On Musical Self-Similarity : Intersemiosis as Synecdoche and Analogy

Self-similarity, a concept borrowed from mathematics, is gradually becoming a keyword in musicology. Although a polysemic term, self-similarity often refers to the multi-scalar feature repetition in a set of relationships, and it is commonly valued as an indication for musical ‘coherence’ and ‘consistency’. In this study, Gabriel Pareyon presents a theory of musical meaning formation in the context of intersemiosis, that is, the translation of meaning from one cognitive domain to another cognitive domain (e.g. from mathematics to music, or to speech or graphic forms). From this perspective, the degree of coherence of a musical system relies on a synecdochic intersemiosis: a system of related signs within other comparable and correlated systems. The author analyzes the modalities of such correlations, exploring their general and particular traits, and their operational bounds. Accordingly, the notion of analogy is used as a rich concept through its two definitions quoted by the Classical literature—proportion and paradigm, enormously valuable in establishing measurement, likeness and affinity criteria. At the same time, original arguments by Benoît B. Mandelbrot (1924–2010) are revised, alongside a systematic critique of the literature on the subject. In fact, connecting Charles S. Peirce’s ‘synechism’ with Mandelbrot’s ‘fractality’ is one of the main developments of the present study

A clinical investigation of chronic pain in subjects with HIV-associated sensory neuropathy

HIV-associated sensory neuropathy (HIV-SN) is a debilitating complication of HIV infection and its treatment. However, no commercially available pharmacotherapy has demonstrated consistent efficacy at clinical trial. This study aims to identify strategies to improve clinical trial design in HIV-SN by deeply phenotyping a cohort of people living with HIV, and through a meta-analysis of the placebo response in HIV-SN trials. 148 subjects were recruited, including 81 with HIV-SN. Age was the only independent predictor of neuropathy in this cohort. The prevalence of multiple chronic pain diagnoses was high, especially in those with HIV-SN (82.5% versus 61.2%, p=0.0008). This indicates that careful characterisation of painful conditions at trial entry is required to identify efficacy of the intervention with respect to HIV-SN-related symptoms specifically. Subjects showed heterogeneity of symptoms and signs, determined by symptom-based questionnaires and quantitative sensory testing, and could be allocated to distinct ‘sensory profiles’. Those with HIV-SN displayed predominantly ‘mechanical hyperalgesia’ (43.2%) and ‘sensory loss’ (30.3%) profiles. Similar profiling at clinical trial enrolment could allow for the identification of differential responses to therapy at a sub-group level. A preliminary healthy volunteer study allowed for assessment of reliability and measurement error in conditioned pain modulation (CPM). There was no difference in CPM response between those with and without neuropathy, but the response was heterogeneous. CPM may not yet be robust enough to recommend as a profiling measure in trials of HIV-SN. Corneal confocal microscopy and a point-of-care nerve conduction device were assessed for their effectiveness as tools for screening and monitoring HIV-SN. Both were shown to be useful and have the potential to increase the certainty of a diagnosis of neuropathic pain at trial enrolment. A 2012 meta-analysis identified a greater placebo response in trials of HIV-SN compared to other neuropathic pain conditions. Repeat meta-analysis identified no difference in placebo response between HIV-SN and a comparable sensory neuropathy, diabetic polyneuropathy.Open Acces

The Architectural Competition. Research Inquiries and Experiences

This publication is an anthology featuring 26 papers presented at the Conference on Architectural Competitions organised by the School of Architecture and the Built Environment at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm from the 16th to the 18th October 2008. What can be learnt from the Stockholm Conference? Firstly, whilst there is only limited research being carried out, at separate universities and institutions focusing on the study of architectural competitions in Europe, there is a vast potential for further research into how architectural firms, their affiliated architectural associations and the competition organisers can cooperate to improve competition processes and outcomes. Secondly, it has demonstrated that both researchers and professional practices can benefit from the development of robust, two-way communication aimed at bothdispelling the myths associated with the architectural competition and to test its perceived realities. For these reasons we hope this anthology will support the establishment and maintenance of a network that will promote communication between the various architectural competition stakeholders and further encourage the exchange of information and knowledge sharing. The conference has demonstrated that scientific research into the architectural competition can offer a multifaceted field of study of significant importance to university based researchers, practicing architects and urban planners alike. By learning from the Stockholm conference, we can reflect upon the various research challenges that will occur in the future and rethink the use of competitions as a design tool to facilitate the production of innovative ideas, improve standards and the commissioning of projects