The tale of Beryn and the siege of Thebes: alternative ideas of the Canterbury Tales

It is safe to say that few people have read John Lydgate's Siege of Thebes or the anonymous Tale of Beryn, two fifteenth-century attempts to continue the journey and tale-telling of Chaucer's unfinished masterpiece. Yet in a real sense very few people have read the Canterbury Tales. What they have experienced is a modern fabrication by Skeat, Robinson, Baugh, Fisher, and other editors who offer the poem as a coherent work, albeit marred by gaps and rough edges, but nonetheless recounting what was said on a one-way trip from Southwerk to the outskirts of Canterbury. This is technically a fabrication because no surviving manuscript arranges the fragments in an order which gives perfect geographical support to this design -- not without the notorious Bradshaw Shift -- and no single manuscript, not even Ellesmere, contains all the tales and links to be found in a modern edition with its scholarly conflations. To recognize and investigate a recoverable idea," as Donald Howard has done so brilliantly, really means to grant priority to the idea of the scribe-editor of Ellesmere, though let me say that I have no objection to any reader's wish to invest confidence in this careful attempt to give order to the poem at some time during the decade following Chaucer's death. The goal of this paper is rather to investigate the ideas arrived at by two other fifteenth-century readers, who perhaps understood Chaucer's intentions a great deal better than most of us, or perhaps a great deal worse. Nonetheless they understood the Canterbury Tales collection differently from Ellesmere and Howard, and their efforts as continuators represent editorial decisions and critical responses which are nearly contemporary and therefore deserve more recognition than has hitherto been granted

Genetic analysis of safflower domestication.

BackgroundSafflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) is an oilseed crop in the Compositae (a.k.a. Asteraceae) that is valued for its oils rich in unsaturated fatty acids. Here, we present an analysis of the genetic architecture of safflower domestication and compare our findings to those from sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.), an independently domesticated oilseed crop within the same family.We mapped quantitative trait loci (QTL) underlying 24 domestication-related traits in progeny from a cross between safflower and its wild progenitor, Carthamus palaestinus Eig. Also, we compared QTL positions in safflower against those that have been previously identified in cultivated x wild sunflower crosses to identify instances of colocalization.ResultsWe mapped 61 QTL, the vast majority of which (59) exhibited minor or moderate phenotypic effects. The two large-effect QTL corresponded to one each for flower color and leaf spininess. A total of 14 safflower QTL colocalized with previously reported sunflower QTL for the same traits. Of these, QTL for three traits (days to flower, achene length, and number of selfed seed) had cultivar alleles that conferred effects in the same direction in both species.ConclusionsAs has been observed in sunflower, and unlike many other crops, our results suggest that the genetics of safflower domestication is quite complex. Moreover, our comparative mapping results indicate that safflower and sunflower exhibit numerous instances of QTL colocalization, suggesting that parallel trait transitions during domestication may have been driven, at least in part, by parallel genotypic evolution at some of the same underlying genes

学会抄録

Genetic map file of consensus genotypes for each contig

MICROGRID MODELING ASSESSMENT FOR CLIMATE TRENDS AND WEATHER EVENTS

This report performs a gap analysis on microgrid models with respect to climate change risks at Naval installations. Six climate change risks are identified for the model analysis including drought, flooding, heat, cold, wildfires, and weather extremes. Each climate change risk is decomposed into ordered effects that inform the impacts that the climate risks may have on microgrids. The climate change risks, ordered effects, and the impacts on microgrids are used to analyze three microgrid models to determine if they adequately incorporate the six climate risks. A model analysis framework is developed to identify gaps in the approach of the models, the input parameters of the models, and the assumptions made in the models. The analysis demonstrates that gaps exist in each model when considering the climate change risks, the ordered effects, and the impacts to the microgrid. These gaps exist in all three models analyzed using the model analysis framework. The identified gaps are used to develop recommendations for ways to improve the incorporation of the climate change risks into microgrid models and the necessary research required to inform that data used in microgrid models.Naval Facilities Engineering CommandCivilian, Department of the NavyCivilian, Department of the NavyCivilian, Department of the NavyCivilian, Department of the NavyApproved for public release. Distribution is unlimited

Proceedings of the 21st Annual Meeting, Southern Soybean Disease Workers (March 6-8, 1994, Tulsa, Oklahoma)

Contents 1993-94 SSDW Committee Chairs 1993-94 SSDW Officers Graduate student competition Resistance of Soybean Cultivars in Maturity Group IV-VIII to Rotylenchulus reniformis. JJ Cornelius and GW Lawrence Evaluation of Susceptibility of Soybean to Red Crown Rot caused by Calonectria crotalariae in the Field. KD Kim, JS Russin, and JP Snow Contributed papers Soybean Disease Loss Estimate for the Southern United States During 1993, Table 1. Estimated percent Joss of soybean yields in 1993 to disease, Table 2. Estimated reduction of soybean yields in 1993 to disease, and Table 3. Southern states soybean disease loss estimate total in bushels and dollars, 1993. Compiled by JA Wrather Aerial Blight Associated with Delayed Maturity of Soybean. IA Fox, MA Blaine, and GL Sciumbato Relationship of Phytophthora Resistance to Soybean Yield. GL Sciumbato., FG Hancock, JA Fox, and D Boykin Effects of Long-Term Tillage Practices on Soil Populations of Microsclerotia of Macrophomina phaseolina. SR Kendig and JA Wrather Effect of Maturity Group, Growth Stage, and Planting Date on Progress of Sudden Death Syndrome of Soybean. JC Rupe and EE Gebur, Jr Additional Soybean Plant Introductions Resistant to Soybean Cyst Nematode. LD Young Frogeye Leaf Spot Control in Soybeans with Foliar-Fungicides. AY Chambers Interaction of the Root-Knot Nematode, Meloidogyne incognita, with Selected Weed Species Present in Soybean Fields in Louisiana. EC McGawley, JS Russin, and JL Griffin Population Development by Meloidogyne incognita and Heterodera glycines on Soybean Stressed by Weeds and Defoliation. JS Russin, EC McGawley, and LL Griffin Resistance to Rotylenchulus reniformis in Soybean. RT Robbins and L Rakes Treasurer\u27s report. GG Hammes Proceedings of the Southern Soybean Disease Workers are published annually by the Southern Soybean Disease Workers. Text, references, figures, and tables are reproduced as they were submitted by the authors. The opinions exposed by the participants at this conference are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of the Southern Soybean Disease Workers. Mention of trademark or propriety products in this Proceedings does not constitute a guarantee, warranty, or endorsement of that product by the Southern Soybean Disease Workers

NSTAR Ion Thruster and Breadboard Power Processor Functional Integration Test Results

A 2.3 kW Breadboard Power Processing Unit (BBPPU) was developed as part of the NASA Solar Electric Propulsion Technology Application Readiness (NSTAR) Program. The NSTAR program will deliver an electric propulsion system based on a 30 cm xenon ion thruster to the New Millennium (NM) program for use as the primary propulsion system for the initial NM flight. The final development test for the BBPPU, the Functional Integration Test, was carried out to demonstrate all aspects of BBPPU operation with an Engineering Model Thruster. Test objectives included: (1) demonstration and validation of automated thruster start procedures, (2) demonstration of stable closed loop control of the thruster beam current, (3) successful response and recovery to thruster faults, and (4) successful safing of the system during simulated spacecraft faults. These objectives were met over the specified 80-120 VDC input voltage range and 0.5-2.3 output power capability of the BBPPU. Two minor anomalies were noted in discharge and neutralizer keeper current. These anomalies did not affect the stability of the system and were successfully corrected

Polymyxin B in Combination with Rifampin and Meropenem against Polymyxin B-Resistant KPC-Producing Klebsiella pneumoniae

Safe and effective therapies are urgently needed to treat polymyxin-resistant KPC-producing K. pneumoniae and suppress the emergence of resistance. We investigated the pharmacodynamics of polymyxin B, rifampin, and meropenem alone and as polymyxin B-based double and triple combinations against KPC-producing K. pneumoniae . The rate and extent of killing with polymyxin B (1-128mg/L), rifampin (2-16mg/L), and meropenem (10-120mg/L) were evaluated against polymyxin B-susceptible (PB S ) and -resistant (PB R ) clinical isolates using 48h static time-kills. Additionally, humanized triple drug regimens of polymyxin B (C ss : 0.5, 1, 2mg/L), rifampin 600mg every 12 or 8h, and meropenem 1 or 2g every 8h dosed as an extended 3h infusion were simulated over 48h using a one-compartment in vitro dynamic infection model. Serial bacterial counts were measured to quantify pharmacodynamic effect. Population analysis profiles (PAPs) were used to assess the emergence of polymyxin B resistance. Monotherapy was ineffective against both isolates. Polymyxin B with rifampin demonstrated early bactericidal activity against the PB S isolate followed by regrowth by 48h. Bactericidal activity was sustained at all polymyxin B concentrations ≥2 mg/L in combination with meropenem. No two-drug combinations were effective against the PB R isolate, but all simulated triple-drug regimens showed early bactericidal activity by 8h that was sustained over 48h against both strains. PAPs did not reveal the emergence of resistant subpopulations. The triple drug combination of polymyxin B, rifampin, and meropenem may be a viable consideration for the treatment of PB R KPC-producing K. pneumoniae . Further investigation is warranted to optimize triple combination therapy