The farce element in Moliere.

To gain a true appreciation of the works of any author, we must first be familiar with his race, his environment, and the period in which and of which he wrote. The Paris of the early seventeenth century was far different from the modern metropolis of today. It was the Paris of ill-paved, badly lighted streets where beggar and peasant starved and marquises rolled by in their emblazoned coaches, where d’Artagnan and the King’s musketeers spread romance and challenged authority and where conspiracy brewed and criminals died upon the pillory. It was a pleasure-loving and pleasure-seeking, merry, carefree populace in spite of the iron rule of Richelieu, the crimes of the Fronde and the wars of Louis XIV. In the heart of this Paris lived Moliere; for it was just around the corner from the market place that his father, Jean Poquelin, kept his shop where the young Jean Baptiste served his apprenticeship as valet de chamber tapissier, an honorable and lucrative office. Moliere, or rather Jean Baptiste Poquelin – the name of Moliere was not adopted until the formation of his l’Illustre Theatre – had but to turn the corner to see richly dressed merchants barter their merchandise, and to hear market women cry their wares. Quite near was the Pont Neuf, the main artery of the city, athrong with people of all sorts. Hurried business men justled leisurely valets and grisettes, while to one side quacks exhibited their drugs or their mountebanks aided them to get customers by their queer antics, and acrobats, clowns, and ballad singers displayed their talents. Here it was that Moliere first acquired a taste for comedy. Every Sunday, Jean Baptiste was wont to spend with his maternal grandfather, Louis Cresse, at his fine country home. Like all good bourgeois, Louise Cresse was fond of the theatre; so it is highly probable that he was often accompanied by his grandson to see the first night performances of the actors of the Hotel de Bourgogne. Gros-Guillaume was chied fun-maker there, and Guillet-Gorju, wearing an enormous peruke and a bump on his nose showed the boy Poquelin the ridiculous side of medicine by his portrayal of a doctor. At the celebrated fair of Saint Germain des Pres, two booths of which grandfather Cresse owned, mountebanks performed upon improvised stages. And at the Hotel du Petit Bourbon a different kind of farce, the comedy-of-masks, was presented by Scaramouche and his Italian companions. All of these influences together with his training in rhetoric and in the reading and acting of the Latin poets, Terence and Plautus, at the College de Clermont provided a good foundation upon which to build a stage to be set for a more refined farce and to attain its zenith of decoration in high comedy

The Quantum No-Stretching: A geometrical interpretation of the no-cloning theorem

We consider the ideal situation in which a space rotation is transferred from a quantum spin j to a quantum spin l different from j. Quantum-information theoretical considerations lead to the conclusion that such operation is possible only for lj. For l>j the optimal stretching transformation is derived. We show that for qubits the present no-stretching theorem is equivalent to the usual no-cloning theorem

The relativistic Sagnac Effect: two derivations

The phase shift due to the Sagnac Effect, for relativistic matter and electromagnetic beams, counter-propagating in a rotating interferometer, is deduced using two different approaches. From one hand, we show that the relativistic law of velocity addition leads to the well known Sagnac time difference, which is the same independently of the physical nature of the interfering beams, evidencing in this way the universality of the effect. Another derivation is based on a formal analogy with the phase shift induced by the magnetic potential for charged particles travelling in a region where a constant vector potential is present: this is the so called Aharonov-Bohm effect. Both derivations are carried out in a fully relativistic context, using a suitable 1+3 splitting that allows us to recognize and define the space where electromagnetic and matter waves propagate: this is an extended 3-space, which we call "relative space". It is recognized as the only space having an actual physical meaning from an operational point of view, and it is identified as the 'physical space of the rotating platform': the geometry of this space turns out to be non Euclidean, according to Einstein's early intuition.Comment: 49 pages, LaTeX, 3 EPS figures. Revised (final) version, minor corrections; to appear in "Relativity in Rotating Frames", ed. G. Rizzi and M.L. Ruggiero, Kluwer Academic Publishers, Dordrecht, (2003). See also http://digilander.libero.it/solciclo

Geschlechtsspezifische Abwanderungsraten und deren Konsequenzen für den grauen Mausmaki (Microcebus murinus)

Abwanderung, definiert als eine permanente Verlagerung von Streifgebieten, Territorien oder als ein permanenter Wechsel zu neuen sozialen Gruppen, ist ein nahezu omnipräsentes Phänomen. Ein weit verbreitetes Muster im Tierreich sind geschlechtsspezifische Abwanderungsraten (SBD) und/oder -distanzen. Mit der Entdeckung und dem Fortschritt genetischer Analysemethoden hat sich die Anzahl der Studien, die geschlechtsspezifische Abwanderungsraten in den verschiedensten Tierarten untersuchen, exponentiell vervielfacht. Im Gegenzug dazu bleiben Aspekte wie der Abwanderungsprozess weitgehend unerforscht. Dieses Ungleichgewicht in unserem Wissensstand über SBD limitiert nicht nur unser Verständnis zur Evolution von SBD, sondern auch unser Wissen über die Dynamiken und Prozesse, die die verschiedenen Populationen einer Art verbinden. Dementsprechend bleiben viele essentielle Annahmen zu möglichen Kosten und Bedrohungen während des Abwanderns von eher theoretischer Natur. In der vorliegenden Arbeit habe ich proximate Aspekte des Abwanderungsprozesses für einen kleinen, solitär aktiven Primaten, den grauen Mausmaki (Microcebus murinus), dokumentiert, sowie die Konsequenzen von stark einseitigen Abwanderungstendenzen junger Männchen untersucht mittels Fokustierbeobachtungen und Telemetrie, sowie Fang-Widerfang-Daten und genetischer Analysen untersucht. Die dokumentierte Abwanderungsstrategie war durch uniforme, stark gerichtete Bewegungsmuster gekennzeichnet und Erkundungsaktivitäten waren auf einen sehr limitierten Raum beschränkt. Die Dauer des Prozesses variierte zwischen Individuen, da diese unterschiedlich stark und lange zwischen alten und neuen Streifgebieten pendelten, bevor sie endgültig ihr altes Streifgebiet verließen. Diese Beobachtung deutet an, dass die Einwanderungsphase den schwierigsten Teil des Abwanderungsprozesses für graue Mausmakis in Bezug auf die abwanderungsbezogenen Kosten darstellt. Diese Annahme wurde durch einen weiteren Befund unterstützt, der auf Fang-Wiederfang- und genetischen Daten basierte. Für abwandernde graue Mausmakis gibt es scheinbar eine minimal erforderliche Körpergröße für Abwanderer. Dieses Minimalmaß an Entwicklungsreife scheint als Absicherung gegen die mit Abwanderung assoziierten energetischen Kosten zu dienen. Abwanderungsstrategien, die einen Abgleich innerer mit äußeren Bedingungen erlauben, sogenannte konditionsabhängige Strategien, scheinen weitverbreitet zu sein, da sie es einem Individuum erlauben, sein Abwanderungsverhalten und damit die Aussicht auf Erfolg zu optimieren. Für graue Mausmakis führt diese Strategie, eine gewisse physische Kondition zu erreichen, anscheinend auch mit sich, dass sie weniger eingeschränkt sind bezüglich der zurückgelegten Abwanderungsdistanzen. Diese Annahme beruht auf der Tatsache, dass weder Körpergewicht, noch –kondition einen Zusammenhang mit Abwanderungsdistanzen aufwiesen. Nach Erreichen des kritischen Wertes an körperlicher Entwicklung bestimmen andere Faktoren den genauen Zeitpunkt für die Emigration. Welche Faktoren dies im Einzelnen sind, muss in weiteren Projekten untersucht werden. Persönlichkeit/Temperament oder physiologische Faktoren wie z.B. Hormone scheinen vielversprechende Ansatzpunkte für weitere Untersuchungen zu sein. In Bezug darauf, beinhaltet diese Arbeit einen Modellansatz, der es ermöglicht, den Einfluss verschiedenster Faktoren auf Verhaltensequenzen zu untersuchen, was anhand von beobachtetem Fressverhalten für Männchen und Weibchen exemplarisch dargestellt wurde. Dieser Ansatz könnte in Zukunft dazu genutzt werden, Veränderungen im Verhalten im Laufe des Abwanderungsprozesses zu untersuchen. Der letzte Teil der vorliegenden Arbeit evaluiert die Konsequenzen von stark einseitigen Abwanderungstendenzen junger Männchen für den Fortbestand von Inzuchtrisiko, einem der meistgenannten ultimaten Mechanismen für die Evolution von SBD. Es konnte kein Hinweis auf Inzuchtdepression ausgemacht werden und SBD verringerte das Inzuchtrisko bereits beträchtlich. Allerdings war das tatsächliche Inzuchtrisiko noch weit geringer, da die Wirkung von Abwanderung zusätzlich durch demografische (z.B. Mortalität) und Verhaltensmechanismen (z.B. die weiträumige Suche nach Paarungspartner durch Männchen) ergänzt wurde. Als Konsequenz daraus scheint jede weitere Abwanderungsaktivität von Männchen oder Weibchen überflüssig zu sein. Diese Situation erlaubt es scheinbar auch, dass geschlechtsspezifische Abwanderungstendenzen ein fester Teil männlicher „life histories“ geworden sind und als solcher bestehen. Einzig der Abwanderungsprozess scheint einen gewissen Grad an Flexibilität in Bezug auf den Zeitpunkt des Abwanderns zu erlauben, was es grauen Mausmakimännchen wahrscheinlich ermöglicht, ihre Erfolgsaussichten zu erhöhen. Indes, was die genauen Ursachen für die Evolution von SBD in grauen Mausmakis waren, bleibt zu ermitteln

Estrutura e funcionamento dos centros de atendimento socioeducativo (CASE) sob o ponto de vista da ressocialização

The issue with offender children and adolescents in Brazil is general knowledge. Further being a specific problem in some families, it is also responsibility of the State, according to the Federal and State Constitution (CF and CSESC in Portuguese acronym, respectively), and to the Child and Adolescent Statute (ECA in its Portuguese acronym). The State adopt public policies to deal with offender minors, and among the policies to provide instruments and ensure of children and adolescents rights who present problems with the law, there are the National System for socioeducation and Center for Socioeducation Attendance (SINASE and CASE in Portuguese acronym, respectively). Internal organization of CASE uses the Individual Plan of Attendance, called PIA because its Portuguese acronym. They are instruments for registration of behavior and activities observed and proposes for the admitted, whose reports are performed by the technical administrative people, addressed to follow each adolescent in detention, but each CASE adopt its own report criteria. This dissertation searched verifies whether there is possibility for resocialization of these adolescents in detention through the study on three PIAs from the CASE Grande Florianópolis. Despite the higher number of adolescent in detention, only sixteen PIAs were available for study, and just three of them could be organized in a coherent whole, enabling a deep analysis. Because the document is developed during the adolescents’ detention period inside the CASE, their pages were not organized, and when developing the research, thirteen from the sixteen PIAs were uncomplete, and that was the reason to analyze entirely only three documents. The research for this dissertation is characterized as soft qualitative, basic strategical, bibliographic and documental with empirical and epistemological and dialectic traces, and intentional sampling (BAUER; GASKELL, 2010; GIL, 2010; SEVERINO, 1986). The aim of this research was comprehend whether the CASE and the appliance of its policies lead to the resocialization of youth in detention. A bibliographic survey was performed focusing on the Education rights, in conceptual bases of federal and state laws and about the public policies for resocialization of youth in detention, faced the data congregate from documents that serve as instrument for registration of behavior and activities observed, and the proposes for admitted. The results point that there is the possibility for resocialization of youth in detention proved by transcriptions and analyses of PIAs, sheltered the limitations of the research because the number of admitted analyzed, what did not enable generalizations.O problema com crianças e adolescentes infratores, no Brasil, é de conhecimento geral. Além de ser um problema específico de algumas famílias, também é responsabilidade do Estado, conforme versa a Constituição Federal (CF), a do Estado de Santa Catarina (CESC), e o Estatuto da Criança e do Adolescente (ECA). O Estado adota políticas públicas para lidar com menores infratores e, dentre as políticas de instrumentalização e garantia dos direitos das crianças e adolescentes que apresentam problemas com a lei, estão o Sistema Nacional de Atendimento Socioeducativo (SINASE); os Centros de Atendimento Socioeducativo Provisório (CASEP) e os Centros de Atendimento Socioeducativo (CASE). A organização interna dos CASE utiliza os Planos Individuais de Atendimento ao Adolescente (PIA), que são instrumentos para registro de comportamentos e atividades observadas e propostas aos internos, cujas anotações são realizadas pelo pessoal técnico-administrativo, e destinam-se ao acompanhamento de cada adolescente em privação de liberdade, porém, cada unidade adota seus critérios de anotação. Esta dissertação buscou verificar, por meio do estudo de três PIA do CASE da Grande Florianópolis, se, em acordo com a atuação desenvolvida, existe a possibilidade de ressocialização de jovens em privação de liberdade. Embora a número de adolescentes em privação de liberdade seja bastante alto, apenas dezesseis PIA foram disponibilizados para estudo, e somente três deles puderam ser organizados em um todo coerente, possível de análise aprofundada. Por se tratar de um documento de acompanhamento das ações e atitudes dos adolescentes internados, os registros deveriam ser periódicos e sequencias, compondo um dossiê sobre o mesmo. Contudo, no desenvolvimento da pesquisa, percebeu-se que treze, dos dezesseis PIA disponibilizados, estavam incompletos e, por esta razão, apenas três documentos foram analisados na íntegra. A pesquisa desta dissertação caracteriza-se como qualitativa soft, básica estratégica, bibliográfica e documental, com traços empíricos e epistemológico-dialética com amostragem intencional (BAUER; GASKELL, 2010; GIL, 2010; SEVERINO, 1986). O objetivo da pesquisa foi compreender se os CASE e a aplicação de suas políticas levam à ressocialização dos jovens em privação de liberdade. Foi realizado levantamento bibliográfico enfocando o direito à educação, em bases conceituais da legislação federal, estadual e sobre as políticas públicas para a ressocialização dos jovens em privação de liberdade, confrontadas com dados reunidos dos documentos que servem de instrumento para registro dos comportamentos e atividades observadas e propostas aos internos. Os resultados apontam que existe a possibilidade de ressocialização dos jovens em privação de liberdade, comprovada nas transcrições e análises dos PIA, resguardadas as limitações desta pesquisa, em função do número de Planos Individuais de Atendimento ao Adolescente analisados

"The Brain" - The Philological Library, Free University of Berlin

In 1997 Lord Norman Foster was commissioned to design a new library building to house the 10 previously separate departmental librariesof the Faculty of Philosophy and Humanities. The new library had to be integrated into the existing Free University building of 1971, which would simultaneously undergo a comprehensive refurbishment. The 'Rostlaube' ('rusty shack') is a typical example of late sixties architecture. It was designed by Candilis, JosicandWoods in a modular griddling system influenced by Le Corbusier. The entire structure now has to be stripped of asbestos, the worn-out façade needs a facelift and the technical infrastructure must be updated to meet present standards. As far as the reconstruction is concerned, Foster has opted to preserve the original state where possible and keep alterations to a minimum. The library is a completely new component, though, for which parts of the existing building had to be removed. The erection of a new library building was necessitated by the intention of bringing together within the 'Rostlaube' 10 separate departments, currently spread all over campus, together with their staff and administrative offices as well as lecture-rooms. At the same time, the departmental libraries are to be integrated into one, which is a completely new departure for the Free University. The collections of the Philological Library cover classical and modern languages and literatures as well as comparative literature and linguistics. The new building will have a capacity of 800,000 volumes on open shelves and desk space for 650 readers. A state-of-the-art energy-saving heating system is included in the overall budget of 18 million Euros, while the cost of shelves and computer equipment is excluded

Data from: MHC-disassortative mate choice and inbreeding avoidance in a solitary primate

Sexual selection theory suggests that choice for partners carrying dissimilar genes at the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) may play a role in maintaining genetic variation in animal populations by limiting inbreeding or improving the immunity of future offspring. However, it is often difficult to establish whether the observed MHC dissimilarity among mates drives mate choice or represents a by-product of inbreeding avoidance based on MHC-independent cues. Here, we used 454-sequencing and a 10-year study of wild grey mouse lemurs (Microcebus murinus), small, solitary primates from western Madagascar, to compare the relative importance on the mate choice of two MHC class II genes, DRB and DQB, that are equally variable but display contrasting patterns of selection at the molecular level, with DRB under stronger diversifying selection. We further assessed the effect of the genetic relatedness and of the spatial distance among candidate mates on the detection of MHC-dependent mate choice. Our results reveal inbreeding avoidance, along with disassortative mate choice at DRB, but not at DQB. DRB-disassortative mate choice remains detectable after excluding all related dyads (characterized by a relatedness coefficient r > 0), but varies slightly with the spatial distance among candidate mates. These findings suggest that the observed deviations from random mate choice at MHC are driven by functionally important MHC genes (like DRB) rather than passively resulting from inbreeding avoidance and further emphasize the need for taking into account the spatial and genetic structure of the population in correlative tests of MHC-dependent mate choice