The Jurisdictional Limits of Qāḍī Courts during the Umayyad Period

Abstract: This paper examines the function and jurisdiction of the qāḍī during the Umayyad period, focusing on the limits of the qāḍī’s power and on his relationship to other power holders in Umayyad society. Based on an examination of biographies of more than seventy Umayyad qāḍī‑s, this paper demonstrates that qāḍī‑s had unquestioned jurisdiction over marriage, divorce, inheritance, and other “family law”. Neither local elites nor political leaders were above the qāḍī in such cases. However, the qāḍī had no jurisdiction over cases involving rebels and heretics. Nor did they determine the division of spoils. These examples suggest that the jurisdictional limits of qāḍī courts were well-established during the Umayyad period.Résumé : Cet article examine les fonctions et les compétences du cadi à l’époque omeyyade, en s’interrogeant sur les limites de son pouvoir et sur sa relation à d’autres autorités de la société omeyyade. Fondé sur un examen des biographies de plus de soixante-dix cadis, l’article démontre que ceux-ci avaient une compétence incontestée sur les affaires de mariage, de divorce, d’héritage et relevant d’autres domaines du « droit de la famille ». Ni les élites locales, ni les dirigeants politiques n’étaient au-dessus du cadi dans de tels cas. Toutefois, le cadi n’avait pas juridiction sur les cas impliquant les rebelles et les hérétiques. Ils ne pouvaient pas non plus se prononcer sur la division du butin. Ces exemples suggèrent que les limites juridictionnelles des tribunaux de cadis étaient bien établies à l’époque omeyyade.الملخص : تعالج هذه المقالة وظيفة القاضي وصلاحياته في العصر الأموي، تركيزا على حدود سلطة القاضي وعلاقته مع أصحاب السلطة الآخرين في المجتمع الأموي. واعتماداً على دراسة تراجم أكثر من سبعين قاض أموي تظهر هذه المقالة أن القضاة كانوا يتمتّعون بصلاحيات معترف بها على كلّ القضايا التي تخصّ الزواج والطلاق والإرث وغيرها من الأحوال الشخصية. وفي هذه الأمور لم يكن أحد من النخب المحلّية ولا الحكام السياسيون فوق سلطة القاضي. إلا أن محاكمة المتمرّدين والهراطقة لم تدخل في صلاحيات القضاة، كما أنهم لم يقدروا على توزيع الغنائم. فتظهر هذه الأمثال أن حدود صلاحيات محكمة القاضي كانت ثابتة في العصر الأموي.

Measurements of one-point statistics in 21-cm intensity maps via foreground avoidance strategy

Measurements of the one-point probability distribution function and higher-order moments (variance, skewness, and kurtosis) of the high-redshift 21-cm fluctuations are among the most directstatistical probes of the non-Gaussian nature ofstructure formation and evolution during re-ionization. However, contamination from astrophysical foregrounds and instrument systematics pose significant challenges in measuring these statistics in real observations. In this work, we use forward modelling to investigate the feasibility of measuring 21-cm one-point statistics through a foreground avoidance strategy. Leveraging the characteristic wedge-shape of the foregrounds in k-space, we apply a wedge-cut filtre that removes the foreground contaminated modes from a mock data set based on the Hydrogen Epoch of Re-ionization Array (HERA) instrument, and measure the one-point statistics from the image-space representation of the remaining non-contaminated modes. We experiment with varying degrees of wedge-cutting over different frequency bandwidths and find that the centre of the band is the least susceptible to bias from wedge-cutting. Based on this finding, we introduce a rolling filtre method that allows reconstruction of an optimal wedge-cut 21-cm intensity map over the full bandwidth using outputs from wedge-cutting over multiple sub-bands. We perform Monte Carlo simulations to show that HERA should be able to measure the rise in skewness and kurtosis near the end of re-ionization with the rolling wedge-cut method if foreground leakage from the Fourier transform window function can be controlled

Predictors of employment in bipolar disorder : a systematic review

Background Severe work impairment can be present for a considerable proportion of the course of bipolar disorder (BD) and is costly for governments, services and individuals. Understanding predictors of employment in BD is therefore crucial as some may be susceptible to interventions. We conducted a systematic review of prospective studies in order to identify predictors of employment in people with BD. Methods We searched Medline, PsychInfo, EMBASE and Web of Science databases, hand searched 3 journals and used predetermined criteria to select papers for full text inclusion. Sixty seven papers were identified. Nine met inclusion criteria, with a total sample of 3184. Results Studies included in this review identified cognitive deficits (67%, n=4), depression (43%, n=3) and level of education (33%, n=2) as predictors of employment in BD patients. Bipolar depression not only affects whether someone is employed but also time off work. Even sub-syndromal depression appears to damage employment prospects. Verbal memory and executive functioning appear to be predictors of work functioning. Limitations Conclusions are based on a relatively small number of studies and are therefore subject to change with the addition of further studies. A formal meta-regression was not possible due to differences between measures of employment and work functioning. Conclusions Better assessment and management of depression and cognitive difficulties could improve the occupational functioning of BD patients. There is a need for high quality longitudinal studies specifically designed to investigate predictors of employment in large bipolar disorder samples

Measurements of one-point statistics in 21 cm intensity maps via foreground avoidance strategy

Measurements of the one-point probability distribution function and higher-order moments (variance, skewness, and kurtosis) of the high-redshift 21 cm fluctuations are among the most direct statistical probes of the non-Gaussian nature of structure formation and evolution during reionization. However, contamination from astrophysical foregrounds and instrument systematics pose significant challenges in measuring these statistics in real observations. In this work, we use forward modelling to investigate the feasibility of measuring 21 cm one-point statistics through a foreground avoidance strategy. Leveraging the well-known characteristic of foreground contamination in which it occupies a wedge-shape region in k-space, we apply a foreground wedge-cut filter that removes the contaminated modes from a mock data set based on the Hydrogen Epoch of Reionization Array (HERA) instrument, and measure the one-point statistics from the image-space representation of the remaining non-contaminated modes. We experiment with wedge-cutting over different frequency bandwidths and varying degrees of removal that correspond to different assumptions on the extent of the foreground sources on the sky and leakage from the Fourier Transform window function. We find that the centre of the band is the least biased from wedge-cutting while the edges of the band are unusable due to being highly down-weighted by the window function. Based on this finding, we introduce a rolling filter method that allows reconstruction of an optimal wedge-cut 21~cm intensity map over the full bandwidth using outputs from wedge-cutting over multiple sub-bands. We perform Monte Carlo simulations to show that HERA should be able to measure the rise in skewness and kurtosis near the end of reionization with the rolling wedge-cut method if foreground leakage from the Fourier transform window function can be controlled.Comment: 12 pages, 8 figures, submitted to MNRA

A Bayesian Calibration Framework for EDGES

We develop a Bayesian model that jointly constrains receiver calibration, foregrounds and cosmic 21cm signal for the EDGES global 21\,cm experiment. This model simultaneously describes calibration data taken in the lab along with sky-data taken with the EDGES low-band antenna. We apply our model to the same data (both sky and calibration) used to report evidence for the first star formation in 2018. We find that receiver calibration does not contribute a significant uncertainty to the inferred cosmic signal (<1%), though our joint model is able to more robustly estimate the cosmic signal for foreground models that are otherwise too inflexible to describe the sky data. We identify the presence of a significant systematic in the calibration data, which is largely avoided in our analysis, but must be examined more closely in future work. Our likelihood provides a foundation for future analyses in which other instrumental systematics, such as beam corrections and reflection parameters, may be added in a modular manner.Comment: 18 pages + 3 for appendices. 13 figures. Accepted to MNRA

A comprehensive standardised data definitions set for acute coronary syndrome research in emergency departments in Australasia

Patients with chest discomfort or other symptoms suggestive of acute coronary syndrome are one of the most common categories seen in many Emergency Departments (EDs). Although the recognition of patients at high risk of acute coronary syndrome has improved steadily, identifying the majority of chest pain presentations who fall into the low-risk group remains a challenge. Research in this area needs to be transparent, robust, applicable to all hospitals from large tertiary centres to rural and remote sites, and to allow direct comparison between different studies with minimum patient spectrum bias. A standardized approach to the research framework using a common language for data definitions must be adopted to achieve this. The aim was to create a common framework for a standardized data definitions set that would allow maximum value when extrapolating research findings both within Australasian ED practice, and across similar populations worldwide. Therefore a comprehensive data definitions set for the investigation of non-traumatic chest pain patients with possible acute coronary syndrome was developed, specifically for use in the ED setting. This standardized data definitions set will facilitate‘knowledge translation’ by allowing extrapolation of useful findings into the real-life practice of emergency medicine

Apportioned Commodity Fetishism and the Transformative Power of Game Studies

This chapter explores the ways in which the field of Game Studies helps shape popular understandings of player, play, and game, and specifically how the field alters the conceptual, linguistic, and discursive apparatuses that gamers use to contextualize, describe, and make sense of their experiences. The chapter deploys the concept of apportioned commodity fetishism to analyze the phenomena of discourse as practice, persona, and vagaries of game design, recursion, lexical formation, institutionalization, systems of self-effectiveness, theory as anti-theory, and commodification