Advances in Distant Diplomatics: A Stylometric Approach to Medieval Charters

The quantitative analysis of writing style (stylometry) is becoming an increasingly common research instrument in philology. When it comes to medieval texts, such a methodology might be able to help us disentangle the multiple authorial strata that can often be discerned in them (issuer, dictator, scribe, etc.). To deliver a proof of concept in 'distant diplomatics,' we have turned to a corpus of twelfth-century Latin charters from the Cambrai episcopal chancery. We subjected this collection to an (unsupervised) stylometric modelling procedure, based on lexical frequency extraction and dimension reduction. In the absence of a sizable 'ground truth' for this material, we zoomed in on a specific case study, namely the oeuvre of the previously identified dictator-scribe known as 'RogF/JeanE.' Our results offer additional support for the attribution of a diplomatic oeuvre to this individual and even allow us to enlarge it with additional documents. Our analysis moreover yielded the serendipitous discovery of another, previously unnoticed, oeuvre, which we tentatively attribute to a scribe-dictator 'JeanB.' We conclude that the large-scale stylometric analysis is a promising methodology for digital diplomatics. More efforts, however, will have to be invested in establishing gold standards for this method to realize its full potential

La stylométrie comme outil pour la recherche de l’élaboration des chartes médiévales. Le cas de Cambrai au douzième siècle (1131-1200)

Introduction : le développement de la méthodologie La démarche numérique récente dans les humanités a mené au développement de plusieurs logiciels et méthodes. Dans les domaines de l’histoire médiévale et de la diplomatique en particulier, ceux-ci s’intéressent à la paléographie numérique, ce qui a soulevé des questions sur les possibilités et les limites des ordinateurs. Alors que la paléographie numérique a évolué vers une discipline presque indépendante, l’étude du dictamen s’est développé..

Astronomy and Literature | Canon and Stylometrics

This eighth issue of Interfaces contains two thematic clusters: the first cluster, entitled The Astronomical Imagination in Literature through the Ages, is edited by Dale Kedwards; the second cluster, entitled Medieval Authorship and Canonicity in the Digital Age, is edited by Jeroen De Gussem and Jeroen Deploige

NKT sublineage specification and survival requires the ubiquitin-modifying enzyme TNF AIP3/A20

Natural killer T (NKT) cells are innate lymphocytes that differentiate into NKT1, NKT2, and NKT17 sublineages during development. However, the signaling events that control NKT sublineage specification and differentiation remain poorly understood. Here, we demonstrate that the ubiquitin-modifying enzyme TNF AIP3/A20, an upstream regulator of T cell receptor (TCR) signaling in T cells, is an essential cell-intrinsic regulator of NKT differentiation. A20 is differentially expressed during NKT cell development, regulates NKT cell maturation, and specifically controls the differentiation and survival of NKT1 and NKT2, but not NKT17, sublineages. Remaining A20-deficient NKT1 and NKT2 thymocytes are hyperactivated in vivo and secrete elevated levels of Th1 and Th2 cytokines after TCR ligation in vitro. Defective NKT development was restored by compound deficiency of MALT1, a key downstream component of TCR signaling in T cells. These findings therefore show that negative regulation of TCR signaling during NKT development controls the differentiation and survival of NKT1 and NKT2 cells

European Lung Cancer Working Party. Clinical Practice Guidelines. Small Cell Lung Cancer: V. Extensive disease

The present guidelines on the management of extensive disease small cell lung cancer (SCLC) were formulated by the ELCWP in October 2007. They are designed to answer the following nine questions: 1) What is the definition of extensive disease? 2)What are the active drugs? 3) What is the best induction regimen? 4) Is there a role for maintenance chemotherapy? 5) Is there a role for dose-intensive chemotherapy? 6) Is there a role for the use of haemopoietic growth factors and stem cells support? 7) Is there a role for alternating or sequential chemotherapy? 8) Is there a role for biological treatments? 9) Is there a place for second-line chemotherapy

European Lung Cancer Working Party Clinical Practice Guidelines. Non-Small Cell Lung Cancer: III. Metastatic disease

The present guidelines on the management of advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NS CLC) were formulated by the ELCWP in October 2006. They are designed to answer the following twelve questions: 1) What benefits can be expected from chemotherapy and what are the treatment objectives? 2) What are the active chemotherapeutic drugs for which efficacy has been shown? 3) Which are the most effective platinum-based regimens? 4) Which is the indicated dosage of cisplatin? 5) Can carboplatin be substituted for cisplatin? 6) Which is the optimal number of cycles to be administered? 7) Can non-platinum based regimens be substituted for platinum based chemotherapy as first-line treatment? 8) Is there an indication for sequential chemotherapy? 9) What is the efficacy of salvage chemotherapy and which drugs should be used in that indication? 10) What is the place of targeted therapies? 11) What is the place of chemotherapy in the management of a patient with brain metastases? 12) Which specific drugs can be used for the patient with bone metastases

L'élaboration des chartes médiévales : l'exemple des évêchés d'Arras, Cambrai et Liège (XIe-XIIe siècles)

The production process of charters has often demanded the attention of medievalists in the past. Questions related to the writing, the composing and eventually the identity of the individuals who produced these texts have led to a myriad of methods. This research explores the available methodology for diplomatists, via the analysis of the episcopal charters coming from the dioceses of Liège, Arras and Cambrai - a type of charter deserving of more attention. The development of digital techniques, in particular, have been considered and tested, specifically the computer programme GIWIS and procedures used in the field of stylometry, without losing touch with the analogue methods. Finally, this dissertation takes the study of the names present in our charters in consideration, in an attempt at identifying the individuals who were active in the production of these episcopal charters.Depuis longtemps déjà, l'élaboration des chartes a intéressé les médiévistes. Les questions de l'écriture, de la rédaction et finalement de l'identité des personnes impliquées dans la production de ces textes ont ainsi mené à une myriade de méthodes et à des questions de recherche particulières. Cette thèse explore la méthodologie disponible pour les diplomatistes, et ceci par l'étude des chartes épiscopales des diocèses de Liège, d'Arras et de Cambrai- type de charte qui mérite certainement une plus grande attention. Surtout le développement des méthodes numériques a fait l'objet de l'attention, en particulier par le test du logiciel GIWIS et par l'usage de techniques du domaine de la stylométrie, sans perdre de vue les méthodes manuelles. Enfin, cette étude concerne l'analyse des noms présents dans ces actes, afin de tenter d'identifier les personnes actives dans leur élaboration

The production of medieval charters : the example of the dioceses of Liege, Arras and Cambrai (11 th - 12 th c.)

Depuis longtemps déjà, l'élaboration des chartes a intéressé les médiévistes. Les questions de l'écriture, de la rédaction et finalement de l'identité des personnes impliquées dans la production de ces textes ont ainsi mené à une myriade de méthodes et à des questions de recherche particulières. Cette thèse explore la méthodologie disponible pour les diplomatistes, et ceci par l'étude des chartes épiscopales des diocèses de Liège, d'Arras et de Cambrai- type de charte qui mérite certainement une plus grande attention. Surtout le développement des méthodes numériques a fait l'objet de l'attention, en particulier par le test du logiciel GIWIS et par l'usage de techniques du domaine de la stylométrie, sans perdre de vue les méthodes manuelles. Enfin, cette étude concerne l'analyse des noms présents dans ces actes, afin de tenter d'identifier les personnes actives dans leur élaboration.The production process of charters has often demanded the attention of medievalists in the past. Questions related to the writing, the composing and eventually the identity of the individuals who produced these texts have led to a myriad of methods. This research explores the available methodology for diplomatists, via the analysis of the episcopal charters coming from the dioceses of Liège, Arras and Cambrai - a type of charter deserving of more attention. The development of digital techniques, in particular, have been considered and tested, specifically the computer programme GIWIS and procedures used in the field of stylometry, without losing touch with the analogue methods. Finally, this dissertation takes the study of the names present in our charters in consideration, in an attempt at identifying the individuals who were active in the production of these episcopal charters

L’élaboration des chartes médiévales : l’exemple des évêchés d’Arras, Cambrai et Liège (xie-xiie siècles) (position de thèse)

L’importance des sources diplomatiques pour le médiéviste a été bien soulignée, et leur élaboration a attiré l’attention depuis longtemps. Les questions de l’écriture, de la rédaction et finalement de l’identité des personnes impliquées dans la production de ces textes ont ainsi mené à une myriade de méthodes et à des questions de recherche particulières. Cette thèse explore la méthodologie disponible pour les diplomatistes et ses perspectives, afin de déterminer dans quelle mesure il est possib