The fundamental group and torsion group of Beauville surfaces

We give a survey on the fundamental group of surfaces isogenous to a higher product. If the surfaces are regular, e.g. if they are Beauville surfaces, the first homology group is a finite group. We present a MAGMA script which calculates the first homology groups of regular surfaces isogenous to a product.Comment: 14 pages; MAGMA script included; v2: minor corrections, final version to appear in the Proceedings of the Conference "Beauville Surfaces and Groups", Newcastle University (UK), 7-9th June 201

Surfaces with pg = q = 2, K2 = 6, and albanese map of degree 2

We classify minimal surfaces of general type with pg = q = 2 and K2 = 6 whose Albanese map is a generically finite double cover. We show that the corresponding moduli space is the disjoint union of three generically smooth irreducible components MIa, MIb, M II of dimension 4, 4, 3, respectively. © Canadian Mathematical Society 2012

A family of surfaces with pg=q=2,K2=7 and Albanese map of degree 3

We study a family of surfaces of general type with pg = q = 2 and K2 = 7, originally constructed by Cancian and Frapporti by using the Computer Algebra System MAGMA. We provide an alternative, computer-free construction of these surfaces, that allows us to describe their Albanese map and their moduli space

A new family of surfaces with pg = q = 2 and K2 = 6 whose Albanese map has degree 4

We construct a new family of minimal surfaces of general type with pg = q = 2 and K2 = 6, whose Albanese map is a quadruple cover of an abelian surface with polarization of type (1, 3). We also show that this family provides an irreducible component of the moduli space of surfaces with pg = q = 2 and K2 = 6. Finally, we prove that such a component is generically smooth of dimension 4 and that it contains the two-dimensional family of product-quotient examples previously constructed by the first author. The main tools we use are the Fourier-Mukai transform and the Schrödinger representation of the finite Heisenberg group H3

Standard isotrivial fibrations with pg = q = 1, II

A smooth, projective surface S is called a standard isotrivial fibration if there exists a finite group G which acts faithfully on two smooth projective curves C and F so that S is isomorphic to the minimal desingularization of T {colon equals} (C × F) / G. Standard isotrivial fibrations of general type with pg = q = 1 have been classified in [F. Polizzi, Standard isotrivial fibrations with pg = q = 1, J. Algebra 321 (2009),1600-1631] under the assumption that T has only Rational Double Points as singularities. In the present paper we extend this result, classifying all cases where S is a minimal model. As a by-product, we provide the first examples of minimal surfaces of general type with pg = q = 1, KS2 = 5 and Albanese fibration of genus 3. Finally, we show with explicit examples that the case where S is not minimal actually occurs. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Counter-Diffusion: Does Russian Propaganda Wind Up in America?

Does the norm diffusion process work in reverse? Specifically, does the success of the Russian government in building counternarratives and counternorms to reinforce its authoritarian government mean they have the ability to diminish successful human rights advocacy in the United States? This project examines whether the rhetoric used to justify anti-LGBT policies in Russia are broadcast and adopted by anti-LGBT groups in the United States. In the United States, public support for LGBT civil rights is often cited as a success story in the adoption and diffusion of human rights norms. Often, this is used as evidence of broadening norm adoption. However, this local success has not been followed by global success. Russia, for example, remains as a country that largely denies LGBT rights and criminalizes advocacy as “homopropaganda.” Rather than causing public backlash, this position is met with widespread public support in Russia. We expect the existence of a successful counternorm in one country to be adopted and weaponized against the same group in another country where human rights norms have been adopted. We examine this question by collecting public statements and stories issued by Russian state media that reference LGBT rights issues. We then compare them to statements made by American ant-LGBT groups, measuring for changes in content. We expect that, over time, American groups start to use rhetoric similar to that used by Russia

Shaming the Truth: Naming and Shaming and Transitional Justice

While it is generally recognized that “naming and shaming” carried out by transnational human rights actors can lead to an improvement in aggregate conditions, it is less clear whether this strategy influences more specific behavior. As more states are democratizing, the international community has stepped up efforts at transitional justice to promote accountability and reconciliation. What is unclear is whether this promotion has been positive or negative for the pursuit of transitional justice broadly or if the community prioritizes some mechanisms over others. In this paper, we examine the role that human rights advocacy plays in the onset of transitional justice mechanisms. Using events data to disaggregate naming and shaming across state, intergovernmental, and nongovernmental actors, we test which kinds of activities have the greatest impact on the implementation of transitional justice in post-conflict settings

A Pair of Rigid Surfaces with pg= q = 2 and K2= 8 Whose Universal Cover is Not the Bidisk

We construct two complex-conjugated rigid minimal surfaces with pg = q = 2 and K2 = 8 whose universal cover is not biholomorphic to the bidisk H × H. We show that these are the unique surfaces with these invariants and Albanese map of degree 2, apart from the family of product-quotient surfaces given in [33]. This completes the classification of surfaces with pg = q = 2, K2 = 8, and Albanese map of degree 2

SELF-REPRESENTATION IN CHILDREN SUFFERING FROM CONGENITAL HEART DISEASE (CHD) AND MATERNAL COMPETENCE

Background: Child development may be subject to forms of motor, physical, cognitive and self-representation impairments when complex congenital heart disease (CHD) occurs. In some cases, inadequacy of both self-representation as well as the family system are displayed. It seems to be important to search the likely internal and external resources of the CHD child, and the possible connections among such resources, which may help him/her to manage his/her own risk condition. Design and Methods: The research project inquires the possible resources related to the self-representation and self-esteem levels of the CHD child, and those related to maternal self-perception as competent mothers. A group of 25 children (mean age=10,2; SD=1,8) suffering from specific forms of CHD, and a group made up of their relative mothers (mean age=38,2; SD=5) were studied. The tools used were the Human Figure Drawing, to investigate child body-related self-representation; the TMA scale (Self-esteem Multidimensional Test), to investigate the child’s self-esteem; and the Q-sort questionnaire, to assess how mothers perceived their maternal competence. Results: Data concerning the likely correlations between the child’s self-representation and the maternal role competence show [that] positive correlations between some indicators of maternal competence, specific aspects of CHD children’s self-representation (mothers’ emotional coping and children’s self-image adequacy) and self-esteem (mothers’ emotional scaffolding and children’s self-esteem at an emotional level). Conclusions: By detecting the occurrence of specific correlations among resources of both child and mother, the study provides cardiologists with information that is useful for building a relationship with the families concerned, which would seem to enhance the quality of the process of the cure itself

On surfaces with pg = 2, q = 1 and K2 = 5

We consider minimal surfaces of general type with pg = 2, q = 1 and K2 = 5. We provide a stratification of the corresponding moduli space M and we give some bounds for the number and the dimensions of its irreducible components. © Springer-Verlag 2011