Many names - many shapes: the war goddess in early Irish literature - with reference to Indian texts: a study in the phenomenology of religion

A quote from the Rees brothers book 'Celtic Heritage', comparing one of the Irish war -goddesses to the Indian Kali has provided the first impulse for this thesis. In the course of the study it emerged that the Indian material would be most useful in shedding further light on the Irish figures rather than to undertake a fully developed comparison.When studying the Irish texts it soon becomes apparent that the war- goddesses cannot be seen in isolation but only in relationship with a male hero.Two heroes have extensive dealings with the war- goddesses, Cú Chulainn, the famous hero of Ulster, and the Dagda of the Túatha Dé Danann. Cú Chulainn generally benefits from the activites of the Badb, the screeching battle crow, while the Morri gan displays a relentless hostility towards him One important fact which emerges from these stories is the existence of a deap- seated similarity between the great hero and the otherwordly females which becomes particularly obvious when studying the various animal shapes the latter appear in. On the whole, the war -goddesses reveal themselves to be elusive, many -shaped figures who attack the hero's courage and inner strength rather than challenging him physically. They are not interested in questions of allegiance though this changes as time goes by, with later texts showing a different perspective.The relationship between the Morrigan and the Dagda in Cath Maige Tuired takes a different form. Here, a powerful male figure who incorporates both life -giving and destructive aspects within his nature turns the destructive and chaotic potential personified by the Morrigan into more controlled channels so that she benefits his own people. Through his agency she becomes a powerful influence in the battle against the Fomorians. Figures who resemble the war -goddesses closely are investigated such as Washers at the Ford, death- messengers, hags and other hostile females.Variations on familiar themes and developments over time can be observed.It seems that very often the male hero determines the role of the otherwordly female and the later texts show a marked decline of the latter. Comparison with Indian evidence is prompted by the curious fact that although male figures are the protagonists of war in both cultures, it is female figures who emerge most clearly as the personifications of death and destruction.The question is asked whether any common features emerge which may explain this phenomenon and lead to a typology of female figures of death and destruction. An investigation of Kali's story reveals that certain attitudes towards violence and destruction are indeed similar, and that certain methods of containing this dangerous force in female shape find echoes in both traditions. However, the details as to behaviour, strategy, appearance, etc. show marked differences. It is concluded that comparison with Kali throws certain features of the Irish goddesses into sharper relief which may not have been possible otherwise. Any claim to seeing true similarities has to remain very tenuous indeed

The Sabiñánigo Sandstone Succession, Jaca Basin, Southern Pyrenees, NE-Spain : A Depositional Model

The Eocene Sabiñánigo Sandstone Succession (SSt-Succession) forms part of the sedimentary infill of the Jaca Basin, which evolved as a piggyback basin in front of the emerging Pyrenean orogeny. Foreland basins in general, and their siliciclastic deposits in particular, are not only of scientific but also of common economic interest, due to their outstanding relevance for hydrocarbon exploration. Furthermore, the SSt-Succession is of great scientific interest, as it takes over a challenging position within the Jaca Basin. It forms the transitional part from deep marine to continental deposition, promising to reveal some insights on the depositional processes affecting the Jaca Basin. Thus, the scientific research was driven by the general interest in the genesis of the SSt-Succession, and how it fits into the Pyrenean realm, e.g. how basin formation was triggered by the Pyrenean orogeny. Therefore, the SSt-Succession was scrutinized from different points of view, integrating distinct approaches, and analytical methods, with the working process described in this case study. The SSt-Succession is exposed within two distinct ridges, showing excellent outcrop conditions, with lateral and vertical stratigraphic surfaces, that can be traced physically and optically over large distances. But they are lacking any marker horizon between both ridges that enables to easily link-up both exposure sites situated at the northern and the southern limb of the Basa Anticline. Therefore, the sediments of the SSt-Succession have been processed in detail to get a data set that enables to construct a time-calibrated framework of each exposure site. This in turn allows connecting both exposure sites and developing a depositional model of the entire SSt-Succession. Different techniques were applied within this study to characterize the sedimentary succession of the Sabiñánigo Sandstones. It considers gamma ray logs together with standard lithological profiles. In addition, to constrain the previous sedimentary overburden, covering the SSt-Succession, low-temperature thermochronology has been applied. Spectral gamma ray analyses were used to refine standard facies analysis and to support sequence stratigraphic correlation within the SSt-Succession. Detailed facies analyses and gamma ray spectrometry studies were combined, revealing a pattern of returning facies types, large-scale facies associations and related vertical stacking patterns. On the basis of the generated data set a scheme of facies types and corresponding facies associations was established, comprising various lithologies, ranging from argillaceous siltstones rich in Nummulites up to coarse-grained sandstonesand conglomerates. This allowed to deduce the depositional setting of the SSt-Succession, reaching from transitional offshore to delta plain environments, and enabled to characterize the sedimentary evolution of the Sabiñánigo Delta system, and thus, to elucidate driving mechanisms controlling the depositional processes. This study greatly benefits from a wide data set that allows interpreting the deposits of the SSt-Succession from different points of view and to integrate the applied methods into a time calibrated model. It, therefore, was possible to identify two progradational sequences as well as to examine the depositional history of the SSt-Succession and to reveal corresponding driving mechanisms. The SSt-Succession reflects a process response system that connects the evolution of the Pyrenean Orogeny with sedimentary deposition in the southern Foreland basin (Jaca Basin). The development as a piggyback basin is stored in the sedimentary archive. The first stage of evolution clearly identifies a partly developed delta, whereas the sedimentary sequence of the second stage indicates a fulldeveloped delta. In the early stage, the moving piggyback basin was filled from the emerging Boltaña Anticline in the east, and during the second stage from the newly uplifted Axial Zone in the north

Statistical Pattern Detection in Univariate Time Series of Intensive Care On-Line Monitoring Data

Objectives: To determine how different mathematical time series approaches can be implemented for the detection of qualitative patterns in physiologic monitoring data, and which of these approaches could be suitable as a basis for future bedside time series analysis. Design: Offline time series analysis. Setting: Surgical intensive care unit of a teaching hospital.Patients: 19 patients requiring hemodynamic monitoring with a pulmonary artery catheter. Interventions: None. Measurements and results: Hemodynamic data were acquired in 1-minute intervals from a clinical information system and exported into statistical software for further analysis. Altogether, 134 time series for heart rate, mean arterial pressure and mean pulmonary artery pressure were visually classified by a senior intensivist into five patterns: no change, outlier, temporary level change, permanent level change, and trend. The same series were analyzed with low order autoregressive (AR) models and with phase space (PS) models. The resulting classifications from both models were compared to the initial classification. Outliers and level changes were detected in most instances with both methods. Trend detection could only be done indirectly. Both methods were more sensitive to pattern changes than they were clinically relevant. Especially with outlier detection, 95% confidence intervals were too close. AR models require direct user interaction, whereas PS models offer opportunities for fully automated time series analysis in this context. Conclusion: Statistical patterns in univariate intensive care time series can reliably be detected with AR models and with PS models. For most bedside problems both methods are too sensitive. AR models are highly interactive, and both methods require that users have an explicit knowledge of statistics. While AR models and PS models can be extremely useful in the scientific off-line analysis, routine bedside clinical use cannot yet be recommended

Predator-Prey Dynamics Driven by Feedback between Functionally Diverse Trophic Levels

Neglecting the naturally existing functional diversity of communities and the resulting potential to respond to altered conditions may strongly reduce the realism and predictive power of ecological models. We therefore propose and study a predator-prey model that describes mutual feedback via species shifts in both predator and prey, using a dynamic trait approach. Species compositions of the two trophic levels were described by mean functional traits—prey edibility and predator food-selectivity—and functional diversities by the variances. Altered edibility triggered shifts in food-selectivity so that consumers continuously respond to the present prey composition, and vice versa. This trait-mediated feedback mechanism resulted in a complex dynamic behavior with ongoing oscillations in the mean trait values, reflecting continuous reorganization of the trophic levels. The feedback was only possible if sufficient functional diversity was present in both trophic levels. Functional diversity was internally maintained on the prey level as no niche existed in our system, which was ideal under any composition of the predator level due to the trade-offs between edibility, growth and carrying capacity. The predators were only subject to one trade-off between food-selectivity and grazing ability and in the absence of immigration, one predator type became abundant, i.e., functional diversity declined to zero. In the lack of functional diversity the system showed the same dynamics as conventional models of predator-prey interactions ignoring the potential for shifts in species composition. This way, our study identified the crucial role of trade-offs and their shape in physiological and ecological traits for preserving diversity

High-sensitivity dual-comb and cross-comb spectroscopy across the infrared using a widely-tunable and free-running optical parametric oscillator

Coherent dual-comb spectroscopy (DCS) is a form of Fourier transform spectroscopy that enables high-resolution measurements at high speeds without the trade-off between resolution and update rate inherent to mechanical delay scanning. However, high complexity of the optical system and limited sensitivity of the measurements remain major challenges for deploying broadband DCS in the short-wave infrared (SWIR, 1.4-3 um) and mid-infrared (mid-IR, >3 um) regions where many molecules have strong absorption bands. We address these challenges via a wavelength-tunable dual-comb optical parametric oscillator (OPO) combined with a new detection method. Both OPO pump beams are generated in a single spatially-multiplexed laser cavity, while both signal and idler beams are generated in a single spatially-multiplexed OPO cavity. The near-common-path of the beams in each cavity ensures that even in free-running operation the noise sources of the two combs are highly correlated, facilitating comb-line-resolved and aliasing-free measurements with 250-MHz spectral resolution. At an instantaneous bandwidth below 1 THz, high power per comb line of up to 70 uW (signal) and 150 uW (idler) is achieved. The accessible spectrum spans 1290 nm to 1670 nm (signal) and 2700 nm to 5160 nm (idler). In a SWIR DCS measurement, we achieve a signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of 33 dB Hz^1/2. For mid-IR measurements, we introduce a novel cross-comb spectroscopy implementation to overcome limitations posed by traditional mid-IR detection, obtaining a record-high SNR of 41 dB Hz^1/2. Our results are a promising route towards dual-comb spectroscopy with high sensitivity and high resolution over a wide spectral range

Multitrophic diversity effects depend on consumer specialization and species-specific growth and grazing rates

Ecosystem functioning is affected by horizontal (within trophic groups) and vertical (across trophic levels) biodiversity. Theory predicts that the effects of vertical biodiversity depend on consumer specialization. In a microcosm experiment, we investigated ciliate consumer diversity and specialization effects on algal prey biovolume, evenness and composition, and on ciliate biovolume production. The experimental data was complemented by a process-based model further analyzing the ecological mechanisms behind the observed diversity effects. Overall, increasing consumer diversity had no significant effect on prey biovolume or evenness. However, consumer specialization affected the prey community. Specialist consumers showed a stronger negative impact on prey biovolume and evenness than generalists. The model confirmed that this pattern was mainly driven by a single specialist with a high per capita grazing rate, consuming the two most productive prey species. When these were suppressed, the prey assemblage became dominated by a less productive species, consequently decreasing prey biovolume and evenness. Consumer diversity increased consumer biovolume, which was stronger for generalists than for specialists and highest in mixed combinations, indicating that consumer functional diversity, i.e. more diverse feeding strategies, increased resource use efficiency. Overall, our results indicate that consumer diversity effects on prey and consumers strongly depend on species-specific growth and grazing rates, which may be at least equally important as consumer specialization in driving consumer diversity effects across trophic levels

Food Intake, Diet Quality and Behavioral Problems in Children: Results from the GINI-plus/LISA-plus Studies

Background/Aims: To assess the association between food intake and diet quality and behavioral problems at the 10-year follow-up of the two population-based birth cohorts of the studies German Infant Nutritional Intervention and `Influences of lifestyle-related factors on the immune system and the development of allergies in childhood'. Methods: Cross-sectional data on food intake over the past year were collected by a parent-reported food frequency questionnaire. Diet quality was based on reference values of food amounts of the optimized mixed diet. Behavioral problems were assessed by a parent-reported Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Relationships between food category intake, diet quality and behavior problems were examined using multivariable regression modeling adjusted for gender, sociodemographic characteristics, body mass index, physical exercise, television viewing/PC use and total energy intake. A total of 3,361 children with complete data were analyzed. Results: Children with increased intake of confectionery had increased odds of having emotional symptoms {[}adjusted odds ratio (ORadj) 1.19, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.08-1.32] compared to children with low intake. A higher diet quality score was associated with lower likelihood of emotional symptoms (ORadj 0.89, 95% CI 0.80-0.98). The un-adjusted significant relationship between diet quality and hyperactivity/inattention was attenuated by adjusting for several confounders to an ORadj of 0.92 (95% CI 0.82-1.03). Conclusions: Increased consumption of high-sugar products and lower diet quality are associated with a higher likelihood of emotional symptoms in children. Copyright (C) 2012 S. Karger AG, Base