Applying politeness research : an introduction to the Soto data

Introduction to special issue

Relevance theory and metaphor : an analysis of Tom Waits’ ‘Emotional Weather Report’

‘Emotional Weather Report’ is a song by Tom Waits from his 1975 album, Nighthawks at the Diner. ‘Nighthawk’ is a US colloquial term popularised by its use in the title of Edward Hopper’s 1942 painting ‘Nighthawks’, which depicts a nocturnal scene in a New York diner. The term is used to describe people who habitually seek entertainment or companionship in the night-time hours. Waits refers implicitly to Hopper’s work throughout the song, using metaphorical language to present a first-person account of the emotional state of a nighthawk by drawing on the weather report format. Waits’ language relies on the listener’s specific geographical, meteorological and cultural knowledge to grasp his communicative intention. The song prompts the audience to bring different levels of encyclopaedic knowledge to an interpretation, and affords differing levels of understanding without distorting the extended metaphor that ‘weather is Waits’ emotions’. This article explores the advantages of a relevance theoretic approach (Sperber and Wilson, 1995) to the stylistic analysis of lyrics. We discuss how the figurative language in Waits’ lyrics is foregrounded by the listener’s schematic/encyclopaedic knowledge of Waits’ history as a performer, of meteorological phenomena, and of American culture. We argue that a comprehensive stylistic analysis of a song necessitates a consideration of numerous factors in addition to linguistic choice, including the presentation of the performer, the genre of music, and the performer’s history. Such a consideration is paramount to (i) successful metaphorical mapping for the listener, (ii) a full analysis of the text as a cultural artefact for the critic, and (iii) the achievement of a cohesive and distinct style for the performer

Efficient solution of the multichannel Lüscher determinant condition through eigenvalue decomposition

We present a method for efficiently finding solutions of L\"uscher's quantisation condition, the equation which relates two-particle scattering amplitudes to the discrete spectrum of states in a periodic spatial volume of finite extent such as that present in lattice QCD. The approach proposed is based on an eigenvalue decomposition in the space of coupled-channels and partial-waves, which proves to have several desirable and simplifying features that are of great benefit when considering problems beyond simple elastic scattering of spinless particles. We illustrate the method with a toy model of vector-vector scattering featuring a high density of solutions, and with an application to explicit lattice QCD energy level data describing $J^P=1^-$ and $1^+$ scattering in several coupled channels

Menguak pasar tradisional Indonesia

Dari sudut nilai-nilai budaya, bukan saja mempersoalkan masalah ekonomi, tetapi justru di pasar-pasar tradisional ini sejatinya kita akan temukan identitas budaya bangsa dari setiap wilayah , mulai dari cara berpikir, cara bersikap dan cara bertingkah laku masyarakat setempat dapat kita temukan di sini, kemudian proses pertukaran nilai dengan melakukan interaksi antar penjual dan pembeli merupakan bagian yang menarik, tidak saja sebatas jual beli , tetapi ada juga informasi yang dipertukarkan tentang lingkungan sosialnya

Resonances in coupled πk,ηK scattering from lattice QCD

Coupled-channel $\pi K$ and $\eta K$ scattering amplitudes are determined by studying the finite-volume energy spectra obtained from dynamical lattice QCD calculations. Using a large basis of interpolating operators, including both those resembling a $q\bar{q}$ construction and those resembling a pair of mesons with relative momentum, a reliable excited-state spectrum can be obtained. Working at ${m_\pi=391\,\mathrm{MeV}}$, we find a gradual increase in the $J^P=0^+$ $\pi K$ phase-shift which may be identified with a broad scalar resonance that couples strongly to $\pi K$ and weakly to $\eta K$. The low-energy behavior of this amplitude suggests a virtual bound-state that may be related to the $\kappa$ resonance. A bound state with $J^P=1^-$ is found very close to the $\pi K$ threshold energy, whose coupling to the $\pi K$ channel is compatible with that of the experimental $K^\star(892)$. Evidence is found for a narrow resonance in $J^P=2^+$. Isospin--3/2 $\pi K$ scattering is also studied and non-resonant phase-shifts spanning the whole elastic scattering region are obtained.We thank our colleagues within the Hadron Spectrum Collaboration. We also thank R. Briceno, M.R. Pennington, C.J.Shultz and A.P. Szczepaniak for fruitful discussions. Chroma [63] and QUDA [64, 65] were used to perform this work on clusters at Jefferson Laboratory under the USQCD Initiative and the LQCD ARRA project. Gauge configurations were generated using resources awarded from the U.S. Department of Energy INCITE program at Oak Ridge National Lab, the NSF Teragrid at the Texas Advanced Computer Center and the Pittsburgh Supercomputer Center, as well as at Jefferson Lab. RGE and JJD acknowledge support from U.S. Department of Energy contract DE-AC05-06OR23177, under which Jefferson Science Associates, LLC, manages and operates Jefferson Laboratory. JJD acknowledges support from the U.S. Department of Energy Early Career award contract DE-SC0006765. CET acknowledges partial support from the Science and Technology Facilities Council (U.K.) [grant number ST/L000385/1].This is the accepted manuscript. The final version is available at http://journals.aps.org/prd/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevD.91.054008

Assessment of the dysexecutive syndrome in schizophrenia

Background. Cognitive neuropsychological theories hypothesize a role for frontal lobe executive deficits in the aetiology of schizophrenic symptoms. The study examined the performance of a schizophrenic group on the Behavioural Assessment of the Dysexecutive Syndrome (BADS), a test battery which assesses the 'everyday' difficulties associated with the dysexecutive syndrome. Performance of the schizophrenics was contrasted with that of brain injured and healthy volunteer groups. Methods. Matched groups of 31 schizophrenic patients, 35 patients-with brain injuries and 26 healthy volunteers were administered the BADS. Patients were also given tests of general intelligence and memory. Patients and their relatives/carers also completed a questionnaire rating day-to-day failures of executive functioning. Results. Schizophrenic and brain-injured patients showed impairment on the BADS, compared to healthy controls. There were no significant differences between the two patient groups. Significant impairment was found in a subgroup of 16 schizophrenics who showed otherwise intact general intellectual functioning, suggesting the existence of a specific executive deficit. Among the schizophrenic patient group there was evidence of a dissociation between executive and memory impairments. A significant correlation existed between performance on the BADS and relatives ratings of executive problems for the brain injured group, but not for the schizophrenic group. Conclusions. The BADS is a useful tool for identifying executive deficits in people with a diagnosis of schizophrenia, especially those who are otherwise generally intellectually intact. This is particularly important in the context of rehabilitation and community transition programmes.published_or_final_versio

Behavioural and electrophysiological investigations of three-dimensional navigation

The world through which animals navigate is complex and three-dimensional, yet the majority of studies of navigation have been conducted in two-dimensional planar environments. The aim of this thesis, therefore, was to test whether animals are able to represent three-dimensional space, and if so, to determine the manner in which this space is represented in the brain. Behavioural and electrophysiological techniques were employed to answer these questions. In the first set of experiments, the ability of mice to complete working and reference memory tasks on a three-dimensional radial arm maze was compared with their ability on a two-dimensional analogue of the three-dimensional maze. The findings showed an equally good level of working memory in two and three-dimensional mazes, but reduced reference memory in the three-dimensional maze. These results suggest an intact representation of three-dimensional space over short time scales, but impairment in the formation, retention and/or recall of these representations over longer timescales. The second study, using electrophysiological techniques, tested the manner in which the brain represents orientation in three-dimensional environments. A three-dimensional apparatus was developed to test whether head direction (HD) cells encode orientation in a planar, multi-planar or volumetric manner. Head direction cells, which are known to be responsive to spatial orientation in 2D environments, were recorded as rats climbed between different vertical walls on cuboidal climbing apparatus. The findings showed that the HD cell system represents orientation in a multi-planar manner, in which the animal’s plane of locomotion and the position of that plane relative to the azimuth inform the firing direction of HD cells. It will be argued in this thesis that the HD system is optimised to allow animals to translate their representation of orientation from vertical planes back to the horizontal plane without the accumulation of heading errors. Together, the findings presented in this thesis suggest that rodent use a multi-planar reference frame to aid navigation in complex three-dimensional environments

B1 resonance in coupled πω, πφ scattering from lattice QCD

We present the first lattice QCD calculation of coupled $\pi\omega$ and $\pi\phi$ scattering, incorporating coupled $S$ and $D$-wave $\pi\omega$ in $J^P=1^+$. Finite-volume spectra in three volumes are determined via a variational analysis of matrices of two-point correlation functions, computed using large bases of operators resembling single-meson, two-meson and three-meson structures, with the light-quark mass corresponding to a pion mass of $m_\pi \approx 391$ MeV. Utilizing the relationship between the discrete spectrum of finite-volume energies and infinite-volume scattering amplitudes, we find a narrow axial-vector resonance ($J^{PC}=1^{+-}$), the analogue of the $b_1$ meson, with mass $m_{R}\approx1380$ MeV and width $\Gamma_{R}\approx 91$ MeV. The resonance is found to couple dominantly to $S$-wave $\pi\omega$, with a much-suppressed coupling to $D$-wave $\pi\omega$, and a negligible coupling to $\pi\phi$ consistent with the `OZI rule'. No resonant behavior is observed in $\pi\phi$, indicating the absence of a putative low-mass $Z_s$ analogue of the $Z_c$ claimed in $\pi J/\psi$. In order to minimally present the contents of a unitary three-channel scattering matrix, we introduce an $n$-channel generalization of the traditional two-channel Stapp parameterization

Decays of an exotic 1-+ hybrid meson resonance in QCD

We present the first determination of the hadronic decays of the lightest exotic $J^{PC}=1^{-+}$ resonance in lattice QCD. Working with SU(3) flavor symmetry, where the up, down and strange quark masses approximately match the physical strange-quark mass giving $m_\pi \sim 700$ MeV, we compute finite-volume spectra on six lattice volumes which constrain a scattering system featuring eight coupled channels. Analytically continuing the scattering amplitudes into the complex energy plane, we find a pole singularity corresponding to a narrow resonance which shows relatively weak coupling to the open pseudoscalar--pseudoscalar, vector--pseudoscalar and vector--vector decay channels, but large couplings to at least one kinematically-closed axial-vector--pseudoscalar channel. Attempting a simple extrapolation of the couplings to physical light-quark mass suggests a broad $\pi_1$ resonance decaying dominantly through the $b_1 \pi$ mode with much smaller decays into $f_1 \pi$, $\rho \pi$, $\eta' \pi$ and $\eta \pi$. A large total width is potentially in agreement with the experimental $\pi_1(1564)$ candidate state, observed in $\eta \pi$, $\eta' \pi$, which we suggest may be heavily suppressed decay channels

Patient-Specific Prosthetic Fingers by Remote Collaboration - A Case Study

The concealment of amputation through prosthesis usage can shield an amputee from social stigma and help improve the emotional healing process especially at the early stages of hand or finger loss. However, the traditional techniques in prosthesis fabrication defy this as the patients need numerous visits to the clinics for measurements, fitting and follow-ups. This paper presents a method for constructing a prosthetic finger through online collaboration with the designer. The main input from the amputee comes from the Computer Tomography (CT) data in the region of the affected and the non-affected fingers. These data are sent over the internet and the prosthesis is constructed using visualization, computer-aided design and manufacturing tools. The finished product is then shipped to the patient. A case study with a single patient having an amputated ring finger at the proximal interphalangeal joint shows that the proposed method has a potential to address the patient's psychosocial concerns and minimize the exposure of the finger loss to the public.Comment: Open Access articl