977 research outputs found
The Norman Conquest of the Classical Past: William of Poitiers, Language and History
William of Poitiers' Gesta Guillelmi, written shortly after the Norman Conquest of England, remains surprisingly neglected, especially by historians. He is generally regarded primarily as a classical stylist who employed classical references to decorate his panegyric of William of Normandy. Poitiers' use of classical allusion was, however, far from superficial. In arguing for William’s legitimacy as king of England, Poitiers addresses a wider audience than is generally acknowledged, and appeals directly to the fears, expectations and values of his day. The article examines his three most sustained allusions to classical heroes of naval enterprises and conquest – Caesar, Aeneas and Theseus – as key components of the memory of the Norman Conquest, demonstrating that each allusion makes a specific moral and political point. Poitiers is a case study for medieval authorial ingenuity in applying classicism to the problems of the present
Translation, interpretation and the Danish Conquest of England, 1016
Through an investigation of key factors in translation and interpretation (time, distance and language) this chapter explores how eleventh- and twelfth-century historians responded to the Danish Conquest (1016). It considers translations of language and of ideas by employing comparative studies of narratives written within and outside England, including the eleventh-century Anglo-Saxon Chronicle and Encomium Emmae Reginae, and new renderings of these in Gaimar’s Anglo-Norman French Estoire des Engleis and in Latin works by Orderic Vitalis, William of Malmesbury, Henry of Huntingdon and John of Worcester. Ideas about the use of Latin and vernaculars and the role of genre are reassessed; it is asserted that what appear to be minor alterations in translation can, and do, effect a transformation in the received pictures of past disruption
The Latin Life of Gruffudd ap Cynan, British kingdoms and the Scandinavian past
The article examines the representation and purpose of dynastic struggle in the twelfth-century Latin Life of Gruffudd ap Cynan. Understudied despite the publication of Paul Russell's edition (2005), the Vita Griffini Filii Conani remains a missing piece of a larger puzzle: the flourishing of Latin historical writing in eleventhand twelfth-century Britain and northern Europe. This article sets the Vita in its wider British and European context, and assesses the significance of Gruffudd's Scandinavian heritage against the realities of political experience. It argues that the Vita's portrayal of dynasty and dynastic conflict, set on the great stage of the North Sea zone, seeks to establish the legitimacy of a ruler who was both an outsider and of Scandinavian descent. The reality of invasion and conquest in the British Isles demanded new Latin histories wherein Scandinavian dynasties could be a key source of legitimacy, and the Vita needs to be read as part of this larger discourse
Repulsively bound atom pairs in an optical lattice
Throughout physics, stable composite objects are usually formed via
attractive forces, which allow the constituents to lower their energy by
binding together. Repulsive forces separate particles in free space. However,
in a structured environment such as a periodic potential and in the absence of
dissipation, stable composite objects can exist even for repulsive
interactions. Here we report on the first observation of such an exotic bound
state, comprised of a pair of ultracold atoms in an optical lattice. Consistent
with our theoretical analysis, these repulsively bound pairs exhibit long
lifetimes, even under collisions with one another. Signatures of the pairs are
also recognised in the characteristic momentum distribution and through
spectroscopic measurements. There is no analogue in traditional condensed
matter systems of such repulsively bound pairs, due to the presence of strong
decay channels. These results exemplify on a new level the strong
correspondence between the optical lattice physics of ultracold bosonic atoms
and the Bose-Hubbard model, a correspondence which is vital for future
applications of these systems to the study of strongly correlated condensed
matter systems and to quantum information.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figure
Direct high-precision measurement of the magnetic moment of the proton
The spin-magnetic moment of the proton is a fundamental property of
this particle. So far has only been measured indirectly, analysing the
spectrum of an atomic hydrogen maser in a magnetic field. Here, we report the
direct high-precision measurement of the magnetic moment of a single proton
using the double Penning-trap technique. We drive proton-spin quantum jumps by
a magnetic radio-frequency field in a Penning trap with a homogeneous magnetic
field. The induced spin-transitions are detected in a second trap with a strong
superimposed magnetic inhomogeneity. This enables the measurement of the
spin-flip probability as a function of the drive frequency. In each measurement
the proton's cyclotron frequency is used to determine the magnetic field of the
trap. From the normalized resonance curve, we extract the particle's magnetic
moment in units of the nuclear magneton . This
measurement outperforms previous Penning trap measurements in terms of
precision by a factor of about 760. It improves the precision of the forty year
old indirect measurement, in which significant theoretical bound state
corrections were required to obtain , by a factor of 3. By application
of this method to the antiproton magnetic moment the fractional
precision of the recently reported value can be improved by a factor of at
least 1000. Combined with the present result, this will provide a stringent
test of matter/antimatter symmetry with baryons.Comment: published in Natur
An efficient record linkage scheme using graphical analysis for identifier error detection
Integration of information on individuals (record linkage) is a key problem in healthcare delivery, epidemiology, and "business intelligence" applications. It is now common to be required to link very large numbers of records, often containing various combinations of theoretically unique identifiers, such as NHS numbers, which are both incomplete and error-prone
Electrical control over single hole spins in nanowire quantum dots
Single electron spins in semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) are a versatile
platform for quantum information processing, however controlling decoherence
remains a considerable challenge. Recently, hole spins have emerged as a
promising alternative. Holes in III-V semiconductors have unique properties,
such as strong spin-orbit interaction and weak coupling to nuclear spins, and
therefore have potential for enhanced spin control and longer coherence times.
Weaker hyperfine interaction has already been reported in self-assembled
quantum dots using quantum optics techniques. However, challenging fabrication
has so far kept the promise of hole-spin-based electronic devices out of reach
in conventional III-V heterostructures. Here, we report gate-tuneable hole
quantum dots formed in InSb nanowires. Using these devices we demonstrate Pauli
spin blockade and electrical control of single hole spins. The devices are
fully tuneable between hole and electron QDs, enabling direct comparison
between the hyperfine interaction strengths, g-factors and spin blockade
anisotropies in the two regimes
Desulfotomaculum varum sp. nov., a moderately thermophilic sulfate-reducing bacterium isolated from a microbial mat colonizing a Great Artesian Basin bore well runoff channel
A strictly anaerobic moderately thermophilic bacterium, designated strain RH04-3T (T = type strain), was isolated from a red colored microbial mat that colonizes a Great Artesian Basin (GAB) bore well (Registered Number 17263) runoff channel at 66 °C. The cells of strain RH04-3T were straight to slightly curved, sporulating, Gram-positive rods (2.0–5.0 × 1.0 μm) that grew optimally at 50 °C (temperature growth range between 37 and 55 °C) and at pH 7 (pH growth range of 5.0 and 8.5). Growth was inhibited by NaCl concentrations ≥1.5% (w/v), and by chloramphenicol, streptomycin, tetracycline, penicillin and ampicillin. The strain utilized fructose, mannose, glycerol, lactate, pyruvate and H2 in the presence of sulfate, and fermented pyruvate in the absence of sulfate. Strain RH04-3T reduced sulfate, sulfite, thiosulfate and elemental sulfur, but not nitrate, nitrite, iron(III), arsenate(V), vanadium(V) or cobalt(III) as terminal electron acceptors. The G + C content of DNA was 52.4 ± 0.8 mol % as determined by the thermal denaturation (Tm) method. 16S rRNA sequence analysis indicated that strain RH04-3T was a member of the genus Desulfotomaculum and was most closely related to Desulfotomaculum putei (similarity value of 95.2%) and Desulfotomaculum hydrothermale (similarity value of 93.6%). On the basis of phylogenetic and phenotypic characteristics, strain RH04-3T is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Desulfotomaculum, for which the name Desulfotomaculum varum sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain RH04-3T = JCM 16158T = KCTC 5794T
Retrospective analysis of Schlafen11 (SLFN11) to predict the outcomes to therapies affecting the DNA damage response
BACKGROUND: The absence of the putative DNA/RNA helicase Schlafen11 (SLFN11) is thought to cause resistance to DNAdamaging agents (DDAs) and PARP inhibitors.
METHODS: We developed and validated a clinically applicable SLFN11 immunohistochemistry assay and retrospectively correlated
SLFN11 tumour levels to patient outcome to the standard of care therapies and olaparib maintenance.
RESULTS: High SLFN11 associated with improved prognosis to the first-line treatment with DDAs platinum-plus-etoposide in SCLC
patients, but was not strongly linked to paclitaxel–platinum response in ovarian cancer patients. Multivariate analysis of patients
with relapsed platinum-sensitive ovarian cancer from the randomised, placebo-controlled Phase II olaparib maintenance
Study19 showed SLFN11 tumour levels associated with sensitivity to olaparib. Study19 patients with high SLFN11 had a lower
progression-free survival (PFS) hazard ratio compared to patients with low SLFN11, although both groups had the benefit of
olaparib over placebo. Whilst caveated by small sample size, this trend was maintained for PFS, but not overall survival, when
adjusting for BRCA status across the olaparib and placebo treatment groups, a key driver of PARP inhibitor sensitivity.
CONCLUSION: We provide clinical evidence supporting the role of SLFN11 as a DDA therapy selection biomarker in SCLC and
highlight the need for further clinical investigation into SLFN11 as a PARP inhibitor predictive biomarker
Juvenile obesity and its association with utilisation and costs of pharmaceuticals - results from the KiGGS study
<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>According to a national reference, 15% of German children and adolescents are overweight (including obese) and 6.3% are obese. An earlier study analysed the impact of childhood overweight and obesity on different components of direct medical costs (physician, hospital and therapists). To complement the existing literature for Germany, this study aims to explore the association of body mass index (BMI) with utilisation of pharmaceuticals and related costs in German children and adolescents.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Based on data from 14, 836 respondents aged 3-17 years in the German Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS), drug intake and associated costs were estimated using a bottom-up approach. To investigate the association of BMI with utilisation and costs, univariate analyses and multivariate generalised mixed models were conducted.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>There was no significant difference between BMI groups regarding the probability of drug utilisation. However, the number of pharmaceuticals used was significantly higher (14%) for obese children than for normal weight children. Furthermore, there was a trend for more physician-prescribed medication in obese children and adolescents. Among children with pharmaceutical intake, estimated costs were 24% higher for obese children compared with the normal weight group.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This is the first study to estimate excess drug costs for obesity based on a representative cross-sectional sample of the child and adolescent population in Germany. The results suggest that obese children should be classified as a priority group for prevention. This study complements the existing literature and provides important information concerning the relevance of childhood obesity as a health problem.</p
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