The Early Lieder of Josephine Lang: A Comparative Study

Josephine Lang\u27s contribution to nineteenth-century song has been increasingly recognized in recent scholarship. This is largely because of Harald Krebs’s and Sharon Krebs\u27s groundbreaking book, Josephine Lang: Her Life and Songs (2007). In their book, Krebs and Krebs draw information about Lang’s life from two early biographies, the first written during Lang’s lifetime by Ferdinand Hiller and the second written after her death by her son Heinrich Adolf Köstlin. Primary sources fill in the gaps that these two nineteenth-century biographies left open. For example, the letters between Lang and her correspondents also reveal much about her social reputation, financial hardships, dealings with publishers, and relationships with contemporary composers, including Felix Mendelssohn and Ferdinand Hiller. In my thesis, I study the influence of Felix Mendelssohn and Ferdinand Hiller on Josephine Lang. To do so, I use primary sources (letters and manuscripts) and secondary sources (historical and modern biographies). I also provide a comparative study of settings of the same text by Lang and her contemporaries, focusing on her songs “Schon wieder bin ich fortgerissen” and “An die Entfernte,” in order to demonstrate how her works may have been inspired or influenced by others. This research finds hints of influence in the settings that are examined and highlights the impact of Mendelssohn and Hiller on Lang’s professional career

Dynamic Social Balance and Convergent Appraisals via Homophily and Influence Mechanisms

Social balance theory describes allowable and forbidden configurations of the topologies of signed directed social appraisal networks. In this paper, we propose two discrete-time dynamical systems that explain how an appraisal network \textcolor{blue}{converges to} social balance from an initially unbalanced configuration. These two models are based on two different socio-psychological mechanisms respectively: the homophily mechanism and the influence mechanism. Our main theoretical contribution is a comprehensive analysis for both models in three steps. First, we establish the well-posedness and bounded evolution of the interpersonal appraisals. Second, we fully characterize the set of equilibrium points; for both models, each equilibrium network is composed by an arbitrary number of complete subgraphs satisfying structural balance. Third, we establish the equivalence among three distinct properties: non-vanishing appraisals, convergence to all-to-all appraisal networks, and finite-time achievement of social balance. In addition to theoretical analysis, Monte Carlo validations illustrates how the non-vanishing appraisal condition holds for generic initial conditions in both models. Moreover, numerical comparison between the two models indicate that the homophily-based model might be a more universal explanation for the formation of social balance. Finally, adopting the homophily-based model, we present numerical results on the mediation and globalization of local conflicts, the competition for allies, and the asymptotic formation of a single versus two factions

Artificial Small RNA-Based Silencing Tools for Antiviral Resistance in Plants

[EN] Artificial small RNAs (art-sRNAs), such as artificial microRNAs (amiRNAs) and synthetic trans-acting small interfering RNAs (syn-tasiRNAs), are highly specific 21-nucleotide small RNAs designed to recognize and silence complementary target RNAs. Art-sRNAs are extensively used in gene function studies or for improving crops, particularly to protect plants against viruses. Typically, antiviral art-sRNAs are computationally designed to target one or multiple sites in viral RNAs with high specificity, and art-sRNA constructs are generated and introduced into plants that are subsequently challenged with the target virus(es). Numerous studies have reported the successful application of art-sRNAs to induce resistance against a large number of RNA and DNA viruses in model and crop species. However, the application of art-sRNAs as an antiviral tool has limitations, such as the difficulty to predict the efficacy of a particular art-sRNA or the emergence of virus variants with mutated target sites escaping to art-sRNA-mediated degradation. Here, we review the different classes, features, and uses of art-sRNA-based tools to induce antiviral resistance in plants. We also provide strategies for the rational design of antiviral art-sRNAs and discuss the latest advances in developing art-sRNA-based methodologies for enhanced resistance to plant viruses.This research was funded by grants RYC-2017-21648 and RTI2018-095118-A-100 from the Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovacion y Universidades (MCIU, Spain), Agencia Estatal de Investigacion (AEI, Spain), and Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER, European Union) to AC.Cisneros, AE.; Carbonell, A. (2020). Artificial Small RNA-Based Silencing Tools for Antiviral Resistance in Plants. Plants. 9(6):1-16. https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9060669S1169

Percepção e desempenho acadêmico do test-Taker no uso do método de pontuação de teste de eliminação de número numérico com ponderação de confiança (CWNRET) no teste de múltipla escolha

The most common assessment tool in Higher Education and in most licensure examinations in the Philippines is the multiple-choice (MC) test. Thus, it is appropriate to device a tool on how teachers can help their students to analyze the items in an MC test better. The aim of this study is to determine the perception and test scores of the students in using Confidence-Weighted Number Right Elimination Testing (CWNRET) compared to Number Right (NR) and Number Right Elimination Testing (NRET) scoring method in answering an MC test. The researcher developed the Test-taker's Perception Inventory for the purpose of this study. Based on the results, this study showed that, generally, the perception of the students who used CWNRET is not significantly different from the perception of the students in using NRET and NR scoring methods. However, there is a significant increase in the students’ perception on their need to give extra effort when CWNRET scoring method is used in answering an MC test compared to NR scoring method. Although, perceived anxiety/ trickiness is also significantly higher when CWNRET scoring method was used compared to NR scoring method. This study also showed that even if the MC tests were completed using the convention scoring method, students who have undergone CWNRET have generally higher mean score compared to students who were trained to answer other scoring methods.La herramienta de evaluación más común en Educación Superior y en la mayoría de los exámenes de licenciatura en Filipinas es el examen de opción múltiple (MC). Por lo tanto, es apropiado instalar una herramienta sobre cómo los maestros pueden ayudar a sus estudiantes a analizar mejor los elementos en una prueba de MC. El objetivo de este estudio es determinar la percepción y los puntajes de las pruebas de los estudiantes al utilizar el método de puntuación de Prueba de eliminación correcta de números ponderados por confianza (CWNRET) en comparación con el método de puntuación de la Prueba de eliminación correcta de números (NRET) y en función de la respuesta correcta. El investigador desarrolló el Inventario de Percepción del examinador para los fines de este estudio. Basado en los resultados, este estudio mostró que, en general, la percepción de los estudiantes que usaron CWNRET no es significativamente diferente de la percepción de los estudiantes en el uso de los métodos de puntuación NRET y NR. Sin embargo, hay un aumento significativo en la percepción de los estudiantes sobre su necesidad de esforzarse más cuando se utiliza el método de puntuación CWNRET para responder a una prueba de MC en comparación con el método de puntuación NR. Aunque, la percepción de ansiedad / dificultad también es significativamente mayor cuando se utilizó el método de puntuación CWNRET en comparación con el método de puntuación NR. Este estudio también demostró que incluso si las pruebas de MC se completaron con el método de calificación de la convención, los estudiantes que se han sometido a CWNRET tienen una puntuación media generalmente más alta en comparación con los estudiantes que fueron capacitados para responder a otros métodos de calificación.A ferramenta de avaliação mais comum no ensino superior e na maioria dos exames de licenciamento nas Filipinas é o teste de múltipla escolha (MC). Assim, é apropriado criar uma ferramenta sobre como os professores podem ajudar seus alunos a analisar melhor os itens em um teste de MC. O objetivo deste estudo é determinar as pontuações de percepção e teste dos alunos no uso de Teste de Eliminação Certa de Número Ponderado por Confiança (CWNRET) em comparação com o método de pontuação Nright (NR) e Teste de Eliminação Numérica à Direita (NRET) ao responder a um teste de MC. O pesquisador desenvolveu o Perception Inventory do Test-taker para o propósito deste estudo. Com base nos resultados, este estudo mostrou que, em geral, a percepção dos alunos que utilizaram o CWNRET não é significativamente diferente da percepção dos alunos em utilizar os métodos de pontuação NRET e NR. No entanto, há um aumento significativo na percepção dos alunos sobre sua necessidade de dar um esforço extra quando o método de pontuação CWNRET é usado para responder a um teste de MC em comparação com o método de pontuação NR. Embora a ansiedade percebida / trapaça também seja significativamente maior quando o método de pontuação CWNRET foi usado em comparação com o método de pontuação NR. Este estudo também mostrou que, mesmo se os testes de MC foram concluídos usando o método de pontuação de convenção, os alunos que foram submetidos a CWNRET têm geralmente pontuação média maior em comparação com os alunos que foram treinados para responder a outros métodos de pontuaçã