Stable vector bundles as generators of the Chow ring

In this paper we show that the family of stable vector bundles gives a set of generators for the Chow ring, the K-theory and the derived category of any smooth projective variety.Comment: last version. last part removed. slightly different from published version on Geom. Dedicata 117 (2006

Holomorphic symmetric differentials and parallelizable compact complex manifolds

We provide a characterization of complex tori using holomorphic symmetric differentials. With the same method we show that compact complex manifolds of Kodaira dimension 0 having some symmetric power of the cotangent bundle globally generated are quotients of parallelizable manifolds, therefore have an infinite fundamental group

Holomorphic symmetric differentials and a birational characterization of Abelian Varieties

A generically generated vector bundle on a smooth projective variety yields a rational map to a Grassmannian, called Kodaira map. We answer a previous question, raised by the asymptotic behaviour of such maps, giving rise to a birational characterization of abelian varieties. In particular we prove that, under the conjectures of the Minimal Model Program, a smooth projective variety is birational to an abelian variety if and only if it has Kodaira dimension 0 and some symmetric power of its cotangent sheaf is generically generated by its global sections.Comment: UPDATED: more details added on main proo

Exempt Assets May Not be Considered When Determining if Student Loan Should be Discharged

(Excerpt) Student loans are presumptively non-dischargeable under title 11 of the United States Code (the “Bankruptcy Code”). The Bankruptcy Code, however, provides that a debtor may rebut the presumption and be discharged from student loans if the debtor can prove that excepting the debt from discharge would cause “undue hardship” on the debtor or the debtor’s dependents. Proving undue hardship is a “formidable task” for a debtor, but not an impossible one. The Bankruptcy Code does not define undue hardship and does not provide bankruptcy courts with any guidance on how to evaluate it. Accordingly, Congress has given bankruptcy courts substantial discretion to define undue hardship on their own. Primarily two different tests have evolved and have been adopted to evaluate undue hardship in a judicial effort to reduce inconsistencies and create clearer guidelines: the totality of the circumstances test and the Brunner test. While the adoption of one test or the other has enabled the courts to create and apply clearer standards, there remains an ambiguity with regard to consideration of exempt assets when evaluating undue hardship. Exempt assets ordinarily are “to be liberally construed for the benefit of debtors,” as a matter of public policy and in order to facilitate a debtor’s fresh start. However, because of different judicial opinions regarding exempt assets, one question emerges: may a debtor’s exempt assets be considered in a bankruptcy court’s undue hardship analysis? This memorandum addresses this question in a tripartite method. Part I examines the two tests for evaluating undue hardship: the “totality of the circumstances” test and the so-called “Brunner test.” Part II discusses exempt assets, and Part III concludes by analyzing the treatment of exempt assets under both tests

La Turchia in Europa: analisi storico-politica di un iter di integrazione problematico

Il presente elaborato affronta, in chiave storico-politica, la problematica controversa della candidatura europea della Turchia. Ho maturato un forte interesse su questo tema nel contesto di un’esperienza formativa e di stage vissuta nell'anno corrente in Turchia, per un periodo di sei mesi. In sintesi, l’elaborato consta di tre parti: La prima parte, introduttiva e a carattere prevalentemente storico, contiene un excursus dettagliato sull’evoluzione delle relazioni tra Turchia e CE/UE a partire dal 1963 (data del primo accordo convenzionale tra Turchia e Comunità Europea per un'unione doganale), fino ai nostri giorni. La suddetta introduzione storica si focalizza, poi, sui momenti cruciali dell’evoluzione dei rapporti Turchia-Ue, ossia quei passaggi storici nei quali si può rintracciare un cambiamento significativo tale da influenzare in maniera decisiva tutti i successivi sviluppi del processo di adesione. La seconda parte dell’elaborato tratta alcune questioni politiche particolarmente rilevanti ai fini dell’attuale negoziato di adesione. Vengono affrontate le questioni scottanti che tutt’oggi inducono a considerare la Turchia una democrazia troppo problematica e ancora non del tutto pronta all'ingresso: si sottolineano, così, i numerosi e impegnativi passi avanti che essa deve necessariamente impegnarsi a compiere, sulla strada dell’adeguamento all’Europa. Vengono, inoltre, passati in rassegna anche gli straordinari progressi che la Turchia ha compiuto e le ricadute positive che la candidatura europea ha generato sul sistema politico turco. Sono dunque analizzate le numerose riforme già portate a termine dalla Turchia, sia a partire dal riconoscimento ufficiale circa la sua eleggibilità alla candidatura (Helsinki, 1999), sia sopratutto a partire dall’avvio del negoziato di adesione (ufficialmente nel 2005). Nel contempo, attraverso un breve excursus storico sul sistema politico turco, se ne evidenziano i cambiamenti significativi avutisi recentemente sotto la spinta positiva dell’Ue. Un accenno alla strategia politica del partito AKP, attualmente al governo in Turchia, consente, poi, di focalizzarsi sulle modalità attraverso le quali il partito al potere serva la causa europeista, la persegua o se ne allontani, di volta in volta, a seconda delle strategie politiche da esso poste in essere. La terza parte, infine, affronta tematiche più ampie e trasversali: gli equilibri geopolitici e l’impatto sulla società civile circa il negoziato e la possibilità, verosimile o meno, che la Turchia aderisca all’Ue. Per quanto riguarda l’importanza strategica della Turchia, vengono analizzate le diverse sfaccettature del ruolo di “ponte tra Oriente e Occidente”, da sempre conferito alla Turchia. Ci si sofferma, quindi sulle attuali priorità e le potenzialità future delle relazioni esterne di questo Paese sia con i vicini europei che con quelli asiatici, tentando di prospettare, infine, uno scenario futuro di assetti geopolitici ed economico-energetici che abbiano la Turchia come perno. Da ultimo, ho ritenuto utile inserire un approfondimento in riferimento al lavoro di ricerca da me svolto durante uno stage presso la Human Rights Foundation of Turkey ad Ankara. In particolare il mio studio si è focalizzato su un progetto di cooperazione decentrata che questa ONG sta coltivando con altre associazioni affini dell’area mediorientale e di alcuni Paesi europei. Il progetto è basato sull’incremento degli standard qualitativi dei servizi sanitari nazionali nell’area e su una profonda cooperazione multilaterale in campo medico, che può fungere da strumento di promozione di una cultura di pace in quelle aree critiche. Esso può, a mio avviso, rappresentare un importante punto di partenza che, attraverso l’impegno della società civile, turca, europea e mediorientale, incrementi dal basso il coinvolgimento in particolar modo della Turchia come guida di azioni di peace-keeping nella zona calda del Medio Oriente, rappresentando così nel contempo uno snodo sempre più cruciale e un partner ancora più appetibile per l’Europa e la sua politica estera di sicurezza

Narrative and Cultural History in the Hippocratic Treatise On Ancient Medicine

This paper focuses on the ‘history of medicine’ outlined by the author of the Hippocratic treatise On Ancient Medicine, in order to reflect on the relationship between medicine and narrative in Classical Greece. At the outset of the work, the author provides an account of the beginnings of his discipline, conceiving of medicine’s history as a continuum of research and findings that unravel the nature of the human body and the cause of diseases. As this paper shows, the physician-narrator assigns to his craft a crucial role in fostering the birth and progress of human civilization. The rhetorical goals of the historical account are, as I argue, attained through a subtle narrative strategy. In fact, the narrator locates the origins of medicine within a teleological framework, marked by strong emphasis on the heuristic method that characterizes the past, the present, and the future of medical knowledge at once

The Effects of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) on development and hyperekplexia in embryonic zebrafish model

Marijuana is one of the most commonly used illicit drugs around the world. It has gained attention as an alternative medicine to many different disorders. Though initially investigated in modern medicine for its analgesic and antiemetic properties, cannabis has been recently found to benefit numerous neurological disorders. Though there are over 100 different cannabinoids produced by the cannabis plant, Δ9 – tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) has been shown to the most efficacious phytocannabinoid in neurological disorders. THC has been shown in numerous previous studies to be effective at treating spasticity caused by multiple sclerosis and spinal cord injury, as well as seizures. Through binding of the endogenous cannabinoid receptor system THC is able to affect both the excitatory and inhibitory synapses. Hyperekplexia is an upper motor neuron disease characterized by hypertonia and exaggerated startle response. In Hyperekplexia, there is a decrease in inhibitory synapse caused by a loss of glycine receptors. Because previous studies have demonstrated the efficacy of THC in disorders similar to hyperekplexia, it should be investigated as a treatment for this disorder as well. This study demonstrates that in embryonic zebrafish, THC does not detrimentally affect the development of the synapses needed to complete the startle response. Additionally, this study supports the use of THC as a treatment option for the alleviation of spasticity caused by hyperekplexia

Aging Effects on Anatomy and Neurophysiology of Taste and Smell 1

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/73582/1/j.1741-2358.1984.tb00364.x.pd

Experimental Boss Design and Testing

Over the years, gaming has developed rapidly from simple pixel-based experiences to fully blown three-dimensional worlds. As developing technologies improve, so does the complexity and flexibility of what can be created. Encounters, along with all aspects of any gaming experience, have evolved along with the technologies that create them. These intense combat instances, often times referred to as “bosses”, represent a chance for the developer to challenge player skill, cooperation, and coordination. In addition to being major challenges, encounters also allow players to feel a sense of progression as they learn and adapt to mechanics incorporated within an encounter’s design. Eventually these mechanics are mastered, and surmounted to a lasting sense of accomplishment and success. This project details a personal process of encounter design from initial conception to eventual player testing, along with design choices, outside influences, and development methods. These were ultimately utilized in an attempt to create an engaging and successful boss encounter