VP-Fronting in Sardinian: a structural paradox

This paper investigates the phenomena of Inversion and VP-fronting in Sardinian in examples like Dormende sunt sos pitzinnos ?sleeping are the children?. It is argued that the postverbal subject in these constructions cannot occupy the same position as the subject in general cases of Inversion, but raises to a higher position within the clause. This raising operation yields sharply ungrammatical sentences if VP fronting does not apply. However, these can be excluded by postulating general conditions (distinct from the Agree operation) on the structural relations which must hold at spell-out between overt heads and the elements which they license. It is argued that these conditions, along with further provisions which are necessary to accommodate the position of heavy subjects in Inversion constructions, may play a role in facilitating processing

Four new species of deep water agglutinated foraminifera from the Oligocene-Miocene of the Congo Fan (offshore Angola)

Four new species of deep-water agglutinated benthic foraminifera are described from the Oligocene and Miocene of the Congo Fan, offshore Angola. Scherochorella congoensis n.sp., Paratrochamminoides goroyskiformis n.sp., Haplophragmoides nauticus n.sp. and Portatrochammina profunda n.sp. all occur in deep-sea turbiditic shales and sands from the distal section of the Congo Fan

Organic matter responses to radiation under lunar conditions

Large bodies, such as the Moon, which have remained relatively unaltered for long periods of time have the potential to preserve a record of organic chemical processes from early in the history of the solar system. A record of volatiles and impactors may be preserved in buried lunar regolith layers that have been capped by protective lava flows. Of particular interest is the possible preservation of prebiotic organic materials delivered by ejected fragments of other bodies, including those originating from the surface of the early Earth. Lava flow layers would shield the underlying regolith and any carbon-bearing materials within them from most of the effects of space weathering, but the encapsulated organic materials would still be subject to irradiation before they were buried by regolith formation and capped with lava. We have performed a study to simulate the effects of solar radiation on a variety of organic materials mixed with lunar and meteorite analogue substrates. A fluence of ~3 x 1013 protons cm-2 at 4-13 MeV, intended to be representative of solar energetic particles, has little detectable effect on low molecular weight (≤C30) hydrocarbon structures that can be used to indicate biological activity (biomarkers) or the high molecular weight hydrocarbon polymer poly(styrene-co-divinylbenzene), and has little apparent effect on a selection of amino acids (≤C9). Inevitably, more lengthy durations of exposure to solar energetic particles may have more deleterious effects and rapid burial and encapsulation will always be more favourable to organic preservation. Our data indicate that biomarker compounds that may be used to infer biological activity on their parent planet can be relatively resistant to the effects of radiation, and may have a high preservation potential in paleoregolith layers on the Moon

Low-Noise Amplification of a Continuous Variable Quantum State

We present an experimental realization of a low-noise, phase-insensitive optical amplifier using a four-wave mixing interaction in hot Rb vapor. Performance near the quantum limit for a range of amplifier gains, including near unity, can be achieved. Such low-noise amplifiers are essential for so-called quantum cloning machines and are useful in quantum information protocols. We demonstrate that amplification and ``cloning'' of one half of a two-mode squeezed state is possible while preserving entanglement.Comment: To appear in Physical Review Letters July 3rd. 4 pages, 4 figure

A genealogy of the whole child

This research is an investigation into how the essentially ‘progressive’ pedagogical construct of the whole child became a neoliberal policy subject. In short, it is a presentation of the production/ or productions of the whole child in the neoliberal policy process. Specifically, it is focused on policies of well-being and character from the time of New Labour to the 2014 Conservative government. During the course of the research, three different yet thoroughly connected productions of the whole child have emerged: the whole child constituted in policy document definitions through psy- scientific discourses; the whole child constituted through the processes and practices of a neoliberal education system and the whole child constituted through classroom practices of well-being and character programmes. They occur at different stages of the policy process and in different sites yet are inseparable. Together they constitute a kind of anatomy of the whole child in neoliberal education policy. I have found it helpful to employ Foucault’s concept of the dispositif to both explore and connect the notion of the whole child and neoliberalism. I have understood those three articulations from the perspective of his constructs of bio power, governmentality and technologies of the self. My research then suggests that this ‘whole child’ of education policy represents and facilitates an increasingly systematic extension of neoliberal governance into/through the emotional and moral ‘life’ of the child. The whole child functions as a bio political or etho political subject that is a critical and developing constituent part of the neoliberal dispositif

Refreshment by the case: Use of multimedia in case study assessment

This paper outlines a novel approach to developing, presenting and using a multimedia case study for the assessment of a large (circa 230 students) Operations Management module at undergraduate level on a Business Studies programme. Engagement, realism and handling complexity are important issues in Operations Management teaching, learning and assessment. It is argued that traditional text based case studies do not address these concerns sufficiently and consequently can encourage surface learning approaches. Consultancy and simulation are more likely to be effective on these issues with the greater focus on experiential learning. However the constraints of these techniques restrict use as assessment options, particularly for large undergraduate programmes. This paper offers tutors of Operations Management an alternative approach to facilitating experiential learning using a multimedia case. The action research reported here develops this multimedia approach, identifies the practical considerations and the potential for improved student learning outcomes. The findings indicate that this multimedia approach was engaging, realistic and challenging hence facilitated greater student interest, understanding and skills

A Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation Polarimeter Using Superconducting Bearings

Measurements of the polarization of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) radiation are expected to significantly increase our understanding of the early universe. We present a design for a CMB polarimeter in which a cryogenically cooled half wave plate rotates by means of a high-temperature superconducting (HTS) bearing. The design is optimized for implementation in MAXIPOL, a balloon-borne CMB polarimeter. A prototype bearing, consisting of commercially available ring-shaped permanent magnet and an array of YBCO bulk HTS material, has been constructed. We measured the coefficient of friction as a function of several parameters including temperature between 15 and 80 K, rotation frequency between 0.3 and 3.5 Hz, levitation distance between 6 and 10 mm, and ambient pressure between 10^{-7} and 1 torr. The low rotational drag of the HTS bearing allows rotations for long periods of time with minimal input power and negligible wear and tear thus making this technology suitable for a future satellite mission.Comment: 6 pages, IEEE-Transactions of Applied Superconductivity, 2003, Vol. 13, in pres

Exercise-Induced Hypoalgesia in Healthy Individuals and People With Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Exercise-induced hypoalgesia (EIH) is a reduction in pain that occurs during or following exercise. Randomized controlled studies published from 1980 to January 2020 that examined experimentally induced pain before and during/following a single bout of exercise in healthy individuals or people with chronic musculoskeletal pain were systematically reviewed. Data were analyzed using random-effects meta-analyses and studies were appraised using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool and GRADE. Five thousand eight hundred twenty-nine records were screened, with 13 studies ultimately included. In healthy individuals, aerobic exercise caused large EIH (7 studies, 236 participants; g = −.85 [−1.58, −.13]), dynamic resistance exercise caused small EIH (2 studies, 23 participants; g = −.45 [−.69, −.22]), and isometric exercise did not cause EIH (3 studies, 177 participants; g = −.16 [−.36,.05]). In chronic musculoskeletal pain, isometric exercise did not cause EIH (3 studies, 114 participants; g = −.41 [−1.08,.25]); aerobic (0 studies) and dynamic resistance (1 study) exercise were not analyzed. We conclude that, based on small studies with unclear risk of bias, aerobic and dynamic resistance exercise reduce experimental pain in healthy individuals. Further research is needed to determine whether EIH exists for experimental and clinical pain in people with chronic musculoskeletal pain. Registration: PROSPERO ID: CRD42018085886. Perspective: Based on low-quality data from small samples, a single bout of aerobic exercise reduces experimental pain in healthy individuals. The evidence is unclear in people with chronic musculoskeletal pain but warrants further investigation due to the limited number of studies in these populations