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Conceptualizing Variation in Greek Exodus and Postclassical Greek
No full textThis project frames Jewish translation practice within Greek diachrony and the broader realities of bilingual cognitive processing. Often, linguistic research on the Greek of the Pentateuch has focused on isolated lexemes, resulting in an overemphasis on a ‘literal’ translation process representative of lexeme-for-lexeme matching. This scholarship stresses the text’s characteristic ‘isomorphism,’ suggesting that the translator(s) rendered nearly every Hebrew morpheme with a corresponding morpheme in Greek. In fact, this lexical pairing was even more important than conveying meaning, for meaning was not the translator(s) ‘intention.’ Although these sentiments still abound, recent studies in variationist linguistics paint a more complex picture of language production. Specifically, variation in argument realization indicates that such intentional cross-linguistic lexical pairing was unlikely. In light of documentary texts, Greek literature, and epigraphy, this project positions allative (motion toward) and ablative (motion from) arguments in Greek Exodus within the history of Greek. While acknowledging cross-linguistic influence, this project also offers an important corrective to the concept of ‘translation technique.’ Though the Hebrew source text lays the metaphorical path, several subconscious factors including cross-linguistic priming and event conceptualization drive production in Greek. This nuanced perspective creates an avenue for Septuagint research to move beyond otherizing the language use of Jewish populations in antiquity. Instead, the translators of the Greek Pentateuch may be situated within the broader linguistic and cultural world of Ptolemaic Egypt
Ground Penetrating Radar Survey along the streets of York City Centre Roman York: beneath the streets GPR Report 3
No full text5 ha of the streets of York city centre were surveyed using a step-frequency GPR system, dragged along the street surface at low speed. This was the first large-scale trial of its kind in the UK focused on testing the observability of archaeological features in urban environments. The GPR frequency ranged from 200-3000 MHz, which in theory meant that it should be good for capturing data from the surface down to 3m or more, though anything other than the largest archaeological features would probably lose resolution beyond 2m.
The survey registered details about the road makeup, services, and utilities. It had been imagined that the density of modern utilities might make seeing the archaeology between or through them impossible. However, it was noted that while dense in some areas, in many parts of the city there was plenty of space between linear features to observe any potential phenomena.
Unfortunately, no identifiably Roman features were discovered. The problem was not caused by utilities, but significant signal attenuation, with few features visible below about one meter. No archaeology was observed below this depth, even when the survey was above known archaeological features.
To investigate if this was due to soil ground conditions or equipment, two areas were resurveyed using a 250 MHz detector which had worked well on open grass areas within the city (Reports 1 & 2 in this series), but it too suffered from significant signal attenuation below 1 m. This may relate to the road makeup, and beneath that the attenuation from clay and sedimentary deposits.
This report is primarily of use for understanding methodological issues, from the archaeological point of view. Nonetheless, the data in the repository may be of use to anyone commissioning PAS 128 Utilities surveys in the streets in York city centre
Physical Pathways for JWST-observed Supermassive Black Holes in the Early Universe
No full textAbstract
Observations with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have revealed active galactic nuclei (AGN) powered by supermassive black holes (SMBHs) with estimated masses of 107–108
M
⊙ at redshifts z ∼ 7–9. Some reside in overmassive systems with higher AGN to stellar mass ratios than locally. Understanding how massive black holes could form so early in cosmic history and affect their environment to establish the observed relations today are some of the major open questions in astrophysics and cosmology. One model to create these massive objects is through direct collapse black holes (DCBHs) that provide massive seeds (∼105–106
M
⊙), able to reach high masses in the limited time available. We use the cosmological simulation code GIZMO to study the formation and growth of DCBH seeds in the early Universe. To grow the DCBHs, we implement a gas swallowing model set to match the Eddington accretion rate as long as the nearby gaseous environment, affected by stellar and accretion disk feedback, provides sufficient fuel. We find that to create massive AGN in overmassive systems at high redshifts, massive seeds accreting more efficiently than the fiducial Bondi–Hoyle model are needed. We assess whether the conditions for such enhanced accretion rates are realistic by considering limits on plausible transport mechanisms. We also examine various DCBH growth histories and find that mass growth is more sustained in overdense cosmological environments, where high gas densities are achieved locally. We discuss the exciting prospect to directly probe the assembly history of the first SMBHs with upcoming, ultradeep JWST surveys.</jats:p
Electron Tomography of Organelles and Vesicles in the Investigation of SNARE Function and Localization.
No full textElectron tomography can provide additional morphological information not easily obtained by conventional transmission electron microscopy of thin sections. It uses a goniometer stage in the electron microscope to tilt the specimen and collect a series of 2D images from different orientations, which are combined to provide a 3D volume tomogram and a colored reconstruction of the morphological feature(s) of interest. Here we describe the protocols for its use in visualizing changes in organelle morphology after depletion of the SNARE proteins VAMP7 and VAMP8 and to study VAMP7 localization on endolysosomes/lysosomes
SPATIALIZING WOMEN'S EVERYDAY ACCESS TO ENERGY: AN INTRA‐URBAN COMPARISON OF THE GENDER–ENERGY NEXUS IN LAHORE, PAKISTAN
No full textAbstractThe disparate distribution of energy and housing infrastructures in many megacities of the global South raises issues of equity and spatial justice, particularly for women. An intra‐urban comparison helps unpack the specific socio‐spatial characteristics of the gender–energy nexus, particularly in low‐income neighbourhoods that represent one form of peripheral urbanization. This article contributes to the limited literature on low‐income urban women's lived experiences and everyday energy practices. Using a mixed‐methods approach that combines 424 questionnaire surveys and 21 semi‐structured interviews with low‐income women across five case study sites in Lahore, it investigates women's energy access and use in domestic and open/public spaces, and workplaces. The study reveals significant infrastructural variations and gendered inequities within and across peripheries, and in their relation to urban cores. It demonstrates how women's peripheralized energy access is both spatially defined (e.g. in the heterogeneity of infrastructure available in peripheral neighbourhoods and in relation to their spatial proximity to urban cores) and socially contingent on their intersectional identities. The intra‐urban comparison reveals the complex gendered energy practices and women's subjective experiences of socio‐material exclusion, underscoring the importance of moving beyond simplistic private/public dichotomies and instead adopting an intersectional lens in spatializing the gender–energy nexus when studying urban peripheries.</jats:p
Investigation of metabolism in glioblastoma patient-derived xenografts using deuterium metabolic imaging
No full textThe identification of metabolic subtypes of cancer could be used to indicate prognosis and sensitivity to treatment. Conventional anatomical imaging techniques provide morphological information, such as tumour size and perfusion. However, they do not provide any information on metabolic activity, which in treated tumours can precede anatomical changes. Position emission tomography (PET) is the only metabolic imaging technique that is currently routinely available in the clinic, however, it only provides information on substrate uptake and not downstream metabolism. In this project, deuterium metabolic imaging (DMI), in the form of 2H spectroscopy and 2H chemical shift imaging (CSI), was used to study glucose and acetate metabolism in patient-derived xenografts (PDX) of glioblastoma in mice and rats respectively. Using 2H-labelled glucose, I showed that despite exhibiting the same concentration of glucose within the tumour, glycolytic PDX subtypes produced more labelled lactate and mitochondrial PDX subtypes more labelled glutamine and glutamate pool (Glx). These metabolic subtypes also showed a differential metabolic response to chemoradiation, which was detectable before any anatomical changes were observed on conventional 1H magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Targeting metabolism in the treatment of cancer has led to a number of promising novel metabolic inhibitors reaching the clinical trial phase of drug development. I showed that inhibiting mitochondrial complex 1 resulted in a reduction in tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle activity and a compensatory increase in glycolysis, and that the mitochondrial subtype is more sensitive to this treatment. Moreover, 2H CSI could be used to image these metabolic changes in vivo. Finally, I explored the potential of using 2H-labelled acetate to investigate fatty acid metabolism and the activity of the enzyme acetyl-CoA synthetase 2 (ACSS2) in vitro. Detecting downstream metabolites in vivo can be challenging due to their relatively low concentrations. Here, I showed that semi-heavy water (HDO) labelling from 2H-labelled acetate can be used as a surrogate marker of fatty acid synthesis
Introducing the Condor Array Telescope. V. Deep Broad- and Narrowband Imaging Observations of the M81 Group
No full textAbstract
We used the Condor Array Telescope to obtain deep imaging observations through the luminance broadband and He ii 468.6 nm, [O iii] 500.7 nm, He i 587.5 nm, Hα, [N ii] 658.4 nm, and [S ii] 671.6 nm narrowband filters of an extended region comprising 13 “Condor fields” spanning ≈ 8 × 8 deg2 on the sky centered near M81 and M82. Here we describe the acquisition and processing of these observations, which together constitute unique very deep imaging observations of a large portion of the M81 Group through a complement of broad- and narrowband filters. The images are characterized by an intricate web of faint, diffuse, continuum produced by starlight scattered from Galactic cirrus, and all prominent cirrus features identified in the broadband image can also be identified in the narrowband images. We subtracted the luminance image from the narrowband images to leave, more or less, only line emission in the difference images, and we masked regions of the resulting images around stars at an isophotal limit. The difference images exhibit extensive extended structures of ionized gas in the direction of the M81 Group, from known galaxies of the M81 Group, clouds of gas, filamentary structures, and apparent or possible bubbles or shells. Specifically, the difference images show a remarkable filament known as the “Ursa Major Arc;” a remarkable network of criss-crossed filaments between M81 and NGC 2976, some of which intersect and overlap the Ursa Major Arc; and details of a “giant shell of ionized gas.”</jats:p
Linguistic relativity: Loci and conditions of emergence
No full textThis dissertation addresses the following questions through five studies using the randomized-controlled training paradigm: Can language learning lead to linguistic relativity effects – the effect of the language(s) we speak on our cognition of non-verbal stimuli even without verbalization or preparation for verbalization using the relevant linguistic feature(s)? If yes, then what are the loci of such effects? Are they restricted to higher-level decision processes, or can they extend to lower-level perceptual processes as indexed by neurophysiological measures? Besides, under what condition(s) do linguistic relativity effects (not) emerge and what might this tell us about the underlying psychological mechanisms of such effects? My Studies 1 to 5 all suggest that language learning (more specifically learning a novel grammatical morphological system highlighting the familiar concept of event (in)transitivity) can indeed induce linguistic relativity effects. Regarding the loci, such effects were found in both higher-level decision processes (i.e., learning this novel morphological system biased non-verbal motion event categorization preferences towards motion (in)transitivity compared to a control group naïve to this novel system in Studies 1, 3, and 5) and lower-level perceptual processes (i.e., learning this novel morphological system enhanced not only attentional but also preattentive visual processing of motion event (in)transitivity as indexed by event-related potential (ERP) patterns compared to a control group naïve to this novel system in Study 2). Regarding conditions of emergence, I only studied them in relation to linguistic relativity effects in higher-level decision processes (triads-matching preferences). Through three studies (Studies 3 to 5) manipulating language instructional conditions (one meaning-focused and two form-focused conditions including required intentional induction and direct metalinguistic explanation) and types of semantic processing of the input (manipulating the degree to which embodied semantic processing was interfered with), I found that such linguistic relativity effects relied on internalized linguistic knowledge obtained through repetitive, deep, and potentially embodied semantic processing rather than mere declarative knowledge of what the target pattern is, even when the amount of input or practice was comparable. More specifically, linguistic relativity effects were more likely to emerge under the meaning-focused instructional condition than the required intentional induction condition, followed by the direct metalinguistic explanation condition. Besides language instructional conditions and types of semantic processing, I also found that such linguistic relativity effects were more likely to emerge in individuals with a lower propensity for verbal cognitive style (Study 5). All of these findings are explained within a coherent interactive activation framework of language-cognition interactions, drawing on language embodiment theories and models of the depth of processing of linguistic input. The findings are also discussed in light of contemporary psycho- and neurolinguistic research findings and the history of the philosophical debate on language-cognition relationships. Unlike traditional cross-language-group comparative studies, to the best of my knowledge, my dissertation is the first to investigate linguistic relativity effects induced by grammatical categories and morphemes using artificial language learning experiments with a randomized-controlled design (only a randomly-allocated experimental group but not the control group learned the novel system). This design helps to maximally rule out cultural confounds (that the difference in cognition between speakers of different languages may be due to different cultures instead of language per se). Besides, my dissertation is also the first to show that such linguistic relativity effects induced by grammatical categories and morphemes can even permeate preattentive visual processing. Moreover, this dissertation is also the first to show how such effects depend on language instructional conditions, types of semantic processing during learning, and individual cognitive styles
Conceptualising educational inclusion: interrogating education policies and headteachers’ perspectives in a Pakistani context
No full textEducational inclusion and exclusion in Pakistan is impacted by a mix of contextual social,
economic, and political factors. Multiple levels of intersecting disadvantage contribute
towards large numbers of school age Pakistani children being out of school with poverty
being a most common underlying factor. Poverty can intersect with other markers of
educational marginalisation – such as gender and disability- within schooling as well.
Understanding such interconnected and dynamic characteristics is thus critical to recognising
who may face educational exclusion, marginalisation, and inclusion in Pakistan. Furthermore,
there is limited scholarship on how these markers are recognised and understood by key
actors in education within the country. This research contributes to this area of scholarship by
investigating two perspectives: those embedded in education policies and those held by
headteachers. Education policies create the overarching framework within which educational
inclusion is operationalised. Policy priorities are transmitted through tiers of educational
infrastructure and culminate at the school level where headteachers are instrumental in
creating inclusive school environments. Thus, understanding how educational inclusion is
conceptualised in the policies and by headteachers provides a lens into how educational
inclusion is practised in Pakistani schools.
This study has two parts: the first is a critical policy analysis of three key educational policy
documents that oversee the delivery of education in Karachi, the locational context of this
research. The policy documents were analysed using critical discourse analysis of embedded
policy priorities, language use, and the political, social, and economic context within which
each document was published. The second part comprises semi-structured individual and
participatory group interviews with headteachers of 17 schools catering to low-income
communities in Karachi, all functioning under the operational umbrella of the selected policy
documents. The schools were divided across four school networks with varied funding and
management structures– government schools, charity schools, non-profit schools, and low-
cost private schools. The interviews were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis to
identify the broad themes emerging from the headteachers’ perspectives.
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The study’s research design foregrounds four intersecting markers of exclusion – poverty,
gender, religion, and disability as identified within literature on Pakistan, while also
addressing others identified in the policies and by headteachers. The findings indicate that
poverty is the most common cause of exclusion from education, while girls, students with
disabilities and from religious minority groups also experience diverse forms of
marginalisation within schooling, often made more acute by underlying poverty. However,
perspectives were not uniform across the various markers. Thus, while girls’ enrolment was
prioritised, representational gender inequality in learning materials and classroom practices
was unrecognised in the policies and by headteachers. Policy documents identified
madrassah students as excluded from mainstream education a phenomenon not prioritised in
headteachers’ reflections. Furthermore, marginalisation of religious minorities in a curricular
environment dominated by Islamic epistemology was not prioritised in either. Finally,
mainstreaming of students with disabilities was marginally addressed in the policies while
headteachers’ responses reflected a general lack of understanding of disabilities. Their
responses further highlighted resource inadequacy to address disability needs in mainstream
schools.
The study argues that underlying all conceptualisations of inclusion is recognition of
exclusion – those who are excluded and the nature of exclusion that they experience. To this
end, it adapts Nancy Fraser’s framework of recognition to frame the policies’ and
headteachers’ recognition of exclusion that informs their conceptualisations of inclusion. To
the extent that this research is grounded in conceptualisations embedded in the policies and
articulated by headteachers, it limits this framing to recognition and does not extend to
postulating on its redistributive impact.
While descriptive markers of excluded student groups parallel those from comparable
contexts, some unexpected findings also emerged from the headteachers’ reflections.
Contradicting widely held perceptions of Pakistani headteachers lacking motivation, the
participating headteachers’ narratives on their practices reflected an overarching commitment
to their roles as educators. These were exemplified in narrations of efforts reflecting varied
forms of self-motivated and agentive headship. These were operationalised within and
impacted by the ethos of their institutions in a complex mix of systems-driven support and
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relationships with management. Thus, a second tier of analysis frames the drivers of this
motivated headship in theories of motivation that unpack intrinsic, extrinsic and altruistic
drivers of motivation.
The findings respond to the research objectives of this study to investigate how policy
documents and headteachers conceptualise educational exclusion and inclusion in a Pakistani
context. Points of overlap and variance between policy documents and headteachers’
perspectives reflect the ontological complexity of lived experiences and human behaviour.
Based on the findings, the study proposes a broader, nuanced understanding of exclusion
markers at all tiers of the educational infrastructure in Pakistan, for a dynamic, equity-driven,
and contextualised view of inclusion that responds to evolving environments. The study also
argues that policies should have more holistic conceptualisations informed by broader
stakeholder involvement in policymaking. Finally, the study advocates for educational
leadership training to be designed to capture, cultivate and empower motivation for impactful
and inclusive headship
