Symbolic Patterns Research Articles

Robinson & compagnie: aspects de l’insularité politique de Thomas More à Michel Tournier (review)

Reviewed by: Robinson & compagnie: aspects de l’insularité politique de Thomas More à Michel Tournier Maximillian E. Novak (bio) Jean-Michel Racault. Robinson & compagnie: aspects de l’insularité politique de Thomas More à Michel Tournier. Paris: Éditions Pétra, 2010. 374pp. 29€. ISBN 978-2-84743-033-2. If the robinsonade has remained a significant sub-genre of fiction since the eighteenth century, the contemplation of this variation on a theme of Daniel Defoe is becoming a sub-genre of the criticism of the novel, from Martin Green’s Robinson Crusoe Story (1990) to Jean-Paul Engélibert’s La Postérité de Robinson Crusoé (1997). Jean-Michel Racault’s Robinson & compagnie, the most recent study to join the sub-genre, attempts to show why the robinsonade was and remains an important literary form—why the pattern of shipwreck, redemption on the island, and return to Western society is so fertile for European literature. He argues that so far from being a somewhat primitive writer with unexamined ideas, Defoe had one of the most complex minds of his time, passing on that complexity to a host of future authors fascinated by the possibilities inherent in Crusoe’s narrative. Defoe’s treatment of guilt, isolation, the concept of the self, the fear of the other (in the form of the cannibals), Crusoe’s socialization with the coming of Friday, his attempt at establishing a kind of contractual government among the settlers, and his emergence as the governor of his island with the suppression of the mutineers all raised serious questions for his time and for the centuries that have followed. Part of a series on “des Îles,” Racault’s book begins with a section on Thomas More’s Utopia—a revisit to a work that was a key reference point for his own book on Utopias. Racault states the difference between the robinsonade and the Utopia succinctly. In a robinsonade, an isolated character (or a group) struggles to survive and actively transforms the surrounding nature; in a Utopia, a character arrives at an already formed, ideal society for which he usually expresses his uncritical admiration. Since it is already perfect, there is nothing to change. If Utopias depict an ideal society, they nevertheless depend on a dialectic with the real world; similarly, the robinsonade creates a dialectic with the original place of departure, through the creation of a society that, by its relative simplicity, serves as a critique of the outside world. If it is not always on a literal island, the robinsonade nevertheless always has an island mentality. It does not offer perfect solutions to the political, economic, social, and psychological problems of the civilized world in the manner of a Utopia, but rather a new way of seeing them. In approaching his subject, Racault uses Gérard Genette’s concept of “hypertextualité.” There were robinsonades before Defoe co-opted the form, and to some extent, versions of the Crusoe story written after Defoe’s work modify the ways in which we view the original. The chapter on Shakespeare’s The Tempest is excellent in this regard. Defoe [End Page 716] had probably read the Dryden-Davenant version and certainly knew of the political struggles of those wrecked on Bermuda who inspired Shakespeare. Crusoe as the magician Prospero? Caliban as a Friday incap able of adapting to his master’s whims? And if Ibn Thofaïl’s Hayy ben Yaqdhân and Gracian’s Andrenio give us directions in which Defoe might have gone (but, for the most part, did not), so Jules Verne’s wind-blown balloonists, remnants of America’s Civil War, show how Crusoe’s recreation of human development, with his pottery and bread-making, might have taken shape with the influence of nineteenth-century science. In his examination of Robinson Crusoe, Racault attempts to reconcile the realism of the style with what he considers to be a symbolic pattern in line with the interpretations of G.A. Starr and J. Paul Hunter. He provides three detailed readings of the novel in the form of the seeming miracle of the European grain growing on the island; of the cave with the goat; and of Crusoe’s assuming his role...

Consistency of multidimensional combinatorial substitutions

Multidimensional combinatorial substitutions are rules that replace symbols by finite patterns of symbols in Zd. We focus on the case where the patterns are not necessarily rectangular, which requires a specific description of the way they are glued together in the image by a substitution. Two problems can arise when defining a substitution in such a way: it can fail to be consistent, and the patterns in an image by the substitution might overlap.We prove that it is undecidable whether a two-dimensional substitution is consistent or overlapping, and we provide practical algorithms to decide these properties in some particular cases.

The Comparative Study on English Words, Chinese Words, Early Words and Pictures

Words' naming and categorizing can reflect words' processing course and mechanism.English words,Chinese words,inscription on oracle bones,Dongba pictograph and pictures were different symbolic systems in the history of human characters' development.It had important theoretical values to investigate the features of these five symbolic systems.Two experiments were adopted to investigate five symbolic systems' characteristics.Perceptive similarity evaluation task was performed in Experiment 1a.Two types of symbols were matched,participants were asked to evaluate the similarity level by 7-point scale.Each kind of materials had 16 stimuli including animal,plant,human organs,natural objects and tools.Twenty-six university students participated in this study and they were required to learn and get acquainted with the materials before the experiment.Semantic consistence evaluation task was performed in Experiment 1b.Twenty-five university students participated in this study.Naming and categorizing tasks were performed in Experiment 2.Two-factor within subject design was used:5(symbolic types:English words,Chinese words,inscription on oracle bones,Dongba pictograph and pictures) × 2(tasks:naming,categorizing).During naming task,participants were asked to read the words loudly or name the symbols presented on the screen as quickly and correctly as possible.Naming time was collected by the computer and naming correct percent was recorded by the examiner.During categorizing task,participants were asked to decide whether the item a word or symbol representing belong to a certain category by pressing "F" or "J" on the keyboards.Stimulus-naming were presented in five blocks of 240 trials.Stimulus-categorizing were presented in five blocks of 480 trials.Twenty-four university students participated in this study.The results were as following:(1) Different symbols displayed differently in perceptive similarity judgment task and semantic consistence judgment task.Pictures,inscription on oracle bones,Dongba pictograph and Chinese characters had high similarity in perception,English and other symbols had low similarity;in semantic consistence judgment task,symbols combined with English and Chinese were processed fast.(2) Different kinds of materials were asymmetrical in naming and categorizing:English-reading and Chinese-reading were faster than English-categorizing and Chinese-categorizing,categorizing of inscription on oracle bones,Dongba pictograph-categorizing and picture-categorizing were faster than respective naming.(3) Regardless of naming or categorizing,the reacting of Chinese words and pictures were faster than the reacting of inscription on oracle bones and Dongba pictograph.English-naming was faster than naming of inscription on oracle bones and Dongba pictograph-naming;English-categorizing was slower than Dongba pictograph-categorizing.(4) English words,Chinese words and pictures were asymmetrical in naming and categorizing:English-reading and Chinese-reading were faster than picture-naming but English-categorizing,Chinese-categorizing was slower than picture-categorizing.(5) Dongba pictograph and inscription on oracle bones were asymmetrical in naming and categorizing:the reading of inscription on oracle bones was faster than Dongba pictograph-reading but the categorizing of inscription on oracle bones was slower than Dongba pictograph-categorizing.These phenomena were attributed to the structure characteristics and distinctive features of the five symbols,also the patterns of symbols recording language and participants' proficiency of symbols.These results may provide psychological evidence for the character's development as well as evolution rules,and also help to identify the natures of Dongba pictograph and inscription on oracle bones.

Carving language for social coordination

Human social coordination is often mediated by language. Through verbal dialogue, people direct each other’s attention to properties of their shared environment, they discuss how to jointly solve problems, share their introspections, and distribute roles and assignments. In this article, we propose a dynamical framework for the study of the coordinative role of language. Based on a review of a number of recent experimental studies, we argue that shared symbolic patterns emerge and stabilize through a process of local reciprocal linguistic alignment. Such patterns in turn come to facilitate and refine social coordination by enabling the alignment, joint construction and navigation of conceptual models and actions. Implications of the framework are illustrated and discussed in relation to a case study where dyads of interlocutors interact verbally to reach joint decisions in a perceptual discrimination task. Keywords: social coordination; language; communication; linguistic alignment; symbolic patterns; affordances; emergence; evolution; adaptivity; interaction

Are archetypes transmitted more by culture than biology? Questions arising from conceptualizations of the archetype

The archetype is one of the most important, if not the central concept of analytical psychology. Nevertheless from the beginning the concept was controversial. This paper attempts to review the debate around the term archetype and tries to point out some of the main problems the concept has in the light of contemporary knowledge especially in genetics and neurosciences. It becomes clear that for its use in the practice of Jungian psychotherapy the element of universality in the concept of archetypes is crucial. However, it must be concluded that there is still no firm scientific foundation for the claim that complex symbolic patterns (as for example the myth of the hero) can be transmitted in a way that every human individual has access to them. The paper attempts to show possible ways in which this transmission may be more successfully conceptualized. I would like to have Jung have the last word here. We find a hint in Jung's work where he opens up to ideas much like the ones I have developed here, and this is where Jung says: culture is part of man's nature.

Segmenting and Parsing Instrumentalists' Gestures

This article presents a segmentation model applied to musician movements, taking into account different time structures. In particular we report on ancillary gestures that are not directly linked to sound production, whilst still being entirely part of the global instrumental gesture. Precisely, we study movements of the clarinet captured with an optical 3D motion capture system, analysing ancillary movements assuming that they can be considered as a sequence of primitive actions regarded as base shapes. A stochastic model called the Segmental Hidden Markov Model is used. It allows for the representation of a continuous trajectory as a sequence of primitive temporal profiles taken from a given dictionary. We evaluate the model using two criteria: the Euclidean norm and the log-likelihood, then show that the size of the dictionary does not influence the fitting accuracy and propose a method for building a dictionary based on the log-likelihood criterion. Finally, we show that the sequence of primitive shapes can also be considered as a sequence of symbols enabling us to interpret the data as symbolic patterns and motifs. Based on this representation, we show that circular patterns occur in all players' performances. This symbolic step produces a different layer of interpretation, linked to a larger time scale, which might not be obvious from a direct signal representation.

First language acquisition of French grammar (from 10 months to 4 years old) Introduction

How do French children acquire the grammatical system of their native language so easily? Many hypotheses have been put forward and experimentally tested to solve this mystery. Generative theories argue that grammar is a universal and innate ability ready to be instantiated after birth. Within this framework, grammatical development is seen as a process whereby universal grammar gradually settles into the language-specific structures of the linguistic input that children receive in the first years of life. In the last decades however, many researchers of child language development have suggested other explanations. Current functional-cognitive research (cf. Langacker, 1988, 2000; Bybee, 1995, 2002; Elman et al., 1996; Tomasello, 2003; Diessel, 2004), proposes a usage-based approach to first language acquisition, where grammar is shaped by usage, and linguistic constructions are taken from parental input and gradually generalised by the child. Usage-based theories thus consider grammatical development as a dynamic process which emerges and evolves, in parallel with cognitive and psychological development, through the use of symbolic patterns which consolidate into grammatical constructions.

Casting traceability with direct part marking using reconfigurable pin-type tooling based on paraffin–graphite actuators

Green sand moulding machines for cast iron foundries are presently unable to uniquely identify individual castings. An insert tool concept is developed and tested via incremental mock-up development. The tool is part of the pattern plate and changes shape between each moulding, thus giving each mould a unique ID by embossing a Data Matrix symbol into the sand. In the process of producing the mould, each casting can be given a unique (DPM), enabling part tracking throughout the casting's life cycle. Sand embossing is achieved with paraffin-actuated reconfigurable pin-type tooling under simulated processing conditions. The marker geometry limitations have been tested using static symbol patterns, both for sand embossing and actual casting marking. The marked castings have successfully been identified with decoding software. The study shows that the function of each element of this technology can be successfully applied within the foundry industry.

Mapping Symbols to Sounds: Electrophysiological Correlates of the Impaired Reading Process in Dyslexia

Dyslexic and control first-grade school children were compared in a Symbol-to-Sound matching test based on a non-linguistic audiovisual training which is known to have a remediating effect on dyslexia. Visual symbol patterns had to be matched with predicted sound patterns. Sounds incongruent with the corresponding visual symbol (thus not matching the prediction) elicited the N2b and P3a event-related potential (ERP) components relative to congruent sounds in control children. Their ERPs resembled the ERP effects previously reported for healthy adults with this paradigm. In dyslexic children, N2b onset latency was delayed and its amplitude significantly reduced over left hemisphere whereas P3a was absent. Moreover, N2b amplitudes significantly correlated with the reading skills. ERPs to sound changes in a control condition were unaffected. In addition, correctly predicted sounds, that is, sounds that are congruent with the visual symbol, elicited an early induced auditory gamma band response (GBR) reflecting synchronization of brain activity in normal-reading children as previously observed in healthy adults. However, dyslexic children showed no GBR. This indicates that visual symbolic and auditory sensory information are not integrated into a unitary audiovisual object representation in them. Finally, incongruent sounds were followed by a later desynchronization of brain activity in the gamma band in both groups. This desynchronization was significantly larger in dyslexic children. Although both groups accomplished the task successfully remarkable group differences in brain responses suggest that normal-reading children and dyslexic children recruit (partly) different brain mechanisms when solving the task. We propose that abnormal ERPs and GBRs in dyslexic readers indicate a deficit resulting in a widespread impairment in processing and integrating auditory and visual information and contributing to the reading impairment in dyslexia.

Improving Cost-Optimal Domain-Independent Symbolic Planning

Symbolic search with BDDs has shown remarkable performance for cost-optimal deterministic planning by exploiting a succinct representation and exploration of state sets. In this paper we enhance BDD-based planning by applying a combination of domain-independent search techniques: the optimization of the variable ordering in the BDD by approximating the linear arrangement problem, pattern selection for improved construction of search heuristics in form of symbolic partial pattern databases, and a decision procedure for the amount of bidirection in the symbolic search process.

Topoi and literary interpretation: The effects of a critical reading and writing intervention on high school students’ analytic literary essays

Literary scholars use specific critical lenses called topoi ( Fahnestock & Secor, 1991) to read literature and write their interpretations of these texts. Literary topoi are used in the discourse of modern college literature classrooms ( Wilder, 2002) and are associated with higher grades in students’ literature classes ( Wilder, 2002, 2005). However, research shows that high school students are generally unable to justify their literary interpretations ( Marshall, 2000). In this study, six high school students were taught a strategy to recognize and use topoi to form an interpretation of literature, and then write an argument to support that interpretation. Three of the students were taught to recognize repeated examples of single patterns of symbolism and imagery that support a theme, i.e., the ubiquity topos. The other three were taught to recognize opposing patterns of symbolism and imagery that support a theme, i.e., the paradox topos. All participants were then taught to form arguments based on the topoi, to utilize direct quotations to back their arguments, and to write “tie-in sentences” that link the quotations to the writers’ arguments. Instruction about these topoi resulted in higher quality argumentative essays that provided more textual evidence to support their literary interpretations.

A Pilot Symbol Pattern Enabling Data Recovery Without Side Information in PTS-Based OFDM Systems

Partial transmit sequence (PTS) scheme is one of the most popular peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) reduction schemes for orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) systems. In the PTS scheme, one OFDM symbol is partitioned into disjointed sub-blocks, and each sub-block is multiplied by a phase factor to generate signals with low PAPR. For data recovery, receivers must have side information (SI), e.g., phase factors, from transmitters. In this letter, a novel data recovery scheme in PTS-based OFDM systems without SI is proposed. In the proposed scheme, an additional pilot symbol is intentionally inserted at the end of each sub-block, so that efficient data decoding based on channel estimation can be executed with known pilot symbols. Simulation results show that the BER performance of the proposed scheme without SI is approximately the same as those of the PTS scheme with perfect SI and a maximum likelihood decoding scheme. Considering the cost for SI encoding and decoding, the proposed scheme is practically more advantageous over the PTS scheme.

Binary symbolic dynamics classifies heart rate variability patterns linked to autonomic modulations

Symbolic dynamics derived from heart rate variability (HRV) is able to reflect changes of cardiac autonomic modulations on short time scales in spite of the considerable reduction of information involved. However, the link between the appearance of specific symbolic patterns and the activity of the autonomic nervous system has not yet been elucidated. In this study, we investigate the symbolic dynamics that reflect acceleration (=‘1') and deceleration (=‘0’) of the instantaneous heart rate. The resulting binary series is analyzed with respect to the regularity of binary patterns of length 8 using Approximate Entropy (ApEn). Binary patterns were grouped according to the level of their regularity as assessed by ApEn. ECG recordings were obtained from 17 healthy subjects during graded head-up tilt (0, 15, 30, 45, 60, 75, and 90°). The linear correlation (Spearman correlation coefficient) between tilt angle and the occurrence of binary patterns was evaluated. The results show that regular binary patterns occurred more often with increasing tilt angle whereas the occurrence of some irregular patterns decreased. Some binary patterns did not show a change of occurrence during tilt. When compared to the results of spectral analysis, regular binary patterns reflect sympathetic modulations whereas irregular binary patterns reflect parasympathetic modulations. The parameters derived from binary symbolic dynamics reflect changes of autonomic modulations during graded head-up tilt and are not fully correlated to the spectral markers of HRV.

Symbolic Analysis of Sonar Data for Underwater Target Detection

This paper presents a symbolic pattern analysis method for robust feature extraction from sidescan sonar images that are generated from autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs). The proposed data-driven algorithm, built upon the concepts of symbolic dynamics and automata theory, is used for detection of mines and mine-like objects in the undersea environment. This real-time algorithm is based on symbolization of the data space via coarse graining, i.e., partitioning of the two-dimensional sonar images. The statistical information, in terms of stochastic matrices that serve as features, is extracted from the symbolized images by construction of probabilistic finite state automata. A binary classifier is designed for discrimination of detected objects into mine-like and nonmine-like categories. The pattern analysis algorithm has been validated on sonar images generated in the exploration phase of a mine hunting operation; these data have been provided by the Naval Surface Warfare Center. The algorithm is formulated for real-time execution on limited-memory commercial-of-the-shelf platforms and is capable of detecting objects on the seabed-bottom.

Punctuated Equilibria and Indonesian Art

What defines the evolution of craft to an art form? Is it the length of time that a person puts into producing it? Probably not, for the cardboard cathedrals crafted by John Merrick (the Elephant Man) surely equate in time and effort to a typical sculpture; however, one is whimsy and the other is art. Is it an issue of quality, where a refined craft eventually becomes art? The Durer woodcut, the carved burl, and the samurai sword are of undisputed quality— but art, not necessarily. Is it the level of abstraction or impressionism in figurative expression? If so, we might compare a tourist caricature painter to one of the Dutch masters. Perhaps the closest definition is this: craft is the basic repetition of a learned skill, whereas art suggests creative innovation even if applied to old technology. In this issue’s cover art, we witness a natural experiment in the evolution of art from craft. In this case, the art is ‘‘Luxuriant Grass,’’ by Indonesian artist Mardiyono. The craft is batik, a fabric that has been decorated using a wax resist dyeing method. First, the batik maker applies a pattern of hot wax to a cloth. When the wax dries, the fabric is either brushed with or dipped into a series of dyes. The wax, which is later removed, preserves intricate patterns of unstained cloth. Throughout Southeast Asia, batik carries great cultural significance. Batik can be defined according to pattern, color, or fabric. In Indonesia, traditional Javanese court batik consisted of specific symbolic and ceremonial motifs, typically dyed in earthen tones. However, due to colonial rule, wartime occupation, maritime trade and other geopolitical factors, Indonesian batik patterns have also been known to include European bouquets, Indian peacocks, Chinese phoenixes, and Arabic calligraphy (UNESCO 2009). At its origins, batik was an art intended for royal appreciation (Elliot and Brake 2004). Over time, as innovative artistic designs became recognizable symbolic patterns, batik shifted into the realm of cultural craft. In the expanding regional markets of the mid-1800s, batik makers turned to copper stamps to apply the wax to large swaths of fabric. This allowed for faster production of precisely patterned batik textiles, turning cultural craft into an industry. In the 1960s, new technology encouraged the production of yardage of batik for clothing in Western-style cuts (Elliot and Brake 2004). In Malaysia today, many government departments honor ‘‘batik Thursday,’’ a far more elegant contrast to our Western ‘‘casual Friday.’’ How can we map the transformation of modern batik? For batik, the evolution of art from craft did not occur along a smooth trajectory of increasing abstraction or finery of detail. It occurred in the shift away from a repetitive, learned skill. In ‘‘Luxuriant Grass,’’ Mardiyono’s change is stark but simple. Rather than repeat figurative motifs on a stained background, Mardiyono keeps large swaths of the silk canvass pure crystal white. Moreover, he paints freehand renditions of Indonesian scenes with stunning detail and explosive color. This artistic leap punctuates the equilibrium to push the evolution of art in a single generation. This is an exciting time for aficionados of ‘Eco-Art’ (see www.ecoartsonline.org). To witness the birth of a new art form is equivalent to witnessing Halley’s comet. What do new artists choose as they look for subject matter to EcoHealth 8, 134–135, 2011 DOI: 10.1007/s10393-011-0709-7

Mind as Music

Cognitive neuroscience typically develops hypotheses to explain phenomena that are localized in space and time. Specific regions of the brain execute characteristic functions, whose causes and effects are prompt; determining these functions in spatial and temporal isolation is generally regarded as the first step toward understanding the coherent operation of the whole brain over time. In other words, if the task of cognitive neuroscience is to interpret the neural code, then the first step has been semantic, searching for the meanings (functions) of localized elements, prior to exploring neural syntax, the mutual constraints among elements synchronically and diachronically. While neuroscience has made great strides in discovering the functions of regions of the brain, less is known about the dynamic patterns of brain activity over time, in particular, whether regions activate in sequences that could be characterized syntactically. Researchers generally assume that neural semantics is a precondition for determining neural syntax. Furthermore, it is often assumed that the syntax of the brain is too complex for our present technology and understanding. A corollary of this view holds that functional MRI (fMRI) lacks the spatial and temporal resolution needed to identify the dynamic syntax of neural computation. This paper examines these assumptions with a novel analysis of fMRI image series, resting on the conjecture that any computational code will exhibit aggregate features that can be detected even if the meaning of the code is unknown. Specifically, computational codes will be sparse or dense in different degrees. A sparse code is one that uses only a few of the many possible patterns of activity (in the brain) or symbols (in a human-made code). Considering sparseness at different scales and as measured by different techniques, this approach clearly distinguishes two conventional coding systems, namely, language and music. Based on an analysis of 99 subjects in three different fMRI protocols, in comparison with 194 musical examples and 700 language passages, it is observed that fMRI activity is more similar to music than it is to language, as measured over single symbols, as well as symbol combinations in pairs and triples. Tools from cognitive musicology may therefore be useful in characterizing the brain as a dynamical system.

The Foster Mother's Language: Anti-representation, Pseudo-feminization, and Other Consequences of a Mistake of Gender Charm in <i>Heiðarvíga saga</i>

The Foster Mother's Language: Anti-representation, Pseudo-feminization, and Other Consequences of a Mistake of Gender Charm in Heiðarvíga saga Robin Waugh In the aftermath of the famous battle on the heath in Heiðarvíga saga, a very unusual mistake of identification takes place: "Ok er þeir ríða út eptir heraði, ætla menn, at konur ríði" (309) ["Those who saw them (Barði Guðmundarson, the protagonist of the saga's main feud, and his band of allies) as they rode north through the district thought they were women" (4: 120)]. 1 The saga implies that these riders have taken advantage of the mistaken impressions of them in order to elude contact with enemies and escape from hostile territory undetected. But many of these riders are wounded, some severely, and presumably blood and other signs of their injuries would normally be visible. For this reason and others the mistake seems unlikely: a reader might well suspect that the band's appearance has been disguised. In fact, the consequences of this particular masquerade are so far-reaching that I am surprised that no critic has dealt with it in detail before. [End Page 307] This mistake of gender episode is part, I would argue, of a larger symbolic pattern of uncanny images of women that runs through much of Old Norse literature, including Laxdœla saga, Njáls saga, Finnboga saga, Kormáks saga, and Heiðarvíga saga. The pattern gathers together fundamental Old Icelandic concepts of revenge, battle, gender, and sharp-sightedness and also, in several of these works, relies upon the specific motif of a character receiving inheritance from a foster mother. These various elements join up most particularly and strikingly in Heiðarvíga saga. I focus on this saga not only because it is relatively neglected but also because readers may notice in it a tendency for the traditional man-woman binary to break down at moments of crisis, as if the typical settings in the sagas for such crises could be represented (at least to modern audiences) as the "fertile borderlands, ... the liminal spaces ..., the sites of constant movement and change, the loc[i] of syncretist intermingling and hybrid interfusions of self and other" that Susan Sanford Friedman identifies in examples of postcolonial literature (19). In such settings and at moments of crisis that are characteristic to the sagas, the usual methods of identifying oneself and others can betray themselves as merely longstanding prejudices that are perhaps in the end too reductive to mean very much (Friedman 19). In my chosen sagas, this breakdown of the normal means of identification is so individual that many of the current theories concerning the traditional gender binary that dominates these works, including the revisionist definitions of femininity and masculinity that Carol J. Clover has put forward (and despite the fact that such theories have articulated a number of important distinctions between Old Norse society and the societies of northern and western Europe more generally), need further revision toward the possibility that some attitudes on view in the sagas indicate a remarkable tendency toward anti-representation—a short-circuiting of the usual identifying process (among other things). 2 My conclusion [End Page 308] is that the "to-and-fro-ness" (Friedman 143) that occurs at characteristic moments of identity crisis in the sagas reconfigures the issue of gender as a ghostly figure, 3 and the resulting instability of standard identifications that are based on gender binarity "constitute[...]" a previously under-recognized "propelling force in [the] narrative[s]" (144) of these, and likely other Old Icelandic works as well. In the sagas I examine here, this force manifests itself through magic-knowing foster mothers, rebellious wives, and (occasionally fallible) attributes of sharp sight inherited from female forebearers (Friedman 143-4, 153; Bhabha 1). Of course any upset of the traditional gender binary raises disquieting doubts about humanity's habit of employing gender as a viable step in the process of identifying and recognizing others, and the lucky escape in Heiðarvíga saga is unique in its self-conscious highlighting of a moment when men supposedly take on feminine aspects. Similar getaways are...

Landmarks of Old Livonia – Church Towers, Their Symbols and Meaning

Church towers are among the most prominent features of landscape and contain both significant architectural and symbolic value. Religion and its various beliefs and ideologies bring symbolism and meaning into the everyday lives of people. This geographical study deals with the iconography of church towers, looking closer into their regional distribution pattern and analyzing their connotation within the former territory of Old Livonia (now encompassed by present-day Estonia and present-day Latvia, except for Latgale) and within the European religious context. The analysis of the distribution pattern of church tower symbols in Estonia shows significant regional variance. In the former Province of Estonia, governed by Tallinn, the cross is a dominant symbol on church towers, whereas the use of the cockerel is more widespread in the former Province of Livonia, the historic capital of which was Riga. A third historical region of Livonia, Kurland (governed by Jelgava), shares similarities in church tower symbolism with the Province of Estonia. We believe that the variance in distribution could be due to the influence of urban centers (Tallinn and Riga) in shaping the use of symbols throughout their administrative borders.

Symbol Insertion: A Low-Complexity Joint Peak Power Reduction and Forward Error Correction for Single-Carrier Systems

In this paper, we present a new modulation code, named symbol insertion (SI), that simultaneously achieves both peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) reduction and forward error correction for pulse-shaped single-carrier systems in a low-complexity manner. Based on the fact that PAPR highly depends on the successive phase patterns of discrete complex symbols, the proposed code controls phase shifts by inserting a redundant symbol between consecutive information-bearing symbols. At the receiver, by viewing the inserted symbols as parities, we exploit them for error correction. We show that, when the SI is used as an inner code of serially concatenated codes, its error rate performance is close to those of conventional capacity-approaching codes. The proposed system thus becomes favorable if the amount of PAPR reduction is taken into account. Furthermore, the SI with a rotationally invariant insertion scheme can accommodate itself to noncoherent detection.

Representações fílmicas de uma instituição policial violenta: resquícios da ditadura militar em Tropa de Elite

O propósito deste artigo é investigar como representações fílmicas da violência e da opressão simbólica evidenciam as tensões que se estabelecem no confronto entre traficantes e policiais em ações de combate ao crime nas favelas brasileiras. Analisaremos trechos de um filme recente, Tropa de Elite (2007), no qual métodos de tortura são usados – tanto por policiais quanto pelos traficantes - para obtenção de confissões e execuções por vingança. Argumentamos que a brutalidade que rege as relações entre policiais, traficantes e moradores de favelas reafirma a naturalização de padrões simbólicos que representam resquícios das estratégias opressoras empregadas na época da Ditadura Militar. A violação dos direitos humanos revela que apesar de existirem diferentes organizações policiais no Brasil, a questão de como os policiais lidam com os cidadãos pobres e marginalizados traz à tona uma característica comum a todas elas: o abuso do poder e do uso da agressão física como forma de eleminiar um “inimigo”. Metodologicamente, nossa análise está baseada na “crítica diagnóstica da cultura”, tal como elaborada por Kellner (2001), enfatizando duas de suas dimensões: i) o horizonte social do filme; e ii) seu campo discursivo (análise da mensagem e de outros recursos visuais e expressivos).