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Mind style
No full textStylistics aims to explain how literary and non-literary texts achieve their rhetorical effects, drawing on a range of approaches from within linguistics as well as other disciplines (e.g. cognitive sciences, narratology, literary theory and rhetoric). Fundamental to stylistic enquiry is the idea that style is forged when authors make patterned choices, contributing towards a distinctive ‘style’; when that style is indicative of a way of thinking, it becomes ‘mind style’. Many readers of fiction will be familiar with the feeling of ‘getting inside the mind’ of a character, of seeing the fictional world the way they do, especially notable if that viewpoint is marked, or unusual. For several decades now, stylistic research has explored how different ‘mind styles’ are constructed through the patterned linguistic choices made by authors. This chapter begins with an overview of the kinds of texts that offer mind styles, and the kinds of mind styles that have been identified in stylistic research (Section 1). It then goes on to outline the historical development of the concept, with reference to illustrative examples. Indeed, the development of ‘mind style’ reflects the development of Stylistics, which like this chapter, starts with a focus on formal, lexico-grammatical patterns (Section 2), which are readily identifiable using corpora (Section 3). It then goes on to incorporate the rise of pragmatics (Section 4) and discourse-level approaches (Section 5), as well as the ‘cognitive turn’ (Section 6) in mind style studies
Standing up for the little guy - Protecting micro suppliers against the UK's prohibition on ipso facto clauses
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A generative design framework of surgical robots for assisted ophthalmic surgery
No full textDue to the high demand for ophthalmic surgery and a shortage of surgeons, robot-assisted surgical systems have attracted attention from research communities for their potential to provide superior accuracy, precision, and motion stability, thus reducing the risk of hand tremors associated with manual surgery. However, existing surgical robotic platforms are less adaptable and efficient than traditional manual procedures. Additionally, the design process for these systems is challenging and time-consuming, requiring specialised expertise from multiple stakeholders. To address these challenges, this paper proposes a framework for applying generative design (GD) methods in developing surgical robots for ophthalmic procedures. It aims to generate diverse, feasible solutions, guided by input requirements and system analyses while facilitating continuous improvements to meet future needs. The paper presents the initial implementation of the proposed framework, which includes the development of a library of link geometries and fundamental 1-degree-of-freedom (DoF) mechanisms. These serve as the building blocks for remote centre of motion (RCM) mechanisms, which are critical for minimally invasive surgery (MIS) applications. The paper discusses the future development of the GD framework, aiming to enhance its capabilities for more complex surgical robotic mechanisms. It focuses on refining the framework to address scalability and validation challenges, ultimately improving design efficiency and adaptability for advanced systems.<br/
A Catholic school effect in Northern Ireland? Impacts on attainment, wellbeing and citizenship
No full textA fairytale of Belfast: a 'change story' of urban transformation
No full textOver the last 30 years Belfast has arguably undergone the most fundamental process of urban transformation than any other city in the UK or Ireland. This process has seen it change from having an acutely deindustrialised economy with high levels of deprivation, compounded by a ferocious ethno-nationalist conflict, to what is often portrayed as a ‘city reborn’, with strong economic ‘growth’ and an attractive destination for cruise ships, and academic conferences. This recognisable, persuasively positive and even romantic storyline clearly simplifies the process of urban change, overlooking critical distributive, political and social implications of the direction of change. It also provides a fascinating example of urban storytelling, ‘the complex narratives that make sense of the past’ (Sandercock, 2003). Storytelling can be used to widen the voices in urban debates, but an analysis of the accepted, ‘conventional’ storylines can reveal the nature of power and the voices that dominate urban strategies (Ortiz 2034, Davoudi et al, 2019). This paper, resulting from the international Change Stories project, draws on a discourse analysis of planning documents and interviews with key urban decision-makers. It examines the dominant stories of change in Belfast and explores their underlying assumptions, motivations, the interests they reflect, the voices that are absent, and the implications this may have for the future of the city. This analysis contributes to wider debates around the forces that shape urban change, and the importance of urban storytelling in legitimising adopted strategies. <br/
Comparison of Navier-Stokes and lattice Boltzmann solvers for subject-specific modelling of intracranial aneurysms
No full textModelling cardiovascular disease is at the forefront of efforts to use computational tools to assist in the analysis and forecasting of an individual's state of health. To build trust in such tools, it is crucial to understand how different approaches perform when applied to a nominally identical scenario, both singularly and across a population. To examine such differences, we have studied the flow in aneurysms located on the internal carotid artery and middle cerebral artery using the commercial solver Ansys CFX and the open-source code HemeLB. This comparison evaluates both the algorithmic methods used (finite volume method and lattice Boltzmann method) and issues surrounding the preparation and execution of a simulation using a commercial solver and an academically developed code. We compare velocity profiles within the domain and common metrics used to assess aneurysm rupture risk across a population of 462 boundary condition profiles. Generally, the flow computed by the solvers is qualitatively quite similar in the two domains. The momentum driven flow in the middle cerebral aneurysm demonstrated good quantitative agreement for velocity and shear stress-based metrics throughout the aneurysm region. Although there was greater quantitative variation in the shear driven internal carotid aneurysm, both methodologies consistently identified locations of extreme values of metrics associated with aneurysm rupture risk. Whilst each method has respective advantages and disadvantages that would influence the choice of tool deployed by a particular user, either can provide useful numerical information about flow in an aneurysm to guide decision making in a clinical scenario
Pericles and the Plumber: reigniting the debate of the purpose of legal education for the age of AI
No full textMuch is now being said in the wake of artificial intelligence (AI) about marking and assessments. This year represents the first year in which generative AI usage is considered by the scholarly community to be widespread. The article responds to the recent policy outlined by UCL Laws to introduce a return to traditional assessments, which preserve the integrity of a law degree. We place this debate within the wider context of law schools and what legal education ought to provide for society, more generally. Universities and law schools have different public mandates and should respond in accordance with their aims, community and identity.<br/
Political representation and consociational culture—river conservation as a reflection of post-Dayton challenges and opportunities
No full textThis article explores the relationship between river conservation and the post-Dayton political landscape in Bosnia and Herzegovina through a constructivist lens of political representation. It argues that the bias inherent in consociational culture—shaped by ethnonationalism and group-based politics—distorts formal acts of representation, making them ineffective in addressing environmental concerns. As a result, non-governmental organizations and activists fill the vacuum left by the state, playing a crucial role in representing environmental interests that are sidelined in the formal political sphere. By analyzing this dynamic, the article offers new insights into how political representation is constructed in divided societies, and how this process impacts environmental governance and policymaking.<br/
Green transitional justice
No full textThis book rethinks the boundaries of transitional justice, urging scholars and practitioners to confront the often-overlooked nexus between mass violence and ecological harm. Through an in-depth analysis of the field’s limitations – such as its anthropocentric legalism, neocolonial practices, and alignment with neoliberalism – the book critiques the historical marginalisation of Nature in transitional justice discourse and practice. It argues that ignoring environmental harm not only undermines the possibility of holistic justice but also perpetuates structural violence and inequality. In response, the book sketches a ‘greener’ transitional justice, integrating principles from environmental justice, Indigenous knowledge systems, and ecocentric perspectives. It explores the possibilities of recognising Nature as a victim of mass violence, adapting existing mechanisms to incorporate environmental harm, and fostering transformative approaches premised on the interdependence of human and ecological well-being. This book is written for students, researchers, and practitioners of transitional justice and fields related to conflict transformation, peacebuilding, environmental protection, and development.</p