47 research outputs found
Earthquakes from 1820 to 1936 in Grahamstown and surroundings (Eastern Cape Province, South Africa)
No full textThe seismicity of Grahamstown, in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa, for the years between 1820 and 1936 is investigated with recourse to contemporaneous documentary sources, leading to the development of a seismic history incorporating consideration of the broader geo-political context. Individual studies of five regional events that were felt in Grahamstown during that period, and of one that was not, are presented. Each study includes the development of a full set of intensity data points (IDPs), which are used to determine reappraised epicentral locations and magnitudes, some of which differ significantly from previously listed parameters. The results thus obtained highlight the value of seeking out additional contemporary sources from different language groups when revisiting the source parameters of earthquakes for which no or only very limited instrumental information is available.Published45-783T. Pericolosità sismica e contributo alla definizione del rischioJCR Journalreserve
Reply to "Comment on 'Review: Strong Ground Motions--Have We Seen the Worst?' by Fleur O. Strasser and Julian J. Bommer" by Heriberta Castanos and Cinna Lomnitz
No full text
La literatura en la frontera lingüística : el caso de la escritora italo-suiza Fleur Jaeggy
No full text“The real proustian miracle is not that a madeleine dipped in tea tastes the same as another madeleine dipped in tea thus a rising a memory; it is, rather, that with it,the second madeleine can evoke a room, a house, an entire town and that that ancient place can, in a split second, touch the solidityof any present place, forcingits doors and makingthe furniture falter.” [1]
With these words Genette presents the main idea of what this thesis aims to analyze, in other words, to reach the evoked dimensions of the content within the texts, the language, the universes, the literary themes.In this concrete case, I will explore the suggesting dimension of an author who I consider very uncommon and exceptional both in Italy, the nation where she lives, as in Switzerland, where she was born and of which she is not very representative.
As a study subject, Fleur Jaeggy’s work calls the attention because of the power evoked in the reader by each and every element the authoress uses to unveil her narrative. These elements appear as a constant throughout Jaeggy's literary production and for this reason are analyzed in this study, along with the other constitutive elements of her work: the stylistic evolution within her literary production, her characteristic brevity of expression, her distinctive syntactic sobriety, her typical use of ellipsis. In the same way, the outlines of her characters, her sentimental education processes, her conception of life as well as her sickly inclination to death, her vision of the world and of femininity, will be object of the following research.
To study thoroughly Fleur Jaeggy's work requires close attention so as to understand how literary critics have seen her, but, most of all, how she has been seen by those other authors that have written about her. In fact, in order to appreciate Fleur Jaeggy's essence, one must understand and share those words that authors such as Susan Sontag have dedicated to her – and that have been used in the opening of this work – as well as those written by the Nobel Prize winner Joseph Brodsky:
“There are two types of literature: there's a prose which revels in things such as its subordinate clauses which are like so many branches, or in its vast syntax, expansive like the one belonging to, let's say, Henry James or even, let's say, Joseph Conrad, if you want. And then there's another type of prose of which the best example could be, let's say, Jane Austen with her concise sentences, each one swiftandcomplete in itself. In this case, the author knows from the very first page what to say, it's not that type of prose where the author gets the headway along with the movement of the pen on a sheet of paper; it's a physiological process, organic, something that is rarely experienced with prose.” [2]
Using Brodsky's wordsas an example of the many more that have been said about Jaeggy, this syntactic and poetic prose is the main reason this very research started out; an approach towards this work can in this way be summed up since these words will become ever more clear and necessary as this work moves forward and in depth so as to reach to its own conclusions.
1. Gérard Genette, “Metonimía en Proust” in Figuras III (1972), Lumen, Barcelona 1989, p. 30
2. Extract from the opening speech to Fleur Jaeggy’s book I beati anni del castigo delivered in Nov. 2005 at the La Casa degli Italiani at New York University, NYC."El verdadero milagro proustiano no es que una magdalena mojada en té tenga el mismo gusto que otra magdalena mojada en té y despierte el recuerdo; es, más bien, que esa segunda magdalena resucite con ella un cuarto, una casa, una ciudad entera, y que ese lugar antiguo pueda, por espacio de un segundo, conmover la solidez del lugar actual, forzar sus puertas y hacer vacilar sus muebles." [1]
Genette aporta con estas palabras la idea principal de lo que en esta tesis se pretende analizar, es decir, llegar a la dimensión evocadora del contenido de los textos, del lenguaje, de los universos, de los motivos literarios, en este caso concreto a la dimensión evocadora de una autora que considero poco común y excepcional, tanto en su país de residencia Italia, como en Suiza, su país de nacimiento donde igualmente es poco representativa.
La obra de Fleur Jaeggy como objeto de estudio llama la atención por la fuerza que puede tener en el receptor la evocación de cada uno de los elementos que la autora utiliza para dar a conocer la historia narrativa. Por ello se analiza cada uno de ellos, siempre constantes en el transcurso de su producción literaria. Estudiamos esos elementos constitutivos de su obra: la evolución de su estilo en el transcurso de su creación literaria, de su brevedad expresiva característica, de su sobriedad y brevedad sintáctica, del recurso habitual a la elipsis. De igual modo a través del perfil de sus personajes, de sus procesos de formación sentimental, de su concepción de la vida y su inclinación enfermiza a la muerte, de la feminidad y su visión del mundo.
Adentrarnos en el estudio de la obra de Fleur Jaeggy requiere prestar atención y entender cómo ha sido la recepción de esta para la crítica literaria pero sobre todo para los escritores que sobre la autora expresan su opinión. Entender la esencia de Fleur Jaeggy es entender y compartir las palabras que le dedican escritores como Susan Sontag que se cita en la introducción de este trabajo o las del premio Nobel Iosif Brodskij:
"Ci sono due tipi di letteratura: c'è la prosa che si crogiola nelle proprie subordinate, un po come tante ramificazioni, in una sintassi estessa, espansa, come potrebbe essere qualcuno come, diciamo, Henry James o diciamo, Joseph Conrad, se vogliamo. E poi c'è un altro tipo di prosa, l'esempio migliore potrebbe essere, diciamo, Jane Austen, frasi molto concise e in sé compiute, molto rapide. [...] L'autore, in questo caso, sa quello che dice fin dalla primissima pagina: non è quel tipo di prosa dove l'autore prende l'abbrivo man mano che la penna si muove sulla pagina; è un processo fisiologico, organico, che non si sperimenta molto spesso con la prosa."[2]
Esta prosa sintáctica y poética es el motivo principal del nacimiento de este estudio y con las palabras de Brodskij tomadas como ejemplo de muchas otras que en relación a ella se han dicho, se resume la concepción de este trabajo ya que estas palabras se irán haciendo cada vez más claras y necesarias según se va avanzando y profundizando en este estudio para llegar a las conclusiones del mismo.
1. Gérard Genette. «Metonimia en Proust». Figuras III (Figures III, 1972), Lumen, Barcelona, 1989, p.30.
2. Extraído del discurso de presentación de I beati anni del castigo de Fleur Jaeggy en la Casa Italiana de la New York University noviembre de 2005
Style-of-faulting in ground-motion prediction equations
No full textEquations for the prediction of response spectral ordinates invariably include magnitude, distance and site classification as independent variables. A few equations also include style-offaulting as a fourth variable, although this has an almost negligible effect on the standard deviation of the equation. Nonetheless, style-of-faulting is a useful parameter to include in ground-motion prediction equations since the rupture mechanism of future earthquakes in a particular seismic source zone can usually be defined with some confidence. Current equations including style-of-faulting use different schemes to classify fault ruptures into various categories, which leads to uncertainty and ambiguity regarding the nature and extent of the effect of focal mechanism on ground motions. European equations for spectral ordinates do not currently include style-of-faulting factors, and seismic hazard assessments in Europe often combine, in logic-tree formulations, these equations with those from western North America that do include style-of-faulting coefficients. In this article, a simple scheme is provided to allow style-of-faulting adjustments to be made for those equations that do not include coefficients for rupture mechanism, so that style-of-faulting can be fully incorporated into the hazard calculations. This also considers the case of normal fault ruptures, not modelled in any of the current Californian equations, but which are the dominant mechanism in many parts of Europe. The scheme is validated by performing new regressions on a widely used European attenuation relationship with additional terms for style-of-faulting
An evaluation of the applicability of the NGA models to ground-motion prediction in the Euro-Mediterranean region
No full textThe first phase of the Next Generation Attenuation (NGA) project has now finished, resulting in the publication of five new sets of empirical ground-motion models for PGA, PGV and response spectral ordinates. These models mark a significant advancement in the state-of-the-art in empirical ground-motion modelling and include many effects that are not accounted for in existing European equations. Under the assumption that the Euro-Mediterranean database from which the European relationships are derived is unlikely to drastically change in the near future, a prudent question to ask is: can the NGA models be applied in Europe? In order to answer this question, the NGA model of Boore and Atkinson (PEER Report 2007/01, Pacific Earthquake Engineering Research Center, Berkeley, CA, 234 pp., 2007), which is shown to be representative of the NGA models as a suite, is compared with the dataset used for the development of the most recent European empirical ground-motion models for response spectral ordinates and peak ground velocity. The comparisons are made using analyses of model residuals and the likelihood approach of Scherbaum et al. (Bull Seism Soc Am 94(6):2164–2185, 2004). The analyses indicate that for most engineering applications, and particularly for displacement-based approaches to seismic design, the NGA models may confidently be applied within Europe. Furthermore, it is recommended that they be used in conjunction with existing European models to provide constraint on finite-fault effects and non-linear site response within logic-tree frameworks. The findings also point to the potential benefits of merging the NGA and European datasets
Comment on "Review: Strong Ground Motions--Have We Seen the Worst?" by Fleur O. Strasser and Julian J. Bommer
No full textFertilization: trade-offs between manure abatement and plant productivity
No full textIn 2005, 30% of the Flemish farms faced a manure excess, while at aggregated level still 9.7% of the emission rights were unused. This means that, despite the various possibilities, Flemish farmers do not succeed in an effective exchange of manure between farms. In current paper is shown how inorganic fertilizer use influences the use and exchange of organic nitrogen. Because of the mutual interdependency between organic and inorganic nitrogen emission rights (or quota), inorganic nitrogen use limits the emission rights for organic nitrogen. Utilisation of these emission rights are analysed as a trade-offs choice between plant productivity (use of inorganic nitrogen) and manure disposal, as the major abatement alternative of manure production. Farmers still prefer inorganic fertilizers because of their effect on plant productivity and income. However, by changing the quota rent of organic nitrogen, the fertilization behaviour can be influenced. A higher quota rent of organic nitrogen would increase the use of manure. This trade-off behaviour seriously influences effectiveness of policies. When the objective is to lower the total nitrogen use, a mere reduction of organic quota can partially be counteracted by a higher inorganic nitrogen use. When the objective is to better spread the manure, increasing the quota rent for deficit farms will increase their acceptance of manure.manure abatement, nutrient emission rights, Tobit model, Crop Production/Industries,
