VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Bounds for the normal approximation of the maximum likelihood estimator
Keywords: Normal approximation
Stein's method
Maximum likelihood estimator

The asymptotic normality of the maximum likelihood estimator (MLE) under regularity conditions is a long established and famous result. This is a qualitative result and the assessment of such a normal approximation is our main interest. For this task we partly use Stein's method, which is a probabilistic technique that can be used to explicitly measure the distributional distance between two distributions. Since its first appearance in 1972, the method has been developed for various distributions; here we use the results related to Stein's method for normal approximation.
In this thesis, we derive explicit upper bounds on the distributional distance between the distribution of the MLE and the normal distribution. First, the focus is on independent and identically distributed random variables from both discrete and continuous single-parameter distributions with particular attention to exponential families. For discrete distributions, the case where the MLE can be on the boundary of the parameter space is treated through a perturbation approach, which allows us to obtain bounds on the distributional distance of interest. The bounds are of order n^(-0.5), where n is the number of observations. Simulation-based results are given to illustrate the power of the bound. Furthermore, often the MLE can not be obtained analytically and optimisation methods (such as the Newton-Raphson algorithm) are used. Even in such cases, order n^(-0.5) bounds are given for the distributional distance related to the MLE.
The case of multi-parameter distributions follows smoothly after the detailed discussion related to a scalar parameter. Apart from extending our approach to a multi-parameter setting, we also cover the case of independent but not necessarily identically distributed (i.n.i.d.) random vectors with specific focus on the widely applicable linear regression models.
Going back to the single-parameter setting a different approach to get an upper bound on the distributional distance between the distribution of the MLE and the normal distribution, based on the Delta method, is also developed. The MLE for a Generalised Gamma distribution gives an illustration of the results obtained through this Delta method approach.
Finally, we relax the independence assumption and results for the case of locally dependent random variables are obtained. An example of correlated sums of normally distributed random variables illustrates the bounds. Again, results that do not require an analytic expression of the MLE to be known are given. We end this thesis with ideas currently in progress and further open research questions.
Unsteady aerodynamics and heat transfer in a transonic turbine stage
Keywords: Turbines
Heat
Aerodynamics

In current design methods for gas turbines there are important features of the flow which are not yet within the scope of the available prediction methods for both the calculation of surface pressures and heat transfer rates. Such features include the prediction of three-dimensional viscous flowfields, the accurate location and strengths of the secondary flow regimes in a turbine passage, and allowance for time-dependent variations. It is the understanding of the time-varying phenomena which is the subject of this study. Such phenomena occur due to the periodic interaction between stages in a turbine, either that of a nozzle guide vane on a rotor downstream or vice-versa. In most contemporary designs of turbines the effects are due primarily to the wakes from the trailing-edge of the upstream airfoil, and to any associated shock structures resulting from transonic exit flow Mach numbers. The present investigation is concerned with furthering knowedge of these wake and shock interactions, using a method of simulation established in the Isentropic Light Piston Tunnel and Oxford. Measurements of heat transfer rates and pressures are presented, supported by flow visualisation methods such as surface oil-dots and schlieren photography, for two examples of high-pressure turbine rotor blades. The majority of analysis deals with the first of these (a highty-loaded transonic profile) whilst the second blade (designed for use in a large civil engine) is included for investigation of the effects of flow unsteadiness on the film cooling process
The transition process is examined in detail by use of wide bandwith heat transfer measurements, and a new method derived for modelling this process. It has been possible to observe the effect of the enhanced turbulence in the simulated nozzle guide vane wake and effects due a shock-boundary layer interaction. The reaction of the blade boundary layers to these disturbances is identified, and trajectories of disturbed events tracked along the blade surfaces. The measurements which have been taken allow for some aspects of wake and shock interactions to be included in the design process for turbine blading. A better understanding has been obtained of how these types of transient flow regimes affect the boundary layers on the blade surfaces.
The right to life in armed conflict
Keywords: Armed conflict
Human rights

There is only passing reference made to human rights law in United Kingdom armed forces doctrine and military publications. Moreover, there is no reference made to the United Kingdom’s right to life obligations in respect of those affected by the actions of the state’s armed forces, or armed forces personnel themselves, during international and non-international armed conflict. As a consequence, no formal mechanism exists to ensure that the United Kingdom can comply with its right to life obligations pursuant to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Recent judgments of the European Court of Human Rights, advisory opinions and a judgment of the International Court of Justice, and views of numerous United Nations human rights bodies and rapporteurs would appear to indicate that human rights law can and does, however, apply during armed conflict. The exact nature of how human rights law, and the right to life specifically, apply during armed conflict and the obligations thus created, remain largely unresolved and generate considerable debate. This study therefore aims to consider both the extent to which the United Kingdom has right to life obligations during international and non-international armed conflict and, on the basis of current doctrine and procedures, how far the state complies with such obligations. Implicit in this analysis is a determination of what positive and negative right to life obligations are created by the ECHR and ICCPR, the extent to which these obligations have extraterritorial effect during armed conflict, how these obligations interact with the United Kingdom’s obligations pursuant to international humanitarian law, and the effect of a derogation from the ECHR during armed conflict. This study concludes that the United Kingdom has both substantive and procedural right to life obligations during armed conflict, albeit partially modified by reference to international humanitarian law. Adhering to current United Kingdom military doctrine and procedures does not, however, always ensure full compliance with these obligations.
Variability in pigment composition and bio-optical characteristics of phytoplankton populations  in the Atlantic basin
Keywords: Phytoplankton
Bio-optical characteristics
Atlantic Basin
Pigments

Understanding sources of variability in the optical properties of phytoplankton and how the properties vary over the global ocean is essential in the development of ocean-colour algorithms to map the distribution of phytoplankton functional groups. Using data from oceanographic cruises covering different biogeochemical biomes and provinces over a broad latitudinal gradient of the Atlantic Basin, this study examined the spatial distribution of phytoplankton diagnostic pigments and absorption coefficients and how they varied with ocean observables (temperature and chlorophyll-a concentration) that can be detected from space. It was found that variation in the chlorophyll a-specific absorption coefficient of phytoplankton at 440 nm, 𝑎&ast;𝑝ℎ(440), was influenced significantly by changes in the proportion of the non-photosynthetic pigment (NPP), whereas pigment indices of cell size showed only a weak correlation with 𝑎&ast;𝑝ℎ(440). There were province- and biome-specific changes in the relationships between both temperature and chlorophyll 𝑎 and 𝑎&ast;𝑝ℎ(440). This suggests that when developing remote-sensing algorithms that use temperature or chlorophyll as a predictor of phytoplankton size structure, the underlying physical oceanographic processes that control the biogeochemistry and ecology of the region should be taken into consideration.
Next generation sequencing in disease-relevant tissues
Keywords: NGS
RNA-Seq

Studies of RNA and the transcriptome are of great importance in providing functional information and unravelling the genetic mechanisms that underlie complex disorders and diseases. With the vast majority of complex disease-associated variants falling outside protein-coding regions of the genome, it is likely that variations in gene expression regulation will be essential to understanding disease aetiology. Information on RNA quantity and splicing isoforms is therefore likely to be crucial for understanding complex pathologies of deleterious genetic variation. The advent of next generation sequencing has allowed the development of an assortment of technologies for interrogating aspects of the genome, one of which is high-throughput RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq). This technology allows rapid, relatively cheap, and accurate quantification of transcripts at a genome-wide scale. By providing a greater number of advantages and fewer caveats than alternative methods of transcriptome quantification, RNA-Seq is a disruptive technology that is likely to supersede most others. Throughout this thesis, I have sought to demonstrate how these advantages assist in revealing significant and novel developmental, noncoding, coding, and alternative isoform information of relevance to disorders and diseases. I take advantage of methods that utilize the truly genome-wide coverage of RNA-Seq, that quantify large numbers of transcripts, and that interrogate novel splicing events. More specifically, I present (i) the identification of novel biomarkers of the various placode-derived vertebrate cranial nerves, (ii) differential gene networks which highlight the genetics of autism intellectual disability co-morbidity, and (iii) differential gene expression underlying a form of severe influenza susceptibility. In addition to these studies, this thesis presents an R package for RNA-Seq time-series experiments, including functionality for efficient model-based clustering, and the integration of gene ontology information for cluster number selection and for subsequent profiling. Overall, this thesis demonstrates how RNA-Seq is a powerful tool for understanding disease aetiology.
The restoration of creation in the early Anglo-Saxon vitae of Cuthbert and Guthlac
Keywords: Saint Guthlac
Hagiography
Metrical Life of Saint Cuthbert
Prelapsarian
Saint Augustine
Bede
Postlapsarian
Saint Cuthbert
Anglo-Latin Literature

This thesis explores the relationship between Creation and the saints Cuthbert and Guthlac in their Anglo-Latin and Old English vitae. It argues that this relationship is best understood through received theological exegesis concerning Creation's present state in the postlapsarian world. The exegesis has its foundation in Augustine’s interpretations of the Genesis narrative, though it enters the textual tradition of the vitae via an adapted portion of De Genesi contra Manichaeos in Bede’s metrical Vita Sancti Cuthberti (VCM). Both Augustine and Bede argue, with slight differences, that fallen Creation can be restored into prelapsarian harmony with humanity by way of sanctity. Each individual vita engages with this understanding of the Fall in distinct, though ultimately interrelated, ways, and the chapters of this thesis will therefore explore each text individually.
Chapter 1 argues that the anonymous Vita Sancti Cuthberti (VCA) unites Cuthbert’s ability to restore Creation with the theme of monastic obedience, linking the ordering of a monastery to the restoration of prelapsarian harmony. The VCA also seeks to create sites for potential lay pilgrimage in the landscapes of Farne and Lindisfarne by highlighting the present efficacy of Cuthbert’s miracles. Chapter 2 argues that Bede’s VCM not only reveals his early attempt to fashion Cuthbert into the primary saint for Britain, via a focus on Cuthbert's obedience to the Divine Office, but also that the restoration of Creation functions as a ruminative tool. Chapter 3 argues that Bede transforms the nature of Cuthbert’s sanctity in his prose Vita Sancti Cuthberti (VCP) from static to developmental, influenced by the Evagrian Vita Antonii, and that Creation is adapted to function as the impetus for, and evidence of, Cuthbert’s progression. Chapter 4 argues that Felix's Vita Sancti Guthlaci (VSG) unites the development of Guthlac with a physically delineated Creation, and that the restoration of Creation is elevated to an even greater degree here than in Bede's hagiography. Chapter 5 argues that the author of the Old English Prose Guthlac (OEPG) grounds his vita by utilizing a landscape lexis shared with contemporary boundary clauses, so that here the relationship between the saint and Creation has greater force; it further argues that Guthlac A uniquely connects Guthlac with the doctrine of replacement, consolidating links between his arrival to the eremitic space and the restoration of prelapsarian Eden.
Hedging engagement: America's neoliberal strategy for managing China's rise in the post-Cold War era
Keywords: Absolute gains
China
Economic Policy
Relative Gains
Grand Strategy
America
Containment
Foreign Policy

This thesis examines America's post-Cold War relations with China in the context of the neoliberal vs. neorealist debate. It concludes that neorealism—the dominant school of thought in the international relations literature—is incapable of explaining America’s response to China's rise in the post-Cold War era. Because America was the leading global power and China was its most obvious potential rival, a neorealist theory that prioritized the distribution of relative power would anticipate this relationship to be a most-likely case for American policymakers to pursue containment and prioritize relative gains.
However, I leverage insights from more than 100 personal interviews to demonstrate that in reality American leaders have overwhelmingly preferred a strategy of neoliberal engagement with China that has remained decidedly positive-sum in nature. My explanation for this consistent, bipartisan preference is that American policymakers have not adopted the neorealist assumption that conflict is inevitable between existing and rising great powers. As a result, policymakers have not focused exclusively on how to minimize the relative costs of a potential conflict with China by trying to contain China’s relative power and limit America’s exposure to China (as they did with the Soviet Union in the Cold War). Instead, policymakers have subscribed to the neoliberal belief that conflict can be avoided, and that increasing engagement and interdependence is the best strategy to maintain peace. They have pursued this strategy despite acknowledging that engagement and interdependence have increased the costs of a potential conflict by helping to facilitate China's rise in both an absolute and relative sense, and by increasing America’s exposure to China.
This thesis helps to define the differences between hedging and containing strategies. It argues that while relative material power is often important in deciding whether to hedge or not hedge, these purely material calculations play no role in decisions of whether to pursue containment or engagement. Instead, the decision to contain or not hinges on the target state's behavior and what that reveals about the regime's underlying intentions. Within this new framework, I argue that American policymakers' strategy has been to engage China economically while simultaneously hedging militarily. Furthermore, to the extent that American policymakers have expressed increased concerns about China in recent years, this has been primarily a consequence of China’s increased assertiveness—not changes in its relative power.
The prophetic structure of 1-2 Samuel
Keywords: 1-2 Samuel
Bible
King David
Hebrew Bible
1 Samuel
2 Samuel
rhetorical analysis
Old Testament
concentrism
Chiasmus

The book of 1-2 Samuel, originally one scroll, is an episodic narrative recounting how the ancient Israelite monarchy was established around 1000 BC by the prophet Samuel and the kings Saul and David. For well over a century historical critics have sought to discern the process of its composition, proposing various conclusions with little consensus. Presently it is generally believed that several blocks of traditional material on common themes (e.g. the History of David's Rise) were brought together in the later pre-exilic period as part of the so-called Deuteronomistic History.
This thesis chooses to begin with the present limits of 1-2 Samuel (without including, for example, 1Kgs 1–2), and undertakes to apply rhetorical analysis to all fifty-five chapters, episode by episode, each in its final-form position. The particular structural technique that has been discerned throughout this book is inverted parallelism with an unparalleled centre, here termed 'concentrism'. The unique contributions of this thesis are firstly a careful methodology for concentrism in Hebrew narrative, based on Hebrew poetic and oral composition and proposing specific criteria for identifying and verifying such structures. Secondly, the thesis attempts to account for the current position of every episode in the book, discerning how each contributes to the larger work as regards literary structure and rhetorical message. The resulting arrangement demonstrates an overall unity of technique and authorial perspective, focused on the themes of prophecy (hence the thesis title), deliverance from military attack, religious devotion and dynastic succession.
The centre of this thesis therefore provides a detailed description of the discovered structure, one chapter for each of the book's two primary segments (1Sam 1 – 2Sam 6; 2Sam 7–24). A lengthy preceding chapter addresses various theoretical issues often raised relating to such concentric patterns (often inadequately labelled 'chiasmus'/'chiastic'). A summary chapter likewise follows the central chapters, revisiting themes of the methodology and drawing conclusions together. An initial chapter outlines past and present compositional theories, and a concluding chapter suggests further avenues of future research.
Holistic shipwreck assemblages in 14th and 15th century southeast Asia
Keywords: shipwrecks, Southeast Asia
Lead trade
tin currency
Chinese iron
shipwrecks
Holistic Archaeology
Experiential Museum
iron, china
National Museum Manila
OCMA
Tin trade
trade, Southeast Asia
trade, Philippines
Glass beads, Thailand
Santa Cruz
Rang Kwien
Tin trade, southeast Asia
southeast Asian history
Bakau
Ming Dynasty trade
Flecker, Michael
Lena Shoal
glass beads, Southeast Asia
Ayutthaya
Archaeology public
Singapore
archaeology
Franck Goddio
Archaeological ethics
Turiang

The ceramic trade throughout Medieval Southeast Asia was prolific. Terrestrial sites have yielded massive amounts of ceramic material and the archaeological reports of shipwreck cargoes corroborate the versatile and extensive qualities of trade ceramics in the region. The sheer quantity of ceramic artefacts found in shipwreck assemblages, paired with a well-researched framework of the aesthetic, demonstrates that we rely heavily on ceramic data to date wrecks and establish regional trading patterns. While ceramics typically represent the bulk of the recovered material in these instances, many other types of material are present in the various assemblages. Yet these "lesser" materials suffer from a lack of investigation and, therefore, play virtually no role in the archaeological and historical assessment of the ship, its cargo, and its relationship to the maritime economy of the period. While ceramic studies may provide a general overview, a consideration of the other material provides subtlety and nuance to the analysis.
This case study focuses on the non-ceramic assemblages for six shipwrecks from the 14th and 15th Centuries of Southeast Asia (three Chinese-built and three Southeast Asian-styled junks). The typological study of the metallurgical, organic and geological material from these wrecks can complement much of the work surrounding existing trade models as well as reveal new concepts of crew life, belief systems and culture. These facets come together to offer a more holistic narrative as well as stimulating the need within the region for more study regarding the locations where past peoples mined and manufactured raw metals.
The thesis will also consider the motivations behind the excavators of these projects and what role this plays in the interpretation of the non-ceramic material. One wreck was excavated by treasure hunters, one was done by an amateur archaeologist and a curator, and a third was excavated by a governmental organization. Two excavations were conducted by a non-profit foundation in conjunction with a National Museum and a final one was a purely academic excavation. Each party brings their own experiences and motivations to the excavation and therefore the systems of collection, curation, and conservation weigh heavily and are varied. These factors can determine what priorities each excavator brings to the analysis of excavated objects and the extent to which this effects the subsequent interpretation of the shipwreck.