VictorJuiz/thesis huggingface dataset:
Quantifying the strength of evidence in forensic fingerprints

Part I presents a model for fingerprint matching using Bayesian alignment on unlabelled point sets. An efficient Monte Carlo algorithm is developed to calculate the marginal likelihood ratio between the hypothesis that an observed fingerprint and fingermark pair originate from the same finger and the hypothesis that they originate from different fingers. The model achieves good performance on the NIST-FBI fingerprint database of 258 matched fingerprint pairs, though the computed likelihood ratios are implausibly extreme due to oversimplification in our model.
Part II moves to a more theoretical study of proper scoring rules. The chapters in this section are designed to be independent of each other. Chapter 9 uses proper scoring rules to calibrate the implausible likelihood ratios computed in Part I. Chapter 10 defines the class of compatible weighted proper scoring rules. Chapter 11 derives new results for the score matching estimator, which can quickly generate point estimates for a parametric model even when the normalization constant of the distribution is intractable. It is used to find an initial value for the iterative maximization procedure in §3.3.
Appendix A describes a novel algorithm to efficiently sample from the posterior of a von Mises distribution. It is used within the fingerprint model sampling procedure described in §5.6. Appendix B includes various technical results which would otherwise disrupt the flow of the main dissertation.

Keywords: weight of evidence
forensic identification
marked point process
bayesian alignment
likelihood ratio
Advisor: Lauritzen, S
The management of the Tory interest in Lancashire and Cheshire, 1714-1747

This thesis is concerned primarily with the political organization of the Tory party within the counties of Lancashire and Cheshire between the death of Queen Anne in the summer of 1714 and the General Election of 1747. I was attracted to the subject in the first place "by the work done of late on the period 1688-1714; because the northwest was a traditional stronghold of Royalist and Tory sentiment; and because it was also an area with which I am personally acquainted* By demonstrating the reality of party differences at both the national and provincial levels for the years immediately prior to the Hanoverian Succession, Geoffrey Holmes, W«A« Speck and others had called into question the validity of Sir Lewis Namier f s model as a satisfactory explanation of the structure of politics during the early part of the eighteenth century* It seemed a worthwhile exercise, therefore, to seek to illuminate the political developments of the first half of that century by means of a detailed local study, clearly set against the background of national events ... [see pdf file for full abstract].
From the cradle to the craze: a study on China's indigenous automobile industry, 1953-2007

The Chinese automotive industry has evolved substantially over the last 55 years, in spite of multiple historical and economic hurdles. The change in the governmental policy during 1980s regarding ownership of private automobiles, from prohibition to encouragement, initiated rapid growth in the Chinese automobile industry. In the last two decades, China progressed from being nearly a truck-only producer to becoming a major producer of passenger and commercial cars. Economists consider the time between 2001 and 2007 to be a period of ‘blowout’ in the Chinese automobile industry. To date, little is known regarding this emerging automobile industry: What are the features of Chinese automobile industry? Has the Chinese automobile industry become a global player in its industry and reached economy of scale? How is the indigenous automobile sector different from international joint ventures in China? Have Chinese companies gained full transfer of technology and come to possess the capacity to develop their own designs? The subject is complicated, with many contradictory facts and interpretations. This thesis intends to address these questions by focusing on the Chinese indigenous automobile sector, through its three stages of development, using it as a model to examine the validity of various interpretations. I hope the historical appraisal of the industry’s initial development, its difficulty in transition and the internal-external factors affecting the later growth will help us understand the industrial and technological development of China’s emerging economy.

Keywords: Chinese indigenous automobile industry
Chinese domestic car industry
Chinese automobile industry
Chinese indigenous car industry
Chinese domestic automobile industry
Chinese car industry
Advisor: Offer, A
Thun, E
Modelling the impact of an alien invasion: Harmonia axyridis in Britain

Harmonia axyridis is a ladybird native to Asia, but introduced widely as a biocontrol agent. It is invasive and detrimental to native species in North America, which meant its arrival in Britain was met with concern. Establishment was seen as an opportunity to track the spread of an invasive alien species (IAS) whilst also monitoring impacts on native species.
The aims of this thesis were to examine the responses of native British ladybirds to the arrival of H. axyridis, to establish the effect of the IAS on native ladybirds when compared to other drivers, and to investigate the possible facilitation of the H. axyridis invasion by natural enemy release.
Modelling ladybird distributions with life-history and resource-use traits found that species predatory on a wide range of prey families had larger range sizes than those which ate fewer prey types. This suggests that the wide diet breadth of the IAS is likely to have played a critical role in the species’ rapid spread. Dietary niche overlap between H. axyridis and native ladybirds showed positive correlation with declines of native ladybirds. This indicates that the IAS is playing an important role, but the significance of urbanisation suggests habitat destruction is also significant.
Abundance of H. axyridis was influenced by habitat type and aphid abundance, but not by the native ladybird community, suggesting the spread of the IAS will not be slowed by biotic resistance. Harmonia axyridis is attacked by native parasitoids, but at a much lower rate than is the native Coccinella septempunctata, in line with natural-enemy release theory. There was no evidence of attack rate increasing with time since arrival in an area.
Overall, H. axyridis is an extremely successful IAS, with detrimental effects on native ladybirds which are likely to continue.

Keywords: Traits
Distribution
Harmonia axyridis
Great Britain
Coccinellidae
Colonisation
Niche overlap
Habitat
Diet breadth
Niche breadth
Climate
Native species
Biotic resistance
Enemy release hypothesis
Community
Range size
Coleoptera
Range fill
Natural enemies
Extinction
Invasive alien species
Advisor: Roy, H
Purse, B
Lewis, O
Harrington, R
Shortall, C
Polyphonic music in thirteenth-century France

The investigation of primary sources of thirteenth-century polyphony has been closely related to questions of the date and provenance of the surviving manuscripts. Previous studies have taken a single book and attempted to place it chronologically and topographically within the history of music of the thirteenth century. This thesis considers surviving material related to thirteenth-century polyphony and evaluates the patterns of production found there. These considerations are supported by a review of chronology in the period.
Using techniques derived from the fields of paleography, codicology, and art history, the manuscripts are loosely divided into Parisian and non-Parisian, and the contrasting types of book-production are placed in the context of the contemporary production of other types of book. At the most basic level, Parisian books betray a professional and organised system of production which relates to the generation of books which preceded the establishment of the pecia system whilst provincial manuscripts seem to suggest a more informal and ad-hoc construction and circulation. The data obtained from such source-critical inquiry are then used to ask questions concerning the distribution of genre with the discussion focused primarily on the motet and its various sub-species: bilingual motet, rondeau-motet, etc. Conclusions as regards distribution of the music suggest a distinction between Parisian practices and provincial, particularly Artesian, musical cultures. It is argued that concordance-bases and origins of surviving sources suggest the exclusive cultivation of some genres in Paris, and, of others, in Artois or the provinces.
The developmental and genetic basis of explosive pod-shatter in cardamine hirsuta

Dispersal is a key trait across biology. Within plants, a variety of explosive seed dispersal mechanisms are seen. Whilst ecological and mechanical studies have described this important evolutionary adaptation in many species, a genetic and developmental understanding of explosive seed dispersal is lacking.
In this thesis, the morphology and development of the explosive seed pods of Cardamine hirsuta – a member of the Brassicaceae – are characterised in detail, with reference to its close relative, the model organism A. thaliana. Comparison of fruit morphology between these two species and across other Brassicacean species generated hypotheses regarding the function and polarity of morphological features.
In order to identify genes that are necessary for C. hirsuta fruit development, a genetic screen was conducted and a range of mutants identified and subsequently characterised. Analysis of the indehiscent valveless (val) mutant revealed a loss of valve tissue and an expansion of valve margin identity in the silique. Mapping and sequencing identified a mutation in the MADS-box gene FRUITFULL (FUL), which results in a truncated protein, as the likely cause of the val phenotype. Consideration of ful mutants in C. hirsuta and A. thaliana allowed comparison of the genetic patterning of the fruit dehiscence zone in these two species.
The genetic interactions between fruit mutants characterised in this thesis and mutants in shoot patterning genes revealed common regulatory networks underlying leaf and fruit development in C. hirsuta.
Together, comparison of wild-type and mutant C. hirsuta siliques with those of A. thaliana and other Brassicacean species suggests that specialised cell layers within the valve silique region are of key importance to C. hirsuta’s explosive dehiscence mechanism.

Keywords: Arabidopsis thaliana
fruit morphology
gynoecium
fruit development
Cardamine hirsuta
seed dispersal
FRUITFULL
pod shatter
Advisor: Hay, A
Stars in their eyes: contemporary artists' expressions of fandom and how fan identities influence art

Fandom is, as scholars in relevant areas of Media Studies and Sociology attest, a vibrant aspect of contemporary culture and influential in individuals' expression and construction of their identities. This thesis examines and endeavours to challenge how fandom, defined as "emotionally involved consumption of a given popular narrative or text," is conceived and received in contemporary art. It addresses misconceptions about art by four artists who explicitly express their fan identities in their artwork and examines how a finer understanding of fandom can enrich contemporary art discourse and illuminate the artists' works.
Bringing together the fields of art criticism and cultural studies, the thesis explores the impact of contemporary artists' fandom on their depiction of celebrities and the critical reception these artworks have received. The principal artists whose works and fan identities are analysed are: Ryan McGinley (b. Ramsey, New Jersey, 1977-), Elizabeth Peyton (b. Danbury, Connecticut, 1965-), Karen Kilimnik (b. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1955-) and Stella Vine (b. Alnwick, England, 1969). In addition to these, art works by eleven other prominent late twentieth and early twenty-first century artists are presented as revealing contrasts.
These artists, the principal artists and their comparisons, all are not only doing something interesting artistically; their work presents different approaches to expansive concerns about the nature and function of fans and celebrity in wider culture. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to evaluate how fandom manifests itself in artists' work, whether fan feelings are discernible in their artwork and how admissions of fandom, either through artists' public declarations or evidence in their art, influence critical interpretation of art and colours public perception of the artists themselves.

Keywords: Celebrity
Contemporary Art
Ryan McGinley
Stella Vine
Karen Kilimnik
Fandom
elizabeth peyton
Advisor: Wright, A
The origins of the Druze religion

The thesis attempts to set out the doctrines of Ḥamza b. 'Alī al-Zūzanī, the earliest and most essential teachings of the Druze religion, and to indicate some of the ways in which they are related to Ismā'ilism, the source from which the Druze religion springs.
The major part of the thesis is thus an edition of Ḥamza's writings, together with the writings of his lieutenant, Ismā'il b. Muḥammad al-Tamīmī and a few other pieces by the Imām al-Ḥākim and others, forming in all the first two of the six volumes of the Druze scriptures. Together with this edition is a preface; two introductory sections, one historical, one textual; a summary in English of the edited epistles and, finally, a glossary and index and bibliography.
The preface considers the present state of Druze studies and gives a brief outline of the contents of the thesis.
[Continued in text ...]
Learning place-dependant features for long-term vision-based localisation

In order for autonomous vehicles to achieve life-long operation in outdoor environments, navigation systems must be able to cope with visual change---whether it's short term, such as variable lighting or weather conditions, or long term, such as different seasons. As a GPS is not always reliable, autonomous vehicles must be self sufficient with onboard sensors. This thesis examines the problem of localisation against a known map across extreme lighting and weather conditions using only a stereo camera as the primary sensor. The method presented departs from traditional techniques that blindly apply out-of-the-box interest-point detectors to all images of all places. This naive approach fails to take into account any prior knowledge that exists about the environment in which the robot is operating. Furthermore, the point-feature approach often fails when there are dramatic appearance changes, as associating low-level features such as corners or edges is extremely difficult and sometimes not possible. By leveraging knowledge of prior appearance, this thesis presents an unsupervised method for learning a set of distinctive and stable (i.e., stable under appearance changes) feature detectors that are unique to a specific place in the environment. In other words, we learn place-dependent feature detectors that enable vastly superior performance in terms of robustness in exchange for a reduced, but tolerable metric precision. By folding in a method for masking distracting objects in dynamic environments and examining a simple model for external illuminates, such as the sun, this thesis presents a robust localisation system that is able to achieve metric estimates from night-today or summer-to-winter conditions. Results are presented from various locations in the UK, including the Begbroke Science Park, Woodstock, Oxford, and central London.

Keywords: robotics
computer vision
localisation
navigation
Advisor: Newman, P
Results from the laser-wire at ATF2 and development of a fibre laser for its upgrade

The commissioning and development of a laser-wire transverse electron beam profile monitor at the Accelerator Test Facility 2 in Japan is presented. The experimental setup used including a gigawatt laser system is detailed and characterised. Results from data taking in December 2010 are presented detailing the use of the laser-wire to tune the electron beam.
In conjunction with this, the use of a fibre-based laser system as a suitable laser source for a laser-wire is discussed. A test bed fibre laser system was constructed to investigate the suitability of fibre lasers and the results are presented demonstrating high efficiency and excellent spatial quality. From this, a laser system capable of high resolution and high repetition intra-train scanning for demonstration at the Accelerator Test Facility 2 was designed, constructed and characterised. A commercial fibre laser system was extended using a photonic crystal fibre where periodic amplification designed to match the duty cycle of an accelerator was used advantageously to achieve higher than normal pulse energies. The results and techniques developed to measure them are presented.

Keywords: photonic
diagnostic
ATF2
laser
accelerator
laserwire
fibre
fibre laser
Advisor: Walczak, R
Corner, L
Legal culture in a turbulent time: law and society in early modern Saxony

This thesis reconstructs and interprets the evolution of legal culture in the Saxon city of Freiberg in the sixteenth century. It challenges the notion that early modern state institutions were punitive and disciplinary; and instead posits that in Saxony, they were flexible and sought to maintain social harmony. While previous scholarship has favoured a sociological approach, based on the concept of social control, this thesis employs a legal anthropological optic to study the interaction of state institutions and social life holistically. The focus is not just on how state institutions sought to regulate social life, but also on how ordinary people used institutions for their diverse purposes. The goal of this methodological approach, based on Lawrence Friedman’s concept of legal culture, is to assess the relative position and interaction of the people, the judiciary, and the law in early modern Germany.
Probing the interactions of the court and the residents of Freiberg reveals that the court was primarily a record-keeper and a mediator. For the former, it logged and transcribed all manner of transactions: peace pacts, loans, and house purchases; and Freibergers readily turned to the court to get a formal record of an obligation. For the latter, the court was rarely a site of punishment, rather it was a place where conflicts were regulated, and bonds forged. At court, Freibergers fostered ties to one another. Neither of these roles, record-keeper or mediator, are ones traditionally ascribed to early modern courts. Only by considering by the culture of a court does either become apparent.

Advisor: Roper, L
Theorising the doctrine of joint criminal enterprise in international criminal law

This thesis develops a theoretical account of the basis and justification for the doctrine of Joint Criminal Enterptise in international criminal law by examining principles governing the ascription of criminal responsibility in English and German criminal law. The first part consists of a comprehensive review of the development of the JCE doctrine, including its historical antecedents, its initial formulation by the ICTY, its subsequent explication by tribunals and academics, and recent alternatives doctrines proposed by the ICC and by commentators. It identifies the main loopholes and contradictions in the construction of these theories, and presents factual scenarios for which these theories, particularly JCE, either have no answers, or problematic ones. The second part examines whether any of the variants of JCE can be justified as principal responsibility. It first identifies elements that distinguish international crimes from their domestic counterparts, and which are pertinent in developing an account of criminal responsibility for international crimes. It also examines the concept of perpetration responsibility in English and German criminal law and theory. It then combines the insights gleaned from these analyses to conclude that only JCE I can be appropriately considered as perpetrator responsibility and proposes a modified version of the doctrine of Organisationsherrschaft in German criminal law as a more accurate characterisation of the role and function of high level participants in mass atrocity. The final part focuses on the concept of accomplice responsibility in German and English criminal law and doctrine to address whether JCE II and JCE III can be justified as modes of secondary criminal responsibility. It concludes that JCE II and JCE III can be retained as distinct modes of accomplice liability using expressive and risk justifications, provided their operation is limited in ways that correspond to principles of secondary responsibility in domestic jurisdictions.

Keywords: Organisationsherrschaft
JCE
perpetration
international law
criminal law
Advisor: Ashworth, A
Multisensory aspects of the spatial cuing of driver attention

The primary goal of the empirical research outlined in this thesis was to examine a number of the factors contributing to the design of more ergonomic multisensory warning signals, that is, signals that elicit efficient and effective responses from interface operators under demanding conditions. To achieve this goal, a series of experiments was conducted in order to examine the nature and consequences of the crossmodal links inherent in spatial attention between various different sensory modalities, such as audition, vision, and touch, in an applied setting. In particular, a laboratory-based simulated driving task was used to investigate the effectiveness of various different auditory and vibrotactile cues in orienting a driver's attention to potential emergency driving events seen through the front windscreen or rearview mirror. The results of the first set of auditory spatial cuing experiments highlighted a significant performance advantage when the target driving events occurred in the cued, rather than the uncued, direction, with the biggest benefits being seen following spatially-predictive auditory or verbal cues. The second set of vibrotactile spatial cuing experiments demonstrated the potential utility of vibrotactile warning signals for presenting spatial information to car drivers, and the results were successfully replicated in a study using a high-fidelity driving simulator. The third set of experiments, incorporating an orthogonal task design, were conducted in order to examine the mechanisms responsible for the advantageous spatial cuing effects reported in the earlier experiments. Taken together, the results demonstrated that while directional congruency between a warning signal and target driving event may be sufficient to facilitate performance due to the priming of the appropriate response, attentional facilitation (i.e., perceptual enhancement) typically requires the co-location of the cue and target within the same functional region of space. In sum, this thesis demonstrates the potential value of approaching the design of effective multisensory warning signals for human operators by studying the information processing mechanisms in the human brain. The findings outlined here add to the literature concerning the brain's differential representation of stimuli presented in peripersonal as opposed to extrapersonal space. Further experimental chapters detail experiments that examined verbal directional cuing, olfactory cuing, and crossmodal interactions in virtual haptic environments.

Advisor: Spence, C