Latham & Watkins

This article explores the ninth-century Book of Governors by East Syrian bishop Thomas of Marga, a text notorious for its sprawling and disjointed narrative structure. Through the lens of network analysis, the study seeks to untangle the dense web of 622 characters and their interactions within this work, which remains one of the richest sources of information on the medieval Church of the East. The analysis reveals that the Book of Governors is characterized by a multipolar narrative with no single dominant character, contrasting sharply with more centralized character networks found in other literary works. By examining individual books within Thomas’s text, the study highlights structural variations, such as the contrasting narrative foci in books 3 and 6, and the recurring prominence of figures like Timothy I, the long-reigning patriarch of the Church of the East. The article demonstrates not only how network analysis helps decipher a complex narrative but also how it facilitates deeper insights into the text’s character dynamics, such as the roles of women and Muslims, and the significance of epistolary exchanges. This interdisciplinary approach combines distant and close reading strategies, providing a fresh perspective on a medieval work that has long eluded comprehensive analysis due to its sheer complexity.

The potential applications of emerging technologies to anti-money laundering (AML) compliance programmes present a variety of benefits and challenges to financial institutions. Recently, technologies such as machine learning and natural language processing, biometrics, geolocation, and blockchain and smart contracts have shown tremendous potential to bolster the AML compliance efforts of financial institutions. However, the use of these technologies in AML compliance programmes of financial institutions present a number of challenges. This paper discusses these emerging technologies, the potential applications of such technologies to AML compliance programmes of financial institutions, and the associated benefits and challenges of these potential applications. This discussion is particularly important given increased regulatory scrutiny of financial institutions and their AML efforts in recent years.

Previous research has shown that a 5-day course of morphine enhances nociceptive sensitivity and allodynia when given 10 days after chronic constriction injury (CCI) as measured by the Von Frey test, a test where the hindpaw is poked with force (measured in grams) calibrated filament. This increased sensitivity to touch suggests that post trauma morphine makes second order sensory dorsal horn neurons more excitable. Therefore, it is hypothesized that during morphine enhanced allodynia, dorsal horn neurons will be more excitable to nociceptive stimulus. It was found that morphine enhanced allodynia causes more excitable neurons across a larger spatial range of the spinal cord, both rostral-caudal and dorsal-ventral along the dorsal horn. Mechanisms for the increased excitability of the dorsal horn are proposed and explored. These findings add to a robust literature which has detailed the paradoxical pain amplifying effects of morphine. Further, this study predicts that hyperexcitability of pain and touch pathways may occur as a clinically unintended side effect of morphine when administered to treat ongoing neuropathic pain. Lay Summary When working on the body, opioids take effect on various cells- including cells of the nervous system known as Glia. These glial cells produce various inflammatory responses that are typically known to decrease inflammation in the body. However, prior literature has revealed that following an activated state, these cells enter a “primed” form. If a second immunological activation occurs during this primed state, glial cells have been shown to release proteins that actually potentiate the state of pain. This study examines this hypothesis through the context of peripheral nerve injury (modeling injury, surgery, or trauma), followed by an administration of morphine. Using advanced imaging techniques, we are able to visualize exactly what modulators are inducing this potentiated pain response, as well as where in the nervous system these cells are found. Morphine has a potent effect on various aspects of the nervous system which may be alleviated by other treatment routes that focus specifically on the cell type and location that release the molecules that initiate the healing process. By unveiling the details of this mechanism, we can better understand how to treat patients following injury or surgery without inducing a higher pain response that can be caused by a short-term administration of morphine. To see the complete thesis, please visit https://scholar.colorado.edu/concern/undergraduate_honors_theses/0k225c53t.