1$:\nWe apply the case $n = 1$ to each fiber\n$P_a = \\{(b,\\xi) \\in K \\times \\mathrm{RV}^k \\mid (a,b,\\xi) \\in P\\}$, where $a$ runs over $K^{n-1}$. (Note that by compactness this works uniformly, so that in particular we get definable cell centers $K^{n-1} \\to K$.)\nThen we finish by applying induction to a set $P' \\subset K^{n-1} \\times \\mathrm{RV}^{k'}$ ``describing'' the fibers:\nFor each $0$-cell $\\{c\\} \\subset K$ of the fiber at $a \\in K^{n-1}$,\n$P'_a$ encodes the set $P_{a,c} \\subset \\mathrm{RV}^k$;\nfor each $1$-cell $X \\subset K$ of the fiber at $a \\in K^{n-1}$,\n$P'_a$ encodes (a) the set denoted by $R$ in Definition~\\ref{defn:cell} and (b), for each $\\xi \\in R$, the fiber $P_{a,b} \\subset \\mathrm{RV}^k$,\nwhere $b \\in K$ is an arbitrary element of the twisted box corresponding to $\\xi$ (i.e., $\\operatorname{rv}(b - c) = \\xi$, where $c$ is the center of $X$).\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Theorem~\\ref{thm:C0} and Addenda~\\ref{add:cd:cont:f}, \\ref{add:cd:cont:c}]\nFor $n = 0$, all three results are trivial. We now assume that all three results are already known for $n - 1$ and we deduce them for $n$. Concerning Theorem~\\ref{thm:C0}, note that we may as well\nassume that $\\acl$ equals $\\dcl$ (by Proposition~\\ref{prop:exist:alg:skol}).\n\nAddendum~\\ref{add:cd:cont:c}: First, find a cell decomposition with possibly non-continuous centers. By inductively applying Addendum~\\ref{add:cd:cont:f} to each component of the center tuple of each cell, we may refine the cell decomposition to get continuous centers.\n\nTheorem~\\ref{thm:C0}: We may suppose that $X$ has empty interior, since the proof given at the end of Subsection~\\ref{sec:cont} applies to the interior of $X$.\nChoose a cell decomposition of $X$ with continuous centers. No cell $A_\\ell \\subset X$ is of cell-type $(1, \\dots, 1)$ (since such cells have non-empty interior,\nby the ``in particular'' part of Addendum~\\ref{add:cd:cont:c}). Thus the homeomorphism from Remark~\\ref{rem:cell:homeo} allows us to reduce the problem on $A_\\ell$\nto one of lower ambient dimension. Apply induction.\n\nAddendum~\\ref{add:cd:cont:f}: The above proof of Theorem~\\ref{thm:C0} also yields a finite partition of $X$ such that $f$ is continuous on each piece.\nApply this to each of the given functions $f_j$ and then choose a cell decomposition respecting all pieces from all those partitions.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Addendum~\\ref{add:cd:alg:range}]\nUsing Lemma~\\ref{lem:fin-inf} and our assumption $\\acl=\\dcl$,\nwe find a partition of $X$ such that on each piece, $f_j$ is continuous and either constant or injective for each $j$; assume without loss that $X$ is a single such piece. In a similar way, assume without loss that $X$ is a cell and that each $f_j$ has the Jacobian Property (Definition~\\ref{defn:JP}) on each twisted box of $X$. Since constant functions pose no problem, we assume that all $f_j$ are injective.\n\nNext, choose a finite $\\emptyset$-definable set $\\tilde C \\subset K$ $1$-preparing $f_j(B)$ for every $j$ and every twisted box $B$ of $X$ (using Corollary~\\ref{cor:prep}) and set $C := \\bigcup_j f^{-1}_j(\\tilde C)$. After a further finite partition of $X$, we may assume that either (i) $X$ consists of a single twisted box or that (ii) $C$ is empty.\n\nIn Case (i), choose any $c \\in C \\subseteq X$ and decompose $X$ as \\(\\{c\\}\\cup (X\\setminus \\{c\\})\\), both of which are \\(\\emptyset\\)-definable cells. Then the desired properties follow from the Jacobian Property, namely the image of both cells are cells with center $f_j(c)$.\n\nIn Case (ii), definably choose, for each twisted box $B$ of $X$ and each $j$, an element $\\tilde c_{j,B} \\in \\tilde C$ in such a way that $f_j(B)$ is $1$-next to $\\tilde c_{j,B}$. By a further finite partition of $X$, we may assume that $\\tilde c_{j,B}$ does not depend on $B$. Then\n$f_j(X)$ is a cell with center $\\tilde c_{j,B}$ and we are done.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\nAs explained above, we will not give detailed proofs of Theorem \\ref{thm:cd:alg:piece:Lipschitz} and its related result from Addendum \\ref{add:cd:Lip:comp} to Theorem \\ref{thm:cd:alg:skol}, and we do not use these results in this paper. We nevertheless specify where this is worked out, under very closely related assumptions.\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Theorem \\ref{thm:cd:alg:piece:Lipschitz} and Addendum \\ref{add:cd:Lip:comp} to Theorem \\ref{thm:cd:alg:skol}]\nUnder our Assumption \\ref{ass:acl=dcl} that $\\acl$ equals $\\dcl$, but assuming a notion of tameness with an angular component map ${\\overline{\\rm ac}}$ (instead of $1$-h-minimality with $\\operatorname{rv}$), both results are proved in \\cite{CFL}, and the proof readily adapts. (By Theorem \\ref{thm:tame2vf} and Remark \\ref{rem::tame2vf}, $1$-h-minimality and the tameness notion are very closely related.)\n\\end{proof}\n\n(The proof of Addendum~\\ref{add:cd:Lip:comp} and its variant in \\cite{CFL} essentially comes from \\cite{CCL-PW}, apart from the improvement made possible by the assumption $\\acl_K=\\dcl_K$.) \n\n\n\n\\subsection{Dimension theory}\\label{sec:dim}\n\nUnder the assumption of $1$-h-minimality, there is a good notion of dimension of definable subsets of $K^n$. It can be defined in various equivalent ways; here is one possible definition.\n\n\\begin{defn}[Dimension]\\label{defn:dim}\nWe define the dimension of a non-empty definable set $X \\subset K^n$ as the maximal integer $m$ such that there is a $K$-linear function $\\ell : K^n\\to K^m$ such that $\\ell(X)$ has non-empty interior in $K^m$. If $X$ is empty, we set $\\dim X := -\\infty$.\n\\end{defn}\n\n\\begin{remark}\nIn Proposition~\\ref{prop:dim:basic} (\\ref{dim:1}), we will see that one could equivalently only consider coordinate projections $\\ell\\colon K^n \\to K^m$ (instead of arbitrary linear maps).\n\\end{remark}\n\nMany properties about the dimension of definable sets follow rather easily from\ncell decomposition. A proof of such properties has been carried out in \\cite{CLb} under an axiomatic assumption called $b$-minimality. Instead of repeating that proof, we verify that $1$-h-minimality implies $b$-minimality:\n\n\\begin{prop}[b-minimality]\\label{prop:b-min}\nAssume that $\\operatorname{Th}(K)$ is $1$-h-minimal.\nThen the two sorted structure on $(K,\\mathrm{RV})$ obtained from $K$ by adding the sort $\\mathrm{RV}$ and the map $\\operatorname{rv}$ is $b$-minimal in the sense of Definition 2.1 of \\cite{CLb}, with $K$ as main sort. More specifically, the structure $(K,\\mathrm{RV})$ is $b$-minimal with centers and preserves all balls in the sense of Definitions 5.1 and 6.2 of \\cite{CLb}.\n\\end{prop}\n\\begin{proof}\nThe axioms of Definition 2.1 of \\cite{CLb} clearly hold, and Definition 5.1 of \\cite{CLb} follows from the Jacobian Property as formulated in Corollary \\ref{cor:JP}.\n\\end{proof}\n\nThe definition of dimension given in \\cite[Definition~4.1]{CLb} is different than ours, but the results from \\cite[Section 4]{CLb} imply that the definitions are equivalent:\nIf $X \\subset K^n$ is a finite union of cells, then the dimension of $X$ in our sense equals the dimension of $X$ in the sense of \\cite{CLb}, namely the maximum of the dimensions of the cells, where the\ndimension of a cell of cell-type $(j_i)_{i=1}^n$\nis $\\sum_i j_i$.\n\nThe following proposition summarizes the good properties of dimension; in particular, we have definability of dimension, as in o-minimal structures. Property (\\ref{prop:dim:frontier}) is new.\n\n\\begin{prop}[Dimension theory]\\label{prop:dim:basic}\nAssume that $\\operatorname{Th}(K)$ is $1$-h-minimal. Let $X\\subset K^n$, $Y\\subset K^n$ and $Z\\subset K^{m}$ be non-empty definable sets, and let $f:X\\to Z$ be a definable function. Then the following properties hold.\n\\begin{enumerate}\n \\item\\label{dim:1}\n For any $d \\le n$, we have $\\dim X \\ge d$ if and only if there exists a projection $\\pi\\colon K^n \\to K^d$ to a subset of the coordinates\n such that $\\pi(X)$ has non-empty interior. In particular,\n $\\dim X = 0$ if and only if $X$ is finite.\n \\item\\label{dim:2} $\\dim(X \\cup Y) = \\max\\{\\dim X, \\dim Y\\}$.\n \\item\\label{dim:3}\\label{dim:defble} For any $d \\le n$, the set of $z\\in Z$ such that $\\dim f^{-1}(z) = d$ is definable over the same parameters as $f$.\n \\item\\label{dim:4} If all fibers of $f$ have dimension $d$, then $\\dim X = d + \\dim Z$.\n \\item\\label{dim:5}\\label{prop:dim:local} There exists an $x \\in X$ such that the local dimension of $X$ at $x$ is equal to the dimension of $X$, i.e.,\n such that for every open ball $B \\subset K^n$ around $x$, we have $\\dim (X \\cap B) = \\dim X$.\n \\item\\label{dim:6}\\label{prop:dim:frontier} One has $\\dim (\\overline X\\setminus X) < \\dim X$, where $\\overline X$ is the topological closure of $X$, for the valuation topology.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{prop}\n\n\nAlthough most likely, property (\\ref{prop:dim:frontier}) can be proved in a similar way as Theorem (1.8) of \\cite{vdD}, we postpone that proof until the end of Subsection~\\ref{sec:t-strat}, where we will have t-stratifications at our disposal, which will make the proof much simpler.\nWe do however right away prove the ``easy'' case of Property (\\ref{prop:dim:frontier}), namely when $\\dim X$ is equal to the ambient dimension $n$.\n\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Proposition~\\ref{prop:dim:basic}, except for (\\ref{prop:dim:frontier}) when $\\dim X < n$]\nProperties (\\ref{dim:1}) to (\\ref{dim:4}) follow from Proposition \\ref{prop:b-min} and \\cite[Section 4]{CLb}, except for the ``in particular'' part of (\\ref{dim:1}).\n\nConcerning that ``in particular'' part:\nIt is clear that a finite set has dimension $0$. If $X$ is infinite, then there exists a coordinate projection $\\pi\\colon K^n \\to K$ such that $\\pi(X)$ is infinite. By Lemma~\\ref{lem:finite}, $\\pi(X)$ contains a ball, so by Definition~\\ref{defn:dim}, $X$ has dimension at least $1$.\n\nProperty (\\ref{prop:dim:local}) is proved in \\cite{FornHal} in a much more general context; here is a much shorter proof in the present setting:\nWe may assume that $\\acl$ equals $\\dcl$ in $\\operatorname{Th}(K)$ (using Proposition~\\ref{prop:exist:alg:skol}), so that we can apply cell decomposition (Theorem~\\ref{thm:cd:alg:skol}) to $X$; we also use Addendum~\\ref{add:cd:cont:c} to get continuous centers.\n\nChoose a cell $A_\\ell \\subset X$ of maximal dimension (of cell-type $(j_i)_{i=1}^n$, with $\\sum_i j_i = \\dim X =: d$). Then for any $x \\in A_\\ell$, the local dimension of $X$ at $x$ is $d$. Indeed,\nthe projection $\\pi(A_\\ell) \\subset K^d$ to the coordinates $\\{i \\le n \\mid j_i = 1\\}$ is a cell of cell-type $(1, \\dots, 1)$ with continuous center, and hence open. Thus for every sufficiently small ball $B \\subset K^n$ around $x$, we have $\\pi(X \\cap B) = \\pi(B)$, witnessing $\\dim (X \\cap B) \\ge d$.\n\n\nTo prove Property (\\ref{prop:dim:frontier}) in the case $\\dim X = n$, we again\nfirst expand the language so that $\\acl$ equals $\\dcl$ and then find a cell decomposition of $\\overline X \\setminus X$. Since every $n$-dimensional cell has non-empty interior, no such cells can be contained in $\\overline X \\setminus X$. This implies\n$\\dim (\\overline X\\setminus X) < n$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Jacobian Properties in many variables}\n\\label{sec:sjp}\n\nThere are different ways to generalize the Jacobian Property (Definition~\\ref{defn:JP})\nto functions $f$ in several variables. The one presented in this subsection (which we now call the Supremum Jacobian Property) has been introduced in \\cite{Halup} and is used to obtain t-stratifications. (To be precise, \\cite[Definition~2.19]{Halup} is a bit weaker than Definition~\\ref{defn:sup-prep} below).\n\nFirst of all, we need a specific higher-dimensional version of the $\\operatorname{rv}$-map.\n\n\\begin{notn}[$\\mathrel{<\\joinrel\\llap{\\raisebox{-1ex}{$\\scriptstyle{0}\\mkern8mu$}}}$]\nGiven $\\lambda, \\mu \\in \\Gamma_K$, we define $\\lambda \\mathrel{<\\joinrel\\llap{\\raisebox{-1ex}{$\\scriptstyle{0}\\mkern8mu$}}} \\mu$ as $\\lambda < \\mu \\vee \\lambda = \\mu = 0$.\n\\end{notn}\n\n\\begin{defn}[Higher-dimensional $\\mathrm{RV}$]\nFor every $n \\ge 1$, we define $\\mathrm{RV}^{(n)}$ as the quotient $K^n\/\\mathord{\\sim}$, where $x \\sim x' \\iff |x - x'| \\mathrel{<\\joinrel\\llap{\\raisebox{-1ex}{$\\scriptstyle{0}\\mkern8mu$}}} |x|$.\nWe write $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}$ for the canonical map $K^n \\to\\mathrm{RV}^{(n)}$. (For matrices $M \\in K^{n \\times m}$, we will use the more suggestive notation\n$\\operatorname{rv}^{(n \\times m)}(M)$ instead of $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n \\cdot m)}(M)$.)\n\\end{defn}\n\n(Recall that for $x \\in K^n$, $|x|$ denotes the maximum norm of $x$.)\n\n\\begin{remark}\nNote that $\\mathrm{RV}^{(1)}$ is just the usual $\\mathrm{RV}$.\nFor $n \\ge 2$, $\\mathrm{RV}^{(n)}$ is not the same as $\\mathrm{RV}^n$, but $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}$ factors over coordinate-wise $\\operatorname{rv}$, so that we have a natural surjection $\\mathrm{RV}^n \\to \\mathrm{RV}^{(n)}$. Moreover, the maximum norm on $K^n$ factors over $\\mathrm{RV}^{(n)}$.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\\begin{remark}\\label{rem:rvn:GLn}\nAs explained in \\cite[Section~2.2]{Halup}, $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}$ interacts well with ${\\rm GL}_n({\\mathcal O}_K)$; in particular, given $M \\in {\\rm GL}_n({\\mathcal O}_K)$ and $x \\in K^n$, $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}(Mx)$ is determined by $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n \\times n)}(M)$ and $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}(x)$.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\\begin{defn}[Sup-Jac-prop, sup-preparation]\\label{defn:sup-prep}\nFor $X \\subset K^n$ open and $f\\colon X \\to K$, we say that $f$ has the\n\\emph{Supremum Jacobian Property} (\\emph{sup-Jac-prop} for short) on $X$ if\n$f$ is $C^1$ on $X$, $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}(\\operatorname{grad} f)$ is constant on $X$, and for every $x_0$ and $x$ in $X$ we have:\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:T3\/2,mv}\n|f(x) - f(x_0) - ((\\operatorname{grad} f)(x_0))\\cdot(x - x_0) | \\mathrel{<\\joinrel\\llap{\\raisebox{-1ex}{$\\scriptstyle{0}\\mkern8mu$}}} |\\operatorname{grad} f |\\cdot |x-x_0|.\n\\end{equation}\nAs usual, we consider $(\\operatorname{grad} f)(x_0)$ as a matrix with a single row, which we multiply with the column vector $x - x_0$ in the usual way.\nWe say that a map $\\chi\\colon X \\to \\mathrm{RV}^k$ \\emph{sup-prepares} $f$ (for some $k \\ge 0$) if each $n$-dimensional fiber $F \\subset K^n$ of $\\chi$ is open and $f$ has the sup-Jac-prop on each such $F$.\n\\end{defn}\n\n\n\n\\begin{remark}\\label{rem:move:x_0}\nOne easily checks that the validity of (\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}) does not depend on the precise value of $(\\operatorname{grad} f)(x_0)$, but only on $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}((\\operatorname{grad} f)(x_0))$, so it does not play a role whether we evaluate $\\operatorname{grad} f$ at $x_0$ or at any other point of $X$.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\n\n\\begin{remark}\nIn the case $n = 1$, (\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}) is equivalent to $\\operatorname{rv}(f(x) - f(x_0)) = \\operatorname{rv}(f'(x_0))\\cdot \\operatorname{rv}(x - x_0)$ (which is exactly the main condition of the one-dimensional Jacobian Property; see Definition~\\ref{defn:JP}).\nFor $n\\ge 2$ however, (\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}) does not always determine\n$\\operatorname{rv}(f(x) - f(x_0))$.\nIndeed, if e.g.\\ $x - x_0$ is orthogonal to $(\\operatorname{grad} f)(x_0)$, then (\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}) only imposes an upper bound on $|f(x) - f(x_0)|$.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\\begin{remark}\nOne cannot expect to be able to sup-prepare definable functions in the stronger sense that $\\operatorname{rv}(f(x) - f(x_0))$ is equal to\n$\\operatorname{rv}(((\\operatorname{grad} f)(x_0))\\cdot(x - x_0))$ within fibers of $\\chi$ (which would correspond to replacing the right hand side of (\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}) by $|((\\operatorname{grad} f)(x_0))\\cdot(x - x_0)|$). Indeed, consider for example $f(x, y) = y - x^2$, fix any $(x_0, y_0) \\in K^2$ and any $\\epsilon \\in K^\\times$, and set $(x,y) := (x_0 + \\epsilon, y_0 + 2x_0\\epsilon)$. Then\n$((\\operatorname{grad} f)(x_0,y_0))\\cdot((x,y) - (x_0,y_0)) = 0$ but\n$f(x,y) - f(x_0,y_0) \\ne 0$. For any $\\chi$ potentially preparing $f$, we can make such choices such that $(x_0,y_0)$ and $(x, y)$ lie in the same fiber.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\nThe following lemma states that the sup-Jac-prop is preserved by certain transformations.\n\n\n\\begin{lem}[Preservation of sup-Jac-prop]\\label{lem:liptrans}\nLet $X \\subset K^m$ and $Y \\subset K^n$ be open subsets\nand let $\\alpha\\colon X \\to Y$ be a $C^1$-map.\nSuppose that $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n \\times m)}(\\operatorname{Jac} \\alpha)$ is constant on $X$ and that\nfor every $x_1, x_2 \\in X$ we have\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:scaling}\n|\\alpha(x_2) - \\alpha(x_1)| = |\\operatorname{Jac} \\alpha|\\cdot |x_2 - x_1|\n\\end{equation}\nand\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:alpha}\n\\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}(\\alpha(x_2) - \\alpha(x_1)) = \\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}((\\operatorname{Jac} \\alpha)(x_1)\\cdot (x_2 - x_1))\n\\end{equation}\nFinally, suppose that $f\\colon Y \\to K$ is a $C^1$-map such that $f \\circ \\alpha$ has the sup-Jac-prop (on $X$).\nThen $f$ satisfies (\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}) for all $x_0, x \\in \\alpha(X)$.\n\\end{lem}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nLet $x_1, x_2 \\in X$ be given and set $y_i := \\alpha(x_i)$ and $z_i := f(y_i)$.\nIn the following, gradients and Jacobians will always be computed at $x_1$ or $y_1$; we\nwill omit those points from the notation.\n\nWhat we need to show is:\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:lt-want}\n|z_2 - z_1 - (\\operatorname{grad} f)\\cdot (y_2 - y_1)| \\mathrel{<\\joinrel\\llap{\\raisebox{-1ex}{$\\scriptstyle{0}\\mkern8mu$}}} |\\operatorname{grad} f| \\cdot |y_2 - y_1|.\n\\end{equation}\nBy assumption, we have\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:lt-have}\n|z_2 - z_1 - (\\operatorname{grad} (f\\circ \\alpha))\\cdot (x_2 - x_1)| \\mathrel{<\\joinrel\\llap{\\raisebox{-1ex}{$\\scriptstyle{0}\\mkern8mu$}}} |\\operatorname{grad} (f\\circ \\alpha)| \\cdot |x_2 - x_1|.\n\\end{equation}\nApplying $\\operatorname{grad} (f\\circ \\alpha) = (\\operatorname{grad} f)\\cdot (\\operatorname{Jac} \\alpha)$\nto the right hand side of (\\ref{eq:lt-have}) gives\n\\[\n|\\operatorname{grad} (f\\circ \\alpha)| \\cdot |x_2 - x_1| \\le |\\operatorname{grad} f| \\cdot |\\operatorname{Jac} \\alpha| \\cdot |x_2 - x_1|\n\\overset{(\\ref{eq:scaling})}{=} |\\operatorname{grad} f| \\cdot |y_2 - y_1|.\n\\]\nOn the left hand side of (\\ref{eq:lt-have}), we do the following:\n\\[\n(\\operatorname{grad} (f\\circ \\alpha))\\cdot (x_2 - x_1) = (\\operatorname{grad} f)\\cdot (\\operatorname{Jac} \\alpha)\\cdot (x_2 - x_1) \\approx\n(\\operatorname{grad} f)\\cdot (y_2 - y_1),\n\\]\nwhere in the ``$\\approx$'', we use (\\ref{eq:alpha}) to get an error $e$ with $e \\mathrel{<\\joinrel\\llap{\\raisebox{-1ex}{$\\scriptstyle{0}\\mkern8mu$}}} |\\operatorname{grad} f| \\cdot |y_1 - y_2|$ (and this is what ``$\\approx$'' means here).\nPutting things together yields (\\ref{eq:lt-want}), as desired.\n\\end{proof}\n\nThe main result of this subsection is that every definable function on $K^n$ can be sup-prepared:\n\n\\begin{thm}[Sup-preparation]\\label{thm:T3\/2,mv}\nSuppose that $\\operatorname{Th}(K)$ is $1$-h-minimal.\nFor every $\\emptyset$-definable function $f\\colon K^n \\to K$, there exists a $\\emptyset$-definable map $\\chi\\colon K^n\\to \\mathrm{RV}^k$ (for some $k\\geq 0$) sup-preparing $f$\n(in the sense of Definition~\\ref{defn:sup-prep}).\n\\end{thm}\n\nThe proof needs some kind of cell decomposition with 1-Lipschitz centers, as e.g.\\ provided by Theorem~\\ref{thm:cd:alg:skol}, Addendum~\\ref{add:cd:Lip:comp}. To keep this paper more self-contained (since we did not give the proof of Addendum~\\ref{add:cd:Lip:comp} in full detail), we will instead prove and use the following weaker version of the addendum; more precisely, this proposition is proved in a joint induction with Theorem~\\ref{thm:T3\/2,mv}.\n\n\\begin{prop}[Twisted boxes with $1$-Lipschitz centers]\\label{prop:twibox:1Lip}\nAssume $1$-h-minimality and that $\\acl$ equals $\\dcl$ (in the sense of Assumption~\\ref{ass:acl=dcl}).\nThen, for every $\\emptyset$-definable set $X \\subset K^n$, there exists a\n$\\emptyset$-definable map $\\chi\\colon X \\to \\mathrm{RV}^{k'}$ such that each fiber $F$ of $\\chi$ is, up to permutation of coordinates,\nan $\\mathrm{RV}$-definable twisted box of cell-type $(1, \\dots, 1, 0, \\dots, 0)$ with $1$-Lipschitz center (i.e., each component $c_i\\colon \\pi_{ |\\xi_2|$, then \\(c_2^{-1}\\) is defined on the whole of \\(Y\\) and the Jacobian property implies that \\(\\operatorname{rv}(x_2 -c_2(x_1)) = \\xi_2\\) if and only if \\(\\operatorname{rv}(x_1 - c_2^{-1}(x_2)) = -\\operatorname{rv}(c_2')^{-1}\\cdot\\xi_2\\).\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Proposition~\\ref{prop:twibox:1Lip} in the case $n = 1$]\nPrepare $X$ by a finite set $C$ and let $\\chi$ be the map given by Lemma~\\ref{lem:InextFam}.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Proposition~\\ref{prop:twibox:1Lip},\nassuming Proposition~\\ref{prop:twibox:1Lip} and Theorem~\\ref{thm:T3\/2,mv} for $n - 1$]\n\nBy an ``$\\mathrm{RV}$-partition'' of $X$, we mean a partition into fibers of an $\\mathrm{RV}$-definable\nmap $X \\to \\mathrm{RV}^k$. Note that if we are already given an $\\mathrm{RV}$-partition of $X$, it suffices to prove the proposition for each fiber individually. (Then put everything together using compactness.)\n\nWe say that $X$ is a ``thick graph'' (of the map $c_n$) if it is of the form $\\{(y, x_n) \\in Y \\times K\\mid \\operatorname{rv}(x_n - c_n(y)) = \\xi\\}$ for some $Y \\subset K^{n-1}$, some $c_n \\colon Y \\to K$, and some $\\xi \\in \\mathrm{RV}$. (Note that we allow $\\xi = 0$, which means that $X$ is just the graph of $c_n$.)\n\nNote that it suffices to obtain the claim in the last coordinate, i.e., to $\\mathrm{RV}$-partition $X$ into sets that are,\nup to permutation of coordinates, thick graphs of $1$-Lipschitz functions $c_n\\colon Y \\to K$.\nAfter that, the proposition follows by applying induction to $Y$.\n\nUsing cell decomposition, we reduce to the case where $X$ is a thick graph of a function $c_n\\colon Y \\to K$ and $Y$ is a twisted box. In particular, $X$ is a twisted box. We may assume that $Y$ is either open or has empty interior (by treating the interior separately).\n\nStep 1: If $Y$ has empty interior, we apply induction to $Y$ to reduce to the case that $Y$ is a twisted box with $1$-Lipschitz centers and we translate the centers away so that $X$ lives in a subspace of $K^n$ where some of the coordinates are $0$; then apply induction once more to finish. Note that, translating the variables of a $1$-Lipschitz function by $1$-Lipschitz functions yields a $1$-Lipschitz function and hence the original $X$ does have the required properties.\n\nSo suppose from now on that $Y$ is open. By partitioning $Y$, we may assume that $c_n$ is $C^1$ and that $|\\partial c_n\/\\partial x_{i}|$ is constant on $Y$ for each $i$. (Lower-dimensional pieces are treated as in Step 1.)\n\nStep 2: Assume $|\\operatorname{grad} c_n| \\le 1$. Using the $n-1$ case of Theorem~\\ref{thm:T3\/2,mv}, we may assume that $c_n$ has the sup-Jac-prop. This, together with\n$|\\operatorname{grad} c_n| \\le 1$, implies that $c_n$ is $1$-Lipschitz, and hence we are done.\n\nStep 3: So now suppose $|\\operatorname{grad} c_n| > 1$. We do an induction on the number of partial derivatives of $c_n$ satisfying $|\\partial c_n\/\\partial x_{i}| > 1$. We suppose without loss that\n$|\\partial c_n\/\\partial x_{n-1}| = |\\operatorname{grad} c_n|$. Let $Z$ be the projection of $Y$ to the first $n-2$ coordinates.\nBy further partitioning, we reduce to the case where, for each individual $a \\in Z$,\nthe function $c_n(a, \\cdot)$ has the Jacobian Property (using Corollary~\\ref{cor:JP} and compactness) and\nhas an open ball as domain. (Again, lower-dimensional pieces are treated as in Step 1.)\n\nNote that for each $a \\in Z$, the fiber $X_{a} \\subset K^2$ is a twisted box. By further partitioning $Z$, we may assume that either all of them or none of them are genuine boxes.\n\nStep 3.a: If all fibers are genuine boxes: by induction on $n$, we may assume that the projection $\\tilde X$ of $X$ to the coordinates $1, \\dots, n-2, n$ is a thick graph of a $1$-Lipschitz function $\\tilde c_n\\colon Z \\to K$.\n(This involves permuting the coordinates $1, \\dots, n-2, n$.) Then $X$ is a thick graph of $c_n(z, x_{n-1}) := \\tilde c_n(z)$, which is $1$-Lipschitz, so we are done.\n\nStep 3.b: If no fiber is a genuine box, we apply the map $\\sigma\\colon K^n \\to K^n$ swapping the coordinates $n-1$ and $n$. By compactness and Lemma~\\ref{lem:swap:twibox},\n$\\sigma(X)$ is the thick graph of the function $c_{n,\\mathrm{new}}$ sending $(x_1, \\dots, x_{n-2}, c_n(x_{n-1}))$ to $x_{n-1}$. Since $|\\partial c_{n,\\mathrm{new}}\/\\partial x_i|\\le |\\partial c_{n}\/\\partial x_i|$ for $i \\le n - 2$ and\n$|\\partial c_{n,\\mathrm{new}}\/\\partial x_n|= 1\/ |\\partial c_{n}\/\\partial x_{n-1}| < 1$, $c_{n,\\mathrm{new}}$ has fewer partial derivatives bigger than $1$, so we can finish by the induction from Step~3.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Theorem~\\ref{thm:T3\/2,mv} in the case $n = 1$]\nThis follows directly from Corollary~\\ref{cor:JP}\nand Lemma~\\ref{lem:InextFam}: The corollary yields a finite $\\emptyset$-definable set $C$ such that (\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}) holds on every ball $1$-next to $C$, and Lemma~\\ref{lem:InextFam} then yields a map $\\chi\\colon K \\to \\mathrm{RV}^k$ whose $1$-dimensional fibers are exactly those balls.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Theorem~\\ref{thm:T3\/2,mv}, assuming Proposition~\\ref{prop:twibox:1Lip} for $n$ and Theorem~\\ref{thm:T3\/2,mv} for $n - 1$]\nThe proof consists of three parts.\n\n\\medskip\n\nPart 1: Some preliminaries:\n\n\\medskip\n\n\\begin{claim}\\label{cl:3\/2-acldcl}\nIt suffices to prove the theorem under the assumption that $\\acl$ equals $\\dcl$.\n\\end{claim}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nLet ${\\mathcal L}^{\\rm as} \\supset {\\mathcal L}$ be as given by Proposition~\\ref{prop:exist:alg:skol}, i.e., $\\operatorname{Th}_{{\\mathcal L}^{\\rm as}}(K)$ is still $1$-h-minimal, and in $\\operatorname{Th}_{{\\mathcal L}^{\\rm as}}(K)$, we have $\\acl$ equals $\\dcl$. Assuming that Theorem~\\ref{thm:T3\/2,mv} holds for this language, we find an ${\\mathcal L}^{\\rm as}$-definable $\\chi'\\colon K^n\\to \\mathrm{RV}^{k'}$ sup-preparing $f$.\nSince ${\\mathcal L}^{\\rm as}$ is an $\\mathrm{RV}$-expansion of ${\\mathcal L}$, Lemma~\\ref{lem:undo-K-to-RV} provides an ${\\mathcal L}$-definable $\\chi\\colon K^n\\to \\mathrm{RV}^k$ such that each fiber $F$ of $\\chi$\nis contained in a fiber of $\\chi'$; in particular, (\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}) holds whenever $(\\operatorname{grad} (f|_F))(x_0)$ is defined. It remains to refine $\\chi$ in such a way that each of its $n$-dimensional fibers is open.\nWe do this by splitting each $n$-dimensional fiber $F$ into its interior $\\mathring F$ and the remainder. Then indeed $\\mathring F$ is open, and\n$F \\setminus \\mathring F$ has dimension less than $n$,\nby Proposition~\\ref{prop:dim:basic} (\\ref{prop:dim:frontier}) applied to\n$K^n \\setminus F$. (Note that we only use the case of Proposition~\\ref{prop:dim:basic} (\\ref{prop:dim:frontier}) which we already proved right after the proposition.)\n\\qedhere(\\ref{cl:3\/2-acldcl})\n\\end{proof}\n\nSo for the remainder of the proof we assume that $\\acl$ equals $\\dcl$ (so that we can apply Cell Decomposition and Proposition~\\ref{prop:twibox:1Lip}).\n\nRecall that we inductively assume that the theorem holds up to dimension $n-1$. From this, we deduce the following for functions defined on some $n$-dimensional neighborhoods of lower-dimensional subsets of $K^n$.\n\n\\begin{claim}\\label{cl:on-graphs}\nGiven any $(n-1)$-dimensional $\\emptyset$-definable $Z \\subset K^{n}$ and any $\\emptyset$-definable $C^1$-function $f$ to $K$ defined on an open neighborhood of $Z$, there exists a $\\emptyset$-definable map $\\chi\\colon Z \\to \\mathrm{RV}^k$ (for some $k \\ge 0$) such that if $F \\subset Z$ is an $(n-1)$-dimensional fiber of $\\chi$, then\n(\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}) holds for every pair $x_0, x \\in F$.\n\\end{claim}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nWe can (and will repeatedly) partition $Z$ into fibers of a $\\emptyset$-definable map $Z \\to \\mathrm{RV}^k$. (If the claim holds for each fiber of such a partition, we then obtain the desired map $Z \\to \\mathrm{RV}^{k'}$ using compactness.)\nBy partitioning $Z$ into the twisted boxes of a cell decomposition, we may assume that $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}(\\operatorname{grad} f)$ is constant. By Proposition~\\ref{prop:twibox:1Lip}, we may assume that $Z$ is a twisted box of cell-type $(1, \\dots, 1, 0)$ with\n$1$-Lipschitz center.\n\nLet $\\hat Z$ be the projection of $Z$ to the first $n-1$ coordinates, so that $Z$ is the graph of a $1$-Lipschitz function $c \\colon \\hat Z \\to K$. Apply Theorem~\\ref{thm:T3\/2,mv} to $c$ and to $f \\circ \\alpha$, where $\\alpha\\colon \\hat Z \\to Z, x \\mapsto (x, c(x))$, and partition $\\hat Z$ and $Z$ accordingly, i.e., so that after the partition, $c$ and $f \\circ \\alpha$ have the sup-Jac-prop on $\\hat Z$. Using that $c$ is $1$-Lipschitz, one obtains that the map $\\alpha\\colon \\hat Z \\to Z, x \\mapsto (x, c(x))$ satisfies the assumptions of Lemma~\\ref{lem:liptrans}. Therefore, the fact that $f \\circ \\alpha$ satisfies (\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}) on $\\hat Z$ implies that $f$ satisfies (\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}) on $Z$, as desired.\n\\qedhere(\\ref{cl:on-graphs})\n\\end{proof}\n\nLet now a $\\emptyset$-definable function $f\\colon K^n \\to K$ be given (with $n \\ge 2$); we need to find a $\\emptyset$-definable map $K^n \\to \\mathrm{RV}^k$ sup-preparing $f$. We more generally allow the domain of $f$ to be any $\\emptyset$-definable set $X \\subset K^n$.\nAs in the proof of Claim~\\ref{cl:on-graphs}, if we have a $\\emptyset$-definable map $\\chi\\colon X \\to \\mathrm{RV}^k$, it suffices to sup-prepare the restrictions of $f$ to each fiber of $\\chi$. Moreover, fibers of dimension less than $n$ can always be neglected. This argument will be applied repeatedly.\n\nWe write elements of $K^n$ as $(x, y)$, with $x\\in K^{n-1}$ and $y \\in K$.\n\n\\medskip\n\nPart 2: Reducing to the case where\n$X$ is of the form $\\bar X\\times B$ for some $\\bar X \\subset K^{n-1}$ and some ball $B \\subset K$, $f$ is $C^1$, $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}(\\operatorname{grad} f)$ is constant, and\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item[(SJP1)] for each fixed $x \\in \\bar X$, the function $f(x, \\cdot)$ has the sup-Jac-prop.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\n\\medskip\n\nWe start by partitioning $K^n$ as follows:\n\n\\begin{enumerate}[(a)]\n \\item By repeatedly applying the case $n = 1$ (and using compactness), we may assume that $f$ has the sup-Jac-prop fiberwise: for every fixed $x \\in K^{n-1}$ and every coordinate permutation $\\sigma\\colon K^n \\to K^n$, the map $y \\mapsto f(\\sigma(x,y))$ has the sup-Jac-prop.\n \\item We moreover assume that $f$ is $C^1$ (using Theorem~\\ref{thm:Ck}) and that\n $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}(\\operatorname{grad} f)$ is constant.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\nBy applying Proposition~\\ref{prop:twibox:1Lip} and permuting coordinates, we may assume that $X$ is a twisted box with $1$-Lipschitz center:\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:F1}\nX = \\{(x, y) \\in K^{n-1} \\times K \\mid x \\in \\bar X,\\ \\operatorname{rv}(y -c(x)) = \\rho\\}\n\\end{equation}\nfor some $\\rho \\in \\mathrm{RV}^\\times$, some definable $1$-Lipschitz $c\\colon \\bar X \\to K$ and where $\\bar X := \\pi_{\\le n-1}(X) \\subset K^{n-1}$ is the projection to the first $n-1$ coordinates. We may assume that $c$ is $C^1$, and applying the Theorem inductively to $c$ allows us to moreover assume that $c$ has the sup-Jac-prop.\n\nSet $X' := \\bar X \\times \\operatorname{rv}^{-1}(\\rho) \\subset K^{n-1} \\times K$. The bijection $\\alpha\\colon X' \\to X, (x,y) \\mapsto (x, y + c(x))$\nsatisfies the assumptions of Lemma~\\ref{lem:liptrans}, so to prove that $f$ has the sup-Jac-prop on some set $F \\subset X$, it suffices\nto verify that $f' := f \\circ \\alpha$ has the sup-Jac-prop on $\\alpha^{-1}(F)$.\nIn other words, it remains to sup-prepare $f'\\colon X' \\to K$.\n\nBy (b), $f'$ is $C^1$ and $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}(\\operatorname{grad} f') = \\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}((\\operatorname{grad} f)(\\operatorname{Jac} \\alpha))$ is constant (using Remark~\\ref{rem:rvn:GLn});\nby (a),\n$f'(x,\\cdot)$ has the sup-Jac-prop for each $x \\in \\bar X$; thus we are done with Part~2.\n\n\\medskip\n\nPart 3: Finishing under the assumptions obtained in Part~2.\n\n\\medskip\n\nRecall that $X = \\bar X \\times B \\subset K^{n-1} \\times K$.\n\n\\begin{enumerate}\n \\item[(SJP2)] By induction, we find a map $\\chi\\colon X \\to \\mathrm{RV}^k$ such that for each fixed $y \\in B$, $g(\\cdot, y)$ is sup-prepared by $\\chi(\\cdot, y)$.\n\\end{enumerate}\nWe choose a cell decomposition of $X$ with continuous centers and we refine $\\chi$ in such a way that the fibers of $\\chi$ are exactly the twisted boxes of the cells. Given such a cell $A_\\ell$, let $\\bar A_\\ell := \\pi_{\\le n-1}(A_\\ell)$ be its projection and let\n$c_\\ell\\colon \\bar A_\\ell \\to K$ be the last component of its center tuple.\n\nLet $Z_\\ell$ be the intersection of the graph of $c_\\ell$ with $X$.\nWe apply Claim~\\ref{cl:on-graphs} to $Z_\\ell$ and $f$, yielding a map $\\chi_\\ell\\colon Z_\\ell \\to \\mathrm{RV}^k$,\nwe extend $\\chi_\\ell$ by $0$ to the whole graph of $c_\\ell$,\nand we replace $\\chi$ by the refinement $(x, y) \\mapsto (\\chi(x, y), (\\chi_\\ell(x, c_\\ell(x)))_\\ell)$.\nIn this way, we achieved the following:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item[(SJP3)]\nGiven any $(x_1, y_1), (x_2, y_2)$ in the same $n$-dimensional fiber of $\\chi$, and given any $\\ell$, the pair of points $(x_i, c_\\ell(x_i))$ ($i =1,2$) satisfies (\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}), provided that both of those points $(x_i, c_\\ell(x_i))$ lie in $X$.\n\\end{enumerate}\nNote that since this refinement of $\\chi$ only depends on $x$,\neach fiber $F$ of $\\chi$ is still of the form\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:fiber}\nF = \\{(x, y) \\in K^{n-1} \\times K \\mid x \\in \\bar F,\\operatorname{rv}(y -c_\\ell(x)) = \\xi\\} \\subset \\bar X \\times B,\n\\end{equation}\nfor some $\\ell$, some $\\xi \\in \\mathrm{RV}$ and where $\\bar F = \\pi_{\\le n-1}(F)$.\nUsing one last refinement of $\\chi$ (also depending only on $x$), we may assume that $\\bar F$ is either open or has dimension less than $n-1$,\nso that if $F$ is $n$-dimensional, it is open.\nTo finish the proof of the theorem, we will prove that $f$ has the sup-Jac-prop on each such $n$-dimensional fiber $F$.\n\nWe already know that $f$ is $C^1$ on $F$ and that $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}(\\operatorname{grad} f)$ is constant on $F$, so it remains to verify (\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}); thus\nlet $(x_1,y_1), (x_2, y_2) \\in F$ be given.\n\nRecall (Remark~\\ref{rem:move:x_0}) that\nin (\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}), it does not matter at which point of $F$ we evaluate the gradient $\\operatorname{grad} f$. Using this, an easy computation\nshows that (\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}) can be verified\nin several steps, jumping to certain intermediate points $(x_3,y_3) \\in F$ first, namely:\nIf (\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}) holds for $(x_1,y_1), (x_3, y_3)$ and also for $(x_3,y_3), (x_2, y_2)$, and if moreover\n$|(x_1,y_1) - (x_3, y_3)| \\le |(x_1,y_1) - (x_2, y_2)|$, then (\\ref{eq:T3\/2,mv}) follows for $(x_1,y_1), (x_2, y_2)$.\nIn a similar way, we can also jump through several intermediate points.\nNote also that the intermediate points can be arbitrary points of $X$ (and do not need to lie in $F$), since $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}(\\operatorname{grad} f)$ is constant on all of $X$.\n\nWe use the notation from (\\ref{eq:fiber}) and distinguish three cases:\n\n\\medskip\n\nCase 1: $|c_\\ell(x_1) - y_1| > |y_2 - y_1|$.\nThen we have $(x_1, y_2) \\in F$, so we can jump from $(x_1, y_1)$ to $(x_1, y_2)$ by (SJP1) and from $(x_1, y_2)$ to $(x_2, y_2)$ by (SJP2).\n\n\n\\medskip\n\nCase 2: $|c_\\ell(x_2) - y_2| > |y_2 - y_1|$: analogous to Case 1.\n\n\\medskip\n\nCase 3: $|c_\\ell(x_i) - y_i| \\le |y_2 - y_1|$ for $i = 1,2$:\nFrom $y_1, y_2 \\in B$, we deduce $c_\\ell(x_i) \\in B$,\nso that $(x_i, c_\\ell(x_i))$ lies in $X$. Moreover, we have $|(x_i,y_i) - (x_i, c_\\ell(x_i))| \\le |(x_1, y_1) - (x_2, y_2)|$.\nThis means that we can jump from $(x_1,y_1)$ to $(x_1, c_\\ell(x_1))$ by (SJP1), then to $(x_2, c_\\ell(x_2))$ by (SJP3), and then to $(x_2,y_2)$ by (SJP1) again.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\subsection{t-stratifications}\n\\label{sec:t-strat}\n\nIn \\cite{Halup}, a notion of stratifications in valued fields has been introduced, called ``t-stratifications''. Intuitively, given a definable set $X \\subset K^n$, a t-stratification captures, for every ball $B \\subset K^n$, the dimension of the space of directions in which $X \\cap B$ is ``roughly translation invariant''. This strengthens classical notions of stratifications (like Whitney or Verdier stratifications), which capture rough translation invariance only locally.\n\nThe existence proof of t-stratifications given in \\cite{Halup} is carried out under some axiomatic assumptions, namely \\cite[Hypothesis~2.21]{Halup}. Those assumptions hold in valued fields with analytic structure (in the sense of \\cite{CLip}) by\n\\cite[Proposition~5.12]{Halup} and in power-bounded T-convex structures by \\cite{Gar.powbd}. We will now show that the assumptions hold in any 1-h-minimal theory of equi-characteristic $0$, hence implying that t-stratifications exist\nin this generality. By the examples of 1-h-minimal theories given in Section~\\ref{sec:examples}, this generalizes\nboth of the above results.\n\nIn this entire section, let $K$ be an equi-characteristic $0$ valued field with $1$-h-minimal theory.\n\nWe quickly recall the necessary definitions related to t-stratifications. First, here is the precise notion of ``roughly translation invariant'':\n\n\\begin{defn}[Risometries, translatability]\\label{defn:trble}\nLet $B \\subset K^n$ be a ball.\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item A bijection $f\\colon B \\to B$ is a \\emph{risometry}\n if for every $x_1, x_2 \\in B$, we have $\\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}(f(x_1) - f(x_2)) = \\operatorname{rv}^{(n)}(x_1 - x_2)$.\n\\item A map $\\chi\\colon K^n \\to Q$ (for some arbitrary set $Q$)\nis \\emph{$d$-translatable} on $B$, for some $0 \\le d \\le n$, if there exists a definable (with parameters) risometry $f\\colon B \\to B$ and a $d$-dimensional sub-vector space $V \\subset K^n$ such that for every $x, x' \\in B$ satisfying $x - x' \\in V$, we have $\\chi(f(x)) = \\chi(f(x'))$.\n\\item\nA subset $X \\subset K^n$ is called $d$-translatable if its characteristic function $1_X\\colon K^n \\to \\{0,1\\}$ is $d$-translatable.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{defn}\n\n\n\n\n\\begin{defn}[t-stratifications]\nLet $\\chi\\colon K^n \\to Q$ be a map (for some arbitrary set $Q$) and let $A$ be a set of parameters. An \\emph{$A$-definable t-stratification reflecting} $\\chi$ is a partition of $K^n$ into $A$-definable sets $S_0, \\dots, S_n$ with the following properties:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n \\item $\\dim S_d \\le d$.\n \\item\n Set $\\chi'(x) := (\\chi(x), d(x)) \\in Q \\times \\{0,\\dots, n\\}$, where $d(x)$ is defined such that $x \\in S_d$ for every $x \\in K^n$.\n For each $d \\le n$ and each open or closed ball $B \\subset S_d \\cup \\dots \\cup S_n$,\nthis map $\\chi'$ is $d$-translatable on $B$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{defn}\n\n\n\n\\begin{thm}[t-stratifications]\\label{thm:t-strats}\nLet $K$ be a valued field of equi-characteristic $0$ with $1$-h-minimal theory, and\nlet $\\chi \\colon K^n \\to Q$ be a $\\emptyset$-definable map, where $Q$ is a sort of $\\mathrm{RV}^{\\mathrm{eq}}$.\nThen there exists a $\\emptyset$-definable t-stratification $(S_i)_{i \\le n}$ reflecting $\\chi$.\n\\end{thm}\n\n\n\\begin{proof}\nAccording to \\cite[Theorem~4.12]{Halup}, the existence of t-stratifications follows from \\cite[Hypothesis~2.21]{Halup}, so the theorem follows from the following lemma.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{lem}\nHypothesis~2.21 of \\cite{Halup} holds in $1$-h-minimal theories.\n\\end{lem}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nThe hypothesis consists of the following four parts.\n\\begin{enumerate}\n \\item $\\mathrm{RV}$ is stably embedded:\n\n This is Proposition~\\ref{prop:stab}.\n\\item Definable maps from $\\mathrm{RV}$ to $K$ have finite image:\n\nThis is (a special case of) Corollary~\\ref{cor:finiterange}.\n\n\\item\nFor every $A \\subset K \\cup \\mathrm{RV}^{\\mathrm{eq}}$, every $A$-definable set $X \\subset K$ can be $1$-prepared by a finite $A$-definable set $C \\subset K$:\n\nThis is clear from the definition of $1$-h-minimality and\nLemma~\\ref{lem:addconst}.\n\n\\item\nThe theory has the Jacobian Property in the sense of \\cite[Theorem~2.19]{Halup}, namely: For every $A \\subset K \\cup \\mathrm{RV}^{\\mathrm{eq}}$, every $A$-definable function $f\\colon K^n \\to K$ can be sup-prepared (in the sense of Definition~\\ref{defn:sup-prep}) by an $A$-definable map $\\xi\\colon K^n \\to Q$, where $Q$ is a sort of $\\mathrm{RV}^{\\mathrm{eq}}$:\n\nAdd $A$ as constants to the language. Then (4) is just Theorem~\\ref{thm:T3\/2,mv}.\\qedhere\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{proof}\n\n\nNote that the proof we gave here also simplifies the proofs from \\cite{Halup} (in the case of fields with analytic structure) and \\cite{Gar.powbd} (in the case of $T$-convex structures): In those papers, the proof of (4) was done using a complicated inductive argument using the existence\nof t-stratifications in lower dimension. This has been replaced by the more direct proof of our Theorem~\\ref{thm:T3\/2,mv}.\n\n\\medskip\n\nWe end this subsection with the promised proof of the missing part of Proposition \\ref{prop:dim:basic}, namely that for definable sets $X \\subset K^n$, the frontier\n $\\overline X\\setminus X$ has lower dimension than $X$:\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Proposition \\ref{prop:dim:basic} (\\ref{prop:dim:frontier})]\nChoose a t-stratification reflecting\nthe Cartesian product $\\chi(x) := (1_X(x), 1_Y(x))$ of the characteristic functions of $X$ and of the frontier $Y := \\bar X \\setminus X$, and set $d := \\dim Y$.\nFor dimension reasons, $Y$ contains at least one point $y \\in S_d$.\n(Note that the definition of t-stratification implies $Y \\cap S_j = \\emptyset$ for $j > \\dim Y$; see \\cite[Lemma~3.10]{Halup}.) Assuming $\\dim X \\le d$, we will show that $y$ cannot be contained in the topological closure of $X$.\n\nSince $S_{\\le d-1} := S_0 \\cup \\dots \\cup S_{d-1}$ is closed (by \\cite[Lemma~3.17 (a)]{Halup}), there exists a ball $B \\subset S_d \\cup \\dots \\cup S_n$ containing $y$.\nLet $f\\colon B \\to B$ be a risometry and $V \\subset K^n$ be a vector space witnessing $d$-translatability of $\\chi$ on this $B$, as in Definition~\\ref{defn:trble}. Since $f$ is a homeomorphism (and $y \\notin X$), to obtain $y \\notin \\bar X$, it suffices to show that $X' := f^{-1}(X \\cap B)$ is closed in $B$.\nLet $\\pi \\colon K^n \\to K^n\/V$ be the canonical map. The definition of $d$-translatability implies that $X' = B \\cap \\pi^{-1}(\\pi(X'))$. Now the assumption $\\dim X \\le d$ implies $\\dim \\pi(X') = 0$, so indeed $X'$ is closed in $B$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Taylor approximation on boxes disjoint from a lower dimensional set}\n\\label{sec:taylor-box}\n\n\nWe prove a higher-dimensional version of the Taylor approximation Theorem~\\ref{thm:high-ord}.\nBy a \\emph{box} in $K^n$, we mean a Cartesian product of balls in $K$.\n\n\\begin{thm}[Taylor approximations on boxes]\\label{thm:t-high-high}\nGiven a $\\emptyset$-definable function $f\\colon K^n\\to K$,\nthere exists a $\\emptyset$-definable set $C\\subset K^n$ of dimension at most $n-1$ such that for any box $B \\subset K^n \\setminus C$, $f$ is $(r+1)$-fold differentiable on $B$, for each $i\\in{\\mathbb N}^n$ with $|i|= r+1$ one has that $|f^{(i)}|$ is constant on $B$, and we have\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:t-high-high}\n|f(x) - T^{\\le r}_{f,x'}(x)| \\le \\max_{|i| = r+1} |f^{(i)}(x')(x - x')^i|\n\\end{equation}\nfor every $x, x' \\in B$. (Here, $i$ runs over $n$-tuples and we use the usual multi-index notation.)\n\\end{thm}\n\n\nOne may investigate whether one can obtain (\\ref{eq:t-high-high}) to not only holds on boxes disjoint from $C$, but also on fibers of a map $K^n \\to \\mathrm{RV}^k$, as in Theorem~\\ref{thm:T3\/2,mv}; however, we do not know how to prove this in general. See Question~\\ref{qu:t-high-high} for more discussion around this.\n\n\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Theorem~\\ref{thm:t-high-high}]\nWe do an induction over $n$, the case $n = 1$ being Theorem~\\ref{thm:high-ord}. Applying the induction hypothesis fiberwise (and using compactness) allows us to find a $C \\subset K^n$ ($\\emptyset$-definable, of dimension less than $n$) such that for every box $B = \\hat B \\times B_n \\subset K^{n-1} \\times K$ disjoint from $C$, for $x_n \\in B_n$ and for every $\\hat x, \\hat x' \\in \\hat B$, we have:\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:hh:1}\n |f(x) -\\sum_{|\\hat i| \\le r} \\frac{f^{(\\hat i, 0)}(\\hat x', x_n)}{\\hat i!}(\\hat x - \\hat x')^{\\hat i}| \\le \\max_{|\\hat i| = r+1} |f^{(\\hat i, 0)}(\\hat x', x_n)(\\hat x - \\hat x')^{\\hat i}|\n\\end{equation}\nFor each $\\hat i \\in {\\mathbb N}^{n-1}$ with $|\\hat i| \\le r$, we moreover apply the $n = 1$ case of the theorem to $f^{(\\hat i, 0)}(\\hat x, \\cdot)$ (for each fixed $\\hat x$) and $r' := r - |\\hat i|$, so that for $\\hat x' \\in \\hat B$ and $x_n, x'_n \\in B'$, we have:\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:hh:2}\n|f^{(\\hat i, 0)}(\\hat x', x_n) - \\sum_{i_n = 0}^{r'} \\frac{f^{(\\hat i, i_n)}(\\hat x', x'_n)}{i_n!}(x_n - x_n')^{i_n}| \\le | f^{(\\hat i, r' + 1)}(\\hat x', x'_n)(x_n - x'_n)^{r' + 1}|.\n\\end{equation}\nUsing (\\ref{eq:hh:2}) to estimate the $f^{(\\hat i, 0)}(\\hat x', x_n)$ from the left hand side of\n(\\ref{eq:hh:1}) yields (\\ref{eq:t-high-high}), as desired.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Classical cells}\\label{sec:cd:classical}\n\nWe end this section by recalling the older, more classical notion of cells which has to be used in the absence of the condition that $\\acl$ equals $\\dcl$ in $\\operatorname{Th}(K)$, and by stating the corresponding classical cell decomposition results under the assumption of $1$-h-minimality.\n\n\n\\begin{defn}[Reparameterized cells]\\label{defn:reparamcell}\nConsider integers $n,k\\geq 0$, a $\\emptyset$-definable set $X\\subset K^n$, and a $\\emptyset$-definable function\n$$\n\\sigma : X\\to \\mathrm{RV}^k.\n$$\nThen $(X,\\sigma)$ is called a $\\emptyset$-definable reparameterized cell (reparameterized by $\\sigma$),\nif, for each $\\xi\\in \\mathrm{RV}^k$, the set $\\sigma^{-1}(\\xi)$, when non-empty, is a $\\xi$-definable cell with some center tuple $c_\\xi$ (see Definition \\ref{defn:cell}), such that moreover $c_\\xi$ depends definably on $\\xi$ and such that the cell-type of $\\sigma^{-1}(\\xi)$ is independent of $\\xi$. If $(X,\\sigma)$ is such a reparameterized cell\nthen, by a twisted box of $X$ we mean a twisted box of $\\sigma^{-1}(\\xi)$ for some $\\xi$ as in Definition \\ref{defn:cell}, and similarly, by the center tuple and the cell-type of $(X,\\sigma)$, we mean the definable family of the center tuples of the cells $\\sigma^{-1}(\\xi)$ (with family parameter $\\xi$), and the cell-type of the $\\sigma^{-1}(\\xi)$, respectively.\n\\end{defn}\n\n\\begin{remark}\nIn the above definition, one can always modify $\\sigma$ in such a way that afterwards,\neach $\\sigma^{-1}(\\xi)$ is either empty or a single twisted box. In a different direction, if the language ${\\mathcal L}$ has an angular component map ${\\overline{\\rm ac}}$ sending $K$ to its residue field,\nthen one can take $\\sigma$ from Definition \\ref{defn:reparamcell} to be residue field valued (instead of $\\mathrm{RV}$-valued).\nEither of those additional assumptions on $\\sigma$ can in particular be imposed on the cells appearing in the following theorem.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\\begin{thm}[Reparameterized cell decomposition]\\label{thm:rcd}\nSuppose that $\\operatorname{Th}(K)$ is $1$-h-minimal.\nConsider $n,k\\geq 0$ and $\\emptyset$-definable sets $X\\subset K^n$ and $P\\subset X\\times \\mathrm{RV}^k$. We consider $P$ as the function sending $x\\in X$ to the fiber $P_x := \\{\\xi \\in \\mathrm{RV}^k \\mid (x,\\xi) \\in P\\}$.\nThen there exists a finite decomposition of $X$ into $\\emptyset$-definable reparameterized cells $(A_i,\\sigma_i)$ such that moreover $P$ (considered as a function) is constant on each twisted box of each $A_i$.\n\nThe other addenda of Theorem \\ref{thm:cd:alg:skol} can be adapted in a similar way.\nIn particular, for the analogue of Addendum \\ref{add:cd:alg:range} of \\ref{thm:cd:alg:skol}, given finitely many $\\emptyset$-definable $f_j:X\\to K$ and assuming $n=1$, we can moreover assume that there are $\\emptyset$-definable reparameterized cells $(B_{ij},\\tau_ {ij})$ such that $f_j(A_i)=B_{ij}$ and such that any twisted box of $A_i$ is mapped by $f_j$ onto a twisted box of $B_{ij}$.\n\nFor the analogue of Addendum \\ref{add:cd:Lip:comp} of \\ref{thm:cd:alg:skol}, up to allowing a well-chosen coordinate permutation for each for each $i$, we can moreover for each $\\xi$ obtain that the center of $\\sigma_i^{-1}(\\xi)$ is $1$-Lipschitz.\n\\end{thm}\n\\begin{proof}\nThe proof is analogous to the proof of Theorem \\ref{thm:cd:alg:skol} and its addenda.\n\\end{proof}\nNote that the above version of Addendum \\ref{add:cd:Lip:comp} is weaker than the original Addendum \\ref{add:cd:Lip:comp} of Theorem \\ref{thm:cd:alg:skol}, since instead of obtaining finitely many $1$-Lipschitz centers,\nwe now only obtain that for each $\\xi$ separately, the center of\n$\\sigma_i^{-1}(\\xi)$ is $1$-Lipschitz;\nthis corresponds to an infinite partition.\n\nA similar phenomenon also arises with Theorem \\ref{thm:cd:alg:piece:Lipschitz} in the absence of the condition that $\\acl=\\dcl$, as in Theorem ~2.1.7 of \\cite{CCL-PW}: $f$ being locally $1$-Lipschitz implies globally $1$-Lipschitz only after some infinite partition of the domain.\n\n\n\n\\section{Mixed characteristic and non-complete theories}\n\\label{sec:mixed}\n\nSo far in this paper, we introduced Hensel minimality in equi-characteristic $0$. It seems plausible that the entire paper can be adapted to include mixed characteristic, but\nthis would require a considerable amount of work, so we leave this for the future. Instead, in Subsection~\\ref{ssec:mixed}, we present a simple method to deduce\nvariants of most of our results in mixed characteristic directly from the equi-characteristic $0$ version, using coarsenings of the valuation.\nWe focus on a few sample results; transferring other results in a similar way is left to the reader as an exercise.\n\nEven though this kind of transfer could be applied to $\\ell$-h-minimality for any $\\ell \\in {\\mathbb N} \\cup \\{\\omega\\}$,\nonly the case $\\ell = \\omega$ seems natural, (see Remark~\\ref{rem:1heqc}) so we focus on this case, introducing a notion of ``$\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimality''\nwhich makes sense in any residue field characteristic.\n\nThe different notions of Hensel minimality naturally extend to non-complete theories, where preparation works uniformly for all models.\nIn Subsection \\ref{ssec:non-comp}, we illustrate this on some sample results.\n\n\\subsection{Mixed characteristic}\\label{ssec:mixed}\nAs usual, we fix a complete theory ${\\mathcal T}$ of valued fields in a language ${\\mathcal L}$ expanding the language ${\\mathcal L}_\\val$ of valued fields. We do require the characteristic of models to be $0$, but in Subsection~\\ref{ssec:mixed}, we allow the models to have arbitrary residue field characteristic.\n\n\\begin{notn}[Equi-characteristic $0$ coarsening]\nGiven a model $K \\models {\\mathcal T}$,\nwe write ${\\mathcal O}_{K,\\eqc}$ for the smallest subring of $K$ containing ${\\mathcal O}_K$ and ${\\mathbb Q}$ and we let $|\\cdot|_{\\eqc}\\colon K \\to \\Gamma_{K,\\eqc}$ be the corresponding valuation. (Thus, $|\\cdot|_{\\eqc}$ is the finest coarsening of $|\\cdot|$ which has equi-characteristic $0$; note that $|\\cdot|_{\\eqc}$ can be a trivial valuation on $K$.) If $|\\cdot|_{\\eqc}$ is a nontrivial valuation (i.e., ${\\mathcal O}_{K,\\eqc} \\ne K$), then we\nalso use the following notation: $\\operatorname{rv}_{\\eqc}\\colon K \\to \\mathrm{RV}_\\eqc$ is the leading term map with respect to $|\\cdot|_{\\eqc}$;\ngiven $\\lambda \\in \\Gamma_{K,\\eqc}$, $\\operatorname{rv}_{\\lambda}\\colon K \\to \\mathrm{RV}_\\lambda$ is the leading term map with respect to $\\lambda$;\nand ${\\mathcal L}_{\\eqc}$ for the expansion of ${\\mathcal L}$ by a predicate for ${\\mathcal O}_{K,\\eqc}$.\n\\end{notn}\n\n\\begin{defn}[$\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimality]\\label{defn:mixed}\nLet ${\\mathcal T}$ be a complete theory\nof valued fields of characteristic $0$ (and arbitrary residue field characteristic) in a language ${\\mathcal L}$ expanding the language ${\\mathcal L}_\\val$ of valued fields. We say that ${\\mathcal T}$ is \\emph{$\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimal}\nif for every model $K \\models {\\mathcal T}$ the following holds:\nIf the valuation $|\\cdot|_{\\eqc}$ on $K$\nis non-trivial, then\nthe ${\\mathcal L}_{\\eqc}$-theory of $K$, when considered\nas a valued field with the valuation $|\\cdot|_{\\eqc}$, is $\\omega$-h-minimal in the sense of Definition~\\ref{defn:hmin:intro}.\n\\end{defn}\n\nWe will see in Section~\\ref{sec:analyt} that $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimality is satisfied in many mixed characteristic settings of interest.\n\n\\begin{remark}\nFor theories of fields of equi-characteristic $0$, $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimality is clearly equivalent to $\\omega$-h-minimality.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\\begin{remark}\\label{rem:1heqc}\nA reason why $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimality seems to be a natural notion is that $\\omega$-minimality is preserved under coarsening the valuation (by Corollary~\\ref{cor:coarse}).\nIndeed, we could equivalently say that ${\\mathcal T}$ is $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimal if every model, with every equi-characteristic $0$ coarsening of the valuation, satisfies Definition~\\ref{defn:hmin:intro}.\nWe do not know whether something similar would be true for $1$-h$^\\eqc$-minimality.\n\\end{remark}\n\nResults which simply state that every definable set\/function of a certain kind has some nice (language-independent) properties\nimmediately follow for valued fields of mixed characteristic under the above assumption; in particular, we have the following:\n\n\\begin{prop}[Language-independent properties]\\label{prop:eqc-easy}\nSuppose that ${\\mathcal T}$ is $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimal as in Definition~\\ref{defn:mixed}. Then the conclusions of the following results hold for any model $K$ of ${\\mathcal T}$:\nLemma~\\ref{lem:finite} ($\\exists^\\infty$-elimination),\nLemma~\\ref{lem:intersection} (definable spherical completeness),\nTheorem~\\ref{thm:C0} (almost everywhere continuity), Theorem~\\ref{thm:Ck} (almost everywhere $C^k$), Proposition~\\ref{prop:dim:basic} (basic properties of dimension).\n\\end{prop}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nWe may work in a model $K \\models {\\mathcal T}$ such that $|\\cdot|_{\\eqc}$ is non-trivial. Then every ${\\mathcal L}$-definable object is in particular ${\\mathcal L}_{\\eqc}$-definable, so all of the above equi-characteristic $0$ results apply to the definable objects in question and yield the desired mixed-characteristic result, except in the case of Proposition~\\ref{prop:dim:basic} (\\ref{dim:defble}).\n(Concerning \\ref{thm:C0} and \\ref{thm:Ck}, note that $|\\cdot|$ and $|\\cdot|_{\\eqc}$\ninduce the same topology and hence equivalent notions of continuity and derivatives.)\n\nProposition~\\ref{prop:dim:basic} (\\ref{dim:defble}) (definability of dimension) can easily be reproved directly in ${\\mathcal L}$, using Lemma~\\ref{lem:finite} and that $0$-dimensional is equivalent to finite.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\nWe now provide the tools necessary to transfer preparation results to mixed characteristic. As sample results, we then\nstate mixed characteristic versions of Corollary~\\ref{cor:prep} about preparation of families (as a warm-up) and of Theorem~\\ref{thm:high-ord} about Taylor approximations.\n\nIn general, whenever something can be $\\lambda$-prepared in equi-characteristic $0$,\nin mixed characteristic, one should expect to obtain $\\lambda\\cdot |m|$-preparation for some integer $m \\ge 1$,\nas the following example illustrates.\n\n\\begin{example}\nThe set $X$ of cubes in the $3$-adic numbers ${\\mathbb Q}_3$ cannot be $1$-prepared by any finite set $C$, since each of the infinitely many disjoint balls $27^r(1+3{\\mathbb Z}_p)$, $r \\in {\\mathbb Z}$, contains both, cubes and non-cubes. However, $X$ is a union of fibers of the map $\\operatorname{rv}_{|3|}\\colon {\\mathbb Q}_3 \\to \\mathrm{RV}_{|3|}$, so it is $|3|$-prepared by the set $\\{0\\}$.\n\\end{example}\n\n\n\\begin{notn}\nDefinition~\\ref{defn:next} about balls $\\lambda$-next to a finite set $C \\subset K$ now has different meanings for $|\\cdot|$ and for $|\\cdot|_\\eqc$. To make clear which of the valuations we mean, we either write $|1|$-next or $|1|_\\eqc$-next (instead of just $1$-next).\n\\end{notn}\n\n\\begin{remark}\nSuppose that $|\\cdot|_{\\eqc}$ is non-trivial on $K$.\nFor any $x, x' \\in K$, we have\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:coarse}\n|x|_\\eqc \\le |x'|_\\eqc \\quad \\iff \\quad \\exists m \\in {\\mathbb N}_{\\ge 1}\\colon |m\\cdot x| \\le |x'|,\n\\end{equation}\nand given a finite set $C \\subset K$, the points $x$ and $x'$ lie in the same ball $|1|_\\eqc$-next to $C$ if and only if for every integer $m \\ge 1$, they lie in the same ball\n$|m|$-next to $C$.\n\\end{remark}\n\nUsing $\\omega$-h-minimality of $K$ as an ${\\mathcal L}_\\eqc$-structure, we will be able to find finite ${\\mathcal L}_\\eqc$-definable sets. To get back to the smaller language ${\\mathcal L}$, we will use the following lemma:\n\n\\begin{lem}[From ${\\mathcal L}_\\eqc$-definable to ${\\mathcal L}$-definable]\\label{lem:mix}\nSuppose that ${\\mathcal T}$ is $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimal. Let $K$ be a model of ${\\mathcal T}$ and suppose\nthat $K$ is $\\aleph_0$-saturated and strongly $\\aleph_0$-homogeneous as an ${\\mathcal L}^{\\mathrm{eq}}$-structure. (Note that this in particular implies that $|\\cdot|_\\eqc$ is non-trivial.)\nThen, any finite ${\\mathcal L}_\\eqc$-definable set $C \\subset K$ is already ${\\mathcal L}$-definable.\n\\end{lem}\n\n\\begin{remark}\\label{rem:homog}\nNote that such models as in the lemma exist: Any model which is special in the sense of \\cite[Definition~6.1.1]{TentZiegler} is strongly $\\aleph_0$-homogeneous by\n\\cite[Theorem~6.1.6]{TentZiegler}, and it is easy to construct $\\aleph_0$-saturated special models.\n \\end{remark}\n\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Lemma~\\ref{lem:mix}]\nIt suffices to prove that for any $a \\in C$, all realizations of $p:=\\tp_{{\\mathcal L}}(a\/\\emptyset)$ lie in $C$; indeed, by $\\aleph_0$-saturation, this then implies that $p$ is algebraic (using that $C$ is finite), and hence isolated by some formula $\\phi_p(x)$, and hence $C$ is defined by the disjunction of finitely many such $\\phi_p(x)$.\n\nSo now suppose for contradiction that there exist $a \\in C$ and $a' \\in K \\setminus C$ which have the same ${\\mathcal L}$-type over $\\emptyset$. Then by our homogeneity assumption, there exists an ${\\mathcal L}$-automorphism of $K$ sending $a$ to $a'$ (and hence not fixing $C$ setwise). Such an automorphism also preserves ${\\mathcal O}_{\\eqc}$ and hence is an ${\\mathcal L}_\\eqc$-automorphism, but this contradicts $C$ being ${\\mathcal L}_\\eqc$-definable.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\nNow we are ready to deduce preparation results in mixed characteristic:\n\n\n\\begin{cor}[of Corollary~\\ref{cor:prep}; preparing families]\\label{cor:prep:mix}\nAssume that $\\operatorname{Th}(K)$ is $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimal.\nFor any $k > 0$\nand any ${\\mathcal L}$-definable set\n$$\nW\\subset K\\times \\mathrm{RV}_{\\lambda}^k,\n$$\nthere exists a finite non-empty ${\\mathcal L}$-definable set $C$ and an integer $m\\ge1$ such that for every ball $B$ $\\lambda\\cdot|m|$-next to $C$, the fiber $W_{x} := \\{\\xi \\in \\mathrm{RV}_{\\lambda}^k \\mid (x,\\xi)\\in W\\}$\ndoes not depend on $x$ when $x$ runs over $B$.\n\\end{cor}\n\n\\begin{remark}\nFor simplicity we omitted the $\\mathrm{RV}$-coordinates (since assuming $\\omega$-h-minimality, we are allowed arbitrarily many $\\mathrm{RV}_\\lambda$-coordinates anyway)\nand we require $W$ to be definable without parameters (since as explained in Remark \\ref{rem:acl:mixed} below, we can add parameters for free).\n\\end{remark}\n\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Corollary~\\ref{cor:prep:mix}]\nBy Remark~\\ref{rem:homog}, we may assume that $K$ is a sufficiently saturated and sufficiently homogeneous model of ${\\mathcal T}$ (as in Lemma~\\ref{lem:mix}).\n\nLet $\\lambda_\\eqc$ be the image of $\\lambda$ in $\\Gamma_{K,\\eqc}$. Since $B_{<\\lambda_\\eqc}(0) \\subset B_{<\\lambda}(0)$, we have a canonical surjection\n$\\mathrm{RV}_{\\lambda_\\eqc} \\to \\mathrm{RV}_{\\lambda}$; let\n$W_\\eqc \\subset K \\times \\mathrm{RV}_{\\lambda_\\eqc}^k$ be the corresponding preimage of $W$.\nBy Corollary~\\ref{cor:prep}, there exists a finite ${\\mathcal L}_\\eqc$-definable set $C$ such that for every pair $x, x'$ in the same ball $\\lambda_\\eqc$-next to $C$, we have $W_{\\eqc,x} = W_{\\eqc,x'}$.\nBy Lemma~\\ref{lem:mix}, $C$ is already ${\\mathcal L}$-definable; we claim that it is as desired.\n\nSuppose for contradiction that there exists no $m$ as in the corollary, i.e., for every integer $m \\ge 1$, there exists a pair of points $(x, x') \\in K^2$ which lie in the same ball $\\lambda\\cdot|m|$-next to $C$ such that $W_x \\ne W_{x'}$.\nBy $\\aleph_0$-saturation (in the language ${\\mathcal L}$), we find a single pair $(x, x') \\in K^2$ of points with $W_x \\ne W_{x'}$ (which implies $W_{\\eqc,x} \\ne W_{\\eqc,x'}$)\nand which lie in the same ball $\\lambda\\cdot |m|$-next to $C$ for every $m \\ge 1$. The latter implies that $x$ and $x'$\nlie in the same ball $\\lambda_\\eqc$-next to $C$, so we get a contradiction to our choice of $C$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{cor}[of Theorem~\\ref{thm:high-ord}; Taylor approximation]\\label{cor:high-ord:mix}\nSuppose that ${\\mathcal T}$ is $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimal and let $K$ be a model of ${\\mathcal T}$.\nLet $f\\colon K \\to K$ be an ${\\mathcal L}$-definable function and let $r \\in {\\mathbb N}$ be given. Then there exists a finite ${\\mathcal L}$-definable set $C$ and an integer $m \\ge 1$ such that for every ball $B$ $|m|$-next to $C$, $f$ is $(r+1)$-fold differentiable on $B$,\n$|f^{(r+1)}|$ is constant on $B$,\nand we have:\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:t-higher:mix}\n |f(x) - T^{\\le r}_{f,x_0}(x) | \\leq \\left|\\frac1m\\cdot f^{(r+1)}(x_0)\\cdot (x-x_0)^{r+1}\\right|\n\\end{equation}\nfor every $x_0, x \\in B$.\n\\end{cor}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nProceeding as in the proof of Corollary~\\ref{cor:prep:mix}, we assume that\n$K$ is sufficiently saturated and sufficiently homogeneous and we use\nTheorem~\\ref{thm:high-ord} and Lemma~\\ref{lem:mix} to find a finite ${\\mathcal L}$-definable set $C$ such that for $x_0, x$ in the same ball $|1|_\\eqc$-next to $C$, we have\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:t-higher:coarse}\n|f(x) - T^{\\le r}_{f,x_0}(x) |_\\eqc \\leq |f^{(r+1)}(x_0)\\cdot (x-x_0)^{r+1}|_\\eqc.\n\\end{equation}\nDifferentiability of $f$ away from $C$ is clear.\nNow suppose that there exists no $m \\ge 1$ satisfying the condition involving (\\ref{eq:t-higher:mix}). As before, we then use $\\aleph_0$-saturation to find\na pair $(x_0, x) \\in K^2$ of points\nwhich lie in the same ball $|1|_\\eqc$-next to $C$ and such that (\\ref{eq:t-higher:mix}) fails for every $m$.\nThe latter means that (\\ref{eq:t-higher:coarse}) fails for $x_0, x$, so we have a contradiction to our choice of $C$.\n\nIt remains to ensure that $|f^{(r+1)}|$ is constant on balls $|m|$-next to $C$. By applying Corollary~\\ref{cor:prep:mix} to the graph of $x \\mapsto \\operatorname{rv}(f^{(r+1)}(x))$, we can\nenlarge $C$ so that this works for balls $|m'|$-next to $C$, for some $m' \\ge 1$. Now the corollary holds using $m \\cdot m'$ (since $|m \\cdot m'| \\le |m|, |m'|$).\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{remark}\nIf $K$ has equi-characteristic $0$, the conclusions of Corollaries~\\ref{cor:prep:mix} and \\ref{cor:high-ord:mix} are just the same as our original equi-characteristic $0$\nconclusions, since $|m| = 1$ for ever integer $m \\ge 1$.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\n\\begin{remark}\nWithout the additional enlargement of $C$ at the end of the proof, instead of $|f^{(r+1)}|$ being constant on $B$, we only would have obtained\n$|f^{(r+1)}(x)| \\le |\\frac1m f^{(r+1)}(x')|$ for all $x, x' \\in B$.\n\\end{remark}\n\nWe leave it to the reader to transfer further preparation results to the mixed characteristic setting in a similar way.\nOn the other hand, for some higher dimensional results (in particular Theorem~\\ref{thm:T3\/2,mv} about sup-preparation),\nit is not so clear how to transfer them.\n\nWe finish this subsection by showing that\nwe can add certain parameters for free, similarly to the equi-characteristic $0$ case.\n\n\\begin{notn}\nWe set $\\mathrm{RV}_\\star := \\bigcup_{m \\ge 1} \\mathrm{RV}_{|m|}$, and we write $\\mathrm{RV}_\\star^{\\mathrm{eq}}$ for the union of all quotients of the form $(\\prod_{i=1}^n \\mathrm{RV}_{|m_i|})\/\\mathord{\\sim}$, for $m_i \\ge 1$ and for ${\\mathcal L}$-definable equivalence relations $\\sim$.\n\\end{notn}\n\n\n\\begin{lem}[Adding constants]\\label{lem:addconst:mix}\nLet ${\\mathcal T}$ be $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimal and let $K$ be a model of ${\\mathcal T}$.\nLet ${\\mathcal L}'$ be an expansion of ${\\mathcal L}$ by constants from $K \\cup \\mathrm{RV}_\\star^{\\mathrm{eq}}$ and let ${\\mathcal T}'$ be the corresponding (complete) ${\\mathcal L}'$-theory of $K$. Then ${\\mathcal T}'$ is also $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimal.\n\\end{lem}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nSuppose that $K$ is a model of ${\\mathcal T}'$ on which $|\\cdot|_\\eqc$ is non-trivial; we need to verify that the ${\\mathcal L}'_\\eqc$-theory of $K$, with the valuation $|\\cdot|_\\eqc$,\nis $\\omega$-h-minimal. This follows from the equi-characteristic $0$ version of the lemma (namely Lemma~\\ref{lem:addconst}), since ${\\mathcal L}'_\\eqc$ is obtained from ${\\mathcal L}_\\eqc$\nby adding constants from $K \\cup \\mathrm{RV}_\\star^{\\mathrm{eq}}$ and $\\mathrm{RV}_\\star^{\\mathrm{eq}} \\subset \\mathrm{RV}_\\eqc^{\\mathrm{eq}}$. (Note that $\\mathrm{RV}_{|m|}$ is a quotient of $\\mathrm{RV}_\\eqc$.)\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{cor}[Removing $\\mathrm{RV}$-parameters]\\label{cor:acl:mix}\nLet ${\\mathcal T}$ be $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimal and let $K$ be a model of ${\\mathcal T}$.\nFor any $A \\subset K$ and any finite ${\\mathcal L}(A \\cup \\mathrm{RV}_\\star)$-definable set $C \\subset K$, there exists a finite ${\\mathcal L}(A)$-definable set $C' \\subset K$ containing $C$.\nIn other words, $\\acl_{{\\mathcal L},K}(A \\cup \\mathrm{RV}_\\star) = \\acl_{{\\mathcal L},K}(A)$.\n\\end{cor}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nBy Lemma~\\ref{lem:addconst:mix}, it is enough to consider the case $A = \\emptyset$.\nFirst assume that $K$ is a sufficiently saturated and sufficiently homogeneous model of ${\\mathcal T}$ (as in Lemma~\\ref{lem:mix}).\nOur ${\\mathcal L}(\\mathrm{RV}_\\star)$-definable definable set $C$ is then ${\\mathcal L}_\\eqc(\\mathrm{RV}_\\eqc)$-definable (since each $\\mathrm{RV}_{|m|}$ is a quotient of $\\mathrm{RV}_\\eqc$).\nBy Corollary~\\ref{cor:acl}, we find a finite ${\\mathcal L}_\\eqc$-definable set $C'$ containing $C$, and by Lemma~\\ref{lem:mix}, $C'$ is ${\\mathcal L}$-definable.\n\nNow let \\(K\\) be general. Let \\(K'\\) be a sufficiently saturated and sufficiently homogeneous elementary extension of \\(K\\). Let \\(\\mathrm{RV}_{K,\\star}\\), respectively \\(\\mathrm{RV}_{K',\\star}\\), the interpretation of \\(\\mathrm{RV}_\\star\\) in \\(K\\), respectively \\(K'\\). We have \\(\\acl_{{\\mathcal L},K}(A\\cup\\mathrm{RV}_{K,\\star}) = \\acl_{{\\mathcal L},K'}(A\\cup\\mathrm{RV}_{K,\\star}) \\subset \\acl_{{\\mathcal L},K'}(A\\cup\\mathrm{RV}_{K',\\star}) = \\acl_{{\\mathcal L},K'}(A) = \\acl_{{\\mathcal L},K}(A)\\).\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{remark}\\label{rem:acl:mixed}\nUsing Lemma~\\ref{lem:addconst:mix} and Corollary~\\ref{cor:acl:mix},\nwe obtain a mixed characteristic analogue of Remark~\\ref{rem:acl}: Firstly, if we can prepare $\\emptyset$-definable objects by $\\emptyset$-definable $C$,\nthen we can also prepare $A$-definable objects by $A$-definable $C$, for $A \\subset K \\cup \\mathrm{RV}_\\star$; and secondly, we can then enlarge $C$ to make it even\n$(A \\cap K)$-definable.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\\subsection{Tameness for non-complete theories}\\label{ssec:non-comp}\n\nThe various notions of Hensel minimality naturally extend to non-complete theories:\n\n\\begin{defn}[non-complete theories]\nLet ${\\mathcal T}$ be a (not necessarily complete) theory in a language ${\\mathcal L}$ expanding ${\\mathcal L}_\\val$, whose models are non-trivially valued fields of characteristic $0$. Say that ${\\mathcal T}$ is X-minimal if each model $K$ of ${\\mathcal T}$\nis X-minimal. Here, X can be ``$\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$'', or, if all models of ${\\mathcal T}$\nare of equi-characteristic $0$, ``$\\ell$-h'' for any $\\ell \\in {\\mathbb N} \\cup \\{\\omega\\}$.\n\\end{defn}\n\nBy the usual play of compactness, preparation results that hold in each model of ${\\mathcal T}$ also hold uniformly for all models of ${\\mathcal T}$.\nWe give two examples to illustrate how this works.\n\nIn this entire subsection, we allow ${\\mathcal T}$ to be non-complete.\n\n\\begin{cor}[of Corollary~\\ref{cor:prep:mix}; preparing families]\\label{cor:prep:nc}\nAssume that ${\\mathcal T}$ is $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimal, and suppose that $\\phi$ is an ${\\mathcal L}$-formula such that for every model $K \\models {\\mathcal T}$, $W_K := \\phi(K)$\nis a subset of $K\\times \\mathrm{RV}_{\\lambda_K}^k$ for some $k > 0$ and some $\\lambda_K \\le 1$ in $\\Gamma_K$.\nThen there exists an ${\\mathcal L}$-formula $\\psi$ and an integer $m \\ge 1$ such that for every model $K \\models {\\mathcal T}$,\n$C_K := \\psi(K)$ is a finite subset of $K$ which $\\lambda_K\\cdot |m|$-prepares $W_K$ in the following sense:\nFor every ball $B \\subset K$ which is $\\lambda_K\\cdot |m|$-next to $C_K$,\nthe fiber $W_{K,x} := \\{\\xi \\in \\mathrm{RV}_{K,\\lambda_K}^k \\mid (x,\\xi)\\in W_K\\}$\ndoes not depend on $x$ when $x$ runs over $B$.\n\\end{cor}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nFix $\\phi$ as in the Corollary~\\ref{cor:prep:nc}. Whether a pair $(m, \\psi)$ works as desired in a model $K$ can be expressed by\nan ${\\mathcal L}$-sentence. (This uses $\\exists^\\infty$-elimination, as provided by Proposition~\\ref{prop:eqc-easy}.) By compactness,\nwe deduce that there exist finitely many pairs $(m_i, \\psi_i)$ which cover all models. Let $m$ be the least common multiple of the $m_i$\n(so that $|m| \\le |m_i|$ for each $i$) and let $\\psi$ be the disjunction of the $\\psi_i$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\nIn the following, recall that $\\mathrm{RV}_\\star := \\bigcup_{m \\ge 1} \\mathrm{RV}_{|m|}$ and note that each $\\mathrm{RV}_{|m|}$ is an imaginary sort.\nIf we do not consider $\\mathrm{RV}_{|m|}$ as an actual sort, then by ``adding a constant symbol from $\\mathrm{RV}_{|m|}$ to the language'',\nwe mean: adding a predicate on the valued field, and imposing (in the theory) that the predicate\nholds for exactly for one fiber of the map $\\operatorname{rv}_{|m|}$.\n\n\n\\begin{cor}[of Corollary~\\ref{lem:addconst:mix}; adding constants]\\label{cor:addconst:nc}\nSuppose that ${\\mathcal T}$ is $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimal. Let ${\\mathcal L}'$ be an expansion of ${\\mathcal L}$ by constant symbols from $K$ and from $\\mathrm{RV}_\\star$, and let ${\\mathcal T}'$ be the same theory as ${\\mathcal T}$, but\nconsidered as an ${\\mathcal L}'$-theory. Then ${\\mathcal T}'$ is also $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimal.\n\\end{cor}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nA model $K$ of ${\\mathcal T}'$ is a model of ${\\mathcal T}$ with some constants from $K$ and $\\mathrm{RV}_\\star$ added to the language. Thus $K$ is $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimal by Corollary~\\ref{lem:addconst:mix}.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{remark}\nObviously, Corollaries~\\ref{cor:prep:nc} and \\ref{cor:addconst:nc} also work with $1$-h-minimality instead of $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimality if all models of $K$ are of equi-characteristic $0$;\nand in that case, the $m$ in Corollary~\\ref{cor:prep:nc} can be omitted and $\\mathrm{RV}_\\star$ becomes $\\mathrm{RV}$.\n\\end{remark}\n\nWe leave it to the reader to formulate other results for non-complete theories. This is usually straight-forward but sometimes a bit technical.\n\n\n\n\n\\section{Examples of Hensel minimal structures}\\label{sec:examples}\n\nIn this section, we provide many examples of Hensel minimal valued fields of equi-characteristic $0$, with various kinds of languages.\nIn some cases, we prove $\\omega$-h-minimality, in others, we only obtain $1$-h-minimality (namely for power-bounded T-convex structures). We also provide examples of valued fields of mixed characteristic which are $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimal, so that our results and methods from\nSubsection~\\ref{ssec:mixed} apply.\n\n\n\\subsection{Valued fields with or without analytic structure}\n\\label{sec:analyt}\n\nIn this subsection, we prove $\\omega$-h-minimality of arbitrary Henselian valued fields $K$ of equi-characteristic $0$ with analytic structure in the sense of \\cite{CLip}. If $K$ has mixed characteristic and analytic structure, we will show that it is $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimal, which means that its equi-characteristic $0$ coarsenings are $\\omega$-h-minimal.\nAs so often, obtaining results in the positive equi-characteristic case seems completely out of reach at present.\n\nThe pure valued field language is a special case of an analytic structure on $K$. Nevertheless, we will treat this case separately in this section, avoiding the machinery of analytic structures and instead building only on classical quantifier elimination results. Note that before, the only known proofs of the Jacobian Property (Corollary~\\ref{cor:JP}) either went via analytic structures (as in \\cite{CLoes, CLip}) or were restricted to algebraically closed valued fields (as in \\cite{HK}).\n\nThe proofs of $\\omega$-h-minimality (i) in the pure field language and (ii) in fields with analytic structure are very similar, the main differences being that, in case (ii) we require additional input from \\cite{CLip}. We therefore formulate both proofs simultaneously, tagging differences with (i) and (ii).\n\nWe fix the following language and structure for the remainder of this subsection.\nNote that in the mixed characteristic case, the Definition~\\ref{defn:mixed} of $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimality requires us to work with two different valuations simultaneously (though in Case~(i), just understanding the coarser valuation is enough for the proof of $\\omega$-h-minimality).\n\\begin{enumerate}[(i)]\n \\item Let ${\\mathcal L} := {\\mathcal L}_\\val \\cup \\{0,1,-\\} = \\{+,-,0,1,\\cdot,{\\mathcal O}_K\\}$ be the pure valued field language together with $0,1,-$ with their natural meaning, and let $K$ be a Henselian valued field of equi-characteristic $0$, considered as an ${\\mathcal L}$-structure.\n\\item\n Let ${\\mathcal A}=(A_{m,n})_{m,n}$ be a separated Weierstrass system in the sense of \\cite{CLip}. Let $K$ be a characteristic zero valued field (possibly of positive residue field characteristic) with a separated analytic ${\\mathcal A}$-structure, as in \\cite[Definitions 4.1.5 and 4.1.6]{CLip}. Note that by \\cite[Proposition 4.5.10 (i)]{CLip}, any such $K$ is Henselian.\n\n We denote the valuation ring of $K$ by ${\\mathcal O}_{K,\\fine}$, and we fix an equi-characteristic $0$ coarsening\n ${\\mathcal O}_K \\supset {\\mathcal O}_{K,\\fine}$. (If ${\\mathcal O}_{K,\\fine}$ itself is of equi-characteristic $0$, one can as well\n choose ${\\mathcal O}_K = {\\mathcal O}_{K,\\fine}$.) We write ${\\mathcal M}_{K,\\fine}$, ${\\mathcal M}_{K}$ for the corresponding maximal ideals and $|\\cdot|_{\\fine}\\colon K \\to \\Gamma_{K,\\fine}$, $|\\cdot|\\colon K \\to \\Gamma_K$\n for the corresponding valuations.\n\nWe let, still in this case (ii), ${\\mathcal L}$ be the expansion of the language from (i) by a\nfunction symbol for field division (extended by zero on zero), by a predicate for ${\\mathcal O}_{K,\\fine}$ and\nby one function symbol for each $f$ in $A_{m,n}$, interpreted as a function ${\\mathcal O}_{K,\\fine}^m\\times{\\mathcal M}_{K,\\fine}^n\\to K$ via the analytic ${\\mathcal A}$-structure on $K$ (and extended by $0$ outside of its domain).\n\\end{enumerate}\n\n\\begin{thm}[Fields with analytic structure]\\label{thm:hmin analytic}\nLet $(K, |\\cdot|)$ be an equi-characteristic $0$ valued field in a language ${\\mathcal L}$ as above in (i) or (ii). (Recall that in particular, in Case~(ii) there is a valuation ring ${\\mathcal O}_{K,\\fine}$ of $K$ which may differ from ${\\mathcal O}_K$.)\nThen the ${\\mathcal L}$-theory of $K$ with the valuation $|\\cdot|$ is $\\omega$-h-minimal.\n\\end{thm}\n\nIn one word, the idea of the proof of Theorem \\ref{thm:hmin analytic} goes via quantifier elimination of valued field quantifiers, in a language to which\nthe sort $\\mathrm{RV}_\\lambda$ and the map $\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda$ has been added, for some given $\\lambda \\le 1$ in $\\Gamma_K^\\times$. The conditions of $\\omega$-h-minimality are then easily checked. Similar quantifier elimination results have been proved but not yet with such an $\\mathrm{RV}_\\lambda$, so we take care to give sufficient details.\n\nThe first technical ingredient, inspired by \\cite{vdDHM}, is the following:\n\n\\begin{lem}\\label{lem:lin an}\nLet \\(F\\leq K\\) be a subfield which is moreover an ${\\mathcal L}$-substructure of $K$, let $\\lambda \\le 1$ be an element of $\\Gamma_K^\\times$ and let \\(\\tau(x)\\) be an \\({\\mathcal L}(F)\\)-term, with \\(x\\) a single variable. Then there exists a finite set $C \\in K$ consisting only of algebraic elements over $F$ such that\n\\(\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(\\tau(x))\\) only depends on $(\\operatorname{rv}_{\\lambda}(x-c))_{c \\in C}$.\n\nMoreover, if we restrict (in our desired property for $C$) to the \\(x\\) that are solutions of a given degree \\(d\\) polynomial equation $P \\in F[X]$, (i.e., if\nwe want to obtain the implication $(\\operatorname{rv}_{\\lambda}(x-c))_{c \\in C} = (\\operatorname{rv}_{\\lambda}(x'-c))_{c \\in C} \\Rightarrow \\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(\\tau(x)) = \\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(\\tau(x'))$ only under the assumption $P(x) = P(x') = 0$), then the elements of \\(C\\) can all be assumed to have degree strictly less than \\(d\\) over \\(F\\).\n\\end{lem}\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof in Case (i)]\nNote that our ${\\mathcal L}(F)$-term $\\tau$ is simply a polynomial in $F[x]$, so the first part of the lemma is immediate from \\cite[Proposition 3.6]{Flen}, and its proof, namely using for $C$ the set of all roots of all derivatives of $\\tau$ (including the roots of $\\tau$ itself). Note that the proof of \\cite[Proposition 3.6]{Flen} yields that the ``Swiss cheeses'' $U_i$ appearing in the statement of the proposition are\n$1$-prepared by $C$.\n\nFor the second part, choose a polynomial $Q$ of degree less than ${\\rm deg} (P)$ such that the polynomial $\\tau$ is congruent to $Q$ modulo $P$. Then for every $x \\in K$ which is a zero of $P$, we have $\\tau(x) = Q(x)$, so we may as well replace $\\tau$ by $Q$. Then choosing $C$ as in the proof of the first part yields the claim.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof in Case (ii)]\nWe apply \\cite{CLip} to $K$ with the valuation $|\\cdot|_{\\fine}$.\nThe main idea is to use \\cite[Theorem 5.5.3]{CLip} to reduce to Case (i).\nAs a preparation, note that it is sufficient to obtain the conclusion of the lemma for $x \\in {\\mathcal O}_K$. Indeed,\nthe $x$ outside of ${\\mathcal O}_K$ can be treated by applying the lemma separately to the ${\\mathcal L}(F)$-term $\\tau(1\/x)$.\n\nBy \\cite[Theorem 5.5.3 and Remark 5.5.4]{CLip}, there is a cover of the valuation ring ${\\mathcal O}_{K_{\\mathrm{alg}}}$ of the algebraic closure of $K$ by finitely many $F$-annuli ${\\mathcal U}_i$ (cf.\\ \\cite[Definition~5.1.1]{CLip}) and there is a finite \\(F\\)-definable set \\(S \\subset K\\), such that, on each \\({\\mathcal U}_i \\setminus S\\), we have \\[\\tau(x) = G_i(x)\/H_i(x)\\cdot E_i(x),\\] where \\(G_i, H_i\\in F[x]\\) are polynomials and where \\(E_i\\) is an \\({\\mathcal L}(F)\\)-term which is a strong unit on ${\\mathcal U}_i$ (cf.\\ \\cite[Definition~5.1.4]{CLip}).\nIndeed, that these data are defined over $F$ follows from \\cite[Remark 5.5.4]{CLip} with $K'=F$.\n\nLet\\(P_S \\in F[x]\\) be the polynomial whose set of roots is \\(S\\) and let \\(P_j \\in F[x]\\) be the collection of polynomials appearing in the definition of the $F$-annuli \\({\\mathcal U}_i\\). (In particular, each ${\\mathcal U}_i$ is\ndefined by a boolean combination of inequalities between the valuations of the \\(P_j\\).) Since $|\\cdot|_{\\fine}$ factors over $\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda$, whether an element $x \\in Z$ lies in ${\\mathcal U}_i$ is determined by $(\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(P_{j}(x)))_j$.\nMoreover, by \\cite[Lemma 6.3.12]{CLip} and \\cite[Remark A.1.12]{CLips}, $\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(E_i)$ only depends on $(\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(P_{j}(x)))_j$.\nThus to prove the lemma for $\\tau$, it suffices to prove it for the polynomials $G_i$, $H_i$, $P_j$ and \\(P_S\\) (considered as functions on $K$). But this has already been done in Case (i).\n\\end{proof}\n\nThe second ingredient is a quantifier elimination result. We\nfix $\\lambda \\le 1$ in $\\Gamma_K^\\times$ and consider the following expansion $\\Lqe$ of ${\\mathcal L}$:\nWe add $\\mathrm{RV}_\\lambda$ as a new sort, together with the map $\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda$ and with the $\\emptyset$-induced structure on $\\mathrm{RV}_\\lambda$,\n i.e., one predicate for each $\\emptyset$-definable subset of $\\mathrm{RV}_\\lambda^n$, for every $n$.\n\n\\begin{prop}\\label{prop:QE analytic}\nThe $\\Lqe$-theory of $K$ eliminates field quantifiers.\n\\end{prop}\n\nThe particularity of Proposition \\ref{prop:QE analytic} is not only that it has $\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda$ and $\\mathrm{RV}_\\lambda$ on top of the analytic structure, but also that there are two valuation rings at play, namely ${\\mathcal O}_{K,\\fine}$ (which may be of mixed characteristic) and ${\\mathcal O}_K$ (which is of equi-characteristic zero).\n\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Proposition \\ref{prop:QE analytic}]\nFirst note that in the case $\\lambda = 1$, this result is known:\nin Case (i), this is \\cite[Proposition~4.3]{Flen} (or also \\cite[Theorem~B]{Basarab})\nand in Case (ii), it is \\cite[Theorem 3.10]{Rid}. This already implies a partial result for arbitrary $\\lambda \\le 1$, namely:\n\\begin{condition}\\label{cond:field-vars}\nEvery $\\Lqe$-formula $\\phi(x)$ having only $K$-variables is equivalent to a field quantifier free formula.\n\\end{condition}\n Indeed, $\\phi(x)$ is equivalent to an $\\Lqe[1](\\lambda)$-formula $\\psi(x)$ without $K$-quantifiers, and each $\\mathrm{RV}$-quantifier of $\\psi(x)$ can easily be replaced by some $\\mathrm{RV}_\\lambda$-quantifiers.\n\nTo prove the general case, we need the following variants of results from \\cite{Flen}.\n\n\nFix a non-zero polynomial $P \\in K[x]$ and an element $a_0 \\in K$.\nLet $c_i \\in K$ be the coefficients of $P$ when developed around $a_0$, i.e., $P(x) = \\sum_i c_i (x-a_0)^i$.\n\nGiven $b \\in K$, we say, cf. \\cite[Definition 3.1]{Flen}, that $P$ has a \\(\\lambda\\)-collision at $b$ around \\(a_0\\) if \\(|P(b)| < \\lambda \\max_i |c_i(b-a_0)^i|\\). Note that whether \\(P\\) has a \\(\\lambda\\)-collision at \\(b\\) around \\(a_0\\) only depends on $\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(c_i)$ (for all $i$) and $\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(b - a_0)$. (This will be useful later.)\n\n\\begin{claim}\\label{cl:col root}\nSuppose that the above $P \\in K[x]$ has a \\(\\lambda\\)-collision at \\(b\\) around \\(a_0\\). Then there exists an integer $n\\geq 0$ with $n < {\\rm deg} P$ and an element $b'\\in K$ ``close to $b$'' such that \\(P^{(n)}(b') = 0\\). Here, ``close to $b$'' means $\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(b'-a_0) = \\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(b-a_0)$ if $n = 0$ and\n$\\operatorname{rv}(b'-a_0) = \\operatorname{rv}(b-a_0)$ if $n \\ge 1$, and $P^{(n)}$ stands for the $n$-th derivative, with $P^{(0)}=P$.\n\\end{claim}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nWithout loss, we may assume that \\(a_0 = 0\\), \\(b=1\\) and \\(\\max_i |c_i| = 1\\). Let \\(Q = \\operatorname{res}(P)\\), the reduction of $P$ modulo ${\\mathcal M}_{K}$. We have \\(Q(1) = 0\\). Let \\(n\\) be such that $1$ is a root of multiplicity $1$ of \\(Q^{(n)}\\). Then Hensel's Lemma yields a root \\(b'\\) of \\(P^{(n)}\\) such that \\(|b'-1| \\leq |P^{(n)}(1)|\\). Since $|P^{(n)}(1)| \\le 1$, this implies $\\operatorname{rv}(b') = \\operatorname{rv}(b)$. In the case $n = 0$, that $1$ is not a root of $Q'$ implies $|P'(1)| = 1$.\nTogether with $|P(1)| \\le \\lambda$, Hensel's Lemma implies $|b' - b| < \\lambda$ and hence $\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(b') = \\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(b)$.\n\\qedhere(\\ref{cl:col root})\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{claim}\\label{cl:exists root}\nSuppose that the above $P \\in K[x]$ has no common zero with any of its proper derivatives and fix $\\xi\\in\\mathrm{RV}^\\times_\\lambda$. The following are equivalent:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item There exists a root $b \\in K$ of \\(P\\) with \\(\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(b-a_0) = \\xi\\);\n\\item there exists \\(b\\in K\\) such that\\\\\n(2a) \\(\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(b-a_0) = \\xi\\), \\(P\\) has a \\(\\lambda\\)-collision at \\(b\\) around \\(a_0\\), and\\\\\n(2b) for every root $a \\in K$ of every proper derivative of $P$,\n\\(P\\) has a \\(\\lambda\\)-collision at \\(b\\) around $a$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{claim}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nIf \\(b\\) is a root of \\(P\\), then \\(P\\) has a \\(\\lambda\\)-collision at \\(b\\) around any \\(a\\neq b\\). So (1) implies (2). Let us now assume that we have \\(b\\) such that (2) holds. If (1) does not hold, then by Claim~\\ref{cl:col root} (and (2a)) there exists a root \\(a\\) of some proper derivative of $P$ with \\(\\operatorname{rv}(a-a_0) = \\operatorname{rv}(b-a_0)\\). Pick the closest such \\(a\\) to \\(b\\). By Claim~\\ref{cl:col root}, around \\(a\\) this time (and using (2b)), there exists a root \\(c\\) of some \\(P^{(m)}\\) with \\(\\operatorname{rv}(c-a) = \\operatorname{rv}(b-a)\\); in particular, $|b-c| < |b-a|$, a contradiction to our choice of $a$.\n\\qedhere(\\ref{cl:exists root})\n\\end{proof}\n\nWe now come back to the actual proof of field quantifier elimination. We abbreviate ``field quantifier free'' by ``fqf''.\nIt suffices to prove the following: Suppose\nthat $K' \\equiv K$ is $|K|^+$-saturated, that $A \\subset K \\cup \\mathrm{RV}_{K,\\lambda}$ and $A' \\subset K' \\cup \\mathrm{RV}_{K',\\lambda}$ are substructures and that\n$\\alpha\\colon A \\to A'$ is an fqf-elementary bijection, i.e., that it preserves the validity of fqf formulas.\nThen for any $a \\in K$, there exists an $a'$ such that $\\alpha$ extends to an fqf-elementary map sending $a$ to $a'$.\n\nFor $\\alpha$ to be fqf-elementary, it suffices that it is an isomorphism of substructures and that $\\alpha|_{A \\cap \\mathrm{RV}_{K,\\lambda}}$ is fqf-elementary. Indeed, suppose that $\\phi$ is an\nfqf $\\Lqe(A)$-sentence that holds in $K$. Then without loss,\n$\\phi = \\psi((\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(\\tau_i))_i)$ for some $\\Lqe(A\\cap K)$-terms $\\tau_i$ and for $\\psi(y)$ an fqf $\\Lqe(A \\cap \\mathrm{RV}_{K,\\lambda})$-formula.\nLet $\\xi_i \\in A \\cap \\mathrm{RV}_{K,\\lambda}$ be the interpretation of $\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(\\tau_i)$. Then $\\phi$ follows from $\\bigwedge_i \\tau_i = \\xi_i$ (which is quantifier free) and\n$\\psi((\\xi_i)_i)$ (which is an fqf $\\Lqe(A \\cap \\mathrm{RV}_{K,\\lambda})$-sentence).\n\nWe may assume $\\mathrm{RV}_{K,\\lambda} \\subset A$, since $\\alpha_{A \\cap \\mathrm{RV}_{K,\\lambda}}$ extends to an fqf-elementary map on $\\mathrm{RV}_{K,\\lambda}$ and the union of this extension with the original $\\alpha$ is an isomorphism of substructures. In particular, when further extending $\\alpha$, we now only need to make sure that it remains an isomorphism of substructures.\nIn terms of formulas, this means (by a usual compactness argument) that given a quantifier free $\\Lqe(A)$-formula $\\phi(x)$ with $x$ a valued field variable, we need to check that $K \\models \\exists x\\,\\phi(x)$ implies $K' \\models \\exists x\\,\\phi^\\alpha(x)$ (where ``$\\phi^\\alpha$'' is the $\\Lqe(A')$-formula obtained from $\\phi$ by applying $\\alpha$ to the parameters from $A$).\n\nWe may assume that $F := K \\cap A$ is a subfield. In Case (ii), this is automatic, since $\\Lqe$ contains field division. In Case (i), the ring homomorphism $\\alpha_{K \\cap A}$ uniquely extends to the fraction field $F$ of $K \\cap A$, and extending $\\alpha$ in this way yields an isomorphism of substructures, since\nfor $\\frac{b}{b'} \\in F$ ($b, b' \\in K \\cap A$), we have\n$\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(\\frac{b}{b'}) = \\frac{\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(b)}{\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(b')}$.\n\nFrom now on, we identify $A$ with its image $\\alpha(A)$.\nFix $a \\in K$ and fix a quantifier free $\\Lqe(A)$-formula $\\phi(x)$ such that $K \\models \\phi(a)$ holds.\nWe need to show that $K' \\models \\exists x\\colon \\phi(x)$. To do so, we will successively reduce to simpler formulas, until we can get rid of the $K$-quantifier $\\exists x$.\n\n\nLet $P \\in F[x]$ be the minimal polynomial of $a$ over $F$ and set $d := {\\rm deg} P$. If \\(a\\) is transcendental over $F$, we set \\(P := 0\\) and \\(d := \\infty\\).\nBy induction on $d$, we may assume:\n\\begin{condition}\\label{cond:F}\n$F$ contains all roots $b$ in \\(K\\) of polynomials over $F$ of degree strictly less than \\(d\\).\n\\end{condition}\n\nAs before, we can assume that the above formula $\\phi$ is of the form $\\phi(x) = \\psi((\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(\\tau_i(x)))_i)$ for some ${\\mathcal L}(F)$-terms $\\tau_i$.\nBy Lemma~\\ref{lem:lin an} (and (\\ref{cond:F}))\n$\\phi(x)$ is equivalent, in the structure $K$, to\na formula of the form \\[\\phi'(x) = \\psi'((\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(x - c_j)_j) \\wedge P(x) = 0\\] for some $c_j \\in F$, where\n$\\psi'(y) = \\psi((\\eta_i(y))_i)$ for suitable $\\Lqe(F)$-definable functions $\\eta_i$.\nWe claim that this equivalence also holds in $K'$, so that we can without loss replace $\\phi$ by $\\phi'$.\n\nTo prove the claim, note that the\nequivalence $\\phi \\leftrightarrow \\phi'$ follows from an $\\Lqe(F)$-sentence $\\chi$, namely\n$\\chi = \\bigwedge_i \\forall x \\in K\\colon \\tau_i(x) = \\eta_i((\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(x - c_j))_j)$.\nSince $\\chi$ only uses $K$-parameters, we already know (by (\\ref{cond:field-vars})) that it is equivalent to a fqf $\\Lqe(F)$-sentence $\\chi'$ (modulo only the $\\Lqe$-theory of $K$, i.e., without using the specific embedding of $F$ into $K$). Thus the truth of $\\chi'$ is preserved by $\\alpha$, so that we obtain the desired equivalence in $K'$.\\footnote{In Case (i), we do not need to invoke another field quantifier elimination result. As in Lemma~\\ref{lem:lin an}, we assume that each \\(\\tau_i\\) has degree smaller than \\(P\\) and we choose, as $c_j$, all the roots of derivatives of all \\(\\tau_i\\), including \\(\\tau_i\\) itself. Then, by \\cite[Proposition 3.6]{Flen}, for every \\(x\\) and $i$, there exists a $j$ such that if we write \\(\\tau_i(x) = \\sum_k a_{k} (x-c_{j})^k\\), the sum\n\\(\\sum_k \\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(a_{k})\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(x-c_{j})^k\\) is well-defined and hence equal to \\(\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(\\tau_i(x))\\). Using that the well-definedness of the sum is an fqf condition, we can define $\\eta_i \\colon (\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(x-c_{j}))_j \\mapsto \\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(\\tau_i(x))$ without field quantifiers, so that the equality $\\eta_i(\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(x-c_{j}))_j = \\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(\\tau_i(x))$ is preserved by $f$.}\n\nNext, note that we can get rid of all the $c_j$ appearing in $\\phi'$ except for the one closest to $a$, i.e., denoting that closest $c_j$ by $c$, we can replace $\\phi'$ by\n\\[\\phi''(x) = \\psi''(\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(x - c)) \\wedge P(x) = 0.\\] Indeed, one can easily choose $\\psi''$ in such a way that $K \\models \\phi''(a)$ and that\n$\\operatorname{Th}_{\\Lqe}(K)$ implies $\\phi'' \\to \\phi'$.\n\nNow $\\exists x \\colon \\phi''(x)$ is equivalent to\n\\(\\exists\\xi \\in \\mathrm{RV}_\\lambda\\colon \\psi''(\\xi)\\wedge(\\exists x\\colon \\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(x-c) = \\xi \\wedge P(x) = 0)\\),\nand it remains to get rid of the $\\exists x$ in that formula.\nIf $P$ is the zero polynomial, then the $\\exists x$ part is trivially true and we are done.\nOtherwise, by Claim \\ref{cl:exists root}, the existence of such an $x$ is equivalent to the existence of an $x$ with $\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(x-c) = \\xi$ such that $P$ has a $\\lambda$-collision at $x$ around certain points $b_j$ from $F$ (namely around $c$ and around the roots of the derivatives of $P$, which are in $F$ by (\\ref{cond:F})). For fixed $P$ and $b_i$, the existence of such a collision is determined by $\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(x - b_j)$, so\nit remains to eliminate the $\\exists x$ from an $\\Lqe(B)$-formula of the form\n$\\exists x\\colon \\psi'''((\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(x - b_j))_j)$ (with $\\psi'''$ fqf, expressing that the collisions exist). This can then be further simplified to a formula of the form $\\exists x\\colon \\bigwedge_j \\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(x - b_j) = \\xi_j$ (where we take $\\xi_j := \\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(a - b_j))$).\nThis formula now expresses that the intersection of certain balls is non-empty, a condition which can easily be seen to only depend on $\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(b_j - b_{j'})$ (see \\cite[Proposition~4.1]{Flen} for details). Thus we are done.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Theorem \\ref{thm:hmin analytic}]\nWe need to show that for every $K' \\equiv K$ and every $A \\subset K'$, every $(A \\cup \\mathrm{RV}_{K',\\lambda})$-definable set $X = \\phi(K') \\subset K'$ can be $\\lambda$-prepared by a finite $A$-definable set $C$.\n\nBy Proposition \\ref{prop:QE analytic}, we may assume that $\\phi$ contains no field quantifiers, so that it\nsuffices to $\\lambda$-prepare the graph of functions of the form \\(\\operatorname{rv}_\\lambda(\\tau(x))\\), where \\(\\tau\\) is an \\(\\Lqe(A)\\)-term. (Here, ``preparing a graph'' is in the sense of Corollary \\ref{cor:prep}.)\n\nBy the first half of Lemma \\ref{lem:lin an}, such a graph can be prepared by a finite set $C$ of elements that are algebraic over\nthe field $F \\le K'$ generated by $A$. Since such a set $C$ is contained in a finite $A$-definable set $C'$, we are done.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{cor}[Equi-characteristic $0$ examples]\\label{cor:ex:equi}\nLet $K$ be a Henselian valued field of equi-characteristic $0$ in a language ${\\mathcal L}$. Then in each of the following cases, $\\operatorname{Th}(K)$ is $\\omega$-h-minimal.\n\\begin{enumerate}\n \\item ${\\mathcal L}$ is the pure valued field language ${\\mathcal L}_\\val$.\n \\item\\label{ex:analytic:00} ${\\mathcal L}$ is the valued field language expanded by function symbols from a separated Weierstrass system ${\\mathcal A}$ and $K$ is equipped with analytic ${\\mathcal A}$-structure in the sense of \\cite{CLip}.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{cor}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nThese are just examples of Theorem~\\ref{thm:hmin analytic}, namely with ${\\mathcal O}_K = {\\mathcal O}_{K,\\fine}$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{cor}[Mixed characteristic examples]\\label{cor:ex:mixed}\nLet $K$ be a Henselian valued field of mixed characteristic in a language ${\\mathcal L}$. Then in each of the following cases, $\\operatorname{Th}(K)$ is $\\omega$-h$^\\eqc$-minimal (as in Definition~\\ref{defn:mixed}).\n\\begin{enumerate}\n \\item ${\\mathcal L}$ is the pure valued field language ${\\mathcal L}_\\val = \\{+,\\cdot,{\\mathcal O}_K\\}$.\n \\item $K$ is a finite field extension of ${\\mathbb Q}_p$ and ${\\mathcal L}$ is the sub-analytic language from \\cite{vdDHM} (which is a variant on the language from \\cite{DvdD}).\n\\item ${\\mathcal L}$ is the valued field language expanded by function symbols from a separated Weierstrass system ${\\mathcal A}$ and $K$ is equipped with analytic ${\\mathcal A}$-structure in the sense of \\cite{CLip}.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{cor}\n\n\n\\begin{proof}\nGiven $K' \\equiv_{{\\mathcal L}} K$, let $|\\cdot|_{\\eqc}$ be the finest equi-characteristic $0$ coarsening\nof the valuation $|\\cdot|$, and let ${\\mathcal L}_{\\eqc}$ be the expansion of ${\\mathcal L}$ by a predicate for the valuation ring ${\\mathcal O}_{K,\\eqc}$ corresponding to $|\\cdot|_{\\eqc}$.\nSuppose that $|\\cdot|_{\\eqc}$ is non-trivial.\nUnder those assumptions, we need to show that $\\operatorname{Th}_{{\\mathcal L}_{\\eqc}}(K'_{\\eqc})$ is $\\omega$-h-minimal, where $K'_{\\eqc}$ is the field $K'$ considered as a valued field\nwith the valuation $|\\cdot|_{\\eqc}$.\n\n(1)\nIf ${\\mathcal L}$ is the pure valued field language, we consider ${\\mathcal L}_{\\eqc}$ as an expansion of ${\\mathcal L}_{{\\mathrm{val}},\\eqc} := \\{+,\\cdot,{\\mathcal O}_{K',\\eqc}\\}$ (which is also the pure valued field language) by a predicate\nfor ${\\mathcal O}_{K'}$. By Theorem~\\ref{thm:hmin analytic}, $\\operatorname{Th}_{{\\mathcal L}_{{\\mathrm{val}},\\eqc}}(K')$ is $\\omega$-h-minimal.\nSince the map $K' \\to \\Gamma_{K'}$ factors over $\\mathrm{RV}_\\eqc$ (where $\\mathrm{RV}_\\eqc$ denotes the leading term structure with respect to $|\\cdot|_\\eqc$),\n${\\mathcal L}_\\eqc$ is an $\\mathrm{RV}_\\eqc$-expansion of ${\\mathcal L}_{{\\mathrm{val}},\\eqc}$, so Theorem~\\ref{thm:resp:h} implies that $\\operatorname{Th}_{{\\mathcal L}_{\\eqc}}(K')$ is also $\\omega$-h-minimal.\n\n(2)\nThis language ${\\mathcal L}$ defines an analytic structure on $K$ (by \\cite[Section~4.4]{CLip} (2)) and hence also on $K'$. Hence, it suffices to prove (3).\n\n(3)\nThe language ${\\mathcal L}_{\\eqc}$ has the shape of the language called ${\\mathcal L}$ in the above Case~(ii) of Section \\ref{sec:analyt}, so\nby Theorem~\\ref{thm:hmin analytic}, $\\operatorname{Th}_{{\\mathcal L}_{\\eqc}}(K')$ is $\\omega$-h-minimal.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\subsection{${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$-convex valued fields}\n\\label{sec:Tcon}\n\nFix a language ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin$ expanding the language of ordered rings\nand fix a complete o-minimal ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin$-theory ${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$ containing the theory RCF of real closed fields.\nGiven a pair of models $K_0 \\prec K$ of ${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$, we can turn $K$\ninto a valued field by using the convex closure of $K_0$ in $K$ as the valuation ring ${\\mathcal O}_K$.\nWe suppose that ${\\mathcal O}_K \\ne K$ and we let ${\\mathcal L}$ be the expansion of ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin$ by a predicate for ${\\mathcal O}_K$.\nIn \\cite{DL.Tcon1,Dri.Tcon2} van den Dries--Lewenberg obtained various results about the model theory of such valued fields $K$ as ${\\mathcal L}$-structures.\nIn particular, the theory ${\\mathcal T} := \\operatorname{Th}_{{\\mathcal L}}(K)$ only depends on ${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$ (and not on the choice of $K$ and $K_0$, provided that ${\\mathcal O}_K \\ne K$) \\cite[Corollary~3.13]{DL.Tcon1}. (Van den Dries--Lewenberg call such a ring ${\\mathcal O}_K$ a ``${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$-convex subring of $K$''. Accordingly, and following other subsequent literature, we call $K$ a ``${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$-convex valued field''.)\n\nWe will prove that this theory ${\\mathcal T}$ is\n$1$-h-minimal, under the assumption that no fast-growing functions are definable in ${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$. In ${\\mathbb R}$, ``no fast-growing functions'' means that every definable function is eventually bounded by a function of the form $x \\mapsto x^n$.\nIn arbitrary real closed fields, the right generalization is\npower-boundedness; see \\cite{Mil.powBd}:\n\n\\begin{defn}[Power-bounded]\nA \\emph{power function} in $K$ is an ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin$-definable function $g\\colon K^\\times \\to K^\\times$ which is an endomorphism of the multiplicative group $K^\\times$. We call the ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin$-structure $K$ (and its theory ${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$) \\emph{power-pounded}, if for every ${\\mathcal L}(K)$-definable function $f\\colon K \\to K$, there exists a\npower function $g$ such that $|f(x)| \\le g(x)$ for all sufficiently large $x \\in K$.\n\\end{defn}\n\nFrom now on, we will assume that ${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$ is power-bounded.\n\nThe proof that $\\operatorname{Th}(K)$ is $1$-h-minimal is essentially contained in the existing literature: Using the criteria given in Theorem~\\ref{thm:tame2vf}, this can be deduced from \\cite[Theorems~2.1 and 2.9]{Gar.powbd}. However, Theorem~2.9 is a lot deeper than what we really need, so we give a more direct proof below (mainly following the ideas from \\cite{Gar.powbd}).\n\n\n\\begin{lem}\\label{lem:tcon-0-h}\nThe theory of $K$ (as an ${\\mathcal L}$-structure) is $0$-h-minimal.\n\\end{lem}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nWe assume that $K$ is sufficiently saturated and use the criterion given by Lemma~\\ref{lem:type-0-h-min}: Given a parameter set $A \\subset K$ and a ball $B \\subset K \\setminus \\acl_K(A)$, we need to verify that all elements of $B$ have the same type over $A\\cup \\mathrm{RV}$. We may assume $A = \\acl_K(A)$.\n\nSince $B \\cap A = \\emptyset$ and since ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin$-types over $A$ correspond to cuts in $A$,\nall elements of $B$ have the same ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin$-type over $A$.\nThus \\cite[Lemma~3.15]{Yin.tcon} applies and tells us that for any $x, x' \\in B$, there exists an automorphism of $K$ fixing $A$ and $\\mathrm{RV}$ but sending $x$ to $x'$. This shows that $x$ and $x'$ have the same type over $A \\cup \\mathrm{RV}$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\nThe following lemma states that ${\\mathcal L}$-definable functions are piecewise ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin$-definable. This is already stated in \\cite[Lemma~2.6]{Dri.Tcon2}, but we shall use a variant from \\cite{Yin.tcon}:\n\n\\begin{lem}[{\\cite[Lemma~3.3]{Yin.tcon}}]\\label{lem:piecewise-omin}\nLet $f\\colon K \\to K$ be an ${\\mathcal L}(A)$-definable function, for some\n$A \\subset K \\cup \\mathrm{RV}$. Then there exists a partition of $K$ into finitely many ${\\mathcal L}(A)$-definable sets $X_i$ and ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin(A \\cap K)$-definable functions $g_i\\colon K \\to K$ such that $f|_{X_i} = g_i|_{X_i}$ for each $i$.\n\\end{lem}\n\nIt might be a bit unclear from the formulation of that lemma in \\cite{Yin.tcon} whether it is intended that parameters from $\\mathrm{RV}$ are allowed. In any case, the proof given in \\cite{Yin.tcon} goes through with parameters from $\\mathrm{RV}$.\n\n\n\n\\begin{thm}[${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$-convex examples]\\label{thm:Tcon}\nLet ${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$ be a power-bounded o-minimal theory containing the theory of real closed fields, in a language ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin$ expanding the language of rings.\nLet ${\\mathcal T}$ be the theory of ${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$-convex valued fields, in the language ${\\mathcal L}$ which is obtained by expanding ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin$ by a predicate for the valuation ring (as explaind at the beginning of this subsection).\nThen ${\\mathcal T}$ is $1$-h-minimal.\n\\end{thm}\n\n\n\\begin{proof}\nWe use the criteria from Theorem~\\ref{thm:tame2vf} to prove $1$-h-minimality, so let an $A$-definable map $f\\colon K \\to K$ be given, for some $A \\subset K \\cup \\mathrm{RV}$.\nLet $X_i \\subset K$ and $g_i\\colon K \\to K$ be as obtained from Lemma~\\ref{lem:piecewise-omin}.\n\nCondition~(T2) of Theorem~\\ref{thm:tame2vf} holds for each $g_i$ by o-minimality (namely, the set $\\{d \\in K \\mid g_i^{-1}(d)$ is infinite$\\}$ is finite), so it also holds for $f$.\n\nCondition~(T1), too, follows for $f$ if we can prove it for each $g_i$. Indeed, take the union of the sets $C$ obtained for all the $g_i$, and further enlarge $C$ so that it $1$-prepares each $X_i$. (This is possible, since by Lemma~\\ref{lem:tcon-0-h}, we already have $0$-h-minimality.) So it remains to prove Condition~(T1) for an ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin(A \\cap K)$-definable function $g_i$.\n\nBy o-minimality, we find a finite $(A \\cap K)$-definable $C \\subset K$ such that $g_i$ is continuously differentiable on $K \\setminus C$. Further enlarge $C$ (using $0$-h-minimality and Corollary~\\ref{cor:prep}) so that it prepares the map $K \\to \\Gamma_K, x \\mapsto |g_i'(x)|$.\n\nLet $B \\subset K$ be a ball $1$-next to $C$. We claim that Condition~(T1) is satisfied with $\\mu_B := |g_i'(x)|$ for any $x \\in B$. Indeed, let $x_1, x_2 \\in B$ be given, with $x_1 \\ne x_2$. By the Mean Value Theorem for o-minimal fields,\nthere exists an $x_3$ in-between (and hence also in $B$) such that $g_i(x_1) - g_i(x_2) = g_i'(x_3)\\cdot (x_1 - x_2)$. Taking valuations on both sides implies $|g_i(x_1) - g_i(x_2)| = \\mu_B\\cdot |x_1 - x_2|$, as desired.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{remark}\nThe assumption that ${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$ is power-bounded is necessary to obtain $1$-h-minimality of ${\\mathcal T}$. Indeed, in the presence of an exponential map, we can define $K \\to \\mathrm{RV}, x \\mapsto \\operatorname{rv}(e^x)$, whose fibers are exactly the translates of the maximal ideal $B_{<1}(0)$ and which hence cannot be prepared in the sense of Corollary~\\ref{cor:prep}.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\\begin{remark}\nWe were not able to prove that power-bounded ${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$-convex valued fields are $\\omega$-h-minimal. This is one of the main reasons why we only assume $1$-h-minimality in most of the paper.\n\\end{remark}\n\nUsing methods from non-standard analysis, results in a ${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$-convex valued field $K$ can often be translated into results about $K$ as an ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin$-structure.\nWe finish this subsection by stating what our Taylor approximation result (Theorem~\\ref{thm:high-ord}) becomes under such a translation, namely a version of Taylor approximation which has some uniformity even when one approaches a bad point.\n\n\n\\begin{cor}\\label{cor:arch}\nLet ${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$ be a power-bounded o-minimal theory containing the theory of real closed fields, in a language ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin$ expanding the language of rings.\nLet $K \\models {\\mathcal T}_\\omin$ be a model, let $f\\colon K \\to K$ be an ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin$-definable function and let $r \\in\\ {\\mathbb N}$ be given.\nThen there exists a finite ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin$-definable set $C \\subset K$ and a constant $c \\in K_{>0}$ such that for every pair $x_0, x \\in K$ satisfying\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:arch.ass}\nc\\cdot |x - x_0| < \\min_{a \\in C}|x_0 - a|,\n\\end{equation}\nwe have\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:arch.imp}\n|f(x) - T^{\\le r}_{f,x_0}(x) | \\leq c\\cdot |f^{(r+1)}(x_0)\\cdot (x-x_0)^{r+1}|\n\\end{equation}\n(where $|\\cdot|$ denotes the usual absolute value and $T^{\\le r}_{f,x_0}$ is the Taylor polynomial of $f$ around $x_0$ of degree $r$; see Definition~\\ref{defn:taylor}).\n\nMore generally, if $(f_q)_{q \\in K^m}$ is an ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin$-definable family of functions $K \\to K$, then\nwe obtain an ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin$-definable family of sets $(C_q)_{q \\in K^m}$ and a constant $c \\in K_{>0}$ which is independent of $q$ such\nthat the above holds for every $q \\in K^m$.\n\\end{cor}\n\n\\begin{remark}\nNote that this result would be false without the assumption on power-boundedness. Indeed, one can check that it fails near $0$ for the function $x \\mapsto e^{1\/x}$.\nOn the other hand, it should be rather easy to obtain for sub-analytic functions, so this is another instance (along with the Jacobian Property)\nof a generalization of a result from an analytic setting to an axiomatic one.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\\private{\nSet $r = 0$ and $x = x_0 + d$, with $dc < x_0$. We consider $|e^{1\/x} - e^{1\/x_0}| < |c \\cdot (e^{1\/x_0})'\\cdot d| = |c \\cdot e^{1\/x_0} \\cdot x_0^{-2}\\cdot d|$.\nAfter dividing by $e^{1\/x_0}$, we obtain $|e^{1\/x-1\/x_0}| = |e^{-d\/(x\\cdot x_0)} - 1| < cdx_0^{-2}$. In the LHS, we approximate $x$ by $x_0$, and then we approximate\nthe exponential by the degree 3 Taylor approx. Then one sees that the corollary fails.\n}\n\n\\begin{remark}\nIt seems that this result should be rather easy to obtain for sub-analytic functions.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\nIn the proof, we use the following lemma: \n\n\\begin{lem}\\label{lem:L2Lomin}\nFor any $A \\subset K$, every finite ${\\mathcal L}(A)$-definable set $C \\subset K$ is already ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin(A)$-definable.\n\\end{lem}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nUsing the order, we reduce to the case where $C = \\{a\\}$ is a singleton.\n${\\mathcal L}(A)$-definability means that $a = f(0)$, for some ${\\mathcal L}(A)$-definable function $f\\colon K \\to K$.\nBy Lemma~\\ref{lem:piecewise-omin}, $f(0) = g(0)$ for some ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin(A)$-definable $g\\colon K \\to K$; this implies that $C$ is ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin(A)$-definable.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Corollary~\\ref{cor:arch}]\nFix a $|K|^+$-saturated elementary extension $K' \\succ K$ and let ${\\mathcal O}_{K'}$ be the convex closure of $K$ in $K'$. By Theorem~\\ref{thm:Tcon}, $K'$ is $1$-h-minimal as an ${\\mathcal L}$-structure, for ${\\mathcal L}$ as in the theorem.\n(Note that the saturation assumption implies ${\\mathcal O}_{K'} \\ne K'$.)\nIn the following, we denote the valuation on $K'$ by $|\\cdot|_v$, to distinguish it from the absolute value $|\\cdot|$. We suppose that a family of functions $(f_q)_{q \\in K^m}$ is given as in the corollary, and by abuse of notation, we also write $(f_q)_{q \\in (K')^m}$ for the corresponding family in $K'$ (defined by the same formula).\n \nSuppose that the corollary fails, i.e., that for every $c \\in K_{>0}$ and for every formula $\\psi$ that could potentially define the family $(C_q)_{q \\in K^m}$, there exists a $q \\in K^m$ and a pair $x_0, x$ for which the implication (\\ref{eq:arch.ass}) $\\Rightarrow$ (\\ref{eq:arch.imp}) fails.\nBy our saturation assumption, there exist $q \\in (K')^m$ and $x_0, x \\in K'$ such that the implication fails for every $c \\in K_{>0}$ and every $\\psi$.\nUsing that ${\\mathcal O}_{K'}$ is the convex closure of $K$, this failure for every $c \\in K_{>0}$ is equivalent to the conjunction\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:v.ass}\n|x - x_0|_v < \\min_{a \\in C_q}|x_0 - a|_v \n\\end{equation}\nand\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:v.imp}\n|f(x) - T^{\\le r}_{f_q,x_0}(x) |_v > |f_q^{(r+1)}(x_0)\\cdot (x-x_0)^{r+1}|_v.\n\\end{equation}\nSo we obtained: For every ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin(q)$-definable set $C_q$, there exist $x_0, x \\in K'$ in the same ball $1$-next to $C_q$ (by (\\ref{eq:v.ass})) such that (\\ref{eq:v.imp}) holds.\nThis contradicts Theorem~\\ref{thm:high-ord}: \\emph{A priori}, that theorem only provides a finite ${\\mathcal L}(q)$-definable set $C$, but ${\\mathcal L}_\\omin(q)$-definability of that set then follows using Lemma~\\ref{lem:L2Lomin}.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\nOne can expect that similar results in higher dimension can be obtained (maybe building on Question~\\ref{qu:t-high-high} below), and that they can lead to finer versions of the preparation results in power-bounded real closed fields from \\cite{DS.ominPrep,NguyenValette}, which are used to deduce the existence of Mostowski's Lipschitz stratifications.\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Comparison to V-minimality}\\label{sec:comparison}\n\nIn \\cite{HK}, Hrushovski--Kazhdan introduced the notion of $V$-minimal theories, which at first sight has the same goal as Hensel minimality, namely: to provide a powerful axiomatic framework for geometry in valued fields. However,\nthe relation between $V$-minimality and Hensel minimality is similar to the relation between strong minimality and o-minimality:\nBy working in a strongly minimal theory of (algebraically closed) fields, one obtains many useful results about geometry in real closed fields, but one cannot treat genuinely o-minimal languages like ${\\mathbb R}_{\\mathrm{exp}}$. In a similar way, working in a $V$-minimal theory of (algebraically closed) valued fields does provide many useful insights about Henselian valued fields (as explained in \\cite[Section~12]{HK}), but there are examples of Hensel minimal theories that cannot be treated in this way.\n\nConcretely, since a V-minimal theory has not more structure on $\\mathrm{RV}$ than a pure valued field, every definable function $K \\to K$ ultimately grows like $x \\mapsto x^r$ for some rational number $r$,\nand this remains true if we expand the language by predicates on $\\mathrm{RV}$ (following \\cite[Section~12]{HK}). In contrast, Section~\\ref{sec:Tcon} provides examples of $1$-h-minimal structures without this property, for example the $T$-convex structure obtained from the (power-bounded o-minimal) expansion of ${\\mathbb R}$ by one function $x \\mapsto x^r$ for every real number $r$.\n\nOn the other hand, if we restrict to the context for which V-minimality has been designed, then it agrees with Hensel minimality. Moreover, in this case, $0$-h-minimality\nand $1$-h-minimality agree. Let us recall the definition of V-minimality.\n\n\\begin{defn}[V-minimality; {\\cite[Section~3.4]{HK}}]\\label{defn:Vmin}\nFix a language ${\\mathcal L} \\supset {\\mathcal L}_\\val$ and a complete theory ${\\mathcal T}$ containing the theory $\\operatorname{ACVF}_{0,0}$ of algebraically closed fields of equi-characteristic $0$.\nThe theory ${\\mathcal T}$ is called \\emph{$V$-minimal} if for every model $K \\models {\\mathcal T}$, we have the following:\n\\begin{enumerate}\\setcounter{enumi}{-1}\n \\item Every definable (with parameters) subset of $K$ is a finite boolean combination of points, open balls, and closed balls.\n \\item Every ${\\mathcal L}(K)$-definable subset of $\\mathrm{RV}^n$ is already\n ${\\mathcal L}_\\val(K)$-definable (where ${\\mathcal L}_\\val$ is the pure valued field language).\n \\item Every definable (with parameters) family of nested closed balls in $K$ has non-empty intersection.\n \\item For every $A \\subset K$, if $X \\subset K$ is an $A$-definable set which is the union of finitely many disjoint closed balls $B_i$, then $\\acl_K(A) \\cap B_i \\ne \\emptyset$ for every $i$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{defn}\n\n\\private{In the last item, HK write that $X$ should be an ``almost $A$-definable closed ball''; this is defined as: there exists an $A$-definable equivalence relation with finitely many classes such that $X$ is a union of equivalence classes....}\n\n\n\\begin{prop}[V-minimality]\\label{prop:vmin}\nSuppose that ${\\mathcal T}$ is a complete theory containing $\\operatorname{ACVF}_{0,0}$, in a language ${\\mathcal L} \\supset {\\mathcal L}_\\val$, and suppose moreover that every ${\\mathcal L}(K)$-definable subset of $\\mathrm{RV}^n$ is already ${\\mathcal L}_\\val(K)$-definable.\nThen the following are equivalent:\n\\begin{enumerate}[(i)]\n \\item ${\\mathcal T}$ is V-minimal.\n \\item ${\\mathcal T}$ is $0$-h-minimal.\n \\item ${\\mathcal T}$ is $1$-h-minimal.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{prop}\n\n\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Proposition~\\ref{prop:vmin}]\n(iii) $\\Rightarrow$ (ii) is trivial.\n\n(i) $\\Rightarrow$ (iii): We use the criteria from Theorem~\\ref{thm:tame2vf}, so let $f\\colon K \\to K$ be $A$-definable,\nfor some $A \\subset K \\cup \\mathrm{RV}$.\n\nFirst note that by the Remark just above \\cite[Lemma~3.30]{HK}, adding parameters from $K \\cup \\mathrm{RV}$ to the language preserves V-minimality, so using compactness,\nthe results from \\cite{HK} hold uniformly in families parametrized by $K$ or $\\mathrm{RV}$.\n\nBy dimension theory (e.g.\\ \\cite[Lemma~3.55]{HK}),\n$f$ has only finitely many infinite fibers, i.e., Condition~(T2) from Theorem~\\ref{thm:tame2vf} holds.\nBy applying \\cite[Corollary~4.3]{HK} to all fibers $f^{-1}(b)$ of $f$ (where $b$ runs over $K$),\nwe find an $A$-definable map $\\rho\\colon K \\to \\mathrm{RV}^k$ (for some $k \\ge 0$) such that for each $\\xi\\in \\mathrm{RV}^k$, the restriction $f|_{\\rho^{-1}(\\xi)}$ is either constant or injective.\nApply \\cite[Corollary~5.9]{HK} to each injective restriction $f|_{\\rho^{-1}(\\xi)}$ and refine the map $\\rho$ accordingly, i.e.,\nsuch that afterwards, $f$ is ``nice'' on each open ball contained in one fiber of $\\rho$ in the sense of \\cite[Definition~5.8]{HK}.\nFinally, by applying \\cite[Corollary~4.3]{HK} to the graph of $\\rho$, we find a finite $A$-definable set $C$ $1$-preparing $\\rho$ (namely, the image of the map $c$ provided by the corollary).\nThen $f$ is nice on each ball $1$-next to $C$, and this implies Condition~(T1) from Theorem~\\ref{thm:tame2vf}.\n\n\n\n(ii) $\\Rightarrow$ (i): We prove the conditions from Definition~\\ref{defn:Vmin}:\n\n(0) Let $X \\subset K$ be definable, and let $C \\subset K$ be a finite set preparing $X$. Then $X$ can be written as a union of the form\n$\\bigcup_{c \\in C} X_c$, where $X_c = \\{c + x \\mid \\operatorname{rv}(x) \\in Z_c\\}$\nfor suitable definable sets $Z_c \\subset \\mathrm{RV}$. Using the assumption that definable subsets of $\\mathrm{RV}$ are already definable in the language ${\\mathcal L}_\\val$,\nwe obtain that each $X_c$ is a finite boolean combination of points, open balls, and closed balls. This then also follows for $X$.\n\n(1) holds by assumption.\n\n(2) is a special case of Lemma~\\ref{lem:intersection}.\n\n(3) By 0-h-minimality, there exists a finite $A$-definable set $C$ preparing $X$. This set $C$ cannot be disjoint from any $B_i$, since for any $c \\in C \\setminus B_i$, the ball $1$-next to $c$ containing $B_i$ is strictly bigger than $B_i$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\subsection{Some open questions}\nAs major future research leads we see the development of motivic integration and of applications to point counting (\u00e0 la Pila-Wilkie) under Hensel minimality, as mentioned in the introduction. We finish the paper with some questions which are internal to this very paper.\nProbably the most \nimmediate question in this context is:\n\n\\begin{question}\nDoes $0$-h-minimality imply $1$-h-minimality, and\/or does $1$-h-minimality imply $\\omega$-h-minimality? (More generally: For which $\\ell < \\ell'$ does $\\ell$-h-minimality imply $\\ell'$-h-minimality?)\n\\end{question}\n\nIf $1$-h-minimality is not equivalent to $\\omega$-h-minimality, we have the following questions:\n\\begin{question}\nAre the ${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$-convex structures from Subsection~\\ref{sec:Tcon} (with ${\\mathcal T}_\\omin$ power-bounded) $\\omega$-h-minimal?\n\\end{question}\n\n\\begin{question}\nDoes $1$-h-minimality imply $\\omega$-h-minimality\nunder the assumptions from Proposition~\\ref{prop:vmin}?\n\\end{question}\n\nIn a somewhat opposite direction, one might wonder:\n\n\\begin{question}\nWhich results still hold if we only assume $0$-h-minimality, or even under Assumption~\\ref{ass:no-ctrl} (``Hensel minimality without control of parameters'')?\n\\end{question}\n\n\n\n\\medskip\n\nSuppose that ${\\mathcal L}'$ is an $\\mathrm{RV}$-expansion of ${\\mathcal L}$. Then $\\ell$-h-minimality of $\\operatorname{Th}_{{\\mathcal L}}(K)$ implies $\\ell$-h-minimality of $\\operatorname{Th}_{{\\mathcal L}'}(K)$\nfor $\\ell = 0, 1, \\omega$ (Theorem~\\ref{thm:resp:h}).\n\n\n\\begin{question}\\label{que:conv}\nDoes the converse also hold, i.e., does $\\ell$-h-minimality of $\\operatorname{Th}_{{\\mathcal L}'}(K)$ imply $\\ell$-h-minimality of $\\operatorname{Th}_{{\\mathcal L}}(K)$?\n\\end{question}\n\nNote that for values of $\\ell$ other than $0$, $1$, $\\omega$, we do not even know the direction from ${\\mathcal L}$ to ${\\mathcal L}'$.\n\n\n\\begin{remark}\nHensel minimality is not preserved by passing to reducts in general. Indeed, suppose that $\\operatorname{Th}_{{\\mathcal L}}(K)$ is $\\omega$-h-minimal and that $K$ is $\\aleph_0$-saturated.\nFix a ball $B = B_{<\\lambda}(a) \\subset K$ which is strictly contained in a ball disjoint from $\\acl_K(\\emptyset)$\n(so that $B$ cannot be prepared by a finite, $\\emptyset$-definable $C \\subset K$). Then $\\operatorname{Th}_{{\\mathcal L}(a,\\lambda)}(K)$ is $\\omega$-h-minimal but\nthe reduct $\\operatorname{Th}_{{\\mathcal L} \\cup \\{B\\}}(K)$ is not (where by ``$B$'', we mean a predicate for that ball).\n\\end{remark}\n\n\\medskip\n\nSuppose that $\\operatorname{Th}(K)$ is $\\omega$-h-minimal and that we have a definable coarsening $|\\cdot|_c$ of the valuation;\nwrite $K_c$ for $K$ considered as a valued field with the coarsened valuation, and write $k_c$ for the residue field of $K_c$,\nconsidered as a valued field with the valuation induced from $|\\cdot|$, and with the full induced structure by ${\\mathcal L}$.\n\n\\begin{question}\nBy Corollary~\\ref{cor:coarse},\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item if $\\operatorname{Th}(K)$ is $\\omega$-h-minimal, then so is $\\operatorname{Th}(K_c)$;\n\\end{enumerate}\nbut:\n\\begin{enumerate}\\stepcounter{enumi}\n \\item Does $\\omega$-h-minimality of $\\operatorname{Th}(K)$ imply $\\omega$-h-minimality of $\\operatorname{Th}(k_c)$?\n \\item Do $\\omega$-h-minimality of $\\operatorname{Th}(K_c)$ and $\\omega$-h-minimality of $\\operatorname{Th}(k_c)$ together imply $\\omega$-h-minimality of $K$?\n\\end{enumerate}\nAnd also:\n\\begin{enumerate}\\setcounter{enumi}{3}\n \\item Does (1) (and\/or (2), (3)) also hold for $0$- and\/or $1$-h-minimality?\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{question}\n\n\n\\medskip\n\n\nAny $C^1$-function $U \\subset {\\mathbb R}^n \\to {\\mathbb R}$ also has a strict derivative (see Definition~\\ref{defn:strict-der}).\nThis is not the case in valued fields:\n\n\\begin{example}\nDefine $f\\colon K^2 \\to K$ by $f(x,y)= x^2$ if $|x|^4 \\leq |y|$ and $f(x,y) = x^3$ otherwise. This function is $C^1$ everywhere, but at $0$, the strict derivative does not exist, since $\\frac{f(x,x^4) - f(x,0)}{x^4} = x^{-2} - x^{-1}$, which diverges for $x \\to 0$.\n\\end{example}\n\nIn view of this example, and by our knowledge that strict $C^1$ is the better notion for rank one valued fields for several reasons (see e.g.~\\cite{BGlockN}, and where strict $C^1$ means that the strict derivative exists everywhere and is continuous), one may try to build a good working notion of definable strict $C^1$ submanifolds of $K^n$, assuming a suitable form of Hensel minimality. The following is a first question in this direction.\n\n\\begin{question}\nDoes the Implicit Function Theorem hold for definable, strict $C^1$ functions, say, assuming $1$-h-minimality (with a well-chosen definition of ``strict $C^1$'')?\n\\end{question}\n\n\n\\medskip\n\n\n\nAddendum \\ref{add:cd:alg:range} of Cell Decomposition (Theorem~\\ref{thm:cd:alg:skol}) speaks about simultaneous preparation of the domain and range of functions,\nbut only in the one-variable case.\n\\begin{question}\nIs there a version of Addendum \\ref{add:cd:alg:range} for functions from $K^n$ to $K^m$ which works for $n$ and\/or $m$ bigger than $1$? What would even be the right formulation?\n\\end{question}\nThe following question might be related:\n\\begin{question}\nTheorem~\\ref{thm:tame2vf} provides a characterization of $1$-h-minimality in terms of functions from $K$ to $K$. Is there an analogous characterization of $\\omega$-h-minimality?\n\\end{question}\n\n\n\\medskip\n\n\nAnd finally: Theorem~\\ref{thm:T3\/2,mv} (order one Taylor approximations of functions in several variables) suggests\nthat we might have the following variant of Theorem~\\ref{thm:t-high-high} (higher order Taylor approximations of functions in several variables):\n\n\\begin{question}\\label{qu:t-high-high}\nGiven a definable function $f\\colon K^n \\to K$ and an integer $r \\ge 1$, does there exist a definable map $\\chi\\colon K^n \\to \\mathrm{RV}^k$ such that\n(\\ref{eq:t-high-high}) (or a similar kind of Taylor approximation) holds on each $n$-dimensional fiber of $\\chi$?\n\\end{question}\n\n\\begin{remark}\nSuch a result would be strictly stronger than Theorem~\\ref{thm:t-high-high}, which yields Taylor approximations\nonly on boxes disjoint from a lower-dimensional definable set $C$. Indeed, given $\\chi$, one can easily find a $C$\nsuch that every box disjoint from $C$ is contained in a fiber of $\\chi$\n(namely by $1$-preparing $\\chi$ fiberwise using Corollary~\\ref{cor:prep}). On the other hand,\nthe family of maximal boxes disjoint from $C$ cannot, in general, by parametrized by a tuple from $\\mathrm{RV}$.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\n\\bibliographystyle{amsplain}\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\\section{Introduction}\n\\normalsize {In} quantum systems, measurement of product observables of two or more can contain information about quantum correlations and quantum dynamics. In the recent past, many theoretical and experimental works have been performed regarding the measurements of product observables using weak measurements. They have been used to resolve the Hardy's Paradox \\cite{1} with experimental verification \\cite{2}, EPR-Bohm experiment \\cite{3}, direct measurement of a density matrix \\cite{4}, reconstruction of entangled quantum states \\cite{5}. It has also been reported that a strange quantum effect namely the ``Quantum Cheshire Cats\" where the properties of a quantum particle can be disembodied (e.g., photon's position and polarization degrees of freedoms can be separated from each other) can be realized using product weak values \\cite{6}. See also the references \\cite{7} and \\cite{8} for the experimental test of the existence of Quantum Cheshire Cats and the exchange of grins between two such Quantum Cheshire Cats, respectively. Weak measurements of product observables also play an important role in understanding the quantum mechanics such as Bell tests \\cite{9,10,11}, nonlocality via post-selection \\cite{12}.\\par \nHigher moment weak values are useful to obtain the weak-valued probability distribution \\cite{13} of an observable in the pre and post-selected systems (which will be shown in this work later). Some applications of weak-valued probability distribution are: (a) Ozawa's measurement- disturbance relation has experimentally been verified using weak-valued probability distribution \\cite{14}, (b) to obtain all of the values of the observables relevant to a Bell test experimentally, weak-valued probabilities have been used \\cite{15}, (c) the authors of \\cite{16} have shown that there is a connection between weak-valued joint probabilities and incompatibility. There are some other applications of weak-valued probabilities e.g., (d) experimental realization of the Quantum Box Problem \\cite{17}, (e) to resolve Hardy's paradox \\cite{2}, (f) justification of Scully \\emph{et al.}'s claim \\cite{18} that the momentum disturbance associated with which-way measurement in Young's double-slit experiment can be avoided has been shown by the negativity of the weak-valued probabilities corresponding to the momentum disturbance, which consequently have zero variance \\cite{19,20}, (g) to control the probe wave packet of the target system by pre and post-selections, one can use the higher moment weak values \\cite{21}, (h) to obtain the modular value of an observable in pre and post- selected systems, higher moment weak values can be used as there is an exact connection between them \\cite{22,23}.\n\\par\nWeak measurements in particular weak values are known to provide useful informations with simple experimental setups. The ``weak value\" was first introduced by Aharonov, Albert, and Vaidman (AAV) \\cite{24}. It was inspired by the two-time formulation of the quantum-mechanical system \\cite{25}. The mechanism of AAV method is that they took the von Neumann measurement scheme \\cite{26} one step forward by considering the coupling coefficient very small i.e., weak followed by a strong measurement in succession. This formulation is characterized by the pre- and postselected states of the system. By preparing a system initially in the state $\\ket{\\psi}$ and post-selecting in the state $\\ket{\\phi}$, as a result we obtain the weak value of any observable ${A}$ which is defined as \n\\begin{align}\n{\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi}_{\\psi}=\\frac{\\braket{\\phi |{A}|\\psi}}{\\braket{\\phi |\\psi}}\\label{1}.\n\\end{align}\nThis is a complex number and the spatial and momentum displacements of the pointer state give the real and imaginary parts of that weak value \\cite{27,28}, respectively. By this way, we get the full knowledge of the complex weak value. One of the exciting and interesting features of weak value is that it can lie outside the max-min range of the eigenvalues of the operator of interest. Simultaneously, measurement disturbance is quite small which gives one to perform further measurements or simultaneous measurement of multiple observables. \\par\nWeak measurements have been proven useful in understanding quantum systems such as for the direct measurement of the wave function of a quantum system \\cite{29}, to calculate slow- and fast-light effects in birefringent photonic crystals \\cite{30}, the confirmation of the Heisenberg-Ozawa uncertainty relationship \\cite{31}, for detecting tiny spatial shifts \\cite{32,33}. Weak value can also be used to measure non-Hermitian operators \\cite{34,35}, in hot thermometry \\cite{36}, to detect entanglement universally in a two-qubit system \\cite{37}. \\par\n\\normalsize{\\textit{Product weak values:}} The observables used in the von Neumann measurement scheme are of simple kinds. Direct measurement of product observables is extremely difficult whether it is strong or weak. This difficulty arises from the fact that the measurement interaction in the von Neumann measurement scheme couples two different observables to a single pointer \\cite{27}. To overcome this, an approach using multi particle interaction Hamiltonian was proposed by Resch and Steinberg (RS) {\\cite{38}} applying AAV method. Namely, they have used the Hamiltonian of the form ${H}=g_1{A}\\otimes{p}_x + g_2{B}\\otimes{p}_y$ with gaussian pointer states. Here $A$ and $B$ are two observables of the system. ${p}_x$ and ${p}_y$ are the pointer's momentum degrees of freedom in two different directions x and y, respectively. $g_1$ and $g_2$ are coupling coefficients between the system and the pointer for two different directions, respectively. By performing a second order expansion in the two-dimensional pointer displacement $\\braket{{X} {Y}}$, they showed that it is possible to extract the real part of the product weak value for the case of commuting observables $[{A},{B}]=0$, namely $Re[\\braket{(AB)_w}_{\\psi}^{\\phi}]=2{\\braket{XY}}\/({g_1g_2t^2})-Re[(\\braket{A_w}_{\\psi}^{\\phi})^* \\braket{B_w}_{\\psi}^{\\phi}]$, where `t' is the interaction time. For imaginary part of the product weak value, one needs to look into $\\braket{{X} {P}_y}$. Note that, the weak value of a tensor product observable in a bipartite system (we will call it product weak value in a bipartite system) can also be calculated according to the RS method as the local observables are commuting. It's generalised version i.e., the product weak values $\\braket{({A} {B})w}_{\\psi}^{\\phi}$ and it's higher orders i.e., $\\braket{({A} {B} {C}\\cdots)w}_{\\psi}^{\\phi}$ using N pointers' correlations can be found in Ref. {\\cite{39}}.\\par\n\\normalsize{\\textit{Summary of the present work:}} In this work, we show that by introducing an unique orthogonal state to the given post selection, it is possible to extract the higher moment weak values $\\braket{({A}^n)_w}_{\\psi}^{\\phi}$ in a single system as well as the product weak values for the given pure and mixed pre selected states in a bipartite system separately. We show application of our results to reconstruct quantum states of single and bipartite systems. We have used higher moment weak values to reconstruct a pure state of a single system and product weak values of a bipartite system to reconstruct unknown pure and mixed states of that bipartite system. Recently, Pan \\emph{et al.} \\cite{5} have used product weak values of projection operators to reconstruct an unknown bipartite pure state. They have considered entangled pointer states as well as the modular values of local projection operators and the modular values of sum of the local projection operators \\cite{23} to evaluate product weak values. We, for the first time show that such product weak values can be realized locally for the case of both pure and mixed states. Also, to reconstruct the states of single and bipartite systems, we have generalized the measurement of projection operators to arbitrary observables. Our method can be generalized to the multipartite systems. Further, we give a necessary separability inequality for finite dimensional systems using product weak values. This inequality is violated by certain class of entangled states by cleverly choosing the product observables and the post selections. By such choices, The PPT criteria can be achieved for these class of entangled states. In particular, we give several examples namely $(i)$ two-qubit Werner state (noisy singlet), $(ii)$ mixture of two-Bell states, $(iii)$ mixture of arbitrary pure entangled and maximally mixed states, $(iv)$ mixture of two arbitrary entangled states, $(v)$ mixture of four-Bell states, $(vi)$ two qudit Werner states, $(vii)$ higher dimensional isotropic states. The criteria can potentially detect more classes of entangled states with suitably choosing product observables and post-selections. Finally we show that our methods of \"extraction of product and higher moment weak values\" are robust against the errors which occur due to the inappropriate choices of system observables and unsharp post-selections.\\par\nThis paper is organized as follows. In sec. \\ref{e II} we provide the formulation of our method. In sec. \\ref{e III} we apply our method to reconstruct quantum states of single as well as bipartite systems separately. Entanglement detection criteria is shown in sec. \\ref{e IV}. We show the robustness of our method in sec. \\ref{e V} and finally conclude in sec. \\ref{e VI}.\n\\section{FORMULATION}\\label{e II}\nThe following identity which is sometimes referred as Vaidman's formula \\cite{40} will be used to derive the main results of this paper\n\\begin{align}\n{A}\\ket{\\phi}=\\braket{{A}}_{\\phi}\\ket{\\phi} + \\braket{\\Delta A}_{\\phi} \\ket{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}},\\label{2}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $A$ is an Hermitian operator and $\\ket{\\phi}$ is any quantum state vector in the Hilbert space $\\mathcal{H}$. The state vector $\\ket{\\phi_{A}^{\\perp}}$ is orthogonal to $\\ket{\\phi}$, $\\braket{{A}}_{\\phi}=\\braket{\\phi |{A}|\\phi}$ and $\\braket{\\Delta A}_{\\phi}=\\braket{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A} |{A}|\\phi}$. For the derivation see Appendix \\ref{A}\n\\subsection{Higher moment weak values}\\label{II A}\nIf $\\ket{\\psi}$, ${A}$ and $\\ket{\\phi}$ are the pre-selected state, the observable and the post-selected state, respectively, then the weak value of the observable $A$ is given by\n\\begin{align}\n{\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi}_{\\psi}&=\\left(\\frac{\\braket{\\psi|{A}|\\phi}}{\\braket{\\psi|\\phi}}\\right)^{\\ast}\\!=\\braket{A}_{\\phi} +\\braket{\\Delta A}_{\\phi}\\frac{\\braket{\\phi_{A}^\\perp|\\psi}}{\\braket{\\phi|\\psi}},\\label{3}\n\\end{align}\nwhere we have used Eq. (\\ref{2}). A similar expression was considered in Ref. \\cite{41} to explain the origin of the complex and anomalous nature of a weak value. The Eq. (\\ref{3}) for the expression of the weak value will be useful for deriving the following result.\\par\n\\emph{Result 1:-}\nThe weak value of the operator $A^2$ which we call the ``second moment weak value\" has the following expression\n \\begin{align}\n{\\braket{({A}^2)_w}}^{\\phi}_{\\psi}=\\braket{A}_\\phi \\Big({\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi}_{\\psi} - {\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}_{\\psi}\\Big) + {\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi}_{\\psi}{\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}_{\\psi},\\label{4}\n\\end{align}\nwhere ${\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi}_{\\psi}$ and ${\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}_{\\psi}$ are the weak values of the operator $A$ for the given pre selection $\\ket{\\psi}$ with two post-selections $\\ket{\\phi}$ and $\\ket{{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}}$, respectively.\n\\begin{proof}\n\\begin{align}\n{\\braket{({A}^2)_w}}^{\\phi}_{\\psi}&=\\left(\\frac{\\braket{\\psi |{A}^2|\\phi}}{\\braket{\\psi|\\phi}}\\right)^{\\ast}\\nonumber\\\\\n&=\\left(\\frac{1}{\\braket{\\psi|\\phi}}\\bra{\\psi}{A}[\\braket{A}_{\\phi}\\ket{\\phi} +\\braket{\\Delta A}_{\\phi}\\ket{\\phi_{A}^\\perp}]\\right)^\\ast \\nonumber\\\\\n&=\\left(\\braket{A}_{\\phi}\\frac{\\braket{\\psi |{A}|\\phi}}{\\braket{\\psi|\\phi}} +\\braket{\\Delta A}_{\\phi}\\frac{\\braket{\\psi |{A}|\\phi_{A}^\\perp}}{\\braket{\\psi|\\phi}}\\right)^\\ast \\nonumber\\\\\n&=\\braket{A}_{\\phi}\\frac{\\braket{\\phi |{A}|\\psi}}{\\braket{\\phi|\\psi}} +\\braket{\\Delta A}_{\\phi}\\frac{\\braket{\\phi_{A}^\\perp |{A}|\\psi}}{\\braket{\\phi_{A}^\\perp |\\psi}}\\frac{\\braket{\\phi_{A}^\\perp |\\psi}}{\\braket{\\phi|\\psi}}.\\label{5}\n\\end{align}\nFrom Eq. (\\ref{3}), using $\\braket{\\Delta A}_{\\phi}\\frac{\\braket{\\phi_{A}^\\perp|\\psi}}{\\braket{\\phi|\\psi}}=\\braket{A_w}^{\\phi}_{\\psi}-\\braket{A}_{\\phi} $ in Eq. (\\ref{5}), we will obtain Eq. (\\ref{4}).\n\\end{proof}\nIn the similar way we obtain all the higher moment weak values which take the general form as\n\\begin{align}\n{\\braket{{A}^n_w}}^{\\phi}_{\\psi}=\\braket{A}_\\phi \\hspace{-2pt}\\Big(\\hspace{-3pt}{\\braket{{A}^{n-1}_w}}^{\\phi}_{\\psi}\\! - \\braket{{A}^{n-1}_w}^{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}_{\\psi}\\hspace{-2pt}\\Big) \\!+ {\\braket{{A}^{n-1}_w}}^{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}_{\\psi}{\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi}_{\\psi},\\label{6}\n\\end{align}\nfor $n=1,2,\\cdots$. \\par\nNow consider the second moment weak value i.e., Eq. (\\ref{4}), where ${\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi}_{\\psi}$ and ${\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}_{\\psi}$ are extractable from the one and the same experimental set-up for the post-selection of $\\ket{\\phi}$ and $\\ket{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}$, respectively as these two states are orthogonal to each other. Note that, although the post-selection can be realized here in one and the same measurement set-up, nevertheless, in order to actually find out the weak values ${\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi}_{\\psi}$ and ${\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}_{\\psi}$, measurements of phase-space displacements for the two post-selected states $\\ket{\\phi}$ and $\\ket{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}$ need to be performed. $\\braket{A}_\\phi$ is the average value of $A$ for the post selected state $\\ket{\\phi}$. Extraction of higher moment weak values becomes extremely simple in two dimensional Hilbert space discussed in the following.\\par\n{\\it Two dimensional case:} In two dimensional Hilbert space, there are only two pairwise orthogonal post-selections which occur at the same time and hence both the weak values with orthogonal post-selections can be extracted simultaneously. Particularly in this dimension, we find that only by knowing the weak values ${\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi}_{\\psi}$ and ${\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}_{\\psi}$, we are able to obtain all the higher moment weak values without any further complications in comparison to Ref. \\cite{42}. So the number of measurements is being reduced considerably than the earlier proposal \\cite{42}. \\par\n{\\it Higher dimensional case:} In higher dimensional Hilbert space, to extract second moment weak value of the observable $A$, one can perform the projective measurements $\\{\\ket{\\phi}\\bra{\\phi}, \\ket{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}\\bra{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}, I-\\ket{\\phi}\\bra{\\phi} -\\ket{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}\\bra{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}} \\}$ for post-selections.\\par\nIt can be shown that the $n$-th moment weak value i.e., ${\\braket{A^{n}_w}}^{\\phi}_{\\psi}$, consists $n$ number of different weak values, namely ${\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi}_{\\psi}$, ${\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}_{\\psi}$,$\\cdots$,${\\braket{{A}_w}}^{(\\phi^{\\perp}_{A})^{n-1}}_{\\psi}$. Here $\\ket{(\\phi^{\\perp}_{A})^{n-1}}=\\ket{((\\phi^{\\perp}_{A})^{\\perp}_{A})\\cdots (n-1) \\hspace{1mm} times}=\\frac{1}{\\braket{\\Delta A}_{(\\phi^{\\perp}_{A})^{n-2}}}\\left(A-\\braket{A}_{(\\phi^{\\perp}_{A})^{n-2}}\\right)\\ket{(\\phi^{\\perp}_{A})^{n-2}}$. Now, if $n$ is even, then there exist pairwise orthogonal post-selected states i.e.,\n$\\left(\\ket{\\phi},\\ket{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}\\right)$, $\\left(\\ket{(\\phi^{\\perp}_{A})^{\\perp}_{A}},\\ket{((\\phi^{\\perp}_{A})^{\\perp}_{A})^{\\perp}_{A}}\\right)$,$\\cdots$,$\\left(\\ket{(\\phi^{\\perp}_{A})^{n-2}},\\ket{(\\phi^{\\perp}_{A})^{n-1}}\\right)$. So, it is possible to obtain weak values ${\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi}_{\\psi}$ and ${\\braket{{A}_w}}^{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}_{\\psi}$ simultaneously for the first pair of post-selected states, so on and so forth. So, effectively the total number of measurements to be performed according to the AAV method to extract the $n$-th moment weak value is ${n}\/{2}$. For odd $\\hspace{0.5mm}$ $n$, the number of measurements is $(n+1)\/2$. Note that, all the measurements here are to be done by only changing the post-selections while keeping the observable $A$ fixed in the AAV method. \\textit{Once we extract the $n$-th moment weak value, then all the lower moment weak values can be calculated from the data of $n$-th moment weak value.}\\par \nThe higher moment weak values of an observable are inaccessible with Gaussian pointer states. The reason is that, in the RS method \\cite{38}, the higher moment weak value terms will vanish due to the properties of the Gaussian pointer state. The whole expression can be found in Ref. \\cite{42} (equation 4). More specifically, it can be seen in the above mentioned expression that when the orbital angular momentum (OAM) of the pointer state is zero (which corresponds to the two dimensional Gaussian pointer state, i.e., OAM state with zero orbital angular momentum), the higher moment weak value terms vanish. To retrieve higher moment weak values, we need to use OAM states with non-zero orbital angular momentums. The key factor for such cases is that the two dimensional OAM states are not factorizable in two different directions for non-zero orbital angular momentums. In doing that one needs to engineer OAM states with higher winding numbers, or superpositions of OAM states to obtain the higher moment weak values. This procedure can become difficult as the moments increase. One needs to prepare pointer states with different combination of orbital angular momentum {\\cite{42}}. Moreover, there are several disadvantages of the RS method from experimental perspective which we will discuss later in this section. See \\cite{43} for a comment regarding the extraction of higher moment weak values. \\par\nAs an application, we will use the higher moment weak values to reconstruct an unknown pure state of a single system. See Appendix \\ref{B} for the derivation of the second or higher moment weak values for the mixed pre selected state case.\n\\subsection{Product weak values}{}\\label{II B}\n\\emph{Product weak values for pure pre-selected state:}\nThe product weak value of the observable ${A}\\otimes {B}$ in a bipartite system is given by\n\\begin{align}\n \\braket{({A}\\otimes {B})_w}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}=\\frac{\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|({A}\\otimes {B})|\\psi_{AB}}}{\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|\\psi_{AB}}},\\label{7}\n\\end{align}\n where the pre selection is the bipartite pure state $\\ket{\\psi_{AB}}$ and the post-selection is a product state $\\ket{\\phi_A\\phi_B}=\\ket{\\phi_A}\\otimes \\ket{\\phi_B}$.\\par\nConsider the ``local weak value\" of the operator $A$\n \\begin{align}\n \\braket{A^{local}_w}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}&=\\frac{\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|({A}\\otimes {I_B})|\\psi_{AB}}}{\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|\\psi_{AB}}}\\nonumber\\\\\n &=\\braket{A}_{\\phi_A} + \\braket{\\Delta A}_{\\phi_A}\\frac{\\braket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A\\phi_B|\\psi_{AB}}}{\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|\\psi_{AB}}},\\label{8}\n\\end{align}\nwhere we have used Eq. (\\ref{2}) in the subsystem A. Eq. (\\ref{8}) will be used to derive the following result.\n \\begin{widetext}\n \\emph{Result 2:-} The product weak value in Eq. (\\ref{7}) can be realized via local weak values as\n\\begin{align}\n\\braket{(A\\otimes B)_w}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}=&\\braket{A}_{\\phi_A} \\left({\\braket{B^{local}_w}}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}} - {\\braket{{B^{local}_w}}^{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}}\\right) + {\\braket{A^{local}_w}}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}{\\braket{B^{local}_w}}^{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}\\label{9}\n\\end{align}\n where ${\\braket{{A}^{local}_w}}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}$, ${\\braket{{B}^{local}_w}}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}$ and ${\\braket{{B}^{local}_w}}^{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}$ are the ``local'' weak values and $\\ket{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}=\\frac{1}{\\braket{\\Delta A}_{\\phi_A}}\\left(A - \\braket{A}_{\\phi_A}\\right)\\ket{\\phi_A}$ is given by (\\ref{2}) for the subsystem A.\n \\begin{proof}\n\\begin{align}\n\\braket{({A}\\otimes {B})_w}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}&=\\left(\\frac{\\braket{\\psi_{AB}|({A}\\otimes {B})|\\phi_A\\phi_B}}{\\braket{\\psi_{AB}|\\phi_A\\phi_B}}\\right)^\\ast\\nonumber\\\\\n&=\\left(\\frac{\\braket{\\psi_{AB}|(\\braket{A}_{\\phi_A}\\ket{\\phi_A} +\\braket{\\Delta A}_{\\phi_A}\\ket{\\phi_{A}^\\perp})\\otimes {B}|\\phi_B}}{\\braket{\\psi_{AB}|\\phi_A\\phi_B}}\\right)^\\ast\\nonumber\\\\\n&=\\braket{A}_{\\phi_A}\\frac{\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|({I_A}\\otimes {B})|\\phi_{AB}}}{\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|\\psi_{AB}}} + \\braket{\\Delta A}_{\\phi_A}\\frac{\\braket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A\\phi_B|({I_A}\\otimes {B})|\\phi_{AB}}}{\\braket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A\\phi_B|\\psi_{AB}}}\\frac{\\braket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A\\phi_B|\\psi_{AB}}}{\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|\\psi_{AB}}}\\nonumber\\\\\n&=\\braket{A}_{\\phi_A}{\\braket{{B}^{local}_w}}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}} + {\\braket{{ B}^{local}_w}}^{\\phi^{\\perp}_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}\\left({\\braket{{A}^{local}_w}}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}} - \\braket{A}_{\\phi_A}\\right),\\nonumber\n\\end{align}\nwhere we have used Eq. (\\ref{2}) in the second line for the subsystem A and Eq. (\\ref{8}) in the fourth line. After the manipulation, we have Eq. (\\ref{9}).\n\\end{proof}\n \\end{widetext}\\par\n\\emph{Product weak values in terms of local weak values:} We have obtained a product weak value using only local weak values. Note that the local weak values ${\\braket{{B}^{local}_w}}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}$ and ${\\braket{{ B}^{local}_w}}^{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}$ can be measured in the same experimental setup as the post-selected states $\\ket{\\phi_A}$ and $\\ket{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}$ are orthogonal to each other. We need another measurement setup for ${\\braket{{A}^{local}_w}}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}$. So, effectively the total number of measurements to be performed according to the AAV method to extract the product weak value $\\braket{({A\\otimes B})_w}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}$ is only two. In experiment, local weak values like ${\\braket{{B}^{local}_w}}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}$ can be realized as \n\\begin{align}\n \\braket{B^{local}_w}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}&=\\frac{\\braket{\\phi_B\\phi_A|(I_{A}\\otimes {B})|\\psi_{AB}}}{\\braket{\\phi_B\\phi_A|\\psi_{AB}}}\\label{10}\\\\\n &=\\frac{\\braket{\\phi_B|{B}|\\psi^{\\phi_A}_B}}{\\braket{\\phi_B|\\psi_B^{\\phi_A}}},\\label{11}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\ket{\\psi_B^{\\phi_A}}=\\braket{\\phi_A|\\psi_{AB}}$ is an unnormalized state for the subsystem B. That is, we first measure the projection operator $\\Pi_{\\phi_A}=\\ket{\\phi_A}\\bra{\\phi_A}$ on the subsystem A, then the state of the subsystem B becomes $\\braket{\\phi_A|\\psi_{AB}}\/\\sqrt{\\braket{\\psi_B^{\\phi_A}|\\psi_B^{\\phi_A}}}$ which we consider to be pre-selected state for the subsystem B. This pre-selected state is unknown as $\\ket{\\psi_{AB}}$ is unkown. So, for each given projector related to the subsystem A, there exists an unknown pre-selected state of the subsystem B. The observable is $B$ and the post-selection is $\\ket{\\phi_B}$. So from Eq. (\\ref{11}), we see that the local weak value $ \\braket{B^{local}_w}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\psi_{AB}}$ can be realized according to the AAV method related to the subsystem B. \\par\n\\emph{Product weak values for mixed pre-selected state:} If the pre selection of the bipartite system is a mixed state $\\rho_{AB}$ then, the product weak value of the observable ${A}\\otimes {B}$ is given by \n \\begin{align}\n \\braket{({A}\\otimes {B})_w}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}}=\\frac{\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|\\left({A}\\otimes {B}\\right)\\rho_{AB}|\\phi_A\\phi_B}}{\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|\\rho_{AB}|\\phi_A\\phi_B}}.\\label{12}\n\\end{align}\nNote that generalization for mixed state of Eq. (\\ref{9}) is not straightforward.\n \\begin{widetext}\n \\emph{Result 3:-} The product weak value in Eq. (\\ref{12}) can be realized via local weak values as\n \\begin{align}\n\\braket{(A\\otimes B)_w}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}}=\\braket{A}_{\\phi_A}\\braket{B^{local}_w}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}} + \\frac{\\braket{\\Delta A}_{\\phi_A}}{2p(\\rho_{AB},\\phi_A\\phi_B)}\\sum_{i=1}^{m}\\bigg( &\\lambda^i_A \\braket{ B^{local}_w}^{i_A\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}}p(\\rho_{AB},i_A\\phi_B) \\nonumber\\\\\n&+ {\\lambda^{\\prime}_A}^i \\braket{ B^{local}_w}^{{i^{\\prime}_A}\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}}p(\\rho_{AB},{i^{\\prime}_A}\\phi_B) \\bigg),\\label{13}\n\\end{align}\nwhere \\{$\\lambda_A^i,\\ket{i_A}$\\} and \\{${\\lambda^{\\prime}_A}^i,\\ket{{i^{\\prime}_A}}$\\} satisfy the spectral decomposition for the normal operators $\\ket{\\phi_A}\\bra{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}} + \\ket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A}\\bra{\\phi_A}$ and $\\ket{\\phi_A}\\bra{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}} - \\ket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A}\\bra{\\phi_A}$, respectively. $p(\\rho_{AB},\\phi_A\\phi_B)=\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|\\rho_{AB}|\\phi_A\\phi_B}$ is the probability of obtaining the post-selected state $\\ket{\\phi_A\\phi_B}$ for the given pre selected state $\\rho_{AB}$ and `$m$' is the dimension of the subsystem A.\\par\n \\begin{proof}\n \\begin{align}\n \\braket{({A}\\otimes {B})_w}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}}&=\\frac{\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|\\left({A}\\otimes {B}\\right)\\rho_{AB}|\\phi_A\\phi_B}}{\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|\\rho_{AB}|\\phi_A\\phi_B}}\\nonumber\\\\\n &=\\braket{A}_{\\phi_A}\\frac{\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|\\left({I_A}\\otimes {B}\\right)\\rho_{AB}|\\phi_A\\phi_B}}{\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|\\rho_{AB}|\\phi_A\\phi_B}} + \\braket{\\Delta A}_{\\phi_A}\\frac{\\braket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A\\phi_B|\\left({I_A}\\otimes {B}\\right)\\rho_{AB}|\\phi_A\\phi_B}}{\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|\\rho_{AB}|\\phi_A\\phi_B}},\\label{14}\n\\end{align}\nwhere we have used Eq. (\\ref{2}). Now $\\braket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A\\phi_B|\\left({I_A}\\otimes {B}\\right)\\rho_{AB}|\\phi_A\\phi_B}=Tr\\left[\\left(\\ket{\\phi_A}\\bra{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}}\\otimes \\ket{\\phi_B}\\bra{\\phi_{B}}\\right)(I_A\\otimes B)\\rho_{AB}\\right]$ can be calculated as \n\\begin{align}\n\\braket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A\\phi_B|\\left({I_A}\\!\\otimes \\!{B}\\right)\\rho_{AB}|\\phi_A\\phi_B} + \\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|\\hspace{-2pt}\\left({I_A}\\!\\otimes\\! {B}\\right)\\rho_{AB}|\\phi^{\\perp}_A\\phi_B}\\hspace{-2pt}=\\hspace{-2pt}Tr\\hspace{-2pt}\\left[\\left(\\{\\ket{\\phi_A}\\bra{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}} + \\ket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A}\\bra{\\phi_{A}}\\}\\otimes \\ket{\\phi_B}\\bra{\\phi_{B}}\\right)\\hspace{-2pt}\\left(I_A\\otimes B\\right)\\hspace{-2pt}\\rho_{AB}\\right],\\label{15}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\ket{\\phi_A}\\bra{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}} + \\ket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A}\\bra{\\phi_{A}}$ is a normal operator satisfying $XX^{\\dagger}=X^{\\dagger}X$ (where X is any operator) and hence can be written in spectral decomposition \n\\begin{align}\n\\ket{\\phi_A}\\bra{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}} + \\ket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A}\\bra{\\phi_A}=\\sum_i^{m}{\\lambda_A^i \\ket{i_A}\\bra{i_A}},\\label{16}\n\\end{align}\nwhere \\{$\\ket{i_A}$\\} is the set of eigenvectors with eigenvalues \\{$\\lambda_A^i$\\}. Using Eq. (\\ref{16}) in (\\ref{15}), we have\n\\begin{align}\n\\braket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A\\phi_B|\\left({I_A}\\otimes {B}\\right)\\rho_{AB}|\\phi_A\\phi_B} + \\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|\\left({I_A}\\otimes {B}\\right)\\rho_{AB}|\\phi^{\\perp}_A\\phi_B}&=\\sum_i^{m}{\\lambda_A^i\\braket{i_A\\phi_B|(I_B\\otimes B)\\rho_{AB}|i_A\\phi_B}}\\nonumber\\\\\n&=\\sum_i^{m}{\\lambda_A^i\\braket{B^{local}_w}^{i_A\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}}p(\\rho_{AB},i_A\\phi_B)},\\label{17}\n\\end{align}\nwhere we have used the definition of the weak value $\\braket{ B_w}^{i_A\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}}$ of the observable $B$ for the given pre and post-selections $\\rho_{AB}$ and $\\ket{i_A\\phi_B}$, respectively. $p(\\rho_{AB},i_A\\phi_B)=\\braket{i_A\\phi_B|\\rho_{AB}|i_A\\phi_B}$ is the probability of obtaining the product state $\\ket{i_A\\phi_B}$. Now similarly,\n\\begin{align}\n\\braket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A\\phi_B|\\left({I_A}\\otimes {B}\\right)\\rho_{AB}|\\phi_A\\phi_B} - \\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|\\left({I_A}\\otimes {B}\\right)\\rho_{AB}|\\phi^{\\perp}_A\\phi_B}=\\sum_i^{m}{{\\lambda^{\\prime}_A}^i\\braket{B^{local}_w}^{i^{\\prime}_A}_{\\rho_{AB}}p(\\rho_{AB},{i^{\\prime}_A}\\phi_B)},\\label{18}\n\\end{align}\nwhere we have used the fact that $\\ket{\\phi_A}\\bra{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}} - \\ket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A}\\bra{\\phi_A}$ is also a normal operator with the spectral decomposition \n\\begin{align}\n\\ket{\\phi_A}\\bra{\\phi^{\\perp}_{A}} - \\ket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A}\\bra{\\phi_A}=\\sum_i^{m}{{\\lambda^{\\prime}_A}^i \\ket{i^{\\prime}_A}\\bra{{i^{\\prime}_A}}}.\\label{19}\n\\end{align}\nNow adding two equations (\\ref{17}) and (\\ref{18}), we have \n\\begin{align}\n\\braket{\\phi^{\\perp}_A\\phi_B|\\left({I_A}\\otimes {B}\\right)\\rho_{AB}|\\phi_A\\phi_B}=\\frac{1}{2}\\sum_i^{m}{\\left(\\lambda_A^i\\braket{ B^{local}_w}^{i_A\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}}p(\\rho_{AB},i_A\\phi_B) + {\\lambda^{\\prime}_A}^i \\braket{B^{local}_w}^{i^{\\prime}_A\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}}p(\\rho_{AB},{i^{\\prime}_A}\\phi_B)\\right)}.\\label{20}\n\\end{align}\nUsing Eq. (\\ref{20}) in (\\ref{14}), we obtain Eq. (\\ref{13}).\n\\end{proof}\n\\end{widetext}\\par\n\\emph{Product weak values in terms of local weak values:} The product weak value $\\braket{(A\\otimes B)_w}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}}$ consists the local weak values $\\braket{ B^{local}_w}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}}$, $\\{\\braket{B^{local}_w}^{i_A\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}}\\}^{m}_{i=1}$ and $\\{\\braket{B^{local}_w}^{i^{\\prime}_A\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}}\\}^{m}_{i=1}$. Here `$m$' is the dimension of the subsystem A. Note that, $\\{\\braket{B^{local}_w}^{i_A\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}}\\}^{m}_{i=1}$ can be measured in the same experimental setup according to the AAV method as the post-selections $\\{\\ket{i_A}\\}$ form complete set of orthogonal basis. Similarly $\\{\\braket{B^{local}_w}^{{i^{\\prime}_A}\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}}\\}^{m}_{i=1}$ can also be measured within the same experiment with the complete set of post-selections $\\{\\ket{i^{\\prime}_A}\\}$ according to the AAV method. \\emph{So, the total number of measurements to be performed according to the AAV method to extract $\\braket{(A\\otimes B)_w}^{\\phi_A\\phi_B}_{\\rho_{AB}}$ is only three}. Local weak values can be realized in the same way as discussed above in Eq. (\\ref{11}).\\par\n\\emph{Comparison with previous works:} In the Ref. {\\cite{27,38}}, authors have shown that it is also possible to extract the product weak values by obtaining local weak values of the observables separately as well as by looking into different pointers' position and momentum correlations i.e., statistical averages of these different degrees of freedom. There are some cases where polarization degrees of freedom (polarization correlations) was considered instead of position and momentum variables \\cite{2}. For such cases statistical averages of those polarization degrees of freedom can be difficult to obtain or number of measurements will be large. Instead, our approach shows that one needs to obtain only local weak values. Our approach is not necessarily restricted with Gaussian pointer states. But in most of the previous works \\cite{27,38,46}, different type of pointer states have been used with certain constraints unlike in our case. \\par \nOur methods are easy to perform in experiments due to their local realizations. While in the previous works \\cite{27,38,42,46} i.e., extraction of higher moment weak values and product weak values, there are N pointers' correlations to be measured. So the scalability of their methods face significant challenges. Moreover, from an experimental perspective, their schemes are hard to implement as the resources required to observe the correlations are of second order in terms of the interaction coefficient.\\par\nIn the next section, we discuss about the applications of our results to reconstruct unknown quantum states in a single and bipartite systems.\n\\section{Quantum State Tomography} \\label{e III}\nIn the following, we discuss some methods of quantum state tomography of a single and bipartite system using higher moments weak values and product weak values.\n{\\subsection{ State reconstruction of a single system}} \n\\subsubsection{Pure state}\nAs an application of higher moment weak values we reconstruct a pure state. The method of quantum state reconstruction using weak values was introduced by Lundeen \\emph{et al}. \\cite{lundeennature} as follows. Any state can be written in computational basis $\\{\\ket{i}\\}$ as \n\\begin{align}\n\\ket{\\psi}=\\sum_{i=0}{\\alpha_i\\ket{i}},\\label{21}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\alpha_i=\\braket{i|\\psi}$. Now the weak value of a projection operator $\\Pi_{i}=\\ket{i}\\bra{i}$ is given by \n\\begin{align}\n\\braket{(\\Pi_{i})_w}_{\\psi}^{b}=\\frac{\\braket{b|{i}}\\braket{i|\\psi}}{\\braket{b|\\psi}},\\label{22}\n\\end{align}\nwith $\\braket{b|i}\\neq0$. where $\\ket{b}$ is a post-selection. So using Eq. (\\ref{22}), we finally construct the pure state Eq. (\\ref{21})\n\\begin{align}\n\\ket{\\psi}=\\sum_i{\\frac{\\braket{(\\Pi_{i})_w}_{\\psi}^{b}}{\\braket{b|{i}}}\\ket{i}}.\\label{23}\n\\end{align}\nThe complex number $\\braket{b|\\psi}$ is not taken into account as it corresponds to the global phase factor after normalization. So to measure a pure state, we need to obtain weak values of the projection operators $\\Pi_i$ with pre selection $\\ket{\\psi}$ and post-selection $\\ket{b}$, respectively.\\par\nInstead of measuring weak values of the projection operators individually, we want to use the higher moment weak values of the observable which satisfies spectral decomposition with those projection operators and using those higher moment weak values we will obtain weak values of the projection operators. Let the observable be \n\\begin{align}\nA=\\sum_i{a_i\\Pi_{i}},\\label{24}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $a_i$ are the eigenvalues of the observable $A$. Now the weak value and higher moment weak values of the observable are \n \\begin{align}\n\\braket{A_w}_{\\psi}^{b}=\\sum_i{a_i\\braket{(\\Pi_{i})_w}_{\\psi}^{b}},\\label{25}\\\\\n\\braket{A^n_w}_{\\psi}^{b}=\\sum_i{a^n_i\\braket{(\\Pi_{i})_w}_{\\psi}^{b}},\\label{26}\n\\end{align}\nwhere `$n$' is any positive integer. Eqs. (\\ref{25}) and (\\ref{26}) can be solved to obtain the weak values of projection operators for different `$n$'. For example in three dimensional Hilbert Space, we require only up to second moment weak values because one can use the completeness relation for the projection operators with pre selection $\\ket{\\psi}$ and post-selection $\\ket{b}$ \n \\begin{align}\n1=\\sum_i{\\braket{(\\Pi_{i})_w}_{\\psi}^{b}}.\\label{27}\n\\end{align}\nIn Appendix \\ref{C}, we explicitly show how to solve the above equations to obtain the weak values of the projection operators.\\par\nFrom (\\ref{C1}), the highest moment weak value is $\\braket{A^{d-1}_w}_{\\psi}^{b}$ and as we have discussed in (\\ref{II A}) that, extracting the highest moment weak value is enough to calculate all the lower moments weak values. \\emph{Hence the total number of measurements needed to reconstruct a pure state is ${d}\/{2}$ if the dimension $d$ is even and $({d-1})\/{2}$ if the dimension $d$ is odd} (see \\ref{II A} for detail discussion). \\par\nTo compare with Lundeen \\emph{et al.} \\cite{29} and Wu \\cite{47}, the number of measurement operators which is the complete set of projection operators with a fixed post-selection is $(d-1)$. Moreover, we measure only one system operator $A$, but post-selections are to be changed, while, in their method, there are $(d-1)$ system operators (projection operators) to be measured according to the AAV method.\\par\nNote that the weak values of projection operators in Eq. (\\ref{22}) are exactly the weak-valued probabilities which were mentioned in the introduction section. \\par\n\\normalsize{\\textit{Alternative:\u2013}}\nThe weak value of an observable $C$ with pre and post-selections $\\ket{\\psi}$ and $\\ket{0}$, respectively is\n\\begin{align}\n\\braket{C_w}_{\\psi}^{0}=\\frac{\\braket{0|C|\\psi}}{\\braket{0|\\psi}}.\\label{28}\n\\end{align}\nInserting the identity operator $I=\\sum_{i}{\\ket{i}\\bra{i}}$ in numerator of the right hand side of Eq. (\\ref{28}), we have\n\\begin{align}\n\\braket{C_w}_{\\psi}^{0} - C_{00}=\\sum_{i=1}{C_{0i}\\frac{\\alpha_i}{\\alpha_0}},\\label{29}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $C_{0i}=\\braket{0|C|i}$. Like Eq. (\\ref{29}), we have to measure a set of observables to obtain the values of $\\alpha_1\/\\alpha_0$, $\\alpha_2\/\\alpha_0$,$\\cdots$,$\\alpha_{(d-1)}\/\\alpha_0$ (see Appendix \\ref{C}). The value of $\\alpha_0$ can be obtained from the normalization condition. Here, the number of measurement operators is $(d-1)$. This method will be used to reconstruct an unknown quantum pure state of a bipartite system.\n\\subsubsection{Mixed state}\nMeasurement of a mixed state of a quantum system was also introduced by Lundeen \\emph{et al.} \\cite{4} using product weak values of two non commuting projection operators. It was later simplified by Shengjun Wu \\cite{47} where weak values of complete set of projection operators with complete set of post-selected states have been used. Here, we develop another method by using the weak values of arbitrary observables which can be thought as the generalization of the reference \\cite{47}. This part is added here because we will use the same procedure while dealing with bipartite mixed state reconstruction using product weak values.\\par\nLet the unknown mixed state be the pre-selected state then the weak value of the observable $C$ with post-selection $\\ket{j}$ is \n\\begin{align}\n\\braket{C_w}_{\\rho}^{j}=\\frac{\\braket{j|C\\rho|j}}{\\braket{j|\\rho|j}}.\\label{30}\n\\end{align}\nInserting the identity operator $I=\\sum_{i}{\\ket{i}\\bra{i}}$, we have\n\\begin{align}\np(\\rho,j)\\braket{C_w}_{\\rho}^{j}=\\sum_i{C_{ji}\\rho_{ij}},\\label{31}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $p(\\rho,j)=\\braket{j|\\rho|j}$ is the probability of obtaining the basis state $\\ket{j}$ as a post-selection and $C_{ji}=\\braket{j|C|i}$, $\\rho_{ij}=\\braket{i|\\rho|j}$. To obtain the $j$-th column of the density matrix $\\rho$ from Eq. (\\ref{31}), we need to measure a set of arbitrary observables according to the AAV method to get a set of equations like (\\ref{31}) (see Appendix \\ref{D}). \\par\nTo compare with the work by Lundeen \\emph{et al.} \\cite{4} where each matrix element is directly obtainable via sequential measurements of two non-commuting projection operators in the AAV method. Different combinations of position and momentum correlations are to be measured where the correlations are of second order in terms of the interaction coefficient. Our method is more efficient as we only need to measure $(d-1)$ arbitrary single observables according to AAV method. We do not discard any post-measurements data and thus reduces the number of experimental runs (see Appendix \\ref{D}). \\par\nWeak measurement methods have several key advantages for state reconstruction of a quantum system over the standard schemes \\cite{4}. For example, the state disturbance is minimum and thus it is possible for characterization of the state of a system during a physical process in an experiment. Unlike standard schemes, global reconstruction is not required by our methods as states can be determined locally i.e., each matrix element can directly be accessed. Standard scheme typically requires $\\mathcal{O}(d^2)$ measurements, while our method require $\\mathcal{O}(d-1)$ measurements for mixed state reconstruction.\\par\nRecently Vallone \\emph{et al.} \\cite{48} have shown: ``Strong Measurements Give a Better Direct Measurement of the Quantum Wave Function\". Namely, they have considered the von Neumannn Hamiltonian with basis projection operator (of the system) and Pauli operators (of the two dimensional pointer) and coupling coefficient (without approximation). After the evolution of the system and the pointer, the system is projected in the uniform superposition of the basis states. After that, each wavefunctions or basis coefficients of the concerned system state are calculated using the experimental probabilities obtained from the measurement of the two dimensional pointer's different observables. To compare,\\\\\n{(i) In our method, the state disturbance is minimum. While in the work of Vallone \\emph{et al.} \\cite{48}, the system will be disturbed strongly.} \\\\\n(ii) In the method of Vallone \\emph{et al.} \\cite{48}, the post-selection of the system has to be of particular forms to make the scheme successful otherwise (a) the systematic error (trace distance) will be independent of the interaction coefficient which is one of their main concerns in the scheme (b) wavefunctions for each computational basis will diverge and hence the scheme will fail. Dimension of the pointer's Hilbert space is considered to be two dimensional (finite dimensional). By such restrictions, the method can only be used for limited number of quantum systems (e.g., optical systems). While in our methods, there are no such restrictions on pointer states. The most suitable ways can be applied to obtain single weak values. \\\\\n(iii) (a) In the method of Vallone \\emph{et al.} \\cite{48}, for pure state reconstruction of a single system, there are effectively `$d-1$' number of projection operators and for each projection operator, three different measurement observables are needed. So, the total number of measurement settings is `$3(d-1)$'. While in our method, the measurement settings are nearly `$d\/2$' using higher moment weak values. (b) For the mixed state reconstruction, they need two independent pointers, three different joint pointer operators and `$d-1$' number of projection operators and one post-selection in the system \\cite{49}. Using such combinations, one need to calculate mean values of different combination of tripartite observables. In our method, `$d-1$' number of weak values are required and there are no such joint operations. \\\\\n(iv) Vallone \\emph{et al.} \\cite{48} have shown that strong measurements outperform weak measurements in both the ``precision and accuracy\" for arbitrary quantum states in most cases. In our case, by performing the experiment many times on identically prepared systems, it is possible to reduce the uncertainty in the mean pointer displacement to any arbitrary precision \\cite{50} (in order to obtain the real and imaginary part of the weak values)\\\\\n(v) For the given finite ensemble size, our scheme can't give better performance than the methods of \\cite{48,49} in terms of precision and accuracy \\cite{51,52}. \n\\subsection{State reconstruction of a bipartite system}\n\\subsubsection{Pure state}\nIn the above, we introduced reconstruction of an unknown pure state of a given system using single observable (or projection) weak values. For the reconstruction of a bipartite state, one needs to measure product weak values namely the weak values of the tensor product observables. In standard scheme i.e., von Neumann measurement scheme, measurement of product observables can not be realized directly as it requires the interaction Hamiltonian of the two distant subsystems to be of the form $H\\propto (A\\otimes B)$ which implies an instantaneous interaction between the two distant subsystems (a relativistic constraint). In this section, we use our version of product weak values (\\ref{9}) in a bipartite system to reconstruct a pure state following the same method of Eq. (\\ref{29}) as we saw for the pure state case in a single quantum system.\\par\nThe pure state of a bipartite system can be written in computational basis as\n\\begin{align}\n\\ket{\\psi_{AB}}=\\sum_{ij}{\\alpha_{ij}\\ket{i_A}\\otimes\\ket{j_B}},\\label{32}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\alpha_{ij}=\\braket{ij|\\psi_{AB}}$ and $\\ket{ij}=\\ket{i_A}\\otimes\\ket{j_B}$. \n The product weak value of the observable $C_{A}\\otimes C_{B}$ in a bipartite system is given by \n\\begin{align}\n \\braket{(C_{A}\\otimes C_{B})_w}^{00}_{\\psi_{AB}}=\\frac{\\braket{00|(C_{A}\\otimes C_{B})|\\psi_{AB}}}{\\braket{00|\\psi_{AB}}},\\label{33}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\ket{\\psi_{AB}}$ is the bipartite pre selected state which is to be reconstructed. $\\ket{00}=\\ket{0_A}\\otimes\\ket{0_B}$ is the post-selected state. Now inserting identity operator $I=\\sum_{ij}{\\ket{ij}\\bra{ij}}$ of the joint Hilbert space in Eq. (\\ref{33}), we have\n\\begin{align}\n\\braket{( \\hspace{-1pt}C_{A}\\!\\otimes \\!C_{B} \\hspace{-1pt})_w}^{00}_{\\psi_{AB}} \\hspace{-4pt}- \\hspace{-2pt}\\big[C_{A}\\big]_{00} \\hspace{-1pt}\\big[C_{B}\\big]_{00} \\hspace{-2pt}= \\hspace{-8pt}\\sum_{i,j\\neq (0,0)} \\hspace{-10pt}\\big[C_{A}\\big]_{0i} \\hspace{-1pt}\\big[C_{B}\\big]_{0j}\\frac{\\alpha_{ij}}{\\alpha_{00}}, \\label{34}\n\\end{align}\n where $\\left[C_{A}\\right]_{0i}\\left[C_{B}\\right]_{0j}=\\braket{00|C_{A}\\otimes C_{B}|ij}$ and $\\alpha_{00}\\neq 0$. Again we have to solve a matrix equation using Eq. (\\ref{34}) for a set of product operators to obtain the values $\\frac{\\alpha_{ij}}{\\alpha_{00}}$ (see Appendix \\ref{E}) .\\par\nWe have found using the matrix equation (\\ref{E1}) that we do not require to measure all the product weak values. For example, consider a two-qubit system where \n\\begin{equation}\n\\begin{split}\nC^{(1)}_{A}\\otimes C^{(1)}_{B}&=I^A\\otimes \\sigma_x^B ,\\hspace{2mm} C^{(2)}_{A}\\otimes C^{(2)}_{B}=\\sigma_x^A\\otimes I^B\\label{35}\\\\[10pt]\n&C^{(3)}_{A}\\otimes C^{(3)}_{B}=\\sigma_x^A\\otimes \\sigma_x^B,\n\\end{split}\n\\end{equation}\nthen the square matrix in (\\ref{E1}) becomes an identity matrix having nonzero determinant and hence all the coefficients can be determined. \\emph{This way, the number of measurements of product weak values can be reduced}. In this particular case, we need only one product weak value i.e., $\\braket{(\\sigma_x^A\\otimes \\sigma_x^B)_w}^{00}_{\\psi_{AB}}$ to be measured and according to Eq. (\\ref{9}), it can be calculated using local weak values $\\braket{ (\\sigma_x^B)_w}^{00}_{\\psi_{AB}}$, $\\braket{(\\sigma_x^B)_w}^{10}_{\\psi_{AB}}$ and $\\braket{(\\sigma_x^A)_w}^{00}_{\\psi_{AB}}$. So the total number of local weak values is only three to reconstruct two-qubit pure state. Note that, the local weak value $\\braket{(\\sigma_x^B)_w}^{10}_{\\psi_{AB}}$ can be calculated by using $\\braket{(\\sigma_x^B)_w}^{00}_{\\psi_{AB}}$ with the completeness relation for $\\ket{0}$ and $\\ket{1}$.\\par\nTo compare with the method of Pan \\emph{et al.} \\cite{5}, our method is experimentally simple because it does not depend on the nature of the pointer's state (entangled or product) and locally measurable (using local weak values only) while in their method, the use of entangled pointer's states are necessary (which might not be an easy task to perform) and local modular values as well as modular values of the sum of the local operators are required. For certain cases, some of the probability amplitudes with the entangled pointer's states are considered to be sufficiently small. Complicated situations may arise for higher dimensions and multi-partite systems because of the entangled pointer states. Our method can be generalized both in higher dimensions and multi-partite systems with local weak value measurements only. In the method of Pan \\emph{et al.} \\cite{5}, The number of product weak values is $(m-1)(n-1)$ and each product weak value consists one modular value of the sum of the two local projectors as well as two local projector modular values. Here `$m$' and `$n$' are the number of dimensions of the subsystems A and B, respectively. \\emph{In our method, there are $(d-1)$ (where $d=mn$) numbers of product weak values and each product weak value can be extracted with only two numbers of AAV type weak measurements}. But as we have seen for the case of two-qubit system (\\ref{35}), we do not need to calculate $(d-1)$ numbers of product weak values all the time. For example, effectively we need only two local weak values to reconstruct the pure state of the two-qubit system. Note that, in Ref. \\cite{5} for two-qubit system, the total number of measurements is three in which one is the modular value of the sum of two local projectors and two local projector modular values. So, in most of the cases, it is possible to reduce the number of product weak values considerably in our method of state reconstruction.\n\\subsubsection{Mixed state}{}\nTo reconstruct a mixed state of a bipartite system, we will use the method of Eq. (\\ref{31}). Now, let the pre-selection of the system be $\\rho_{AB}$ which is unknown and post-selection be any computational basis state $\\ket{kl}$. Then the product weak value of the operator $C_A\\otimes C_B$ is given by\n\\begin{align}\n \\braket{(C_{A}\\otimes C_{B})_w}^{kl}_{\\rho_{AB}}=\\frac{\\braket{kl|\\left(C_{A}\\otimes C_{B}\\right)\\rho_{AB}|kl}}{\\braket{kl|\\rho_{AB}|kl}}.\\label{36}\n\\end{align}\nNow inserting the identity operator $I=\\sum_{i,j}{\\ket{ij}\\bra{ij}}$ in Eq. (\\ref{36}), we have\n\\begin{align}\n p(\\rho_{AB},kl) \\hspace{-2pt}\\braket{( \\hspace{-1pt}C_{A}\\!\\otimes\\! C_{B} \\hspace{-1pt})_w}^{kl}_{\\rho_{AB}} \\hspace{-2pt}= \\hspace{-2pt}\\sum_{i,j}\\left[C_{A}\\right]_{ki} \\hspace{-1pt}\\left[C_{B}\\right]_{lj} \\hspace{-1pt}[\\rho_{AB}]_{ij,kl},\\label{37}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\left[C_{A}\\right]_{ki}\\left[C_{B}\\right]_{lj}=\\braket{kl|C_{A}\\otimes C_{B}|ij}$, $[\\rho_{AB}]_{ij,kl}=\\braket{ij|\\rho_{AB}|kl}$ and $p(\\rho_{AB},kl)=\\braket{kl|\\rho_{AB}|kl}$ is the probability of the successful post-selection $\\ket{kl}$.\nSo to obtain the \\emph{kl}-th column of the density matrix $\\rho_{AB}$, we have to form a matrix equation using Eq. (\\ref{37}) for a set of product operators (see Appendix \\ref{F}).\\par\nClearly, mixed state reconstruction is more resource intensive than the pure state case in a bipartite system. The number of product weak values to be calculated here is ($d-1$) and each product weak value can be extracted with only three numbers of AAV type weak measurements (see \\ref{II B}). Here $d=m n$, where `m' and `n' are dimensions of the subsystems A and B, respectively. \\emph{We will get advantage of using matrix equation} (\\ref{ F1}) \\emph{where for some cases we do not require to calculate all the product weak values as we have seen for the case of bipartite pure state reconstruction}. \\par\nIt is important to note that, our method of calculating product weak values for pure and mixed states in a bipartite system can also be applied for projection operators and hence one can reconstruct pure state using the state reconstruction method of Ref. \\cite{5}. For mixed state reconstruction, one should look to the Ref. \\cite{47} by considering bipartite system conditions.\\par\nFull knowledge of the state of a quantum system is always crucial to understand a system better and for controlling quantum technologies. In particular, the measurement of bipartite (multi-partite) states are useful for information transfer, cryptography protocols, etc. They are also used to study nonlocality, quantum discord, entanglement entropy, etc. We have shown the application of product and higher moment weak values as quantum state reconstruction of a single and bipartite systems only. The calculations of product weak values of a bipartite system are even more fascinating because of their local realizations. We can have applications of product weak values to extract informations about multi-partite systems for future technologies. Product weak values with local realization can find it's applications in quantum steering, to perform some nonlocal tasks, etc.\n\\section{Entanglement detection}\\label{e IV}\nDue to an immense application of entangled systems \\cite{53,54}, it is, by default, an important task in the field of quantum information to detect whether the shared states are entangled or not. Here we show that product weak values (introduced in sec. \\ref{e II}) can be used to detect entanglement of a bipartite system's state. Product weak values are experimentally accessible quantities and we have discussed in sec. \\ref{e II} how one can do that. We have found a necessary separability criteria for finite-dimensional systems. By clever choices of product observable and post-selections, it is possible to achieve the PPT criteria for entanglement detection of several important class of entangled bipartite states. Our method of entanglement detection can definitely be used for more class of entangled states.\\par\n There are some existing necessary separability criteria \\cite{53,54} for detection of entanglement for finite-dimensional systems based on local uncertainty relation (standard deviation based) \\cite{55}, entropic uncertainty relations \\cite{56}, separability inequalities on Bell correlations \\cite{57} (which are exponentially stronger than the corresponding local reality inequalities), etc. It is worth mentioning here that Uffink and Seevink provided a single separability inequality \\cite{58}, (although the choice of the observables being state-dependent) quadratic in nature is used to detect separability \/ entanglement of all two-qubit states. \\par\nThe separable states are considered to be of the following form \n\\begin{align}\n\\rho=\\sum_i{p_i\\rho_A^i\\otimes \\rho_B^i}\\label{38},\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\rho_A^i=\\ket{\\psi_A^i}\\bra{\\psi_A^i}$, $\\rho_B^i=\\ket{\\psi_B^i}\\bra{\\psi_B^i}$ and $\\sum_i p_i=1$. We will consider the following quantity which is directly connected to the product weak value (\\ref{12}) for mixed states\n\\begin{widetext}\n\\begin{align}\n&\\left| \\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|(A\\otimes B)\\rho|\\phi_A\\phi_B} \\right|^2\\nonumber\\\\\n&=\\left| \\sum_i p_i\\braket{\\phi_A|A\\rho_A^i|\\phi_A} \\braket{\\phi_B|B\\rho_B^i|\\phi_B} \\right|^2\\nonumber\\\\\n&=\\left| \\sum_i \\left\\{\\sqrt{p_i}\\frac{\\braket{\\phi_A|A\\rho_A^i|\\phi_A}}{\\sqrt{\\braket{\\phi_A|\\rho_A^i|\\phi_A}}}\\sqrt{\\braket{\\phi_B|\\rho_B^i|\\phi_B}}\\right\\} \\left\\{\\sqrt{p_i}{\\sqrt{\\braket{\\phi_A|\\rho_A^i|\\phi_A}}} \\frac{\\braket{\\phi_B|B\\rho_B^i|\\phi_B}}{\\sqrt{\\braket{\\phi_B|\\rho_B^i|\\phi_B}}}\\right\\}\\right|^2\\nonumber\\\\\n& \\leq \\left( \\sum_i p_i\\frac{\\left|\\braket{\\phi_A|A\\rho_A^i|\\phi_A}\\right|^2}{\\braket{\\phi_A|\\rho_A^i|\\phi_A}}\\braket{\\phi_B|\\rho_B^i|\\phi_B} \\right)\\left( \\sum_i p_i\\braket{\\phi_A|\\rho_A^i|\\phi_A}\\frac{\\left|\\braket{\\phi_B|B\\rho_B^i|\\phi_B}\\right|^2}{\\braket{\\phi_B|\\rho_B^i|\\phi_B}} \\right)\\nonumber\\\\\n&=\\left( \\sum_i p_i\\braket{\\phi_A|A|\\psi_A^i}{\\braket{\\psi_A^i|A|\\phi_A}}\\braket{\\phi_B|\\psi_B^i}\\braket{\\psi_B^i|\\phi_B}\\right)\\left( \\sum_i p_i\\braket{\\phi_A|\\psi_A^i}{\\braket{\\psi_A^i|\\phi_A}}\\braket{\\phi_B|B|\\psi_B^i}\\braket{\\psi_B^i|B|\\phi_B}\\right)\\nonumber\\\\\n&=\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|(A\\otimes I)\\rho(A\\otimes I)|\\phi_A\\phi_B}\\braket{\\phi_A\\phi_B|(I\\otimes B)\\rho(I\\otimes B)|\\phi_A\\phi_B}\\nonumber\\\\\n&=\\braket{\\phi_A|A\\rho_A^{\\phi_B}A|\\phi_A}\\braket{\\phi_B|B\\rho_B^{\\phi_A}B|\\phi_B}\\nonumber\\\\\n&=\\braket{\\phi_A|A^2|\\phi_A}\\braket{\\phi_B|B^2|\\phi_B}\\braket{\\phi_A^{\\prime}|\\rho_A^{\\phi_B}|\\phi_A^{\\prime}}\\braket{\\phi_B^{\\prime}|\\rho_B^{\\phi_A}|\\phi_B^{\\prime}}\\label{39},\n\\end{align}\nwhere we have applied the Cauchy-schwarz inequality, $\\rho_X^{\\phi_Y}=\\braket{\\phi_Y|\\rho|\\phi_Y}$ and $\\ket{\\phi_X^{\\prime}}=X\\ket{\\phi_X}\/\\sqrt{\\braket{\\phi_X|X^2|\\phi_X}}$ with $X\\neq Y$ and X,Y=\\{A,B\\}. The quantity $\\braket{\\phi_X^{\\prime}|\\rho_X^{\\phi_Y}|\\phi_X^{\\prime}}$ can experimentally be obtained in the following way. At the first stage, measure the projection operator $\\Pi_{\\phi_Y}=\\ket{\\phi_Y}\\bra{\\phi_Y}$ in the subsystem `Y' on the shared bipartite state $\\rho$. The collapsed state in the subsystem `X' is now $\\rho_X^{\\phi_Y}$, which is also the prepared state in this subsystem. At the second stage, measure the projection operator $\\Pi_{\\phi_X^{\\prime}}=\\ket{\\phi_X^{\\prime}}\\bra{\\phi_X^{\\prime}}$ in the subsystem `X'. Note that, $\\braket{\\phi_X|X^2|\\phi_X}$ can be obtained by just knowing the matrix form of the operator $X$ and $\\ket{\\phi_X}$.\n\\end{widetext}\\par\nThe violation of the above inequality will imply entanglement of the given bipartite state. Now, the following examples will show the potential of the above inequality to detect entanglement of certain class of entangled states. \\\\\n\\textit{(i)} \\textit{Two-qubit Werner state} (noisy singlet):\n\\begin{align}\n\\rho=p\\ket{\\psi_{AB}^-}\\bra{\\psi_{AB}^-}+(1-p)\\frac{I_A\\otimes I_B}{4},\\nonumber\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\ket{\\psi_{AB}^-}=\\frac{1}{\\sqrt{2}}(\\ket{01}-\\ket{10})$. By choosing $A=\\sigma^x_A$, $B=\\sigma^x_B$, $\\ket{\\phi_A}=\\ket{1}$ and $\\ket{\\phi_B}=\\ket{0}$, it can be shown that the inequality is violated for $p>1\/3$ (PPT criterion).\\\\\n\\textit{(ii)} \\textit{Mixture of two Bell states}:\n\\begin{align}\n\\rho=p\\ket{\\phi_{AB}^+}\\bra{\\phi_{AB}^+}+(1-p)\\ket{\\phi_{AB}^-}\\bra{\\phi_{AB}^-},\\nonumber\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\ket{\\phi_{AB}^+}=\\frac{1}{\\sqrt{2}}(\\ket{00}+\\ket{11})$ and $\\ket{\\phi_{AB}^-}=\\frac{1}{\\sqrt{2}}(\\ket{00}-\\ket{11})$.\\par\nConsider $A=\\sigma^x_A$, $B=\\sigma^x_B$, $\\ket{\\phi_A}=\\ket{1}$ and $\\ket{\\phi_B}=\\ket{1}$. The inequality is violated for $p\\neq 1\/2$ (PPT criterion).\\\\\n\\emph{(iii)} The following density operator \n\\begin{align}\n\\rho=p\\ket{\\psi_{AB}}\\bra{\\psi_{AB}} +(1-p)\\frac{I_A\\otimes I_B}{4}\\nonumber\n\\end{align} \nwhere $\\ket{\\psi_{AB}}=a\\ket{00}+b\\ket{11}$ and $|a|^2+|b|^2=1$, is entangled if and only if $p > 1\/(1+4|ab|)$ (PPT criterion).\\par\nUsing the above separability criterion with the choices $A=\\sigma_A^x$, $B=\\sigma_B^x$, $\\ket{\\phi_A}=\\ket{1}$ and $\\ket{\\phi_B}=\\ket{1}$. The inequality is violated for $p > 1\/(1+4|ab|)$.\\\\\n\\textit{(iv)} The density operator \n\\begin{align}\n\\rho=p\\ket{\\psi_{AB}^{(1)}}\\bra{\\psi_{AB}^{(1)}} +(1-p)\\ket{\\psi_{AB}^{(2)}}\\bra{\\psi_{AB}^{(2)}}\\nonumber\n\\end{align} \nwhere $\\ket{\\psi_{AB}^{(1)}}=b_1\\ket{01}+c_1\\ket{10}$, $\\ket{\\psi_{AB}^{(2)}}=b_2\\ket{01}+c_2\\ket{10}$, $|b_1|^2+|c_1|^2=1$ and $|b_2|^2+|c_2|^2=1$, is entangled if and only if (PPT criterion) $|pb_1^*c_1+(1-p)b_2^*c_2| > 0$.\\par \nUsing the separability criterion with the choices $A=\\sigma_A^x$, $B=\\sigma_B^x$, $\\ket{\\phi_A}=\\ket{0}$ and $\\ket{\\phi_B}=\\ket{1}$. The inequality is violated for $|pb_1^*c_1+(1-p)b_2^*c_2| > 0$.\\\\\n\\textit{(v) Mixture of 4-Bell states:} \n\\begin{align}\n\\rho=&p_1\\ket{\\psi_{AB}^+}\\bra{\\psi_{AB}^+}+p_2\\ket{\\psi_{AB}^-}\\bra{\\psi_{AB}^-}\\nonumber\\\\&\n+p_3\\ket{\\phi_{AB}^+}\\bra{\\phi_{AB}^+}+p_4\\ket{\\phi_{AB}^-}\\bra{\\phi_{AB}^-},\\nonumber\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\ket{\\psi_{AB}^+}=\\frac{1}{\\sqrt{2}}(\\ket{00}+\\ket{11})$, $\\ket{\\psi_{AB}^-}=\\frac{1}{\\sqrt{2}}(\\ket{00}-\\ket{11})$ and $p_1+p_2+p_3+p_4=1$. This density matrix is entangled if and only if $p_i >1\/2$, $p_j < 1\/2$, $i\\neq j$ and $i,j=1,2,3,4$ (PPT criterion).\\par\nConsider (a) $A=\\sigma^x_A$, $B=\\sigma^x_B$, $\\ket{\\phi_A}=\\ket{0}$ and $\\ket{\\phi_B}=\\ket{0}$. The inequality is violated for $p_1> 1\/2$ or $p_2>1\/2$, (b) $A=\\sigma^x_A$, $B=\\sigma^x_B$, $\\ket{\\phi_A}=\\ket{0}$ and $\\ket{\\phi_B}=\\ket{1}$. The inequality is violated for $p_3> 1\/2$ or $p_4>1\/2$.\\\\\n\\textit{(vii) Two qudit Werner states \\cite{59}:}\n\\begin{align}\n\\rho=(1-p)\\frac{2}{d^2+d}P^{(+)} + p\\frac{2}{d^2-d}P^{(-)}, \\hspace{3mm} 0\\leq p\\leq 1,\\nonumber\n\\end{align}\nwhere the projectors $P^{(+)}=(I+V)\/2$, $P^{(-)}=(I-V)\/2$ with identity $I$ and flip operation $V=\\sum_{i,j=0}^{d-1}{\\ket{i}\\bra{j}\\otimes \\ket{j}\\bra{i}}$, and $\\{\\ket{i}\\}$ is the basis states. The state $\\rho$ is entangled if and only if $p>1\/2$ (PPT criterion).\\par\nTo see, which values of `$p$' are achievable via the separability inequality Eq. (\\ref{39}), we first calculate the entanglement condition and then will see some physically implementable systems. Consider $\\bra{i^{\\prime}_A i^{\\prime}_B}C_A\\otimes C_B=\\bra{j^{\\prime}_A j^{\\prime}_B}$, where $\\braket{i^{\\prime}_A|j^{\\prime}_A}=0$ or $\\braket{i^{\\prime}_B|j^{\\prime}_B}=0$ or both. Then from Eq. (\\ref{39}), the LHS - RHS becomes\n\\begin{align}\n|\\Lambda^{(-)}\\braket{j^{\\prime}_A|i^{\\prime}_B}\\braket{j^{\\prime}_B|i^{\\prime}_A}\\hspace{-1mm}|^2 - &\n\\left[\\Lambda^{(+)}+\\Lambda^{(-)}|\\hspace{-1mm}\\braket{j^{\\prime}_A|i^{\\prime}_B}\\hspace{-1mm}|^2\\right]\\nonumber\\\\\n& \\times\\left[\\Lambda^{(+)}+\\Lambda^{(-)}|\\hspace{-1mm}\\braket{j^{\\prime}_B|i^{\\prime}_A}\\hspace{-1mm}|^2\\right]\\label{40}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\Lambda^{(+)}=\\frac{1-p}{d^2+d} + \\frac{p}{d^2-d}$ and $\\Lambda^{(-)}=\\frac{1-p}{d^2+d} - \\frac{p}{d^2-d}$. Now by making the choices $|\\hspace{-1mm}\\braket{j^{\\prime}_B|i^{\\prime}_A}\\hspace{-1mm}|=|\\hspace{-1mm}\\braket{j^{\\prime}_A|i^{\\prime}_B}\\hspace{-1mm}|=1$, it is easy to show that LHS-RHS (\\ref{40}) is alway positive for $p> \\frac{3(d-1)}{2(2d-1)}$ which is the entanglement condition for the Werner state in $d\\otimes d$. It known that for $\\frac{1}{2} \\frac{3(d-1)}{2(2d-1)}$, the Werner state is bound entangled (conjectured) and distillable respectively. That is, our separability criterion (\\ref{39}) is able to detect the distillability of the Werner state but not the bound entanglement (if any). In Appendix \\ref{G}, we give the examples of how to fulfil the choices we made here in the physical systems.\\\\\n\\textit{(vi) Higher dimensional isotropic states \\cite{60}:}\n\\begin{align}\n\\rho=p\\ket{\\psi^+_{AB}}\\bra{\\psi^+_{AB}}+(1-p)\\frac{I_A\\otimes I_B}{d^2},\\nonumber\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\ket{\\psi_{AB}^+}=\\frac{1}{\\sqrt{d}}(\\sum_{i=1}^d\\ket{i_Ai_B}$ and `$d$' is the dimension of the subsytems. \\par \nBy choosing the spin flip operators $A=\\sigma^x_A$, $B=\\sigma^x_B$ such that $(\\sigma^x_A\\otimes \\sigma_B^x)\\ket{i_Ai_B}=\\ket{j_Aj_B}$, $j_A\\neq i_A$, $j_B\\neq i_B$, and $\\ket{\\phi_A}=\\ket{i_A}$, $\\ket{\\phi_B}=\\ket{i_B}$, it can be shown that the inequality is violated for $p>1\/(d+1)$ (PPT criterion).\\par\nIn comparison with most of the existing works, the above separability inequality is easier to implement in experiments due to the simple realization of weak measurement and less number of measurement settings. In particular, compared to the case of universal (i.e., state-independent) detection of two-qubit entanglement using two copies of the state at a time and using the notion of weak values \\cite{37}, the aforesaid inequality (\\ref{39}) (involving product weak values) uses only a single copy of the bipartite state ${\\rho}$ at a time. Moreover, the criterion is resource-wise better than tomography, based on local realization and dependent on one type of measurement set-up. \\par\nWe do believe that the separability inequality (\\ref{39}) is of universal nature at least for the set of all two-qubit states. Needless to say that the choice of the local observables $A$, $B$ as well as the post-selected state $\\ket{{\\phi}_A{\\phi}_B}$ do depend upon the choice of the input bi-partite state ${\\rho}$.\n\\section{Robustness}\\label{e V}\nIn AAV method, the coupling between the system and the pointer is extremely small and hence the state collapse is avoided. During the process, any resolution is insufficient to distinguish the different eigenvalues of the observable. Nevertheless, by performing the experiment many times on identically prepared systems, it is possible to reduce the uncertainty in the mean pointer displacement to any arbitrary precision \\cite{50}. \\par \nThere are other type of errors which are inevitable due to the inappropriate choices of system observables and unsharp post-selections. Here, we show that our methods of ``extraction of product and higher moment weak values\" are robust against them.\\\\ \n\\textsl{(i)} \\normalsize{\\textit{Error in choice of observable:}} In experiment, let's say, we want to measure a spin-1\/2 observable according to the AAV method but due to some technical difficulties, we are unable to measure the actual spin-1\/2 observable (slightly changed $\\theta$ and $\\phi$, where $\\theta$ and $\\phi$ define a point on the bloch sphere). Now let `$A$' be the correct observable while `$A^e$' be the erroneous one such that $\\left|A-A^e\\right| \\leq \\delta$, where $\\left|X\\right| = Tr\\sqrt{X^{\\dagger}X}$ is the trace norm of a square matrix X. So the error occurring in the weak value is given by \n\\begin{align}\n\\Delta(\\rho,A,\\phi)&=\\left|{\\braket{A_w}^{\\phi}_{\\rho} - \\braket{A^e_w}^{\\phi}_{\\rho}}\\right|=\\frac{\\left|\\braket{\\phi|(A-A^e)\\rho|\\phi}\\right|}{\\braket{\\phi|\\rho|\\phi}}\\nonumber\\\\\n&\\leq \\frac{\\left|\\braket{\\phi|(A-A^e)\\rho|\\phi}\\right|}{m}, \\label{41}\n\\end{align}\nwhere `m' is the minimum of the probabilities for all the possible choices of rank-one post-selections with a given pre-selection. Now consider the spectral decomposition $A-A^e=\\sum_i{\\lambda_i\\ket{i}\\bra{i}}$ where $\\{\\ket{i}\\}$ is the complete set of orthogonal basis. Then\n\\begin{align}\n\\Delta(\\rho,A,\\phi)&\\leq\\frac{1}{m}\\left|\\sum \\lambda_i \\braket{\\phi|i}\\braket{i|\\rho|\\phi} \\right|\\nonumber\\\\\n&\\leq\\frac{1}{m}\\sum_i \\left|\\lambda_i\\right| \\left| \\braket{\\phi|i}\\braket{i|\\rho|\\phi}\\right|. \\label{42}\n\\end{align}\nNote that $\\left|A-A^e\\right|=\\sum_i \\left|\\lambda_i\\right|$ and since $0\\leq \\rho \\leq \\mathbbm{1} $, it can easily be shown that $\\left| \\braket{\\phi|i}\\braket{i|\\rho|\\phi}\\right|\\leq 1$. Hence\n\\begin{align}\n\\Delta(\\rho,A,\\phi)&\\leq\\frac{1}{m}\\sum_i \\left|\\lambda_i\\right|=\\frac{\\left|A-A^e\\right|}{m}\\leq \\frac{\\delta}{m}. \\label{43}\n\\end{align}\n\\textsl{(ii)} \\normalsize{\\textit{Noisy post-selection:}} Now we consider another type of error which is common in experiments is due to the unsharp post-selections. Let us assume that the unsharp post-selection is a mixture of the true post-selection $\\ket{\\phi}$ with probability $(1-\\epsilon)$ and noise state $\\sigma$ with probability $\\epsilon$ \n\\begin{align}\n \\Phi^{\\epsilon}=(1-\\epsilon)\\ket{\\phi}\\bra{\\phi} + \\epsilon\\sigma,\\label{44}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\epsilon$ is a sufficiently small positive quantity. Then the difference between the perturbed and true weak values is \n\\begin{align}\n\\braket{A_w}^{ \\Phi^{\\epsilon}}_{\\rho} - \\braket{A_w}^{\\phi}_{\\rho}\\approx\\epsilon\\left[ \\frac{Tr(\\sigma A \\rho) - \\braket{A_w}^{\\phi}_{\\rho} Tr(\\sigma\\rho)}{\\braket{\\phi|\\rho|\\phi}} \\right].\\label{45}\n\\end{align}\\par\nSo in both the cases (Eqs. (\\ref{43}) and (\\ref{45})), the weak values are robust. Now it is not hard to realize that product and higher moment weak values are also robust. The only thing we need to do is to replace the observable $A$ by $A^2$ for a single system and $C_A\\otimes C_B$ for a bipartite system in Eqs. (\\ref{43}) and (\\ref{45}). Hence the weak values which we have used to reconstruct the state of a single and bipartite systems are also robust.\\\\\n\\section{Conclusion}\\label{e VI}\nWe have derived the methods of extracting higher moment weak values and product weak values using Vaidman's formula. Such higher moment weak values are calculated using only the weak values of that observable with pairwise orthogonal post-selections. Two dimensional Hilbert space becomes the simplest case for extracting the higher moment weak values. Our methods turn out to be simple from experimental perspective as we don't need to measure the N pointer's correlations as required in the previous works. Previously, it was thought that with Gaussian pointers' states, it is not possible to obtain the higher moment weak values but we have shown that instead of looking for different pointer states (e.g., OAM states) to obtain the higher moment weak values, we can use Vaidman's formula. To extract the product weak values in a bipartite system, we have again used Vaidman's formula in one of the subsystems. The product weak values can be calculated using only local weak values. The key factor for such local realization is that the action of the local operator on the local post-selected state is equivalent to the superposition of that post-selected state and a unique orthogonal state to that given post-selected state. Our method can be used to verify Hardy's Paradox, to confirm the existence of quantum Cheshire cats, to perform EPR-Bohm experiment, to realize non-locality via post-selections, etc.\\par\nAs an application, we have shown how to reconstruct quantum states of a single and bipartite systems separately. We have used higher moment weak values to reconstruct an unknown pure state of a single system. The number of measurements are nearly half of the measurements required in previous works. Mixed state reconstruction has been shown using arbitrary observbles. We have used product weak values for reconstruction of pure and mixed states in a bipartite system. Such reconstructions become simply feasible in experiment using only the measurements of local weak values. In the previous works, projection measurement operators were the central for direct quantum state tomography. But we have generalized it to any arbitrary observables for both single and bipartite systems. Comparisons between the previous works and our work have been considered from various perspective (e.g., number of measurements according to the AAV method and experimental feasibility). { A necessary separability criteria (in terms of an inequality) for finite dimensional bi-partite systems using product weak values has been derived. This inequality is turned out to be strong as the PPT criteria can be achieved for certain class of entangled states by cleverly choosing the product observables and the post selections. The criteria can, in principle detect more classes of entangled states with suitably choosing product observables and post-selections}. Finally, we have shown that our methods are robust against the errors which are inevitable due to the inappropriate choices of system observables and unsharp post-selections. Our method can easily be extended to multi-partite systems.\\par\n{\\bf{Acknowledgment}}: Sahil is thankful to the QIC group at HRI, Allahabad, for making an arrangement for visiting the group during which, part of the work was done. SM acknowledges financial support from the Visiting Postdoctoral Programme of IMSc, Chennai. We would like to thank AK Pan and PK Panigrahi for bringing an useful comment \\cite{43} on higher moment weak values calculation to our attention. \n\\bibliographystyle{apsrev4-1}\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\\section{Introduction}\\label{Section-introduction}\n\nGiven a compact domain $T\\subset\\mathbb{R}^2$ with piecewise smooth boundary,\nconsider the straight line motion of a particle inside $T$, with specular reflections\nin $\\partial T$. Let $f:M\\to M$ be the {\\em billiard map}, where\n$M=\\partial T\\times[-\\tfrac{\\pi}{2},\\tfrac{\\pi}{2}]$ with the convention that $(r,\\theta)\\in M$\nrepresents $r=$ collision position at $\\partial T$ and $\\theta=$ angle of collision.\nThe map $f$ has a natural invariant Liouville measure $d\\mu=\\cos\\theta drd\\theta$.\nSina{\\u\\i} proved that dispersing billiards are uniformly hyperbolic systems with\ndiscontinuities \\cite{Sinai-billiards}, hence the Liouville measure is ergodic.\n\n\\medskip\nFor a while uniform hyperbolicity was the only mechanism to generate chaotic billiards,\nuntil Bunimovich constructed examples of ergodic nowhere dispersing\nbilliards \\cite{Bunimovich-close-to-scattering,Bunimovich-ergodic-properties,Bunimovich-Nowhere-dispersing}.\nThese billiards, known as {\\em Bunimovich billiards}, are non-uniformly hyperbolic:\n$\\mu$--almost every point has one positive Lyapunov exponent and one negative Lyapunov exponent,\nsee \\cite[Chapter 8]{Chernov-Markarian}.\nIn this paper we construct symbolic models for non-uniformly hyperbolic billiard maps\nsuch as Bunimovich billiards. Assume that the billiard table $T$ satisfies\nthe conditions of \\cite[Part V]{Katok-Strelcyn}, and\nlet $h$ be the Kolmogorov-Sina{\\u\\i} entropy of $\\mu$.\n\n\\begin{theorem}\\label{Thm-billiard}\nIf $\\mu$ is ergodic and $h>0$ then there exists a topological Markov shift\n$(\\Sigma,\\sigma)$ and a H\\\"older continuous map $\\pi:\\Sigma\\to M$ s.t.:\n\\begin{enumerate}[$(1)$]\n\\item $\\pi\\circ \\sigma=f\\circ\\pi$.\n\\item $\\pi$ is surjective and finite-to-one on a set of full $\\mu$--measure.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{theorem}\n\nOther examples of non-uniformly hyperbolic billiard maps are\n\\cite{Wojtkowski-principles,Bunimovich-lemons}. See section \\ref{Section-preliminaries} for\nthe definition of topological Markov shifts.\n\n\\begin{corollary}\\label{corollary-periodic}\nUnder the above assumptions, $\\exists C>0$ and $p\\geq 1$ s.t. $f$ has at least\n$Ce^{hnp}$ periodic points of period $np$ for all $n\\geq 1$. \n\\end{corollary}\n\nCorollary \\ref{corollary-periodic} is consequence of Theorem \\ref{Thm-billiard}\nand the work of Gurevi{\\v{c}} \\cite{Gurevich-Topological-Entropy,Gurevich-Measures-Of-Maximal-Entropy},\nas in \\cite[Thm. 1.1]{Sarig-JAMS}. It is related to an estimate of Chernov \\cite{Chernov-91}.\nThe integer $p$ is the period of $(\\Sigma,\\sigma)$, hence $p=1$ iff $(\\Sigma,\\sigma)$\nis topologically mixing. Since $\\mu$ is mixing, we expect that the symbolic\ncoding of Theorem \\ref{Thm-billiard}\ncan be improved to give a topologically mixing $(\\Sigma,\\sigma)$.\nTheorem \\ref{Thm-billiard} is consequence of the main result\nof this paper, Theorem \\ref{Thm-main}, and of an argument of Katok and Strelcyn\n\\cite[Section I.3]{Katok-Strelcyn}.\nThe statement of Theorem \\ref{Thm-main} is technical, so we first introduce some notation. \n\n\n\\medskip\nLet $M$ be a smooth Riemannian surface with finite diameter, possibly with boundary.\nWe assume that the diameter of $M$ is smaller than one\\footnote{Just multiply the\nmetric by a sufficiently small constant.}.\nLet $\\mathfs D^+,\\mathfs D^-$ be closed\nsubsets of $M$.\nFix $f:M\\backslash\\mathfs D^+\\to M$ a diffeomorphism\nonto its image, s.t. $f$ has an inverse $f^{-1}:M\\backslash\\mathfs D^-\\to M$ that\nis a diffeomorphism onto its image.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Set of discontinuities $\\mathfs D$:} The {\\em set of discontinuities of $f$} is\n$\\mathfs D:=\\mathfs D^+\\cup \\mathfs D^-$. \n\n\\medskip\nIf $x\\not\\in\\bigcup_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}f^n(\\mathfs D)$ then $f^n(x)$ is well-defined for all $n\\in\\mathbb{Z}$,\nand for every $y=f^n(x)$ there is a neighborhood $U\\ni y$ s.t. $f\\restriction_U,f^{-1}\\restriction_{U}$\nare diffeomorphisms onto their images. We require some regularity conditions on $M,f$.\nThe first four assumptions are on the geometry of $M$.\nGiven $x\\in M\\backslash\\mathfs D$, let ${\\rm inj}(x)$ denote the {injectivity radius} of $M$ at $x$,\nand let $\\exp{x}$ be the {\\em exponential map} at $x$, wherever it can be defined.\nGiven $r>0$, let $B_x[r]\\subset T_xM$ be the ball with center 0 and radius $r$.\nThe Riemannian metric on $M$ induces a Riemannian metric on $TM$, called the {\\em Sasaki\nmetric}, see e.g. \\cite[\\S2]{Burns-Masur-Wilkinson}.\nDenote the Sasaki metric by $d_{\\rm Sas}(\\cdot,\\cdot)$.\nSimilarly, we denote the Sasaki metric on $TB_x[r]$ by the same notation, and the context\nwill be clear in which space we are. For nearby small vectors, the Sasaki metric is\nalmost a product metric in the following sense. Given a geodesic $\\gamma$ joining $y$ to $x$,\nlet $P_\\gamma:T_yM\\to T_xM$ be the parallel transport along $\\gamma$.\nIf $v\\in T_xM$, $w\\in T_yM$ then\n$d_{\\rm Sas}(v,w)\\asymp d(x,y)+\\|v-P_\\gamma w\\|$ as $d_{\\rm Sas}(v,w)\\to 0$, see e.g.\n\\cite[Appendix A]{Burns-Masur-Wilkinson}. The rate of convergence depends on the\ncurvature tensor of the metric on $M$. Here are the first two assumptions on $M$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Regularity of $\\exp{x}$:} $\\exists a>1$ s.t. for all\n$x\\in M\\backslash\\mathfs D$ there is $d(x,\\mathfs D)^a<\\mathfrak r(x)<1$ \ns.t. for $D_x:=B(x,2\\mathfrak r(x))$ the following holds:\n\\begin{enumerate}[ii]\n\\item[(A1)] If $y\\in D_x$ then ${\\rm inj}(y)\\geq 2\\mathfrak r(x)$, $\\exp{y}^{-1}:D_x\\to T_yM$\nis a diffeomorphism onto its image, and\n$\\tfrac{1}{2}(d(x,y)+\\|v-P_{y,x}w\\|)\\leq d_{\\rm Sas}(v,w)\\leq 2(d(x,y)+\\|v-P_{y,x} w\\|)$ for all $y\\in D_x$ and\n$v\\in T_xM,w\\in T_yM$ s.t. $\\|v\\|,\\|w\\|\\leq 2\\mathfrak r(x)$, where \t\n$P_{y,x}:=P_\\gamma$ is the radial geodesic $\\gamma$ joining $y$ to $x$.\n\\item[(A2)] If $y_1,y_2\\in D_x$ then\n$d(\\exp{y_1}v_1,\\exp{y_2}v_2)\\leq 2d_{\\rm Sas}(v_1,v_2)$ for $\\|v_1\\|$, $\\|v_2\\|\\leq 2\\mathfrak r(x)$,\nand $d_{\\rm Sas}(\\exp{y_1}^{-1}z_1,\\exp{y_2}^{-1}z_2)\\leq 2[d(y_1,y_2)+d(z_1,z_2)]$\nfor $z_1,z_2\\in D_x$ whenever the expression makes sense.\nIn particular $\\|d(\\exp{x})_v\\|\\leq 2$ for $\\|v\\|\\leq 2\\mathfrak r(x)$,\nand $\\|d(\\exp{x}^{-1})_y\\|\\leq 2$ for $y\\in D_x$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\n\\medskip\nThe next two assumptions are on the regularity of $d\\exp{x}$.\nFor $x,x'\\in\\ M\\backslash\\mathfs D$, let $\\mathfs L _{x,x'}:=\\{A:T_xM\\to T_{x'}M:A\\text{ is linear}\\}$\nand $\\mathfs L _x:=\\mathfs L_{x,x}$. \nThen the parallel transport $P_{y,x}$ considered in (A1) is in $\\mathfs L_{y,x}$.\nGiven $y\\in D_x,z\\in D_{x'}$ and $A\\in \\mathfs L_{y,z}$,\nlet $\\widetilde{A}\\in\\mathfs L_{x,x'}$, $\\widetilde{A}:=P_{z,x'} \\circ A\\circ P_{x,y}$.\nBy definition, $\\widetilde{A}$ depends on $x,x'$ but different basepoints define\na map that differs from $\\widetilde{A}$ by pre and post composition with isometries.\nIn particular, $\\|\\widetilde{A}\\|$ does not depend on the choice of $x,x'$.\nSimilarly, if $A_i\\in\\mathfs L_{y_i,z_i}$ then $\\|\\widetilde{A_1}-\\widetilde{A_2}\\|$ does\nnot depend on the choice of $x,x'$.\nDefine the map $\\tau=\\tau_x:D_x\\times D_x\\to \\mathfs L_x$\nby $\\tau(y,z)=\\widetilde{d(\\exp{y}^{-1})_z}$, where we use the identification\n$T_v(T_{y}M)\\cong T_{y}M$ for all $v\\in T_yM$.\n\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Regularity of $d\\exp{x}$:}\n\\begin{enumerate}[ii]\n\\item[(A3)] If $y_1,y_2\\in D_x$ then\n$\n\\|\\widetilde{d(\\exp{y_1})_{v_1}}-\\widetilde{d(\\exp{y_2})_{v_2}}\\|\n\\leq d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}d_{\\rm Sas}(v_1,v_2)\n$\nfor all $\\|v_1\\|,\\|v_2\\|\\leq 2\\mathfrak r(x)$, and \n$\\|\\tau(y_1,z_1)-\\tau(y_2,z_2)\\|\\leq d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}[d(y_1,y_2)+d(z_1,z_2)]$\nfor all $z_1,z_2\\in D_x$.\n\\item[(A4)] If $y_1,y_2\\in D_x$ then the map $\\tau(y_1,\\cdot)-\\tau(y_2,\\cdot):D_x\\to \\mathfs L_x$\nhas Lipschitz constant $\\leq d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}d(y_1,y_2)$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\n\\medskip\nConditions (A1)--(A2) guarantee that the exponential maps and their inverses\nare well-defined and have uniformly bounded Lipschitz constants in balls\nof radii $d(x,\\mathfs D)^a$.\nCondition (A3) controls the Lipschitz constants of the derivatives of these maps,\nand condition (A4) controls the Lipschitz constants of their second derivatives.\nHere are some case when (A1)--(A4) are satisfied, in increasing order of generality:\n\\begin{enumerate}[$\\circ$]\n\\item The curvature tensor $R$ of $M$ is globally bounded, e.g. when $M$ is the\nphase space of a billiard map.\n\\item $R,\\nabla R,\\nabla^2 R,\\nabla^3R$ grow at most polynomially\nfast with respect to the distance to $\\mathfs D$, e.g. when $M$ is a moduli space\nof curves equipped with the Weil-Petersson metric \\cite{Burns-Masur-Wilkinson}.\n\\end{enumerate}\nNow we discuss the assumptions on $f$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Regularity of $f$:} There are constants $0<\\beta<10$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc $\\chi$--hyperbolic measure:} An $f$--invariant probability measure on $M$ is called\n{\\em $\\chi$--hyperbolic} if $\\mu$--a.e. $x\\in M$ has one Lyapunov exponent $>\\chi$\nand another $<-\\chi$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc $f$--adapted measure:} An $f$--invariant measure on $M$ is called {\\em $f$--adapted}\nif\n$$\\int_M \\log d(x,\\mathfs D)d\\mu(x)>-\\infty.$$\nA fortiori $\\mu(\\mathfs D)=0$.\n\n\n\n\n\\begin{theorem}\\label{Thm-main}\nLet $M,f$ satisfy conditions {\\rm (A1)--(A6)}. For all $\\chi>0$,\nthere exists a topological Markov shift $(\\Sigma,\\sigma)$\nand a H\\\"older continuous map $\\pi:\\Sigma\\to M$ s.t.:\n\\begin{enumerate}[$(1)$]\n\\item $\\pi\\circ \\sigma=f\\circ\\pi$.\n\\item $\\pi[\\Sigma^\\#]$ has full $\\mu$--measure for every $f$--adapted $\\chi$--hyperbolic measure $\\mu$.\n\\item For all $x\\in \\pi[\\Sigma^\\#]$, $\\#\\{\\underline v\\in\\Sigma^\\#:\\pi(\\underline v)=x\\}<\\infty$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{theorem}\n\nAbove, $\\Sigma^\\#$ is the {\\em recurrent set} of $\\Sigma$, see section \\ref{Section-preliminaries}.\nEvery $\\sigma$--invariant measure $\\widehat{\\mu}$ is carried by $\\Sigma^\\#$,\nhence its projection $\\mu=\\widehat{\\mu}\\circ\\pi^{-1}$ has the same entropy\nas $\\widehat{\\mu}$ (this follows from the Abramov-Rokhlin formula \\cite{Abramov-Rokhlin}).\nIn particular, the topological entropy of $(\\Sigma,\\sigma)$ is at most that of $(M,f)$.\nOn the other direction, every $f$--adapted $\\chi$--hyperbolic measure $\\mu$ has\na lift $\\widehat{\\mu}$ with the same entropy. If we know that $\\chi$--hyperbolic measures are\n$f$--adapted then the topological entropies of $(\\Sigma,\\sigma)$ and $(M,f)$ coincide,\nand their measures of maximal entropy are related. In this case, Corollary \\ref{corollary-periodic}\nhas a potentially stronger statement: for every $\\varepsilon>0$, $\\exists C>0$ and $p\\geq 1$ s.t. $f$ has at\nleast $Ce^{(H-\\varepsilon)np}$ periodic points of period $np$ for all $n\\geq 1$,\nwhere $H$ is the topological entropy of $\\Sigma$.\nAt the moment, we are not aware of general results assuring that $\\chi$--hyperbolic measures\nare $f$--adapted, except when the measure is Liouville \\cite[Section I.3]{Katok-Strelcyn}.\n\n\\medskip\nWe now discuss the applicability of Theorem \\ref{Thm-billiard}. Let us restrict ourselves to\nbilliard tables with finitely many boundary components, otherwise many degeneracies\ncan occur (see e.g. \\cite[Part V]{Katok-Strelcyn}). Assumptions (A1)--(A6) are satisfied\nif all boundary components are $C^3$. The precise conditions that guarantee \nnon-uniform hyperbolicity are unknown, so we mention two classes of billiard tables $T$\nwhose billiard maps are non-uniformly hyperbolic:\n\\begin{enumerate}[$\\circ$]\n\\item Sina{\\u\\i} billiard: every component of $\\partial T$ is dispersing.\nIn this case, the billiard map exhibits uniform hyperbolicity.\n\\item Bunimovich billiard: $\\partial T$ is the union of finitely many segments\nand arcs of circles s.t. each of these arcs belongs to a disc contained in $T$.\nWhen this happens, non-uniform hyperbolicity is ensured via a focusing-defocusing mechanism,\nsee \\cite[Chapter 8]{Chernov-Markarian}. See Figure \\ref{figure-billiards} for some examples.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\n\\begin{figure}[hbt!]\n\\centering\n\\def12cm{12cm}\n\\input{billiards.pdf_tex}\\label{figure-billiards}\\caption{Examples of Bunimovich billiards:\n(a) pool table with pockets, (b) stadium, (c) flower.}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Related literature}\n\nThe construction of Markov partitions and symbolic dynamics for uniformly hyperbolic\ndiffeomorphisms and flows in compact manifolds laid its foundation during the late sixties and\nearly seventies through the works of Adler \\& Weiss\n\\cite{Adler-Weiss-PNAS,Adler-Weiss-Similarity-Toral-Automorphisms},\nSina{\\u\\i} \\cite{Sinai-Construction-of-MP,Sinai-MP-U-diffeomorphisms},\nBowen \\cite{Bowen-MP-Axiom-A,Bowen-Symbolic-Flows}, and\nRatner \\cite{Ratner-MP-three-dimensions,Ratner-MP-n-dimensions}.\nBelow we discuss other contexts.\n\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Billiards:} These are the main examples of maps with discontinuities.\nKatok and Strelcyn constructed invariant manifolds for non-uniformly hyperbolic\nbilliard maps which include Bunimovich billiards \\cite{Katok-Strelcyn}.\nBunimovich, Chernov and Sina{\\u\\i} constructed countable Markov partitions for two-dimensional\ndispersing billiard maps \\cite{Bunimovich-Chernov-Sinai}.\nAll these results are for Liouville measures. Up to our knowledge,\nour result is the first symbolic coding of uniformly and non-uniformly hyperbolic\nbilliard maps for general measures.\n\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Tower extensions of billiard maps:} Young constructed tower extensions\nfor certain two-dimensional dispersing billiard maps \\cite{Young-towers}.\nContrary to our case, Young's tower extensions provide codings which are usually infinite-to-one,\nhence it is unclear that $\\chi$--hyperbolic measures can be lifted to the\nsymbolic space without increasing its entropy. Nevertheless, such tower extensions\nguarantee exponential decay of correlations for certain two-dimensional dispersing billiard maps.\t \n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Non-uniformly hyperbolic three-dimensional flows:} The first author and Sarig\nconstructed symbolic models for non-uniformly hyperbolic three-dimensional flows with positive\nspeed \\cite{Lima-Sarig}. The idea is to take a Poincar\\'e section and analyze the Poincar\\'e return map $f$.\nThe Poincar\\'e map $f$ has discontinuities, but its derivative is uniformly bounded inside the set\nof continuities. Hence the methods of \\cite{Sarig-JAMS} apply more easily.\n\n\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Weil-Petersson flow:} Moduli spaces of curves possess natural negatively\ncurved incomplete K\\\"ahler metrics, called {\\em Weil-Petersson metrics}. The geodesic\nflow of one such metric is called the {\\em Weil-Petersson flow}, and it preserves a canonical\nLiouville measure.\nThe properties of the Weil-Petersson metric are intimately related to the hyperbolic\ngeometry of surfaces, and this partly explains the recent interest in the dynamics\nof the Weil-Petersson flow. Burns, Masur and Wilkinson proved that the Liouville\nmeasure is hyperbolic \\cite{Burns-Masur-Wilkinson}.\nFor that, they combined results of Wolpert and McMullen to show that the\nWeil-Petersson metric explodes at most polynomially fast while approaching\nthe boundary of the Deligne-Mumford compactification of the moduli space of curves,\nhence the Weil-Petersson flow satisfies the assumptions of Katok and Strelcyn \\cite{Katok-Strelcyn}.\nThe construction of symbolic dynamics for the Weil-Petersson flow is still open.\n\n\\medskip\nAs pointed out by Sarig \\cite[pp. 346]{Sarig-JAMS}, our main result (Theorem \\ref{Thm-main})\ncan be regarded as a step towards the construction of Markov partitions capturing\nmeasures of maximal entropy for surface maps with discontinuities with positive topological\nentropy, such as Bunimovich billiards.\nMotivated by this, we ask the following question.\n\n\\smallskip\n\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Question:} Let $f$ be a billiard map with topological entropy $H>0$. Does $f$ have a measure\nof maximal entropy? If it does, is it $f$--adapted? Is it Bernoulli? \n\n\\medskip\nA positive answer to this question would imply that $\\exists C>0$ s.t. $f$ has at least \n$Ce^{Hn}$ periodic points of period $n$, for all $n\\geq 1$.\n\n\\medskip\nIn \\cite[pp. 858]{Burns-Masur-Wilkinson} it was suggested\nthat one of the assumptions (in their notation, the compactness of $\\overline{N}$)\ncan be relaxed to the assumption that $N$ has finite diameter.\nThe main reason not to claim this is that they use \\cite{Katok-Strelcyn}, whose framework\nassumes $\\overline N$ to be compact. We only assume finite diameter, hence\nour work is a step towards the relaxation of the assumptions of \\cite{Katok-Strelcyn}\nto the context mentioned in \\cite{Burns-Masur-Wilkinson}.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Methodology}\n\nThe proof of Theorem \\ref{Thm-main} is based on \\cite{Sarig-JAMS} and \\cite{Lima-Sarig},\nand it follows the steps below:\n\\begin{enumerate}[(1)]\n\\item If $\\mu$ is $f$--adapted and $\\chi$--hyperbolic, then $\\mu$--a.e. $x\\in M$\nhas a Pesin chart $\\Psi_x:[-Q_\\varepsilon(x),Q_\\varepsilon(x)]^2\\to M$ s.t.\n$\\lim_{n\\to\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{n}\\log Q_\\varepsilon(f^n(x))=0$.\n\\item Define $\\varepsilon$--double charts $\\Psi_x^{p^s,p^u}$, the two-sided versions of Pesin charts\nthat control separately the local forward and local backward hyperbolicity at $x$.\n\\item Construct a countable collection $\\mathfs A$ of $\\varepsilon$--double charts that are dense\nin the space of all $\\varepsilon$--double charts. The notion of denseness is defined in terms of\nfinitely many parameters of $x$.\n\\item Define the transition between $\\varepsilon$--double charts s.t. $p^s,p^u$\nare as maximal as possible. This is important to establish the inverse theorem (Theorem \\ref{Thm-inverse}). \n\\item Apply a Bowen-Sina{\\u\\i} refinement (following \\cite{Bowen-LNM}).\nThe resulting partition defines a topological Markov shift $(\\Sigma,\\sigma)$ and a map\n$\\pi:\\Sigma\\to M$ satisfying Theorem \\ref{Thm-main}.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\n\\medskip\nContrary to \\cite{Sarig-JAMS,Lima-Sarig}, we do not require $M$ to be compact (not even to have bounded curvature)\nneither $f$ to have uniformly bounded $C^{1+\\beta}$ norm. As a consequence,\nwe have to control the parameters appearing in the construction more carefully.\nIn the methodology of proof above,\nthis is reflected in steps (1), (3), (4). Steps (2) and (5) work almost verbatim as in \\cite{Sarig-JAMS}.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Preliminaries}\\label{Section-preliminaries}\n\nLet $\\mathfs G=(V,E)$ be an oriented graph, where $V=$ vertex set and $E=$ edge set.\nWe denote edges by $v\\to w$, and we assume that $V$ is countable.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Topological Markov shift (TMS):} A {\\em topological Markov shift} (TMS) is a pair $(\\Sigma,\\sigma)$\nwhere\n$$\n\\Sigma:=\\{\\text{$\\mathbb{Z}$--indexed paths on $\\mathfs G$}\\}=\n\\left\\{\\underline{v}=\\{v_n\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}\\in V^{\\mathbb{Z}}:v_n\\to v_{n+1}, \\forall n\\in\\mathbb{Z}\\right\\}\n$$\nand $\\sigma:\\Sigma\\to\\Sigma$ is the left shift, $[\\sigma(\\underline v)]_n=v_{n+1}$. \nThe {\\em recurrent set} of $\\Sigma$ is\n$$\n\\Sigma^\\#:=\\left\\{\\underline v\\in\\Sigma:\\exists v,w\\in V\\text{ s.t. }\\begin{array}{l}v_n=v\\text{ for infinitely many }n>0\\\\\nv_n=w\\text{ for infinitely many }n<0\n\\end{array}\\right\\}.\n$$\nWe endow $\\Sigma$ with the distance $d(\\underline v,\\underline w):={\\rm exp}[-\\min\\{|n|\\in\\mathbb{Z}:v_n\\neq w_n\\}]$.\n\n\\medskip\nWrite $a=e^{\\pm\\varepsilon}b$ when $e^{-\\varepsilon}\\leq \\frac{a}{b}\\leq e^\\varepsilon$,\nand $a=\\pm b$ when $-|b|\\leq a\\leq |b|$. Given an open set $U\\subset \\mathbb{R}^n$ and $h:U\\to \\mathbb{R}^m$,\nlet $\\|h\\|_0:=\\sup_{x\\in U}\\|h(x)\\|$ denote the $C^0$ norm of $h$. For $0<\\beta<1$,\nlet $\\Hol{\\beta}(h):=\\sup\\frac{\\|h(x)-h(y)\\|}{\\|x-y\\|^\\beta}$ \nwhere the supremum ranges over distinct elements $x,y\\in U$.\nIf $h$ is differentiable, let\n$\\|h\\|_1:=\\|h\\|_0+\\|dh\\|_0$ denote its $C^1$ norm, and\n$\\|h\\|_{1+\\beta}:=\\|h\\|_{C^1}+\\Hol{\\beta}(dh)$ its $C^{1+\\beta}$ norm.\nGiven $x\\in M$, remember that $B_x[r]\\subset T_xM$ is the ball with center $0\\in T_xM$ and radius $r$.\nAlso define $R[r]:=[-r,r]^2\\subset\\mathbb{R}^2$.\n\n\\medskip\nThe diameter of $M$ is less than one, hence we can assume that $a=b$: just change\n$a,b$ to $\\max\\{a,b\\}$. For symmetry and simplification purposes,\nwe will sometimes use (A3)--(A5) in the weaker forms below.\nDefine $\\rho(x):=d(\\{f^{-1}(x),x,f(x)\\},\\mathfs D)$, then (A3)--(A5) imply\nthat for all $x\\in M\\backslash\\mathfs D$:\n\\begin{enumerate}[ii]\n\\item[(A3)'] If $y_1,y_2\\in D_x$ then\n$\n\\|\\widetilde{d(\\exp{y_1})_{v_1}}-\\widetilde{d(\\exp{y_2})_{v_2}}\\|\n\\leq \\rho(x)^{-a}d_{\\rm Sas}(v_1,v_2)\n$\nfor all $\\|v_1\\|,\\|v_2\\|\\leq 2\\mathfrak r(x)$,\nand \n$\\|\\tau(y_1,z_1)-\\tau(y_2,z_2)\\|\\leq d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}[d(y_1,y_2)+d(z_1,z_2)]$\nfor all $z_1,z_2\\in D_x$.\n\\item[(A4)'] If $y_1,y_2\\in D_x$ then the map $\\tau(y_1,\\cdot)-\\tau(y_2,\\cdot):D_x\\to \\mathfs L_x$\nhas Lipschitz constant $\\leq \\rho(x)^{-a}d(y_1,y_2)$.\n\\item[(A5)'] If $y\\in D_x$ then $\\|df_y^{\\pm 1}\\|\\leq \\rho(x)^{-a}$.\n\\end{enumerate}\nHere is a consequence of (A5) and the inverse theorem, written in symmetric form:\n\\begin{enumerate}[(A7)]\n\\item[(A7)] $\\|df^{\\pm 1}_x\\|\\geq m(df^{\\pm 1}_x)\\geq \\rho(x)^a$.\n\\end{enumerate}\nAbove, $m(A):=\\|A^{-1}\\|^{-1}$. For the ease of reference, we collect (A1)--(A7) in Appendix A\nin the format we will use in the text.\n\n\\medskip\nWe note that $\\mu$ is $f$--adapted iff $\\int \\log\\rho(x)d\\mu>-\\infty$.\nIf $\\mu$ is $f$--adapted then by $\\mu$--invariance the functions\n$-\\log d(f^{-1}(x),\\mathfs D),-\\log d(x,\\mathfs D),-\\log d(f(x),\\mathfs D)$ are in $L^1(\\mu)$,\nhence is also their maximum $-\\log\\rho(x)$. The reverse implication is proved similarly.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\section{Linear Pesin theory}\n\nIn this section we construct changes of coordinates that make $df$ a hyperbolic matrix.\nSince we are dealing with the action of the derivative only, the closeness of $x$ to $\\mathfs D$\nis irrelevant.\n\n\\medskip\nFix $\\chi>0$, and let ${\\rm NUH}_\\chi$ be the set\nof $x\\in M\\backslash \\bigcup_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}f^n(\\mathfs D)$ for which\nthere are vectors $\\{e^s_{f^n(x)}\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}$, $\\{e^u_{f^n(x)}\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}$ s.t. for every\n$y=f^n(x)$, $n\\in\\mathbb{Z}$, it holds:\n\\begin{enumerate}[(1)]\n\\item $e^{s\/u}_y\\in T_yM$, $\\|e^{s\/u}_y\\|=1$.\n\\item ${\\rm span}(df^m_ye^{s\/u}_y)={\\rm span}(e^{s\/u}_{f^m(y)})$ for all $m\\in\\mathbb{Z}$.\n\\item $\\lim_{m\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{m}\\log\\|df^m_y e^s_y\\|<-\\chi$ and\n$\\lim_{m\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{m}\\log\\|df^m_y e^u_y\\|>\\chi$.\n\\item $\\lim_{m\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{m}\\log|\\sin\\alpha(f^m(y))|=0$, where\n$\\alpha(f^m(y))=\\angle(e^s_{f^m(y)},e^u_{f^m(y)})$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Oseledets-Pesin reduction}\n\nWe represent $df_x$ as a hyperbolic matrix.\n\n\n\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Parameters $s(x),u(x)$:} For $x\\in{\\rm NUH}_\\chi$, define\n$$\ns(x):=\\sqrt{2}\\left(\\sum_{n\\geq 0}e^{2n\\chi}\\|df^n_xe^s_x\\|^2\\right)^{1\/2} \\text{ and }\nu(x):=\\sqrt{2}\\left(\\sum_{n\\geq 0}e^{2n\\chi}\\|df^{-n}_xe^u_x\\|^2\\right)^{1\/2}.\n$$\n\n\\medskip\nThese numbers are well-defined because $x\\in{\\rm NUH}_\\chi$, and $s(x),u(x)\\geq \\sqrt{2}$.\nLet $e_1=(1,0),e_2=(0,1)$ be the canonical basis of $\\mathbb{R}^2$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Linear map $C_\\chi(x):$} For $x\\in{\\rm NUH}_\\chi$, let\n$C_\\chi(x):\\mathbb{R}^2\\to T_xM$ be the linear map s.t.\n$$\nC_\\chi(x):e_1\\mapsto \\frac{e^s_x}{s(x)}\\ ,\\ C_\\chi(x): e_2\\mapsto \\frac{e^u_x}{u(x)}\\cdot\n$$\n\n\\medskip\nGiven a linear transformation, let $\\|\\cdot\\|$ denote its sup norm and $\\|\\cdot\\|_{\\rm Frob}$ its\nFrobenius norm\\footnote{The Frobenius norm\nof a $2\\times 2$ matrix $A=\\left[\\begin{array}{cc}a & b\\\\ c & d\\end{array}\\right]$ is\n$\\|A\\|_{\\rm Frob}=\\sqrt{a^2+b^2+c^2+d^2}$.}. The Frobenius norm is equivalent to the usual sup norm,\nwith $\\|\\cdot\\|\\leq \\|\\cdot\\|_{\\rm Frob}\\leq \\sqrt{2}\\|\\cdot\\|$.\n \n\\begin{lemma}\\label{Lemma-linear-reduction}\nFor all $x\\in{\\rm NUH}_\\chi$, the following holds:\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item $\\|C_\\chi(x)\\|\\leq \\|C_\\chi(x)\\|_{\\rm Frob}\\leq 1$\nand $\\|C_\\chi(x)^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}=\\tfrac{\\sqrt{s(x)^2+u(x)^2}}{|\\sin\\alpha(x)|}$.\n\\item $C_\\chi(f(x))^{-1}\\circ df_x\\circ C_\\chi(x)$ is a diagonal matrix with diagonal entries $A,B\\in\\mathbb{R}$\ns.t. $|A|e^\\chi$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof}\n(a) In the basis $\\{e_1,e_2\\}$ of $\\mathbb{R}^2$ and the basis $\\{e^s_x,(e^s_x)^\\perp\\}$ of $T_xM$, $C_\\chi(x)$ takes the\nform $\\left[\\begin{array}{cc}\\tfrac{1}{s(x)}& \\tfrac{\\cos\\alpha(x)}{u(x)}\\\\ 0&\\tfrac{\\sin\\alpha(x)}{u(x)}\\end{array}\\right]$,\nhence $\\|C_\\chi(x)\\|_{\\rm Frob}^2=\\tfrac{1}{s(x)^2}+\\tfrac{1}{u(x)^2}\\leq 1$. The inverse of\n$C_\\chi(x)$ is\n$\\left[\\begin{array}{cc}s(x)& -\\tfrac{s(x)\\cos\\alpha(x)}{\\sin\\alpha(x)}\\\\ 0&\\tfrac{u(x)}{\\sin\\alpha(x)}\\end{array}\\right]$,\ntherefore $\\|C_\\chi(x)^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}=\\tfrac{\\sqrt{s(x)^2+u(x)^2}}{|\\sin\\alpha(x)|}$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n(b) It is clear that $e_1,e_2$ are eigenvectors of $C_\\chi(f(x))^{-1}\\circ df_x\\circ C_\\chi(x)$.\nWe calculate the eigenvalue of $e_1$ (the calculation of the eigenvalue of $e_2$ is similar).\nSince $df_xe^s_x=\\pm\\|df_xe^s_x\\|e^s_{f(x)}$,\n$[df_x\\circ C_\\chi(x)](e_1)=\\pm df_x\\left[\\tfrac{e^s_x}{s(x)}\\right]=\\pm\\tfrac{\\|df_xe^s_x\\|}{s(x)}e^s_{f(x)}$, hence\n$[C_\\chi(f(x))^{-1}\\circ df_x\\circ C_\\chi(x)](e_1)=\\pm\\|df_xe^s_x\\|\\tfrac{s(f(x))}{s(x)}e_1$.\nThus $A:=\\pm\\|dfe^s_x\\|\\tfrac{s(f(x))}{s(x)}$ is the eigenvalue of $e_1$. Note that\n\\begin{align*}\ns(f(x))^2&=\\tfrac{2}{e^{2\\chi}\\|df_xe^s_x\\|^2}\\sum_{n\\geq 1}e^{2n\\chi}\\|df^n_xe^s_x\\|^2\n=\\tfrac{s(x)^2-2}{e^{2\\chi}\\|df_xe^s_x\\|^2}<\\tfrac{s(x)^2}{e^{2\\chi}\\|df_xe^s_x\\|^2},\n\\end{align*}\ntherefore $|A|-\\infty\\ \\text{ and }\\ \\int \\log |B(x)|d\\mu(x)<\\infty.\n\\end{align*}\nWe prove the first inequality (the second inequality is proved similarly). By (A6),\n$s(x)^2\\geq 2(1+e^{2\\chi}\\|df_xe^s_x\\|^2)\\geq 2(1+e^{2\\chi}\\rho(x)^{2a})$\nhence\n$$\nA(x)^2=e^{-2\\chi}\\tfrac{s(x)^2-2}{s(x)^2}=e^{-2\\chi}\\left(1-\\tfrac{2}{s(x)^2}\\right)\n\\geq\\tfrac{\\rho(x)^{2a}}{1+e^{2\\chi}\\rho(x)^{2a}}\\geq\\tfrac{\\rho(x)^{2a}}{1+e^{2\\chi}}\\,\\cdot\n$$\nTherefore\n$$\n\\int \\log|A(x)|d\\mu(x)\\geq a\\int\\log \\rho(x)d\\mu(x)-\\tfrac{1}{2}\\log(1+e^{2\\chi})>-\\infty.\n$$\nBy a similar reasoning, $\\int \\log |B(x)|d\\mu(x)<\\infty$.\nTherefore we can apply the Oseledets theorem for $D_\\chi^{(n)}$ and $\\mu$:\nthere is an $f$--invariant set $X\\subset{\\rm NUH}_\\chi$ with $\\mu(X)=1$ s.t. every\n$x\\in X$ satisfies (2) and $\\lim_{n\\to\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{n}\\log\\|D_\\chi^{(n)}(x)\\|$ exists.\nWe claim that (3)--(4) hold in $X$.\n\n\\medskip\nWe first show that the Lyapunov exponents of $D_\\chi^{(n)}$ and $df^n$ coincide in $X$.\nFix $x\\in X$, and take $n_k\\to\\infty$ s.t. $C_\\chi(f^{n_k}(x))\\to C_\\chi(x)$.\nSince\n$\\|D_\\chi^{(n)}(x)\\|\\leq \\|C_\\chi(f^{n}(x))^{-1}\\|\\|df^n_x\\|\\|C_\\chi(x)\\|\\leq \\|C_\\chi(f^{n}(x))^{-1}\\|\\|df^n_x\\|$,\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\lim_{n\\to\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{n}\\log\\|D_\\chi^{(n)}(x)\\|=\\limsup_{k\\to\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{n_k}\\log\\|D_\\chi^{(n_k)}(x)\\|\\\\\n&\\leq \\limsup_{k\\to\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{n_k}\\log\\|C_\\chi(f^{n_k}(x))^{-1}\\|+\\limsup_{k\\to\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{n_k}\\log\\|df^{n_k}_x\\|\n=\\lim_{n\\to\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{n}\\log\\|df^n_x\\|.\n\\end{align*}\nSimilarly, $\\|df^n_x\\|\\leq \\|C_\\chi(f^n(x))\\|\\|D_\\chi^{(n)}(x)\\|\\|C_\\chi(x)^{-1}\\|\\leq\\|D_\\chi^{(n)}(x)\\|\\|C_\\chi(x)^{-1}\\|$,\nthus\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\lim_{n\\to\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{n}\\log\\|df^n_x\\|=\\limsup_{k\\to\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{n_k}\\log\\|df^{n_k}_x\\|\n\\leq \\limsup_{k\\to\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{n_k}\\log\\|D_\\chi^{(n_k)}(x)\\|\\\\\n&=\\lim_{n\\to\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{n}\\log\\|D_\\chi^{(n)}(x)\\|.\n\\end{align*}\nHence $\\lim_{n\\to\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{n}\\log\\|D_\\chi^{(n)}(x)\\|=\\lim_{n\\to\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{n}\\log\\|df^n_x\\|$.\nApplying the same argument along the sequence $m_k\\to\\infty$ for which\n$C_\\chi(f^{-m_k}(x))\\to C_\\chi(x)$, we obtain\n\\begin{equation}\\label{equality-spectra}\n\\lim_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log\\|D_\\chi^{(n)}(x)\\|=\\lim_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log\\|df^n_x\\|.\n\\end{equation}\n\n\\medskip\nSince $\\|C_\\chi(\\cdot)\\|\\leq 1$, $\\limsup_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log\\|C_\\chi(f^n(x))\\|\\leq 0$. Reversely,\nthe inequality $\\|df^n_x\\|\\leq \\|C_\\chi(f^n(x))\\|\\|D_\\chi^{(n)}(x)\\|\\|C_\\chi(x)^{-1}\\|$ implies\n$$\n\\liminf_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log\\|C_\\chi(f^n(x))\\|\\geq \\lim_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log\\|df^n_x\\|-\n\\lim_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log\\|D_\\chi^{(n)}(x)\\|=0.\n$$\nThis proves (3). A similar argument to the proof of (3) does {\\em not} give (4). For that, we introduce some normalizing matrices. \nLet $\\lambda_1(x),\\lambda_2(x)$ be the Lyapunov exponents of $df^n$ at $x$. By (\\ref{equality-spectra}),\n$D_\\chi^{(n)}$ has the same Lyapunov exponents at $x$. Taking\n$\\Lambda_\\chi(x):=\\left[\\begin{array}{cc}\\lambda_1(x) & 0 \\\\ 0 & \\lambda_2(x)\\end{array}\\right]$,\nwe have $\\lim_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log \\|(D_\\chi^{(n)}(x)\\Lambda_\\chi(x)^{-n})^{\\pm 1}\\|=0$.\n\n\\medskip\nSimilarly, we can define $\\Lambda(x):T_xM\\to T_xM$ by $\\Lambda(x)e^s_x=\\lambda_1(x)e^s_x$\nand $\\Lambda(x)e^u_x=\\lambda_2(x)e^u_x$ and observe that\n$\\lim_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log\\|(df^n_x\\Lambda(x)^{-n})^{\\pm 1}\\|=0$. Since\n$\\Lambda_\\chi(x)=C_\\chi(x)^{-1} \\Lambda(x) C_\\chi(x)$, it follows that\n\\begin{align*}\n&C_\\chi(f^n(x))^{-1}=D_\\chi^{(n)}(x)C_\\chi(x)^{-1}(df^n_x)^{-1}\\\\\n&=[D_\\chi^{(n)}(x)\\Lambda_\\chi(x)^{-n}][\\Lambda_\\chi(x)^n C_\\chi(x)^{-1} \\Lambda(x)^{-n}]\n[df^n_x\\Lambda(x)^{-n}]^{-1}\\\\\n&=[D_\\chi^{(n)}(x)\\Lambda_\\chi(x)^{-n}]C_\\chi(x)^{-1} [df^n_x\\Lambda(x)^{-n}]^{-1}\n\\end{align*}\nand hence\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\limsup_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log\\|C_\\chi(f^n(x))^{-1}\\|\\\\\n&\\leq\\lim_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log \\|D_\\chi^{(n)}(x)\\Lambda_\\chi(x)^{-n}\\|+\n\\lim_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log\\|(df^n_x\\Lambda(x)^{-n})^{-1}\\|=0.\n\\end{align*}\nSince $\\liminf_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log\\|C_\\chi(f^n(x))^{-1}\\|\\geq 0$, property (4) holds.\nHence $X$ satisfies (2)--(4) and $\\mu[X]=1$. Therefore\n$X\\cap{\\rm Reg}\\subset {\\rm NUH}_\\chi^*$ has full $\\mu$--measure.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\section{Non-linear Pesin theory}\n\nWe now define charts that make $f$ itself look like a hyperbolic matrix.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Pesin chart $\\Psi_x$:} For $x\\in{\\rm NUH}_\\chi$, let\n$\\Psi_x:R[\\mathfrak r(x)]\\to M$, $\\Psi_x:=\\exp{x}\\circ C_\\chi(x)$.\n$\\Psi_x$ is called the {\\em Pesin chart at $x$}.\n\n\\medskip\nGiven $x\\in M\\backslash\\mathfs D$, let $\\iota_x:T_xM\\to \\mathbb{R}^2$ be an isometry.\nIf $y\\in D_x$ and $A:\\mathbb{R}^2\\to T_yM$ is a linear map,\nwe can define $\\widetilde{A}:\\mathbb{R}^2\\to \\mathbb{R}^2$, $\\widetilde{A}:=\\iota_x\\circ P_{y,x}\\circ A$.\nAgain, $\\widetilde A$ depends on $x$ but $\\|\\widetilde{A}\\|$ does not.\n\n\n\\begin{lemma}\\label{Lemma-Pesin-chart}\nThe Pesin chart $\\Psi_x$ is a diffeomorphism onto its image. Moreover:\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item $\\Psi_x$ is $2$--Lipschitz and $\\Psi_x^{-1}$ is $2\\|C_\\chi(x)^{-1}\\|$--Lipschitz.\n\\item $\\|\\widetilde{d(\\Psi_x)_{v_1}}-\\widetilde{d(\\Psi_x)_{v_2}}\\|\\leq d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}\\|v_1-v_2\\|$\nfor all $v_1,v_2\\in R[\\mathfrak r(x)]$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nSince $C_\\chi(x)$ is a contraction,\n$C_\\chi(x)R[\\mathfrak r(x)]\\subset B_x[2\\mathfrak r(x)]$\nand so $\\Psi_x$ is well-defined with inverse $C_\\chi(x)^{-1}\\circ \\exp{x}^{-1}$.\nIt is a diffeomorphism because $C_\\chi(x)$ and $\\exp{x}$ are.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n(1) By (A2), $\\Psi_x$ is $2$--Lipschitz and\n$\\Psi_x^{-1}$ is $2\\|C_\\chi(x)^{-1}\\|$--Lipschitz.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n(2) Since $C_\\chi(x)v_i\\in B_x[2\\mathfrak r(x)]$, (A3) implies that\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\|\\widetilde{d(\\Psi_x)_{v_1}}-\\widetilde{d(\\Psi_x)_{v_2}}\\|=\n\\|\\widetilde{d(\\exp{x})_{C_\\chi(x)v_1}}\\circ C_\\chi(x)-\n\\widetilde{d(\\exp{x})_{C_\\chi(x)v_2}}\\circ C_\\chi(x)\\|\\\\\n&\\leq d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}\\|C_\\chi(x)v_1-C_\\chi(x)v_2\\|\\leq d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}\\|v_1-v_2\\|.\n\\end{align*}\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\medskip\nGiven $\\varepsilon>0$, let $I_\\varepsilon:=\\{e^{-\\frac{1}{3}\\varepsilon n}:n\\geq 0\\}$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Parameter $Q_\\varepsilon(x)$:} For $x\\in{\\rm NUH}_\\chi$, let\n$Q_\\varepsilon(x):=\\max\\{q\\in I_\\varepsilon:q\\leq \\widetilde Q_\\varepsilon(x)\\}$, where\n$$\n\\widetilde Q_\\varepsilon(x)=\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}\n\\min\\left\\{\\|C_\\chi(x)^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}^{-24\/\\beta},\\|C_\\chi(f(x))^{-1}\\|^{-12\/\\beta}_{\\rm Frob}\\rho(x)^{72a\/\\beta}\\right\\}.\n$$\n\n\\medskip\nThe term $\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}$ will allow to absorb multiplicative constants.\nThe choice of $Q_\\varepsilon(x)$ guarantees that\nthe composition $\\Psi_{f(x)}^{-1}\\circ f\\circ \\Psi_x$ is well-defined in $R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$\nand it is close to a linear hyperbolic map (Theorem \\ref{Thm-non-linear-Pesin}),\nand it allows to compare nearby Pesin charts (Proposition \\ref{Lemma-overlap}).\nWe have the following bounds:\n\\begin{align*}\n&Q_\\varepsilon(x)\\leq \\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}, \\|C_\\chi(x)^{-1}\\|Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/24}\\leq \\varepsilon^{1\/8},\n\\|C_\\chi(f(x))^{-1}\\|Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/12}\\leq \\varepsilon^{1\/4},\\\\\n&\\rho(x)^{-a}Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/72}<\\varepsilon^{1\/24}.\n\\end{align*}\n\n\n\\begin{lemma}[Temperedness lemma]\\label{Lemma-temperedness}\nIf $x\\in{\\rm NUH}_\\chi^*$, then\n$$\n\\lim_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log Q_\\varepsilon(f^n(x))=0.\n$$\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\n\\begin{proof}\nClearly $\\limsup_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log Q_\\varepsilon(f^n(x))\\leq 0$.\nReversely, $x\\in{\\rm Reg}$ implies that $\\lim_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log\\rho(f^n(x))=0$.\nBy property (4) in the definition of ${\\rm NUH}_\\chi^*$,\n$\\lim_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log\\|C_\\chi(f^n(x))^{-1}\\|=0$ hence $\\liminf_{n\\to\\pm\\infty}\\tfrac{1}{|n|}\\log Q_\\varepsilon(f^n(x))\\geq 0$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{The map $f$ in Pesin charts}\n\n\n\\begin{theorem}\\label{Thm-non-linear-Pesin}\nThe following holds for all $\\varepsilon>0$ small enough: If $x\\in{\\rm NUH}_\\chi$\nthen $f_x:=\\Psi_{f(x)}^{-1}\\circ f\\circ\\Psi_x$ is well-defined on\n$R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$ and satisfies:\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item $d(f_x)_0=C_\\chi(f(x))^{-1}\\circ df_x\\circ C_\\chi(x)$.\n\\item $f_x(v_1,v_2)=(Av_1+h_1(v_1,v_2),Bv_2+h_2(v_1,v_2))$ for $(v_1,v_2)\\in R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$ where:\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (a)}]\n\\item $|A|e^\\chi$, cf. Lemma \\ref{Lemma-linear-reduction}.\n\\item $h_1(0,0)=h_2(0,0)=0$ and $\\nabla h_1(0,0)=\\nabla h_2(0,0)=0$.\n\\item $\\|h_1\\|_{1+\\beta\/2}<\\varepsilon$ and $\\|h_2\\|_{1+\\beta\/2}<\\varepsilon$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\item $\\|df_x\\|_0<\\tfrac{2(1+e^{2\\chi})}{\\rho(x)^a}$.\n\\end{enumerate}\nThe norms above are taken in $R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$.\nA similar statement holds for $f_x^{-1}:=\\Psi_x^{-1}\\circ f^{-1}\\circ \\Psi_{f(x)}$.\n\\end{theorem}\n\n\n\\begin{proof}\nThe first step is to show that $f_x:R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]\\to\\mathbb{R}^2$ is well-defined.\nUsing that $C_\\chi(x)$ is a contraction, $C_\\chi(x)R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]\\subset B_x[20Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$.\nSince $C_\\chi(f(x))^{-1}$ is globally defined, it is enough to show that\n$$\n(f\\circ\\exp{x})(B_x[20Q_\\varepsilon(x)])\\subset \\exp{f(x)}(B_{f(x)}[2\\mathfrak r(f(x))]).\n$$\nFor small $\\varepsilon>0$ we have:\n\\begin{enumerate}[$\\circ$]\n\\item $20Q_\\varepsilon(x)<2\\mathfrak r(x)\\Rightarrow\\exp{x}$ is well-defined on $B_x[20Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$. By (A2),\n$\\exp{x}$ maps $B_x[20Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$ diffeomorphically into $B(x,40Q_\\varepsilon(x))$.\n\\item $40Q_\\varepsilon(x)<2\\mathfrak r(x)\\Rightarrow B(x,40Q_\\varepsilon(x))\\subset B(x,2\\mathfrak r(x))$. \nBy (A5), $f$ maps $B(x,40Q_\\varepsilon(x))$ diffeomorphically into $B(f(x),40 \\rho(x)^{-a}Q_\\varepsilon(x))$.\n\\item $40\\rho(x)^{-a}Q_\\varepsilon(x)<\\tfrac{\\mathfrak r(f(x))}{2}\\Rightarrow B(f(x),40 \\rho(x)^{-a}Q_\\varepsilon(x))\\subset\nB\\left(f(x),\\frac{\\mathfrak r(f(x))}{2}\\right)$. By (A2),\n$\\exp{f(x)}^{-1}$ maps $B\\left(f(x),\\frac{\\mathfrak r(f(x))}{2}\\right)$ diffeomorphically into\n$B_{f(x)}[\\mathfrak r(f(x))]$.\n\\end{enumerate}\nTherefore $f_x:R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]\\to\\mathbb{R}^2$ is a diffeomorphism onto its image.\n\n\\medskip\nWe check (1)--(2). Property (1) is clear since\n$d(\\Psi_x)_0=C_\\chi(x)$ and $d(\\Psi_{f(x)})_0=C_\\chi(f(x))$. By Lemma \\ref{Lemma-linear-reduction},\n$d(f_x)_0=\\left[\\begin{array}{cc}A & 0 \\\\ 0 & B\\end{array}\\right]$ with $|A|e^\\chi$. Define $h_1,h_2:R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]\\to\\mathbb{R} $ by \n$f_x(v_1,v_2)=(Av_1+h_1(v_1,v_2),Bv_2+h_2(v_1,v_2))$. Then (a)--(b) are automatically\nsatisfied. It remains to prove (c).\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Claim:} $\\|d(f_x)_{w_1}-d(f_x)_{w_2}\\|\\leq \\tfrac{\\varepsilon}{3}\\|w_1-w_2\\|^{\\beta\/2}$\nfor all $w_1,w_2\\in R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$.\n\n\\medskip\nBefore proving the claim, let us show how to conclude (c). Let $h=(h_1,h_2)$.\nIf $\\varepsilon>0$ is small enough then $R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]\\subset B_x[1]$. Applying the claim with $w_2=0$,\nwe get $\\|dh_w\\|\\leq \\frac{\\varepsilon}{3}\\|w\\|^{\\beta\/2}<\\tfrac{\\varepsilon}{3}$. By the mean value inequality,\n$\\|h(w)\\|\\leq \\tfrac{\\varepsilon}{3}\\|w\\|<\\tfrac{\\varepsilon}{3}$, hence $\\|h\\|_{1+\\beta\/2}<\\varepsilon$.\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of the claim.]\nFor $i=1,2$, define\n$$\nA_i= \\widetilde{d(\\exp{f(x)}^{-1})_{(f\\circ \\exp{x})(w_i)}}\\,,\\\nB_i=\\widetilde{df_{\\exp{x}(w_i)}}\\,,\\ C_i=\\widetilde{d(\\exp{x})_{w_i}}.\n$$\nWe first estimate $\\|A_1 B_1 C_1-A_2 B_2 C_2\\|$.\n\\begin{enumerate}[$\\circ$]\n\\item By (A2), $\\|A_i\\|\\leq 2$. By (A2), (A3), (A5):\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\|A_1-A_2\\|\\leq d(f(x),\\mathfs D)^{-a}d((f\\circ \\exp{x})(w_1),(f\\circ \\exp{x})(w_2))\\\\\n&\\leq 2d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}d(f(x),\\mathfs D)^{-a}\\|w_1-w_2\\|\\leq 2\\rho(x)^{-2a}\\|w_1-w_2\\|.\n\\end{align*}\n\\item By (A5), $\\|B_i\\|\\leq \\rho(x)^{-a}$. By (A2) and (A6):\n$$\n\\|B_1-B_2\\|\\leq \\mathfrak K d(\\exp{x}(w_1),\\exp{x}(w_2))^{\\beta}\\leq 2\\mathfrak K\\|w_1-w_2\\|^\\beta.\n$$\n\\item By (A2), $\\|C_i\\|\\leq 2$. By (A3):\n$$\n\\|C_1-C_2\\|\\leq d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}\\|w_1-w_2\\|\\leq \\rho(x)^{-a}\\|w_1-w_2\\|.\n$$\n\\end{enumerate}\nBy a crude approximation, we get $\\|A_1 B_1 C_1-A_2 B_2 C_2\\|\\leq 24\\mathfrak K\\rho(x)^{-3a}\\|w_1-w_2\\|^\\beta$.\nNow we estimate $\\|d(f_x)_{w_1}-d(f_x)_{w_2}\\|$:\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\|d(f_x)_{w_1}-d(f_x)_{w_2}\\|\\leq \\|C_\\chi(f(x))^{-1}\\| \\|A_1 B_1 C_1-A_2 B_2 C_2\\| \\|C_\\chi(x)\\|\\\\\n&\\leq 24\\mathfrak K\\rho(x)^{-3a}\\|C_\\chi(f(x))^{-1}\\|\\|w_1-w_2\\|^\\beta.\n\\end{align*}\nSince $\\|w_1-w_2\\|<40Q_\\varepsilon(x)$, if $\\varepsilon>0$ is small enough then\n\\begin{align*}\n&24\\mathfrak K\\rho(x)^{-3a}\\|C_\\chi(f(x))^{-1}\\|\\|w_1-w_2\\|^{\\beta\/2}\n\\leq 200\\mathfrak K\\rho(x)^{-3a}\\varepsilon^{3\/2}\\|C_\\chi(f(x))^{-1}\\|^{-5}\\rho(x)^{36a}\\\\\n&\\leq 200\\mathfrak K\\varepsilon^{3\/2}<\\varepsilon.\n\\end{align*}\nThis completes the proof of the claim.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n(3) In the proof of Lemma \\ref{Lemma-adaptedness} we showed that\n$\\|d(f_x)_0\\|=|B(x)|\\leq \\tfrac{\\sqrt{1+e^{2\\chi}}}{\\rho(x)^a}<\\tfrac{1+e^{2\\chi}}{\\rho(x)^a}$.\nBy part (2) above, if $w\\in R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$ then\n$\\|d(f_x)_w\\|\\leq \\varepsilon\\|w\\|^{\\beta\/2}+\\tfrac{1+e^{2\\chi}}{\\rho(x)^a}<\\tfrac{2(1+e^{2\\chi})}{\\rho(x)^a}$,\nsince $\\varepsilon\\|w\\|^{\\beta\/2}<1<\\tfrac{1+e^{2\\chi}}{\\rho(x)^a}$ for small $\\varepsilon>0$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{The overlap condition}\\label{section-overlap}\n\nWe now want to change coordinates from $\\Psi_x$ to $\\Psi_y$ when $x,y$\nare ``sufficiently close''. Even when $x$ and $y$ are very close, the behavior of $C_\\chi(x)$ and $C_\\chi(y)$\nmight differ, so we need to compare them.\nWe will eventually consider Pesin charts with different domains.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Pesin chart $\\Psi_x^\\eta$:} It is restriction of $\\Psi_x$ to $R[\\eta]$, where $0<\\eta\\leq Q_\\varepsilon(x)$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc $\\varepsilon$--overlap:} Two Pesin charts $\\Psi_{x_1}^{\\eta_1},\\Psi_{x_2}^{\\eta_2}$ are said to\n{\\em $\\varepsilon$--overlap} if $\\tfrac{\\eta_1}{\\eta_2}=e^{\\pm\\varepsilon}$ and if there is $x\\in M$ s.t.\n$x_1,x_2\\in D_x$ and $d(x_1,x_2)+\\|\\widetilde{C_\\chi(x_1)}-\\widetilde{C_\\chi(x_2)}\\|<(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^4$.\n\n\\medskip\nWe write $\\Psi_{x_1}^{\\eta_1}\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\approx}\\Psi_{x_2}^{\\eta_2}$.\nWe claim that if $\\varepsilon>0$ is small enough, then $\\Psi_{x_1}^{\\eta_1}\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\approx}\\Psi_{x_2}^{\\eta_2}$\nimplies that $\\Psi_{x_i}(R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x_i)])\\subset D_{x_1}\\cap D_{x_2}$\n(and hence we can apply (A1)--(A3) without mentioning $x$). We prove the inclusion for $i=1$.\nStart noting that, since $d(x_1,x_2)<\\varepsilon d(x_2,\\mathfs D)$,\n$d(x_1,\\mathfs D)=d(x_2,\\mathfs D)\\pm d(x_1,x_2)=(1\\pm\\varepsilon)d(x_2,\\mathfs D)$.\nBy Lemma \\ref{Lemma-Pesin-chart}(1),\n$\\Psi_{x_1}(R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x_1)])\\subset B(x_1,40Q_\\varepsilon(x_1))$. This ball\nis contained in $D_{x_1}$ since $40 Q_\\varepsilon(x_1)\\ll40\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}\\rho(x_1)^a<\\mathfrak r(x_1)$.\nWe have\n$$\n\\Psi_{x_1}(R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x_1)])\\subset B(x_1,40 Q_\\varepsilon(x_1))\\subset\nB(x_2,40 Q_\\varepsilon(x_1)+d(x_1,x_2)).\n$$\nSince\n$40Q_\\varepsilon(x_1)+d(x_1,x_2)\\leq 40\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}(1+\\varepsilon)^ad(x_2,\\mathfs D)^a+\nd(x_2,\\mathfs D)^a<2\\mathfrak r(x_2)$ for small $\\varepsilon>0$, it follows that\n$\\Psi_{x_1}(R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x_1)])\\subset D_{x_2}$.\nThe next proposition shows that $\\varepsilon$--overlap is strong enough to guarantee\nthat the Pesin charts are close.\n\n\n\\begin{proposition}\\label{Lemma-overlap}\nThe following holds for $\\varepsilon>0$ small enough.\nIf $\\Psi_{x_1}^{\\eta_1}\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\approx}\\Psi_{x_2}^{\\eta_2}$ then:\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item {\\sc Control of $s,u$:}\n$\\frac{s(x_1)}{s(x_2)}=e^{\\pm(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3}$ and $\\frac{u(x_1)}{u(x_2)}=e^{\\pm(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3}$.\n\\item {\\sc Control of $\\alpha$:} $\\frac{|\\sin\\alpha(x_1)|}{|\\sin\\alpha(x_2)|}=e^{\\pm(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3}$.\n\\item {\\sc Overlap:} $\\Psi_{x_i}(R[e^{-2\\varepsilon}\\eta_i])\\subset \\Psi_{x_j}(R[\\eta_j])$ for $i,j=1,2$.\n\\item {\\sc Change of coordinates:} For $i,j=1,2$, the map $\\Psi_{x_i}^{-1}\\circ\\Psi_{x_j}$\nis well-defined in $R[d(x_j,\\mathfs D)^a]$,\nand $\\|\\Psi_{x_i}^{-1}\\circ\\Psi_{x_j}-{\\rm Id}\\|_{1+\\beta\/2}<\\varepsilon(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^2$\nwhere the norm is taken in $R[d(x_j, \\mathfs{D})^{2a}]$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof} Assume $x_1,x_2\\in D_x$, and let $C_i=\\widetilde{C_\\chi(x_i)}$.\nBy assumption, $d(x_1,x_2)+\\|C_1-C_2\\|<(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^4$. Note that $\\Psi_{x_i}=\\exp{x_i}\\circ P_{x,x_i}\\circ C_i$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n(1) We prove the estimate for $s$ (the calculation for $u$ is similar).\nSince $\\varepsilon>0$ is small, it is enough to prove that $\\left|\\tfrac{s(x_1)}{s(x_2)}-1\\right|<\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3$.\nWe have $s(x_i)^{-1}=\\|C_\\chi(x_i)e_1\\|=\\|C_ie_1\\|$, hence\n$|s(x_1)^{-1}-s(x_2)^{-1}|=|\\|C_1e_1\\|-\\|C_2e_1\\||\\leq \\|C_1-C_2\\|<(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^4$.\nAlso\n$s(x_1)=\\|C_\\chi(x_1)e_1\\|^{-1}\\leq \\|C_\\chi(x_1)^{-1}\\|<\\tfrac{\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}}{Q_\\varepsilon(x_1)}\n<\\tfrac{\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}}{\\eta_1\\eta_2}$,\ntherefore\n$$\n\\left|\\tfrac{s(x_1)}{s(x_2)}-1\\right|=s(x_1)|s(x_1)^{-1}-s(x_2)^{-1}|<\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3.\n$$\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n(2) We use the general inequality for an invertible linear transformation $L$:\n\\begin{equation}\\label{gen-ineq-angles}\n\\frac{1}{\\|L\\|\\|L^{-1}\\|}\\leq \\frac{|\\sin\\angle(Lv,Lw)|}{|\\sin\\angle(v,w)|}\\leq \\|L\\|\\|L^{-1}\\|.\n\\end{equation}\nApply this to $L=C_1C_2^{-1}$, $v=C_2e_1$, $w=C_2e_2$ to get that\n$$\n\\frac{1}{\\|C_1C_2^{-1}\\|\\|C_2C_1^{-1}\\|}\\leq \\frac{\\sin\\alpha(x_1)}{\\sin\\alpha(x_2)}\\leq \\|C_1C_2^{-1}\\|\\|C_2C_1^{-1}\\|.\n$$\nWe have $\\|C_1C_2^{-1}-{\\rm Id}\\|\\leq\\|C_1-C_2\\|\\|C_2^{-1}\\|<\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3$,\nand by symmetry $\\|C_2C_1^{-1}-{\\rm Id}\\|<\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3$, therefore\n$\\|C_1C_2^{-1}\\|\\|C_2C_1^{-1}\\|<[1+\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3]^20$ small enough.\n\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n(4) The proof that $\\Psi_{x_2}^{-1}\\circ \\Psi_{x_1}$ is well-defined in\n$R[d(x_1,\\mathfs D)^a]$ is similar to the proof of (3). The only difference is in the last estimate:\nif $\\varepsilon>0$ is small enough then for $w\\in B$ it holds\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\|w\\|\\leq \\|v\\|+8\\|C_2^{-1}\\|(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^4\\leq \\sqrt{2}d(x_1,\\mathfs D)^a+8(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3\\\\\n&\\leq [\\sqrt{2}(1+\\varepsilon)^a+8\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}]d(x_2,\\mathfs D)^a<2\\mathfrak r(x_2).\n\\end{align*}\nNow:\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\Psi_{x_2}^{-1}\\circ \\Psi_{x_1}-{\\rm Id}=C_2^{-1}\\circ\\exp{x_2}^{-1}\\circ\\exp{x_1}\\circ C_1-{\\rm Id}\\\\\n&=[C_2^{-1}\\circ P_{x_2,x}]\\circ[\\exp{x_2}^{-1}\\circ\\exp{x_1}-P_{x_1,x_2}]\\circ [P_{x,x_1}\\circ C_1]+C_2^{-1}(C_1-C_2)\\\\\n&=[C_2^{-1}\\circ P_{x_2,x}]\\circ[\\exp{x_2}^{-1}-P_{x_1,x_2}\\circ\\exp{x_1}^{-1}]\\circ\\Psi_{x_1}+C_2^{-1}(C_1-C_2).\n\\end{align*}\nWe calculate the $C^{1+\\beta\/2}$ norm of $[\\exp{x_2}^{-1}-P_{x_1,x_2}\\circ\\exp{x_1}^{-1}]\\circ\\Psi_{x_1}$\nin the domain $R[d(x_1, \\mathfs{D})^{2a}]$.\nBy Lemma \\ref{Lemma-Pesin-chart}(1), $\\|d\\Psi_{x_1}\\|_0\\leq 2$\nand\n$$\n\\Hol{\\beta\/2}(d\\Psi_{x_1})\\leq d(x_1,\\mathfs D)^{-a}4d(x_1,\\mathfs{D})^{2a(1-\\beta\/2)}=4d(x_1,\\mathfs D)^{a(1-\\beta)}\n< 4.\n$$\nCall $\\Theta:=\\exp{x_2}^{-1}-P_{x_1,x_2}\\circ\\exp{x_1}^{-1}$. For $\\varepsilon>0$ small enough, inside $D_{x_1}$ we have:\n\\begin{enumerate}[$\\circ$]\n\\item By (A2),\n$\\|\\Theta(v)\\|\\leq d_{\\rm Sas}(\\exp{x_2}^{-1}(v),\\exp{x_1}^{-1}(v))\\leq 2d(x_1,x_2)\\leq 2\\varepsilon^{6\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3$\nthus $\\|\\Theta\\circ \\Psi_{x_1}\\|_0<\\varepsilon^{2\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3$.\n\\item By (A3), $\\|d\\Theta_v\\|=\\|\\tau(x_2,v)-\\tau(x_1,v)\\|\\leq d(x_1,\\mathfs D)^{-a}d(x_1,x_2)\n<\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3$.\nHence $\\|d\\Theta\\|_0<\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3$ and\n$\\|d(\\Theta\\circ\\Psi_{x_1})\\|_0\\leq 2\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3<\\varepsilon^{2\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3$.\n\\item By (A4),\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\|\\widetilde{d\\Theta_v}-\\widetilde{d\\Theta_w}\\|=\\|[\\tau(x_2,v)-\\tau(x_1,v)]-[\\tau(x_2,w)-\\tau(x_1,w)]\\|\\\\\n&\\leq d(x_1,\\mathfs D)^{-a}d(x_1,x_2)\\|v-w\\\n\\end{align*}\nhence ${\\rm Lip}(d\\Theta)\\leq d(x_1,\\mathfs D)^{-a}d(x_1,x_2)$.\n\\item Using that\n$$\n\\Hol{\\beta\/2}(d(\\Theta_1\\circ\\Theta_2))\\leq \\|d\\Theta_1\\|_0\\Hol{\\beta\/2}(d\\Theta_2)+\n{\\rm Lip}(d\\Theta_1)\\|d\\Theta_2\\|_0^{2}4d(x_1,\\mathfs{D})^{2a(1-\\beta\/2)}\n$$\nfor $\\Theta_2$ with domain $R[d(x_1,\\mathfs{D})^{2a}]$, we get that\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\Hol{\\beta\/2}[d(\\Theta\\circ\\Psi_{x_1})]\\leq \\|d\\Theta\\|_0\\Hol{\\beta\/2}(d\\Psi_{x_1})+\n{\\rm Lip}(d\\Theta)\\|d\\Psi_{x_1}\\|_0^2 4d(x_1,\\mathfs{D})^{2a(1-\\beta\/2)}\\\\\n&<4\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3+ \nd(x_1,\\mathfs D)^{-a}d(x_1,x_2)16d(x_1,\\mathfs{D})^{2a(1-\\beta\/2)}\\\\\n&<4\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3+16\\varepsilon^{6\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3<\\varepsilon^{2\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3.\n\\end{align*}\n\\end{enumerate}\nThis implies that $\\|\\Theta\\circ\\Psi_{x_1}\\|_{1+\\beta\/2}<3\\varepsilon^{2\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3$, hence\n$$\n\\|C_2^{-1}\\circ P_{x_2,x}\\circ\\Theta\\circ\\Psi_{x_1}\\|_{1+\\beta\/2}\\leq \\|C_2^{-1}\\|3\\varepsilon^{2\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3\n\\leq 3\\varepsilon^{2\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^2.\n$$\nThus\n$\\|\\Psi_{x_2}^{-1}\\circ \\Psi_{x_1}-{\\rm Id}\\|_{1+\\beta\/2}\\leq\n3\\varepsilon^{2\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^2+\\|C_2^{-1}\\|(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^4<\n3\\varepsilon^{2\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^2+\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^3<4\\varepsilon^{2\/\\beta}(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^2<\\varepsilon(\\eta_1\\eta_2)^2$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{The map $f_{x,y}$}\n\nLet $x,y\\in{\\rm NUH}_\\chi$, and assume that $\\Psi_{f(x)}^{\\eta}\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\approx}\\Psi_y^{\\eta'}$.\nWe want to change $\\Psi_{f(x)}$ by $\\Psi_y$ in $f_x$ and obtain a result\nsimilar to Theorem \\ref{Thm-non-linear-Pesin}.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc The maps $f_{x,y}$ and $f_{x,y}^{-1}$:} If $\\Psi_{f(x)}^{\\eta}\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\approx}\\Psi_y^{\\eta'}$,\ndefine the map $f_{x,y}:=\\Psi_y^{-1}\\circ f\\circ \\Psi_x$.\nIf $\\Psi_{x}^{\\eta}\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\approx}\\Psi_{f^{-1}(y)}^{\\eta'}$, define\n$f_{x,y}^{-1}:=\\Psi_x^{-1}\\circ f^{-1}\\circ \\Psi_y$. \n\n\\medskip\nAny meaningful estimate of the regularity of $f_{x,y}$ in the $C^{1+\\beta\/2}$ norm cannot be better than\nthat of Theorem \\ref{Thm-non-linear-Pesin}. In order to keep estimates of size $\\varepsilon$, we\nconsider the $C^{1+\\beta\/3}$ norm.\n\n\\begin{theorem}\\label{Thm-non-linear-Pesin-2}\nThe following holds for all $\\varepsilon>0$ small enough:\nIf $x,y\\in{\\rm NUH}_\\chi$ and $\\Psi_{f(x)}^{\\eta}\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\approx}\\Psi_{y}^{\\eta'}$, then\n$f_{x,y}$ is well-defined in $R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$ and can be written as\n$f_{x,y}(v_1,v_2)=(Av_1+h_1(v_1,v_2),Bv_2+h_2(v_1,v_2))$ where:\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (a)}]\n\\item $|A|e^{\\chi}$, cf. Lemma \\ref{Lemma-linear-reduction}.\n\\item $\\|h_i(0)\\|<\\varepsilon\\eta$, $\\|\\nabla h_i(0)\\|<\\varepsilon\\eta^{\\beta\/3}$, and\n$\\Hol{\\beta\/3}(\\nabla h_i)<\\varepsilon$ where the norm is taken in $R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$.\n\\end{enumerate}\nIf $\\Psi_{x}^{\\eta}\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\approx}\\Psi_{f^{-1}(y)}^{\\eta'}$\nthen a similar statement holds for $f_{x,y}^{-1}$.\n\\end{theorem} \n\n\n\\begin{proof}\nWe write $f_{x,y}=(\\Psi_y^{-1}\\circ\\Psi_{f(x)})\\circ f_x=:g\\circ f_x$ and see it as a\nsmall perturbation of $f_x$.\nBy Theorem \\ref{Thm-non-linear-Pesin}(2--3),\n$$\nf_x(0)=0,\\ \\|d(f_x)\\|_0< \\tfrac{2(1+e^{2\\chi})}{\\rho(x)^a},\\ \\|d(f_x)_v-d(f_x)_w\\|\\leq \\varepsilon\\|v-w\\|^{\\beta\/2}\n$$\nfor $v,w\\in R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$, where the $C^0$ norm is taken in $R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$,\nand by Proposition \\ref{Lemma-overlap}(4) we have\n$$\n\\|g-{\\rm Id}\\|<\\varepsilon(\\eta\\eta')^2,\\ \\|d(g-{\\rm Id})\\|_0<\\varepsilon(\\eta\\eta')^2,\\ \\|dg_v-dg_w\\|\\leq\\varepsilon(\\eta\\eta')^2\\|v-w\\|^{\\beta\/2}\n$$\nfor $v,w\\in R[d(f(x),\\mathfs{D})^{2a}]$, where the $C^0$ norm is taken in this same domain.\n\n\\medskip\nWe first prove that $f_{x,y}$ is well-defined in $R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$.\nWe have\n$$\nf_x(R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)])\\subset B(0,40(1+e^{2\\chi})\\rho(x)^{-a}Q_\\varepsilon(x))\\subset R[d(f(x),\\mathfs D)^{2a}]\n$$\nsince\n$40(1+e^{2\\chi})\\rho(x)^{-a}Q_\\varepsilon(x)<40(1+e^{2\\chi})\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}d(f(x),\\mathfs D)^{2a}0$ small enough. By Proposition \\ref{Lemma-overlap}(4), $f_{x,y}$ is well-defined.\n \n\\medskip\nNow we prove (b). Let $h:=(h_1,h_2)=g\\circ f_x-d(f_x)_0$.\nThen $\\|h(0)\\|=\\|g(0)\\|<\\varepsilon(\\eta\\eta')^2<\\varepsilon\\eta$\nand for $\\varepsilon>0$ small enough:\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\|\\nabla h(0)\\|\\leq \\|dg_0\\circ d(f_x)_0-d(f_x)_0\\|\\leq \\|d(g-{\\rm Id})_0\\|\\|d(f_x)_0\\|\\\\\n&<\\varepsilon(\\eta\\eta')^2 2(1+e^{2\\chi})\\rho(x)^{-a}<\\varepsilon\\eta\\eta' 2\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}(1+e^{2\\chi})<\\varepsilon\\eta^{\\beta\/3}.\n\\end{align*}\nFinally, since $f_x(R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)])\\subset R[d(f(x),\\mathfs D)^{2a}]$, if $\\varepsilon>0$ is small enough then\nfor all $v,w\\in R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$ it holds:\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\|dh_v-dh_w\\|=\\|dg_{f_x(v)}\\circ d(f_x)_v-dg_{f_x(w)}\\circ d(f_x)_w\\|\\\\\n&\\leq \\|dg_{f_x(v)}-dg_{f_x(w)}\\|\\|d(f_x)_v\\|+\\|dg_{f_x(w)}\\|\\|d(f_x)_v-d(f_x)_w\\|\\\\\n&\\leq \\varepsilon(\\eta\\eta')^2\\|f_x(v)-f_x(w)\\|^{\\beta\/2}\\|d(f_x)\\|_0+\\varepsilon\\|dg\\|_0\\|v-w\\|^{\\beta\/2}\\\\\n&\\leq (\\varepsilon(\\eta\\eta')^2\\|d(f_x)\\|_0^{1+\\beta\/2}+40\\varepsilon\\|dg\\|_0Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/6})\\|v-w\\|^{\\beta\/3}\\\\\n&\\leq (4\\eta^2(1+e^{2\\chi})^2\\rho(x)^{-2a}+ 80Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/6})\\varepsilon\\|v-w\\|^{\\beta\/3}\\\\\n&\\leq (4\\varepsilon^{6\/\\beta}(1+e^{2\\chi})^2+ 80\\varepsilon^{1\/2})\\varepsilon\\|v-w\\|^{\\beta\/3}<\\varepsilon\\|v-w\\|^{\\beta\/3}.\n\\end{align*}\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\section{Double charts and the graph transform method}\n\nWe now define $\\varepsilon$--double charts.\nFor $\\varepsilon>0$ small, define $\\delta_\\varepsilon:=e^{-\\varepsilon n}\\in I_\\varepsilon$ where $n$ is the unique positive integer s.t.\n$e^{-\\varepsilon n}<\\varepsilon\\leq e^{-\\varepsilon(n-1)}$. In particular, $\\delta_\\varepsilon<\\varepsilon$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc $\\varepsilon$--double chart:} An {\\em $\\varepsilon$--double chart} is a pair of Pesin charts\n$\\Psi_x^{p^s,p^u}=(\\Psi_x^{p^s},\\Psi_x^{p^u})$ where $p^s,p^u\\in I_\\varepsilon$\nwith $00$.\nSince zero is the only accumulation point of $I_\\varepsilon$,\n$q_\\varepsilon(x)$ is well-defined and positive.\nIt is clear that $q_\\varepsilon(x)\\leq \\delta_\\varepsilon Q_\\varepsilon(x)<\\varepsilon Q_\\varepsilon(x)$. Since\n$$\n\\min\\{e^{\\varepsilon|n|}Q_\\varepsilon(f^{n+1}(x)):n\\in\\mathbb{Z}\\}\\leq e^{\\varepsilon}\\min\\{e^{\\varepsilon|n+1|}Q_\\varepsilon(f^{n+1}(x)):n\\in\\mathbb{Z}\\},\n$$\nwe have $q_\\varepsilon(f(x))\\leq e^{\\varepsilon}q_\\varepsilon(x)$. Reversely,\n$$\n e^{-\\varepsilon}\\min\\{e^{\\varepsilon|n+1|}Q_\\varepsilon(f^{n+1}(x)):n\\in\\mathbb{Z}\\}\\leq \\min\\{e^{\\varepsilon|n|}Q_\\varepsilon(f^{n+1}(x)):n\\in\\mathbb{Z}\\}\n$$\ntherefore $e^{-\\varepsilon}q_\\varepsilon(x)\\leq q_\\varepsilon(f(x))$.\n\\end{proof}\n\nWe want to separate the dependence of $q_\\varepsilon(x)$\non the future from its dependence on the past, hence we define the one-sided versions of $q_\\varepsilon(x)$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Parameters $q_\\varepsilon^s(x),q_\\varepsilon^u(x)$:} For $x\\in{\\rm NUH}_\\chi^*$, define\n\\begin{align*}\nq_\\varepsilon^s(x)&:=\\delta_\\varepsilon\\min\\{e^{\\varepsilon|n|}Q_\\varepsilon(f^n(x)):n\\geq 0\\}\\\\\nq_\\varepsilon^u(x)&:=\\delta_\\varepsilon\\min\\{e^{\\varepsilon|n|}Q_\\varepsilon(f^n(x)):n\\leq 0\\}.\n\\end{align*}\n\n\\begin{lemma}\\label{Lemma-q^s}\nFor all $x\\in{\\rm NUH}_\\chi^*$, the following holds:\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item {\\sc Good definition:} $00\\text{ and }\\limsup_{n\\to-\\infty}q_\\varepsilon^u(f^n(x))>0.\n$$\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{ The graph transform method}\n\nLet $v=\\Psi_x^{p^s,p^u}$ be an $\\varepsilon$--double chart.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Admissible manifolds:} We define an {\\em $s$--admissible manifold at $v$} as a set\nof the form $\\Psi_x\\{(t,F(t)):|t|\\leq p^s\\}$ where $F:[-p^s,p^s]\\to\\mathbb{R}$ is a $C^{1+\\beta\/3}$ function\ns.t.:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item[(AM1)] $|F(0)|\\leq 10^{-3}(p^s\\wedge p^u)$.\n\\item[(AM2)] $|F'(0)|\\leq \\tfrac{1}{2}(p^s\\wedge p^u)^{\\beta\/3}$.\n\\item[(AM3)] $\\|F'\\|_0+\\Hol{\\beta\/3}(F')\\leq\\tfrac{1}{2}$ where the norms are taken in $[-p^s,p^s]$.\n\\end{enumerate}\nSimilarly, a {\\em $u$--admissible manifold at $v$} is a set\nof the form $\\Psi_x\\{(G(t),t):|t|\\leq p^u\\}$ where $G:[-p^u,p^u]\\to\\mathbb{R}$ is a $C^{1+\\beta\/3}$ function\nsatisfying (AM1)--(AM3), where the norms are taken in $[-p^u,p^u]$.\n\n\\medskip\nThe functions $F,G$ are called the {\\em representing functions}.\nWe let $\\mathfs M^s(v)$ (resp. $\\mathfs M^u(v)$) denote the set of all $s$--admissible\n(resp. $u$--admissible) manifolds at $v$.\n\n\\begin{lemma}\\label{Lemma-admissible-manifolds}\nThe following holds for $\\varepsilon>0$ small enough. If $v=\\Psi_x^{p^s,p^u}$ is an $\\varepsilon$--double chart, then for\nevery $V^s\\in\\mathfs M^s(v)$ and $V^u\\in\\mathfs M^u(v)$ it holds:\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item $V^s$ and $V^u$ intersect at a single point $P=\\Psi_x(w)$, and $\\|w\\|_\\infty<10^{-2}(p^s\\wedge p^u)$.\n\\item $\\tfrac{\\sin\\angle(V^s,V^u)}{\\sin\\alpha(x)}=e^{\\pm(p^s\\wedge p^u)^{\\beta\/4}}$\nand $|\\cos\\angle(V^s,V^u)-\\cos\\alpha(x)|<2(p^s\\wedge p^u)^{\\beta\/4}$, where\n$\\angle(V^s,V^u)=$ angle of intersection of the tangents to $V^s$ and $V^u$ at $P$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{lemma}\n\nWhen $M$ is compact and $f$ is a $C^{1+\\beta}$ diffeomorphism, this is \\cite[Prop. 4.11]{Sarig-JAMS}.\nThe same proof works almost verbatim, see the appendix for the necessary adaptations.\n\n\\medskip\nLet $v=\\Psi_x^{p^s,p^u}$, $w=\\Psi_y^{q^s,q^u}$ be $\\varepsilon$--double charts with\n$v\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\rightarrow}w$. We now define the {\\em graph transforms}: these are two maps\nthat work in different directions of the edge $v\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\rightarrow}w$, one of them\nsends $u$--admissible manifolds at $v$ to $u$--admissible manifolds at $w$, the other\nsends $s$--admissible manifolds at $w$ to $s$--admissible manifolds at $v$. \n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Graph transforms $\\mathfs F_{v,w}^s$ and $\\mathfs F_{v,w}^u$:} The {\\em graph transform}\n$\\mathfs F_{v,w}^s:\\mathfs M^s(w)\\to\\mathfs M^s(v)$ is the map that sends\nan $s$--admissible manifold at $w$ with representing function $F:[-q^s,q^s]\\to\\mathbb{R}$ to the unique\n$s$--admissible manifold at $v$ with representing function $G:[-p^s,p^s]\\to\\mathbb{R}$ s.t.\n$\\{(t,G(t)):|t|\\leq p^s\\}\\subset f_{x,y}^{-1}\\{(t,F(t)):|t|\\leq q^s\\}$. \nSimilarly, the {\\em graph transform} $\\mathfs F_{v,w}^u:\\mathfs M^u(v)\\to\\mathfs M^u(w)$\nis the map sending a $u$--admissible manifold at $v$ with representing function $F:[-p^u,p^u]\\to\\mathbb{R}$\nto the unique $u$--admissible manifold at $w$ with representing function $G:[-q^u,q^u]\\to\\mathbb{R}$ s.t.\n$\\{(G(t),t):|t|\\leq q^u\\}\\subset f_{x,y}\\{(F(t),t):|t|\\leq p^u\\}$.\n\n\\medskip\nIn other words, the representing functions of $s,u$--admissible manifolds\nchange by the application of $f_{x,y}^{-1},f_{x,y}$ respectively.\nFor $V_1,V_2\\in\\mathfs M^s(v)$ with representing functions\n$F_1,F_2$ and for $i\\geq 0$, define $ d_{C^i}(V_1,V_2):=\\|F_1-F_2\\|_i$ where the\nnorm is taken in $[-p^s,p^s]$. A similar definition\nholds in $\\mathfs M^u(v)$.\n\n\\begin{proposition}\\label{Prop-graph-transform}\nThe following holds for $\\varepsilon>0$ small enough. If $v\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\rightarrow}w$ then\n$\\mathfs F_{v,w}^s$ and $\\mathfs F_{v,w}^u$ are well-defined. Furthermore, if\n$V_1,V_2\\in \\mathfs M^u(v)$ then:\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item $ d_{C^0}(\\mathfs F_{v,w}^u(V_1),\\mathfs F_{v,w}^u(V_2))\\leq e^{-\\chi\/2} d_{C^0}(V_1,V_2)$.\n\\item $ d_{C^1}(\\mathfs F_{v,w}^u(V_1),\\mathfs F_{v,w}^u(V_2))\\leq\ne^{-\\chi\/2}( d_{C^1}(V_1,V_2)+ d_{C^0}(V_1,V_2)^{\\beta\/3})$.\n\\item $f(V_i)$ intersects every element of $\\mathfs M^u(w)$ at exactly one point.\n\\end{enumerate}\nAn analogous statement holds for $\\mathfs F_{v,w}^s$.\n\\end{proposition}\n\nWhen $M$ is compact and $f$ is a $C^{1+\\beta}$ diffeomorphism,\nthis is \\cite[Prop. 4.12 and 4.14]{Sarig-JAMS}.\nThe proof in our case requires some minor changes, see Appendix B.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Stable and unstable manifolds of $\\varepsilon$--gpo's}\n\nCall a sequence ${\\underline v}^+=\\{v_n\\}_{n\\geq 0}$ a {\\em positive $\\varepsilon$--gpo} if $v_n\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\to}v_{n+1}$\nfor all $n\\geq 0$. Similarly, a {\\em negative $\\varepsilon$--gpo} is a sequence ${\\underline v}^-=\\{v_n\\}_{n\\leq 0}$\ns.t. $v_{n-1}\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\to}v_n$ for all $n\\leq 0$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Stable\/unstable manifold of positive\/negative $\\varepsilon$--gpo:} The {\\em stable manifold}\nof a positive $\\varepsilon$--gpo ${\\underline v}^+=\\{v_n\\}_{n\\geq 0}$ is \n$$\nV^s[{\\underline v}^+]:=\\lim_{n\\to\\infty}\n(\\mathfs F_{v_0,v_1}^s\\circ\\cdots\\circ\\mathfs F_{v_{n-2},v_{n-1}}^s\\circ\\mathfs F_{v_{n-1},v_n}^s)(V_n)\n$$\nfor some (any) choice of $(V_n)_{n\\geq 0}$ with $V_n\\in\\mathfs M^s(v_n)$.\nThe {\\em unstable manifold} of a negative $\\varepsilon$--gpo ${\\underline v}^-=\\{v_n\\}_{n\\leq 0}$ is \n$$\nV^u[{\\underline v}^-]:=\\lim_{n\\to-\\infty}\n(\\mathfs F_{v_{-1},v_0}^u\\circ\\cdots\\circ\\mathfs F_{v_{n+1},v_{n+2}}^u\\circ\\mathfs F_{v_n,v_{n+1}}^u)(V_n)\n$$\nfor some (any) choice of $(V_n)_{n\\leq 0}$ with $V_n\\in\\mathfs M^u(v_n)$.\n\n\\medskip\nFor an $\\varepsilon$--gpo $\\underline{v}=\\{v_n\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}$, let\n$V^s[\\underline v]:=V^s[\\{v_n\\}_{n\\geq 0}]$\nand $V^u[\\underline v]:=V^u[\\{v_n\\}_{n\\leq 0}]$.\n\n\\begin{proposition}\\label{Prop-stable-manifolds}\nThe following holds for all $\\varepsilon>0$ small enough.\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item {\\sc Admissibility:} $V^s[{\\underline v}^+],V^s[{\\underline v}^-]$ are well-defined admissible manifolds at $v_0$.\n\\item {\\sc Invariance:}\n$$\nf(V^s[\\{v_n\\}_{n\\geq 0}])\\subset V^s[\\{v_n\\}_{n\\geq 1}]\\text{ and }\nf^{-1}(V^u[\\{v_n\\}_{n\\leq 0}])\\subset V^u[\\{v_n\\}_{n\\leq -1}].\n$$\n\\item {\\sc Shadowing:} If ${\\underline v}^+=\\{\\Psi_{x_n}^{p^s_n,p^u_n}\\}_{n\\geq 0}$ then\n$$\nV^s[{\\underline v}^+]=\\{x\\in \\Psi_{x_0}(R[p^s_0]):f^n(x)\\in \\Psi_{x_n}(R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x_n)]),\\,\\forall n\\geq 0\\}.\n$$\nAn analogous statement holds for $V^u[{\\underline v}^-]$.\n\\item {\\sc Hyperbolicity:} If $x,y\\in V^s[{\\underline v}^+]$ then $d(f^n(x),f^n(y))\\xrightarrow[n\\to\\infty]{}0$,\nif $x,y\\in V^u[{\\underline v}^-]$ then $d(f^n(x),f^n(y))\\xrightarrow[n\\to-\\infty]{}0$, and the rates are exponential.\n\\item {\\sc H\\\"older property:} The map $\\underline v^+\\mapsto V^s[\\underline v^+]$ is H\\\"older continuous,\ni.e. there exists $K>0$ and $\\theta<1$ s.t. for all $N\\geq 0$, if $\\underline v^+,\\underline w^+$ are positive $\\varepsilon$--gpo's\nwith $v_n=w_n$ for $n=0,\\ldots,N$\nthen $ d_{C^1}(V^s[\\underline v^+],V^s[\\underline w^+])\\leq K\\theta^N$. The same holds for the map\n$\\underline v^-\\mapsto V^u[\\underline v^-]$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{proposition}\n\nWhen $M$ is compact and $f$ is a $C^{1+\\beta}$ diffeomorphism,\nthis is \\cite[Prop. 4.15]{Sarig-JAMS}. The same proof works in our case:\nit uses the hyperbolicity of $f_{x,y}$ (Theorem \\ref{Thm-non-linear-Pesin-2}),\nand the contracting properties of the graph transforms (Proposition \\ref{Prop-graph-transform}).\nProposition \\ref{Prop-stable-manifolds} ensures that every $\\varepsilon$--gpo is associated to a unique point.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Shadowing:} We say that an $\\varepsilon$--gpo $\\{\\Psi_{x_n}^{p^s_n,p^u_n}\\}$ {\\em shadows}\na point $x\\in M$ when $f^n(x)\\in \\Psi_{x_n}(R[p^s_n\\wedge p^u_n])$ for all $n\\in\\mathbb{Z}$.\n\n\\begin{lemma}\\label{Lemma-shadowing}\nEvery $\\varepsilon$--gpo shadows a unique point.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nLet $\\underline v=\\{v_n\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}$ be an $\\varepsilon$--gpo. By Proposition \\ref{Prop-stable-manifolds}(3),\nany point shadowed by $\\underline v$ must lie in $V^s[\\{v_n\\}_{n\\geq 0}]\\cap V^u[\\{v_n\\}_{n\\leq 0}]$.\nBy Lemma \\ref{Lemma-admissible-manifolds}(1), this intersection consists of a singleton $\\{x\\}$.\nWrite $v_n=\\Psi_{x_n}^{p^s_n,p^u_n}$. By Proposition \\ref{Prop-stable-manifolds}(2),\nfor all $n\\geq 0$ we have $f^n(x)\\in V^s[\\{v_{n+k}\\}_{k\\geq 0}]\\subset \\Psi_{x_n}(R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x_n)])$,\nand for all $n\\leq 0$ we have $f^n(x)\\in V^u[\\{v_{n+k}\\}_{k\\leq 0}]\\subset\\Psi_{x_n}(R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x_n)])$,\nhence $\\underline v$ shadows $x$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\section{Coarse graining}\\label{Section-coarse-graining}\n\nWe now pass to a countable set of $\\varepsilon$--double charts that define a topological Markov shift that\nshadows all relevant orbits.\n\n\\begin{theorem}\\label{Thm-coarse-graining}\nFor all $\\varepsilon>0$ sufficiently small, there exists a countable family $\\mathfs A$ of $\\varepsilon$--double charts\nwith the following properties:\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item {\\sc Discreteness}: For all $t>0$, the set $\\{\\Psi_x^{p^s,p^u}\\in\\mathfs A:p^s,p^u>t\\}$ is finite.\n\\item {\\sc Sufficiency:} If $x\\in {\\rm NUH}_\\chi^*$ then there is a sequence $\\underline v\\in{\\mathfs A}^{\\mathbb{Z}}$\nthat shadows $x$.\n\\item {\\sc Relevance:} For all $v\\in \\mathfs A$ there is an $\\varepsilon$--gpo $\\underline{v}\\in\\mathfs A^\\mathbb{Z}$\nwith $v_0=v$ that shadows a point in ${\\rm NUH}_\\chi^*$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{theorem}\n\nParts (1) and (3) will be crucial to prove the inverse theorem (Theorem \\ref{Thm-inverse}).\nPart (2) says that the $\\varepsilon$--gpo's in $\\mathfs A$ shadow a.e. point with respect to every\n$f$--adapted $\\chi$--hyperbolic measure, see Lemma \\ref{Lemma-adaptedness}.\n\n\\begin{remark}\nIn part (2) we only assume that $x\\in{\\rm NUH}_\\chi^*$, while \\cite{Lima-Sarig,Sarig-JAMS}\nrequire the stronger assumption $x\\in{\\rm NUH}_\\chi^\\#$. The reason of the improvement\nis that here $q_\\varepsilon(x)$ is defined as a minimum instead of a sum,\nand hence Lemma \\ref{Lemma-q^s}(1) holds.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nWhen $M$ is compact and $f$ is a diffeomorphism, the above statement is consequence\nof Propositions 3.5, 4.5 and Lemmas 4.6, 4.7 of \\cite{Sarig-JAMS}. When $M$ is compact (with boundary)\nand $f$ is a local diffeomorphism with bounded derivatives, this is Proposition 4.3 of \\cite{Lima-Sarig}.\nWe follow the same strategy, adapted to our context.\n\n\\medskip\nFor $t>0$, let $M_t=\\{x\\in M: d(x,\\mathfs D)\\geq t\\}$.\nSince $M$ has finite diameter (remember we are even assuming it is smaller than one), each $M_t$\nis precompact\\footnote{$M_t$ might not be compact, since $M$ might have boundaries.}.\nLet $\\mathbb{N}_0=\\mathbb{N}\\cup\\{0\\}$. Fix a countable open cover $\\mathfs P=\\{D_i\\}_{i\\in\\mathbb{N}_0}$ of $M\\backslash\\mathfs D$ s.t.:\n\\begin{enumerate}[$\\circ$]\n\\item $D_i:=D_{z_i}=B(z_i,2\\mathfrak r(z_i))$ for some $z_i\\in M$.\n\\item For every $t>0$, $\\{D\\in\\mathfs P:D\\cap M_t\\neq\\emptyset\\}$ is finite.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\n\n\\medskip\nLet $X:=M^3\\times {\\rm GL}(2,\\mathbb{R})^3\\times (0,1]$.\nFor $x\\in{\\rm NUH}_\\chi^*$, let\n$\\Gamma(x)=(\\underline x,\\underline C,\\underline Q)\\in X$ with\n\\begin{align*}\n\\underline x=(f^{-1}(x),x,f(x)),\\ \\underline C=(C_\\chi(f^{-1}(x)),C_\\chi(x),C_\\chi(f(x))),\\ \\underline Q=Q_\\varepsilon(x).\n\\end{align*}\nLet $Y=\\{\\Gamma(x):x\\in{\\rm NUH}_\\chi^*\\}$. We want to construct a countable dense subset\nof $Y$. Since the maps $x\\mapsto C_\\chi(x),Q_\\varepsilon(x)$ are usually just measurable,\nwe apply a precompactness argument.\nFor each triple of vectors $\\underline{k}=(k_{-1},k_0,k_1)$, $\\underline{\\ell}=(\\ell_{-1},\\ell_0,\\ell_1)$,\n$\\underline a=(a_{-1},a_0,a_1)\\in\\mathbb{N}_0^3$ and $m\\in\\mathbb{N}_0$, define\n$$\nY_{\\underline k,\\underline \\ell,\\underline a,m}:=\\left\\{\\Gamma(x)\\in Y:\n\\begin{array}{cl}\ne^{-k_i-1}\\leq d(f^i(x),\\mathfs D)< e^{-k_i},& -1\\leq i\\leq 1\\\\\ne^{\\ell_i}\\leq\\|C_\\chi(f^i(x))^{-1}\\|0$, and let $\\Psi_x^{p^s,p^u}\\in\\mathfs A$ with $p^s,p^u>t$.\nNote that $\\rho(x)>\\rho(x)^{2a}>Q_\\varepsilon(x)>p^s,p^u>t$.\nIf $\\Gamma(x)\\in Y_{\\underline k,\\underline\\ell,\\underline a,m}(j)$ then:\n\\begin{enumerate}[$\\circ$]\n\\item Finiteness of $\\underline k$: for $|i|\\leq 1$, $e^{-k_i}> d(f^i(x),\\mathfs D)\\geq\\rho(x)>t$, hence $k_i< |\\log t|$.\n\\item Finiteness of $\\underline\\ell$: for $i=0,1$, $e^{\\ell_i}\\leq \\|C_\\chi(f^i(x))^{-1}\\|Q_\\varepsilon(x)>t$, hence $m<|\\log t|$.\n\\item Finiteness of $j$: $tt\\}\\leq \\#(I_\\varepsilon\\cap (t,1])^2$ is finite.\n\\end{enumerate}\nThe first five items above give that, for $\\underline a\\in\\mathbb{N}_0^3$ and $t>0$,\n\\begin{align*}\n\\#\\left\\{\\Gamma(x):\n\\begin{array}{c}\n\\Psi_x^{p^s,p^u}\\in\\mathcal A\\text{ s.t. }p^s,p^u>t\\\\\n\\text{and }f^i(x)\\in D_{a_i}, |i|\\leq 1\n\\end{array}\n\\right\\}\\leq\\sum_{j=0}^{\\lceil |\\log t|\\rceil+2}\\sum_{m=0}^{\\lceil |\\log t|\\rceil}\n\\sum_{-1\\leq i\\leq 1\\atop{k_i,\\ell_i=0}}^{T_t}\n\\# Y_{\\underline k,\\underline\\ell,\\underline a,m}(j)\n\\end{align*}\nis the finite sum of finite terms, hence finite. Together with the last item above,\nwe conclude that\n\\begin{align*}\n\\#\\left\\{\\Psi_x^{p^s,p^u}\\in\\mathcal A:p^s,p^u>t\\right\\}&\\leq \n\\sum_{j=0}^{\\lceil |\\log t|\\rceil+2}\\sum_{m=0}^{\\lceil |\\log t|\\rceil}\\sum_{-1\\leq i\\leq 1\\atop{k_i,\\ell_i=0}}^{T_t}\n\\# Y_{\\underline k,\\underline\\ell,\\underline a,m}(j)\\\\\n&\\ \\ \\ \\times (\\#\\{D\\in\\mathfs P:D\\cap M_t\\neq\\emptyset\\})^3\\times (\\#(I_\\varepsilon\\cap (t,1]))^2\n\\end{align*}\nis finite. This proves the discreteness of $\\mathfs A$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\em Proof of sufficiency.}\nLet $x\\in {\\rm NUH}_\\chi^*$. Take $(k_i)_{i\\in\\mathbb{Z}},(\\ell_i)_{i\\in\\mathbb{Z}},(m_i)_{i\\in\\mathbb{Z}},(a_i)_{i\\in\\mathbb{Z}},(j_i)_{i\\in\\mathbb{Z}}$ s.t.:\n\\begin{align*}\n& d(f^i(x),\\mathfs D)\\in [e^{-k_i-1},e^{-k_i}), \\|C_\\chi(f^i(x))^{-1}\\|\\in [e^{\\ell_i},e^{\\ell_i+1}),\\\\\n&Q_\\varepsilon(f^i(x))\\in [e^{-m_i-1},e^{-m_i}),f^i(x)\\in D_{a_i}, q_\\varepsilon(f^i(x))\\in[e^{-j_i-1},e^{-j_i+1}).\n\\end{align*}\nFor $n\\in\\mathbb{Z}$, define\n$$\n\\underline k^{(n)}=(k_{n-1},k_n,k_{n+1}),\\ \\underline\\ell^{(n)}=(\\ell_{n-1},\\ell_n,\\ell_{n+1}),\\ \\underline a^{(n)}=(a_{n-1},a_n,a_{n+1}).\n$$\nThen $\\Gamma(f^n(x))\\in Y_{\\underline k^{(n)},\\underline\\ell^{(n)},\\underline a^{(n)},m_n}$.\nTake $\\Gamma(x_n)\\in Y_{\\underline k^{(n)},\\underline\\ell^{(n)},\\underline a^{(n)},m_n}(j_n)$\ns.t.:\n\\begin{enumerate}[aaa)]\n\\item[(${\\rm a}_n$)] $ d(f^i(f^n(x)),f^i(x_n))+\n\\|\\widetilde{C_\\chi(f^i(f^n(x)))}-\\widetilde{C_\\chi(f^i(x_n))}\\|0$ is sufficiently small. This proves\nthat $\\Psi_{f(x_n)}^{p^s_{n+1}\\wedge p^u_{n+1}}\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\approx}\\Psi_{x_{n+1}}^{p^s_{n+1}\\wedge p^u_{n+1}}$.\nSimilarly, we prove that\n$\\Psi_{f^{-1}(x_{n+1})}^{p^s_n\\wedge p^u_n}\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\approx}\\Psi_{x_n}^{p^s_n\\wedge p^u_n}$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n(GPO2) The very definitions of $p^s_n,p^u_n$ guarantee that\n$p^s_n=\\min\\{e^\\varepsilon p^s_{n+1},\\delta_\\varepsilon Q_\\varepsilon(x_n)\\}$ and\n$p^u_{n+1}=\\min\\{e^\\varepsilon p^u_n,\\delta_\\varepsilon Q_\\varepsilon(x_{n+1})\\}$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Claim 4:} $\\{\\Psi_{x_n}^{p^s_n,p^u_n}\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}$ shadows $x$.\n\n\\medskip\nBy (${\\rm a}_n$) with $i=0$, we have\n$\\Psi_{f^n(x)}^{p^s_n\\wedge p^u_n}\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\approx}\\Psi_{x_n}^{p^s_n\\wedge p^u_n}$, hence \nby Proposition \\ref{Lemma-overlap}(3) we have $f^n(x)=\\Psi_{f^n(x)}(0)\\in \\Psi_{x_n}(R[p^s_n\\wedge p^u_n])$,\nthus $\\{\\Psi_{x_n}^{p^s_n,p^u_n}\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}$ shadows $x$.\n\n\\medskip\nThis concludes the proof of sufficiency.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\em Proof of relevance.} The alphabet $\\mathfs A$ might not a priori satisfy\nthe relevance condition, but we can easily reduce it to a sub-alphabet $\\mathfs A'$ satisfying (1)--(3).\nCall $v\\in\\mathfs A$ relevant if there is $\\underline v\\in\\mathfs A^\\mathbb{Z}$ with $v_0=v$ s.t. $\\underline{v}$ shadows\na point in ${\\rm NUH}_\\chi^*$. Since ${\\rm NUH}_\\chi^*$ is $f$--invariant, every $v_i$ is relevant.\nThen $\\mathfs A'=\\{v\\in\\mathfs A:v\\text{ is relevant}\\}$ is discrete\nbecause $\\mathfs A'\\subset\\mathfs A$, it is sufficient and relevant by definition.\n\\end{proof}\n\nLet $\\Sigma$ be the TMS associated to the graph with vertex set $\\mathfs A$ given by\nTheorem \\ref{Thm-coarse-graining} and\nedges $v\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\to}w$. An element of $\\Sigma$ is an $\\varepsilon$--gpo, hence\nwe define $\\pi:\\Sigma\\to M$ by\n$$\n\\{\\pi[\\{v_n\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}]\\}:=V^s[\\{v_n\\}_{n\\geq 0}]\\cap V^u[\\{v_n\\}_{n\\leq 0}].\n$$\nHere are the main properties of the triple $(\\Sigma,\\sigma,\\pi)$.\n\n\\begin{proposition}\\label{Prop-pi}\nThe following holds for all $\\varepsilon>0$ small enough.\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item Each $v\\in\\mathfs A$ has finite ingoing and outgoing degree, hence $\\Sigma$ is locally compact.\n\\item $\\pi:\\Sigma\\to M$ is H\\\"older continuous.\n\\item $\\pi\\circ\\sigma=f\\circ\\pi$.\n\\item $\\pi[\\Sigma]\\supset{\\rm NUH}_\\chi^*$.\n\\end{enumerate} \n\\end{proposition}\n\nPart (1) follows from (GPO2), part (2) follows from Proposition \\ref{Prop-graph-transform},\npart (3) is obvious, and part (4) follows from Theorem \\ref{Thm-coarse-graining}(2).\nIt is important noting that $(\\Sigma,\\sigma,\\pi)$ does {\\em not} satisfy Theorem \\ref{Thm-main},\nsince $\\pi$ might be (and usually is) infinite-to-one. We use $\\pi$ to induce a locally\nfinite cover of ${\\rm NUH}_\\chi^\\#$, which will then be refined to a partition of ${\\rm NUH}_\\chi^\\#$\nthat will lead to the proof of Theorem \\ref{Thm-main}.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\section{The inverse problem}\n\nOur goal is to analyze when $\\pi$ loses injectivity. More specifically, given that\n$\\pi(\\underline{v})=\\pi(\\underline{w})$ we want to compare $v_n$ and $w_n$, and show that they\nare uniquely defined ``up to bounded error''. We do this under the additional assumption\nthat $\\underline{v},\\underline{w}\\in\\Sigma^\\#$. Remind that $\\Sigma^\\#$ is the {\\em recurrent set} of $\\Sigma$:\n$$\n\\Sigma^\\#:=\\left\\{\\underline v\\in\\Sigma:\\exists v,w\\in V\\text{ s.t. }\\begin{array}{l}v_n=v\\text{ for infinitely many }n>0\\\\\nv_n=w\\text{ for infinitely many }n<0\n\\end{array}\\right\\}.\n$$\nThe main result is the following.\n\n\\begin{theorem}[Inverse theorem]\\label{Thm-inverse}\nThe following holds for $\\varepsilon>0$ small enough.\nIf $\\{\\Psi_{x_n}^{p^s_n,p^u_n}\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}},\\{\\Psi_{y_n}^{q^s_n,q^u_n}\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}\\in\\Sigma^\\#$ satisfy\n$\\pi[\\{\\Psi_{x_n}^{p^s_n,p^u_n}\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}]=\\pi[\\{\\Psi_{y_n}^{q^s_n,q^u_n}\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}]$ then:\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item $d(x_n,y_n)<25^{-1}\\max\\{p^s_n\\wedge p^u_n,q^s_n\\wedge q^u_n\\}$.\n\\item $\\tfrac{\\sin\\alpha(x_n)}{\\sin\\alpha(y_n)}=e^{\\pm\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}}$ and\n$|\\cos\\alpha(x_n)-\\cos\\alpha(y_n)|<\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}$.\n\\item $\\tfrac{s(x_n)}{s(y_n)}=e^{\\pm 4\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}}$ and $\\tfrac{u(x_n)}{u(y_n)}=e^{\\pm 4\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}}$.\n\\item $\\tfrac{Q_\\varepsilon(x_n)}{Q_\\varepsilon(y_n)}=e^{\\pm \\sqrt[3]{\\varepsilon}}$.\n\\item $\\tfrac{p^s_n}{q^s_n}=e^{\\pm\\sqrt[3]{\\varepsilon}}$ and $\\tfrac{p^u_n}{q^u_n}=e^{\\pm\\sqrt[3]{\\varepsilon}}$.\n\\item $(\\Psi_{y_n}^{-1}\\circ\\Psi_{x_n})(v)=(-1)^{\\sigma_n}v+\\delta_n+\\Delta_n(v)$ for $v\\in R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x_n)]$,\nwhere $\\sigma_n\\in\\{0,1\\}$, $\\delta_n$ is a vector with $\\|\\delta_n\\|<10^{-1}(q^s_n\\wedge q^u_n)$ and\n$\\Delta_n$ is a vector field s.t. $\\Delta_n(0)=0$ and $\\|d\\Delta_n\\|_0<\\sqrt[3]{\\varepsilon}$ on $R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x_n)]$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{theorem}\n\nThe difference from Theorem \\ref{Thm-inverse} to \\cite[Thm 5.2]{Sarig-JAMS} is\nthat the estimate on our part (6) holds only in the smaller rectangle $R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x_n)]$. Part (1) is proved as\nin \\cite[Prop. 5.3]{Sarig-JAMS}. \nHere is one of its consequences. We have\n$d(x_n,y_n)<25^{-1}(p^s_n\\wedge p^u_n+q^s_n\\wedge q^u_n)<\\varepsilon[d(x_n,\\mathfs D)^a+d(y_n,\\mathfs D)^a]$,\nhence\n$$\nd(x_n,\\mathfs D)=d(y_n,\\mathfs D)\\pm d(x_n,y_n)=d(y_n,\\mathfs D)\\pm\\varepsilon[d(x_n,\\mathfs D)^a+d(y_n,\\mathfs D)^a].\n$$\nThese estimates have two consequences. The first is that\n\\begin{equation}\\label{equation-distances}\n\\frac{1-\\varepsilon}{1+\\varepsilon}\\leq \\frac{d(x_n,\\mathfs D)}{d(y_n,\\mathfs D)}\\leq \\frac{1+\\varepsilon}{1-\\varepsilon}\n\\end{equation}\nand so, for $\\varepsilon>0$ is sufficiently small, it holds\n$\\tfrac{1}{2}\\leq \\tfrac{d(x_n,\\mathfs D)^a}{d(y_n,\\mathfs D)^a}\\leq 2$.\nThe second consequence is that $x_n\\in D_{y_n}$ and $y_n\\in D_{x_n}$, since\n\\begin{align*}\n&d(x_n,y_n)<\\varepsilon[d(x_n,\\mathfs D)^a+d(y_n,\\mathfs D)^a]<3\\varepsilon\\min\\{d(x_n,\\mathfs D)^a,d(y_n,\\mathfs D)^a\\}\\\\\n&<\\min\\{\\mathfrak r(x_n),\\mathfrak r(y_n)\\}.\n\\end{align*}\nTherefore we can take parallel transport with respect to either $x_n$ or $y_n$.\n\n\n\\medskip\nThe proofs of parts (2)--(6) use, as in \\cite{Sarig-JAMS}, some auxiliary facts about admissible manifolds. Let\n$\\underline v^+=\\{v_n\\}_{n\\geq 0}$ be a positive $\\varepsilon$--gpo with $v_n=\\Psi_{x_n}^{p^s_n,p^u_n}$.\nBy Proposition \\ref{Prop-stable-manifolds}, $V^s[\\underline v^+]$ has the following property:\n$f^n(V^s[\\underline v^+])\\subset V^s[\\{v_k\\}_{k\\geq n}]\\subset \\Psi_{x_n}(R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x_n)])$.\nThis motivates the definition of {\\em staying in windows} as in \\cite{Sarig-JAMS}:\ngiven an $\\varepsilon$--double chart, say that $V^s\\in\\mathfs M^s(v)$ stays in windows if\nthere exists a positive $\\varepsilon$--gpo $\\underline v^+$ with $v_0=v$ and $s$--admissible\nmanifolds $W^s_n\\in\\mathfs M^s(v_n)$ s.t. $f^n(V^s)\\subset W^s_n$ for all $n\\geq 0$.\nIn particular, every $V^s[\\underline v^+]$ stays in windows, and the reverse statement is also true.\nAn analogous definition holds for $u$--admissible manifolds. Given $V^s\\in \\mathfs M^s[v]$\nand $x\\in V^s$, let $e^s_x\\in T_xM$ denote the positively oriented vector tangent to $V^s$ at $x$.\n\n\\begin{proposition}\\label{Prop-stay-window}\nThe following holds for all $\\varepsilon>0$ small enough.\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item If $V^s\\in\\mathfs M^s[\\Psi_x^{p^s,p^u}]$ stays in windows then for all $y,z\\in V^s$ and $n\\geq 0$: \n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (a)}]\n\\item $d(f^n(y),f^n(z))<6p^s e^{-\\frac{\\chi}{2}n}$.\n\\item $\\|df^n_y e^s_y\\|\\leq 6\\|C_\\chi(x)^{-1}\\|e^{-\\frac{\\chi}{2}n}$.\n\\item $|\\log\\|df^n_y e^s_y\\|-\\log\\|df^n_z e^s_z\\||0$ small enough. Let $v\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\to}w$ with\n$v=\\Psi_x^{p^s,p^u},w=\\Psi_y^{q^s,q^u}$, and assume $V^s\\in\\mathfs M^s[w]$ stays in windows.\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item If $s(V^s)<\\infty$ then $s[\\mathfs F^s_{v,w}(V^s)]<\\infty$.\n\\item For $\\xi\\geq {\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}}$, if $s(V^s)<\\infty$ and $\\tfrac{s(V^s)}{s(y)}=e^{\\pm\\xi}$\nthen $\\tfrac{s(\\mathfs F^s_{v,w}(V^s))}{s(x)}=e^{\\pm(\\xi-Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4})}$.\n\\end{enumerate} \n\\end{lemma}\n\nNote that the ratio improves. \n\n\\begin{proof}\nWhen $M$ is compact and $f$ is a $C^{1+\\beta}$ diffeomorphism,\nthis is \\cite[Lemma 7.2]{Sarig-JAMS}, and the proof of part (1) is identical.\nPart (2) requires some finer estimates.\n\n\\medskip\nLet $F,G$ be the representing functions of $V^s,\\mathfs F^s_{v,w}(V^s)$,\nand let $q:=\\Psi_y(0,F(0))$, $p:=\\Psi_x(0,G(0))$. Then\n$\\tfrac{s(\\mathfs F^s_{v,w}(V^s))}{s(x)}=\\tfrac{s(p)}{s(x)}=\\tfrac{s(p)}{s(f^{-1}(q))}\\cdot\\tfrac{s(f^{-1}(q))}{s(f^{-1}(y))}\\cdot\\tfrac{s(f^{-1}(y))}{s(x)}$. We have:\n\\begin{enumerate}[$\\circ$]\n\\item $p,f^{-1}(q)\\in \\mathfs F^s_{v,w}(V^s)$, hence Proposition \\ref{Prop-stay-window}(1)(c) implies\n$\\tfrac{s(p)}{s(f^{-1}(q))}=e^{\\pm Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}}$.\n\\item Since $(p^s\\wedge p^u)^3(q^s\\wedge q^u)^3\\ll Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}$,\nProposition \\ref{Lemma-overlap}(1) implies $\\tfrac{s(f^{-1}(y))}{s(x)}=e^{\\pm Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}}$.\n\\end{enumerate}\nThus it is enough to show that $\\tfrac{s(f^{-1}(q))}{s(f^{-1}(y))}=e^{\\pm(\\xi-3Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4})}$.\nWe show one side of the inequality (the other is similar).\nNote that this is the term that gives the improvement. As in \\cite[pp. 375]{Sarig-JAMS}, we have\n$$\n\\tfrac{s(f^{-1}(q))^2}{s(f^{-1}(y))^2}\\leq\n\\underbrace{\\left(\\tfrac{2+e^{2\\xi+2\\chi}s(y)^2\\|df e^s_{f^{-1}(y)}\\|^2}{2+e^{2\\chi}s(y)^2\\|df e^s_{f^{-1}(y)}\\|^2}\\right)}_{= \\text{ I}}\\ \n\\underbrace{{\\rm exp}\\left(2|\\log \\|df e^s_{f^{-1}(q)}\\|-\\log \\|df e^s_{f^{-1}(y)}\\||\\right)}_{=\\text{ II}}.\n$$\nWe estimate I as in \\cite[pp. 376]{Sarig-JAMS}: I $\\leq e^{2\\xi-7Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}}$.\nTherefore it suffices to show that $\\text{II}\\leq e^{Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}}$.\nSince $\\|df e^s_{f^{-1}(z)}\\|=\\|df^{-1}e^s_z\\|^{-1}$,\n$\\text{II}={\\rm exp}(2|\\log \\|df^{-1}e^s_q\\|-\\log \\|df^{-1}e^s_{y}\\||)$, hence\nby the claim in the proof of Proposition \\ref{Prop-stay-window} (Appendix B):\n\\begin{equation}\\label{estimate-II}\n\\log(\\text{II})\\leq2\\mathfrak K\\rho(y)^{-2a}[d(q,y)^\\beta+\\|e^s_q-P_{y,q}e^s_y\\|].\n\\end{equation}\nSince $q=\\Psi_y(0,G(0))$ and $y=\\Psi_y(0,0)$, Lemma \\ref{Lemma-Pesin-chart}(1) implies that\n$d(q,y)\\leq 2|G(0)|\\leq 500^{-1}(q^s\\wedge q^u)\\leq 500^{-1}e^\\varepsilon(p^s\\wedge p^u)$, therefore\n$d(q,y)0$:\n\\begin{align*}\n&2\\mathfrak K\\rho(y)^{-2a}d(q,y)^\\beta\\leq 2\\mathfrak K\\rho(y)^{-2a}Q_\\varepsilon(y)^{3\\beta\/4}Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}\n\\leq 2\\mathfrak K\\rho(y)^{-2a}Q_\\varepsilon(y)^{\\beta\/36}Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}\\\\\n&\\leq 2\\mathfrak K\\varepsilon^{1\/12}Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}<\\tfrac{1}{2}Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}.\n\\end{align*}\nTo bound the second term of (\\ref{estimate-II}), we first estimate $\\sin\\angle(e^s_q,P_{y,q}e^s_y)$.\nSince $e^s_y$ is the unitary vector in the direction of\n$d(\\Psi_y)_0\\colvec{1\\\\0}=d(\\exp{y})_0\\circ C_\\chi(y)\\colvec{1\\\\0}$\nand $e^s_q$ is the unitary vector in the direction of\n$d(\\Psi_y)_{(0,G(0))}\\colvec{1\\\\ G'(0)}=d(\\exp{y})_{C_\\chi(y)\\colvec[.6]{0\\\\G(0)}}\\circ C_\\chi(y)\\colvec{1\\\\ G'(0)}$,\nthe angles they define are the same. In other words, if\n$$\nA=\\widetilde{d(\\exp{y})_0\\circ C_\\chi(y)},B=\\widetilde{d(\\exp{y})_{C_\\chi(y)\\colvec[.6]{0\\\\G(0)}}\\circ C_\\chi(y)},\nv_1=\\colvec{1\\\\0},v_2=\\colvec{1\\\\ G'(0)}\n$$\nthen $\\sin\\angle(e^s_q,P_{y,q}e^s_y)=\\sin\\angle(Av_1,Bv_2)$. Using (\\ref{gen-ineq-angles}) \nwith $L=A$, $v=v_1$, $w=A^{-1}Bv_2$, we get\n\\begin{align*}\n&|\\sin\\angle(Av_1,Bv_2)|\\leq \\|A\\|\\|A^{-1}\\||\\sin\\angle(v_1,A^{-1}Bv_2)|\\\\\n&\\leq \\|C_\\chi(y)^{-1}\\|[|\\sin\\angle(v_1,v_2)|+|\\sin\\angle(v_2,A^{-1}Bv_2)|].\n\\end{align*}\nWe have $|\\sin\\angle(v_1,v_2)|\\leq |G'(0)|\\leq \\tfrac{1}{2}(q^s\\wedge q^u)^{\\beta\/3}\\leq\n\\tfrac{e^{\\frac{\\beta\\varepsilon}{3}}}{2}(p^s\\wedge p^u)^{\\beta\/3}$, therefore for small $\\varepsilon>0$ it holds\n$|\\sin\\angle(v_1,v_2)|\\leq Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/3},Q_\\varepsilon(y)^{\\beta\/3}$. In particular\n$|\\sin\\angle(v_1,v_2)|\\leq Q_\\varepsilon(y)^{\\beta\/12}Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}$. Also, by (A3):\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\|A^{-1}B-{\\rm Id}\\|\\leq \\|A^{-1}\\|\\|A-B\\|\\leq\n\\|C_\\chi(y)^{-1}\\| \\left\\|\\widetilde{d(\\exp{y})_0}-\\widetilde{d(\\exp{y})_{C_\\chi(y)\\colvec[.6]{0\\\\ G(0)}}}\\right\\|\\\\\n&\\leq \\|C_\\chi(y)^{-1}\\|\\rho(y)^{-a}|G(0)|\\leq \\|C_\\chi(y)^{-1}\\|\\rho(y)^{-a}Q_\\varepsilon(y)^{1-\\frac{\\beta}{4}}Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}\\\\\n&\\leq Q_\\varepsilon(y)^{1-\\frac{11\\beta}{36}}Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}<\\tfrac{1}{4}Q_\\varepsilon(y)^{\\beta\/12}Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}\\ll 1.\n\\end{align*}\nThis implies that $v_2,A^{-1}Bv_2$ are almost unitary vectors, therefore\n$$\n|\\sin\\angle(v_2,A^{-1}Bv_2)|\\leq 2\\|v_2-A^{-1}Bv_2\\|\\leq 4\\|A^{-1}B-{\\rm Id}\\|0$:\n\\begin{align*}\n&2\\mathfrak K\\rho(y)^{-2a}\\|e^s_q-P_{y,q}e^s_y\\|\\leq\n8\\mathfrak K\\|C_\\chi(y)^{-1}\\|\\rho(y)^{-2a}Q_\\varepsilon(y)^{\\beta\/12}Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}\\\\\n&\\leq 8\\mathfrak K\\|C_\\chi(y)^{-1}\\|Q_\\varepsilon(y)^{\\beta\/24}\\rho(y)^{-2a}Q_\\varepsilon(y)^{\\beta\/36}Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}\\\\\n&\\leq 8\\mathfrak K\\varepsilon^{5\/24}Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}<\\tfrac{1}{2}Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/4}.\n\\end{align*}\nHence (\\ref{estimate-II}) implies that $\\text{II}0$ small enough.\nIf $\\{\\Psi_{x_n}^{p^s_n,p^u_n}\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}$, $\\{\\Psi_{y_n}^{q^s_n,q^u_n}\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}\\in\\Sigma^\\#$ satisfy\n$\\pi[\\{\\Psi_{x_n}^{p^s_n,p^u_n}\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}]=\\pi[\\{\\Psi_{y_n}^{q^s_n,q^u_n}\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}]$ then for all $n\\in\\mathbb{Z}$:\n$$\n\\tfrac{s(x_n)}{s(y_n)}=e^{\\pm 4\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}}\\text{ and }\\tfrac{u(x_n)}{u(y_n)}=e^{\\pm 4\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}}.\n$$\n\\end{proposition}\n\nWhen $M$ is compact and $f$ is a $C^{1+\\beta}$ diffeomorphism,\nthis is \\cite[Prop. 7.3]{Sarig-JAMS}, and the proof is identical.\nLet $\\underline v=\\{\\Psi_{x_n}^{p^s_n,p^u_n}\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}$ and $\\underline w=\\{\\Psi_{y_n}^{q^s_n,q^u_n}\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}$.\nWe sketch the proof for the first estimate:\n\\begin{enumerate}[$\\circ$]\n\\item If $\\pi(\\underline v)=x$ then $s(x)<\\infty$: this follows from the relevance of $\\mathfs A$ \n(Thm. \\ref{Thm-coarse-graining}(3)).\n\\item Apply Lemma \\ref{Lemma-improvement} along $\\underline v$ and the orbit of $x$: if\n$v_n=v$ for infinitely many $n>0$, then the ratio improves at each of these indices.\nThe conclusion is that $\\tfrac{s(V^s[\\{v_k\\}_{k\\geq n}])}{s(x_n)}=e^{\\pm\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}}$, and\nanalogously $\\tfrac{s(V^s[\\{w_k\\}_{k\\geq n}])}{s(y_n)}=e^{\\pm\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}}$.\n\\item Since $f^n(x)\\in V^s[\\{v_k\\}_{k\\geq n}]\\cap V^s[\\{w_k\\}_{k\\geq n}]$, Proposition \\ref{Prop-stay-window}(1)(c)\nimplies that $\\tfrac{s(V^s[\\{v_k\\}_{k\\geq n}])}{s(f^n(x))}=e^{\\pm\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}}$\nand $\\tfrac{s(V^s[\\{w_k\\}_{k\\geq n}])}{s(f^n(x))}=e^{\\pm\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}}$.\n\\end{enumerate}\nHence $\\tfrac{s(x_n)}{s(y_n)}=\\tfrac{s(x_n)}{s(V^s[\\{v_k\\}_{k\\geq n}])}\\cdot\\tfrac{s(V^s[\\{v_k\\}_{k\\geq n}])}{s(f^n(x))}\n\\cdot\\tfrac{s(f^n(x))}{s(V^s[\\{w_k\\}_{k\\geq n}])}\\cdot\\tfrac{s(V^s[\\{w_k\\}_{k\\geq n}])}{s(y_n)}=e^{\\pm4\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}}$.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Control of $Q_\\varepsilon(x_n)$}\n\nRemind that $Q_\\varepsilon(x):=\\max\\{q\\in I_\\varepsilon:q\\leq \\widetilde Q_\\varepsilon(x)\\}$ where\n$$\n\\widetilde Q_\\varepsilon(x)=\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}\n\\min\\left\\{\\|C_\\chi(x)^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}^{-24\/\\beta},\\|C_\\chi(f(x))^{-1}\\|^{-12\/\\beta}_{\\rm Frob}\\rho(x)^{72a\/\\beta}\\right\\},\n$$\nso we first control $\\widetilde Q_\\varepsilon(x_n)$.\nBy parts (2)--(3), $\\tfrac{\\|C_\\chi(x_n)^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}}{\\|C_\\chi(y_n)^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}}=e^{\\pm 5\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}}$.\nUsing that $\\Psi_{f(x_n)}^{p^s_{n+1}\\wedge p^u_{n+1}}\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\approx}\\Psi_{x_{n+1}}^{p^s_{n+1}\\wedge p^u_{n+1}}$,\nProposition \\ref{Lemma-overlap}(1)--(2) implies that\n$\\tfrac{\\|C_\\chi(f(x_n))^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}}{\\|C_\\chi(x_{n+1})^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}}=e^{\\pm\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}}$,\nand similarly $\\tfrac{\\|C_\\chi(f(y_n))^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}}{\\|C_\\chi(y_{n+1})^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}}=e^{\\pm\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}}$.\nHence\n$$\\tfrac{\\|C_\\chi(f(x_n))^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}}{\\|C_\\chi(f(y_n))^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}}=\n\\tfrac{\\|C_\\chi(f(x_n))^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}}{\\|C_\\chi(x_{n+1})^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}}\\cdot\n\\tfrac{\\|C_\\chi(x_{n+1})^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}}{\\|C_\\chi(y_{n+1})^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}}\\cdot\n\\tfrac{\\|C_\\chi(y_{n+1})^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}}{\\|C_\\chi(f(y_n))^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}}=e^{\\pm 7\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}}.$$\n\n\\medskip\nWe now estimate the ratio $\\tfrac{\\rho(x_n)}{\\rho(y_n)}$. For that we obtain estimates\nsimilar to (\\ref{equation-distances}) for $f^{\\pm 1}(x_n),f^{\\pm 1}(y_n)$. By symmetry,\nwe only need to get the inequalities for $f(x_n),f(y_n)$. Start by noting that\n$d(f(x_n),x_{n+1})\\leq (p^s_{n+1}\\wedge p^u_{n+1})^8<\\varepsilon d(x_{n+1},\\mathfs D)$, hence\n$d(f(x_n),\\mathfs D)=d(x_{n+1},\\mathfs D)\\pm d(f(x_n),x_{n+1})=(1\\pm\\varepsilon)d(x_{n+1},\\mathfs D)$\nand thus $d(f(x_n),x_{n+1})<2\\varepsilon d(f(x_n),\\mathfs D)$. Similarly $d(f(y_n),y_{n+1})<2\\varepsilon d(f(y_n),\\mathfs D)$.\nUsing part (1), $d(x_{n+1},y_{n+1})<\\varepsilon[d(x_{n+1},\\mathfs D)+d(y_{n+1},\\mathfs D)]<\n2\\varepsilon[d(f(x_n),\\mathfs D)+d(f(y_n),\\mathfs D)]$, therefore\n\\begin{align*}\nd(f(x_n),f(y_n))&\\leq d(f(x_n),x_{n+1})+d(x_{n+1},y_{n+1})+d(y_{n+1},f(y_n))\\\\\n&<4\\varepsilon[d(f(x_n),\\mathfs D)+d(f(y_n),\\mathfs D)].\n\\end{align*}\nThis implies that $d(f(x_n),\\mathfs D)=d(f(y_n),\\mathfs D)\\pm 4\\varepsilon[d(f(x_n),\\mathfs D)+d(f(y_n),\\mathfs D)]$\nand so\n$\\tfrac{1-4\\varepsilon}{1+4\\varepsilon}\\leq \\tfrac{d(f(x_n),\\mathfs D)}{d(f(y_n),\\mathfs D)}\\leq\\tfrac{1+4\\varepsilon}{1-4\\varepsilon}$.\nThe same estimate holds for $f^{-1}$. Together with (\\ref{equation-distances}), we get that\n$\\tfrac{1-4\\varepsilon}{1+4\\varepsilon}\\leq\\tfrac{\\rho(x_n)}{\\rho(y_n)}\\leq\\tfrac{1+4\\varepsilon}{1-4\\varepsilon}$.\nIf $\\varepsilon>0$ is small enough then\n$e^{-\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}}<\\left(\\tfrac{1-4\\varepsilon}{1+4\\varepsilon}\\right)^{\\frac{72a}{\\beta}}\n<\\left(\\tfrac{1+4\\varepsilon}{1-4\\varepsilon}\\right)^{\\frac{72a}{\\beta}}0$ is small enough it holds $\\tfrac{Q_\\varepsilon(x_n)}{Q_\\varepsilon(y_n)}=e^{\\pm\\sqrt[3]{\\varepsilon}}$.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Control of $p^s_n$ and $p^u_n$}\n\nAs in \\cite[Prop. 8.3]{Sarig-JAMS}, (GPO2) implies the lemma below.\n\n\\begin{lemma}\\label{Lemma-maximality}\nIf $\\underline v=\\{\\Psi_{x_n}^{p^s_n,p^u_n}\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}\\in\\Sigma^\\#$ then \n$p^s_n=\\delta_\\varepsilon Q_\\varepsilon(x_n)$ for infinitely many $n>0$ and\n$p^u_n=\\delta_\\varepsilon Q_\\varepsilon(x_n)$ for infinitely many $n<0$.\n\\end{lemma}\n\nWe now prove the first half of part (5) (the other half is analogous).\nBy symmetry, it is enough to prove that $p^s_n\\geq e^{-\\sqrt[3]{\\varepsilon}}q^s_n$ for all $n\\in\\mathbb{Z}$.\n\\begin{enumerate}[$\\circ$]\n\\item If $p^s_n=\\delta_\\varepsilon Q_\\varepsilon(x_n)$ then part (4) gives\n$p^s_n=\\delta_\\varepsilon Q_\\varepsilon(x_n)\\geq e^{-\\sqrt[3]{\\varepsilon}}\\delta_\\varepsilon Q_\\varepsilon(y_n)\n\\geq e^{-\\sqrt[3]{\\varepsilon}}q^s_n$.\n\\item If $p^s_n\\geq e^{-\\sqrt[3]{\\varepsilon}}q^s_n$ then (GPO2) and part (4) give:\n$$p^s_{n-1}=\\min\\{e^\\varepsilon p^s_n,\\delta_\\varepsilon Q_\\varepsilon(x_{n-1})\\}\\geq\ne^{-\\sqrt[3]{\\varepsilon}}\\min\\{e^\\varepsilon q^s_n,\\delta_\\varepsilon Q_\\varepsilon(y_{n-1})\\}=e^{-\\sqrt[3]{\\varepsilon}}q^s_{n-1}.$$\n\\end{enumerate}\nBy Lemma \\ref{Lemma-maximality}, it follows that $p^s_n\\geq e^{-\\sqrt[3]{\\varepsilon}}q^s_n$ for all $n\\in\\mathbb{Z}$.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Control of $\\Psi_{y_n}^{-1}\\circ\\Psi_{x_n}$}\n\nFor $z_n=x_n,y_n$, the calculations in the\nproof of Lemma \\ref{Lemma-linear-reduction} give that\n$$\n\\widetilde{C_\\chi(z_n)}=R_{z_i}\\left[\\begin{array}{cc}\\tfrac{1}{s(z_n)}& \\tfrac{\\cos\\alpha(z_n)}{u(z_n)}\\\\\n0 & \\tfrac{\\sin\\alpha(z_n)}{u(z_n)}\\end{array}\\right]\n$$\nwhere $R_{z_n}$ is the rotation that takes $e_1$ to $\\iota_{z_n}e^s_{z_n}$.\n\n\\begin{lemma}\\label{Lemma-rotations}\nUnder the conditions of Theorem \\ref{Thm-inverse}, for all $n\\in\\mathbb{Z}$ it holds\n$$\nR_{y_n}^{-1}R_{x_n}=(-1)^{\\sigma_n}{\\rm Id}+\n\\left[\\begin{array}{cc}\\varepsilon_{11}&\\varepsilon_{12}\\\\ \\varepsilon_{21}&\\varepsilon_{22}\\end{array}\\right]\n$$\nwhere $\\sigma_n\\in\\{0,1\\}$ and $|\\varepsilon_{jk}|<(p^s_n\\wedge p^u_n)^{\\beta\/5}+(q^s_n\\wedge q^u_n)^{\\beta\/5}<\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}$.\n\\end{lemma}\n\nWhen $M$ is compact and $f$ is a $C^{1+\\beta}$ diffeomorphism,\nthis is \\cite[Prop. 6.7]{Sarig-JAMS}. See Apendix B for the proof in our context.\n\n\\medskip\nNow we establish part (6). It is enough to prove the case $n=0$.\nWrite $\\Psi_{x_0}^{p^s_0,p^u_0}=\\Psi_{x}^{p^s,p^u}$,\n$\\Psi_{y_0}^{q^s_0,q^u_0}=\\Psi_{y}^{q^s,q^u}$, $p=p^s\\wedge p^u$, $q=q^s\\wedge q^u$,\n$\\sigma=\\sigma_0$.\nWrite $\\widetilde{C_\\chi(x)}=R_xC_x$, $\\widetilde{C_\\chi(y)}=R_yC_y$.\nAs in \\cite[\\S9]{Sarig-JAMS}, Lemma \\ref{Lemma-rotations} gives\n$\\|C_y^{-1}C_x-(-1)^\\sigma{\\rm Id}\\|<14\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}$ and hence for small $\\varepsilon>0$:\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\|\\widetilde{C_\\chi(x)}-\\widetilde{C_\\chi(y)}\\|\\leq \\|R_xC_x-(-1)^\\sigma R_xC_y\\|+\\|R_xC_y-(-1)^\\sigma R_yC_y\\|\\\\\n&\\leq \\|C_y^{-1}\\|\\|C_y^{-1}C_x-(-1)^\\sigma{\\rm Id}\\|+\\|R_y^{-1}R_x-(-1)^\\sigma{\\rm Id}\\|<\n16\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}\\|C_y^{-1}\\|<\\|C_y^{-1}\\|.\n\\end{align*}\nWe use this to show that $\\Psi_y^{-1}\\circ\\Psi_x$ is well-defined in $R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$.\nThe argument is very similar to the proof of Proposition \\ref{Lemma-overlap}(3).\nFor $v\\in R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$, (A2) and part (4) imply that for small $\\varepsilon>0$:\n\\begin{align*}\n&d(\\Psi_x(v),\\Psi_y(v))\\leq 2d_{\\rm Sas}(C_\\chi(x)v,C_\\chi(y)v)\\leq 4(d(x,y)+\\|\\widetilde{C_\\chi(x)}-\\widetilde{C_\\chi(y)}\\|\\|v\\|)\\\\\n&< 4(q+\\|C_y^{-1}\\|\\|v\\|)<100\\|C_y^{-1}\\|Q_\\varepsilon(y).\n\\end{align*}\nhence $\\Psi_x(v)\\in B(\\Psi_y(v),100\\|C_y^{-1}\\|Q_\\varepsilon(y))\\subset \\Psi_y[B]$ where\n$B\\subset\\mathbb{R}^2$ is the ball with center $v$ and radius $200\\|C_y^{-1}\\|^2Q_\\varepsilon(y)$.\nIf $\\varepsilon>0$ is small then for $w\\in B$ we have\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\|w\\|\\leq \\|v\\|+200\\|C_y^{-1}\\|^2Q_\\varepsilon(y)<20Q_\\varepsilon(y)+200\\varepsilon^{1\/4}Q_\\varepsilon(y)^{1-\\beta\/12}\\\\\n&<20\\varepsilon^{3\/\\beta}d(y,\\mathfs D)^a+200\\varepsilon^{1\/4}d(y,\\mathfs D)^a0$ that:\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\|d(\\Delta)_v\\|\\leq 2\\|C_y^{-1}\\|d(y,\\mathfs D)^{-a}d(x,y)+14\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}\n<2\\|C_y^{-1}\\|d(y,\\mathfs D)^{-a}Q_\\varepsilon(y)+14\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}\\\\\n&<2\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}\\|C_y^{-1}\\|Q_\\varepsilon(y)^{\\beta\/24}d(y,\\mathfs D)^{-a}Q_\\varepsilon(y)^{\\beta\/72}+14\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}<16\\sqrt{\\varepsilon}<\\sqrt[3]{\\varepsilon}.\n\\end{align*}\nThe estimate of $\\|\\delta\\|$ is identical to \\cite[pp. 383]{Sarig-JAMS}. This completes the proof\nof part (6), and hence of Theorem \\ref{Thm-inverse}.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\section{Symbolic dynamics}\n\n\\subsection{A countable Markov partition}\n\nLet $(\\Sigma,\\sigma)$ be the TMS\nconstructed in Theorem \\ref{Thm-coarse-graining}, and let\n$\\pi:\\Sigma\\to M$ as defined in the end of section \\ref{Section-coarse-graining}.\nIn the sequel we use Theorem \\ref{Thm-inverse} to construct a cover of ${\\rm NUH}_\\chi^\\#$\nthat is locally finite and satisfies a (symbolic) Markov property.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc The Markov cover $\\mathfs Z$:} Let $\\mathfs Z:=\\{Z(v):v\\in\\mathfs A\\}$, where\n$$\nZ(v):=\\{\\pi(\\underline v):\\underline v\\in\\Sigma^\\#\\text{ and }v_0=v\\}.\n$$\n\n\\medskip\nIn other words, $\\mathfs Z$ is the family defined by the natural partition of $\\Sigma^\\#$ into\ncylinder at the zeroth position. Admissible manifolds allow us to\ndefine {\\em invariant fibres} inside each $Z\\in\\mathfs Z$. Let $Z=Z(v)$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc $s$\/$u$--fibres in $\\mathfs Z$:} Given $x\\in Z$, let $W^s(x,Z):=V^s[\\{v_n\\}_{n\\geq 0}]\\cap Z$\nbe the {\\em $s$--fibre} of $x$ in $Z$ for some (any) $\\underline v=\\{v_n\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}\\in\\Sigma^\\#$\ns.t. $\\pi(\\underline v)=x$ and $v_0=v$. Similarly, let $W^u(x,Z):=V^u[\\{v_n\\}_{n\\leq 0}]\\cap Z$ be\nthe {\\em $u$--fibre} of $x$ in $Z$.\n\n\\medskip\nBy Proposition \\ref{Prop-stay-window}(2), the definitions above do not depend on the choice of $\\underline v$, \nand any two $s$--fibres ($u$--fibres) either coincide or are disjoint. We also\ndefine $V^s(x,Z):=V^s[\\{v_n\\}_{n\\geq 0}]$ and $V^u(x,Z):=V^u[\\{v_n\\}_{n\\leq 0}]$.\nBelow we collect the main properties of $\\mathfs Z$.\n\n\\begin{proposition}\\label{Prop-Z}\nThe following are true.\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item {\\sc Covering property:} $\\mathfs Z$ is a cover of ${\\rm NUH}_\\chi^\\#$.\n\\item {\\sc Local finiteness:} For every $Z\\in\\mathfs Z$, $\\#\\{Z'\\in\\mathfs Z:Z\\cap Z'\\neq\\emptyset\\}<\\infty$.\n\\item {\\sc Product structure:} For every $Z\\in\\mathfs Z$ and every $x,y\\in Z$, the intersection\n$W^s(x,Z)\\cap W^u(y,Z)$ consists of a single point of $Z$.\n\\item {\\sc Symbolic Markov property:} If $x=\\pi(\\underline v)$ with $\\underline v\\in\\Sigma^\\#$, then\n$$\nf(W^s(x,Z(v_0)))\\subset W^s(f(x),Z(v_1))\\, \\text{ and }\\, f^{-1}(W^u(f(x),Z(v_1)))\\subset W^u(x,Z(v_0)).\n$$\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{proposition}\n\nPart (1) follows from Theorem \\ref{Thm-coarse-graining}(2),\npart (2) follows from Theorem \\ref{Thm-inverse}(5), part (3) follows from\nLemma \\ref{Lemma-admissible-manifolds}(1), and part (4) is proved as in \\cite[Prop. 10.9]{Sarig-JAMS}.\nFor $x,y\\in Z$, let $[x,y]_Z:=$ intersection point of $W^s(x,Z)$ and $W^u(y,Z)$, and\ncall it the {\\em Smale bracket} of $x,y$ in $Z$.\n\n\\begin{lemma}\nThe following holds for all $\\varepsilon>0$ small enough.\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item {\\sc Compatibility:} If $x,y\\in Z(v_0)$ and $f(x),f(y)\\in Z(v_1)$ with\n$v_0\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\to} v_1$ then $f([x,y]_{Z(v_0)})=[f(x),f(y)]_{Z(v_1)}$.\n\\item {\\sc Overlapping charts properties:} If $Z=Z(\\Psi_x^{p^s,p^u}),Z'=Z(\\Psi_y^{q^s,q^u})\\in\\mathfs Z$\nwith $Z\\cap Z'\\neq \\emptyset$ then:\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (a)}]\n\\item $Z\\subset \\Psi_y(R[q^s\\wedge q^u])$.\n\\item If $x\\in Z\\cap Z'$ then $W^{s\/u}(x,Z)\\subset V^{s\/u}(x,Z')$. \n\\item If $x\\in Z,y\\in Z'$ then $V^s(x,Z)$ and $V^u(y,Z')$ intersect at a unique point. \n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{lemma}\n\nWhen $M$ is compact and $f$ is a diffeomorphism, part (1) is \\cite[Lemma 10.7]{Sarig-JAMS}\nand part (2) is \\cite[Lemmas 10.8 and 10.10]{Sarig-JAMS}. The same proofs work in our case,\nsince all calculations are made in the rectangle $R[10Q_\\varepsilon(x)]$, and in this domain\nwe have Theorem \\ref{Thm-inverse}(6). \n\n\\medskip\nNow we apply a refinement method to destroy non-trivial intersections in $\\mathfs Z$. \nThe result is a partition of ${\\rm NUH}_\\chi^\\#$ with the (geometrical) Markov property.\nThis idea, originally developed by Sina{\\u\\i} and Bowen\nfor finite covers \\cite{Sinai-Construction-of-MP,Sinai-MP-U-diffeomorphisms,Bowen-LNM},\nworks equally well for countable covers with the local finiteness property \\cite{Sarig-JAMS}.\nWrite $\\mathfs Z=\\{Z_1,Z_2,\\ldots\\}$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc The Markov partition $\\mathfs R$:} For every $Z_i,Z_j\\in\\mathfs Z$, define a partition of $Z_i$ by:\n\\begin{align*}\nT_{ij}^{su}&=\\{x\\in Z_i: W^s(x,Z_i)\\cap Z_j\\neq\\emptyset,\nW^u(x,Z_i)\\cap Z_j\\neq\\emptyset\\}\\\\\nT_{ij}^{s\\emptyset}&=\\{x\\in Z_i: W^s(x,Z_i)\\cap Z_j\\neq\\emptyset,\nW^u(x,Z_i)\\cap Z_j=\\emptyset\\}\\\\\nT_{ij}^{\\emptyset u}&=\\{x\\in Z_i: W^s(x,Z_i)\\cap Z_j=\\emptyset,\nW^u(x,Z_i)\\cap Z_j\\neq\\emptyset\\}\\\\\nT_{ij}^{\\emptyset\\emptyset}&=\\{x\\in Z_i: W^s(x,Z_i)\\cap Z_j=\\emptyset,\nW^u(x,Z_i)\\cap Z_j=\\emptyset\\}.\n\\end{align*}\nLet $\\mathfs T:=\\{T_{ij}^{\\alpha\\beta}:i,j\\geq 1,\\alpha\\in\\{s,\\emptyset\\},\\beta\\in\\{u,\\emptyset\\}\\}$,\nand let $\\mathfs R$ be the partition generated by $\\mathfs T$.\n\n\n\\medskip\nSince $T_{ii}^{su}=Z_i$, $\\mathfs R$ is a partition of ${\\rm NUH}_\\chi^\\#$.\nClearly, $\\mathfs R$ is a refinement of $\\mathfs Z$. Theorem \\ref{Thm-inverse}\nimplies two local finiteness properties for $\\mathfs R$:\n\\begin{enumerate}[$\\circ$]\n\\item For every $Z\\in\\mathfs Z$, $\\#\\{R\\in\\mathfs R:R\\subset Z\\}<\\infty$.\n\\item For every $R\\in\\mathfs R$, $\\#\\{Z\\in\\mathfs Z:Z\\supset R\\}<\\infty$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\n\\medskip\nNow we show that $\\mathfs R$ is a Markov partition in the sense of Sina{\\u\\i} \\cite{Sinai-MP-U-diffeomorphisms}. \n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc $s$\/$u$--fibres in $\\mathfs R$:} Given $x\\in R\\in\\mathfs R$, we define the {\\em $s$--fibre}\nand {\\em $u$--fibre} of $x$ by:\n\\begin{align*}\nW^s(x,R):=\n\\bigcap_{T_{ij}^{\\alpha\\beta}\\in\\mathfs T\\atop{T_{ij}^{\\alpha\\beta}\\supset R}} W^s(x,Z_i)\\cap T_{ij}^{\\alpha\\beta}\n\\, \\text{ and }\\, W^u(x,R):=\n\\bigcap_{T_{ij}^{\\alpha\\beta}\\in\\mathfs T\\atop{T_{ij}^{\\alpha\\beta}\\supset R}} W^u(x,Z_i)\\cap T_{ij}^{\\alpha\\beta}.\n\\end{align*}\n\nAny two $s$--fibres ($u$--fibres) either coincide or are disjoint.\n\n\\begin{proposition}\\label{Prop-R}\nThe following are true.\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item {\\sc Product structure:} For every $R\\in\\mathfs R$ and every $x,y\\in R$, the intersection\n$W^s(x,R)\\cap W^u(y,R)$ consists of a single point of $R$. Denote it by $[x,y]$.\n\\item {\\sc Hyperbolicity:} If $z,w\\in W^s(x,R)$ then $d(f^n(z),f^n(w))\\xrightarrow[n\\to\\infty]{}0$, and\nif $z,w\\in W^u(x,R)$ then $d(f^n(z),f^n(w))\\xrightarrow[n\\to-\\infty]{}0$. The rates are exponential.\n\\item {\\sc Geometrical Markov property:} Let $R_0,R_1\\in\\mathfs R$. If $x\\in R_0$ and $f(x)\\in R_1$ then \n$$\nf(W^s(x,R_0))\\subset W^s(f(x),R_1)\\, \\text{ and }\\, f^{-1}(W^u(f(x),R_1))\\subset W^u(x,R_0).\n$$\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{proposition}\n\nWhen $M$ is compact and $f$ is a diffeomorphism, this is \\cite[Prop. 11.5 and 11.7]{Sarig-JAMS}\nand the same proof works in our case.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{A finite-to-one Markov extension}\n\nWe construct a new symbolic coding of $f$.\nLet $\\widehat{\\mathfs G}=(\\widehat V,\\widehat E)$ be the oriented graph with vertex set\n$\\widehat V=\\mathfs R$ and edge set $\\widehat E=\\{R\\to S:R,S\\in\\mathfs R\\text{ s.t. }f(R)\\cap S\\neq\\emptyset\\}$,\nand let $(\\widehat\\Sigma,\\widehat\\sigma)$ be the TMS induced by $\\widehat{\\mathfs G}$.\nThe ingoing and outgoing degree of every vertex in $\\widehat\\Sigma$ is finite.\n\n\\medskip\nFor $\\ell\\in\\mathbb{Z}$ and a path $R_m\\to\\cdots\\to R_n$ on $\\widehat{\\mathfs G}$ define\n$_\\ell[R_m,\\ldots,R_n]:=f^{-\\ell}(R_m)\\cap\\cdots\\cap f^{-\\ell-(n-m)}(R_n)$, the set of points whose itinerary\nfrom $\\ell$ to $\\ell+(n-m)$ visits the rectangles $R_m,\\ldots,R_n$. The crucial property that\ngives the new coding is that $_\\ell[R_m,\\ldots,R_n]\\neq\\emptyset$. This follows by induction, using the\nMarkov property of $\\mathfs R$ (Proposition \\ref{Prop-R}(3)).\n\n\\medskip\nThe map $\\pi$ defines similar sets: for $\\ell\\in\\mathbb{Z}$ and a path\n$v_m\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\to}\\cdots\\overset{\\varepsilon}{\\to}v_n$ on $\\Sigma$ let\n$\nZ_\\ell[v_m,\\ldots,v_n]:=\\{\\pi(\\underline w):\\underline w\\in\\Sigma^\\#\\text{ and }w_\\ell=v_m,\\ldots,w_{\\ell+(n-m)}=v_n\\}$.\nThere is a relation between $\\Sigma$ and $\\widehat\\Sigma$ in terms of these sets:\nif $\\{R_n\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}\\in\\widehat\\Sigma$ then there exists $\\{v_n\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}\\in\\Sigma$\ns.t. $_{-n}[R_{-n},\\ldots,R_n]\\subset Z_{-n}[v_{-n},\\ldots,v_n]$ for all $n\\geq 0$ (in particular $R_n\\subset Z(v_n)$\nfor all $n\\in\\mathbb{Z}$). This fact is proved as in \\cite[Lemma 12.2]{Sarig-JAMS}.\nBy Proposition \\ref{Prop-R}(2), $\\bigcap_{n\\geq 0}\\overline{_{-n}[R_{-n},\\ldots,R_n]}$\nis the intersection of a descending chain of nonempty closed sets with\ndiameters converging to zero.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc The map $\\widehat\\pi:\\widehat\\Sigma\\to M$:} Given $\\underline R=\\{R_n\\}_{n\\in\\mathbb{Z}}\\in\\widehat\\Sigma$,\n$\\widehat\\pi(\\underline R)$ is defined by the identity\n$$\n\\{\\widehat\\pi(\\underline R)\\}:=\\bigcap_{n\\geq 0}\\overline{_{-n}[R_{-n},\\ldots,R_n]}.\n$$\n\n\\medskip\nThe triple $(\\widehat\\Sigma,\\widehat\\sigma,\\widehat\\pi)$ is the one that satisfies Theorem \\ref{Thm-main}.\n\n\\begin{theorem}\\label{Thm-widehat-pi}\nThe following holds for all $\\varepsilon>0$ small enough.\n\\begin{enumerate}[{\\rm (1)}]\n\\item $\\widehat\\pi:\\widehat\\Sigma\\to M$ is H\\\"older continuous.\n\\item $\\widehat\\pi\\circ\\widehat\\sigma=f\\circ\\widehat\\pi$.\n\\item $\\widehat\\pi[\\widehat\\Sigma^\\#]\\supset {\\rm NUH}_\\chi^\\#$, hence\n$\\pi[\\widehat\\Sigma^\\#]$ carries all $f$--adapted $\\chi$--hyperbolic measures. \n\\item Every point of $\\widehat\\pi[\\widehat\\Sigma^\\#]$ has finitely many pre-images in $\\widehat\\Sigma^\\#$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{theorem}\n\nWhen $M$ is compact and $f$ is a diffeomorphism, parts (1)--(3) are \\cite[Thm. 12.5]{Sarig-JAMS}\nand part (4) is \\cite[Thm. 5.6(5)]{Lima-Sarig}.\nThe same proofs work in our case, and the bound\non the number of pre-images is exactly the same: there is a function \n$N:\\mathfs R\\to\\mathbb{N}$ s.t. if $x=\\widehat\\pi(\\underline R)$ with $R_n=R$ for infinitely many $n>0$ and $R_n=S$\nfor infinitely many $n<0$ then $\\#\\{\\underline S\\in\\widehat\\Sigma^\\#:\\widehat\\pi(\\underline S)=x\\}\\leq N(R)N(S)$.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\section*{Appendix A: Underlying assumptions}\n\nRemember the definition of $\\widetilde{A}\\in\\mathfs L_{x,x'}$ for $A\\in\\mathfs L_{y,z}$ and\n$y\\in D_x,z\\in D_{x'}$. Remember also the definition of $\\tau=\\tau_x:D_x\\times D_x\\to \\mathfs L_x$\nby $\\tau(y,z)=\\widetilde{d(\\exp{y}^{-1})_z}$.\nThroughout the text, we assume that there are constants $\\mathfrak K,a>1$ s.t. for all\n$x\\in M\\backslash\\mathfs D$ there is $d(x,\\mathfs D)^a<\\mathfrak r(x)<1$ \ns.t. for $D_x:=B(x,2\\mathfrak r(x))$ it holds:\n\\begin{enumerate}[ii]\n\\item[(A1)] If $y\\in D_x$ then ${\\rm inj}(y)\\geq 2\\mathfrak r(x)$, $\\exp{y}^{-1}:D_x\\to T_yM$\nis a diffeomorphism onto its image, and\n$\\tfrac{1}{2}(d(x,y)+\\|v-P_{y,x}w\\|)\\leq d_{\\rm Sas}(v,w)\\leq 2(d(x,y)+\\|v-P_{y,x} w\\|)$ for all $y\\in D_x$ and\n$v\\in T_xM,w\\in T_yM$ s.t. $\\|v\\|,\\|w\\|\\leq 2\\mathfrak r(x)$, where \t\n$P_{y,x}:=P_\\gamma$ is the radial geodesic $\\gamma$ joining $y$ to $x$.\n\\item[(A2)] If $y_1,y_2\\in D_x$ then\n$d(\\exp{y_1}v_1,\\exp{y_2}v_2)\\leq 2d_{\\rm Sas}(v_1,v_2)$ for $\\|v_1\\|$, $\\|v_2\\|\\leq 2\\mathfrak r(x)$,\nand $d_{\\rm Sas}(\\exp{y_1}^{-1}z_1,\\exp{y_2}^{-1}z_2)\\leq 2[d(y_1,y_2)+d(z_1,z_2)]$\nfor $z_1,z_2\\in D_x$ where the expression makes sense.\nIn particular $\\|d(\\exp{x})_v\\|\\leq 2$ for $\\|v\\|\\leq 2\\mathfrak r(x)$,\nand $\\|d(\\exp{x}^{-1})_y\\|\\leq 2$ for $y\\in D_x$.\n\\item[(A3)] If $y_1,y_2\\in D_x$ then\n$$\n\\|\\widetilde{d(\\exp{y_1})_{v_1}}-\\widetilde{d(\\exp{y_2})_{v_2}}\\|\n\\leq d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}d_{\\rm Sas}(v_1,v_2)\\leq \\rho(x)^{-a}d_{\\rm Sas}(v_1,v_2)\n$$\nfor all $\\|v_1\\|,\\|v_2\\|\\leq 2\\mathfrak r(x)$ and \n\\begin{align*}\n\\|\\tau(y_1,z_1)-\\tau(y_2,z_2)\\|&\\leq d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}[d(y_1,y_2)+d(z_1,z_2)]\\\\\n&\\leq \\rho(x)^{-a}[d(y_1,y_2)+d(z_1,z_2)]\n\\end{align*}\nfor all $z_1,z_2\\in D_x$.\n\\item[(A4)] If $y_1,y_2\\in D_x$ then the map $\\tau(y_1,\\cdot)-\\tau(y_2,\\cdot):D_x\\to \\mathfs L_x$\nhas Lipschitz constant $\\leq d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}d(y_1,y_2)\\leq \\rho(x)^{-a}d(y_1,y_2)$.\n\\item[(A5)] If $y\\in D_x$ then $\\|df_y^{\\pm 1}\\|\\leq d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}\\leq \\rho(x)^{-a}$.\n\\item[(A6)] If $y_1,y_2\\in D_x$ and $f(y_1),f(y_2)\\in D_{x'}$ then\n$\\|\\widetilde{df_{y_1}}-\\widetilde{df_{y_2}}\\|\\leq \\mathfrak Kd(y_1,y_2)^\\beta$,\nand if $y_1,y_2\\in D_x$ and $f^{-1}(y_1),f^{-1}(y_2)\\in D_{x''}$ then\n$\\|\\widetilde{df_{y_1}^{-1}}-\\widetilde{df_{y_2}^{-1}}\\|\\leq \\mathfrak Kd(y_1,y_2)^\\beta$.\n\\item[(A7)] $\\|df^{\\pm 1}_x\\|\\geq m(df^{\\pm 1}_x)\\geq \\rho(x)^a$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\section*{Appendix B: Standard proofs and adaptations of \\cite{Sarig-JAMS}}\\label{Appendix-standard-proofs}\n\nIn this appendix we prove some statements claimed throughout the text, most of them consisting\nof adaptations of proofs in \\cite{Sarig-JAMS}. The main issue is the lack of higher\nregularity of the exponential map. The results of \\cite{Sarig-JAMS} are technical but extremely\nwell-written, so rewriting it to our context would probably increase the technicalities and decrease\nthe clarity. Hence we decided to write this appendix as a tutorial:\nwe follow the proofs of \\cite{Sarig-JAMS} as most as possible, mentioning the necessary changes. \nThe main changes are in the geometrical estimates on $M$:\nsome Lipschitz constants of \\cite{Sarig-JAMS} are substituted by terms of\nthe form $d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}$. We then show that our\ndefinition of $Q_\\varepsilon(x)$ is strong enough to cancel out these terms.\nSince the proofs of \\cite{Sarig-JAMS} have freedom in the choice of exponents,\nwe obtain the same final results and therefore (almost always) the same statements of \\cite{Sarig-JAMS}.\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Lemma \\ref{Lemma-admissible-manifolds}.]\nPart (1) is proved exactly as in \\cite[Prop. 4.11(1)--(2)]{Sarig-JAMS}.\nWe concentrate on part (2). Let $\\eta=p^s\\wedge p^u$.\nThe estimate of $\\tfrac{\\sin\\angle(V^s,V^u)}{\\sin\\alpha(x)}$ in \\cite{Sarig-JAMS} is\ndivided into the analysis of four factors. The estimate of the first\ntwo factors is identical; the difference is in the estimates of the remaining two factors.\n\n\\medskip\nBy (A3), if $x\\in M\\backslash\\mathfs D$ and $\\|v\\|\\leq 2\\mathfrak r(x)$ then\n$|{\\rm det}[d(\\exp{x})_v]-1|\\leq 4d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}\\|v\\|$,\ni.e. we substitute $K_1$ in \\cite[pp. 407]{Sarig-JAMS} by $4d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}$.\nWith this notation,\n$K_1\\eta<4d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}Q_\\varepsilon(x)^{\\beta\/72}\\eta^{1-\\beta\/72}<4\\varepsilon^{1\/24}\\eta^{1-\\beta\/72}<\\eta^{2\\beta\/3}$\nfor $\\varepsilon>0$ small, then the third factor is $e^{\\pm 2\\eta^{2\\beta\/3}}$. To estimate the fourth\nfactor, note that again by (A3) if $x\\in M\\backslash\\mathfs D$ and $\\|v\\|\\leq 2\\mathfrak r(x)$\nthen $\\|\\widetilde{d(\\exp{x})_v}-{\\rm Id}\\|\\leq d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}\\|v\\|$,\ni.e. we substitute $K_2$ in \\cite[pp. 407]{Sarig-JAMS} by $d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}$. Noting as above\nthat $3K_2\\eta<\\eta^{2\\beta\/3}$, we get that the fourth factor is $e^{\\pm\\tfrac{1}{3}\\eta^{\\beta\/4}}$\nas in \\cite[pp. 408]{Sarig-JAMS}.\n\n\\medskip\nThe estimates of $|\\cos\\angle(V^s,V^u)-\\cos\\alpha(x)|$ work as in \\cite{Sarig-JAMS} after using again\nthat $K_2\\eta<\\eta^{2\\beta\/3}$, in which case $K_3=24$. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Proposition \\ref{Prop-graph-transform}.]\nWe follow the proofs of \\cite[Prop. 4.12 and 4.14]{Sarig-JAMS},\nwith the modifications below.\n\\begin{enumerate}[$\\circ$]\n\\item Pages 411--412: in claim 3, it is enough to have $|G'(0)|<\\tfrac{1}{2}(q^s\\wedge q^u)^{\\beta\/3}$.\nProceed as in \\cite{Sarig-JAMS} to get that\n$$\n|G'(0)|< e^{-\\chi+\\varepsilon}\\left[|A||F'(0)|+\\tfrac{2}{3}\\varepsilon^{\\beta\/3}(p^s\\wedge p^u)^{\\beta\/3}\n+6\\varepsilon (p^s\\wedge p^u)^{\\beta\/3}\\right]\n$$\nand then note that for $\\varepsilon>0$ small enough this is at most\n\\begin{align*}\n&e^{-\\chi+\\varepsilon}\\left[\\tfrac{1}{2}e^{-\\chi}+\\tfrac{2}{3}\\varepsilon^{\\beta\/3}+6\\varepsilon\\right](p^s\\wedge p^s)^{\\beta\/3}\\\\\n&\\leq e^{-\\chi+\\varepsilon+\\varepsilon\\beta\/3}\\left[\\tfrac{1}{2}e^{-\\chi}+\\tfrac{2}{3}\\varepsilon^{\\beta\/3}+6\\varepsilon\\right](q^s\\wedge q^s)^{\\beta\/3}\n<\\tfrac{1}{2}(q^s\\wedge q^u)^{\\beta\/3}.\n\\end{align*}\n\\item Page 412: in claim 4, it is enough to have $\\|G'\\|_0+\\Hol{\\beta\/3}(G')<\\tfrac{1}{2}$.\nProceed as in \\cite{Sarig-JAMS} to get that\n$\\|G'\\|_0+\\Hol{\\beta\/3}(G')0$ is small.\n\\item Pages 414--415: in the proof of part 2, proceed as in \\cite{Sarig-JAMS} to get that\n$$\n\\|G_1-G_2\\|_0\\leq (|A|+3\\varepsilon^2)(1+\\varepsilon^2+3\\varepsilon^3)\\|F_1-F_2\\|_0\n$$\nand note that $ (|A|+3\\varepsilon^2)(1+\\varepsilon^2+3\\varepsilon^3)<(e^{-\\chi}+3\\varepsilon^2)(1+\\varepsilon^2+3\\varepsilon^3)0$ is small enough.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of inequality {\\rm (\\ref{inequality-C})}.]\nWe will use assumption (A3) as stated in section \\ref{Section-introduction}:\n\\begin{enumerate}[ii]\n\\item[(A3)] $\\|df_x\\|< d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}$ and\n$\\|df^{-1}_x\\|< d(x,\\mathfs D)^{-a}$ for all $x\\in M\\backslash\\mathfs D$.\n\\end{enumerate}\nWe have:\n\\begin{align*}\n&s(f^{-1}(x))^2=2\\sum_{n\\geq 0}e^{2n\\chi}\\|df^ne^s_{f^{-1}(x)}\\|^2=\n2+2e^{2\\chi}\\|dfe^s_{f^{-1}(x)}\\|^2\\sum_{n\\geq 0}e^{2n\\chi}\\|df^ne^s_x\\|^2\\\\\n&=\n2+e^{2\\chi}\\|dfe^s_{f^{-1}(x)}\\|^2s(x)^2\\leq (1+e^{2\\chi}\\|dfe^s_{f^{-1}(x)}\\|^2)s(x)^2.\n\\end{align*}\nBy (A3),\n$\\tfrac{s(f^{-1}(x))^2}{s(x)^2}\\leq 1+e^{2\\chi} d(f^{-1}(x),\\mathfs D)^{-2a}\\leq 1+e^{2\\chi}\\rho(x)^{-2a}$.\nWe also have that\n\\begin{align*}\n&u(f^{-1}(x))^2=2\\sum_{n\\geq 0}e^{2n\\chi}\\|df^{-n}e^u_{f^{-1}(x)}\\|^2=2\\|df^{-1}e^u_x\\|^{-2}\n\\sum_{n\\geq 0}e^{2n\\chi}\\|df^{-(n+1)}e^u_x\\|^2\\\\\n&=2e^{-2\\chi}\\|df^{-1}e^u_x\\|^{-2}\\sum_{n\\geq 1}e^{2n\\chi}\\|df^{-n}e^u_x\\|^2=\ne^{-2\\chi}\\|df^{-1}e^u_x\\|^{-2}(u(x)^2-2)\\\\\n&<\\|df^{-1}e^u_x\\|^{-2} u(x)^2,\n\\end{align*}\nhence by (A6) we get that\n$\\tfrac{u(f^{-1}(x))^2}{u(x)^2}\\leq \\rho(x)^{-2a}<1+e^{2\\chi}\\rho(x)^{-2a}$.\nFinally, applying (\\ref{gen-ineq-angles}) for $L=df^{-1}_x$, $v=e^s_x$, $w=e^u_x$ and\nusing (A3), we have\n$$\n\\tfrac{\\sin\\alpha(x)}{\\sin\\alpha(f^{-1}(x))}=\\tfrac{\\sin\\angle(e^s_x,e^u_x)}{\\sin\\angle(df^{-1}_x e^s_x,df^{-1}_xe^u_x)}\n\\leq \\|df^{-1}_x\\|\\|df_{f^{-1}(x)}\\|<\\rho(x)^{-2a}.\n$$\nSince $\\|\\cdot \\|\\leq \\|\\cdot\\|_{\\rm Frob}\\leq \\sqrt{2}\\|\\cdot\\|$, the above inequalities and\nLemma \\ref{Lemma-linear-reduction} give that\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\|C_\\chi(f^{-1}(x))^{-1}\\|\\leq \\|C_\\chi(f^{-1}(x))^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}\n\\leq\\rho(x)^{-2a}\\sqrt{1+e^{2\\chi}\\rho(x)^{-2a}}\\|C_\\chi(x)^{-1}\\|_{\\rm Frob}\\\\\n&\\leq 2\\rho(x)^{-2a}(1+e^\\chi\\rho(x)^{-a})\\|C_\\chi(x)^{-1}\\|.\n\\end{align*}\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Proposition \\ref{Prop-stay-window}.]\nThe proof of part (2) is identical to the proof of \\cite[Prop. 6.4]{Sarig-JAMS},\nand the proof of part (1)(a)--(b) is identical to the proof of \\cite[Prop. 6.3(1)--(2)]{Sarig-JAMS}.\nTo prove (1)(c), we make some modifications in the proof of \\cite[Prop. 6.3(3))]{Sarig-JAMS}.\nWe start with the claim below.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\sc Claim:} If $y,z\\in D_x$ and $v\\in T_yM,w\\in T_zM$ with $\\|v\\|=\\|w\\|=1$ then\n\\begin{align*}\n&|\\|df_y^{\\pm 1}(v)\\|-\\|df_z^{\\pm 1}(w)\\||\\leq \\mathfrak K\\rho(x)^{-a}[d(y,z)^\\beta+\\|v-P_{z,y}w\\|]\\hspace{.2cm}\\text{and}\\\\\n&\\left|\\frac{\\|df_y^{\\pm 1}(v)\\|}{\\|df_z^{\\pm 1}(w)\\|}-1\\right|\\leq \\mathfrak K\\rho(x)^{-2a}[d(y,z)^\\beta+\\|v-P_{z,y}w\\|].\n\\end{align*}\nIn particular\n$\\left|\\log\\|df_y^{\\pm 1}(v)\\|-\\log\\|df_z^{\\pm 1}(w)\\|\\right|\\leq \\mathfrak K\\rho(x)^{-2a}[d(y,z)^\\beta+\\|v-P_{z,y}w\\|]$.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\em Proof of the claim.} The inequalities are consequences of (A5)--(A7). Since\nthese assumptions are symmetric on $f$ and $f^{-1}$, we only prove the claim for $f$.\nNote that:\n\\begin{align*}\n&|\\|df_y(v)\\|-\\|df_z(w)\\||\\leq \\|\\widetilde{df_y}(P_{y,x}v)-\\widetilde{df_z}(P_{z,x}w)\\|\\\\\n&\\leq \\|\\widetilde{df_y}-\\widetilde{df_z}\\|+\\|\\widetilde{df_z}\\|\\|v-P_{z,y}w\\|\\leq\n\\mathfrak Kd(y,z)^\\beta+\\rho(x)^{-a}\\|v-P_{z,y}w\\|\\\\\n&\\leq \\mathfrak K\\rho(x)^{-a}[d(y,z)^\\beta+\\|v-P_{z,y}w\\|].\n\\end{align*}\nThe second inequality follows from the first one and from (A7).\n\n\\medskip\nLet us now prove part (1)(c). Write $V^s=V^s[\\{\\Psi_{x_n}^{p^s_n,p^u_n}\\}_{n\\geq 0}]$. By the claim,\n\\begin{align*}\n&|\\log\\|df^n e^s_y\\|-\\log\\|df^n e^s_z\\||\\leq \\sum_{k=0}^{n-1}|\\log\\|df e^s_{f^k(y)}\\|-\\log\\|df e^s_{f^k(z)}\\||\\\\\n&\\leq \\sum_{k=0}^{n-1}\\mathfrak K\\rho(x_k)^{-2a}[d(f^k(y),f^k(z))^\\beta+\n\\|e^s_{f^k(y)}-P_{f^k(z),f^k(y)}e^s_{f^k(z)}\\|].\n\\end{align*}\nBy part (1)(a) and the definition of $Q_\\varepsilon(x_k)$,\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\rho(x_k)^{-2a}d(f^k(y),f^k(z))^\\beta<\\varepsilon^{1\/12}Q_\\varepsilon(x_k)^{-\\beta\/36}6e^{-\\frac{\\beta\\chi}{2} k}(p^s_0)^\\beta\\\\\n&<6\\varepsilon^{1\/12}(p^s_k)^{-\\beta\/36}e^{-\\frac{\\beta\\chi}{2} k}(p^s_0)^\\beta.\n\\end{align*}\nBy (GPO2) we have $p^s_0\\leq e^{\\varepsilon k}p^s_k$, then for small $\\varepsilon>0$ the last expression above is\n\\begin{align*}\n\\leq 6\\varepsilon^{1\/12}(p^s_0)^{-\\beta\/36}e^{-\\frac{\\beta\\chi}{2}k+\\frac{\\beta\\varepsilon}{36}k}(p^s_0)^\\beta\n< 6\\varepsilon^{1\/12}e^{-\\frac{\\beta\\chi}{3}k}(p^s_0)^{\\beta\/4}\n\\end{align*}\nand thus\n$$\n\\sum_{k=0}^{n-1}\\mathfrak K\\rho(x_k)^{-2a}d(f^k(y),f^k(z))^\\beta\\leq\n\\tfrac{6\\mathfrak K\\varepsilon^{1\/12}}{1-e^{-\\frac{\\beta\\chi}{3}}}(p^s_0)^{\\beta\/4}<\\tfrac{1}{2}(p^s_0)^{\\beta\/4}.\n$$\nWe now estimate the second sum. Call $N_k:=\\|e^s_{f^k(y)}-P_{f^k(z),f^k(y)}e^s_{f^k(z)}\\|$.\nWrite $f^k(y)=\\Psi_{x_k}(\\underline y_k)=\\Psi_{x_k}(y_k,F_k(y_k))$ and\n$f^k(z)=\\Psi_{x_k}(\\underline z_k)=\\Psi_{x_k}(z_k,F_k(z_k))$, where $F_k$ is the representing function\nof $V^s[\\{\\Psi_{x_n}^{p^s_n,p^u_n}\\}_{n\\geq k}]$. In part (1), it is proved\nthat $\\|\\underline y_k-\\underline z_k\\|\\leq 3p^s_0e^{-\\frac{\\chi}{2}k}$.\nAs in \\cite[pp. 418--419]{Sarig-JAMS}, \n\\begin{align*}\n&N_k\\leq 2\\|C_\\chi(x_k)^{-1}\\|\\|\\underline y_k-\\underline z_k\\|^{\\beta\/3}\\\\\n&\\hspace{.85cm}+4\\|C_\\chi(x_k)^{-1}\\|\n\\left\\|\\widetilde{d(\\exp{x_k})_{C_\\chi(x_k)\\underline y_k}\\circ C_\\chi(x_k)}-\\widetilde{d(\\exp{x_k})_{C_\\chi(x_k)\\underline z_k}\\circ C_\\chi(x_k)}\\right\\|\n\\end{align*}\nwhich, by (A3), is \n$\\leq 2\\|C_\\chi(x_k)^{-1}\\|\\|\\underline y_k-\\underline z_k\\|^{\\beta\/3}+4\\|C_\\chi(x_k)^{-1}\\|\\rho(x_k)^{-a}\\|\\underline y_k-\\underline z_k\\|$.\nFor $\\varepsilon>0$ small enough\n\\begin{align*}\n&4\\rho(x_k)^{-a}\\|\\underline y_k-\\underline z_k\\|^{\\beta\/72}\\leq 12\\rho(x_k)^{-a}(p^s_0)^{\\beta\/72}e^{-\\frac{\\beta\\chi}{144}k}\\\\\n&\\leq 12\\rho(x_k)^{-a}(p^s_k)^{\\beta\/72}e^{-\\frac{\\beta\\chi}{144}k+\\frac{\\beta\\varepsilon}{72}k}\n\\leq 12\\varepsilon^{1\/24}e^{-\\frac{\\beta\\chi}{144}k+\\frac{\\beta\\varepsilon}{72}k}<1,\n\\end{align*}\nthus $N_k\\leq 3\\|C_\\chi(x_k)^{-1}\\|\\|\\underline y_k-\\underline z_k\\|^{\\beta\/3}$. Hence for small $\\varepsilon>0$\n\\begin{align*}\n&\\rho(x_k)^{-2a}N_k\\leq 3\\|C_\\chi(x_k)^{-1}\\|\\rho(x_k)^{-2a}\\|\\underline y_k-\\underline z_k\\|^{\\beta\/3}\\\\\n&\\leq 9\\|C_\\chi(x_k)^{-1}\\|\\rho(x_k)^{-2a}(p^s_0)^{\\beta\/3}e^{-\\frac{\\beta\\chi}{6}k}\\\\\n&\\leq 9\\|C_\\chi(x_k)^{-1}\\|\\rho(x_k)^{-2a}(p^s_0)^{\\beta\/12}e^{-\\frac{\\beta\\chi}{6}k}(p^s_0)^{\\beta\/4}\\\\\n&\\leq 9\\|C_\\chi(x_k)^{-1}\\|\\rho(x_k)^{-2a}(p^s_k)^{\\beta\/12}e^{-\\frac{\\beta\\chi}{6}k+\\frac{\\beta\\varepsilon}{12}k}(p^s_0)^{\\beta\/4}\\\\\n&\\leq 9\\|C_\\chi(x_k)^{-1}\\|(p^s_k)^{\\beta\/24}\\rho(x_k)^{-2a}(p^s_k)^{\\beta\/36}e^{-\\frac{\\beta\\chi}{6}k+\\frac{\\beta\\varepsilon}{12}k}(p^s_0)^{\\beta\/4}\\\\\n&\\leq 9\\varepsilon^{5\/24}e^{-\\frac{\\beta\\chi}{7}k}(p^s_0)^{\\beta\/4}\n\\end{align*}\nand therefore\n$$\n\\sum_{k=0}^{n-1}\\mathfrak K\\rho(x_k)^{-2a}\\|e^s_{f^k(y)}-P_{f^k(z),f^k(y)}e^s_{f^k(z)}\\|\\leq\n\\tfrac{9\\mathfrak K\\varepsilon^{5\/24}}{1-e^{-\\beta\\chi\/7}}(p^s_0)^{\\beta\/4}<\\tfrac{1}{2}(p^s_0)^{\\beta\/4}.\n$$\nThe conclusion is that $|\\log\\|df^n e^s_y\\|-\\log\\|df^n e^s_z\\||<(p^s_0)^{\\beta\/4}5$ (cf. Fig.~13 in \\citet{jin18}), thus we have a SFR complete sample of SBs. \nThen, for the whole sample, we considered the spectroscopic redshifts (when available) instead of the photometric values, however this does not significantly affect the stellar masses: the two estimates for the parent sample are in agreement within a 1$\\sigma$ scatter of $0.11$ dex, compatible with the uncertainties reported by \\citet{laigle16}. \nOnly for one SB analyzed in this work (ID $685067$, z$_\\text{spec}=0.37$), the new stellar mass was remarkably lower ($-0.56$ dex), due to the large difference with previous photometric redshift (z$_\\text{phot}=0.71$). Therefore, $\\text{dist}_\\text{MS}$ was even higher, strengthening its starburst selection.\n\nThis criteria yielded 152 SBs, 25 of which were observed during 4 nights at the Magellan 6.5 $m$ Baade Telescope ($17$-$18$\/$03$\/$2017$ and $22$-$23$\/$03$\/$2018$). The observed $25$ galaxies were chosen from the pre-selected SB sample according to a priority list. \nWe preferentially observed sources close to bright stars (J < $19$-$20$ mag), so as to facilitate target acquisition, although we eventually avoided blind offsets, since our galaxies are already sufficiently bright (peak magnitudes $<19$ mag) to be detected in $\\sim 20$-$60$ s in the good seeing conditions of those observations. In addition, we targeted intrinsically brighter sources first, maximizing SFR\/D$_L^2$(z) ratio (D$_L$ is the luminosity distance), and assuming no prior knowledge about the dust attenuation of the system, which was set to 0 in all cases. This introduces a small bias in our selection toward the more massive objects. However, our galaxies span the full range of stellar masses above $10^{10} M_\\odot$. We refer to Fig.~1 in Paper I, where we presented the redshift, the SFR and the stellar mass distribution of our observed starbursts and our parent galaxy sample.\n\nOur targets were observed with the single-slit echelle spectrograph FIRE \\citep{simcoe13}, which has a wavelength range of $0.82$-$2.4 \\mu$m. We refer to \\citet{simcoe13} for the full technical description of the instrument.\nWe chose a slit width of $1''$, (yielding a spectral resolution of R$=3000$) to minimize slit losses (the average intrinsic FWHM angular size in Ks-band for our sample is $\\sim 0.6''$) and reduce the impact of OH sky emission. In all the cases, the slits were oriented along the semi-major axis of each galaxy, as determined from HST i-band images. Additionally, we benefited from good seeing conditions over all the four nights, with an average of $0.7''$ and a minimum of $0.45''$. \nThe majority of our starbursts were observed in AB sequence, with single exposure times of $15$-$20$ minutes \\footnote{We chose single frame integrations of $20$ minutes during the first run and $15$ minutes in the second run, which significantly reduces saturation of OH lines in K band, thus helping spectral reduction in that band.}. We decided to double the integration times (completing the ABBA sequence)\\footnote{In practice, doing an AB sequence is irrelevant for the spectral reduction, as the pipeline reduces each frame separately (See Section \\ref{spectroscopic_reduction}), though it allows us to easily derive 2D emission line maps with the standard IRAF tasks \\textsc{imarith} and \\textsc{imcombine}.} for galaxies with a lower S\/N of the H$\\alpha$+[\\ion{N}{II}] complex (based on real-time reduction), to improve the detection of fainter lines. \n\n\\subsection{Spectroscopic reduction}\\label{spectroscopic_reduction}\n\nThe spectra were fully reduced using the publicly available IDL-based FIREHOSE pipeline \\citep{gagne15}. For each exposure, we used internal quartz lamps (one for each observing session) to trace the $21$ orders of the echelle spectra and to apply the flat field correction. Then, the wavelength calibration was performed by fitting a low (1-5) order polynomial (depending on the spectral order) to ThAr lines of lamp exposures (taken close in time to the corresponding science frames). We checked that the residuals of the fitted lines to the best-fit wavelength solution are less than $1$ pixel in all the cases, and is $< 0.1$ pixel for the majority of the orders. This translates into an average wavelength accuracy of $\\Delta \\lambda \/ \\lambda$ $\\simeq 5 \\times 10^{-5}$, nearly constant across the entire spectral range. Finally, the sky subtraction was applied independently for each single frame following the method of \\citet{kelson03}. In this step, the OH lines in the spectra are used to refine the wavelength calibration.\n\nThe 1-D spectra are extracted from the 2-D frames using an optimal extraction method \\citep{horne86}. However, this procedure cannot be applied when there is a rapidly varying spatial profile of the object flux \\citep{horne86}, as in the presence of spatially extended and tilted emission lines. We used in these cases a boxcar extraction procedure, with a sufficiently large extraction aperture (always $> 1.3''$) in order to include all the line emission from the 2-D exposure. We adopted the boxcar extraction for $3$ galaxies in our sample, which are the IDs $245158$, $493881$ and $470239$. Given the agreement within the uncertainties between the fluxes measured with the two approaches for the remaining galaxies, the use of the boxcar procedure does not appear to introduce a systematic flux bias. \n\nAfter the spectral extraction, we applied the flux calibration to each 1-D extracted spectrum, using telluric spectra derived from the observations of A0V stars. Before dividing the object and telluric spectra in the pipeline, we could interactively refine the wavelength matching between the two by minimizing the $rms$ of the product. However, at infrared wavelengths slightly different times and\/or airmasses between science and standard star observations can produce non-negligible telluric line residuals, affecting the subsequent analysis. We found that this problem was more relevant in K-band, where strong telluric features are present in the observed wavelength ranges $19950$-$20250$ \\AA\\ and $20450$-$20800$ \\AA. The residuals in these regions can produce artificial variations of the real flux up to a factor of $2$, while it is less significant at shorter wavelengths (Y to H). In order to remove these artifacts, we followed the procedure described in \\citet{mannucci01}: we first considered a standard star at an airmass of $\\sim1.5$ and calibrated it with two different stars observed at significantly lower and higher airmasses (e.g., $1.2$ and $1.9$). Then the two obtained spectra are divided, yielding a global correction function (which is different from $1$ only in the regions of strong telluric features defined above) that applies to all the single-exposure spectra, each of them with a different multiplicative factor until the telluric line residuals disappear\n\\footnote{We fitted a linear function in nearby regions free of telluric regions and emission lines, and then determined the correction function through minimizing the rms of the difference between the corrected spectrum and the afore-mentioned continuum fit}.\nFinally, we combined (with a weighted-average) all the 1-D calibrated spectra of the same object. \n\nThe error on the flux density f$_\\lambda$ obtained from the FIRE pipeline was checked over all the spectral range, analyzing the continuum of each galaxy in spectral windows of $200$ \\AA\\ and steps of $100$ \\AA, masking emission lines. In each window, we rescaled the rms noise so as to have the $\\chi_{\\text{reduced}}^2 =$ 1 when fitting the continuum with a low-order ($\\lesssim 1$) polynomial\\footnote{A spline of order $1$ spanning the whole wavelength range was used as a correction function}. This criterion, equivalently, ensures that the noise level matches the $1$-$\\sigma$ dispersion of the object spectrum in each window. Typical corrections are within a factor of $2$, variable across the spectral bands. \n\nDue to slit losses, variable seeing conditions and the spatial extension of our objects, which are typically larger than the slit width ($1''$), part of the total flux of the galaxies is lost. In order to recover the total absolute flux, we matched the whole spectrum to the photometric SED. This was done by applying a $5\\sigma$ clipping and error-weighted average to the Magellan spectrum inside z++, Y, J, H and K$_s$ photometric bands, and comparing the obtained mean $f_\\lambda$ in each filter to the corresponding broad-band photometry \\citep{laigle16}. Since the SED shapes derived from the spectra are generally in agreement with the photometric SED shapes, we rescaled our spectra with a constant factor, determined through a least squares minimization procedure. The aperture correction factors for our sample range between $0.8$ and $3$, with a median of $1.4$. They are subject to multiple contributions, i.e., slit position with respect to the object, seeing conditions during the target and the standard stars observations. The few cases in which the aperture correction was lower than $1$ could be due indeed to a much better seeing of the standard star compared to the target observation.\nWe remind that this procedure assumes that lines and continuum are equally extended, which is clearly an approximation. Spatially resolved near-IR line maps (e.g., with SINFONI) would be required to test possible different gradients of the two emission components, and to derive better total flux corrections.\n\n\\subsection{Complementary optical spectra}\\label{complementary_optical_spectra}\n\n\\begin{figure*}[t!]\n \\centering\n \\raggedright{\\textbf{HST F814W} \\quad \\qquad \\textbf{UltraVISTA H} \\qquad \\textbf{VLA 3 GHz}}\n \\includegraphics[angle=0,width=17.5cm,trim={0cm 0.cm 0cm 127cm},clip]{test_mosaic_all_compressed.pdf}\n \\caption{\\small For each of the galaxies observed in our second observing run at Magellan we show (from left to right): HST-ACS F814W images (FWHM$_{\\text{res}}=0.095''$), H-band UltraVISTA cutouts (same f.o.v. and FWHM$_{res} \\sim 0.75''$) and 3 GHz radio images from VLA-COSMOS 3GHz Large Project \\citep{smolcic17} (FWHM$\\sim 0.75''$).\n Cutout images for the sample of the first observing run were presented in Paper I.}\\label{stamps}\n\\end{figure*}\n\nA subset of our Magellan sample also has publicly available optical spectra: $10$ starbursts in our sample have been observed with the VIMOS spectrograph \\citep{lefevre03} by the zCOSMOS survey \\citep{lilly07}, and their optical spectra are publicly available through the LAM website (\\url{cesam.lam.fr\/zCOSMOS}). They span the range $5550<\\lambda<9650$ \\AA, which includes [\\ion{O}{II}]$\\lambda 3727$ \\AA, H$\\gamma$, H$\\beta$ and [\\ion{O}{III}]$\\lambda 5007$ \\AA\\ lines for our galaxies. The spectral resolution is on average $R=600$, constant across the whole range, while the noise level increases from the blue to the red part of the spectrum, due to the increased OH sky emission at longer wavelengths. Due to the absence of the noise spectrum in the public zCOSMOS release, we used instead a sky spectrum at the same resolution of VIMOS, rescaled with a spline to match the flux standard deviation in spectral regions free of emission lines, similarly to what has been done before on the Magellan spectra.\nEven though it is a first approximation, this procedure allows to reproduce the increasing noise in correspondence of OH lines, i.e., where strong sky-subtraction residuals are expected, and take into account the higher average noise level of the red part of the spectrum. \nFor one galaxy in our sample (ID $493881$), we took its optical spectrum from SDSS-III DR9 \\citep{ahn12}, which spans a wider wavelength range $3600<\\lambda<10400$ \\AA\\ at higher resolution (R$\\sim 2000$), thus allowing a better sky subtraction and a higher SNR. \nIn both cases, the spectra were already fully reduced, wavelength and flux calibrated, as described in the respective papers. We apply only an aperture correction by matching the observed spectrum to the photometric SED \\citep{laigle16} with the same methodology adopted for the Magellan spectra. However, we warn that there could be some mis-matches compared to our Magellan observations in the slit \ncentering and orientation, as also in the seeing conditions, thus the spectra may not be exactly representative of the same regions.\n\n\\subsection{Line measurements}\\label{line_measurements}\n\nWe measured emission line fluxes, line widths and uncertainties on fully calibrated and aperture corrected spectra using the python anaconda distribution (Mark Rivers, 2002\\footnote{GitHub Repository: \\href{stsci.tools\/lib\/stsci\/tools\/nmpfit.py}{stsci.tools\/lib\/stsci\/tools\/nmpfit.py}}) of the IDL routine MPFIT (Markwardt 2009).\nGiven the FWHM resolution of FIRE for $1''$ slit width ($=100$ km\/s), all our emission lines are resolved, owing to intrinsically higher velocity widths. \n\nWe fit the lines with a single Gaussian on top of an underlying order-1 polynomial continuum. In each case, we require a statistical significance of the fit of $95\\%$, as determined from the residual $\\chi^2$. When a single Gaussian does not satisfy the above condition, we use a double Gaussian (with varying flux ratio and same FWHM, in km\/s, for the two components), which instead provides a better fit, placing its $\\chi^2$ within the asked confidence level. The flux uncertainties were derived by MPFIT itself, and they were always well behaved, with best-fit $\\chi_\\text{reduced}^2 \\simeq 1$. For non detected lines (i.e., SNR $<2$ in our case), we adopt a $2\\sigma$ upper limit \\footnote{We remark that we are guided by the wavelength position, line width and flux ratio (for double line components) of H$\\alpha$, which is always detected at $>4\\sigma$. The Gaussian amplitude remains thus the only variable to constrain the fit for the other lines.}. However, we highlight that our detected emission lines have always high S\/N ratios: H$\\alpha$, [\\ion{N}{II}]$\\lambda$6584$\\AA$\\ and Pa$\\beta$ are identified on average at 9.3, 8.4 and 7.4 $\\sigma$, respectively (lowest SNRs are 4, 5.3 and 3.3 for the same lines). \n\nWe fitted a double Gaussian for $12$ galaxies in our sample.\nAs we will see later in Section \\ref{pre-coalescence} by combining the informations of their 1D and 2D spectra, in $6$ of them we interpret the two Gaussians as coming from different merger components. For the remaining galaxies, in $2$ cases the lines are consistent with global rotation, while for the last $4$ we were not able to derive firm conclusions, even though we favour the contribution of multiple system parts to their emission. In Appendix \\ref{emissionlinefits}, we show the 1D emission line fits for all our $25$ starbursts, and we discuss in more detail the origin of double Gaussians line components.\n\nWe applied the stellar absorption correction on Balmer and Paschen emission lines, rescaling upwards their fluxes. In order to determine the level of absorption for these lines, we adopted \\citet{bruzual03} synthetic spectra with solar metallicity and constant star-formation history for $200$-$300$ Myr, which are the typical merger-triggered starburst timescales \\citep{dimatteo08}.\nThe current starburst activity imposed by our selection suggests that the final coalescence of the major merger occurred relatively recently, certainly within the last 200 Myr. \nNumerical simulations of major mergers with different masses and dynamical times indicate indeed that star formation stops within 100-200 Myr after the coalescence, even without AGN quenching \\citep{springel05a,bournaud11,powell13,moreno15}.\nAveraging the results over this interval, we applied an EW$_{abs}$ of $5$, $2.5$, $2.5$ and $2$ \\AA\\ for H$\\beta$, H$\\alpha$, Pa$\\gamma$ and Pa$\\beta$, respectively\\footnote{The EW$_{abs}$ of H$\\beta$ and H$\\alpha$ are consistent with those adopted in previous works \\citep[e.g.][]{valentino15}, while it was not possible to make comparisons for Pa$\\gamma$ and Pa$\\beta$.}. In the same order, we estimated for these lines an average absorption correction of $35\\%$, $7\\%$, $26\\%$, $13\\%$ of the total flux. If we allow an uncertainty of $\\pm 1$ \\AA\\ on the EW$^{abs}$ correction of either Pa$\\gamma$ and Pa$\\beta$, this will produce variations on the final fluxes that are $6\\%$ on median average, and thus it will not significantly affect our results. \n\nAll the lines in the Magellan spectra, either in emission or in absorption, were analyzed based on the following steps. Firstly, H$\\alpha$ and [\\ion{N}{II}]$\\lambda\\lambda$ $6548$,$6583$, which are the lines with the highest S\/N, were fitted together assuming a common linear continuum and a fixed ratio of the [\\ion{N}{II}] doublet of $3.05$ \\citep{storey88}. From this fit we derived the redshift of the galaxy, the intrinsic FWHM of H$\\alpha$ (in terms of velocity), and the flux ratio of the two H$\\alpha$ components for double gaussian fits. The instrinsic total line widths were obtained by subtracting in quadrature the FIRE resolution width ($100$ km\/s) from the best-fit observed FWHM. For double Gaussians, the total FWHM was calculated adding the single FWHM and the separation between the two component peaks, as this quantity is more representative of the whole system.\n\nThen, the three parameters defined above were fixed and used to fit all other emission lines, including those in the optical zCOSMOS and SDSS spectra, after rescaling the FWHM to account for the different spectral resolutions. For the galaxies with the highest S\/N of Pa$\\beta$ ($>8\\sigma$), we verified that even without fixing its FWHM a-priori, the fit yields a line velocity width consistent within the errors with the value found from H$\\alpha$, indicating that our assumption is generally valid.\nGiven the \\textit{rms} wavelength calibration accuracy (see Section \\ref{spectroscopic_reduction}), we allowed the line central wavelength to vary in the fit by $3\\sigma$, corresponding to $1.5$ \\AA\\ at $10000$ \\AA, and $3$ \\AA\\ at $20000$ \\AA.\nFor each measured flux, we also added in quadrature an error due to the uncertainty of the absolute flux calibration. This additional uncertainty ranges between $5\\%$ and $10\\%$, and is determined as the maximum residual difference between the average fluxes estimated from the photometry and from the aperture corrected spectra, among all the bands ranging from z++ to K$_S$. \nFinally, the equivalent widths of the lines were derived following its definition ($=\\int (F(\\lambda)-F_{cont}(\\lambda))$\/$F_{cont}(\\lambda)$), where $F(\\lambda)$ is the best-fit gaussian flux distribution and $F_{cont}$ is the fitted underlying continuum. \nSince the fluxes of H$\\alpha$ and Pa$\\beta$ were presented in Paper I, here we show in Table \\ref{table2} the FWHM of the lines, the EWs of H$\\alpha$, H$\\delta$ and Pa$\\beta$, the fluxes of [\\ion{O}{III}]$5007$ and H$\\beta$ that have been used in the BPT diagram.\n\n\\subsection{Ancillary data}\\label{ancillary_data}\n\nAlmost all of our starbursts (24) were observed by HST-ACS in the F814W filter \\citep{koekemoer07} at an angular resolution of $0.095''$ ($\\sim0.7$ kpc at z$=0.7$). The UltraVISTA survey \\citep{mccracken12} observed our galaxies in YJHK bands at a spatial FWHM resolution of $\\sim0.75''$, comparable to the average seeing during our Magellan observations. Two galaxies in the subset have higher resolution ($0.19''$) F160W HST images from the DASH program \\citep{momcheva16}.\nFinally, all our galaxies are well detected in radio $3$ GHz VLA images \\citep{smolcic17} (owing a similar a spatial resolution of $\\simeq 0.75''$), with an average S\/N of $18$. \nIn \\citet{calabro18} we showed the HST F814W, H-band UltraVISTA and radio $3$ GHz VLA cutout images for only $10$ galaxies in our whole sample, for reason of space. Therefore, we include here in Fig.\\ref{stamps} the same types of images for the remaining sample of $14$ starbursts, all of which have been observed during the second Magellan run (we remind that galaxy ID 578239 was not observed by HST, so we did not show it).\n\n\\subsection{Morphological classification}\\label{morphological_classification}\n\nEven though the light emission of dusty starbursts at optical\/NIR wavelengths might be still severely affected by dust, the high resolutions offered by HST F814W images allows us to investigate the global structure of these systems. In Paper I we showed that the morphology of $18$ galaxies has been already classified by \\citet{kartaltepe10} (K10), revealing a merger origin for the majority of them. Adopting the same criteria of K10, we have classified visually the remaining $6$ galaxies (one has no HST coverage), but the results do not change significantly: $61\\%$ of our total sample are major mergers, as revealed by their highly disturbed morphology, tidal tales and bridges, $23\\%$ are classified as minor mergers from the presence of only slightly perturbed structures (e.g., warped disks, asymmetric spiral arms, etc.) without large companions, $11\\%$ are classified as spheroidal\/S0 galaxies and the remaining $5\\%$ as spirals. The major merger subset is additionally divided in five smaller classes according to their merger state (I: First approach, II: First contact, III: pre-merger, IV: Merger, V: Old-merger\/merger remnant), following K10. \n\nHowever, we remind that the merger recognition and, even more, the merger stage classification from the optical morphology is very uncertain and more difficult at higher redshifts, due to lower resolution and to surface brightness dimming, which hampers the detection of faint tidal tales\/interacting features, especially after the coalescence. The galaxy ID $245158$ represents a show-case example of this uncertainty: it has been classified as spiral\/minor merger from its global morphology, but it clearly shows a double nucleus in the central region, further confirmed by a double component H$\\alpha$ in the 2-D and 1-D spectrum, indicating rather an ongoing merger system.\n\n\\subsection{Radio size measurements}\\label{radio_size_measurements}\n\n\\begin{figure}[t!]\n \\centering\n \\includegraphics[angle=0,width=\\linewidth,trim={0.cm 0.cm 0.cm 0cm},clip]{Radio_fit_PaperII_compressed.pdf}\n \n \\caption{\\small GALFIT fitting of the radio VLA image (3 GHz) of the galaxy ID 685067 ($z = 0.37$) with the VLA synthesised beam in the \\textit{upper} row and with a Gaussian profile (convolved with the beam) in the \\textit{bottom} row. In horizontal sequence are shown, from left to right, the original image, the fitted model and the residual (original-model). For this galaxy, we derive an angular size of $0.20 \\pm 0.04''$ (the pixel scale is $0.2''$\/pixel), which corresponds to a physical size of $1.06 \\pm 0.19$ kpc. We notice that here GALFIT converges when fixing the position angle (PA) and axis ratio (q) parameters, to 0 and 1, respectively (Table \\ref{table2}). This example illustrates the possibility to reliably measure the radio sizes of our objects even when they are smaller than the FWHM resolution of VLA ($0.75''$). In this case, the difference between the two models is recognized by looking at the residual images (i.e., original-model).}\\label{galfit_residuals}\n\\end{figure}\n\nThe radio continuum emission has been used as a dust-free tracer of the SFR in galaxies in the absence of contamination from an AGN \\citep[e.g.,][]{condon92}. Since all our galaxies do not show either radio jets or radio flux excess compared to that expected from the SFR only (as we will show in Section \\ref{AGN_identification}), we used $3$ GHz VLA images for measuring the FWHM size of their starburst cores, where the bulk of star-formation is taking place. For each SB, we used GALFIT \\citep{peng10} to fit a 2D function, convolved with the VLA synthesised beam, to their radio emission. We tested several 2D profiles, which include a Gaussian, a S\\'ersic function and the VLA beam itself, requiring a significance of the fit (probed by the $\\chi^2$) of at least $95\\%$ confidence level, as for the emission line measurements. In addition to the $\\chi^2$ analysis, all the GALFIT residuals of the fit (original-model) were checked by eye inspection, and the excluded fittings have always worst residuals. \nThe best-fit profiles obtained for our sample are summarized as follows:\n\\begin{itemize}\n \\item A single 2D Gaussian with varying FWHM, axis ratio and position angle provides the best fit for $13$ starbursts. In one case (ID 470239), the required conditions are obtained only by fitting a single S\\'ersic profile with varying parameters, but its half light diameter (calculated as $2 \\times r_e$, with $r_e$ the effective radius) is only $3\\%$ different from the total FWHM of a single gaussian fit, thus we assume the latter as the final value. \\footnote{We also tried to fit a single and double S\\'ersic profile for all the other sources. However, given the larger number of parameters of this profile and the limited VLA resolution, we do not obtain convergence for the majority of them, or the resulting $\\chi_\\text{reduced}^2$ are too high.}\n \\item A double 2D Gaussian is required by $3$ galaxies (ID 245158, 412250 and 519651), allowing to resolve them and measure single components FWHM and their relative separation.\n \\item Fitting the VLA synthesised beam yields the best solution for $6$ galaxies, which are then unresolved with current resolution ($0.75''$)\n \\item A single 2D Gaussian with fixed axis ratio and position angle (to $1$ and $0$, respectively) is used for $2$ sources (ID 578239 and 685067). We remark that, in case the $95\\%$ significance level of the fit is satisfied with either this or the previous approach (as in the case of some very compact sources), we adopt the Gaussian solution only if the associated $\\chi^2$ probability level is at least double compared to the fit with the VLA beam.\n\\end{itemize}\n\nAs shown later, for a few galaxies we have measured angular sizes that are much smaller than the synthesised beam FWHM ($\\sim 0.75''$), down to $\\sim0.2''$ and to a physical scale of $1$ kpc. To demonstrate that it is possible to reliably determine the sizes even for these extreme, compact sources, we show in Fig. \\ref{galfit_residuals} a comparison between the GALFIT residuals obtained when fitting the image with a Gaussian (convolved to the VLA beam) (upper row) and with the radio synthesised beam itself (bottom row). It is evident that a Gaussian provides a better fit of the original source profile and a cleaner residual compared to the VLA beam alone. \n\nThe uncertainties on the sizes were recalculated for all the starbursts from their radio SNRs, using the fact that better detected radio sources also have the smallest radio size uncertainties, as shown, e.g., in \\citet{coogan18}. We used then the same formulation as: \n\\begin{equation}\n FWHM_{err}\\simeq 1 \\times \\frac{FWHM_{beam}}{SNR},\n\\end{equation}\\label{errorsize} \nwhere FWHM$_{beam}$ is the circularized FWHM of the VLA synthetized beam, and the multiplying coefficient was determined from simulations, following \\citet{coogan18}. All the size measurements with relative uncertainties and the method used for their determination are included in Table \\ref{table2}.\n\nSince our galaxies are well detected in radio band (average SNR of $18$) and the VLA synthetized beam is well known, we always obtain a good fit for the resolved sources. Among them, we were able to fit a double Gaussian for $3$ objects. In these cases, their total FWHM (adopted throughout the paper) were determined as the sum of the average single FWHM sizes and the separation between the two components. However, we will also consider the single sizes in some cases, e.g., in Fig. \\ref{Mass_Size}. This finding suggests that also some other galaxies may represent double nuclei that are blended in $0.75''$ resolution VLA images. \nFor the unresolved galaxies instead (i.e. those fitted with the VLA beam, as explained above), we adopted a $3\\sigma$ upper limit on their FWHM. Within the most compact starbursts, some of them may be affected by pointlike emission from an AGN, which decreases artificially the observed size. However, we tend to discard this possibility since, as we will see later, none of our AGN candidates show a radio-excess compared to the radio emission due to their SFR. \n\n\\subsection{AGN identification}\\label{AGN_identification}\n \nWe started searching for AGN components in the mid-IR. Through the multi-component SED fitting of IR+(sub)mm photometry (described in Section \\ref{sample_selection}) we detected at $>3\\sigma$ the dusty torus emission component for a subset of $12$ SBs. The significance of the detection was derived from the ratio between the total best-fit dusty torus luminosity ($=L_\\text{AGN,IR}$) and its $1\\sigma$ uncertainty, inferred as the luminosity range (symmetrized) yielding a variation of the $\\chi_{red}^2$ $\\leq1$ with respect to the minimum value of best-fit \\citep{avni76}. More details about the torus estimation method are described in \\citet{liu18} and \\citet{jin18}. Among the $12$ mid-IR AGNs, we detected the dusty torus emission at high significance level ($> 5\\sigma$) for $6$ starbursts (ID 777034, 519651, 222723, 232171, 466112, 894779), while for the remaining objects we obtained a lower significance ranging $3\\sigma<$ $L_{AGN,IR}$ $<5\\sigma$ (see Table \\ref{table2}). The SED fitting of all the galaxies can be found in the Appendix \\ref{additional_plots}. \n\nWithin the sample of IR-detected AGNs, $6$ galaxies (ID 777034, 222723, 232171, 635862, 578239, 911723) are also detected in X-rays at more than $3\\sigma$ by XMM-Newton, Chandra or NuStar \\citep{cappelluti09,marchesi16,civano15}. Throughout the paper, we will consider the X-ray luminosities L$_X$ measured by \\citet{lanzuisi17}, integrated over the energy range $2$-$10$ keV. \nTo estimate the contribution of star-formation to the total intrinsic L$_\\text{X}$, we used the relation between SFR and L$_\\text{X,SFR}$ of \\citet{mineo14}, rescaled to a Chabrier IMF and applying a correction factor of $0.6761$ to convert the X-ray luminosity from the $0.5$-$8$ keV to the $2$-$10$ keV band.\n\nWe remind that the column densities N$_H$ inferred from their hardness ratios \\citep{lanzuisi17} are consistent with those derived from the dust attenuations (toward the centers) assuming a mixed model (Paper I), suggesting that also the X-ray emission is coming from the nucleus, where the AGN is expected to be located. \nFurthermore, all our starbursts do not show radio jets in VLA images, and do not have significant radio excess than expected from their SFR, assuming a typical IR-radio correlation with q$_\\text{IR} = 2.4$, as in \\citet{ibar08}, \\citet{ivison10} and \\citet{liu18}. \n\n\n\\section{Results}\\label{results}\n\n\\begin{figure*}[h!]\n \\centering\n \\includegraphics[angle=0,width=0.48\\linewidth,trim={0.cm 3cm 0.cm 0cm},clip]{Quadruple_plot_paperII1.pdf}\n \\includegraphics[angle=0,width=0.48\\linewidth,trim={0.cm 3cm 0.cm 0cm},clip]{Quadruple_plot_paperII2.pdf}\n \n \\caption{\\small \\textit{Left:} Correlations of A$_\\text{V,tot}$ with the radio size (top), and with the N2 index (bottom). We show with filled blue diamonds all the Magellan SBs that were used to derive the best-fit linear relation (blue continuous line) and the $\\pm$1$\\sigma$ dispersion (blue shaded area), while empty diamonds represent galaxies excluded from those calculations. The latter comprise the $4$ outliers discussed in the text (ID 303305, 345018, 472775, 545185) and all the upper limits in the A$_\\text{V,tot}$ vs FWHM$_\\text{radio}$ plot.\n In the corners, we show in black the equation of the linear fit (which includes $1\\sigma$ error of the two best-fit parameters), and in gray the Spearman correlation coefficient (R) with the corresponding p-value (p), the reduced chi-square of the fit ($\\chi_\\text{red}^2$), and the $1\\sigma$ scatter of our SBs around the best-fit line, all of which do not take into account upper limits and the $4$ outliers mentioned above.\n For comparison, the linear fit and $1\\sigma$ dispersion including the $4$ outlier galaxies are highlighted with a gray continuous dashed line and two dotted lines of the same color. \\textit{Right:} Correlations of A$_\\text{V,tot}$ with the line velocity width (top), and with the EW(Pa$\\beta$) (bottom). In the last diagram, $4$ galaxies without EW(Pa$\\beta$) measurements are not considered.}\\label{correlations}\n\\end{figure*}\n\nThe spectra that we have obtained at the Magellan telescope, along with longer wavelength radio images, provide us key information\nto understand both the attenuation sequence and the variety of morphological classes of our starbursts. First of all, since dissipative mergers are able to funnel the gas from the large scales of Milky-way-like disks ($\\sim10$ kpc) to sizes that are more than one order of magnitude smaller \\citep{dimatteo05}, it is useful to analyze the characteristic star-forming sizes of our starbursts.\nBesides this, from the galaxy integrated Magellan spectra we can study together the excitation and kinematic state of the gas, and the aging of the stellar population in the outer starburst cores, traced respectively by the [\\ion{N}{II}]\/H$\\alpha$ ratios, the intrinsic (resolution corrected) line velocity widths of single 1-D Gaussian components ($=$FWHM$_{\\text{line}}$, which is a proxy for the velocity dispersion in the system) and the Balmer\/Paschen line equivalent widths ($=$EW$_{H\\alpha,Pa\\beta}$).\n\nIn Fig. \\ref{correlations} we present the main result of this analysis, showing that the FWHM$_{\\text{radio}}$, the N2 parameter, the FWHM$_{\\text{line}}$ and the EW$_{Pa\\beta}$ are all correlated to the total dust attenuation A$_\\text{V,tot}$, which is used here as the reference quantity for comparison. \nThis suggests that our starbursts can be described as, at first order, a one-parameter sequence: similar correlations at different significance levels are indeed found also when comparing on a single basis each pair of the above parameters.\n\nWe tested these correlations using three different approaches with all the available data, excluding from the calculations only the upper limits and missing EW(Pa$\\beta$) measurements.\nFirstly, we calculated the Spearman rank correlation coefficient R (the higher R, the stronger the correlation) and the corresponding p-value, which represents the probability of obtaining an equal (or stronger) R if no correlation exists. We defined a threshold probability of $5\\%$ to accept the correlation. Overall, we found that the p-values are nearly always lower than $0.05$, meaning that the correlations are significant according to our criteria. In only one case (EW$_{Pa\\beta}$ vs FWHM$_{\\text{radio}}$) we determined a slightly higher p-value of $0.1$ (thus a higher probability of no correlation), which could be partly affected by the lowest number of data (i.e. lowest statistics) available here compared to the other diagrams. However, the other methods indicate instead a stronger physical connection between the two quantities.\n\nIn the second approach, we fitted the galaxies in each diagram with a linear relation (in log-log space, except for the last diagram where the y-axis is in linear scale), by using an Orthogonal Distance Regression procedure (ODR), which allows to take into account measurement uncertainties in both axis (we discuss later possible outliers or different fitting functions). We determined the SNR of the angular coefficient (i.e., how much it differs from 0), finding significant correlations at more than $3\\sigma$ in 8 cases, while they are less strong ($2<$ SNR $<3$) for the remaining two diagrams. In the four correlations shown in Fig.\\ref{correlations}, we obtained a significance of $5.8$, $5$, $4.3$ and $3.65\\sigma$ for A$_\\text{V,tot}$ vs N2, FWHM$_{\\text{line}}$ and EW$_{Pa\\beta}$, respectively. With this method, we also determined the 1$\\sigma$ dispersion of our data with respect to the best-fit linear relation. \n\n\\begin{table*}[!htb]\n \\centering\n \\begin{tabular}{||l||l||l||l||l||}\n \\hlineB{2}\n & \\bfseries FWHM$_{\\text{radio}}$ & \\bfseries N2 & \\bfseries FWHM$_{\\text{line}}$ & \\bfseries EW$_{\\text{Pa}\\bm{\\beta}}$ \\\\\n \\hlineB{2}\n \\bfseries A$_{\\text{V,tot}}$ & -0.6 (0.007) & 0.48 (0.027) & 0.61 (0.0037) & -0.52 (0.026) \\\\\n \\rowcolor{SeaGreen3!30!} & 5.8$\\sigma$ & 6$\\sigma$ & 4.3$\\sigma$ & 4.3$\\sigma$ \\\\\n \\rowcolor{Tan3!30!} & 0.028\\% & $<0.001\\%$ & $2.9\\%$ & $0.12\\%$ \\\\\n \\hlineB{1.5}\n \\bfseries FWHM$_{\\text{radio}}$ & & -0.71 (0.0006) & -0.46 (0.049) & 0.45 (0.1) \\\\\n \\rowcolor{SeaGreen3!30!} & & 5.74$\\sigma$ & 2.93$\\sigma$ & 4.9$\\sigma$ \\\\\n \\rowcolor{Tan3!30!} & & $<0.001\\%$ & $0.033\\%$ & $3\\%$ \\\\\n \\hlineB{1.5}\n \\bfseries N2 & & & 0.67 (0.0003) & -0.43 (0.05) \\\\\n \\rowcolor{SeaGreen3!30!} & & & 5.45$\\sigma$ & 3.85$\\sigma$ \\\\\n \\rowcolor{Tan3!30!} & & & $<0.001\\%$ & $0.15\\%$ \\\\\n \\hlineB{1.5}\n \\bfseries FWHM$_{\\text{line}}$ & & & & -0.46 (0.05) \\\\\n \\rowcolor{SeaGreen3!30!} & & & & 2.5$\\sigma$ \\\\\n \\rowcolor{Tan3!30!} & & & & $12.9\\%$ \\\\ \n \\hlineB{2}\n \\end{tabular}\n\\caption{\\small Correlation coefficients among the total attenuation towards the center in a mixed model (A$_\\text{V,tot}$), the 3GHz radio FWHM size (FWHM$_{\\text{radio}}$), the line velocity width (FWHM$_{\\text{line}}$) and the equivalent width of Pa$\\beta$ (which tightly correlates also with the EW of H$\\alpha$, H$\\beta$ and H$\\delta$). In each case we show in three colored lines: \\textbf{(white)} the Spearman correlation coefficient and corresponding p-value; \\textbf{(green)} the significance of the correlation derived from the ratio of the linear best-fit angular coefficient and its uncertainty; \\textbf{(orange)} the probability of having a significance lower than 2$\\sigma$ if a random $20\\%$ of the sample is removed. For the calculations we excluded the upper limits, missing EW(Pa$\\beta$) measurements, and the $4$ outlier starbursts (ID 303305, 345018, 472775, 545185) in the three diagrams relating A$_\\text{V,tot}$ to N2, FWHM$_{\\text{line}}$ and EW(Pa$\\beta$).}\\label{table1}\n\\end{table*}\n\nFinally, we also performed Monte Carlo simulations: for each relation, we run 100k simulations, removing each time at random $20\\%$ of the points, recalculating the significance of the correlation using our second approach. We then estimated the rate ($\\sim$ probability) at which such correlations completely disappear with a significance falling below $2\\sigma$. This analysis allows to test the systematics and scatter of the correlations, ensuring they are robust and not driven by a few outliers. Overall, we find low probabilities (less than $5\\%$) to obtain a less than $2\\sigma$ significance when removing a random $20\\%$ of the galaxies, indicating that our correlations do not cancel out and are not found by chance. In the four diagrams of Fig.\\ref{correlations}, we obtained probabilities of $0.028\\%$, $0.001\\%$, $4.7\\%$ and $0.7\\%$, in the same order as above.\n\nWe remind that A$_\\text{V,tot}$ are determined from the Pa$\\beta$ observed fluxes and the bolometric L$_{IR}$ (assuming a mixed model geometry) \\footnote{As explained in Paper I, for $4$ galaxies in our sample where Pa$\\beta$ resides in opaque atmospheric regions or out of the FIRE coverage, we estimated the attenuation (ID 245158) or its upper limit (ID 303305, 500929, 893857) through the Pa$\\gamma$ line, adopting a flux ratio Pa$\\beta$\/Pa$\\gamma=2.2$. This is the average expected observed ratio for all the attenuation values in our range, assuming either a mixed model or a foreground dust-screen geometry, and it is verified by $9$ starbursts with simultaneous detection of Pa$\\gamma$ and Pa$\\beta$.}. However, for $4$ galaxies in the sample (ID 303305, 500929, 893857 and 232171) we do not detect either Pa$\\beta$ or Pa$\\gamma$, thus in these cases we derived A$_\\text{V,tot}$ in a similar way from their H$\\alpha$ fluxes (so to avoid upper limits), adding a representative error of $0.1$ dex determined from the remaining sample as the scatter of the correlation between Pa$\\beta$ and H$\\alpha$ based A$_\\text{V,tot}$.\nWe also verified that including the upper limits in the calculations does not significantly alter the fitted trends. \nHereafter, we discuss in detail on a single basis the most important findings.\n\nIn the first (top-left) panel of Fig. \\ref{correlations}, the FWHM radio sizes, while spanning a wide range from less than $600$ pc to $\\sim$12 kpc, are tightly anti-correlated to the dust obscuration level A$_\\text{V,tot}$ (R=-0.6, p-value=0.007, and a scatter of $0.26$ dex). Towards the smaller sizes and higher obscurations (A$_\\text{V,tot}>20$ mag), three galaxies are unresolved with VLA, thus they may be actually closer to the best-fit linear relation derived from the remaining sample. In this diagram, X-ray detected AGNs are found both at small and large radii, and have a similar distribution compared to the other galaxies, suggesting that radio size measurements and hence the result in Fig. \\ref{correlations} are not contaminated by AGNs.\n\nIn the last three panels of Fig. \\ref{correlations}, the [\\ion{N}{II}]\/H$\\alpha$ ratio, the line velocity width (FWHM$_\\text{line}$) and the EW of Pa$\\beta$\\footnote{We use this line for comparison since, being at longer wavelength, it is more representative of the whole system, allowing to probe a larger fraction of starburst cores if a mixed geometry holds. However, in the Appendix \\ref{additional_plots} we show that EW(Pa$\\beta$) is tightly correlated to the EW of H$\\alpha$, H$\\beta$ and H$\\delta$, all of them being strongly sensitive to the age of the stellar population (at fixed SFH), thus similar results are obtained also if choosing a different line for the EW.} are also correlated to the total attenuation at more than 3$\\sigma$ significance level (R coefficients and p-values are $0.51$(0.009), $0.48$(0.015) and $-0.46$(0.034), respectively). \nHowever, we notice that $4$ galaxies (ID$=$ 303305, 472775, 345018 and 545185) are outside the 1$\\sigma$ dispersion of the best-fit relations in all the three diagrams (gray dashed and dotted thin lines). They show lower N2, FWHM$_\\text{line}$, and higher EW than expected from their dust obscuration level. Alternatively, they have a larger A$_\\text{V,tot}$ for their N2, FWHM$_\\text{line}$ and EW values. \n\nIn order to understand the nature of these galaxies, we simulated $100$k different realizations of the last three diagrams of Fig.\\ref{correlations}, with N2, FWHM$_\\text{line}$, EW(Pa$\\beta$) and A$_\\text{V,tot}$ of $25$ galaxies distributed according to the best-fit relations and the corresponding $1\\sigma$ dispersions.\nThen we computed the probability of having at least $4$ galaxies ($3$ for the last plot) with an orthogonal distance from the best-fit relation (gray dashed line) equal or greater than the $4$ (or $3$) outliers described above. \nWe found, in the same order presented above, a probability of $0.2\\%$, $0.025\\%$ and $0.005\\%$, indicating that those $4$ galaxies are real outliers and cannot be simply explained by the $1\\sigma$ scatter of the best-fit lines. \n\nGiven their deviant behavior, we excluded these outliers and derived again the best-fit relations, which are shown in Fig.\\ref{correlations} with a blue continuous line. We found on average a reduction of the $1\\sigma$ dispersion (shown with a light blue shaded area) by $\\sim0.1$ dex and a slight improvement of the correlation significance compared to the previous calculations. However, the best-fit linear equations are not significantly different, thus we give only the analytic expressions of this second fit where the outliers are not considered. The new results for the three diagrams, and all the diagnostics for the remaining $7$ correlations are presented in Table \\ref{table1}. We notice that the $4$ divergent starbursts have an upper limit on their radio size, and are not outliers in other diagrams that do not involve A$_\\text{V,tot}$, thus the latter are not affected by this analysis. \nA possible physical explanation of the diverging behavior of these $4$ galaxies will be discussed in Section \\ref{outliers}. \n\nFinally, if we look at all the correlations in Table \\ref{table1}, we can notice the presence of a subset of quantities that correlate better than others. Apart from the previously discussed A$_\\text{V,tot}$ vs. FWHM$_{\\text{size}}$, the line width, N2 and radio size are tightly and robustly correlated with each other. Indeed, from bootstrapping analysis,\nthe probability that there is no correlation is less than $0.033\\%$. As we will see in Section \\ref{velocity_enhancement}, this result hides a deeper physical link among them. \n\n\\section{Discussion}\n\nThe results presented in the previous section show that the wide range of attenuations measured in Paper I translate into a wide range of other physical properties, i.e., radio sizes, N2, velocity width, Balmer\/Paschen EW, and even more, all these quantities appear to be connected to each other, defining a one-parameter sequence. In this Section we propose a physical interpretation of this sequence, and show that the correlating properties considered before are consistent with being primarily reflecting different evolutionary merger stages. Then we discuss the role played by each parameter into this sequence.\n\n\\subsection{Identification of early-phase, pre-coalescence mergers}\\label{pre-coalescence}\n\n\\begin{figure}[t!]\n \\centering\n \\includegraphics[angle=0,width=\\linewidth,trim={0.cm 7.4cm 1.8cm 1cm},clip]{2Dspectra_last_revised_compressed.pdf}\n \\caption{\\small Close-up view of the H$\\alpha$ emission line profiles for the galaxies satisfying one of the two pre-coalescence criteria defined in Section \\ref{pre-coalescence}. \n In each panel, as a consequence of the sky-subtraction procedure applied to the 2D spectra, the lines appear twice in different slit positions, in the first with a positive flux (in yellow) and in the second with a negative flux (in black). For each cutout, we show with two white arrows the slit position (s) and the dispersion direction ($\\lambda$), which are slightly rotated due to the curved Magellan spectra.\n In order to clarify the classification criteria adopted in this work for finding pre-coalescence SBs, we highlight: (1) with continuous lines the different tilting angles of H$\\alpha$ line profiles (first $3$ SBs); (2) with dotted ellipses the spatially separated H$\\alpha$ lines coming from different merger components (last $4$ SBs). \n }\\label{2Dspectra}\n\\end{figure}\n\nA first guess for a physical understanding of what is guiding the large spread of properties comes from the morphology. Indeed we have already seen that our sample comprises mergers at different stages of evolution (MI to MV), though this classification is very uncertain and sometimes misleading, as shown in Section \\ref{morphological_classification}: the faintness of tidal tails and residual interacting features make systems at the coalescence difficult to recognize, while multiple optical components and double nuclei in HST images may just reflect the dust attenuation pattern rather than the true distribution of SFR and M$_\\ast$. \nAs shown in Section \\ref{radio_size_measurements}, a double gaussian component fit on radio images allowed to resolve three sources, suggesting that they may be composed of two interacting nuclei. However, the limited resolution of VLA ($0.75''$ of FWHM) does not allow us to derive solid conclusions on the remaining sample, which might contain more close pairs. New maps and ALMA follow-ups would increase the resolution and hopefully resolve these blended pre-coalescence systems. \n\nA complementary way to find close interacting pairs in early merger stages comes from the analysis of their 2D spectra.\nWith that aim, we performed a crude sky-subtraction procedure: we subtracted the 2D spectra taken for the same object but at different positions along the slit (A and B, separated by $2.2''$), in order to remove the sky lines and allow a visual inspection of the emission line profiles. \nFor construction, the lines appear twice in each sky-subtracted frame and exactly with the same shape: one time with a positive flux (when the object is in position A), and the other with a negative flux (when the galaxy is in position B). \nBy looking at these line profiles, we identified interacting pairs by requiring one of the following conditions:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n \\item detached H$\\alpha$ line components along the spatial direction, coming from separated merger components located at different slit positions (e.g., ID 223715, 519651, 545185, 668738 in Fig. \\ref{2Dspectra}). \n \\item tilted H$\\alpha$ line with two different inclination angles (based on visual inspection), indicating the presence of two emitting regions with independent kinematic properties, inconsistent with a single rotating disk (e.g., ID 245158, 493881, 470239 in Fig. \\ref{2Dspectra}).\n \n\\end{enumerate}\n\nIn our sample, we identified from the two above conditions $7$ close-pair pre-coalescence starbursts, which are shown in Fig.\\ref{2Dspectra}. For an additional source with a double radio emission component (ID $412250$), one of the two nuclei was not falling inside the slit, thus it was not observable with FIRE. However, this SB should be considered a merging pair at the same level of the others. \n\nAs we can see in Fig. \\ref{correlations}, the selected pre-coalescence starbursts are preferentially found at larger half-light radii, and all the systems with FWHM$_\\text{radio}>6$ kpc belong to this category. This result has two main implications. \nFirstly, the sizes measured in radio are not necessarily those of single merger components, but they should be interpreted primarily as separation between the two pre-coalescence starburst units \n(e.g., for all the three systems resolved in radio (ID 245158, 412250, 519651), their separation is larger than the size of single nuclei). Secondly, the early evolutionary phases are also characterized by lower dust obscurations, suggesting that the merger induced gas compaction (i.e., the increase of hydrogen column density in the center) has not yet completed.\n\nThis pre-coalescence subset identification provides an immediate physical interpretation for $6$ galaxies of those that were simultaneously fitted with a double Gaussian in the 1D spectrum (Section \\ref{line_measurements}), explaining this profile as coming from different merger components.\nHowever, we warn that these diagnostics are not identical and the connection between the line profiles in the 1D and in the 2D spectrum is not straightforward. Starbursts with multiple spatial emission lines do not necessarily display double Gaussians in the 1D spectrum, because this is subject to projection effects and depends on the distribution in wavelength of each spatial component. Indeed, the lines of one of the galaxies shown in Fig. \\ref{2Dspectra} (ID 519651) were still fitted with a single Gaussian in the 1D.\n\nFurthermore, our subset of $6$ pre-coalescence starbursts identified from the 2D spectra is not necessarily complete, as many galaxies (e.g., ID 635862, 777034, 472775, 685067) have sky-subtracted 2D spectra with low S\/N, not allowing to apply the visual criteria 1) and 2) presented above in this Section. We would have required longer integration times or spatially resolved observations to build a complete sample of starbursts before the coalescence. Similarly, if the two merger nuclei are too close, it would be impossible to detect them even in the 2D spectra, and would need a significant improvement of spatial resolution to identify the pair.\n\n\n\\subsection{Velocity enhancement and shocks toward the coalescence}\\label{velocity_enhancement}\n\n\\subsubsection{BPT diagram and shocks}\n\nThe second (bottom-left) panel of Fig.\\ref{correlations} shows that more obscured starbursts tend to have higher N2 relative to H$\\alpha$, reaching [\\ion{N}{II}]\/H$\\alpha$ ratios higher than 1, which are more typical of AGN and LINERs. Indeed, the classical BPT diagnostic diagram in Figure \\ref{BPT1} \\footnote{Two variants of the BPT using the [SII]6717+6731\/H$\\alpha$ or the [OIII]$\\lambda$5007\/[OII]$\\lambda$3727+3729 ratios (S2BPT or O2BPT, respectively) are shown in Fig. \\ref{BPTdiagram} in the Appendix. We remind that, due to an enhanced ionization parameter and lower metallicity (at fixed mass) in the ISM at higher redshifts, the average star-forming galaxies population at z$=0.7$ occupies a region in the BPT diagram which is shifted rightwards by $\\lesssim +0.1$ dex compared to z$=0.1$ \\citep{faisst18,masters16}. However, there are currently no studies addressing how this will affect the separation lines among SB, AGN and LINERs. If we suppose that at z$\\sim0.7$ the same shift applies also to these lines, galaxies at intermediate obscurations and line widths would still fall in the composite region with dominant LINER\/AGN-like properties. Also, this would not affect our subsequent conclusions based on the comparison with shock models.}, \nperformed on $9$ galaxies with [\\ion{O}{III}] and H$\\beta$ available measurements, confirms that SBs with higher obscuration and line velocity width are found in the composite, AGN or LINER classification regions, according to empirical separation lines derived in the local Universe \\citep{kauffmann03,kewley01,cidfernandes10,veilleux87}.\n\nNotably, the location of this subset of galaxies (which are shifted to the right compared to the purely SF region) is consistent with the predictions of shock models, with varying shock contribution and velocity (compare with Fig. 10 and Fig. 2 of \\citet{rich11,rich14}, respectively). Additionally, \\citet{lutz99} argue that LINER-like spectra in infrared selected galaxies are due to shocks, possibly related to galactic superwinds. \nThe presence of increasing widespread shocks provides the most immediate interpretation for the spectra in our sample with enhanced [\\ion{N}{II}]\/H$\\alpha$, given that AGN emission would be highly suppressed (Paper I). \n\nHowever, we cannot exclude some residual influence by an AGN. Hydrodynamical simulations performed by \\citet{roos15} show that even in the case of high obscuration\nan AGN can ionize the gas very far from the nucleus, reaching kpc scales and the circum-galactic medium. Furthermore, the accreting black hole might not be in the center, but that sounds unplausible: the attenuations towards the center derived independently from the X-ray detected AGNs are consistent with those derived from the mixed model (see Paper I) and, even further, \\citet{rujopakarn18} show that the AGN position correlates with that of active star forming regions. Finally, we also notice that two galaxies (which simultaneously have X-rays and mid-IR dusty torus detection) were fitted with broad H$\\alpha$ components (line width of $\\sim 1000$ km\/s). Such large velocity widths have been observed in both shock-dominated regions (possibly supernova driven, \\citet{ghavamian17}) and AGNs \\citep{peterson97,gaskell09,netzer15}. IFU data would be needed to disentangle shock or AGN emission, as we expect the latter to be much more concentrated in the central part of the system.\n\n\\begin{figure}[h!]\n \\centering\n \\includegraphics[angle=0,width=8.4cm,trim={0.1cm 3.3cm 2.6cm 5.5cm},clip]{BPT_N2_double.pdf}\n \\caption{\\small \\textit{Top:} BPT diagram of $9$ starbursts in our sample with optical spectra available (for one galaxy included in zCOSMOS, we did not detect both [\\ion{O}{III}]5007 and H$\\beta$). While $3$ sources lie in the SF excitation region, the remaining galaxies are not consistent with SF, and their spectra show a mixture of composite, AGN and LINER properties. The color coding indicates that galaxies with higher N2 which are closer to the AGN\/LINER regions also have increasingly higher line velocity widths ($\\sigma_{\\text{line}}$). \\textit{Bottom:} Same diagram as above, but here the galaxies are color coded according to their total dust attenuation A$_\\text{V,tot}$. More obscured starbursts preferentially display AGN\/LINER properties.}\\label{BPT1}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\begin{figure}[ht!]\n \\centering\n \\includegraphics[angle=0,width=\\linewidth,trim={0.1cm 0.2cm 1.7cm 2.3cm},clip]{Mdyn_Mall.pdf}\n \\includegraphics[angle=0,width=\\linewidth,trim={0.1cm 0.2cm 1.7cm 2.3cm},clip]{Virial_theorem_total.pdf}\n \\caption{\\small \\textit{Top:} Comparison between the dynamical mass M$_{\\text{dyn}}$ and the total mass content M$_{\\text{tot}}$ ($=$ M$_{gas}$+M$_{\\ast}$+M$_{\\text{dark matter}}$) for our SBs sample, color coded by their total attenuation A$_\\text{V,tot}$. \\textit{Bottom:} Diagram showing the square of the total FWHM velocity width as a function of M$_{\\text{tot}}$\/FWHM$_{\\text{radio}}$, using the same color coding based on A$_\\text{V,tot}$. On the y-axis, const$=1.3 \\times G$\/($4$) groups the coefficients in Equation~3 so as to facilitate comparison with the virialized case (1:1 relation, shown as a grey dotted line). The blue continuous line represents a linear fit to our sample, excluding galaxies with an upper limit on their radio size, while the blue shaded area shows the $\\pm1\\sigma$ limits of this best-fit relation. Both panels of the figure suggest that our galaxies may be approaching virialization, and more obscured starbursts are closer to the equilibrium.}\\label{virial}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\begin{figure}[t!]\n \\centering\n \n \\includegraphics[angle=0,width=8.4cm,trim={0.1cm 0.cm 1.3cm 2.cm},clip]{Sigma_N2index_single.pdf}\n \\caption{\\small Correlation between the line velocity width of single Gaussian components (FWHM$_{\\text{line}}$) and the N2 index (both measured from our Magellan-FIRE spectra), indicating that the two quantities are tightly (scatter $=$ 0.26 dex) physically related.}\\label{sigmaline}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\subsubsection{The dynamical masses of our sample}\\label{dynamical_masses}\n\nIn order to better understand the dynamical status of our starbursts and how far they are from relaxation, we compared their total masses M$_{\\text{tot}}$ to the dynamical masses M$_{\\text{dyn}}$ estimated from the line velocity widths and radio sizes. For the latter, we used the formulation of \\citet{daddi10} as :\n\\begin{equation}\n M_{\\text{dyn}}=1.3\\times\\frac{ \\text{FWHM}_\\text{radio} \\times (\\text{FWHM}_\\text{line,total}\/2)^2}{\\text{G sin}^2(i)}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere FWHM$_\\text{line,total}$ is the one-dimensional total line velocity width (accounting for both rotation and dispersion), while sin$^2$(i) is the correction for inclination that we take as the average value for randomly oriented galaxies ($57^\\circ$). In order to determine the total uncertainty on M$_{\\text{dyn}}$, we considered an additional error on the inclination factor of $0.3$ dex, as in \\citet{coogan18}. This represents the main contribution to the error ($\\sim 90\\%$ in median), since the line width and radio sizes are always well measured with high S\/N. \n\nThen we compared this quantity to the total mass content (baryonic + dark matter) of the systems, estimated as :\n\\begin{equation}\n \\text{M}_{\\text{tot}}=\\text{M}_\\ast+\\text{M}_{\\text{gas}}+\\text{M}_\\text{dark matter}\n\\end{equation}\nin which M$_\\text{gas}$ was determined, as described in Paper I, as M$_\\text{gas} = 8.05+0.81 \\times$ log(SFR$_\\text{IR}$) \\citep{sargent14}, valid for a starburst regime, and we assumed M$_\\text{dark matter} = 10\\% \\pm 10 \\%$ of M$_\\ast$. Since this contribution is highly uncertain, it was set nearly uncontrained. However, this range is consistent with studies of high-$z$ ($>0.5$) massive star-forming galaxies, which found a modest to negligible dark matter fraction inside the half-light radius \\citep[e.g.,][]{daddi10,genzel17}. In any case, given the small contribution, its exact value does not affect the results of this paper. \nFor the error determination, we considered the above uncertainty on M$_\\text{dark matter}$, a $0.1$ dex error on M$_\\ast$ \\citep{laigle16}, and $20\\%$ incertitude on the gas mass (even though its contribution is negligible given that M$_{\\text{gas}} \\simeq 0.1$ M$_{\\ast} $ on average for our sample).\n\nThe comparison between M$_\\text{dyn}$ and M$_\\text{tot}$ in Fig. \\ref{virial} shows that, on average, our galaxies are not completely virialized: while $\\sim$ half of the sample is consistent within $2\\sigma$ with the 1:1 relation, the remaining part is located above at higher M$_\\text{dyn}$. The largest departures from virialization are observed for the pre-coalescence and less obscured systems, i.e. supposedly earlier stage mergers. On the contrary, the systems with better agreement may be fully coalesced starburst cores with higher A$_\\text{V,tot}$. \n\nThe tight connection between velocity and gravitational potential is clarified in the bottom panel of Fig. \\ref{virial}, as the FWHM$_\\text{line}^2$ and M$_\\text{tot}\/$FWHM$_\\text{radio}$ correlate at 5$\\sigma$ significance (with R=0.74 and p-value=0.0002). Also here, while pre-coalescence mergers have larger displacements from the 1:1 relation, they are confined in a region at lower velocity widths and shallower potential wells. This suggests that also other starbursts (ID 249989, 466112, 326384) in this region may be pre-coalescence mergers that we were not able to securely identify, due to their lower S\/N 2D spectra, and indeed their optical morphology strengthens this suspicion. In the upper-right part of Fig. \\ref{virial}-\\textit{bottom}, separated from the previous sample, are clustered the more obscured starbursts, i.e., supposedly coalesced mergers. We notice also that all X-ray detected AGNs are localized in this region of the diagram, indicating a possible link between evolutionary phase and AGN properties, that we will further investigate in the following Section. \n\n\nOverall, the above results suggest a time-evolutionary scenario, in which more advanced, already coalesced mergers are close to virialization, and the increased central potential wells (due to the contribution of both merger components) are responsible for the enhancement of both the kinetic energy content and shocks towards the later stages of the interaction. The tight relation between the line velocity width of single Gaussian components (a proxy for the velocity dispersion in the system) and shock production (traced by the N2 index) is further indicated by the color coding of the BPT diagram in Fig. \\ref{BPT1}-\\textit{top}, and by the correlation between FWHM$_{\\text{line}}$ and \\ion{N}{II}\/H$\\alpha$ in Fig. \\ref{sigmaline}, which has a significance higher than $5\\sigma$ (R=0.67, p-value=$3\\times10^{-4}$) and a dispersion of $0.26$ dex. \n\n\n\\subsection{Lower line equivalent widths toward late merger stages}\\label{lower_line_equivalent_widths}\n\n\\begin{figure*}[t!]\n \\centering\n \\includegraphics[angle=0,width=17.5cm,trim={4.8cm 0.1cm 3.cm 0.3cm},clip]{EW3_vs_APaBirx_triple_last.pdf}\n \\vspace{-0.25cm}\n \\includegraphics[angle=0,width=17.5cm,trim={4.8cm 0.cm 3.cm 1.4cm},clip]{EW3_vs_N2new_2_triple.pdf}\n \\caption{\\small \\textit{Top:} Comparison between the EW of H$\\delta$, H$\\beta$ and Pa$\\beta$ lines to the dust attenuation parameter A$_{Pa\\beta,\\text{IRX}}$, defined as $2.5 \\times log_{10}(1+\\text{SFR}_{\\text{IR}}\/\\text{SFR}_{Pa\\beta,\\text{obs}}$ (Paper I). We remark that the last panel is equivalent to the bottom-right plot in Fig. \\ref{correlations}, even though a different scale has been used (the relation between A$_{Pa\\beta,\\text{IRX}}$ and A$_\\text{V,tot}$ is given in Eq. \\ref{eqAV}). \\textit{Bottom:} Correlations between the EW of H$\\delta$, H$\\beta$, Pa$\\beta$ lines and the N2 index ($=log_{10}([NII]\/H\\alpha)$). The blue continuous lines are the best-fit linear relations, determined as explained in Section \\ref{results}, while the blue shaded area show the $\\pm1\\sigma$ scatter of our data around the best-fit relations.}\\label{EW_ALL}\n\\end{figure*}\n\nThe equivalent widths (EW) of hydrogen recombination lines give a relatively dust-unbiased picture (assuming that stars and emission lines are equally extincted) of the contribution of the SFR to the stellar mass content\n, and they are sensitive to the luminosity weighted age of the stellar populations, so that they could provide useful information about the evolutionary stage of the merger. However, these EWs would only probe what is happening in the outer parts of the system, since the core is completely obscured in optical\/near-IR.\n\nWe show in the last diagram in Fig. \\ref{correlations} and the upper part of Fig. \\ref{EW_ALL} that, when the starbursts become more obscured, the EWs of Pa$\\beta$, H$\\delta$ and H$\\beta$ decrease, indicating a gradual SFR decline in the outer skin of more obscured and compact starbursts. Additional correlations are found also independently between those EWs and the other quantities, such as the N2 index (Fig. \\ref{EW_ALL}-\\textit{bottom}). We additionally remark that the different Paschen and Balmer lines correlate each other (see Fig. \\ref{EW_EW} in the Appendix), for which reason our results, derived adopting the Pa$\\beta$ line as a reference (because it is the least attenuated), are also valid when considering the H$\\delta$, H$\\beta$ and H$\\alpha$ lines.\n\nIn our sample, we also found that the Balmer EWs, while having a large dynamical range, can reach very low values: in five galaxies (ID 303305, 685067, 777034, 862072 and 345018) we measure an EW(H$\\delta$) < $-4\\AA$ (i.e. in absorption), which are typically found in E+A dusty galaxies \\citep{poggianti00}. \nLow EW hydrogen recombination lines (in strong absorption) are clear signatures of the prevalence of A-type stars, indicating that a recent ($<$ 1 Gyr ago) massive star-formation episode has taken place during the past $10^8$-$10^9$ yr, while the youngest stellar populations (mainly OB stars) are nearly all obscured by dust in the inner starburst core. \nOur dusty starburst systems should also not be confused with post starburst (PSB) galaxies, which have similar absorption EWs (e.g., EW(H$\\delta$) lower than $\\sim -5 \\AA$ as in \\citet{goto07} and \\citet{maltby16}), but are thought to be nearly (or already) quenched systems, with much lower SFR levels and lower dust content compared to our sample (see \\citet{pawlik18} for a full discussion of the different types of PSB galaxies). We caution that the quenched PSB selection from only the Balmer EW can actually return real starbursts and not post starburst systems.\n\nPutting all together, the time-evolutionary scenario that we have suggested has the advantage of explaining in a simple way these new results. If we follow the merger evolution towards the coalescence, the outer starburst skin becomes increasingly dominated by A-type stars, recognizable through the deep absorption lines in the optical\/near-IR and which were formed at earlier times when the separation between the merging nuclei was larger. At the same time, the star-formation in the skin is being suppressed, possibly driven by supernova feedback. \n\n\n\\subsection{Outliers}\\label{outliers}\n\nWe found in Section \\ref{results} (Fig. \\ref{correlations}) that $4$ galaxies are outside the $1\\sigma$ dispersion of the best-fit relations between the dust attenuation A$_\\text{V,tot}$ and, simultaneously, the [NII]\/H$\\alpha$ ratio (N2), the line velocity width (FWHM$_\\text{line}$) and the EW(Pa$\\beta$). \nIn particular, they have lower N2, FWHM$_\\text{line}$ and EW(Pa$\\beta$) than expected from their A$_\\text{V,tot}$, suggesting that, compared to other highly obscured galaxies, there is a minor impact from shocks or a dominant contribution of star-formation to the emission lines.\n\nWithin our SB sample, we recognize that these $4$ outliers have the largest dust obscurations A$_\\text{V,tot}\\geq 18$ mag, and are among the most compact, with radio FWHM sizes below $1$ kpc. These extreme and peculiar features suggest they may represent the very end stages of the merger evolution, and that the correlations with A$_\\text{V,tot}$ may saturate toward these late phases. We also notice that the same objects are not systematically outliers when we consider their N2, FWHM$_\\text{line}$ and EW(Pa$\\beta$) values, confirming the close physical connection among these quantities, as shown in the two previous Sections \\ref{velocity_enhancement} and \\ref{lower_line_equivalent_widths}.\n\n\\subsection{The complete sequence of merger stages at intermediate redshift}\\label{cartoon_section}\n\n\\begin{figure*}[t!]\n \\centering\n \\includegraphics[angle=0,width=0.9\\linewidth,trim={0cm 0.0cm 0.cm 0cm},clip]{Cartoon_revised_compressed2.pdf}\n \\caption{\\small Schematic illustration of the time-evolutionary behavior of the physical parameters studied in the text: dust attenuation, characteristic size of the system, line velocity width (or, equivalently, the N2 index) and the EW of Balmer and Paschen lines. The time sequence is divided into 5 fundamental merger stages, with the QSO and passive spheroidal system representing the final stages according to the classical merger paradigm \\citep{sanders96,hopkins08a,hopkins08c}. Solid lines are qualitative trends during the SB phase inferred from our results, while dashed lines are predictions about the future evolution of the $4$ parameters shown on the y-axis (line width and N2 index behave similarly). In the upper part of the figure, we show a qualitative merger timescale following Fig.~1 of \\citet{hopkins08c}, assuming for the merger a total starburst duration of $200$ Myr. For each phase, we show in the bottom part the ACS-F814W cutout of a representative case. The first three images are SB galaxies from our sample: ID 223715, ID 777034 and ID 472775. They were chosen as having increasing dust attenuations and radio compactness, suggestive of more advanced merger phases: the first was identified as a pre-coalescence merger in Section \\ref{pre-coalescence}, while the latter is unresolved in radio and is highly obscured (A$_\\text{V,tot}=18$ mag). The last $2$ cutouts show a quasar at $z=0.73$ and an ETG at $z=0.66$, selected in COSMOS field from the catalogs of \\citet{prescott16} and \\citet{tasca09}, respectively.\n }\\label{cartoon}\n\\end{figure*}\n\nOur observations and results, presented in previous sections, suggest we are starting to see an evolutionary sequence in high-redshift mergers. This can be traced through a variety of physical measurable quantities of our galaxies, including the total attenuation towards the center, the characteristic size of the starburst region, the EW of hydrogen absorption lines, and finally the [\\ion{N}{II}]\/H$\\alpha$ ratios and line velocity widths, which behave similarly.\nIn Fig. \\ref{cartoon} we schematize with a cartoon all the results that we have found so far, showing with a red continuous line the qualitative trend of the different physical quantities as a function of time. We divided the time axis into five merger evolutionary stages, which are arranged in relation to the two most crucial transformation events during the merger: the coalescence and the blow-out\/QSO appearance.\n\nWe notice that the first phase may not necessarily represent the beginning of the interaction, i.e., when the two galaxies approach for the first time. Even though the whole merger episode may last 1-1.5 Gyr in total, from the first encounter to the formation of a passive spheroidal system, the starburst activity is typically shorter, ranging 200-300 Myr \\citep{dimatteo08} and may be triggered intermittently at various stages of the evolution. Furthermore, whether or not a strong burst is already activated at the first approach depends on many factors, including the impact geometry, the morphology, the stellar mass ratio and the gas content of the colliding galaxies \\citep{dimatteo08}. \n\n\nBesides the observable starburst phases studied in this work, can we also make some predictions on the future evolution of these systems ? In general, it is very hard to demonstrate visually a connection between mergers and their descendants. Indeed, not all merger-induced starbursts exhibit morphological disturbances \\citep{lotz08}, and when merger residual signatures are present, they fade rapidly, becoming almost invisible beyond the local Universe even in the deepest optical images \\citep[e.g.][]{hibbard97}. We can in principle rely on hydrodynamical simulations, which allow to trace the full time-sequence of mergers, even though they also present limitations due to the many assumptions, initial conditions and physical complexity involved in such events. \n\nIn the classical theoretical merger paradigm, the infalling gas triggers obscured AGN accretion \\citep{bennert08a}, whose peak of activity typically occurs $\\sim 250$ Myr after the onset of the starburst \\citep{wild10}, and $\\sim 100$ Myr after the peak of SFR \\citep{davies07,hopkins12}. It is during these later starburst phases that the AGN feedback can blow out with strong feedback winds the surrounding dust and gas cocoon, eventually revealing itself as a bright QSO \\citep{hopkins08c}. This phase is generally very short, lasting for $\\lesssim 100$ Myr \\citep{hopkins10c}, and has been claimed since a long time: \\citet{lipari03} suggested that QSOs could be indeed young IR active galaxies at the end phase of a strong starburst. \n\n\nSince the QSO dominates the luminosity of the system at all wavelengths, it would be extremely hard to analyze the physical properties of the host galaxies during this phase. Indeed, \\citet{zakamska16} show that even in radio-quiet QSOs both the infrared and the radio emission are dominated by the quasar activity, not by the host galaxy. \nAn alternative possibility is to look far from the central bright source. Recent works are revealing Ly-$\\alpha$ nebulae surrounding high-redshift quasars, with extension that can reach tens of kpc ($\\lesssim$ 50 kpc) from the center \\citep{arrigonibattaia18}.\nOn the other hand, one may focus on local samples, increasing simultaneously the images resolution. For example, \\citet{lipari03} and \\citet{bennert08b} discovered with HST the presence of outflows, arcs, bubbles and tidal tales in optical band in a sample of local QSOs, possibly formed through strong galactic winds or merger processes. Again in nearby (z $<0.3$) QSOs, near-IR H band adaptive optics observations \\citep{guyon06} revealed that $\\sim 30\\%$ of their hosts show signs of disturbances, and the most luminous QSOs are harbored exclusively in ellipticals or in mergers (which may become ellipticals soon). Furthermore, while the SFRs of the hosts are similar to those of normal star-forming galaxies, their mid- and far-IR colors resemble those of warm ULIRGs, strengthening a connection between these two objects.\n\n\nIn the following two Sections \\ref{mass-size-section} and \\ref{QSO_in_formation}, we discuss separately the two ending stages of the merger sequence, and investigate how our work can provide some clues to understand what are the physical properties of the systems into which our starbursts will evolve. In the cartoon of Fig. \\ref{cartoon}, the predicted evolution for all the quantities studied in this paper (see Section \\ref{results}) is shown with a dashed line. These qualitative trends are motivated mainly from simulations, and are not confirmed observationally.\n\n\\subsection{Mass-size relation and comparison with higher and lower-z starbursts}\\label{mass-size-section}\n\nThe merger-induced starbursts are supposed to end up in a passive system, but we do not know the exact physical properties (e.g., size, stellar mass, morphology) of these merger remnants. Sub-millimeter galaxies (SMGs) at high redshift ($>2$), which are commonly viewed as higher luminous counterparts of lower redshift ULIRGs, have been suggested to be direct progenitors of massive ETGs \\citep{tacconi08,toft14}.\nWe can investigate this connection by comparing in Fig. \\ref{Mass_Size} the stellar masses and the characteristic sizes of our starbursts with those of disk galaxies and spheroids at z $\\sim0.7$ \\citep{vanderwel14}. To be conservative, we are adopting here the M$_\\ast$-size relations for circularized radii. If we consider instead the non-circularized cases, the same relations would slightly shift upwards by $\\sim 0.1$ dex.\nIn addition, we remark that we are comparing our radio (starburst) extensions to optical rest-frame sizes tracing the stellar mass distribution of disks and elliptical galaxies. Indeed, we implicitly assume that, after the gas in our starburst cores is converted into stars, the extensions of these cores will represent also the stellar component sizes of their passive remnants. On the other hand, they may still represent the dense star-forming gas components of post-starburst systems if some residual is left after the merger, as they may remain compact for at least 1 Gyr \\citep{davis18}.\n\n\\begin{figure*}[t!]\n \\centering\n \\includegraphics[angle=0,width=\\linewidth,trim={0.1cm 0.2cm 2cm 1.3cm},clip]{Mass_size_new.pdf}\n \\caption{\\small Diagram showing the radio size vs stellar mass for our sample. We compare our results to the stellar mass - stellar size relation of LTGs (cyan line with 1$\\sigma$ dispersion) and ETGs (blue line) at z$=$0.7 \\citep{vanderwel14}, and with the bulge properties of low redshift (z$\\sim$0.1) spiral galaxies from \\citet{graham08} (grey squares). The eleven points shown here for the bulges represent the median ($\\pm1\\sigma$) of their distributions of stellar masses and stellar sizes (in K band) as a function of galaxy type, from S0 to Sm spirals. For $3$ galaxies in our sample fitted with a double Gaussian, we also represent the `deblended' radio sizes of each single component with violet crosses, connecting them with a dashed violet line. In these cases, we assigned to each component half of the total stellar mass of the system, even though a precise estimation requires a separate fit on deblended photometric data.}\\label{Mass_Size}\n\\end{figure*}\n\nIn the diagram of Fig. \\ref{Mass_Size}, $6$ SBs are consistent with the late-type galaxy (LTG) relation at z $\\sim0.7$. However all of them are pre-coalescence SBs and, as we have seen before, they should not be considered disk galaxies as their size is primarily reflecting the separation between the merging components. For two of the three galaxies resolved in radio, the single values return below on the early-type galaxy (ETG) relation. The characteristic sizes of this subset (FWHM$_{\\text{size}}$ ranging 3-15 kpc in diameter, with median FWHM$_{\\text{size}}$ of 8 kpc) are similar to those typical observed in SMGs \\citep{casey11,tacconi08,biggs08}, which suggests that SMGs at high-redshift (or at least a fraction of them) could be indeed intermediate-phase mergers composed of unresolved double nuclei, as argued by \\citet{iono09} and \\citet{arribas12}. \n\nIn the bottom part instead, we can immediately notice that a major fraction of our sample (13 galaxies, i.e., $52\\%$ of the total sample) is not consistent with the ETG relation (taking $1$-$\\sigma$ dispersion), and is located well below it by $\\sim0.5$ dex, with an average size of $\\leq 1.2$ kpc, indicating that they are much more compact than their stellar envelopes and than typical ellipticals at z $\\sim0.7$. We underline that such difference would be even higher if we compare this subset to the M$_\\ast$-size relation at redshifts lower than $0.7$, as the ETG sizes at z $=0.25$ are a factor of 1.5 higher than those at z $=0.75$, at our median stellar mass \\citep{vanderwel14}.\nThis sample of very compact starbursts has typical extensions that are similar to those of dense star-forming regions in local ULIRGs \\citep{genzel98,piqueraslopez16}, including Arp 220 \\citep{sakamoto17} and M82 \\citep{barker08}, suggesting they are driven by the same merger mechanisms (as also argued in Paper I).\n\nIf we take for each galaxy its distance from the LTG relation (dist$_{\\text{LTG}}=\\log_{10}$(FWHM$_{\\text{size}}$\/FWHM$_{\\text{LTG}}$)), we can also use this quantity in place of the radius to trace the same sequence found in Section \\ref{results}, taking into account the mild dependence on stellar mass.\nAs the merger proceeds, the system moves from the LTG to the ETG relation and then even below at significantly smaller sizes (by $\\sim 0.5$ dex at least), meaning that the compact starburst cores that form at the coalescence cannot produce directly the ellipticals seen at redshift $0.7$ and below. \n\nThe sizes of our starbursts instead resemble those of typical bulges in lower redshift spirals and lenticular galaxies \\citep{graham08,laurikainen10}, indicating a possible evolutionary link with mergers, as suggested by other works \\citep[e.g.][]{sanders96,lilly99,elichemoral06,querejeta15}.\nThis idea is consistent with the typical observed gas fractions of our starbursts (derived as M$_{gas}$\/(M$_\\ast$+M$_{gas}$), with M$_{gas}$ calculated in Section \\ref{dynamical_masses}), which range between $0.02$ and $0.25$ ($\\sim 0.1$ in median). Assuming that all the remaining gas is consumed before the passivization and that the same amount of gas has been already converted into stars (which depends on the merger phase and dynamics), it means that the current starburst cores can produce approximately $20\\%$, and up to $50\\%$, of the final stellar mass of the galaxies. Higher resolution radio images targeting specific emission lines can further constrain the kinematic properties of the starbursting cores, by looking for rotation, or their luminosity profile, e.g., measuring their Sersic index.\nHow this old stellar component is affected by the merger can depend on many conditions difficult to model in detail, including the geometry of the interaction, the gas content and the mass ratio of the colliding galaxies. \n\n\n\\begin{figure*}[]\n \\centering\n \\includegraphics[angle=0,width=0.338\\linewidth,trim={0cm 0.cm 0cm 0cm},clip]{distanceLTG_LXobserved_SNR3_0.pdf}\n \\includegraphics[angle=0,width=0.65\\linewidth,trim={1.2cm 0.7cm 3.cm 2cm},clip]{LXobs_LXint_AvTOT_ALL.pdf}\n \n \\caption{\\small \\textit{Left:} Comparison between the observed X-ray luminosity (L$_\\text{X,obs}$) and the distance from the Mass-size relation of LTGs at $z\\sim0.7$, for our $6$ starbursts detected in X-rays. Upper limit on L$_\\text{X,obs}$ for $6$ mid-IR AGNs undetected in X is shown with a black circle, where the horizontal segment represents the range of dist$_\\text{LTG}$ spanned by this subset. The intrinsic X-ray luminosity due to star-formation is highlighted with a gray line for the median SFR of the sample ($\\pm 0.4$dex scatter from \\citet{mineo14}), and may dominate the total X-ray observed emission for the X-undetected starbursts; \\textit{Center:} X-ray attenuation L$_{X,obs}$\/L$_{X,int}$ as a function of the infrared-based attenuation A$_\\text{V,tot}$ (in a mixed model geometry and towards the center) for our sample of mid-IR detected AGNs. We assumed here a bolometric correction factor L$_{\\text{X,intr,AGN}}=0.04\\times$ L$_{\\text{BOL,AGN}}$ \\citep{vasudevan07}. Stacks on the whole sample and on the X-undetected subset are displayed with hatching circles, while the violet shaded regions indicate the area of no obscuration, which incorporates a factor of 2 uncertainty in the conversion between intrinsic X-ray and bolometric AGN luminosity; \\textit{Right:} Same diagram as before, but assuming an L$_{\\text{BOL,AGN}}$- dependent bolometric correction \\citep{lusso12}, as explained in the text. \n }\\label{distltg}\n\\end{figure*}\n\n\\begin{figure}[h!]\n \\centering\n \\includegraphics[angle=0,width=\\linewidth,trim={0.1cm 0cm 0cm 1.3cm},clip]{distanceLTG_Lbol_AGN_Mstar_SNR3_0.pdf}\n \\caption{\\small L$_{\\text{BOL,AGN}}$\/M$_\\ast$ vs. distance from the Mass-size relation of LTGs (dist$_{LTG}$) for our SBs sample. The Eddington limit is shown with a blue horizontal line, while the shaded area takes into account the spread of M$_\\ast$ among our sample and the uncertainty of the relation between stellar mass and BH mass by \\citet{reines15}. The Eddington ratio is shown on the right y-axis.}\\label{distltg2}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\subsection{QSOs in formation at $z \\sim 0.7$ ?}\\label{QSO_in_formation}\n\n\nIn the starburst selection phase, we discarded several quasars because of the impossibility to study the properties of their host galaxies (dust attenuation, SFR, stellar mass), as discussed in Section \\ref{cartoon_section}. In order to overcome these limitations, several authors have extensively studied also the transitional moments (just preceding the final blow-out) in the dress of type-I and warm ULIRGs \\citep{kawakatu06,sanders88}. Similarly, we can have some clues of the inner black-hole activity just before the hypothetical QSO by looking at the AGN diagnostics in our starburst sample. \n\nAs mentioned in Section \\ref{AGN_identification}, we detected the mid-IR dusty torus AGN emission in $12$ galaxies, and simultaneous X-ray emission in $6$ of them. Notably, the latter are the only ones (among mid-IR AGNs) whose host galaxies lie below the ETG relation in the Mass-size diagram (see Fig. \\ref{Mass_Size}), at systematically smaller sizes than ellipticals at z $\\leq 0.7$. \nThis suggests that during early merger stages the AGNs are predominantly obscured, while they start to appear in X-rays toward intermediate stages (i.e. when the host starbursts are more compact and obscured), possibly driven by rapid AGN feedback clearing the gas and dust around the black hole.\n\nThis can be seen better in Fig. \\ref{distltg}-\\textit{left}, where all the host galaxies of X-ray detected AGNs are located at larger distances from the Mass-size relation of LTGs compared to X-ray undetected AGNs. Moreover, they have X-ray luminosities at least 1 order of magnitude higher ($\\sim +1.5$ on average) than what inferred from their SFR. For the X-undetected galaxies instead, the upper limit on L$_X$ $=$10$^{41.7}$ erg\/s, determined by average-stacking their fluxes in the $2$-$10$ keV band at the median $z$ of the sample, is consistent with emission produced by star-formation only, suggesting that in this band the AGN is completely obscured.\n\nIn order to assess the level of obscuration, we computed the ratio between the observed and the intrinsic X-ray luminosity L$_{\\text{X,obs}}$\/L$_{\\text{X,intr}}$, comparing this quantity to the total dust attenuation A$_{V,tot}$ inferred in a mixed model from Pa$\\beta$ and the bolometric IR luminosity (Paper I). L$_{\\text{X,intr}}$ comprises the contribution from both star-formation (as explained in Section \\ref{AGN_identification} and from the AGN, assuming L$_{\\text{X,intr,AGN}}=0.04\\times$ L$_{\\text{BOL,AGN}}$ \\citep{vasudevan07} and a bolometric AGN luminosity L$_{\\text{BOL,AGN}}$ $=1.5\\times$ L$_{AGN,IR}$ \\citep{elvis94} (Fig. \\ref{distltg}-\\textit{center}). \nAlternatively, we considered the bolometric correction of \\citet{lusso12} for type-2 AGNs, which depends on L$_{\\text{BOL,AGN}}$ itself through the following, nonlinear equation:\n\\begin{equation}\n \\text{log}_\\text{10}\\left(\\frac{\\text{L}_\\text{BOL}}{\\text{L}_\\text{2-10keV}}\\right)=0.217x-0.022x^2-0.027x^3+1.289\n\\end{equation}\n, where x $=$ log$_{10}$(L$_\\text{BOL}$) $-12$ and the scatter of the relation is $0.26$ dex.\nHowever, the results derived with this second assumption (Fig. \\ref{distltg}-\\textit{left}) do not change significantly compared to the first case.\n\nThe figures presented above confirm that the total attenuation inferred from the L$_\\text{X}$ may be the discriminating parameter between X-ray detected and undetected mid-IR AGNs: while the former are relatively unobscured, the X-ray emission from the second is suppressed at least by a factor of $30$. \nInterestingly, this transition does not seem to be related to an increased bolometric luminosity, since no correlations are observed with this quantity.\nWe also remind that for this analysis we are following the standard procedure, which does not take into account shock contribution to the X-ray luminosity. A possible non negligible shock emission at these high energies (which in any case is difficult to model) would result in an underestimation of the true effective X-ray attenuation towards the AGN.\n\n\n\nThe previous results suggest that the X-ray attenuation decreases as the starburst becomes more dust-obscured (probed by A$_\\text{V,tot}$) during the last merger phases. In a standard framework (i.e., if we exclude dominant contribution from shocks to the X-ray luminosity), this apparent contradiction can be reconciled by considering the different timescales of our diagnostics.\nOn the one hand, Pa$\\beta$ (used to calculate A$_\\text{V,tot}$), yields a luminosity (or, equivalently, a SFR, by applying the \\citet{kennicutt94} conversion) that is averaged over a timescale of $20$-$30$ Myr. Conversely, the AGN luminosity that we measure in X-rays gives an istantaneous information of the AGN activity.\nAs a consequence, with the X-ray analysis we are able to probe the current dust attenuation level, while A$_\\text{V,tot}$ traces the obscuration in the recent past ($\\lesssim 30 Myr$). According to this speculation, the X-ray luminosities measured for a subset of $6$ late stage mergers indicate that the AGN-induced blow-out may have already started since a few Myr ago, clearing the surrounding gas and dust content, and that we might be very close to the final QSO phase.\n\n\nFurthermore, in Fig.\\ref{distltg2} we display the AGN accretion efficiencies of our galaxies as a function of their distance from the LTGs Mass-size relation.\nThe efficiencies were estimated by comparing the observed L$_{\\text{BOL,AGN}}$\/M$_\\ast$ ratios to the maximum value allowed by Eddington (L$_{\\text{BOL,AGN}}$\/M$_\\ast$|$_{EDD}\\simeq$1.5), from which we derived the so-called Eddington ratio (L\/L$_\\text{EDD}$)|$_{AGN}$.\nWe assumed the typical correlation for AGNs between the stellar mass M$_\\ast$ and black hole mass M$_{BH}$ of \\citet{reines15} and a spherically symmetric accreting BH, yielding log(L$_{EDD}$\/M$_\\ast$) $\\simeq$ 0.9685+0.05 log$_{10}$(M$_\\ast$). The M$_\\ast$ in the second term can be approximated with the median value of the sample M$_{\\ast,\\text{median}}$, leaving a small secondary dependence on stellar mass which, for our mass ranges (10$^{10}$-10$^{11}$ M$_\\odot$) produces variations of $<5\\%$. This variation, added to the uncertainty on the relation between M$_\\ast$ and M$_\\text{BH}$ reported by \\citet{reines15} (cfr. their equations 4 and 5), is highlighted in Fig.\\ref{distltg2} with a blue shaded area around the Eddington limit (blue line) calculated above. \n\nFrom this analysis, we found that $2$ AGNs have an Eddington ratio higher than 1 ($1.2<$ (L\/L$_\\text{EDD}$)|$_{AGN}$ $<1.85$), while additional $3$ AGNs are radiating between $57\\%$ and $79\\%$ of their maximum luminosity. However, all these $5$ AGNs are still consistent within $2\\sigma$ errors with (L\/L$_\\text{EDD}$)|$_{AGN}=1$ if we also consider the uncertainty on the conversion factor from the ratio L$_{\\text{BOL,AGN}}$\/M$_\\ast$, as discussed before. We remark that additional uncertainties on the M$_\\ast$- M$_\\text{BH}$ relation can come from the assumptions on the BH accretion geometry, which is not taken into account here.\nThe remaining 7 IR-detected AGNs have instead lower Eddington ratios between $0.35$ and $0.08$.\n\nThe galaxies which are undetected in X, radio and mid-IR may contain low-active AGNs, even though current upper limits on the Eddington ratio are not so stringent and do not allow to discriminate them from the detected subset.\nThe intrinsic variability of AGN accretion may thus explain why we are currently missing many of these sources in our sample, and that only deeper X-ray observations can potentially reveal. The duty cycle above $30\\%$ and $1\\%$ L$_{\\text{EDD}}$ seems to be at least $\\sim 25\\%$ and $\\sim 50\\%$, respectively.\n\n\\section{Summary and conclusions}\n\nUsing our unique sample of 25 starburst galaxies (typically 7 times above the star-forming Main Sequence) at z=0.5-0.9 with near-IR rest frame spectroscopy of Paschen lines, we found in Paper I that they span a large range of attenuations toward the core centers from A$_V=2$ to A$_V=30$, forming a sequence which is consistent with a mixed model geometry of dust and stars. In this paper we have investigated the nature of this attenuation sequence, comparing A$_V$ with other physical properties, such as the radio size (which traces the extension of the starburst), the emission lines velocity widths and [\\ion{N}{II}]\/H$\\alpha$ ratios (which reflect the increasing potential well depth and likely shock contribution towards the final merger stages), and finally the EW of hydrogen absorption lines, which is sensitive to the luminosity-weighted age of the stellar populations surrounding the optically obscured core.\n\n\nWe summarize the main results of this paper as follows:\n\\begin{itemize}\n \\item We found that the physical quantities introduced above, namely the radio sizes (FWHM$_{\\text{radio}}$), the line velocity widths (FWHM$_{\\text{line}}$), the [\\ion{N}{2}]\/H$\\alpha$ ratios (N2) and the equivalent widths of Paschen\/Balmer lines (EW$_{Balmer,Paschen}$), all correlate each other (Fig.\\ref{correlations}), defining a one-parameter sequence of z$\\sim$0.7 starburst galaxies.\n \\item These correlations can be interpreted as a time-evolutionary sequence of merger stages. As the merger evolves, the starburst becomes more compact and dust obscured, while the deep potential wells created by merging nuclei produce, according to the Virial Theorem, an increase of the kinetic energy and shocks in the system. At the same time, intermediate aged A-type stars in the outer starburst core regions are primarily responsible for the stronger optical+near-IR absorption lines in later phases.\n \n \\item 4 galaxies are outliers simultaneously in 3 of the 10 main correlations, which involve A$_\\text{V,tot}$ and, respectively, N2, FWHM$_\\text{line}$ and EW(Pa$\\beta$). Having the largest dust attenuations and among the smallest radio sizes in our sample, these outliers may represent the very end phases of the merger evolution, where the above 3 relations may reach a saturation level. \n \\item Using sky-subtracted 2D spectra, we identified a subset of $7$ pre-coalescence mergers by the presence of spatially separated or kinematically detached (i.e., rotation-driven tilted lines with different inclination angles) H$\\alpha$ components, representing earlier, less obscured phases of the interaction. The radio sizes measured for these systems are likely tracing the separation between the merging nuclei rather than the dimensions of single cores. However, our sample may contain additional double nuclei which we are not currently able to resolve.\n \\item Half of our sample comprises extremely compact starbursts, with average half-light radii of $600$ pc ($6$ galaxies have only upper limits), similar to the sizes of starbursting cores observed in local ULIRGs. These sizes are also $\\sim 0.5$ dex smaller than ETGs at redshift $\\sim$0.7 and below, indicating that our merger-driven starbursts cannot be direct progenitors of the population of massive ellipticals formed in the last $\\sim 7$ Gyr. On the contrary, they are more consistent with typical sizes and masses of bulge structures \\citep{graham08}, suggesting a possible evolutionary connection between our starburst cores and bulges.\n \\item In our sample, we detected at $>3\\sigma$ the mid-IR dusty torus AGN emission in $12$ starbursts, with Eddington ratios ranging from $1.9$ to less than $0.08$. Among them, only 6 galaxies are simultaneously detected (at $3\\sigma$) in X-rays.\n Intriguingly, the latter have the largest departures from the Mass-size relation of LTGs (at $z\\leq$ 0.7), suggesting that AGNs start to appear in X-rays during the latest (compact) merger phases, as the blow-out of surrounding dust\/gas may precede a possible final QSO. \n\\end{itemize}\nOverall, the relations among the above physical parameters converge toward a time-evolutionary sequence of merger stages, which represents an observational evidence (translated at higher redshift) of the theoretical merger-induced starbursts framework of \\citet{hopkins08a,hopkins08c,dimatteo05}, and the evolutionary sequence postulated by \\citet{toomre72}. The future advent of JWST will allow to test this scenario up to very high redshift, where the conditions of the Universe and gas content of galaxies were even different compared to the epochs studied here.\n\n\\smallskip\n\n\\begin{acknowledgements}\nWe thank the anonymous referee for useful suggestions that improved the quality of this manuscript, G.Rudie for assistence with Magellan observations, Nicol{\\'a}s Ignacio Godoy for data reduction, and Daniela Calzetti for discussions. M.O. acknowledges support from JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number JP17K14257. N.A. acknowledges support from the Brain Pool Program, funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT through the Korean National Research Foundation (2018H1D3A2000902). M.B. acknowledges FONDECYT regular grant 1170618. R.C. acknowledges financial support from CONICYT Doctorado Nacional No. 21161487 and CONICYT PIA. ACT172033. A.C. acknowledges RadioNet conference funding. This research has made use of the zCosmos database, operated at CeSAM\/LAM, Marseille, France.\n\\end{acknowledgements}\n\n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
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+{"text":"\\section{Introduction} \\label{sec:intro}\nThe origin of Phobos and Deimos has been intensely debated. Historically, they were believed to be captured asteroids, due to their spectral properties sharing a resemblance with D-type asteroids \\citep[e.g.][]{Bur78,Mur91}. However, the captured scenario is confronted with the difficulty of explaining their almost circular equatorial orbits around Mars \\citep{Bur92,Ros11}. Recently, the giant impact scenario $-$ in which Phobos and Deimos accreted within an impact-generated disk $-$ is gaining more and more attention \\citep{Ros16,Hes17,Hyo17a,Hyo17b,Hyo18}. Recent high-resolution smoothed-particles hydrodynamic (SPH) impact simulations show that the building blocks of Phobos and Deimos consist of a nearly equal mixture of Martian and impactor material \\citep{Hyo17a}. They also found that a small amount of the building blocks is vaporized ($< 5$ wt\\%) and the rest is melted ($> 95 $wt\\%). Then, using the thermodynamic data obtained in \\cite{Hyo17a}, \\cite{Pig18} investigated the expected chemical composition of Phobos and Deimos assuming a variety of impactor compositions. They found that the vapor preferentially contains volatile elements and, during its condensation sequence, it morphs into different species depending on the impactor's composition. \\cite{Ron16} investigated the formation of Mars' moons in an impact-generated disk that is composed of two main phases: a thin magma layer in the inner midplane and a larger gas envelope that extends at larger radii. After investigating the possible outcomes from magma solidification and gas condensation, \\cite{Ron16} concluded that the condensed dust from the gas envelope in the outer region could be the origin of the Mars' moons. However, they limit the study of condensability to olivine only, and thus, it is not possible to determine the full dust composition (amount of more or less volatiles species) that would be derived from their model.\\\\\n\nIn previous papers, the Martian moon-forming disk has been considered as a closed system. However, volatile elements in the vapor or condensed dust might preferentially escape from the system due to the fact that it is thermally energetic and the orbits of debris are highly eccentric just after the giant impact \\citep{Hyo17a,Hyo17b}.\\\\\n \nThe volatile content of Martian moons would be an important proxy to reveal the origin of Phobos and Deimos, and JAXA (Japan Aerospace eXploration Agency) is planning the Martian Moons eXplorer (MMX) mission, in which a spacecraft will be sent to the Martian moons, conduct detailed remote sensing and in-situ analysis, retrieve samples there, and return to Earth.\\\\\n\nIn this paper, we consider hydrodynamic escape of volatile-rich vapor and removal of its condensates by planetary radiation pressure as possible mechanisms of volatile depletion from the building blocks of Phobos and Deimos. In section 2, we show that the surface of Mars is heated up significantly just after the impact and may be a major radiative source. In Section 3, we describe the spatial structure of the building blocks of Martian moons just after the impact. In section 4, we discuss the possibility of removing volatile-rich vapor by hydrodynamic escape. In section 5, we discuss the possibility of removing volatile-rich dust by planetary radiation pressure. In section 6 we summarize our results.\n\n\\section{Blazing Mars after a giant impact} \\label{sec:surface}\n\\begin{figure}[ht!]\n\\plotone{Fig1_Surface_temperature.eps}\n\\caption{Surface temperature distribution of Mars just after the Martian moon and Borealis basin forming impact obtained in \\cite{Hyo17a}. Only particles whose depth is less than 100 km are over plotted (20h after the impact).}\n\\label{surface_temp}\n\\end{figure}\n\nUsing the data obtained from SPH impact simulations \\citep{Hyo17a} that produce both the Martian moon-forming disk and the Borealis basin \\citep{Mar08,Hyo17b}, we investigate the surface temperature of Mars just after the giant impact (impact energy of $\\sim3-6 \\times10^{29}$ J). Figure \\ref{surface_temp} shows the post-impact temperature distribution of the Martian surface (impactor mass of $m_{\\rm imp} \\sim 0.03M_{\\rm Mars}$, impact velocity of $v_{\\rm imp} \\sim1.4v_{\\rm esc}$ where $v_{\\rm esc}$ is the mutual escape velocity, and impact angle of $\\theta=45$ degrees). We found that the impact significantly heats up the planet surface around the impact point. The post-impact Martian surface exhibits 3 distinct regions with temperatures $T_{\\rm pla} \\sim 5000-6000$ K, $\\sim 3000-4000K$ and $\\sim1000$ K. Note that the results do not significantly change when using other impact conditions that cover the similar impact energies ($m_{\\rm imp}\\sim0.01M_{\\rm Mars}$, $v_{\\rm imp}\\sim2.2v_{\\rm esc}$ and $\\theta=45$ degrees, $m_{\\rm imp}\\sim0.056M_{\\rm Mars}$, $v_{\\rm imp}\\sim1.4v_{\\rm esc}$ and $\\theta=45$ degrees).\\\\\n\nA very simple estimation will help to quantify this temperature increase ($\\Delta T$)\n \\begin{equation}\n \t\\Delta T = E_{\\rm heat}\/C_{\\rm p}M_{\\rm heat}\n \\end{equation}\n %\nwhere $E_{\\rm heat}$ is the energy used to heat the Martian surface, $C_{\\rm p}$ is the specific heat, and $M_{\\rm heat}$ is the heated mass. Here, we consider $M_{\\rm heat} \\sim M_{\\rm imp}$, because the volume of an isobaric core induced by the impact on Mars is comparable to that of the impactor. Since the total impact energy ($E_{\\rm imp}$) is roughly equally partitioned to Mars and the impactor, and about half of this energy is used to increase the internal energy, we adopted $E_{\\rm heat} \\sim 0.25E_{\\rm imp}$. We also adopted C$_{\\rm p}$ = 1000 J K$^{-1}$ kg$^{-1}$ for typical rock. Then we get $\\Delta T \\sim 4000$ K, which is consistent with our numerical results.\\\\\n\nThe cooling timescale of the surface temperature anomaly can be estimated as follows. We consider the energy emitted by time unit \n\\begin{equation}\n\tdE\/dt = S \\times \\sigma_{\\rm SB} T_{\\rm pla}^4,\n\\end{equation}\nand energy change \n\\begin{equation}\n\t\\Delta E = S \\times D \\times \\rho C_{\\rm p} \\Delta T,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\sigma_{\\rm SB}=5.67 \\times 10^{-5}$ (in cgs unit) is the Stefan-Boltzmann constant, $S$ is the surface area, $D$ is the depth and density $\\rho=3000$ kg m$^{-3}$. Then, the cooling timescale can be written by assuming a black-body radiation cooling \\citep[see also][]{Hyo17a} as \n \\begin{equation}\n \t\tt_{\\rm cool} = \\Delta E\/(dE\/dt) \\sim 717 \\hspace{1mm} \\rm{days} \\times \\left( \\frac{D}{100 \\rm{km}} \\right) \\left( \\frac{\\Delta T}{3000 \\rm{K}} \\right) \\left( \\frac{T_{\\rm pla}}{4000 \\rm{K}} \\right)^{-4}. \n \\end{equation}\nThus, it takes years to cool down from $T_{\\rm pla}=4000$ K to $T_{\\rm pla}=1000$ K assuming its depth of $100$ km (SPH simulations show that more than 100 km in depth is significantly heated up). Note that, in this work, we focus on the epoch just after the impact and before the disk particles are circularized to form a circular thin disk with a timescale of 10s of days \\citep{Hyo17b}. Thus, the cooling timescale is much longer than the dynamical timescale.\n \n\\section{Disk structure just after the giant impact} \\label{sec:disk_str}\n In this paper, we focus on the epoch just after the giant impact and before the debris were circularized to create the circular equatorial Martian moon-forming disk. This is because, just after the impact, the system is thermally hot and the debris particles have highly eccentric orbits \\citep{Hyo17a,Hyo17b}. Thus, the particles can reach a location distant from Mars, where Martian gravitational attraction becomes weaker (closer to particles' apocenter) and where escape of the planet is easier. Below, we describe the orbits and structure of the debris just after the impact where particles travel from their pericenter to apocenter distances.\\\\\n\n\\subsection{Orbits and configurations of disk particles}\n\\cite{Hyo17a} shows that the initial disk material just after the giant impact is mostly melted phase and $\\sim 5$wt\\% of the total disk mass ($M_{\\rm tot} \\sim 10^{20}$ kg) is vaporized. The orbits of the disk material are initially highly eccentric \\citep[$e>0.5$,][]{Hyo17a,Hyo17b} and their radial distances significantly change with time. Thus, near the planet, the material may not be solid due to stronger radiative heating from blazing Mars, but as they approach their apocenter distance, they may solidify or condense (Figure \\ref{disk_sch}). Typical particle size of the melts (or its solids) is $\\sim 1.5$ m during their first orbit from their pericenters to apocenters \\citep{Hyo17a}. Thus, such melt particles are too large to be blown off by Martian radiation pressure (see Section 5). In contrast, the condensates from the vapor are expected to have a typical size of $\\sim0.1 \\mu$m \\citep{Ron16,Hyo17a} and thus they can potentially be removed by radiation pressure from blazing Mars.\\\\\n\n\\begin{figure}[ht!]\n \\epsscale{0.50}\n\\plotone{Fig2_schematic_arm.eps}\n\\caption{Schematic figure of the building blocks of Phobos and Deimos just after the impact \\citep[see also Figure 1 of][]{Hyo17a}. Closer to blazing Mars, the disk consists of vapor (light green region) and meter-sized melts (green points). In contrast, the outer part (outside the condensation line) consists of volatile-rich vapor (cyan region), meter-sized melts\/solids (green points) and $\\micron$-sized volatile-rich condensates from the vapor (small blue points).}\n\\label{disk_sch}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\subsection{Temperature of particles heated by planetary radiation} \\label{sec:disk_temp}\nIn this subsection, we estimate the temperature of particles as a function of radial distance from Mars. Here we consider the case where solid particles and ambient vapor quickly equilibrate. Below, we calculate the temperature of solids when they are put under planetary radiation. We assume that solids are heated up instantaneously and achieve an equilibrated temperature with radiation cooling.\\\\ \n\nThe balance between the planetary radiation heating whose surface temperature of $T_{\\rm pla}$ and radiation cooling of particles whose temperature and size are $T_{\\rm par}$ and $d$, respectively, can be written as \n\\begin{equation}\n\t\\bar{Q}_{\\rm abs} \\frac{\\sigma_{\\rm SB} T_{\\rm pla}^4 \\times 4\\pi R_{\\rm p}^2}{4\\pi r^2} \\times \\pi d^2 = \\sigma_{\\rm SB}T_{\\rm par}^4 \\times 4 \\pi d^2 \n\\label{equi_temp}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $R_{\\rm p}$ is the radius of the central planet, $r$ is the distance between the central planet and solid. $\\bar{Q}_{\\rm abs}$ is the absorption efficiency of a solid that determines the efficiency of absorbing the radiation as internal heating. Note that $\\bar{Q}_{\\rm abs}$ ranges from 0 to 1 and it strongly depends on the material properties and its size. Thus, in this paper, we treat this as a parameter and we use $\\bar{Q}_{\\rm abs} = 0.1,0.5$ and $0.9$ for reference. Using the equation \\ref{equi_temp}, we can calculate the equilibrium temperature of the particles as\n\\begin{equation}\nT_{\\rm par} = \\frac{T_{\\rm pla}R_{\\rm p}^{1\/2} \\bar{Q}_{\\rm abs}^{1\/4}}{(2 r)^{1\/2}}.\n\\label{Tpar}\n\\end{equation}\nFigure \\ref{disk_temp} shows the temperature of solids (and equilibrated ambient vapor) as a function of distance from Mars, assuming different surface temperatures of Mars and $\\bar{Q}_{\\rm abs}$ obtained by using the equation \\ref{Tpar}. Here, we assume that equilibrium quickly occurs. The temperature of optically thin dust is regulated by radiation cooling or planetary radiation heating. If a dust has a temperature above the equilibrium temperature, the dust radiatively cools and its timescale of micron-size dust is very quick compared to the orbital timescale \\citep{Hyo17a}. In contrast, if dust temperature is below the equilibrium temperature, the planetary radiation heats up the dust. Then, its timescale $t_{\\rm heat}$ can be estimated using the same argument in Section 2 but with $dE\/dt=\\bar{Q}_{\\rm abs} \\frac{\\sigma_{\\rm SB} T_{\\rm pla}^4 \\times 4\\pi R_{\\rm p}^2}{4\\pi r^2} \\times \\pi d^2$ ($\\rho=3000$ kg m$^{-3}$ and $C_{\\rm p}=1000$ J K$^{-1}$ kg$^{-1}$) as\n \\begin{equation}\n \t\tt_{\\rm heat} = \\Delta E\/(dE\/dt) \\sim 3\\times10^{-3} \\hspace{1mm} \\rm{s} \\times \\bar{Q}_{\\rm abs}^{-1} \\left( \\frac{d}{0.1 \\micron} \\right) \\left( \\frac{\\Delta T}{1000 \\rm{K}} \\right) \\left( \\frac{T_{\\rm pla}}{4000 \\rm{K}} \\right)^{-4} \\left(\\frac{r}{10 \\rm{R_{\\rm Mars}}} \\right)^2. \n \\end{equation}\nTherefore, the heating timescale is also much shorter than the orbital timescale and thus thermal equilibration would quickly occur during the first orbits of particles.\\\\\n\n\\cite{Hyo17a,Hyo17b} showed that particles have highly eccentric orbits just after the giant impact and their radial distance from Mars can change between $\\sim 1-100 R_{\\rm Mars}$ depending on their semi-major axis and eccentricity. Also, just after the impact (when all disk particles are significantly concentrated around the impact point), disk particles are optically thick and thus their temperature is regulated by impact-induced energy \\cite[$T_{\\rm par} \\sim 2000$ K in][]{Hyo17a} and not by radiation heating discussed here. However, as the disk expands with cooling and if disk material goes far enough away from Mars, they become optically thin (see Section 5.1) and then these outer parts quickly reach their equilibrium temperature regulated by radiation heating. Therefore, the temperatures of gases and solids would change between $\\sim 100 < T_{\\rm par} < 2000$ K depending on the radial distance and $\\bar{Q}_{\\rm abs}$ (Figure \\ref{disk_temp}).\\\\\n\n\\begin{figure}[ht!]\n\\plotone{Fig3_disk_structures.eps}\n\\caption{Temperature of particles as a function of radial distance from Mars, assuming balance between radiation heating and radiation cooling. Different colors represent cases of Mars with different temperatures. From left to right panels, we assume different values of $\\bar{Q}_{\\rm abs}=0.1, 0.5, 0.9$, respectively.}\n\\label{disk_temp}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\section{Volatile gas depletion by hydrodynamic escape} \\label{sec:hydro}\n Just after the Martian moon-forming impact, the debris are a mixture of vapor ($\\sim 5$wt\\%) and magma ($\\sim 95$wt\\%) with a temperature of $\\sim$2000 K \\citep{Hyo17a} and vapor preferentially contains volatile elements \\cite[Table 3 in][]{Pig18}. In this section, we estimate the amount of volatile gas that can be thermally removed from the building blocks of Phobos and Deimos.\\\\\n \n\\subsection{Volatile gas depletion from Martian moon-forming disk} \nIf the vapor is thermally energetic enough compared to planet gravity, it would escape in a hydrodynamic manner, which is called the hydrodynamic escape. The ratio of the gravitational energy required for escape and the thermal energy of vapor is expressed using the escape parameter $\\lambda_{\\rm esc}$, \\citep[e.g.][]{Gen03},\n\\begin{equation}\n\\lambda_{\\rm esc} = GMm\/kT_{\\rm vap}r\n\\label{lambda_esc}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $G$ is the gravitational constant, $M$ is the mass of the central planet, $m$ is the mean molecular weight of vapor, $k$ is the Boltzmann constant and $T_{\\rm vap}$ is the temperature of the vapor at a distance $r$ from the planet. If $\\lambda_{\\rm esc} < 1$ is satisfied, vapor can readily escape from the potential field of the planet since the thermal velocity is larger than the local escape velocity of the planet.\\\\\n\nHere, we use the direct output obtained from SPH simulations provided by \\cite{Hyo17a} (their Figure 6) and evaluate their $\\lambda_{\\rm esc}$ values during their first orbit from their impact point to their apocenter distances (that is just after the impact and we consider $r_{\\rm peri} < r < r_{\\rm apo}$ for each particle). This is because a chance to escape from the system would be the most likely during the first orbit (because they are eccentric and thermally energetic); the period before circularization and cooling down of the vapor throughout successive orbits \\citep{Hyo17b}. Note that, \\cite{Nak17} also considered hydrodynamic escape as a possible volatile depletion process of the Martian moon-forming disk. However, they consider the epoch after the debris were circularized to form a circular steady-state disk around Mars and, under this circumstance, $\\lambda_{\\rm esc} > 1$. Here, we consider the early epoch before the steady-state circular disk is formed when $\\lambda_{\\rm esc} < 1$.\\\\\n\nBesides $T_{\\rm vap}$ and $r$, $\\lambda_{\\rm esc}$ depends on the mean molecular weight ($m$), which is calculated as follows. The vapor contains a mixture of about one half Martian material and about one half impactor material \\citep{Hyo17a}. \\cite{Pig18} calculated the vapor composition at $2000$ K, assuming the impactor's composition is of either Mars, CV, CI, EH or comet-like material. Here, using the same procedure as \\cite{Pig18}, we calculated the mean molecular weight of the vapor at 2000K, 1500K, and 1000K during their condensation sequence using various impactor compositions.\\\\\n\nFigure \\ref{frac_hydro} shows the fraction of $\\lambda_{\\rm esc} < 1$ among eccentric particles during their first orbit as explained above. We found that a significant amount of about $\\sim10-40$\\% of the vapor (depending on the impactor composition) can hydrodynamic escape from the system when vapor temperature is 2000 K. Even when vapor temperature decreases down to 1000 K, $\\sim10-40$\\% of the vapor can still escape because the mean molecular weight decreases as temperature decreases (only more volatile elements remain in vapor phase).\\\\\n\nIf there is sufficient water on Mars at the time of impact, the impact-induced vapor may consist of mostly water ($m\\sim18$ g mol$^{-1}$). In this case, about $\\sim20-40\\%$ of water-dominated vapor will be lost at a vapor temperature between $1000-2000$ K (see pentagon in Figure \\ref{frac_hydro}).\\\\\n\nNote that our above estimation only considers thermal velocity (using $\\lambda_{\\rm esc} < 1$ criteria) so that molecules are on ballistic trajectories. In reality, in addition to this thermal velocity, vapor itself has dynamical velocity inherited from the impact velocity (close to local Keplerian velocity) and a pressure gradient that reduces the effective gravity of Mars. These effects would ease the criteria of vapor escape from the Martian system and thus our above estimation should be considered as a lower bound.\\\\\n\n\\begin{figure}[ht!]\n\\plotone{Fig4_Frac_of_hydrodynamic_escape.eps}\n\\caption{Mass fraction of vapor phase that satisfies $\\lambda_{\\rm esc} < 1$ during the orbit from pericenter to apocenter using the data obtained in SPH simulations \\citep{Hyo17a}. The mean molecular masses at different temperatures are obtained by calculating the condensation sequence starting from T=2000K and $P=10^{-4}$ bar, whose initial composition is the result of an equal mixture of Martian material and different impactor materials (Mars, CV, CI, EH or comet-like materials). As temperature decreases, the mean molecular mass becomes smaller since only more volatile elements remain in the vapor phase. The color contour represents the critical distance where $\\lambda_{\\rm esc} = 1$.}\n\\label{frac_hydro}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\subsection{Mass fractionation through hydrodynamic escape} \nMass fractionation, such as the change in $D\/H$, is not expected for the rapid hydrodynamic escape considered here. The degree of mass fractionation can be evaluated from the crossover mass ($m_{\\rm c})$, that is the mass of the heaviest species that can be dragged to space by the escaping species \\citep{Hun87,Gen08} ;\n\\begin{equation}\nm_{\\rm c} = m + \\frac{F_{esc}k T_{\\rm vap}}{gb}\n\\label{}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $g$ is the gravitational acceleration, $F_{\\rm esc}$ is the escape flux of major species, and $b$ is the binary diffusion coefficient. If $m_{\\rm c}$ is comparable to $m$, mass fractionation is significant, while if $m_{\\rm c} \\gg m$ it is negligible. Here for simplicity, we consider a water-dominated vapor in the disk, i.e., $m = 3.0 \\times10^{26}$ kg (equivalent to 18 g mol$^{-1}$). The escape flux Fesc is roughly estimated as\n\\begin{equation}\nF_{\\rm esc} \\sim \\frac{M_{\\rm esc}}{mS \\Delta t}\n\\label{}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $M_{\\rm esc}$ is the total escaping mass ($\\sim 10^{18}$ kg, which corresponds to 30\\% of the vaporized disk mass), $S$ is the escaping surface area ($\\sim 10^{14}$ m$^{2}$, which corresponds to the surface area of Mars), and $\\Delta t$ is the typical duration of hydrodynamic escape. When we consider one orbit of the disk ($\\Delta t \\sim 1$ day), $F_{\\rm esc}$ is estimated to be $10^{24}$ m$^{-2}$ s$^{-1}$. Since the order of magnitude for $b$ is $10^{22}$ m$^{-1}$ s$^{-1}$ for $T_{\\rm vap} = 2000$ K \\citep{Mas70}, and $g \\sim 1$ m s$^{-2}$,\n\\begin{equation}\nm_{\\rm c}\/m \\sim 10^8\n\\label{}\n\\end{equation}\nTherefore, no mass fractionation would take place during hydrodynamic escape in the Martian moon-forming disk.\\\\\n\n\\section{Volatile dust depletion by radiation pressure} \\label{sec:RP}\nIn the previous section, we consider vapor loss by hydrodynamic escape. However, as shown in Section 2, the temperature of the vapor may decrease as the radial distance increases and previous papers show that the vapor may condense into $0.1 \\mu m$ sized dust particles \\citep{Hyo17a}. These small specks of dust may be affected by planetary radiation pressure. In this section, we investigate the possibility for such dust to be blown off by planetary radiation pressure just after the impact.\\\\\n\n\\subsection{Opacity of the debris disk} \n\\begin{figure}[ht!]\n\\plotone{Fig5_Snapshots_tau.eps}\n\\caption{Snapshots of impact simulations obtained in \\cite{Hyo17a} (left panel is that of 20h and right panel is that of 33h). The red points represent those belonging to Mars. White points represent those that escaped from Mars' gravity. Cyan points represent those of disk particles whose $\\tau > 1$. Yellow points represent those of disk particles whose $\\tau < 1$. About $\\sim 20\\%$ and $\\sim 34$\\% of the disk particles are $\\tau < 1$ (yellow points) at 20h and 33h, respectively.}\n\\label{tau}\n\\end{figure}\n\nRadiative escape of dusty volatile material would only be possible if the planet's hot and radiative surface is visible by the volatile condensates. To check for this possibility, we have computed the radially integrated optical depth ($\\tau$) of the disk for every disk particle, using outputs of the SPH simulation at 20 h and 33h as examples. The system was divided into $1000\\times200\\times600$ cells in spherical coordinates with minimum radius at the planet surface and maximum radius at 500,000 km. Then, the mass in each cell was obtained by summing the mass of all particles inside a given cell and converting into an equivalent optical depth, assuming that all the mass is made of particles with a 1.5m radius \\citep{Hyo17a}. Then the optical depth was computed for every cell along the radial path starting from Mars' surface. Results are shown in Figure \\ref{tau}. It appears that particles close to Mars and accumulated in a dense tidal arm all have $\\tau > 1$ and then should not be sensitive to radiation pressure. Conversely, all disk particles above and below this arm and beyond 15 Mars radii have $\\tau < 1$, so will be subject to radiation pressure. These particles comprise about $\\sim 20$\\% (at 20h) and $\\sim34\\%$ (at 30h) of the total disk mass. Of course, as the system evolves, this fraction of particles with $\\tau < 1$ increases as the systems spread radially and azimuthally. In addition, as these particles are located far from Mars, they are more prone to condense into small condensates. So these results suggest that a substantial population of small condensates and volatile particles will indeed be subject to radiative effects. Quantifying this number more precisely is a very difficult task as it would require a dynamical simulation fully coupled with a radiative transfer code, which is beyond the scope of the present paper that investigates first order effects.\\\\\n\n\\subsection{Basics of the radiation pressure} \\label{sec:RP_basic}\nThe orbits of small particles may be significantly influenced by the radiation pressure either from the Sun or the central planet \\citep[e.g.][]{Bur79}. The radiation pressure can be written as \n\\begin{equation}\n\tF_{\\rm RP} = \\bar{Q}_{\\rm RP} \\frac{S}{c} \\times \\sigma_{\\rm col} \t\t\n\\label{}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\bar{Q}_{\\rm RP}$ is the Planck mean of the radiation pressure efficiency averaged over spectrum, $S$ is the radiation flux density at distance $r$, $c$ is the speed of light, and $\\sigma_{\\rm col}=\\pi d^2$ is the cross-section of a particle whose radius is $d$, respectively.\\\\\n\n$\\bar{Q}_{\\rm RP}$ can be expressed using the radiation pressure efficiency $Q_{\\rm RP}(\\lambda, d)$ as a function of wavelength $\\lambda$ and dust size $d$ as \\citep{Bur79}\n\\begin{equation}\n\t\\bar{Q}_{\\rm RP}(T_{\\rm pla},d)= \\int_0^{\\infty} B(\\lambda,T_{\\rm pla}) Q_{\\rm RP} (\\lambda,d) d\\lambda\t\t\n\\label{}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $B(\\lambda, T_{\\rm pla})$ is the normalized Planck function at a wavelength of $\\lambda$ and planet temperature $T_{\\rm pla}$ so that the total area of this curve is unity. Using the luminosity $L=\\sigma_{\\rm SB}T_{\\rm pla}^4 \\times 4\\pi R_{\\rm p}^2$, $S$ is written as $S=L\/(4\\pi r^2)$ and thus\n\\begin{equation}\n\tS=\\frac{\\sigma_{\\rm SB} T_{\\rm pla}^{4} \\times 4\\pi R_{\\rm p}^2}{4\\pi r^2}.\t\n\\label{}\n\\end{equation}\n\nAs shown in section 2, the planet surface is significantly heated up by the giant impact. Assuming both the Sun and a heated planet emit black body radiation and assuming $\\bar{Q}_{\\rm RP}=1$, the ratio of these radiation pressures can be written as\n\\begin{equation}\n\t\\frac{F_{\\rm RP,Sun}}{F_{\\rm RP,planet}} = \\left( \\frac{R_{\\rm Sun}}{R_{\\rm pla}} \\right)^2 \\left( \\frac{r_{\\rm pla}}{r_{\\rm Sun}} \\right)^2 \\left( \\frac{T_{\\rm Sun}}{T_{\\rm pla}} \\right)^4 \n\\label{}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $R_{\\rm Sun}=6.95 \\times 10^5$ km and $R_{\\rm pla}$ are the radii of the Sun and the planet, respectively. $r_{\\rm Sun}=2.27 \\times 10^8$ km and $r_{\\rm pla}$ are the distances from the disk particles to the Sun and the planet, respectively. $T_{\\rm Sun}$ and $T_{\\rm pla}$ are the temperatures of the Sun and the planet, respectively. For the parameters of interest here, assuming $T_{\\rm Sum}=6000$ K, $T_{\\rm Mars}=3000K$ and $R_{\\rm Mars}=3300$ km and $r_{\\rm Mars}=4R_{\\rm Mars}$, we get $F_{\\rm RP,Sun}\/F_{\\rm RP,Mars} \\sim 2\\times10^{-3}$, which indicates the radiation pressure from Mars' surface dominates over that from the Sun. Thus, in this paper, we only consider the effect of planetary radiation pressure on the building blocks of Phobos and Deimos.\\\\\n\n\\subsection{Conditions for eccentric dust to be blown off by radiation pressure} \\label{sec:RP_cond}\n\\begin{figure}[ht!]\n\\plotone{Fig6_Map_of_RP_removed_criteria.eps}\n\\caption{An example of a map of parameters where a particle is removed by radiation pressure (yellow region). Cyan region is where the particle is not removed. The solid black curve is where particles are condensed, assuming particle temperature is settled by radiation equilibrium. The solid, dashed and dotted horizontal lines are the particle's semi-major axis (corresponding to $\\beta=0.5$), apocenter distance and pericenter distance, respectively. Note that, $a=4R_{\\rm Mars}$ and $e=0.7$ are typical orbital elements found in SPH simulations \\citep{Hyo17a,Hyo17b}. In Figure \\ref{frac_RP}, we consider all the particles that have different orbital elements.}\n\\label{map}\n\\end{figure}\n\nThe vector of the radiation pressure points in the opposite direction of the gravitational force and thus the effective mass of the central planet can be expressed by using the ratio between these two absolute terms $\\beta$ as\n\\begin{equation}\n\tM_{\\rm eff} = \\left(1-\\beta \\right)M \n\\label{}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\beta$ is written as\n\\begin{equation}\n\t\\beta = \\frac{F_{\\rm RP}}{F_{\\rm grav}} \n\\label{}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $F_{\\rm grav}=\\frac{GM}{r^2}$.\\\\\n\nIn order for a condensed \"eccentric\" dust particle to be blown off by radiation pressure, the particle needs to have a larger velocity $v(r)$ than the escape velocity of the planet $v_{\\rm esc}(r)$ at its distance r. We can write this condition as\n\\begin{equation}\n\tv(r)=\\sqrt{GM\\left( \\frac{2}{r} - \\frac{1}{a_{0}} \\right) } > v_{\\rm esc} = \\sqrt{ \\frac{2GM_{\\rm eff}}{r}}\n\\label{}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $a_{\\rm 0}$ is the semi-major axis of the dust particle. Since $r > r_{\\rm peri}$, the critical blow-off conditions can be written as\n\\begin{equation}\n\tr_{\\rm peri} < r < r_{\\rm \\beta} = 2 a_{0} \\beta.\n\\label{}\n\\end{equation}\nThis criteria tells us that a particle on a circular orbit ($r=a_{\\rm 0}$) requires $\\beta=0.5$ as a critical value to be blown off \\citep{Bur79}. However, if the orbit is eccentric, the critical $\\beta$ value above which a particle is blown off depends on the radial location where particles condense in a way that a distance larger than $a_{\\rm 0}$ requires $\\beta > 0.5$ and a distance smaller than $a_{\\rm 0}$ requires $\\beta<0.5$.\\\\\n\nIn addition to the above criteria, a particle needs to condense (at $r=r_{\\rm con}$) before they reach the apocenter to feel radiation pressure. Assuming the temperature of a particle is settled as an equilibrium temperature (Section \\ref{sec:disk_temp}), the condition is written as \n\\begin{equation}\n\tr_{\\rm apo} > r > r_{\\rm con} = \\frac{1}{2} \\left( \\frac{T_{\\rm pla}}{T_{\\rm con}} \\right)^2 R_{\\rm p} \\bar{Q}^{1\/2}_{\\rm abs}. \n\\label{}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $T_{\\rm con}$ is the condensation temperature for a specific element. To satisfy the above two conditions at the same time, $r_{\\rm \\beta}$ and $r_{\\rm con}$ need to be\n\\begin{equation}\n\t{\\rm (i)\\hspace{0.1cm}} r_{\\rm con} < r_{\\rm apo}, {\\rm \\hspace{0.2cm} (ii) \\hspace{0.1cm}} r_{\\rm \\beta} > r_{\\rm peri}, \\hspace{0.2cm} {\\rm and \\hspace{0.1cm} (iii) \\hspace{0.1cm}} r_{\\rm con} < r_{\\rm \\beta}.\n\\label{}\n\\end{equation}\n\\\\\n\nFigure \\ref{map} shows an example of a parameter map where a dust particle ($a=4R_{\\rm Mars}$ and e=0.7) is removed by radiation pressure (yellow region) as a function of condensation temperature and $\\beta$ at different planet temperatures and absorption coefficients of the particle. The sharp left vertical edge of the yellow region is due to the condition (i). Thus, particles whose condensation temperature is smaller than the critical temperature\n\\begin{equation}\n\tT_{\\rm con,apo} = \\sqrt{\\frac{R_{\\rm p}}{2r_{\\rm apo}} } T_{\\rm pla} \\bar{Q}^{1\/4}_{\\rm abs}\n\\label{Tapo}\n\\end{equation}\nare never removed by radiation pressure. The horizontal bottom edge of the yellow region is due to condition (ii). The left bottom curves of the yellow regions represent condition (iii), which is the equilibrium temperatures of particles (minimum condensation temperatures) at a distance $r$ from Mars.\\\\\n\n\n\\subsection{$\\beta$ value of the condensed dust particles} \n\\begin{figure}[ht!]\n\\plotone{Fig7_Beta_value.eps}\n\\caption{$\\beta$ value as a function of particle size at different planet temperatures and particle densities. Red, green and blue colors represent cases where planet temperatures are $T_{\\rm pla}=4000$, 3000 and 2500 K, respectively. The solid, dotted and dashed lines represent cases where particle densities are $\\rho_{\\rm dust}=$5.0, 3.0 and 1.0 g cm$^{-3}$, respectively.}\n\\label{beta}\n\\end{figure}\n\nIn this subsection, we estimate the $\\beta$ value of an arbitrary condensed species from the vapor. Following the previous discussion in Section \\ref{sec:RP_basic}, $\\beta$ can be written as\n\\begin{eqnarray}\n\\label{betavalue}\n\t&\\beta = F_{\\rm RP}\/F_{\\rm grav} = \\frac{9}{16\\pi} \\bar{Q}_{\\rm RP} \\times \\frac{ \\sigma_{\\rm SB} T_{\\rm pla}^4}{c G R_{\\rm p} d \\rho_{\\rm pla} \\rho_{\\rm dust} }\\\\ \n\t&\\sim 10 \\hspace{0.1cm} {\\rm [cgs]} \\times \\bar{Q}_{\\rm RP} \\left( \\frac{R_{\\rm p}}{R_{\\rm Mars}} \\right)^{-1} \\left( \\frac{d}{0.1 \\hspace{0.1cm} \\micron} \\right)^{-1} \\left( \\frac{\\rho_{\\rm pla}}{ {\\rm 4.0 \\hspace{0.1cm} g \\hspace{0.1cm} cm^{-3}} }\\right )^{-1} \\left(\\frac{\\rho_{\\rm dust}}{ {\\rm 3.0 \\hspace{0.1cm} g \\hspace{0.1cm} cm^{-3} }} \\right)^{-1} \\left( \\frac{T_{\\rm pla}}{3000 \\hspace{0.1cm} {\\rm K}} \\right)^4 \n\\end{eqnarray}\nwhere $\\rho_{\\rm pla}$ and $\\rho_{\\rm dust}$ are densities of the central planet and irradiated particle, respectively. And now we need to evaluate the efficiency of radiation pressure $\\bar{Q}_{\\rm RP}$. Here, using the procedure discussed in \\cite{Zoo75}, we simply estimate $\\bar{Q}_{\\rm RP}$ and calculate the $\\beta$ value. We assume that $Q_{\\rm RP}(\\lambda, d)$ is unity (absorb all radiation) for particles whose characteristic length $2\\pi d$ is larger than wavelength and zero vice-versa as\n\\begin{eqnarray}\n Q_{\\rm PR} (\\lambda) &= 0, \\hspace{0.5cm} {\\rm if} \\hspace{0.1cm} \\lambda > 2\\pi d\\\\\n Q_{\\rm PR} (\\lambda) &= 1, \\hspace{0.5cm} {\\rm if} \\hspace{0.1cm} \\lambda \\leq 2\\pi d\n\\end{eqnarray}\nHere, radiation flux is assumed to be the black body radiation and we use the Planck function $B(\\lambda, T_{\\rm pla})=C \\times (2h c^2\/\\lambda^5)(1\/(e^{hc\/\\lambda k T_{\\rm pla}} - 1))$ whose integral over the $\\lambda$ is unity (C is constant). Using the above assumptions, we can express $\\bar{Q}_{\\rm RP}$ as\n\\begin{equation}\n\t\\bar{Q}_{\\rm RP}(\\lambda_{\\rm cri},T_{\\rm pla} ) = \\int_0^{\\lambda_{\\rm cri}} B( \\lambda,T_{\\rm pla} ) Q_{\\rm RP}(\\lambda) d\\lambda\n\\label{Qbar}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\lambda_{\\rm cri}=2 \\pi d$ \\citep{Zoo75}.\\\\\n\nFigure \\ref{beta} shows the $\\beta$ value of the above \"ideal\" particles obtained by equation \\ref{betavalue}-\\ref{Qbar}. We found that $\\beta$ ranges widely from $\\sim0.01-50$ depending on density, planet temperature and particle size. Note that, however, if we consider the material properties such as more realistic absorption and scattering properties and calculate $\\beta$ more precisely by using the famous Mie theory \\citep[e.g.][]{Bur79}, the $\\beta$ value may deviate from our ideal results. Thus, in this paper, we use $\\beta$ as a parameter ($0.01 < \\beta < 10$) and estimate the amount of depletion as will be discussed in the following sections.\\\\\n\n\\subsection{Volatile dust depletion from Martian moon-forming disk} \n\\begin{figure}[ht!]\n\\plotone{Fig8_Map_of_RP_removed_fraction.eps}\n\\caption{Fraction of condensates in Martian moon-forming debris that are removed from Mars' system during their first orbit from their pericenter to apocenter just after the impact as a function of their condensation temperature and $\\beta$ value. Different panels show different Mars temperatures and $\\bar{Q}_{abs}$. The orbital data is obtained from SPH simulations \\citep{Hyo17a,Hyo17b}.}\n\\label{frac_RP}\n\\end{figure}\n\nIn this subsection, we will estimate the amount of condensed dust depletion from the building blocks of Phobos and Deimos just after the giant impact. As explained before, we will only focus on the first orbit from their pericenter to apocenter. During the successive orbits, the debris quickly forms an optically thick (in the radial direction) and vertically thin equatorial circular disk from which Phobos and Deimos accrete \\citep{Hyo17b}. Thus, volatile dust removal would only be efficient during this first orbit.\\\\\n\nDuring the first orbit, the temperature of particles can change between $T_{\\rm peri} \\leq T_{\\rm dust} \\leq T_{\\rm apo}$, where $T_{\\rm peri}=2000$ K \\citep{Hyo17a} and $T_{\\rm apo}=T_{\\rm con,apo}$ (see equation \\ref{Tapo}), respectively. Using the arguments in Section \\ref{sec:RP_cond} and the data obtained from SPH simulations in \\cite{Hyo17a}, we calculate the fraction of vapor particles from the building blocks of Phobos and Deimos that (1) condense before reaching their apocenter ($T_{\\rm con} < T_{\\rm con,apo}$) and that (2) have a larger $\\beta$ value than the critical $\\beta$ described as\n\\begin{eqnarray}\n \\beta_{\\rm cri} = \\left( \\frac{T_{\\rm pla}}{T_{\\rm con}} \\right)^2 \\left( \\frac{R}{4a_{0}} \\right) \\bar{Q}^{1\/2}_{\\rm abs}, \\hspace{0.5cm} {\\rm if} \\hspace{0.1cm} T_{\\rm con} < T_{\\rm con,peri}\\\\\n \\beta_{\\rm cri} = \\left( \\frac{T_{\\rm pla}}{T_{\\rm con,peri}} \\right)^2 \\left( \\frac{R}{4a_{0}} \\right) \\bar{Q}^{1\/2}_{\\rm abs}, \\hspace{0.5cm} {\\rm if} \\hspace{0.1cm} T_{\\rm con} \\geq T_{\\rm con,peri}\n\\end{eqnarray}\nwhere $T_{\\rm con,peri}$ is\n\\begin{equation}\n\tT_{\\rm con,peri} = \\sqrt{ \\frac{R_{\\rm p}}{2r_{\\rm per}}} T_{\\rm pla} \\bar{Q}^{1\/4}_{\\rm abs}.\n\\label{}\n\\end{equation}\n\\\\\n\nIn Section 5.3., we have considered only a specific case of orbital elements. Here, using the data obtained from SPH simulations in \\cite{Hyo17a}, we have calculated the fraction of removed dust in Martian moon-forming debris. We assume all dust\/particles have the same condensation temperature of $T_{\\rm con}$ and a radiation pressure coefficient of $\\beta$ with their orbital elements distributed within the range obtained from SPH simulations \\citep{Hyo17a,Hyo17b}. Then, we calculate the fraction of particles that satisfy the above two criteria (the fraction of particles whose orbits meet the condition to be removed by radiation pressure with the specific values of $T_{\\rm con}$ and $\\beta$). Figure \\ref{frac_RP} shows the results of the calculations. When the temperature of Mars drops, the vapor cools down more easily closer to their apocenter, and thus dust that has smaller condensation temperature can also be removed. When $\\bar{Q}_{abs}$ becomes smaller, the same process occurs as the vapor temperature falls and more volatile elements can condense before reaching their apocenter.\\\\\n\nFigure \\ref{frac_RP} tells us that `moderately' volatile elements such as Na and K ($T_{\\rm con} \\sim 700-2000$ K) whose $\\beta > \\sim 0.1$ are more easily removed than highly volatile elements such as H$_{2}$O, Pb and C ($T_{\\rm con} < ~ 700$ K). This is because highly volatile elements need to go far enough away from Mars to cool down and condense, but there are few particles in the debris that have such orbital elements. The exact value of $\\beta$ strongly depends on condensed species and thus more precise quantitative estimation of the volatile loss by radiation pressure requires detailed study about $\\beta$ values. Also, we have to note that the condensates would not be in a pure form, but in a mixture. We will leave this matter to future work.\\\\\n\n\\section{Discussion \\& Conclusion} \\label{sec:conclusion}\nThe origin of Martian moons is intensely debated. Recent works have shown that the Martian moons Phobos and Deimos could accrete within an impact generated disk \\citep[e.g.][]{Ros16,Hes17,Hyo17a,Hyo17b}. In contrast, (even though it is not shown) it has been suggested that Martian moons could be captured asteroids due to their spectral properties \\citep[e.g.][]{Bur78}.\\\\\n\nNow, JAXA (Japan Aerospace eXploration Agency) is planning the Martian Moons eXplorer (MMX) mission. In this mission a spacecraft will be sent to the Martian moons, perform detailed remote sensing and in-situ analysis, and return samples to Earth. Gamma-ray, neutron-ray, and near-infrared spectrometers will be onboard the MMX spacecraft. The gamma-ray spectrometer can measure major elements such Si and Fe, and the neutron-ray spectrometer can measure H concentration. The near-infrared spectrometer can observe absorption features of hydrated minerals. Thus, major elemental ratios and volatile contents, such as H$_{2}$O, would be critical for understanding the origin of Phobos and Deimos, and also constraining the composition of the impactor that hit Mars, if Phobos and Deimos were formed by a giant impact.\\\\\n\nPrevious works have investigated the expected chemical composition of the building blocks of Phobos and Deimos within the framework of the giant impact hypothesis \\citep{Ron16,Hyo17a,Pig18}. Using high-resolution SPH simulations, \\cite{Hyo17a} found that the building blocks of Phobos and Deimos contain about an equal mixture of Martian material and impactor material with a temperature of $\\sim 2000$ K just after the impact. They also found that the building blocks are about $\\sim 5$wt\\% vaporized and the rest, about $\\sim 95$wt\\%, is melted just after the impact. Then, using these results obtained in \\cite{Hyo17a}, \\cite{Pig18} calculated the condensation sequence of vapor assuming a specific type of impactor composition is equally mixed with Martian materials. They found that the vapor and its condensates contain more volatile elements than melts and its solids. And, its composition significantly differs with varying impactor compositions. However, these works consider the system to be a closed one and did not take into account any possible processes that may cause volatile elements to be lost from the Martian system.\\\\\n\nIn this work, we consider hydrodynamic escape (Section 4) and radiation pressure (Section 5) as possible mechanisms to remove volatiles, since the Borealis basin-forming impact would have heated the Martian surface up to $\\sim1000-6000$ K (Section 2) and the building blocks of Phobos and Deimos should be heated up to $\\sim 2000$ K \\citep{Hyo17a}. We focus on the epoch just after the impact because the orbits of the building blocks of Phobos and Deimos are highly eccentric at this time \\citep{Hyo17b}, and thus are expected to escape more easily from the system closer to their apocenters where Martian gravitational attraction becomes weaker.\\\\\n\nIn section 4, we consider volatile vapor loss by hydrodynamic escape. Mars has weaker gravity than the Earth and thus the escaping parameter $\\lambda_{\\rm esc}$ is smaller. If $\\lambda_{\\rm esc} < 1$, the vapor thermal velocity exceeds the Martian escape velocity and vapor loss would occur. Using the orbital data obtained in \\cite{Hyo17a}, we calculated the fraction of vapor that satisfies $\\lambda_{\\rm esc} < 1$ during its first orbit from pericenter (which is around the impact point) to apocenter. We found that about $\\sim10-40$\\% of the vapor would be lost ($\\lambda_{\\rm esc} < 1$) at $T_{\\rm gas} \\sim 1000-2000$ K depending on the impactor composition (the mean molecular mass of the vapor depends on the impactor composition).\\\\\n\nMeanwhile, during the first orbit from pericenter to apocenter, some of the vapor may condense and form $\\sim 0.1 \\micron$ sized dust \\citep{Hyo17a}. And these small dust grains may be influenced by radiation from Mars when it is heated up to $1000 - 6000$ K just after the impact (Section 2). In section 5, we calculated the fraction of $\\sim 0.1 \\micron$ sized dust that can potentially be blown off by radiation pressure as a function of different $\\beta$ values and condensation temperatures during its first orbit. Both $\\beta$ and condensation temperature strongly depend on dust composition. We found that removal of `moderately' volatile dust ($700 {\\rm K} < T_{\\rm con} < 2000$ K) by radiation pressure was more likely to occur when it satisfies $\\beta > \\sim 0.1$ than \"highly\" volatile dust ($T_{\\rm con} < 700$ K). Further investigation will be required to study condensation temperature and $\\beta$ values for different elements and to constrain the exact amount of depletion of volatiles using a chemistry and radiative transfer code.\\\\\n\nIn this work, we qualitatively demonstrated that hydrodynamic escape and radiation pressure can remove volatiles from the building blocks of Phobos and Deimos just after the impact. Therefore, not only the bulk chemical composition, but also the bulk volatile elements content would be key measurements to distinguish the two hypotheses for the origin of Phobos and Deimos - capture scenario or impact scenario. Thus, the absence of volatiles obtained in JAXA's MMX or variation in their content from the one predicted in our previous works \\citep[][where a closed system was considered]{Hyo17a,Pig18} could further confirm the impact origin of the Martian moons and also tell us the efficiency of the processes considered here.\n\n\n\n\\acknowledgments\nWe thank Vincent Bourrier for discussion on radiation pressure. R.H acknowledge the financial supports of JSPS Grants-in-Aid for JSPS Fellows (JP17J01269). S.C., R.H., and H.G. acknowledge the financial support of the JSPS-MAEDI bilateral joint research project (SAKURA program). R.H. and H.G. thank the Astrobiolgy Center of the National Institutes of Natural Sciences, NINS (AB291011). H.G. also acknowledges JSPS KAKENHI grant (JP17H02990) and MEXT KAKENHI grant (JP17H06457).\n\n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\n\\section*{Appendix}\n\\begin{appendix}\n\n\n\\section{Omitted Algorithms}\\label{appendix:algos}\n\nEssentially, the family of our $\\textsc{WIN-EXP}$ algorithms is parametrized by the step-size $\\eta$-parameter, the estimate of the utility that the learner gets at every timestep $\\tilde{u}_t(b)$ and finally, the type of feedback that he receives after every timestep $t$. Clearly, both $\\eta$ and the estimate of the utility depend crucially on the particular type of feedback.\n\nIn this section, we present the specifics of the algorithms that we omitted from the main body of the text, due to lack of space. \n\n\\begin{comment}\n\\subsection{Outcome based batch-reward feedback}\n\n\\begin{algorithm}[H]\n\\begin{algorithmic}\n\\State Let $\\pi_1(b) =\\frac{1}{|B|}$ for all $b\\in B$ (i.e. the uniform distribution over bids), $\\eta = \\sqrt{\\frac{\\log\\left(|B| \\right)}{2T|O|}}$\n\\For{each iteration t}\n\\State Draw an action $b_t$ from the multinomial distribution based on $\\pi_t(\\cdot)$\n\\State Observe $x_t(\\cdot)$, chosen outcomes $o_\\tau, \\forall \\tau \\in I_t$, average reward function conditional on each realized outcome $Q_t(b,o)$ and the realized frequencies for each outcome $f_t(o) = \\frac{|I_{to}|}{|I_t|}$.\n\\State Compute estimate of utility: \n\\begin{equation}\n\\tilde{u}_t(b) = \\sum_{o \\in O} \\frac{\\Pr_t \\left[o|b \\right]}{\\Pr_t[o]} f_t(o) \\left(Q_t(b,o)-1 \\right)\n\\end{equation}\n\\State Update $\\pi_t(\\cdot)$ based on the Exponential Weights Update: \n\\begin{equation}\n\\forall b\\in B: \\pi_{t+1}(b) \\propto \\pi_{t}(b)\\cdot \\exp\\left\\{\\eta \\cdot \\tilde{u}_t(b)\\right\\}\n\\end{equation}\n\\EndFor\n\\end{algorithmic}\n\\caption{$\\textsc{WIN-EXP}$ algorithm for learning with outcome-based batch-reward feedback}\\label{alg:winexp4}\n\\end{algorithm}\n\\end{comment}\n\n\n\\subsection{Outcome-based feedback graph over outcomes}\n\\begin{algorithm}[H]\n\\begin{algorithmic}\n\\State Let $\\pi_1(b) =\\frac{1}{|B|}$ for all $b\\in B$ (i.e. the uniform distribution over bids), $\\eta = \\sqrt{\\frac{\\log(|B|)}{8T\\alpha \\ln\\left(\\frac{16|O|^2 T}{\\alpha}\\right)}}$\n\\For{each iteration t}\n\\State Draw an action $b_t \\sim \\pi_t(\\cdot)$, multinomial\n\\State Observe $x_t(\\cdot)$, chosen outcome $o_t$ and associated reward function $r_t(\\cdot, o_t)$\n\\State Observe and associated reward function $r_t(\\cdot, \\cdot)$ for all neighbor outcomes $N_\\epsilon^{in}, N_\\epsilon^{out}$ \n\\State Compute estimate of utility:\n\\begin{equation}\n\\tilde{u}_t(b) = \\mathbbm{1}\\{o_t\\in O_{\\epsilon}\\} \\sum_{o \\in N_{\\epsilon}^{out}(o_t)}\n\\frac{(r_t(b, o) - 1) \\Pr_t[o|b]}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']}\n\\end{equation}\n\\State Update $\\pi_t(\\cdot)$ based on the Exponential Weights Update: \n\\begin{equation}\n\\end{equation}\n\\EndFor\n\\end{algorithmic}\n\\caption{$\\textsc{WIN-EXP-G}$ algorithm for learning with outcome-based feedback and a feedback graph over outcomes}\\label{alg:winexpG}\n\\end{algorithm}\n\n\n\n\\section{Omitted proofs from Section \\ref{SEC:OUTCOME-BASED}} \\label{appendix:outcome}\nWe first give a lemma that bounds the moments of our utility estimate.\n\n\\begin{lemma}\\label{lem:moments2}\nAt each iteration $t$, for any action $b\\in B$, the random variable $\\tilde{u}_t(b)$ is an unbiased estimate of the true expected utility $u_t(b)$, i.e.: $\\forall b\\in B: \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)\\right] = u_t(b)-1$ and has expected second moment bounded by: $\\forall b\\in B: \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\left(\\tilde{u}_t(b)\\right)^2\\right]\\leq 4\\sum_{o\\in O} \\frac{\\Pr_t[o|b]}{\\Pr_t[o]}$.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Lemma \\ref{lem:moments2}]\nAccording to the notation we introduced before we have: \n\\begin{align*}\n\\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)\\right] &= \\mathbb{E}_{o_t}\\left[\\frac{\\left(r_t(b, o_t)-1\\right)\\cdot \\Pr_t[o_t|b]}{\\Pr_t[o_t]}\\right] =\\sum_{o\\in O} \\frac{\\left(r_t(b, o)-1\\right)\\cdot \\Pr_t[o|b]}{\\Pr_t[o]} \\textstyle{\\Pr_t}[o]\\\\\n& = \\sum_{o\\in O} r_t(b, o) \\Pr_t[o|b] - 1 = u_t(b) - 1\n\\end{align*}\nSimilarly for the second moment:\n\\begin{align*}\n\\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)^2\\right] &\\leq \\mathbb{E}_{o_t}\\left[\\frac{(r_t(b, o_t) - 1)^2 \\Pr_t[o_t|b]^2}{\\Pr_t[o_t]^2} \\right]\n= \\sum_{o\\in O} \\frac{(r_t(b, o) - 1)^2 \\Pr_t[o|b]^2}{\\Pr_t[o]^2} \\Pr_t[o]\\\\\n& \\leq \\sum_{o\\in O} \\frac{4 \\Pr_t[o|b]}{\\Pr_t[o]}\n\\end{align*}\nwhere the last inequality holds since $r_t(\\cdot,\\cdot)\\in [-1,1]$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Theorem \\ref{thm:outcome-based-main}]\nObserve that regret with respect to utilities $u_t(\\cdot)$ is equal to regret with respect to the translated utilities $u_t(\\cdot) -1$. We use the fact that the exponential weight updates with an unbiased estimate $\\tilde{u}_t(\\cdot) \\leq 0$ of the true utilities, achieves expected regret of the form:\n\\begin{align*}\nR(T) \\leq~& \\frac{\\eta}{2} \\sum_{t=1}^T \\sum_{b\\in B} \\pi_t(b) \\cdot \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\left(\\tilde{u}_t(b)\\right)^2\\right] + \\frac{1}{\\eta} \\log(|B|)\n\\end{align*}\nFor a detailed proof of the above, we refer the reader to Appendix \\ref{appendix:a}. Invoking the bound on the second moment by Lemma \\ref{lem:moments2}, we get:\n\\begin{align*}\nR(T) \\leq~& 2\\eta \\sum_{t=1}^T \\sum_{b\\in B} \\pi_t(b) \\cdot \\sum_{o\\in O} \\frac{\\Pr_t[o|b]}{\\Pr_t[o]} + \\frac{1}{\\eta} \\log(|B|)\\\\\n=~& 2\\eta \\sum_{t=1}^T \\sum_{o\\in O}\\sum_{b\\in B} \\pi_t(b) \\cdot \\frac{\\Pr_t[o|b]}{\\Pr_t[o]} + \\frac{1}{\\eta} \\log(|B|)\\\\\n\\leq~& 2\\eta T|O| + \\frac{1}{\\eta} \\log(|B|)\n\\end{align*}\nPicking $\\eta = \\sqrt{\\frac{\\log(|B|)}{2T|O|}}$, we get the theorem.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\subsection{Comparison with Results in Weed et al.}\\label{sec:app-weed}\n\nWe note that our result in Example \\ref{ex:weed} also \\emph{recovers} the results of \\citet{WRP16}, who work in the continuous bid setting (i.e. $b\\in [0,1]$). In order to describe their results, consider the grid ${\\cal L}_T$ formed by the maximum bids from other bidders $m_t = \\max_{j \\neq i} b_{jt}$ for all the rounds. Let $l^o=(m_t, m_{t'})$ be the widest interval in ${\\cal L}_T$, that contains an optimal fixed bid in hindsight and let $\\Delta^o$ denote its length. \\citet{WRP16} provide an algorithm for learning the valuation, which yileds regret $4\\sqrt{T\\log(1\/\\Delta^o)}$. \n\nThe same regret can be achieved, if we simply consider a partition of the bidding space $[0,1]$ into $\\frac{1}{\\epsilon}$ intervals of equal length $\\epsilon$, for $\\epsilon < \\Delta^o$, and run our algorithm on this discretized bid space $B$.\nIf $l^o$ contains an optimal bid, then any bid $b\\in l^o$ is also optimal in-hindsight, since all such bids achieve the same utility. Since $\\Delta^o>\\epsilon$, there must exist a discretized bid $b_{\\epsilon}^*\\in B\\cap l^o$. Thus, $b_{\\epsilon}^*$ is also optimal in hindsight. Hence, regret against the best fixed bid in $[0,1]$ is equal to regret against the best fixed discretized bid in $B$. By our Theorem \\ref{thm:outcome-based-main}, the latter regret is $4\\sqrt{T\\log(\\nicefrac{1}{\\epsilon})}$, which can be made arbitrarily close to the regret bound achieved by \\citet{WRP16}, who use a more intricate adaptive discretization. Similar to \\citet{WRP16}, knowledge of $\\Delta^o$ can be bypassed by instead defining $\\Delta^o$ as the length of the smallest interval in ${\\cal L}_T$ and then using the standard doubling trick, i.e.: keep an estimate of $\\Delta^o$ and once this estimate is violated, divide $\\Delta^o$ in half and re-start your algorithm. The latter only increases the regret by a constant factor.\n\n\\section{Notes on Subsection \\ref{SEC:BATCH}}\\label{appendix:notes}\n\nIf one is interested in optimizing the \\emph{sum} of utilities at each iteration rather than the \\emph{average}, then if all iterations have the same number of batches $|I|$, this simply amounts to rescaling everything by $|I|$, which would lead to an $|I|$ blow up in the regret. \n\nIf different periods have different number of batches and $I_{\\max}$ is the maximum number of batches per iteration, then we can always pad the extra batches with all zero rewards. This would amount to again multiplying the regret by $I_{\\max}$ and would change the unbiased estimates at each period to be scaled by the number of iterations in that period: \n\\begin{equation}\\label{eqn:batch-unbiased-3}\n\\tilde{u}_t(b) = \\frac{|I_t|}{I_{\\max}}\\sum_{o\\in O}\\frac{\\Pr_t[o | b]\\cdot \\Pr_t[o | b_t]}{\\Pr_t[o]} \\left(Q_t(b, o) - 1\\right) \n\\end{equation}\nand then we would invoke the same algorithm. This essentially puts more weight on iterations with more auctions, so that the \"step-size\" of the algorithm depends on how many auctions were run during that period. It is easy to see that the latter modification would lead to regret $4I_{\\max}\\sqrt{T\\log\\left(|B|\\right)}$ in the sponsored search auction application.\n\n\\section{Omitted Proofs from Section \\ref{SEC:BATCH}}\\label{appendix:batch}\nWe first prove an upper bound on the moments of our estimates used in the case of batch rewards. \n\\begin{lemma}\\label{lem:moments4}\nAt each iteration $t$, for any action $b\\in B$, the random variable $\\tilde{u}_t(b)$ is an unbiased estimate of $u_t(b) - 1$ and can actually be constructed based on the feedback that the learner receives: $\\forall b\\in B: \\tilde{u}_t(b)= \\sum_{o\\in O}\\frac{\\Pr_t[o | b]}{\\Pr_t[o]} f_t(o) \\left(Q_t(b, o) - 1\\right) \\label{eqn:batch-unbiased}$ \nand has expected second moment bounded by: $\\forall b\\in B: \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\left(\\tilde{u}_t(b)\\right)^2\\right]\\leq 4\\sum_{o\\in O}\\frac{\\Pr_t[o | b]}{\\Pr_t[o]}$.\n\\end{lemma}\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Lemma \\ref{lem:moments4}]\nFor the estimate of the utility it holds that:\n\\begin{align}\n\\tilde{u}_t(b) =~& \n\\frac{1}{|I_t|}\\sum_{\\tau\\in I_t}\\frac{(r_\\tau(b, o_\\tau) - 1) \\Pr_t[o_\\tau | b]}{\\Pr_t[o_\\tau]}\\nonumber\\\\\n=~& \n\\frac{1}{|I_t|}\\sum_{o\\in O}\\sum_{\\tau\\in I_{to}}\\frac{(r_\\tau(b, o) - 1) \\Pr_t[o | b]}{\\Pr_t[o]}\\nonumber\\\\\n=~& \n\\sum_{o\\in O: |I_{to}|>0}\\frac{\\Pr_t[o | b]}{\\Pr_t[o]} f_t(o) \\frac{1}{|I_{to}|}\\sum_{\\tau\\in I_{to}}(r_\\tau(b, o) - 1) \\nonumber\\\\\n=~& \n\\sum_{o\\in O}\\frac{\\Pr_t[o | b]}{\\Pr_t[o]} f_t(o) \\left(Q_t(b, o) - 1\\right) \\label{eqn:batch-unbiased}\n\\end{align}\nFrom the first equation it follows along identical lines, that this is an unbiased estimate, while from the last equation it is easy to see that this unbiased estimate can be constructed based on the feedback that the learner receives.\n\nMoreover, we can also bound the second moment of these estimates by a similar quantity as in the previous section:\n\\begin{align*}\n\\mathbb{E}[\\tilde{u}_t(b)^2]=~&\\sum_{b_t\\in B}\\mathbb{E}\\left[\\left(\\sum_{o\\in O}\\frac{\\Pr_t[o | b]}{\\Pr_t[o]} f_t(o) \\left(Q_t(b, o) - 1\\right)\\right)^2 \\bigg| b_t\\right] \\pi_t(b_t)\\\\\n\\leq~&\\sum_{b_t\\in B}\\mathbb{E}\\left[\\sum_{o\\in O}\\left(\\frac{\\Pr_t[o | b]}{\\Pr_t[o]} \\left(Q_t(b, o) - 1\\right)\\right)^2 f_t(o) \\bigg| b_t\\right] \\pi_t(b_t) \\tag{By Jensen's inequality}\\\\\n=~& \\sum_{b_t\\in B}\\sum_{o\\in O}\\left(\\frac{\\Pr_t[o | b]}{\\Pr_t[o]} \\left(Q_t(b, o) - 1\\right)\\right)^2 \\mathbb{E}[f_t(o)|b_t]\\cdot \\pi_t(b_t) \\\\\n=~& \\sum_{o\\in O}\\left(\\frac{\\Pr_t[o | b]}{\\Pr_t[o]} \\left(Q_t(b, o) - 1\\right)\\right)^2 \\sum_{b_t\\in B}\\mathbb{E}[f_t(o)|b_t]\\cdot \\pi_t(b_t) \\\\\n=~& \\sum_{o\\in O}\\left(\\frac{\\Pr_t[o | b]}{\\Pr_t[o]} \\left(Q_t(b, o) - 1\\right)\\right)^2 \\textstyle{\\Pr_t}[o]\\\\\n\\leq~& 4\\sum_{o\\in O}\\frac{\\Pr_t[o | b]}{\\Pr_t[o]}\n\\end{align*}\n\\end{proof}\n\nThen following the same techniques in Theorem~\\ref{thm:outcome-based-main}, it is straightforward to conclude the proof of the corollary.\n\n\\section{Omitted Proofs from Section \\ref{SEC:CONTINUOUS}} \n\\label{appendix:cont}\\label{sec:app-doubling-trick}\n\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Lemma \\ref{lem:de-piece}]\nLet $\\ensuremath{\\textsc{OPT}} = \\argsup_{b \\in \\mathcal{B}} \\sum_{t=1}^T u_t(b)$ be the best fixed action in the continuous action space $\\mathcal{B}$ in hindsight. Since $\\epsilon < \\Delta^o$, then $b^*$ must belong to some $d$-dimensional $\\epsilon$-cube, either as an interior point or as a limit of interior points, as expressed by Definition \\ref{defn:piecewise}. %\nThe utility is $L$-Lipschitz within this $\\epsilon$-cube and since $\\epsilon< \\Delta^o$, each cube contains at least one point in the discretized space $B$. For the case where $\\ensuremath{\\textsc{OPT}}$ is achieved as the limit of interior points then for every $\\delta>0$ there exist an interior point of some cube $\\tilde{b}$, such that $\\sum_{t=1}^T u_t(\\tilde{b})\\geq \\ensuremath{\\textsc{OPT}}-\\delta$. The same obviously holds when $\\ensuremath{\\textsc{OPT}}$ is achieved by an interior point. Let $\\hat{b}$ be the closest discretized point to $\\tilde{b}$ that lies in the same cube as $\\tilde{b}$. \nSince $\\|\\hat{b}-\\tilde{b}\\|_{\\infty}\\leq \\epsilon$, by the Lipschitzness of the average reward function within each cube, we get:\n\\begin{align*}\n\\ensuremath{\\textsc{OPT}} \\leq \\sum_{t=1}^T u_t(\\tilde{b}) + \\delta \\leq \\sum_{t=1}^T u_t(\\hat{b}) + \\delta + \\epsilon L T \\leq \\sup_{b\\in B} \\sum_{t=1}^T u_t(\\hat{b}) + \\delta + \\epsilon L T\n\\end{align*}\nSince we can take $\\delta$ as close to zero as we want, we get the lemma.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Theorem \\ref{thm:continuous-lipschitz-known}]\nFrom Lemma \\ref{lem:de-piece} we know that for $\\epsilon < \\Delta^o$, the discretization error is $DE(B, \\mathcal{B}) \\leq \\epsilon L T$. Combining Lemma \\ref{lem:regret-de} and Corollary \\ref{corol:batch-rewards}, we have\n\\begin{align*}\nR(T, \\mathcal{B}) &\\leq R(T, B) + DE(B, \\mathcal{B}) = 2\\sqrt{2T|O|\\log(|B|)} + \\epsilon L T\\\\\n& = 2\\sqrt{2T|O|\\log \\left(\\frac{1}{\\epsilon^d}\\right)} + \\epsilon L T\\\\\n& = 2\\sqrt{2dT|O|\\log\\left(\\frac{1}{\\epsilon}\\right)} + \\epsilon L T\\\\\n& = 2\\sqrt{2dT|O|\\log\\left(\\max \\left\\{LT, \\frac{1}{\\Delta^o} \\right\\}\\right)} + \\min \\left\\{\\frac{1}{LT},\\Delta^o\\right\\}\\\\ \n& \\leq 2\\sqrt{2dT|O|\\log\\left(\\max \\left\\{LT, \\frac{1}{\\Delta^o} \\right\\}\\right)} + 1%\n\\end{align*}\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\paragraph{Unknown Lipschitzness constant.} In Theorem \\ref{thm:continuous-lipschitz-known} the discretization parameter $\\epsilon$ depends on the prior knowledge of the Lipschitzness constant, $L$, the number of rounds, $T$ and the minimum edge length of each $d$-dimensional cube, $\\Delta^o$. In order to address the problem that in general we do not know any of those constants a priori, we will apply a standard doubling trick (\\cite{ACBFS02}) to remove this dependence. We assume that $T$ is upper bounded by a constant $T_M$ and similarly we also assume that $\\log\\left(\\max\\left\\{LT, \\frac{1}{\\Delta^o}\\right\\}\\right)$ is upper bounded by a constant. \n\nWe will then initialize two bounds: $B_T=1$ and $B_{\\Delta^o,LT}=1$ and run the $\\textsc{WIN-EXP}$ algorithm with step size $\\sqrt{\\frac{\\log(\\nicefrac{1}{\\epsilon})}{2B_T|O|}}$ and $\\epsilon=\\min \\left\\{\\frac{1}{L T},\\Delta^o \\right\\}$ until $t\\leq B_T$ or $\\log\\left(\\max\\left\\{tL,\\frac{1}{\\Delta^o}\\right\\}\\right) \\leq B_{\\Delta^o,LT}$ fails to hold. If one of these discriminants fails, then we double the bound and restart the algorithm. This modified strategy only increases the regret by a constant factor.\n\n\n\\begin{corollary}\\label{cor:doubling}\nThe $\\textsc{WIN-EXP}$ algorithm run with the above doubling trick achieves an expected regret bound\n$\\mathcal{R}(T) \\leq 25\\sqrt{2dT|O|\\log\\left(\\max \\left\\{LT, \\frac{1}{\\Delta^o} \\right\\}\\right)} +1$\n\\end{corollary}\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Corollary \\ref{cor:doubling}]\nBased on the doubling trick that we described above, we divide the algorithm into stages in which $B_T$ and $B_{\\Delta^o, LT}$ are constants. Let $B^*_L$, and $B^*_{\\Delta^o,LT}$ be the values of $B_L$ and $B_{\\Delta,LT}$ respectively when the algorithm terminates. There is at most a total of $\\log\\left(B_T^* \\right) +\\log\\left(B_{\\Delta^o,LT}^* \\right) + 1$ stages in this doubling process. Since the actual expected regret is bounded by the sum of the regret of each stage, following the result of Theorem \\ref{thm:continuous-lipschitz-known}, we have\n\\begin{align*}\nR(T) &\\leq \\sum_{i =0}^{\\left\\lceil\\log\\left(B_T^*\\right)\\right\\rceil} \\sum_{j=0}^{\\left\\lceil\\log\\left(B_{\\Delta^o,LT}^*\\right)\\right\\rceil}\\left(2 \\sqrt{2d2^i|O|2^j}\\right) + \\log\\left(B_T^* \\right)+\\log\\left(B_{\\Delta^o,LT}^* \\right) + 1 \\\\\n& = \\sum_{i =0}^{\\left\\lceil\\log\\left(B_T^*\\right)\\right\\rceil} \\sum_{j=0}^{\\left\\lceil\\log\\left(B_{\\Delta^o,LT}^*\\right)\\right\\rceil} \\left(2 \\sqrt{2d|O|2^i \\cdot 2^j}\\right) + \\log\\left(B_T^* B_{\\Delta^o,LT}^*\\right) + 1\\\\\n&= \\left[\\sum_{i =0}^{\\left\\lceil\\log\\left(B_T^*\\right)\\right\\rceil} \\left(\\sqrt{2} \\right)^i\\right] \\cdot \\left[\\sum_{j =0}^{\\left\\lceil\\log\\left(B_{\\Delta^o,LT}^*\\right)\\right\\rceil} \\left(\\sqrt{2} \\right)^j\\right] 2\\sqrt{2d|O|} + \\log\\left(B_T^* B_{LT,\\Delta^o}^*\\right) + 1\\\\\n&= \\frac{1-\\sqrt{2}^{\\lceil\\log(B^*_T)\\rceil+1}}{1-\\sqrt{2}}\\cdot \\frac{1-\\sqrt{2}^{\\lceil\\log(B^*_{\\Delta^o,LT})\\rceil+1}}{1-\\sqrt{2}} \\cdot 2\\sqrt{2d|O|} +\\log\\left(B_T^* B_{\\Delta^o,LT}^*\\right) + 1\\\\\n&\\leq \\left(\\frac{\\sqrt{2}}{\\sqrt{2}-1}\\right)^2\\sqrt{B^*_T B^*_{\\Delta^o, LT}} \\cdot 2 \\sqrt{2d|O|} + \\log\\left(B_T^* B_{\\Delta^o,LT}^*\\right) + 1\\\\\n&= \\left(\\frac{\\sqrt{2}}{\\sqrt{2}-1}\\right)^2 \\cdot 2\\sqrt{2d|O|B^*_T B^*_{\\Delta^o,LT}} + \\log\\left(B_T^* B_{\\Delta^o,LT}^*\\right) + 1\\\\\n& \\leq 25\\sqrt{2d|O|B^*_T B^*_{\\Delta^o,LT}} + 1\n\\end{align*}\n\n\nCombining the fact that $B^*_T\\leq T$ and $B^*_{\\Delta^o,LT}\\leq \\log\\left(\\max\\left\\{LT, \\frac{1}{\\Delta^o}\\right\\}\\right)$ as well as the above inequalities, we complete the proof.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\subsection{Omitted Proofs from Section \\ref{sec:sponsored-lipschitz}}\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Theorem \\ref{thm:lipschitz-weighted-gsp}]\nConsider a bidder $i$. Observe that conditional on the bidder's score $s_i$, his utility remains constant if he is allocated the same slot. Moreover, when the slots are different, then the difference in utilities is at most $2$, since utilities lie in $[-1,1]$. Moreover, because the slots are allocated in decreasing order of rank scores, the slot allocation of a bidder is different under $b_i$ and $b_i'$ only if there exists a bidder $j$, who passes the rank-score reserve (i.e. $s_j\\cdot b_j\\geq r$) and whose rank-score $s_j\\cdot b_j$ lies in the interval $[s_i\\cdot b_i, s_i\\cdot b_i']$. Hence, conditional on $s_i$, the absolute difference between the bidder's expected utility when he bids $b_i$ and when he bids $b_i+\\epsilon$, with $\\epsilon > 0$, is upper bounded by:\n\\begin{align*}\n2\\cdot\\Pr\\left[\\exists j\\neq i \\text{ s.t }s_j\\cdot b_j \\in [s_i\\cdot b_i, s_i\\cdot (b_i + \\epsilon)] \\text{ and } s_j\\cdot b_j \\geq r ~|~ s_i\\right] \n\\end{align*}\nBy a union bound the latter is at most:\n\\begin{align*}\n2\\cdot \\sum_{j \\neq i} \\Pr \\left[s_j \\in \\left[\\frac{s_ib_i}{b_j}, \\frac{s_i(b_i+\\epsilon)}{b_j}\\right] \\text{ and } s_j\\cdot b_j \\geq r ~|~ s_i\\right]\n\\end{align*}\nSince $s_j\\in [0,1]$, the previous quantity is upper bounded by replacing the event $s_j\\cdot b_j\\geq r$ by $b_j\\geq r$. This event is independent of the scores and we can then write the above bound as:\n\\begin{align*}\n2 \\cdot \\sum_{j \\neq i \\text{ s.t. } b_j \\geq r} \\Pr \\left[s_j \\in \\left[\\frac{s_ib_i}{b_j}, \\frac{s_i(b_i+\\epsilon)}{b_j}\\right] \\Big| s_i\\right]\n\\end{align*}\nSince each quality score $s_j$ is drawn independently from an $L$-Lipschitz CDF $F_j$, we can further simplify the bound by:\n\\begin{align*}\n2 \\cdot \\sum_{j \\neq i \\text{ s.t. } b_j \\geq r} \\left[F_j \\left(\\frac{s_i(b_i+\\epsilon)}{b_j} \\right) - F_j \\left( \\frac{s_i b_i}{b_j}\\right)\\right] &\\leq 2 \\cdot \\sum_{j \\neq i \\text{ s.t. } b_j \\geq r} L \\frac{s_i\\epsilon}{b_j} \\leq 2 \\cdot \\sum_{j \\neq i \\text{ s.t. } b_j \\geq r} L \\frac{s_i\\epsilon}{r} \\leq \\frac{2nL}{r} \\epsilon\n\\end{align*}\nSince the absolute difference of utilities between these two bids is upper bounded conditional on $s_i$, by the triangle inequality it is also upper bounded even unconditional on $s_i$, which leads to the Lipschitz property we want:\n\\begin{equation}\n\\big| u_i(b_i, \\mathbf{b}_{-i}, r) - u_i(b_i+\\epsilon, \\mathbf{b}_{-i}, r)\\big| \\leq \\frac{2nL}{r} \\epsilon\n\\end{equation}\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\section{Omitted proofs from section \\ref{SEC:SWITCH-POA}}\\label{appendix:switch}\n\n\\subsection{Switching Regret and PoA}\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Corollary \\ref{cor:switch}]\nWe first observe that the results proven in \\cite{GLL12} for a prediction algorithm $\\mathcal{A}$ with \\emph{regret} upper bounded by $\\rho(T)$ hold also for algorithms $\\mathcal{A}$ for which we know upper bound of their expected regrets. Specifically, if algorithm $\\mathcal{A}$ has an upper bound of $\\rho(T)$ for its expected regret, where $\\rho(T)$ is a concave, non-decreasing, $[0,+\\infty) \\to [0,+\\infty)$ function, then Lemma $1$ from \\cite{GLL12} holds for \\emph{expected} regret. With that in mind, we can directly apply the \\emph{Randomized Tracking Algorithm} and get expected switching regret upper bounded by: \n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:exp-switch}\n\\left(C(TP) +1 \\right)L_{C(TP),T}\\rho \\left(\\frac{T}{\\left(C(TP) +1 \\right)L_{C(TP),T}} \\right) + \\sum_{t=1}^T \\frac{\\eta_t}{8} + \\frac{r_T\\left( \\left(C(TP) +1 \\right)L_{C(TP),T - 1}-1\\right)}{\\eta_T}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $TP$ is the switching path of the optimal bids and $C(TP)$ is the number of switches in the optimal bid according to this path.\n\nWe proceed by making sure that the conditions for the upper bound of the expected regret of $\\textsc{WIN-EXP}$ satisfy the conditions required by algorithm $\\mathcal{A}$ in \\cite{GLL12}. Indeed, the upper bound of the expected regret of our algorithm, $\\sqrt{2dT|O|\\log \\left(\\max \\left\\{LT, \\frac{1}{\\Delta^o} \\right\\} \\right)} +1$, is non decreasing in $T$. Also, at timestep $t=0$, we incur no regret. We also apply the following slight modifications in Algorithm $2$ in \\cite{GLL12} so as to match the nature of our problem. First, instead of computing the expected loss at each timestep $t$, we will now compute the expected outcome-based utility, i.e. $\\bar{u}_t\\left(\\pi_t \\right) = \\sum_{b \\in B} \\pi_t(b)\\mathbb{E}_{o_t} \\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)\\right]$. Second, instead of the cumulative loss of their algorithm $\\mathcal{A}$ we will now use the cumulative outcome-based expected utility of $\\textsc{WIN-EXP}$, i.e. $\\bar{U}_t\\left(\\textsc{WIN-EXP}, T \\right) = \\sum_{c=0}^C \\bar{U}_{\\textsc{WIN-EXP}}(t_c, t_{c+1})$, where \n\\begin{equation*}\n\\bar{U}_{\\textsc{WIN-EXP}}(t_c, t_{c+1}) = \\sum_{s=t_c}^{t_{c+1}-1} \\bar{u}_s\\left(\\pi_{\\textsc{WIN-EXP},s}(t_c) \\right)\n\\end{equation*}\nis the cumulative outcome-based expected utility gained from our $\\textsc{WIN-EXP}$ algorithm in the time interval $[t_c, t_{c+1})$\\footnote{We clarify here that these time intervals are with respect to the switching bids.} with respect to $\\bar{u}_s$ for $s \\in [t_c, t_{c+1})$. Now, we are computing the regret components of \\cite{GLL12} so as to achieve the desired result. \n\nBefore we show the specifics of the computation, we note here that $g > 0$ is a \\emph{parameter} of the Tracking Regret algorithm presented by \\cite{GLL12} and can be set a priori from the designer of the algorithm. The complexity of $g$ affects the computational complexity of the algorithm and there is a tradeoff between the computational complexity and the regret of the algorithm. For our computations here, we will set\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:g}\ng+1 = \\left(\\frac{T}{C(TP)+1}\\right)^\\alpha\n\\end{equation}\n\nwhere $0 < \\alpha < 1$ is a constant. Now, we are ready to compute the components of the regret: \n\\begin{align*}\nA &= L_{C(TP),T} \\left(C(TP) +1 \\right) R_{\\textsc{WIN-EXP}} \\left(\\frac{T}{L_{C(TP),T}\\left(C(TP) +1 \\right)} \\right) \\\\\n &\\leq 25 \\left(\\frac{\\log \\left(\\frac{T}{C(TP)+1}\\right)}{\\log (g+1)}+2 \\right) \\left(C(TP)+1\\right) \\left(\\sqrt{2d|O|\\frac{T\\log (g+1) \\log (m)}{\\log \\left(\\frac{T}{C(TP)+1} \\right) + 2\\log (g+1)}} + 1 \\right) \\\\\n &= 50 \\cdot \\left(2 + \\frac{1}{\\alpha}\\right)\\cdot \\left(C(TP)+1\\right) \\sqrt{2d|O|\\cdot \\frac{\\alpha}{1+2\\alpha} \\cdot T\\log (m)}\\\\\n &\\leq 50 \\sqrt{\\frac{1+2\\alpha}{\\alpha}\\cdot\\left(C(TP)+1\\right)^2 2d|O|T\\log (m)}\\\\\n &\\leq 50 \\sqrt{\\left(2+\\frac{1}{\\alpha}\\right)\\cdot\\left(C+1\\right)^2 2d|O|T\\log (m)}\n\\end{align*}\nwhere in the second equality we have denoted $\\log (m) = \\log \\left(\\max \\left\\{LT, \\frac{1}{\\Delta^o}\\right\\} \\right)$ and the last inequality comes from the fact that $C$ is the upper bound on the number of switches that the transition path $TP$ can have. %\nMoving on to the computation of the rest of the components of the regret: \n\\begin{align*}\nB &=\\sum_{t=1}^T \\frac{\\eta_t}{8} \\leq \\frac{1}{8}\\sqrt{\\frac{T\\log\\left(\\nicefrac{1}{\\epsilon}\\right)}{2|O|}} = O\\left(\\sqrt{\\frac{T}{|O|}} \\right)\\\\\nD &= r_T \\left( L_{C(TP),T} \\left( C(TP) + 1 \\right) - 1 \\right) \\\\\n %\n %\n &= \\left(\\frac{\\alpha+1}{\\alpha} + \\epsilon_2 \\right) \\log T + \\log \\left(1+\\epsilon_2\\right) - \\left(\\frac{\\alpha+1}{\\alpha} \\right)\\log\\epsilon_2\n\\end{align*}\nwhere $\\epsilon_2 \\in (0,1)$ is a constant. Before we conclude, we observe that even though Corollary $1$ of \\cite{GLL12} is stated as a high-probability ex post result, the proof uses a result from \\cite{BL06} (Lemma $4.1$) which also holds for the expected regret. According to \\cite{GLL12} the switching regret is the sum of the aforementioned $A, B, D$. Thus, we get the result.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\subsection{Feedback Graphs over Outcomes}\\label{appendix:outcome-feedback-graph}\n\nWe first prove bounds on the moments of our unbiased estimates used in the case of a feedback graph over outcomes.\n\n\\begin{lemma}\\label{lem:moments3}\nAt each iteration $t$, for any action $b\\in B$, the random variable $\\tilde{u}_t(b)$ has bias with respect to $u_t(b)-1$ bounded by:\n$\\big|\\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)\\right] - (u_t(b) - 1)\\big| \\leq 2 \\epsilon |O|$ and has expected second moment bounded by: $\\forall b\\in B: \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)^2\\right]\\leq4\\sum_{o\\in O_{\\epsilon}} \\frac{\\Pr_t[o|b]}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']}$.\n\\end{lemma}\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Lemma \\ref{lem:moments3}]\nFor the expected utility we have: \n\\begin{align*}\n\\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)\\right] &= \\mathbb{E}_{o_t}\\left[\\mathbbm{1}\\{o_t\\in O_{\\epsilon}\\} \\sum_{o \\in N_{\\epsilon}^{out}(o_t)}\n\\frac{(r_t(b, o) - 1) \\Pr_t[o|b]}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']}\\right]\\\\\n&=\\sum_{o_t\\in O_{\\epsilon}} \\sum_{o \\in N_{\\epsilon}^{out}(o_t)}\n\\frac{(r_t(b, o) - 1) \\Pr_t[o|b]}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']} \\Pr_t[o_t]\\\\\n&= \\sum_{o \\in O_{\\epsilon}} \\sum_{o_t\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)} \n\\frac{(r_t(b, o) - 1) \\Pr_t[o|b]}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']} \\Pr_t[o_t]\\\\\n&= \\sum_{o \\in O_{\\epsilon}} \\frac{(r_t(b, o) - 1) \\Pr_t[o|b]}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']}\\sum_{o_t\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)} \n \\Pr_t[o_t]\\\\\n& = \\sum_{o\\in O_{\\epsilon}} (r_t(b, o) - 1) \\Pr_t[o|b]\\\\\n& = \\sum_{o\\in O} (r_t(b, o) - 1) \\Pr_t[o|b] - \\sum_{o\\notin O_{\\epsilon}} (r_t(b, o) - 1) \\Pr_t[o|b]\\\\\n& = u_t(b) - 1 - \\sum_{o\\notin O_{\\epsilon}} (r_t(b, o) - 1) \\Pr_t[o|b]\n\\end{align*}\nThus, we get that the bias of $\\tilde{u}$ with respect to $u_t - 1$ is bounded by:\n\\begin{equation}\n\\big|\\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)\\right] - (u_t(b) - 1)\\big| \\leq 2 \\epsilon |O| \n\\end{equation}\nSimilarly for the second moment:\n\\begin{align}\n\\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)^2\\right] &\\leq \\mathbb{E}_{o_t}\\left[\\left(\\mathbbm{1}\\{o_t\\in O_{\\epsilon}\\} \\sum_{o \\in N_{\\epsilon}^{out}(o_t)}\n\\frac{(r_t(b, o) - 1) \\Pr_t[o|b]}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']}\\right)^2 \\right] \\nonumber\\\\\n&= \\sum_{o_t\\in O_{\\epsilon}} \\left(\\sum_{o \\in N_{\\epsilon}^{out}(o_t)}\n\\frac{(r_t(b, o) - 1) \\Pr_t[o|b]}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']}\\right)^2 \\Pr_t[o_t] \\label{eqn:variance-bnd-feedback}\n\\end{align}\nObserve that the quantity inside the square:\n\\begin{align*}\n\\sum_{o \\in N_{\\epsilon}^{out}(o_t)}\n\\frac{(r_t(b, o) - 1)}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']} \\Pr_t[o|b]\n\\end{align*}\ncan be thought of as an expected value of the quantity $\\frac{(r_t(b, o) - 1)}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']}$, were $o$ is the random variable and is drawn from the distribution of outcomes conditional on a bid $b$. \nThus, by Jensen's inequality, the square of the latter expectation is at most the expectation of the square, i.e.:\n\\begin{align*}\n\\left(\\sum_{o \\in N_{\\epsilon}^{out}(o_t)}\n\\frac{(r_t(b, o) - 1)}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']} \\Pr_t[o|b]\\right)^2 \\leq \\sum_{o\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{out}(o_t)} \\frac{(r_t(b, o) - 1)^2}{\\left(\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']\\right)^2} \\Pr_t[o|b]\n\\end{align*}\nCombining with Equation \\eqref{eqn:variance-bnd-feedback}, we get:\n\\begin{align*}\n\\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)^2\\right] &\\leq \\sum_{o_t\\in O_{\\epsilon}} \\sum_{o\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{out}(o_t)} \\frac{(r_t(b, o) - 1)^2}{\\left(\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']\\right)^2} \\Pr_t[o|b] \\Pr_t[o_t]\\\\\n&= \\sum_{o\\in O_{\\epsilon}} \\sum_{o_t\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)} \\frac{(r_t(b, o) - 1)^2}{\\left(\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']\\right)^2} \\Pr_t[o|b] \\Pr_t[o_t]\\\\\n&= \\sum_{o\\in O_{\\epsilon}} \\frac{(r_t(b, o) - 1)^2}{\\left(\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']\\right)^2}\\Pr_t[o|b] \\sum_{o_t\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)} \\Pr_t[o_t]\\\\\n&= \\sum_{o\\in O_{\\epsilon}} \\frac{(r_t(b, o) - 1)^2}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']}\\Pr_t[o|b]\\\\\n&\\leq 4\\sum_{o\\in O_{\\epsilon}} \\frac{\\Pr_t[o|b]}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']}\n\\end{align*}\nwhere the last inequality holds since $r_t(\\cdot,\\cdot)\\in [-1,1]$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Theorem \\ref{thm:feedback-graph}] \nObserve that regret with respect to utilities $u_t(\\cdot)$ is equal to regret with respect to the translated utilities $u_t(\\cdot) -1$. We use the fact that the exponential weight updates with an estimate $\\tilde{u}_t(\\cdot) \\leq 0$ which has bias with respect to the true utilities, bounded by $\\kappa$, achieves expected regret of the form: %\n\\begin{align*}\nR(T) \\leq~& \\frac{\\eta}{2} \\sum_{t=1}^T \\sum_{b\\in B} \\pi_t(b) \\cdot \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)^2\\right] + \\frac{1}{\\eta} \\log(|B|) + 2\\kappa T\n\\end{align*}\nFor the detailed proof of the above claim, please see Appendix \\ref{appendix:a}. Invoking the bound on the bias and the second moment by Lemma \\ref{lem:moments3}, we get:\n\\begin{align*}\nR(T) \\leq~& 2\\eta \\sum_{t=1}^T \\sum_{b\\in B} \\pi_t(b) \\cdot \\sum_{o\\in O_{\\epsilon}} \\frac{\\Pr_t[o|b]}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']} + \\frac{1}{\\eta} \\log(|B|) + 4\\epsilon |O| T\\\\\n=~& 2\\eta \\sum_{t=1}^T \\sum_{o\\in O_{\\epsilon}} \\sum_{b\\in B} \\pi_t(b) \\cdot \\frac{\\Pr_t[o|b]}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']} + \\frac{1}{\\eta} \\log(|B|) + 4\\epsilon |O| T\\\\\n=~& 2\\eta \\sum_{t=1}^T \\sum_{o\\in O_{\\epsilon}} \\frac{\\Pr[o]}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']} + \\frac{1}{\\eta} \\log(|B|) + 4\\epsilon |O| T\n\\end{align*}\nWe can now invoke Lemma 5 of \\cite{ACDK15}, which states that:\n\\begin{lemma}[\\cite{ACDK15}] Let $G = (V,E)$ be a directed graph with $|V| = K$, in which each node $i\\in V$ is assigned a positive weight $w_i$. Assume that $\\sum_{i\\in V}w_i\\leq 1$, and that $w_i\\geq \\epsilon$ for all $i \\in V$ for some constant $0 < \\epsilon <1\/2$. Then \n\\begin{equation}\n\\sum_{i\\in V}\\frac{w_i}{\\sum_{j\\in N^{in}(i)} w_j} \\leq 4\\alpha \\ln\\frac{4K}{\\alpha \\epsilon}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere neighborhoods include self-loops and $\\alpha$ is the independence number of the graph.\n\\end{lemma}\n\nInvoking the above lemma for the feedback graph $G_{\\epsilon}$ (and noting that the independence number cannot increase by restricting to a sub-graph), we get:\n\\begin{equation}\n\\sum_{o\\in O_{\\epsilon}} \\frac{\\Pr[o]}{\\sum_{o'\\in N_{\\epsilon}^{in}(o)}\\Pr_t[o']}\\leq 4\\alpha \\ln \\frac{4|O|}{\\alpha \\epsilon}\n\\end{equation}\nThus, we get a bound on the regret of:\n\\begin{align*}\nR(T) \\leq~&8\\eta \\alpha \\ln\\left(\\frac{4|O|}{\\alpha \\epsilon}\\right) T+ \\frac{1}{\\eta} \\log(|B|) + 4\\epsilon |O| T\n\\end{align*}\nPicking $\\epsilon = \\frac{1}{4|O| T}$, we get: \n\\begin{align*}\nR(T) \\leq~&8\\eta \\alpha \\ln\\left(\\frac{16|O|^2 T}{\\alpha}\\right) T+ \\frac{1}{\\eta} \\log(|B|) + 1\n\\end{align*}\nPicking $\\eta = \\sqrt{\\frac{\\log(|B|)}{8T\\alpha \\ln\\left(\\frac{16|O|^2 T}{\\alpha}\\right)}}$, we get the theorem. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\\section{Omitted proof for the regret of the exponential weights update}\\label{appendix:a}\n\\begin{lemma}\nThe exponential weights update with an estimate $\\tilde{u}_t(\\cdot)\\leq 0$ such that for any $b\\in B$ and $t$, $\\left\\vert \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)\\right] - (u_t(b)-1)\\right\\vert\\leq \\kappa$, achieves expected regret on the form:\n\\begin{align*}\nR(T) \\leq~& \\frac{\\eta}{2} \\sum_{t=1}^T \\sum_{b\\in B} \\pi_t(b) \\cdot \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)^2\\right] + \\frac{1}{\\eta} \\log(|B|) + 2\\kappa T\n\\end{align*}\n\\end{lemma}\n\\begin{proof}\nFollowing the standard analysis of the exponential weight updates algorithm \\cite{AHK12} and the fact that $\\forall x \\leq 0$, $e^x \\leq 1 + x + \\frac{x^2}{2}$ as well as let $b^* = \\argmax_{b\\in B} \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\sum_{t=1}^T u_t(b)\\right]$, we have \n\\begin{align*}\n \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\sum_{t=1}^{T} \\tilde{u}_t(b^*)\\right] &\\leq \\sum_{t=1}^T \\sum_{b\\in B}\\pi_t(b)\\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)\\right] + \\frac{\\eta}{2} \\sum_{t=1}^T \\sum_{b\\in B} \\pi_t(b) \\cdot \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)^2\\right] + \\frac{1}{\\eta} \\log(|B|)\\\\\n& \\leq \\sum_{t=1}^T \\sum_{b\\in B}\\pi_t(b)(u_t(b) - 1 + \\kappa) + \\frac{\\eta}{2} \\sum_{t=1}^T \\sum_{b\\in B} \\pi_t(b) \\cdot \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)^2\\right] + \\frac{1}{\\eta} \\log(|B|)\\\\\n& =\\mathbb{E}\\left[ \\sum_{t=1}^T u_t(b_t)\\right] + \\frac{\\eta}{2} \\sum_{t=1}^T \\sum_{b\\in B} \\pi_t(b) \\cdot \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)^2\\right] + \\frac{1}{\\eta} \\log(|B|) + \\kappa T - T\n\\end{align*}\n\nwhich implies that \n\\begin{align*}\nR(T) &~=~ \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\sum_{t=1}^T u_t(b^*)\\right] - \\mathbb{E}\\left[ \\sum_{t=1}^T u_t(b_t)\\right]\\leq \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\sum_{t=1}^{T} \\tilde{u}_t(b^*)\\right]- \\mathbb{E}\\left[ \\sum_{t=1}^T u_t(b_t)\\right] + \\kappa T + T\\\\\n&~\\leq~ \\frac{\\eta}{2} \\sum_{t=1}^T \\sum_{b\\in B} \\pi_t(b) \\cdot \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)^2\\right] + \\frac{1}{\\eta} \\log(|B|) + 2\\kappa T\n\\end{align*}\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\paragraph{Remark.} Let the estimator $\\tilde{u}_t(b)$ be unbiased for any $t$ and any $b\\in B$, then the expected regret is\n\\begin{align*}\nR(T) \\leq~& \\frac{\\eta}{2} \\sum_{t=1}^T \\sum_{b\\in B} \\pi_t(b) \\cdot \\mathbb{E}\\left[\\tilde{u}_t(b)^2\\right] + \\frac{1}{\\eta} \\log(|B|)\n\\end{align*}\n\n\\end{appendix}\n\n\n\n\n\n\\section{Introduction}\n\\input{introduction}\n\n\\section{Learning in Auctions without Knowing your Value}\\label{sec:binary}\\label{SEC:BINARY}\n\\input{preliminaries}\n\n\\section{Abstraction: Learning with Win-Only Feedback}\\label{sec:win-only}\\label{SEC:WIN-ONLY}\n\\input{win-only-learning}\n\n\\section{Beyond Binary Outcomes: Outcome-Based Feedback}\\label{sec:outcome-based}\\label{SEC:OUTCOME-BASED}\n\\input{outcome-based-learning}\n\n\n\\subsection{Batch Rewards Per-Iteration and Sponsored Search Auctions}\\label{sec:batch}\\label{SEC:BATCH}\n\\input{batch-rewards}\n\n\\section{Continuous Actions with Piecewise-Lipschitz Rewards}\\label{sec:continuous}\\label{SEC:CONTINUOUS}\n\\input{continuous-lipschitz}\n\n\\section{Further Extensions}\nIn this section, we discuss an extension to switching regret and the implications on Price of Anarchy and one to the feedback graphs setting.\n\\subsection{Switching Regret and Implications for Price of Anarchy}\\label{sec:switch-poa}\\label{SEC:SWITCH-POA}\n\\input{switching-poa}\n\n\\subsection{Feedback Graphs over Outcomes}\\label{sec:graph}\\label{SEC:GRAPH}\n\\input{outcome-feedback-graph}\n\n\\section{Experimental Results}\\label{sec:experiments}\n\\input{experiments}\n\n\\section{Conclusion}\\label{sec:disc}\n\\input{discussion}\n\n\\clearpage\n\\bibliographystyle{ACM-Reference-Format}\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Sponsored Search with Lipschitz Utilities}\\label{sec:sponsored-lipschitz}\nIn this subsection, we extend our analysis of learning in the sponsored search auction model (Example \\ref{ex:ss}) to the continuous bid space case, i.e., each bidder can submit a bid $b\\in [0,1]$. As a reminder, the utility function is: $u_t(b) = x_t(b)(\\hat{v}_t - p_t(b))$, \nwhere $b\\in [0,1]$, $\\hat{v}_t \\in [0,1]$ is the average value for the clicks at iteration $t$, $x_t(\\cdot)$ is the CTR curve and $p_t(\\cdot)$ is the CPC curve. These curves are implicitly formed by running some form of a Generalized Second Price auction (GSP) at each iteration to determine the allocation and payment rules. As we show in this subsection, the form of the GSP ran in reality gives rise to Lipschitz utilities, under some minimal assumptions. Therefore, we can apply the results in Section \\ref{sec:continuous} to get regret bounds even with respect to the continuous bid space $\\mathcal{B}=[0,1]$ \\footnote{The aforementioned Lipschitzness is also reinforced by real world data sets from Microsoft's sponsored search auction system.}. We begin by providing a brief description of the type of Generalized Second Price auction ran in practice.\n\n\\begin{definition}[Weighted-GSP]\\label{weighted-gsp}\nEach bidder $i$ is assigned a \\emph{quality score} $s_i\\in [0,1]$. Bidders are ranked according to their score-weighted bid $s_i\\cdot b_i$, typically called the \\emph{rank-score}. Every bidder whose rank-score does not pass a reserve $r$ is discarded. Bidders are allocated slots in decreasing order of \\emph{rank-score}. Each bidder is charged per-click the lowest bid she could have submitted and maintained the same slot. Hence, if a bidder $i$ is allocated a slot $k$ and $\\rho_{k+1}$ is the rank-score of the bidder in slot $k+1$, then she is charged $\\rho_{k+1}\/s_i$ per-click. We denote with $U_i(\\mathbf{b}, \\mathbf{s}, r)$, the utility of bidder $i$ under a bid profile $\\mathbf{b}$ and score profile $\\mathbf{s}$.\n\\end{definition}\nThe quality scores are typically highly random, dependent on the features of the ad and the user that is currently viewing the page. Hence, a reasonable modeling assumption is that the scores $s_i$ at each auction are drawn i.i.d. from some distribution with CDF $F_i$. We now show that if the CDF $F_i$ is Lipschitz (i.e. admits a bounded density), then the utilities of the bidders are also Lipschitz.\n\n\\begin{theorem}[Lipschitzness of the utility of Weighted GSP]\\label{thm:lipschitz-weighted-gsp}\nSuppose that the score $s_i$ of each bidder $i$ in a weighted GSP is drawn independently from a distribution with an $L-$Lipschitz CDF $F_i$. Then, the expected utility $u_i(b_i, \\mathbf{b}_{-i}, r) = \\mathbb{E}_{\\mathbf{s}}\\left[U_i(b_i, \\mathbf{b}_{-i}, \\mathbf{s}, r)\\right]$ is $\\frac{2nL}{r}-$Lipschitz wrt $b_i$.\n\\end{theorem}\n\n\n\nThus, we see that when the quality scores in sponsored search are drawn from $L$-Lipschitz CDFs $F_i, \\forall i \\in n$ and the reserve is lower bounded by $\\delta>0$, then the utilities are $\\frac{2nL}{\\delta}$-Lipschitz and we can achieve good regret bounds by using the $\\textsc{WIN-EXP}$ algorithm with batch rewards, with action space $B$ being a uniform $\\epsilon$-grid, $\\epsilon = \\frac{\\delta}{2nLT}$ and unbiased estimates given by Equation~\\eqref{eqn:batch-unbiased} or Equation \\eqref{eqn:batch-unbiased-2}. In the case of sponsored search the second unbiased estimate takes the following simple form:\n\\begin{equation}\n\\textstyle{\\tilde{u}_t(b) = \\frac{x_t(b)\\cdot x_t(b_t)}{\\sum_{b'\\in B} \\pi_t(b') x_t(b')} \\left(\\hat{v}_t - p_t(b)- 1\\right) - \\frac{(1-x_t(b))\\cdot (1-x_t(b_t))}{\\sum_{b'\\in B} \\pi_t(b') (1-x_t(b'))}}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\hat{v}_t$ is the average value from the clicks that happened during iteration $t$, $x_t(\\cdot)$ is the CTR curve, $b_t$ is the realized bid that the bidder submitted and $\\pi_t(\\cdot)$ is the distribution over discretized bids of the algorithm at that iteration. We can then apply Theorem \\ref{thm:continuous-lipschitz-known} to get the following guarantee:\n\\begin{corollary} The $\\textsc{WIN-EXP}$ algorithm run on a uniform $\\epsilon$-grid with $\\epsilon = \\frac{\\delta}{2nLT}$, step size $\\sqrt{\\frac{\\log(1\/\\epsilon)}{4T}}$ and unbiased estimates given by Equation~\\eqref{eqn:batch-unbiased} or Equation \\eqref{eqn:batch-unbiased-2}, when applied to the sponsored search auction setting with quality scores drawn independently from distributions with $L$-Lipschitz CDFs, achieves regret at most: %\n$4\\sqrt{T\\log\\left(\\frac{2nLT}{\\delta}\\right)}+1$.\n\n\\end{corollary}\n\n\n\n\n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\\section{Introduction and background}\n\\label{1}\n\n \nLet $G= G(V, E)$ be a simple graph. For any vertex $v\\in V(G)$, $d(v)$ denotes the degree of $v$, $N(v)$ denotes the set of neighbors of $v$, and $N[v]$ denotes the closed neighborhood, i.e. $N[v]:=N(v)\\cup \\{v\\}$.\n\nA subset $I\\subseteq V(G)$ is called \\textit{independent} if it does not induce any edge. A \\textit{maximal independent set} is an independent set which is not a proper subset of another independent set (it cannot be extended). A maximum independent set is an independent set of maximal size; its size is denoted by $\\alpha(G)$.\n\nA subset $D\\subseteq V(G)$ is a \\textit{dominating} set in $G$ if each vertex in $V(G)\\setminus D$ is adjacent to at least one vertex of $D$, that is, $\\forall v\\in V(G)\\setminus D$, $|N(v)\\cap D|\\geq 1$.\n We call a set \\textit{$k$-dominating} if each vertex in $V(G)\\setminus D$ is adjacent to at least $k$ vertices of $D$, that is, $\\forall v\\in V(G)\\setminus D$, $|N(v)\\cap D|\\geq k$ .\n The theory of independent sets and dominating sets has been studied extensively over the last 60 years.\n \nFollowing the concept of W\\l{}och \\cite{wloch}, we study \\textit{$k$-dominating independent sets}, or $k$-DISes for brevity, in case $k>1$. Note that the case $k=1$ when a set $W$ is dominating and independent at the same time is also extensively studied. These sets are called \\textit{kernels} of the graphs (due to Neumann and Morgenstern) and they clearly coincide with the maximal independent sets.\nThe possible number of kernels has been resolved in many graph families including connected graphs, bipartite graphs and trees, triangle-free graphs, see the results of Moon, Moser, F\\\"uredi, Hujter and Tuza, Jou and Chang \\cite{chang1, chang2, furedi, HT, moon}.\n\\medskip\n\nOur principal function is formulated in the following\n\n\\begin{nota}\nLet $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n)$ denote the maximum number of $k$-DISes in graphs of order $n$, and let\n$\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n, \\mathcal{F})$ denote the maximum number of $k$-DISes in the $n$-vertex members of the graph family $\\mathcal{F}$. If $\\mathcal{F}$ consists of a single graph $G$, we denote by $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(G)$ the number of $k$-DISes in $G$.\n\\end{nota}\n\nConcerning graph constructions, we will use \n\\begin{nota}\nFor arbitrary graphs $G$ and $H$, $G+H$ denotes the disjoint union of $G$ and $H$. Similarly, if a parameter $k\\in \\mathbb{Z}^+$ is given, $kG$ denotes the disjoint union of $k$ copies of $G$. $K_m\\square K_m$ denotes the Cartesian product of two $K_m$ graphs, or in other words it is the strongly regular Lattice graph $L(m)$, or Rook graph. Finally, $(K_m)^t$ denotes the Cartesian product of $t$ $ K_m$ graphs: $K_m\\square K_m\\square \\ldots \\square K_m$.\n\\end{nota}\n\n\\begin{obs}\\label{obsit} $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(G+H)=\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(G)\\cdot\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(H)$ for any two graphs $G$ and $H$. \n\\end{obs}\n\n\\begin{nota}\nLet $\\zeta_k(G):=\\sqrt[n]{\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(G)}$ for a fixed graph $G$ on $n$ vertices and let $$\\zeta_k(n):=\\sqrt[n]{\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n)}, \\ \\ \\zeta_k(n, \\mathcal{F}):=\\sqrt[n]{\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n, \\mathcal{F})}.$$\n\\end{nota}\n\n\\begin{theorem}\\label{alap0}\n\\begin{itemize}\n\\item[(i)] $\\zeta_k(n) \\in [1,2] \\ \\ \\forall k,n \\in \\mathbb{Z}^+, k\\leq n.$\n\n\\item[(ii)] $\\zeta_k(G) \\leq \\lim \\inf \\zeta_k(n) \\ \\ \\forall k \\in \\mathbb{Z}^+$ and for every fixed graph $G$.\n\n\\item[(iii)] $\\forall k \\ \\ \\exists \\lim \\zeta_k(n)$.\n\n\\end{itemize}\n\\end{theorem}\n\n\\begin{proof} Part $(i)$ is straightforward since $1\\leq\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n)\\leq 2^n$ in view of the empty graph and the number of all possible subsets of the vertex set.\\\\\n Suppose $\\zeta_k(G)\\geq 1$. If we apply Observation \\ref{obsit} to $\\left\\lfloor \\frac{n}{|V(G)|}\\right\\rfloor$ disjoint copies of $G$ and suitable number of additional isolated vertices, we get $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n)\\geq \\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(G)^{\\left\\lfloor\\frac{n}{|V(G)|}\\right\\rfloor}$, hence part $(ii)$ follows.\\\\\nFinally, part $(i)$ and part $(ii)$ together implies part $(iii)$.\n\\end{proof}\n\nOur main theorems are \n\n\\begin{theorem} \\label{fo1} The order of magnitude of the maximum number of $2$-DISes is bounded as follows.\n $$1.22<\\sqrt[9]{6}\\leq \\lim \\zeta_2(n) \\leq \\sqrt[5]{3}<1.2457.$$\n\\end{theorem}\n\n\\begin{theorem} \\label{fo2} For every $k>2$,\n $$\\sqrt[2k]{2}\\leq \\lim\\zeta_k(n) \\leq \\sqrt[k+1]{2}.$$\n\\end{theorem}\n\n\n\nThe paper is built up as follows.\nSection 2 summarizes the main known results on the number of $k$-DISes for $k=1$.\n\nIn Section 3, we give a simple characterization of graphs which contain a $k$-dominating independent set and point out the existence of large graph families not containing $2$-DISes. Next we prove that if a $k$-DIS exists in a tree, then it is unique. Furthermore we present an efficient algorithm which provides a $k$-DIS in a given tree or proves the non-existence of such a set. Finally, we present graph constructions containing many $k$-DISes. Proposition \\ref{expect} essentially states that a random graph contains a huge number of $k$-DISes for any fixed $k$. \n\nWe prove the lower bounds of Theorem \\ref{fo1} and Theorem \\ref{fo2} in Section 4.\nThese bounds are based on constructions. The presented graphs providing the lower bound on $ \\zeta_k(n)$ are of different structure in the cases $k=1, 2, 3$ and $k\\geq 4$.\n One of them leads to the determination of the number of ternary $(n, M, 2)_3$ MDS codes as well. \n\nExtremal constructions are often obtained from finite geometry. (For detailed descriptions we refer to \\cite{FS}.) In our case, specific examples \nfor different types of graphs with many $2$-dominating ($k$-dominating) independent sets are given based on hyperovals and generalized $\\{k;n\\}$-arcs.\n\n Section 5 is devoted to the upper bound part of Theorem \\ref{fo1} and Theorem \\ref{fo2}. \n At last, some open questions and concluding remarks are collected in Section 6.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\bigskip\n\\section{Results on the number of maximal independent sets: $1$-DISes}\n\\label{2}\n\nErd\\H os and Moser raised the question to determine the maximum number of maximal cliques in $n$-vertex graphs. Note that it is the same as the maximum number of maximal independent sets (that is, $1$-DISes) an $n$-vertex graph can have.\n\nAnswering a question of Erd\\H os and Moser, Moon and Moser proved the following well known\n\n\\begin{theorem}[Moon-Moser, \\cite{moon}]\\label{alap} The following equality holds:\n\n$$\\hbox{\\rm mi}_1(n)= \\left\\{ \\begin{array}{lll} 3^{n\/3} & \\textrm{if } n\\equiv 0 \\pmod 3 \\\\ \\frac{4}{3}\\cdot3^{ \\lfloor n\/3 \\rfloor} & \\textrm{if } n\\equiv 1 \\pmod 3\\\\ \n2\\cdot3^{ \\lfloor n\/3 \\rfloor} & \\textrm{if } n\\equiv 2 \\pmod 3 \\end{array} \\right.$$\n\\end{theorem}\n\\noindent Moreover, they proved that the equality is attained if and only if the graph $G$ is isomorphic to the graph $\\frac{n}{3} K_3$ (if $n\\equiv 0 \\pmod 3$); to one of the graphs $(\\lfloor \\frac{n}{3} \\rfloor-1)K_3 + K_4$ or $(\\lfloor \\frac{n}{3} \\rfloor-1)K_3 + 2K_2$ (if $n\\equiv 1 \\pmod 3$); to $\\lfloor n\/3 \\rfloor K_3 + K_2$ (if $n\\equiv 2 \\pmod 3$).\n\n\\begin{corollary} $\\lim \\zeta_1(n)= \\sqrt[3]{3}$, and $\\lim \\zeta_k(n) \\in [1, \\sqrt[3]{3}]$ for all $k>1$.\n\\end{corollary}\n\n\n\n\\noindent For connected graphs the question was raised by Wilf \\cite{wilf}, and the answer is fairly similar.\n\n\\begin{theorem}[F\\\"uredi \\cite{furedi}, Griggs, Grinstead, Guichard \\cite{griggs}] Let $\\mathcal{F}_{con}$ be the family of connected graphs.\nThen \n\n$$\\hbox{\\rm mi}_1(n, \\mathcal{F}_{con})= \\left\\{ \\begin{array}{lll} \\frac{2}{3}\\cdot3^{n\/3}+\\frac{1}{2}\\cdot2^{n\/3} & \\textrm{if } n\\equiv 0 \\pmod 3 \\\\\n3^{ \\lfloor n\/3 \\rfloor}+ \\frac{1}{2}\\cdot2^{ \\lfloor n\/3 \\rfloor} & \\textrm{if } n\\equiv 1 \\pmod 3\\\\ \n\\frac{4}{3}\\cdot3^{ \\lfloor n\/3 \\rfloor}+\\frac{3}{4}\\cdot2^{ \\lfloor n\/3 \\rfloor} & \\textrm{if } n\\equiv 2 \\pmod 3 \\end{array} \\right.$$\n\\end{theorem}\nThe extremal graphs are determined as well. In these graphs, there is a vertex of maximum degree, and its removal yields a member of the extremal graphs list of Theorem \\ref{alap}.\n\\medskip\n\n \\noindent Wilf, and later Sagan studied the family of trees.\n\n\\begin{theorem}[\\cite{wilf, sagan}]\\label{tree} Let $\\mathcal{T}$ be the family of trees.\nThen the following equality holds:\n\n$$\\hbox{\\rm mi}_1(n, \\mathcal{T})= \\left\\{ \\begin{array}{ll} \\frac{1}{2}2^{n\/2}+1 & \\textrm{if } n\\equiv 0 \\pmod 2 \\\\ 2^{ \\lfloor n\/2 \\rfloor} & \\textrm{if } n\\equiv 1 \\pmod 2 \\end{array} \\right.$$\n\nThe extremal trees can be classified. \n\\end{theorem}\n\n\n\\begin{corollary} $\\lim \\zeta_1(n, \\mathcal{T})= \\sqrt{2}$.\n\\end{corollary}\n\n\n\\begin{theorem}[Hujter, Tuza \\cite{HT}]\nEvery triangle-free graph on $n \\geq 4$ vertices has at most $2^{n\/2} $ or $5 \\cdot 2^{( n - 5 )\/2} $ maximal independent sets, whether $n$ is even or odd. In each case, the extremal graph is unique.\n\\end{theorem}\n\n\n\n\n\\medskip\n\n\n\\section{$k$-DISes --- existence and characterizations }\n\n\n\n\nWhile kernels ($1$-DISes) obviously exist in every graph, this is far from being true for $k$-DISes for a fixed $k>1$. To illustrate this phenomenon, consider\n\n\\begin{proposition} Let $G$ be (i) a complete graph, (ii) an odd cycle, (iii) the complement of a connected triangle-free graph with at least $2$ edges, w.r.t. $K_n$. Then $G$ does not contain a $k$-dominating independent set for $k>1$. \n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nIt is straightforward to check the statement for (i) and (ii). If $G$ is the complement of a connected triangle-free graph, then an independent set consists of at most $2$ vertices in $G$, however no pair of vertices are both adjacent to every other vertex in the graph.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\nHence the question naturally arises whether to contain (many) $k$-dominating sets is rather a rare property for $k>1$. \nConsider the Erd\\H os-R\\'enyi random graph $G_{n,p}$. Let $X_{t,1}$ denote the random variable which counts the number of maximal independent sets of size $t$ in $G_{n,p}$ and $X_{t,k}$ denote random variable which counts the number of $k$-DISes of size $t$ in $G_{n,p}$. \\\\\nFollowing the idea of Bollob\\'as and Erd\\H os on maximal cliques \\cite{EB}, one can easily calculate the expected value of $X_{t,1}$, $X_{t,2}$ or generally of $X_{t,k}$ as well. Note that the expected value for $X_{t,1}$ is well known, we only add here for the purpose of comparison. \n\n\\begin{proposition}\\label{expect} $\\mathbb{E}(X_{t,1})=\\binom{n}{t}(1-p)^{\\binom{t}{2}}\\left(1-(1-p)^t\\right)^{n-t},$ \n\n \\hspace{0.6cm} $\\mathbb{E}(X_{t,2})=\\binom{n}{t}(1-p)^{\\binom{t}{2}}\\left(1-(1-p)^t-tp(1-p)^{t-1}\\right)^{n-t}$,\n\n\\hspace{0.6cm} $\\mathbb{E}(X_{t,k})=\\binom{n}{t}(1-p)^{\\binom{t}{2}}\\left(1-(1-p)^t-tp(1-p)^{t-1}- \\cdots - \\binom{t}{k-1}p^{k-1}(1-p)^{t-k+1} \\right)^{n-t}$.\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{corollary} \\label{kov}\nLet $p=1\/2$. \n\nIf $t<\\log_2{n}-2\\log\\log n$ or $t >2\\log_2{n}$, then $\\mathbb{E}(X_{t,1})<1\/n$ and so $\\mathbb{E}(X_{t,k})<1\/n$ for all $k$.\n\nIf $t=c\\log_{2}n$ with constant $11$, the situation is completely different from the case $k=1$. Confirming an extended version of a conjecture of Pawe{\\l} Bednarz \\cite{pawel} on $k$-DISes of trees, we can formulate the following \n\n\n\\begin{theorem}\\label{fa} Let $k>1$.\nIf $G$ is a tree (or forest) and there exists a $k$-dominating independent set in $G$, then it is unique. That is, $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n, \\mathcal{T})=1$.\n\\end{theorem}\n\n\\begin{proof} Assume to the contrary that there exists a forest $T$ with (at least) two different $k$-dominating sets $D_1$ and $D_2$, moreover $T$ is a minimal counterexample regarding the number of vertices and edges. We introduce the notions $L_T$ for the set of leaves in $T$, $Q_T:=N(L_T)$ the neighbors of the leaves and $R_T:=V\\setminus (L_T \\cup Q_T)$ the rest of the vertices. The minimality condition immediately implies \nthat $T$ is a tree. Furthermore $L_T \\subseteq D_i$ from the $k$-domination and $Q_T \\cap D_i = \\emptyset$ from the independence of the sets $D_i$.\nConsequently, the graph spanned by $R_T$ has at least two different $k$-dominating sets and they can be extended in the same way to $Q_T$ and $L_T$, a contradiction.\n\nFinally, observe that the leaves of a star $S_{k+1}$ form a $k$-dominating independent set in $S_k$.\n\\end{proof}\n\nAn alternative way to see this is a consequence of the following simple Algorithm \\ref{alga}, which either finds the unique $k$-dominating set in the tree, or proves that there does not exist any.\n\n\\begin{algo}\\label{alga} Let $D$ and $D'$ be empty sets in the beginning.\n\n$\\bullet$ Put all the isolated vertices to $D$. Cluster the vertices of the forest $T$ to $L_T, Q_T, R_T$ as in the proof of Theorem \\ref{fa}.\\\\ $\\bullet$ If $|Q_T|=0$ but $|L_T|>1$, stop with the answer 'no $k$-dominating independent set'.\\\\ $\\bullet$ If $|Q_T|=0$ and $|L_T|=1$, put $w\\in L_T$ to $D$ and stop with the answer '$D$ is the $k$-dominating independent set'.\\\\ $\\bullet$ If $|Q_T|=|L_T|=0$, stop with the answer '$D$ is the $k$-dominating independent set'.\\\\ $\\bullet$ Else choose a vertex $q$ from $Q_T$ which has at most $1$ neighbor from $R_T \\cup Q_T$. Note that such a vertex clearly exists since the graph $G \\setminus L_T$ is a tree, whose leaf set is a subset of $Q_T$.\\\\ $\\bullet$ $\\bullet$ If $|N(q)\\cap L_T|\\geq k$, then\nput $q$ to $D'$ and the vertices of $N(q)\\cap L_T$ to $D$, finally delete \\mbox{$\\{q\\}\\cup (N(q)\\cap L_T)$} from $T$.\\\\\n $\\bullet$ $\\bullet$ If $|N(q)\\cap L_T|=k-1$ and $|N(q)\\cap(R_T \\cup Q_T)|=1$, then put $q$ to $D'$ and the vertices of $N(q)\\cap L_T$ to $D$, delete \\mbox{$\\{q\\}\\cup (N(q)\\cap L_T)$} from $T$, and separate the edges which are adjacent to the vertex $N(q)\\cap(R_T \\cup Q_T)$ in the remaining graph with copies of $N(q)\\cap(R_T \\cup Q_T)$ as endvertices.\\\\\n $\\bullet$ $\\bullet$ Else, stop with the answer 'no $k$-dominating independent set'.\\\\ Iterate.\n\\end{algo}\n\nIt is easy to see that if a vertex is duplicated, then the copies will be leaves in the remaining graph hence the vertex will be part of $D$ if there exists a suitable $k$-dominating independent set.\nIt is also clear that $D$ will be an independent set throughout the algorithm. At the same time every vertex in $D'$ will have at least $k$ neighbors from $D$. Indeed, if a vertex $q$ is put into $D'$ when $|N(q)\\cap L_T|=k-1$, then it is guaranteed that its last neighbor will be in $D$ as well. Thus $D$ will be a $k$-dominating independent set. \nFinally, the algorithm stops with 'no' answer exactly when there is an evidence for the non-existence.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\medskip\n\n\n\\section{$k$-DISes --- constructions and lower bounds }\n\nIn this section we prove the lower bound of Theorem \\ref{fo1} and Theorem \\ref{fo2} by showing suitable graphs. \n Let $G$ be a complete bipartite graph of equal cluster size, or a Tur\\'an graph $T_{p^2,p}$ on $p^2$ vertices and $p$ equal partition classes.\n\n\\begin{proposition}\\label{constr} $\\zeta_k(K_{t,t})=\\sqrt[2t]{2}$ if $k\\leq t$. \n\n$\\zeta_k(T_{p^2,p})=\\sqrt[p^2]{p}$ if $k\\leq p$.\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\nPutting together the first statement of Proposition \\ref{constr} with $k=t$ and Theorem \\ref{alap0} we get the lower bound of Theorem \\ref{fo2} : $\\zeta_k(K_{k,k})=\\sqrt[2k]{2} \\leq \\lim \\zeta_k(n)$. \\\\\nNote that for $k=3$, the Tur\\'an graph provides better estimation from Proposition \\ref{constr}:\n$\\zeta_k(T_{3\\cdot 3,3})=\\sqrt[9]{3} \\leq \\lim \\zeta_3(n)$. Here $\\sqrt[9]{3}\\approx 1.13$ while the bipartite graph $K_{3,3}$ would yield only $\\sqrt[6]{2}\\approx 1.122$.\nFor $k=4$, $\\zeta_4(T_{4\\cdot 4,4})= \\zeta_4(K_{4,4})$.\n\\medskip\n\n\\noindent Kneser graphs also provide many $k$-DISes:\n\n\n\\begin{proposition}\\label{Kneser} Let $G=KN(n,t)$ denote the Kneser graph whose vertices correspond to the $t$-element subsets of a set of $n$ elements, and where two vertices are adjacent if and only if the two corresponding sets are disjoint. Suppose $t< n\/2$. Then $G$ contains $n$ $k$-DISes for $k=\\binom{n-t-1}{t-1}$.\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nClearly the largest independent set in $G$ is of size $\\binom{n-1}{t-1}$ according to the theorem of Erd\\H os, Ko and Rado \\cite{EKR}, and the corresponding $t$-element subsets are those which contain a fixed element $i\\in \\{1,2,\\ldots, n\\}$. Thus the proposition indeed follows since a $t$-element subset which does not contain $i$ are disjoint to exactly $k=\\binom{n-t-1}{t-1}$ $t$-subsets which contain $i$, while\n less vertices in a maximal independent set do not provide enough edges to $k$-dominate the rest of the vertices.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\nNow we turn our attention to the case $k=2$.\n\n\n\n\n\n\\begin{claim}\n $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(3)=1$, $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(4)=2$, $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(5)=2$, $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(6)=3$, $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(7)=3$, $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(8)=4$, $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(9)=6$, $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(16)\\geq 24$.\n\\end{claim}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nIt is easy to check that the number of the $2$-DISes in $P_3$, $K_{2,2}$, $K_{2,2,2}$, $K_{2,2,2,2}$, $K_3\\square K_3$ and $K_4\\square K_4$ is $1; 2; 3; 4; 6$, and $24$, respectively. It is also easy to check that joining a new vertex to a graph's every vertex does not increase or decrease the number of the $2$-DISes. Finally, it can be shown by case analysis that these graphs are extremal indeed.\n\\end{proof}\n\nConcerning $2$-DISes, product graphs seem to provide the best lower bound, at least much better than those provided by Proposition \\ref{constr}.\n\n\\begin{construction} \\label{pelda1}\nLet $n$ be large enough, and let\n\n$$G_n= \\alpha K_3\\square K_3 +\\beta K_4\\square K_4, \\mbox{ \\ with \\ } \\alpha, \\beta \\in \\mathbb{N}, \\beta\\leq 8.$$ (Observe that $\\alpha$ and $\\beta$ is uniquely determined.) \n\n\\end{construction}\n\nIn view of Observation \\ref{obsit} this implies\n \n\\begin{proposition}\\label{order}\n\n$${\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n)}= \\Omega({6}^{n\/9}) \\ \\mbox{ and hence } \\sqrt[9]{6}\\leq \\lim\\zeta_2(n). $$\n\\end{proposition} \n\n\n\nWe conjecture that in fact $\\sqrt[9]{6}= \\lim\\zeta_2(n)$ holds, moreover, the graphs listed in Construction \\ref{pelda1} are extremal graphs, that is, if $n$ is large enough then \n$\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n)=\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(G)$ holds for an $n$-vertex graph only if $G$ is a graph from Construction \\ref{pelda1}.\n\nConcerning $k=3$, we conjecture that the Tur\\'an graph $T_{3\\cdot 3,3}$ provides the order of magnitude, as $\\sqrt[9]{3}\\leq\\zeta_3(n)$. Finally, in general we conjecture that if $k$ is large enough, then $\\zeta_k(n)=\\zeta_k(K_{k,k})=\\sqrt[2k]{2}$.\n\n\n\\begin{nota}\nLet $G^*$ denote the graph constructed from $G$ by adding a new vertex to its vertex set and joining it to all of the vertices of $G$.\n\\end{nota} \n\n\\noindent Applying the observation $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(v(G), G) = \\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(v(G)+1, G^*)$, we have\n \n\\begin{corollary}\n$${\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n, \\mathcal{F}_{con})}= \\Omega({6}^{n\/9}).$$\n\\end{corollary} \n\n\n\\subsection{ Connections to MDS codes}\n\nWe begin with some preliminaries about coding theory and MDS codes, for more details we refer to \\cite{code}.\n\n\\begin{definition} Let $C\\subseteq \\mathbb{F}_q^n$ be a set of codewords in the vector space $\\mathbb{F}_q^n$. Defining the Hamming metric $d(*,*)$ on $\\mathbb{F}_q^n$, $d(C)$ -- called the minimal distance -- is $d(C)=\\min\\{d(c, c') : c, c'\\in C, c\\neq c'\\}$. A code $C\\subseteq \\mathbb{F}_q^n$ is a $q$-ary $(n,M,d)_q$ code if the dimension of the vector space is $n$, $|C|=M$ and the minimal distance is $d$. \nA code $C$ is linear if it is a subspace of the vector space $\\mathbb{F}_q^n$.\n\\end{definition}\n\nThe Singleton bound for a $q$-ary $(n,M,d)$ code states that $|C|\\leq q^{n-d+1}$. If equality holds, then $C$ is said to be a maximum distance separable code, or simply, an MDS code. \n(Linear) MDS codes are extensively studied, and have strong connections to finite geometries, namely, to the existence of certain arcs in multidimensional projective spaces, see \\cite{code}. The problem of determining the number of linear MDS codes in $\\mathbb{F}_q^n$ of minimal distance $d$ was essentially posed by Segre, and determined so far only in some special cases \\cite{mdses1, mdses2}. We highlight here only \n\n\\begin{proposition}\\label{enum} The number of linear $q$-ary $(n,M,2)_q$ MDS codes is $(q-1)^{n-1}$.\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\n\n\\noindent Much less is known about the number of all MDS codes in $\\mathbb{F}_q^n$ of minimal distance $d$. \n\n\\bigskip\n\n\n\n\\noindent Now we return to Construction \\ref{pelda1}. One may suggest that similar graph products with multiple terms yield bounds on $\\zeta_k(n)$.\\\\\n Consider $t$ disjoint copies of $(K_3)^k$. The set $V( (K_3)^k)$ can be represented by vectors over $\\mathbb{F}_3$ of length $k$, and two of them is adjacent if and only if they differ in exactly $1$ coordinate. Hence a subset $D$ of $V( (K_3)^k)$ is a $k$-DIS if and only if every fixed $k-1$ coordinate determines exactly one element of $D$. In other words, $D$ is a set of $3^{k-1}$ vectors from $\\mathbb{F}_3^k$, with minimal Hamming distance $2$. Consequently, $D$ is a MDS code, and the number of $k$-DISes in $ (K_3)^k$ is the number of (not necessarily linear) $(k, 3^{k-1}, 2)_3$ MDS codes. \n\n\\begin{theorem}\\label{mds} The number of $(k, 3^{k-1}, 2)_3$ MDS codes is $3\\cdot2^{k-1}$.\n\\end{theorem}\n\n\n\\begin{proof} We prove by induction on $k$. For $k=1$, the statement clearly holds.\\\\\nFirst observe that Proposition \\ref{enum} provides $3\\cdot2^{k-1}$ general $(k, 3^{k-1}, 2)_3$ MDS codes. Indeed, any linear MDS code $C$ contains the all-zero vector, and their translations $C+(0,\\cdots, 0,1)$ and $C-(0,\\cdots, 0,1)$\nyields suitable new codes. \\\\\nHence it is enough to prove that the number of $(k+1, 3^{k}, 2)_3$ MDS codes is at most twice the number of $(k, 3^{k-1}, 2)_3$ MDS codes if $k\\geq 1$. Observe that if one prescribes the value of arbitrary $k$ coordinates in a $(k+1, q^{k}, 2)_q$ MDS code, then exactly one codeword will fulfill the condition.\n Consider a $(k+1, 3^{k}, 2)_3$ MDS code. Observe that the set of codewords having zero as first coordinate are corresponding to a $(k, 3^{k-1}, 2)_3$ MDS code. Indeed, the minimal distance does not change while deleting the first coordinate yields a set of $3^{k-1}$ codewords of length $k$. Finally we prove that such a $(k, 3^{k-1}, 2)_3$ MDS code could be obtained from at most two $(k+1, 3^{k}, 2)_3$ MDS codes. To this end, delete the first coordinate of the codewords, and omit those codewords which had $0$ on the first coordinate. Thus we get $2\\cdot 3^{k-1}$ vectors in $\\mathbb{F}_3^k$. Assign a graph $G$ to this vector set by connecting every pair of vectors which are at Hamming distance $1$. The number of proper two-colorings of this graph by colors '1' and '2' is equivalent to the number of extensions of this vector set by an appropriate first coordinate to get a $(k+1, 3^{k}, 2)_3$ MDS code together with the omitted codewords. Notice that the number of proper two-colorings is at most two for any connected graph. Thus Lemma \\ref{finish}\nfinishes the proof.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{lemma}\\label{finish} $G$, the graph assigned to the codewords of nonzero first coordinate, is connected.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\n\\begin{proof}\nWe prove by contradiction. Assume that $ (v_1, v_2, \\ldots v_{k+1})$ and $(w_1, w_2, \\ldots, w_{k+1})$ are codewords, $v_1\\neq 0 \\neq w_1$, furthermore $\\textbf{v}=(v_2, \\ldots v_{k+1})$ and $\\textbf{w}=(w_2, \\ldots, w_{k+1})$ are in different component of $G$ and their Hamming distance is minimal w.r.t. pairs of codewords taken from different components of $G$. \nNote that $\\textbf{v}$ and $\\textbf{w}$ must differ in at least two coordinates according to our assumption, hence $k\\geq 2$. W.l.o.g. we may assume that $v_2\\neq w_2$. Let us define $z_2$ by $\\{v_2, w_2, z_2\\}=\\{1,2, 0\\}$. Since $\\textbf{v}$ and $\\textbf{w}$ were at the smallest Hamming distance, \n$(w_2, v_3, v_4, \\ldots v_{k+1})$ or $(v_2, w_3, w_4, \\ldots, w_{k+1})$ cannot be vertices of $G$ since it would yield a smaller Hamming distance. But any $k$ prescribed coordinates can be extended to get a codeword in an $(k+1, 3^{k}, 2)_3$ MDS code, thus $(0, w_2, v_3, v_4, \\ldots v_{k+1}), (0, v_2, w_3, w_4, \\ldots, w_{k+1}) \\in C$. Hence $(0, z_2, v_3, v_4, \\ldots v_{k+1})$ and $(0, z_2, w_3, w_4, \\ldots, w_{k+1})$ do not belong to $C$, which implies that $(z_2, v_3, v_4, \\ldots v_{k+1})$ and $(z_2, w_3, w_4, \\ldots, w_{k+1})$ are in the vertex set of $G$. Observe that they have more common coordinates than $\\textbf{v}$ and $\\textbf{w}$ had while they still belong to different components, which is a contradiction.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\\begin{remark} The proof implies that the graph assigned to the codewords of nonzero first coordinate is bipartite as well, and all $(k, 3^{k-1}, 2)_3$ MDS codes are the translates of linear $(k, 3^{k-1}, 2)_3$ MDS codes.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\\begin{corollary} $\\zeta_k{((K_3)^k)}= \\sqrt[3^k]{3\\cdot2^{k-1}}$. If $k>2$, this is less then $\\zeta_k{(K_{k,k})}= \\sqrt[2k]{2}$.\n\\end{corollary}\n\n\n\n\n\\bigskip\n\n\n\n\\subsection{ Connections to finite geometries}\n\nIn this subsection we study constructions coming from finite geometries. The first reason to do this is the fact that many extremal structures are provided by geometric constructions in general (see \\cite{FS}). In our case they provide a graph family with large number of $k$-DISes.\nThe second reason is that these families have remarkable connections to many interesting subfields of projective geometry, including $m$-fold blocking sets, arcs and tangent-free sets. \n\n\\begin{definition}\nLet $PG(2,q)$ denote a finite projective plane over $\\mathbb{F}_q$, with point set $\\mathcal{P}$ and line set $\\mathcal{L}$. Let $G(\\mathcal{P, L})$ be the (bipartite) point-line incidence graph of the geometry. Note that $G(\\mathcal{P, L})$ is a $q+1$ regular graph on $N=2(q^2+q+1)$ vertices.\n\\end{definition}\n\n\\begin{definition}\nAn $m$-fold blocking set $B$ in a projective plane is a set of points such\nthat each line contains at least $m$ points of $B$ and some line contains exactly $m$\npoints of $B$.\n\\end{definition}\n\n\\begin{definition}\nIn a finite projective plane of order $q$, a $\\{K;t\\}$-arc is a nonempty proper subset $\\mathcal{K}$ of $K$ points of the plane such that every line intersects $\\mathcal{K}$ in at most $t$ points and there exists a set of $t$ collinear points in $\\mathcal{K}$. A $\\{K, 2\\}$-arc is simply\ncalled a $K$-arc. Note that $\\{K, t\\}$-arcs and multiple blocking sets are \ncomplements of each other in a projective plane, that is, the complement of a $\\{K, t\\}$-arc is a $(q+1-t)$-fold blocking set. A $\\{K;t\\}$-arc is called maximal, if $K=(q+1)t-q$, that is, in the case when the size attains the possible maximum \\cite{cossu}. \n\\end{definition}\n\n\nIt is well known that every line intersects $\\mathcal{K}$ in either $0$ or $t$ points in a maximal $\\{K;t\\}$-arc $\\mathcal{K}$ \\cite{cossu}. Denniston showed \\cite{Denniston} that maximal $\\{K;t\\}$-arcs exist in projective planes $PG(2,q)$ of even order for all divisors $t$ of $q$. On the other hand, Ball, Blokhuis and Mazzocca proved that no maximal $\\{K;t\\}$-arcs exists in projective planes of odd order \\cite{BBM}.\n\n\n\n\\begin{construction} \\label{hyper}\nConsider a hyperoval $\\mathcal{H}$ in $PG(2,q)$, $q>2$ even, that is, a maximal arc of $q+2$ points. Let the set $D\\subseteq V(G)$ consist of the lines skew to $\\mathcal{H}$ and the points of $\\mathcal{H}$. \n\\end{construction}\n\n\\begin{claim} Construction \\ref{hyper} provides a $2$-DIS for any hyperoval of the projective geometry.\n\\end{claim}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nAny line intersects a hyperoval in $0$ or $2$ points, thus the secants of the hyperoval are dominated by exactly $2$ vertices of $D\\cap\\mathcal{P}$. The points of $\\mathcal{P}\\setminus \\mathcal{H}$ are also dominated by at least $2$ vertices of $D\\cap\\mathcal{L}$ since exactly $q+1-\\frac{q+2}{2}$ skew lines are going through \nany external point of $\\mathcal{H}$. Finally, it is clear that the set of skew lines and the vertices of $\\mathcal{H}$ form an independent set in $G(\\mathcal{P, L})$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\nThere exist other suitable $2$-dominating (or $k$-dominating) independent sets in $G(\\mathcal{P, L})$.\\\\ Let us take a point set $\\mathcal{Q}\\subseteq \\mathcal{P}$ and the lines skew to $\\mathcal{Q}$ from $\\mathcal{L}$. This provides a $k$-dominating independent set of $G(\\mathcal{P, L})$ if and only if the following conditions hold:\n\n\\begin{itemize}\n\\item[(1)] Any line intersects $\\mathcal{Q}$ in $0$ or at least $k$ points,\n\\item[(2)] There exist at least $k$ skew lines to $\\mathcal{Q}$ through any point in $\\mathcal{P}\\setminus\\mathcal{Q}$.\n\\end{itemize}\n\n\\begin{corollary}\\label{kicsi}\nIf $\\mathcal{Q}$ is a set without tangents on at most $2q-2$ points, the conditions above hold for $k=2$. \n\\end{corollary}\n\n\\noindent Indeed, $(1)$ holds by definition, while $(2)$ is easy to check since if $l$ lines intersect $\\mathcal{Q}$ through a given point in $\\mathcal{P}\\setminus\\mathcal{Q}$, then $|\\mathcal{Q}|\\geq 2l$ must hold.\n\\medskip\n\nBeside hyperovals of planes of even order, various families of sets are known which fulfill the conditions (1) and (2).\nFirst, consider the generalization of Construction \\ref{hyper}.\n\n\n\n\\begin{construction} \\label{k-arc}\n Consider a maximal $\\{K;t\\}$-arc $\\mathcal{K}$ in $PG(2,q)$, $q$ even. Let $G(\\mathcal{P, L})$ be the point-line incidence graph of the geometry, and let the set $D\\subseteq V(G)$ consists of the lines skew to $\\mathcal{K}$ and the points of $\\mathcal{K}$. \n\\end{construction}\n\n\n\\begin{claim} Construction \\ref{k-arc} provides a $t$-dominating independent set for any maximal $\\{K;t\\}$-arc of the projective geometry if $t\\leq \\sqrt{q}$. \n\\end{claim}\n\n\n\\noindent Indeed, $(1)$ holds by definition. Concerning $(2)$, at most $q+1-t$ lines can intersect $\\mathcal{K}$ through a given point in $\\mathcal{P}\\setminus\\mathcal{K}$, thus $(q+1-t)t\\geq |\\mathcal{K}|=t(q+1)-q \\Leftrightarrow q\\geq t^2$.\n\\smallskip\n\n\nThe so-called $(q+t, t)$-arcs of type $(0,2,t)$ were investigated by Korchm\\'aros, Mazzocca, G\\'acs and Weiner \\cite{korchmaros, gacs}. These are pointsets of $q+t$ points in $PG(2,q)$ such that every line meets them in either $0, 2$ or $t$ points, $22$ as well.\n\n\nSo far, we have seen tangent-free sets only if $q$ is even. For any odd prime power $q>5$, Blokhuis, Seres and Wilbrink presented\n a suitable set of $2q-2$ points arises from the symmetric difference of two conics \\cite{BSW}, which provides a $2$-DIS via Corollary \\ref{kicsi}. For $q$ prime, no example is known having fewer vertices. \n If $q=p^h$, $h>1$, Lavrauw, Storme and Van de Voorde constructed a set without tangents of size $q+(q-p)\/(p-1)<2q-2$ \\cite{LSV}. Up to now, this is the smallest known tangent-free pointset in the $q$ odd case.\n The main idea was to apply the following result. Consider a set $\\mathcal{S}$ of $q$ affine points in $PG(2, q)$, $p > 2$, and let $D$ be the set of determined directions of $\\mathcal{S}$, lying on the ideal line . If $|D| < (q + 3)\/2$,\nthen $\\mathcal{S}$ together with the complement of $D$ w.r.t. the ideal line is a set without tangents. This was observed and applied by Blokhuis, Brouwer and Sz\\H onyi \\cite{BBS}, showing a set without tangent of size $2q-q\/p$.\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\\section{Proof of the upper bounds of Theorem \\ref{fo1} and \\ref{fo2}}\n\nIn Section 4 we proved a lower bound on $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n)$ in Proposition \\ref{order} which provides $\\Theta(1,22^n)<~\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n)$. This section is devoted to the results on upper bounds. Following the idea of F\\\"uredi \\cite{furedi}, the approach is inductive. We begin with a general upper bound which highlights the key concept.\n\n\\begin{proposition}\\label{upper1}\nLet $\\alpha_k:=\\max_{d\\in \\mathbb{Z}^+} \\{ \\sqrt[d+1]{\\frac{k+d}{k}}\\}$. Then\n$\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n)= O(\\alpha_k^n)$.\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nLet $\\delta$ denote the minimal degree in a graph $G$, and let $v$ be a vertex of minimal degree in $G$. Any $k$-dominating independent set of $G$ contains either $v$ and none of $N(v)$, or at least $k$ vertices of $N(v)$. The number of $k$-DISes containing $v$ is evidently at most $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n-\\delta-1)$, while the number of $k$-DISes not containing $v$ is at most $\\frac{\\delta}{k}\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n-\\delta-1)$. Indeed, any $w\\in N(v)$ appears in at most $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n-\\delta-1)$ $k$-DISes, and the $k$-dominating property concerning the vertex $v$ implies that we counted any such $k$-dominating independent set at least $k$ times. Hence $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n)\\leq (1+\\frac{\\delta}{k})\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n-\\delta-1)$, and the statement follows.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{remark} Comparing this result with Theorem \\ref{alap}, Proposition \\ref{upper1} determined the right order of magnitude in the case $k=1$.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\\begin{corollary} $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n)< \\sqrt[3]{2}^n \\ \\ \\mbox{where} \\ \\ \\sqrt[3]{2}\\approx 1,26$.\n\\end{corollary}\n\nIn order to prove the upper bound of Theorem \\ref{fo1}, we refine the above result. The main idea is to improve the bounds if the minimal degree is less then $4$.\n\n\\begin{theorem}\\label{upperb2}\n $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n)<\\sqrt[5]{3}^n \\ \\ \\mbox{where} \\ \\ \\sqrt[5]{3}\\approx 1,2457.$\n\\end{theorem}\n\n\\begin{proof}\n\n\n\nDefine $\\tau:=\\sqrt[5]{3}$. We prove by induction. Note that $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(0)\\leq \\tau^0$ and $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(1)\\leq \\tau^1$ trivially holds and assume that $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(i)\\leq \\tau^i$ holds for $i=0,\\ldots , n-1$. \nNotice that the deletion of possible isolated vertices does not affect the number of $2$-DISes.\n\nAssume first that $\\delta=1$ in $G$. Consequently, $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n, G)\\leq \\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n-2)\\leq \\tau^{n-2}\\leq \\tau^{n}$ as vertices of degree $1$ must be in the $2$-dominating set in contrast with their neighbors.\n\nNext, suppose that $d(v)=\\delta=2$. This implies \n\\begin{equation}\\label{ketto}\n\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n, G)\\leq \\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n-3)+\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n-4)\\end{equation}\nsince the $2$-DISes are either formed by $v$ and a $2$-DIS in $G\\setminus N[v]$ or formed by $w_1, w_2 \\in N(v)$ and a $2$-DIS in $G\\setminus ~( N[w_1]\\cup~N[w_2])$. Let $\\tau_1$ be the unique positive root of $P(x)=x^4-x-1$. ($\\tau_1\\approx 1,22$.) Then inequality \\eqref{ketto} implies that $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n, G)\\leq \\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n-3)+\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n-4)\\leq \\tau^{n-3}+\\tau^{n-4}<\\tau^n$ as $\\tau_1< \\tau$.\n\nLet us suppose $d(v)=\\delta=3$. If $|N(w_i)\\cup~N(w_j)]|\\geq 5$ for all pairs of vertices $w_i\\neq w_j\\in N(v)$ and $N(v)$ is an independent set, then \n\\begin{equation}\\label{harom}\n\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n, G)\\leq \\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n-4)+\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n-7) + 2\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n-8).\\end{equation}\nIndeed, the $2$-DISes are either formed by $v$ and a $2$-DIS in $G\\setminus N[v]$, or formed by $w_1, w_2 \\in N(v)$ and a $2$-DIS in $G\\setminus ~( N[w_1]\\cup~N[w_2])$, or formed by $w_1, w_3 \\in N(v)$ and a $2$-DIS in $G\\setminus ~( N[w_1]\\cup~N[w_3]\\cup \\{w_2\\})$, or formed by $w_2, w_3 \\in N(v)$ and a $2$-DIS in $G\\setminus ~( N[w_2]\\cup~N[w_3]\\cup \\{w_1\\})$. Let $\\tau_2$ be the unique positive root of $P(x)=x^8-x^4-x-2$. ($\\tau_2\\approx 1,241$.) Then inequality \\eqref{harom} implies that $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n, G)\\leq~ \\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n-4)+~\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n-~7)+~2\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n-~8)\\leq \\tau^{n-4}+\\tau^{n-7}+2\\tau^{n-8}<\\tau^n$ as $\\tau_2< \\tau$.\\\\\nWhat if $|N(w_i)\\cup~N(w_j)|\\geq 5$ does not hold for some $w_i\\neq w_j\\in N(v)$? Then every $2$-DIS which does not contain $v$ must contain both $w_i$ and $w_j$. Indeed, one of them must be in the set $D$ to dominate $v$, but then the other one cannot be $2$-dominated, thus it must be in the $D$ as well. Hence we could bound the number of $2$-DISes by $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n-4)+~\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n-~5)$, and the inequality $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n, G)<\\tau^n$ follows easily. \\\\\nFinally, we have to handle the case when $|N(w_i)\\cup~N(w_j)|\\geq 5$ holds for every $w_i, w_j\\in N(v)$ but $N(v)$ induces at least one edge. W.l.o.g, $w_1w_2\\in E(G)$ and then we miss the $2$-DISes where $w_1$ and $w_2$ were both part of $D$ in inequality \\eqref{harom}, which yields \n\\begin{equation}\\label{negy}\n\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n, G)\\leq \\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n-4)+2\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n-7)\\end{equation}\nto hold in this case. Observing that the unique positive root $\\tau_3$ of $x^7-x^3-2$ is less then $\\tau$, we conclude to\n$\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n, G)<\\tau^n$ again.\n\nAt last, applying the proof of Proposition \\ref{upper1} to $\\delta\\geq 4$, we get $$\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n)\\leq \\left(\\frac{2+\\delta}{2}\\right)\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n-\\delta-1).$$ \n\nThe fact $$\\max_{d\\in\\mathbb{Z}, d\\geq 4} \\left\\{ \\sqrt[d+1]{\\frac{2+d}{2}}\\right\\}= \\sqrt[5]{\\frac{6}{2}}=\\tau $$\nthus completes the proof.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{proof}[Proof of Theorem \\ref{fo2}, upper bound]\nFinally, to obtain the upper bound in Theorem \\ref{fo2}, we only have to observe two facts. On the one hand, we can assume that $\\delta\\geq k$ holds for the minimal degree of $G$, similarly to the proof of Theorem \\ref{upperb2}. Indeed, otherwise we would get $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n, G)\\leq \\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n-\\delta)$. On the other hand, easy computation shows that $\\sqrt[d+1]{\\frac{k+d}{k}}$ is a monotone decreasing function of $d$ from $d=k$, if $k$ is fixed. Thus $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n, G)\\leq 2\\cdot \\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n-k-1)$, and the upper bound follows.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\section{Concluding remarks and open problems}\n\nIn this final chapter we gather some problems and conjectures related to the discussed results.\n\n\n\n\n\\begin{problem} \\label{mdscode}\nDetermine or bound the number of all MDS codes, especially the number of $q$-ary MDS codes of type $(n,M,2)_q$\n\n\\end{problem} \n\n\\begin{remark}\nThe result is related to the number of $q-1$-coloring of certain Hamming-graphs in view of the proof of Theorem \\ref{mds}. Note that this problem is widely open even if we consider linear MDS codes, and on the other hand $q$ is not required to be a prime power.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\\begin{problem} \\label{vegessik}\nDetermine the number of maximal independent sets of the incidence graph $G(\\mathcal{P, L})$ of the projective geometry $PG(2,q)$ in terms of the number of vertices.\n\\end{problem} \n\n\\begin{conjecture} For every $k$, there exists a graph $G$ for which $\\zeta_k(G)=\\lim \\zeta_k(n)$ holds.\n\\end{conjecture} \n\n\n\\begin{conjecture}($\\sqrt[9]{6}$-conjecture) The maximal number of $2$-DISes in $n$-vertex graphs is $\\Theta(\\sqrt[9]{6}^n)$. That is, $\\zeta_2(n)=\\zeta_2(K_3\\square K_3)$. Moreover, Construction \\ref{pelda1} provides the extremal graphs for the function $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_2(n)$ if $n$ is large enough.\n\\end{conjecture} \n\n\\begin{conjecture} The maximal number of $k$-DISes in $n$-vertex graphs is attained for the disjoint union of $K_{k,k}$ graphs for $k>3$ if $2k|n$.\n\\end{conjecture} \n\n\n\\begin{problem} Describe large graph families $\\mathcal{F}$ for which \n\\begin{itemize}\n\\item $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n, \\mathcal{F})\\leq 1$,\n\\item $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n, \\mathcal{F})$ is bounded by a polynomial of $n$,\n\\item $\\lim\\zeta_k(n, \\mathcal{F})=1$.\n\\end{itemize}\n\\end{problem} \nThis problem is motivated by the results of Farber, Hujter and Tuza \\cite{HT2}.\n\n\\begin{conjecture} $\\hbox{\\rm mi}_k(n, \\mathcal{F})$ is not bounded by a polynomial of $n$ for the graph family of incidence graphs of projective planes.\n\\end{conjecture} \n\n\n\\bigskip\n\\noindent\n{\\bf Acknowledgments}\n\nI would like to thank Zolt\\'an F\\\"uredi, Tam\\'as H\\'eger, Mikl\\'os Simonovits, Tam\\'as Sz\\H{o}nyi and Zsolt Tuza for helpful discussions on the topics of this paper.\n\\bigskip\n\n\n\n\n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\\section{Propaganda techniques}\n1. Presenting Irrelevant Data (Red Herring) \u7121\u76f8\u95dc \n2. Misrepresentation of Someone's Position (Straw Man) \u76f8\u4f3c\u4ee3\u66ff\u539f\u672c \n3. Whataboutism \u62b9\u9ed1 \u865b\u507d\u6307\u63a7\u63a8\u7ffb\u8ad6\u9ede \n4. Causal Oversimplification \u904e\u5ea6\u7c21\u5316 \n5. Obfuscation, Intentional vagueness, Confusion \u6545\u610f\u6df7\u6dc6 \u6545\u610f\u4e0d\u8b1b\u6e05\u695a \n6. Appeal to authority \u6b0a\u5a01\u5c31\u662f\u5c0d\u7684 \n7. Black-and-white Fallacy, Dictatorship \u975e\u9ed1\u5373\u767d \n8. Name calling or labeling \u8cbc\u6a19\u7c64 \n9. Loaded Language \u4f7f\u7528\u60c5\u7dd2\u5316\u7684\u5b57\u773c \n10. Exaggeration or Minimisation \u904e\u5ea6\u8a87\u5927\u6216\u5927\u4e8b\u5316\u5c0f \n11. Flag-waving \u7528\u7fa4\u9ad4\u8cbc\u6a19\u7c64 \ninclude making statements as if it was the government. \n12. Doubt \u8cea\u7591 \n13. Appeal to fear\/prejudice \u6563\u64ad\u6050\u61fc\u548c\u504f\u898b \n14. Slogans \u6a19\u8a9e \n15. Thought-terminating clich\u00e9 \u6577\u884d \n16. Bandwagon. \u52a0\u5165\u6703\u8d0f\u7684\u4eba \n17. Reductio ad hitlerum \u6697\u793a\/\u9023\u7d50\u76ee\u6a19\u8ddf\u4e0d\u559c\u6b61\u7684\u5718\u9ad4 \n18. Repetition \n19. Neutral \u2013 Political:\n this include the international political news and events. \n20. Neutral \u2013 Non-Political \n21. MEME\u5f0f\u5e7d\u9ed8\n\n\n\\section{Analysis}\nthe time an account change names\nthe times the account has an mis align between account language and tweet language\n\nremove duplicate message \ncount duplicate value in both user profile description and \nplot account cluster plot if possible, and merge users with the same users profile description \n\nanalyst posting time and compare to the ASPI results. \n\ncount the number of unique account\nthe starting time of the account \nplot the activity \n\n\\subsection{Finding}\na lot basketball, football related content\nthe sports content was overlapped by severlap different website. \nfor example\ntweetid \"999469582346665984\"\ntweet\"\u91cc\u5f17\u65af\u662fNBA\u91cc\u6700\u9876\u5c16\u7684\u6559\u7ec3\u4e4b\u4e00,\u8fd9\u8d5b\u5b63\u4e5f\u662f\u4ed6\u52a0\u5165\u5feb\u8239\u4ee5\u6765\u6307\u6325\u7684\u6700\u51fa\u8272\u7684\u8d5b\u5b63\u4e4b\u4e00,\"\u5feb\u8239\u4e3b\u5e2d\u9c8d\u5c14\u9ed8\u5728\u4e00\u4efd\u58f0\u660e\u4e2d\u5982\u662f\u8bf4\u9053\"\nwas posted \n\u5feb\u8239\u8207\u91cc\u5f17\u65af\u9054\u6210\u7e8c\u7d04\u5354\u8b70 \u8001\u95c6:\u6700\u5f37\u6559\u7df4\u4e4b\u4e00\n\u539f\u6587\u7db2\u5740:http:\/\/read01.com\/O3KgeaP.html\nhttps:\/\/read01.com\/O3KgeaP.html#.YKtEvy8RppQ\n\u5feb\u8239\u4e0e\u91cc\u5f17\u65af\u8fbe\u6210\u7eed\u7ea6\u534f\u8bae \u8001\u677f:\u6700\u5f3a\u6559\u7ec3\u4e4b\u4e00\nhttps:\/\/3g.163.com\/sports\/article\/DII8TCI30005877U.html\n\u91cc\u5f17\u65af\u7559\u4efb\u5feb\u8239\u4e3b\u5e05!\u8001\u677f:\u4ed6\u662f\u6700\u5f3a\u6559\u7ec3\u4e4b\u4e00 \u6ca1\u7406\u7531\u4e0d\u7559\nhttps:\/\/www.twoeggz.com\/news\/8756688.html\n\u5feb\u8239\u4e0e\u91cc\u5f17\u65af\u8fbe\u6210\u7eed\u7ea6\u534f\u8bae \u8001\u677f:\u6700\u5f3a\u6559\u7ec3\u4e4b\u4e00\nhttps:\/\/m.themaxexp.com\/www\/news\/183022.html\n\u5feb\u8239\u7eed\u7ea6\u91cc\u5f17\u65af:\u6211\u671f\u5f85\u56de\u5f52\u7ee7\u7eed\u5f00\u53d1\u5e74\u8f7b\u7403\u5458\nhttps:\/\/m.china.com\/social\/13001814\/20180524\/32445431.html\n\u5feb\u8239\u7eed\u7ea6\u91cc\u5f17\u65af~\u5c0f\u8aaa|\u5feb\u8239\u8207\u91cc\u5f17\u65af\u9054\u6210\u7e8c\u7d04\u5354\u8b70 \u8001\u95c6:\u6700\u5f37\u6559\u7df4\u4e4b\u4e00\nhttps:\/\/m.bjzyjhltd.com\/qd\/3124\/\n\n\ntweetid\"996208455823192064\"\ntweet\"\u636e\u7f8e\u56fd\u5a92\u4f53\u62a5\u9053,\u660e\u5c3c\u82cf\u8fbe\u68ee\u6797\u72fc\u961f\u4eca\u5e74\u91cd\u8fd4\u5b63\u540e\u8d5b,\u4f46\u5728\u5b63\u540e\u8d5b\u7684\u5931\u5229\u4e5f\u8868\u660e,\u4ed6\u4eec\u60f3\u8981\u5728\u672a\u6765\u66f4\u8fdb\u4e00\u6b65\u4ecd\u9700\u8981\u66f4\u5927\u7684\u5f15\u63f4\u52a8\u4f5c\u3002\"\nshowed up in 14 different news cite in \n\n\nit also appeared that even toward the same entity, the accounts have vast different language for sending the same message. for example different linguistic ways in criticising the entity. across some of them, the name calling seem to be applicable across sentences.\n\u90ed\u761f\u75ab\n\u90ed\u761f\u9f9c\n\u7838\u90ed\/\u934b \n\nAlso few of them had mis spelling, \u90ed to \u934b. we suspect that the level of automation of this cluster could be limited. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{conclusion}\nfuture:\nstudying how much the content across sites overlap, if it always comes from certain websites. and compare the time it being posted. as a way for tracing the content flow. \n\n\n\n\\end{document}\n\\endinput\n\n\\section{Introduction}\n\nPropaganda has the purpose of framing and influencing opinions. With the rise of the internet and social media, propaganda has adopted a powerful tool for its unlimited reach, as well as multiple forms of content that can further drive engagement online and offline without disclosing the writers' identity. Computational propaganda is defined as propaganda being created or distributed using computational or technical means \\cite{bolsover2017computational}. Exploiting social media is considered as one of the low-cost and high-impact techniques in information warfare, driving and manipulating human behavior with various psychological manipulations \\cite{10.2307\/26481910}. How information is conveyed is by using propaganda techniques. Propaganda techniques are not only used for political content, but also for marketing, and religious content for persuasion purpose. Propaganda techniques, commonly used in disinformation and misinformation, are the way that propaganda is conveyed \\cite{da2019fine}, such detection allows for more fine-grained analysis and detection, not only distinguishing if it is propaganda, but characterizing where it might come from. The propaganda activity launched by foreign adversaries could be particularly concerning to a country as the usual goal may include steering discord, spreading fear, influencing beliefs and behaviors, diminishing trust, and threatening the stability of a country \\cite{10.2307\/26481910}. Various state-backed official and unofficial departments, organizations, and agencies were established to address information warfare include the Internet Research Agency of Russia \\cite{diresta2019tactics}, 50 Cent Party \\cite{king2017chinese} \\cite{han2015manufacturing} of Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Public Opinion Brigades of the Communist Party of Vietnam \\cite{bradshaw2017troops}.\n\nMost of the recent work has been focused on propaganda detection, in other word, identifying if the information is propaganda or not. This has been done using various methods such as qualitative analysis, quantitative analysis \\cite{beskow2020characterization}, and machine learning \\cite{wickramarathna2020framework} \\cite{rcc}. The main features for this detection task could be divided into two parts, content-driven, and network-driven. \nSome of the current propaganda text corpora open data sets on document levels include \\citet{rashkin2017truth} which labeled texts into trusted, satire, hoax, and propaganda on news. \\citet{barron2019proppy} further increased the corpus \\cite{rashkin2017truth} with more propaganda articles and metadata of the articles. The currently available fine-grained propaganda technique dataset is the one presented by \\citet{da2019fine}. From news articles, they labeled 18 propaganda techniques on a word-by-word sentence level, so that the position of where the propaganda technique was applied from start to end was being documented. All of the mentioned data sets are in English. \\citet{baisa2019benchmark} released a propaganda technique dataset for Czech based on newspaper. \n Another open data source is Twitter, a popular social media platform, the dataset discloses state-linked information operations that took place on their platform. \n However, the Twitter dataset is not labeled with propaganda techniques but the Twitter account metadata and media information only. The previously labeled propaganda technique in news article texts could be quite different linguistically compared to texts on social media. Tweets, messages posted on Twitter, tend to be more casual with slang and emoji. They are also shorter as the platform has a text length limit.\nIn the literature \\citet{da2020survey} who conducted a survey of computational propaganda, mentioned that there is limited propaganda detection research based on text features due to the lack of annotated data sets. Yet we think text content is an important feature for performing cross-platform detection, in user-identity linking, and in information origin tracing. Since the network feature may differ from platform to platform, text content is more consistent in that regard. To our knowledge, there is no existing propaganda technique dataset for Mandarin Chinese. \n\nTo address such a gap, we present our dataset\\footnote{Dataset will be released on https:\/\/github.com\/annabechang} that focuses on propaganda techniques in Mandarin based on a state-linked information operations dataset from the PRC released by Twitter in July 2019. The dataset consists of multi-label propaganda techniques of the sampled tweets. Additionally, we employed a fine-tuned BERT model for the multi-label classification task. \n\n\n\\section{Propaganda Techniques}\n\nBelow we explained a list of selected propaganda techniques we have considered based on various studies \\cite{da2019fine} \\cite{baisa2019benchmark} \\cite{enwiki:1020793767}. Using the same assumption as \\cite{da2019fine}, we labeled our data based on the linguistic and language use that can be judged directly without retrieving extra information. The propaganda techniques we considered are as follows: \n\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\n \\item Presenting Irrelevant Data\n \n Also called Red Herring. Introducing irrelevant information or issues to an argument. \n \n \\item Misrepresentation of Someone's Position (Straw Man)\n \n Substituting one's opinion with a distorted version rather than the original one. \n \n \\item Whataboutism\n \n Defaming the opponents with hypocrisy.\n \n \\item Oversimplification \\\\\n Overly generalizing information or the complexity of the certain issues to favor a party. \n \n \\item Obfuscation, intentional vagueness, confusion\\\\\n Purposefully being vague with the intention for the audience to develop false recognition toward the subject. \n \n \\item Appeal to authority\\\\\n Supporting the opinion or clam unconditionally as long as it comes from the government or an expert.\n \n \\item Black-and-white Fallacy\\\\\n Presenting only two opposite possibilities, one favoring a certain party and one presented by the opponent. \n \n \\item Stereotyping, name-calling, labeling\\\\\n Labeling the target with the intention of arousing prejudices or making an association with stereotypes. \n \n \\item Loaded Language\\\\\n Using emotional words to influence audience opinions. \n \n \\item Exaggeration or Minimisation\\\\\n Overly amplifying or reducing the importance of something. \n \n \\item Flag-waving\\\\\n Justifying or presenting as a nation or group or idea. In our case, we also consider Flag-waving when one person is presented as their opinion represents the entire nation or group.\n \n \\item Doubt\\\\\n Questioning or steering uncertainty or trust toward something, an entity, or a group.\n \n \\item Appeal to fear or prejudice \\\\\n Spreading a sense of anxiety, fear, or panic toward the audience or entity.\n \n \\item Slogans \\\\\n A brief sentence that includes labeling, stereotyping or certain cognitive belief.\n \n \\item Thought-terminating clich\u00e9\\\\\n Using simple and generic sentences to discourage detail in discussions.\n\n \\item Bandwagon\\\\\n Persuading the audience to align with the bigger crowd who appear to have an advantage or better situation, or implying a certain entity will lose or have a worse situation. \n \n \\item Guilt by association or Reductio ad Hitlerum\\\\\n Associating an opponent or target with the usually disliked object or group.\n \n \\item Repetition\\\\\n Repeating the same message or idea several times. \n\\end{enumerate}\n\nAdditional to the usual propaganda techniques, we also introduce the following that have been seen in the dataset:\n\n\\begin{enumerate}\n \\item Neutral Political \\\\\n This includes the international political news that's being written objectively. \n \n \\item Non-Political\\\\\n This includes the non-political related content, which could be written with a neutral or angry, or happy tone. \n\n \\item Meme humor\\\\\n This is the content that used sarcastic humor toward an entity.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\n\\section{Data}\n\nTwitter disclosed 936 accounts with identified state-backed information operations from the People's Republic of China (PRC) government departments, agencies, and party-supported organizations. The dataset was divided into two batches that consist of 744 accounts and 196 accounts separately on Twitter's information operations disclosure. In our study, we sampled tweets from a batch of 744 accounts. The available data disclosed containing account metadata (account created time, a user profile description, user-reported location, etc), tweet metadata (tweet created time, tweet text, tweet language, tweet hashtags, etc), and shared media content (images and videos). In our study, we only focus on the tweet metadata. \n\nThe total number of tweets sent by the 744 accounts is $ 1,898,108$. We first filter it by language, and duplicates were dropped. The total number of tweets in Chinese contained in the dataset is $ 74,277$, we randomly selected $ 9,950$ tweets out of that number for labeling. \n\n\\citet{uren2019tweeting} conducted a detailed quantitative and qualitative analysis on these accounts, and suggested that this cluster could be re-purposed spam accounts as they altered the used language through different periods of time. These findings are aligned with ours. Figure \\ref{fig:total_lang} shows the top 15 tweet language usage out of 50 total used languages. The top 5 languages used in this cluster of accounts are Indonesian (in), English (en), Portuguese (pt), Chinese (zh), and Tagalog (tl). \n\n\\begin{figure}[ht]\n \\centering\n \\includegraphics[width=\\linewidth]{total_lang.png}\n \\caption{Language usage of more than 10,000 times each year}\n \\label{fig:lang_used}\n\\end{figure}\n\nIn Figure \\ref{fig:lang_used} we plot the language used more than 10,000 times each year and we can see that Chinese was only used by this cluster of accounts after 2017. The primary used language appears to have been clear cut in different years, which indicate that this cluster could be spam accounts that were created and used by entities with different backgrounds and purposes at different time period. \n\n\\begin{figure}[ht]\n \\centering\n \\includegraphics[width=\\linewidth]{Lang_survey.jpeg}\n \\caption{Total language usage in the data set}\n \\label{fig:total_lang}\n\\end{figure}\n\nManual annotation was done by two annotators separately on different portions of the dataset, this was designed intentionally to insure the alliance of opinions in the dataset \\cite{gordon2021disagreement}. This design will increase the annotator consistency, reduce noise and have better model performance. In the annotation process, we iterate the process of reviewing, data labeling and documenting political entities being named in the sentence. We built pre-defined labels according to the political entities mentioned, and human annotators update from the rule based labels, adding more entity keywords \\footnote{The list of entity keywords will be released on the same website}, and updating the further unseen data labels. The keywords are show in Table \\ref{tab:key}, they can be divided into four categories: exiled or anti-government Chinese, Hong Kong protest, Taiwan independence, International Geo-Political related topics. The usage of keyword is not to be exact but assisting the human annotators.\n\n\\begin{table}[ht]\n \\caption{Aggregation of keyword mentioned count}\n \\label{tab:key}\n \\begin{tabular}{cc}\n \\toprule\n Keyword Category & Count \\\\\n \\midrule\n Exiled or anti-government Chinese & 5,406 \\\\\n Hong Kong protest & 209 \\\\\n International Geo-Political & 1,718 \\\\\n Taiwan independence & 2 \\\\\n \\bottomrule\n\\end{tabular}\n\\end{table}\n\nThe propaganda techniques are only labeled on the political-related content, there could be non-political content using propaganda techniques but this is not labeled as it was not our focus. Such content will be labeled as a non-political class. \n\nIn total, we have 21 different propaganda techniques, we showed a label statistic in Table \\ref{tab:freq}. This is an imbalanced dataset, as the most frequently used label is the non-political content that was used for $ 6,117$ times. Loaded Language was used the most at $ 2,609$ times, followed by Whataboutism $ 2,509$ and Name-Calling $ 2,313$ are the most used propaganda techniques on political-related content. A few techniques occurred rarely, especially the Thought-terminating clich\u00e9 was not used. We suspect that this is due to the nature of spam accounts. That is, building a relationship with other accounts was not their primary goal. Thought-terminating clich\u00e9s might be used more in the circumstances where building a relationship with other accounts is one of the target goals. An example of how the dataset was formatted can be seen in Table \\ref{tab:smp}, the tweets were translated for the purpose of display. \n\n\\begin{table}[ht]\n \\caption{Data set label statistics}\n \\label{tab:freq}\n \\begin{tabular}{ccc}\n \\toprule\n Symbo & Propaganda Techniques & Frequency\\\\\n \\midrule\n 1 & Presenting Irrelevant Data & 13\\\\\n 2 & Straw Man & 2\\\\\n 3 & Whataboutism & 2,509\\\\\n 4 & Oversimplification & 37\\\\\n 5& Obfuscation& 12\\\\\n 6& Appeal to authority& 50\\\\\n 7& Black-and-white & 265\\\\\n 8& Name Calling& 2,313\\\\\n 9& Loaded Language& 2,609\\\\\n 10& Exaggeration or Minimisation& 114\\\\\n 11& Flag-waving& 81\\\\\n 12& Doubt& 147\\\\\n 13& Appeal to fear or prejudice & 141\\\\\n 14& Slogans& 37\\\\\n 15& Thought-terminating clich\u00e9& 0\\\\\n 16& Bandwagon& 64\\\\\n 17& Reductio ad Hitlerum& 83\\\\\n 18& Repetition& 60\\\\\n 19& Neutral Political & 915\\\\\n 20& Non-Political& 6,117\\\\\n 21& Meme humor& 5\\\\\n \n \\bottomrule\n\\end{tabular}\n\\end{table}\n\n\\begin{table}[ht]\n \\caption{Data set sample display}\n \\label{tab:smp}\n \\begin{tabular}{|p{1.5cm}|p{4cm}|p{1.5cm}|}\n \\toprule\n Tweetid & Translated Tweet & Propaganda Techniques\\\\\n \\midrule \n \\shortstack[r]{990189929\\\\836699648} & The truth and hypocrisy under the false democratic face of Guo Wengui, the clown jumping beam, is now undoubtedly exposed! & 3,8,9\\\\\n \\hline \n \\shortstack[r]{114879827\\\\6281364480} & We must severely punish the rioters and return Hong Kong to peaceful & 8,9,13,14\\\\\n \\bottomrule\n\\end{tabular}\n\\end{table}\n\n\\section{Multi-label Propaganda Technique Classification}\nIn this section, we describe our methodology in designing andfine- tuning, and provide the result of our BERT-based multi-label classification result.\n\nBidirectional Encoder Representations from Transformers \\(BERT\\) \\cite{devlin-etal-2019-bert} a language representation model has delivered state-of-the-art results in several NLP tasks. In our case, the research problem in our case is a multi-label task where given one sentence, there are one to multiple labels that could apply. \n\nWe used the bert-base-chinese pre-trained model provided by Huggingface \\cite{wolf-etal-2020-transformers} for both tokenization and pre-training the model. The bert-base-chinese pre-trained model is trained based on both simplified Chinese and traditional Chinese \\cite{cui2019pre}, which fits our use case. In our model design, we used a BERT model followed by a dropout and linear layer for regularization and classification purposes. We have 21 different labels defined in our propaganda technique labels with 1 of them without occurrence. We set the number of dimensions for the linear layer to 20. The output of the linear layer is what we used to determine the accuracy of the models. \n\nThe max input length was set to 100 with a training batch size of 2 and a validation batch size of 2 using the data loader from Pytorch \\cite{NEURIPS2019_9015}. We chose to use BCEWithLogitsLoss, which combines a Sigmoid layer and BCELoss, from Pytorch \\cite{NEURIPS2019_9015} as our loss function. Adam \\cite{1412.6980} was used as an optimizer. We ran it for 2 epochs with a learning rate equal to $ 1e-05$. We trained on a Linux machine with GeForce RTX 2070 GPU, and 16 Intel(R) Core(TM) i9-9900K CPU.\n\n\n\\section{Evaluation}\nThe training and testing size was set to 80\\% and 20\\% respectively. The results are shown in the Table \\ref{tab:res}. We only trained it for 2 epochs yet we saw the loss decreased drastically from $ 0.71102$ to $ 0.05953$. In the experiment, we trained for more than 2 epochs; however, the accuracy did not improve. Thus 2 epochs appear to be optimal in our experiment. The evaluation metrics used were accuracy, micro-averaged F1-score, and macro-averaged F1-score. Micro-averaged F1-score aggregate all the samples to compute the average metric of the True Positives our of the Predicted Positives. Macro-averaged F1-score aggregated each class and compute the metrics based on each class. In our case, our accuracy is $ 0.80352$ with micro-averaged F1-score of $ 0.85431$ and macro-averaged F1-score of $ 0.20803$. This indicates that our model performed well in predicting overall samples, however the performance on each label varied a lot. This is expected as our dataset is skewed, some labels have many data while a few labels have very little data labeled in the dataset. \n\n\\begin{table}[ht]\n \\caption{Classification results}\n \\label{tab:res}\n \\begin{tabular}{cc}\n \\toprule\n Measurement Name & Performance \\\\\n \\midrule\n Loss : Epoch 0 & 0.71102 \\\\\n Loss : Epoch 1 & 0.05953 \\\\\n Accuracy& 0.80352 \\\\\n F1 Score (Micro) & 0.85431 \\\\\n F1 Score (Macro) & 0.20803 \\\\\n \\bottomrule\n\\end{tabular}\n\\end{table}\n\n\nTwo main activity directions of the dataset were to target opponents of the CPC, such as exiled Chinese, human rights lawyers, relevant personnel and to vilify the protesters against the national security law in Hong Kong. This finding was aligned with what was found in \\cite{uren2019tweeting} \\cite{bolsover2017computational}, where the spam accounts flooded content in Mandarin with the purpose of dominating search results on Twitter when it comes to certain topics. By doing so the propaganda operators wanted the search results to be skewed toward a perspective that favored the CCP and eschewed the certain community.\n\n\\section{Discussion}\nIn this paper, we presented the first propaganda technique dataset of state-backed information operation accounts from PRC for Mandarin based on dataset released by Twitter. We applied 21 propaganda techniques and we annotated a total of $ 9,950$ sentences under a multi-label setting. Machine learning models driven propaganda research can be particularly benefited by our data set. As we labeled political content with propaganda techniques, while giving non political item a label. Our dataset can be used to train classifier for political and non-political in Mandarin as well.\n\nUpon the organization structure of PRC, different departments and agencies may lunch online operations targeting the same or different groups of audiences, with different linguistic characteristics. Thus, this data set's linguistic feature or the propaganda techniques may not apply to all. \n\n\\section{Conclusion}\n\nWe presented a new dataset on propaganda techniques from the state-backed information operation accounts from PRC in Mandarin. We trained a fine-tuned BERT model to perform multi-label classification on our dataset. In the times where information on social media are part of information warfare strategics. Our dataset could be beneficial in the propaganda, political research and beyond.\n\nBy considering the country, political party, or authority as an entity, we could initially view state-backed propaganda on different topics as a stance detection of texts from such an entity. And propaganda techniques could be viewed as a writing style feature. This could help future research in clustering and identifying how likely it is that the information is coming from the same entity or agency.\n\nOne state could launch several propaganda texts that have a similar stance or opinion in different countries with different languages. Thus we hope to see our dataset inspire or provide useful information on multilingual or cross platform state-back propaganda research, using the propaganda techniques as the universal features across languages. \n\n\\bibliographystyle{ACM-Reference-Format}\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\n\\section{Introduction}\n\\label{sec:introduction}\n\nWith nearly 100 confirmed transiting extrasolar planets (TEPs) known,\nmany studies of planetary properties now focus \non the statistical distributions of and correlations between \nplanetary parameters.\nIndividual TEPs still remain extraordinarily valuable, \nparticularly if they have properties that \nexemplify an important subgroup of planets \nand orbit stars that are bright \nenough for meaningful follow-up observations. \nSuch iconic well-studied planets include\nHD~209458b \\citep{dc:2000,henry:2000}, \nHD~189733 \\citep{bouchy:2005}, \nGJ~436b \\citep{gillon:2007,butler:2004}, \nHAT-P-13b,c \\citep{bakos:2010},\nWASP-12b \\citep{hebb:2009}, \nand GJ~1214b \\citep{dc:2009}. \nThe HAT-P-17\\ system has at least two unusual properties \ncompared to the ensemble of known TEPs \nand may serve as an exemplar for planets with these \nproperties. The atmosphere of \nHAT-P-17b\\ is relatively cool for a TEP and \nHAT-P-17c\\ is one of only two long-period planets found to orbit \na TEP host. \n\nThe distribution of TEPs discovered by ground-based transit \nsurveys is biased toward \nlarge planets orbiting faint early type stars in short period orbits. \nEach of these biases stems from the observational selection effects \nof the surveys that have detected the majority of TEPs: \nthe deep transits of large planets are easier to detect; \nearly type stars dominate magnitude limited surveys; \nand short-period orbits have higher \\textit{a prioiri} \ntransit probabilities and significantly larger probabilities of \ndetection in a ground-based survey limited to one or two \nobserving sites. \nThe overabundance of detected short period planets has skewed \nour perception of the atmospheric properties of extrasolar jovian planets. \nPlanets in $P \\sim 3$\\,d orbits ($a \\sim 0.04$) experience intense \ninteractions with the radiation and tides\nof their host stars. \nThe atmospheres of many of these planets are inflated beyond \nthe radii predicted by theoretical models \\citep{fortney:2007}. \nTo understand cooler planets, \nwhich we know from radial velocity (RV) surveys represent \nthe vast majority of gas giants \\citep{wright:2009}, \nwe must study planets orbiting progressively \nfurther from their host stars. \n\nWith such a scarcity of cool planets, \nHAT-P-17b\\ is a valuable probe of the planetary mass--radius relationship \nand additional properties through follow-up observations. \nTogether, the relatively long orbital period and later spectral type of the host star \nyield an incident stellar flux that \nis 1--2 orders of magnitude lower than the flux received by most \ndetected TEPs \\citep{kovacs:2010}. \nThe host star is also relatively bright, $V = \\hatcurCCtassmv$, \nmaking follow-up atmospheric studies conceivable.\nWhile the \\textit{Kepler} mission \\citep{borucki:2010}\nhas been extraordinarily successful \nin the detection of TEPs, the vast majority of its discovered planets \norbit faint stars; only 1.5\\% of the $\\sim10^5$ stars being surveyed \n\\citep{batalha:2010} are brighter than 11th magnitude \n(Kepler magnitude). \nWe predict that HAT-P-17b\\ will be among the small number of \nwell-studied cooler ($\\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff}} < 1000$\\,K) TEPs.\n\nPrior to this announcement, only one TEP discovered by a \nground-based photometric survey is in a confirmed multi-planet system. \nHAT-P-13 \\citep{bakos:2010}\nhas a hot Jupiter inner planet and highly eccentric super-Jupiter \nouter planet with an orbital period of ~450~d. \nThe outer planet, HAT-P-13c, was detected only in RV measurements \nand has not been shown to transit. \nThe system reported here, HAT-P-17, is now the second TEP \ndiscovered by a ground-based \ntransit survey with a confirmed second planet. \nThe relatively low rate of detected planet multiplicity among TEPs\ndiscovered from by ground may be skewed by the lack of\nlong-term RV and photometric monitoring for most TEP host stars.\nMeasuring the rate of planet multiplicity among \nstars hosting a hot Jupiter will probe \nthe dynamical histories and migrations mechanisms of \nhot Jupiters \\citep[see, e.g.,][]{wu:2007}.\nMulti-planet systems are significantly more common among \nRV-detected systems; \\cite{wright:2009} find that 28\\% of known \nplanet host stars are multi-planet systems. \n\nSeveral multi-planet systems have also been discovered from space. \nCorot-7 is thought to host two short-period \nsuper-Earths \\citep{leger:2009,queloz:2009}, one of which transits.\nThe \\textit{Kepler} mission recently announced five candidate \nsystems with multiple transiting planets and is poised to announce \nadditional systems \\citep{steffen:2010}.\n\nThe Hungarian-made Automated Telescope Network\n\\citep[HATNet;][]{bakos:2004} survey has been one of the main\ncontributors to the discovery of TEPs. In operation since 2003, it\nhas now covered approximately 14\\% of the sky, searching for TEPs\naround bright stars ($8\\lesssim I \\lesssim 14.0$). HATNet operates\nsix wide-field instruments: four at the Fred Lawrence Whipple\nObservatory (FLWO) in Arizona, and two on the roof of the hangar\nservicing the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory's Submillimeter\nArray, in Hawaii. Since 2006, HATNet has announced and published 16\nTEPs. In this work we report our seventeenth discovery, around the\nrelatively bright star previously known as \\hatcurCCgsc{}.\n\nThe layout of the paper is as follows. In \\refsecl{obs} we report the\ndetection of the photometric signal and the follow-up spectroscopic\nand photometric observations of HAT-P-17{}. In \\refsecl{analysis} we\ndescribe the analysis of the data, beginning with the determination of\nthe stellar parameters, continuing with a discussion of the methods\nused to rule out nonplanetary, false positive scenarios which could\nmimic the photometric and spectroscopic observations, and finishing\nwith a description of our global modelling of the photometry and radial\nvelocities. In \\refsecl{discussion} we discuss implications of this \ndiscovery, compare our results with recent theoretical models of TEPs, \nand consider possible follow-on observations.\n\n\\section{Observations}\n\\label{sec:obs}\n\n\n\\subsection{Photometric detection}\n\\label{sec:detection}\n\nThe transits of HAT-P-17b{} were detected with the HAT-5 telescope in\nArizona, the HAT-8 telescope in Hawaii, and with the Wise-HAT (WHAT)\ntelescope at Wise Observatory in Israel \\citep{shporer:2009}. The\nregion around \\hatcurCCgsc{}, a field internally labeled as\n\\hatcurfield, was observed on a nightly basis between 2005 May 8 and\n2005 October 24, whenever weather conditions permitted. We gathered\n9686 exposures of 5 minutes duration at a 5.5 minute cadence. \nEach image\ncontained approximately 85,000 stars down to $I\\sim14.0$. For the\nbrightest stars in the field, we achieved a per-image photometric\nprecision of 5\\,mmag. The star is also located in the overlapping\nfield \\hatcurfieldtwo, which was observed with the HAT-6 telescope in\nArizona and the WHAT telescope in Israel between 2004 June 4 and\n2004 November 10, and between 2005 July 3 and 2005 July 15. Altogether\n4882 exposures of 5 minutes duration at 5.5 minute cadence \nwere gathered for this field.\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\plotone{\\hatcurhtr-hatnet.eps}\n\\caption{\n\tUnbinned (top) and binned (bottom) light curve{}s of HAT-P-17{} \n\tincluding all 14,000 instrumental\n \\band{I} 5.5 minute cadence measurements obtained with the\n HAT-5, HAT-6, and HAT-8 telescopes of HATNet and with the\n WHAT telescope (see the text for details), and folded with\n the period $P = \\hatcurLCPprec$\\,days (resulting from the\n global fit described in \\refsecl{analysis}). The solid line\n shows the ``P1P3'' transit model fit to the light curve\n (\\refsecl{globmod}).\n\\label{fig:hatnet}}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\nThe calibration of the HATNet and WHAT frames was carried out using\nstandard photometric procedures. The calibrated images were then\nsubjected to star detection and astrometry, as described in\n\\cite{pal:2006}. Aperture photometry was performed on each image at\nthe stellar centroids derived from the Two Micron All Sky Survey\n\\citep[2MASS;][]{skrutskie:2006} catalog and the individual\nastrometric solutions. The resulting light curves\\ were decorrelated (cleaned\nof trends) using the External Parameter Decorrelation \\citep[EPD;\n see][]{bakos:2009} technique in ``constant'' mode and the Trend\nFiltering Algorithm \\citep[TFA; see][]{kovacs:2005}. The light curves{} were\nsearched for periodic box-shaped signals using the Box Least-Squares\n\\citep[BLS; see][]{kovacs:2002} method. We detected a significant\nsignal in the light curve{} of \\hatcurCCgsc{} (also known as\n\\hatcurCCtwomass{} and TYC 2717-417-1; \n$\\alpha = \\hatcurCCra$, $\\delta = \\hatcurCCdec$;\nJ2000; V=\\hatcurCCtassmv{}; \\citealp{droege:2006}), with an apparent\ndepth of $\\sim\\hatcurLCdip$\\,mmag, and a period of\n$P=\\hatcurLCPshort$\\,days (see \\reffigl{hatnet}). The drop in\nbrightness had a first-to-last-contact duration, relative to the total\nperiod, of $q = \\hatcurLCq$, corresponding to a total duration of $Pq =\n\\hatcurLCdurhr$~hr (see \\reffigl{hatnet}). We note that the transits\nwere only detected from the observations of field \\hatcurfield, and\nwere not detected in the observations of field \\hatcurfieldtwo{}.\n\n\\subsection{Reconnaissance Spectroscopy}\n\\label{sec:recspec}\n\nAs is routine in the HATNet project, all candidates are subjected to\ncareful scrutiny before investing valuable time on large\ntelescopes. This includes spectroscopic observations at relatively\nmodest facilities to establish whether the transit-like feature in the\nlight curve of a candidate might be due to astrophysical phenomena\nother than a planet transiting a star. Many of these false positives\nare associated with large radial-velocity variations in the star (tens\nof \\ensuremath{\\rm km\\,s^{-1}}) that are easily recognized.\n\n\nOne of the tools we have used for this purpose is the\nHarvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) Digital Speedometer\n\\citep[DS;][]{latham:1992}, an echelle spectrograph mounted on the\n\\mbox{FLWO 1.5\\,m}\\ telescope. This instrument delivers high-resolution spectra\n($\\lambda\/\\Delta\\lambda \\approx 35,\\!000$) over a single order\ncentered on the \\ion{Mg}{1}\\,b triplet ($\\sim$5187\\,\\AA), with\ntypically low signal-to-noise (S\/N) ratios that are nevertheless\nsufficient to derive radial velocities (RVs) with moderate precisions\nof 0.5--1.0\\,\\ensuremath{\\rm km\\,s^{-1}}\\ for slowly rotating stars. The same spectra can be\nused to estimate the effective temperature, surface gravity, and\nprojected rotational velocity of the host star, as described by\n\\cite{torres:2002b}. With this facility we are able to reject many\ntypes of false positives, such as F dwarfs orbited by M dwarfs,\ngrazing eclipsing binaries, or triple or quadruple star\nsystems. Additional tests are performed with other spectroscopic\nobservations described in the next section.\n\nFor HAT-P-17{} we obtained eight observations with the DS between\nSeptember and November of 2007. The velocity measurements showed an\nrms residual of \\hatcurDSrvrms\\,\\ensuremath{\\rm km\\,s^{-1}}, consistent with no detectable RV\nvariation within the precision of the measurements. All spectra were\nsingle-lined, i.e., there is no evidence for additional stars in the\nsystem. The atmospheric parameters we infer from these observations\nare the following: effective temperature $\\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff\\star}} =\n\\hatcurDSteff\\,K$, surface gravity $\\ensuremath{\\log{g_{\\star}}} = \\hatcurDSlogg$ (log\ncgs), and projected rotational velocity $\\ensuremath{v \\sin{i}} = \\hatcurDSvsini\\,\\ensuremath{\\rm km\\,s^{-1}}$. \nThe effective temperature corresponds to an \\hatcurISOspec\\ dwarf star. \nThe mean heliocentric RV of HAT-P-17\\ is\n$\\gamma_{\\rm RV} = \\hatcurDSgamma$\\,\\ensuremath{\\rm km\\,s^{-1}}.\n\n\\subsection{High resolution, high S\/N spectroscopy}\n\\label{sec:hispec}\n\nGiven the significant transit detection by HATNet, and the encouraging\nDS results that rule out obvious false positives, we proceeded with\nthe follow-up of this candidate by obtaining high-resolution, high-S\/N\nspectra to characterize the RV variations, and to refine the\ndetermination of the stellar parameters. For this we used HIRES\n\\citep{vogt:1994} on the Keck~I telescope located on Mauna\nKea, Hawaii, between 2007 October and 2010 April. The width of the\nspectrometer slit was $0\\farcs86$, resulting in a resolving power of\n$\\lambda\/\\Delta\\lambda \\approx 55,\\!000$, with a wavelength coverage\nof $\\sim$3800--8000\\,\\AA\\@.\n\nWe obtained 32 HIRES exposures with an iodine cell mounted directly \nin front of the spectrometer entrance slit. \nThe dense set of molecular absorption lines imprinted \non the stellar spectra provide a robust wavelength fiducial \nagainst which Doppler shifts are measured, \nas well as strong constraints on the shape of the spectrometer instrumental \nprofile at the time of each observation \\citep{marcy:1992,valenti:1995}.\nAn additional exposure was taken\nwithout the iodine cell, for use as a template in the reductions.\nRelative RVs in the solar system barycentric frame were derived as\ndescribed by \\cite{butler:1996}, incorporating full modeling of the\nspatial and temporal variations of the instrumental profile. \nThese measurements have typical uncertainties of 1.5--2.0~\\ensuremath{\\rm m\\,s^{-1}}\\ \nfor spectra with per-pixel signal-to-noise ratios of 100--150. \nHIRES measurements of late G and early K dwarf stars have achieved \nlong term stability of 1.5--2.0~\\ensuremath{\\rm m\\,s^{-1}}\\ on standard stars, \nincluding noise from systematic and astrophysical sources \n\\citep{howard:2010}.\nThe RV measurements and their uncertainties are listed in \\reftabl{rvs}. \nThe period-folded data, along with our best fit described below in\n\\refsecl{analysis}, are displayed in \\reffigl{rvbis}.\n\n\\begin{figure*\n\\plotone{HTR248-002_rv_multipanel.eps}\n\\caption{\n {\\em Top:} Keck\/HIRES RV measurements for\n \\hbox{HAT-P-17{}} shown as a function of BJD, along with our\n best-fit 2-planet model (see \\reftabl{planetparam}). The\n center-of-mass velocity has been subtracted.\n {\\em Second from top:} Same as top panel except the \n RV model of the inner planet has been subtracted \n from the data and the model, revealing the orbit of the outer \n planet. The rms variation of the\n residuals to the two-planet model is 3.07\\,\\ensuremath{\\rm m\\,s^{-1}}, \n requiring a jitter of\n $\\hatcurRVjitter$\\,\\ensuremath{\\rm m\\,s^{-1}}\\ added in quadrature to the\n individual errors to yield a reduced $\\ensuremath{\\chi^2}$ of 1.0. The\n error-bars in this panel have been inflated accordingly.\n {\\em Third row:} RV measurements phased to the \n orbital periods of the inner planet (left) and \n the outer planet (right). \n In each plot the orbit of the other planet has been \n removed. \n {\\em Fourth row:} Bisector spans (BS), with the mean value\n subtracted, phased at the period of the inner planet (left) \n and the outer planet (right). The\n measurement from the template spectrum is included (see\n \\refsecl{bisec}).\n {\\em Fifth row:} Relative chromospheric activity index $S$\n measured from the Keck spectra, phased at the period of the\n inner planet (left) and the outer planet (right).\n\tNote the different vertical scales of the panels. Observations\n shown twice are represented with open symbols.\n\\label{fig:rvbis}}\n\\end{figure*}\n\nIn the same figure we also show the relative $S$ index, which is a\nmeasure of the chromospheric activity of the star derived from the\nflux in the cores of the \\ion{Ca}{2} H and K lines. This index was\ncomputed following the prescription given by \\citet{vaughan:1978},\nafter matching each spectrum to a reference spectrum using a\ntransformation that includes a wavelength shift and a flux scaling\nthat is a polynomial as a function of wavelength. The transformation\nwas determined on regions of the spectra that are not used in\nNote that our relative $S$ index has not been calibrated to the scale\nof \\citet{vaughan:1978}. We do not detect any significant variation of\nthe index correlated with the orbital phase of either planet; \nsuch a correlation might have\nindicated that the RV variations could be due to stellar activity,\ncasting doubt on the planetary nature of the candidates. \n\nIn addition, we computed an $S_{\\rm HK}$ index calibrated \nto the Mt.\\ Wilson scale, permitting comparisons with \ncalibrated activity measurements of other stars \\citep{knutson:2010}. \nWe find $S_{\\rm HK} = 0.162$ (median of all HIRES measurements) and \n\\ensuremath{\\log\\rhk}\\ = $-$5.039 (median).\nThese measurements employ the techniques described in \n\\cite{isaacson:2010}, calibrated on 1500 stars observed by the \nCalifornia Planet Survey (CPS). \nWe used $B-V = 0.83$ estimated from \\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff}}\\ using the linear transformation \nbetween those quantities in \\cite{valenti:2005}.\n\n\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\n \\begin{deluxetable*}{lrrrrr}\n}{\n \\begin{deluxetable}{lrrrrr}\n}\n\\tablewidth{0pc}\n\\tablecaption{\n\tRelative radial velocities, bisector spans, and activity index\n\tmeasurements of HAT-P-17{}.\n\t\\label{tab:rvs}\n}\n\\tablehead{\n\t\\colhead{BJD} & \n\t\\colhead{RV\\tablenotemark{a}} & \n\t\\colhead{\\ensuremath{\\sigma_{\\rm RV}}\\tablenotemark{b}} & \n\t\\colhead{BS} & \n\t\\colhead{\\ensuremath{\\sigma_{\\rm BS}}} & \n\t\\colhead{S\\tablenotemark{c}} \\\\%& \n\t\\colhead{\\hbox{(2,454,000$+$)}} & \n\t\\colhead{(\\ensuremath{\\rm m\\,s^{-1}})} & \n\t\\colhead{(\\ensuremath{\\rm m\\,s^{-1}})} &\n\t\\colhead{(\\ensuremath{\\rm m\\,s^{-1}})} &\n \\colhead{(\\ensuremath{\\rm m\\,s^{-1}})} &\n\t\\colhead{}\n}\n\\startdata\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{rvtablelong}}{\\input{rvtable.tex}\n\t[-2ex]\n}{\\input{rvtable_short.tex}\n\t[-2ex]\n}\n\\enddata\n\\tablenotetext{a}{\n\tThe zero-point of these velocities is arbitrary. An overall\n offset $\\gamma_{\\rm rel}$ fitted to these velocities in\n \\refsecl{globmod} has {\\em not} been subtracted.\n}\n\\tablenotetext{b}{\n\tInternal errors excluding the component of astrophysical\n jitter considered in \\refsecl{globmod}.\n}\n\\tablenotetext{c}{\n\tRelative chromospheric activity index, not calibrated to the\n\tscale of \\citet{vaughan:1978}.\n}\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{rvtablelong}}{\n\t\\tablecomments{\n \n\t\tNote that for the iodine-free template exposures we do not\n\t\tmeasure the RV but do measure the BS and S index. Such template\n\t\texposures can be distinguished by the missing RV value. \n \n\t}\n}{\n \\tablecomments{\n \n\t\tNote that for the iodine-free template exposures we do not\n\t\tmeasure the RV but do measure the BS and S index. Such template\n\t\texposures can be distinguished by the missing RV value. \n This table is presented in its entirety in the electronic edition\n of the Astrophysical Journal. A portion is shown here for guidance\n regarding its form and content.\n \n\t}\n} \n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\n \\end{deluxetable*}\n}{\n \\end{deluxetable}\n}\n\n\\subsection{Photometric follow-up observations}\n\\label{sec:phot}\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\plotone{\\hatcurhtr-lc.eps}\n\\caption{\n\tUnbinned instrumental $z$-band, $I$-band, $R$-band, and\n $i$-band transit light curves{}, acquired with KeplerCam at the\n \\mbox{FLWO 1.2\\,m}{} telescope, with the Schmidt telescope at Konkoly\n Observatory, and with the 0.46\\,m and 1\\,m telescopes at Wise\n Observatory. The light curves have been EPD- and TFA-processed,\n as described in \\refsec{globmod}.\n The dates and facilities used to observe the events are indicated.\n Curves after the first are displaced vertically for clarity. Our\n best fit from the global modeling described in \\refsecl{globmod}\n is shown by the solid lines. Residuals from the fits are\n displayed at the bottom, in the same order as the top curves. The\n error bars represent photon and background shot noise, plus\n readout noise.\n\\label{fig:lc}}\n\\end{figure}\n\nIn order to permit a more accurate modeling of the light curve, we\nconducted additional photometric observations using a variety of\nfacilities, including: the KeplerCam CCD camera on the \\mbox{FLWO 1.2\\,m}{}\ntelescope, the 0.6\\,m Schmidt telescope of Konkoly Observatory at the\nPiszk\\'estet\\H{o} Mountain Station, and the 0.46\\,m and 1.0\\,m\ntelescopes at Wise Observatory. We observed three transit events of\nHAT-P-17{} with the \\mbox{FLWO 1.2\\,m}{} telescope on the nights of 2007 December\n14, 2008 October 19, and 2009 October 16, while the event on 2008\nSeptember 8 was observed simultaneously at Konkoly Observatory and\nwith the two telescopes at Wise Observatory (\\reffigl{lc}). These\nobservations are summarized in \\reftabl{phfusummary}.\n\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\n \\begin{deluxetable*}{llrrr}\n}{\n \\begin{deluxetable}{llrrr}\n}\n\\tablewidth{0pc}\n\\tabletypesize{\\scriptsize}\n\\tablecaption{\n Summary of photometric follow-up observations\n \\label{tab:phfusummary}\n}\n\\tablehead{\n \\colhead{Facility} &\n \\colhead{Date} &\n \\colhead{Number of Images} &\n \\colhead{Cadence (s)} &\n \\colhead{Filter}\n}\n\\startdata\nKeplerCam\/\\mbox{FLWO 1.2\\,m}{} & 2007 Dec 14 & 367 & 30 & Sloan \\band{z} \\\\\nKonkoly Schmidt 0.6\\,m & 2008 Sep 8 & 538 & 45 & \\band{I} \\\\\nWise 0.46\\,m & 2008 Sep 8 & 769 & 35 & \\band{R} \\\\\nWise 1.0\\,m & 2008 Sep 8 & 407 & 50 & \\band{R} \\\\\nKeplerCam\/\\mbox{FLWO 1.2\\,m}{} & 2008 Oct 19 & 350 & 33 & Sloan \\band{i} \\\\\nKeplerCam\/\\mbox{FLWO 1.2\\,m}{} & 2009 Oct 16 & 403 & 33 & Sloan \\band{i} \\\\\n[-2ex]\n\\enddata\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\n \\end{deluxetable*}\n}{\n \\end{deluxetable}\n}\n\nThe reduction of these images, including basic calibration,\nastrometry, and aperture photometry, was performed as described by\n\\citet{bakos:2009}. We performed EPD and TFA to remove trends\nsimultaneously with the light curve modeling\n(see \\refsecl{analysis}, and \\citet{bakos:2009} for details). \nThe final time series are\nshown in the top portion of \\reffigl{lc}, along with our best-fit\ntransit light curve{} model described below; the individual measurements are\nreported in \\reftabl{phfu}.\n\n\\begin{deluxetable}{lrrrr}\n\\tablewidth{0pc}\n\\tablecaption{High-precision differential photometry of HAT-P-17\\label{tab:phfu}}\n\\tablehead{\n\t\\colhead{BJD} & \n\t\\colhead{Mag\\tablenotemark{a}} & \n\t\\colhead{\\ensuremath{\\sigma_{\\rm Mag}}} &\n\t\\colhead{Mag(orig)\\tablenotemark{b}} & \n\t\\colhead{Filter} \\\\\n\t\\colhead{\\hbox{~~~~(2,400,000$+$)~~~~}} & \n\t\\colhead{} & \n\t\\colhead{} &\n\t\\colhead{} & \n\t\\colhead{}\n}\n\\startdata\n\\input{phfu_tab_short.tex}\n[-2ex]\n\\enddata\n\\tablenotetext{a}{\n\tThe out-of-transit level has been subtracted. These magnitudes have\n\tbeen subjected to the EPD and TFA procedures, carried out\n\tsimultaneously with the transit fit.\n}\n\\tablenotetext{b}{\n\tRaw magnitude values without application of the EPD\n\tand TFA procedures.\n}\n\\tablecomments{\n This table is available in a machine-readable form in the\n online journal. A portion is shown here for guidance regarding\n its form and content.\n}\n\\end{deluxetable}\n\n\n\n\\section{Analysis}\n\\label{sec:analysis}\n\n\n\\subsection{Properties of the parent star}\n\\label{sec:stelparam}\n\nFundamental parameters of the host star HAT-P-17{} such as the mass\n(\\ensuremath{M_\\star}) and radius (\\ensuremath{R_\\star}), which are needed to infer the planetary\nproperties, depend strongly on other stellar quantities that can be\nderived spectroscopically. For this we have relied on the HIRES template\nspectrum, and the analysis\npackage known as Spectroscopy Made Easy \\citep[SME;][]{valenti:1996},\nalong with the atomic line database of \\cite{valenti:2005}. SME\nyielded the following {\\em initial} values and uncertainties (which we\nhave conservatively increased to include our estimates of the\nsystematic errors):\neffective temperature $\\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff\\star}}=\\hatcurSMEiteff$\\,K, \nstellar surface gravity $\\ensuremath{\\log{g_{\\star}}}=\\hatcurSMEilogg$\\,(cgs),\nmetallicity $\\ensuremath{\\rm [Fe\/H]}=\\hatcurSMEizfeh$\\,dex, and \nprojected rotational velocity $\\ensuremath{v \\sin{i}}=\\hatcurSMEivsin\\,\\ensuremath{\\rm km\\,s^{-1}}$.\nWe adopt the single-sided uncertainty of $\\pm0.5\\,\\ensuremath{\\rm km\\,s^{-1}}$ on \\ensuremath{v \\sin{i}}\\ \nfrom \\cite{valenti:2005} based on their SME analysis of \nnearly 2000 stars. \nFor this star and others with low \\ensuremath{v \\sin{i}}, \nthe true error distribution excludes unphysical values \n($\\ensuremath{v \\sin{i}} < 0\\,\\ensuremath{\\rm km\\,s^{-1}}$) and is likely asymmetric.\n\n\nIn principle the effective temperature and metallicity, along with the\nsurface gravity taken as a luminosity indicator, could be used as\nconstraints to infer the stellar mass and radius by comparison with\nstellar evolution models. However, the effect of \\ensuremath{\\log{g_{\\star}}}\\ on the\nspectral line shapes is subtle, and as a result it is typically\ndifficult to determine accurately, so that in practice it is a poor\nluminosity indicator. For planetary transits, a stronger\nconstraint is often provided by \\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}, the normalized semimajor\naxis, which is closely related to \\ensuremath{\\rho_\\star}, the mean stellar density.\nThe quantity \\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}\\ can be derived directly from the transit\nlight curves\\ \\citep[see][and also \\refsecl{globmod}]{sozzetti:2007}. This, in\nturn, improves our determination of the spectroscopic\nparameters by supplying an indirect constraint on the weakly\ndetermined spectroscopic value of \\ensuremath{\\log{g_{\\star}}}\\ that removes\ndegeneracies. We take this approach here, as described below. The\nvalidity of our assumption, namely that the adequate physical model\ndescribing our data is a planetary transit (as opposed to a blend), is\nshown later in \\refsecl{bisec}.\n\nOur initial values of \\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff\\star}}, \\ensuremath{\\log{g_{\\star}}}, and \\ensuremath{\\rm [Fe\/H]}\\ were used to\ndetermine auxiliary quantities needed in the global modeling of the\nfollow-up photometry and radial velocities (specifically, the\nlimb-darkening coefficients). This modeling, the details of which are\ndescribed in \\refsecl{globmod}, uses a Monte Carlo approach to deliver\nthe probability distribution of \\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}\\ and other fitted\nvariables. See \\cite{pal:2009b} for further details. \nWhen combining \\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}\\ (a luminosity proxy)\nwith assumed Gaussian distributions for \\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff\\star}}\\ and\n\\ensuremath{\\rm [Fe\/H]}\\ from SME, \nwe compare with stellar evolution models to estimate the \nprobability distributions of additional inferred stellar parameters, \nincluding \\ensuremath{\\log{g_{\\star}}}.\nHere we use the\nstellar evolution calculations from the Baraffe\\ series by\n\\cite{baraffe:1998}. The comparison with the model isochrones\nwas carried out for each of 20,000 Monte Carlo trial sets (see\n\\refsecl{globmod}). Parameter combinations corresponding to unphysical\nlocations in the \\hbox{H-R} diagram (1.5\\% of the trials) were\nignored, and replaced with another randomly drawn parameter set. The\nresult and error estimate for the surface gravity, $\\ensuremath{\\log{g_{\\star}}} = \\hatcurISOlogg$, is\ndifferent from the result of our initial SME analysis, which is not\nsurprising in view of the strong correlations among \\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff\\star}}, \\ensuremath{\\rm [Fe\/H]},\nand \\ensuremath{\\log{g_{\\star}}}\\ that are often present in spectroscopic\ndeterminations. Therefore, we carried out a second iteration in which\nwe adopted this value of \\ensuremath{\\log{g_{\\star}}}\\ and held it fixed in a new SME\nanalysis (coupled with a new global modelling of the RV and light curves),\nadjusting only \\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff\\star}}, \\ensuremath{\\rm [Fe\/H]}, and \\ensuremath{v \\sin{i}}. This gave\n$\\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff\\star}} = \\hatcurSMEiiteff$\\,K, \n$\\ensuremath{\\rm [Fe\/H]} = \\hatcurSMEiizfeh$, and \n$\\ensuremath{v \\sin{i}} = \\hatcurSMEiivsin$\\,\\ensuremath{\\rm km\\,s^{-1}},\nin which the conservative uncertainties for the first two have been\nincreased by a factor of two over their formal values, as before. A\nfurther iteration did not change \\ensuremath{\\log{g_{\\star}}}\\ significantly, so we\nadopted the values stated above as the final atmospheric properties of\nthe star. They are collected in \\reftabl{stellar}, together with the\nadopted values for the macroturbulent and microturbulent velocities.\n\n\n\nWith the adopted spectroscopic parameters the model isochrones yield\nthe stellar mass and radius, \\ensuremath{M_\\star}\\ = \\hatcurISOmlong\\,\\ensuremath{M_\\sun}\\ and\n\\ensuremath{R_\\star}\\ = \\hatcurISOrlong\\,\\ensuremath{R_\\sun}, along with other properties listed\nat the bottom of \\reftabl{stellar}. HAT-P-17{} is a\n\\hatcurISOspec\\ dwarf star with an estimated age of\n\\hatcurISOage\\,Gyr, according to these models. The inferred location\nof the star in a diagram of \\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}\\ versus \\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff\\star}}, analogous to\nthe classical H-R diagram, is shown in \\reffigl{iso}. The stellar\nproperties and their 1$\\sigma$ and 2$\\sigma$ confidence ellipsoids are\ndisplayed against the backdrop of \\cite{baraffe:1998} isochrones for\nthe measured metallicity of \\ensuremath{\\rm [Fe\/H]}\\ = \\hatcurSMEiizfehshort, and a range\nof ages. For comparison, the location implied by the initial SME\nresults is also shown (triangle).\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\plotone{\\hatcurhtr-iso-ar.eps}\n\\caption{\n\tModel isochrones from \\cite{baraffe:1998} for the measured\n metallicity of HAT-P-17, \\ensuremath{\\rm [Fe\/H]} = \\hatcurSMEiizfehshort, and ages\n between 1.0 and 13.0\\,Gyr with a step-size of 1.0\\,Gyr (left\n to right). The adopted values of $\\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff\\star}}$ and \\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}\\ are\n shown together with their 1$\\sigma$ and 2$\\sigma$ confidence\n ellipsoids. The initial values of \\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff\\star}}\\ and \\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}\\ from\n the first SME and light curve\\ analyses are represented with a\n triangle.\n\\label{fig:iso}}\n\\end{figure}\n\nThe stellar evolution modelling provides color indices that may be\ncompared against the measured values as a sanity check. The best\navailable measurements are the near-infrared magnitudes from the 2MASS\nCatalogue \\citep{skrutskie:2006},\n$J_{\\rm 2MASS}=\\hatcurCCtwomassJmag$, \n$H_{\\rm 2MASS}=\\hatcurCCtwomassHmag$ and \n$K_{\\rm 2MASS}=\\hatcurCCtwomassKmag$;\nwhich we have converted to the photometric system of the models (ESO\nsystem) using the transformations by \\citet{carpenter:2001}. The\nresulting measured color index is $J-K = \\hatcurCCesoJKmag$. This is\nwithin 1$\\sigma$ of the predicted value from the isochrones of $J-K =\n\\hatcurISOJK$. The distance to the object may be computed from the\nabsolute $K$ magnitude from the models ($M_{\\rm K}=\\hatcurISOMK$) and\nthe 2MASS $K_s$ magnitude, which has the advantage of being less\naffected by extinction than optical magnitudes. The result is\n$\\hatcurXdist$\\,pc, where the uncertainty excludes possible\nsystematics in the model isochrones that are difficult to quantify.\n\n\n\\begin{deluxetable}{lcl}\n\\tablewidth{0pc}\n\\tabletypesize{\\scriptsize}\n\\tablecaption{\n\tStellar parameters for HAT-P-17{}\n\t\\label{tab:stellar}\n}\n\\tablehead{\n\t\\colhead{~~~~~~~~Parameter~~~~~~~~}\t&\n\t\\colhead{Value} &\n\t\\colhead{Source}\n}\n\\startdata\n\\noalign{\\vskip -3pt}\n\\sidehead{Spectroscopic properties}\n~~~~$\\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff\\star}}$ (K)\\dotfill & \\ifthenelse{\\equal{\\hatcurSMEversion}{i}}{\\hatcurSMEiteff}{\\hatcurSMEiiteff} & SME\\tablenotemark{a}\\\\\n~~~~$\\ensuremath{\\rm [Fe\/H]}$\\dotfill & \\ifthenelse{\\equal{\\hatcurSMEversion}{i}}{\\hatcurSMEizfeh}{\\hatcurSMEiizfeh} & SME \\\\\n~~~~$\\ensuremath{v \\sin{i}}$ (\\ensuremath{\\rm km\\,s^{-1}})\\dotfill & \\ifthenelse{\\equal{\\hatcurSMEversion}{i}}{\\hatcurSMEivsin}{\\hatcurSMEiivsin} & SME \\\\\n~~~~$\\ensuremath{v_{\\rm mac}}$ (\\ensuremath{\\rm km\\,s^{-1}})\\dotfill & \\ifthenelse{\\equal{\\hatcurSMEversion}{i}}{\\hatcurSMEivmac}{\\hatcurSMEiivmac} & SME \\\\\n~~~~$\\ensuremath{v_{\\rm mic}}$ (\\ensuremath{\\rm km\\,s^{-1}})\\dotfill & \\ifthenelse{\\equal{\\hatcurSMEversion}{i}}{\\hatcurSMEivmic}{\\hatcurSMEiivmic} & SME \\\\\n~~~~$\\gamma_{\\rm RV}$ (\\ensuremath{\\rm km\\,s^{-1}})\\dotfill & \\hatcurDSgamma & DS \\\\\n\\sidehead{Photometric properties}\n~~~~$V$ (mag)\\dotfill & \\hatcurCCtassmv & TASS \\\\\n~~~~$V\\!-\\!I_C$ (mag)\\dotfill & \\hatcurCCtassvi & TASS \\\\\n~~~~$J$ (mag)\\dotfill & \\hatcurCCtwomassJmag & 2MASS \\\\\n~~~~$H$ (mag)\\dotfill & \\hatcurCCtwomassHmag & 2MASS \\\\\n~~~~$K_s$ (mag)\\dotfill & \\hatcurCCtwomassKmag & 2MASS \\\\\n\\sidehead{Derived properties}\n~~~~$\\ensuremath{M_\\star}$ ($\\ensuremath{M_\\sun}$)\\dotfill & \\hatcurISOmlong & Baraffe+\\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}+SME \\tablenotemark{b}\\\\\n~~~~$\\ensuremath{R_\\star}$ ($\\ensuremath{R_\\sun}$)\\dotfill & \\hatcurISOrlong & Baraffe+\\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}+SME \\\\\n~~~~$\\ensuremath{\\log{g_{\\star}}}$ (cgs)\\dotfill & \\hatcurISOlogg & Baraffe+\\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}+SME \\\\\n~~~~$\\ensuremath{L_\\star}$ ($\\ensuremath{L_\\sun}$)\\dotfill & \\hatcurISOlum & Baraffe+\\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}+SME \\\\\n~~~~$M_V$ (mag)\\dotfill & \\hatcurISOmv & Baraffe+\\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}+SME \\\\\n~~~~$M_K$ (mag,CIT)\\dotfill & \\hatcurISOMK & Baraffe+\\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}+SME \\\\\n~~~~Age (Gyr)\\dotfill & \\hatcurISOage & Baraffe+\\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}+SME \\\\\n~~~~Distance (pc)\\dotfill & \\hatcurXdist\\phn & Baraffe+\\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}+SME\\\\\n[-2ex]\n\\enddata\n\\tablenotetext{a}{\n\tSME = ``Spectroscopy Made Easy'' package for the analysis of\n\thigh-resolution spectra \\citep{valenti:1996}. These parameters\n\trely primarily on SME, but have a small dependence also on the iterative\n\tanalysis incorporating the isochrone search and global modelling of\n\tthe data, as described in the text.\n}\n\\tablenotetext{b}{\n\tBaraffe+\\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}+SME = Based on the \n Baraffe\\ isochrones \\citep{baraffe:1998},\n \\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}\\ as a luminosity indicator, and the SME results.\n}\n\\end{deluxetable}\n\n\n\\subsection{Spectral line-bisector analysis}\n\\label{sec:bisec}\n\nOur initial spectroscopic analyses discussed in \\refsecl{recspec} and\n\\refsecl{hispec} rule out the most obvious astrophysical false positive\nscenarios. However, more subtle phenomena such as blends\n(contamination by an unresolved eclipsing binary, whether in the\nbackground or associated with the target) can still mimic both the\nphotometric and spectroscopic signatures we see. \n\nFollowing \\cite{torres:2007}, we explored the possibility that the\nmeasured radial velocities are not the results of a planet in \nKeplerian motion, but are instead caused by\ndistortions in the spectral line profiles due to contamination from a\nnearby unresolved eclipsing binary. A bisector analysis based on the\nKeck spectra was done as described in \\S 5 of \\cite{bakos:2007a}. \nWe detect no variation in excess of the measurement errors in the\nbisector spans (see \\reffigl{rvbis}). The correlation\nbetween the radial velocities and the bisector variations is\ninsignificant. Therefore, we conclude that the velocity variations are\nreal, and that the star is orbited by a close-in giant planet.\n\n\n\\subsection{Global modelling of the data}\n\\label{sec:globmod}\n\nThis section describes the procedure we followed to model the HATNet\nphotometry, the follow-up photometry, and the radial velocities\nsimultaneously. Our model for the follow-up light curves\\ used analytic\nformulae based on \\citet{mandel:2002} for the eclipse of a star by a\nplanet, with limb darkening being prescribed by a quadratic law. The\nlimb darkening coefficients for the $I$, $R$ and Sloan $z$ and $i$\nbands were interpolated from the tables by \\citet{claret:2004} for the\nspectroscopic parameters of the star as determined from the SME\nanalysis (\\refsecl{stelparam}). The transit shape was parametrized by\nthe normalized planetary radius $p\\equiv \\ensuremath{R_{p}}\/\\ensuremath{R_\\star}$, the square of\nthe impact parameter $b^2$, and the reciprocal of the half duration of\nthe transit $\\ensuremath{\\zeta\/\\rstar}$. We chose these parameters because of their\nsimple geometric meanings and their negligible correlations with each \nother \\citep[see][]{bakos:2009}. The relation between $\\ensuremath{\\zeta\/\\rstar}$\nand the quantity \\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}, used in \\refsecl{stelparam}, is given by\n\\begin{equation}\n\\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar} = P\/2\\pi (\\ensuremath{\\zeta\/\\rstar}) \\sqrt{1-b^2} \\sqrt{1-e^2}\/(1+e \\sin\\omega)\n\\end{equation}\n\\citep[see, e.g.,][]{tingley:2005}. Our model for the HATNet data was\nthe simplified ``P1P3'' version of the \\citet{mandel:2002} analytic\nfunctions (an expansion in terms of Legendre polynomials), for the\nreasons described in \\citet{bakos:2009}.\n\nInitial modelling of the RV observations showed deviations from a\nKeplerian fit highly suggestive of a second body in the system with a\nmuch longer period than the transiting planet. Thus, in our global\nmodelling, the RV curve was parametrized by the combination of an\neccentric Keplerian orbit for the inner planet with semi-amplitude\n$K$, and Lagrangian orbital elements $(k,h) \\equiv\ne\\times(\\cos\\omega,\\sin\\omega)$, plus an eccentric Keplerian orbit for\nthe outer object with $K_2$, $k_2$ and $h_2$, and a systemic RV\nzero-point $\\gamma$ \\citep[see also][]{bakos:2009}. Throughout this\npaper the subscripts ``1'' and ``2'' refer to HAT-P-17b\\ and\nHAT-P-17c, respectively. If the subscript is omitted, we refer to\nHAT-P-17b.\n\nWe assumed a strict periodicity in the individual\ntransit times. We assigned the transit number $N_{tr} = 0$ to the last\ncomplete follow-up light curve\\ gathered on 2009 Oct 16. The adjustable\nparameters in the fit that determine the ephemeris were chosen to be\nthe time of the first transit center observed with HATNet,\n$T_{c,-65}$, and that of the last transit center observed with the\n\\mbox{FLWO 1.2\\,m}\\ telescope, $T_{c,0}$. We used these as opposed to period and\nreference epoch in order to minimize correlations between parameters\n\\citep[see][]{pal:2008}. Times of mid-transit for intermediate events\nwere interpolated using these two epochs and the corresponding transit\nnumber of each event, $N_{tr}$. The eleven main parameters describing\nthe physical model were thus $T_{c,-65}$, $T_{c,0}$, $\\ensuremath{R_{p}}\/\\ensuremath{R_\\star}$,\n$b^2$, $\\ensuremath{\\zeta\/\\rstar}$, $K$, $k \\equiv e\\cos\\omega$, $h \\equiv e\\sin\\omega$,\n$K_2$, $k_2$ and $h_2$. Five additional parameters were included that\nhave to do with the instrumental configuration. These are the HATNet\nblend factor $B_{\\rm inst,247}$, and $B_{\\rm inst,248}$ which accounts\nfor possible dilution of the transit in the \\hatcurfield{} and\n\\hatcurfieldtwo{} HATNet light curves\\ from background stars due to the broad\nPSF (20\\arcsec\\ FWHM), the HATNet out-of-transit magnitudes\n$M_{\\rm 0,HATNet,247}$, and $M_{\\rm 0,HATNet,248}$, and the relative \nzero-point $\\gamma_{\\rm rel}$ of the Keck RVs.\n\nWe extended our physical model with an instrumental model that\ndescribes brightness variations caused by systematic errors in the\nmeasurements. This was done in a similar fashion to the analysis\npresented by \\citet{bakos:2009}. The HATNet photometry has already\nbeen EPD- and TFA-corrected before the global modeling, so we only\nconsidered corrections for systematics in the follow-up light curves. We chose\nthe ``ELTG'' method, i.e., EPD was performed in ``local'' mode with\nEPD coefficients defined for each night, and TFA was performed in\n``global'' mode using the same set of stars and TFA coefficients for\nall nights. \nThe total number of fitted\nparameters was 16 (physical model with 5\nconfiguration-related parameters) + 36 (local EPD) + 10\n(global TFA) = 67, i.e.~much smaller than the number of data points\n(2866, counting only RV measurements and follow-up photometry\nmeasurements).\n\nThe joint fit was performed as described in \\citet{bakos:2009}. We\nminimized \\ensuremath{\\chi^2}\\ in the space of parameters using a hybrid\nalgorithm, combining the downhill simplex method \\citep[AMOEBA;\n see][]{press:1992} with a classical linear least squares algorithm.\nParameter uncertainties were derived applying the Markov\nChain Monte-Carlo method \\citep[MCMC, see][]{ford:2006} using\n``Hyperplane-CLLS'' chains \\citep{bakos:2009}. This provided the full\n{\\em a posteriori} probability distributions of all adjusted\nvariables. The {\\em a priori} distributions of the parameters for\nthese chains were chosen to be Gaussian, with eigenvalues and\neigenvectors derived from the Fisher covariance matrix for the\nbest-fit solution. The Fisher covariance matrix was calculated\nanalytically using the partial derivatives given by \\citet{pal:2009}.\n\nFollowing this procedure we obtained {\\em a posteriori}\ndistributions for all fitted variables, and other quantities of\ninterest such as \\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}. As described in \\refsecl{stelparam},\n\\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}\\ was used with stellar evolution models to infer a\ntheoretical value for \\ensuremath{\\log{g_{\\star}}}\\ that is significantly more accurate\nthan the spectroscopic value. The improved estimate was in turn\napplied to a second iteration of the SME analysis, as explained\npreviously, to obtain better estimates of \\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff\\star}}\\ and\n\\ensuremath{\\rm [Fe\/H]}. The global modeling was then repeated with updated\nlimb-darkening coefficients based on those new spectroscopic\ndeterminations. The resulting geometric parameters pertaining to the\nlight curves and velocity curves are listed in\n\\reftabl{planetparam} and \\reftabl{planetparamc}.\n\nIncluded in \\reftabl{planetparam} is the RV ``jitter''. \nThis quantity accounts for RV variability due to \nrotational modulation of stellar surface features, \nstellar pulsation, undetected planets, \nand uncorrected systematic errors in the velocity reduction \n\\citep{wright:2005}. \nOur adopted jitter value of \\hatcurRVjitter\\ \\ensuremath{\\rm m\\,s^{-1}}\\ was chosen \nso that reduced $\\chi^{2} = 1$ for the RV data of the global\nfit. This value is consistent with the jitter of an ensemble of \nchromospherically quiet, late G\/early K dwarf stars \n\\citep{wright:2005}.\nAuxiliary parameters not listed in the tables are:\n$T_{\\mathrm{c},-65}=\\hatcurLCTA$~(BJD),\n$T_{\\mathrm{c},0}=\\hatcurLCTB$~(BJD), the blending factors \n$B_{\\rm instr,247}=\\hatcurLCiblendA$ and \n$B_{\\rm instr,248}=\\hatcurLCiblendB$, and\n$\\gamma_{\\rm rel}=\\hatcurRVgamma$\\,\\ensuremath{\\rm m\\,s^{-1}}.\nThe latter quantity represents an arbitrary offset for the Keck RVs,\nand does \\emph{not} correspond to the true center of mass velocity of\nthe system, which was listed earlier in \\reftabl{stellar}\n($\\gamma_{\\rm RV}$).\n\nThe planetary parameters and their uncertainties are derived\nfrom the {\\em a posteriori} distributions of the stellar, light curve,\nand RV parameters. We find an inner planet mass of\n$\\ensuremath{M_{p}}=\\hatcurPPmlong\\,\\ensuremath{M_{\\rm J}}$ and a radius of\n$\\ensuremath{R_{p}}=\\hatcurPPrlong\\,\\ensuremath{R_{\\rm J}}$, giving a mean density\n$\\rho_p=\\hatcurPPrho$\\,\\ensuremath{\\rm g\\,cm^{-3}}. These and other planetary parameters are\nlisted at the bottom of Table~\\ref{tab:planetparam}.\nWe note that the inner planets's eccentricity is\nsignificantly non-zero: $e = \\hatcurRVeccen$, $\\omega =\n\\hatcurRVomega^\\circ$. \n\nIn addition to HAT-P-17b, we detect a second, outer planet in the system. \nHAT-P-17c\\ is a long-period jovian planet with a \nminimum mass $m_2 \\sin i_2 =\n\\hatcurcPPmlong\\,\\ensuremath{M_{\\rm J}}$ and \norbital period $P_2 = \\hatcurcLCP$\\,days. \nIts eccentricity of $e_2 =\n\\hatcurcRVeccen$ is consistent with a circular orbit. \nBecause we have only measured about half of an orbit of \nHAT-P-17c, we conservatively adopt \n95.4\\% confidence intervals (`2-$\\sigma$ errors') \nfor the error estimates on parameters associated with this planet. \n(Unless noted, all other parameter uncertainties in this paper are 68.3\\% confidence intervals, \n`1-$\\sigma$ errors'.)\nFigure~\\ref{fig:mcmc} shows the distributions of \nand correlations between \n$m_2 \\sin i_2$, $P_2$, and $e_2$ from the MCMC analysis. \nCorrelations between the Lagrangian orbital parameters \n$k_2 = e_2 \\cos \\omega_2$ and \n$h_2 = e_2 \\sin \\omega_2$ are also shown. \n\n\n\n\\begin{figure*}[!ht]\n\\plotone{mcmc_4panel.eps}\n\\caption{\n\t\\textit{A posteriori} distributions showing correlations \n\tbetween parameters describing HAT-P-17c. \n\tBest-fit parameter values are marked with filled circles. \n\tGrayscale regions enclose \n\t68.3\\%, 95.4\\%, and 99.73\\% of the MCMC samples. \n\\label{fig:mcmc}}\n\\end{figure*}\n\n\n\\begin{deluxetable}{lc}\n\\tabletypesize{\\scriptsize}\n\\tablecaption{Orbital and planetary parameters for HAT-P-17b{}\\label{tab:planetparam}}\n\\tablehead{\n\t\\colhead{~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Parameter~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~} &\n\t\\colhead{Value}\n}\n\\startdata\n\\noalign{\\vskip -3pt}\n\\sidehead{Light curve{} parameters}\n~~~$P$ (days) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurLCP$ \\\\\n~~~$T_c$ (${\\rm BJD}$) \n \\tablenotemark{a} \\dotfill & $\\hatcurLCT$ \\\\\n~~~$T_{14}$ (days)\n \\tablenotemark{a} \\dotfill & $\\hatcurLCdur$ \\\\\n~~~$T_{12} = T_{34}$ (days)\n \\tablenotemark{a} \\dotfill & $\\hatcurLCingdur$ \\\\\n~~~$\\ensuremath{a\/\\rstar}$ \\dotfill & $\\hatcurPPar$ \\\\\n~~~$\\ensuremath{\\zeta\/\\rstar}$ \\dotfill & $\\hatcurLCzeta$\\phn \\\\\n~~~$\\ensuremath{R_{p}}\/\\ensuremath{R_\\star}$ \\dotfill & $\\hatcurLCrprstar$ \\\\\n~~~$b^2$ \\dotfill & $\\hatcurLCbsq$ \\\\\n~~~$b \\equiv a \\cos i\/\\ensuremath{R_\\star}$\n \\dotfill & $\\hatcurLCimp$ \\\\\n~~~$i$ (deg) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurPPi$\\phn \\\\\n\n\\sidehead{Limb-darkening coefficients \\tablenotemark{b}}\n~~~$c_1,i$ (linear term) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurLBii$ \\\\\n~~~$c_2,i$ (quadratic term) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurLBiii$ \\\\\n~~~$c_1,z$ \\dotfill & $\\hatcurLBiz$ \\\\\n~~~$c_2,z$ \\dotfill & $\\hatcurLBiiz$ \\\\\n~~~$c_1,I$ \\dotfill & $\\hatcurLBiI$ \\\\\n~~~$c_2,I$ \\dotfill & $\\hatcurLBiiI$ \\\\\n\n\\sidehead{RV parameters}\n~~~$K$ (\\ensuremath{\\rm m\\,s^{-1}}) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurRVK$\\phn\\phn \\\\\n~~~$k_{\\rm RV}$\\tablenotemark{c} \n \\dotfill & $\\hatcurRVk$\\phs \\\\\n~~~$h_{\\rm RV}$\\tablenotemark{c}\n \\dotfill & $\\hatcurRVh$ \\\\\n~~~$e$ \\dotfill & $\\hatcurRVeccen$ \\\\\n~~~$\\omega$ (deg) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurRVomega$\\phn \\\\\n~~~RV jitter (\\ensuremath{\\rm m\\,s^{-1}}) \\dotfill & \\hatcurRVjitter \\\\\n\n\\sidehead{Secondary eclipse parameters}\n~~~$T_s$ (BJD) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurXsecondary$ \\\\\n~~~$T_{s,14}$ \\dotfill & $\\hatcurXsecdur$ \\\\\n~~~$T_{s,12}$ \\dotfill & $\\hatcurXsecingdur$ \\\\\n\n\\sidehead{Planetary parameters}\n~~~$\\ensuremath{M_{p}}$ ($\\ensuremath{M_{\\rm J}}$) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurPPmlong$ \\\\\n~~~$\\ensuremath{R_{p}}$ ($\\ensuremath{R_{\\rm J}}$) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurPPrlong$ \\\\\n~~~$C(\\ensuremath{M_{p}},\\ensuremath{R_{p}})$\n \\tablenotemark{d} \\dotfill & $\\hatcurPPmrcorr$ \\\\\n~~~$\\ensuremath{\\rho_{p}}$ (\\ensuremath{\\rm g\\,cm^{-3}}) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurPPrho$ \\\\\n~~~$\\log g_p$ (cgs) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurPPlogg$ \\\\\n~~~$a$ (AU) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurPParel$ \\\\\n~~~$T_{\\rm eq}$ (K) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurPPteff$ \\\\\n~~~$\\Theta$\\tablenotemark{e} \\dotfill & $\\hatcurPPtheta$ \\\\\n~~~$F_{per}$ ($10^{\\hatcurPPfluxperidim}$\\ensuremath{\\rm erg\\,s^{-1}\\,cm^{-2}}) \\tablenotemark{f}\n \\dotfill & $\\hatcurPPfluxperi$ \\\\\n~~~$F_{ap}$ ($10^{\\hatcurPPfluxapdim}$\\ensuremath{\\rm erg\\,s^{-1}\\,cm^{-2}}) \\tablenotemark{f} \n \\dotfill & $\\hatcurPPfluxap$ \\\\\n~~~$\\langle F \\rangle$ ($10^{\\hatcurPPfluxavgdim}$\\ensuremath{\\rm erg\\,s^{-1}\\,cm^{-2}}) \\tablenotemark{f}\n \\dotfill & $\\hatcurPPfluxavg$ \\\\ [-2ex]\n\\enddata\n\\tablenotetext{a}{\n \\ensuremath{T_c}: Reference epoch of mid transit that\n minimizes the correlation with the orbital period. It\n corresponds to $N_{tr} = -32$.\n\t\\ensuremath{T_{14}}: total transit duration, time\n\tbetween first to last contact;\n\t\\ensuremath{T_{12}=T_{34}}: ingress\/egress time, time between first\n\tand second, or third and fourth contact.\n}\n\\tablenotetext{b}{\n\tValues for a quadratic law, adopted from the tabulations by\n \\cite{claret:2004} according to the spectroscopic (SME)\n parameters listed in \\reftabl{stellar}.\n}\n\\tablenotetext{c}{\n Lagrangian orbital parameters derived from the global modelling, \n and primarily determined by the RV data. \n}\n\\tablenotetext{d}{\n\tCorrelation coefficient between the planetary mass \\ensuremath{M_{p}}\\ and radius\n\t\\ensuremath{R_{p}}.\n}\n\\tablenotetext{e}{\n\tThe Safronov number is given by $\\Theta = \\frac{1}{2}(V_{\\rm\n\tesc}\/V_{\\rm orb})^2 = (a\/\\ensuremath{R_{p}})(\\ensuremath{M_{p}} \/ \\ensuremath{M_\\star} )$\n\t\\citep[see][]{hansen:2007}.\n}\n\\tablenotetext{f}{\n\tIncoming flux per unit surface area, averaged over the orbit.\n}\n\\end{deluxetable}\n\n\\begin{deluxetable}{lr}\n\\tablewidth{0pc}\n\\tablecaption{Orbital and planetary parameters for HAT-P-17c{}\n\\label{tab:planetparamc}}\n\\tablehead{\n\t\\colhead{~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Parameter~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~} &\n\t\\colhead{Value}\n}\n\\startdata\n\\sidehead{RV parameters, as induced by HAT-P-17c}\n~~~$P_2$ (days) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcLCP$ \\\\\n~~~$T_{2c}$\\tbn{a} (BJD) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcLCT$ \\\\\n~~~$K_2$ (\\ensuremath{\\rm m\\,s^{-1}}) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcRVK$ \\\\\n~~~$k_2$ \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcRVk$ \\\\\n~~~$h_2$ \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcRVh$ \\\\\n~~~$e_2$ \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcRVeccen$ \\\\\n~~~$\\omega_2$ \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcRVomega^\\circ$ \\\\\n~~~$T_{2,peri}$ (days) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcPPperi$ \\\\\n\n\\sidehead{Hypothetical light curve{} parameters, HAT-P-17c\\tablenotemark{b}}\n~~~$T_{2,14}$\\tbn{c} (days) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcLCdur$ \\\\\n~~~$T_{2,12} = T_{34}$ (days) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcLCingdur$ \\\\\n\n\\sidehead{Hypothetical secondary eclipse parameters for HAT-P-17c\\tbn{a}}\n~~~$T_{2s}$ (BJD) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcXsecondary$ \\\\\n~~~$T_{2s,14}$ (days) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcXsecdur$ \\\\\n~~~$T_{2s,12}$ (days) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcXsecingdur$ \\\\\n\n\\sidehead{Planetary parameters for HAT-P-17c}\n~~~$m_2\\sin i_2$ ($\\ensuremath{M_{\\rm J}}$) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcPPmlong$ \\\\\n~~~$a_2$ (AU) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcPParel$ \\\\\n~~~$T_{2,\\rm eq}$ (K) \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcPPteff$ \\\\\n~~~$F_{2,per}$ ($10^{\\hatcurcPPfluxperidim}$\\ensuremath{\\rm erg\\,s^{-1}\\,cm^{-2}}) \\tbn{d}\n \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcPPfluxperi$ \\\\\n~~~$F_{2,ap}$ ($10^{\\hatcurcPPfluxapdim}$\\ensuremath{\\rm erg\\,s^{-1}\\,cm^{-2}}) \\tbn{d} \n \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcPPfluxap$ \\\\\n~~~$\\langle F_2 \\rangle$ ($10^{\\hatcurcPPfluxavgdim}$\\ensuremath{\\rm erg\\,s^{-1}\\,cm^{-2}}) \\tbn{d}\n \\dotfill & $\\hatcurcPPfluxavg$ \\\\\n[-2ex]\n\\enddata\n\\tablenotetext{a}{\n\t$T_{2c}$ would be the center of transit of HAT-P-17c, if its\n\t(unknown) inclination is $90\\arcdeg$.\n}\n\\tablenotetext{b}{\n\tTransits of HAT-P-17c\\ have not been observed. The values are for\n\tguidance only, and assume zero impact parameter. \n}\n\\tablenotetext{c}{\n\t\\ensuremath{T_{14}}: total transit duration, time\n\tbetween first to last contact, assuming zero impact parameter. \n\t\\ensuremath{T_{12}=T_{34}}: ingress\/egress time, time between first\n\tand second, or third and fourth contact. Note that these values\n\tare hypothetical, and transits of HAT-P-17c\\ have not been observed.\n}\n\\tablenotetext{d}{\n\tIncoming flux per unit surface area in periastron, apastron, and\n\taveraged over the orbit. \t\n}\n\\end{deluxetable}\n\n\n\n\\section{Discussion}\n\\label{sec:discussion}\n\t \nWe present the detection of HAT-P-17b, \na transiting hot Saturn in an eccentric orbit,\nand HAT-P-17c, a cold Jupiter near the ice line \nwith an unknown orbital inclination. \nIn this section we discuss these two planets in the context of \nrecent models and trends, the statistics of nearly 100 TEPs, \nand the small number of multi-planet systems with \none or more transiting members.\n \n \n\\subsection{The Planet HAT-P-17b}\n\nAs seen in \\reffigl{exomr}, HAT-P-17b{} has a radius that is \ntypical of other known TEPs with masses in the range \n0.5--0.6\\,\\ensuremath{M_{\\rm J}}. Comparing HAT-P-17b{} to the theoretical \nmodels by \\cite{fortney:2007} we find that it is consistent \nwith gas-dominated planet having a core-mass of \n$M_C \\sim 25$\\,\\ensuremath{M_\\earth}\\ for an age of 4\\,Gyr, or somewhat \nless than this for older ages. HAT-P-17b{} is not inflated relative \nto theoretical models. \nThis lack of inflation is consistent with the relatively cool \ntemperature ($\\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eq}} = \\hatcurPPteff$\\,K) of HAT-P-17b.\n\n\n\\begin{figure*}[!ht]\n\\plotone{exoplanet_m_r.eps}\n\\caption{\n Mass--radius diagram of known TEPs (small filled squares). \n HAT-P-17b\\ is shown as a large filled square.\n Overlaid are Fortney et al. (2007) planetary isochrones interpolated \n to the solar equivalent semi-major axis of HAT-P-17b\\ for ages of 1.0 Gyr \n (upper solid lines) and 4 Gyr (lower dashed-dotted lines) and \n core masses of 0 and 25\\,\\ensuremath{M_\\earth}\\ (upper and lower lines respectively), \n as well as isodensity lines for \n 0.4, 0.7, 1.0, 1.33, 5.5 and 11.9\\,\\ensuremath{\\rm g\\,cm^{-3}}\\ (dashed lines). \n Solar system planets are shown with open triangles.\n\\label{fig:exomr}}\n\\end{figure*}\n\n\n\\subsubsection{A Predicted Non-inverted Atmosphere?}\n\nSecondary eclipse measurements of TEPs in multiple\npassbands with the \n\\textit{Spitzer Space Telescope} have revealed two \nclasses of atmospheres among jovian planets. \n``Non-inverted'' atmospheres are described well \nby 1D atmospheric models with water in absorption. \nIn contrast, ``inverted'' atmospheres show \ndayside emission spectra that are best modeled \nby a high-altitude temperature inversion and water \nin emission. \nPhysically, such an inversion requires \na high-altitude absorber. \nPlanets in intermediate states (mild inversions, etc) \nalso appear possible. \n\\cite{knutson:2010} noted that planets with inverted \natmospheres systematically orbit chromospherically \nquiet stars while planets with non-inverted atmospheres orbit \nchromospherically active stars. \nThey proposed that chromospheric activity, \nas measured by the \\ion{Ca}{2} H \\& K index \n\\ensuremath{\\log\\rhk}, traces UV flux which is responsible for destroying \nthe photochemically labile inversion-causing molecules. \nThese authors are agnostic on the exact molecule. \nTiO absorption has been suggested by \\cite{hubeny:2003} \nwhile \\cite{zahnle:2009}\nargue that sulfur photochemistry is key to generating \nan atmospheric temperature inversion.\nHAT-P-17\\ is a chromospherically quiet star with \n$\\ensuremath{\\log\\rhk} = -5.039$. \nThus, the activity-inversion relation \npredicts that the atmosphere of HAT-P-17b\\ will be inverted. \nThe two host stars in the \\cite{knutson:2010} \nsample with properties most similar to \nHAT-P-17---WASP-2 (\\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff}}\\ = 5230\\,K, $\\ensuremath{\\log\\rhk} = -5.054$) and \nXO-2 (\\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff}}\\ = 5340\\,K, $\\ensuremath{\\log\\rhk} = -4.988$)---both\nhave planets with measured temperature inversions. \n\nA key caveat is that the activity-inversion relation \nis based on a sample of relatively hot planetary atmospheres. \nThe photochemistry responsible for atmospheric \ntemperature inversion may not be active on\nthe relatively cool HAT-P-17b\\ (\\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eq}}\\ = 792\\,K). \nFor example, the sulfur photochemistry model \nby \\cite{zahnle:2009} is only active for $T \\ge 1200$\\,K.\nObservations of this planet in secondary eclipse\nwill probe the temperature range \nover which such inversions are produced and \nmay offer clues to the identity of the absorbing molecules. \n\nWe computed the signal-to-noise ratios (SNR) of \nwarm \\textit{Spitzer} secondary eclipse observations of HAT-P-17b\\ \nassuming either efficient day-night circulation (\\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eq}}\\ = 780\\,K)\nor a hot day side with no circulation (\\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eq}}\\ = 927\\,K). \nFor this range of atmospheres, we estimate that \\textit{Spitzer} \nwill measure the secondary eclipse depth \nwith SNR = 2--5 at 3.6\\,$\\mu$m \nand SNR = 3--6 at 4.5\\,$\\mu$m for an observation of a single \nsecondary eclipse. \nThis sensitivity will help constrain atmosphere models for this planet.\nThe superior collecting area and extended IR coverage of \n\\textit{JWST} will give significantly stronger constraints on the \nIR emission spectrum of HAT-P-17b. \n\n\n\\subsubsection{Spin-orbit Alignment}\n \nIn the core accretion theory of planet formation, \nhot giant planets like HAT-P-17b\\ form beyond the ice line \n(a few AU from the host star) and subsequently migrate inward. \nSeveral migration mechanisms have been proposed. \nTidal interactions with the protoplanetary disk \\citep{lin:1996} \ndeliver gas giants with uniformly low obliquity. \nAlternatively, Kozai cycles \\citep{fabrycky:2007} or \nplanet-planet scattering \\citep{chatterjee:2009} leave the \nmigrated planets in high obliquity orbits, \npossibly with high eccentricity \n(depending on the degree of tidal damping). \nBoth high and low-obliquity systems have been observed \nby the Rossiter-McLaughlin (R-M) effect, suggesting some \ncombination of migration mechanisms \n(Fabrycky \\& Winn 2009; Morton \\& Johnson, in preparation).\n\n\\citet{winn:2010} recently noted that nearly all misaligned \n(high obliquity) planets orbit hot stars (\\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff}}\\ $>$ 6250\\,K). \nThey suggested that all hot giant planets \nmigrated by one of the high obliquity mechanisms and that \nplanets orbiting cool stars subsequently \nalign the spin axis of the convective zones and photospheres \nof their hosts with the orbital plane. \nStars above this threshold temperature lack a significant \nconvective zone and their close-in giant planets \nremain in high-obliquity orbits. \n\nAlthough HAT-P-17\\ is a cool star, the Winn et al.\\ \nmodel predicts spin-orbit misalignment because the \nwider, eccentric orbit of HAT-P-17b\\ lengthens the \ntimescale for orbital decay considerably. \nOf the known TEPs,\nHAT-P-17b\\ has the longest expected timescale except for \nHD~80606b (J.~Winn, personal communication).\nIn particular, HAT-P-17b\\ has a longer timescale than WASP-8b, \nwhich is known to be misaligned \\citep{queloz:2010}. \nThis planet ($P = 8$ d, $e = 0.31$) is broadly similar to\nHAT-P-17b\\ and also orbits a relatively cool star ($\\ensuremath{T_{\\rm eff}} = 5600\\,K$).\n\nMeasuring the projected spin-orbit angle $\\lambda$ of HAT-P-17b\\ \nis a challenging but plausible proposition with HIRES. \nWe estimate a 4--11\\ \\ensuremath{\\rm m\\,s^{-1}}\\ amplitude R-M effect for \n\\ensuremath{v \\sin{i}}\\ = 0.3--0.8 \\ensuremath{\\rm km\\,s^{-1}}. \n\n \n\\subsubsection{Similarity to HAT-P-15b}\n\nHAT-P-17b\\ is strikingly similar to HAT-P-15b \n\\citep{kovacs:2010} in orbital period \n(10.3\\,d and 10.9\\,d, respectively) and \neccentricity (0.35 and 0.19, respectively). \nThe mass of HAT-P-15b \nis significantly larger though \n(0.5\\,\\ensuremath{M_{\\rm J}}\\ and 1.9\\,\\ensuremath{M_{\\rm J}}, respectively). \nThese two planets are the only ground-based transit \ndiscoveries with orbital periods longer than 10\\,d. \n(Other transiting planets with $P > 10$\\,d\ninclude those detected by space-based transit \nsurveys and two planets discovered by RVs \nthat were later shown to transit.) \nThe bias toward detecting planets with \nshort orbital periods with ground-based transit searches \nstems from the observational window function \nof a longitudinally-spaced multi-site telescope \nnetwork \\citep{vonbraun:2009}. \nThe HAT-South survey will significantly \nimprove the detection of longer period transiting planets \nwith a 50\\% detection rate out to orbital periods of \n12\\,d \\citep{bakos-hatsouth:2009}.\n\n \n\\subsection{Transit Timing Varations}\n\nThe presence of a second detected planet in the HAT-P-17\\ \nsystem raises the possibility of transit timing variations \n\\citep[TTVs; ][]{holman:2005}. \nHowever, because HAT-P-17b\\ and HAT-P-17c\\ are widely separated \n($a_2\/a_1 \\sim 31$) and HAT-P-17c\\ is on a nearly circular orbit, \nthe two planets interact very weakly.\nThe TTVs are expected to be less than 1~s, \nundetectable with current techniques.\n\t \n\t \n\\subsection{The Planet HAT-P-17c}\n\nHAT-P-17c\\ is an approximately Jupiter-mass planet separated \nfrom its host star by about half the Sun-Jupiter separation. \nDespite having only observed 50\\% of the orbit \nof HAT-P-17c, its orbital parameters are well constrained \nfor a long-period planet (\\reffigl{mcmc}). \nWhile we cannot completely rule out a highly eccentric orbit, \nonly 3\\% of the MCMC samples have $e > 0.3$.\n\nThe 2007 Dec 14 light curve (\\reffigl{lc}) showing a partial transit \nof HAT-P-17b\\ is during the broad transit window of HAT-P-17c. \nWe interpret the detected transit as due to HAT-P-17b\\ because the \ntiming precisely matches the ephemeris derived from other transits. \nWe do not detect additional transits (possibly due to HAT-P-17c) \nin that light curve. \nBecause that light curve is the only one taken in \\band{z} \nwe cannot compare the photometric level of this transit with others \nto see if it was \ntaken entirely when HAT-P-17c\\ was in transit. \n\nBased on the current orbital fit, the next opportunity to search for a\ntransit of HAT-P-17c\\ is in 2012 Oct. \nThe timing is favorable for an observing campaign as \nthe star is visible for $\\sim$5\\,hr per night from mid-Northern latitudes. \nFrom the ground, a coordinated, multi-site search spanning \na range of longitudes is likely necessary to rule in or out \n$\\sim$1\\% deep transits of maximum duration \\hatcurcLCdurshort\\,d.\n\n\\subsection{Planet Multiplicity}\n\nThe migration mechanism of hot jovian planets remains a major \noutstanding problem of planet formation and evolution. \nThe presence of additional massive planets in a system \npoints to migration within the protoplanetary disk, \nwhile the absence of additional planets suggests a more \ndisruptive mechanism such planet-planet scattering \nor the Kozai mechanism. \n\n\\cite{wright:2009} measured the rate of planet multiplicity and \nfound that 14\\% of exoplanet host stars are multi-planet systems \nand another 14\\% show evidence of multiplicity in the \nform of an RV trend. \nHere we compute the fraction of \nstars hosting a ``cool jovian planet'' \n($\\ensuremath{m \\sin i} > 0.2$\\,\\ensuremath{M_{\\rm J}}\\ and $a > 0.2$\\, AU)\nthat also host a ``hot jovian planet'' \n($\\ensuremath{m \\sin i} > 0.2$\\,\\ensuremath{M_{\\rm J}}\\ and $a < 0.2$\\, AU). \nWe used the Exoplanet Orbit Database\\footnote{http:\/\/exoplanets.org} \nof planets with well-defined orbital parameters. \nOf the 375 planet hosts (including HAT-P-17), \nwe find 106 stars that host a hot jovian planet and \n204 stars that host one or more cool jovian planets. \nOf the latter group, 10 stars (5\\%) also host a hot jovian planet. \nRestricting the hot jovian planets to $a < 0.1$\\,AU, 6\/204 = 3\\% \nof stars host both cool and hot jovian planets. \nNote that this selection of planets does not suffer from a significant \ndetection bias; the Doppler signal from a hot jovian planet is \nessentially always detectable for systems with a detected \ncool jovian planet. \nWhile hot jovian planets represent a \ndisproportionally large fraction of the known planets due \nto observational selection effects, \nmulti-planet systems like HAT-P-17\\ are rare. \n\n\n\n\\acknowledgements \n\nWe thank H.~Knutson, J.~Winn, and J.~Wright for helpful conversations. \nHATNet operations have been funded by NASA grants NNG04GN74G,\nNNX08AF23G and SAO IR\\&D grants. \nA.W.H.\\ gratefully acknowledges support from a Townes Post-doctoral Fellowship \nat the U.\\,C.\\ Berkeley Space Sciences Laboratory.\nWork of G.\\'A.B.~and J.~Johnson were\nsupported by the Postdoctoral Fellowship of the NSF Astronomy and\nAstrophysics Program (AST-0702843 and AST-0702821, respectively). G.T.\\\nacknowledges partial support from NASA grant NNX09AF59G. We acknowledge\npartial support also from the Kepler Mission under NASA Cooperative\nAgreement NCC2-1390 (D.W.L., PI). G.K.~thanks the Hungarian Scientific\nResearch Foundation (OTKA) for support through grant K-81373. \nT.M.\\ acknowledges the Israel Science Foundation (grant 655\/07).\nThis research has made use of Keck telescope time granted through NOAO\nand NASA. We thank Ezra Mashal for his help in operating the\nWise HAT telescope over the past years. We thank the TLC project (M.~Holman\nand J.~Winn) for swapping time on the 1.2\\,m telescope on a short notice. \nThis research has made use of the Exoplanet Orbit Database \nand the Exoplanet Data Explorer at exoplanets.org, \nthe SIMBAD database (operated at CDS, Strasbourg, France), and \nNASA's Astrophysics Data System Bibliographic Services.\nFinally, the authors wish to extend special thanks to those of Hawai`ian ancestry \non whose sacred mountain of Mauna Kea we are privileged to be guests. \nWithout their generous hospitality, the Keck observations presented herein\nwould not have been possible.\n\n\n\\input{biblio.tex}\n\n\\end{document}\n\n\n\n\n\n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
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+{"text":"\\section{\\label{section:intro}Introduction}\nCollective phenomena and self-organization are widespread in the animal kingdom~\\cite{parrish1999science,camazine2003Book,sumpter2010Book,couzin2003adv}. Theory as well as empirical works suggest that these macroscopic behaviors often emerge from simple microscopic interactions among individuals~\\cite{vicsek1995prl}. Much of collective behavior theory and models assume that individuals in populations are identical~\\cite{vicsek1995prl,del2018PhilTransRoySoc}. Animal populations in nature, however, are rarely homogeneous. Within conspecific social groups, heterogeneity may arise from differences in age, size, or sex. Social groups may also have dominance hierarchies including differences in behavioral tendencies such as boldness and shyness~\\cite{dyer2008BehavEcol,ioannou2008Oecol,michelena2010ProcRoySocB,del2018PhilTransRoySoc}. Heterogeneity also arises when individuals of different species interact to form groups, also called mixed-species flocks~\\cite{morse1970EcolMono,diamond1981Nature,sridhar2009animalbeh,stensland2003mammalreview,greenberg2000book,lukoschek2000review,sridhar2018philB}.\nGiven the wide prevalence of individual variations among grouping species, it is pertinent to investigate how heterogeneity among individuals influences macroscopic features of collective animal behavior~\\cite{gueron1996jtb,nagy2010nature,biro2006currbio,romey2013ecolmodel,herbert2013procB,aplin2014procB,farine2017procB,del2018PhilTransRoySoc}. \n\nMost of the previous studies that incorporate heterogeneity focus on emergent properties of single groups~\\cite{gueron1996jtb,couzin2002jtb,couzin2005nature,jolles2013animalbeh,romey2013ecolmodel,farine2014animalbeh,herbert2013procB,farine2017procB,del2018PhilTransRoySoc}. Computational studies show that differences among individuals in phenotypes such as mobility, local cohesion or environmental sensing ability can lead to spontaneous assortment of phenotypes within groups~\\cite{couzin2002jtb}. For example, individuals with higher speed, or `leaders' who sense environmental gradients, are often at the leading edge of groups despite the absence of any communication or signalling among group members~\\cite{couzin2005nature}. Furthermore, even a relatively small proportion of such leaders can facilitate consensus decision making and transfer of information within groups~\\cite{couzin2005nature,conradt2005tree}. Recently, spin-based models have been used to show analytically the existence of phase-transition like behavior in the consensus decision making in heterogeneous groups~\\cite{pinkoviezky2018pre}. \n\nAnimal populations across taxa, from insects to mammals, often form a large number of groups that frequently merge (fusion) and split (fission) among themselves~\\cite{couzin2009currbiol}. Microbial populations too exhibit such dynamics either because of their self-propulsion or by being driven by their environment~\\cite{joshi2017PLOSCompBio,durham2012AnnRewMarSci}. Previous studies have focussed on deriving the emergence of group size distributions in such fission-fusion populations~\\cite{gueron1995MathBioSci,gueron1998JMB,durrett1999JourTheorProb,niwa2003JTB,ma2011JTB}. The role of heterogeneity, which as discussed above is widely prevalent in natural systems, has not attracted much attention in the literature on fission-fusion systems~\\cite{sueur2011oikos,greenberg2000book}. Evolutionary models of collective behavior predict the emergence of heterogeneity in social, navigational or cooperative traits in fission-fusion populations~\\cite{guttal2010pnas,torney2010pnas,joshi2017PLOSCompBio}. In such heterogeneous populations, each group needs to be characterized by an additional property that describes the degree of heterogeneity (referred to as group composition). In the literature on mixed-species flocks, group composition patterns are in fact used to infer species-level interactions in ecological communities~\\cite{sridhar2012amnat,berry2014frontier,graves1993pnas,ulrich2010ecology,sridhar2014BehavEcolSocio}. However, group compositions are highly dynamic due to the underlying fission-fusion process among groups.\n\n\n\n\n\nIn this paper, we develop and analyze a model of fission-fusion dynamics of heterogeneous populations. Coagulation-Fragmentation processes provide an excellent mathematical framework to model such flocking dynamics~\\cite{gueron1995MathBioSci,gueron1998JMB,durrett1999JourTheorProb,niwa2003JTB,ma2011JTB,majumdar2000nonequilibrium}. One such important model, proposed by Niwa~\\cite{niwa2003JTB}, assumes homogeneous groups on a fixed number of discrete sites. The two most important parameters governing the group movement between sites are the split and move rates. The former determines the rate at which a group splits into two smaller groups (fission), while the latter determines the rate at which a group moves to a new site, merging with any group (fusion) present at the new site. This fission-fusion dynamic model predicts that, in populations of identical individuals, group size distribution is approximately logarithmic. These models have been successful in predicting qualitative features of empirically observed group size distributions from the field~\\cite{bonabeau1999pnas,bonabeau1995PhysRevE,niwa2003JTB,ma2011JTB,griesser2011PLOSone}. In our study, we employ this framework and generalize it to account for heterogeneity among individuals. \n\nFor simplicity, we assume that the population consists of two types of individuals (or species). Unlike homogeneous populations, here we need to keep track of group compositions in addition to the group size distribution. We incorporate the effect of heterogeneity via increased split-rate for groups of heterogeneous composition. The resulting two daughter groups are drawn randomly from all possible partitions of the parent group. We discuss alterations to these assumptions later, but these help keep the model analytically tractable while offering interesting insights on real-world heterogeneous flocks. We first derive master equations for the group sizes and composition and obtain approximate steady-state solutions in the large population limit. We also carry out Monte-Carlo simulations of the model which show considerable agreement with the analytical solution. \n\nOur main finding is that the composition of the flocks depends on the group size. This is despite the merge and split rates being independent of the group size. In particular, we show that there exists a critical group size below which they are more likely to be homogeneous and contain the abundant type\/species. However, groups larger than the critical size are representative of the population heterogeneity. The prevalence of heterogeneous groups is surprising, given our assumption that heterogeneous groups exhibit a higher propensity to split. \nIn the Discussion section, we provide a reasoning for this phenomenon. We also discuss some interesting implications of our results for current methods used to infer interspecies interactions from mixed-species flock compositions.\n\n\\section{Merge-Split model for Heterogeneous populations}\\label{section:methods}\nOur formulation of the problem in heterogeneous populations is based on the merge-split model for homogeneous populations, originally conceived by Niwa~\\cite{niwa2003JTB} and later analyzed by Ma et al~\\cite{ma2011JTB}. Our motivation for employing this framework is two-fold. First, because of its simplicity, it is an analytically tractable framework for investigating fission-fusion group dynamics~\\cite{niwa2003JTB,ma2011JTB}. Secondly, despite the simplicity of many assumptions in the model, its predictions qualitatively agree with empirically observed group size distributions in various organisms. Specifically, the model predicts that group size distribution of animals may follow a heavy-tailed and skewed distribution, described by a power-law decay followed by an exponential decay (see a review of Niwa's model in Appendix~A). Indeed, several species of fish show excellent quantitative agreement with the prediction of group-size distribution~\\cite{niwa2003JTB,bonabeau1995PhysRevE,griesser2011PLOSone} while many organisms like the American buffalo, spiders, and many mammalian herbivores exhibit qualitative features of heavy-tailed distributions (see Chapter 2 of~\\cite{sumpter2010Book} for more discussion on Niwa's model and its empirical validity). Given these considerations, we adopt this merge-split modeling framework and generalize Niwa's model to accommodate two species. We derive master equations from the underlying stochastic process. The derivation is non-trivial and includes some assumptions and approximations. Therefore, we only present the overall approach and key steps here, while presenting the detailed algebraic steps in the Appendix~B.\n\n\\subsection{Key Assumptions}\nWe assume $s$ sites without geometry and a population consisting of $N_1$ type-I individuals and $N_2$ type-II individuals which can occupy these sites with total population size, $N=N_1+N_2$. Individuals of the same type are indistinguishable. A group is defined to be the set of individuals occupying the same site at any point in time. \n\nAs in the previous model~\\cite{niwa2003JTB,ma2011JTB}, groups move from their current site to a randomly chosen site at a rate $q$ that is independent of the size of the groups. If the group lands at a site that is already occupied by another group, they merge to form a larger group with size equal to the sum of the smaller groups. \n\nUnlike the previous model, the groups can be heterogeneous. A group with size $ n $ of which $ k $ are of type-I, referred to as the `composition' of a group, will be denoted by the ordered pair $(n,k)$. We incorporate the role of heterogeneity via the following assumption: heterogeneous groups have a higher split rate than homogeneous ones. This assumption is justified based on previous individual-based models that indeed predict that more heterogeneous groups are less stable~\\cite{gueron1996jtb,del2018PhilTransRoySoc}. More specifically, we assume a group-size-independent split rate which is a function only of the proportion of each type in the group ($k\/n$ and $1 - k\/n$). The split rate of an $(n,k)$-group is given by:\n\\begin{equation}\n\tp(n,k)=p_0+\\frac{k}{n}\\left(1-\\frac{k}{n}\\right)\\delta\n\t\\label{eq:split_rate}\n\\end{equation}\nIn Eq~\\eqref{eq:split_rate}, $ p_0 $ is the base split-rate that is experienced by homogeneous groups (i.e.~when $k=0$ or $n$). \nThe {\\it excess split-rate parameter}, $ \\delta > 0 $ determines the maximum extent to which split rates of heterogeneous groups exceed that of homogeneous ones. The function, $p(n,k)$ is concave down with respect to the proportion $k\/n$, i.e.~heterogeneous groups have a higher split rate than homogeneous ones. Groups with proportion $ k\/n=0.5 $ experience the maximum split rate, $p=p_0+\\frac{\\delta}{4}$. \n\n\nWhen groups do split, they do so uniformly at random, i.e.~every possibility that results in two daughter groups is equally probable. Hence, heterogeneous groups are more likely to split but the mechanism of the split does not favour any type of group (see {\\it Discussion} for how relaxing this assumption may influence our main results). A group $(n,k)$ splits into two groups $(k_1 + k_2, k_1)$ and $(n-(k_1+k_2), k - k_1)$ such that $k_1 \\sim U(0,k)$ and $k_2 \\sim U(0, n-k)$, where $U(a,b)$ is the uniform distribution on the integers in the interval $[a,b]$. The random variables are sampled conditional on $0 < k_1 + k_2 < n$, which ensures that there is a split. After splitting, the two daughter groups occupy random sites.\n\n\\subsection{Transition events}\\label{subsec:transition}\n\nThe number of $(n,k)$-groups at time $t$, denoted by $X(n,k,t)$, is the primary random variable of interest. We derive an equation for the rate of change of expected value of this random variable, defined as $f(n,k,t):=\\mathbb{E}\\left[X(n,k,t)\\right]$. This is done by considering all events that will lead to a change in $X(n,k,t)$ in a small time interval. All such events, along with the resulting change to the number of {\\it focal groups} $(n,k)$, are listed below in Fig~\\ref{fig:transitions}. There are six such events that can lead to a change in the number of focal groups--- three merge and three split events.\n\nWe denote the rates of these events as $P_{\\alpha}$ if it's a split event and $Q_{\\alpha}$ if it's a merge event. The subscript $\\alpha$ indicates the change in the total number of groups, $X(n,k,t)$. Thus,\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item $Q_{\\alpha}(t)$: A merge event changes $X(n,k,t)$ by $\\alpha \\in \\{-2,-1,1\\}$.\n\\item $P_{\\alpha}(t)$: A split event changes $X(n,k,t)$ by $\\alpha \\in \\{-1,1,2\\}$.\n\\end{enumerate}\nA graphical representation of all transition events are shown in Fig~\\ref{fig:transitions} and the exact expressions for these rates are derived in Appendix~B.1.\n\n\\subsection{Dynamical equations}\\label{subsec:dynamical}\nUsing the above notations for the rates of various events, we obtain the following equation that determines how the expected number of groups of composition $(n,k)$ changes with time,\n\n\\begin{equation}\n\t\\begin{aligned}\n \t\\frac{d f(n,k,t) }{dt}=&\\mathbb{E}\\left[Q_{+1}(t)\\right]-\\mathbb{E}\\left[Q_{-1}(t)\\right]-2\\mathbb{E}\\left[Q_{-2}(t)\\right]\\\\\n &+\\mathbb{E}\\left[P_{+1}(t)\\right]-\\mathbb{E}\\left[P_{-1}(t)\\right]+2\\mathbb{E}\\left[P_{+2}(t)\\right].\n\t\\end{aligned}\n\\label{eq:het_master_eq_dependent}\n\\end{equation}\n\n\\noindent\nThis is also known as the master equation. In the large $N$ limit it is reasonable to assume that the random variables $X(n,k,t)$ are pairwise independent. This allows us to rewrite the master equation as (for details see Appendix~B.1)\n\n\n\\begin{equation}\n\t\\begin{aligned}\n \\frac{df(n,k,t)}{dt}=& \\sum_{i=1}^{n-1} \\sum_{j=(i+k-n) \\vee 0}^{i \\wedge k} q f(i,j,t) \\frac{f(n-i,k-j,t)}{s}\\\\ \n &-\\boldsymbol{1}_{n\\equiv 0(mod~2)} \\boldsymbol{1}_{k\\equiv 0(mod~2)} q\\frac{f(\\frac{n}{2},\\frac{k}{2},t)}{s}\\nonumber\\\\ \n &-\\boldsymbol{1}_{n\\neq 1}p(n,k)f(n,k,t)\\\\\n &+ \\sum_{i=n+1}^N \\sum_{j=k \\vee (i-N_2)}^{(i+k-n) \\wedge N_1} \\frac{2p(i,j)f(i,j,t)}{(j+1)(i-j+1)-2}\\nonumber\\\\\n &-\\frac{2q}{s}f(n,k,t)\\sum_{i=1}^{N-n}\\sum_{j=(n+i-k-N_2) \\vee 0}^{(N_1-k) \\wedge i}f(i,j,t)\\\\\n &+\\boldsymbol{1}_{n-\\frac{N_2}{2} \\leq k \\leq \\frac{N1}{2}}2q\\frac{f(n,k,t)}{s}.\n \\end{aligned}\n \\tag{3}\\label{eq:het_master_eq}\n\\end{equation}\n\n\\noindent\nwhere we remind the reader that $p$ is the split rate, $q$ is the move rate, and $s$ is the number of sites. The notations $a \\vee b$ and $a \\wedge b$ represent the maximum and the minimum of $a$ and $b$, respectively. Finally, $\\boldsymbol{1}$ is an indicator function defined for a statement $A$ as\n\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:indicator}\n\\boldsymbol{1}_{A}:=\n\\begin{cases}\n1 &\\text{if } A \\text{ is true}\\\\\n0 &\\text{if } A \\text{ is false.}\n\\end{cases}\\tag{4}\n\\end{equation\n\\noindent\nWe also write a mean-field equation by generalising the one in \\cite{ma2011JTB} (Refer to Eq~(9b) in Appendix~A). The expected total number of groups, $Z(t):=\\sum_{n}\\sum_{k}f(n,k,t)$, obeys the following equation\n\n\n\\begin{equation}\n\\begin{aligned}\n \t\\frac{dZ(t)}{dt} =& \\sum_{i=2}^{N}\\sum_{j=0\\vee (i-N_2)}^{i\\wedge N_1}p(i,j)f(i,j,t)\\\\\n &-\\sum_{i=1}^{N}\\sum_{j=0\\vee(i-N_2)}^{i\\wedge N_1}\\Bigg( \\frac{q}{s}f(i,j,t)\\sum_{k=1}^{N-i}\\sum_{l=(i+k-j-N_2)\\vee 0}^{(N_1-j)\\wedge k}\\\\\n &f(k,l,t)\\nonumber-\\boldsymbol{1}_{i\\leq \\frac{N}{2}}\\boldsymbol{1}_{i-\\frac{N_2}{2}\\leq j\\leq \\frac{N_1}{2}}\\frac{q}{s}f(i,j,t)\\Bigg).\n\\end{aligned}\n\\tag{5}\\label{eq:het_mean_field}\n\\end{equation}\n\\subsection{Steady-state equations}\nIn steady state, i.e.~$\\frac{df(n,k,t)}{dt}=0$ and $\\frac{dZ(t)}{dt}=0$, we derive equations relating $Z$, the expected total number of groups to $W(n,k):=\\frac{f(n,k)}{Z}$, the expected proportion of $(n,k)$-groups. When the system size is large ($s\\rightarrow \\infty$), it is natural to assume that $Z$ also grows such that the ratio of the two, the fraction of occupied sites, also converges to a constant ($ \\frac{Z}{s}\\rightarrow Z_0 $). In other words, for large systems, the fluctuations in $Z$ are of a smaller order than $s$. This finally results in the following two equations: \n\n\n \\begin{align*}\n 0=&\\sum_{i=1}^{n-1} \\sum_{j=(i+k-n) \\vee 0}^{i \\wedge k} q W(i,j) W(n-i,k-j)\\\\\n &-\\boldsymbol{1}_{n\\neq 1}\\frac{p(n,k)}{Z_0}W(n,k)\\nonumber\\\\\n &+\\sum_{i=n+1}^N \\sum_{j=k \\vee (i-N_2)}^{(i+k-n) \\wedge N_1} \\frac{2p(i,j)W(i,j)}{Z_0((j+1)(i-j+1)-2)}\\\\\n &-2qW(n,k),\n \\tag{6}\\label{eq:ss_equation}\n \\end{align*}\n\n\\begin{equation}\n Z_0 = \\frac{1}{q}\\sum_{i=2}^{N}\\sum_{j=0\\vee(i-N_2)}^{i\\wedge N_1}p(i,j)W(i,j,t). \n \\tag{7}\\label{eq:ss_mean_field_equation}\n \\end{equation}\t\n\n\\noindent\nUsing an iterative scheme, we solve Eq~\\eqref{eq:ss_equation} and Eq~\\eqref{eq:ss_mean_field_equation} to obtain $W(n,k)$. A detailed description of the derivation, including all the approximations and the iterative technique is provided in Appendix~B.\n\n\\subsection{Monte-Carlo Simulations}\nUsing a Monte-Carlo algorithm, we simulate the system described above. We maintain a two dimensional counter, $ C(n,k) $ that stores the number of groups of size $n$ with $k$ type-I individuals. At discrete time points, a Bernoulli random variable with appropriately calculated parameter was used to decide between the occurrence of a split and merge. In the case of a split event, the group that undergoes splitting is decided using a bivariate random variable whose probability mass function, $ P(Y=(n,k)) $ is proportional to $ p(n,k)C(n,k) $, where $ p $ is the split rate. When a group splits, the number of type-I and type-II individuals in the daughter groups is uniformly distributed between 0 and the value for the parent group. Merge events are simulated in an analogous way. The initial condition for the simulation is obtained by placing $N_1$ type-I and $N_2$ type-II individuals uniformly at random on the s sites. After the system reaches steady-state we sample the counter at regular intervals to produce the distribution.\n\n\n\\subsection{Parameter values}\nThe parameters governing the dynamics of this model are the base split-rate, $p_0$, merge rate, $q$, and the excess split-rate, $\\delta$. The limiting scenario, where $p_0>>q$ is uninteresting because split events dominate, and we see very few groups consisting more than a single individual. On the other hand, when $p_0< n_c$ (Fig~\\ref{fig:cond_prob_n}). This is surprising given that heterogeneous groups, for all group sizes, have a higher split rate.\n\nTo demonstrate the above transition from homogeneous to heterogeneous groups at a critical group size, in Fig~\\ref{fig:bifurcation_n}, we plot the location of the modes of $W_n$ as a function of group size ($n$). The transition from bimodality to unimodality appears qualitatively similar to a pitchfork bifurcation~\\cite{strogatz2014book}. In this bifurcation, two stable and one unstable fixed points converge to give a single stable fixed point. In our system, the modes (maxima) of the distribution $W_n$ can be viewed as stable fixed points and minima as unstable fixed points. It must be noted that the value of $n_c$ is dependent on the excess split-rate parameter ($\\delta$) and increases as we increase $\\delta$ (Fig~\\ref{fig:deltaVSn_c}). As is evident in Fig~\\ref{fig:deltaVSn_c}, both the analytical calculations and the Monte Carlo simulations predict that $n_c$ increases for larger values of $\\delta$. However, for smaller values of $\\delta$ ($<3$), the analytical result predicts that critical group size increases with reducing excess split-rate, which is inconsistent with Monte-Carlo simulations. We suspect that this may be related to other anomalous results observed at low $\\delta$, possibly due to a violation of the assumption of independence of group compositions, a point we return to later in this section.\n\nWe show the plots for two cases of unequal abundances of the two types\/species in the population in Fig~\\ref{fig:skewed_population_n}. First, when the proportion of type-I ($N_1\/N$) is closer to 0.5, we find that the above results broadly hold true (top row of Fig~\\ref{fig:skewed_population_n}): As the group size ($n$) increases, the distribution $W_n$ changes from a bimodal to a unimodal distribution. Unlike the equal proportion scenario where extreme modes merge to form a unimodal distribution (Fig~\\ref{fig:cond_prob_n}), in this case, the two extreme modes vanish with increasing $n$ and a mode at the population proportion emerges. Second, when the proportion of type-I ($N_1\/N$) is much smaller than 0.5, the distribution remains unimodal for all group sizes. However, the mode of the distribution gradually moves from an extreme end representing homogeneous groups composed of the abundant species to one representing the population proportion ($N_1\/N$). \n\nWe remark that despite differences in the way the modes of $W_n$ behave for different population proportions of two types, our model predicts a consistent pattern of group-size dependent composition, i.e.~small group sizes are likely to be homogeneous with the abundant species whereas larger groups contain two species reflecting population proportion. These surprising qualitative features arise despite simple assumptions of the model such as group-size independent merge and split rates and an excess split-rate associated with heterogeneous groups. We provide an intuitive explanation for this in the Discussion section below.\n\nOn a similar note, we study $W_n$ as a function of the excess split-rate ($\\delta$) due to group heterogeneity. We find that when $\\delta$ is less than a critical value, the distribution $W_n$ has a single mode at $ k\/n \\approx 0.5 $ (Fig~\\ref{fig:cond_prob_delta})), representing heterogeneous groups. For $\\delta$ above that critical value, however, the distribution becomes bimodal with modes occurring close to $k\/n=0$ and $k\/n=1$, indicating higher likelihood of homogeneous groups. The location of the modes plotted as a function of excess split-rate ($\\delta$) also shares qualitative features of a pitchfork bifurcation (Fig~\\ref{fig:bifurcation_delta}).\n\nWe have observed that in the case where the split rate, $p_0$ is large in comparison to the merge rate, $q$, the predictions of the analysis show poor agreement with the results of Monte-Carlo simulation. In particular, when the excess split-rate parameter, $\\delta$ is small, the equations predict small groups to be bimodal, but this is not the case for the results of the Monte-Carlo simulations. The results do, however, show agreement for large groups. We also recall the inconsistency between analytical and Monte-Carlo simulations in predicting $n_c$, shown in Fig~\\ref{fig:deltaVSn_c}. We suspect these are to be due to a break-down in the assumption of independence among the random variables $X(n,k)$ (see sections~\\ref{subsec:transition},~\\ref{subsec:dynamical}) and requires further investigations. \n\nEarlier studies that adopted merge-split dynamics~\\cite{niwa2003JTB,ma2011JTB} primarily investigated the group size distributions in homogeneous populations. We found it instructive to look at the group size distribution for heterogeneous populations too. The probability of a group having size $ n $ is obtained by summing the composition dependent proportion, $ W(n,k) $ over all possible compositions, resulting in a group size probability defined by $ P(n)=\\sum_kW(n,k) $. Fig~\\ref{fig:group_size_distr} shows $ P(n) $ as a function of $ n $ on log-log scale from simulations and iterative solution to the analytical equations. The plots shows qualitative match with the earlier predicted distributions and is approximately logarithmic. Although the likelihood of occurrence of small groups is nearly the same for different values of excess split-rate for heterogeneous groups ($\\delta$), the $P(n)$ decays much faster for larger values of $\\delta$. This means that large groups are rarer for higher values of $\\delta$. \n\n\\section{Discussion}\\label{section:discussions}\nIn summary, we develop and analyze a heterogeneous flocking model with two types (or species) of individuals. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first model of merge-split dynamics for heterogeneous populations. We use a first principles approach to derive an analytical description of group sizes and composition. We assumed that heterogeneous groups split at higher rates than homogeneous ones but the rates are independent of the size of the groups. Merge rates are independent of both group size and composition. Our key prediction is that composition of small groups is likely to be skewed towards the abundant type. Above a critical group size, $ n_c $, groups reflect the relative composition of species in the population, i.e.~they are more likely to be heterogeneous. This is despite the assumption that heterogeneous groups split more often.\n\nWe offer an intuitive explanation of the result via two opposing `forces' at play in this model. The first being chance, driven by the number of combinatorial ways a group can be realised by randomly choosing individuals from the population. Given a heterogeneous population, the combinations for the formation of heterogeneous groups far outweigh that of homogeneous ones; this effect is pronounced when the group size is large. The second force which opposes this formation (or maintenance) of heterogeneous group arises from the model assumption that heterogeneous groups are more likely to split into two daughter groups. A single split, however, is not biased towards formation of homogeneous groups. Nevertheless, successive splits have a cumulative effect of homogenising, and reducing the size of daughter groups. Therefore, this homogenising force manifests strongly for smaller group sizes. These forces put together, we find the occurrence of homogeneous groups are dominant up to a critical group size $n_c$, beyond which the combinatorial forces result in heterogeneous groups.\n\nIn finite groups where individuals probabilistically interact among themselves, the noise at the group-level, also called intrinsic noise, increases with decreasing group size~\\cite{van1992stochastic}. Intrinsic noise, in some cases, can cause bimodal states for small groups~\\cite{horsthemke1984noise,biancalani2014noise,jhawar2018deriving}. It may be worth investigating a plausible connection between our results, where stochasticity of merge and split events for small groups sizes plays an important role, with the phenomenon of noise-induced bimodality.\n\n\\subsection*{Generality and Extensions}\n\n \n\nWe now discuss some implications of the assumptions of our model and the associated analytical approximations. Our assumption that heterogeneous groups are more likely to split or fragment is broadly supported by previous agent-based simulation models of group movement~\\cite{gueron1996jtb,couzin2005nature,del2018PhilTransRoySoc}. However, these models as well as some empirical studies~\\cite{ward2008quorum} suggest that, unlike our model assumption, groups do not split uniformly randomly into any of possible partitions; rather, fission events are more likely to cause homogeneous daughter groups. We suspect that incorporating this additional feature, for example in the analysis leading to Fig~\\ref{fig:bifurcation_n}, will increase the critical group size ($n_c$), at which the group compositions transition from homogeneous to heterogeneous groups. In other words, we are likely to find groups dominated by the abundant type for much larger groups than predicted by our analyses. Nevertheless, we expect that the qualitative features of our results are unlikely to change.\n\nWe made a number of assumptions to derive a semi-analytic approximation for the dynamical equations for the fission-fusion groups. The major ones among these are that the population ($N$) is very large and well mixed and that individuals\/groups have a sufficiently large number of sites ($s$) to occupy. Furthermore, we assumed that the proportion of occupied sites ($Z\/s$) takes a constant value (i.e. fluctuations in $Z$ are of a smaller order than $s$) in steady state. Another aspect that is implicit in our model formulation is the lack of spatial structure; we assumed, as in the original model by Niwa~\\cite{niwa2003JTB,ma2011JTB}, a group in any site can merge with group at any other site and that daughter groups after a split event can occupy any empty site. However, incorporation of such realistic features may make our model analytically intractable. Therefore, to confirm our predictions in such relatively complicated scenarios, we suggest studies based on individual-based simulations of fission-fusion group dynamics. \n\nA natural generalisation of our model is one that incorporates $M$ species, with $M>2$. The split rate function for groups could be extrapolated from Eq~\\eqref{eq:split_rate} in a way that preserves its qualitative aspects, i.e.~heterogeneous groups having higher split rates than homogeneous ones. For such a system, we expect to find qualitatively similar behavior to that exhibited by the two species model, i.e.~smaller groups are likely to be dominated by one of the species but groups beyond a critical size to be mixed in ratios that are representative of the population composition. To investigate the type of bifurcations and the behavior of the system near critical points, we require a formal analysis of the generalized model. \n\n\\subsection*{Empirical Implications}\nWe now discuss implications of our results to ecological studies on mixed-species flocks, one of the most widely studied type of heterogeneous flocks. Our model predicts that a study of mixed-species flocks focussing on groups smaller than critical group size of the system will yield observation of flocks that are largely homogeneous; this is despite the fact that the population is heterogeneous. On the other hand, a study on large groups will find flock compositions that represent the population heterogeneity. Therefore, empirical study designs must account for group-size dependent composition of flocks. \n\nThe above prediction of our model has further implications for empirical studies that try to infer interspecies interactions from the frequency of their co-occurrence in mixed-species groups. In such studies, typically, a high frequency of co-occurrence beyond what is expected of a null association is typically interpreted as evidence for positive interspecies interactions~\\cite{sridhar2012amnat,berry2014frontier,graves1993pnas,ulrich2010ecology,sridhar2014BehavEcolSocio}. A study that samples flocks that are of size smaller than $n_c$ may rarely find mixed-species associations, thus leading to the conclusion that two species have no or weak positive interspecies interactions. In contrast, a study that samples flocks that are larger than $n_c$ will find many groups with mixed-species associations and thus may arrive at the opposite conclusion of positive interspecies interactions. Therefore, our study highlights that the merge-split dynamics of flocks must be accounted for when making inferences on interspecies interactions.\n\n\\subsection*{Conclusions}\n\nOur model analysis yields interesting predictions about the composition of heterogeneous groups, suggesting that groups below a certain threshold do not reflect the population level composition. An interesting direction for further study would be to generalize the model of multiple species to allow for differential interactions between species. The differential interactions may arise because the degree of affinities for different pairs of species are not the same. For example, some species may like to be associated with each other while some may avoid each other. \nOur model provides a starting point to investigate such complex interactions via suitably modified merge and split rate functions. In conclusion, our study highlights the importance of investigating mechanistic models of how individual level interactions between species results in heterogeneous flock dynamics and compositions. \n\n\\section{Acknowledgements}\\label{section:acknowledgements}\nWe thank Hari Sridhar for comments on the manuscript. VG acknowledges support from DBT-IISc partnership program, DST Centre for Mathematical Biology at IISc Phase II (SR\/S4\/MS:799\/12) and infrastructure support from DST-FIST. SK acknowledges partial support from UGC CAS.\n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\\section{Introduction}\nFacial expression recognition (FER), as the task of classifying the emotion on images or video sequences \\cite{bazzo2004recognizing,tong2007facial,ozbey2018expression,liu2016learning,monkaresi2016automated,zhang2017facial}, has become an increasingly dynamic topic in the field of computer vision in recent years. Although significant progress has been made towards improving the expression classification, there are still many challenges in exploring the dynamic expression variation. As shown in Fig. \\ref{fig:introduction} (first row), the expression \"Happy\" is mostly contributed by the expressional intensity variation on the mouth region. Therefore, it is necessary to locate such informative region when capturing dynamic expression variation in video sequence.\n\n\\begin{figure}[t]\n\\centerline{\\includegraphics[width=0.45\\textwidth]{introduction.pdf}}\n\\caption{Video example of \"Happy\", where the expression starts from neutral stage to peak one and return to neutral again. The heatmap represents the concerned regions for expression recognition based on the learned features, where previous works (second row) focus on different regions in each frame of video while our method (bottom row) targets on a certain contributing expressional region for better variation exploring.} \n\\label{fig:introduction}\n\\vspace{-12pt}\n\\end{figure}\n\nMost of existing works \\cite{bargal2016emotion,monkaresi2016automated,zhang2017facial} focus on extracting the feature representation of each frame using the Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN), which lacks a global consideration of correlation among all frames in video sequence. These methods aim to find out the most contributing expression features with each frame and take it as an image-based task by assembling these features to model the facial activation. \nFig. \\ref{fig:introduction} (second row) shows the individual features they learned from each frame, where different features focus on different regions. That is because the facial expression intensity on different regions is dynamically changing among the video frames. \nHowever, such features can only contribute limited strength to explore the dynamic variation of expression as they do not concentrate on the facial activation in an certain expression region (mouth).\nMoreover, the features coming from peak frames usually focus on important regions which have more contributing information than those of non-peak frames. Therefore, there is a great need for guiding the mechanism to pay attention to the certain facial regions in all video frames, especially those focused by peak frames, to effectively capture the dynamic expression variation. \n\nSince Graph Convolutional Network (GCN) \\cite{kipf2016semi,lee2018multi} has exhibited outstanding performances in learning correlative feature representations for specific tasks, it can be exploited to share the messages in graph and reconstruct the hidden states of each node to focus more on the significant information. We adapt GCN framework to FER task to learn the frame-based feature dependencies by training a learnable adjacency matrixs. After propagating expression features among the frame, GCN learn more contributing features due to the significant impact of peak frames on non-peak frames.\n\n\nAlthough we learn expression features which focus on the same region in each frame to model the dynamic variation, those learned features of the peak frames still have more informative expressional representations than those of non-peak frames and should be considered more for final recognition.\nTo automatically distinguish peak frames in video-sequences, we characterize the expression intensities by deriving frame-wise weights from the elements of learned adjacency matrix in GCN layer. \nWe utilize a weighted feature fusion function based on the expression intensity weights to integrate the reconstructed features. It can guide the model to focus on those peak expression frames which contribute more to the final classification.\n\nTo sum up, we propose a novel GCN based end-to-end framework for dynamic FER task, called Facial Expression Recognition GCN (FER-GCN), to learn more contributing facial expression features to capture dynamic expression variation. We introduce a GCN layer between CNN and RNN to achieve this. Firstly, our GCN layer updates the individual features of each frame based on the propagated features from the peak frames and learn an adjacency matrix which represents the inter-dependency among frames. \nWith the GCN learned features focusing on the same regions, the LSTM layer is further applied to learn their long-term dependencies to model the variation. Fig. \\ref{fig:introduction} (bottom row) shows GCN learned features which focus on the same region (mouth). \nSecondly, we adopt the learned adjacency matrix of GCN layer to represent expression intensities in time series. It can decrease the influence of the weak expressional features from neutral frames and exploit more expressional contributing ones from peak frames for final classification. Comparing to state-of-the-art approaches, our method is much more robust and achieves the best performances on four benchmarks (CK+, Oulu-CASIA, MMI and AFEW8.0).\n\nOur main contributions are summarized as follows:\n\\begin{itemize}\n \\item To the best of our knowledge, we are the first to apply GCN to FER task. Our graph based modules first propagate the most contributing expression features from peak frames among nodes to learn the frame-based features which focus on a certain expression region, and then explore the long-term dependencies among video frames to capture dynamic variation. It helps the model target on certain regions for expressional features learning.\n \\item We also design a weighted feature fusion mechanism using adjacency matrix of GCN layer to fuse the features of all frames in one video sequence, where different learned weights represent different expression intensities of each frame, which eventually results in that the features of the peak frames contribute more to the final recognition while the weak expressional ones contribute less.\n \\item We conduct our experiments on four public FER benchmark datasets, which demonstrates that the proposed method outperforms all state-of-the-art methods. And we also do ablation study which verified the effectiveness of each component in our model.\n\\end{itemize}\n\n\\section{Related Work}\nFacial expression recognition (FER) has been studied over decades. Traditional researches \\cite{bazzo2004recognizing,tong2007facial} either utilized facial fiducial points obtained by a Gabor-feature based facial point detector or focused on facial action units (AUs) directly \\cite{tian2001recognizing,tong2007facial} to model temporal facial activations for FER task. As convolutional neural networks (CNN) can extract deeper and more contexual information, existing approaches which benefit from CNN can be generally divided into two categories: image-based and video-based.\n\n\\begin{figure*}\n\\centerline{\\includegraphics[width=1.0\\textwidth]{pipeline_1.pdf}}\n\\caption{Overall architecture of our proposed method FER-GCN. Left:We apply two graph based modules to obtain the learned features by sharing the features among the frames, which focus on the most contributing regions for dynamic expression variation exploring. After that, we calculate the integrated representation for final classification by fusing them with the expression intensity weights learned from adjacency matrix $\\textbf{\\textit{A}}$ in graph. Right: details about how our GCN layer works. Each node shares its features to neighbors and updates itself with the matrix $\\textbf{\\textit{A}}$.} \n\\label{fig:pipeline}\n\\vspace{-15pt}\n\\end{figure*}\n\nImage-based methods \\cite{ozbey2018expression,liu2016learning} do not consider dynamic variation and only study on still images. Yu \\textit{et al.} \\cite{yu2015image} proposed a method to exploit an ensemble multiple CNNs by minimizing a mixture of the log likelihood loss and the hinge loss. Bargal \\textit{et al.} \\cite{bargal2016emotion} established a hybrid network which combines VGG16 \\cite{simonyan2014very} with residual neural network (RNN) to learn appearance features of expressions. Mollahosseini \\textit{et al.} \\cite{mollahosseini2016going} proposed to adopt three inception modules which have different critical considerations for a deeper and wider network. These image-based methods ignore the temporal information in a consecutive image sequence of facial expression, which plays an important role in capturing the dynamic variation for FER. To deal with this problem, a vast majority of works are explored toward video-based methods and have achieved remarkable performance. In video-based task \\cite{monkaresi2016automated}, there is an additional capturing of dynamic variation of expression intensities among consecutive frames. Liu \\textit{et al.} \\cite{liu2014deeply} utilized 3D CNN to extract the spatio-temporal features and Zhang \\textit{et al.} \\cite{zhang2017facial} proposed a spatio-temporal network to extract dynamic-still information. Zhao \\textit{et al.} \\cite{zhao2016peak} also introduced that not all image frames in one video contribute equally to the final classification, and defined the peak and non-peak frames in the video sequences.\n\nAlthough FER has shown good performance by video-based methods which successfully learn the temporal information among consecutive frames, it is still challenging when faced with the high intra-class variation. Some works introduced attention mechanism to their models to improve this situation. Minaee \\textit{et al.} \\cite{minaee2019deep} introduced attentional convolutional network into deep learning approach, which is able to focus on expressional parts of the face. Liu \\textit{et al.} \\cite{liu2019pose} proposed an attention mechanism in hierarchical scales to discover the most relevant regions to the facial expression, and select the most informative scales to learn the expression-discriminative representations. The introduction of attention module greatly improved the task performance over previous models on multiple datasets, but it is still not clear that how the expression features work or share in temporal domain in such module.\n\nInspired by works of Graph Convolutional Network (GCN) \\cite{kipf2016semi,lee2018multi}, where each node shares the information with neighbors and then updates the state it learned based on the adjacency matrix, we develop a graph tailored to video-based FER task. Specifically, since our learnable adjacency matrix learned by the graph stands for how much each frame contributes to the final classification, we use it to distinguish peak frames from weak ones and reconstruct each node features during sharing the most contributing spatial expressive features to others. In the end, our method learns the most contributing spatial-temporal features in an interpretable way by graph learning, which leads to effective capture of the expressive component and proves to be more robust to individual variations.\n\n\\section{Methodology}\nThe architecture of our proposed method Facial Expression Recognition GCN (FER-GCN), illustrated in Fig. \\ref{fig:pipeline} (left), is composed of four components: CNN based feature extraction module, graph based module, weighted features fusion module and the final classification. \nGiven a facial video sequence $x_i$, $i={1,2,...,N}$ where $N$ is the number of frames, we first utilize a CNN network to extract their deep features. \nThen two graph based modules are following and each of them is exploited to learn more contributing expression features of each frames by a Graph Convolutional Network (GCN) layer and a Long Short Term Memory (LSTM) layer. \nAt last, we derive $N$ weights of $N$ features from the learnable adjacency matrix of GCN layer, which implies the expression intensity of each frame, to fuse the $N$ features together for the final classification.\n\n\\subsection{Graph based Module}\nTo capture the dynamic expression variation more effectively, we propose a novel graph based module to capture the dynamic expression variation.\nWe build a GCN layer with $N$ frames, to propagate messages among the nodes in graph and model the frame-wise correlation by learning a dynamic adjacency matrix $\\textbf{\\textit{A}}$. All nodes tend to be influenced by expressional informative frames and update themselves as more contributing ones.\nAfter the above process of graph learning, the $N$ frame updated features are further sent to the BiLSTM for long-term dependency learning in both forward and backward directions. The LSTM layer can capture the dynamic expression variation on certain concerned regions.\n\n\\textbf{Graph learning}\nWe first give the details about how our GCN layer works in Fig. \\ref{fig:pipeline} (right). Our GCN layer contains $N$ nodes, which correspond to each frame of video sequence. \nDuring training GCN, we first generate the $N$ frame features $H_i \\in \\mathbb{R}^{1 \\times d}$, $i={1,2,...,N}$ by CNN extractor or the previous GCN layer. \nThen we represent them as individual node to build a full-connected graph with a learnable adjacency matrix $\\textbf{\\textit{A}} \\in \\mathbb{R}^{N \\times N}$. \nAt every step, the GCN layer works in a way that each node shares its feature to neighbors and updates the state with both updated messages from neighbor nodes and the matrix $\\textbf{\\textit{A}}$ from the last time step. In fact, adjacency matrix $\\textbf{\\textit{A}}$ is dynamically updated with the backpropagated gradient in each time step, aiming to establish the inter-dependency among the frames.\nThe element $\\textbf{\\textit{A}}_{ij}$ in matrix $\\textbf{\\textit{A}}$ stands for how much the node $i$ depends on the node $j$, and thus the weak expression frames tend to have high possibility to depend on the peak ones for the latter focus on expressional region.\nIn this way, each node is more likely to update the features based on massages from the peak frame and thus focuses on the concerned expression region. The process of learning more contributing features can be formalized as the following.\n\nFor the $i$th node, it receives messages from the other $N-1$ neighbors, whose input features can be jointly represented as a matrix $\\textit{n}_i \\in \\mathbb{R}^{(N-1)\\times d}$ as follows:\n\\begin{equation}\n \\textit{n}_i = [H_1^\\mathrm{T} \\\\\\ H_2^\\mathrm{T} \\\\\\ ... \\\\\\ H_{i-1}^\\mathrm{T} \\\\\\ H_{i+1}^\\mathrm{T} \\\\\\ ... \\\\\\ H_N^\\mathrm{T}]^\\mathrm{T}\n\\end{equation}\nDuring the messages updating, the features from the neighbors are embedded with a learnable parameter matrix $\\textbf{\\textit{W}}^{l} \\in \\mathbb{R}^{d\\times d}$ and then are propagated to node $i$. The embedded neighbors messages $M^{l}_i \\in \\mathbb{R}^{(N-1) \\times d}$ can be calculated as follows:\n\\begin{equation}\n M^{l}_i = \\textit{n}_i\\textbf{\\textit{W}}^{l}\n\\end{equation}\nHere, $l$ represents the $l$th time step. Then the node $i$ updates its state by using both the updated messages $M^{l}_i$ and its own current state based on the $i$th row of the learned correlation matrix $\\textbf{\\textit{A}}$. Therefore, the output $o^{l+1}_i \\in \\mathbb{R}^{1 \\times d}$ of node $i$ can be calculated as follows:\n\\begin{equation}\n \\textbf{\\textit{A}}_{i\\bar{i}} = [\\textbf{\\textit{A}}_{i1},\\textbf{\\textit{A}}_{i2},\\cdots,\\textbf{\\textit{A}}_{i(i-1)},\\textbf{\\textit{A}}_{i(i+1)},\\cdots,\\textbf{\\textit{A}}_{in}]\n\\end{equation}\n\\begin{equation}\n o^{l+1}_i = f(\\textbf{\\textit{A}}_{i\\bar{i}}M^{l}_i \\oplus \\textbf{\\textit{A}}_{ii}H_i\\textbf{\\textit{W}}^{l})\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\textbf{\\textit{A}}_{i\\bar{i}} \\in \\mathbb{R}^{1\\times(N-1)}$ is a matrix which consists of correlation coefficients between node $i$ and the other nodes, and $\\oplus$ means matrix addition. $f(\\cdot)$ is the non-linear function like LeakyReLU. \nAfter updating the states of nodes into $o^{l+1} \\in \\mathbb{R}^{N \\times d}$, where $d$ is the dimension of each node, the $N$ frame features are presented to focus on the same facial region as shown in Fig. \\ref{fig:pipeline} (right), which indicates our GCN layer successfully guides the model to focus on the most contributing expression region among the video frames.\n\nIn addition, after the subsequent process of updating features, we get the loss and conduct the backpropagation. Our learnable adjacency matrix \\textbf{\\textit{A}} updates itself with the backpropagated gradient as follows:\n\\begin{equation}\n \\textbf{\\textit{A}}^{l+1} = \\textbf{\\textit{A}}^l - lr \\ast \\partial loss\/\\partial \\textbf{\\textit{A}}^l\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $lr$ is the learning rate, and matrix \\textbf{\\textit{A}} will dynamically learn the inter-dependency among the frames to guide the message propagation in graph.\n\n\\textbf{Temporal variation modeling}\nAfter processing the features by the GCN layer, the updated features in all frames focus on certain most contributing expression regions. \nThen, through the LSTM layer, we further learn the long-term temporal dependency for features concerned with certain regions in space. \nSpecially, we adopt BiLSTM \\cite{schuster1997bidirectional} to get access to the information from both past and future states for more contextual information combining.\nSince the BiLSTM calculates the feature of each frame in each time step,\nwe give the output learned feature of each frame as follows:\n\\begin{equation}\n H^{l+1}_i = g(V_f\\sigma (U_f[s^{l}_f, o^{l+1}_i]) + V_b\\sigma(U_b[s^{l}_b, o^{l+1}_i]) + b), \\\\\n \n i \\in [1,N]\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $s_f^l,s_b^l \\in \\mathbb{R}^{d}$ are the hidden states containing information from previous and future time steps respectively. $U_f,U_b \\in \\mathbb{R}^{d\/2 \\times 2d}$ embed the concatenation of hidden state and input respectively in two directions. Then $V_f,V_b$ project embeddings from $\\mathbb{R}^{d\/2}$ to dimension $\\mathbb{R}^{d}$. $b \\in \\mathbb{R}^{d}$ is the additional bias, and $g,\\sigma$ are the activation functions $tanh$, $sigmoid$ respectively.\n\n\\textbf{Module details}\nNote that, our GCN layer works by gathering messages from neighbor nodes based on the adjacency matrix $\\textbf{\\textit{A}}$, which is generally pre-defined in most researches. \nAs matrix $\\textbf{\\textit{A}}$ is crucial for GCN training, we initial $\\textbf{\\textit{A}}$ with an identity matrix whose elements of main diagonal are 1 and the remaining are 0. It means that each frame is initialed to be independent at the beginning, and our graph will learn their dependencies during the graph updating.\nAnd our LSTM layer learns the GCN output in $N$ steps respectively to explore the long-term dependency in time series.\nSpecially, we utilize two such graph based modules sharing the same adjacency matrix as a stacked structure for deep feature construction.\n\n\\subsection{Weighted Feature Fusion}\nAfter passing two graph based modules, we get the learned features which are more informative than the initial CNN features owing to mainly focusing on the same regions on face.\nHowever, there are still some learned features not informative enough, especially at the beginning of the video frames which usually has a weak expression. Therefore, we introduce a weight feature fusion mechanism to reemphasize the contribution of the peak ones.\n\n\\textbf{Expression intensity weights}\nAs the adjacency matrix \\textbf{\\textit{A}} learns the dependencies among the video frames, where the weak frames are more dependent on the peak frames, the relevant coefficients of the peak frames are larger than those of weak ones, which can represent the importance of individual frames among video based on their expression intensities. To represent the expression intensity of each frame, we develop a weight function based on the learned matrix \\textbf{\\textit{A}} to calculate corresponding frame-wise weights. Since the $i$th column of \\textbf{\\textit{A}} represents influence of the $i$th frame on other frames, the expression intensity weights can be formulated by :\n\\begin{equation}\n weight = softmax(mean(\\textbf{\\textit{A}}, dim=0))\n \n\\end{equation}\nHere we apply row-wise average pooling on the matrix \\textbf{\\textit{A}} and a softmax function to get the normalized importance $weight \\in \\mathbb{R}^{1\\times N}$ which represents the expression intensity in each frame.\n\n\\textbf{Fusion for final representation}\nAs the peak frames tend to contain more informative features than the weak ones, we need to reemphasize their different contributions for the final classification.\nTo focus more on the features of peak frame, we fuse the $N$ frame features $H_i, i=1,2,...,N$ with the expression intensity weight of each frame to generate the final representation. Our weighted feature fusion function and the final fused representation $r \\in \\mathbb{R}^d$ can be formulated as follows:\n\\vspace{-5pt}\n\\begin{equation}\n r = \\sum_{i=1}^N weight_i H_i\n\\end{equation}\nwhere the final representation $r$ can be calculated as the weighted sum of the feature sequence $H$ and the importance $weight$.\n\nNote that since matrix \\textbf{\\textit{A}} not only participates in the graph learning, but also is utilized for the calculation of expression intensity weights. \nFor correctly learning the graph correlation, we freeze the gradient of matrix \\textbf{\\textit{A}} in the weight calculation branch to avoid the gradient irrelevant to graph learning. \nWe use values of the learned matrix \\textbf{\\textit{A}} to represent the intensities in dynamic expression variation. And we also clarify that the graph based module and weighted feature fusion are both indispensable to video-based FER task. The graph based module aims to learn the features based on the most contributing expression regions, which can guide the spatial module to focus on the most contributing expression region while some non-expressional features still exist in the weak frame. Thus our weighted feature fusion function helps to distinguish the peak and weak expression frames, to make the features of peak frame contribute more to the final recognition while decrease the impacts of the non-expressional features. Detailed visualization and analysis are illustrated in Section 4.4.\n\n\\section{Experiments}\nIn this section, we conduct the experiments on three widely used datasets, CK+ \\cite{lucey2010extended}, Oulu-CASIA \\cite{zhao2011facial}, and MMI \\cite{pantic2005web}. We compare our model with state-of-the-art methods and do ablation study to demonstrate the effectiveness of each component in our model.\n\\subsection{Datasets}\nFollowing the common evaluation strategy, we employ the most popular 10-fold cross-validation protocol on the following three datasets.\n\n\\textbf{CK+ dataset.} As an extended version of Cohn-Kanade (CK) dataset, this dataset includes 583 image sequences from 123 subjects, in which only 327 sequences from 118 subjects have facial expression labels (Anger, Contempt, Disgust, Fear, Happiness, Sadness and Surprise). For each of the video sequence, the intensity of the expression is reflected from neutral to the apex.\n\n\\textbf{Oulu-CASIA dataset.} It is composed of 6 basic facial expressions (Anger, Disgust, Fear, Happiness, Sadness and Surprise) from 80 subjects ranging from 23 to 58 years old. This dataset can be divided into 3 parts based on lighting conditions (normal, weak and dark), each of which consists of 480 sequences (80 subjects with 6 expressions). Similar\nto CK+ dataset, all expression sequences begin at a neutral stage and end with the peak emotion.\n\n\\begin{table}\n\\centering\n\\caption{Average accuracy on the CK+, Oulu-CASIA and MMI datasets respectively.}\n\\label{tab:total_acc}\n\\begin{tabular}{ccccc}\n\\hline\n\\textbf{Method} & \\textbf{CK+} & \\textbf{Oulu} & \\textbf{MMI} & \\textbf{Feature} \\\\ \\hline \\hline\nInception \\cite{mollahosseini2016going} & 93.20\\% & - & 77.60\\% & static \\\\ \\hline\nIACNN \\cite{meng2017identity} & 95.37\\% & - & 71.55\\% & static \\\\ \\hline\nDLP-CNN \\cite{li2017reliable} & 95.78\\% & - & - & static \\\\ \\hline\nFN2EN \\cite{ding2017facenet2expnet} & 96.80\\% & 87.71\\% & - & static \\\\ \\hline\nDeRL \\cite{yang2018facial} & 97.30\\% & 88.00\\% & 73.23\\% & static \\\\ \\hline\nPPDN \\cite{zhao2016peak} & 99.30\\% & 84.59\\% & - & static \\\\ \\hline\n3DCNN \\cite{liu2014deeply} & 85.90\\% & - & 53.20\\% & Dynamic \\\\ \\hline\nITBN \\cite{wang2013capturing} & 86.30\\% & - & 59.70\\% & Dynamic \\\\ \\hline\nHOG 3D \\cite{klaser2008spatio} & 91.44\\% & 70.63\\% & 60.89\\% & Dynamic \\\\ \\hline\nTMS \\cite{jain2011facial} & 91.89\\% & - & - & Dynamic \\\\ \\hline\n3DCNN-DAP \\cite{liu2014deeply} & 92.40\\% & - & 63.40\\% & Dynamic \\\\ \\hline\nSTM-ExpLet \\cite{liu2014learning} & 94.19\\% & 74.59\\% & 75.12\\% & Dynamic \\\\ \\hline\nLOMo \\cite{sikka2016lomo} & 95.10\\% & 82.10\\% & - & Dynamic \\\\ \\hline\n3D Inception-Resnet \\cite{hasani2017facial} & 95.53\\% & - & 79.26\\% & Dynamic \\\\ \\hline\nTraj. on S+(2, n) \\cite{kacem2017novel} & 96.87\\% & 83.13\\% & 79.19\\% & Dynamic \\\\ \\hline\nDTAGN \\cite{jung2015joint} & 97.25\\% & 81.46\\% & 70.24\\% & Dynamic \\\\ \\hline\nGCNet \\cite{kim2017deep} & 97.93\\% & 86.11\\% & 81.53\\% & Dynamic \\\\ \\hline\nPHRNN-MSCNN \\cite{zhang2017facial} & 98.50\\% & 86.25\\% & 81.18\\% & Dynamic \\\\ \\hline\n\\hline\n\\textbf{Ours} & \\textbf{99.54\\%} & \\textbf{91.04\\%} & \\textbf{85.89\\%} & Dynamic \\\\ \\hline\n\\end{tabular}\n\\vspace{-15pt}\n\\end{table}\n\n\n\\textbf{MMI dataset.} This database includes 30 subjects of both genders and diverse ages from 19 to 62, containing 213 video sequences labeled with 6 basic expressions (Anger, Disgust, Fear, Happiness, Sadness, Surprise), out of which 205 sequences are with frontal face. And the expressions of subjects start from neutral state to the apex of one of the six basic facial expressions and return to the neutral state again.\n\\vspace{-5pt}\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Experimental Settings}\nIn our model, like most previous works, we set $N=16$ to choose $N$ frames chronologically from each video, and reuse frames if the number of whole frames less than 16. We utilize VGG16 \\cite{simonyan2014very} with batch normalization layer as the feature extractor, which is initialized with the pre-trained model on ImageNet. In the graph based spatial-temporal module, we set the dimension $d$ of the feature vector in each node as 256, and we adopt LeakyReLU with the negative slope of 0.2 as the non-linear activation function followed by each GCN layer. We adopt BiLSTM \\cite{schuster1997bidirectional} as the LSTM layer.\n\n\n\nIn the training phase, the input images are resized to $256 \\times 256$ and then are randomly cropped into $224 \\times 224$ with illumination changes and image flip for data augmentation. Our model is trained for 120 epochs with standard stochastic gradient descent (SGD) with learning rate set as 0.001 and weight decay set as 0.00005. We conduct all experiments using the Pytorch framework with a single NVIDIA 1080ti GPU.\n\\vspace{-5pt}\n\n\\subsection{Comparison to State-of-the-art Methods}\nWe use CK+ \\cite{lucey2010extended}, Oulu-CASIA \\cite{zhao2011facial}, and MMI \\cite{pantic2005web} datasets for evaluation. We compare our method with state-of-the-art approaches which only use single end-to-end framework, not including the ensemble models like \\cite{kuo2018compact,li2018deep}.\n\n\\begin{table}[t]\n\\centering\n\\caption{Confusion matrix of recognizing four expressions on CK+ dataset.}\n\\label{tab:ck_conf}\n\\begin{tabular}{c||ccccccc}\n\\hline\n & An & Co & Di & Fe & Ha & Sa & Su \\\\ \\hline \\hline\nAn & \\textbf{100\\%} & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% \\\\ \nCo & 0\\% & \\textbf{100\\%} & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% \\\\\nDi & 0\\% & 0\\% & \\textbf{100\\%} & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% \\\\\nFe & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & \\textbf{100\\%} & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% \\\\\nHa & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & \\textbf{100\\%} & 0\\% & 0\\% \\\\\nSa & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & \\textbf{100\\%} & 0\\% \\\\\nSu & 0\\% & 1\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & \\textbf{99\\%} \\\\\n\\hline\n\\end{tabular}\n\\vspace{-8pt}\n\\end{table}\n\n\\begin{table}[t]\n\\centering\n\\caption{Confusion matrix of recognizing four expressions on Oulu-CASIA dataset.}\n\\label{tab:oulu_conf}\n\\begin{tabular}{c||cccccc}\n\\hline\n & An & Di & Fe & Ha & Sa & Su \\\\ \\hline \\hline\nAn & \\textbf{88\\%} & 7\\% & 1\\% & 0\\% & 3\\% & 1\\% \\\\ \nDi & 10\\% & \\textbf{84\\%} & 2\\% & 0\\% & 3\\% & 1\\% \\\\\nFe & 0\\% & 0\\% & \\textbf{91\\%} & 4\\% & 1\\% & 4\\% \\\\\nHa & 0\\% & 0\\% & 2\\% & \\textbf{98\\%} & 0\\% & 0\\% \\\\\nSa & 4\\% & 4\\% & 1\\% & 0\\% & \\textbf{90\\%} & 1\\% \\\\\nSu & 0\\% & 0\\% & 4\\% & 0\\% & 1\\% & \\textbf{95\\%} \\\\\n\\hline\n\\end{tabular}\n\\vspace{-10pt}\n\\end{table}\n\n\\begin{table}[t]\n\\centering\n\\caption{Confusion matrix of recognizing four expressions on MMI dataset.}\n\\label{tab:mmi_conf}\n\\begin{tabular}{c||cccccc}\n\\hline\n & An & Di & Fe & Ha & Sa & Su \\\\ \\hline \\hline\nAn & \\textbf{77\\%} & 13\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & 10\\% & 0\\% \\\\ \nDi & 3\\% & \\textbf{91\\%} & 3\\% & 0\\% & 3\\% & 0\\% \\\\\nFe & 4\\% & 0\\% & \\textbf{68\\%} & 4\\% & 4\\% & 20\\% \\\\\nHa & 0\\% & 0\\% & 2\\% & \\textbf{98\\%} & 0\\% & 0\\% \\\\\nSa & 9\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & 0\\% & \\textbf{91\\%} & 0\\% \\\\\nSu & 0\\% & 0\\% & 10\\% & 0\\% & 2\\% & \\textbf{88\\%} \\\\\n\\hline\n\\end{tabular}\n\\vspace{-15pt}\n\\end{table}\n\n\\begin{figure*}\n\\centerline{\\includegraphics[width=0.95\\textwidth]{heatmap.pdf}}\n\\caption{Example of the feature reconstruction in our GCN layer. First row: Origin facial images of \"Disgust\" in MMI dataset; Second row: input features of GCN layer; Third row: output features of GCN layer. It clarifies that our GCN layer shares most contributing expression features among frames to helps model focus more on the corresponding expression regions (such as mouth and nose here).} \n\\label{fig:gcn}\n\\vspace{-15pt}\n\\end{figure*}\n\n\n\\textbf{Results on CK+}\nAs the results shown in Table \\ref{tab:total_acc}, our proposed method takes the spatial-temporal feature propagation into consideration and achieves 99.54\\% recognition rates on CK+ dataset, which outperforms the compared state-of-the-art methods in video task. Compared to PHRNN-MSCNN \\cite{zhang2017facial}, which is also a video-based method, our model shows improvement of 1.04\\%. Although PPDN \\cite{zhao2016peak} treats video FER as the image-based task and only extracts the features from peak images to boost the performance of classification, it ignores noise of emotion changes in video sequences, and we outperform it by 0.24\\%. The detailed confusion matrix on CK+ is given in Table \\ref{tab:ck_conf}, where we find that almost all expressions are recognized well and \"Surprise\" shows the lowest recognition rate with 99\\%.\n\n\n\n\\textbf{Results on Oulu-CASIA}\nCompared to all the state-of-the-art methods on Oulu-CASIA dataset as shown in Table \\ref{tab:total_acc}, our model achieves the best performance and has a 91.04\\% accuracy rate. It outperforms PHRNN-MSCNN \\cite{zhang2017facial} (video-based) and DeRL \\cite{yang2018facial} (image-based) by 4.79\\%, 3.04\\% respectively. The confusion matrix in Table \\ref{tab:oulu_conf} indicates that our method performs well in \"Happiness\" and \"Surprise\", but it shows the relatively low recognition rate with \"Disgust\", which is mostly confused with \"Anger\".\n\n\\textbf{Results on MMI}\nTable \\ref{tab:total_acc} also reports the comparison of our model with other state-of-the-art methods on MMI dataset. Our model achieves the highest accuracy of 85.89\\% and outperforms the previous best model GCNet \\cite{kim2017deep} by 4.36\\%. Compared to the PHRNN-MSCNN \\cite{zhang2017facial}, which also utilizes the spatio-temporal representations, our method maps a expression variation graph to propagate the correlated features and has the improvement of 4.71\\%. From the confusion matrix shown in Table \\ref{tab:mmi_conf}, we can see that \"Happiness\" is relatively easy to be distinguished. \"Anger\" and \"Fear\" are mostly confused with \"Disgust\" and \"Surprise\", respectively.\n\n\\begin{figure*}[t]\n\\centerline{\n\\subfloat[CK+]{\\includegraphics[width=0.32\\textwidth]{ck_w.pdf}}\n\\subfloat[Oulu-CASIA]{\\includegraphics[width=0.32\\textwidth]{oulu_w.pdf}}\n\\subfloat[MMI]{\\includegraphics[width=0.32\\textwidth]{mmi_w.pdf}}}\n\\caption{Visualization of expression intensity weights for 16 steps on three datasets respectively. The horizontal axis represents the step number in each video sequence. The values of temporal weighs are given in the vertical axis through a sigmoid function, which refer to the expression intensity of each frame in the dynamic expression variation.}\n\\label{fig:weight}\n\\vspace{-12pt}\n\\end{figure*}\n\n\\subsection{Visualization and Analysis}\nWe further give the visualization to demonstrate the effectiveness of two components in our model: 1) we first show results of the GCN learned features which are updated with the propagated expression features in the graph based module; 2) and then we plot the expression intensity weights calculated from the learned adjacency matrix $\\textbf{\\textit{A}}$ in GCN layer to represent the expression intensity of each frame.\n\n\\textbf{GCN learned features}\nIn graph based module, we mainly illustrate how our GCN learns the $N$ frame features based on features from peak frames. As shown in Fig. \\ref{fig:gcn}, the expression of origin facial images is \"Disgust\", whose expression intensity goes up from neutral to peak, then returns to neutral. The second row represents the extracted features from the previous CNN extractor, which shows that original CNN takes it as current image-based expression learning and concentrates on different facial parts in different frames. More in details, the weak frames (frame 1, 3, 11, 13, 15) focus on uncertain parts, while the peak frame (frame 5, 7, 9) mainly focus on the mouth and nose regions which are contributing more to the \"Disgust\" expression. We can see that, in the third row, features of all frames are learned to focus more on the mouth and nose regions with filtering out the non-expression contributing features. It demonstrates that our GCN layer shares the features among the video frames to guide them to pay attention to the most contributing expression region in all frames.\n\n\\textbf{Expression intensity weights}\nThe expression intensity weights represent the expression intensity of each frame among a video sequence, where the weights of peak frames tend to be larger and the weak ones smaller. We give the visualization of the expression intensity weights learned by adjacency matrix $\\textbf{\\textit{A}}$ in GCN layer on three datasets in Fig. \\ref{fig:weight} respectively, where we normalize the weights through a sigmoid function for better understanding. We find that the weights of CK+ and Oulu-CASIA increase gradually from the first frame to the last frame in video sequence while the weights of MMI achieve highest value in the middle part. It demonstrates that our adjacency matrix $\\textbf{\\textit{A}}$ which relies on expression intensities among the dynamic expression variation, is able to learn the dependencies between frames and can help our model to automatically locate the peak expression frames in video FER task.\n\\vspace{-3pt}\n\n\\subsection{Ablation Study}\nWe run an extensive ablation study to demonstrate the effectiveness of different components of our proposed model FER-GCN, including the components of graph based spatial-temporal module and weighted feature fusion function. \n\n\n\\begin{table}\n\\centering\n\\caption{Ablation study on the individual components.}\n\\label{tab:ablation1}\n\\begin{tabular}{cccc}\n\\hline\nExperiment model & CK+ & Oulu-CASIA & MMI \\\\ \\hline \\hline\n\\multirow{2}*{VGG16} & \\multirow{2}*{97.78\\%} & \\multirow{2}*{85.83\\%} & \\multirow{2}*{80.75\\%} \\\\ \n~ & ~ & ~ & ~ \\\\ \\hline \nVGG16 + graph based & \\multirow{2}*{98.39\\%} & \\multirow{2}*{88.33\\%} & \\multirow{2}*{84.37\\%} \\\\\nspatial-temporal module$\\times1$ & ~ & ~ & ~ \\\\ \\hline\nVGG16 + graph based & \\multirow{2}*{99.09\\%} & \\multirow{2}*{89.79\\%} & \\multirow{2}*{84.64\\%} \\\\\nspatial-temporal module$\\times2$ & ~ & ~ & ~ \\\\ \\hline\nVGG16 + graph based & \\multirow{2}*{99.00\\%} & \\multirow{2}*{87.71\\%} & \\multirow{2}*{83.07\\%} \\\\\nspatial-temporal module$\\times3$ & ~ & ~ & \\\\ \\hline\nVGG16 + graph based & \\multirow{3}*{\\textbf{99.54\\%}} & \\multirow{3}*{\\textbf{91.04\\%}} & \\multirow{3}*{\\textbf{85.89\\%}} \\\\\nspatial-temporal module$\\times2$ & ~ & ~ & ~ \\\\\n+ weighted feature fusion & ~ & ~ & ~ \\\\ \\hline\n\\end{tabular}\n\\vspace{-15pt}\n\\end{table}\n\n\\textbf{Ablation study on individual components} We first give the study on the contributions of individual components in our model As shown in Table \\ref{tab:ablation1}, the VGG16 backbone achieves the accuracy of 97.78\\%, 85.83\\% and 80.75\\% on three datasets, which outperforms some existing methods because of our designed training process. With the spatial-temporal feature propagation and reconstruction, the \\textit{VGG16+graph based spatial-temporal module$\\times1$} outperforms the backbone by 0.61\\%, 2.50\\% and 3.62\\% on three datasets respectively. It demonstrates that the graph based module helps to guide our model to focus on the peak expression regions among video frames to explore the dynamic expression variation for final recognition. Also, we find that the performance of FER achieves the highest accuracy of 99.09\\%, 89.79\\% and 84.64\\% with only two graph based spatial-temporal modules and it is not going better when we utilize more. We give the analysis that the propagation between the nodes will be accumulated if we use more GCN layers, and it will result in over-smoothing. That is, the node features may be over-smoothed such that the features of nodes with different expression intensities may become indistinguishable. At last, our weighted feature fusion function has another improvement of 0.45\\%, 1.25\\% and 1.25\\% on three datasets respectively, which shows its strong ability to capture the dynamic expression variation in video sequence.\n\n\n\\vspace{-5pt}\n\\subsection{Additional Evaluation on Wild Database}\nAt last, we conduct an additional experiment on a public \"in the wild\" dataset AFEW 8.0 \\cite{dhall2018emotiw} to further investigate the robustness of our proposed method. In details, we follow the data pre-processing by \\cite{lu2018multiple} and only compare our FER-GCN with the top-ranked single models or baselines in Emotiw2018 \\cite{dhall2018emotiw} on the validation set. As shown in Table \\ref{tab:wild}, the baseline of Emotiw2018 achieves the lowest performance of 38.81\\% where the other methods have large improvement with deep feature extractor and temporal feature exploring. Although VGG-Face-LSTM achieves the performance of 53.91\\% by exploiting spatial-temporal features, our proposed FER-GCN explores more interpretable features from the most contributing expression regions among the frames to capture the dynamic variation, and outperforms it by 1.76\\%. It indicates that our proposed model helps to learn a more general dynamic expressional feature representation.\n\\begin{table}\n\\centering\n\\caption{Recognition accuracy of each single model on the validation dataset of AFEW 8.0.}\n\\label{tab:wild}\n\\begin{tabular}{|c|c|}\n\\hline\nMethod & Accuracy \\\\ \\hline\nEmotiw2018 (baseline) \\cite{dhall2018emotiw} & 38.81\\% \\\\\nHoloNet \\cite{hu2017learning} & 46.50\\% \\\\\nDSN-VGG-Face \\cite{fan2018video} & 48.04\\% \\\\\nResne50-LSTM \\cite{lu2018multiple} & 49.31\\% \\\\\nDenseNet161-pool5 \\cite{liu2018multi} & 51.44\\% \\\\\nVGG-Face-LSTM \\cite{lu2018multiple} & 53.91\\% \\\\ \\hline\nOurs & \\textbf{55.67\\%} \\\\ \\hline\n\\end{tabular}\n\\vspace{-15pt}\n\\end{table}\n\\section{Conclusion}\nIn this paper, we present a novel framework named FER-GCN, which utilizes graph work to learn most contributing features for facial expression recognition. Our designed graph based module learn features of each node based on the propagated features from peak frames for long-term dependency exploring. And the adjacency matrix learned from the GCN layer is further applied to locate the peak frame in video sequence and further guide our model to focus on features of the peak frame. Experimental results on four widely used facial expression datasets demonstrate the superiority of our method compared with other state-of-the-art methods. \n\n\\bibliographystyle{IEEEtran}\n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\\section{Introduction}\nThe aim of this paper is to investigate a reduced-order approach for four-dimensional variational data assimilation (4D-Var), with an illustration in the context of ocean modelling, which is our main field of interest.\n4D-Var is now in use in\nnumerical weather prediction centers (e.g. Rabier {\\it et al.} 2000) and should be a potential\ncandidate for operational oceanography in prospect of seasonal climate\nprediction and possibly of high resolution global ocean mesoscale prediction.\nHowever, ocean scales make the problem even more difficult\nand computationally heavy to handle than for the atmosphere.\nSeveral applications were conducted these last years for various oceanic\nstudies, including for example : basin-scale ocean circulation, either with\nquasigeostrophic (Moore 1991; Schr\\\"oter {\\it et al.} 1993; Luong {\\it\net al.} 1998) or with primitive equation models (Greiner {\\it et al.}\n1998; Wenzel and Schr\\\"oter 1999; Greiner and Arnault 2000; Weaver {\\it et al.}\n2002); coastal modelling (Leredde {\\it et al.} 1998; Devenon {\\it et\nal.} 2001); or biogeochemical modelling (Lawson {\\it et al.} 1995;\nSpitz {\\it et al.} 1998; Lellouche {\\it et al.} 2000, Faugeras {\\it et\nal.}, 2003).\\par\nHowever, although considerable work and improvements have been performed,\na number of difficulties remain, common to most applications (and also to other data assimilation methods). The first\nproblem is the fact that ocean models are non-linear, while 4D-Var theory is\nestablished in a linear context. More precisely, variational approach can\nadapt in principle to non-linear models, but the cost function is no\nlonger quadratic with regard to the initial condition (which is the\nusual control parameter) which can lead to\nimportant difficulties in the minimization process and the occurence of\nmultiple minima. Several strategies have been proposed to overcome these\n problems: Luong {\\it et al.} (1998) and Blum {\\it et\nal.} (1998) perform successive minimizations over increasing time periods; \nCourtier {\\it et al.} (1994), with the so-called incremental approach, generate a\nsuccession of quadratic problems, which solutions should converge (but with no\ngeneral theoretical proof) towards the solution of the initial minimization\nproblem. \nA second major difficulty with variational problem\nimplementation lies in our poor knowledge of the\nbackground error, whose covariance matrix plays an important role in the cost\nfunction and in the minimization process. In the absence of statistical information, these covariances are\noften approximated empirically by analytical (e.g. Gaussian)\nfunctions. For instance, the covariances, used in the ``standard''\n4D-Var experiment $E_{FULL}$ described in section \\ref{Sect:NumExp} are 3D but univariate.\nMoreover, as discussed in (Lermusiaux, 1999), errors evolve with the\ndynamics of the system and thus the error space should evolve in the\nsame way. In realistic systems, it proves to be difficult to catch correctly this evolution.\nThe third major problem in the use of 4D-Var in realistic oceanic applications\nis probably the dimension of the control space. In fact, this\ndimension is generally equal to the size of the model state\nvariable (composed, in our case, by the two horizontal components of the\nvelocity, temperature and salinity), which is\ntypically of the order of $10^6$-$10^8$. This makes of course the\nminimization difficult and expensive (typically tens to hundreds times the\ncost of an integration of the model), even with the best current\npreconditioners.\\par \nThis last difficulty can be addressed by reducing the dimension of the\nminimization space. This is for example the idea of the incremental approach\n(Courtier {\\it et al.} 1994), in which an important part of the\nsuccessive quadratic minimization problems previously mentioned can be\nsolved using a coarse resolution (e.g. Veers\\'e and Th\\'epaut 1998).\nThe dimension of the minimization problem can then be decreased by one\nor two orders of magnitude. However, even with such an approach, the\ndimension of the control space remains quite large in realistic\napplications. Another way to reduce the dimension of the control space\n is the representer method (Bennett, 92), performing the minimization\nin the observation space. The number of parameters to estimate is\nequal to the number of observation locations.\nConcerning sequential data assimilation, reduced-order methods were\ndeveloped to allow the specification of error covariances matrix even\nfor realistic applications. This is the case for example of the\nSingular Extended Evolutive Kalman (SEEK)\nfilter (Pham {\\it et al.} 1998; Brasseur {\\it et al.}\n1999). \\par\nIn this paper, we propose an alternative way for drastically decreasing the dimension of the control space, and hence the cost of the minimization process. Moreover this method provides a natural choice for a multivariate background error covariance matrix, which helps improving the quality of the final solution. The method is based on a decomposition of the control variable on a well-chosen family of a few relevant vectors, and has already been successfully applied in the simple case of a quasigeostrophic box model (Blayo {\\it et al.} 1998). The aim of the present paper is to further develop this approach and to validate it in a more realistic case, namely a primitive equation model of the equatorial Pacific ocean. The method is described in section 2. Then the model, the assimilation scheme and the numerical experiments are presented in section 3, and their results are discussed. Finally some conclusions are drawn in section 4.\n\\section{The reduced-space approach}\nLet a model simply written as\n\\begin{equation}\n\\frac{\\partial {\\bf x}}{\\partial t} = M({\\bf x}) \n\\end{equation}\nwith the state vector ${\\bf x}$ in $\\Omega\n\\times [t_0,t_N]$, $\\Omega$ being the physical domain. Suppose that we have some\nobservations ${\\bf y}^{\\hbox{\\scriptsize o}}$ distributed over $\\Omega \\times\n[t_0,t_N]$, with an observation operator $H$ mapping ${\\bf x}$ onto ${\\bf y}$. The classical 4D-Var approach consists in minimizing a cost function \n\\begin{equation}\n\\begin{array}{ll}\nJ({\\bf u})&= J_o({\\bf u}) + J_b({\\bf u})\\\\\n&= \\frac{1}{2} \\,\\displaystyle \\sum_{i=0}^N \\left( H({\\bf x}_i) - {\\bf y}_i^{\\hbox{\\scriptsize o}} \\right)^T {\\bf R}_i^{-1} \\left( H({\\bf x}_i) - {\\bf y}_i^{\\hbox{\\scriptsize o}} \\right) + \\frac{1}{2} \\, ( {\\bf u} - {\\bf u}^b )^T {\\bf B}_u^{-1} ( {\\bf u} - {\\bf u}^b )\n\\end{array}\n\\label{eq:J}\n\\end{equation}\nusing the notations of Ide {\\it et al.} (1997). ${\\bf u}^b$ is a background value for the control vector ${\\bf u}$, and ${\\bf B}_u$ is its associated error covariance matrix. In most applications, the control variable ${\\bf u}$ is the state variable at\nthe initial time : ${\\bf u}={\\bf x}(t_0)$, and the background state\n${\\bf u}^b = {\\bf x}^b$ is typically a forecast from a previous\nanalysis given by the data assimilation system. In this case, once the model is discretized,\nthe size of ${\\bf u}$ (i.e. the dimension of the control space ${\\mathcal\nU}$) is equal to the size of ${\\bf x}$, denoted by $n$. $\\ \\textbf{x}_i$ stands for the state variable at time $t_i$. In equation (\\ref{eq:J}), $\\textbf{x}_i$ is propagated by $M$, the fully non-linear model.\\par\nIn the incremental formulation which is used here, the cost function ${\\bf{J}}$ is written as\na function of $\\delta {\\bf x}_0 = {\\bf x}_0 - {\\bf x}^b$ and the $J_o$ term is calculated using the linearized model \\textbf{M}:\n\n\\begin{equation}\n\\begin{array}{ll}\nJ(\\delta \\textbf{x}) & =\\frac{1}{2}(\\delta \\textbf{x})^t \\textbf{B}^{-1}\\delta\n\\textbf{x} \\\\\n & + \\frac{1}{2} \\displaystyle \\sum_{i=1}^{N} ({\\bf{H_{i}M_{t_i,t_0}}}\\delta\n\\textbf{x}_0 -\\bf{d}_i)^{t} R_{i}^{-1} ({\\bf{H_{i}M_{t_i,t_0}}}\\delta\n\\textbf{x}_0 -\\bf{d}_i) \\\\\n\\end{array}\n\\label{eq:Jinc}\n\\end{equation}\n\nwhere $\\bf{d}_i$ stands for the innovation vector: $\\textbf{d}_i =\n\\textbf{y}_i - H(\\textbf{x}_b(t_i))$ and $M_{t_i,t_0}$ is the temporal\nevolution performed by the model $M$ between the instants $t_0$ and $t_i$.\\par\nThe basic idea then, for constructing a reduced-order approach, consists in\ndefining a convenient mapping ${\\mathcal M}$ from ${\\mathcal W}\\equiv\\hbox{\\bf I\\hspace*{-1mm}R}^r$ into\n$\\,{\\mathcal U}\\equiv\\hbox{\\bf I\\hspace*{-1mm}R}^n$, with $r\\ll n$, and in replacing the control variable ${\\bf u}$ by the new control variable ${\\bf w}$ with ${\\bf u}={\\mathcal M}({\\bf w})$. Since we want to preserve a good solution while having only a rather small number $r$ of degrees of freedom on the choice of ${\\bf w}$, the subspace ${\\mathcal M}({\\mathcal W})$ of ${\\mathcal U}$ must be chosen in order to contain only the ``most pertinent'' admissible values for ${\\bf u}$. More precisely, in the case of the control of the initial condition ${\\bf u}={\\bf x}(t_0)$, we decide to define the mapping ${\\mathcal M}$ by an affine relationship of the form :\n\\begin{equation}\n{\\bf x}(t_0)={\\mathcal M}({\\bf w})=\\hat{{\\bf x}} + \\sum_{i=1}^r w_i {\\bf L}_i \\qquad \\hbox{with } {\\bf w}=(w_1,\\ldots,w_r) \\in\n{\\mathcal W}\\equiv\\hbox{\\bf I\\hspace*{-1mm}R}^r \n\\label{eq:x0}\n\\end{equation}\nIn order to let ${\\bf w}$ span a wide range of physically possible\nstates, $\\hat{{\\bf x}}$ represents an estimate of the state of the\nsystem, and ${\\bf L}_1,\\ldots, {\\bf L}_r$ are vectors containing the\nmain directions of variability of the system (the $w_i$ are scalars).\nSuch a definition relies on the fact that most of the variability of\nan oceanic system can be described by a low dimensional space.\nEven if it is only rigorously proved for very simplified models (Lions\n\\textit{et al.}, 1992), it is often\nexpected that, away from the equator, ocean circulation can be seen as a dynamical\nsystem having a strange attractor. This means that the system trajectories are\nattracted towards a (low dimension) manifold. In the vicinity of this\nattractor, orthogonal perturbations will be naturally damped, while tangent\nperturbations will not (they can even be greatly amplified, due to the chaotic\ncharacter of the system). To retrieve a system trajectory over of period of\ntime $[t_0,t_N]$, it seems thus necessary to propose an initial condition ${\\bf x}(t_0)$\ncontaining such variability modes tangent to the attractor, but not\nnecessarily variability modes orthogonal to it. Thus, in definition\n(\\ref{eq:x0}), $\\hat{{\\bf x}}$ should ideally be located on the attractor,\nand ${\\bf L}_1,\\ldots, {\\bf L}_r$ should correspond to the main directions of\nvariability tangent to it. In the tropical ocean, the rationale is different, and even simpler since the tropical ocean dynamics is mostly linear, and can be represented by a rather limited number of linear, and possibly non-linear, modes (e.g. De Witte {\\it et al.} 1998).\\par \nIn practice, we will choose $\\hat{{\\bf x}}={\\bf x}^b$, i.e. the background state that would be used in the corresponding classical 4D-Var approach. \nWith this choice, the increment $\\delta {\\bf x}= {\\bf x}(t_0)-{\\bf x}^b$ is equal to $\\displaystyle{\\delta {\\bf x}= \\sum_{i=1}^r w_i {\\bf L}_i = {\\bf L w}}$. In this reduced-space approach, we define a new expression for the background term $J_b$ of the cost function $J$ :\n\\begin{equation}\nJ_b({\\bf w})=\\frac{1}{2} \\, {\\bf w}^T {\\bf B}_w^{-1} {\\bf w}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere ${\\bf B}_w$ is the background error covariance matrix in the reduced space. The natural representation of ${\\bf B}_w$ in the full space is the singular matrix \n\\begin{equation}\n{\\bf B}_r = {\\bf L} {\\bf B}_w {\\bf L}^T\n\\end{equation}\nMinimization is performed using a quasi-Newton descent method with an\nexact line search (algorithm M1QN3, Gilbert and Lemar\\'echal 1989). As\nin the classical 4D-Var method, the problem is preconditionned by defining a new\ncontrol variable $\\delta {\\bf v} = \\textbf{B}^{-1\/2} \\delta{\\bf x}_0$, which implies\n$J_b(\\delta {\\bf v}) = \\frac{1}{2}\\, \\delta {\\bf v}^T \\delta {\\bf v}$.\nFrom a programming point of view, this approach implies nearly no modification to the original code, since we only have to add a mapping procedure corresponding to ${\\mathcal M}$, and the\nadjoint of this procedure. \\par\nIt is important to point out that the choice of the subspace \n${\\mathcal M}({\\mathcal W})$ of ${\\mathcal U}$ is performed using additional\ninformation (the information leading to the construction of the ${\\bf L}_i$s) with regard to usual 4D-Var with no order reduction. This is done of course in order to make the choice of ${\\mathcal M}$ effective, but it will also automatically introduce this extra information into the assimilation procedure (through ${\\bf L}$ and ${\\bf B}_w$), and thus possibly help making the\nassimilation efficient.\\vspace*{3mm}\\par\nConcerning the actual choice of $({\\bf L}_1,\\ldots, {\\bf L}_r)$, different families of vectors can be proposed :\n\\begin{itemize}\n\\item The variability of the system can be defined in a statistical sense,\nwhich means that we seek directions maximizing the variance around a mean\nstate of the system. This is actually the definition of Empirical Orthogonal\nFunctions (EOFs), which can be computed from a sampling of a model trajectory (see section \\ref{SSect:eofs}).\n\\item We can also define the variability in a harmonical sense. In that case,\nthe vectors can be defined by a Fourier or wavelets analysis of a model\ntrajectory. Note however that, with regard to a rectangular domain, the presence of continental boundaries makes the analysis more difficult. \n\\item If we consider the notion of variability within the framework of\ndynamical systems, we look for vectors maximizing a ratio of the form\n$\\|{\\bf x}(t=T_2)\\| \/ \\|{\\bf x}(t=T_1)\\|$, for some norm $\\|.\\|$. The problem can be simplified by making a\ntangent linear approximation, which leads to the computation of singular\nvectors (SVs). In the limit case where $T_2 - T_1$ becomes large (infinite),\nSVs converge towards Lyapunov vectors (LVs). Properties of SVs and LVs can be\nfound for instance in Legras and Vautard (1995). The tangent linear\nassumption can also be relaxed, and vectors corresponding to SVs and LVs can\nbe computed with the fully non-linear model. They are called respectively\nnon-linear singular vectors (NSVs, Mu 2000) and bred modes (BVs,\nToth and Kalnay 1997). Note that, to our knowledge, these ``non-linear'' vectors have been introduced in an empirical way, with nearly no related properties established theoretically.\n\\end{itemize}\nDurbiano (2001) performed a thorough study of these families of\nvectors (EOFs, SVs, LVs, NSVs and BVs) in the perspective of their use\nas reduced basis for several data assimilation problem. In particular,\nshe compared their performances for the present problem of the control\nof the initial condition in a reduced space, in the case of a 2-D\nshallow water model. She concluded in this case to the clear\nsuperiority of EOFs with regard to the other families of vectors. This\nis probably due to the fact that EOFs take into account the\nnonlinearity of the model (while SVs and LVs do not), and also that\ntheir covariance matrix ${\\bf B}_w$ is quite accurately known, which is not the case for the other families of vectors. \nThat is why we used EOFs in the realistic 3-D experiment described in\nsection 3. Note that this way of approximating the variability of the system\nin a data assimilation process by a low dimension space generated by the\nfirst $r$ EOFs is similar to the method used in the SEEK filter, or in the reduced order filter proposed by Cane {\\it et al.} (1996). \n\\section{Numerical experiments}\n\\label{Sect:NumExp}\n\\subsection{Model and EOF analysis}\n\\label{SSect:eofs}\nThe model used in our tests is the primitive equation ocean general\ncirculation model OPA (Madec {\\it et al.} 1999), in its $z$-coordinate rigid-lid\nversion. The region of interest is the equatorial Pacific ocean, from 30$^\\circ$ S\nto 30$^\\circ$ N. The horizontal resolution is set to 1$^\\circ$\\\/ zonally, and varies\nmeridionally from 1\/2$^\\circ$\\\/ at the equator to 2$^\\circ$\\\/ at 30$^\\circ$. Vertically the\nocean is discretized using 25 levels. The state vector consists of\ntemperature, salinity and horizontal velocity,\nand has a size slightly greater than $10^6$.\\par \nA one-year simulation was performed, starting from\na previous restart built with the ECMWF wind stresses and heat fluxes\nand using ERS-TAO daily wind stresses and ECMWF heat fluxes to force\nthe model. In a 10$^\\circ$-wide band near the northern and southern\nboundaries, buffer zones are prescribed where the model solution is\nrelaxed towards Levitus climatology. This version of the model has\nbeen used previously in a number of studies, and details can be found\ntherein (e.g. Vialard {\\it et al.} 2001, Vialard {\\it et al.} 2003,\nWeaver {\\it et al.} 2003).\\par\nThe model solution during the first year of data assimilation experiment (1993) has been sampled with a 2-day periodicity, and a multivariate EOF analysis of the three-dimensional fields has been performed. Let us recall that this analysis consists in determining the main directions of variability of the model sample ${\\bf X}=({\\bf X}_1,\\ldots,{\\bf X}_p)$, which \nleads to diagonalizing the covariance matrix ${\\bf X}^T{\\bf X}$,\nwith ${\\bf X}_j= \\displaystyle \\frac{1}{\\sigma_i} [{\\bf x}(t_j)-\\bar{\\bf x}]$ and $\\bar{\\bf\nx}=\\displaystyle \\frac{1}{p}\\, \\displaystyle \\sum_{j=1}^{p}{\\bf x}(t_j)$. The inner product is the usual one for a state vector containing several physical quantities expressed in different units~: \n\\begin{equation}\n<{\\bf X}_j,{\\bf X}_k> = \\sum_{i=1}^{n} \\displaystyle \\frac{1}{\\sigma_i ^2} ({\\bf x}(t_j)-\\bar{\\bf x})_i ({\\bf x}(t_k)-\\bar{\\bf x})_i\n\\end{equation}\nwhere ${\\sigma_i^2}$ is the empirical variance of the $i$-th\ncomponent : ${\\sigma_i^2}= \\displaystyle \\frac{1}{p}\\,\\displaystyle \\sum_{j=1}^{p}({\\bf X}_j^i)^2$.\nThis diagonalization leads to a set of orthonormal eigenvectors $({\\bf\nL}_1,\\ldots, {\\bf L}_p)$ corresponding to eigenvalues $\\lambda _1 >\n\\ldots > \\lambda_p >0$. Since trajectories are computed with\nthe fully non-linear model, these modes represent non-linear variability around\nthe mean state over the whole period.\\par\nThe first level ($z=5$m) of the first EOF is displayed on Fig. 1. As can be\nseen, it is mostly representative of the variability of the equatorial zonal\ncurrents, of the north-south temperature oscillation and\nof the mean structure of the sea surface salinity.\\par\nThe fraction of variability (or ``inertia\") which is conserved when\nretaining only the $r$ first vectors is $\\displaystyle \\sum_{j=1}^{r}\n\\lambda_j \/ \\sum_{j=1}^{p} \\lambda_j$. Its variation as a function of\n$r$ is displayed in Fig. 2. We can see that a large part of the total\nvariance can be represented by a very few EOFs : 80\\% for the first 13 EOFs, 92\\% for the first 30 EOFs.\\par \nFinally, let us emphasize that a natural estimate for the covariance matrix of the first $r$ eigenvectors $({\\bf L}_1,\\ldots, {\\bf L}_r)$, i.e. ${\\bf B}_w$ in our reduced-order 4D-Var, is simply the diagonal matrix $\\hbox{Diag}(\\lambda_1,\\ldots,\\lambda_r)$.\n\\subsection{Assimilation experiments}\nA 4D-Var assimilation scheme, based on the incremental formulation of\nCourtier {\\it et al.} (1994), has been developped for the OPA model\n(Weaver {\\it et al.} 2003, Vialard {\\it et al.} 2003). Without going into details (which can be found in references above), let us recall that the nonquadratic cost function $J({\\bf x}(t_0))$ is expressed in terms of the increment $\\delta {\\bf x}_0$, and that its minimization is replaced by a sequence of minimizations of simplified quadratic cost functions. The basic state-trajectory used in the tangent linear model is regularly updated in an outer loop of the assimilation algorithm, while the iterations of the actual minimizations are performed within an inner loop.\\par\nDifferent statistical models can be chosen for representing the\ncorrelations of background error. In the present study, we used a\nLaplacian-based correlation model, which is implemented by numerical\nintegration of a generalized diffusion-type equation (Weaver and\nCourtier, 2001). The horizontal correlation lengths for the gaussian\nfunctions are equal to $8^o$ in longitude and $2^o$ in latitude near the\nequator and $4^o$ in longitude\/latitude outside the area situated between $20^o$N\/S. The vertical\ncorrelation lengths depend on the depth. ${\\bf B}$ is thus block diagonal :\ncovariances are spatially varying but remain monovariate. Such a choice for ${\\bf B}$ leads to significantly\nbetter results than those given by a simple diagonal representation of\nthis matrix. However, since ${\\bf\nB}$ remains univariate, the links between the model variables\ncome only from the action of the model dynamics. The development of a\nmultivariate model for ${\\bf B}$ is presently under way in research\ngroups. Ricci {\\it et al.} (2004) include a state-dependent\ntemperature-salinity constraint, which works quite well in the 3D-Var\ncase but is not yet operational for the 4D-Var case.\\par\nThe observation error covariance matrices ${\\bf R}_i$ depend of course of the assimilated data. \nWe will consider in the present case only temperature observations,\nwhich are assumed independent with a standard error equal to $\\sigma_T$.\nThe ${\\bf R}_i$ are thus taken equal to $\\sigma_T^2\\, {\\bf Id}$.\\par \n\nWe have used for our experiments the classical framework of\ntwin experiments. A one-year simulation of the model was performed, starting\nat the beginning of 1993. This\nsimulation (further denoted $E_{REF}$) will be the reference experiment. \nPseudo-observations of the temperature field were then generated, by extraction\nfrom this one-year solution at the locations of the 70 TAO moorings (Fig.\n3), with a periodicity of 6 hours, on the first 19 levels of the model (i.e.\nthe first 500 meters of the ocean). This corresponds to observing 0.17\\% of the model state vector every 6 hours. Those temperature values have been perturbed by the addition of a gaussian noise, with a standard error set to $\\sigma_T=0.5$$^\\circ$ C, which is an upper bound for the standard error of\nthe real TAO temperature dataset.\\par \nA 4D-Var assimilation of these pseudo-observations (i.e. with full\ncontrol variable $\\delta {\\bf x}_0$, built from the state vector\n(u,v,T,S) in the whole space) was then performed,\nusing an independent field ${\\bf x}_b$ (a solution of the model three\nmonths later) as the first guess (background field) for the minimization\nprocess. This first assimilation experiment will be denoted $E_{FULL}$, since it uses the full control space. In order to improve the validity of the tangent linear approximation, the assimilation time window was divided into successive one-month windows.\\par \nThen an additional simulation was performed, using the reduced-space\napproach described in section 2 with $r=30$ EOFs (which represent 92\\% of the\ntotal inertia - Fig. 2). This second assimilation experiment will be denoted $E_{REDUC}$. As detailed previously, the control variable in this case\nis ${\\bf w}=(w_1, \\ldots, w_r)$, with the mapping $\\delta {\\bf x}_0 =\n{\\bf L}{\\bf w}$ and the preconditionning $\\delta {\\bf v} = {\\bf B}_w^{-1\/2}{\\bf w} = {\\bf B}_w^{-1\/2}{\\bf L}^T \\delta{\\bf x}_0$.\n\\subsection{Numerical results}\nAs explained in section 2, the reduced-space assimilation algorithm presents two main differences with regard to the full-space algorithm, which are the multivariate nature of the background error covariance matrix, and the small dimension of the control space. Both aspects are expected to improve the efficiency of the assimilation, and we will now illustrate their respective impact.\n\\subsubsection{Background error covariances}\nThe background error covariance matrix used in the reduced-space approach is defined empirically by the EOF analysis and is expressed in the full-space as ${\\bf B}_r={\\bf L}{\\bf B}_w{\\bf L}^T$. It integrates statistical information on the consistency between the different model variables, and is naturally multivariate. On the other hand, the matrix ${\\bf B}$ used in the full-space 4D-Var is univariate, since providing a multivariate model for this matrix remains challenging. This aspect is of course very important, and should lead to significant changes in the assimilation results. Note that Buehner {\\it et al.} (1999) have proposed a similar way of representing error covariances with EOF analysis in the context of 3D-Var. However they consider that the reduced basis is not sufficient to span the analysis increment space and blend this EOF basis with the prior ${\\bf B}$ projected into the sub-space orthogonal to the EOFs.\\par\nAn interesting way to illustrate these differences between the\nfull-space ${\\bf B}$ and the reduced-space ${\\bf B}_r$ is to perform\npreliminary assimilation experiments with a single observation. For\nthat purpose, we use a single temperature observation located within\nthe thermocline at 160$^\\circ$ W on the equator, and specified at the end\nof a one-month assimilation time window. The innovation is set to 1$^\\circ$\nK. The analysis increment at the initial time in such an experiment is\nproportional to the column of ${\\bf B}{\\bf M}_{t_n,t_0}^T$\ncorresponding to the location of the observation. As can be seen in\nFig. 4, the reduced-space method performs, as expected, a rather weak correction over the whole basin, while the full-space method generates a much stronger and local increment.\nThe structure of the increment is indeed much more elaborate in the\nreduced-space experiment, with scales larger than in the full-space experiment. Note that the input from the first EOF (shown on Fig. 1) is quite clear in the horizontal pattern of the increment, since $w_1\/\\|{\\bf w}\\|=0.86$ in this particular case. The maximum value of the increment however is only 0.06$^\\circ$ C for the reduced-space 4D-Var, while it is 0.94 $^\\circ$ C in the full-space 4D-Var.\\par\nThe interest of the naturally multivariate aspect of ${\\bf B}_r$ is also clear in the results of our twin experiments. Two different types of diagnostics were performed, the first one concerning only the assimilated variables (i.e. temperature in the present case), while the second one relates to all other variables that are not assimilated. This second type of diagnostic is of course the most significant, since it evaluates the capability of the assimilation procedure to propagate information over the whole model state vector.\\par\nAn example of the first type of diagnostic is given in Fig. 5a, which displays the temperature rms error defined by \n\\begin{equation}\n\\hbox{rms}_T (z,t)=\\left(\\int{\n\\left( T(\\lambda,\\theta,z,t)-T_{REF}(\\lambda,\\theta,z,t)\\right)^2 d\\lambda \\,\nd\\theta } \\right)^{1\/2}\n\\end{equation}\n\nThe discretized formula becomes :\n\n\\begin{equation}\n\\hbox{rms}_T (z,t)= \\| x -x_{ref} \\|_2 = \\left [\\displaystyle \\frac{1}{N_x \\times N_y}\n\\sum_{i=1}^{N_x} \\sum_{j=1}^{N_y} (\\textbf{T}(i,j,z,t) -\n\\textbf{T}_{ref}(i,j,z,t))^2\\right ]^{1\/2} \n\\end{equation}\nwhere $N_x$ and $N_y$ are the number of grid points in x and y.\nThis error is significantly weaker in $E_{REDUC}$ than in $E_{FULL}$, although the assimilation system in $E_{REDUC}$ has much less degrees of freedom to adjust the model trajectory to these data.\\par \nAn example of the second type of diagnostic is shown in Fig. 5b,c. In our test case, these results are clearly in favour of\nthe reduced-space approach. The errors on the salinity S and the zonal component of the velocity $u$ for the solution\nprovided by $E_{FULL}$ are systematically greater than for $E_{REDUC}$. \\par\nThe interest of this approach can also be illustrated by the results in the\nlower levels. It is well-known that the time-scale for the information to penetrate from the upper ocean into the deep ocean within an\nassimilation process may be quite long. However, in experiment $E_{REDUC}$ the\nEOFs add information on the vertical structure of the flow (see Fig. 4) and then make the\nvertical adjustment easier. We have plotted for\nexample in Fig. 6 the errors of the different solutions at level 20 (depth :\n750 m, \\textit{ie} below the observations). $E_{REDUC}$ performs a\nvery good identification of the solution due to the propagation of the information in depth.\\par\nThese results are only part of what should be shown in terms of\ndiagnostic analyses. But all of them clearly prove that the results of\n$E_{REDUC}$ vs $E_{FULL}$ are significantly improved for all, assimilated or not, variables.\\par \nFinally, it must be mentioned that we have also illustrated the fundamental role of the multivariate nature of ${\\bf B}_r$ by performing an additional reduced-order experiment (not shown) using univariate EOFs. In this case, the directions proposed for the minimization were not relevant, and the assimilation failed. \n\\subsubsection{Dimension of the control space}\nThe second important difference brought by the reduced-space approach with regard to the full-space approach is the dimension of the minimization space, which is decreased by several orders of magnitude. This should reduce the number of iterations necessary for the minimization, i.e. reduce the cost of the data assimilation algorithm, which is an important practical issue.\\par \nThe evolution of the cost functions for experiments $E_{FULL}$ and\n$E_{REDUC}$ are displayed on Fig. 7. Since we use different covariance matrices ${\\bf B}$ and ${\\bf B}_r$ in these two experiments, the curves are not quantitatively\ncomparable.\nHowever, it is clear in Fig. 7 that the number of iterations required to\nstabilize the cost function is reduced by nearly one order of\nmagnitude between the full-space 4D-Var approach (which needs\ntypically several tens of iterations) and the reduced-space approach\n(which needs eight to ten iterations). In the present experiments, we\nhave kept the same number of iterations (2 outer loops of ten\niterations each) in the two experiments to strictly compare the\nresults. But having a look at the cost function, it is clear that the\nminimum is quickly reached by $E_{REDUC}$ experiment. Considering the\nlow number of freedom degrees, the computational cost can be thus divided by a factor of 4 or 5 between the two methods.\n\\section{Conclusion}\nThis paper presents a reduced-space approach for 4D-Var data assimilation. A new control space of low dimension is defined, in which the minimization is performed. An illustration of the method is given in the case of twin experiments with a primitive equation model of the equatorial Pacific ocean. \\par\nThis method presents two important features, which make the assimilation algorithm effective. First the background error covariance matrix ${\\bf B}_r$ is built using statistical information (an EOF analysis) on a previous model run. This introduces relevant additional information in the assimilation process and makes ${\\bf B}_r$ naturally multivariate, while providing an analytical multivariate model for ${\\bf B}$ is still challenging. This improves the identification of the solution, both on observed and non-observed variables, and at all depths in the model.\nSecondly the reduction of the dimension of the control space limits the number of iterations for the minimization, which results in a decrease of the computational cost by roughly one order of magnitude.\n\\par\nHowever the results presented in this\nwork are only a first (but necessary) step, since they concern twin experiments. They need of course to be confirmed by\nadditional experiments in other contexts, in particular experiments with real data and in other geographical areas. \nAs a matter of fact, the efficiency of the method is closely related\nto the fact that the reduced basis does contain pertinent information on the\nvariability of the true system. That is why, in the context of real\nobservations (i.e. in the case of an imperfect model), the control\nspace must probably not be limited to model-based variability.\nTherefore, we can imagine either compute EOFs from results of previous\ndata assimilation using for example full-space 4D-Var (Durbiano 2001),\nand\/or improve the assimilation results by performing a few full-space iterations at the end of the reduced-space minimization (Hoteit {\\it et al.} 2003).\\par\nSeveral other ideas can be considered to extend the present methodology to a fully realistic context, and some of them are presently under investigation in our group. Concerning the definition of the reduced basis, one could think of its evolutivity and adaptivity, as in some sequential assimilation methods (Brasseur {\\it et al.} 1999; Hoang {\\it et al.} 2001). Moreover a major source of difficulty (common to all data assimilation methods) is our insufficient knowledge (and therefore parameterization) of the model error. Recent works have addressed this problem in the context of variational methods, which intend to model and control this error (e.g. D'Andr\\'ea and Vautard 2001; Durbiano 2001; Vidard 2001). Such a control could probably be performed in a reduced-order context and complement efficiently the present method. \n\\vspace*{5mm}\\\\\n{\\bf Acknowledgments}\\par\nThe authors would like to thank Anthony Weaver and Arthur Vidard for numerous helpful discussions. A. Weaver provided the OPAVAR package and helped us using it. Laurent Parent helped in the configuration of the numerical experiments. This work has been supported by the french project MERCATOR for operational oceanography. Idopt is joint\nCNRS-INPG-INRIA-UJF research project.\\vspace*{3 mm}\\\\ \n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\\section{Introduction}\n\\label{sec:introduction}\n\nDeep learning is revolutionizing computing \\cite{LeCun:2015dt, Goodfellow:2016wc} for an ever-increasing range of applications, from natural language processing \\cite{Wu:2016wt} to particle physics \\cite{Radovic:2018iz} to cancer diagnosis \\cite{Capper:2018dy}.\nThese advances have been made possible by a combination of algorithmic design \\cite{Glorot:2011tm} and dedicated hardware development \\cite{Sze:2017ka}. \nQuantum computing \\cite{Nielsen:2011vx}, while more nascent, is experiencing a similar trajectory, with a rapidly closing gap between current hardware and the scale required for practical implementation of quantum algorithms.\nError rates on individual quantum bits (qubits) have steadily decreased \\cite{Barends:2014fu, Harty:2014cm}, and the number and connectivity of qubits have improved \\cite{Bernien:2017bp, Zhang:2017et}, making so-called Noisy Intermediate Scale Quantum (NISQ) processors \\cite{Preskill:2018uv} capable of tasks too hard for a classical computer a near-term prospect. \nExperimental progress has been met with algorithmic advances \\cite{Montanaro:2016iz} and near-term quantum algorithms have been developed to tackle problems in combinatorics \\cite{Farhi:2014wk}, quantum chemistry \\cite{AspuruGuzik:2012ho} and solid state physics \\cite{Wecker:2015kd}.\nHowever, it is only recently that the potential for quantum processors to accelerate machine learning has been explored \\cite{Biamonte:2017ic}.\n\nQuantum machine learning algorithms for universal quantum computers have been proposed \\cite{Harrow:2009gx, Lloyd:2014gc, Rebentrost:2014fi} and small-scale demonstrations implemented \\cite{Cai:2015jk}, though the requirements for practical protocols remain an open question \\cite{Aaronson:2015hl}.\nRelaxing the requirement of universality, quantum machine learning for NISQ processors has emerged as a rapidly advancing field \\cite{Mitarai:2018tv, Farhi:2018wv, Schuld:2018vp, Havlicek:2018tu} that may provide a plausible route towards practical quantum-enhanced machine learning systems. \nThese protocols typically map features of machine learning algorithms (such as hidden layers in a neural network) directly onto a shallow quantum circuits in a platform independent manner.\nIn contrast, the work presented here leverages features unique to a particular physical platform. \n\nIn this work, we introduce an architecture for neural networks unique to quantum optical systems: the Quantum Optical Neural Network (QONN).\nWe argue that many of the features which are natural to quantum optics (mode mixing, optical nonlinearity) can directly be mapped to neural networks.\nMoreover, technological advances driven by trends in photonic quantum computing \\cite{OBrien:2007ioa, Obrien:2009eu, Rudolph:2017du} and the microelectronics industry \\cite{Sun:2015gg} offer a plausible route towards large-scale, high-bandwidth QONNs, all within a CMOS compatible platform.\n\nThrough numerical simulation and analysis, we apply our architecture to a number of key quantum information science protocols.\nWe benchmark the QONN by designing quantum optical gates where circuit decompositions are already known.\nNext, we show that our system can learn to simulate other quantum systems using only a limited set of input\/output state pairs, generalizing what it learns to previously unseen inputs.\nWe demonstrate this learning on both Ising and Bose-Hubbard Hamiltonians. \nWe then introduce and test a new quantum optical autoencoder protocol for data compression, with applications in quantum communication and quantum networks, which again relies on the ability to train our systems using a subset of possible inputs. \nFinally, we apply our system to a classical machine learning controls task, balancing an inverted pendulum by a reinforcement learning approach.\nOur results may find application both as an important technique for designing next generation quantum optical systems, as well as a versatile experimental platform for near-term optical quantum information processing and machine learning.\n\n\\begin{figure*}[t!]\n \\begin{centering}\n \\includegraphics[width=7in]{ArchitectureLateral}\n \\end{centering}\n \\caption{\\label{fig:Architecture} \n\\textbf{Quantum Optical Neural Network.} \n(a) An example of a classical neural network architecture. Hidden layers are rectified linear units (ReLU) and the output neuron uses a sigmoid activation function to map the output into the range $(0,1)$. \n(b) An example of our quantum optical neural network (QONN) architecture. Inputs are dual-rail Fock states which encoded qubits, with a photon in the top mode representing $\\left|0\\right>$ and a photon in the bottom mode representing $\\left|1\\right>$. \nThe single-site nonlinearities are given by $\\chi^{(3)}$ functions: a Kerr-type interaction applying a constant phase for each additional photon present. \nReadout is given by single photon detectors which measure the photon number at each output mode.}\n\\end{figure*}\n\nIn prototypical neural networks [see Fig.\\ref{fig:Architecture}(a)] an input vector $\\vec{x}\\in \\mathbb{R}^n$ is passed through multiple layers of: \n(1) linear transformation, i.e.\\ a matrix multiplication $W(\\theta_i).\\vec{x}$ parameterized by weights $\\theta_i$ at layer $i$, and \n(2) nonlinear operations $\\sigma(\\vec{x})$ which are single site nonlinear functions sometimes parameterized by biases $\\vec{b}_{i}$ (typically referred to as the perceptron or neuron, see Fig.\\ref{fig:Architecture}(a), inset for two examples: the rectifying neuron and the sigmoid neuron).\nThe goal of the neural network is to optimize the parameter sets $\\{\\theta_i\\}$ and $\\{b_i\\}$ to realize a particular input-output function $f(\\vec{x})=y$.\nThe power of neural networks lies in the fact that when trained over a large data set $\\{\\vec{x}_i\\}$, this often highly nonlinear functional relationship is generalizable to a large vector set to which the network was not exposed during training.\nFor example, in the context of cancer diagnosis, the input vectors may be gray scale values of pixels of an image of a cell, and the output may be a two dimensional vector that corresponds to the binary label of the cell as either a benign or malignant \\cite{Kourou:2015jx}.\nOnce the network is trained, it may categorize with high probability new, unlabelled, images of cells as either `benign' or `malignant'. \n\nA number of the key components of classical neural networks are readily implementable using state of the art integrated quantum photonics.\nFirst, matrix multiplication can be realized across optical modes (where each mode contains a complex electric field component) via arrays of beamsplitters and programmable phase shifts \\cite{Reck:1994dz, Clements:2016tv}.\nIn the lossless case, an $n$-mode optical circuit comprising $n(n-1)$ components implements an arbitrary $n\\times n$ single particle unitary operation (which can also be used for classical neural networks \\cite{Arjovsky:2015tb, Jing:2016tk}), and a $n$-dimensional non-unitary operation can always be embedded across a $2n$-mode optical circuit \\cite{Miller:2013ij}.\nAdvances in integrated optics have enabled the implementation of such circuits for applications in quantum computation \\cite{Carolan:2015vga}, quantum simulation \\cite{Lanyon:2009jf, Sparrow:2018ba}, and classical optical neural networks \\cite{Shen:2017hb}.\nSecond, optical nonlinearities are a core component of many classical \\cite{Miller:2009fi, Miller:2010bm} and quantum \\cite{Knill:2001vi, Kok:2007ep} optical computing architectures.\nSingle photon coherent nonlinearities can be implemented via measurement \\cite{Knill:2001vi}, interaction with three-level atoms \\cite{Duan:2004gg} or superconducting materials \\cite{Kirchmair:2013gu}, and through all-optical phenomena such as the Kerr effect \\cite{Brod:2016ji}.\nWhile integration of each of these technologies into a single scalable system is an outstanding challenge for the field, for generality, the architecture we present considers idealized components.\nIn this work we focus on discrete variable QONNs due to the maturity of the technology platform, but note that continuous variable implementations are also promising \\cite{killoran2018continuous}.\n\n\\begin{figure*}[t!]\n \\begin{centering}\n \\includegraphics[width=7in]{BenchmarkingTight}\n \\end{centering}\n \\caption{\\label{fig:Benchmarking} \n\\textbf{Benchmarking Results.} The first nine figures show 50 training runs for each of three representative optical quantum computing tasks: performing a CNOT gate, separating\/generating Bell states, and generating GHZ states. At low layer depth, the optimizations frequently fail to converge to an optimal value (we defined an error less than $10^{-4}$ as ``success''), terminating at relatively large errors. This behavior gets worse as we add layers, out to 5 layers, at which point it undergoes a rapid reversal, with the training essentially always succeeding at layer depths of 7 or more. This is shown in the final figure, where success percentage is plotted against the number of layers for each of the three tasks. \n}\n\\end{figure*}\n \n\n\\section{Architecture}\n\\label{sub:mathematical_formalism}\n\nAs shown in Fig.~\\ref{fig:Architecture}(b), input data to our QONN is encoded as photonic quantum states $\\ket{\\psi_i}$, either as dual rail qubits requiring two optical modes per photon ($\\ket{0}\\equiv\\ket{10}_{12}, \\ket{1}\\equiv\\ket{01}_{12}$), or more generally as a Fock states $\\ket{i}_j$ (corresponding to $i$ photons in the $j^\\text{th}$ optical mode), which for $n$ photons in $m$ modes is described by a $\\binom{n+m-1}{m}$-dimensional complex vector of unit magnitude.\nThe linear circuit is described by an $m$-mode linear optical unitary $U(\\vec{\\theta})$ parameterized by a vector $\\vec{\\theta}$ of $m(m-1)$ phases shifts $\\theta_i \\in (0,2\\pi]$ via the encoding of Reck et al.,\\ \\cite{Reck:1994dz}.\nThe nonlinear layer $\\Sigma$ comprises single mode $\\chi^{(3)}$ interactions in the monochromatic approximation, applying a constant phase for each additional photon present via self-phase modulation \\cite{Brod:2016ji}. For a given interaction strength $\\phi$, this unitary can be expressed as $\\Sigma\\left(\\phi\\right) = \\sum_{n=1}^{\\infty} \\left|0\\right> \\left<0\\right| + e^{i(n-1)\\phi} \\left|n\\right> \\left0.45$ - see Section \\ref{sec:data}). It is therefore not true that one population is automatically composed of the evolved products from the other.\n\nOne of the goals of this paper is to identify, in BOSS, the most likely progenitors of lower redshift SDSS-I\/II LRGs, and design a set of weights that allow a selection of the galaxies that are linked by the same evolutionary history. \n\nOur other major goal is to place quantitative constraints on the formation and recent evolution of present-day luminous red galaxies, which in broad terms constitute a subset (at large luminosities, or stellar masses) of what are typically called early-type galaxies (ETGs). \nEfforts towards understanding ETGs and their evolution can be split into two categories: those that focus on their stellar content, and those that primarily aim to constrain their dynamical evolution, or merging history. Studies have been performed based on (see also references within): the mass or luminosity function of central galaxies \\citep{WakeEtAl06, BrownEtAl07, FaberEtAl07, CoolEtAl08}, and of their satellites \\citep{TalEtAl12}; colour-magnitude diagram \\citep{CoolEtAl06, BernardiEtAl10b}; photometry SED fitting \\citep{KavirajEtAl09, MarastonEtAl09}; absorption line fitting to individual galaxies' spectra \\citep{TragerEtAl00, ThomasEtAl05, ThomasEtAl10, CarsonEtAl10} or to stacked spectra \\citep{EisensteinEtAl03, GravesEtAl09, ZhuEtAl10}; full spectral fitting \\citep{JimenezEtAl07}; close-pair counts \\citep{BellEtAl06,BundyEtAl09} and clustering \\citep{ZehaviEtAl05a,ShethEtAl06, MasjediEtAl06, ConroyEtAl07a, WhiteEtAl07, BrownEtAl08, MasjediEtAl08, WakeEtAl08, TojeiroEtAl10, deProprisEtAl10}. There is general agreement in the overall picture: ETGs constitute a uniform population of galaxies; are dominated by old and metal rich stellar populations; their mean ages (either mass- or light-weighted) decrease with luminosity; and the most luminous occupy the more dense environments. There is, however, an increasing amount of evidence pointing towards some amount of recent star formation in intermediate-mass ETGs (see e.g. \\citealt{SchawinskiEtAl07,KavirajEtAl07,SalimEtAl10}). This amount of star formation is not in conflict with the hierarchical model of structure formation, and \\cite{KavirajEtAl10}, through evidence coming from small morphological disruptions in early-type galaxies, argue that it can be explained from the contributions from minor-mergers. \n\nOn the clustering side, halo modelling is rapidly being established as a successful tool to learn about galaxy formation (see e.g. \\citealt{ZehaviEtAl05b,ZhengZEtAl07,SkibbaEtAl09a,SkibbaEtAl09b,RossEtAl09,ZhengZEtAl09,RossEtAl10,TinkerEtAl10, WakeEtAl11}, and references within). \nIt is a powerful approach that connects galaxies with the dark matter halos in which they reside, and which describes the distribution of a population of galaxies in terms of centrals and satellites, as well as their relative ratio, as a function of halo mass (which is well correlated with luminosity, see e.g. \\citealt{SwansonEtAl08,CresswellEtAl09,RossEtAl11}). \nE.g., \\cite{ZhengZEtAl07} use luminosity dependent galaxy clustering at different epochs and the expected growth of dark matter halos to infer a growth due to star formation between $z=1$ and the present day, after roughly taking into account growth due to the merging of centrals and satellites. This type of description of galaxy assembly can then be directly compared to predictions from semi-analytical simulations (see \\citealt{ZehaviEtAl12}). \n\nMore specifically, the dynamical passive model can be directly tested by a halo model type of analyses. By performing HOD modelling at two different redshifts, one can evolve the best-fit halo model fitted at one redshift to another, assuming passive evolution. Comparison of the best-fit halo models provides insight about the dynamical evolution of the sample, particularly in terms of satellite accretion and disruption. For most of the samples chosen, analyses show that a purely passive model would predict too many satellites at low redshift, and therefore some galaxies must merge or be disrupted (see e.g. \\citealt{ConroyEtAl07a, WhiteEtAl07,ZhengZEtAl07, BrownEtAl08,WakeEtAl08, SeoEtAl08}).\nMeasurements of merger rates of massive galaxies vary significantly (see Table 4 in \\citealt{TojeiroEtAl10} for a summary), but luminosity growth via merging seems confined to something between 3-20\\% since $z\\approx1$. \n\nIt seems increasingly likely that the assembly history of massive galaxies is inexorably linked to the existence of intra-cluster light (ICL) - a diffuse and scattered stellar component that can account for 10-50\\% of the stellar mass in clusters (see e.g. \\citealt{FeldmeierEtAl04, MihosEtAl05,PurcellEtAl07,YangEtAl09}). A likely mechanism of its formation is the disruption of satellite galaxies when halos merge (see e.g. \\citealt{ConroyEtAl07b, PurcellEtAl07, WhiteEtAl07,YangEtAl09} and discussions therein). A lack of conservation of light, or stellar mass, in galaxy mergers has implications for the interpretation of the evolution of the luminosity function and inferred merger histories. The fraction of light lost by a merging satellite to the intra-cluster medium remains largely unconstrained, with estimates at the large halo mass end from the studies cited above varying between 15\\% and 80\\%. In the present work we make no explicit allowances for the loss of light to the ICM when two galaxies merge, but we will argue that our results are robust to this effect, within the limitations of the models and data. \n\nIn the work presented here we approach the problem of galaxy assembly from a new direction, opposite in ethos to that of \\cite{ZhengZEtAl07}. We will use state of the art modelling of the stellar evolution of a sample of galaxies to directly quantify growth from star formation, and from that infer a galaxy-merger history. We compute a model for the stellar evolution of SDSS-II LRGs by decomposing their spectra into a series of star-formation and metallicity histories, as well as dust content. This allows us to make predictions of their colour and magnitudes at any redshift. This information, when combined with the target selection information for BOSS galaxies, constrains the regions in colour and magnitude space in BOSS within which progenitors of LRGs are more likely to reside. We then compute a set of weights that depend on the predicted evolution of each galaxy across the two surveys, and up-weight the objects that are more likely to be in both samples. The analysis we present depends on underlying assumptions about stellar evolution, initial mass functions and dust modelling. We perform the full analysis using two different sets of assumptions, so as to give the reader an idea of the dependence our final results on this type of uncertainty. \n\nIsolating the likely progenitors of LRGs in BOSS is in itself no test of the merging history of the sample. Following on from our analyses in \\cite{TojeiroEtAl10, TojeiroEtAl11b}, we test the evolution in the number and luminosity density of the galaxies between LRGs and BOSS, as a way to measure the amount of merging or luminosity growth between the two redshift surveys. We also use a luminosity-weighted two-point correlation function to further test the dynamical passive hypothesis - weighting the galaxies by luminosity produces a clustering statistic that, on large-scales, is less sensitive to galaxies within the sample merging.\n\nThis paper is organised as follows: in Section \\ref{sec:data} we describe our two data sets, including targeting; in Section \\ref{sec:stellar_ev} we explain how we compute a stellar evolution model that describes the stellar evolution of all galaxies and spans a redshift range between 0.23 and 0.7; in Section \\ref{sec:sample_matching} we use this stellar evolution model to compute a set of weights that allows us to construct optimal samples of galaxies at different redshifts and explore the evolution of LRGs in the BOSS volume; in Section \\ref{sec:population_evolution} we compute merger-rates and average luminosity growth across the samples and, in Section \\ref{sec:clustering}, we compute the large-scale clustering of each of our samples and compare to predictions from a purely passive model. Finally we discuss and summarise our conclusions in Section \\ref{sec:discussion}. Where required we assume a flat $\\Lambda$ cold dark matter (LCDM) cosmology with $\\Omega_m = 0.266$, $\\Omega_\\Lambda = 0.734$ and $H_0 = 71$ kms$^{-1}$Mpc$^{-1}$.\n\n\n\\section{Data} \\label{sec:data}\n\nThe Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) has imaged over one quarter of the sky using a\ndedicated 2.5m telescope in Apache Point, New Mexico \\citep{GunnEtAl06}. For details on\nthe hardware, software and data-reduction see \\citet{YorkEtAl00} and\n\\citet{StoughtonEtAl02}. In summary, the survey was carried out on a\nmosaic CCD camera \\citep{GunnEtAl98} and an auxiliary 0.5m telescope for photometric\ncalibration. Photometry was taken in five bands: $u, g, r, i$ and $z$ \\citep{FukugitaEtAl96}, and magnitudes corrected for Galactic extinction using the dust maps of \\cite{SchlegelEtAl98}. BOSS, a part of the SDSS-III survey \\citep{EisensteinEtAl11}, has mapped an additional $5,200$ square degrees of southern galactic sky, increasing the total imaging SDSS footprint to nearly $14,500$ square degrees, or just over one third of the celestial sphere. All of the imaging was re-processed and released as part of SDSS Data Release 8 \\citep{AiharaEtAl11}.\n\nIn SDSS-I\/II, Luminous Red Galaxies (LRGs) were selected for spectroscopic\nfollow-up according to the target algorithm described in\n\\citet{EisensteinEtAl01}, designed to follow a passive stellar population in colour and apparent magnitude space. In this paper we analyse the latest SDSS LRG\nspectroscopic sample (Data Release 7, \\citealt{AbazajianEtAl09}), which includes\naround 180,000 objects with a spectroscopic footprint of nearly 8000\nsq. degrees and a redshift range $0.15 & 0.3,\n\\end{eqnarray}\n\\noindent\nwhere the two colours, $c_\\parallel$ and $c_\\perp$ are defined as\n\n\\begin{eqnarray}\nc_\\parallel &=& 0.7(g-r) + 1.2[(r-i) - 0.18] \\\\\n c_\\perp &=& (r-i) - (g-r)\/4 - 0.18.\n\\end{eqnarray}\n\nModel magnitudes are used for the colour cuts, and petrosian magnitudes for the apparent magnitude and surface brightness constraints. Note that whereas petrosian magnitudes naturally fail to account for flux outside twice the petrosian radii, and whereas this fraction varies as a function of galaxy type (see e.g. \\citealt{GrahamEtAl05}), here they are simply used to define a sample of galaxies. When computing luminosity densities we always use cmodel magnitudes. Cut II mostly but not exclusively targets LRGs at $z\\gtrsim 0.4$ following:\n\n\\begin{eqnarray}\nr_p &< &19.5 \\\\\nc_\\perp &>& 0.45 - (g-r)\/6 \\\\\n(g-r) &> &1.3 + 0.35(r-i) \\\\\n\\mu_{r,p} &<& 24.2 \\text{ mag arcsec}^2 \\\\\nr_{psf} - r_{model} &>& 0.5.\n\\end{eqnarray}\n\n\nTwo separate algorithms are necessary as the passive stellar population turns sharply in a $g-r$ vs $r-i$ colour plane, when the 4000\\AA\\ break moves through the filters. \n\nIn SDSS-III, galaxies at $z \\lesssim 0.43$ are predominantly but not exclusively targeted by\nthe LOZ selection algorithm, akin to Cut I above, but \nextended to fainter magnitudes. A LOZ galaxy must pass the following:\n\\begin{eqnarray}\n r_{cmod} &<& 13.6 + c_\\parallel\/0.3, \\label{eq:sliding_cut}\\\\\n |c_\\perp| &<& 0.2, \\label{eq:track_cut}\\\\\n 16 < r_{cmod} &<& 19.6,\n\\end{eqnarray}\nwhere the two auxiliary colours $c_\\parallel$ and $c_\\perp$ are defined as for SDSS-I\/II above. \n\nGalaxies at $z \\gtrsim 0.43$ are predominantly but not exclusively targeted by\nthe CMASS selection algorithm, which extends the Cut II above by targeting both fainter and bluer galaxies. A CMASS\ngalaxy must pass the following criteria:\n\\begin{eqnarray}\n 17.5 < i_{cmod} &<& 19.9, \\\\\n r_{mod} - i_{mod} &<& 2, \\\\\n d_\\perp &>& 0.55, \\\\\n i_{fib2} &<& 21.5, \\\\\n i_{cmod} &<& 19.86 + 1.6(d_{perp} - 0.8),\n\\end{eqnarray}\nwhere the auxiliary colour $d_\\perp$ is defined as\n\\begin{equation}\n d_\\perp = r_{mod} - i_{mod} - (g_{mod} - r_{mod})\/8.0.\n\\end{equation}\n\nCMASS objects must also pass the following star-galaxy separation cuts:\n\\begin{eqnarray}\n i_{psf} - i_{mod} &>& 0.2 + 0.2(20.0 - i_{mod}),\\\\\n z_{psf} - z_{mod} &>& 9.125 - 0.46z_{mod},\n\\end{eqnarray}\nunless they also pass the LOZ cuts. \n\nThe CMASS selection algorithm was designed to loosely follow a constant stellar mass limit and,\nunlike Cut-II in SDSS-II, it does not exclusively target red\nobjects. Therefore, whereas both the LRG and CMASS samples are\ncolour-selected, CMASS is a significantly more complete sample than the LRGs, especially at the bright end. In this paper we will split our data into two distinct redshift slices, with our lower redshifts slice ranging between $0.23 < z < 0.45$ and our higher redshift slice between $0.45 < z < 0.7$. Our low redshift slice consists exclusively of SDSS-I\/II LRGs (Cut-I and Cut-II) and contains approximately 89,000 galaxies, and our high redshift slice consists exclusively of SDSS-III CMASS galaxies, with over 250,000 objects. The low redshift cut-off is motivated by our previous analysis of the LRGs that indicates the sample is significantly contaminated at lower redshifts (\\citealt{TojeiroEtAl11, TojeiroEtAl11b}). We do not make use of LOZ galaxies for the main analysis presented in this paper, mainly due to the fact that the volume and number density sampled by LOZ currently lags behind that of the CMASS due to problems in target selection at the beginning of the observing run. We use LOZ galaxies only in Section \\ref{sec:unresolved_pairs}, when investigating potentially unresolved targets in CMASS. The $n(z)$ distribution of our two samples is shown in Fig.~\\ref{fig:n_z}.\n\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.5in]{n_z.ps}\n\\caption{Number density as a function of redshift for the LRG (red) and the CMASS (black) samples. The dashed line at $z=0.45$ shows our chosen hard boundary between the two surveys - we do not use any LRGs with $z>0.45$ nor any CMASS galaxies with $z<0.45$}\n\\label{fig:n_z}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\section{The stellar population modelling}\\label{sec:stellar_ev}\n\nWe use the 124 stellar evolution models computed in \\cite{TojeiroEtAl11} by stacking LRG spectra according to their luminosity, redshift and colour, and subsequently analysed them with VESPA (\\citealt{TojeiroEtAl07,TojeiroEtAl09}) to obtain detailed star-formation histories as a function of lookback time. VESPA fits a linear combination of stellar populations of different ages and metallicities, modulated by a dust extinction, to the stacked optical spectra. Each star-formation history can then be translated into a detailed evolution of any magnitude and colour with cosmic time. We have made no changes to these publicly available models other than increasing the sampling in redshift, to provide better resolved colour and magnitude evolution\\footnote{The models from Tojeiro et al. (2011) are available at \\url{http:\/\/www.icg.port.ac.uk\/~tojeiror\/lrg_evolution\/}}. We consider the solutions obtained with two sets of stellar population models: the Flexible Stellar Population Synthesis (FSPS) models of \\cite{ConroyEtAl09} and \\cite{ConroyAndGunn10}, and the stellar population models of \\cite{MarastonEtAl11} (M11) - we refer the reader to Section 4 of \\cite{TojeiroEtAl11} for detailed information on the differences and similarities between the two sets of assumptions, and we note that the most significant difference arises from the stellar evolution tracks\\footnote{Briefly, notable differences lie in the choice of the shape of the initial mass function (IMF), isochrone tracks and stellar libraries. In the case of M11, we use a combination of a \\cite{Kroupa01} IMF, the MILES stellar library of \\cite{SanchezBlazquezEtAl06} and isochrones from \\cite{CassisiEtAl97} and \\cite{SchallerEtAl92} combined with the fuel consumption approach of \\cite{RenziniAndBuzzoni86} for post Main-Sequence phases. For FSPS models we use a combination of a \\cite{Chabrier03} IMF, with a MILES stellar library and the Padova isochrones of \\cite{MarigoEtAl07,MarigoEtAl08}}. One of the main results in \\cite{TojeiroEtAl11} is that, even though FSPS and M11 provide star-formation histories that have very similar mass-weighted ages that decrease with luminosity, in the M11 case this is due to the presence of a population of stars of young to intermediate ages (1-3 Gyr), whilst in the FSPS case this is due to a slightly younger main burst of star formation, which extends to lower ages with decreasing luminosity. These differences in the star-formation histories will have an impact on the results, and we will compare results obtained using both models throughout the paper. In Section \\ref{sec:physical_model} we describe the star-formation histories recovered with both sets of models in detail.\n\n\\begin{figure*}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=4.5in, angle=90]{colour_ev.ps}\n\\caption{The observed colour evolution of CMASS galaxies contrasted with the predicted colour evolution of LRGs at CMASS redshifts. In each panel the black contours show the number density of the full LRG sample in the $g-r$ vs $r-i$ plane. The blue contours show the number density of CMASS galaxies for a given redshift range (given for each panel). The red dots show the predicted colours of the LRGs at the same redshifts given by the FSPS models, and the blue dots show the predicted colours using the M11 models. The different dots correspond to the prediction of LRGs of different luminosity, colour and redshift. The solid red line shows the $d_\\perp=0.55$ cut for reference.}\n\\label{fig:colour_ev}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure*}\n\nIn Fig.~\\ref{fig:colour_ev} we show the $g-r$ and $r-i$ colours predicted by the fits to LRGs based on the different models (red dots for FSPS and blue for M11) and how they compare to the colours of observed CMASS galaxies in four redshift ranges (blue contours). The locus of the models traces the locus of the observed galaxies remarkably well. Furthermore, the FSPS models predict a tendency to have bluer colours with increased redshift, and that is tentatively matched by the data. M11 models follow broadly the same trend, with the main differences seen at $z=0.55$, where M11 models predict significantly bluer galaxies (some models predict a crossing of the $d_\\perp$ cut). \n\n\n\\subsection{The composite model}\\label{sec:composite_model}\n\\begin{figure}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.7in]{composite_model.ps}\n\\caption{The composite stellar evolution model, computed according to the procedure in Section~\\ref{sec:composite_model}. In all panels the shaded contours show the number density of LRGs (at $z<0.45$ and on the bottom half of the last plot) and CMASS galaxies (at $z>0.45$ and on the top half of the last plot). The red (blue) solid line shows our composite stellar model obtained using the FSPS (M11) VESPA star-formation histories. It is a weighted average of the models shown in Fig.~\\ref{fig:colour_ev}. The error bars show the 1$\\sigma$ dispersion of the models shown in Fig.~\\ref{fig:colour_ev} in each redshift bin. For reference, the yellow line shows the LRG purely passive model of \\protect\\cite{MarastonEtAl09} - see Section \\ref{sec:passive_model}.}\n\\label{fig:composite_model}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure}\nThe clear advantage of our set of models is that it gives a data-driven grasp on the stochasticity of the population properties. We do not need to assume all targeted LRGs are the same and natural scatter in the colours - given by changes in metallicity and star-formation rate - can be trivially accounted for. We are limited in the sense that we can only predict the evolution of any galaxy to redshifts greater than the one it is observed at; this is because the fossil record can only hold information on the {\\it past} history of a galaxy. Evolving a galaxy forward requires assumptions about any subsequent star-formation, or lack of it. In order to match the samples we need a stellar evolution model that spans the redshift range of both samples combined, and that we can use to evolve any galaxy to any redshift with minimal assumptions about their stellar evolution. We choose an approach where we compute a {\\it single} weighted composite model that spans the redshift range of the sample, based on the 124 individual stacks. At each redshift we compute a mean spectrum, weighted by the number of galaxies that make a prediction for that particular redshift (i.e. observed at $z\\le z'$). From this mean spectrum we compute a new set of magnitude and colours, that define what we will call our {\\it composite model}. The k+E corrections of the composite model are the weighted means of the individual k+E corrections - this composite model is therefore our best estimate of the overall average colour and magnitude evolution of the full LRG sample. Note that this approach is formally the equivalent to taking the weighted mean of the 124 star formation histories for each stack, and using that weighted star formation history to recover the composite spectrum and correspondent models.\n\nWe show the colour evolution of our model in Fig.~\\ref{fig:composite_model}, and the K+e corrections in Fig.~\\ref{fig:ke_corrections} (red for FSPS models, and blue for M11). These models are used to describe all galaxies in the study: LRGs and CMASS galaxies alike. For completeness in Section \\ref{sec:beyond_composite} we briefly discuss the impact of using the strictly passive stellar evolution model of \\cite{MarastonEtAl09}, or the full range of 124 individual models, on our results.\n\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.5in]{ke_corrections.ps}\n\\caption{K+e corrections in the $r_{0.55}$-band (triangles) and in the $i_{0.55}$-band (asterisks).The red lines refer to the FSPS models, and the blue lines to the M11 models. The error bars show the $1\\sigma$ scatter around the mean from the 124 individual stacks. These corrections allow us to compute the evolved absolute magnitude of any galaxy at $z=0.55$, in the two shifted filters (therefore for galaxies at $z=0.55$ this correction is fixed and independent of their spectra or modelling). The corrections in the $r_{0.55}$ band are steeper because it traces the 4000\\AA\\ break at these redshifts - see Fig.~\\ref{fig:filters}. The scatter in the M11 k+E corrections is larger, as these models predict stochastic events of star-formation at young to intermediate ages in some of the stacks. For reference, the yellow line shows the LRG purely passive model of \\protect\\cite{MarastonEtAl09}, as a dashed line for the $i_{0.55}$-band and as a solid line for the $r_{0.55}$-band - see Section \\ref{sec:passive_model}.}\n\\label{fig:ke_corrections}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\subsubsection{Physical model}\\label{sec:physical_model}\n\nAs mentioned in the previous section, VESPA solutions with the two different stellar population models give physical models for the galaxies that are qualitatively different, especially for LRGs at $z<0.25$. FSPS produces a model that is nearly completely passive, with less than $2-3\\%$ by mass in stars that are younger than 3 Gyrs. M11 gives a model that sees over $90\\%$ of the stellar mass formed over 12 Gyrs ago (for a galaxy at $z=0$), but which often puts a non-negligible amount of stars at ages of 1-3 Gyrs (up to $10\\%$ in mass). This generates more scatter in the blue points in Fig.~\\ref{fig:colour_ev} and, as a direct consequence, a larger scatter in Figs.~\\ref{fig:composite_model} and \\ref{fig:ke_corrections}. \n\nSmall but non-negligible amounts of star-formation act to steepen the luminosity evolution (given by the k+E corrections), as the galaxy effectively 'loses' stars as we step back in redshift. More generally, a change in k+E corrections can also arise from different assumptions in the stellar evolution models, or from a different slope - or an evolving slope - of the initial mass function (IMF). In \\cite{TojeiroEtAl10} we investigated the effects of an added redshift-dependent term to the k+E corrections, being motivated at the time by uncertainties in the slope of the IMF. Here we will perform no such investigation, but having two models with two different slopes for the k+E corrections provides an estimate of the impact of this uncertainty on our final results\n\nBoth stellar population models give a constant metallicity with redshift, although M11 solutions are slightly more metal rich at $Z \\approx 0.03$, whereas FSPS prefers a solution with $Z \\approx 0.025$. \n\nFinally, the dust content is very similar in both cases - extinction increases with decreasing luminosity, increasing redshift and increasing $r- i$ colour, varying between $\\tau_V = 0.2$ and $\\tau_V=0.8$. Here $\\tau_V$ is the optical depth at $\\lambda = 5500\\AA$ and the dust extinction is modelled according to a \\cite{CharlotFall00} mixed-slab geometry (see \\citealt{TojeiroEtAl11} for full details). The weighted average, and the effective extinction for the composite model, is $\\tau_V \\sim 0.4-0.5$.\n\n\n\\subsection{K+e corrections}\\label{sec:ke_corrections}\nWe follow closely the procedure of \\citet{TojeiroEtAl10}, which we summarise here for completeness.\n\nOur composite model provides\n$L_\\lambda(t_{age})$, the luminosity per unit wavelength of a galaxy of\nage $t_{age}$. We\nK+e-correct all galaxies to a common redshift of $z_c=0.55$, and\ncalculate corrected absolute magnitudes in filters shifted to $z_c=0.55$ as\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:abs_mag}\n M_{r 0.55} = r_{cmod} - 5\\log_{10} \\left\\{ \\frac{D_L(z_i)}{10 \\mathrm{pc}} \\right\\}\n - Ke(z, z_c),\n\\end{equation}\nwith\n\\begin{eqnarray} \\label{eq:ke_corrs}\n \\lefteqn{Ke(z, z_c) =} \\\\\n &= -2.5 \\log_{10} \\left\\{ \\frac{1}{1+z} \\frac{ \\int T_{\\lambda_o}\n L_{\\lambda_o} (z) \\lambda_o d\\lambda_o \\int T_{\\lambda\/(1+z_c)}\n \\lambda_e^{-1} d\\lambda_e} {\\int T_{\\lambda_o\/(1+z_c)}\n L_{\\lambda_e}(z_c) \\lambda_e d\\lambda_e \\int\n T_{\\lambda_o}\\lambda_o^{-1} d\\lambda_o} \\right\\}. \\nonumber\n\\end{eqnarray}\n$\\lambda_o$ is in the observed frame and $\\lambda_e$ in the emitted\nframe. $T_\\lambda$ is the SDSS's $r$-band filter response, and\n$L_\\lambda(z)$ the luminosity density of a galaxy at redshift $z$, given the\nfiducial model. We also compute $M_{i 0.55}$, using exactly the same procedure on the $i$-band. Note that for a galaxy at $z=0.55$, the K+e correction is independent of the observed or modelled spectrum and equals $-2.5 \\log_{10}\\left(\\frac{1}{1+z}\\right)$. By choosing $z_c = 0.55$, roughly the peak of the redshift distribution of CMASS galaxies, we minimise the effect of the modelling on CMASS galaxies. The other option would have been to k+e correct to median redshift of LRGs. However, as the composite stellar population model is based on the spectra of LRGs, its predictions must be at least as robust for LRGs as for CMASS galaxies, if not more so. Therefore, our procedure is the more robust approach. We show the k+e correction in the $r-$ and $i-$bands in Fig.~\\ref{fig:ke_corrections}. For reference, in Fig.~\\ref{fig:filters} we show the expected observed-frame spectrum of a typical galaxy in the sample at $z_c=0.55$, along side the three broadband filters used in this paper.\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.5in]{filters.ps}\n\\caption{The expected observed spectrum of a typical galaxy in the sample at $z=0.55$ (black). The three broadband filters used for target selection are overplotted: $g-$band in blue, $r-$band in green and $i-$band in red. For reference, we show in grey the expected observed spectrum of a galaxy at $z=0.3$.}\n\\label{fig:filters}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\n\\subsection{Comparing CMASS galaxies and LRGs}\\label{sec:samples}\n\n\\begin{figure*}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=4.5in, angle=90]{mag_comparisons.ps}\n\\caption{Comparing K+e corrected magnitudes in SDSS-I\/II LRGs and BOSS CMASS galaxies. {\\it Top:} the distribution of absolute magnitudes for LRGs (dashed lines) and CMASS galaxies (solid lines). The different colours show the results from using different stellar population models, with FSPS in red and M11 in blue. The two panels show the magnitude computed either in the rest-frame $r-$ or $i-$band. {\\it Bottom:} the absolute-magnitude with redshift on both samples. FSPS results are shown in the solid contours, and M11 in the line contours. The samples are split at $z=0.45$; we do not use any LRGs with $z>0.45$ nor any CMASS galaxies with $z<0.45$. These plots show clearly the reach to fainter magnitudes of the CMASS sample. See main text for a discussion on the effect of the stellar population models.}\n\\label{fig:mag_comparisons}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure*}\n\nWe can use the K+e-corrected absolute magnitudes to broadly characterise the two samples. Fig.~\\ref{fig:mag_comparisons} shows a simple comparison of the magnitude distributions for both samples and their evolution with redshift computed for both the $r-$ and the $i-$band. Once again we show the results for the FSPS model in red and for the M11 model in blue. Here the only model differences come through the K+e corrections, with the different slopes between models (shown in Fig.~\\ref{fig:ke_corrections}) naturally giving different k+E corrected absolute magnitudes. M11 shows a steeper slope with respect to FSPS, with the crossing point at $z_c=0.55$. So for a galaxy at $z < 0.55$ M11 will predict a {\\it fainter} k+E corrected magnitude at $z=0.55$. Conversely, for a galaxy at $z > 0.55$, M11 will predict a {\\it brighter} k+E corrected magnitude at $z=0.55$. By construction, the magnitudes for galaxies sitting at $z=0.55$ will match for both models due to our choice of filters. The top panel of Fig.~\\ref{fig:mag_comparisons} shows the effect of having different slopes for the k+E corrections - for LRGs this is about 0.3 magnitudes in the $r_{0.55}$-band; for CMASS galaxies it is much smaller, at less than 0.1 magnitudes. These values are roughly halved for the $i_{0.55}$-band. The bottom two panels of Fig.~\\ref{fig:mag_comparisons} show the evolution of the corrected magnitudes with redshift (solid contours for FSPS and line contours for M11). As expected, we see a steeper evolution with redshift using the M11 contours. \n\nFig.~\\ref{fig:colour_magnitude} displays colour-magnitude relations. Here we show only the results using FSPS models as the results are similar in both cases. The CMASS sample has a broader range in absolute magnitude and colour than the LRG sample, as expected given the larger number density. The clear trend seen between rest-frame colour and $M_{r 0.55}$ is explained simply by target selection. To help make this point we show the expected evolution of the colour-magnitude relation of an object at the faint end of the survey (cmodel $=19.9$ at $z=0.45$) and an observed colour of $r-i=0.8$, between $z=0.25$ and $z=0.7$ - this is the red line in both plots. Any object to the faint side of the red lines would fail the magnitude cuts in the $i-$band of the CMASS algorithm. This gives an obvious artefact when plotting $M_{r 0.55}$ vs colour, where upon the CMASS selection does not select faint blue galaxies. The bright end slope is a consequence of volume effects, coupled with the slope of a typical galaxy spectra.\n\n\n\n\n\\begin{figure*}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.2in]{colour_magnitude_Mi.ps}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.2in]{colour_magnitude_Mr.ps}\n\\caption{Rest-frame, k+e corrected colour-magnitude relations for CMASS galaxies (filled contours) and LRGs (overploted black contours), as a function of $M_{i 0.55}$ shown on the left panel, and as a function of $M_{r 0.55}$ on the right hand side. CMASS galaxies show a broader range in their rest-frame $M_{r 0.55} - M_{i 0.55}$, as well as fainter reach and median in both magnitudes. The right-hand side plot shows a clear trend of rest-frame colour with $M_{r 0.55}$, with redder colour going with lower luminosity. This is trend is a result of target selection, particularly the magnitude cut - we show the expected evolution of the colour-magnitude relation of an object at the faint end of the survey (cmodel$=19.9$ at $z=0.45$) and an observed colour of $r-i=0.8$, between $z=0.25$ and $z=0.7$. Any object to the faint side of the red lines would fail the magnitude cuts of the CMASS algorithm. }\n\\label{fig:colour_magnitude}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure*}\n\n\n\n\\section{Sample matching}\\label{sec:sample_matching}\nWe now construct galaxy samples at high and low redshift that are coeval according to our composite stellar evolution models. We continue to closely follow the methodology of \\cite{TojeiroEtAl10}, which we summarise below. \nWe have to take into account three redshift-dependent effects:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n \\item the intrinsic evolution of the colour and brightness of the galaxies;\n \\item the varying errors on galaxy colour measurements; and\n \\item the varying survey selection function.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\nOur correction for (i) is given by our composite stellar evolution model. We include an evolving colour scatter term to allow for\n(ii). \\cite{TojeiroEtAl10} used the population scatter around the stellar evolution model with redshift. \\cite{TojeiroEtAl11b} updated this term to be based on the evolution of photometric errors as a function of apparent magnitudes, which were modelled as a function of redshift - see their Section 3. The motivation was two fold: firstly the photometric errors are driven principally by the apparent magnitude of an object, rather than its redshift; and secondly this is less dependent on choice of stellar evolution modelling. We adopt this approach here. For (iii) we construct a set of weights that assures a given population of\ngalaxies - in terms of colour and absolute magnitude - is given the\nsame weight in the high and low redshift samples, as described in the next section.\n\n\\subsection{Weighting scheme}\\label{sec:weighting_scheme}\n\nWe use the weighting scheme of \\cite{TojeiroEtAl10}, which keeps the total weight of each\n{\\it galaxy population} the same in different redshift slices. \n\nSuppose an LRG, $g_A$, is faint and therefore can only be seen in a small fraction of the CMASS volume, $f_V$, but can be seen in the full LRG volume. Then our weighting scheme will give $g_A$ a weight that is equal to $f_V$. Consider now a faint CMASS galaxy, that is observed in $f_V$, and whose magnitude and colour evolution matches those predicted for $g_A$. This galaxy will by definition also only be observed in a fraction $f_V$ of the CMASS volume. Our weighting scheme gives $g_B$ a weight on unity. Note this is the opposite approach to the traditional $V_{\\rm max}$ weight, which would {\\it up-weight} $g_B$ by $1\/f_V$ and give $g_A$ a weight of unity.\n\nExplicitly,\nfor an LRG in a volume $V_{LRG}$ we calculate\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:wa}\n V_{\\rm{match},i} = \\frac{V_{LRG}}{V^{LRG}_{\\rm{max},i}} \\times \\mathrm{min} \n \\left\\{ \\frac{V^{LRG}_{\\rm{max},i}}{V_{LRG}}, \\frac{V^{CMASS}_{\\rm{max},i}}{V_{CMASS}} \\right\\},\n\\end{equation}\nand similarly for a CMASS galaxy, in a volume $V_{CMASS}$:\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:wb}\n V_{\\rm{match},i} = \\frac{V_{CMASS}}{V^{CMASS}_{\\rm{max},i}} \\times \\mathrm{min} \n \\left\\{ \\frac{V^{LRG}_{\\rm{max},i}}{V_{LRG}}, \\frac{V^{CMASS}_{\\rm{max},i}}{V_{CMASS}} \\right\\}.\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $V_{\\rm{max},i}$ is the volume a galaxy $i$ would have been observed in either survey, according to the full target selection cuts and the evolution of its colour and magnitude, as given by the composite model.\n\nWhere the traditional $V_{\\rm max}$ estimator would up-weight\ngalaxies only visible in a fraction of the volume they were observed in, we instead give these galaxies a weight of unity and down-weight the corresponding galaxies with the same properties observed in the other volume.\n\nThe interpretation of the $V_{\\rm match}$ weight is different than that of the traditional $V_{\\rm max}$ \nweighting. Whereas the latter gives us the means to correct for\nincompleteness and yields true space densities, the former must be interpreted as a weighting scheme rather than a completeness\ncorrection. I.e., $V_{\\rm match}$ weighted number and luminosity densities {\\em are still potentially volume incomplete},\nbut the populations are weighted in such a way that they are equally\nrepresented at both redshifts. We can compare the distribution of\ntotal weighted luminosity for the two slices, but we cannot interpret\nthese functions as giving the true luminosity density. \n\nThe advantage of this weighting scheme is that we sample different populations equally based on volume, and therefore obtain a weighted population such that galaxies observed throughout a large volume are up-weighted. It also implicitly checks that we are only using populations that exist in both samples, without having to do such a test explicitly (e.g. \\citealt{WakeEtAl06}).\n\n\n\n\\subsection{The progenitors of LRGs}\\label{sec:progenitors}\n\n\\begin{figure*}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.2in]{Vmatch_density.ps}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.2in]{Vmatch2_density.ps}\n\\caption{Average $V_{\\rm match}$ weight as a function of colours and $i-$band magnitude, shown for the two main targeting parameter space diagrams in CMASS. A darker colour corresponds to a lower value of $V_{\\rm match}$ , and the brighter colours to the regions in parameter space that have the largest likelihood of being progenitors of the LRG sample. The red solid lines show targeting cuts. The orange line on the plot on the left shows the morphology cut derived in \\protect\\cite{MastersEtAl11}, and the dashed green line shows the blue cut of the cut-II selection in \\protect\\cite{EisensteinEtAl01}. }\n\\label{fig:Vmatch_density}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure*}\n\nA large value of $V_{\\rm match}$ ($V_{\\rm match}$ varies between 0 and 1) indicates that a galaxy belongs to a population that can be observed across a large fraction of both surveys, and a small value of $V_{\\rm match}$ means a population of galaxies is only present in a small fraction of the volume in at least one of the surveys. In other words, the larger this value for a CMASS galaxy, the more likely this galaxy is a progenitor of a typical LRG galaxy, and vice-versa. \n\nFig. \\ref{fig:Vmatch_density} shows a mapping of the average value of this weight onto the two CMASS targeting parameter spaces: a $g-r$ vs $r-i$ plot, and a $d_\\perp$ vs the cmodel magnitude in the $i$-band. We show the results using the FSPS models in the solid contours and the results using M11 in the line contours, which are qualitatively similar. The colour-colour plot shows a clear trend for the average value of $V_{\\rm match}$ to increase to redder $g-r$ colours, as expected if LRGs were exclusively made of metal rich and old stars. Interestingly, we also see that some blue regions of the colour-colour plot display an increase of the average value of the $V_{\\rm match}$ weight. This relation is a result of the small but significant amounts of young to intermediate-aged stars detected in LRG spectra at BOSS redshifts (corresponding roughly to stars aged between 1 and 3 Gyr in SDSS-I\/II galaxies). The orange line in the left-hand plot of Fig.~\\ref{fig:Vmatch_density} shows the $g-i = 2.35$ cut of \\cite{MastersEtAl11}, which was motivated by the morphological analysis of a small subsample of CMASS galaxies with Hubble Space Telescope (HST) imaging. They suggest selecting galaxies with $g-i > 2.35$ produces a cleaner sample of early-type galaxies ($90\\%$) that are more traditionally associated with typical LRGs. Additionally, we predict that at least a fraction of the galaxies that sit in the blue end of that colour-colour plot are also LRG progenitors, temporarily visiting the blue cloud due to small amounts of star formation. Assuming they retain their morphology (it is hard to imagine a scenario where they would not), our analysis makes quantitative predictions on the fraction of star-forming ellipticals that should be found on that part of the diagram, given the morphological mixing of the LRG sample (not currently known, to our knowledge). This result can be turned into a test of SPS models, as different sets of models will predict a different number density at those colours. We leave this exploration for future work.\n\nThe right-hand side panel of Fig.~\\ref{fig:Vmatch_density} shows an uninterrupted trend to lower $V_{\\rm match}$ towards fainter magnitudes. Interestingly, the slope of the $V_{\\rm match}$ contours are almost parallel to the sliding cut in $d_\\perp$ with $i-$band magnitude. This cut was designed to follow a line of constant stellar mass (Maraston et al. in prep) suggesting that the $V_{\\rm match}$ has a clear dependence on stellar mass, as it should.\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.2in]{no_LRG_magnitudes.ps}\n\\caption{k+e corrected absolute magnitudes for CMASS galaxies (black), LRGs (green) and the subset of CMASS galaxies that is seen in less than 5\\% of the LRG volume according to our model (purple). These lie almost exclusively at the faint end, demonstrating how important the apparent magnitude cut is in the sample matching between the two surveys. Solid lines for results using the FSPS models and dashed lines for results using M11.}\n\\label{fig:no_LRG_magnitudes}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure}\n\nA complementary way to examine the $V_{\\rm match}$ weights is to isolate the CMASS galaxies with a small $V_{\\rm match}$ weight - these are the CMASS galaxies that are less likely to be the progenitors of a typical LRG. Fig.~\\ref{fig:no_LRG_magnitudes} shows the K+e-corrected absolute magnitude distribution of those CMASS galaxies with a $V_{match} < 0.05$, i.e. that are observed in less than 5\\% of the volumes of the surveys. We clearly see these galaxies are well confined to the faint end of the CMASS population. The difference between the two models is a consequence of the steeper luminosity evolution given by K+e corrections of the M11 models - CMASS galaxies are typically brighter at LRG redshifts (when compared to a flatter luminosity evolution), and are seen through more of its volume. \n\nFig.~\\ref{fig:no_LRG_colour} presents the distribution of the absolute rest-frame $r_{0.55} - i_{0.55}$ colour for the same populations as in Fig.~\\ref{fig:no_LRG_magnitudes}. The bias towards losing intrinsically redder galaxies is explained by the fact that the CMASS sample is itself biased towards redder galaxies in $M_{r 0.55} - M_{i 0.55}$ at the faint end (see Section \\ref{sec:samples} and Fig.~\\ref{fig:colour_magnitude}) due to the $i$-band selection.\n\n\nWe show the fraction of CMASS galaxies that are observed in less than 5\\% of the LRG volume as a function of redshift, absolute magnitude, $g-r$ and rest-frame $M_{r 0.55} - M_{i 0.55}$ colours in Fig.~\\ref{fig:fraction_lost}. Once again these figures demonstrate that magnitude is the dominant reason why these galaxies are not well matched between samples, but {\\it rest-frame} colour also plays a part - see the upturn in the fraction of lost objects for bright $M_{r 0.55}$ compared to the fraction of lost objects for bright $M_{i 0.55}.$ These are the galaxies with redder $M_{r 0.55} - M_{i 0.55}$ rest-frame colours.\n\\begin{figure}\n\\begin{center} \n\\includegraphics[width=3.2in]{no_LRG_colour.ps}\n\\caption{Distribution of k+e corrected, absolute $r_{0.55}$ - $i_{0.55}$ colours for CMASS galaxies (black), LRGs (green) and the subset of CMASS galaxies (purple) that is seen in less than 5\\% of the LRG volume according to our model. Solid line for results using the FSPS models and dashed line for results using M11.}\n\\label{fig:no_LRG_colour}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.4in]{frac_lost_all.ps}\n\\caption{The fraction of CMASS galaxies that is seen in less than 5\\% of the LRG volume as a function of redshift (first panel), absolute magnitude (second panel - solid line for $M_{r 0.55}$ and dashed line for $M_{i 0.55}$, observed $g-r$ colour (third panel), and k+E correct rest-frame colour $M_{r 0.55} - M_{i 0.55}$ (bottom panel). Red lines for results using the FSPS models and blue for M11.}\n\\label{fig:fraction_lost}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\section{Measuring population evolution}\\label{sec:population_evolution}\n\nIn order to compute merger and luminosity growth rates, we first define the samples of CMASS galaxies and LRGs to be investigated (Section \\ref{sec:sample_selection}). Having selected matched samples, we then study the evolution of a number of quantities. In Section \\ref{sec:luminosity_function} we consider luminosity functions and in Section \\ref{sec:rates_of_change} the rates of change in number density, luminosity density, and typical luminosity per object.\n\n\\subsection{Sample selection}\\label{sec:sample_selection}\n\n In each survey we take the brightest objects until we reach a given K+e corrected absolute magnitude, and we compute a $V_{\\rm match}$ - weighted comoving number density $n$ and a $V_{\\rm match}$ - weighted luminosity density $\\ell$. We consider the following options to define the limiting magnitude in each sample, $M_{min,CMASS}$ and $M_{min,LRG}$:\n\n\\begin{itemize}\n\\item A flat cut in k+E corrected absolute magnitude across the two surveys: in this case $M_{min,CMASS}$ = $M_{min,LRG}$. In general, $n_{LRG} \\ne n_{CMASS}$ and $\\ell_{LRG} \\ne \\ell_{CMASS}$.\n\\item A cut in K+e corrected absolute magnitude such that both samples have the same comoving number density. In this case $n_{LRG} = n_{CMASS}$ by construction, but in general $M_{min,CMASS} \\ne M_{min,LRG}$, and $\\ell_{LRG} \\ne \\ell_{CMASS}$.\n\\item A cut in K+e corrected absolute magnitude such that both samples have the same comoving luminosity density. In this case $\\ell_{LRG} = \\ell_{CMASS}$ by construction, but in general $M_{min,CMASS} \\ne M_{min,LRG}$, and $n_{LRG} \\ne n_{CMASS}$. This can be advantageous in clustering analyses that are luminosity weighted (see Section \\ref{sec:clustering}).\n\n\\end{itemize}\n\nTo avoid confusion we will refer to the number and luminosity densities computed using a flat cut in absolute magnitude as $n'$ and $\\ell'$.\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{The luminosity function}\\label{sec:luminosity_function}\n\nWith full knowledge of the completeness of the sample, we can compute luminosity functions and study their evolution. The completeness, in terms of the sample one intended to select, is primarily affected by the following well-understood effects:\n\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item targeting completeness - not all objects that pass the targeting cuts are targeted due to bright star masks, fibre collisions or other tiling issues;\n\\item redshift failure - not all objects with a spectrum successfully yield a redshift;\n\\item star\/galaxy separation - galaxies that fail the star-galaxy separation in spite of being genuine galaxy targets.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\nWe use the targeting completeness and redshift failure corrections as described in \\cite{PercivalEtAl07} for the LRGs and in \\cite{RossEtAl12} for CMASS galaxies; both samples have very high spectroscopic completeness ($>97\\%$). The fraction of galaxies lost to the star\/galaxy separation can be estimated from commissioning data, where star-galaxy cuts are less restrictive or not included at all. This fraction is estimated to be 1\\% for CMASS galaxies (Padmanabhan et al. in prep), 1\\% for cut-II LRGs and $<<1\\%$ for cut-I LRGs \\citep{EisensteinEtAl01}. This could result in a systematic underestimate of the number density of CMASS galaxies compared to LRGs, which would at most be $\\approx1\\%$. In an independent analyses, \\cite{MastersEtAl11} found $3\\% \\pm 2\\%$ of CMASS targets in the COSMOS field that failed the star-galaxy cuts, in spite of being obviously galaxies when captured in high-quality HST imaging. This measurement agrees well with the numbers cited above. \n\n\\begin{figure*}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=4.5in, angle=90]{luminosity_functions.ps}\n\\caption{$V_{\\rm match}$ and $V_{\\rm max}$ weighted luminosity functions in the k+e corrected $r_{0.55}-$ and $i_{0.55}$ bands (obtained using the FSPS composite model), for the CMASS and LRG samples. The dashed lines show the un-weighted luminosity functions. The $V_{\\rm max}$ weights work by mostly up-weighting the fainter galaxies, as can be seen in the two left panels. This typically breaks down for faint galaxies. The $V_{\\rm match}$ weight, in turn, up- and down-weights galaxies according to their relative presence on the other survey - this can be seen in how effectively we down-weight faint galaxies in both surveys to get a luminosity function that is well matched - particularly in the $i_{0.55}-$band. Poisson errors are negligible $(\\sim 1\\%)$ except for the brightest or faintest half magnitudes ($1-10\\%$). See text for further discussion.} \n\\label{fig:luminosity_function}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure*}\n\nFig.~\\ref{fig:luminosity_function} presents luminosity functions weighted by $V_{\\rm match}$ (right), and by the standard $V\/$$V_{\\rm max}$ weights (left). For reference, in both panels we show in the dashed lines the luminosity function without any completeness correction - in this case it is simply the number count of galaxies per magnitude bin, divided by the volume of each survey. We compute the luminosity function in $M_{i 0.55}$ (top) and $M_{r 0.55}$ (bottom) absolute magnitudes. Recall that the $V_{\\rm match}$ scheme weighs each sample such that populations are matched in terms of volume, but that it does not yield true volume densities (see Section \\ref{sec:weighting_scheme}). Compared to $V\/$$V_{\\rm max}$ weights this {\\em downweights} faint galaxies in both samples, such that the overall luminosity functions are matched. In case of zero merger evolution or contamination (and in the case of perfect modelling), our $V_{\\rm match}$ weights fully account for changes in the {\\it stellar} evolution and the two luminosity functions should therefore match. Differences can be interpreted in a number of ways: \n\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item growth (i.e., merging); \n\\item contamination: galaxies in CMASS that have identical colour and magnitudes to LRG progenitors but evolve to be something else at low redshift; \n\\item resolution issues: close pairs of galaxies failing to be resolved in CMASS due to instrumental and atmospheric limitations;\n\\item inadequacies in the modelling - in this case, mostly in the slope of the k+E corrections. \n\\end{enumerate}\n\nIt is clear that the luminosity functions of CMASS galaxies and LRGs are better matched in $M_{i 0.55}$ than in $M_{r 0.55}$. There is a larger uncertainty in the slope of the k+E corrections in the $r-$band, as that traces a region of the spectrum sensitive to small amounts of star formation at $z_c=0.55$. Small mismatches in the amount of star formation at those redshifts between our composite model and the true star-formation rate of CMASS galaxies may not be enough to down-weight them using our method, but reveal themselves in a detailed comparison such as the one we attempt here. We therefore argue that the $i-$band luminosity is more reliable for the purposes of our analysis, as it is a better tracer of overall luminosity, or stellar mass, of the galaxy.\n\nDifferences in the {\\it shape} of the luminosity function can help identify the reasons for the differences between the two samples. We present a more quantitative analysis in the next Section, where we construct three estimators to quantify differences in the amplitude and shape of the luminosity function, but first we look at the effect of using a different k+E correction model. \n\n\n\\begin{figure*}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=4.5in, angle=90]{luminosity_function_M10.ps}\n\\caption{Same as Fig.~\\ref{fig:luminosity_function}, but using the absolute magnitudes computed with M11 models.}\n\\label{fig:luminosity_function_M10}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure*}\n\nFig.~\\ref{fig:luminosity_function_M10} shows the same luminosity functions as Fig.~\\ref{fig:luminosity_function}, but using the absolute k+E corrected absolute magnitudes obtained using the M11 models. The differences are substantial, especially for the LRGs. Note the differences are already apparent in the uncorrected (dashed) curves, showing the reason lies with the computation of the absolute magnitudes themselves, and not with the weighting scheme. These results are consistent with the steeper k+E correction and the magnitude distributions shown in Figs.~\\ref{fig:mag_comparisons} and \\ref{fig:no_LRG_magnitudes}. The effect is primarily due to the k+E corrected absolute magnitudes of the LRGs at $z_c=0.55$ - they are $\\approx 0.3$ magnitudes fainter than predicted with the flatter FSPS k+E correction. The differences are larger for the LRG magnitudes simply because of our choice of $z_c$, which minimises the effect of the modelling for CMASS galaxies (see Section ~\\ref{sec:ke_corrections}).\n\nThere is an overall improvement in the matching of all $V_{\\rm match}$ luminosity functions across the two surveys when using only red CMASS galaxies (with $g-i>2.35$) for both models. This improvement is small, of only a few per cent, and is explained by the fact that the $V_{\\rm match}$ weights are lower for the bluer galaxies, and so they are already being down-weighted when using the full sample.\n\nContrasting the two weighting schemes we see that the standard $V\/V_{max}$ weights up-weight galaxies at the faint end. Bright galaxies are visible in most of the survey and therefore incur a small correction. This shifts the break of the luminosity function to fainter magnitudes when compared to the uncorrected curve, but the falling in number density after that must not be trusted completely - $V\/V_{max}$ weights get increasingly dominated by poisson error towards faint magnitudes (see Section \\ref{sec:weighting_scheme}). This is visibly the opposite than what happens using the $V_{\\rm match}$ weights in the opposite panels. \n\n\\subsection{Rates of change}\\label{sec:rates_of_change}\n\nIn order to understand the differences seen in Figs.~\\ref{fig:luminosity_function} and \\ref{fig:luminosity_function_M10} we define three estimators to quantify changes as a function of magnitude. For a pair of samples matched on luminosity density, we define a merger rate as\n\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:r_n}\nr_N = \\left(1 - \\frac{n_{LRG}}{n_{CMASS}}\\right) \\frac{1}{\\Delta t},\n\\end{equation}\n\nwhere $\\Delta t$ is the time, in Gyr, between the mean redshift of the two samples (defined such that $\\Delta t > 0$) . Similarly, for a pair of samples matched by number density we define a luminosity growth as\n\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:r_ell}\nr_\\ell = \\left( \\frac{\\ell_{LRG}}{\\ell_{CMASS}} -1\\right) \\frac{1}{\\Delta t}.\n\\end{equation}\n\nThese two rates would be exactly a merger rate and a luminosity growth in the absence of complications such as \n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item resolution issues: close pairs of galaxies failing to be resolved within instrumental and atmospheric limitations; \n\\item contamination: galaxies in CMASS not following our composite stellar evolution model and evolving into a different region of colour and magnitude space than that of the LRGs at low-redshift;\n\\item loss of light to the intra-cluster medium (ICM) when a merging event occurs; and\n\\item a systematic offset in the computation of the absolute magnitudes as a result of the modelling.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\nWe investigate (i) in Section~\\ref{sec:unresolved_pairs}. (ii) is an intrinsic limitation of any methodology without a full understanding of the evolution of {\\em all} galaxy types. (iii) can potentially be investigated by using small-scale clustering and a halo occupation distribution type of approach, in order to estimate the fraction of satellite merging and a fraction of light lost to the ICM. We do not perform such an analysis in the present paper, but we will show in Section~\\ref{sec:discussion} how, when taken together, the results we show in this and in the next Section (large scale clustering) present a picture that points strongly towards a small amount of population growth. To deal with (iv), we also define a galaxy growth rate by using our samples matched by a fixed k+E corrected absolute magnitude (see Section~\\ref{sec:sample_selection}) as\n\n\\begin{equation} \\label{eq:r_g}\nr_g = \\left(1-\\frac{n'_{LRG}\/\\ell'_{LRG}}{n'_{CMASS}\/\\ell'_{CMASS}} \\right) \\frac{1}{\\Delta t}\n\\end{equation}\n\n$r_g$ would match the merger rate even in the presence of contaminants (assuming the luminosity function of the contaminants was the same as the luminosity function of the CMASS galaxies). More generally, it can be interpreted as a rate of change of luminosity per single object across the two surveys. Whereas $r_N$ and $r_\\ell$ are dominated by the relative amplitude of the luminosity function between the two redshifts, $r_g$ tells us about differences in the shape. \n\n\\subsubsection{Results}\\label{sec:population_growth}\n\nWe compute $r_N$ and $r_\\ell$ as a function of $M_{i 0.55}$ (the magnitude of the faintest LRG in the sample, which was used to compute the matched samples - see Section \\ref{sec:sample_selection}), which are shown in Figs.~\\ref{fig:merger_rates} and \\ref{fig:luminosity_growth}. Our most inclusive samples (i.e., where $M_{i 0.55}=-22$) include $\\approx 95\\%$ of the LRGs and $\\approx 40\\%$ of CMASS galaxies, and have large stellar masses with $\\log_{10} M\/M_{\\odot} \\gtrsim 11.2$ (Maraston et al. 2012, in prep).\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.2in]{r_n.ps}\n\\caption{The merger rate, per Gyr, computed as per equation \\ref{eq:r_n} as a function of the magnitude of the faintest LRG in the sample. The black lines shows $r_N \\times 100$ for the full sample, and the red line for galaxies with $g-i>2.35$. The results obtained from using M11 models (dashed lines) show the same slope with magnitude as the results using FSPS models (solid lines), but are a {\\em factor of two to three} lower. Poisson errors shown.}\n\\label{fig:merger_rates}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.2in]{r_l.ps}\n\\caption{The luminosity growth, per Gyr, computed as per equation \\ref{eq:r_ell} as a function of the magnitude of the faintest LRG in the sample. The black lines shows $r_\\ell \\times 100$ for the full sample, and the red line for galaxies with $g-i>2.35$. The results obtained from using M11 models (dashed lines) show the same slope with magnitude as the results using FSPS models (solid lines), but are a {\\em factor of two to three} lower. Poisson errors shown.} \n\\label{fig:luminosity_growth}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure}\n\n$r_N$ is negative for all magnitudes, although it tends to zero towards brighter magnitudes. This implies that, for the same integrated luminosity density, there are {\\it more} LRG galaxies per comoving volume than there are CMASS galaxies. I.e., CMASS galaxies appear to be {\\it brighter} than LRGs in the $i_{0.55}$ band. This is expected from our analysis of the luminosity functions of Figs.~\\ref{fig:luminosity_function} and \\ref{fig:luminosity_function_M10}. We emphasise that if this brightening was due simply to the stellar evolution, and in the absence of other complications, then our model and $V_{\\rm match}$ weights would account for it.\n\n$r_\\ell$ naturally tells a similar tale - for the same comoving number density, LRGs are hold less luminosity than CMASS galaxies. Removing galaxies with observed colour $g-i<2.35$ reduces this number by $\\lesssim 1\\%$ at the faintest magnitudes, but a 5\\% discrepancy remains, even for the reddest galaxies in the CMASS sample. As is obvious from the luminosity functions in Figs.~\\ref{fig:luminosity_function} and \\ref{fig:luminosity_function_M10}, these rates are heavily dependent on the slope of the k+E corrections. Results using the M11 models are identical in shape, but are lower by a factor of two to three. I.e. - the uncertainty in the modelling of the k+E corrections can potentially overwhelm these statistics. We return to this at the end of this section. One point of interest is how the $V_{\\rm match}$ $M_{i 0.55}$ CMASS luminosity function seems offset from that of the LRGs by an almost constant factor as a function of magnitude for both FSPS and M11 - this is likely a result of a k+E correction slope that is too steep. \n\n\\begin{figure*}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[angle=90, width=7in]{r_g_all.ps}\n\\caption{The change in average light per luminosity, per Gyr, computed as per equation \\ref{eq:r_g} as a function of faintest galaxy in the sample. The three panels show the different weighting schemes used when computing number and luminosity densities: $V_{\\rm match}$ on the left, unweighted in the centre, and $V_{\\rm max}$ on the right. The black lines shows $r_g \\times 100$ for the full sample, and the red line for galaxies with $g-i>2.35$. When weighted by $V_{\\rm match}$ , $r_g$ shows evidence for a slowly evolving population using both stellar population models (M11 in dashed lines, FSPS in the solid lines; we also show the purely passive model of \\protect\\citealt{MarastonEtAl09} in the dot-dashed red line - see Section \\ref{sec:passive_model} for details). The trend in the middle panel is dominated by incompleteness issues in the LRG sample, which are severe for $M_{i 0.55} > -23$ (see Figs.~\\ref{fig:luminosity_function} and \\ref{fig:luminosity_function_M10}). $V\/$$V_{\\rm max}$ weights (right) result in a low $r_g$ down to lower magnitudes than $V\/$$V_{\\rm max}$ , but it rises a steeply with decreasing luminosity beyond that. This could be a result of an inadequate completeness correction, or increased merging rate at these luminosities. In any case, this comparison demonstrates clearly that the way in which the $V_{\\rm match}$ weights balance the two samples at low luminosities results in a well matched sample in terms of comoving densities and average luminosity per galaxy - as is our goal. Poisson errors are shown for one of the sets of models only for clarity - they are identical for the other set. See text for further discussion.} \n\\label{fig:r_g}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure*}\n\nTo help understand the observed evolution, we examine the rate of change in weighted luminosity per object, or $r_g$ as given by equation (\\ref{eq:r_g}), which we show on the left-most panel of Fig.~\\ref{fig:r_g}. Recall that, for this statistic, we select galaxy samples based on a fixed k+E corrected absolute magnitude. Using either SPS model, $r_g$ is between $-1\\%$ (at the bright end) and $2\\%$ (at the faint end). A steeper evolution seen with M11 is now clear, and it indicates that the typical luminosity per galaxy increases between the two surveys, especially at the faint end. A similar trend is seen using FSPS models, but it is less significant. Processes like merging would act to change the shape of the luminosity function, according to the fraction and magnitude of the merging galaxies. However, that is not what is observed in the $M_{i 0.55}$ luminosity function with {\\it either} set of models. In other words, the fact that we observe a small value of $r_g$ is {\\it support for a slowly evolving weighted luminosity per galaxy} between the two surveys. Note that the sign is positive - i.e. $\\frac{n'_{LRG}\/\\ell'_{LRG}}{n'_{CMASS}\/\\ell'_{CMASS}} < 1$, or in other words there is on average more luminosity per galaxy in the LRG sample. This is now consistent with a small amount of luminosity growth through merging.\n\nFor comparison, we also show $r_g$ computed using unweighted number and luminosity densities, or using $V_{\\rm max}$ -corrected densities. In the unweighted case, we see a much steeper trend in inferred merger rate with luminosity. This trend is dominated by incompleteness issues within the LRG sample, which becomes serious at around $M_{i 0.55} = -23$, as can be seen in the dashed lines of Figs.~\\ref{fig:luminosity_function} and \\ref{fig:luminosity_function_M10}. A $V\/$$V_{\\rm max}$ weight results in a lower inferred merger rate down to lower magnitudes ($M_{i 0.55} = -22.5$), but shows a steep trend of increasing $r_g$ with decreasing luminosity beyond that. It is difficult to assess whether this effect is due to $V\/$$V_{\\rm max}$ being insufficient to fully correct for completeness or whether it is due to a steeper merging rate at those luminosities (which in turn are down-weighted using the $V_{\\rm match}$ approach). In any case, this comparison demonstrates quite clearly that the way in which the $V_{\\rm match}$ weights balance the two samples at low luminosities results in a well matched sample in terms of comoving densities and average luminosity per galaxy. \n\nTo summarise: we have a complicated scenario: $r_N$ and $r_\\ell$ only reflect a true merger rate or luminosity growth in the absence of contamination or unresolved pairs, and a true contamination\/unresolved pairs fraction in the absence of merging. These two quantities are also sensitive to a change in the slope of k+E corrections as they rely on matching samples by luminosity and number density. They show a significant excess of luminosity in CMASS, with respect to what we should expect from LRGs. $r_g$, measuring the change in the average luminosity per object, is less sensitive both to the slope of the k+E correction and to contaminants (provided they have a similar luminosity than the galaxies of interest). This quantity shows a modest evolution between the two surveys ($<2\\%$) for both stellar population synthesis (SPS) models. \n\nWe take this investigation further by seeing whether unresolved pairs in CMASS could explain the excess of luminosity implied by $r_N$ and $r_\\ell$ alone.\n\n\\subsection{Unresolved pairs}\\label{sec:unresolved_pairs}\n\nWe investigate this issue by looking at pairs of LRGs with another object (photometrically classified as a galaxy), within a $\\approx 2\"$ separation - the angular size subtended by same the physical distance at $z=0.3$ that corresponds to 1.2\" at $z=0.55$. In other words, we find all LRGs with a close companion such that they would be likely unresolved due to seeing (taken to be typically 1.2\") at CMASS redshifts. In order to increase our statistics, and to allow us to investigate this issue to fainter magnitudes, we perform this analysis in the LOZ sample. The LOZ targeting is very similar to that of the LRGs in terms of colour, but targets fainter galaxies (see Section~\\ref{sec:data}). We use the full photometric sample as this sample is very pure, with stellar contamination at less that $2\\%$ (Padmanabhan et al. in prep). We apply the cuts described in Section~\\ref{sec:data} on DR8 photometry \\citep{AiharaEtAl11}, resulting in approximately 1 million targets. Of these, only $\\approx$ 15,000 (30,000), or roughly $1.3\\%$ $(2.4\\%)$ have a pair between $1.2\"$ and $2\"$ $(2.4\")$. Approximately half of these close neighbours are photometrically classified as galaxies and half are photometrically classified as stars. We also note that the foreground volume of a $2\"$ arcsec disc at $z=0.3$ is roughly one third of the foreground volume of a $1.2\"$ arcsec disc at $z=0.55$. So assuming a constant number density of foreground objects, we should multiply our estimate of the multiple fraction due to chance alignment by a factor of 3. We have no way to estimate how many of the the close pairs are chance alignments and how many are physically associated pairs. If we assume that all pairs are chance alignments we reach an estimate on the number of unresolved targets at CMASS redshifts of $\\approx 2\\%$. We show the distance profile of these pairs in Fig.~\\ref{fig:d_neighbours}.\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.2in]{d_neighbours.ps}\n\\caption{Number of LOZ galaxies with a photometric pair as a function of its distance. The blue line shows the distances distribution for photometric pairs classified as stars, and the red line shows the distances for photometric pairs classified as galaxies. The black like is the sum of the two. The vertical dashed lines are representative of the seeing discs at $z=0.3 (1.2\")$ and the angular size of the 1.2\" seeing disc at $z=0.6$ redshifted to $z=0.3 (2\")$. The clear drop off in the number of pairs at distances smaller than roughly $1\"$ is due to the fact that we cannot resolve pairs closer than the seeing disc.} \n\\label{fig:d_neighbours}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.7in]{mag_extra.ps}\n\\caption{The excess magnitude in $r-$band introduced by potentially unresolved pairs from neighbours photometrically classified as galaxies, as a function of $r-$band magnitude (black dots, with the median in green). The histograms show the distribution of $r_{mod}$ before (blue) and after (red) adding the flux of the close neighbour (histograms are not normalised to the y-axis, but share a common normalisation). } \n\\label{fig:mag_extra}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure}\n\nWe can use our estimate of unresolved multiples to calculate the additional flux brought into the CMASS sample from potentially unresolved neighbours. Fig.~\\ref{fig:mag_extra} shows the excess in the $r-$band as a function of $r_{mod}$ from pairs classified as galaxies (black dots, with the median in green). We over plot the unnormalised distributions of $r_{model}$ before (blue) and after (red) adding the flux of the close pair. It is clear that the effect can be quite dramatic (approximately $0.2$ magnitudes) for objects fainter than $r_{mod}\\approx 18$ magnitudes. It is worth pointing out that in spite having of smaller statistics, if we repeat the above analysis around LRG targets (as opposed to LOZ galaxies) we get perfectly consistent results. \n\nIntegrated over all galaxies with close neighbours, the total flux brought into the sample by neighbours photometrically classified as galaxies is roughly 7.5\\% of the $r-$band flux of the LRGs. However, this is only happening to roughly 2\\% of the CMASS sample according to our more generous estimate, and is therefore too small to explain the observed excess in luminosity in CMASS, compared to what is expected from LRGs {\\it if} we attribute this excess of luminosity to unresolved targets. Reversing the question, to explain the excess in luminosity that we observe in the case of FSPS models at the faintest end (a 4\\% excess in luminosity integrated over the sample; see Fig.~\\ref{fig:luminosity_growth}), we require that over 50\\% of the CMASS galaxies are in fact unresolved targets due to chance alignments (this number would have to increase by approximately a factor of two to explain the excess in luminosity inferred using the M11 models). This is 25 times larger than the fraction estimated by our analyses of close pairs in LOZ, suggesting that the slope of k+E corrections or contamination, rather than unresolved targets, is the mostly the source for the trends seen in Figs.~\\ref{fig:merger_rates} and \\ref{fig:luminosity_growth}, and explains why we see only a small evolution in $r_g$ in Fig.~\\ref{fig:r_g}.\n\n\\cite{MastersEtAl11} identified a significant number of unresolved targets in CMASS by looking at HST COSMOS data of a small sub-sample of CMASS galaxies. They show that $\\approx 21 \\pm 4\\%$ of CMASS galaxies are in fact unresolved pairs, of which approximately half are estimated to be a result of chance alignment, and half physically connected pairs (i.e. satellites in the same dark matter halo). Note that we are not interested in any unresolved CMASS objects that are also unresolved at low redshift, as any such close neighbours will have their flux accounted for in our estimates of the LRGs luminosity, and therefore would not contribute towards the discrepancy shown in Figs.~\\ref{fig:merger_rates} and \\ref{fig:luminosity_growth}. Without information on the radial distribution of the unresolved CMASS targets analysed by Masters et al., a direct comparison is not particularly insightful.\n \nOur analysis shows clearly that unresolved targets cannot account for the excess in luminosity observed in CMASS galaxies. This remains true even allowing for the fraction of unresolved pairs measured by Masters et al. Once again we emphasise that the slope of k+E corrections, rather than unresolved targets, is most likely the reason for the trends seen in Figs.~\\ref{fig:merger_rates} and \\ref{fig:luminosity_growth}, and explains why we see only a small evolution in $r_g$ in Fig.~\\ref{fig:r_g}.\n\n\\subsection{Beyond the composite model}\\label{sec:beyond_composite}\n\nIn Section \\ref{sec:composite_model} we introduced the composite model as the best estimate of the overall average colour and magnitude evolution of the full LRG sample. In this Section we take the opportunity to briefly consider two additional approaches to modelling the colours and magnitudes of LRGs. Firstly, we consider a purely passive stellar model and secondly we consider using all individual LRG models instead of averaging them into a single composite stellar prescription. \n\n\\subsubsection{A passive model}\\label{sec:passive_model}\n\nWe take the fully passive stellar model of \\cite{MarastonEtAl09} and assume it applies to every LRG and to every red CMASS galaxy (with $g-i<2.35$). CMASS galaxies bluer than this cut show signs of star formation (Thomas et al. in prep) and a significantly distinct morphological mix with a large fraction of late-type galaxies \\citep{MastersEtAl11}; a purely passive model is simply not a correct description of the bluer CMASS galaxies. The \\cite{MarastonEtAl09} passive model is based on a single burst of star formation at $z\\sim5$, with solar metallicity and an additional component of 3\\% (by mass) of metal-poor old stars. As this model was fitted to 2dF SDSS LRG and Quasar (2SLAQ) data \\citep{CannonEtAl06}, with a significantly redder selection function, it does not fit the CMASS data as well as our composite model (see Fig.~\\ref{fig:composite_model}).\n\nWe proceed in exactly the same way as for the composite model, and we show the resulting evolution of $r_g$ with $M_{i0.55}$ as the dot-dashed red line in Fig.~\\ref{fig:r_g}. The new results agree particular well with the results using the FSPS composite model, as expected given Fig.~\\ref{fig:ke_corrections}: the k+E correction for a purely passive model follows closely that of the FSPS composite model k+E corrections. This shows that the differences in the modelling stem mostly from differences in the assumed star-formation histories, but note that these in turn are driven by the different stellar evolution tracks assumed in each set of stellar population synthesis models. Once we weight by $V_{\\rm match}$ all models give consistent results. The differences are more significant without the $V_{\\rm match}$ weight, and the inferred merger rates are then larger with a purely passive model. \n\n\\subsubsection{Using 124 stellar evolution models}\\label{sec:allstacks}\n\nWhereas the composite model captures the average stellar evolution of the LRGs, there is a significant amount of scatter around this average especially in the case of the M11 models. We attempt to use the full range of individual fits to LRGs of different colour, redshift and luminosity as follows. To each LRG we assign the correct model according to its $r-i$ colour, luminosity and redshift. To each CMASS galaxy we assign the closest model in terms of colour: we take the predicted $g-r$ and $r-i$ colours of the 124 models at the redshift of each CMASS galaxy, and we assign to that galaxy the model that sits closest. Note that as photometric scatter is larger than the typical distance between different models this is an intrinsically noisy process.\n\nAs explained in Section \\ref{sec:composite_model} each stellar evolution model has a different scope in redshift. We therefore must change the definition of our weights to allow for this fact: we use only the volume probed by each stellar evolution model to define $V_{\\rm{LRG}}$, $V_{\\rm{max}}^{LRG}$, $V_{CMASS}$ and $V_{\\rm{max}}^{CMASS}$ in Eqs. (\\ref{eq:wa}) and (\\ref{eq:wb}). This is equivalent to splitting into 124 pairs of surveys, each with a different predicted evolution and redshift range, and considering the result on the combination. We show the resulting evolution of $r_g$ in Fig.~\\ref{fig:r_g_allstacks}.\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.5in]{r_g_allstacks.ps}\n\\caption{The change in average light per luminosity, per Gyr, computed as per equation \\ref{eq:r_g} as a function of faintest galaxy in the sample, using 124 models of stellar evolution as described in Section \\ref{sec:allstacks}. The black lines shows $r_g \\times 100$ for the full sample, and the red line for galaxies with $g-i>2.35$. M11 results are shown in dashed lines, and FSPS results in solid lines. These results should be compared to the left-most panel of Fig.~\\ref{fig:r_g}, obtained using the composite model. The results are similar in the FSPS case, but steeper for the M11 models. The differences are not significant given the errors. }\n\\label{fig:r_g_allstacks}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure}\n When compared to the values obtained with the composite model we see a larger difference in $r_g$ in the case of M11 models; this is expected given the larger scatter around this composite model. Given how noisy the process of assigning a model to each CMASS galaxy can be, it is hard to interpret this difference, which is not in any case significant. Whereas it is obviously desirable to include as much information as possible on the stellar evolution of the LRGs, photometric scatter makes this method unreliable. One potential improvement over the composite model is to construct two or more average models, for sufficiently distinct areas of colour-colour or colour-magnitude space. We leave such explorations for future work. For the moment we emphasise that the composite model we describe in Section \\ref{sec:composite_model} is the most suitable choice for the current analysis.\n\n\\section{Large-scale clustering}\\label{sec:clustering}\n\nThe evolution of the large scale clustering has the potential to help us interpret the results of the previous sections by constraining the merging history of the sample. The evolution of the large-scale linear bias has a well-defined evolution, given by \\cite{Fry96}, for pure passive evolution (i.e., no mergers). This gives us the opportunity to check whether our weighted samples are consistent with a small amount of merging and contamination, as suggested by Fig.\\ref{fig:r_g}.\n\nWe will follow \\cite{TojeiroEtAl10} and weigh galaxies by their luminosity. The advantage is that any merging happening amongst CMASS galaxies will not contribute towards a deviation from the Fry et al. model, provided that no significant loss of light happens to the ICM. Note that even if this loss is significant, it is still preferential to match samples by luminosity density and weight by galaxy luminosity - see Section \\ref{sec:discussion}.\n\n\\subsection{Measuring and modelling the correlation function}\n\nThe two-point correlation function, $\\xi(r)$ measures the excess probability, $dP(r)$ of finding a pair of galaxies at a given distance $r$, compared to a purely random distribution:\n\n\\begin{equation}\ndP(r) = n[1+\\xi(r)] dV \n\\end{equation}\nIn practice, we count pairs of galaxies in bins of $r$ and $\\mu$, and use the \\cite{LandySzalay93} estimator as \n\n\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:xi_estimator}\n\\hat{\\xi_\\ell}(r) = \\frac{\\sum_{\\mu} DD(r,\\mu) - 2DR(r,\\mu) + RR(r, \\mu) }{\\sum_\\mu RR(r,\\mu)} P_\\ell\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $DD$, $DR$ and $RR$ are normalised galaxy-galaxy, galaxy-random and random-random pair counts in bins of $r$ and $\\mu$ respectively ($\\mu$ is the cosine of the angle between a galaxy pair and the line of sight). We use a random catalogue with the same angular mask as the data catalogue, and with an $n(z)$ matched to that of the data. To avoid contributions from shot noise from the random pair counts, we use random catalogues with 10 times the number density of the data. \n\nSetting $\\ell = 0$ in equation~(\\ref{eq:xi_estimator}) gives us the monopole of the correlation function, as defined in \\cite{Hamilton92} - this is the excess of finding a pair of galaxies at given distance $r$ averaged over pairs observed at all angles with respect to the line of sight. \nThe quadropole, or $\\ell=2$ contains the next order of information, by effectively comparing the power along and across lines of sight. $\\xi_0$ and $\\xi_2$ are both affected by redshift-space distortions and enhanced clustering along the line-of-sight, which we model. Even though the passive model of \\cite{Fry96} constrains only the spherically averaged power, or $\\xi_0$, we fit our data to models of $\\xi_0$ and $\\xi_2$, as this improves our signal. \n\nWe model the isotropic, $\\mu$-averaged correlation function $\\xi(r)$ as in \\cite{SamushiaEtAl12}. A non-trivial survey geometry imprints a non-uniform distribution of pairs in $\\mu$ on the data as not all galaxy-pair configurations are allowed by the window function. We correct for this effect as in \\cite{SamushiaEtAl12}, by weighting each galaxy pair such that the weighted distribution of pairs in $\\mu$ corresponds to that expected in the absence of a window function.\n\n\n\\subsection{Fitting the correlation function}\n\nTo increase our resolution with redshift, we split each of the CMASS and LRG slices into two, giving a total of 4 luminosity-matched slices centred at $z=$0.3, 0.4, 0.5 and 0.6. For each of the slices we compute $\\hat{\\xi}_0(r)$ and $\\hat{\\xi}_2(r)$ according to Equation~\\ref{eq:xi_estimator}, and we use a simple 2-dimensional $\\chi^2$ minimisation in order to find the best fitting scale-invariant amplitudes. \n\nWe estimate the errors and their covariance by using mock simulations. We use mock catalogues constructed using the Large Suite of Dark Matter Simulations (LasDamas, McBride et al. in prep) in order to construct 80 independent realisations of $\\hat{\\xi}_0$ and $\\hat{\\xi}_2$ for the first two redshift slices (we sub-sample each mock in order to reproduce the $n(z)$ in each redshift slice). For the last two redshift slices, we use 600 perturbation-theory halo mocks of \\cite{ManeraEtAl12}, and follow the same procedure. \nTo ensure a stable inversion of the covariance matrix, and to increase our signal-to-noise in each bin, we re-bin the correlation functions to 11 bins in comoving distance, logarithmically spaced between 30 and 200 Mpc\/h. This results in a total of 22 measurements to be fitted by two parameters, totalling 20 degrees of freedom.\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Large-scale bias evolution}\n\\begin{figure*}\n\\begin{center}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.4in]{xi0_ev.ps}\n\\includegraphics[width=3.4in]{xi0_ev_M10.ps}\n\n\\caption{The amplitude of the luminosity and $V_{\\rm match}$ -weighted large-scale amplitude of $\\xi_0$ computed as a function of redshift (solid black dots). The two lowest redshift points lie exclusively within the LRG sample, and the two highest redshift points exclusively in the CMASS sample. The open dots show the amplitude of the un-weighted large-scale power, fitted to the same scales. The red dots (open and filled) show the amplitude of $\\xi_0$ when selecting only CMASS galaxies with $g-i>2.35$. The lines show the best fit passive model of \\protect\\cite{Fry96} (Equation \\ref{eq:amplitude}), obtained by assuming LCDM and fitting for $b(z_0)$ - the solid line is a fit to the filled (weighted) points, and the dashed line is a fit to the open (not weighted) points. We give the minimum values of $\\chi^2$ for each case. Left: FSPS models; right: M11 models. }\n\\label{fig:xi0_ev}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure*}\n\nThe evolution of the amplitude of the monopole can be seen in the filled circles of Fig.~\\ref{fig:xi0_ev}, with error bars derived from the fits to all of the mocks, using the covariance matrices described in the previous section.\n\nTo check whether our results are consistent with the \\cite{Fry96} evolution, we model the redshift evolution of the amplitude of the monopole, $A_0(z)$, \nas \\citep{Hamilton92}:\n\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:amplitude}\nA_0(z) = \\left( b^2(z) + \\frac{2}{3}f(z)b(z) + \\frac{1}{5} f^2(z) \\right) \\sigma_8^2(z)\n\\end{equation}\nwith $\\sigma_8(z) = \\sigma_8(0)D(z)\/D(0)$ and \n\\begin{equation} \\label{eq:fry96}\nb(z) = [b(z_0) - 1] \\frac{D(0)}{D(z_0)} + 1\n\\end{equation}\n$f$ is the logarithmic derivative of the linear growth factor $D(z)$ with expansion, $f\\equiv d\\log D(z)\/d\\log a$. For simplicity we assume a LCDM cosmology and $f(z) = \\Omega_m^{\\gamma(z)}$, with $\\gamma(z) = 0.557 - 0.02z$ (\\citealt{PolarskiEtAl08}). \n\nWe take $z_0 = 0.3$ and use a simple $\\chi^2$ minimisation to fit the model of Equation \\ref{eq:amplitude} to our four data points. We perform this analysis eight times:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item by weighting the galaxies by their luminosity and $V_{\\rm match}$ ;\n\\item by not weighting the galaxies;\n\\item by weighting the galaxies by their luminosity and $V_{\\rm match}$ and applying a $g-i>2.35$ cut; and\n\\item by not weighting the galaxies and applying a $g-i>2.35$ cut\n\\end{enumerate}\nwith each of the two stellar population models. The $\\chi^2$ values of our fits can be seen in Fig.~\\ref{fig:xi0_ev}. For both the FSPS and M11 results, the best-fit comes from when the data is weighted by $V_{\\rm match}$ and by luminosity, and when we use only galaxies redder than $g-i=2.35$. This result is a good indication that our weights are performing as expected, and that there is less evolution towards the red end of the galaxy population, as expected. Weighting by $V_{\\rm match}$ and luminosity makes a larger difference to the best-fitting $\\chi^2$ than cutting the galaxies in colour - this is because the $V_{\\rm match}$ weights effectively down-weight blue galaxies most effectively. The weights increase the overall amplitude of $\\xi_0$ simply because we are up-weighting the most luminous objects and these are more biased (e.g. \\citealt{ZehaviEtAl05b,ZehaviEtAl11}). FSPS models give a formally better fit than M11 models, but note that in the case of weighted red galaxies, both models give acceptable fits to the passive model. This result is a welcome confirmation of our interpretation of Fig.~\\ref{fig:r_g}. In summary, our weights and sample matching yield a sample of galaxies that is consistent with dynamical passive evolution. Moreover, this is robust to the set of stellar population models used to create the samples and compute the weights. \n\n\n\n\n\\section{Summary, discussion and conclusions}\\label{sec:discussion}\n\nIn this paper we present a joint analysis of SDSS-I\/II LRGs and BOSS CMASS galaxies, with the aim of identifying and characterising a coeval population of galaxies spanning a redshift range between $0.23$ and $0.7$. We are motivated from the desire to select a population of galaxies that is evolving passively in a dynamical sense (i.e. no mergers) as closely as possible, as the large-scale bias evolution of such a population can be understood analytically and yield significant gains in cosmological analysis of large-scale structure. \n\nWe focused on the progenitors of LRGs, as massive red galaxies are prime candidates for such a population. As the targeting selection in CMASS is significantly wider both in colour and magnitude (Section~\\ref{sec:data}), we developed a set of weights that optimally matches galaxies in terms of their stellar evolution (Section \\ref{sec:weighting_scheme}). To do so, we relied on the fossil record of LRGs from which we extracted a stellar evolution model (Fig.~\\ref{fig:composite_model}). We then used this model to identify the most likely progenitors of LRGs amongst CMASS galaxies (Section~\\ref{sec:progenitors}). Finally we developed a number of estimators to attempt to characterise and quantify population evolution between the two surveys (Sections \\ref{sec:population_evolution} and \\ref{sec:clustering}).\n\nWe find that CMASS galaxies are an extension of LRGs by being both intrinsically fainter and having a wider range in observed and in rest-frame colour. Fig.~\\ref{fig:fraction_lost} shows the fraction of CMASS galaxies that are not expected to evolve into LRGs as a function of redshift, absolute magnitude, observed $g-r$ colour and rest-frame $M_{r 0.55} - M_{i 0.55}$ k+E corrected colour. We find a steep dependences in absolute magnitude and rest-frame colours, confirming that CMASS galaxies are broader in terms of {\\it intrinsic} properties. \n\nOur analysis of weighted number and luminosity densities using the $r_N$ and $r_\\ell$ estimators (Figs.~\\ref{fig:luminosity_growth} and \\ref{fig:merger_rates}) points towards a scenario where the CMASS sample is typically brighter expected from the LRG progenitors. To investigate this issue further we considered the potential contamination from unresolved targets - i.e. CMASS targets that are targeted as a single object, but are in fact unresolved pairs of stars of galaxies (Section \\ref{sec:unresolved_pairs}). By examining close pairs of LOZ galaxies (such that they would be unresolved at CMASS redshifts) we estimate that the extra luminosity from these pairs would be too small ($<1\\%$ in the $r^{0.55}-$band) to explain the excess in luminosity we see in CMASS, even in our most generous scenario. The most likely reason for the remaining differences is uncertainty in the slope of the k+E corrections (which affect the absolute magnitudes mostly of the LRGs), or contaminants - objects in CMASS that share a region of colour-magnitude space with LRG progenitors but that evolve into something other than present-day massive red galaxies. Even though both stellar population synthesis models used in this study give an identical trend of this luminosity excess with magnitude, we find it to be 2-3 times larger with the M11 models. To help identify the reason for this luminosity excess, we look at the rate of change in luminosity per object, $r_g$, and at the evolution of the large-scale clustering.\n\nThe estimator $r_g$ was designed to be intrinsically less sensitive to contaminants in CMASS (provided they have a similar luminosity distribution to the galaxies of interest, in which case $r_g$ can be interpreted as a merger rate). It is also less sensitive the slope of the k+E corrections (mostly via the sample selection, which is different to the sample selection needed for $r_N$ and $r_\\ell$ - see Section \\ref{sec:sample_selection}). We find that $r_g$ tests differences in shape of the luminosity function, whilst $r_N$ and $r_\\ell$ are also sensitive to the relative amplitudes. We only small evolution in $r_g$. Moreover, we find that this evolution (between $-1\\%$ at the bright end and $2\\%$ at the faint end - see left-hand panel of Fig.~\\ref{fig:r_g}) is much less sensitive to the stellar population synthesis modelling. We compared the optimally $V_{\\rm match}$ -weighted $r_g$ with the results obtained using a standard $V\/$$V_{\\rm max}$ weight (Fig.~\\ref{fig:r_g}). In that case we would infer a merger rate of up to $13\\%$ at the faintest end, showing that the weighting scheme we introduce is having the effect we intended: effectively matching the two samples terms of comoving densities and average luminosity per galaxy. This result is evidence for a small evolution in the properties of the galaxies, once they are properly weighted. \n\nWe should comment on a possible systematic error in $r_g$ due to the completeness estimation in each survey. In Section \\ref{sec:luminosity_function} we noted that the fraction of CMASS galaxies that fail the star-galaxy separation (but which are nonetheless genuine galaxies) is larger than the fraction of LRGs that fail similar cuts at low redshift by at most $1\\%$. This is a small number, but comparable to the accuracy with which we aim to constrain the dynamical evolution of these galaxies. We should therefore conservatively add $1\\%$ uncertainty to the rates we show in Section \\ref{sec:population_growth}. For our most inclusive sample ($M_{i 0.55} < -22$), $r_g$ is therefore constrained to be $1.6 \\pm 1.5\\%$ with M11 models, and $0.4 \\pm 1.4\\%$ with FSPS models. Our most inclusive samples include $\\approx 95\\%$ of the LRGs and $\\approx 40\\%$ of CMASS galaxies, and have large stellar masses with $\\log_{10} M\/M_{\\odot} \\gtrsim 11.2$ (Maraston et al. 2012, in prep).\n\nTo place further constraints on the evolution of our weighted samples, we investigate the evolution of the amplitude of the large-scale clustering (Fig.~\\ref{fig:xi0_ev}). We find that the best fit to a dynamically passive evolution model (i.e. strictly no mergers, and assuming LCDM) happens when we weight the galaxies by $V_{\\rm match}$ and luminosity, and we use only red galaxies ($g-i > 2.35$). This is {\\it further} evidence that the weights are working as they should, and we find formally good fits to the passive model using both FSPS and M11 solutions, providing increased weight to our interpretation of Figs.~\\ref{fig:luminosity_growth}, \\ref{fig:merger_rates} and \\ref{fig:r_g}.\n\n\n\\subsection{Comparison with previous work}\n\nIndependent efforts to constrain the assembly and evolution of massive galaxies range generally focus on the cosmic evolution of the luminosity function or on their clustering. Direct comparisons are difficult due to the different samples used, which vary in terms of number density (or typical minimum halo mass), magnitude or colour cuts, but this is nonetheless a useful exercise.\n\n\\cite{CoolEtAl08} measured the evolution in the luminosity function of LRGs up to $z\\approx 0.9$ by observing a small sample of nearly 300 galaxies targeted using similar cuts to SDSS-II LRGs. They find that at the massive end, galaxies must not have grown by more than 50\\% between $z=0.9$ and $z=0.1$, corresponding to less than 8\\% growth per Gyr. \\cite{WakeEtAl06} analysed SDSS-I\/II and 2SLAQ LRGs, covering a redshift range between $z=0.17$ and $z=0.6$ and found that no growth was necessary to explain the evolution of the luminosity function once a passive stellar evolution model was applied, but that non-passive growth with up to 25\\% of the galaxies merging between the two redshifts could not be ruled out. \\cite{BrownEtAl07} studied the luminosity evolution of nearly 40,000 galaxies since $z\\approx1$ in the Bootes field. At the massive red end, they find that at least 80\\% of the stellar mass of these galaxies had to be place by $z=0.9$, resulting in a mild growth of less than $3\\%$ per Gyr to the present-day. \\cite{TojeiroEtAl10} measured the stellar growth of LRGs between $0.2\\lesssim z \\lesssim 0.45$ and found it to vary between 2-6\\%, depending on the luminosity with brighter galaxies showing a smaller evolution. For the same luminosity range in this paper we find a smaller merger rate, in spite of the larger redshift range. This discrepancy is explained by a combination of different model for the stellar evolution of the galaxies and by an estimator that is less sensitive to overall offsets in magnitudes and potential contaminants (see equation \\ref{eq:r_g}). Whereas studying the evolution of luminosity densities can certainly test departure from a purely or nearly passive dynamical evolution, it only formally tests a net influx of luminosity in or out of the samples between the two redshifts. Studies of the evolution of the clustering of galaxies are therefore important in characterising the mass assembly of these massive galaxies.\n\nBy fitting a halo model to a sample at high-redshift, evolving it passively to a lower redshift, and comparing it directly to a model fitted to data at that redshift allows for a direct comparison of predicted (from a passive model) and measured populations of centrals and satellites for samples matched in number density. Traditionally such approaches find too many satellites at low redshift, resulting in too large a number density and an overestimation of power at all scales (see e.g. \\citealt{WhiteEtAl07, BrownEtAl08, WakeEtAl08}). \n\nThe usual interpretation is that a fraction of the satellites and\/or centrals must have merged. Such approaches have implied merger rates in the order of 2-8\\% per Gyr since a redshift of 1, which is in apparent agreement with the results presented here. An interesting disagreement, however, is the fact that such studies have found that the evolution of the large-scale power departs significantly from the passive model of \\cite{Fry96}; they find a nearly invariant large-scale amplitude as a function of redshift, which corresponds to effectively {\\em underestimating} the bias at low redshift, with respect to passive evolution. As mentioned previously the merging scenario - coming from HOD fits to smaller scales - suggests that a fraction of galaxies in the sample at high-redshift must have merged, effectively reducing the large-scale power via two mechanisms. It primarily reduces the number of objects in high-mass halos, therefore decreasing the overall bias of the sample. A likely secondary effect is that merging within the sample must reduce the number density at low redshift for the same population of galaxies - as the samples are matched in number density, resulting in an enrichment of less-biased galaxies at low redshift. \n\nOur matching and weighting by luminosity bypases both of these problems. Firstly, when weighting galaxies by their luminosity, merging events between galaxies will not decrease the relative contribution of the halos within which they reside to the overall bias of the sample. This is only strictly true in the case of no loss of light to the ICM, but we argue here that weighting by luminosity will almost always be better than any weighting scheme that depends on the number of objects - in a merging of two objects the relative contribution of a given halo will be reduced by $1\/2$ if weighting by number. It follows that, provided that the overall loss of light is less than $50\\%$ of the combined light of the merging system, we have an estimation of the bias evolution that is less sensitive to merging of galaxies within the sample, and to which the Fry model is more applicable. Note that this is true {\\em even} in the case of merging within the sample. Estimates on how much light may be lost to the intra-cluster medium varies. Based on a halo model analysis, \\cite{WhiteEtAl07} estimated an upper bound on the loss of light to the ICM of $25-40\\%$ of the light of the accreting satellite (not of the whole merging system), depending on halo mass; \\cite{SkibbaEtAl07} argued that this fraction should be between $5-15\\%$. Using simulation-based models \\cite{ConroyEtAl07b} show how scenarios that allow disrupted satellites to deposit up to 80\\% of their stars in the ICM favour the observed evolution in the galaxy stellar mass function since $z\\sim1$. \\cite{PurcellEtAl07} estimate that around 20\\% of the total light in massive halos ($M>10^{13}M_\\odot$) is in a diffuse component. Analyses as the ones above show how understanding the mechanisms that lead to the formation of the ICL is of clear importance to learning how massive galaxies assemble. Nonetheless it remains clear that weighting by luminosity is {\\em in practice} advantageous if one wishes, as we do, to use a passive model for the evolution of the large-scale bias. The effectiveness of our weighting scheme is nicely demonstrated with our clustering analysis, which shows how a passive model is a better fit to the weighted data (see Fig.~\\ref{fig:xi0_ev}). \n\n\\subsection{Final remarks and future work}\nWe conclude that our sample is slowly evolving (to less that $2\\%$ by merging, when samples are appropriately matched and weighted), to the extent of what is testable by current data and models. We demonstrated the efficiency of a $V_{\\rm match}$ and luminosity weighting in constructing a sample that is as close to being dynamically passive as possible, whilst at the same time not needing to cut the sample in colour or redshift; therefore optimising our signal. This aspect is particularly important given broad nature of CMASS galaxies with respect to LRGs.\n\nIn terms of future work, we will assess the cosmological gains of using our slowly evolving sample when measuring growth rates and redshifts-space distortions using the large-scale amplitude of the correlation function. We further intend to extend this analysis to the LOZ and main galaxy samples \\citep{StraussEtAl02}, which will provide not only better statistics for cosmology analysis, but will also allow a study of evolutionary paths of other populations of galaxies.\n\n\n\\section{Acknowledgments}\nRT and WJP thank the European Research Council for support. WJP also thanks the Science and Technology Facilities Council. \n\nFunding for SDSS-III has been provided by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the Participating Institutions, the National Science Foundation, and the U.S. Department of Energy. The SDSS-III web site is http:\/\/www.sdss3.org\/.\n\nSDSS-III is managed by the Astrophysical Research Consortium for the\nParticipating Institutions of the SDSS-III Collaboration including the\nUniversity of Arizona,\nthe Brazilian Participation Group,\nBrookhaven National Laboratory,\nUniversity of Cambridge,\nCarnegie Mellon University,\nUniversity of Florida,\nthe French Participation Group,\nthe German Participation Group,\nHarvard University,\nthe Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias,\nthe Michigan State\/Notre Dame\/JINA Participation Group,\nJohns Hopkins University,\nLawrence Berkeley National Laboratory,\nMax Planck Institute for Astrophysics,\nMax Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics,\nNew Mexico State University,\nNew York University,\nOhio State University,\nPennsylvania State University,\nUniversity of Portsmouth,\nPrinceton University,\nthe Spanish Participation Group,\nUniversity of Tokyo,\nUniversity of Utah,\nVanderbilt University,\nUniversity of Virginia,\nUniversity of Washington,\nand Yale University.\n\\bibliographystyle{mn2e}\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
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+{"text":"\\section{Introduction}\n\\label{intro}\nDeep learning has become a promising way to model the complexity of stock movements. It enables us to capture non-linear movements, to associate large data, and to reduce noise without an assumption of a pre-specified underlying structure. At the same time, it leaves us with a difficulty in selecting numerous hyperparameters, which critically affects the performance of the resulting models.\nMost studies dealing with a financial time series typically choose pre-specified hyperparameters and check the robustness of the model based on small changes in the parameters. This approach requires experts to put a lot of effort into tuning numerous parameters simultaneously, which often results in a suboptimal model. \n\n Hyperparameter optimization (HPO) can be used to mitigate this problem by automatically searching\nfor the most optimal hyperparameters in machine learning learners, and has been widely used to identify good configurations more quickly, such as through the use of a sequential model-based algorithm configuration (SMAC), tree-structure Parzen estimator (TPE), and Sprearmint \\cite{feurer2014using}.\nHPO has also been demonstrated to be an extremely powerful approach for automatic image and speech recognition, and offers advantages for dealing with machine learning in a systematic manner. \nFirst, it reduces the human effort necessary in tuning the hyperparameters and opens up the possibility of improving the performance of machine learning \\cite{melis2018state}\\cite{snoek2012practical}. Second, it improves the reproducibility and fairness of scientific studies because an automated HPO is more reproducible than a hand-tuned approach using trial-and-error\nsearches to produce a desired behavior, thereby allowing us to compare different methods more fairly through the same level of tuning \\cite{bergstra2013making}\\cite{sculley2018winner}.\n\n\nDespite such advantages, financial studies have generally not considered this method. HPO requires a large data scale to avoid an overfitting occurring in both the training and validation data. Stock-related data are obtained only over a relatively short time span, typically from the year 1950 to the present. As shown in Fig. \\ref{fig:log_return}, a random evolution of a stock return, such as time-varying volatility and occasional jumps related to crashes or sudden upsurges, causes a time dependency of the model parameter set to specific periods. Furthermore, cross-validation and shuffling, which are crucial techniques for preventing an overfitting, cannot be used because stock-related data are time-ordered, and a modeling process requires preserving the time ordering. \nFor these reasons, the use of HPO has\nrarely been assessed and there is a poor understanding of its efficiency in financial data modeling. As a result, practitioners need to pay more attention to hyperparameter tuning and the resulting models largely depending on their experience. \n\\begin{figure}[t]\n\\centering\n \\scalebox{0.5}\n {\n\t\\includegraphics{Fig1.pdf}\n\n }\n\\caption{S$\\&$P 500 index and its returns from Jan. 1, 1950 to Dec. 31, 2017.}\n\\label{fig:log_return}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\nIn this study, we evaluate the viability of HPO in terms of the stock return predictability problem. We examined the HPO performance across different conditions, the input features of the fundamentals and technical indicators, and the regularization of a dropout and batch normalization.\nOur key findings are as follows:\n\\begin{itemize}\n\\item[\u2022] We show that, whereas the prediction models with an input of fundamentals are likely to overfit the in-sample data, \nmodels with the input feature of the technical indicators achieves a strong predictability throughout the in- and out-of-sample periods. A dropout is more effective for a positive predictability in an out-of-sample than a batch normalization.\n\\item[\u2022] We show that the model with good predictability in both an in- and out-of-sample is less sensitive to the time evolution, which reveals that it is a general model for adapting to the changes in the economic and business conditions.\n\\end{itemize}\nWe believe this study provides insight into the application of machine learning for investment purposes or risk management.\n\\\\\n\\\\\n\\noindent {\\bf Related work} \n In financial economics, there is a long-standing debate whether (excess) stock market returns are predictable. \nThe conventional framework for analyzing equity premium predictability is a `linear predictive regression' model taking the following form:\n\\begin{equation}\nr_{t+1}=\\alpha+\\bm \\beta^{'} \\bm x_{t}+\\varepsilon_{t+1},\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $r_{t+1}$ is the return on the stock market index in excess of the risk-free interest rate, $\\alpha$ is an intercept term, $\\bm \\beta$ is a $p\\times 1$ dimensional vector of the slope parameters, $\\bm x_{t}$ is a $p\\times 1$ dimensional vector of the predictor variables observed at time $t$, and $\\varepsilon_{t+1}$ is a zero-mean disturbance term. \nThe most commonly followed approaches are the use of individual bivariate regressions using one variable at a time from the Goyal and Welch (GW)\npredictor variables \\cite{welch2007comprehensive}, or a multivariate regression, which includes the full set of GW predictors in (1) (see \\cite{goyal2003predicting}\\cite{welch2007comprehensive}\\cite{campbell2007predicting} for a bivariate regression and \\cite{rapach2010out}\\cite{neely2014forecasting}\\cite{buncic2017macroeconomic} for a multivariate regression).\n\n\nDeep learning models are on the rise, showing impressive results in modeling the complex behavior of financial data. Examples include stock prediction based on long short-term memory (LSTM) networks \\cite{fischer2018deep},\ndeep portfolios based on deep autoencoders \\cite{heaton2017deep},\nthreshold-based approaches using recurrent neural networks \\cite{lee2018threshold}, and\ndeep factor models involving deep feed-forward networks \\cite{nakagawa2018deep}, LSTM networks \\cite{nakagawa2019deep}, and fundamentals \\cite{alberg2017improving}. These studies apply hand-tuned hyper-parameters.\n\nIn section \\ref{sec:2}, we provide the data used in this study and the preprocessing methods.\nIn section \\ref{sec:3}, we describe the experimental setting and its implementation.\nIn section \\ref{sec:4}, we provide the experimental results and make comparisons between models.\nFinally, some concluding remarks are given in section \\ref{sec:5}.\n\n\n\n\\section{Data and preprocessing}\n\\label{sec:2}\nWe used sets of fundamentals and technical indicators that have traditionally been used for studying stock predictability. \n\\\\\n\\\\\n\\noindent {\\bf Technical indicators} \nTechnical analysis is a method for forecasting price movements using past prices and volume and includes a variety of forecasting techniques such as a chart\nanalysis, cycle analysis, and computerized technical trading systems. \n\nTechnical analysis has a long history of widespread use by participants in\nspeculative markets \n\\cite{smidt1965amateur}\n\\cite{billingsley1996benefits}\n\\cite{fung1997information}\n\\cite{menkhoff1997examining}\n\\cite{cheung2001currency}\n\\cite{gehring2003technical}, and\nthere is a large body of academic evidence\ndemonstrating\nthe usefulness of a technical analysis, including theoretical support \n\\cite{brown1989technical} and empirical evidence \n\\cite{lo2000foundations}\\cite{blume1994market}, as well as their role in out-of-sample equity premium predictability \n\\cite{baetje2016equity}\n\\cite{rapach2010out}\n\\cite{neely2014forecasting}.\n\n\nThe monthly market data for the S$\\&$P500 were obtained from Yahoo Finance and contain daily trading data, i.e., the opening prices, high prices, low prices, adjusted closing prices, and end-of-day volumes. The data are from the period between January 1, 1950 and December 31, 2017 (Fig. \\ref{fig:log_return}).\nWe used a full set of 14 technical indicators based on 3 types of popular technical strategies, moving average crossover rules, momentum rules, and volume rules:\n\\begin{itemize}\n \\setlength\\itemsep{1em}\n\\item\tThe time-series momentum indicator, MOM($m$), is the generation of a buy signal when the price is higher than the historical price. Its validation is supported by the observation that the ``trend'' effect persists for approximately 1 year and then partially reverses over a longer timeframe. \nHere, $\\textrm{MOM}_{t}(m)$ at time $t$ is\ndefined as follows:\n\\begin{equation}\n \\textrm{MOM}_{t}(m)=\\begin{cases}\n 1 \\textrm{ (Buy signal) }, & \\text{if} \\quad P_{t} \\geq P_{t-m}\\\\\n -1 \\textrm{ (Sell signal) }, & \\text{otherwise}.\n \\end{cases}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $P_{t}$ is the index value at time $t$, and $m$ is the\nlook-back period. \nWe use $m = 1,3,6,9$ and $12$, which are respectively labeled as\n$\\textrm{MOM}_{t}$(1M), \n$\\textrm{MOM}_{t}$(3M),\n$\\textrm{MOM}_{t}$(6M),\n$\\textrm{MOM}_{t}$(9M), and\n$\\textrm{MOM}_{t}$(12M).\n\t \n\\item The moving average indicator, MA$(s,l)$, \nprovides a signal for an upward or downward trend.\nA buy signal is generated when the short-term moving average crosses above the long-term moving average because this represents the beginning of an upward trend. A sell signal is generated when the short-term moving average \ncrosses below the long-term moving average because this represents the beginning of a downward trend.\n\nLet us define\na simple moving average of the index as follows:\n\\begin{equation}\n\\textrm{MA}_{j,t}^{P}=(1\/j)\\sum_{i=0}^{j-1}P_{t-m} \n\\textrm{ for } j=s \\textrm{ or }l,\n\\end{equation}\t\nwhere $s$ and $l$ are the look-back periods for short and long moving averages. \nThe moving average indicator $\\textrm{MA}_{t}(s,l)$\nis then designed as follows:\n\\begin{equation}\n \\textrm{MA}_{t}(s,l)=\\begin{cases}\n 1 \\textrm{ (Buy signal) }, & \\text{if} \\quad \\textrm{MA}_{s,t}^{P} \\geq \\textrm{MA}_{l,t}^{P}\\\\\n -1 \\textrm{ (Sell signal) }, & \\text{otherwise}.\n \\end{cases}\n \\end{equation}\n\tThe six moving average indicators are constructed for $s=1$, $2$, $3$, and \n$l=9$, $12$, which are symbolized as \n\tMA(1M-9M), MA(1M-12M), MA(2M-9M), MA(2M-12M), MA(3M-9M), and MA(3M-12M).\n\\item The volume indicator, VOL($s,l$), indicates a strong market\ntrend if the recent stock market volume and stock price increase.\nLet us define the on-balance volume (OBV) as follows:\n\\begin{equation}\n\\textrm{OBV}_{t}=\\sum_{k=1}^{t}VOL_{k}D_{k},\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $VOL_{k}$ is a measure of the trading volume (i.e., number of shares traded) during period $k$, and $D_{k}$ is a binary variable: \n\\begin{equation}\n D_{k}=\\begin{cases}\n 1, & \\text{if} \\quad P_{k}\\geq P_{k-1}\\\\\n -1, & \\text{otherwise}.\n \\end{cases}\n\\end{equation}\nThe value of $\\textrm{OBV}_{t}$ conceptionally measures both positive and negative \nvolume based on the belief that changes in volume can predict a stock movement. The volume-based indicator is then defined as the difference between\nthe moving averages with a $s$-period and $l$-period:\n\\begin{equation}\n \\textrm{VOL}(s,l)=\\begin{cases}\n 1 \\textrm{ (Buy signal) }, & \\text{if} \\quad \\textrm{MA}_{s,t}^{\\textrm{OBV}} \\geq \\textrm{MA}_{l,t}^{\\textrm{OBV}}\\\\\n -1 \\textrm{ (Sell signal) }, & \\text{otherwise}.\n \\end{cases}\n\\end{equation}\nHere,\n$\n\\textrm{MA}_{j,t}^{\\textrm{OBV}}=(1\/j)\\sum_{i=0}^{j-1}\\textrm{OBV}_{t-i}\n$ is the moving average of $\\textrm{OBV}_{t}$ for $j=s$ or $l$. \nThe six moving average indicators are constructed for $s=1$, $2$, $3$ and \n$l=9$, $12$, which are symbolized as \nVOL(1M-9M), VOL(1M-12M),\nVOL(2M-9M), VOL(1M-12M), VOL(3M-9M) and VOL(3M-12M).\n\\end{itemize}\n\\noindent {\\bf Fundamental indicators}\nWe use the financial indicators employed by \n\\cite{welch2007comprehensive} for the\nU.S. stock market, which is available from Amit Goyal's web site. \nWe use updated data consisting of 14 popular fundamental variables\nspanning from January 1950 to December 2017. We provide a short definition of\nthese variables as follows.\n\\begin{itemize}\n \\setlength\\itemsep{1em}\n\\item Dividend-price ratio, DP: Log of a 12-month moving sum of dividends paid on the S\\&P 500 index minus the log of the stock prices. \n\\item Dividend yield, DY: Log of a 12-month moving sum of dividends minus the log of 1-month lagging stock prices.\n\\item Earning-price ratio, EP: Log of a 12-month moving sum of earnings on the S\\&P 500 index minus the log of the stock prices.\n\\item Dividend-payout ratio, DE: Log of a 12-month moving sum of dividends minus the log of a 12-month moving sum of earnings.\n\\item Stock variance, SVAR: Sum of squared daily returns on the S$\\&$P500. \n\\item Book-to-market ratio, BM: Ratio of book value to market value for the Dow Jones Industrial Average. \n\\item Net equity expansion, NTIS: Ratio of 12-month moving sum of net issues by NYSE listed stocks divided by their total market capitalization.\n\\item Treasury Bill rate, TBL: Interest rate on a 3-month treasury bill from the secondary market. \n\\item Long-term yield, LTY: Long-term government bond yields. \n\\item Long-term rate of return, LTR: Long-term government bond returns \n\\item Term spread, TMS: Difference between the long and term yield on government bonds and T-bills. \n\\item Default yield spread, DFY: Difference between BAA- and AAA-rated corporate bonds and returns on long-term government bonds. \n\\item Default return spread, DFR: Difference between the return on long-term corporate bonds and returns on the long-term government bonds.\n\\item Inflation, INFL: Consumer Price Index (CPI) for all urban consumers.\\\\ \n\\end{itemize} \n\\section{Experiments}\n\\label{sec:3}\n\\noindent {\\bf Data Splits:}\nAs mentioned earlier, the predictability found in traditional studies is not uniform over time and is concentrated within certain periods \\cite{neely2014forecasting}. To check the robustness, we investigated the predictability over four different periods, the entire period of $1950-2017$ (Exp. 1) and its sub-periods of $1950-2015$ (Exp. 2), $1950-2007$ (Exp. 3), and $1950-2002$ (Exp. 4).\nFor each experiment, we split the\ndata into in-sample and out-of-sample periods.\nThe in-sample data were divided into a training dataset (50$\\%$) for developing the prediction models and a validation set (50$\\%$) for evaluating its predictive ability.\n\\\\\n \\\\\n\\noindent{\\bf Training:} \nDeep feedforward neural networks (DNNs) were used in this study. We applied TPE for automated hyperparameter tuning with\nadditional tests using simulated annealing and a random search to further confirm our results. \nThe hyperparameters and their\nprior distributions are summarized in Table \\ref{params}.\nFor hyperparameter selection, we trained DNNs on an in-sample training set and selected the model with the lowest validation error.\nWe limited the number of function evaluations for finding optimal hyper-parameters to $50$. \nEach evaluation comprised training the DNN\nmodels for 200 epochs and selecting the model with the lowest validation error.\n\\\\\n\\\\\n\\noindent{\\bf Regularizer:} \nWe are particularly interested in regularization methods for model generalization\nbecause the time-dependent behavior of financial data is likely to cause a parameter instability over an out-of-sample. \nWe examined the effectiveness of the most popular regularization methods, namely, a dropout and batch normalization (BN). \nA dropout\\cite{srivastava2014dropout} \nis a simple way to prevent co-adaptation among\nhidden nodes of deep feed-forward neural networks by randomly dropping out selected hidden nodes.\nIn recent years, batch normalization \\cite{IoffeS2015batch} has replaced a dropout\nin modern neural network architectures. \nIt uses the distribution of\nthe summed input to a neuron over a mini-batch of training cases to compute the\nmean and variance, which are then used to normalize the summed input to the\nneuron for each training case.\nDropout and BN layers are employed for all hidden layers.\n\\\\\n\\\\\n\\begin{table}[htbp]\n\\centering\n\\caption{List of parameters and their corresponding range of\nvalues used in the grid search.}\n\\label{table:meanerrorbaseline}\n\\small\n\\begin{tabular}{lll}\n\\toprule\n Hyperparamter &\\quad \\quad \\quad & Considered values\/functions \\\\\n\\midrule\n Number of Hidden Layers && \\{2, 3\\} \\\\\n Number of Hidden Units && \\{2, 4, 8, 16\\} \\\\\n \\makecell[l]{ Standard deviation} &&\\{0.025,0.05,0.075\\}\\\\\n Dropout && \\{0.25, 0.5, 0.75\\} \\\\\n Batch Size && \\{28, 64, 128\\} \\\\\n Optimizer && \\{RMSProp, ADAM, SGD (no momentum)\\} \\\\\n Activation Function&& Hidden layer: \\{tanh, ReLU, sigmoid\\}, Output layer: Linear \\\\\n Learning Rate && \\{0.001\\} \\\\\n Number of Epochs && \\{100\\} \\\\ \n\\bottomrule\n\\end{tabular}\n\\parbox{\\textwidth}{\\small%\n\\vspace{1eX}\n{\\bf Number of Layers}: number of the layers of the neural network.\n{\\bf Number of Hidden Units}: number of units in the hidden layers\nof the neural network.\n{\\bf Standard Deviation}: standard deviation of a random normal initializer. \n{\\bf Dropout}: dropout rates. \n{\\bf Batch Size}: number of samples per \nbatch. \n{\\bf Activation}: sigmoid function $\\sigma(z)=1\/(1+e^{-z})$, hyperbolic \ntangent function $\\textrm{tanh}(z)=(e^{z}-e^{-z})\/(e^{z}-e^{-z})$,\nand rectified linear unit (ReLU) function $\\textrm{ReLU}(z)=\\textrm{max}(0,z)$.\n{\\bf Learning Rate}: learning rate of the back-propagation algorithm.\n{\\bf Number of Epochs}: number of iterations for all of the training data.\n{\\bf Optimizer}: stochastic gradient descent (SGD) \\cite{kingma2014adam}, RMSProp \\cite{tieleman2012lecture}, and ADAM \\cite{kingma2014adam}}\n \\label{params}%\n\\end{table}\n\n\\noindent {\\bf Out-of-sample $R^{2}$ statistic:} \nWe measured the out-of-sample $R^{2}$ statistics ($R_{\\textrm{OS}}$) \\cite{campbell2007predicting} for a comparison with the in-sample $R^{2}$ statistics ($R^{2}_{\\textrm{IS}}$)\nand evaluated the forecasting power of the models. \nThe $R_{\\textrm{OS}}^{2}$ statistic measures the improvement in the mean square\nforecast error (MSFE) for the return forecast relative to the simple historical\naverage (or constant expected return) forecast, which ignores information contained in the predictors. This is computed as follows:\n\\begin{equation}\nR^{2}_{\\textrm{OS}}=1-\\frac{\\sum_{t=1}^{T}(r_{t}-\\hat{r}_{t})^{2}}{\\sum_{t=1}^{T}(r_{t}-\\bar{r}_{t})^{2}},\n\\end{equation} \nwhere $\\hat{r}_{t}$ is the fitted value from a predictive regression estimated through period $t-1$, and $\\bar{r}_{t}$ is the historical average return estimated through period $t-1$.\n\\\\\n\\\\\n\\noindent {\\bf Model stability:} We analyzed the model stability over time in terms of the feature importance. \nStock price dynamics is so complex with complicated interactions among changing micro\nbehavior, varying product cycles, interdependent industrial structures, and cyclic macro environment, thus it leads to gradual or sudden shifts in the model parameters. For example, traditional univariate models are highly exposed to\nthe model instability in the in-sample, which demonstrates the time-dependency of \nthe statistical significance and the coefficient of the predictor variables \\cite{neely2014forecasting}. To overcome this problem, a multivariate regression model is proposed through which the changes to the parameters at breaks are estimated \\cite{paye2006instability}.\n\nWe examined the stability of the trained model over time by \ncomputing the SHapley Additive exPlanation (SHAP) values of the features \\cite{lundberg2018consistent}\nto find the contribution of the features in the prediction and determine the change in ranking of the features over time. \n\\section{Results}\n\\label{sec:4}\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Technical Indicators}\n\n\\subsubsection{Dropout versus batch normalization}\nWe compared a DNN with a dropout and a DNN with batch normalization for the four experiments. The following observations can be made regarding the results reported in Table \\ref{tab:dropout}.\n\\begin{itemize}\n\\item Both DNNs show a good in-sample predictive power of a positive $R^{2}_{\\textrm{IS}}$ for all experiments. The in-sample predictive power of the BN ranging over 1.740 to 2.968 is stronger than that of the dropout ranging over 0.424 to 0.748. \n\\item The DNN with a dropout achieves a good out-of-sample predictive power, showing positive $R^{2}_{OS}$ values for all experiments, which means that it outperforms the historical mean return over the training and validation periods.\nHowever, the BM model achieves a poor out-of-sample predictive power, with negative $R^{2}_{OS}$ values for all experiments. A dropout is more effective at preventing a model instability.\n\\item The instability of the BN model is derived from an overfitting to the in-sample set based on the observation that, although $\\textrm{MSE}_{\\textrm{train}}$ and $\\textrm{MSE}_{\\textrm{val}}$ of the BN model are lower than those of the dropout model (except for only $\\textrm{MSE}_{\\textrm{train}}$ in Exp. 2), $\\textrm{MSE}_{\\textrm{test}}$ of the BN model is higher than that of the dropout model. Figure \\ref{MSE_TPE_BN} graphically shows the overfitting occurring during the training in Exp. 1.\n\\item The results indicate that an in-sample predictive content does not necessarily translate into an out-of-sample predictive ability, nor ensure the stability of the predictive relation over time.\n\\item The degree of predictability varies according to the experimental period, showing that Exp. 2 and 3 show a strong predictability of $1.889$ and $1.670$, and Exp. 1 and 4 show a relatively weak predictability of $0.569$ and $0.319$, respectively.\n\\item Figure \\ref{MSE_forecast_pattern} graphically shows how to beat the historical average in Exp. 1. The dropout model forecasts returns around the mean of the out-of-sample, whereas the historical average showed a greater deviation. This means the model can be adjusted better to a new market environment than the historical average. \n\\item The DNN with a dropout achieves an average predictability of 0.53$\\%$ in-sample and 1.11$\\%$ out-of-sample. The DNN with a dropout has an average predictability of 2.312$\\%$ in-sample \nand $-2.8545\\%$ out-of-sample.\n\\end{itemize}\n\n\\begin{table}[htbp]\n\\small\n \\centering\n \\caption{Comparison of models based on average prediction performance ($\\pm$1 s.d. in parentheses) over 5 runnings with different random initial seeds for each experiment.}\n \\begin{tabular}{L{3.cm} C{2.cm} C{2.cm} C{2.cm} C{2.cm} C{2.cm} }\n \\toprule\n Model & \\multicolumn{1}{c}{$\\textrm{MSE}_{\\textrm{train}}$ } & \\multicolumn{1}{c}{$\\textrm{MSE}_{\\textrm{val}}$ } & \\multicolumn{1}{c}{$\\textrm{MSE}_{\\textrm{test}}$ } &\n \\multicolumn{1}{c}{$R^{2}_{IS}$ } & \\multicolumn{1}{c}{$R^{2}_{OS}$ } \\\\\n \\hline\n & \\multicolumn{5}{c}{Exp. 1} \\\\\n \\cline{2-6}\n DNN w. dropout & \\makecell{0.129 \\\\($\\pm 3.236 $)}& \\makecell{0.197 \\\\ ($\\pm 0.171 $)} & \\makecell{ $\\bm{0.186}$ \\\\ ($\\pm\\bm{ 1.506 }$)}& \\makecell{0.748 \\\\ ($\\pm$1.040)}& \\makecell{$\\bm{0.569}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.621}$)} \\\\\n DNN w. BN & \\makecell{ $\\bm{0.128}$\\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.646}$)}& \\makecell{$\\bm{0.193}$\\\\($\\bm{\\pm 1.333 }$)} & \\makecell{0.194\\\\($\\pm 1.713$)} & \\makecell{$\\bm{1.740}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.247$})} &\\makecell{$-3.74$ \\\\($\\pm$0.804)} \\\\\n \\hline\n & \\multicolumn{5}{c}{Exp. 2} \\\\\n \\cline{2-6}\n DNN w. dropout & \\makecell{ $\\bm{0.126}$ \\\\ ($\\bm{\\pm 0.062}$)} & \\makecell{ 0.206 \\\\ ($\\pm 0.130$)} &\\makecell{$\\bm{0.201}$ \\\\ ($\\bm{\\pm 0.540}$)}& \\makecell{0.451 \\\\($\\pm$0.028)}& \\makecell{$\\bm{1.889}$ \\\\ ($\\bm{\\pm 0.242)}$} \\\\\n DNN w. BN & \\makecell{0.127\\\\($\\pm 1.739$)}& \\makecell{ $\\bm{0.201}$\\\\($\\bm{ \\pm 0.298}$)} &\\makecell{0.209\\\\($\\pm 3.240$)} & \\makecell{$\\bm{1.890}$\\\\ ($\\bm{\\pm 0.293}$)} &\\makecell{$ -2.70$\\\\ ($\\pm$0.906)} \\\\\n \\hline\n & \\multicolumn{5}{c}{Exp. 3 } \\\\\n \\cline{2-6}\n DNN w. dropout & \\makecell{0.130\\\\($\\pm 0.189 $)} & \\makecell{0.216 \\\\($\\pm 0.038 $)} & \\makecell{$\\bm{0.147}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.174}$)}&\\makecell{0.507 \\\\($\\pm$0.056)} & \\makecell{$\\bm{1.670}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.143}$)} \\\\\n DNN w. BN & \\makecell{$\\bm{0.125}$\\\\($\\bm{\\pm 1.618 }$)}& \\makecell{$\\bm{0.213}$\\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.768 }$)} & \\makecell{0.153\\\\($\\pm 2.781 $)} &\\makecell{$\\bm{2.650}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.543}$)} & \\makecell{$-3.518$ \\\\($\\pm$2.650)} \\\\\n \\hline\n & \\multicolumn{5}{c}{Exp. 4} \\\\\n \\cline{2-6}\n DNN w. dropout & \\makecell{0.1193 \\\\($\\pm 0.697$)}& \\makecell{0.197 \\\\($\\pm 0.716$)} & \\makecell{$\\bm{0.218}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.356}$) }& \\makecell{0.424 \\\\($\\pm$0.181)} & \\makecell{$\\bm{0.319}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.139}$)}\\\\\n DNN w. BN & \\makecell{$\\bm{0.115}$\\\\($\\bm{\\pm 3.998 }$)}& \\makecell{$\\bm{0.196}$\\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.702}$)} & \\makecell{0.219\\\\($\\pm 2.160$)} & \\makecell{$\\bm{2.968}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.959}$)} & \\makecell{$-1.460$ \\\\($\\pm$0.989)}\\\\\n \\bottomrule\n \\end{tabular}%\n\\begin{tablenotes}[flushleft]\\footnotesize\n \\item[]\n Note: All the $\\textrm{MSE}$ and $R^{2}$ values have been multiplied by a factor of $10^{-2}$ and all the s.d. values has been multiplied by a factor of $10^{-5}$.\n \\end{tablenotes}\n \\label{tab:dropout}%\n \\end{table}%\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\begin{figure}[t]\n\\centering\n \\scalebox{0.5}\n {\n\t\\includegraphics{Fig2.pdf}\n\n }\n\\caption{Validation and testing errors of the DNNs with dropout and with BN with regards to $50$ function evaluations and 200 epochs for each function evaluation. \nThe (dashed) lines are the average score over\nfive random initializations and \nthe shaded regions correspond to one standard deviation.\n\\iffalse\nThe (dashed) lines represent the\naverage over five random initializations.\n\\fi\n\\iffalse\nof five repetitions with different training and validation splits, and the shaded\nareas represent the standard deviation over those repetitions.\nThe results are the average testing score\nover five trials where the shaded regions correspond to the\nstandard deviation.\n\\fi}\n\\label{MSE_TPE_BN}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\n\n\\begin{figure}[t]\n\\centering\n \\scalebox{0.5}\n {\n\t\\includegraphics{Fig3.png}\n }\n\\caption{Comparison of actual and predicted values over the out-of-sample period. The actual return is drawn by the thin solid black line.\nForecasted values from the DNN with dropout,\nin-sample mean, and\nout-of-sample mean \nare drawn by the solid green, blue and yellow lines, respectively.\n}\n\\label{MSE_forecast_pattern}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\subsubsection{Effect of optimizer choice}\nTo further check the robustness of a dropout with respect to the dependency on the selected optimization algorithm, we repeated the experiments using a random search and simulated annealing. As shown in\nFig. \\ref{MSE_three_opt}, a comparable performance is shown for both the validation and test set, without an overfitting to the former.\nOur observations on different optimizers consistently suggest that a dropout helps improve the generalization. This indicates that the benefits of the HPO are general, without\ndepending on a specific optimizer, thereby demonstrating its robustness.\n\n\n\\begin{figure}[t]\n\\centering\n \\scalebox{0.55}\n {\n\t\\includegraphics{Fig4.pdf}\n }\n \n\\caption{Comparison of the simulated annealing (SA), TPE, and random search (RS) performances on the validation and test sets for the first 100 observations. \nThe (dashed) lines are the average score over\nfive random initializations and \nthe shaded regions correspond to one standard deviation.\n}\n\\label{MSE_three_opt}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Model stability over time}\nFigure \\ref{fig_SHAP} shows the importance of features arranged in decreasing order for the dropout and batch normalization models. They were calculated by summing the absolute values of the SHAP values. Table \\ref{SHAP_rank} shows the rank of the features over time from Exp. 4 to Exp. 1. The following observation was made based on the results.\n \\begin{itemize}\n \\item The feature importance is sensitive to the selected experimental periods for both models. This implies that the selection of a small number of features based on their importance can prevent a model generalization for unseen (new) data. \n \n\\item Overall, we observed that a DNN with a BN \nachieves a greater variability than a DNN with a dropout. In the experiments with a dropout, the five variables $\\{$MA112, MA212, MA39, MA29, MOM6M$\\}$ and\nthe six variables $\\{$MOM12M, VOL29, VOL212, VOL312, MOM3M, MOM1M $\\}$\nremain in the top half (from 1st to 8th) and bottom half across the experiments, respectively.\nBy contrast, in the experiments using a BN, only $\\{$MA19$\\}$ remains in the top half and $\\{$MA29, MA312$\\}$ remain in the bottom half. This indicates that a DNN with a dropout is more generalized against a time change and explains the outperformance of $R^{2}_{OS}$ in a more fundamental manner.\n \\end{itemize}\n\n \n\n\\begin{figure}[h]\n \\advance\\leftskip-1cm\n \\centering\n \\subfigure[DNN with dropout. From left, Exp. 1\u20134.]{%\n \\includegraphics[width=0.25\\linewidth]{Fig5.pdf}%\n \\includegraphics[width=0.25\\linewidth]{Fig6.pdf}%\n \\includegraphics[width=0.25\\linewidth]{Fig7.pdf}%\n \\includegraphics[width=0.25\\linewidth]{Fig8.pdf}%\n }\\\\\n \\subfigure[DNN with BN. From left, Exp. 1\u20134.]{%\n \\includegraphics[width=0.25\\linewidth]{Fig9.pdf}\n \\includegraphics[width=0.25\\linewidth]{Fig10.pdf}\n \\includegraphics[width=0.25\\linewidth]{Fig11.pdf}\n \\includegraphics[width=0.25\\linewidth]{Fig12.pdf}\n }\n \\caption{Mean absolute value of SHAP values for each features for Exp. 1--4.}\n \\label{fig_SHAP}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\n\n \\begin{table}[!htb]\n \\caption{\\label{SHAP_rank}\nFeature ranking results of DNNs with dropout (left) and with BN (right).}\n \\small\n \\begin{minipage}{.55\\textwidth}\n \\centering\n \\begin{tabular}{lccccc}\n \\toprule\n & \\multicolumn{1}{c}{Exp. 4} & \\multicolumn{1}{c}{Exp. 3} & \\multicolumn{1}{c}{Exp. 2} & \\multicolumn{1}{c}{Exp. 1} \\\\\n \\hline\n MA112 & 1 & 4 & 3 & 2 \\\\\n MA212 & 2 & 3 & 4 & 7 \\\\\n MA39 & 3 & 6 & 5 & 1 \\\\\n MA19 & 4 & 1 & 1 & 10 \\\\\n MA29 & 5 & 2 & 2 & 4 \\\\\n MOM6M & 6 & 5 & 6 & 5 \\\\\n VOL19 & 7 & 8 & 8 & 13 \\\\\n MOM9M & 8 & 9 & 9 & 9 \\\\\n MOM12M & 9 & 13 & 11 & 11 \\\\\n VOL29 & 10 & 10 & 10 & 16 \\\\\n VOL212& 11 & 12 & 14 & 17 \\\\\n VOL312 & 12 & 11 & 13 & 12 \\\\\n MA312 & 13 & 7 & 7 & 14 \\\\\n VOL112& 14 & 14 & 15 & 8 \\\\\n VOL39 & 15 & 16 & 16 & 3 \\\\\n MOM3M & 16 & 15 & 12 & 16 \\\\\n MOM1M & 17 & 17 & 17 & 15 \\\\\n \\bottomrule\n \\end{tabular}%\n \\end{minipage}\n \\begin{minipage}{.3\\textwidth}\n \\centering\n \\begin{tabular}{lcccc}\n \\toprule\n & \\multicolumn{1}{c}{Exp. 4} & \\multicolumn{1}{c}{Exp. 3} & \\multicolumn{1}{c}{Exp. 2} & \\multicolumn{1}{c}{Exp. 1} \\\\\n \\hline\n MA212 & 1 & 1 & 17 & 8 \\\\\n VOL19 & 2 & 9 & 8 & 4 \\\\\n MA112 & 3 & 15 & 14 & 17 \\\\\n MA19 & 4 & 3 & 5 & 6 \\\\\n VOL39 & 5 & 16 & 13 & 15 \\\\\n VOL312& 6 & 5 & 3 & 14 \\\\\n VOL29 & 7 & 11 & 7 & 13 \\\\\n MOM3M & 8 & 6 & 4 & 12 \\\\\n MA39 & 9 & 4 & 1 & 9 \\\\\n MOM9M & 10 & 12 & 6 & 2 \\\\\n MOM6M & 11 & 2 & 16 & 1 \\\\\n MA29 & 12 & 17 & 11 & 16 \\\\\n VOL112& 13 & 14 & 12 & 5 \\\\\n MOM12M& 14 & 8 & 9 & 7 \\\\\n MOM1M & 15 & 10 & 2 & 3 \\\\\n MA312 & 16 & 13 & 10 & 11 \\\\\n VOL212& 17 & 7 & 15 & 10 \\\\\n \\bottomrule\n \\end{tabular}%\n \\end{minipage}\n \\iffalse\n \\begin{tablenotes}[flushleft]\\footnotesize\n \\item[]\n Note: Superscripts $t$ and $b$ denote the features remaining\n in the top and bottom halves of the features during all experiments.\n \\end{tablenotes}\n \\fi\n \\end{table}\n\n\n\\subsection{Fundamentals}\n\\subsubsection{Predictability and model stability}\nTable \\ref{tab:fundamentals} shows the results produced through the\nsame procedure as used in the previous experiments applying fundamentals. \nThe following observations can be made regarding the results.\n\\begin{itemize}\n\\item For both models, fundamental data are prone to an overfitting to the in-sample data as shown in\nthe positive $R_{IS}^{2}$ and negative $R_{OS}^{2}$ values. \n\\item A DNN with a dropout outperforms a DNN with a BN in terms of better values of $R_{IS}^{2}$ and $R_{OS}^{2}$ except for only $R_{IS}^{2}$ in Exp. 1. \n\\end{itemize}\n\n\\begin{table}[htbp]\n\\small\n \\centering\n \\caption{Comparison of models based on average prediction performance ($\\pm$1 s.d. in parentheses) over 5 runnings with different random initial seeds for each experiment.}\n \\begin{tabular}{L{3.cm} C{2.cm} C{2.cm} C{2.cm} C{2.cm} C{2.cm} }\n \\toprule\n Regularizer & \\multicolumn{1}{c}{$\\textrm{MSE}_{\\textrm{train}}$ } & \\multicolumn{1}{c}{$\\textrm{MSE}_{\\textrm{val}}$ } & \\multicolumn{1}{c}{$\\textrm{MSE}_{\\textrm{test}}$ } &\n \\multicolumn{1}{c}{$R^{2}_{IS}$ } & \\multicolumn{1}{c}{$R^{2}_{OS}$ } \\\\\n \\hline\n & \\multicolumn{5}{c}{Exp. 1} \\\\\n \\cline{2-6}\n DNN w. dropout & \\makecell{0.129 \\\\($\\pm 0.580 $)}& \\makecell{0.198 \\\\ ($\\pm 0.329 $)} & \\makecell{ $\\bm{0.189}$ \\\\ ($\\pm\\bm{ 0.904 }$)}& \\makecell{$-0.179$ \\\\ ($\\pm$0.177)}& \\makecell{$\\bm{-0.341}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.620}$)} \\\\\n DNN w. BN & \\makecell{ $\\bm{0.127}$\\\\($\\bm{\\pm 2.778}$)}& \\makecell{$\\bm{0.193}$\\\\($\\bm{\\pm 2.412 }$)} & \\makecell{0.205\\\\($\\pm 18.817$)} & \\makecell{$\\bm{2.700}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.544$})} &\\makecell{$-10.462$ \\\\($\\pm$9.105)} \\\\\n \\hline\n & \\multicolumn{5}{c}{Exp. 2} \\\\\n \\cline{2-6}\n DNN w. dropout & \\makecell{ $\\bm{0.119}$ \\\\ ($\\bm{\\pm 1.797}$)} & \\makecell{ 0.202 \\\\ ($\\pm 0.687$)} &\\makecell{$2.334$ \\\\ ($\\pm 15.298$)}& \\makecell{$\\bm{3.841}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.645}$)}& \\makecell{$\\bm{-13.794}$ \\\\ ($\\bm{\\pm 7.457)}$} \\\\\n DNN w. BN & \\makecell{0.156\\\\($\\pm 9.133$)}& \\makecell{ $\\bm{0.196}$\\\\($\\bm{ \\pm 0.823}$)} &\\makecell{$\\bm{ 0.598}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 89.937$})} & \\makecell{$-5.098$\\\\ ($\\pm 2.558$)} &\\makecell{$ -191.78$\\\\ ($\\pm$43.838)} \\\\\n \\hline\n & \\multicolumn{5}{c}{Exp. 3 } \\\\\n \\cline{2-6}\n DNN w. dropout & \\makecell{$\\bm{0.122}$\\\\($\\bm{\\pm 2.632}$)} & \\makecell{2.122 \\\\($\\pm 1.185 $)} & \\makecell{$\\bm{0.170}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 5.285}$)}&\\makecell{$\\bm{4.248}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm0.736}$)} & \\makecell{$\\bm{-13.670}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 3.527}$)} \\\\\n DNN w. BN & \\makecell{$0.138$\\\\($\\pm 18.870$)}& \\makecell{$\\bm{0.206}$\\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.715}$)} & \\makecell{0.271\\\\($\\pm 134.062$)} &\\makecell{$1.160$ \\\\($\\pm 5.526$)} & \\makecell{$-81.173$ \\\\($\\pm$89.469)} \\\\\n \\hline\n & \\multicolumn{5}{c}{Exp. 4} \\\\\n \\cline{2-6}\n DNN w. dropout & \\makecell{$\\bm{0.113}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 1.315}$)}& \\makecell{0.194 \\\\($\\pm 1.385$)} & \\makecell{$\\bm{0.232}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 8.753}$) }& \\makecell{$\\bm{3.443}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.764}$)} & \\makecell{$\\bm{-6.058}$ \\\\($\\bm{\\pm 3.992}$)}\\\\\n DNN w. BN & \\makecell{$0.129$\\\\($\\pm 5.911 $)}& \\makecell{$\\bm{0.185}$\\\\($\\bm{\\pm 0.121}$)} & \\makecell{0.395\\\\($\\pm 49.916$)} & \\makecell{$1.003$ \\\\($\\pm 1.816$)} & \\makecell{$-80.260$ \\\\($\\pm$22.767)}\\\\\n \\bottomrule\n \\end{tabular}%\n\\begin{tablenotes}[flushleft]\\footnotesize\n \\item[]\n Note: All the $\\textrm{MSE}$ and $R^{2}$ values have been multiplied by a factor of $10^{-2}$ and all the s.d. values has been multiplied by a factor of $10^{-5}$.\n \\end{tablenotes}\n \\label{tab:fundamentals}%\n \\end{table}%\n \n \n \n \n\\section{Conclusion}\n\\label{sec:5}\nIn this study, we explored hyperparameter optimization techniques used in\nA stock return prediction by applying DNN-based predictors. The experiment was validated\nby considering different settings for the datasets, periods, and regularization.\nWe found that technical indicators are robust to an overfitting\nduring the HPO procedure, showing positive $R_{IS}$ and $R_{OS}$ values over different time periods, whereas the fundamental indicators are prone to an overfitting to the in-sample data. To summarize, dropout layers can efficiently decrease the risk of an overfitting and increase the model generalizability. \n\nThis system can be seen as a first step toward a better and\nmore fruitful integration of the recent developments in HPO techniques. Future efforts for improving\nthe current solution will be devoted to the design of a neural architecture for the fundamental data, which are robust to an overfitting. Fundamental data evidently reflect the fundamental values, which can\nserve as useful predictors or provide complementary information for a stock return prediction. \nWe expect the development to improve the prediction accuracy by\ncombining fundamental and technical indicators.\n\n\n\n\\bibliographystyle{unsrt}\n\\input{HyperparamterOptimizationForStock.bbl}\n\n\\end{document}","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\\section{INTRODUCTION}\\label{sec:intro}\n\\IEEEPARstart{V}{isual} sensor networks are used in a diverse set of applications such as surveillance \\cite{wang2006surveillance}, traffic monitoring and control \\cite{rachmadi2011trafficControl}, parking lot management \\cite{baroffio2015visual} and indoors patient monitoring \\cite{8361445}.\nRecently, integrating such sensor networks to traffic infrastructure has been suggested as promising means to support autonomous driving functionality in complex urban zones to enable cooperative perception \\cite{wang2018deployment,arnold2019cooperative}.\nIn such setting, the infrastructure-based sensors, which may include cameras and lidars, augment vehicles' on-board sensor data using emerging V2X technologies.\nThe usage of these networks is expected to grow further as high resolution sensors become more affordable and new generations of highly reliable wireless communication systems become widely deployed \\cite{5G}.\nWhen designing sensor networks, the choice of the number and pose of the sensors, \\textit{i.e.} their location and rotation angles, is critical in determining their coverage.\nThis directly impacts the performance of object detection, classification, and tracking applications that use the data from these sensor networks.\n\nThe problem of optimising sensor poses for a network of sensors has been explored in the literature.\nA major category of the existing studies formulate this problem as a discrete optimisation problem where a finite set of possible sensor poses is considered and the target objects' visibility is described by a set of binary variables \\cite{Chakrabarty2002,horster2006optimal,gonzales2009optimalIP,zhao2009optimal}.\nThe problem is then solved by using various forms of Integer Programming (IP) solvers or heuristic methods \\cite{zhao2013approximate} to either maximise the number of visible target objects (coverage) with a fixed number of sensors; or to minimise the number of sensors required to achieve a given coverage constraint.\nHowever, the majority of the applications that may use such sensor networks, \\textit{e.g.} object detection \\cite{arnold2019cooperative} and tracking \\cite{granstrom2017extended}, require a minimum level of visibility over the target objects which cannot be encoded by single binary variables.\nFor example, an object may have different degrees of visibility due to occlusions and due to its position \\textit{w.r.t.} the sensors, which causes ambiguity in the assignment of a binary visibility variable.\n\nAnother category of the existing studies consider the optimisation of continuous sensor pose variables using simulated annealing \\cite{1345252}, Broyden\u2013Fletcher\u2013Goldfarb\u2013Shanno (BFGS) \\cite{akbarzadeh2013probabilistic}, particle swarm \\cite{nguyen2015lineofsight}, evolutionary algorithms \\cite{saad2020realistic} and gradient-based optimisation \\cite{akbarzadeh2014efficient}.\nMost of the studies in this category focus on maximising the coverage (visible ground area) of extensive 3D environments described by digital elevation maps.\nHowever, such formulation does not consider the distribution of objects in the environment, and instead, assume an object would be visible if it is within a region covered by the sensors.\nAs a result, these studies fail to detect and prevent occlusions between objects since they do not explicitly model the visibility of the target objects.\nThis becomes a limiting factor when considering cluttered environments such as traffic junctions with a significant number of vehicles and pedestrians.\n\nThe visibility models that have been used in the literature usually consider simplifying assumptions which hinder the applicability of such methods in many practical settings.\nExamples of such simplifications include the use of a 2D visibility model that does not take into account the sensors' pitch and yaw angles \\cite{Chakrabarty2002,horster2006optimal,gonzales2009optimalIP} or the assumption of cameras focusing on a single target object without occlusions \\cite{ercan2006optimal}.\nIn the cases where occlusions are considered, \\textit{e.g.} \\cite{zhao2009optimal}, the visibility model only takes into account the centroid of objects to determine if the whole object is occluded.\nAs a result, partial occlusions, which are common in practice, are not considered.\nFurthermore, the use of Line-of-Sight (LoS) visibility models based on the Bresenham's algorithm \\cite{akbarzadeh2013probabilistic,saad2020realistic} and derived methods \\cite{nguyen2015lineofsight} is only applicable to environments represented by an elevation map.\n\nDue to the aforementioned limitations, the problem of determining the optimal poses for a network of sensors that avoid occlusions and guarantee a minimum degree of visibility for all target objects remains unsolved.\nTo this end, we propose an occlusion-aware visibility model based on a differentiable rendering framework and develop two novel approaches for object-centric sensor pose optimisation based on gradient-ascent and Integer Programming, respectively.\nDifferent from the existing approaches in the literature that aim to cover ground areas on elevation maps, we explicitly model the visibility of the target objects by considering a set of object configurations, defined as frames.\nIn this definition, each frame contains a number of target objects with specific sizes, positions and orientations within the environment.\nThe objective of the proposed method is to maximise the visibility of all target objects across the frames.\nThe distribution of frames is considered to be application specific and can be obtained by empirical evaluations or simulation.\nWe perform a comprehensive evaluation of the proposed methods in a challenging traffic junction environment and compare them with previous methods in the literature.\nThe results of this evaluation indicate that explicitly modelling the visibility of objects is critical to avoid occlusions in cluttered scenarios.\nFurthermore, the results show that both of the proposed methods outperform existing methods in the literature by a significant margin in terms of object visibility.\nIn summary, the contributions of this paper are:\n\\begin{itemize}\n\t\\item A realistic visibility model, created using a rendering process, that produces pixel-level visibility information and is capable of detecting occlusions between objects;\n\t\\item A novel gradient-based sensor pose optimisation method based on the aforementioned visibility model;\n\t\\item A novel IP sensor pose optimisation method that guarantees minimum object visibility based on aforementioned rendering process;\n\t\\item The performance comparison between both methods and existing works in the literature in a simulated traffic junction environment.\n\\end{itemize}\n\nThe rest of this paper is organised as follows.\nSection \\ref{sec:relatedworks} provides a review of related methods and highlights the distinguishing aspects of our work.\nSection \\ref{sec:problem} defines the system model and the formal underlying optimisation problem, including a novel sensor pose parametrisation.\nSections \\ref{sec:gradopt} and \\ref{sec:ipopt} describe the proposed gradient-based and Integer Programming solutions of the underlying optimisation problem, respectively.\nFinally, Section \\ref{sec:experiments} presents the evaluation results and Section \\ref{sec:conclusion} presents the concluding remarks.\n\n\\section{RELATED WORKS}\n\\label{sec:relatedworks}\nThis section provides a review of existing works related to sensor pose optimisation and differentiable rendering, and articulates how our work in this paper compares to these existing works in the literature.\n\n\\subsection{Sensor pose optimisation}\n\tThe problem of sensor pose optimisation has its historical origin in the field of computational geometry with the art-gallery problem \\cite{orourke1987art}, where the aim is to place a minimal number of sensors within a polygon environment in such a way that all points within the polygon are visible.\n\tAlthough further work extends the art-gallery problem to a 3D environment considering finite field-of-view and image quality metrics \\cite{fleishman2000automatic}, it still falls short of providing realistic sensor and environmental models.\n\tFurther efforts treat the pose optimisation problem as an extension of the maximum coverage problem, however use very simplistic sensor assumptions, such as radial sensor coverage in 2D environments \\cite{agarwal2009efficient}.\n\t\n\tOne category of methods consider sensor poses as continuous variables which are optimised according to some objective function.\t\t\n\tAkbarzadeh \\textit{et al.} \\cite{akbarzadeh2013probabilistic} propose a probabilistic visibility model using logistic functions conditioned on the distance and vertical\/horizontal angles between the sensor and a target point.\n\tThe authors then optimise the aggregated coverage over an environment described by a digital elevation map using simulated annealing and Broyden\u2013Fletcher\u2013Goldfarb\u2013Shanno (BFGS) optimisation.\n\tIn further work \\cite{akbarzadeh2014efficient}, the same authors propose a gradient-ascent optimisation to maximise the aggregated coverage using their previous visibility model.\n\tThis method requires obtaining the analytical forms of the derivatives of sensor parameters.\n\tIn contrast, we propose a gradient-ascent method that uses Automatic Differentiation (AD) \\cite{paszke2019pytorch} allowing efficient sensor pose optimisation without specifying the analytical forms of the derivatives.\n\t\n\tRecent work by Saad \\textit{et al.} \\cite{saad2020realistic} uses a visibility model similar to \\cite{akbarzadeh2013probabilistic} with a LoS formulation. \n\tThe authors introduce constraints over sensors' locations and detection requirements, which are application-specific, and optimise the sensor pose to achieve the detection requirements using a genetic algorithm.\n\tTemel \\textit{et al.} \\cite{temel2014} uses a LoS binary visibility model and a stochastic Cat Swarm Optimisation (CSO) to maximise the coverage of a set of sensors.\n\tThe aforementioned methods aim to maximise the coverage of extensive 3D environments represented by digital elevation maps and use LoS algorithms \\cite{nguyen2015lineofsight,akbarzadeh2013probabilistic} to detect occlusions in these elevation maps.\n\tHowever, digital elevation maps are not ideal to represent target objects due to their coarse spatial resolution, which may conceal the objects' shapes.\n\tIn this paper, we propose a novel visibility model, based on the depth buffer of a rendering framework \\cite{ravi2020pytorch3d}, which allows to accurately and efficiently detect any occlusions using arbitrarily shaped environments and objects.\n\tFurthermore, we explicitly model the visibility of target objects using a differentiable visibility score which is based on a realistic perspective camera model.\n\t\n\tGiven the difficulty of optimising the sensors' pose as continuous variables, another category of methods consider a discrete approach, where a subset of candidate sensor poses must be chosen to maximise the binary visibility of target points \\cite{zhao2013approximate,1345252,gonzalez2009optimal,yao2009can}.\n\tThis formulation allows to solve the problem using various forms of Integer Programming (IP) solvers \\cite{gonzalez2009optimal}, including Branch-and-Bound methods \\cite{schrijver1998theory}.\n\tIn some cases, solving the IP problem can be computationally infeasible, particularly when the set of candidate sensors is large, and thus, approximated methods, such as Simulated Annealing \\cite{zhao2013approximate,1345252} and Markov-Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) sampling strategies \\cite{zhao2013approximate,yao2009can}, can be used.\n\tThe drawback of the aforementioned approximated methods is that they cannot guarantee the optimality of the solution found.\n\t\n\tThe methods in the IP category consider the visibility of a target object as a binary variable (\\textit{i.e.} visible or invisible), which cannot represent different levels of visibility and may result in sub-optimal sensor poses.\n\tConsider, for example, two sensor poses that can observe a given target object; one of the poses is closer to the object and provides more information than the other; yet, both poses obtain the same binary visibility result, \\textit{i.e.} the object is visible.\n\tIn contrast to methods in this category that assign a binary visibility for target objects, we propose a novel IP formulation that considers the number of points (or pixels) that each sensor cast over each object, obtained using a rendering framework.\n\tOur proposed IP formulation takes into account the effect of partial occlusions and guarantees a minimum visibility across all target objects.\n\n\\subsection{Differentiable Rendering}\n\tA general renderer is a process that generates images, or pixel values, given 3D scene parameters, which include objects' meshes and textures, camera and lighting parameters.\n\tIn contrast, differentiable renderers are a subclass capable of providing the derivative of pixel values with respect to any of the aforementioned scene parameters \\cite{loper2014opendr}.\n\tSuch formulation bridges the gap between 3D scene parameters and their 2D projections \\cite{kato2020differentiable}, allowing efficient gradient-based optimisation solutions to inverse-graphics problems such as 3D object reconstruction \\cite{kato2019learning}, object\/camera pose estimation \\cite{rhodin2015versatile} and adversarial examples generation \\cite{liu2018beyond}.\n\tHowever, the potential of differentiable renderers is yet to be explored in the context of sensor pose optimisation for visual sensor networks.\n\tIn this paper, we use PyTorch3D's \\cite{ravi2020pytorch3d} perspective camera models to create an end-to-end differentiable pipeline that can be optimised using gradient-ascent.\n\tThis pipeline allows to directly optimise the sensors' pose to maximise the visibility of multiple target objects, as described in Section \\ref{sec:gradopt}.\n\tFor a detailed review of differentiable renderers and applications the reader may refer to \\cite{kato2020differentiable}.\n\n\\section{PROBLEM FORMULATION}\n\\label{sec:problem}\n\tThis section firstly presents the formulation of the sensor pose optimisation problem upon which we base our gradient-based and Integer Programming (IP) methods in Sections \\ref{sec:gradopt} and \\ref{sec:ipopt}, respectively.\n\tNext, a novel sensor pose parametrisation is introduced to constrain the sensor poses to feasible regions which are pre-defined according to the environment where the sensors are deployed.\n\t\n\t\\begin{figure*}[htp]\n\t\t\\centering\n\t\t\\includegraphics[width=\\textwidth]{smodel-visibility}\t\t\n\t\t\\caption{Illustration of the problem formulation for an exemplar driving environment with $N=3$ sensors and $M=5$ target objects. (a) Physical representation of target objects and sensor poses. (b) Objects and environment representation under the sensor pose problem formulation. (c) re-projected point cloud $P(S)$ and objects' visibility metric. Note that the visibility metric of a target object is obtained by counting the number of points of $P(S)$ on the surface the respective object, as defined in Equation \\ref{eq:vis}.}\n\t\t\\label{fig:sysmodel-visibility}\n\t\\end{figure*}\n\t\n\tThe sensor network, depicted in Figure \\ref{fig:sysmodel-visibility}a, consists of a set of fixed infrastructure sensors $S$ that collectively observe a set of target objects, denoted by $O$, in a driving environment.\n\tEach target object is represented using a three-dimensional cuboid encoded by $o=(x,y,z,w,h,l,\\theta) \\in O$, where $x,y,z$ correspond to the 3D centroid of the box, while $w,h,l$ represent the box size and $\\theta$ corresponds to the pitch angle (rotation around the vertical axis), as depicted in Figure \\ref{fig:sysmodel-visibility}b.\n\tThe visibility of object $o$ by the sensor set $S$, denoted by $\\vis(o,S)$, is defined as the number of pixels, or points, that the set of sensors $S$ project onto the object's surfaces.\n\tVisibility in this sense intuitively quantifies the information that sensors capture about each object and has shown to be correlated with the performance of perception tasks such as 3D object detection \\cite{arnold2019cooperative} and tracking \\cite{granstrom2017extended}.\n\tThis visibility metric is computed in two steps.\n\tFirst, the frame containing objects $O$ is rendered.\n\tThen, the depth-buffer from each sensor in $S$ is re-projected into 3D space, creating an aggregated point cloud $P(S)$, as described in Section \\ref{sec:gradopt:occlusion} and illustrated in Figure \\ref{fig:sysmodel-visibility}c.\n\tFinally, the visibility of each object $o \\in O$ is obtained by counting the number of points of $P(S)$ that lie on the surface of each respective object:\n\t\\begin{equation}\n\t\t\\label{eq:vis}\n\t\t\\vis(o, S) = \\sum_{\\bm{p} \\in P(S)} \n\t\t\\begin{cases}\n\t\t1,& \\text{if } \\bm{p} \\text{ on } o \\text{'s surface} \\\\\n\t\t0,& \\text{otherwise}.\n\t\t\\end{cases}\n\t\\end{equation}\n\tThis visibility metric provides pixel-level resolution which successfully captures the effects of total or partial occlusions caused by other target objects and by the environment.\n\tThe environment model, denoted by $E$, can also be modified according to the application requirements.\n\tFor example, it is possible to include static scene objects, such as buildings, lamp posts and trees, that may affect the visibility of target objects.\n\t\n\tThe formulation proposed so far considered a single, static configuration of target objects, denoted by $O$.\n\tHowever, driving environments are dynamic and typically contain moving vehicles and pedestrians.\n\tWe account for dynamic environments by considering a set of $L$ static frames.\n\tEach frame contains a number of target objects with specific sizes, positions and orientations within the environment.\n\tThe number of frames, denoted by $L$, must be chosen such that the distribution of objects over the collection of frames approximates the distribution of target objects' in the application environment.\n\tFor example, one can obtain a set of frames for driving environments using microscopic scale traffic simulation tools, such as SUMO \\cite{SUMO2018} or through the empirical observation of the driving environment.\n\t\n\tThe underlying optimisation problem is to find the optimum poses for $N$ sensors, denoted by $S=\\{s_1,\\dots,s_N\\}$ that maximise the visibility of target objects across the $L$ frames.\n\tFormally, the optimal set of sensor poses is defined as\n\t\\begin{equation}\n\t\t\\label{eq:optimalP}\n\t\t\\hat{S} \\triangleq \\argmax_S \\min_{o \\in \\mathbb{O}} \\vis(o, S),\n\t\\end{equation}\n\twhere $\\mathbb{O}$ is the set of objects across $L$ frames.\n\tIn practice, each frame is rendered independently so that objects from different frames do not occlude one another, but the optimisation is still performed across all frames.\n\t\n\tIt should be noted that one can alternatively maximise the mean visibility of the target objects, which can be formulated as $\\argmax_S \\frac{1}{M}\\sum_{o \\in \\mathbb{O}} \\vis(o,S)$.\n\tHowever, this may result in some of the objects having very low or zero visibility in the favour of others having un-necessarily large visibility.\n\tBut maximising the minimum visibility biases the optimisation algorithm towards sensor poses that guarantee the visibility of all target objects.\n\t\n\t\\subsection{Sensor Pose Parametrisation}\n\t\\label{sec:poseparam}\n\t\tGenerally speaking, the pose of a sensor in a 3D environment can be described by the canonical six degrees-of-freedom parametrisation $s=(x,y,z,\\varphi,\\theta,\\phi)$, where the $(x,y,z)$ represent the sensor position and $(\\varphi,\\theta,\\phi)$ its viewing angles.\n\t\tHowever, unconstrained optimisation under such parametrisation is seldom useful in practice as most environments have restrictions regarding sensors' location, \\textit{e.g.} sensors must be mounted close to a wall, on lamp posts, and clear from a road, etc.\n\t\tTo this end, we propose a continuous sensor pose parametrisation called virtual rail which imposes constraints over the sensors' location without adding any penalty term to the optimisation objective function or requiring any changes to the optimisation process, such as gradient projection.\n\t\t\n\t\tA virtual rail is defined by a line segment between two points in 3D space.\n\t\tThe sensors can be placed at any point within this line segment, as illustrated in Figure \\ref{fig:virtualRails}.\n\t\tThe viewing angles are described by the rotations along the X and Y axis, as we assume no rotation along the camera axis (Z). \n\t\tThe pose of a sensor on a virtual rail between points $\\bm{p_1,p_2} \\in \\mathbb{R}^3$ has its pose fully determined by the parameters $s=(t,\\alpha,\\beta)$ through the parametrisation\n\t\t\\begin{equation}\n\t\t\\label{eq:railparam}\n\t\t\t\\begin{aligned}\n\t\t\t\t(x,y,z) &= \\bm{p_1} + \\sigma(t)(\\bm{p_2}-\\bm{p_1}), \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\\varphi &= 2\\pi\\sigma(\\alpha), \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\\theta &= \\pi\\sigma(\\beta), \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\\phi &= 0, \n\t\t\t\\end{aligned}\n\t\t\\end{equation}\n\t\twhere\n\t\t\\begin{equation}\n\t\t\\label{eq:sigmoid}\n\t\t\t\\sigma(z) = \\frac{1}{1+e^{-z}},\n\t\t\\end{equation}\n\t\tis the sigmoid function.\n\t\tThis function enforces the bounds of position within the rail, \\textit{i.e.} $(x,y,z)$ on the line segment between $\\bm{p_1,p_2}$, and viewing angles $\\varphi \\in [0,2\\pi]$, $\\theta \\in [0,\\pi]$ for unbounded variables $t,\\alpha,\\beta \\in \\mathbb{R}$.\n\t\t\n\t\tThis parametrisation allows the use of unbounded gradient optimisation with guaranteed constraints over the sensors' poses.\n\t\tNote that the choice of the number and position of virtual rails are hyper-parameters defined to fit the needs of the application according to the complexity of the environment\/task.\n\n\\section{GRADIENT-BASED SENSOR POSE OPTIMISATION}\n\\label{sec:gradopt}\n\tThis section describes the proposed gradient-based sensor pose optimisation for multi-object visibility maximisation.\n\t\t\n\tThe objective function proposed in Equation \\ref{eq:optimalP} is not differentiable \\textit{w.r.t.} the sensor pose parameters due to the non-continuity introduced by the threshold operation in $\\vis(\\cdotp)$.\n\tThus, gradient-based solutions cannot be applied to solve this optimisation problem.\n\tWe, therefore, propose a processing pipeline featuring a differentiable objective function that approximates the objective function in Equation \\ref{eq:optimalP}.\n\tA crucial element of this approximation is the visibility score, a continuous variable in the interval $[0,1]$ that measures the visibility of a given 3D point \\textit{w.r.t.} a sensor.\n\tThe processing pipeline considers the continuous visibility score of multiple points over each target object, which ensures the objects' visibility and implicitly approximates the original problem in Section \\ref{sec:problem}.\n\tIt shall be noted that the visibility score is different from the visibility metric (Equation \\ref{eq:vis}) in two ways: 1) the former is differentiable while the latter is not; 2) the former indicates the degree of visibility of a single point on a target object while the latter is the number of points on the surface of a target object.\n\tThe proposed processing pipeline for the computation and optimisation of the objective function is depicted in Figure \\ref{fig:diagramGD}.\n\t\n\tThe processing pipeline consists of five stages.\n\t\\begin{enumerate}\n\t\t\\item a set of target points, denoted by $T \\in \\mathbb{R}^{MF\\times 3}$, is created by sampling $F$ points from each of the $M$ target objects.\n\t\tThe points are randomly distributed along the objects' surfaces proportionally to each surface area.\n\t\t\n\t\t\\item the points $T$ are projected onto the image plane of each sensor and a visibility score is computed for each target point according to their position \\textit{w.r.t.} the visible frustum of the respective sensor, as described in Section \\ref{sec:gradopt:visibility}.\n\t\t\n\t\t\\item an occlusion-aware visibility model, described in Section \\ref{sec:gradopt:occlusion}, is used to update the visibility score created in the previous stage.\n\t\tThis is required since some projected points will be in the visible frustum of a given sensor but occluding objects prevent direct line-of-sight between the point and the sensor.\n\t\t\n\t\t\\item the objective function is computed as the mean visibility score of all points $T$ on target objects, as described in Section \\ref{sec:gradopt:objective}. \n\t\t\n\t\t\\item gradient-ascent is used to maximise the objective computed in the previous step, as described in Section \\ref{sec:gradopt:optim}.\n\t\\end{enumerate}\n\n\tThe proposed processing pipeline can work for any continuous sensor pose parametrisation.\n\tIn this paper, we consider the parametrisation proposed in Section \\ref{sec:poseparam}, which constrains the sensor position to a line segment and allows for unconstrained gradient-based optimisation.\n\t\n\t\\begin{figure*}[htp]\n\t\\centering\n\t\\includegraphics[width=\\textwidth]{diagramGD}\t\t\n\t\\caption{Processing pipeline of the proposed Gradient-based sensor pose optimisation method. (a) an exemplar frame with two objects and a set $S$ of $N$ sensors, including an environmental model with an occluding block (in green). (b) the optimisation pipeline.}\n\t\\label{fig:diagramGD}\n\t\\end{figure*}\n\t\t\n\t\\subsection{Visibility Model}\n\t\\label{sec:gradopt:visibility}\n\t\tIn this section we propose a realistic visibility model based on the perspective camera model provided by PyTorch3D \\cite{ravi2020pytorch3d}.\n\t\tBuilt on top of PyTorch, this camera model provides differentiable transformations from the global coordinate system to the camera image plane which is fundamental for a fully differentiable pipeline.\n\t\tThe cameras' extrinsic matrix is determined by the pose of the sensors, specified by the set of parameters $S$, being optimised.\n\t\tIt shall be noted that all cameras intrinsic properties are identical: 90-degree horizontal field-of-view, $D_\\text{near}=1$m, $D_\\text{far}=100$m near and far clipping planes, respectively, and resolution of $W=200$ x $H=200$ pixels.\n\t\tThe resolution is kept relatively small in order to reduce the computational complexity of the rendering process, described in Section \\ref{sec:gradopt:occlusion}.\n\t\tIncreasing the image resolution directly increases the visibility of the target objects as there will be a higher number of pixels\/points per object.\n\t\tIn practice, the sensor poses resulting from the optimisation process can be used for cameras with higher resolution, as long as they have the same aspect ratio and field-of-view.\n\t\t\n\t\tThe projection of a point $p = [x \\; y \\; z]^T \\in \\mathbb{R}^3$ in the global coordinate system into the image plane of sensor $s$ is given by\n\t\t\\begin{equation}\n\t\t\\label{eq:imagePlaneProjection}\n\t\t\\begin{bmatrix}\n\t\t\tu_sd_s \\\\\n\t\t\tv_sd_s \\\\\n\t\t\td_s\n\t\t\\end{bmatrix} =\n\t\tM_i M_e(s) \n\t\t\\begin{bmatrix}\n\t\tx \\\\\n\t\ty \\\\\n\t\tz\n\t\t\\end{bmatrix},\n\t\t\\end{equation}\n\t\twhere $[ud \\; vd \\; d]^T$ are homogeneous coordinates that can be divided by $d$ to obtain the canonical form $[u \\; v \\; 1]^T$.\n\t\tHere, $u,v$ are the image plane coordinates in pixels, $d$ is the depth of the point in the view frustum and $M_i, M_e$ are the intrinsic and extrinsic camera matrices of sensor $s$, respectively.\n\t\tThe point $p$ is within the visible frustum if and only if $W \\geq u \\geq 0$, $H \\geq v \\geq 0$ and $D_\\text{far} \\geq d \\geq D_\\text{near}$ where $W$ and $H$ are the image width and height in pixels.\n\t\t$D_\\text{near},D_\\text{far}$ are the camera near and far clipping planes in meters, respectively.\n\t\t\n\t\tThe visibility of a given point from the perspective of a sensor $s$ is determined by verifying that the image plane projection of this point, given by Equation \\ref{eq:imagePlaneProjection}, satisfies the bounds described in the previous paragraph.\n\t\tIf the bounds are satisfied, the point is considered visible, otherwise it is not.\n\t\tSince the threshold operations used to identify the visibility of a point are not differentiable, we opt to use the sigmoid function (Equation \\ref{eq:sigmoid}) as a differentiable approximation of the binary visibility.\n\t\tThis continuous visibility score can be interpreted as a probabilistic visibility measure \\cite{akbarzadeh2013probabilistic} of a point, ranging from 0 (completely invisible) to 1 (completely visible).\n\t\tThis is formulated by a \\textit{window} function as follows:\n\t\t\\begin{equation}\n\t\tw(z,\\gamma,z_0,z_1) = \\sigma(\\gamma(z-z_0))-\\sigma(\\gamma(z-z_1)),\n\t\t\\end{equation}\n\t\twhere $\\gamma \\in \\mathbb{R}$ controls the rate of transition on the limits of the interval $[z_0,z_1]$, as illustrated in Figure \\ref{fig:windowf}.\n\t\tAs $\\gamma$ increases the window function tends to a binary threshold operation.\n\t\tHowever, this reduces the intervals with non-zero gradients, and consequently inhibits parameters updates through gradient optimisation.\n\t\tEmpirical tests revealed that $\\gamma=1$ was the best out of the three tested values (0.1, 1, 10) for this hyper-parameter.\n\t\t\n\t\tThe visibility score of a point $p$ with image plane projection $[u_sd_s \\ v_sd_s \\ d_s]^T$ is given by\t\t\n\t\t\\begin{equation}\n\t\t\\label{eq:visScore}\n\t\t\t\\Psi(p,s) = w(u_s,\\gamma,0,W) \\cdot w(v_s,\\gamma,0,H) \\cdot w(d_s,\\gamma,D_\\text{near},D_\\text{far}).\n\t\t\\end{equation}\n\t\t\n\t\t\\begin{figure}[htp]\n\t\t\t\\centering\t\n\t\t\t\\includegraphics[width=\\linewidth]{windowfunction}\n\t\t\t\\caption{Window function $w(z,\\gamma,z_0,z_1)$ plotted for $z_0=0,z_1=200$ and varying values of $\\gamma$.}\n\t\t\t\\label{fig:windowf}\n\t\t\\end{figure}\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tThis visibility model does not take into account occlusions caused by other objects or the environment since a point being within the visible frustum of a sensor is a required but not sufficient condition to guarantee direct line-of-sight visibility from the sensor to the point.\n\t\tWe account for occlusion by proposing an occlusion aware visibility model in Section \\ref{sec:gradopt:occlusion}.\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\\subsection{Occlusion Awareness}\n\t\\label{sec:gradopt:occlusion}\n\t\tWe verify line-of-sight visibility using the depth buffer generated by PyTorch3D's \\cite{ravi2020pytorch3d} rasteriser. \n\t\tThis rasteriser transforms the meshes representing the environment and the target objects into a raster image with a corresponding depth buffer.\n\t\tWhen an object is projected to the image plane, the orthogonal distance between the object and the sensor is stored in the corresponding pixel position of the depth buffer.\n\t\tIf another object is projected to the same pixel, the depth buffer keeps the smallest depth distance among the two.\n\t\tThis solves the hidden surface problem in computer graphics, where some objects overlap over the sensor's field-of-view and the closest objects occlude\/hide other objects in the background.\n\t\tWe use the same approach in our processing pipeline to determine if a given sensor has line-of-sight visibility of a point in 3D space.\n\t\t\n\t\tGiven a target point $p \\in T$ and a sensor $s$, the point is considered to be occluded from the point of view of sensor $s$ if\n\t\t\\begin{equation}\n\t\t\\label{eq:occlusionCriteria}\n\t\t|d_s - Z_s(u_s,v_s)| > \\kappa,\n\t\t\\end{equation}\n\t\twhere $[u_sd_s \\ v_sd_s \\ d_s]^T$ is the projection of $p$ on the image plane of $s$ according to Equation \\ref{eq:imagePlaneProjection}.\n\t\tHere, $Z_s(u_s,v_s)$ is the depth buffer of sensor $s$ at the pixel position $(u_s,v_s)$ and $\\kappa$ is a threshold for the maximum disparity between the projection depth value and the depth buffer.\n\t\tIn our experiments, we consider $\\kappa=0.5$m, which allows to accurately detect occlusions.\n\t\tFigure \\ref{fig:occlusion-aware} illustrates this occlusion-aware visibility model for a visible and an occluded point.\n\t\tIn this figure, the depth of a point projected on the image plane matches the depth buffer measurement at the corresponding pixel if the point is visible; if the point is occluded the depth buffer value will be smaller since there is another object closer to the sensor.\n\t\t\n\t\tThis occlusion-aware visibility model leads to an enhanced version of the visibility score of a point $p$ observed by sensor $s$, given by:\n\t\t\\begin{equation}\n\t\t\\label{eq:visScoreOcc}\n\t\t\t\\Psi(p,s) = \\left\\{\n\t\t\t\\begin{aligned}\n\t\t\t& w(u_s,\\gamma,0,W) \\cdot \\\\ \n\t\t\t& \\quad w(v_s,\\gamma,0,H) \\cdot \\\\\n\t\t\t& \\quad \\quad w(d_s,\\gamma,D_\\text{near},D_\\text{far}), && \\text{if } |d_s - Z_s(u_s,v_s)| \\leq \\kappa \\\\\n\t\t\t& 0, && \\text{otherwise.}\n\t\t\t\\end{aligned}\n\t\t\t\\right.\n\t\t\\end{equation}\n\t\tIn the case where $p$ is out of the visible frustum of sensor $s$, the visibility score is given by Equation \\ref{eq:visScore}.\n\t\tNote that if the point is occluded, there is no gradient signal to change the pose of the sensor in which the point is occluded.\n\t\tYet, the occluded point can be targeted by other sensors in the network.\n\t\t\n\t\tThe depth buffer from each sensor is re-projected into 3D space, using the inverse of Equation \\ref{eq:imagePlaneProjection}, to create a 3D point cloud representing all points observed by the respective sensor.\n\t\tEffectively, the depth buffers from each sensor $s \\in S$ are re-projected and aggregated into a fused point cloud $P(S)$, shown in Figure \\ref{fig:simpleMesh}.\n\t\tThis fused point cloud is used to compute the visibility metric $\\vis(o,S)$, used by the IP method and during the system performance evaluation.\n\t\t\n\t\t\\begin{figure}[htp]\n\t\t\t\\centering\t\n\t\t\t\\includegraphics[width=\\linewidth]{diagramOcc}\n\t\t\t\\caption{Illustration of the occlusion-aware visibility model: a point is considered to be visible by sensor $s$ if it lies within the visible frustum of $s$ and the Z component of the projection in the image plane closely matches the Z component obtained from the depth buffer (red point on $o_1$). If the disparity between these distances is above a threshold ($\\kappa=0.5$m) the point is considered occluded (blue point on $o_2$).}\n\t\t\t\\label{fig:occlusion-aware}\n\t\t\\end{figure}\t\t\n\n\t\\subsection{Objective Function}\n\t\\label{sec:gradopt:objective}\n\t\tA target point $p$ may be observed by multiple sensors, thus, the overall visibility of a point by a set of sensors $S$ is computed as\n\t\t\\begin{equation}\n\t\t\\label{eq:visScoreAll}\n\t\t\\Psi(p,S) = 1-\\prod_{s \\in S} (1-\\Psi(p,s)).\n\t\t\\end{equation}\n\t\tAccording to Equation \\ref{eq:visScoreAll}, a point's overall visibility score is forced to be 1 if at least one sensor has a visibility score of one.\n\t\tConversely, sensors that cannot observe a point (zero visibility score) do not affect the overall visibility score.\n\t\tFurthermore, when multiple sensors observe the same point, the combined visibility score improves.\n\n\t\tThe proposed sensor pose optimisation model in this paper aims to maximise the mean visibility score across all objects $O$ for a given set of sensors $S$.\n\t\tHence, the following objective function is maximised in our gradient-based formulation:\n\t\t\\begin{equation}\n\t\t\\label{eq:objective-func}\n\t\t\\mathcal{L} = \\frac{1}{|T|}\\sum_{p \\in T} \\Psi(p,S),\n\t\t\\end{equation}\n\t\twhere $T$ is a set of randomly sampled target points from target objects' surfaces, and $\\Psi(p,S)$ is the overall visibility score of point $p$ across all sensors $S$ according to Equation \\ref{eq:visScoreAll} considering the enhanced occlusion-aware visibility model, described by Equation \\ref{eq:visScoreOcc}.\t\n\t\t\n\t\\subsection{Optimisation}\n\t\\label{sec:gradopt:optim}\t\n\t\tWe adopt the Adam optimiser \\cite{kingma2014adam} to allow per-parameter learning rate and adaptive gradient-scaling, which has been shown to stabilise and shorten the optimisation process.\n\t\tThe optimiser uses a global learning rate of 0.1, and is executed for 20 iterations over the whole collection of frames.\n\t\tThese optimisation hyper-parameters were determined empirically through experiments.\n\t\tAlgorithm \\ref{alg:gd} describes the optimisation process for a set of frames and Table \\ref{tab:gdalgodesc} specifies the input variables used in the algorithm.\n\t\t\n\t\tThe objective function in Equation \\ref{eq:objective-func} is maximised \\textit{w.r.t.} the continuous sensor pose parameters $(t,\\alpha,\\beta)$ described in Section \\ref{sec:poseparam}.\n\t\tThese parameters specify the pose of a sensor within a virtual rail.\n\t\tIn an environment containing multiple virtual-rails, there must be an assignment between each sensor and the virtual-rail it belongs to.\n\t\tThis assignment is represented by a discrete variable that maps each sensor to one of the virtual-rails and is also subject to optimisation.\n\t\tHowever, since it is a discrete variable, it cannot be part of the gradient-based optimisation process.\n\t\tWe overcome this problem by performing multiple runs of the optimisation process, each with a random virtual-rail assignment, and reporting the best results across all runs in terms of the objective function.\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\tThe sensor poses are initialised using a uniform distribution on the interval $[-2,2]$ over the parameter $t$, which controls the sensor position $(x,y,z)$ along the virtual-rail according to Equation \\ref{eq:railparam}.\n\t\tThe limits of the uniform distribution are chosen such that the sensors initial position within the rail can be anywhere from $10\\%$ to $90\\%$ of the length of the rail.\n\t\tThe viewing angles can be randomly initialised in the same fashion.\n\t\tHowever, there may be some prior information of the environment that can guide this decision.\n\t\tFor example, in a traffic junction objects are likely to traverse the central area of the junction, thus, sensors could benefit by focusing towards the junction centre.\n\t\tAlthough this step is not strictly required, it introduces prior information into the problem which reduces the amount of time required to achieve satisfactory results in the optimisation process.\n\t\t\n\t\t\\begin{algorithm}\n\t\t\\caption{Gradient-Ascent Sensor Pose Optimisation}\n\t\t\\label{alg:gd}\n\t\t\\begin{algorithmic}[1]\n\t\t\t\\REQUIRE $N,O_1,O_2,O_3,\\dots,O_L,F,E,\\text{virtualRails},\\text{epochs}$\n\t\t\t\\ENSURE $\\hat{S}$, minVisibility\n\t\t\t\\\\ \\textit{Initialisation} :\n\t\t\t\\STATE $S \\gets \\emptyset$\n\t\t\t\\FOR{$i \\gets 1$ to $N$}\n\t\t\t\\STATE $p_1,p_2 \\gets $ random virtual rail from \\text{virtualRails}\n\t\t\t\\STATE Draw sample $t$ from $\\text{Uniform}(-2,2)$\n\t\t\t\\STATE Set $\\alpha,\\beta$ such that sensor focus on the centre of the junction \\COMMENT{Alternatively, sample them from the uniform distribution.}\n\t\t\t\\STATE Set $s=f(p_1,p_2,t,\\alpha,\\beta)$ \\COMMENT{$f$ is the sensor pose parametrisation given by Equation \\ref{eq:railparam}}\n\t\t\t\\STATE $S \\gets S \\cup s$\n\t\t\t\\ENDFOR\n\t\t\t\\\\ \\textit{Optimisation loop}\n\t\t\t\\FOR{$e \\gets 1$ to epochs}\n\t\t\t\\STATE $\\mathcal{L} \\gets 0$\n\t\t\t\\FOR{$O \\in \\{O_1,\\dots,O_L\\}$}\n\t\t\t\\STATE $T \\gets$ sample $F$ points from each target objects $o \\in O$ surfaces \n\t\t\t\\STATE $T' \\gets$ image plane projection of $p \\in T$ for each sensor $s \\in S$ according to Equation \\ref{eq:imagePlaneProjection}\n\t\t\t\\STATE $Z,P \\gets$ depth-buffer and reconstructed point-cloud from rasteriser as a function of $O,S,E$\n\t\t\t\\STATE $\\Psi \\gets $ visibility score for each $p \\in T'$ according to Equation \\ref{eq:visScoreOcc}\n\t\t\t\\STATE $\\Psi_S \\gets $ overall visibility score over all sensors according to Equation \\ref{eq:visScoreAll}\n\t\t\t\\STATE $\\mathcal{L} \\gets \\mathcal{L} + \\text{mean}(\\Psi_S)$\n\t\t\t\\ENDFOR\n\t\t\t\\STATE minVisibilityMetric $\\gets \\min_o \\vis(o, S) \\forall o \\in O_1 \\cup \\dots \\cup O_L$ \\COMMENT{Computes the visibility metric using the reconstructed point-cloud $P$}\n\t\t\t\\IF{minVisibilityMetric improved since last epoch}\n\t\t\t\\STATE $\\hat{S} \\gets S$\n\t\t\t\\ENDIF\n\t\t\t\\STATE Compute $\\frac{\\partial \\mathcal{L}}{\\partial S}$ using automatic differentiation\n\t\t\t\\STATE Update $S$ based on gradient-ascent update rule\n\t\t\t\\ENDFOR\n\t\t\t\\RETURN $\\hat{S}$, minVisibility\n\t\t\\end{algorithmic} \n\t\\end{algorithm}\n\n\t\\begin{table}[]\n\t\t\\caption{Description of variables in Algorithm \\ref{alg:gd}}\n\t\t\\label{tab:gdalgodesc}\n\t\t\\resizebox{\\linewidth}{!}{%\n\t\t\\begin{tabular}{@{}lll@{}}\n\t\t\t\\toprule\n\t\t\t\\textbf{Variable} & \\textbf{Description} & \\textbf{Value} \\\\ \\midrule\n\t\t\tN & Number of sensors & 1-6 \\\\\n\t\t\t$O_1,\\dots,O_L$ & Sets of objects for each of the L frames & \\\\\n\t\t\tL & Number of frames in the dataset & 1000 \\\\\n\t\t\tF & Number of target points sampled per object & 400 \\\\\n\t\t\tE & Environmental model & \\\\\n\t\t\tvirtualRails & The set of virtual rails described by two end-points in $\\mathbb{R}^3$ & \\\\\n\t\t\tepochs & Number of optimisation iterations & 20 \\\\ \\bottomrule\n\t\t\\end{tabular}\n\t\t}\n\t\\end{table}\n\n\t\t\n\\section{INTEGER PROGRAMMING-BASED SENSOR POSE OPTIMISATION}\n\\label{sec:ipopt}\nInteger Programming (IP) is an effective approach for solving optimisation problems where some or all of the variables are integers and may be subject to other constraints \\cite{schrijver1998theory}.\nApplied to sensor pose optimisation, this formulation assumes that the optimal set of sensors are chosen from a finite set of sensor poses, called candidate poses.\nThe problem is a combinatorial search to find the optimal subset of candidate poses that maximise an objective function.\nThis objective function typically models the visibility of an area or objects.\nAdditional constraints, such as the maximum number of sensors in the optimal set can be added to the problem formulation.\nThis section describes how IP can be applied to solve the sensor pose optimisation problem formulated in Section \\ref{sec:problem}.\nThe objective is to find the subset of candidate sensor poses that maximises the minimum visibility metric of target objects.\nWe firstly introduce a method for the discretisation of the sensor pose parameter space into a finite set of candidate poses.\nWe then cast the base optimisation problem in Eq. \\ref{eq:optimalP} into an IP optimisation problem and present three approaches to solve it: a heuristic off-the-shelf solver and two approximate methods based on sampling strategies.\n\n\t\\subsection{Discretising Pose Parameters}\n\t\tTo apply Integer Programming to the sensor placement problem we need to discretise the sensor pose parameter space into a finite set of candidate sensor poses.\n\t\tWe use the concept of virtual rails, described in Section \\ref{sec:poseparam}, to create the set of candidate sensor poses by dividing each virtual rail into 10 equally spaced sensor positions.\n\t\tThe horizontal viewing angles at each position is also divided into 10 feasible angles, between 0 and 360 degrees.\n\t\tThe vertical viewing angles at each position is divided into 3 feasible angles.\n\t\tTo this end, the set of candidate sensor poses for a given virtual rail is $S' = \\{(t, \\varphi, \\theta) : \\sigma(t) \\in \\{0.1,0.2,\\dots,1\\}, \\varphi \\in \\{36,72,\\dots,360\\}, \\theta \\in \\{18,36,54\\} \\}$.\n\t\tFor simplicity, in the rest of this paper we assume that $S'$ represents the union of candidate poses from all virtual rails and the number of candidate poses is given by $|S'|=N'$.\n\t\tFigure \\ref{fig:virtualRails} illustrates the set of candidate poses $S'$ for a T-junction scenario.\n\t\t\n\t\\subsection{IP Objective}\t\t\n\t\tThe general sensor pose optimisation problem can be formulated as the following IP problem\n\t\t\\begin{equation}\n\t\t\\begin{aligned}\n\t\t\t\\max_{b_1,\\dots,b_{N'}} & f(b_1,\\dots,b_{N'},o_1,\\dots,o_M) \\\\\n\t\t\t\\textrm{s.t.} \\quad & \\sum_{i=1}^{N'} b_i \\leq N, \n\t\t\\end{aligned}\n\t\t\\end{equation}\n\t\twhere $b_i$ is a binary variable indicating if the $i$-th sensor in the candidate set, denoted by $s_i \\in S'$, is part of the optimal set.\n\t\tIn other words, the sensor $s_i$ is part of the optimal set if $b_i$ is 1 and the optimal set of sensors is given by \n\t\t$\\hat{S} = \\{s_i \\in S' : b_i = 1 \\quad \\forall i \\in \\{1,\\dots,N'\\} \\}$.\n\t\tThe constraint guarantees that the maximum number of chosen sensors do not exceed $N$.\n\t\tThe objective function $f(\\cdot)$ represents the targets' visibility, which depends on the choice of sensors $b_1,\\dots,b_{N'}$ and the targets $o_1,\\dots,o_M$.\n\t\tPrevious works \\cite{gonzales2009optimalIP,zhao2013approximate} define $f(\\cdot)$ as the sum of binary visibilities of environment points.\n\t\tThis is a poor estimate of target objects' visibility since there are varying degrees of visibility which cannot be encoded as a binary variable.\n\t\tTo address this problem, we propose a novel IP formulation that takes into account the visibility metric of a target object $o$ observed by a sensor $s$, $\\vis(o, \\{s\\})$, defined in Equation \\ref{eq:vis}.\t\t\n\t\tThe motivation is to to find the sensor set that maximise the minimum visibility metric among target objects.\n\t\tHence, the equivalent IP problem is described by\n\t\t\\begin{equation}\n\t\t\\label{eq:ipoptim}\n\t\t\\begin{aligned}\n\t\t\t\\max_{z,b_1,\\dots,b_{N'}} \\quad & z \\\\\n\t\t\t\\textrm{s.t.} \\quad & \\sum_{i=1}^{N'} b_i \\vis(o, \\{s_i\\}) \\geq z \\quad \\forall o \\in O, \\\\\n\t\t\t & \\sum_{i=1}^{N'} b_i \\leq N,\n\t\t\\end{aligned}\n\t\t\\end{equation}\n\t\twhere $z \\in \\mathbb{Z}_{\\geq 0}$ is the minimum visibility metric among target objects.\n\t\tThe first constraint guarantees that $z$ is the minimum visibility metric among all objects.\n\t\tNote that the effect of multiple sensors observing a given object is cumulative \\textit{w.r.t.} the visibility metric, \\textit{i.e.} $\\vis(o, \\{s_1,s_2\\})=\\vis(o, \\{s_1\\})+\\vis(o, \\{s_2\\})$.\n\t\t\n\t\tThe formulation proposed so far considers a single frame, denoted by $O$, containing the target objects.\n\t\tThis is extended to $L$ frames by rendering each frame individually, including the objects and the environmental model, for all candidate sensors.\n\t\tThe visibility of an object $o$, as observed by sensor $s_i$, denoted by $\\vis(o, \\{s_i\\})$, is obtained by counting the number of points in the re-projected point cloud generated by sensor $s_i$ that are on the surface of the object $o$, as described in Section \\ref{sec:problem} and illustrated in Figure \\ref{fig:diagramIP}.\n\t\tIn practice, the visibility of all objects are computed frame by frame, for each candidate sensor, prior to the optimisation and stored in a visibility matrix $V$.\n\t\tThis allows to solve the IP problem in Eq. \\ref{eq:ipoptim} for any number of sensors without recomputing the objects' visibilities.\n\t\t\n\t\t\\begin{figure*}[htp]\n\t\t\t\\centering\n\t\t\t\\includegraphics[width=\\textwidth]{diagramIP}\t\t\n\t\t\t\\caption{Illustration of the process of computing the visibility metric of object $o_i \\in O$ by each candidate sensor $s_i \\in S'$. The rendered point cloud naturally handles any occlusion caused by the environment model $E$ and other target objects in the frame. The visibility of a given object is obtained by counting all points (represented by the blue dots) from the respective sensor that are on the surface of the respective object. The output is a visibility matrix $V$ that depicts how many points each candidate sensor cast on each object in the frame, \\textit{i.e.} the object's visibility. This process is repeated for all frames and the matrices computed for each frame are concatenated horizontally.}\n\t\t\t\\label{fig:diagramIP}\n\t\t\\end{figure*}\n\t\n\t\t\\begin{figure}[htp]\n\t\t\t\\centering\t\n\t\t\t\\includegraphics[width=\\linewidth]{virtualRails}\n\t\t\t\\caption{Candidate set $S'$ over 5 virtual rails (red line segments) in a T-junction environment. Each yellow wireframe represent a sensor's viewing pose. To ease visualisation, only 10 candidates sensors are represented for each virtual rail, but the entire set consider 10 rotations along the Y axis and 3 rotations along the X axis, resulting in a total of 300 candidates per rail, or 1500 candidates overall.}\n\t\t\t\\label{fig:virtualRails}\n\t\t\\end{figure}\n\t\n\t\\subsection{Heuristic Solution}\n\t\tIP problems are NP-complete \\cite{schrijver1998theory}, thus, finding the solution using exhaustive search is computationally expensive or even unfeasible when the search space is large.\n\t\tParticularly, the size of the search space of the IP problem in Eq. \\ref{eq:ipoptim} is $\\binom{N'}{N}$.\n\t\tFor example, for a candidate set with $N'=1500$ poses and a given number of sensors $N$, \\textit{e.g.} 6, the size of the search space is $\\binom{1500}{6} \\approx 3^{17}$. \n\t\tFor this reason, there are multiple algorithms that attempt to solve the problem using heuristic methods such as cutting plane and branch-and-cut methods \\cite{schrijver1998theory}.\n\t\t\n\t\tIn this paper, we use the \\textit{Coin-or Branch and Cut (CBC)} open-source IP solver \\cite{cbcsolver} and the \\textit{python-mip} wrapper \\cite{python-mip} to solve the problem.\n\t\tThis solver uses Linear Programming (LP) relaxation for continuous variables and applies branching and cutting plane methods where the integrality constraint does not hold.\n\t\tThe solver cannot always guarantee the optimality of the solution, specially when exhaustive search is infeasible.\n\t\tThus, the problem in Equation \\ref{eq:ipoptim} is solved using the default optimisation settings until the optimal solution is found or the time since an improvement in the objective function exceeds a limit.\n\t\n\t\\subsection{Approximate Solutions}\n\t\tApproximate solutions to the IP problem are often used for the camera placement problem when exact solutions cannot be obtained in feasible time \\cite{zhao2013approximate}.\n\t\tAs described in the previous section, exhaustive search is unfeasible for the IP problem in Eq. \\ref{eq:ipoptim} due to the size of the search space.\n\t\tFor this reason, we implement two approximate methods: Na\\\"ive sampling and Markov Chain Monte Carlo (MCMC) sampling.\n\t\t\n\t\tThe Na\\\"ive sampling method assumes that all sensors in the candidate set $S'$ are equally likely to be part of the optimal set. \n\t\tThis method explores the search space by uniformly sampling $N$ sensors from the candidate set $S'$ without replacement.\n\t\tThe algorithm, described in Algorithm \\ref{alg:naiveIP}, runs until time since the last improvement in the objective function exceeds a limit.\n\t\t\n\t\tThe MCMC method uses the Metropolis-Hastings sampling algorithm \\cite{zhao2013approximate} to select sensors that are likely to maximise the objective function.\n\t\tAlgorithm \\ref{alg:mcmcIP} describes the full and detailed execution steps of the proposed sampling scheme.\n\t\tThe process starts with an initial sample of $N$ random sensors from $S'$, denoted by $S_0$.\n\t\tAt each subsequent iteration, a new sample set is computed as follows.\n\t\tAt iteration $i$, a random and uniformly selected element of $S_{i-1}$ is exchanged with a random and uniformly selected element of $S'$, generating an intermediate set $S_{i}^*$. \n\t\tThe ratio $r=\\frac{f(S_{i}^*)}{f(S_{i-1})}$, is computed, where $f(S) = \\min_{o \\in O} \\vis(o, S)$.\n\t\tThe solution set at iteration $i$ is then set according to\n\t\t\\begin{equation}\n\t\t\tS{i} = \n\t\t\t\\begin{cases}\n\t\t\tS_{i-1}, & \\text{if } u \\leq r \\\\\n\t\t\tS_{i}^*,& \\text{otherwise},\n\t\t\t\\end{cases}\n\t\t\\end{equation}\n\t\twhere $u$ is a sample from the uniform distribution $U[0,1]$.\n\t\tThe algorithm is executed until the time since the last improvement in the objective function exceeds a limit.\n\t\t\n\t\t\\begin{algorithm}\n\t\t\t\\caption{Na\\\"ive Sampling Approximate IP Solution}\n\t\t\t\\label{alg:naiveIP}\n\t\t\t\\begin{algorithmic}[1]\n\t\t\t\t\\REQUIRE $S',N,O,\\text{maxTime}$\n\t\t\t\t\\ENSURE $\\hat{S}$\n\t\t\t\t\\\\ \\textit{Initialisation} :\n\t\t\t\t\\STATE z\\_best = 0\n\t\t\t\t\\STATE $\\hat{S} = \\emptyset$\n\t\t\t\t\\\\ \\textit{Sampling loop}\n\t\t\t\t\\WHILE {timeSinceLastImprovement $\\leq$ maxTime}\n\t\t\t\t\t\\STATE $S$ = $N$ samples from $S'$ without replacement;\n\t\t\t\t\t\\STATE z = $\\min_{o \\in O} \\vis(o,S)$\n\t\t\t\t\t\\IF {(z $\\geq$ z\\_best)}\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\\STATE z\\_best = z\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\\STATE $\\hat{S} = S$\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\\STATE reset timeSinceLastImprovement\n\t\t\t\t\t\\ENDIF\n\t\t\t\t\\ENDWHILE\n\t\t\t\t\\RETURN $\\hat{S}$ \n\t\t\t\\end{algorithmic} \n\t\t\\end{algorithm}\n\t\n\t\t\\begin{algorithm}\n\t\t\\caption{MCMC Metropolis-Hastings Sampling Approximate IP Solution}\n\t\t\\label{alg:mcmcIP}\n\t\t\\begin{algorithmic}[1]\n\t\t\t\\REQUIRE $S',N,O,\\text{maxTime}$\n\t\t\t\\ENSURE $\\hat{S}$\n\t\t\t\\\\ \\textit{Initialisation} :\n\t\t\t\\STATE z\\_best = 0\n\t\t\t\\STATE $\\hat{S} = \\emptyset$\n\t\t\t\\STATE $S$ = $N$ samples from $S'$\n\t\t\t\\\\ \\textit{MCMC loop}\n\t\t\t\\WHILE {timeSinceLastImprovement $\\leq$ maxTime}\n\t\t\t\\STATE $S^* = S$\n\t\t\t\\STATE replace one random element of $S^*$ with a random element from $S'\\setminus S^*$ \n\t\t\t\\STATE $z = \\min_{o \\in O} \\vis(o,S)$\n\t\t\t\\STATE $z^* = \\min_{o \\in O} \\vis(o,S^*)$\n\t\t\t\\STATE $r = \\frac{z^*}{z + \\epsilon}$ \\COMMENT{$\\epsilon$ is a small value to avoid division by zero}\n\t\t\t\\STATE $u \\gets \\text{sample from Uniform}(0,1)$\n\t\t\t\\IF {($u \\leq r$)}\n\t\t\t\t\\STATE $S = S^*$\n\t\t\t\t\\STATE $z = z^*$\n\t\t\t\t\\IF {(z $\\geq$ z\\_best)}\n\t\t\t\t\\STATE z\\_best = z\n\t\t\t\t\\STATE $\\hat{S} = S$\n\t\t\t\t\\STATE reset timeSinceLastImprovement\t\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\\ENDIF\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\\ENDIF\n\t\t\t\\ENDWHILE\n\t\t\t\\RETURN $\\hat{S}$ \n\t\t\\end{algorithmic} \n\t\\end{algorithm}\n\n\\section{EVALUATION}\n\\label{sec:experiments}\n\tThis section describes the evaluation of the proposed sensor pose optimisation methods.\n\tFirst, the evaluation metrics are defined in Section \\ref{sec:experiments:metrics}.\n\tNext, the experiment setup is described, including details of the simulation scenario in Section \\ref{sec:experiments:setup}.\n\tThen, a comparative evaluation between the methods proposed in this paper is presented in Section \\ref{sec:experiments:cproposed}.\n\tFinally, a comparison of the proposed methods with existing works in the literature and a comparison of different visibility models are reported in Section \\ref{sec:experiments:cprev} and \\ref{sec:experiments:vismodels}, respectively.\n\t\n\t\\subsection{Evaluation Metrics}\n\t\\label{sec:experiments:metrics}\n\t\tExisting studies in the literature assess sensor pose optimisation methods using the number of visible targets \\cite{zhao2013approximate} or the mean ground area coverage \\cite{akbarzadeh2014efficient,akbarzadeh2013probabilistic,saad2020realistic}, where coverage is defined as the probability that an area is visible to a sensor.\n\t\tHowever, such metrics are unsuitable for object-centric visibility for two reasons.\n\t\tFirst, adopting a binary visibility for an object is a coarse measure, since an object can be visible to different degrees due to its distance from the sensors, due to occlusions and limited sensor field-of-view.\n\t\tSecondly, the coverage of a ground area does not guarantee that an object placed within this area will be visible, as occlusions may limit the object's visibility.\n\t\tFor the aforementioned reasons, in our analysis we evaluate a set of sensor poses $S$ based on the minimum visibility metric across all objects, denoted by $\\min_{o \\in \\mathbb{O}} \\vis(o,S)$.\n\t\tRecalling from Equation \\ref{eq:vis}, the visibility metric is defined as number of pixels that the set of sensors $S$ observe on the surface of a given target object.\n\t\tIn addition to the minimum visibility metric, we compute the Empirical Cumulative Distribution Function (ECDF) of the visibility metric for all objects across frames, which provides broader insight into the visibility patterns across objects.\n\t\t\n\t\\subsection{Evaluation Setup}\n\t\\label{sec:experiments:setup}\n\t\tThe performance evaluation of the proposed sensor pose optimisation methods is carried out by simulating traffic on a T-junction environment.\n\t\tThis is motivated by the challenging conditions faced in such environments.\n\t\tFor safety reasons, it is critical to guarantee that all vehicles, \\textit{i.e.} target objects, are visible to the sensors.\n\t\tYet, vehicles are subject to occlusions from other vehicles and buildings.\n\t\t\n\t\tThe driving environment is simulated using the CARLA open-source simulator \\cite{Dosovitskiy17carla}.\n\t\tA typical urban T-junction is chosen from one of the existing maps in the simulation tool.\n\t\tIt has an area of 80 x 40 meters with several tall buildings and road-side objects, such as trees, bus shelters and lamp-posts.\n\t\tWithin this environment, a dataset consisting of 1000 frames is generated.\n\t\tEach frame is a snapshot of the environment at a particular time, containing the number of vehicles and their representation.\n\t\tThe objects' representation, as described in Section \\ref{sec:problem}, defines their position, size and orientation in the environment.\n\t\t\n\t\tThe environment model, available through CARLA open-source assets, contains a high number of complex meshes that slow down the rendering process.\n\t\tFor this reason, we opt to create a simplified version of the environment.\n\t\tTo this end, we create cuboid meshes for the buildings near the junction, and represent vehicles as cuboids using the same dimensions of the original objects' bounding boxes.\n\t\tThis approximation significantly speed up the rendering process without detrimental impact to the measurement of objects' visibility metric.\n\t\tFigures \\ref{fig:fullMesh} and \\ref{fig:simpleMesh} illustrate the original and simplified environment models, respectively.\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\tSensors placed in such driving environments must be placed by the road-side and clear from the road.\n\t\tThis constraint is addressed by creating five virtual rails alongside the junction, each aligned with the curb over a segment of the junction, as illustrated in Figure \\ref{fig:virtualRails}.\n\t\tThe parametrisation of the rails is application dependent and may need adjustment.\n\t\tIn this application, the virtual rail configuration allows sensors to be positioned on existing road-side infrastructure, such as traffic lights.\n\t\tThe virtual rails are positioned on a height of 5.2m above the ground, following the standards of public light infrastructure in the UK \\cite{durhamLighting}.\n\t\tHowever, the height of each sensor could also be included in the optimisation process.\n\t\t\n\t\t\\begin{figure*}[htp]\n\t\t\t\\centering\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\\subfloat[\\label{fig:fullMesh}]{\\includegraphics[width=0.46\\textwidth]{tjuncPCLFullMesh}}\\hfill\n\t\t\t\\subfloat[\\label{fig:simpleMesh}]{\\includegraphics[width=0.48\\textwidth]{tjuncPCLSimpleMesh}}\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\\caption{T-junction environment models described by re-projected point clouds created using \\protect\\subref{fig:fullMesh} the original environment model representation from CARLA and \\protect\\subref{fig:simpleMesh} the simplified environment model proposed in this paper.}\n\t\t\t\\label{fig:meshEnvironments}\n\t\t\\end{figure*}\t\n\n\t\\subsection{Comparative evaluation of the proposed methods}\n\t\\label{sec:experiments:cproposed}\n\t\tTable \\ref{tab:results} shows the results comparing the gradient-based and IP optimisation methods in terms of the minimum object visibility metric and duration of the optimisation process for a varying number of sensors, denoted by $N$.\n\t\tThe runtime performance of the IP methods does not include the time required to compute the visibility matrix, i.e. rendering 1000 frames for each of the 1500 candidate sensors poses, which took 28 hours.\n\t\tHowever, this process is only done once and the resulting visibility matrix is used by all IP methods for any number of sensors.\n\t\tNone of the methods could find a pose for a single sensor that can observe all objects, thus, the results are reported for $N > 1$.\n\t\tThe gradient-based method results are reported for the best out of 10 runs for each number of sensors.\n\t\tEach run has a random sensor-rail assignment and random sensor position initialisation, as described in Section \\ref{sec:gradopt:optim}.\n\t\tThe best minimum visibility metric observed in each run is reported in Figure \\ref{fig:runsGD}.\n\t\t\n\t\tThe evaluation shows that the IP method consistently outperform the gradient-based method, which we believe is explained by two factors.\n\t\tFirst, the loss function being maximised in the gradient method is non-convex and presents local-maxima, which may result in sub-optimal results.\n\t\tSecondly, the gradient-based method does not optimise the sensor-rail assignment.\n\t\tWe circumvent the latter by performing multiple optimisation runs for the gradient-based method, each with a random sample of sensor-rail assignment.\n\t\tHowever, the variance of the visibility metric obtained across runs, observed in Figure \\ref{fig:runsGD}, suggests that ten samples may not be enough to explore the sensor-rail assignment space.\n\t\tIncluding more samples of sensor-rail assignments requires more optimisation runs, which becomes time costly.\n\t\tOn the other hand, the IP method handles the sensor-rail assignment naturally as the candidate sensor pose set includes sensor poses in all virtual rails.\n\t\t\n\t\tFigure \\ref{fig:poseECDF} shows the resulting sensor poses found by each method for different numbers of sensors and the associated ECDF of the visibility metric of the target objects for each set of sensor poses.\n\t\tThe visibility metric distributions obtained with IP solutions show similar visibility patterns, except for $N=6$ where the heuristic IP approach has a significant advantage over its counterparts. \n\t\tThe distribution of visibilities for gradient-based solutions is significantly skewed towards smaller visibilities if compared to IP solutions.\n\t\tParticularly, for $N=5$, approximately 80\\% of the objects have less than 1000 points when observed by the gradient-based solution, while only 40\\% of objects have less than 1000 points for the IP solutions.\n\t\t\n\t\t\\begin{figure}[htp]\n\t\t\t\\centering\t\n\t\t\t\\includegraphics[width=\\linewidth]{runsGD}\n\t\t\t\\caption{Best Minimum visibility for each out of the ten runs of the Gradient-ascent optimisation method for varying number of sensors $N$.}\n\t\t\t\\label{fig:runsGD}\n\t\t\\end{figure}\n\t\t\n\t\t\\begin{table}[]\n\t\t\t\\caption{Comparison of optimisation results for different number of sensors across methods}\n\t\t\t\\label{tab:results}\n\t\t\t\\resizebox{\\linewidth}{!}{%\n\t\t\t\t\\begin{tabular}{@{}lllll@{}}\n\t\t\t\t\t\\toprule\n\t\t\t\t\t\\textbf{Method} & \\textbf{N} & \\textbf{Min Visibility} & \\textbf{Runtime till Best (min)} & \\textbf{Overall Runtime (min)} \\\\ \\midrule\n\t\t\t\t\t\\multirow{5}{*}{Gradient-based*}& 2 & 17 & 25 & 27 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 3 & 55 & 32 & 32 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 4 & 102 & 39 & 39 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 5 & 123 & 30 & 46 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 6 & 178 & 16 & 53 \\\\ \\midrule\n\t\t\t\t\t\\multirow{5}{*}{IP CBC} & 2 & \\textbf{26} & 325 & 565 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 3 & 67 & 416 & 656 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 4 & 213 & 286 & 526 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 5 & \\textbf{447} & 175 & 415 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 6 & \\textbf{590} & 354 & 594 \\\\ \\midrule\n\t\t\t\t\t\\multirow{5}{*}{IP Na\\\"ive} & 2 & 26 & 0.2 & 240 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 3 & \\textbf{114} & 163 & 406 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 4 & 201 & 44 & 284 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 5 & 354 & 179 & 419 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 6 & 405 & 97 & 337 \\\\ \\midrule\n\t\t\t\t\t\\multirow{5}{*}{IP MCMC} & 2 & 26 & 0.2 & 240 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 3 & 107 & 190 & 430 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 4 & \\textbf{220} & 423 & 663 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 5 & 321 & 87 & 327 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 6 & 411 & 20 & 260 \\\\ \\bottomrule\n\t\t\t\t\\end{tabular}\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\t\\footnotesize *Best results out of 10 runs with random initialisation. Overall Runtime reported for the single best run.\n\t\t\\end{table}\n\t\n\t\t\\begin{figure*}[htp]\n\t\t\\centering\n\t\t\t\\subfloat[$\\hat{S}$ for $N=2$ ]{\\includegraphics[width=0.45\\textwidth]{pose-2}}\\hfill\n\t\t\t\\subfloat[ECDF of $\\vis(o,\\hat{S})$]{\\includegraphics[width=0.45\\textwidth]{ecdf-2}}\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\\subfloat[$\\hat{S}$ for $N=3$ ]{\\includegraphics[width=0.45\\textwidth]{pose-3}}\\hfill\n\t\t\t\\subfloat[ECDF of $\\vis(o,\\hat{S})$]{\\includegraphics[width=0.45\\textwidth]{ecdf-3}}\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\\subfloat[$\\hat{S}$ for $N=4$ ]{\\includegraphics[width=0.45\\textwidth]{pose-4}}\\hfill\n\t\t\t\\subfloat[ECDF of $\\vis(o,\\hat{S})$]{\\includegraphics[width=0.45\\textwidth]{ecdf-4}}\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\\subfloat[$\\hat{S}$ for $N=5$ ]{\\includegraphics[width=0.45\\textwidth]{pose-5}}\\hfill\n\t\t\t\\subfloat[ECDF of $v\\vis(o,\\hat{S})$]{\\includegraphics[width=0.45\\textwidth]{ecdf-5}}\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\\subfloat[$\\hat{S}$ for $N=6$ ]{\\includegraphics[width=0.45\\textwidth]{pose-6}}\\hfill\n\t\t\t\\subfloat[ECDF of $\\vis(o,\\hat{S})$]{\\includegraphics[width=0.45\\textwidth]{ecdf-6}}\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\\caption{Resulting sensor poses and visibility distributions. The left column represents the perspective view of the junction showing the pose of the resulting set $\\hat{S}$. The right column shows the ECDF of object's visibility for the optimal set of sensors found by different methods. The colour of the sensors in the perspective view follows the legend of the ECDF plot. Each row describes the results for a given number of sensors, denoted by $N$. Note that some of the camera poses are the same across methods and may appear as a single one, particularly for $N=2$. }\n\t\t\\label{fig:poseECDF}\n\t\t\\end{figure*}\n\t\n\t\\subsection{Comparison with existing works}\n\t\\label{sec:experiments:cprev}\n\t\tWe compare our sensor pose optimisation methods with two existing works.\n\t\tAkbarzadeh \\textit{et al.} \\cite{akbarzadeh2014efficient} maximise the coverage of a ground area using gradient-ascent and Zhao \\textit{et al.} \\cite{zhao2013approximate} uses Integer Programming to maximise the number of target points visible in an environment.\n\t\tWe reproduce these methods in the simulated T-junction environment considering the coverage of uniformly distributed points over the T-junction ground area.\n\t\tNote that these methods do not explicitly model the visibility of the target objects, instead they maximise the coverage of the ground area.\n\t\tThe evaluation considers the ground surface coverage, \\textit{i.e.} the ratio of ground points that are visible to the sensors, and the minimum visibility of objects placed over this area.\n\t\tThe results are reported in Table \\ref{tab:results-other-methods}.\n\t\tThese results show that the previous methods are successful in maximising the coverage of the T-junction's ground area.\n\t\tHowever, this does not guarantee the visibility of target objects since occlusions between objects are a key factor in determining the visibility of objects in cluttered environments.\n\t\tThis underpins the importance of explicitly considering the visibility of target objects in contrast to the coverage of ground areas.\n\t\t\n\t\t\\begin{table}[]\n\t\t\t\\caption{Performance comparison with existing works in terms of ground area coverage and minimum object visibility for different number of sensors}\n\t\t\t\\label{tab:results-other-methods}\n\t\t\t\\resizebox{\\linewidth}{!}{%\n\t\t\t\t\\begin{tabular}{@{}lllll@{}}\n\t\t\t\t\t\\toprule\n\t\t\t\t\t\\textbf{Method} & \\textbf{N} & \\textbf{Ground Area Coverage (\\%)} & \\textbf{Min Visibility} & \\textbf{Overall Runtime (min)} \\\\ \\midrule\n\t\t\t\t\t\\multirow{5}{*}{Akbarzadeh et al. \\cite{akbarzadeh2014efficient}} & 2 & 51 & 0 & 2 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 3 & 69 & 0 & 2 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 4 & 73 & 0 & 2 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 5 & 78 & 1 & 2 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 6 & 91 & 41 & 2 \\\\ \\midrule\n\t\t\t\t\t\\multirow{5}{*}{Zhao et al. \\cite{zhao2013approximate}} & 2 & 79 & 0 & 3 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 3 & 88 & 0 & 3 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 4 & 91 & 0 & 3 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 5 & 92 & 0 & 3 \\\\\n\t\t\t\t\t& 6 & 92 & 0 & 3 \\\\ \\bottomrule\n\t\t\t\t\\end{tabular}\n\t\t\t}\n\t\t\\end{table}\n\t\n\t\\subsection{Comparison between visibility models}\n\t\\label{sec:experiments:vismodels}\n\t\tWe perform a study comparing the performance of the gradient-based method considering three different visibility models: our visibility model with and without occlusion awareness (Eq. \\ref{eq:visScore} and \\ref{eq:visScoreOcc}, respectively) and the visibility model from Akbarzadeh \\textit{et al.} \\cite{akbarzadeh2014efficient}.\n\t\tIn this study, we consider $N=6$ sensors and explicitly model the visibility of the target objects using the three aforementioned visibility models.\n\t\tTable \\ref{tab:ablation} reports the results of this study.\n\t\tOur occlusion-aware visibility model achieves the best performance as it can realistically determine which points are visible and accordingly change the sensors' pose to account for potential occlusions.\n\t\tThis is highlighted in Figure \\ref{fig:visibilityAblation}, depicting the point clouds of target points, where the colour of each point encodes its visibility score, ranging from blue (invisible) to red (visible).\n\t\tNote that our occlusion-aware visibility model correctly identify non-visible parts of the objects due to occlusion (blue) or only partially visible (yellow).\n\t\tIn contrast, the two other visibility models fail to identify areas of occlusion, mistakenly determining that all points are visible (red).\n\t\tAs a result, the optimisation process cannot improve the visibility of such areas.\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\\begin{table}[]\n\t\t\t\\caption{Comparison between visibility models used in the gradient-based method}\n\t\t\t\\label{tab:ablation}\n\t\t\t\\centering\n\t\t\t\\begin{tabular}{@{}ll@{}}\n\t\t\t\t\\toprule\n\t\t\t\t\\textbf{Visibility Model} & \\textbf{Min Visibility} \\\\ \\midrule\n\t\t\t\tOurs (without Occlusion-Aware model, Eq. \\ref{eq:visScore}) & 82 \\\\\n\t\t\t\tOurs (with Occlusion-Aware model, Eq. \\ref{eq:visScoreOcc}) & \\textbf{178} \\\\\n\t\t\t\tAkbarzadeh et al. \\cite{akbarzadeh2014efficient} & 115 \\\\ \\bottomrule\n\t\t\t\\end{tabular}\n\t\t\\end{table}\n\t\n\t\t\\begin{figure*}[htp]\n\t\t\t\\centering\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\\subfloat[\\label{fig:visibilityAblation:our}]{\\includegraphics[width=0.3\\textwidth]{visOurs}}\\hfill\n\t\t\t\\subfloat[\\label{fig:visibilityAblation:ourNoOcc}]{\\includegraphics[width=0.3\\textwidth]{visOursNoOcc}}\\hfill\n\t\t\t\\subfloat[\\label{fig:visibilityAblation:vahab}]{\\includegraphics[width=0.3\\textwidth]{visVahab}}\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\\caption{Point clouds showing the target points over all objects in all the frames for three visibility models. \\protect\\subref{fig:visibilityAblation:our} our visibility model including occlusion awareness, \\protect\\subref{fig:visibilityAblation:ourNoOcc} our visibility model without occlusion awareness and \\protect\\subref{fig:visibilityAblation:vahab} Akbarzadeh et al. \\cite{akbarzadeh2014efficient}. The point colors indicate the visibility score $\\Psi$, ranging from blue ($\\Psi = 0$, invisible) to red ($\\Psi = 1$, visible). The white vertical pointer marks the position of the object with least visibility. Sensors poses are indicated by XYZ axis within coloured spheres.}\n\t\t\t\\label{fig:visibilityAblation}\n\t\t\\end{figure*}\n\t\t\n\n\\section{CONCLUSION}\n\\label{sec:conclusion}\n\tSensor pose optimisation methods such as the ones proposed in this paper can guide the cost-effective deployment of visual sensor networks in traffic infrastructure to maximise the visibility of objects of interest.\n\tSuch sensor network infrastructures can be used to increase the safety and efficiency of traffic monitoring systems and aid the automation of driving in complex road segments, particularly, in areas where accidents are more likely to happen.\n\t\n\tOur systematic study, in addition to the proposition of novel approaches for sensor pose optimisation, reveals a number of key insights that can be useful for researchers and system designers.\n\tFirstly, explicit modelling of the visibility of the target objects is critical when optimising the poses of sensors, particularly in cluttered environments where sensors are prone to severe occlusions.\n\tSecondly, rendering-based visibility models can realistically determine the visibility of target objects at the pixel level and, thus, improve the pose optimisation process.\n\tThirdly, the IP optimisation method seems to outperform the gradient-ascent method in terms of minimum object visibility, at the cost of increased computational time.\n\tThe sensor pose optimisation methods proposed in this paper can guide the deployment of sensor networks in traffic infrastructure to maximise the visibility of objects of interest.\n\t\n\tAs a follow-on study, we believe that it can be interesting to investigate how to reduce the search space of the IP formulation, for example, by using heuristics to remove candidate sensor poses that have limited observability.\n\tAdditionally, strategies to incorporate the discrete rail assignment variables directly into the gradient optimisation should be investigated, \\textit{e.g.} considering differentiable discrete distribution sampling via Gumbel-Softmax \\cite{45822}.\n\tOther global-optimisation strategies could be used to circumvent the impact of local-minima in the gradient-ascent method.\n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\\section{Introduction}\n\\label{sec:intro}\nThe electric field produced as a consequence of the separation of electrical charges inside clouds is the origin of lightning in the troposphere. However, as originally proposed by \\cite{Wilson1925\/PPhSocLon} and later detected by \\cite{Franz1990\/Sci}, atmospheric electrical discharges can also take place in upper regions of the atmosphere. These types of electrical phenonema are known as Transient Luminous Events (TLEs).\n\nThe first detected TLE was a sprite \\citep{Franz1990\/Sci}, an upper atmospheric discharge formed by a complex structure of thousands of streamers and a diffuse non-streamer zone that can extend from 40~km up to 85~km of altitude \\citep{Sentman1994\/VIDEO, Lyons1994\/GeoRL}. Other types of TLEs, known as halos and elves, can also be produced in the upper atmosphere at altitudes greater than 70~km and 80~km. Both halos and sprites can have a duration of several milliseconds \\citep{Lyons2000\/ETAGU, Barrington-Leigh2001\/JGR,Wescott2001\/JGR\/1, Bering2002\/AdSpR,Moudry2003\/JASTP,Bering2004\/AdSpR,Bering2004\/GeoRL,Frey2007\/GeoRL,Sentman2008\/JGRD\/1, Gordillo-Vazquez2008\/JPhD, Luque2011\/NatGe}, while elves have a duration of less than 1~ms \\citep{Inan1991\/GRL, Inan1997\/GeoRL, Taranenko1993\/GRL, Moudry2003\/JASTP, Kuo2007\/JGRA, Marshall2010\/JGRA\/2, gordillo2016upper, van_der_Velde2016\/GRL, perezmodeling, perezspectroscopic}.\n\nIn 1995, \\cite{Wescott1995\/GeoRL, Wescott1996\/GeoRL\/1} discovered the existence of upward propagating conical-shaped jets in the ranges of altitudes between 15~km and 25~km. Later in year 2002, \\cite{Pasko2002\/Natur} reported another type of upward propagating jets that reached the ionosphere. These upward propagating discharges were later called Blue Jets (BJ) and Gigantic Jets (GJ), two types of TLEs that can propagate in the range of altitudes between 15~km and 40~km in the case of Blue Jets, and between 15~km and 90~km in the case of GJs. The upper altitude reached by Blue Jets (about 40~km) corresponds to the level where propagation time equals the relaxation timescale of about 0.2~s \\citep{Sukhorukov1996\/GeoRL\/1}. Blue Jets and Gigantic Jets are different events triggered right above the cloud layer \\citep{Pasko2002\/Natur, van_der_Velde2010\/JGR, Pasko2012\/SSR, Chanrion2017\/GRL}. According to some evidences \\citep{Krehbiel2008\/NatGe, Riousset2010\/JGRA, Pasko2012\/SSR}, Gigantic Jets could be initiated as a cloud lightning discharge propagating upward, while Blue Jets are triggered as a consequence of the electrical breakdown produced between the storm upper charge layer and the screening charge attracted to the cloud top \\citep{Krehbiel2008\/NatGe, Riousset2010\/JGRA, Pasko2012\/SSR}. \n\n\nSince their discovery in 1989, TLEs have been observed from planes, balloons, ground-based detectors and space-based instrumentation. Several campaigns have recorded the spectra of sprites \\citep{Hampton1996\/GeoRL, Kanmae2007\/GeoRL, Passas2016\/APO, Gordillo-Vazquez2018\/JGR}. Some space-based missions, such as the Space Shuttle \\citep{Boeck1992\/GRL}, the Imager of Sprites and Upper Atmospheric Lightning (ISUAL) of the National Space Organization of Taiwan (NSPO) \\citep{Chern2003\/JASTP, Chen2008\/JGRA, hsu2017\/TAOC} and the Global Lightning and sprIte MeasurementS (GLIMS) of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) \\citep{sato2015overview,Adachi2016\/JASTP} have reported TLE observations from space. Last April 2, 2018 the Atmosphere-Space Interactions Monitor (ASIM) \\citep{Neubert2006\/ILWS} of the European Space Agency (ESA) was successfully launched. ASIM is equipped with the Modular Multi-Imaging Assembly (MMIA), devoted to the study of TLEs from space. In addition, the Tool for the Analysis of RAdiations from lightNIng and Sprites (TARANIS) \\citep{Blanc2007\/AdSpR} of the Centre National d'\\'Etudes Spatiales (CNES), will also be devoted to the observation of these events after its expected launch in 2019 or 2020.\n\nSeveral authors have investigated the local chemical impact of TLEs \\citep{Gordillo-Vazquez2008\/JPhD, Sentman2008\/JGRD\/1, Gordillo-Vazquez2009\/PSST, Gordillo-Vazquez2010\/JGRA, Pasko2012\/SSR, Parra-Rojas\/JGR, Parra-Rojas\/JGR2015, Winkler2015\/JASTP, PerezInvernon2016\/GRL, Hoder2016\/IOP, perezmodeling}. Recently, \\cite{Winkler2015\/JASTP} developed a local chemical model of Blue Jets obtaining an important local enhancement of NO$_x$, N$_2$O and O. The global chemical influence of TLEs has been investigated by previous studies. According to previous local models of halos and elves \\citep{perezmodeling}, their global chemical impact would be negligible. \\cite{Arnone2014\/JGR} estimated the global production of NO$_x$ by sprites using the Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model version 4 (WACCM4). \\cite{Arnone2014\/JGR} found that a perturbation in the tropical concentration of nitrogen oxide by sprites could lie between 0.015~ppbv and 0.15~ppbv. These quantities correspond to a perturbation of the background concentration of NO$_x$ between less than 1 \\% and up to 20 \\% at different altitudes. Some observational studies have attempted to measure sprite-NO$_x$ through satellite observations \\citep{Arnone2008\/GeoRL, Rodger2008\/GRL, Arnone2009\/PSST, arnone2016chimtea}. However, according to these studies sprite-NO$_x$ is at the edge of current detectability.\nThe predicted significant local chemical influence \\citep{Winkler2015\/JASTP} suggest that Blue Jets could have a non-negligible influence in the chemistry of the atmosphere.\n\nIn this work, we have developed the first global parameterization of Blue Jets. We have used the WACCM4 model in order to study the global occurrence rate of Blue Jets and their global chemical impact by developing three different Blue Jet parameterizations. WACCM4 includes a lightning parameterization developed by \\cite{Price1992\/JGR} based on the cloud top height (CTH). Here we also use other lightning parameterizations based on, respectively, the amount of convective precipitation (CP) \\citep{Allenp2002\/JGR}; the upward mass flux (MFLUX) \\citep{Allenp2002\/JGR}; the precipitation rate and the Convective Available Potential Energy (CPCAPE) \\citep{Romps2014\/SCI}; and on the upward cloud ice flux (ICEFLUX) \\citep{Finney2014\/ACP}.The combined use of lightning and Blue Jet parameterizations allow us to predict the geographical and seasonal chemical impact of Blue Jets.\n\n\n\\subsection{Physics and chemistry of Blue Jets} \n\\label{sec:bjstatistics}\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\includegraphics[width=0.6\\columnwidth]{BJ_wescott.png}\n\\footnotesize\n\\caption{\\label{fig:BJ_wescott}\nLeft panel: Inverted black and white photography of a Blue Jet. The spatial scales of the leader and streamer regions can be appreciated. Image adapted from \\cite{Wescott2001\/JGR}. Right panel: Blue Jet simulated by \\cite{Krehbiel2008\/NatGe} illustrating the charge structure of clouds. Blue and red lines correspond to positive and negative charges, respectively. Image adapted from \\cite{Krehbiel2008\/NatGe}.\n\\normalsize\n}\n\\end{figure}\n\nBlue Jets are formed by a leader channel surrounded by a large number of streamers. The leader is a highly conductive plasma channel that can heat the air up to thousands of Kelvin. The first interpretations of Blue Jets by a streamer corona of a leader were made by \\cite{Sukhorukov1998\/JASTP} and \\cite{Petrov1999\/JTePh}. \\cite{Raizer2006\/GeoRL, Raizer2007\/JASTP} proposed the development of Blue Jets as a bi-leader channel that propagates upward from the streamer zone of a positive leader. According to \\cite{Raizer2006\/GeoRL, Raizer2007\/JASTP}, this leader can transfer the energy contained in the clouds to upper regions of the atmosphere, where the low density allows the development of a streamer corona. Figure~\\ref{fig:BJ_wescott} shows a photography of a real Blue Jet from\\cite{Wescott2001\/JGR} and the structure of charges in clouds that trigger the inception of Blue Jets simulated by \\cite{Krehbiel2008\/NatGe}.\n \\cite{Krehbiel2008\/NatGe} developed a model based on quasielectrostatic fields, formed as an imbalance of the electric charge in the cloud tops, to predict Blue Jet and Gigantic Jet inception. After lightning occurs, a charged layer can remain near the storm top layer creating a local electric field. \\cite{Krehbiel2008\/NatGe} found that conventional electric breakdown near this charged layer could trigger an upward propagating leader, forming a Blue Jet. \\cite{Riousset2010\/JGRA} upgraded the model proposed by \\cite{Krehbiel2008\/NatGe}, confirming the obtained results. Observations by \\cite{Lu2011\/GRL} supported some of the predictions by \\cite{Krehbiel2008\/NatGe} and \\cite{Riousset2010\/JGRA}. As hypothesized by \\cite{Krehbiel2008\/NatGe}, there would exist a competition between intra-cloud discharges and Blue Jets in the process of discharging the cloud. The result of this competition would depend on the capability of the convective fluxes to mix the oppositely charged layers located in the cloud top before the inception of a Blue Jet.\n\n\\cite{Chanrion2017\/GRL} have recently described the observation of a Blue Jet from the International Space Station (ISS). The top height of the thundercloud that initiated the Blue Jet reached the tropopause, an atmospheric region where convection is weak. The reported Blue Jet was preceded in 1.16~s by a strong negative CG lightning with a peak current of -167.5~kA. This CG discharge could possibly be the parent lightning of the Blue Jet.\nA Blue Jet would then be formed by an upward propagating leader traveling to upper regions of the atmosphere with lower pressure, reaching its maximum altitude between 30~km and 40~km \\citep{van_der_Velde2010\/JGR, Pasko2012\/SSR, daSilva2013\/GRL, Milikh2014\/JGR, Chanrion2017\/GRL}. Streamers could then emerge from the leader as it passes through the low pressure regions of the atmosphere \\citep{Raizer2007\/JASTP}.\n\n\\cite{Mishin1997\/GeoRL} and \\cite{smirnova2003\/IJGA} developed the first models to estimate the local chemical impact of Blue Jets. However, these models do not include the latest results on the electrodynamical mechanisms of Blue Jets \\citep{Raizer2007\/JASTP, Krehbiel2008\/NatGe, Riousset2010\/JGRA}. \\cite{Winkler2015\/JASTP} developed the most detailed model to date to study the local chemical impact of a Blue Jet including 88~species interacting through more than 1000~reactions. They used their model to estimate the local chemical impact of the leader and streamers of a Blue Jet at several altitudes.\nAccording to their estimations, the high-temperature reactions taking place in the Blue Jet leader can enhance by several orders of magnitude the local background concentrations of stratospheric N$_2$O and NO (due to the high temperature reactions collected in Table~3 of \\citep{Winkler2015\/JASTP}) and produce a significant depletion of ozone \\citep{Winkler2015\/JASTP}. In addition, the high electric field in the streamer phase would produce an enhancement in the concentration of N$_2$O by the chemical reactions\n\n\\begin{linenomath*}\n\\begin{equation}\ne + N_2 \\rightarrow e + N_2(A^3\\Sigma_u^+) \\label{reactionN2A}\n\\end{equation}\n\\end{linenomath*}\nand\n\\begin{linenomath*}\n\\begin{equation}\nN_2(A^3\\Sigma_u^+) + O_2 \\rightarrow N_2O + O. \\label{reactionN2A}\n\\end{equation}\n\\end{linenomath*}\n\n\nThe injection of NO$_x$ into the stratosphere could also influence the concentration of other species. According to investigations about the chemical influence of lightning-produced NO in the atmosphere, atmospheric electricity phenomena can also contribute to the concentration of OH, HO$_2$ and CO \\citep{rohrer2006strong, murray2013interannual, siingh2015lightning}. In particular, NO interacts with HO$_2$ producing OH. The production of OH molecules can influence the acidity of rainwater \\citep{seinfeld2016atmospheric}, as they can react with NO$_2$ molecules producing HNO$_3$ following the chemical reaction NO$_2$ + OH + M $\\rightarrow$ HNO$_3$ + M \\citep{labrador2005effects}. The formation of OH contributes to the loss of CO by the process CO + OH $\\rightarrow$ HO$_2$ + C \\citep{murray2013interannual}. OH molecules can also contribute to the oxidation of SO$_2$, leading to the production of H$_2$SO$_4$. In addition, NO$_2$ molecules contribute to the production of N$_2$O$_5$. The oxidation of N$_2$O$_5$ followed by a heterogeneous hydrolysis reaction on aerosol particles contributes to the enhancement of HNO$_3$.\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Global budgets of N$_2$O and NO$_x$ and their relation with atmospheric electricity} \n\\label{sec:budjet}\n\nAccording to \\cite{Winkler2015\/JASTP}, Blue Jets could inject an important amount of nitrous oxide (N$_2$O), nitric oxide (NO) and nitrogen dioxide NO$_2$ at stratospheric altitudes. These gases play important roles in the chemical balance of stratospheric ozone. In addition, N$_2$O is one of the most important greenhouse gases. \n\nNatural N$_2$O sources are estimated to inject about 10.2~Tg~N$_2$O-N~yr$^{-1}$ in the atmosphere, while anthropogenic sources could produce around 6.3~Tg N$_2$O-N~yr$^{-1}$ \\citep{davidson2009\/nat, Prather2015\/JGR}, where 1~Tg = 10$^{12}$~g and N$_2$O-N stands for the mass of nitrogen atoms in N$_2$O molecules \\citep{davidson2009\/nat}. The major natural and anthropogenic sources of N$_2$O are basically due to nitrification and denitrification produced by microbes at ground level \\citep{davidson2009\/nat}. However, \\cite{Sheese2015\/GRL} have recently proposed an atmospheric source of N$_2$O based on observations from the satellite instrument ``Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment-Fourier Transform Spectrometer\" (ACE-FTS) consisting of the chemical reaction described in equation~(\\ref{reactionN2A}) \\citep{arnone2012stratosphere, Sheese2015\/GRL}. N$_2$O is the major source of NO in the stratosphere. 90 \\% of the stratospheric destruction of N$_2$O is by photolysis (N$_2$O + h$\\nu$ $\\rightarrow$ N$_2$ + O) and 10 \\% is by reaction with O($^1$D) producing NO, N$_2$ and O$_2$ molecules \\citep{seinfeld2016atmospheric}. \n\n\n\n\\cite{Plieninger2016\/ACP} compared global-average vertical profiles of N$_2$O obtained by different instruments. In particular, \\cite{Plieninger2016\/ACP} showed the vertical stratospheric concentration of N$_2$O obtained by the ``Michelson Interferometer for Passive Atmospheric Sounding\" (MIPAS), the ``Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment-Fourier Transform Spectrometer (ACE-FTS), the ``Microwave Limb Sounder onboard Aura\" (Aura-MLS) and the ``Sub-Milimetre Radiometer onboard Odin\" (Odin-SMR). It is worth noting that the global-average concentration of N$_2$O estimated by each of the above mentioned instruments between 20~km and 40~km indicates that the observational uncertainty in the global amount of N$_2$O is about 10~\\% \\citep{Plieninger2016\/ACP}. \n\nLightning is not considered an important source of atmospheric N$_2$O, as shown in Table~11 of \\cite{SchumannHuntrieser2007\/SCP} where results from different studies and campaigns conclude that the global lightning-produced emission rate of N$_2$O is below 5~$\\times$10$^{-4}$ ~Tg~N$_2$O-N~yr$^{-1}$.\n\nLet us now turn to the global budget of NO and NO$_2$, which together make up NO$_x$. \\cite{SchumannHuntrieser2007\/SCP} presented an extensive study about the global production of NO$_x$ by lightning (or LNO$_x$) based on satellite and aircraft measurements, laboratory experiments and theoretical studies. \nLightning is considered one of the major natural sources of atmospheric NO$_x$ emissions. Different studies estimate the global production of NO$_x$ in thunderstorms in a wide range between 1 and 20~Tg~NO-N~yr$^{-1}$ \\citep{SchumannHuntrieser2007\/SCP, huntrieser2016injection}. However, the most likely range is 5$\\pm$3~Tg~N~yr$^{-1}$. Lightning would then contribute up to $\\sim$10-15$\\%$ of the total global emissions of NO$_x$. It is probably something greater than 10\\% now that anthropogenic emissions have decreased substantially in North America and Europe.\n\nThe uncertainties in the contribution of lightning to the global concentration of NO$_x$ is based on theoretical and empirical challenges. Laboratory results of NO$_x$ produced by electrical discharges are difficult to extrapolate to real lightning discharges, as both Cloud-to-Ground (CG) and Intra-Cloud (IC) lightning discharges are different from each other \\citep{Price1997\/JGR} and cannot be accurately reproduced in the laboratory. Space-based instruments measure NO$_2$ and cannot accurately measure the concentration of tropospheric NO$_x$ \\citep{SchumannHuntrieser2007\/SCP, beirle2010direct, bucsela2010lightning, pickering2016estimates}. This concentration has to be usually deduced from the concentration of other species that can react with NO$_x$ molecules. However, some uncertainties in the atmospheric chemical kinetics of NO$_x$ lead to imprecisions in the estimation of NO$_x$ from measurements. These estimations are often based on an assumed upper tropospheric (UT) chemical lifetime of NO$_x$ in a range between 2 and 8~days. \nBased on reanalysis of the measurements taken by the Deep Convective Clouds and Chemistry (DC3) atmospheric experiment, \\cite{Nault2017\/JGR} recently revised the interaction of atmospheric CH$_3$O$_2$NO$_2$ and HNO$_3$ with NO$_x$ molecules, estimating a new UT NO$_x$ lifetime of about 3 hours in the first few hours downwind of a thunderstorm instead of the previous scale of days. Using this new analysis, \\cite{Nault2017\/JGR} estimated a global lightning production of NO$_x$ of about 9~Tg~NO-N~yr$^{-1}$. \\cite{Nault2017\/JGR} results indicate higher LNO$_x$ in the mid-latides than in the tropical regions, in agreement with \\cite{SchumannHuntrieser2007\/SCP}. However, the latest estimations of the global lightning NO$_x$ emissions by new cloud-sliced observations of UT NO$_2$ in the 6~km - 9~km range from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) of the Aura mission combined with the GEOS-Chem model point to a global lightning NO$_x$ source of 5.5~Tg~N yr$^{-1}$ \\citep{maraisnitrogen}. \\cite{maraisnitrogen} reports no significant difference in LNO$_x$ production per flash between the tropics and mid-latitudes.\nStratospheric NO can cause ozone depletion through the processes \\citep{crutzen1979\/ARPS} \n\n\\begin{linenomath*}\n\\begin{equation}\nNO + O_3 \\rightarrow NO_2 + O_2,\n\\end{equation}\n\\begin{equation}\nNO_2 + O \\rightarrow NO + O_2.\n\\end{equation}\n\\label{ozonedep}\n\\end{linenomath*}\n\nMoreover, the oxidation of N$_2$O is the major source of stratospheric NO, producing 1~Tg~N~yr$^{-1}$ of NO$_x$ \\citep{crutzen1979\/ARPS}. Thus, the introduction of Blue Jets in global models as a new possible atmospheric source of N$_2$O and NO$_x$ could have a non negligible effect in the global budget of ozone.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\section{Model} \n\\label{sec:models}\n\n\n\\subsection{WACCM4}\n\\label{sec:models}\n\nThe Whole Atmosphere Community Climate Model version 4 (WACCM4) \\citep{Marsh2013\/JC} is a global circulation model included in the Community Earth Climate System Model version 1 (CESM1). WACCM4 is an extension of the Community Atmosphere Model (CAM4) \\citep{Marsh2013\/JC, tilmes2015description, tilmes2016representation}. CAM4 couples the troposphere and the stratosphere chemistry, while WACCM4 extends up to the thermosphere. The chemistry of WACCM4 is based on version 4 of the Model for OZone And Related chemical Tracers (MOZART4) \\citep{kinnison2007sensitivity, emmons2010description, lamarque2012\/GMD, tilmes2015description}, including 183~species and 472~chemical reactions including gas-phase chemistry of neutrals and ions, photolysis and heterogenous chemistry.\n\n\nWe set the model domain extending from the surface to 140~km of altitude (5.96$\\times$10$^{-6}$~hPa). We divide the vertical domain in 88 levels and set a horizontal resolution of 1.9$^{\\circ}$ in latitude and 2.5$^{\\circ}$ in longitude. We start the numerical experiment with WACCM4 running a complete year (from January 1999 to January 2000) without Blue Jets allowing free dynamics for each considered lightning parameterization. Then, we run the same period of time in the specified dynamics mode (SD-WACCM4) \\citep{lamarque2012\/GMD, smith2017\/JAS}. In this study, we use the facility of SD but, instead of nudging to reanalysis fields, we nudge to the meteorological fields from a previous (free-running) WACCM simulation. The reason for using SD is to ensure that the basic dynamics in the lower and middle atmosphere is identical in simulations in which other changes are made. In this second run, temperature fields and horizontal winds in the troposphere and stratosphere are nudged at each model time step using the output of the first run. We apply the nudging from ground level to 80~km. The nudging is then tapered off in the ranges of altitude between 80 and 90~km, and finally removed at 90~km of altitude \\citep{smith2017\/JAS}.\n\nAfterward, we use the same specified dynamics in order to run a complete year including all the combinations of lightning and Blue Jet parameterizations. This approach allows us to compare the simulations with and without Blue Jets in order to estimate their global chemical impact in the atmosphere.\n\nAs the lifetime of N$_2$O in the atmosphere is of the order of a century \\citep{Prather2015\/JGR}, we select the most realistic cases and repeat the process for a period of one decade. Following this approach, the obtained results would be closer to the chemical equilibrium. We discuss these cases in section~\\ref{sec:results}.\n \n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Lightning parameterizations}\n\\label{sec:lightning}\n\nThe temporal and geographical occurrence of Blue Jets obtained with WACCM4 will strongly depend on the global occurrence of lightning. In this section, we briefly highlight the particularities of each considered lightning parameterization.\n\nThe characteristic size of lightning is some orders of magnitude smaller than the WACCM4 grid size. Therefore, lightning are considered as sub-grid events in the model. WACCM4 includes a lightning parameterization based on the cloud top heights (CTH) \\citep{Price1992\/JGR} that estimates the density of lightning (or flashes) in each domain cell for every time step of 30~minutes. The regional and seasonal flash frequency produced by this parameterization roughly agrees with the observations recorded by the Lightning Imaging Sensor (LIS) and the Optical Transient Detector (OTD) \\citep{Christian2003\/JGR, cecil2014gridded} over a period of two decades. However, the implementation of this lightning parameterization in WACCM4 overestimates the total flashes per second taking place in the globe over a period of one year. According to OTD\/LIS, the global lightning occurrence over a year is around 44~flashes per second, while this parameterization produces around 65~flashes per second. In addition, the lightning parameterization by \\cite{Price1992\/JGR} implemented in WACCM4 also underestimates the lightning occurrence over the oceans. For these reasons, the use of a parameterization for Blue Jets together with the CTH lightning parameterization by \\cite{Price1992\/JGR} would probably underestimate the occurrence of Blue Jets over the oceans and would overestimate the global occurrence of Blue Jets. However, the spatial correlation between the flash frequency reported by OTD\/LIS and the flash frequency estimated by CTH is 0.7602. This is the highest spatial correlation obtained by the use of different lightning parameterizations. Therefore, we choose the CTH lightning parameterization to show the primary results.\n\n\\cite{Allenp2002\/JGR} developed a lightning parameterization based on the amount of convective precipitation (CP) over USA. We have tested this lightning parameterization in WACCM4, obtaining a good agreement between the predicted flash frequency (51~flashes per second) and the lightning occurrence reported by OTD\/LIS. We obtain a spatial correlation between the flash frequency derived by CP and OTD\/LIS of 0.5760. However, the implementation of this parameterization in WACCM4 produces a lightning occurrence that remains almost constant over the four seasons, in disagreement with observations. \\cite{Allenp2002\/JGR} also derived a lightning parameterization based on the upward mass flux (MFLUX) at 440~hPa. This parameterization produces again a good agreement between the predicted flash frequency (43~flashes per second) and the lightning occurrence reported by OTD\/LIS. However, it slightly overestimates the occurrence of lightning in the oceans and in South America, while underestimates the flash density in some regions of Africa. In addition, MFLUX produces a low spatial correlation (0.4963) with the flash frequency reported by OTD\/LIS.\n\nApart from these three ``classical\" lightning parameterizations by \\cite{Price1992\/JGR} and \\cite{Allenp2002\/JGR}, we also implement Blue Jet parameterizations in WACCM4 together with two, more recent, lightning parameterizations developed by \\cite{Romps2014\/SCI} (CPCAPE) and \\cite{Finney2014\/ACP} (ICEFLUX), respectively. The parameterization of \\cite{Romps2014\/SCI} is based on the precipitation rate and on the Convective Available Potential Energy (CAPE), while the parameterization by \\cite{Finney2014\/ACP} is based on the upward cloud ice flux at 440~hPa. \nThe parameterization by \\cite{Romps2014\/SCI} produces global (52~flashes per second), regional and seasonal lightning frequencies that agree with the observation by OTD\/LIS but it overestimates the flash occurrence over the oceans. The spatial correlation between the flash frequency derived by CPCAPE and the observations of OTD\/LIS is 0.4540. The implementation of the parameterization developed by \\cite{Finney2014\/ACP} underestimates by a factor of~2 the global lightning occurrence rate and results in a spatial correlation with the flash frequency reported by OTD\/LIS of 0.6739. \n\n\n\\subsection{Blue Jet parameterizations in WACCM4}\n\\label{sec:bj}\n\n\\subsubsection{Blue Jet frequency}\n\\label{subsec:BJfrequency}\nThe characteristic size of Blue Jets is some orders of magnitude smaller than the horizontal size of WACCM4 grids. As in the case of lightning, Blue Jets have to be treated as sub-grid phenomena in WACCM4. Following the basic idea of the previously described global lightning parameterizations, we have developed two different Blue Jet parameterizations to be considered in global models. The first developed parameterization prescribes the estimation of global Blue Jets per minute to predict their chemical influence in the atmosphere. The second proposed parameterization is based on physical assumptions and does not impose the rate of occurrence of Blue Jets.\n\n\\subsubsection*{Parameterization based on ISUAL and the altitude of the tropopause (IS-TROP LOW \/ IS-TROP UP)}\n\n\n\n\\cite{Ignaccolo2006\/GeoRL} proposed a formula to estimate the global rate of sprites based on reports of sprite detections. \\cite{Ignaccolo2006\/GeoRL} obtained a global occurrence rate of sprites about 2.8 per minute. According to ISUAL, the global occurrence rate of TLEs is around 4.13~per minute \\cite{Chen2008\/JGRA}, among which 3.23 are elves, 0.50 are sprites, 0.39 are halos and 0.01 are gigantic jets. As optical emissions from Blue Jets and lightning are difficult to separate, the global global occurrence rate of Blue Jets was not derived from ISUAL data. However, we assume that Blue Jets are less frequent than sprites and more frequent than Gigantic Jets. Therefore, as a first approximation we assume that the global occurrence rate of Blue Jet is in the range between 0.01 and 1.0 events per minute. Given that Blue Jets are triggered as a consequence of the remaining imbalance of charge in thunderclouds after lightning occurs \\citep{Krehbiel2008\/NatGe}, Blue Jet parameterizations must be spatially and temporally connected with any considered parameterization of lightning. Following these considerations, the total occurrence of Blue Jets at a given time would be the total occurrence of lightning flashes given multiplied by 3.6 $\\times$ 10$^{-4}$ (UP) or 3.6 $\\times$ 10$^{-6}$ (LOW), respectively. \n\nAs we discussed in section~\\ref{sec:bjstatistics}, the model proposed by \\cite{Krehbiel2008\/NatGe} indicates that the inception of Blue Jets is favored when the two oppositely charged layers located in the upper part of thunderclouds do not mix. Hence, it is reasonable to expect the inception of Blue Jets when the convection near the cloud top is weak. In this regard, the Blue Jet reported by \\cite{Chanrion2017\/GRL} was triggered in a thundercloud whose top height was near the tropopause, where the lack of convection keeps the temperature relatively constant. WACCM4 and the most of Global Circulation Models can calculate the altitude of the tropopause and the cloud top height, two atmospheric variables that can be related with the possibility of Blue Jet inception \\citep{Krehbiel2008\/NatGe, Chanrion2017\/GRL}. We can then distribute the predicted Blue Jets exclusively in the domain cells where the cloud top height is above the beginning of the tropopause or below tropopause by no more than one kilometer and there is lightning. We also impose as a condition to the existence of Blue Jets that the flash frequency is greater than zero in that domain cell. We restrict the locations where Blue Jets can be distributed to the range of latitudes between 60$^{\\circ}$ S and 60$^{\\circ}$ N. We name this Blue Jet parameterization as ``IS-TROP LOW\" and ``IS-TROP UP\", depending on whether the global occurrence rate of BJ is set to 3.6 $\\times$ 10$^{-6}$ (LOW) or 3.6 $\\times$ 10$^{-4}$ (UP) Blue Jets per lightning and where IS and TROP refer to ISUAL and to the height of the tropopause, respectively. Although this parameterization could produce a realistic geographical occurrence of Blue Jets, the global occurrence rate is somehow imposed. \n\n\n\n\n\\subsubsection*{Parameterization based on lightning peak currents and the altitude of the tropopause (LPC-TROP LOW \/ LPC-TROP UP)}\n\nAccording to the model developed by \\cite{Krehbiel2008\/NatGe}, a strong lightning discharge or a set of small amplitude CG lightning discharges occurring within a short time distance would probably precede the inception of a Blue Jet, since Blue Jets are produced by a large imbalance of charge. \\cite{Chanrion2017\/GRL} reported the observation of a Blue Jet preceded by a strong lightning discharge. Let us now use this observation to derive a more realistic Blue Jet parameterization based on the peak current value of the lightning possibly preceding a Blue Jet.\nThe Blue Jet reported by \\cite{Chanrion2017\/GRL} was preceded by a negative Cloud-to-Ground (CG) lightning discharge with a peak current of -167.5~kA. Elves, the less energetic TLEs, seem to be triggered by lightning discharges with peak currents whose absolute value is above 60~kA \\citep{Barrington-Leigh1999\/GeoRL\/1}. As an approximation, we can assume that the peak current threshold of the lightning preceding Blue Jets is between 60~kA and 167.5~kA. We choose two representative values in this range to be the threshold of Blue Jets, such as 100~kA and 150~kA. According to the distribution of global lightning peak current reported by \\cite{Said2013\/JGR} using the Vaisala global lightning data set GLD360, approximately 1 \\% of lightning have a peak current above 100~kA and only 0.1 \\% have a peak current above 150~kA. We can then develop a Blue Jet parameterization in WACCM4 where the spatial occurrence of Blue Jets is again restricted to domain cells where the cloud top height is higher than one kilometer below the tropopause. However, instead of imposing the global occurrence of Blue Jets, we can now assume that the Blue Jet frequency in such domain cells is given by the amount of lightning in the domain cell with peak currents above 100~kA or 150~kA. Hence, we define the Blue Jet frequency in each cell where the cloud top height is near the tropopause as 0.01 (UP) or 0.001 (LOW) times the frequency of lightning. We refer to these two Blue Jet parameterizations as ``LPC-TROP UP\" and ``LPC-TROP LOW\", where LPC and TROP recall to lightning peak current and to the height of the tropopause, respectively. The maximum peak current of lightning is not homogeneously distributed over land and ocean \\citep{Said2013\/JGR}. However, we do not include in this parameterization any parameter to take into account this inhomogeneity. This simplification is justified because the scope of this paper is to describe the global chemical influence of Blue Jets rather that the regional influence.\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Chemical impact of Blue Jets}\n\\label{subsec:chemicalimpact}\n\\cite{Winkler2015\/JASTP} developed the most detailed zero-dimensional model until now to predict the local chemical impact of a Blue Jet in the center of Blue Jet leader and streamers. \\cite{Winkler2015\/JASTP} estimated the chemical impact of an upward propagating Blue Jet at different altitudes between 18~km and 38~km, obtaining a significant enhancement in the densities of some chemical species such as N$_2$O, NO or O and a decrease in the density of O$_3$ in the center of Blue Jets. We use the local chemical impact of a single Blue Jet obtained by \\cite{Winkler2015\/JASTP} together with the previously derived Blue Jet parameterizations to estimate the global chemical impact of Blue Jets using WACCM4. We assume that each Blue Jet would produce an enhancement in the concentrations of N$_2$O, NO or O. However, as Blue Jets are considered as sub-grid phenomena in WACCM4, we take into account the following considerations:\n\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item As the area of a WACCM4 cell is larger than the horizontal cross-section of the Blue Jet, we have to estimate the total number of species produced by all Blue Jets at each altitude and distribute them over the area of the grid at each altitude level. Hence, we need to estimate the electrodynamical radius of the Blue Jet where the chemical reactions are produced. \\cite{Winkler2015\/JASTP} noted that while the optical radius of a Blue Jet is a few hundreds of meters \\citep{Wescott2001\/JGR}, the electrodynamical radius could be between 20 and 100~times smaller \\citep{Shneider2012\/PhysPlas, Milikh2014\/JGR}. Based on optical observations by \\cite{Wescott2001\/JGR}, we have assumed that Blue Jets have an optical radius of 250~m at their base. Hence, the electrodynamical radius $R_e$ would be in the range between $R_1$ = 2.5~m and $R_2$ = 12.5~m. According to \\cite{Winkler2015\/JASTP}, the production of N$_2$O and NO is dominated by the leader for altitudes ranging between 18~km and 28~km and by streamers between 28~km and 38~km. We have then assumed that the electrodynamical radius of the Blue Jet is completely filled by a leader between 18~km and 28~km of altitude and by streamers between 28~km and 38~km of altitude.\n\nThe global production of N$_2$O by Blue Jets can then be estimated using the density variations reported by \\cite{Winkler2015\/JASTP} (figure~19 of \\cite{Winkler2015\/JASTP}). As a first approximation, we can consider a Blue Jet as a 20~km long cylinder with a constant radii of 2.5~m or 12.5~m formed by a leader and a streamer region. A single Blue Jet would produce between 2 $\\times$ 10$^{28}$ and 6 $\\times$ 10$^{29}$ molecules of N$_2$O for electrodynamical radii of 2.5~m and 12.5~m, respectively. Assuming that the global occurrence rate of Blue Jets is between 0.01 and 1~per minute \\citep{Ignaccolo2006\/GeoRL, Chen2008\/JGRA}, we find that Blue Jets with a radii of 2.5~m would produce between 6 $\\times$ 10$^{-3}$~Tg~N$_2$O-N~yr$^{-1}$ and 0.6~Tg~N$_2$O-N~yr$^{-1}$, while Blue Jets with a radii of 12.5~m would produce between 0.15~Tg~N$_2$O-N~yr$^{-1}$ and 15 ~Tg~N$_2$O-N~yr$^{-1}$\n\n\n\\item We assume that the production of species decays parabolically across the radial coordinate $r$ from the center of the Blue Jet up to the limit of the electrodynamical radius as \n\n\\begin{linenomath*}\n\\begin{equation}\nN(r) = N_{max} \\left(1 - \\frac{r^2}{R^2_e} \\right),\n\\label{NR}\n\\end{equation}\n\\end{linenomath*}\n\nwhere $R_e$ is the electrodynamical radius and $N_{max}$ is the enhancement in the density of species in the symmetry axis of the Blue Jet as predicted by \\cite{Winkler2015\/JASTP}.\n\n\n\\item Recorded optical emissions from Blue Jets indicate an increase of its radius with altitude \\citep{Wescott2001\/JGR}. We assume that the Blue Jet radius increases with altitude following the simple scale law\n\n\\begin{linenomath*}\n\\begin{equation}\nP_i R_i = P_j R_j,\n\\label{scalelay}\n\\end{equation}\n\\end{linenomath*}\n\nwhere $P$ and $R$ are the atmospheric pressure and Blue Jet radius at two different altitude levels denoted as $i$ and $j$.\n\n\n\n\\end{enumerate}\n\nFollowing these considerations, the Blue Jet region at 30~km of altitude filled by streamers would have a radius between 16~m and 80~m. Given the assumed altitude-dependence of the leader and streamer-region radius and the production profile by \\cite{Winkler2015\/JASTP}, the total production of N$_2$O and NO by a Blue Jet is dominated by the leader phase.\n\n\n\n\n\\section{Results} \n\\label{sec:results}\n\nWe have implemented in WACCM4 the Blue Jet parameterizations derived in section~\\ref{sec:bj} using five different lightning parameterizations. We present the obtained global occurrence rate of Blue Jets in subsection~\\ref{sec:occurrence}. We have coupled these Blue Jet frequencies with the chemical impact of a single Blue Jet predicted by \\cite{Winkler2015\/JASTP}. In subsection~\\ref{sec:gchemical} we present the predicted global impact of Blue Jets for each global parameterization.\n\n\\subsection{Global occurrence and seasonal cycle of Blue Jets}\n\\label{sec:occurrence}\n\nLet us firstly focus on the global occurrence of Blue Jets derived for each combination of lightning and Blue Jet parameterizations. The first column of figure~\\ref{fig:bj_cases_1_2} shows the obtained lightning flash frequency using different lightning parameterizations in WACCM4. The second column of figure~\\ref{fig:bj_cases_1_2} shows the Blue Jet frequency for the Blue Jet parameterization denoted as ``IS-TROP LOW\" using different lightning parameterizations. As we have previously detailed, this Blue Jet parameterization take as input the global occurrence rate of Blue Jet estimated from the TLE occurrence reported by ISUAL. The Blue Jet frequency obtained with the BJ parameterizations ``LPC-TROP LOW\" and ``LPC-TROP UP\" using different lightning parameterizations is plotted in figure~\\ref{fig:bj_cases_3}. In the ``LPC-TROP\" parameterization, the Blue Jet occurrence rate is not fixed to any given value. Instead, it is based on the physical assumptions previously described in section~\\ref{sec:bj}.\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\includegraphics[width=1.0\\columnwidth]{bj_cases_1_2.pdf}\n\\caption{\\label{fig:bj_cases_1_2}\n(First column) annual average lightning flash frequencies in flashes km$^{-2}$day$^{-1}$ and (second column) annual average Blue Jet frequencies in BJ km$^{-2}$day$^{-1}$ using the Blue Jet parameterization denoted as ``IS-TROP LOW\" and different lightning parameterizations. We have used different lightning parameterizations denoted as CTH \\citep{Price1992\/JGR} based on the cloud top height, CP \\citep{Allenp2002\/JGR} based on the precipitation rate, CPCAPE \\citep{Romps2014\/SCI} based on the precipitation rate and convective available potential energy (CAPE), MFLUX \\cite{Allenp2002\/JGR} based on the updraft mass flux and ICEFLUX \\citep{Finney2014\/ACP} based on the upward cloud ice flux. We annotate in boxes the total annual Blue Jets per minute.\n}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\includegraphics[width=1.0\\columnwidth]{bj_cases_3.pdf}\n\\footnotesize\n\\caption{\\label{fig:bj_cases_3}\nAnnual average Blue Jet frequencies BJ km$^{-2}$day$^{-1}$ using the parameterizations denoted as ``LPC-TROP LOW\" and ``LPC-TROP UP\". The shown Blue Jet frequencies have been calculated using different lightning parameterizations denoted as CTH \\citep{Price1992\/JGR} based on the cloud top height , CP \\citep{Allenp2002\/JGR} based on the precipitation rate, CPCAPE \\citep{Romps2014\/SCI} based on the precipitation rate and convective available potential energy (CAPE), MFLUX \\citep{Allenp2002\/JGR} based on the updraft mass flux and ICEFLUX \\citep{Finney2014\/ACP} based on the upward cloud ice flux. We annotate in boxes the total annual Blue Jets per minute.\n\\normalsize\n}\n\\end{figure}\n\nThe Blue Jet frequencies obtained with all the considered Blue Jet parameterizations and with the CTH lightning parameterization are collected in table~\\ref{tab:results}. The results obtained with the other tested lightning parameterizations are shown in the supplementary material.\n\nThe Blue Jet parameretizations ``IS-TROP\" and the most of the Blue Jet parameterizations ``LPC-TROP LOW\" produce a global occurrence rate of Blue Jets lower than 1 BJ per minute, as estimated from the TLE frequency reported by ISUAL. However, the Blue Jet parameterizations ``LPC-TROP UP\" and ``CP LPC-TROP LOW\" significantly overestimate the Blue Jet frequency. \n\nThe comparison of the spatial distribution of lightning flashes and Blue Jets indicates that the relative occurrence of Blue Jets in Asia with respect to other regions is larger than the relative occurrence of lightning flashes. In addition, most of the considered parameterizations produce a maximum in the lightning flash frequency and in the Blue Jet frequency over Africa and in the north of South America. \n\nThe monthly global average occurrences of Blue Jets obtained with different lightning parameterization schemes are presented in figure~\\ref{fig:bj_monthly}. The maximum occurrence of Blue Jets takes place between June and August, coinciding with the maximum occurrence of lightning. As the occurrence of Blue Jets is related with a high lightning activity on clouds \\citep{Krehbiel2008\/NatGe} (see figure~\\ref{fig:BJ_wescott}), we conclude that the obtained coincidence of the seasonal cycle of lightning and Blue Jets can be considered as realistic.\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\includegraphics[width=0.8\\columnwidth]{bj_monthly.pdf}\n\\caption{\\label{fig:bj_monthly}\nMonthly global average Blue Jet frequencies BJ km$^{-2}$day$^{-1}$ using the developed Blue Jets parameterization. The shown Blue Jet frequencies have been calculated using different lightning parameterizations denoted as CTH \\citep{Price1992\/JGR} based on the cloud top height, CP \\citep{Allenp2002\/JGR} based on the precipitation rate, CPCAPE \\citep{Romps2014\/SCI} based on the precipitation rate and convective available potential energy (CAPE), MFLUX \\citep{Allenp2002\/JGR} based on the updraft mass flux and ICEFLUX \\citep{Finney2014\/ACP} based on the upward cloud ice flux.\n}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\n\\subsection{Global chemical impact of Blue Jets}\n\\label{sec:gchemical}\n\nWe follow the simulation scheme proposed in section~\\ref{sec:models} in order to predict the global chemical impact of Blue Jets in the atmosphere. We use the same specified dynamics to simulate the atmosphere with and without Blue Jets. \n\nFirst, we run simulations of one year for all the considered Blue Jet parameterizations (subsection~\\ref{sec:chem1}). Then, we choose some of the most representative cases and extend the simulations up to ten years in order to obtain the chemical influence of Blue Jets when equilibrium is reached (subsection~\\ref{sec:chem10}). We do not include in this discussion the chemical impact of Blue Jets using the parameterizations that overestimate the Blue Jet frequency (``LPC-TROP UP\"). \n\n\\subsubsection{Transient response}\n\\label{sec:chem1}\nIn this section we present and discuss the global impact of Blue Jets over one year for all the considered cases. It is important to note that simulations of one year including the chemical perturbation of Blue Jets do not allow the atmosphere to reach the equilibrium. However, these short simulations are useful to choose the most realistic cases before extending the simulation to five and ten years. \nWe collect in table~\\ref{tab:results} the total annual production, i.e., the total number of NO, N$_2$O and O molecules injected in the atmosphere by Blue Jets for all the considered cases of the CTH lightning parameterization, while we show in the supplementary material the results corresponding to other lightning parameterizations. The cases in which the production of N$_2$O is larger than the natural source of atmospheric N$_2$O (10.2~Tg~N$_2$O-N~yr$^{-1}$) \\citep{davidson2009\/nat, Prather2015\/JGR} and the total occurrence rate of Blue Jets is higher than 1 BJ per minute will be considered as unrealistic scenarios. Therefore, the realistic scenarios would be most of the``IS-TROP UP\", all ``IS-TROP LOW\" and most of ``LPC-TROP LOW\". The lower realistic scenario (3.6 $\\times$ 10$^{-6}$ BJ per lightning flash and R$_1$ = 2.5~m) produces a Blue Jet frequency of 1.4 $\\times$ 10$^{-3}$ BJ per minute and 6.6 $\\times$ 10$^{-4}$ Tg~N$_2$O-N~yr$^{-1}$ (ICEFLUX IS-TROP LOW R$_1$), while the higher realistic case (3.6 $\\times$ 10$^{-4}$ BJ per lightning flash and R$_2$ = 12.5~m) produces a Blue Jet frequency of 0.72~BJ per minute and 7.6~Tg~N$_2$O-N~yr$^{-1}$ (CTH LPC-TROP LOW R$_2$). \nThe predicted production of NO in the so-called realistic cases is about two orders of magnitude lower that the production of NO by lightning. The global production of NO by Blue Jets is then negligible. The global production of O is also negligible.\n\n\nLet us now estimate the transient chemical impact of Blue Jets in the atmosphere over one year. For this purpose, we calculate the global annual average vertical profile of some chemical species obtained from the simulations of Blue Jets and compare them with the profiles produced in the simulations without Blue Jets. We plot the obtained results with the cases whose predicted Blue Jet frequency is close to the maximum value estimated from the TLE occurrence reported by ISUAL (IS-TROP UP R$_1$ and R$_2$; and LPC-TROP LOW R$_1$ and R$_2$, respectively) in figure~\\ref{fig:bj_price}, together with the percentage of change at each altitude between simulations with and without Blue Jets (relative enhancement). The last three plots of figure~\\ref{fig:bj_price} correspond to the vertical production rate of NO, N$_2$O and O by both Blue Jets and lightning. Figure~\\ref{fig:bj_price} shows results for the CTH lightning parameterization, while the supplementary material shows figures collecting results with other lightning parameterizations (CP, CPCAPE, MFLUX, ICEFLUX).\n\n\nIt is worth analyzing the obtained chemical impact for each considered species. The most remarkable chemical impact of Blue Jets are the enhancements in the densities of NO$_x$ and N$_2$O at altitudes between 10~km and 30~km. Most of the simulations producing a realistic Blue Jet frequency and imposing R$_2$ = 12.5~m (IS-TROP UP R$_2$ and LPC-TROP LOW R$_2$) predict maximum density increases of NO$_x$ and N$_2$O of 30~\\% and 5~\\%, respectively. Simulations that produce the lowest possible Blue Jet frequency (IS-TROP LOW R$_1$ and R$_2$) and simulations producing a realistic Blue Jet frequency (IS-TROP UP R$_1$ and LPC-TROP LOW R$_1$) and imposing R$_1$ = 2.5~m predict a negligible influence of Blue Jets in the global amount of NO$_x$ and N$_2$O. \n\nVertical profiles of other species can also be influenced by the inclusion of Blue Jets in the global atmospheric chemistry. Blue Jets could produce a decrease in the upper tropospheric density of OH and HO$_2$ of about 5~\\% and 20~\\%, respectively. The injected NO molecules would led to an increase in OH and a reduction of HO$_2$ by the process NO + HO$_2$ $\\rightarrow$ NO$_2$ + OH \\citep{murray2013interannual}. However, the conversion of NO into NO$_2$ can also contribute to a decrease in the concentration of OH, specially at lower altitudes by the process NO$_2$ + OH + M $\\rightarrow$ HNO$_3$ + M, where M represents air molecules (N$_2$ + O$_2$). According to our results, the concentration of HNO$_3$ and SO$_2$ could increase about 20~\\%. HNO$_3$ and SO$_2$ molecules can directly contribute to the production of acid rain \\citep{seinfeld2016atmospheric}. The density profile of CO can exhibit both relative increases and decreases at different altitudes, as its gains and losses mechanisms depend on the concentration of OH according to the process CO + OH $\\rightarrow$ CO$_2$ + H \\citep{murray2013interannual}.\nThe global density profiles of other species, such as O$_3$ and O, are not significantly influenced by Blue Jets.\n\n\nThe first panel of figure~\\ref{fig:bj_column_chem_enhancement_cases} shows the annual average total column density of N$_2$O after a WACCM4 simulation of 1~year using the lightning parameterization by \\cite{Price1992\/JGR} without Blue Jets. The rest of the panels in figure~\\ref{fig:bj_column_chem_enhancement_cases} show the annual average total column density difference of N$_2$O between two simulations of 1~year with and without Blue Jets using different lightning parameterizations. The geographical distribution of N$_2$O changes is directly linked to the adopted lightning parameterization (see figure~\\ref{fig:bj_cases_3}), with strong increases in N$_2$O in the tropics and\/or mid-latitudes in relation to a local stronger Blue Jet occurrence in those regions. Interestingly, all lightning parameterizations produce an enhancement in the concentration of N$_2$O near the northern high latitude and polar regions. Given the limited amount of Blue Jet simulated to occur at high latitude, N$_2$O is likely increased by wave-driven transport and mixing from lower latitudes in the extratropical upper troposphere-lowermost stratosphere on relatively fast timescales (see e.g. \\cite{holton1995stratosphere}). On longer timescales (see e.g. the 5 and 10 years cases presented below), increases in N$_2$O at high latitude can occur through poleward and downward adiabatic transport of tropical air. Similar effects are produced also in simulations of LNO$_x$ by \\cite{grewe2009impact} with high impact of LNO$_x$ to changes at high latitude.\n\n\n\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\includegraphics[width=1\\columnwidth]{bj_price.pdf}\n\\caption{\\label{fig:bj_price}\nSolid lines correspond to annual global average density of some species after a WACCM4 simulation of 1~year including Blue Jets and using the lightning parameterization CTH \\citep{Price1992\/JGR}. Triangles correspond to the same simulation with lightning but without Blue Jets. Dashed lines represent the percentage difference when Blue Jets are included. The last three subplots in the lower row show the total production rate of NO, N$_2$O and O, respectively by Blue Jets and lightning.\n}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\includegraphics[width=1\\columnwidth]{bj_column_chem_enhancement_cases.pdf}\n\\caption{\\label{fig:bj_column_chem_enhancement_cases}\nThe top left panel shows the annual average total column density of N$_2$O after a WACCM4 simulation of 1~year using the lightning parameterization by \\cite{Price1992\/JGR} without Blue Jets. The other panels correspond to the variation in the annual average total column density of N$_2$O between two simulations of 1~year with and without Blue Jets using different lightning parameterizations and the realistic Blue Jet parameterization ``LPC-TROP UP R$_1$\" . \n}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\subsubsection{Response close to equilibrium}\n\\label{sec:chem10}\n\nThe analysis of the global chemical impact of Blue Jets presented in the previous section is based on a simulation of one year. As we pointed out in section~\\ref{sec:models}, the lifetime of N$_2$O is of the order of a century, while the time scale of the overturning circulation is about 5~years.\n\nWe select two of the previously identified realistic cases in terms of Blue Jet frequency (LPC-TROP LOW R$_1$ and R$_2$) and extend the CTH-based simulations up to five and ten years. We also extend the control case without Blue Jets up to five and ten years. This approach allows us to see the global distribution after the injected species have been transported. It is important to emphasize that a simulation of more than 100~years would be necessary to reach the complete chemical equilibrium. However, such a long simulation is out of the scope of this paper. We plot on figures~\\ref{fig:bj_price_2004} and~\\ref{fig:bj_price_2009} the atmospheric chemical influence of Blue Jets annual averaged for the fifth and the tenth year of simulation, respectively. The chemical influence of Blue Jets is a factor of two larger in the five year simulation (see figure~\\ref{fig:bj_price_2004}) than in the simulation of one year (figure~\\ref{fig:bj_price}). Hence, we cannot assume that the atmosphere has already reached an equilibrium after including Blue Jets. However, the chemical influence of Blue Jets as shown in the 10 year simulation (see figure~\\ref{fig:bj_price_2009}) is quite similar to the one obtained in the simulation of five years, indicating that a simulation of ten years may be sufficient to estimate the global chemical impact of Blue Jets despite the 100~year lifetime of N$_2$O. After a simulation of ten years, the density enhancements and decreases obtained in the previous section (one year simulations) are increased by a factor of two. The increase in the tropospheric density of HNO$_3$ suggests that Blue Jets could also have a direct influence in the acidity of rainwater.\n\nLet us now investigate the geographical chemical impact of Blue Jets resulting from a 10 year simulation. We plot in figure~\\ref{fig:bj_column_chem_absolute} the annual average total column density of some species after simulating a decade using the realistic BJ parameterization ``LPC-TROP LOW R$_2$\". The differences with respect to a simulation without Blue Jets are plotted in figure~\\ref{fig:bj_column_chem_enhancement} (total column density) and in figure~\\ref{fig:lat} (longitudinally averaged vertical profile of N$_2$O and O$_3$). The maximum influence in the density of N$_2$O and HNO$_3$ is concentrated near the North Pole, as can be seen in figures~\\ref{fig:bj_column_chem_enhancement} and~\\ref{fig:lat}. \nFigure~\\ref{fig:lat} also shows a slight depletion of about 5 \\% in the column density of O$_3$ above 30~km near the Equator. Although the total column density of O$_3$ in polar regions is not significantly affected by Blue Jets (see figure~\\ref{fig:bj_column_chem_enhancement}). Figure~\\ref{fig:lat} shows that there is an increase of O$_3$ below 18~km of altitude at all latitudes and a decrease above 20~km of altitude of about~5 \\%. \nSome other species show differences that are distributed through mid latitudes, especially around points of maximum Blue Jet occurrence rates. \n\n\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\includegraphics[width=1\\columnwidth]{bj_price_2004.pdf}\n\\caption{\\label{fig:bj_price_2004}\nSolid lines correspond to annual global average density of some species after a WACCM4 simulation of 5~years including Blue Jets and using the lightning parameterization CTH \\citep{Price1992\/JGR}. Triangles correspond to the same simulation with lightning but without Blue Jets. Dashed lines represent the percentage variation with respect to a similar simulation without Blue Jets. The last three subplots in the lower row show the total production rate of NO, N$_2$O and O by lightning and Blue Jets. Note that the horizontal upper scale of figures~\\ref{fig:bj_price}, \\ref{fig:bj_price_2004} and \\ref{fig:bj_price_2009} are different.\n}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\includegraphics[width=1\\columnwidth]{bj_price_2009.pdf}\n\\caption{\\label{fig:bj_price_2009}\nSolid lines correspond to annual global average density of some species after a WACCM4 simulation of 10~year including Blue Jets and using the lightning parameterization CTH \\citep{Price1992\/JGR}. Triangles correspond to the same simulation with lightning but without Blue Jets. Dashed lines represent the percentage variation with respect to a similar simulation without Blue Jets. The last three subplots in the lower row show the total production rate of NO, N$_2$O and O by lightning and Blue Jets. Note that the horizontal upper scale of figures~\\ref{fig:bj_price}, \\ref{fig:bj_price_2004} and \\ref{fig:bj_price_2009} are different.\n}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\includegraphics[width=1\\columnwidth]{bj_column_chem_absolute.pdf}\n\\caption{\\label{fig:bj_column_chem_absolute}\nAnnual average total column density of some chemical species after a WACCM4 simulation of 10~years including Blue Jets. These subplots have been calculated using the lightning parameterization based on the cloud-top height CTH \\citep{Price1992\/JGR} and the Blue Jets parameterization denoted as ``LPC-TROP LOW R$_2$\".\n}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\includegraphics[width=1\\columnwidth]{bj_column_chem_enhancement}\n\\caption{\\label{fig:bj_column_chem_enhancement}\nDifferences in the annual average total column density of some chemical species between two simulations of 10~years with (as in figure~\\ref{fig:bj_column_chem_absolute}) and without Blue Jets. Positive values correspond to enhancement in densities due to Blue Jets, while negative variations represent density decrease produced by Blue Jets. \n}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\includegraphics[width=1\\columnwidth]{lat.pdf}\n\\caption{\\label{fig:lat}\nLatitude-altitude distribution of the differences in the annual average density profile of N$_2$O and O$_3$ between two simulations of 10~years with (as in figure~\\ref{fig:bj_column_chem_absolute}) and without Blue Jets. These variations are longitudinally average.\n}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\nThe obtained density profile of N$_2$O can be compared with measurements of Aura-MLS and MIPAS \\citep{Plieninger2016\/ACP} to determine how well the obtained response corresponds with observations. As detailed by \\cite{Plieninger2016\/ACP}, Aura-MLS and MIPAS (operating at reduced resolution mode) measured the density profile of N$_2$O over a wide range of latitudes. Figure~7 of \\cite{Plieninger2016\/ACP} shows the reported N$_2$O and their error bars from Aura-MLS and MIPAS. We plot these profiles together with the N$_2$O obtained after 10 year simulations with Blue Jets in figure~\\ref{fig:bj_price_2009_N2O}. It can be seen that the equilibrium response of WACCM4 including Blue Jets produce a global average N$_2$O profile that falls in the range reported by Aura-MLS and MIPAS for the cases ``LPC-TROP LOW R$_1$ and R$_2$\".\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\includegraphics[width=0.6\\columnwidth]{bj_price_2009_N2O.pdf}\n\\caption{\\label{fig:bj_price_2009_N2O}\nComparison between the global average profile of N$_2$O obtained by Aura-MLS and MIPAS \\citep{Plieninger2016\/ACP} and the global average profile of N$_2$O after 10 year simulation with and without Blue Jets in WACCM4 (second subplot of the first row of figure~\\ref{fig:bj_price_2009}) shown here with red, purple and superimposed green solid lines (absolute values) and dashed lines (percentage of change). Blue and yellow solid lines correspond to the lower and upper total N$_2$O density reported by Aura-MLS and MIPAS according to the error bars shown in figure 7 of \\cite{Plieninger2016\/ACP}. Blue and yellow dashed lines are the percentage of difference between the lower and upper total N$_2$O density reported by Aura-MLS and MIPAS and the N$_2$O profile of a WACCM4 simulation without Blue Jets.\n}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\n\n\\normalsize\n\n\\section{Summary and conclusions}\n\n\nWe have introduced for the first time Blue Jets in an atmospheric global circulation model. The Blue Jet parameterization presented here is a step further in the coupling between local and global models of atmospheric electricity phenomena. \nPrevious local models of Blue Jets predicted an important local enhancement of N$_2$O and NO$_x$ molecules between 18~km and 38~km of altitude, as well as a depletion of O$_3$ \\citep{Winkler2015\/JASTP}. The significant local chemical influence of Blue Jets suggests that their global chemical influence could be non-negligible. \n\nIn this work, we have developed two different global parameterizations of Blue Jets. The first parameterizations (IS-TROP LOW and UP) is based on the ratio between lightning and TLE occurrence rate as reported by ISUAL and introduces a physical-based geographical dependence for the occurrence of Blue Jets. These parameterizations link the occurrence of TLEs with the altitude of the cloud top. It imposes the condition that the top of the thunderclouds must be near the tropopause in order to favor the inception of Blue Jets. Finally, the second Blue Jet parameterizations (LCP-TROP LOW and UP) are based on the observational evidences pointing to a close relationship between strong lightning discharges and Blue Jets in thunderstorms. We have obtained a good agreement between the TLE occurrence rate reported by ISUAL and the predicted ones by the Blue Jet parameterizations introduced in WACCM4 except with LCP-TROP UP. \n\nThe implementation of these Blue Jet parameterizations in WACCM4 has allowed us to estimate their global chemical influence in the atmosphere. We have made several assumptions about the geometry of single Blue Jets in order to couple the local chemical model of \\cite{Winkler2015\/JASTP} with the global chemistry implemented in WACCM4. Depending on the differences between the obtained N$_2$O profile and the profiles reported by Aura-MLS and MIPAS \\citep{Plieninger2016\/ACP}, we have distinguished between realistic and extreme cases. According to the most realistic cases, Blue Jets would inject between 6.6 $\\times$ 10$^{-4}$~Tg~N$_2$O-N~yr$^{-1}$ and 7.6~Tg~N$_2$O-N~yr$^{-1}$ near 20~km of altitude. The average value 3.8~Tg~N$_2$O-N~yr$^{-1}$ corresponds about 38~\\% of natural N$_2$O sources. In addition, we have obtained that the global production of NO$_x$ by Blue Jets is between 10$^{-5}$~Tg~NO-N~yr$^{-1}$ and 0.14~Tg~NO-N~yr$^{-1}$. The average value 0.07~Tg~NO-N~yr$^{-1}$ is about 1~\\% of natural NO sources, two orders of magnitude below the production of NO$_x$ by lightning on the troposphere. WACCM4 has allowed us to estimate the influence of Blue Jets in other chemical species apart from NO$_x$ and N$_2$O. In particular, we have found that the stratospheric (between 20~km and 40~km) concentration of some species such as OH, HO$_2$, SO$_2$ and HNO$_3$ could also be influenced by Blue Jets. Finally, we have also found that the inclusion of Blue Jets in WACCM4 can account for a maximum decrease of O$_3$ by about 5 \\% between 20~km and 40~km of altitude. \n\n\nThere are several reasons behind the high uncertainty in what we call realistic results. First, there is not a clear convenient global parameterization of lightning to be combined with the proposed Blue Jet parameterizations \\citep{Tost2007\/ACP}. Second, the detailed mechanisms behind the production of Blue Jets are still poorly described, which makes it difficult to build global parameterization for Blue Jets. Finally, the complex chemistry taking place in the high temperature leader-phase of Blue Jets together with the uncertainties in their electrodynamical radius imply an important uncertainty of the local chemical influence of Blue Jets. All in all, we consider this work as a first approximation to the understanding of the influence of Blue Jets on the global atmospheric chemistry.\n\n\\clearpage\n\n\\small\n\n\\begin{longtable}{|c|c|c|c|c|}\n\n\\hline \\multicolumn{1}{|c}{\\textbf{L-BJ parameterizations}} & \\multicolumn{1}{|c}{\\textbf{BJ frequency [min$^{-1}$]}} & \\multicolumn{1}{|c}{\\textbf{Tg~NO-N~yr$^{-1}$}} & \\multicolumn{1}{|c}{\\textbf{Tg~N$_2$O-N~yr$^{-1}$}} & \\multicolumn{1}{|c|}{\\textbf{Tg~O~yr$^{-1}$}} \\\\\n\n\\endfirsthead\n\n\\multicolumn{1}{|c}{\\textbf{L-BJ parameterization}} & \\multicolumn{1}{|c}{\\textbf{BJ frequency [min$^{-1}$]}} & \\multicolumn{1}{|c}{\\textbf{Tg~NO-N~yr$^{-1}$}} & \\multicolumn{1}{|c}{\\textbf{Tg~N$_2$O-N~yr$^{-1}$}} & \\multicolumn{1}{|c|}{\\textbf{Tg~O~yr$^{-1}$}} \\\\\n\\hline\n\\endhead\n\n\n\n\\hline\n\nCTH IS-TROP UP R$_1$ & 0.9 & 6 $\\times$ 10$^{-3}$ & 0.42 & 3 $\\times$ 10$^{-7}$ \\\\ \n\\hline\nCTH IS-TROP UP R$_2$ & 0.9 & 0.16 & 10.4 & 7 $\\times$ 10$^{-6}$ \\\\ \n\\hline\nCTH IS-TROP LOW R$_1$ & 9 $\\times$ 10$^{-3}$ & 6 $\\times$ 10$^{-6}$ & 4 $\\times$ 10$^{-3}$ & 3 $\\times$ 10$^{-9}$ \\\\ \n\\hline\nCTH IS-TROP LOW R$_2$ & 9 $\\times$ 10$^{-3}$ & 1.5 $\\times$ 10$^{-3}$ & 0.1 & 8 $\\times$ 10$^{-8}$ \\\\ \n\\hline\nCTH LPC-TROP UP R$_1$ & 7.2 & 5 $\\times$ 10$^{-2}$ & 3.0 & 3 $\\times$ 10$^{-6}$ \\\\ \n\\hline\nCTH LPC-TROP UP R$_2$ & 7.2 & 1.36 & 76.0 & 7 $\\times$ 10$^{-5}$ \\\\ \n\\hline\nCTH LPC-TROP LOW R$_1$ & 0.72 & 5 $\\times$ 10$^{-3}$ & 0.3 & 3 $\\times$ 10$^{-7}$ \\\\ \n\\hline\nCTH LPC-TROP LOW R$_2$ & 0.72 & 0.14 & 7.6 & 7 $\\times$ 10$^{-6}$ \\\\ \n\\hline\n\n\\caption{BJ frequency and production of NO, N$_2$O and O obtained for different one year simulations using BJ parameterizations and the CTH lightning parameterization.} \\label{tab:results} \\\\\n\n\\end{longtable}\n\n\n\n\\section*{Acknowledgement}\n\nThe authors acknowledge helpful discussions with Rolando Garcia, Daniel Marsh, Michael Mills, Charles Bardeen, Douglas Kinnison, Andrew Gettelman, Simone Tilmes, Louisa Emmons and Heidi Huntrieser. This work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, MINECO under projects ESP2015-69909-C5-2-R and ESP2017-86263-C4-4-R and by the EU through the H2020 Science and Innovation with Thunderstorms (SAINT) project (Ref. 722337) and the FEDER program. The National Center for Atmospheric Research is sponsored by the National Science Foundation. FJPI acknowledges a PhD research contract, code BES-2014-069567. FJGV acknowledges support from the Spanish Ministry of Education and Culture under the Salvador de Madariaga program PRX17\/00078. Data and codes presented here are available from figshare repository at bit.ly\/WACCMBJ.\n\n\\newcommand{\\pra}{Phys. Rev. A} \n\\newcommand{\\jgr}{J. Geoph. Res. } \n\\newcommand{\\jcp}{J. Chem. Phys. } \n\\newcommand{\\ssr}{Space Sci. Rev.} \n\\newcommand{\\planss}{Plan. Spac. Sci.} \n\\newcommand{\\pre}{Phys. Rev. E} \n\\newcommand{\\nat}{Nature} \n\\newcommand{\\icarus}{Icarus} \n\\newcommand{\\ndash}{-} \n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\\section{Introduction}\n\nCellularity is a concept due to Graham and Lehrer ~\\cite{Graham-Lehrer-cellular} that is useful for studying non--semisimple specializations of certain algebras such as Hecke algebras, $q$--Schur algebras, etc. A number of important examples of cellular algebras, including the Hecke algebras of type $A$ and the Birman--Wenzl--Murakami (BMW) algebras, actually occur in towers $A_0 \\subseteq A_1 \\subseteq A_2 \\subseteq \\dots$ with coherent cellular structures. Coherence means that the cellular structures are well--behaved with respect to induction and restriction.\n\nThis paper establishes a framework for proving cellularity of towers of algebras $(A_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ that are obtained by repeated Jones basic constructions from a coherent tower of cellular algebras $(Q_n)_{n \\ge 0}$. \n\nExamples that fit in our framework include: Temperley-Lieb algebras, Brauer algebras, walled Brauer algebras, Birman--Wenzl--Murakami (BMW) algebras, cyclotomic BMW algebras, partition algebras, and contour algebras.\nWe give a uniform proof of cellularity for all of these algebras. \n\nWe should alert the reader that we use a definition of cellular algebras that is slightly weaker than the original definition of Graham and Lehrer. The two definitions are equivalent in case $2$ is invertible in the ground ring, and we know of no consequence of cellularity that would not also hold with the weaker definition; in particular, all results of Graham and Lehrer ~\\cite{Graham-Lehrer-cellular} go through with the modified definition. See Section \\ref{subsection: cellularity} for details. Our contention is that the relaxed definition is in fact superior, as it allows one to deal more naturally with extensions of cellular algebras. \nFor this reason, we have retained the terminology ``cellularity\" for our weaker definition, rather than inventing some new terminology such as ``weak cellularity.\" \n\n Once we have proved our abstract result (Theorem \\ref\n{main theorem}), it is generally very easy to check that each example fits our framework, and thus that the tower $(A_n)_{n\\ge 0}$ in the example is a coherent tower of cellular algebras. What we need is, for the most part, already in the literature, or completely elementary. The application of our method to the cyclotomic BMW algebras depends on a very recent result of Mathas regarding induced modules of cyclotomic Hecke algebras ~\\cite{mathas-2009}. \n\n\n\nFor most of our examples, cellularity has been established previously (but coherence of the cellular structures is a new result). Many of the existing proofs of cellularity for these algebras follow the pattern made explicit by Xi in his paper on cellularity of the partition algebras ~\\cite{Xi-Partition}. The cellular bases obtained are pieced together from cellular bases of the (quotient) algebras $Q_k$ and bases of certain $R$--modules $V_k$ of tangles or diagrams, where $R$ is the ground ring for $A_n$; a formal method for piecing the parts together is K\\\"onig and Xi's method of ``inflation\" \n~\\cite{KX-Morita}. It is not evident that the resulting ``tangle bases'' yield coherent cellular structures.\nBy contrast, the cellular bases that we produce are indexed by paths on the branching diagram (Bratteli diagram) for the generic semisimple representation theory of the tower $(A_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ over a field, and coherence is built into the construction. \n\nFor example, for the Brauer algebras, the BMW algebras, and the cyclotomic BMW algebras, \nour cellular basis of the $n$--th algebra is indexed by up--down tableaux of length $n$, and may be regarded as\nan analogue of Murphy's cellular basis ~\\cite{murphy-hecke95} for the Hecke algebra, or the basis of Dipper, James and Mathas ~\\cite{dipper-james-mathas} for the cyclotomic Hecke algebras.\n A Murphy type basis for the BMW and Brauer algebras has been constructed by Enyang ~\\cite{Enyang2}, but such a basis for the cyclotomic BMW algebras has not been obtained previously. It would be fairly involved to extend Enyang's method to the cyclotomic case, but our method applies to this case without difficulty. \n\n\nLet us remark on the role played by the generic ground ring for our examples. For each of our examples $(A_n)_{n \\ge 0}$, there is a generic ground ring $R$ such that any specialization $A_n^S$ to a ground ring $S$ is obtained as $A_n^S = A_n^R \\otimes_R S$. Moreover, $R$ is an integral domain, and if $F$ denotes the field of fractions of $R$, then the algebras $(A_n^F)_{n \\ge 0}$ are split semisimple with a known representation theory and branching diagram. It suffices for us to prove that the sequence of algebras defined over the generic ground ring $R$ is a coherent cellular tower, and we find that we can use the structure of the algebras defined over $F$ as a tool to accomplish this.\n\n\n \n \nOur approach is influenced by the work of K\\\"onig and Xi ~\\cite{KX-Morita} as well as by the work of Cox et.~al. on ``towers of recollement\" ~\\cite{cox-towers}. In fact, the idea behind our approach is roughly the following: Each algebra $A_n$ (over the generic ground ring $R$) contains an essential idempotent $e_{n-1}$ with the properties that $e_{n-1} A_n e_{n-1} \\cong A_{n-2}$ and \\break $A_n\/(A_n e_{n-1} A_n) \\cong Q_n$, where $Q_n$ is a cellular algebra. Assuming that $A_{n-2}$ and $A_{n-1}$ are cellular, we show that the\n(generally non--unital) ideal $I_n = A_n e_{n-1} A_n$ is a ``cellular ideal\" in $A_n$ by relating ideals of \n$A_{n-2}$ to ideals of $A_n$ contained in $I_n$. This proof involves a new basis--free characterization of cellularity and also involves showing that $I_n \\cong A_{n-1} \\otimes_{A_{n-2}} A_{n-1}$ as\n$A_{n-1}$ bimodules; thus $I_n$ is a sort of Jones basic construction for the pair $A_{n-2} \\subseteq A_{n-1}$. Since our version of cellularity behaves well under extensions, we can conclude that\n$A_n$ is cellular. Our method is related to ideas introduced by K\\\"onig and Xi in their treatment of \ncellularity and Morita equivalence ~\\cite{KX-Morita}. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n Following Cox et.~al.~\\cite{cox-towers}, our approach employs the interaction between induction and restriction functors relating $A_{n-1}$--mod and $A_{n}$--mod, on the one hand, and localization and globalization functions relating $A_n$--mod and $A_{n-2}$--mod, on the other hand. (Write $e = e_{n-1} \\in A_n$. The localization functor $F: A_n\\text{--mod} \\rightarrow e A_n e\\text{--mod} \\cong A_{n-2}\\text{--mod}$ is $F: M \\mapsto e M$. The globalization function $G: A_{n-2}\\text{--mod} \\cong e A_n e\\text{--mod} \\rightarrow A_n\\text{--mod}$ is $G: N \\mapsto A_n e \\otimes_{e A_n e} N$.) \n \n Our framework and that of Cox et.~al. dovetail nicely; in fact, our main result (Theorem ~\\ref{main theorem}) says that if \n $(A_n)$, $(Q_n)$ are two sequences of algebras satisfying our framework axioms, then $(A_n)$ satisfies a cellular version of the axioms for towers of recollement; see ~\\cite{cox-walled-brauer} for a discussion of cellularity and towers of recollement.\n\n\nAlthough our techniques do not seem to be adaptable to proving ``strict\" cellularity in the sense of \n~\\cite{Graham-Lehrer-cellular}, by combining our results with previous proofs of ``strict\" cellularity for our examples, we can show the existence of ``strictly\" cellular Murphy type bases, i.e. bases indexed by\npaths on the generic branching diagram for the sequence of algebras $(A_n)_{n \\ge 0}$. We will indicate how this can be done for the cyclotomic BMW algebras; other examples are similar. \n\nSeveral other general frameworks have been proposed for cellularity which also successfully encompass many of our examples; see ~\\cite{KX-Morita, green-martin-tabular, wilcox-cellular}.\n\nIn a companion paper ~\\cite{GG2}, we refine the framework of this paper to take into account the role played by Jucys--Murphy elements. At the same time, we modify Andrew Mathas's theory \\cite{mathas-seminormal} of cellular algebras with Jucys--Murphy elements to take into account coherent sequences of such algebras.\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent{\\bf Acknowledgement.} Part of this work was done while both authors were visiting MSRI in 2008. We are grateful to the organizers of the program in Combinatorial Representation Theory and to the staff at MSRI for a pleasant and stimulating visit. We thank the referees for helpful suggestions which resulted in several improvements. \n\n\\hfill \\newpage\n\n\\section{Preliminaries}\n\n \n\\subsection{Algebras with involution}\nLet $R$ be a commutative ring with identity. In the following, assume $A$ is an $R$--algebra with an involution $i$ (that is, an $R$--linear algebra anti--automorphism of $A$ with \\def\\id{{\\rm id}} $i^2 = \\id$). \n\nIf $M$ is a left $A$--module, we define a right $A$--module $i(M)$ as follows. As a set, $i(M)$ is a copy of $M$, with elements marked with the symbol $i$, $i(M) = \\{i(m) : m \\in M\\}$. The $R$--module structure of $i(M)$ is given by $i(m_1) + i(m_2) = i(m_1 + m_2)$, and $r i(m) = i(r m)$. Finally, the right $A$--module structure is defined by\n$i(m) a = i( (i(a) m)$. If $\\alpha : M \\to N$ is a homomorphism of left $A$--modules, define $i(\\alpha) : i(M) \\to i(N)$ by $i(\\alpha)(i(m)) = i(\\alpha(m))$. Then $i : A\\text{--mod} \\to \\text{mod--}A$ is a functor. \nFor any fixed $M$, \n$i : M \\to i(M)$ given by $m \\mapsto i(m)$ is, by definition, an isomorphism of $R$--modules.\n\nIf $\\Delta$ is a left ideal in $A$, we have two possible meanings for $i : \\Delta \\to i(\\Delta)$, namely the restriction to $\\Delta$ of the involution $i$, whose image is a right ideal in $A$, or the application of the functor $i$. However, there is no problem with this, as the right $A$--module obtained by applying the functor $i$ can be identified with the\nright ideal $i(\\Delta)$.\n \n\n\n The same construction gives a map from right $A$--modules to left $A$--modules. Moreover, if \n$A$ and $B$ are $R$--algebras with involutions $i_A$ and $i_B$, and $M$ is an $A$--$B$--bimodule, then\n$i(M)$, defined as above as an $R$--module has the structure of a $B$--$A$--bimodule with\n$b\\, i(m) a =i( i_A(a) m \\, i_B(b))$. \nNote that $i\\circ i(M)$ is naturally isomorphic to $M$, so $i$ is an equivalence between the categories of \n$A$--$B$--bimodules and the category of $B$--$A$--bimodules.\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma; involutions and tensor products of bimodules}\n Suppose $A$, $B$, and $C$ are $R$--algebras with involutions $i_A$, $i_B$, and $i_C$. Let\n$_B P_A$ and $_A Q_C$ be bimodules. Then\n$$\ni(P \\otimes_A Q) \\cong i(Q) \\otimes_A i(P),\n$$\nas $C$--$B$--bimodules.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} It is straightforward to check that there is a well defined $R$--linear isomorphism\n$f_0 : P \\otimes_A Q \\to i(Q) \\otimes_A i(P)$ such that $f_0(p \\otimes q) = i(q) \\otimes i(p)$. Then\n$$f = f_0 \\circ i^{-1} : i(P\\otimes_A Q) \\to i(Q) \\otimes_A i(P)$$ is an $R$--linear isomorphism. Finally, one can check that $f$ is a $C$--$B$--bimodule map.\n\\end{proof}\n \n\n\n\\begin{remark} \\label{remark: i applied to tensor product}\nNote that if we identify $i(P \\otimes_A Q)$ with $i(Q) \\otimes_A i(P)$ via $f$, then we have the \nformula $i(p \\otimes q) = i(q) \\otimes i(p)$. In particular, let $M$ be a $B$--$A$--bimodule, and identify\n$i\\circ i(M)$ with $M$, and $i(M\\otimes_A i(M))$ with $i\\circ i(M) \\otimes_A i(M) = M\\otimes_A i(M)$.\nThen we have the formula $i(x \\otimes i(y)) = y \\otimes i(x)$. We will use these identifications throughout the paper.\n\\end{remark}\n \n \n\\subsection{Cellularity} \\label{subsection: cellularity}\n\nWe recall the definition of {\\em cellularity} from ~\\cite{Graham-Lehrer-cellular}; see also\n~\\cite{Mathas-book}. The version of the definition given here is slightly weaker than the original definition in ~\\cite{Graham-Lehrer-cellular}; we justify this below.\n\n\n\\begin{definition} \\label{gl cell} Let $R$ be an integral domain and $A$ a unital $R$--algebra. A {\\em cell datum} for $A$ consists of an algebra involution $i$ of $A$; a partially ordered set $(\\Lambda, \\ge)$ and \nfor each $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda$ a set $\\mathcal T(\\lambda)$; and a subset $\n\\mathcal C = \\{ c_{s, t}^\\lambda : \\lambda \\in \\Lambda \\text{ and } s, t \\in \\mathcal T(\\lambda)\\} \\subseteq A$; \nwith the following properties:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item $\\mathcal C$ is an $R$--basis of $A$.\n\\item \\label{mult rule} For each $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda$, let $\\breve A^\\lambda$ be the span of the $c_{s, t}^\\mu$ with\n$\\mu > \\lambda$. Given $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda$, $s \\in \\mathcal T(\\lambda)$, and $a \\in A$, there exist coefficients \n$r_v^s( a) \\in R$ such that for all $t \\in \\mathcal T(\\lambda)$:\n$$\na c_{s, t}^\\lambda \\equiv \\sum_v r_v^s(a) c_{v, t}^\\lambda \\mod \\breve A^\\lambda.\n$$\n\\item $i(c_{s, t}^\\lambda) \\equiv c_{t, s}^\\lambda \\mod \\breve A^\\lambda$ for all $\\lambda\\in \\Lambda$ and, $s, t \\in \\mathcal T(\\lambda)$.\n\n\\end{enumerate}\n$A$ is said to be a {\\em cellular algebra} if it has a cell datum. \n\\end{definition}\n\n\n\nFor brevity, we will write that $(\\mathcal C, \\Lambda)$ is a cellular basis of $A$. \n\n\n\n\n\n\\begin{remark} \\mbox{} \\label{remark: on definition of cellularity}\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item The original definition in ~\\cite{Graham-Lehrer-cellular} requires that $i(c_{s, t}^\\lambda) = c_{t, s}^\\lambda $ for all $\\lambda, s, t$. However, one can check that the results of \\cite{Graham-Lehrer-cellular} remain valid with our weaker axiom.\nIn fact, we are not aware of any consequence of cellularity that would not also hold with our weaker definition. \n\\item In case $2 \\in R$ is invertible, our definition is equivalent to the original. Here is the proof: Suppose that $2$ is invertible in the ground ring and that\n$\\{c_{s, t}^\\lambda\\}$ is a cellular basis in the sense of Definition \\ref{gl cell}. We want to produce a new cellular basis $\\{a_{s, t}^\\lambda\\}$ satisfying the strict equality $i(a_{s, t}^\\lambda) = a_{t, s}^\\lambda $ for all $\\lambda, s, t$. By hypothesis, for each $\\lambda, s, t$ there is a unique $f(\\lambda, s, t) \\in \\breve A^\\lambda$ such that $i(c_{s, t}^\\lambda) = c_{t, s}^\\lambda + f(\\lambda, s, t)$. One easily checks that $i(f(\\lambda, s, t)) = -f(\\lambda, t, s)$. Declare\n$a_{s, t}^\\lambda = c_{s, t}^\\lambda + (1\/2) f(\\lambda, t, s)$ for all $\\lambda, s, t$. \nThen $\\{a_{s, t}^\\lambda\\}$ has the desired properties. \n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{remark}\n\nWe recall some basic structures related to cellularity, see ~\\cite{Graham-Lehrer-cellular}.\nGiven $\\lambda\\in\\Lambda$. Let $A^\\lambda$ denote the span of the $c_{s,t}^{\\mu}$ with $\\mu \\geq \\lambda$. It follows that both $A^\\lambda$ and $\\breve A^\\lambda$ (defined above) are $i$--invariant two sided ideals of $A$.\nIf $t \\in \\mathcal T(\\lambda)$, define $C_t^\\lambda$ to be the $R$-submodule of $A^\\lambda\/\\breve A^\\la$ with basis $\\{ c_{s,t}^\\lambda + \\breve A^\\la : s \\in \\mathcal T(\\lambda) \\}$. Then $C_t^\\lambda$ is a left $A$-module by Definition \\ref{gl cell} (\\ref{mult rule}). Furthermore, the action of $A$ on $C_t^\\lambda$ is independent of $t$, i.e $C_u^{\\lambda}\\cong C_t^{\\lambda}$ for any $u,t \\in \\mathcal T(\\lambda)$. The {\\em left cell module} $\\Delta^\\lambda$ \nis defined as follows: as an $R$--module, $\\Delta^\\lambda$ is free with basis $\\{c_s^\\lambda$ : $s \\in \\mathcal T(\\lambda)\\}$; for each $a \\in A$, the action of $a$ on $\\Delta^\\lambda$ is defined by $ ac_s^\\lambda=\\sum_v r_v^s(a) c_v^\\lambda$ where $r_v^s(a)$ is as in Definition \\ref{gl cell} (\\ref{mult rule}). Then $\\Delta^\\lambda \\cong C_t^\\lambda$, for any $t \\in \\mathcal T(\\lambda)$.\n For all $s,t \\in \\mathcal T(\\lambda)$, we have a canonical $A-A$--bimodule isomorphism $\\alpha : A^\\lambda\/\\breve A^\\la \\rightarrow \\Delta^\\lambda \\otimes_R i(\\Delta^\\lambda)$ defined by $\\alpha(c_{s,t}^{\\lambda}+\\breve A^\\la)=c_s^\\lambda \\otimes_R i(c_t^\\lambda)$. Moreover, we have\n $i \\circ \\alpha = \\alpha \\circ i$, using Remark \\ref{remark: i applied to tensor product} and point (3) of Definition \\ref{gl cell}.\n\n\n\\begin{definition} Suppose $A$ is a unital $R$--algebra with involution $i$, and $J$ is an $i$--invariant ideal; then we have an induced algebra involution $i$ on $A\/J$. \nLet us say that $J$ is a {\\em cellular ideal} in $A$ if it satisfies the axioms for a cellular algebra (except for being unital) with cellular basis \n$$ \\{ c_{s, t}^\\lambda : \\lambda \\in \\Lambda_J \\text{ and } s, t \\in \\mathcal T(\\lambda)\\} \\subseteq J$$\nand we have, as in point (2) of the definition of cellularity, \n$$\na c_{s, t}^\\lambda \\equiv \\sum_v r_v^s(a) c_{v, t}^\\lambda \\mod \\breve J^\\lambda\n$$\nnot only for $a \\in J$ but also for $a \\in A$.\n\\end{definition}\n\n\n\\begin{remark} \\label{remark on extensions of cellular algebras} (On extensions of cellular algebras.) \nIf $J$ is a cellular ideal in $A$, and \n$H = A\/J$ is cellular (with respect to the involution induced from the involution on $A$), then $A$ is cellular. In fact, let $(\\Lambda_J, \\ge)$ be the partially ordered set in the cell datum for $J$ and $\\mathcal C_J$ the cellular basis.\nLet $(\\Lambda_H, \\ge)$ be the partially ordered set in the cell datum for $H$ and $\\{\\bar h_{u, v}^\\mu\\}$ the cellular basis. Then $A$ has a cell datum with partially ordered set $\\Lambda = \\Lambda_J \\cup \\Lambda_H$, with partial order agreeing with the original partial orders on $\\Lambda_J$ and on $\\Lambda_H$ and with $\\lambda > \\mu$ if $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_J$ and $\\mu \\in \\Lambda_H$.\nA cellular basis of $A$ is $\\mathcal C_J \\cup \\{h_{s, t}^\\mu\\}$, where $h_{s, t}^\\mu$ is any lift of $\\bar h_{s, t}^\\mu$.\n\n\nWith the original definition of ~\\cite{Graham-Lehrer-cellular}, the assertions of this remark would be valid only if the ideal\n$J$ has an $i$--invariant $R$--module complement in $A$.\nThe ease of handling extensions is our motivation for using the weaker definition of cellularity.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\n\\subsection{Basis--free formulations of cellularity}\nK\\\"onig and Xi have given a basis--free definition of cellularity ~\\cite{KX-Morita}. We describe a slight weakening of their definition, which corresponds exactly to our weaker form of Graham--Lehrer cellularity\n\n\\begin{definition}[K\\\"onig and Xi] \\label{defKX} Let $R$ be an integral domain and $A$ a unital $R$-algebra\nwith involution $i$. An $i$--invariant two sided ideal $J$ in $A$ is called a {\\em split ideal} if, and only if,\nthere exists a left ideal $\\Delta$ of $A$ contained in $J$, with $\\Delta$ finitely generated and free over $R$, and \nthere is an isomorphism of $A$--$A$--bimodules $\\alpha : J \\rightarrow \\Delta \\otimes_R i(\\Delta)$ making the following diagram commute:\n\\begin{diagram}\nJ\t&\\rTo^{\\alpha}\t&&\\Delta \\otimes_R i(\\Delta)\\\\\n\\dTo_{i} &&& \\dTo_{i}\\\\\nJ\t&\\rTo^{\\alpha}\t&&\\Delta \\otimes_R i(\\Delta)\\\\\n\\end{diagram}\n\n\\ignore{\n$$\\begin{CD}\nJ\t@>\\alpha>>\t\\Delta \\otimes_R i(\\Delta)\\\\\n@VViV\t\t\t@VViV\\\\\nJ\t@>\\alpha>>\t\t\\Delta \\otimes_R i(\\Delta).\n\\end{CD}$$\n}\nA finite chain of $i$--invariant two sided ideals\n$$0=J_0 \\subset J_1 \\subset J_2 \\subset \\cdots \\subset J_n = A$$\nis called a {\\em cell chain} if for each $j$ ($1 \\leq j \\leq n$), the quotient $J_j\/J_{j-1}$ is a split ideal of $A\/J_{j-1}$ (with respect to the involution induced by $i$ on $A\/J$). \n\\end{definition} \n\n\\begin{remark} \\label{remark on Konig Xi definition}\n\\mbox{}\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item K\\\"onig and Xi call a split ideal a ``cell ideal.\" We changed the terminology to avoid confusion with other concepts. \n\\item The definition of a cell chain differs from the one given by Konig and Xi in that we dropped the requirement that $J_{j-1}$ have an $i$-invariant $R$-module complement in $J_j$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{remark}\n\n\n \n\\begin{lemma} Let $R$ be an integral domain and let $A$ be a unital $R$--algebra with involution $i$.\nAn ideal $J$ of $A$ is split if, and only if, there exists a left $A$--module $M$ that is finitely generated and free as an $R$--module, and there exists an\nisomorphism of $A$--$A$--bimodules $\\gamma : J \\rightarrow M \\otimes_R i(M)$ making the following diagram commute:\n\\begin{diagram}\nJ &\\rTo^{\\gamma} &&M \\otimes_R i(M)\\\\\n\\dTo_{i} &&& \\dTo_{i}\\\\\nJ &\\rTo^{\\gamma} &&M \\otimes_R i(M)\\\\\n\\end{diagram}\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\n\n\\begin{proof} If $J$ is split, it clearly satisfies the condition of the lemma. Conversely, suppose the condition of the lemma is satisfied. Fix some element $b_0$ of the basis of $M$ over $R$ and define a left $A$--module map\n$\\beta : M \\to A$ by $\\beta(m) = \\gamma^{-1}(m \\otimes b_0)$. Then $\\beta$ is an isomorphism of $M$ onto a left\nideal $\\Delta$ of $A$ contained in $J$.\n\n\\ignore{\nRegard $M$ as an $A$--$R$--bimodule.\nAs in Remark \\ref{remark: i applied to tensor product}, identify $i\\circ i(M)$ with $M$ and\n$i(M \\otimes_R i(M))$ with $M \\otimes_R i(M)$. Then the map $x \\otimes i(y) \\mapsto y \\otimes i(x)$ is just\n$i : M \\otimes_R i(M) \\to M \\otimes_R i(M)$. The same considerations apply to $\\Delta$ as well.\n}\n\n\nNow we have $\\beta \\otimes i(\\beta) : M \\otimes_R i(M) \\to \\Delta \\otimes_R i(\\Delta)$\nis an isomorphism satisfying $(\\beta \\otimes i(\\beta)) \\circ i = i \\circ (\\beta \\otimes i(\\beta))$. It follows that\n$\\alpha = (\\beta \\otimes i(\\beta)) \\circ \\gamma : J \\to \\Delta \\otimes_R i(\\Delta)$ is an isomorphism of \n$A$--$A$--bimodules satisfying the requirement for a split ideal, namely, $ \\alpha \\circ i = i \\circ \\alpha$.\n\\end{proof}\n \n\n\\begin{lemma}[K\\\"onig and Xi] \\label{lemma: equivalence of GL and KX} Let $A$ be an $R$--algebra with involution.\n$A$ is {cellular} if, and only if, $A$ has a finite cell chain.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} We sketch the proof from ~\\cite{KX-structure}, p.\\ 372.\n\nSuppose $A$ has a cell datum with partially ordered set $(\\Lambda, \\ge)$ and cell basis $\\{ c_{s, t}^\\lambda\\}$. \nWrite $\\Lambda$ as a sequence $(\\lambda_1, \\lambda_2, \\dots, \\lambda_n)$, where $\\lambda_1$ is maximal in $\\Lambda$, and, for $1 \\le j < n$, \n$\\lambda_{j+1}$ is maximal in $\\Lambda \\setminus \\{\\lambda_1, \\dots, \\lambda_j\\}$. Then for each $j\\ge 1$, $\\Gamma_j = \\{\\lambda_1, \\dots, \\lambda_j\\}$ is an order ideal in $\\Lambda$. Set $\\Gamma_0 = \\emptyset$.\n Define $A(\\Gamma_j)$ to be the $R$-submodule of $A$ \nspanned by the basis elements $c_{u, v}^\\lambda$, with $\\lambda \\in \\Gamma_j$.\nThen $A(\\Gamma_j)$ is an $i$--invariant two sided ideal in $A$, and\n$$0=A(\\Gamma_0)\\subset A(\\Gamma_1)\\subset\\cdots\\subset A(\\Gamma_{n})=A.$$\nMoreover (see ~\\cite{Graham-Lehrer-cellular}, p. 6), \n$$A(\\Gamma_j)\/A(\\Gamma_{j-1})\\cong\nA^{\\lambda_j}\/\\breve A^{\\lambda_j} \\cong\n\\Delta^{\\lambda_j}\\otimes_Ri(\\Delta^{\\lambda_j}),$$\nand the isomorphism $\\alpha : A(\\Gamma_j)\/A(\\Gamma_{j-1}) \\to \\Delta^{\\lambda_j}\\otimes_Ri(\\Delta^{\\lambda_j})$ satisfies\n$\\alpha \\circ i = i \\circ \\alpha$. Thus $(A(\\Gamma_j))_{1 \\le j \\le n}$ is a cell chain.\n\nConversely, suppose $(J_j)_{0 \\le j \\le n}$ is a cell chain in $A$. Then for each $j \\ge 1$, we have an \n$A$--module $\\Delta_j$ that is finitely generated and free as an $R$--module, and an isomorphism of $A$--$A$--bimodules\n$\\alpha_j : J_j\/J_{j-1} \\to \\Delta_j \\otimes_R i(\\Delta_j)$ satisfying $i \\circ \\alpha_j = \\alpha_j \\circ i$.\n Let $\\{b^j_s : s\\in \\mathcal T(j)\\}$ be an $R$--basis of $\\Delta_j$ and let\n$c_{s, t}^{\\lambda_j}$ be any lift in $J_j$ of $\\alpha_j^{-1}(b^j_s \\otimes i(b^j_t))$. Now take $\\Lambda'$ to be $\\Lambda$ with the order $\\lambda_1 > \\lambda_2 > \\cdots > \\lambda_n$. Let $\\mathcal C = \\{c_{s, t}^{\\lambda_j} : 1\\le j \\le n; \\ s, t \\in \\mathcal T(j)\\}$. Then \n$(\\mathcal C, \\Lambda')$ is a cellular basis of $A$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{remark} In the Lemma, $A$ has a cellular basis $\\{c_{s, t}^\\lambda\\}$ with\n$i(c_{s, t}^\\lambda) = c_{t, s}^\\lambda$ if, and only if, $A$ has a finite cell chain $(J_j)$ such that\nfor each $j\\ge 1$, $J_{j-1}$ has an $i$--invariant $R$--module complement in $J_j$. \n\\end{remark}\n\nNote that if we follow the procedure of the proof, starting with a cell datum on $A$ with partially ordered set\n$(\\Lambda, \\ge)$, then the only information that we retain about $\\Lambda$ is that $\\lambda_{j+1}$ is maximal in \n$\\Lambda \\setminus \\Gamma_j$; we cannot recover the partial order on $\\Lambda$ from this. Moreover, if we continue to\nproduce a cellular basis $\\{c_{s, t}^j\\}$ from the cell chain $(A(\\Gamma_j))_{0 \\le j \\le n}$, the result will not necessarily have the properties of a cellular basis with respect to the original partially ordered set $(\\Lambda, \\ge)$.\n\nIn order to prove our main results, we will need a different basis--free formulation of cellularity that allows us to pass back and forth between\nthe formulation of Definition \\ref{gl cell} and the basis--free formulation without losing information about the partially ordered set.\n\n\n\\begin{definition} \\label{definition: cell net}\nLet $A$ be an $R$--algebra with involution $i$. Let $(\\Lambda, \\ge)$ be a finite partially ordered set. For $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda$, let\n $\\Gamma_{\\ge \\lambda}$ denote the order ideal $\\{\\mu : \\mu \\ge \\lambda\\}$ and $\\Gamma_{> \\lambda}$ the order ideal $\\{\\mu : \\mu > \\lambda\\}$.\n \nA {\\em $\\Lambda$--cell net} is a map from the set of order ideals of $\\Lambda$ to the set of $i$--invariant two sided ideals of $A$, \n$\\Gamma \\mapsto A_\\Gamma$, with the following properties:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item $A_\\emptyset = \\{0\\}$. If $\\Gamma_1 \\subseteq \\Gamma_2$, then $A_{\\Gamma_1} \\subseteq A_{\\Gamma_2} $.\n\\item For $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda$, write $A_{\\ge \\lambda} = A_{\\Gamma_{\\ge \\lambda}}$ and $A_{> \\lambda} = A_{\\Gamma_{> \\lambda}}$. Then\n$$A = {\\rm span}\\{A_{\\ge \\mu} : \\mu \\in \\Lambda \\},$$ and for all $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda$, $$A_{> \\lambda} ={\\rm span} \\{ A_{\\ge \\mu} : \\mu > \\lambda\\}.$$\n\\ignore{\n\\item If $\\mu$ is not comparable with $\\lambda_i$ ($1 \\le i \\le s$), then\n$$A_{\\ge \\mu} \\cap {\\rm span}\\{A_{\\ge \\lambda_i} : 1 \\le i \\le s\\} \\subseteq A_{> \\mu}.$$\n}\n\\item For each $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda$, there is an $A$--module $M^\\lambda$, finitely generated and free as an $R$--module, such that whenever $\\Gamma \\subseteq \\Gamma'$ are order ideals of $\\Lambda$, with $\\Gamma' \\setminus \\Gamma = \\{\\lambda\\}$, then there exists an\nisomorphism of $A$--$A$--bimodules $$\\alpha : A_{\\Gamma'}\/A_{\\Gamma} \\to M^\\lambda \\otimes_R i(M^\\lambda),$$ satisfying\n$i \\circ \\alpha = \\alpha \\circ i$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{definition}\n\n\\begin{proposition} \\label{lemma: cell net characterization of cellularity}\n Let $A$ be an $R$--algebra with involution, and let $(\\Lambda, \\ge)$ be a finite partially ordered set.\n Then $A$ has a cell datum with partially ordered set $\\Lambda$ if, and only if, $A$ has a $\\Lambda$--cell net.\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof} Suppose that $A$ has a cell datum with partially ordered set $\\Lambda$ and cell basis\n$\\{c_{s, t}^\\lambda\\}$. For each order ideal $\\Gamma$ of $\\Lambda$, let $A(\\Gamma)$ denote the span of those $c_{s, t}^\\lambda$ with\n$\\lambda \\in \\Gamma$. Then $\\Gamma \\mapsto A(\\Gamma)$ is a $\\Lambda$--cell net.\n\nConversely, suppose that $A$ has a $\\Lambda$--cell net, $\\Gamma \\mapsto A_\\Gamma$. For each $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda$, we have\nan isomorphism of $A$--$A$--bimodules $\\alpha_\\lambda : A_{\\ge \\lambda}\/A_{ > \\lambda} \\to M^\\lambda \\otimes_R i(M^\\lambda)$.\nLet $\\{b_s^\\lambda : s \\in \\mathcal T(\\lambda)\\}$ be an $R$--basis of $M^\\lambda$ and let $c_{s, t}^\\lambda$ be any lift of\n$\\alpha_\\lambda^{-1}(b_s^\\lambda \\otimes i(b_t^\\lambda))$ to $A_{\\ge \\lambda}$. We claim that $$\\mathcal C = \\{c_{s, t}^\\lambda : \\lambda \\in \\Lambda; s, t \\in \\mathcal T(\\lambda)\\}$$ is an $R$--basis of $A$. \n\nLet $A^\\lambda$ be the span of those $c_{s, t}^\\mu$ with $\\mu \\ge \\lambda$ and $\\breve A^\\lambda$ the span of those $c_{s, t}^\\mu$ with $\\mu > \\lambda$. If $\\mu \\ge \\lambda$, then for all $s, t \\in \\mathcal T(\\mu)$, $c_{s, t}^\\mu \\in A_{\\ge \\mu} \\subseteq A_{\\ge \\lambda}$, using point (1) of Definition \\ref{definition: cell net}.\nHence $A^\\lambda \\subseteq A_{\\ge \\lambda}$. Similarly, $\\breve A^\\lambda \\subseteq A_{> \\lambda} $.\n\n\n \nWe claim that \n\\begin{equation} \\label{equation: equality of ideals related to order ideals}\n\\text{for all} \\ \\lambda \\in \\Lambda, \\quad A_{\\ge \\lambda} = A^\\lambda.\n\\end{equation}\nThis is clear if $\\lambda$ is a maximal element of $\\Lambda$. (Note that $A_{> \\lambda} = A_\\emptyset = \\{0\\}$.)\n Now suppose that $\\lambda$ is not maximal and that for all\n $\\mu > \\lambda$, $A_{\\ge \\mu} = A^\\mu$. Then $$A_{> \\lambda} = {\\rm span}\\{A_{\\ge \\mu} : \\mu > \\lambda\\}\n = {\\rm span}\\{A^\\mu : \\mu > \\lambda\\} = \\breve A^\\lambda,$$\n where the first equality comes from (2) of Definition \\ref{definition: cell net} and the second from the induction hypothesis. By definition of $\\{c_{s, t}^\\lambda\\}$, we have $$A_{\\ge \\lambda} = {\\rm span}\\{c_{s, t}^\\lambda\\} + A_{> \\lambda} = {\\rm span}\\{c_{s, t}^\\lambda\\} + \\breve A^\\lambda = A^\\lambda.$$\n Assertion (\\ref{equation: equality of ideals related to order ideals}) now follows by induction. Point (2) of Definition \\ref{definition: cell net} and (\\ref{equation: equality of ideals related to order ideals}) imply that\n $A_{> \\lambda} = \\breve A^\\lambda$ for all $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda$, and that $A = {\\rm span}(\\mathcal C)$.\n \nWe now proceed to establish linear independence of $\\mathcal C$. \nWrite $\\Lambda$ as a sequence $(\\lambda_1, \\lambda_2, \\dots, \\lambda_K)$ with \n$\\lambda_1$ maximal and $\\lambda_{j+1}$ maximal in $\\Lambda \\setminus \\{\\lambda_1, \\dots, \\lambda_j\\}$ for $1 \\le j < K$. Put \n$\\Gamma_j = \\{\\lambda_1, \\dots, \\lambda_j\\}$ for $j \\ge 1$ and $\\Gamma_0 = \\emptyset$. Then $(\\Gamma_j)_{0 \\le j \\le K}$ is a maximal chain of order ideals. Since $\\Gamma_j \\setminus \\Gamma_{j-1} = \\{\\lambda_j\\}$, we have an isomorphism $\\gamma_j : A_{\\Gamma_j}\/A_{\\Gamma_{j-1}} \\to M^{\\lambda_j} \\otimes_R \ni(M^{\\lambda_j})$ with $i \\circ \\gamma_j = \\gamma_j \\circ i$. Thus $(A_{\\Gamma_j})_{0 \\le j \\le K}$ is a cell chain\nin $A$. So by the proof of Lemma \\ref{lemma: equivalence of GL and KX}, $A$ has a cellular basis\n$$\\mathcal B = \\{ b_{s, t}^\\lambda : \\lambda \\in \\Lambda;\\ s, t, \\in \\mathcal T(\\lambda)\\},$$ but with respect to the ``wrong\" partial order on $\\Lambda$. Since $\\mathcal C$ is a spanning set of the same cardinality as the basis\n$\\mathcal B$, it follows that $\\mathcal C$ is linearly independent over $R$, and thus an $R$--basis of\n$A$. \n\n\\ignore{\nWe now proceed to establish linear independence of $\\mathcal C$, making use of condition (3) of Definition \\ref{definition: cell net}.\n Suppose we have a non--trivial linear relation $\\sum_{\\lambda, s, t} r(\\lambda, s, t) c_{s, t}^\\lambda = 0$ with coefficients in $R$. Let $\\mu$ be minimal among those $\\lambda$ such that some $r(\\lambda, s, t)$ is non--zero. Rewrite the linear relation as\n$\\Sigma' + \\Sigma'' + \\Sigma''' = 0$, where $\\Sigma'$ is the sum of those terms with $\\lambda$ not comparable to $\\mu$,\n\\ $\\Sigma''$ is the sum of those terms with $\\lambda > \\mu$, and $\\Sigma'''$ is the sum of those terms with $\\lambda = \\mu$.\nThen $\\Sigma'' + \\Sigma''' \\in A^{\\mu} = A_{\\ge \\mu}$. Hence also $\\Sigma' \\in A_{\\ge \\mu}$. But\n $\\Sigma' $ is also in the span of those $A_{\\ge \\lambda}$ with $\\lambda$ not comparable to $\\mu$. By point (3) of \n Definition \\ref{definition: cell net}, we have $\\Sigma' \\in A_{> \\mu}$. But then $\\Sigma' + \\Sigma'' \\in A_{> \\mu}$. \n Taking the quotient by $A_{> \\mu}$, we get $\\sum_{s, t} r(\\mu, s, t) ( c_{s, t}^\\mu + A_{> \\mu}) = 0$.\n Since the set of $( c_{s, t}^\\mu + A_{> \\mu})$ is a basis of $A_{\\ge \\mu}\/A_{ > \\mu} $, it follows that all the \n coefficients $r(\\mu, s, t)$ are zero, a contradiction. \n }\n \n Because $A_{> \\lambda} = \\breve A^\\lambda$ for all $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda$, it is now easy to see that properties (2) and (3) of Definition \\ref{gl cell} are satisfied by $\\mathcal C$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{remark} \\label{remark: conditions for cell net to give strict cellular basis}\n In the Proposition, the following are equivalent:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item $A$ has a cellular basis $\\{c_{s, t}^\\lambda\\}$ with\n$i(c_{s, t}^\\lambda) = c_{t, s}^\\lambda$.\n\\item $A$ has a $\\Lambda$ cell net $\\Gamma \\to A_\\Gamma$ such that for each pair $\\Gamma \\subseteq \\Gamma'$, $A_\\Gamma$ has an $i$--invariant $R$--module complement in $A_{\\Gamma'}$. \n\\item $A$ has a $\\Lambda$ cell net $\\Gamma \\to A_\\Gamma$ such that for each $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda$, \n$A_{> \\lambda}$ has an $i$--invariant $R$--module complement in $A_{\\ge \\lambda}$. \n\\end{enumerate}\nThe implications (1) $\\implies$ (2) $\\implies$ (3) are evident. For (3) $\\implies$ (1), let $B_\\lambda$ denote the $i$--invariant $R$--module complement of $A_{> \\lambda}$ in $A_{\\ge \\lambda}$, and, \nin the 2nd\nparagraph of the proof of the Proposition, let $c_{s, t}^\\lambda$ be the unique lift of\n$\\alpha_\\lambda^{-1}(b_s^\\lambda \\otimes i(b_t^\\lambda))$ in $B_\\lambda$. \n\\end{remark}\n\n\\subsection{Coherent towers of cellular algebras}\n\\begin{definition}\nLet $H_0 \\subseteq H_1 \\subseteq H_2 \\subseteq \\cdots$ be an increasing sequence of cellular algebras, with a common multiplicative identity element, over an integral domain $R$. Let $\\Lambda_n$ denote the partially ordered set in the cell datum for $H_n$. We say that $(H_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ is a {\\em coherent tower of cellular algebras} if the following conditions are satisfied:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item The involutions are consistent; that is, the involution on $H_{n+1}$, restricted to $H_n$, agrees with the involution on $H_n$.\n\\item For each $n\\ge 0$ and for each $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_n$, the induced module ${\\rm Ind}_{H_n}^{H_{n+1}} (\\Delta^\\lambda)$\nhas a filtration by cell modules of $H_{n+1}$. That is, there is a filtration\n$$\n{\\rm Ind}_{H_n}^{H_{n+1}} (\\Delta^\\lambda) = M_t \\supseteq M_{t-1} \\supseteq \\cdots \\supseteq M_0 = (0)\n$$\nsuch that for each $j\\ge1$, there is a $\\mu_j \\in \\Lambda_{n+1}$ with $M_j\/M_{j-1} \\cong \\Delta^{\\mu_j}$.\n\\item For each $n\\ge 0$ and for each $\\mu \\in \\Lambda_{n+1}$, the restriction ${\\rm Res}_{H_n}^{H_{n+1}} (\\Delta^\\mu)$\nhas a filtration by cell modules of $H_{n}$. That is, there is a filtration\n$$\n{\\rm Res}_{H_n}^{H_{n+1}} (\\Delta^\\mu) = N_s \\supseteq N_{s-1} \\supseteq \\cdots \\supseteq N_0 = (0)\n$$\nsuch that for each $i\\ge1$, there is a $\\lambda_i \\in \\Lambda_{n}$ with $N_j\/N_{j-1} \\cong \\Delta^{\\lambda_i}$.\n\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{definition}\n\nThe modification of the definition for a {\\em finite} tower of cellular algebras is obvious.\n\nWe call a filtration as in (2) and (3) a {\\em cell filtration}.\nIn the examples that we study, we will also have {\\em uniqueness of the multiplicities} of the cell modules appearing as subquotients of the cell filtrations, and {\\em Frobenius reciprocity} connecting the multiplicities in the two types of filtrations. We did not include uniqueness of multiplicities and Frobenius reciprocity as requirements in the definition, as they will follow from additional assumptions that we will impose later; see Lemma \\ref{lemma: multiplicities in cell filtrations}.\\footnote{Hemmer and Nakano ~\\cite{Hemmer-Nakano} have obtained remarkable general results about uniqueness of multiplicities in Specht filtrations of modules over Hecke algebras of type A. Hartmann and Paget \\cite{Hartmann-Paget} obtained analogous results for modules over Brauer algebras. The assertions that we require here are much more special, applying only to induced modules of cell modules and restrictions of cell modules. }\n\n\n\\begin{example} \\label{example: Hn coherent tower} {\\em The tower of Hecke algebras of type $A$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras.}\nLet $R$ be an integral domain and $q$ an invertible element of $R$. Let $H_n(R, q)$ denote the Hecke algebra of type $A$ generated by elements $T_1, \\dots, T_{n-1}$ satisfying the braid relations and the quadratic relations $(T_j-q)(T_j + 1) = 0$ for $1 \\le j \\le n-1$. When $q = 1$, $H_n(R, q)$ is the group algebra $R \\mathfrak S_n$ of the symmetric group $\\mathfrak S_n$. \nAs is well known, $H_n(R, q)$ has a basis $T_w$ ($w \\in \\mathfrak S_n$) given by \n$T_w = T_{j_1} \\dots T_{j_\\ell}$ for any reduced expression $w = s_{j_1} \\dots s_{j_\\ell}$.\nThe map defined by $i(T_w) = T_{w^{-1}}$ is an algebra involution. The map defined by $(T_w)^\\# = (-q)^{\\ell(w)}(T_{w^{-1}})^{-1}$ is an algebra automorphism. The assignment $T_w \\mapsto T_w$ is an embedding of $H_n(R, q)$ into\n$H_{n+1}(R, q)$. The algebra involutions are consistent on $(H_n)_{n \\ge 0}$.\n\nDipper and James ~\\cite{dipper-james1, dipper-james2} studied the representation theory of the Hecke algebras, defining Specht modules $S^\\lambda$ which generalize Specht modules for symmetric groups. \nThey showed that induced modules of Specht modules have a filtration by Specht modules\n~\\cite{dipper-james1}. Jost ~\\cite{jost} showed that restrictions of Specht modules have Specht filtrations.\n \n Murphy ~\\cite{murphy-hecke95} showed that the Hecke algebras are cellular (before the formalization of the notion of cellularity in ~\\cite{Graham-Lehrer-cellular}). Murphy shows that his cell modules $\\Delta^\\lambda$ satisfy\n $\\Delta^\\lambda \\cong ({S^{\\lambda'}})^\\#$, where $\\lambda'$ is the transpose of $\\lambda$ and the superscript $\\#$ means that the module is twisted by the automorphism $\\#$. Thus it follows from the results of Dipper, James, and Jost cited above that restricted modules and induced modules of Murphy's cell modules have cell filtrations.\n\\end{example}\n\n\n\\subsection{Inclusions of split semisimple algebras and branching diagrams}\n A general \\break source for the material in this section is ~\\cite{GHJ}. \n \n A finite dimensional split semisimple algebra over a field $F$ is one which is isomorphic to a finite direct sum of full matrix algebras over $F$.\n \nSuppose\n$A \\subseteq B$ are finite dimensional split semisimple algebras over $F$ (with the same identity element). Let $A(i)$, $i \\in I$, be the minimal ideals of $A$ and $B(j)$, $j \\in J$, the minimal ideals of $B$. \nWe associate a $J \\times I$ {\\em inclusion matrix}\n$\\Omega$ to the inclusion $A \\subseteq B$, as follows. Let $W_j$ be a simple $B(j)$--module.\nThen $W_j$ becomes an $A$--module via the inclusion, and $\\Omega(j, i)$ is the multiplicity of a simple $A_i$--module \n in the decomposition of $W_j$ as an $A$--module. \n An equivalent characterization of the inclusion matrix is the following. Let $q_i$ be a minimal idempotent in $A(i)$ and let $z_j$ be the identity of \n$B(j)$ (a minimal central idempotent in $B$). Then $q_i z_j$ is the sum of\n $\\Omega(j, i)$ minimal idempotents in $B(j)$.\n\nIt is convenient to encode an inclusion matrix by a bipartite graph, called the {\\em branching diagram}; the branching diagram has vertices labeled by $I$ arranged on one horizontal line, vertices labeled by $J$ arranged along a second (higher) horizontal line, and $\\Omega(j, i)$ edges connecting\n$j \\in J$ to $i \\in I$.\n\nIf $A_1 \\subseteq A_2 \\subseteq A_3 \\cdots$ is a (finite or infinite) sequence of inclusions of finite dimensional split semisimple algebras over $F$, then the branching diagram for the sequence is obtained by stacking the branching diagrams for each inclusion, with the \nupper vertices of the diagram for $A_i \\subseteq A_{i+1}$ being identified with the lower vertices of the diagram for $A_{i+1} \\subseteq A_{i+2}$.\n\nFor our purposes, it suffices to restrict our attention to the case that $A_0 \\cong F$. In most of our examples,\n the entries in each inclusion matrix are all $0$ or $1$; thus in the branching diagram there are no multiple edges between vertices.\n\n\n\n\n\\begin{definition} \\label{def of branching} An (infinite) abstract branching diagram $\\mathfrak{B}$ is an infinite graph with vertex set\n$V = \\coprod_{i \\ge 0} V_i$, with the following properties\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item $V_0$ is a singleton and $V_i$ is finite for all $i$.\n\\item Two vertices $v \\in V_i$ and $w \\in V_j$ are adjacent only if $|i - j|=1$. Multiple edges are allowed between adjacent vertices. \n\\item If $i \\ge 1$ and $v \\in V_i$, then $v$ is adjacent to at least one vertex in $V_{i-1}$ and to at least one vertex in $V_{i+1}$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{definition}\n\nThe definition can be modified in the obvious way for a {\\em finite} abstract branching diagram. \nWhen we treat the walled Brauer algebra in Section \\ref{subsection: walled Brauer algebras}, we will loosen the definition by dropping the requirement that $V_0$ is a singleton. \n\n\nThe branching diagram for a sequence of finite dimensional split semisimple algebras (with the restrictions mentioned above) is an abstract branching diagram, and conversely, given an abstract branching diagram $\\mathfrak{B}$, one can construct a sequence of finite dimensional split semisimple algebras (over any given field) whose branching diagram is (isomorphic to) $\\mathfrak{B}$.\n\nLet $\\mathfrak{B}$ be an abstract branching diagram with vertex set $V = \\coprod_{i \\ge 0} V_i$. We usually denote the unique element of $V_0$ by $\\emptyset$. We picture $\\mathfrak{B}$ with the elements of $V_i$ arranged on the horizontal line $y = i$ in the plane, and we call $V_i$ the $i$--th {\\em row} of vertices in $\\mathfrak{B}$. If $v \\in V_i$ and $w \\in V_{i+1}$ are adjacent, we write $v \\nearrow w$. The subgraph of $\\mathfrak{B}$ consisting of $V_i$ and $V_{i+1}$ and the edges connecting them is called the $i$--th {\\em level} of $\\mathfrak{B}$.\n\n\nNow suppose we are given an abstract branching diagram $\\mathfrak{B}_0$ with vertex set\n\\def\\spp #1{^{(#1)}}\n$V\\spp 0 = \\coprod_{i \\ge 0} V_i\\spp 0$. We construct a new abstract branching diagram $\\mathfrak{B}$ as follows:\nThe vertex set of $\\mathfrak{B}$ is $V = \\coprod_{k \\ge 0} V_k$, where\n$$\nV_k = \\coprod_{\\substack{i\\leq k\\\\k-i\\text{ even}}} V_i\\spp 0 \\times \\{k\\}.\n$$\nThus the $k$--th row of vertices of $\\mathfrak{B}$ consists of copies of rows $k$, $k-2$, $k-4$, \\dots of vertices of\n$\\mathfrak{B}_0$. Now if $(\\lambda, k) \\in V_k$ and $(\\mu, k+1) \\in V_{k+1}$, there exist $i \\le k$ with $k -i$ even such that\n$\\lambda \\in V_i \\spp 0$, and $j \\le k+1$ with $k+ 1 - j$ even such that $\\mu \\in V_j \\spp 0$.\nWe declare $(\\lambda, k) \\nearrow (\\mu, k+1)$ if, and only if, $|i - j| = 1$ and $\\lambda$ and $\\mu$ are adjacent\nin $\\mathfrak{B}_0$. The number of edges connecting $(\\lambda, k) $ and $(\\mu, k+1)$ is the same as the number of edges connecting $\\lambda$ and $\\mu$ in $\\mathfrak{B}_0$. \n\nThe first few levels of $\\mathfrak{B}$ is picture schematically in Figure \\ref{figure: branching diagram}, where each diagonal line represents\nall the edges connecting vertices in $V_i^{(0)}$ with vertices in $V_{i \\pm 1}^{(0)}$. \n\\begin{figure}\n$$ \\inlinegraphic[scale=.5]{branching1}$$\n\\caption{Branching diagram obtained by reflections}\n\\label{figure: branching diagram}\n\\end{figure}\nNote that the $k$--th level of $\\mathfrak{B}$ is a folded copy of the first $k$ levels of $\\mathfrak{B}_0$.\nWe call $\\mathfrak{B}$ the {\\em branching diagram obtained by reflections from $\\mathfrak{B}_0$}.\n\n\\begin{example} Take $\\mathfrak{B}_0$ to be Young's lattice. Thus $V_k\\spp 0$ consists of Young diagrams of size\n$k$, and $\\lambda \\nearrow \\mu$ in $\\mathfrak{B}_0$ if $\\mu$ is obtained from $\\lambda$ by adding one box.\nThen the $k$--th row of vertices in the abstract branching diagram $\\mathfrak{B}$ obtained from $\\mathfrak{B}_0$ by reflections consists of all pairs $(\\lambda, k)$, where $\\lambda$ is a Young diagram of size $i \\le k$, with $k - i$ even.\n Moreover, $(\\lambda, k) \\nearrow (\\mu, k+1)$ in $\\mathfrak{B}$ if, and only if, \n$\\mu$ is obtained from $\\lambda$ either by adding one box or by removing one box.\n\\end{example}\n\n\\subsection{The Jones basic construction} This paper could be written without ever mentioning the Jones basic construction.\n Nevertheless, in our view, the basic construction plays an essential role behind the scenes.\n\nThe Jones basic construction was introduced ~\\cite{Jones-index} in the theory of von Neumann algebras and is crucial in the analysis of von Neumann subfactors. Translated to the context of finite dimensional split semisimple algebras over a field, the basic construction was a fundamental ingredient in Wenzl's analysis of the generic structure of the Brauer algebras and the BMW algebras ~\\cite{Wenzl-Brauer, Birman-Wenzl, Wenzl-BCD} .\n\nThe basic construction for finite dimensional split semisimple algebras can be described as follows (see ~\\cite{GHJ}): let $ A \\subseteq B $ be finite dimensional split semisimple algebras over field $ F$, with the same multiplicative identity element.\nThe basic construction for the pair $ A \\subseteq B $ is the algebra ${\\rm End}(B_A)$.\nThis algebra is also split semisimple and the inclusion matrix for the pair $B \\subseteq {\\rm End}(B_A)$ is a transpose of that for the pair $ A \\subseteq B $. Suppose now that $ B$ has a faithful $F$-- valued trace $ \\varepsilon$ with faithful restriction to $ A$. Here faithful means that the bilinear form $(x, y) \\mapsto \\varepsilon(x y)$ is non--degenerate. In this case there is a unique trace preserving conditional expectation\n$ \\varepsilon_A : B \\to A$, i.e. a unital $A$--$A$--bimodule map satisfying $\\varepsilon\\circ \\varepsilon_A = \\varepsilon$. \nIdentify $ B$ with its image in ${\\rm End}_F(B)$ under the left regular representation.\nThe basic construction $ {\\rm End}(B_A)$ is equal to $ B \\varepsilon_A B =\n\\{ \\sum_{i = 1}^n b_i' \\varepsilon_A b_i'' : n \\ge 1, b_i', b_i'' \\in B\\}$. Moreover, $ B \\varepsilon_A B \\cong\nB \\otimes_A B$, where the latter is given the algebra structure determined by\n$(b_1 \\otimes b_2)(b_3 \\otimes b_4) = b_1 \\otimes \\varepsilon_A(b_2 b_3) b_4$. Note that we have three realizations for the basic construction,\n$$\n{\\rm End}(B_A) \\cong B \\varepsilon_A B \\cong\nB \\otimes_A B,\n$$\nany of which could serve as a potential definition of the basic construction in a more general setting.\n\nSuppose in addition that we are given an algebra $C$ with $B \\subseteq C$ and that $ C$ contains an idempotent $ e$ such that $ exe = \\varepsilon_{A}(x) e$ for $ x \\in B$, and $x \\mapsto x e$ is injective from $B$ to $Be \\subseteq C$. Note that\n $ BeB$ is a possibly non--unital subalgebra of $C$.\nBy ~\\cite{Wenzl-Brauer}, Theorem 1.3, $ BeB \\cong B\\varepsilon_{A}B \\cong {\\rm End}(B_{A})$, and, in particular, $ BeB$ is unital and semisimple.\n\nLet's now describe how Wenzl used these ideas to show the generic semisimplicity of the \nBrauer algebras. We refer the reader to Section \\ref{subsection: Brauer algebras} for the definition of the Brauer algebras.\nConsider the Brauer algebras $B_{n} = B_n(F, \\delta)$ over $F= {\\mathbb C}$ or $F = {\\mathbb Q}(\\delta)$, in the first case with parameter\n$\\delta $ a non-integer complex number, and in the second case with parameter $\\delta $\nan indeterminant over ${\\mathbb Q}$. The Brauer algebras have a canonical $F$--valued trace $\\varepsilon$ and conditional expectations $\\varepsilon_{n}: B_{n} \\to B_{n-1}$ preserving the trace. \n Each Brauer algebra $B_{n}$ contains an essential idempotent $e_{n-1}$ with\n $e_{n-1}^{2} = \\delta e_{n-1}$ and $e_{n-1} xe_{n-1} = \\delta \\varepsilon_{n-1}(x) e_{n-1}$ for\n $x \\in B_{n-1}$. Moreover, $x \\mapsto x e_{n-1}$ is injective from $B_{n-1}$ to $B_{n}$ and one has $B_{n}\/ B_{n} e_{n-1} B_{n} \\cong F \\mathfrak S_{n}$,\n which is semisimple, since $F$ has characteristic 0.\n Let $f_{n-1} = \\delta^{-1} e_{n-1}$; then $f_{n-1}$ is an idempotent with$f_{n-1} xf_{n-1} = \\varepsilon_{n-1}(x) f_{n-1}$ for\n $x \\in B_{n-1}$. We have $B_{0} \\cong B_{1} \\cong F$. \n \n Suppose it is known for some $n$ that $B_{k}$ is split semisimple and that\n the trace $\\varepsilon$ is faithful on $B_{k}$ for $k \\le n$. By Wenzl's observation applied to\n $B_{n-1} \\subseteq B_{n} \\subseteq B_{n+1}$ and the idempotent $f_{n} \\in B_{n+1}$, we have\n $B_{n} e_{n} B_{n} = B_{n} f_{n} B_{n} \\cong B_{n} \\varepsilon_{n} B_{n} \\cong {\\rm End}((B_{n})_{B_{n-1}})$. But it is elementary to check that $B_{n} e_{n} B_{n} = \n B_{n+1} e_{n} B_{n+1}$. Thus we have that the ideal $B_{n+1} e_{n} B_{n+1} \\subseteq \n B_{n+1}$ is split semisimple, and the quotient of $B_{n+1}$ by this ideal ($\\cong F \\mathfrak S_{n+1}$) is also split semisimple, so $B_{n+1}$ is split semisimple. To continue the inductive argument, it is necessary to verify that the trace $\\varepsilon$ \nis faithful on $B_{n+1}$. Wenzl uses a Lie theory argument for this.\n\n In this paper, we develop a cellular analog of this argument. Let's continue to use the example of the Brauer algebras to illustrate this. Cellularity is a property that is preserved under specializations, so it suffices to consider the Brauer algebras over the generic ring\n $R = {\\mathbb Z}[ \\delta ] $. Let $F$ denote the field of fractions of $R$, $F = {\\mathbb Q}(\\delta)$.\t\n Write $B_{n}$ for $B_{n}(R, \\delta)$ and $B_{n}^{F}$ for $B_{n}(F, \\delta)$. By Wenzl's theorem, $B_{n}^{F}$ is split semisimple. \n We have $B_{0} \\cong B_{1} \\cong R$. \n \n Suppose it is known for some $n$ that $B_{k}$ is cellular for $k \\le n$. We want to show that\n$B_{n+1} e_{n} B_{n+1} = B_{n} e_{n} B_{n}$ is a cellular ideal in $B_{n+1}$. It will then follow that $B_{n+1}$ is cellular, because the quotient $B_{n+1}\/B_{n+1} e_{n} B_{n+1} \\cong R \\mathfrak S_{n+1}$ is cellular. Let $\\Lambda_{n-1}$ denote the partially ordered set in the \ncell datum for $B_{n-1}$. For each order ideal $\\Gamma$ of $\\Lambda_{n-1}$, write $J(\\Gamma)$ for the span in $B_{n-1}$ of all $c_{s, t}^\\lambda$ with $\\lambda \\in \\Gamma$. The crucial point is to show that\n$\\Gamma \\mapsto B_n e_n J(\\Gamma) B_n = B_{n+1} e_n J(\\Gamma)B_{n+1}$ is a \n$\\Lambda_{n-1}$--cell net in $B_{n+1} e_n B_{n+1}$. Along the way to doing this, we show that\n \\begin{equation}\\label{equation: jones bc 1}\nJ'(\\Gamma) := B_{n} \\otimes_{B_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma) \\otimes_{B_{n-1}} B_{n} \\cong B_{n}e_{n}J(\\Gamma)B_{n} \n \\end{equation} \nvia $b' \\otimes x \\otimes b'' \\mapsto b' e_{n} x b''$; consequently, if $\\Gamma_{1} \\subseteq \\Gamma_{2}$, then $J'(\\Gamma_{1})$ imbeds in $J'(\\Gamma_{2}) $. In particular,\n \\begin{equation} \\label{equation: jones bc 2}\n B_{n} \\otimes_{B_{n-1}} B_{n} \\cong B_{n}e_{n}B_{n} = B_{n+1}e_{n}B_{n+1}, \n \\end{equation}\nand $J'(\\Gamma)$ imbeds as an ideal in the (non--unital) algebra $\n B_{n} \\otimes_{B_{n-1}} B_{n}$. Essentially, what we show is that \n $B_{n+1}e_{n}B_{n+1} = B_{n}e_{n} B_{n}$ is isomorphic to the basic construction \n $\n B_{n} \\otimes_{B_{n-1}} B_{n}$, and that\n $\\Gamma \\mapsto J'(\\Gamma)$ is a $\\Lambda_{n-1}$--cell net in $\n B_{n} \\otimes_{B_{n-1}} B_{n}$. \n \n We note that $B_{n}$ is {\\em not} a projective $B_{n-1}$--module, but the isomorphisms\n (\\ref{equation: jones bc 1}) and the embeddings $J'(\\Gamma_{1}) \\hookrightarrow J'(\\Gamma_{2}) $\n reflect the projectivity of $B_{n}^{F}$ over $B_{n-1}^{F}$.\n \n \n\\subsection{Coherent cellular towers and extension of the ground ring}\n\nLet $R$ be an integral domain and let $F$ denote the field of fractions of $R$. We will be interested in \ncoherent towers $(H_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ of cellular algebras over $R$ such that for all $n$, the $F$--algebra $H_n^F := H_n \\otimes_R F$ is (split) semisimple. We will see that in this situation we have uniqueness of multiplicities in the\nfiltrations of induced and restricted modules by cell modules, and Frobenius reciprocity connecting these multiplicities.\n\nFor any algebra $A$ over $R$, write $A^F$ for the $F$--algebra $A\\otimes_R F$. Moreover, for a left (or right)\n$A$--module $M$, write $M^F$ for the left (or right) $A^F$ module $M\\otimes_R F$.\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{first tensor iso}\nLet $R$ be an integral domain and $F$ its field of fractions. Let $A$ and $B$ be $R$-algebras. For modules $M_{A}$ and \n$_A N$, we have\n\\begin{equation} \\label{Fisomorphism}\nM\\otimes_A N\\otimes_R F\\cong M^F\\otimes_{A^F}N^F\n\\end{equation}\n\\noindent\nas $F$-vector spaces. The isomorphism\n$$M\\otimes_A N\\otimes_RF\\rightarrow M^F\\otimes_{A^F}N^F$$\nis determined by $(x\\otimes_Ay\\otimes_R f)\\mapsto(x\\otimes_R\\bm 1_F)\\otimes_{A^F}(y\\otimes_R f)$. If ${}_{A}{N}_B$ is a bimodule, then the isomorphism in (\\ref{Fisomorphism}) is an isomorphism of right $B^F$--modules, and similarly, if \n$_B M_A$ is a bimodule, then the isomorphism is an isomorphism of left $B^F$--modules. \n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nNote that\n\\begin{align}\nM&\\otimes_A(N\\otimes_R F)\\cong M\\otimes_A A^F\\otimes_{A^F}(N\\otimes_R F) \\notag \\\\\n\t&=(M\\otimes_A A\\otimes_R F)\\otimes_{A^F}(N\\otimes_R F) \\notag \\\\\n\t&\\cong (M\\otimes_R F)\\otimes_{A^F}(N\\otimes_R F) \\notag \\\\\n\t&=M^F\\otimes_{A^F}N^F. \\notag\n\\end{align}\n\n\\noindent\nIf we track a simple tensor through these equalities and isomorphisms, we see that\n\\begin{align}\n&x\\otimes_A y\\otimes_R f\\mapsto x\\otimes_A\\bm 1_{A^F}\\otimes_{A^F}(y\\otimes_R f) \\notag \\\\\n\t&\\quad=x\\otimes_A\\bm 1_A\\otimes_R\\bm 1_F\\otimes_{A^F}(y\\otimes_R f)\\mapsto(x\\otimes_R\\bm 1_F)\\otimes_{A^F}(y\\otimes_R f). \\notag\n\\end{align}\nThe final statement follows from this.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma injectivity of x to x tensor 1} Let $R$ be an integral domain and $F$ its field of fractions. If $M$ is a free $R$--module, then the map $M \\to M \\otimes_R F$ determined by \n$x \\mapsto x \\otimes 1_F$ is injective.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} It follows from ~\\cite{Jacobson}, Propositions 3.2 and 3.3 that the map $x \\mapsto x \\otimes 1$ takes an $R$--basis of $M$ to an $F$--basis of $M \\otimes_R F$. In particular, the map is injective.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{injectivity of iota tensor id(F) with free R modules}\nLet $R$ be an integral domain and $F$ its field of fractions. Let $N_1 \\subseteq N_2$ be $R$--modules with $N_2$ free. Let $\\iota : N_1 \\to N_2$ denote the injection. Then\n$\\iota \\otimes \\id_F : N_1 \\otimes_R F \\to N_2 \\otimes_R F$ is injective.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof}\n Any element of $N_1 \\otimes_R F $ can be written as $y = (1\/q) (x \\otimes 1_F)$,\nwith $q \\in R^\\times$ and $x \\in N_1$. Then $\\iota \\otimes \\id_F(y) = (1\/q)(\\iota(x) \\otimes 1_F) =\n(1\/q)\\, \\gamma \\circ \\iota (x)$, where $\\gamma : N_2 \\to N_2 \\otimes_R F$ is determined\nby $z \\mapsto z \\otimes 1_F$. Because $N_2$ is a free $R$--module, $\\gamma$ is injective, by Lemma \\ref{lemma injectivity of x to x tensor 1}, and it follows that $\\iota \\otimes \\id_F$ is injective.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: multiplicities in cell filtrations}\nLet $R$ be an integral domain with field of fractions $F$.\n Suppose that $(H_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras over $R$ and that\n $H_n^F$ is split semisimple for all $n$. Let $\\Lambda_n$ denote the partially ordered set in the cell datum for\n $H_n$. \n Then\n \\begin{enumerate}\n \\item \n $\\{(\\Delta^\\lambda)^F : \\lambda \\in \\Lambda_n\\}$ is a complete family of simple $H_n^F$--modules.\n \\item Let $[\\omega(\\mu, \\lambda)]_{\\mu \\in \\Lambda_{n+1}, \\, \\lambda \\in \\Lambda_n}$ denote the inclusion matrix for\n $H_n^F \\subseteq H_{n+1}^F$. Then for any $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_n$ and $\\mu \\in \\Lambda_{n+1}$, \n and any cell filtration of ${\\rm Res}_{H_n}^{H_{n+1}}(\\Delta^\\mu)$, the number of subquotients of the filtration isomorphic to $\\Delta^\\lambda$ is $\\omega(\\mu, \\lambda)$.\n \n \\item Likewise, for any $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_n$ and $\\mu \\in \\Lambda_{n+1}$, \n and any cell filtration of ${\\rm Ind}_{H_n}^{H_{n+1}}(\\Delta^\\lambda)$, the number of subquotients of the filtration isomorphic to $\\Delta^\\mu$ is $\\omega(\\mu, \\lambda)$.\n \\end{enumerate}\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} For point (1), $(\\Delta^\\lambda)^F$ is a cell module for $H_n^F$, and, for a semisimple cellular algebra, the cell modules are precisely the simple modules.\n\nWe have \n\\begin{equation} \\label{first direct sum decomp of Res Delta}\n({\\rm Res}_{H_n}^{H_{n+1}}(\\Delta^\\mu))^F = {\\rm Res}_{H_n^F}^{H_{n+1}^F}((\\Delta^\\mu)^F) \\cong\n \\bigoplus_{\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_n} \\omega(\\mu ,\\lambda) (\\Delta^\\lambda)^F,\n\\end{equation}\nby definition of the inclusion matrix. On the other hand, if \n$$\n{\\rm Res}_{H_n}^{H_{n+1}} (\\Delta^\\mu) = N_s \\supseteq N_{s-1} \\supseteq \\cdots \\supseteq N_0 = (0)\n$$\nis a cell filtration, with $N_j\/N_{j-1} \\cong \\Delta^{\\lambda_j}$, then\n$$\n({\\rm Res}_{H_n}^{H_{n+1}}(\\Delta^\\mu))^F = N_s^F \\supseteq N_{s-1}^F \\supseteq \\cdots \\supseteq N_0^F = (0),\n$$\nby Lemma \\ref{injectivity of iota tensor id(F) with free R modules}, because all the modules\n$N_j$ are free as $R$--modules. Moreover, \n$N_j^F\/N_{j-1}^F \\cong (N_j\/N_{j-1})^F \\cong (\\Delta^{\\lambda_j})^F$ by right exactness of tensor products. Since $H_n^F$ modules are semisimple,\n\\begin{equation}\\label{second direct sum decomp of Res Delta}\n({\\rm Res}_{H_n}^{H_{n+1}}(\\Delta^\\mu))^F \\cong \\bigoplus_{j = 1}^s (\\Delta^{\\lambda_j})^F.\n\\end{equation}\nComparing (\\ref{first direct sum decomp of Res Delta}) and (\\ref{second direct sum decomp of Res Delta}) and taking into account that $\\Delta^\\lambda \\mapsto (\\Delta^\\lambda)^F$ is injective, we obtain conclusion (2).\n\nLikewise,\n$$\n({\\rm Ind}_{H_n}^{H_{n+1}}(\\Delta^\\lambda))^F = H_{n+1} \\otimes_{H_n} \\Delta^\\lambda \\otimes_R F \\cong \n H_{n+1}^F \\otimes_{H_n^F} (\\Delta^\\lambda)^F,\n$$\nby Lemma \\ref{first tensor iso}. \nBut\n$$\nH_{n+1}^F \\otimes_{H_n^F} (\\Delta^\\lambda)^F = {\\rm Ind}_{H_n^F}^{H_{n+1}^F}((\\Delta^\\lambda)^F) \\cong \\bigoplus_{\\mu \\in \\Lambda_{n+1}} \\omega(\\mu ,\\lambda) (\\Delta^\\mu)^F,\n$$\nusing (\\ref{first direct sum decomp of Res Delta}) and Frobenius reciprocity. The rest of the argument for point (3) is similar to that for point (2).\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n \n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: cell basis indexed by paths}\nAdopt the assumptions and notation of Lemma \\ref{lemma: multiplicities in cell filtrations}.\nAssume in addition that the branching diagram $\\mathfrak{B}$ for $(H_n^F)_{n\\ge 0}$ has no multiple edges and that\n$H_0^F = F$. It follows that each $H_n$ has a cell datum (perhaps different from the one initially given)\nwith the same partially ordered set $\\Lambda_n$ but with $\\mathcal T(\\lambda)$ equal to the set of paths\non $\\mathfrak{B}$ from $\\emptyset$ to $\\lambda$. \n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nReferring to the proof of Proposition \\ref{lemma: cell net characterization of cellularity}, it suffices to show that, for each $n$ and for each $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_n$, the cell module $\\Delta^\\lambda$ has\n an $R$--basis indexed by the set $\\mathcal P(\\lambda)$ of paths in $\\mathfrak{B}$ from $\\emptyset$ to $\\lambda$. \nBut this says only that the rank of $\\Delta^\\lambda$ over $R$ is $|\\mathcal P(\\lambda)|$, and this is true because ${\\rm rank}_R(\\Delta^\\lambda) = {\\rm dim}_F(\\Delta^\\lambda \\otimes_R F) = |\\mathcal P(\\lambda)|$. See also the following remark.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{remark} In principle, in the situation of Lemma \\ref{lemma: cell basis indexed by paths}, we can recursively build bases of cell modules, using the cell filtrations of restrictions. Suppose we have bases of $\\Delta^\\lambda$ for all $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_n$ for some $n$. \nLet $\\mu \\in \\Lambda_{n+1}$. Then $\\Delta^\\mu$, regarded as an $H_n$--module, has a filtration by cell modules of $H_n$, \n$$\n\\Delta^\\mu = N_s \\supseteq N_{s-1} \\supseteq \\cdots \\supseteq N_0 = (0),\n$$\n with $N_j\/N_{j-1} \\cong \\Delta^{\\lambda_j}$; and $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_n$ appears (exactly once) in the list \n of $\\lambda_j$, if, and only if, $\\lambda \\nearrow \\mu$. Now we inductively build bases of the $N_j$ to obtain a basis of $N_s = \\Delta^\\mu$. The isomorphism $N_1 \\cong \\Delta^{\\lambda_1}$ provides a basis of $N_1$. For $j \\ge 2$, if we have a basis of $N_{j-1}$, then that basis together with any lift of a basis of $N_j\/N_{j-1} \\cong \\Delta^{\\lambda_j}$ gives a basis of $N_j$.\n\n\n\n\n\\end{remark}\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\\section{A framework for cellularity}\nIn this section we describe our framework for cellularity of algebras related to the Jones basic construction.\n\n \n\\subsection{Framework Axioms} \\label{subsection: framework axioms}\nLet $R$ be an integral domain with field of fractions $F$. We consider two sequences of $R$--algebras\n$$\nA_0 \\subseteq A_1 \\subseteq A_2 \\subseteq \\cdots, \\quad\\text{and} \\quad Q_0 \\subseteq Q_1 \\subseteq Q_2 \\subseteq \\cdots,\n$$\neach with a common multiplicative identity element. \nWe assume the following axioms:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item \\label{axiom Hn coherent} $(Q_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras.\n\\item \\label{axiom: involution on An} There is an algebra involution $i$ on $\\cup_n A_n$ such that $i(A_n) = A_n$.\n\\item \\label{axiom: A0 and A1} $A_0 = Q_0 = R$, and $A_1 = Q_1$ (as algebras with involution).\n\\item \\label{axiom: semisimplicity}\nFor all $n$, $A_n^F : = A_n \\otimes_R F$ is split semisimple. \n\\item \\label{axiom: idempotent and Hn as quotient of An}\n For $n \\ge 2$, $A_n$ contains an essential idempotent $e_{n-1}$ such that $i(e_{n-1}) = e_{n-1}$ and\n$A_n\/(A_n e_{n-1} A_n) \\cong Q_n$, as algebras with involution.\n\n\\item \\label{axiom: en An en} For $n \\ge 1$, $e_{n}$ commutes with $A_{n-1}$ and $e_{n} A_{n} e_{n} \\subseteq A_{n-1} e_{n}$.\n\\item \\label{axiom: An en}\nFor $n \\ge 1$, $A_{n+1} \te_{n} = A_{n} e_{n}$, and the map $x \\mapsto x e_{n}$ is injective from\n$A_{n}$ to $A_{n} e_{n}$.\n\\item \\label{axiom: e(n-1) in An en An} For $n \\ge 2$, $e_{n-1} \\in A_{n+1} e_n A_{n+1}$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\n\n\\begin{remark} \\mbox{}\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item\nLet $\\Lambda_n \\spp 0$ denote the partially ordered set in the cell datum for $Q_n$. It follows from axioms (\\ref{axiom Hn coherent}) and (\\ref{axiom: semisimplicity}) and Lemma \\ref{lemma: multiplicities in cell filtrations} that $\\Lambda_n \\spp 0$ can be identified with the $n$--th row of vertices of the branching diagram for $(Q_n^F)_{n \\ge 0}$.\n\n\\item Applying the involution in axiom (\\ref{axiom: An en}), we also have $e_{n} A_{n+1} \t = e_{n} A_n $, and the map $x \\mapsto e_{n} x $ is injective from\n$A_{n}$ to $e_{n} A_{n}$. \n\\item Since $e_n$ is an essential idempotent, there is a non--zero $\\delta_n \\in R$ with $e_n^2 = \\delta_n e_n$. Thus we have $e_n A_n e_n \\supseteq e_n A_{n-1} e_n = A_{n-1} e_n^2 =\n\\delta_n A_{n-1} e_n$. Combining this with axiom (\\ref{axiom: en An en}), we have\n$\\delta_n A_{n-1} e_n \\subseteq e_n A_n e_n \\subseteq A_{n-1} e_n$. Hence\n$e_n A_n^F e_n = A_{n-1}^F e_n$. \n\n\n\\item From axiom (\\ref{axiom: en An en}), we have for every\n$x \\in A_{n}$, there is a $y \\in A_{n-1}$ such that $e_{n} x e_{n} = y e_{n}$; but by axiom\n(\\ref{axiom: An en}), $y$ is uniquely determined, so we have a map ${\\rm cl}_{n} : A_{n} \\rightarrow A_{n-1}$ \nwith $e_{n} x e_{n} = {\\rm cl}_{n}(x) e_{n}$. It is easy to check that ${\\rm cl}_{n}$ is an $A_{n-1}$--$A_{n-1}$--bimodule map, but it is not unital in general; if $e_{n-1}^2 = \\delta_n e_{n-1}$, then \n${\\rm cl}_{n}(\\bm 1) = \\delta_n \\bm 1$. If $\\delta_n$ is invertible in $R$, then $\\varepsilon_{n} = (1\/\\delta_n) {\\rm cl}_{n}$ is a conditional expectation, i.e., a unital $A_{n-1}$--$A_{n-1}$--bimodule map.\n\\item From axioms (\\ref{axiom: semisimplicity}) and (\\ref{axiom: idempotent and Hn as quotient of An}), we have $Q_n^F : = Q_n \\otimes_R F$ is split semisimple. \n\\item In our examples, there is a single non--zero $\\delta$ with $e_n^2 = \\delta e_n$ for all $n$. \n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{remark}\n\n \n\n\n \n\n\\subsection{The main theorem}\n\n\n\\begin{theorem} \\label{main theorem}\n Let $R$ be an integral domain with field of fractions $F$. Let $(Q_k)_{k\\ge 0}$ and\n$(A_k)_{k\\ge 0}$ be two towers of $R$--algebras satisfying the framework axioms of Section \\ref{subsection: framework axioms}. Then\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item $(A_k)_{k\\ge 0}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras.\n\\item For all $k$, the partially ordered set in the cell datum for $A_k$ can be realized as\n$$\n\\Lambda_k = \\coprod_{\\substack{i\\leq k\\\\k-i\\text{ even}}} \\Lambda_i\\spp 0 \\times \\{k\\},\n$$\nwith the following partial order: Let $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_i\\spp 0$ and $\\mu \\in \\Lambda_j\\spp 0$, with\n$i$, $j$, and $k$ all of the same parity. Then\n $(\\lambda, k) > (\\mu, k)$ if, and only if, $i < j$, or $i = j$ and $\\lambda > \\mu$ in $\\Lambda_i\\spp 0$.\n \\item Suppose $k \\ge 2$ and $(\\lambda, k) \\in \\Lambda_i\\spp 0 \\times \\{k\\} \\subseteq \\Lambda_k$. Let \n $\\Delta^{(\\lambda, k)}$ be the corresponding cell module. \n If $i < k$, \n then\n $(A_k e_{k-1} A_k \\ \\Delta^{(\\lambda, k)})\\otimes_R F = \\Delta^{(\\lambda, k)}\\otimes_R F $, while if $i = k$ then \\break $A_k e_{k-1} A_k \\ \\Delta^{(\\lambda, k)} = 0$.\n\\item The branching diagram $\\mathfrak{B}$ for $(A_k^F)_{k \\ge 0}$ is that obtained by reflections from the branching diagram\n$\\mathfrak{B}_0$ for $(Q_k^F)_{n \\ge 0}$.\n\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{theorem}\n\n \\begin{remark} \\label{remark: point 5 comes from other statements}\n In most of our examples, the branching diagrams have no multiple edges. In this case,\n for all $k$ and for all $(\\lambda, k) \\in \\Lambda_k$, the index set $\\mathcal T((\\lambda, k))$ in the cell datum for $A_k$ can be taken to be the set of paths on $\\mathfrak{B}$ from $\\emptyset$ to $(\\lambda, k)$.\nThis follows from (1) and (4), using Lemma \\ref{lemma: cell basis indexed by paths}.\n \\end{remark}\n \n \n\\section{Proof of the main theorem} \\label{section: basic construction preserves cellularity}\n \n \n We will prove Theorem \\ref{main theorem} in this section. Our strategy is to prove \n the following statement by induction on $n$:\n\n\\smallskip\n\\noindent {\\bf Claim:}\\quad\n{\\em For all $n \\ge 0$, the statements (1) --(4) of Theorem \\ref{main theorem} hold for the finite tower $(A_k)_{0 \\le k \\le n}$.}\n\\smallskip\n\nOf course, by statement (4) for the finite tower, we mean that the branching diagram for the\nfinite tower $(A_k^F)_{0 \\le k \\le n}$ is that obtained by reflections from the branching diagram\nof the finite tower $(Q_k^F)_{0 \\le k \\le n}$. \n\nThe claim holds trivially for $n = 0$ and $n = 1$. We assume that the claim holds \nfor some $n \\ge 1$ and prove that it also holds for $n + 1$. \n\n\\subsection{$A_{n+1}$ is cellular}\nWe will show that $A_{n+1}$ is a cellular algebra.\n\nSince $A_{n+1}\/A_{n+1} e_n A_{n+1} \\cong Q_{n+1}$ is cellular, to prove that\n $A_{n+1}$ is cellular, it suffices to show that $A_{n+1} e_n A_{n+1}$ is a cellular ideal in $A_{n+1}$; see Remark\n\\ref{remark on extensions of cellular algebras}.\n\nRecall that $\\Lambda_k$ denotes the partially ordered set in the cell datum for $A_k$ for each $k$, $0 \\le k \\le n$.\nDenote the elements of the cellular basis of $A_k$ by $c_{u, v}^\\lambda$ for $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_k$ and\n$u, v \\in \\mathcal T(\\lambda)$.\n\n\nFor each order ideal $\\Gamma$ of $\\Lambda_{n-1}$, recall that $A_{n-1}(\\Gamma)$ is the span in $A_{n-1}$ of all $c_{s, t}^\\lambda$ with $\\lambda \\in \\Gamma$.\n$A_{n-1}(\\Gamma)$ is an $i$--invariant two sided ideal of $A_{n-1}$. \n\\ignore{\nIf $\\Gamma \\subseteq \\Gamma'$ are two order ideals with\n$\\Gamma' \\setminus \\Gamma = \\{\\lambda\\}$, then\n$$A_{n-1}(\\Gamma')\/A_{n-1}(\\Gamma)\\cong\nA_{n-1}^{\\lambda}\/\\breve A_{n-1}^{\\lambda} \\cong\n\\Delta^{\\lambda}\\otimes_Ri(\\Delta^{\\lambda}),$$\nand the isomorphism $\\alpha : A_{n-1}(\\Gamma')\/A_{n-1}(\\Gamma) \\to \\Delta^{\\lambda}\\otimes_Ri(\\Delta^{\\lambda})$ satisfies\n$\\alpha \\circ i = i \\circ \\alpha$.\n}\nIn the following, we will write $J(\\Gamma) = A_{n-1}(\\Gamma)$\nand $$\\hat J(\\Gamma)= A_n e_n J(\\Gamma) A_n = A_{n+1} e_n J(\\Gamma)A_{n+1}, $$ which is a two sided ideal in $A_{n+1}$. \nOur goal is to show that $\\Gamma \\mapsto \\hat J(\\Gamma)$ is a $\\Lambda_{n-1}$--cell net in $A_{n+1} e_n A_{n+1}$.\n \n \n\\begin{lemma} \\label{second tensor iso}\nLet $R$ be an integral domain and $F$ its field of fractions. \nSuppose that $A$ and $B$ are $R$-algebras. Let\n$P_{A}$, $_A M_A$ and $_A Q$\n be modules. Then\n$$P\\otimes_AM\\otimes_AQ\\otimes_R F\\cong P^F\\otimes_{A^F}M^F\\otimes_{A^F}Q^F$$\nas $F$-vector spaces. The isomorphism \n$$P\\otimes_A M\\otimes_A Q\\otimes_R F\\rightarrow P^F\\otimes_{A^F} M^F\\otimes_{A^F}Q^F$$\nis determined by \n$$x\\otimes_Ay\\otimes_Az\\otimes_R f \\mapsto (x\\otimes_R\\bm 1_F)\\otimes_{A^F}(y\\otimes_R\\bm 1_F)\\otimes_{A^F}(z\\otimes_R f).$$\nIf $_B P_A$ and $_A Q_B$ are bimodules, then the isomorphism is an isomorphism of $B^F$--$B^F$--bimodules.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nBy Lemma \\ref{first tensor iso},\n\\begin{equation} \\label{equation: 2nd tensor iso 1}\n(P\\otimes_AM)\\otimes_AQ\\otimes_R F\\cong(P\\otimes_AM)^F\\otimes_{A^F}Q^F.\\end{equation}\nApplying Lemma \\ref{first tensor iso} again, we have that \n\\begin{equation} \\label{equation: 2nd tensor iso 2}\n(P\\otimes_AM)^F\\cong P^F\\otimes_{A^F}M^F\n\\end{equation}\nas right $A^F$--modules. Combining the two isomorphisms we have\n\\begin{equation} \\label{equation: 2nd tensor iso 3}\nP\\otimes_AM\\otimes_AQ\\otimes_R F\\cong P^F\\otimes_{A^F}M^F\\otimes_{A^F}Q^F.\n\\end{equation}\nIf we track a simple tensor through these isomorphisms, we see that\n\\begin{align}\nx\\otimes_A&y\\otimes_Az\\otimes_R f\\mapsto(x\\otimes_Ay\\otimes_R\\bm 1_F)\\otimes_{A^F}(z\\otimes_R f) \\notag \\\\\n\t&\\mapsto(x\\otimes_R\\bm 1_F)\\otimes_{A^F}(y\\otimes_R\\bm 1_F)\\otimes_{A^F}(z\\otimes_R f). \\notag\n\\end{align}\nIf $_B P_A$ and $_A Q_B$ are bimodules, then the isomorphism in (\\ref{equation: 2nd tensor iso 1}) is an isomorphism of $B^F$--$B^F$--bimodules, and the isomorphism in (\\ref{equation: 2nd tensor iso 2}) is an isomorphism of \n$B^F$--$A^F$-- bimodules. Hence the final isomorphism (\\ref{equation: 2nd tensor iso 3}) is an isomorphism of\n$B^F$--$B^F$--bimodules.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{beta inj}\nLet $K$ be a field and $A$ a semisimple $K$-algebra. Suppose that $I \\subseteq A$ is a two-sided ideal and $M_A$, $_A N$ are modules. Then the homomorphism $M\\otimes_{A} I\\otimes_{A} N\\rightarrow M\\otimes_{A} N$ defined by $x\\otimes y\\otimes z\\mapsto x\\otimes yz$ is injective.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nThe semisimplicity of $A$ implies that all $A$-modules are projective. Thus $N\\otimes_{A}-$ and $-\\otimes_{A} M$ are exact, and \n$$N\\otimes_AI\\otimes_AM\\rightarrow N\\otimes_AA\\otimes_AM\\cong N\\otimes_AM$$\nis injective.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\ignore{\n\\begin{remark} \\label{special case of beta inj}\nIf $J$ is a two-sided ideal such that $I\\trianglelefteq J\\trianglelefteq A$, then the proof of Lemma \\ref{beta inj} implies that the map $N\\otimes_AI\\otimes_AM\\rightarrow N\\otimes_AJ\\otimes_AM$ is injective.\n\\end{remark}\n}\n\n\n\n\\vbox{\n\\begin{proposition} \\label{proposition: Phi isomorphism} For all order ideals $\\Gamma$ of $\\Lambda_{n-1}$:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item \n The map\n$$\\Phi_\\Gamma : \\ A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n\\rightarrow A_n e_n J(\\Gamma) A_n$$\ndetermined by $$\\Phi_\\Gamma(a_1 e_n \\otimes x\\otimes e_n a_2)=a_1 e_n xa_2$$ is an isomorphism of \n$A_{n+1}$--$A_{n+1}$--bimodules.\n\\item $ A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma) \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n$ is a free $R$--module.\n\\item Let $ \\Gamma'$ be another order ideal containing $\\Gamma$, such that $\\Gamma' \\setminus \\Gamma$ is a singleton.\n Let $\\iota$ denote the injection $J(\\Gamma) \\ \\to J(\\Gamma')$. Then\n$$\n\\begin{aligned}\n\\beta_{\\Gamma,\\Gamma'} := \\id \\otimes \\iota \\otimes \\id : \\ &A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma) \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n \\to \\\\\n&A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma') \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n\n\\end{aligned}\n$$\nis injective.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{proposition}\n}\n\nWe provide two lemmas on the way to proving Proposition \\ref{proposition: Phi isomorphism}.\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma 1 for induction on j}\n Let \\ $\\Gamma \\subseteq \\Gamma'$ be two order ideals in $\\Lambda_{n-1}$ such that $\\Gamma' \\setminus \\Gamma$ is a singleton.\nSuppose that \\ $\\Phi_{\\Gamma}$ is an isomorphism and that $ A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma) \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n$ is a free $R$--module. Then $\\beta_{\\Gamma, \\Gamma'}$ is injective and \n$ A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma') \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n$ is a free $R$--module.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} Let $\\{\\lambda\\} = \\Gamma' \\setminus \\Gamma$.\nSince $\\Phi_{\\Gamma}$ is assumed injective, it follows from considering the commutative diagram below that\n$\\beta_{\\Gamma,\\Gamma'}$ is also injective:\n\\begin{diagram}\nA_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n &&\\rTo^{\\Phi_\\Gamma} &&A_n e_n J(\\Gamma) A_n \\\\\n\\dTo_{ \\beta_{\\Gamma, \\Gamma'} } & &&& \\dTo\\\\\n A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma')\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n &&\\rTo^{\\Phi_{\\Gamma'}} &&A_n e_n J(\\Gamma') A_n\n\\end{diagram}\n\\ignore{\n$$\\begin{CD}\nA_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n @>\\Phi_\\Gamma>> A_n e_n J(\\Gamma) A_n \\\\\n@VV \\beta_{\\Gamma, \\Gamma'} V @VV V \\\\\nA_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma')\\otimes_{A_n} e_n A_n @> \\Phi_{\\Gamma'} >> A_n e_n J(\\Gamma') A_n\n\\end{CD}\n$$\n}\n\nBy the right exactness of tensor products, we have\n\\begin{equation} \\label{equation 1 for lemma 1 of induction on j}\n\\begin{aligned}\n&(A_n e_n\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma')\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_{n }A_n) \/ \\beta_{\\Gamma,\\Gamma'}(A_n e_{n}\\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n ) \\\\\n&\\cong A_n e_n\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} (J(\\Gamma')\/J(\\Gamma)) \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n \\\\\n&\\cong A_n e_n\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} \\Delta^{\\lambda} \\otimes_R i( \\Delta^{\\lambda}) \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n\n\\end{aligned}\n\\end{equation}\nConsider $A_n e_n = A_{n+1} e_n$ (because of framework axiom (\\ref{axiom: An en})) as an $A_{n+1}$--$A_{n-1}$--bimodule. One can easily check that\n$i(A_n e_n) \\cong e_n A_n $ as $A_{n- 1}$--$A_{n+1}$--bimodules. Therefore,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{equation 2 for lemma 1 of induction on j}\ni( \\Delta^{\\lambda}) \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n \\cong i( \\Delta^{\\lambda}) \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} i( A_n e_n)\n\\cong i(A_n e_n\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} \\Delta^{\\lambda}),\n\\end{equation}\nusing Lemma \\ref{lemma; involutions and tensor products of bimodules}. By framework axioms \n(\\ref {axiom: en An en}) and (\\ref{axiom: An en}), $A_n e_n \\cong A_n$ as $A_n$--$A_{n-1}$--bimodules. Hence,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{equation 3 for lemma 1 of induction on j}\nA_n e_n\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} \\Delta^{\\lambda} \\cong A_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} \\Delta^{\\lambda} = {\\rm Ind}_{A_{n-1}}^{A_n}( \\Delta^{\\lambda}),\n\\end{equation}\nas $A_n$ modules. Combining (\\ref{equation 1 for lemma 1 of induction on j}), \n(\\ref{equation 2 for lemma 1 of induction on j}), and (\\ref{equation 3 for lemma 1 of induction on j}), we have\n\\begin{equation} \\label{equation 4 for lemma 1 of induction on j}\n\\begin{aligned}\n&(A_n e_n\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma')\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_{n}A_n) \/ \\beta_{\\Gamma,\\Gamma'}(A_n e_{n}\\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n ) \\\\\n&\\cong {\\rm Ind}_{A_{n-1}}^{A_n}( \\Delta^{\\lambda}) \\otimes_R i( {\\rm Ind}_{A_{n-1}}^{A_n}( \\Delta^{\\lambda})),\n\\end{aligned}\n\\end{equation}\nas $A_n$--$A_n$--bimodules.\n\n\nBy the induction assumption on $n$, ${\\rm Ind}_{A_{n-1}}^{A_n}( \\Delta^{\\lambda})$ has a filtration\nwith subquotients isomorphic to cell modules for $A_n$, and in particular ${\\rm Ind}_{A_{n-1}}^{A_n}( \\Delta^{\\lambda})$ is a free $R$--module. By (\\ref{equation 4 for lemma 1 of induction on j}), \n$$\n(A_n e_n\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma')\\otimes_{A_n} e_{n}A_n) \/ \\beta_{\\Gamma,\\Gamma'}(A_n e_{n}\\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n )\n$$\nis a free $R$--module. Since $A_n e_{n }\\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n$ is free by hypothesis, and $\\beta_{\\Gamma,\\Gamma'}$ is injective, \n $$\\beta_{\\Gamma,\\Gamma'}(A_n e_{n}\\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n )$$ is a free $R$--module. Hence \n$$\nA_n e_n\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma')\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_{n}A_n\n$$\nis also a free $R$--module.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma 2 for induction on j} Let $\\Gamma$ be an order ideal in $\\Lambda_{n-1}$.\n If $A_n e_n\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma) \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_{n}A_n$ is a free $R$--module, then $\\Phi_\\Gamma$ is an isomorphism.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\n\n\n\\begin{proof} $\\Phi_\\Gamma$ is surjective, so we only have to prove $\\Phi_\\Gamma$ is injective.\nDefine\n$$\\alpha_1~:~ A_{n} e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_{n}\\rightarrow A_{n}e_n\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_{n}\\otimes_R F$$\nand\n$$\\alpha_2~:~ A_{n} e_n J(\\Gamma) A_{n}\\rightarrow A_{n} e_n J(\\Gamma) A_{n}\\otimes_R F$$\nby $x \\mapsto x \\otimes \\bm 1_F$.\n Since $A_{n}e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_{n}$ is a free $R$--module, by assumption, \n $\\alpha_1$ is injective, according to Lemma \\ref{lemma injectivity of x to x tensor 1}. Let \n $$\n \\tau: A_{n} e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_{n}\\otimes_R F \\rightarrow\n A_n^F e_n \\otimes_{ A_{n-1}^F}J(\\Gamma)^F \\otimes_{ A_{n-1}^F} e_n A_n^F\n $$\n be the isomorphism from Lemma \\ref{second tensor iso}. (We are writing $e_n$ for $e_n \\otimes \\bm 1_F$.)\n Let\n $$\n \\Phi_\\Gamma^F: A_n^F e_n \\otimes_{ A_{n-1}^F}J(\\Gamma)^F \\otimes_{ A_{n-1}^F} e_n A_n^F\t\\rightarrow\t A_n^F e_nJ(\\Gamma)^F A_n^F\n $$\n be defined by $xe_n \\otimes a \\otimes e_n y \\mapsto x e_n a y$. \n \n Consider the following diagram\n \\newarrow{Equals} =====\n \\begin{diagram}\n A_n^F e_n \\otimes_{ A_{n-1}^F}J(\\Gamma)^F \\otimes_{ A_{n-1}^F} e_n A_n^F && \\rTo^{\\Phi_\\Gamma^F} && A_n^F e_nJ(\\Gamma)^F A_n^F \\\\\n \\uTo^{\\tau}&&&& \\uEquals\\\\\n A_{n}e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_{n}\\otimes_R F &&\\rTo^{\\Phi_\\Gamma\\otimes id_F}&&\n A_{n} e_n J(\\Gamma) A_{n}\\otimes_R F\\\\\n \\uTo^{\\alpha_{1}}&&&&\\uTo_{\\alpha_{2}}\\\\\n A_{n}e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_{n}&&\\rTo^{\\Phi_\\Gamma}&&A_{n} e_n J(\\Gamma) A_{n}.\\\\\n \\end{diagram}\n \\ignore{\n$$\\begin{CD}\n A_n^F e_n \\otimes_{ A_{n-1}^F}J(\\Gamma)^F \\otimes_{ A_{n-1}^F} e_n A_n^F\t@>\\Phi_\\Gamma^F>>\t A_n^F e_nJ(\\Gamma)^F A_n^F \\\\\n@A\\tau AA\t@|\\\\\n A_{n}e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_{n}\\otimes_R F @>\\Phi_\\Gamma\\otimes id_F>> A_{n} e_n J(\\Gamma) A_{n}\\otimes_R F\\\\\n@A\\alpha_1AA\t@AA\\alpha_2A\\\\\n A_{n}e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_{n} @>\\Phi_\\Gamma>> A_{n} e_n J(\\Gamma) A_{n}.\\\\\n\\end{CD}$$\n}\nIt is straightforward to check that $\\Phi_\\Gamma^F \\circ \\tau\\circ \\alpha_1 = \\alpha_2 \\circ \\Phi_\\Gamma$. Thus, to prove that $\\Phi_\\Gamma$ is injective, it suffices to show that $\\Phi_\\Gamma^F$ is injective.\n\n Define \n $$\\beta~:~ A_n^F e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}^F}J(\\Gamma)^F\\otimes_{A_{n-1}^F} e_n A_n^F\\rightarrow A_n^F e_n\\otimes_{A_{n-1}^F} e_n A_n^F$$\n by $\\beta(x\\otimes y\\otimes z)=x\\otimes yz$. Observe that $\\beta$ is injective by\n Lemma \\ref{beta inj}. Define $$\\phi^F : A_n^F e_n\\otimes_{A_{n-1}^F} e_n A_n^F \\to A_n^F e_n A_n^F$$ by\n $\\phi^F( x e_n \\otimes e_n y) = x e_n y$. Observe that $\\phi^F \\circ \\beta = \\Phi_\\Gamma^F$, so to prove that $\\Phi_\\Gamma^F$ is injective, it suffices to show that $\\phi^F$ is injective.\n \n \nSince $A_{n+1}^F$ is split semisimple (by framework axiom (\\ref{axiom: semisimplicity})), the ideal $A_{n+1}^F e_n A_{n+1}^F$\n(which equals $ A_n^F e_n A_n^F$ by framework axiom (\\ref{axiom: An en})) is a unital algebra in its own right, and Morita equivalent to $e_n A_{n+1}^F e_n = e_n A_n^F e_n \\cong A_{n-1}^F$.\nIn fact, let \n$$\\psi^F : e_n A_n \\otimes_{A_n^F e_n A_n^F} A_n^F e_n \\to e_n A_n^F e_n$$ be given by \n$e_n x \\otimes y e_n \\mapsto (1\/\\delta_n) e_n xy e_n$, where $e_n^2 = \\delta_n e_n$. Then\n$$(e_n A_{n}^F e_n, A_n^F e_n A_n^F, A_n^F e_n, e_n A_n^F, \\psi^F, \\phi^F)$$\n is a Morita context, in the sense of ~\\cite{Jacobson}, Section 3.12, with surjective\nbimodule maps $\\psi^F$ and $\\phi^F$. It follows from Morita theory, for example ~\\cite{Jacobson}, Morita Theorem I, page\n167, that $\\psi^F$ and $\\phi^F$ are isomorphisms.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\noindent\n{\\em Proof of Proposition \\ref{proposition: Phi isomorphism}}: \\quad \nLet $\\Gamma$ be an order ideal of $\\Lambda_{n-1}$. There exists a chain of order ideals\n$$\n\\emptyset = \\Gamma_0 \\subseteq \\Gamma_1 \\subseteq \\cdots \\subseteq \\Gamma_s = \\Gamma,\n$$\nsuch that the difference between any two successive order ideals is a singleton. Write $\\beta_j$ for\n$\\beta_{\\Gamma_j, \\Gamma_{j+1}}$, for $0 \\le j < s$.\n\nWe prove by induction that for $0 \\le j \\le s$, \n$\\Phi_{\\Gamma_j}$ is an isomorphism and $A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma_j) \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n$ is a free $R$--module; and that for $0 \\le j < s$, $\\beta_j$ is injective.\nFor $j = 0$, these statements are trivial since $J(\\emptyset) = 0$.\n\nFix $j$ ($0 \\le j < s$) and suppose that \n$A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma_j)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n$ is a free $R$--module, that\n$\\Phi_{\\Gamma_j}$ is an isomorphism. Then it follows from Lemma \\ref{lemma 1 for induction on j} that \n$ A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma_{j+1})\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n$ is a free $R$--module. Next, it follows from Lemma \\ref{lemma 2 for induction on j} that $\\Phi_{\\Gamma_{j+1}}$ is an isomorphism. \n\nWe conclude that $A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}}J(\\Gamma)\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n$ is a free $R$--module and that\n $\\Phi_\\Gamma$ is an isomorphism. Applying Lemma \n\\ref{lemma 1 for induction on j} again gives statement (3) of the Proposition.\n \\qed\n \n\n\\medskip\n\nWe continue to work with the following assumptions: \n $R$ is an integral domain with field of fractions $F$. $(Q_k)_{k\\ge 0}$ and\n$(A_k)_{k\\ge 0}$ are two towers of $R$--algebras satisfying the framework axioms of Section \\ref{subsection: framework axioms}. \nThe following induction assumption is in force:\nFor some fixed $n \\ge 1$, the conclusions (1) --(4) of Theorem \\ref{main theorem} hold for the finite tower $(A_k)_{0 \\le k \\le n}$.\nWe use the notation of the discussion preceding Lemma \\ref{second tensor iso}.\n\nThe following is a corollary of Proposition \\ref{proposition: Phi isomorphism}.\n\n\\begin{corollary} \\label{corollary: a basic construction isomorphism}\n$A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n \\cong A_n e_n A_n$, as $A_{n+1}$--$A_{n+1}$ bimodules, with the isomorphism determined by $x e_n \\otimes e_n y \\mapsto x e_n y$. \n\\end{corollary}\n\n\\begin{proof} In Proposition \\ref{proposition: Phi isomorphism}, take $\\Gamma = \\Lambda_{n-1}$, so \n$J(\\Gamma) = A_{n-1}$. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{proposition} \\mbox{} \\label{lemma: cellularity induction step}\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item $\\Gamma \\mapsto \\hat J(\\Gamma)$ is a $\\Lambda_{n-1}$--cell net in $A_n e_n A_n$.\n\\item\n $A_n e_n A_n$ is a cellular ideal in $A_{n+1}$.\n\\item $A_{n+1}$ is a cellular algebra. The partially ordered set in the cell datum for $A_{n+1}$ can be realized as\n$\\Lambda_{n+1} = \\Lambda_{n-1} \\cup \\Lambda_{n+1}\\spp 0$, where $ \\Lambda_{n+1}\\spp 0$ is the partially ordered set in the cell datum for\n$Q_{n+1}$; moreover the partial order on $\\Lambda_{n+1}$ agrees with the original partial orders on $\\Lambda_{n-1} $ and \n$\\Lambda_{n+1}\\spp 0$, and satisfies $\\lambda > \\mu$ if $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_{n-1}$ and $\\mu \\in \\Lambda_{n+1}\\spp 0$.\n\\item Let $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_{n-1}$, and let $ \\Delta^\\lambda$ denote the corresponding cell module of $A_{n-1}$. The cell module of $A_{n+1}$ corresponding to $\\lambda$ is isomorphic to \n$A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} \\Delta^\\lambda$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof} It is evident that $\\hat J(\\emptyset) = \\{0\\}$, and that $\\Gamma_1 \\subseteq \\Gamma_2$ implies $\\hat J(\\Gamma_1) \\subseteq \\hat J(\\Gamma_2)$.\nNote that $J(\\Gamma_{\\ge \\lambda}) = A_{n-1}^\\lambda$, so $\\hat J(\\Gamma_{\\ge \\lambda}) = A_n e_n A_{n-1}^\\lambda A_n$.\nSimilarly, $\\hat J(\\Gamma_{> \\lambda}) = A_n e_n \\breve A_{n-1}^\\lambda A_n$. It follows that\n$A_n e_n A_n = {\\rm span}\\{\\hat J(\\Gamma_{\\ge \\lambda}) : \\lambda \\in \\Lambda_{n-1}\\}$ and that\nfor all $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_{n-1}$, $\\hat J(\\Gamma_{> \\lambda}) = {\\rm span}\\{ \\hat J(\\Gamma_{\\ge \\mu}) : \\mu > \\lambda\\}$. We have shown that\n$\\Gamma \\mapsto \\hat J(\\Gamma)$ satisfies conditions (1) and (2) of Definition \\ref{definition: cell net}.\n \n Next we show that $\\Gamma \\mapsto \\hat J(\\Gamma)$ satisfies condition (3) of Definition \\ref{definition: cell net}.\nLet $\\Gamma \\subseteq \\Gamma'$ be two order ideals of $\\Lambda_{n-1}$, with $\\Gamma' \\setminus \\Gamma = \\{\\lambda\\}$.\nFrom the proof of Proposition \\ref{proposition: Phi isomorphism}, we already have $\\hat J(\\Gamma')\/\\hat J(\\Gamma) \\cong M^\\lambda \\otimes_R i(M^\\lambda)$, with\n$M^\\lambda = A_n e_n\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} \\Delta^{\\lambda} $. Let $\\chi : \\hat J(\\Gamma')\/\\hat J(\\Gamma) \\to M^\\lambda \\otimes_R i(M^\\lambda)$ denote the isomorphism. We have to check that $\\chi \\circ i = i \\circ \\chi$. The isomorphism\n$\\Phi_\\Gamma$ of Proposition \\ref{proposition: Phi isomorphism} satisfies $i \\circ \\Phi_\\Gamma = \\Phi_\\Gamma\\circ i$. Moreover,\n$$\\beta_{\\Gamma, \\Gamma'}( A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma) \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n) \\subseteq A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma') \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n$$\nand $\\hat J(\\Gamma) \\subseteq \\hat J(\\Gamma')$ are $i$--invariant, so the induced isomorphism\n$$\n\\begin{aligned}\n\\tilde \\Phi_\\Gamma : A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma')& \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n\/ \\beta_{\\Gamma, \\Gamma'}( A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma) \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n) \\\\ &\\to \\hat J(\\Gamma')\/\\hat J(\\Gamma)\n\\end{aligned}\n$$\nsatisfies $i \\circ \\tilde\\Phi_\\Gamma = \\tilde\\Phi_\\Gamma\\circ i$. Next, the map $$\\pi : A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma') \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n \\to\nA_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma')\/J(\\Gamma) \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n$$\nsatisfies $i \\circ \\pi = \\pi \\circ i$, \nso the induced isomorphism\n$$\n\\begin{aligned}\n\\tilde \\pi: A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma') &\\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n\/ \\beta_{\\Gamma, \\Gamma'}( A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma) \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n) \\\\ &\\to A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma')\/J(\\Gamma) \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n\n\\end{aligned}\n$$\nsatisfies $i \\circ \\tilde \\pi = \\tilde \\pi \\circ i$. Finally, we have an isomorphism $\\alpha: J(\\Gamma')\/J(\\Gamma) \\to \\Delta^{\\lambda} \\otimes_R i(\\Delta^{\\lambda})$ satisfying $i \\circ \\alpha = \\alpha \\circ i$, so the map\n$$\\begin{aligned}\n\\bar\\alpha = \\id \\otimes \\alpha \\otimes \\id : &A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} J(\\Gamma')\/J(\\Gamma) \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n \\to \\\\\n&A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} \\Delta^{\\lambda} \\otimes_R i(\\Delta^{\\lambda}) \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n\n\\end{aligned}$$\nsatisfies $i \\circ \\bar\\alpha = \\bar\\alpha \\circ i$.\nThe map $\\chi$ is $ \\bar\\alpha \\circ \\tilde \\pi \\circ \\tilde \\Phi_\\Gamma^{-1}$, so we have $i \\circ \\chi = \\chi \\circ i$.\n\nThis completes the proof that $\\Gamma \\mapsto \\hat J(\\Gamma)$ is a $\\Lambda_{n-1}$--cell net in $A_n e_n A_n$. By\nProposition \\ref{lemma: cell net characterization of cellularity}, $A_n e_n A_n$ has a cell datum with partially ordered set equal to $\\Lambda_{n-1}$. Moreover, since\nthe isomorphisms $\\hat J(\\Gamma')\/\\hat J(\\Gamma) \\cong M^\\lambda \\otimes_R i(M^\\lambda)$ are actually \nisomorphisms of $A_{n+1}$--$A_{n+1}$--bimodules, the cellular basis $\\tilde{\\mathcal C}$ of $A_n e_n A_n$\nsatisfies the property (2) of Definition \\ref{gl cell} not only for $a \\in A_n e_n A_n$ but also for $a \\in A_{n+1}$;\nthat is $A_n e_n A_n$ is a cellular ideal in $A_{n+1}$.\n\nStatement (3) of the Lemma follows from applying Remark \\ref{remark on extensions of cellular algebras}.\nStatement (4) follows from the isomorphism $\\hat J(\\Gamma')\/\\hat J(\\Gamma) \\cong M^\\lambda \\otimes_R i(M^\\lambda)$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{corollary} \\label{corollary: p.o. set for cellular structure}\n\n The description of the partially ordered set given in Theorem \\ref{main theorem}, point (2), is valid for $k = n+1$.\n\\end{corollary}\n\n\\begin{proof}\n Combining point (3) of Proposition \\ref{lemma: cellularity induction step} with the induction assumption (specifically the description of $\\Lambda_{n-1}$ as the union of copies of \n$\\Lambda_{n-1}\\spp 0$, $\\Lambda_{n-3}\\spp 0$, etc.), we see that $\\Lambda_{n+1}$ is the union of copies of \n$\\Lambda_{n+1}\\spp 0$, $\\Lambda_{n-1}\\spp 0$, $\\Lambda_{n-3}\\spp 0$, etc., with the following partial order:\nthe partial order agrees with the original partial order on each $\\Lambda_i \\spp 0$, and \n$\\lambda > \\mu$ if $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_i \\spp 0$, $\\mu \\in \\Lambda_j \\spp 0$, and $i < j$. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\nFor the remainder of Section \\ref{section: basic construction preserves cellularity}, we denote elements of $\\Lambda_k$ ($0 \\le k \\le n+1$) by ordered pairs $(\\lambda, k)$, where it is understood that\n$\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_i\\spp 0$ for some $i \\le k$ with $k -i$ even.\n\n\\begin{corollary} \\label{corollary: cell modules and An en An}\n Point (3) of Theorem \\ref{main theorem} holds for $k = n+1$.\n\\end{corollary}\n\n\\begin{proof}\n The cell modules of $A_{n+1}$ are of two types: There are the cell modules\n$\\Delta^{(\\lambda, n+1)}$ with $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_{n+1}\\spp 0$, which are actually cell modules of\n$A_{n+1}\/(A_n e_n A_n) \\cong Q_{n+1}$. These satisfy $$A_n e_n A_n \\ \\Delta^{(\\lambda, n+1)} = 0.$$\nOn the other hand, there are the cell modules of the cellular ideal $A_n e_n A_n$, namely\n$\\Delta^{(\\lambda, n+1)} = A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} \\Delta^{(\\lambda, n-1)}$, with\n$\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_i\\spp 0$ for some $i < n+1$ with $n+1 -i$ even. These satisfy\n$$A_n e_n A_n \\ \\Delta^{(\\lambda, n+1)} = \nA_n e_n A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} \\Delta^{(\\lambda, n-1)}.\n$$\nBut \n$$\nA_n e_n A_n e_n \\otimes_R F = A_n^F A_{n-1}^F e_n = A_n^F e_n, \n$$ using framework axiom (\\ref{axiom: en An en}), so we have $$A_n e_n A_n \\ \\Delta^{(\\lambda, n+1)} \\otimes_R F = \\Delta^{(\\lambda, n+1)} \\otimes_R F ,$$\nby application of Lemma \\ref{first tensor iso}..\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\subsection{Cell filtrations of restrictions and induced modules}\n\nNext we show that the restriction of a cell module from $A_{n+1}$ to $A_n$, and the induction of a cell module from\n$A_n$ to $A_{n+1}$, have cell filtrations.\n\n\\begin{proposition} \\label{lemma: cell filtration of restrictions}\nLet $(\\lambda, n+1) \\in \\Lambda_{n+1}$, and let $\\Delta = \\Delta^{(\\lambda, n+1)}$ be the corresponding\ncell module of $A_{n+1}$. Then the restriction of $\\Delta$ to $A_n$ has a cell filtration.\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof} Write ${\\rm Res}(\\Delta)$ for the restriction to $A_n$.\n\nIf $A_{n+1} e_n A_{n+1} \\ \\Delta = 0$, then $\\Delta$ is an $Q_{n+1}$--module; moreover,\nby framework axiom (\\ref{axiom: e(n-1) in An en An}) from Section \\ref{subsection: framework axioms}, $A_n e_{n-1} A_n\\ {\\rm Res}(\\Delta) = 0$ as well, so ${\\rm Res}(\\Delta)$ is a $Q_{n}$--module.\nThen it follows from the assumption of coherence of $(Q_k)_{k \\ge 0}$ that ${\\rm Res}(\\Delta)$ has a cell filtration as an $Q_n$--module, hence as an $A_n$--module.\n\nIf $A_{n+1} e_n A_{n+1}\\ \\Delta \\ne 0$, then $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_i\\spp 0$ for some $i < n$, and \n$$\\Delta \\cong A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} \\Delta^{(\\lambda, n-1)}.$$ \nSince $A_n e_n \\cong A_n$ as $A_n$--$A_{n-1}$ bimodules, \n ${\\rm Res}(\\Delta) \\cong \n{\\rm Ind}_{A_{n-1}}^{A_{n}}( \\Delta^{(\\lambda, n-1)})$, which has a cell filtration by the induction assumption.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: sort of flatness}\n Let $R$ be an integral domain with field of fractions $F$. Let $A$ be a unital $R$--algebra, $P$ a right $A$--module, and $N_1 \\subseteq N_2$ left $A$--modules, such that\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item $A^F = A \\otimes_R F$ is semisimple, and \n\\item $N_2$ and $P \\otimes_A N_1$ are free $R$--modules.\n\\end{enumerate}\nLet $\\iota : N_1 \\to N_2$ denote the injection. Then $$\\id_P \\otimes \\iota : P \\otimes_A N_1 \\to P \\otimes_A N_2$$ is injective.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} First, $\\iota \\otimes \\id_F : N_1 \\otimes_R F \\to N_2 \\otimes_R F$ is injective by Lemma \\ref{injectivity of iota tensor id(F) with free R modules}.\nWrite $\\beta = \\id_P \\otimes \\iota$, and let \n$$\\beta^F = \\id_{P^F} \\otimes (\\iota \\otimes \\id_F) : P^F \\otimes_{A^F} N_1^F \\to \nP^F \\otimes_{A^F} N_2^F. \n$$\nSince $A^F$ is semisimple, $P^F$ is projective; hence $\\beta^F$ is injective.\n\nConsider the following diagram: \n\\begin{diagram}\n P^F \\otimes_{A^F} N^F_{1} \t&&\\rTo^{\\beta^F} &&\t P^F \\otimes_{A^F} N^F_{2} \t\\\\\n \\uTo^{\\tau_{1}} &&&& \\uTo_{\\tau_{2}}\\\\\n P \\otimes_{A} N_1 \\otimes_R F &&\\rTo^{\\beta\\otimes id_F} && P \\otimes_{A} N_2 \\otimes_R F\\\\\n\\uTo^{\\alpha_1}&&&&\t\\uTo_{\\alpha_2}\\\\\n P \\otimes_{A} N_1 &&\\rTo^{\\beta}&& P \\otimes_{A} N_2,\\\\\n\\end{diagram}\n\\ignore{\n$$\\begin{CD}\n P^F \\otimes_{A^F} N^F_{1} \t@>\\beta^F>>\t P^F \\otimes_{A^F} N^F_{2} \t\\\\\n@A\\tau_1 AA\t@A\\tau_2 AA\\\\\nP \\otimes_{A} N_1 \\otimes_R F @>\\beta\\otimes id_F>> P \\otimes_{A} N_2 \\otimes_R F\\\\\n@A\\alpha_1AA\t@AA\\alpha_2A\\\\\n P \\otimes_{A} N_1 @>\\beta>> P \\otimes_{A} N_2,\\\\\n\\end{CD}$$\n}\nwhere $\\alpha_i$ is determined by $x \\mapsto x \\otimes 1_F$ and $\\tau_i$ is the isomorphism of Lemma \\ref{first tensor iso} ($i = 1, 2$). Note that \n$\\alpha_1$ is injective\nby Lemma \\ref{lemma injectivity of x to x tensor 1}, since $ P \\otimes_{A} N_1$ is assumed to be free over $R$. One can check that\n$\\beta^F \\circ \\tau_1 \\circ \\alpha_1 = \\tau_2 \\circ \\alpha_2 \\circ \\beta$. It follows that $\\beta$ is injective.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: globalization preserves cell filtrations}\n Let $M$ be an $A_{n-1}$ module with a cell filtration:\n$$\n(0) = M_0 \\subseteq M_1 \\subseteq \\cdots \\subseteq M_t = M,\n$$\nwith $M_j\/M_{j-1} \\cong \\Delta^{(\\lambda_j, n-1)}$ for $1 \\le j \\le t$. Then for $1 \\le j \\le t$,\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item $A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} M_{j}$ is a free $R$--module,\n\\item $A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} M_{j-1}$ imbeds in $A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} M_{j}$, and\n\\item $(A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} M_{j})\/(A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} M_{j-1}) \\cong \nA_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} \\Delta^{(\\lambda_j, n-1)}$.\n\\end{enumerate}\nThus, the $A_{n+1}$--module $A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} M$ has a cell filtration with subquotients\n$\\Delta^{(\\lambda_j, n+1)} = A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} \\Delta^{(\\lambda_j, n-1)}$ ($1 \\le j \\le t$).\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} We have $M_1 \\cong \\Delta^{(\\lambda_1, n-1)}$, so $A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} M_1$ is a free $R$--module.\nFix $j \\ge 2$ and suppose that $A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} M_{j-1}$ is a free $R$--module.\nLet $\\iota: M_{j-1} \\to M_j$ denote the injection and let $$\\beta = \\id_{ A_n e_n} \\otimes \\iota : A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} M_{j-1} \\to A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} M_{j}.$$\nThen $\\beta$ is injective by an application of Lemma \\ref{lemma: sort of flatness}, with \n$A = A_{n-1}$, $P = A_n e_n$, $N_1 = M_{j-1}$, and $N_2 = M_j$.\nThe quotient $$( A_{n}e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} M_{j},)\/\\beta( A_{n}e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} M_{j-1})$$ is free over $R$,\nbecause\n$$\n\\begin{aligned}\n( A_{n}e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} &M_{j})\/\\beta( A_{n}e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} M_{j-1}) \\\\\n&\\cong\nA_{n}e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} (M_j\/ M_{j-1}) \\\\\n&\\cong A_{n}e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} \\Delta^{(\\lambda_j, n-1)}.\n\\end{aligned}\n$$\nConsequently, $ A_{n}e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} M_{j}$ is free over $R$. All the assertions of the lemma now follow by induction on $j$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{induction to An en An from An}\n Let $M$ be an $A_n$--module, \nand let ${\\rm Res}(M)$ denote the restriction of $M$ to $A_{n-1}$. We have\n$$A_n e_n A_n \\otimes_{A_n} M \\cong A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} {\\rm Res}(M),\n$$\nas $A_{n+1}$ modules.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} \n\\ignore{The map from $A_n e_n A_n \\times M$ to \n$A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} {\\rm Res}(M)$ determined by\n$$\n(\\sum_i x'_i e_n x''_i, m) \\mapsto \\sum_i (x'_i e_n \\otimes x''_i m)\n$$\nis $R$--bilinear and $A_n$--balanced, so yields a linear map $\\psi: A_n e_n A_n \\otimes_{A_n} M \\to A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} {\\rm Res}(M)$. Likewise the map from $A_n e_n \\times M$ to\n$A_n e_n A_n \\otimes_{A_n} M$ determined by $(x e_n, m) \\mapsto x e_n \\otimes m$ is\n$R$--bilinear and $A_{n-1}$--balanced, so gives a linear map\n$\\phi : A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} {\\rm Res}(M) \\to A_n e_n A_n \\otimes_{A_n} M $. It is straightforward to check that $\\psi$ and $\\phi$ are inverses.\n}\nBy Corollary \\ref{corollary: a basic construction isomorphism}, we have $A_n e_n A_n \\cong A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} e_n A_n \\cong\n A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} A_n$ as $A_{n+1}$--$A_n$ bimodules. Thus\n $$A_n e_n A_n \\otimes_{A_n} M \\cong A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} A_n \\otimes_{A_n} M \\cong\n A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} {\\rm Res}(M).$$\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{proposition} \\label{proposition: cell filtration of induced modules}\n Let ${(\\mu, n)} \\in \\Lambda_n$ and let $\\Delta^{(\\mu, n)}$ be the corresponding cell module of \n$A_n$. \n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item\n $A_n e_n A_n \\otimes_{A_n} \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)}$ has cell filtration (as an\n$A_{n+1}$--module). In particular, $A_n e_n A_n \\otimes_{A_n} \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)}$ is free as an $R$--module.\n\\item $A_n e_n A_n \\otimes_{A_n} \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)}$ imbeds in ${\\rm Ind}_{A_n}^{A_{n+1}}(\\Delta^{(\\mu, n)})$,\nand $${\\rm Ind}_{A_n}^{A_{n+1}}(\\Delta^{(\\mu, n)})\/(A_n e_n A_n \\otimes_{A_n} \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)}) \\cong\nQ_{n+1} \\otimes_{A_n} \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)}.$$\n\\item $Q_{n+1} \\otimes_{A_n} \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)}$ has cell filtration (as a $Q_{n+1}$--module, hence as an \n$A_{n+1}$--module). \n\\item ${\\rm Ind}_{A_n}^{A_{n+1}}(\\Delta^{(\\mu, n)})$ has a cell filtration.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof} For point (1), \nlet ${\\rm Res}(\\Delta^{(\\mu, n)})$ denote the restriction to $A_{n-1}$.\nBy Lemma \\ref{induction to An en An from An}, we have\n$A_n e_n A_n \\otimes_{A_n} \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)} \\cong A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} {\\rm Res}(\\Delta^{(\\mu, n)})$, as\n$A_{n+1}$ modules. By the induction assumption stated at the beginning of Section \n\\ref{section: basic construction preserves cellularity}, $ {\\rm Res}(\\Delta^{(\\mu, n)})$ has cell filtration,\n$$\n(0) = M_0 \\subseteq M_1 \\subseteq \\cdots \\subseteq M_t = {\\rm Res}(\\Delta^{(\\mu, n)}),\n$$\nwith $M_j\/M_{j-1} \\cong \\Delta^{(\\lambda_j, n-1)}$ for some $(\\lambda_j, n-1) \\in \\Lambda_{n-1}$. By Lemma \\ref {lemma: globalization preserves cell filtrations},\n$A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} {\\rm Res}(\\Delta^{(\\mu, n)})$ has a cell filtration with subquotients\n$\\Delta^{(\\lambda_j, n+1)} = A_n e_n \\otimes_{A_{n-1}} \\Delta^{(\\lambda_j, n-1)}$.\n\nPoint (2) follows from Lemma \\ref{lemma: sort of flatness} (with left and right modules interchanged), taking\n$A = A_n$, $P = \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)}$, $N_1 = A_n e_n A_n$, and $N_2 = A_{n+1}$. Note that\n$A_{n+1}$ is a free $R$--module by Proposition \\ref{lemma: cellularity induction step}, and $A_n e_n A_n \\otimes_{A_n} \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)} $ is a free $R$--module by point (1). The statement regarding the quotient follows from the right exactness of tensor products.\n\nFor $n=1$, $A_1 = Q_1$, and $\\Delta^{(\\mu, n)}$ is an $Q_1$--cell module; statement (3) follows from\nthe assumption of coherence of $(Q_k)_{k \\ge 0}$. If $n \\ge 2$, then by the induction assumption,\neither $A_n e_{n-1} A_n\\ \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)} = \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)}$, or $A_n e_{n-1} A_n \\ \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)} = (0)$. In the former case,\n$$\n\\begin{aligned}\nQ_{n+1} \\otimes_{A_n} \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)} &= Q_{n+1} \\otimes_{A_n}A_n e_{n-1} A_n\\ \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)} \\\\\n&= Q_{n+1}A_n e_{n-1} A_n \\otimes_{A_n} \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)} = 0,\\\\\n\\end{aligned}\n$$\nbecause $e_{n-1} \\in A_{n+1} e_n A_{n+1}$, by the framework axiom (\\ref{axiom: e(n-1) in An en An}). In the latter case, $A_n e_{n-1} A_n$ annihilates both $Q_{n+1}$ and $\\Delta^{(\\mu, n)}$, so both are $A_n\/(A_n e_{n-1} A_n) \\cong Q_n$--modules.\nThus $Q_{n+1} \\otimes_{A_n} \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)} = Q_{n+1} \\otimes_{Q_n} \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)}$, which has\nan $Q_{n+1}$--cell filtration by the assumption of coherence of $(Q_k)_{k \\ge 0}$. This proves point (3).\n\nFinally, we have an exact sequence\n$$\n0 \\to A_n e_n A_n \\otimes_{A_n} \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)} \\to {\\rm Ind}_{A_n}^{A_{n+1}}(\\Delta^{(\\mu, n)}) \\to\nQ_{n+1} \\otimes_{A_n} \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)} \\to 0,\n$$\nwhere both $A_n e_n A_n \\otimes_{A_n} \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)}$ and $Q_{n+1} \\otimes_{A_n} \\Delta^{(\\mu, n)} $ have $A_{n+1}$--cell filtrations. Hence $ {\\rm Ind}_{A_n}^{A_{n+1}}(\\Delta^{(\\mu, n)})$ has an $A_{n+1}$--cell filtration.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{corollary} \\label{corollary: Ak coherent tower} \nThe finite tower $(A_k)_{0 \\le k \\le n+1}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras.\n\\end{corollary}\n\n\\begin{proof} Combine the induction hypothesis, Proposition \\ref{lemma: cellularity induction step}, Proposition \\ref{lemma: cell filtration of restrictions}, and Proposition \\ref{proposition: cell filtration of induced modules}.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{corollary} \\label{corollary: branching diagram obtained by reflections}\n The branching diagram for the finite tower \n $(A_k^F)_{0 \\le k \\le n + 1}$ is that obtained by reflections from the branching diagram\nof the finite tower $(Q_k^F)_{0 \\le k \\le n + 1}$.\n\\end{corollary}\n\n\\begin{proof} From the induction hypothesis, we already know that the branching diagram\nfor $(A_k^F)_{0 \\le k \\le n }$ is obtained by reflections from the branching diagram\nof the finite tower $(Q_k^F)_{0 \\le k \\le n}$. So we have only to consider the branching diagram\nfor $A_{n-1}^F \\subseteq A_n^F \\subseteq A_{n+1}^F$; specifically, we need to show that\nif $\\lambda \\in \\Lambda_i \\spp 0$ with $i < n+1$ and $n+1 -i $ even, and $(\\mu, n) \\in \\Lambda_n$ is arbitrary, \nthen $$(\\mu, n) \\nearrow (\\lambda, n+1) \\text{\\quad if, and only if \\quad } (\\lambda, n-1) \\nearrow (\\mu, n),$$\nin the branching diagram for $A_{n-1}^F \\subseteq A_n^F \\subseteq A_{n+1}^F$, and the number of \nedges connecting $(\\mu, n)$ and $(\\lambda, n+1)$ is the same as the number of edges connecting \n$(\\lambda, n-1)$ and $ (\\mu, n)$.\nBut this follows from Lemma \\ref{lemma: multiplicities in cell filtrations} and the proof of either Proposition \\ref{lemma: cell filtration of restrictions}, or Proposition \\ref{proposition: cell filtration of induced modules}, point (1).\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\medskip\n\\noindent\n{\\em Conclusion of the proof of Theorem \\ref{main theorem}.} \\ \\ Under the assumption that statements (1)--(4) of the theorem are valid for the finite tower $(A_k)_{0 \\le k \\le n}$, for some fixed $n$, we had to show that they are also valid for the tower $(A_k)_{0 \\le k \\le n + 1}$. This was verified in Corollary\n\\ref{corollary: Ak coherent tower}, Corollary \\ref{corollary: p.o. set for cellular structure}, Corollary \n\\ref{corollary: cell modules and An en An}, and Corollary \\ref{corollary: branching diagram obtained by reflections}. \n\n\n\\section{Examples}\n\n\\subsection{Preliminaries on tangle diagrams} \\label{subsection: preliminaries on tangle diagrams}\nSeveral of our examples involve {\\em tangle diagrams} in the rectangle $\\mathcal R = [0, 1] \\times [0, 1]$.\nFix points $a_i \\in [0, 1]$, $i \\ge 1$, with $0 < a_1 < a_2 < \\cdots$. Write\n$\\p i = (a_i, 1)$ and $\\overline{ \\p i} = (a_i, 0)$.\n\n\nRecall that a {\\em knot diagram} means a collection of piecewise smooth closed curves in the plane\nwhich may have intersections and self-intersections, but only simple\ntransverse intersections. At each intersection or crossing, one of the\ntwo strands (curves) which intersect is indicated as crossing\nover the other. \n\nAn {\\em $(n,n)$--tangle diagram} is a piece of a\nknot diagram in $\\mathcal R$ consisting of exactly $n$ topological intervals and possibly some number of closed curves, such that: (1) the endpoints of the intervals are the points $\\p 1, \\dots \\p n, \\pbar 1, \\dots, \\pbar n$, and these are the only points of intersection of the family of curves with the boundary of the rectangle, and (2) each interval intersects the boundary of the rectangle transversally. \n\n\nAn {\\em $(n,n)$--Brauer diagram} is a ``tangle\" diagram containing no closed curves, \nin which information about over and under crossings is ignored. Two Brauer diagrams are identified if the pairs of boundary points joined by curves is the same in the two diagrams.\nBy convention, there is a unique $(0, 0)$--Brauer diagram, the empty diagram with no curves.\nFor $n \\ge 1$, the number of $(n,n)$--Brauer diagrams is $(2n-1)!! = (2n-1)(2n-3)\\cdots (3)(1)$.\n\nA {\\em Temperley--Lieb} diagram is a Brauer diagram without crossings. For $n \\ge 0$, the number of $(n, n)$--Temperley--Lieb diagrams is the Catalan number $\\frac{1}{n+1} {2n \\choose n}$.\n\nFor any of these types of diagrams, we call $P = \\{\\p 1, \\dots, \\p n, \\pbar 1,\\dots, \\pbar n\\}$ the set of {\\em vertices} of the diagram, $P^+ = \\{\\p 1, \\dots, \\p n\\}$ the set of {\\em top vertices}, and\n$P^- = \\{\\pbar 1,\\dots, \\pbar n\\}$ the set of {\\em bottom vertices}. A curve or {\\em strand} in the diagram is called a {\\em vertical} or {\\em through} strand if it connects a top vertex and a bottom vertex, and a {\\em horizontal} strand if it connects two top vertices or two bottom vertices.\n\n\n\\subsection{The Brauer algebras}\n\\subsubsection{Definition of the Brauer algebras} \\label{subsection: Brauer algebras}\n\nLet $S$ be a commutative ring with identity, with a distinguished element $\\delta$.\nThe Brauer algebra $B_n(S, \\delta)$ is the free $S$--module with basis the set of $(n, n)$--Brauer diagrams, and with multiplication defined as follows.\nThe product of two Brauer diagrams is defined\nto be a certain multiple of another Brauer diagram. Namely, given two\nBrauer diagrams $a, b$, first ``stack\" $b$ over $a$; the result is a planar tangle that may contain some number of closed curves. Let $r$ denote the number of closed curves, and let $c$ be the Brauer\ndiagram obtained by removing all the closed curves. Then\n$\na b = \\delta^r c.\n$\n\n\\begin{definition}\\r\nFor $n \\ge 1$, the {\\em Brauer algebra} $B_n(S, \\delta)$ over $S$ with parameter $\\delta$ is the free $S$-module with basis the set of \n$(n,n)$-Brauer diagrams, with the bilinear product determined by the\nmultiplication of Brauer diagrams. In particular, $B_0(S, \\delta) = S$.\n\\end{definition}\n\n\nNote that the Brauer diagrams with only vertical strands are in\nbijection with permutations of $\\{1, \\dots, n\\}$, and that the\nmultiplication of two such diagrams coincides with the multiplication of\npermutations. Thus the Brauer algebra contains the group algebra $S\\mathfrak S_n$ of\nthe permutation group $\\mathfrak S_n$. The identity element of the Brauer algebra is the diagram corresponding to the trivial permutation.\n\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Brief history of the Brauer algebras}\nThe Brauer algebras were introduced by Brauer~\\cite{Brauer} as a device\nfor studying the invariant theory of orthogonal and symplectic groups.\nWenzl ~\\cite{Wenzl-Brauer} observed that generically, the sequence of Brauer algebras (over a field) is obtained\nby repeated Jones basic constructions from the symmetric group algebras; he used this to show that\n$B_n(k, \\delta)$ is semisimple, when $k$ is a field of characteristic zero and $\\delta$ is not an integer.\nGraham and Lehrer ~\\cite{Graham-Lehrer-cellular} showed that the Brauer algebras are cellular, and classified the simple modules of $B_n(k, \\delta)$ when $k$ is a field and $\\delta$ is arbitrary. Another illuminating proof of cellularity of\nthe Brauer algebras was given by K\\\"onig and Xi ~\\cite{KX-Brauer}. Enyang's two proofs of cellularity for \nBirman--Wenzl algebras ~\\cite{Enyang1, Enyang2} also apply to the Brauer algebras.\n\n\\subsubsection{Some properties of the Brauer algebras} In this section, write $B_n$ for $B_n(S, \\delta)$. \nFor $n \\ge 1$, let $\\iota$ denote the map from $(n,n)$--Brauer diagrams to\n$(n+1, n+1)$--Brauer diagrams that adds an additional strand to a diagram, connecting $\\p {n+1}$ to\n$\\pbar {n+1}$.\n$$\n\\iota: \\quad \\inlinegraphic{tangle_box2} \\quad \\mapsto \\quad \n\\inlinegraphic{iota}\n$$\nThe linear extension of $\\iota$ to $B_n$ is an injective unital homomorphism into\n$B_{n+1}$. Using $\\iota$, we identify $B_n$ with its image in $B_{n+1}$.\n\nFor $n \\ge 1$ define a map ${\\rm cl}$ from $(n,n)$--Brauer diagrams into $B_{n-1}$ as follows. First ``partially close\" a given $(n,n)$--Brauer diagram by adding an additional smooth curve connecting $\\p n$ to $\\pbar n$,\n$$\n \\inlinegraphic{tangle_box2} \\quad \\mapsto \\quad \n\\inlinegraphic{partial_closure}.\n$$\nIn case the resulting ``tangle\" contains a closed curve (which happens precisely when the original diagram already had a strand connecting $\\p n$ to $\\pbar n$), remove this loop and replace it with a factor of $\\delta$. The linear extension of ${\\rm cl}$ to $B_n$ is a (non-unital)\n$B_{n-1}$--$B_{n-1}$ bimodule map, and ${\\rm cl}\\circ\\iota(x) = \\delta\\ x$ for $x \\in \nB_n$.\n\nIf $\\delta$ is invertible in $S$, we can define $\\varepsilon_n = (1\/\\delta) {\\rm cl}$, which is a \nconditional expectation, that is, a unital $B_{n-1}$--$B_{n-1}$ bimodule map. We have\n${\\varepsilon_{n+1}}\\circ\\iota(x) = x$ for $x \\in \nB_n$. The map $\\varepsilon = \\varepsilon_1\\circ \\cdots \\circ \\varepsilon_n : B_n \\to B_0 \\cong S$ is a normalized trace; that is, $\\varepsilon(\\bm 1) = 1$ and $\\varepsilon(a b) = \\varepsilon(b a)$ for all $a, b$. The value of $\\varepsilon$ on a Brauer diagram $d$ is obtained as follows: first close all the strands of $d$ by introducing new curves joining $\\p j$ to $\\pbar j$ for all $j$; let $c$ be the number of components (closed loops) in the resulting\n$(0,0)$--tangle; then $\\varepsilon(d) = \\delta^{c - n}$ if $d \\in B_n$. The trace and condition expectation play an essential role in Wenzl's treatment of the structure of the Brauer algebra over ${\\mathbb Q}({\\mathbold \\delta})$\n~\\cite{Wenzl-Brauer}, and thus implicitly in our verification of the framework axioms in Proposition\n\\ref{proposition: framework axioms for Brauer}.\n\nThe involution $i$ on $(n, n)$--Brauer diagrams which reflects a diagram in the axis $y = 1\/2$\nextends linearly to an algebra involution of $B_n$. We have $\\iota \\circ i = i \\circ \\iota$ and ${\\rm cl}\\circ i = i \\circ {\\rm cl}$.\n\nThe products $a b$ and $b a$ of two Brauer diagrams have at most as many through strands as $a$. Consequently, the span of diagrams with at most $r$ through strands ($r \\le n$ and $n-r$ even) is a two--sided ideal $J_r$ in $B_n$. $J_r$ is $i$--invariant.\n\nLet $e_j$ and $s_j$ denote the $(n, n)$--Brauer diagrams:\n$$\ne_j = \\inlinegraphic[scale=.7]{ordinary_E_j}\\qquad\ns_j = \\inlinegraphic[scale= .7]{ordinary_s_j} \n$$\nNote that $e_j^2 = \\delta e_j$, so $e_j$ is an essential idempotent if $\\delta \\ne 0$, and nilpotent if $\\delta = 0$.\nWe have $i(e_j) = e_j$ and $i(s_j) = s_j$. \nIt is easy to see that $e_1, \\dots, e_{n-1}$ and $s_1, \\dots, s_{n-1}$ generate $B_n$ as an algebra. \n\nLet $r \\le n$ with $n - r$ even, and let $f_r = e_{r+1} e_{r+3} \\cdots e_{n-1}$.\nAny Brauer diagram with exactly $r$ through strands can be factored as $\\pi_1 f_r \\pi_2$, where $\\pi_i$ are permutation diagrams. Consequently, $J_r$ is generated by $f_r$. In particular the\nideal $J = J_{n-2}$ spanned by diagrams with fewer than $n$ through strands is generated by $e_{n-1}$. We have $B_n\/J \\cong S\\mathfrak S_n$, as algebras with involutions.\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: Brauer axiom 6} Write $B_n$ for $B_n(S, \\delta)$.\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item \nFor $n \\ge 2$, $e_{n} B_{n} e_{n} = B_{n-1} e_{n}$.\n\\item $e_1 B_1 e_1 = \\delta B_0 e_1$\n\\item For $n \\ge 2$, \n$e_{n}$ commutes with $ B_{n-1} $. \n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} For $n \\ge 2$, if $x$ is an $(n, n)$--Brauer diagram, then $e_{n} x e_{n} \\in B_{n-1}\\, e_{n}$. Thus, $e_{n} B_{n} \\,e_{n} \\break \\subseteq B_{n-1} \\,e_{n}$. On the other hand, for $x \\in B_{n-1}$, we \nhave $e_{n} x e_{n-1} e_{n} = x e_{n}$. Hence, \n $e_{n} B_{n} e_{n} \\supseteq B_{n-1} \\,e_{n}$. This proves (1). Points (2) and (3) are obvious.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{B(n+1) e(n) = B(n) e(n) for Brauer algebras} Write $B_n$ for $B_n(S, \\delta)$.\nFor $n \\ge 1$, \n $B_{n+1}\\, e_{n} = B_{n} \\, e_{n}$. Moreover, \n $x \\mapsto x e_{n}$ is injective from $ B_{n}$ to $ B_{n+1}$.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} \nBy ~\\cite{Wenzl-Brauer}, Proposition 2.1, any $(n+1, n+1)$--Brauer diagram is either already in \n$B_{n}$, or can be written in the form $a \\chi_{n} b$, with $a, b \\in B_{n}$ and\n$\\chi_{n} \\in \\{e_{n}, s_{n}\\}$. Applying this again to $b$, either $b \\in B_{n-1}$, or $b$ can be factored as $b_1 \\chi_{n-1} b_2$, with $b_i \\in B_{n-1}$ and $\\chi_{n-1} \\in \\{e_{n-1}, s_{n-1}\\}$. Since $e_{n}^2 = \\delta e_{n}$ and $s_{n} e_{n} = e_{n}$, it follows that if\n$b \\in B_{n-1}$, then $a \\chi_{n} b e_{n} = a b \\chi_{n} e_{n} \\in B_{n} e_{n}$.\nIf $b = b_1 \\chi_{n-1} b_2$, then $a \\chi_{n} b e_{n} = a b_1 \\chi_{n} \\chi_{n-1} e_{n} b_2$.\nNow we can apply the following identities: $e_{n} \\chi_{n-1} e_{n} = e_{n}$ for \n$\\chi_{n-1} \\in \\{e_{n-1}, s_{n-1}\\}$, $s_{n} e_{n-1} e_{n} = s_{n-1} e_{n}$, and\n $s_{n} s_{n-1} e_{n} = e_{n-1} e_{n}$ to conclude that $a \\chi_{n} b e_{n} \\in B_{n} e_{n}$. This shows that $B_{n+1} e_{n} = B_{n} e_{n}$. \n\nFor $x \\in B_{n}$, we have\n${\\rm cl}( x e_{n}) = x$, so the map $x \\mapsto x e_{n}$ is injective from\n$B_{n}$ to $B_{n}e_{n}$. \\end{proof}\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Verification of framework axioms for the Brauer algebras}\n\nWe take $R = {\\mathbb Z}[{\\mathbold \\delta}]$, where ${\\mathbold \\delta}$ is an indeterminant. Then $R$ is the universal ground ring for the Brauer algebras; for any commutative ring $S$ with distinguished element $\\delta$, we have\n$B_n(S, \\delta) \\cong B_n(R, {\\mathbold \\delta})\\otimes_R S$. Let $F = {\\mathbb Q}({\\mathbold \\delta})$ denote the field of fractions of $R$. Write $B_n = B_n(R, {\\mathbold \\delta})$.\n\n\\begin{proposition} \\label{proposition: framework axioms for Brauer} The two sequence of $R$--algebras $(B_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ and $(R \\mathfrak S_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ satisfy the framework axioms of Section \\ref{subsection: framework axioms}.\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof} According to Example \\ref{example: Hn coherent tower}, $(R\\mathfrak S_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras, so axiom (\\ref{axiom Hn coherent}) holds.\nFramework axioms (\\ref{axiom: involution on An}) and (\\ref{axiom: A0 and A1}) are evident.\n$B_n^F$ is split semisimple by ~\\cite{Wenzl-Brauer}, Theorem 3.2, so axiom (\\ref{axiom: semisimplicity}) holds.\n\nWe take $e_{n-1} \\in B_n$ to be the element defined in the previous section. Let us verify the axioms (\\ref{axiom: idempotent and Hn as quotient of An})--(\\ref{axiom: e(n-1) in An en An}) involving $e_{n-1}$. As observed above, $e_{n-1}$ is $i$--invariant, $J = B_n e_{n-1} B_n$ is the ideal spanned by diagrams with fewer than $n$ through strands, and $B_n\/J \\cong R\\mathfrak S_n$ as algebras with involution. This verifies axiom (\\ref{axiom: idempotent and Hn as quotient of An}).\nAxiom (\\ref{axiom: en An en}) follows from Lemma \\ref{lemma: Brauer axiom 6} and axiom (\\ref{axiom: An en}) from \n Lemma \\ref{B(n+1) e(n) = B(n) e(n) for Brauer algebras}. Axiom (\\ref{axiom: e(n-1) in An en An}) holds because $e_{n-1} e_n e_{n-1} = e_{n-1}$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\begin{corollary} For any commutative ring $S$ and for any $\\delta \\in S$, \nthe sequence of Brauer algebras $(B_n(S, \\delta))_{n \\ge 0}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras.\n$B_n(S, \\delta)$ has cell modules indexed by all Young diagrams of size $n$, $n-2$, $n-4, \\dots$. The cell module labeled by\na Young diagram $\\lambda$ has a basis labeled by up--down tableaux of length $n$ and shape $\\lambda$.\n\\end{corollary}\n\n\\subsection{The Jones--Temperley--Lieb algebras}\n\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Definition of the Jones--Temperley--Lieb algebras} \nLet $S$ be a commutative ring with identity, with distinguished element $\\delta$. The Jones--Temperley--Lieb algebra $T_n(S, \\delta)$ is the unital $S$--algebra with generators $e_1, \\dots, e_{n-1}$ satisfying the relation:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item $e_j^2 = \\delta e_j$,\n\\item $e_j e_{j \\pm 1} e_j = e_j$,\n\\item $e_j e_k = e_k e_j$, if $|j - k| \\ge 2$,\n\\end{enumerate}\nwhenever all indices involved are in the range from $1$ to $n-1$.\n\n\\subsubsection{Diagramatic realization of the Jones--Temperley-Lieb algebras}\n\nThe $S$--span \\break $\\tilde T_n(S, \\delta)$ of Temperley--Lieb diagrams is a subalgebra of the Brauer algebra. We have an algebra map $\\varphi$ from $T_n(S, \\delta)$ to $\\tilde T_n(S, \\delta)$, determined by $e_j \\mapsto e_j$ for $1 \\le j \\le n-1$.\nKauffman shows (\\cite{Kauffman}, Theorem 4.3) that the map is an isomorphism. In fact, to show that $\\varphi$ is surjective, it suffices to show that any Temperley--Lieb diagram can be written as a product of $e_j$'s. Kauffman indicates by example how this is to be done, and it is not difficult to invent a measure of complexity of Temperley--Lieb diagrams and to show this formally, by induction on complexity. For injectivity, Jones shows (\\cite{Jones-index}, p.\\ 14) that $T_n(S, \\delta)$ is spanned by a family $\\mathbb B$ of $\\frac{1}{n+1}{2n \\choose n}$ reduced words in the $e_j$'s. \nSince $\\varphi$ is surjective and $\\tilde T_n(S, \\delta)$ is a free $S$--module of rank $\\frac{1}{n+1}{2n \\choose n}$, it follows easily that $\\mathbb B$ is a basis and $\\varphi$ is an isomorphism. Because of this, we will no longer distinguish between $T_n(S, \\delta)$ and $\\tilde T_n(S, \\delta)$.\n\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Brief history of the Jones--Temperley--Lieb algebras} The Jones-Temperley-Lieb algebras were introduced by Jones in his study of subfactors ~\\cite{Jones-index} and then employed by him to define the Jones link invariant ~\\cite{jones-invariant}. The name derives from the appearance of specific representations of the algebras in statistical mechanics that had been found some years earlier. By now, there is a huge literature related to these algebras because of their multiple roles in subfactor theory, invariants of links and 3-manifolds, statistical mechanics and quantum field theory. The Jones--Temperley--Lieb algebras were shown to be cellular in ~\\cite{Graham-Lehrer-cellular}. Several other proofs of cellularity are known, for example ~\\cite{wilcox-cellular, green-martin-tabular}.\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Some properties of the Jones--Temperley--Lieb algebra} The Brauer algebra maps\n$\\iota$, ${\\rm cl}$, $\\varepsilon_n$ (when $\\delta$ is invertible), and $i$ restrict to maps\nof the Jones--Temperley--Lieb algebras having similar properties. For example, $i$ is an algebra involution on each\n$T_n(S, \\delta)$ and $i \\circ \\iota = \\iota\\circ i$.\n\nThe span of Temperley--Lieb diagrams having at least one horizontal strand is an ideal $J$ in $T_n(S, \\delta)$, and\n$T_n(S, \\delta)\/J \\cong S$.\nThe proof of surjectivity of $\\varphi$ sketched above shows that any Temperley--Lieb diagram with at least one horizontal edge\ncan be written as a non-trivial product of $e_j$'s; so $J$ is equal to the ideal generated by all of the $e_j$'s.\nHowever, the identities $e_j e_{j+1} e_j = e_j$ imply that $J$ is the ideal generated by $e_{n-1}$. \n\n\n\\subsubsection{Verification of the framework axioms for the Jones--Temperley--Lieb algebras}\nWe take $R = {\\mathbb Z}[{\\mathbold \\delta}]$, where ${\\mathbold \\delta}$ is an indeterminant. Then $R$ is the universal ground ring for the Jones--Temperley--Lieb algebras; for any integral domain $S$ with distinguished element $\\delta$, we have\n$T_n(S, \\delta) \\cong T_n(R, {\\mathbold \\delta})\\otimes_{R} S$. Let $F = {\\mathbb Q}({\\mathbold \\delta})$ denote the field of fractions of $R$. Write $T_n = T_n(R, {\\mathbold \\delta})$.\n\n\\begin{proposition} \\label{proposition: framework axioms for TL} The two sequences of $R$--algebras $(T_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ and $(R)_{n \\ge 0}$ satisfy the framework axioms of Section \\ref{subsection: framework axioms}.\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof} Axioms (\\ref{axiom Hn coherent}), (\\ref{axiom: involution on An}), and (\\ref{axiom: A0 and A1}) are obvious. \nFor semisimplicity of $T_n^F$, see ~\\cite{GHJ}, \nTheorem 2.8.5. This gives axiom (\\ref{axiom: semisimplicity}).\nWe checked axiom (\\ref{axiom: idempotent and Hn as quotient of An}) in the previous section. The proof for\naxiom (\\ref{axiom: en An en}) is the same as for the Brauer algebras.\n\nAccording to ~\\cite{Jones-index}, Lemma 4.1.2, any \n $(n+1, n+1)$--Temperley--Lieb diagram is either already in \n$T_{n}$, or can be written in the form $a e_{n} b$, with $a, b \\in T_{n}$. Given this, the verification of\naxiom (\\ref{axiom: An en}) is the same as for the Brauer algebras; we have to use only the identity\n$e_{n} e_{n-1} e_{n} = e_{n}$ in place of several similar identities for the Brauer algebras. \n\nAs for the Brauer algebras, axiom \n(\\ref{axiom: e(n-1) in An en An}) follows from the identity $e_{n-1} e_n e_{n-1} = e_{n-1}$.\n \\end{proof}\n \n \\begin{corollary} For any ring $S$ and $\\delta \\in S$, the sequence of Jones--Temperley--Lieb algebras $(T_n(S, \\delta))_{n \\ge 0}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras. The cell modules of $T_n(S, \\delta)$ can be labeled by Young diagrams with one or two rows and size $n$, and the basis of the cell module labeled by $\\lambda$ by standard tableaux of shape $\\lambda$.\n \\end{corollary}\n \n \\begin{proof} We only have to remark that the vertices on the $n$-th row of the branching diagram for\n $(T_k^F)_{k\\ge 0}$ (see ~\\cite{GHJ}, Lemma 2.8.4) can be labeled by Young diagrams of size $n$ with no more than 2 rows, and the paths on the branching diagram by standard tableaux. \n (Alternatively, the vertices on the $n$-th row of the branching diagram can be labeled by Young diagrams with one row and size $n$, $n-2$, $n-4, \\dots$, and the paths on the branching diagram by up--down tableaux.)\n \\end{proof}\n\n\n\\subsection{The Birman--Wenzl--Murakami (BMW) algebras}\n\n\\subsubsection{Definition of the BMW algebras}\nThe BMW algebras were first introduced by Birman and Wenzl ~\\cite{Birman-Wenzl} and independently by Murakami ~\\cite{Murakami-BMW} as abstract algebras defined by generators and relations. The version of the presentation given here follows ~\\cite{Morton-Wassermann}.\n\n\\def\\unskip\\kern.55em\\ignorespaces{\\unskip\\kern.55em\\ignorespaces}\n\\def\\vskip-\\lastskip\\vskip4pt{\\vskip-\\lastskip\\vskip4pt}\n\\def\\vskip-\\lastskip\\vskip4pt plus2pt{\\vskip-\\lastskip\\vskip4pt plus2pt}\n\\def\\vskip-\\lastskip\\vskip12pt plus2pt minus2pt{\\vskip-\\lastskip\\vskip12pt plus2pt minus2pt}\n\n\n\n\\begin{definition} \\label{definition: BMW algebra}\nLet $S$ be a commutative unital ring with invertible elements $\\rho$ and $q$ and an element $\\delta$ satisfying $\\rho^{-1} - \\rho = (q^{-1} -q)(\\delta -1)$. The {\\em Birman--Wenzl--Murakami algebra}\n$\\bmw n(S; \\rho, q, \\delta)$ is the unital $S$--algebra \n with generators $g_i^{\\pm 1}$ and\n$e_i$ ($1 \\le i \\le n-1$) and relations:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item (Inverses) \\unskip\\kern.55em\\ignorespaces $g_i g_i^{-1} = g_i^{-1} g_i = 1$.\n\\item (Essential idempotent relation)\\unskip\\kern.55em\\ignorespaces $e_i^2 = \\delta e_i$.\n\\item (Braid relations) \\unskip\\kern.55em\\ignorespaces $g_i g_{i+1} g_i = g_{i+1} g_i g_{i+1}$ \nand $g_i g_j = g_j g_i$ if $|i-j| \\ge 2$.\n\\item (Commutation relations) \\unskip\\kern.55em\\ignorespaces $g_i e_j = e_j g_i$ and\n$e_i e_j = e_j e_i$ if $|i-j|\\ge 2$. \n\\item (Tangle relations)\\unskip\\kern.55em\\ignorespaces $e_i e_{i\\pm 1} e_i = e_i$, $g_i\ng_{i\\pm 1} e_i = e_{i\\pm 1} e_i$, and $ e_i g_{i\\pm 1} g_i= e_ie_{i\\pm 1}$.\n\\item (Kauffman skein relation)\\unskip\\kern.55em\\ignorespaces $g_i - g_i^{-1} = (q - q^{-1}) (1 - e_i)$.\n\\item (Untwisting relations)\\unskip\\kern.55em\\ignorespaces $g_i e_i = e_i g_i = \\rho^{-1} e_i$,\nand $e_i g_{i \\pm 1} e_i = \\rho e_i$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{definition}\n\n\\subsubsection{Geometric realization of the BMW algebras}\nA geometric realization of the BMW algebra is as the algebra of framed $(n, n)$--tangles in the disc cross the interval, modulo certain skein relations. It is more convenient, at least for our purposes, to describe this geometric version in terms of tangle diagrams.\n\nFirst, tangle diagrams can be multiplied by stacking, as for Brauer or Temperley--Lieb diagrams (but closed loops are allowed, and there is no reduction by removing closed loops after stacking). Recall that our convention is that the product $ab$ of tangle diagrams is given by stacking $b$ over $a$. This makes $(n, n)$--tangle diagrams into a monoid, the identity being the tangle diagram in which each top vertex $\\p j$ is connected to the bottom vertex $\\pbar j$ by a vertical line segment, when $n \\ge 1$.\n(The identity for the monoid of $(0, 0)$--tangle diagrams is the empty tangle.)\n\n\\medskip\n\\vbox{\n\\begin{eqnarray*}\n\\text{I}&\\quad\\ &\\inlinegraphic{right_twist} \\quad \\longleftrightarrow\n \\quad \\inlinegraphic{vertical_line} \\quad\n \\longleftrightarrow \\quad \\inlinegraphic{left_twist}\\\\\n\\text{II}&\\quad\\ &\\inlinegraphic[scale =.5] {ReidemeisterII} \\quad \n\\longleftrightarrow \n\\quad \\inlinegraphic[scale=1.75]{id_smoothing} \\\\\n \\text{III}&\\quad\\ &\\inlinegraphic{ReidIIIleft} \\quad \\longleftrightarrow \\quad \n\\inlinegraphic{ReidIIIright} \n\\end{eqnarray*} \n\n\\centerline{Reidemeister moves}\n}\n\n\\medskip\nTwo tangle diagrams are said to be {\\em regularly isotopic} if they are related by a sequence of Reidemeister moves of types II and III, followed by an isotopy of $\\mathcal R$ fixing the boundary.\n(Reidemeister moves of type I are not allowed.) See the figure above for the Reidemeister moves.\n\nStacking of tangle diagrams respects regular isotopy; thus one obtains a monoid structure on the regular isotopy classes of $(n, n)$--tangle diagrams. Let us denote this monoid by $\\mathcal U_n$.\nLet $S$ be a ring with elements $\\rho$, $q$ and $\\delta$ as in the definition of the BMW algebras.\nThe {\\em Kauffman tangle algebra} $\\kt n(S; \\rho, q, \\delta)$ is the monoid algebra $S\\ \\mathcal U_n$ modulo the following skein relations:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item Crossing relation:\n$\n\\quad \\inlinegraphic[scale=.6]{pos_crossing} - \\inlinegraphic[scale=.3]{neg_crossing} \n\\quad = \n\\quad\n(q^{-1} - q)\\,\\left( \\inlinegraphic[scale=1.2]{e_smoothing} - \n\\inlinegraphic[scale=1.2]{id_smoothing}\\right).\n$\n\\item Untwisting relation:\n$\\quad \n\\inlinegraphic{right_twist} \\quad = \\quad \\rho \\quad\n\\inlinegraphic{vertical_line} \\quad\\ \\text{and} \\quad\\ \n\\inlinegraphic{left_twist} \\quad = \\quad \\rho^{-1} \\quad\n\\inlinegraphic{vertical_line}. \n$\n\\item Free loop relation: $T\\, \\cup \\, \\bigcirc = \\delta \\, T, $ where $T\\, \\cup \\, \\bigcirc$ means the union of a tangle diagram $T$ and a closed loop having no crossings with $T$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\nLet $E_j$ and $G_j$ denote the following $(n,n)$--tangle diagrams:\n$$\nE_j = \\inlinegraphic[scale=.7]{ordinary_E_j}\\qquad\nG_j = \\inlinegraphic[scale= .7]{ordinary_G_j} \n$$\nMorton and Wassermann \\cite{Morton-Wassermann} showed that the assignments $e_j \\mapsto E_j$ and $g_j \\mapsto G_j$ determine an isomorphism from $\\bmw n(S; \\rho, q, \\delta)$ to\n$\\kt n(S; \\rho, q, \\delta)$. Given this, we will no longer distinguish between the BMW algebras and the Kauffman tangle algebras. (However, we remark that it is possible to use our techniques to recover\nthe theorem of Morton and Wasserman, using only results in the original paper of Birman and Wenzl; we prove the analogous isomorphism theorem for the cyclotomic BMW algebras in Section \\ref{The cyclotomic Birman--Wenzl--Murakami (BMW) algebras}, and the result for the ordinary BMW algebras is a special case.)\n\n\\subsubsection{Brief history of the BMW algebras} The origin of the BMW algebras was in knot theory. Kauffman defined \\cite{Kauffman} an invariant of regular isotopy for links in $S^3$, determined by skein relations. Birman and Wenzl ~\\cite{Birman-Wenzl} and Murakami ~\\cite{Murakami-BMW} then defined the BMW algebras in order to give an algebraic setting for the Kauffman invariant. The BMW algebras were implicitly modeled on algebras of tangles. The definition of the Kauffman tangle algebra was made explicit by Morton and Traczyk ~\\cite{Morton-Traczyk}, who also showed that $\\kt n(S; \\rho, q, \\delta)$ is free as an $S$--module of rank\n$(2n-1)!!$. Morton and Wassermann ~\\cite{Morton-Wassermann} showed that the BMW algebras and Kauffman tangle algebras are isomorphic.\n\nXi showed ~\\cite{Xi-BMW} that the tangle basis of Morton and Traczyk is a cellular basis. Enyang has exhibited two cellular bases of BMW algebras; the first ~\\cite{Enyang1} is a tangle type basis, and the second ~\\cite{Enyang2} is a basis indexed by up--down tableaux, which demonstrates the coherence of the cellular structures on $(\\bmw n)_{n \\ge 0}$.\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Some properties of the BMW algebras} \nIn the following, we write $\\bmw n$ for \\break $\\bmw n(S; \\rho, q, \\delta)$.\n\n The BMW algebras have an algebra involution \n$i$ uniquely determined by $i(e_j) = e_j$ and $i(g_j) = g_j$ for all $j$. The action of $i$ on tangle diagrams is by the rotation through the axis $y = 1\/2$. (It is by rotation rather than reflection, since the reflection would take $g_j \\mapsto g_j^{-1}$.)\n\nFor $n \\ge 0$, there is a unique homomorphism $\\iota$ from $\\bmw n$ to $\\bmw {n+1}$ determined by $e_i \\mapsto e_i$ and $g_i \\mapsto g_i$ for $1 \\le i \\le n-1$. On the level of tangle diagrams, the map is given by adding\na new vertical strand connecting $\\p {n+1}$ and $\\pbar {n+1}$, as for the Brauer algebras.\n\n \n\n\nFor $n \\ge 1$, a map ${\\rm cl}$ from $(n, n)$--tangle diagrams to \n$(n-1, n-1)$--tangle diagrams can be defined as for Brauer diagrams. The linear extension of this map respects\nregular isotopy and the Kauffman skein relations, so determines a linear map from \n$\\bmw n$ to $\\bmw {n-1}$. We have $i \\circ {\\rm cl} = \n {\\rm cl} \\circ i$ and $ {\\rm cl} \\circ \\iota = \\delta \\, x$. Moreover, for $x \\in \\bmw{n}$, we have\n $x = {\\rm cl} ( \\iota(x) e_n)$, so it follows that $\\iota: \\bmw n \\to \\bmw {n+1}$ is injective.\n The involution $i$ and inclusion $\\iota$ satisfy $i\\circ \\iota = \\iota\\circ i$.\n Using $\\iota$, we identify $\\bmw n$ as a subalgebra of $\\bmw {n+1}$. \n\n \n If $\\delta$ is invertible in $S$, we can define $\\varepsilon_n = (1\/\\delta) {\\rm cl}$, which is a conditional expectation, that is, an unital $\\bmw {n-1}$--$\\bmw {n-1}$ bimodule map. We have $\\varepsilon_{n+1} \\circ \\iota(x) = x$ for $x \\in \\bmw n$.\n \n The ideal $J$ in $\\bmw n$ generated by $e_{n-1}$ contains $e_j$ for all $j$ because of the relations\n $e_j e_{j+1} e_j = e_j$. It follows from the BMW relations that $\\bmw n\/J $ is isomorphic to the Hecke algebra $H_n(S; q^2)$ with the quadratic relation $g_j - g_j^{-1} = q - q^{-1}$, or \n $(g_j - q) (g_j + q^{-1}) = 0$. \n \n \\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: axiom 6 for BMW} \\mbox{}\n \\begin{enumerate}\n\\item \nFor $n \\ge 2$, $e_{n} \\bmw {n} e_{n} = \\bmw {n-1} e_{n}$.\n\\item $e_1 \\bmw 1 e_1 = \\delta\\, \\bmw 0 \\,e_1$\n\\item For $n \\ge 1$, \n$e_{n}$ commutes with $ \\bmw {n-1} $. \n\\end{enumerate}\n \\end{lemma}\n \n \\begin{proof} The proof is the same as that of Lemma \\ref{lemma: Brauer axiom 6} for the Brauer algebras, using the tangle realization of the BMW algebras.\n \\end{proof}\n \n \\begin{lemma} \\label{Bn e(n-1) = B(n-1) e(n-1) for BMW algebras}. For $n \\ge 1$, \n$\\bmw {n+1} \\,e_{n} = \\bmw {n} \\,e_{n}$. Moreover, \n $x \\mapsto x e_{n}$ is injective from $\\bmw {n}$ to $\\bmw {n} e_{n}$.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} According to ~\\cite{Birman-Wenzl}, Lemma 3.1, any $(n+1, n+1)$--tangle is already in $\\bmw {n}$, or it can be written as a linear combination of elements\n$a \\chi_{n} b$, with $a, b \\in \\bmw {n}$ and $\\chi_{n} \\in \\{e_{n}, g_{n}\\}$. Given this, the proof of \nthe lemma is the same as the proof of Lemma \\ref{B(n+1) e(n) = B(n) e(n) for Brauer algebras} \n for the Brauer algebras, using the tangle relations and untwisting relations of Definition \\ref{definition: BMW algebra} in place of similar identities for the Brauer algebras.\n\\end{proof}\n \n \\subsubsection{Verification of the framework axioms for the BMW algebras}\n The generic or universal ground ring for the BMW algebras is\n $$\n R = {\\mathbb Z}[{\\bm \\rho}^{\\pm1}, {\\bm q}^{\\pm1}, {\\mathbold \\delta}]\/\\langle {\\bm \\rho}^{-1} - {\\bm \\rho} = ({\\bm q}^{-1} - {\\bm q})({\\mathbold \\delta} -1) \\rangle,\n $$\n where ${\\bm \\rho}$, ${\\bm q}$, and ${\\mathbold \\delta}$ are indeterminants over ${\\mathbb Z}$. Suppose that $S$ is an appropriate ground ring for the BMW algebras; that is, \n $S$ is a commutative unital ring with invertible elements $\\rho$ and $q$ and an element $\\delta$ satisfying $\\rho^{-1} - \\rho = (q^{-1} -q)(\\delta -1)$. Then $\\bmw n(S; \\rho, q, \\delta) \\cong \\bmw n(R; {\\bm \\rho}, {\\bm q}, {\\mathbold \\delta}) \\otimes_R S$. \n\n$R$ is an integral domain whose field of fractions is $F \\cong {\\mathbb Q}({\\bm \\rho}, {\\bm q})$ (with ${\\mathbold \\delta} = \\break\n ({\\bm \\rho}^{-1} - {\\bm \\rho})\/({\\bm q}^{-1} - {\\bm q}) + 1$ in $F$.) We write $\\bmw n$ for \n $\\bmw n(R; {\\bm \\rho}, {\\bm q}, {\\mathbold \\delta})$ and $H_n$ for $H_n(R; {\\bm q}^2)$ in this section.\n\n\\begin{proposition}\\label{proposition: framework axioms for BMW}\n The two sequences of algebras $(\\bmw n)_{n \\ge 0}$ and $(H_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ satisfy the framework axioms of Section \\ref{subsection: framework axioms}.\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof} According to example \\ref{example: Hn coherent tower} , $(H_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras, so axiom (\\ref{axiom Hn coherent}) holds. Axioms (\\ref{axiom: involution on An}) and (\\ref{axiom: A0 and A1}) are evident.\n$\\bmw n^F$ is semisimple by ~\\cite{Birman-Wenzl}, Theorem 3.7, or ~\\cite{Wenzl-BCD}, Theorem 3.5. Thus axiom (\\ref{axiom: semisimplicity}) holds.\n\nWe observed above that $\\bmw n\/\\bmw n e_{n-1} \\bmw n \\cong H_n$; it is easy to check that the isomorphism respects the involutions. Thus axiom (\\ref{axiom: idempotent and Hn as quotient of An}) holds. Axiom \n(\\ref{axiom: en An en}) follows from Lemma \\ref{lemma: axiom 6 for BMW} and axiom (\\ref{axiom: An en}) from Lemma \\ref{Bn e(n-1) = B(n-1) e(n-1) for BMW algebras}.\nFinally, axiom (\\ref{axiom: e(n-1) in An en An}) holds again because of the relation $e_{n-1} e_n e_{n-1} = e_{n-1}$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{corollary} Let $S$ be any ground ring for the BMW algebras, with parameters $\\rho$, $q$, and \n$\\delta$. \nThe sequence of BMW algebras $(\\bmw n(S; \\rho, q, \\delta))_{n \\ge 0}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras.\n$\\bmw n(S; \\rho, q, \\delta)$ has cell modules indexed by all Young diagrams of size $n$, $n-2$, $n-4, \\dots$. The cell module labeled by\na Young diagram $\\lambda$ has a basis labeled by up--down tableaux of length $n$ and shape $\\lambda$.\n\\end{corollary}\n\n\n\\subsection{The cyclotomic Birman--Wenzl--Murakami (BMW) algebras}\n\\label{The cyclotomic Birman--Wenzl--Murakami (BMW) algebras}\n\n\\subsubsection{Definition of the cyclotomic BMW algebras}\n\nIn general, our notation will follow ~\\cite{GH3}. In order to simplify statements, we establish the following convention.\n\n\\begin{definition} Fix an integer $r \\ge 1$. A {\\em ground ring} \n$S$ is a commutative unital ring with parameters $\\rho$, $q$, $\\delta_j$ ($j \\ge 0$), and\n$u_1, \\dots, u_r$, with $\\rho$, $q$, and $u_1, \\dots, u_r$ invertible, and with $\\rho^{-1} - \\rho= (q^{-1} -q) (\\delta_0 - 1)$.\n\\end{definition}\n\n\n\n\\begin{definition} \\label{definition: cyclotomic BMW}\nLet $S$ be a ground ring with\nparameters $\\rho$, $q$, $\\delta_j$ ($j \\ge 0$), and\n$u_1, \\dots, u_r$.\nThe {\\em cyclotomic BMW algebra} $\\bmw{n, S, r}(u_1, \\dots, u_r)$ is the unital $S$--algebra\nwith generators $y_1^{\\pm 1}$, $g_i^{\\pm 1}$ and\n$e_i$ ($1 \\le i \\le n-1$) and relations:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item (Inverses)\\unskip\\kern.55em\\ignorespaces $g_i g_i^{-1} = g_i^{-1} g_i = 1$ and \n$y_1 y_1^{-1} = y_1^{-1} y_1= 1$.\n\\item (Idempotent relation)\\unskip\\kern.55em\\ignorespaces $e_i^2 = \\delta_0 e_i$.\n\\item (Affine braid relations) \n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item[\\rm(a)] $g_i g_{i+1} g_i = g_{i+1} g_ig_{i+1}$ and \n$g_i g_j = g_j g_i$ if $|i-j| \\ge 2$.\n\\item[\\rm(b)] $y_1 g_1 y_1 g_1 = g_1 y_1 g_1 y_1$ and $y_1 g_j =\ng_j y_1 $ if $j \\ge 2$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\item[\\rm(4)] (Commutation relations) \n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item[\\rm(a)] $g_i e_j = e_j g_i$ and\n$e_i e_j = e_j e_i$ if $|i-\nj|\n\\ge 2$. \n\\item[\\rm(b)] $y_1 e_j = e_j y_1$ if $j \\ge 2$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\item[\\rm(5)] (Affine tangle relations)\\vadjust{\\vskip-2pt\\vskip0pt}\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item[\\rm(a)] $e_i e_{i\\pm 1} e_i = e_i$,\n\\item[\\rm(b)] $g_i g_{i\\pm 1} e_i = e_{i\\pm 1} e_i$ and\n$ e_i g_{i\\pm 1} g_i= e_ie_{i\\pm 1}$.\n\\item[\\rm(c)\\hskip1.2pt] For $j \\ge 1$, $e_1 y_1^{ j} e_1 = \\delta_j e_1$. \n\\vadjust{\\vskip-\n2pt\\vskip0pt}\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\item[\\rm(6)] (Kauffman skein relation)\\unskip\\kern.55em\\ignorespaces $g_i - g_i^{-1} = (q - q^{-1})(1- e_i)$.\n\\item[\\rm(7)] (Untwisting relations)\\unskip\\kern.55em\\ignorespaces $g_i e_i = e_i g_i = \\rho ^{-1} e_i$\n and $e_i g_{i \\pm 1} e_i = \\rho e_i$.\n\\item[\\rm(8)] (Unwrapping relation)\\unskip\\kern.55em\\ignorespaces $e_1 y_1 g_1 y_1 = \\rho e_1 = y_1 \ng_1 y_1 e_1$.\n\\item[\\rm(9)](Cyclotomic relation) \\unskip\\kern.55em\\ignorespaces $(y_1 - u_1)(y_1 - u_2) \\cdots (y_1 - u_r) = 0$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{definition}\n\nThus, a cyclotomic BMW algebra is the quotient of the affine BMW algebra ~\\cite{GH1}, by the cyclotomic relation $(y_1 - u_1)(y_1 - u_2) \\cdots (y_1 - u_r) = 0$. \n\n\n \\subsubsection{Geometric realization} \\label{subsubsection: cyclotomic BMW geometric realization}\n We recall from ~\\cite{GH1} that the affine BMW algebra is isomorphic to the affine Kauffman tangle algebra, which is an algebra of ``affine tangle diagrams,\" modulo Kauffman skein relations. An affine $(n,n)$--tangle diagram is just an ordinary $(n+1, n+1)$--tangle diagram with a fixed\n vertical strand connecting $\\p 1$ and $\\pbar 1$, as in the following figure.\n $$\n\\inlinegraphic[scale=1.5]{affine-4-tangle}\n$$\n The affine Kauffman tangle algebra is generated by the following affine tangle diagrams:\n$$\nX_1 = \\inlinegraphic[scale= .7]{X1}\n\\qquad\nG_i = \\inlinegraphic[scale=.6]{G_i}\\qquad\nE_i = \\inlinegraphic[scale= .7]{E_i} .\n$$\n\n One can also define a cyclotomic Kauffman tangle algebra \n $\\kt{n, S, r}(u_1, \\dots, u_r)$ as the quotient of the affine Kauffman tangle algebra by a cyclotomic skein relation, which is a ``local\" version of the cyclotomic relation of \n Definition \\ref{definition: cyclotomic BMW} (9). See\n ~\\cite{GH2} for the precise definition. We denote the images of $X_1$, $E_i$ and $G_i$ in the cyclotomic Kauffman tangle algebra by the same letters. \nThe assignments\n $e_i \\mapsto E_i$, $g_i \\mapsto G_i$ and $y_1 \\mapsto \\rho X_1$ defines a surjective homorphism\n from $\\varphi : \\bmw {n, S, r}(u_1, \\dots, u_r) \\to \\kt{n, S, r}(u_1, \\dots, u_r)$, see ~\\cite{GH2}, page 1114. \n \n It is shown in ~\\cite{GH2, GH3} and in ~\\cite{Wilcox-Yu3} that\n the the map $\\varphi$ is an isomorphism, assuming admissibility conditions on the ground ring (see Section \\ref{subsubsection: admissibility}). However, we are {\\em not} going to assume this result here, but will give a new proof of the isomorphism. \n \n\n\n\\subsubsection{Brief history of cyclotomic BMW algebras} Affine and cyclotomic BMW algebras were introduced by H\\\"aring--Oldenberg ~\\cite{H-O2} and have recently been studied by three groups of mathematicians:\nGoodman and Hauschild Mosley ~\\cite{GH1, GH2, GH3, goodman-2008}, Rui, Xu, and Si ~\\cite{rui-2008, rui-2008b}, and Wilcox and Yu ~\\cite{Wilcox-Yu, Wilcox-Yu2, Wilcox-Yu3, Yu-thesis}. Under (slightly different) admissibility assumptions on the ground ring (see Section \\ref{subsubsection: admissibility}) all three groups have shown that the algebra\n$\\bmw{n, S, r}$ is free over $S$ of rank $r^n (2n-1) ! !$ and in fact is cellular. (Wilcox and Yu produced cellular basis satisfying the strict equality $i(c_{s, t}^\\lambda) = c_{t, s}^\\lambda$, while the other groups only established cellularity in the weaker sense of Definition \\ref{gl cell}.) The cellular bases produced by all three groups are essentially tangle bases, i.e., cyclotomic analogues of the basis of Morton, Traczyk, and Wassermann for the ordinary BMW algebras. Goodman \\& Hauschild Mosley and Wilcox \\& Yu have shown that the algebras can be realized as algebras of tangles, when the ground ring is admissible. Rui et.\\ al.\\ have achieved additional representation theoretic results. Further background on cyclotomic BMW algebras, motivation for the study of these algebras, relations to other mathematical topics (quantum groups, knot theory), and further literature citations can be found in ~\\cite{GH2} and in the other papers cited above.\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Advantages of our approach to cellularity}\nOne of our motivations in undertaking the current work was to produce a Murphy type cellular basis for the cyclotomic BMW algebras, indexed by up--down tableaux. As mentioned in the introduction, this has not been done previously, and it would be involved to extend Enyang's method for ordinary BMW algebras ~\\cite{Enyang2} to the cellular case. \n\n It turns out that our proof of cellularity is actually more direct than the previous proofs cited above, in that it bypasses the lengthy proof (in ~\\cite{GH2}, Proposition 3.7, or ~\\cite{Wilcox-Yu3}, Theorem 3.2) that these algebras have a finite spanning set of the appropriate cardinality. Our method does not depend the isomorphism of the cyclotomic BMW algebras and cyclotomic Kauffman tangle algebras ~\\cite{GH2, GH3} or ~\\cite{Wilcox-Yu3}; in fact, we can give a new proof of this isomorphism. \n \n One might say that the difficulty in our proof has been displaced, because instead of the finite spanning set result cited above, we require Mathas' recent theorem on coherence of cellular structures for cyclotomic Hecke algebras ~\\cite{mathas-2009}.\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Admissibility conditions on the ground ring.} \\label{subsubsection: admissibility}\n\nThe cyclotomic BMW algebras can be defined over arbitrary ground rings. However, it is necessary to impose conditions on the parameters in order to get a satisfactory theory.\n\nOne can see by a simple computation why one has to expect conditions on the parameters. First, one can show that there are elements $\\delta_{-j}$ in the ground ring $S$ for $j \\ge 1$ such that\n$e_1 y_1^{-j} e_1 = \\delta_{-j} \\,e_1$; moreover, $\\delta_{-j}$ is a polynomial in\n$\\rho^{-1}$, $q - q^{-1}$, and $\\delta_0, \\delta_1, \\dots, \\delta_j$; see \\cite{GH3}, Lemma 2.5.\nIf one now multiplies the cyclotomic relation, Definition \\ref{definition: cyclotomic BMW} (9), by $y_1^a$ and\npre-- and post--multiplies by $e_1$, one gets \n$\n(\\sum_{k = 0}^r a_k \\delta_{k + a} ) e_1 = 0,\n$\nfor $a \\in {\\mathbb Z}$, where the $a_k$ are signed elementary symmetric polynomials in $u_1, \\dots, u_r$. Therefore, either $e_1$ is a torsion element over $S$, or the following {\\em weak admissibility conditions} hold:\n$$\n\\sum_{k = 0}^r a_k \\delta_{k + a} = 0, \\quad \\text{for $a \\in {\\mathbb Z}$}.\n$$\nIf $S$ is a field and the weak admissibility conditions do not hold, then $e_1 = 0$; it follows that all the $e_i$ are zero, and the algebra reduces to the cyclotomic Hecke algebra over $S$ with parameters $q^2$ and\n$u_1, \\dots, u_r$.\n\nThe weak admissibility conditions are complicated and not strong enough to give satisfactory results on the representation theory of the algebras. Therefore, one wishes to find conditions that are both simpler and stronger. \nTwo apparently different conditions have been proposed, one by Wilcox and Yu ~\\cite{Wilcox-Yu}, and another by Rui and Xu ~\\cite{rui-2008}. It has been shown in ~\\cite{goodman-admissibility} that the two conditions are equivalent in the case of greatest interest, when $S$ is an integral domain with $q - q^{-1} \\ne 0$. \nWe consider only this case from now on.\n\n\\begin{definition} Let $S$ be an integral ground ring with\nparameters $\\rho$, $q$, $\\delta_j$ ($j \\ge 0$) and $u_1, \\dots, u_r$, with $q - q^{-1} \\ne 0$.\nOne says that $S$ is {\\em admissible} (or that the parameters are {\\em admissible}) if $\\{e_1, y_1 e_1, \\dots, y_1^{r-1} e_1\\} \\subseteq \\bmw{2, S, r}$ is linearly independent over $S$.\n\\end{definition}\n\n\nIt is shown in ~\\cite{Wilcox-Yu} that admissibility is equivalent to finitely many (explicit) polynomial relations on the parameters. Moreover, these relations give $\\rho$ and $(q - q^{-1}) \\delta_j$ as Laurent polynomials\nin the remaining parameters $q, u_1, \\dots, u_r$; see ~\\cite{Wilcox-Yu} and ~\\cite{GH3} for details.\n\n\\subsubsection{Morphisms of ground rings and a universal admissible ground ring} \n\\label{subsubsection: morphisms and generic ring}\nWe consider what are the appropriate morphisms between ground rings for cyclotomic BMW algebras. The obvious notion would be that of a ring homomorphism taking parameters to parameters; that is, if $S$ is a ground ring with parameters $\\rho$, $q$, \netc., and $S'$ another ground ring with parameters $\\rho'$, $q'$, etc., then a morphism $\\varphi : S \\to S'$ would be required to map $\\rho \\mapsto \\rho'$, \n$q \\mapsto q'$, etc. \n\nHowever, it is better to require less, for the following reason: The parameter $q$ enters into the cyclotomic BMW\n relations only in the expression $q^{-1} -q$, and the transformation $q \\mapsto -q^{-1}$ leaves this expression invariant. Moreover, the transformation $g_i \\mapsto -g_i$, $\\rho \\mapsto -\\rho$, $q \\mapsto -q$ (with all other generators and parameters unchanged) leaves the cyclotomic BMW relations unchanged. \n\n\nTaking this into account, we arrive at the following notion:\n\n\n\\begin{definition} \\label{definition: parameter preserving}\nLet $S$ be a ground ring with\nparameters $\\rho$, $q$, $\\delta_j$ ($j \\ge 0$), and\n$u_1, \\dots, u_r$.\nLet $S'$ be another ground ring with parameters $\\rho'$, $q'$, etc. \n\nA unital ring homomorphism $\\varphi : S \\rightarrow S'$ is a {\\em morphism of ground rings} if it maps\n$$\n\\begin{cases}\n&\\rho \\mapsto \\rho', \\text{ and}\\\\\n& q \\mapsto q' \\text{ or } q \\mapsto -{q'}^{-1},\n\\end{cases}\n$$\nor\n$$\n\\begin{cases}\n&\\rho \\mapsto -\\rho', \\text{ and}\\\\\n& q \\mapsto -q' \\text{ or } q \\mapsto {q'}^{-1},\n\\end{cases}\n$$\nand strictly preserves all other parameters.\n\\end{definition}\n\n\n Suppose there is a morphism of ground rings $\\psi : S \\rightarrow S'$.\n Then $\\psi$ extends to a \nhomomorphism from \n$\\bmw{n, S, r}$ to $\\bmw{n, S', r}$. Moreover, $\\bmw{n, S, r} \\otimes_S S' \\cong \\bmw{n,S', r}$ as $S'$--algebras. These statements are discussed in ~\\cite{GH3}, Section 2.4.\n\nLet $S$ be a ground ring with admissible parameters $\\rho$, $q$, $\\delta_j$ ($j \\ge 0$), and\n$u_1, \\dots, u_r$. Then \n$$\n\\rho, -q^{-1}, \\delta_j \\ (j \\ge 0), \\text{ and } u_1, \\dots, u_r\n$$\nand\n$$\n-\\rho, -q, \\delta_j \\ (j \\ge 0), \\text{ and } u_1, \\dots, u_r\n$$\nare also sets of admissible parameters. \n Suppose that $S$ is an integral ground ring with admissible parameters, with $q - q^{-1} \\ne 0$, and that $S'$ is another integral ground ring; \n if $\\varphi : S \\rightarrow S'$ is \na morphism of ground rings such that\n $\\varphi(q - q^{-1}) \\ne 0$, then $S'$ is also admissible.\n \n It is easy to show (see \\cite{GH3}, Theorem 3.19) that there is a universal integral admissible ground ring $R$, with parameters ${\\bm \\rho}$, ${\\bm q}$, ${\\mathbold \\delta}_j$ ($j \\ge 0$), and ${\\bm u}_1, \\dots, {\\bm u}_r$, with the following properties:\n \\begin{enumerate}\n \\item The parameters ${\\bm q}$, ${\\bm u}_1$, \\dots, ${\\bm u}_r$ of \n$R$ are algebraically independent over ${\\mathbb Z}$.\n\\item $R$ is generated as a ring by \n ${\\bm q}^{\\pm 1}$, ${\\bm \\rho} \\powerpm$, ${\\mathbold \\delta}_0$, ${\\mathbold \\delta}_1$, \\dots ${\\mathbold \\delta}_{r-1} $, and ${\\bm u}_1^{\\pm 1}, \\dots, {\\bm u}_r^{\\pm 1}$.\n\\item Whenever $S$ is an integral ground ring with admissible\nparameters, with $q - q^{-1} \\ne 0$, there exists a morphism of ground rings from $R$ to $S$; thus\n$\\bmw{n, S, r} \\cong \\bmw{n, R, r} \\otimes_{R} S$. \n\\item The field of fractions of $R$ is ${\\mathbb Q}({\\bm q}, {\\bm u}_1, \\dots, {\\bm u}_r)$.\n\\item Let $\\bm p = \\prod_{j = 1}^r {\\bm u}_j$. Then one has ${\\bm \\rho} = \\bm p$ if $r$ is even and\n${\\bm \\rho} = {\\bm q}^{-1} \\bm p$ if $r$ is odd. Since ${\\bm \\rho}^{-1} - {\\bm \\rho}= ({\\bm q}^{-1} -{\\bm q}) ({\\mathbold \\delta}_0 - 1)$, and ${\\bm q}$, ${\\bm u}_1$, \\dots, ${\\bm u}_r$ are algebraically independent,\none has ${\\mathbold \\delta}_0 \\ne 0$. \n \\end{enumerate}\n \n \\subsubsection{Some properties of cyclotomic BMW and Kauffman tangle algebras.} We restrict attention to the case of an integral admissible ground ring $S$ with $q - q^{-1} \\ne 0$. We write $\\bmw n$ for $\\bmw {n, S, r}(u_1, \\dots, u_r)$ and $\\kt n$ for $\\kt {n, S, r}(u_1, \\dots, u_r)$.\n \n The cyclotomic BMW algebras have an algebra involution \n$i$ uniquely determined by $i(e_j) = e_j$ and $i(g_j) = g_j$ for all $j$, and $i(y_1) = y_1$. Likewise, the\n cyclotomic Kauffman tangle algebras have an algebra involution $i$, whose action on affine tangle diagrams is by the rotation through the axis $y = 1\/2$. The surjective homomorphism $\\varphi : \\bmw n \\to \\kt n$ respects the involutions. \n \n For $n \\ge 0$, there is a homomorphism (of involutive algebras) $\\iota$ from $\\bmw n$ to $\\bmw {n+1}$ determined by $e_i \\mapsto e_i$ and $g_i \\mapsto g_i$ for $1 \\le i \\le n-1$, and $y_1 \\mapsto y_1$; it is not clear\n {\\em a priori} that $\\iota$ is injective. \n \n Likewise, there is a homomorphism (of involutive algebras) $\\iota$ from $\\kt n$ to $\\kt {n+1}$. \n On the level of affine tangle diagrams, the map is given by adding\na new vertical strand connecting $\\p {n+1}$ and $\\pbar {n+1}$, as for the Brauer algebras. This map\nis injective, as we will now explain. \n\n For $n \\ge 1$, a map ${\\rm cl}$ from affine $(n, n)$--tangle diagrams to affine \n $(n-1, n-1)$--tangle diagrams can be defined as for Brauer diagrams and ordinary tangle diagrams. The linear extension of this map respects\nregular isotopy and all the skein relations defining the cyclotomic Kauffman tangle algebras, so determines a linear map from \n$\\kt n$ to $\\kt {n-1}$. (See ~\\cite{GH1}, Section 2.7, and ~\\cite{GH2}, Section 3.3 for details.) \n The map ${\\rm cl}$ respects the involutions, $i \\circ {\\rm cl} = \n {\\rm cl} \\circ i$. Moreover, for $x \\in \\kt{n}$, we have\n $x = {\\rm cl} ( \\iota(x) e_n)$, so it follows that $\\iota: \\kt n \\to \\kt {n+1}$ is injective.\n Using $\\iota$, we identify $\\kt n$ as a subalgebra of $\\kt {n+1}$. \n\n If $\\delta_0$ is invertible in $S$, we can define $\\varepsilon_n = (1\/\\delta_0) {\\rm cl}$, which is a conditional expectation, that is, an unital $\\kt {n-1}$--$\\kt {n-1}$ bimodule map. We have $\\varepsilon_{n+1} \\circ \\iota(x) = x$ for $x \\in \\bmw n$.\n\n\n\\subsubsection{The cyclotomic Hecke algebra} \nWe recall the definition of the affine and cyclotomic Hecke algebras, see ~\\cite{ariki-book}.\n\n\\begin{definition}\nLet $S$ be a commutative unital ring with an invertible element $q$. The {\\em affine Hecke algebra} \n$\\ahec{n,S}(q^2)$ \nover $S$\nis the $S$--algebra with generators $t_1, g_1, \\dots, g_{n-1}$, with relations:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item The generators $g_i$ are invertible, satisfy the braid relations, and $g_i - g_i^{-1} = (q - q^{-1})$.\n\\item The generator $t_1$ is invertible, $t_1 g_1 t_1 g_1 = g_1 t_1 g_1 t_1$ and $t_1$ commutes with $g_j$ for $j \\ge 2$.\n\\end{enumerate}\nLet $u_1, \\dots, u_r$ be additional elements in $S$. The {\\em cyclotomic Hecke algebra}\n\\break $\\hec{n, S, r}(q^2; u_1, \\dots, u_r)$ is the quotient of the affine Hecke algebra $\\ahec{n, S}(q^2)$ by the polynomial relation $(t_1 - u_1) \\cdots (t_1 - u_r) = 0$.\n\\end{definition}\n\nWe remark that since the generator $t_1$ can be rescaled by an arbitrary invertible element of $S$, only the ratios of the parameters $u_i$ have invariant significance in the definition of the cyclotomic Hecke algebra. The affine and cyclotomic Hecke algebras have unique algebra involutions determined by\n$g_i \\to g_i$ and $t_1 \\to t_1$. \n\nNow let $S$ be a ground ring with parameters $\\rho$, $q$, $\\delta_j$, and $u_1, \\dots, u_r$. For each $n$, let $I_n$ be the two sided ideal in $\\bmw{n, S, r}$ generated by $e_{n-1}$. \nBecause of the relations $e_j e_{j\\pm1} e_j = e_j$, the ideal $I_n$ is generated by any $e_i$ ($1 \\le i \\le n-1$) or by all of them. It is easy to check that the quotient of $\\bmw{n, S, r}$ by $I_n$ is isomorphic (as involutive algebras) to the cyclotomic Hecke algebra $\\hec{n, S, r}(q^2; u_1, \\dots, u_r)$.\n\n\nLet $\\lambdabold = (\\lambda^{(1)}, \\dots, \\lambda^{(r)})$ be an $r$--tuple of Young diagrams. The total size of $\\lambdabold$ is\n$|\\lambdabold| = \\sum_i |\\lambda^{(i)}|$. If ${\\bm \\mu}$ and $\\lambdabold$ are $r$--tuples of Young diagrams of total size $f-1$ and $f$ respectively, we write ${\\bm \\mu} \\subset \\lambdabold$ if ${\\bm \\mu}$ is obtained from $\\lambdabold$ by removing one box from one component of $\\lambdabold$.\n\n\\begin{theorem}[\\cite{ariki-book}] \\label{theorem: cyclotomic hecke split semisimple}\nLet $F$ be a field. The cyclotomic Hecke algebra $\\hec{n, F, r}(q^2; u_1, \\dots, u_r)$ is split semisimple for all $n$ as long as $q$ is not a proper root of unity and, for all\n$i \\ne j$,\n$u_i\/u_j$ is not an integer power of $q$ . In this case, the simple components of \\break $\\hec{n, F, r}(q; u_1, \\dots, u_r)$ are labeled by $r$--tuples of Young diagrams of total size $n$, and a simple $\\hec{n, F, r}$ module $V_\\lambdabold$ decomposes as a\n$\\hec{n-1, F, r}$ module as the direct sum of all $V_{\\bm \\mu}$ with ${\\bm \\mu} \\subset \\lambdabold$.\n\\end{theorem}\n\nLet us call the branching diagram for the cyclotomic Hecke algebras, as described in the theorem, the\n{\\em $r$--Young lattice}. Note that, as for the usual Young's lattice, the $r$--Young lattice has no multiple edges. \n\n\n\n\n \\begin{theorem}[Ariki, Koike, Dipper, James, Mathas] \\label{propositon: cyclotomic Hecke coherent tower}\n The sequence of cyclotomic Hecke algebras $(\\hec{n, S, r}(q^2; u_1, \\dots, u_r))_{n \\ge 0}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras.\n \\end{theorem}\n \n \\begin{proof} Write $\\hec n$ for $ \\hec{n, S, r}(q^2; u_1, \\dots, u_r)$. Ariki and Koike showed that the cyclotomic Hecke algebras are free as $S$ modules ~\\cite{ariki-koike}, which implies that $\\hec n$ imbeds naturally in \n $\\hec {n+1}$. Moreover, the algebras $\\hec n$ have involutions that are consistent with the inclusions. Dipper, James and Mathas ~\\cite{dipper-james-mathas} constructed a cellular basis of the cyclotomic Hecke algebras, generalizing the Murphy basis of ordinary Hecke algebras. Ariki and Mathas\n showed ~\\cite{ariki-mathas}, Proposition 1.9, that restrictions of cell modules from $\\hec {n+1}$ to $\\hec n$ have cell filtrations. Finally, Mathas has shown ~\\cite{mathas-2009} that the module obtained from inducing a cell module from\n $\\hec n$ to $\\hec {n+1}$ has a cell filtration.\n \\end{proof}\n\n \\subsubsection{Verification of the framework axioms for the cyclotomic BMW algebras}\nLet $R$ be the generic admissible integral ground ring, with parameters \n${\\bm \\rho}$, ${\\bm q}$, ${\\mathbold \\delta}_j$ ($j \\ge 0$), and ${\\bm u}_1, \\dots, {\\bm u}_r$, as introduced at the end of Section \\ref{subsubsection: morphisms and generic ring}. In this section, \nwe write $\\bmw n$ for $\\bmw{n, R, r}({\\bm u}_1, \\dots, {\\bm u}_r)$,\n $\\kt n$ for $\\kt{n, R, r}({\\bm u}_1, \\dots, {\\bm u}_r)$,\nand $\\hec n$ for\n$\\hec{n, R, r}({\\bm q}^2; {\\bm u}_1, \\dots, {\\bm u}_r)$. Recall that the field of fractions of $R$ is\n$F = {\\mathbb Q}({\\bm q}, {\\bm u}_1, \\dots, {\\bm u}_r)$. Let $\\bmw n^F = \\bmw n \\otimes_R F$, and similarly for the other algebras. \n\nIf we would assume the isomorphism of $\\bmw n$ and $\\kt n$, then we could verify the framework axioms for the pair of sequences $(\\bmw n)_{n \\ge 0}$ and $(\\hec n)_{n \\ge 0}$ without difficulty,\nusing elementary observations and some deeper results from the literature, and consequently apply Theorem \\ref{main theorem} to the cyclotomic BMW algebras. However, we wish to give\nan independent proof of the isomorphism. Consequently, we have to verify the framework axioms and prove the isomorphism $\\bmw n \\cong \\kt n$ inductively, in tandem with the inductive step in the proof of Theorem \\ref{main theorem}. \n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: Axiom on A0 for cyclotomic BMW}\n $\\bmw 0 \\cong \\kt 0 \\cong R$.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} Wilcox and Yu ~\\cite{Wilcox-Yu3}, Proposition 6.2, show that $\\kt 0$ is a free $R$ module with basis $\\{\\emptyset\\}$, where\n$\\emptyset$ denotes the empty affine tangle diagram, \nwhich is also the identity element of $\\kt 0$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: isomorphism varphi implies injectivity of iota}\n If for some $n$ and for some admissible ground ring $S$, we have\n$\\varphi : \\bmw n^S \\to \\kt n^S$ is an isomorphism, then $\\iota: \\bmw n^S \\to \\bmw {n+1}^S$ is injective.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} $\\varphi \\circ \\iota = \\iota \\circ \\varphi : \\bmw n^S \\to\n\\kt {n+1}^S$ is injective, because $\\varphi: \\bmw n^S \\to \\kt n^S$ and $\\iota: \\kt n^S \\to \\kt {n+1}^S$ are injective. Thus\n $\\iota : \\bmw n^S \\to \\bmw {n+1}^S$ is injective.\n\\end{proof} \n\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: generic semisimplicty of cycotomic BMW} For all $n \\ge 0$, $\\bmw n^F \\cong \\kt n^F$, $\\bmw n^F$ is split semisimple of dimension \\break $r^n (2n - 1)!!$, and $\\iota : \\bmw n^F \\to \\bmw {n+1}^F$ is injective. \n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} This is proved in ~\\cite{GH3}, Theorem 4.8. We stress that the result is independent of the finite spanning set theorem, ~\\cite{GH2}, Proposition 3.7. One thing that is not made clear in the proof of \n~\\cite{GH3}, Theorem 4.8 is why $\\iota : \\bmw n^F \\to \\bmw {n+1}^F$ is injective. But if one assumes\ninductively that the conclusions of the theorem hold for $\\bmw f^F, f \\le n$, for some fixed $n$, and in particular that\n$\\varphi : \\bmw n^F \\to \\kt n^F$ is an isomorphism, then $\\iota : \\bmw n^F \\to \\bmw {n+1}^F$ is injective by Lemma \\ref{lemma: isomorphism varphi implies injectivity of iota}.\nOne can then continue with the proof of the inductive step of ~\\cite{GH3}, Theorem 4.8. \n\\end{proof} \n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: cardinality of basis of bmw n}\nIf for some $n$, $\\bmw n$ is a free $R$--module, then its rank is $r^n (2n-1)!!$.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} $x \\mapsto x \\otimes 1$ takes an $R$--basis of $\\bmw n$ to an $F$--basis of\n$\\bmw n \\otimes_R F = \\bmw n^F$. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: finite spanning set implies isomorphism and freeness}\n If for some $n$, $\\bmw n$ has a spanning set $A$ of cardinality $r^n (2n -1)!!$, \nthen $\\varphi : \\bmw n \\to \\kt n$ is an isomorphism, and $A$ is an $R$--basis of $\\bmw n$. \n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} Say $\\bmw n$ has a spanning set $A$ of cardinality $r^n (2n -1)!!$. To prove both conclusions, it suffices to show that $\\varphi(A)$ is linearly independent in $\\kt n$. But $$ \\{\\varphi(a) \\otimes 1: a \\in A\\} \\subseteq \\kt n \\otimes_R F = \\kt n^F$$ is a spanning set of cardinality $r^n (2n -1)!!$, which is the dimension of $\\kt n^F$, according to Lemma \\ref{lemma: generic semisimplicty of cycotomic BMW}. Therefore $\\{\\varphi(a) \\otimes 1: a \\in A\\} $ is linearly independent in $\\kt n^F$, and hence $\\varphi(A)$ is linearly independent in $\\kt n$. \n\\end{proof} \n\n\n\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: W1 isomorphic to KT1 and to H1}\n$\\bmw 1 \\cong \\kt 1 \\cong \\hec 1$, $\\bmw 1$ is a free $R$--module of rank $r$, and both\n$\\iota : \\bmw 0 \\to \\bmw 1$ and $\\iota : \\bmw 1 \\to \\bmw 2$ are injective. \n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} By definition, $\\bmw 1 \\cong \\hec 1 \\cong R[X]\/((X-u_1)\\cdots (X-u_r))$, and these algebras are free $R$--modules of rank $r$. Hence $\\varphi : \\bmw 1 \\to \\kt 1$ is an isomorphism by\nLemma \\ref{lemma: finite spanning set implies isomorphism and freeness}. The injectivity statements follow from Lemma \\ref{lemma: isomorphism varphi implies injectivity of iota}.\n\n \\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: axioms 2 6 7 for cyclotomic BMW} \nSuppose that for some $n \\ge 1$ one has $\\bmw k \\cong \\kt k$ for $0 \\le k \\le n$. Then\nthe maps $\\iota: \\bmw {k} \\to \\bmw {k+1}$ are injective for $0 \\le k \\le n$. Using the maps $\\iota$, regard $\\bmw k$ as a subalgebra of $\\bmw {k+1}$ for $0 \\le k \\le n$. One has:\n \\begin{enumerate}\n \\item $ {\\mathbold \\delta}_0 R \\,e_1 \\subseteq\n e_1 \\bmw 1 e_1 \\subseteq R \\,e_1$.\n \n \n \\item \nFor $2 \\le k \\le n$, $e_{k} \\bmw {k} e_{k} = \\bmw {k-1} e_{k}$.\n\n\\item For $1 \\le k \\le n$, \n$e_{k}$ commutes with $ \\bmw {k-1} $. \n\\item For $1 \\le k \\le n$, \n$\\bmw {k+1} \\,e_{k} = \\bmw {k} \\,e_{k}$. Moreover, \n $x \\mapsto x e_{k}$ is injective from $\\bmw {k}$ to $\\bmw {k} e_{k}$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n \\end{lemma}\n \n \\begin{proof} The statement about injectivity of the maps $\\iota$ follows from Lemma \\ref{lemma: isomorphism varphi implies injectivity of iota}. \n \n Point (1) follows from the relations $e_1 y_1^j e_1 = {\\mathbold \\delta}_j e_1$ for $j \\ge 0$. \n Point (2) and the first part of point (4) follows from the corresponding facts for the affine BMW algebras, ~\\cite{GH1}, Proposition 3.17, and Proposition 3.20. \nPoint (3) follows from the defining relations for the cyclotomic BMW algebras. For the injectivity statement\nin point (4), note that for $x \\in \\bmw k$, \n$$\n{\\rm cl}(\\varphi(x e_k)) = {\\rm cl}(\\varphi(x) E_k) = \\varphi(x).\n$$ \nSince $\\varphi : \\bmw k \\to \\kt k$ is injective, so is $x \\mapsto x e_k$. \n\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\vbox{\n\\begin{theorem}\\label{proposition: framework axioms for CBMW} \\mbox{}\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item\n The two sequences of algebras $(\\bmw k)_{k \\ge 0}$ and $(H_k)_{k \\ge 0}$ satisfy the framework axioms of Section \\ref{subsection: framework axioms}.\n \\item For all $k \\ge 0$, $\\varphi : \\bmw k \\to \\kt k$ is an isomorphism, and $\\iota: \\bmw k \\to \\bmw {k+1}$ is injective.\n \\item The conclusions of Theorem \\ref{main theorem} are valid for the sequence $(\\bmw k)_{k \\ge 0}$. \n \\end{enumerate}\n\\end{theorem}\n}\n\n\\begin{proof} According to Proposition \\ref{propositon: cyclotomic Hecke coherent tower}, $(H_k)_{k \\ge 0}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras, so axiom (\\ref{axiom Hn coherent}) of the framework axioms holds. Axiom (\\ref{axiom: A0 and A1}) holds by Lemmas \\ref{lemma: Axiom on A0 for cyclotomic BMW} and \\ref{lemma: W1 isomorphic to KT1 and to H1}. \nAxiom (\\ref{axiom: semisimplicity}) holds by Lemma \\ref{lemma: generic semisimplicty of cycotomic BMW}. We observed above that $\\bmw k\/\\bmw k e_{k-1} \\bmw k \\cong H_k$ as involutive algebras; thus axiom (\\ref{axiom: idempotent and Hn as quotient of An}) holds. \nAxiom (\\ref{axiom: e(n-1) in An en An}) holds because of the relation $e_{k-1} e_k e_{k-1} = e_{k-1}$.\n\nSuppose that for some $n \\ge 0$, it is known that the maps $\\varphi : \\bmw k \\to \\kt k$ are isomorphisms for $0 \\le k \\le n$. Then, from Lemma \\ref{lemma: axioms 2 6 7 for cyclotomic BMW} , we have the following versions of framework axioms (\\ref{axiom: involution on An}), (\\ref{axiom: en An en}) and (\\ref{axiom: An en}):\n\\par\\noindent (2$'$) \\ \\ $\\bmw k$ is an $i$--invariant subalgebra of $\\bmw {k+1}$ for $0 \\le k \\le n$. \n\\par\\noindent (6$'$) \\ \\ For $1 \\le k \\le n$, $e_{k}$ commutes with $\\bmw {k-1}$ and $e_{k} \\bmw {k} e_{k} \\subseteq \\bmw {k-1} e_{k}$.\n\\par\\noindent (7$'$) \\ \\ For $ 1 \\le k \\le n$, $\\bmw {k+1} \te_{k} = \\bmw {k} e_{k}$, and the map $x \\mapsto x e_{k}$ is injective from\n$\\bmw {k}$ to $\\bmw {k} e_{k}$.\n\nNow we consider the following:\n\\par\\smallskip\n\\noindent {\\bf Claim:}\\quad\n For all $n \\ge 0$, \\par\n\\noindent (a) \\ \\\nfor $0\\le k \\le n$, the maps $\\varphi : \\bmw k \\to \\kt k$ are isomorphisms,\nand therefore $\\bmw k$ may be regarded as an $i$--invariant subalgebra of $\\bmw {k+1}$, and\n\\par\\noindent (b) \\ \\ the statements (1) --(4) of Theorem \\ref{main theorem} hold for the finite tower $(\\bmw k)_{0 \\le k \\le n}$.\n\\smallskip\n\nFor $n = 0$ and $n = 1$, the claim follows from Lemmas \\ref{lemma: Axiom on A0 for cyclotomic BMW} and \\ref{lemma: W1 isomorphic to KT1 and to H1}. We assume the claim holds for some $n \\ge 1$ and show that it also holds for $n + 1$. \nThen, by the discussion above, the framework axioms hold for the finite tower\n$(\\bmw k)_{0\\le k \\le n}$ with axioms (\\ref{axiom: involution on An}), (\\ref{axiom: en An en}) and (\\ref{axiom: An en}) replaced by the finite versions (2$'$), (6$'$), and (7$'$).\nNow the inductive step in the proof of Theorem \\ref{main theorem} goes through without change and\nyields part (b) of the claim for the tower $(\\bmw k)_{0 \\le k \\le n+1}$. In particular, \n$\\bmw {n+1}$ is a cellular algebra; the cardinality of its cellular basis is $r^{n+1} (2n + 1)!!$,\nby Lemma \\ref{lemma: cardinality of basis of bmw n}. But then\nLemma \\ref{lemma: finite spanning set implies isomorphism and freeness} gives that\n$\\varphi: \\bmw {n+1} \\to \\kt {n+1}$ is an isomorphism, so part (a) of the claim also holds for $n + 1$. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{corollary} Let $S$ be any admissible integral ground ring with $q - q^{-1} \\ne 0$. \n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item\nThe sequence of cyclotomic BMW algebras $(\\bmw {n, S, r})_{n \\ge 0}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras.\n$\\bmw {n, S, r}$ has cell modules indexed by all $r$--tuples of Young diagrams of total size $n$, $n-2$, $n-4, \\dots$. The cell module labeled by\nan $r$--tuple of Young diagrams $\\lambdabold$ has a basis labeled by up--down tableaux of length $n$ and shape $\\lambdabold$.\n\\item $\\bmw {n, S, r} \\cong \\kt {n, S, r}$ for all $n \\ge 0$. \n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{corollary}\n\n\n\\begin{remark} It is possible to combine our results with the results of Wilcox and Yu\n~\\cite{Wilcox-Yu2} to obtain\nMurphy type bases of the cyclotomic BMW algebras that are strictly cellular, i.e. $i(c_{s, t}^\\lambda) = c_{t, s}^\\lambda $ for all $\\lambda, s, t$. To do this, all we need, according to Remark \\ref{remark: conditions for cell net to give strict cellular basis}, is an $i$--invariant $R$--module complement to the ideal\n$\\breve {\\bmw n}^{(\\lambdabold, n)}$ in $ {\\bmw n}^{(\\lambdabold, n)}$. However, one can check that the\nideals $\\breve {\\bmw n}^{(\\lambdabold, n)}$ and $ {\\bmw n}^{(\\lambdabold, n)}$ for our cellular structure are the same as for the cellular structure of Wilcox and Yu, and therefore, since their cellular basis satisfies the strict equality $i(c_{s, t}^\\lambda) = c_{t, s}^\\lambda $ for all $\\lambda, s, t$, the desired\n$i$--invariant $R$--module complement exists. \n\\end{remark}\n\n \\begin{remark} Our framework also applies to \n the degenerate\ncyclotomic BMW algebras (cyclotomic Nazarov Wenzl algebras) studied in ~\\cite{ariki-mathas-rui}. For the details, see ~\\cite{GG2}.\n \\end{remark} \n\n \n\\subsection{The walled Brauer algebras} \\label{subsection: walled Brauer algebras}\n\\subsubsection{Definition of the walled Brauer algebras} \nLet $S$ be a commutative ring with identity, with a distinguished element $\\delta$.\nThe walled (or rational) Brauer algebra $B_{r, s}(S, \\delta)$\n is a unital subalgebra of the Brauer algebra $B_{r+s}(S, \\delta)$ spanned by certain Brauer diagrams.\n Divide the $r+s$ top vertices into a left cluster consisting of the leftmost $r$ vertices and a right cluster consisting of the remaining $s$ vertices, and similarly for the bottom vertices. The walled Brauer diagrams are those in which no vertical strand connects a left vertex and a right vertex, and every horizontal strand connects a left vertex and a right vertex. (If we draw a vertical line--the wall--separating left and right vertices, then vertical strands are forbidden to cross the wall, and horizontal strands are required to cross the wall.) One can easily check that the span of walled Brauer diagrams is a unital subalgebra of $B_{r+s}(S, \\delta)$.\n \n \\subsubsection{Brief history of the walled Brauer algebras} The walled Brauer algebras were introduced by Turaev ~\\cite{turaev-operator-invariants} and by Koike ~\\cite{koike-tensor-products}, and studied by Benkart et.\\ al.\\ ~\\cite{benkart-walled-brauer} and by Nikitin ~\\cite{nikitin-walled-brauer}. \n The walled Brauer algebras arise in connection with the invariant theory of the general linear group acting on mixed tensors. \n Cellularity of walled Brauer algebras was proved by Green and Martin ~\\cite{green-martin-tabular} and by Cox et.\\ al.\\ ~\\cite{cox-walled-brauer}; the latter authors show that\n walled Brauer algebras can be arranged into coherent cellular towers.\n \n \\subsubsection{Some properties of the walled Brauer algebras} The walled Brauer algebra $B_{r, s}$ is invariant under the involution $i$ of the Brauer algebra $B_{r+s}$. Moreover, the inclusion map\n $\\iota : B_{r+s} \\to B_{r+s+1}$ maps $B_{r, s}$ to $B_{r, s+1}$, and the closure map\n ${\\rm cl} : B_{r+s} \\to B_{r + s -1}$ maps $B_{r, s}$ to $B_{r, s-1}$, when $s \\ge 1$. If $\\delta$ is invertible, $\\varepsilon_{r, s} = (1\/\\delta)\\, {\\rm cl} : B_{r, s} \\to B_{r, s-1}$ is a conditional expectation, and, of course, the trace $\\varepsilon$ on $B_{r+s}$ restricts to a trace on $B_{r, s}$. \n \n The Brauer algebras have an involutive inner automorphism $\\rho$ which maps each Brauer diagram to its reflection in the vertical line $x = 1\/2$. (We might as well take the vertical line to coincide with our wall.)\n It is clear that $\\rho$ restricts to an isomorphism from $B_{r, s}$ to $B_{s, r}$. Given this, we can define ``left versions\" of $\\iota$, ${\\rm cl}$ and $\\varepsilon_{r, s}$ by\n $\\iota' = \\rho \\circ \\iota \\circ \\rho : B_{r, s} \\to B_{r+1, s}$, ${\\rm cl}' = \\rho \\circ {\\rm cl} \\circ \\rho : B_{r, s} \\to B_{r-1, s}$, and $\\varepsilon' = \\rho \\circ \\varepsilon \\circ \\rho : B_{r, s} \\to B_{r-1, s}$. Note that\n $\\iota'$ adds a vertical strand on the left, and ${\\rm cl}'$ partially closes diagrams on the left.\n \n Let $e_{a, b}$ be the Brauer diagram with horizontal strands connecting $\\p a$ to $\\p {b}$ and\n $\\pbar a$ to $\\pbar {b}$ and vertical strands connecting $\\p j$ to $\\pbar j$ for all $j \\ne a, b$.\n One can easily check the following properties: \n \\begin{lemma} \\mbox{} \\label{lemma: properties of e(r, s) in walled brauer algebra}\n \\begin{enumerate}\n \\item $e_{a, b}^2 = \\delta e_{a, b}$.\n \\item $e_{a, b} \\,e_{a, b\\pm 1}\\, e_{a, b} = e_{a, b}$\n and $e_{a, b} \\,e_{a\\pm 1, b}\\, e_{a, b} = e_{a, b}$. \n \\item For $e_{a, b} \\in B_{r, s}$, $\\iota(e_{a, b}) = e_{a, b}$ and $\\iota'(e_{a, b}) = e_{a+1, b+1}$.\n \\item For $x \\in B_{r, s+1}$, we have $e_{1, r+ s+2} \\,\\iota'(x)\\, e_{1, r+ s+2} = \\iota'\\circ \\iota\\circ{\\rm cl}(x)\\, e_{1, r+ s+2}$.\n \\item For $x \\in B_{r+1, s}$, we have $e_{1, r+ s+2} \\,\\iota(x)\\,e_{1, r+ s+2}= \\iota'\\circ \\iota\\circ {\\rm cl}'(x) \\,e_{1, r+ s+2} $.\n \\item $e_{1, r+s + 2}$ commutes with $\\iota'\\circ \\iota(x)$ for all $x \\in B_{r, s}$.\n \\end{enumerate}\n \\end{lemma}\n \n The following statement is also easy to check:\n \n \\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: quotient of A_n by J for walled brauer}\nThe ideal $J$ in $B_{r, s}(S, \\delta)$ generated by $e_{1, r+s}$ is the ideal spanned by diagrams with fewer than $r + s$ through strands, and $B_{r, s}(S, \\delta)\/J \\cong S (\\mathfrak S_r \\times \\mathfrak S_s)$.\n \\end{lemma}\n \n\n \n \\begin{lemma} \\mbox{} \\label{lemma: An e(n-1) equals A(n-1) e(n-1) for walled Brauer}\n \\begin{enumerate}\n \\item $B_{r, s+1}\\, e_{1, r+s+1} = \\iota(B_{r, s}) \\,e_{1, r+s+1}$.\n \\item $B_{r+1, s} \\,e_{1, r+s+1} = \\iota'(B_{r, s})\\, e_{1, r+s+1}$.\n \\end{enumerate}\n \\end{lemma}\n \n \\begin{proof} To prove part (1), we\n have to show that if $d$ is a diagram in $B_{r, s+1}$, then there is a diagram\n $d' \\in \\iota(B_{r, s})$ such that $d \\,e_{1, r+s+1} = d' \\,e_{1, r+s+1}$. We can suppose that $d$ is not already in $ \\iota(B_{r, s})$; therefore, the vertex $ \\pbar {r+s + 1}$ in $d$ is connected to some vertex $v$ other than $\\p 1$ and $\\p {r+s + 1}$. There are two cases to consider. \n \n\n \n The first is that the vertices $\\p 1$ and $\\p {r+s + 1}$ are not connected to each other in $d$; let $a$ and $b$ be the vertices connected to\n $\\p 1$ and $\\p {r+s + 1}$. Now let $d'$ be the diagram in which $a$ and $b$ are connected to each other; $\\p {r + s + 1}$ is connected to $ \\pbar {r+s + 1}$; $\\p 1$ is connected to $v$; and all other strands are as in $d$. Then we have $d \\,e_{1, r+s+1} = d' \\,e_{1, r+s+1}$.\n The case that the vertices $\\p 1$ and $\\p {r+s + 1}$ are connected to each other is similar and will be omitted.\n \n Part (2) is proved by applying the map $\\rho$ to both sides of the equality in part (1) and then\n interchanging the roles of $r$ and $s$.\n \\end{proof}\n \n \n A unital trace $\\varepsilon$ on an $S$--algebra $A$ is {\\em non-degenerate} if for every non--zero $x \\in A$ there exists a $y \\in A$ such that $\\varepsilon(xy) \\ne 0$.\n \n \\begin{lemma} \\mbox{} \\label{lemma: non-degeneracy of trace on Brauer and walled Brauer}\n \\begin{enumerate}\n \\item\n The trace $\\varepsilon$ on $B_n({\\mathbb Q}({\\mathbold \\delta}), {\\mathbold \\delta})$ is non-degenerate, for any $n$.\n \\item The trace $\\varepsilon$ on $B_{r, s}({\\mathbb Q}({\\mathbold \\delta}), {\\mathbold \\delta})$ is non-degenerate, for any $r, s$.\n \\end{enumerate}\n \\end{lemma}\n \n \\noindent {\\em Sketch of proof.} The argument for part (1) is from ~\\cite{Morton-Traczyk}. It suffices to show that\n the determinant of the Gram matrix $\\varepsilon(d d')_{d, d'}$, where $d, d'$ run over the list of all Brauer diagrams (in some order), is non-zero. Recall that $\\varepsilon(d d')$ is ${\\bm q}^{c(d d')- n}$, where\n $c(d d')$ is the number of components in the tangle obtained by closing all the strands of $d d'$. \n One can check that $c(d \\,i(d) ) = n$ and $c(d d') < n$ for all diagrams other than $i(d)$. Therefore, each\n row and column of the Gram matrix has exactly one entry equal to $1$ and all other entries have the form \n ${\\bm q}^{-k}$ for some $k >0$. \n \n The argument for part (2) is identical.\n \\qed\n \n \\medskip\n\n \n \\subsubsection{Verification of the framework axioms for the walled Brauer algebras}\n \nTo fit the walled Brauer algebras to our framework, we have to reduce the double sequence of algebras to a single sequence. We adopt the following scheme, as in ~\\cite{nikitin-walled-brauer}, or\n~\\cite{cox-walled-brauer}: \n Fix some integer $t \\ge 0$. For any $S$ and $\\delta \\in S$, we consider the sequence of walled Brauer algebras\n $A_n = A_n(S, \\delta)$, where\n $A_{2 k}(S, \\delta) = B_{k, k+ t}(S, \\delta)$, and $A_{2 k + 1}(S, \\delta) = B_{k, k+t + 1}(S, \\delta)$, with the inclusions\n $$\n A_{2 k} \\stackrel{\\iota}{\\longrightarrow} A_{2k + 1} \\stackrel{\\iota'}{\\longrightarrow} A_{2k + 2}.\n $$\nWe put $f_{2k-1} = e_{1, 2k+t} \\in A_{2k}$ and $f_{2k} = e_{1, 2k+ t + 1} \\in A_{2k+1}$. \n We identify $A_n$ as a subalgebra of $A_{n+1}$ via these embeddings.\n With these conventions, Lemma \\ref{lemma: properties of e(r, s) in walled brauer algebra}, points (2) and (3) give $f_n f_{n\\pm 1} f_n = f_n$.\n Moreover, if we write ${\\rm cl}_n = {\\rm cl}$ when $n$ is even and ${\\rm cl}_n = {\\rm cl}'$ when $n$ is odd, then\n we have $f_{n-1} x f_{n-1} = {\\rm cl}_{n-1}(x) f_{n-1} $ for $x \\in A_{n-1}$, by Lemma \\ref{lemma: properties of e(r, s) in walled brauer algebra}, points (4) and (5). Point (6) of the Lemma says that $f_{n-1}$ commutes with\n $A_{n-2}$.\n \n \n If $J$ is the ideal in $A_n$ generated by\n $f_{n-1}$, then we have $A_{2k}\/J \\cong S(\\mathfrak S_k \\times \\mathfrak S_{k + t})$, and $A_{2k + 1}\/J \\cong S(\\mathfrak S_k \\times \\mathfrak S_{k + t + 1})$. So we set $Q_{2k}(S) = S(\\mathfrak S_k \\times \\mathfrak S_{k + t})$ and $Q_{2k + 1}(S) = S(\\mathfrak S_k \\times \\mathfrak S_{k + t + 1})$, with the natural embeddings.\n \n Since $A_0 = B_{0, t} \\cong S \\mathfrak S_t$, and $A_1 = B_{0, t+1} \\cong S \\mathfrak S_{t + 1}$, we cannot hope to satisfy our framework axiom (\\ref{axiom: A0 and A1}). However, we can replace axiom (\\ref{axiom: A0 and A1}) with the weaker\n \n \\medskip\n \\noindent(3$'$) \\quad $A_0 \\cong Q_0$, and $A_1 \\cong Q_1$.\n \\medskip\n \n\\noindent We also have to drop our usual convention (see Definition \\ref{def of branching}) regarding branching diagrams that the \n$0$--th row of the branching diagram has a single vertex. Our conclusions will have to be modified, but not severely.\n \n \\medskip\n We now take $R = {\\mathbb Z}[{\\mathbold \\delta}]$ and $\\delta = {\\mathbold \\delta}$. $R$ is the generic ground ring for\n walled Brauer algebras; if $S$ is any commutative unital ring with parameter $\\delta$, then\n $B_{r, s}(S, q) = B_{r, s}(R, {\\bm q}) \\otimes_R S$. Let $F = {\\mathbb Q}({\\mathbold \\delta})$.\n In the remainder of this section, we write\n $A_n = A_n(R, {\\mathbold \\delta})$ and $Q_n = Q_n(R)$. (Recall that $Q_n(R) = R(\\mathfrak S_k \\times \\mathfrak S_{k + t})$ if $n = 2k$, and\n$ Q_n(R) = R(\\mathfrak S_k \\times \\mathfrak S_{k + t + 1})$ if $n = 2 k + 1$.)\n \n \n \\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: generic semisimplicity for walled Brauer}\n The walled Brauer algebra $B_{r, s}({\\mathbb Q}({\\mathbold \\delta}), {\\mathbold \\delta})$ is split semisimple.\n \\end{lemma}\n \n \\noindent{\\em Sketch of proof.} It suffices to show that (for any $t$) the algebras in the sequence $A_n$ are split semisimple. This was proved by Nikitin in ~\\cite{nikitin-walled-brauer}, following Wenzl's method for the Brauer algebra in ~\\cite{Wenzl-Brauer}. \n Nikitin's proof involves obtaining the weights of the trace $\\varepsilon$, but little detail is given. For our purposes, we can bypass this issue, and use Lemma \\ref{lemma: non-degeneracy of trace on Brauer and walled Brauer} instead. Then the method of proof of Theorem 3.2 from ~\\cite{Wenzl-Brauer} applies.\n \\qed\n \\medskip \n \n \\begin{proposition} \\label{proposition: framework axioms for walledBrauer} The two sequence of $R$--algebras $(A_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ and $(Q_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ satisfy the framework axioms of Section \\ref{subsection: framework axioms}, with axiom (3) replaced by (3\\,$'$), specified above, and with the elements\n $f_n$ taking the role of the elements $e_n$ in the list of framework axioms.\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof} The sequence $(Q_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ is clearly a coherent tower of cellular algebras, so axiom (\\ref{axiom Hn coherent}) holds. Axiom (\\ref{axiom: involution on An}) is evident, and we have remarked about substituting axiom (\\ref{axiom: A0 and A1}$'$) for axiom (\\ref{axiom: A0 and A1}). \n$A_n^F$ is split semisimple by Lemma \n\\ref{lemma: generic semisimplicity for walled Brauer}. Thus axiom (\\ref{axiom: semisimplicity}) holds.\n\nWe have $f_{n-1}$ is an essential idempotent with $i(f_{n-1}) = f_{n-1}$. We have \\break $A_n\/ (A_n f_{n-1} A_n) \\cong Q_n$ by Lemma \\ref{lemma: quotient of A_n by J for walled brauer}, which gives axiom \n(\\ref{axiom: idempotent and Hn as quotient of An}).\n\nWe have seen that $f_{n-1}$ commutes with $A_{n-2}$ and $f_{n-1} A_{n-1} f_{n-1} \\subseteq A_{n-2} f_{n-1}$. Moreover, if $x \\in A_{n-2}$, then $f_{n-1} x f_{n-1} = {\\mathbold \\delta} x f_{n-1}$, so\n$f_{n-1} A_{n-1} f_{n-1} \\supseteq {\\mathbold \\delta} A_{n-2} f_{n-1}$. Therefore, \n$f_{n-1} A_{n-1}^F f_{n-1} = A_{n-2}^F f_{n-1}$, so axiom (\\ref{axiom: en An en}) holds.\n\nAxiom (\\ref{axiom: An en}) results from Lemma \\ref{lemma: An e(n-1) equals A(n-1) e(n-1) for walled Brauer}, and\naxiom (\\ref{axiom: e(n-1) in An en An}) from $f_{n-1} f_n f_{n-1} = f_{n-1}$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{remark} The branching diagram for the sequence\n$(Q_n^F)$ is the following: Each row has vertices labeled by pairs of Young diagrams; on an even row $2k$, the the first Young diagram in a pair has $k$ boxes and the second $k+t$ boxes; on an odd row $2k+1$, the first Young diagram has $k$ boxes and the second $k+t+1$ boxes; finally, there is an edge between pairs of Young diagrams in successive rows that differ by exactly one box.\n\\end{remark}\n\n\\begin{corollary} \\mbox{} Let $S$ be any commutative unital ring with parameter $\\delta$.\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item The walled Brauer algebras $B_{r, s}(S, \\delta)$ are cellular algebras. \n\\item The family is coherent in the sense that the restriction of a cell module from $B_{r, s}(S, \\delta)$ to $B_{r-1, s}(S, \\delta)$ or to $B_{r, s-1}(S, \\delta)$ and induction of a cell module from $B_{r, s}(S, \\delta)$ to\n$B_{r+1, s}(S, \\delta)$ or to $B_{r, s+1}(S, \\delta)$ have filtrations by cell modules. \n\\item The cell modules\nof $B_{r, s}(S, \\delta)$ are labeled by pairs of Young diagrams $(\\lambda^{(1)}, \\lambda^{(2)})$, where\n$|\\lambda^{(2)}| - |\\lambda^{(1)}| = s - r$ and $|\\lambda^{(2)}| + |\\lambda^{(1)}| \\le s + r$.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\\end{corollary}\n\n\nA basis for any cell module for $B_{r, s}$ can be labeled by paths on a certain branching diagram.\nSuppose without loss of generality that $t = s - r \\ge 0$. Let $(A_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ and $(Q_n)_{n \\ge 0}$ be the two sequences of algebras defined above, depending on $t$, so in particular, $B_{r, s} = A_{2 r}$.\nLet $\\mathfrak{B}_0$ be the branching diagram for $(Q_n^F)_{n \\ge 0}$, which was described above, and let \n$\\mathfrak{B}$ be that obtained by reflections from $\\mathfrak{B}_0$. On the $0$--th row, $\\mathfrak{B}$ has vertices labeled\nby all pairs $(\\emptyset, \\lambda)$, where $\\lambda$ is a Young diagram of size $t$. Finally, augment $\\mathfrak{B}$ with a copy of Young's lattice up to the $(t-1)$--st level, with vertices labeled by pairs $(0, \\mu)$ with $0 \\le |\\mu| \\le t-1$. The pairs of Young diagrams labeling the cell modules of $B_{r, s}$\nare located on the $r + s$--th row of the augmented branching diagram, and a basis of any cell module can be labeled by paths on the augmented branching diagram from $(\\emptyset, \\emptyset)$ to the pair in question.\n\nWe note that several of the results of Section 3 of ~\\cite{cox-walled-brauer} follow from the application of our method to the walled Brauer algebras.\n\n\\subsection{Partition algebras} \n\n\\subsubsection{Definition of the partition algebras} Let $n$ be an integer, $n \\ge 1$. Let \n$[\\p n] = \\break\\{\\p 1, \\dots, \\p n\\}$ and $[\\pbar n] = \\{ \\pbar 1, \\dots, \\pbar n\\}$ be disjoint sets of size $n$, and \nlet $X_n$ be the family of all set partitions of $[\\p n] \\cup [\\pbar n]$. \n\nWe can represent an element $x$ of $X_n$ by any graph with vertex set equal to $[\\p n] \\cup [\\pbar n]$ whose connected components are the blocks or classes of the partition $x$. We picture such a graph as a diagram\nin the rectangle $\\mathcal R$, with the vertices in $[\\p n]$ arranged on the top edge and those in\n$[\\pbar n]$ arranged on the bottom edge of $\\mathcal R$, as in the tangle diagrams discussed in Section \\ref{subsection: preliminaries on tangle diagrams}.\n\nLet $S$ be any commutative ring with identity, with a distinguished element $\\delta$. \nWe define a product on $X_n$ as follows: \nLet $x$ and $y$ be elements of $X_n$. Realize $y$ as a set partition of $[\\p n] \\cup [\\p n']$ (with $[\\p n']$ the set of bottom vertices). Realize $x$ as a set partition of $[\\p n'] \\cup [\\pbar n]$ (with $[\\p n']$ the set of top vertices).\nLet $E_x$ and $E_y$ be the corresponding equivalence relations, regarded as equivalence relations on\n$[\\p n] \\cup [\\p n'] \\cup [\\pbar n]$. Let $E$ be the smallest equivalence relation on $[\\p n] \\cup [\\p n'] \\cup [\\pbar n]$ containing $E_x \\cup E_y$. Let $r$ be the number of equivalence classes of $E$ contained in $[\\p n']$.\nLet $E_{x y}$ be the equivalence relation obtained by restricting $E$ to $[\\p n] \\cup [\\pbar n]$, and let\n$z$ be the corresponding set partition of $[\\p n] \\cup [\\pbar n]$. Then $x y$ is defined to be $\\delta^r z$. \n\n\n Here is an example of two set partitions represented by graphs and their product.\n\n$$\ny = \\inlinegraphic[scale= .3]{partition1}\n\\qquad\nx = \\inlinegraphic[scale=.3]{partition2}\\qquad\nxy = \\delta \\ \\inlinegraphic[scale= .3]{partition3} \n$$ \n\nWe let $A_{2n}(S, \\delta)$ be the free $S$ module with basis $X_n$. We give $A_{2n}(S, \\delta)$ the bilinear product extending the product defined on $X_n$. One can check the multiplication is associative. Note that $A_0(S, \\delta) \\cong S$. \nFor $n \\ge 1$, the multiplicative identity of $A_{2n}(S, \\delta)$ is the partition with blocks $\\{ \\p i, \\pbar i\\}$ for $1 \\le i \\le n$. \n\n\nFor $n \\ge 1$, Let $X'_n \\subset X_n$ be the family of set partitions with $\\p n$ and $\\pbar n$ in the same block. The\n$S$--span of $X'_n$ is a unital subalgebra of $A_{2n}(S, \\delta)$, which we denote by \\break$A_{2n -1}(S, \\delta)$. \n\nThe algebras $A_k(S, \\delta)$ for $k \\ge 0$ are called the {\\em partition algebras}. \n\nNote that the set partitions $x \\in X_n$ each of whose blocks has size $2$ can be identified with Brauer diagrams on $2n$ vertices, and the product of such diagrams in the Brauer algebra $B_n(S, \\delta)$ agrees with the product in $A_{2n}$. Thus $B_n(S, \\delta)$ can be identified with a unital subalgebra of $A_{2n}(S, \\delta)$.\n\n\\subsubsection{Brief history of the partition algebras} The partition algebras $A_{2n}$ were introduced independently by Martin ~\\cite{martin-partition-JKTR, martin-structure-j.algebra} and Jones ~\\cite{jones-partition}. Partition algebras arise as centralizer algebras for the symmetric group $\\mathfrak S_k$ acting\nas a subgroup of ${\\rm GL}(k, {\\mathbb C})$ on tensor powers of ${\\mathbb C}^k$ ~\\cite{jones-partition, martin-partition-potts}.\nThe algebras $A_{2n+1}$ have been used as an auxiliary device for studying the partition algebras, by Martin and others. Halverson and Ram ~\\cite{halverson-ram-partition} emphasized putting the even and odd algebras on an equal footing, which reveals the role played by the basic construction.\nCellularity of the partition algebras was proved in ~\\cite{Xi-Partition, doran-partition, wilcox-cellular}. For further literature citations, see the review article ~\\cite{halverson-ram-partition}.\n\n\\subsubsection{Some properties of the partition algebras} Fix a ground ring $S$ and $\\delta \\in S$.\nIn this section write $A_k$ for $A_k(S, \\delta)$. \n\n\nFor $n \\ge 1$, $A_{2n-1}$ is defined as a subalgebra of \n$A_{2n}$. The map $\\iota : X_{n} \\to X'_{n+1}$ which adds the additional block\n$\\{\\p {n+1}, \\pbar {n+1}\\}$ to $x \\in X_n$ is an imbedding; the linear extension of $\\iota$ to $A_{2n}$\nis a unital algebra monomorphism into $A_{2n + 1}$. Using $\\iota$, we identify $A_{2n}$ with its image in $A_{2n + 1}$. \n\n\nFor $n \\ge 1$, let $p_{2n -1} \\in A_{2n}$ \nbe the set partition of $[\\p n] \\cup [\\pbar n]$ with blocks $\\{\\p n\\}$, $\\{\\pbar n\\}$, and $\\{\\p i, \\pbar i\\}$ for $1 \\le i \\le n-1$, . The element\n$p_{2n -1}$ satisfies $p_{2n-1}^2 = \\delta\\, p_{2n-1}$. Let $p_{2n} \\in A_{2n + 1}$ be the set partition of $[\\p {n+1}] \\cup [\\pbar {n+1}]$ with blocks $\\{ \\p n, \\p {n+1}, \\pbar n, \\pbar {n+1}\\}$ and $\\{\\p i, \\pbar i\\}$ for $1 \\le i \\le n-1$. Then $p_{2n} $ is an idempotent. \n\nHere are graphs representing the $p_k$ for $k$ even and odd:\n$$\np_8 = \\inlinegraphic[scale= .3]{e8}\n\\qquad\np_9 = \\inlinegraphic[scale=.3]{e9}\\\n$$ \nOne can check that \n\\begin{equation}\np_k p_{k \\pm 1} p_k = p_k \\quad \\text{for all $k$}.\n\\end{equation}\n\nDefine an involution $i$ on $X_n$ by interchanging $\\p j$ with $\\pbar j$ for each $j$. The map $i$ reflects a graph $d(x)$ representing $x \\in X_n$ in the line $y = 1\/2$. The linear extension of $i$ to \n$A_n$ is an algebra involution. Note that $X'_n$ and $A_{2n-1}$ are invariant under $i$. \nThe embeddings of $A_k$ in $A_{k+1}$ commute with the involutions. The elements $p_k$ are \ninvariant under $i$. \n\nDefine a map ${\\rm cl} : X_n \\to X'_n$ by merging the blocks containing $\\p n$ and $\\pbar n$, and define\n${\\rm cl} : A_{2n} \\to A_{2n-1}$ as the linear extension of the map ${\\rm cl} : X_n \\to X'_n$. \n\n\nDefine a map \n${\\rm cl} : X'_n \\to A_{2n-2}$ as follows: For $x \\in X'_n$, if $\\{\\p n, \\pbar n\\}$ is a block of $x$, then\n${\\rm cl}(x) = \\delta \\,x'$, where $x' \\in X_{n-1}$ is obtained by removing the block $\\{\\p n, \\pbar n\\}$.\nOtherwise, ${\\rm cl}(x) \\in X_{n-1}$ is obtained by intersecting each block of $x$ with $[\\p {n-1}] \\cup [\\pbar {n-1}]$. Define \n${\\rm cl} : A_{2n-1} \\to A_{2n-2}$ as the linear extension of the map ${\\rm cl} : X'_n \\to A_{2n-2}$.\n\nOne can check that for all $k$, ${\\rm cl} : A_k \\to A_{k-1}$ is a non--unital $A_{k-1}$--$A_{k-1}$ bimodule map. Moreover, ${\\rm tr} = {\\rm cl} \\circ {\\rm cl} \\circ \\cdots \\circ {\\rm cl} : A_k \\to A_0 \\cong S$ is a non--unital trace. The trace ${\\rm tr}$ can be computed as follows: given $x \\in X_n$, let $d(x)$ be any graph representing $x$ and let $d'(x)$ be the graph augmented by drawing edges between each pair\nof vertices $\\{\\p j, \\pbar j\\}$; then ${\\rm tr}(x) = \\delta^r$, where $r$ is the number of components of $d'(x)$.\n\nThe maps ${\\rm cl}$ commute with the algebra involutions $i$, and ${\\rm tr} (a) = {\\rm tr}(i(a))$. \nMoreover,\n\\begin{equation}\np_k x p_k = {\\rm cl}(x) p_k \\quad \\text{for all $x \\in A_k$, $k \\ge 1$}.\n\\end{equation}\n\nIf $\\delta$ is invertible, define $\\varepsilon_{2n} : A_{2n} \\to A_{2n -1}$ by $\\varepsilon_{2n} = {\\rm cl}$, and\n$\\varepsilon_{2n-1} : A_{2n-1} \\to A_{2n -2}$ by $\\varepsilon_{2n-1} = \\delta^{-1} \\, {\\rm cl}$. Then the maps \n$\\varepsilon_k$ are unital conditional expectations, and the map $\\varepsilon = \\varepsilon_1 \\circ \\cdots \\varepsilon_k : A_k \\to A_0 \\cong S$ is a unital trace.\n\n\n\\def{\\rm pn}{{\\rm pn}}\nLet $x \\in X_n$. Call a block of $x$ a {\\em through block} if the block has non--empty intersection with both\n$[\\p n ]$ and $[\\pbar n]$. The number of through blocks of $x$ is called the propagating number\nof $x$, denoted ${\\rm pn}(x)$. Clearly, ${\\rm pn}(x) \\le n$ for all $x \\in X_n$. The only $x \\in X_n$ with propagating number equal to $n$ are Brauer diagrams with only vertical strands, i.e.\\ permutation diagrams.\n\n If $x, y \\in X_n$ and $x y = \\delta^r z$, then\n${\\rm pn}(z) \\le \\min\\{ {\\rm pn}(x), {\\rm pn}(y)\\}$. Hence the span of the set of $x \\in X_n$ with\n${\\rm pn}(x) < n$ is an ideal $J_{2n} \\subset A_{2n}$. Moreover, $J_{2n -1} := J_{2n} \\cap A_{2n -1}$ is the span\nof $x \\in X'_n$ with ${\\rm pn}(x) < n$. \n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: axiom 5 for partition algebras}\n\n For $n \\ge 1$, $A_{2n}\/J_{2n} \\cong S \\mathfrak S_n$, and $A_{2n-1}\/J_{2n-1} \\cong S \\mathfrak S_{n-1}$, as algebras with involution.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} The span of permutation diagrams is a linear complement to $J_{2n}$, and is an $i$--invariant subalgebra of $A_{2n}$ isomorphic to $S \\mathfrak S_n$; hence, $A_{2n}\/J_{2n} \\cong S \\mathfrak S_n$. The span of permutation diagrams $\\pi$ with $\\pi(n) = n$ is a linear complement to $J_{2n-1}$ in $A_{2n-1}$; hence\n$A_{2n-1}\/J_{2n-1} \\cong S \\mathfrak S_{n-1}$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\n\\begin{lemma} For $k \\ge 2$, $J_{k} = A_{k-1} p_{k-1} A_{k-1}$. \n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} It is straightforward to check that if $x \\in X_n$ has propagating number strictly less than $n$, then \n$x$ can be factored as $x = x' p_{2n-1} x''$, with $x', x'' \\in X'_n$. Likewise, if $n \\ge 2$ and $x \\in X'_n$\nhas propagating number strictly less than $n$, then $x$ can be factored as\n$x = x' p_{2n-2} x''$ with $x', x'' \\in X'_{n-1}$. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{lemma}\\label{lemma: axiom 6 for partition algebras}\n \\mbox{}\n \\begin{enumerate}\n\n\\item \nFor $k \\ge 3$, $p_{k-1} A_{k-1} p_{k-1} = A_{k-2} p_{k-1}$.\n \\item $p_1 A_1 p_1 = \\delta\\, A_0 \\,p_1$.\n\\item For $k \\ge 2$, \n$p_{k-1}$ commutes with $ A_{k-2} $. \n\\end{enumerate}\n \\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} Let $x \\in A_{2n}$ with $n \\ge 1$. Then $p_{2n-1} x p_{2n-1}$ is contained in the span of $y \\in X_n$ such\nthat $\\{\\p n\\}$ and $\\{ \\pbar n\\}$ are blocks of $y$, and any such $y$ can be written as $y = z p_{2n-1}$, where $z \\in A_{2n-2}$. \n\nNow consider $x \\in A_{2n + 1}$ with $n \\ge 1$. Then\n$p_{2n} x p_{2n}$ is contained in the span of $y \\in X'_{n+1}$ such that $\\{\\p n, \\p {n+1}, \\pbar n, \\pbar {n+1}\\}$ is contained in one block of $y$. Any such $y$ can be written as $y = z p_{2n}$ where\n$z \\in A_{2n-1}$. \n\nThis shows that $p_{k-1} A_k p_{k-1} \\subseteq A_{k-2} p_{k-1}$ for all $k \\ge 3$.\nOn the other hand, if $x \\in A_{k-2}$ then $x p_{k-1} = x p_{k-1} p_{k-2} p_{k-1} =\np_{k-1} x p_{k-2} p_{k-1} \\in p_{k-1} A_{k} p_{k-1}$, so $p_{k-1} A_k p_{k-1} \\supseteq A_{k-2} p_{k-1}$.\nThis proves (1).\n\nPoints (2) and (3) are easy to check.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: axiom 7 for partition algebras}\nFor $k \\ge 2$, $A_k p_{k-1} = A_{k-1} p_{k-1}$. Moreover, \n $x \\mapsto x e_{k-1}$ is injective from $ A_{k-1}$ to $A_{k}$.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} For $k =2$, we have $A_2 p_1 = S p_1 = A_1 p_1$. For $k \\ge 3$, we have\n$$\n\\begin{aligned}\nA_k p_{k-1} &= A_k p_{k-1} p_{k-2} p_{k-1} \\\\& \\subseteq J_k p_{k-1} = A_{k-1} p_{k-1} A_{k-1} p_{k-1} \n\\\\& \\subseteq\n A_{k-1} A_{k-2} p_{k-1} = A_{k-1} p_{k-1}.\n \\end{aligned}\n $$\n Checking $k$ odd and even separately, one can check that $x = {\\rm cl}(x p_{k-1})$ for $k \\ge 2$ and\n $x \\in A_{k-1}$.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: non-degeneracy of trace partition algebra}\n The trace $\\varepsilon$ on $A_k({\\mathbb Q}({\\mathbold \\delta}), {\\mathbold \\delta})$ is non--degenerate.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} For any set partition $x \\in X_n$, let $r(x)$ be the number of blocks of $x$. Let $E_x$\nbe the equivalence relation on\n$[\\p n] \\cup [\\pbar n]$ whose equivalence classes are the blocks of $x$. \n\n For any $x, y \\in X_n$, define an integer $r(x, y)$ as follows: Let $E(x, y)$ be the smallest equivalence relation on $[\\p n] \\cup [\\pbar n]$ containing $E_x \\cup E_{i(y)}$ and let $r(x, y)$ be the number of equivalence classes of $E(x, y)$. Clearly, $r(x, y) \\le \\min\\{r(x), r(y)\\}$. Moreover, if $r(x) = r(y)$, then\n $r(x, y) < r(x)$ unless $y = i(x)$, and $r(x, i(x)) = r(x)$. \n \n It is not hard to see that ${\\rm tr}(x y) = {\\mathbold \\delta}^{r(x, y)}$, so $\\varepsilon(x, y) = {\\mathbold \\delta}^{r(x, y)-n}$.\n It follows that the Gram determinant $\\det(\\varepsilon(x y))_{x, y}$ is a Laurent polynomial that has a unique\n term of highest degree namely $\\pm \\prod_x \\varepsilon(x\\, i(x))$. In particular the Gram determinant is non--zero.\n This shows that the trace on $A_{2n}({\\mathbb Q}({\\mathbold \\delta}), {\\mathbold \\delta})$ is non--degenerate, and the same method shows that the restriction of the trace to $A_{2n-1}({\\mathbb Q}({\\mathbold \\delta}), {\\mathbold \\delta})$ is non--degenerate.\n \\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: generic semisimplicity for partition algebras} $A_k({\\mathbb Q}({\\mathbold \\delta}), {\\mathbold \\delta})$ is split semisimple. The branching diagram for \\break\n$(A_k({\\mathbb Q}({\\mathbold \\delta}), {\\mathbold \\delta}))_{k \\ge 0}$ has vertices on levels $2n$ and $2n+1$ labeled by all Young diagrams of size $j$, $0 \\le j \\le n$. There is an edge connecting $\\lambda$ on level $2n$ and $\\mu$ on level\n$2n \\pm 1$ if, and only if, $\\lambda = \\mu$ or $\\mu$ is obtained by removing one box from $\\lambda$. \\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} This is proved by Martin ~\\cite {martin-partition-JKTR}. It can also be proved using the method of Wenzl from ~\\cite{Wenzl-Brauer}, using\nLemma \\ref{lemma: non-degeneracy of trace partition algebra}.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\subsubsection{Verification of framework axioms for the partition algebras}\n\nWe take $R = {\\mathbb Z}[{\\mathbold \\delta}]$, where ${\\mathbold \\delta}$ is an indeterminant. Then $R$ is the universal ground ring for the partition algebras; for any commutative ring $S$ with distinguished element $\\delta$, we have\n$A_k(S, \\delta) \\cong A_k(R, {\\mathbold \\delta})\\otimes_R S$. Let $F = {\\mathbb Q}({\\mathbold \\delta})$ denote the field of fractions of $R$. Write $A_k = A_k(R, {\\mathbold \\delta})$. Define $Q_{2n} = Q_{2n + 1} = R \\mathfrak S_n$.\n\n\\begin{proposition} \\label{proposition: framework axioms for partition algebras} The two sequence of $R$--algebras $(A_k)_{k \\ge 0}$ and $(Q_k)_{k \\ge 0}$ satisfy the framework axioms of Section \\ref{subsection: framework axioms}.\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nAccording to Example \\ref{example: Hn coherent tower}, $(Q_k)_{k \\ge 0}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras, so axiom (\\ref{axiom Hn coherent}) holds.\nFramework axioms (\\ref{axiom: involution on An}) and (\\ref{axiom: A0 and A1}) are evident.\n$A_k^F$ is split semisimple by Lemma \\ref{lemma: generic semisimplicity for partition algebras}. This verifies axiom (\\ref{axiom: semisimplicity}).\n\nWe take $p_{k-1} \\in A_k$ to be the element defined in the previous section. Then \n$p_{k-1}$ is an $i$--invariant essential idempotent.\nWith $J_k = A_k p_{k-1} A_k$, we have $A_k\/J_k \\cong Q_k$ as algebras with involution by Lemma \\ref{lemma: axiom 5 for partition algebras}. \n This verifies axiom (\\ref{axiom: idempotent and Hn as quotient of An}).\n \nAxiom (\\ref{axiom: en An en}) follows from Lemma \\ref{lemma: axiom 6 for partition algebras}, and axiom (\\ref{axiom: An en}) from \n Lemma \\ref{lemma: axiom 7 for partition algebras}. Axiom (\\ref{axiom: e(n-1) in An en An}) holds because $p_{n-1} p_n p_{n-1} = p_{n-1}$.\n \\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{corollary} For any commutative ring $S$ and for any $\\delta \\in S$, \nthe sequence of partition algebras $(A_n(S, \\delta))_{n \\ge 0}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras.\n$A_n(S, \\delta)$ has cell modules indexed by all Young diagrams of size $j$, $0 \\le j \\le n$.\n The cell module labeled by\na Young diagram $\\lambda$ has a basis labeled by paths on the branching diagram for $(A_k({\\mathbb Q}({\\mathbold \\delta}), {\\mathbold \\delta}))_{k \\ge 0}$, described in Lemma \\ref{lemma: generic semisimplicity for partition algebras}.\n\\end{corollary}\n\n\\subsection{Contour algebras}\nWe define generalizations of the {\\em contour algebras} of Cox et.\\ al.\\ ~\\cite{cox-towers}, which in turn include several sorts of diagram algebras. The algebras are obtained as a sort of wreath product of the Jones--Temperley--Lieb algebras with some other algebra $A$ with involution; varying $A$ gives a wide variety of examples.\n\n\\subsubsection{Definition of contour algebras} Let $S$ be a commutative ring with distinguished element $\\delta$. Let $A$ be an $S$--algebra with involution $i$ and with a unital $S$--valued trace $\\varepsilon$. We first define the $A$--Temperley--Lieb algebras $T_n(A)$ and then the contour algebras $\\cont n d A$ as subalgebras of $T_n(A)$. In case we need to emphasize the ground ring $S$ and parameter $\\delta$, we\nwrite $\\cont n d {A, S, \\delta}$. \n\nAn $A$--Temperley--Lieb diagram is a Temperley--Lieb (TL) diagram with strands labeled by elements of $A$. For convenience, we adopt the convention that an unlabeled strand is the same as a strand labeled with the identity of $A$.\n\nWe will define the product of two $A$--Temperley--Lieb diagrams. \nFirst we note that ordinary TL diagrams have an inherent orientation. Label the top vertices of a TL diagram by\n$\\p 1, \\dots, \\p n$ and the bottom vertices by $\\pbar 1, \\dots, \\pbar n$. Place a small arrow pointing down at each\nodd numbered vertex (top or bottom) and a small arrow pointing up at each even numbered vertex. Then because of the planarity of TL diagrams, each strand of a TL diagram must connect one arrow pointing into the rectangle $\\mathcal R$ of the diagram with one arrow pointing out of $\\mathcal R$; the strand can be thought of as oriented from the inward pointing arrow to the outward pointing arrow. When two TL diagrams are multiplied by stacking, the orientation of composed strands agrees. \n\nNow consider two $A$--Temperley--Lieb diagrams $X$ and $Y$. To form the product $X Y$, stack $Y$ over $X$ as for tangles, forming a composite diagram $X\\circ Y$. Label each non--closed composite strand with the product of the labels of its component strands from $X$ and $Y$, taken in the order of their occurrence as the strand is traversed according to its orientation. For each closed strand $s$ in $X\\circ Y$, let $\\varepsilon(s)$ be the trace of the product of\nthe labels of its component strands; the product is unique up to cyclic permutation of the factors, so the trace \nis uniquely determined. Let $r$ be the number of closed strands and let $Z$ be the labeled diagram obtained by removing all the closed strands. Then $XY = \\delta^r ( \\prod_s \\varepsilon(s))\\, Z$. \n\nAs an $S$--module, $T_n(A)$ is $A^{\\otimes n} \\otimes T_n(S, \\delta) = \\bigoplus_x (A^{\\otimes n} \\otimes x)$, where the sum is over ordinary Temperley--Lieb diagrams $x$. We identify a simple tensor $a_1 \\otimes \\cdots \\otimes a_n \\otimes x$\nwith a labeling of $x$ with the labels $a_1, \\dots, a_n$. We have to specify how to place the labels. We fix an ordering of the vertices, for example $\\p 1 < \\cdots < \\p n < \\pbar 1 < \\cdots \\pbar n$, and then order the strands of $x$ according to the order of the initial vertex of each (oriented) strand. The simple tensor\n$a_1 \\otimes \\cdots \\otimes a_n \\otimes x$\nis identified with the diagram with underlying TL diagram $x$, with the $j$--th strand of $x$ labeled by $a_j$ for each $j$. \n\n\nFix TL diagrams $x$ and $y$. The product of $A$--Temperley--Lieb diagrams with underlying TL diagrams $x$ and $y$, defined above, determines a multilinear map $A^{2n} \\to A^{\\otimes n} \\otimes xy$, and hence a bilinear\nmap $( A^{\\otimes n} \\otimes x) \\times ( A^{\\otimes n} \\otimes y) \\to A^{\\otimes n} \\otimes xy$. This product extends to a bilinear product on $T_n(A)$, which one can check to be associative.\n\nNext we define an involution on $T_n(A)$. Define $i$ on an $A$--labeled TL diagram by flipping the diagram over the line $y = 1\/2$ and applying the involution in $A$ to the label of each strand. For a fixed TL diagram $x$, this gives a multilinear map from $A^n$ to $A^{\\otimes n} \\otimes i(x)$, and hence a linear map from\n$A^{\\otimes n} \\otimes x$ to $A^{\\otimes n} \\otimes i(x)$. Now $i$ extends to a linear map on \n$T_n(A)$. One can check that $i$ is an algebra involution.\n\nThis completes the definition of the $A$--Temperley--Lieb algebra, as an algebra with involution.\n\nNext we define the $A$--contour algebras. We assign a depth to each strand in an ordinary TL diagram $x$, as follows: Draw a curve from a point on a given strand $s$ to the western boundary of $\\mathcal R$, having only transverse intersections with\nany strands of $x$. The depth of $s$ is the minimum, over all such curves $\\gamma$, of the number of points of intersection of $\\gamma$ with the strands of $x$ (including $s$). The depth of an $A$--labeled TL diagram is the maximum depth of the strands with non--identity labels.\n\nFix $d \\le n$. As an $S$--module $\\cont n d A$ is the span of those $A$--labeled TL diagrams of depth no greater than $d$. It is easy to check as in\n~\\cite{cox-towers} Lemma 2.1 that $\\cont n d A$ is an $i$--invariant subalgebra of $T_n(A)$. \n\nFor $a \\in A$ and $1 \\le j \\le n$ let $a^{(j)}$ be the identity TL diagram in $T_n(A)$ with the $j$--th strand labeled with $a$ (and the other strands unlabeled). We have $a\\power j$ and $b \\power k$ commute if $j \\ne k$. \nAlso $a \\power j$ commutes with $e_k$ unless $j \\in \\{k, k+1\\}$ and $e_k a \\power k = e_k a \\power {k+1}$, and, likewise, $ a \\power k e_k= a \\power {k+1} e_k$. \nNote that $a \\mapsto a \\power k$ is an algebra homomorphism if $k$ is odd, but an algebra anti-homomorphism if $k$ is even.\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma; generating contour algebras}\n$\\cont n d A$ is generated as an algebra by $e_1, \\dots, e_{n-1}$ and by \n $\\{ a \\power k : 1 \\le k \\le d\\}$. \n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\noindent{\\em Sketch:} It is enough to show that if $x$ is a Temperley--Lieb diagram and $X = x a \\power k$ has depth\n$r$, then $X$ can be rewritten as a product of $a \\power r$ and TL diagrams. First one can check that\n$X$ can be written as $x_1 \\, x_2 a \\power {k'} \\, x_3$ where the $x_i$ are TL diagrams, $x_2$ is a product of commuting $e_i$'s, and the depth of $ x_2 \\,a \\power {k'} $ is $r$. Finally, it suffices to show that\n$ x_2 \\,a \\power {k'} $ can be written as a product of TL diagrams with $a \\power r$. We give an example that\ncaptures the idea: $e_1 e_3 a \\power 6$ has depth $2$. We have\n$$\n\\begin{aligned}\ne_1 e_3 a \\power 6 &= (e_1 e_3) (e_2 e_4) (e_1 e_3) a \\power 6 \\\\\n&= (e_1 e_3) (e_2 e_4) (e_3 e_5) (e_2 e_4) (e_1 e_3) a \\power 6 \\\\\n&= (e_1 e_3) (e_2 e_4) (e_3 e_5)a \\power 2 (e_2 e_4) (e_1 e_3),\n\\end{aligned}\n$$\nby repeated use of the relations listed before the statement of the lemma.\n\n\\subsubsection{Brief history of contour algebras} The contour algebras introduced by Cox et.\\ al.\\ ~\\cite{cox-towers} are the special case with $A$ the group algebra of the cyclic group ${\\mathbb Z}_m$. On the other hand, the\n$A$--Temperley--Lieb algebras $T_n(A)$ have been considered in ~\\cite{jones-planar}, Example 2.2. The contour subalgebras of $T_n(A)$ were discussed in ~\\cite{green-martin}. \n\n\n\\subsubsection{Some properties of $A$--Temperley--Lieb and contour algebras} We deal with the contour algebras and the\n$A$--Temperley--Lieb algebras together; regard $T_n(A)$ as $\\cont n {\\infty} A$. \n\n We define maps $\\iota: \\cont n d A \\to \\cont {n+1} d A$ as for other classes of \ndiagram or tangle algebras, and likewise maps ${\\rm cl} : \\cont n d A \\to \\cont {n-1} d A$; if closing the rightmost strand of an $A$--Temperley--Lieb diagram produces a closed loop, remove the loop and multiply the resulting diagram\nby $\\delta$ times the trace of the product of labels along the loop. The map $\\iota$ is injective, since\n$x = {\\rm cl}( \\iota(x) e_n)$ for $x \\in \\cont n d A$. The maps $\\iota$ and ${\\rm cl}$ commute with the involutions.\n\nIf $\\delta$ is invertible in $S$, we can define $\\varepsilon_n = (1\/\\delta) {\\rm cl} : \\cont n d A \\to \\cont {n-1} d A$, which is a unital\nconditional expectation. We have\n${\\varepsilon_{n+1}}\\circ\\iota(x) = x$ for $x \\in \n\\cont n d A$. The map $\\varepsilon = \\varepsilon_1\\circ \\cdots \\circ \\varepsilon_n : \\cont n d A \\to \\cont 0 d A \\cong S$ is a normalized trace. The value of $\\varepsilon$ on an $A$-Temperley--Lieb diagram $X$ with $n$ strands is obtained as follows: first close all the strands of $X$ by introducing new curves joining $\\p j$ to $\\pbar j$ for all $j$; let $r$ be the number of closed loops in the resulting\ndiagram; then $\\varepsilon(X) = \\delta^{r - n} \\prod_s \\varepsilon(s)$, where the product is over the collection of closed loops $s$, and $\\varepsilon(s)$ denotes the trace in $A$ of the product of labels along the loop $s$.\n\nThe span $J$ of $A$--Temperley--Lieb diagrams of depth $\\le d$ and with at least one horizontal strand is an ideal in $\\cont n d A$. \nBy Lemma \\ref{lemma; generating contour algebras}, any $A$--Temperley--Lieb diagram with depth $ \\le d$ can be written as a word in the $e_i$'s and in elements $a \\power k$ with $k \\le d$; the diagram is in $J$ if, and only if,\nsome $e_i$ appears in the word. Thus $J$ is the ideal generated by the $e_i$'s. Because of the relations\n$e_i e_{i \\pm 1} e_i = e_i$, $J$ is generated by $e_{n-1}$. The quotient $\\cont n d A\/ J$ is isomorphic\n(as algebras with involution) to the subalgebra generated by the $a \\power k$ with $k \\le d$, and thus to $A^{\\otimes d}$ if $n \\ge d$ and\n$A^{\\otimes n}$ if $n < d$. \n\n \\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: axiom 6 for contour} \\mbox{}\n \\begin{enumerate}\n\\item \nFor $n \\ge 3$, $e_{n-1} \\, \\cont {n-1} d A \\, e_{n-1} = \\cont {n-2} d A \\, e_{n-1}$.\n\\item $e_1 \\, \\cont 1 d A \\, e_1 = \\delta\\, S \\,e_1$\n\\item For $n \\ge 2$, \n$e_{n-1}$ commutes with $ \\cont {n-2} d A$. \n\\end{enumerate}\n \\end{lemma}\n \n \\begin{proof} The proof is the same as that of Lemma \\ref{lemma: Brauer axiom 6} for the Brauer algebras.\n \\end{proof}\n \n \\begin{lemma} \\label{Bn e(n-1) = B(n-1) e(n-1) for contour algebras} For $n \\ge 2$, \n$\\cont n d A \\,e_{n-1} = \\cont {n-1} d A \\,e_{n-1}$. Moreover, \n $x \\mapsto x e_{n-1}$ is injective from $\\cont {n-1} d A$ to $\\cont {n-1} d A \\,e_{n-1}$.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} Any $A$--TL diagram in $\\cont n d A$ is either already in $\\cont {n-1} d A$, or it can be written\nas $ \\alpha \\chi \\beta$, with $\\alpha, \\beta \\in \\cont {n-1} d A$, and \n$\\chi \\in \\{ e_{n-1} , a \\power n \\}$ if $n \\le d$, or $\\chi = e_{n-1}$ if $n > d$. \n\nThe remainder of the proof is the same as the proof of Lemma \\ref{B(n+1) e(n) = B(n) e(n) for Brauer algebras} for the Brauer algebras, using the identities: $a \\power {n} x e_{n-1} = x a \\power {n-1} e_{n-1}$, and $e_{n-1} x e_{n-1} = {\\rm cl}(x) e_{n-1}$ for $x \\in \\cont {n-1} d A$. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Hypotheses on the algebra $A$} \\label{subsubsection: hypotheses on A for generic contour algebras}\n\nWe will suppose that the algebra $A$ has a generic version defined over an integral domain $R_0$. \nLet $F_0$ be the field of fractions of $R_0$. We suppose that $A = A(R_0)$ satisfies the following hypotheses:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item $A = A(R_0)$ is cellular.\n\\item $A(F_0) = A(R_0) \\otimes_{R_0} F_0$ is split semisimple.\n\\item The trace $\\varepsilon$ on $A({R_0})$ is non--degenerate.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\nWe take $R = R_0[{\\mathbold \\delta}]$, where ${\\mathbold \\delta}$ is an indeterminant, and \nlet $F = F_0({\\mathbold \\delta})$ denote the field of fractions of $R$. \nWe will show that $(\\cont n d {A, R, {\\mathbold \\delta}})_{n \\ge 0} $ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras. \n\n\n\\subsubsection{Special instances} The cellular algebra $A$ in Section \\ref{subsubsection: hypotheses on A for generic contour algebras} can be taken to be the generic version of any of the diagram or tangle algebras treated in this paper. $A$ could be taken to be a generic Hecke algebra or cyclotomic Hecke algebra, or the group ring of a symmetric group over $R_0 = {\\mathbb Z}$. \n\nThe contour algebras of Cox et.\\ al.\\ ~\\cite{cox-towers} are recovered by taking\n$R_0 = {\\mathbb Z}[ {\\mathbold \\delta}_1, \\dots, {\\mathbold \\delta}_{m-1}]$ and $A$ the group algebra of ${\\mathbb Z}_m$ over $R_0$. The trace on $A$ is determined by $\\varepsilon([k]) = {\\mathbold \\delta}_k$ for $[k] \\ne [0]$ and $\\varepsilon([0] )= 1$. The parameter $\\delta_0$ in ~\\cite{cox-towers} becomes identified with our $\\delta$. \n\n\n\\subsubsection{Verification of the framework axioms for contour algebras} Adopt the hypotheses and notation of Section \\ref{subsubsection: hypotheses on A for generic contour algebras}. \n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: non degenerate trace on contour algebras}\n The trace $\\varepsilon$ on $\\cont n d {A, F, {\\mathbold \\delta}}$ is non--degenerate.\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} We take any basis $\\mathbb A$ of $A$ over $F_0$ with $\\bm 1 \\in \\mathbb A$. As a basis $\\mathbb B$ of $\\cont n d A$ over $F$ we take all $n$--strand TL diagrams decorated up to depth $d$ with elements of $\\mathbb A$. We consider the modified Gram determinant $\\det [\\varepsilon( X i(Y))]_{X, Y \\in \\mathbb B}$. If $X$ and $Y$ have different underlying TL diagrams, then $\\varepsilon( X i(Y)) \\in \\delta^{-1} F_0$. \n\nNext consider matrix entries $\\varepsilon( X i(Y))$ where $X$ and $Y$ have the same underlying TL diagram, say $x$. Suppose $x$ has $\\ell$ strands at depth $d$ or less and these strands are decorated by basis elements\n$a_{1}, \\dots, a_{\\ell}$ in $X$, respectively $b_{1}, \\dots, b_{\\ell}$ in $Y$. Then $\\varepsilon(X i(Y)) = \\prod_{j=1}^{\\ell} \\varepsilon(a_{j} i(b_{j}))$. The determinant of the square submatrix of $ [\\varepsilon( X i(Y))]$ consisting of those entries for which $X$ and $Y$ both have underlying TL diagram $x$ is therefore $D^{\\ell}$, where\n$D$ is the determinant of $[\\varepsilon(a i(b))]_{a, b \\in \\mathbb A}$. \nIt follows that $\\det [\\varepsilon( X i(Y))]_{X, Y \\in \\mathbb B}$ is equal to a power of $D$ modulo\n$\\delta^{-1} R_{0}$, and is therefore non--zero. \n\\end{proof}\n\nConsider $$Q_{n} = \\cont n d A\/ J \\cong \\begin{cases} A^{\\otimes n} &\\text{if $n < d$} \\\\\nA^{\\otimes d} &\\text{if $n \\ge d$.} \\\\ \\end{cases}\n$$\nBy the assumptions in Section \\ref{subsubsection: hypotheses on A for generic contour algebras},\n$Q_{n}(R)$ is cellular and $Q_{n}(F)$ is split semisimple. Moreover, it is easy to see that\n$(Q_{n})_{n \\ge 0}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras.\n\n\\begin{lemma} \\label{lemma: generic semisimplicity for contour algebras} \n$\\cont n d {A, F, {\\mathbold \\delta}}$ is split semisimple for all $n$. \n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof} The method of Wenzl from ~\\cite{Wenzl-Brauer} applies, using the non--degeneracy of the trace and the split semisimplicity of $Q_{n}(F)$ for all $n$. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{proposition} The pair of sequences $(\\cont n d {A, R, {\\mathbold \\delta}})_{n \\ge 0}$ and\n$(Q_{n}(R))_{n \\ge 0}$ satisfy the framework axioms of Section \\ref{subsection: framework axioms}.\nHence, $(\\cont n d {A, R, {\\mathbold \\delta}})_{n \\ge 0}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras. \n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nWe observed above that $(Q_k)_{k \\ge 0}$ is a coherent tower of cellular algebras, so axiom (\\ref{axiom Hn coherent}) holds.\nFramework axioms (\\ref{axiom: involution on An}) and (\\ref{axiom: A0 and A1}) are evident.\nFramework axiom (\\ref{axiom: semisimplicity}) follows from Lemma \\ref{lemma: generic semisimplicity for contour algebras}. \n\nThe elements $e_{k}$ are $i$--invariant essential idempotents. \nWith $J = \\cont k d A e_{k-1} \\cont k d A$, we have $\\cont k d A\/J \\cong Q_k$ as algebras with involution. \n This verifies axiom (\\ref{axiom: idempotent and Hn as quotient of An}).\n Axiom (\\ref{axiom: en An en}) follows from Lemma \\ref{lemma: axiom 6 for contour}, and axiom (\\ref{axiom: An en}) from \n Lemma \\ref{Bn e(n-1) = B(n-1) e(n-1) for contour algebras}. Axiom (\\ref{axiom: e(n-1) in An en An}) holds because $e_{n-1} e_n e_{n-1} = e_{n-1}$.\n \\end{proof}\n\n\n\n\\bibliographystyle{amsplain}\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\n\\section{Spin-1\/2 fermions in quantum field theory}\n \\label{sec:spinhalf}\n\nWe begin these lectures with a treatment of spin-$\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ fermions in\nquantum field theory. In most introductory courses in relativistic quantum field\ntheory, the student first encounters fermion fields in the treatment of a\nrelativistic theory of electrons and photons. The electron is\nrepresented by a four-component Dirac fermion field, and the free field electron\nLagrangian yields the Dirac equation. The four components represent\ntwo degrees of freedom corresponding to the electron \nand two degrees\nof freedom corresponding to the positron. Feynman rules for quantum\nelectrodynamics are developed and the vector-like nature of the $e^+\ne^-$ coupling to photons leads to some important simplifications.\n\nThe theory of electroweak interactions involves chiral\ninteractions of fermions with gauge bosons. Left-handed and\nright-handed fermions transform differently under the electroweak\ngauge group, which may appear strange to students trained to think in\nterms of four-component Dirac fermions. Nevertheless, after electroweak\nsymmetry breaking, the mass-eigenstate fermion fields can be\nidentified. All massive fermion states are charged under U(1)$_{\\rm\n EM}$ and are thus represented by Dirac fermion fields. The\nneutrinos are massless, but only the left-handed neutrinos and\nright-handed antineutrinos are present in the theory. Thus, one can\nstill use four-component fermion fields (by applying the\nappropriate chiral projection operators on the neutrino fields). Hence, \nthe four-component techniques of quantum\nelectrodynamics are easily accommodated and Feynman rules for the\nfermion fields are obtained in a straightforward manner. \n \nHowever, the observation of\nneutrino mixing phenomena implies that neutrinos are massive, which\nrequires new physics beyond the Standard Model of the electroweak\ninteractions. Models of neutrino mass often include neutral\nself-conjugate fermion states with two degrees of freedom, called\nMajorana fermions. Such\nstates can be described using four-component fermion fields that are\nconstrained by an appropriate conjugation condition. However,\nthe resulting field theory description of systems of Majorana and\nDirac fermions is somewhat awkward. Moreover, the \nFeynman rules for interacting Majorana fermions require some care.\n\nReturning to first principles, one can ask how spin-$\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ fermions arise\nin quantum field theory. In Section~\\ref{sec:spin_half_rep}, we\nshall demonstrate that the fundamental building blocks employed in \nconstructing spin-$\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ quantum fields are\ntwo-component spinors corresponding to the two-dimensional representations of the\nLorentz group. \nA neutral Majorana fermion is then represented\nby a two-component fermion field.\nDirac fermions arise when one considers\ntheories of two mass-degenerate two-component fermions, which can\nbe combined to make a charged four-component Dirac fermion. This is\ncompletely analogous to the case of spin-0 bosons, in which a neutral\nboson is represented by a real scalar field and a charged boson is\nrepresented by a complex scalar field (whose real and imaginary parts\nconstitute two mass-degenerate real scalars).\n\nThe development of two-component spinor technology has a number of\nbenefits. First, it provides an elegant unified description of\nMajorana and Dirac fermions. Second, it is very convenient to employ\nthe two-component spinor formalism in theories of chiral interactions.\nFinally, it will prove especially useful in developing the formalism\nof supersymmetry, which is the main focus of these lectures.\n\nBecause most students see the four-component spinor formalism first\nand are therefore more familiar with it, we shall devote Section~\\ref{sec:24} to the translation between the two- and four-component formalisms. \nFinally, in Section~\\ref{sec:Feynman} we demonstrate how Feynman rules involving four-component\nfermion fields can be extended to incorporate Majorana fermions.\n\nThis section is based on a comprehensive review of Dreiner, Haber and\nMartin\\cite{Dreiner:2008tw}, where many references to the original\nliterature can be found.\n\n\n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Two-component spinor technology}\n\\label{sec:spin_half_rep}\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Orthochronous Lorentz transformations}\n\n\nQuantum spin-$\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ fields transform\nunder a two-dimensional irreducible representation of the Lorentz\ngroup. Thus, we first examine the properties that define a Lorentz transformation\\cite{sexl}.\nUnder an active\nLorentz transformation, $\\Lambda^\\mu{}_\\nu$, a four-vector $p^\\mu$\ntransforms as\n\\begin{equation}\np^{\\prime\\,\\mu}=\\Lambda^\\mu{}_\\nu p^\\nu\\,.\n\\end{equation} \nThe condition that $g_{\\mu\\nu}p^\\mu p^\\nu$ is invariant under\nLorentz transformations implies that\\footnote{In our conventions, the Minkowski metric tensor is\n$g_{\\mu\\nu}={\\rm diag}(1\\,,\\,-1\\,,\\,-1\\,,\\,-1)$.} \n\\begin{equation} \\label{lambdarelation}\n\\Lambda^\\mu{}_\\nu g_{\\mu\\rho}\\Lambda^\\rho{}_\\lambda=g_{\\nu\\lambda}.\n\\end{equation}\nThat is, $\\Lambda\\in$\\,O(3,1). \\Eq{lambdarelation} implies that $\\Lambda$ possesses the following two\nproperties: (i)~$\\rm{det}~\\Lambda=\\pm 1$ and (ii)~$|\\Lambda^0{}_0|\\geq\n1$. Thus, Lorentz transformations fall into four disconnected\nclasses denoted by a pair of signs, $\\left(\\rm{sgn}[\\rm{det}~\\Lambda]\\,,\\,\n\\rm{sgn}[\\Lambda^0{}_0]\\right)$. The proper\northochronous Lorentz transformations correspond to $(+,+)$ and are\ncontinuously connected to the identity.\n \n The most general proper orthochronous\nLorentz transformation, characterized by a\nrotation angle $\\theta$ about an axis $\\mathbold{\\widehat n}$\n($\\mathbold{\\vec\\theta}\\equiv\\theta \\mathbold{\\widehat n}$) and a\nboost vector $\\mathbold{\\vec \\zeta}\\equiv\n\\mathbold{\\hat v}\\tanh^{-1}\\beta$ (where $\\mathbold{\\hat{v}}\\equiv\n\\mathbold{\\vec{v}}\/|\\mathbold{\\vec{v}}|$ is the unit velocity vector and\n$\\beta\\equiv |\\mathbold{\\vec v}|\/c$),\\footnote{Henceforth, we shall\n work in particle physics\nunits where $\\hbar=c=1$.}\nis a $4\\times 4$\nmatrix given by:\n\\begin{equation} \\label{lambda44}\n\\Lambda=\\exp\\left(-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} i\\theta^{\\alpha\\beta}s_{\\alpha\\beta}\\right)\n=\\exp\\left(\n-i\\mathbold{{\\vec\\theta}\\cdot}\\boldsymbol{\\vec s}\n-i\\mathbold{{\\vec\\zeta}\\cdot}\\boldsymbol{\\vec k}\\right)\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\theta^{\\alpha\\beta}$ is antisymmetric, with\n$\\theta^i \\equiv \\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\epsilon^{ijk} \\theta_{jk}$,\n$\\zeta^i\\equiv\\theta^{i0}=-\\theta^{0i}$, and\n\\begin{equation} \\label{explicitsmunu}\n(s_{\\alpha\\beta})^\\mu{}_\\nu=i(g_\\alpha{}^\\mu\\,g_{\\beta\\nu}-g_\\beta{}^\\mu\n\\,g_{\\alpha\\nu})\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwith $s^i\\equiv\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\epsilon^{ijk}s_{jk}$ and $k^i\\equiv s^{0i}=-s^{i0}$.\nWe have employed a notation where the lower case Latin indices $i,j,k=1,2,3$ and $\\epsilon^{123}=+1$.\n\nNote that the $s^{\\mu\\nu}$ are antisymmetric $4\\times 4$ matrices, {\\it i.e.},\n$s^{\\mu\\nu}=-s^{\\nu\\mu}$, and satisfy the\ncommutation relations,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{eq:comm-rels}\n[s^{\\alpha\\beta},s^{\\rho\\sigma}] = i(g^{\\beta\\rho}\\,s^{\\alpha\\sigma} -\ng^{\\alpha\\rho}\\,s^{\\beta\\sigma} - g^{\\beta\\sigma}\\,s^{\\alpha\\rho} +\ng^{\\alpha\\sigma}\\,s^{\\beta\\rho} ).\n\\end{equation}\nIt follows from \\eqs{lambda44}{explicitsmunu} that an\ninfinitesimal orthochronous Lorentz transformation is\ngiven by\n\\begin{equation} \\label{inflambda4}\n\\Lambda^\\mu{}_\\nu\\simeq\\delta^\\mu{}_\\nu+\\theta^\\mu{}_\\nu\n\\simeq (\\mathds{1}_{4\\times 4}-i\\mathbold{{\\vec\\theta}\\cdot}\\boldsymbol{\\vec s}\n-i\\mathbold{{\\vec\\zeta}\\cdot}\\boldsymbol{\\vec k})^\\mu{}_\\nu\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\mathds{1}_{4\\times 4}$ is the $4\\times 4$ identity matrix, \nand we have used $\\theta^\\mu{}_\\nu=-\\theta_\\nu{}^\\mu$.\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Finite-dimensional Representations of the Lorentz Group}\n\n\nA generic spin-$s$ field $\\Phi$ transforms as\n\\begin{equation}\n\\Phi(x) \\rightarrow \\Phi'(x^{\\prime}) = M_R(\\Lambda)\\Phi(x)\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $M_R\\equiv\\exp\\bigl(-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} i \\theta_{\\mu\\nu}S^{\\mu\\nu}\\bigr)$ and\nthe $S_{\\mu\\nu}$ constitute finite-dimensional irreducible matrix\nrepresentations of the Lie algebra of the Lorentz group. The $S^{\\mu\\nu}$ satisfy \nthe same commutation relations as the $s^{\\mu\\nu}$ given in \\eq{eq:comm-rels}.\nIt is convenient to denote the six independent generators defined by the\n$S^{\\mu\\nu}$ as\n\\begin{equation} \\label{jkdef}\nS^i \\equiv\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} \\epsilon^{ijk} S_{jk}\\,,\\qquad\\qquad K^i \\equiv S^{0i}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $i,j,k=1,2,3$. The $S^i$ generate\nthree-dimensional rotations in space and the $K^i$ generate the\nLorentz boosts. It then follows that\n\\begin{equation}\nM_R\\equiv\\exp\\left(-i\\mathbold{{\\vec\\theta}\\!\\cdot\\!}\\boldsymbol{\\vec\nS} -i\\mathbold{{\\vec\\zeta}\\!\\cdot\\!}\\boldsymbol{\\vec K}\\right)\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nThe $S^i$ and $K^i$ satisfy the\ncommutation relations,\n\\begin{align}\n[S^i\\, , \\,S^j] &= \\epsilon^{ijk} S^k\\,,\\\\\n [S^i\\, , \\,K^j] &= \\epsilon^{ijk} K^k\\,,\\\\\n [K^i\\, , \\,K^j] &= - \\epsilon^{ijk} S^k\\,.\n\\end{align}\nWe define the following linear combinations of the generators,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\mathbold{\\vec S_+} \\equiv\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} (\\mathbold{\\vec S}+\ni\\mathbold{\\vec K})\\,,\\qquad\\quad\n\\mathbold{\\vec S_-} \\equiv\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\n(\\mathbold{\\vec S}- i\\mathbold{\\vec K}),\n\\end{equation}\nwhich satisfy the commutation relations, \n\\begin{align}\n[S_+^i\\,,\\,S_+^j] &= i\\epsilon^{ijk}S_+^k\\,, \\\\\n[S_-^i \\, , \\, S_-^j ] & = i \\epsilon^{ijk}S_-^k\\,, \\\\\n[S_{\\pm}^i\\,,\\,S_{\\mp}^j ] &= 0\\,,\n\\end{align}\ncorresponding to two independent (complexified) SU(2) Lie algebras.\nThus, the representations of the Lorentz algebra are characterized by $(s_1,s_2)$, where\nthe $s_i$ are half-integers.\nFor example, $(0,0)$ corresponds to a scalar field and\n$(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$ corresponds to a four-vector field.\n\n\\subsubsection{Two-component spinors}\n\nSpin-1\/2 fermion fields transform under the spinor representations, $(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)$ corresponding to $\\boldsymbol{\\vec{S}}_+=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\boldsymbol{\\vec\\sigma}$ and\n$\\boldsymbol{\\vec{S}}_-=0$,\n and $(0,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$ corresponding to $\\boldsymbol{\\vec{S}}_+=0$ and\n$\\boldsymbol{\\vec{S}}_-=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\boldsymbol{\\vec\\sigma}$. That is, the \nLorentz transformation matrices acting on spinor fields may be written in terms of the Pauli spin matrices $\\sigma^1$, $\\sigma^2$, and $\\sigma^3$ as follows,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{halfzero}\n\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\n(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}, 0): \\hspace{1.2cm} M=\\exp\\left(-\\nicefrac{i}{2} \\mathbold{\\vec\\theta\\!\\cdot\\!\\vec\\sigma}-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\mathbold{\\vec\\zeta\n\\!\\cdot\\!\\vec\\sigma}\\right),\n\\end{equation}\nwhich via a similarity transformation is equivalent to the matrix representation, $(M^{-1})^{{\\mathsf T}} =i\\sigma^2 M (i\\sigma^2)^{-1}$, and\n\\begin{equation} \\label{zerohalf}\n(0,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}): \\hspace{1cm} [M^{-1}]^\\dagger=\\exp\\left(-\\nicefrac{i}{2}\n\\mathbold{\\vec\\theta\\!\\cdot\\!\\vec\\sigma}\n+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\mathbold{\\vec\\zeta\\!\\cdot\\!\\vec\\sigma}\\right), \n\\end{equation}\nwhich via a similarity transformation is equivalent to the matrix representation, $M^*=i\\sigma^2 [M^{-1}]^\\dagger (i\\sigma^2)^{-1}$.\n\nThus, the Lorentz transformation law for two-component $(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)$ fields can be written in two equivalent ways, \n\\begin{equation}\n \\xi'_\\alpha=M_\\alpha{}^\\beta\\,\\xi_\\beta\\,,\\qquad\\quad\n\\xi^{\\prime\\,\\alpha}=[(M^{-1})^{{\\mathsf T}}]^\\alpha{}_\\beta\\,\\xi^\\beta\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\alpha,\\beta=1,2$.\nLikewise, the Lorentz transformation law for two-component $(0,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$ fields can be written in two equivalent ways, \n\\begin{equation}\n\\xi^{\\prime\\,\\dagger\\,\\dot\\alpha}=\n[(M^{-1})^\\dagger]^{\\dot\\alpha}{}_{\\dot\\beta}\\,\\xi^{\\dagger\\,\\dot\\beta}\n\\,,\\qquad\\quad \n\\xi^{\\prime\\,\\dagger}_{\\dot\\alpha}=\n[M^*]_{\\dot{\\alpha}}{}^{\\dot\\beta}\\xi^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nThe $(0,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$ fields are related to the $(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)$ fields by hermitian conjugation,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\xi^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\equiv(\\xi_\\alpha)^\\dagger\\,,\\qquad\\quad \\xi^{\\dagger\\,\\dot\\alpha}\\equiv(\\xi^\\alpha)^\\dagger\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nIt is conventional to employ undotted indices for the spinor\ncomponents of $(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)$ fields and dotted indices for the spinor components of $(0,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$ fields.\n\nAs noted below \\eqs{halfzero}{zerohalf}, respectively,\neach of the two equivalent representation matrices, $M$ and\n$(M^{-1})^{{\\mathsf T}}$ in the case of $(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)$, and $(M^{-1})^\\dagger$\nand $M^*$ in the case of $(0,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$,\nare related by a similarity transformation involving the antisymmetric matrices,\n\\begin{equation}\ni\\sigma^2=\\left(\\begin{matrix} \\phantom{-} 0&\\quad 1\\\\\n-1&\\quad\n0\\end{matrix}\\right)=\\epsilon^{\\alpha\\beta}=\\epsilon^{\\dot\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nand\n\\begin{equation}\n(i\\sigma^2)^{-1}=-i\\sigma^2=\\epsilon_{\\alpha\\beta}=\\epsilon_{\\dot\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhich define the epsilon symbols with undotted and dotted indices. Note that the epsilon symbols with raised and lowered\nindices differ by an overall sign. \nMoreover, they can be used to\nraise and lower the \nspinor indices,\n\n\\begin{equation} \\label{raiseindex}\n\\xi^\\alpha =\\epsilon^{\\alpha\\beta}\\,\\xi_\\beta\\,,\\qquad\n\\xi_\\alpha =\\epsilon_{\\alpha\\beta}\\,\\xi^\\beta,\\qquad\n\\xi^{\\dagger\\,\\dot\\alpha}\n=\\epsilon^{\\dot\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\\,\\xi^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\,,\\qquad\n\\xi^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\n=\\epsilon_{\\dot\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\\,\\xi^{\\dagger\\,\\dot\\beta}.\n\\end{equation}\n\n\nThe products of two epsilon symbols with undotted and with dotted indices,\nrespectively, satisfy,\n\\begin{align}\n&\\epsilon_{\\alpha\\beta} \\epsilon^{\\gamma\\delta} =\n-\\delta_\\alpha^\\gamma \\delta_\\beta^\\delta\n+\\delta_\\alpha^\\delta \\delta_\\beta^\\gamma\n,\\\\\n&\\epsilon_{\\dot{\\alpha}\\dot{\\beta}} \\epsilon^{\\dot{\\gamma}\\dot{\\delta}} =\n-\\delta_{\\dot{\\alpha}}^{\\dot{\\gamma}}\\delta_{\\dot{\\beta}}^{\\dot{\\delta}}\n+\\delta_{\\dot{\\alpha}}^{\\dot{\\delta}}\\delta_{\\dot{\\beta}}^{\\dot{\\gamma}}\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\delta_{\\dot\\alpha}^{\\dot\\beta}=\\delta_\\alpha^\\beta$\nand the two-index symmetric Kronecker delta symbol \nwith undotted indices is defined by\n$\\delta^1_1=\\delta^2_2=1$ and $\\delta_1^2=\\delta_2^1=0$.\nIn particular,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\epsilon_{\\alpha\\gamma}\\,\\epsilon^{\\gamma\\beta}=\\delta_\\alpha^\\beta\\,,\\qquad\\quad\n\\epsilon_{\\dot\\alpha\\dot\\gamma}\\,\\epsilon^{\\dot\\gamma\\dot\\beta}=\\delta_{\\dot\\alpha}^{\\dot\\beta}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\n\nFinally, we introduce the $\\sigma$-matrices:\n\\begin{align}\n\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}=(\\mathds{1}_{2\\times 2}\\,;\\,\n\\mathbold{\\vec\\sigma}) \\,,\\qquad\n\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\,\\dot\\alpha\\beta}=(\\mathds{1}_{2\\times 2}\\,;\\, \n-\\mathbold{\\vec\\sigma})\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\mathds{1}_{2\\times 2}$ is the $2\\times 2$ identity matrix. The spinor index\nstructure derives from the relations,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{MM}\n(M^\\dagger)^{\\dot\\alpha}{}_{\\dot\\beta}\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\dot\\beta\\gamma}\nM_\\gamma{}^\\delta=\\Lambda^\\mu{}_\\nu\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\nu\\,\\dot\\alpha\\delta}\\,,\\qquad\n(M^{-1})_\\alpha{}^\\beta\\sigma^\\mu_{\\beta\\dot\\gamma}[(M^{-1})^\\dagger]^{\\dot\\gamma}{}_{\\dot\\delta}=\\Lambda^\\mu{}_\\nu\\sigma^\\nu_{\\alpha\\dot\\delta}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nNote that the matrix $M$ and its inverse have the same spinor index\nstructure (and likewise for the matrix $M^\\dagger$ and its inverse).\n\nWe will sometimes find it useful to relate the $\\sigma^\\mu$ and $\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu$ matrices using the identities\n\\begin{equation}\n\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha{\\dot{\\alpha}}} = \\epsilon_{\\alpha\\beta}\n\\epsilon_{\\dot{\\alpha}\\dot{\\beta}} \\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\,\\dot{\\beta}\\beta}\n\\,, \\qquad\\quad \\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\,\\dot{\\alpha}\\alpha} =\n\\epsilon^{\\alpha\\beta} \\epsilon^{\\dot{\\alpha}\\dot{\\beta}}\n\\sigma^{\\mu}_{\\beta\\dot{\\beta}}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nThe significance of $\\sigma^\\mu$ is that Lorentz 4-vectors can be built\nfrom spinor bilinears. For example, $\\chi^\\alpha \\of{x} \\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha \\dot{\\beta}} \\xi^{\\dot{\\beta}}\\of{x} $ transforms as a Lorentz 4-vector,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\chi^{\\,\\prime\\,\\alpha}(x')\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\n\\xi^{\\prime\\,\\dagger\\,\\dot\\beta}(x')\n&=&\\chi^\\alpha(x)\n[M^{-1}\\sigma^\\mu(M^{-1})^\\dagger]_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\\xi^{\\dagger\\,\\dot\\beta}(x)\n \\\\\n&\n=&\\Lambda^\\mu{}_\\nu\\,\\chi(x)^\\alpha\\sigma^\\nu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\n\\xi^{\\dagger\\,\\dot\\beta}(x)\n\\,,\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nafter making use of \\eq{MM}. Spinor\nindices can be suppressed by adopting a summation\nconvention where we contract indices as follows:\n\\begin{equation} \\label{contract}\n{}^\\alpha{}_\\alpha\\qquad {\\rm and} \\qquad\n{}_{\\dot{\\alpha}}{}^{\\dot{\\alpha}}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nFor example,\n\\begin{Eqnarray} \\xi\\eta\n&\\equiv & \\xi^\\alpha\\eta_\\alpha ,\n\\\\\n\\xi^\\dagger \\eta^\\dagger &\\equiv & \\xi^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha} \\eta^{\\dagger\\,\\dot\n\\alpha} ,\n\\\\\n\\xi^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\eta &\\equiv & \\xi^\\dagger_{\\dot{\\alpha}}\n\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\dot{\\alpha}\\beta}\\eta_\\beta , \n\\\\\n\\xi\\sigma^\\mu \\eta^\\dagger &\\equiv & \\xi^{{\\alpha}} \\sigma^{\\mu}_{\\alpha\n\\dot \\beta} \\eta^{\\dagger\\,\\dot \\beta} .\n \\end{Eqnarray} \nIn particular, for\nanticommuting spinors,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\eta\\xi\\equiv\\eta^\\alpha\\xi_\\alpha&=&-\\xi_\\alpha\\eta^\\alpha=+\\xi^\\alpha\\eta_\\alpha=\\xi\\eta\\,.\\\\\n\\eta^\\dagger\\xi^\\dagger\\equiv \\eta^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}{\\xi^\\dagger}^{\\dot\\alpha}&=&-{\\xi^\\dagger}^{\\dot\\alpha} \\eta^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}=\\xi^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha} {\\eta^\\dagger}^{\\dot\\alpha}=\\xi^\\dagger\\eta^\\dagger\\,.\n\\end{Eqnarray}\n\nThe behavior of spinor products\nunder hermitian conjugation is noteworthy,\n\\begin{equation}\n(\\xi \\Sigma \\eta)^\\dagger = \\eta^\\dagger \\reversed{\\Sigma} \\xi^\\dagger\\,,\n\\quad (\\xi \\Sigma \\eta^\\dagger)^\\dagger = \\eta \\reversed{\\Sigma}\n\\xi^\\dagger\\,,\n\\quad (\\xi^\\dagger \\Sigma \\eta)^\\dagger = \\eta^\\dagger \\reversed{\\Sigma}\n\\xi\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere in each case $\\Sigma$ stands for any sequence of alternating\n$\\sigma$ and $\\overline{\\sigma}$ matrices, and $\\reversed{\\Sigma}$ is\nobtained by reversing the order of the $\\sigma$\nand $\\overline{\\sigma}$ matrices that appear in $\\Sigma$.\n\nFrom the sigma matrices, one can construct the\nantisymmetrized products,\n\\begin{align}\n(\\sigma^{\\mu\\nu})_\\alpha{}^\\beta\n&\\equiv \\tfrac14 i\\left(\\sigma^\\mu{}_{\\!\\!\\!\\!\\alpha\\dot{\\gamma}}\n\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\nu\\dot{\\gamma}\\beta}-\\sigma^\\nu{}_{\\!\\!\\!\\!\\alpha\\dot{\\gamma}}\n\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\dot{\\gamma}\\beta}\\right)\\,,\n\\\\\n(\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\nu})^{\\dot{\\alpha}}{}_{\\dot{\\beta}} &\\equiv\n\\tfrac14 i\\left(\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu{}^{\\dot{\\alpha}\\gamma}\n\\sigma^\\nu{}_{\\!\\!\\!\\!\\gamma\\dot{\\beta}}-\\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu{}^{\\dot{\\alpha}\\gamma}\n\\sigma^\\mu{}_{\\!\\!\\!\\!\\gamma\\dot{\\beta}}\\right)\\,. \n\\end{align}\n\nWith this notation, we may write the $(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)$ and $(0,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$ transformation\nmatrices, respectively, as\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\nM&=&\\exp\\left(-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} i\\theta^{\\mu\\nu}\\sigma_{\\mu\\nu}\\right)\\,,\n \\\\\n(M^{-1})^\\dagger &=&\n\\exp\\left(-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} i\\theta^{\\mu\\nu}\\overline{\\sigma}_{\\mu\\nu}\\right)\\,,\n\\end{Eqnarray} \nwhere the $\\theta^{\\mu\\nu}$ are defined below \\eq{lambda44}.\n\n\nConsider a pure boost of an on-shell two-component spinor from its rest frame to\nthe frame where $p^\\mu=(E_{\\boldsymbol{p}}\\,,\\,\\boldsymbol{\\vec\np})$, with $E_{\\boldsymbol{p}}=(|{\\mathbold{\\vec p}}|^2+m^2)^{1\/2}$.\nIn this case, setting $\\theta^{ij}=0$ (corresponding to no rotation),\nwe obtain,\n \\begin{Eqnarray}\nM&=&\\exp\\left(-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\mathbold{\\vec\\zeta\\!\\cdot\\!\\vec\\sigma}\\right)\n=\\sqrt{\\frac{p\\!\\cdot\\!\\sigma}{m}}=\\frac{(E_{\\boldsymbol{p}}+m)\\mathds{1}_{2\\times 2}\n-\\mathbold{\\vec\\sigma\\!\\cdot\\!\\vec\np}}{\\sqrt{2m(E_{\\boldsymbol{p}}+m)}}\n\\,,\\label{mboost}\n\\\\\n(M^{-1})^\\dagger&=&\\exp\\left(+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\mathbold{\\vec\\zeta\\!\\cdot\\!\\vec\\sigma}\\right)\n=\\sqrt{\\frac{p\\!\\cdot\\!\\overline{\\sigma}}{m}}=\\frac{(E_{\\boldsymbol{p}}+m) \\mathds{1}_{2\\times 2}\n+\\mathbold{\\vec\\sigma\\!\\cdot\\!\\vec\np}}{\\sqrt{2m(E_{\\boldsymbol{p}}+m)}} \\,.\\label{mstarboost}\n \\end{Eqnarray} \nThe matrix square roots, $\\sqrt{p\\!\\cdot\\!\\sigma}$ and\n$\\sqrt{p\\!\\cdot\\!\\overline{\\sigma}}$, appearing in \\eqs{mboost}{mstarboost} are defined to be the unique non-negative\ndefinite hermitian matrices\nwhose squares are equal\nto the non-negative definite hermitian matrices\n${\\color{Red}\\ominus} p\\!\\cdot\\!\\sigma$ and ${\\color{Red}\\ominus} p\\!\\cdot\\!\\overline{\\sigma}$,\nrespectively.\\footnote{Note that ${\\color{Red}\\ominus} p\\!\\cdot\\!\\sigma$\nand ${\\color{Red}\\ominus} p\\!\\cdot\\!\\overline{\\sigma}$ are non-negative\nmatrices due to the implicit mass-shell condition\nsatisfied by $p^\\mu$.}\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Useful identities}\n\n\nThe following identities can be used to systematically simplify\nexpressions involving products of $\\sigma$ and $\\overline{\\sigma}$\nmatrices,\n\\begin{align}\n& \\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot{\\alpha}}\n\\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu^{\\dot{\\beta}\\beta} = {\\color{Red}\\ominus} 2 \\delta_{\\alpha}^{\\beta}\n\\delta^{\\dot{\\beta}}_{\\dot{\\alpha}}, \\label{sigid1}\n\\\\\n& \\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot{\\alpha}} \\sigma_{\\mu\\beta\\dot{\\beta}} =\n{\\color{Red}\\ominus} 2 \\epsilon_{\\alpha\\beta}\n\\epsilon_{\\dot{\\alpha}\\dot{\\beta}}\\,, \\label{sigid2} \\\\\n&\n\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\dot{\\alpha}\\alpha}\n\\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu^{\\dot{\\beta}\\beta} = {\\color{Red}\\ominus} 2 \\epsilon^{\\alpha\\beta}\n\\epsilon^{\\dot{\\alpha}\\dot{\\beta}}\\,, {}\\label{sigid3}\n\\\\\n& {[\\sigma^\\mu\\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu + \\sigma^\\nu \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\n]_\\alpha}^\\beta = {\\color{Red}\\ominus} 2g^{\\mu\\nu}\n\\delta_{\\alpha}^{\\beta}\\,, {}\\label{sigid4}\n\\\\\n&[\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\sigma^\\nu + \\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu \\sigma^\\mu\n]^{\\dot{\\alpha}}{}_{\\dot{\\beta}} = {\\color{Red}\\ominus} 2g^{\\mu\\nu}\n\\delta^{\\dot{\\alpha}}_{\\dot{\\beta}}\\,, {}\\label{sigid5}\n\\\\\n& \\sigma^\\mu \\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu \\sigma^\\rho = {\\color{Red}\\ominus} g^{\\mu\\nu}\n\\sigma^\\rho \\oplus g^{\\mu\\rho} \\sigma^\\nu \\ominus\ng^{\\nu\\rho} \\sigma^\\mu \\ominus i \\epsilon^{\\mu\\nu\\rho\\kappa}\n\\sigma_\\kappa\\,, {}\\label{sigsigsig1}\n\\\\\n& \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu \\sigma^\\nu \\overline{\\sigma}^\\rho = {\\color{Red}\\ominus} g^{\\mu\\nu}\n\\overline{\\sigma}^\\rho \\oplus g^{\\mu\\rho} \\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu \\ominus\ng^{\\nu\\rho} \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu \\oplus i\n\\epsilon^{\\mu\\nu\\rho\\kappa} \\overline{\\sigma}_\\kappa\\,,{} \\label{sigsigsig2}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\epsilon^{0123}=-\\epsilon_{0123}=+1$ in our conventions.\nThe traces of alternating products of $\\sigma$ and $\\overline{\\sigma}$\nmatrices are given by,\n\\begin{align}\n&{\\rm Tr}[\\sigma^\\mu \\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu ] = {\\rm Tr}[\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\n\\sigma^\\nu ] = {\\color{Red}\\ominus} 2 g^{\\mu\\nu} \\,, {}\n\\\\\n&{\\rm Tr}[\\sigma^\\mu \\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu \\sigma^\\rho \\overline{\\sigma}^\\kappa ] =\n2 \\left ( g^{\\mu\\nu} g^{\\rho\\kappa} - g^{\\mu\\rho}\ng^{\\nu\\kappa} + g^{\\mu\\kappa} g^{\\nu\\rho} + i\n\\epsilon^{\\mu\\nu\\rho\\kappa} \\right )\\,, \\qquad\\phantom{xx} {}\n\\\\\n&{\\rm Tr}[\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu \\sigma^\\nu \\overline{\\sigma}^\\rho \\sigma^\\kappa ] =\n2 \\left ( g^{\\mu\\nu} g^{\\rho\\kappa} - g^{\\mu\\rho}\ng^{\\nu\\kappa} + g^{\\mu\\kappa} g^{\\nu\\rho} - i\n\\epsilon^{\\mu\\nu\\rho\\kappa} \\right )\\,. {}\n\\end{align}\nTraces involving\nan odd number of $\\sigma$ and $\\overline{\\sigma}$ matrices cannot arise,\nsince there is no way to connect the spinor indices consistently.\nAdditional identities involving $\\sigma^{\\mu\\nu}$ and\n$\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\nu}$ can be found in Ref.~\\cite{Dreiner:2008tw}. \n\nFinally, we examine some useful identities involving bilinear spinor\nquantities. Although the two-component spinor fields appearing in\nthese lectures are anticommuting, one also may encounter commuting\ntwo-component spinor wave functions. Thus, it is convenient to denote\nan arbitrary two-component spinor by $z_i$, and a sign factor,\n$(-1)^A=+1 [-1]$, for commuting [anticommuting] spinors, respectively.\nThen, the following\nidentities hold:\n\\begin{align}\n&z_1 z_2 = -(-1)^A z_2 z_1 {}\n\\\\\n&z_1^\\dagger z_2^\\dagger = -(-1)^A z_2^\\dagger z_1^\\dagger {}\n\\\\\n&z_1 \\sigma^\\mu z_2^\\dagger = (-1)^A z_2^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu z_1 {} \\label{eq:sigmucom} \\\\\n&z_1 \\sigma^\\mu \\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu z_2 = -(-1)^A z_2 \\sigma^\\nu\n\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu z_1\n {}\\\\\n&z_1^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu \\sigma^\\nu z_2^\\dagger = -(-1)^A z_2^\\dagger\n\\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu \\sigma^\\mu z_1^\\dagger\n{}\\\\\n&z_1^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu \\sigma^\\rho \\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu z_2=(-1)^A z_2\n\\sigma^\\nu \\overline{\\sigma}^\\rho \\sigma^\\mu z_1^\\dagger\\,.{}\n\\end{align}\n\nIn many cases, it is convenient to rewrite a product of two bilinear\nspinor quantities in terms of products in which \nthe individual spinors appear in a different order. Below, we provide five different Fierz\nidentities, which are valid for both commuting and anticommuting spinors,\n\\begin{align}\n(z_1 z_2)(z_3 z_4) &= -(z_1 z_3) (z_4 z_2) - (z_1 z_4)(z_2 z_3)\\,, {}\n\\\\\n(z_1^\\dagger z_2^\\dagger)(z_3^\\dagger z_4^\\dagger) &= \n- (z_1^\\dagger z_3^\\dagger)\n(z_4^\\dagger z_2^\\dagger) - (z^\\dagger_1 z^\\dagger_4) \n(z_2^\\dagger z^\\dagger_3)\\,, {}\n\\\\ (z_1 \\sigma^\\mu z_2^\\dagger)(z_3^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu z_4) &= {\\color{Red}\\oplus}\n2 (z_1 z_4) (z_2^\\dagger z^\\dagger_3)\\,, {}\n\\\\\n (z_1^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu z_2)(z^\\dagger_3 \\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu z_4) &= {\\color{Red}\\ominus}\n\\phantom{-} 2 (z_1^\\dagger z^\\dagger_3) (z_4 z_2)\\,, {}\n\\\\\n (z_1 \\sigma^\\mu z^\\dagger_2)(z_3 \\sigma_\\mu z^\\dagger_4) &= {\\color{Red}\\ominus} \\phantom{-} 2\n(z_1 z_3) (z^\\dagger_4 z^\\dagger_2)\\,.{}\n\\end{align}\nAn exhaustive \nlist of Fierz identities \ncan be found in Appendix B of Ref.\\cite{Dreiner:2008tw}. \n\n\\subsubsection{Free field theories of two-component fermions}\nThe $(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)$ spinor field $\\xi_\\alpha(x)$ describes a neutral\n{{Majorana fermion}}. The free-field Lagrangian is:\n\\begin{equation}\n\\mathscr{L}= {\\color{Red}\\ominus} i\\xi^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\xi - \\ifmath{\\tfrac12} m\n(\\xi \\xi + \\xi^\\dagger \\xi^\\dagger )\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhich is hermitian up to a total divergence since we can rewrite the above Lagrangian as\n\\begin{equation}\n\\mathscr{L}= \\ifmath{\\tfrac12} i \\xi^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\!\\!\\stackrel{\\leftrightarrow}{\\partial}_{\\!\\mu}\\!\\xi - \\ifmath{\\tfrac12} m\n(\\xi \\xi + \\xi^\\dagger \\xi^\\dagger )+\\text{total divergence}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $ \\xi^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\!\\!\\stackrel{\\leftrightarrow}{\\partial}_{\\!\\mu}\\!\\xi \\equiv\n\\xi^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu(\\partial_\\mu\\xi) - (\\partial_\\mu\\xi)^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\,\\xi$. \n\nGeneralizing to a multiplet of two-component fermion fields,\n$\\hat{\\xi}_{\\alpha i}(x)$, labeled by flavor index $i$, the free Lagrangian is\n\\begin{equation}\n\\mathscr{L}= {\\color{Red}\\ominus} i{\\hat\\xi}^{\\dagger\\,i}\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\hat\\xi_i\n- \\ifmath{\\tfrac12} M^{ij}\\hat\\xi_i\\hat\\xi_j\n- \\ifmath{\\tfrac12} M_{ij}{\\hat\\xi}^{\\dagger\\,i}{\\hat\\xi}^{\\dagger\\,j}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere hermiticity implies that $M_{ij}\\equiv (M^{ij})^*$ is a complex symmetric\nmatrix.\nTo identify the physical fermion fields, we express the so-called \\textit{interaction eigenstate fields}, \n$\\hat\\xi_{\\alpha i}(x)$, in terms of \\textit{mass-eigenstate fields}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\xi(x)=\\Omega^{-1}\\hat\\xi(x),\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\Omega$ is unitary and chosen such that\n\\begin{equation}\n\\Omega^{{\\mathsf T}} M\\, \\Omega = \\boldsymbol{m} = {\\rm diag}(m_1,m_2,\\ldots),\n\\end{equation}\nwhere the $m_i$ are non-negative real numbers.\nIn linear algebra, this is called the\n{\\textit{Takagi diagonalization}} of a complex symmetric matrix\n$M$\\cite{takagi,horn}.\\footnote{Subsequently, it was recognized in\nRefs.\\cite{horn2,horn3} that the Takagi diagonalization was first\nestablished for nonsingular complex symmetric matrices by Autonne\n\\cite{autonne}.}\nTo compute the values of the diagonal elements of $\\boldsymbol{m}$, we note\nthat\n\\begin{equation}\n\\Omega^{{\\mathsf T}} MM^\\dagger \\Omega^\\ast= \\boldsymbol{m}^2 .\n\\end{equation}\nSince $MM^\\dagger$ is hermitian, it can be diagonalized by a unitary\nmatrix. Thus, the $m_i$ of the Takagi diagonalization are\nthe non-negative square-roots of the eigenvalues of $MM^\\dagger$.\nIn terms of the mass eigenstate fields,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\mathscr{L}= {\\color{Red}\\ominus}\ni\\xi^{\\dagger\\,i}\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\xi_i- \\ifmath{\\tfrac12} m_{i}(\\xi_i\\xi_i+\n\\xi^{\\dagger\\,i}\\xi^{\\dagger\\,i})\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\\clearpage\n\n\\begin{example}[The Seesaw Mechanism\\cite{seesaw1,seesaw2,seesaw3,seesaw4,seesaw5}]\n\nThe~seesaw~Lagrangian for the two-component fermions $\\psi_1$ and $\\psi_2$ is\n\\begin{equation}\n\\mathscr{L}=i\\left(\\psi^{\\dagger\\,1}\\,\\overline\\sigma^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\psi_1+\n\\psi^{\\dagger\\,2}\\,\\overline\\sigma^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\psi_2\\right)-M^{ij}\\psi_i\\psi_j\n-M_{ij}\\psi^{\\dagger\\,i}\\,\\psi^{\\dagger\\,j} \\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere\n\\begin{equation}\nM^{ij}={\\left(\\begin{array}{cc} 0 &\\,\\,\\, m_D\\\\ m_D &\\,\\,\\,\nM\\end{array}\\right)}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nand (without loss of generality) $m_D$ and $M$ are real and\npositive. The Takagi diagonalization of this matrix is\n\\begin{equation}\n\\Omega^T M\n\\Omega=M_D,\\label{takagidef}\n\\end{equation}\n where\n\\begin{align}\n\\Omega=\\left(\\begin{array}{cc} \\phantom{-} i\\cos\\theta &\\quad \\sin\\theta \\\\\n-i\\sin\\theta &\\quad \\cos\\theta\\end{array}\\right)\\,,\\qquad\\quad\nM_D= \\left(\\begin{array}{cc} m_- &\\quad 0\\\\ 0 &\\quad m_+ \\end{array}\\right) \\,,\n\\end{align}\nwith\n\\begin{equation}\nm_\\pm=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\left[\\sqrt{M^2+4m_D^2}\\pm M\\right]\n\\end{equation}\nand\n\\begin{equation}\n\\sin 2\\theta=\\frac{2m_D}{\\sqrt{M^2+4m_D^2}}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nIf $M\\gg m_D$, then the corresponding fermion masses are\n$m_-\\simeq m_D^2\/M$ and $m_+\\simeq M$, with $\\sin\\theta\\simeq\nm_D\/M$. The mass eigenstates, $\\chi_i$ are given by\n$\\psi_i=\\Omega_i{}^j\\chi_j$; to leading order in $m_d\/M$,\n\\begin{align}\ni\\chi\\ls{1} \\simeq \\psi_1-\\frac{m_D}{M}\\psi_2\\,,\\qquad\\quad\n\\chi\\ls{2} \\simeq \\psi_2+\\frac{m_D}{M}\\psi_1\\,.\n\\end{align}\nIndeed, one can check that: \n\\begin{equation}\n\\begin{split}\n \\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\nm_D(\\psi_1\\psi_2+\\psi_2\\psi_1 )+\\tfrac12 M\\psi_2 & \\psi_2 +{\\rm\nh.c.} \\\\\n& \\simeq\\frac12\\left[\\frac{m_D^2}{M}\\chi\\ls{1}\\chi\\ls{1}+\nM\\chi\\ls{2}\\chi\\ls{2}+{\\rm h.c.}\\right]\\,,\n\\end{split}\n\\end{equation}\n which corresponds to a theory\nof two Majorana fermions---one very light and one very heavy\n({\\textit{the seesaw}}).\n\\end{example}\n\nIn any theory containing a multiplet of fields, one can check for the existence of global symmetries.\nThe simplest case is a theory of a pair of two-component $(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)$ fermion fields $\\chi$ and $\\eta$, with\nthe free-field Lagrangian,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{DiracLag2}\n\\mathscr{L}= {\\color{Red}\\ominus} i\\chi^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\chi \\ominus\n i\\eta^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\eta-m(\\chi\\eta+\n\\chi^\\dagger\\eta^\\dagger)\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nThe Lagrangian given in \\eq{DiracLag2} possesses a U(1) global symmetry, $\\chi\\to e^{i\\theta}\\chi$ and $\\eta\\to e^{-i\\theta}\\eta$.\nThat is, $\\chi$ and $\\eta$ are oppositely charged. \n The corresponding mass matrix is\n\\begin{equation}\nM = \\left(\\begin{matrix} 0&\\quad m\\\\ m&\\quad 0\n\\end{matrix}\\right).\n\\end{equation}\n Performing the Takagi diagonalization yields two degenerate two-component fermions of mass $m$. However, the corresponding mass-eigenstates are not eigenstates of charge.\\footnote{This is the analog of a free field theory of a complex scalar boson\n$\\Phi$ with a mass term, $\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm mass}=-m^2|\\Phi|^2$. Writing\n$\\Phi=(\\phi_1+i\\phi_2)\/\\sqrt{2}$, we can write Lagrangian in terms of $\\phi_1$ and $\\phi_2$ with a diagonal mass\nterm. But, $\\phi_1$ and $\\phi_2$ do not correspond to states of definite charge.}\nTogether, $\\chi$ and $\\eta^\\dagger$ constitute a single (four-component) {\\textit{Dirac fermion}}.\n\nMore generally, consider a collection of\ncharged Dirac fermions represented by\npairs of two-component interaction eigenstate fields\n$\\hat\\chi_{\\alpha i}(x)$, $\\hat\\eta_{\\alpha }^i(x)$, with\n\\begin{equation}\n\\mathscr{L}=\n i{\\hat\\chi}^{\\dagger i}\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\hat\\chi_i\n+\n i{\\hat\\eta}^\\dagger_{i}\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\hat\\eta^i\n-M^i{}_j \\hat\\chi_i\\hat\\eta^j\n-M_i{}^j {\\hat\\chi}^{\\dagger i}\\hat\\eta^\\dagger_{ j}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $M$ is a complex matrix with matrix elements denoted by\n$M^i{}_j$ (note the placement of the flavor indices $i$ and $j$), and $M_i{}^j\\equiv (M^i{}_j)^*$.\n\nWe denote the mass eigenstate fields by $\\chi_i$ and\n$\\eta^i$ and the unitary matrices $L$ and~$R$, such that\n$\\hat\\chi_i=L_i{}^k\\chi_k$ and \n$\\hat\\eta^i=R^i{}_k\\eta^k$,\nand \n\\begin{equation} \\label{LTMR}\nL^{{\\mathsf T}} M R= {\\boldsymbol{m}}={\\rm diag}(m_1,m_2,\\ldots),\n\\end{equation}\nwhere the $m_i$ are non-negative real numbers.\nThis is the singular value\ndecomposition of a complex matrix (see, e.g., Refs.\\cite{horn2,horn3}). Noting that\n\\begin{equation}\nR^\\dagger(M^\\dagger M) R \\,=\\, {\\boldsymbol{m}}^2\\,,\\label{svd}\n\\end{equation}\nthe diagonal elements of $\\boldsymbol{m}$ are\nthe non-negative square roots of the\ncorresponding eigenvalues of $M^\\dagger M$.\nIn terms of the\nmass eigenstate fields,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{lagDiracdiag}\n\\mathscr{L}= i{\\chi}^{\\dagger i}\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\chi_i+\n i{\\eta}^\\dagger_i \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu \\partial_\\mu\\eta^i\n- m_i(\\chi_i\\eta^i + \\chi^{\\dagger i} \\eta^\\dagger_i)\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\n\\subsubsection{Fermion--scalar interactions}\n\nThe most general set of interactions\nwith the scalars of the theory $\\hat\\phi_I$\nare then given by:\n\\begin{equation}\n\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm int} = -\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} \\hat Y^{Ijk} \\hat\\phi_I\\hat\\psi_j\\hat\\psi_k\n-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} \\hat Y_{Ijk}\\hat\\phi^{I} {\\hat\\psi}^{\\dagger\\,j} {\\hat\\psi}^{\\dagger\\,k}\n\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\hat Y_{Ijk}\\equiv (\\hat Y^{Ijk})^*$ and $\\hat\\phi^I\\equiv (\\hat\\phi_I)^*$.\n The flavor index $I$ runs over a collection of\nreal scalar fields $\\hat\\varphi_i$ and pairs of complex scalar fields\n$\\hat\\Phi_j$ and $\\hat\\Phi^j\\equiv(\\hat\\Phi_j)^*$\n(where a complex field and its\nconjugate are counted separately).\nThe Yukawa\ncouplings $\\hat Y^{Ijk}$ are symmetric under interchange of $j$ and\n$k$.\n\nThe mass-eigenstate\nbasis $\\psi$ is related to the interaction-eigenstate basis $\\hat \\psi$ by\na unitary transformation,\n\\begin{align}\n\\hat \\psi \\equiv \\begin{pmatrix}\\hat\\xi \\\\ \\hat\\chi \\\\ \\hat\\eta\n\\end{pmatrix}= U \\psi\n\\equiv \\begin{pmatrix}\\Omega &\\quad 0& \\quad0 \\\\\n 0 & \\quad L &\\quad 0 \\\\\n 0 & \\quad 0 &\\quad R\\end{pmatrix}\n\\begin{pmatrix}\\xi \\\\ \\chi \\\\ \\eta\\end{pmatrix} \\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\Omega$, $L$, and $R$ are constructed as described previously.\nLikewise a unitary transformation yields the scalar mass-eigenstates via $\\hat\\phi=V\\phi$.\nThus, in terms of mass-eigenstate fields:\n\\begin{equation}\n\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm int} = -\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} Y^{Ijk} \\phi_I\\psi_j\\psi_k\n-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} Y_{Ijk} \\phi^{I} {\\psi}^{\\dagger\\,j} {\\psi}^{\\dagger\\,k}\n\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere\n$Y^{Ijk}=V_J{}^I U_m{}^j U_n{}^k \\hat Y^{Jmn}$.\n\n\\subsubsection{Fermion--gauge boson interactions}\n\nIn the gauge-interaction basis for the\ntwo-component fermions the corresponding interaction\nLagrangian is given by\n\\begin{equation} \\label{eq:lintG}\n\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm int} =\n- g_a A_a^{\\mu} {\\hat\\psi}^{\\dagger\\,i}\\,\n\\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu ({\\boldsymbol T}^a)_i{}^j \\hat\\psi_j \\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere the index $a$ labels the (real or complex) vector bosons\n$A_a^\\mu$ and is summed over.\nIf the gauge symmetry is unbroken, then the index $a$ runs over the\nadjoint representation of the gauge group, and the $({\\boldsymbol T}^a)_i{}^j$\nare hermitian representation matrices\\footnote{For a $U(1)$ gauge\ngroup, the $\\mathbold{T}^a$ are replaced by real numbers\ncorresponding to the U(1) charges of the $(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)$\nfermions.}\nof the gauge group acting on the\nfermions. There is a separate coupling\n$g_a$ for each simple group or U(1) factor of the\ngauge group G.\n\n\nIn the case of spontaneously broken gauge theories, one must\ndiagonalize the vector boson squared-mass matrix. The form of\n\\eq{eq:lintG} still applies where $A_\\mu^a$ are gauge boson fields of\ndefinite mass, although in this case for a fixed value of $a$, the\nproduct $g_a{\\boldsymbol T}^a$ is\nsome linear combination of the original $g_a {\\boldsymbol T}^a$ of the\nunbroken theory.\nThat is, the hermitian matrix gauge field $(A_\\mu)_i{}^j\\equiv\nA_\\mu^a (\\boldsymbol{T^a})_i{}^j$ appearing in \\eq{eq:lintG} can always\nbe re-expressed in terms of the\n\\textit{physical} mass eigenstate gauge boson fields.\nIf an unbroken U(1)\nsymmetry exists, then the physical gauge bosons will also\nbe eigenstates of the\nconserved U(1)-charge.\\footnote{\\label{vectormass}\nIn terms of the physical gauge boson fields, $A_\\mu^a\\boldsymbol{T^a}$\nconsists of a sum over real neutral gauge fields\nmultiplied by hermitian generators, and\ncomplex charged gauge fields\nmultiplied by non-hermitian generators.\nFor example, in the electroweak Standard\nModel, ${\\rm G}={\\rm SU}(2)\\times$U(1) with gauge bosons and\ngenerators $W_\\mu^a$ and ${\\boldsymbol T}^a=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\tau^a$ for SU(2),\nand $B_\\mu$ and $\\boldsymbol{Y}$ for U(1),\nwhere the $\\tau^a$ are the usual Pauli matrices.\nAfter diagonalizing the gauge boson squared-mass matrix,\n$$\ngW_\\mu^a \\boldsymbol{T^a}+ g' B_\\mu \\boldsymbol{Y}=\n\\frac{g}{\\sqrt{2}}(W_\\mu^+\\boldsymbol{T^+}\n+W_\\mu^-\\boldsymbol{T^-})+\n\\frac{g}{\\cos\\theta_W}\\left(\\boldsymbol{T^3}-\\boldsymbol{Q}\n\\sin^2\\theta_W\\right)Z_\\mu+e\\boldsymbol{Q}A_\\mu\\,,\n$$\nwhere\n$\\boldsymbol{Q}=\\boldsymbol{T^3}+\\boldsymbol{Y}$ is the generator\nof the unbroken U(1)$_{\\rm EM}$,\n$\\boldsymbol{T^\\pm}\\equiv \\boldsymbol{T^1}\\pm i\\boldsymbol{T^2}$,\nand $e=g\\sin\\theta_W=g'\\cos\\theta_W$.\nThe massive gauge boson charge-eigenstate fields\nof the broken theory\nconsist of a charged massive gauge boson pair,\n$W^\\pm\\equiv (W^1\\mp iW^2)\/\\sqrt{2}$, a neutral massive gauge boson,\n$Z\\equiv W^3\\cos\\theta_W-B\\sin\\theta_W$, and the massless photon,\n$A\\equiv W^3\\sin\\theta_W+B\\cos\\theta_W$.}\n\nIn terms of mass-eigenstate fermion fields,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm int} =\n- A_a^{\\mu} \\psi^{\\dagger\\,i}\\,\n\\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu (G^a)_i{}^j \\psi_j \\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $G^a= g_a U^\\dagger {\\boldsymbol{T}}^a U$\n(no sum over~$a$).\n\nThe case of gauge interactions\nof charged Dirac fermions can be treated as follows. Consider pairs of $(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)$\ninteraction-eigenstate fermions\n$\\hat\\chi_i$ and $\\hat\\eta^i$ that transform as conjugate representations\nof the gauge group (hence the difference in the flavor index heights).\nThe Lagrangian for the gauge interactions\nof Dirac fermions can be written in the form:\n\\begin{equation}\n\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm int} =\n- g_a A_a^{\\mu} \\hat\\chi^{\\dagger\\,i}\\, \\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu\n({\\boldsymbol T}^a)_i{}^j \\hat\\chi_j\n+ g_a A_a^{\\mu} \\hat\\eta^\\dagger_{\\,i}\\, \\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu\n({\\boldsymbol T}^a)_j{}^i \\hat\\eta^j \\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere the $A_\\mu^a$ are gauge boson mass-eigenstate fields.\nHere we have used the fact that if $({\\boldsymbol T}^a)_i{}^j$ are the\nrepresentation matrices for the $\\hat\\chi_i$, then the $\\hat\\eta^i$\ntransform in the complex conjugate representation with generator\nmatrices $-({\\boldsymbol T}^a)^*\n= -({\\boldsymbol T}^a)^T$.\nIn terms of mass-eigenstate fermion fields,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm int} =\n- A_a^{\\mu}\\left[ {\\chi}^{\\dagger\\,i}\\, \\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu\n(G_L^a)_i{}^j \\chi_j\n- {\\eta}^\\dagger_{\\,i}\\, \\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu\n(G_R^a)_j{}^i \\eta^j\\right] \\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere\n$G_L^a=g_a L^\\dagger {\\boldsymbol{T}}^a L$ and\n$G_R^a=g_a R^\\dagger {\\boldsymbol{T}}^a R$ (no sum over~$a$).\n\n\\subsection[Correspondence between the\ntwo- and four-component spinor notations]{Correspondence between the\ntwo-component and four-component spinor notations}\n\\label{sec:24}\n\nMost pedagogical treatments of calculations in particle physics\nemploy four-component Dirac spinor notation, which combines distinct irreducible\nrepresentations of the Lorentz symmetry algebra. Parity-conserving theories such as QED and\nQCD and their Feynman rules are especially well-suited to four-component\nspinor notation. In light of the widespread familiarity with four-component spinor\ntechniques, we provide in this section a translation between \ntwo-component and four-component spinor notation. \n\n\n\\subsubsection{From two-component to four-component spinor notation}\nThe correspondence between the two-component and four-component\nspinor language is most easily exhibited\nin the basis in which $\\gamma_5$ is diagonal (this is called the {\\it\nchiral} representation).\nEmploying 2$\\times$2 matrix blocks,\nthe gamma matrices are given by:\n\\begin{align}\n\\gamma^\\mu = \\begin{pmatrix} 0 & \\quad \\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha{\\dot{\\beta}}}\\\\\n\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu{\\dot{\\alpha}}\\beta} &\\quad 0\\end{pmatrix}\n\\,,\\quad\n\\gamma_5 \\equiv i\\gamma^0\\gamma^1\\gamma^2\\gamma^3=\\begin{pmatrix}\n-\\delta_\\alpha{}^\\beta & \\quad 0\\\\ 0 &\\quad \\delta^{\\dot{\\alpha}}{}_{\\dot{\\beta}}\n\\end{pmatrix}\n\\,.\n\\end{align}\nThe chiral projections operators are\n\\begin{align}\nP_L\\equiv \\ifmath{\\tfrac12}(1-\\gamma_5)\\,, \\label{eq:projL} \\\\\nP_R\\equiv \\ifmath{\\tfrac12}(1+\\gamma_5)\\,. \\label{eq:projR}\n\\end{align}\nIn addition, we identify the generators of the Lorentz group\nin the reducible $(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)\\oplus (0,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$ representation\\footnote{In most textbooks,\n$\\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}$ is called $\\sigma^{\\mu\\nu}$. Here, we use the\nformer symbol so that there is no confusion with the two-component\ndefinition of $\\sigma^{\\mu\\nu}$.}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}\\equiv\\frac{i}{4}[\\gamma^\\mu,\\gamma^\\nu]=\n\\begin{pmatrix} \\sigma^{\\mu\\nu}{}_\\alpha{}^\\beta & \\quad 0\\\\ \n0 & \\quad\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\nu}{}^{\\dot{\\alpha}}{}_{\\dot{\\beta}}\\end{pmatrix}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}$ satisfies the duality relation,\n$\\gamma\\ls{5}\\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} i \\epsilon^{\\mu\\nu\\rho\\tau}\\Sigma_{\\rho\\tau}$.\n\n\n\nA four-component Dirac spinor field, $\\Psi(x)$, is made up of two\nmass-degenerate two-component spinor fields, $\\chi_\\alpha(x)$ and\n$\\eta_\\alpha(x)$ as follows:\n\\begin{equation} \\label{diracspinor}\n\\Psi(x)\\equiv\\begin{pmatrix} \\chi_\\alpha(x)\n\\\\[4pt] \\eta^{\\dagger\\,\\dot{\\alpha}}(x)\\end{pmatrix}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nNote that $P_L$ and $P_R$ project out the upper and lower components,\nrespectively.\nThe Dirac conjugate field \n$\\overline{\\Psi}$ and the charge conjugate field $\\Psi^c$ are\ndefined by\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\overline{\\Psi}(x)&\\equiv&\\Psi^\\dagger A =\n\\bigl(\\eta^\\alpha(x),\\chi^\\dagger_{\\dot{\\alpha}}(x)\\bigr)\\,,{} \\label{psibar} \\\\[6pt]\n\\Psi^c(x)&\\equiv&C\\overline{\\Psi}^{{\\mathsf T}}(x)=\n\\begin{pmatrix} \\eta_\\alpha(x) \\\\[4pt] \\chi^{\\dagger\\,\\dot{\\alpha}}(x)\n\\end{pmatrix}\\,, {}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nwhere the Dirac conjugation matrix $A$ and the charge conjugation\nmatrix $C$ satisfy\n\\begin{equation}\nA\\gamma^\\mu A^{-1}={\\gamma^\\mu}^\\dagger\\,,\\qquad\\qquad\\qquad C^{-1}\n\\gamma^\\mu C=-{\\gamma^\\mu}^{{\\mathsf T}}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nIt is conventional to impose two additional conditions:\n\\begin{equation} \\label{extraconditions}\n\\Psi=A^{-1}\\overline{\\Psi}^\\dagger\\,, \\qquad\\qquad (\\Psi^c)^c=\\Psi\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nThe first of these conditions together with \\eq{psibar} is equivalent\nto the statement that $\\overline{\\Psi}\\Psi$ is hermitian.\nThe second condition corresponds to the statement\nthat the (discrete)\ncharge conjugation transformation applied twice is equal to the\nidentity operator. It then follows that\n\\begin{equation} \\label{AC}\nA^\\dagger=A\\,,\\qquad\\quad C^{{\\mathsf T}}=-C\\,,\\qquad\\quad (AC)^{-1}=(AC)^*\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nIn the chiral representation, $A$ and $C$ are explicitly given by\n\\begin{equation}\nA=\\begin{pmatrix} 0 &\\quad \\delta^{\\dot{\\alpha}}{}_{\\dot{\\beta}} \\\\\n\\delta_\\alpha{}^\\beta &\\quad 0\\end{pmatrix}\\,,\\qquad\nC =\\begin{pmatrix} \\epsilon_{\\alpha\\beta}& \\quad 0\\\\\n 0 &\\quad \\epsilon^{\\dot{\\alpha}\\dot{\\beta}}\\end{pmatrix}\n\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nNote the \\textit{numerical} equalities, $A=\\gamma^0$ and\n$C=i\\gamma^0\\gamma^2$, although these identifications do not respect\nthe structure of the undotted and dotted indices specified above.\n\nFinally, we note the following results, which are easily derived:\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n&& \\hspace{-0.4in} A\\Gamma A^{-1} = \\eta\\ls{\\Gamma}^A\\Gamma^\\dagger\\,,\\qquad\n\\eta\\ls{\\Gamma}^A=\\begin{cases} +1\\,, &\n\\text{\\quad for $\\Gamma=\\mathds{1}\\,,\\,\\gamma^\\mu\\,,\\,\n\\gamma^\\mu\\gamma\\ls{5}\\,,\\,\\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}$,}\\\\ -1\\,, &\n\\text{\\quad for $\\Gamma=\\gamma\\ls{5}\n\\,,\\,\\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}\\gamma\\ls{5}$\\,,}\\end{cases} \\label{aagamma}\n\\\\[6pt]\n&& \\hspace{-0.4in} C^{-1}\\Gamma C= \\eta\\ls{\\Gamma}^C \\Gamma^{{\\mathsf T}}\\,,\\qquad\n\\eta\\ls{\\Gamma}^C=\\begin{cases} +1\\,, &\n\\text{\\quad for $\\Gamma=\\mathds{1}\\,,\\,\\gamma\\ls{5}\\,,\\,\n\\gamma^\\mu\\gamma\\ls{5}$\\,,} \\\\ -1\\,, &\n\\text{\\quad for $\\Gamma=\\gamma^\\mu\\,,\\,\\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}\n\\,,\\,\\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}\\gamma\\ls{5}$\\,.}\\end{cases} \\label{ccgamma} \n\\end{Eqnarray}\n\n\\subsubsection{Four-component spinor bilinear covariants}\n\nThe Dirac bilinear covariants are quantities that are quadratic in the\nDirac spinor fields and transform irreducibly as Lorentz tensors. These\nmay be constructed from the corresponding quantities that are\nquadratic in the two-component spinors. To construct a translation\ntable between the two-component spinor and four-component spinor forms\nof the bilinear covariants, we first define two Dirac spinor fields,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\Psi_1(x)\\equiv\\left(\\begin{array}{c}{\\chi_1} (x) \\\\[4pt]\n{\\eta^\\dagger_1}(x)\\end{array}\\right)\\,, \\qquad\\quad\n\\Psi_2(x)\\equiv\\left(\\begin{array}{c}{\\chi_2} (x) \\\\[4pt]\n{\\eta^\\dagger_2}(x)\\end{array}\\right)\\, ,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere spinor indices have been suppressed. It follows that,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n &&\\overline\\Psi_1 \\Psi_2 = \\eta_1\\chi_2 +\n\\chi^\\dagger_1\\eta^\\dagger_2\\,, \\label{bilinear1}\\\\\n&& \\overline\\Psi_1\\gamma_5\\Psi_2 = -\\eta_1\\chi_2 +\n\\chi^\\dagger_1\\eta^\\dagger_2\\,,\\\\\n&& \\overline\\Psi_1\\gamma^\\mu\\Psi_2 = \\chi_1^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\chi_2\n +\\eta_1\\sigma^\\mu \\eta^\\dagger_2\\,,\\\\\n&& \\overline\\Psi_1\\gamma^\\mu\\gamma_5\\Psi_2 =\n-\\chi^\\dagger_1\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\chi_2\n +\\eta_1\\sigma^\\mu \\eta^\\dagger_2\\,, \\\\\n&& \\overline\\Psi_1\\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}\\Psi_2 = 2(\\eta_1 \\sigma^{\\mu\\nu}\n \\chi_2 + \\chi^\\dagger_1 \\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\nu} \\eta^\\dagger_2)\\,,\\\\\n&& \\overline\\Psi_1\\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}\\gamma_5 \\Psi_2 = -2(\\eta_1\n\\sigma^{\\mu\\nu}\n \\chi_2 - \\chi^\\dagger_1 \\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\nu} \\eta^\\dagger_2)\n \\,.\\label{bilinear6}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nThe above results can be used to to obtain the translations given\nin Table~\\ref{tab:24}.\n\\clearpage\n\n\\begin{table}[t!]\n\\begin{center}\n\\renewcommand{\\arraystretch}{1.5}\n\\setlength{\\tabcolsep}{1.5pc}\n\\caption{\\small Relating the Dirac bilinear covariants written in\n terms of four-component Dirac spinor fields to the corresponding quantities\n expressed in terms of two-component spinor fields using the notation\n of \\eq{diracspinor}. These results apply to both commuting and\n anticommuting spinors. In the latter case,\none may alternatively write $ \\overline\\Psi_1\\gamma^\\mu P_R\\Psi_2 =\n-\\eta^\\dagger _2\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\eta_1$,\netc. [cf.~\\eq{eq:sigmucom}].\n}\n\\label{tab:24}\n\\vskip 0.05in\n\\begin{tabular}{|l|l|} \\hline\n$\\overline\\Psi_1 P_L \\Psi_2 = \\eta_1\\chi_2$\n &$\\overline\\Psi\\lsup c_1 P_L \\Psi_2^c = \\chi_1\\eta_2$ \\\\\n$\\overline\\Psi_1 P_R \\Psi_2 = \\chi^\\dagger_1\\eta^\\dagger_2$\n &$\\overline\\Psi_1\\lsup c P_R \\Psi_2^c = \\eta^\\dagger_1\\chi^\\dagger_2$ \\\\\n$\\overline\\Psi\\lsup c_1 P_L \\Psi_2 = \\chi_1\\chi_2$\n &$ \\overline\\Psi_1 P_L \\Psi_2^c = \\eta_1\\eta_2$ \\\\\n$\\overline\\Psi_1 P_R \\Psi^c_2 = \\chi^\\dagger_1\\chi^\\dagger_2$\n &$\\overline\\Psi\\lsup c_1 P_R \\Psi_2 = \\eta^\\dagger_1\\eta^\\dagger_2$ \\\\\n$\\overline\\Psi_1 \\gamma^\\mu P_L\\Psi_2 = \\chi^\\dagger_1\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\chi_2$\n &$\\overline\\Psi\\lsup c_1 \\gamma^\\mu P_L\\Psi_2^c =\n \\eta^\\dagger_1\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\eta_2$\\\\\n$\\overline\\Psi\\lsup c_1\\gamma^\\mu P_R\\Psi^c_2 = \\chi_1\\sigma^\\mu\n \\chi^\\dagger_2$\n &$\\overline\\Psi_1\\gamma^\\mu P_R\\Psi_2 = \\eta_1\\sigma^\\mu\n \\eta^\\dagger_2 $ \\\\\n$\\overline\\Psi_1 \\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}P_L \\Psi_2\n = 2\\,\\eta_1\\sigma^{\\mu\\nu}\\chi_2$\n &$\\overline\\Psi_1\\lsup c \\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}P_L \\Psi_2^c\n = 2\\,\\chi_1\\sigma^{\\mu\\nu}\\eta_2$ \\\\\n$\\overline\\Psi_1 \\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}P_R \\Psi_2\n = 2\\,\\chi^\\dagger_1\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\nu}\\eta^\\dagger_2$\n &$\\overline\\Psi_1\\lsup c \\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}P_R \\Psi_2^c\n =\n 2\\,\\eta^\\dagger_1\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\nu}\\chi^\\dagger_2$\\\\\n\\hline\n\\end{tabular}\n\\end{center}\n\\vskip -0.15in\n\\end{table}\n\nWhen $\\Psi_2 = \\Psi_1$, the bilinear covariants listed in\n\\eqst{bilinear1}{bilinear6} are either hermitian or\nanti-hermitian. Using \\eq{aagamma}, it follows that\n$\\overline\\Psi \\Gamma \\Psi$ is\nhermitian for $\\Gamma = \\mathds{1}_{4\\times 4},\\ i\\gamma_5,\\ \\gamma^\\mu,\\ \\gamma^\\mu \\gamma_5, \\ \\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}$, and $i \\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}\\gamma_5$.\n\n\nOne can also define Majorana bilinear covariants. A four-component\nMajorana fermion field is defined by the condition,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{majcond}\n\\Psi_M(x)=\\Psi^c_M(x)=C\\overline\\Psi_M^T(x)=\\begin{pmatrix} \\xi_\\alpha(x) \\\\[3pt] \\xi^{\\dot\\alpha\\,\\dagger}(x)\\end{pmatrix}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\\Eqst{bilinear1}{bilinear6} and the results of Table~\\ref{tab:24}\nmay also be applied to four-component Majorana\nspinors, $\\Psi_{M1}$ and $\\Psi_{M2}$, by setting $\\xi_1\\equiv\\chi_1=\\eta_1$,\nand $\\xi_2\\equiv\\chi_2=\\eta_2$, respectively.\nThis implements the Majorana\ncondition given in \\eq{majcond}\nand imposes additional\nrestrictions on the Majorana bilinear covariants. In particular, the\n\\textit{anticommuting} Majorana four-component fermion fields\nsatisfy the following additional identities,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\overline\\Psi_{M1}\\Psi_{M2}&=&\\overline\\Psi_{M2}\\Psi_{M1}\n\\,,{}\\label{M1}\\\\\n\\overline\\Psi_{M1}\\gamma\\ls{5}\\Psi_{M2}&=&\\overline\\Psi_{M2}\n\\gamma\\ls{5}\\Psi_{M1}\\,,{}\\label{M2}\\\\\n\\overline\\Psi_{M1}\\gamma^\\mu \\Psi_{M2}&=&\n-\\overline\\Psi_{M2}\\gamma^\\mu\\Psi_{M1}\\,,{}\\label{M3}\\\\\n\\overline\\Psi_{M1}\\gamma^\\mu\\gamma\\ls{5} \\Psi_{M2}&=&\n\\overline\\Psi_{M2}\\gamma^\\mu\\gamma\\ls{5}\\Psi_{M1}\\,,{}\\label{M4}\\\\\n\\overline\\Psi_{M1}\\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu} \\Psi_{M2}&=&\n-\\overline\\Psi_{M2}\\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}\\Psi_{M1}\\,,{}\\label{M5}\\\\\n\\overline\\Psi_{M1}\\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}\\gamma\\ls{5} \\Psi_{M2}&=&\n-\\overline\\Psi_{M2}\\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}\\gamma\\ls{5}\\Psi_{M1}\\,. {}\\label{M6}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\n\nIf\n$\\Psi_{M1}=\\Psi_{M2}\\equiv\\Psi_M$, then \\eqst{M1}{M6} yield\n\\begin{equation}\n\\overline\\Psi_{M}\\gamma^\\mu\n\\Psi_{M}=\\overline\\Psi_{M}\\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}\n\\Psi_{M}=\\overline\\Psi_{M}\\Sigma^{\\mu\\nu}\\gamma\\ls{5} \\Psi_{M}=0\\,.\\\\\n\\end{equation}\nOne additional useful result for Majorana fermion fields is:\n\\begin{equation}\n\\overline\\Psi_{M1}\\gamma^\\mu P_L\\Psi_{M2}=\n-\\overline\\Psi_{M2}\\gamma^\\mu P_R\\Psi_{M1}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\n\\subsection{Feynman Rules for Dirac and Majorana fermions}\n\\label{sec:Feynman}\n\n\nThe application of four-component fermion\ntechniques in parity-violating theories is straightforward for\nprocesses involving Dirac fermions. However, the inclusion of\nMajorana fermions involves some subtleties that require elucidation.\nIn light of the widespread familiarity with four-component spinor\ntechniques, we shall develop four-component fermion Feynman rules\n that treat Dirac and Majorana fermions on equal \nfooting\\cite{Dreiner:2008tw,Gates:1987ay,Denner:1992me,Kleiss:2009hu}.\\footnote{\nFor a comprehensive set of \ntwo-component fermion Feynman rules, see Ref.~\\cite{Dreiner:2008tw}.}\n\n\nConsider first the Feynman rule for the four-component fermion\npropagator.\nVirtual Dirac fermion lines can either correspond to $\\Psi$ or\n$\\Psi^c$. Here, there is no ambiguity in the propagator Feynman rule,\nsince for free Dirac fermion fields,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\left\\langle 0\\right|T[\\Psi(x)\\overline{\\Psi}(y)]\n\\left|0\\right\\rangle=\n\\left\\langle 0\\right |T[\\Psi^c(x)\\overline{\\Psi^c}(y)]\n\\left|0\\right\\rangle\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nso that the Feynman rules for the propagator of a $\\Psi$ and $\\Psi^c$\nline, exhibited below, are identical.\nThe same rule also applies to a four-component Majorana fermion $\\Psi_M$.\n\\begin{center}\n\\begin{picture}(200,50)(-135,-16)\n\\thicklines\n\\LongArrow(-110,25)(-70,25)\n\\ArrowLine(-130,15)(-50,15)\n\\put(-90,30){$p$}\n\\put(20,10){$\\displaystyle\n {\\frac{i(\\slashchar{p}\\ominus m)}\n {p^2 \\oplus m^2 \\ominus i\\epsilon}}$}\n\\end{picture}\n\\end{center}\n\n\\vspace{-0.2in}\nConsider next a set of neutral Majorana fermions $\\Psi_{Mi}$ and\ncharged Dirac fermions $\\Psi_i$,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\Psi_{Mi} =\n\\begin{pmatrix}\n\\xi_i\n\\\\[4pt]\n\\xi^\\dagger_i\n\\end{pmatrix},\n\\qquad\n\\Psi_i =\n\\begin{pmatrix}\n\\chi_i \\\\[4pt]\n\\eta^\\dagger_i\n\\end{pmatrix},\n\\end{equation}\n interacting with a neutral scalar $\\phi$ or\nvector boson $A_\\mu$. The interaction Lagrangian in terms of two-component\nfermions is\n\\begin{Eqnarray} \\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\! \\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\n\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm int} &=& -\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}(\\lambda^{ij}\\xi_i\\xi_j+\\lambda_{ij}\n\\xi^{\\dagger\\,i}\\xi^{\\dagger\\,j})\\phi-(\\kappa^i{}_j\\chi_i\\eta^j+\\kappa_i{}^j\n\\chi^{\\dagger\\,i}\\eta^\\dagger_j)\\phi\\ {} \\nonumber \\\\\n&&\\, -G_i{}^j\\,\\xi^{\\dagger\\,i}\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\xi_j A_\\mu\n-[(G_L)_i{}^j\\chi^{\\dagger\\,i}\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\chi_j\n+(G_R)_i{}^j\\eta^{\\dagger\\,i}\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\eta_j]A_\\mu\\,,{} \\label{lint1}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nwhere $\\lambda$ is a complex symmetric matrix with \n$\\lambda^{ij}\\equiv\\lambda^*_{ij}$,\n$\\kappa$ is an arbitrary complex matrix with $\\kappa_i{}^j\\equiv (\\kappa^i{}_j)^*$,\nand $G$, $G_L$ and $G_R$\nare hermitian matrices.\nConverting to four-component spinor notation (see Problem 1), the resulting Feynman rules \nare shown below.\n\\clearpage\n\n\n\\begin{figure}[t!]\n\\begin{center}\n\\begin{picture}(200,68)(40,0)\n\\DashLine(10,40)(60,40)5\n\\ArrowLine(60,40)(100,70)\n\\ArrowLine(100,10)(60,40)\n\\Text(30,30)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\phi$}\n\\Text(70,20)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_{Mj}$}\n\\Text(70,67)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_{Mi}$}\n\\Text(140,40)[l]{$-i(\\lambda^{ij}P_L+\\lambda_{ij} P_R)$}\n\\end{picture}\n\\end{center}\n\\vspace{0.2in}\n\n\\begin{center}\n\\begin{picture}(200,68)(40,0)\n\\Photon(60,40)(10,40){3}{5}\n\\ArrowLine(60,40)(100,70)\n\\ArrowLine(100,10)(60,40)\n\\Text(30,25)[]{$\\scriptstyle A_\\mu$}\n\\Text(70,20)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_{Mj}$}\n\\Text(70,67)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_{Mi}$}\n\\Text(140,40)[l]{$-i\\gamma_\\mu[G_i{}^j P_L-G_j{}^i P_R]$}\n\\end{picture}\n\\end{center}\n\\vspace{0.2in}\n\\begin{center}\n\\begin{picture}(200,68)(40,0)\n\\DashLine(10,40)(-40,40)5\n\\ArrowLine(10,40)(50,70)\n\\ArrowLine(50,10)(10,40)\n\\Text(-20,30)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\phi$}\n\\Text(20,20)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_j$}\n\\Text(20,67)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_i$}\n\\DashLine(160,40)(110,40)5\n\\ArrowLine(160,40)(200,70)\n\\ArrowLine(200,10)(160,40)\n\\Text(75,40)[]{or}\n\\Text(130,30)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\phi$}\n\\Text(170,15)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi^{cj}$}\n\\Text(170,65)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi^{ci}$}\n\\Text(240,40)[l]{$-i(\\kappa^i{}_j P_L+\\kappa_j{}^i P_R)$}\n\\end{picture}\n\\end{center}\n\\vspace{0.2in}\n\\begin{center}\n\\begin{picture}(200,68)(40,0)\n\\Photon(60,40)(10,40){3}{5}\n\\ArrowLine(60,40)(100,70)\n\\ArrowLine(100,10)(60,40)\n\\Text(30,25)[]{$\\scriptstyle A_\\mu$}\n\\Text(70,20)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_j$}\n\\Text(70,67)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_i$}\n\\Text(140,40)[l]{$-i\\gamma_\\mu[(G_L)_i{}^j P_L+(G_R)_i{}^j P_R]$}\n\\end{picture}\n\\end{center}\n\\vspace{0.2in}\n\\begin{center}\n\\begin{picture}(200,68)(40,0)\n\\Photon(60,40)(10,40){3}{5}\n\\ArrowLine(60,40)(100,70)\n\\ArrowLine(100,10)(60,40)\n\\Text(50,90)[]{or}\n\\Text(200,90)[]{or}\n\\Text(30,25)[]{$\\scriptstyle A_\\mu$}\n\\Text(70,15)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi^{cj}$}\n\\Text(70,65)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi^{ci}$}\n\\Text(140,40)[l]{$\\phantom{-} i\\gamma_\\mu[(G_L)_i{}^j P_L+(G_R)_i{}^j P_R]$}\n\\end{picture}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{figure}\n\nThe arrows on the Dirac fermion lines depict the flow of the\nconserved charge. A Majorana fermion is self-conjugate, so\nits arrow simply reflects the structure of $\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm int}$;\n{\\it i.e.}, $\\overline\\Psi_M$ [$\\Psi_M$] is represented by\nan arrow pointing out of [into] the vertex. The arrow directions\ndetermine the placement of the $u$ and $v$ spinors in an\ninvariant amplitude.\n\nFor vertices involving Dirac fermions, one has a choice of either\nusing the Dirac field or its charge conjugated field. The Feynman\nrules corresponding to these two choices are related, due to the\nfollowing identity, \n\\begin{equation} \\label{CC}\n\\overline\\Psi^c_i\\Gamma\\Psi^c_j=-\\Psi_i^T C^{-1}\\Gamma C\\overline\\Psi_j^T=\n\\overline\\Psi_j C\\Gamma^T\nC^{-1}\\Psi_i=\\eta^C\\ls{\\Gamma}\\overline\\Psi_j\\Gamma \\Psi_i\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere we have used \\eq{ccgamma}. Note that the extra minus sign that\narises in the penultimate step above is due to the anticommutativity\nof the fermion fields.\n\n\nNext, consider the interaction of fermions with charged bosons $\\Phi$ and $W$ (assumed\nto have charge equal to that of $\\chi$ and $\\eta^\\dagger$). The corresponding interaction Lagrangian is given by:\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm int} &=&\n-\\Phi[(\\kappa_1)^i{}_j\\xi_i\\eta^j\n+(\\kappa_2)_{ij}\\xi^{\\dagger i} \\chi^{\\dagger j}] \n -\\Phi^\\dagger[(\\kappa_2)^{ij}\\xi_i\\chi_j\n+(\\kappa_1)_i{}^j\\xi^{\\dagger i}_i \\eta^{\\dagger}_j] \\nonumber\n\\\\\n&&\n\\oplus W_\\mu[(G_1)_j{}^i\\chi^{\\dagger j}\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\xi_i\n-(G_2)_{ij}\\xi^{\\dagger i}\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu \\eta^j] \\nonumber \\\\\n&& \\oplus W_\\mu^\\dagger[(G_1)^j{}_i\\xi^{\\dagger i}\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\chi_j\n-(G_2)^{ij}\\eta^{\\dagger}_j\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\xi_i]\\,,\\label{lint2}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nwhere $\\kappa_1$, $\\kappa_2$, $G_1$ and $G_2$ \nare complex matrices. Converting to four-component spinor notation,\nthe corresponding Feynman rules are:\n\\begin{center}\n\\begin{picture}(200,78)(20,0)\n\\DashArrowLine(-60,40)(-10,40)5\n\\ArrowLine(-10,40)(30,70)\n\\ArrowLine(30,10)(-10,40)\n\\Text(-50,30)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Phi$}\n\\Text(-10,18)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_{Mi}$}\n\\Text(-10,67)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_{j}$}\n\\Text(45,40)[l]{or}\n\\DashArrowLine(80,40)(130,40)5\n\\ArrowLine(170,70)(130,40)\n\\ArrowLine(130,40)(170,10)\n\\Text(100,30)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Phi$}\n\\Text(140,18)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_{Mi}$}\n\\Text(140,67)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi^{cj}$}\n\\Text(200,40)[l]{$-i(\\kappa_1{}^i{}_j P_L+\\kappa_{2ij} P_R)$}\n\\end{picture}\n\\end{center}\n\\vspace{0.04in}\n\\begin{center}\n\\begin{picture}(200,68)(20,0)\n\\DashArrowLine(-10,40)(-60,40)5\n\\ArrowLine(30,70)(-10,40)\n\\ArrowLine(-10,40)(30,10)\n\\Text(-40,30)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Phi$}\n\\Text(0,18)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_{Mi}$}\n\\Text(0,67)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_{j}$}\n\\Text(45,40)[l]{or}\n\\DashArrowLine(130,40)(80,40)5\n\\ArrowLine(130,40)(170,70)\n\\ArrowLine(170,10)(130,40)\n\\Text(100,30)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Phi$}\n\\Text(140,18)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_{Mi}$}\n\\Text(140,67)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi^{cj}$}\n\\Text(200,40)[l]{$-i(\\kappa_2{}^{ij}P_L+\\kappa_{1i}{}^j P_R)$}\n\\end{picture}\n\\end{center}\n\\vspace{0.04in}\n\\begin{center}\n\\begin{picture}(200,78)(20,0)\n\\Photon(-20,40)(30,40){3}{5}\n\\ArrowLine(30,40)(70,70)\n\\ArrowLine(70,10)(30,40)\n\\ArrowLine(5.05,40)(4.95,40)\n\\Text(0,30)[]{$\\scriptstyle W$}\n\\Text(40,18)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_{Mj}$}\n\\Text(40,67)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_{i}$}\n\\Text(160,40)[l]{$-i\\gamma^\\mu(G_{1i}{}^jP_L-G_{2ji} P_R)$}\n\\end{picture}\n\\end{center}\n\\vspace{0.3in}\n\\begin{center}\n\\begin{picture}(200,68)(20,0)\n\\Photon(-20,40)(30,40){3}{5}\n\\ArrowLine(70,70)(30,40)\n\\ArrowLine(30,40)(70,10)\n\\ArrowLine(5.05,40)(4.95,40)\n\\Text(0,30)[]{$\\scriptstyle W$}\n\\Text(40,18)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_{Mj}$}\n\\Text(40,67)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi^{ci}$}\n\\Text(170,40)[l]{$i\\gamma^\\mu(G_{2ji} P_R -G_{1i}{}^j P_L)$}\n\\Text(20,95)[]{or}\n\\Text(210,95)[]{or}\n\\end{picture}\n\\end{center}\n\\vspace{0.3in}\n\\begin{center}\n\\begin{picture}(200,68)(20,0)\n\\Photon(30,40)(-20,40){3}{5}\n\\ArrowLine(70,70)(30,40)\n\\ArrowLine(30,40)(70,10)\n\\ArrowLine(4.95,40)(5.05,40)\n\\Text(0,30)[]{$\\scriptstyle W$}\n\\Text(40,18)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_{Mj}$}\n\\Text(40,67)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_{i}$}\n\\Text(160,40)[l]{$-i\\gamma^\\mu(G_1{}^i{}_j P_L-G_{2}{}^{ji} P_R)$}\n\\end{picture}\n\\end{center}\n\\vspace{0.3in}\n\\begin{center}\n\\begin{picture}(200,68)(20,0)\n\\Photon(30,40)(-20,40){3}{5}\n\\ArrowLine(30,40)(70,70)\n\\ArrowLine(70,10)(30,40)\n\\ArrowLine(4.95,40)(5.05,40)\n\\Text(20,95)[]{or}\n\\Text(210,95)[]{or}\n\\Text(0,30)[]{$\\scriptstyle W$}\n\\Text(40,18)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi_{Mj}$}\n\\Text(40,67)[]{$\\scriptstyle\\Psi^{ci}$}\n\\Text(170,40)[l]{$i\\gamma^\\mu(G_{2}{}^{ji} P_R -G_{1}{}^i{}_j P_L)$}\n\\end{picture}\n\\end{center}\n\nWhen the interaction Lagrangians given in \\eqs{lint1}{lint2} are\nconverted to four-component spinor notation (see Problems 1 and 2 at\nthe end of this section), there is an equivalent form in which\n$\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm int}$ is written in terms of charge-conjugated Dirac\nfour-component fields [after using \\eq{CC}]. Thus, the Feynman rules involving\nDirac fermions can take two possible forms, as\nshown above.\nAs previously noted, the direction of an\narrow on a Dirac fermion line indicates the\ndirection of the fermion charge flow (whereas the arrow on\nthe Majorana fermion line is unconnected to charge flow).\nHowever, we are free to choose either a\n$\\Psi$ or $\\Psi^c$ line to represent a Dirac fermion at any place in a\ngiven Feynman graph.\\footnote{Since the charge of $\\Psi^c$ is opposite\nin sign to the charge\nof $\\Psi$, the corresponding arrow directions of the $\\Psi$ and $\\Psi^c$\nlines must point in opposite directions.}\nFor any decay or scattering process,\na suitable choice of either the $\\Psi$-rule or the $\\Psi^c$-rule\nat each vertex (the choice can be different at different vertices)\nwill guarantee that\nthe arrow directions on fermion lines flow continuously through\nthe Feynman diagram. Then, to evaluate an invariant amplitude,\none should traverse \\textit{any} continuous fermion\nline (either $\\Psi$ or $\\Psi^c$)\nby moving antiparallel to the direction of the fermion arrows.\n\n\n\nFor a given process, there may be a number of distinct\nchoices for the arrow directions on the Majorana fermion lines,\nwhich may depend on whether one represents a given Dirac fermion by\n$\\Psi$ or $\\Psi^c$.\nHowever, different choices do {\\it not} lead to independent Feynman\ndiagrams.\nWhen computing an invariant amplitude, one\nfirst writes down the relevant\nFeynman diagrams with no arrows on any Majorana\nfermion line. The number of distinct graphs contributing to the\nprocess is then determined. Finally, one makes some choice for\nhow to distribute the arrows on the Majorana fermion lines\nand how to label Dirac fermion lines (either as the field $\\Psi$ or its\ncharge conjugate $\\Psi^c$) in a manner consistent\nwith the Feynman rules for the vertices previously given.\nThe end result for the invariant\namplitude (apart from an overall unobservable phase)\ndoes not depend on the choices\nmade for the direction of the fermion arrows.\n\nUsing the above procedure, the Feynman rules for the\nexternal fermion wave functions are the same for Dirac and Majorana fermions:\n\\begin{itemlist}\n\\item\n$u(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p},s)$: incoming $\\Psi$ [or $\\Psi^c$]\nwith momentum $\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}$ parallel to the arrow direction,\n\\item\n$\\bar u(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p},s)$: outgoing $\\Psi$ [or $\\Psi^c$] with\nmomentum $\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}$ parallel to the arrow direction,\n\\item\n$v(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p},s)$: outgoing $\\Psi$ [or $\\Psi^c$] with\nmomentum $\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}$ anti-parallel to the arrow direction,\n\\item\n$\\bar v(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p},s)$: incoming $\\Psi$ [or $\\Psi^c$] with\nmomentum $\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}$ anti-parallel to the arrow direction.\n\\end{itemlist}\n\n\n\nWe now consider the application of the Feynman rules presented above\nto some $2\\to 2$ scattering processes involving a Majorana fermion\neither as an external state or as an internal line.\n\n\\begin{example}[$\\boldsymbol{\\Psi(p_1)\\Psi(p_2)\\to\\Phi(k_1)\\Phi(k_2)}$ via $\\boldsymbol{\\Psi_M}$-exchange]\n\nHere, $\\Phi$ is a charged scalar.\nThe contributing Feynman graphs are:\n\n\\vspace{12pt}\n\n\\begin{picture}(450,85)(125,-25)\n\\thicklines\n\\ArrowLine(185,-15)(125,-15)\n\\DashArrowLine(185,-15)(245,-15){5}\n\\ArrowLine(125,45)(185,45)\n\\DashArrowLine(185,45)(245,45){5}\n\\ArrowLine(185,45)(185,-15)\n\\put(165,12){$\\Psi_M$}\n\\put(130,50){$\\Psi$}\n\\put(130,-25){$\\Psi^c$}\n\\ArrowLine(360,-15)(300,-15)\n\\DashLine(360,-15)(390,15){5}\n\\DashArrowLine(390,15)(420,45){5}\n\\ArrowLine(300,45)(360,45)\n\\DashLine(360,45)(390,15){5}\n\\DashArrowLine(390,15)(420,-15){5}\n\\ArrowLine(360,45)(360,-15)\n\\put(340,12){$\\Psi_M$}\n\\put(305,50){$\\Psi$}\n\\put(305,-25){$\\Psi^c$}\n\\end{picture}\n\n\\vspace{12pt}\n\n\\noindent\nFollowing the arrows on the fermion lines in reverse,\nthe invariant amplitude is given by,\n\\begin{Eqnarray} \\label{mex2}\ni\\mathcal{M}&=&\n(-i)^2\\bar v(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}_2,s_2)(\\kappa_1 P_L+\\kappa_2^* P_R)\n\\left[\\frac{i(\\slashchar{p_1}-\\slashchar{k_1}+m)}{t-m^2} \n+\\frac{i(\\slashchar{k_1}-\\slashchar{p_2}+m)}{u-m^2}\\right]\\nonumber \\\\\n&&\\qquad \\times (\\kappa_1 P_L+\\kappa_2^* P_R) u(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}_1,s_1)\\,,{}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nwhere $t\\equiv (p_1-k_1)^2$, $u\\equiv (p_2-k_1)^2$ and\n$m$ is the Majorana fermion mass. The sign of each diagram is\ndetermined by the relative permutation of spinor wave functions\nappearing in the amplitude (the overall sign of the amplitude is\nunphysical).\nIn the present example, in\nboth terms appearing in \\eq{mex2}, the spinor wave functions appear in \nthe same order (first $\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}_2$ and then\n$\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}_1$),\nimplying a relative plus sign between the two terms. \n\n\nOne can check that \\textrm{$i\\mathcal{M}$} is antisymmetric under\ninterchange of the two initial electrons. \nThis is most easily verified by\ntaking the transpose of the invariant amplitude (the latter is a\ncomplex number whose value is not changed by transposition).\nIt is convenient to adopt the convention in which the (commuting) $u$\nand $v$ spinor wave functions are related via,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\nv(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p},s) &=& C\\bar u(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p},s)^{{\\mathsf T}}\n\\,,\\qquad\\qquad\\quad\nu(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p},s) = C\\bar v(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p},s)^{{\\mathsf T}}\\,,\n\\label{uvspinrelation1} \\\\\n\\bar v(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p},s) &=& -u(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p},s)^{{\\mathsf T}}C^{-1}\n\\,,\\qquad\\quad\\,\n\\bar u(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p},s) = -v(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p},s)^{{\\mathsf T}}C^{-1}\\,.\n\\label{uvspinrelation2}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nwhere $C$ is the charge conjugation matrix.\nUsing \\eqs{uvspinrelation1} {uvspinrelation2}, \nthe transposed amplitude can be simplified by employing the relation,\n\\begin{align}\n\\bar v(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}_2,s_2)\\Gamma u(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}_1,s_1)=\n-\\eta^C\\ls{\\Gamma}\n\\bar v(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}_1,s_1)\\Gamma u(\\boldsymbol{\\vec\n p}_2,s_2)\\,, \\label{vgamu}\n\\end{align}\nwhich is a consequence of \\eq{ccgamma}.\n\n\n\\end{example}\n\n\\begin{example}[$\\boldsymbol{\\Psi(p_1)\\Psi^c(p_2)\\!\\to\\!\\Psi_M(p_3)\\Psi_M(p_4)}$~\\!via\\! charged\\! $\\boldsymbol{\\Phi}$-exchange]\n\nIn addition to a possible $s$-channel annihilation graph,\nthe contributing Feynman graphs can be represented by \neither diagram set (i) or diagram set (ii) shown below, where each set\ncontains a $t$-channel and $u$-channel graph, respectively.\n\\clearpage\n\n\\noindent Diagram set (i):\n\n\\begin{picture}(450,85)(130,-10)\n\\thicklines\n\\ArrowLine(125,-15)(185,-15)\n\\ArrowLine(185,-15)(245,-15)\n\\ArrowLine(125,45)(185,45)\n\\ArrowLine(185,45)(245,45)\n\\DashArrowLine(185,45)(185,-15){5}\n\\put(220,50){$\\Psi_M$}\n\\put(220,-25){$\\Psi_M$}\n\\put(130,50){$\\Psi$}\n\\put(130,-25){$\\Psi^c$}\n\\ArrowLine(290,-15)(350,-15)\n\\Line(380,15)(350,-15)\n\\ArrowLine(380,15)(410,45)\n\\ArrowLine(290,45)(350,45)\n\\Line(350,45)(380,15)\n\\ArrowLine(380,15)(410,-15)\n\\DashArrowLine(350,45)(350,-15){5}\n\\put(410,50){$\\Psi_M$}\n\\put(410,-25){$\\Psi_M$}\n\\put(295,50){$\\Psi$}\n\\put(295,-25){$\\Psi^c$}\n\\end{picture}\n\n\\vskip 0.5in\n\\noindent\nDiagram set (ii):\n\n\\begin{picture}(450,85)(130,-10)\n\\thicklines\n\\ArrowLine(185,-15)(125,-15)\n\\ArrowLine(245,-15)(185,-15)\n\\ArrowLine(125,45)(185,45)\n\\ArrowLine(185,45)(245,45)\n\\DashArrowLine(185,45)(185,-15){5}\n\\put(220,50){$\\Psi_M$}\n\\put(220,-25){$\\Psi_M$}\n\\put(130,50){$\\Psi$}\n\\put(130,-25){$\\Psi$}\n\\ArrowLine(350,-15)(290,-15)\n\\Line(380,15)(350,-15)\n\\ArrowLine(410,45)(380,15)\n\\ArrowLine(290,45)(350,45)\n\\Line(350,45)(380,15)\n\\ArrowLine(380,15)(410,-15)\n\\DashArrowLine(350,45)(350,-15){5}\n\\put(410,50){$\\Psi_M$}\n\\put(410,-25){$\\Psi_M$}\n\\put(295,50){$\\Psi$}\n\\put(295,-25){$\\Psi$}\n\\end{picture}\n\\vskip 0.5in\n\nThe amplitude is evaluated by following the arrows on the fermion\nlines in reverse. Either diagram set (i) or set (ii) may be chosen to evaluate the invariant amplitude.\nWe again employ \\eq{ccgamma} to derive the relation,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{vgamv}\n\\bar v(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}_2,s_2)\\Gamma v(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}_4,s_4)=\n-\\eta^C\\ls{\\Gamma}\n\\bar u(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}_4,s_4)\\Gamma u(\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}_2,s_2)\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhich can be used in comparing the invariant amplitude obtained by\nusing diagram sets (i) and (ii). One can check that \nthe invariant amplitudes resulting from diagram sets\n(i) and (ii) differ by an overall minus sign, which is unphysical.\nThe overall minus sign arises due to the fact that the corresponding\norder of the spinor wave functions\ndiffers by an odd permutation [e.g.,\nfor the $t$-channel graphs, compare 3142 and\n3124 for (i) and (ii) respectively]. For the same\nreason, there is a relative minus sign between the $t$-channel and\n$u$-channel graphs for either diagram set [e.g., compare 3142\nand 4132 in diagram set(i)].\n\n\nIf $s$-channel annihilation contributes, its contribution to the\ninvariant amplitude is easily obtained.\nRelative to the $t$-channel graph of diagram set\n(ii) above, the $s$-channel graph shown below\ncomes with an extra minus sign (since 2134 is odd with respect to 3124).\n\\end{example}\n\n\\begin{picture}(450,95)(28,-40)\n\\SetScale{0.8}\n\\thicklines\n\\ArrowLine(185,15)(125,-25)\n\\ArrowLine(305,-25)(245,15)\n\\ArrowLine(125,55)(185,15)\n\\ArrowLine(245,15)(305,55)\n\\DashLine(185,15)(245,15){5}\n\\put(220,45){$\\Psi_M$}\n\\put(220,-25){$\\Psi_M$}\n\\put(110,45){$\\Psi$}\n\\put(110,-25){$\\Psi$}\n\\end{picture}\n\n\n\\vskip -0.05in\n\nIn the computation of the unpolarized cross-section, non-standard spin\nprojection operators can arise in the evaluation of the interference\nterms (see Appendix D of Reference \\cite{Haber:1984rc}), such as\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n \\sum_s u({\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}},s) v^T({\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}},s)\n = (\\slashchar{p} + m)C^T\\,, \\qquad\n\\sum_s \\bar{u}^T({\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}},s)\n\\bar{v}({\\boldsymbol{\\vec p}},s)\n= C^{-1}(\\slashchar{p} - m)\\,,\\nonumber \n\\end{Eqnarray}\nwhich requires additional manipulation of the charge conjugation\nmatrix~$C$. However, these non-standard spin projection operators can be\navoided by judicious use of spinor wave function product relations of the kind\nobtained in \\eqs{vgamu}{vgamv}.\n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Problems}\n\\begin{problem}\nConvert the interaction Lagrangian given by \\eq{lint1} to\nfour-component spinor notation.\nShow that the end result is \n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm int}&=& -\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}(\\lambda^{ij}\\overline{\\Psi}_{Mi} P_L\\Psi_{Mj}\n+\\lambda_{ij}\\overline{\\Psi}_{M}\\llsup{i}P_R\\Psi_{M}\\llsup{j})\\phi\n-\\overline{\\Psi}\\llsup{\\,j}(\\kappa^i{}_j P_L +\\kappa_i{}^j P_R)\\Psi_{i}\\phi \\nonumber \\\\\n&& \\oplus\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\overline{\\Psi}_{Mi}\\gamma^\\mu\\left[(G^a)_i{}^j P_L-(G^a)_j{}^i P_R\\right]\n\\Psi_{Mj} \\nonumber \\\\\n&& \n\\oplus \\left[(G_L^a)_i{}^j\\overline{\\Psi}\\llsup{\\,i}\\gamma^\\mu P_L\\Psi_{j}\n+(G_R^a)_i{}^j\\overline{\\Psi}\\llsup{\\,i}\\gamma^\\mu\nP_R\\Psi_{j}\\right]A^a_\\mu\\,, \\label{lint14}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nwhere the $\\Psi_{Mj}$ are a set of (neutral) Majorana\nfour-component fermions and the $\\Psi_{j}$ are a set of Dirac four-component fermions.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\nConvert the interaction Lagrangian given by \\eq{lint2} to\nfour-component spinor notation.\nShow that the end result is \n\\begin{Eqnarray} \n\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\\!\n\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm int} &=&\n-\\left[(\\kappa_1)^i{}_j\\overline{\\Psi}\\llsup{\\,j}P_L\\Psi_{Mi}\n+(\\kappa_2)_{ij}\\overline{\\Psi}\\llsup{j}P_R\\Psi_{M}^i\\right]\\Phi\n\\nonumber \\\\\n&&\n\\oplus \\left[(G_1)_j{}^i\\overline{\\Psi}\\llsup{\\,j}\\gamma^\\mu P_L\\Psi_{Mi}\n+(G_2)_{ij}\\overline{\\Psi}\\llsup{\\,j}\\gamma^\\mu P_R\\Psi_{M}^i\\right]W_\\mu\n+{\\rm h.c.} \\label{lintc4}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\n\\end{problem}\n\\begin{problem}\nDerive \\eq{vgamu}. Then,\nverify that the invariant amplitude given by \\eq{mex2} is\nantisymmetric under the interchange of the two initial electrons.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\nDerive \\eq{vgamv}. Then, verify that the invariant amplitude \nfor the scattering process considered in Example 3 obtained\nfrom diagram sets (i) and (ii), respectively, differ by an overall\nminus sign.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\section{Supersymmetric gauge theories}\n\\label{sec:gaugetheories}\n\\renewcommand{\\theequation}{\\arabic{section}.\\arabic{equation}}\n\\setcounter{equation}{0}\n\nIn this section, we discuss the supersymmetric extension of \ngauge theories. We begin with the vector superfield $V$, which contains\nthe gauge fields as well as their supersymmetric partners, the\ngauginos. We discuss the behavior of $V$ under a gauge\ntransformation, and the gauge-invariant interaction terms that couple\nthe vector superfield with one or more \nchiral superfields. Both abelian and non-abelian gauge groups are\ntreated. Finally, we construct the SUSY Lagrangians corresponding to QED and a\nnon-Abelian SUSY Yang-Mill theory coupled to supersymmetric matter.\n\n\\subsection{Vector superfields}\n\nImposing a reality condition on a complex superfield (which is a\ncovariant constraint with respect to SUSY transformations), we obtain the so-called real vector superfield,\n\\begin{align}\nV(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=V^\\dagger(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhich will be employed in constructing supersymmetric gauge theories.\nExpanding in $\\theta$ and $\\theta^\\dagger$,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\nV&=& \\ C + i\\theta\\chi-i\\theta^\\dagger\\chi^\\dagger +\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} i\n\\theta\\theta(M+iN)-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} i \\theta^\\dagger \\theta^\\dagger (M-iN)\n+\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger V_\\mu \\nonumber \\\\\n&&+\ni(\\theta\\theta)\\theta^\\dagger\\bigl(\\lambda^\\dagger-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\ni\\,\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\chi\\bigr)-i(\\theta^\\dagger\n\\theta^\\dagger)\\theta(\\lambda-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\ni\\sigma^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\chi^\\dagger\\bigr) \\nonumber \\\\\n&& +\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}(\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger \n\\theta^\\dagger)\\bigl(D-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\Box C\\bigr)\\,,\n\\label{VectorSF}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nwhere $C$, $M$, $N$, $D$ and $V_\\mu$ are real bosonic fields,\nand $\\chi$ and $\\lambda$ are two-component fermion fields. The\nvarious factors of $i$ and $\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ are conventional, and the\nparticular linear combination of fields chosen as coefficients of\n$(\\theta\\theta)\\theta^\\dagger$, $(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)\\theta$ and\n$(\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)$ are convenient for later\npurposes [cf.~footnote~\\ref{fn38}].\n \nNote that the superfield $V$ is dimensionless, in which case it\nfollows that the dimensions of the component fields are $[V_\\mu]=1$ and\n$[\\lambda]=\\tfrac32$, as expected, whereas $[C]=[D]=0$, and $[\\chi]=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$\nafter making use of the dimensions of the Grassmann coordinates,\n$[\\theta]=[\\theta^\\dagger]=-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$.\n\nThe real vector field $V_\\mu$ is a candidate for a gauge\nboson of an abelian U(1) gauge theory. The corresponding field strength tensor is given by\n\\begin{align}\nF_{\\mu\\nu}=\\partial_\\mu V_\\nu-\\partial_\\nu V_\\mu\\,.\n\\end{align}\nIndeed, this can be shown to be one of the components of the \\textit{field strength superfield}, which is defined by\n\\begin{align}\n\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha=-\\tfrac{1}{4} {\\overline{D}}^{2} D_\\alpha V\\,.\\label{Walpha}\n\\end{align}\nNote that $\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\beta}\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha=0$, so that $\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha$ is a spinor chiral superfield. Evaluating the above expression, and expressing it in the chiral representation,\n\\begin{align}\n\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha(y,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=\n-i\\lambda_\\alpha + \\theta_\\alpha D \n-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} i (\\sigma^\\mu\\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu\\theta)_\\alpha F_{\\mu\\nu}\n-\\theta\\theta (\\sigma^\\mu\\partial_\\mu \\lambda^\\dagger)_\\alpha ,\\label{Wdef}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $y\\equiv x-i\\theta \\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger$. The fermionic partner\nof the gauge boson, called the gaugino, is represented by the\ntwo-component spinor field $\\lambda$. Remarkably, the fields $C$,\n$M$, $N$ and $\\chi$ that are coefficients in the Taylor expansion of the vector\nsuperfield $V$ do not appear in \\eq{Wdef}. The reason for this will\nbecome apparent in Section~\\ref{sec:gauge}.\n\n\nOne can work out the SUSY transformation laws of the fields, $\\lambda$,\n$F_{\\mu\\nu}$ and~$D$,\nby matching component fields on both sides of the following equation,\n \\begin{align}\n \\delta_{\\xi} \\mathcal{W}_\\alpha=-i(\\xi \\widehat{Q}+\\xi^\\dagger \\widehat{Q}^\\dagger)\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha.\n \\end{align}\n The end result is\n\\begin{align}\n \\delta_{\\xi}\\lambda_\\alpha&= i\\xi_\\alpha D+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}(\\sigma^\\mu\\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu)_\\alpha{}^\\beta\\xi_\\beta F_{\\mu\\nu}\\,, \\\\\n \\delta_{\\xi} F_{\\mu\\nu}&=i\\partial_\\mu(\\xi\\sigma_\\nu\\lambda^\\dagger-\\lambda\\sigma_\\nu\\xi^\\dagger)\n -i\\partial_\\nu(\\xi\\sigma_\\mu\\lambda^\\dagger-\\lambda\\sigma_\\mu\\xi^\\dagger)\\,, \\\\\n \\delta_{\\xi} D&=\\partial_\\mu(\\xi\\sigma^\\mu\\lambda^\\dagger+\\lambda\\sigma^\\mu\\xi^\\dagger)\\,.\\label{delD}\n\\end{align}\nNote that the mass dimension of the $D$-term is given by $[D]=2$. Hence, \ndimensional analysis implies that $\\delta_\\xi D$ must be a total\nderivative, which is confirmed in \\eq{delD}.\nFrom the above transformation laws, we conclude that $(\\lambda\\,,\\,\\lambda^\\dagger\\,,\\,F_{\\mu\\nu}\\,,\\,D)$ forms an irreducible supermultiplet (corresponding to superhelicity $1$).\n\nTo obtain the Lagrangian for the SUSY U(1) gauge theory, note that\n\\begin{align}\n\\tfrac14[\\mathcal{W}^\\alpha \\mathcal{W}_\\alpha]_F+{\\rm h.c.}&=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} i(\\lambda\\sigma^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\lambda^\\dagger+\\lambda^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\lambda)+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} D^2-\\tfrac14 F_{\\mu\\nu}F^{\\mu\\nu} \\nonumber \\\\[5pt]\n&=i\\lambda^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\lambda+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} D^2-\\tfrac14\n F_{\\mu\\nu}F^{\\mu\\nu}+\\text{total derivative}. \\label{WF}\n\\end{align}\nThis is the kinetic energy term for a U(1) gauge field $V_\\mu$ and its\ngaugino superpartner $\\lambda$. Both the gauge boson and gaugino are\nmassless. The real scalar field $D$ is not dynamical; it is an\nauxiliary field.\n\nThe action corresponding to the Lagrangian of\n\\eq{WF} can be written as an integral over half of superspace. In\nparticular, \\eq{d2theta} yields,\n\\begin{align}\n\\mathscr{L}=\\tfrac14\\int d^2\\theta\\, \\mathcal{W}^\\alpha \\mathcal{W}_\\alpha+{\\rm h.c.}\n\\end{align}\nOne can show that $[\\mathcal{W}^\\alpha \\mathcal{W}_\\alpha]_F$ and its hermitian\nconjugate term differ only by a total derivative. Hence, both terms\ncontribute equally to the action, which is given by\n\\begin{align}\nS=\\tfrac12\\int d^4 x\\,d^2\\theta\\, \\mathcal{W}^\\alpha \\mathcal{W}_\\alpha\\,.\n\\end{align}\nIt is sometimes convenient to turn this integral into an integration\nover the full superspace. Using a trick analogous to the one employed\nin \\eq{2to4}, we end up with,\n\\begin{align}\nS=\\tfrac12\\int d^4 x\\,d^2\\theta\\, \\left(-\\tfrac14 \\overline{D}\\lsup{2}\\right)(D^\\alpha V) \\mathcal{W}_\\alpha\n=\\tfrac12\\int d^4 x\\,d^2\\theta\\,d^2\\theta^\\dagger(D^\\alpha V) \\mathcal{W}_\\alpha\n\\,,\n\\end{align}\nafter using \\eq{Walpha} to rewrite one factor of $\\mathcal{W}^\\alpha$ in\nterms of $V$.\n\nIt is instructive to count the degrees of freedom in the irreducible\nsupermultiplet, $(\\lambda\\,,\\,\\lambda^\\dagger\\,,\\,F_{\\mu\\nu}\\,,\\,D)$. \nOn-shell, there are two real fermionic degrees\nof freedom \nassociated with the massless gaugino, after imposing the\nLagrange field equations,\\footnote{Starting with two complex (or\n equivalently four real) degrees\n of freedom for the two-component gaugino field $\\lambda$,\n \\eq{gauginoDirac} relates the spinor components $\\lambda_1$ and $\\lambda_2$, thereby\n reducing the number of real degrees of freedom from four to two.}\n\\begin{equation}\ni\\overline{\\sigma}\\lsup{\\mu\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\\partial_\\mu\\lambda_\\beta=0\\,.\\label{gauginoDirac}\n\\end{equation}\nThis matches the two real bosonic degrees of freedom corresponding\nto the two transverse polarizations of the massless gauge boson.\n\nTo count\n the off-shell bosonic degrees of freedom,\none must take into account the Bianchi identity,\\footnote{Although it\n appears that the Bianchi identity yields four constraints, since the\n spacetime index $\\mu$ is a free index, in fact only\n three constraints are independent. This is because one of the four\n constraints is redundant due to the identity,\n$\\epsilon^{\\mu\\nu\\rho\\sigma}\\partial_\\mu\\partial_\\nu F_{\\rho\\sigma}=0$,\nwhich is automatically satisfied as a result of the antisymmetry of the Levi-Civita tensor.\nPhysically, the Bianchi identity implies that the three components of the\n electric field vector determine the three components of the magnetic field vector.}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\epsilon^{\\mu\\nu\\rho\\sigma}\\partial_\\nu F_{\\rho\\sigma}=0\\,,\\label{bianchi}\n\\end{equation}\nwhich is satisfied independently of the field equations. This\nidentity reduces the number of real degrees of freedom in the real\nantisymmetric tensor $F_{\\mu\\nu}$ from\nsix to three. Adding in the one real degree of freedom associated\nwith $D$, we end up with a total of four real bosonic degrees of freedom,\nwhich matches the four real off-shell fermionic degrees of freedom corresponding to $\\lambda$ and~$\\lambda^\\dagger$. \n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Gauge invariance}\n\\label{sec:gauge}\nThe vector superfield $V$ contains the familiar gauge field\n$V_\\mu$. But it also includes other component fields $C$, $\\chi$, $M$\nand $N$, whose meaning is less obvious. As we will see, these latter fields\nturn out to be gauge artifacts. Thus, we must examine how gauge\ntransformations of the gauge field theory get promoted to gauge transformations of the\nvector superfield $V$.\n\nLet $\\Lambda(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)$ be a chiral superfield (\\textit{i.e.}, $\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\Lambda=0$) and let \n$\\Lambda^\\dagger(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)$ be the corresponding antichiral superfield. Consider the transformation,\n\\begin{align}\nV\\to V+i(\\Lambda-\\Lambda^\\dagger)\\,.\n\\label{eq:Vgaugetransform}\n\\end{align}\nWe assert that \\eq{eq:Vgaugetransform} is a supersymmetric\ngeneralization of the gauge transformation of an abelian gauge theory,\nhenceforth called a super gauge transformation.\n\nWith the help of \\eq{eq:Dcomms}, it is straightforward to show that\nthe field strength superfield, $\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha$, is invariant under a super\ngauge transformation.\nMoreover, if the Taylor series of $\\Lambda(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)$ is\nwritten as\\footnote{In contrast to the chiral superfield $\\Phi$ in\n \\eq{eq:chiralSF} whose mass dimension is 1, the chiral superfield $\\Lambda$ is dimensionless,\n as required for consistency in light of \\eq{eq:Vgaugetransform}.}\n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{split}\n\\Lambda(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=&\n\\widetilde{A}(x) + \\sqrt{2}\\,\\theta \\widetilde{\\psi}(x) + \\theta\\theta \\widetilde{F}(x)-i \\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger \\partial_\\mu \\widetilde{A}(x) \\\\\n& - \\frac{i}{\\sqrt{2}} (\\theta\\theta) \n\\theta^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\, \\partial_\\mu \\widetilde{\\psi}(x)-\\tfrac{1}{4}(\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar) \\square \\widetilde{A}(x)\\,, \n\\end{split}\n\\end{align}\nthen the impact of the super gauge transformation given by\n\\eq{eq:Vgaugetransform} on the component fields of $V$\nis,\\footnote{\\label{fn38} The invariance\nof $\\lambda$ and $D$ under super gauge transformations is a\nconsequence of the particular choices made for the coefficients of\n$(\\theta\\theta)\\theta^\\dagger$, $(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)\\theta$ and\n$(\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)$ in \\eq{VectorSF}.}\n\\begin{align}\n C \n & \n \\to C+i(\\widetilde{A}-\\widetilde{A}^*)\\,,\\\\\n\\chi\n&\n\\to \\chi+ \\sqrt{2}\\, \\widetilde{\\psi} \\, , \\\\\nM+iN \n&\n\\to M+iN+2\\widetilde{F}\\,,\\\\\nV_\\mu\n&\n \\to V_\\mu+\\partial_\\mu(\\widetilde{A}+\\widetilde{A}^*)\\,, \\\\\n \\lambda\n &\n \\to \\lambda\\,,\\label{lambdaGT} \\\\\nD \n&\n\\to D\\,.\\label{DGT}\n\\end{align}\nIndeed, under a super gauge transformation, the gauge field $V_\\mu$\ntransforms by an ordinary gauge transformation. Moreover the \nfield strength tensor $F_{\\mu\\nu}=\\partial_\\mu V_\\nu-\\partial_\\nu\nV_\\mu$, the gaugino\nfield $\\lambda$, and the auxiliary field $D$ are gauge invariant as\none would anticipate (consistent with the fact that the field strength\nsuperfield $\\mathcal{W}$ is gauge invariant).\n\n\nOne particularly useful gauge choice is to choose $\\widetilde A$,\n$\\widetilde\\psi$ and $\\widetilde F$ such that \n\\begin{equation}\nC=\\chi=M=N=0\\,.\\label{WZ}\n\\end{equation}\nThis is called the {{Wess-Zumino (WZ) gauge}}\\cite{Wess:1974jb}. \nThe existence of such a gauge implies that the fields $C$,\n$\\chi$, $M$, and $N$ are gauge artifacts, as previously stated.\nThe main drawback of the WZ gauge is that it is not a\nsupersymmetric gauge choice. That is, starting from the WZ gauge and\nperforming a SUSY transformation on the component fields of the vector\nsuperfield~$V$ will yield new component fields that do not satisfy the WZ gauge\ncondition. \n\nThe main benefit of the WZ gauge is that it provides enormous\nsimplification in many practical computations. In particular, applying\nthe WZ gauge condition [\\eq{WZ}] to the vector superfield given in \\eq{VectorSF},\n\\begin{align}\nV_{\\rm WZ}=\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger V_\\mu+\ni(\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger\\bar{\\lambda})-i(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)(\\theta\\lambda)+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}(\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)D\\,.\n\\end{align}\nComputing the square of $V_{\\rm WZ}$ with the help of \\eq {eq:r3} yields,\n\\begin{align}\nV^2_{\\rm WZ}(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} (\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)V_\\mu V^\\mu\\,.\n\\end{align}\nand $V^n_{\\rm WZ}(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=0$ for $n=3,4,5,\\dots$. This\nimplies that the Taylor series for the exponential of $V_{\\rm WZ}$ is\na finite series and\ncontains only three terms,\n\\begin{align}\n\\exp(2gV_{\\rm WZ})=1+2gV_{\\rm WZ}+2g^2V^2_{\\rm WZ}\\,. \\label{e2gV}\n\\end{align}\nThis result will be especially important when we consider\ngauge-invariant interactions in Section~\\ref{GI}.\n\nFinally, we consider the implications of $R$-invariance. \nSince $V$ is a real superfield, it follows from \\eq{Rtrans} that,\n\\begin{align}\n\\widehat{R}V(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=V(x,e^{-ia}\\theta,e^{ia}\\theta^\\dagger)\\,.\n\\end{align}\nIn the Wess-Zumino gauge, the $R$ transformations of the component fields are given by\n\\begin{align}\nV_\\mu&\\to V_\\mu\\,, \\\\\n\\lambda&\\to e^{ia}\\lambda\\,, \\\\\nD&\\to D\\,.\n\\end{align}\nThe Lagrangian of \\eq{WF} for the SUSY gauge theory is invariant under\n$R$ transformations.\nIn the present context, the presence of $R$-invariance is associated with the chiral symmetry of the massless gaugino.\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Gauge-invariant interactions}\n\\label{GI}\nSuppose that $\\Phi$ is a chiral superfield that is charged under the U(1) gauge group.\nThen the gauge transformations of the chiral superfield and the corresponding antichiral superfield are given by,\n\\begin{align}\n\\Phi\\to e^{-2ig\\Lambda}\\Phi\\,,\\qquad\\quad \\Phi^\\dagger\\to e^{2ig\\Lambda^\\dagger}\\Phi^\\dagger\\,,\\label{eq:Phigauge}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\Lambda$ is the chiral superfield gauge\ntransformation parameter introduced in\n\\eq{eq:Vgaugetransform}.\nIn the presence of gauge interactions, the kinetic energy term for the\nchiral superfield given by \\eq{phiphiD},\n\\begin{align}\n\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm KE}=[\\Phi^\\dagger \\Phi]_D=\\int d^4 \\theta\\,\\Phi^\\dagger\\Phi\\,,\n\\end{align}\nis not gauge invariant. But this deficiency is easily repaired. A\ngauge-invariant kinetic energy term \nwith respect to the gauge transformations given in\n\\eqs{eq:Vgaugetransform}{eq:Phigauge} is given by,\n\\begin{align}\n\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm KE}=[\\Phi^\\dagger e^{2gV}\\Phi]_D=\\int d^4 \\theta\\,\\Phi^\\dagger e^{2gV}\\Phi\\,.\n\\label{eq:LKE}\n\\end{align}\nThe proof is left as an exercise (see Problem \\ref{pr:invKE}).\n\n\nNormally, the exponential, $\\exp(2gV)$, would yield an infinite series\nof terms. But, the series terminates in the Wess-Zumino gauge, as\nindicated in \\eq{e2gV}, and we get \n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{split}\n\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm KE}=&(\\mathcal{D}_\\mu A)(\\mathcal{D}^\\mu A)^\\dagger+\ni \\psi^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu \\mathcal{D}_\\mu \\psi+F^\\dagger F\\\\\n&\n+ig\\sqrt{2}(A^\\dagger\\lambda\\psi-A\\lambda^\\dagger\\psi^\\dagger)\n+gAA^\\dagger D+\\text{total derivative}\\,,\\label{KEint}\n\\end{split}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\mathcal{D}_\\mu\\equiv\\partial_\\mu+igV_{\\mu}$ is the usual gauge-covariant derivative.\nThe presence of the Yukawa interaction of the scalar-fermion-gaugino\nis especially noteworthy, with a coupling proportional to the gauge\ncoupling $g$. This is a consequence of supersymmetry, which relates\nthe gauge and Yukawa couplings that otherwise would be independent.\n\n\nAnother manifestation of SUSY is revealed when we consider the terms\nof the Lagrangian involving the auxiliary fields $F$ and $D$. \nConsider the Lagrangian of the interacting gauge theory that consists\nof contributions from \\eqs{WF}{KEint}. We can isolate those terms\nthat involve $F$ and $D$ explicitly, \n\\begin{align}\n\\mathscr{L} = \\biggl\\{\\tfrac14[\\mathcal{W}^\\alpha \\mathcal{W}_\\alpha]_F+{\\rm h.c.}\\biggr\\}+[\\Phi^\\dagger e^{2gV}\\Phi]_D \n =\\ldots+\nF^\\dagger F+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} D^2+gAA^\\dagger D\\,.\\label{FD}\n\\end{align}\nSolving the Lagrange field equations for $F$ and $D$,\n\\begin{align}\n& \\frac{\\partial\\mathscr{L}}{\\partial F}=0\\qquad\\Longleftrightarrow\\qquad F=0\\,, \\\\\n& \\frac{\\partial\\mathscr{L}}{\\partial\n D}=0\\qquad\\Longleftrightarrow\\qquad D=-gA^\\dagger A\\,.\\label{DAA}\n\\end{align}\nInserting these results back into \\eq{FD} [where the terms not\nexplicitly given can be found in \\eqs{WF}{KEint}] yields the Lagrangian in terms of its physical fields,\n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{split}\n\\mathscr{L} =&-\\tfrac14 F_{\\mu\\nu}F^{\\mu\\nu}\n+i\\lambda^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\lambda+(\\mathcal{D}_\\mu A)(\\mathcal{D}^\\mu A)^\\dagger \n+ i \\psi^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu \\mathcal{D}_\\mu \\psi \\\\\n& +i\\sqrt{2}\\,g(A^\\dagger\\lambda\\psi-A\\lambda^\\dagger\\psi^\\dagger)\n-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} g^2 (A^\\dagger A)^2\\,.\n\\end{split}\n\\end{align}\nThus, a potential for the scalar field $A$ has been generated,\n\\begin{align}\nV_{\\rm scalar}=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} g^2 (A^\\dagger A)^2\\,.\n\\end{align}\n\nThere is one more possible term, called the Fayet-Iliopoulos term\\cite{Fayet:1974jb},\nthat can appear in a renormalizable SUSY U(1) gauge theory Lagrangian,\n\\begin{align}\n\\mathcal{L}_{\\rm FI}=2\\xi[V]_D= \\xi D+\\text{total divergence}\\,.\n\\end{align}\nThis modifies the form of $D$ obtained in \\eq{DAA},\n\\begin{align}\nD=-gA^\\dagger A-\\xi\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhich in turn modifies the scalar potential,\n\\begin{align}\nV_{\\rm scalar}=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\bigl[gA^\\dagger A+\\xi\\bigr]^2\\,.\n\\end{align}\nThe existence of a quartic scalar coupling proportional to the square of the gauge coupling (in the presence or absence of a Fayet-Iliopoulos term) is another manifestation of SUSY.\n\n\\subsection{Generalizing to more than one chiral superfield}\n\nWith only one chiral superfield, it was not possible to include a superpotential $W(\\Phi)$ in our gauge theory, since \n$W$ is a holomorphic function of a charged field and hence not gauge-invariant.\nBut, a theory with more than one charged chiral superfield can admit a gauge invariant superpotential.\n\nFor example, consider a set of charged chiral superfields $\\Phi_i$ with U(1) charges $q_i$, which transform under U(1) as\n\\begin{align}\n\\Phi_i\\to e^{-2igq_i\\Lambda}\\Phi_i\\,.\n\\end{align}\nSuppose that a gauge-invariant superpotential can be constructed, $W(\\Phi_i)$. When we solve for the auxiliary field $F_i$, we will obtain\n\\begin{align}\nF_i=-\\left(\\frac{dW}{dA_i}\\right)^\\dagger\\,, \\label{fsubi}\n\\end{align}\nas before [cf.~\\eq{f}], which provides the $F$-term contributions to the scalar potential,\n\\begin{align}\nV_{\\rm scalar}\\ni \\sum_i \\left|\\frac{dW}{dA_i}\\right|^2\\,.\\label{niF}\n\\end{align}\n\nWhen we solve for the auxiliary field $D$, we obtain a contribution from each scalar $A_i$,\n\\begin{align}\nD=-\\xi-\\sum_i q_i g A_i^\\dagger A_i\\,. \\label{DFI}\n\\end{align}\nThe corresponding $D$-term contributions to the scalar potential are\n\\begin{align}\nV_{\\rm scalar}\\ni\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\left[\\xi+\\sum_i gq_iA^\\dagger A\\right]^2\\,.\\label{niD}\n\\end{align}\nIncluding both the $F$-term and $D$-term contributions yields the\nfollowing scalar potential,\n\\begin{align}\nV_{\\rm scalar}=\\sum_i \\left|\\frac{dW}{dA_i}\\right|^2+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\left[\\xi+\\sum_i gq_iA^\\dagger A\\right]^2\\,,\\label{vscalar1}\n\\end{align}\nwhich can also be conveniently written as\n\\begin{align}\nV_{\\rm scalar}=\\sum_i F_i^\\dagger F_i+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} D^2\\,, \\label{vscalar2}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $F$ and $D$ are given by \\eqs{fsubi}{niD}, respectively.\nNote that the form of the scalar potential [either \\eq{vscalar1} or\n(\\ref{vscalar2})] makes clear that $V_{\\rm scalar}\\geq 0$. This\nobservation will play an important role in the theory of supersymmetry\nbreaking, which is treated in Section~\\ref{SSB}.\n\nThe above results can now be used to construct the supersymmetric\nextension of QED. The superfield content of SUSY-QED consists of a real vector superfield $V$, a chiral superfield $\\Phi_+$ with charge $q=1$, and a chiral superfield $\\Phi_-$ with charge $q=-1$. The unique renormalizable, gauge-invariant superpotential is\n\\begin{equation} \\label{Wsqed}\nW(\\Phi_+,\\Phi_-)=m\\Phi_+\\Phi_-\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nThe $R$-charges of both $\\Phi_+$ and $\\Phi_-$ can be chosen to be $+1$, in which case the theory is also $R$-invariant.\nThe construction of the SUSY-QED Lagrangian is left as an exercise\n(see Problem \\ref{pr:SUSYQED}).\n\n\n\n\\subsection{\\mbox{SUSY \\!Yang-Mills theory coupled to supermatter}}\n\nThe construction of the supersymmetric generalization of Yang-Mills\ntheory, \\textit{i.e.},~a non-abelian gauge theory coupled to matter, is more\ncomplicated than the case of an abelian gauge theory treated in\nprevious sections. In this subsection, we will summarize the main\nmodifications. The reader can fill in the details with the help of Refs.\\cite{Bailin,Sohnius:1985qm}.\n\n\nConsider a non-abelian compact simple Lie group G, with generators $T^a$ that satisfy commutation relations,\n\\begin{align}\n\\bigl[T^a\\,,\\,T^b\\bigr]=if_{abc}T^c\\,.\n\\end{align}\nIt is convenient to normalize the generators of the defining (fundamental)\nrepresentation of G such that,\n\\begin{align}\n\\Tr(T^a T^b)=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\delta_{ab}.\n\\end{align}\n\nThe vector superfield, $V^a$, possesses an adjoint index $a$, which\nruns over the generators of G.\nThus, we can define the matrix gauge superfield,\n\\begin{align}\nV\\equiv V^a T^a\\,.\n\\end{align}\nThe gauge transformation law for $V$ given in \\eq{eq:Vgaugetransform}\nis significantly more complicated in the case of a non-abelian gauge theory, \n\\begin{align}\ne^{2gV} \\longrightarrow e^{-2ig\\Lambda^\\dagger}e^{2gV} e^{2ig\\Lambda^\\dagger},\\label{eq:Vnonabelian}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\Lambda\\equiv (\\Lambda^a T^a)_{ij}$ is the matrix chiral superfield gauge\ntransformation parameter.\n\nThe chiral superfields are now multiplets corresponding to representation $R$\nof the gauge group G, transforming as\\footnote{When acting on the $\\Phi_i$, one employs the generators $T^a$ in the representation $R$.}\n\\begin{align}\n\\Phi_i\\to \\left(e^{-2ig\\Lambda}\\right)_{ij}\\Phi_j\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhich provides the\ngeneralization of \\eq{eq:Phigauge} to a nonabelian gauge group.\nNote that $\\Phi^\\dagger_i\\left(e^{2gV}\\right)_{ij}\\Phi_j$ is\ngauge-invariant, if the gauge transformation law for $V$ is given by \\eq{eq:Vnonabelian}.\n\nLikewise, we define a matrix version of \nthe nonabelian field-strength superfield, $\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha\\equiv \\mathcal{W}_\\alpha^a T^a$, where\n\\begin{align}\n\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha=-\\frac{1}{8g}\\overline{D}\\lsup{2}e^{-2gV}D_\\alpha e^{2gV}\\,.\\label{eq:Wnonabelian}\n\\end{align}\nUnlike the abelian case, $\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha$ is not gauge-invariant. However it transforms as an adjoint field,\n\\begin{align}\n\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha\\to e^{-2ig\\Lambda}\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha e^{2ig\\Lambda}\\,,\n\\end{align}\nso that $\\Tr(\\mathcal{W}^\\alpha \\mathcal{W}_\\alpha)$ is gauge-invariant.\nIn the WZ gauge,\\footnote{In contrast to the abelian case, the\n expansion of $\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha^a$ in terms of its component fields in the\n nonabelian case will necessarily contain gauge artifacts. After imposing\n the WZ gauge condition, the expansion of $\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha^a$ in terms of\n its component fields resembles the corresponding expression of \n SUSY abelian gauge theory [cf.~\\eq{Wdef}].}\nwhen expanded in component fields, $\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha^a$ depends only on the\nphysical fields, $\\lambda^a$, $F^{\\mu\\nu a}$ and the auxiliary field $D^a$,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha^a=-i\\lambda_\\alpha^a+\\theta_\\alpha D^a-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} i(\\sigma^\\mu\\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu\\theta)_\\alpha F_{\\mu\\nu}^a-\\sigma^\\mu(\\mathscr{D}_{\\mu ab}\\lambda^{\\dagger b})_\\alpha \\,\\theta\\theta\\,,\\label{Wna}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere \n\\begin{equation}\n\\mathscr{D}_{\\mu ab}\\equiv\\delta_{ab}\\partial_\\mu+g f_{abc} V_\\mu^c\\,,\n\\end{equation}\n is the gauge-covariant derivative in the adjoint representation, and \n\\begin{equation}\nF_{\\mu\\nu}^a=\\partial_\\mu V_\\nu^a-\\partial_\\nu V_\\mu^a-gf_{abc}V_\\mu^b V_\\nu^c\n\\end{equation}\nis the nonabelian field strength tensor.\n\n\\subsection{The SUSY Lagrangian}\nThe Lagrangian for SUSY Yang-Mills theory coupled to supermatter is given by\n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{split}\n\\mathscr{L}= \\left[\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\int d^2\\theta\\,\\Tr(\\mathcal{W}^\\alpha \\mathcal{W}_\\alpha)+{\\rm h.c.}\\right]+\\int d^4\\theta \\,\n\\Phi^\\dagger e^{2gV}\\Phi \n+\\left[\\int d^2\\theta\\,W(\\Phi_k)+{\\rm h.c.}\\right]. \\label{SUSYYMLag}\n\\end{split}\n\\end{align}\nIn contrast to the abelian gauge theory, no Fayet-Iliopoloulos term\nis allowed since $[D^a]_D$ carries an adjoint index and thus is not\ngauge invariant. The superpotential $W(\\Phi_k)$ is assumed to be a\ngauge-invariant holomorphic function of the chiral superfields. The\nchiral superfields $\\Phi_k$ taken together transform under a reducible\n$d$-dimensional representation $R=\\oplus_k R_k$ of the gauge group G,\nwhere $d=\\sum_k {\\rm dim}~R_k$.\nIn terms of component fields, \\eq{SUSYYMLag} yields\n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{split}\n\\mathscr{L}=&-\\tfrac14 F_{\\mu\\nu}^a F^{\\mu\\nu a}+i\\lambda^{\\dagger a}\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu(\\mathscr{D}_\\mu\\lambda)^a+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} D^a D^a+F_i^\\dagger F_i \n+(\\mathcal{D}_\\mu A)_i(\\mathcal{D}^\\mu A)_i^\\dagger \\\\\n& +i \\psi_i^\\dagger\n\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu (\\mathcal{D}_\\mu \\psi)_i +gA_i^\\dagger T_{ij}^a A_j D^a \n+ig\\sqrt{2}(A_i^\\dagger T^a_{ij}\\psi_j\\lambda^a-\\lambda^{\\dagger a}\\psi^\\dagger_i T^a_{ij} A_j)\n \\\\\n&\n+F_i\\frac{dW}{dA_i}+F^\\dagger_i\\left(\\frac{dW}{dA_i}\\right)^\\dagger\n-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} \\frac{d^2 W}{dA_i dA_j}\\psi_i\\psi_j-\n\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} \\left(\\frac{d^2 W}{dA_i dA_j}\\right)^\\dagger\\psi^\\dagger_i\\psi^\\dagger_j \\,,\n\\end{split}\n\\label{eq:LSUSYcomponents}\n\\end{align}\nwhere there is an implicit sum over repeated indices, and \nthe labels $i$ and $j$ run over $1,2,\\ldots, d$.\nThe corresponding covariant derivative, when acting\non the component fields $A_i$ and $\\psi_i$, is $\\mathcal{D}_\\mu=\\mathds{1}\\partial_\\mu+igT^a V_\\mu^a$,\nwhere $\\mathds{1}$ is the $d\\times d$ identity matrix and the generators $T^a$ are in the reducible \nrepresentation $R$ of the group G.\n\nNote that the interactions of the matter fermions and the gauginos\nwith the gauge fields are dictated by gauge invariance (via the\ngauge covariant derivative) and do not depend on supersymmetry.\nIn contrast, the Yukawa interaction of the gaugino with the matter\nfermion and its scalar partner (with a coupling proportional to the gauge\ncoupling $g$) is a consequence of supersymmetry, and relates\nthe gauge and Yukawa couplings that otherwise would be independent.\n\n\nWe can now eliminate the auxiliary fields $F_i$ and $D^a$ by employing the\nLagrange field equations. We end up with\n\\begin{align}\nF_i=-\\left(\\frac{dW}{dA_i}\\right)^\\dagger\\,,\\qquad\\quad D^a=-gA_i^\\dagger T^a_{ij} A_j\\,.\\label{FandD}\n\\end{align}\nSubstituting back into \\eq{eq:LSUSYcomponents} yields the following scalar potential,\n\\begin{align}\nV_{\\rm scalar}=\\sum_i \\left|\\frac{dW}{dA_i}\\right|^2+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} g^2(A_i^\\dagger T^a_{ij} A_j)^2\\,.\\label{vscalar3}\n\\end{align}\nEquivalently, we can write:\n\\begin{align}\nV_{\\rm scalar}=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} D^a D^a+\\sum_i F_i^\\dagger F_i\\,.\\label{vscalar4}\n\\end{align}\n\\Eqs{vscalar3}{vscalar4} provide the nonabelian generalization of\n\\eqs{vscalar1}{vscalar2}. As in the abelian case, $V_{\\rm scalar}\\geq 0$.\n\n\n\nIf we drop the requirement of renormalizability, then we can generalize the action of a SUSY-Yang Mills theory coupled to supermatter,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\mathscr{L} &=&\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\int d^4\\theta \\bigl[K(e^{2gV}\\Phi\\,,\\, \\Phi^\\dagger) +\nK(\\Phi\\,,\\, \\Phi^\\dagger e^{2gV})\\bigr] \n+\\left[\\int d^2\\theta\\,W(\\Phi_i)+{\\rm h.c.}\\right]\\nonumber \\\\\n&& +\\left[\\tfrac14\\int d^2\\theta\\,f_{ab}(\\Phi) \\mathcal{W}^{\\alpha\n a}\\mathcal{W}^b_\\alpha+{\\rm h.c.}\\right] \\label{susykahler}\n\\,,\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nwhere $K$ is the K\\\"ahler potential and $f_{ab}(\\Phi)$ is a holomorphic function of the chiral superfields called the \\textit{gauge kinetic function}.\nIn renormalizable global supersymmetry, the minimal versions of the K\\\"ahler potential and gauge kinetic function are used:\n\\begin{align}\nK(e^{2gV}\\Phi\\,,\\, \\Phi^\\dagger) &=\nK(\\Phi\\,,\\, \\Phi^\\dagger e^{2gV})=\\Phi^\\dagger e^{2gV}\\Phi\\,,\\\\\nf_{ab}(\\Phi) &=\\delta_{ab}\\,.\n\\end{align}\n\nThe generalization of the SUSY Lagrangian to a theory based on a\ngauge group that is a direct product of compact simple Lie groups and\nU(1) factors is straightforward. There is a gauge field strength\ntensor and a separate gauge coupling constant\ncorresponding to each group in the direct product. Details are left\nfor the reader.\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Problems}\n\\begin{problem}\nShow that $\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha$ is invariant under the gauge transformation of \\eq{eq:Vgaugetransform}.\n\\end{problem}\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:invKE}\nShow that the kinetic energy term given by \\eq{eq:LKE} is invariant under the gauge transformations for $\\Phi$ and $\\Phi^\\dagger$ given in \\eq{eq:Phigauge} and $V\\to V+i(\\Lambda-\\Lambda^\\dagger)$.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:SUSYQED}\nConstruct the full SUSY QED Lagrangian in the Wess-Zumino gauge. Show that the physical states of the theory consist of a Dirac fermion (the ``electron''), two complex scalar ``selectrons,'' usually denoted by $\\widetilde e_L$ and $\\widetilde e_R$, a massless photon, and a massless photino. \nCheck that the number of bosonic and fermionic degrees of freedom are equal, both off-shell and on-shell.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\nConsider the SUSY QED theory examined in Problem~\\ref{pr:SUSYQED}.\nHowever, this time\ndo \\textit{not} impose the Wess-Zumino gauge condition. Instead, explore the consequences of adding the following supersymmetric gauge fixing term\\cite{Ovrut:1981wa,Miller:1983pg,Dine:2016rxc}, \n\\begin{align}\n\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm GF}=-\\frac{1}{8\\alpha}\\bigl[(D^2 V)(\\overline{D}\\lsup2 V)\\bigr]_D\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\alpha$ is the gauge fixing parameter.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\nStarting from the case where the gauge group G is nonabelian, show\nthat the gauge transformation law for the gauge superfield~$V$, as\ndeduced from \\eq{eq:Vnonabelian}, reduces to\n$V\\rightarrow V+i(\\Lambda-\\Lambda^\\dagger)$ in the abelian limit.\nLikewise, show that $\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha$ as given in \\eq{eq:Wnonabelian} reduces to\n$\\mathcal{W}_\\alpha=-\\tfrac{1}{4} {\\overline{D}}^{2} D_\\alpha V $ in the abelian limit.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\nEvaluate the contribution of the K\\\"ahler potential terms to the\nLagrangian given in \\eq{susykahler} in terms of the component fields.\nShow that your result reduces to \\eq{kahler} in the limit of $g\\to 0$. \n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\nEvaluate the contribution of the gauge kinetic function terms\nto the\nLagrangian given in \\eq{susykahler} in terms of the component fields.\nHow does your result simplify in the abelian limit?\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\nStarting from \\eq{susykahler}, solve for the auxiliary fields $F_i$\nand~$D^a$ using the Lagrange field equations. Using these results, determine the form of the scalar\npotential that generalizes the results of \\eqs{vscalar3}{vscalar4}.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\n\\section{\\hbox{Supersymmetric extension of the Standard Model (MSSM)}}\n\\label{sec:MSSM}\n\\renewcommand{\\theequation}{\\arabic{section}.\\arabic{equation}}\n\\setcounter{equation}{0}\n\nWith the necessary SUSY technology now in hand, we are ready to study its realization in extensions to the SM. \nIn this section, we describe the minimal supersymmetric extension of\nthe Standard Model (MSSM). Much of the presentation of this section\nfollows Ref.\\cite{susy}, where many of the relevant references to the\noriginal literature can be found.\n\nIn Section~\\ref{sec:MSSMfields}, we begin by presenting the MSSM\nfield content. We then specify the\nSU(3)$\\times$SU(2)$\\times$U(1) gauge-invariant superpotential for the\nchiral superfields in Section~\\ref{sec:MSSMW}. Given the superfield formalism developed in\nSections~\\ref{sec:superspace} and \\ref{sec:gaugetheories}, all the\nsupersymmetric interactions of the theory are now determined.\nAt this stage, the supersymmetry is still an exact symmetry.\n\nWe introduce SUSY breaking in the MSSM in Section~\\ref{sec:MSSMSSB}.\nSince the fundamental origin of SUSY-breaking is \nunknown, we parametrize the SUSY-breaking by adding all possible\nsoft-SUSY-breaking terms consistent with the SU(3)$\\times$SU(2)$\\times$U(1)\ngauge symmetry and a discrete $B-L$ symmetry. In\nSection~\\ref{sec:count}, we count the number of\nparameters that govern the MSSM.\nThe resulting MSSM particle spectrum and Higgs boson spectrum are\nexhibited in Sections~\\ref{sec:MSSMspectrum} and \\ref{higgssector}, respectively.\nFinally, in Section~\\ref{sec:MSSMGU}, we demonstrate the unification of\ngauge couplings in the MSSM. \n\nAs in the SM, the neutrinos of the MSSM are massless.\nTo incorporate massive neutrinos, one can introduce \nright-handed neutrinos and employ the seesaw mechanism. It is then\na simple matter to extend the MSSM by adding a SM singlet superfield\nthat contains a right-handed neutrino and the corresponding sneutrino\nsuperpartner. We shall not present this construction in these\nlectures; for further details, see e.g.~Ref.\\cite{Dedes:2007ef}.\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Field content of the MSSM}\n\\label{sec:MSSMfields}\n\n\\subsubsection{MSSM superfields and their component fields}\nThe minimal supersymmetric extension of the Standard Model (MSSM)\ncontains the fields of the\ntwo-Higgs-doublet extension of the SM\nand their corresponding superpartners.\nThe gauge fields and their superpartners are contained in real vector supermultiplets.\nThese gauge supermultiplets consist of the \nSU(3)$\\times$SU(2)$\\times$U(1) gauge bosons and their\ngaugino fermionic superpartners.\nThe matter fields and their superpartners reside in chiral supermultiplets.\nThe three generations of quark and lepton supermultiplets\nconsist of left-handed\nquarks and leptons and\ntheir scalar superpartners (squarks and sleptons),\nand the corresponding antiparticles. \nThe Higgs supermultiplets\nconsist of two complex Higgs doublets, their\nhiggsino fermionic superpartners, and the\ncorresponding antiparticles.\nThe MSSM fields and their gauge quantum\nnumbers are shown in Table~\\ref{tab:MSSMcontent}. \n\\vskip -0.05in\n\\begin{table}[h!]\n\\caption{\\small\nThe fields of the MSSM and their\nSU(3)$\\times$SU(2)$\\times$U(1) quantum numbers are listed.\nThe electric charge is given in terms of the third component of\nthe weak isospin $T_3$ and U(1) hypercharge $Y$ by\n$Q=T_3+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} Y$.\nFor simplicity, only one generation of quarks and leptons is exhibited.\nThe left-handed charge-conjugated quark and lepton fields are denoted\nby a superscript $c$. In particular, $f^c_L\\equiv\nP_Lf^c=P_LC\\bar{f}\\lsup{\\,{\\mathsf T}}=C\\bar{f}_R\\lsup{\\,{\\mathsf T}}$, following\nthe notation of Ref.\\cite{Langacker:1980js}, where $f$ is a\nfour-component fermion field.\nThe $L$ and $R$ subscripts\nof the squark and slepton fields indicate the chirality of the\ncorresponding fermionic superpartners.\n \\label{tab:MSSMcontent} }\n\\vskip 0.1in\n\\begin{tabular}{|c|c|c|c|c|c|c|} \\hline\n\\multicolumn{7}{|c|}{Field content of the MSSM} \\\\ \\hline\nSuper- & Super- & Bosonic & Fermionic & & & \\\\\nmultiplets & field & fields & partners &\nSU(3) & SU(2) & U(1) \\\\ \\hline\ngluon\/gluino & $\\widehat V_8$ & $g$ & $\\widetilde g$ & 8 & 1& $\\phantom{-} 0$ \\\\\ngauge boson\/ & $\\widehat V$ & $W^\\pm\\,,\\,W^0$ & $\\widetilde W^\\pm\\,,\\widetilde W^0$ & 1 & 3 & $\\phantom{-} 0$ \\\\\ngaugino & $\\widehat V^\\prime$ & $B$ & $\\widetilde B$ & 1 &1 & $\\phantom{-} 0$ \\\\ \\hline\nslepton\/ & $\\widehat L$ &$(\\widetilde\\nu_L, \\widetilde e^-_L)$ & $(\\nu,e^-)_L$ & 1 & 2 & $-1$ \\\\\nlepton & $\\widehat E^c$ & $\\tilde e^+_R$ & $e_L^c$ & 1 & 1 & $\\phantom{-}\n 2$ \\\\ \\hline\nsquark\/ & $\\widehat Q$ & $(\\widetilde u_L,\\widetilde d_L)$ & $(u,d)_L$ & 3 &2 & $\\phantom{-} 1\/3$ \\\\\nquark & $\\widehat U^c$ & $\\widetilde u_R^*$ & $u_L^c$ & $\\bar{3}$ &1 & $-4\/3$ \\\\\n & $\\widehat D^c$ & $\\widetilde d_R^*$ & $d_L^c$ & $\\bar{3}$ & 1 & $\\phantom{-} 2\/3$ \\\\ \\hline\nHiggs boson\/ & $\\widehat H_d$ & $(H^0_d\\,,\\,H_d^-)$ & $(\\widetilde H^0_d,\\widetilde H^-_d)$ & 1 & 2 & $-1$ \\\\ \nhiggsino & $\\widehat H_u$ & $(H^+_u\\,,\\,H^0_u)$ & $(\\widetilde H^+_u,\\widetilde H^0_u)$ & 1 & 2 & $\\phantom{-} 1$ \\\\ \\hline\n \\end{tabular}\n \\end{table}\n %\n\nTable~\\ref{tab:MSSMcontent} shows that one Higgs doublet superfield has hypercharge $-1$, and the other has hypercharge $+1$.\nThe distinction between hypercharge $\\pm 1$ is irrelevant in a\n non-supersymmetric quantum field theory, where complex scalar fields are\n always accompanied by their hermitian conjugates. However, in\nsupersymmetric models the distinction is important, because \nthe corresponding Higgs superfields are used to construct the\nsuperpotential. Since the superpotential \nmust be holomorphic, \\textit{i.e.}~depend only on chiral superfields and not\ntheir hermitian conjugates, it is important to keep track of the\nquantum numbers of the chiral superfields of the model.\n\n\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Anomaly cancellation and the second Higgs doublet}\n\\label{sec:ac}\n\nThe enlarged Higgs sector of the MSSM constitutes the minimal structure\nneeded to guarantee the cancellation of gauge\nanomalies generated by the \nhiggsino superpartners that can appear as internal lines in one-loop triangle diagrams with\nthree external electroweak gauge bosons.\n\nPotentially problematic anomalies arise from \none-loop $VVA$ and $AAA$ triangle diagrams with three external gauge bosons, and fermions running around the loop [where $V$ refers to a $\\gamma_\\mu$ (vector) vertex and $A$ refers to a $\\gamma_\\mu\\gamma\\ls{5}$ (axial vector) vertex].\nAn anomalous theory violates unitarity and fails as a consistent quantum field theory.\nThus, we need to make sure all gauge anomalies cancel when summed over\nall triangle diagrams with fixed external gauge fields\\cite{anomalies}. \n\nThe anomalies will cancel if \ncertain group theoretical constraints are satisfied. \nIn particular, the trace of the product of the relevant generators appearing at\nthe external vertices must vanish,\n\\begin{align}\n&\nW^i W^j B~\\text{triangle} \\qquad\\Longleftrightarrow \\qquad \\Tr(T_3^2 Y)=0\\,,\\nonumber \\\\\n&\nBBB~\\text{triangle} \\,\\,\\quad\\qquad\\Longleftrightarrow \\qquad\\quad\\!\\! \\Tr(Y^3)=0\\,.\\nonumber\n\\end{align}\nIn the Standard Model, the fermion contributions to \n $\\Tr(Y^3)$ sum to zero:\n\\begin{align}\n\\Tr(Y^3)_{\\rm SM}=3\\left(\\tfrac{1}{27}+\\tfrac{1}{27}-\\tfrac{64}{27}+\\tfrac{8}{27}\\right)-1-1+8=0\\,.\n\\end{align}\nIn contrast, in the MSSM, \nif we only add the higgsinos $(\\widetilde{H}_u^+ \\,,\\,\\widetilde{H}_u^0)$, the resulting\nanomaly factor is\n$\n\\Tr (Y^3)=\\Tr(Y^3)_{\\rm SM}+2,\n$\nleading to a gauge anomaly. To cancel this, we must add a second higgsino doublet with opposite hypercharge, $(\\widetilde{H}_d^0 \\,,\\,\\widetilde{H}_d^-)$.\n\nThere is an independent argument for requiring the second Higgs\ndoublet in the MSSM.\nWith only one Higgs doublet, one cannot\ngenerate mass for both ``up''-type and ``down''-type\nquarks (and charged leptons)\nin a way that is consistent with a holomorphic superpotential.\n\n\\subsubsection{Suppressed baryon and lepton number violation}\n\\label{sec:bml}\n\nIt is an experimental fact that baryon number $B$ and lepton number\n$L$ are, to a very good approximation, global symmetries of nature.\nIf neutrinos are Majorana fermions, then $L$-violation is present but strongly\nsuppressed, with neutrino masses of order $v^2\/M$, where $v$ is the\nscale of electroweak symmetry breaking and $M\\gg v$. No $B$-violation\nhas yet been experimentally observed. Moreover, the\ncurrent bounds on the\nproton lifetime suggest that the mass scale associated with baryon\nnumber violation cannot be below about $10^{16}$~GeV, which is a\ncharacteristic scale of grand unification.\n \nOne of the remarkable features of the SM is that the suppression of $B$ and $L$-violating\nprocesses is a natural feature of the model.\nThat is, the SM Lagrangian possesses an accidental\nglobal \\hbox{$B\\!\\!-\\!\\!L$} symmetry due to the fact that \nall renormalizable terms of the Lagrangian (with dimension four or less) \nthat can be composed of SM fields preserve the $B$ and $L$\nglobal symmetries. Indeed, $B$ and\n$L$-violating operators composed of SM fields must have\ndimension $d=5$ or\nlarger\\cite{Weinberg:1979sa,Wilczek:1979hc,Weldon:1980gi}.\n\nFor example, consider the dimension-five $L$-violating operator,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{L5}\n\\mathscr{L}_5=-\\frac{f_{mn}}{M}(\\epsilon^{ij}L_i^mH_j)(\\epsilon^{k\\ell}L_k^n\nH_\\ell)+{\\rm h.c.}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $f$ is a coefficient that depends on the lepton generation (labeled by\n$m$ and $n$), $H_j$ is the complex Higgs doublet field and $L_i^a\\equiv\n(\\nu_L^a\\,,\\,\\ell_L^a)$ is the doublet \nof two-component lepton fields. \nAfter electroweak symmetry breaking, the neutral component\nof the doublet Higgs\nfield acquires a vacuum expectation value, and a Majorana mass\nmatrix for the neutrinos is generated. The dimension-five term given\nby \\eq{L5}\nis generated by new physics beyond\nthe SM at the scale $M$. Likewise, one can construct dimension-six \n$B$-violating operators composed of SM fields that allow, e.g.,\nfor proton decay, which is suppressed by $v^2\/M_{\\rm G}^2$. Such \nterms can be generated, e.g., in grand unified theories with a\ncharacteristic mass scale $M_{\\rm G}$.\nIn general, $B$ and\n$L$-violating effects are suppressed by $(v\/M)^{d-4}$, where\n$M$ is the characteristic mass scale of the physics that generates the\ncorresponding higher dimensional operator (of dimension $d$). \n\nUnfortunately, the suppression of $B$ and $L$-violation is not guaranteed in a generic\nsupersymmetric extension of the Standard Model. For example, it is\npossible to construct gauge invariant supersymmetric dimension-four\n$B$ and $L$-violating operators made up of fields of SM\nparticles and their superpartners. Such operators, if present in the\ntheory, would yield a proton decay rate many orders of magnitude\nlarger than the current experimental bound. \nTo avoid this catastrophic prediction, one can\nintroduce an additional symmetry\nin the supersymmetric theory that will eliminate the $B$ and\n$L$-violating operators of dimension\n$d\\leq 4$. Further details are provided in the next subsection.\nNevertheless, one must admit that the SM provides a more satisfying\nexplanation for approximate $B$ and $L$ conservation than does its\nsupersymmetric extension.\n\n\\subsection{The superpotential of the MSSM}\n\\label{sec:MSSMW}\nGiven the chiral and gauge superfield content of the MSSM, we must now specify the superpotential. The most general SU(3)$\\times$SU(2)$\\times$U(1) gauge-invariant superpotential (omitting the right-handed neutrino superfield) is\n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{split}\nW = &\\ (h_u)_{mn} \\widehat{Q}_m\\!\\cdot\\! \\widehat{H}_u\\, \\widehat{U}_n^c + (h_d)_{mn} \\widehat{H}_d\\!\\cdot\\!\\widehat{Q}_m\\, \\widehat{D}_n^c \\\\\n& + (h_e)_{mn} \\widehat{H}_d \\!\\cdot\\!\\widehat{L}_m\\,\\widehat{E}_n^c +\\mu \\widehat{H}_u\\!\\cdot\\! \\widehat{H}_d\\,+\\,W_{\\rm RPV},\\label{MSSMsuperpot}\n\\end{split}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $m$ and $n$ label the generations. That is, $h_u$, $h_d$ and $h_e$ are $3\\times 3$ matrix Yukawa couplings. Note that color indices have been suppressed, and we\n employ a dot product notation for the singlet combination of two SU(2) doublets. For example,\n\\begin{equation}\n \\widehat{H}_u\\!\\cdot\\! \\widehat{H}_d \\equiv \\epsilon^{ij}\\widehat{H}_{u\\,\\!i} \\widehat{H}_{d\\,\\!j}\n =\\widehat{H}_u^+ \\widehat{H}_d^--\\widehat{H}_u^0 \\widehat{H}_d^0\\,.\n \\end{equation}\nThe so-called $\\mu$-term above is the supersymmetric analog\nof the Higgs boson squared-mass term of the SM. \n\nIn addition to the supersymmetric generalization of the SM Yukawa\ncouplings and the $\\mu$-term, \nthe gauge symmetries of the superpotential also allow for a number of new terms that violate $B-L$ conservation.\nAs discussed in Section~\\ref{sec:bml},\nthis is in contrast to the SM where there are no $B$ or\n$L$-violating interactions at the renormalizable level.\nThe $B-L$ violating terms of the supersymmetric model arise due to the presence of $W_{\\rm RPV}$ in \\eq{MSSMsuperpot} and are\ngiven by,\n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{split}\nW_{\\rm RPV}=&\\ \n(\\lambda_L)_{pmn} \\widehat L_p \\widehat L_m \\widehat E^c_n\n+ (\\lambda_L^\\prime)_{pmn}\\widehat L_p \\widehat Q_m\\widehat D^c_n \\\\\n& +(\\lambda_B)_{pmn}\\widehat U^c_p \\widehat D^c_m \\widehat D^c_n\n+(\\mu_L)_p \\widehat H_u\\widehat L_p\\,.\n\\end{split}\n\\end{align}\nNote that the term \nproportional to $\\lambda_B$ violates $B$, while the other three terms\nviolate $L$. \nThe $L$-violating term proportional to $\\mu_L$ is the generalization of the\n$\\mu \\widehat H_u\\widehat H_d$ term,\nin which the $Y=-1$ Higgs supermultiplet $\\widehat H_d$ is replaced\nby the lepton supermultiplet $\\widehat L_p$. Indeed, if $L$ violation\nis present, then there is no distinction between $\\widehat{L}$ and $\\widehat{H}_d$, since the gauge quantum numbers of these two superfields are identical.\n\n\nIf all terms in $W_{\\rm RPV}$ were allowed, the resulting model would predict \na proton decay rate many orders of magnitude larger than the current\nexperimental bound.\nThis can be avoided by imposing an appropriate discrete symmetry that\nwould eliminate the undesirable terms in $W$.\n\nThe standard choice in constructing the MSSM is to set $W_{RPV}=0$.\nThere are a number of ways to accomplish this. First, one\none could directly impose a $B-L$ symmetry.\nAlternatively, one can set $W_{RPV}=0$ by introducing a matter parity, under which $\\widehat Q$, $\\widehat U^c$, $\\widehat D^c$, $\\widehat L$ and $\\widehat E^c$ are odd, and $\\widehat H_u$ and $\\widehat H_d$ are even. \nFinally, a third option is to impose an $R$-invariant superpotential. As discussed in Section~\\ref{Rinvariance},\n$W$ is $R$-invariant if the $R$ charges of the chiral superfields are\nchosen such that $R(W)=2$. Thus, if we choose $R$ charges of $+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$\nfor $\\widehat Q$, $\\widehat U^c$, $\\widehat D^c$, $\\widehat L$, $\\widehat E^c$ and $R$ charges\nof $+1$ for $\\widehat H_u$, $\\widehat H_d$, then the condition of $R$-invariance\nsets $W_{\\rm RPV}=0$.\n\nOne has to make sure that whichever symmetry one chooses to set\n$W_{\\rm RPV}=0$ is also consistent with the soft-SUSY-breaking terms\nthat are subsequently added to the model. In particular, in the case of the $R$-invariance, recall that $R(\\lambda)=1$, which forbids the gaugino mass term,\n\\begin{align}\nm_\\lambda(\\lambda\\lambda+\\lambda^\\dagger\\lambda^\\dagger).\\label{eq:gauginomass}\n\\end{align}\nBut phenomenology requires massive gauginos. This motivates the use of $R$-parity, described in the following subsection, rather than $R$-invariance.\n\n\n\\subsubsection{$R$-parity}\nThe gaugino mass term in \\eq{eq:gauginomass}\nis an allowed soft-SUSY-breaking term.\nIf this term is added \nto a theory with an $R$-invariant superpotential, then\nthe continuous U(1)$_R$ symmetry is broken down to a discrete $\\mathbb{Z}_2$ symmetry,\ncalled {$R$-parity}\\cite{Fayet:1976et,Farrar:1978xj}. One can check that the $R$-parity of a particle with baryon number $B$, lepton number $L$ and spin $S$ is given by\n\\begin{align}\nR=(-1)^{3(B-L)+2S}\\,.\\label{Rparity}\n\\end{align}\nIt is sufficient to impose $R$-parity invariance in order to set $W_{\\rm\n RPV}=0$,\\footnote{The effects of imposing matter parity and\n $R$-parity in the MSSM are identical for all\n renormalizable interactions.} \nwhich is equivalent to imposing the $B-L$ discrete symmetry.\nFor the remainder of these lectures, we shall assume that $R$-parity\nis conserved. \n\nOne can use \\eq{Rparity} to deduce the $R$-parity quantum numbers of\nall SM particles and their supersymmetric partners,\n\\begin{align}\nR=\\begin{cases} +1\\,, & \\quad \\text{for all SM particle particles}\\,,\\\\\n-1\\,,& \\quad \\text{for all superpartners}\\,.\\end{cases}\n\\end{align}\nThe conservation of $R$-parity in scattering\nand decay processes has a critical impact on supersymmetric\nphenomenology. \n For example, any initial state in a scattering\nexperiment will involve ordinary ($R$-even) particles.\nConsequently, it follows that supersymmetric particles must be\nproduced in pairs. In general, these particles are highly unstable\nand decay into lighter states. Moreover, $R$-parity invariance\nalso implies that\nthe lightest supersymmetric particle (LSP) is absolutely\nstable, and must eventually be produced\nat the end of a decay chain initiated by the decay of a heavy unstable\nsupersymmetric particle.\n\nIn order to be consistent with cosmological constraints, a stable LSP\nis almost certainly electrically and color neutral.\nConsequently, the LSP in an $R$-parity-conserving theory is weakly\ninteracting with ordinary matter, \\textit{i.e}\\!., it behaves like a stable heavy\nneutrino and will escape collider detectors without being directly\nobserved. Thus, the canonical signature for conventional\n$R$-parity-conserving supersymmetric theories is missing (transverse)\nenergy, due to the escape of the LSP. Moreover,\nthe stability of the LSP in $R$-parity-conserving supersymmetry\nmakes it a promising candidate for dark matter.\n\n\\subsubsection{MSSM parameters of the SUSY-conserving sector}\nThe parameters of the SUSY-conserving\nsector consist of: (i)~gauge couplings, $g_s$, $g$, and $g'$,\ncorresponding\nto the Standard Model gauge group SU(3)$\\times$SU(2)$\\times$U(1)\nrespectively; (ii)~a\nSUSY-conserving higgsino mass parameter\n$\\mu$; and (iii)~Higgs-fermion Yukawa coupling constants,\n$\\lambda_u$, $\\lambda_d$, and $\\lambda_e$, corresponding to\nthe couplings of one generation of left- and right-handed\nquarks and leptons and their\nsuperpartners to the Higgs bosons and higgsinos. Because there is no\nright-handed neutrino (or its superpartner) in the MSSM as defined\nhere, a Yukawa coupling $\\lambda_\\nu$ is not included.\nThe complex $\\mu$ parameter and Yukawa couplings\nenter via the most general renormalizable $R$-parity-conserving\nsuperpotential given by \\eq{MSSMsuperpot} with $W_{\\rm RPV}=0$.\n\n\n\nOne can now obtain the scalar potential from \\eq{vscalar4} as applied to\nthe MSSM,\n\\begin{align}\nV_{\\rm scalar}=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\bigl[D^a D^a+(D')^2\\bigr]+F_i^* F_i\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhere the index $a$ runs over the SU(3) and SU(2) gauge indices and\n$D'$ is the U(1)$_Y$ $D$-term.\nFocusing on the terms that depend on the Higgs boson fields, one\nobtains,\n\\clearpage\n\n\\begin{align}\nV_{\\rm Higgs}=|\\mu|^2\\bigl[|H_d|^2+|H_u|^2\\bigr]+\\tfrac18(g^2+g^{\\prime\\,2})\\bigl[|H_d|^2-|H_u|^2\\bigr]^2\n+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} g^2|H_d^* H_u|^2\\,.\n\\end{align}\nClearly $\\vev{V_{\\rm Higgs}}\\equiv\\vev{0|V_{\\rm Higgs}|0}\\geq 0$, as expected. Moreover, $H_d=H_u=0$ minimizes the\nHiggs scalar potential, which yields $\\vev{V_{\\rm Higgs}}=0$, corresponding to a supersymmetric vacuum. Thus, there is no SU(2)$\\times$U(1) breaking at this stage.\nBut after introducing soft SUSY-breaking terms, some of which involve\nthe Higgs fields, it will then be possible to spontaneously break the\nSU(2)$\\times$U(1) symmetry. Consequently, SUSY breaking and electroweak symmetry breaking are intimately related in the MSSM.\n\n\n\\subsection{Supersymmetry breaking in the MSSM}\n\\label{sec:MSSMSSB}\n\nFollowing the rules of Girardello and Grisaru\\cite{Girardello:1981wz}\nthat were presented in Section~\\ref{GGrules}, we add the\nsoft-SUSY-breaking terms, consistent with the\nSU(3)$\\times$SU(2)$\\times$U(1) gauge symmetry and the assumed\n$R$-parity invariance (for a review, see Ref.\\cite{Chung:2003fi}). For simplicity, we consider in this section the case of one generation of quarks,\nleptons, and their scalar superpartners.\n\nThe supersymmetry-breaking\nsector contains the following sets of parameters:\n(i)~three complex\ngaugino Majorana mass parameters, $M_3$, $M_2$, and $M_1$, associated with\nthe SU(3), SU(2), and U(1) subgroups of the Standard Model;\n(ii)~five squark and slepton squared-mass parameters, $M^2_{\\widetilde Q}$,\n$M^2_{\\widetilde U}$, $M^2_{\\widetilde D}$, $M^2_{\\widetilde L}$, and $M^2_{\\widetilde E}$,\ncorresponding to the superpartners of the five electroweak multiplets of\nleft-handed fermion fields and their charge-conjugates, $(u, d)_L$, $u^c_L$,\n$d^c_L$, $(\\nu$, $e^-)_L$, and $e^c_L$\n[cf.~Table~\\ref{tab:MSSMcontent}]; and\n(iii)~three Higgs-squark-squark and Higgs-slepton-slepton trilinear\ninteraction terms, with complex coefficients $T_U\\equiv\\lambda_u A_U$,\n$T_D\\equiv\\lambda_d A_D$, and $T_E\\equiv\\lambda_e A_E$\n(which define the $A$-parameters). \nFollowing Ref.\\cite{Haber:1993wf}, it is conventional to separate out the\nfactors of the Yukawa couplings in defining the\n$A$-parameters, originally motivated by a simple class of\ngravity-mediated SUSY-breaking\nmodels\\cite{Hall:1983iz,Nilles:1983ge,Martin:1997ns}.\nWith this definition, if the $A$-parameters \nare parametrically of the same order (or smaller) relative\nto other supersymmetry-breaking mass parameters, then\nonly the third generation $A$-parameters will be\nphenomenologically relevant. \n\nFinally, we have\n(iv)~two real squared-mass parameters ($m_1^2$ and~$m_2^2$) and one \ncomplex squared-mass parameter, $m_{12}^2\\equiv \\mu B$\n(the latter defines the $B$-parameter), which appear in the \ntree-level scalar Higgs potential, \n\\begin{Eqnarray}\nV&=&(m_1^2+|\\mu|^2)H_d^\\dagger H_d+(m_2^2+|\\mu|^2)H_u^\\dagger\nH_u+(m_{12}^2H_u H_d+{\\rm\n h.c.}) \\nonumber \\\\\n&&\\qquad\\quad +\\ifmath{\\tfrac18}(g^2+g^{\\prime\\,2})(H_d^\\dagger H_d-H_u^\\dagger\nH_u)^2+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}|H_d^\\dagger H_u|^2\\,.\\label{Hpot}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nNote that the quartic Higgs couplings in \\eq{Hpot} are related to the gauge\ncouplings $g$ and $g'$ as a consequence of supersymmetry.\nThe breaking of the\nelectroweak symmetry SU(2)$\\times$U(1) to U(1)$_{\\rm EM}$ is\nonly possible after introducing the\nsupersymmetry-breaking Higgs squared-mass parameters $m_1^2$, $m_2^2$\n(which can be negative) and $m_{12}^2$.\nAfter minimizing the Higgs scalar potential,\nthese three squared-mass\nparameters can be re-expressed in terms of the two\nHiggs vacuum expectation values, $\\langle H_d^0\\rangle\\equiv v_d\/\\sqrt{2}$ \nand $\\langle H_u^0\\rangle\\equiv v_u\/\\sqrt{2}$,\nand the CP-odd Higgs mass $m_A$ [cf.~\\eqs{minbeta}{minconditions} below]. \nOne is always free to rephase the Higgs doublet fields such that $v_d$\nand $v_u$ are both real and positive.\n\nThe quantity, $v_d^2+v_u^2=\n4m_W^2\/g^2=(2G_F^2)^{-1\/2}\\simeq (246~{\\rm GeV})^2$, is fixed by the\nFermi constant, $G_F$, whereas the ratio\n\\begin{equation} \\label{eqtanbeta}\n\\tan \\beta = \\frac{v_u}{v_d}\n\\end{equation}\nis a free parameter such that $0\\leq\\beta\\leq\\pi\/2$.\nThe tree-level conditions for the scalar potential minimum\nrelate the diagonal and off-diagonal Higgs squared-mass parameters in terms\nof $m^2_Z=\\ifmath{\\tfrac14}(g^2+ g^{\\prime\\,2})(v_d^2+v_u^2)$, the angle~$\\beta$, and\nthe CP-odd Higgs mass $m_A$:\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\sin 2\\beta &=& \\frac{2m_{12}^2}{m_1^2+m_2^2+2|\\mu|^2}=\\frac{2m_{12}^2}{m_A^2}\n\\,, \\label{minbeta} \\\\[6pt]\n\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} m_Z^2 &=& -|\\mu|^2+\\frac{m_1^2-m_2^2\\tan^2\\beta}{\\tan^2\\beta-1}\\,.\n\\label{minconditions}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\n\nAt this stage, one can already see the tension with naturalness, if\nthe SUSY parameters, $|m_1|$, $|m_2|$ and $|\\mu|$, are significantly larger than the scale of\nelectroweak symmetry breaking. In this case, $m_Z^2$ will be the\ndifference of two large numbers, requiring some fine-tuning of the\nSUSY parameters in order to produce the correct $Z$ boson mass. In\nthe literature, this tension is referred to as the little hierarchy\nproblem\\cite{little,little2,little3}, previous noted in Section~\\ref{quadratic}.\nOne must also guard against the existence of \ncharge and\/or color breaking global minima\ndue to non-zero vacuum expectation values for the squark and \ncharged slepton fields. This possibility can be avoided \nif the $A$-parameters are not unduly\nlarge\\cite{AlvarezGaume:1983gj,Frere:1983ag,Derendinger:1983bz,Gunion:1987qv,Chowdhury:2013dka,Hollik:2016dcm,Casas:1995pd}.\nAdditional constraints must also be respected to avoid directions in scalar field space in which\nthe full tree-level scalar potential can become unbounded from below\\cite{Casas:1995pd}.\n\n\\subsection{The MSSM parameter count}\n\\label{sec:count}\n\nThe total number of independent physical parameters\nthat define the MSSM (in its most general form) is\nquite large, primarily due to the\nsoft-supersymmetry-breaking sector. In particular, in the case of\nthree generations of quarks, leptons, and their superpartners,\n$M^2_{\\widetilde Q}$,\n$M^2_{\\widetilde U}$, $M^2_{\\widetilde D}$, $M^2_{\\widetilde L}$, and $M^2_{\\widetilde E}$\nare hermitian $3\\times 3$ matrices, and\n$A_U$, $A_D$, and $A_E$ are complex $3\\times 3$\nmatrices. In addition, $M_1$, $M_2$, $M_3$, $B$, and $\\mu$\nare in general complex parameters. Finally, as in the Standard Model, the\nHiggs-fermion Yukawa couplings, $\\lambda_f$ ($f\\!=\\!u$, $d$, and $e$),\nare complex $3\\times 3$ matrices that\nare related to the quark and lepton mass matrices via: $M_f=\\lambda_f\nv_f\/\\sqrt{2}$, where $v_e\\equiv v_d$ [with $v_u$ and $v_d$ as defined\nabove \\eq{eqtanbeta}].\n\nHowever, not all these parameters are physical.\nSome of the MSSM parameters can be eliminated by\nexpressing interaction eigenstates in terms of the mass eigenstates,\nwith an appropriate redefinition of the MSSM fields to remove unphysical\ndegrees of freedom. The analysis of Refs.\\cite{Dimopoulos:1995ju,Haber:2000jh} shows that the MSSM\npossesses 124 independent parameters. Of these, 18\ncorrespond to SM parameters\n(including the QCD vacuum angle, $\\theta_{\\rm QCD}$), one corresponds to\na Higgs sector parameter (the analogue of the SM\nHiggs mass), and 105 are genuinely new parameters of the model.\nThe latter include: five real parameters and three CP-violating phases in\nthe gaugino\/higgsino sector, 21 squark and slepton masses,\n36 real mixing angles to define the\nsquark and slepton mass eigenstates, and 40 CP-violating phases that\ncan appear in the squark and slepton interactions.\n\nUnfortunately, without additional restrictions on the 124 parameters,\nthe MSSM is not a\nphenomenologically viable theory. In particular, a generic point of\nthe MSSM parameter space typically exhibits:\n(i)~no conservation of the separate lepton numbers\n$L_e$, $L_\\mu$, and $L_\\tau$; (ii)~unsuppressed\nflavor-changing neutral currents (FCNCs)\\cite{Georgi:1986ku,Hall:1985dx};\nand (iii)~new sources of CP~violation\\cite{Khalil:2002qp} that are\ninconsistent with the experimental bounds.\nFor example, the strong suppression of FCNCs observed in nature implies\nthat the off-diagonal matrix elements of\nthe soft-SUSY-breaking squark and slepton squared-mass matrices\nare highly constrained\\cite{Chung:2003fi,RamseyMusolf:2006vr}.\n\nIn practice, various simplifying assumptions are imposed \non the SUSY-breaking sector to reduce the\nnumber of parameters to a more manageable form, such that\nthe constraints imposed by lepton and quark flavor changing and\nCP-violating processes are satisfied. For example,\nspecific models of gravity-mediated and gauge-mediated supersymmetry\nbreaking\\footnote{One of the benefits of GMSB models\n is that the SUSY-breaking is transmitted to the MSSM sector via\n gauge boson exchange, which is automatically flavor-conserving.} \nintroduce a small number of fundamental parameters that provide the\nsource for SUSY-breaking for the MSSM,\nconsistent with the constraints due to flavor and CP violation.\nMore details can be found in Ref.\\cite{susy}.\n\nAn alternative approach, called the phenomenological MSSM (pMSSM) has\nbeen introduced\\cite{Djouadi:2002ze,Berger:2008cq}, which attempts to\nidentify the parameters most relevant for phenomenology, subject to\na number of simplifying assumptions.\nThe pMSSM is governed by 19 independent real supersymmetric\nparameters: the three gaugino\nmass parameters $M_1$, $M_2$ and $M_3$, the Higgs sector parameters $m_A$ and\n$\\tan\\beta$, the Higgsino mass parameter $\\mu$, five squark and slepton\nsquared-mass parameters for the degenerate first and second\ngenerations ($M^2_{\\widetilde Q}$, $M^2_{\\widetilde U}$, $M^2_{\\widetilde D}$,\n$M^2_{\\widetilde L}$ and $M^2_{\\widetilde E}$), the five\ncorresponding squark and slepton squared-mass parameters for\nthe third generation, and three third-generation $A$-parameters\n($A_t$, $A_b$ and $A_\\tau$).\\footnote{In Ref.\\cite{deVries:2015hva}, the number of pMSSM parameters\nis reduced to ten by assuming one common squark mass parameter for the\nfirst two generations, a second common squark mass parameter for the third\ngeneration, a common slepton mass parameter, and a common third generation\n$A$ parameter.} \nThe first and second generation $A$-parameters can be neglected as their\nphenomenological consequences are negligible. Such an approach \nassumes that new sources of flavor violation and\/or CP-violation\nare either absent or negligible.\\footnote{The pMSSM approach has been\n recently extended to include additional CP-violating\nSUSY-breaking parameters in Ref.\\cite{Berger:2015eba}.}\n\n\n\\subsection{The MSSM particle spectrum}\n\\label{sec:MSSMspectrum}\n\\subsubsection{ Spin-1\/2 superpartners}\n\nThe superpartners of the gauge and Higgs bosons are fermions,\nwhose names are obtained by appending ``ino'' to the end of the\ncorresponding SM particle name. The gluino is the\ncolor-octet Majorana fermion partner of the gluon\nwith mass $M_{\\widetilde g}=|M_3|$.\nThe superpartners of the electroweak gauge\nand Higgs bosons (the gauginos and higgsinos)\ncan mix due to SU(2)$\\times$U(1) breaking effects. As a result,\nthe physical states of definite mass are model-dependent linear combinations\nof the charged or neutral gauginos and higgsinos,\ncalled charginos and neutralinos, respectively\n(sometimes collectively called electroweakinos).\nThe charginos are Dirac fermions, and\nthe neutralinos are Majorana fermions.\n\n\nThe tree-level mixing of the charged gauginos ($\\widetilde W^\\pm$) and \nhiggsinos ($\\widetilde H_u^+$ and $\\widetilde H_d^-$) is governed \nby a $2\\times 2$ complex\nmass matrix,\n\\begin{align}\nM_C\\equiv \\begin{pmatrix}\n M_2\\quad\n & gv_u\/\\sqrt{2} \\\\\n gv_d\/\\sqrt{2} \\quad\n &\\mu \\end{pmatrix}\\,.\n\\end{align}\nThe physical chargino states and their\nmasses are obtained by\nperforming a singular value decomposition\nof the complex matrix $M_C$ [cf.~\\eq{LTMR}]:\n\\begin{align}\nU^* M_C V^{-1}={\\rm diag}(M_{\\widetilde\\chi^+_1}\\,,\\,M_{\\widetilde\\chi^+_2})\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhere $U$ and $V$ are unitary matrices.\nThe physical chargino states are Dirac fermions and are denoted by\n$\\widetilde\\chi^\\pm_1$ and $\\widetilde\\chi^\\pm_2$. These are linear combinations of the\ncharged gaugino and higgsino states determined\nby the matrix elements of $U$ and $V$.\nThe chargino masses correspond to the singular values of\n$M_C$, \\textit{i.e.}, the positive square roots\nof the eigenvalues of $M_C^\\dagger M_C$,\n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{split}\n\\hspace{-0.1in}\nM^2_{\\widetilde\\chi^+_1,\\widetilde\\chi^+_2}=&\n\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} \\biggl\\{ |\\mu|^2+|M_2|^2+2m_W^2\\\\\n&\\quad\\left.\n\\mp\n\\sqrt{\\left(|\\mu|^2+|M_2|^2+2m_W^2\\right)^2 \n-4 |\\mu M_2 - m_W^2 \\sin2\\beta|^2}\\,\\,\n\\right\\rbrace\\,,\n\\end{split}\n\\end{align}\nwhere the states are ordered such that $M_{\\widetilde\\chi^+_1} \\leq M_{\\widetilde\\chi^+_2}$.\nThe relative phase of $\\mu$ and $M_2$ is physical and potentially observable.\n\nThe tree-level mixing of the neutral gauginos ($\\widetilde B$ and\n$\\widetilde W^0$) and \nhiggsinos ($\\widetilde H_d^0$ and $\\widetilde H_u^0$) is\ngoverned by a $4\\times 4$ complex symmetric mass\nmatrix,\n\\begin{align}\nM_N\\equiv \\begin{pmatrix}\n M_1\\quad & 0 \\quad & -\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} g' v_d \\quad & \\phantom{-}\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} g' v_u \\\\\n 0 \\quad & M_2 \\quad & \\phantom{-}\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} g v_d \\quad & -\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} g v_u \\\\\n-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} g' v_d \\quad & \\phantom{-}\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} g v_d \\quad & 0 \\quad & -\\mu \\\\\n\\phantom{-}\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} g' v_u \\quad & -\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} g v_u \\quad & -\\mu \\quad & 0 \\end{pmatrix}\\,.\n\\end{align}\nTo determine the physical neutralino states and their masses,\none must perform a\nTakagi-diagonalization\nof the complex symmetric matrix $M_N$ [cf.~\\eq{takagidef}]:\n\\begin{align}\nW^T M_N W={\\rm diag}(M_{\\widetilde\\chi^0_1}\\,,\\,M_{\\widetilde\\chi^0_2}\\,,\\,M_{\\widetilde\\chi^0_3}\\,,\\,M_{\\widetilde\\chi^0_4})\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhere $W$ is a unitary matrix.\nThe physical neutralino states are Majorana fermions, and are denoted by\n$\\widetilde\\chi^0_i$ ($i=1,\\ldots 4$), where the states are ordered such that\n$M_{\\widetilde\\chi^0_1}\\leqM_{\\widetilde\\chi^0_2}\\leqM_{\\widetilde\\chi^0_3}\\leqM_{\\widetilde\\chi^0_4}$.\nThe $\\widetilde\\chi^0_i$ are the linear combinations of the\nneutral gaugino and higgsino states determined\nby the matrix elements of $W$.\nThe neutralino masses correspond to the singular values of\n$M_N$, \\textit{i.e.}, the positive square roots\nof the eigenvalues of $M_N^\\dagger M_N$. \n\n\n\\subsubsection{Spin-0 superpartners}\n\nThe superpartners of the quarks and leptons are spin-zero\nbosons: the squarks, charged sleptons,\nand sneutrinos, respectively.\nFor a given Dirac fermion $f$, there are two superpartners, $\\widetilde\nf_L$ and $\\widetilde f_R$, where the $L$ and $R$ subscripts simply identify\nthe scalar partners that are related by supersymmetry to the left-handed and\nright-handed fermions, $f_{L,R}\\equiv\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}(1\\mp\\gamma_5)f$, respectively.\n(There is no $\\widetilde\\nu_R$ in the MSSM.)\nHowever, $\\widetilde f_L$--$\\widetilde f_R$ mixing is possible,\nin which case $\\widetilde f_L$ and $\\widetilde f_R$ are not mass\neigenstates. \n\nWe first consider the squarks and the sleptons.\nFor three generations of squarks, one\nmust diagonalize $6\\times 6$ matrices corresponding\nto the basis $(\\widetilde q_{iL}, \\widetilde q_{iR})$,\nwhere $i=1,2,3$ are the generation\nlabels.\nFor simplicity, only the one-generation case is illustrated\nin detail below.\n\nUsing the notation of the third family, the one-generation\ntree-level squark squared-mass matrix is given by\n\\begin{align}\n\\mathcal{M}^2 =& \\begin{pmatrix}\n M^2_{\\widetilde Q}+ m^2_q+ L_q\\quad\n & m_q X_q^* \\\\\n m_q X_q\\quad\n &M^2_{\\widetilde R}+ m^2_q+ R_q \\end{pmatrix}\\,,\\label{sqmassmat}\n \\end{align} \nwhere\n\\begin{align}\nX_q\\equiv A_q-\\mu^* (\\cot\\beta)^{2T_{3q}}\\,,\n\\end{align} \\label{Xtdef}\nand \n\\begin{align}\nT_{3q}=\\begin{cases} \\phantom{-}\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\,,\\quad \\text{for $q=t$}\\,,\\\\ -\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\,,\\quad \\text{for $q=b$}.\\end{cases}\n\\end{align}\n\n\nThe diagonal squared-masses are governed by soft-SUSY-breaking\nsquared-masses $M^2_{\\widetilde Q}$ and $M^2_{\\widetilde R}\\equiv\nM^2_{\\widetilde U}$ [$M^2_{\\widetilde D}$] for $q=t$~[$b$], the\ncorresponding quark masses $m_t$ [$m_b$], and electroweak correction terms:\n\\begin{align}\nL_q& \\equiv\n(T_{3q}-e_q\\sin^2\\theta_W)m_Z^2\\cos 2\\beta\\,,\\\\\nR_q& \\equiv\ne_q\\sin^2\\theta_W \\,m_Z^2\\cos 2\\beta\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhere $e_q=\\tfrac23$ [$-\\tfrac13$] for $q=t$ [$b$].\n\nThe off-diagonal squark squared-masses are\nproportional to the corresponding quark masses and depend on\n$\\tan\\beta$, the\nsoft-SUSY-breaking $A$-parameters and the higgsino mass parameter\n$\\mu$.\nAssuming that the $A$-parameters\nare parametrically of the same order (or smaller) relative\nto other SUSY-breaking mass parameters, it then follows that\n$\\widetilde q_L$--$\\widetilde q_R$ mixing effects\nare small, with the possible exception of the third generation,\nwhere mixing can be enhanced by factors of $m_t$ and $m_b\\tan\\beta$.\n\n\n\nIn the case of third generation $\\widetilde q_L$--$\\widetilde q_R$\nmixing, the mass eigenstates (denoted by $\\widetilde q_1$ and\n$\\widetilde q_2$, with $m_{\\tilde q_1}m_Z$), the predicted upper bound for $m_h$\nis approximately given by\\cite{Haber:1996fp}\n\\begin{align}\nm_{h}^2{~\\raise.15em\\hbox{$<$}\\kern-.85em\\lower.35em\\hbox{$\\sim$}~} m_Z^2+\\frac{3g^2 m_t^4}{8\\pi^2m_W^2}\\left[\\ln\\left(\\frac{M_S^2}{m_t^2}\\right)+\\frac{X_t^2}{M_S^2}\n\\left(1-\\frac{X_t^2}{12M_S^2}\\right)\\right]\\,, \\label{hradcorr}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $X_t\\equiv A_t-\\mu\\cot\\beta$ governs stop mixing (taking $A_t$\nand $\\mu$ real for simplicity).\nThe Higgs mass upper limit is saturated when\n$\\tan\\beta$ is large [{\\it i.e.}, $\\cos^2 (2\\beta) \\sim 1$] and $X_t=\\sqrt{6}\\,\nM_S$, which defines the so-called maximal mixing scenario.\n\nA more complete treatment of the radiative corrections\\cite{Draper:2016pys}\nshows that\n\\eq{hradcorr} somewhat overestimates the true upper bound of $m_{h}$.\nThese more refined computations, which incorporate\nrenormalization group improvement, and the two-loop and\nleading three-loop contributions, yield an upper bound of $m_{h}{~\\raise.15em\\hbox{$<$}\\kern-.85em\\lower.35em\\hbox{$\\sim$}~} 135$~GeV in the\nregion of\nlarge $\\tan\\beta$ (with an accuracy of a few GeV)\nfor $m_t=175$~GeV and $M_S{~\\raise.15em\\hbox{$<$}\\kern-.85em\\lower.35em\\hbox{$\\sim$}~} 2$~TeV\\cite{Draper:2016pys},\nwhich is quite close to the observed value of the Higgs mass!\n\nIn certain cases, radiative corrections also can significantly modify the tree-level\nYukawa couplings. For a review of such effects, see e.g., Ref.\\cite{Carena:2002es}. \n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Unification of gauge couplings}\n\\label{sec:MSSMGU}\n\n\n\nGrand unification theory (GUT) predicts the unification of gauge couplings at some very high energy scale\\cite{Raby,guts,Langacker:1980js,Ross}. \nThe running of the couplings is dictated by the particle content of the effective theory that resides below the GUT scale. \nHowever, attempts to embed the Standard Model in an SU(5) or SO(10)\nunified theory do not quite succeed.\nIn particular, the three running gauge couplings (the strong QCD\ncoupling $g_s$ and the electroweak gauge couplings $g$ and $g'$) do not meet at a point, as shown by the dashed lines in Fig.~\\ref{fig:GUT}.\nIn contrast, in the case of the MSSM with superpartner masses of order\n1 TeV, the renormalization group evolution is modified above the\nSUSY-breaking scale. In this case, unification of gauge couplings\ncan be (approximately) achieved as illustrated by the red and blue\nlines in Fig.~\\ref{fig:GUT}.\n\n\\begin{figure}[h!]\n\\centering\n\\includegraphics[width=0.7\\linewidth]{images\/unified_couplings.eps}\n\\caption{\\small\nRenormalization group evolution of the inverse gauge couplings $\\alpha_a^{-1}(Q)$ in the\nStandard Model (dashed lines) and the MSSM (solid lines). In the MSSM\ncase, $\\alpha_3(m_Z)$ is varied between 0.121 and 0.117, and the\nsupersymmetric particle mass thresholds are between 500 GeV and 1.5 TeV, for the\nlower and upper solid lines, respectively. Two-loop effects are\nincluded. Taken from Ref.\\cite{Martin:1997ns}.\n}\n\\label{fig:GUT}\n\\end{figure}\n\nA quantitative assessment of the success of gauge coupling unification\ncan be performed as follows. \nSince the electroweak gauge couplings $g$ and $g'$ are very well\nmeasured, first focus on these two couplings. For a given low-energy\neffective theory (below the GUT scale), we use the renormalization\ngroup equations (RGEs) to determine the couplings $g$ and $g'$ as a\nfunction of the energy scale. We then define $M_{\\rm GUT}$ to be the\nscale at which these two couplings meet. \n\n We now assume that the unification of the three\ngauge couplings, $g_s$, $g$ and $g'$ occurs at $M_{\\rm GUT}$. Using\nthe RGEs for the gauge couplings, we can now run $g_s$ down to the\nelectroweak scale and compare with the experimentally measured value.\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Normalization of the U(1)$_{\\rm Y}$ coupling}\nIn electroweak theory, the overall normalization of the U(1)$_{\\rm Y}$ coupling is a matter of convention. But, if the GUT group is simple and nonabelian, then the relative normalization of the U(1)$_{\\rm Y}$ coupling to the SU(2) gauge coupling is fixed. \nWe denote the SU(3)$\\times$SU(2)$\\times$U(1)$_{\\rm Y}$ gauge couplings using the proper GUT normalization by $g_3$, $g_2$ and $g_1$ respectively. Our task is to relate $g_1$ with $g'$.\nTo do so, let us begin by\nconsidering the covariant derivative,\n\\begin{align}\nD_\\mu=\\partial_\\mu+i\\sum_a g_a T^a A_\\mu^a\\,.\n\\end{align}\nIf the gauge group is a direct product group, then different sets of generators $T^a$ are associated with with the different group factors, and we must use the appropriate $g_a$ depending on which generator it multiplies. \nIn particular, for SU(2)$\\times$U(1)$_{\\rm Y}$ (below the GUT scale), \n\\begin{align}\ng_a T^a A_\\mu^q\\ni gT^3 W_\\mu^3+g'\\frac{Y}{2}B_\\mu\\,.\n\\end{align}\nAbove the GUT scale, the corresponding terms of the covariant derivative are\n\\begin{align}\ng_a T^a A_\\mu^q\\ni g_U( T^3 W_\\mu^3+T^0B_\\mu)\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhere $g_U$ is the gauge coupling of the unifying GUT group and $T^0$ is the properly normalized hypercharge generator. \nIn particular, the generators of the GUT group satisfy\n\\begin{align}\n\\Tr(T^a T^b) =T(R) \\delta^{ab}\\,,\\label{tab}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $T(R)$ is a constant that depends on the representation\n$R$.\\footnote{Once $T(R)$ is fixed for one representation, it is then\n determined for all other representations. It is standard practice\n to fix $T(R)=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ for the defining (fundamental) representation, although the\nargument presented below is independent of this choice.} \nWe now set the two covariant derivatives above equal at the GUT scale,\n\\begin{align}\n g_U( T^3 W_\\mu^3+T^0B_\\mu)=gT^3 W_\\mu^3+g'\\frac{Y}{2}B_\\mu\\,.\n \\end{align}\nNoting that $g_U=g_3=g_2=g_1$ at the GUT scale, it\nfollows that\n $g_2=g$ and $g_1 T^0=g'(Y\/2)$. Since $T(R)$ only depends on the\n representation $R$, \\eq{tab} yields $\\Tr (T^3)^2=\\Tr(T^0)^2$. Thus,\n\\begin{align}\n g_1^2=g^{\\prime\\,2}\\,\\frac{\\Tr Y^2}{4\\Tr(T^3)^2}\\,.\\label{gone}\n\\end{align}\nThe relevant quantum numbers are provided in\nTable~\\ref{tab:two-component_fields}. \n \nThe traces in \\eq{gone} are evaluated by summing over one generation of fermions, under the assumption that it is made up of\ncomplete irreducible representations of the GUT group.\\footnote{In an\n SU(5) GUT, one\n generation of fermions make up a 10-dimensional and the complex\n conjugate of a 5-dimensional \n representation of SU(5). In an SO(10) GUT, one generation of fermions (including\n the right-handed neutrino) comprise a 16 dimensional spinor\n representation of SO(10).}\nUsing the results of Table~\\ref{tab:two-component_fields}, we simply\nadd up the last two columns. Including the appropriate color factor\nof 3 when tracing over the suppressed color index, \nwe obtain\n$\\Tr (T^3)^2=2$ and $\\Tr Y^2=\\tfrac{40}{3}$. Thus, \n\\eq{gone} yields\n \\begin{align}\ng_1^2=\\tfrac53 g^{\\prime\\,2}\\,.\n\\end{align}\n\n\\begin{table}\n\\centering\n\\caption{\\small The $T_3$ and $Y$ quantum numbers of the two-component\n fermion fields that make up one generation of SM fermions. In\n computing the corresponding traces, one must not forget the color\n factor of 3 that arises when tracing over the (suppressed) color\n index. \\label{tab:two-component_fields}}\n\\vskip 0.06in\n\\begin{tabular}{|ccccc|} \\hline\nTwo-component fields & $T_3$ & $Y$ & $\\Tr (T^3)^2$ & $\\Tr Y^2$ \\\\ \\hline\n$\\psi_{Q_1}$ & $\\phantom{-}\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ & $\\phantom{-}\\tfrac13$ & $3(\\tfrac14)$ & $3(\\tfrac19)$ \\\\[5pt]\n$\\psi_{Q_2}$ & $-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ & $\\phantom{-}\\tfrac13$ & $3(\\tfrac14)$ & $3(\\tfrac19)$ \\\\[5pt]\n$\\psi_{U}$ & $\\phantom{-} 0$ & $-\\tfrac{4}{3}$ & $3(0)$ & $3(\\tfrac{16}{9})$ \\\\[5pt]\n$\\psi_{D}$ & $\\phantom{-} 0$ & $\\phantom{-} \\tfrac23$ & $3(0)$ & $3(\\tfrac{4}{9})$ \\\\[5pt]\n$\\psi_{L_1}$ & $\\phantom{-}\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ & $-1$ & $\\tfrac14$ & $1$ \\\\[5pt]\n$\\psi_{L_2}$ & $-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ & $-1$ & $\\tfrac14$ & $1$ \\\\[5pt]\n$\\psi_{E}$ & $\\phantom{-} 0$ & $\\phantom{-} 2$ & $0$ & $4$ \\\\ \\hline\n \\end{tabular}\n \\end{table}\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Gauge coupling running}\nWe now examine the running of the gauge couplings\nin the one-loop approximation, where the gauge couplings $g_i$ obey the differential equation,\n \\begin{align}\n \\frac{dg_i^2}{dt}=\\frac{b_i g_i^4}{16\\pi^2}\\,,\\qquad \\text{for $i=1,2,3$},\\label{gRGE}\n\\end{align}\n where $t=\\ln Q^2$ and $Q$ is the energy scale. The solution to\n \\eq{gRGE} is\n \\begin{align}\n \\frac{1}{g_i^2(m_Z)}=\\frac{1}{g_U^2}-\\frac{b_i}{16\\pi}\\ln\\left(\\frac{m_Z^2}{M_{\\rm GUT}^2}\\right)\\,,\\label{RGEsol}\n\\end{align}\n where $M_{\\rm GUT}$ is the GUT scale at which the three gauge\n couplings unify. Using \\eq{RGEsol}, the following two equations are obtained:\n\\begin{align}\n \\sin^2\\theta_W(m_Z)=&\\frac{g^{\\prime\\,2}(m_Z)}{g^2(m_Z)+g^{\\prime\\,2}(m_Z)}=\\frac{\\tfrac35 g_1^2(m_Z)}{g^2(m_Z)+\\frac35 g_1^2(m_Z)} \\nonumber \\\\\n=&\\frac{3}{8}-\\frac{5}{32\\pi}\\,\\alpha(m_Z)(b_1-b_2)\\ln\\left(\\frac{M_{\\rm GUT}^2}{m_Z^2}\\right)\\,,\\label{sinw} \\\\[5pt]\n \\ln\\left(\\frac{M_{\\rm GUT}^2}{m_Z^2}\\right)=&\\frac{32\\pi}{5b_1+3b_2-8b_3}\\left(\\frac{3}{8\\alpha(m_Z)}-\\frac{1}{\\alpha_s(m_Z)}\\right)\\,,\\label{log}\n \\end{align}\n where $e=g\\sin\\theta_W$, $\\alpha\\equiv e^2\/4\\pi$ and $\\alpha_s\\equiv g_s^2\/4\\pi$.\n\nIt is convenient to introduce the parameter,\n\\begin{align} x\\equiv \\frac{1}{5}\\left(\\frac{b_2-b_3}{b_1-b_2}\\right)\\,.\n \\end{align}\n Then, \\eqs{sinw}{log} yield,\n\\begin{align}\n \\sin^2\\theta_W(m_Z)=\\frac{1}{1+8x}\\left[3x+\\frac{\\alpha(m_Z)}{\\alpha_s(m_Z)}\n\\right]\\,.\n\\end{align}\nOnce we know the value of $x$,\nwe can use the above equation to determine $\\alpha_s(m_Z)$ given the\nvalues of $\\sin^2\\theta_W$ and $\\alpha$, evaluated at $m_Z$,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\alpha_s(m_Z)=\\frac{\\alpha(m_Z)}{(1+8x)\\sin^2\\theta_W(m_Z)-3x}\\,.\\label{alphastrong}\n\\end{equation}\n\nThe value of $x$ is determined from the values of the $b_i$, which are given by the following formula,\n\\begin{align}\nb_i=\\tfrac{2}{3}T_f(R_k)\\prod_{j\\neq k} d_f(R_j)+\\tfrac{1}{6}T_s(R_k)\\prod_{j\\neq k} d_s(R_j)-\\tfrac{11}{3} C_2(G_i)\\,,\\label{bi}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $f$, $s$ stand for fermions and scalars, respectively, $d(R)$ is the dimension of the representation $R$, and the generators in representation $R$ satisfy,\n\\begin{align}\n\\Tr(T^a T^b)= T(R)\\delta^{ab}\\,,\\qquad\\quad (T^a T^a)_{ij}=C_2(G)\\delta_{ij}\\,.\n\\end{align}\nNote that,\n\\begin{align}\nT(R_1)=\\left[\\sqrt{\\tfrac{3}{5}}\\,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} Y\\right]^2=\\tfrac{3}{20}Y^2\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhere we have employed the properly normalized hypercharge generator, $\\sqrt{3\/5}\\,(Y\/2)$.\nIn addition, $C_2({\\rm G})=N$ for G$=$SU($N$), and $C_2({\\rm G})=0$ for G$=$U(1).\n\nOne can now assess the success or failure of gauge coupling unification\nin the SM and in the MSSM. For details, see Problems~\\ref{pr:GUT1}\nand \\ref{pr:GUT2}. As advertised in Fig.~\\ref{fig:GUT}, the gauge\ncouplings do not unify when the SM is extrapolated to the GUT scale.\nIn contrast, in the MSSM, the modified running of the gauge couplings\ndue to the supersymmetric partners of the SM particles results in\napproximate unification.\\footnote{For a more precise analysis, we\n should extend the calculations of this subsection to include\n two-loop running of the gauge couplings\\cite{Castano:1993ri}. One must also properly\n treat threshold corrections at the TeV scale\\cite{Martens:2011uha,Allanach:2014nba} (due to mass splittings\n among superpartners) and at the GUT scale\\cite{Lucas:1995ic}. The latter are quite\n model-dependent and allows some wiggle room in achieving precise\n gauge coupling unification.}\nThis success has often been touted as one of\nthe motivations for TeV-scale supersymmetry.\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Problems}\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:spectra}\nStarting with the SUSY Lagrangian for SUSY Yang Mills theory coupled\nto matter given in \\eq{eq:LSUSYcomponents}, \neliminate the auxiliary fields and obtain the Lagrangian of the MSSM prior to\nSUSY-breaking. For simplicity, you may consider only one generation\nof quarks and leptons and their superpartners.\nThen add in the soft-SUSY-breaking terms to obtain the\ncomplete MSSM Lagrangian. Using this result, verify the mass spectrum\nof the supersymmetric particles obtained in\nSection~\\ref{sec:MSSMspectrum}. \n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\nUsing the results of Problem~\\ref{pr:spectra}, verify the results\nobtained in Section~\\ref{higgssector} for the MSSM Higgs sector.\nWrite out the Feynman rules for the interaction of the Higgs bosons \nwith the gauge bosons and with the quarks and leptons.\n\\end{problem} \n \n\\begin{problem}\nUsing the results of Problem~\\ref{pr:spectra}, one can obtain the complete set of Feynman rules for the MSSM with one\ngeneration of quarks and leptons and their superpartners.\nWork out as many of the rules as you can and check your results against\nRef.\\cite{Rosiek:1989rs}. \n\\end{problem}\n\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:GUT1}\nAssuming $N_g$ generations of the quarks and leptons and $N_h$ copies\nof the SM Higgs boson, use \\eq{bi} to obtain\n\\begin{align}\nb_3=&\\tfrac{4}{3}N_g-11\\,,\\nonumber \\\\\nb_2=&\\tfrac{1}{6}N_h+\\tfrac{4}{3}N_g-\\tfrac{22}{3}\\,,\\nonumber \\\\\nb_1=&\\tfrac{1}{10}N_h+\\tfrac{4}{3}N_g\\,.\\nonumber\n\\end{align}\nFor the SM, we have $N_g=3$ and $N_h=1$. Check that $b_3=-7$, $b_2=-\\tfrac{19}{6}$ and $b_1=\\tfrac{41}{10}$. Consequently,\n\\begin{align}\nx=\\frac{23}{218}=0.1055\n\\end{align}\nIn particular, note that $x$ is independent of $N_g$.\n\\label{pr:bs}\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:GUT2}\n Show that the SM results of Problem~\\ref{pr:bs} are modified in the\n MSSM as follows:\n \\begin{align}\nb_3=&2N_g-9\\,,\\nonumber \\\\\nb_2=&\\tfrac{1}{2}N_h+2N_g-6\\,,\\nonumber \\\\\nb_1=&\\tfrac{3}{10}N_h+2N_g\\,.\\nonumber\n\\end{align}\nFor the MSSM, we have $N_g=3$ and $N_h=2$. Verify that $b_3=-3$, $b_2=1$ and $b_1=\\tfrac{33}{5}$, and consequently,\n$x=\\tfrac17$. Using the values for $\\alpha(m_Z)$ and $\\sin^2\\theta_W(m_Z)$ given in Ref.\\cite{pdg},\nevaluate $\\alpha_s$ using \\eq{alphastrong}.\nShow that for $x=\\tfrac17$ (as predicted by the\nMSSM), one obtains a value for $\\alpha_s(m_Z)$ that is quite close to\nthe current world average\\cite{pdg}. Using $x=0.1055$, check that the\ncorresponding SM prediction for $\\alpha_s(m_Z)$ is significantly lower than the observed value.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\n\n\n\\section{Superspace and Superfields}\n\\renewcommand{\\theequation}{\\arabic{section}.\\arabic{equation}}\n\\setcounter{equation}{0}\n\\label{sec:superspace}\n\n\nIn the section we introduce superspace coordinates $\\theta$ and $\\theta^\\dagger$.\nThe concept of a supersymmetry transformation is then realized as a translation in superspace.\nWe construct superfields\\cite{Ferrara:1974ac,Salam:1974jj,Salam:1976ib}, which can be expanded in powers of $\\theta$ and\n$\\theta^\\dagger$; the corresponding expansion coefficients are the fields\nof a super\\-multiplet. By introducing the spinor covariant derivative, one is\nable to define the derivative of a superfield that is covariant with\nrespect to SUSY transformations. This allows us to define an\nirreducible chiral\nsuperfield by imposing a derivative constraint.\n\nEmploying this formalism, we demonstrate how to construct a\nSUSY Lagrangian for chiral superfields, and \nand show that the\nsupersymmetric action can be expressed as an integral over superspace. \nFinally, we discuss the improved ultraviolet behavior of SUSY and introduce the\ncelebrated non-renormalization theorem of $N=1$ supersymmetry\\cite{GRS,SeibergNR}.\n \n\\subsection{Superspace coordinates and translations}\n\\label{sec:supercoords}\n\nIn Section~\\ref{sec:SUSYalgebra} we indicated that we expect a SUSY\ntranslation to be similar to a space-time translation, where the SUSY generators $Q$, $Q^\\dagger$ replace the $P^\\mu$ of ordinary space-time translations:\n\\begin{align}\n \\delta_{\\xi}\\Phi(x)=i\\bigl[\\xi Q+\\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger\\,,\\,\\Phi(x)\\bigr]\\,,\n \\end{align}\n for $\\Phi=A$, $\\psi$ or $F$. \n But what exactly is being translated? \n\\clearpage\n\nIn this subsection,\n we extend spacetime by introducing Grassmann coordinates, $\\theta^\\alpha$ and $\\theta^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}$. The result is an 8-dimensional \\textit{superspace} with coordinates\n$(x^\\mu\\,,\\,\\theta^\\alpha\\,,\\,\\theta^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha})$. The\nGrassmann coordinates are anticommuting coordinates; i.e., they satisfy anticommutation relations,\n \\begin{align}\n \\{\\theta^\\alpha\\,,\\,\\theta^\\beta\\}=\\{\\theta^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,\\theta^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=\\{\\theta^\\alpha\\,,\\,\\theta^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=0\\,.\n \\end{align}\n\nOne can also define derivatives with respect to $\\theta$ and\n$\\theta^\\dagger$. It is convenient to introduce the following notation,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{dth1}\n\\partial_{\\alpha}\\equiv \\frac{\\partial}{\\partial\\theta^\\alpha}\\,,\\qquad\\qquad\n\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\equiv \\frac{\\partial}{\\partial{\\theta^\\dagger}^{\\dot\\alpha}}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nThe derivatives with respect to $\\theta$ and $\\theta^\\dagger$ are\ndefined in the obvious way,\n\\begin{equation}\n \\partial_\\alpha\\theta^\\beta=\\delta_\\alpha^\\beta\\,,\\qquad\\qquad \\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}{\\theta^\\dagger}^{\\dot\\beta}=\\delta_{\\dot\\alpha}^{\\dot\\beta}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nIt then follows that\n\\begin{align}\n\\partial_\\alpha\\theta_\\beta=\\partial_\\alpha(\\epsilon_{\\beta\\gamma}\\theta^\\gamma)=-\\epsilon_{\\alpha\\beta}\\,,\\qquad \\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\theta^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}=\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}(\\epsilon_{\\dot\\beta\\dot\\gamma}\\theta^{\\dagger\\dot\\gamma})=-\\epsilon_{\\dot\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\\,.\\label{dteps}\n\\end{align}\n\nDerivatives with respect to $\\theta$ and $\\theta^\\dagger$ satisfy a\nmodified Leibniz rule, \n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\partial_\\alpha(fg)&=&(\\partial_\\alpha f)g+(-1)^{\\varepsilon(f)}f(\\partial_\\alpha g)\\,,\\\\\n\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}(fg)&=&(\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha} f)g+(-1)^{\\varepsilon(f)}f(\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha} g)\\,,\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nwhere \n\\begin{equation}\n\\varepsilon(f)=\\begin{cases} 0\\,,&\\quad \\text{if $f$ is Grassmann even}\\,,\\\\ 1\\,,&\\quad \\text{if $f$\n is Grassmann odd}\\,, \\end{cases}\n\\end{equation}\nand $f$ is Grassmann even [odd] if it is a product of an even\n[odd] number of anticommuting quantities.\nFor example,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\partial_\\alpha(\\theta\\theta)&=&\\partial_\\alpha\\bigl(\\epsilon_{\\gamma\\beta}\\theta^\\gamma\\theta^\\beta\\bigr)=\\epsilon_{\\gamma\\beta}(\\delta^\\gamma_\\alpha\\theta^\\beta-\\delta_\\alpha^\\beta\\theta^\\gamma)=2\\theta_\\alpha\\,,\\label{partialtt}\\\\\n\\partial_{\\dot\\alpha}(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)&=&\n\\partial_{\\dot\\alpha}\\bigl(\\epsilon_{\\dot\\beta\\dot\\gamma}\n\\theta^{\\dagger\\dot\\gamma}\\theta^{\\dagger\\dot\\beta}\\bigr)=\n\\epsilon_{\\dot\\beta\\dot\\gamma}(\\delta^{\\dot\\gamma}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\theta^{\\dagger\\dot\\beta}-\\delta_{\\dot\\alpha}^{\\dot\\beta}\\theta^{\\dagger\\dot\\gamma})\n=-2\\theta_{\\dot\\alpha}^\\dagger\\,.\\label{partialtdtd}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\n\nLikewise, one conventionally defines,\n\\begin{align}\n\\partial^{\\alpha}\\equiv \\frac{\\partial}{\\partial\\theta_\\alpha}\\,,\\qquad\n\\partial^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha}\\equiv \\frac{\\partial}{\\partial\\theta^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}}\\,.\\label{dth2}\n\\end{align}\nHowever, one needs to be careful since this notation leads to an unexpected minus sign when relating\nthe derivatives of \\eqs{dth1}{dth2},\n\\begin{equation}\n\\partial^\\alpha =-\\epsilon^{\\alpha\\beta}\\partial_\\beta\\,,\\qquad\n\\partial^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha}=-\\epsilon^{\\dot\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\,. \\label{eq:partialsign}\n\\end{equation}\nThis is the one case where the rule for raising a spinor index given\nin \\eq{raiseindex} does \\textit{not} apply.\n\n\n\nIn order to define translations in superspace, we shall\ngeneralize the translation operator $\\exp(ix\\!\\cdot\\! P)$ to the super-translation operator,\n \\begin{align}\n G(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=\\exp(ix\\!\\cdot\\! P+\\theta Q+\\theta^\\dagger Q^\\dagger)\\,.\n \\end{align}\n We can now extend the field operator, $\\Phi(x)=\\exp(ix\\!\\cdot\\!\n P)\\Phi(0)\\exp(-ix\\!\\cdot\\! P)$ to a \\textit{superfield} operator,\n \\begin{align}\n \\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=G(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)\\Phi(0,0,0)G^{-1}(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)\\,.\n \\end{align}\n %\n In this way, we can realize a supersymmetry transformation as a translation in superspace.\n %\n\n Using the Baker-Campbell-Hausdorff formula\\cite{BrianHall},\n \\begin{equation} \\label{BCH}\n\\exp(A)\\exp(B)=\\exp\\bigl(A+B+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}[A\\,,\\,B]+\\cdots\\bigr)\\,, \n\\end{equation}\none can prove (see Problem \\ref{pr:two_super_translations}),\n \\begin{align}\n G(y,\\xi,\\xi^\\dagger)G(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=G\\bigl(x+y+i(\\xi\\sigma\\theta^\\dagger-\\theta\\sigma\\xi^\\dagger),\\xi+\\theta,\\xi^\\dagger+\\theta^\\dagger\\bigr)\\,. \\label{GG}\n \\end{align}\n Note the appearance in \\eq{GG} of an extra non-trivial spacetime translation, $ i (\\xi \\sigma \\theta^\\dagger - \\theta \\sigma \\xi^\\dagger)$.\n %\nHence, it follows that\n \\begin{align}\n \\begin{split}\n &G(y,\\xi,\\xi^\\dagger)\\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger) G^{-1}(y,\\xi,\\xi^\\dagger) \\\\\n & \\qquad = \\Phi\\bigl(x+y+i(\\xi\\sigma\\theta^\\dagger-\\theta\\sigma\\xi^\\dagger),\\xi+\\theta,\\xi^\\dagger+\\theta^\\dagger\\bigr)\\,.\n\\end{split}\n\\label{eq:Phixy}\n\\end{align}\nFor infinitesimal $y$, $\\xi$ and $\\xi^\\dagger$, we can approximate\n\\begin{equation}\nG(y,\\xi,\\xi^\\dagger)\\simeq \\mathds{1}+i(y\\!\\cdot\\! P+\\xi Q+\\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger)\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhich allows us to rewrite the left-hand side of \\eq{eq:Phixy} as\n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{split}\n& G\\of{y,\\xi,\\xi^\\dagger} \\Phi\\of{ x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger} G^{-1}\\of{y,\\xi,\\xi^\\dagger} \\\\\n&\\quad \\simeq \\of{ \\mathds{1}+i\\of{y\\!\\cdot\\! P+\\xi Q+\\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger} } \\Phi\\of{x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger} \\of{ \\mathds{1} - i \\of{ y\\!\\cdot\\! P + \\xi Q + \\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger }}\n\\end{split} \\nonumber\n\\\\\n& \\quad \\simeq \\Phi\\of{x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger} \n+ i y_\\mu \\sqof{ P^\\mu, \\Phi } + i \\sqof{ \\xi Q, \\Phi } + i \\sqof{ \\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger, \\Phi }.\n\\label{eq:GPhiG}\n\\end{align}\nOne can also Taylor expand the right-hand side of \\eq{eq:Phixy}, which\nto first order yields\n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{split}\n& \\Phi\\bigl(x+y+i(\\xi\\sigma\\theta^\\dagger-\\theta\\sigma\\xi^\\dagger),\\xi+\\theta,\\xi^\\dagger+\\theta^\\dagger\\bigr)\n\\\\\n & \\qquad \\qquad = \\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger) + \\bigl[y^\\mu+i(\\xi\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger-\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\xi^\\dagger)\\bigr]\\partial_\\mu \\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger) \\\\\n& \\qquad \\qquad \\quad \\qquad \\qquad\\,\\,\\,\\, +\\bigl(\\xi^\\alpha\\partial_\\alpha+\\xi^\\dagger\\partial^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha}\\bigr)\\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)\\,,\n \\end{split}\n \\label{eq:Phixy2}\n \\end{align}\nwhere we have employed the derivatives defined in \\eq{dth1}.\nComparing the first-order terms of eqns.~(\\ref{eq:GPhiG}) and (\\ref{eq:Phixy2}),\n we end up with expressions for the following commutators,\n \\begin{align}\n \\bigl[\\Phi\\,,\\,P_\\mu\\bigr]&= i\\,\\partial_\\mu\\Phi\\,, \\label{eq:PPhi} \\\\\n \\big[\\Phi\\,,\\,\\xi Q\\bigr]&= i\\,\\xi^\\alpha\\left(\\partial_{\\alpha}+i(\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger)_\\alpha\\partial_\\mu\\right)\\Phi\\,, \\label{eq:QPhi} \\\\\n \\big[\\Phi\\,,\\,\\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger\\bigr]&= -i\\left(\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}+i(\\theta\\sigma^\\mu)_{\\dot\\alpha}\\partial_\\mu\\right)\\xi^{\\dagger\\,\\dot\\alpha}\\Phi\\,,\\label{eq:QbarPhi}\n\\end{align}\n\nThe above results motivate the introduction of the following differential operators,\n\\begin{align}\n\\widehat{P}_\\mu&=i\\partial_\\mu\\,,\\label{Phat}\\\\\n\\widehat{Q}_\\alpha&=i\\partial_\\alpha-(\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger)_\\alpha\\partial_\\mu\\,, \\label{Qhat}\\\\\n\\widehat{Q}^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}&=-i\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}+(\\theta\\sigma^\\mu)_{\\dot\\alpha}\\partial_\\mu\\,,\\label{QDhat}\n\\end{align}\nwhich allow us to succinctly rewrite \\eqst{eq:PPhi}{eq:QbarPhi} as follows:\n \\begin{align}\n \\bigl[\\Phi\\,,\\,P_\\mu\\bigr]&=\\widehat{P}_\\mu\\Phi\\,, \\\\\n \\big[\\Phi\\,,\\,\\xi Q\\bigr]&=(\\xi\\widehat{Q})\\Phi\\,, \\label{stranslate1}\\\\\n \\big[\\Phi\\,,\\,\\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger\\bigr]&=(\\xi^\\dagger\\widehat{Q}^\\dagger)\\Phi\\,.\\label{stranslate2}\n\\end{align}\n\n\nIn \\eq{susytranslate}, we noted that the action of an infinitesimal SUSY transformation on any field $\\Phi\\of{x}$ was given by\n$\\delta_{\\xi}\\Phi(x)=i\\bigl[\\xi Q+\\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger\\,,\\,\\Phi(x)\\bigr]$.\nIn light of \\eqs{stranslate1}{stranslate2}, we conclude that the action of an\ninfinitesimal SUSY transformation on a\nsuperfield $\\Phi\\of{x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger}$ is given by\n \\begin{align}\n \\delta_{\\xi}\\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=-i(\\xi \\widehat{Q}+\\xi^\\dagger \\widehat{Q}^\\dagger)\\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)\\,.\\label{supertrans}\n\\end{align}\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Expansion of the superfield in powers of $\\theta$ and $\\theta^\\dagger$}\n\n\n\nConsider the Taylor expansion of a superfield,\n$\\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)$, in powers of $\\theta$ and~$\\theta^\\dagger$. The coefficients of this expansion will be functions of\n$x$, which can be interpreted as ordinary fields. Since $\\theta$ and\n$\\theta^\\dagger$ are anticommuting coordinates, this Taylor series\nterminates after a finite number of terms. In particular, since $\\theta$ and\n$\\theta^\\dagger$ are \nanticommuting two-component spinor\nquantities, it follows that\n$(\\theta_1)^2=(\\theta_2)^2=(\\theta^\\dagger_{\\dot 1})^2=(\\theta^\\dagger_{\\dot\n 2})^2=0$, whereas products such as $\\theta_1\\theta_2$ and\n$\\theta_1^\\dagger \\theta_2^\\dagger$ do not vanish. Indeed, it is easy\nto check that\n\\begin{align}\n\\theta^\\alpha\\theta^\\beta&=-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\epsilon^{\\alpha\\beta}\\theta\\theta\\,,\\qquad\\qquad\n{\\theta^\\dagger}^{\\dot\\alpha}{\\theta^\\dagger}^{\\dot\\beta}=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\epsilon^{\\dot\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar\\,,\\nonumber \\\\\n\\theta_\\alpha\\theta_\\beta&=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\epsilon_{\\alpha\\beta}\\theta\\theta\\,,\\qquad\\qquad\\phantom{-}\n{\\theta}^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}{\\theta}^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}=-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\epsilon_{\\dot\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar\\,,\\nonumber\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\theta\\theta\\equiv \\theta^\\alpha\\theta_\\alpha$ and $\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar\\equiv\\theta^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\n{\\theta^\\dagger}^{\\dot\\alpha}$ following the convention of \\eq{contract}. \nProducts such as $\\theta_\\alpha\\theta_\\beta\\theta_\\gamma=0$, since the\nspinor indices can assume at most two different values. Finally, the\nfollowing three results are noteworthy (see Problem 17),\n\\begin{align}\n(\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger)\\theta_\\beta&=-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} \\theta\\theta(\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger)_\\beta \\label{eq:r1} \\\\\n(\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger)\\theta^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}&=-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} \\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar(\\theta\\sigma^\\mu)_{\\dot\\beta} \\label{eq:r2} \\\\\n(\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger)(\\theta\\sigma^\\nu\\theta^\\dagger)&=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} g^{\\mu\\nu}(\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar). \\label{eq:r3}\n\\end{align}\nSometimes, we shall write\n$\\theta\\theta\\theta^\\dagger\\theta^\\dagger\\equiv\n(\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)$. In such products, there should\nbe no ambiguity in omitting the parentheses.\n\n\nThe Taylor series expansion of a complex superfield\n$\\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)$ is therefore given by,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)&=& f(x) +\\theta\\zeta(x)+\\theta^\\dagger\\chi^\\dagger(x)+\\theta\\theta m(x)+\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar n(x) +\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger V_\\mu(x) \\nonumber\\\\\n&& \n+(\\theta\\theta)\\theta^\\dagger\\lambda^\\dagger(x)+(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)\\theta\\lambda(x)+\\theta\\theta\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar d(x)\\,,\\label{phitaylor}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nwhere $f$, $m$, $n$, $V_\\mu$, and $d$ are complex commuting bosonic\nfields and $\\zeta$, $\\chi$, $\\lambda$ and $\\psi$ are anticommuting\ntwo-component fermionic fields. \nThe SUSY transformation laws of the component fields can now be easily\nobtained (see Problem~\\ref{pr:fmnV}) by comparing both sides of \\eq{supertrans}.\n\n\nHence, there are 16 bosonic and 16 fermionic real degrees of freedom.\nIf we impose the constraint, $\\Phi^\\dagger=\\Phi$, then $f$, $d$ and $V_\\mu$\nare real bosonic fields, $n^\\dagger=m$, $\\zeta=\\chi$ and $\\lambda=\\psi$. In this\ncase, there are 8 bosonic and 8 fermionic real degrees of freedom. In both cases, there are too many degrees of freedom to describe the supermultiplet of the Wess-Zumino model.\nThis is because an unconstrained complex superfield, $\\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)$, describes a\nreducible representation of the SUSY algebra. One must impose\nsupersymmetric constraints to project out an irreducible\nsupermultiplet.\\footnote{A real superfield $\\Phi$ yields an off-shell\n irreducible representation with superspin $j=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$. More on this\n in Section~\\ref{sec:gaugetheories}.}\n\nThe superfield defined in \\eq{phitaylor} is an example of a\n\\textit{bosonic} superfield, where the Taylor series coefficients of terms even in\nthe number of Grassmann coordinates are commuting bosonic fields and the coefficients of terms odd in\nthe number of Grassmann coordinates are anticommuting fermionic fields.\nSimilarly, one can define a \\textit{fermionic} superfield, where the\nTaylor series coefficients of terms even in\nthe number of Grassmann coordinates are anticommuting fermionic fields and the coefficients of terms odd in\nthe number of Grassmann coordinates are commuting bosonic fields.\n \n\\subsection{Spinor covariant derivatives}\n\n\nFor a superfield $\\Phi$, it is easy to check that neither\n$\\partial_\\alpha\\Phi$ nor $\\partial_{\\dot\\alpha}\\Phi$ is a superfield, since\n\\begin{align}\n\\partial_\\alpha(\\delta_{\\xi}\\Phi)\\neq \\delta_{\\xi}(\\partial_\\alpha\\Phi)\\,,\\qquad\\quad\n\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}(\\delta_{\\xi}\\Phi)\\neq \\delta_{\\xi}(\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\Phi)\\,.\n\\end{align}\nNote that if $\\Phi$ is a bosonic superfield, then the hermitian conjugate of $\\partial_\\alpha\\Phi$ is given\nby,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{daggers}\n(\\partial_\\alpha\\Phi)^\\dagger=-\\partial_{\\dot\\alpha}^\\dagger\n\\Phi^\\dagger\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere the minus sign above is related to the minus sign in\n\\eq{dteps}.\n\\clearpage\n\nWe therefore introduce spinor covariant derivatives $D_\\alpha$ and\n$\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}$ such that $D_\\alpha\\Phi$ and\n$\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\Phi$ are superfields,\\footnote{Note that if\n $\\Phi$ is a bosonic superfield, then $D_\\alpha\\Phi$ and\n $\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\Phi$ are fermionic superfields.}\n which implies the\nfollowing conditions must be satisfied,\n\\begin{align}\nD_\\alpha(\\delta_{\\xi}\\Phi)=\\delta_{\\xi}(D_\\alpha\\Phi)\\,,\\qquad\\quad\n\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}(\\delta_{\\xi}\\Phi)=\\delta_{\\xi}(\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\Phi)\\,.\\label{dsuper}\n\\end{align}\nUsing \\eq{supertrans} to express $\\delta_{\\xi}\\Phi$ in terms of the operators $\\widehat{Q}$ and\n$\\widehat{Q}^\\dagger$ defined in \\eqs{Qhat}{QDhat}, respectively, one easily derives\n\\begin{align}\n\\{D_\\alpha\\,,\\,\\widehat{Q}_\\beta\\}=\\{D_\\alpha\\,,\\,\\widehat{Q}^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=\\{\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,\\widehat{Q}_{\\beta}\\}=\\{\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,\\widehat{Q}^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=0\\,.\\label{antis}\n\\end{align}\n\nTo fix the explicit forms for the spinor covariant derivatives, we choose\nthe normalization of $D_\\alpha$ so that it has the form\n$D_\\alpha=\\partial_\\alpha+\\ldots$, where the ellipsis refers to\ncorrection terms needed to satisfy \\eqs{dsuper}{antis}. In the case\nof $\\overline{D}_\\alpha$, it is customary to impose the condition,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{Dcond}\n(D_\\alpha\\Phi)^\\dagger=\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\Phi^\\dagger\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\Phi$ is a bosonic superfield, in which case\n$\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}=-\\partial_{\\dot\\alpha}^\\dagger+\\ldots$\n [cf.~\\eq{daggers}]. \n\nThe explicit forms for the spinor covariant derivatives that satisfy\nthe above conditions are given by, \n\\begin{align}\nD_\\alpha&=\\partial_\\alpha-i(\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger)_\\alpha\\,\\partial_\\mu\\,, \\label{eq:D} \\\\\n\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}&=-\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}+i(\\theta\\sigma^\\mu)_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,\\partial_\\mu\\,. \\label{eq:Db}\n\\end{align}\nIn particular, $D$ and $\\overline{D}$\nsatisfy the same anticommutation relations as $\\widehat{Q}$ and $\\widehat{Q}^\\dagger$ (see Problem~\\ref{pr:D}),\n\\begin{align}\n\\{D_\\alpha\\,,\\,D_\\beta\\}=\\{\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=0 \\ \\ \\mathrm{and\\ \\ }\n\\{D_\\alpha\\,,\\,\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=2i\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\\partial_\\mu.\n\\label{eq:Dcomms}\n\\end{align}\n\nOne can also define spinor covariant derivatives with a raised spinor index.\nIn this case, it is conventional to define,\n\\begin{align}\nD^\\alpha\\equiv \\epsilon^{\\alpha\\beta}D_\\beta&=-\\partial^\\alpha+i(\\theta^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu)^\\alpha\\,\\partial_\\mu\\,, \\\\\n\\overline{D}\\lsup{\\dot\\alpha}\\equiv \\epsilon^{\\dot\\alpha\\dot\\beta}D_\\beta\n&=\\partial^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha}-i(\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\theta)^{\\dot\\alpha}\\,\\partial_\\mu\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhere we have employed \\eq{eq:partialsign}. That is,\nthe spinor indices of $D_\\alpha$ and $\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}$ are raised\nin the\nconventional way according to \\eq{raiseindex}.\\footnote{This is in contrast to the\nrule for raising the spinor indices of $\\partial_\\alpha$ and\n$\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}$ specified in \\eq{eq:partialsign}, where\nan extra minus sign appears.} \nThe following differential operators\nwill be useful later in these lectures,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\nD^2&=&D^\\alpha D_\\alpha=-\\partial^\\alpha\\partial_\\alpha+2i(\\partial^\\alpha\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}{\\theta^\\dagger}\\lsup{\\dot\\beta})\\partial_\\mu+\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar\\,\\square\\,,\\label{DD}\\\\\n\\overline{D}\\lsup{\\,2}&=&\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\overline{D}\\lsup{\\,\\dot\\alpha}=-\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\partial^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha}+2i(\\theta^\\alpha\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\\partial^{\\dagger\\dot\\beta})\\partial_\\mu+\\theta\\theta\\square\\,,\\label{DbDb}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nwhere $\\square\\equiv\\partial_\\mu\\partial^\\mu$. One can then derive\nthe following identity (see Problem~\\ref{pr:DDid}),\n\\begin{equation} \\label{DDid}\n[D^2,\\overline{D}\\lsup{2}]= 4i\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\n\\dot{\\beta}}\\partial_\\mu[D^\\alpha,\\overline D\\lsup{\\,\\dot{\\beta}}]\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\nWe have employed different notation for the conjugation of the\nvarious differential operators that appear in this subsection.\nThe relation of $\\widehat{Q}^\\dagger$ to $\\widehat{Q}$ is\n\\textit{hermitian conjugation} in the same sense that $\\hat{P}_\\mu\n=i\\partial_\\mu$ [defined in \\eq{Phat}] is an hermitian operator in\nquantum field theory with respect to the inner product defined by the\nintegration of complex fields over spacetime.\nThat is, the dagger on the differential operator $\\widehat{Q}^\\dagger$\ndenotes Hermitian conjugation with respect to the inner product\ndefined by the integration of complex superfields over\nsuperspace.\\footnote{For further details, see\n Refs.~\\cite{Sohnius:1985qm,Martin:1997ns}. Integration over\n superspace will be treated in Section~\\ref{integration}.}\n\n\nIn contrast, the relation of $\\overline{D}$ to $D$ is \\textit{complex\n conjugation} in the same sense that $\\partial_\\mu^*$ is the complex\nconjugate of $\\partial_\\mu$. In the latter case, the differential\noperator $\\partial_\\mu$ is a real operator.\nThat is, if we define $\\partial^*_\\mu$ \nto be the derivative operator that acts on the field $\\phi$ such that\n\\begin{align}\n\\of{\\partial_\\mu \\phi}^\\dagger = \\partial_\\mu^* \\phi^\\dagger,\n\\end{align}\nthen since $\\of{\\partial_\\mu \\phi}^\\dagger = \\partial_\\mu \\phi^\\dagger$, it\nfollows that\n$\\partial^*_\\mu=\\partial_\\mu$. In light of \\eq{Dcond},\nwe can therefore regard $\\overline{D}$ as the complex conjugate of $D$.\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Chiral superfields}\n\nA chiral superfield is obtained by imposing\nthe constraint $\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\Phi=0$ on a general superfield $\\Phi$. Such a constraint is covariant with respect to\nSUSY transformations, and the end result is an irreducible superfield that\ncorresponds to the superspin $j=0$ irreducible\nrepresentation of the SUSY algebra. \nUsing \\eq{eq:Db}, the constraint yields a differential equation,\n\\begin{align}\n\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\Phi=\\bigl[-\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}+i(\\theta\\sigma^\\mu)_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,\\partial_\\mu\\bigr]\\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=0\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhose solution is of the form\n\\begin{align}\n\\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=\\exp(-i\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger\\,\\partial_\\mu)\\Phi(x,\\theta)\\,.\\label{eq:Phixththb}\n\\end{align}\n\nWe can expand $\\Phi(x,\\theta)$ in a\n (truncated) \nTaylor series in $\\theta$,\n\\begin{align}\n\\Phi(x,\\theta)=A(x)+\\sqrt{2}\\,\\theta\\psi(x)+\\theta\\theta F(x)\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhere the factor of $\\sqrt{2}$ is conventional. Plugging this into\n\\eq{eq:Phixththb} and using the identity (see Problem~\\ref{pr:expexp}),\n\\begin{align}\n\\exp(-i\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger\\,\\partial_\\mu)=1-i\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger\\,\\partial_\\mu-\\tfrac{1}{4}(\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)\\square,\n\\end{align}\nwe find after some algebraic manipulation a chiral superfield with the form,\n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{split}\n\\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger) &=\nA(x) + \\sqrt{2}\\,\\theta \\psi(x) + \\theta\\theta F(x)-i \\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger \\partial_\\mu A(x)\\\\\n&\\quad - \\frac{i}{\\sqrt{2}} (\\theta\\theta) \n\\theta^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\, \\partial_\\mu \\psi(x)-\\tfrac{1}{4}(\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar) \\square A(x).\n\\end{split}\n\\label{eq:chiralSF}\n\\end{align}\nNote that the chiral superfield $\\Phi$ has dimension $[\\Phi]=1$, in which case it\nfollows that the dimensions of the component fields are $[A]=1$ and\n$[\\psi]=\\tfrac32$, as expected, whereas $[F]=2$\nafter making use of the dimensions of the Grassmann coordinates,\n$[\\theta]=[\\theta^\\dagger]=-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$.\n\n\nGiven a chiral superfield $\\Phi$, its hermitian conjugate,\n$\\Phi^\\dagger$, is an antichiral superfield, which is\ndefined by the SUSY-covariant constraint,\n$D_\\alpha\\Phi^\\dagger=0$.\nUsing \\eq{eq:D}, the latter constraint yields a differential equation,\n\\begin{align}\nD_{\\alpha}\\Phi^\\dagger=\\bigl[\\partial_{\\alpha}-i(\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger)_{\\alpha}\\,\\partial_\\mu\\bigr]\\Phi^\\dagger(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=0\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhose solution is of the form\n\\begin{align}\n\\Phi^\\dagger(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=\\exp(i\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger\\,\\partial_\\mu)\\Phi^\\dagger(x,\\theta^\\dagger)\\,.\\label{eq:Phixththb2}\n\\end{align}\n\nWe can expand $\\Phi^\\dagger(x,\\theta^\\dagger)$ in a\n (truncated) \nTaylor series in $\\theta^\\dagger$,\n\\begin{align}\n\\Phi^\\dagger(x,\\theta^\\dagger)=A^\\dagger(x)+\\sqrt{2}\\,\\theta^\\dagger\\psi^\\dagger(x)+\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar F^\\dagger(x)\\,.\n\\end{align}\nPlugging this result into \\eq{eq:Phixththb2} and\nfollowing the same procedure as before, we end up with,\n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{split}\n\\Phi^\\dagger(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger) &=\nA^\\dagger(x) + \\sqrt{2}\\,\\theta^\\dagger \\psi^\\dagger(x) + \\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar F^\\dagger(x)+i \\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger \\partial_\\mu A^\\dagger(x) \\\\\n&\\quad - \\frac{i}{\\sqrt{2}} (\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar) \n\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\, \\partial_\\mu \\psi^\\dagger(x)-\\tfrac{1}{4}(\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar) \\square A^\\dagger(x)\\,.\n\\end{split}\n\\end{align}\nSince $\\Phi^\\dagger$ is the hermitian conjugate of $\\Phi$, we can\nidentify $A^\\dagger$, $\\psi^\\dagger$ and $F^\\dagger$ as the hermitian\nconjugates of $A$, $\\psi$ and $F$.\n\nIn calculations, it is often simpler to employ the so-called \\textit{chiral representation}, in which all superfield operators $\\mathcal{O}$ are modified according to\n\\begin{align}\n\\mathcal{O}_{\\rm chiral}=\\exp(i\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger\\,\\partial_\\mu)\\mathcal{O}\\exp(-i\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger\\,\\partial_\\mu)\\,.\n\\end{align}\nIn the chiral representation,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n&& \\widehat{Q}_\\alpha=i\\partial_\\alpha\\,,\\qquad\\qquad \\ \\\n\\widehat{Q}^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}=-i\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}+2(\\theta\\sigma^\\mu)_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,\\partial_\\mu\\,,\\label{Qchiral}\n\\\\\n&&\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}=-\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\qquad\\qquad \nD_{\\alpha}=\\partial_{\\alpha}-2i(\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger)_{\\alpha}\\,\\partial_\\mu\\,.\\label{Dchiral}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nThus, in the chiral representation, the requirement $\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\Phi=-\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\Phi=0$ is simply the requirement that $\\Phi$ is independent of $\\theta^\\dagger$.\nIn the chiral representation, the chiral superfield will be denoted by\n\\begin{align}\n\\Phi_1(x,\\theta)=A(x)+\\sqrt{2}\\,\\theta\\psi(x)+\\theta\\theta F(x)\\,.\\label{phione}\n\\end{align}\nIt then follows that the general expression for a chiral superfield is\n\\begin{align}\n\\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger) =\\exp(-i\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger\\,\\partial_\\mu)\\Phi_1(x,\\theta)=\\Phi_1(x-i\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger\\,,\\,\\theta)\\,.\n\\end{align}\nIt is convenient to define the shifted spacetime coordinate,\n\\begin{align}\ny \\equiv x - i \\theta \\sigma^\\mu \\theta^\\dagger,\n\\end{align}\nso that the chiral superfield is given by,\n\\begin{align}\n\\Phi\\of{x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger} = \\Phi_1\\of{y,\\theta}.\n\\end{align}\n\nThe SUSY transformation laws for the fields that appear in the chiral\nsuperfield can now be determined simply by inserting the expression\nfor $\\Phi$ in the chiral representation given by \\eq{phione} into\n\\eq{supertrans}. In performing the computation, one employs the\nchiral representation expressions for $\\widehat{Q}$ and\n$\\widehat{Q}^\\dagger$ given in \\eq{Qchiral}. You may verify (see Problem~\\ref{pr:chiraltrans})\nthat the result of this calculation coincides with the SUSY\ntransformation laws\ngiven previously in \\eqst{offshell1}{offshell3}.\n\nLikewise, one can define an antichiral representation in which \n\\begin{align}\n\\mathcal{O}_{\\rm antichiral}=\\exp(-i\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger\\,\\partial_\\mu)\\mathcal{O}\\exp(i\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger\\,\\partial_\\mu)\\,.\n\\end{align}\nIn the antichiral representation,\n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{split}\n& \\widehat{Q}^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}=-i\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\qquad\\qquad \\ \\ \n\\widehat{Q}_\\alpha=i\\partial_{\\alpha}-2(\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger)_{\\alpha}\\,\\partial_\\mu\\,,\n \\\\\n&D_{\\alpha}=\\partial_{\\alpha}\\,,\\qquad\\qquad \\quad\n\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}=-\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}+2i(\\theta\\sigma^\\mu)_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,\\partial_\\mu\\,.\n\\end{split}\n\\end{align}\nThus, in the antichiral representation, the requirement $D_{\\alpha}\\Phi^\\dagger\n=\\partial_{\\alpha}\\Phi^\\dagger=0$ is simply the requirement that $\\Phi^\\dagger$ is independent of $\\theta$.\nIn the antichiral representation, the antichiral superfield will be denoted by\n\\begin{align}\n\\Phi_2(x,\\theta^\\dagger)=A^\\dagger(x)+\\sqrt{2}\\,\\theta^\\dagger\\psi^\\dagger(x)+\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar F^\\dagger(x)\\,.\n\\end{align}\nIt then follows that the general expression for an antichiral superfield is\n\\begin{align}\n\\Phi^\\dagger(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger) =\\exp(i\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger\\,\\partial_\\mu)\\Phi_2(x,\\theta^\\dagger)=\\Phi_2(x+i\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger\\,,\\,\\theta^\\dagger)\\,.\n\\end{align}\nIt is convenient to define the shifted spacetime coordinate,\n\\begin{align}\ny^\\dagger \\equiv x + i \\theta \\sigma^\\mu \\theta^\\dagger,\n\\end{align}\nso that the antichiral superfield is given by,\n\\begin{align}\n\\Phi^\\dagger\\of{x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger} = \\Phi_2\\of{y^\\dagger,\\theta^\\dagger}.\n\\end{align}\n\n\n\\subsection{Constructing the SUSY Lagrangian}\n\n\\subsubsection{$F$-terms}\nUltimately, our goal is to construct an action that is invariant under SUSY. It is therefore sufficient to construct a Lagrangian that transforms under SUSY as a total derivative.\nIn the literature, it is common to use the nomenclature\n\\textit{$F$-term} to denote the coefficient of the\n$\\theta\\theta$ term of a superfield. This is sometimes explicitly\nindicated as follows,\n\\begin{align}\n[\\Phi]_{\\theta\\theta}=[\\Phi]_F=F. \\label{Fterm}\n\\end{align}\nRecall that in \\eq{offshell3}, we demonstrated that the auxiliary\nfield $F(x)$ transforms as a total derivative under the SUSY\ntransformation laws. But, this field is simply the coefficient of the\n$\\theta \\theta$ term of a chiral superfield! Indeed, the \n$F$-term of any chiral superfield transforms under a SUSY\ntransformation as a total derivative. This means that such terms (and\ntheir hermitian conjugates) are candidates for terms in a Lagrangian,\nwhich then yields an action that is invariant under SUSY.\n\nTo discover the relevant $F$-terms for constructing a SUSY Lagrangian,\nwe first prove an important theorem.\n\n\\begin{theorem}\nFor any positive integers $n$ and $m$, \nif $\\Phi$ is a chiral superfield, then so is $\\Phi^n$, whereas $\\Phi^n (\\Phi^\\dagger)^m$ is not a chiral superfield.\n\\end{theorem}\n\\begin{proof}\nWe first note that\n\\begin{equation}\n\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\Phi^n=n\\Phi^{n-1}\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\Phi=0,\n\\end{equation}\nwhich shows $\\Phi^n$ satisfies the defining constraint of a chiral superfield.\nA similar computation shows that $\\Phi^n (\\Phi^\\dagger)^m$ does not\nsatisfy the required constraint.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\nAn important consequence of the above theorem is that\n\\begin{equation}\n\\sum_{n\\geq 1} [a_n\\Phi^n]_F+{\\rm h.c.}\n\\end{equation}\nis a Lorentz scalar that transforms as a total divergence, and thus is a candidate for terms in a Lagrangian whose action is invariant under SUSY.\n\n\\subsubsection{Kinetic terms}\n\\label{kineticterms}\nTo construct the kinetic terms of the SUSY Lagrangian,\nwe define the operator $T$,\n\\begin{align}\nT\\Phi=-\\tfrac{1}{4}\\overline{D}\\lsup2\\Phi^\\dagger\\,,\\label{Tdef}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\overline{D}\\lsup2\\equiv \\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}{\\overline{D}}\\lsup{\\dot\\alpha}$. Note\nthat $\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}(T\\Phi)=0$ (due to the anticommutation relations\nsatisfied by $\\overline{D}$), so that $T\\Phi$ is a chiral superfield.\nIn the chiral representation, with $\\Phi=A+\\sqrt{2}\\,\\theta\\psi+\\theta\\theta F$,\n\\begin{align}\nT\\Phi=F^\\dagger-i\\sqrt{2}\\,\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\psi^\\dagger-\\theta\\theta\\,\\square A^\\dagger\\,.\n\\end{align}\nHence, the $F$-component of $\\Phi T \\Phi$ is given by,\n\\begin{align}\n[\\Phi T\\Phi]_F & =-A\\square A^\\dagger+F^\\dagger F+i\\psi\\sigma^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\psi^\\dagger\\nonumber\\\\\n&= (\\partial_\\mu A)(\\partial^\\mu A^\\dagger)+F^\\dagger F+i\\psi^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\psi+\\text{total derivative}\\,,\\label{KE}\n\\end{align}\nwhich we recognize as the kinetic energy term of the\nWess-Zumino Lagrangian [cf.~\\eq{eq:LWZF}].\n\\subsubsection{Mass terms}\n\nTo construct the mass terms of the SUSY Lagrangian, the following\ntheorem is useful.\n\\begin{theorem}\nFor any chiral superfield $\\Phi$,\n\\begin{align}\n[\\Phi]_F=-\\tfrac{1}{4} D^2\\Phi\\biggl|_{\\theta=\\theta^\\dagger=0}=\\tfrac{1}{4}\\partial^\\alpha\\partial_\\alpha\\Phi\\biggl|_{\\theta=\\theta^\\dagger=0}\\,.\\label{phiF}\n\\end{align}\n\\end{theorem}\n\\begin{proof}\n\\Eq{phiF} follows immediately from \\eq{DD}. \n\\end{proof}\nWe can compute the $F$ term of any holomorphic function of a chiral\nsuperfield, $W(\\Phi)$, as follows. After making judicious use of the\nchain rule,\n\\begin{align}\n[W(\\Phi)]_F&=\\tfrac{1}{4}\\partial^\\alpha\\partial_\\alpha W\\biggl|_{\\theta=\\theta^\\dagger=0} \n\t=\\tfrac{1}{4}\\partial^\\alpha\\frac{dW}{d\\Phi}\\partial_\\alpha\\Phi\\biggl|_{\\theta=\\theta^\\dagger=0} \\nonumber \\\\[6pt]\n&=\\frac{1}{4}\\biggl\\{\\left(\\frac{d^2 W}{d\\Phi^2}\\partial^\\alpha\\Phi\\partial_\\alpha\\Phi\\right)\n+\\frac{dW}{d\\Phi}\\partial^\\alpha\\partial_\\alpha\\Phi\\biggr\\}\\biggl|_{\\theta=\\theta^\\dagger=0} \\,.\\label{WPhi}\n\\end{align}\nNoting that $(\\partial^\\alpha\\Phi\\partial_\\alpha\\Phi)_{\\theta=\\theta^\\dagger=0}=-2\\psi\\psi$,\n\\eq{WPhi} yields,\n\\begin{align}\n[W(\\Phi)]_F &=-\\frac12\\left(\\frac{d^2 W}{d\\Phi^2}\\right)_{\\Phi=A}\\psi\\psi+\\left(\\frac{dW}{d\\Phi}\\right)_{\\Phi=A}F\\,.\n\\end{align}\nIntroducing the notation, $dW\/dA\\equiv (dW\/d\\Phi)_{\\Phi=A}$,\nit follows that\n\\begin{align}\n[W(\\Phi)]_F=-\\frac12 \\frac{d^2 W}{dA^2}\\psi\\psi+\\frac{dW}{dA}F\\,.\\label{rest}\n\\end{align}\nIn the jargon of SUSY, $W(\\Phi)$ is called the \\textit{superpotential}. For renormalizable theories, $\\!W(\\Phi)\\!$ is at most cubic in~$\\Phi$. \n\n\\subsubsection{The Wess-Zumino SUSY Lagrangian using $F$-terms}\nCollecting the results of \\eqs{KE}{rest}, we end up with,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\mathscr{L}&=&[\\Phi T\\Phi]_F+\\bigl\\{[W(\\Phi)]_F+{\\rm h.c.}\\bigr\\}\n\\nonumber \\\\[2pt]\n&=&(\\partial_\\mu A)^\\dagger(\\partial^\\mu A)+ i \\psi^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu \\partial_\\mu \\psi +F\\frac{dW}{dA}+F^\\dagger\\left(\\frac{dW}{dA}\\right)^{\\!\\!\\dagger}\n+F^\\dagger F \\nonumber \\\\\n&&\\quad \n-\\frac12\\left[\\frac{d^2 W}{dA^2}\\,\\psi\\psi+\\left(\\frac{d^2 W}{dA^2}\\right)^{\\!\\!\\dagger}\\!\\!\\psi^\\dagger\\psi^\\dagger\\right]\\,,\\label{WZlagF}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nafter dropping total derivative terms. We have thus recovered the\nWess-Zumino Lagrangian that was previously written down in \\eq{eq:LWZoriginal}.\n\n\nThe proof that the Wess-Zumino action is supersymmetric, or\nequivalently, $\\delta_{\\xi}\\mathcal{L}=\\partial_\\mu K^{\\prime\\,\\mu}$, is\nnow trivial since \n$\\mathscr{L}$ was constructed from $F$-terms, which\ntransform as total derivatives under SUSY transformations.\n\n\\subsubsection{An alternate form for the kinetic terms: $D$-terms and the K\\\"ahler potential}\n\\label{Kahler}\nThe approach of subsection~\\ref{kineticterms} is not the only supersymmetric way to construct the kinetic energy terms.\nConsider an unconstrained superfield $V(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)$.\n Expanding $V$ as a Taylor series in $\\theta$ and $\\theta^\\dagger$, the\n highest order nonvanishing term is proportional to $(\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)$. If we write \n\\begin{align}\nV(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=\\cdots+(\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)D(x)\\,,\n\\end{align}\nthen one can show that $\\delta_{\\xi} D(x)$ is a total derivative\nusing dimensional analysis as we did for $\\delta_{\\xi} F(x)$ at the end of\nSection~\\ref{offshell}. Hence, $D$-terms can also provide suitable terms for a SUSY Lagrangian.\n\n\nWe shall denote the $D$-term by,\n\\begin{equation}\n[V]_{\\theta\\theta\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar}=[V]_D=D\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nusing a notation analogous to that of \\eq{Fterm}. The relevant\ntheorem analogous to \\eq{phiF} is given below.\n\\begin{theorem}\nFor any superfield $V$,\n\\begin{equation}\n[V]_D =\\tfrac{1}{16}\\overline{D}\\lsup{2}D^2\n V\\biggl|_{\\theta=\\theta^\\dagger=0}=\\tfrac{1}{16}(\\partial^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\partial^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha})(\\partial^\\alpha\\partial_\\alpha)V\\biggl|_{\\theta=\\theta^\\dagger=0}\\,.\\label{VD}\n\\end{equation}\n\\end{theorem}\n\\begin{proof}\n\\Eq{VD} follows immediately from \\eqs{DD}{DbDb}. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\\noindent\nFor example, if $\\Phi$ is a chiral superfield, one can show that (see Problem~\\ref{pr:phistphiD}),\n\\begin{align}\n[\\Phi^\\dagger\\Phi]_D=(\\partial_\\mu A)(\\partial^\\mu A^\\dagger)+F^\\dagger F+i\\psi^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\psi+\\text{total derivative}\\,,\\label{phiphiD}\n\\end{align}\nwhich again reproduces the kinetic energy terms of the Wess-Zumino Lagrangian.\n\nIndeed, one can obtain candidate terms for a SUSY Lagrangian by\nconsidering the $\\theta\\theta\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar$ component of an\narbitrary function of a chiral superfield and its complex conjugate.\nThis function, denoted by $K(\\Phi,\\Phi^\\dagger)$, is called the K\\\"ahler\npotential. Applying the chain rule as in our computation of\n$[W(\\Phi)]_F$ [cf.~\\eqst{WPhi}{rest}], one can calculate (see Problem~\\ref{pr:K}),\n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{split}\n[K(\\Phi,\\Phi^\\dagger)]_D=&\\frac{\\partial^2 K}{\\partial A\\partial A^\\dagger}\\biggl[(\\partial_\\mu A)(\\partial^\\mu A^\\dagger)+F^\\dagger F+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} i\\psi^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\!\\!\\stackrel{\\leftrightarrow}{\\partial}_{\\!\\mu}\\!\\psi\\biggr] \\\\\n&-\\frac12\\,\\frac{\\partial^3 K}{\\partial A\\partial A^{\\dagger\\,2}}\\biggl[F\\psi^\\dagger\\psi^\\dagger+i\\psi^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\psi\\partial_\\mu A^\\dagger\\biggl] \\\\\n&-\\frac12\\,\\frac{\\partial^3 K}{\\partial A^2\\partial A^{\\dagger}}\\biggl[F^\\dagger\\psi\\psi-i\\psi^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\psi\\partial_\\mu A\\biggl] \\\\\n&+\\frac14\\,\\frac{\\partial^4 K}{\\partial A^2\\partial A^{\\dagger\\,2}}(\\psi\\psi)(\\psi^\\dagger\\psi^\\dagger)+\\text{total derivative}\\,.\\label{kahler}\n\\end{split}\n\\end{align}\n\nWe conclude that the most general SUSY Lagrangian involving a chiral\nsuperfield $\\Phi$ is given by\n\\begin{align}\n\\mathscr{L}=[K(\\Phi,\\Phi^\\dagger)]_D+\\bigl\\{[W(\\Phi)]_F+{\\rm h.c.}\\bigr\\}\\,.\\label{eq:Lgeneral}\n\\end{align}\nThe auxiliary field $F$ can be determined via its classical\nfield equation, which yields\n\\begin{align}\nF=\\left(\\frac{\\partial^2 K}{\\partial A\\partial A^\\dagger}\\right)^{-1}\\left[\\frac12\\,\\frac{\\partial^3 K}{\\partial A^2\\partial A^{\\dagger}}\\psi\\psi-\\left(\\frac{dW}{dA}\\right)^\\dagger\\right]\\,.\\label{aux}\n\\end{align}\n\nThe case of $K(\\Phi,\\Phi^\\dagger)=\\Phi^\\dagger\\Phi$ reduces to the result of\n\\eq{phiphiD} and corresponds to the kinetic energy term of the\nWess-Zumino model as noted above. In this case, \\eq{aux} yields,\n\\begin{equation}\nF=-\\left(\\frac{dW}{dA}\\right)^\\dagger\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhich reproduces the result previously obtained in \\eq{f}.\n\nMore complicated K\\\"ahler potentials yield non-renormalizable Lagrangians. These arise in\nlow-energy effective field theories (that include operators of dimension greater than four),\nin supersymmetric $\\sigma$-models, and in supergravity. Such\napplications lie beyond the scope of these lectures.\n\n\\subsection{$R$-invariance}\n\\label{Rinvariance}\nRecall that the SUSY algebra can be extended by added adding a bosonic\nU(1)$_R$ generator $R$ such that [cf.~\\eqst{R1}{susyalg7}],\n\\begin{align}\n\\left[R\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha\\right]=-Q_\\alpha\\,,\\qquad\\quad\n\\left[R\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\right]=Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,.\\label{Rcommute}\n\\end{align}\nThe action of ${\\rm U}(1)_R$ on a superfield $\\Phi$ can be represented by a differential operator $\\widehat{R}$ acting on superspace,\n\\begin{align}\n[\\Phi\\,,\\,R]=\\widehat{R}\\Phi\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhere\n\\begin{align}\n\\widehat{R}\\equiv \\theta^\\alpha\\partial_\\alpha-\\theta^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\partial^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha}-n\\,,\\qquad \\text{with $n\\in\\mathbb{R}$}\\,.\n\\end{align}\nWe call $n$ the \\textit{weight} (or $R$-charge) of the superfield $\\Phi$. (For a \\textit{real} superfield, only $n=0$ is possible.)\nUnder a ${\\rm U}(1)_R$ transformation,\n\\begin{align}\n\\delta_a\\Phi=ia[R\\,,\\,\\Phi]=-ia\\widehat{R}\\Phi\\,.\n\\end{align}\nActing on a superfield $\\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)$,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\widehat{R}\\,\\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=e^{2ina}\\,\\Phi(x,e^{-ia}\\theta,e^{ia}\\theta^\\dagger)\\,,\\label{Rtrans}\n\\end{equation}\nThe differential operator $\\widehat{R}$ satisfies the identities,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\nD_\\alpha \\widehat{R}&=&(\\widehat{R}+1)D_\\alpha\\,,\\\\\n\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\widehat{R}&=&(\\widehat{R}-1)\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,.\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nHence, it follows that if $\\Phi$ is a chiral [antichiral] superfield, then\n$\\widehat{R}\\Phi$ is a chiral [antichiral] superfield.\n\nGiven a chiral superfield, $\\Phi=A+\\sqrt{2}\\,\\theta\\psi+\\theta\\theta\nF$, in the chiral representation, the ${\\rm U}(1)_R$ transformations of the component fields are:\n\\begin{align}\nA&\\to e^{ina}A\\,,\\\\\n\\psi &\\to e^{i(n-1)a}\\psi\\,,\\\\\nF&\\to e^{i(n-2)a}F\\,,\\label{RF}\n\\end{align}\nafter employing \\eq{Rtrans}.\n\n\n\\begin{theorem}\n\\label{Rtheorem}\nThe kinetic energy term $[\\Phi^\\dagger\\Phi]_D$ is automatically\n$R$-invariant, whereas $[W(\\Phi)]_F$ is $R$-invariant if and only if $W$ has $R$-charge equal to 2.\n\\end{theorem}\n\\begin{proof}\nIf $n=2$, then $F$ is invariant under a ${\\rm U}(1)_R$ transformation,\n in light of \\eq{RF}. This result applies to any $F$-term.\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{example}\n[Wess-Zumino model with $\\boldsymbol{W(\\Phi)=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} m\\Phi^2+\\tfrac13 g\\Phi^3}$]\nIf $m=0$, then the Wess-Zumino model is $R$-invariant with $n=\\tfrac13$.\nIf $g=0$, then the Wess-Zumino model is $R$-invariant with $n=\\tfrac12$.\nIf both $m\\neq 0$ and $g\\neq 0$, then the Wess-Zumino model is not $R$-invariant. \n\\end{example}\n\n\n\\subsection{Grassmann integration and the SUSY action}\n\\label{integration}\nA supersymmetric action can be written as an integral over superspace.\nFirst, we introduce integration over anticommuting Grassmann\nvariables. The rules of integration are\\cite{Berezin},\n\\begin{align} \\label{grules}\n\\int d\\theta=\\int d\\theta^\\dagger=0\\,,\\qquad \\int \\theta\\,d\\theta=\\int\n \\theta^\\dagger\\,d\\theta^\\dagger=1\\,.\n\\end{align}\nThat is, integration over Grassmann variables is in some sense equivalent to differentiation.\n\nIt is conventional to define\n\\begin{align}\nd^2\\theta&\\equiv -\\tfrac14 d\\theta^\\alpha d\\theta_\\alpha\\,,\\\\\nd^2\\theta^\\dagger&\\equiv-\\tfrac14 d\\theta^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha} d\\theta^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\\\\nd^4\\theta &\\equiv d^2\\theta d^2\\theta^\\dagger\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhich yields the following non-zero integrals,\n\\begin{align}\n\\int d^2 \\theta\\, (\\theta\\theta)=\\int d^2\\theta^\\dagger\\,(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)=\\int d^4\\theta\\,(\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)=1\\,.\n\\end{align}\n\n\nIt follows that for a chiral superfield,\n\\begin{align}\n\\int d^2\\theta\\, \\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=\\int d^2\\theta\\, \\Phi_1(x,\\theta)=[\\Phi]_F=-\\tfrac14 D^2\\Phi\\biggl|_{\\theta=\\theta^\\dagger=0}\\,.\n\\label{d2theta}\n\\end{align}\nLikewise, for an arbitrary superfield $V(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)$,\n\\begin{align}\n\\int d^4\\theta\\, V(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=[V]_D=\\tfrac{1}{16}\\overline{D}\\lsup{2} D^2 V\\biggl|_{\\theta=\\theta^\\dagger=0}\\,.\\label{d4theta}\n\\end{align}\nThus, the most general SUSY action involving a chiral superfield $\\Phi$ is\n\\begin{align}\nS=\\int d^4 x\\,d^4\\, \\theta K(\\Phi,\\Phi^\\dagger)+\\int d^4 x\\,d^2\\theta\\, W(\\Phi)\n+\\int d^4 x\\,d^2\\theta^\\dagger\\, W(\\Phi^\\dagger)\\,.\\label{S}\n\\end{align}\n\nGeneralizations to theories with multiple chiral superfields are\nstraightforward. In the more general case, $W$ is a holomorphic\nmultivariable function of the chiral superfields, and $K$ is a\nmultivariable function of the chiral superfields and their hermitian conjugates. For a renormalizable theory, $W$ is at most a cubic multinomial, \n\\begin{align}\nW(\\Phi_i)=\\sum_i a_i\\Phi_i+\\sum_{i,j} b_{ij}\\Phi_i\\Phi_j+\\sum_{i,j,k}c_{ijk}\\Phi_i\\Phi_j\\Phi_k\\,,\n\\end{align}\nand\n\\begin{align}\nK(\\Phi_i,\\Phi_i^\\dagger)=\\sum_i \\Phi_i^\\dagger\\Phi_i\\,.\\label{Ksimple}\n\\end{align}\n\nIn special cases, one can convert an integral over ``half'' of superspace (e.g. integrals over\n$d^4 x\\, d^2\\theta$) into an integral over the full superspace. The key\nobservation is that for an arbitrary superfield $V$,\n\\begin{align}\n\\int d^4x\\,d^2\\theta\\,V(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=\\int d^4 x\\left(-\\tfrac14 D^2 V\\right)\\,.\\label{intV}\n\\end{align}\nOn the left-hand side of \\eq{intV}, the integration over $d^2 \\theta$ projects out all terms proportional to $\\theta\\theta$. On the right-hand side, $D^2\\!=-\\!\\partial^\\alpha\\partial_\\alpha$\nup to total derivative terms that can be dropped because we are integrating over $d^4 x$. Hence, $\\tfrac14 \\partial^\\alpha\\partial_\\alpha$ has the effect of projecting out all terms proportional to $\\theta\\theta$.\nLikewise,\n\\begin{align}\n\\int d^4x\\,d^2\\theta^\\dagger\\,V(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=\\int d^4 x\\left(-\\tfrac14 \\overline{D}\\lsup{2} V\\right)\\,.\n\\end{align}\nHence, it follows that\n\\begin{align}\n\\int d^4 x\\,d^2\\theta\\left(-\\tfrac14 \\overline{D}\\lsup{2} V\\right)=\\int d^4x\\,d^4\\theta\\,V(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)\\,.\\label{2to4}\n\\end{align}\n\n\\Eqs{d2theta}{d4theta} identify integrals over\nhalf of superspace as $F$-terms and integrals over the full superspace\nas $D$-terms. However,\n\\eq{2to4} appears to blur the distinction between $D$-terms and $F$-terms.\nFor example, in the Wess-Zumino Lagrangian, the kinetic energy\nterm may be written as an $F$-term, $[\\Phi T\\Phi]_F$ [cf. \\eq{WZlagF}], or\nas a $D$-term, $[\\Phi^\\dagger\\Phi]_D$, as in\n \\eqs{phiphiD}{eq:Lgeneral}. However,\nconsider the case of a half superspace integral of the superpotential given\nin \\eq{S}. If we attempt to convert this into a full superspace\nintegral using \\eq{2to4}, the end result is\n\\begin{equation}\n\\int d^4 x \\,d^2\\theta\\,W(\\Phi) =-4\\int d^4 x\\, d^4\\theta\\,\\label{nonlocal}\n\\overline{D}\\lsup{-2} W(\\Phi)\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nDue to the inverse differential operator, the integrand on the right-hand side of \\eq{nonlocal} is a non-local\nfunctional of chiral superfields. This provides the distinction\nbetween $F$-terms and $D$-terms. In particular, any half superspace integral\nthat can be converted into a full superspace integral over a \\textit{local}\nfunctional of superfields will be called a $D$-term.\n\nHaving written the action in \\eq{S} as an integral over superspace (for\n$D$-terms) and half of superspace (for $F$-terms), one can obtain\nexpressions for the Green functions of quantum chiral\n(and antichiral) superfields. The corresponding two-point functions\nprovide expressions for the superspace propagators. One can then\nformulate a set of superspace Feynman rules and develop a\ndiagrammatic representation of the perturbative expansion of the\nGreen functions. This was first carried out by Grisaru, Ro\\u{c}ek, and\nSiegel\\cite{GRS}, and was applied to the perturbative computation of\nthe effective action. Indeed, such techniques are quite useful since a\nsingle supergraph (in which individual lines correspond to\nsuperfields) is equivalent to a large number of Feynman diagrams involving\nthe corresponding component fields.\nA comprehensive treatment of these methods are beyond the scope of these lectures.\nFor a pedagogical development of supergraphs and superspace Feynman rules, see e.g.~Refs.\\cite{Gates,Srivastava,Buchbinder,Pokorski}.\n\n\\subsection{Improved ultraviolet behavior of supersymmetry}\n\\label{sec:non-renorm}\n\nAn attractive feature of supersymmetric quantum field theories is that\ntheir ultraviolet divergences are better behaved, as compared to\nordinary quantum field theories.\nRef.\\cite{GRS} demonstrated that the loop corrections to the effective\naction of a supersymmetric theory of chiral superfields\ncan be expressed as an integral over the full superspace,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{effact}\n\\sum_n \\int d^4 x_1\\cdots d^4 x_n\\int d^4\\theta\\, g_n(x_1,\\ldots,x_n)\nF_1(x_1,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)\\cdots F_n(x_n,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere the $F_i(x_i,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)$ are local functionals of chiral\nand antichiral superfields and their covariant derivatives, and the\n$g_n$ are translationally invariant functions on Minkowski space.\n\n\\Eq{effact} implies that $D$-terms are renormalized but $F$-terms\nare not renormalized. Moreover, if $F$-terms are absent at\ntree-level, then they are not generated at the loop level. Hence, the\ntree-level K\\\"ahler potential is\nrenormalized by radiative corrections, whereas there are no loop\ncorrections to the tree-level superpotential. This is the famous\nnon-renormalization theorem of $N=1$ supersymmetry.\\footnote{The \nproof of the non-renormalization theorem implicitly assumes that the function $g_n$\nin \\eq{effact} is local. However, the non-renormalization theorem can fail if \nthe super\\-symmetric theory contains massless fields as shown in\nRefs.\\cite{West:1990rm,Jack:1990pd,Dunbar:1991fc}, due to infrared\ndivergences. For example, the inverse Laplacian operator\n$\\square^{-1}$ (from a massless propagator) can appear, resulting in\na non-local function $g_n$ in \\eq{effact}. One can show that\nthe non-renormalization theorem holds for the\nWilsonian effective action\\cite{Shifman:1986zi,Shifman:1991dz}, where\nthe infrared effects are cut off\\cite{SeibergNR,Poppitz:1996na}. \\label{fnW}}\nThe proof of the non-renormalization theorem in Ref.\\cite{GRS} relies\non the analysis of supergraphs in perturbation theory, and is beyond\nthe scope of these lectures. Heuristically, this\ntheorem is a consequence of an exact cancellation between fermion and boson\nloop contributions to the effective action due to supersymmetry.\n\nNote that the non-renormalization of the tree-level superpotential\nis simply a consequence of the fact that the integral of a\nproduct of chiral superfields over \\textit{all} of superspace in \\eq{effact} is zero due to\n\\eq{grules} [see Problem~\\ref{pr:half}]. Moreover, the assumption that\nthe $F_i$ in \\eq{effact} are \\textit{local} functionals of chiral and\nantichiral superfields is essential. Otherwise, one could employ\n\\eq{nonlocal} and erroneously claim the existence of loop corrections\nto the tree-level superpotential.\n\n\n\nWe now briefly explore the consequence of the non-renormalization of\nthe superpotential. Consider the action of the Wess-Zumino model,\n\\begin{align}\nS_{\\mathrm{WZ}} = \\int d^4 x \\int d^4 \\theta\\, \\Phi^\\dagger \\Phi + \\sqof{ \\int d^4 x \\int d^2\\theta \\of{\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} m \\Phi^2 + \\tfrac{1}{3} \\lambda\\Phi^3} \n+ {\\rm h.c.}}.\n\\end{align}\nThe non-renormalization theorem implies that renormalized fields and\nparameters are related to bare fields and parameters as follows\\cite{Cui},\n\\begin{equation} \\label{bare}\n\\Phi_R=Z^{-1\/2}\\Phi\\,,\\qquad\\quad m_R=Zm\\,,\\qquad\\quad\n\\lambda_R=Z^{3\/2}\\lambda\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nwhere the subscript $R$ indicates renormalized quantities and the\nbare quantities have no subscript. \\Eq{bare} is equivalent to the\nstatement that the superpotential is unrenormalized,\n$W_R(\\Phi_R)=W(\\Phi)$. \nThat is,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} m_R\\Phi_R^2 +\\tfrac13 \\lambda_R\\Phi_R^3=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} m\\Phi^2 +\\tfrac13\n\\lambda\\Phi^3\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nWave function renormalization is a consequence of the\nrenormalization of the K\\\"ahler potential ($\\Phi^\\dagger\\Phi$ in\nthe case of the Wess-Zumino model). \n\nThe non-renormalization theorem does \\textit{not} assert that\nthe parameters of the\nsuperpotential are not renormalized. Indeed, \\eq{bare} states that\nthe renormalization of the parameters $m$ and $\\lambda$ are governed\nby the wave function renormalization constant $Z$. Moreover, the\nwave function renormalization constants of the component fields of the chiral\nsuperfield are~equal (i.e., $A_R\\!\\!=Z^{-1\/2}A$ and\n$\\psi_R\\!=\\!Z^{-1\/2}\\psi$), as a consequence of supersymmetry.\n\n\n\n\nIn Ref.\\cite{SeibergNR}, Seiberg offered a more intuitive understanding of the\nnon-renormalization theorem, which also forbids nonperturbative\ncorrections to the Wilsonian effective action [cf.~footnote~\\ref{fnW}].\nSeiberg's argument draws on the symmetry and\nholomorphy\\footnote{The fact that the superpotential is a\n holomorphic function of chiral superfields plays a critical role in\nSeiberg's argument.\nIn contrast, the renormalization of the K\\\"ahler potential is\npossible because the latter is a function of chiral and antichiral\nsuperfields and hence is not holomorphic.}\n\\!of the\nsuperpotential. Consider again the example of the Wess-Zumino\nsuperpotential, $W(\\Phi)=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} m\\Phi^2+\\tfrac13\\lambda\\Phi^3$.\nFollowing Ref.\\cite{SeibergNR}, one can think of $m$ and $\\lambda$ as the vacuum\nexpectation values of chiral superfields, so that $W$ must be\nholomorphic in $m$ and $\\lambda$ as well as in $\\Phi$. \nIn light of Theorem~\\ref{Rtheorem} in Section~\\ref{Rinvariance}, the theory is\ninvariant under an enhanced ${\\rm U}(1) \\times {\\rm U}(1)_R$\nsymmetry, with the charge assignments shown in\nTable~\\ref{tab:charges}.\n\\begin{table}[h!]\n\\begin{center}\n\\caption{\\small Charge assignments under the ${\\rm U}(1) \\times {\\rm U}(1)_R$ symmetry.}\n\\label{tab:charges}\n\\vskip 0.1in\n\\begin{tabular}{| l | r r r r |}\n\\hline\n\t& $\\Phi$\t& $\\Phi^\\dagger$\t& $m$\t& $\\lambda$\t\\\\\n\t\\hline\n${\\rm U}(1)$ & 1\t\t& $-1$\t\t\t\t& $-2$\t\t& $-$3 \t\t\t\\\\\n${\\rm U}(1)_R$\t& 1\t\t&\t1\t\t\t&\t0\t&\t$-$1\t\\\\\n\\hline\n\\end{tabular}\n\\end{center}\n\\end{table}\n\nTo maintain the ${\\rm U}(1) \\times{\\rm }U(1)_R$ symmetry and holomorphy,\ncorrections to the Wilsonian effective superpotential must therefore be of the form\n\\begin{align}\nm \\Phi^2 f\\of{ \\frac{ \\lambda \\Phi }{ m} },\\label{wilson}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $f$ is an arbitrary holomorphic function. \n\\Eq{wilson} is valid for arbitrary $\\lambda$. Thus, we can take\n$|\\lambda|\\ll 1$, in which case perturbation theory should be valid.\nExpanding in powers of the coupling constant $\\lambda$, the perturbative expansion should have the\nfollowing form,\n\\begin{equation}\nW_{\\rm eff}=\\sum_{n=0}^\\infty\na_n\\frac{\\lambda^n}{m^{n-1}}\\Phi^{n+2}\\,.\\label{Weffective}\n\\end{equation}\nThe terms in $W_{\\rm eff}$ are represented diagrammatically by one\nparticle irreducible (1PI) supergraphs constructed from propagators and\nthree-point vertices proportional to $\\lambda$. However, one cannot construct a\none-loop (or higher) supergraph that behaves like\n$\\lambda^n\\Phi^{n+2}$. It is easy to show that tree-level diagrams\nwith $n+2$ external legs, $n$ vertices and $n-1$ propagators would\nbehave like $\\lambda^n\\Phi^{n+2}$. But, the only 1PI tree-level\ngraphs are those with either two or three external legs! Hence, we\nconclude that $a_0=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$, $a_1=\\tfrac13$ and $a_n=0$ for\n$n\\geq 2$.\\footnote{One can also conclude that $a_n=0$ for $n\\geq 2$\n by noting that the Wilsonian effective action $W_{\\rm eff}$ must have a smooth\n limit as $m\\to 0$.} That is\n$W_{\\rm eff}(\\Phi)=W_{\\rm tree}(\\Phi)$, which is the statement that the\nsuperpotential is not renormalized.\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Problems}\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:two_super_translations}\nProve that\n\\begin{align}\n G(y,\\xi,\\xi^\\dagger)G(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=G\\bigl(x+y+i(\\xi\\sigma\\theta^\\dagger-\\theta\\sigma\\xi^\\dagger),\\xi+\\theta,\\xi^\\dagger+\\theta^\\dagger\\bigr)\\,. \\nonumber\n \\end{align}\n {\\sl HINT}: use the Baker-Campbell-Hausdorff formula given in \\eq{BCH}. \n \\end{problem}\n \n \n\\begin{problem}\nVerify that when acting on a superfield $\\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)$,\n$$\n\\{\\widehat{Q}_\\alpha\\,,\\,\\widehat{Q}_\\beta\\}=\\{\\widehat{Q}^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,\\widehat{Q}^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=0\\,,\\qquad\\quad\n\\{\\widehat{Q}_\\alpha\\,,\\,\\widehat{Q}^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=2\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\\widehat{P}_\\mu\\,.\n$$\n\\end{problem}\n \n \n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:3results}\nProve \\eqst{eq:r1}{eq:r3}. The last result is an example of a\nFierz identity (see, e.g., Appendix B of Ref.\\cite{Dreiner:2008tw} or\nAppendix A of Ref.\\cite{Bailin}).\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:fmnV}\nUsing \\eq{supertrans}, obtain the SUSY transformation laws for the\nbosonic component fields,\n$f$, $m$, $n$, $V_\\mu$, and $d$, and the fermionic component fields,\n$\\zeta$, $\\chi$, $\\lambda$ and $\\psi$, which appear in the complex\nsuperfield defined in \\eq{phitaylor}. \n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\nSuppose that $\\Phi$ is a bosonic superfield. Verify that\n\\eq{daggers} holds. Then, show that \\eqs{eq:D}{eq:Db} satisfy\n\\eq{Dcond}.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\nSuppose that $\\Phi$ is a fermionic superfield. Show that\n\\eqs{daggers}{Dcond} are modified as follows:\n$(\\partial_\\alpha\\Phi)^\\dagger=\\partial_{\\dot\\alpha}^\\dagger\\Phi^\\dagger$\nand $(D_\\alpha\\Phi)^\\dagger=-\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\Phi^\\dagger$. \n \\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem} \n\\label{pr:D}\nShow that the spinor covariant derivatives, as defined in \\eq{eq:D}\nand \\eq{eq:Db}, satisfy the following anticommutation relations,\n$\\{D_\\alpha\\,,\\,D_\\beta\\}=\\{\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=0$ and\n$\\{D_\\alpha\\,,\\,\\overline{D}_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=2i\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\\partial_\\mu$.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:DDid}\nDerive \\eq{DDid}.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:expexp}\nProve that\n\\begin{align*}\n\\exp(-i\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger\\,\\partial_\\mu)=1-i\\theta\\sigma^\\mu\\theta^\\dagger\\,\\partial_\\mu-\\tfrac{1}{4}(\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)\\square,\n\\end{align*}\nwhere $\\square\\equiv\\partial_\\mu\\partial^\\mu.$\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:chiraltrans}\nUsing \\eq{supertrans}, one can\nobtain the SUSY transformation laws for the component fields $A$,\n$\\psi$ and $F$ in \\eq{eq:chiralSF}. Perform the calculation by\nworking in the chiral representation and show\nthat the SUSY transformation laws for $A$, $\\psi$ and $F$ coincide with\nthe results obtained previously in \\eqst{offshell1}{offshell3} for the fields of a superspin $j=0$\nsupermultiplet. \n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:phistphiD}\nIf $\\Phi$ is a chiral superfield, show that\n\\begin{align*}\n[\\Phi^*\\Phi]_D=(\\partial_\\mu A)(\\partial^\\mu A^*)+F^* F+i\\psi^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\psi+\\text{total derivative}\\,.\n\\end{align*}\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:K}\nDerive \\eq{kahler}.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\nA linear superfield\\cite{Ferrara:1974ac,Salam:1974jj}, $L(x,\\theta,\\bar\\theta)$,\nis defined as a constrained real scalar superfield that satisfies, $D^2 L(x,\\theta,\\bar\\theta)=\\overline D\\lsup{2}\nL(x,\\theta,\\bar\\theta)=0$. Identify the component fields\nthat make up the linear superfield. Show that $\\partial_\\mu V^\\mu=0$,\nwhere $V^\\mu$ is the component vector field of $L$. \nCheck that the number of fermion and boson degrees of freedom of the linear\nsuperfield are equal.\n[HINT: the identity given by \\eq{DDid} should be helpful.]\n\\end{problem}\n\n\n\\begin{problem}\nEmploying the operator $T$ defined in \\eq{Tdef}, show that\n\\begin{equation}\n\\int d^4 x\\,d^2\\theta\\, \\Phi T\\Phi = \\int d^4 x\\, d^4\\theta\n\\,\\Phi^\\dagger\\Phi\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nby converting the integral over half of superspace into an integral\nover the full superspace. Use the above result to conclude that\n$[\\Phi T \\Phi]_F=[\\Phi^\\dagger\\Phi]_D$.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:half}\nIf $\\Phi$ is a chiral superfield and $\\Phi^\\dagger$ is an antichiral\nsuperfield, show that\n\\begin{equation}\n\\int d^4 x\\,d^4\\theta\\, \\Phi(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=\\int d^4 x\\,d^4\\theta\\,\n\\Phi^\\dagger(x,\\theta,\\theta^\\dagger)=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\\end{problem}\n\n\n\n\\section{Motivation for TeV-scale supersymmetry}\n\\label{sec:motivation}\n\\renewcommand{\\theequation}{\\arabic{section}.\\arabic{equation}}\n\\setcounter{equation}{0}\n\n\n\nThe Standard Model (SM) of particle physics has been remarkably\nsuccessful for describing the observed behavior of the fundamental\nparticles and their interactions\\cite{Langacker}. \nIndeed, there are no definitive departures from the Standard Model observed in experiments conducted at high energy collider facilities. \nNevertheless, some fundamental microscopic phenomena must necessarily lie outside of the purview of the SM.\nThese include: neutrinos with non-zero mass\\cite{numass}; dark matter\\cite{darkmatter}; the suppression of CP-violation in the strong interactions (the so-called strong CP problem\\cite{Kim:2008hd}); gauge coupling unification\\cite{guts}; the baryon asymmetry of the universe\\cite{White:2016nbo}; inflation in the early universe\\cite{inflation}; dark energy\\cite{darkenergy}; and the gravitational interaction. None of these phenomena can be explained within the framework of the SM alone.\n\nConsequently, the SM should be regarded at best as a low-energy effective field theory~\\cite{eft}, which is valid below some high energy scale. \nThat is, new high energy scales must exist where more fundamental physics resides.\nIn this section, we explain why one might expect to find this new\nphysics at the TeV scale. We discuss the \\textit{principle of\n naturalness}, and how supersymmetry provides a natural mechanism for\navoiding the quadratic sensitivity of the squared-masses of\nelementary scalar particles to ultraviolet physics.\n\n\n\\subsection{Why the \\textrm{TeV} scale?}\nThe classical gravitational interaction lies outside the SM. Using\nthe fundamental constants, $\\hbar$, $c$ and Newton's gravitational\nconstant $G_N$, one can construct a quantity with the units of energy\ncalled the Planck scale,\n\\begin{equation}\nM_{\\rm PL}c^2\\equiv \\left(\\frac{\\hbar c^5}{G_N}\\right)^{1\/2}\\simeq\n1.2\\times 10^{19}~{\\rm GeV}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nThe significance of the Planck scale can be seen as follows.\nAt the Planck energy scale, the quantum mechanical\naspects of gravity can no longer be neglected.\nThe gravitational energy of a particle of mass $m$,\nevaluated at its Compton wavelength, $r_c=\\hbar\/(mc)$,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\Phi\\sim\\frac{G_N m^2}{r_c}=\\frac{G_N m^3 c}{\\hbar}{~\\raise.15em\\hbox{$<$}\\kern-.85em\\lower.35em\\hbox{$\\sim$}~} 2mc^2\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nmust be below $2mc^2$ to avoid particle-antiparticle pair\ncreation by the gravitational field. Hence, up to \n$\\mathcal{O}(1)$ constants, we conclude that $m{~\\raise.15em\\hbox{$<$}\\kern-.85em\\lower.35em\\hbox{$\\sim$}~} M_{\\rm\nPL}$.\\footnote{Note that for $m=M_{\\rm PL}$, the Schwarzschild radius\n$r_s\\equiv 2G_N m\/c^2\\simeq r_c$, which provides additional evidence\nthat the quantum mechanical nature of gravity cannot be neglected at\nenergy scales above the Planck scale.}\nSince particle-antiparticle pair creation is an inherently quantum\nmechanical phenomenon, \nquantum gravitational effects can no longer be ignored at the Planck scale. \nThus, the SM cannot be a\nfundamental theory of particles and interactions at energy scales of\norder the Planck scale and above. \n\n\nThere must be an energy scale $\\Lambda$ at which the Standard Model\nbreaks down. Based on the arguments given above, it follows that the\nupper bound on $\\Lambda$ is the Planck scale. But, it is possible\nthat $\\Lambda$ lies significantly below the Planck scale.\nFor example, a credible theory of neutrino masses (e.g., the type-I seesaw model~\\cite{numass}) posits the existence of a right-handed electroweak singlet Majorana neutrino of mass of order $10^{14}~{\\rm GeV}$. \nHenceforth, we shall define $\\Lambda$ to be the lowest energy scale at\nwhich the SM breaks down. \n\nThe predictions made by the SM depend on a number of parameters that\nmust be taken as input to the theory. These parameters cannot be\npredicted, since their values are \nsensitive to unknown ultraviolet (UV) physics.\nIn the 1930s, it was already appreciated\nthat a critical difference exists between the behavior of boson and\nfermion masses~\\cite{Weisskopf:1939zz}. Fermion masses are\nlogarithmically sensitive to UV physics~\\cite{Weisskopf:1934} due to\nthe chiral symmetry of massless fermions, which implies that the radiative\ncorrection to the tree-level fermion mass is of the form,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\delta m_F\\sim m_F\\ln(\\Lambda^2\/m_F^2)\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhich vanishes in the limit of $m_F\\to 0$.\nIn contrast, no such symmetry exists for bosons (in the absence of supersymmetry), and consequently we expect quadratic sensitivity of\nthe boson squared-mass to UV physics,\n$\\delta m^2_B\\sim \\Lambda^2\\,.$\n\n\n\nThese observations have important consequences for the fundamental physics\nthat describes the Higgs boson. \nIn the SM, the Higgs boson squared-mass is given by $m_h^2=\\lambda v^2$ and the W\nboson squared-mass is $m_W^2=\\tfrac{1}{4}g^2 v^2$, where\n$\\vev{\\Phi^0}=v\/\\sqrt{2}=174$~GeV is the vacuum\nexpectation value of the neutral Higgs field, $\\lambda$~is\nthe Higgs self-coupling [cf.~\\eq{vofphi}], and $g$ is the SU(2) gauge coupling.\nTogether, these imply that\n\\begin{equation}\n\\frac{m_h^2}{m_W^2}=\\frac{4\\lambda}{g^2}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhich one would expect to be roughly of $\\mathcal{O}(1)$. The Higgs\nboson with mass 125~GeV\nsatisfies this expectation. \n\nHowever, the existence of the Higgs boson is a consequence of a spontaneously broken scalar potential, \n\\begin{equation}\nV(\\Phi)=-\\mu^2(\\Phi^\\dagger\\Phi)+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\lambda(\\Phi^\\dagger\\Phi)^2\\,,\\label{vofphi}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\mu^2=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\lambda v^2$ at\nthe minimum of the scalar potential.\nThe parameter $\\mu^2$ is quadratically sensitive to $\\Lambda$. Hence, to obtain $v=246$~GeV in a theory\nwhere $v\\ll \\Lambda$ requires a significant fine-tuning of the ultraviolet parameters of the fundamental theory.\nIndeed, the one-loop contributions to the squared mass parameter $\\mu^2$ are expected to be of\norder $(g^2\/16\\pi^2)\\Lambda^2$. Setting this quantity to be of order of $v^2$ (to avoid an \\textit{unnatural} cancellation\nbetween the tree-level parameter and the loop corrections) yields\n\\begin{equation}\n\\Lambda\\simeq 4\\pi v\/g\\sim {O}(1~{\\rm TeV})\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nThus, a \\textit{natural} theory of electroweak symmetry breaking\n(EWSB) appears to require new TeV scale physics beyond the SM associated with the EWSB dynamics. \n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{The modern principle of naturalness}\nThis principle of naturalness was \nfirst introduced by Weisskopf in a paper published in 1939\\cite{Weisskopf:1939zz}.\nIn the abstract of this 1939 paper, Weisskopf wrote,\n``the self-energy of charged particles obeying Bose statistics is found to be quadratically divergent...,'' and concluded that in theories of elementary bosons, new phenomena must enter at an energy scale of $m\/e$ (where $e$ is the relevant coupling). \nIn modern particle physics, naturalness is often associated with the question, ``how do we understand the magnitude of the EWSB scale?''\nIn the absence of\nnew physics beyond the SM, its natural value would be the\nPlanck scale (or perhaps the grand unification scale or the seesaw scale that\ncontrols neutrino masses).\n\nThere have been a number of theoretical proposals to explain the origin of the EWSB energy scale:\n(1) naturalness is restored by a symmetry principle--supersymmetry (SUSY)--which ties the bosons to\nthe more well-behaved fermions\\cite{Witten,Susskind}; (2) the Higgs boson is an approximate Goldstone boson, the only other\nknown mechanism for keeping an elementary scalar light\\cite{dewsb}; (3) the Higgs boson is a composite scalar, with an inverse length of\norder the TeV-scale\\cite{dewsb}; (4) extra spatial dimensions beyond three provide new mechanisms\nfor naturally large hierarchies of scales\\cite{RS,extradim};\n(5)~classical scale invariance and its minimal violation via quantum\nanomalies\\cite{Bardeen:1995kv,Meissner:2006zh,Iso:2009ss,Tavares:2013dga,Gorsky:2014una,Helmboldt:2016mpi} can generate a Higgs mass via dimensional transmutation\\cite{Coleman:1973jx}; and\n(6)~the EWSB scale arises due to some vacuum selection mechanism\n(either anthropic\\cite{Agrawal:1998xa} or cosmological\\cite{Graham:2015cka,Arkani-Hamed:2016rle}).\nFinally, maybe none of these explanations are relevant, and the EWSB\nenergy scale \nis simply the result of some initial condition whose origin will never be discernible.\n\nOf course, these are lectures on supersymmetry. Thus, we shall\nmotivate SUSY at the TeV scale as a potential solution of the\nso-called hierarchy problem:\nwhy is the scale of EWSB so much smaller than the Planck\nscale?\n\n\n \\subsection{\\mbox{Avoiding quadratic UV-sensitivity \nwith elementary scalars}}\n\\label{quadratic}\nFirst, consider a lesson from history.\nThe electron self-energy in classical electromagnetism goes\nlike $e^2\/a$, where $a$ is the classical radius of the electron. For a\npoint-like electron, $a\\rightarrow 0$; hence the electron self-energy diverges linearly. In the quantum\ntheory, fluctuations of the electromagnetic fields (in the\n``single electron theory'') generate a quadratic divergence.\n If\nthese divergences are not canceled, one would expect \nQED to break down at an energy of order $m_e\/e$,\n far below the Planck scale.\n\nThe linear and quadratic divergences will cancel exactly if\none makes a bold hypothesis: the existence of the positron\n(with a mass equal to that of the electron but of opposite\ncharge).\nWeisskopf was the first to demonstrate this cancellation in\n1934\\cite{Weisskopf:1934}.\\footnote{Actually the cancellation was not present\nin the initial publication, but thanks to\na letter from Wendell Furry, the correct result was published in an erratum.}\nThis is an historical example in which \n a symmetry implies the existence of a partner particle that cancels\n the dangerously large UV contribution to the particle mass. \n\nThe motivation for SUSY may be viewed analogously\\cite{Hitoshi,Hitoshi2}, with the electron playing the role of SM particles and the\npositron playing the role of superpartners. SUSY\nassociates a fermionic superpartner with every SM particle and vice versa, thus doubling the SM spectrum. SUSY relates the self-energy of the\nelementary scalar boson to the self-energy of its fermionic partner. Since the latter is only logarithmically sensitive to~$\\Lambda$, we conclude\nthat the quadratic sensitivity of the scalar squared-mass to\nUV physics must exactly cancel.\nNaturalness is restored!\n\nHowever,\nsince no superpartners degenerate in mass with the\ncorresponding SM particles exist in nature, SUSY must be a broken symmetry.\nAlthough the fundamental origin of SUSY-breaking is yet to be understood,\nthe effective scale of SUSY-breaking cannot be much larger than of\norder a few TeV, \nif SUSY is responsible for the origin of the EWSB scale.\n\n\n\\enlargethispage{\\baselineskip}\nThe absence of any evidence for SUSY at the LHC\\cite{nosusy} is a cause for some\nconcern\\cite{susy}. This has led to some discussion of the so-called little\nhierarchy problem\\cite{little,little2,little3} which reflects the observation that the\neffective SUSY-breaking mass scale is somewhat separated from the scale of EWSB.\nNevertheless, if evidence for supersymmetric\nphenomena in the TeV or multi-TeV regime were to be eventually established at \nthe LHC or at a future collider facility\n(with an energy reach beyond the LHC\\cite{vlhc}), it would be viewed as a spectacularly\nsuccessful explanation of the large hierarchy between the (multi-)TeV scale and\nPlanck scale. In this case, the remaining little hierarchy would\nperhaps be regarded as a less pressing issue.\n\n\n\n\\section{Supersymmetry Breaking}\n\\renewcommand{\\theequation}{\\arabic{section}.\\arabic{equation}}\n\\setcounter{equation}{0}\n\\label{SSB}\n\nIf supersymmetry were an exact symmetry of nature, then particles\nand their superpartners, which differ in spin by half a unit, would be\ndegenerate in mass. Since superpartners have not (yet) been observed,\nsupersymmetry must be a broken symmetry. In light of the\nnon-observation of supersymmetric particles at the LHC,\nthe energy scale of supersymmetry breaking must lie above \n1~TeV. \n\nThe fundamental mechanism responsible for supersymmetry breaking is\npresently unknown. In Section~\\ref{sec:originsofSUSYbreaking}, we\ndescribe some general considerations related to SUSY breaking,\nand we examine several possible frameworks for the spontaneous\nbreaking of SUSY. In Section~\\ref{sumrule}, we examine constraints\non mass splittings within supermultiplets in the presence of\nSUSY-breaking.\nThe possible origins of SUSY-breaking dynamics is surveyed in Section~\\ref{SUSYdynamics}. \nFinally, in Section~\\ref{sec:softSUSYbreaking}, we examine a\nmore agnostic approach, in which the supersymmetry of the effective low energy theory at\nthe TeV scale is softly broken. In such an\napproach, we identify the possible soft-supersymmetry breaking terms\nthat can appear in the Lagrangian, without making assumptions about\ntheir fundamental origin.\n\n\\subsection{Spontaneous SUSY breaking}\n\\label{sec:originsofSUSYbreaking}\nIn Section~\\ref{SUSYalg}, we derived \\eq{pzero}, which states that the energy operator $P^0$ for a supersymmetric theory is given by\n\\begin{align}\nP^0= \\frac{1}{2 t } \\of{ Q_1 Q_1^\\dagger+Q_1^\\dagger Q_1+Q_2 Q_2^\\dagger+Q_2^\\dagger Q_2 }\\,,\\label{peezero}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $t$ is real and positive (conventionally, $t=2$). Since the right-hand side of \\eq{peezero} is\npositive semi-definite, it\nfollows that the vacuum energy is zero if and only if the vacuum is supersymmetric:\n\\begin{align}\n\\vev{0\\,|P^0\\,|\\,0}=0\\quad\\Longleftrightarrow\\quad Q_\\alpha\\ket{0}=0\\,.\n\\end{align}\nMoreover, assuming the absence of fermion condensation,\\footnote{That is, we assume the absence of a\nfermion bilinear covariant, with the properties of a Lorentz scalar,\nthat acquires a nonzero vacuum expectation value.}\nthe vacuum energy can be identified as the vacuum expectation value of\nthe scalar potential. That is, in the case of a supersymmetric vacuum,\n\\begin{align}\n\\vev{0\\,|P^0\\,|\\,0}=0\\quad\\Longleftrightarrow\\quad \\vev{0\\,|V_{\\rm scalar}\\,|\\,0} = 0\\,.\n\\end{align}\nTo appreciate the significance of $ \\vev{0\\,|V_{\\rm scalar}\\,|\\,0} = 0$,\nrecall \\eq{vscalar4}, which we repeat below for the\nconvenience of the reader,\n\\begin{align}\nV_{\\rm scalar}=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} D^a D^a+\\sum_i F_i^* F_i\\,.\\label{DDFF}\n\\end{align}\nIt follows that if the vacuum is supersymmetric, then the vacuum expectation \nvalues of the auxiliary fields must vanish,\n\\begin{align}\n\\vev{0\\,|F_i\\,|\\,0}=\\vev{0\\,|D^a\\,|\\,0}=0.\n\\end{align}\n\nOne can reach the same conclusion by considering the transformation\nlaws of the field components of a superfield.\nFor a chiral superfield, the component fermion field transforms according to,\n\\begin{align}\n\\delta_\\xi\\psi_{\\alpha i}=i\\bigl[\\xi Q+\\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger\\,,\\,\\psi_{\\alpha i}\\bigr]=\n- i\\sqrt{2}\\, (\\sigma^\\mu \\xi^\\dagger)_\\alpha\\> \\partial_\\mu A_i+\\sqrt{2}\\,\\xi_\\alpha F_i\\,.\n\\end{align}\nBy Lorentz invariance, $\\vev{0\\,|\\partial_\\mu A_i\\,|\\,0}=0$. Hence,\n\\begin{align}\n\\vev{0\\,|\\bigl[\\xi Q+\\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger\\,,\\,\\psi_{\\alpha i}\\bigr]\\,|\\,0}=\\sqrt{2}\\,\\xi_\\alpha\\vev{0\\,|F_i\\,|\\,0}\\,.\n\\end{align}\nThus, if $Q_\\alpha\\ket{0} = 0$ and $Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\ket{0}=0$, then $\\vev{0\\,|F_i\\,|\\,0}=0$.\nLikewise, for a real vector superfield, the component gaugino field transforms according to,\n\\begin{align}\n\\delta_{\\xi}\\lambda^a_\\alpha=i\\bigl[\\xi Q+\\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger\\,,\\,\\lambda^a_\\alpha\\bigr]=\n i\\xi_\\alpha D^a+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}(\\sigma^\\mu\\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu)_\\alpha{}^\\beta\\xi_\\beta F^a_{\\mu\\nu}\\,.\n\\end{align}\n Since $\\vev{0\\,|F_{\\mu\\nu}^a|\\,0}=0$ (again, by Lorentz invariance), it follows that\n\\begin{align}\n \\vev{0\\,|\\bigl[\\xi Q+\\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger\\,,\\,\\lambda^a_\\alpha\\bigr]\\,|\\,0}=i\\xi_\\alpha\\vev{0\\,|D^a|\\,0}\\,.\n\\end{align}\nThus, if $Q_\\alpha\\ket{0}=0$ and $Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\ket{0}=0$, then $\\vev{0\\,|D^a\\,|\\,0}=0$.\n %\n \nIf at least one of the components of the auxiliary fields $F_i$ or\n$D_a$ has a nonzero vacuum expectation value, then SUSY is\nspontaneously broken. Mechanisms of spontaneous SUSY breaking fall into two\npossible categories:\n$F$-type breaking, if $\\vev{0\\,|F_i\\,|\\,0}\\neq 0$ for some $i$, and\n$D$-type breaking if $\\vev{0\\,|D^a|\\,0}\\neq 0$ for some $a$.\n\n\\subsubsection{The O'Raifeartaigh mechanism ($F$-type breaking)}\n \n \n One way to spontaneously break SUSY is to construct a model in which\n it is impossible to simultaneously solve the Lagrange field equations\nfor all the components of the auxiliary fields, $F_i$. \nThis is the O'Raifeartaigh mechanism\\cite{ORaifeartaigh:1975nky},\\footnote{A well-known\n supersymmetric joke: a graduate student returns to the University\n for the fall semester after spending a month at TASI earlier in the summer.\n The professor says to\n the student, ``Welcome back! I see that one of the lecture courses you attended\n at TASI was an introduction to supersymmetry. So, did you learn\n anything useful from\n these lectures?'' The student replies, ``I learned how to spell\n O'Raifeartaigh's name.''}\nwhere the SUSY breaking arises\nentirely from a nonzero $F$-term vacuum expectation\nvalue.\\footnote{Implicitly, we are assuming here that if the $D$-term\n is present, then $\\vev{D^a}=0$.}\n\n\nConsider the set of equations,\n\\begin{align}\nF_i^\\dagger=-\\frac{dW}{dA_i}=0\\,.\\label{fdag}\n\\end{align}\nA solution to these equations corresponds to the existence of \na choice of the scalar fields, $A_i$, such that all the\nequations, $F_i^\\dagger=0$, are fulfilled. Suppose that a solution,\n$A_i=v_i$, solves these equations. In light of \\eq{DDFF}, this\nsolution must correspond to a minimum of the scalar potential, which\nwe identify as the vacuum (ground) state of the theory. Since\n$F_i^\\dagger=0$ implies that $F_i=0$, we can conclude\nthat $\\vev{0\\,|F_i\\,|\\,0}=0$ (for all $i$).\nIf no solution to \\eq{fdag} exists, then it must be true that\n$\\vev{0\\,|F_i\\,|\\,0}\\neq 0$ for some $i$. \nIn this latter case, SUSY must be spontaneously broken.\n\nThe simplest O'Raifeartaigh model that exhibits $F$-term SUSY breaking\ncontains three chiral superfields and\nis treated in Problem~\\ref{pr:Oraif}.\n\n\n\\subsubsection{$D$-type breaking via the Fayet-Iliopoulos term}\n\nConsider SUSY-QED with a superpotential given by \\eq{Wsqed} and a Fayet-Iliopoulos term. Using\n\\eqs{fsubi}{DFI}, the resulting scalar potential [\\eq{vscalar2}] is given by\n\\begin{equation} \\label{FI1}\nV_{\\rm\n scalar}=|F_+|^2+|F_-|^2+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} D^2\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere\n\\begin{equation} \\label{FI2}\nF_\\pm=-mA_\\pm\\,,\\qquad\\quad D=-g\\bigl(|A_+|^2-|A_-|^2\\bigr)-\\xi.\n\\end{equation}\nSuppose that $m^2>g\\xi$. One can check that the minimum of the scalar\npotential occurs for $\\vev{A_+}=\\vev{A_-}=0$. Moreover, at the scalar\npotential minimum, $\\vev{F_+}=\\vev{F_-}=0$, whereas $\\vev{D}=-\\xi\\neq\n0$. Thus, in this model SUSY breaking arises\nentirely from a nonzero $D$-term vacuum expectation value.\nAdditional aspects of this model are treated in Problems~\\ref{pr:FI}\nand \\ref{pr:FI2}.\n\n\\subsubsection{The goldstino}\n\\label{goldstino}\n\nFrom Goldstone's theorem, we know that the spontaneous breaking of a\ncontinuous symmetry (with bosonic generators) gives rise to a massless\nboson called the Nambu-Goldstone boson. Analogously, the spontaneous breaking\nof supersymmetry, whose algebra contains fermionic generators, gives rise to a\nmassless fermion called the Goldstone fermion, which is more\ncommonly known as the goldstino\\cite{Salam:1974zb}.\n\n\\begin{theorem}\nIf SUSY is spontaneously broken, then there exists a massless spin-1\/2 fermion in the spectrum called the \\textit{goldstino}.\n\\end{theorem}\n\\begin{proof}[Proof]\nAlthough this theorem can be proven rigorously, independently of\nperturbation theory, it is instructive to exhibit a proof based on a\ntree-level analysis of a SUSY nonabelian gauge theory coupled to supermatter.\nThe scalar potential is given by \\eq{DDFF} where [cf.~\\eq{FandD}],\n\\begin{align}\nF_i=-\\left(\\frac{dW}{dA_i}\\right)^\\dagger\\,,\\qquad\\quad D^a=-gA_i^\\dagger T^a_{ij} A_j\\,.\\label{FiDa}\n\\end{align}\nAt the scalar potential minimum, where $\\partial V\/\\partial A_j=0$, the scalar fields are equal to their vacuum expectation values, $A_j=\\vev{A_j}$.\nThen,\n\\begin{align}\n0=\\left(\\frac{ \\partial V}{\\partial A_j}\\right)_{\\vev{A}}=-gA_i^\\dagger T^a_{ij} D^a\\biggl|_{\\vev{A}}-\\sum_i\n\\frac{ \\partial^2 W}{\\partial A_i\\partial A_j}F_i\\biggl|_{\\vev{A}}\\,.\n\\end{align}\nHence,\n\\begin{align}\n\\sum_i\n\\left\\langle\\frac{ \\partial^2 W}{\\partial A_i\\partial A_j}\\right\\rangle\\vev{F_i}=-g\\vev{A_i}^\\dagger T^a_{ij} \\vev{D^a}\\,.\n\\label{eq:FD}\n\\end{align}\n\nThe superpotential $W$ must be a gauge invariant function of the\nchiral superfields. That is,\n\\begin{equation}\nW(\\Phi)=W(e^{-2ig\\Lambda}\\Phi)\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\Lambda\\equiv \\Lambda^a T^a$ is the matrix chiral superfield gauge\ntransformation parameter.\nTaking $\\Lambda^a$ infinitesimal and expanding to first order yields\n\\begin{equation}\n\\frac{dW}{d\\Phi_i}T^a_{ij}\\Phi_j=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nEvaluating the hermitian conjugate of this expression, setting $\\theta=\\theta^\\dagger=0$, and\ntaking the vacuum expectation value of the resulting equation, we end up with\n\\begin{equation} \\label{FTa}\n\\vev{F_i}T^a_{ji}\\vev{A_j}^\\dagger=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\nThe fermion masses can be determined from the SUSY Lagrangian given by\n\\eq{eq:LSUSYcomponents} after setting the scalar fields to their\nvacuum expectation values,\n\\begin{align}\n-\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm mass} =&\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} \\left\\langle\\frac{ \\partial^2 W}{\\partial A_i\\partial A_j}\\right\\rangle \\psi_i\\psi_j\n-i\\sqrt{2}\\,g\\vev{A_i}^\\dagger T^a_{ij} \\psi_j\\lambda^a+{\\rm h.c.}\n\\\\\n=&\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\bigl(\\psi_i\\quad -i\\lambda^b\\bigr)\n\\begin{pmatrix} \\left\\langle\\displaystyle\\frac{ \\partial^2 W}{\\partial A_i\\partial A_j}\\right\\rangle & \\quad\n\\sqrt{2}\\,g\\vev{A_j}^\\dagger T^a_{ji} \\\\[25pt] \\sqrt{2}\\,g\\vev{A_i}^\\dagger T^b_{ij} & \\quad 0\\end{pmatrix}\n\\begin{pmatrix} \\psi_j \\\\[25pt] -i\\lambda^b\\end{pmatrix}\\,.\\label{fmatrix}\n\\end{align}\n\nUsing \\eqs{eq:FD}{FTa}, one can verify that the fermion mass matrix\ngiven in \\eq{fmatrix} possesses a zero eigenvalue,\n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{pmatrix} \\left\\langle\\displaystyle\\frac{ \\partial^2 W}{\\partial A_i\\partial A_j}\\right\\rangle & \\quad\n\\sqrt{2}\\,g\\vev{A_j}^\\dagger T^a_{ji} \\\\[25pt] \\sqrt{2}\\,g\\vev{A_i}^\\dagger T^b_{ij} & \\quad 0\\end{pmatrix}\n\\begin{pmatrix} \\vev{F_j} \\\\[25pt] \\frac{1}{\\sqrt{2}}\\vev{D^a}\\end{pmatrix}=0\\,,\\label{eigen}\n\\end{align}\nunder the assumption that at least one of the auxiliary field vacuum\nexpectation values is nonzero.\nThe corresponding eigenvector, $\\of{ \\vev{F_j},\n \\tfrac{1}{\\sqrt{2}}\\vev{D^a} }$, can be identified with the massless\ngoldstino, $\\widetilde{G}$. That is,\n\\begin{align}\n\\widetilde G=\\vev{F_j}\\psi_j-\\frac{i}{\\sqrt{2}}\\vev{D^a}\\lambda^a\\,.\n\\end{align}\n\n\nThe existence of the goldstino in the fermion mass spectrum is a\nconsequence of the assumption that the vacuum is not invariant under\nSUSY transformations, in which case at least one of the auxiliary field vacuum\nexpectation values is nonzero, as assumed below \\eq{eigen}.\nIn contrast, if the vacuum is supersymmetric, then $\\vev{F_j}=\\vev{D^a}=0$, in\nwhich case \\eqs{eq:FD}{FTa} are trivially\nsatisfied. Hence in this case, one cannot conclude that a zero\neigenvalue of the fermion mass matrix exists. \n\\end{proof}\n\n \n\\subsection{Mass Sum rules}\n\\label{sumrule}\n \nIf SUSY is broken, then there is no expectation that particles in a\nwould-be supermultiplet are degenerate in mass. If the SUSY breaking\nis spontaneous, then there is still some memory of supersymmetry\nin the properties of the SUSY-broken theory. In particular, the mass spectrum\nof the spontaneously broken SUSY theory satisfies certain sum rules that\nreflect the fact the spontaneous breaking of the supersymmetry is inherently soft\\cite{Ferrara:1979wa}.\n\nTo exhibit such sum rules, we return to the Lagrangian of the SUSY\nnonabelian gauge theory coupled to supermatter\ngiven in \\eq{eq:LSUSYcomponents}. We set the scalar fields and the\nauxiliary fields to their vacuum expectation values and compute the\nresulting tree-level mass spectrum.\n\nThe spin-1 masses arise from\n\\begin{align}\n\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm mass}= (\\mathcal{D}_\\mu A)(\\mathcal{D}^\\mu A)^\\dagger,\n\\end{align}\n where \n$\\mathcal{D}_\\mu=\\partial_\\mu+igT^a V^a_\\mu$. It is convenient to write the gauge boson squared-mass matrix as follows,\n\\begin{align}\n(M^2_1)_{ab}=2g^2\\vev{A^\\dagger_i}T^a_{ij}T^b_{jk}\\vev{A_k}=\n2\\left\\langle \\frac{\\partial D^a}{\\partial A_k^\\dagger}\\frac{\\partial D^b}{\\partial A_k}\\right\\rangle\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhere we have made use of $D^a=-gA_i^\\dagger T^a_{ij}A_j$ [cf.~\\eq{FandD}].\nLikewise, we can rewrite the spin-1\/2 mass matrix [previously obtained\nin \\eq{fmatrix}] as,\n\\begin{align}\n M_{\\scalebox{.8}{$\\tfrac12$}}=\\begin{pmatrix} \\left\\langle -\\displaystyle\\frac{ \\partial F_i^\\dagger}{\\partial A_j}\\right\\rangle & \\quad\n-\\sqrt{2}\\, \\displaystyle\\left\\langle\\frac{ \\partial D^a}{\\partial A_i}\\right\\rangle\\\\[25pt]\n-\\sqrt{2}\\, \\displaystyle\\left\\langle\\frac{ \\partial D^b}{\\partial A_j}\\right\\rangle& \\quad 0\\end{pmatrix}\\,.\n\\end{align}\n\nThe spin-0 masses arise from the scalar potential, $V\\equiv V_{\\rm scalar}$. Identifying the\nterms quadratic in the scalar field,\n\\begin{equation}\n-\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm mass}=\\frac12\\bigl(A_i\\quad A_j^\\dagger\\bigr)\\begin{pmatrix}\n \\displaystyle\\left\\langle{\\frac{\\partial^2 V}{\\partial A_i\\partial A_k^\\dagger}}\\right\\rangle\\qquad \n \\displaystyle\\left\\langle{\\frac{\\partial^2 V}{\\partial A_i\\partial A_\\ell}}\\right\\rangle \\\\[15pt]\n \\displaystyle\\left\\langle{\\frac{\\partial^2 V}{\\partial A_j^\\dagger\\partial A_k^\\dagger}}\\right\\rangle\\qquad \n \\displaystyle\\left\\langle{\\frac{\\partial^2 V}{\\partial A_j^\\dagger\\partial\n A_\\ell}}\\right\\rangle\\end{pmatrix}\\begin{pmatrix} A_k^\\dagger \\\\[25pt]\n A_\\ell \\end{pmatrix}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nThe scalar squared-mass matrix given above will be denoted by $M_0^2$.\n \nThe elements of the scalar squared-mass matrix can be\nrewritten in terms of derivatives of the auxiliary fields $F_i$ and\n$D^a$. For example, noting that \n\\eq{FiDa} implies that $F$\nis a function of $A^\\dagger$ (and likewise, $F^\\dagger$ is a\nfunction of $A$), then it follows from \\eq{DDFF} that \n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\frac{\\partial^2 V}{\\partial A_i\\partial\n A_k^\\dagger}\n&=& \\frac{\\partial F^\\dagger_m}{\\partial A_i}\\frac{\\partial\n F_m}{\\partial A^\\dagger_k} +\\frac{\\partial D^a}{\\partial\n A_k^\\dagger}\\frac{\\partial D^a}{\\partial\n A_i}+D^a\\,\\frac{\\partial^2 D^a}{\\partial A_k^\\dagger\\partial A_i}\\,.\n\\end{Eqnarray}\n\nOne can now evaluate the trace of the various squared-mass\nmatrices,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\Tr M_1^2&=&2\\left\\langle \\frac{\\partial D^a}{\\partial\n A_k^\\dagger}\\frac{\\partial D^a}{\\partial A_k}\\right\\rangle\\,, \\\\\n\\Tr M_{\\scalebox{.8}{$\\tfrac12$}}^\\dagger M_{\\scalebox{.8}{$\\tfrac12$}}^{\\phantom{\\dagger}}&=&\\left\\langle \\frac{\\partial F_i}{\\partial A_k^\\dagger}\\frac{\\partial\n F_i^\\dagger}{\\partial A^\\dagger_k}\\right\\rangle +4\\left\\langle \\frac{\\partial D^a}{\\partial\n A_k^\\dagger}\\frac{\\partial D^a}{\\partial A_k}\\right\\rangle\\,, \\\\\n\\Tr M_0^2&=& 2 \\left\\langle \\frac{\\partial F^\\dagger_i}{\\partial A_k}\\frac{\\partial\n F_i}{\\partial A^\\dagger_k}\\right\\rangle +2\\left\\langle \\frac{\\partial D^a}{\\partial\n A_k^\\dagger}\\frac{\\partial D^a}{\\partial\n A_k}\\right\\rangle+2\\left\\langle D^a\\frac{\\partial^2 D^a}\n {\\partial A^\\dagger_k \\partial A_k}\\right\\rangle, \\nonumber \\\\\n\\phantom{line} \\label{trmzero}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nwhere there are implicit sums over each pair of repeated indices.\nWe can simplify the last term of \\eq{trmzero} using $D^a=-gA_i^\\dagger\nT^a_{ij}A_j$ to obtain.\n\\begin{align}\n\\Tr M_0^2=2\\left\\langle \\frac{\\partial F_i}{\\partial A_k^\\dagger}\\frac{\\partial F_i^\\dagger}{\\partial A_k}\\right\\rangle\\\n+2\\left\\langle \\frac{\\partial D^a}{\\partial A_k^\\dagger}\\frac{\\partial D^a}{\\partial A_k}\\right\\rangle-2g\\vev{D^a}\\Tr T^a\\,.\n\\end{align}\nIt then follows that\n\\begin{equation} \\label{masssumrule}\n\\Tr(M_0^2-2M_{\\scalebox{.8}{$\\tfrac12$}}+3M_1^2)=-2g\\vev{D^a}\\Tr\nT^a\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\nWe recognize the left-hand side of \\eq{masssumrule} as a\nsupertrace, which is defined as the following weighted sum of traces,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n&&\\phantom{line}\\nonumber \\\\[-10pt]\n&&\\Str M^2\\equiv \\sum_J (-1)^{2J} (2J+1) \\Tr M_J^2\\,,\\label{stracedef}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nwhere \n$M_J^2$ is the squared-mass matrix of \\textit{real} spin-$J$\nfields.\\footnote{Note that complex fields are equivalent to two\n mass-degenerate real fields.}\nNote the $(-1)^{2J}$\nfactor, so that bosons contribute positively and fermions negatively\nto the sum over $J$. \nAs applied to a SUSY nonabelian gauge theory coupled to supermatter, the sum is taken over $J=0$, $\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ and 1. \nHence, \\eq{masssumrule} assumes the following simple form,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{eq:supersumrule}\n{\\rm Str}~M^2=-2g\\vev{D^a}\\Tr T^a\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\nThe mass sum rule can \nprovide a useful check on the phenomenological viability of theories\nwith tree-level spontaneous supersymmetry breaking. \nLet us now see how this applies in several cases.\n\n\\subsection{The origin of SUSY-breaking dynamics}\n\\label{SUSYdynamics}\n\\subsubsection{Models of tree-level spontaneous SUSY breaking}\nIn the case of $F$-type breaking (\\textit{i.e.}, the O'Raifeartaigh model), in which $\\vev{F_i}\\neq 0$ and $\\vev{D^a}=0$,\n\\eq{eq:supersumrule} yields \n\\begin{equation} \\label{strzero}\n{\\rm Str}~M^2=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nFor example, consider the matter sector of SUSY-QED, which contains two chiral\nsupermultiplets [cf.~\\eq{Wsqed}]. The corresponding spectrum contains a\nfour-component Dirac electron and its two complex scalar superpartners, the\nselectrons (denoted by $\\widetilde e_1$ and $\\widetilde e_2$). If SUSY\nis spontaneously broken by an $F$-term vacuum expectation value, then \\eq{strzero}\nyields\n\\begin{align}\nm_{\\tilde{e}_1}^2 + m_{\\tilde{e}_2}^2 = 2 m_e^2 ,\n\\end{align}\nso that one selectron would be heavier than the electron and the other\nselectron would be lighter than the electron. Clearly, this is very\nbad for phenomenology, since experiment demands that all superpartner\nmasses must be significantly heavier than their SM counterparts.\n\nConsider next $D$-type breaking with $\\vev{F_i}=0$ and $\\vev{D^a}\\neq 0$ in a nonabelian gauge theory.\nIn this case, $\\Tr T^a=0$ and we again conclude that $\\Str M^2=0$.\nHowever, it turns out that when the scalar potential is minimized, it\nis always possible to find a vacuum in which $\\vev{D^a}=0$. Hence,\n$D$-term SUSY-breaking is not possible in this case (see Problem~\\ref{pr:holo}).\n\nFinally, consider $D$-type breaking in a gauge theory with a U(1)\nfactor. The Standard Model provides an example of this case. But in the\nStandard Model, the hypercharge generator satisfies $\\Tr Y=0$ when\nsummed over one generation of matter. Hence we again find that $\\Str\nM^2=0$. It is possible to construct models of $D$-type SUSY breaking\nvia the Fayet-Iliopoulos term~$\\xi$. In such models, $\\vev{D}$ is\nproportional to $\\xi$, as shown below \\eq{FI2}. However, no realistic models of this type are known.\n\nBased on the above considerations, we conclude that the mass sum rule\nseverely constrains tree-level SUSY-breaking models. Indeed, no\nphenomenologically realistic tree-level spontaneously broken SUSY model has ever been\nsuccessfully constructed. \n\n\\subsubsection{Gauge-mediated SUSY breaking}\nOne way to avoid the tyranny of the mass\nsum rule is to consider models in which the radiative corrections to\nthe tree-level masses are significant. In general, there is no reason\nwhy the radiative corrections should respect the tree-level relations\nderived in Section~\\ref{sumrule}. For example, one can construct models with two distinct\nsectors of supermatter, which are coupled by the exchange of gauge\nbosons. The particles of the Standard Model (SM) reside in one of the\nsupermatter sectors, whereas the source of SUSY-breaking (SSB) is located in\nthe second supermatter sector, whose characteristic mass scale, $M_{\\rm\nSSB},$ is\nassumed to be significantly above 1~TeV. Indeed, in this second supermatter\nsector, the masses of particles and their superpartners are split due\nto SUSY-breaking, while respecting the tree-level mass sum rule\nobtained in \\eq{eq:supersumrule}. In this case, tree-level SUSY-breaking\nis phenomenologically viable in light of the large\ncharacteristic mass scale $M_{\\rm SSB}$ that governs the SSB sector.\n\nIn such a setup, SUSY is unbroken in\nthe SM sector at tree level, in which case $\\Str M^2=0$ is trivially\nsatisfied (see Problem~\\ref{pr:exact}). However, there exist\nradiative corrections to the sum rule induced by loops involving the\nsupermatter of the SSB sector. These corrections are\nresponsible for SUSY-breaking in the SM sector\nand the corresponding\nmass splitting between the SM particles and their superpartners.\nMoreover, these mass splittings are totally radiative in nature and not\nsubject to the tree-level sum rule of \\eq{eq:supersumrule}. Models\ncan easily be constructed in which the masses of the SM superpartners\nare all raised above 1 TeV, thereby avoiding conflict with the current LHC searches. \n The end result is SUSY-breaking in the SM that is\nphenomenologically viable.\n\nIn the scenario outlined above, SUSY-breaking is communicated to the\nSM-sector via a messenger mechanism, in which the messengers consists\nof gauge bosons that couple both to the SM sector and the\nSSB sector. Models of this type provide examples of\ngauge-mediated SUSY breaking (GMSB).\nDetails of GMSB model building lie beyond the scope of these lectures.\nFor further details, you may consult Refs.~\\cite{Giudice:1998bp,Luty:2005sn,Shirman:2009mt}. \n\n\n \n\\subsubsection{Local supersymmetry and the super-Higgs mechanism}\n\nAnother way of evading the tyranny of the mass sum rule is to\nconsider models with \\textit{local} supersymmetry.\n\nIn these lectures, we have focused on theories with global\nsupersymmetry, where the anticommuting SUSY translation parameter\n$\\xi$ is independent of the position $x$. Suppose we attempt to\ngeneralize this to local supersymmetry, where $\\xi=\\xi(x)$. Since\nthe spinorial SUSY generators satisfy\n$\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,\\overline{Q}_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=2\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}P_\\mu$, \na theory of local supersymmetry must also be invariant under local\nspacetime translations, in which the translation depends on the\nposition. A theory that possesses a local spacetime translation\nsymmetry is a theory of gravity! Hence, a locally supersymmetric\ntheory is a theory of gravity plus supersymmetry, \\textit{i.e.}, supergravity\\cite{sugra1,sugra2}.\n \nWe have already encountered the massless supermultiplet that contains\nthe spin-3\/2 gravitino and the spin-2 graviton. \nSuppose we couple this supermultiplet to ordinary supermatter. In\naddition, suppose that the local supersymmetry is broken, which will\ngenerate a mass splitting within the graviton supermultiplet. \nWe require that the graviton remain massless, while the gravitino acquires\nmass. This can be accomplished via the super Higgs mechanism\\cite{Deser:1977uq,Cremmer:1978iv}.\n\nWe have seen in Section~\\ref{goldstino} that in models of\nspontaneously-broken global supersymmetry, the spectrum includes a\nmassless goldstino.\nIn models of spontaneously-broken supergravity, the goldstino is ``absorbed''\nby the gravitino via the super-Higgs mechanism. \nInitially, a massless gravitino possesses only two helicity states,\n$\\lambda=\\pm\\tfrac32$. In the super-Higgs mechanism, the goldstino\nprovides $\\lambda=\\pm\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ helicity states for a massive gravitino. \nThat is, the goldstino is removed from the\nphysical spectrum and the gravitino acquires a mass\n(denoted by $m_{3\/2}$). The gravitino now possesses the four\nhelicity states, $\\lambda=\\pm\\tfrac32$, $\\pm\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$, as expected\nfor a massive spin-$\\tfrac32$ particle.\n\n In spontaneously broken supergravity, the tree-level mass sum rule\n obtained in \\eq{eq:supersumrule} is modified. For example, if $N$ chiral supermultiplets are minimally coupled to supergravity, then\\cite{Cremmer:1982en},\n \\begin{align}\n \\Str M^2= (N-1)(2m_{3\/2}^2-\\kappa \\vev{D^a D^a})-2g\\vev{D^a} T^a\\,,\n\\end{align}\n where\n $\\kappa=(8\\pi G_N)^{1\/2}=(8\\pi)^{1\/2}M_{\\rm PL}^{-1}$. Typical models of interest have $\\vev{D^a}=0$, in which case\\cite{Cremmer:1982wb} ,\n \\begin{align}\n \\Str M^2= 2(N-1)m_{3\/2}^2\\,.\n \\end{align}\n If $m_{3\/2}{~\\raise.15em\\hbox{$>$}\\kern-.85em\\lower.35em\\hbox{$\\sim$}~} \\mathcal{O}(1~{\\rm TeV})$, then one expects the superpartner masses of SM particles to lie in the TeV regime.\n \n\\subsubsection{Gravity-mediated SUSY-breaking}\n\nConsider again the framework of two distinct sectors of supermatter that\nare initially uncoupled. We identify one of the sectors as the\nSM sector where the SM particles and their superpartners reside.\nIn the second so-called ``hidden'' sector, SUSY is spontaneously\nbroken. \n \nSupergravity models provide a natural mechanism for\ntransmitting the SUSY breaking of the hidden sector to the\nparticle spectrum of the SM sector. In models of gravity-mediated\nSUSY breaking, gravity is the messenger of\nsupersymmetry breaking\\cite{Nilles:1983ge ,Hall:1983iz}.\nMore precisely, SUSY breaking in the SM sector is mediated by effects of\ngravitational strength (suppressed by inverse powers of the Planck mass).\nThe induced mass splittings between the SM particles and their superpartners\nare of $\\mathcal{O}(m_{3\/2})$, whereas the gravitino couplings are\nroughly gravitational in strength.\n\nUnder certain theoretical assumptions\non the structure of the K\\\"ahler potential (the so-called sequestered form\nintroduced in Ref.\\cite{Randall:1998uk}), SUSY breaking is due\nentirely to the super-conformal (super-Weyl) anomaly,\nwhich is common to all supergravity models.\nThis approach is called anomaly-mediated supersymmetry breaking (AMSB).\nIndeed, anomaly mediation is more generic than originally conceived,\nand provides a ubiquitous source of supersymmetry breaking\\cite{DEramo:2012vvz,Harigaya:2014sfa}.\n\n\n \\subsection{A phenomenological approach: soft SUSY-breaking}\n \\label{sec:softSUSYbreaking}\n \n If SUSY-breaking arises due to gauge-mediated SUSY-breaking or\n gravity-mediated SUSY-breaking, then we can formally integrate out\n the SSB sector physics at the mass scale $M_{\\rm SSB}$ that\n characterizes the fundamental SUSY-breaking dynamics. For example, in the case\n of gravity-mediated SUSY breaking, we identify $M_{\\rm SSB}=M_{\\rm PL}$. In\n GMSB models, $M_{\\rm SSB}$ can be much smaller than $M_{\\rm PL}$ but still\n significantly larger than the scale of electroweak symmetry breaking.\n\n The end result is an effective broken supersymmetric theory whose Lagrangian consists \n of supersymmetric terms and explicit SUSY-breaking terms.\nThe explicit SUSY-breaking terms that are present in the effective low-energy\ntheory (which is valid at energy scales below $M_{\\rm SSB}$) are ``soft.''\n The meaning of soft in this context will be explained shortly.\n \n The phenomenological approach to SUSY-breaking takes the point of\n view that the fundamental dynamics of SUSY-breaking is unknown.\n Therefore, we should simply parameterize SUSY breaking in the\n low-energy effective theory\n by including all possible soft-SUSY-breaking terms. The coefficients\n of these terms will be taken to be arbitrary (to be determined by\n experiment). Ultimately, these parameters will provide clues to the\n structure of the fundamental dynamics that is responsible for SUSY-breaking.\n \n \\subsubsection{A catalog of soft-SUSY-breaking terms}\n\\label{GGrules}\nThe most general set of soft-SUSY-breaking terms in a super-Yang Mills theory coupled to supermatter\nwas first elucidated by Girardello and Grisaru in Ref.\\cite{Girardello:1981wz},\n\\begin{align}\n-\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm soft}=m_{ij}^2 A_i^\\dagger A_j+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\bigl[m_{ab}\\lambda^a\\lambda^b+{\\rm h.c.}\\bigr]+\\bigl[w(A)+{\\rm h.c.}\\bigr]\\,,\\label{GGsoft}\n\\end{align}\nwhere there is an implicit sum over repeated indices. The scalar squared-mass matrix $m_{ij}^2$ is hermitian and the gaugino mass matrix $m_{ab}$ is complex symmetric. The function\n$w(A)$ is a holomorphic cubic multinomial of the scalar fields,\n\\begin{align}\nw(A)=c_i A_i+b_{ij}A_i A_j+a_{ijk}A_i A_j A_k\\,.\n\\end{align}\nNote that $c_i=0$ in the absence of any gauge singlet fields. In the\nliterature, the $b_{ij}$ are called the $B$-terms and the $a_{ijk}$\nare called the $A$-terms. Note the corresponding mass dimensions, $[b_{ij}]=2$ and $[a_{ijk}]=1$.\n\nDimension-4 terms are not included in \\eq{GGsoft}, since non-supersymmetric\ndimension-4 terms would constitute a hard breaking of supersymmetry\\cite{Martin:1999hc}.\nOne interesting feature of \\eq{GGsoft} is the absence of\nnon-supersymmetric fermion mass terms, $m_{ij}\\psi_i\\psi_j+{\\rm\n h.c.}$, and non-holomorphic cubic terms in the scalar fields (e.g.,\n$A_i A_j A_k^\\dagger$, etc.). Although such terms are technically soft \nin models with no gauge\nsinglets\\cite{Hall:1990ac,Jack:1999ud,Un:2014afa,Chattopadhyay:2016ivr,Ross:2016pml},\ntheses terms rarely arise in\nactual models of fundamental SUSY-breaking, or if present are highly\nsuppressed\\cite{Martin:1999hc}. Henceforth, we shall\nneglect them.\n\nIn general, there is no relation between $w(A)$ and the\nsuperpotential, which under the assumption of renormalizability has\nthe following generic form, \n\\begin{align}\nW(\\Phi)=\\kappa_i\\Phi_i+\\mu_{ij}\\Phi_i\\Phi_j+\\lambda_{ijk}\\Phi_i\\Phi_j\\Phi_k\\,.\n\\end{align}\nBut, some models of fundamental SUSY breaking yield the relations,\n\\begin{align}\nc_i=C\\kappa_i\\,, \\qquad\\quad b_{ij}=B\\mu_{ij}\\,,\\qquad\\quad a_{ijk}=A\\lambda_{ijk}\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhich relate the coefficients of $w(A)$ to the coefficients of $W(\\Phi)$.\n\n \\subsubsection{Soft vs.~hard SUSY breaking and the reappearance of quadratic divergences}\n \n Consider the one-loop effective potential for a gauge theory coupled to matter,\n\\begin{align}\n V_{\\rm eff}(A)=V_{\\rm scalar}(A)+V^{(1)}(A)\\,.\n \\end{align}\n If we regulate the divergence of the one-loop correction by a\n momentum cutoff $\\Lambda$, then\\cite{HaberTASI}\n\\begin{align}\n V^{(1)}(A)=\\frac{\\Lambda^2}{32\\pi^2}\\Str\n M_i^2(A)+\\frac{1}{64\\pi^2}\\Str\\left\\{M_i^4(A)\\left[\\ln\\left(\\frac{M_i^2(A)}{\\Lambda^2}\\right)-\\frac12\\right]\\right\\}\\,,\\label{effpot} \n \\end{align}\n where $M_i^2(A)$ are the relevant squared-mass matrices for spin 0,\n $\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ and 1, in which the scalar vacuum expectation values are\n replaced by the corresponding scalar fields, $A$.\n\n\\Eq{effpot} implies that both in supersymmetric theories and in the case\nof spontaneously broken SUSY (assuming\n in the latter that all U(1) generators are traceless), we have\n $\\Str M^2=0$, in which case the quadratic divergences [i.e., the\n terms proportional to $\\Lambda^2$ in \\eq{effpot}] cancel exactly!\n In Ref.\\cite{Girardello:1981wz}, Girardello and Grisaru showed that if\n explicit SUSY breaking terms are present, then there \nis a catalog of possible explicit SUSY-breaking terms for which\n$\\Str M_i^2(A)$ is a constant \\textit{independent} of the scalar\nfields, $A$. Such terms shift the vacuum energy, but in the context\nof quantum field theory they have no observable effect. Terms with\nsuch properties are deemed ``soft,'' and are given in\n\\eq{GGsoft}.\\footnote{Non-holomorphic cubic terms and mass terms of\n fermions that reside in a chiral supermultiplet can generate\n quadratically divergent terms in $V^{(1)}$ that are linear in the\n scalar fields, $A$. However, if no gauge singlet fields exist in the\n model, then terms that are linear in $A$ are absent due to gauge invariance.} \nIn contrast, hard SUSY-breaking terms will generate quadratically\ndivergent terms in $V^{(1)}$ that are scalar-field-dependent.\nThis is a signal that some of the parameters of the low-energy effective theory\nare quadratically sensitive to UV physics.\n\n\\subsubsection{Soft SUSY-breaking: an effective theory perspective}\n \nConsider a set of light chiral superfields $\\Phi$ and a set of heavy\nchiral superfields $\\Omega$ associated with a mass scale $M\\equiv\nM_{\\rm SSB}$. Furthermore, assume that SUSY-breaking is generated by\nan $F$-term that resides in the SSB sector,\n\\begin{align}\n \\vev{F_\\Omega}=f\\neq 0\\,.\n \\end{align}\nOne can integrate out the physics of the SSB sector, as shown in the\nfollowing examples\\cite{Girardello:1981wz,Pomarol:1995np,Rattazzi:1995tc}.\n\n\\begin{example}\nConsider a holomorphic cubic multinomial of chiral superfields $\\Phi$,\nwhich we denote by $\\widetilde{w}(\\Phi)$.\nA possible term in the effective Lagrangian is\n\\begin{align}\n \\frac{1}{M}\\int d^2\\theta\\, \\Omega\\, \\widetilde{w}(\\Phi)\\,,\\label{Ow}\n \\end{align}\n since $\\Omega\\, \\widetilde{w}(\\Phi)$ is a term in the\n superpotential. \nThe factor of $M^{-1}$ appears on the basis of dimensional analysis.\nIn particular, note the mass dimensions, $[\\widetilde{w}]=3$, $[\\Omega]$=1 and $[\\int d^2\\theta]=1$. \n \n Since the vacuum expectation value of ${F_\\Omega}$, denoted by\n$\\vev{F_\\Omega}=f$, is nonzero, it follows that $\\vev{\\Omega}\\ni \\theta\\theta f$. Inserting this into \\eq{Ow} yields,\n \\begin{align}\n \\frac{1}{M}\\int d^2\\theta\\, \\theta\\theta f\\, \\widetilde{w}(\\Phi)=\\frac{f}{M}\\,\\widetilde{w}(A)\\,,\n \\end{align}\n which produces the term, $w(A)=(f\/M)\\widetilde{w}(A)$, in our\n catalog of $\\delta\\mathscr{L}_{\\rm soft}$ given in \\eq{GGsoft}.\n \nIn order to achieve soft-SUSY-breaking masses in the low-energy\neffective theory of order 1~TeV, one must require that\n$f\/M\\sim\\mathcal{O}(1~{\\rm TeV})$. For example, in gravity-mediated SUSY breaking, $M\\sim M_{\\rm PL}$, in which case $f\\sim (10^{11}~{\\rm GeV})^2$. Note that $f^{1\/2}$ identifies the energy scale of the fundamental SUSY breaking.\n \\end{example}\n\\begin{example}\nAnother possible term in the effective Lagrangian is\n\\begin{align}\n \\frac{1}{M^2}\\int d^4\\theta\\,\\Phi_i^\\dagger \\left(e^{2gV}\\right)_{ij}\\Phi_j\\,\\Omega^\\dagger \\Omega\\,,\n \\end{align}\nwhich would contribute to the K\\\"ahler potential. Setting $\\vev{\\Omega}=\\theta\\theta f$ and evaluating the result in the Wess-Zumino gauge,\n \\begin{align}\n \\frac{f^2}{M^2}\\int d^4\\theta\\,(\\theta\\theta)(\\theta^\\dagger\\thetabar)\\Phi_i^\\dagger \\left(e^{2gV}\\right)_{ij}\\Phi_j=\\frac{f^2}{M^2}A^\\dagger A\\,.\n \\end{align}\nThus, the low-energy effective theory contains a scalar squared-mass\nterm of order $f\/M$, which we again recognize as one of the\nsoft-SUSY-breaking terms of \\eq{GGsoft}.\n\n \\end{example}\n %\n \\begin{example}\n Finally, one additional possible term in the effective Lagrangian is\n \\begin{align}\n \\frac{1}{M}\\int d^2\\theta\\,\\Omega\\Tr(W^\\alpha W_\\alpha)\\,,\n \\end{align}\n which would contribute to the gauge kinetic function. Setting $\\vev{\\Omega}=\\theta\\theta f$,\n \\begin{align}\n \\frac{f}{M}\\int d^2\\theta\\,\\theta\\theta \\Tr(W^\\alpha W_\\alpha)=-\\frac{f}{M}\\Tr(\\lambda^\\alpha\\lambda_\\alpha)\\,,\n \\end{align}\n which yields a gaugino mass term of order $f\/M$.\n \\end{example}\n\nWe have thus demonstrated how the possible soft-SUSY-breaking terms of\n\\eq{GGsoft} can arise in the low-energy effective theory after\nintegrating out the physics associated with the SSB sector.\n \n \n \n\n\n \n \\subsection{Problems}\n \n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:Oraif}\nAn O'Raifeartaigh model that exhibits $F$-term SUSY breaking\nmust involve at least three chiral superfields\\cite{ORaifeartaigh:1975nky}. \nOne of the simplest\nmodels of this type has the following superpotential,\n\\begin{equation}\nW(\\Phi_1,\\Phi_2,\\Phi_3)=\\lambda\\Phi_1(\\Phi_3^2-m^2)+\\mu\\Phi_2\\Phi_3\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\lambda$ is dimensionless and $\\mu$ and $m$ are mass parameters.\nEvaluate the corresponding $F$-terms, $F_1$, $F_2$ and $F_3$ and write\nout the scalar potential, $V_{\\rm scalar}$. Show that no solution for\nthe scalar fields $A_1$ $A_2$ and $A_3$ exist such that\n$F_1=F_2=F_3=0$. Conclude that SUSY is spontaneously broken. \n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\nFind the minimum of $V_{\\rm scalar}$ obtained in Problem~\\ref{pr:Oraif}, and verify that $\\langle\n0|V_{\\rm scalar}|0\\rangle > 0$. Identify the goldstino of this model.\nFinally, compute the mass spectrum of the fermions and bosons and\nverify that the mass sum rule, \\eq{strzero}, is satisfied.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:FI}\nShow that in the case of SUSY-QED with a Fayet-Iliopoulos term and\n$m^2>g\\xi$ [cf.~\\eqs{FI1}{FI2}], SUSY is broken and the goldstino can be identified as the\nphotino (the supersymmetric partner of the photon). \nIn the case of $m^2g\\xi$ and\n$m^20$. In this frame,\nit is easy to show that $w=w^0(1;0,0,1)$. That is, in any Lorentz frame,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{helicitydef}\nw^\\mu=h P^\\mu\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $h$ is called the helicity operator. In particular,\n\\begin{equation}\n[h\\,,\\,P^\\mu]=[h\\,,\\,J^{\\mu\\nu}]=0\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhich means that the eigenvalues of $h$ can be used to label states of\nthe irreducible massless representations of the Poincar\\'e algebra.\nFrom \\eq{helicitydef}, we\nderive\\footnote{We define the differential operator\n$L^i\\equiv\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\epsilon^{ijk}L_{jk}$. Then, noting that\n$\\mathbold{\\vec L}=\\mathbold{\\vec x\\times\\vec P}$, it follows that $\\mathbold{\\vec{L}\\cdot\\vec{P}}=0$.\nHence, $\\mathbold{\\vec{J}\\cdot\\vec{P}}=(\\mathbold{\\vec{L}}+\\mathbold{\\vec{S}})\\cdot\\mathbold{\\vec{P}}=\\mathbold{\\vec{S}\\cdot\\vec{P}}$.}\n\\begin{equation} \\label{hdefinition}\nh=\\frac{w^0}{P^0}=\\frac{\\mathbold{\\vec{J}\\cdot\\vec{P}}}{P^0}\n=\\frac{\\mathbold{\\vec{S}\\cdot\\vec{P}}}{|\\boldsymbol{\\vec{P}}|}=\\boldsymbol{\\vec{S}\\!\\cdot\\!\\hat{P}}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nafter noting that $P^0=|\\boldsymbol{\\vec{P}}|$ for massless states.\nEigenvalues of $h$ are called the helicity (and are denoted by\n$\\lambda$);\nits spectrum consists of non-negative half-integers,\n$\\lambda=0,\\pm\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},\\pm 1,\\ldots$.\nUnder a CPT transformation, $\\lambda\\to -\\lambda$. \nThus, in any quantum field theory realization of massless particles, \nboth~~$\\pm|\\lambda|$ helicity states must appear in the theory.\nIt is common to refer to a massless (positive energy) state\nof helicity $\\lambda$ as having spin $|\\lambda|$.\n\n\\subsection{The supersymmetry (SUSY) algebra}\n\\label{SUSYalg}\nIn the 1960s, Coleman and Mandula proved\na very powerful no-go theorem\nthat showed that in quantum field theories in $3+1$ dimensional\nspacetime with a mass gap, the only possible symmetry incorporating Poincar\\'e\ntransformations and a global internal symmetry group of transformations \nmust be a trivial tensor product of the two groups\\cite{Coleman:1967ad}. \nSubsequently, Haag, {\\L}opusza{\\'{n}}ski and Sohnius proved that the only\npossible extension of the Poincar\\'e algebra involves the addition\nof new fermionic generators that transform either as a $(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)$ or\n$(0,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$ under the Lorentz algebra, denoted by $Q^i_{\\alpha}$ and\nits hermitian conjugate\n$Q^{\\dagger}_{\\dot\\alpha i}\\equiv (Q^i_\\alpha)^\\dagger$, respectively,\nwhere $i=1,2,\\ldots N$\\cite{Lopuszanski,Haag:1974qh}.\nIn these lectures, we shall focus exclusively on the case of $N=1$, in which case the subscript $i$\ncan be dropped.\n\nWe therefore begin by examining the structure of\nthe $N=1$ SUSY algebra, which is obtained by adding one\n$(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)$ and one $(0,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$ generator to the Poincar\\'e algebra,\ndenoted by $Q_\\alpha$ and $Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}$, respectively.\nThese two-component spinor generators have no explicit dependence\non the spacetime coordinate and are thus\ninvariant under spacetime translations. That is,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\exp\\left(-ia_\\mu P^\\mu\\right)Q_\\alpha \\exp\\left(ia_\\mu P^\\mu\\right)&=&Q_\\alpha\\,,\\\\[6pt]\n\\exp\\left(-ia_\\mu P^\\mu\\right)Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha} \\exp\\left(ia_\\mu P^\\mu\\right)&=&Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nwhere the $a_\\mu$ are real parameters. Working to first order in $a_\\mu$, it follows that\nthe spinor generators\nmust commute with the translation generator~$P^\\mu$,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{QP}\n[Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,P^\\mu]=[Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,P^\\mu]=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\nThe commutation relations given in \\eq{QP} can also be deduced by\nemploying the following algebraic argument. Using the known\ntransformation properties of $Q_\\alpha$, $Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}$ and\n$P^\\mu$ under the\nPoincar\\'e algebra, it follows that $[Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,P^\\mu]$ must consist\nof generators whose transformation properties are consistent with the\ntensor product,\n\\begin{equation}\n(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)\\otimes(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})=(1,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})\\oplus(0,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nunder the Poincar\\'e algebra. But according to the\nHaag-{\\L}opuszanski-Sohnius theorem, there are no $(1,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$ generators.\nThis argument still leaves open the possibility that\n$[Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,P^\\mu]\\propto \\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}Q^{\\dagger\\,\\dot\\beta}$.\nHowever, it can be shown using the Jacobi identity\n that\nthe proportionality constant must be zero.\n\nThe transformation properties of $Q_\\alpha$ and\n$Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}$\nunder the Poincar\\'e algebra yield their\ncommutation relations with the $J^{\\mu\\nu}$,\n\\begin{equation}\n[Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,J^{\\mu\\nu}]=(\\sigma^{\\mu\\nu})_\\alpha{}^\\beta Q_\\beta\\,,\n\\qquad\\qquad\n[Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,J^{\\mu\\nu}]\n=-Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}(\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\nu})^{\\dot\\beta}{}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nThe Coleman-Mandula theorem implies that one cannot obtain a consistent algebraic\nstructure by postulating commutation relations for the $Q_\\alpha$ and $Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}$.\nHowever, by declaring $Q_\\alpha$ and $Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}$ to be \\textit{fermionic}\ngenerators, one can postulate \\textit{anticommutation} relations for $Q_\\alpha$ and $Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}$\nsuch that the generators $\\{P^\\mu\\,,\\,J^{\\mu\\nu}\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\}$ form\na closed algebraic system. We therefore consider the three possible anticommutation relations,\nalong with their transformation properties with respect to the Poincar\\'e algebra,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q_\\beta\\}\\qquad & \\qquad (\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)\\otimes(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)=(1,0)\\oplus(0,0)\\,,\\label{qqcomm1}\\\\\n\\{Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}\\qquad & \\qquad (0,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})\\otimes (0,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})=(0,1)\\oplus(0,0)\\,,\\label{qqcomm2}\\\\\n\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}\\qquad & \\qquad (\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},0)\\otimes (0,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})=(\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})\\,.\\label{qqcomm3}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\n\\Eqs{qqcomm1}{qqcomm2} imply that\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\beta\\}&=&s(\\sigma^{\\mu\\nu})_\\alpha{}^\\beta J_{\\mu\\nu}+k\\delta_\\alpha{}^\\beta\\mathds{1}\\,,\\label{QQsk1}\\\\[6pt]\n\\{Q^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}\\ &=& s^* (\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\nu})^{\\dot\\alpha}{}_{\\dot{\\beta}}J_{\\mu\\nu}\n+k^*\\delta^{\\dot\\alpha}{}_{\\dot\\beta}\\mathds{1}\\,,\\label{QQsk2}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nwhere $s$ and $k$ are complex numbers\nand \\eq{QQsk2} is the hermitian conjugate of \\eq{QQsk1}. Note that\nwe have raised and\/or lowered some of the spinor indices for convenience.\nSince $[Q_\\alpha,P^\\lambda]=[Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha},P^\\lambda]=0$ and $[J_{\\mu\\nu},P^\\lambda]\\neq 0$,\nit follows that $s=0$. If we now lower all spinor indices, \\eqs{QQsk1}{QQsk2} with $s=0$ yield\n\\begin{equation}\n\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q_\\beta\\}=k\\epsilon_{\\beta\\alpha}\\mathds{1}\\,,\\qquad\\quad\n\\{Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=k^*\\epsilon^{\\dot\\beta\\dot\\alpha}\\mathds{1}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nand we conclude that $k=0$, since the left-hand sides of the above equations are symmetric under\nthe interchange of spinor indices, whereas the right hand sides are antisymmetric.\nHence,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q_\\beta\\}=\\{Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\n\\Eq{qqcomm3} implies that the remaining anticommutation relation must be of the form\n\\begin{equation} \\label{QQt}\n\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=t\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}P_\\mu\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $t$ is a complex number. Multiplying \\eq{QQt} by $\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\nu\\dot\\beta\\alpha}$ and using\n$\\Tr(\\sigma^\\mu\\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu)=2g^{\\mu\\nu}$, it follows that\n\\begin{equation} \\label{sigbarqq}\n\\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu^{\\dot\\beta\\alpha}\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=2tP_\\mu\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nIn particular, for $\\mu=0$, \\eq{sigbarqq} relates the energy $P^0$ to the SUSY generators:\n\\begin{equation} \\label{pzero}\n2tP^0=Q_1 Q_1^\\dagger+Q_1^\\dagger Q_1+Q_2 Q_2^\\dagger+Q_2^\\dagger Q_2\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nSince $P^0\\geq m$ for physical states of mass $m$ and the right-hand side of \\eq{pzero} is positive semi-definite,\nit follows that $t$ must be real and positive.\\footnote{We reject the possibility of $t=0$, in\nwhich case $Q=Q^\\dagger=0$ and the SUSY algebra reduces to the Poincar\\'e algebra.}\nOne can rescale the definition of the fermionic generators $Q$ and $Q^\\dagger$ such that\n$t=2$. In this convention,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=2\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}P_\\mu\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\nTo summarize, the $N=1$ SUSY algebra\nis spanned by the generators $\\{P^\\mu\\,,\\,J^{\\mu\\nu}\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\}$, which\nsatisfy \\eqst{spoincarealg1}{spoincarealg3} and\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n[Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,P^\\mu]&=&[Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,P^\\mu]=0\\,,\\label{susyalg1}\\\\\n\\left[Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,J^{\\mu\\nu}\\right]&=&(\\sigma^{\\mu\\nu})_\\alpha{}^\\beta Q_\\beta\\,,\\label{susyalg2}\\\\\n\\left[Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,J^{\\mu\\nu}\\right]&=&-Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\n(\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\nu})^{\\dot\\beta}{}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\label{susyalg3}\\\\\n\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q_\\beta\\}&=&\\{Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=0\\,,\\label{susyalg4}\\\\\n\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}&=&2\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}P_\\mu\\,.\\label{susyalg5}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\n\nNote that \\eqst{susyalg1}{susyalg5} are unchanged under the U(1) phase transformation,\n\\begin{equation}\nQ_\\alpha\\to e^{-i\\chi}Q_\\alpha\\,,\\qquad\\quad Q^{\\dagger}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\to e^{i\\chi}Q^{\\dagger}_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhereas the generators $P^\\mu$ and $J^{\\mu\\nu}$ are not transformed.\nOne can therefore extend the $N=1$ SUSY algebra by adding a bosonic generator $R$ such that\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\ne^{i\\chi R}Q_\\alpha e^{-i\\chi R}&=&e^{-i\\chi}Q_\\alpha\\,,\\label{R1}\\\\\ne^{i\\chi R}Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha} e^{-i\\chi R}&=&e^{i\\chi}Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,.\\label{R2}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nExpanding out to first order in $\\chi$, one easily derives the commutation relations,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\left[R\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha\\right]&=&-Q_\\alpha\\,,\\label{susyalg6} \\\\\n\\left[R\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\right]&=&Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,.\\label{susyalg7}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nWe therefore say that the generator $Q_\\alpha$ has an $R$-charge of $-1$. Since $P^\\mu$ and $J^{\\mu\\nu}$\nare uncharged under the U(1)$_R$ transformation, it follows that\n\\begin{equation} \\label{susyalg8}\n[R\\,,\\,P^\\mu]=[R\\,,\\,J^{\\mu\\nu}]=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nThus, \\eqst{spoincarealg1}{spoincarealg3},\n(\\ref{susyalg1})--(\\ref{susyalg5}) and (\\ref{susyalg6})--(\\ref{susyalg8})\ndefine the maximally extended\n$N=1$ SUSY algebra, which includes an additional\ncontinuous U(1)$_R$ symmetry.\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Representations of the $N=1$ SUSY algebra}\nIn Section~\\ref{sec:Poincare}, we identified the two Casimir operators of the Poincar\\'e\nalgebra, $P^2$ and $w^2$, and noted that the\nrepresentations of the Poincar\\'e algebra can be labeled by the eigenvalues of\nthe Casimir operators acting on the physical states.\nWe saw that \nthe massive\nrepresentations can be labeled by their mass and spin, $(m,s)$. For a fixed value of $m$, the\ncorresponding spin-$s$ representations are $(2s+1)$-dimensional.\nFor massless states, we defined\n the helicity operator\n$h=\\boldsymbol{\\vec{S}\\!\\cdot\\!\\hat{P}}$ [cf.~\\eq{hdefinition}], with\n eigenvalues $\\lambda=0,\\pm\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},\\pm 1\\,\\ldots$.\nWe also noted that $\\lambda$ changes sign under a CPT\ntransformation. Hence, the massless positive energy\nrepresentations of the Poincar\\'e algebra are specified by $|\\lambda|$.\nFor the case of $\\lambda=0$, the corresponding representation is one-dimensional.\nFor any non-zero \nchoice for $\\lambda$,\nthe corresponding representation is two-dimensional and reducible,\nas both $\\pm|\\lambda|$ helicity states must appear.\n\nThe unitary representations of the $N=1$ SUSY algebra can be determined\nby using similar techniques\\cite{Salam:1974za,Sokatchev:1975gg}. First, we identify the Casimir operators, which\ncommute with all the SUSY algebra generators, $\\{P^\\mu\\,,\\,J^{\\mu\\nu}\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha}\\}$.\nIt is clear that $P^2$ is a Casimir operator, since $Q_\\alpha$ and $Q^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha}$ commute\nwith $P^\\mu$. However, $w^2$ is \\textit{not} a Casimir operator of the SUSY\nalgebra. To establish this result, it is straightforward to use the (anti-)commutation\nrelations of the SUSY algebra to prove that:\n\\begin{equation} \\label{wQQ}\n\\left[w^\\mu\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha\\right]=i(\\sigma^{\\mu\\nu})_{\\alpha}{}^\\beta Q_\\beta P_\\nu\\,,\\qquad\\quad\n\\left[w^\\mu\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\right]= i(\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\nu})^{\\dot\\beta}{}_{\\dot\\alpha}Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}P_\\nu\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nUsing these results, it is straightforward to derive:\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n[w^2\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha]&=&2i\\sigma^{\\mu\\nu}{}_\\alpha{}^\\beta Q_\\beta w_\\mu P_\\nu-\\tfrac{3}{4}P^2 Q_\\alpha\\,,\\label{wtwo} \\\\\n\\left[w^2\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\right]&=&2i\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\mu\\nu\\dot\\beta}{}_{\\dot\\alpha} Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta} w_\\mu P_\\nu\n-\\tfrac{3}{4}P^2 Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,.\\label{wtwodag}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nThus, $w^2$ does not commute with the fermionic generators of the SUSY algebra. One consequence\nof this result is that the representations of the SUSY\nalgebra consist of supermultiplets that contain particles of equal\nmass but with different spins.\n\nIn order to deduce the possible spins that make up an irreducible supermultiplet, we shall identify a second Casimir\noperator of the $N=1$ SUSY algebra. We begin by defining the operator\n\\begin{equation}\nB^\\mu\\equiv w^\\mu+\\tfrac{1}{4}Q^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu Q\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nUsing \\eqss{susyalg4}{susyalg5}{wQQ}, one can derive\n\\begin{equation} \\label{BQQ}\n[B^\\mu\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha]=-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} P^\\mu Q_\\alpha\\,,\\qquad\\qquad [B^\\mu\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}]=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} P^\\mu Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nThe four-vector operator $B^\\mu$ possesses some of the properties of the Pauli-Lubanski vector $w^\\mu$.\nIn particular,\n\\begin{align} \n[B^\\mu\\,,\\,B^\\nu] &=i\\epsilon^{\\mu\\nu\\rho\\lambda}B_\\rho P_\\lambda ; \\label{BmuBnu} \\\\\n[B^\\mu, P^\\nu] & = 0; \\label{BP}\\\\\n[B^\\mu, J^{\\nu\\lambda} ] & = i \\of{ g^{\\mu\\nu} B^\\lambda - g^{\\mu\\lambda} B^\\nu } . \\label{Bvector}\n\\end{align}\nOne may be tempted to conjecture that $B^2\\equiv B_\\mu B^\\mu$\nis a Casimir operator of the SUSY algebra. However, $[B^2\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha]\\neq 0$, so we must look further.\nThe structure of \\eq{BQQ} suggests that we define\n\\begin{equation} \\label{Cmunu}\nC^{\\mu\\nu}\\equiv B^\\mu P^\\nu-B^\\nu P^\\mu\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nIt then follows that\n\\begin{equation}\n[C^{\\mu\\nu}\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha]=[C^{\\mu\\nu}\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}]=[C^{\\mu\\nu}\\,,\\,P^\\lambda]=0\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere the first two commutators vanish as a consequence of \\eq{BQQ} and the last commutator\nvanishes as a consequence of \\eq{BP}. Moreover, \\eqs{spoincarealg2}{Bvector} imply that $P^\\mu$ and $B^\\mu$\nare Lorentz four-vectors, in which case $C^{\\mu\\nu}$ is a second-rank Lorentz tensor. Hence\n\\begin{equation} \\label{C2def}\nC^2\\equiv C_{\\mu\\nu} C^{\\mu\\nu}=2[B^2 P^2-(B\\!\\cdot\\! P)^2]\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nsatisfies\n\\begin{equation}\n[C^2\\,,\\,P^\\mu]=[C^2\\,,\\,J^{\\mu\\nu}]=[C^2\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha]=[C^2\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}]=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\nWe conclude that $P^2$ and $C^2$ are the two\nCasimir operators of the $N=1$ SUSY algebra.\nRepresentations of the $N=1$ SUSY algebra can therefore be\nlabeled by the eigenvalues of $P^2$ and $C^2$ when acting on the\nphysical states.\\footnote{As in the case of the Poincar\\'e algebra,\nwe restrict our considerations to\nstates of non-negative energy $P^0$.} The eigenvalue of $P^2$ is\n$m^2$, where $m$ is the mass. To understand the physical meaning of $C^2$, we will consider massive and massless supermultiplets separately.\n\n\\subsubsection{Massive $N=1$ supermultiplets}\nTo see the physical interpretation of $C^2$, we first consider the case of $m\\neq 0$, so that we are free to evaluate the Lorentz scalar $C^2$ in the particle rest frame.\nIn this frame,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{bmudef}\nB^\\mu=(\\tfrac{1}{4}Q^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^0 Q\\,;\\,mS^i+\\tfrac{1}{4}Q^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^i Q),\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $S^i$ is defined in \\eq{jkdef}.\nWe then compute,\n\\begin{align}\nC^2 & = 2\\left[B^2 P^2-(B\\!\\cdot\\! P)^2\\right] \n =2m^2\\left[B^2-B_0^2\\right] \n = -2m^2 B^i B^i,\n\\end{align}\nwhere $B^iB^i\\equiv |\\boldsymbol{\\vec B}|^2$. \nMoreover, if we define the rest-frame operator,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{caljdef}\n\\mathcal{J}^i\\equiv \\frac{1}{m}B^i=S^i+\\frac{1}{4m}Q^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^i Q\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nthen it follows from \\eq{BmuBnu} that\n\\begin{equation}\n[\\mathcal{J}^i\\,,\\,\\mathcal{J}^j]=i\\epsilon^{ijk} \\mathcal{J}^k\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\nThe eigenvalues of $\\mathcal{J}^i \\mathcal{J}^i$ are $j(j+1)$ for $j=0,\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},1,\\tfrac{3}{2}\\,\\ldots$. Hence, the\neigenvalues of\n\\begin{equation}\nC^2=-2m^4 \\mathcal{J}^i \\mathcal{J}^i\n\\end{equation}\nare $-2m^4 j(j+1)$. We conclude that for positive energy, timelike $P^\\mu$,\nthe unitary irreducible representations of the $N=1$ SUSY algebra are labeled by $(m,j)$, where $j$ is called\nthe \\textit{superspin} of the supermultiplet.\nThe states of an irreducible $N=1$ massive supermultiplet of superspin $j$ are exhibited\nin Table~\\ref{massivesuperplet}. \nThe explicit construction of these\nstates and a discussion of their properties is presented in Section~\\ref{App}.\n\n\\begin{table}[t!]\n \\caption{\\small States of an $N=1$ massive supermultiplet of superspin $j$. An interpretation\nis provided for $j=s$ and $j=s+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ where $s$ is a non-negative integer.\nThe bosonic and fermionic degrees of freedom (D.o.f.) of the supermultiplet coincide\nand is equal to $2(2j+1)$.\\label{massivesuperplet}}\n\\vskip 0.1in\n{\n\\addtolength\\tabcolsep{2pt}\n\\begin{tabular}{cccc}\n\\hline\nSpin & D.o.f. & Interpretation ($j=s$) & Interpretation ($j=s+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$) \\\\ \\hline\n$j$ & $2(2j+1)$ & complex spin-$s$ boson & ``complex'' spin-($s+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$) fermion \\\\\n$j+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ & $2j+2$ & spin-($s+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$ fermion & real spin-$(s+1)$ boson \\\\\n$j-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ & $2j$ & spin-($s-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$ fermion & real spin-$s$ boson \\\\ \\hline\n\\end{tabular}}\n \\end{table}\n\n\n\\begin{example}[The massive chiral supermultiplet, $\\boldsymbol{j=0}$]\n\nFor $j=0$, only $j_3=0$ is possible, in which case the massive\nsupermultiplet is made up of two states of spin 0 and two states of\nspin $\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$. The two spin-0 states can be combined into a single complex\nscalar state, and the two spin-$\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ states can be identified as the two\ncomponents of a two-component Majorana fermion. In this case the\n$j-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ row of Table~\\ref{massivesuperplet} is not relevant. \n\\end{example}\n\nIt can be shown (see Problem \\ref{pr:jhalf}) that the massive\nsupermultiplet of superspin $\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ consists of a (real) spin-1 boson,\na (real) spin-0 boson and two mass-degenerate Majorana fermions, which\ncan be combined into a single Dirac fermion (called a \\textit{complex}\nfermion in Table~\\ref{massivesuperplet}).\nAs expected, in both the $j=0$ and $j=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ cases exhibited above,\nthe number of bosonic degrees of freedom of the\nsupermultiplet equals the number of fermionic degrees of freedom. \n\n\n\n\\subsubsection{Massless $N=1$ supermultiplets}\n\nWe now examine the case of zero-mass positive energy states, where $P^2=0$ and $P^0>0$. If one multiplies\n\\eq{susyalg5} by $P^\\rho P^\\lambda\\overline{\\sigma}_\\rho^{\\dot\\gamma\\alpha}\\overline{\\sigma}_\\gamma^{\\dot\\beta\\tau}$,\none can easily derive the anticommutation relation,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\{P^\\rho\\overline{\\sigma}_\\rho^{\\dot\\gamma\\alpha}Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,P^\\lambda Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\dot\\beta\\tau}\\}=2P^2 P^\\mu\\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu^{\\dot\\gamma\\tau}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nThus, for $P^2=0$ we have,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{PoperatorP}\n\\bra{\\Psi}\\{P^\\rho\\overline{\\sigma}_\\rho^{\\dot\\gamma\\alpha}Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,P^\\lambda Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\dot\\beta\\tau}\\}\\ket{\\Psi}=0\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nfor any state $\\ket{\\Psi}$.\nIn the space of one-particle states, only positively-normed states exist. Noting that\n$(P^\\mu\\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu^{\\dot\\alpha\\beta}Q_\\beta)^\\dagger=P^\\mu Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu^{\\dot\\beta\\alpha}$,\n\\eq{PoperatorP} implies that as operators on the space of one-particle states,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{zeroops}\nP^\\rho\\overline{\\sigma}_\\rho^{\\dot\\gamma\\alpha}Q_\\alpha=\nP^\\lambda Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\overline{\\sigma}_\\lambda^{\\dot\\beta\\tau}=0\\,,\\qquad\n\\text{for}~~P^2=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nUsing this result, one can evaluate the Casimir operator $C^2$, defined in \\eq{C2def}, in the case of $P^2=0$.\nIn particular, using $w_\\mu P^\\mu = 0$ and \\eq{zeroops},\n\\begin{equation}\nC^2=-2(B\\!\\cdot\\! P)^2=-\\tfrac{1}{8}(Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\overline{\\sigma}^{\\dot\\alpha\\beta}_\\mu Q_\\beta P^\\mu)^2=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\nThe same conclusion can be obtained by choosing\nthe standard reference frame, $P^\\mu=P^0(1\\,;\\,0\\,,\\,0\\,,\\,1)$,\nfor lightlike four-vectors. In this reference frame, the anticommutators given in \\eqs{susyalg4}{susyalg5}\nsimplify to\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\{Q_1\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_1\\}&=& 0\\,,\\qquad\\quad\\,\\,\n\\{Q_2\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_2\\}=4P_0\\,,\\label{qqmassless1}\\\\\n\\{Q_1\\,,\\,Q_1\\}&=&\\{Q_2\\,,\\,Q_2\\}=\\{Q_1\\,,\\,Q_2\\}=0\\,,\\label{qqmassless2}\\\\\n \\{Q^\\dagger_1\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_1\\}&=&\\{Q^\\dagger_2\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_2\\}=\\{Q^\\dagger_1\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_2\\}=0\\,.\\label{qqmassless3}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nHence,\n\\begin{equation}\nC^2=-2(B\\!\\cdot\\! P)^2=-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} P_0^2(Q_1^\\dagger Q_1)^2=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} P_0^2 Q_1^\\dagger Q_1^\\dagger Q_1 Q_1=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\n\\Eq{zeroops} implies a number of other operator identities when acting on the space of one-particle states.\nUsing \\eq{susyalg5}, one easily derives\n\\begin{equation}\n[Q^\\alpha Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}]=4P_\\mu\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}Q^\\alpha\\,,\\qquad\\quad\n[Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}Q^{\\dagger\\,\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,Q_\\beta]=-4P_\\mu\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}Q^{\\dagger\\,\\dot\\beta}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nApplying \\eq{zeroops} then yields\n\\begin{equation} \\label{QQQQ}\n[Q^\\alpha Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}]=[Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}Q^{\\dagger\\,\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,Q_\\beta]=0\\,,\\qquad\n\\text{for}~~P^2=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nThen, for any one-particle state $\\ket{\\Psi}$, \\eqss{susyalg4}{susyalg5}{QQQQ} yield\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\nP_\\mu\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\alpha}Q^\\beta Q_\\beta\\ket{\\Psi}&=&\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\}Q^\\beta Q_\\beta\\ket{\\Psi}\n=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} Q_\\alpha Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}Q^\\beta Q_\\beta\\ket{\\Psi}\\nonumber \\\\\n&=&\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} Q_\\alpha [Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,Q^\\beta Q_\\beta]\\ket{\\Psi}=0\\,.\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nA similar computation of $P_\\mu\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\alpha}Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}Q^{\\dagger\\,\\dot\\beta}$\nallows us to conclude that\n\\begin{equation}\nP_\\mu Q^\\beta Q_\\beta\\ket{\\Psi}=P_\\mu Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}Q^{\\dagger\\,\\dot\\beta}\\ket{\\Psi}=0\\,,\\qquad \\text{for}~~P^2=0\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nafter multiplying through by $\\overline{\\sigma}_\\nu^{\\dot\\alpha\\alpha}$ and evaluating the resulting trace.\nAs we are only interested in positive energy states, we conclude that as operators on the space of one-particle states,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{QQQQ0}\nQ^\\beta Q_\\beta=Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}Q^{\\dagger\\,\\dot\\beta}=0\\,,\\qquad \\text{for}~~P^2=0~~\\text{and}~~P^0>0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\nIn order to identify the massless supermultiplets of one-particle states, it is convenient to define\n\\begin{equation} \\label{Lmudef}\nL^\\mu\\equiv \\ifmath{\\tfrac12}(w^\\mu+B^\\mu)=w^\\mu+\\tfrac{1}{8}Q^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu Q\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nNote \n$[Q_\\alpha ,P^\\mu ]=[Q^\\dagger_{\\dot{\\alpha}}, P^\\mu ]=0$ and\n$[w_\\mu, P_\\nu ]=0$\nimply that\n\\begin{equation} \\label{PL}\n[P^\\mu\\,,\\,L^\\nu]=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nUsing \\eqss{susyalg4}{susyalg5}{wQQ}, one can easily derive\n\\begin{equation} \\label{LQQ}\n[L^\\mu\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha]=-\\tfrac{1}{4}(\\sigma^\\mu\\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu)_\\alpha{}^\\beta Q_\\beta P_\\nu\\,,\\qquad\n[L^\\mu\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}]=\\tfrac{1}{4}(\\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu\\sigma^\\mu)^{\\dot\\beta}{}_{\\dot\\alpha} Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}P_\\nu\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nA straightforward computation then gives:\n\\begin{equation} \\label{LLcomm}\n[L^\\mu\\,,\\,L^\\nu]=i\\epsilon^{\\mu\\nu\\rho\\lambda}(L_\\rho+\\tfrac{1}{16}Q^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}_\\rho Q)P_\\lambda\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nWhen $P^2=0$, we impose the results of \\eq{zeroops} to obtain\n\\begin{equation} \\label{Lprops0}\nP^\\mu L_\\mu=[L^\\mu\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha]=[L^\\mu\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}]=0\\,,\\qquad \\text{for}~~P^2=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nMoreover, if we employ the identity\n\\begin{equation}\n\\epsilon^{\\mu\\nu\\rho\\lambda}\\overline{\\sigma}_\\rho=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} i(\\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu\\sigma^\\mu\\overline{\\sigma}^\\lambda-\\overline{\\sigma}^\\lambda\\sigma^\\mu\\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu)\\,,\n\\end{equation}\n[which is a consequence of \\eq{sigsigsig1}],\nit then follows from \\eq{zeroops} that\n\\begin{equation} \\label{epsQP}\n\\epsilon^{\\mu\\nu\\rho\\lambda}Q^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}_\\rho Q P_\\lambda=0\\,,\\qquad \\text{for}~~P^2=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\n\nHence, in the massless case, \\eq{LLcomm} simplifies to\n\\begin{equation} \\label{LLcomm0}\n[L^\\mu\\,,\\,L^\\nu]=i\\epsilon^{\\mu\\nu\\rho\\lambda}L_\\rho P_\\lambda\\,,\\qquad \\text{for}~~P^2=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nFinally, we evaluate $L^\\mu L_\\mu$ for the positive energy massless one-particle states.\nAs in the analysis of the Poincar\\'e algebra, we shall assume that $w^\\mu w_\\mu=\\lim_{m\\to\n 0} (-m^2\\boldsymbol{\\vec S}\\llsup{\\,2})=0$.\nUsing \\eq{epsQP}, it follows that\n\\begin{equation}\nw^\\mu Q^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu Q= -\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\epsilon^{\\mu\\nu\\rho\\lambda}J_{\\nu\\rho}P_\\lambda Q^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu Q=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nIn light of \\eq{sigid3},\nwe obtain\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n(Q^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu Q)(Q^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu Q)&=&2\\epsilon^{\\dot\\alpha\\dot\\gamma}\\epsilon^{\\beta\\tau}Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\nQ_\\beta Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\gamma}Q_\\tau=2\\epsilon^{\\dot\\alpha\\dot\\gamma}\\epsilon^{\\beta\\tau}\nQ^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}[2P_\\mu\\sigma^\\mu_{\\beta\\dot\\gamma}-Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\gamma}Q_\\beta]Q_\\tau\\nonumber \\\\\n&=& 2(Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}Q^{\\dagger\\,\\dot\\alpha})(Q^\\beta Q_\\beta)-4P^\\mu Q^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}_\\mu Q=0\\,,\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nafter applying the operator identities given in \\eqs{zeroops}{QQQQ0}. Hence,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{lmulmu}\nL^\\mu L_\\mu=0\\,,\\qquad \\text{for}~~P^2=0~~\\text{and}~~P^0>0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\nWhen $P^2=0$ and $P^0>0$, the properties of $L^\\mu$ [cf.~eqs.~(\\ref{PL}), (\\ref{Lprops0}), (\\ref{LLcomm0})\nand (\\ref{lmulmu})] match precisely the\nproperties of the Pauli-Lubanski vector.\nThus, we must solve the equations $L^2=P^2=L_\\mu\nP^\\mu=0$. In\na reference frame in which $P^\\mu=P^0(1\\,;\\,0\\,,\\,0\\,,\\,1)$ and $P^0>0$, \nit follows that $L^\\mu=L^0(1\\,;\\,0\\,,\\,0\\,,\\,1)$. Consequently, in any Lorentz frame,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{shelicitydef}\nL^\\mu=\\mathcal{K} P^\\mu\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\mathcal{K}\\equiv L^0\/P^0$ is called the superhelicity operator.\nMore explicitly, in a frame where $P^\\mu=P^0(1\\,;\\,0\\,,\\,0\\,,\\,1)$,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{mathcalkdef}\n\\mathcal{K}=h+\\frac{1}{8P^0}\\left(Q_1^\\dagger Q_1+Q_2^\\dagger Q_2\\right)\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $h\\equiv w^0\/P^0=\\boldsymbol{\\vec S\\!\\cdot\\!\\hat P}$ is the usual helicity operator acting\non massless one-particle states. By virtue of \\eqs{susyalg1}{Lprops0}, it follows that\n\\begin{equation} \\label{KQQ}\n[\\mathcal{K}\\,,\\,P^\\mu]=[\\mathcal{K}\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha]=[\\mathcal{K}\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}]=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\nHence, the states of the massless supermultiplet are eigenstates of\n$\\mathcal{K}$, with possible\neigenvalues $\\kappa=0,\\pm\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},\\pm 1,\\pm\\tfrac{3}{2},\\ldots$. In contrast, $h$ does not commute with\n$Q_\\alpha$ and $Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}$. Thus, the different states of the massless\nsupermultiplet will have different helicities.\nWe conclude that for positive energy, timelike $P^\\mu$,\nthe irreducible representations of the $N=1$ SUSY algebra are labeled by\nthe eigenvalue $\\kappa$ of the superhelicity operator, which is called\nthe \\textit{superhelicity} of the massless supermultiplet. Moreover, an $N=1$ massless supermultiplet with superhelicity $\\kappa$ consists of two massless\nstates with helicity $\\kappa$ and $\\kappa-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$, respectively.\\footnote{In the literature, it is more\ncommon to define $L^\\mu=(\\mathcal{K}+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})P^\\mu$, in which case the helicities of the massless $N=1$ supermultiplet\nare $\\kappa+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ and $\\kappa$ (e.g., see refs.~\\cite{Srivastava,Buchbinder}).\nIn our opinion, the definition of the superhelicity operator given in \\eq{shelicitydef} is cleaner.}\n\n\nAny quantum field theory realization of supersymmetry respects CPT symmetry. Since the helicity\nchanges sign under a CPT transformation, it follows that any\nirreducible massless supermultiplet with superhelicity~$\\kappa$ must\nbe accompanied by the corresponding CPT-conjugate states that make up an\nirreducible massless supermultiplet with superhelicity\n$-\\kappa+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$. \nHence, without loss of generality, we can restrict the possible values\nof the superhelicity to $\\kappa=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},1,\\tfrac32,\\ldots$. \nThese results are summarized in\nTable~\\ref{masslesssuperplet}. The explicit construction of the\nstates of an irreducible massless supermultiplet and a discussion of their properties is presented in Section~\\ref{App}.\n\n\n\\begin{table}[t!]\n\\caption{\\small States of an $N=1$ massless supermultiplet of superhelicity $\\kappa$\nand the corresponding\nCPT conjugates which comprise an $N=1$ massless super\\-multiplet of superhelicity $-\\kappa+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$.\nAn interpretation\nis provided for $\\kappa=s$ and $\\kappa=s-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$, where $s$ is a positive integer.\nIn the special case of $\\kappa=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$, the scalar boson of the supermultiplet is complex, whereas for $\\kappa=1,\\tfrac{3}{2},2,\\ldots$,\nthe bosonic member of the supermultiplet is real\nwith nonzero spin. In all cases, the number of bosonic and fermionic degrees of\nfreedom (D.o.f.) coincide and are equal to\n2.\\label{masslesssuperplet}}\n\\vskip 0.1in\n{\n\\begin{tabular}{cccc} \\hline\nHelicities & D.o.f. & Interpretation ($\\kappa=s$) & Interpretation ($\\kappa=s-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$) \\\\ \\hline\n$\\kappa$\\,,\\,$-\\kappa$ & $2$ & spin-$s$ boson & spin-$(s-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$ fermion \\\\\n$\\kappa-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$\\,,\\,$-\\kappa+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ & $2$ & spin-$(s-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$ fermion & spin-$(s-1)$ boson \\\\ \\hline\n\\end{tabular}}\n\\end{table}\n\n\n\n\\begin{example}[A massless chiral supermultiplet, with $\\boldsymbol{\\kappa=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}}$]\nIncluding the CPT-conjugates, this supermultiplet contains two states of helicity 0, and two states of helicity $\\pm\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$,\nrespectively, which yields a massless complex scalar and a\nmassless Majorana fermion. We recognize this as the massless limit of\na massive $j=0$ chiral supermultiplet. \n\\end{example}\n\n\\begin{example}[a massless gauge supermultiplet, with $\\boldsymbol{\\kappa=1}$]\nIncluding the CPT-conjugates, this supermultiplet contains two states of helicity $\\pm\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$\nand two states of helicity $\\pm 1$, which yields a massless\nMajorana fermion and a massless spin-1 particle. This is a gauge supermultiplet\n (e.g the photino and the photon of\nsupersymmetric QED). \n\\end{example}\n\n\nIn Problem \\ref{pr:spin2}, you will show that\na massless supermultiplet with $\\kappa=2$ and its CPT-conjugates\ncontains\na massless spin-$\\tfrac{3}{2}$ and a massless spin 2 particle, which\nis realized in supergravity by the\ngravitino and the graviton, respectively. \n\n\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Consequences of super-Poincar\\'e invariance}\n\n\nA Poincar\\'e invariant quantum field theory respects the Poincar\\'e algebra generated\nby $\\{P^\\mu\\,,\\,J^{\\mu\\nu}\\}$, which satisfy commutation relations given by\n\\eqst{spoincarealg1}{spoincarealg3}. One of the basic postulates of\nPoincar\\'e-invariant quantum field theory states that a translationally-invariant,\nLorentz-invariant vacuum $\\ket{0}$ exists such that\\cite{Roman},\n\\begin{equation} \\label{pvacuum}\nP^\\mu\\ket{0}=0\\,,\\qquad\\quad J^{\\mu\\nu}\\ket{0}=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nIn particular, $\\bra{0}P^\\mu\\ket{0}=0$. Indeed if $\\bra{0}P^\\mu\\ket{0}\\neq 0$, then\nthe vacuum would not be invariant under Lorentz transformations. This is easily proven\nby taking the vacuum expectation value of \n\\begin{equation}\n\\exp\\left(\\tfrac{1}{2}i\\theta_{\\rho\\tau}J^{\\rho\\tau}\\right) P^\\mu\n \\exp\\left(-\\tfrac{1}{2}i\\theta_{\\rho\\tau}J^{\\rho\\tau}\\right)=\\Lambda^{\\mu}{}_{\\nu}P^\\nu\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere the $\\theta_{\\rho\\tau}=-\\theta_{\\rho\\tau}$ parameterize the $4\\times 4$ Lorentz transformation\nmatrix $\\Lambda^\\mu{}_\\nu$\n[cf.~\\eqs{lambda44}{explicitsmunu}]. \n Using $J^{\\mu\\nu}\\ket{0}=0$,\nit follows that\n\\begin{equation}\n\\bra{0}P^\\mu\\ket{0}=\\Lambda^{\\mu}{}_{\\nu}\\bra{0}P^\\nu\\ket{0}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhich holds for all Lorentz transformations $\\Lambda$. Thus, it follows that $\\bra{0}P^\\mu\\ket{0}=0$.\n\nA super-Poincar\\'e invariant quantum field theory respects the SUSY algebra\ngenerated by\n$\\{P^\\mu\\,,\\,J^{\\mu\\nu}\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha}\\}$.\nThe SUSY algebra generators satisfy\nthe commutation relations of the Poincar\\'e algebra and the\n(anti)commutation relations given by\n\\eqst{susyalg1}{susyalg5}. Two important consequences can be established:\n\\vskip 0.1in\n\n1. \\textit{The vanishing of the vacuum energy is a necessary and sufficient condition\nfor the existence of a global supersymmetric vacuum.}\n\\vskip 0.1in\n\n2. \\textit{In a theory governed by a supersymmetric action, for a fixed non-zero $P_\\mu$ the number of bosonic\nand fermionic degrees of freedom coincide.}\n\\vskip 0.1in\n\n\\noindent\nWe address these two results in the next two subsections.\n\n\n\\subsubsection{The vacuum energy of a globally supersymmetric theory}\n\nIn order to prove that the vanishing of the vacuum energy is a necessary and sufficient condition\nfor the existence of a global supersymmetric vacuum, we consider\nthe anticommutation relations of the fermionic generators of the SUSY\nalgebra,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{QQanti}\n\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=2\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}P_\\mu\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nFollowing the derivation of \\eq{pzero},\n\\begin{equation} \\label{QQpzero}\nP^0=\\tfrac{1}{4}\\left[Q_1 Q_1^\\dagger+Q_1^\\dagger Q_1+Q_2 Q_2^\\dagger+Q_2^\\dagger Q_2\\right]\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nSince the right-hand side of \\eq{pzero} is\npositive semi-definite (and neither $Q$ nor $Q^\\dagger$ is the zero operator), it\nfollows that\n\\begin{equation}\n\\vev{0\\,|P^0\\,|\\,0}=0\\quad\\Longleftrightarrow\\quad Q_\\alpha\\ket{0}=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nIn particular, $Q_\\alpha\\ket{0}=0$ implies that the vacuum is supersymmetric, in the same way\nthat $P^\\mu\\ket{0}=J^{\\mu\\nu}\\ket{0}=0$ imply that the vacuum is translationally-invariant\nand Lorentz-invariant.\\footnote{Equivalently,\n$\\bra{0}\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}\\ket{0}=0$,\nby covariance with respect to the SUSY algebra,\nsince there are no spinor quantities with one undotted and one dotted index\nthat can appear on the right hand side of this equation.\nHence, $Q_\\alpha\\ket{0}=0$, which then yields $\\bra{0}P^0\\ket{0}=0$.}\n\nHowever, this proof is troubling for two separate reasons. First, suppose that the action\nof the theory is invariant under supersymmetric transformations, but the vacuum is not\npreserved by supersymmetry. In this case, $Q_\\alpha\\ket{0}\\neq 0$, and we say that\nsupersymmetry is spontaneously broken. Then, \\eq{QQpzero} implies that\n$\\bra{0}P^0\\ket{0}>0$, which contradicts \\eq{pvacuum}. Thus, it appears that the\nspontaneous breaking of supersymmetry is not possible without breaking Lorentz invariance.\nPerhaps a more fundamental objection is that the concept of the vacuum energy is\nusually considered to be unphysical\nin non-gravitational theories, as it is commonly asserted that only energy differences are physical.\nThus, it seems to be a matter of convention to choose the vacuum energy such that $\\bra{0}P^0\\ket{0}=0$.\n\nTo overcome the objections raised above, we re-examine the concept of the vacuum energy\nin relativistic (non-gravitational) quantum field theory. Using the\nNoether procedure, the conserved\ncanonical energy-momentum tensor, $T^{(c)}_{\\mu\\nu}$ can be obtained,\nwhich satisfies $\\partial^\\mu T^{(c)}_{\\mu\\nu}=0$.\\footnote{The arguments given here do not depend on\nwhether one employs the canonical energy momentum tensor or the\nimproved symmetrized energy-momentum tensor.}\nOne can then formally compute the vacuum energy\ndensity by summing over the vacuum Feynman diagrams of the theory. By Lorentz covariance~\\cite{Witten},\n\\begin{equation}\n\\bra{0}T^{(c)}_{\\mu\\nu}\\ket{0}=\\mathcal{E}g_{\\mu\\nu}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\mathcal{E}$ is typically UV divergent. Since the Hamiltonian density is identified\nas $\\mathscr{H}=T_{00}$, it follows that $\\mathcal{E}$ is the vacuum energy density.\nHowever, one is always free to define a new subtracted energy-momentum tensor,\n\\begin{equation}\nT_{\\mu\\nu}\\equiv T^{(c)}_{\\mu\\nu}-\\mathcal{E} g_{\\mu\\nu}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhich is a Lorentz-covariant expression.\\footnote{For example, in the quantum theory\nof free fields, the vacuum energy is set to zero by defining the Hamiltonian density to be\nnormal ordered.}\nBy construction, $\\partial^\\mu T_{\\mu\\nu}=0$ and\n\\begin{equation}\n\\bra{0}T_{\\mu\\nu}\\ket{0}=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nThe energy-momentum tensor $T_{\\mu\\nu}$ plays\na distinguished role in relativistic quantum field theory, since it can be used\nto construct the generators of spacetime translations,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{vacp}\nP_\\mu=\\int d^3 x\\ T_\\mu{}^0\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nthat satisfy $\\bra{0}P_\\mu\\ket{0}=0$. Indeed, $P_\\mu$ defined by \\eq{vacp} is a four-vector with respect\nto Lorentz transformations.\nLikewise, one can construct a distinguished angular momentum tensor $M_{\\mu\\nu\\lambda}$ that\ncan be used to construct the generators of Lorentz transformations\n\\begin{equation}\nJ_{\\mu\\nu}=\\int d^3 x M_{\\mu\\nu}{}^0\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhich satisfy $\\bra{0}J_{\\mu\\nu}\\ket{0}=0$.\n\nHowever, in a supersymmetric theory, another choice of the energy-momentum tensor is\nnatural. The fermionic generators $Q_\\alpha$ and $Q^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha}$ of the SUSY algebra\nare time-independent (conserved) quantities that are obtained by integrating the zeroth component\nof the supercurrents,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{Qint}\nQ_\\alpha=\\int d^3 x J_\\alpha^0\\,,\\qquad\\qquad Q^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha}=\\int d^3 x J^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha\\,0}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nIn a theory governed by a supersymmetric Lagrangian, the supercurrents $J_\\alpha^\\mu$ and $J^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha\\,\\mu}$\nare related by supersymmetry to\nan energy-momentum tensor, denoted by $T^{(\\rm SUSY)}_{\\mu\\nu}$.\nThen, the proper interpretation of \\eq{QQanti} is~\\cite{deWit}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=2\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\\int d^3 x\\, T^{(\\rm SUSY)}{}_\\mu{}^0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nOne can then rewrite the above anticommutation relation as:\n\\begin{equation} \\label{revisedQQ}\n\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=2\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}P_\\mu+2E_0\\sigma^0_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $P_\\mu$ is defined by \\eq{vacp} and\n\\begin{equation} \\label{Ezero}\nE_0\\equiv\\int d^3 x\\,\\bra{0}T^{(\\rm SUSY)}{}_0{}^0\\ket{0}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nIf $E_0=0$ (which corresponds to $T^{(\\rm SUSY)}_{\\mu\\nu}=T_{\\mu\\nu}$),\nthen we recover the standard SUSY algebra, and the\nvacuum is supersymmetric. If $E_0\\neq 0$, then \\eq{revisedQQ} is consistent with $\\bra{0}P^\\mu\\ket{0}=0$\n(which is required by the Lorentz-invariant vacuum) and with $Q_\\alpha\\ket{0}\\neq 0$. In particular,\n$E_0$ serves as an order parameter for broken supersymmetry.\n\nNote that $E_0\\geq 0$ since \\eq{revisedQQ} implies that:\n\\begin{equation}\nE_0=\\tfrac{1}{4}\\bra{0}Q_1 Q_1^\\dagger+Q_1^\\dagger Q_1+Q_2 Q_2^\\dagger+Q_2^\\dagger Q_2\\ket{0}\\geq 0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nIn supersymmetric theories, it is common to call $E_0$ the vacuum energy. Thus, if supersymmetry is\nspontaneously broken, then this definition of the vacuum energy is not compatible with usual\nconventions of quantum field theory in which the vacuum energy is defined to be zero.\n\n\nAlthough the conclusions obtained above are correct, the derivation of \\eq{revisedQQ} is still somewhat formal.\nIndeed\nif the vacuum breaks supersymmetry, then the integrals in \\eq{Qint} do not converge when integrated\nover an infinite volume (this is an infrared divergence), so strictly\nspeaking the fermionic generators $Q_\\alpha$ and $Q^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha}$ are undefined.\\footnote{Moreover,\ngiven a non-zero value for $\\bra{0}T^{(\\rm SUSY)}{}_0{}^0\\ket{0}$, which is a constant by\ntranslational invariance, one sees that $E_0$ defined in \\eq{Ezero} also diverges in the infinite volume limit.}\nNevertheless,\nthe supercurrents are conserved, as expected in a supersymmetric theory with no \\textit{explicit}\nsupersymmetry breaking. In section~\\ref{goldstino}, we will demonstrate that given a supersymmetric\nLagrangian, if the vacuum breaks supersymmetry\nthen a massless Goldstone fermion exists in the spectrum. The long range forces mediated by\nthis massless particle are responsible for the non-convergence of the integrals in \\eq{Qint}.\nEquivalently, in a spontaneously-broken globally supersymmetric theory, applying $Q_\\alpha$ to the vacuum\ncreates a zero-momentum massless fermionic state, which is a state of infinite norm~\\cite{weinberg3}.\n\n\\subsubsection{Equality of bosonic and fermionic degrees of freedom in\n super\\-symmetric theories}\n\nIn a theory governed by a supersymmetric action, for a fixed non-zero $P_\\mu$ the number of bosonic\nand fermionic degrees of freedom coincide. To prove this result, we first observe that the application\nof $Q_\\alpha$ or $Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}$ to a physical state changes that state by adding half a unit of spin.\nAn explicit example of this behavior can be seen in \\eqs{massiveplet2}{massiveplet3}. We can summarize\nthis behavior in the following schematic equations,\n\\begin{equation}\nQ_\\alpha\\ket{B}=\\ket{F}\\,,\\qquad\\quad Q_\\alpha\\ket{F}=\\ket{B}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nand similarly for the application of $Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}$, where $\\ket{B}$ is a bosonic state\nand $\\ket{F}$ is a fermionic state. It is convenient to introduce an operator, denoted by $(-1)^F$,\nwith the following properties:\n\\begin{equation}\n(-1)^F\\ket{B}=\\ket{B}\\,,\\qquad\\quad (-1)^F\\ket{F}=-\\ket{F}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nNote that\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\nQ_\\alpha(-1)^F\\ket{F}&=&-Q_\\alpha\\ket{F}=-\\ket{B}\\,, \\\\\n(-1)^F Q_\\alpha\\ket{F}&=&(-1)^F\\ket{B}=\\ket{B}\\,,\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nand similarly for the application of $Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}$. It follows that $Q_\\alpha$\n[and $Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}$] anticommute with $(-1)^F$,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{minusF}\n\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,(-1)^F\\}=\\{Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,(-1)^F\\}=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n\nUsing \\eq{minusF}, we can evaluate the following trace over physical states,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\Tr\\left[(-1)^F\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}\\right]&=&\n\\Tr\\left[(-1)^F(Q_\\alpha Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}+Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}Q_\\alpha)\\right] \\nonumber \\\\\n&=& \\Tr\\left[-Q_\\alpha (-1)^F Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}+(-1)^F Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}Q_\\alpha\\right]\\nonumber \\\\\n&=& \\Tr\\left[-Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}Q_\\alpha (-1)^F+Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}Q_\\alpha (-1)^F\\right]\\nonumber \\\\\n&=&0\\,,\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nafter a cyclic permutation within the trace at the penultimate step.\nEmploying \\eq{susyalg5},\nwe conclude that\n\\begin{equation} \\label{traceF}\n\\Tr (-1)^F=0\\,,\\qquad \\text{for any fixed non-zero $P^\\mu$}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nFor a fixed non-zero eigenvalue $p^\\mu$ obtained by applying the\nmomentum operator $P^\\mu$ to a physical\nstate, \n\\begin{equation}\n\\Tr (-1)^F=\\sum_{\\{r\\}} \\bra{p^\\mu,\\{r\\}}(-1)^F\\ket{p^\\mu,\\{r\\}}=N_B(p^\\mu)-N_F(p^\\mu)=0\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\{r\\}$ indicates all other quantum numbers of the physical state. Thus, the number of\nbosonic ($N_B$) and fermionic ($N_F$) degrees of freedom coincide.\n\nWe have already observed that \\eq{minusF} is satisfied by all\npositive energy representations of the SUSY algebra. The\nproof above demonstrates that the equality of bosonic and fermionic\ndegrees of freedom in supersymmetric theories is far more general.\nIndeed, the only case where this equality can break down is when~$P^\\mu=0$,\ncorresponding to the vacuum state of the supersymmetric theory.\\footnote{For\nexample, Witten showed that in an SU($N$) supersymmetric Yang-Mills\ntheory, $\\Tr (-1)^F=N$ for the supersymmetric ground\nstate~\\cite{Witten2}.}\n\n\n\n\\subsection{Supersymmetric theories of spin-0 and spin-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\ particles}\n\nThe simplest supermultiplet contains a complex scalar and a\ntwo-component (Majorana) fermion, of common mass $m$. The case of\n$m\\neq 0$ corresponds to superspin $j\\!=\\!0$ and the case of $m\\!=\\!0$\ncorresponds to superhelicity $\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ and its CPT-conjugate.\n\n\\subsubsection{The Wess-Zumino Lagrangian}\n\nA Lagrangian that respects the SUSY algebra is given by\n\\begin{align}\n\\mathscr{L}=(\\partial_\\mu A)^\\dagger(\\partial^\\mu A)+ i \\psi^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu \\partial_\\mu \\psi-\\left|\\frac{dW}{dA}\\right|^2-\\frac12\\left[\\frac{d^2 W}{dA^2}\\,\\psi\\psi+\\left(\\frac{d^2 W}{dA^2}\\right)^{\\!\\!\\dagger}\\!\\!\\psi^\\dagger\\psi^\\dagger\\right]\\,,\n\\label{eq:LWZoriginal}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $A$ is a complex scalar,\\footnote{Employing $A$ for a complex\n scalar field rather than $\\phi$ follows the notation first introduced\n in Ref.\\cite{WessBagger}. It should not be confused with the\n notation for a vector field, which will henceforth be denoted\n by $V$.} \n$\\psi$ and $\\psi^\\dagger$ are two-component spinors, and $W=W(A)$\n[called the \\textit{superpotential}]\nis a holomorphic function of $A$ (\\textit{i.e.}, a function of $A$ and \\textit{not}~$A^\\dagger$).\nIf $W(A)$ is (at most) a cubic polynomial in $A$, then the above\nLagrangian yields a renormalizable \nquantum field theory called the \\textit{Wess-Zumino model}.\nFor example, a simple quadratic superpotential,\n$W=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} mA^2$, describes\na free theory of a complex scalar and a Majorana fermion of common mass $|m|$.\nAn interacting theory is\nobtained by including a cubic term in the superpotential,\n\\begin{align}\nW=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} mA^2+\\tfrac{1}{3}g A^3\\,.\\label{wcubic}\n\\end{align}\nWithout loss of generality, we can assume that $m$ and $g$ are\nnon-negative (by appropriate rephasing of $A$ and $\\psi$). Then,\ninserting \\eq{wcubic} into \\eq{eq:LWZoriginal} yields the Wess-Zumino\nLagrangian,\n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{split}\n\\mathscr{L}&=\n(\\partial_\\mu A)^\\dagger(\\partial^\\mu A)+ i \\psi^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu \\partial_\\mu \\psi-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} m(\\psi\\psi+\\psi^\\dagger\\psi^\\dagger)-m^2(A^\\dagger A)\n \\\\\n&\\quad -g(A\\psi\\psi+A^\\dagger\\psi^\\dagger\\psi^\\dagger)-mg(A^\\dagger A)(A+A^\\dagger)-g^2(A^\\dagger A)^2 \\,.\n\\end{split} \\label{wzlag}\n\\end{align}\nAs expected, the boson and fermion are mass-degenerate. Moreover, SUSY imposes relations among the couplings. In this model, we see that the quartic scalar coupling is the square of the Yukawa (scalar-fermion-fermion) coupling. \n\n\n\nIn order to employ four-component Feynman rules, it is convenient to\nconvert the Wess-Zumino Lagrangian into four-component fermion form.\nWriting $A=(S+iP)\/\\sqrt{2}$, where $S$ and $P$ are hermitian fields, we obtain\n\\begin{align}\n\\begin{split}\n\\mathscr{L}&=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} (\\partial_\\mu S)^2+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} (\\partial_\\mu P)^2-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} m^2(S^2+P^2)+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} \\overline\\Psi_M(i\\gamma^\\mu\\partial_\\mu-m)\\Psi_M\n \\\\\n&\\quad -\\frac{g}{\\sqrt{2}}\\left[S\\Psi_M\\psi_M-iP\\Psi_M\\gamma\\ls{5}\\Psi_M\\right]-\\frac{mg}{\\sqrt{2}}S(S^2+P^2)\n-\\tfrac{1}{4}g^2(S^2+P^2)^2\\,.\n\\end{split}\n\\end{align}\nNote that this Lagrangian separately conserves C, P and T. We identify $S$ as a scalar and $P$ as a pseudoscalar.\n\n\\subsubsection{Invariance of the Wess-Zumino Lagrangian with respect\n to SUSY transformations}\n\nThe Wess-Zumino Lagrangian given by \\eq{wzlag} is invariant with respect to global supersymmetry transformations. Explicitly, these transformations depend on an\ninfinitesimal Grassmann (anticommuting) two-component spinor parameter $\\xi$ that is independent of the spacetime position $x$,\n\\begin{align}\n\\delta_\\xi A &= \\sqrt{2}\\,\\xi \\psi\\,,\\label{susytr1}\\\\\n\\delta_\\xi\\psi_\\alpha\n&=\n- i\\sqrt{2} (\\sigma^\\mu \\xi^\\dagger)_\\alpha\\> \\partial_\\mu A-\\sqrt{2}\\,\\xi_\\alpha\\left(\\frac{dW}{dA}\\right)^{\\!\\!\\dagger}\\,.\\label{susytr2}\n\\end{align}\nBy hermitian conjugation, one also obtains\n\\begin{align}\n\\delta_\\xi A^\\dagger &= \\sqrt{2}\\,\\xi^\\dagger \\psi^\\dagger\\,,\\label{susytr3}\n \\\\\n\\delta_\\xi\\psi^\\dagger_{\\dot{\\alpha}}\n&=\n i \\sqrt{2}(\\xi\\sigma^\\mu)_{\\dot{\\alpha}}\\> \\partial_\\mu A^\\dagger-\\sqrt{2}\\,\\xi^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\left(\\frac{dW}{dA}\\right)\\,.\\label{susytr4}\n \\end{align}\n Applying these transformation laws to \\eq{wzlag}, one obtains a result of the form\n \\begin{align}\n \\delta_{\\xi}\\mathscr{L}=\\partial_\\mu K^\\mu\\,.\n \\label{eq:Kmu}\n \\end{align}\n That is, the action of the Wess-Zumino Model, $S=\\int d^4 x\\,\\mathcal{L}$, is invariant under global SUSY transformations; \\textit{i.e.}, $\\delta_{\\xi} S=0$.\n \n\n \n But, how do we know that the transformation laws just introduced correspond to SUSY transformations? Recall that for ordinary spacetime translations,\n \\begin{equation}\n e^{ia\\!\\cdot\\! P}\\Phi(x)e^{-ia\\!\\cdot\\! P}=\\Phi(x+a)\\,,\n \\end{equation}\n which in infinitesimal form is given by\n \\begin{equation}\n i\\bigl[P^\\mu\\,,\\,\\Phi(x)\\bigr]=\\partial^\\mu\\Phi(x)\\,,\n \\end{equation}\n where $\\Phi=A$ or $\\psi$. Equivalently, for an infinitesimal translation, \n \\begin{equation}\n \\delta_a\\Phi(x)\\equiv\\Phi(x+a)-\\Phi(x)\\simeq a^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\Phi(x)=ia^\\mu\\bigl[P^\\mu\\,,\\,\\Phi(x)\\bigr]\\,.\n \\end{equation}\n Likewise, since $Q$ and $Q^\\dagger$ are the generators of SUSY-translations, we expect\n \\begin{equation} \\label{susytranslate}\n \\delta_{\\xi}\\Phi(x)=i\\bigl[\\xi Q+\\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger\\,,\\,\\Phi(x)\\bigr]\\,.\n \\end{equation}\nConsider the commutator of two SUSY-translations:\n \\begin{Eqnarray}\n (\\delta_{\\eta}\\delta_{\\xi}-\\delta_{\\xi}\\delta_{\\eta})\\Phi(x)&=&\\biggl[i(\\eta Q+\\eta^\\dagger Q^\\dagger)\\,,\\,\n \\bigl[i(\\xi Q+\\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger)\\,,\\,\\Phi(x)\\bigr]\\biggr] \n -(\\xi\\longleftrightarrow\\eta)\\nonumber\n \\\\\n &=&\\biggl[\\bigl[i(\\eta Q+\\eta^\\dagger Q^\\dagger)\\,,\\,i(\\xi Q+\\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger)\\bigr]\\,,\\,\\Phi(x)\\biggr]\\,,\n \\end{Eqnarray}\n after employing the Jacobi identity for the double commutators. Using the SUSY algebra,\n $$\n \\bigl[\\eta Q\\,,\\,\\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger\\bigr]=2(\\eta\\sigma^\\mu\\xi^\\dagger) P_\\mu\\,.\n $$\n Note that the anticommutator has been converted into a commutator due to the fact that $\\eta$ and $\\xi$ are anticommuting two-component spinors. Likewise, \n $$\n \\bigl[\\eta Q\\,,\\,\\xi Q\\bigr]=\\bigl[\\eta^\\dagger Q^\\dagger\\,,\\,\\xi^\\dagger Q^\\dagger\\bigr]=0\\,.\n $$\n Hence, we end up with \n \\begin{Eqnarray}\n \\bigl[\\delta_{\\eta}\\,,\\,\\delta_{\\xi}\\bigr]\\Phi(x)&=&2(\\xi\\sigma^\\mu\\eta^\\dagger-\\eta^\\dagger\\sigma^\\mu\\xi^\\dagger)\\bigl[P_\\mu\\,,\\,\\Phi(x)\\bigr] \\nonumber\n \\\\\n&=& -2i(\\xi\\sigma^\\mu\\eta^\\dagger-\\eta^\\dagger\\sigma^\\mu\\xi^\\dagger)\\partial_\\mu\\Phi(x)\\,.\n \\end{Eqnarray}\nLikewise, a similar computation yields,\n \\begin{Eqnarray}\n \\bigl[\\delta_{\\eta}\\,,\\,\\delta_{\\xi}\\bigr]A(x)&=&-2i(\\xi\\sigma^\\mu\\eta^\\dagger-\\eta^\\dagger\\sigma^\\mu\\xi^\\dagger)\\partial_\\mu A(x)\\,, \n \\\\[6pt]\n \\bigl[\\delta_{\\eta}\\,,\\,\\delta_{\\xi}\\bigr]\\psi_\\alpha(x)&=&-2i(\\xi\\sigma^\\mu\\eta^\\dagger-\\eta^\\dagger\\sigma^\\mu\\xi^\\dagger)\\partial_\\mu \\psi_\\alpha +R\\,, \\label{eq:Remainder}\n \\end{Eqnarray}\n where the remainder $R$ vanishes after imposing the classical field\n equations for $\\psi_\\alpha(x)$, as you will verify in Problem \\ref{pr:R}.\nWe conclude that the SUSY algebra is realized \\textit{on-shell}, \\textit{i.e.}, after employing the classical field equations.\n \n It is instructive to employ\n Noether's theorem, which states that an invariance of the action under\n a continuous symmetry implies the existence of a conserved current.\n Since we have explicitly identified the SUSY\n transformations, we can \nuse Noether's theorem to determine the corresponding conserved supercurrent. Using $\\delta_{\\xi}\\mathscr{L}=\\partial_\\mu K^\\mu$, the resulting conserved Noether supercurrents are\n \\begin{align}\n \\xi^\\alpha J_\\alpha^\\mu+\\xi^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha} J^{\\dagger\\,\\mu\\dot\\alpha}=\\sum_\\Phi \\delta_{\\xi}\\Phi\\,\\frac{\\delta\\mathscr{L}}{\\delta(\\partial_\\mu \\Phi)}-K^\\mu\\,,\n \\end{align}\n where the sum is taken over $\\Phi=A$, $\\psi$. Note that the supercurrent has both a Lorentz index and a spinor index.\n %\n Noether's theorem states that the supercurrent is conserved \\textit{after imposing the classical field equations}. That is, \n\\begin{equation}\n \\partial_\\mu J^\\mu_\\alpha=\\partial_\\mu J^{\\dagger\\,\\mu\\dot\\alpha}=0\\,.\n\\end{equation}\n \nThe supercharges are defined in the usual way (as previously noted):\n \\begin{align} \nQ_\\alpha=\\int d^3 x J_\\alpha^0\\,,\\qquad\\qquad Q^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha}=\\int d^3 x J^{\\dagger\\dot\\alpha\\,0}\\,.\\label{QJ}\n\\end{align}\nThese are expressions that depend on the fields $A$ and $\\psi$.\nOne can now employ the canonical commutation relations of the boson field $A$ and the canonical anticommutation relations of the fermion field $\\psi$ to verify that \n\\begin{equation} \\label{QandCCR}\n\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q_\\beta\\}=\\{Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=0\\,,\\qquad\\quad\n\\{Q_\\alpha\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\}=2\\sigma^\\mu_{\\alpha\\dot\\beta}P_\\mu\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $P_\\mu$ is the Noether charge of spacetime translations given in \\eq{vacp}.\n\n \n \n\\subsection{The SUSY algebra realized off-shell}\n\\label{offshell}\n\nThe SUSY transformation laws of the Wess-Zumino Lagrangian exhibited in \\eqs{susytr1}{susytr2} are not in an\noptimal form for two reasons. First, in the case of a cubic\nsuperpotential $W(A)$, the transformation law for $\\psi_\\alpha$ is non-linear in the fields.\nSecond, the SUSY algebra is only realized on-shell.\nWe can address both these issues by introducing an auxiliary complex scalar field $F(x)$.\nConsider the alternative Lagrangian,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\mathscr{L}&=&(\\partial_\\mu A)^\\dagger(\\partial^\\mu A)+ i \\psi^\\dagger \\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu \\partial_\\mu \\psi\n+F^\\dagger F \n+F\\,\\frac{dW}{dA}+F^\\dagger\\left(\\frac{dW}{dA}\\right)^{\\!\\!\\dagger} \\nonumber \\\\\n&& -\\frac12\\left[\\frac{d^2 W}{dA^2}\\,\\psi\\psi+\\left(\\frac{d^2 W}{dA^2}\\right)^{\\!\\!\\dagger}\\!\\!\\psi^\\dagger\\psi^\\dagger\\right]\\,.\n\\label{eq:LWZF}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nThe field $F(x)$ is auxiliary since $\\mathscr{L}$ does not depend on $\\partial_\\mu F$ and\n$\\partial_\\mu F^\\dagger$. That is, $F$ and $F^\\dagger$ are non-dynamical fields.\n\nWe can trivially solve for $F$ and $F^\\dagger$ using the classical field equations,\n\\begin{align}\n\\frac{\\partial\\mathscr{L}}{\\partial F}&=0\\qquad\\Longrightarrow \\qquad F^\\dagger=-\\frac{dW}{dA}\\,,\\label{fs}\n\\\\\n\\frac{\\partial\\mathscr{L}}{\\partial\n F^\\dagger}&=0\\qquad\\Longrightarrow\\qquad F=\n-\\left(\\frac{dW}{dA}\\right)^{\\!\\!\\dagger}\\,.\\label{f}\n\\end{align}\nHence, \\eqs{fs}{f} yield,\n\\begin{equation}\nF^\\dagger F+F\\,\\frac{dW}{dA}+F^\\dagger\\left(\\frac{dW}{dA}\\right)^{\\!\\!\\dagger}=-\\left|\\frac{dW}{dA}\\right|^2\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nPlugging this result back into \\eq{eq:LWZF},\nwe recover the general form of the Wess-Zumino Lagrangian given by \\eq{eq:LWZoriginal}.\n\nThe Lagrangian including the auxiliary fields given by \\eq{eq:LWZF} is\nalso invariant under SUSY translations. The appropriately modified\nSUSY transformation laws are now given by\n\\begin{align}\n\\delta_\\xi A &= \\sqrt{2}\\,\\xi \\psi\\,,\\label{offshell1}\n\\\\\n\\delta_\\xi\\psi_\\alpha\n&=\n- i\\sqrt{2} (\\sigma^\\mu \\xi^\\dagger)_\\alpha\\> \\partial_\\mu A+\\sqrt{2}\\,\\xi_\\alpha F\\,,\\label{offshell2}\n\\\\\n\\delta_{\\xi} F&=-i\\sqrt{2}\\,\\xi^\\dagger\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\psi\\,.\\label{offshell3}\n\\end{align}\nBy hermitian conjugation, one also obtains\n\\begin{align}\n\\delta_\\xi A^\\dagger &= \\sqrt{2}\\,\\xi^\\dagger \\psi^\\dagger\\,,\n \\\\\n\\delta_\\xi\\psi^\\dagger_{\\dot{\\alpha}}\n&=\n i \\sqrt{2}(\\xi\\sigma^\\mu)_{\\dot{\\alpha}}\\> \\partial_\\mu A^\\dagger+\\sqrt{2}\\,\\xi^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}F^\\dagger\\,,\n \\\\\n\\delta_{\\xi} F^\\dagger&=i\\sqrt{2}(\\partial_\\mu\\psi^\\dagger)\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\xi\\,.\n \\end{align}\n Applying these transformation laws to \\eq{eq:LWZF}, one obtains a result of the form\n \\begin{align}\n \\delta_{\\xi}\\mathscr{L}=\\partial_\\mu K^{\\prime\\,\\mu}\\,,\n \\label{eq:Kpmu}\n \\end{align}\nwhere the explicit form for $K^{\\prime\\,\\mu}$ is to be determined in\nProblem~\\ref{pr:kprime}. Moreover, as you will verify in Problem \\ref{pr:xieta},\n \\begin{align}\n \\bigl[\\delta_{\\eta}\\,,\\,\\delta_{\\xi}\\bigr]\\Phi(x)=-2i(\\xi\\sigma^\\mu\\eta^\\dagger-\\eta^\\dagger\\sigma^\\mu\\xi^\\dagger)\\partial_\\mu \\Phi(x)\\,,\n \\end{align}\n for $\\Phi=A$, $\\psi$ and $F$ \\textit{without} the need to impose the classical field equations.\nThus, the Wess-Zumino Lagrangian with auxiliary fields included as in\n\\eq{eq:LWZF} is invariant under SUSY translations, and the SUSY algebra is realized \\textit{off-shell}, \\textit{i.e.}, without requiring that the fields satisfy their classical field equations.\n\nThe following two observations will be particularly useful as we move\nforward. First, note that the mass dimensions of the fields are given\nby $[A]=1$, $[\\psi]=\\tfrac{3}{2}$ and $[F]=2$, which is consistent with\nthe requirement that $[\\mathscr{L}]=4$ (since the action is\ndimensionless in units of $\\hbar=1$). Then,\n\\eqst{offshell1}{offshell3} are dimensionally consistent if $[\\xi]=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$.\n Second, note that $\\delta_{\\xi} F$ given in \\eq{offshell3} is a total\n derivative. Indeed, $\\delta_{\\xi} F$ is a total derivative as a consequence of dimensional analysis and the linearity of the SUSY transformation laws. This implies that $\\delta_{\\xi} F$ must involve $\\partial_\\mu$, since $[\\partial_\\mu]=1$.\nAn important consequence of this observation is that\n$\\int \\!d^4x\\, F$ is invariant under SUSY transformations. \n \n \n\\subsection{Counting bosonic and fermionic degrees of freedom}\nIt is instructive to count both the on-shell and off-shell bosonic and\nfermionic degrees of freedom in the Wess-Zumino model, which\nis a theory of a complex scalar and a\ntwo-component fermion. \n\nA complex scalar possesses two real\ndegrees of freedom. Note that applying the classical field equations\n(in this case the inhomogeneous Klein-Gordon equation) does not affect\nthe number of scalar\ndegrees of freedom, but only the spacetime dependence of the scalar\nfield. The two-component fermion $\\psi_\\alpha$ possesses two complex degrees of\nfreedom, which yields four real degrees of\nfreedom.\\footnote{Equivalently, we can count $\\psi$ and $\\psi^\\dagger$ as four independent degrees of freedom.} \nApplying the classical field equations,\n\\begin{equation} \\label{diraceq}\ni\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\psi=\\left(\\frac{d^2 W}{dA^2}\\right)^{\\!\\!\\dagger}\\psi^\\dagger\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhich relate $\\psi$ and $\\psi^\\dagger$, thereby eliminating two of the\nfour degrees of freedom.\\footnote{If $d^2 W\/dA^2=0$, then\n $i\\overline{\\sigma}^\\mu\\partial_\\mu\\psi=0$ yields a relation between \n $\\psi_1$ and $\\psi_2$.}\nBy taking the derivative of \\eq{diraceq}, one can eliminate\n$\\psi^\\dagger$ using the hermitian conjugate of \\eq{diraceq}.\nThe resulting equation for $\\psi$ is the inhomogeneous Klein-Gordon\nequation, which does not further affect the number of\nfermionic degrees of freedom.\nThus, the Wess-Zumino model possesses two on-shell bosonic and two fermionic\ndegrees of freedom. \n\nThe counting of the off-shell degrees of freedom can be performed by examining the\nLagrangian [\\eq{eq:LWZF}] expressed in terms of the propagating and\nauxiliary fields. In this case, we count two real degrees of freedom for\nthe complex scalar, four real degrees of freedom for the two-component\nfermion and two real degrees of freedom for the complex auxiliary\nfield~$F$. That is, the Wess-Zumino model possesses four bosonic and four fermionic\noff-shell degrees of freedom. \n\nThus, the number of bosonic and fermionic degrees of freedom match in both on-shell and off-shell counting.\n\n\\subsection{Lessons from the Wess-Zumino Model}\n\nIn our study of the Wess-Zumino model, we provided a Lagrangian that\nincorporated the fields of a known supermultiplet. However, it was\nrather mysterious how this Lagrangian was obtained. It was\neven more mysterious how we came up with the correct SUSY\ntransformation laws for the various fields. \nMoreover, it was quite laborious to verify that the proposed SUSY\ntransformation laws satisfy the SUSY algebra and the action is \ninvariant under super-Poincar\\'e transformations.\n\nWe also learned that in order for the SUSY transformation laws to\nrespect the SUSY algebra off-shell, one must introduce additional\nauxiliary fields. One additional benefit of doing so is that the \ncorresponding SUSY transformation laws are now linear in all the fields. \nFor this reason, we introduced the auxiliary field $F$, which can be\nused to write down the SUSY translation-invariant quantity $\\int\\! d^4\nx \\, F(x)$. This observation actually provides an important clue for how to\nconstruct a SUSY Lagrangian.\n\nAs we shall demonstrate in Section~\\ref{sec:superspace}, it is possible to develop a formalism in which, starting with\na known supermultiplet, one can trivially construct a Lagrangian that\nis invariant under super-Poincar\\'e transformations. Moreover, this\nformalism will provide explicit forms for the SUSY transformation\nlaws that automatically respect the SUSY algebra.\n\n\n\n\\subsection{\\mbox{Appendix: Constructing the states of a supermultiplet}}\n\\label{App}\n\nIn this subsection, we provide further details on the construction of\nthe states of the massive and massless supermultiplets, which yields\nthe results presented in Tables~\\ref{massivesuperplet} and\n\\ref{masslesssuperplet}.\n\n\\subsubsection{States of a massive supermultiplet of superspin $j$}\n \n\nTo construct the states of the massive supermultiplet,\nwe note that in the rest frame, the anticommutators given in \\eqs{susyalg4}{susyalg5}\nsimplify to\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n\\{Q_1\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_1\\}&=&\\{Q_2\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_2\\}=2m\\,,\\label{restframeQQ}\\\\\n\\{Q_1\\,,\\,Q_1\\}&=&\\{Q_2\\,,\\,Q_2\\}=\\{Q_1\\,,\\,Q_2\\}=0\\,,\\label{restframeanti} \\\\\n \\{Q^\\dagger_1\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_1\\}&=&\\{Q^\\dagger_2\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_2\\}=\\{Q^\\dagger_1\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_2\\}=0\\,.\n \\end{Eqnarray}\n All states in a supermultiplet with superspin $j$ are simultaneous eigenstates of $P^2$,\n $\\mathcal{J}^i \\mathcal{J}^i$ and $\\mathcal{J}^3$ with eigenvalues $m^2$, $j(j+1)$ and\n $j_3$, respectively, where the possible values of $j_3$\n are $-j,-j+1,\\ldots,j-1,j$. \n\nFor a fixed value of the superspin $j$,\n there exists a distinguished state of the supermultiplet that is a \n simultaneous eigenstate of $P^2$, $\\mathcal{J}^i\\mathcal{J}^i$ and $\\mathcal{J}^3$,\n denoted by $\\ket{\\Omega}$, which satisfies\\footnote{Recall that if $\\ket{s,m_s}$ are eigenstates\n of $\\boldsymbol{\\vec S}\\llsup{\\,2}$ and $S^3$ with corresponding eigenvalues $s(s+1)$ and $m_s$\n respectively, then\n $$\n S_{\\pm}\\ket{s,m_s}=\\sqrt{(s\\mp m_s)(s\\pm m_s+1)}\\ket{s,m_s\\pm 1}\\,.\n $$\n }\n \\begin{equation} \\label{Omegastate}\n Q_\\beta\\ket{\\Omega}=0\\,,\\qquad\\quad S_+\\ket{\\Omega}=0\\,,\n \\end{equation}\n where $S_{\\pm}\\equiv S^1\\pm iS^2$.\n To verify that a state $\\ket{\\Omega}$ exists that is annihilated by $Q_\\beta$,\nlet us assume the contrary. Suppose that\n a simultaneous eigenstate of $P^2$, $\\mathcal{J}^i\\mathcal{J}^i$ and $\\mathcal{J}^3$,\n denoted by $\\ket{\\Psi}$, is not annihilated by $Q_\\beta$. In the rest frame, \\eq{BQQ}\n yields\n \\begin{equation} \\label{JQQ}\n [\\mathcal{J}^i\\,,\\,Q_\\beta]=[\\mathcal{J}^i\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}]=0\\,,\n \\end{equation}\n so it follows that $Q_\\beta\\ket{\\Psi}$ is also a simultaneous eigenstate of $P^2$, $\\mathcal{J}^i\\mathcal{J}^i$\n and $\\mathcal{J}^3$. By assumption, $Q_\\beta\\ket{\\Psi}$ is not annihilated by $Q_\\alpha$, so we\n conclude that $Q_\\alpha Q_\\beta\\ket{\\Psi}$ is also a simultaneous eigenstate of $P^2$, $\\mathcal{J}^i\\mathcal{J}^i$\n and $\\mathcal{J}^3$. But we now arrive at a contradiction, since \\eq{restframeanti} yields\n \\begin{equation}\n Q_\\gamma\\left(Q_\\alpha Q_\\beta\\ket{\\Psi}\\right)=0\\,.\n \\end{equation}\n Consequently, there must be at least one state of the supermultiplet that satisfies\n$Q_\\beta\\ket{\\Omega}=0$. Using \\eqs{caljdef}{Omegastate}, it follows that\n\\begin{equation}\n \\mathcal{J}^i\\ket{\\Omega}=S^i\\ket{\\Omega}\\,.\n \\end{equation}\n If $S_+\\ket{\\Omega}=0$, then it follows that $\\ket{\\Omega}$ is also\n a simultaneous eigenstate of $\\boldsymbol{\\vec{S}}\\llsup{\\,2}$ and $S^3$ with corresponding eigenvalues\n $j(j+1)$ and $j$. Moreover, this state must be unique under the assumption that the\n superspin $j$ supermultiplet is an \\textit{irreducible} representation of the $N=1$ supersymmetry\n algebra.\n\n Note that \\eq{wQQ} when evaluated in the rest frame yields:\n \\begin{equation} \\label{siQcomm}\n [S^i\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha]=i\\sigma^{i0}{}_\\alpha{}^\\beta Q_\\beta\\,,\\qquad\\quad\n [S^i\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}]=i\\overline{\\sigma}^{i0\\dot\\beta}{}_{\\dot\\alpha}Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\,.\n \\end{equation}\nHence, one can define additional states of the supermultiplet,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}\\equiv (S_-)^{j-j_3}\\ket{\\Omega}\\,,\\qquad\\quad\\text{for}~~j_3=-j,-j+1,\\ldots,j-1,j\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nall of which satisfy\n\\begin{equation} \\label{Omegastatej3}\nQ_\\alpha\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}=0\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nas a result of \\eq{siQcomm}. As before, $\\mathcal{J}^i\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}=S^i\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}$ as\na consequence of \\eqs{caljdef}{Omegastatej3}. It follows that\n$\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}$ is also a simultaneous eigenstate of $\\boldsymbol{\\vec{S}}\\llsup{\\,2}$ and $S^3$ with corresponding eigenvalues\n $j(j+1)$ and~$j_3$. That is,\n \\begin{equation} \\label{Omegajj3}\n \\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}=\\ket{j,j_3}\\,,\n \\end{equation}\n where the rest-frame spin and its projection along the $z$-axis are explicitly indicated.\n\nStarting from $\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}=\\ket{j,j_3}$, one can now construct the remaining states of the massive supermultiplet\nby considering the series of states for each possible value of $j_3$,\n $\n \\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}\\,,\\, Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}\\,,\\, Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}\\,,\\,\\ldots\\,.\n $\nThis series of states terminates due to \\eq{restframeanti} and only four independent states survive (for a given fixed value of $j_3$),\n\\begin{equation} \\label{mstatesj}\n\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}\\,,\\quad Q^\\dagger_1\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}\\,,\\quad Q^\\dagger_2\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}\\,,\\quad\n Q^\\dagger_1Q^\\dagger_2\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}\\,.\n \\end{equation}\n\nAll the states of \\eq{mstatesj} are mass-degenerate (with mass $m\\neq 0$). The spins of\nthese states can be determined by applying the operators $\\boldsymbol{\\vec S}\\llsup{\\,2}$ and $S^3$.\nBy virtue of \\eq{Omegajj3}, we already know that $\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}$ is a spin-$j$ state\nwith $S^3$-eigenvalue $j_3$. Next, one can use \\eq{siQcomm} to derive:\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n[S^i\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}]&=&iQ^\\dagger_{\\dot\\gamma}\\left[\\overline{\\sigma}^{i0\\dot\\gamma}{}_{\\dot\\alpha}\nQ^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}-\\overline{\\sigma}^{i0\\dot\\gamma}{}_{\\dot\\beta}Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\right]\\,,\\\\\n\\left[\\boldsymbol{\\vec S}\\llsup{\\,2}\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\right]&=&2iQ^\\dagger_{\\dot\\gamma}\\left[\n\\overline{\\sigma}^{i0\\dot\\gamma}{}_{\\dot\\alpha} Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\n-\\overline{\\sigma}^{i0\\dot\\gamma}{}_{\\dot\\beta} Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\right]S^i\\,.\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nIt immediately follows that:\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\n[S^i\\,,\\,Q_1^\\dagger Q_2^\\dagger]&=&iQ_1^\\dagger Q_2^\\dagger\\Tr \\sigma^{i0}=0\\,,\\label{SiQ1Q2}\\\\\n\\left[\\boldsymbol{\\vec S}\\llsup{\\,2}\\,,\\,Q_1^\\dagger Q_2^\\dagger\\right]&=&2iQ_1^\\dagger Q_2^\\dagger S^i\\Tr \\sigma^{i0}=0\\,.\n\\label{S2Q1Q2}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nApplying \\eqs{SiQ1Q2}{S2Q1Q2} to the state $\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}$, it follows that $Q_1^\\dagger Q_2^\\dagger\n\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}$ is also a spin-$j$ state with $S^3$-eigenvalue $j_3$.\nThis result is easily understood. Noting that we can write\n\\begin{equation}\nQ_1^\\dagger Q_2^\\dagger=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\epsilon^{\\dot\\alpha\\dot\\beta}Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nit follows that $Q_1^\\dagger Q_2^\\dagger$ is a \\textit{scalar} operator. This is consistent with the\nfact that the antisymmetric part of the tensor product of two SU(2) spinor representations is an SU(2) singlet.\nThus, $Q_1^\\dagger Q_2^\\dagger\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}$ and $\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}$ possess the same eigenvalues\nwith respect to $\\boldsymbol{\\vec S}\\llsup{\\,2}$ and $S^3$.\n\nTo determine the properties of $Q_1^\\dagger\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}$ and $Q_2^\\dagger\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}$,\nwe first note that $Q_\\alpha$ is a spinor operator \nthat imparts spin-$\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ to any state it acts on. \nMoreover, \\eq{siQcomm} yields:\n\\begin{equation} \\label{Qdaghalf}\n\\hspace{-0.2in}\nS^3 Q_1^\\dagger\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}=(j_3+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})Q_1^\\dagger\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}\\,,\n\\quad\nS^3 Q_2^\\dagger\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}=(j_3-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})Q_2^\\dagger\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}.\n\\end{equation}\nHence, one can employ the standard results from the theory of angular momentum addition in quantum mechanics,\nwhich relates the tensor product basis to the total angular momentum basis. In particular,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\ket{j\\,,\\,m}=\\sum_{m_1,m_2}\\ket{j_1\\,,\\,m_1}\\otimes\\ket{j_2\\,,\\,m_2}\\vev{j_1\\,\\, j_2\\,;\\, m_1\\,\\, m_2\\,|\\,j\\,\\, m}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\vev{j_1\\,\\, j_2\\,;\\, m_1\\,\\, m_2\\,|\\,j\\,\\, m}$ are the\nClebsch-Gordon (C-G) coefficients. We employ the Condon-Shortly\nphase conventions in which the C-G coefficients are real and symmetric. In the present application,\nwe require the following two C-G coefficients (taking the upper and lower\nsigns, respectively),\n\\begin{align}\n\\ket{\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\,,\\, \\pm\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}}\\otimes\\ket{j\\,,\\,\n m\\mp\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}}=&\\left(\\frac{j+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\pm\n m}{2j+1}\\right)^{1\/2}\\!\\ket{j+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\,,\\, m}\\nonumber \\\\\n&\\mp\\left(\\frac{j+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\mp m}{2j+1}\\right)^{1\/2}\\!\\ket{j-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\,,\\, m}, \n\\end{align}\nEqs.~(\\ref{Omegajj3}), (\\ref{Qdaghalf}), (\\ref{SiQ1Q2}) and\n(\\ref{S2Q1Q2}) imply that\n\\begin{align}\n& \\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}=\\ket{j\\,,\\,j_3}\\,, \\label{massiveplet1}\\\\\n& Q_1^\\dagger \\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}=\\left(\\frac{j+j_3+1}{2j+1}\\right)^{1\/2}\\ket{j+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\,,\\,j_3+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}}\n-\\left(\\frac{j-j_3}{2j+1}\\right)^{1\/2}\\ket{j-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\,,\\,j_3+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}}\\,, \\label{massiveplet2} \\\\\n& Q_2^\\dagger \\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}=\\left(\\frac{j-j_3+1}{2j+1}\\right)^{1\/2}\\ket{j+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\,,\\,j_3-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}}\n+\\left(\\frac{j+j_3}{2j+1}\\right)^{1\/2}\\ket{j-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}\\,,\\,j_3-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}}\\, , \\label{massiveplet3}\\\\\n& Q_1^\\dagger Q_2^\\dagger \\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}=\\ket{j\\,,\\,j_3}\\,.\\label{massiveplet4}\n\\end{align}\nIn particular, if $j_3\\neq j$ then \\eqs{massiveplet2}{massiveplet3} imply that $Q_1^\\dagger \\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}$\nand $Q_2^\\dagger \\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}$ are orthogonal linear combinations of spin-($j\\pm\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$) states\n(although these states are eigenstates of $S^3$ as shown in \\eq{Qdaghalf}). If\n$j_3=\\pm j$ then $Q_1^\\dagger \\ket{\\Omega(j)}$ and $Q_2^\\dagger \\ket{\\Omega(-j)}$\nare states of spin-($j+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$), since both these states\nare eigenstates of $\\boldsymbol{\\vec S}\\llsup{\\,2}$ and $S^3$ with eigenvalues $(j+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})(j+\\tfrac{3}{2})$\nand $\\pm(j+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$, respectively.\n\n\nNote that since $[P^2,Q_\\alpha]=[P^2,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}]=0$, it follows that \nall the states of the supermultiplet,\n$\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}\\,,\\,Q^{\\dagger\\,1}\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}\\,,\\,Q^{\\dagger\\,2}\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}\\,,\\,Q^{\\dagger\\,1}\nQ^{\\dagger\\,2}\\ket{\\Omega(j_3)}$, are mass-degenerate, with common\nmass $m$.\nThe states of an $N=1$ massive supermultiplet of superspin $j$ are exhibited\nin Table~\\ref{massivesuperplet}.\n\nIn summary, there are $4(2j+1)$ mass-degenerate states in a massive\nsupermultiplet of superspin $j$, which are explicitly given by\n\\eqst{massiveplet1}{massiveplet4}, for $j_3=-j,-j+1,\\ldots,j-1,j$. In\ngeneral, a massive supermultiplet of superspin $j$ is made up of\n$2(2j+1)$ states of spin $j$, $2j+2$ states of spin $(j+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$ and\n$2j$ states of spin ($j-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$). The extra two states for the case of\nspin-$(2j+1)$ arise when $j_3=\\pm j$, in which cases $Q_1^\\dagger\n\\ket{\\Omega(j)}$ and $Q_2^\\dagger \\ket{\\Omega(-j)}$ are pure states of\nspin $(j+\\ifmath{\\tfrac12})$ as previously noted. Note that the number of\nfermionic and bosonic degrees of freedom of the massive supermultiplet\ncoincide and is equal to $2(2j+1)$. These results are summarized in Table~\\ref{massivesuperplet}.\n\n\n\\subsubsection{States of a massless supermultiplet of superhelicity $\\kappa$}\nTo construct the states of an irreducible massless supermultiplet, we\nchoose the standard reference frame, $P^\\mu=P^0(1\\,;\\,0\\,,\\,0\\,,\\,1)$, \nfor lightlike four-vectors.\nIn this reference frame, the anticommutators given in \\eqs{susyalg4}{susyalg5}\nsimplify to those exhibited in \\eqst{qqmassless1}{qqmassless3}. All the\nstates in the massless supermultiplet are\nsimultaneous eigenstates of $P^2$ and the superhelicity operator $\\mathcal{K}$, with eigenvalues\n$m^2$ and $\\kappa$, respectively, where the possible values of\n$\\kappa=0,\\pm\\ifmath{\\tfrac12},\\pm 1,\\pm\\tfrac32,\\ldots$.\n\nFor a fixed value of the superhelicity $\\kappa$, there exists a distinct state of the supermultiplet,\n denoted by $\\ket{\\Omega}$, that satisfies:\n \\begin{equation} \\label{Omegastate0}\n Q_\\beta\\ket{\\Omega}=0\\,,\\qquad\\quad \\mathcal{K}\\ket{\\Omega}=\\kappa\\ket{\\Omega}\\,.\n \\end{equation}\nTo verify that a state $\\ket{\\Omega}$ exists that is annihilated by $Q_\\beta$,\nlet us assume the contrary. \nSuppose that a state of\n the massless supermultiplet, denoted by $\\ket{\\Psi}$ exists that is not annihilated by\n$Q_\\beta$. Due to \\eq{KQQ}, it follow that $Q_\\beta\\ket{\\Psi}$ must also be a state of\nthe massless supermultiplet. Arguing as we did below \\eq{Omegastate}, we again arrive at a contradiction.\nConsequently, there must be at least one state of the supermultiplet that satisfies\n$Q_\\beta\\ket{\\Omega}=0$. Moreover, a state that satisfies\n\\eq{Omegastate0} must be unique under the assumption that the\n massless supermultiplet with superhelicity $\\kappa$ is an \\textit{irreducible} representation of the $N=1$ SUSY\n algebra.\n\nThe states of the massless supermultiplet are obtained by considering the series,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\ket{\\Omega}\\,,\\, Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\ket{\\Omega}\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta} Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\ket{\\Omega}\\,.\n\\end{equation}\nHowever, $Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta} Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\ket{\\Omega}=0$ as a result of\n\\eq{QQQQ0}, and $P^\\lambda Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}\\overline{\\sigma}_\\lambda^{\\dot\\beta\\tau}\\ket{\\Omega}=0$\nas a consequence of \\eq{zeroops}. Thus, in contrast to the massive\nsupermultiplet, the massless supermultiplet contains only two states.\nThese two states are eigenvalues of the helicity operator $h$.\nTo determine the corresponding helicities, we shall employ\nthe standard reference frame where $P^\\mu=P^0(1\\,;\\,0\\,,\\,0\\,,\\,1)$.\nSince \\eq{zeroops} yields $Q_1=Q^\\dagger_1=0$, it follows that the massless $N=1$ supermultiplet consists of the\ntwo states, $\\ket{\\Omega}$ and $Q^\\dagger_2\\ket{\\Omega}$. Using \\eqs{mathcalkdef}{Omegastate0},\nthe helicities of these two states can be determined,\n\\begin{Eqnarray}\nh\\ket{\\Omega}&=&\\left[\\mathcal{K}-\\frac{1}{8P^0}\\left(Q_1^\\dagger Q_1+Q_2^\\dagger Q_2\\right)\\right]\\ket{\\Omega}\n=\\kappa\\ket{\\Omega}\\,,\\label{helicityOmega}\\\\[8pt]\nhQ^\\dagger_2\\ket{\\Omega}&=&\\left[\\mathcal{K}-\\frac{1}{8P^0}\\left(Q_1^\\dagger Q_1+Q_2^\\dagger Q_2\\right)\\right]Q^\\dagger_2\\ket{\\Omega} \\nonumber \\\\\n&=& \\left[\\kappa Q_2^\\dagger-\\frac{1}{8P^0} Q_2^\\dagger\\left(2P_\\mu\\sigma^\\mu_{22}-Q_2^\\dagger Q_2\\right) \\right. \\nonumber \\\\\n&&\\qquad\\quad\n-\\left.\\!\\!\\frac{1}{8P^0} Q_1^\\dagger\\left(2P_\\mu\\sigma^\\mu_{12}-Q_2^\\dagger Q_1\\right)\\right]\\ket{\\Omega} \\nonumber \\\\\n&=& \\left[\\kappa-\\tfrac{1}{4}(\\sigma^0_{22}-\\sigma^3_{22})\\right]Q^\\dagger_2\\ket{\\Omega}\n=(\\kappa-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}) Q^\\dagger_2\\ket{\\Omega}\\,.\\label{helicityQomega}\n\\end{Eqnarray}\nIndeed, the superhelicity $\\kappa$ is the maximal helicity of the massless $N=1$ supermultiplet.\nThus, an irreducible $N=1$ massless supermultiplet with superhelicity $\\kappa$ consists of two massless\nstates with helicity $\\kappa$ and $\\kappa-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$, respectively.\nThese results are summarized in Table~\\ref{masslesssuperplet}.\n\n\n\\subsection{Problems}\n\n\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:jhalf}\nShow that the massive $j=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ supermultiplet corresponds to a real vector field, a real scalar field and a Dirac fermion field.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\nDerive the following three commutation relations:\n\\begin{equation}\n[B^\\mu\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha]=-\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} P^\\mu Q_\\alpha\\,,\\qquad\\qquad\n[B^\\mu\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}]=\\ifmath{\\tfrac12} P^\\mu\nQ^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}\\,,\n\\end{equation}\n\\begin{equation}\n[B^\\mu\\,,\\,B^\\nu]=i\\epsilon^{\\mu\\nu\\rho\\lambda}B_\\rho P_\\lambda\\,,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $B^\\mu$ is defined in \\eq{bmudef}.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:Lcomms}\nDerive the following twp commutation relations,\n\\begin{align} \n[L^\\mu\\,,\\,Q_\\alpha]=-\\tfrac{1}{4}(\\sigma^\\mu\\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu)_\\alpha{}^\\beta Q_\\beta P_\\nu\\,,\\qquad\\quad\n[L^\\mu\\,,\\,Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\alpha}]=\\tfrac{1}{4}(\\overline{\\sigma}^\\nu\\sigma^\\mu)^{\\dot\\beta}{}_{\\dot\\alpha}\n Q^\\dagger_{\\dot\\beta}P_\\nu\\,,\n\\end{align}\nwhere $L^\\mu$ is defined in \\eq{Lmudef}.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:spin2}\nShow that a massless supermultiplet with $\\kappa=2$ and \nits CPT-conjugates corresponds to\na massless spin-$\\tfrac{3}{2}$ and a massless spin 2 particle, which\nis realized in supergravity by the\ngravitino and the graviton. \n\\end{problem}\n\n \\begin{problem}\nObtain the explicit form for $K^\\mu$ in \\eq{eq:Kmu}.\n\\end{problem}\n\\clearpage\n\n \\begin{problem}\n \\label{pr:R}\nObtain an explicit expression for $R(x)$ in \\eq{eq:Remainder}, and\nshow that it vanishes after imposing the classical field equations for\n$\\psi_\\alpha(x)$. Note that this computation is non-trivial and\nrequires a judicious application of \nFierz identities for two-component fermions (which can be found, e.g.,\nin Appendix B of Ref.~\\cite{Dreiner:2008tw}).\n\\end{problem}\n\n %\n\\begin{problem}\nObtain an explicit expression for $J^\\mu_\\alpha$ in terms of the fields $A$ and $\\psi$ in the Wess-Zumino model.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\n\\begin{problem}\nVerify, for the Wess-Zumino model, \nthat the Noether supercharges defined by \\eq{QJ} satisfy the SUSY algebra [cf.~\\eq{QandCCR}].\n\\end{problem}\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:kprime}\nObtain the explicit form for $K^{\\prime\\,\\mu}$ in \\eq{eq:Kpmu}.\n\\end{problem}\n\n\n\n\\begin{problem}\n\\label{pr:xieta}\nStarting from \\eqst{offshell1}{offshell3}, verify that\n \\begin{align*}\n \\bigl[\\delta_{\\eta}\\,,\\,\\delta_{\\xi}\\bigr]\\Phi(x)=-2i(\\xi\\sigma^\\mu\\eta^\\dagger-\\eta^\\dagger\\sigma^\\mu\\xi^\\dagger)\\partial_\\mu \\Phi(x)\\,,\n \\end{align*}\n for $\\Phi=A$, $\\psi$ and $F$ without the need to impose the classical field equations.\n \\end{problem}\n\n\n\\chapter*{Supersymmetric Theory and Models\n \\vspace{-24pt}\n\\else\n \\chapter[Supersymmetric Theory and Models]{Supersymmetric Theory and Models}\n\\fi\n\n\n\n\\author[]{Howard E.~Haber\\textsuperscript{1} and Laurel Stephenson Haskins\\textsuperscript{1,2}\n}\n\n\\address{\n\\textsuperscript{1}Santa Cruz Institute for Particle Physics,\\\\\nUniversity of California, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA\\\\\n\\vspace{6pt}\n\\textsuperscript{2}Racah Institute of Physics,\\\\\nHebrew University, Jerusalem 91904, Israel \n}\n\n\\begin{abstract}\nIn these introductory lectures, we review the theoretical tools used in constructing supersymmetric field theories and their application to physical models. \nWe first introduce the technology of two-component spinors, which is convenient for describing spin-$\\ifmath{\\tfrac12}$ fermions. After motivating why a theory of nature may be supersymmetric at the TeV energy scale, we show how supersymmetry (SUSY) arises as an extension of the Poincar\\'e algebra of spacetime symmetries. We then obtain \nthe representations of the SUSY algebra and discuss its simplest realization in the Wess-Zumino model. \nIn order to have a systematic approach for obtaining supersymmetric Lagrangians, we \nintroduce the formalism of superspace and superfields and recover the Wess-Zumino Lagrangian. These methods are then extended to encompass supersymmetric abelian and non-abelian gauge theories coupled to supermatter.\nSince supersymmetry is not an exact symmetry of nature, it must ultimately be broken. We discuss several mechanisms of SUSY-breaking (both spontaneous and explicit) and briefly survey various proposals for realizing SUSY-breaking in nature.\nFinally, we construct the\nthe Minimal Supersymmetric extension of the Standard Model (MSSM), and \nconsider the implications for the future of SUSY in particle physics.\n\\end{abstract}\n\\body\n\n\\tableofcontents\n\n\\section{Introduction to the TASI-2016 Supersymmetry Lectures}\n\\label{Intro}\nThese lectures were first presented at the 2016 Theoretical Advanced Study Institute (TASI-2016) in Boulder, CO.\nFour ninety-minute lectures were given, with the aim of presenting the basic theoretical techniques of supersymmetry\nneeded for the construction of a supersymmetric extension of the Standard Model of particle physics. \nThe lectures were pitched at an elementary level, assuming that\nthe students were well versed in quantum field theory, gauge theory and the Standard Model, but with no assumed prior knowledge \nof supersymmetry. Nevertheless, some aspects of these lectures may also be useful to the reader with some prior \nknowledge of supersymmetry.\n\nIt is possible to introduce the technology of supersymmetry theory using four-component spinor notation that is familiar to all students of quantum field theory. However, it is our view that employing two-component spinor notation greatly simplifies the presentation of the theoretical structure of supersymmetry in 3$+$1 spacetime dimensions.\nThus, in Section~\\ref{sec:spinhalf}, we introduce the two-component spinor notation in some detail and discuss how it is related to the better known four-component spinor notation.\nThis material is based heavily on a comprehensive review of Dreiner, Haber and Martin that is presented in Ref.\\cite{Dreiner:2008tw}. In this review, it is shown that practical calculations in quantum field theory can be carried out entirely within the framework of the two-component spinor notation, which include the development of Feynman rules for two-component spinors. However, at the end of Section 1, we are slightly less ambitious and revert to four-component fermion notation for the purpose of computing scattering and decay processes. In particular, we provide a translation between two and four-component spinor notation, and develop four-component spinor Feynman rules that treat both Dirac and Majorana fermions on the same footing.\n\nIn Section~\\ref{sec:motivation}, we present the motivation for TeV-scale supersymmetry. Namely, why is it that we feel compelled to introduce a supersymmetric extension of the Standard Model, despite the great success of the Standard Model in describing collider data and the absence of significant evidence for new physics beyond the Standard Model.\nWith this motivation in mind, we are ready to explore the theoretical aspects of supersymmetry.\n\nSince this is not a review article, we do not feel compelled to present a comprehensive list of references. Nevertheless, it is instructive to assemble a list of books and lecture notes on supersymmetry, many of which we have found quite useful in preparing these lectures. Thus, we draw your attention to the following books listed in Refs.\\cite{WessBagger,Gates,Srivastava,Piguet,Freund,MullerKirsten,West,Lopuszanski,Bailin,Buchbinder,Soni,Galperin,Polonsky,Mohapatra,Drees,Baer,Aitchison,Binetruy,Terning,MullerKirsten2,Labelle,Shifman,sugra1,weinberg3,MDine,Manoukian,sugra2,Raby} and the following reviews and lecture notes listed in Ref.\\cite{Taylor:1983su,Nilles:1983ge,Haber:1984rc,Sohnius:1985qm,Lahanas:1986uc,Haber:1993wf,Derendinger,Lykken,Martin:1997ns,Giudice:1998bp,bilalsusy,Petrov:2001hz,FigueroaO'Farrill:2001tr,Chung:2003fi,Luty:2005sn,RamseyMusolf:2006vr,Shirman:2009mt,GKane,susy,Bertolini:2013via}. The reader is warned that conventions vary widely among these references. Apart from the two possible choices for the spacetime metric (either the mostly minus metric used in these lectures or the mostly plus metric), there are many different choices in the definition of a variety of quantities, often involving different choices of signs. Of these many conventions, we believe that the ones employed in these lecture notes are probably closest to those that appear in Ref.\\cite{Sohnius:1985qm}.\\footnote{We also note that although Ref.\\cite{Martin:1997ns} employs the mostly plus metric, one can obtain a version of Martin's Supersymmetry Primer in the mostly minus metric by changing one line in the LaTeX source code. This alternative version of the Primer closely matches the conventions employed in these lectures.}\n\nIn Section~\\ref{sec:SUSYalgebra}, we show how the algebra of the Poincar\\'e group can be extended to obtain the supersymmetry (SUSY) algebra. The representations of the $N=1$ SUSY\nalgebra are elucidated, and the Wess-Zumino model is presented as the simplest realization of a supersymmetric field theory. In Section~\\ref{sec:superspace}, we take some of the mystery out of constructing a SUSY Lagrangian by introducing the concepts of superspace and superfields. This formalism allows one to construct supersymmetric field theories without any guesswork. In Section~\\ref{sec:gaugetheories}, the formalism of supersymmetric gauge theories is developed. In Section~\\ref{SSB}, we examine supersymmetry breaking, which is necessary for accommodating the observation that the elementary particles observed today are not each accompanied by an equal-mass superpartner.\nFinally, in Section~\\ref{sec:MSSM}, we construct the Minimal Supersymmetric extension of the Standard Model (MSSM). \nWe end these lectures in Section~\\ref{sec:future} with a brief discussion of what lies ahead for supersymmetry.\n\n\n\n\\input{Sections\/spin_half_fermions}\n\\input{Sections\/SUSYMotivations}\n\\input{Sections\/SUSY_first_steps}\n\\input{Sections\/Superspace_superfields}\n\\input{Sections\/SUSY_gauge_theories}\n\\input{Sections\/SUSY_breaking}\n\\input{Sections\/SUSYic_extension}\n\\input{Sections\/LHC}\n\n\n\n\n\\section*{Acknowledgments}\nWe would like to thank Zackaria Chacko, Andrew Cohen, Michael Dine, Herbi Dreiner, Stephen Martin, Raman Sundrum, and John Terning for many enlightening discussions.\nH.E.H. is grateful to Rouven Essig and Ian Low for their invitation to present these lectures at TASI 2016, and their patience in waiting for these lecture notes to be completed. This work is supported in part by the U.S. Department of Energy grant number DE-SC0010107.\nL.S.H. is also supported by the Israel\nScience Foundation under grant no.~1112\/17.\n\n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
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+{"text":"\\section{Introduction}\n\\IEEEPARstart{T}{he} neurons in our brain have a capacity to process a large amount of high dimensional data from various sensory inputs while still focusing on the most relevant components for decision making \\cite{pillow2006dimensionality} \\cite{cunningham2014dimensionality}. This implies that the biological neural networks have a capacity to perform dimensionality reduction to facilitate decision making. In the field of machine learning, artificial neural networks also require a similar capability because of the availability of massive amounts of high dimensional data being generated everyday through various sources for digital information. Thus it becomes imperative to derive an efficient method for dimensionality reduction to facilitate tasks like classification, feature learning, storage, etc. Deep generative networks such as Autoencoders have been shown to perform better than many commonly used statistical techniques such as PCA (principal component analysis), ICA (Independent Component Analysis) for encoding and decoding of high dimensional data \\cite{hinton1994autoencoders}. These networks are traditionally trained using gradient descent based on back-propagation. However it is observed that for deep networks, gradient descent doesn't converge and gets stuck in a local minima in case of purely randomized initialization \\cite{bengio2007greedy}. A solution to this problem is, weight initialization by utilizing a generative layer-by-layer training procedure based on Contrastive Divergence (CD) algorithm \\cite{hot06}.\n\nTo maximize the performance of this algorithm, a dedicated hardware implementation is required to accelerate computation speed. Traditionally CMOS based designs have been used for this by utilizing commonly available accelerator like GPUs \\cite{raina2009large}, FPGAs \\cite{kim2009highly}, ASICs \\cite{maaimm11}\\cite{stromatias2015robustness}, etc. Recently with the introduction of the emerging non-volatile memory devices such as PCM, CBRAM, OxRAM, MRAM, etc, there is further optimization possible in design of a dedicated hardware accelerators given the fact that they allow replacement of certain large CMOS blocks while simultaneously emulating storage and compute functionalities \\cite{sqcpsvgd11}\\cite{alibart2013pattern}\\cite{yang2013memristive}\\cite{de2013silicon}\\cite{jackson2013nanoscale}\\cite{vlzrbgkgq14},\\cite{wong2015memory}\\cite{burr2015experimental}\\cite{milo2016demonstration}. \n\nRecent works that present designs of Contrastive Divergence based learning using resistive memory devices are \\cite{srpj15}, \\cite{stanford_rbm_prob}. In \\cite{srpj15} the authors propose the use of a two-memristor model as a synapse to store one synaptic weight. In \\cite{stanford_rbm_prob} the authors have experimentally demonstrated a 45-synapse RBM realized with 90 resistive phase change memory (PCM) elements trained with a bio-inspired variant of the contrastive divergence algorithm, implementing Hebbian and anti-Hebbian weight update. Both these designs justify the use of RRAM devices as dense non-volatile synaptic arrays. Also both make use of a spike based programming mechanism for gradually tuning the weights. Negative weights have been implemented by using two devices in place of a single device per synapse. It is apparent that in order to implement more complex learning rules with larger and deeper networks the hardware complexity and area footprint increases considerably while using this simplistic design strategy. As a result, there is a need to increase further increase the functionality of the RRAM devices in the design beyond simple synaptic weight storage. In \\cite{tnanoelm} we have described a design exploiting the intrinsic device-to-device variability as a substitute for the randomly distributed hidden layer weights in order to gain both area and power savings. In \\cite{rramrbm}, we have made use of another property of the RRAM devices by exploiting the cycle-to-cycle variability in device switching to create a stochastic neuron as a basic building block for a hybrid CMOS-OxRAM based Restricted Boltzmann Machines (RBM) circuit. \n\n\n\n\nIn this paper we build upon our previous work on hybrid CMOS-OxRAM RBM with the following novel contributions: \n\\begin{itemize}\n\\item\nDesign of deep generative models (DGM) that utilize the hybrid CMOS-RRAM RBM as a building block.\n\\item\nDesign of programmable output normalization block for stacking multiple hybrid RBMs.\n\\item\nSimulation and performance analysis of two types of DGM architectures at 8-bit synaptic weight resolution: (i) Deep Belief Networks (DBN) and (ii) Stacked Denoising Autoencoders (SDA) \\item\nAnalysis of learning performance (accuracy, MSE) while using only greedy layer-wise training (without backprop).\n\\item\nAnalysis of learning impact on RRAM device endurance. \n\\end{itemize}\nIn our hybrid CMOS-OxRAM DGM implementation the OxRAM devices have been exploited for four different storage and compute functions: (i) Synaptic weight matrix, (ii) neuron internal state storage, (iii) stochastic neuron firing and (iv) programmable gain control block. \nSection \\ref{s2} discusses the basics of OxRAM and deep generative networks. Section \\ref{s4} describes the implementation details of our proposed hybrid CMOS-OxRAM DGM architectures. Section \\ref{s5} discusses simulation results and Section \\ref{sc} gives the conclusions.\n\n\\section{Basics of OxRAM and DGM Architectures}\n\\label{s2}\n\\subsection{OxRAM Working}\n\\begin{figure}[htbp]\n\\centering\n\\includegraphics[scale=.42]{iv_curve.png}\n\\caption{Basic IV characteristics for HfOx OxRAM device with switching principle indicated. Experimental data corresponding to device presented in \\cite{rramrbm}.}\n\\label{fig:1a}\n\\end{figure}\n\\begin{figure}[htbp]\n\\centering\n\\includegraphics[scale=.3]{resdist.png}\n\\caption{Cycle-to-Cycle ON\/OFF-state resistance distribution for HfOx device presented in \\cite{rramrbm}.}\n\\label{fig:1b}\n\\end{figure}\nOxRAM devices are two-terminal MIM-type structures (metal-insulator-metal) sandwiching an active metal-oxide based insulator layer, between metallic electrodes (see Fig. \\ref{fig:1a}). The active layer exhibits reversible non-volatile switching behavior on application of appropriate programming current\/voltage across the device terminals. In the case of filamentary- OxRAM devices, formation of a conductive filament in the active layer, leads the device to a low-resistance (LRS\/On) SET-state, while dissolution of the filament puts the device in a high-resistance (HRS\/Off) RESET-state. The conductive filament is composed of oxygen vacancies and defects \\cite{wlycwclct12}. SET-state resistance (LRS) level can be defined by controlling the dimensions of the conductive filament \\cite{sqbpvvgd13}\\cite{wlycwclct12}, which depends on the amount of current flowing through the active layer. Current flowing through the active layer is controlled either by externally imposed current compliance or by using an optional selector device (i.e. 1R-1T\/1D configuration). \nOxRAM devices are known to demonstrate cycle-to-cycle (C2C) (shown in Fig. \\ref{fig:1b}), and device-to-device (D2D) variability \\cite{baeumer2017subfilamentary}\\cite{li2015variation},\\cite{ielmini2016resistive}. In our proposed architecture, we exploit OxRAM (a) C2C switching variability for realization of stochastic neuron circuit, (b) binary resistive switching for realization of synaptic weight arrays\/neuron internal state storage and (c) SET-state resistance modulation for normalization block. \n\n\n\\label{s3}\n\\subsection{Restricted Boltzmann Machines (RBM)}\nUnsupervised learning based on generative models has gained importance with use of deep neural networks. Besides being useful for pre-training a supervised predictor, unsupervised learning in deep architectures can be of interest to learn a distribution and generate samples from it \\cite{bengio2009learning}. \nRBMs in particular, are widely used as building blocks for deep generative models such as DBN and SDA. Both these models are made by stacking RBM blocks on top of each other. Training of such models using traditional back-propagation based approaches is a computationally intensive problem. Hinton et.al.\\cite{hot06} showed that such models can be trained very fast through greedy layer-wise training making the task of training deep networks based on stacking of RBMs more feasible.\n\\begin{figure}[b]\n\\centering\n \\includegraphics[scale=0.5]{rbm_basic.png}\n \\caption{Graphical representation of RBM hidden\/visible nodes.}\n \\label{fig1a}\n\\end{figure}\nEach RBM block consists of two layers of fully connected stochastic sigmoid neurons as shown in Fig. \\ref{fig1a}. The input or the first layer of the RBM is called the visible layer and the second (feature detector) layer is called the hidden layer. Each RBM is trained using CD algorithm as described in \\cite{h10}. The output layer of the bottom RBM acts as the visible layer for the next RBM.\n\n\\subsection{Stacked Denoising Autoencoder (SDA)}\nAn autoencoder network is a deep learning framework mostly used for denoising corrupted data \\cite{vincent}, dimensionality reduction \\cite{hinton1994autoencoders} and weight initialization applications. In recent years random weight initialization techniques have been preferred over use of generative training networks \\cite{xavier}, however DGMs continue to be the ideal candidate for dimensionality reduction and denoising applications. \nAutoencoder network is basically realized using two networks:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n \\item An 'encoder' network which has layers of RBMs stacked on the top of one another.\n \\item A mirrored 'decoder' network with same weights as that of the encoder layer for data reconstruction.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\n\\begin{figure}[b]\n\\centering\n \\includegraphics[width=\\linewidth]{sda_basic.png}\n \\caption{(a) Basic RBM blocks stacked to form a deep autoencoder. (b) Denoising noisy image using autoencoder.}\n \\label{fig1}\n\\end{figure}\nThe stack of RBMs in autoencoder are trained layer-wise one after the other. An 'unrolled' autoencoder network with the encoder and decoder is shown in Fig. \\ref{fig1}. \n\n\\subsection{Deep Belief Network (DBN)}\nDBNs are probabilistic generative models that are composed of multiple layers of stochastic, latent variables \\cite{hinton2009deep}. The latent variables typically have binary values and are often called hidden units or feature detectors. The top two layers have undirected, symmetric connections between them and form an associative memory. The lower layers receive top-down, directed connections from the layer above. The states of the units in the lowest layer represent a data vector. A typical DBN is shown in Fig. \\ref{fig1b} which uses a single RBM as the first two layers followed by a sigmoid belief network (logistic regression layer) for the final classification output.\n\n\\begin{figure}[b]\n\\centering\n \\includegraphics[width=0.7\\linewidth]{dbn_struct.png}\n \\caption{DBN architecture comprising of stacked RBMs}\n \\label{fig1b}\n\\end{figure}\n\nThe two most significant DBN properties are:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item There is an efficient, layer-by-layer procedure for learning the top-down, generative weights that determine how the variables in one layer depend on the variables in the layer above.\n\\item After learning, the values of the latent variables in every layer can be inferred by a single, bottom-up pass that starts with an observed data vector in the bottom layer and uses the generative weights in the reverse direction.\n\\end{enumerate}\nDBNs have been used for generating and recognizing images \\cite{hot06}, \\cite{huang2007unsupervised},\\cite{bengio2007greedy}, video sequences \\cite{sutskever2007learning}, and motion-capture data \\cite{taylor2007modeling}. With low number of units in the highest layer, DBNs perform non-linear dimensionality reduction and can learn short binary codes, allowing very fast retrieval of documents or images \\cite{hinton2006reducing}.\n\n\n\\section{Implementation of Proposed Architectures}\n\\label{s4} \n\\begin{figure*}[htbp]\n \\includegraphics[width=\\linewidth]{dgm_rram_new.png}\n \\caption{(a) Individual RBM training layer architecture. RBM training block symbols, 'H', 'V' and 'S' represent hidden layer memory, visible layer memory, and synaptic network respectively. (b) Cascaded RBM blocks for realizing the proposed deep autoencoder with shared weight update module (c) Fully digital CD based weight update module. (d) Block level design of single stochastic sigmoid neuron}\n \\label{fig2}\n\\end{figure*}\nBasic building block of both SDA and DBN is the RBM. In our simulated architectures, within a single RBM block OxRAM devices are used for multiple functionalities. The basic RBM block (shown in Fig. \\ref{fig2}(a)) is replicated, with the hidden layer memory states of the first RBM acting as visible layer memory for the next RBM block and so on (Fig. \\ref{fig2}(b)). All RBM blocks have a common weight update module described in Section \\ref{CDup}. Post training, the learned synaptic weights along with the sigmoid block can be used for reconstructing the test data. Architecture sub-blocks consist of:\n\n\\subsection{Synaptic Network}\nSynaptic network of each RBM block was simulated using a 1T-1R HfOx OxRAM matrix. Each synaptic weight is digitally encoded in a group of binary switching OxRAM devices, where the number of devices used per synapse depends on the required weight resolution. For all architectures simulated in this work we have used 8-bit resolution (i.e. 8 OxRAM devices\/per synapse).\n\n\\subsection{Stochastic Neuron Block}\n\nFig \\ref{fig2}(d), shows the stochastic sigmoid neuron block. Each neuron (hidden or visible) has a sigmoid response, which was implemented using a low-power 6-T sigmoid circuit (\\cite{suri5}). Gain of the sigmoid circuit can be tuned by optimizing the scaling of the six transistors. Voltage output of the sigmoid circuit is compared with the voltage drop across the OxRAM device, with the help of a comparator. The HfOx based device is repeatedly cycled ON\/OFF. C2C intrinsic $R_{ON}$ and $R_{OFF}$ variability of the OxRAM device leads to a variable reference voltage for the comparator. This helps to translate the deterministic sigmoid output to a neuron output, which is effectively stochastic in nature. At any given moment, a specific neuron's output determines it's internal state, which needs to be stored for RBM driven learning. Neuron internal state is stored using individual OxRAM devices placed after the comparator. Single OxRAM\/per neuron is sufficient for state storage, since RBM requires each neuron to only have a binary activation state.\n\n\n\n\\subsection{CD Weight Update Block}\n\\label{CDup}\nThe weight update module is a purely digital circuit that reads the synaptic weights and internal neuron states. It updates the synaptic weights during learning based on the CD RBM algorithm (\\cite{h10}). The block consists of an array of weight update circuits, one of which is shown in Fig \\ref{fig2}(c). Synaptic weight is updated by ${\\bigtriangleup}$Wij \\ref{eqcd}, based on the previous (v, h) and current (v', h') internal neuron states of the mutually connected neurons in the hidden and visible layers. CD is is realized using two AND gates and a comparator (having outputs -1, 0, +1). Input to the first AND gate is previous internal neuron states, while the input to second AND gate is the current internal neuron states. Based on the comparator output, ${\\epsilon}$ (learning rate) will either be added, subtracted, or not applied to the current synaptic weight (Wij). \n\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eqcd}\n\\bigtriangleup W_{ij}= \\epsilon (vh^T-v^{'}h^{'T})\n\\end{equation}\n\\subsection{Output Normalization block}\n\\begin{figure*}[htbp]\n\\centering\n \\includegraphics[width=\\textwidth]{gain_ckt_new}\n \\caption{Programmable normalization circuit: (a) Circuit Schematic, (b) Gain variation w.r.to variation in OxRAM resistance state}\n \\label{fig_norm}\n\\end{figure*}\n\n\nIn order to chain the mixed-signal design of RBM we need to ensure the signal output at each layer is having an enhancement in the dynamic range so that the signal doesn't deteriorate as the network depth increases. For this purpose we proposed a hybrid CMOS-OxRAM programmable normalization circuit (see Fig. \\ref{fig_norm}) whose gain and bias can be tuned based on OxRAM resistance programming.\n\nThe circuit schematic of the programmable normalization block is shown in Fig. \\ref{fig_norm}(a)). In order to check variation in gain, we have considered programming the OxRAM in three different SET states ($\\sim$ 3.2 k$\\Omega$, 6.6 k$\\Omega$, and 22.6 k$\\Omega$).\n\nThe differential amplifier consisting of a DC gain control circuit and a biasing circuit is used to implement the normalization function. A two stage amplifier consisting of transistors N3, N4, N5, N6, P3, P4, P5, P6, and P7 is used. DC gain of the circuit is controlled using a constant $g_m$ circuit whose output is fed into N3. The constant $g_m$ circuit consists of transistors N1, N2, P1, P2 and one OxRAM. Based on the OxRAM resistance, $g_m$ of the circuit can be changed thereby changing the output potential. This affects $V_{gs}$ of N3 thereby controlling the gain of the circuit. \n\nTo validate the design, we performed simulation of the circuit using an OxRAM device compact model (\\cite{li2015variation}) and 90 nm CMOS design kit. The simulated variation in the gain of the circuit based on the resistance state of the OxRAM is shown in Fig. \\ref{fig_norm}(b). Gain control through OxRAM programming was found to be more prominent at higher operating frequencies. \n\nBias control is implemented by a potential divider circuit ($R_f$ and the OxRAM). The potential divider circuit determines the potential across $V_g$ of P6. Input $V_2$ is swept from 0 V to 1 V. If the potential across P6 increases for a fixed $V_2$ the output switching voltage also increases thereby controlling the bias of the output.\n\n\\section{Deep Learning Simulations and Results}\n\\label{s5}\nSimulations of the proposed architectures (DBN, SDA) were performed in MATLAB. Both generative networks with CD algorithm and behavioral model of all blocks described in section \\ref{s4} were simulated. Stochastic sigmoid neuron activation and normalization circuits were simulated in Cadence Virtuoso using 90 nm CMOS design kit and Verilog-A OxRAM compact model \\cite{li2015variation}.\n\n\\subsection{Stacked Denoising Autoencoder performance analysis}\nWe trained two autoencoder networks each having the same number of neurons in the final encoding layer, but varying levels of depth, and compared their denoising performance (see Fig. \\ref{fig8}). In each network a single synaptic weight was realized using 8 OxRAM devices (8-bit resolution). All neurons have a logistic activation except for the last ten units in the classification layer, which are linear. The networks were trained on a reduced MNIST dataset of 5000 images and tested for denoising 1000 new salt-and-pepper noise corrupted images (see Fig. \\ref{fig8}).\n\n\\begin{figure}[t]\n\\centering\n\\includegraphics[width=\\linewidth]{sda_results.png}\n\\caption{(a) 3-layer deep SDA-1, (b) 5-layer deep SDA-2. Denoising results of 100 corrupted MNIST images for: (c) SDA1 and (d) SDA2.}\n\\label{fig8}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\begin{table}[!htbp]\n\\caption{Proposed Autoencoder performance for reduced MNIST}\n\\label{mnist1}\n\\begin{center}\n\n\n \\begin{tabular}{|c|c|c|}\n \\hline\n Network & Implementation & MSE \\bigstrut\\\\\n \\hline\n \\multirow{2}[4]{*}{784x100x784} & Software & 0.010 \\bigstrut\\\\\n\\cline{2-3} & Hybrid OxRAM SDA & 0.003 \\bigstrut\\\\\n \\hline\n \\multirow{2}[4]{*}{784x100x40x100x784} & Software & 0.049 \\bigstrut\\\\\n\\cline{2-3} & Hybrid OxRAM SDA & 1.095 \\bigstrut\\\\\n \\hline\n \\end{tabular}%\n\\end{center}\n\\end{table}\nTable \\ref{mnist1} presents the learning performance of the proposed SDA-1 and SDA-2. Increasing depth in the network was not useful with the current learning algorithm and tuning parameters. \n\n\\subsection{Deep Belief Network performance analysis}\nWe simulated two deep belief network architectures shown in Fig. \\ref{fig6b}. (4 and 5 layer variants) Performance of the network was measured by testing on 1000 samples from the reduced MNIST dataset. The results for the same are shown in Table \\ref{tab:dbn}. We measured test accuracy using 3 parameters :\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item Top 1 accuracy : correct class corresponds to output neuron with highest response. \n\\item Top 3 accuracy : correct class corresponds to the top 3 output neurons with highest response.\n\\item Top 5 accuracy : correct class corresponds to the top 5 output neurons with highest response.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\nFrom Table \\ref{tab:dbn}, the performance of simulated Hybrid CMOS-OxRAM DBN matches closely with software based accuracy (2-3\\% lower) for a DBN formed with 2 RBMs. There is a significant drop in test accuracy for the DBN with 3 RBMs. This is acceptable as the goal of the greedy layer-wise training is to pre-train the network to a good state before using back-propagation to allow faster convergence. Thus lower accuracy after layer-wise training for a deeper network is acceptable as the weights would be further optimized using back-propagation. \n\n\\begin{figure}[t]\n\\centering\n \\includegraphics[width=\\linewidth]{deep_net_dbn_rbm.png}\n \\caption{Simulated 4 and 5 layer DBN architecture.}\n \\label{fig6b}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\begin{table}[htbp]\n \\centering\n \\caption{Proposed DBN Performance for Reduced MNIST}\n\\scalebox{0.75}{\n \\begin{tabular}{|c|c|c|c|c|}\n \\hline\n \\multirow{2}[4]{*}{Network} & \\multirow{2}[4]{*}{Implementation} & \\multicolumn{3}{c|}{Test accuracy} \\bigstrut\\\\\n\\cline{3-5} & & Top-1 & Top-3 & Top-5 \\bigstrut\\\\\n \\hline\n \\multirow{2}[8]{*}{784x100x40x10} & Software & 93.10\\% & 98.70\\% & 99.40\\% \\bigstrut\\\\\n\\cline{2-5} & Hybrid OxRAM DBN & 78.70\\% & 95.50\\% & 98.80\\% \\bigstrut\\\\\n \\hline\n \\multirow{2}[8]{*}{784x160x80x40x10} & Software & 93.70\\% & 98.50\\% & 99.40\\% \\bigstrut\\\\\n\\cline{2-5} & Hybrid OxRAM DBN & 21.30\\% & 61.40\\% & 79.60\\% \\bigstrut\\\\\n \\hline\n \\end{tabular}%\n }\n \\label{tab:dbn}%\n\\end{table}%\n\n\n\\subsection{Tuning $V_{OxRAM}$ amplifying gain}\nThe sigmoid activation circuits in the network use a gain factor in order to balance for the low current values obtained as a result of the OxRAM device resistance values. If the amplification is low it will lead to saturation and the network will not learn a proper reconstruction of the data. This necessitates proper tuning of the amplifier gain for effective learning. In our architecture, amplifier gain for $V_{OxRAM}$ is an important hyper-parameter along with the standard ones (momentum, decay rate, learning rate, etc.) and is different for each consecutive pair of layers. A higher dimensional input to a layer will require a lower amplifying gain for $V_{OxRAM}$ and vice-versa.\n\n\\subsection{Switching activity analysis for the Proposed architecture}\n\\label{s6}\nResistive switching of OxRAM devices is observed in following sections of the architecture:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item Synaptic matrix\n\\item Stochastic neuron activation\n\\item Internal neuron state storage. \n\\end{enumerate}\nRRAM devices suffer from limited cycling endurance ($\\sim$ 0.1 million cycles) \\cite{balatti2014pulsed}.For stochastic neuron activation, the OxRAM device is repeatedly cycled to OFF state and the voltage drop across the device is used to generate the stochastic signal fed to one of the comparator inputs. Thus the neuron activation block related switching activity depends on the number of data samples as well as number of epochs. The maximum switching per device for any layer can be estimated by using (\\ref{eq1}):\n\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq1}\nN_{events} = N_{epochs} * N_{samples} * N_{batch}\n\\end{equation}\nAnother part of the architecture where the OxRAM device may observe a significant number of switching events is the synaptic matrix. Since we are interested in device endurance, we consider the worst case, i.e. the of maximum number of hits a particular OxRAM device will take during the entire weight update procedure. For worst case analysis we make the following assumptions-\n\\begin{itemize} \n\\item While bit encoding the synaptic weight (4 or 8 or 16), there exists an OxRAM device that is switched every single time. \n\\end{itemize}\nThus the maximum possible number of hits a device would take during the synaptic weight update procedure can be estimated using (\\ref{eq2}): \n\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq2}\nN_{switch events}=N_{batch}*N_{epochs}\n\\end{equation}\nSimulated switching activity for reduced MNIST training for each neuron layer and synaptic matrix is shown in Table \\ref{table:sw} and Table \\ref{sw_act} corresponding to both SDA and DBN architectures respectively. Key observations can be summarized as:\n\\begin{itemize}\n\\item Increasing depth of the network increases amount of switching for hidden layers.\n\\item Increasing depth of the network doesn't have significant impact on the the switching events in the synaptic matrix.\n\\end{itemize}\n\n\\begin{table}\n\\centering\n\\caption{Maximum OxRAM switching activity for 5 layer SDA (training)} \n\\begin{tabular}{|c|c|}\n\\hline\nDevice placement & Max Switching activity\\\\ \n\\hline\nL1-784 & 596\\\\ \n\\hline\nL2-100 & 3074\\\\ \n\\hline\nL3-40 & 542\\\\ \n\\hline\nW1 & 6808\\\\ \n\\hline\nW2 & 5000\\\\ \n\\hline\n\\end{tabular}\n\\label{table:sw}\n\\end{table}\n\n\\begin{table}\n\\centering\n\\caption{Maximum OxRAM switching activity for 5 layer DBN (training)} \n\\begin{tabular}{|c|c|}\n\\hline\nDevice placement & Max Switching activity\\\\ \n\\hline\nL1-784 & 596\\\\ \n\\hline\nL1-784 & 428 \\\\\n\\hline\nL2-160 & 2069 \\\\\n\\hline\nL3-80 & 3026 \\\\\n\\hline\nL4-40 & 420 \\\\\n\\hline\nW1 & 6798 \\\\\n\\hline\nW2 & 5000 \\\\\n\\hline\nW3 & 2500 \\\\\n\\hline\nW4 & 2500 \\\\\n\\hline\n\\end{tabular}\n\\label{sw_act}\n\\end{table}\n\n\\section{Conclusion}\n\\label{sc}\nIn this paper we proposed a novel methodology to realize DGM architectures using mixed-signal type hybrid CMOS-RRAM design framework. We achieve deep generative models by proposing a strategy to stack multiple RBM blocks. \nOverall learning rule used in this study is based on greedy-layer wise learning with no back propagation which allows the network to be trained to a good pre-training stage. RRAM devices are used extensively in the proposed architecture for multiple computing and storage actions. Total RRAM requirement for the largest simulated network was 139 kB for DBN and 169 kB for SDA.\nSimulated architectures show that the performance of the proposed DGM models matches closely with software based models for 2 layers deep network. The top-3 test accuracy achieved by the DBN for reduced MNIST was $\\sim$ 95.5\\%. MSE of SDA network was 0.003. Endurance analysis shows resonable maximum switching activity. Future work would focus on realizing an optimal strategy to implement back-propagation with the proposed architecture to enable complete training of the DGM on the hybrid DGM architecture. \n\n\\section*{Acknowledgement}\nThis research activity under the PI Prof. M. Suri is partially supported by the Department of Science \\& Technology (DST), Government of India and IIT-D FIRP Grant. Authors would like to express gratitude to S. Chakraborty. The authors would like to thank F. Alibart and D. Querlioz for the HfOx device data.\n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\\section{Introduction}\\label{sec:intro}\n\nWith the advent of large-scale automated time-series photometric\nsurveys to search for microlensing events, transiting planets, and\nsupernovae, well-sampled light curves for millions of stars have been,\nand are continuing to be, collected. While the primary scientific\ngoals of these surveys are to search for rare phenomena, the enormous\ndatabases of light curves that are a by-product of these surveys\npresents a great opportunity to study many other topics related to\nstellar variability \\citep[e.g.][]{Paczynski.97}. With some exceptions\n\\citep[e.g.][]{Hartman.04,Creevey.05,Parley.06,Norton.07, Beatty.07,\n Karoff.07, Shporer.07, Fernandez.09} the copious data produced by\ndedicated wide-field transit surveys has been relatively\nunder-utilized for studying topics unrelated to transiting planets. In\nthis paper we use data from the Hungarian-made Automated Telescope\nNetwork \\citep[HATNet;][]{Bakos.04} project to study the variability\nof probable K and M dwarf field stars.\n\nCombining photometric observations with proper motion measurements is\nan effective method for selecting nearby dwarf stars. This technique\nis routinely used in the search for cool stars in the solar\nneighborhood \\citep[e.g.][]{Reyle.04}, and has been suggested as an\neffective method for screening giants from transit surveys\n\\citep{Gould.03}. By selecting red, high proper motion stars, it is\npossible to obtain a sample that consists predominately of nearby K\nand M-dwarfs, with very few luminous, distant giants. Whereas a\ngeneral variability survey of Galactic field stars will yield a\nm\\'{e}lange of objects that are often difficult to classify without\ndetailed follow-up \\citep[e.g.][]{Hartman.04, Shporer.07}, by focusing\na survey on red, high proper motion stars, one can narrow in on a few\nspecific topics related to low-mass stars.\n\nMain-sequence stars smaller than the Sun are not known to exhibit\nsignificant pulsational instabilities, but they may exhibit the\nfollowing types of photometric variability: 1. Variability due to\nbinarity (either eclipses or proximity effects such as ellipsoidal\nvariability). 2. Variability due to the rotational modulation or\ntemporal evolution of starspots. 3. Flares. We discuss each type of\nvariability, and what might be learned from studying it, below.\n\n\\subsection{Low-Mass Eclipsing Binaries}\nIn recent years there has been an increasing number of EBs discovered\nwith K and M dwarf components \\citep[see the list of 13 such binaries\n compiled by][note that most of these were found in the last 5\n years]{Devor.08}. From these discoveries it has become clear that\nthe radii of early M dwarfs and late K dwarfs are somewhat larger than\npredicted by theory \\citep[the number typically stated is\n 10\\%;][]{Torres.02,Ribas.03,Lopez-Morales.05,Ribas.06,Beatty.07,Fernandez.09}.\n\nMost of the binaries found to date have periods shorter than a few\ndays and are expected to have rotation periods that are tidally\nsynchronized to the orbital period. The rapid rotation in turn yields\nenhanced magnetic activity on these stars compared to isolated, slowly\nrotating stars. It has been suggested that the discrepancy between\ntheory and observation for these binary star components may be due to\ntheir enhanced magnetic activity inhibiting convection.\n\\citep{Ribas.06,Torres.06,Lopez-Morales.07,Chabrier.07}. Support for\nthis hypothesis comes from interferometric measurements of the\nluminosity-radius relation for inactive single K and M dwarfs which\nappears to be in agreement with theoretical predictions\n\\citep{Demory.09}. There is also evidence that the discrepancy may be\ncorrelated with metallicity \\citep{Lopez-Morales.07}. Testing these\nhypotheses will require finding additional binaries spanning a range\nof parameters (mass, rotation\/orbital period, metallicity, etc.). \n\nAs transiting planets are discovered around smaller stars, the need\nfor models that provide accurate masses and radii for these stars has\nbecome acute. For example, the errors in the planetary parameters for\nthe transiting Super-Neptune GJ 436b appear to be dominated by the\nuncertainties in the stellar parameters of the $0.45~M_{\\odot}$\nM-dwarf host star \\citep[][note that the author gives errors in the\n mass and radius for the star of $\\sim 3\\%$ assuming that the\n theoretical models for the luminosity of M-dwarfs are accurate while\n making no such assumption about the radius]{Torres.07}. Having a\nlarge sample of low mass stars with measured masses and radii would\nenable the determination of precise empirical relations between the\nparameters for these stars.\n\n\\subsection{Stellar Rotation}\nThe rotation period is a fundamental measurable property of a\nstar. For F, G, K and early M main sequence stars there is a\nwell-established relation between rotation, magnetic activity and age\n\\citep[e.g.][]{Skumanich.72,Noyes.84,Pizzolato.03}. In addition to\nilluminating aspects of stellar physics, this relation in practice\nprovides the best method for measuring the ages of field main sequence\nstars \\citep[][]{Mamajek.08,Barnes.07}.\n\nFor late M-dwarfs the picture is less clear. From a theoretical\nstandpoint one might expect that fully convective stars should not\nexhibit a rotation-activity connection if the connection is due to the\n$\\alpha\\Omega$-dynamo process, which operates at the interface of the\nradiative and convective zones in a star, and is thought to generate\nthe large scale magnetic fields in the Sun \\citep[see for example the\n discussion by][]{Mohanty.03}. Nonetheless, several studies have found\nevidence that the rotation-activity connection continues to very late\nM-dwarfs \\citep{Delfosse.98, Mohanty.03, Reiners.07}. In these studies\nthe rotation period is inferred from the projected rotation velocity\n$v \\sin i$, which is measured spectroscopically, while the degree of\nmagnetic activity is estimated by measuring either the H$\\alpha$\nemission or X-ray emission. Rotation studies of this sort suffer both\nfrom the inclination axis ambiguity, and from low sensitivity to slow\nrotation. In practice it is very difficult to measure $v \\sin i$\nvalues less than $\\sim 1$~km\/s, which generally means that it is only\npossible to place lower limits on the period for late M-dwarf stars\nwith periods longer than $\\sim 10~{\\rm days}$. Moreover, because\nlow-mass stars are intrinsically faint, these studies require large\ntelescopes to obtain high-resolution, high S\/N spectra, so that\ntypically only a few tens of stars are studied at a time.\n\nThere are two techniques that have been used to directly measure\nstellar rotation periods. The first technique, pioneered by\n\\citet{Wilson.57}, is to monitor the emission from the cores of the\nCaII H and K lines, searching for periodic variations. The venerable\nMount-Wilson Observatory HK project has used this technique to measure\nthe rotation periods of more than 100 slowly rotating dwarfs and giant\nstars\n\\citep[][]{Wilson.78,Duncan.91,Baliunas.95,Baliunas.96}. Alternatively,\nif a star has significant spot-coverage it may be possible to measure\nits rotation period by detecting quasi-periodic variations in its\nbroad-band photometric brightness. Studies of this sort have been\ncarried out in abundance for open clusters \\citep[e.g.][]{Radick.87}\nas well as for some field stars \\citep[e.g.][]{Strassmeier.00}. While\nthere are rich samples of rotation periods for K and M dwarfs in open\nclusters with ages $\\la 600~{\\rm Myr}$\n\\citep{Irwin.06,Irwin.07,Irwin.09a,Meibom.09,Hartman.09}, the data for\nolder K and M dwarfs is quite sparse. As such, there are few\nobservational constraints on the rotational evolution of these stars\nafter $\\sim 0.5~{\\rm Gyr}$.\n\nUnlike spectroscopic studies, photometric surveys may yield rotation\nperiods for hundreds of stars at a time. There are, however, some\ndrawbacks to these surveys. The spot distribution on the surface of a\nstar may in general be quite complex, so the resulting signal in the\nlight curve will not always take a simple form. Since the number of\nbrightness minima per cycle is not known a priori, there is a risk\nthat the true rotation period may be a harmonic of the measured\nperiod. Spots on the Sun come and go on time-scales shorter than the\nSolar rotation period, and indeed stellar light curves also exhibit\nsecular trends. For long period stars the measured variation\ntime-scale may actually correspond to a spot evolution time-scale\nrather than the rotation period of the star. For short period stars\nthere may be difficulties in distinguishing spot modulation from\nbinarity effects (though for these stars the rotation period is\nexpected to be tidally synchronized to the orbital period).\n\nDespite these caveats, given the existing uncertainties in the\nrotation-activity connection for low mass stars and the potential to\nuse rotation as a proxy for age, a large, homogeneously collected\nsample of photometric rotation periods for field K and M dwarfs could\npotentially be of high value.\n\n\\subsection{Flares}\nFlaring is known to be a common phenomenon among K and M\ndwarfs. Studies of open cluster and field flare stars have shown that\nthe frequency of flaring increases with decreasing stellar mass, and\ndecreases with increasing stellar age \\citep[e.g.][]{Ambartsumyan.70,\n Mirzoyan.89}. Significant flaring on these low-mass dwarfs is likely\nto impact the habitability of any planets they may harbor\n\\citep[e.g.][]{Kasting.93,Lammer.07,Guinan.09}, so determining the\nfrequency of flares, and its connection with other stellar properties\nsuch as rotation, has important implications for the study of\nexoplanets.\n\n\\subsection{The HATNet Survey}\nTo address these topics we use data from HATNet to conduct a\nvariability survey of K and M dwarfs. The on-going HATNet project is a\nwide-field search for transiting extrasolar planets (TEPs) orbiting\nrelatively bright stars. The project employs a network of 7 robotic\ntelescopes (4 in Arizona at Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory, 2 in\nHawaii on the roof of the Sub-Millimeter Array at Mauna Kea\nObservatory, and 1 in Israel at Wise Observatory; the latter is\nreferred to as WHAT, see \\citealp{Shporer.09}) which have been used to\nobtain some $\\sim 700,000$ images covering approximately $10\\%$\nof the sky. The survey has generated light curves for approximately\n2.5 million stars, from which $\\sim 900$ candidate TEPs have been\nidentified. To date, the survey has announced the discovery of 12\nTEPs, including HAT-P-11b \\citep{Bakos.09}, a Super-Neptune\n($0.08~M_{J}$) planet that is the smallest found so far by a\nground-based transit survey. While the primary focus of the HATNet\nproject has been the discovery of TEPs, some results not related to\nplanets have also been presented. This includes the discovery and\nanalysis of a low-mass M dwarf in a single-lined eclipsing binary (EB)\nsystem \\citep{Beatty.07}, searches for variable stars in two\nHATNet\/WHAT fields \\citep{Hartman.04, Shporer.07}.\n\n\\subsection{Overview of the Paper}\nThe structure of the paper is as follows. In \\S~\\ref{sec:data} we\ndescribe both the HATNet photometric data, and select the sample of\nfield K and M dwarfs. In \\S~\\ref{sec:selection} we discuss our methods\nfor selecting variable stars. We estimate the degree of blending for\npotential variables in \\S~\\ref{sec:blend}. We match our catalog of\nvariables to other catalogs in \\S~\\ref{sec:match}. We discuss the\nproperties of the variables in \\S~\\ref{sec:discussion} including an\nanalysis of one of the EB systems found in the survey. We conclude in\n\\S~\\ref{sec:conclusion}. In appendix~\\ref{sec:mcsimulations} we\ndescribe the Monte Carlo simulations used in establishing our\nvariability selection thresholds, while in appendix~\\ref{sec:cat} we\npresent the catalog of variable stars.\n\n\\section{Observational Data}\\label{sec:data}\n\n\\subsection{HATNet Data}\\label{sec:hatnet}\n\nThe HATNet project, which has been in operation since 2003, uses a\nnetwork of 7 small (11\\,cm aperture), autonomous telescopes to obtain\ntime-series observations of stars. For details on the system design\nsee \\citet{Bakos.04}; here we briefly review a few points that are\nrelevant to the survey presented in this paper. Prior to 2007\nSeptember each telescope employed a 2K$\\times$2K CCD and a Cousins\n$I_{C}$ filter \\citep{Cousins.76}. The 2K$\\times$2K CCDs covered an\n$8.2\\degr \\times 8.2\\degr$ field of view (FOV) at a pixel scale of\n$14\\arcsec$. With these CCDs, stars with $7.5 \\la I_{C} \\la 14.0$ were\nobserved with a typical per-image photometric precision of a few mmag\nat the bright end, 0.01 mag at $I_{C} \\sim 11$, and 0.1 mag at $I_{C}\n\\sim 13.5$. After this date the telescopes were refitted with\n4K$\\times$4K CCDs and Cousins $R_{C}$ filters. The new CCDs cover a\n$10.6\\degr \\times 10.6\\degr$ FOV at a pixel scale of $9\\arcsec$. With\nthese CCDs, stars with $8.0 \\la R_{C} \\la 15.0$ are observed with a\ntypical per-image photometric precision of a few mmag at the bright\nend, 0.01 mag at $R_{C} \\sim 12$, and 0.1 mag at $R_{C} \\sim 15$. The\nexact magnitude limits and precision as a function of magnitude vary\nwithin a field due to vignetting, and from field to field due to\ndifferences in the reduction procedure used and in the degree of\nstellar crowding. In 2008 September the filters were changed to Sloan\n$r$, though we do not include any observations taken through the new\nfilters in the survey presented here. For both CCD formats, the\ntypical full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the point spread function\n(PSF) is $\\sim 2$ pixels (i.e. $\\sim 30\\arcsec$ for the 2K fields and\n$\\sim 20\\arcsec$ for the 4K fields).\n\nThe data for this survey comes from 72 HATNet fields with declinations between $+15\\degr$ and $+52\\degr$. These fields are\ndefined by dividing the sky into 838 $7.5\\degr \\times 7.5\\degr$\ntiles. The survey covers approximately 4000 square degrees, or roughly\n10\\% of the sky.\n\nThe data reduction pipeline has evolved over time, as such the fields\nstudied in this survey have not all been reduced in a uniform\nmanner. For simplicity we choose to use the available light curves as\nis, rather than re-reducing the fields in a consistent manner\noptimized for finding variable stars rather than TEPs. Both aperture\nphotometry (AP) and image subtraction photometry (ISM) have been used\nfor reductions. Both pipelines were developed from scratch for\nHATNet. See \\citet{Pal.09} for detailed descriptions of both methods.\n\nFor both pipelines the Two Micron All-Sky Survey\n\\citep[2MASS;][]{Skrutskie.06} is used as the astrometric\nreference. The astrometric solutions for the images are determined\nusing the methods described by \\citet{Pal.06}~and\n\\citet{Pal.09}. Photometry is performed at the positions of 2MASS\nsources transformed to the image coordinate system. For each resulting\nlight curve the median magnitude is fixed to the $I_{C}$ or $R_{C}$\nmagnitude of the source based on a transformation from the 2MASS\n$J$,$H$ and $K_{S}$ magnitudes. For the ISM reduction this magnitude\nis also used as the reference magnitude for each source in converting\ndifferential flux measurements into magnitudes.\n\nBoth the AP and ISM pipelines produce light curves that are calibrated\nagainst ensemble variations in the flux scale (for AP this is done as\na step in the pipeline, for ISM this is an automatic result of the\nmethod). For each source, light curves are obtained using three\nseparate apertures. The set of apertures used has changed over time;\nthe most recent reductions use aperture radii of 1.45, 1.95 and 2.35\npixels. Following the post-processing routines discussed below, we\nadopt a single ``best'' aperture for each light curve.\n\nThe calibrated light curves for each aperture are passed through two\nroutines that remove systematic variations from the light curves that\nare not corrected in calibrating the ensemble. The first routine (EPD)\ndecorrelates each light curve against a set of external parameters\nincluding parameters describing the shape of the PSF, the sub-pixel\nposition of the star on the image, the zenith angle, the hour angle,\nthe local sky background, and the variance of the background\n\\citep[see][]{Bakos.09}. After applying EPD, the light curves are then\nprocessed with the Trend-Filtering Algorithm \\citep[TFA;][]{Kovacs.05}\nwhich decorrelates each light curve against a representative sample of\nother light curves from the field. The number of template light curves\nused differs between the fields, typically the number is $\\sim 8\\%$ of\nthe total number of images for that field. In applying the TFA routine\nwe also perform $\\sigma$-clipping on the light curves since this\ngenerally reduces the number of false alarms when searching for\ntransits. For the remainder of the paper we will refer to light curves\nthat have been processed through EPD only, without application of TFA,\nas EPD light curves, and will refer to light curves that have been\nprocessed through both EPD and TFA as TFA light curves. We note that\nfor some fields the EPD light curves were not stored and only TFA\nlight curves are available.\n\nBoth of these algorithms tend to improve the signal to noise ratio of\ntransit signals in the light curves, but they may distort the light\ncurves of stars that show large-amplitude, long-period, continuous\nvariability. Additionally the decorrelation against the zenith and\nhour angles in the EPD routine will tend to filter out real variable\nstar signals with periods very close to a sidereal day or an integer\nmultiple of a sidereal day. The TFA routine in particular may distort\nlong-period signals while increasing the signal to noise ratio of\nshort-period signals. For this reason we analyze both the EPD and TFA\nlight curves, when available, to select variable stars\n(\\S~\\ref{sec:selection}). We note that for the analysis in this paper\nwe do not use the signal-reconstruction mode TFA presented by\n\\citet{Kovacs.05}. Once a signal is detected, TFA can be run in this\nmode to obtain a trend-filtered light curve that is free of signal\ndistortions, however for signal detection one must use general TFA\nsince the signal is not known a priori.\n\nFinally, an optimal aperture is chosen for\neach star. For stars fainter than a fixed limit the smallest aperture\nis used (to minimize the sky noise), for brighter stars the aperture\nwith the smallest root-mean-square (RMS) light curve is used.\n\n\\subsection{Composite Light Curves}\\label{sec:lightcurve}\n\nBecause the separation between the HATNet field centers is smaller\nthan the FOV of the HATNet telescopes for both the 2K and 4K CCDs,\nsome stars are observed in multiple fields. These stars may have more\nthan one light curve, which we combine into composite light curves. In\nmaking a composite light curve we subtract the median magnitude from\neach component light curve. For fields reduced with both ISM and AP we\nuse the light curve with the lowest RMS, and in the case of equal RMS\nwe use the ISM light curve. Note that the composite light curve for a\nstar may include a mix of $I_{C}$ and $R_{C}$ photometry. While the\namplitude of variability may be different from filter to filter, the\nperiod and phasing for variations due to eclipses or the rotational\nmodulation of starspots will be independent of bandpass. For\nsimplicity we do not allow for independent amplitudes of different\nfilters in searching for variability using the methods described in\n\\S~\\ref{sec:selection}; we do not expect this to make a significant\ndifference to period detections. However, we note that a simple\nmerging of photometry from different filters may result in spurious\nside lobes in the power spectrum; for a more detailed analysis of\nindividual objects this effect should be considered.\n\n\\subsection{Selection of the K and M Dwarf Sample}\\label{sec:otherdat}\n\nTo select the sample of stars that are probable K and M dwarfs we\napply cuts on the proper motion and on the color. Proper motion\nmeasurements are taken from the PPM-Extended catalog\n\\citep[PPMX;][]{Roser.08} which provides proper motions with\nprecisions ranging from 2~mas\/yr to 10~mas\/yr for 18 million stars\nover the full sky down to a limiting magnitude of $V \\sim 15.2$. The\nPPMX catalog provides complete coverage of the HATNet survey for stars\nwith $V-I_{C} \\la 1.2$ for the 2K fields and for stars with $V - R \\la\n0.7$ for the 4K fields. For stars redder than these limits, the faint\nlimit of HATNet is deeper than the faint limit of PPMX. We select all\nstars from this catalog with a proper motion $\\mu > 30~{\\rm\n mas\/yr}$. For the color selection we use the 2MASS $JHK_{S}$\nphotometry and, where available, $V$-band photometry from the PPMX\ncatalog, which is taken from the Tycho-2 catalog \\citep{Hog.00} and\ntransformed to the Johnson system by \\citet{Kharchenko.01}. Only $\\sim\n4\\%$ of the stars have $V$ photometry given in the PPMX catalog, for\nthe majority of stars that do not have $V$ photometry we calculate an\napproximate $V$ magnitude using\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:2MASSVtrans}\nV = -0.0053 + 3.5326J + 1.3141H - 3.8331K_{S}.\n\\end{equation}\nwhich is determined from 590 Landolt Standard stars \\citep{Landolt.92}\nwith 2MASS photometry, and is used internally by the HATNet project to\nestimate the $V$ magnitudes of transit candidates for follow-up\nobservations. We then select stars with $V-K_{S} > 3.0$ which\ncorresponds roughly to stars with spectral types later than K6\n\\citep{Bessell.88}. This selects a total of \\ensuremath{471,970}{} stars from\nthe PPMX catalog, of which \\ensuremath{33,177}{} fall in a reduced HATNet\nfield; of these \\ensuremath{32,831}{} have a HATNet light curve\ncontaining more than 1000 points.\n\nNote that extrapolating a $V$ magnitude from near-infrared photometry\nis not generally reliable to more than a few tenths of a magnitude. We\ntherefore also obtained $V$ magnitudes for stars in our sample by\nmatching to the USNO-B1.0 catalog \\citep{Monet.03}. This matching was\ndone after the variability search described in \\S~\\ref{sec:selection};\nwe choose not to redo the sample selection and the subsequent\nvariability selection. Note that low-mass sub-dwarfs, which have\nanomalously blue $V-K_{S}$ values, will pass a selection on $V-K_{S} >\n3.0$ computed using eq.~\\ref{eq:2MASSVtrans} to extrapolate the $V$\nmagnitude, while they would not necessarily pass a selection using the\nmeasured value of $V-K_{S}$. To transform from the photographic\n$B_{U}$, $R_{U}$ magnitudes in the USNO-B1.0 catalog to the $V$-band\nwe use a relation of the form:\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:BURUVtrans}\nV = aB_{U} + bB_{U}^2 + cR_{U} + dR_{U}^2 + eB_{U}R_{U} + f\n\\end{equation}\nwith coefficients given separately in table~\\ref{tab:fitparams} for\nthe $(B_{U,1},R_{U,1})$, $(B_{U,1},R_{U,2})$, $(B_{U,2},R_{U,1})$ and\n$(B_{U,2},R_{U,2})$ combinations. These transformations were\ndetermined using $\\sim 1100$ stars with both $V$ photometry in the PPMX\ncatalog and USNO-B1.0 $(B_{U},R_{U})$ photometry. Based on the\nroot-mean-square (RMS) scatter of the post-transformation residuals,\nwe used the $(B_{U,2},R_{U,2})$, $(B_{U,1},R_{U,2})$,\n$(B_{U,2},R_{U,1})$ and $(B_{U,1},R_{U,1})$ transformations in order\nof preference. For stars with neither PPMX $V$ photometry nor\nUSNO-B1.0 photometry, we used eq.~\\ref{eq:2MASSVtrans}. For the\nremainder of the analysis in this paper, the $V$ magnitude is taken\nfrom PPMX (Tycho-2) for 3.1\\% of the stars in our sample, from\nUSNO-B1.0 for 93.6\\% of the stars, and is transformed from the 2MASS\nmagnitudes for 3.3\\% of the stars.\n\nFigure~\\ref{fig:HKJH} shows the $J-H$ vs. $H-K_{S}$ color-color\ndiagram for the selected sample. We also show the expected relations\nfor dwarf stars and for giants. The relation for dwarfs is taken from\na combination of the \\citet{Baraffe.98} 1.0 Gyr isochrone for solar\nmetallicity stars with $0.15~M_{\\odot} \\leq M \\leq 0.7~M_{\\odot}$ and\nthe \\citet{Chabrier.00} models for objects with $M \\leq\n0.075~M_{\\odot}$. The $JHK$ magnitudes for these isochrones were\ntransformed from the CIT system \\citep{Elias.82,Elias.83} to the 2MASS\nsystem using the transformations determined by\n\\citet{Carpenter.01}. The relation for giant stars with $\\log g < 2.0$\nis taken from the 1.0 Gyr, solar metallicity Padova isochrone\n\\citep{Marigo.08, Bonatto.04}\\footnote{The isochrone was obtained from\n the CMD 2.1 web interface\n http:\/\/stev.oapd.inaf.it\/cgi-bin\/cmd\\_2.1}. While the majority of\nstars lie in the expected dwarf range, a significant number of stars\nfall along the giant branch. Some of these stars may be rare carbon\ndwarfs, but the majority are most likely giants with inaccurate proper\nmotion measurements in the PPMX catalog. Of the 2445 selected stars\nwith $J - H > 0.8$ that have HATNet light curves, 87\\% have undetected\nproper motions or proper motions less than 10 mas\/yr in the USNO-B1.0\ncatalog, this is compared to 28\\% of the sample with $J - H < 0.8$. A\nvisual inspection of the POSS-I and POSS-II Digitized Sky Survey\nimages for a number of the sources with $J - H > 0.8$ and $\\mu >\n100~{\\rm mas\/yr}$ revealed none with visually detectable proper\nmotion, and in many cases the object consists of two close, comparably\nbright stars, for which misidentification of sources may be to blame\nfor the spurious proper motion detection. This includes several stars\nwhere the PPMX and USNO-B1.0 proper motion values are comparable. We\ntherefore apply an additional cut in the $J - H$ vs $H-K_{S}$\ncolor-color diagram as shown in figure~\\ref{fig:HKJH} to reduce the\nsample to \\ensuremath{28,785}{} stars.\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{1.0}}\n\\plotone{f1_small.eps}\n\\caption{$J-H$ vs. $H-K_{S}$ color-color diagram for\n \\ensuremath{32,831}{} stars that have $V-K_{S} > 3.0$ with $V$\n taken either from the PPMX catalog (Tycho-2) or extrapolated from\n the 2MASS $J$, $H$ and $K_{S}$ magnitudes using\n eq.~\\ref{eq:2MASSVtrans}, $\\mu > 30~{\\rm mas\/yr}$ from the PPMX\n catalog, and that have a HATNet light curve containing more than\n 1000 points (gray-scale points). The solid line shows the expected\n relation for cool dwarfs \\citep{Baraffe.98,Chabrier.00}, while the\n dot-dashed line shows the expected relation for giants\n \\citep{Marigo.08, Bonatto.04}. Stars outside the area enclosed by\n the dotted line are rejected. For display purposes we have added\n slight Gaussian noise to the observed colors in the plot.}\n\\label{fig:HKJH}\n\\end{figure}\n\nFigure~\\ref{fig:rpm} shows a $V-J$ vs. $H_{J}$ reduced proper-motion\n\\citep[RPM;][]{Luyten.22} diagram for the sample. Here the RPM, $H_{J}$, is calculated as\n\\begin{equation}\nH_{J} = J + 5\\log_{10}(\\mu\/1000)\n\\end{equation} \nand gives a rough measure of the absolute magnitude $M_{J}$ of a\nstar. We show roughly the lines separating main sequence dwarfs from\nsub-dwarfs and giants. In figure~\\ref{fig:MJRPMcomp} we compare the\nRPM to $M_{J}$ for 239 stars in the sample which have a Hipparcos\nparallax \\citep{Perryman.97}. To remove additional giants from the\nsample we reject \\ensuremath{1225}{} stars with\n$H_{J} < 3.0$, leaving our final sample of \\ensuremath{27,560}{} stars.\n\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{1.0}}\n\\plotone{f2_small.eps}\n\\caption{$V-J$ vs. $H_{J}$ RPM diagram for stars with $\\mu > 30~{\\rm\n mas\/yr}$ passing $V-K_{S}$ and $JHK$ color cuts. Note that in this\n plot we use $V$ magnitudes that are transformed from the USNO-B1.0\n photographic magnitudes for the majority stars, and not the $V$\n magnitudes transformed from $JHK$ that were used in applying the\n initial $V-K_{S}$ cut. The lines separate main sequence dwarfs from\n sub-dwarfs and giants. We reject the\n \\ensuremath{1225}{} stars with $H_{J} < 3.0$. The\n lines separating main sequence dwarfs from sub-dwarfs are taken from\n \\citet{Yong.03}.}\n\\label{fig:rpm}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\begin{deluxetable*}{ccrrrrrrr}}{\\begin{deluxetable}{ccrrrrrrr}}\n\\tabletypesize{\\scriptsize}\n\\tablewidth{0pc}\n\\tablecaption{Coefficients for transformations from USNO-B1.0 $B_U$ and $R_U$ magnitudes to $V$ (eq.~\\ref{eq:BURUVtrans}).}\n\\tablehead{\n\\colhead{$B_{U}$} &\n\\colhead{$R_{U}$} &\n\\colhead{$a$} &\n\\colhead{$b$} &\n\\colhead{$c$} &\n\\colhead{$d$} &\n\\colhead{$e$} &\n\\colhead{$f$} &\n\\colhead{RMS [mag]}\n}\n\\startdata\n1 & 1 & $-0.76 \\pm 0.19$ & $-0.02 \\pm 0.01$ & $1.71 \\pm 0.15$ & $-0.14 \\pm 0.01$ & $0.15 \\pm 0.02$ & $1.63 \\pm 0.52$ & 0.27 \\\\\n1 & 2 & $0.72 \\pm 0.08$ & $-0.061 \\pm 0.002$ & $0.38 \\pm 0.06$ & $-0.057 \\pm 0.006$ & $0.114 \\pm 0.007$ & $-0.89 \\pm 0.26$ & 0.19 \\\\\n2 & 1 & $0.85 \\pm 0.09$ & $-0.045 \\pm 0.006$ & $0.44 \\pm 0.08$ & $-0.051 \\pm 0.003$ & $0.079 \\pm 0.008$ & $-1.52 \\pm 0.24$ & 0.22 \\\\\n2 & 2 & $0.73 \\pm 0.14$ & $-0.164 \\pm 0.008$ & $0.46 \\pm 0.13$ & $-0.20 \\pm 0.01$ & $0.35 \\pm 0.02$ & $-0.75 \\pm 0.26$ & 0.19 \\\\\n\\enddata\n\\label{tab:fitparams}\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\end{deluxetable*}}{\\end{deluxetable}}\n\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{1.0}}\n\\plotone{f3.eps}\n\\caption{The absolute magnitude $M_{J}$ vs. the RPM for 239 stars in\n the sample which have a Hipparcos parallax. This confirms that the\n RPM provides a rough estimate of the absolute magnitude for this\n sample of stars. We reject stars with $H_{J} < 3.0$, as these appear to be\n predominately giants.}\n\\label{fig:MJRPMcomp}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\section{Selection of Variable Stars}\\label{sec:selection}\n\nWe use a number of techniques to search for light curves that show\nsignificant variability. The techniques include the phase-binning and\nharmonic-fitting Analysis of Variance periodograms\n\\citep[AoV\/AoVHarm;][]{SchwarzenbergCzerny.89,SchwarzenbergCzerny.96},\nthe Discrete Auto-Correlation Function \\citep[DACF;][]{Edelson.88},\nand the Box-Least-Squares \\citep[BLS;][]{Kovacs.02} algorithms as\nimplemented in the VARTOOLS program\\footnote{The VARTOOLS program is\n available at http:\/\/www.cfa.harvard.edu\/\\~{}jhartman\/vartools\/}\n\\citep{Hartman.08}. We also conduct a search for flare-like events in\nthe light curves. We apply the algorithms to both the EPD and TFA\nlight curves of sources, when available. For the flare-search we use\nonly the EPD light curves because the $\\sigma$-clipping applied to the\nTFA light curves may remove real flares.\n\nBecause the light curves contain non-Gaussian, temporally-correlated\nnoise, formal estimates for the variability detection significance are\nunreliable. We therefore have conducted Monte Carlo simulations of\nlight curves with realistic noise properties to inform our choice of\nselection thresholds for several of the algorithms mentioned above,\nthese are described in appendix~\\ref{sec:mcsimulations}. In the\nfollowing subsections we discuss the use of each of the variability\nselection algorithms in turn. We finish with a comparison of the\ndifferent methods. The resulting catalog of variable stars is\npresented in appendix~\\ref{sec:cat}.\n\n\\subsection{AoV}\nThe AoV periodogram is a method for detecting continuous periodic\nvariations suggested by \\citet{SchwarzenbergCzerny.89} which typically\nyields higher S\/N detections than other periodograms. The original\nmethod suggested by \\citet{SchwarzenbergCzerny.89} uses phase-binning\nfor the model signal, so it is most comparable to the popular Phase\nDispersion Minimization technique\n\\citep[PDM;][]{Stellingwerf.78}. Following this\n\\citet{SchwarzenbergCzerny.96} introduced an efficient method for\nfitting a Fourier series to a non-uniformly sampled light curve using\na basis of orthogonal polynomials. When combined with an ANalysis Of\nVAriance (ANOVA) statistic, the result is the AoVHarm periodogram. We\napplied both methods to our light curves, and discuss each in turn.\n\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\begin{deluxetable*}{ccrrrrrrr}}{\\begin{deluxetable}{ccrrrrrrr}}\n\\tabletypesize{\\scriptsize}\n\\tablewidth{0pc}\n\\tablecaption{Selection Threshold Parameters for AoV and AoVHarm}\n\\tablehead{\n& & & \\multicolumn{3}{c}{AoV} & \\multicolumn{3}{c}{AoVHarm} \\\\\n\\colhead{Chip} &\n\\colhead{LC Type} &\n\\colhead{Mag.} &\n\\colhead{$S\/N_{0}$} &\n\\colhead{$P_{0}$ [days]} &\n\\colhead{$\\alpha$} &\n\\colhead{$S\/N_{0}$} &\n\\colhead{$P_{0}$ [days]} &\n\\colhead{$\\alpha$}\n}\n\\startdata\nEPD & 2K & 6.5 & 30.0 & 5 & 0.40 & 40.0 & 4 & 0.41\\\\\nEPD & 2K & 7.5 & 30.0 & 5 & 0.40 & 40.0 & 4 & 0.41\\\\\nEPD & 2K & 8.5 & 30.0 & 5 & 0.40 & 40.0 & 4 & 0.41\\\\\nEPD & 2K & 9.5 & 30.0 & 5 & 0.33 & 30.0 & 4 & 0.37\\\\\nEPD & 2K & 10.5 & 25.0 & 5 & 0.23 & 30.0 & 4 & 0.37\\\\\nEPD & 2K & 11.5 & 20.0 & 5 & 0.23 & 25.0 & 4 & 0.43\\\\\nEPD & 2K & 12.5 & 20.0 & 5 & 0.23 & 25.0 & 4 & 0.36\\\\\nEPD & 2K & 13.5 & 20.0 & 5 & 0.14 & 25.0 & 4 & 0.22\\\\\nTFA & 2K & 6.5 & 20.0 & 5 & 0.14 & 30.0 & 4 & 0.16\\\\\nTFA & 2K & 7.5 & 20.0 & 5 & 0.14 & 30.0 & 4 & 0.16\\\\\nTFA & 2K & 8.5 & 20.0 & 5 & 0.14 & 30.0 & 4 & 0.16\\\\\nTFA & 2K & 9.5 & 20.0 & 5 & 0.00 & 20.0 & 4 & 0.22\\\\\nTFA & 2K & 10.5 & 15.0 & 5 & 0.00 & 20.0 & 4 & 0.13\\\\\nTFA & 2K & 11.5 & 15.0 & 5 & 0.00 & 20.0 & 4 & 0.00\\\\\nTFA & 2K & 12.5 & 15.0 & 5 & 0.00 & 20.0 & 4 & 0.00\\\\\nTFA & 2K & 13.5 & 15.0 & 5 & 0.00 & 20.0 & 4 & 0.00\\\\\nEPD & 4K & 7.5 & 30.0 & 5 & 0.33 & 30.0 & 4 & 0.50\\\\\nEPD & 4K & 8.5 & 30.0 & 5 & 0.33 & 30.0 & 4 & 0.50\\\\\nEPD & 4K & 9.5 & 30.0 & 5 & 0.33 & 30.0 & 4 & 0.50\\\\\nEPD & 4K & 10.5 & 30.0 & 5 & 0.33 & 30.0 & 4 & 0.50\\\\\nEPD & 4K & 11.5 & 25.0 & 5 & 0.23 & 25.0 & 4 & 0.43\\\\\nEPD & 4K & 12.5 & 20.0 & 5 & 0.23 & 25.0 & 4 & 0.36\\\\\nEPD & 4K & 12.5 & 20.0 & 5 & 0.23 & 20.0 & 4 & 0.43\\\\\nEPD & 4K & 13.5 & 20.0 & 5 & 0.14 & 20.0 & 4 & 0.28\\\\\nEPD & 4K & 14.5 & 20.0 & 5 & 0.00 & 20.0 & 4 & 0.22\\\\\nTFA & 4K & 7.5 & 20.0 & 5 & 0.00 & 25.0 & 4 & 0.15\\\\\nTFA & 4K & 8.5 & 20.0 & 5 & 0.00 & 25.0 & 4 & 0.15\\\\\nTFA & 4K & 9.5 & 20.0 & 5 & 0.00 & 25.0 & 4 & 0.15\\\\\nTFA & 4K & 10.5 & 20.0 & 5 & 0.00 & 25.0 & 4 & 0.06\\\\\nTFA & 4K & 11.5 & 15.0 & 5 & 0.00 & 20.0 & 4 & 0.00\\\\\nTFA & 4K & 12.5 & 15.0 & 5 & 0.00 & 20.0 & 4 & 0.00\\\\\nTFA & 4K & 12.5 & 15.0 & 5 & 0.00 & 20.0 & 4 & 0.00\\\\\nTFA & 4K & 13.5 & 15.0 & 5 & 0.00 & 20.0 & 4 & 0.00\\\\\nTFA & 4K & 14.5 & 15.0 & 5 & 0.00 & 20.0 & 4 & 0.00\\\\\n\\enddata\n\\label{tab:aovcutoff}\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\end{deluxetable*}}{\\end{deluxetable}}\n\n\\subsubsection{Phase Binning AoV - Search for General Periodic Variability}\n\nWe run the AoV algorithm with phase-binning on the full sample of\nstars. We first apply a $5\\sigma$ iterative clipping to the light\ncurve before searching for periods between $0.1$ and $100~{\\rm\n days}$. We use 8 phase bins, and generate the periodogram at a\nfrequency resolution of $0.1 \/ T$ where $T$ is the total time-span\ncovered by a given light curve. We then determine the peak at 10 times\nhigher resolution. As our figure of merit we use the signal-to-noise\nratio (S\/N), with a $5\\sigma$ iterative clipping applied to the\nperiodogram in calculating the noise (the RMS of the\nperiodogram). Figure~\\ref{fig:AOV_SNvsP} shows the AoV S\/N as a\nfunction of the peak period for various light curve subsamples. For\ncomparison we also show the Monte Carlo simulation results for each\nsubset. We adopt a separate selection threshold on S\/N for each\nsubsample. The thresholds have the form\n\\begin{equation}\nS\/N_{\\rm min} = \\left\\{ \\begin{array}{ll}\nS\/N_{0} & \\mbox{if $P < P_{0}$} \\\\\nS\/N_{0}\\left( P\/P_{0} \\right) ^{\\alpha} & \\mbox{if $P \\geq P_{0}$}\n\\end{array}\n\\right..\n\\end{equation}\nThe adopted values of $S\/N_{0}$, $P_{0}$ and $\\alpha$ are listed for\neach subsample in Table~\\ref{tab:aovcutoff}. In addition to this\nselection we also reject detections with periods near 1 sidereal day,\none of its harmonics, or other periods which appear as spikes in the\nhistogram of detected periods (the latter includes periods between\n5.71 and 5.80 days). For composite light curves that contain both 2K\nand 4K observations we take\n\\begin{equation}\nS\/N_{\\rm min} = f_{2K}S\/N_{\\rm min,2K} + f_{4K}S\/N_{\\rm min,4K}\n\\label{eqn:aovsnmin}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $f_{2K}$ and $f_{4K}$ are the fraction of points in the light\ncurve that come from 2K and 4K observations, and $S\/N_{\\rm min,2K}$\nand $S\/N_{\\rm min,4K}$ are the 2K and 4K thresholds at the period of\nthe composite light curve.\n\nAs summarized in table~\\ref{tab:selectionstats}, our selection\nthreshold passes a total of \\ensuremath{1320}{} EPD light curves, and\n\\ensuremath{1729}{} TFA light curves. These are inspected by eye to\nreject obvious false alarms and to identify EBs. There are\n\\ensuremath{753}{} EPD light curves that we judge to show clear,\ncontinuous, periodic variability, \\ensuremath{47}{} that show eclipses,\n\\ensuremath{419}{} that we consider to be questionable (these are\nincluded in the catalog, but flagged as questionable), and\n\\ensuremath{101}{} that we reject. For the TFA light curves the\nrespective numbers are \\ensuremath{1210}{}, \\ensuremath{64}{},\n\\ensuremath{400}{}, and \\ensuremath{55}{}. Note that the distinction\nbetween ``clear'' variability and ``questionable'' cases is fairly\nsubjective. Generally we require the variations to be obvious to the\neye for periods $\\ga$ 30 days, for shorter periods we consider the\nselection to be questionable if it appears that the variability\nselection may be due to enhanced scatter on a few nights.\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{0.7}}\n\\plotone{f4.eps}\n\\caption{Period vs. S\/N from AoV for 4 representative light curve\n subsamples. On the left column we plot the observed values showing\n the light curves that pass the selection (dark filled points) and\n the light curves that do not pass the selection (grey filled points)\n separately, on the right column we plot the results from the Monte\n Carlo simulation for the corresponding subsample. The lines show the\n adopted S\/N cut-off as a function of period. Note that in addition\n to the cut-off shown with the line, we also reject light curves for\n which the peak period is close to one sidereal day or a harmonic of\n one sidereal day.}\n\\label{fig:AOV_SNvsP}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\begin{deluxetable*}{llrrrrr}}{\\begin{deluxetable}{llrrrrr}}\n\\tabletypesize{\\scriptsize}\n\\tablewidth{0pc}\n\\tablecaption{Summary of variable star selection}\n\\tablehead{\n\\multicolumn{1}{c}{Variability} &\n\\multicolumn{1}{c}{LC Reduction} &\n\\multicolumn{1}{c}{Automatically} &\n\\multicolumn{1}{c}{Non-EB} &\n&\n& \\\\\n\\colhead{Selection Type} &\n\\colhead{Type} &\n\\colhead{Selected} &\n\\colhead{Var.} &\n\\colhead{EB} &\n\\colhead{Quest.} &\n\\colhead{Rej.}\n}\n\\startdata\nAoV & EPD & \\ensuremath{1320}{} & \\ensuremath{753}{} & \\ensuremath{47}{} & \\ensuremath{419}{} & \\ensuremath{101}{} \\\\\nAoV & TFA & \\ensuremath{1729}{} & \\ensuremath{1210}{} & \\ensuremath{64}{} & \\ensuremath{400}{} & \\ensuremath{55}{} \\\\\nAoV & Both\\tablenotemark{a} & \\ensuremath{781}{} & \\ensuremath{576}{} & \\ensuremath{41}{} & \\ensuremath{53}{} & \\ensuremath{5}{} \\\\\nAoV & Either\\tablenotemark{b} & \\ensuremath{2268}{} & \\ensuremath{1387}{} & \\ensuremath{70}{} & \\ensuremath{766}{} & \\ensuremath{151}{} \\\\\nAoV only\\tablenotemark{c} & Either\\tablenotemark{b} & \\ensuremath{450}{} & \\ensuremath{120}{} & \\ensuremath{4}{} & \\ensuremath{317}{} & \\ensuremath{79}{} \\\\\nAovHarm & EPD & \\ensuremath{1337}{} & \\ensuremath{1082}{} & \\ensuremath{34}{} & \\ensuremath{185}{} & \\ensuremath{36}{} \\\\\nAovHarm & TFA & \\ensuremath{1717}{} & \\ensuremath{1443}{} & \\ensuremath{43}{} & \\ensuremath{217}{} & \\ensuremath{14}{} \\\\\nAovHarm & Both\\tablenotemark{a} & \\ensuremath{936}{} & \\ensuremath{806}{} & \\ensuremath{24}{} & \\ensuremath{27}{} & \\ensuremath{5}{} \\\\\nAovHarm & Either\\tablenotemark{b} & \\ensuremath{2118}{} & \\ensuremath{1719}{} & \\ensuremath{53}{} & \\ensuremath{375}{} & \\ensuremath{45}{} \\\\\nAovHarm only\\tablenotemark{c} & Either\\tablenotemark{b} & \\ensuremath{450}{} & \\ensuremath{120}{} & \\ensuremath{4}{} & \\ensuremath{317}{} & \\ensuremath{79}{} \\\\\nBLS & EPD & \\ensuremath{463}{} & \\ensuremath{79}{} & \\ensuremath{60}{} & \\ensuremath{39}{} & \\ensuremath{281}{} \\\\\nBLS & TFA & \\ensuremath{444}{} & \\ensuremath{160}{} & \\ensuremath{81}{} & \\ensuremath{39}{} & \\ensuremath{160}{} \\\\\nBLS & Both\\tablenotemark{a} & \\ensuremath{155}{} & \\ensuremath{62}{} & \\ensuremath{52}{} & \\ensuremath{4}{} & \\ensuremath{13}{} \\\\\nBLS & Either\\tablenotemark{b} & \\ensuremath{752}{} & \\ensuremath{177}{} & \\ensuremath{89}{} & \\ensuremath{74}{} & \\ensuremath{428}{} \\\\\nBLS only\\tablenotemark{c} & Either\\tablenotemark{b} & \\ensuremath{439}{} & \\ensuremath{1}{}\\tablenotemark{d} & \\ensuremath{21}{} & \\ensuremath{64}{}\\tablenotemark{d} & \\ensuremath{428}{} \\\\\nDACF & EPD & \\ensuremath{1491}{} & \\ensuremath{620}{} & \\ensuremath{0}{} & \\ensuremath{534}{} & \\ensuremath{243}{} \\\\\nDACF & TFA & \\ensuremath{1190}{} & \\ensuremath{507}{} & \\ensuremath{0}{} & \\ensuremath{318}{} & \\ensuremath{95}{} \\\\\nDACF & Both\\tablenotemark{a} & \\ensuremath{353}{} & \\ensuremath{203}{} & \\ensuremath{0}{} & \\ensuremath{27}{} & \\ensuremath{21}{} \\\\\nDACF & Either\\tablenotemark{b} & \\ensuremath{2328}{} & \\ensuremath{924}{} & \\ensuremath{0}{} & \\ensuremath{825}{} & \\ensuremath{317}{} \\\\\nDACF only\\tablenotemark{c} & Either\\tablenotemark{b} & \\ensuremath{1344}{} & \\ensuremath{373}{} & \\ensuremath{0}{} & \\ensuremath{582}{} & \\ensuremath{528}{} \\\\\n\\hline\nTotals\\tablenotemark{e} & & \\ensuremath{4579}{} & \\ensuremath{2239}{} & \\ensuremath{95}{} & \\ensuremath{1176}{} & \\ensuremath{1105}{} \\\\\n\\enddata\n\\label{tab:selectionstats}\n\\tablenotetext{a}{Stars that are selected by this method for both the EPD and TFA light curves. Note that stars that are automatically selected by this method for both EPD and TFA light curves but for which the by eye classification differs between the two light curve types will be included in the number of automatically selected variables, but will not be included in any of the subsequent columns for this row.}\n\\tablenotetext{b}{Stars that are selected by this method for either the EPD or the TFA light curves.}\n\\tablenotetext{c}{Stars that are selected exclusively by this method for either the EPD or the TFA light curves. For the Non-EB Var. and EB types stars are included in this row if they were only classified as that type during the visual inspection for this method. The questionable column lists the total number of stars that were flagged as questionable by this method and were either rejected during the visual inspection, or not selected, by all other methods. The rejected column lists the total number of stars that were rejected during the visual inspection for this method and did not pass the automatic selection for any of the other methods.}\n\\tablenotetext{d}{These stars are not included in the catalog of variables.}\n\\tablenotetext{e}{For the EB and non-EB variable classes we list the total number of stars that were classified as this type during the visual inspection for at least one method. Note that \\ensuremath{36}{} stars are flagged as EBs during the visual inspection for one method and as non-EB variables during the visual inspection for another method, so a total of \\ensuremath{2298}{} stars are flagged as either an EB or as a robust non-EB variable for at least one method. This total does not include flare stars selected in \\S~\\ref{sec:flares}, unless they are also identified as a variable by AoV, AoVHarm, BLS or DACF. Including flare stars, the total number of stars with a robust variability detection is \\ensuremath{2321}{}. Of these, \\ensuremath{1928}{} are not flagged as a probable blend or as having a problematic amplitude. For the questionable detections we list the total number of stars that are classified as questionable for at least one method and are not classified as a robust detection for any of the methods. For the rejections we list the total number of stars that were rejected during the visual inspection for all methods by which they were automatically selected.}\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\end{deluxetable*}}{\\end{deluxetable}}\n\n\\subsubsection{Harmonic AoV - Search for Sinusoidal Periodic Variability}\n\nThe AoVHarm periodogram is generated for each star in a similar manner\nto the AoV periodogram. We run the algorithm using a sinusoid model\nwith no higher harmonics (it is thus comparable to DFT methods, or to\nthe popular Lomb-Scargle technique; \\citealp{Lomb.76,Scargle.82}). As\nfor the phase-binning AoV search we use eq.~\\ref{eqn:aovsnmin} for the\nselection threshold, with parameters given for each subsample in\ntable~\\ref{tab:aovcutoff}. Figure~\\ref{fig:AOVHARM_SNvsP} shows the\nAoVHarm S\/N as a function of peak period for several light curve\nsubsamples.\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{0.7}}\n\\plotone{f5.eps}\n\\caption{Same as Figure~\\ref{fig:AOV_SNvsP}, here we show the results for the AoVHarm period search.}\n\\label{fig:AOVHARM_SNvsP}\n\\end{figure}\n\nOur selection threshold passes a total of \\ensuremath{1337}{} EPD\nlight curves and \\ensuremath{1717}{} TFA light curves. Inspecting\nthese by eye we find \\ensuremath{1082}{} EPD light curves that show\nclear, continuous, periodic variability, \\ensuremath{34}{} that show\neclipses, \\ensuremath{185}{} that we consider to be questionable,\nand \\ensuremath{36}{} that we reject. For the TFA light curves the\nnumbers are \\ensuremath{1443}{}, \\ensuremath{43}{},\n\\ensuremath{217}{}, and \\ensuremath{14}{} respectively (see also\ntable~\\ref{tab:selectionstats}).\n\n\\subsection{DACF - Search for Quasi-Periodic Variability}\nThe DACF is a technique that has frequently been used to determine the\nvariation time-scale of quasi-periodic signals. In particular this\ntechnique is commonly applied in measuring the rotation period of a\nstar from a light curve that exhibits variations due to the rotational\nmodulation of starspots which may be varying in size, intensity,\nposition, or number over time \\citep[e.g.][]{Aigrain.08}. It is not\nobvious, however, that the DACF method provides better period\ndeterminations than Fourier methods such as AoVHarm even in\nquasi-periodic cases. Since even in cases where the coherence\ntime-scale is short compared to the period, the Fourier power spectrum\nshould still have a predominant peak near the period of the star that\ncan be determined in a straightforward fashion, whereas the automatic\nidentification of the predominant variation time-scale from an\nautocorrelation function is non-trivial, as seen below. It is,\ntherefore, with some skepticism that we attempt to use the DACF method\nto identify periods.\n\nFor each light curve we calculate the DACF at time lags ranging from 0\nto 100 days with a step-size of 1 day. The binning time-scale of 1 day\nmeans that we will only be sensitive to variation time-scales $\\ga 2$\ndays. In practice, our peak finding algorithm limits us to periods\n$\\ga 10$ days. A light curve with a significant periodic or\nquasi-periodic signal with a timescale $T$ will have a DACF that peaks\nat $T$, as well as at $2T$, $3T$, $\\ldots$ depending on the coherence\nof the signal.\n\nTo automate the selection of peaks in the DACF we use the following\nroutine (below, $y_{i}$ is the DACF value for time-lag $t_{i}$):\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item Identify connected sets of points $(t_{i},y_{i})$ with $y_{i} >\n 0$.\n\\item Extend the left and right boundaries of each set until a local\n minimum is found in both directions.\n\\item Reject sets with 3 or fewer points, with 0 for the left\n boundary, or with the maximum time-lag computed for the right\n boundary. This leaves $N_{\\rm peak}$ sets of points (peaks) to\n consider.\n\\item Fit a quadratic function $y(t)$ to each of the $N_{\\rm peak}$\n sets.\n\\item Letting $\\chi^{2}_{N - 3}$ and $\\chi^{2}_{N-1}$ be the\n $\\chi^{2}$ values from fitting a quadratic function and a constant\n function respectively to the set, we perform an F-test on the\n statistic\n\\begin{equation}\nf=\\frac{(\\chi^{2}_{N-1} - \\chi^{2}_{N-3})\/2}{\\chi^{2}_{N-3}\/(N-3)}\n\\label{eqn:ftest}\n\\end{equation}\nto determine the significance of the quadratic fit relative to the\nconstant function fit \\citep[see][]{Lupton.93}. For each of the\n$N_{\\rm peak}$ sets we record the time-lag of the peak and its error\nfrom the quadratic fit ($t_{p}$ and $\\sigma t_{p}$), the peak DACF\nvalue and its error ($y_{p}$ and $\\sigma y_{p}$), and the false alarm\nprobability of the fit from the F-test ($Pr_{p}$). Note that this is\nnot the false alarm probability of finding any connected set of points\nin the DACF that is well-fit by a quadratic in a random signal. In\ngeneral, that false alarm probability will be higher.\n\\item Starting from the peak with the shortest time lag $t_{p}$,\n identify the first peak with $Pr_{p} < Pr_{\\rm lim1}$ and $y_{p} >\n y_{\\rm lim}$ or with $Pr_{p} < Pr_{\\rm lim2}$, choose this peak as\n the period for the star. If there is no such peak in the DACF, then\n the star is not selected as a variable by this method. We adopt\n $Pr_{\\rm lim1} = 10^{-4}$; $Pr_{\\rm lim2}$ and $y_{\\rm lim}$ are\n determined independently for each subsample from the\n simulations. For a given subsample we take $Pr_{\\rm lim2}$ and\n $y_{\\rm lim}$ to be the fifth smallest and largest values\n respectively from the simulations (i.e. the 99.5 percentile\n values).\\label{step:DACFlimits}\n\\end{enumerate}\n\nIn Figure~\\ref{fig:AutoCorrpeaks_ymaxvsFAP_vssim} we plot the minimum\n$Pr_{p}$ found in each DACF against the maximum $y_{p}$ found and show\nthe adopted cutoffs. We plot the results from the observed light\ncurves and the simulations for four representative\nsubsamples. Figure~\\ref{fig:ExampleDACF} shows an example of the DACF\nand selected peak for a periodic variable, and for one of the least\nsignificant detections that pass our selection. The un-phased light\ncurves for each of these cases are also presented.\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{0.6}}\n\\plotone{f6.eps}\n\\caption{Minimum false alarm probability $Pr_{p}$ vs. maximum peak\n value $y_{p}$ found in each DACF for 4 representative light curve\n subsamples. On the left column we plot the observed values showing\n the light curves that pass the selection (dark filled points) and\n the light curves that do not pass the selection (grey filled points)\n separately, on the right column we plot the results from the Monte\n Carlo simulation for the corresponding subsample. The lines show the\n adopted $Pr_{p}$\/$y_{p}$ cut-off. Note that the plotted $Pr_{p}$ and\n $y_{p}$ values for a given DACF may not come from the same peak. In\n selecting peaks from the DACF we require that both the $Pr_{p}$ and\n the $y_{p}$ values for a given peak pass the selection. This plot is\n meant only to provide an approximate visualization of the\n selection.}\n\\label{fig:AutoCorrpeaks_ymaxvsFAP_vssim}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\begin{figure*}[!ht]}{\\begin{figure}[t]}\n\\epsscale{1.0}\n\\plotone{f7.eps}\n\\caption{Top: Examples of the DACF for one of the highest significance\n detections of variability (left) and for one of the lowest\n significance detections (right). In each case the dark line shows\n the quadratic fit to the DACF used to determine the period of\n variation. Bottom: Un-phased light curves for the two stars. Note\n that the period for the star on the right is likely half the value\n determined by the peak identification algorithm. In this case the\n peak at $P \\sim 10~{\\rm days}$ did not pass the cut on $Pr_{p}$,\n while the second peak at $P \\sim 20~{\\rm days}$ did. The $P \\sim\n 10~{\\rm days}$ signal is the top peak in the AoV and AoVHarm\n periodograms for this star, however the the S\/N for both\n periodograms is below our selection threshold.}\n\\label{fig:ExampleDACF}\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\end{figure*}}{\\end{figure}}\n\nWe find significant peaks in the DACF for a total of\n\\ensuremath{1491}{} EPD light curves and \\ensuremath{1190}{} TFA light\ncurves. We inspect these by eye to eliminate obvious false alarms\n(typically cases where a light curve shows significant scatter on a\nfew nights, often of several magnitudes or more), we also note whether\nor not the detection appears to be robust and whether or not the\nperiod determination is likely to be accurate. For the EPD light\ncurves we consider \\ensuremath{465}{} of the detections to be\nrobust and with a correct period, \\ensuremath{155}{} to be\nrobust but at the wrong period (typically the detected period is an\ninteger multiple of the likely true period, see for example\nfigure~\\ref{fig:ExampleDACF}), \\ensuremath{534}{} to be non-robust,\nand we reject \\ensuremath{243}{} of the detections as clear false\nalarms. For the TFA light curves the respective numbers are\n\\ensuremath{353}{}, \\ensuremath{154}{},\n\\ensuremath{318}{}, and \\ensuremath{95}{} (see also\ntable~\\ref{tab:selectionstats}). The distinction between a robust and\na non-robust detection is subjective, typically we consider a\ndetection to be robust if the variability in the phased or unphased\nlight curve is obvious to the eye and\/or the DACF shows a set of clear\nregularly spaced peaks. There are some cases where the DACF shows\nclear regularly spaced peaks; however the scatter in the light curve\nappears to correlate with the phase. We consider many of these cases\nto be non-robust (most are light curves from 4K fields with periods\nnear the lunar cycle). We include all non-rejected detections in the\nfinal catalog together with flags indicating the reliability of the\ndetection and the reliability of the period.\n\n\\subsection{BLS - Search for Eclipses}\nThe BLS algorithm, primarily used in searches for transiting planets,\ndetects periodic box-like dips in a light curve. This algorithm may be\nmore sensitive to detached binaries with sharp-featured light curves\nthan the other methods used. For our implementation of the BLS\nalgorithm we search 10,000 frequency points within a period range of\n0.1 to 20.0 days. To search for long period events where the eclipse\nduration may be only a very short fraction of the orbital period, we\nrepeated the search at a higher frequency resolution using 100,000\npoints within a period range of 1.0 to 20.0 days. At each trial\nfrequency we bin the phased light curve into 200 bins, and search over\nfractional eclipse durations ranging from 0.01 to 0.1 in\nphase. Figure~\\ref{fig:BLS_SNvsP} shows the $S\/N$ vs the period for\nthe EPD and TFA light curves. We select \\ensuremath{752}{} stars\nwith $S\/N > 10.0$ and with a period not close to 1 sidereal day or a\nharmonic of a sidereal day as potentially eclipsing systems. We do not\nuse the Monte Carlo simulations to set the selection thresholds for\nthis method because distinguishing between red noise and an eclipse\nsignal by eye is less ambiguous than distinguishing between red noise\nand general periodic or quasi-periodic variability. The selected light\ncurves are inspected by eye to identify eclipsing systems. A total of\n\\ensuremath{89}{} candidate EB systems are found in this manner,\n\\ensuremath{8}{} are found in the EPD light curves only,\n\\ensuremath{29}{} are found in the TFA light curves only, and\n\\ensuremath{52}{} are found in both the EPD and TFA light curves (see\nalso table~\\ref{tab:selectionstats}).\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{0.7}}\n\\plotone{f8_small.eps}\n\\caption{Period vs. S\/N from BLS for EPD and TFA light curves. The\n dark points show light curves that pass the $S\/N > 10.$ cut and do\n not have a period near a sidereal day or one of its harmonics. The\n grey points show light curves that do not pass this cut.}\n\\label{fig:BLS_SNvsP}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\subsection{Search for Flares}\\label{sec:findflares}\n\nAs noted in the introduction, flaring is a common phenomenon among K\nand M dwarfs. While we were inspecting the light curves of candidate\nvariable stars we noticed a number of stars showing significant\nflares. We therefore decided to conduct a systematic search for flare\nevents in the light curves. Most optical stellar flares show a very\nsteep rise typically lasting from a few seconds to several\nminutes. \\citet{Krautter.96} notes that flares can be divided into two\nclasses based on their decay times: ``impulsive'' flares have decay\ntimes of a few minutes, to a few tens of minutes, while ``long-decay''\nflares have decay times of up to a few hours. Due to the 5-minute\nsampling of the HATNet light curves, flares of the former type will\nonly affect one or two observations in a light curve, while flares of\nthe latter type might affect tens of observations. In general it is\nvery difficult to determine whether a given outlier in a light curve\nis due to a flare or bad photometry without inspecting the images from\nwhich an observation was obtained. This is impractical to do for tens\nof thousands of light curves when each light curve may contain tens to\nhundreds of outliers. While observations that are potentially\ncorrupted are flagged, in practice the automated routines that\ngenerate these flags do not catch all cases of bad photometry. We\ntherefore do not attempt to identify individual ``impulsive'' flares\nin the light curves, and instead conduct a statistical study of the\nfrequency of these flares (\\S~\\ref{sec:flares}). Long-decay flares, on\nthe other hand, may be searched for in an automated fashion if a\nfunctional form for the decay is assumed \\citep[this is similar to\n searching for microlensing events, see for example][]{Nataf.09}. To\nsearch for long-decay flares we used the following algorithm:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item Compute $m_{0}$, the median magnitude of the light curve, and\n $\\delta_{0}$ the median deviation from the median.\n\\item Identify all sets of consecutive points with $m - m_{0} <\n -3\\delta_{0}$. Let $t_{0}$ be the time of the brightest observation\n in a given set, and let $N$ be the number of consecutive points\n following and including $t_{0}$ with $m - m_{0} < -2\\delta_{0}$. We\n proceed with the set if $N > 3$.\n\\item\\label{step:fitflare} Use the Levenberg-Marquardt algorithm\n \\citep{Marquardt.63} to fit to the $N$ points a function of the\n form:\n\\begin{equation}\nm(t) = -2.5\\log_{10}\\left( A e^{-(t-t_{0})\/\\tau} + 1\\right) + m_{1}\n\\label{eqn:flare}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $A$, $\\tau$ and $m_{1}$ are the free parameters. Here $A$ is the\npeak intensity of the flare relative to the non-flaring intensity,\n$\\tau$ is the decay timescale, and $m_{1}$ is the magnitude of the\nstar before the flare. For the initial values we take $m_{1} = m_{0}$,\n$\\tau = 0.02~{\\rm days}$, and $A = 10^{-0.4(m_{p} - m_{0})} - 1$,\nwhere $m_{p}$ is the magnitude at the peak.\n\\item\\label{step:Ftestflare} Perform an F-test on the statistic given\n in eq.~\\ref{eqn:ftest} where $\\chi^{2}_{N-3}$ in this case is the\n $\\chi^{2}$ value from fitting eq.~\\ref{eqn:flare}. If the false\n alarm probability is greater than 1\\%, reject the candidate. If not,\n increase the number of points by one and repeat\n step~\\ref{step:fitflare}. Continue as long as the false alarm\n probability decreases.\n\\item We reject any flare candidate for which there are at least two\n other candidate flares from light curves in the same field that\n occur within 0.1 days of the flare candidate.\n\\item Let the number of points with $t< t_{0}$ and $t_{0} - t <\n 0.05~{\\rm days}$ be $N_{\\rm before}$ and the number of points with\n $t > t_{1}$ and $t - t_{1} < 0.05~{\\rm days}$ be $N_{\\rm\n after}$. Here $t_{1}$ is the time of the last observation included\n in the fit. Reject the candidate flare if $N_{\\rm before} < 2$ or\n $N_{\\rm after} < 2$. Also reject the candidate flare if $A < 0.$, $A\n > 10.0$, $\\tau < 0.001~{\\rm days}$, $\\tau > 0.5~{\\rm days}$, $A <\n \\sigma_{A}$, $\\tau < \\sigma_{\\tau}$, or if the false alarm\n probability from step~\\ref{step:Ftestflare} is greater than\n 0.1\\%. Here $\\sigma_{A}$ and $\\sigma_{\\tau}$ are the formal\n uncertainties on $A$ and $\\tau$ respectively. The selection on $A$\n is used to reject numerous light curves with significant outliers\n which appear to be due to artifacts in the data rather than flares.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\nWe apply the above algorithm to the non-composite EPD light curves\n(i.e.~light curves from each field are processed independently for\nstars with light curves from multiple fields). The algorithm is\napplied both on the raw EPD light curves, and on EPD light curves that\nare high-pass filtered by subtracting from each point the median of\nall points that are within 0.1 day of that point. There are a total of\n\\ensuremath{23,589}{} stars with EPD light curves that are analyzed, we\nexclude from the analysis \\ensuremath{4}{} stars from the full\nsample for which only $\\sigma$-clipped TFA light curves are\navailable. A total of \\ensuremath{320}{} candidate flare\nevents from \\ensuremath{281}{} stars are selected. These are\ninspected by eye to yield the final sample of \\ensuremath{64}{} flare\nevents from \\ensuremath{60}{} stars. Figure~\\ref{fig:exampleflares}\nshows two examples of these large-amplitude, long-decay flares. The\nidentified flares have peak intensities that range from $A = 0.09$ to\n$A = 4.21$ and decay time-scales that range from $\\tau = 4$~minutes to\n$\\tau = 1.7$~hours.\n\n\\begin{figure}[]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{1.0}}\n\\plotone{f9.eps}\n\\caption{Two examples of large-amplitude, long-decay flares seen in\n the HATNet light curves. In each case the solid line shows the fit\n of eq.~\\ref{eqn:flare} to the light curve that was done in\n automatically identifying candidate flares.}\n\\label{fig:exampleflares}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\subsection{Comparison of Selection Methods}\\label{sec:comp}\n\nAs seen in Table~\\ref{tab:selectionstats} more stars pass the\nautomatic selections for AoV or for DACF than pass the automatic\nselections for AoVHarm. On the other hand, there are more robust\ndetections found by AoVHarm than by the other methods. The latter\nresult may be due, in part, to a bias toward sinusoidal signals in the\nby-eye selection. However, taking it at face value, it appears that\nthe AoVHarm method is a more robust period-finder for this sample of\nlight curves than either the AoV or the DACF methods. For the\n\\ensuremath{1075}{} TFA light curves that are classified as\nrobust detections during the visual inspections for both the AoV and\nAoVHarm methods, the S\/N for the AoVHarm detection is greater than the\nS\/N for the AoV detection in all but\n\\ensuremath{12}{} cases. This is in line with the\nlong-known fact that Fourier-based period-finding methods generally\nyield higher S\/N detections than phase-binning methods, even in cases\nwhere the signal is non-sinusoidal \\citep{Kovacs.80}.\n\nA direct comparison between the DACF and the AoVHarm or AoV methods is\ndifficult since the selection for DACF is quite different from the\nselections for AoV or AoVHarm. However, it is apparent from\ntable~\\ref{tab:selectionstats} that, at least for our selection\nthresholds, the DACF detections are generally found to be less\nreliable than the AoVHarm or AoV detections. Again there may be a bias\nin the by-eye selection against the types of variables that pass DACF,\nhowever it is also likely that the increased complexity in identifying\na period from the auto-correlation function results in more false\nalarms than are generated by the periodogram-based methods.\n\nAs expected, BLS appears to be the best technique for identifying\neclipsing binaries; \\ensuremath{89}{} out of the \\ensuremath{95}{} potential\neclipsing binaries identified in our survey are selected by BLS,\nincluding \\ensuremath{21}{} that are identified exlusively by BLS. The\nsecond most successful method for identifying EBs is the AoV method\nwhich identified \\ensuremath{70}{} of the \\ensuremath{95}{} potential eclipsing\nbinaries, and exclusively identified \\ensuremath{4}{} of them.\n\n\\section{Variability Blending}\\label{sec:blend}\n\nWhile the wide FOV of the HATNet telescopes allows a significant\nnumber of bright stars to be simultaneously observed, the downside to\nthis design is that the pixel scale is necessarily large, so a given\nlight curve often includes flux contributions from many\nstars. Blending is a particularly significant issue in high stellar\ndensity fields near the Galactic plane. A star blended with a nearby\nvariable star may be incorrectly identified as a variable based on its\nlight curve. If the stars are separated by more than a pixel or two,\nit may be possible to distinguish the real variable from the blend by\ncomparing the amplitudes of their light curves. However, because\nphotometry is only obtained for stars down to a limiting magnitude\n(the value used varies from field to field), in many cases we do not\nhave light curves for all the faint neighbors near a given candidate\nvariable star, so we cannot easily determine which star is the true\nvariable. In these cases we can still give an indication of whether or\nnot a candidate is likely to be a blend by determining the expected\nflux contribution from all neighboring stars to the candidate's light\ncurve.\n\nTo determine whether or not a candidate is blended with a nearby\nvariable star that has a light curve, we measure the peak-to-peak\nlight curve amplitude (in flux) of all stars within 2$\\arcmin$ of the\ncandidate. If any neighbor has an amplitude that is greater than twice\nthe flux amplitude of the candidate, the candidate is flagged as a\nprobable blend. If any neighbor has an amplitude that is between half\nand twice the flux amplitude of the candidate, the candidate is\nflagged as a potential blend. If any neighbor has an amplitude that is\nbetween 10\\% and half the flux amplitude of the candidate, the\ncandidate is flagged as an unlikely blend. And finally we flag the\ncandidate as a non-blend if all neighbors have amplitudes that are\nless than 10\\% that of the candidate. We determine the amplitude of a\nlight curve by fitting to it 10 different Fourier series of the form:\n\\begin{equation}\nm(t) = m_{0} + \\sum_{i=1}^{N}a_{i}\\sin \\left( 2\\pi it\/P + \\phi_{i}\\right)\n\\end{equation}\nwith $N$ ranging from 1 to 10. Here $P$ is the period of the light\ncurve. We perform an F-test to determine the significance of each fit\nrelative to fitting a constant function to the light curve, and choose\nthe amplitude of the Fourier series with the lowest false alarm\nprobability. If the lowest false alarm probability is greater than\n10\\% we set the amplitude to zero. We try all periods identified for\neach candidate by the variability searches described in\n\\S~\\ref{sec:selection}, and adopt the largest amplitude found. For\ncandidates that have light curves from multiple fields, or that have\nboth ISM and AP reductions, we do the amplitude test on each separate\nfield\/reduction and adopt the most significant blending flag found for\nthe candidate. If the amplitude of the candidate variable star is set\nto zero for a given field\/reduction we do not use that field\/reduction\nin determining the blending flag. If this is true for all\nfields\/reductions we flag the candidate as problematic. We use the EPD\nlight curves in doing this test.\n\nTo determine whether or not a candidate is potentially blended with a\nnearby faint variable star that does not have a light curve, we\ncompare the observed amplitude of the candidate to its expected\namplitude if a neighboring star were variable with an intrinsic\namplitude of $1.0~{\\rm mag}$. We assume that an amplitude of $1.0~{\\rm\n mag}$ is roughly the maximum value that one might expect for a short\nperiod variable star. If the measured amplitude is less than the\nexpected amplitude then we flag the candidate as a potential blend, if\nit is greater than the expected amplitude and less than twice the\nexpected amplitude we flag the candidate as an unlikely blend, and if\nit is greater than twice the expected amplitude, we flag it as a\nnon-blend. The test is done for all stars within 2$\\arcmin$ of the\ncandidate that do not have a light curve, and we adopt the most\nsignificant blending flag found for the candidate. To determine the\nexpected amplitude of the candidate star induced by the neighbor, we\nnote that a star with magnitude $m_{1}$ located near a variable star\nwith magnitude $m_{2}$ and amplitude $\\Delta m_{2} > 0$, has an\nexpected light curve amplitude that is given by\n\\begin{eqnarray}\n\\lefteqn{\\Delta m_{1,AP} = 2.5\\log_{10} \\left[ f_{1}10^{-0.4m_{1}} + f_{2}10^{-0.4(m_{2} - \\Delta m_{2})} \\right]} \\nonumber\\\\\n&&\\mbox{} - 2.5\\log_{10} \\left[ f_{1}10^{-0.4m_{1}} + f_{2}10^{-0.4m_{2}} \\right] \\hspace{0.9in}\n\\label{eqn:blendAP}\n\\end{eqnarray}\nfor the case of aperture photometry, and by\n\\begin{eqnarray}\n\\lefteqn{\\Delta m_{1,ISM} = } \\nonumber \\\\\n&&2.5\\log_{10} \\left[ f_{1}10^{-0.4m_{1}} + f_{2}10^{-0.4m_{2}}\\left( 10^{0.4\\Delta m_{2}} - 1\\right) \\right] \\nonumber \\\\\n&&\\mbox{} - 2.5\\log_{10} \\left[ f_{1}10^{-0.4m_{1}} \\right] \\hspace{2.0in}\n\\label{eqn:blendISM}\n\\end{eqnarray}\nfor the case of image subtraction photometry. The two expressions\ndiffer because in the ISM pipeline photometry is done on difference\nimages (only differential flux is summed in the aperture), whereas in\nthe AP pipeline photometry is done directly on the science images (all\nstellar flux is summed in the aperture). Here $f_{1,2}$ is the\nfraction of the flux from star 1(2) that falls within the aperture, and we use the catalog values (transformed from 2MASS) for $m_{1}$ and $m_{2}$. To\ndetermine $f_{1}$ and $f_{2}$ we integrate the intersection between\nthe circular aperture and a Gaussian PSF which we assume to have a\nFWHM of 2 pixels (this is a typical effective ``seeing'' for both\nthe 2K and 4K images), we do not consider pixelation effects in making\nthis estimate. \n\nWe compare the results from the two blending tests for each candidate,\nand adopt the most significant blending flag from among the two tests\nfor the catalog. We do not run the test on the candidate flare stars,\nunless the star was selected as a variable by another method as\nwell. Out of the \\ensuremath{3474}{} stars that are in either the\nfirst or the second catalog, \\ensuremath{936}{} are\nflagged as unblended, \\ensuremath{451}{} are flagged\nas unlikely blends, \\ensuremath{1397}{} are flagged\nas potential blends, \\ensuremath{399}{} are flagged\nas probable blends, and \\ensuremath{291}{} are found to\nhave problematic amplitudes (cases where the amplitude measuring\nalgorithm failed for the star in question).\n\n\\section{Match to Other Catalogs}\\label{sec:match}\n\n\\subsection{Match to Other Variable Star Surveys}\\label{sec:varmatch}\n\nWe match all \\ensuremath{3496}{} stars selected as potential\nvariables to the combined General Catalogue of Variable Stars\n\\citep[GCVS;][]{Samus.06}, the New Catalogue of Suspected Variable\nStars \\citep[NSV;][]{Kholopov.82} and its supplement\n\\citep[NSVS;][]{Kazarovets.98}\\footnote{The GCVS, NSV and NSVS were\n obtained from http:\/\/www.sai.msu.su\/groups\/cluster\/gcvs\/gcvs\/ on\n 2009 April 7}. We also match to the ROTSE catalog of variable stars\n\\citep{Akerlof.00}, to the ALL Sky Automated Survey Catalogue of\nVariable Stars \\citep[ACVS;][]{Pojmanski.02}\\footnote{Version 1.1\n obtained from http:\/\/www.astrouw.edu.pl\/asas\/?page=catalogues}, and\nto the Super-WASP catalogue of periodic variables coincident with\nROSAT X-ray sources \\citep{Norton.07}. In all cases we use a\n$2\\arcmin$ matching radius. We use a large matching radius to include\nmatches to known variables that may be blended with stars in our\nsample. In total \\ensuremath{77}{} of our candidate variables lie within\n$2\\arcmin$ of a source in one of these catalogs, meaning that\n\\ensuremath{3419}{} are new identifications. This includes \\ensuremath{36}{}\nthat match to a source in the GCVS, \\ensuremath{4}{} that match to a\nsource in the NSV, \\ensuremath{7}{} that match to a source in the NSVS,\n\\ensuremath{4}{} that match to a source in the ACVS, \\ensuremath{8}{}\nthat match to a source in the ROTSE catalog (\\ensuremath{4}{} of\nwhich are in the GCVS as well), and \\ensuremath{23}{} that match to a\nSuper-WASP source (\\ensuremath{2}{} of these are in their catalogue\nof previously identified variables). Two of the \\ensuremath{36}{}\ncandidate variables that match to a source in the GCVS\n(HAT-215-0001451 and HAT-215-0001491) actually match to the same\nsource, V1097~Tau, a weak emission-line T~Tauri star. Both stars are\nflagged as probable blends in our catalog, in this case\nHAT-215-0001491 is the correct variable while HAT-215-0001451 is the\nblend.\n\nWe inspect each of the \\ensuremath{77}{} candidates with a potential match\nand find that the match is incorrect for \\ensuremath{39}{} of them and\ncorrect for \\ensuremath{38}{}. For \\ensuremath{23}{} of\nthe \\ensuremath{39}{} incorrect matches the candidate variable is\nflagged as a probable blend in our catalog. In\n\\ensuremath{8}{} cases the candidate variable is flagged\nas a potential blend, in \\ensuremath{4}{} cases it is\nflagged as an unlikely blend, in \\ensuremath{3}{} cases it is\nflagged as unblended, and in \\ensuremath{1}{} case the\namplitude is considered problematic. The match appears to be correct\nfor four of the candidate variables flagged as probable blends. In\naddition to HAT-215-0001491, the stars HAT-239-0000221 and\nHAT-239-0000513 both match correctly to sources in the GCVS. These\nstars form a common proper motion, low mass binary system. Both stars\nare flagged as probable blends in our catalog. Each matches\nseparately, and correctly, to a flare star in the GCVS (V0647~Her and\nV0639~Her respectively). For the NSV-matching probable blend candidate\nHAT-121-0003519 the match may be correct, though the positional\nuncertainty of the NSV source is high. A variable star classification\nis not available for this source.\n\nThe \\ensuremath{16}{} variables that match correctly to a source\nin the GCVS include 4 BY Draconis-type rotational variables, 6 UV\nCeti-type flare stares, 1 INT class Orion variable of the T Tauri\ntype, and 5 eclipsing systems. The EBs include the two W UMa-type\ncontact systems DY CVn and V1104 Her, the two Algol-type systems DK\nCVn and V1001 Cas, and the M3V\/white dwarf EB DE CVn\n\\citep[][]{VanDenBesselaar.07}.\n\n Table~\\ref{tab:cross}, at the end\nof the paper, lists the first ten cross-identifications, the full\ntable is available electronically with the rest of the catalog.\n\n\\subsection{Match to ROSAT}\\label{sec:xray}\n\nWe match all \\ensuremath{3496}{} stars selected as potential\nvariables to the ROSAT All-sky survey source catalog \\citep{Voges.99}\nusing the US National Virtual Observatory catalog matching\nutilities. We use a 3.5$\\sigma$ positional matching criterion. A total\nof \\ensuremath{248}{} of the variables match to an X-ray source,\nincluding \\ensuremath{237}{} stars in our primary catalog of\nperiodic variables, \\ensuremath{14}{} of the EBs, and\n\\ensuremath{24}{} of the \\ensuremath{60}{} flare stars. A few of\nthe variable stars are close neighbors where one is likely to be a\nblend of the other, so there are \\ensuremath{243}{} distinct\nX-ray sources that are matched to. Table~\\ref{tab:xray} at the end of\nthe paper gives the cross-matches. The full table is available\nelectronically with the rest of the catalog. In Section~\\ref{sec:rot}\nwe discuss the X-ray properties of the rotational variables.\n\n\\section{Discussion}\\label{sec:discussion}\n\n\\subsection{Eclipsing Binaries}\\label{sec:eb}\n\nThe \\ensuremath{95}{} stars that we identify as potential EBs have periods\nranging from $P = \\ensuremath{ 0.193}{}~{\\rm days}$ to\n$P=\\ensuremath{24.381}{}~{\\rm days}$. We flag \\ensuremath{11}{} of\nthe candidate EBs as probable blends, \\ensuremath{23}{} as\npotential blends, \\ensuremath{21}{} as unlikely blends,\n\\ensuremath{35}{} as unblended, and \\ensuremath{5}{} as having\nproblematic amplitudes. Figure~\\ref{fig:exampleEBs} shows phased light\ncurves for 12 of the EBs.\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{1.0}}\n\\plotone{f10_small.eps}\n\\caption{Example phased light curves for 12 of the \\ensuremath{95}{} potential EBs found in the survey. The period listed is in days.}\n\\label{fig:exampleEBs}\n\\end{figure}\n\nIn addition to matching the candidate EBs to other variable star\ncatalogs (\\S~\\ref{sec:varmatch}) and to ROSAT (\\S~\\ref{sec:xray}) we\nalso checked for matches to previously studied objects using\nSIMBAD. The following objects had noteworthy matches:\n\\begin{enumerate}\n\\item \\emph{HAT-148-0000574}: matches to the X-ray source 1RXS\n J154727.5+450803, and was previously discovered to be an SB2 system\n by \\citet{Mochnacki.02}, we discuss this system in detail in\n \\S~\\ref{sec:RXJ1547}.\n\\item \\emph{HAT-216-0002918} and \\emph{HAT-216-0003316}: match to CCDM\n J04404+3127A and CCDM J04404+3127B, respectively, which form a\n common proper-motion 15$\\arcsec$ binary system. The two stars are\n both selected as candidate EBs with the same period, and are both\n flagged as potential blends in the catalog; based on a visual\n inspection of the light curves we conclude that the fainter\n component (HAT-216-0003316) is most likely the true $P=2.048~{\\rm\n day}$ EB. The fainter component, which has spectral type M3 on\n SIMBAD, also matches to the X-ray source RX J0440.3+3126.\n\\item \\emph{HAT-127-0008153}: matches to CCDM J03041+4203B, which is\n the fainter component in a common proper-motion $20\\arcsec$ binary\n system. This star is flagged as a potential blend, the brighter\n component appears to match to the X-ray source 1RXS\n J030403.8+420319. Based on a visual inspection of the light curves\n we conclude that HAT-127-0008153 is likely the true variable.\n\\item \\emph{HAT-169-0003847}: is $24\\arcsec$ from the Super-WASP\n variable 1SWASP~J034433.95+395948.0, the two stars are blended in\n the HATNet images, however from a visual inspection of the light\n curves we conclude that HAT-169-0003847 is likely the true variable.\n\\item \\emph{HAT-192-0001841}: is $46\\arcsec$ from a high\n proper-motion, K0 star BD+41~2679. The two stars may be members of a\n common proper-motion binary system (the former has a proper motion\n of $65.79$, $-151.77~{\\rm mas\/yr}$ in RA and DEC respectively, while\n the latter has $89.76$, $-117.14~{\\rm mas\/yr}$).\n\\item \\emph{HAT-169-0003847}: is flagged as an unlikely blend, and we\n confirm that BD+41~2679 is not the true variable.\n\\item \\emph{HAT-193-0008020}: matches to GSC~03063-02208 and has a\n spectral type of M0e listed on SIMBAD \\citep[see also][]{Mason.00}.\n\\item \\emph{HAT-216-0007033}: matches to the X-ray source\n RX~J0436.1+2733 and has spectral type M4 listed on SIMBAD.\n\\item \\emph{HAT-341-0019185}: is $43\\arcsec$ from TYC~1097-291-1, the\n two stars appear to be members of a common proper motion binary\n system. HAT-341-0019185 is flagged as a probable blend in our\n catalog, though it does not appear that TYC~1097-291-1 is the real\n variable.\n\\end{enumerate}\n\n\\subsubsection{The Low-mass EB 1RXS~J154727.5+450803}\\label{sec:RXJ1547}\n\nThe EB HAT-148-0000574 matches to 1RXS J154727.5+450803. Using RV\nobservations obtained with the Cassegrain spectrograph on the David\nDunlap Observatory (DDO) 1.88~m telescope\\footnote{Based on data\n obtained at the David Dunlap Observatory, University of Toronto},\n\\citet{Mochnacki.02} found that this object is a $P=3.54997 \\pm\n0.00005~{\\rm day}$ double-lined spectroscopic binary system with\ncomponent masses $\\ga 0.26~M_{\\odot}$. This system, however, was not\npreviously known to be eclipsing. Here we combine the published RV\ncurves from \\citet{Mochnacki.02} with the HATNet I-band light curve to\nprovide preliminary estimates for the masses and radii of the\ncomponent stars.\n\nFigure~\\ref{fig:RXJ1547lc} shows the EPD HATNet light curve phased at\na period of $P = 3.550018$ days together with a model fit, while\nfigure~\\ref{fig:RXJ1547RV} shows a fit to the radial velocity\nobservations taken from \\citet{Mochnacki.02}. Note the out of eclipse\nvariations in the light curve, presumably due to spots on one or both\nof the components, which indicates that the rotation period of one or\nboth of the stars is tidally locked to the orbital period. Since the\nHATNet light curve is not of high enough quality to measure the radii\nto better than a few percent precision, we do not fit a detailed spot\nmodel to the light curve, and instead simply fit a harmonic series to\nthe out of eclipse observations and then subtract it from the full\nlight curve. We model the light curve using the JKTEBOP program\n\\citep{Southworth.04a,Southworth.04b} which is based on the Eclipsing\nBinary Orbit Program \\citep[EBOP;][]{Popper.81,Etzel.81,Nelson.72},\nbut includes more sophisticated minimization and error analysis\nroutines. We used the DEBiL program \\citep{Devor.05} to measure the\neclipse minimum times from the light curve, which in turn were used\nwith the RV curves to determine the ephemeris. In modeling the RV\ncurves we fix $e = 0$ \\citep[][found $e = 0.008 \\pm\n 0.007$]{Mochnacki.02}, and we fix $k = R_{2}\/R_{1} = 1.0$ in\nmodelling the light curve given $q = 1.00 \\pm 0.02$ from the fit to\nthe RV curves (the light curve is not precise enough to provide a\nmeaningful constraint on $k$). For completeness we note that we\nassumed quadratic limb darkening coefficients of $a = 0.257$, $b =\n0.586$ for both stars \\citep{Claret.00}, which are appropriate for a\n$T_{\\rm eff} = 3000~{\\rm K}$, $\\log g = 4.5$, solar metallicity\nstar. The results are insensitive to the adopted limb darkening\ncoefficients; we also performed the fit using the coefficients\nappropriate for a $T_{\\rm eff} = 4000~{\\rm K}$, $\\log g = 4.5$ star\nand found negligible differences in the resulting parameters and\nuncertainties. The parameters for the system are given in\ntable~\\ref{tab:RXJ1547param}. Note that the $1\\sigma$ errors given on\nthe masses and radii are determined from a Monte Carlo simulation\n\\citep{Southworth.05}. These are likely to be overly optimistic given\nthe inaccurate treatment of the spots, and our assumption that the\ncomponent radii are equal.\n\n\\begin{deluxetable}{lr}\n\\tabletypesize{\\scriptsize}\n\\tablewidth{0pc}\n\\tablecaption{Parameters for the EB 1RXS J154727.5+450803}\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{}{\\tablehead{\n\\colhead{Parameter} & \\colhead{Value}\n}}\n\\startdata\n\\cutinhead{Coordinates and Photometry}\nRA (J2000) & 15:47:27.42\\tablenotemark{a} \\\\\nDEC (J2000) & +45:07:51.39\\tablenotemark{a} \\\\\nProper Motions [mas\/yr] & -259, 200\\tablenotemark{b} \\\\\nJ & $9.082~{\\rm mag}$\\tablenotemark{c} \\\\\nH & $8.463~{\\rm mag}$\\tablenotemark{c} \\\\\nK & $8.215~{\\rm mag}$\\tablenotemark{c} \\\\\n\\cutinhead{Ephemerides}\nP & $3.5500184 \\pm 0.0000018~{\\rm day}$ \\\\\nHJD & $2451232.89534 \\pm 0.00094$ \\\\\n\\cutinhead{Physical Parameters}\n$M_{1}$ & $0.2576 \\pm 0.0085~M_{\\odot}$\\\\\n$M_{2}$ & $0.2585 \\pm 0.0080~M_{\\odot}$\\\\\n$R_{1}=R_{2}$ & $0.2895 \\pm 0.0068~R_{\\odot}$\\\\\n\\cutinhead{RV Fit Parameters}\n$\\gamma$ & $-21.21 \\pm 0.41~{\\rm km\/s}$ \\\\\n$K_{1}$ & $55.98 \\pm 0.76~{\\rm km\/s}$ \\\\\n$K_{2}$ & $55.78 \\pm 0.83~{\\rm km\/s}$ \\\\\n$e$ & 0.0\\tablenotemark{d}\\\\\n\\cutinhead{LC Fit Parameters}\n$J_{2}\/J_{1}$ & $1.0734 \\pm 0.030$ \\\\\n$(R_{1} + R_{2})\/a$ & $0.0737 \\pm 0.0014$ \\\\\n$R_{2}\/R_{1}$ & 1.0\\tablenotemark{e}\\\\\n$i$ & $86.673^{\\circ} \\pm 0.068^{\\circ}$ \\\\\n\\enddata\n\\tablenotetext{a}{SIMBAD}\n\\tablenotetext{b}{PPMX}\n\\tablenotetext{c}{2MASS}\n\\tablenotetext{d}{fixed}\n\\tablenotetext{e}{fixed based on $q = 1.004 \\pm 0.020$ from fitting the RV curves.}\n\\label{tab:RXJ1547param}\n\\end{deluxetable}\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{0.8}}\n\\plotone{f11.eps}\n\\caption{Phased HATNet I-band light curve for the low-mass EB 1RXS J154727.5+450803. The top panel shows the full EPD light curve, the bottom two panels show a model fit to the two eclipses after subtracting a harmonic series fit to the out of eclipse portion of the light curve.}\n\\label{fig:RXJ1547lc}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{1.0}}\n\\plotone{f12.eps}\n\\caption{Circular orbit fit to the RV curves for the low-mass EB 1RXS J154727.5+450803. The observations are taken from \\citet{Mochnacki.02}.}\n\\label{fig:RXJ1547RV}\n\\end{figure}\n\nTable~\\ref{tab:otherEBS} lists the masses and radii of the 4 other\nknown double-lined detached EBs with at least one main sequence\ncomponent that has a mass less than $0.3 M_{\\odot}$. We do not include\nRR Cae which is a white-dwarf\/M-dwarf EB that has presumably undergone\nmass transfer \\citep{Maxted.07}. In figure~\\ref{fig:EBmodelcomp} we\nplot the mass-radius relation for stars in the range $0.15 M_{\\odot} <\nM < 0.3 M_{\\odot}$. Like the components of CM Dra and the secondary of\nGJ~3236, and unlike the components of SDSS-MEB-1 and the secondary of\n2MASSJ04463285+190432, the components of 1RXS J154727.5+450803 have\nradii that are larger than predicted from the \\citet{Baraffe.98}\nisochrones (if the age is $\\ga 200~{\\rm Myr}$). The radii are $\\sim\n10$\\% larger than the predicted radius in the $1.0~{\\rm Gyr}$, solar\nmetallicity isochrone. High precision photometric and spectroscopic\nfollow-up observations, and a more sophisticated analysis of the data\nare need to confirm this.\n\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\begin{deluxetable*}{lrrrrr}}{\\begin{deluxetable}{lrrrrr}}\n\\tabletypesize{\\scriptsize}\n\\tablewidth{0pc}\n\\tablecaption{Other Double-Lined EBs with a very late M dwarf component}\n\\tablehead{\n\\colhead{Name} &\n\\colhead{Period [days]} &\n\\colhead{$M_{1}$ [$M_{\\odot}$]} &\n\\colhead{$M_{2}$ [$M_{\\odot}$]} &\n\\colhead{$R_{1}$ [$R_{\\odot}$]} &\n\\colhead{$R_{2}$ [$R_{\\odot}$]}\n}\n\\startdata\nCM Dra & $1.27$ & $0.2310 \\pm 0.0009$ & $0.2141 \\pm 0.0010$ & $0.2534 \\pm 0.0019$ & $0.2396 \\pm 0.0015$ \\\\\nSDSS-MEB-1 & $0.407$ & $0.272 \\pm 0.020$ & $0.240 \\pm 0.022$ & $0.268 \\pm 0.010$ & $0.248 \\pm 0.009$ \\\\\n2MASSJ04463285+190432 & $0.619$ & $0.47 \\pm 0.05$ & $0.19 \\pm 0.02$ & $0.57 \\pm 0.02$ & $0.21 \\pm 0.01$ \\\\\nGJ~3236 & $0.771$ & $0.376 \\pm 0.016$ & $0.281 \\pm 0.015$ & $0.3795 \\pm 0.0084$ & $0.300 \\pm 0.015$ \\\\\n\\enddata\n\\tablerefs{CM Dra: \\citet{Morales.09}; \\citet{Lacy.77}; \\citet{Metcalfe.96}; SDSS-MEB-1: \\citet{Blake.08}; 2MASSJ04463285+190432: \\citet{Hebb.06}; GJ~3236: the parameters listed for this system are determined by giving equal weight to the three models in \\citet{Irwin.09b}}\n\\label{tab:otherEBS}\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\end{deluxetable*}}{\\end{deluxetable}}\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{1.0}}\n\\plotone{f13.eps}\n\\caption{Mass-radius relation for 7 main sequence stars in\n double-lined DEBs with $M < 0.3 M_{\\odot}$. The two points with the\n smallest error bars are the components of CM Dra, the open circles\n are the components of SDSS-MEB-1, the open square is the secondary\n component of 2MASSJ04463285+190432, the X is the secondary component\n of GJ~3236, and the filled square marks the two components of 1RXS\n J154727.5+450803. The solid line shows the $1.0~{\\rm Gyr}$, solar\n metallicity isochrone from \\citet{Baraffe.98}. Note that the error\n bars for 1RXS~J154727.5+450803 do not incorporate systematic errors\n that may result from not properly modelling the spots or allowing\n the stars to have unequal radii.}\n\\label{fig:EBmodelcomp}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\subsection{Rotational Variables}\\label{sec:rot}\n\nFigure~\\ref{fig:exampleROTlcs} shows example phased light curves for\n12 randomly selected rotational variables found in our survey. For the\nfollowing analysis we only consider stars in our variables catalog\nthat are identified as reliable detections for at least one search\nalgorithm and that are not flagged as probable blends or as having\nproblematic amplitudes. In order of preference, we adopt the AoVHarm\nTFA, AoVHarm EPD, AoV TFA, AoV EPD, DACF TFA or DACF EPD period for\nthe star, choosing the period found by the first method for which the\ndetection is considered secure.\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{0.9}}\n\\plotone{f14_small.eps}\n\\caption{Phased EPD light curves for 12 randomly selected rotational\n variables found in the survey. The period listed is in days. The\n zero-point phase is arbitrary. For this figure we use the period\n found by applying AoVHarm to the TFA light curves.}\n\\label{fig:exampleROTlcs}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\subsubsection{Period-Amplitude Relation}\\label{sec:periodamp}\n\nFor FGK stars there is a well-known anti-correlation between stellar\nactivity measured from emission in the H and K line cores, or from\nH$\\alpha$ emission, and the Rossby number \\citep[$R_{O}$, the ratio of\n the rotation period to the characteristic time scale of convection,\n see][]{Noyes.84}, which saturates for short periods. Similar\nanti-correlations with saturation have been seen between $R_{O}$ and\nthe X-ray to bolometric luminosity ratio \\citep[e.g.][]{Pizzolato.03},\nand between $R_{O}$ and the amplitude of photometric variability\n\\citep[e.g.][]{Messina.01, Hartman.09}. Main sequence stars with $M\n\\la 0.35 M_{\\odot}$ are fully convective \\citep{Chabrier.97}, so one\nmight expect that the rotation-activity relation breaks down, or\nsignificantly changes, at this mass. Despite this expectation, several\nstudies have indicated that the rotation-activity relation (measured\nusing $v \\sin i$ and H$\\alpha$ respectively) continues for late\nM-dwarfs \\citep{Delfosse.98, Mohanty.03, Reiners.07}. Recently,\nhowever, \\citet{West.09} have found that rotation and activity may not\nalways be linked for these stars.\n\nIn figure~\\ref{fig:PeriodvsAmp} we plot the rotation period against\nthe peak-to-peak amplitude for stars in several color bins. The\npeak-to-peak amplitude is calculated for the EPD light curves as\ndescribed in section~\\ref{sec:blend}; for stars observed in multiple\nfields we take the amplitude of the combined light curve. Stars\nwithout an available EPD light curve, or for which the amplitude\nmeasuring algorithm failed, are not included in the plot. A total of\n\\ensuremath{1525}{} stars are included in the plot. For stars\nwith $V-K_{S} < 5.0$ (corresponding roughly to $M \\ga 0.25 M_{\\odot}$)\nthe photometric amplitude and the period are anti-correlated at high\nsignificance. There appears to be a cut-off period, such that the\nperiod and amplitude are uncorrelated for stars with periods shorter\nthan the cut-off, and are anti-correlated for stars with periods\nlonger than the cut-off. In other words, the relations are saturated\nbelow a critical rotation period. \\citet{Hartman.09} find a saturation\nthreshold of $R_{O} = 0.31$, which for a $0.6~M_{\\odot}$ star\ncorresponds to a period of $\\sim 8~{\\rm days}$ \\citep[assuming\n $(B-V)_{0} = 1.32$ for stars of this mass, and using the empirical\n relation between the convective time scale and $(B-V)_{0}$\n from][]{Noyes.84}. This is consistent with what we find for the\nbluest stars in our sample. For stars with $V-K_{S} > 5.0$ ($M \\la\n0.25~M_{\\odot}$), the period and amplitude are not significantly\ncorrelated, at least for periods $\\la 30~{\\rm days}$. This result\nsuggests that the distribution of starspots on late M dwarfs is\nuncorrelated with rotation period over a large period range, and is\nperhaps at odds with H$\\alpha$\/$v \\sin i$ studies which indicate a\ndrop in activity for very late M-dwarf stars with $v \\sin i \\la\n10~{\\rm km\/s}$ \\citep[e.g.][]{Mohanty.03}.\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{0.8}}\n\\plotone{f15.eps}\n\\caption{Rotation period vs. peak-to-peak photometric amplitude for\n \\ensuremath{1525}{} stars. We divide the sample into 4 bins\n by $V-K_{S}$ color, corresponding roughly to $M \\ga 0.6 M_{\\odot}$,\n $0.5 M_{\\odot} \\la M \\la 0.6 M_{\\odot}$, $0.25 M_{\\odot} \\la M \\la\n 0.5 M_{\\odot}$, and $M \\la 0.25 M_{\\odot}$, from blue to red. We\n also list the Spearman rank-order correlation coefficient and the\n statistical significance of the correlation for each sample (note\n that negative values of $r_{S}$ imply that the period and amplitude\n are anti-correlated). For stars with $V-K_{S} < 5.0$ the period and\n peak-to-peak amplitude are anti-correlate with high\n significance. The relation appears to be saturated for periods $\\la\n 5~{\\rm days}$, with hints that the saturation period increases for\n decreasing stellar mass. For stars with $V-K_{S} > 5.0$ ($M \\la 0.25\n M_{\\odot}$), the period and amplitude are not significantly\n correlated for $P \\la 30~{\\rm days}$.}\n\\label{fig:PeriodvsAmp}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\subsubsection{Period-Color\/Period-Mass Relation}\n\nIn figure~\\ref{fig:VarColorHist} we compare the distribution of\n$V-K_{S}$ colors for periodic variables to the distribution for all\nstars in the sample. We also show the fraction of stars that are\nvariable with peak-to-peak amplitudes greater than 0.01 mag as a\nfunction of $V-K_{S}$.\n\nThe plotted relation has been corrected for completeness by conducting\nsinusoid injection\/recovery simulations to estimate our detection\nefficiency. In conducting these tests we divide the sample into 90\nperiod\/amplitude\/color bins. We use color bins of $2.0 < V-K_{S} <\n3.5$, $3.5 < V-K_{S} < 4.0$, $4.0 < V-K_{S} < 4.5$, $4.5 < V-K_{S} <\n5.0$ and $5.0 < V-K_{S} < 6.0$, three period bins of 0.1-1~day,\n1-10~days, and 10-100~days, and 5 amplitude bins logarithmically\nspanning 0.01 to 1.0 mag. While ideally a much finer grid would be\nused for these simulations, we were limited by computational resources\nto this fairly coarse sampling. For each bin we randomly select 1000\nstars with the appropriate color (for color bins with fewer than 1000\nstars we select with replacement). For each selected star we then\nchoose a random period and amplitude drawn from uniform-log\ndistributions over the bin and inject a sine curve with that\nperiod\/amplitude and a random phase into the light curve of the\nstar. If both EPD and TFA light curves are available for the star we\ninject the same signal into both light curves. We do not reduce the\namplitude for the injection into the TFA light curve, this may cause\nus to slightly overestimate our detection efficiency. If the star was\nidentified as a variable or a potential variable by our survey, we\nfirst remove the true variable signal from the light curve by fitting\na harmonic series to the phased light curve before injecting the\nsimulated signal. We then process the simulated signals through the\nAoV, AoVHarm and DACF algorithms using the same selection parameters\nas used for selecting the real variables. We do not apply by-eye\nselections on the simulated light curves, so our detection efficiency\nmay be overestimated (particularly for longer period stars where the\nby-eye selection tended to be stricter than the automatic cuts). To\nget the completeness corrected variability fraction we weight each\nreal detected variable by $1\/f$ where $f$ is the fraction of simulated\nsignals that are recovered for the period\/amplitude\/color bin that the\nreal variable falls in. We find that we are roughly $\\sim 80\\%$\ncomplete over our sample of stars for peak-to-peak amplitudes greater\nthan 0.01 mag and periods between 0.1 and 100 days. Considering the\nrecovery fraction separately for each variability method, we find that\n$\\sim 91\\%$ of the simulations are recovered by AoVHarm, and in $\\sim\n97\\%$ of the recovered simulations the recovered frequency is within\n$0.001~{\\rm day}^{-1}$ of the injected frequency. For AoV we again\nfind that $\\sim 91\\%$ of the simulations are recovered, but that\nfraction of recovered simulations where the recovered frequency is\nwithin $0.001~{\\rm day}^{-1}$ of the injected frequency is $\\sim 93\\%$\nin this case. For the DACF method we find that only $\\sim 34\\%$ of the\nsimulations are recovered, although if we consider only simulations\nwhere the injected period is greater than 10 days the fraction of\nsimulations that are recovered by DACF is then $\\sim 81\\%$. The\nfraction of these latter recoveries for which the recovered frequency\nis within $0.001~{\\rm day}^{-1}$ of the injected frequency is only\n$\\sim 51\\%$ in this case, however. For the simulations the recovery\nfrequency is relatively insensitive to the period and color and\ndepends most significantly on the amplitude. For amplitudes between\n0.01 mag and 0.022 mag the recovery fraction is $\\sim 65\\%$, whereas\nfor amplitudes above 0.05 mag the recovery fraction is $\\sim\n90\\%$. Above 0.05 mag the recovery fraction is independent of\namplitude. As noted above, the estimated completeness of $\\sim 80\\%$\nis likely to be overly optimistic since we do not include the by-eye\nselection, do not account for the reduction in signal amplitude by TFA\nand use relatively ``easy-to-find'' sinusoid signals. Nonetheless we\nexpect that the recovery frequency is $\\ga 70\\%$.\n\nAs seen in figure~\\ref{fig:VarColorHist} the fraction of stars that\nare detected as variables increases steeply with decreasing stellar\nmass. While only $\\sim 3\\%$ of stars with $M \\ga 0.7~M_{\\odot}$ are\nfound to be variable, approximately half of the stars with $M \\la\n0.2~M_{\\odot}$ are detected as variables with peak-to-peak amplitudes\n$\\ga 0.01~{\\rm mag}$ (fig.~\\ref{fig:PeriodvsAmp}). We find that an\nexponential relation of the form\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:fracvar}\n{\\rm Var.~Frac.} = (0.0034 \\pm 0.0008) e^{(0.84 \\pm 0.06)(V-K_{S})}\n\\end{equation}\nfits the observed relation over the color range $2.0 < V-K_{S} < 6.0$.\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{0.4}}\n\\plotone{f16.eps}\n\\caption{Top: The distribution of $V-K_{S}$ colors for the\n \\ensuremath{1849}{} stars in our catalog of periodic variables\n that are flagged as being secure detections for at least one\n detection method and are not flagged as probable blends or as having\n problematic amplitudes, compared to the distribution of $V-K_{S}$\n colors for all \\ensuremath{27,560}{} stars in the sample. On the top axis\n we show the corresponding main sequence stellar masses determined by\n combining the empirical $V-K_{S}$ vs. $M_{K}$ main-sequence for\n stars in the Solar neighborhood given by \\citet{Johnson.09} with the\n mass-$M_{K}$ relation from the \\citet{Baraffe.98} 4.5~Gyr,\n solar-metallicity isochrone with $L_{\\rm mix} = 1.0$. We used the\n relations from \\citet{Carpenter.01} to convert the CIT $K$\n magnitudes from the isochrones into the 2MASS system. The\n distribution for variable stars is biased toward redder $V-K_{S}$\n colors relative to the distribution for all stars. The decrease in\n the total number of stars in the sample red-ward of $V-K_{S} \\sim\n 3.5$ is due to the $V$-band magnitude limit of the PPMX\n survey. Bottom: The completeness corrected fraction of stars that\n are variable with peak-to-peak $R$ or $I_{C}$ amplitude $>0.01$~mag\n as a function of $V-K_{S}$; this fraction increases exponentially\n with color (solid line, eq.~\\ref{eq:fracvar}). While only $\\sim 3\\%$\n of stars with $M \\ga 0.7~M_{\\odot}$ are found to be variable at the\n $\\ga 1\\%$ level, approximately half of the stars with $M \\la\n 0.2~M_{\\odot}$ are variable at this level.}\n\\label{fig:VarColorHist}\n\\end{figure}\n\nIn figure~\\ref{fig:PeriodDist} we show the relation between period and\ncolor. For stars with $V-K_{S} \\la 4.5$ the measured distribution of\n$\\log P$ is peaked at $\\sim 20~{\\rm days}$ with a broad tail toward\nshorter periods and a more rapid drop-off for longer periods. Note\nthat the cut-off for longer periods may be due to the correlation\nbetween period and amplitude for these stars; stars with periods\nlonger than $\\sim 20~{\\rm days}$ may be harder to detect and not\nintrinsically rare. The peak of the distribution appears to be\ncorrelated with color such that redder stars are found more commonly\nat longer periods than bluer stars. For stars with $V-K_{S} \\ga 4.5$\nthe distribution changes significantly such that the $\\log P$\ndistribution appears to be more or less flat between $\\sim 0.3$ and\n$\\sim 10~{\\rm days}$, while red stars with $P \\ga 10~{\\rm days}$ are\nuncommon. The morphology is broadly consistent with what has been seen\nfrom other surveys.\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{0.5}}\n\\plotone{f17.eps}\n\\caption{Top: Period vs. $V-K_{S}$ for\n \\ensuremath{1785}{} stars in our catalog of periodic\n variables that are flagged as being secure detections for at least\n one detection method, are not flagged as having incorrect period\n determinations for that method, and are not flagged as probable\n blends or as having problematic amplitudes. There appears to be a\n paucity of stars with $P > 10~{\\rm days}$ and $V-K_{S} > 4.5$ or $V\n - K_{S} < 3$. Bottom: The distributions of periods are shown for\n four color bins. For the three bluest color bins there appears to be\n a correlation between period and color, such that the mode period is\n longer for redder stars. For stars with $V-K_{S} \\ga 4.5$, on the\n other hand, the period distribution appears to be biased to shorter\n periods. Using a K-S test, we find that the probability that the\n stars in any two of the different color bins are drawn from the same\n distribution is less than $0.01\\%$ for all combinations except the\n for the combination of the two intermediate color bins. For that\n combination the probability is $\\sim 0.7\\%$.}\n\\label{fig:PeriodDist}\n\\end{figure}\n\nTo demonstrate this, in Figure~\\ref{fig:PeriodMassComp} we compare the\nmass-period distribution for stars in our survey to the results from\nother surveys of field stars and open clusters. We choose to use mass\nfor the comparison rather than observed colors because a consistent\nset of colors is not available for all surveys. The masses for stars\nin our survey are estimated from their $V-K_{S}$ colors (see\nFig.~\\ref{fig:VarColorHist}). We take data from the Mount Wilson and\nVienna-KPNO \\citep{Strassmeier.00} samples of field stars with\nrotation periods. For the Mount Wilson sample we use the compilation\nby \\citet{Barnes.07}, the original data comes from \\citet{Baliunas.96}\nand from \\citet{Noyes.84}. For the Vienna-KPNO sample we only consider\nstars which are listed as luminosity class V. We estimate the masses\nfor stars in these samples using the same $V-K_{S}$ to mass conversion\nthat we use for our own sample. The $V$ and $K_{S}$ magnitudes for\nthese field stars are taken from SIMBAD where available. We also\ncompare our sample to four open clusters with ages between $100 -\n200$~Myr, including M35 \\citep[$\\sim 180~{\\rm Myr}$;][]{Meibom.09},\nand three clusters observed by the MONITOR project: M50 \\citep[$\\sim\n 130~{\\rm Myr}$;][]{Irwin.09a}, NGC~2516 \\citep[$\\sim 150~{\\rm\n Myr}$;][]{Irwin.07}, and M34 \\citep[$\\sim 200~{\\rm\n Myr}$;][]{Irwin.06}. Finally, we compare our sample to the two\noldest open clusters with significant samples of rotation periods: M37\n\\citep[$\\sim 550~{\\rm Myr}$;][]{Hartman.09}, and the Hyades\n\\citep[$\\sim 625~{\\rm Myr}$;][]{Radick.87,Radick.95,Prosser.95}. For\nthe MONITOR clusters we use the mass estimates given in their papers,\nthese are based on the $I_{C}$-mass relation from the appropriate\n\\citet{Baraffe.98} isochrone for the age\/metallicity of each\ncluster. For M35, M37 and the Hyades we use the mass estimates derived\nfrom the $V,I_{C}$-mass relations from the appropriate YREC\n\\citep{An.07} isochrones for each cluster. For M35 we only include 214\nstars from the \\citet{Meibom.09} catalog that lie near the main\nsequence in $V$, $B$ and $I_{C}$, and we exclude any stars which have\na proper motion membership probability less than $80\\%$, or an RV\nmembership probability less than $80\\%$ as determined by\n\\citet{Meibom.09}. We expect that the stars in our sample, and in the\nother field star samples, have a range of ages, but on average will be\nolder than the stars in the open clusters.\n\nThe sample of stars with rotation periods presented here is\nsubstantially richer than is available for other surveys of field\nstars. This is especially the case for later spectral types. The\nMt.~Wilson and Vienna-KPNO surveys primarily targeted G and early K\nstars, so there is not much overlap in stellar mass between those\nsamples and our sample. The few Mt.~Wilson stars with estimated masses\n$\\la 0.8~M_{\\odot}$ do show an anti-correlation between mass and\nperiod, and have periods that are longer than the majority of stars in\nour sample. The Vienna-KPNO stars, on the other hand, have periods\nthat cluster around $\\sim 10~{\\rm days}$, which is closer to the mode\nof the period distribution for stars of comparable mass in our\nsample. Since the Vienna-KPNO stars were selected as showing\nspectroscopic evidence for chromospheric activity before their periods\nwere measured photometrically, this sample is presumably more biased\nto shorter period active stars than the Mt.~Wilson sample. Given the\ncorrelation between photometric amplitude and rotation period, we\nwould also expect our sample to be biased toward shorter period stars\nrelative to the Mt.~Wilson sample. When compared to the open cluster\nsamples we see clear evidence for evolution in the rotation periods of\nlow-mass stars. Stars in the younger clusters have shorter periods at\na given mass, on average, than stars in our sample. The discrepancy\nbecomes more apparent for stars with $M \\la 0.5~M_{\\odot}$ for which\nthe period and mass appear to be positively correlated in the young\ncluster samples while they are anti-correlated in our sample. Looking\nat the $\\sim 600~{\\rm Myr}$ clusters, again the periods of stars in\nour sample are longer at a given mass, on average, than the periods of\nthe cluster stars, however in this case the mode of the period\ndistribution for the cluster stars appears to be closer to the mode of\nthe period distribution for our sample than it is for the younger\nclusters. The lowest mass stars in the older clusters also do not show\nas significant a correlation between mass and period as do the lowest\nmass stars in the younger clusters. For stars with $M \\la\n0.3~M_{\\odot}$ the available field star and older open cluster samples\nare too sparse to draw any conclusions from when comparing to our\nsample. For the younger clusters, we note that the distribution of\nperiods for the lowest mass stars is even more strongly peaked toward\nshort periods than it is in our sample. This suggests that these stars\ndo lose angular momentum over time, despite not having a tachocline. A\nmore detailed comparison of these data to models of stellar angular\nmomentum evolution is beyond the scope of this paper.\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{0.4}}\n\\plotone{f18.eps}\n\\caption{A comparison of the mass-period distribution for stars in our\n survey to the results from other surveys. See the text for a\n description of the data sources. For clarity we make the comparison\n separately for field stars, open clusters with $100~{\\rm Myr} < t <\n 500~{\\rm Myr}$ and for two open clusters with $t \\sim 600~{\\rm\n Myr}$. The rotation periods of stars in our sample at a given mass\n appear to be longer, on average, than the periods of stars in the\n open clusters, this is true across all mass ranges covered by our\n survey. The rotation periods from the Vienna-KPNO survey appear to\n be comparable, at a given mass, to the periods of stars in our\n sample, while the periods from the Mt.~Wilson survey appear to be\n generally longer than the periods from our survey. It is likely that\n our survey and the Vienna-KPNO surveys are biased toward\n high-activity, shorter period stars than the Mt.~Wilson survey is.}\n\\label{fig:PeriodMassComp}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\subsubsection{Period-X-ray Relation}\n\nFigure~\\ref{fig:XrayFractionvsPeriod} shows the fraction of variables\nthat match to an X-ray source as a function of period. This fraction\nis constant at $\\sim 22\\%$ for periods less than $\\sim$4 days, for\nlonger periods the fraction that matches to an X-ray source decreases\nas $\\sim P^{-0.8}$. Following \\citet{Agueros.09} we calculate the\nratio of X-ray to J-band flux via\n\\begin{equation}\n\\log_{10} (f_{X} \/ f_{J}) = \\log_{10}f_{X} + 0.4J + 6.30\n\\end{equation}\nwhere 1 count s$^{-1}$ in the 0.1-2.4 keV energy range is assumed to\ncorrespond on average to $f_{X} = 10^{-11}$ erg cm$^{-2}$ s$^{-1}$. In\nfigure~\\ref{fig:logfxfjvsperiod} we plot the flux ratio as a function\nof rotation period for samples of variables separated by their $V -\nK_{S}$ color. The X-ray flux is anti-correlated with the rotation\nperiod for stars with $M \\ga 0.25 M_{\\odot}$, for stars with $M \\la\n0.25 M_{\\odot}$ there is still a hint of an anti-correlation, though\nit is of low statistical significance (the false alarm probability is\n$\\sim 20\\%$). This result is similar to what we found for the\nphotometric amplitude-period relation.\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{1.0}}\n\\plotone{f19.eps}\n\\caption{The fraction of non-EB periodic variable stars that match to\n a ROSAT source as a function of rotation period. The errorbars for\n the 3 longest period bins show 1$\\sigma$ upper-limits. For stars\n with rotation periods less than $\\sim$4 days the fraction that\n matches to an X-ray source is constant at $\\sim 22\\%$, for longer\n periods the fraction decreases as $\\sim P^{-0.8}$.}\n\\label{fig:XrayFractionvsPeriod}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{1.0}}\n\\plotone{f20.eps}\n\\caption{The ratio of 0.1-2.4 keV X-ray flux to $J$-band near infrared\n flux vs. the rotation period for non-EB periodic variable stars that\n match to a ROSAT source. We divide the sample into the same 4 color\n bins used in fig.~\\ref{fig:PeriodvsAmp}. We also list the Spearman\n rank-order correlation coefficient and the statistical significance\n of the correlation for each sample. The X-ray flux is\n anti-correlated with the rotation period at high significance for\n stars with $V - K_{S} < 5.0$. For stars with $V - K_{S} > 5.0$ ($M\n \\la 0.25 M_{\\odot}$) there is still a hint of an anti-correlation,\n though it is of low statistical significance.}\n\\label{fig:logfxfjvsperiod}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\subsection{Flares}\\label{sec:flares}\n\nIn Section~\\ref{sec:findflares} we conducted a search for\nlarge-amplitude long-duration flares, finding only \\ensuremath{64}{}\nevents in \\ensuremath{60}{} out of \\ensuremath{23,589}{} stars with EPD\nlight curves that were analyzed. There are likely to be many more\nflare events that have been observed but which cannot be easily\ndistinguished from non-Gaussian noise in an automated fashion. The\npresence of these flares may, however, be identified statistically by\nlooking for an excess of bright outliers relative to faint outliers in\nthe light curves that correlates with other observables, such as the\nrotation period. For each light curve we determine the excess fraction\nof bright $n$-$\\delta$ outliers via\n\\begin{equation}\nf_{n} = \\frac{N_{n,-} - N_{n,+}}{N_{\\rm tot}}\n\\label{eqn:excessbright}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $N_{n,-}$ is the number of points in the light curve with $m -\nm_{0} < -n\\delta$, $N_{n,+}$ is the number of points with $m - m_{0} >\nn\\delta$, $m_{0}$ is the median of the light curve, $\\delta$ is the\nmedian value of $|m - m_{0}|$, and there are $N_{\\rm tot}$ points in\nthe light curve. We do this for $n = 3$, 5 and 10. Before calculating\n$f_{n}$ we high-pass filter the light curve by subtracting from\neach point the median of all points that are within 0.1 day of that\npoint.\n\nIt is a well known fact that the distribution of magnitudes in the\nlight curve of a faint star is skewed about the median toward faint\nvalues. As such we expect $f_{n}$ to be less than zero and to decrease\nfor fainter stars. Figure~\\ref{fig:RMSvsexcess} shows the excess\nfraction of bright outliers as a function of the light curve scatter\nfor the high-pass filtered light curves. We compare the observed\nrelation to the relation obtained for a simulated set of light curves\ngenerated using Poisson noise for the flux from the star, the sky and\nthe sky annulus. We simulate one light curve for each observed light\ncurve, using the observed sky fluxes and extinctions to determine the\nexpected sky flux and star flux for each point in each light curve. We\nfind that the median relation between the excess fraction of bright\noutliers and the light curve scatter is consistent with the expected\nrelation; however there is greater scatter about this relation than\nexpected from our idealized noise model. It is unclear whether other\nsources of noise, such as systematic variations due to blending,\nflat-fielding errors, pixelation effects, etc., will yield a skewed\ndistribution of magnitude values, and if so, in which direction the\nmagnitude distribution will be skewed. It is unlikely, however, that\nthis would be correlated with parameters such as the rotation\nperiod. Therefore, if a correlation is observed between rotation\nperiod and the excess fraction of bright outliers, then it is likely\nto be physical.\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{0.8}}\n\\plotone{f21_small.eps}\n\\caption{The excess fraction of bright $5\\delta$ outliers vs. the\n light curve scatter $\\delta$, shown for the $\\sim$27,000 observed\n light curves (top) and for a simulated sample of light curves\n (bottom). The dark points with the error bars show the median values\n of $f_{5}$ for the observed light curves, the solid line shows a\n power-law fit to the median values for the observed light curve,\n while the dashed line shows a power-law fit to the median values for\n the simulations.}\n\\label{fig:RMSvsexcess}\n\\end{figure}\n\nIn figure~\\ref{fig:ExcessvsPeriod} we plot the median excess fraction\nof bright 5-$\\delta$ and 10-$\\delta$ outliers as a function of period\nfor stars in our variables catalog that are identified as reliable\ndetections for at least one search algorithm, and that are not flagged\nas probable blends or as having problematic amplitudes. In order of\npreference, we adopt the AoVHarm TFA, AoVHarm EPD, AoV TFA, AoV EPD,\nDACF TFA or DACF EPD period for the star. There appears to be a slight\nanti-correlation between period and excess fraction of bright\n5-$\\delta$ outliers such that stars with short periods ($< 10~{\\rm\n days})$ have slightly more bright 5-$\\delta$ outliers than faint\n5-$\\delta$ outliers compared to the median, while stars with long\nperiods ($> 10~{\\rm days}$) have slightly fewer compared to the\nmedian. A Spearman rank-order correlation test rejects the null\nhypothesis that the excess fraction is not anti-correlated with the\nperiod at $99.92\\%$ confidence. For 10-$\\delta$ outliers, the excess\nfraction of bright outliers also appears to be anti-correlated with\nthe period, though at lower significance ($99.5\\%$).\n\nIn figure~\\ref{fig:ExcessvsPeriod} we also compare the distribution of\nperiods for stars with detected large-amplitude long-duration flares\nto the distribution for stars without such flare detections. A total\nof \\ensuremath{31}{} of the\n\\ensuremath{60}{} flare stars have a robust period determination and\nare not flagged as a probable blend. The period detection frequency of\n$\\sim 50\\%$ for flare stars is significantly higher than that for all\nother stars ($\\la 7\\%$). This result is expected if stellar flaring is\nassociated with the large starspots that give rise to continuous\nphotometric variations. As seen in figure~\\ref{fig:ExcessvsPeriod},\nthe distribution of periods for flare stars is concentrated toward\nshorter periods than the distribution for non-flare stars. The longest\nperiod found for a flare star is 18.2 days whereas 31\\% of the\nnon-flare stars with period determinations have periods greater than\n18.2 days. Conducting a K-S test we find that the probability that the\ntwo samples are drawn from the same distribution is less than\n$10^{-6}$.\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{0.4}}\n\\plotone{f22.eps}\n\\caption{Top: The median excess fraction of bright $5\\delta$ outliers\n and $10\\delta$ outliers vs. period for stars in our variables\n catalog that are identified as reliable detections for at least one\n search algorithm, and that are not flagged as probable blends or as\n having problematic amplitudes. In computing the excess fraction for\n each light curve we subtract the median excess fraction for the\n light curve scatter (fig.~\\ref{fig:RMSvsexcess}). Center: The median\n rank of the excess fraction of bright $5\\delta$ and $10\\delta$\n outliers vs. the rank period. The anti-correlation between period\n and the excess fraction of bright outliers is more apparent when the\n ranks, rather than the values, are plotted against each\n other. Bottom: Comparison between the period distributions for stars\n with detected large-amplitude long-duration flares, and stars\n without such a flare detected. Note the absence of long-period stars\n with flares. For clarity we have multiplied the flare star period\n distribution by a factor of 10.}\n\\label{fig:ExcessvsPeriod}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\begin{figure}[!ht]\n\\ifthenelse{\\boolean{emulateapj}}{\\epsscale{1.2}}{\\epsscale{0.6}}\n\\plotone{f23.eps}\n\\caption{Top: The distribution of $V-K_{S}$ colors for the \\ensuremath{60}{} stars\n with high amplitude flares detected compared to the distribution of\n $V-K_{S}$ colors for all \\ensuremath{27,560}{} stars in the sample. The\n distribution for flares stars is biased toward redder $V-K_{S}$\n colors relative to the distribution for all stars. Note that we use\n a 5 times higher binning resolution for the full sample. Bottom:\n The fraction of stars with a high amplitude flare detection is\n plotted against $V-K_{S}$. For stars with $V-K_{S} < 4.0$ less than\n $\\sim 0.1\\%$ of stars had a flare detected, for stars with $V-K_{S}\n > 4.5$ the fraction is $\\ga 1\\%$.}\n\\label{fig:FlareColor}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\section{Conclusion}\\label{sec:conclusion}\n\nIn this paper we have presented the results of a variability survey\nconducted with HATNet of field K and M dwarfs selected by color and\nproper motion. We used a variety of variability selection techniques\nto identify periodic and quasi-periodic variables, and have also\nconducted a search for large amplitude, long-duration flare events. We\nconducted Monte Carlo simulations of light curves with realistic noise\nproperties to aid in setting the selection thresholds. Out of a total\nsample of \\ensuremath{27,560}{} stars we selected \\ensuremath{3496}{} that\nshow potential variability, including \\ensuremath{95}{} that show eclipses in\ntheir light curves, and \\ensuremath{60}{} that show flares. We\ninspected all automatically selected light curves by eye, and flagged\n\\ensuremath{2321}{} stars (including those with flares) as being\nsecure variability detections. Because the HATNet images have poor\nspatial resolution, variability blending is a significant problem. We\ntherefore implemented an automated routine to classify selected\nnon-flare variables as probable blends, potential blends, unlikely\nblends, unblended or as having problematic amplitudes. Altogether we\nfound \\ensuremath{1928}{} variables that are classified as\nsecure detections and are not classified as probable blends or as\nhaving problematic amplitudes (cases where the best-fit Fourier series\nto the light curve has a flase alarm probability greater than\n10\\%). This includes \\ensuremath{79}{} stars that show eclipses in\ntheir light curves. We identified \\ensuremath{64}{} flare events in\n\\ensuremath{60}{} stars, \\ensuremath{38}{} of these stars are\nalso selected as potential periodic or quasi-periodic variables\n(\\ensuremath{37}{} are considered reliable detections, of\nwhich \\ensuremath{36}{} have reliable period\ndeterminations and \\ensuremath{31}{} have\nreliable period determinations and are not flagged as probable blends\nare as having problematic amplitude determinations). We matched the\nsample of potential variables to other catalogs, and found that\n\\ensuremath{77}{} lie within $2\\arcmin$ of a previously identified variable,\nwhile \\ensuremath{3419}{} do not. Including only flare stars and variables\nthat are classified as secure detections and are not classified as\nprobable blends or as having problematic amplitudes,\n\\ensuremath{43}{} (including\n\\ensuremath{7}{} EBs) lie within $2\\arcmin$ of a previously\nidentified variable, so that \\ensuremath{1885}{}\nare new identifications.\n\nOne of the eclipsing binaries that we identified is the previously\nknown SB2 system 1RXS~J154727.5+450803. By combining the published RV\ncurves for the component stars with the HATNet $I$~band light curve,\nwe obtained initial estimates for the masses and radii of the\ncomponent stars (Tab.~\\ref{tab:RXJ1547param}). The system is one of\nonly a handful of known double-lined eclipsing binaries with component\nmasses less than $0.3~M_{\\odot}$. While we caution that the errors on\nthe component radii are likely to be underestimated due to systematic\nerrors that have not been considered in this preliminary analysis, it\nis interesting that the radii do appear to be larger than predicted if\nthe system is older than $\\sim 200~{\\rm Myr}$. With a magnitude $V\n\\sim 13.4$, this system is only slightly fainter than the well-studied\nbinary CM Dra ($V \\sim 12.90$) which has been the anchor of the\nempirical mass-radius relation for very late M\ndwarfs. 1RXS~J154727.5+450803 is thus a promising target for more\ndetailed follow-up to obtain high precision measurements of the\nfundamental parameters of the component stars. With additional\nfollow-up, the large sample of \\ensuremath{79}{} probable late-type eclipsing\nbinaries presented in this paper should prove fruitful for further\ninvestigations of the fundamental parameters of low-mass stars.\n\nThe majority of the variable stars that we have identified are likely\nto be BY~Dra type variables, with the measured period corresponding to\nthe rotation period of the star. This is the largest sample of\nrotation periods presented to date for late-type field stars. We\ndiscussed a number of broad trends seen in the data, including an\nanti-correlation between the rotation period and the photometric\namplitude of variability, an exponential relation between $V-K_{S}$\ncolor and the fraction of stars that are variable, a positive\ncorrelation between period and the $V-K_{S}$ color for stars with $V -\nK_{S} \\la 4.5$, a relative absence of stars with $P \\ga 10.0~{\\rm\n days}$ and $V - K_{S} \\ga 4.5$, and an anti-correlation between the\nrotation period and the ratio of X-ray to $J$~band flux. The\ncorrelations between period and activity indicators including the\namplitude of photometric variability and the X-ray emission are\nconsistent with the well-known rotation-age-activity-mass relations\nfor F, G, K and early M dwarfs. The data presented here may help in\nfurther refining these relations. Our data hints at a change in the\nrotation-activity connection for the least massive stars in the sample\n($M \\la 0.25~M_{\\odot}$). The anti-correlation between period and\namplitude appears to break down for these stars, and similarly the\nperiod-X-ray anti-correlation is less significant for these stars than\nfor more massive stars. This is potentially at odds with previous\nstudies which used H$\\alpha$ to trace activity and $v \\sin i$ to infer\nrotation period, and found that the period-activity anti-correlation\nextends to very late-type M dwarfs. Comparing our sample to other\nfield and open cluster samples, we find that the rotation periods of\nstars in our sample are generally longer than the periods found in\nopen clusters with $t \\la 620~{\\rm Myr}$, which implies that K and M\ndwarf stars continue to lose angular momentum past the age of the\nHyades. This appears to be true as well for stars with $M \\la\n0.25~M_{\\odot}$, though these stars generally have shorter periods\nthan more massive stars in our sample.\n\nFinally we have conducted a search for flare events in our light\ncurves, identifying \\ensuremath{64}{} events in \\ensuremath{60}{}\nstars. Due to the difficulty between distinguishing a flare from bad\nphotometry in an automated way, there are likely to be many flare\nevents in the light curves that we do not identify. We therefore do\nnot attempt to draw conclusions about the total occurrence rate of\nflaring \\citep[for a recent determination of this frequency using data\n from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, see][]{Kowalski.09}. We find that\nthe distribution of $V-K_{S}$ colors for flare stars is biased toward\nred colors, implying that the flare frequency increases with\ndecreasing stellar mass, which has been known for a long time\n(\\citealp{Ambartsumyan.70}, see also \\citealp{Kowalski.09}). We find\nthat roughly half the flare stars are detected as periodic variables,\nwhich is a significantly higher fraction than for the full sample of\nstars. This is in line with the expectation that stellar flaring is\nassociated with the presence of significant starspots, and is\nconsistent with the finding by \\citet{Kowalski.09} that the flaring\nfrequency of active M dwarfs showing H$\\alpha$ emission is $\\sim 30$\ntimes higher than the flaring frequency of inactive M dwarfs. We also\nfind that the distribution of periods for flare stars is biased toward\nshorter periods, again as expected from the rotation-activity\nconnection. Finally we attempt to statistically identify flares by\nsearching for excess bright outliers relative to faint outliers in the\nlight curves. This excess appears to be anti-correlated with rotation\nperiod and provides further evidence that flares are more common among\nrapidly rotating K and M dwarfs than among slower rotators.\n\n\\acknowledgements\n\nHATNet operations have been funded by NASA grants NNG04GN74G,\nNNX08AF23G and SAO IR\\&D grants. G.\\'{A}.B. acknowledges support from\nthe Postdoctoral Fellowship of the NSF Astronomy and Astrophysics\nProgram (AST-0702843). T.M. acknowledges support from the ISRAEL\nSCIENCE FOUNDATION (grant No. 655\/07). The Digitized Sky Surveys were\nproduced at the Space Telescope Science Institute under\nU.S. Government grant NAG W-2166. The images of these surveys are\nbased on photographic data obtained using the Oschin Schmidt Telescope\non Palomar Mountain and the UK Schmidt Telescope. The plates were\nprocessed into the present compressed digital form with the permission\nof these institutions. This research has made use of data obtained\nfrom or software provided by the US National Virtual Observatory,\nwhich is sponsored by the National Science Foundation. This research\nhas made use of the SIMBAD database, operated at CDS, Strasbourg,\nFrance.\n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\n\\subsubsection*{\\bibname}}\n\n\n\\begin{document}\n\\runningauthor{Dina Mardaoui and Damien Garreau}\n\n\\twocolumn[\n\n\\aistatstitle{An Analysis of LIME for Text Data}\n\n\\aistatsauthor{Dina Mardaoui \\And Damien Garreau}\n\\aistatsaddress{Polytech Nice, France \\And Universit\\'e C\\^ote d'Azur, Inria, CNRS, LJAD, France}\n]\n\n\\begin{abstract}\nText data are increasingly handled in an automated fashion by machine learning algorithms. \nBut the models handling these data are not always well-understood due to their complexity and are more and more often referred to as ``black-boxes.''\nInterpretability methods aim to explain how these models operate. \nAmong them, LIME has become one of the most popular in recent years. \nHowever, it comes without theoretical guarantees: even for simple models, we are not sure that LIME behaves accurately. \nIn this paper, we provide a first theoretical analysis of LIME for text data. \nAs a consequence of our theoretical findings, we show that LIME indeed provides meaningful explanations for simple models, namely decision trees and linear models. \n\\end{abstract}\n\n\\section{Introduction}\n\nNatural language processing has progressed at an accelerated pace in the last decade. \nThis time period saw the second coming of artificial neural networks, embodied by the apparition of recurrent neural networks (RNNs) and more particularly long short-term memory networks (LSTMs). \nThese new architectures, in conjunction with large, publicly available datasets and efficient optimization techniques, have allowed computers to compete with and sometime even beat humans on specific tasks. \n\nMore recently, the paradigm has shifted from recurrent neural networks to \\emph{transformers networks} \\citep{vaswani_et_al_2017}. \nInstead of training models specifically for a task, large \\emph{language models} are trained on supersized datasets. \nFor instance, \\texttt{Webtext2} contains the text data associated to $45$ millions links \\citep{radford_et_al_2019}. \nThe growth in complexity of these models seems to know no limit, especially with regards to their number of parameters. \nFor instance, BERT \\citep{devlin_et_al_2018} has roughly $340$ millions of parameters, a meager number compared to more recent models such as GTP-2 \\citep[$1.5$ billions]{radford_et_al_2019} and GPT-3 \\citep[$175$ billions]{brown_et_al_2020}.\n\nFaced with such giants, it is becoming more and more challenging to understand how particular predictions are made. \nYet, \\emph{interpretability} of these algorithms is an urgent need. \nThis is especially true in some applications such as healthcare, where natural language processing is used for instance to obtain summaries of patients records \\citep{spyns_1996}. \nIn such cases, we do not want to deploy in the wild an algorithm making near perfect predictions on the test set but for the wrong reasons: the consequences could be tragic. \n\n\\begin{figure}\n \\centering\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.21]{general_explanation.pdf}\n \\vspace{-0.3in}\n \\caption{\\label{fig:general-explanation}Explaining the prediction of a random forest classifier on a Yelp review. \\emph{Left panel:} the document to explain. The words deemed important for the prediction are highlighted, in orange (positive influence) and blue (negative influence). \\emph{Right panel:} values of the largest $6$ interpretable coefficients, ranked by absolute value. }\n\\end{figure}\n\nIn this context, a flourishing literature proposing \\emph{interpretability methods} emerged. \nWe refer to the survey papers of \\citet{Guidotti_et_al_2018} and \\citet{Adadi_Berrada_2018} for an overview, and to \\citet{danilevsky_et_al_2020} for a focus on natural language processing. \nWith the notable exception of SHAP \\citep{Lundberg_Lee_2017}, these methods do not come with any guarantees. \nNamely, given a simple model already interpretable to some extent, we cannot be sure that these methods provide meaningful explanations. \nFor instance, explaining a model that is based on the presence of a given word should return an explanation that gives high weight to this word. \nWithout such guarantees, using these methods on the tremendously more complex models aforementioned seems like a risky bet. \n\nIn this paper, we focus on one of the most popular interpretability method: \\emph{Local Interpretable Model-agnostic Explanations} \\citet[LIME]{ribeiro_et_al_2016}, and more precisely its implementation for text data. \nLIME's process to explain the prediction of a model~$f$ for an example~$\\xi$ can be summarized as follows: \n\\begin{enumerate}[(i).,itemsep=1pt,topsep=0pt]\n \\item from a corpus of documents $\\corp$, create a TF-IDF transformer $\\Normtfidf$ embedding documents into $\\Reals^D$;\n \\item create $n$ perturbed documents $x_1,\\ldots,x_n$ by deleting words at random in $\\xi$; \n \\item for each new example, get the prediction of the model $y_i\\defeq f(\\normtfidf{x_i})$;\n \\item train a (weighted) linear surrogate model with inputs the absence \/ presence of words and responses the $y_i$s.\n\\end{enumerate}\nThe user is then given the coefficients of the surrogate model (or rather a subset of the coefficients, corresponding to the largest ones) as depicted in Figure~\\ref{fig:general-explanation}. \nWe call these coefficients the \\emph{interpretable coefficients}. \n\nThe model-agnostic approach of LIME has contributed greatly to its popularity: one does not need to know the precise architecture of~$f$ in order to get explanations, it is sufficient to be able to query~$f$ a large number of times. \nThe explanations provided by the user are also very intuitive, making it easy to check that a model is behaving in the appropriate way (or not!) on a particular example. \n\n\\paragraph{Contributions. }\nIn this paper, we present the first theoretical analysis of LIME for text data. \nIn detail,\n\n\\begin{itemize}[itemsep=1pt,topsep=0pt]\n \\item we show that, when the number of perturbed samples is large, \\textbf{the interpretable coefficients concentrate with high probability around a fixed vector $\\beta$} that depends only on the model, the example to explain, and hyperparameters of the method;\n \\item we provide an \\textbf{explicit expression of $\\beta$}, from which we gain interesting insights on LIME. In particular, \\textbf{the explanations provided are linear in $f$};\n \\item for simple decision trees, we go further into the computations. We show that \\textbf{LIME provably provides meaningful explanations}, giving large coefficients to words that are pivotal for the prediction;\n \\item for linear models, we come to the same conclusion by showing that the interpretable coefficient associate to a given word is approximately equal to \\textbf{the product of the coefficient in the linear model and the TF-IDF transform of the word} in the example. \n\\end{itemize}\n\nWe want to emphasize that all our results apply to the default implementation of LIME for text data\\footnote{\\url{https:\/\/github.com\/marcotcr\/lime}} (as of October 12, 2020), with the only caveat that we do not consider any feature selection procedure in our analysis. \nAll our theoretical claims are supported by numerical experiments, the code thereof can be found at \\url{https:\/\/github.com\/dmardaoui\/lime_text_theory}.\n\n\\paragraph{Related work. }\nThe closest related work to the present paper is \\citet{garreau_luxburg_2020_aistats}, in which the authors provided a theoretical analysis of a variant of LIME in the case of tabular data (that is, unstructured data belonging to $\\Reals^N$) when $f$ is linear. \nThis line of work was later extended by the same authors \\citep{garreau_luxburg_2020_arxiv}, this time in a setting very close to the default implementation and for other classes of models (in particular partition-based classifiers such as CART trees and kernel regressors built on the Gaussian kernel). \nWhile uncovering a number of good properties of LIME, these analyses also exposed some weaknesses of LIME, notably cancellation of interpretable features for some choices of hyperparameters. \n\nThe present work is quite similar in spirit, however we are concerned with \\emph{text data}. \nThe LIME algorithm operates quite differently in this case. \nIn particular, the input data goes first through a TF-IDF transform (a non-linear transformation) and there is no discretization step since interpretable features are readily available (the words of the document). \nTherefore both the analysis and our conclusions are quite different, as it will become clear in the rest of the paper. \n\n\\section{LIME for text data}\n\\label{sec:lime}\n\nIn this section, we lay out the general operation of LIME for text data and introduce our notation in the process. \nFrom now on, we consider a model~$f$ and look at its prediction for a fixed example~$\\xi$ belonging to a corpus~$\\corp$ of size~$N$, which is built on a dictionary~$\\dg$ of size~$D$. \nWe let $\\norm{\\cdot}$ denote the Euclidean norm, and $\\sphere{D-1}$ the unit sphere of $\\Reals^D$. \n\nBefore getting started, let us note that LIME is usually used in the \\emph{classification} setting: $f$ takes values in $\\{0,1\\}$ (say), and $f(\\normtfidf{\\xi})$ represents the class attributed to~$\\xi$ by~$f$. \nHowever, behind the scenes, LIME requires~$f$ to be a real-valued function. \nIn the case of classification, this function is the probability of belonging to a certain class according to the model. \nIn other words, the \\emph{regression} version of LIME is used, and this is the setting that we consider in this paper. \nWe now detail each step of the algorithm. \n\n\n\\subsection{TF-IDF transform}\n\\label{sec:tfidf}\n\nLIME works with a vector representation of the documents. \nThe TF-IDF transform \\citep{luhn_1957,jones_1972} is a popular way to obtain such a representation. \nThe idea underlying the TF-IDF is quite simple: to any document, associate a vector of size~$D$. \nIf we set $\\word_1,\\ldots,\\word_D$ to be our dictionary, the $j$th component of this vector represents the importance of word~$\\word_j$. \nIt is given by the product of two terms: the term frequency (TF, how frequent the word is in the document), and the inverse term frequency (IDF, how rare the word is in our corpus). \nIntuitively, the TF-IDF of a document has a high value for a given word if this word is frequent in the document and, at the same time, not so frequent in the corpus. \nIn this way, common words such as ``the'' do not receive high weight. \n\nFormally, let us fix $\\delta \\in\\corp$. \nFor each word $\\word_j\\in\\dg$, we set $m_j$ the number of times $\\word_j$ appears in $\\delta$. \nWe also set $v_j\\defeq \\log \\frac{N+1}{N_j+1}+1$, where~$N_j$ is the number of documents in~$\\corp$ containing~$\\word_j$. \nWhen presented with~$\\corp$, we can pre-compute all the $v_j$s and at run time we only need to count the number of occurrences of~$\\word_j$ in~$\\delta$. \nWe can now define the normalized TF-IDF:\n\n\\begin{definition}[Normalized TF-IDF]\n\\label{def:tf-idf}\nWe define the \\emph{normalized TF-IDF} of $\\delta$ as the vector $\\normtfidf{\\delta}\\in\\Reals^D$ defined coordinate-wise by \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:def-norm-tf-idf}\n\\forall 1\\leq j\\leq D,\\quad \\normtfidf{\\delta}_j \\defeq \\frac{m_j v_j}{\\sqrt{\\sum_{j=1}^D m_j^2v_j^2}}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\nIn particular, $\\norm{\\phi(\\delta)}=1$, where $\\norm{\\cdot}$ is the Euclidean norm. \n\\end{definition}\n\nNote that there are many different ways to define the TF and IDF terms, as well as normalization choices. \nWe restrict ourselves to the version used in the default implementation of LIME, with the understanding that different implementation choices would not change drastically our analysis. \nFor instance, normalizing by the $\\ell_1$ norm instead of the $\\ell_2$ norm would lead to slightly different computations in Proposition~\\ref{prop:beta-computation-linear-main}. \n\nFinally, note that this transformation step does not take place for tabular data, since the data already belong to $\\Reals^D$ in this case. \n\n\\subsection{Sampling}\n\\label{sec:sampling}\n\nLet us now fix a given document $\\xi$ and describe the sampling procedure of LIME. \nEssentially, the idea is to sample new documents similar to $\\xi$ in order to see how~$f$ varies in a neighborhood of $\\xi$. \n\n\\begin{figure}\n \\centering\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.18]{sampling.pdf}\n \\caption{\\label{fig:sampling}The sampling scheme of LIME for text data. To the left, the document to explain $\\xi$, which contains $d=15$ distinct words. The new samples $x_1,\\ldots,x_n$ are obtained by removing $s_i$ random words from $\\xi$ (in blue). In the $n$th sample, one word is removed, yielding two deletions in the original document.}\n\\end{figure}\n\nMore precisely, let us denote by $d$ the number of distinct words in $\\xi$ and set $\\dl\\defeq \\{\\word_1,\\ldots,\\word_d\\}$ the \\emph{local dictionary}. \nFor each new sample, LIME first draws uniformly at random in $\\{1,\\ldots,d\\}$ a number~$s_i$ of words to remove from~$\\xi$. \nSubsequently, a subset $S_i\\subseteq \\{1,\\ldots,d\\}$ of size~$s_i$ is drawn uniformly at random: all the words with indices contained in $S_i$ are \\emph{removed} from~$\\xi$. \nNote that the multiplicity of removals is independent from $s_i$: if the word ``good'' appears $10$ times in $\\xi$ and its index belongs to $S$, then all the instances of ``good'' are removed from $\\xi$ (see Figure~\\ref{fig:sampling}). \nThis process is repeated~$n$ times, yielding~$n$ new samples $x_1,\\ldots,x_n$. \nWith these new documents come~$n$ new binary vectors $z_1,\\ldots,z_n\\in\\{0,1\\}^d$, marking the absence or presence of a word in $x_i$. \nNamely, $z_{i,j}=1$ if $\\word_j$ belongs to $x_i$ and $0$ otherwise. \nWe call the $z_i$s the \\emph{interpretable features}. \nNote that we will write $\\Indic\\defeq (1,\\ldots,1)^\\top$ for the binary feature associated to~$\\xi$: all the words are present. \n\nAlready we see a difficulty appearing in our analysis: when removing words from $\\xi$ at random, $\\normtfidf{\\xi}$ is modified in a non-trivial manner. \nIn particular, the denominator of Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-norm-tf-idf} can change drastically if many words are removed. \n\nIn the case of tabular data, the interpretable features are obtained in a completely different fashion, by discretizing the dataset. \n\n\\subsection{Weights}\n\nLet us start by defining the \\emph{cosine distance}: \n\n\\begin{definition}[Cosine distance]\nFor any $u,v\\in\\Reals^d$, we define\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:def-cos-distance}\n\\distcos{u}{v} \\defeq 1 - \\frac{u\\cdot v}{\\norm{u}\\cdot \\norm{v}}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\n\\end{definition}\n\nIntuitively, the cosine distance between~$u$ and~$v$ is small if the \\emph{angle} between~$u$ and~$v$ is small. \nEach new sample~$x_i$ receives a positive weight~$\\pi_i$, defined~by\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:def-weights}\n\\pi_i \\defeq \\exp{\\frac{-\\distcos{\\Indic}{z_i}^2}{2\\nu^2}}\n\\, ,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\nu$ is a positive \\emph{bandwidth parameter}. \nThe intuition behind these weights is that $x_i$ can be far away from $\\xi$ if many words are removed (in the most extreme case, $s=d$, all the words from $\\xi$ are removed). \nIn that case, $z_i$ has mostly $0$ components, and is far away from $\\Indic$.\n\nNote that the cosine distance in Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-weights} is actually multiplied by $100$ in the current implementation of LIME. \nThus there is the following correspondence between our notation and the code convention: $\\nu_{\\text{LIME}}=100\\nu$. \nFor instance, the default choice of bandwidth, $\\nu_{\\text{LIME}}=25$, corresponds to $\\nu=0.25$. \n\nWe now make the following important remark: \\textbf{the weights only depends on the number of deletions.} \nIndeed, conditionally to $S_i$ having exactly $s$ elements, we have $z_i\\cdot \\Indic = d-s$ and $\\norm{z_i}=\\sqrt{d-s}$. \nSince $\\norm{\\Indic}=\\sqrt{d}$, using Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-weights}, we deduce that $\\pi_i=\\psi(s\/d)$, where we defined the mapping \n\\begin{align}\n\\psi\\colon [0,1]& \\longrightarrow \\Reals \\label{eq:def-psi-main} \\\\\nt &\\longmapsto \\exp{\\frac{-(1-\\sqrt{1-t})^2}{2\\nu^2}} \\notag \n\\, .\n\\end{align}\nWe can see in Figure~\\ref{fig:psi} how the weights are given to observations: when $s$ is small, then $\\psi(s\/d)\\approx 1$ and when $s\\approx d$, $\\psi(s\/d)$ which is a small quantity depending on $\\nu$. \nNote that the complicated dependency of the weights in $s$ brings additional difficulty in our analysis, and that we will sometimes restrict ourselves to the large bandwidth regime (that is, $\\nu\\to +\\infty$). \nIn that case, $\\pi_i \\approx 1$ for any $1\\leq i\\leq n$. \n\nEuclidean distance between the interpretable features is used instead of the cosine distance in the tabular data version of the algorithm. \n\n\n\\begin{figure}\n \\centering\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.18]{psi_sd.pdf}\n \\caption{\\label{fig:psi}Weights as a function of the number of deletions for different bandwidth parameters ($\\nu=0.25$ is default). LIME gives more weights to documents with few deletions ($s\/d\\approx 0$ means that $\\psi(s\/d)\\approx 1$ regardless of the bandwidth).}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\n\\subsection{Surrogate model}\n\nThe next step is to train a surrogate model on the interpretable features $z_1,\\ldots,z_n$, trying to approximate the responses $y_i\\defeq f(\\normtfidf{x_i})$. \nIn the default implementation of LIME, this model is linear and is obtained by weighted ridge regression \\citep{hoerl_1970}. \nFormally, LIME outputs \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:main-problem}\n\\betahat_n^{\\lambda} \\in\\argmin{\\beta\\in\\Reals^{d+1}} \\biggl\\{ \\sum_{i=1}^n \\pi_i(y_i - \\beta^\\top z_i)^2 + \\lambda \\norm{\\beta}^2\\biggr\\}\n\\, ,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\lambda>0$ is a regularization parameter. \nWe call the components of $\\betahat_n^\\lambda$ the \\emph{interpretable coefficients}, the $0$th coordinate in our notation is by convention the intercept. \nNote that some feature selection mechanism is often used in practice, limiting the number of interpretable features in output from LIME. \nWe do not consider such mechanism in our analysis. \n\nWe now make a fundamental observation. \nIn its default implementation, LIME uses the default setting of \\texttt{sklearn} for the regularization parameter, that is, $\\lambda=1$. \nHence the first term in Eq.~\\eqref{eq:main-problem} is roughly of order $n$ and the second term of order $d$. \nSince we experiment in the large~$n$ regime ($n=5000$ is default) and with documents that have a few dozen distinct words, $n\\gg d$. \nTo put it plainly, we can consider that $\\lambda=0$ in our analysis and still recover meaningful results. \nWe will denote by $\\betahat_n$ the solution of Eq.~\\eqref{eq:main-problem} with $\\lambda=0$, that is, ordinary least-squares. \n\nWe conclude this presentation of LIME by noting that the main free parameter of the method is the bandwidth $\\nu$. \nAs far as we know, there is no principled way of choosing $\\nu$. \nThe default choice, $\\nu=0.25$, does not seem satisfactory in many respects. \nIn particular, other choices of bandwidth can lead to different values for interpretable coefficients. \nIn the most extreme cases, they can even change sign, see Figure~\\ref{fig:cancellation}. \nThis phenomenon was also noted for tabular data in \\citet{garreau_luxburg_2020_arxiv}. \n\n\\begin{figure}\n \\centering\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.2]{cancellation.pdf}\n \\vspace{-0.1in}\n \\caption{\\label{fig:cancellation}In this experiment, we plot the interpretable coefficient associated to the word ``came\" as a function of the bandwidth parameter. The red vertical line marks the default bandwidth choice ($\\nu=25$). We can see that LIME gives a negative influence for $\\nu \\approx 0.1$ and a positive one for $\\nu > 0.2$. }\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\section{Main results}\n\nWithout further ado, let us present our main result. \nFor clarity's sake, we split it in two parts: Section~\\ref{sec:main:concentration} contains the concentration of $\\betahat_n$ around $\\beta^f$ whereas Section~\\ref{sec:main:computation} presents the exact expression of $\\beta^f$. \n\n\\subsection{Concentration of $\\betahat_n$}\n\\label{sec:main:concentration}\n\nWhen the number of new samples~$n$ is large, we expect LIME to stabilize and the explanations not to vary too much. \nThe next result supports this intuition. \n\n\\begin{theorem}[Concentration of $\\betahat_n$]\n\\label{th:concentration-of-betahat}\nSuppose that the model $f$ is bounded by a positive constant $M$ on $\\sphere{D-1}$. \nRecall that we let $d$ denote the number of distinct words of $\\xi$, the example to explain. \nLet $0<\\epsilon < M$ and $\\eta\\in (0,1)$. \nThen, there exist a vector $\\beta^f\\in\\Reals^d$ such that, for every \n\\[\nn\\gtrsim \\max \\left\\{M^2d^{9} \\exps{\\frac{10}{\\nu^2}}, Md^5\\exps{\\frac{5}{\\nu^2}}\\right\\} \\frac{\\log \\frac{8d}{\\eta}}{\\epsilon^2}\n\\, ,\n\\]\nwe have $\\proba{\\smallnorm{\\betahat_n - \\beta^f} \\geq \\epsilon} \\leq \\eta$. \n\\end{theorem}\n\nWe refer to the supplementary material for a complete statement (we omitted numerical constants here for clarity) and a detailed proof. \nIn essence, Theorem~\\ref{th:concentration-of-betahat} tells us that we can focus on $\\beta^f$ in order to understand how LIME operates, provided that~$n$ is large enough. \nThe main limitation of Theorem~\\ref{th:concentration-of-betahat} is the dependency of~$n$ in~$d$ and~$\\nu$. \nThe control that we achieve on $\\smallnorm{\\betahat_n-\\beta}$ becomes quite poor for large~$d$ or small~$\\nu$: we would then need~$n$ to be unreasonably large in order to witness concentration. \n\nWe notice that Theorem~\\ref{th:concentration-of-betahat} is very similar in its form to Theorem~1 in \\citet{garreau_luxburg_2020_arxiv} except that (i) the dimension is replaced by the number of distinct words in the document to explain, and (ii) there is no discretization parameter in our case. \nThe differences with the analysis in the tabular data framework will be more visible in the next section. \n\n\\subsection{Expression of $\\beta^f$}\n\\label{sec:main:computation}\n\nOur next result shows that we can derive an explicit expression for $\\beta^f$. \nBefore stating our result, we need to introduce more notation. \nFrom now on, we set $x$ a random variable such that $x_1,\\ldots,x_n$ are i.i.d. copies of $x$. \nSimilarly,~$\\pi$ corresponds to the draw of the $\\pi_i$s and $z$ to that of the~$z_i$s. \n\n\\begin{definition}[$\\alpha$ coefficients]\n\\label{def:alphas}\nDefine $\\alpha_0\\defeq \\expec{\\pi}$ and, for any $1\\leq p\\leq d$, \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:def-alphas-main}\n\\alpha_p \\defeq \\expec{\\pi \\cdot z_1 \\cdots z_p }\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\n\\end{definition}\n\nIntuitively, when $\\nu$ is large, $\\alpha_p$ corresponds to the probability that $p$ distinct words are present in $x$. \nThe sampling process of LIME is such that $\\alpha_p$ does not depend on the exact set of indices considered. \nIn fact,~$\\alpha_p$ only depends on~$d$ and~$\\nu$. \nWe show in the supplementary material that it is possible to compute the $\\alpha$ coefficients in closed-form as a function of~$d$ and~$\\nu$:\n\n\\begin{proposition}[Computation of the $\\alpha$ coefficients]\n\\label{prop:alphas-computation-main}\nLet $0\\leq p\\leq d$. \nFor any $d\\geq 1$ and $\\nu >0$, it holds that \n\\[\n\\alpha_p = \\frac{1}{d} \\sum_{s=1}^d \\prod_{k=0}^{p-1} \\frac{d-s-k}{d-k} \\psi\\left(\\frac{s}{d}\\right)\n\\, .\n\\]\n\\end{proposition}\n\nFrom these coefficients, we form the normalization constant\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:def-densct}\nc}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d \\defeq (d-1)\\alpha_0\\alpha_2 -d\\alpha_1^2 + \\alpha_0\\alpha_1\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\n\nWe will also need the following. \n\n\\begin{definition}[$\\sigma$ coefficients]\n\\label{def:sigmas}\nFor any $d\\geq 1$ and $\\nu >0$, define\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:def-sigmas}\n\\begin{cases}\n\\sigma_1 &\\defeq -\\alpha_1\n\\, , \\\\\n\\sigma_2 &\\defeq \\frac{(d-2)\\alpha_0 \\alpha_2 - (d-1)\\alpha_1^2 + \\alpha_0\\alpha_1}{\\alpha_1-\\alpha_2}\\, , \\\\\n\\sigma_3 &\\defeq \\frac{\\alpha_1^2-\\alpha_0\\alpha_2}{\\alpha_1-\\alpha_2 }\n\\, .\n\\end{cases}\n\\end{equation}\n\\end{definition}\n\nWith these notation in hand, we have:\n\n\\begin{proposition}[Expression of $\\beta^f$]\n\\label{prop:expression-of-beta}\nUnder the assumptions of Theorem~\\ref{th:concentration-of-betahat}, we have $c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d >0$ and, for any $1\\leq j\\leq d$,\n\\begin{align}\n\\label{eq:def-beta}\n\\beta_j^f = c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1^{-1}_d\\biggl\\{\\sigma_1 \\expec{\\pi f(\\normtfidf{x})} & + \\sigma_2 \\expec{\\pi z_j f(\\normtfidf{x})} \\\\\n&+ \\sigma_3 \\sum_{\\substack{k=1 \\\\ k\\neq j}}^d \\expec{\\pi z_k f(\\normtfidf{x})}\\biggr\\} \\notag \n\\, .\n\\end{align}\n\\end{proposition}\n\nWe also have an expression for the intercept which can be found in the supplementary material, as well as the proof of Proposition~\\ref{prop:expression-of-beta}. \nAt first glance, Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-beta} is quite similar to Eq.~(6) in \\citet{garreau_luxburg_2020_arxiv}, which gives the expression of $\\beta_j^f$ in the tabular data case. \nThe main difference is the TF-IDF transform in the expectation, personified by $\\Normtfidf$, and the additional terms (there is no $\\sigma_3$ factor in the tabular data case). \nIn addition, the expression of the $\\sigma$ coefficients is much more complicated than in the tabular data case. \nWe now present some immediate consequences of Proposition~\\ref{prop:expression-of-beta}. \n\n\\paragraph{Linearity of explanations. }\nPerhaps the most striking feature of Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-beta} is that it is \\textbf{linear in $f$}.\nMore precisely, the mapping $f\\mapsto \\beta^f$ is linear in $f$: for any given two functions $f$ and $g$, we have\n\\[\n\\beta^{f+g} = \\beta^f + \\beta^g\n\\, .\n\\]\nTherefore, because of Theorem~\\ref{th:concentration-of-betahat}, the explanations $\\betahat_n$ obtained for a finite sample of new examples are also approximately linear in the model to explain. \nWe illustrate this phenomenon in Figure~\\ref{fig:linearity}. \nThis is remarkable: many models used in machine learning can be written as a linear combination of smaller models (\\emph{e.g.}, generalized linear models, kernel regressors, decision trees and random forests). \nIn order to understand the explanations provided by these complicated models, one can try and understand the explanations for the elementary elements of the models first. \n\n\\paragraph{Large bandwidth. }\nIt can be difficult to get a good sense of the values taken by the $\\sigma$ coefficients, and therefore of $\\beta$. \nLet us see how Proposition~\\ref{prop:expression-of-beta} simplifies in the large bandwidth regime and what insights we can gain. \nWe denote by $\\betainf$ the limit of $\\beta$ when $\\nu\\to +\\infty$. \nWhen $\\nu\\to +\\infty$, we prove in the supplementary material that, for any $1\\leq j\\leq d$, up to $\\bigo{1\/d}$ terms and a numerical constant, the $j$-th coordinate of $\\betainf$ is then approximately equal to \n\\begin{equation*}\n\\left(\\betainf^f\\right)_j\\! \\approx\\! \\condexpec{f(\\normtfidf{x})}{\\word_j\\in x} - \\frac{1}{d}\\sum_{k\\neq j} \\condexpec{f(\\normtfidf{x})}{\\word_k\\in x}\n.\n\\end{equation*}\nIntuitively, the interpretable coefficient associated to the word $\\word_j$ is high if \\textbf{the expected value of the model when word $\\word_j$ is present is significantly higher than the typical expected value when other words are present}. \nWe think that this is reasonable: if the model predicts much higher values when $\\word_j$ belongs to the example, it surely means that~$\\word_j$ being present is important for the prediction. \nOf course, this is far from the full picture, since (i) this reasoning is only valid for large bandwidth, and (ii) in practice, we are concerned with $\\betahat_n$ which may be not so close to $\\beta^f$ for small $n$. \n\n\\begin{figure}\n \\centering\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.25]{linsum.pdf}\n \\vspace{-0.1in}\n \\caption{\\label{fig:linearity}The explanations given by LIME for the sum of two models (here two random forests regressors) are the sum of the explanations for each model, up to noise coming from the sampling procedure.}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\n\\subsection{Sketch of the proof}\n\nWe conclude this section with a brief sketch of the proof of Theorem~\\ref{th:concentration-of-betahat}, the full proof can be found in the supplementary material. \n\nSince we set $\\lambda=0$ in Eq.~\\eqref{eq:main-problem}, $\\betahat_n$ is the solution of a weighted least-squares problem. \nDenote by $W\\in\\Reals^{n\\times n}$ the diagonal matrix such that $W_{i,i}=\\pi_i$, and set $Z\\in\\{0,1\\}^{n\\times (d+1)}$ the matrix such that its $i$th line is $(1,z_i^\\top)$. \nThen the solution of Eq.~\\eqref{eq:main-problem} is given by \n\\[\n\\betahat_n = \\left(Z^\\top WZ\\right)^{-1}Z^\\top Wy\n\\, ,\n\\]\nwhere we defined $y\\in\\Reals^n$ such that $y_i=f(\\normtfidf{x_i})$ for all $1\\leq i\\leq n$. \nLet us set $\\Sigmahat_n\\defeq \\frac{1}{n}Z^\\top WZ$ and $\\Gammahat_n^f\\defeq \\frac{1}{n}Z^\\top Wy$. \nBy the law of large numbers, we know that both $\\Sigmahat_n$ and $\\Gammahat_n^f$ converge in probability towards their population counterparts $\\Sigma\\defeq \\smallexpec{\\Sigmahat_n}$ and $\\Gamma^f\\defeq \\smallexpec{\\Gammahat_n}$. \nTherefore, provided that $\\Sigma$ is invertible, $\\betahat_n$ is close to $\\beta^f\\defeq \\Sigma^{-1}\\Gamma^f$ with high probability. \n\nAs we have seen in Section~\\ref{sec:lime}, the main differences with respect to the tabular data implementation are (i) the interpretable features, and (ii) the TF-IDF transform. \nThe first point lead to a completely different $\\Sigma$ than the one obtained in \\citet{garreau_luxburg_2020_arxiv}. \nIn particular, it has no zero coefficients, leading to more complicated expression for $\\beta^f$ and additional challenges when controlling $\\opnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}$. \nThe second point is quite challenging since, as noted in Section~\\ref{sec:tfidf}, \\textbf{the TF-IDF transform of a document changes radically when deleting words at random in the document.} \nThis is the main reason why we have to resort to approximations when dealing with linear models. \n\n\n\n\n\\section{Expression of $\\beta^f$ for simple models}\n\\label{sec:discussion}\n\nIn this section, we see how to specialize Proposition~\\ref{prop:expression-of-beta} to simple models $f$. \nRecall that our main goal in doing so is to investigate whether it makes sense or not to use LIME in these cases. \nWe will focus on two classes of models: decision trees (Section~\\ref{sec:decision-trees}) and linear models (Section~\\ref{sec:linear-models}). \n\n\\subsection{Decision trees}\n\\label{sec:decision-trees}\n\nIn this section we focus on simple decision trees built on the presence or absence of given words. \nFor instance, let us look at the model returning $1$ if the word ``food'' is present, or if ``about'' and ``everything'' are present in the document. \nIdeally, LIME would give high positive weights to ``food,'' ``about,'' and ``everything,'' if they are present in the document to explain, and small weight to all other words. \n\nWe first notice that such simple decision trees can be written as sums of products of the binary features. \nIndeed, recall that we defined $z_j=\\indic{\\word_j\\in x}$. \nFor instance, suppose that the first three words of our dictionary are ``food,'' ``about,'' and ``everything.''\nThen the model from the previous paragraph can be written \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:def-g}\ng(x) = z_1 + (1-z_1)\\cdot z_2 \\cdot z_3\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\n\nNow it is clear that the $z_j$s can be written as function of the TF-IDF transform of a word, since $\\word_j\\in x$ if, and only if, $\\normtfidf{x}_j > 0$. \nTherefore this class of models falls into our framework and we can use Theorem~\\ref{th:concentration-of-betahat} and Proposition~\\ref{prop:expression-of-beta} in order to gain insight on the explanations provided by LIME. \nFor instance, Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-g} can be written as $f(\\normtfidf{x})$ with, for any $\\zeta\\in\\Reals^D$, \n\\[\nf(\\zeta) \\defeq \\indic{\\zeta_1 > 0} + (1-\\indic{\\zeta_1>0}) \\cdot \\indic{\\zeta_2 > 0} \\cdot \\indic{\\zeta_3 > 0}\n\\, .\n\\]\nBy linearity, it is sufficient to know how to compute~$\\beta^f$ when~$f$ is a product of indicator functions. \n\nWe now make an important remark: since the new example $x_1,\\ldots,x_n$ are created by deleting words at random from the text $\\xi$, \\textbf{$x$ only contains words that are already present in $\\xi$}. \nTherefore, without loss of generality, we can restrict ourselves to the local dictionary (the distinct words of $\\xi$). \nIndeed, for any word $\\word$ not already in $\\xi$, $\\indic{\\word \\in x}=0$ almost surely. \nAs before, we denote by $\\dl$ the local dictionary associated to $\\xi$, and we denote its elements by $\\word_1,\\ldots,\\word_d$. \nWe can compute in closed-form the interpretable coefficients for a product of indicator functions:\n\n\\begin{proposition}[Computation of $\\beta^f$, product of indicator functions]\n\\label{prop:beta-computation-indicator-product-general-main}\nLet $J\\subseteq \\{1,\\ldots,d\\}$ be a set of~$p$ distinct indices and set $f(x) = \\prod_{j\\in J}\\indic{x_j>0}$. \nThen, for any $j\\in J$, \n\\begin{align*}\n\\beta_j^f \\!&=\\! c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d^{-1}\\!\\bigl[\\sigma_1\\alpha_p + \\sigma_2\\alpha_p + (d\\!-\\!p)\\sigma_3\\alpha_{p+1} + (p\\!-\\!1)\\sigma_3\\alpha_p\\bigr]\n\\end{align*}\nand, for any $j\\in\\{1,\\ldots,d\\}\\setminus J$, \n\\begin{align*}\n\\beta_j^f \\!&=\\! c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d^{-1}\\!\\bigl[\\sigma_1\\alpha_p+\\sigma_2\\alpha_{p+1}+(d\\!-\\!p\\!-\\!1)\\sigma_3\\alpha_{p+1} + p\\sigma_3\\alpha_p \\bigr]\n.\n\\end{align*}\n\\end{proposition}\n\nIn particular, when $p=0$, Proposition~\\ref{prop:beta-computation-indicator-product-general-main} simplifies greatly and we find that $1\\leq k\\leq d$, $\\beta_k^f=\\indic{k=j}$. \nIt is already a reassuring result: when the model is just indicating if a given word is present, \\textbf{the explanation given by LIME is one for this word and zero for all the other words}. \n\nIt is slightly more complicated to see what happens when $p\\geq 1$. \nTo this extent, let us set $j\\in J$ and $k\\notin J$. \nThen it follows readily from Proposition~\\ref{prop:beta-computation-indicator-product-general} that\n\\[\n\\beta^f_j - \\beta_k^f = c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d^{-1}(\\sigma_2+\\sigma_3)(\\alpha_p-\\alpha_{p+1})\n\\, .\n\\]\nSince $\\alpha_p\\approx 1\/(p+1)$ and $\\sigma_2+\\sigma_3\\approx 6$, we deduce that $\\beta_j^f \\gg \\beta_k^f$. \nMoreover, from Definition~\\ref{def:alphas} and~\\ref{def:sigmas} one can show that $\\beta_k^f = \\bigo{1\/d}$ when $\\nu$ is large. \nThus Proposition~\\ref{prop:beta-computation-indicator-product-general} tells us that \\textbf{LIME gives large positive coefficients to words that are in the support of~$f$ and small coefficients to all the other words}. \nThis is a satisfying property. \n\nTogether with the linearity property, Proposition~\\ref{prop:beta-computation-indicator-product-general} allows us to compute $\\beta^f$ for any decision tree that can be written as in Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-g}. \nWe give an example of our theoretical predictions in Figure~\\ref{fig:decision-tree-result}. \nAs predicted, \\textbf{the words that are pivotal in the prediction have high interpretable coefficients, whereas the other words receive near-zero coefficients}. \nIt is interesting to notice that words that are near the root of the tree receive a greater weight. \nWe present additional experiments in the supplementary material.\n\n\\begin{figure}\n \\centering\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.25]{decision_tree.pdf}\n \\vspace{-0.1in}\n \\caption{\\label{fig:decision-tree-result}Theory \\emph{vs} practice for the tree defined by Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-g}. The black whisker boxes correspond to $100$ runs of LIME with default settings ($n=5000$ new examples and $\\nu=0.25$) whereas the red crosses correspond to the theoretical predictions given by our analysis. The example to explain is a Yelp review with $d=35$ distinct words.}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\subsection{Linear models}\n\\label{sec:linear-models}\n\nWe now focus on linear models, that is, for any document $x$,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:def-linear-model-main}\nf(\\normtfidf{x}) \\defeq \\sum_{j=1}^d \\lambda_j \\normtfidf{x}_j\n\\, ,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\lambda_1,\\ldots,\\lambda_d$ are arbitrary fixed coefficients. \nWe have to resort to approximate computations in this case: from now on, we assume that $\\nu = +\\infty$. \nWe start with the simplest linear function: all coefficients are zero except one, that is, $\\lambda_k=1$ if $k=j$ and $0$ otherwise in Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-linear-model-main}, for a fixed index~$j$. \nWe need to introduce additional notation before stating or result. \nFor any $1\\leq j\\leq d$, define\n\\[\n\\omega_k \\defeq \\frac{m_j^2v_j^2}{\\sum_{\\ell=1}^d m_\\ell^2v_\\ell^2}\n\\, ,\n\\]\nwhere the $m_k$s and $v_k$s were defined in Section~\\ref{sec:tfidf}. \nFor any~$J$ that is a strict subset of $\\{1,\\ldots,d\\}$, define $H_S\\defeq \\sum_{j\\in J}\\omega_j$. \nRecall that $S$ denotes the random subset of indices chosen by LIME in the sampling step (see Section~\\ref{sec:sampling}). \nDefine $E_j= \\condexpec{(1-H_S)^{-1\/2}}{S\\not\\ni j}$ and for any $k\\neq j$, $E_{j,k} = \\condexpec{(1-H_S)^{-1\/2}}{S\\not\\ni j,k}$. \nThen we have the following:\n\n\\begin{proposition}[Computation of $\\beta^f$, linear case]\n\\label{prop:beta-computation-linear-main}\nLet $1\\leq j\\leq d$ and assume that $f(\\normtfidf{x})=\\normtfidf{x}_j$. \nThen, for any $1\\leq k\\leq d$ such that $k\\neq j$, \n\\begin{align*}\n\\left(\\betainf^f\\right)_k &= \\biggl[2 E_{j,1} - \\frac{2}{d}\\sum_{\\ell \\neq k,j}E_{j,\\ell}\\biggr] \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d}}\n\\, ,\n\\end{align*}\nand\n\\begin{align*}\n\\left(\\betainf^f\\right)_j &= \\biggl[3E_j - \\frac{2}{d} \\sum_{k \\neq j}E_{j,k}\\biggr] \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d}}\n\\, .\n\\end{align*}\n\\end{proposition}\n\nProposition~\\ref{prop:beta-computation-linear-main} is proved in the supplementary material. \nThe main difficulty is to compute the expected value of $\\normtfidf{x}_j$: this is the reason for the $E_j$ terms, for which we find an approximate expression as a function of the $\\omega_k$s. \nAssuming that the $\\omega_k$ are small, we can further this approximation and show that $E_j \\approx 1.22$ and $E_{j,k}\\approx 1.15$. \nIn particular, \\textbf{these expressions do not depend on~$j$ and~$k$}. \nThus we can drastically simplify the statement of Proposition~\\ref{prop:beta-computation-linear-main}: for any $k\\neq j$, $\\left(\\beta_\\infty^f\\right)_k \\approx 0$ and $\\left(\\beta_\\infty^f\\right)_j \\approx 1.36 \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j$. \nWe can now go back to our original goal, Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-linear-model-main}. \nBy linearity, we deduce that \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:simplified-betainf-linear-main}\n\\forall 1\\leq j\\leq d, \\quad \\left(\\beta_\\infty^f\\right)_j \\approx 1.36 \\cdot \\lambda_j \\cdot \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\nIn other words, up to a numerical constant and small error terms depending on $d$, \\textbf{the explanation for a linear~$f$ is the TF-IDF value of the word multiplied by the coefficient of the linear model. }\nWe believe that this behavior is desirable for an interpretability method: large coefficients in the linear model should intuitively be associated to large interpretable coefficients. \nBut at the same time the TF-IDF of the term is taken into account. \n\nWe observe a very good match between theory and practice (see Figure~\\ref{fig:linear}). \nSurprisingly, this is the case even though we assume that~$\\nu$ is large in our derivations, whereas~$\\nu$ is chosen by default in all our experiments.\nWe present experiments with other bandwidths in the supplementary. \n\n\\begin{figure}\n \\centering\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.24]{linear.pdf}\n \n \\caption{\\label{fig:linear}Theory \\emph{vs} practice for an arbitrary linear model. The black whisker boxes correspond to $100$ runs of LIME with default settings ($n=5000$ and $\\nu=0.25$). The red crosses correspond to our theoretical predictions: $\\beta_j\\approx 1.36\\lambda_j\\normtfidf{\\xi}_j$. Here $d=29$. }\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\section{Conclusion}\n\nIn this work we proposed the first theoretical analysis of LIME for text data. \nIn particular, we provided a closed-form expression for the interpretable coefficients when the number of perturbed samples is large. \nLeveraging this expression, we exhibited some desirable behavior of LIME such as the linearity with respect to the model. \nIn specific cases (simple decision trees and linear models), we derived more precise expression, showing that LIME outputs meaningful explanations in these cases. \n\nAs future work, we want to tackle more complex models. \nMore precisely, we think that it is possible to obtained approximate statements in the spirit of Eq.~\\eqref{eq:simplified-betainf-linear-main} for models that are not linear. \n\n\\subsubsection*{Acknowledgments}\n\nThis work was partly funded by the UCA DEP grant. \nThe authors want to thank Andr\\'e Galligo for getting them to know eachother. \n\n\n\\section*{Organization of the supplementary material}\n\nIn this supplementary material, we collect the proofs of all our theoretical results and additional experiments. \nWe study the covariance matrix in Section~\\ref{sec:study-of-sigma} and the responses in Section~\\ref{sec:study-of-gamma}. \nThe proof of our main results can be found in Section~\\ref{sec:study-of-beta}. \nCombinatorial results needed for the approximation formulas obtained in the linear case are collected in Section~\\ref{sec:subsets-sums}, while other technical results can be found in Section~\\ref{sec:technical}. \nFinally, we present some additional experiments in Section~\\ref{sec:experiments}. \n\n\\paragraph{Notation.}\nFirst, let us quickly recall our notation. \nWe consider $x,z,\\pi$ the generic random variables associated to the sampling of new examples by LIME. \nTo put it plainly, the new examples $x_1,\\ldots,x_n$ are i.i.d. samples from the random variable $x$. \nAlso remember that we denote by $S\\subseteq \\{1,\\ldots,d\\}$ the random subset of indices removed by LIME when creating new samples for a text with $d$ distinct words. \nFor any finite set $R$, we write $\\card{R}$ the cardinality of $R$. \nRecall that we denote by $S$ the random set of indices deleted in the sampling. \nWe write $\\Expec_s$ the expectation conditionally to $\\card{S}=s$. \nSince we consider vectors belonging to $\\Reals^{d+1}$ with the zero-th coordinate corresponding to an intercept, we will often start the numbering at $0$ instead of $1$. \nFor any matrix $M$, we set $\\frobnorm{M}$ the Frobenius norm of $M$ and $\\opnorm{M}$ the operator norm of $M$. \n\n\n\\section{The study of $\\Sigma$}\n\\label{sec:study-of-sigma}\n\nWe begin by the study of the covariance matrix. \nWe show in Section~\\ref{sec:computation-of-sigma} how to compute $\\Sigma$. \nWe will see how the $\\alpha$ coefficients defined in the main paper appear. \nIn Section~\\ref{sec:computation-of-sigma-inverse}, we show that it is possible to invert $\\Sigma$ in closed-form: it can be written in function of $c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d$ and the $\\sigma$ coefficients. \nWe show how $\\Sigmahat_n$ concentrates around $\\Sigma$ in Section~\\ref{sec:sigmahat-concentration}. \nFinally, Section~\\ref{sec:control-opnorm} is dedicated to the control of $\\opnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}$. \n\n\n\\subsection{Computation of $\\Sigma$}\n\\label{sec:computation-of-sigma}\n\nIn this section, we derived a closed-form expression for $\\Sigma\\defeq \\smallexpec{\\Sigmahat_n}$ as a function of $d$ and $\\nu$. \nRecall that we defined $\\Sigmahat = \\frac{1}{n}Z^\\top WZ$. \nBy definition of $Z$ and $W$, we have\n\\[\n\\Sigmahat =\n\\begin{pmatrix}\n\\frac{1}{n}\\sum_{i=1}^n \\pi_i & \\frac{1}{n}\\sum_{i=1}^n \\pi_i z_{i,1} & \\cdots & \\frac{1}{n}\\sum_{i=1}^n \\pi_i z_{i,d} \\\\ \n\\frac{1}{n}\\sum_{i=1}^n \\pi_i z_{i,1} & \\frac{1}{n}\\sum_{i=1}^n \\pi_i z_{i,1} & \\cdots & \\frac{1}{n}\\sum_{i=1}^n \\pi_i z_{i,1}z_{i,d} \\\\ \n\\vdots & \\vdots & \\ddots & \\vdots \\\\ \n\\frac{1}{n}\\sum_{i=1}^n \\pi_i z_{i,d} & \\frac{1}{n}\\sum_{i=1}^n \\pi_i z_{i,1}z_{i,d} & \\cdots & \\frac{1}{n}\\sum_{i=1}^n \\pi_i z_{i,d}\n\\end{pmatrix}\n\\in\\Reals^{(d+1)\\times (d+1)}\n\\, .\n\\]\nTaking the expectation in the last display with respect to the sampling of new examples yields\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:def-sigma}\n\\Sigma =\\begin{pmatrix}\n\\expec{\\pi} & \\expec{\\pi z_1} & \\cdots & \\expec{\\pi z_d} \\\\ \n \\expec{\\pi z_1} & \\expec{\\pi z_1 } & \\cdots & \\expec{\\pi z_1 z_d} \\\\ \n\\vdots & \\vdots & \\ddots & \\vdots \\\\ \n\\expec{\\pi z_d} & \\expec{\\pi z_1z_d } & \\cdots & \\expec{\\pi z_d}\n\\end{pmatrix}\n\\in\\Reals^{(d+1)\\times (d+1)}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\n\nAn important remark is that $\\expec{\\pi z_j}$ does not depend on $j$. \nIndeed, there is no privileged index in the sampling of $S$ (the subset of removed indices). \nThus we only have to look into $\\expec{\\pi z_1}$ (say). \nFor the same reason, $\\expec{\\pi z_jz_k}$ does not depend on the $2$-uple $(j,k)$, and we can limit our investigations to $\\expec{\\pi z_1z_2}$. \nThis is the reason why we defined $\\alpha_0 = \\expec{\\pi}$ and, for any $1\\leq p\\leq d$, \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:def-alphas}\n\\alpha_p = \\expec{\\pi \\cdot z_1 \\cdots z_p}\n\\end{equation}\nin the main paper. \nWe recognize the definition of the $\\alpha_p$s in Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-sigma} and we write\n\\[\n\\Sigma_{j,k} = \n\\begin{cases}\n\\alpha_0 &\\text{ if } j=k=0, \\\\\n\\alpha_1 &\\text{ if } j=0 \\text{ and } k> 0 \\text{ or } j> 0 \\text{ and } k=0 \\text{ or } j=k> 0, \\\\\n\\alpha_2 &\\text{ otherwise. }\n\\end{cases}\n\\]\nAs promised, we can be more explicit regarding the $\\alpha$ coefficients. \nRecall that we defined the mapping \n\\begin{align}\n\\psi\\colon [0,1]& \\longrightarrow \\Reals \\label{eq:def-psi} \\\\\nt &\\longmapsto \\exp{-(1-\\sqrt{1-t})^2\/(2\\nu^2)} \\notag \n\\, .\n\\end{align}\nIt is a decreasing mapping (see Figure~\\ref{fig:psi-t}). \nWith this notation in hand, we have the following expression for the $\\alpha$ coefficients (this is Proposition~1 in the paper):\n\n\n\\begin{figure}\n \\centering\n \\includegraphics[scale=0.16]{psi_sup_compressed.pdf}\n \\caption{\\label{fig:psi-t}The function $\\psi$ defined by Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-psi} with bandwidth parameter $\\nu=0.25$. In orange (resp. blue), one can see the upper (resp. lower) bound given by Eq.~\\eqref{eq:psi-precise-bound}. }\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\begin{proposition}[Computation of the $\\alpha$ coefficients]\n\\label{prop:alphas-computation}\nFor any $d\\geq 1$, $\\nu >0$, and $p\\geq 0$, it holds that\n\\[\n\\alpha_p = \\frac{1}{d} \\sum_{s=1}^d \\prod_{k=0}^{p-1} \\frac{d-s-k}{d-k} \\psi\\left(\\frac{s}{d}\\right)\n\\, .\n\\]\n\\end{proposition}\n\nIn particular, the first three $\\alpha$ coefficients can be written\n\\[\n\\alpha_0 = \\frac{1}{d} \\sum_{s=1}^d \\psi\\left(\\frac{s}{d}\\right) \\, ,\n\\quad \n\\alpha_1 = \\frac{1}{d} \\sum_{s=1}^d \\left(1-\\frac{s}{d}\\right)\\psi\\left(\\frac{s}{d}\\right)\n\\, ,\n\\quad \\text{ and } \\quad\n\\alpha_2 = \\frac{1}{d} \\sum_{s=1}^d \\left(1-\\frac{s}{d}\\right)\\left(1-\\frac{s}{d-1}\\right)\\psi\\left(\\frac{s}{d}\\right)\n\\, .\n\\]\n\n\\begin{proof}\nThe idea of the proof is to use the law of total expectation with respect to the collection of events $\\{\\card{S}=s\\}$ for $s\\in\\{1,\\ldots,d\\}$. \nSince $\\proba{\\card{S}=s}=\\frac{1}{d}$ for any $1\\leq s\\leq d$, all that is left to compute is the expectation of $\\pi z_1\\cdots z_p$ conditionally to $\\card{S}=s$. \nAccording to the remark in Section~2.3 of the main paper, $\\pi = \\psi(s\/d)$ conditionally to $\\{\\card{S}=s\\}$.\nWe can conclude since, according to Lemma~\\ref{lemma:proba-containing-cond}, \n\\[\n\\probaunder{\\word_1\\in x,\\ldots,\\word_p\\in x}{s} = \\frac{(d-s)(d-s-1)\\cdots (d-s-p+1)}{d(d-1)\\cdots (d-p+1)}\n\\, .\n\\]\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\centering\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.11]{alpha0_nu_compressed.pdf} \n\\includegraphics[scale=0.11]{alpha1_nu_compressed.pdf}\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.11]{alpha2_nu_compressed.pdf}\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.11]{alpha3_nu_compressed.pdf}\n\\caption{\\label{fig:alphas-bandwidth-dependency}Behavior of the first $\\alpha$ coefficients with respect to the bandwidth parameter $\\nu$. The red vertical lines mark the default bandwidth choice ($\\nu=0.25$). The green horizontal line denotes the limits for large $d$ given by Corollary~\\ref{cor:alphas-approx}.}\n\\end{figure}\n\nIt is important to notice that, when $\\nu \\to +\\infty$, $\\psi(t)\\to 0$ for any $t\\in (0,1]$. \nAs a consequence, in the large bandwidth regime, the $\\psi(s\/d)$ weights are arbitrarily close to one. \nWe demonstrate this effect in Figure~\\ref{fig:alphas-bandwidth-dependency}. \nIn this situation, the $\\alpha$ coefficients take a simpler form. \n\n\\begin{corollary}[Large bandwidth approximation of $\\alpha$ coefficients]\n\\label{cor:alphas-approx}\nFor any $0\\leq p\\leq d$, it holds that\n\\[\n\\lim_{\\nu\\to +\\infty} \\alpha_p = \\frac{d-p}{(p+1)d}\n\\, .\n\\]\n\\end{corollary}\n\nWe report these approximate values in Figure~\\ref{fig:alphas-bandwidth-dependency}. \nIn particular, when both $\\nu$ and $d$ are large, we can see that $\\alpha_p\\approx 1\/(p+1)$. \nThus $\\alpha_0\\approx 1$, $\\alpha_1\\approx \\frac{1}{2}$, and $\\alpha_2\\approx \\frac{1}{3}$. \n\n\\begin{proof}\nWhen $\\nu\\to +\\infty$, we have $\\psi(s\/d)\\to 1$ and we can conclude directly by using Lemma~\\ref{lemma:proba-containing}. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\nNotice that we can be slightly more precise than Corollary~\\ref{cor:alphas-approx}. \nIndeed, $\\psi$ is decreasing on $[0,1]$, thus for any $t\\in [0,1]$, $\\exp{-1\/(2\\nu^2)}\\leq \\psi(t)\\leq 1$. \nTherefore we can present some efficient bounds for the $\\alpha$ coefficients when $\\nu$ is large. \n\n\\begin{corollary}[Bounds on the $\\alpha$ coefficients]\n\\label{cor:alphas-bounds}\nFor any $0\\leq p\\leq d$, it holds that \n\\[\n\\frac{d-p}{(p+1)d} \\exps{\\frac{-1}{2\\nu^2}} \\leq \\alpha_p \\leq \\frac{d-p}{(p+1)d}\n\\, .\n\\]\n\\end{corollary}\n\nOne can further show that, for any $0\\leq t\\leq 1$, \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:psi-precise-bound}\n\\exp{\\frac{-t^2}{2\\nu^2}} \\leq \\psi(t) \\leq \\exp{\\frac{-t^2}{8\\nu^2}}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\nUsing Eq.~\\eqref{eq:psi-precise-bound} together with the series-integral comparison theorem would yield very accurate bounds for the $\\alpha$ coefficients and related quantities, but we will not follow that road. \n\n\n\n\\subsection{Computation of $\\Sigma^{-1}$}\n\\label{sec:computation-of-sigma-inverse}\n\nIn this section, we present a closed-form formula for the matrix inverse of $\\Sigma$ as a function of $d$ and $\\nu$.\n\n\\begin{minipage}{0.7\\textwidth}\n\\begin{proposition}[Computation of $\\Sigma^{-1}$]\n\\label{prop:sigma-inverse-computation}\nFor any $d\\geq 1$ and $\\nu >0$, recall that we defined\n\\[\nc}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d = (d-1)\\alpha_0\\alpha_2 -d\\alpha_1^2 + \\alpha_0\\alpha_1\n\\, .\n\\]\nAssume that $c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d\\neq 0$ and $\\alpha_1\\neq \\alpha_2$. \nDefine $\\sigma_0 \\defeq (d-1)\\alpha_2 + \\alpha_1$ and recall that we set \n\\[\n\\begin{cases}\n\\sigma_1 &= -\\alpha_1\n\\, , \\\\\n\\sigma_2 &= \\frac{(d-2)\\alpha_0 \\alpha_2 - (d-1)\\alpha_1^2 + \\alpha_0\\alpha_1}{\\alpha_1-\\alpha_2}\\, , \\\\\n\\sigma_3 &= \\frac{\\alpha_1^2-\\alpha_0\\alpha_2}{\\alpha_1-\\alpha_2 }\n\\, .\n\\end{cases}\n\\]\nThen it holds that\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:sigma-inverse-computation}\n \\Sigma^{-1} = \n \\frac{1}{c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d}\n\\begin{pmatrix}\n \\sigma_0 & \\sigma_1 & \\sigma_1 &\\cdots & \\sigma_1 \\\\ \n \n \\sigma_1 & \\sigma_2 & \\sigma_3 & \\cdots & \\sigma_3 \\\\\n \n \\sigma_1 & \\sigma_3 & \\sigma_2 & \\ddots & \\vdots \\\\ \n \n \\vdots & \\vdots & \\ddots & \\ddots & \\sigma_3 \\\\\n \n \\sigma_1 & \\sigma_3 & \\cdots & \\sigma_3 & \\sigma_2 \\\\\n\\end{pmatrix}\n\\in\\Reals^{(d+1)\\times (d+1)}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\n\\end{proposition}\n\\end{minipage}\n\\begin{minipage}{0.25\\textwidth}\n \\begin{center}\n \\includegraphics[scale=0.11]{cd_compressed.pdf}\n \\end{center}\n \\captionof{figure}{\\label{fig:dencst}Evolution of the normalization constant $c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d$ as a function of the bandwidth for $d=30$. In red, the default bandwidth $\\nu=0.25$, in green the limit for large bandwidth given by Corollary~\\ref{cor:approximate-sigma-inverse}.}\n\\end{minipage}\n\n\nWe display the evolution of the $\\sigma_i\/c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d$ coefficients with respect to $\\nu$ in Figure~\\ref{fig:sigmas}. \n\n\\begin{figure}\n \\centering\n \\includegraphics[scale=0.11]{sigma0__nu_compressed.pdf} \n \\includegraphics[scale=0.11]{sigma1__nu_compressed.pdf}\n \\includegraphics[scale=0.11]{sigma2__nu_compressed.pdf}\n \\includegraphics[scale=0.11]{sigma3__nu_compressed.pdf}\n \\caption{\\label{fig:sigmas}Evolution of $\\sigma_i\/c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d$ as a function of $\\nu$ for $1\\leq i\\leq 4$ for $d=30$. In red the default value of the bandwidth. In green the limits given by Corollary~\\ref{cor:approximate-sigma-inverse}. We can see that the $\\sigma$ coefficients are close to these limit values for the default bandwidth. }\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nFrom Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-sigma}, we can see that $\\Sigma$ is a block matrix. \nThe result follows from the block matrix inversion formula and one can check directly that $\\Sigma\\cdot \\Sigma^{-1} = \\Identity_{d+1}$. \n\\end{proof}\n\nOur next result shows that the assumptions of Proposition~\\ref{prop:sigma-inverse-computation} are satisfied: $\\alpha_1-\\alpha_2$ and $c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d$ are positive quantities. \nIn fact, we prove a slightly stronger statement which will be necessary to control the operator norm of $\\Sigma^{-1}$. \n\n\\begin{proposition}[$\\Sigma$ is invertible]\n\\label{prop:large-nu-makes-everything-ok}\nFor any $d\\geq 2$, \n\\[\n\\alpha_1 - \\alpha_2 \\geq \\frac{\\exps{\\frac{-1}{2\\nu^2}}}{6} > 0\n\\, ,\n\\quad \\text{ and } \\quad \nc}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d \\geq \\frac{\\exps{\\frac{-2}{\\nu^2}}}{40} > 0\n\\, .\n\\]\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nBy definition of the $\\alpha$ coefficients (Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-alphas}), we have\n\\[\n\\alpha_1 - \\alpha_2 = \\frac{1}{d}\\sum_{s=1}^d \\left(1-\\frac{s}{d}\\right) \\frac{s}{d-1} \\psi\\left(\\frac{s}{d}\\right)\n\\, .\n\\]\nSince $\\exps{\\frac{-1}{2\\nu^2}} \\leq \\psi(t) \\leq 1$ for any $t\\in [0,1]$, we have\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:large-nu-aux-1}\n\\exps{\\frac{-1}{2\\nu^2}} \\cdot \\frac{1}{d}\\sum_{s=1}^d \\left(1-\\frac{s}{d}\\right) \\frac{s}{d-1} = \\frac{d+1}{6d}\\cdot \\exps{\\frac{-1}{2\\nu^2}}\n\\leq \\alpha_1-\\alpha_2 \\leq \\frac{d+1}{6d}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\nThe right-hand side of Eq.~\\eqref{eq:large-nu-aux-1} yields the promised bound. \nNote that the same reasoning gives\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:large-nu-aux-2}\n\\frac{d+1}{2d} \\cdot \\exps{\\frac{-1}{2\\nu^2}} \\leq \\alpha_0 - \\alpha_1 \\leq \\frac{d+1}{2d}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\n\nLet us now find a lower bound for $c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d$. \nWe first start by noticing that \n\\begin{align}\nc}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d &= d\\alpha_1(\\alpha_0-\\alpha_1) - (d-1)\\alpha_0(\\alpha_1-\\alpha_2) \\label{eq:dencst-alt-writing} \\\\\n&= \\sum_{s=1}^d \\left(1-\\frac{s}{d}\\right) \\psi\\left(\\frac{s}{d}\\right) \\cdot \\frac{1}{d}\\sum_{s=1}^d \\frac{s}{d}\\psi\\left(\\frac{s}{d}\\right) - \\sum_{s=1}^d \\psi\\left(\\frac{s}{d}\\right) \\cdot \\frac{1}{d} \\sum_{s=1}^d \\left(1-\\frac{s}{d}\\right) \\psi\\left(\\frac{s}{d}\\right) \\notag \\\\\nc}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d &= \\frac{1}{d}\\left[ \\sum_{s=1}^d \\psi\\left(\\frac{s}{d}\\right) \\cdot \\sum_{s=1}^d \\frac{s^2}{d^2}\\psi\\left(\\frac{s}{d}\\right) - \\left(\\sum_{s=1}^d \\frac{s}{d}\\psi\\left(\\frac{s}{d}\\right)\\right)^2\\right] \\notag \n\\, .\n\\end{align}\nTherefore, by Cauchy-Schwarz inequality, $c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d\\geq 0$. \nIn fact, $c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d>0$ since the equality case in Cauchy-Schwarz is attained for proportional summands, which is not the case here. \n\nHowever, we need to improve this result if we want to control $\\opnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}$ more precisely. \nTo this extent, we use a refinement of Cauchy-Schwarz inequality obtained by \\citet{filipovski_2019}. \nLet us set, for any $1\\leq s\\leq d$, \n\\[\na_s \\defeq \\sqrt{\\psi\\left(\\frac{s}{d}\\right)}\\, ,\n\\quad b_s \\defeq \\frac{s}{d}\\sqrt{\\psi\\left(\\frac{s}{d}\\right)}\\, ,\n\\quad A \\defeq \\sqrt{\\sum_{s=1}^d a_s^2} \\, ,\n\\quad \\text{ and } B\\defeq \\sqrt{\\sum_{s=1}^d b_s^2}\n\\, .\n\\]\nWith these notation, \n\\[\nc}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d = \\frac{1}{d}\\left[A^2B^2-\\left(\\sum_{s=1}^d a_sb_s\\right)^2\\right]\n\\, ,\n\\]\nand Cauchy-Schwarz yields $A^2B^2\\geq \\left(\\sum_{s=1}^d a_sb_s\\right)^2$. \nTheorem~2.1 in \\citet{filipovski_2019} is a stronger result, namely\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:improved-cauchy-schwarz}\nAB\\geq \\sum_{s=1}^da_sb_s + \\frac{1}{4}\\sum_{s=1}^d \\frac{(a_s^2 B^2 - b_s^2 A^2)^2}{a_s^4B^4 + b_s^4 A^4} a_sb_s\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\nLet us focus on this last term. \nSince all the terms are non-negative, we can lower bound by the term of order $d$, that is,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:large-nu-aux-3}\n\\frac{1}{4}\\sum_{s=1}^d \\frac{(a_s^2 B^2 - b_s^2 A^2)^2}{a_s^4B^4 + b_s^4 A^4} a_sb_s \\geq \\frac{1}{4} \\frac{(b_d^2A^2-a_d^2B^2)^2}{b_d^4A^4+a_d^4B^4}a_db_d = \\frac{1}{4}\\frac{(A^2-B^2)^2}{A^4+B^4}\\psi(1)\n\\, ,\n\\end{equation}\nsince $a_d=b_d = \\sqrt{\\psi(1)}$. \nOn one side, we notice that\n\\begin{align}\nA^2-B^2 &= \\sum_{s=1}^d \\left(1-\\frac{s^2}{d^2}\\right)\\psi\\left(\\frac{s}{d}\\right) \\notag \\\\\n&\\geq \\exp{\\frac{-1}{2\\nu^2}} \\cdot \\sum_{s=1}^d \\left(1-\\frac{s^2}{d^2}\\right) \\notag \\tag{for any $t\\in[0,1]$, $\\psi(t)\\geq \\exps{-1\/(2\\nu^2)}$} \\\\\n&= \\exp{\\frac{-1}{2\\nu^2}} \\cdot \\frac{1}{6}\\left(4d-\\frac{1}{d}-3\\right) \\notag \\\\\nA^2-B^2 &\\geq \\frac{3d\\cdot \\exp{\\frac{-1}{2\\nu^2}}}{8} \\notag \n\\, ,\n\\end{align}\nwhere we used $d\\geq 2$ in the last display. \nWe deduce that $(A^2-B^2)^2 \\geq 9d^2\\exps{\\frac{-1}{2\\nu^2}}\/64$. \nOn the other side, it is clear that $A^2\\leq d$, and \n\\[\nB^2 \\leq \\sum_{s=1}^d \\frac{s^2}{d^2} = \\frac{(d+1)(2d+1)}{6d}\n\\, .\n\\]\nFor any $d\\geq 2$, we have $B^2\\leq 5d\/8$, and we deduce that $A^4+B^4\\leq \\frac{89}{64}d^2$. \nTherefore,\n\\[\n\\frac{(A^2-B^2)^2}{A^4+B^4} \\geq \\frac{9\\exps{\\frac{-1}{\\nu^2}}}{89}\n\\, .\n\\]\nComing back to Eq.~\\eqref{eq:large-nu-aux-3}, we proved that \n\\[\n\\frac{1}{4}\\sum_{s=1}^d \\frac{(a_s^2 B^2 - b_s^2 A^2)^2}{a_s^4B^4 + b_s^4 A^4} a_sb_s \\geq \\frac{9\\exps{\\frac{-3}{2\\nu^2}}}{356}\n\\, .\n\\]\nPlugging into Eq.~\\eqref{eq:improved-cauchy-schwarz} and taking the square, we deduce that \n\\[\nA^2B^2\\geq \\left(\\sum_{s=1}^d a_sb_s\\right)^2 + 2\\cdot \\sum_{s=1}^d a_sb_s\\cdot \\frac{9\\exps{\\frac{-3}{2\\nu^2}}}{356} + \\frac{81\\exps{\\frac{-3}{\\nu^2}}}{126736}\n\\, .\n\\]\nBut $\\sum a_sb_s \\geq d\\exps{\\frac{-1}{2\\nu^2}}\/2$, therefore, ignoring the last term, we have\n\\[\nA^2B^2 -\\left(\\sum_{s=1}^d a_sb_s\\right)^2 \\geq \\frac{9d\\exps{\\frac{-2}{\\nu^2}}}{356}\n\\, .\n\\]\nWe conclude by noticing that $356\/9\\leq 40$. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\\begin{remark}\nWe suspect that the correct lower bound for $c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d$ is actually of order $d$, but we did not manage to prove it. \nCareful inspection of the proof shows that this $d$ factor is lost when considering only the last term of the summation in Eq.~\\eqref{eq:improved-cauchy-schwarz}. \nIt is however challenging to control the remaining terms, since $B^2$ is roughly half of $A^2$ and $\\frac{s^2}{d^2}B^2-A^2$ is close to $0$ for some values of $s$. \n\\end{remark}\n\nWe conclude this section by giving an approximation of $\\Sigma^{-1}$ for large bandwidth. \nThis approximation will be particularly useful in Section~\\ref{sec:beta-computation}. \n\n\\begin{corollary}[Large bandwidth approximation of $\\Sigma^{-1}$]\n\\label{cor:approximate-sigma-inverse}\nFor any $d\\geq 2$, when $\\nu \\to +\\infty$, we have \n\\[\nc}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d \\longrightarrow \\frac{d^2-1}{12d} \n\\, ,\n\\]\nand, as a consequence,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:def-sigma-infty}\n\\begin{cases}\n\\frac{\\sigma_0}{c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d} &\\to \\frac{2(2d-1)}{d+1} = 4 - \\frac{6}{d} + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d^2}} \\\\\n\\frac{\\sigma_1}{c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d} &\\to \\frac{-6}{d+1} = - \\frac{6}{d} + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d^2}} \\\\\n\\frac{\\sigma_2}{c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d} &\\to \\frac{6(d^2-2d+3)}{(d+1)(d-1)} = 6 - \\frac{12}{d} + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d^2}} \\\\\n\\frac{\\sigma_3}{c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d} &\\to \\frac{-6(d-3)}{(d+1)(d-1)} = -\\frac{6}{d} + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d^2}}\\, .\n\\end{cases}\n\\end{equation}\n\\end{corollary}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nThe proof is straightforward from the definition of $c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d$ and the $\\sigma$ coefficients, and Corollary~\\ref{cor:alphas-approx}. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\\subsection{Concentration of $\\Sigmahat_n$}\n\\label{sec:sigmahat-concentration}\n\nWe now turn to the concentration of $\\Sigmahat_n$ around $\\Sigma$. \nMore precisely, we show that $\\Sigmahat_n$ is close to $\\Sigma$ in operator norm, with high probability. \nSince the definition of $\\Sigmahat_n$ is identical to the one in the Tabular LIME case, we can use the proof machinery of \\citet{garreau_luxburg_2020_arxiv}. \n\n\\begin{proposition}[Concentration of $\\Sigmahat_n$]\n\\label{prop:sigmahat-concentration}\nFor any $t\\geq 0$, \n\\[\n\\proba{\\opnorm{\\Sigmahat_n - \\Sigma} \\geq t} \\leq 4d\\cdot \\exp{\\frac{-nt^2}{32d^2}}\n\\, .\n\\]\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nWe can write $\\Sigmahat=\\frac{1}{n}\\sum_i \\pi_i Z_iZ_i^\\top$. \nThe summands are bounded i.i.d. random variables, thus we can apply the matrix version of Hoeffding inequality. \nMore precisely, the entries of $\\Sigmahat_n$ belong to $[0,1]$ by construction, and Corollary~\\ref{cor:alphas-bounds} guarantees that the entries of $\\Sigma$ also belong to $[0,1]$. \nTherefore, if we set $M_i\\defeq \\frac{1}{n}\\pi_i Z_iZ_i^\\top -\\Sigma$, then the $M_i$ satisfy the assumptions of Theorem~21 in \\citet{garreau_luxburg_2020_arxiv} and we can conclude since $\\frac{1}{n}\\sum_i M_i = \\Sigmahat_n-\\Sigma$. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\\subsection{Control of $\\opnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}$}\n\\label{sec:control-opnorm}\n\nWe now turn to the control of $\\opnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}$. \nEssentially, our strategy is to bound the entries of $\\Sigma^{-1}$, and then to derive an upper bound for $\\opnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}$ by noticing that $\\opnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}\\leq \\frobnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}$. \nThus let us start by controlling the $\\sigma$ coefficients in absolute value. \n\n\\begin{lemma}[Control of the $\\sigma$ coefficients]\n\\label{lemma:sigma-elements-control}\nLet $d\\geq 2$ and $\\nu \\geq 1.66$. \nThen it holds that\n\\[\n\\abs{\\sigma_0} \\leq \\frac{d}{3} \\, ,\n\\quad \\abs{\\sigma_1} \\leq 1\\, ,\n\\quad \\abs{\\sigma_2} \\leq \\frac{3d}{2}\\exps{\\frac{1}{2\\nu^2}}\\, ,\n\\quad \\text{ and }\\quad \\abs{\\sigma_3} \\leq \\frac{3}{2}\\exps{\\frac{1}{2\\nu^2}}\n\\, .\n\\]\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nBy its definition, we know that $\\sigma_0$ is positive. \nMoreover, from Corollary~\\ref{cor:alphas-bounds}, we see that\n\\begin{align*}\n\\sigma_0 &= (d-1)\\alpha_2 + \\alpha_1 \\\\\n&\\leq \\frac{(d-1)(d-2)}{3d} + \\frac{d-1}{2d} \\\\\n&= \\frac{2d^2-3d+3}{6d}\n\\, .\n\\end{align*}\nOne can check that for any $d\\geq 2$, we have $2d^2-3d+3\\leq 2d^2$, which concludes the proof of the first claim. \n\nSince $\\abs{\\sigma_1}=\\alpha_1$, the second claim is straightforward from Corollary~\\ref{cor:alphas-bounds}. \n\nRegarding $\\sigma_2$, we notice that\n\\[\n\\sigma_2 = \\frac{c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d + \\alpha_1^2 - \\alpha_0\\alpha_2}{\\alpha_1-\\alpha_2}\n\\, .\n\\]\nSince $\\alpha_0\\geq \\alpha_1\\geq \\alpha_2$, we have\n\\[\n-\\alpha_1(\\alpha_0-\\alpha_1) \\leq \\alpha_1^2-\\alpha_0\\alpha_2 \\leq \\alpha_0(\\alpha_1-\\alpha_2)\n\\, .\n\\]\nUsing Eqs.~\\eqref{eq:large-nu-aux-1} and~\\eqref{eq:large-nu-aux-2} in conjunction with Corollary~\\ref{cor:alphas-bounds}, we find that $\\abs{\\alpha_1^2-\\alpha_0\\alpha_2} \\leq 1\/4$. \nMoreover, from Eq.~\\eqref{eq:dencst-alt-writing}, we see that $c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d\\leq d\/4$. \nWe deduce that \n\\[\n\\abs{\\sigma_2} \\leq \\left(\\frac{d}{4} + \\frac{1}{4}\\right)\\cdot 6\\exps{\\frac{1}{2\\nu^2}}\n\\, ,\n\\]\nwhere we used the first statement of Proposition~\\ref{prop:large-nu-makes-everything-ok} to lower bound $\\alpha_1\\alpha_2$. \nThe results follows, since $d\\geq 2$. \n\nFinally, we write\n\\begin{align*}\n\\abs{\\sigma_3} &= \\frac{\\abs{\\alpha_1^2-\\alpha_0\\alpha_2}}{\\alpha_1-\\alpha_2} \\\\\n&\\leq \\frac{1\/4}{\\frac{d+1}{6d}\\cdot \\exps{\\frac{-1}{2\\nu^2}}}\n\\end{align*}\naccording to Proposition~\\ref{prop:large-nu-makes-everything-ok}. \n\\end{proof}\n\nWe now proceed to bound the operator norm of $\\Sigma^{-1}$. \n\n\\begin{proposition}[Control of $\\opnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}$]\n\\label{prop:opnorm-control}\nFor any $d\\geq 2$ and any $\\nu > 0$, it holds that \n\\[\n\\opnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}} \\leq 70 d^{3\/2} \\exps{\\frac{5}{2\\nu^2}}\n\\, .\n\\]\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{remark}\n\\label{remark:influence-of-d}\nWe notice that the control obtained worsens as $d\\to +\\infty$ and $\\nu\\to 0$. \nWe conjecture that the dependency in $d$ is not tight. \nFor instance, showing that $c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d=\\Omega(d)$ (that is, improving Proposition~\\ref{prop:large-nu-makes-everything-ok}) would yield an upper bound of order $d$ instead of $d^{3\/2}$. \nThe discussion after Proposition~\\ref{prop:large-nu-makes-everything-ok} indicates that such an improvement may be possible. \nMoreover, we see in experiments that the concentration of $\\betahat_n$ does not degrade that much for large $d$ (see, in particular, Figure~\\ref{fig:linear-large-d} in Section~\\ref{sec:add-exp-linear}), another sign that Proposition~\\ref{prop:opnorm-control} could be improved. \n\\end{remark}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nWe will use the fact that $\\opnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}\\leq \\frobnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}$. \nWe first write\n\\[\n\\frobnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}^2 = \\frac{1}{c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d^2}\\left(\\sigma_0^2 + 2d\\sigma_1^2 + d\\sigma_2^2 + (d^2-d)\\sigma_3^2\\right)\n\\, ,\n\\]\nby definition of the $\\sigma$ coefficients. \nOn one hand, using Lemma~\\ref{lemma:sigma-elements-control}, we write\n\\begin{align}\n\\sigma_0^2 + 2d\\sigma_1^2 + d\\sigma_2^2 + (d^2-d)\\sigma_3^2 &\\leq \\frac{d^2}{9} + 2d + d\\cdot (3d\/2)^2 \\exps{\\frac{1}{\\nu^2}} + (d^2-d)\\cdot \\frac{9}{4}\\exps{\\frac{1}{\\nu^2}} \\notag \\\\\n&\\leq 3d^3\\exps{\\frac{1}{\\nu^2}} \\label{eq:opnorm-control-aux-1}\n\\, ,\n\\end{align}\nwhere we used $c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d\\leq d$ and $d\\geq 2$ in the last display. \nOn the other hand, a direct consequence of Proposition~\\ref{prop:large-nu-makes-everything-ok} is that\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:opnorm-control-aux-2}\n\\frac{1}{c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d^2} \\leq 1600\\exps{\\frac{4}{\\nu^2}}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\nPutting together Eqs.~\\eqref{eq:opnorm-control-aux-1} and~\\eqref{eq:opnorm-control-aux-2}, we obtain the claimed result, since $\\sqrt{3\\cdot 1600}\\leq 70$. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\\section{The study of $\\Gamma^f$}\n\\label{sec:study-of-gamma}\n\nWe now turn to the study of the (weighted) responses. \nIn Section~\\ref{sec:gamma-computation}, we obtain an explicit expression for the average responses. \nWe show how to obtain closed-form expressions in the case of indicator functions in Section~\\ref{sec:gamma-computation-indicator}. \nIn the case of a linear model, we have to resort to approximations that are detailed in Section~\\ref{sec:gamma-computation-linear}. \nSection~\\ref{sec:concentration-gammahat} contains the concentration result for $\\Gammahat_n$. \n\n\n\\subsection{Computation of $\\Gamma^f$}\n\\label{sec:gamma-computation}\n\nWe start our study by giving an expression for $\\Gamma^f$ for any $f$ under mild assumptions. \nRecall that we defined $\\Gammahat_n=\\frac{1}{n}Z^\\top W y$, where $y\\in\\Reals^{d+1}$ is the random vector defined coordinate-wise by $y_i=f(x_i)$. \nFrom the definition of $\\Gammahat_n$, it is straightforward that\n\\[ \n\\Gammahat_n =\n\\begin{pmatrix}\n\\frac{1}{n}\\sum_{i=1}^n \\pi_{i}f(\\normtfidf{x_i}) \\\\ \n\\frac{1}{n}\\sum_{i=1}^{n} \\pi_{i}{z_{i,1}}f(\\normtfidf{x_i})\\\\ \n\\vdots\\\\ \n\\frac{1}{n}\\sum_{i=1}^{n} \\pi_{i}{z_{i,d}}f(\\normtfidf{x_i}) \\\\ \n\\end{pmatrix}\n\\in\\Reals^{d+1}\n\\, .\n\\]\nAs a consequence, since we defined $\\Gamma^f=\\smallexpec{\\Gammahat_n}$, it holds that\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:def-gamma}\n\\Gamma^f = \n\\begin{pmatrix}\n\\expec{ \\pi f(\\normtfidf{x}) } \\\\ \n\\expec{\\pi z_1 f(\\normtfidf{x})}\\\\ \n\\vdots\\\\ \n\\expec{\\pi z_d f(\\normtfidf{x})} \\\\ \n\\end{pmatrix}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\nOf course, Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-gamma} depends on the model $f$. \nThese computations can be challenging. \nNevertheless, it is possible to obtain exact results in simple situations. \n\n\\paragraph{Constant model. }\nAs a warm up, let us show how to compute $\\Gamma^f$ when $f$ is constant. \nPerhaps the simplest model of all: $f$ always returns the same value, whatever the value of $\\normtfidf{x}$ may be. \nBy linearity of $\\Gamma^f$ (see Section~3.2 of the main paper), it is sufficient to consider the case $f=1$. \nFrom Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-gamma}, we see that \n\\[\n\\Gamma^f_j =\n\\begin{cases}\n\\expec{\\pi} &\\text{ if } j = 0, \\\\\n\\expec{\\pi z_j} &\\text{ otherwise. }\n\\end{cases}\n\\]\nWe recognize the definitions of the $\\alpha$ coefficients, and, more precisely, $\\Gamma^f_0=\\alpha_0$ and $\\Gamma^f_j=\\alpha_1$ if $j\\geq 1$. \n\n\n\\subsection{Indicator functions}\n\\label{sec:gamma-computation-indicator}\n\nLet us turn to a slightly more complicated class of models: indicator functions, or rather products of indicator functions. \nAs explained in the paper, these functions fall into our framework.\nWe have the following result: \n\n\\begin{proposition}[Computation of $\\Gamma^f$, product of indicator functions]\n\\label{prop:gamma-indicator-general}\nSet $J\\subseteq \\{1,\\ldots,d\\}$ a set of $p$ distinct indices. \nDefine \n\\[\nf(\\normtfidf{x}) \\defeq \\prod_{j\\in J} \\indic{\\normtfidf{x}_j > 0}\n\\, .\n\\]\nThen it holds that\n\\[\n\\Gamma_\\ell^f = \n\\begin{cases}\n\\alpha_p & \\text{ if } \\ell \\in \\{0\\}\\cup J \\\\\n\\alpha_{p+1} & \\text{ otherwise.}\n\\end{cases}\n\\]\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nAs noticed in the paper, $f$ can be written as a product of $z_j$s. \nTherefore, we only have to compute\n\\[\n\\Expec\\biggl[\\pi \\prod_{j\\in J}z_j\\biggr] \\quad \\text{ and } \\quad \\Expec\\biggl[\\pi z_k \\prod_{j\\in J}z_j\\biggr]\n\\, ,\n\\]\nfor any $1\\leq k\\leq d$. \nThe first term is $\\alpha_p$ by definition. \nFor the second term, we notice that if $\\ell \\in \\{0\\}\\cup J$, then two terms are identical in the product of binary features, and we recognize the definition of $\\alpha_p$. \nIn all other cases, there are no cancellation and we recover the definition of $\\alpha_{p+1}$. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\\subsection{Linear model}\n\\label{sec:gamma-computation-linear}\n\nWe now consider a linear model, that is, \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:def-linear-model}\nf(\\normtfidf{x}) \\defeq \\sum_{j=1}^d \\lambda_j \\normtfidf{x}_j\n\\, ,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\lambda_1,\\ldots,\\lambda_d$ are arbitrary fixed coefficients. \nIn order to simplify the computations, we will consider that $\\nu \\to +\\infty$ in this section. \nIn that case, $\\pi \\cvas 1$. \nIt is clear that $f$ is bounded on $\\sphere{D-1}$, thus, by dominated convergence, \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:def-gamma-infty}\n\\Gamma^f \\longrightarrow \\Gammainf \\defeq \n\\begin{pmatrix}\n\\expec{f(\\normtfidf{x}} \\\\\n\\expec{z_1 f(\\normtfidf{x}} \\\\\n\\vdots \\\\\n\\expec{z_d f(\\normtfidf{x}}\n\\end{pmatrix}\n\\in\\Reals^{d+1}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\n\nBy linearity of $f\\mapsto \\Gamma^f_{\\infty}$, it is sufficient to compute $\\expec{\\normtfidf{x}_j}$ and $\\expec{z_k \\normtfidf{x}_j}$ for any $1\\leq j,k\\leq d$.\n\nFor any $1\\leq j\\leq d$, recall that we defined \n\\[\n\\omega_k = \\frac{m_j^2v_j^2}{\\sum_{k=1}^d m_k^2v_k^2}\n\\, ,\n\\]\nand $H_S \\defeq \\sum_{k \\in S}\\omega_k$, where $S$ is the random subset of indices chosen by LIME. \nThe motivation for the definition of the random variable $H_S$ is the following proposition: it is possible to write the expected TF-IDF as an expression depending on $H_S$. \n\n\\begin{proposition}[Expected normalized TF-IDF]\n\\label{prop:expected-tfidf}\nLet $\\word_j$ be a fixed word of $\\xi$. \nThen, it holds that \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:expected-tfidf}\n\\expec{\\normtfidf{x}_j} = \\expec{z_j\\normtfidf{x}_j} = \\frac{d-1}{2d}\\cdot \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j \\cdot \\condexpec{\\frac{1}{\\sqrt{1 - H_S}}}{S\\not\\ni j}\n\\, ,\n\\end{equation}\nand, for any $k\\neq j$, \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:expected-tfidf-z}\n\\expec{z_k\\normtfidf{x}_j} = \\frac{d-2}{3d} \\cdot \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j \\cdot \\condexpec{\\frac{1}{\\sqrt{1-H_S}}}{S\\not\\ni j,k}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nWe start by proving Eq~\\eqref{eq:expected-tfidf}. \nLet us split the expectation depending on $\\word_j\\in x$. \nSince the term frequency is $0$ if $\\word_j\\notin x$, we have\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:tfidf-aux-1}\n\\expec{\\normtfidf{x}_j} = \\condexpec{\\normtfidf{x}_j}{w_j\\in x} \\proba{w_j\\in x}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\nLemma~\\ref{lemma:proba-containing} gives us the value of $\\proba{w_j\\in x}$. \nLet us focus on the TF-IDF term in Eq.~\\eqref{eq:tfidf-aux-1}. \nBy definition, it is the product of the term frequency and the inverse document frequency, normalized. \nSince the latter does not change when words are removed from $\\xi$, only the norm changes: we have to remove all terms indexed by $S$. \nFor any $1\\leq j\\leq d$, let us set $m_j$ (resp. $v_j$) the term frequency (resp. the inverse term frequency) of $\\word_j$ \nConditionally to $\\{\\word_j\\in x\\}$,\n\\[\n\\normtfidf{x}_j = \\frac{m_j v_j}{\\sqrt{\\sum_{k \\notin S} m_k^2 v_k^2}}\n\\, .\n\\]\nLet us factor out $\\normtfidf{\\xi}_j$ in the previous display. \nBy definition of $H_S$, we have\n\\[\n\\normtfidf{x}_j = \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j \\cdot \\frac{1}{\\sqrt{1 - \\sum_{k\\in S} \\frac{m_k^2v_k^2}{\\norm{\\tfidf{\\xi}}^2}}} = \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j \\cdot \\frac{1}{\\sqrt{1-H_S}}\n\\, .\n\\]\nSince $\\{w_j\\in x\\}$ is equivalent to $\\{j\\notin S\\}$ by construction, we can conclude. \nThe proof of the second statement is similar; one just has to condition with respect to $\\{w_j,w_k\\in x\\}$ instead, which is equivalent to $\\{S\\not\\ni j,k\\}$. \n\\end{proof}\n\nAs a direct consequence of Proposition~\\ref{prop:expected-tfidf}, we can derive $\\Gamma_{\\infty}^f=\\lim_{\\nu\\to +\\infty}\\Gamma^f$ when $f:x\\mapsto x_j$. \nRecall that we set $E_j = \\condexpec{(1-H_S)^{-1\/2}}{S\\not\\ni j}$ and $E_{j,k} = \\condexpec{(1-H_S)^{-1\/2}}{S\\not\\ni j,k}$. \nThen\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:gamma-computation-linear}\n\\left(\\Gamma_{\\infty}^f\\right)_k = \n\\begin{cases}\n\\left(\\frac{1}{2}-\\frac{1}{2d}\\right) \\cdot E_j \\cdot \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j &\\text{ if } k=0 \\text{ or } k=j, \\\\\n\\left(\\frac{1}{3}-\\frac{2}{3d}\\right) \\cdot E_{j,k} \\cdot \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j &\\text{ otherwise.}\n\\end{cases}\n\\end{equation}\n\nIn practice, the expectation computations required to evaluate $E_j$ and $E_{j,k}$ are not tractable as soon as $d$ is large. \nIndeed, in that case, the law of $H_S$ is unknown and approximating the expectation by Monte-Carlo methods requires is hard since one has to sum over all subsets and there are $\\bigo{2^d}$ subsets $S$ such that $S\\subseteq \\{1,\\ldots,d\\}$. \nTherefore we resort to approximate expressions for these expected values computations. \n\nWe start by writing\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:main-approx-expec}\n\\expec{\\frac{1}{\\sqrt{1-X}}} \\approx \\frac{1}{\\sqrt{1-\\expec{X}}}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\nAll that is left to compute will be $\\condexpec{H_S}{S\\not\\ni j}$ and $\\condexpec{H_S}{S\\not\\ni j,k}$. \nWe see in Section~\\ref{sec:subsets-sums} that after some combinatoric considerations, it is possible to obtain these expected values as a function of $\\omega_j$ and $\\omega_k$. \nMore precisely, Lemma~\\ref{lemma:expectation-computation} states that\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:approx-expec-hs}\n\\condexpec{H_S}{S\\not\\ni j} = \\frac{1-\\omega_j}{3} + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d}}\n\\quad \\text{ and }\\quad \n\\condexpec{H_S}{S\\not\\ni j,k} = \\frac{1-\\omega_j-\\omega_k}{4} + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d}}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\nWhen $d$ is large and the $\\omega_k$s are small, using Eq.~\\eqref{eq:main-approx-expec}, we obtain the following approximations:\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:approx-norm-tfidf}\n\\expec{\\normtfidf{x}_j} \\approx \\frac{1}{2}\\cdot \\sqrt{\\frac{1}{1-\\frac{1}{3}}} \\cdot \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j \\approx 0.61 \\cdot \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j\n\\, ,\n\\end{equation}\nand, for any $k\\neq j$, \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:approx-norm-tfidf-2}\n\\expec{z_k\\normtfidf{x}_j} \\approx \\frac{1}{3}\\cdot \\sqrt{\\frac{1}{1-\\frac{1}{4}}}\\cdot \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j \\approx 0.38 \\cdot \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\nFor all practical purposes, we will use Eq.~\\eqref{eq:approx-norm-tfidf} and~\\eqref{eq:approx-norm-tfidf-2}. \n\n\\begin{remark}\nOne could obtain better approximations than above in two ways. \nFirst, it is possible to take into account the dependency in $\\omega_j$ and $\\omega_k$ in the expectation of $H_S$. \nThat is, plugging Eq.~\\eqref{eq:approx-expec-hs} into Eq.~\\eqref{eq:main-approx-expec} instead of the numerical values $1\/3$ and $1\/4$. \nThis yields more accurate, but more complicated formulas. \nWithout being so precise, it is also possible to consider an arbitrary distribution for the $\\omega_k$s (for instance, assuming that the term frequencies follow the Zipf's law \\citep{powers_1998}). \nSecond, since the mapping $\\theta : x\\mapsto \\frac{1}{\\sqrt{1-x}}$ is convex, by Jensen's inequality, we are always \\emph{underestimating} by considering $\\theta(\\expec{X})$ instead of $\\expec{\\theta(X)}$. \nGoing further in the Taylor expansion of $\\theta$ is a way to fix this problem, namely using\n\\[\n\\expec{\\frac{1}{\\sqrt{1-X}}} \\approx \\frac{1}{\\sqrt{1-\\expec{X}}} + \\frac{3\\var{X}}{8\\sqrt{1-\\expec{X}}}\n\\, ,\n\\]\ninstead of Eq.~\\eqref{eq:main-approx-expec}.\nWe found that \\textbf{it was not useful to do so from an experimental point of view:} our theoretical predictions match the experimental results while remaining simple enough. \n\\end{remark}\n\n\n\\subsection{Concentration of $\\Gammahat_n$}\n\\label{sec:concentration-gammahat}\n\nWe now show that $\\Gammahat_n$ is concentrated around $\\Gamma^f$. \nSince the expression of $\\Gammahat_n$ is the same than in the tabular case, and since $f$ is bounded on the unit sphere $\\sphere{D-1}$, the same reasoning as in the proof of Proposition~24 in \\citet{garreau_luxburg_2020_arxiv} can be applied. \n\n\\begin{proposition}[Concentration of $\\Gammahat_n$]\n\\label{prop:concentration-gammahat}\nAssume that $f$ is bounded by $M>0$ on $\\sphere{D-1}$. \nThen, for any $t>0$, it holds that \n\\[\n\\proba{\\smallnorm{\\Gammahat_n - \\Gamma^f} \\geq t} \\leq 4d \\exp{\\frac{-nt^2}{32Md^2}}\n\\, .\n\\]\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nRecall that $\\norm{\\normtfidf{x}}=1$ almost surely. \nSince $f$ is bounded by $M$ on $\\sphere{D-1}$, it holds that $\\abs{f(\\normtfidf{x})}\\leq M$ almost surely. \nWe can then proceed as in the proof of Proposition~24 in \\citet{garreau_luxburg_2020_arxiv}. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\\section{The study of $\\beta^f$}\n\\label{sec:study-of-beta}\n\nIn this section, we study the interpretable coefficients. \nWe start with the computation of $\\beta^f$ in Section~\\ref{sec:beta-computation}. \nIn Section~\\ref{sec:betahat-concentration}, we show how $\\betahat_n$ concentrates around $\\beta^f$. \n\n\\subsection{Computation of $\\beta^f$}\n\\label{sec:beta-computation}\n\nRecall that, for any model $f$, we have defined $\\beta^f = \\Sigma^{-1}\\Gamma^f$. \nDirectly multiplying the expressions found for $\\Sigma^{-1}$ (Eq.~\\eqref{eq:sigma-inverse-computation}) and $\\Gamma^f$ (Eq.~\\eqref{eq:def-gamma}) obtained in the previous sections, we obtain the expression of $\\beta^f$ in the general case (this is Proposition~2 in the paper). \n\n\\begin{proposition}[Computation of $\\beta^f$, general case]\n\\label{prop:beta-computation-general}\nAssume that $f$ is bounded on the unit sphere. \nThen \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:beta-computation-intercept}\n\\beta^f_0 = c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1^{-1}_d\\biggl\\{\\sigma_0\\expec{\\pi f(\\normtfidf{x})} + \\sigma_1\\sum_{k=1}^d \\expec{\\pi z_k f(\\normtfidf{x})}\\biggr\\}\n\\, ,\n\\end{equation}\nand, for any $1\\leq j\\leq d$, \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:beta-computation-general}\n\\beta^f_j = \nc}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1^{-1}_d\\biggl\\{\\sigma_1 \\expec{\\pi f(\\normtfidf{x})} + \\sigma_2 \\expec{\\pi z_j f(\\normtfidf{x})} + \\sigma_3 \\sum_{\\substack{k=1 \\\\ k\\neq j}}^d \\expec{\\pi z_k f(\\normtfidf{x})}\\biggr\\}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\n\\end{proposition}\n\nThis is Proposition~2 in the paper, with the additional expression of the intercept $\\beta_0^f$. \nLet us see how to obtain an approximate, simple expression when both the bandwidth parameter and the size of the local dictionary are large. \nWhen $\\nu\\to +\\infty$, using Corollary~\\ref{cor:approximate-sigma-inverse}, we find that \n\\[\n\\beta_0^f \\longrightarrow \\left(\\betainf^f\\right)_0\\defeq \\frac{4d-2}{d+1}\\expec{\\pi f(\\normtfidf{x})} - \\frac{6}{d+1}\\sum_{k=1}^d \\expec{\\pi z_k f(\\normtfidf{x})}\n\\, ,\n\\]\nand, for any $1\\leq j\\leq d$,\n\\[\n\\beta_j^f \\longrightarrow \\left(\\betainf^f\\right)_j \\defeq \\frac{-6}{d+1}\\expec{\\pi f(\\normtfidf{x})} + \\frac{6(d^2-2d+3)}{d^2-1}\\expec{\\pi z_j f(\\normtfidf{x})} - \\frac{6(d-3)}{d^2-1}\\sum_{k\\neq j} \\expec{\\pi z_k f(\\normtfidf{x})}\n\\, .\n\\]\nFor large $d$, since $f$ is bounded on $\\sphere{D-1}$, we find that\n\\[\n\\left(\\betainf^f\\right)_0 = 4\\expec{\\pi f(\\normtfidf{x})} - \\frac{6}{d}\\sum_{k=1}^d \\expec{\\pi z_k f(\\normtfidf{x})} + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d}}\n\\, ,\n\\]\nand, for any $1\\leq j\\leq d$,\n\\[\n\\left(\\betainf^f\\right)_j = 6\\expec{\\pi z_j f(\\normtfidf{x})} - \\frac{6}{d}\\sum_{k\\neq j} \\expec{\\pi z_k f(\\normtfidf{x})} + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d}}\n\\, .\n\\]\nNow, by definition of the interpretable features, for any $1\\leq j\\leq d$, \n\\begin{align*}\n\\expec{\\pi z_j f(\\normtfidf{x})} &= \\condexpec{\\pi z_j f(\\normtfidf{x})}{\\word_j \\in x} \\cdot \\proba{\\word_j \\in x} + \\condexpec{\\pi z_j f(\\normtfidf{x})}{\\word_j \\notin x} \\cdot \\proba{\\word_j \\notin x} \\\\\n&= \\condexpec{\\pi f(\\normtfidf{x})}{\\word_j \\in x}\\cdot \\frac{d-1}{2d} + 0\n\\, ,\n\\end{align*}\nwhere we used Lemma~\\ref{lemma:proba-containing} in the last display. \nTherefore, we have the following approximations of the interpretable coefficients: \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:betainf-simplified-intercept}\n\\left(\\betainf^f\\right)_0 = 2\\expec{\\pi f(\\normtfidf{x})} - \\frac{3}{d}\\sum_k \\condexpec{\\pi f(\\normtfidf{x})}{\\word_k\\in x} + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d}}\n\\, ,\n\\end{equation}\nand, for any $1\\leq j\\leq d$,\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:betainf-simplified}\n\\left(\\betainf^f\\right)_j = 3\\condexpec{\\pi f(\\normtfidf{x})}{\\word_j\\in x} - \\frac{3}{d}\\sum_k \\condexpec{\\pi f(\\normtfidf{x})}{\\word_k\\in x} + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d}}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\nThe last display is the approximation of Proposition~\\ref{prop:beta-computation-general} presented in the paper. \n\n\\begin{remark}\nIn \\citet{garreau_luxburg_2020_arxiv}, it is noted that LIME for tabular data provably ignores unused coordinates.\nIn other words, if the model $f$ does not depend on coordinate $j$, then the explanation $\\beta^f_j$ is $0$. \nWe could not prove such a statement in the case of text data, even for simplified expressions such as Eq.~\\eqref{eq:betainf-simplified}. \n\\end{remark}\n\nWe now show how to compute~$\\beta^f$ in specific cases, thus returning to generic $\\nu$ and $d$.\n\n\\paragraph{Constant model. }\nAs a warm up exercise, let us assume that $f$ is a constant, which we set to $1$ without loss of generality (by linearity). \nRecall that, in that case, $\\Gamma^f_0=\\alpha_0$ and $\\Gamma^f_j=\\alpha_1$ for any $1\\leq j\\leq d$. \nFrom the definition of $c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d$ and the $\\sigma$ coefficients (Proposition~\\ref{prop:sigma-inverse-computation}), we find that \n\\[\n\\begin{cases}\n\\sigma_0 \\alpha_0 + d\\sigma_1\\alpha_1 &= c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d \\, ,\\\\\n\\sigma_1\\alpha_0 + \\sigma_2\\alpha_1 + (d-1)\\sigma_3\\alpha_1 &= 0 \n\\, .\n\\end{cases}\n\\]\nWe deduce from Proposition~\\ref{prop:beta-computation-general} that $\\beta^f_0=1$ and $\\beta^f_j=0$ for any $1\\leq j\\leq d$. \nThis is conform to our intuition: if the model is constant, then no word should receive nonzero weight in the explanation provided by Text LIME. \n\n\\paragraph{Indicator functions. }\nWe now turn to indicator functions, more precisely \\emph{products} of indicator functions. \nWe will prove the following (Proposition~3 in the paper):\n\n\\begin{proposition}[Computation of $\\beta^f$, product of indicator functions]\n\\label{prop:beta-computation-indicator-product-general}\nLet $j\\subseteq \\{1,\\ldots,d\\}$ be a set of $p$ distinct indices and set $f(x) = \\prod_{j\\in J}\\indic{x_j>0}$. \nThen \n\\[\n\\begin{cases}\n\\beta_0^f &= c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d^{-1}\\left(\\sigma_0\\alpha_p+p\\sigma_1\\alpha_p+(d-p)\\sigma_1\\alpha_{p+1}\\right)\\, , \\\\\n\\beta_j^f &= c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d^{-1}\\left(\\sigma_1\\alpha_p + \\sigma_2\\alpha_p + (d-p)\\sigma_3\\alpha_{p+1} + (p-1)\\sigma_3\\alpha_p\\right) \\text{ if }j \\in J\\, ,\\\\\n\\beta_j^f &= c}% constant in the denominator of \\Sigma^{-1_d^{-1}\\left(\\sigma_1\\alpha_p+\\sigma_2\\alpha_{p+1}+(d-p-1)\\sigma_3\\alpha_{p+1} + p\\sigma_3\\alpha_p \\right) \\text{ otherwise}\n\\, .\n\\end{cases}\n\\]\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\n\\begin{proof}\nThe proof is straightforward from Proposition~\\ref{prop:gamma-indicator-general} and Proposition~\\ref{prop:beta-computation-general}. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\\paragraph{Linear model. }\nIn this last paragraph, we treat the linear case. \nAs noted in Section~\\ref{sec:gamma-computation-linear}, we have to resort to approximate computations: in this paragraph, we assume that $\\nu = +\\infty$. \nWe start with the simplest linear function: all coefficients are zero except one (this is Proposition~4 in the paper). \n\n\\begin{proposition}[Computation of $\\beta^f$, linear case]\n\\label{prop:beta-computation-linear}\nLet $1\\leq j\\leq d$ and assume that $f(\\normtfidf{x})=\\normtfidf{x}_j$. \nRecall that we set $E_j= \\condexpec{(1-H_S)^{-1\/2}}{S\\not\\ni j}$ and for any $k\\neq j$, $E_{j,k} = \\condexpec{(1-H_S)^{-1\/2}}{S\\not\\ni j,k}$. \nThen \n\\begin{equation*}\n\\left(\\beta_\\infty^f\\right)_0 =\n\\left\\{5 E_j -\\frac{2}{d} \\sum_{k \\neq j}E_{j,k}\\right\\} \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d}}\n\\end{equation*}\nfor any $k\\neq j$, \n\\begin{equation*}\n\\left(\\beta_\\infty^f\\right)_k = \n\\left\\{2E_{j,1} -\\frac{2}{d}\\sum_{\\ell \\neq k,j}E_{j,\\ell} \\right\\}\\normtfidf{\\xi}_j + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d}}\n\\, ,\n\\end{equation*}\nand\n\\begin{equation*}\n\\left(\\beta_\\infty^f\\right)_j =\n\\left\\{3E_j -\\frac{2}{d} \\sum_{k \\neq j}E_{j,k}\\right\\} \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d}}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation*}\n\\end{proposition}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nStraightforward from Eqs.~\\eqref{eq:def-sigma-infty} and~\\eqref{eq:gamma-computation-linear}. \n\\end{proof}\n\nAssuming that the $\\omega_k$ are small, we deduce from Eqs.~\\eqref{eq:approx-norm-tfidf} and~\\eqref{eq:approx-norm-tfidf-2} that $E_j \\approx 1.22$ and $E_{j,k}\\approx 1.15$. \nIn particular, \\emph{they do not depend on $j$ and $k$.} \nThus we can drastically simplify the statement of Proposition~\\ref{prop:beta-computation-linear}:\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:simplified-betainf-linear-1}\n\\forall k\\neq j,\\quad \\left(\\beta_\\infty^f\\right)_k \\approx 0\n\\quad \\text{ and } \\left(\\beta_\\infty^f\\right)_j \\approx 1.36 \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\nWe can now go back to our original goal: $f(x) = \\sum_{j=1}^{d}\\lambda_j x_j$. \nBy linearity, we deduce from Eq.~\\eqref{eq:simplified-betainf-linear-1} that \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:simplified-betainf-linear}\n\\forall 1\\leq j\\leq d, \\quad \\left(\\beta_\\infty^f\\right)_j \\approx 1.36 \\cdot \\lambda_j \\cdot \\normtfidf{\\xi}_j\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\nIn other words, as noted in the paper, \\textbf{the explanation for a linear~$f$ is the TF-IDF of the word multiplied by the coefficient of the linear model,} up to a numerical constant and small error terms depending on~$d$.\n\n\n\\subsection{Concentration of $\\betahat$}\n\\label{sec:betahat-concentration}\n\nIn this section, we state and prove our main result: the concentration of $\\betahat_n$ around $\\beta^f$ with high probability (this is Theorem~1 in the paper). \n\n\\begin{theorem}[Concentration of $\\betahat_n$]\n\\label{th:betahat-concentration}\nSuppose that $f$ is bounded by $M>0$ on $\\sphere{D-1}$. \nLet $\\epsilon >0$ be a small constant, at least smaller than $M$. \nLet $\\eta\\in (0,1)$. \nThen, for every \n\\[\nn\\geq \\max \\left\\{2^9\\cdot 70^4 M^2d^{9} \\exps{\\frac{10}{\\nu^2}}, 2^9\\cdot 70^2 Md^5\\exps{\\frac{5}{\\nu^2}}\\right\\} \\frac{\\log \\frac{8d}{\\eta}}{\\epsilon^2}\n\\, ,\n\\]\nwe have $\\proba{\\smallnorm{\\betahat_n - \\beta^f} \\geq \\epsilon} \\leq \\eta$. \n\\end{theorem}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nWe follow the proof scheme of Theorem~28 in \\citet{garreau_luxburg_2020_arxiv}. \nThe key point is to notice that \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:binding-lemma}\n\\smallnorm{\\betahat_n-\\beta^f} \\leq 2\\opnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}} \\smallnorm{\\Gammahat_n-\\Gamma^f} + 2\\opnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}^2 \\norm{\\Gamma^f}\\smallopnorm{\\Sigmahat_n-\\Sigma} \n\\, ,\n\\end{equation}\nprovided that $\\smallopnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}(\\Sigmahat_n-\\Sigma)}\\leq 0.32$ (this is Lemma~27 in \\citet{garreau_luxburg_2020_arxiv}. \nTherefore, in order to show that $\\smallnorm{\\betahat_n-\\beta^f}\\leq \\epsilon$, it suffices to show that each term in Eq.~\\eqref{eq:binding-lemma} is smaller than $\\epsilon\/4$ and that $\\smallopnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}(\\Sigmahat-\\Sigma)}\\leq 0.32$. \nThe concentration results obtained in Section~\\ref{sec:study-of-sigma} and ~\\ref{sec:study-of-gamma} guarantee that both $\\smallopnorm{\\Sigmahat-\\Sigma}$ and $\\smallnorm{\\Gammahat-\\Gamma^f}$ are small if $n$ is large enough, with high probability. \nThis, combined with the upper bound on $\\smallopnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}$ given by Proposition~\\ref{prop:opnorm-control}, concludes the proof. \n\nLet us give a bit more details. \nWe start with the control of $\\smallopnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}(\\Sigmahat_n-\\Sigma)}$. \nSet $t_1\\defeq (220 d^{3\/2}\\exps{\\frac{5}{2\\nu^2}})^{-1}$ and $n_1\\defeq 32d^2\\log \\frac{8d}{\\eta} \/ t_1^2$. \nThen, according to Proposition~\\ref{prop:sigmahat-concentration}, for any $n\\geq n_1$, \n\\[\n\\proba{\\smallopnorm{\\Sigmahat_n-\\Sigma} \\geq t_1} \\leq 4d\\exp{\\frac{-nt_1^2}{32d^2}} \\leq \\frac{\\eta}{2}\n\\, .\n\\]\nSince $\\smallopnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}\\leq 70 d^{3\/2}\\exps{\\frac{5}{2\\nu^2}}$ (according to Proposition~\\ref{prop:opnorm-control}), by sub-multiplicativity of the operator norm, it holds that\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:proof-main-aux-1}\n\\smallopnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}(\\Sigmahat-\\Sigma)} \\leq \\smallopnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}} \\smallopnorm{\\Sigmahat-\\Sigma} \\leq 70\/220 < 0.32\n\\, ,\n\\end{equation}\nwith probability greater than $1-\\eta\/2$. \n\nNow let us set $t_2\\defeq (4\\cdot 70^2 M d^{7\/2} \\exps{\\frac{5}{\\nu^2}})^{-1}\\epsilon$ and $n_2 \\defeq 32d^2 \\log \\frac{8d}{\\eta} \/ t_2^2$. \nAccording to Proposition~\\ref{prop:sigmahat-concentration}, for any $n\\geq n_2$, it holds that \n\\[\n\\smallopnorm{\\Sigmahat_n-\\Sigma} \\leq \\frac{\\epsilon}{4Md^{1\/2}} \\cdot (70^2 d^3 \\exps{5\/\\nu^2})^{-1}\n\\, ,\n\\]\nwith probability greater than $\\eta\/2$. \nSince $\\smallnorm{\\Gamma^f}\\leq M\\cdot d^{1\/2}$ and $\\smallopnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}^2\\leq 70^2d^3\\exps{5\/\\nu^2}$, \n\\[\n\\opnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}} \\smallnorm{\\Gammahat-\\Gamma^f} \\leq \\frac{\\epsilon}{4}\n\\]\nwith probability grater than $1-\\eta\/2$. \nNotice that, since we assumed $\\epsilon < M$, $t_2< t_1$, and thus Eq.~\\eqref{eq:proof-main-aux-1} also holds. \n\nFinally, let us set $t_3\\defeq \\epsilon \/ (4\\cdot 70 d^{3\/2}\\exps{\\frac{5}{2\\nu^2}})$ and $n_3\\defeq 32Md^2\\log \\frac{8d}{\\eta}\/t_3^2$. \nAccording to Proposition~\\ref{prop:concentration-gammahat}, for any $n\\geq n_3$, \n\\[\n\\proba{\\smallnorm{\\Gammahat_n-\\Gamma^f} \\geq t_3} \\leq 4d\\exp{\\frac{-nt_3^2}{32Md^2}} \\leq \\frac{\\eta}{2}\n\\, .\n\\]\nSince $\\smallopnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}\\leq 70d^{3\/2}\\exps{\\frac{5}{2\\nu^2}}$, we deduce that \n\\[\n\\opnorm{\\Sigma^{-1}}^2 \\norm{\\Gamma^f}\\smallopnorm{\\Sigmahat_n-\\Sigma} \\leq \\frac{\\epsilon}{2}\n\\, ,\n\\]\nwith probability greater than $1-\\eta\/2$. \nWe conclude by a union bound argument. \n\\end{proof}\n\n\\section{Sums over subsets}\n\\label{sec:subsets-sums}\n\nIn this section, independent from the rest, we collect technical facts about sums over subsets. \nMore particularly, we now consider arbitrary, fixed positive real numbers $\\omega_1,\\ldots,\\omega_d$ such that $\\sum_k \\omega_k = 1$. \nWe are interested in subsets $S$ of $\\{1,\\ldots,d\\}$. \nFor any such $S$, we define $H_S\\defeq \\sum_{k\\in S}\\omega_k$ the sum of the $\\omega_k$ coefficients over $S$. \nOur main goal in this section is to compute the expectation of $H_S$ conditionally to $S$ not containing a given index (or two given indices), which is the key quantity appearing in Proposition~\\ref{prop:beta-computation-linear}.\n\n\\begin{lemma}[First order subset sums]\n\\label{lemma:first-order-subset-sums}\nLet $1\\leq s\\leq d$ and $1\\leq j,k\\leq d$ with $j\\neq k$. \nThen \n\\[\n\\sum_{\\substack{\\card{S} = s \\\\ S\\not\\ni j}} H_S = \\binom{d-2}{s-1}(1-\\omega_j)\n\\, ,\n\\]\nand \n\\[\n\\sum_{\\substack{\\card{S} = s \\\\ S\\not\\ni j,k}} H_S = \\binom{d-3}{s-1}(1-\\omega_j-\\omega_k)\n\\, .\n\\]\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nThe main idea of the proof is to rearrange the sum, summing over all indices and then counting how many subsets satisfy the condition. \nThat is, \n\\begin{align*}\n\\sum_{\\substack{\\card{S} = s \\\\ S \\ni j}} H_S &= \\sum_{k=1}^d \\omega_k \\cdot \\cardset{S \\text{ s.t. } j,k \\in S} \\\\\n&= \\sum_{k\\neq j} \\omega_k \\cdot \\binom{d-2}{s-2} + \\omega_j \\cdot \\binom{d-1}{s-1} \\\\\n&= \\binom{d-2}{s-2} + \\left[ \\binom{d-1}{s-1} - \\binom{d-2}{s-2} \\right]\\omega_j\n\\, . \n\\end{align*}\nWe conclude by using the binomial identity\n\\[\n\\binom{d-1}{s-1} - \\binom{d-2}{s-2} = \\binom{d-2}{s-1}\n\\, .\n\\]\nNotice that, in the previous derivation, we had to split the sum to account for the case $j=k$. \nThe proof of the second formula is similar. \n\\end{proof}\n\nLet us turn to expectation computation that are important to derive approximation in Section~\\ref{sec:gamma-computation-linear}.\nWe now see $S$ and $H_S$ as random variables. \nWe will denote by $\\expecunder{\\cdot}{s}$ the expectation conditionally to the event $\\{\\card{S}=s\\}$. \n\n\\begin{lemma}[Expectation computation]\n\\label{lemma:expectation-computation}\nLet $j,k$ be distinct elements of $\\{1,\\ldots,d\\}$. \nThen\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:subset-sum-expectation-computation}\n\\condexpec{H_S}{S\\not\\ni j} = \\frac{(1-\\omega_j)(d+1)}{3(d-1)} = \\frac{1-\\omega_j}{3} + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d}}\n\\, ,\n\\end{equation}\nand\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:subset-sum-expectation-2}\n\\condexpec{H_S}{S\\not\\ni j,k} = \\frac{(1-\\omega_j-\\omega_k)(d+1)}{4(d-2)} = \\frac{1-\\omega_j-\\omega_k}{4} + \\bigo{\\frac{1}{d}}\n\\end{equation}\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nBy the law of total expectation, we know that \n\\[\n\\condexpec{H_S}{S\\not\\ni j} = \\sum_{s=1}^{d} \\condexpecunder{H_S}{S\\not\\ni j}{s} \\cdot \\condproba{\\card{S}=s}{S\\not\\ni j}\n\\, .\n\\]\nWe first notice that, for any $s< d$, \n\\begin{align*}\n\\condproba{\\card{S}=s}{S\\not\\ni j} &= \\frac{\\condproba{S\\not\\ni j}{\\card{S} = s} \\proba{\\card{S}=s}}{\\proba{j\\notin S}} \\\\\n&= \\frac{\\binom{d-1}{s} \/ \\binom{d}{s}\\cdot \\frac{1}{d}}{\\frac{d-1}{2d}}\\\\\n\\condproba{\\card{S}=s}{S\\not\\ni j} &= \\frac{2(d-s)}{d(d-1)}\n\\, .\n\\end{align*}\nAccording to Lemma~\\ref{lemma:first-order-subset-sums}, for any $1\\leq s < d$, \n\\[\n\\sum_{\\substack{\\card{S} = s \\\\ S\\not\\ni j}} H_S = \\binom{d-2}{s-1}(1-\\omega_j)\n\\, .\n\\]\nMoreover, there are $\\binom{d-1}{s}$ such subsets. \nSince $\\binom{d-1}{s-1}^{-1}\\binom{d-2}{s}=\\frac{s}{d-1}$, we deduce that\n\\[\n\\condexpecunder{H_S}{S\\not\\ni j}{s} = \\frac{s}{d-1}(1-\\omega_j)\n\\, .\n\\]\nFinally, we write\n\\begin{align*}\n\\condexpec{H_S}{S\\not\\ni j} &= \\sum_{s=1}^{d-1} \\frac{s}{d-1}(1-\\omega_j) \\cdot \\frac{2(d-s)}{d(d-1)} \\\\\n&= (1-\\omega_j) \\cdot \\frac{2}{d(d-1)^2} \\sum_{s=1}^{d-1} s(d-s) \\\\\n\\condexpec{H_S}{S\\not\\ni j} &= \\frac{(d+1)(1-\\omega_j)}{3(d-1)}\n\\, .\n\\end{align*}\nThe second case is similar. \nOne just has to note that\n\\begin{align*}\n\\condproba{\\card{S}=s}{S\\not\\ni j,k} &= \\frac{\\condproba{S\\not\\ni j,k}{\\card{S}=s}}{\\proba{j,k \\notin S}} \\\\\n&= \\frac{3(d-s)(d-s-1)}{d(d-1)(d-2)} \\tag{Lemma~\\ref{lemma:proba-containing}}\n\\, .\n\\end{align*}\nThen we can conclude since \n\\[\n\\sum_{s=1}^{d-2} s(d-s)(d-s-1) = \\frac{(d-2)(d-1)d(d+1)}{12}\n\\, .\n\\]\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\section{Technical results}\n\\label{sec:technical}\n\nIn this section, we collect small probability computations that are ubiquitous in our derivations. \nWe start with the probability for a given word to be present in the new sample $x$, conditionally to $\\card{S} =s$. \n\n\\begin{lemma}[Conditional probability to contain given words]\n\\label{lemma:proba-containing-cond}\nLet $\\word_1,\\ldots,\\word_p$ be $p$ distinct words of $\\dl$. \nThen, for any $1\\leq s\\leq d$, \n\\[\n\\probaunder{\\word_1\\in x,\\ldots,\\word_p\\in x}{s} = \\frac{(d-s)(d-s-1)\\cdots (d-s-p+1)}{d(d-1)\\cdots (d-p+1)} = \\frac{(d-s)!}{(d-s-p)!}\\cdot \\frac{(d-p)!}{d!}\n\\, .\n\\]\n\\end{lemma}\n\nIn the proofs, we use extensively Lemma~\\ref{lemma:proba-containing-cond} for $p=1$ and $p=2$, that is,\n\\[\n\\probaunder{\\word_j\\in x}{s} = \\frac{d-s}{d} \n\\quad \\text{ and } \\quad \n\\probaunder{\\word_j \\in x, \\word_k \\in x}{s} = \\frac{(d-s)(d-s-1)}{d(d-1)}\n\\, ,\n\\]\nfor any $1\\leq j,k\\leq d$ with $j\\neq k$. \n\n\\begin{proof}\nWe prove the more general statement. \nConditionally to $\\card{S} =s$, the choice of $S$ is uniform among all subsets of $\\{1,\\ldots,d\\}$ of cardinality $s$. \nThere are $\\binom{d}{s}$ such subsets, and only $\\binom{d-p}{s}$ of them do not contain the indices corresponding to $\\word_1,\\ldots,\\word_p$.\n\\end{proof}\n\nWe have the following result, without conditioning on the cardinality of $S$: \n\n\\begin{lemma}[Probability to contain given words]\n\t\\label{lemma:proba-containing}\nLet $\\word_1,\\ldots,\\word_p$ be $p$ distinct words of $\\dl$. \n\tThen\n\t\\[\n\t\\proba{\\word_1,\\ldots,\\word_p\\in x} = \\frac{d-p}{(p+1)d}\n\t\\, .\n\t\\]\n\\end{lemma}\n\n\\begin{proof}\nBy the law of total expectation,\n\\begin{align*}\n\\proba{\\word_1,\\ldots,\\word_p\\in x} &= \\frac{1}{d}\\sum_{s=1}^d \\condproba{\\word_1,\\ldots,\\word_p\\in x}{s} \\\\\n&= \\frac{1}{d}\\sum_{s=1}^d \\frac{(d-s)!}{(d-s-p)!}\\cdot \\frac{(d-p)!}{d!}\n\\, ,\n\\end{align*}\nwhere we used Lemma~\\ref{lemma:proba-containing-cond} in the last display. \nBy the hockey-stick identity~\\citep{ross_1997}, we have\n\\[\n\\sum_{s=1}^d \\binom{d-s}{p} = \\sum_{s=p}^{d-1} \\binom{s}{p} = \\binom{d}{p+1}\n\\, .\n\\]\nWe deduce that \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:aux-limit-1}\n\\sum_{s=1}^d \\frac{(d-s)!}{(d-s-p)!} = \\frac{d!}{(p+1)\\cdot (d-p-1)!}\n\\, .\n\\end{equation}\nWe deduce that \n\\begin{align*}\n\\proba{\\word_1,\\ldots,\\word_p\\in x}\n&= \\frac{1}{d} \\frac{(d-p)!}{d!} \\sum_{s=1}^d \\frac{(d-s)!}{(d-s-p)!} \\\\\n&= \\frac{1}{d} \\frac{(d-p)!}{d!} \\frac{d!}{(p+1)\\cdot (d-p-1)!} \\tag{by Eq.~\\eqref{eq:aux-limit-1}} \\\\\n\\proba{\\word_1,\\ldots,\\word_p\\in x} &= \\frac{d-p}{(p+1)d}\n\\, .\n\\end{align*}\n\\end{proof}\n\n\\section{Additional experiments}\n\\label{sec:experiments}\n\nIn this section, we present additional experiments. \nWe collect the experiments related to decision trees in Section~\\ref{sec:add-exp-trees} and those related to linear models in Section~\\ref{sec:add-exp-linear}. \n\n\\paragraph{Setting.}\nAll the experiments presented here and in the paper are done on Yelp reviews (the data are publicly available at \\url{https:\/\/www.kaggle.com\/omkarsabnis\/yelp-reviews-dataset}). \nFor a given model $f$, the general mechanism of our experiments is the following. \nFor a given document $\\xi$ containing $d$ distinct words, we set a bandwidth parameter $\\nu$ and a number of new samples $n$. \nThen we run LIME $n_\\text{exp}$ times on $\\xi$, with no feature selection procedure (that is, all words belonging to the local dictionary receive an explanation). \nWe want to emphasize again that this is the only difference with the default implementation. \nUnless otherwise specified, the parameters of LIME are chosen by default, that is, $\\nu=0.25$ and $n=5000$.\nThe number of experiments $n_\\text{exp}$ is set to $100$. \nThe whisker boxes are obtained by collecting the empirical values of the $n_\\text{exp}$ runs of LIME: they give an indication as to the variability in explanations due to the sampling of new examples. \nGenerally, we report a subset of the interpretable coefficients, the other having near zero values. \n\nLet us explain briefly how to read these whisker boxes: to each word corresponds a whisker box containing all the $n_\\text{exp}$ values of interpretable coefficients provided by LIME ($\\betahat_j$ in our notation). \nThe horizontal dark lines mark the quartiles of these values, and the horizontal blue line is the median. \nOn top of these experimental results, we report with red crosses the values predicted by our analysis ($\\beta_j^f$ in our notation).\n\nThe Python code for all experiments is available at \\url{https:\/\/github.com\/dmardaoui\/lime_text_theory}.\nWe encourage the reader to try and run the experiments on other examples of the dataset and with other parameters. \n\n\\subsection{Decision trees}\n\\label{sec:add-exp-trees}\n\nIn this section, we present additional experiments for small decision trees. \nWe begin by investigating the influence of $\\nu$ and $n$ on the quality of our theoretical predictions. \n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\centering\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.21]{decision_tree_nu_005.pdf} \n\\hspace{0.5cm}\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.21]{decision_tree_nu_035.pdf}\n\\caption{\\label{fig:tree-bandwidth}Influence of the bandwidth on the explanation given for a small decision tree on a Yelp review ($n=5000,n_\\text{exp}=100$, $d=29$). \\emph{Left panel:} $\\nu=0.05$, \\emph{right panel:} $\\nu=0.35$. Our theoretical predictions remain accurate for non-default bandwidths.}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\paragraph{Influence of the bandwidth.}\nLet us consider the same example $\\xi$ and decision tree as in the paper. \nIn particular, the model $f$ is written as \n\\[\n\\indic{\\text{``food''}} + (1-\\indic{\\text{``food''}}) \\cdot \\indic{\\text{``about''}} \\cdot \\indic{\\text{``Everything''}}\n\\, .\n\\]\nWe now consider non-default bandwidths, that is, bandwidths different than $0.25$. \nWe present in Figure~\\ref{fig:tree-bandwidth} the results of these experiments. \nIn the left panel, we took a smaller bandwidth ($\\nu=0.05$) and in the right panel a larger bandwidth ($\\nu=0.35$). \nWe see that while the numerical value of the coefficients changes slightly, their relative order is preserved. \nMoreover, our theoretical predictions remain accurate in that case, which is to be expected since we did not resort to any approximation in this case. \nInterestingly, the empirical results for small $\\nu$ seem more spread out, as hinted by Theorem~\\ref{th:betahat-concentration}.\n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\centering\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.21]{decision_tree_simple_n_50.pdf} \n\\hspace{0.5cm}\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.21]{decision_tree_simple_n_8000.pdf}\n\\caption{\\label{fig:tree-nsample}Influence of the number of perturbed samples on the explanation given for a small decision tree on a Yelp review ($\\nu=0.25,n_\\text{exp}=100,d=29$). \\emph{Left panel:} $n=50$, \\emph{right panel:} $n=8000$. Empirical values are less likely to be close to the theoretical predictions for small $n$.}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\n\\paragraph{Influence of the number of samples.}\nKeeping the same model and example to explain as above, we looked into non-default number of samples $n$. \nWe present in Figure~\\ref{fig:tree-nsample} the results of these experiments. \nWe took a very small $n$ in the left panel ($n=50$ is two orders of magnitude smaller than the default $n=5000$) and a larger $n$ in the right panel. \nAs expected, when $n$ is larger, the concentration around our theoretical predictions is even better. \nTo the opposite, for small $n$, we see that the explanations vary wildly. \nThis is materialized by much wider whisker boxes. \nNevertheless, to our surprise, it seems that our theoretical predictions still contain some relevant information in that case. \n\n\\paragraph{Influence of depth.}\nFinally, we looked into more complex decision trees. \nThe decision rule used in Figure~\\ref{fig:tree-complex} is given by \n\\[\n\\indic{\\text{``food''}} + (1-\\indic{\\text{``food''}})\\indic{\\text{``about''}}\\indic{\\text{``Everything''}} +\\indic{\\text{``bad''}}+ \\indic{\\text{``bad''}}\\indic{\\text{``character''}}\n\\, .\n\\]\nWe see that increasing the depth of the tree is not a problem from a theoretical point of view. \nIt is interesting to see that words used in several nodes for the decision receive more weight (\\emph{e.g.}, ``bad'' in this example). \n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\centering\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.25]{decision_tree_complexe.pdf} \n\\caption{\\label{fig:tree-complex}Theory meets practice for a more complex decision tree ($\\nu=0.25,n_\\text{exp}=100,n=5000,d=29$). Here we report all coefficients. The theory still holds for more complex trees.}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\n\\subsection{Linear models}\n\\label{sec:add-exp-linear}\n\n\nLet us conclude this section with additional experiments for linear models. \nAs in the paper, we consider an arbitrary linear model \n\\[\nf(\\normtfidf{x}) = \\sum_{j=1}^d \\lambda_j \\normtfidf{x}_j\n\\, .\n\\]\nIn practice, the coefficients $\\lambda_j$ are drawn i.i.d. according to a Gaussian distribution. \n\n\\paragraph{Influence of the bandwidth.}\nAs in the previous section, we start by investigating the role of the bandwidth in the accuracy of our theoretical predictions. \nWe see in the right panel of Figure~\\ref{fig:linear-bandwidth} that taking a larger bandwidth does not change much neither the explanations nor the fit between our theoretical predictions and the empirical results. \nThis is expected, since our approximation (Eq.~\\eqref{eq:simplified-betainf-linear}) is based on the large bandwidth approximation. \nHowever, the left panel of Figure~\\ref{fig:linear-bandwidth} shows how this approximation becomes dubious when the bandwidth is small. \nIt is interesting to note that in that case, the theory seems to always \\emph{overestimate} the empirical results, in absolute value. \nThe large bandwidth approximation is definitely a culprit here, but it could also be the regularization coming into play. \nIndeed, the discussion at the end of Section~2.4 in the paper that lead us to ignore the regularization is no longer valid for a small $\\nu$. \nIn that case, the $\\pi_i$s can be quite small and the first term in Eq.~(5) of the paper is of order $\\exps{-1\/(2\\nu^2)}n$ instead of $n$. \n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\centering\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.25]{linear_nu_005.pdf} \n\\includegraphics[scale=0.25]{linear_nu_035.pdf} \n\\caption{\\label{fig:linear-bandwidth}Influence of the bandwidth on the explanation for a linear model on a Yelp review ($n_\\text{exp}=100,n=5000, d=29 $). \\emph{Left panel:} $\\nu=0.05$, \\emph{right panel:} $\\nu=0.35$. The approximate theoretical values are less accurate for smaller bandwidths.}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\paragraph{Influence of the number of samples.}\nNow let us look at the influence of the number of perturbed samples. \nAs in the previous section, we look into very small values of~$n$, \\emph{e.g.}, $n=50$. \nWe see in the left panel of Figure~\\ref{fig:linear-n} that, as expected, the variability of the explanations increases drastically. \nThe theoretical predictions seem to overestimate the empirical results in absolute value, which could again be due to the regularization beginning to play a role for small $n$, since the discussion in Section~2.4 of the paper is only valid for large~$n$. \n\n\\begin{figure}\n\\centering\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.25]{linear_n_50.pdf} \n\\includegraphics[scale=0.25]{linear_n_8000.pdf} \n\\caption{\\label{fig:linear-n}Influence of the number of perturbed samples on the explanation for a linear model on a Yelp review ($ \\nu=0.25,n_\\text{exp}=100, d=29 $). \\emph{Left panel:} $n=50$, \\emph{right panel:} $n=8000$. The empirical explanations are more spread out for small values of $n$.}\n\\end{figure}\n\n\\paragraph{Influence of $d$.}\nTo conclude this section, let us note that $d$ does not seem to be a limiting factor in our analysis. \nWhile Theorem~\\ref{th:betahat-concentration} hints that the concentration phenomenon may worsen for large $d$, as noted before in Remark~\\ref{remark:influence-of-d}, we have reason to suspect that it is not the case. \nAll experiments presented on this section so far consider an example whose local dictionary has size $d=29$. \nIn Figure~\\ref{fig:linear-large-d} we present an experiment on an example that has a local dictionary of size $d=52$.\nWe observed no visible change in the accuracy of our predictions. \n\n\\begin{figure}\n\n\\centering\n\\includegraphics[scale=0.25]{linear_large_d.pdf} \n\\caption{\\label{fig:linear-large-d}Theory meets practice for an example with a larger vocabulary ($\\nu=0.25,n_\\text{exp}=100,n=5000,d=537$). Here we report only $50$ interpretable coefficients. Our theoretical predictions seem to hold for larger local dictionaries.}\n\\end{figure}\n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\\section{Introduction} \n\\label{sec:intro} \n\nDecision-making in medicine requires precise knowledge of individualized health outcomes over time after applying different treatments \\cite{huang2012analysis,hill2013assessing}. This then informs the choice of treatment plans and thus ensures effective care personalized to individualized patients. Traditionally, the gold standard for estimating the effects of treatments are randomized controlled trials~(RCTs). However, RCTs are costly, often impractical, or even unethical. To address this, there is a growing interest in estimating health outcomes over time after treatments from observational data, such as, \\eg, electronic health records.\n\nNumerous methods have been proposed for estimating (counterfactual) outcomes after a treatment from observational data in the static setting \\cite{van2006targeted,chipman2010bart,johansson2016learning,curth2021nonparametric}. Different from that, we focus on longitudinal settings, that is, \\emph{over time}. In fact, longitudinal data are nowadays paramount in medical practice. For example, almost all EHRs nowadays store sequences of medical events over time \\cite{allam2021analyzing}. However, estimating counterfactual outcomes over time is challenging. One reason is that counterfactual outcomes are typically never observed. On top of that, directly estimating counterfactual outcomes with traditional machine learning methods in the presence of (time-varying) confounding has a larger generalization error of estimation \\cite{alaa2018limits}, or is even biased (in case of multiple-step-ahead prediction) \\cite{robins2009estimation}. Instead, tailored methods are needed. \n\nOnly recently, there is a growing interest in methods for estimating counterfactual outcomes over time \\cite{robins2009estimation}. Here, state-of-the-art methods make nowadays use of machine learning. Prominent examples are: recurrent marginal structural networks~(RMSNs) \\cite{lim2018forecasting}, counterfactual recurrent network~(CRN) \\cite{bica2020estimating}, and G-Net \\cite{li2021g}. However, these methods build upon simple long short-term memory~(LSTM) networks \\cite{hochreiter1997long}, because of which their ability to model complex, long-range dependencies in observational data is limited. As a remedy, we develop a \\emph{Causal Transformer}\\xspace~(CT\\xspace) for estimating counterfactual outcomes over time. It is carefully designed to capture complex, long-range dependencies in medical data that are nowadays common in EHRs. \n\nIn this paper, we aim at estimating counterfactual outcomes over time, that is, for one- and multi-step-ahead predictions. For this, we develop a novel \\emph{Causal Transformer}\\xspace~(CT\\xspace): it overcomes limitations of existing methods by leveraging a tailored transformer-based architecture to capture complex, long-range dependencies in the observational data. Specifically, we combine three separate transformer subnetworks for processing time-varying covariates, past treatments, and past outcomes, respectively, into a joint network with in-between cross-attentions. Here, each transformer subnetwork is further extended by (i)~masked multi-head self-attention, (ii)~shared learnable relative positional encoding, and (iii)~attentional dropout. \n\nTo train CT\\xspace, we further develop a custom end-to-end training procedure and, to this end, propose a novel counterfactual domain confusion loss. This allows us to solve an adversarial balancing objective in which we balance representations to be (a)~predictive of outcomes and (b)~non-predictive of the current treatment assignment. The latter is crucial to address confounding bias and thus reduces the generalization error of counterfactual prediction. We demonstrate the effectiveness of our CT\\xspace over state-of-the-art methods using an extensive series of experiments with synthetic and real-world data. \n\nOverall, our \\textbf{main contribution} are as follows:\\footnote{Code is available online: \\url{https:\/\/anonymous.4open.science\/r\/AnonymousCausalTransformer-9FC5}}\n\\vspace{-0.2cm}\n\\begin{enumerate}[noitemsep]\n\\item We propose a new end-to-end model for estimating counterfactual outcomes over time: the \\emph{Causal Transformer}\\xspace~(CT\\xspace). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first transformer tailored to causal inference. \n\\item We develop a custom training procedure for our CT\\xspace based on a novel counterfactual domain confusion loss. \n\\item We use synthetic and real-world data to demonstrate that our CT\\xspace achieves state-of-the-art performance. We further achieve this both for one- and multi-step-ahead predictions. \n\\end{enumerate}\n\\vspace{-0.3cm}\n\n\\begin{figure*}[tbp]\n \\begin{center}\n \\centerline{\\includegraphics[width=\\textwidth]{figures\/multi-input-causal-transformer}}\n \\caption{Overview of CT\\xspace architecture. We distinguish two timelines: time steps $1, \\ldots t$ refer observational data (patient trajectories) and thus input; time steps $t+1, \\ldots t+\\tau$ is the projection horizon and thus output. Three separate transformers are used in parallel for encoding observational data as input: treatments $\\mathbf{A}_t$ (blue), outcomes $\\mathbf{Y}_{t}$ (green), and time-varying covariates $\\mathbf{X}_t$ (red). These are fused in via $k$ stacked multi-input blocks. Additional static covariates $\\mathbf{V}$ (gray) are fed into all multi-input blocks. Each multi-input block further makes use of cross-attentions. Afterwards, the three respective representation for treatments, outcomes, and time-varying covariates are averaged, giving the (balanced) representation $\\mathbf{\\Phi}_t$ (purple). On top of that are two additional networks $G_Y$ (outcome prediction network) and $G_A$ (treatment classifier network), that we later use for balancing in our counterfactual domain confusion loss. Residual connections with layer normalizations are omitted for clarity.\n }\n \\label{fig:multi-input-transformer}\n \\end{center}\n \\vskip -0.2in\n\\end{figure*}\n\n\\section{Related Work} \n\\label{sec:related-work}\n\n\\paragraph{Estimating counterfactual outcomes in static setting.} \n\nExtensive literature has focused on estimating counterfactual outcomes (or, analogously, individual treatment effects~(ITE)) in static settings \\cite{johansson2016learning,alaa2018bayesian,wager2018estimation,yoon2018ganite,curth2021nonparametric}. Several works have adapted deep learning for that purpose \\cite{johansson2016learning,yoon2018ganite}. In the static setting, the input is given by cross-sectional data, and, as such, there are \\emph{no} time-varying covariates, treatments, and outcomes. However, counterfactual outcome estimation in static settings is different from work, in which we are interested in settings over time. \n\n\\paragraph{Estimating counterfactual outcomes over time.} Methods for estimating time-varying outcomes were originally introduced in epidemiology and make widespread use of simple linear models. Here, the aim is to estimate average (non-individual) effects of time-varying treatments. Examples of such methods include G-computation, marginal structural models (MSMs), and structural nested models \\cite{robins1986new,robins2000marginal,hernan2001marginal,robins2009estimation}. To address the limited expressiveness of linear models, several Bayesian non-parametric methods were proposed \\cite{Xu16,schulam2017reliable,soleimani2017treatment}. However, these make strong assumptions regarding the data generation mechanism, and are not designed for multi-dimensional outcomes as well as static covariates. Other methods build upon recurrent neural networks \\cite{qian2021synctwin,berrevoets2021disentangled} but these are restricted to single-time treatments or make stronger assumptions for identifiability, which do not hold for our setting (see Appendix~\\ref{app:methods-table}). \n\nThere are several methods that build upon the potential outcomes framework \\cite{rubin1978bayesian,robins2009estimation}, and, thus, ensure identifiability by making the same assumptions as we do (see Sec.~\\ref{sec:problem-formulation}). Here, state-of-the-art methods are recurrent marginal structural networks~(RMSNs) \\cite{lim2018forecasting}, counterfactual recurrent network~(CRN) \\cite{bica2020estimating}, and G-Net \\cite{li2021g}. These methods address bias due to time-varying confounding in different ways. RMSNs combine two propensity networks and use the predicted inverse probability of treatment weighting~(IPTW) scores for training the prediction networks. CRN uses an adversarial objective to produce the sequence of balanced representations, which are simultaneously predictive of the outcome but non-predictive of the current treatment assignment. G-Net aims to predict both outcomes and time-varying covariates, and then performs G-computation for multiple-step-ahead prediction. All of three aforementioned methods are built on top of one\/two-layer LSTM encoder-decoder architectures. Because of that, they are limited by the extent with which they can capture long-range, complex dependencies between time-varying confounders (\\ie, time-varying covariates, previous treatments, and previous outcomes). However, such complex data are nowadays widespread in medical practice (\\eg, electronic health records) \\cite{allam2021analyzing}, which may impede the performance of the previous methods for real-world medical data. As a remedy, we develop a \\emph{deep} transformer network for counterfactual outcomes estimation over time. \n\n\\paragraph{Transformers.} Transformers refer to deep neural networks for sequential data that typically adopt a custom self-attention mechanism \\cite{vaswani2017attention}. This makes transformers both flexible and powerful in modeling long-range associative dependencies for sequence-to-sequence tasks. Prominent examples come from natural language processing (e.g., BERT \\cite{devlin2019bert}, RoBERTa \\cite{liu2019roberta}, and GPT-3 \\cite{brown2020language}). Other examples include, \\eg, time-series forecasting \\cite{tang2021probabilistic,zhou2021informer}. However, to the best of our knowledge, no paper has developed transformers specifically for causal inference. This presents our novelty. \n\n\\section{Problem Formulation} \n\\label{sec:problem-formulation}\nWe build upon the standard setting for estimating counterfactual outcomes over time as in \\cite{robins2009estimation,lim2018forecasting,bica2020estimating,li2021g}. Let $i$ refer to some patient and with health trajectories that span time steps $t = 1, \\dots, T^{(i)}$. For each time step $t$ and each patient $i$, we have the following: $d_x$ time-varying covariates $\\mathbf{X}_{t}^{(i)} \\in \\mathbb{R}^{d_x}$; $d_a$ categorical treatments $\\mathbf{A}_{t}^{(i)} \\in \\{a_1, \\dots, a_{d_a}\\}$; and $d_y$ outcomes $\\mathbf{Y}_{t}^{(i)} \\in \\mathbb{R}^{d_y}$. For example, critical care for COVID-19 would involve blood pressure and heart rate as time-varying covariates, ventilation as treatment, and respiratory frequency as outcome. Treatments are modeled as categorical variables as this relates to the question of whether to apply a treatment or not, and is thus consistent with prior works \\cite{lim2018forecasting,bica2020estimating,li2021g}. Further, we record static covariates describing a patient $\\mathbf{V}^{(i)}$ (\\eg, gender, age, or other risk factors). For notation, we omit patient index $(i)$ unless needed. \n\nFor learning, we have access to i.i.d. observational data $\\mathcal{D} = \\big\\{ \\{\\mathbf{x}_{t}^{(i)}, \\mathbf{a}_{t}^{(i)}, \\mathbf{y}_{t}^{(i)}\\}_{t=1}^{T^{(i)}} \\cup \\mathbf{v}^{(i)} \\big\\}_{i=1}^N$. In clinical settings, such data are nowadays widely available in form of EHRs \\cite{allam2021analyzing}. Here, we summarize the patient trajectory by $\\bar{\\mathbf{H}}_{t} = \\{ \\bar{\\mathbf{X}}_{t}, \\bar{\\mathbf{A}}_{t-1}, \\bar{\\mathbf{Y}}_{t}, \\mathbf{V} \\}$, where $\\bar{\\mathbf{X}}_{t} = (\\mathbf{X}_1, \\dots, \\mathbf{X}_t)$, $\\bar{\\mathbf{Y}}_{t} = (\\mathbf{Y}_1, \\dots, \\mathbf{Y}_t)$, and $\\bar{\\mathbf{A}}_{t-1} = (\\mathbf{A}_1, \\dots, \\mathbf{A}_{t-1})$.\n\nWe build upon the potential outcomes framework \\cite{neyman1923application,rubin1978bayesian} and its extension to time-varying treatments and outcomes \\cite{robins2009estimation}. Let $\\tau \\geq 1$ denote projection horizon for a $\\tau$-step-ahead prediction. Further,\nlet $\\bar{\\mathbf{a}} (t, t+\\tau-1) = (\\mathbf{a}_t, \\ldots, \\mathbf{a}_{t + \\tau - 1})$ \ndenote a given (non-random) treatment intervention. Then, we are interested in the potential outcomes, $\\mathbf{Y}_{t + \\tau}[\\bar{\\mathbf{a}} (t, t+\\tau-1)]$, under the treatment intervention. However, the potential outcomes for a specific treatment intervention are typically never observed for a patient but must be estimated. Formally, the potential counterfactual outcomes over time are identifiable from factual observational data $\\mathcal{D}$ under three standard assumptions: (1)~consistency, (2)~sequential ignorability, and (3)~sequential overlap (see Appendix~\\ref{app:assumptions} for details). \n\nOur task is thus to estimate future counterfactual outcomes $\\mathbf{Y}_{t + \\tau}$, after applying a treatment intervention $\\bar{\\mathbf{a}} (t, t+\\tau-1)$ for a given patient history $\\bar{\\mathbf{H}}_{t}$. Formally, we aim to estimate:\n\\begin{equation}\n \\mathbb{E} \\big( \\mathbf{Y}_{t + \\tau}[\\bar{\\mathbf{a}} (t, t+\\tau-1)] \\;\\mid\\; \\bar{\\mathbf{H}}_{t} \\big) .\n\\end{equation} \nTo do so, we learn a function $g(\\tau, \\bar{\\mathbf{a}} (t, t+\\tau-1), \\bar{\\mathbf{H}}_{t})$. Simply estimating $g(\\cdot)$ with traditional machine learning is biased \\cite{robins2009estimation}. For example, one reason is that treatment interventions not only influence outcomes but also future covariates. To address this, we develop a tailored model for estimation.\n\n\\section{Causal Transformer}\n\n\\paragraph{Input.} \n\nOur \\emph{Causal Transformer}\\xspace~(CT\\xspace) is a single multi-input architecture, which combines three separate transformer subnetworks. Each processes a different sequence as input: (i)~past time-varying covariates $\\bar{\\mathbf{X}}_{t}$; (ii)~past outcomes $\\bar{\\mathbf{Y}}_{t}$; and (iii)~past treatments before intervention $\\bar{\\mathbf{A}}_{t-1}$. Since we aim at estimating the counterfactual outcome after treatment intervention, we further input the future treatment assignment that a medical practitioners wants to intervene on. Thus, we concatenate two treatment sequences into one $\\bar{\\mathbf{A}}_{t-1} \\cup \\bar{\\mathbf{a}} (t, t+\\tau-1)$. Additionally, (iv)~the vector with static covariates $\\mathbf{V}$ is fed into all subnetworks.\n\n\\subsection{Model architecture}\n\nCT\\xspace learns a sequence of treatment-invariant (balanced) \\emph{representations} $\\bar{\\mathbf{\\Phi}}_{t+\\tau-1} = (\\mathbf{\\Phi}_1, \\dots, \\mathbf{\\Phi}_{t+\\tau-1})$. To do so, we stack $k$ identical \\emph{transformer blocks}. The first transformer block receives the different input sequences. The $k$-th transformer block outputs a sequence of representations $\\mathbf{\\Phi}_t$. The architecture is shown in Fig.~\\ref{fig:multi-input-transformer}. \n\n\\paragraph{Transformer blocks.} \n\nLet $i = 1, \\ldots, k$ index the different transformer blocks. Each transformer block receives three parallel sequences of hidden states as input (for each of the input sequences). For time step $t$, we denote them by $\\mathbf{A}^i_t$, $\\mathbf{Y}^i_t$, and $\\mathbf{X}^i_t$, respectively. We denote size of the hidden states by $d_h$. Further, each transformer block receives a representation vector of static covariates as additional input. \n\nFor the first transformer block ($i=0$), we use linearly-transformed time-series as input:\n\\begin{align}\n \\begin{split}\n & \\mathbf{A}_t^0 = \\operatorname{Linear}(\\mathbf{A}_{t}), \\quad \\,\\, \\mathbf{X}_t^0 = \\operatorname{Linear}(\\mathbf{X}_{t}), \\\\\n & \\mathbf{Y}_t^0 = \\operatorname{Linear}(\\mathbf{Y}_{t}), \\quad \\,\\, \\tilde{\\mathbf{V}} = \\operatorname{Linear}(\\mathbf{V}),\n \\end{split}\n\\end{align}\nwhere parameters of linear layers are shared for all time steps. All blocks $ \\ge 2 $ use the output sequence of the previous block $i-1$ as inputs.\n\nFor notation, we denote sequences of hidden states after block $i$ by three tensors $\\mathrm{A}^i, \\mathrm{X}^i$, and $\\mathrm{Y}^i$, \\ie, \n\\begin{align}\n \\begin{split}\n & \\mathrm{A}^i = \\big(\\mathbf{A}_1^i, \\dots, \\mathbf{A}_{t + \\tau - 2}^i\\big)^\\top , \\,\n \\mathrm{X}^i = \\big(\\mathbf{X}_1^i, \\dots, \\mathbf{X}_{t}^i\\big)^\\top , \\\\\n & \\mathrm{Y}^i = \\big(\\mathbf{Y}_1^i, \\dots, \\mathbf{Y}_{t + \\tau - 1}^i\\big)^\\top\n \\end{split}\n\\end{align}\n\nFollowing \\cite{dong2021attention,lu2021pretrained}, each transformer block combines a (i)~multi-head self-\/cross-attention, (ii)~feed-forward layer, and (iii)~layer normalization. A detailed formulation is in Appendix~\\ref{app:CT-block}. \n\n\\underline{(i) Multi-head self-\/cross-attention} uses a scaled dot-product attention with several parallel attention heads. Each attention head requires a 3-tuple of keys, queries, and values, \\ie, $K, Q, V \\in \\mathbb{R}^{T \\times d_{qkv}}$, respectively. These are obtained from a sequence of hidden states $\\mathrm{H} = \\big(\\mathbf{h}_1, \\dots, \\mathbf{h}_t\\big)^\\top \\in \\mathbb{R}^{T \\times d_h}$ ($\\mathrm{H}$ is one of $\\mathrm{A}$, $\\mathrm{X}$ or $\\mathrm{Y}$, depending on the subnetwork). Formally, we compute\n\\begin{align}\n \\label{eq:attention}\n \\operatorname{head}^{(i)} & = \\operatorname{Attention}(Q^{(i)}, K^{(i)}, V^{(i)}) \\\\\n & = \\operatorname{softmax}\\Big(\\frac{Q^{(i)}K^{(i)}{}^\\top}{\\sqrt{d_{qkv}}}\\Big) V^{(i)} , \\label{eq:attention2}\n\n \\\\\n Q^{(i)} &= Q^{(i)}(\\mathrm{H}) = \\mathrm{H} \\, W_Q^{(i)} + \\mathbf{1} b_Q^{(i)}{}^\\top , \\\\\n K^{(i)} &= K^{(i)}(\\mathrm{H}) = \\mathrm{H} \\, W_K^{(i)} + \\mathbf{1} b^{(i)}_K{}^\\top , \\\\ \n V^{(i)} &= V^{(i)}(\\mathrm{H}) = \\mathrm{H} \\, W_V^{(i)} + \\mathbf{1} b_V^{(i)}{}^\\top ,\n\\end{align}\nwhere $W_Q^{(i)}, W_K^{(i)}, W_V^{(i)} \\in \\mathbb{R}^{d_h \\times d_{qkv}}$ and $b_Q^{(i)}$, $b_Q^{(i)}$, $b_V^{(i)} \\in \\mathbb{R}^{d_{qkv}}$ are parameters of a single attention head $i$, where $\\operatorname{softmax}(\\cdot)$ operates separately on each row, and where $\\mathbf{1} \\in \\mathbb{R}^{d_{qkv}}$ is a vector of ones. We set the dimensionality of keys and queries to $d_{qkv} = d_{h} \/ n_h$, where $n_h$ is the number of heads.\n\nThe output of a multi-head attention is a concatenation of the different heads, \\ie, \n\\begin{equation}\n \\operatorname{MHA}(Q, K, V) = \\operatorname{Concat}(\\operatorname{head}^{(1)}, \\dots, \\operatorname{head}^{(n_h)}) .\n\\end{equation}\nHere, we simplified the original multi-head attention in \\cite{vaswani2017attention} by omitting the final output projection layer after concatenation to reduce risk of overfitting.\n\n\nIn CT\\xspace, self-attention uses the sequence of hidden states from the same transformer subnetwork to infer keys, queries, and values, while cross-attention uses the sequence of hidden states of the other two transformer subnetworks as keys and values. We use multiple cross-attentions to exchange the information between parallel hidden states.\\footnote{Different variants of combining multiple-input information with self- and cross-attentions were already studied in the context of multi-source translation, e.g., by \\cite{libovicky2018input}. Our implementation is closest to parallel attention combination.} These are placed on top of the self-attention layers (see subdiagram in Fig.~\\ref{fig:multi-input-transformer}). We add the representation vector of static covariates, $\\tilde{\\mathbf{V}}$, when pooling different cross-attention outputs.\n\nWe mask hidden states for self- and cross-attentions by setting the attention logits in Eq.~\\eqref{eq:attention2} to $-\\infty$. This ensures that information flows only from the current input to future hidden states (and not the other way around). \n\n\\underline{(ii) Feed-forward layer} ($\\operatorname{FF}$) with ReLU activation is applied time-step-wise to the sequence of hidden states, \\ie,\n\\begin{equation*}\n \\operatorname{FF}(\\mathbf{h}_t) = \\operatorname{dropout}\\Big(W_{2} \\max\\big\\{ 0 , \n \\operatorname{dropout}(W_{1} \\mathbf{h}_t + b_{1}) \\big\\} + b_2\\Big) .\n\\end{equation*}\n\n\\underline{(iii) Layer normalization} ($\\operatorname{LN}$) \\cite{lei2016layer} and residual connections are added after each self- and cross-attention. We compute the layer normalization via\n\\begin{equation}\n \\operatorname{LN}(\\mathbf{h}_t) = \\frac{\\gamma}{\\sigma} \\odot (\\mathbf{h}_t - \\mu) + \\beta ,\n\\end{equation}\n\\begin{equation}\n \\mu = \\frac{1}{d_h} \\sum_{i=1}^{d_h} (\\mathbf{h}_t)_i, \\quad \\sigma = \\sqrt{\\frac{1}{d_h} \\sum_{i=1}^{d_h} \\big((\\mathbf{h}_t)_i - \\mu \\big)^2} ,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\gamma, \\beta \\in \\mathbb{R}^{d_h}$ are scale and shift parameters and where $\\odot$ is an element-wise product. \n\n\\textbf{Balanced representations.} The (balanced) representations are then constructed via average pooling over three (or two) parallel hidden states of the $k$-th transformer block. Thereby, we use a fully-connected layer and an exponential linear unit (ELU) non-linearity; \\ie,\n\\begin{align}\n\\nonumber\n & \\mathbf{\\tilde{\\Phi}}_t = \n \\begin{cases}\n \\frac{1}{3}(\\mathbf{A}_{i-1}^{k} + \\mathbf{X}_i^{k} + \\mathbf{Y}_i^{k}), & i \\in \\{1, \\dots, t\\} , \\\\\n \\frac{1}{2}(\\mathbf{A}_{i-1}^{k} + \\mathbf{Y}_i^{k}), & i \\in \\{t+1, \\dots, t + \\tau - 1\\} ,\n \\end{cases} , \\\\\n & \\mathbf{\\Phi}_t = \\operatorname{ELU}(W_{O}\\operatorname{dropout}(\\mathbf{\\tilde{\\Phi}}_t) + b_{O}) \\label{eq:output-repr}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $W_{O} \\in \\mathbb{R}^{d_h \\times d_r}, b_O \\in \\mathbb{R}^{d_r}$ are layer parameters and $d_r$ is the dimensionality of the balanced representation. \n\n\\subsection{Positional encoding} \n\nIn order to preserve information about the order of hidden states, we make use of position encoding~(PE). This is especially relevant for clinical practice as it allows us to distinguish sequences such as, \\eg, (treatment~A $\\mapsto$ side-effect~S $\\mapsto$ treatment~B) from (treatment~A $\\mapsto$ treatment~B $\\mapsto$ side-effect~S). \n\nWe model information about relative positions in the input at time steps $j$ and $i$ with $0 \\le j \\le i \\le t$ by a set of vectors $a^V_{ij}, a^K_{ij} \\in \\mathbb{R}^{d_{qkv}}$ \\cite{shaw2018self}. Specifically, they are shaped in the form of Toeplitz matrix\n\\begin{align}\n & a^V_{ij} = w^V_{\\operatorname{clip}(j-i, l_{\\text{max}})}, \\qquad a^K_{ij} = w^K_{\\operatorname{clip}(j-i, l_{\\text{max}})}, \\\\\n & \\operatorname{clip}(x, l_{\\text{max}}) = \\max\\{ -l_{\\text{max}}, \\min\\{ l_{\\text{max}}, x \\}\\}\n\\end{align}\nwith learnable weights $w^K_k, w^V_k \\in \\mathbb{R}^{d_{qkv}}$, for $k \\in \\{-l_{\\text{max}}, \\dots, 0\\}$, and where $l_{\\text{max}}$ is the maximum distinguishable distance in the relative PE. The above formalization ensures that we obtain \\emph{relative} encodings, that is, our CT\\xspace considers the distance between past or current position $j$ and current position $i$, but not the actual location. Furthermore, the current position $i$ attends only to past information or itself, and, thus, we never use $a^V_{ij}$ and $a^K_{ij}$ where $i < j$. As a result, there are only $(l_{\\text{max}} + 1) \\times d_{qkv}$ parameters to estimate.\n\nWe then use the relative PE to modify the self-attention operation (Eq.~\\eqref{eq:attention}). Formally, we compute the attention scores via (indices of heads are dropped for clarity)\n\\begin{align}\n & (\\operatorname{Attention}(Q, K, V))_i = \\sum_{j=1}^t \\alpha_{ij}(V_j + a_{ij}^V) , \\\\\n & \\alpha_{ij} = \\operatorname{softmax}_j \\left(\\frac{Q_i^\\top (K_j + a_{ij}^K)}{\\sqrt{d_{qkv}}} \\right) , \\label{eq:attn-relative-enc}\n\\end{align}\nwith attention scores $\\alpha_{ij}$ and where $K_j$, $V_j$, and $Q_i$ are columns of corresponding matrices and where $\\operatorname{softmax}_j$ operates wrt. to index $j$. Cross-attention with PE is defined in an analogous way. In our CT\\xspace, the attention scores are shared across all the heads and blocks, as well as the three different sub-networks. \n\nIn our CT\\xspace, we use relative positional encodings \\cite{shaw2018self} that are incorporated in every self- and cross-attention. This is different from the original transformer \\cite{vaswani2017attention}, which used absolute positional encodings with fixed weights for the initial hidden states of the first transformer block (see Appendix~\\ref{app:abs-pe} for details). However, relative PE is regarded as more robust and, further, suited for patient trajectories where the order of treatments and diagnoses is particularly informative \\cite{allam2021analyzing}, but not the absolute time step. Additionally, it allows for better generalization to unseen sequence lengths: for the ranges beyond the maximal distinguishable distance $l_{\\text{max}}$, CT\\xspace stops to distinguish the precise relative location of states and considers everything as distant past information. In line with this, our experiments later also confirm relative PE to be superior over absolute PE. \n\n\\begin{figure*}[tbp]\n \n \\centering\n \\hfill\n \\subfigure[One-step-ahead prediction]{\\includegraphics[width=0.32\\textwidth]{figures\/tg-sim-one-step-ahead.pdf}}\\label{fig:results-tg-sim-one-step}\n \\hfill\n \\subfigure[$\\tau$-step-ahead prediction (single sliding treatment).]{\\includegraphics[width=0.32\\textwidth]{figures\/tg-sim-six-step-ahead-timing-of-treatment.pdf}}\\label{fig:results-tg-sim-six-step-timing}\n \\hfill\n \\subfigure[$\\tau$-step-ahead prediction (random trajectories)] {\\includegraphics[width=0.32\\textwidth]{figures\/tg-sim-six-step-ahead-random.pdf}}\\label{fig:results-tg-sim-six-step-rand}\n \\hfill\n \\caption{Results for fully-synthetic data based on tumor growth simulator (lower values are better). Shown is the mean performance averaged over five runs with different seeds. Here: $\\tau = 6$.}\n \\label{fig:results-tg-sim}\n \\vskip -0.2in\n\\end{figure*}\n\n\\begin{table*}[tbp]\n \\caption{Results for semi-synthetic data for $\\tau$-step-ahead prediction based on real-world medical data (MIMIC-III). Shown: RMSE as mean $\\pm$ standard deviation over five runs. Here: random trajectory setting. MSMs struggle for long prediction horizons with values $>$ 10.0 (due to linear modeling of IPTW scores).}\n \\label{tab:ss-sim-all}\n \n \\begin{center}\n \\scriptsize\n \\input{tables\/ss-sim-all}\n \\end{center}\n \\vskip -0.1in\n\\end{table*}\n\n\\subsection{Training of our \\emph{Causal Transformer}\\xspace} \n\\label{sub-sec:CT-training}\n\nIn our CT\\xspace, we aim at two simultaneous objectives to address confounding bias: (a)~we aim at learning representations that are predictive of the next outcome and (b)~are non-predictive of the current treatment assignment. This thus naturally yields an adversarial objective . For this purpose, we make use of balanced representations, which we train via a novel \\emph{counterfactual domain confusion loss}.\n\n\\paragraph{Adversarial balanced representations.} \n\nAs in \\cite{bica2020estimating}, we build \\emph{balanced} representations that allow us to achieve the adversarial objectives (a) and (b). For this, we put two fully-connected networks on top of the representation $\\mathbf{\\Phi}_t$, corresponding to the respective objectives: (a)~an outcome prediction network $G_Y$ and (b)~a treatment classifier network $G_A$. Both receive the representation $\\mathbf{\\Phi}_t$ as input; the outcome prediction network additionally receives the current treatment $\\mathbf{a}_t$ that we want to intervene on. We implement both as single hidden layer fully-connected networks with number of units $n_{\\text{FC}}$ and ELU activation. For notation, let $\\theta_{Y}$ and $\\theta_{A}$ denote the trainable parameters in $G_Y$ and $G_A$, respectively. Further, let $\\theta_{R}$ denote all trainable parameters in CT\\xspace for generating the representation $\\mathbf{\\Phi}_t$. \n \n\\paragraph{Factual outcome loss.} For objective~(a), we fit the outcome prediction network $G_Y$, and thus $\\mathbf{\\Phi}_t$, by minimizing the factual loss of the next outcome. This can be done, \\eg, via the mean squared error (MSE). We then yield\n\\begin{align}\n & \\mathcal{L}_{G_Y} (\\theta_Y, \\theta_R) = \\left\\Vert \\mathbf{Y}_{t+1} - G_Y\\big(\\mathbf{\\Phi}_t(\\theta_R), \\mathbf{a}_t; \\theta_Y \\big) \\right\\Vert^2 .\n\\end{align}\n\n\\paragraph{Counterfactual domain confusion loss.} For objective~(b), we want to fit the treatment classifier network $G_A$, and thus the representation $\\mathbf{\\Phi}_t$, in way that it is non-predictive of the current treatment. To achieve this, we develop a novel domain confusion loss tailored for counterfactual inference. Our idea builds upon the domain confusion loss \\cite{tzeng2015simultaneous}, an adversarial objective, previously used for unsupervised domain adaptation, whereas we adapt it specifically for counterfactual inference. \n\nThen, we fit $G_A$ so that it can predict the current treatment, \\ie, via \n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:loss-ga}\n\\hspace{-0.3cm}\n\\mathcal{L}_{G_A} (\\theta_A, \\theta_R) = - \\sum_{j=1}^{d_a} \\mathbbm{1}_{[\\mathbf{a}_t = a_j]} \\log G_A (\\mathbf{\\Phi}_t(\\theta_R); \\theta_A) , \n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\mathbbm{1}_{[\\cdot]}$ is the indicator function. This thus minimizes a classification loss of the current treatment assignment given $\\mathbf{\\Phi}_t$. However, while $G_A$ can predict the current treatment, the actual representation $\\mathbf{\\Phi}_t$ should not, and should rather be non-predictive. For this, we propose to minimize the cross-entropy between a uniform distribution over treatment categorical space and predictions of $G_A$ via\n\\begin{equation}\n\\label{eq:loss-conf}\n\\mathcal{L}_{\\text{conf}} (\\theta_A, \\theta_R) = - \\sum_{j=1}^{d_a} \\frac{1}{d_a} \\log G_A (\\mathbf{\\Phi}_t(\\theta_R); \\theta_A) ,\n\\end{equation}\nthus achieving domain confusion. \n\n\\paragraph{Overall adversarial objective.} \n\nUsing the above, CT\\xspace is trained via\n\\begin{align}\n\\hspace{-0.3cm} \n(\\hat{\\theta}_Y, \\hat{\\theta}_R) & = \\argmin_{\\theta_Y, \\theta_R} \\mathcal{L}_{G_Y} (\\theta_Y, \\theta_R) + \\alpha \\mathcal{L}_{\\text{conf}} (\\hat{\\theta}_A, \\theta_R) , \\label{eq:loss-yr}\\\\ \n \\hat{\\theta}_A & = \\argmin_{\\theta_A} \\alpha \\mathcal{L}_{G_A} (\\theta_A, \\hat{\\theta}_R) , \\label{eq:loss-a}\n\\end{align}\nwhere $\\alpha$ is a hyperparameter for domain confusion. Thereby, optimal values of $\\hat{\\theta}_Y$, $\\hat{\\theta}_R$ and $\\hat{\\theta}_A$ achieve an equilibrium between factual outcome prediction and domain confusion. In CT\\xspace, we implement this by performing iterative updates of the parameters of each transformer subnetwork (rather than optimizing globally). Details are in Appendix~\\ref{app:adv-training}. \n\nPrevious work \\cite{bica2020estimating} has addressed the above adversarial objective through gradient reversal \\cite{ganin2015unsupervised}. However, this has two shortcomings: (i)~If the parameter $\\lambda$ of gradient reversal becomes too large, the representation may be predictive of opposite treatment \\cite{atan2018counterfactual}. (ii)~If the treatment classifier network learns too fast, gradients vanish and are not passed to representations, leading to poor fit \\cite{tzeng2017adversarial}. Different from that, we propose a novel counterfactual domain confusion loss. As we see later, our loss is highly effective: it even improves CRN \\cite{bica2020estimating}, when replacing gradient reversal through our loss.\n\n\\paragraph{Stabilization.} \n\nWe further stabilize the above adversarial training by employing exponential moving average~(EMA) of model parameters during training \\cite{yaz2018unusual}. EMA helps to limit cycles of model parameters around the equilibrium with vanishing amplitude and thus accelerates overall convergence. We apply EMA to all trainable parameters (\\ie, $\\theta_Y$, $\\theta_R$, $\\theta_A$). Formally, we update parameters during training via \n\\begin{equation}\n\\theta^{(i)}_{\\text{EMA}} = \\beta \\, \\theta^{(i - 1)}_{\\text{EMA}} + (1 - \\beta) \\, \\theta^{(i)} ,\n\\end{equation}\nwhere superscripts $(i)$ refers to the different steps of the optimization algorithm, where $\\beta$ is a exponential smoothing parameter, and where we initialize $\\theta^{(0)}_{\\text{EMA}} = \\theta^{(0)}$. We provide pseudocode for an iterative gradient update in CT\\xspace via EMA in Appendix \\ref{app:adv-training}.\n\n\\paragraph{Attentional dropout.} To reduce the risk of overfitting between time steps, we implement attentional dropout via DropAttention \\cite{zehui2019dropattention}. During training, attention scores $\\alpha_{ij}$ in Eq.~\\eqref{eq:attn-relative-enc} are element-wise randomly set to zero with probability $p$ (\\ie, the dropout rate). However, we make a small simplification. We do not perform normalized rescaling \\cite{zehui2019dropattention} of attention scores but opt for traditional dropout rescaling \\cite{srivastava2014dropout}, as this resulted in more stable training for short-length sequences. \n\n\\paragraph{Mini-batch augmentation with masking.}\n\nFor training data $\\mathcal{D}$, we always have access to the full time-series, that is, including all time-varying covariates $\\mathbf{x}_{1}^{(i)}, \\dots, \\mathbf{x}_{T^{(i)}}^{(i)}$. However, upon deployment, these are no longer observable for $\\tau$-step-ahead predictions with $\\tau \\ge 2$. To reflect this during training, we perform data augmentation at the mini-batch level. For this, we duplicate the training samples: We uniformly sample the length $1 \\leq t_s \\leq T^{(i)}$ of the masking window, and then create a duplicate data sample where the last $t_s$ time-varying covariates $\\mathbf{x}_{t_s}, \\dots, \\mathbf{x}_{T^{(i)}}^{(i)}$ are masked by setting the corresponding attention logits of $\\mathrm{H} = \\mathrm{X}$ in Eq.~\\eqref{eq:attention} to $-\\infty$.\n\nMini-batch augmentation with masking allows us train a single model for both one- and multiple-step-ahead prediction in end-to-end fashion. This distinguishes our CT\\xspace from RMSNs and CRN, which are built on top of encoder-decoder architectures and trained in a two-stage procedure. Later, we experiment with an encoder-decoder version of CT\\xspace but find that it is inferior performance to our end-to-end model.\n\n\\subsection{Theoretical insights}\n\nThe following result provides a theoretical justification that our counterfactual domain confusion loss indeed leads to balanced representations, and, thus, removes the bias induced by time-varying confounders\\footnote{Importantly, our\nloss is different from gradient reversal (GR) in \\cite{ganin2015unsupervised, bica2020estimating}. It builds balanced representations by minimizing \\emph{reversed KL-divergence} between the treatment-conditional distribution of representation and mixture of all treatment-conditional distributions.}.\n\\begin{theorem}\\label{thrm:domain_conf_loss_short}\nWe fix $t \\in \\mathbb{N}$ and define $P$ as the distribution of $\\mathbf{\\bar{H}_t}$, $P_j$ as the distribution of $\\mathbf{\\bar{H}_t}$ given $\\mathbf{A}_t = a_j$, and $P^\\Phi_j$ as the distribution of $\\mathbf{\\Phi}_t = \\Phi(\\mathbf{\\bar{H}_t})$ given $\\mathbf{A}_t = a_j$ for all $j \\in \\{1, \\dots, d_a\\}$. Let $G^j_A$ denote the output of $G_A$ corresponding to treatment $a_j$. Then, there exists an optimal pair $(\\Phi^\\ast, G^\\ast_A)$ such that\n\\begin{align}\\\n \\Phi^\\ast &= \\argmax_{\\Phi} \\sum_{j=1}^{d_a} \\mathbb{E}_{\\mathbf{\\bar{h}}_t \\sim P}\\left[ \\log\\left({G^\\ast}^j_A(\\Phi(\\mathbf{\\bar{h}}_t) \\right)\\right] \\label{eq:phi-star}\\\\\n G^\\ast_A &= \\argmax_{G_A} \\sum_{j=1}^{d_a} \\mathbb{E}_{\\mathbf{\\bar{h}}_t \\sim P_j}\\left[\\log\\left({G}^j_A(\\Phi^\\ast(\\mathbf{\\bar{h}}_t) \\right) \\right] \\mathbb{P}(\\mathbf{A}_t = a_j) \\label{eq:ga-star}\\\\\n& \\text{subject to} \\sum_{i=1}^{d_a} {G}^i_A(\\Phi^\\ast(\\mathbf{\\bar{h}}_t)) = 1.\n\\end{align}\nFurthermore, $\\Phi^\\ast$ satisfies Eq.~(1) if and only if it induces balanced representations across treatments, i.e., $P^{\\Phi^\\ast}_1 = \\ldots = P^{\\Phi^\\ast}_{d_a}$.\n\\end{theorem}\n\\begin{proof}\nSketch: We make use of Prop. 1 in \\cite{bica2020estimating}, and derive an explicit expression for $G^\\ast_A$ for fixed $\\Phi$. Plugging this into our objective for $\\Phi^\\ast$ allows us to obtain an expression similar to Eq.~17 from \\cite{bica2020estimating}. However, there is a crucial difference: we have a \\emph{reversed} KL divergence between $P^{\\Phi^\\ast}_j$ and a mixture of $\\{P^{\\Phi^\\ast}_1, \\dots, P^{\\Phi^\\ast}_{d_a}\\}$. For details we refer to Appendix~\\ref{app:proof}.\n\\end{proof}\n\nIt could be easily shown, that objectives (\\ref{eq:loss-ga}) and (\\ref{eq:loss-conf}) are exactly finite sample versions of (\\ref{eq:ga-star}) and (\\ref{eq:phi-star}) from Theorem~\\ref{thrm:domain_conf_loss_short}, respectively.\n\n\\subsection{Implementation}\n\n\\paragraph{Training.} We implemented CT\\xspace in PyTorch Lightning. We trained CT\\xspace using Adam \\cite{kingma2014adam} with learning rate $\\eta$ and number of epochs $n_e$. The dropout rate $p$ was kept the same for both feed-forward layers and DropAttention (we call it sequential dropout rate). We employed teacher forcing technique \\cite{williams1989learning}. During evaluation of multiple-step-ahead prediction, we switch off teacher forcing and autoregressively feed model predictions. For the parameters $\\alpha$ and $\\beta$ of adversarial training, we choose values $\\beta = 0.99$ and $\\alpha = 0.01$ as in the original works \\cite{tzeng2015simultaneous,yaz2018unusual}, which also performed well in our experiments. We additionally perform an exponential rise of $\\alpha$ during training. \n\n\\paragraph{Hyperparameter tuning.} $p$, $\\eta$, and all other hyperparameters (number of blocks $k$, minibatch size, number of attention heads $n_h$, size of hidden units $d_h$, size of balanced representation $d_r$, size of fully-connected hidden units $n_{\\text{FC}}$) are subject to hyperparameter tuning. Details are in Appendix~\\ref{app:hparams}. \n\n\\begin{table}[tbp]\n \\caption{Results for experiments with real-world medical data (MIMIC-III). Shown: RMSE as mean $\\pm$ standard deviation over five runs.}\n \n \\label{tab:mimic-real-sim-all}\n \n \\begin{center}\n \\tiny\n \\input{tables\/mimic-real-sim-all}\n \\end{center}\n \\vskip -0.1in\n\\end{table}\n\n\\begin{table}[tbp]\n \\caption{Ablation study for proposed CT\\xspace (with counterfactual domain confusion loss, $\\alpha = 0.01$, $\\beta = 0.99$). Reported: normalized RMSE of CT\\xspace with relative changes.}\n \\label{tab:ablation-study}\n \n \\begin{center}\n \\scriptsize\n \\addtolength{\\tabcolsep}{-1.6pt} \n \\input{tables\/ablation-study}\n \\addtolength{\\tabcolsep}{1.6pt} \n \\end{center}\n \\vskip -0.1in\n\\end{table}\n\n\\begin{table*}[tp]\n \\caption{CRN with different training procedures. Results for fully-synthetic data based on tumor growth simulator (here: $\\gamma = 4$).}\n \\label{tab:ablation-study-crn}\n \n \\begin{center}\n \\scriptsize\n \n \\input{tables\/ablation-study-crn}\n \n \\end{center}\n \\vskip -0.1in\n\\end{table*}\n\n\\section{Experiments}\n\nTo demonstrate the effectiveness of our CT\\xspace, we make use of synthetic datasets. Thereby, we follow common practice in benchmarking for counterfactual inference \\cite{lim2018forecasting,bica2020estimating,li2021g}. For real datasets, the true counterfactual outcomes are typically unknown. By using \\mbox{(semi-)}synthetic datasets, we can compute the true counterfactuals and thus validate our CT\\xspace. \n\n\\paragraph{Baselines.} The chosen baselines are identical to those in previous, state-of-the-art literature for estimating counterfactual outcomes over time \\cite{lim2018forecasting,bica2020estimating,li2021g}. These are: \\textbf{MSMs}~\\cite{robins2000marginal,hernan2001marginal}, \\textbf{RMSNs}~\\cite{lim2018forecasting}, \\textbf{CRN}~\\cite{bica2020estimating}, and \\textbf{G-Net} \\cite{li2021g}. Details are in Appendix~\\ref{app:baselines}. For comparability, we use the same hyperparameter tuning for the baselines as for CT\\xspace (see Appendix~\\ref{app:hparams}). \n\n\\subsection{Experiments with fully-synthetic data} \\label{sec:tg-sim}\n\n\\paragraph{Data.} We build upon the pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic model of tumor growth \\cite{geng2017prediction}. It provides a state-of-the-art biomedical model to simulate the effects of lung cancer treatments over time. The same model was previously used for evaluating RMSNs \\cite{lim2018forecasting} and CRN \\cite{bica2020estimating}. For $\\tau$-step-ahead prediction, we distinguish two settings: (i)~single sliding treatment where trajectories involve only a single treatment as in \\cite{bica2020estimating}; and (ii)~random trajectories where one or more treatments are assigned. We simulate patient trajectories for different amounts of confounding $\\gamma$. Further details are in Appendix~\\ref{app:syn}. Here, and in all following experiments, we apply hyperparameter tuning (see Appendix~\\ref{app:hparams}).\n\n\\paragraph{Results.} Fig.~\\ref{fig:results-tg-sim} shows the results. We see a notable performance gain for our CT\\xspace over the state-of-the-art baselines, especially pronounced for larger confounding $\\gamma$ and larger $\\tau$. Overall, CT\\xspace is superior by a large margin. \n\nFig.~\\ref{fig:results-tg-sim} also shows a CT\\xspace variant in which we removed the counterfactual domain confusion loss by setting $\\alpha$ to zero, called CT\\xspace($\\alpha = 0$). For comparability, we keep the hyperparameters as in the original CT\\xspace. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of proposed counterfactual domain confusion loss, especially for multi-step-ahead prediction. CT\\xspace also provides a significant runtime speedup in comparison to other neural network methods, mainly due to faster processing of sequential data with self- and cross-attentions, and single stage end-to-end training (see exact runtime comparison in Appendix~\\ref{app:runtime}). We plotted t-SNE embeddings of the balanced representations (Appendix~\\ref{app:t-sne}) to exemplify how the balancing works.\n\n\\subsection{Experiments with semi-synthetic data}\n\n\\paragraph{Data.} We create a semi-synthetic dataset based on real-world medical data from intensive care units. This allows us to validate our CT\\xspace with high-dimensional, long-range patient trajectories. For this, we use the MIMIC-III dataset \\cite{johnson2016mimic}. Building upon the ideas of \\cite{schulam2017reliable}, we then generate patient trajectories with outcomes under endogeneous and exogeneous dependencies while considering treatment effects. Thereby, we can again control for the amount of confounding. Details are in Appendix~\\ref{app:ss-sim}. Importantly, we again have access to the ground-truth counterfactuals for evaluation. \n\n\\paragraph{Results.} Table~\\ref{tab:ss-sim-all} shows the results. Again, CT\\xspace has a consistent and large improvement across all projection horizons $\\tau$ (average improvement over baselines: 38.5\\%). By comparing our CT\\xspace against CT\\xspace($\\alpha = 0$), we see clear performance gains, demonstrating the benefit of our counterfactual domain confusion loss. Additionally, we separately fitted an encoder-decoder architecture, namely \\emph{Encoder-Decoder} \\emph{Causal Transformer}\\xspace (EDCT). This approach leverages a single-subnetwork architecture, where all three sequences are fed into the a single subnetwork (as opposed to three separate networks as in our CT\\xspace). Further, the EDCT leverages the the existing GR loss from \\cite{bica2020estimating} and the similar encoder-decoder two-stage training. Details on this EDCT model are in Appendix~\\ref{app:EDCT}. Here, we find that our combination of end-to-end single-stage learning and three-subnetworks CT\\xspace is superior. \n\n\\subsection{Experiments with real-world data}\n\n\\paragraph{Data.} We now demonstrate the applicability of our CT\\xspace to real-world data and, for this, use intensive care unit stays in MIMIC-III \\cite{johnson2016mimic}. We use the same 25 vital signs and 3 static features. We use (diastolic) blood pressure as outcome and consider two treatments: vasopressors and mechanical ventilation. Details are in Appendix~\\ref{app:real-world-data}. \n\n\\paragraph{Results.} Because we no longer have access to the true counterfactuals, we now report the performance of predicting factual outcomes; see Table~\\ref{tab:mimic-real-sim-all}. All state-of-the-art baselines are outperformed by our CT\\xspace. This demonstrates the superiority of our proposed model. \n\n\\subsection{Ablation study}\n\nWe performed an extensive ablation study (Table~\\ref{tab:ablation-study}) using full-synthetic data (setting: random trajectories) to confirm the effectiveness of the different model components, usage of counterfactual domain confusion loss, and three subnetworks architecture as a whole. Thus, we grouped all the ablations in three categories. First category (\\textsf{a}) contains model components ablations: replacing trainable relative positional encoding (PE) with non-trainable relative PE, generated as described in Appendix~\\ref{app:abs-pe}); replacing our PE with a trainable absolute PE as in original transformer \\cite{vaswani2017attention}; removing attentional dropout; or removing cross-attention layers for all subnetworks. Second category (\\textsf{b}) has loss-related ablations, such as removing EMA of model weights; switching off adversarial balancing, but not EMA; and replacing our domain confusion loss with gradient reversal (GR) as in \\cite{bica2020estimating}. The last group (\\textsf{c}) tests a single-subnetwork version of CT\\xspace, namely EDCT (see Appendix~\\ref{app:EDCT} for details), with our counterfactual domain confusion (DC) loss loss and GR.\n\nOverall, not a single component alone is crucial, but the combination of novel architecture with three-subnetworks and novel DC loss is critical. This is confirmed for long prediction horizon ($\\tau = 6$), when our proposed CT\\xspace achieves the best performance. Notably, the main insight here is: simply switching the backbone from LSTM to transformer and using gradient reversal, as in \\cite{bica2020estimating}, gives unstable results (see ablation ``EDCT w\/ GR ($\\lambda$ = 1)``). Furthermore, our three-subnetworks CT\\xspace with GR loss performs even worse (see ablation ``w\/ GR ($\\lambda$ = 1)``). Hence, this motivates the usage of counterfactual domain confusion loss with EMA of model weights for our CT\\xspace.\n\nTo further demonstrate the effectiveness of our novel counterfactual domain confusion loss, we perform an additional test based on the fully-synthetic dataset (Table~\\ref{tab:ablation-study-crn}). We use (i)~a CRN with GR as in \\cite{bica2020estimating}. We compare it with (ii)~a CRN trained with our proposed counterfactual domain confusion loss. Evidently, our loss also helps the CRN to achieve a better RMSE. \n\n\\subsection{Conclusion}\n\nFor personalized medicine, estimates of the counterfactual outcomes for patient trajectories are needed. Here, we proposed a novel, state-of-the-art methods: the \\emph{Causal Transformer}\\xspace which is designed to capture complex, long-range patient trajectories. \n\n\\FloatBarrier\n\\printbibliography\n\n\\newpage\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
+{"text":"\\section{Introduction }\n\\label{sec-intro}\n\\andy{intro}\n\nA quantum system, prepared in a state that does not belong to an eigenvalue\nof the total Hamiltonian, starts to evolve\nquadratically in time \\cite{Beskow,Misra}.\nThis characteristic behavior leads to the so-called quantum Zeno phenomenon,\nnamely the possibility of slowing down the temporal\nevolution (eventually hindering\ntransitions to states different from the initial one) \\cite{strev}.\n\nThe original proposals that aimed at verifying this effect\ninvolved unstable systems and were not amenable to\nexperimental test \\cite{Wilkinson}. However, the remarkable idea\n\\cite{Cook} to use a two-level system motivated an interesting\nexperimental test \\cite{Itano},\nrevitalizing a debate on the physical meaning of this\nphenomenon \\cite{Itanodiscuss,PNBR}.\nThere seem to be a certain consensus, nowadays, that the quantum Zeno effect\n(QZE) can be given a dynamical explanation, involving only an\nexplicit Hamiltonian dynamics.\n\nIt is worth emphasizing that the discussion of the last\nfew years mostly stemmed from experimental considerations, related to the\n{\\em practical} possibility of performing experimental tests. Some examples are\nthe interesting issue of ``interaction-free\" measurements \\cite{inn} and the\nneutron-spin tests of the QZE \\cite{PNBR,NNPR}.\nIn practical cases, one cannot neglect the presence of losses and\nimperfections, which obviously conspire against an almost-ideal\nexperimental realization, more so when the total number of ``measurements\"\nincreases above certain theoretical limits.\n\nThe aim of the present paper is to investigate an interesting (and often\noverlooked) feature of what we might call the quantum Zeno dynamics. We shall\nsee that a series of ``measurements\" (von Neumann's projections \\cite{von})\ndoes not necessarily hinder the evolution of the quantum system. On the\ncontrary, the system can evolve away from its initial state, provided it\nremains in the subspace defined by the ``measurement\" itself. This interesting\nfeature is readily understandable in terms of rigorous theorems\n\\cite{Misra}, but it seems to us that it is worth clarifying it by\nanalyzing interesting physical examples. We shall therefore focus our attention\non an experiment involving neutron spin \\cite{PNBR}\nand shall see that in fact this enables\nus to kill two birds with one stone: not only the state of the neutron\nundergoing QZE {\\em will change}, but it will do so in a way that clarifies\nwhy reflection effects may play a substantial role in the experiment analyzed.\n\nIn the neutron-spin example to be considered, the evolution of the\nspin state is hindered when a series of spectral decompositions\n(in Wigner's sense \\cite{Wigner}) is performed on the spin state.\nNo ``observation\" of the spin states, and therefore no projection\n{\\em \\`a la} von Neumann is required, as far as the different\nbranch waves of the wave function cannot interfere after the\nspectral decomposition. Needless to say, the analysis that follows\ncould be performed in terms of a Hamiltonian dynamics, without\nmaking use of projection operators. However, we shall use in this\npaper the von Neumann technique, which will be found convenient\nbecause it sheds light on some remarkable aspects of the Zeno\nphenomenon and helps to pin down the physical implications of some\nmathematical hypotheses with relatively less efforts.\n\nThe paper is organized as follows. We briefly review, in the next\nsection, the seminal theorem for the short-time dynamics of quantum\nsystems, proved by Misra and Sudarshan \\cite{Misra}. Its\napplication to the neutron-spin case is discussed in\nSec.~\\ref{sec-neutr}. In Secs.~\\ref{sec-neutrspin} and\n\\ref{sec-compltrans}, unlike in previous papers \\cite{PNBR,NNPR},\nwe shall incorporate the spatial (1-dimensional, for simplicity)\ndegrees of freedom of the neutron and represent them by an\nadditional quantum number that labels, roughly speaking, the\ndirection of motion of the wave packet. A more realistic analysis\nis presented in Sec.~\\ref{sec-numan}. Finally,\nSec.~\\ref{sec-findisc} is devoted to a discussion. Some additional\naspects of our analysis are clarified in the Appendix.\n\n\n\\setcounter{equation}{0}\n\\section{Misra and Sudarshan's theorem }\n\\label{sec-MisSud}\n\\andy{MisSud}\n\nConsider a quantum system Q, whose\nstates belong to the Hilbert space ${\\cal H}$ and whose evolution\nis described by the unitary operator $U(t)=\\exp(-iHt)$, where $H$\nis a semi-bounded Hamiltonian. Let $E$ be a projection operator and\n$E{\\cal H}E={\\cal H}_E$ the subspace spanned by its eigenstates.\nThe initial density matrix $\\rho_0$ of system Q is taken to belong\nto ${\\cal H}_E$. If Q is let to follow its ``undisturbed\"\nevolution, under the action of the Hamiltonian $H$ (i.e., no\nmeasurements are performed in order to get informations about its\nquantum state), the final state at time $T$ reads\n\\andy{noproie}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\rho (T) = U(T) \\rho_0 U^\\dagger (T)\n \\label{eq:noproie}\n\\end{equation}\nand the probability that the system is still in ${\\cal H}_E$ at time $T$\n is\n\\andy{stillun}\n\\begin{equation}\nP(T) = \\mbox{Tr} \\left[ U(T) \\rho_0 U^\\dagger(T) E \\right] .\n\\label{eq:stillun}\n\\end{equation}\nWe call this a ``survival probability:\" it\nis in general smaller than 1, since the Hamiltonian $H$\ninduces transitions out of ${\\cal H}_E$.\nWe shall say that the quantum systems has ``survived\" if it is\nfound to be in ${\\cal H}_E$ by means of a suitable measurement\nprocess \\cite{MScomment}.\n\nAssume that we perform a measurement at time $t$,\nin order to check whether Q has survived. Such a measurement\nis formally represented by the projection operator $E$. By definition,\n\\andy{inprep}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\rho_0 = E \\rho_0 E , \\qquad \\mbox{Tr} [ \\rho_0 E ] = 1 .\n\\label{eq:inprep}\n\\end{equation}\nAfter the measurement, the state of Q changes into\n\\andy{proie}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\rho_0 \\rightarrow \\rho(t) = E U(t) \\rho_0 U^\\dagger(t) E\/P(t),\n\\label{eq:proie}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere\n\\andy{probini}\n\\begin{equation}\nP(t) = \\mbox{Tr} \\left[ U(t) \\rho_0 U^\\dagger(t) E \\right]\n\\label{eq:probini}\n\\end{equation}\nis the probability that the system has survived. [There is, of\ncourse, a probability $1-P$ that the system has not survived (i.e.,\nit has made a transition outside ${\\cal H}_E$) and its state has\nchanged into $\\rho^\\prime(t) = (1-E) U(t) \\rho_0 U^\\dagger(t)\n(1-E)\/(1-P)$. We concentrate henceforth our attention on the\nmeasurement outcome (\\ref{eq:proie})-(\\ref{eq:probini}).] The above\nis the standard Copenhagen interpretation: The measurement is\nconsidered to be instantaneous. The ``quantum Zeno paradox\"\n\\cite{Misra} is the following. We prepare Q in the initial state\n$\\rho_0$ at time 0 and perform a series of $E$-observations at\ntimes $t_k=kT\/N \\; (k=1,\n\\cdots, N)$. The state of Q after the above-mentioned $N$\nmeasurements reads\n\\andy{Nproie}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\rho^{(N)}(T) = V_N(T) \\rho_0 V_N^\\dagger(T) , \\qquad\n V_N(T) \\equiv [ E U(T\/N) E ]^N\n\\label{eq:Nproie}\n\\end{equation}\nand the probability to find the system in ${\\cal H}_E$ (``survival\nprobability\") is given by\n\\andy{probNob}\n\\begin{equation}\nP^{(N)}(T) = \\mbox{Tr} \\left[ V_N(T) \\rho_0 V_N^\\dagger(T) \\right].\n\\label{eq:probNob}\n\\end{equation}\nEquations (\\ref{eq:Nproie})-(\\ref{eq:probNob}) display the\n``quantum Zeno effect:\" repeated\nobservations in succession modify the dynamics of the quantum system;\nunder general conditions, if $N$ is sufficiently large, all transitions\noutside ${\\cal H}_E$ are inhibited.\n\nIn order to consider the $N \\rightarrow \\infty$ limit (``continuous\nobservation\"), one needs some mathematical requirements: define\n\\andy{slim}\n\\begin{equation}\n{\\cal V} (T) \\equiv \\lim_{N \\rightarrow \\infty} V_N(T) ,\n \\label{eq:slim}\n\\end{equation}\nprovided the above limit exists in the strong sense.\nThe final state of Q is then\n\\andy{infproie}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\widetilde{\\rho} (T) = {\\cal V}(T) \\rho_0 {\\cal V}^\\dagger (T)\n \\label{eq:infproie}\n\\end{equation}\nand the probability to find the system in ${\\cal H}_E$ is\n\\andy{probinfob}\n\\begin{equation}\n{\\cal P} (T) \\equiv \\lim_{N \\rightarrow \\infty} P^{(N)}(T)\n = \\mbox{Tr} \\left[ {\\cal V}(T) \\rho_0 {\\cal V}^\\dagger(T) \\right].\n\\label{eq:probinfob}\n\\end{equation}\nOne should carefully notice that nothing is said about the final\nstate $\\widetilde{\\rho} (T)$, which depends on the characteristics of the\nmodel investigated and on the {\\em very measurement performed}\n(i.e.\\ on the projection operator $E$, which enters in the\ndefinition of $V_N$). Misra and Sudarshan assumed, on physical\ngrounds, the strong continuity of ${\\cal V}(t)$:\n\\andy{phgr}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\lim_{t \\rightarrow 0^+} {\\cal V}(t) = E\n\\label{eq:phgr}\n\\end{equation}\nand proved that under general conditions the operators ${\\cal\nV}(T)$ (exist for all real $T$ and) form a semigroup labeled by the\ntime parameter $T$. Moreover, ${\\cal V}^\\dagger (T) = {\\cal\nV}(-T)$, so that ${\\cal V}^\\dagger (T) {\\cal V}(T) =E$. This\nimplies, by (\\ref{eq:inprep}), that\n\\andy{probinfu}\n\\begin{equation}\n{\\cal P}(T)=\\mbox{Tr}\\left[\\rho_0{\\cal V}^\\dagger(T){\\cal V}(T)\\right]\n= \\mbox{Tr} \\left[ \\rho_0 E \\right] = 1 .\n\\label{eq:probinfu}\n\\end{equation}\nIf the particle is ``continuously\" observed,\nin order to check whether it has survived inside ${\\cal H}_E$ ,\nit will never make a transition to ${\\cal H}-{\\cal H}_E$.\nThis is the ``quantum Zeno paradox.\"\n\nAn important remark is now in order: the theorem just summarized\n{\\em does not} state that the system {\\em remains}\nin its initial state, after the series of very frequent measurements.\nRather, the system is left in the subspace ${\\cal H}_E$,\ninstead of evolving ``naturally\" in the total\nHilbert space ${\\cal H}$. This subtle\npoint, implied by Eqs.\\ (\\ref{eq:infproie})-(\\ref{eq:probinfu}),\nis often not duely stressed in the literature.\n\nNotice also the conceptual gap between\nEqs.\\ (\\ref{eq:probNob}) and (\\ref{eq:probinfob}): To perform an\nexperiment with $N$ finite is only a practical problem, from the\nphysical point of view.\nOn the other hand, the $N \\rightarrow \\infty$ case\nis physically unattainable, and is rather to be regarded as a\nmathematical limit (although a very interesting one).\nIn this paper, we shall not be concerned with this problem\n(thoroughly investigated in \\cite{NNPR}) and shall\nconsider the $N \\to \\infty$ limit\nfor simplicity. This will make the analysis more transparent.\n\n\\setcounter{equation}{0}\n\\section{Quantum Zeno effect with neutron spin }\n\\label{sec-neutr}\n\\andy{neutr}\n\nThe example we consider is a neutron spin in a magnetic\nfield \\cite{PNBR}. (A photon analog was\nfirst outlined by Peres \\cite{Peres}.)\nWe shall consider two different experiments: Refer to Figures 1(a) and 1(b).\nIn the case schematized in Figure~1(a),\n\\begin{figure\n\\begin{center}\n\\epsfig{file=figure1.eps,width=\\textwidth}\n\\end{center}\n\\caption{(a) Evolution of the neutron spin\nunder the action of a magnetic field. An emitter sends a spin-up neutron\nthrough several regions where a magnetic field $B$ is present.\nThe detector $D_0$ detects a spin-down neutron:\nNo Zeno effect occurs.\n(b) Quantum Zeno effect: the neutron spin is ``monitored\"\nat every step, by selecting and detecting the spin-down component.\n$D_0$ detects a spin-up neutron. }\n\\label{fig:fig1}\n\\end{figure}\nthe neutron interacts with several identical regions in which there is\na static magnetic field $B$, oriented along the $x$-direction.\nWe neglect here any losses and assume that\nthe interaction be given by the Hamiltonian\n\\andy{simpleH}\n\\begin{equation}\nH= \\mu B \\sigma_1,\n\\label{eq:simpleH}\n\\end{equation}\n$\\mu$ being the (modulus of the) neutron magnetic moment,\nand $\\sigma_i \\; (i=1,2,3)$ the Pauli matrices.\nWe denote the spin states of the neutron along the\n$z$-axis by $\\vert \\uparrow\\rangle$ and $\\vert \\downarrow\\rangle$.\n\nLet the initial neutron state be\n$\\rho_{0} = \\rho_{\\uparrow \\uparrow} \\equiv\n\\vert \\uparrow \\rangle\\langle\\uparrow \\vert$.\nThe interaction with the magnetic field provokes a rotation of the\nspin around the $x$-direction. After crossing the whole setup, the\nfinal density matrix reads\n\\andy{finalstepT}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\rho (T) \\equiv\ne^{-iHT} \\rho_{0} e^{iHT} =\n\\cos ^2 {\\frac{\\omega T}{2}} \\rho\\sb{\\uparrow \\uparrow}\n + \\sin ^2{\\frac{\\omega T}{2}} \\rho \\sb{\\downarrow \\downarrow}\n - \\frac i2\\sin{\\omega T}(\n \\rho \\sb{\\uparrow \\downarrow}- \\rho \\sb{\\downarrow\\uparrow }),\n\\label{eq:finalstepT}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\omega=2 \\mu B$ and $T$ is the total time spent in the $B$ field.\nNotice that the free evolution is neglected (and so are reflection effects,\nwave-packet spreading, etc.).\nIf $T$ is chosen so as to satisfy the ``matching\" condition\n$\\cos \\omega T\/2 = 0$, we obtain\n\\andy{noZeno}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\rho (T) = \\rho\\sb{\\downarrow \\downarrow}\n\\qquad \\quad \\left( T = (2m+1) \\frac{\\pi}{\\omega}, \\;\\; m \\in {\\bf N} \\right),\n\\label{eq:noZeno}\n\\end{equation}\nso that the probability\nthat the neutron spin is down at time $T$ is\n\\andy{pT}\n\\begin{equation}\nP_{\\downarrow}(T) =1\n\\qquad \\quad \\left( T = (2m+1) \\frac{\\pi}{\\omega}, \\;\\; m \\in {\\bf N} \\right).\n\\label{eq:pT}\n\\end{equation}\nThe above two equations correspond to Eqs.\\ (\\ref{eq:noproie}) and\n(\\ref{eq:stillun}).\nIn our example, $H$ is such that if the\nsystem is initially prepared in the up state, it will evolve to\nthe down state after time $T$.\nNotice that,\nwithin our approximations, the experimental setup\ndescribed in Figure~1(a) is equivalent to the situation where a magnetic field\n$B$ is contained in a single region of space.\n\nLet us now modify the experiment just described by inserting at every step\na device able to select and detect one component [say the down\n($\\downarrow$) one] of the neutron spin. This can be accomplished by\na magnetic mirror M and a detector D.\nThe former acts as a ^^ ^^ decomposer,\" by splitting a\nneutron wave with indefinite spin (a superposed state of up\nand down spins) into two branch waves\neach of which is in a definite spin state\n(up {\\em or} down) along the $z$-axis. The down state is then forwarded to a\ndetector, as shown in Figure~1(b).\nThe magnetic mirror yields a spectral decomposition \\cite{Wigner}\nwith respect to the spin\nstates, and can be compared to the inhomogeneous magnetic field in a\ntypical Stern-Gerlach experiment.\n\nWe choose the same initial state for Q as in the previous experiment\n[Figure 1(a)]. The action of M+D is represented by\nthe operator $E \\equiv \\rho\\sb{\\uparrow \\uparrow} $\n[remember that we follow the evolution along the horizontal direction,\ni.e.\\ the direction the spin-up neutron travels,\nin Figure~1(b)], so that\nif the process is repeated $N$ times, like in Figure~1(b), we obtain\n\\andy{yesZeno}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\rho^{(N)}(T) = V_N(T) \\rho_0 V_N^\\dagger(T)\n = \\left( \\cos ^2 {\\frac{\\omega t}{2}} \\right)^N\n \\rho\\sb{\\uparrow \\uparrow}\n = \\left( \\cos ^2 {\\frac{\\pi}{2N}} \\right)^N\n \\rho\\sb{\\uparrow \\uparrow} ,\n\\label{eq:yesZeno}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere the ``matching\" condition for $T=Nt$ [see Eq.\\\n(\\ref{eq:noZeno})] has been required again. The probability that\nthe neutron spin is up at time $T$, if $N$ observations have been\nmade at time intervals $t \\; (Nt=T)$, is\n\\andy{pZT}\n\\begin{equation}\nP_{\\uparrow}^{(N)}(T) =\n \\left( \\cos ^2 {\\frac{\\pi}{2N}} \\right)^N .\n\\label{eq:pZT}\n\\end{equation}\n\nThis discloses the occurrence of a QZE:\nIndeed, $P_\\uparrow^{(N)}(T)> P_\\uparrow^{(N-1)}(T)$ for $N\\geq 2$,\nso that the evolution is ``slowed down\" as $N$ increases. Moreover,\nin the limit of infinitely many observations\n\\andy{NZeno}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\rho^{(N)}(T) \\stackrel{N \\rightarrow \\infty}{\\longrightarrow}\n\\widetilde{\\rho}(T) = \\rho\\sb{\\uparrow \\uparrow}\n\\label{eq:NZeno}\n\\end{equation}\nand\n\\andy{probfr}\n\\begin{equation}\n{\\cal P}_\\uparrow (T) \\equiv \\lim_{N \\rightarrow \\infty}\nP_\\uparrow^{(N)}(T) = 1.\n\\label{eq:probfr}\n\\end{equation}\nFrequent observations ``freeze\" the neutron spin in its initial state, by\ninhibiting ($N \\geq 2$) and eventually hindering ($N \\rightarrow \\infty$)\ntransitions to other states.\nNotice the difference from Eqs.~(\\ref{eq:noZeno}) and (\\ref{eq:pT}):\nThe situation is completely reversed.\n\n\n\n\\setcounter{equation}{0}\n\\section{The spatial degrees of freedom}\n\\label{sec-neutrspin}\n\\andy{neutrspin}\n\nIn the analysis of the previous section only the spin degrees\nof freedom were taken into account.\nNo losses were considered, even though\ntheir importance was already mentioned in \\cite{PNBR,NNPR}.\nIn spite of such a simplification, the model yields\nphysical insight into the Zeno phenomenon, and has the nice\nadvantage of being solvable.\n\nWe shall now consider a more detailed description. The practical\nrealizability of this experiment has already been discussed, with\nparticular attention to the $N \\rightarrow \\infty$ limit and\nvarious possible losses \\cite{NNPR}. One source of losses is the\noccurrence of reflections at the boundaries of the interaction\nregion and\/or at the spectral decomposition step. A careful\nestimate of such effects would require a dynamical analysis of the\nmotion of the neutron wave packet as it crosses the whole\ninteraction region (magnetic-field regions followed by field-free\nregions containing each a magnetic mirror M that performs the\n``measurement\"). However, it is not an easy task to include the\nspatial degrees of freedom of the neutron in the analysis; instead,\nwe shall adopt a simplified description of the system, which\npreserves most of the essential features and for which an explicit\nsolution can still be obtained. It turns out that the inclusion of\nthe spatial degrees of freedom in the evolution of the spin state\ncan result in completely different situations from the ideal case,\nwhich in turn clarifies the importance of losses in actual\nexperiments and, at the same time, sheds new light on the Zeno\nphenomenon itself.\n\nLet us now try to incorporate the other degrees of\nfreedom of the neutron state in our description.\nLet our state space be the 4-dimensional Hilbert space\n${\\cal H}_p \\otimes {\\cal H}_s$, where\n${\\cal H}_p = \\{ |R \\rangle, |L \\rangle \\}$ and\n${\\cal H}_s = \\{ |\\uparrow \\rangle, |\\downarrow \\rangle \\}$\nare 2-dimensional Hilbert spaces, with $R (L)$ representing a particle\ntraveling towards the right (left) direction along the $y$-axis,\nand $\\uparrow (\\downarrow)$ representing spin up (down) along the $z$-axis.\nWe shall set, in the respective Hilbert spaces,\n\\andy{settings}\n\\begin{equation}\n |R \\rangle = \\coltwovector10} \\def\\downn{\\coltwovector01, \\quad |L \\rangle = \\downn; \\qua\n |\\uparrow \\rangle = \\coltwovector10} \\def\\downn{\\coltwovector01, \\quad |\\downarrow \\rangle = \\downn,\n\\label{eq:settings}\n\\end{equation}\nso that, for example, the state $|R \\downarrow \\rangle$\n represents a spin-down particle traveling towards the right\ndirection ($+y$).\nAlso, for the sake of simplicity, we shall work with vectors, rather than\ndensity matrices (the extension is straightforward).\n\nIn this extended Hilbert space the first\nPauli matrix $\\sigma_1$ acts only on ${\\cal H}_s$ as a spin flipper,\n$\\sigma_1 |\\uparrow \\rangle = |\\downarrow \\rangle$ and\n$\\sigma_1 |\\downarrow \\rangle = |\\uparrow \\rangle$, while\nanother first Pauli matrix $\\tau_1$ acts only on ${\\cal H}_p$ as a\ndirection-reversal operator,\n$\\tau_1|R\\rangle=|L\\rangle$ and $\\tau_1|L\\rangle=|R\\rangle$.\nTo investigate the effects of reflection\nwe assume that the interaction be described by the Hamiltonian\n\\andy{modelH}\n\\begin{equation}\nH= g (1 + \\alpha \\tau_1)(1 + \\beta \\sigma_1),\n\\label{eq:modelH}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $g, \\alpha$ and $\\beta$ are real constants.\nBy varying these parameters and the total\ninteraction time $T$, the above Hamiltonian can describe various\nsituations in which a neutron, impinging on a $B$-field applied\nalong $x$-axis, undergoes transmission\/reflection and\/or spin-flip\neffects.\n\nIt is worth pointing out that the above Hamiltonian\nincorporates the spatial degrees of freedom in an abstract way:\nOnly the 1-dimensional motion of the neutron, represented by $L$ and $R$,\nhas been taken into account and all other effects (like\nfor instance the spread of the wave packet) are neglected.\nThis amounts to consider a trivial free Hamiltonian, which can be\ndropped out from the outset.\nThis may seem too drastic an approximation;\nhowever, it is not as rough as one may imagine. In fact,\nover the distances involved (a neutron interferometer), the\nspread of the wave packet can always be practically neglected as a first\napproximation.\nThe introduction of the above two degrees of freedom $L$ and $R$\njust corresponds to such a situation and the simplicity\nof the model still enables us to obtain explicit solutions for the\ndynamical evolution. This can be a great advantage.\nA realization of such a quantum Zeno effect experiment is in progress \nat the pulsed ISIS neutron spallation source. \nNeutrons which are trapped between perfect crystal plates pass on each \nof their 2000 trajectories through a flipper device which cause an adjustable \nspin rotation. \nFlipped neutrons immediately leave the storage system where they can be \neasily detected (see e.g.\\ \\cite{Jerica}).\n\nSince the spin flipper $\\sigma_1$ and the direction-reversal\noperator $\\tau_1$ commute with each other and with the Hamiltonian\n(\\ref{eq:modelH}), the energy levels of the system governed by this\nHamiltonian are obviously $E_{\\tau\\sigma} \\equiv g\n(1+\\tau\\alpha)(1+\\sigma\\beta)$ with $\\tau,\\sigma=\\pm$. Moreover,\nthe evolution of the system has the following factorized structure\n\\begin{equation}\\label{fs}\ne^{-iHT}=e^{-igT}e^{-i\\alpha gT\\tau_1}e^{-i\\beta gT\\sigma_1}\ne^{-i\\alpha\\beta gT\\tau_1\\sigma_1}.\n\\end{equation}\nIf a neutron is initially prepared in state $|R \\uparrow \\rangle$,\nthe evolution operator is explicitly expressed as\n\\andy{e-iHT}\n\\begin{equation}\ne^{-iHT}=t_\\uparrow\n +r_\\uparrow\\tau_1\n +t_\\downarrow\\sigma_1\n +r_\\downarrow\\tau_1\\sigma_1,\n\\label{eq:e-iHT}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $t_\\uparrow, t_\\downarrow, r_\\uparrow$ and $r_\\downarrow$ are the\ntransmission\/reflection coefficients of a neutron, whose spin is\nflipped\/not flipped after interacting with a constant magnetic\nfield $B$, applied along the $x$-direction in a finite region of\nspace (square potential, stationary state problem). See Figure\n\\ref{fig:ssprob}.\n\\begin{figure}\n\\begin{center}\n\\epsfig{file=figure2.eps,width=\\textwidth}\n\\end{center}\n\\caption{Transmission and reflection coefficients for a neutron\ninitially prepared in the $|R \\uparrow \\rangle$ state. }\n\\label{fig:ssprob}\n\\end{figure}\nThese coefficients are connected with the energy levels by the\nfollowing relation\n\\andy{corrs}:\n\\begin{equation}\n\\pmatrix{t_\\uparrow & t_\\downarrow \\cr r_\\uparrow & r_\\downarrow}=\\frac 14\n\\pmatrix{1 & 1 \\cr 1 & -1}\n\\pmatrix{e^{-iE_{++}T} & e^{-iE_{+-}T} \\cr e^{-iE_{-+}T} & e^{-iE_{--}T}}\n\\pmatrix{1 & 1 \\cr 1 & -1}.\n\\label{eq:corrs}\n\\end{equation}\n\nBy specifying the values of the parameters $g, \\alpha, \\beta$ and\nthe total interaction time $T$, one univocally determines\n$t_\\uparrow, t_\\downarrow, r_\\uparrow$ and $r_\\downarrow$.\nDirect physical meaning can therefore be attributed to the constants\n$g, \\alpha$ and $\\beta$ in (\\ref{eq:modelH}) by comparison with the\ntransmission\/reflection coefficients. For example, in order to mimic\na realistic experimental setup with given values of\n$t_{\\uparrow\\downarrow}, r_{\\uparrow\\downarrow}$, it is enough to obtain the\nvalues of $g, \\alpha$ and $\\beta$ from (\\ref{eq:corrs}) and plug them\nin the Hamiltonian (\\ref{eq:modelH}).\nThe model could in principle be further improved by making the constant $g$\nenergy-dependent. We will consider a more realistic\nHamiltonian in Sec.~\\ref{sec-numan}.\n\n\n\\setcounter{equation}{0}\n\\section{The ideal case of complete transmission}\n\\label{sec-compltrans}\n\\andy{compltrans}\n\nIn the following discussions we always assume that our initial\nstate is $|R\\uparrow \\rangle $, i.e., a right-going spin-up neutron, and\nconsider, for definiteness, the case of total transmission with\nspin flipped, i.e., $|t_\\downarrow|^2=1$, {\\em when no measurements are\nperformed}. Of course, this has to be considered as an idealized\nsituation, since a spin rotation can only take place when there is\nan interaction potential (proportional to the intensity of the\nmagnetic field) which necessarily produces reflection effects (with\nthe only exception of plane waves). Stated differently, when the\nspatial degrees of freedom are taken into account in the scattering\nproblem off a spin-flipping potential, complete transmission is\nimpossible to achieve: There are always reflected waves. Our model\nHamiltonian (\\ref{eq:modelH}) must therefore be regarded as a\nsimple caricature of the physical system we are analyzing. Wave\npacket effects will be discussed in Sec.\\ \\ref{sec-numan}.\n\nTo obtain a total transmission with spin flipped, the evolution\noperator should have the form $e^{-iHT}\\propto\\sigma_1$, which is\nequivalent to either\n\\andy{either.or}\n\\begin{eqnarray}\n&e^{-i\\alpha gT\\tau_1}\\propto\\tau_1,\\quad e^{-i\\beta gT\\sigma_1}\n\\propto 1,\\quad e^{-i\\alpha\\beta gT\\tau_1\\sigma_1}\\propto\n\\tau_1\\sigma_1,&\n\\label{eq:either} \\\\\n\\noalign{\\noindent or}\n&e^{-i\\alpha gT\\tau_1}\\propto 1,\\quad e^{-i\\beta gT\\sigma_1}\n\\propto \\sigma_1,\\quad e^{-i\\alpha\\beta gT\\tau_1\\sigma_1}\\propto 1.&\n\\label{eq:or}\n\\end{eqnarray}\nThat is,\n\\andy{condi1,2}\n\\begin{eqnarray}\n{\\rm Case\\ i)}\\hfill&\\cos\\alpha gT=\\sin\\beta gT=\\cos\\alpha\\beta gT=0,&\\hfill\n\\label{eq:condi1}\n\\\\\n\\noalign{\\noindent or}\n{\\rm Case\\ ii)}\\hfill&\\sin\\alpha gT=\\cos\\beta gT=\\sin\\alpha\\beta gT=0.&\\hfill\n\\label{eq:condi2}\n\\end{eqnarray}\n(All other cases, such as total reflection with\/without spin-flip\ncan be analyzed in a similar way.)\nIn both cases,\nthe evolution is readily computed:\n\\andy{evol0}\n\\begin{equation}\ne^{-iHT} |R \\uparrow \\rangle = \\mbox{phase factor} \\times |R \\downarrow \\rangle .\n\\label{eq:evol0}\n\\end{equation}\nThe boundary conditions are such that the neutron is\ntransmitted and its spin flipped with unit\nprobability. For the experimental realization, see \\cite{spinflip}.\nThis is the situation outlined in Figure \\ref{fig:fig1}(a).\n\nWe shall now focus on some interesting\ncases, which illustrate some definite aspects of the QZE.\\ \\\nLet us see, in particular, how the evolution of the quantum state of the\nneutron is modified by choosing different projectors (corresponding to\ndifferent ``measurements\").\n\n\n\\subsection{Direction-insensitive spin measurement}\n\\label{sec-case1}\n\\andy{case1}\n\nWe perform now a series of measurements, in order to check whether the\nneutron spin is up.\nLet us call this type of measurement a ``direction-insensitive spin\nmeasurement,\" for reasons that will become clear later.\n\\begin{figure}\n\\begin{center}\n\\epsfig{file=figure3.eps,height=10cm}\n\\end{center}\n\\caption{(a) Direction-insensitive spin measurement.\n(b) Direction-sensitive spin measurement.}\n\\label{fig:figins}\n\\end{figure}\nRefer to Figure \\ref{fig:figins}(a).\nThe projection operator corresponding to this measurement is\n\\andy{E1}\n\\begin{equation}\nE_1=1-|R\\downarrow\\rangle\\langle R\\downarrow|-|L\\downarrow\\rangle\\langle L\\downarrow|={1\\over2}(1+\\sigma_3),\n\\label{eq:E1}\n\\end{equation}\nthat is, the spin-down components are projected out regardless of\nthe direction of propagation of the neutron. In this case, after\nfrequent measurements $E_1$ performed at time intervals $T\/N$, the\nevolution operator in Eq.~(\\ref{eq:Nproie}) reads\n\\andy{VN1a}\n\\begin{equation}\nV_{N}(T)\n=\\left( E_1e^{-iHT\/N}E_1 \\right)^N\n=E_1(t_\\uparrow+r_\\uparrow\\tau_1)^N ,\n\\label{eq:VN1a}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $t_\\uparrow\\sim1-igT\/N$ and $r_\\uparrow\\sim-i\\alpha gT\/N$ for large $N$\n[see Eq.\\ (\\ref{eq:e-iHT})]. Taking the limit, one obtains the\nfollowing expression for the QZE evolution operator defined in Eq.\\\n(\\ref{eq:slim}):\n\\andy{V1(T)a}\n\\begin{equation}\n{\\cal V}(T)\n=\\lim_{N\\to\\infty}V_N(T)\n =e^{-igT}E_1e^{-i\\alpha gT\\tau_1}.\n\\label{eq:V1(T)a}\n\\end{equation}\n\nInteresting physical situations can now be investigated. Choose,\nfor instance, $gT= \\pi, \\alpha= -1\/2, \\beta= -1$, which belongs to\nCase i) in Eq.\\ (\\ref{eq:condi1}) [so that, without measurements,\nthe neutron is totally transmitted with its spin flipped, as shown\nin Eq.\\ (\\ref{eq:evol0})]. When the direction-insensitive\nmeasurements are continuously performed, the QZE evolution is\n${\\cal V}(T)=-iE_1\\tau_1$ and the final state is\n\\andy{fst0}\n\\begin{equation}\n{\\cal V}(T)|R\\uparrow\\rangle=-i|L\\uparrow\\rangle,\n\\label{eq:fst0}\n\\end{equation}\ni.e., {\\em the neutron spin is not flipped, but the neutron itself\nis totally reflected}. This clearly shows that reflection\n``losses\" can be very important; as a matter of fact, reflection effects\n{\\em dominate}, in this example. Notice that this is always an example\nof QZE: The projection operator $E_1$ in\n(\\ref{eq:E1}) {\\em prevents} the spin from flipping.\nThe point here is, however, that $E_1$ is\nnot ``tailored\" so as to prevent the wave function from being reflected!\n\n\\subsection{Another particular case: seminal model}\n\\label{sec-semmod}\n\\andy{semmod}\n\nLet us now focus on a model corresponding to\nCase ii) in Eq.~(\\ref{eq:condi2}). The choice of parameters, e.g.\\\n$gT=\\pi\/2, \\alpha=2n, \\beta=-1$,\nobviously fulfills these conditions for\narbitrary integer $n$.\nTotal transmission with spin flipped occurs again when\nno measurement is performed.\n\nWhen direction-insensitive spin measurements, described by\nprojections $E_1$, are performed at time intervals $T\/N$ and in the\n$N\\to \\infty$ limit, the QZE evolution operator in\nEq.~(\\ref{eq:V1(T)a}) becomes simply ${\\cal V}_1(T)=-i(-1)^nE_1$\nand the final state is\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:fst00a}\n{\\cal V}_1(T)|R\\uparrow\\rangle=-i(-1)^n|R\\uparrow\\rangle,\n\\end{equation}\nso that the ``usual\" QZE is obtained. When $n=0$ this is our\nseminal model \\cite{PNBR}, reviewed in Sec.~\\ref{sec-neutr}.\nObviously, the case $n=0$ is not rich enough to yield information\nabout reflection effects. In the following subsection the case of\nnonzero $n$ will be discussed.\n\n\\subsection{Direction-sensitive spin measurements}\n\\label{sec-case2}\n\\andy{case2}\n\nWe now consider a different type of spin measurement.\nLet the measurement be characterized by the\nfollowing projection operator\n\\andy{E2}\n\\begin{equation}\nE_2=1-|R\\downarrow\\rangle\\langle R\\downarrow|,\n\\label{eq:E2}\n\\end{equation}\nwhich projects out those neutrons that are transmitted with their\nspin flipped. Notice that spin-down neutrons that are reflected are\nnot projected out by $E_2$: for this reason we call this a\n``direction-sensitive\" spin measurement. Refer to\nFigure~\\ref{fig:figins}(b). Even though the action of this\nprojection is not easy to implement experimentally, this example\nclearly illustrates some interesting issues related to the\nMisra--Sudarshan theorem. We shall see that the action of the\nprojector $E_2$ will yield a very interesting result. For large\n$N$, the evolution is given by\n\\begin{equation}\nV_{2,N}(T)=\n\\left(E_2e^{-iHT\/N}E_2\\right)^N =\ne^{-igT}\\left(1-i\\frac{gT}{N} Z\\right)^NE_2+O(1\/N),\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $Z\\equiv E_2(H\/g-1)E_2$.\nThe QZE evolution is given by the limit\n\\begin{equation}\\label{eq:ev2}\n{\\cal V}_2(T)=\\lim_{N\\to\\infty}V_{2,N}(T)=e^{-igT}e^{-igTZ}E_2 .\n\\end{equation}\nTo compute its effect on the initial state $|R\\uparrow\\rangle$,\nwe note that, when acting on states $|R\\uparrow\\rangle, |L\\uparrow\\rangle$\nand $|L\\downarrow\\rangle$, which span the ``survival\" subspace,\nthe $Z$ operator behaves as\n\\begin{equation}\nZ \\left(\\matrix{|R\\uparrow\\rangle\\cr |L\\uparrow\\rangle\\cr\n|L\\downarrow\\rangle}\\right)\n=\\left(\\matrix{0&\\alpha&\\alpha\\beta\\cr \\alpha&0&\\beta\\cr\n\\alpha\\beta&\\beta&0}\\right)\n\\left(\\matrix{|R\\uparrow\\rangle\\cr |L\\uparrow\\rangle\\cr\n|L\\downarrow\\rangle}\\right).\n\\end{equation}\nLet us choose for definiteness $\\beta=-1$, so that\n\\begin{equation}\n(Z-1\/2)^2|R\\uparrow\\rangle=\\theta^2|R\\uparrow\\rangle,\n\\label{eq:Z2Rup}\n\\end{equation}\nwith $\\theta=\\sqrt{8\\alpha^{2}+1}\/2$.\nThus the final state can be readily obtained\n\\andy{VTRup2}\n\\begin{equation}\n{\\cal V}_2(T)|R\\uparrow\\rangle\n=\ne^{-3igT\/2}\\Biggl[\n\\left(\\cos gT\\theta+\\frac{i}{2\\theta}\\sin gT\\theta\n \\right)|R\\uparrow\\rangle\n+\\frac{i\\alpha}{\\theta}\\sin gT\\theta\n\\Bigl(|L\\downarrow\\rangle-|L\\uparrow\\rangle\\Bigr)\\Biggr].\n\\label{eq:VTRup2}\n\\end{equation}\nTherefore, for a continuous direction-sensitive\n(namely, $E_2$) measurement, the probability of\nfinding the initial state $|R\\uparrow\\rangle$\nis not unity. Part of the wave function will be\nreflected, although the neutron would have been totally transmitted\nwithout measurement [see (\\ref{eq:evol0})] or with an ``$E_1$-measurement\"\n[see (\\ref{eq:fst00a})].\n\nClearly, the action of the projector $E_2$ yields a completely\ndifferent result from that of $E_1$, in (\\ref{eq:fst00a}). This is\nobvious and easy to understand: the state (\\ref{eq:VTRup2}) belongs\nto the subspace of the ``survived\" states, {\\em according to the\nprojection $E_2$.} Notice also that the probability loss due the\nmeasurements is zero, in the limit, because the QZE evolution\n(\\ref{eq:ev2}) is unitary within the subspace of the \\lq\\lq\nsurvived\" states.\n\n\\setcounter{equation}{0}\n\\section{A more realistic model }\n\\label{sec-numan}\n\\andy{numan}\n\nLet us now introduce a more realistic (albeit static) model. Such a\nmodel can be shown to be derivable from a Hamiltonian very similar\nto the one studied in the previous sections by a suitable\nidentification of parameters (see Appendix A). The effect of\nreflections in the QZE will now be tackled by directly solving a\nstationary Schr\\\"odinger equation, which will be set up as follows.\n\nLet a neutron with energy $E=k^2\/2m$ and spin up ($+z$ direction),\nmoving along the $+y$ direction, impinge on $N$ regions of constant\nmagnetic field pointing to the $x$ direction, among which there are\n$N-1$ field-free regions. The thickness of a single piece of\nmagnetic field is $a$ and the field-free region has size $b$. The\nconfiguration is shown in Figure \\ref{fig:figYu1}.\n\\begin{figure}\n\\epsfig{file=figure4.eps,width=\\textwidth}\n\\caption{Spin-up neutron moving along the $+y$ direction with energy\n$E$. The magnetic field points to the $+x$ direction and is zero in\nthe region between $y_n^\\prime$ and $y_n$, in which the\nmeasurements will be made. In these field-free regions the wave\nfunctions are $|\\psi_n^\\prime\\rangle$ before measurement and\n$|\\psi_n\\rangle$ after the measurement.}\n\\label{fig:figYu1}\n\\end{figure}\nThus we have the one-dimensional scattering problem of a neutron\noff a piecewise constant magnetic field with total thickness\n$D=Na$. The stationary Schr\\\"odinger equation is described by the\nHamiltonian\n\\andy{realH}\n\\begin{equation}\nH_{\\rm Z}=\\frac{p_y^2}{2m}+\\mu B\\sigma_1\\Omega(y),\n\\label{eq:realH}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\mu$ is the modulus of the neutron magnetic momentum, $B$\nthe strength of the magnetic field and\n\\begin{equation}\n\\Omega(y)\n=\\left\\{\\matrix{0&\\mbox{for}&y<0,&y_n^\\primey_N^\\prime$ reads\n\\begin{equation}\\label{w2}\n|\\psi_N\\rangle= e^{iky}[t_\\uparrow|\\uparrow\\rangle+t_\\downarrow |\\downarrow\\rangle].\n\\end{equation}\nSince $[\\sigma_1,H_{\\rm Z}]=0$, it is convenient to work with the\nbasis $|\\pm\\rangle=(|\\uparrow\\rangle\\pm|\\downarrow\\rangle)\/\\sqrt 2$,\ni.e., the eigenstates of $\\sigma_1$ belonging to eigenvalues $\\pm 1$.\nFor later use we denote $r_\\pm=r_\\uparrow\\pm r_\\downarrow$ and\n$t_\\pm=t_\\uparrow\\pm t_\\downarrow$.\n\nIn the field-free region, before the point $y=m_n$ where the $n$th\nmeasurement is assumed to take place, $y_n^\\prime1$, the transmission amplitude of the same neutron passing\nthrough a magnetic field with a lattice-like structure as depicted\nin Figure 4 can be written as\n\\begin{equation}\nt_\\pm\n=\\frac {e^{-iky_N}t_{a\\pm}}{e^{-iky_1}[N]_\\pm -[N-1]_\\pm t_{a\\pm}}.\n\\end{equation}\nFor a neutron in its spin-up state $|\\uparrow\\rangle$, the transmission\namplitude with spin unflipped is then $t_\\uparrow=(t_++t_-)\/2$ and that\nwith spin flipped is $t_\\downarrow=(t_+-t_-)\/2$. As a result, for a spin-up\nneutron to go through a constant potential of width $y_N=D=Na$\nwithout reflection and with spin flipped, i.e., $|t_\\downarrow|=1$, one\nshould require $k_\\pm D=n_\\pm\\pi$ or\n\\begin{equation}\\label{ttc}\nE=\\frac{\\pi^2(n_+^2+n_-^2)}{4mD^2},\\quad\n\\mu B=\\frac{\\pi^2(n_+^2-n_-^2)}{4m D^2},\n\\end{equation}\nwith $n_\\pm$ two arbitrary integers, their difference $n_+-n_-$ \nbeing an odd number. In this case of complete transmission\n$|t_\\downarrow|=1$, the energy $E$ must be larger than the potential $\\mu\nB$. The rest of the analysis above, however, is valid also when the\nenergy is less than the potential.\n\nNow we consider the case where $N$ tends to infinity and the\nmagnetic field possesses a periodic lattice structure. The relation\n(\\ref{eq:rel1}) still holds and in order to preserve the\ntranslational symmetry along the $y$ axis (that is, to keep the \nHamiltonian invariant under a translation of $(a+b)$ along the \n$y$-axis), one should have \n$|q_\\pm|=1$ owing to the Bloch theorem. \nEquivalently, the trace of the transfer matrix $e^{ikb\\tau_3}M_\\pm$\nas given in Eq.~(\\ref{eq:trace}) should be less than one. This\ndetermines the energy band of the system: those energies that make\nthe absolute value of this trace greater than 1 will be forbidden,\nbecause for these energies $|q_\\pm|$ or $|q_\\pm|^{-1}$ becomes\nlarger than one and $[N]_\\pm$ tends exponentially to infinity when\n$N$ approaches infinity. For large $N$, even if there is no\nperiodical structure, there is always some $k$ that makes this\ntrace greater than one (e.g. $kb+k_\\pm a=l\\pi$). Therefore the\ntransmission probability will tend to zero exponentially when $N$\nbecomes large, even though the energy may be very large relative to\nthe potential. This shows that reflection effects in presence of a\nlattice structure are very important; as we shall see, this feature\nis preserved even when projection operators are interspersed in the\nlattice.\n\n\\subsection{Direction-insensitive projections}\n\\label{sec-insensitive}\n\\andy{insensitive}\n\nWe consider now the second situation, when direction-insensitive\nmeasurements are performed at points $m_n$s. By this kind of\nmeasurement, the spin-down components are projected out and the\nspin-up components evolve freely regardless whether the neutron is\ntravelling right or left.\n\nThe boundary conditions imposed by this kind of measurement at point\n$m_n$ for the wave function $|\\psi_n\\rangle$ and $|\\psi^\\prime_n\\rangle$\nin the field-free region are expressed as\n\\begin{equation}\nR_{n,\\downarrow}=L^\\prime_{n,\\downarrow}=0,\n\\quad \\pmatrix{R_{n,\\uparrow}^\\prime \\cr L_{n,\\uparrow}^\\prime \\cr}\n=e^{-ikb\\tau_3}\\pmatrix{R_{n,\\uparrow}\\cr L_{n,\\uparrow} \\cr},\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $R_{n,\\uparrow}=(R_{n,+}+R_{n,-})\/2$ and\n$R_{n,\\downarrow}=(R_{n,+}-R_{n,-})\/2$ for right-going components and\nsimilar expressions for the left-going and primed components.\nTherefore, application of Eq.~(\\ref{ev1}) $N$ times yields\n\\begin{equation}\\label{ev2}\n\\pmatrix{R_{N,\\uparrow}\\cr L_{N,\\uparrow} \\cr}\n=(e^{ikb\\tau_3}M_1)^N\\pmatrix{R_{0,\\uparrow}\\cr L_{0,\\uparrow} \\cr},\n\\end{equation}\nwhere the $2\\times 2$ transfer matrix $M_1$ has the\nfollowing matrix elements\n\\begin{equation}\n(M_1)_{ij}\n=\\bar{M}_{ij}-\\Delta M_{i2}\\Delta M_{2j}\/\\bar{M}_{22}\n\\end{equation}\nwith $\\bar M=(M_++M_-)\/2$ and $\\Delta M=(M_+-M_-)\/2$.\n\nNow we take the limit as required by a ``continuous\" measurement,\ni.e., $N\\to\\infty$, $a\\to0$ keeping $Na=D$ finite and $Nb\\to 0$. By\nthe definition (\\ref{eq:Mpm}) of the transfer matrix, we have the\nsmall-$a$ expansions\n\\begin{equation}\n\\bar M=1+ika\\tau_3+O(a^2),\\quad\n\\Delta M= \\zeta ka(\\tau_2-i\\tau_3)+O(a^2)\n\\end{equation}\nwith $\\zeta\\equiv\\mu B\/2E$, obtaining\n\\begin{equation}\n\\lim_{N\\to\\infty}(e^{ikb\\tau_3}M_1)^N= e^{ikD\\tau_3}.\n\\end{equation}\nRecall that $t_\\uparrow=e^{-ikD}R_{N,\\uparrow}$ is the transmission amplitude,\n$L_{0,\\downarrow}=r_\\downarrow$ the reflection amplitude and $L_{N,\\uparrow}=0$ and\n$R_{0,\\uparrow}=1$ because of the boundary conditions. After taking the\nlimit $N\\to\\infty$ in Eq.~(\\ref{ev2}), we see that the transmission\n(survival) probability becomes one, i.e., $|t_{\\uparrow}|^2=1$, for {\\em\nany} input energy and magnetic field. This reveals another aspect\nof neutron QZE: When the energy of the neutron is smaller than the\npotential, the transmission probability decays exponentially when\nthe length increases and no measurement is performed; By contrast,\nwhen continuous direction-insensitive measurements are made, one\ncan obtain a total transmission!\n\nIf we choose the energy of the neutron and the potential as in\nEq.~(\\ref{ttc}), without measurements the neutron will be totally\ntransmitted with its spin flipped. On the other hand, if the\nspin-up state is measured continuously, the neutron will be totally\ntransmitted with its spin unflipped. This is exactly the QZE in the\nusual sense. Our analysis enables us to see that two kinds of QZEs\nare taking place: One is the QZE for the right-going neutron, by\nwhich we obtain a total transmission of the right-going input\nstate, and another one is for the left-going neutron, which\npreserves the zero amplitude of the left-going input state. This\ncase corresponds to projector $E_1$ in our simplified model in\nSec.~\\ref{sec-semmod}.\n\n\n\\subsection{Direction-sensitive projections}\n\\label{sec-sensitive}\n\\andy{sensitive}\n\nThe third case we consider is the direction-sensitive measurement.\nBy this kind of measurement the left-going components (or the\nreflection parts) evolve freely, no matter whether spin is up or\ndown, and the right-going components are projected to the spin-up\nstate. The corresponding boundary conditions are\n\\begin{equation}\nR_{n,\\downarrow}=0,\\qquad L_{n,\\pm}=e^{-ikb}L^\\prime_{n,\\pm}.\n\\end{equation}\n\nIf we apply Eq.~(\\ref{ev1}) $N$ times, supplemented with these\nboundary conditions, the following relations among the transmission\nand reflection amplitudes are obtained\n\\begin{equation}\\label{ev3}\ne^{ikD}\\pmatrix{t_{\\uparrow}\\cr 0\\cr 0}=\\left(e^{ikb\\Sigma_3}M_2\\right)^N\n\\pmatrix{1\\cr r_{\\uparrow}\\cr r_{\\downarrow}},\n\\end{equation}\nwhere $\\Sigma_3$ is a diagonal matrix $\\Sigma_3={\\rm diag}\\{1,-1,-1\\}$\nand the $3\\times3$ transfer matrix $M_2$ is given by\n\\begin{equation}\nM_2=\\pmatrix{\\bar{M}_{11}&\\bar{M}_{12}&\\Delta M_{12}\\cr\n \\bar{M}_{21}&\\bar{M}_{22}&\\Delta M_{22}\\cr\n \\Delta M_{21}&\\Delta M_{22}&\\bar{M}_{22}\\cr}.\n\\end{equation}\n\nIn the limit of continuous measurements ($N\\to\\infty$, $a\\to 0$,\nwhile keeping $D=Na$ constant, and $Nb\\to 0$), the transfer matrix\nis expanded as\n\\begin{equation}\nM_2=1-ika\/3+ika Z_2+O(a^2),\n\\end{equation}\nfor small $a$, with ($\\zeta=\\mu B\/2E$)\n\\begin{equation}\\label{z2}\nZ_2\\equiv\\pmatrix{4\/3&0&-\\zeta\\cr\n 0&-2\/3&\\zeta\\cr\n \\zeta&\\zeta&-2\/3\\cr},\n\\end{equation}\nand we have\n\\begin{equation}\n\\lim_{N\\to\\infty}(e^{ikb\\Sigma_3}M_2)^{N}=e^{-ikD\/3}e^{ikD Z_2}.\n\\end{equation}\n\nNotice that the matrix $Z_2$ satisfies $\\Sigma_3\nZ_2\\Sigma_3=Z_2^\\dagger$, from which we obtain, in the above limit,\nthe conservation of probability\n\\begin{equation}\n|t_\\uparrow|^2+|r_\\uparrow|^2+|r_\\downarrow|^2=1.\n\\end{equation}\nThis shows that there are no losses caused by the continuous\ndirection-sensitive measurements. On the other hand, the\ntransmission amplitude with spin unflipped is explicitly given by\n\\begin{equation}\nt_\\uparrow={{e^{-i4kD\/3}}\\over\\left(e^{-ikD Z_2}\\right)_{11}}\n\\end{equation}\nwhich implies that the transmission probability $|t_\\uparrow|^2$ is in\ngeneral {\\em not} equal to one. To have a general impression of its\nbehavior, we plot $T_{\\uparrow}=|t_\\uparrow|^2$ as a function of $kD$ and\n$\\zeta$ in Figure~\\ref{fig:figYu2}.\n\nSome comments are in order. There are two critical values for\n$\\zeta$, namely $0$ and $\\zeta_c=4\\sqrt3\/9\\approx 0.77$. When $0\\le\n\\zeta<\\zeta_c$, the matrix $Z_2$ has three real eigenvalues and the\ntransmission probability will oscillate depending on $kD$. When\n$\\zeta=\\zeta_c$ the transmission probability will decay according\nto $(kD)^{-2}$.\nIn fact, if one defines $G=Z_2-2\/3$, it is easy to show that \n$e^{-ikDG}=1-ikDG+(e^{2ikD}-1-2ikD)G^2\/4$, because $G$ satisfies \n$G^2(G+2)=0$.\nThen one can explicitly confirm that the element $(e^{-ikDG})_{11}$ \nincludes a linear $kD$ term, which gives the $(kD)^{-2}$ behavior to \nthe transmission probability. Finally, when $\\zeta>\\zeta_c$ the\nmatrix $Z_2$ has two imaginary eigenvalues and therefore the\ntransmission probability decays exponentially with $kD$. This can\nbe seen clearly in Figure~5(a). An interesting case arises when we\nconsider $1\/2<\\zeta<\\zeta_c$ or $E<\\mu B<8\\sqrt3E\/9\\approx 1.5E$.\nWithout measurements, the transmission probability decays\nexponentially when the length of the magnetic field is increased,\nbecause the input energy is smaller than the potential. When\ncontinuous measurements are performed, however, the transmission\nprobability will oscillate as the length of the magnetic field\nincreases.\n\\begin{figure}\n\\begin{center}\n\\epsfig{file=fig5a.eps,height=8cm}\n\\end{center}\n\\begin{center}\n\\epsfig{file=fig5b.eps,height=8cm}\n\\end{center}\n\\caption{The transmission probability with spin unflipped\n$T_{\\rm up}=|t_\\uparrow|^2$ is plotted as a function of $kD$ and $z=\\zeta$ in\n(a) and as a function of\n$B_1=\\sqrt{m\\mu B}D$\nand $kD$ in (b).}\n\\label{fig:figYu2}\n\\end{figure}\n\nAs we can see in Figure~\\ref{fig:figYu3}, although the conditions\n(\\ref{ttc}) for total transmission in absence of measurements have\nbeen imposed, the transmission probability $T_{\\uparrow}$ is not one, as\nit would be for the ``ordinary\" QZE. Reflections are unavoidable.\nThis case corresponds to the projector $E_2$ considered in the\nsimplified model.\n\\begin{figure}\n\\begin{center}\n\\epsfig{file=fig6.eps,width=\\textwidth}\n\\end{center}\n\\caption{The transmission probablity with spin unflipped $T_\\uparrow=|t_\\uparrow|^2$\nas a function of $n$, when the conditions \n (\\ref{ttc})\nfor total transmission are satisfied with $n_-=n$ and $n_+=n+9$.}\n\\label{fig:figYu3}\n\\end{figure}\n\nAs we have seen, there are peculiar reflection effects in presence\nof projections, when $D$ (total length) is varied. This is clearly\nan interference effect, which can lead to enhancement of reflection\n``losses,\" if the ``projection\" does not suppress the left\ncomponent of the wave (this is what happens for $E_2$). This proves\nthat reflection effects can become very important in experimental\ntests of the QZE with neutron spin, if, roughly speaking, the total\nlength of the interaction region ``resonates\" with the neutron\nwavelength. It is interesting that such a resonance effect takes\nplace even though the dynamical properties of the system are\nprofoundly modified by the projection operators, in the limit of\n``continuous\" measurements, leading to the QZE.\n\nFinally, we would like to stress again that we are performing an\nanalysis in terms of stationary states (i.e.,\ntransmission\/reflection coefficients for plane waves), while at the\nsame time we are analyzing a quantum Zeno phenomenon, which is\nessentially a time-dependent effect. This is meaningful within our\napproximations, where the wave-packet spread is neglected and the\nmeasurements are performed with very high frequency. A more\nsophisticated argument in support of this view is given in Appendix\nA. In the present context wave packets effects, if taken into\naccount, would result in a sort of average of the effects shown in\nFigures 5 and 6 (which refer to the monochromatic case); however,\nour general conclusions would be unaltered. It is worth stressing\nthat, in neutron optics, effects due to a high sensitivity to\nfluctuation phenomena (such as fluctuations of the intensity of the\nmagnetic field) become important at high wave number and constitute\nan experimental challenge \\cite{fluctB}.\n\n\n\n\\setcounter{equation}{0}\n\\section{Summary}\n\\label{sec-findisc}\n\\andy{findisc}\n\nWe have analyzed some peculiar features of a quantum Zeno-type\ndynamics by discussing the noteworthy example of a neutron spin\nevolving under the action of a magnetic filed in presence of\ndifferent types of measurements (``projections\").\n\nThe ``survival probability\" depends on our definition of\n``surviving,\" i.e., on the choice of the projection operator $E$.\nDifferent $E$s will yield different final states, and Misra and\nSudarshan's theorem \\cite{Misra} simply makes sure that the\nsurvival probability is unity: the final state belongs to the\nsubspace of the survived products.\n\nIn the physical case considered (neutron spin), our examples\nclarify that the practical details of the experimental procedure by\nwhich the neutron spin is ``measured\" are very important. For\nexample, in order to avoid constructive interference effects,\nleading to (unwanted) enhancement of the reflected neutron wave, it\nis important to devise the experimental setup in such a way that\nreflection effects are suppressed.\n\n\n\\section*{Acknowledgments}\nThis work is partly supported by the Grant-in-Aid for International \nScientific Research: Joint Research \\#10044096 from the Japanese \nMinistry of Education, Science and Culture, by Waseda University \nGrant for Special Research Projects No.~98A--619 and by the \nTMR-Network of the European Union ``Perfect Crystal Neutron Optics\"\nERB-FMRX-CT96-0057.\n\n\n\n\n\\renewcommand{\\thesection}{\\Alph{section}}\n\\setcounter{section}{1}\n\\setcounter{equation}{0}\n\\section*{Appendix A}\n\\label{sec-appA}\n\\andy{appA}\n\n\\renewcommand{\\thesection}{\\Alph{section}}\n\\renewcommand{\\thesubsection}{{\\it\\Alph{section}.\\arabic{subsection}}}\n\\renewcommand{\\theequation}{\\thesection.\\arabic{equation}}\n\\renewcommand{\\thefigure}{\\thesection.\\arabic{figure}}\n\nIn this appendix, we shall endeavor to establish a connection\nbetween the models analyzed in Secs.~\\ref{sec-neutrspin} and\n\\ref{sec-numan}. In other words, we will examine whether the\nparametrization of the Hamiltonian of the form (\\ref{eq:modelH}) is\ncompatible with the more realistic one considered in\n(\\ref{eq:realH}) and in such a case find which values are to be\nassigned to the parameters $\\alpha,\\beta$ and $g$. To this end, it\nis enough to consider the scattering (i.e., the transmission and\nreflection) process of a neutron off a single constant magnetic\nfield $B$ of width $a$. We compare the scattering amplitudes\ncalculated on the basis of the simple abstract Hamiltonian\n(\\ref{eq:modelH}) and of the more realistic one (\\ref{eq:realH}).\nNotice that the process is treated as a dynamical one in the former\ncase ($T$ is regarded, roughly speaking, as the time necessary for\nthe neutron to go through the potential), while in the latter case\nwe treat it as a stationary problem.\n\nObserve first that the tranfer matrix $M_\\pm$ in (\\ref{eq:Mpm}),\nderived for the stationary scattering process, yields the following\ntransmission\/reflection amplitudes\n\\andy{RRLL}\n\\begin{eqnarray}\nR'_{1,\\uparrow\n={1\\over2}\\left({1\\over(M_+)_{22}}+{1\\over(M_-)_{22}}\\right),&&\nR'_{1,\\downarrow\n={1\\over2}\\left({1\\over(M_+)_{22}}-{1\\over(M_-)_{22}}\\right),\\nonumber\\\\\n&&\\label{eq:RRLL}\\\\\nL_{0,\\uparrow\n=-{1\\over2}\\left({(M_+)_{21}\\over(M_+)_{22}}\n+{(M_-)_{21}\\over(M_-)_{22}}\\right),\n&& L_{0,\\downarrow}\n=-{1\\over2}\\left({(M_+)_{21}\\over(M_+)_{22}}\n-{(M_-)_{21}\\over(M_-)_{22}}\\right).\\nonumber\n\\end{eqnarray}\nIt is easy to show that the relations (\\ref{eq:RRLL}) are\nequivalent to\n\\andy{corrs'}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\left(\n\\begin{array}{cccc}\n1 & 1 & 1 & 1 \\\\\n1 & -1 & 1 & -1 \\\\\n1 & 1 & -1 & -1 \\\\\n1 & -1 & -1 & 1\n\\end{array}\n\\right)\n\\left(\n\\begin{array}{c}\nR'_{1,\\uparrow}\\\\\nR'_{1,\\downarrow}\\\\\nL_{0,\\uparrow}\\\\\nL_{0,\\downarrow}\n\\end{array}\n\\right)\n=\n\\left(\n\\begin{array}{c}\n{\\cal M}_{-,+}\\\\\n{\\cal M}_{-,-}\\\\\n{\\cal M}_{+,+}\\\\\n{\\cal M}_{+,-}\n\\end{array}\n\\right),\n\\label{eq:corrs'}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere we have introduced\n\\andy{calMpm}\n\\begin{equation}\n{\\cal M}_{+,\\pm}={1+(M_\\pm)_{21}\\over(M_\\pm)_{22}},\\quad\n{\\cal M}_{-,\\pm}={1-(M_\\pm)_{21}\\over(M_\\pm)_{22}}.\n\\label{eq:calMpm}\n\\end{equation}\nIt is important to realize that these quantities are just phase\nfactors. In fact, since\n\\andy{Melements}\n\\begin{equation}\n(M_\\pm)_{21}=i\\sinh\\eta_\\pm\\sin k_\\pm a\n\\quad\\mbox{and}\\quad\n(M_\\pm)_{22}=\\cos k_\\pm a-i\\cosh\\eta_\\pm\\sin k_\\pm a\n\\label{eq:Melements}\n\\end{equation}\nand\n\\andy{abs2}\n\\begin{equation}\n|1\\pm(M_\\pm)_{21}|^2=|(M_\\pm)_{22}|^2=1+\\sinh^2\\eta_\\pm\\sin^2k_\\pm a,\n\\label{eq:abs2}\n\\end{equation}\ntheir absolute values are unity. Thus we can rewrite them in the\nform\n\\andy{calMpp}\n\\begin{equation}\n{\\cal M}_{+,\\pm}=e^{i(\\xi_\\pm+\\phi_\\pm)},\\quad\n{\\cal M}_{-,\\pm}=e^{i(-\\xi_\\pm+\\phi_\\pm)},\n\\label{eq:calMpp}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere\n\\andy{phases}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\xi_\\pm=\\tan^{-1}(\\sinh\\eta_\\pm\\sin k_\\pm a)\\quad\\mbox{and}\\quad\n\\phi_\\pm=\\tan^{-1}(\\cosh\\eta_\\pm\\tan k_\\pm a).\n\\label{eq:phases}\n\\end{equation}\nObserve now that (\\ref{eq:corrs}), dynamically derived from the\nabstract Hamiltonian (\\ref{eq:modelH}), is equivalent to\n\\andy{trvsgT}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\left(\\matrix{t_\\uparrow\\cr\n t_\\downarrow\\cr\n r_\\uparrow\\cr\n r_\\downarrow\\cr}\n\\right)\n={1\\over4}\\left(\\matrix{1&1&1&1\\cr\n 1&-1&1&-1\\cr\n 1&1&-1&-1\\cr\n 1&-1&-1&1\\cr}\n \\right)\n \\left(\\matrix{e^{-iE_{++}T}\\cr\n e^{-iE_{+-}T}\\cr\n e^{-iE_{-+}T}\\cr\n e^{-iE_{--}T}\\cr}\n \\right).\n\\label{eq:trvsgT}\n\\end{equation}\nThe apparent similarity between the above relation and\n(\\ref{eq:corrs'}), valid in the stationary scattering setup,\ninduces us to look for a more definite connection between the two\ncases.\n\nIf we slightly generalize the abstract Hamiltonian \n(\\ref{eq:modelH}) \n\\andy{model2H}\n\\begin{equation}\nH_{\\rm dyn}=g[1+\\alpha\\tau_1+\\beta\\sigma_1+\\gamma\\tau_1\\sigma_1],\n\\label{eq:model2H}\n\\end{equation}\nby introducing the additional parameter $\\gamma$, we easily find\nthe correspondence existing between the parameters involved: The\nincident wave number $k$ of the neutron and the configuration of\nthe static potential (strength $B$ and width $a$) determine the\nscattering data, which are reproducible by an appropriate choice of\nparameters $\\alpha,\\beta,\\gamma$ and $gT$ in the dynamical process\ngoverned by the Hamiltonian (\\ref{eq:model2H}).\n\nFor definiteness, consider the case of narrow potential, that is,\n$a\\to0$ or $ka\\ll1$. Incidentally, notice that this is the case of\ninterest for the analysis of the QZE. The above $\\xi_\\pm$ and\n$\\phi_\\pm$ are then approximated as\n\\andy{xiphi}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\xi_\\pm\\sim\\pm\\zeta ka,\\qquad\n\\phi_\\pm\\sim(1\\mp\\zeta)ka,\n\\label{eq:xiphi}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere we set $\\zeta=\\mu B\/2E=m\\mu B\/k^2$, as in\nSec.~\\ref{sec-numan}. In the limit $a\\to0$, the evolution time $T$\nis also considered to be of the same order of $a$ and the\ntransmission and reflection coefficients are expressed, in terms of\nthe parameters $\\alpha,\\beta,\\gamma$ and $gT$, as\n\\andy{abgg'}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\left(\\matrix{t_\\uparrow\\cr\n t_\\downarrow\\cr\n r_\\uparrow\\cr\n r_\\downarrow\\cr}\\right)\n\\sim\\left(\\matrix{1\\cr\n -i\\beta gT\\cr\n -i\\alpha gT\\cr\n -i\\gamma gT\\cr}\\right).\n\\label{eq:abgg'}\n\\end{equation}\nIn the stationary scattering problem, the same quantities are calculated\nto be\n\\andy{kxiphi}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\left(\\matrix{t_\\uparrow\\cr\n t_\\downarrow\\cr\n r_\\uparrow\\cr\n r_\\downarrow\\cr}\\right)\n=\\left(\\matrix{e^{-ika}R'_{1,\\uparrow}\\cr\n e^{-ika}R'_{1,\\downarrow}\\cr\n L_{0,\\uparrow}\\cr\n L_{0,\\downarrow}\\cr}\\right)\n\\sim\\left(\\matrix{1-ika+i(\\phi_++\\phi_-)\/2\\cr\n i(\\phi_+-\\phi_-)\/2\\cr\n -i(\\xi_++\\xi_-)\/2\\cr\n -i(\\xi_+-\\xi_-)\/2\\cr}\\right)\n\\sim\\left(\\matrix{1\\cr\n -i\\zeta ka\\cr\n 0\\cr\n -i\\zeta ka\\cr}\\right).\n\\label{eq:kxiphi}\n\\end{equation}\nTherefore, the following abstract Hamiltonian\n\\andy{rH}\n\\begin{equation}\nH_{\\rm dyn}=\\mu B(1+\\tau_1)\\sigma_1\n\\label{eq:rH}\n\\end{equation}\ncan reproduce the desired scattering data when the system evolves under\nthis Hamiltonian for time $T=a\/v=ma\/k$.\n\nIt is also interesting to see how such a dynamical Hamiltonian\n$H_{\\rm dyn}$ may reproduce the transfer matrix $M_\\pm$\n(\\ref{eq:Mpm}), which further confirms the equivalence between the\ntwo formalisms, stationary and dynamical, governed by the\nHamiltonians $H_{\\rm Z}$ and $H_{\\rm dyn}$, respectively. For this\npurpose, consider first a neutron, initially prepared in state\n$|R\\pm\\rangle$, subject to the dynamical evolution engendered by\n$H_{\\rm dyn}$ for time $T=ma\/k$. By definition, the transfer matrix\nconnects the scattering products in the following way\n\\andy{Rinc}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\pmatrix{R_{1,\\pm}^\\prime \\cr 0 \\cr}\n=M_\\pm\\pmatrix{1 \\cr L_{0,\\pm} \\cr}.\n\\label{eq:Rinc}\n\\end{equation}\nThese scattering amplitudes are given by the corresponding\nmatrix elements of the evolution operator $e^{-iHT}$,\n\\andy{R'L}\n\\begin{equation}\ne^{-ika}R_{1,\\pm}'=\\langle R\\pm|e^{-iHT}|R\\pm\\rangle,\\qquad\nL_{0,\\pm}=\\langle L\\pm|e^{-iHT}|R\\pm\\rangle,\n\\label{eq:R'L}\n\\end{equation}\nwhich reduces, for small $T$, to\n\\andy{r'l}\n\\begin{equation}\nR_{1,\\pm}'\\sim1+ika\\mp i\\mu BT,\\qquad L_{0,\\pm}\\sim\\mp i\\mu BT.\n\\label{eq:r'l}\n\\end{equation}\nOn the other hand, if a neutron is prepared in $|L\\pm\\rangle$, we have\nthe relation\n\\andy{Linc}\n\\begin{equation}\n\\pmatrix{R_{1,\\pm}' \\cr e^{-ika} \\cr}\n=M_\\pm\\pmatrix{0 \\cr L_{0,\\pm} \\cr},\n\\label{eq:Linc}\n\\end{equation}\nwhere\n\\andy{R'Lr'l}\n\\begin{equation}\nR_{1,\\pm}'=e^{ika}\\langle R\\pm|e^{-iHT}|L\\pm\\rangle\\sim\\mp i\\mu BT,\\qquad\nL_{0,\\pm}=\\langle L\\pm|e^{-iHT}|L\\pm\\rangle\\sim1\\mp i\\mu BT.\n\\label{eq:R'Lr'l}\n\\end{equation}\nIt is now an easy task to determine the matrix elements of $M_\\pm$ from\nthe above relations (\\ref{eq:Rinc})--(\\ref{eq:R'Lr'l}).\nWe obtain\n\\andy{mpm}\n\\begin{equation}\nM_\\pm\\sim\\pmatrix{\n1+ika\\mp i\\mu BT &\\mp i\\mu BT\\cr\n\\pm i\\mu BT &1-ika\\pm i\\mu BT}\n=1-i[\\pm\\mu B(i\\tau_2+\\tau_3)-2E\\tau_3]T.\n\\label{eq:mpm}\n\\end{equation}\nBy defining a ``generator\" $G_{\\rm d}$\n\\andy{Gd}\n\\begin{equation}\nG_{\\rm d}=\\mu B(i\\tau_2+\\tau_3)\\sigma_1-2E\\tau_3,\n\\label{eq:Gd}\n\\end{equation}\nthe transfer matrix $M_\\pm$ for finite $a$ (or $T$) can be rewritten as\n\\andy{e-iGdT}\n\\begin{equation}\nM_\\pm\n=\\langle\\pm|e^{-iG_{\\rm d}T}|\\pm\\rangle,\n\\label{eq:e-iGdT}\n\\end{equation}\nwhich is nothing but the transfer matrix (\\ref{eq:Mpm}), obtained\nfor the stationary-state problem from the Hamiltonian $H_{\\rm Z}$.\n\n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaArXiv"}}
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+{"text":"\n**The Secret Life of \nMS. FINKLEMAN**\n\n**Ben H. Winters**\n\n_For_ Diana, Rosalie, and Isaac\n\n# TABLE OF CONTENTS\n\nCover\n\nTitle Page\n\n1 THE GREAT UNKNOWN\n\n2 A WALKING, TALKING MYSTERY\n\n3 TRADITIONAL ENGLISH FOLK BALLADS FROM THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY\n\n4 SPDSTAMF\n\n5 THE GOLDBERG VARIATIONS\n\n6 BETHESDA'S DAD\n\n7 MOZART'S PIANO CONCERTO NO. 20 IN D MINOR\n\n8 TENNY BOYER\n\n9 \"GREENSLEEVES\"\n\n10 THE TINIEST CHANGE IN PLAN\n\n11 THE NOTE\n\n12 FLOCCINAUCINIHILIPILIFICATION\n\n13 GOPHERS\n\n14 AWKWARD POPCORN\n\n15 \"LIVIN' ON A PRAYER\"\n\n16 THREE LITTLE WORDS\n\n17 BETHESDA FIELDING, MOUNTAIN CLIMBER\n\n18 \"ONE! TWO! THREE! FOUR!\"\n\n19 CHRISTMAS LIGHTS\n\n20 ONE MORE PART OF THE SECRET\n\n21 \"GREAT BALLS OF FIRE\"\n\n22 \"LOSE? WE CAN'T LOSE!\"\n\n23 OUT OF TIME\n\n24 WASHINGTON CROSSING THE NILE\n\n25 AN OLD CARDBOARD BOX SECURED WITH MASKING TAPE\n\n26 A DREADFUL COUGH\n\n27 \"LET'S ROCK!\"\n\n28 \"JANITOR STEVE IS GONNA FREAK\"\n\n29 THE ROCK SHOW\n\nEpilogue JUNE\n\nAcknowledgments\n\nCopyright\n\nAbout the Publisher\n\n# [1\n\nTHE GREAT UNKNOWN](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c01)\n\n_Ms. Finkleman_ was not the most popular teacher at Mary Todd Lincoln Middle School.\n\nShe wasn't the most _unpopular,_ either, of course. Never would she be ranked, for example, with famously horrible teachers like Mr. Vasouvian, the cruel gym instructor, or creepy Ms. Pinn-Darvish, the art teacher with the streak of purple in her jet black hair. But nor was Ms. Finkleman adored the way that some teachers are adored: teachers like gentle old Mrs. Howell, who brought brownies every second Friday, and who included a bonus question on every test relating to her cats, Jackie O and Mr. Spock.\n\nNo, Ms. Finkleman, who taught Band and Chorus, was considered neither awful nor excellent\u2014indeed, she was hardly thought of at all. Her hair was a boring shade of brown, her face neither beautiful nor ugly, her speaking voice timid and plain, her clothes drab and conservative. A kid could pass her in the halls a hundred times and never know it\u2014quiet, anonymous Ms. Finkleman, hurrying from the music room to the teachers' lounge, her head down and her violin case clutched tightly to her chest.\n\nIn short, Ms. Finkleman was one of those people so totally unremarkable as to be essentially invisible.\n\nShe was until the Seventeenth Annual All-County Choral Corral, that is.\n\nUntil Little Miss Mystery and the Red Herrings.\n\nUntil Bethesda Fielding and Tenny Boyer got caught cheating and were very nearly expelled.\n\nBut as anyone can tell you\u2014at least, anyone who has taken English Language Arts with Ms. Petrides\u2014a good story starts at the beginning and ends at the end, no two ways about it. And the story of Ms. Finkleman's shocking emergence from obscurity begins midway through second semester, in seventh-grade Social Studies with Mr. Melville.\n\nBethesda Fielding was enjoying the American Revolution.\n\nShe got to class first and snagged her favorite seat in the front row. Mr. Melville's class didn't have assigned seats, but Bethesda usually sat in the front\u2014it was kind of dorky, but she was short and hated feeling like there were things going on she couldn't see. As she dug out her Social Studies notebook (which was almost full, even though it was only February and seventh grade still had four months to go), Mr. Melville was already writing today's lesson in big, sloppy, red capital letters across the board.\n\nYesterday morning Paul Revere had charged through the night to warn his countrymen about the British advance. Today, according to what Mr. Melville was scrawling on the dry erase board, someone named Israel Putnam would be leading the ragtag colonial forces in the Battle of Bunker Hill. Bethesda was a smart girl with a secret sense of herself as exceptional, and she got a certain flush of pleasure from stories of important people and the important things they had done. She waited impatiently, pencil poised above her spiral notebook, one sneakered foot squeaking against the leg of her chair.\n\nMr. Melville finished writing and stood at the front of the room, arms crossed, watching unsmilingly as Braxton Lashey rushed in thirty seconds after the second bell.\n\n\"Ah! Mr. Lashey! \" Mr. Melville exclaimed haughtily.\n\n\"You have decided to favor us with your company! What a pleasant surprise! \"\n\nMr. Melville was a large man of late middle age, with a wild mane of thick white hair, a thick white beard, and thick white eyebrows that were forever arching upward to express sarcasm, mock bewilderment, or scorn. The Eyebrows of Cruelty, as they were known to all at Mary Todd Lincoln Middle School, weren't the only remarkable thing about Mr. Melville. It was also well known that he never spoke to other teachers and spent the lunch period alone at his desk, eating tuna salad and listening to jazz music. A third famous fact was that every semester he gave one huge test that determined 33.33 percent of your grade\u2014and he never announced when the test would be until the night before. He called it the Floating Midterm, and when students complained, as they often did, he would say, \"Whatever is the problem?\" with an expression of exaggerated innocence. \"If you're paying attention in class, why would you need to study at all?\"\n\nMr. Melville wasn't the most popular teacher at Mary Todd Lincoln Middle School, either.\n\nBraxton Lashey fumbled his way to his seat. \"Please, Mr. Lashey,\" said Mr. Melville, his tone thick with sarcasm, his eyebrows dancing wickedly. \"Do take your time.\"\n\nWhen at last poor Braxton was settled, Mr. Melville began. \"Before we are introduced to Generals Putnam and Howe, and discover that the Battle of Bunker Hill was fought on a different hill entirely... I have for you a Special Project.\"\n\nBethesda Fielding grinned and flipped to a fresh page in her Social Studies notebook as reaction to Mr. Melville's announcement burbled through the classroom. Chester Hu poked Victor Glebe in the arm and made a thumbs-up; Shelly Schwartz smiled brightly at Violet Kelp, who smiled brightly back; Rory Daas muttered, \"Oh, sweet,\" under his breath; Pamela Preston bounced giddily in her seat; Natasha Belinsky clapped three times and said, \"Yay! \" Braxton Lashey, who had been digging through his backpack, pretending to search for a pen while he waited for his blush to fade, looked up and smiled.\n\nSpecial Projects were another famous fact about Mr. Melville, and the only one that wasn't something bad. Even kids who hated school (like Chester Hu) or were generally terrible at it (like Natasha Belinsky) got excited about Mr. Melville's Special Projects. The only kids who _didn't_ were those who were totally spaced out\u2014kids like Tenny Boyer, who always sat in the back row, doodling guitars on his jeans with a highlighter pen.\n\nSpecial Projects were totally random assignments that had nothing whatsoever to do with the approved Social Studies syllabus. They were invented by Mr. Melville personally, in accordance with no curricular requirement or Board of Education guidance. Special Projects were weird, cool, and interesting. Best of all, Mr. Melville suspended regular homework while a Special Project was under way.\n\nEvery year parents grumbled about the projects (which took valuable time away from preparing for all the federally mandated standardized tests), and wondered why Mary Todd Lincoln's principal hadn't put a stop to them. The truth was that Principal Van Vreeland, like everyone else, was frightened of Mr. Melville and talked to him as little as possible.\n\nThe last Special Project, back in December, had been on family trees, which most students thoroughly enjoyed\u2014especially lucky Pamela Preston, who discovered that her great-great-great-great-uncle was the person who shot Jesse James. There had even been a picture of her in the newspaper, beaming, posed next to a scowling Mr. Melville.\n\nNow, beneath BUNKER HILL, Mr. Melville slowly wrote three words in thick blue marker: THE GREAT UNKNOWN.\n\nBethesda Fielding carefully copied down this intriguing phrase, her sneaker squeaking more insistently, as Mr. Melville explained.\n\n\"Life is a mystery,\" he said slowly, heavily enunciating every word. \"An endless dance of secrets and ambiguity. The things you _know_ and the things that you _think_ you know are but tiny pebbles when set against the towering mountain of that which you _do not_ know, and which you can never _hope_ to know. My question for you, intrepid youth, is this: Do we cower in terror before the great unknown? Do we hide our heads? Are we mice? Or are we human beings?\"\n\nPamela Preston's hand shot up. \"Human beings.\"\n\n\"That was a rhetorical question, Ms. Preston, though your enthusiasm is appreciated,\" Mr. Melville replied wearily. \"Today's Special Project is simple. Pluck out a loose thread from the vast tapestry of your existence, and follow it where it leads. Peer into the bottomless chasm of the great unknown, reach out for the hand of truth, and grab it! In summary, find a mystery, and _solve_ it! \"\n\n\"Can I go to the bathroom? \" asked Chester Hu.\n\n\"No,\" snapped Mr. Melville, giving Chester a baleful glare before he concluded. \"By Monday! Seven hundred fifty words! Using primary sources! Yes? Good?\"\n\n\"I don't get it,\" said Natasha Belinsky.\n\n\"I am terribly sorry, Ms. Belinsky,\" said Mr. Melville, looking not at all sorry. \"But we must press on.\" And with that, Mr. Melville turned back to the board, uncapped his red dry-erase marker, and returned his class to Bunker Hill.\n\nMeanwhile, at the end of Hallway C, in the Band and Chorus room, Ms. Finkleman was leading her first-period sixth graders through an off-key assault upon John Philip Sousa's \"King Cotton\"\u2014wholly unaware of Mr. Melville's Special Project and the particular mystery Bethesda Fielding already had it in her head to solve.\n\n# [2\n\nA WALKING, TALKING MYSTERY](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c02)\n\n_At lunch,_ Bethesda Fielding sat quietly at one end of a long table, sipping a strawberry melon Snapple, while her fellow seventh graders loudly considered various approaches to the Special Project.\n\nShelly Schwartz and her twin sister, Suzie, were considering why hot dogs are sold in packages of twelve, but hot-dog buns are sold in packages of eight. Victor Glebe was going to solve the mystery of whether Mr. Happy, the diving dolphin at Stinson Aquarium, was really happy, or just faking, in hopes of earning his freedom. \"Oh my god,\" said Chester Hu to Victor Glebe. \"I love that idea! That's such a good idea! Can we work together?\" Hayley Eisenstein thought she might solve the mystery of why her mother no longer spoke to her uncle Allen. Braxton Lashey said he didn't know what he was going to do, didn't have any ideas, and he had left his lunch at home, so could anyone loan him a couple bucks?\n\nTodd Spolin, who was eating a taco, said he was going to solve the mystery of what they put in the tacos.\n\n\"What about you, Bethesda?\" asked Pamela Preston, who, ever since the whole great-uncle-shot-Jesse-James thing, sort of considered herself the queen of Special Projects. \"What are you thinking?\"\n\n\"Hmm? \" said Bethesda.\n\n\"What are you going to do your Special Project on?\"\n\n\"Oh. Well,\" Bethesda answered, \"I think I'm going to do Ms. Finkleman.\"\n\nPamela narrowed her eyes and tilted her head a little. \"You're going to do _what?\"_\n\n\"Ms. Finkleman,\" said Bethesda, taking a sip of her Snapple. \"That's probably what I'm going to do. I'm almost positive.\"\n\nEveryone looked at everyone else, and then at Bethesda, and there was a long silence; from the next table over they heard Tenny Boyer singing quietly to himself, oblivious as usual, bobbing his head to his iPod and reading a magazine. Then there was a loud crunching sound as Todd Spolin took an enormous bite of taco.\n\nBethesda smiled impishly around her straw and casually tucked a stray lock of her reddish tannish hair behind her ear. She had decided on her Special Project idea almost as soon as Mr. Melville had explained the assignment, and she was pretty pleased with it. It seemed like no one at lunch really got what she was talking about\u2014and Bethesda was pretty pleased with that, too.\n\nPamela Preston broke the silence, addressing Bethesda as if she were telling a kindergartner not to eat paste. \"Um, Bethesda? What exactly are you talking about? Ms. Finkleman is just our boring music teacher.\"\n\n\"Or _is she?\"_ answered Bethesda dramatically, her smile widening, her foot squeaking animatedly against the leg of the cafeteria table.\n\n\"I'm sorry, Bethesda, but I totally don't get it,\" said Pamela.\n\n\"Me neither,\" agreed Todd Spolin, although it sounded more like \"nee never,\" since he had a lot of taco in his mouth.\n\n\"It's simple, really,\" Bethesda said patiently. She took off her glasses and cleaned a speck of Snapple from her shirt as she spoke, drawing out her words to extend her time in the spotlight. \"Okay. So. Mr. Melville's assignment was for us to find a mystery in our life and solve it.\"\n\n\"Wait\u2014it was? \" said Natasha Belinsky, furiously paging through her notebook.\n\n\"Ms. Finkleman is a _total_ unknown quantity. Right? Think about all the other teachers. We know that Mr. Darlington is married and lives in that old yellow building on Hatchet Street. We know that Mrs. Howell has the cats with the dumb names. We know that Ms. Zmuda went here when she was a kid.\"\n\n\"We sure do,\" said Chester Hu, rolling his eyes. \"She never shuts up about it.\"\n\n\"We even know that Mr. Melville is married, and there are some pictures of little kids on his desk. I bet they're grandchildren.\"\n\n\"I bet they came with the picture frames,\" said Suzie Schwartz.\n\n\"But what about Ms. Finkleman?\" Bethesda continued. \"Is there a single famous fact about Ms. Finkleman? \"\n\nThere was another long silence, but Bethesda could tell it was less of a \"what is she _talking_ about?\" silence and more of a \"huh, that's interesting\" silence. Pamela still looked skeptical, but most of the others were starting to nod.\n\n\"You know, now that you mention it,\" said Shelly Schwartz thoughtfully, \"she's such a quiet lady. I wonder where she comes from.\"\n\n\"Exactly,\" said Bethesda.\n\n\"Yeah. And is she married?\" wondered Suzie. Everyone started to get into it.\n\n\"What about kids? Does she have kids?\" offered Hayley Eisenstein.\n\n\"Does she have any friends?\" said Braxton Lashey.\n\n\"What about pets? \" added the new girl, Marisol Pierce, shyly.\n\n\"Mmmhfm\u2014nn\u2014mmfffhm? \" said Todd Spolin.\n\n\"Exactly, exactly, exactly!\" Bethesda responded, waving a finger in the air. _\"That_ is what I'm going to find out!\"\n\n\"No offense, Bethesda,\" said Pamela, crossing her arms across her chest. \"But I don't think it's the greatest idea.\"\n\n\"I agree,\" said Natasha Belinsky, crossing her arms in exactly the same way. \"Who cares about Ms. Finkleman?\"\n\n\"I do!\" said Bethesda. \"And so should you guys.\"\n\nBethesda stood and addressed the other kids at the table as if she were making a big closing argument in a courtroom. \"This woman is a part of our lives! She's a part of our _community!_ We take music from her _every single day.\"_ (Which wasn't true, since music and art alternated, plus there were weekends and everything, but nobody interrupted. Bethesda was on a roll.) \"And yet we don't know the first thing about her! Ms. Finkleman is a walking, talking mystery, right in our midst, and I am going to solve her! I mean solve _it!_ I mean\u2014you know what I mean! \"\n\nAnd with that, Bethesda spun on her heel and exited the lunchroom.\n\nAnd then, a second later, came back. \"I forgot my Snapple.\"\n\nThen she spun on her heel and exited the lunchroom again.\n\n\"Well, whatever,\" said Pamela Preston, when Bethesda was gone. \"I am going to solve the mystery of where Jesse James is buried. I don't know if you guys heard, but it was my great-great-great-great-uncle who shot him.\"\n\n\"Yeah,\" Chester said. \"We heard.\"\n\n# [3 \nTRADITIONAL ENGLISH _FOLK BALLADS FROM TEl SIXTEENTH CENTURY_](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c03)\n\n_At that_ very moment, Principal Isabella Van Vreeland sat at the large mahogany desk that dominated her vast, thickly carpeted office, wearing a giant foam sombrero and halfheartedly eating an egg-salad sandwich. As she chewed, she stared at her computer screen, reading and rereading an email from Principal Winston Cohn of Grover Cleveland Middle School. Finally she scowled, put down her sandwich, and shouted. \"Jasper! Get in here!\"\n\nAssistant Principal Jasper Ferrars, a very thin and very tall man with close-cut black hair, rushed in with notebook and pen at the ready. \"Yes! Principal! Ma'am! Hi! What is it?\"\n\n\"Jasper, I\u2014Stop looking at me like that.\"\n\n\"I wasn't! I mean, I _was_ looking at you. Of course I was looking at you. But only in order to be attentive,\" Jasper answered rapidly. \"I wasn't, you know, _looking_ at you. How's your sandwich? Is it okay? Good sandwich?\"\n\n\"You are looking at me like I'm wearing a giant foam sombrero that says GO GROVER CLEVELAND on it.\"\n\n\"Yes. I was. I _may_ have been. I can't remember. But, as you know, the fact of the matter is... you _are_ wearing a giant foam sombrero that says GO GROVER CLEVELAND on it.\"\n\nPrincipal Van Vreeland leaped up from her desk. \"And whose fault is that? \"\n\n\"Um\u2014mine?\" stammered Jasper.\n\n\"No,\" snapped Principal Van Vreeland. \"But good guess. It is the fault of our girls' softball team, which was trounced by Grover Cleveland.\"\n\n\"Yes, ma'am.\"\n\n\"It is the fault of the fun little wager I made with Principal Cohn, requiring me to wear this preposterous headgear for the entire school day.\"\n\n\"Yes, ma'am.\"\n\nIn point of fact, under the terms of the wager Principal Van Vreeland was required not only to _wear_ the silly hat, but to photograph herself wearing it and send the photograph via email to Principal Cohn. And it was Principal Cohn's one-word, all-caps reply to that photograph (\"OL\u00c9!\") that Principal Van Vreeland had been reading over and over, causing her to lose her appetite for egg salad.\n\nThis was only the most recent in a string of similar humiliations. Every year Mary Todd Lincoln competed with Grover Cleveland in dozens of activities, from debate to chess to lacrosse, and every year they lost in all of them. But Principal Van Vreeland could not resist betting against Principal Cohn over and over, on every single competition. Such was her deeply held belief in the inherent superiority of Mary Todd Lincoln's assorted teams, squads, and societies. As a result, over the course of her tenure at Mary Todd Lincoln, Principal Van Vreeland had been obligated on various occasions to go to school in a fake handlebar mustache, in a bright red wig, and (after a punishing six-nothing loss in the boys' hockey semifinals) dressed as a penguin.\n\n\"Jasper,\" she said now, \"I have a question.\"\n\n\"Yes, ma'am?\"\n\n\"Are there any events left on the county calendar in which we compete against Grover Cleveland?\" The principal paused, and then added, \"Perhaps a _non_ -sporting event? \"\n\n\"Well, there is the Choral Corral, ma'am.\" \"Ah! Yes! The Corral!\"\n\nThe All-County Choral Corral was an annual musical competition. Every band and chorus teacher in the county selected one seventh-grade class to compete, and the classes could do any kind of musical presentation they wanted: marching bands, barbershop quartets, chamber quartets, anything. Principal Van Vreeland had never placed a bet on the Choral Corral before\u2014the Corral was...\n\n\"Perfect!\" shouted Principal Van Vreeland, jumping to her feet. \"Who's our music teacher again? The mousy little brown-haired lady? \"\n\n\"Ms. Finkleman, ma'am.\"\n\n\"Ah! Yes!\" Principal Van Vreeland was pacing with excitement, tapping her perfectly manicured forefinger against the bridge of her nose. \"And what kind of astonishing performance is Ms. Finkleman preparing to wow the judges and ensure our victory over Grover Cleveland this year? \"\n\n\"Traditional English folk ballads from the sixteenth century,\" Jasper said.\n\nPrincipal Van Vreeland stopped and stared at him. \"I'm sorry. Could you repeat that? \"\n\n\"Yes, ma'am,\" Jasper replied. \"Traditional English folk ballads from the sixteenth century. They're, um... they're...\"\n\nJasper was going to say that they were quite lovely, but there was something in Principal Van Vreeland's facial expression that made him think that if he said that, she would throw her stapler at him. She had done so once before, when he suggested that her plan for a giant trophy case at the school entrance might be rejected by the county appropriations committee, since Mary Todd Lincoln never won any trophies.\n\nInstead, Principal Van Vreeland sat down, took off her sombrero, and lowered her head down onto her desk. \"You know what I should do, Jasper?\" She sighed. \"I should just give up. I should go live on a farm and raise sheep and goats.\"\n\nJasper's eyes lit up. \"Ooh! Can I have your desk?\"\n\n\"Get out, Jasper.\"\n\n\"Yes, ma'am.\"\n\nJasper shut the door gingerly behind him as Principal Van Vreeland stared at Principal Cohn's email, still flashing back at her from the screen.\n\n\"OL\u00c9!\" said the email.\n\nWhat the devil was she going to do?\n\n# [4\n\nSPDSTAMF](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c04)\n\n_There_ is no sound in the world quite like that of a middle school emptying of its student body on a Friday afternoon. First there is the high, shrill clang of the seventh-period bell, followed immediately by a tremendous echoing _BANG!_ as the classroom doors burst open like dozens of dams breaking at once. Then comes the rubbery squeak of a couple hundred pairs of sneakers all rushing over dirty linoleum, followed by and interspersing with the metallic clatter of a couple hundred lockers hurriedly being thrown open. Loudest of all is the din of the children themselves: the boys, ramming into the walls as they try to get around one another in a great ungainly race for the doors; the girls, squealing giddily and shrieking out plans to meet later at the mall, or Shira's house, or Sheila's house, but is it Sheila's mom's house or Sheila's dad's house? And on and on, the voices getting louder and louder, reaching higher and higher pitches of excitement, until the last kid flies out and the big double doors shut at last. Then silence.\n\nIt was in that silence, after all her fellow students had fled, that Bethesda Fielding stood at her locker, carefully labeling a fresh blue spiral notebook.\n\nTHE SPECIAL PROJECT TO DISCOVER THE SECRET TRUTH ABOUT MS. FINKLEMAN, Bethesda wrote, in her careful all-caps handwriting, which was never as neat as she wanted it to be. And then, underneath it, SPDSTAMF. Bethesda loved to give everything titles or elaborate nicknames. Her favorite stuffed animal, for example, which sat proudly in the corner of her room in an old rocking chair, was named Teddy Who Replaced the One Whose Head Fell Off in the Washing Machine, or Teddy WROWHFOWM, or just Ted-Wo for short.\n\nOn page one of the SPDSTAMF, she wrote PART ONE: TEACHERS. Her plan was to make a thorough survey of the Mary Todd Lincoln Middle School faculty, interrogating each of Ms. Finkleman's colleagues to find out what they knew. She paused before her locker mirror to compose herself into a serious no-nonsense detective: hair pulled back, eyes narrowed into piercing slits, lips pursed and businesslike.\n\nBethesda Fielding, Mystery Solver! Hmm, she thought. The pink butterfly barrette kind of ruins it.\n\nShe tossed the barrette in her locker and set off down Hallway B.\n\n\"Goodness gracious! Look who's come to call! \"\n\nMs. Aarndini was a cheerful, industrious woman with a bob haircut and a collection of brightly colored cardigan sweaters. As Bethesda came in, she was busily readying her Home Economics room for the weekend, carefully tucking each Singer sewing machine under its regulation sewing-machine cozy.\n\n\"I'd offer you a snack,\" piped Ms. Aarndini, \"but all I've got is bread the sixth graders made, and, well, you don't want bread a sixth grader made. Are you having trouble seeing, honey? \"\n\nBethesda relaxed her Mystery Solver squint a little and said, \"Ms. Aarndini, I need information.\"\n\n\"Oh? Is it about the beanbags?\" (Ms. Aarndini's seventh graders were making beanbags that week.) \"Be sure to use uncooked beans, m'dear. _Uncooked._ I can't stress that enough.\"\n\n\"Noted,\" said Bethesda. \"But I actually need to know about Ms. Finkleman.\"\n\n\"The music teacher? What do you need to know about _her?\"_\n\n\"To be honest? Anything, really. Her friends, her family, her life. Anything you know.\"\n\n\"Well, gee, hon,\" said Ms. Aarndini, and paused at the closet with a small basket full of pincushions. \"I know she's the music teacher.\"\n\nBethesda smiled. \"All right, then.\"\n\n\"Sorry not to be more help. But I'm pretty new around here. Other folks will know more.\"\n\nBethesda called, \"Thanks! \" over her shoulder, checked Ms. Aarndini off her list, and moved swiftly down the hall.\n\nBut Bethesda soon discovered that Ms. Aarndini was wrong: Other folks _didn't_ know more. In fact, they knew nothing. All that she learned, after an hour weaving her way up and down the halls, from the arts annex to the library, was that there's a lot of ways to say \"Nothing.\"\n\n\"Ms. Finkleman? Nope. Not a thing,\" said Ms. Beaumont.\n\n\"Zilch,\" said Mr. Darlington.\n\n\"Nada,\" said Mrs. Farouk.\n\n\"Zip,\" said Mr. Lavasinda.\n\n\"Not a jot,\" said Ms. Pinn-Darvish. \"Not a tittle.\"\n\n\"Never heard of her,\" grumbled Mr. Vasouvian, stuffing dodgeballs into a giant sack.\n\n\"Yo no s\u00e9 nada,\" said Senorita Tutwiler with an apologetic shrug.\n\nEven gentle old Mrs. Howell, who had been at the school forever and generally knew everything about everyone, was no help. She was, however, kind enough to offer Bethesda a brownie, which Bethesda nibbled as she headed for the last stop on her list. SPDSTAMF, she reflected, might be the _tiniest_ bit harder than she'd anticipated.\n\nMs. Zmuda taught Pre-algebra and coached the math team, on which Bethesda was a star. Bethesda found her grading papers with her feet up on her desk, her chair tilted back at a relaxed angle.\n\n\"Bethesda!\" Ms. Zmuda said, startled, as the front legs of her chair returned to the floor with a loud clunk. \"Do we have math practice today? \" Ms. Zmuda threw open a desk drawer, digging frantically for her graphing calculator and flash cards. \"Give me one second, will ya?\"\n\n\"It's not that,\" said Bethesda. \"I'm working on a Special Project.\"\n\n\"Ah! Melville, eh? \" laughed Ms. Zmuda, and she did a quick little Melville impression, her eyebrows wiggling with comic menace.\n\n\"Exactly. So, anyway, I'm looking for some information. But to tell you the truth, I've already asked every other teacher and no one knew much, so I sort of doubt you'll be able to help either.\"\n\n\"Well, gee whiz, Bethesda. Thanks for the vote of confidence.\"\n\n\"Ms. Finkleman. Band and Chorus,\" said Bethesda quickly, not even bothering to open her spiral notebook. \"Know anything about her? \"\n\n\"Huh,\" replied Ms. Zmuda. \"Okay, well, I guess you were right this time. I can't say I know much about Ms. Finkleman. Nice enough, but she kind of keeps herself to herself, know what I'm saying?\"\n\n\"That's what I figured.\" Bethesda sighed, heading for the door. \"Have a great weekend, Ms. Zmuda.\"\n\n\"I mean, I'm sure you've already heard about the tattoo.\"\n\nBethesda stopped walking.\n\n# [5\n\n _THE GOLDBERG VARIATIONS_](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c05)\n\n_Bethesda paused_ at the door to the Band and Chorus room and looked up and down Hallway C to make sure the coast was clear. She was 99 percent sure that Ms. Finkleman would already have left for the weekend, and that no one else would be around\u2014it was now 4:27, and there was never _anyone_ left at school, kids or teachers, after four o'clock on a Friday afternoon. But checking to make sure the coast was clear seemed like a nice, solid Mystery Solver kind of thing to do.\n\nBethesda felt just the slightest bit ooky about rooting around in a teacher's desk, but there was no helping it. She needed this Special Project to be a big ridiculous slice of awesomeness with a cherry on top (as her dad would say), especially after her display of bravado in the lunchroom this afternoon. She took a breath and cracked the door....\n\nAnd heard music. Soft, lovely music. Piano.\n\n_Argle bargle,_ Bethesda thought. _The Piano Kid._\n\nBethesda pushed the door the rest of the way open and there he was, hunched over the piano bench, his back to Bethesda, tinkling away.\n\nKevin McKelvey was a tall, thin boy with green eyes and a splash of freckles across the bridge of his nose. Bethesda didn't know him that well. In class and at lunch and stuff he kept pretty quiet, and otherwise nobody saw much of him. He was always busy doing what he was doing right now: Practicing the piano.\n\nKevin's father was the concert pianist Walter \"Walt\" McKelvey, the only real, live celebrity in the Mary Todd Lincoln parent community. The second famous fact about Kevin was that he practiced the piano four hours a day, and was therefore known as the Piano Kid\u2014although some people called him the Suit Kid, because he wore a navy blue blazer and tie to school every day. Once an obnoxious substitute teacher named Mr. Beshelov, who thought he was funny, had kidded Kevin about it. He asked Kevin if he had a date after school, and Kevin mumbled no, but Mr. Beshelov kept needling him until finally Kevin stood up and gave this whole little speech about how his father said you had to have respect for the instrument, which meant having respect for yourself, and he would appreciate very much not being teased about it by a so-called grown-up.\n\nHow could Bethesda look through Ms. Finkleman's desk with the Piano Kid hanging around? She cleared her throat. \"Hey, Kevin.\"\n\nThe Piano Kid stopped playing and twisted around on the bench. \"Oh, hello, Bethesda. What are you doing here? \"\n\n\"I, um, I just need to...\" Bethesda suddenly figured out how she could make this happen. \"Kevin, what's that you're playing? \"\n\n\"Oh, um, it's a piano.\"\n\n\"I know. I meant, what song are you playing? \"\n\n\"Right. Duh.\" Kevin blushed bright red. \"It's Bach. The Goldberg Variations.\"\n\n\"I really like it! \" said Bethesda, twisting a tannish reddish lock with her forefinger. \"I liked the part that you were doing just then.\"\n\n\"This part?\"\n\nKevin turned back to the piano and started to plunk out the notes again.\n\n\"Yeah, that part,\" she said encouragingly. \"It's totally clamfoodle.\"\n\n\"It's totally what?\"\n\n\"Clamfoodle. Meaning, just, like, really good. My dad makes up words sometimes,\" she added, strolling nonchalantly toward Ms. Finkleman's desk. \"He's a total goof. Anyway, keep playing. I love it.\"\n\nKevin kept playing, totally focused on the Goldberg Variations, as Bethesda sat down at Ms. Finkleman's desk.\n\nUnfortunately, it wasn't much help.\n\nThere were no pictures of family members (like Mr. Melville had on his desk) or pets (like Mrs. Howell had on hers); no coffee mug with a jokey slogan about golf (like Mr. Carlsbad's). Just a pencil sharpener, a bowl of those little clementine oranges, and the teacher's edition of _Greensleeves and Other Traditional English Folk Ballads._\n\n_Yeesh,_ Bethesda thought.\n\nMs. Finkleman had been teaching at Mary Todd Lincoln for eight years. Was it really possible that she had sat at this desk for all that time and not done anything to make it personal? There was no hint of the individual who sat here\u2014just a perfectly neat desk and a sad little bowl of fruit.\n\nBethesda slid open the top drawer, and it banged against her knee. \"Ow! \" she hollered, and Kevin stopped playing. She quickly straightened up, laced her hands in front of her, and leaned her chin on them as if lost in concentration. \"Wow,\" Bethesda murmured. \"That part was really great.\"\n\n\"Oh, thanks,\" Kevin said. \"Um, what are you doing?\"\n\n\"Just listening.\" Bethesda smiled. \"Just enjoying. Is there more? \"\n\n\"What? Oh, sure. Yeah. That was just the first three variations, sort of. There are thirty of them.\"\n\n\"Perfect!\" said Bethesda. \"I mean, I'd love to hear the rest. If you don't mind.\"\n\nKevin's fingers returned to the keys, and Bethesda returned to her investigation. The top drawer was no help either: a pile of ungraded sixth-grade music-theory quizzes, a stack of neatly folded handkerchiefs. _Yawn._\n\nThen Bethesda opened the bottom drawer, and stopped cold.\n\n\"Huh,\" murmured Bethesda quietly\u2014too quietly for Kevin to hear over the gentle strains of the Goldberg Variations. She leaned in closer and said it again. \"Huh.\"\n\nHer mind racing, Bethesda flipped open her SPDSTAMF notebook and copied down this intriguing new piece of evidence, checking and double-checking the strange jumble of letters to make sure that she got the whole thing. Then she gently shut the drawer, stood up, and slipped out the door, leaving Kevin McKelvey to his Bach.\n\nShe was about to sprint down Hallway C when she paused, her hand still on the doorknob, the door not yet shut all the way. The music drifted out of the Band and Chorus room, and for the first time Bethesda really listened to what Kevin was playing.\n\n_Wow,_ she thought enviously. _He is so good. I wish I was that good at something._\n\n_Clamfoodle,_ Kevin thought meanwhile, as he sat at the piano, practicing, practicing, forever practicing. _Wow. I wish my dad was a total goof._\n\n# [6\n\nBETHESDA'S DAD](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c06)\n\n_On Saturday_ morning, Bethesda wolfed down a waffle and biked furiously back to school, standing up on the pedals and pumping her legs, her purple knit scarf whipping behind her in the late February wind. She banged on the front doors and told a scowling Janitor Steve that she had left her lunch bag in her locker. Bethesda actually _had_ left her lunch bag in her locker so she wouldn't have to lie to Janitor Steve to get back into the school. Bethesda secretly admired the hardworking Janitor Steve, pushing his mop up and down the empty hallways long after everyone else had gone home, his big belly straining against the elastic waistband of his sweatpants. He wasn't particularly friendly, but he clearly believed in a job done right.\n\nNow that she thought of it, Bethesda wondered where Janitor Steve came from. _Hmm. That might makea good Special Project._\n\n_Bethesda!_ she chastised herself, as she turned down Hallway D toward the school library. _Focus!_\n\nFor the next hour and a half, her face firmly set in Mystery Solver mode, Bethesda worked her way through stacks of old yearbooks and archived school newspapers, looking for anything at all about Ms. Finkleman. What she found was... nothing. Not a jot, as Ms. Pinn-Darvish would say. Not a tittle. When she turned up in the paper at all, Ida Finkleman appeared only in classroom snapshots, baton in hand, performing her official school duties. There were no candid yearbook pics of, say, Ms. Finkleman and her three adorable kids on Family Day. There were no quotes from her in the _Gazetteer_ comparing life at Mary Todd Lincoln to another school she had once worked at, long ago, back in Boise or Sacramento or Alberta.\n\nBy noon Bethesda was across town, at the Wilkersholm Memorial Public Library, where she scoured the archives of the local newspaper\u2014week by week, day by day, month by month\u2014in search of any mention of Ida Finkleman. Again, nothing. Eight years of town history, eight years of Laundromat openings, shopping-mall closings, Fourth of July parades, zoo escapes and recapturings, and no Ms. Finkleman in sight. Hmm.\n\nAt last, Bethesda turned to the Internet (\"the first refuge of the lazy,\" as Mr. Melville sneeringly called it), where supposedly a person could find any and all information in the entire universe. And what did she find? Nothing.\n\n_Your search\u2014\"IDA FINKLEMAN\"\u2014did not match any results._\n\nAt four o'clock on Saturday afternoon, Bethesda blinked in the bright afternoon sun of the Wilkersholm Memorial Public Library parking lot, tugged back on her purple scarf, and wondered what to do next.\n\n\"Bethesda! Hi!\"\n\n_Oh, perfect,_ Bethesda thought. \"Hey, Pamela.\"\n\nPamela Preston, wearing an elaborate pink winter hat and high-fashion snow boots, waved merrily as she turned her bike into the parking lot and pulled up next to Bethesda. \"Working on Melville, I bet,\" she chirped.\n\n\"Me, too!\"\n\nBethesda muttered, \"Yeah,\" and tried to muster a smile. She and Pamela had been close from the ages of seven to nine, when they lived near each other and were both stars of the L'il Otters swim team. They had drifted apart, however, for all the reasons that ten-year-old girls do: Pamela's family moved to a different, bigger house, out of biking distance from Bethesda's; Pamela had started hanging out a lot with Natasha Belinsky and Todd Spolin, neither of whom Bethesda was too crazy about; and once, during their last season together on the Otters, Suzie told Bethesda that Todd said that Pamela said the backstroke (Bethesda's specialty) wasn't really swimming\u2014\"it was more, like, impressive floating.\"\n\nAnyway, since they had gotten to Mary Todd Lincoln, Bethesda and Pamela didn't hang out so much. And Pamela was the last person Bethesda felt like running into, just as she realized the SPDSTAMF was maybe going to be harder than she'd imagined.\n\n\"So? How's it going with the _fascinating_ Ms. Finkleman? \" Pamela replied, her eyes twinkling ever so slightly.\n\n\"Oh, you know,\" Bethesda replied. \"Fine, I guess.\"\n\n\"Oh, great!\" Pamela said warmly, as if Bethesda had said something totally different. \"Well, _my_ Special Project is going really well, too. Really, _really_ well.\" Talking very rapidly, and with a lot more hand gestures than Bethesda thought necessary, Pamela explained that she had dropped the Jesse James theme this time, and instead was studying the mystery of those weird piles of small rocks that ringed the school athletic field.\n\n\"I mean, have you noticed those piles? \"\n\n\"Uh, yeah, I guess so,\" Bethesda said, shading her eyes against the bright white sun and Pamela's enthusiastic smile.\n\n\"Well. I'm still piecing together the evidence and all, but you know what I think? \" Pamela lowered her voice and leaned forward over her handlebars, giving Bethesda a rich noseful of her lilac perfume. \"I think it's _aliens.\"_\n\n\"Really?\" Despite herself, Bethesda was intrigued. \"Aliens?\"\n\n\"Yes! Not the aliens themselves, just, like, _signs_ of them. They're preparing to land on our athletic field.\"\n\n\"Wow.\" Bethesda smiled weakly. \"Aliens. Are you here to check the newspaper archives? \"\n\n\"What? No, I don't need to. I've got it all pieced together. I'm just on the way to the art store to get some pink poster board. Won't that be cute?\"\n\nYeah. Cute. As she biked home, Bethesda's mind raced with anxiety. The clock was counting down to Monday morning, when Special Projects were due, and Pamela Preston had aliens from outer space about to land on the Mary Todd Lincoln athletic field. Bethesda, on the other hand, had (drum roll, please!) the world's most boring music teacher! _Erf!_\n\nBethesda's purple scarf caught in her rear wheel; she braked too hard, jerked the bike to the right, and slammed into the red-and-white striped barber pole outside Sully's Unisex Salon.\n\n\"Argle bargle,\" Bethesda cried as she struggled to her feet and picked little bits of deicing salt out of her palms. Argle bargle was another favorite phrase of Bethesda's father, for expressing intense emotional frustration or physical pain. When you were experiencing both, you said it twice. \"Argle bargle!\"\n\nAfter dinner that night, Bethesda sat at the kitchen table, a bottle of Snapple open in front of her, considering the meager data she'd collected thus far. There was the intriguing information about the tattoo. That was good. There was the intriguing clue from Ms. Finkleman's desk drawer. That was also good. And there was\u2014what else? The bowl of clementine oranges? No help there.\n\nBethesda sighed and decided her best bet was to focus on the clue from the desk. The original, written on a scrap of yellowing copy paper, was taped to the bottom of Ms. Finkleman's bottom drawer; but Bethesda had carefully copied the whole thing onto page three of her SPDSTAMF spiral notebook.\n\nIt was a secret code. Obviously. But what could it mean?\n\nIt was 8:45 p.m. Special Projects were due first thing Monday morning. Thirty-six hours of mystery-solving time left.\n\nAGY EGY? T M R? Maybe these were the names of Ms. Finkleman's best friends. Aggy Eggy? Tamara?\n\nP... P... Y...\n\nPROJ!\n\nWas it a list of places that Ms. Finkleman had traveled? Or lived? Was there a Projistan? Bethesda, who was pretty good at geography, didn't think so.\n\nCome on, Ms. Finkleman, she thought. Who are you? As Bethesda sat staring helplessly at the code, remembering her arrogant performance in the lunchroom on Friday and generally deciding the situation couldn't get much worse, she heard a chipper voice behind her.\n\n\"All right!\" said Bethesda's father, settling down next to her at the kitchen table with a gigantic bowl of ice cream. \"What are we working on?\"\n\nBethesda's father loved to help. It was kind of a problem.\n\n\"I have a big Social Studies project, dad. And it's really hard, so\u2014\"\n\n\"Ooh! The notorious Mr. Melville!\" said Bethesda's father. \"Social Studies! Good thing I'm so social and\/or studious! So? Lay it on me! What's the assignment?\"\n\nBethesda sighed. \"Well\u2014\"\n\n\"Hey, you want some ice cream? It's scrombifulous.\" (Made-up word.) \"Pecan raisin pretzel.\"\n\n\"No thanks, Dad. I have to focus.\"\n\n\"Can't focus with low blood sugar, Dr. Octagon,\" he said, using one of his zillion entirely nonsensical nicknames for her. He waggled the spoon at Bethesda and gave the ice cream a creaky, imploring voice. \"Eeeeat me. Pleeease eeeeeat me....\"\n\nBethesda gave in and took the spoon, giving her father an opportunity to grab her spiral notebook. He held it up right in front of his eyes and squinted. \"Let's see what we have here! What on god's green earth is a Finkleman?\"\n\n\"It's not a _what,_ it's a _who,_ and that's what I'm trying to figure out. Ida Finkleman is my Music Fundamentals teacher,\" explained Bethesda, reclaiming her notebook and wiping a smudge of chocolate syrup off the lower right-hand corner. \"Look, Dad. No offense, but I don't really think there's much you can do to help on this one.\"\n\n\"That's preposterous! \" her father protested. \"First of all, I'm a good helper! Secondly, I know lots of stuff! Thirdly\u2014did I say I was a good helper already? \"\n\n\"Yeah, Dad.\"\n\n\"All right, then. Gimme a crack at it. What else is an old man to do? \"\n\nBethesda's father started pretend crying, blowing his nose vigorously in his napkin. Bethesda knew from many years of experience there wasn't anything she could say that would make him back off. So she pushed the spiral notebook back across the table. He beamed and bent over it intently.\n\n\"Hmm,\" he said softly, peering at the mystifying scramble of letters that Bethesda had copied from Ms. Finkleman's desk drawer.\n\n\"Hmm, what?\" asked Bethesda wearily.\n\nBethesda's dad didn't answer. He held up one chocolate-stained finger for quiet and studied the spiral notebook in silence for a long moment. Then he snapped his fingers, looked back up at Bethesda, and said, \"I've got it!\"\n\n\"Really? What is it?\"\n\n\"It's a code.\"\n\nBethesda rolled her eyes. \"Thanks, Dad, but I got that far already.\"\n\nHe shrugged and licked chocolate off his fingers. \"Oh, well.\"\n\n\"What I'm trying to figure out is what the code _means.\"_\n\n\"That I don't know. Although...\" \"Although what? \"\n\n\"It's going to sound ridiculous. But there's something kind of strangely familiar about those letters. Like I don't know what it means, but the meaning is somehow... calling to me.\"\n\nHe was right: It sounded ridiculous. And yet Bethesda's foot sprang to life, suddenly squeaking insistently against the table leg, like it was a bloodhound that had just picked up a scent.\n\n\"Calling to you? \" she asked, looking at her dad skeptically.\n\n\"Yeah. Calling to me. Like from another life. Or something.\" Bethesda's dad laughed at himself, embarrassed. \"Okay, so I guess I wasn't much use this time. That's what you get for\u2014\"\n\nSuddenly Bethesda shouted, \"Aha! \" and pounded on the table hard, hard enough to make the ice-cream spoon dance in its bowl. Bethesda's dad, startled, pushed back from the table. \"Honey?\"\n\n\"Come on!\" Bethesda ran upstairs, taking the steps two at a time. She was thinking about all those boring stories her dad had told her about his past, from before he met her mother. About growing up in Brooklyn, and about the navy\u2014and about his \"punk rock\" days. All the silly pictures, the torn jeans and the pierced ears and the spiky black hairdo. And what did he always say, whenever he finished some silly story about those years? \"But that was another time,\" he'd say. \"Another life.\"\n\nThey were in her parents' bedroom, in her dad's closet.\n\n\"What are we doing up here, cheese potato?\"\n\n\"Show me your record collection.\"\n\nA huge smile appeared on Bethesda's dad's face. \"Really? You want to see my records? I'm honored. Seriously. I always knew\u2014\"\n\n\"Hurry up!\"\n\n\"Okay, okay.\"\n\nThey dug out the stack of records, the musty black disks in their shiny paper sleeves, and Bethesda riffled through the stack, looking for... well, what exactly she was looking for, Bethesda wasn't totally sure.\n\nUntil suddenly, there it was.\n\n\"Oh, man,\" said Bethesda's dad from over her shoulder. \"I haven't heard _that_ in yonks.\"\n\nBethesda examined the record more carefully. It wasn't a full-sized LP. It was what she had heard her dad call a seven-inch, a small record with just one or two songs on each side. She read the faded yellow sticker, which was printed in a messy font designed to look like handwriting. On the top it said the name of the band: Little Miss Mystery and the Red Herrings. At the bottom, in tiny type, it said North Side Sounds. \"That's the record company,\" her dad explained. And in the middle, dead center, were the song titles. There was just one song on the A side, called \"Allergy Emergency.\" The B side was called \"Not So Complicated.\"\n\nBethesda's eyes opened wide. She grabbed her spiral notebook and reexamined the mysterious code she had cribbed from Ms. Finkleman's desk drawer. There it was, the seventh line: (e?) _NSCOMP._\n\nNSCOMP.\n\n\"Not So Complicated.\"\n\nAnd the first line: AGY EGY\n\n\"Allergy Emergency.\"\n\n\"Oh my god, Dad,\" Bethesda said, her eyes widening. \"This isn't a code! \" \"It's not?\" he said. \"It's a set list.\"\n\nWhich is how it came to be that at precisely 9:42, when Bethesda Fielding's mother got home from Mackenzie Magruder McHenry, the downtown law firm where she practiced appellate litigation (and often had to work on Saturdays, because she was, as Bethesda's dad liked to say, \"a big shot\"), she found her husband and daughter dancing around the living room to a band she hadn't heard, or so much as thought of, in fifteen years.\n\n\"Good lord,\" said Angela Fielding with a laugh. \"What's going on here?\"\n\n\"C'mon, gorgeousness,\" hollered her husband. \"Dance party! \"\n\nBethesda whirled past, clapping her hands and leaping to the beat. \"Guess what, Mom?\" she shouted. \"I solved a mystery! \"\n\n# [7\n\nMOZART'S PIANO CONCERTO NO. 20 IN D MINOR](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c07)\n\n_On that_ same night\u2014at that very same moment, in fact\u2014in a high-rise condominium on the other side of town, an unremarkable brown-haired woman was fixing herself a cup of Sleepytime tea. In fuzzy slippers she padded from the kitchen into the living room. The unremarkable brown-haired woman sank down in her armchair, put her feet up on the matching ottoman, and exhaled. Before she had her first sip of tea, Ida Finkleman slightly raised her mug of Sleepytime and murmured a single sentence. It was a sentence that would have struck most who knew this most unremarkable woman as rather remarkable indeed.\n\n\"The agouti,\" she intoned softly, \"lives on.\"\n\nAgoutis are tiny brownish rodents who populate the verdant jungles of South and Central America. Ida Finkleman had never seen one, but once she had read about them in _National Geographic_ and felt a strong tug of kinship with the little fellows. Agoutis, the article had said, were \"shy and nervous creatures.\" As you would be, too, Ms. Finkleman felt, if you lived where they did: in a habitat teeming with much larger creatures who were always trying to eat you. An agouti's only hope of survival, _National Geographic_ explained, was to be at all times as small and still and plain and dull as possible.\n\nWhich was exactly how Ms. Finkleman felt at school.\n\nTo her, Mary Todd Lincoln Middle School was a jungle. Boorish, clumsy sixth graders rooted blindly from class to class, bumping into the walls. Tall eighth-grade girls pranced through the hallways like gazelles, preening for one another and letting out gales of twittery laughter at jokes only they could understand. Crass seventh-grade boys gathered in packs in the cafeteria, flinging Tater Tots and flicking bits of meatloaf like gorillas scuffling with their dung.\n\nWhen she was teaching, it was even worse. Ms. Finkleman, timid and skittish, stood meekly at her music stand, speaking in her mousy voice about Beethoven or Copland, struggling to be heard above the din. It was a tough world for a little agouti, and Ms. Finkleman knew that she could be doing something else if she chose. Her parents in Sarasota told her so every time she called, handing the phone back and forth to each other.\n\n\"So? You're so miserable? So quit!\"\n\n\"So come down here, you're so miserable!\"\n\n\"It's beautiful down here!\"\n\n\"The trees!\"\n\n\"And the juice! Delicious!\"\n\n\"Come and work for your cousin Sherman!\"\n\n\"He runs a very successful funeral home!\"\n\n\"No, thank you,\" Ida always told them. And they would always ask why, and she would always say... _because._\n\nBecause as hard as it was to get through her days, at least they were days filled with music. Thinking music, talking music, and even, every once in a blue moon, managing to _teach_ music. Just yesterday, for example, she had played her sixth-period seventh graders a selection from _Peter and the Wolf,_ and Natasha Belinsky (of all people) had raised her hand suddenly and said, \"Oh, wait! So it's like the music is the characters talking! Except they're not talking! They're _being_ music!\"\n\nMs. Finkleman was so surprised by Natasha's flash of insight that she was momentarily struck dumb. Then, when she was finally able to stammer out the words, \"Why, that's exactly right,\" _Natasha_ was so surprised she choked on her gum and had to go to the nurse.\n\nThese small, sporadic victories kept Ms. Finkleman going. On such meals did the little agouti keep from starving.\n\nAnd when she was at home, Ms. Finkleman could put on her slippers, fix a mug of Sleepytime tea, and leave the jungle behind. She turned on her stereo, closed her eyes, and lost herself in the bracing first movement of Mozart's Piano Concerto no. 20 in D Minor.\n\nHow soothing they were, her familiar pleasures\u2014how very _human._\n\n# [8\n\nTINNY BOYER](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c08)\n\n_All ((right,_ people, settle down!\" bellowed Mr. Melville, clapping his big hands together for quiet.\n\nIt was first period Monday morning, time for the presentation of Special Projects. Mr. Melville, being Mr. Melville, decided the running order at random as they went along, so no one knew when they might be called upon to present. If it worked like it was _supposed_ to, about half the class would present today, the rest tomorrow. But if it worked like it _usually_ worked, there would be enough stragglers, incompletes, and presentations that went over time that Special Projects would drag on at least through Thursday.\n\n\"Hmm,\" Mr. Melville muttered darkly, stroking his beard. \"Who shall be our first victim?\"\n\nBethesda leaned forward hopefully in her chair but did not cross her fingers. She had decided early in her middle school career that it was too dorky to cross your fingers in hopes of being called on. Instead she pictured a giant pair of fingers in her mind and mentally crossed them. Just as dorky, true, but at least no one could see it. Nervously, Bethesda undid and then redid her twin pigtails. Her Chuck Taylors, a new pair emblazoned with black-and-gold stars, squeaked rhythmically against the side of her chair.\n\nMr. Melville slowly scanned the classroom with his big shaggy head. _Squeak, squeak, squeak,_ went Bethesda's new sneakers. _Squeak, squeak, squeak._\n\n\"Let us begin with... Mr. Boyer.\"\n\nBethesda sighed and uncrossed the fingers in her mind as Mr. Melville settled his stern gaze on Tenny Boyer.\n\n\"All right, Tennyson,\" Mr. Melville said. \"Knock our socks off.\"\n\nThere was a long pause, as there was any time a teacher called on Tenny Boyer. Finally Tenny's voice, raspy and uncertain, came from the back of the room, and said what it always said.\n\n\"Huh?\"\n\nMr. Melville launched the Eyebrows of Cruelty upward in feigned surprise and then twisted his lips ironically, as if to say, \"I'm not really surprised, my arched eyebrows notwithstanding.\"\n\n\"Your Special Project, Mr. Boyer?\" Mr. Melville said. \"On the great unknown?\"\n\nLong pause.\n\n\"Huh?\"\n\nThe Eyebrows of Cruelty ascended even higher up Mr. Melville's big forehead, like two fuzzy mountain climbers.\n\n\"You have an assignment due today, Tennyson.\"\n\n\"I do?\"\n\n\"Indeed. Right now, in fact.\"\n\n\"Oh, man,\" Tenny managed. He was wearing blue jeans, a faded Pearl Jam T-shirt, and a blue-hooded sweatshirt, with the hood pulled up over his mess of dark, unkempt hair. \"I, uh...\" Tenny trailed off with an awkward half smile. \"Huh.\"\n\nMr. Melville sighed. \"Dare I infer from your expression of genial incomprehension that the assignment is not forthcoming? \"\n\nLong pause.\n\n\"Wait. What?\"\n\nBethesda glanced over at Suzie Schwartz, and they both smiled and shook their heads. Good ol' Tenny Boyer.\n\nThere were kids (like Bethesda) who always paid attention and always did the homework and crossed and uncrossed giant mental fingers. There were kids (like Suzie, or like Chester Hu) who sometimes paid attention, and sometimes played video games instead of studying, and sometimes did their homework on the bus, but usually at least _tried_ to do it. And then there was Tenny Boyer. The kid who _never_ did the homework. Who never raised his hand and never had an answer ready in case he was called on. Who had to go back to his locker at least once a day because he had brought the wrong notebook, or no notebook at all. Who, once, in Home Ec, had sewed his sleeve to a pair of pants\u2014on which occasion Ms. Aarndini had proclaimed Tenny \"the king of careless errors.\"\n\n\"Well, Tennyson,\" concluded Mr. Melville. \"I shall move forward, having failed once again in my quixotic effort to plant some small seed of knowledge in your mind.\"\n\nLong pause.\n\n\"Okay, man, sweet.\"\n\n\"Yes. Sweet,\" Mr. Melville said sternly. \"Now let us press on. Ms. Fielding? \"\n\nBethesda set up her easel and her record player at the front of the room and took a deep breath. When speaking in front of large groups, Bethesda had a tendency to talk very quickly so that all the words ran together. Her dad said that at such times she sounded like a motorboat:\n\n_\"Bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.\"_\n\n_You're not a motorboat,_ Bethesda told herself, in her most soothing interior voice. _You're a person. You're a person._\n\nShe looked up. Everyone was staring at her, waiting for her to begin. _Okay. Now talk._\n\n\"Our story begins in 1991,\" she said.\n\nBethesda told first-period Social Studies the story of Little Miss Mystery and the Red Herrings, just as she had pieced it together. She began with her father's random memories of seeing the band play live at a basement bar called Bar Tender when he was a college sophomore. Then she moved on to what she had learned from the archives of various music magazines, which she had spent Saturday night and half of Sunday poring over. The big national ones like _Spin_ and _Rolling Stone_ didn't have much on the Red Herrings, but then Bethesda had found a publication called _Maximum Rock 'n' Roll,_ which had led her to a little Chicago punk-rock magazine called _The Fabulist,_ which had been the gold mine.\n\nLittle Miss Mystery and the Red Herrings were an all-girl punk band formed by four friends in the early 1990s in a small town outside St. Louis called Webster Groves. They moved to Chicago and recorded a bunch of singles; they got pretty popular in clubs around the city but never hit it big; they broke up by the end of the decade.\n\nBethesda quoted for the class an article from _The Fabulist,_ written in 1998 by someone named Rob Armstrong. \"Ask anyone in their small but rabid fan base,\" it said. \"The Herrings' recent unexpected breakup leaves a hole in the alternative scene that will be hard to fill.\"\n\n\"Excellent use of primary sources,\" Mr. Melville said approvingly. \"Thanks.\"\n\n\"Now, what's the point?\"\n\nBethesda swallowed nervously, and thought, _Don't let Melville throw you. This project rules. You are not a motorboat._ Still, she decided to skip ahead to the fun part. \"Okay, so before I reveal the mystery I solved, why don't I play you a song?\" Bethesda gave a nod to Suzie Schwartz, her audio assistant, who dropped the needle on the record.\n\nAs soon as the record started to play, Tenny looked up.\n\nMost kids, if they had found out there was a major project due today that they had totally spaced on, would be sitting at their desks in a state of stomach-churning, leg-twitching panic, trying to figure out something easy but impressive they could pull off by tomorrow. Not Tenny Boyer. Starting as soon as Mr. Melville finished scolding him, and right up until the moment Bethesda Fielding started playing that record, he sat with his eyes half closed, absentmindedly drawing the cover of _Led Zeppelin IV_ on the bottom of his shoe.\n\nIt wasn't true, as Mr. Melville had mockingly suggested, that Tenny Boyer didn't know anything. Tenny knew, for example, the guitar solo from the Lynyrd Skynyrd song \"Gimme Three Steps\" note for note, from beginning to end. He knew all the lyrics to every Nirvana song, including unreleased tracks and B sides. He could tell you when Bob Dylan went electric, when David Lee Roth left Van Halen, and when the Beatles first came to America. He could tell you the names of all the members of the Go-Go's, who played which instrument, and who wrote which songs. He could tell you Elvis Costello's real name and why he changed it.\n\nUnfortunately, all of this information didn't leave a lot of brain space for, say, Social Studies. And all the many hours Tenny spent after school, alone in his basement, playing guitar, didn't leave a lot of time for homework. And so Tenny's always-terrible grades were getting worse with every passing semester; his father had lately begun grumbling that next year, when his fellow Mary Todd Lincolnites advanced to eighth grade, Tenny would be sent to the St. Francis Xavier Young Men's Education and Socialization Academy.\n\nSo Tenny tried to force himself to make an effort, to do the work, to stop making so many careless errors\u2014at least to pay attention every once in a while. But it was no use. Tenny's mind always drifted back to rock and roll. By the time Mr. Melville had let him off the hook and moved on to the next kid, Tenny was already drawing on his shoe, trying to remember the third verse of \"It's the End of the World as We Know It.\"\n\nBut then the music started.\n\nThat girl with the glasses, Bethesda or whatever her name was, was playing a record on a beat-up turntable. Tenny dropped his marker and sat up straight, eyes wide open, trying to figure out what song it was. What band, even. It was punk, definitely early nineties punk, but who was it?\n\nWhatever it was, it was _awesome._ The song was built on a thundering four-four beat, straight up and down, with a galloping, snare-rolling drum figure and a really sweet, slippery eighth-note bass line. And the vocal\u2014the vocal was insane! The lyrics were garbled and buried in the mix, further distorted by the record player's tinny old speakers. But it didn't matter _what_ this girl was singing. The _way_ she was singing it was out of control. The vocal was delirious, a series of mad whoops, passionate and atonal and intense.\n\nIs this Sleater-Kinney? Tenny thought, trying to place the singing voice. Sidemouse? L7 maybe? He wished he'd been paying attention.\n\nAnd then it got even better. There was this long, strangled cry\u2014\"Waaaaa!\"\u2014as the song leaped into a bridge section, which was accented by a wicked buzz-saw guitar part. The bridge came to a walloping crescendo, and the song ripped back into the chorus. Then the chorus repeated; then it modulated; then it modulated again, as the rest of the band started singing\u2014howling, really, Tenny thought _\u2014howling_ a punching, choppy countermelody against the lead vocal line.\n\nTenny turned to the kid sitting next to him, who happened to be lanky, bespectacled, ultraserious Victor Glebe. Tenny had never spoken a word to Victor through six years of elementary school and two years of middle school. \"Oh my god, dude,\" Tenny said to him now, \"this is _awesome.\"_\n\nVictor, who was carefully organizing his photographs of Mr. Happy, the diving dolphin at Stinson Aquarium, looked up with a furrowed brow. \"Yes,\" he said solemnly. \"Awesome.\"\n\nAt the front of the room, Bethesda stood bobbing her head nervously to the record. \"You can call it overrated, tell me everything has faded! \" sang Little Miss Mystery. \"But it's not so complicated! It's not so complicated! _Waaaaa!_ \"\n\n\"Well,\" said Mr. Melville when the three-minute song ended. \"That was horrible.\"\n\n\"That song, sir, is called 'Not So Complicated,'\" said Bethesda, ignoring his opinion, \"and it was recorded in 1994 by Little Miss Mystery and the Red Herrings. Here they are around that time.\" Suzie's sister, Shelly, acting as visual assistant, displayed a photograph from a Red Herrings profile in _The Fabulist,_ which Bethesda had taken to the 24\/7 Kinko's yesterday and blown up to poster size. \"Part of the band's deal was that no one ever knew Little Miss Mystery's true identity.\n\n\"But I...,\" Bethesda continued, dropping her voice into a dramatic register, _\"do_ know.\"\n\nOn a nod from Bethesda, Shelly revealed a second blown-up picture, this one of Ms. Finkleman from last year's yearbook.\n\nThe effect was immediate, and exactly as Bethesda had hoped. Mr. Melville's class exploded with excited chatter.\n\n\"That's crazy!\" shouted Todd Spolin.\n\nLisa Deckter gasped loudly and clapped her hand over her mouth.\n\n\"Whoa! \" hollered Chester Hu. \"Is that\u2014\"\n\n\"It is,\" said Haley Eisenstein. \"It totally is.\"\n\n\"Whoa!\" Chester hollered again.\n\nIn the magazine picture, Little Miss Mystery wore a battered black leather jacket and black leather boots; her nose was pierced and her hair was a mad tumble of black and red streaks. Ms. Finkleman, in the yearbook shot, wore glasses, a nondescript beige jacket, and had no piercings of any kind, not even earrings. But the face\u2014it was the same face, and Bethesda could tell that everyone in the room could see it: Ida Finkleman was Little Miss Mystery. Even Mr. Melville was nodding slowly, impressed, his mouth slightly open beneath his thick white mustache.\n\n\"Whoa! \" shouted Chester a third time.\n\n\"How did you figure this out? \" asked Violet Kelp.\n\nQuickly Bethesda explained about the scrap of paper with the mysterious code, and how (with a little help from her dad) she had figured out that the \"code\" was really a set list. Bethesda skipped over how she got ahold of the code in the first place and didn't make eye contact with Kevin McKelvey, who was sitting in the fourth row in his blue blazer.\n\n\"Oh, and there's one more piece of evidence,\" Bethesda went on. \"When I asked other teachers what they knew about Ms. Finkleman, no one knew much, except for Ms. Zmuda, who once sat next to her in Nurse Kelly's office, getting faculty flu shots. She saw that Ms. Finkleman has a tattoo on her arm. A tattoo of...\" (Bethesda ostentatiously flipped open her SPDSTAMF spiral notebook to read, though of course she knew the quote by heart.) \"'A kind of a strange-looking man with long hair and piercing eyes.'\"\n\nThen Bethesda put down the spiral notebook and read aloud again from _The Fabulist:_ \"The Red Herrings weren't afraid to wear their influences on their sleeves\u2014sometimes literally. Little Miss Mystery proudly sports a tattoo of Ozzy Osbourne on her right arm.\"\n\nShelly held aloft a picture of Ozzy Osbourne, who (Bethesda explained) was once the lead singer of a band called Black Sabbath. And he was definitely a strange-looking man, with long hair and piercing eyes. Bethesda crossed her arms across her chest and wrapped up in her best closing-argument voice. \"There you have it, my friends. Mystery... solved! \"\n\nThe classroom burst into applause. Bethesda's tough lawyer-lady face broke into a wide smile, which grew even wider when she looked over and saw that Mr. Melville, for once, was smiling, too.\n\nThen there came a voice from the back of the room. It was Tenny Boyer, who in no one's memory had ever volunteered a classroom comment, in Mr. Melville's class or in any class, ever.\n\n\"Play the record again!\"\n\n# [9\n\n _\"GREENSLEEVES\"_](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c09)\n\n_As soon_ as the bell rang, Ms. Finkleman knew something was wrong.\n\nSixth period was seventh-grade Music Fundamentals, and it usually took the students of seventh-grade Music Fundamentals at _least_ five minutes to get settled. Five minutes for the birds to stop their wild chattering, for the wildebeests to stop snorting and huffling about, for the orangutans to stop howling and hooting and hurling pencil erasers.\n\nToday, however, fifteen seconds after the bell, Ms. Finkleman looked out from behind her music stand and twenty-four pairs of eyes stared back. Twenty-four pairs of hands, folded in twenty-four laps. Twenty-four students, quiet, composed, and intent. If Ms. Finkleman didn't know better, she might even have said _respectful._ She had heard other teachers speak of respectful students before, but had always thought it was just a legend, like Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster. But now, here they were: a roomful of children waiting quietly for her to begin teaching.\n\nMs. Finkleman felt a sharp pang, which she recognized as her keen agouti instinct for impending danger. A little voice sounded insistently in her ear.\n\n_Something is wrong,_ said the voice. _Run!_\n\n\"Um... good afternoon,\" began Ms. Finkleman tentatively. \"We will, uh, we will start with song number four in your books. That's 'Greensleeves.'\"\n\nShe paused for the big burst of noise that always erupted when she asked her class to do anything. But not today. No one shouted. No one collapsed into unprompted gales of laughter. No one got up to sharpen a pencil. No one farted or sneezed or coughed a loud on-purpose cough. They flipped their songbooks open to song number four, looked up, and waited. Ms. Finkleman heard her heart beating in the eerie silence of the room.\n\nShe cleared her throat and started teaching.\n\n\"Okay. Now, 'Greensleeves' is probably the most well known of the folk songs we're presenting this spring at the Choral Corral. And it's, um, it's really quite beautiful. As I believe I mentioned Friday, it was written in the late 1500s. The authorship is uncertain, although\u2014\" \"Ms. Finkleman? \"\n\nShe looked up. It was Todd Spolin. Todd had long, stringy brown hair, and his face was perpetually squinty. He was the kind of kid who slouched way down low in his chair, snapping his gum, aggressively uninterested. Except for today. Today he was raising his hand, smiling pleasantly, and waiting to be called on.\n\nThe voice in Ms. Finkleman's head returned, with new urgency. _Run,_ it said. _Run like the wind!_\n\n\"Yes, Todd?\" she said.\n\n\"I just wanna make sure I'm getting what's going on with the words, here,\" Todd said, squinting at the sheet music open in his lap. \"It's all about how this guy is really into this girl, and they're hanging out and stuff? \"\n\n\"Yes, that's correct.\"\n\n\"But then at this end part it goes, 'Thou wouldst not love me.' Meaning, what? Like, she's not into it. Right?\"\n\n\"Why, yes, Todd. That's correct,\" said Ms. Finkleman again.\n\n\"Oh, man. It's so... emo.\"\n\nWhen Todd said that little word, _emo,_ there was a response from the students. It was a slight response, nearly imperceptible, but Ms. Finkleman felt it distinctly. Twenty-four children leaning slightly forward in their seats, twenty-four pairs of eyes widening just the slightest bit. Ms. Finkleman had the sudden uncomfortable sensation of being examined like a piece of meat in a case. She regarded Todd carefully for a moment before answering.\n\n\"Emo?\" she said finally. \"I'm afraid I'm not familiar with the term.\"\n\n\"You're not? \" Todd looked momentarily mystified, but then he smiled.\n\n\"Ohhhhhh. Sure you're not, Ms. Finkleman,\" Todd said with a devilish hyena's grin. _\"Sure_ you're not.\"\n\nThen\u2014it just got stranger and stranger\u2014he _winked_ at her.\n\nThe voice in Ms. Finkleman's head came back, fervently entreating her: _Go! Flee! Seek cover!_ In her mind's eye, an agouti zipped under a bush and hid, trembling, from a pair of circling hawks.\n\nBut Ms. Finkleman just tapped her baton three times on her music stand and signaled the class to begin.\n\nBy the time the children got to the end of the first refrain of \"Greensleeves,\" Ms. Finkleman was astonished all over again. Because they were doing something they never did, a behavior even more unusual than paying attention: They were _trying._\n\n\"I have been ready at your hand,\" they sang. \"To grant whatever you would crave.\"\n\nThey sat with their hands folded on laps, peering closely at their music, singing full voiced and energetically.\n\n\"I have both wagered life and land, your love and good will for to have.\"\n\nAs her class plowed forward, the wariness that had possessed Ms. Finkleman since the beginning of the period began to melt away. She half closed her eyes and waved her baton gently, immersing herself in the familiar pleasure of \"Greensleeves\" and its enchanting, centuries-old melody.\n\nThe children sang. \"Ah, Greensleeves now farewell, adieu! To God I pray to prosper thee!\"\n\nWhen they got to the end of the song, Ms. Finkleman tapped her baton, gave a few small corrections, and took them back to the beginning.\n\nAnd so sixth period progressed, and soon Ms. Finkleman forgot about the little voice and about the agouti hiding beneath the bush. It no longer mattered to her what dreadful surprise lay in wait. It didn't matter if all this respectful attention was an elaborate setup and at the end of the period she would face a fusillade of spitballs or a bucket of crickets dumped on her head. It was all worth it. This experience, this moment, this classroom full of enthusiastic children doing their best and respecting the music, was worth whatever price she might have to pay.\n\nThe kids practiced \"Greensleeves\" again, and then again, and it got better and better, just like a piece of music is _supposed_ to when you practice it. The Schwartz sisters, in the center of the alto section, hit their harmonies. With a little help from Kevin McKelvey at the piano, plunking out the notes when needed, Victor Glebe sang his solo (almost) perfectly. Natasha Belinsky figured out how to sing in rounds, a skill that had long eluded her. Braxton Lashey did not fall out of his chair\u2014not even once. Even those students who were usually good, like Bethesda Fielding and Pamela Preston, were downright _great_ today.\n\n\"For I am still thy lover true, come once again and love me....\"\n\nAs they sang, Ms. Finkleman glanced anxiously at the clock. She knew that this magical period, like the romance depicted in the song, would soon have to end.\n\nActually, it ended early. At 1:53, seven minutes before the period bell, the door of the Band and Chorus room abruptly swung open, revealing Jasper Ferrars, the assistant principal. Ms. Finkleman lowered her baton, and the children grew quiet. \"Excuse me, children,\" said Jasper, rubbing his thin hands together rapidly. \"Ms. Finkleman, Principal Van Vreeland would like a moment of your time. Immediately after class. If you don't mind.\" He shut the door, and the little voice in Ms. Finkleman's head returned: _I told you so._\n\n# [10\n\nTHE TINIEST CHANCE IN PLAN](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c10)\n\n_Bethesda Fielding_ was having a tough time getting down the hall. She was on her way to her seventh-period class, Pre-algebra with Mr. Carlsbad, but everywhere she turned she was thronged by excited kids. They tugged on her elbow, tapped on her shoulders, stood in her way.\n\n\"So, wait\u2014Ms. Finkleman?\" they asked.\n\n\"The music lady?\"\n\n\"She was in a band?\"\n\n\"A punk band? \"\n\n\"Seriously?\"\n\n\"Yup,\" answered Bethesda with a wide smile. _\"Seriously._ All documented by numerous primary sources.\"\n\nHer whole day had been like this. At lunch, between classes, during classes, she had explained about the magazine articles, about the tattoo, about the set list. And all day long, she had gotten the same response.\n\n\"Awesome!\" \"Cool.\" _\"So_ cool.\"\n\n\"Thank you,\" she said, grinning, bouncing a little on her heels. \"I know.\"\n\nBethesda's friends were nearly as worked up by the whole thing as she was. \"Man,\" said Chester Hu, shaking his head with glee. \"You're a detective! You're like whatever-his-face! The guy with the hat!\"\n\n\"Sherlock Holmes,\" murmured Victor Glebe.\n\n\"You should do all the teachers! \" Chester continued, ignoring him. \"You should do Mr. Vasouvian next! I bet he's a former serial killer!\"\n\n\"Bethesda, you realize you're famous now, right?\" said Suzie. \"I mean, like, _world_ famous. Right, Shelly?\"\n\nBut Shelly was busy explaining to a tall eighth grader named Rick Triplehorn that she had been the visual assistant and was therefore an important part of the whole discovery. \"Nice work,\" said Rick, causing Shelly to blush bright red and drop her backpack on her foot.\n\nJust then, Pamela Preston approached and offered her congratulations, which sounded the tiniest bit like they weren't congratulations at all. \"Bethesda!\" Pamela said in a slight singsong. \"Have I even _said_ to you yet how _amazing_ your Special Project was?\" (She hadn't.) \"No, it was _really_ good, Bethesda. It really was. It's just too bad Ms. Finkleman didn't turn out to be related to someone really interesting. Like, oh, I don't know, Jesse James or someone. Not to be, like, negative.\"\n\nBethesda thought it was a bit, like, negative, but she didn't let it bother her. She said thanks, and kept on grinning. She felt like she had been grinning all day.\n\nIda Finkleman sat in a gray rolling chair in Principal Van Vreeland's office. Jasper, thin and wiry, stood just behind her, his arms crossed.\n\n\"So,\" said Principal Van Vreeland, smiling with pursed lips and leaning back in her own chair, which was just like the one Ms. Finkleman was in, except twice as big.\n\n\"Ida.\"\n\n\"Yes, Principal Van Vreeland,\" said Ms. Finkleman. \"Ida, Ida, Ida.\"\n\n\"Yes, Principal Van Vreeland,\" said Ms. Finkleman again.\n\nThis was very odd. Just as in eight years at Mary Todd Lincoln Ms. Finkleman had never had a class full of respectful children, she had also never been called in for a sit-down meeting with the principal. Ms. Finkleman was surprised, in fact, that Principal Van Vreeland even knew her first name. But now here she was, saying it over and over, in a fashion clearly intended to be friendly\u2014but which Ms. Finkleman found rather intimidating. Then the principal nodded sharply to Jasper, who nodded back and left the room. Ms. Finkleman wasn't sure, but she thought she heard the door lock from the outside.\n\n\"Ida, dear, how go the preparations for the All-County Choral Corral?\"\n\n\"Oh,\" Ms. Finkleman said. \"Fine, thank you. Pretty good.\" Why on earth was the principal asking her about the Choral Corral?\n\n\"Now, what is it that Jasper tells me you're planning for this year's concert? Victorian Sea Shanties? Is that right? \"\n\n\"No,\" answered Ms. Finkleman. \"Not exactly. Traditional English folk ballads from the\u2014\"\n\nPrincipal Van Vreeland sprang forward in her chair with such velocity that Ida shrank back. For a terrifying moment, she thought her boss was going to bite her on the nose. Instead, Principal Van Vreeland narrowed her eyes, looked directly at Ms. Finkleman, and said a single word.\n\n\"No.\"\n\n\"No?\"\n\n\"No. You see, Ida dear, there's been the tiniest change in plan.\"\n\nNinety seconds later, Ida Finkleman was standing in the hallway outside the main office, her face flushed, her heart pumping, trying to process Principal Van Vreeland's bizarre request.\n\nRequest? _Demand_ was more like it.\n\nA rock-and-roll show? For the Choral Corral?\n\nHow was she going to do it? She wouldn't! She _couldn't!_\n\nBut the principal's tone had been unmistakable: Say no, and Mary Todd Lincoln would find itself a new music teacher. Ms. Finkleman staggered down the hallway, trying to get her bearings. She had to get to seventh period, but somehow she couldn't remember where her room was. She raised an unsteady hand and ran it weakly through her hair.\n\nThis was a catastrophe!\n\nShe wanted to throw herself down on the grimy, gum-sticky floor of the hallway and pound her head against the ground.\n\nAnd that's when Ms. Finkleman saw her. In Converse sneakers and a navy blue skirt, her hair in two jaunty pigtails, Bethesda Fielding leaned on a locker outside Mr. Carlsbad's room, laughing and gesturing enthusiastically amid a boisterous crowd of admirers. Ms. Finkleman looked hard at Bethesda. Principal Van Vreeland had explained the origin of this \"tiny change in plan,\" including which bright young student had unearthed the \"fascinating secret\" of Ms. Finkleman's past\u2014and had seen fit to share it with the entire student body.\n\nShe strode swiftly down the hall and said, \"Bethesda,\" in a low voice. The other children got quiet and looked at Ida with wide eyes. This was the same awed, respectful expression she had seen during sixth period, but its origin was no longer a puzzle. These children didn't see Ms. Finkleman anymore. They saw Little Miss Mystery. Their gawking curiosity made her feel cold and sick and angry, as angry as she had ever felt.\n\n\"Will you excuse us?\" Ms. Finkleman said sharply, and watched the other kids scamper rapidly down the hall, glancing backward over their shoulders at Mary Todd Lincoln's first-ever confirmed rock star.\n\n\"Ms. Finkleman? Hi!\" said Bethesda warmly. \"I\u2014\"\n\nMs. Finkleman looked her square in the eye. \"You had no right to do what you've done.\"\n\nBethesda blinked. \"What?\"\n\n\"My past is none of your business.\"\n\n\"But\u2014\"\n\n\"And if I choose not to discuss it with the world, it's for a reason.\"\n\nBethesda said, \"I\u2014\" again, and again Ms. Finkleman interrupted. \"My life is not a joke, or a game, or a school project. It belongs to _me.\"_\n\nBethesda's face burned red and she blinked back tears. \"I...\" she said for a third time, and trailed off helplessly.\n\nBut it didn't matter. Ms. Finkleman walked away.\n\n# [11\n\n _THE NOTE_](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c11)\n\n_Bethesda s father_ put down his fork and sighed a big woe-is-me kind of sigh.\n\n\"This must be the worst dinner in the world,\" he said sadly.\n\n\"What, Dad?\"\n\n\"Oh! Bethesda! So sorry to bother you, dear. It's just that I slaved away over a hot stove for five to eight minutes, carefully combining all the ingredients as directed by the box. And yet my perfect little child, more precious to me than life itself, won't eat. You hate it. You hate me. I shall stab myself with a salad fork.\"\n\n\"Knock it off, Dad,\" cautioned Bethesda. \"I'm not in the mood.\"\n\nBethesda's dad never knocked it off when people asked him to. It was kind of a problem. \"Oh, and it _looked_ like such a simple recipe,\" he said, moaning in his fake distress. \"Just macaroni and... shoot, what's the other thing? \"\n\nBethesda crossed her arms, trying not to be amused. \"Cheese, Dad.\"\n\nHer father smacked himself in the head with an open palm. \"Oh, man! No wonder! I put in maple syrup!\"\n\n\"That's gross.\"\n\n\"Oh? Well, bad news, Grouchykins. You're smiling.\"\n\nLike all people in a bad mood, Bethesda hated to be told when she was smiling. She stopped immediately.\n\n\"So what are the bad mood ground rules here? Am I allowed to ask you a question? \" Bethesda just shrugged. \"What happened with the Special Project? Speaking as your unofficial research assistant, I feel it's my right to know. According to the fine print of the unofficial research assistant contract I...\"\n\nBethesda's father stopped mid-joke and looked at his daughter seriously. \"Bethesda?\"\n\nShe pushed the plate away and laid down her silverware. Her father gazed at her for a long moment until she looked up and said, \"You know what, Dad? I've got a lot of homework.\"\n\n\"Okey smokey,\" he replied softly. \"More ice cream for me.\"\n\n* * *\n\nIn her room, Bethesda sat glumly on her bed, hugging Ted-Wo to her chest. She had three chapters of early American history to read, two chapters of _To Kill a Mockingbird,_ four pages of Pre-algebra problem sets, and an earth sciences quiz on Friday. She didn't feel like doing any of it. In fact, she didn't feel like doing anything.\n\n\"My life is not a joke, or a game, or a school project,\" Ms. Finkleman had said, her eyes flashing. \"It belongs to _me.\"_\n\nBethesda groaned. What kind of terrible person was she? She hadn't even _thought_ of Ms. Finkleman's feelings, never stopped to consider how the dumb Special Project would affect _her._\n\nShe groaned again and listlessly started unpacking her book bag.\n\nThat's when she saw the note.\n\nAt 8:25 that night, Tenny Boyer pushed open the glass doors of the Pilverton Plaza Mall. As always, he wore an ancient rock-and-roll T-shirt (in this case, from AC\/DC's 1980 world tour, purchased at a yard sale last summer), jeans of dubious cleanliness, and his well-worn blue-hooded sweatshirt with the hood pulled up loosely around his thick hair. As always, his iPod ear buds were firmly in place. Listening to _King of America,_ Elvis Costello's tenth (and in Tenny's opinion, best) album, Tenny slouched past the arcade and rode the escalator up to the food court. He slouched past the Sbarro, past the Cinnabon, past the China Wok, past the Auntie Anne's, and at last arrived at his destination: Chef Pilverton.\n\nChef Pilverton was a life-sized automated puppet of a French chef. He lived inside the big clock that sat in the northeast corner of the food court, across from Arthur Treacher's Fish & Chips. Every fifteen minutes, Chef Pilverton popped out of the top of the clock like a jack-in-the-box, brandishing a rolling pin and an eggbeater, and made some sort of food-court-related announcement in a dramatic French accent. Stuff like, \"Bonjour! Bienvenue \u00e0 la Food Court! \" or \"Mmm! J'adore China Wok! \"\n\nWhen Tenny was a little kid and came to the mall with his parents and his brothers, he would stare at the clock, just waiting for Chef Pilverton, and fall over laughing every time he popped out. Now, age twelve, Tenny thought Chef Pilverton was sort of lame. In fact, he thought Pilverton Mall as a whole was kind of lame, especially since the only thing _not_ lame about it\u2014namely, Record World\u2014had closed three years ago.\n\nTenny was only here tonight because of the note.\n\nThe note was written on a piece of eight and a half by eleven notebook paper and folded over and then over again. Sometime during seventh period, someone had slid it through the tiny slats on the front of his locker. And all that it said, in careful, neat handwriting in red ink, was CHEF PILVERTON 8:30.\n\nTenny had no idea who the note was from. He didn't really have any friends. He wasn't in any clubs or extracurricular activities. There were Ian and Frank, a couple of guys from Grover Cleveland who he had sort of tried to start a band with last year, but Ian had moved, and he hadn't talked to Frank since last summer. Tenny had let himself wonder if maybe it was a girl who had slipped him the note, like a secret admirer or whatever. But he had to admit that it was pretty unlikely. For one thing, girls didn't usually go around randomly asking guys out. And girls definitely didn't go around asking _him_ out. And who asks _anybody_ out by writing them a note to meet at Chef Pilverton?\n\nSo Tenny didn't know what or who he was waiting for. But here he was, standing by the big clock, bobbing his head to \"Lovable,\" and waiting. What else was he going to do\u2014his homework?\n\nAnd then, at precisely eight thirty, just as Chef Pilverton popped out and said, \"Je voudrais un cheese stick, s'il vous plait,\" the mystery was revealed. An unremarkable woman with unremarkable brown hair, dressed in plain dull brown, approached Tenny Boyer and tapped him on the shoulder.\n\n\"Good evening, Tennyson,\" said Ms. Finkleman. \"Can I buy you a Cinnabon? \"\n\nYou can ask anybody who's taken life sciences with Dr. Kesselmann: Human beings, like all animals, are driven by what Maslow called the hierarchy of needs. Food and water. Safety and security. And, if you're a rock-obsessed seventh grader perilously close to flunking social studies, avoiding a future at the St. Francis Xavier Young Men's Education and Socialization Academy.\n\nSo when Ms. Finkleman made her proposal, Tenny didn't even think it over. He didn't even say \"Huh?\" He put down his Cinnabon, wiped the frosting off his hand, and extended it for Ms. Finkleman to shake.\n\nJust as Bethesda Fielding, clutching a folded-up piece of notebook paper and wearing her Mystery Solver face, walked into the food court.\n\n\"Bethesda,\" called Ms. Finkleman, waving her over. \"Won't you come and join us?\"\n\n# [12\n\nFLOCCINAUCINIHILIPILIFICATION](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c12)\n\n_The next_ day, Tuesday, Pamela Preston sat at her desk in sixth-period Music Fundamentals, a few minutes before the bell, her copy of _Greensleeves and Other Traditional English Folk Ballads_ open on her desk beside a forty-ounce bottle of spring water. Pamela was a big believer that proper hydration was essential to maintaining a clear, glowy complexion. Pamela sincerely felt that the universe required people like her: People who always looked great and felt great, so other people had somewhere to focus their attention.\n\nShe sipped her water and looked impatiently around the room. Pamela was having an irritating week. Bethesda Fielding's Special Project had been, like, this major sensation, which was totally marvelous for _her._ The only problem was that she, Pamela, who everyone knew _always_ had the _best_ Special Projects, hadn't even been called on to present yet! Even though she had sat in the front row both Monday and Tuesday, raising her hand higher and higher each time Mr. Melville scanned the room for his next victim. And so for two whole days, Bethesda Fielding had been the reigning queen of Special Projects, and Pamela... was not. The proper balance of the universe, therefore, was seriously messed up.\n\nMs. Finkleman walked in, and Pamela's classmates instantly hushed and leaned forward in their chairs, staring, just as they had yesterday. Pamela rolled her eyes and took a long swallow of spring water.\n\nOkay, Pamela thought. So Ms. Finkleman used to be some sort of rock-and-roll whatever. Uh, hello? Big whoop?\n\nStupid universe.\n\nTwo rows back and almost all the way over at the window, Bethesda Fielding was drawing a cool squares-and-stars pattern on the back of her music folder and thinking about last night.\n\nAt the food court, in the shadow of Chef Pilverton, Ms. Finkleman had made a surprising proposition to her and Tenny Boyer. Bethesda had agreed with no hesitation, and she was sure that her end of the bargain would be no problem. But there was one thing about Ms. Finkleman's deal that didn't make sense... one thing that didn't add up....\n\n_Stop it,_ she warned herself sharply. _Stop right there. No more mystery solving for you!_\n\nShe looked around the room for Tenny, who had sat there with her at the food court last night and had also agreed to Ms. Finkleman's plan. She wondered if he'd been struck by the new mystery, too, and whether it plagued him as much as it did her.\n\nThere he was, sitting in the last row as always, wearing that ratty blue-hooded sweatshirt and his usual blank expression. As she watched, he absentmindedly poked his pencil eraser around in his ear.\n\n_Okay then. I guess he's not plagued._\n\n\"Good afternoon, children,\" said Ms. Finkleman. \"I have an announcement to make.\"\n\nFirst, she explained quickly and with a note of sadness in her voice, sixth-period Music Fundamentals would not be performing traditional English folk ballads at the upcoming Choral Corral after all. \"I know some of you will be disappointed at this development,\" she added, though she had to admit to herself that no one looked all that disappointed. The reaction seemed more along the lines of collective relief. Smiles blossomed on seventh-grade faces all over the room, and happy, curious whispers burbled to life like rippling streams. Chester Hu, who two days earlier had apologetically explained that his dog had peed all over his copy of _Greensleeves and Other Traditional English Folk Ballads,_ looked particularly relieved.\n\n\"Instead of our previously planned program,\" Ms. Finkleman continued, \"We will be devoting our slot at the Choral Corral to...\" She paused, and took a deep breath, and continued. \"A rock-and-roll show.\"\n\nThere was a long, astonished silence as the news sunk in. And then Todd Spolin, he of the stringy hair and squinty eyes, leaped up out of his seat, pumped both fists in the air as if he had just won a marathon, and hollered, \"Yesssssss!\"\n\nWhat followed was five solid minutes of total chaos. Suddenly half the class was out of its seat, and everyone was shouting. Natasha kicked her leg out and played an air-guitar riff on her folder. Violet Kelp and Bessie Stringer held hands and jumped up and down, both repeating, \"Oh my god oh my god oh my god,\" like two little girls who just got ponies for Christmas. Shelly Schwartz shared an excited hug with Lindsey Deming. Braxton Lashey, who since the beginning of the period had been trying to fix a pen that had exploded while he was chewing on it earlier, looked up and shouted, \"Wicked,\" ink smeared all over his face. Even Kevin McKelvey in his navy blue blazer nodded enthusiastically, adjusted his tie, and grinned.\n\n\"This is so wicked!\" proclaimed Rory Daas.\n\n\"You know what it's gonna be like?\" Chester Hu said to Victor Glebe. \"Like that movie? About that school? Where the kids rock? \"\n\n_\"School of Rock,\"_ answered Victor.\n\n\"No,\" said Chester. \"That's not it.\"\n\nMs. Finkleman tapped on her music stand, trying to reclaim the room's attention, but it was no use. Every time it seemed like the excitement was dying down, someone would yell out, \"This is so cool! \" and it would all start again.\n\nThroughout this extended period of gleeful chaos, people were constantly smiling grateful smiles and shooting enthusiastic thumbs-up at Bethesda Fielding. It wasn't entirely clear how one thing was connected to the other, but obviously it was no coincidence: This change of plan was all thanks to Bethesda. If she hadn't discovered the hidden truth about Ms. Finkleman, they would be singing \"Greensleeves\" at that very moment.\n\nNo one, however, paid any particular attention to Tenny Boyer. No one remembered, amid the general celebration, that there was among them a kid who was obsessed with rock and roll, who knew every member of every band, who could quote any lyric and play any guitar solo you could name. No one noticed that Tenny didn't seem surprised by Ms. Finkleman's announcement.\n\nAnd no one, except for Bethesda and Ms. Finkleman herself, knew the truth: Tenny Boyer would secretly be planning the whole thing.\n\n_A show?_\n\n_A rock-and-roll show?_\n\nAs the class cheered Ms. Finkleman's dramatic announcement, Pamela Preston sat perfectly still, contemplating the ever-growing imbalance of the universe.\n\n_No, no, no!_\n\nPamela's hands tightened around her water bottle, causing an unpleasant crunkling noise. She was a featured soloist in two of the six folk ballads planned for the Choral Corral. How exactly would her clear, bell-like soprano be appropriately featured in a rock-and-roll song?\n\nAs her classmates clamored joyfully, Pamela sat with her nose ever so slightly wrinkled, her head of golden curls titled ever so slightly to the left, her eyes ever so slightly narrowed. She surveyed her fellow students as if they were a doctor's eye chart that wouldn't quite come into focus. This questioning gaze finally came to rest on Ms. Finkleman\u2014who, still standing at the front of the room and calling for attention, did not notice Pamela and her wrinkled nose and her displeased squint.\n\nIf she had noticed, Ms. Finkleman might have thought to herself: _Now_ there _is a girl who smells something rotten._\n\nAt last Ms. Finkleman managed to quiet the class enough to present the full plans for the rock show, the plans she and Tenny had made at the food court the night before. The twenty-four students of Music Fundamentals were divided into three eight-piece rock bands, and each assigned an instrument based on what they could already play or might learn quickly. Thus cellists like Victor Glebe were assigned to the electric bass, pianists (like Kevin McKelvey, obviously) were designated keyboardists, and so on. Kids who didn't play instruments would either be singers or assigned \"supplemental percussion,\" meaning tambourines and maracas. Each of the three bands would perform one song, representing a different decade\u2014sixties rock, eighties rock, and nineties rock. (\"What about seventies rock?\" Bethesda had asked at the food court last night, as Tenny sketched this all out on a Cinnabon napkin. He just shook his head and muttered, \"Don't ask.\")\n\nThe kids listened raptly as Ms. Finkleman explained all this, scribbling down their instrument assignments and trading excited looks and high-fives with their new bandmates. They managed to keep themselves relatively calm until the end, when Ms. Finkleman added one final piece of news: She herself, Ms. Ida Finkleman, aka Little Miss Mystery, would be performing right alongside them, singing along with every band, on every number, for the whole rock show.\n\nNot only would they be putting on a rock concert, they'd be sharing the stage with a real rock star.\n\n\"Oh my god!\" Chester Hu called out. \"This is so awesome!\"\n\n_Right,_ thought Ms. Finkleman. _Awesome._\n\n(In fact, this particular element, the idea of standing up there singing rock songs alongside her student population, was Ms. Finkleman's least favorite part of the whole awful affair. But Principal Van Vreeland had been unyielding. \"But that is the whole point, Ida dear,\" she'd cooed in her sweetly poisonous tone. \"You're Mary Todd Lincoln's prize possession, after all. Our homegrown musical sensation. We must show you off now, mustn't we?\")\n\n\"Okay, so I think that's everything, folks,\" Ms. Finkleman concluded. \"Let's uh, let's get star\u2014uh, yes? Ezra?\"\n\nEzra McClellan was a short boy with perfectly straight blond hair and very pale skin. According to the band assignments Ms. Finkleman had just made, he was to play drums in Band Three, the one doing nineties rock.\n\n\"Oh,\" said Ezra. \"Yeah. So, what are the bands called? \"\n\n\"Hey, yeah,\" echoed the girl sitting next to Ezra, Hayley Eisenstein, speaking thickly through her retainer. \"Real rock bands aren't just called Band Number One or Band Number Two.\"\n\nThere was a murmur of general approval.\n\n\"Excellent question,\" answered Ms. Finkleman, and looked quickly at Tenny, who nodded slightly. \"Very well. Each band will decide upon its own name. We have very little time to waste, so please divide into your bands and let's take...\" She glanced at her watch. \"We'll take thirty seconds to name the bands.\"\n\nIt took the rest of the period to name the bands. Band Number One, who would be playing sixties rock, swiftly devolved into discord when tambourinist Natasha Belinsky dismissed the first suggestion from drummer Chester Hu, which was Barf Hammer.\n\n\"Ew! \" Natasha protested. \"No way.\"\n\n\"Okey-doke,\" replied Chester cheerfully. \"How about Barf Machine?\"\n\n\"Ew!\"\n\n\"But we're all agreed it should have the word 'barf' in it?\" \"No! Ew!\"\n\nBand Number Two, the eighties rock band, was equally deadlocked over a suggestion from rhythm guitarist Carmine Lopez that it would be cool to name the band Floccinaucinihilipilification, because it's the longest word in the English language. Rory Daas (lead vocals) protested that, first of all, Floccinaucinihilipilification would never fit on a T-shirt, and secondly, it isn't the longest word in the English language\u2014the longest word is pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis.\n\nHayley thought those were both dumb, and she lobbied to name the band after her dog, who had recently been hit by a bus. Unfortunately, the late pet's name was Ms. Pinkbottom, and nobody thought that sounded right. Carmine then suggested they name the band after the bus (\"The M43! C'mon, that's a great name!\"), but Hayley didn't think that was very funny.\n\nOnly for Band Three, who would be doing nineties rock, did the naming conversation go smoothly, and only after its members remembered that they had an expert in their midst.\n\n\"Um, so, Tenny\u2014it's Tenny, right?\" said Suzie Schwartz.\n\n\"What? Yeah.\" Tenny was so rarely the center of attention that he was kind of startled to find the other seven kids in his assigned band staring at him.\n\n\"Do you have any thoughts on a band name?\"\n\n\"Uh, yeah,\" he said, with a little smile. \"I mean, the name is, like, super key, you know what I mean? \"\n\nThe other members of Band Number Three did not really know what he meant, and they looked at each other quizzically\u2014except Pamela Preston, who exhaled heavily and looked at her watch.\n\nLike anyone who is really into rock, Tenny Boyer spent a lot of time coming up with cool band names. Some people like names that sort of _feel_ like the music the band does, like Metallica or Devo or Soundgarden. Some band names are more like little stories, like the Grateful Dead, or Minor Threat, or They Might Be Giants. Some are just nonsense, like one of Tenny's favorites, Pearl Jam. What's a Pearl Jam?\n\nBut Tenny had a special affection for band names that are the Somethings: like the Modern Lovers, or the B-52s, or the Replacements, or the Talking Heads.\n\n\"Tenny? \" He looked up\u2014whoops. He had totally drifted off into his own thoughts.\n\n\"So, what do you think?\" It was Bethesda Fielding, this intense girl with the glasses and the pigtails, who since yesterday was suddenly this big part of his life. She smiled at him encouragingly. \"Do you have any suggestions? \"\n\nTenny smiled. \"The Careless Errors,\" he said. \"How about the Careless Errors?\"\n\nEveryone in Band Three looked over at Bethesda, who had made this whole rock thing happen. (Except for Pamela, who looked at her watch again and got up to go to the bathroom.)\n\n\"What do you think? \" said Lisa Deckter, rhythm guitar.\n\n\"The Careless Errors,\" Bethesda repeated, and then, after a pause: \"Huh. That's, like\u2014that's perfect.\" The Careless Errors it was.\n\nAt last the other bands had their names as well. The members of Band Number Two agreed that Hayley would reach into her backpack, and they would name themselves for whatever she pulled out\u2014and so Half-Eaten Almond Joy was born.\n\nBand Number One gave up and decided to just call themselves Band Number One.\n\nWhen the bell rang, the students of Ms. Finkleman's sixth-period Music Fundamentals streamed out, happily chattering about band names and rock songs and who was playing what and how totally, ridiculously fun this whole thing was going to be. \"Tomorrow, children,\" Ms. Finkleman called after them. \"Tomorrow our preparations for this performance shall begin in earnest.\"\n\nTenny was the last one at the door. \"Hey, maybe don't say stuff like 'shall begin in earnest,'\" he said quietly. \"It doesn't sound very, you know, very rock.\"\n\nShe gave a little nod, and he shut the door behind him. Ms. Finkleman's gaze fell to her desk and her teacher's edition of _Greensleeves and Other Traditional English Folk Ballads._ She looked sadly at the tattered green volume for a second, sighed, and slipped it into the top drawer.\n\n# [13\n\nGOPHERS](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c13)\n\n_In the_ cafeteria on Wednesday, Todd Spolin reached across Natasha Belinsky to get to Pamela Preston's half-eaten lunch, which consisted of homemade chicken salad on sprouted grain bread, four carrots, Greek yogurt, and a fun pack of M&M's for a treat.\n\n\"Pammers? You gonna eat this?\"\n\n\"What? No. You can have it.\"\n\n\"Sweetness.\"\n\nTodd happily tore open the bag of M&M's and smooshed them into the yogurt. Pamela wasn't hungry. Not after this morning, and her Special Project, which had been _significantly_ less than perfect. She spoke for four and a half minutes about the mysterious rock formations ringing the school's athletic field, showed numerous close-up photographs neatly displayed on pink poster board, and paused dramatically before revealing her conclusion about the alien invasion force.\n\nIt wasn't until she was halfway through her first bow that she noticed no one was clapping. And that Mr. Melville, instead of beaming and pronouncing hers a Special Project of extreme ingenuity and penetrating insight, was... _laughing!_ He was laughing a low, throaty laugh that caused his sizable gut to slowly roll up and down beneath his crossed arms. And when a teacher begins to laugh, especially a teacher as serious and self-contained and unsmiling as Mr. Melville, his students naturally begin to laugh as well.\n\n_Laughing._\n\n_At her!_\n\n\"What? \" Pamela demanded, her note cards trembling in her hand.\n\n\"Alas, Ms. Preston, if you had checked the recent archives of our local newspaper, you might have discovered the truth, which is a tad more... picayune.\"\n\n\"Picayune?\" Pamela didn't know what the word meant, but she didn't like where this was heading.\n\n\"Gophers, my dear. The rock rings were caused by gophers, and I believe they've already been taken care of. Not so much a mystery of the unknown as an inconvenient rodent infestation.\"\n\n\"But\u2014I\u2014Mr. Melville\u2014\"\n\n\"All right. Who's the next victim?\"\n\n\"Stupid gophers,\" Pamela grumbled now, furiously drumming her fingers on the cafeteria table.\n\n\"You never could have known, Pammy,\" Natasha offered.\n\n\"That's true,\" Pamela said, tilting her head reflectively.\n\n\"Acphhhly\u2014\" Todd interjected, talking through a thick mouthful of Pamela's chicken salad.\n\n\"What?\"\n\n\"I said, actually\u2014I knew. That it was gophers.\" _\"What?\"_\n\n\"My dad is an exterminator, remember? He was the one they called in to smoke out the little buggers.\"\n\nPamela narrowed her eyes at Todd and grabbed her lunch back. \"For god's sake, Todd, why didn't you tell me that yesterday? I stood up there and announced that the rock rings were caused by aliens from outer space! \"\n\n\"Yeah, no, I know.\" He shrugged. \"I thought you were going to say that the gophers _were_ aliens. I was like, wait, is there a planet of gophers somewhere? Because _that_ would be _awesome!\"_\n\n\"Oh my god, Todd, you are such a moron.\"\n\nNatasha leaned over with outstretched arms and gave Pamela a hug. \"You know what, Pamela? It's not such a big deal. This one time, you didn't have the best Special Project. I mean, Bethesda\u2014\"\n\nAt the mention of Bethesda Fielding's name, Pamela interrupted her friend with a sharp \"Ick!\" and pried Natasha's fingers off her arm like leeches. \"You know what? Don't even talk to me about Bethesda and this rock-show nonsense! In fact...\" Pamela leaned forward slightly. \"I have a _strong_ suspicion that there is something fishy about that whole situation.\"\n\n\"Fishy? \" Natasha said, her eyes wide. \"What do you mean? \"\n\nTodd looked up from the table; he had been absently scooping bits of spilled yogurt off the cafeteria table and licking them from his fingers. \"I'm so down with the rock show. I was practicing my guitar until one o'clock last night. Then I was like\u2014wait! I gotta put strings on this thing! And _then_ I was like\u2014wait! Maybe if I\u2014\"\n\n\"Todd! Listen!\" Pamela said, and stood in a huff. \"So Ms. Finkleman used to be a rock star. Great. Very interesting\u2014but why keep it hidden so long? And how come now she's suddenly fine with it becoming public knowledge? Not only that, but putting on a big concert? \"\n\nShe looked coolly at Natasha and Todd, who looked at each other, and then said, in perfect unison, \"I dunno.\"\n\n\"There is dirt to be dug up on this,\" Pamela said, \"And I am going to do the digging! Like a\u2014like a...\"\n\n\"A gopher? \"\n\nPamela glared at Natasha, threw up her hands, and stalked out of the lunchroom.\n\n\"What? \" said Natasha to Todd, who shrugged and got back to work on Pamela's lunch. \"What did I say?\"\n\n# [14\n\nAWKWARD POPCORN](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c14)\n\n_Bethesda Fielding_ sat at her kitchen table directly across from Tenny Boyer, her tannish reddish hair serious and unpigtailed, her glasses high on her nose, her right hand holding a sharpened number two pencil. In front of Bethesda were the following things: a well-thumbed copy of _A More Perfect Union: United States History from Plymouth Rock to the Constitution;_ a pencil case containing several backup pencils, two blue pens, four fresh erasers, and a fancy highlighter that was either pink or yellow, depending on how you clicked it; and a new spiral notebook, labeled PROJECT: STUDYING WITH TENNY (SWT), opened to the first page, labeled THINGS TO GO OVER (T-GO).\n\nIn front of Tenny Boyer was a red bowl filled with microwave popcorn, from which he was grabbing big handfuls and shoveling them into his face, and a can of cream soda, from which he was loudly drinking with a straw.\n\nBethesda looked at Tenny. He looked back at her, smiled blankly, and then kind of looked around the room. Bethesda took a breath to start talking, but wasn't sure what to say. Tenny slurped his soda.\n\n\"So,\" Bethesda said finally.\n\n\"So,\" Tenny answered.\n\n\"You excited?\"\n\n\"What?\"\n\n\"You know, for the rock show? \" \"Oh, yeah. Totally.\"\n\nThe clock ticked. Tenny shifted in his chair. Finally Bethesda said, \"Hey, do you need a pencil?\"\n\n\"What?\"\n\n\"A pencil? To write things down? \"\n\n\"Oh,\" he said vacantly. \"Yup. Totally.\"\n\nAs she dug around for a pencil she wouldn't mind losing (or getting back coated with earwax), Bethesda thought for the millionth time that having Tenny Boyer in her house was approximately the weirdest thing ever.\n\nShe had promised Ms. Finkleman she would do this, had agreed to the deal, and she had no intention of backing out. But it was _so weird._\n\nBethesda and Tenny hadn't even had a conversation since the fourth grade, when everyone in Mrs. Kleindienst's class had been assigned partners for their reports on the regions of Canada. They had worked together fine, Bethesda recalled, but only because she had done the whole project. Their presentation on Nova Scotia consisted of a poem Bethesda wrote about Nova Scotia, a drawing by Bethesda of a traditional Nova Scotian schoolhouse, and a list Bethesda made of Nova Scotia's primary imports (steel, cotton) and exports (wool, herring). Tenny's only contribution was a thirty-five-second, Nova Scotia-inspired \"musical interlude,\" played with two pencils against the side of a milk carton.\n\nSince then, Bethesda and Tenny had maybe said hi to each other now and then, or \"Sorry,\" if they collided in the hall, but that was it. Bethesda hung out with the Schwartz sisters, and sometimes Violet Kelp, and she worked on the _Mary Todd Lincoln Gazetteer_ and did math team and studied at the Wilkersholm Memorial Public Library. Tenny Boyer... well, Bethesda didn't know what he did, or who he hung out with, or where. All she knew was that he sat in the back of every class with a spaced-out expression\u2014and, she was now learning, he was the messiest popcorn eater in all human history.\n\nBethesda handed Tenny a pencil, and he said, \"Thanks, dude.\" And then they sat in awkward silence. From the other room came the low murmur of a reporter on TV, discussing expected rainfall in various regions of the American Southeast. Bethesda's father followed weather like some people follow sports.\n\n\"Okay,\" Bethesda began. \"I'll list some topics, and we'll both write down everything you're having trouble with. That way, I've got a list of what to focus on when we're working together, and you've got a list of what to work on at home.\"\n\n\"Sounds good,\" Tenny said, and then scratched his head. Popcorn crumbs cascaded gently from his hair. \"Um, can I have some paper?\"\n\nHalf an hour later, after Tenny had gathered all the necessary supplies... and after he had borrowed some scissors to take the shrink-wrap off his copy of _A More Perfect Union..._ and after he had finished his cream soda and asked Bethesda if it was okay to have another one... and after he had cleaned up the popcorn he accidentally knocked off the table on the way to the fridge... and after he had waited, repeating, \"I'm really sorry, dude,\" while Bethesda vacuumed the crumbs he missed... they finally began studying.\n\n\"Let's start with the Constitution.\" Bethesda figured they'd done that the most recently, so it would be freshest in Tenny's mind. \"What do you know about the Federalist Papers?\" asked Bethesda.\n\n\"The what? \"\n\n\"Okay,\" she said, carefully writing _Fed. Papers_ under THINGS TO GO OVER (T-GO). \"How about the Three-Fifths Clause?\"\n\n\"It was... oh. Wait. Was it some kind of... huh. What was it? \"\n\nBethesda wrote _3\/5 Cl._ under _Fed. Papers_ and bit her lip. _Okay,_ she thought. _A lot to go over. No problem. We've got plenty of time._\n\n\"Tenny? What are you doing? \"\n\nTenny had closed his notebook and pushed _A More Perfect Union_ away like a gross plate of food. He leaned way back in his chair and yawned.\n\n_Wait. Is he\u2014is he taking a break?_\n\n\"Tenny?\"\n\n\"Hey, you know what I don't get?\" he said absently, twirling his pencil between two fingers like a drumstick.\n\n\"It's not break time, Tenny,\" Bethesda said with a worried frown. \"Not even close.\"\n\nTenny didn't seem to hear. \"I don't get why Ms. Finkleman\u2014I mean, why Little Miss Mystery\u2014\"\n\nBethesda cut him off sharply. \"No. Stop.\"\n\n\"Huh?\"\n\n\"I'm serious, Tenny. We're not talking about it.\"\n\nBethesda could guess what it was that Tenny wanted to talk about, and the truth was that she wanted to talk about it, too. In fact, it was _all_ she wanted to talk about, practically all she could _think_ about since Ms. Finkleman had summoned her and Tenny to the food court on Monday night and they had made their agreement.\n\n_There was one thing about Ms. Finkleman's deal that didn't make sense... one thing that didn't add up..._\n\nIf Ms. Finkleman was secretly the punk-rock singer\/guitarist Little Miss Mystery, then why did she need Tenny Boyer to plan the rock show for the Choral Corral? Yes, Tenny was the kid at school who knew the most about rock\u2014but Ms. Finkleman was actually a former rock star! Surely she knew more! Surely she was perfectly capable of creating the show by herself!\n\nAnd yet that was exactly the deal Ms. Finkleman had made with Tenny: He would choose the songs, plan the running order, decide who would be in which bands and who would play which instruments. He would watch all the rehearsals and give her notes to give to the kids. He would secretly make all the decisions for Ms. Finkleman, who would then relay them to sixth-period Music Fundamentals as if they were her own.\n\nAnd in return for his help, Tenny would get some sorely needed help of his own. Bethesda Fielding\u2014glad to have a chance to make up to Ms. Finkleman for revealing her hidden past\u2014would tutor him in Social Studies so he wouldn't flunk Mr. Melville's infamous Floating Midterm and end up at St. Francis Xavier next year.\n\nIt was a straightforward agreement, a three-way pact, to which all parties had readily agreed. All very simple.\n\n_Except why on earth did Little Miss Mystery need Tenny Boyer?_\n\nAs for why Tenny needed Bethesda\u2014well, that part was no mystery.\n\n\"Tell me about the Bill of Rights,\" she said firmly, pushing Tenny's book back across the table.\n\nLong pause.\n\n\"Huh?\"\n\n# [15\n\n\"LIVIN' ON A PRAYER\"](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c15)\n\n_Kevin McKelvey_ sat at the giant antique Steinway that took up most of his bedroom, wearing his dark blue blazer and tie, his hair immaculately combed as always. He sighed. He looked out the window. He looked down in his lap. He cracked his knuckles. Finally, slowly, he lifted his hands up onto the keys and played a glittering glissando down the length of the keyboard. He sighed again.\n\nKevin's life, like his room, was dominated by the piano. Every day after school he went directly to the Band and Chorus room and practiced until Janitor Steve chased him out so he could lock the front doors. At home, after dinner, Kevin sat at the Steinway and practiced for a few hours more. His mother would stand just outside the door, listening; often he would find her there when he finally emerged to brush his teeth before bed.\n\nShe would always smile and pat him on the back. \"Piano is in your blood,\" his mom liked to say. \"It's in your bones, dear.\"\n\nWhich was true. Walter \"Walt\" McKelvey was a world-class concert pianist who jetted around the world playing with various quartets, quintets, and philharmonics. When he was in town, home for a night or two from Berlin before taking off for Tokyo, he would lean against Kevin's doorframe, arms crossed, and say, \"All right, son. Show me where we are.\"\n\nKevin would sit and play the Goldberg Variations, or Chopin's preludes, or something by Satie, while his mother beamed at her two geniuses and Kevin's father listened solemnly, with his eyes closed. And then he gave notes. A half hour, maybe an hour, of corrections: \"The adagio section is too fast, Kevin.\" \"You're _assaulting_ the keys, Kevin. Approach with diplomacy, not force.\"\n\nAnd Kevin would nod. \"Of course, Father,\" and then Walter McKelvey would leave to catch a flight to Toronto or Charlotte or Kuala Lumpur, to accompany a symphony\u2014and Kevin went back to practicing.\n\nKevin sighed a third time and flipped opened the sheet music in front of him. For this rock-and-roll project, he'd been assigned to the keyboards (of course) and was playing for the eighties rock band, Half-Eaten Almond Joy. Their song, by a band Kevin had never heard of called Bon Jovi, was \"Livin' on a Prayer.\"\n\n_Well,_ Kevin thought, quickly skimming the sheet music, _at least it's not going to be hard._\n\nThe original was done on synthesizer, not real piano, so it was basically just chording. He played E minor for two measures, four quarter notes per measure, and then for another two measures. Was the whole song just E minor? No\u2014here at last came a chord change. He moved to C for a measure, to D for a measure, and then back to E minor. Easy.\n\nKevin glanced at the vocal line, just to keep himself interested. \"Tommy used to work on the docks,\" he sang softly, continuing to bang out the chords (E minor, E minor), \"Union's been on strike, he's down on his luck, it's tough....\" (C, then D.) \"So tough...\" (Back to E minor.)\n\nRight around there, right when the song moved back to E minor, Kevin felt a shiver beneath his skin. There was something about the way that E minor chord landed when it came back that _agreed_ with the lyrics. Life really _was_ tough for this Tommy guy. With his left foot, Kevin worked the sustain pedal, and the chords bounced off the walls of his bedroom. He kept singing. The second verse was about Tommy's friend Gina, who worked at a diner. It sounded like she didn't like working at this diner, but she didn't have any choice, because of her and Tommy's financial situation. The chords remained the same, but now the repetition, instead of feeling simple, was somehow deeply satisfying. Again the song moved through its simple changes, from E minor to C and then to D, like it was building, line by line, measure by measure.\n\nAt the chorus the melody changed: more held notes, longer lines. Kevin sang out: \"Whooah! We're halfway there!\" And then\u2014 _bam!_ \u2014out of nowhere, the E minor inverted, transforming into its bright-eyed cousin, G major! A big, gorgeous G major!\n\n\"Whooooooooooooa! Livin' on a prayer! \"\n\nAfter the chorus, the song went into a third verse, then returned to the chorus before launching, _whoosh,_ into a long solo section\u2014then one more huge, triumphant chorus. When he finished, Kevin played \"Livin' on a Prayer\" again.\n\nThat same night, in the basement of his dad's house, where he stayed on the weekends, Chester Hu was getting really frustrated. \"I can't do it,\" he shouted to no one, tossing his drumsticks to the ground. \"I can't! I _suck.\"_\n\nWhat Chester couldn't do, he had decided after trying twice, was sustain a steady four kicks a measure on the bass drum, while hitting the snare on the two and the four, as was required to play the James Brown song \"I Got You (I Feel Good).\" Ms. Finkleman had named him the drummer for the sixties rock band (Band Number One) because Chester had briefly drummed for the Mary Todd Lincoln marching band. Of course, Chester had stunk in the marching band. Tromping along with his big shoulder-slung bass drum, he could never make it around the track without losing the tempo, losing his breath, or (on one extremely embarrassing occasion) losing the whole rest of the band and marching directly into a cluster of pom-pom girls.\n\nSo, sure, he had been as psyched as everyone else about this rock-show thing\u2014at first. But now, seated at the ancient drum kit that once had belonged to his uncle Phillip, holding the sticks in his hand, confronting the reality of how hard it was to play drums in a real band, his instinct was to quit immediately, take an F in Music Fundamentals, and go play video games. But Chester kept remembering all the crazy details of Bethesda Fielding's Special Project\u2014those pictures! The set list! The tattoo! Ms. Finkleman's secret identity!\n\nHow could he bail on this? It was like Batman had come to their school and was teaching a crime-fighting class!\n\n_Face it, young man,_ he thought, _it would be a shame to waste this splendid opportunity._ Chester shuddered, realizing he had gotten that phrase from dorky Mr. Bigelow, the guidance counselor with the mole who always smelled like after-dinner mints.\n\nWhatever. Chester picked up his drumsticks and tried again.\n\nPamela Preston was _not_ practicing her maracas. When she got home from the mother-daughter yoga class she and her mom attended on alternate Friday evenings, she removed the maracas disdainfully from her backpack, plucking them out one by one and holding them away from her body like they were dirty diapers. She dropped them on the floor of her room, where they rattled lamely.\n\nIt was bad enough that Bethesda Fielding's Special Project had been a triumph, while hers had been a humiliating disaster.\n\nIt was bad enough that traditional English folk ballads from the sixteenth century had been replaced by this rock-and-roll nonsense, depriving Pamela of the spotlight.\n\nBut _maracas?_ Her assigned instrument was the _maracas?_ It wasn't even a real instrument! It was something a preschooler made out of dried rice and an egg carton!\n\nHer friends kept telling her that it wasn't a big deal\u2014that doing rock would be \"more funner\" than folk ballads (as Natasha said), or that it would be \"the sweetest sweetness of all time\" (Todd). But the rock show somehow belonged to Bethesda, it was her thing, and that meant that Bethesda had become the most important person in the seventh grade. But that was _Pamela's_ rightful place, and she couldn't just let that change for no reason.\n\nWait. _Wait!_\n\n\"Aha! \" Pamela cried. \"I've got it! \" There had to be a _reason!_\n\nThere had to be some reason that Ms. Finkleman\u2014or Little Miss Mystery, whatever her stupid name was\u2014had given up her rock-star existence. And there had to be a _reason_ she kept it a secret all these years!\n\nThere was something she didn't want anyone to know! All Pamela had to do was figure out that secret something, and she could set the universe straight once more!\n\n\"I am a genius! \" yelled Pamela Preston, running out of her room to find the phone. On the way she kicked the stupid maracas under her bed.\n\nMeanwhile, Bethesda Fielding closed the front door behind Tenny Boyer, watched him bike down the street, and settled down wearily on the big living-room sofa. Project SWT was not going well at all. Bethesda was trying to maintain a positive attitude, but after one week, she was already pretty sick of hearing Tenny Boyer say \"Um\" and \"Oh\" and \"Huh?\" and occasionally \"What?\" What was wrong with this kid? He always showed up late, he never studied\u2014he didn't even _try!_ Even though _he_ was the one who needed the help.\n\nOver and over again, they had these ridiculous conversations:\n\n\"Tenny! Can you try to pay attention? \"\n\n\"What?\"\n\n\"I need you to focus, Tenny. To try.\"\n\n\"I am. I'm totally... wait, what did you say? \"\n\nAt the end of their first week of work, Tenny had learned basically nothing. Wait! Not quite true: He had, after much confusion, grasped the concept that \"the 1700s\" meant the same as \"the eighteenth century.\" But to earn Tenny a passing grade on the Floating Midterm, they were going to have to do better than that. A _lot_ better.\n\nBethesda had told Ms. Finkleman she was an amazing tutor. She had promised her this would be no problem.\n\n\"I can do this,\" she said, trying to talk herself into optimism. \"There's still plenty of time. I can _do_ this.\"\n\nAs she trudged up the stairs to her room, Bethesda looked longingly back toward the kitchen. Her father was whistling as he fixed himself an elaborate sundae, pouring a thick stream of chocolate syrup into a bowl overloaded with ice cream. But Bethesda kept walking. She had lyrics to memorize.\n\nBethesda closed the door to her room and clicked through her iPod to find the song the Careless Errors were doing in the rock show: \"Holiday\" by a band called Weezer. Bethesda had wasted an entire night trying to get Tenny Boyer to understand that Benedict Arnold and Benjamin Franklin were two different people, and instead of diving into a giant bowl of walnut fudge, she had to memorize some song so she could prepare to humiliate herself in front of the entire school.\n\nHow had this happened?\n\n_Oh, right,_ she thought glumly. _Me. Me and my stupid Special Project._\n\nJust then her father yelled up the stairs: \"Hey! Bethesdaberry! You've got a phone call! It's Pamela Preston.\"\n\nBethesda stopped. Pamela Preston?\n\nHalfway across town, Patricia McKelvey was standing outside the door of her son's bedroom, her arms crossed, her brows furrowed with concern. Her son, Kevin, was in his room, playing the piano as usual, but it was a song she didn't recognize.\n\nShe wasn't sure what song, but it was most definitely _not_ Beethoven.\n\nShe was about to crack the door to see what was going on, when she heard her son... singing. Singing _loud._\n\nMrs. McKelvey couldn't exactly make out the words coming from under Kevin's closed bedroom door, but it sounded something like \"Livin' on a praaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaayer!\" Then, when the song ended, she heard another unfamiliar sound. Kevin was laughing. Deliriously, gleefully laughing.\n\n# [16\n\nTHREE LITTLE WORDS](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c16)\n\nTO: Winston Cohn\n\nFROM: Isabel Van Vreeland\n\nSUBJECT: UPCOMING CHORAL CORRAL\/YOUR TOTAL HUMILIATION\n\nMy dear Principal Cohn,\n\nSorry if this email contains the occasional misspelign. My hands are trembling from what I have just witnessed in my Band and Chorus room, where our own Ms. Finkleman and her students are preparing for the upcoming Seventeenth Annual Choral Corral. Ms. Finkleman is creating a show\n\nPrincipal Van Vreeland tapped her chin for a moment with a perfectly manicured forefinger, and then deleted the word _show._\n\nMs. Finkleman is creating a _MASTERPIECE_ that will surely go down in the history of the All-County Choral Corral as one of the\n\nStop. Delete, delete.\n\nas _THE SINGLE GREATEST_ performance ever. In sum, Principal Cohn: WE WILL DESTROY YOU.\n\n\"Principal Van Vreeland? If I might?\"\n\nThe principal looked up with a sour expression. She hadn't realized Jasper was still hovering over her shoulder. I should really get him some kind of bell, she thought suddenly, and then mentally filed the idea for later.\n\n\"Not to be a metaphorical rocker of the figurative boat, of course.\" He wrung his reedy hands together with consternation. \"But I wonder if you are certain this sort of communication is such a good idea?\"\n\n\"My god, are you irritating,\" the principal snapped as her finger plunged down on the send button. \"I have total confidence in Ms. Finkleman, in Lady McMystery, whatever her name is.\"\n\n\"But\u2014\"\n\n\"But what, Jasper? Because at this moment, I'm having far _less_ confidence in my choice of assistant principal! \"\n\nJasper blanched. \"But nothing! Nothing at all. I was just going to say how completely I agree with you. Always. Obviously.\"\n\nJust then a sharp _ding_ sounded from Principal Van Vreeland's computer, as a reply email arrived. Together, the principal and her assistant leaned forward to read the three little words flashing merrily on the screen.\n\nCare to wager?\n\n# [17\n\nBETHESDA FIELIDING, MOUNTHAIN CLIMBER](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c17)\n\n_A((righ._ Let's start with an easy one tonight. Who was the primary drafter of the Declaration of Independence?\"\n\n\"Oh. Shoot. Wait.\" said Tenny slowly. \"I think I might know this.\"\n\n\"You do.\"\n\n\"Okay.\"\n\n\"You definitely do.\" Pause.\n\n\"I don't know.\"\n\n\"Come on, Tenny. It rhymes with Fefferson.\" \"Oh. Okay... um...\"\n\nBethesda scrunched up her face and moaned. _\"Jefferson,_ Tenny. The person who drafted the Declaration of Independence was Thomas Jefferson.\"\n\n\"Oh.\"\n\n\"Benjamin Franklin edited it.\"\n\n\"I thought Benjamin Franklin was the traitor guy.\"\n\n\"No! No, that's...\" Bethesda willed herself not to get upset and offered her best encouraging smile. \"You know what? Let's come back to it.\"\n\nIn her imagination, Bethesda fixed her gaze on a distant mountaintop, reshouldered her heavy pack, and kept climbing. She had been tutoring Tenny Boyer in American history for three weeks, and they hadn't made much progress. Bethesda had decided that her task was a mountain, and she was a mountain climber. A brave mountain climber! A dauntless mountain climber! Audacious! Steadfast! Intrepid! (She had looked up _brave_ in the thesaurus.) She was counting on the mental imagery to inspire her, hoping that if she just worked hard enough, Tenny would finally start getting this stuff.\n\nAnd he _better_ start getting it; as of today it was March, and that meant it was open season for the Floating Midterm. It was usually later in the spring, but with Melville you never knew. One day, when they least expected it, first period would end with Mr. Melville suddenly, offhandedly announcing, in his rough growl of a voice: \"Oh, by the way, little geniuses, tomorrow is test day.\"\n\nSo here she was, the brave and dauntless and audacious (etc.) mountain climber, at the foot of Mount Everest, where Tenny Boyer knew absolutely nothing about early American history, gazing up at the summit, where he knew it all.\n\n\"Name one of the main events that led to the passage of the Stamp Act.\" \"The what? \"\n\n\"The Stamp Act? You know this! I know you know this,\" Bethesda pleaded. She threw back a swallow of her kiwi-lime Snapple and looked desperately at Tenny, thinking hard about what led to the Stamp Act\u2014French and Indian War, French and Indian War, French and Indian War\u2014because maybe if she _thought_ it hard enough, she could _will_ him to know.\n\n\"I, uh... let's see.\"\n\n\"Come on, Tenny. The Stamp Act? The buildup to the Revolution? We made a whole flowchart for this!\" \"Oh, yeah,\" said Tenny weakly.\n\n\"Okay.\"\n\nPause.\n\n\"Wait, what's a flowchart again? \" Bethesda the Mountain Climber watched as the peak of Everest disappeared behind cloud cover.\n\n* * *\n\n\"Honey? Hi.\"\n\nPamela Preston's mother nudged open the door to her daughter's bedroom, bearing a tray of premium organic snack crackers, sliced locally grown apples, and a cup of warm nonfat milk. Pamela looked up, irritated.\n\n\"You've been holed up in here all evening.\" Pamela's mother smiled gently. \"Pam-Pam, darling, are you having boy trouble?\"\n\n\"What? No.\"\n\n\"You're not?\"\n\n\"No. I'm trying to solve a mystery.\"\n\n\"Oh, I know, dear, I know,\" answered her mom, lightly placing the snack tray on Pamela's bedside table and settling down on the bed. \"Boys _can_ be a mystery.\"\n\nPamela turned around in her desk chair to glare at her mother. \"No, Mom. I'm trying to solve an actual, important mystery.\"\n\n\"Oh, dear.\"\n\n\"So I would appreciate some peace and quiet.\" \"Very well, darling.\" \"Thank you.\"\n\nAs her mother rose, Pamela glanced up. \"Leave the crackers.\"\n\nPamela waited until her mother pulled the door shut and returned to her careful examination of the clues she had arranged in front of her. She'd gotten Bethesda's notes with just the teensiest bit of trickery: She called to say how much she admired Bethesda's Special Project, and how embarrassed she was that hers was such a nightmare\u2014and could she borrow Bethesda's notes to just, like, try to figure out how she had done it?\n\nBethesda had seemed sort of touched, actually, which made Pamela feel bad for about one half of one second. Until she remembered what was at stake. As in, the whole entire _universe._\n\nPamela bent over Bethesda's notes, idly running a finger through her blond curls as she tried to make sense of it all. A bunch of old articles from these magazines no one had ever heard of. Some notes in Bethesda's irritatingly careful handwriting, describing her conversation with Ms. Zmuda about the tattoo.\n\nAnd the so-called set list.\n\nPamela studied it carefully. Was it _really_ just a set list? Maybe Bethesda was wrong. Maybe it was a secret code after all! A code that had to be cracked. Some sort of message\u2014but from who?\n\n_Oh my god,_ she thought suddenly. _Aliens. Ms. Finkleman is an alien!_\n\nAnd then she thought: _Pamela! Enough with the stupid aliens!_\n\nDownstairs, Mrs. Preston settled into a living-room chair and smiled lovingly at her husband, who was engrossed in a mystery novel called _Murdered... For Good._\n\n\"What? \" he said finally, without looking up.\n\n\"Oh, nothing,\" she said with a wistful sigh. \"Our little Pamela is having boy problems.\"\n\n# [18\n\n\"ONE! TWO! THREE! FOUR!\"](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c18)\n\n_By mid-March,_ Project SWT was under way almost every night, meaning that Bethesda was hanging out with Tenny Boyer more than her best friends. Of course, if they told people they were studying together they'd have to say _why:_ it would give away the whole secret arrangement. So at school, they remained strangers. Bethesda still had lunch with the Schwartz sisters and Violet Kelp, and Tenny still had lunch by himself, listening to his iPod and bobbing his head, reading a magazine or scrawling ideas for the rock show in a spiral notebook.\n\nThe only thing was, when Tenny and Bethesda passed each other in the hallway, he gave her this tiny little nod, and she gave him a tiny little nod back. Like, for example, every day when Bethesda was on the way from third period to fourth period and she passed Tenny at the Hallway C water fountain going the opposite way.\n\nOne day she lingered by the water fountain for over two minutes, waiting for him so they could nod, but he never walked by. (That night he explained that Mrs. Petrides had held him after because he fell asleep during a vocab drill.)\n\n_Oh, well,_ she thought glumly as she sat down for fourth period.\n\nShe really liked the little nod thing.\n\n\"Oh my god\u2014it's her! Wait, is that her?\"\n\n\"Yeah! Whoa!\"\n\n\"Are you sure? She looks so... boring.\" \"I know!\"\n\nMs. Finkleman kept walking, keeping her head down.\n\nThe revelations, about her \"secret past\" and the new plans for the Choral Corral, had spread through the school like a fever. Ms. Ida Finkleman, aka Little Miss Mystery, was the subject of every conversation, and her Band and Chorus room the epicenter of a great continuous whirl of excited speculation. The details about the rock show were a closely held secret, and students traded rumors about what songs were going to be in the show, who was playing what, and (as one particularly electrifying rumor had it) who would be biting the head off a live chicken during the finale.\n\nAnd so Ms. Finkleman, the timid little agouti who for so long had survived in the jungles of Mary Todd Lincoln Middle School by remaining nameless and faceless, a total unknown, had suddenly been plucked from the protective obscurity of the underbrush and thrown out into the harsh sunlit glare of the savannah. Everywhere Ms. Finkleman looked, someone was staring, looking her up and down, taking her measure. As she emerged from her teal Honda Civic in the faculty parking lot, kids ran up, took furtive cellphone pictures, and ran away. As she traveled the hallways, students pointed at her and giggled nervously, whispering behind their hands. Every time she entered the teachers' lounge, she discovered her colleagues having animated conversations that ended abruptly as soon as she came in.\n\nEven the Band and Chorus room, long her private sanctuary in the howling wilderness, was no longer safe. Yesterday Principal Van Vreeland had \"popped in to offer support,\" but the principal's support was not terribly supportive, especially when she just stood in the back of the room, dancing. Ms. Finkleman could imagine nothing more distracting than having the school's highest official doing her bizarre, gyrating, snakelike dance moves\u2014unless it was when she was joined by the assistant principal, Jasper, who stood next to her, clapping his hands at odd intervals and shifting back and forth like the Frankenstein monster.\n\nThe day before that, it had been Mr. Darlington, the lanky, awkward science teacher, who stopped by midway through their rehearsal period.\n\n\"Can I help you?\"\n\n\"I just needed to, uh, borrow a, uh, music stand for an experiment we're doing,\" said Mr. Darlington, adjusting his black horn-rim glasses on the bridge of his nose. \"On the chemical properties of, uh...\" Mr. Darlington trailed off, smiling lamely. \"Music stands.\"\n\n\"That's fine,\" Ms. Finkleman said impatiently, motioning toward the cluster of music stands in the back of the room. But instead of fetching one and leaving, Mr. Darlington grabbed a clementine off her desk and folded his spindly frame into a student chair to watch Half-Eaten Almond Joy practice \"Livin' on a Prayer\"\u2014while, presumably, his sixth-grade chemistry students watched a filmstrip.\n\n\"One! Two! _One, two, three, four!_ \"\n\nTenny called out the tempo, played the opening lick, and the Careless Errors started in on \"Holiday.\" Ezra McClellan clabbered away at the drums, carefully counting to himself as he played, muttering under his breath to keep himself on rhythm. Lisa Deckter, who was a violinist, really, and still getting the hang of guitar, stared at her fingers as they churned out the rhythm riff that drove the song. Pamela Preston looked totally bored, shaking her maracas with obvious distaste.\n\nBethesda Fielding began to sing, nervous and tentative, pushing a loose strand of reddish tannish hair away from her mouth. \"Let's go away for a while,\" she sang, \"you and me, to a strange and distant land...\"\n\nWith each phrase she moved a little closer to the microphone, and then a little farther back, unsure of how close you were supposed to stand. The mike was set too tall for her, and she couldn't figure out how to get it closer to her mouth. When she got to the end of the third line (\"Where they speak no word of truth\"), she somehow took a big step forward with her right foot just as she jerked the stand up with her left hand, and it smacked her in the tooth. \"Ouch!\" she said, really loud and right into the microphone. The sudden noise totally messed up Ezra's rhythm.\n\nOnly Tenny Boyer, coloring the spots between vocal lines with fills (basically little mini-guitar solos) was completely comfortable. Eyes half shut, head thrown back, lips slightly parted, he looked like a rock-and-roll superstar.\n\nBethesda recovered her equilibrium in time to stammer out the words of the chorus (\"Holllllllliday! Far away!\"). As the song chugged forward, Bethesda looked at Tenny with awe. _He's like a totally different person._\n\n\"All right, folks,\" said Ms. Finkleman, clapping her hands sharply as soon as the Careless Errors managed to get to the end. \"Let's move on.\"\n\nMs. Finkleman sounded different these days. Her kids noticed, of course, and figured it was only natural. They assumed that this new voice\u2014icy, tough, unemotional\u2014was that of the punk-rock lady who had emerged from within the nerdy band teacher. The truth was a little more complicated. There had been a time in Ms. Finkleman's life when rock and roll had been the most important thing to her. But now, to hear these songs, this music, was the last thing she wanted. So to protect herself, she didn't _let_ herself hear it: She listened to the practice sessions without hearing. She watched without seeing. She stood with arms crossed, trying her hardest to experience no emotion at all. And she spoke in the voice of a woman who was there in the room, but at the same time a million miles away.\n\nLet Tenny pay attention, she thought as the Careless Errors set down their instruments and went back to their seats. Let him be in charge. Just get through this, and then life will go back to how it's supposed to be.\n\n\"Okay,\" she said. \"'I Got You' folks? You're up.\"\n\n\"One! Two! _One, two, three, four!_ \"\n\nChester Hu clicked his sticks together as he called out the groove, and Band Number One lit into \"I Got You.\" Victor Glebe played the bass with his eyes shut tight, trying to see the next note with his mind, like a Jedi. Bessie Stringer blew feverishly into her baritone sax, her eyes wide, her cheeks puffed out like a chipmunk. As he drummed, Chester mumbled the words of the song, because he had timed his snare hits to the lyrics; Rachel Portnoy, the singer, glanced at Chester every once in a while because she kept forgetting the words.\n\nBut all of them were happy.\n\nUnlike their teacher, the students of sixth-period Music Fundamentals were having a great time. The Choral Corral, their moment in the spotlight, was still over a month away, but their lives had already been transformed. Every time a teacher \"stopped by\" to watch them in awe, every fresh rumor that made the rounds, further confirmed their status as the new celebrities of Mary Todd Lincoln Middle School. And nor were they celebrities for something school related, like Lana Pinfield, that girl from Grover Cleveland who came in fourth in the National Spelling Bee three years ago. No, the students of sixth-period Music Fundamentals were _rock_ celebrities, and no one could imagine anything cooler.\n\nChester had been carrying his drumsticks everywhere he went, their tips poking from the inside of his coat like twin badges of honor. Carmine Lopez was inspired to carry his guitar case everywhere he went, even to gym class, where it was mildly dented by a flying dodgeball.\n\n\"Hey, aren't you in Ms. Finkleman's sixth-period class?\" kids would say to them, rushing up to the Schwartz sisters or Rory Daas or Hayley Eisenstein or whoever. \"That is _so_ awesome.\"\n\nThey even had their own language. Once, during one particularly raucous practice session (when the members of Half-Eaten Almond Joy had finally played \"Livin' on a Prayer\" all the way through, while all the others improvised a praying-themed group dance), Lisa Deckter had suddenly called out, \"That is so R.\" And when everyone looked at her, she said, \"You know\u2014R. As in, Rock? \"\n\nSoon they were all ranking everything\u2014pencils, lessons, teachers, movies, food, whatever\u2014by its relative rockfulness. Something that was good was R. Something that was _really_ good was WR, or Way Rock. Something that was so good you couldn't stand it was Totally Way Rock, or TWR.\n\n\"This macaroni and cheese is WR! \" the kids of sixth-period Music Fundamentals would say. Or \"A pop quiz? That is so UR! \" (As in, Un-Rock.) Or \"Hey, the cafeteria was damaged in a grease fire\u2014so they're ordering pizza for school lunch! That is TWR! \"\n\nAnd, as late March moved inexorably toward April, Ms. Finkleman's students got better and better at rock.\n\n\"One! Two! _One, two, three, four!_ \"\n\nKevin McKelvey counted in \"Livin' on a Prayer.\" As Half-Eaten Almond Joy played, Tenny sat in the back of the room, watching, his eyes flickering from deep inside his blue-hooded sweatshirt. If anyone glanced over, they'd think it was just good ol' Tenny, spacing out as usual. You'd never guess his mind was whirring like a motor, clocking mistakes, listing corrections.\n\nHe noticed that Carmine Lopez's chording was woefully imprecise. He noticed that Rory Daas kept messing up the chorus, which only had about six words in it. He noticed that Hayley Eisenstein's bass strap was in serious need of adjustment.\n\nBut somewhere along the way, Tenny realized something: This is gonna be good. This is gonna be _really_ good.\n\nAs he played chords with his left hand, Kevin McKelvey sawed the air with his right, keeping time. The blue-blazered Piano Kid had emerged as the leader of the eighties rock band, and the others all looked to him for tempo. When he was satisfied that they were with him, Kevin brought both hands back down on the keyboard. His fingers leaped aggressively across the keys.\n\nKevin had easily mastered \"Livin' on a Prayer.\" Actually, he had moved on from \"Livin' on a Prayer\" to mastering all the other songs of Bon Jovi. As he learned each number, he studied the way the band's keyboardist, David Bryan, handled them. What had seemed easy at first now seemed extraordinarily clever, the work of a virtuoso musician finding small trills and little pockets of melody to make simple songs glorious.\n\nFrom there, Kevin kept going. He had been using his hours and hours of daily piano practice to conduct a self-guided tour of all the greats of rock piano, from Little Richard to Billy Joel to Fiona Apple to Ben Folds. He had discovered that rock was about more than musicianship\u2014it was about facial expression and physical contortion and, and, and... _attitude._\n\nKevin McKelvey had been working on his attitude.\n\nNow, on the final chorus of \"Livin' on a Prayer,\" he did something he had been meaning to try for a while. He kicked one foot out from under the keyboard, slipped off his tan loafer, and played a concluding glissando with his toes.\n\nThe class burst into applause. \"Whoa!\" everyone yelled. Chester Hu, as usual, yelled loudest of all. \"That is TWR!\"\n\nKevin gave a little salute and slipped back into his loafer.\n\nLittle Miss Mystery rapped her baton on the music stand, cutting off the applause. \"Let's do it one more time.\"\n\n\"Hey,\" said Ellis Walters, Half-Eaten's drummer, as he rubbed sweat off the back of his neck with a paper towel. \"Maybe it's time for you to practice singing the song with us, Ms. Finkleman. I mean, that's still going to be part of the show, right? \"\n\n\"Yes,\" she replied quickly, her voice echoing distantly. \"But not yet. We're not ready for that yet.\"\n\nThat same Friday afternoon, the last school day in March, Ms. Finkleman was walking distractedly through the parking lot. She was thinking about Ellis's question\u2014she knew that soon enough she would indeed have to get up there, take the microphone and actually start singing along as she had promised. The idea turned her stomach. _Soon, Ida,_ she counseled herself. _Soon this will all be over._\n\nThe final bell had rung and she was walking from the schoolroom door to her teal Honda Civic when she passed by a knot of kids lounging in the bright warmth of the first truly gorgeous spring day. These were the kind of kids of whom Ms. Finkleman the agouti was most fearful. They were like leopards, bright and sleek and supremely self-possessed. As she passed them, the two boys were playing a game that involved smacking each other hard on the back of the head, while the three girls laughed high flights of laughter and tossed their chestnut hair in the spring wind. Ms. Finkleman lowered her head and hurried by, a stack of sheet music clutched to her chest.\n\nThen she heard it. Clapping. _Oh, terrific,_ she thought. _Ironic applause. How delightful. After years of barely knowing who I am, kids are now mocking me._\n\nBut then, from the corner of her eye, she saw that the kids weren't just clapping\u2014they were standing up. She stopped walking. And she saw in their expressions the same frank awe and admiration she saw every day from her own students in sixth-period Music Fundamentals.\n\nThey weren't mocking her. These kids were _seriously_ applauding.\n\n\"Yeah, Ms. Finkleman!\" they shouted, and she ventured to give them a little wave. \"You rule!\"\n\n\"Ms. Finkleman rocks!\"\n\nMs. Finkleman got in her Civic, turned on the engine, and\u2014she couldn't help it\u2014she smiled.\n\n# [19\n\nCHRISTMAS LIGHTS](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c19)\n\n_That night,_ at exactly 6:53 p.m., Tenny Boyer was sitting on a beanbag chair on the floor of his room, furiously writing out notes from that afternoon's rehearsal. He cast occasional agitated glances at the clock, which was a collector's item he'd gotten off eBay. It featured a photograph of the legendary guitarist Pete Townshend of The Who, midway through one of his trademark windmill guitar moves, in which he would bring his hand all the way above his head, pick gripped tightly, before bringing it down in a mighty swoop to hit the next power chord. Pete's windmilling right hand was the minute hand of Tenny's bedroom clock; with each tick forward, it was telling him to get up and leave.\n\nBut Tenny had a lot more to do. He wracked his brain, trying to remember everything the three bands weren't nailing yet. Directing the rock show would be a lot easier if he could just take notes in class\u2014but then, of course, everyone would know it was him, not Ms. Finkleman, who was in charge.\n\nOkay, so, let's see. He needed to make sure that on the final chorus of \"Holiday\" all the Careless Errors sang backup, so the song would have a nice, satisfying build. Lisa was doing it, but Ezra needed to relax about his drumming and chime in, and so did that sulky blond girl on the maracas\u2014what was her name? Pamela.\n\nAs for Half-Eaten Almond Joy, they had problems of their own. A big eighties-rock stadium song like \"Livin' on a Prayer\" should definitely have a kind of ragged quality, but they were sounding downright sloppy. Carmine Lopez was enjoying himself a little too much on rhythm guitar, dancing around and waggling his tongue. Of course there was room in rock for a little tongue wagglin', but you gotta keep the rhythm\u2014that's why it's called _rhythm_ guitar! And as for what's-his-face in the suit, the Piano Kid...\n\nTenny stared out his window for a second, pencil idle. He was thinking he should tell Ms. Finkleman to have the Piano Kid dial it down a little with all the goofball stuff. Tenny liked showmanship as much as the next guy, but Kevin (that was his name, Kevin) was starting to get a little over the top, vigorously bouncing up and down on the piano bench during his solos and whooping \"whoo-hoos!\" like Little Richard. But then Tenny crossed out the note. Better to let the Piano Kid have his fun. _Something about that guy,_ Tenny thought. _That guy needs to rock._\n\nPete Townshend's hand clicked forward meaningfully. Tenny muttered, \"Argle bargle,\" an expression he had picked up from Bethesda. He knew there was something he was forgetting. What was it?\n\n_Oh! Duh!_\n\nTenny scrawled it in big letters at the very bottom of the page, his best idea ever.\n\n**(e?)** _NSCONV_\n\nTenny gave a grunt of satisfaction and set down his pencil as Pete's hand reached directly above his head. Time to go to Bethesda's house.\n\nPamela Preston stared at the evidence again. _Come on, Pammy. You can figure this out._\n\nShe was still trying to solve the mystery of why Little Miss Mystery had given up her rock-star existence and why she'd kept it a secret up till now. She'd sifted through Bethesda's Special Project notes a thousand times; she had skulked around the Band and Chorus room digging for clues and found nothing but a boring teacher's room, with a boring desk and a boring bowl of clementines. She had even swallowed her pride and gone to the stupid Wilkersholm Memorial Public Library and dug through the newspaper archives, looking for anything about Ms. Finkleman that Bethesda hadn't uncovered.\n\nNow, Pamela turned back to the set list. _What had Bethesda missed? Wait! Where was the date? When was this set list from? Maybe\u2014maybe it was from Little Miss Mystery's last show! And maybe it was a total failure!_\n\n_And maybe that's why she quit being a rock star! Because she stank at it! And... and... and it's so embarrassing... and..._\n\nShe crunkled her water bottle and growled. _And maybe I've got nothing._\n\n\"Oh, forget it! \" she cried, hurling the bottle across the room. \"I give up! \"\n\n\"What do you mean, give up? \"\n\nPamela's father, a tall man with a furrowed brow and a bristly black mustache, stood in her doorway with his arms crossed, a paperback mystery called _Murdered... Again_ dangling from one hand.\n\n\"It's nothing, Father,\" Pamela answered glumly, fishing around under her bed for the maracas. _I might as well practice my supplemental percussion,_ she thought miserably as she pulled them out. \"Don't worry about it.\"\n\n\"I will worry about it, Pamela Preston. I distinctly heard you say that you give up, and I'd like to know what you're giving up on.\" He cocked his head and gave a strained half smile. \"These aren't, uh, more of the boy problems your mother keeps\u2014\"\n\n\"No! I'm not having any boy problems. It's just\u2014it's just...\"\n\nPamela burst into tears. Her father's uncomfortable smile grew more uncomfortable. \"There, there,\" he said, still standing in the doorway of her bedroom with his arms folded. \"There, there.\"\n\nThen Pamela, her chin quivering, said, \"I need to find a way to make this dumb teacher do what I want her to do! And there's this secret information that I could use to, like, _force_ her to do it.\" Pamela took a heaving breath and dabbed at her eyes with the corner of her frilly lilac bedspread.\n\n\"Ah,\" her father said, nodding thoughtfully. \"Blackmail. My little girl is growing up so fast.\"\n\n\"Well, except, I can't figure out the secret. So I give up. I give up! \"\n\n\"Oh, no, you don't, young lady.\" Pamela's father stepped into her room and sat down next to her on the bed and looked her right in the eye. \"We are Prestons, Pamela. And Prestons _never_ give up.\"\n\nPamela sniffled. \"We don't?\"\n\n\"If you want to blackmail this teacher, by gum, you go in there and you do it.\" He thumped his mystery novel on his knee for emphasis. \"And if you don't have the dirt you need on her, well then, you just stand up straight, hold your head high, and _bluff.\"_ As he spoke, Pamela sat up straighter and stuck out her chin. \"You bluff your little pants off, Pamela Preston! You hear me? \"\n\nPamela looked back at him resolutely, her final tear rapidly drying on her cheek.\n\n\"I love you, Daddy!\"\n\n\"Yes, well,\" he muttered, blushing. \"Go to sleep.\"\n\n\"You're late,\" said Bethesda Fielding, impatiently gesturing Tenny inside. \"Sorry.\"\n\nTenny slouched into the kitchen and ran his hand through his hair. As always, Bethesda's kitchen smelled richly of buttered microwave popcorn; as always, Bethesda's dad yelled, \"Hey, Tenny,\" from the living room, where he was working his way through a root beer float and staring at the Weather Channel.\n\n\"All right,\" Bethesda said. \"Let's get to it.\"\n\nIn her imagination, Bethesda adjusted her top hat and cracked a whip. Lately she had dropped the whole Bethesda Fielding, Mountain Climber thing and thought of herself as Bethesda Fielding, Lion Tamer. The task of preparing Tenny Boyer for Mr. Melville's test was the lion. Or, wait\u2014maybe Tenny was the lion. Or maybe Bethesda was the whip, and Mr. Melville was the lion... oh, what did it matter? Bethesda the Lion Tamer wasn't doing any better than Bethesda Fielding the Mountain Climber, Bethesda the Riverboat Pilot, or Bethesda the World War I Flying Ace. After six weeks of intense studying, with Melville adding more material every day, Tenny Boyer knew exactly as much as he had when they started: nothing.\n\n\"Let's refresh,\" Bethesda began. \"The Quartering Act. What do you\u2014\"\n\n\"Oh, hey,\" Tenny interrupted. \"I had the raddest idea for an encore. I was thinking\u2014\"\n\n\"Stop, Tenny! Come _on,\"_ Bethesda answered sharply. \"We are not talking about the rock show tonight.\"\n\n\"But it's really coming up soon, dude.\"\n\n\"The test is coming up really soon, too!\" Bethesda gestured helplessly at her copy of _A More Perfect Union._ \"Remember? Any day now Mr. Melville is going to announce the Floating Midterm. He could do it tomorrow! And when he does, we're only going to have one night left.\"\n\n\"Yeah,\" Tenny said glumly.\n\n\"I mean, I'm sorry to be harsh, but to be totally honest, I feel like you're just as far behind as when we started.\" Bethesda had been wanting to say something like this for a few days. She still didn't really _know_ Tenny\u2014their entire relationship consisted of A) secretly nodding at each other by the Hallway C water fountain, and B) sitting around her table failing to study American history\u2014but she felt like they had started to become friends, in this weird way. Which is why she felt comfortable being kind of stern: It was for his own good. He had to pass this test! \"We have to make some kind of breakthrough here, or you're really sunk.\"\n\n\"I know.\" He sounded miserable.\n\n\"Well, whenever you're stumped on social studies,\" which, Bethesda didn't add, was constantly, \"instead of figuring it out, you change the subject to the rock show.\"\n\n\"All right. So let's... let's just\u2014\"\n\nBut it was too late: Bethesda was on a roll. \"I don't get you, Tenny. You're the one who needs help. You're the one who's going to fail this test, and this subject, and probably have to go to St. Francis Xavier. Ms. Finkleman is trying to do you a favor here, and so am I. But I can't if all you want to talk about all the time is the rock show.\"\n\nSuddenly it was really quiet. Bethesda had been speaking louder than she meant to. For a long moment, the two kids didn't say anything. Tenny picked up one of the pencils Bethesda had left out for him and chewed on the eraser. Bethesda walked silently to the fridge and opened a mango passionberry Snapple. In the other room, Bethesda's dad talked to the television. \"What? You think you can outrun a hurricane? You can't outrun a hurricane, pal.\" As she sat back at the table, Bethesda noticed that Tenny was absently making guitar chords with his fingers. _He probably doesn't even realize he's doing that._ She thought. _Like me, with the sneaker squeaking._\n\n\"It's not...\" Tenny trailed off.\n\n\"What?\"\n\n\"It's not that I don't _want_ to learn this stuff, dude\u2014Bethesda. I mean, Bethesda.\" \"That's okay.\"\n\n\"It's just\u2014it's my brain. I have, like, a brain problem.\"\n\nBethesda sipped her Snapple. They were wasting time. They should stop talking and just get to work. But there was something about the way Tenny was sitting, with his eyes most of the way closed, his head tilted slightly forward, like he was trying to look inside his head and examine his own problematic brain that made her wait quietly until he spoke again.\n\n\"It's, like, inside my brain, everything you say is gray.\"\n\n\"Um, thanks?\"\n\n\"Not everything. Not, like, 'How are you?' But all this history stuff is gray. And gross. All these wars, and the guys in their funny hats with their guns and stuff. It's all gray.\"\n\n\"I think I know what you mean,\" said Bethesda. Then she predicted what he was going to say next, which was a nervous habit Bethesda sometimes had during serious conversations. Tenny would say that when he thought about the rock show, everything was in color. And she knew how she would respond: for _her,_ the opposite was true. Rock was essentially boring and gray, but _history_ was colorful.\n\nBut as it turned out, Bethesda had predicted incorrectly.\n\n\"When we're working on the rock show, or I'm thinking about it, it's not gray. It's _black.\"_\n\n\"Huh?\" said Bethesda, and then smiled\u2014she sounded like Tenny.\n\n\"Yeah. It's like I'm in a room where everything is totally black,\" Tenny continued. \"Weird, right? Then when the chords start, or a big backbeat kicks in, one by one, all these little lights go on. Like those little lights you buy on a string. What do you call them? \"\n\n\"Christmas lights.\"\n\n\"Exactly.\"\n\nBethesda loved Christmas lights. Every year her father spent three days stringing the house with them, and he usually fell off the roof at some point and ended up hanging by the gutters. And it usually took seven tries before they would all light up. Every year he vowed that it wasn't worth the effort and he would never do it again. But every year he did, and it was always worth it. Bethesda _loved_ Christmas lights.\n\n\"And so, when I'm thinking about the rock show,\" Tenny went on, \"or, you know, when I'm actually _listening_ to music, it's like my mind goes to perfect, beautiful black, and then it fills with Christmas lights. And they're flickering and buzzing and making all these wild patterns.\"\n\nHe paused for a second, lifted his head and opened his eyes, and looked right at Bethesda for the first time that night. She realized that it was the first time he had looked directly at her since they began studying together six weeks ago.\n\n\"You know what I mean? \"\n\n\"Yeah,\" said Bethesda. \"I do.\"\n\nTenny sort of shrugged his shoulders. \"Anyway, I just want you to know that I _know_ what a pain it is, tutoring me, and I'm sorry. I promise I'll try and focus. It's just... you know, these, uh...\"\n\n\"Christmas lights,\" Bethesda concluded.\n\n\"Yeah.\"\n\n\"Okay,\" she said softly. \"So, let's get to work.\"\n\nAs anyone who has lived through Mrs. Petrides's English Language Arts class and her Thursday vocabulary drills can tell you, the word _paradox_ means \"something that contradicts itself.\" And the moment the words \"Let's get to work\" escaped Bethesda Fielding's mouth\u2014and she tied her hair in a ponytail and put on her fiercest, most determined face\u2014her situation became deeply paradoxical.\n\nBecause at that moment she knew that she was done for. There was no chance that all the work she had put in was going to pay off. After six weeks of intense studying, after all of her tricks of the imagination, early American history was a big gray mush for Tenny Boyer, and it was going to stay that way.\n\nBut also, at the _very same moment,_ she was more determined than ever for him to pass the Floating Midterm. Not just for Ms. Finkleman (to make up to her for revealing her secret past to the world), and not just for herself (to prove that she was a terrific tutor), but for Tenny himself. She couldn't give up on him.\n\nShe liked him\u2014though Bethesda didn't exactly _know_ that she liked him.\n\nAnd she definitely didn't know that the fact that she liked him was about to change both of their lives forever.\n\n# [20\n\nONE MORE PART OF THE SECRET](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c20)\n\n_\"Little Miss_ Mystery! Wait up!\"\n\nMs. Finkleman stopped, startled, in the mostly empty parking lot. She'd been arriving at school super early every day to meet with Tenny Boyer, so she could get that day's notes from him in secret. So it was a bit unnerving when, one day in early April, she stepped out of her Honda Civic forty-five minutes before the first bell and heard someone calling out to her, frantically. Especially since he was calling her by that ridiculous name, which she still couldn't get used to. After all, until a few weeks ago, it was a name she hadn't thought about\u2014in fact had tried with strenuous effort _not_ to think about\u2014for years.\n\n\"Miss Mystery!\"\n\nThe student racing toward her was one she had never seen before, with wild eyes and hair a mess, waving some sort of rumpled blue flag over his head to get her attention.\n\n\"Hey, I was\u2014I was hoping to catch you,\" the kid panted, out of breath and twittering with excitement. \"Miss Mystery, I want to\u2014there's something I've really gotta tell you.\"\n\nThe student was hunched over, trying to catch his breath. And with a start, Ms. Finkleman realized that she _did_ know him. It wasn't a flag that now hung limply from his left hand, gently flapping in the spring breeze. It was a navy blue blazer.\n\n\"Kevin?\"\n\n\"Yes. Hi. Okay, so,\" Kevin McKelvey began, his chest still heaving. \"My father came home last night. He, um, he's been away for, like, two months, playing Prokofiev in the National Symphony Hall in Beijing.\"\n\n\"Wow,\" murmured Ms. Finkleman. She loved Prokofiev.\n\n\"Whatever,\" Kevin said, and shook his head rapidly, dismissively. Prokofiev was not the point. \"As soon as he got home my mom took him aside for this extremely urgent conversation. She told him how I haven't been practicing for my stupid recitals since I've been doing all this stuff for your class.\"\n\nMs. Finkleman's brow creased. Just what she needed: An angry concert pianist. \"Oh?\"\n\n\"Yeah,\" Kevin continued, speaking very rapidly. \"And at first I was going to apologize and say I was sorry and that I would rededicate myself to the fine art of classical piano, and have respect for myself and for my instrument, and all that stuff. Because, you know, my dad, he's really... he's my _dad,_ you know? \"\n\n\"Take a breath, Kevin.\"\n\nKevin took a breath. \"But instead I sort of heard myself talking all about Little Miss Mystery. All about you. I had to explain who you were and about your old band and stuff, because of course my father had never heard of it. Anyway, I said that\u2014well, I told him that rock music had really changed me. I think I said it altered the substance of my soul. Weird, right? But how now at last I could feel the joy in the piano that I was always supposed to feel and, and, and...\"\n\nMs. Finkleman took a deep breath of her own. _Oh, boy._\n\n\"And?\"\n\n\"And they grounded me, but I said they would have to chain me to the wall if they thought they would keep me out of the rock show. And we yelled a lot. Basically, it was the worst conversation I've ever had in my whole life.\"\n\n\"Oh,\" said Ms. Finkleman. \"Oh, dear. Well, Kevin, I'm really sorry about this. What can I do?\"\n\nKevin squinted at her, confused. \"Do? No, I\u2014\" He paused. \"I just wanted to say thank you.\"\n\nAnd then, in one quick movement, he took a step forward and hugged her tightly. \"Thank you so much.\" And then he ran off.\n\nFive minutes later, Ms. Finkleman slipped down Hallway A, took a right at the broken water fountain, and pushed open a door that said DARKROOM. The Mary Todd Lincoln photography program had been abruptly discontinued two years ago, when a kid named Tino something-or-other had won a contest for kids, held by a national photography magazine, with an \"abstract\" photo that turned out to be of his own butt. Nobody used the room anymore, which made it the perfect place for Ms. Finkleman and Tenny Boyer to conduct their secret sessions.\n\nShe waited silently in the red glowing semidarkness, sipping her English breakfast tea and breathing the sour chemical tang that still haunted in the room. _Oh, Kevin,_ she thought. _If only you knew._\n\nAfter a moment, Tenny Boyer pushed open the door of the darkroom, and he and Ms. Finkleman had the same brief introductory conversation they'd had every morning since preparations for the rock show began.\n\n\"Hey.\"\n\n\"Did anyone see you?\" \"Nope.\"\n\n\"All right. Quickly please. \"\n\n\"Okay,\" Tenny began. \"'Livin' on a Prayer.' Carmine is playing sloppy, and he's really gotta get it together. Push him, he'll crack it.\"\n\n\"Fine.\"\n\n\"And for the Careless Errors, what's up with Pamela? Tell her she can't stand there holding her maracas and scowling. She's gotta get into it.\"\n\n\"Fine.\"\n\nTenny flipped rapidly through his thick spiral notebook, checking off each item as he relayed it to Ms. Finkleman. \"Oh, on 'I Got You,' Tucker and Bessie have to work on that dance step. Drill them until it's in their bones.\"\n\n\"Fine.\"\n\n\"Braxton, on 'Holiday,' he's got to stay out of the way. He's trying out fills, but it sounds like a big mush, especially during the hush-hush part, the breakdown. Kevin can improvise, but not Braxton. He gets carried away and knocks the keyboard off the stand.\" \"Fine.\"\n\n\"Oh, and Chester is killing me. Tell him to loosen up on the backbeat. It's James Brown, he's not in the marching band anymore.\"\n\nMs. Finkleman looked at her watch. \"Anything else? \"\n\n\"Um, um...\" Tenny flipped frantically through his book. \"Yes! Oh! The best thing. The encore. They're gonna want one, so we've gotta be ready. I say we call everybody back out on stage, all the kids, plus you, of course\u2014and we do 'Not So Complicated.' By the Red Herrings. Perfect, right? \"\n\nMs. Finkleman drew a sharp breath.\n\n_No! No!_\n\nBut what could she say? Of course Tenny was right\u2014it only made sense. \"Fine.\"\n\n\"Great! \" Tenny pushed back the hood of his sweatshirt and beamed. \"Oh my god. This show is going to be so wicked! Don't you think?\"\n\nMs. Finkleman managed a small smile. These surreptitious morning meetings were difficult for her. The truth was, she liked Tenny. His sloppy enthusiasm was really rather charming. But it was that very enthusiasm\u2014 that anxious, excitable energy\u2014that reminded Ms. Finkleman of every rock person she had ever known, and one rock person in particular. Face-to-face with Tenny Boyer in the red dark of the abandoned photo lab, Ms. Finkleman found herself wanting to engage seriously with him, to discuss the rock show. To get into it, as he would say. But she mustn't.\n\nInstead, she retreated into teacher mode. \"Tennyson?\" she asked suddenly. \"How is the studying going? \"\n\nThere was a long pause.\n\n\"Uh. Fine.\"\n\n\"Really, Tenny? You feel prepared for Mr. Melville'stest?\"\n\n\"Oh, you know,\" Tenny said with a half smile. \"Getting there.\"\n\n\"Good. Because my understanding is, he may announce the date at any moment.\"\n\n\"Yeah, I know. No, it's going great. Really great.\"\n\n\"Good,\" said Ms. Finkleman again.\n\nMs. Finkleman watched Tenny leave. She fervently hoped he wasn't lying, that he was really learning something from his work with Bethesda. The fact that this academically challenged young man would benefit from the arrangement was the only thing that made it acceptable to involve the children in her ongoing deception. That was her bargain with herself.\n\nShe turned down Hallway C, took a sip of tea, and walked into her classroom.\n\n\"Ah. Ms. Finkleman,\" said a voice. \"What an _unexpected_ pleasure.\"\n\nMs. Finkleman stopped just inside the door. This morning was certainly turning out to be full of surprises. \"Pamela? What are you doing here?\"\n\nPamela Preston sat in Ms. Finkleman's chair, leaning way back, her fingers laced behind her head. Her feet, clad in strappy black sandals, rested confidently on the desk. \"I might ask you the same thing,\" she said with a cunning grin.\n\n\"What do you mean? This is my classroom.\"\n\n\"Oh, right. That's true,\" said Pamela, momentarily confused. She quickly regained her composure and narrowed her eyes at Ms. Finkleman. \"Now. You and I need to have a little chat.\"\n\n\"Oh?\"\n\nMs. Finkleman did not know exactly what to do next. She had never come into her own classroom at 8:45 to find a student sitting in her chair, feet propped up on her desk.\n\n\"Well, make it quick,\" she said simply. \"I've got a lot of work to do this morning.\" Ms. Finkleman began to putter around her room, adjusting music stands, pulling up the blinds that covered the windows.\n\n\"I've discovered a secret about you,\" Pamela said, her voice hardening. \"Or, I should say, a secret about Little Miss Mystery.\"\n\nMs. Finkleman stopped and looked carefully at Pamela Preston. \"Everyone already knows that secret, Pamela.\"\n\n\"Not _all_ of it,\" Pamela replied, in a husky, menacing tone that chillingly reminded Ms. Finkleman of Principal Van Vreeland. \"Not the secret reason why you put your rock-star life behind you and kept it hidden for so long. Nobody knows that part except for me, Ms. Finkleman. And if you don't want it revealed, I'd suggest we get back to rehearsing our traditional English folk ballads. Today.\"\n\nA cold shiver ran up Ms. Finkleman's spine.\n\n_Is it true? Could this obnoxious little girl with the blond ringlets and the lilac perfume have found out the truth? The real truth?_\n\n_And is she_ blackmailing _me?_\n\n\"Okay,\" said Ms. Finkleman, trying to think clearly. \"What's the secret? \"\n\nPamela paused. \"Um, what? \"\n\n\"You say you've found secret information about why I never told anyone I was a rock star. So what's the secret information? \"\n\n\"But you already know what it is. So, um, it's, like, not really necessary for me to tell you.\"\n\nMs. Finkleman felt her heart unclench, and she worked hard to suppress a smile.\n\n\"Well, yes, I know it, and you say that you know it. So before we proceed, why don't you tell me, so I know that you know it. You know? \"\n\nPamela grew red in the face. \"I just do, okay?\" she said stubbornly. \"I know it.\"\n\nFor a child so intent on blackmail, Pamela Preston was a terrible liar. \"Do as I say! \" she insisted hotly, rising from Ms. Finkleman's chair and staring at her. \"Let's go back to the folk ballads and I won't tell everyone the truth! The\u2014the _secret_ truth! \"\n\nBy now it was painfully obvious that Pamela was bluffing. But Ms. Finkleman realized how much she wanted to _let_ herself be bluffed. How easy it would be to just say, \"Okay, Pamela, you got me,\" and call off the whole thing. She could pull _Greensleeves and Other Traditional English Folk Ballads_ back out of her drawer.\n\nShe would have to weather the class's disappointment, and Principal Van Vreeland's fury, but all of this rock unpleasantness would be over. This was it\u2014this was her chance.\n\n\"Well, Pamela, what can I say? I suppose I've got no choice.\"\n\nPamela tilted her blond head and crossed her arms. A victorious smile spread across her face.\n\nBut then Ms. Finkleman remembered her conversation with Tenny Boyer that morning, in the flickering red light of the darkroom. \"Oh my god. This show is going to be so wicked,\" he had said, half declaring it as fact, half asking for her reassurance. \"Don't you think?\" She thought of Chester Hu, whacking away confidently at his drums; of Bessie Stringer and Tucker Wilson gleefully giggling as they stumbled through their dance moves; of Bethesda Fielding, earnest, goofy Bethesda, jumping around with the microphone, singing \"Holiday,\" her pigtails bouncing.\n\nShe remembered Kevin McKelvey. \"Thank you,\" he had said in the parking lot, and hugged her.\n\n\"Actually, Pamela,\" Ms. Finkleman said, and then took a deep breath. _This is it, Little Miss Mystery. No turning back now._ \"Get out.\"\n\n\"What?\"\n\n\"Go now, and we'll both forget that this conversation ever took place.\"\n\n\"But\u2014\"\n\n\"I am the teacher, and I decide on the material. If you have a problem with that, you can quit. Bear in mind, however, that the Choral Corral is a class requirement. If you want to receive a passing grade in Music Fundamentals, you will show up, and you will shake your maracas.\"\n\nPamela stood there, stony faced.\n\n\"Oh, and Pamela? \"\n\n\"Yes?\"\n\n\"Try to get into it a little, won't you?\"\n\nPamela Preston slunk miserably back down Hallway C, casting dirty looks at everyone she saw. Kevin McKelvey sat in the cafeteria, playing air piano on a bench, his blue blazer crumpled up beside him. Weird, spacey Tenny Boyer stood at his locker, humming that annoying Weezer song, smelling vaguely of chemicals for some reason. Bethesda Fielding sat thoughtfully at her desk in Mr. Melville's room.\n\n\"Oh, hi, Pamela,\" Bethesda bubbled. \"Neat shoes.\"\n\nEver since Pamela had called Bethesda out of nowhere and asked for her Special Project notes, Bethesda had been acting like they were best friends or something. Like they were seven years old again and swimming for the L'il Otters. Like Bethesda hadn't ruthlessly stolen the spotlight away from her. \"Hey, Pamela, I'm trying to figure out a way to teach someone something really fast. Any ideas?\"\n\n\"Why don't you figure it out yourself? \" Pamela snapped. \"You're so smart.\"\n\nMeanwhile, in the Band and Chorus room, Ms. Finkleman continued to prepare for her teaching day, pulling the cover off the piano and lining up the music stands before her first-period sixth graders arrived. She took a final sip of English breakfast tea and settled in behind her desk.\n\nThe truth was, there _was_ one more secret, even if Pamela Preston had no idea what it was.\n\nIda Finkleman was not Little Miss Mystery.\n\nShe had never been a rock star in her life.\n\n# [21\n\n\"GREAT BALLS OF FIRE\"](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c21)\n\n_In the_ basement of his father's house, Chester Hu was practicing the drums. In the past several weeks, Chester had been practicing a lot. In the process he had broken seven pairs of drumsticks, fractured his toe, and somehow snapped the hi-hat shut on his left hand, badly bruising his knuckles\u2014but he had kept right on practicing. Every night, and some mornings before school, he went over to his dad's place, picked up the drumsticks, and practiced. Endlessly he hammered away, trying to coordinate his right foot on the bass drum with his left hand on the snare and his right hand on the cymbals. Trying and failing, trying and occasionally nailing it, then\u2014finally\u2014nailing it every time.\n\nChester roared back into the second chorus of \"I Got You,\" whacking away at the snare, rattling the cymbals within an inch of their lives. His bass pedaling was in perfect sync with his snare hits and his hi-hat hand, all of them moving together like gears in a machine. He hollered out the lead vocal as he drummed.\n\n\"I feeeeel good!\" he shouted, feeling very good indeed.\n\nHe looked up at Victor Glebe, who was playing his electric bass with eyes half closed, his face a picture of serene pleasure.\n\n\"This is awesome!\" yelled Chester, his voice barely rising above the combined decibels of bass and drums. Victor nodded. Awesome.\n\nIt was like that all over town. It was Monday night, and the Choral Corral was on Friday\u2014so close the kids of sixth-period Music Fundamentals could practically smell it.\n\nShelly Schwartz played guitar in her room while Susie Schwartz played bass in hers.\n\nLittle Bessie Stringer with her gigantic baritone sax and heavyset Tucker Wilson with his little trumpet practiced their four-step shuffling choreography and played their unison horn parts. Rory Daas, lead singer for Half-Eaten Almond Joy, preened and strutted across the floor with a mop for a microphone, singing \"Livin' on a Prayer\" for his brother Declan (age three) and Declan's playdate, Sami (age two and three quarters). Outside the kitchen, Rory's mother stood with arms crossed, deciding whether to call a pre-adolescent therapist she had heard good things about.\n\nKevin McKelvey, his navy blue blazer and red-striped tie balled up in a heap on the floor of his room, was exuberantly playing \"Great Balls of Fire.\" In two and a half hours, his father would be boarding an overnight flight to Perth for a month of performances with the Australian National Symphony. To avoid another screaming argument with his parents, all Kevin had to do was stay in here until he left for the airport. So he had wheeled the giant antique Steinway around 180 degrees to block the entrance to his room.\n\n\"Come out of there, young man,\" his father called.\n\nKevin was passing the time with a Jerry Lee Lewis marathon. \"You shake my nerves and you rattle my brain!\" he sang as he played. \"Too much love drives a man insane!\"\n\nKevin's mother banged on the door. \"Enough, Kevin! Enough is enough! \"\n\nKevin sang louder. \"You broke my will! But what a thrill! Goodness, gracious, great balls of fire! \" He stood and kicked the bench away, sticking his butt up in the air as he pounded out the solo. He played it so hard the whole piano shook. The pedals squeaked as he leaned into them with the full weight of his body. Outside the bedroom, Kevin's father's eyes widened as he imagined the horrors being committed upon his grandfather's Steinway.\n\n\"Kevin! \" he shouted. \"If you don't stop right now, we will get rid of that piano.\" Mrs. McKelvey looked at her husband, shocked, but he repeated it. \"So help me god, we will get rid of it! \"\n\nThe music stopped.\n\nThere was a long pause.\n\nMr. and Mrs. McKelvey looked at each other.\n\nStanding at the piano, Kevin's eyes widened. His heart thudded in his chest. There was a part of him that had been waiting to hear those words for his whole life. _Get rid of it?_ That meant... normalcy. Afternoons free. A room where he could turn all the way around.\n\nBut that was before Ms. Finkleman.\n\nAnd Bon Jovi. And Little Richard, and Tori Amos, and Elton John, and...\n\nOutside the door, Kevin's parents stood waiting.\n\nKevin looked at the door, then back to the book propped up in front of him on the piano. _Jerry Lee Lewis: All the Number-One Hits._\n\n\"One! Two! _One, two, three, four!_ \" he shouted, and kept on going.\n\n\"I changed my mind!\" he hollered. \"This love is fine! Goodness, gracious, great balls of fire!\"\n\nAcross town, Bethesda Fielding sat at the computer in the living room, reading an email she had just gotten from Jamey Cullers, a friend from the _Mary Todd Lincoln Gazetteer_ who was a year older. Bethesda had asked her when Melville gave the Floating Midterm last year, and Jamey had just emailed back: April 23.\n\nThat was soon. That was really soon. If Melville was planning to give the test on April 23 again this year, that meant Bethesda had about three weeks to make some sort of breakthrough, to make history colorful somehow for Tenny Boyer.\n\nBethesda got up, stretched, and headed to her room, trying to think creatively. Hypnosis? Could Tenny be hypnotized into learning history? Visual aids? What about visual aids? What if, every time he got an answer wrong, she poured Snapple on his head? She laughed, picturing Tenny's unkempt bird's nest of hair soaked in orange strawberry.\n\nPlus, he got every question wrong\u2014where was she going to get all that Snapple?\n\nShe shouldn't even be thinking about this right now. She had four Pre-algebra problem sets, a science project to plan, and a mountain of English reading she was behind on. In her room, she picked up her book bag, and then put it down again.\n\nShe still needed to practice the encore.\n\nShe put the old Red Herrings seven-inch on the record player and sang along. \"You can call it overrated, tell me everything has faded! \" Bethesda sang in the tough-girl rock-singer voice she'd been working on for weeks now. \"But it's not so complicated! It's not so complicated! \" She jumped around her room, wiggling and bouncing with such enthusiasm that at the end of the second chorus she whacked her elbow against the door frame.\n\nShe kept right on singing. As she sang, she pictured Tenny beside her, his eyes half shut, his head bobbing, playing his guitar.\n\nJust a few streets away, in a small, comfortable home that smelled pleasantly of meat loaf, a plump gray-haired woman named Sally Ann was working on a project. Sally Ann had three giant piles of photographs of her various grandchildren, and it was well past time that she organized the pictures into albums. As Sally Ann spread the pictures across the table and wondered where to begin, her husband, Harry, came whistling into the room. She looked him up and down. \"Is that 'Moonlight in Vermont'? \"\n\n\"Why, so it is,\" her husband answered with a mischievous smile. Sally Ann set down her glue stick and looked squarely at Harry.\n\n\"All right, you,\" she said sternly. \"What are you plotting? \"\n\n\"Why, Sally Ann, I am neither plotting nor planning! I've just been figuring out my schedule, that's all. I thought I might give my Floating Midterm a bit early this year. Like, this Friday.\"\n\n\"Oh? And have you cleared it with the other teachers? Is there anything else on the schedule it might interfere with? \"\n\nMr. Melville's eyebrows danced merrily. \"Oh, I don't think so,\" he said with a dry chuckle. \"Nothing important.\"\n\n# [22\n\n\"LOSE? WE CAN'T LOSE!\"](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c22)\n\n_\"What S worse_ than dressing as a giant hot dog?\"\n\n\"I'm sorry, Principal Van Vreeland. Is that a riddle of some kind? \"\n\n\"No, it is not a riddle, you ignoramus! \" hissed Principal Van Vreeland at Jasper. \"Time is running out! The Choral Corral is _tomorrow!_ And I have yet to settle on the final terms of my bet with Principal Cohn!\"\n\n\"Oh, yes, right,\" said Jasper under his breath. \"That.\"\n\n\"So here is my current thinking: When they lose, Principal Cohn has to go to school in a giant hot-dog costume. For a week. No! A month! And here's the best part: On the back of the hot-dog costume, it'll say GROVER CLEVELAND KISSES MARY TODD LINCOLN'S BUNS.\"\n\n\"Ah,\" answered Jasper noncommittally.\n\n\"What? \" Principal Van Vreeland said sharply. \"See, _buns,_ like, hot-dog buns, but also\u2014\"\n\n\"I get the joke, Principal Van Vreeland. But presumably, if _our side_ loses the Choral Corral, then _you_ would be the one who has to wear the giant hot-dog costume.\"\n\n\"Lose?\" Principal Van Vreeland brayed laughter. \"We can't lose!\"\n\n\"But\u2014\"\n\n\"But nothing,\" the principal interrupted. \"Go find me a hot-dog costume! \"\n\n\"Very good, Principal Van Vreeland.\" Jasper paused at the door. \"At least the losing principal's humiliation will be confined to school grounds.\"\n\nHe closed the office door behind him, but not before he heard his boss say, \"School grounds, eh? Hmmmmm...\"\n\nJasper winced and scurried down the hall.\n\n# [23\n\nOUT OF TIME](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c23)\n\n_At that_ very moment, Bethesda was sitting in Mr. Melville's class, thinking, _Why?_\n\nAnd then she thought: _Stop it, Bethesda!_\n\nAnd then she thought: _Okay, but\u2014why?_\n\nIt was the mystery. It wouldn't leave her alone. The same question that had been tugging at her since that night in the food court, when this whole strange adventure began.\n\n_Why the deception? Why have Tenny plan the rock show?_\n\nShe had promised herself not to try to figure it out, to leave it alone, but her mystery-solving mind kept circling back around, dragging the mystery from the closet, saying, _Solve this! Solve it!_ And now it was Thursday: the Choral Corral was only one day away. Soon this chapter of her life would be closed forever, and Bethesda feared she would never know the answer.\n\n\"What? Come on!\"\n\nSuddenly Bethesda realized that someone was yelling. Actually, everybody was yelling.\n\n\"But\u2014but, Mr. Melville, you can't! \" \"We have to practice! \"\n\nThe voices of the students were outraged, horrified. \"You _can't_ give the test tomorrow! \"\n\nMr. Melville, on the other hand, had never sounded so calm and pleasant: \"Oh, but I think I can.\"\n\nBethesda looked around. First-period Social Studies was in an uproar. And then she saw the words on the board, scrawled in thick, menacing all-caps: FLOATING MIDTERM. TOMORROW.\n\nHayley Eisenstein waved her hand at Mr. Melville, spit flying out of the corners of her mouth. \"The Choral Corral is tomorrow!\"\n\n\"It _is?_ \" Mr. Melville tried to feign surprise, but the particular angle of his eyebrows left little doubt that this cruel bit of scheduling was no accident. \"Well, I don't expect anyone to be cramming this evening. If you've been preparing all along, as is your responsibility, the sudden arrival of the midterm should cause no surfeit of anxiety.\"\n\nEverybody groaned. No one in seventh-grade Social Studies knew what the word _surfeit_ meant, but they'd all be cramming like heck tonight, whether Mr. Melville expected it or not.\n\nThe mystery of Ms. Finkleman disappeared with a _poof_ from Bethesda's mind, replaced by a far more urgent problem. She craned around to look at Tenny Boyer, and saw in his eyes what she felt in her heart: Sheer panic. _They were out of time._ The test was tomorrow, and Tenny was going to fail. As Bethesda watched, he shut his eyes and shook his head helplessly, and Bethesda could just imagine what he was seeing: The cold metal gates of St. Francis Xavier Young Men's Education and Socialization Academy, swinging opening with a chilling creak to beckon him inside.\n\nAs the bell rang and Mr. Melville's students filed miserably into the hallway, still groaning, a plan materialized in Bethesda's mind. There was one way she could save Tenny Boyer. But was it really the sort of thing that she was capable of?\n\nThe plan followed Bethesda through the rest of her day, from class to class to lunch and back to class and then home. She tried to ignore it, to order it away, but the plan only grew more insistent, followed her more closely, got louder and louder in her mind.\n\nAt dinner, the plan was still there, haunting her\u2014tormenting her. She ignored it and tried to eat.\n\n\"Hello? McFuzz? Gertrude McFuzz? Are you in there?\"\n\n\"What? Yeah, Dad.\"\n\n\"I said, did you enjoy your lasagna? \" He pronounced it la-zag-nah, but Bethesda didn't laugh. \"I thought it was pretty grand.\"\n\n\"Right. Hey, Dad, can I be excused from the dishes? I've gotta get to the library.\"\n\nBethesda's father shrugged as he stood to clear the dishes from the table. \"Okey smokey, pokey. Just be home by nine, okay? Your mom is going to want to say good night. And you've got some serious day tomorrow.\"\n\n\"Yup.\"\n\nBethesda grabbed her backpack off the big chair in the living room where she had slung it.\n\n\"Oh, and before you go,\" her father said. \"Your friend Shelly called.\"\n\n\"She did?\"\n\n\"Yep. Oh, what did she say? She said please, please bring her copy of the lyrics tomorrow, because she wrote her bass part on it.\"\n\nBethesda, who had been at the front door, gathering up her bike helmet and shin pads, stopped, confused. \"But Shelly's not even in my band.\"\n\n\"Oh, then it must have been the other one. Suzie. Man, I can _never_ tell those two apart. Even in person. Forget about on the phone! \"\n\nStanding at the front door, her bike helmet dangling from her hand, Bethesda opened her mouth wide. _Oh my god,_ Bethesda thought suddenly. _Of course!_\n\n_\"_ You know, there was this guy I went to college with whose voice sounded exactly like Beaker from the _Muppet Show,\"_ her dad continued. \"Have I ever shown you the _Muppet Show?_ Anyway, this kid...\"\n\nWhile her dad rambled on, Bethesda stood frozen, mouth wide, as the pieces flew into place in her mind. _Of course,_ she said to herself again. _Of course!_\n\nShe had solved the mystery of Ms. Finkleman. Why she had never told anyone about her rock-star past. Why she had secretly put Tenny in charge of the rock show, instead of doing it herself.\n\nHer dad was still talking. \"You know what they should do, those two? They should get totally different haircuts. Like, if Shelly had a mullet, and Suzie had a Mohawk, a person might be able to keep them straight. Will you do me a favor and tell them that for me?\"\n\n\"Yes, Dad,\" said Bethesda with a goofy grin. \"I'll tell them.\"\n\nBethesda hopped on her bike and gave a mighty holler of happiness as she pedaled to the Wilkersholm Memorial Public Library. _It wasn't that Ms. Finkleman was hiding the fact that she was Little Miss Mystery... that wasn't it at all!_\n\n\"Yes! \" she shouted, not even looking around to make sure no one was listening. \"I'm a _genius!\"_\n\nShe turned into the parking lot and carefully chained up her bike. There was just one mystery left: _What was she going to do about Tenny Boyer?_\n\n# [24\n\nWASHINGTON CROSSING THE NILE](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c24)\n\n_That night,_ at precisely eight o'clock, Chef Pilverton popped out of his hiding place in the food court in the Pilverton Mall and pleaded, in his lusty French accent, for everyone to _\"Laissez les bon temps rouler! Avec pizza!\"_\n\nBut there was no one there to hear him. No one, at least, from the seventh-grade class at Mary Todd Lincoln Middle School. No one was pigging out on Boardwalk Fries, or shopping for necklaces at the Jangle Room, or deciding among the various schlocky sequels on offer at the cineplex. They were all at home, and though the Choral Corral was tomorrow at third period, they weren't practicing their instruments. They were studying.\n\nChester Hu sat in the center of a giant pile of disorganized notebooks and scraps of paper, picking them up at random and trying to decipher his own handwriting. \"Ugh! \" he shouted, every time he couldn't understand his own sloppy scrawl. \"I stink! \"\n\nOn the other side of Chester's bedroom, Victor Glebe lay on a beanbag chair with a stack of flash cards as thick as _War and Peace,_ and (judging by Victor's blank facial expression) equally incomprehensible.\n\nSuzie and Shelly Schwartz sat on either side of their kitchen table playing an elaborate test-preparation game they had invented involving a big-size bag of Chewy Spree. Basically, in the center of the table was a giant pile of Chewy Spree, and if the opposing Schwartz sister asked you a question you couldn't answer, you had to put a Chewy Spree in the pile; if you got it right, you got to take one out. Suzie was enjoying a slight lead (Shelly always won when they studied for math), until the game came to an abrupt conclusion when the Schwartzes' doberman, Sammy Schwartz, leaped up on the table and ate the entire scoring system.\n\nMeanwhile, at the Wilkersholm Memorial Public Library, Pamela Preston, Natasha Belinsky, and Todd Spolin had taken over a long oak table in the center of Young Adult. While Natasha and Todd took turns quizzing each other, Pamela twisted a finger through her blond curls, a sour expression on her face.\n\n\"Okay, Pamela,\" Natasha said to Pamela, holding up a flash card. \"What river did George Washington cross on Christmas Eve 1776?\"\n\n\"I mean, honestly? Rock and roll isn't even music,\" Pamela said. Natasha peered at the back of the card confusedly. \"Especially punk. It's more just, like, noise. Noise to a beat.\"\n\n\"Pam! Come on! \" said Todd, raising his voice enough to make the librarian look up sharply. \"Are you seriously still talking about this?\"\n\n\"Yeah,\" Natasha agreed. \"We have to study. Stop being annoyed about the rock show for three seconds and, like, focus. Ooh, hey, are those bar-b-que?\"\n\n\"They are,\" said Todd, passing Natasha his extra-large bag of Soy Crisps, which made a loud crinkling noise. The librarian glared at them. Todd stuck out his tongue and stuffed the chips in his book bag.\n\n\"You know what else I've been thinking?\" Pamela continued, completely ignoring her friends' attempts to study. \"The _worst_ part is that this whole rock nonsense would never have happened if it weren't for Bethesda's Special Project, which, technically, didn't meet the requirements of the assignment. It was supposed to be solve a mystery in your _own_ life, not a mystery in somebody _else's_ life.\"\n\n\"Pamela, seriously. Let it go,\" admonished Todd, then turned to Natasha with a flash card. \"What was the birthplace of Thomas Jefferson? \"\n\n\"Detroit? \" answered Natasha.\n\n\"That is correct.\" (That was not actually correct. Todd always forgot to take notes, so they had made their flash cards from Natasha's, which, unfortunately, were terrible.)\n\n\"Yay!\" Natasha clapped her hands. \"Give me another one.\"\n\nPamela interrupted again. \"But even aside from that, there's something fishy about the whole thing. Have you guys noticed that Little Miss Mystery, or whatever her name is, doesn't even, like, pay attention during practice? \"\n\n\"You're the one who doesn't pay attention, Pam,\" Todd shot back, and then turned to Natasha. \"What year was the Boston Massacre?\"\n\n\"1492.\"\n\n\"That's right.\"\n\n\"Yay! I'm so smart!\"\n\n\"I really wish you guys were, like, on my side. It's not too late to\u2014\"\n\n\"Honestly, honey?\" said Natasha, with a glance at Todd, who nodded. \"Not to be, like, whatever, but if you're not going to study with us, can you go somewhere else? We really have a lot to do.\"\n\n\"Fine!\" said Pamela. \"I will.\"\n\n\"It was the Nile, by the way,\" said Natasha sweetly as Pamela packed up her things. \"Washington crossed the Nile.\"\n\n\"Actually...\" Pamela started to correct Natasha's answer and then stopped, smiling coldly. \"That's absolutely right. You guys are going to do _great.\"_\n\nPamela was shrugging on her pink spring jacket as she walked down the long aisle in the center of the library when she heard the voices. They were coming from the row of potted ficus trees that separated Fiction from Nonfiction, and so at first it seemed oddly as if two of the plants were talking. In fact, it sounded like the two plants were preparing for Melville's test.\n\n\"The French,\" said the first ficus. \"The answer is, the French and the Indians.\"\n\nPamela stopped walking and tilted her head. She would know that voice anywhere: Bethesda Fielding.\n\n\"Huh? \" said the other ficus.\n\nThis second voice was even easier to identify. There was no one in the world who said \"Huh?\" quite like Tenny Boyer.\n\n_So the king and queen of rock and roll are studying for the big test,_ Pamela thought. _Whoop-de-do for them._\n\n\"Yes, Tenny. You can remember it, because it's called the French and Indian War.\"\n\n\"Oh. Yeah. That totally makes sense.\"\n\nPamela rolled her eyes. _Man,_ she thought. _I sure hope Melville grades this on a curve._ She kept listening.\n\n\"It's not happening.\" Tenny sighed. \"It's all, you know\u2014it's still all gray. I'm sorry you wasted all this time, just because of Ms. Finkleman's stupid deal. But it's too late.\"\n\n_Ms. Finkleman?_\n\n_Deal?_\n\n\"No, Tenny,\" Bethesda said, her voice sounding a bit desperate. \"We've got time. We've got twenty minutes. Let's not waste it.\"\n\n\"No. I think it's pretty obvious what's going to happen here. I am going to fail this test. So I'd rather go home and practice my solo. They won't be having any rock shows at St. Francis Xavier.\"\n\n\"Come on, Tenny! I, um... I believe in you.\"\n\nPamela covered her mouth to keep from snickering.\n\n_She believed in_ him? _What a waste of perfectly good belief._\n\n\"Bethesda,\" said Tenny sadly. \"Get real.\"\n\nThere was a long silence, and for a second Pamela thought maybe Tenny and Bethesda had quietly packed up and left the library. She risked a peek between the two ficus trees. No, there they were, Bethesda Fielding and Tenny Boyer, sitting in total silence, neither looking at the other. Tenny fingered chords on an imaginary guitar, while Bethesda sat with her eyes half shut, looking tired and agitated. But then Bethesda spoke, quietly, so quietly that Pamela had to lean forward slightly to hear what she was saying.\n\n\"Tenny,\" Bethesda whispered. \"I have a plan.\"\n\nBethesda had seen the plan on a TV special about a couple of bad kids who cheat on a test. She couldn't remember whether they got caught or not, although she sort of doubted they would make a special about kids who get away with cheating. But the thing was, those kids were stupid. Bethesda was smart. And one thing she was certain of, after about a zillion hours of fruitless tutoring, was that Tenny Boyer was smart, too\u2014despite all appearances to the contrary. He just couldn't memorize facts. At least, not facts about American history.\n\n\"No way,\" answered Tenny immediately. \"No way are you going to get in trouble to help me.\"\n\n\"I'm not going to get in trouble, and neither are you. We've just got to be careful.\"\n\n\"But...\"\n\n\"Tenny. It'll be easy. And, I mean, to be honest? It's the only way.\"\n\nTenny let out a long, tired sigh. He looked up at the clock. The library was closing in a few minutes. He rubbed his fingers against his exhausted eyes.\n\n\"Are you... I mean, Bethesda. Are you _sure?\"_\n\n\"Yes,\" said Bethesda. \"I am.\"\n\nTenny reached out his hand, and Bethesda shook it. She remembered another handshake, that fateful night in the food court with Ms. Finkleman. Bethesda had promised her that Tenny Boyer would pass Mr. Melville's class\u2014no matter what. As Tenny stood and crammed his copy of _A More Perfect Union_ and his piles of disorganized notes back into his bag, Bethesda gave him a confident smile and a little thumbs-up.\n\nInside her mind, Bethesda's fancy lawyer-lady voice delivered a stirring closing argument. So cheating on the Floating Midterm was wrong, said the lawyer lady... or _was_ it? Wasn't it true, as Bethesda had finally figured out, that Ms. Finkleman had been lying to the whole school about being a rock star all along? And surely she had her reasons.\n\nSo now Bethesda was going to do something equally bad\u2014and she had _her_ reasons, too. Tenny was too talented! She'd watched him create this whole concert, watched it go from bad to okay to\u2014well, to _amazing._ And now he was going to get yanked out of Mary Todd Lincoln and shipped off to St. Francis Xavier? Why? Because he couldn't memorize a bunch of stupid facts about the American Revolution?\n\nThrough the big window of the Wilkersholm Memorial Public Library, Bethesda watched Tenny get on his bike, wrangle his scraggly mass of brown hair under a black helmet with a Rush sticker on it, and pedal off into the night. It was 8:45, and the library was nearly deserted\u2014though as she stood and stretched and began to pack up her things, Bethesda thought she smelled just the _slightest_ hint of lilac.\n\n# [25\n\n _AN OLD CARDBOARD BOX SECURED WITH MASKING TAPE_](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c25)\n\n_Meanwhile, in_ a high-rise condominium on the other side of town, an unremarkable brown-haired woman padded to the kitchen in her fuzzy slippers to fix herself a cup of tea. When the tea was ready, she padded back into the living room, gently placed the mug on a woven coaster, and sank into her comfortable armchair. She plopped her feet up on the matching ottoman and tried to relax.\n\nBut for once, Ida Finkleman didn't feel like relaxing. She didn't feel like listening to Mozart. She didn't even feel like Sleepytime tea. She returned to the kitchen and poured the mug out into the sink.\n\nIda Finkleman no longer felt like a timid little agouti\u2014not in the slightest bit. In recent days, she hadn't been _surviving_ at Mary Todd Lincoln Middle School, she had been _thriving._ That afternoon, she had led her students into the auditorium for their final dress rehearsal of the rock show, and there was no doubt about it: They were ready. Watching them play today, she had stopped feeling grouchy abut this whole enterprise, stopped casting blame and being mad. She had just enjoyed it. She was so proud. Watching those kids bang out those three songs, watching them jump and leap and holler and twist and dance around the stage... she couldn't help herself any longer. She hopped out of her seat and laughed and cheered and clapped like crazy.\n\nIda went into her bedroom and rummaged underneath the bed, reaching around awkwardly with two hands through the dust bunnies and shoeboxes, until at last she found an old cardboard box secured with masking tape. With her big pair of kitchen scissors, she unsealed the box and riffled through its contents: A high-school yearbook, a Rubik's Cube keychain, a picture of her and her cousin Sherman sharing a bath as infants. And, yes, there it was: a seven-inch record. \"Not So Complicated,\" by Little Miss Mystery and the Red Herrings.\n\nTucked into the sleeve of the seven-inch was a promotional picture, clipped from a magazine, of Little Miss Mystery and the Red Herrings. Ms. Finkleman sat down on her bed with the clipping and carefully smoothed it out in her lap. She looked closely at the lead singer in the photograph, who stood slightly in front of her bandmates, glaring at the camera with a fierce punkrock pout.\n\n\"Hey, you,\" Ms. Finkleman said. She had other pictures of the Herrings, of course, but this was her favorite. Clem just looked so _happy_ in it.\n\n# [26\n\nA DREADFUL COUGH](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c26)\n\n**Question One**\n\n**Paul Revere was a member of a secret Whig organization in the years leading up to his famous ride. This organization was called** **the.----------**\n\nBethesda Fielding immediately knew the answer, but her eyes darted down the list of possible answers anyway. If this had been a test from Mrs. Howell, the incorrect answers would have been total softballs, especially because it was the first question. It would have been, like, A) the Klingons, B) the Dallas Cowboys, and so on.\n\nBut this was Mr. Melville. So answer A was Brothers of Liberty, which was sneakily close to being right, and C was Sons of Freedom, which was even closer. But Bethesda wasn't fooled. Pressing down hard with her sharpened number two pencil, she circled answer B, Sons of Liberty. Bethesda could have listed additional members of the organization, such as Joseph Warren, Samuel Adams (cousin of future president John Adams), and Benjamin Church, who turned out to be a spy for the British. Bethesda had spent so much time on Project SWT that she knew way more than she needed to ace the Floating Midterm.\n\nThat's when she heard Tenny Boyer tapping his pencil against his knuckle. It was a very quiet sound\u2014if you weren't listening for it, you never would have heard it. But Bethesda _was_ listening for it. Because that little sound would be what turned her from hypothetical cheater to actual cheater.\n\n_Tap, tap, tap._\n\n_Argle bargle._\n\nSuddenly Bethesda was hyper-aware of everything around her. She smelled pencil shavings and Mr. Melville's coffee and Marisol Pierce's lavender shampoo. She felt the cool sensation of a spring breeze as it wafted into the room and rustled the venetian blinds. She watched as Mr. Melville slowly sipped from his mug and turned the page of his newspaper, in what seemed like slow motion. Bethesda looked at the headline, which said GIRL CHEATS ON AMERICAN HISTORY EXAM.\n\nShe blinked. The headline was about city council elections.\n\n_Tap, tap, tap._\n\nStaring down at her paper, Bethesda coughed quietly twice. Two coughs for B.\n\n_It's official. Bethesda Fielding, Cheater._\n\nAs she moved down her paper to the next question, Bethesda had a fleeting mental image of her father, seated in front of the TV, a giant bowl of Frosted Flakes balanced on his lap, watching a tropical storm make landfall.\n\nQuestion two was about Benjamin Franklin's role in the drafting of the Declaration of Independence. As she circled answer D (\"edited and organized\"), she listened for sniffling. If Tenny knew an answer, he was supposed to sniffle a little, as if he, too, had a slight cold. _Come on, Tenny,_ she thought. _Sniffle. Sniffle! You have to have learned_ something!\n\n_Tap, tap, tap._\n\nMeanwhile, in a cramped stall in the second-floor women's restroom, Ms. Finkleman finished changing her clothes. She emerged from the stall, approached the smeary mirror, and began putting on makeup. As she applied eyeliner in the exact purple-black shade that Clem had always favored, Ida carefully studied her face in the mirror and was startled by how much she looked like her. Ida smiled to think of how many years she had spent being so certain that she and her sister\u2014her _identical_ twin sister!\u2014looked _nothing_ alike.\n\nOf _course_ they looked alike. They looked so alike that when they were six years old, and Ida wanted to play with her dolls instead of taking her piano lesson, Clem would take it for her, because dotty old Mrs. Davis would never know the difference anyway. Clem would take one piano lesson, go upstairs, change clothes, and go down for another. Later, Ida would thank her sister by feeding her pretend cake she'd baked with her dolls. Then Clem would play scales for an appreciative audience of Ida, Paddington Bear, and assorted Barbies.\n\nShe pulled out a tube of lipstick, several shades of scarlet deeper than anything she'd ever worn in her life, and popped the cap off the tube.\n\n* * *\n\n**Question Thirty-two** \n **Which of the following was NOT a cause of the American Revolution?** \n **A) The Stamp Act** \n **B) The Three-Fifths Clause** \n **C) The Boston Tea Party** \n **D) The Boston Massacre**\n\n_Okay,_ Bethesda thought. _He knows this one. I know he knows this one._ She could picture them reviewing the flowchart, just two nights ago, the same night he'd broken her microwave trying to make a frozen burrito. _Do it, Tenny,_ she thought, circling answer B. _Sniffle! Sniffle!_\n\n_Tap, tap, tap._\n\nBethesda coughed twice. Discreetly, she sniffed her sweaty armpits. _Man,_ she thought, _cheating is stressful._ Bethesda stretched and looked around the room. There was Shelly earnestly bent over her answer sheet. There was Braxton Lashey chewing on his pen; that kid never learned. Pamela Preston was up at Mr. Melville's desk, asking him for the pass to the girls' room. Chester Hu, Bethesda noted, was playing an imaginary bass drum with his foot while he worked.\n\nShe glanced up at the clock and breathed a small sigh of relief. First period was almost over, and then it would be time for the Choral Corral. She pictured herself holding the microphone, jumping around the stage, and felt a small burst of adrenalin. _Get through this!_ she thought. _Stay on target!_\n\nQuestion thirty-three had to do with Thomas Jefferson, and it was the first thing on the test that Bethesda didn't know the answer to right away. She was trying to remember whether it was John Jay who cowrote the Federalist Papers, or James Monroe, when she remembered something else entirely. Mr. Melville didn't make kids ask for the hall pass. When people asked if they could go to the bathroom, even during tests, he always said something huffy like, \"Believe it or not, I am not interested in your bodily functions.\"\n\nSo what was Pamela doing at his desk?\n\nMs. Finkleman took a big step away from the mirror and looked at herself up and down. She made a series of contorted faces, sticking out her tongue, narrowing her eyes, practicing the rock-star attitude she would soon be displaying in front of a cheering crowd of Mary Todd Lincolnites. She played a little air guitar, laughed selfconsciously at herself, and then reached her right arm up to her left bicep. She let her hand rest on the tattoo, a permanent reminder of her sister and all they had gone through together.\n\n\"Well, sis, what do you think? \" she said to the mirror. \"Do I look like a rock star or not?\"\n\n* * *\n\n**Question Thirty-nine** \n **The freed slave believed to be the first \nperson to die in the Boston Massacre was \nnamed.**\n\nBethesda didn't even wait for pencil tapping this time. No way Tenny was going to remember the name Crispus Attucks. She coughed, once, for A, and pressed on.\n\nOne more question, and then it would be time for the Choral Corral. One more question and she could go back to being herself. Bethesda Fielding, Non-Cheater.\n\nShe giggled a little, under her breath. That was funny\u2014people having titles in the negative. Albert Einstein, Non-Idiot. Mother Teresa, Non-Jerk. Funny.\n\nBethesda was still smiling as she turned to question forty. Before she could read it, though, a large shadow fell across her desk. \"Ms. Fielding,\" came Mr. Melville's voice, gruff and ominous.\n\nBethesda's stomach tightened and lurched. Slowly, slowly she put down her pencil and turned around to face him.\n\n\"Um. Yes?\" she ventured. But she knew. She knew with terrible certainty what came next.\n\n\"If that dreadful cough of yours has not entirely sapped your strength, I wonder if you wouldn't mind joining me at the front of the room for a little chat.\"\n\nBethesda didn't say anything. Her knees wobbled as she rose to her feet. A hot flush crept down her neck and cheeks, and she felt the eyes of every kid in class as they peered over to see what was happening. She heard Chester Hu whisper, \"Whoa! What the\u2014\" to Victor Glebe.\n\nThe scene felt painfully familiar, and she recalled in an ironic, despairing flash that this exact same thing had occurred in the TV special about the kids who cheated on the test.\n\nStep by miserable step, Bethesda made her way to the front of the room. But Mr. Melville was not behind her. He was three seats over and one seat back.\n\n\"Mr. Boyer? Aren't you going to join us?\"\n\n# [27\n\n _\"LET'S ROCK!\"_](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c27)\n\n_Jasper stood_ outside his boss's office for forty-five seconds, breathing deeply and wringing his hands together, before he went inside. He contemplated a variety of options for what he might do next, all of which were more appealing than going in. He could take the rest of the day off and go antiquing. Or he could quit and join the navy! Jasper had always loved boats.\n\nHe sighed, turned the knob, and pushed open the door.\n\n\"Excuse me, ma'am.\" \"Ah! Jasper!\"\n\nPrincipal Van Vreeland was beaming, as Jasper had known she would be. Her hands reached out to him, her fingers extended in a wide welcoming gesture that, he couldn't help noticing, could easily be transformed into a choking motion. \"Ma'am, there's something\u2014\"\n\n\"Oh, hush, man! No time now! The Choral Corral begins in\u2014\" Principal Van Vreeland cast a gleeful glance at the clock above the door. \"Twenty minutes! In an hour and a half, our utter destruction of Grover Cleveland will be complete!\"\n\n\"Yes, ma'am. It's just that we have a slight problem.\"\n\nThe smile froze on Principal Van Vreeland's face. Her hands began to twitch alarmingly. Jasper took a big step backward.\n\n\"What kind of... _problem?\"_ the principal over-enunciated the final word in the sentence, her face contorting with intense disgust, as if she were pulling a dead rat out of a sink.\n\nIt was Harry Melville who answered, muscling past Jasper's thin frame and marching unbidden into the principal's office.\n\n\"A _cheating_ problem.\"\n\nBethesda and Tenny sat in silence on the hard bench in the hallway outside the principal's office.\n\n\"I'm really sorry,\" Bethesda whispered.\n\n\"Why? \" Tenny whispered back. \"If I wasn't such a moron, this never would have happened.\"\n\n\"Or if I was a halfway decent mountain climber.\"\n\n\"Huh?\"\n\n\"Tutor. A halfway decent tutor.\" \"Shush!\" snapped Mrs. Gingertee, the secretary, from where she sat typing at her desk. \"No talking.\" \"Sorry,\" replied Tenny and Bethesda in unison. \"Shh!\" she snapped again.\n\nBethesda lowered her eyes to the carpet. The incessant _clack-clack-clack_ of Mrs. Gingertee's fingers on the keys sounded to her like the rattling of a long steel chain as it drew tighter and tighter around her heart. _Hey, that's a good metaphor,_ she thought, and then, immediately: _Oh, shut up._\n\nIn her twelve years on earth, Bethesda had never been sent to the principal's office. She had never sat on this uncomfortable bench, never felt this hard feeling like a dense, undigested mass in the very depths of her gut. And though she knew Tenny had been in trouble before\u2014for not doing his homework, for tardiness, for not paying attention\u2014this was different. Cheating on a test was _serious_ trouble. Grade A trouble. Bethesda lowered her face into her hands and started to cry.\n\n\"Aw... hey...\" started Tenny.\n\n\"No crying,\" said Mrs. Gingertee, still typing.\n\nThe door to Principal Van Vreeland's office opened, and Jasper's thin head emerged, like a rodent's emerging from the desert sand. \"This way, children.\"\n\nIn the office, Bethesda and Tenny avoided both the fierce stare of Principal Van Vreeland, who sat drumming her fingernails on her desk, and the stern glare of Mr. Melville, whose considerable bulk was settled into a student-size chair, his arms folded across his big barrel of a chest. It might have been funny if Bethesda wasn't so miserable. Her gaze followed Tenny's to the clock above the door, which said 10:45. Third period, and the Choral Corral, started in fifteen minutes. Right now, the other students from sixth-period Music Fundamentals were being pulled out of their regular classes to assemble backstage in the auditorium.\n\n\"Mr. Melville has brought to my attention the rather serious infraction you two have committed,\" said Principal Van Vreeland rapidly, while Jasper stood behind her and stroked his chin disapprovingly. From the outer office, Bethesda heard the sharp clacking of Ms. Gingertee's fingers at the keyboard.\n\n\"I think we can all agree that the most important thing is to wrap this up quickly,\" the principal continued. Mr. Melville raised a skeptical eyebrow at her. \"I mean, _fairly,_ of course. To wrap this up fairly.\"\n\nBethesda couldn't take it anymore. She had heard thirty seconds of the Serious Trouble Speech, and she thought if she heard another thirty seconds she would weep profusely and\/or barf all over the rug.\n\n\"It was all my fault! \" she blurted out, pulling off her glasses and wiping roughly at her eyes with the sleeve of her shirt. \"The whole thing was my idea! And I dragged Tenny into it, and he said it was a bad idea and I _knew_ it was a bad idea, and I'm really, really sorry.\"\n\nMr. Melville scowled, but Principal Van Vreeland seemed extremely pleased with Bethesda's sudden confession. \"Okay, then, young lady,\" she said quickly, hopping out of her chair. \"Very disappointed in you, naughty naughty, don't do it again, et cetera, et cetera. Jasper? \"\n\nJasper and Principal Van Vreeland moved swiftly toward the door.\n\n\"Wait! \" shouted Tenny.\n\n\"Wait? \" said Principal Van Vreeland. \"What do you mean, wait? Why? \"\n\n\"Because it's not true.\" Tenny turned to Bethesda and said it again. \"It's not true, and you know it.\"\n\n\"It's not? \" asked the principal, looking at Tenny with irritation.\n\n\"No.\" Tenny addressed Bethesda. \"I mean, technically, you weren't even cheating. You were just _coughing.\"_\n\n\"Yeah, but the coughing _was_ the cheating!\"\n\n\"No, the cheating was the cheating. The coughing was just coughing.\"\n\nPrincipal Van Vreeland looked at the clock and groaned. \"Cheating! Coughing! It's all bad. Very, very bad. Don't do it again. Jasper! Let's go.\"\n\nMr. Melville cleared his throat noisily, and all eyes turned to him. \"Slow down, people. Let's just take this nice and slow.\"\n\nAt the word _slow,_ Principal Van Vreeland sighed and returned wearily to her chair. \"I just want to destroy my enemies. Is that so wrong?\" And then, realizing everyone was staring at her, she turned to Mr. Melville. \"Please,\" she moaned. \"Continue. Take your time.\"\n\n\"I think it is perfectly clear that both students share some portion of the culpability here, Madame Principal,\" Mr. Melville intoned gravely. \"I would expect, therefore, that a multifaceted punishment be imposed on both. Obviously to include retaking the test, certainly to involve some parental conversations\u2014\"\n\nFresh tears sprang into Bethesda's eyes.\n\n\"And, of course, immediate exclusion from all extracurricular activities, including participation in this... musical activity.\"\n\n\"Wait a minute,\" stammered Tenny, turning to Bethesda. \"Wait\u2014does he mean the Choral Corral?\"\n\nBethesda nodded miserably.\n\n\"No! Come on! We're\u2014we're _necessary._ It's _our_ show!\" But it was too late. Principal Van Vreeland saw her opportunity.\n\n\"Come now, young man. There is only one person crucial to the rock show, and that is Ms. Finkleman.\" She was out of her chair again, back at the door with her hand at the knob. \"Mr. Melville, you read my mind. A multi\u2014What was that word again? The fancy one?\"\n\n\"Multifaceted.\"\n\n\"Yes! A multifaceted punishment for both cheaters! Now let's all proceed to the auditorium for the Choral Corral!\" She paused and gestured vaguely to Bethesda and Tenny. \"Um, except you two, of course.\"\n\nBethesda looked through her fingers down at the rug. She simply couldn't bear to look at Tenny Boyer. Her and her stupid Special Project! The rock show, this incredible event he had created, this is the project that was _actually_ special... and now he wouldn't even get to be in it.\n\n\"Hang on,\" said Tenny.\n\nPrincipal Van Vreeland glared at Tenny from the doorway. _\"_ What _now?\"_\n\nThere was a look on Tenny Boyer's face that Bethesda had never seen before. A smile twisted up the corners of his lips. His eyes were bright, glowing with inspiration and a hint of mischief. They had a glimmer in them, like\u2014like Christmas lights.\n\n\"Thing is, the Choral Corral isn't an extracurricular.\"\n\nPrincipal Van Vreeland stood at the door, one hand tightly clutching Jasper's arm, staring daggers back across the room. Mr. Melville furrowed his brow with perplexed irritation. \"What?\" he said darkly, elongating the single syllable with a thick undercurrent of menace.\n\nBethesda knew immediately where Tenny was going, and she joined him, like they were two guitarists playing in unison. \"Of course. Music Fundamentals is a _class._ Participation in the Choral Corral is _required!\"_\n\n\"So I totally agree,\" Tenny went on, picking up where Bethesda left off, \"that we should be barred from extracurriculars. I mean, obviously. But the Choral Corral is an _assignment!\"_\n\n\"Now wait just one second,\" Mr. Melville began. \"Surely the _spirit_ of the rule suggests\u2014\"\n\nBethesda, now fully in lawyer-lady mode, interrupted.\n\n\"Wait now, Mr. Melville. Are you saying that what the rule actually _says_ doesn't matter?\"\n\n\"You know perfectly well that is not what I'm saying, Ms. Fielding. However...\"\n\nAs this animated conversation continued, Principal Van Vreeland got redder and redder where she stood in the doorway. \"Stop!\" she shouted. \"We need to settle this, and fast. Mrs. Gingertee! Get me Ida Finkleman.\"\n\nThree minutes later, Ms. Finkleman walked into the room, though it took a long moment for everyone to realize that it was her. Never before had any of them seen the Mary Todd Lincoln Band and Chorus teacher in any color other than drab, unremarkable brown. Now she stood before them in a red leather skirt, hot pink leather boots, and a black leather jacket bristling with brass and copper studs. Her face had always been plain and unpainted; now she wore thick, elaborate slashes of makeup, in rich scarlet and purple, concentrated on her cheekbones and eyelashes like she was an Egyptian princess. Her hair, previously tied back in an unremarkable ponytail or hanging limply about her face, was now a wild, tousled pile of blacks and browns, teased across her eyes and streaked with red.\n\nThe person standing in Principal Van Vreeland's office hardly looked like Ms. Finkleman at all. She was a stranger, a stranger who had just climbed off a motorcycle that she had ridden in from somewhere smoky, dangerous, and dark.\n\nEven from the terrible depths of trouble she was in, Bethesda grinned to see her once-unremarkable music teacher so transformed. From the corner of her eye, she could see that Tenny was grinning, too.\n\nMs. Finkleman looked WR. _TWR._\n\nWhen everyone recovered from the shock of seeing Little Miss Mystery in person, Mr. Melville curtly invited her to take a seat and join the conversation. (Everyone recovered from the shock, that is, except for Jasper, who at the moment she crossed the threshold of the room fell completely, head over heels in love with Ida Finkleman. He heard not a word of the ensuing tense and combative conversation, as he was deep in his head, busily planning a wedding, honeymoon, and happy life together for himself and the new Mrs. Jasper Ferrars.)\n\nMr. Melville cleared his throat noisily. \"I am afraid,\" he began, leveling Ms. Finkleman with an iron stare, \"That these two children cheated on my American history test this morning.\"\n\nMs. Finkleman's eyes widened, and her heavily reddened lips formed into an O of shock and disappointment. \"They did...\" She turned to Bethesda and Tenny. \"You did _what?\"_\n\nThen, struck by something, she turned back to Mr. Melville. \"Wait. You gave your test _today?\"_\n\n\"Hardly the point,\" replied Mr. Melville heavily.\n\nIn a dither of impatience, Principal Van Vreeland snatched up the thread of the conversation. \"What matters at present is deciding what to do! And that ball, Ms. Finkleman, is in your court.\"\n\nAnd so Principal Van Vreeland laid the entire question at Ms. Finkleman's leather-boot clad feet: Did she, as the relevant instructor, consider the Choral Corral an in-class assignment? Or was it an extracurricular activity? Could the cheating students be barred from participation? Or not?\n\n\"Make up your mind quickly, please,\" Principal Van Vreeland concluded, aiming a stern finger at Ms. Finkleman. \"The Choral Corral begins in\u2014\" She grabbed Jasper's arm and twisted it around to look at his watch. \"Two minutes. I need you on that stage! \"\n\nMs. Finkleman looked around the room at all of them looking at her: Principal Van Vreeland with quivering impatience, Mr. Melville with self-righteous irritation, Tenny and Bethesda with silently pleading desperation. _Well done, rock star,_ she castigated herself bitterly. _Very well done._\n\nAt last she shook her head slightly. \"I'm sorry, children,\" she began. \"I'm afraid I must defer to\u2014\"\n\n\"What? \" Tenny leaped out of his chair. \"Come _on!_\n\nNO!\"\n\n\"Young man!\" bellowed Mr. Melville. \"Sit!\"\n\nBut Tenny Boyer had heard enough. He bolted the room, furious, and Bethesda shot off after him, slamming the door behind her. Ms. Finkleman lowered her head into her hands, a pair of tears trailing twin black trails of mascara down her cheeks.\n\n\"Okay! \" said Principal Van Vreeland cheerfully. \"Let's rock! \"\n\n# [28\n\n _\"JANITOR STEVE IS GONA FREAK\"_](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c28)\n\n_The original_ plan was for the kids to wait in the Band and Chorus room until it was their turn to go on, and then file down Hallway C to the auditorium. But after seeing a documentary about the Rolling Stones on PBS, Hayley Eisenstein came in one day and said that they really ought to have a green room. A green room, she explained to the others, is a special backstage area where rock stars hang out before a show. The way Hayley described it, it was like paradise: lots of mirrors, big comfy chairs, a minifridge stocked with all the candy and soda you could want. The green room Ms. Finkleman arranged for the students of sixth-period Music Fundamentals was a supply closet just off the auditorium stage, which had been vacated for the morning by Janitor Steve. The custodian had not been too happy about the arrangement, and had left copious evidence of his displeasure in the form of little yellow Post-its reading DO NOT TOUCH plastered all over the room.\n\nAs the minutes ticked down to the start of third period and the Choral Corral, Ms. Finkleman's students clustered in the center of the room, carefully NOT TOUCHING any of Janitor Steve's buckets or bottles or brooms, and wondering what was going on.\n\n\"You know what?\" said Ezra McClellan, drummer for the Careless Errors, nervously buttoning and unbuttoning the vintage jean jacket he had bought for the show. \"I bet the whole thing is called off.\"\n\n\"What? Why would it be called off? \" answered Bessie Stringer, in a blue sparkling evening gown modeled on one she had seen Aretha Franklin wear in a YouTube clip. (The kids had been responsible for their own outfits.)\n\n\"Uh, because our lead singer and lead guitarist aren't here,\" Ezra said sarcastically.\n\n\"Well, that's too bad for _your_ band, but all our band members _are_ here!\" retorted Todd Spolin of Band Number One, gingerly patting his hair, which he had spent twenty minutes aggressively moussing into a spiky pile. Hayley Eisenstein and Rory Daas of Half-Eaten Almond Joy agreed. \"No reason we can't go on.\"\n\n\"Man! I can't believe Bethesda and Tenny got arrested for cheating,\" groaned Chester Hu, shaking his head.\n\n\"They weren't _arrested,_ Chester,\" Victor Glebe corrected. \"A person can't get arrested for cheating.\"\n\n\"Oh. Huh. My dad totally lied to me.\" Victor and Chester were each wearing a single shiny glove, like Michael Jackson.\n\n\"What about Ms. Finkleman?\" wondered Guy Ficker, the Careless Errors' Hammond organ player. \"Shouldn't she be here by now? \"\n\n\"Oh my god! \" Natasha Belinsky brought her hand to her forehead in sudden astonishment. \"Maybe she was cheating, too! \"\n\n\"Cheating on what?\" said Violet Kelp. \"What are you talking about? \"\n\nTodd Spolin was shaking his head vigorously. \"You know what? Some of us studied for that test! Me and Natasha were at the library for over forty-five minutes last night, and we learned all that junk about George Washingmachine, and we shouldn't suffer just because certain _other_ people slacked off! \"\n\nEzra looked uncertain. Victor nodded in agreement and adjusted his silver glove. Hayley chewed her lip thoughtfully. Shelly Schwartz turned to Suzie and mouthed, \"Washingmachine?\"\n\nAll in all, it was a confused and tension-filled atmosphere in the Mary Todd Lincoln green room\/supply closet as, onstage, the Choral Corral began. The first performance was a set of polka numbers from the students of Amelia Earhart Junior High School, followed by a medley of show tunes from Buzz Aldrin Science and Technology Preparatory Middle School. Through it all, the Mary Todd Lincoln kids sat in silence in their green room, listening, twirling their drumsticks, cracking their knuckles, looking miserably at one another, and trying their best not to touch any of Janitor Steve's stuff. Some were more affected by the tension than others. Suzie Schwartz had to sit down on an overturned mop bucket with her head between her knees, overcome by nerves, and perhaps by the room's strong odor of ammonia.\n\nWhat were they going to do?\n\nIt was at this darkest moment that Pamela Preston made her move.\n\n\"I know it sounds crazy, guys, but maybe we should go back to singing folk ballads.\"\n\nFor a long moment, no one said a word. Victor Glebe scratched his head. Suzie looked up from where she sat on the mop bucket, looked green, and immediately looked down again at her bucket. Onstage, a Buzz Aldrin seventh grader reached for the high notes on \"Everything's Coming Up Roses.\"\n\nPamela was the only one dressed in what they'd been asked to wear for the Choral Corral, before the rock show came up: crisp black slacks and a white button-down dress shirt. \"I mean, we all know 'Greensleeves' still, right? I think\u2014I mean, I'm pretty sure I do. I remember my whole solo. This way at least we can still have a show, and we can all be in it. And we don't need Bethesda and Tenny, or Ms. Finkleman, to do it.\"\n\n\"Huh,\" said Ezra.\n\n\"Yeah,\" said Lisa Deckter. \"I mean, maybe...\"\n\nKids were nodding. Pamela's suggestion did make a certain amount of sense. Maybe it was better to do a perfectly fine performance of traditional English folk ballads from the sixteenth century than to do a half-baked rock show.\n\nBut then, from over by the mops, someone shouted, \"No! Absolutely not!\"\n\n\"I'm sorry? \" said Pamela, who was unscrewing the top to her water bottle, preparing to enjoy her moment in the spotlight after all.\n\n\"I said absolutely not,\" Kevin McKelvey repeated. \"And her name isn't Ms. Finkleman, either. Not today.\n\nHer name is Little Miss Mystery.\" The Piano Kid stood on the lowest rung of a stepladder and addressed the whole group. He wore his signature blue blazer, but he had meticulously covered the whole thing in rhinestones, and his red tie also. Kevin glittered as he waved his arms, exhorting his classmates. \"She's given us so much these last six weeks, people. I mean...\" He stopped for a second and took a deep breath. \"She changed our lives.\"\n\n\"Kevin, that is extremely, like, _touching,\"_ Pamela said with singsong sweetness. \"But if Ms. Fink\u2014sorry, if Little Miss Mystery _were_ here, wouldn't she want us to put on a good show? \"\n\n\"What we want to do is what's right! \" Kevin thundered. \"Right? We wait for them, and then we rock!\"\n\nKevin McKelvey and Pamela Preston stared at each other across the closet. No one said a word.\n\nThen the door flew open, and Tenny Boyer ran red-faced into the room.\n\n\"The rock show is off!\" he shouted, and slammed the door behind him, causing a giant pile of buckets to topple over and go skittering across the floor. (\"Oooh,\" whispered Rory Daas. \"Janitor Steve is not going to like that.\") Tenny continued, his normally placid face tear-streaked and twisted by rage. \"Forget it. We can do the stupid ballad whatevers.\"\n\n\"Well,\" said Pamela with a surprised smile. \"That answers that.\"\n\n\"What are you talking about? \" asked Chester Hu.\n\nKevin McKelvey looked angrily at Tenny from where he stood perched on the stepladder. _\"You_ can't call off the show, Tenny.\"\n\n\"I can! It's mine. Ms. Finkleman didn't create this show\u2014I did.\"\n\n\"Her name,\" cried Kevin, now as red-faced and angry as Tenny, \"is Little Miss Mystery! \"\n\n\"I don't care who she is,\" Tenny spat. \"She's been lying the whole time! Every note you've gotten, every idea, the whole plan came from me. She's nothing but a big fake. I bet she never even _was_ a rock star.\"\n\nEveryone looked around, stunned, trying to figure out what was going on, wondering if this could be true. Pamela Preston just grinned, thinking, _Oh my god! I was right!,_ and then, _Of course I was right. I'm Pamela Preston!_\n\nFrom the stage came the sounds of an Afro-Caribbean medley, being performed, terribly, by the students of J. Edgar Hoover Middle School.\n\nBraxton Lashey shook his head. \"I dunno. Why would Ms. Finkleman\u2014sorry, Kevin, Little Miss Mystery\u2014why would she lie to us?\"\n\n\"Well, uh...,\" Tenny stammered. \"I'm not totally sure. But she did.\"\n\nJust then the door flew open again, and Bethesda Fielding ran in and directly into Tenny, who bumped into a rack of disinfectant sprays, which clattered to the ground. (\"Oh, man,\" muttered Rory darkly. \"Janitor Steve is gonna _freak.\")_ Instantly aware of the entire sixth-period Music Fundamentals class staring at her in tense silence, Bethesda stopped short.\n\n\"Tell them, Bethesda,\" Tenny demanded. \"Tell them about the deal. Tell them the truth about Ms. Finkleman.\"\n\n\"Tenny... I...\"\n\nBethesda, avoiding Tenny's fierce stare, found herself staring at Kevin McKelvey. He looked back at her, mouth slightly open, eyes glistening with tears. \"It's not true,\" he said softly. \"Right?\"\n\nBethesda took an uncertain breath. From the auditorium, the crowd applauded politely for the students of J. Edgar Hoover. Next was A.C. Doyle Academy and their Celebration of Eastern European Folk Tradition\u2014then it would be Grover Cleveland, and then it would be their turn. The students of Music Fundamentals looked urgently at Bethesda, and for the second time that day she felt a hot flush creep up her neck to her face. Her Converse sneakers squeaked nervously on the green room's concrete floor.\n\n_I should tell them,_ she thought. _I should take Tenny's side._\n\nTenny was her friend. Also, he was right: Ms. Finkleman _was_ lying. Not only had she lied about the rock show, but she had never been a rock star at all. She was just a teacher, and not even the kind who stands up for her kids when they're in trouble.\n\n_But I can't tell them,_ she thought.\n\nBecause how could Bethesda reveal the secret truth about Ms. Finkleman to the whole school _\u2014again?_\n\n_So who's it going to be?_ Bethesda asked herself miserably. _Who are you going to hurt now?_\n\nThe door opened again, slowly this time, causing no further crashes or bangs. The woman who entered, with her red leather skirt, smeared punk-rock makeup, and wildly tousled hair, looked for all the world like Little Miss Mystery. But when she spoke, it was in the kind, soft voice of Mary Todd Lincoln Middle School's unremarkable music teacher.\n\n\"That's okay, dear,\" Ms. Finkleman said gently, placing a hand on Bethesda's shoulder. \"I'll tell them.\"\n\nIn the auditorium, Principal Isabella Van Vreeland and her assistant principal, Jasper, raced in and took their reserved seats just in time for the second-to-last group performance: Grover Cleveland Middle School.\n\nPrincipal Van Vreeland's eyes swept the auditorium, at the rows of rowdy Mary Todd Lincoln students and earnest, goofy Mary Todd Lincoln faculty. _These are my people,_ she thought proudly. _Today's victory belongs to them._\n\n_Also to me. Mostly to me._\n\nAfter a brief introduction from their bald, cheerful principal, Winston Cohn, the students of Grover Cleveland took the stage: twelve extremely attractive young people dressed identically in gold pants and silver shirts with black GC monograms on the lapel. The Grover Cleveland Band and Chorus teacher, who looked like a walrus, smoothed down his massive black mustache and signaled them to begin.\n\nThe Grover Cleveland students performed four Gregorian chants in intricate twelve-part harmony, each chant featuring an extended solo from a freakishly talented young man named Richard Beaumont. According to the program notes, this particular seventh grader had recently transferred to Grover Cleveland from a school in Mongolia, where his father had been the United States ambassador, and where Richard had mastered the ancient art of bitonal throat singing. He could, in other words, sing two notes at the same time, a skill possessed by only a couple hundred people on Earth, and which one therefore rarely sees displayed at middle-school choral competitions.\n\nAs Richard ululated vigorously through his final solo, Principal Cohn looked over his shoulder at Principal Van Vreeland and gave her a nice big wink. She ignored him.\n\n\"Don't you worry,\" whispered Principal Van Vreeland to Jasper, who was lost in thought, planning his dream wedding to Ms. Finkleman. \"Our rock-and-roll extravaganza will destroy these little snot-nosed showoffs.\"\n\nJust then, the booming baritone of the announcer filled the auditorium.\n\n\"Ladies and gentlemen, there is only one performance left! \" The slouching hordes of middle-school students sat up and burst into wild applause. Ms. Aarndini put down her knitting and clapped vigorously. Mr. Darlington leaned forward in his seat. The room filled with shouts and hollers.\n\n\"Whooooo!\"\n\n\"Yeah!\"\n\n\"Let's rock! \"\n\nAll the rumors, all the excitement, and all the speculation had been building up to this moment. What songs were they doing? Would there be a smoke machine? Was Ms. Finkleman really going to sing? (There were those, particularly among the sixth-grade boys, still hoping that _someone_ was going to bite the head off of _something.)_\n\n\"Are you ready? \" the announcer continued \"Are you pumped? Have you checked for gum under your seat? \" (The announcer was Janitor Steve). \"Then put your hands together for your very own... Mary Todd Lincoln Middle School!\"\n\nThe curtain flew up, revealing a full rock-and-roll stage setup. There were two guitars, an electric bass, and a keyboard, all resting on their stands, with long snaking cords connecting them to tall stacks of jet black amplifiers. There was a full drum kit, the bass drum adorned with the profile silhouette of Mary Todd Lincoln that was the school's official logo, though someone had given Mrs.\n\nLincoln a green spiky Mohawk for the occasion. There was a microphone in its stand, the stand festooned like a peacock with bright scarves.\n\nThe assembled students and teachers cheered loudly at the sight. They stomped their feet and hooted, holding aloft signs that read MARY TODD LINCOLN RULES and MS. FINKLEMAN ROCKS. And then they waited for the show to begin.\n\nAnd waited.\n\n\"I don't exactly know where to start, so I guess I'll start with my sister.\"\n\nAs Ms. Finkleman spoke, her students huddled together in Janitor Steve's closet, listening quietly. Pamela Preston leaned sulkily against a wall. Tenny Boyer glared from the far side of the closet, his arms folded across his chest, his hooded sweatshirt drawn up over his head.\n\n\"We're twins. Identical twins. She's four minutes, six seconds older than I am.\"\n\nMs. Finkleman hesitated, finding her way forward, and in that split second of silence, the name of Ms. Finkleman's sister leaped into Bethesda's mind\u2014she remembered the one tiny detail of that boring, standard-issue teacher's desk in the Band and Chorus room.\n\n\"Clementine,\" Ms. Finkleman said, just as Bethesda thought it. \"Her name is Clementine. We haven't spoken in fourteen years.\"\n\nSomeone breathed in sharply. Everyone thought the same thing. _Whoa. Fourteen years?_\n\nShelly and Suzie Schwartz looked wordlessly at each other, from where each sat on a patch of concrete, on opposite sides of Janitor Steve's closet. Suzie and Shelly weren't exactly best friends like some twins are, but each spoke more to the other than to anybody else. They spoke a zillion times a day. The idea of not talking to Shelly made Suzie sad in some deep place inside her stomach, and she was sure that Shelly felt the same.\n\n\"So, but why, is the question, right?\" Ms. Finkleman went on. \"And I wish, more than anything, that I had a better answer.\n\n\"We haven't spoken in so long because we had a fight. A stupid fight that somehow turned into something worse, something that never went away. Something that, in a sense, has poisoned my whole life. Yes, Chester?\"\n\n\"Can I go to the bathroom? \"\n\nThree different people, in unison, told Chester to shut up. Ms. Finkleman continued.\n\n\"We were both really into music, me and Clem. Well, her more than me.\" She smiled wistfully. \"I just liked hanging out with my sister. Anyway, when we were sophomores in high school, we started a band. The Red Herrings.\" Ms. Finkleman looked around at her students. \"It was us and a couple friends from school. But the other girls kind of came and went. Really the Red Herrings was just us, me and Clementine. We both played guitar, and we both sang. She wrote the songs.\n\n\"Of course, we were amazing. Or at least we thought we were amazing.\"\n\nPamela Preston cleared her throat noisily. \"Excuse me? I hate to be the responsible one here, but\u2014\"\n\n\"Stuff it for a second, will you, Pam?\" said Todd. Pamela's mouth dropped open, and she turned bright red, but no one noticed.\n\n\"The Red Herrings competed in this Battle of the Bands at a local community college. This hotshot producer from Chicago, a man named Buddy Pendleton, was the judge. And after the competition, he took us aside.\" She paused and took a breath. \"Well. He took Clementine aside.\"\n\nBuddy Pendleton had told Clementine Finkleman two things. Number one, she would never be a rock star with a name like Clementine Finkleman. And number two, her rhythm guitarist was dragging her down.\n\n\"Buddy Pendleton told her the Red Herrings had a shot at being huge. But not as long as I was in the band.\"\n\nIn the auditorium, the cheering died down and was replaced by an anxious and confused silence. Where were they?\n\nThe kids holding up signs began to tire and slowly lowered them. Ms. Pinn-Darvish coughed. Sally Esteban, an eighth grader, blew a bubble and popped it, and the crack echoed loudly through the huge room. From his seat in the second row, Winston Cohn craned his neck around and gave the fuming Principal Van Vreeland a glance that was one part perplexed and three parts gleeful.\n\nSeven rows back and dead center, Bethesda's dad cast a worried glance at Bethesda's mother, who had rushed across town from Mackenzie Magruder McHenry for the eleven o'clock show, and who needed to be back in time for a twelve thirty deposition.\n\n\"Clementine fired me from the Red Herrings. It was the most painful conversation I've ever had.\"\n\nMs. Finkleman risked a glance at Kevin McKelvey, who had said much the same thing to her about his recent argument with his parents. Kevin was staring at the floor, his arms crossed. She pressed on.\n\n\"Honestly, I don't even know why I cared so much. I was never as serious about rock music as Clementine. Which is probably the reason she was so good and I wasn't. I guess what hurt is that Clem didn't want to discuss what we were going to do. She had already made up her mind. She was just telling me. I was out of the band.\"\n\n\"Oh, man,\" said Guy Ficker with a long whistle. \"That stinks.\"\n\n_\"So_ UR,\" agreed Lisa Deckter solemnly.\n\n\"Seriously,\" Natasha Belinsky added. \"Lameness! How could she do that? \"\n\n\"How could she _not_ do it?\" countered Rory Daas. \"I mean, I'm sorry, Ms. Finkleman, but that was her chance to be a rock star. She had to go.\"\n\nMs. Finkleman gave her head a little shake. \"It doesn't matter what she did. It matters what _I_ did. She left, and I never got over it.\"\n\nA couple of weeks later, Clem announced she was moving to Chicago with the band. Their strict Midwestern parents tried to stop her, but Clementine was determined. \"And I let her go, without so much as a good-bye.\"\n\n\"Well, I mean, yeah,\" said Natasha, still horrified at what Ms. Finkleman's sister had done to her. \"What else could you do? \"\n\n\"I could have said good luck. I could have said that I was mad, but I still\u2014You know. I still loved her.\"\n\nBethesda Fielding thought of her father and the time he came to Biography Day in fifth grade, when she had been Charles Dickens. Her dad had videotaped her whole speech, and kept loudly asking other parents to duck their heads down, and afterward she had been embarrassed and irritated and told him he wasn't allowed to come to any more Biography Days. He looked pretty bummed, but said okay, and that she'd always be his Little Dickens, no matter what.\n\n\"But I thought I was the center of the universe,\" Ms. Finkleman continued. \"And anything good that happened to someone else somehow took something away from me.\"\n\nAt this, Pamela Preston bit anxiously at her lower lip and cast a complicated glance toward Bethesda Fielding.\n\n* * *\n\nIn the auditorium, the crowd got bored. The nervous silence blossomed into whispers, which erupted into raucous shouting and hollering and fart noises. Ms. Zmuda led her students out of the room and back to class, since they had a standardized-test prep session third period. A sixth grader had to go to the nurse when another sixth grader smacked him with his MS. FINKLEMAN ROCKS sign.\n\nJasper felt the familiar sting of perfectly manicured fingernails biting into his flesh.\n\n\"Go!\" hissed Principal Van Vreeland. \"Go find out what's happening! \"\n\n\"The more popular the Red Herrings became, the worse I felt. Like Clementine was getting successful just to hurt me. So silly. And then when their second album was a total flop, and North Side dropped them from the label, I felt like if I called her _then,_ she would think I was gloating, trying to make her feel bad.\"\n\n\"Whoa,\" Chester Hu said to Victor Glebe, who nodded gravely.\n\n\"Life is...,\" started Hayley Eisenstein, trying to find the words.\n\n\"It's a mystery,\" said Bethesda.\n\nMs. Finkleman wiped a single tear from her eye with the back of her hand. \"Anyway, I've tried very hard for a very long time not even to _think_ about rock music, because all it does is remind me of my sister, Clementine. Sweet, funny Clementine.\" Ms. Finkleman drew a deep breath and stood up straight. \"But then came Bethesda and her Special Project, and then Principal Van Vreeland got this idea and\u2014well, you know the rest.\n\n\"And, look,\" Ms. Finkleman concluded. \"I understand if you children don't want to go on. Tenny is right. I didn't really create this show you've all been working on so hard. And I am not really a rock star.\"\n\nKevin McKelvey raised his head, uncrossed his arms, and pointed right at Ms. Finkleman. \"Yes,\" he said simply, his rhinestone suit glimmering in the fluorescent supply closet lights. \"Yes, you are.\"\n\nThen Shelly Schwartz said, \"You _totally_ are.\"\n\nAnd then Chester and Victor, in unison, like a good rhythm section should be: \"Of _course_ you are.\"\n\nIn the months to come no one could remember exactly who it was that spoke next. Everyone was thinking the same thing, so in the moment it didn't really matter who actually said the words.\n\n\"Tenny? What should we do?\"\n\nBefore Tenny could answer, the PA system crackled back to life. \"Let's try this one more time,\" Janitor Steve said. \"Please put your hands together\u2014and put your trash in the proper receptacles\u2014for the students of Mary Todd Lincoln Middle School!\"\n\nThe door to the supply closet flew open, and Jasper entered in a mad panic, frantic and panting, not noticing the bottle of all-purpose cleanser he crushed under his foot. \"Children!\" he said. \"What are you doing?\"\n\nTenny looked at Bethesda, who looked back at him. They exchanged their secret nod. Tenny turned to his fellow students and said, \"Go rock.\"\n\n# [29\n\n _THE ROCK SHOW_](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#c29)\n\n_Ms. Petrides,_ the English teacher, would probably disagree, but the truth is, certain things can't be described in words. The rock show presented by the students of sixth-period Music Fundamentals was one of those things. Even when everyone at school had long since learned the secret truth about Ms. Finkleman (the _real_ truth) and the day had passed when everyone thought a genuine rock star walked among them\u2014everyone could agree on one thing: That show was _awesome._\n\nChester Hu _wailed_ on the drums.\n\nSuzie Schwartz's bass playing was soulful and dynamic.\n\nCarmine Lopez strutted around and waggled his tongue _and_ played rhythm guitar in perfect tempo.\n\nBraxton Lashey made it through the entire show without hurting himself, though it was later revealed he had Krazy Glued his keyboard to the stand so it wouldn't fall off.\n\nBessie Stringer and Tucker Wilson were a killer horn section, note perfect on both their unison parts and their four-step shuffling choreography.\n\nKevin McKelvey's solo on \"Livin' on a Prayer\" was exuberant and acrobatic. He straddled the bench, shimmied his skinny frame, alternately battered and massaged the keys, and (at the end of it) did barrel rolls all over the stage. The whole time, teachers who had him in their other classes were checking their programs to make sure it was him.\n\nAs for Ms. Finkleman... Ms. Finkleman _rocked._\n\nIda, who as her students had just learned, had not sung a rock song for over a decade, grabbed the microphone and howled riotously through the entire set without dropping a note. To the delight of the enthusiastic crowd, she shook her leather-clad hips, bared her teeth, and banged rhythmically on a tambourine.\n\nIt was _remarkable._\n\nThere were very few people in attendance that day who did not thoroughly enjoy Mary Todd Lincoln's performance at the Seventeenth Annual Choral Corral. One person was Principal Winston Cohn of Grover Cleveland Middle School, who sank lower and lower in his seat, until by the end of the set he was basically a puddle of green blazer and bald head.\n\nThe others were Bethesda's father and mother, who throughout the show exchanged puzzled looks: _Where was she?_\n\nStanding just offstage, Bethesda Fielding watched Tenny Boyer watch the show. Again they were isolated, as they had been on the principal's bench, trapped together on the sideline of events. For the second time that day, Bethesda experienced this bizarre sensation\u2014here was this strange, spacey kid, who she barely even knew two months ago. And now their fates had somehow been tied together.\n\nAs Tenny watched, his fingers played along with the guitar parts, describing chords in the empty air. His feet shuffled slightly as he ghosted the dance breaks. He played phantom drums and mouthed all the lyrics.\n\n\"This show is amazing,\" Bethesda said, speaking loudly over the vigorous applause for Band Number One's performance of \"I Got You.\" \"You totally lived up to your end of the bargain, Tenny. You should be really proud.\"\n\n\"Yeah,\" he replied simply, and she could tell that he _was_ proud. \"You should be, too.\"\n\nBethesda snorted. \"Are you kidding me? I'm a disaster! I _had_ to have the best Special Project, and it turns out what I discovered was completely wrong. And then I _had_ to make sure you passed Melville. That didn't go so well either, in case you hadn't noticed.\"\n\n\"Yeah. But listen.\"\n\nThere was something serious in Tenny's voice, and when she looked at him she felt it again\u2014that weird shiver of special connection. _To Tenny Boyer! Of all people._\n\n\"You should be proud,\" Tenny explained, \"because you made a promise\u2014\" \"You mean the deal? \"\n\n\"A promise. You made a promise, and you stuck to it. And you kept trying even when it was obvious I wasn't going to get it. You kept trying up to the point where you did something, you know, moronic.\"\n\nBethesda thought about making a joke\u2014because basically he had just called her a moron and all\u2014but she didn't.\n\n\"We're not in the rock show,\" Tenny concluded. \"But I wouldn't trade this semester for anything.\"\n\nAt that moment, \"Livin' on a Prayer\" kicked into the big solo section and the light scheme changed from blue to red, so Tenny didn't notice how thoroughly Bethesda was blushing. Fortunately for her, their conversation was interrupted by a low, grumbling voice.\n\n\"How's the show?\"\n\nMr. Melville stood in his enormous brown sport jacket with his arms crossed, his hulking presence entirely unsuited to the cord-strewn, dimly lit backstage. At his appearance, Tenny scowled and turned his attention back to the stage, but Bethesda looked Mr. Melville straight in the eye. For once, she knew exactly what she was supposed to say.\n\n\"Mr. Melville, I'm sorry we cheated on your test. It was wrong.\"\n\n\"Yes. It was.\" Mr. Melville tapped Tenny on the shoulder. \"And you, sir? \"\n\nTenny reluctantly turned away from the stage and regarded Mr. Melville sulkily. \"What? Now we're not even allowed to watch? \"\n\nBethesda had a hunch what was going on, and she stomped on Tenny's toe. On stage, Half-Eaten Almond Joy was finishing \"Livin' on a Prayer,\" which meant the Careless Errors would be next.\n\n\"What? \" Tenny mouthed to her.\n\n\"Say it, dummy!\" she mouthed back.\n\nMr. Melville waited, arms folded, eyebrows raised. Tenny sighed.\n\n\"I'm\u2014uh\u2014\" He looked straight at Mr. Melville. \"I'm sorry, dude.\"\n\nOn stage, Ms. Finkleman announced the final song of the three-song set.\n\n\"Well.\" Mr. Melville sighed. \"Given the urgency of the situation, I shall accept your mea culpa, inarticulate and grudging though it might be.\"\n\n\"Huh?\" said Tenny. \"What does that mean?\"\n\nMr. Melville smiled. Even his eyebrows seemed to smile. \"It means, go play your guitar, kid.\"\n\n\"One! Two! _One, two, three, four!_ \" hollered Ezra at the drum kit, clicking his sticks and counting the Careless Errors into their big number. Bethesda grabbed Tenny by the forearm and yanked him onto the stage.\n\nBethesda and Tenny's last-minute appearance\u2014just in time for Bethesda to grab the mike for the first lyric, and for Tenny to grab a guitar and play the first of his colorful lead riffs\u2014shot another million volts through what was already a totally electric performance. Bethesda sang exuberantly, and the whole band sang along with her.\n\nEven Pamela Preston shook her maracas with admirable vigor. Soon the other sixth-period Music Fundamentals kids all ran back on stage to sing and exhort the crowd and just generally leap and dance around the stage.\n\n\"Let's go away for a while, you and I! \" they sang. \"To a strange and distant land...\"\n\nBy the end of the final chorus, after Tenny's wicked guitar solo, everyone in the auditorium was singing along.\n\n\"Holiday! Far away! \"\n\nAfter the closing chords, the crowd cheered like crazy.\n\nThey cheered even louder when Ms. Finkleman announced that it was this young man right here, Tennyson Boyer, who had created and directed the entire performance.\n\nAnd they cheered the loudest of all when Tenny grabbed the mike to say thanks, and give all the credit to Benjamin Franklin, Paul Revere, and Bethesda Fielding.\n\nFrom seven rows back and dead center, Bethesda's dad dabbed tears from his eyes and loudly blew his nose and clapped more than anyone\u2014except for Bethesda's mom, that is, who had decided that missing her deposition, this one time, wouldn't be the end of the world.\n\nAn encore was demanded, as Tenny had known it would be. \"This song,\" he announced, flashing a smile at Ms. Finkleman, \"is by my all-time favorite punk band.\" And with that, the students of sixth-period Music Fundamentals launched into \"Not So Complicated,\" by Little Miss Mystery and the Red Herrings\u2014the song that Bethesda had played for them off a battered old seven-inch record in Mr. Melville's class, way, way back in February, before the whole world turned upside down. It was a chaotic version, with three guitars, three basses, three keyboards, and so much supplemental percussion that you never could have heard the words, except that twenty-four students and their teacher were all singing them in raucous unison.\n\nBethesda Fielding the Rock Star, at the center of it all, sang and bounced around the stage as she had sung and bounced around her room. She sang and bounced and traded excited glances with the blue-hooded sweatshirt-wearing guitarist to her left. She glimpsed her parents in the audience, grinning and proud, and winced; she knew some difficult conversations lay ahead. But for now, in this moment, she twirled around and clutched the mike like it was all that mattered in the world, and felt something inside her flickering and buzzing and making all kinds of wild patterns. It felt like Christmas lights.\n\n# [_Epilogue_\n\n **JUNE**](9780062011886_epub_toc_r1.htm#epl)\n\n_Ms. Finkleman_ was still not the most popular teacher at Mary Todd Lincoln Middle School. Even after the acknowledged triumph of the rock show, the revelation that she had never really been a punk-rock singer dimmed her star more than a little. Besides, the new seventh-grade science teacher, Ms. Rodrigo, was teaching her kids how to make explosions using corn syrup, wax paper, and a teaspoonful of mouthwash. It's hard to top that.\n\nIda certainly didn't mind regaining just a tad of her former unremarkableness. What was nice, though, was that the respectful silence, which had so surprised her on the day of Bethesda Fielding's Special Project, never entirely went away. And so she was left, in the aftermath of the Choral Corral, with nearly everything a middle-school music teacher could want. She had her days at school, which could now be more than survived\u2014they could be enjoyed. And she had her evenings at home, with her tea and her comfortable chair and her stereo. Now, however, she alternated: Some nights she listened to Mozart and Haydn, and some nights to James Brown, or to Weezer, or to Little Miss Mystery and the Red Herrings.\n\nAnd one afternoon, a week or so before the end of the school year, Bethesda Fielding stopped by after school.\n\n\"Okay,\" Bethesda began, sheepishly. \"Don't kill me.\"\n\nMs. Finkleman narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the notebook Bethesda clutched in her right hand, which was labeled SPDSTAMF, and said, \"I'm not making any promises.\"\n\n\"It's just that there's one thing bothering me. About this whole thing. One little mystery that's left. And I totally wouldn't bug you, except\u2014well, if I finish seventh grade without knowing the answer, I think it will drive me insane.\"\n\n\"You know what you are?\" Ms. Finkleman sighed. \"You are incorrigible.\"\n\n\"I know, I know. But listen. So you got kicked out of the Red Herrings when you were still a sophomore in high school. And you said yourself it was Clementine who was the one who was really into rock, even then. And that after the whole thing, you never really developed a taste for rock at all. Only classical.\"\n\n\"Yes. So?\"\n\n\"So you said your parents were really strict, which means you couldn't have gotten it when you were in high school.\"\n\n\"Gotten what? \"\n\n\"That tattoo! Ms. Finkleman, when did you get the Ozzy Osbourne tattoo?\"\n\nMs. Finkleman could only laugh.\n\n\"What? \" said Bethesda, getting a little embarrassed. _\"What?\"_\n\n\"I got it when I graduated with a master's degree in arts education,\" she explained, still chuckling as she rolled up her sleeve to reveal a man with long, wild hair and piercing eyes. \"And it's not Ozzy Osbourne. It's Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.\"\n\nThat night Ms. Finkleman made herself a cup of tea and picked up a stack of neat note cards, on which she had written all the things she had to say, and the order in which she would say them.\n\nBut when Clementine answered the phone, she just started talking and didn't look at her cards at all.\n\n* * *\n\nOn the last day of seventh grade, Bethesda Fielding and Tenny Boyer, who would be attending different schools in the fall, biked together to Pilverton Mall to split a farewell Cinnabon. At the food court they talked about music, and the Choral Corral, and the world Tenny would be leaving behind. They agreed they'd \"try to hang out every once in a while,\" which is not a particularly firm commitment. But for some reason Tenny was grinning conspicuously as he said it, and Bethesda found herself grinning, too, and discovered in addition that her sneaker was bopping happily against the table leg.\n\nAt precisely four o'clock, the kids bussed their trays and watched Chef Pilverton emerge from his familiar hiding place within the clock across from Arthur Treacher's. And then, a moment later, a _second_ Chef Pilverton emerged beside the first. Tenny and Bethesda looked at each other, confused. _Two Chef Pilvertons? What the..._\n\nAnd the really strange thing was that neither Chef Pilverton was a giant animatronic puppet. They both appeared to be real live human beings. In fact, they were both middle-school principals, living up to the terms of a most unusual wager. \"Bonjour! \" said Principal Winston Cohn, waving a big rolling pin in the air. _\"Laissez les bon temps rouler,\"_ added Principal Van Vreeland miserably, adjusting the giant white chef's hat that flopped over her eyes.\n\nBoth, as it turned out, were losing principals. The winner of the All-County Choral Corral had been neither Mary Todd Lincoln nor Grover Cleveland, but the Band and Chorus department of Preston Sturges Middle School for the Arts, who had presented a program of traditional English folk ballads from the sixteenth century.\n\nTenny and Bethesda laughed as they left the mall. Outside they hopped on their bikes and headed to Bethesda's house. Tenny had written a song about the Special Project, and the rock show, and the whole crazy semester\u2014the song was called \"The Secret Life of Ms. Finkleman,\" and he really wanted Bethesda to hear it.\n\n# _Acknowledgments_\n\nTo all the people with whom I've rocked, I salute you, especially everyone affiliated with the following ragtag musical concerns: Corm, The Miracle Cures, Lisa Hooks Up, and Sislen & Winters.\n\nThanks to the students of PS 344 (The Anderson School) and PS 77 (Lower Lab) for teaching me how to write.\n\nThanks to comedienne\/memoirist\/friend Abby Sher, who introduced me to my warmhearted and tough-minded agent, Molly Lyons. And to Molly for bringing me to my editor, Sarah Sevier, who made this process totally clamfoodle.\n\nThanks to my family\u2014wife, kids, parents, brother, in-laws, everyone\u2014for making possible my preposterous career.\n\n_The Secret Life of Ms. Finkleman_ was written in the Writers Room in New York City.\n\n# Copyright\n\nLivin' on a Prayer \nWords and Music by Jon Bon Jovi, Desmond Child, and Richie Sambora Copyright \u00a9 1986 UNIVERSAL-POLYGRAM INTERNATIONAL PUBLISHING, INC., BON JOVI PUBLISHING, AND AGGRESSIVE MUSIC ALL RIGHTS FOR BON JOVI PUBLISHING CONTROLLED AND ADMINISTERED BY UNIVERSAL-POLYGRAM INTERNATIONAL PUBLISHING, INC. ALL RIGHTS FOR AGGRESSIVE MUSIC ADMINISTERED BY SONY\/ATV MUSIC PUBLISHING LLC, 8 Music Square West, Nashville, TN 37203 \n _Reprinted by permission of Hal Leonard Corporation_\n\nHoliday \nWords and Music by Rivers Cuomo \nCopyright \u00a9 1994 E.O. Smith Music \nInternational Copyright Secured. All Rights Reserved. \n _Reprinted by permission of Hal Leonard Corporation_\n\nGreat Balls of Fire \nWords and Music by Otis Blackwell and Jack Hammer \nCopyright \u00a9 1957 by Chappell & Co. and Unichappell Music Inc. \nCopyright Renewed \nInternational Copyright Secured. All Rights Reserved. \n _Reprinted by permission of Hal Leonard Corporation_\n\nThe Secret Life of Ms. Finkleman \nCopyright \u00a9 2010 by Ben H. Winters\n\nAll rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.\n\nEPub Edition \u00a9 AUGUST 2010 ISBN: 978-0-062-01188-6\n\nwww.harpercollinschildrens.com\n\nLibrary of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data\n\nWinters, Ben H. \nThe secret life of Ms. Finkleman\/Ben H. Winters. \np. cm. \nSummary: Spurred by a special project from her social studies teacher, seventh-grader Bethesda Fielding uncovers the secret identity of her music teacher, which leads to a most unusual concert performance and a tutoring assignment. \nISBN 978-0-06-196541-8 \n[1. Middle schools\u2014Fiction. 2. Schools\u2014Fiction. 3. Teachers\u2014Fiction. 4. Secrets\u2014Fiction. 5. Musicians\u2014Fiction. 6. Rock music\u2014Fiction. 7. Tutors and tutoring\u2014Fiction.] \nI. Title. \nPZ7.W7667Sec 2010 2010004601 \n[Fic]\u2014dc22 CIP \nAC\n\nTypography by Alison Klanthor \n10 11 12 13 14 LP\/RRDB 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1\n\nFIRST EDITION\n\n# About the Publisher\n\n**Australia** \nHarperCollins Publishers (Australia) Pty. Ltd. \n25 Ryde Road (PO Box 321) \nPymble, NSW 2073, Australia \nhttp:\/\/www.harpercollinsebooks.com.au\n\n**Canada** \nHarperCollins Canada \n2 Bloor Street East - 20th Floor \nToronto, ON, M4W 1A8, Canada \nhttp:\/\/www.harpercollinsebooks.ca\n\n**New Zealand** \nHarperCollinsPublishers (New Zealand) Limited \nP.O. Box 1 Auckland, \nNew Zealand \nhttp:\/\/www.harpercollinsebooks.co.nz\n\n**United Kingdom** \nHarperCollins Publishers Ltd. \n77-85 Fulham Palace Road \nLondon, W6 8JB, UK \nhttp:\/\/www.harpercollinsebooks.co.uk\n\n**United States** \nHarperCollins Publishers Inc. \n10 East 53rd Street \nNew York, NY 10022 \nhttp:\/\/www.harpercollinsebooks.com\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaBook"}}
+{"text":" \nEleanor, \nCountess of Desmond\n\n**Anne Chambers**\n\n_Gill & Macmillan_\nContents\n\nCover\n\nTitle page\n\nChronology\n\nPrologue\n\nChapter 1: The Baron's Daughter\n\nChapter 2: The Feud\n\nChapter 3: The Lady of Desmond\n\nChapter 4: Exile\n\nChapter 5: A Troubled Homecoming\n\nChapter 6: Diplomacy and Intrigue\n\nChapter 7: Rebellion\n\nChapter 8: The Pauper Countess\n\nChapter 9: The Chatelaine\n\nEpilogue\n\nAppendix: The 'Old' Countess of Desmond\n\nGenealogical Tables\n\nReferences\n\nBibliography\n\nCopyright\n\nAbout the Author\n\nAbout Gill & Macmillan\nChronology\n\n1545Eleanor born at Kiltinan castle\n\n1547Death of Henry VIII\n\n1558Accession of Elizabeth I\n\n1558Gerald FitzGerald becomes fourteenth Earl of Desmond\n\n1565Eleanor marries Gerald\n\n1565Battle of Affane\n\n1565Gerald taken prisoner to England\n\n1565Sir Henry Sidney appointed Lord Deputy\n\n1565Gerald returns from captivity\n\n1566Birth of Eleanor's first daughter\n\n1567Gerald imprisoned in Dublin Castle\n\n1567Gerald and Sir John sent to the Tower\n\n1568Eleanor administers the Desmond estates\n\n1569First Desmond Rebellion\n\n1570Eleanor in Tower of London\n\n1570Eleanor and Gerald under restraint in Kent\n\n1570Sir John Perrot, President of Munster\n\n1570Excommunication of Elizabeth I\n\n1571Birth of Eleanor's son, James, in London\n\n1572St Bartholomew's Day Massacre, Paris\n\n1573Eleanor and Gerald granted audience with Elizabeth I\n\n1573Eleanor and Gerald return to Ireland\n\n1573Gerald detained in Dublin\n\n1573Gerald escapes to Munster\n\n1573Eleanor and Gerald welcomed at Lough Gur\n\n1574Gerald re-captures Castlemaine and Castlemartyr\n\n1574Meeting of Eleanor and Gerald with Earl of Essex at Waterford\n\n1574Signing of Combination Document\n\n1574Ormond destroys Derrinlaur Castle\n\n1575Eleanor writes to Queen Elizabeth\n\n1575James FitzMaurice departs for St Malo\n\n1575Eleanor seeks the return of her son\n\n1575Sidney re-appointed Lord Deputy\n\n1576Sir William Drury appointed President of Munster\n\n1577Eleanor intervenes with Drury\n\n1577Eleanor and Gerald take refuge in Kerry\n\n1578Tentative peace accord with Drury\n\n1578Eleanor and Gerald bid farewell to Sidney in Dublin\n\n1578Eleanor sends Elizabeth a gift of marten skins\n\n1579Eleanor re-united with her son\n\n1579FitzMaurice and Papal Force land at Smerwick Harbour\n\n1579Second Desmond Rebellion\n\n1579Murder of Davells and Carter\n\n1579Death of James FitzMaurice\n\n1579Eleanor entrusts her son to Drury\n\n1579Askeaton Abbey desecrated by Sir Nicholas Malby\n\n1579William Pelham, Lord Justice\n\n1579Eleanor intercedes with Pelham\n\n1579Earl of Desmond proclaimed traitor\n\n1579Third Desmond Rebellion\n\n1580Eleanor thwarted in her efforts to go to Queen Elizabeth\n\n1580Gerald sacks Youghal\n\n1580Destruction of Carraigafoyle and Askeaton\n\n1580Eleanor and Gerald on the run in Munster\n\n1580Eleanor entrusts her daughters to her sisters\n\n1580Pelham and Ormond combine against the Desmond forces\n\n1580Eleanor and Gerald hunted by English\n\n1580Winter delivers Eleanor's letter to Court\n\n1580Execution of Sir James Fitzgerald at Cork\n\n1580Sir Arthur Grey de Wilton, Lord Deputy\n\n1580Massacre of Spanish at D\u00fan-an-\u00d3ir\n\n1581Death of Dr Sanders\n\n1582Death of Sir John of Desmond\n\n1582Eleanor intercedes with Grey at Maryborough\n\n1582Eleanor rejoins Gerald on the run\n\n1583Ormond leads the final push against Gerald\n\n1583Gerald tries to negotiate\n\n1583Eleanor and Gerald part\n\n1583Eleanor submits to Ormond\n\n1583Gerald killed near Tralee\n\n1584Sir John Perrot, Lord Deputy\n\n1584Eleanor and her daughters in Dublin Castle\n\n1584Eleanor's son sent to the Tower of London\n\n1585Formal attainder of Desmond estate\n\n1585Eleanor attempts to salvage part of estate\n\n1586Eleanor and her daughters reduced to penury\n\n1587Eleanor petitions Elizabeth\n\n1588Eleanor makes her way to the English Court\n\n1588Spanish Armada\n\n1588Eleanor received by Elizabeth in St James's Palace\n\n1588Elizabeth authorises pardon and pension for Eleanor and her daughters\n\n1588Eleanor visits her son in the Tower. Petitions the Queen for further support\n\n1592Red Hugh O'Donnell escapes from Dublin Castle\n\n1595Hugh O'Neill and O'Donnell conspire with Spain\n\n1597Eleanor marries Sir Donogh O'Connor Sligo\n\n1597Eleanor and Donogh settle in Collooney Castle\n\n1597Sir Conyers Clifford, President of Connaught\n\n1597Battle of the Yellow Ford\n\n1597Earl of Essex, Lord Deputy\n\n1599Siege of Collooney Castle by O'Donnell\n\n1599Battle of Curlew Mountains\n\n1599Donogh submits to O'Donnell\n\n1600Lord Mountjoy, Lord Deputy\n\n1600Return of Eleanor's son to Munster\n\n1601Death of Eleanor's son in Tower of London\n\n1601Battle of Kinsale\n\n1603Death of Elizabeth I\n\n1603Eleanor at Court of James I\n\n1603Assistance from Robert Cecil\n\n1607Eleanor and Donogh in legal battles with new colonists\n\n1609Death of Sir Donogh O'Connor Sligo\n\n1613Eleanor wins legal battle for possession of Sligo estate\n\n1619Desmond title bestowed on Sir Richard Preston and subsequently on the Earl of Denbigh\n\n1638Eleanor's will and death\nPrologue\n\n_Out of every corner of the woods and glens they \ncame creeping forth upon their hands for their \nlegs could not bear them, they looked like \nanatomies of death, they spoke like ghosts, crying \nout of their graves, they did eat the dead carrions, \nhappy where they could find them, yea, and one \nanother soon after, insomuch as the very carcasses \nthey spared not to scrape out of their graves and if \nthey found a plot of watercresses or shamrocks, \nthere they flocked as to a feast for a time, yet not \nable long to continue there withal, that in short \nspace there were none almost left, and a most \npopulous and plentiful country suddenly left void \nof man or beast._\n\nEDMUND SPENSER\n\nEdmund Spenser's horrific account of starvation, cannibalism and decay described the state of the most fertile province of Ireland in 1582. The celebrated poet and civil servant bore witness to the dreadful spectacle that appalled his eyes and compelled his stern Elizabethan heart to cry out in pity.\n\nA once rich province, the size of modern Holland, Munster lay devastated. Lush green pasturelands were torched to a blackened heath, devoid of crops or animals. Famine stalked rampant through the vales and over the gently sloping hills. Among the smouldering remains the skeletal figures of the surviving peasantry foraged in vain. The castles and keeps of the local aristocracy lay in ruins, open to the unrelenting icy rain that hissed in vengeance on the smoking embers. The people were scattered and hid like wild beasts in the fortresses of Munster's rugged mountain ranges and in her great, dark forests and wild glens. They peered silently through the bare branches and waited. They awaited the return of the great overlord their master to whom, by tradition as ancient as the vast oak forests that sheltered them, they had given their absolute allegiance. They waited for him to lead them once more into battle in the bloody and futile war that for over three years had raged and ravaged the countryside.\n\nBut the great overlord shared the same fate as his clansmen. Askeaton castle, the mighty pile on the banks of the River Deel, the symbol of his family's once proud and powerful heritage, lay in ruins. A company of English horse was stabled in its great banqueting hall. Its lord was hunted like a wild animal over the despoiled estates of his Munster lordship. From the lowly wattle huts of his kern, from cold mountain caves to the ruined fortresses of his ancestors, through the marshy recesses of the Glen of Aherlow, into the dark forest of Kylemore and across the tortuous mountain passes to the west, Garrett FitzGerald, the fourteenth earl of the ancient and noble House of Desmond, fled for his life.\n\nHe had many impediments in his headlong flight. His once populous army had vanished, decimated more by famine and fear than by actual engagement with the enemy. His erstwhile allies had, one by one, forsaken him. Every friend had become a potential foe as the price on his head increased. His inheritance of over a half million acres of land in Munster provided the incentive and the scent to the eager English greyhounds who leaped from the slips in pursuit. But perhaps the greatest impediment to his safety stemmed from his own physical disabilities. His body had succumbed to the effects of palsy and the Irish ague, the result of lengthy periods of imprisonment and deprivation, aggravated by the dampness that oozed up from the marshes and bogs and by the rain that dripped incessantly from the bushes and undergrowth in which he hid, or from the sodden thatch of the kerns' cabins when he managed a fitful night's respite from the elements and the enemy. Yet despite these overwhelming liabilities, the earl had one remaining asset\u2014his countess, Eleanor.\n\nBy 1582 Garrett and Eleanor had been married for seventeen years. It had, at first sight, seemed an unlikely match\u2014the pale, proud Geraldine widower and the lively young girl from the rival Butler family. But Eleanor had soon proved her worth by bringing to the marriage certain qualities\u2014coolness, prudence, pragmatism, skill in diplomacy, and an instinctive grasp of political realities\u2014which might offset the less balanced traits of her husband. For the earl's outlook was rooted firmly in the feudal tradition of a bygone era from which he derived his jealously-guarded status as the absolute ruler of a territory larger than that of any other magnate in either England or Ireland. His pride and vanity and his aristocratic temperament made it impossible for him to come to terms with the challenges of a new age, typified by the Tudor monarchy, with its commitment to progress, reform, modernisation and the establishment of strong, central government. Such ideals were anathema to the autocratic Earl of Desmond, and were bitterly resented by him as an intolerable affront to his ancient and customary rights, powers and privileges. His diehard attitude set him inevitably on a collision course with the relentless forces of change; and the struggle, if he persisted in it, could have only one outcome. His young wife, with her greater intelligence and political awareness, perceived the likely trend of future events and determined to do everything in her power to safeguard her husband's interests and try to make him adapt to the unfamiliar new power structure in Munster. And even if Garrett himself was doomed to destruction, Eleanor saw it as her duty to ensure the preservation of his earldom for their son and heir.\n\nWith great skill and courage, the capable and strong-willed countess set about her difficult task. She first sought to act as a moderating influence on her volatile and headstrong husband. Where he threatened and raged against his English opponents, she counselled caution and diplomacy. Where he engaged in wild schemes or contemplated treasonable conspiracies, she conducted negotiations on his behalf with government officials. Where he took reckless and precipitate action, she moved swiftly to defuse the dangerous situation. On numerous occasions she mitigated the ill effects of his irresponsible and, at times, irrational behaviour. Eleanor had also to contend with threats from other quarters. Ruthless Tudor administrators intent on the 'pacification' of Ireland; rapacious English soldiers and government officials; neighbouring lords, envious of the earl's vast domain; power-hungry rivals from within his own family\u2014all these desired Garrett's downfall and hoped to profit from the confiscation of his estates.\n\nThe precarious political state of affairs in Munster was further complicated by the intrusion of a new ideological dimension arising from developments in international politics. On the one hand, a group of Catholic zealots were attempting to use Munster as a cockpit from which to launch a crusade, with papal and continental backing, against the 'heretical' English Queen, while on the other, the fanatical Puritan officers of the English army were remorselessly determined to stamp out every vestige of papal influence. Finally, there was the age-old problem posed by the multitude of undisciplined, idle swordsmen who surrounded the earl and whose only trade was war and rapine. There was no future for such men in the new Ireland that was slowly and painfully coming into being; the archaic world of these Gaelic and gaelicised clansmen was already doomed, and if their hereditary overlord, the Earl of Desmond, allowed his interests to be identified with theirs, then his fate too was sealed.\n\nEleanor's efforts in the face of such opposition made many demands on her varied abilities and on her courage. It was she who single-handedly administered the Desmond estates and revenues during her husband's long absence in England. It was she who loyally shared his years of sordid captivity, nursed him through his illnesses, and petitioned for his release. It was she who kept a close watch on the devious activities of his enemies in Munster and on the even more sinister machinations of certain of his own kinsmen and followers. It was she who conducted important negotiations with successive governors and central and provincial administrators. Her concern for the future of the earldom of Desmond led her to confront the Queen of England and to maintain contact with her over the years by means of astutely worded diplomatic missives. The cold hostility initially displayed by the unfriendly sovereign was gradually replaced by a grudging respect for the Irish countess. In her endeavours to save the Desmond inheritance from confiscation and dismemberment, there was no one, English or Irish, who played a significant role in the affairs of Ireland with whom Eleanor did not confer.\n\nAnd now, even after her husband had been proclaimed a traitor and a rebel, she refused to give up hope. Her home had been destroyed, her children scattered, her husband hunted as a fugitive, forced to seek refuge in remote forests and glens. Now once again, as the harsh winter weather penetrated the densely wooded Glen of Aherlow in the early weeks of 1582, she shared the misery and humiliation of his furtive existence\u2014now cowering beneath a thick mass of undergrowth, where the exhausted earl had collapsed, while a scouting party of English soldiers from the garrison at Kilmallock scoured the area in search of them; now swiftly mounting her horse and decoying the soldiers on a mad chase further and further away from her husband's place of refuge; now wearily returning to nurse the ailing and semi-crippled earl; now composing a letter to the Privy Council; now dashing off northwards to intercede with the Lord Deputy or one of his officials; now suddenly reappearing with news of the approach of another posse of soldiers; now hurrying with Garrett from one wretched hiding-place to another.\n\nThe life of Eleanor Butler FitzGerald, Countess of Desmond is testimony to the struggle of a courageous, spirited, enduring and gritty woman who refused to abandon hope in the face of an inexorable fate which sucked more powerful than she into its maw. And while it may appear that she failed ultimately in her goal to save her husband, her family, her home and her inheritance, her failure is heroic, her path towards it a triumph of the human spirit. One can only stand and applaud in amazement and admiration this forgotten heroine of the Tudor wars in Ireland.\n\nWhile Eleanor may have lived 500 years ago, the personal trauma she experienced by the violent and systematic destruction of the fabric of her native society and way of life has reverberation and relevance today. Women in Bosnia, Somalia, Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine and elsewhere, the mothers, wives, grandmothers, widows, sisters and daughters of the indigenous populations, have lived and continue to live through political, military and social upheaval, their lives torn asunder by forces, both foreign and local, over which they have little control. And yet despite such insurmountable odds, in the midst of such a hostile environment, these unsung heroines continue to protect, nurture and provide for their families and keep hope alive.\n\nAnd it is to these brave women this book is dedicated.\nChapter 1\n\nThe Baron's Daughter\n\n_Sometime let gorgeous Tragedy_\n\n_In sceptred pall come sweeping by,_\n\n_Presenting Thebes, or Pelops' line._\n\n_Or the tale of Troy divine._\n\nMILTON, 'IL PENSEROSO'\n\nEleanor Butler was born at Kiltinan castle, near Fethard, County Tipperary, about the year 1545. She was the second daughter of Edmund Butler, Lord Baron of Dunboyne. Her mother was Cecilia (S\u00edle), daughter of Cormac Oge MacCarthy, Lord of Muskerry, County Cork, and widow of Sir Cormac MacCarthy Reagh. Eleanor had eight brothers, James, John, Piers, Richard, William, Thomas, Nicholas and Walter, and three sisters, Ellis, Katherine and Joan. Kiltinan castle was the principal seat of the family. At the time of Eleanor's birth, her father also possessed the castles of Dangan, Boytonrath, Grange, Ballygellward, Grallagh, Moygarth, Tyrnwyane, Cashel and Fethard.\n\nHer father's title 'Dunboyne' denoted the family's association with Dunboyne, County Meath. The connection can be traced back to the Norman invasion of the twelfth century. In 1172 Hugh de Lacy was granted the lordship of Meath. On his subjugation of the local Gaelic clans he granted the manors of Dunboyne and Moynett to one of his followers, William le Petit. William's line continued until the reign of Henry III, when the sole heiress, Synolda, married Thomas Butler (le Botiller), third son of Theobald Butler, lord of the territory of Ormond in Munster. By this marriage Thomas Butler became the Baron of Dunboyne and removed his residence to County Meath. The title, however, was not officially sanctioned until 1541, when Eleanor's father was formally created Baron of Dunboyne by royal patent of King Henry VIII.\n\nThe Dunboyne Butlers' re-connection with their Munster origins began in the fourteenth century, when Peter, second Lord Dunboyne, married the daughter and heiress of John de Bermingham, lord of Kiltinan and Knockgraffon, County Tipperary. The de Bermingham family had long been settled in County Galway, but one of their house had married the daughter of Philip of Worcester, the original grantee of the Kiltinan properties. The de Berminghams maintained their interest in Kiltinan until the mid-fifteenth century, preferring to base their claim, not on the feudal law of their ancestors, but on the more ancient Gaelic code, whereby property was retained by a family's more powerful members without much regard for proximity of blood or inheritance. In view of Peter's marriage, his grandson, Edmund, fourth Lord Dunboyne, staked his claim to Kiltinan by right of his de Bermingham grandmother. But the de Berminghams by 1410 had granted the castle to the third Earl of Ormond's illegitimate son, Thomas Butler, Prior of Kilmainham, in an attempt to circumvent the claims of the Dunboynes. The fourth Earl of Ormond, as overlord of the area, decided that only a duel could cut through the tangled legal web over ownership of Kiltinan. Consequently in the spring of 1420 Edmund Butler of Dunboyne fought a desperate duel to the death with the prior's son, also named Edmund. But Dunboyne was fatally wounded, and the prior's son won a brief respite for his family. The prior's descendants continued to hold Kiltinan until 1452, when the scales of justice were finally balanced. An interest in the property was conveyed to another Edmund Butler of Dunboyne, nephew of the duellist, and the Dunboynes finally entered into their rightful inheritance, albeit one and a half centuries late.\n\nThe rock fortress of Kiltinan castle stands in an imposing and picturesque location in the shadow of Slievenamon, some five kilometres from Fethard, County Tipperary. It is strategically situated above a steep ravine overlooking the Glashawley river, a tributary of the Suir. It commands a fine view over the rich pasturelands of the Suir valley sweeping away to the south and to the Comeragh and Knockmealdown mountains beyond. A remarkable geographical feature associated with Kiltinan is the 'roaring spring', where an opening in the rocks leads to an underground river from which a spring emerges; an internal waterfall or cascade is thought by geologists to be responsible for the roaring sound. Described as 'the castle and dwelling-house of the Lord of Dunboyne', it was built towards the end of the twelfth century.\n\nIn Eleanor's time Kiltinan was a formidable structure of considerable size. It comprised a large quadrangular courtyard bounded by four towers, one of which was circular; they were built of limestone and sand mortar. The remains of the circular tower, its walls some seven feet thick, can still be seen today. Two of the square towers were subsequently incorporated into the manor house which still occupies the same site and which has recently been magnificently restored and renovated by its more recent owners. Kiltinan is now in the ownership of composer Sir Andrew and Lady Lloyd Webber.\n\nThe roadway to Kiltinan castle in Eleanor's time would have swept up to the great arched gateway, flanked on either side by two three-storeyed towers, rising high above the curtain walls which linked the towers one to the other. The spacious courtyard was a hive of activity as the guard, servants and labourers of the baron went about their allotted duties for the defence and maintenance of the castle and its inhabitants. High on the wall-walk, inside the parapet, sentries kept a watchful eye on the surrounding countryside. In the courtyard water was drawn in iron-bound wooden pails from the underground Glashawley spring. Wood was cut and stacked ready for use in the kitchen and to warm the great hall and living quarters. At one end of the courtyard the baron's horses were maintained by the grooms and horseboys, while in an adjoining shed the castle's smith pounded the red-hot iron into shape, pointed the lances and swords and riveted the armour for the baron's cavalry. A fire glowed in the centre of the yard around which armed men hunkered and awaited the baron's orders. Through the gateway, carts laden with sacks of barley and wheat, vegetables and poultry, butter and cheese, wood and straw, the obligatory payment in kind of the tenants to the lord of the manor, trundled over the cobblestones.\n\nInside the castle the narrow corridors and the stone spiral stairways leading to the upper apartments were dark and gloomy. Shafts of light filtered through the defensive slit windows and the musket and archery loops. Dark corridors ran along the inside of the outer walls, with doors leading into various chambers. On the second level an arched opening from the stairway led into the principal chamber of the castle, the great hall, a lofty room, running the entire length of the castle, its ceiling spanned by great oak beams, the walls lime-washed, and the limestone floor polished to a sheen. Light poured into the chamber through wide, arched windows set in deep embrasures, with stone window seats covered with cushions. From the windows there was an all-encompassing view of the rolling Tipperary pasturelands. A table, richly carved of solid oak, dominated the top of the room, flanked by two iron candlestands. The walls were dotted with iron brackets to support the large tallow candles used to light the room. Off one end of the great hall was the baron's kitchen, buttery and pantry where the servants prepared the food and drink for his table. When the baron entertained his neighbours and friends or received a visit from his overlord, trestle tables were set up within the hall to accommodate his guests.\n\nThe bedchambers on the next level were small square rooms, each dominated by a four-poster bed with a canopy of strong damask or rich velvet. By modern standards the rooms were spartan and, apart from the bedstead, furnishings consisted of a linen box, a cupboard containing a water ewer and basin, and a press for clothes. Adjacent to the lord's bedchamber was his private chapel, elaborately decorated with fine plasterwork and a window of stained glass. Life in such sixteenth-century castles was both cramped and chilly. Their primary function was defensive. They had been built in the twelfth century by the Normans to hold the land they had conquered and, in the changes undertaken by their descendants, the defensive aspect of their design was carefully preserved.\n\nIn Eleanor's day a medieval village, also of Norman origin, flourished outside Kiltinan castle. The village consisted of a street of cottages and craft workshops with lanes between the houses leading off into the surrounding countryside. The village craftsmen and workers supplied the castle with their wares and services. A few kilometres south of the castle stood the important medieval town of Fethard. It had been created an archepiscopal borough by letters patent of King John and had been a busy market town for many centuries. In 1553, on petition of the burgesses and commonalty of the town, a new charter ordained that the borough should become a corporate body with the same privileges and liberties as Kilkenny. The charter was subsequently confirmed by James I in 1608.\n\nTogether with his administrative and military powers as seneschal of the area, Eleanor's father was also a substantial landowner. He received specific rents and services from those who held lands under him. As was the custom, he either leased out land, usually for a period of twenty-one years, for a fixed rent, or let it on a share-cropping basis, providing the tenant with either one-third or a half of the seed for the consideration of what was known as the 'third sheaf'. His tenants, especially the more substantial, further sublet the land to others.\n\nLower in status than the tenanted classes in both the Gaelic and Anglo-Norman lordships was the great mass of land cultivators, herders and labourers, referred to collectively as 'churls'. Neither owning land, or stock, and not allowed to bear arms, they were dependent on their masters. Together with the 'third sheaf', the tenants provided obligatory labour for the cultivation and harvesting of the baron's crops. There was a greater emphasis on tillage within his lordship than in Gaelic-held areas, with crops such as wheat, rye and barley as well as vegetables cultivated. Pigs and sheep were also reared and, in common with most of his contemporaries, the baron maintained a stud, Ireland being noted then as now for its 'great breeds of horses'. Falconry and hunting were the main outdoor recreations; chess, dice and backgammon helped while away the long winter evenings.\n\nEleanor's childhood and girlhood were spent mainly at her father's castle of Kiltinan, where she grew up in an environment influenced by the two principal traditions that dominated sixteenth-century Ireland: the old Gaelic civilisation, which, after the reversal it had encountered in the twelfth century, had over the succeeding centuries staged a gradual but steady recovery; and the feudal tradition of the Anglo-Norman settlers, which had succumbed in varying degrees to the resurgent Gaelic culture. The Butlers were among the original Anglo-Norman invaders but, like their FitzGerald and de Burgo fellow-conquerors, they had, through proximity with their Gaelic neighbours and especially through centuries of intermarriage with the Gaelic aristocracy, become gaelicised, to varying degrees. Eleanor's mother was a MacCarthy, and she had previously been married to Cormac MacCarthy Reagh, by whom she had one son and four daughters. One of Eleanor's half-sisters was in turn married to John Butler of Kilcash, and another was the wife of James FitzGerald of Decies, County Waterford. The incidence of intermarriage between those of Anglo-Norman descent and the Gaelic aristocracy was high, and most of the great dynastic families of both groups were blood- related. This feature also led to many incidents of incestuous marriage; Eleanor's own father had a daughter (later married to Se\u00e1n an tSl\u00e9ibhe O'Carroll) by his half-sister, who later married Sir Piers Butler of Cahir. Eleanor's uncle Peter Butler was married to Honora, the daughter of James FitzGerald, eleventh Earl of Desmond. Her aunt Joan Butler had married Roland Eustace, Viscount Baltinglass, while another aunt, Ellen, married David Roche, Viscount Fermoy, thus linking her family with many prominent houses both Gaelic and gaelicised.\n\nThe Dunboyne Butlers were a cadet branch of one of the great dynastic families of Ireland, the Butlers of Ormond, over whom the Earl of Ormond was the titular head. The earls of Ormond enjoyed palatine jurisdiction over their estates in County Tipperary, which made them very powerful indeed. This privilege, given them by the English Crown, endowed them with the power to establish courts of law, administer justice and appoint court officers, 'thus ensuring that it was they rather than the King who were the ultimate arbitrators'. The earls of Ormond owed theoretical allegiance to the Crown, but they jealously guarded their independence. While they administered their vast estates by right of feudal law, the indigenous Gaelic law had, over the centuries, infiltrated, and by the middle of the sixteenth century many Gaelic customs and practices were prevalent in Ormond.\n\nThe Gaelic or Brehon legal and social system was distinct to Ireland and had evolved over the centuries from its Celtic origins. It was geared to an agrarian economy and society. Gaelic society comprised septs or 'nations' of independent chieftaincies, and was based on the concept of a patrilineal 'descent group forming a definite corporate entity with political and legal functions'. The existence of so many independent entities, each ruled by a chieftain that 'maketh war and peace for himself . . . and obeyeth to no other person . . . except only to such persons as may subdue him by the sword', gave rise to much tribal warfare and unrest. It was also to irk the pride of the Tudor monarchs who, in the early years of their rule, had extinguished similar independent posturings among the English nobility, and who, more recently, in 1537, had inflicted a ruthless chastisement on the powerful House of Kildare when it had shown an inclination towards independence.\n\nThe clan was the centre-point of the Gaelic system and set it apart. The leader or chieftain of the clan was elected by the ruling sept instead of succeeding by right of primogeniture as was the English custom. The tenure of land also differed from the English practice. It was conducted according to a complicated system of land distribution whereby, on the death of a landholder, the land was shared out among the ruling or landholding members of the ruling family. The chieftain retained a life interest only in the clan land and could not bequeath it to his son. Although a woman could purchase and inherit land in her own right, she was prohibited from disposing of it outside the clan. The wealth of the clan was measured not in the extent of its territory but in the number of cattle it possessed. Cattle were the principal symbol of wealth and often the cause of disputes. The power of the chieftain was measured by the number of his followers. Each chieftain accordingly strove to have as many armed men in his company as he could afford. Similarly, it was important for the chieftain to maintain a large workforce of servants and labourers for the more servile work of tending and protecting the cattle herds, tilling the soil, and providing sustenance and accommodation for his band of warriors.\n\nThe chieftain was also in receipt of certain dues and services exacted, often by force, from client chieftains. Under various laws he had the right to a wide range of privileges, such as free entertainment for himself and his extensive household, specific provisions for his horses and hounds, and the right to his clients' attendance with a fixed number of armed men whenever he summoned a hosting. The whole system of sustenance for the lord became known as 'coyne and livery' and was, in effect, the basis of Gaelic authority. By the middle of the sixteenth century, many of these practices had also been adopted by the Anglo-Norman lords.\n\nFosterage played an important role in Gaelic society. The sons of chieftains were fostered, usually in the household of a dependent chief, who considered it an honour and a social and political bond between the two families. The system found little favour with the English administration, but fosterage survived, was widely practised and, in the course of time, had penetrated Anglo-Norman society also.\n\nLike their Anglo-Norman counterparts, Gaelic chieftains adopted stone castles as places of dwelling and protection. In large banqueting halls, attached to the main tower, they held court and entertained lavishly. Every chieftain of note had his 'brehon' or judge who interpreted and administered the law within his territory. He also had a bard ( _ollamh d\u00e1na_ ), who enjoyed a special status in the chief's household and whose basic duty was 'the eulogy of the great and glorification of their deeds'.\n\nThe chieftain employed three groups of fighting men. The first was the cavalry, recruited from within the ranks of the ruling sept or the more prosperous elements of the landowning class. Then came the galloglass ( _gall\u00f3glaigh_ , 'foreign warriors'), the heavy infantry of the chieftain's army, being selected men of great stature and strength, armed with long sword and battle-axe. Originally from Scotland, some had settled in Ireland, where they were given tracts of land in payment for their services as a standing army for the Gaelic chieftains and Anglo-Norman lords who could afford to employ them. The Butlers' traditional galloglass were the MacSweeneys. The third category of fighting men were the kern ( _certhearnigh_ ); skilled in the use of bows and arrows and darts, they were the lightly-armed foot-soldiers of the chieftain's army.\n\nMost of the Anglo-Irish lords and the Gaelic chieftains, despite the Reformation in England, still adhered to the old religion. But Catholicism in Gaelic Ireland differed from that practised on the continent. The sweeping reforms of the preceding centuries had, by and large, failed to apply in Ireland. A pattern of hereditary clergy had evolved where members of a particular family were invested with positions of high office in the church. Many of the bishops and clergy were married or maintained concubines. 'In no field of life was Ireland's apartness from the mainstream of Christian European society so marked as in that of marriage. Throughout the medieval period, and down to the end of the old order in 1603, what could be called Celtic secular marriage remained the norm in Ireland and Christian matrimony was no more than the rare exception grafted on to this system.' There was also a high incidence of divorce, which was a legal right and could be invoked by either spouse. Plurality of marriages, many within the restricted degrees of consanguinity, as well as trial marriages, were common within both the Gaelic and the gaelicised lordships. Offspring born outside wedlock were not penalised in their rights of either succession or land tenure. Conn Bacach O'Neill, first Earl of Tyrone, stoutly declared that he was a man 'that never refused no child that any woman named to be his'.\n\nThus Eleanor grew up in a society which, while it adhered in many ways to its Anglo-Norman origins, had also absorbed into its social and political structures many of the trappings of the Gaelic world that surrounded it. Her Gaelic mother would have further strengthened this development in the house of the Dunboyne Butlers. Their overlord the Earl of Ormond was, however, a loyal supporter of the Tudor monarchs and the least gaelicised of the Anglo-Norman lords in Ireland. Eleanor's father, together with his brother Peter, had served under the Earl of Ormond in the army of Henry VIII in France. They had seen action at the sieges of Montreuil and Boulogne. After the inexplicable death by poison of the earl in London in 1546, his son Thomas, known as Black Tom, then just fifteen years old, was brought up in the new Protestant religion at Court, as a friend and classmate of the young future king, Edward VI, and the future queen, Elizabeth I. Black Tom was to remain at court for many years before he entered into his inheritance in Ireland. During his absence Eleanor's father was placed in charge of the earl's forces in Ormond to repel the increasingly frequent raids of the neighbouring O'Carrolls of Ely. He was appointed Seneschal of the Liberty of Tipperary, an office held by each successive baron since 1295. Duties involved the stewardship of the earl's domains, the exaction and collection of his rents, dues and services, and the administration of his palatine court at Clonmel. Kiltinan bustled with activity during the early years of Eleanor's childhood.\n\nLife for the daughter of a nobleman in the sixteenth century had its set pattern and its responsibilities. From the day of her birth Eleanor was groomed as a potential wife for some Anglo-Norman lord or Gaelic chieftain. Provided their credentials and assets were acceptable to her father and an agreement was reached on a suitable dowry, Eleanor would be given in marriage to the most suitable applicant. Political and financial considerations tended to dictate the matrimonial lot of women in the higher echelons of Gaelic and Anglo-Irish society. It was usual for girls to marry at the comparatively early age of fifteen or sixteen. Given in marriage to one of her own class, Eleanor would eventually become chatelaine of her own castle. With the privilege went the responsibility to oversee the upkeep and maintenance of her husband's castles: food and furnishings bought, stored and replaced; servants hired, fired and trained; banquets organised to impress a neighbour or to honour an overlord; household linens, utensils and liveries selected and accounted for.\n\nTo efficiently administer a large mansion with servants and retainers, to entertain and converse diplomatically with both friend and foe of her husband, involved a level of political and social awareness. In preparation for her exacting future role, Eleanor received some formal education, and English and Gaelic tutors taught her to converse ably in both English and Irish. She learned to write in both languages, and she became a prolific letter-writer, able to express herself succinctly and well, with an intelligent turn of phrase and a political insight that denoted an informed and comprehending mind. She was an able horsewoman, a skill that was to stand to her many times in the course of her traumatic life. Gaelic Ireland is often inaccurately depicted as having been a totally male-dominated society where women fulfilled a mainly subservient role, confined to domestic duties of housekeeping and child-rearing, and rarely becoming involved in the political turmoil of the times. On the contrary, there are many examples of women, mainly in the higher orders of both Gaelic and gaelicised society, who were actively involved in politics, not only in a supportive or advisory capacity to their husbands, but also as strong-willed and independent participants in their own right. Eleanor was to become a prime example of this little-acknowledged fact.\n\nIt was reputed that she was tall in stature, with light brown hair. On special or formal occasions she dressed in the current fashion of the day, in gowns of taffeta, velvet or fine cambric, edged with lace, as befitted her station. Her wardrobe might be purchased in Dublin, which tended to follow English fashion, or bought from the travelling merchants, who brought with them the fashions and fabrics of the continent, imported through the ports of Waterford, Cork and Kinsale. The native Irish attire of the time, a linen or fine woollen smock reaching to the ankles, with long wide sleeves falling in folds at either side, over which was worn a sleeveless dress with a laced bodice, dyed saffron or russet, might well have been worn by S\u00edle MacCarthy's daughter on less auspicious occasions. The great Irish mantle of warm wool, with its thickly fringed collar, was worn by the upper classes of both cultures.\n\nTravel was a difficult and hazardous undertaking in sixteenth-century Ireland, owing to the absence of a developed road system and also to the unsettled state of the country. But journeys, however hazardous, had to be undertaken as business was contracted, military campaigns conducted and social visits made. Such social occasions were marked by banquets, often lasting several days, when family, relatives, friends and foes, converged on Kiltinan. In the great hall the baron's chief steward conducted each guest to his allotted place in strict order according to social and political status. On the trestle tables joints of beef, mutton, venison, poultry and game, boiled or spit-roasted, were laid. Wheaten bread and oatcakes were in plentiful supply, as were vegetables such as cabbage, onion, leek and watercress. Wines from France and Spain, imported through Youghal or Waterford, native aqua vitae ( _uisce beatha_ ), ale and mead, 'the dainty drink of nobles', accompanied the plentiful helpings. Gaelic chieftains in their tight worsted trews and short quilted jackets of fine leather, their hair falling around their shoulders, mingled with the lords of the Pale, clad in doublet and hose. The long hall, warmed by a glowing brazier in the centre and lit by the flickering torches on the wall brackets, reverberated with a mixture of English and Gaelic tongues. A bard rose and sang the praises of Eleanor's father and his house, while her mother's MacCarthy origins were equally lauded. A verse extolling the baron's hospitality and the beauty of his wife and daughters followed. Games of cards, dice and backgammon were played and, as the night wore on, the bids became more reckless, and many a horse, jewelled dagger, silver plate, herd of cattle or tract of land changed hands. The harp and the pipes were played for the dancers, whose capering shadows cast silhouettes on the stone walls.\n\nEleanor's childhood, however, was not all feasting and revelry. Her early years were disturbed by a bitter feud between her father and her uncle which drove a wedge, not only between the brothers, but between her father and his great overlord, the Earl of Ormond. The feud had its origins in 1524 when Eleanor's grandfather, Sir James Butler, concluded a family settlement of his estate, bequeathing the greater portion to his eldest son, Edmund, Eleanor's father. He also directed that his second son, Peter, was to receive the castle and estate of Grallagh, while Thomas, his youngest son, was to inherit Boytonrath and other lands near Cashel. Edmund was Peter's overlord to whom he owed allegiance and, among other things, a 'suit and service of six footmen and one horseman'. Despite their initial co-operation, on their return from the wars in France, a growing enmity developed between the brothers over possession of the Grallagh estate. Edmund claimed that the estate was entailed on the barons of Dunboyne and that his father had no right to bequeath it to Peter, who, he contended, had merely a life interest in the property. The quarrel became further aggravated by the personal animosity that arose between Eleanor's mother and Peter's wife, Honora, daughter of James FitzGerald, the Earl of Desmond. Their mutual dislike may have stemmed from the ancient animosity that existed between the MacCarthys and the earls of Desmond. Whether for this reason or for something of a more personal nature, the two ladies goaded their respective spouses against each other, as each plotted her own husband's triumph. As the feud between the brothers intensified it led to the formation of political affiliations and alliances that were eventually to have repercussions on Eleanor's future.\n\nHer father filed a suit against his brother in the Court of Chancery. But on the advice of his cousin, Black Tom, who had recently returned from England to enter into his estates and title as Earl of Ormond, Peter refused to appear before the court. Ill-feeling already existed between Eleanor's father and the new Earl of Ormond, largely as a result of a dispute concerning the validity of the palatine rights pertaining to the earldom. The earl considered that Edmund had further rebuffed his authority by failing to submit his suit against his brother to his palatine court for his judgment. The Court of Chancery found in Edmund's favour and ordered Peter to restore the disputed Grallagh estate. On the advice of Black Tom, however, Peter refused to comply with the court order. The dispute continued to rage for many years. The legal battle culminated in attacks and reprisals by both brothers on each other and drove an ever-widening wedge, not merely between Edmund and his brother, but with his overlord the Earl of Ormond as well. Eleanor and her family were affected both politically and socially by the baron's estrangement from the Earl of Ormond. They experienced a sense of isolation as the other tributary lords of Ormond were reluctant to defy their powerful overlord and openly fraternise with the Dunboynes. Few invitations were extended to them to the earl's court at Clonmel or Kilkenny. The isolation of the Dunboynes left them open to exploitation in the climate of political discord and intrigue which characterised sixteenth-century Munster. In these circumstances it was inevitable that the family would become involved in the long-standing and more intense feud that existed between the Houses of Ormond and Desmond. While the dispute between Eleanor's father and uncle was to continue unabated until their deaths, when Grallagh was finally restored to the Dunboyne estate, it was to pale into insignificance in comparison to the age-old Desmond\u2013Ormond feud which was about to erupt anew and engulf Eleanor and all Munster in its spreading flames.\n\nThe Butlers' loyalty to the English Crown was well-established before their arrival in Ireland. Theobald, the founder of the family, was created Chief Butler, one of the hereditary offices of state, by King Henry II. Theobald and his descendants were granted the lucrative prisage of wines, the right to one-tenth of the cargo of any wine ship that broke bulk in Ireland. This privilege was held by the family until, by an act of parliament in 1810, it was finally restored to the Crown. From this hereditary honour came the family name of Butler. The Butler lordship in Ireland comprised the northern half of County Tipperary, including the disputed overlordship of the old Gaelic kingdom of Ely O'Carroll. Successive Butler lords consolidated their positions over the succeeding decades. They upheld the Crown's interests in the newly-conquered territories and were amply rewarded. In 1315 Edward II gave Edmund Butler the castles and manors of Carrickmagriffon and Roscrea and conferred on him the earldom of Carrick. Edmund's son James married the niece of Edward III. In 1328 he was created Earl of Ormond and was granted the palatine liberties of Tipperary. In 1392 the third Earl of Ormond acquired the town of Kilkenny, which eventually became the principal seat of the family.\n\nCheek by jowl with the expanding Butler lordship were the lordships of two other Anglo-Norman dynasts. To the north-east the FitzGeralds of Kildare had prospered, while to the west the FitzGeralds of Desmond had carved out a vast estate at the expense of the native Irish chieftains. It was perhaps inevitable that the ambitions of these great Anglo-Norman families would conflict as they vied with each other for power, land and royal favours.\n\nThe ancestors of the FitzGeralds, or, as they became known in Ireland, the Geraldines, were also among the Norman conquerors who invaded Ireland. Their background in England, however, differed greatly from that of the Butlers. Their origins were in the wild marcher lands between England and Wales. After the Norman conquest of England their Italian progenitor Gheraldino was initially granted the lordship of Windsor. From there they advanced into Celtic Wales, where they acquired further lands, both by military and matrimonial means. In 1095 Gerald, the grandson of the original Gheraldino, married the beautiful and notorious Princess Nesta, daughter of the King of South Wales, and built Carew castle on the lands granted to him in right of his wife. This Gerald was the progenitor of the Geraldines or FitzGeralds of Ireland. He died in 1135, leaving three sons, Maurice, William and David, afterwards Bishop of St Davids. Together with Nesta's son by her second marriage, Robert FitzStephen, and her illegitimate offspring by a previous liaison with King Henry I, this turbulent brood became a source of constant strife. In the border areas of the Welsh marches they conducted private wars of retribution without the slightest regard for the sovereignty of the English monarch who, in any event, was powerless to control them. It was an able and wily king who could devise the means to rid his kingdom of such independently-minded barons.\n\nAn invitation from the Gaelic King of Leinster, Dermot MacMurrough, provided him with the opportunity. At the forefront of the Norman invasion of Ireland was Maurice, son of Gerald of Wales. In return for his services Maurice was granted land in what is now County Kildare and built a strong fortress at Maynooth. The FitzGeralds of Kildare were descended from Maurice's eldest son, Gerald, and they eventually became powerful overlords of the greater part of Leinster. The FitzGeralds of Munster descended from his youngest son, Thomas. In 1329 Thomas's great-great-grandson Maurice was created first Earl of Desmond by Edward III and, similar to the Earl of Ormond, was granted the county of Kerry as an hereditary palatine liberty. Both he and his successors extended their power until eventually they claimed the overlordship of a vast area which stretched from north Limerick to Youghal and from Dingle in Kerry to the ancient Gaelic kingdom of the Decies in Waterford.\n\nIn the course of time all three houses, partly by reason of their close association and intermarriage with the neighbouring Gaelic aristocracy and partly because of their isolation from their English origins, become gaelicised. Of the three, the Desmonds could be said to have become the most gaelicised. Despite their English titles and honours, they were, true to their Geraldine tradition, outspoken champions of practical independence from the English Crown. In this they tended to have the moral support of their fellow-Geraldines, the Kildares. In 1345, for example, Maurice of Desmond flaunting his power over the Gaelic and gaelicised lords of Munster convened his own parliament in Callan, County Kilkenny. Thereafter the Munster Geraldines tended to withdraw into their remote domains, and in defiance of England gradually became indistinguishable in tongue, dress and custom from their Gaelic neighbours. Enmity arose between them and their less gaelicised neighbours, the Butlers of Ormond. Their dynastic quarrels were further heightened when each took different sides in the Wars of the Roses in England, fought between the Houses of York and Lancaster, until, finally, the antagonism between the Houses of Ormond and Desmond became entangled in the wider net of political conflict in England.\n\nThe Duke of York was the absentee viceroy of Ireland, but his ambitions soared to more exalted office\u2014the Crown of England. After his defeat at the battle of Ludford Bridge and his subsequent conviction for treason, he was replaced as viceroy of Ireland by the Earl of Ormond. York escaped to Ireland and, aided and abetted by the Geraldines, made plans to invade England. In the event York was killed at the battle of Wakefield in 1460, but his ambitions were later realised by his son, who in 1461 was crowned King Edward IV. One of the first casualties of the Yorkist triumph was the Earl of Ormond, who was promptly executed. His brother and heir, Sir John Butler, in an attempt to revitalise the Lancastrian cause in Ireland, rallied his supporters but was defeated at Pilltown by James, the seventh Earl of Desmond. While this incident was, from the Geraldines' point of view, merely another chapter in the Desmond\u2013Ormond feud, the victory was rewarded by a grateful Yorkist king, who had Desmond's son and successor, Thomas, confirmed as chief governor of Ireland in 1463.\n\nBut despite his apparent Yorkist leanings, the new Earl of Desmond remained independent and as gaelicised as his forebears and attempted to extend Gaelic law and custom into the English Pale. Soon the usually peaceful Pale was aflame. Desmond was speedily replaced by Sir John Tiptoft, who, without apparent royal consent, had Desmond beheaded at Drogheda. The effect on the country was instantaneous. Riots and uprisings erupted throughout Munster and Leinster; the dead earl's brother with a great army burned and pillaged the Pale. The imprisoned Earl of Kildare was released to calm the situation. Tiptoft was recalled, and the King proclaimed his disapproval of the Earl of Desmond's execution.\n\nThe execution of the earl was the final straw that broke the back of the uneasy alliance between the House of Desmond and the Crown of England. In the succeeding decades the Geraldines of Desmond withdrew from all contact with the Crown and its administration in Dublin. They turned their backs on their English origins in favour of their adopted Gaelic world, which welcomed them as the premier buffer between it and the English Crown. Their great rivals, the earls of Ormond, continued to hold for the Crown, and many of the succeeding earls spent much of their time at the English court. Now in the second half of the sixteenth century the long-standing feud between both houses had come to rest in the hands of two volatile young heirs\u2014Black Tom, tenth Earl of Ormond and Garrett FitzGerald, fourteenth Earl of Desmond, each eager to uphold the honour of his house by the destruction of the other.\n\nSecure in Kiltinan, surrounded by her large family, Eleanor took little notice of the gathering storm-clouds. Her main preoccupation was that of any young eligible woman: she patiently plied her needle or read her verse and waited and wondered about her marriage prospects. What dashing lord or handsome chieftain would come to Kiltinan to seek her hand? Or would she instead become the prize in some political or financial deal, a sop to placate some ageing, lascivious noble? Fate was often known to deal a cruel hand in the matrimonial stakes. But whatever her thoughts, little could she have realised how inextricably her future would become entangled in the Ormond\u2013Desmond feud which would hurl her into the very eye of the impending storm.\nChapter 2\n\nThe Feud\n\n_Two households, both alike in dignity,_\n\n_In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,_\n\n_From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,_\n\n_Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean._\n\nSHAKESPEARE, _ROMEO AND JULIET_ , I, i\n\nIn 1558 the daughter of Anne Boleyn and Henry VIII ascended the throne of England. Deemed illegitimate by some of her subjects, God's appointed sovereign majesty by others, the twenty-six-year-old, slight, pale-faced woman determinedly grasped the sceptre of state, aware of the doubts and of the awesome task that she faced. Since the death of her father over a decade earlier, her inherited kingdom had floundered like a rudderless galleon. She had inherited a throne 'humiliated in war, paralysed by ineptitude and sinking into spiritual and financial bankruptcy'. With a great sense of destiny, this autocratic, vain woman embarked on a life's mission to protect and defend her legacy, the kingdom of England, which was to become her substitute lover, husband and child, and to prove that she had indeed 'the heart and stomach of a king'.\n\nPart of Elizabeth's legacy was Ireland, which remained, despite the best efforts of her wily father, a country without political cohesion or racial homogeneity; an island in close and dangerous proximity to England but which English cartographers had not as yet accurately mapped; a country which in its present state was the antithesis of everything that the sovereign Elizabeth and her renaissance age represented. Gaelic Ireland seemed barbarously medieval by the standards of England and continental Europe. More significantly, its outmoded political, social and religious structures, its dogged rebellious attitude to the 'civilising' attempts of the English Crown, its intertribal dissension and its consistent lack of common purpose, made it a potential attraction to England's foreign enemies. In 1558 Ireland, with her myriad of independent lords and chieftains, confronted Elizabeth with a similar problem faced by her grandfather Henry VII in England decades previously. Then the great English feudal lords had also strained at the royal bit before being short-reined into submission and acknowledgment that their royal overlord was invested with a God-given power over them. The Tudors demanded, and had received, the total loyalty and acquiescence of their feudal barons in England. Now it was the turn of the independent chieftains and lords of Ireland to proffer a similar obeisance. But the Irish lords were to prove reluctant to relinquish the powers and privileges they enjoyed by right of Gaelic custom and law. Elizabeth was not to have her way in Ireland without a protracted, expensive and bitter struggle.\n\nElizabeth's supposedly liege lords in Ireland were a mixed bunch. In Leinster the earls of Kildare, the Leinster Geraldines, had, during the reigns of Henry VII and Henry VIII, reached the pinnacle of their power. Henry VIII feared their power in Ireland and their inherited Geraldine tendencies towards independence. Their star finally fell when a hot-blooded young scion, Silken Thomas, son of the ninth earl, convulsed the House of Kildare into a hasty rebellion and provided Henry with the excuse he had long awaited. The rebellion led to the execution in 1537 at Tyburn of Silken Thomas and his five uncles, and the demise of the Kildares as a potential alternative to the English monarch in Ireland. Henry hurriedly had himself confirmed 'King of Ireland' before any Anglo-Norman lord or Gaelic chieftain could snatch the title from him.\n\nIn Ormond the Butlers, after years of eclipse by the Kildares, had re-emerged as the champions of the Crown. In Black Tom, with his Boleyn connections and his close personal relationship with the young queen, a new chapter of Ormond supremacy in Ireland was about to begin. Black Tom's loyalty to and friendship with Elizabeth lasted to the end of her long reign. She referred to him as her 'black husband', which gave rise to much speculation that, while not her husband in the legal sense, Black Tom had been awarded the pleasure of the royal bedchamber. He was twenty-seven years of age at the time of Elizabeth's accession to the throne. As his nickname suggests, and as is evident from his portrait, he was a black-haired, dark-skinned, tall, well-set, elegantly attired courtier, handsome and charming, but also cruel and ruthless when the necessity arose. He was the veritable renaissance man, modern and confident in outlook and action. Just as his loyal ancestry, Boleyn connections and personal ability had struck Elizabeth's sensibility, so his good looks and charm had touched a chord in her heart. Black Tom was and would continue to be her favourite Irish noble, a fact that she made no effort to hide but preferred to flaunt by means of the personal and political favouritism she showed towards him. In 1559 she appointed him Lord Treasurer of Ireland, and he became closely identified with the Sussex faction at the royal court.\n\nIn 1558, Black Tom's neighbour and adversary, Garrett (Gerald), son of James FitzJohn FitzGerald, became the fourteenth Earl of Desmond. In Elizabeth's eyes Garrett was the antithesis of Black Tom. His ancestry made him politically less acceptable, and, from a physical point of view, the delicate, pale, vain, melancholic, temperamental Geraldine aroused no passion in her Tudor heart. Henry VIII had desired that Garrett, like Black Tom, should have an English upbringing and education at Court. But in the wake of the execution of his kinsmen, the Geraldine Kildares, Garrett's father saw little reason to entrust his son to the care and attention of the Tudor king. Consequently Garrett was reared and educated in the hard school of Gaelic custom. He was fostered with the O'Moriartys in Kerry and was subjected to the rigorous physical training required of a potential Gaelic warrior, leader and ruler. But he also aspired to more learned ways and was given to the composition of verse.\n\nLest his literary and general melancholic disposition arouse doubts as to his physical ability to succeed his father to the earldom, and in accordance with the Gaelic custom which ordained that 'every heir or young chieftain of a tribe was obliged in honour to give a public specimen of his valour before he was owned or declared governor or leader of his people', Garrett led his followers 'to make a desperate incursion upon some neighbour or other that they were in feud with; and they were obliged to bring by open force the cattle they found in the lands they attacked or die in the attempt.' The MacCarthy clans of Carbery and Muskerry were singled out by the young Geraldine lord to demonstrate his prowess. Not only did the MacCarthys pay the price of Garrett's initiation in the customary penalties of cattle and booty but, to further emphasise his abilities, he captured and imprisoned Lord Muskerry's son for good measure. Such was the tough school of warrior initiation with its origins in the legendary Celtic world, in which the son and heir of the Earl of Desmond was reared.\n\nBut Garrett's succession to the earldom was fraught with controversy. It had originated when Maurice, the son of the twelfth Earl of Desmond, married his own first cousin, by whom he had a son called James. A nephew of the twelfth earl, James FitzJohn, Garrett's father, disputed the right of James to succeed his father on the grounds of consanguinity. The matter was settled, not by law but by the sword, when James was murdered by James FitzJohn's brother. But James FitzJohn then found his way to the earldom disputed on the grounds of his equally prohibited marriage to his own grandniece, the daughter of Maurice Roche, Lord Fermoy, by whom he had a son known as Sir Thomas Roe FitzGerald. Yielding to pressure from his sub-chiefs, who feared another bloody succession dispute, James FitzJohn divorced his first wife and married M\u00f3r O'Carroll, the daughter of the chieftain of Ely O'Carroll, by whom he had Garrett, his recognised heir, born in 1532, John, later known as Sir John of Desmond, and five daughters. By a later marriage to Ellen, daughter of Donal MacCarthy More, he had another son called James 'Sussex' FitzGerald. Upon Garrett's succession to the earldom in November 1558, Thomas Roe, the disinherited son, unsuccessfully appealed his claim to the earldom of Desmond to the English court.\n\nGarrett's father was a vigorous supporter of the ill-fated House of Kildare and one of the principal activists in the league formed to protect and reinstate the only surviving member of the Kildare dynasty. After the disbandment of the league he had, however, submitted to the Crown and was subsequently created Lord Treasurer and governor of Munster. By his fourth and final marriage to Katherine Butler, the second daughter of the eighth Earl of Ormond, and by various marriage alliances between other members of the Butler and Desmond families, he had mitigated somewhat the endemic rivalry and rancour that existed between the two families and thereby brought a period of peace to Munster. Well might the annalists, with a sense of impending doom, mourn his death in 1558. 'The loss of this good man', they recorded, 'was woeful to his country, for there was no need to watch cattle or close doors from D\u00fanchaoin [Dunquin] to the green-bordered meeting of the three waters [i.e. the rivers Suir, Barrow and Nore].' The scene was set for the enactment of a drama that had all the ingredients of a tragedy of Shakespearean proportions. With the fate and fortune of the two great aristocratic dynasties lying in the hands of two young and untried heirs, Ireland waited with bated breath for the storm to break.\n\nBut the young Desmond heir had already aroused his rival's enmity by his sensational marriage in 1550 to Black Tom's mother, Joan, the Dowager Countess of Ormond. Scarcely twenty years old, Garrett had thus become Black Tom's step-father. Twenty years Garrett's senior, Joan was the daughter of James FitzGerald, the eleventh Earl of Desmond, and was thus Garrett's own second cousin. On the death of Black Tom's father, Joan had subsequently briefly married, at the Crown's insistence, the Lord Justice, Sir Francis Bryan. But it was alleged that she had already fallen for the pale melancholic heir to the Desmond dynasty even before her marriage to Bryan. And Garrett was obviously attracted to his older cousin. The prospect of such a marriage gave rise to considerable speculation and anxiety in various quarters. It was recorded, for example, that great 'displeasure' had arisen 'between Lady Ormond and Lady Desmond re the Countess of Ormond's practice to marry with the heir of Desmond'. The English administration was appalled at the potential consequences of the union. Black Tom was still a minor, and the government feared that the gaelicised Desmond heir would bring 'the uncyville and Yrishe' customs of his house to bear on the loyal House of Ormond. Consequently the Crown intervened, and Joan was summarily 'sent for into Inglande and bestowed as wife to Sir Francis Bryan'. Bryan died in February 1550, and even at his funeral, which was attended by Garrett, 'the Countess of Ormond's practice to marry with the heir of Desmond' was common knowledge. The Lord Chancellor urged the countess to show some restraint, and reluctantly Joan promised him 'upon hir honor that she wolde lyve sole for one yeore'. But in affairs of the heart promises are made to be broken, and by May 1550 Joan and Garrett were married.\n\nThe marriage was the sensation of the day, and at Kiltinan Eleanor's family too heard of the unlikely union which had become the butt of many crude jokes and was the principal topic of conversation from the courtyard fire to the great hall. But initially the marriage had a stabilising effect on the young heir of Desmond. Under Joan's quiet influence, her husband, on the death of his father in November 1558, despite the claim of his dispossessed half-brother, assumed the earldom. Her concern that Garrett should be confirmed in his doubtful title by the Crown bore fruit when he agreed to go to London, where 'with a willing mind and intention', the new earl made his submission in style before the new queen, 'he being well attended on by one hundred prime gentlemen, waytering and attending upon him'. This impressive show, however, cut little ice with Elizabeth who, with her calculating Tudor eyes, coldly surveyed the proud Geraldine peacock who flaunted his power before her, and mentally made a note to clip the wings of so overbearing a subject. Elizabeth knew the controversy that surrounded his title, but, as her own title to the throne was held equally in doubt, for the moment she smiled frostily at the swaggering Irish lord and graciously confirmed him in his title and immense estates.\n\nGarrett's inheritance comprised over half a million acres of land. Rents forthcoming from the estate amounted to over \u00a37,000 per annum, 'a prodigious revenue in these times and perhaps greater than any other subject in Her Majesty's dominion'. Together with their feudal rents, successive earls, as they had gradually adopted Gaelic law, also claimed its privileges. Garrett was entitled to the traditional tributes and payments known as 'cuttings and spendings' from the many Gaelic chieftains who held under him. These tributes varied widely both in content and extent. When, for example, the earl travelled through the territory of an underlord, the expenses he incurred for food, drink and lodging were borne by his underlord. He received specific dues in kind from the territories under his control, varying from wood and candles to drink and cattle. He 'cessed' or quartered his armed followers, horses and hunting hounds on the country. The earl and his family were entitled to 'cuddy' ( _cuid o\u00edche_ ) or entertainment for the night in the houses of the gentry within his lordship. If he did not avail in person of the cuddy, the equivalent cost in meat, flour, whiskey, honey, or a money payment was forwarded to his castle in lieu. If the payments and tributes due to the earl were not readily forthcoming they were likely to be extracted by force and, to judge from the many complaints made against him by his dependent lords, at times Garrett was wont to exact more than his due.\n\nForemost among the privileges pertaining to the Desmond earldom under Gaelic law was the highly prized right of the 'rising out' whereby, whenever his standard was raised, whether in rebellion or against a neighbour, the earl was entitled to receive the armed support of every member of his house and every dweller upon his lands. It was claimed that 'no less than fifty lords and barons paid them [the Earls of Desmond] tribute and were ever ready to march under their banner'. Such power, if vested in a lord hostile to the Crown, posed a grave threat, and as her reign progressed Elizabeth had every reason to fear and try to extinguish it. The Earl of Desmond claimed jurisdiction over some of the most powerful chieftains and lords in Munster. His power was centred in counties Limerick and Kerry and parts of Cork, but his influence extended over a much wider area. He claimed a disputed overlordship of the three MacCarthy clans: MacCarthy More, MacCarthy Muskerry and MacCarthy Reagh. In northern Kerry the FitzMaurices, kinsmen and hereditary marshals to the earls, often resisted his claim of jurisdiction over them. The Barry septs of County Cork, the Knight of Kerry, the Knight of Glin and the White Knight, together with the FitzGeralds of Imokilly in County Cork, the earls' hereditary seneschals, all were allied to the House of Desmond.\n\nTogether with his vast acres, Garrett had also inherited many castles and manors, the principal being Askeaton, Newcastle, Kilmallock and Shanid in County Limerick, Tarbert, Castleisland, Castlemaine and Dingle in County Kerry. His principal residence was Askeaton castle, built in 1199, situated on an island on the River Deel. A sixteenth-century account described it as:\n\n_the one great castle built of square plan, a chief house of the Earl of Desmond, having at each angle of the same a round tower, with various places and chambers in each tower. And there is at the south corner, on the western side at the south part, a high square tower or peel, built for defence, within the walls, and also there were within the walls of the said castle many buildings, namely a large hall, a large room, and an excellent chamber, one garden and, in the same, two fishponds. And outside the walls, and near them, are divers orchards and gardens._\n\nPerched on its rocky plateau, the castle commanded a fine view east and south to where the dark forest of Kylemore stretched for miles into the distance towards the Galtee and Ballyhoura mountains.\n\nThe Earl of Desmond claimed overlordship of the port town of Youghal from which he had an annual chief rent of \u00a371 6s 8d, together with administrative privileges within the town, and was also in receipt of the 'custom and cocket of Kinsale'. His extensive household comprised a secretary, lawyers, versed in both Gaelic and English law, a personal physician who held in payment 'a ploughland free for his service and a tenement in Youghall', constables who guarded the earl's other residences, a seneschal, a marshal, a standing army of galloglass, a large company of bards and rhymers, countless retainers, servants, tradesmen, labourers and hangers-on. The entire earldom was divided into 'highly localised units, each unit with its own castle or town house'. To conquer the lordship presented major difficulties because 'victory was not symbolised by the capture of any one town or castle but was the result of encroachment and penetration until every castle had been destroyed or yielded up'. The earls tended to rule their palatinate by an amalgam of Gaelic and English laws, and brehons or Gaelic judges were employed to arbitrate in disputes. Gaelic customs of dress, language and law flourished. The earls jealously guarded the palatine rights conferred on them by the Crown, while they just as assiduously sought to preserve the wide-ranging privileges granted them by Gaelic custom. In effect they sought and acquired the best of both worlds.\n\nThe first years of Garrett's marriage passed without major incident as Joan exerted her influence on her son and young husband and kept them out of each other's reach. Garrett busied himself within his lordship, establishing his authority over his liege lords and chieftains, exacting the customary dues and tributes, and punishing recalcitrant client lords. His aversion to any interference in his lordship extended also to the Crown. English officials and administrators who arrived in Munster gaped in disbelief at the existence of this relic of feudalism, operated by an autocratic, gaelicised earl who refused to acknowledge not only their presence but the authority of their sovereign mistress. When a confrontation over succession arose among the O'Briens of Thomond, Garrett backed the Gaelic contender for office, demonstrating his preference for the Gaelic system and leaving Elizabeth in no doubt where his loyalties lay.\n\nIn 1560 Joan's restraining hand seemed to weaken when a disagreement arose between Garrett and Black Tom over payment of her marriage settlement. Garrett claimed the rent from the manors of Clonmel, Kilsheelin and Kilfeakle as Joan's dowry. Black Tom refused to pay. Garrett attempted to extract the rents by force. Black Tom responded by invading Garrett's lands. Garrett retaliated by denying Black Tom passage through his territories to collect his right of prisage at Youghal and Kinsale. Recourse to law would have been the practical way to resolve the dispute, but where the Ormond\u2013Desmond feud was concerned, legal niceties did not enter into the equation. The galloglass were mustered, the liegemen summoned to arms, and the place of battle, Bohermore, County Tipperary, selected. But, the annals record, as the 'two great hosts had come front to front and face to face, the great God sent an angel of peace to them, so that concord was established between the hosts'. The 'angel of peace' referred to was Joan who, for fourteen days, as her son and husband faced each other in open hostility, traversed the drawn battle-lines and eventually succeeded in effecting a reconciliation.\n\nIn the event Elizabeth ordered both lords to her presence. Black Tom obeyed the summons immediately, but Garrett made vague excuses and declined to appear at the English court. A personal letter from the Queen demanding his presence in London went unanswered for a month. Joan cajoled and counselled and reluctantly Garrett acquiesced. In 1562, accompanied by an even more impressive retinue than previously, he presented himself before Elizabeth and her Privy Council. 'Being charged before the Council with openly defying the law in Ireland, he answered contumaciously, and when called to order, refused to apologise.' Elizabeth swore in her harsh voice and spat with anger, as was her wont, at the impudence of her subordinate vassal and committed him into custody. She afterwards wrote to soothe an anxious Joan and in a friendly tone explained that 'a little gentle imprisonment' would do her vain young husband the world of good. But evil tongues and court gossip whispered in Garrett's ear that it was Joan who was responsible for his detention so that her son might be further favoured by the Queen. Garrett listened and wrote impulsively to reprimand his wife. Joan implored the Queen's secretary to inform her husband as to her innocence, declaring with a certain pathos, that she had continually sought for 'them both to be perfect friends, as two whom I love as myself'.\n\nBut Garrett's confinement had the desired effect. Denied his freedom and hard-pressed for money, he swallowed his pride and in 1563 signed a treaty with Elizabeth. He promised to pay his dues to the Crown, to maintain English law and order within Desmond, to abolish Gaelic law and practice and to prohibit the unrestricted movement of bards and rhymers within his lordship. In 1564, after a further stay in custody in Dublin, he was finally reunited with his lordship and his wife.\n\nJoan, however, did not long survive her husband's return. On 2 January 1565, worn out, perhaps by the constant pressure of keeping her husband and her son from each other's throats, Joan died and was buried in Askeaton abbey. That Joan loved Garrett, and loved him deeply, cannot be disputed. Joan Butler FitzGerald was not a silly middle-aged matron who sought to prolong her youth by an amorous dalliance with the pale, poetic, warrior earl. 'By birth she was among the noblest women of the realm, by inheritance one of the richest . . . admired for her maturity and intellect', a confidante of Queen Elizabeth, a healer of old wounds. With the death of Garrett's first countess, died also the last prospect of peace in Munster.\nChapter 3\n\nThe Lady of Desmond\n\n_How hight that Amazon (says Artegall)?_\n\n_And where, and how far hence does she abide?_\n\n_Her name (quoth he) they Radigund doe call,_\n\n_A princess of great power and greater pride._\n\nSPENSER, _THE FAERIE QUEENE_ , III\n\nIt is perhaps a quirk of fate that, despite the ongoing feud, it was from the House of Butler that the Earl of Desmond should choose his new countess. On the surface it appeared that the earl sought to heal old wounds and re-establish connections with the House of Ormond which had been severed by Joan's death. But the reverse was in fact more likely, as both the manner and choice of Garrett's future bride could serve only to further antagonise his rival. For Joan Butler was no sooner laid to rest than her husband began a frantic courtship of Black Tom's kinswoman, Eleanor Butler, the daughter of his out-of-favour liegeman, the Baron of Dunboyne.\n\nAt nineteen years of age, Eleanor was within marriageable age and had received her share of proposals. Either the suitors had proved unsuitable or the marriage settlements unsatisfactory, for in 1565, despite her good looks and connections, Eleanor was still available. Her father's dispute with his brother still raged, with Black Tom Earl of Ormond ranged firmly on the side of her uncle. Relations between the Baron of Dunboyne and his powerful overlord remained strained. Consequently the Earl of Desmond's choice of Eleanor as his future bride seemed deliberately motivated to exploit the differences between Black Tom and the baron. From the evidence of their subsequent relationship, however, it is more likely that the impulsive earl fell head over heels in love with the baron's daughter.\n\nThey had had many opportunities to meet through the connections that already existed between their families. Eleanor's half-brother, Donal-na-P\u00edopa\u00ed MacCarthy Reagh, the nephew of the chieftain of Carbery, was married to the daughter of the earl's half-brother. Garrett's sister was married to Edmund Butler, Black Tom's brother. Their most recent meeting might well have been at Askeaton, for the funeral of Garrett's late countess. There Eleanor had perhaps fallen for the aristocratic earl, his pale, sensitive face starkly contrasted by the black velvet of his mourning apparel. Like everybody else throughout Munster, she had heard the gossip about his unlikely union with the middle-aged Dowager Countess of Ormond. While contemporary accounts, generally written by his adversaries, accuse Garrett of being weak, coarse, vain, hypersensitive and void of judgement, there is no doubt that he was attractive to women, particularly strong-willed women, to whom he appeared handsome, pensive and totally misunderstood; someone to be protected both from himself and his adversaries. 'Behind him Desmond left no cool-eyed observers; he moved through his age enveloped in rumours and turmoil, and if his actions repelled some, the riddle of his personality irresistibly drew others.' Joan Butler had been a mature and intelligent woman. Eleanor Butler was also of a similar intelligent stamp, and both were irresistibly drawn to Garrett.\n\nThe entire Dunboyne household was thrown into disarray as the impatient earl conducted his ill-timed courtship at the same hectic pace as he was wont to gallop his horses. There is little doubt that Eleanor returned his advances. Her knight had arrived, albeit from an unexpected quarter. Eleanor's intelligence and beauty had a powerful impact upon the complex personality of her suitor, that strange mixture of poet and warrior. His love for Eleanor and his penchant for verse perhaps inspired his only composition to have survived, aptly entitled 'Against Blame of Women':\n\n_Speak not ill of womankind,_\n\n_'Tis no wisdom if you do._\n\n_You that fault in women find,_\n\n_I would not be praised of you._\n\n_Sweetly speaking, witty, clear,_\n\n_Tribe most lovely to my mind,_\n\n_Blame of such I hate to hear._\n\n_Speak not ill of womankind._\n\n_Bloody treason, murderous act,_\n\n_Not by women were designed,_\n\n_Bells o'erthrown nor churches sacked._\n\n_Speak not ill of womankind._\n\n_Bishop, king upon his throne,_\n\n_Primate skilled to loose and bind,_\n\n_Spring of women every one!_\n\n_Speak not ill of womankind._\n\n_For a brave young fellow long_\n\n_Hearts of women oft have pined._\n\n_Who would dare their love to wrong?_\n\n_Speak not ill of womankind._\n\n_Paunchy greybeards never more_\n\n_Hope to please a woman's mind._\n\n_Poor young chieftains they adore!_\n\n_Speak not ill of womankind._\n\nEleanor and Garrett were married at Kiltinan in late January 1565. The storm-clouds on the horizon would prevent the sun from shining for long on their union. For Eleanor was destined to become involved in a grim episode of history which would culminate in the most appalling personal tragedy and loss imaginable.\n\nThe earl and his new countess began their married life at Askeaton castle. Eleanor had a substantial dowry from her father, and Garrett endowed her with the castle and town of Bridgesford, County Tipperary, as part of her jointure. To judge by their later correspondence, despite their traumatic life together, Eleanor was devoted to Garrett, who in turn proved a respectful and caring husband. Her marriage introduced her to an environment markedly different from what she had been used to at Kiltinan and, in the more gaelicised and robust Desmond household, she strove to walk a diplomatic tight-rope with the Desmond clans and followers who despised the very name of Butler.\n\nShe accompanied Garrett on a tour of his lordship. His client lords received her with the hospitality and deference due their overlord's countess. She viewed the great Desmond castles of Askeaton, Newcastle, Castlemaine, Shanid and the rest with a bride's eye to future adjustments and refurbishment. For the moment she was content to accompany her lord and his retinue on a tour of inspection of his estates as he received the rents, services, homage and entertainment due his station, and enjoyed the festivities and pleasures of her brief honeymoon.\n\nBut political developments in Ireland waited for no such pleasant dalliances, not even for the great Earl of Desmond, whose impulsive spirit in any case was easily provoked especially where his feud with the rival House of Ormond was concerned. Eleanor was about to witness the intensity with which the two rivals were determined to pursue their differences. This time the row was sparked by Garrett's claim to rents from Sir Maurice FitzGerald, Lord of Decies, in Waterford. The Decies was originally part of the Desmond estate, but Sir Maurice now claimed to hold it by feudal tenure from the Crown. Garrett, however, insisted on his right to the overlordship of Decies, which, he proclaimed, 'is and always hathe beene a member of the house of Desmonde and in the rule and governance of the saide Earle and his ancestors'. Sir Maurice appealed to the Earl of Ormond for protection. Black Tom readily agreed. Garrett thereupon summoned a hosting. His dependent lords and clansmen flocked to his standard, anxious for any chance to avenge themselves on their Butler enemies.\n\nThe intensity of their hatred doubtless surprised and dismayed Eleanor as she watched the Desmond forces mass before Askeaton. The mail-coated MacSheehy galloglass, battle-axes slung over their shoulders, formed the vanguard, as they would in battle when their ferocious strength and inborn hunger for slaughter was unleashed on their opposing counterparts, the MacSweeneys. The lightly-armed kern with their short Irish bows, targets and swords milled impatiently around the gateway. Inside the courtyard the horses attended by horseboys awaited their masters, who emerged from the castle clad in protective helmets, mail-shirts and jackets of quilted leather. Each carried a sword and dagger in his belt and a long spear. Garrett himself took command of this hot-blooded and impatient force. As he swung into the saddle, his standard was raised and the ancient war-cry of the Desmond Geraldines erupted in a roar. Amid shouts of 'Shanid ab\u00fa!' Garrett, fourteenth Earl of Desmond, led his army to war against the hereditary enemy.\n\nEleanor watched her husband and his soldiers disappear from view, enveloped in the long woollen cloaks which would serve both as shelter and bed for the duration of the campaign. This was her first parting from Garrett, and she experienced a sense of loneliness and an even greater sense of fear for his safety. She was also uneasily conscious of her own vulnerability and isolation in an alien lordship. But the loneliness and fear would of necessity pass. Her training and personal experience had conditioned her to accept her husband's involvement in the unending litany of feuds, disputes, raids and rebellions, the hallmarks of the volatile society to which they all belonged. She busied herself in the administration of her husband's estate. Her inexperience and her Butler origins might well have made her task more difficult, but Eleanor Butler FitzGerald proved to be no pushover when it came to asserting her rights. From the moment of her husband's departure she determinedly set about establishing her position and authority in Desmond.\n\nThe years of skirmishing and verbal warfare between Garrett and Black Tom finally ended on 1 February 1565 at the ford of Affane near Lismore. This time no 'angel of peace' appeared to separate them. The rents of Decies were forgotten as, faced by the Ormond forces, Garrett put spurs to his horse and personally led the charge against his enemy. A brief but fierce battle ensued until Garrett, in a sharp encounter with Sir Edmund Butler, was 'stryken doune by shott of hagbut throughe his leg and woundid dangerously in III severall places of his body, besides divers bruses'. Some three hundred of his men fell in battle, while others, who tried to swim to safety, were hacked to pieces by the Ormond galloglass along the banks of the Blackwater. Garrett was taken prisoner by an exultant Black Tom. As he was being carried shoulder-high on a litter from the battlefield by his enemies, they taunted him by asking: 'Where now the great Earl of Desmond?', to which Garrett haughtily replied: 'Where he belongs, on the backs of the Butlers.' Brave words indeed. But for Garrett and Eleanor, Affane was to result in humiliation, imprisonment, loss of prestige, physical and mental deprivation, and the start of the slippery slope to rebellion and ruin.\n\nThe Queen was incensed at the entire episode and angrily ordered both earls to her presence. From Elizabeth's point of view, the Affane incident was an insult to her dignity and sovereignty, two attributes jealously guarded by the Tudors. Affane was the last battle fought between two private armies in these islands and, as such, it accomplished little but provoke the Queen's anger. 'It was impossible for a reforming government to ignore this assumption by nominal loyalists of a right to settle a family dispute by an appeal to arms.' The two offending dynasts were to be put straight on the matter by an irate sovereign. Meanwhile, Black Tom exacted his personal revenge on his vanquished enemy. For six weeks he had Garrett incarcerated in his jail at Clonmel until the Lord Justice ordered both himself and his prisoner to Waterford. Fearing that he might be adjudged of equal guilt by the Crown, Black Tom was determined that the Earl of Desmond should be seen in public as the defeated and discredited villain of the piece, and himself the aggrieved but victorious party. He consequently had Garrett bound in chains and paraded through Waterford 'with sounding of trumpett and gunne shott, in suche tryumphant sort as though he were an open enemye or traytours rebell . . . the whole inhabitants of the cyttie staring and wondering and diversly speking thereon to his shame and dishonour'. The jeers and catcalls of the citizens rang in Garrett's ears as he was led, sick, stumbling and dishevelled, through the streets. It was a bitter humiliation for the proud Geraldine earl.\n\nNews of the defeat of Affane and of Garrett's capture by the Butlers was brought to Askeaton by the defeated Desmond clansmen. Eleanor immediately set out for Waterford. She found Garrett in great agony from the wound in his thigh, a wound which was never to fully heal. Together they discussed the likely outcome of his capture and Eleanor soothed his feverish ramblings and bitter outbursts against the Butlers. Garrett entrusted the administration of his estates to her before being conducted to England to answer, with Black Tom, in person to the Queen for their presumptuous and precipitate action. To add to his discomfort, Garrett suffered greatly from sea-sickness on the trip. Consequently it was a haggard and ragged shadow of the vain, swaggering noble of their former meeting who was carried on a litter into the royal presence to answer for his crime. Garrett expected little mercy and even less justice from the angry Queen, well versed in his enemy's version of events.\n\nAt Court the Ormond\u2013Desmond feud became entangled in a wider political intrigue between the Sussex and Leicester factions. Robert Dudley, the Earl of Leicester, had emerged as the Queen's favourite and there was some trepidation in the Sussex camp, that her admiration ran to such lengths as to encourage speculation that she had found herself a prospective husband. Sussex defended Ormond and lauded his loyalty. He berated the Earl of Desmond, accused him of treason and of being an oppressor of his neighbours. Leicester, with the backing of Sir Henry Sidney, favoured Desmond, and they cautiously indicated that his claim over the Decies was no more than an assertion of a right enjoyed for generations by successive earls of Desmond. While Elizabeth was critical of the conduct of both adversaries, she reserved the sharper edge of her tongue for Garrett. Both earls were forced to enter into recognisances for \u00a320,000 and to agree to abide henceforth by the Queen's law. In an attempt to bridle Garrett's influence in Munster, MacCarthy More, over whom he claimed supremacy, was created the Earl of Clancar. Temporarily chastened, but undoubtedly relieved, towards the end of 1565 Garrett was permitted to depart for Ireland, while Black Tom chose to remain at court.\n\nGarrett returned to Eleanor not yet fully recovered from the wounds he received at Affane and bearing also the mental scars of his further alienation from the Crown. Eleanor listened as he bitterly complained about the humiliation he had endured in the English court and the favouritism displayed by Elizabeth. He had been cold-shouldered and snubbed, while his rival, Black Tom, equally culpable, had been favoured by the Queen and her officials. Even the Leicester\u2013Sidney faction had merely used him as a pawn in their political schemes and court intrigues. Eleanor soothed the ruffled pride of her aggrieved husband. She urged him to maintain his relationship, however tentative, with Leicester and Sidney as a means to counter-balance Black Tom's influence, as well as the antagonistic, ambitious petty officials in the Crown administration in Dublin. Initially Garrett seemed to take her advice and pursue a more loyal course. He refused to be drawn into a confederacy with the restless chieftain, Shane O'Neill of Tyrone, and even journeyed to Drogheda to meet Sidney, recently reappointed chief governor of Ireland, to offer him his services in the campaign against the Ulster chieftain.\n\nBeneath the surface, however, the Geraldine\u2013Butler feud simmered on. Factions from both sides raided and counter-raided the territory of the other. Both lordships were in a constant state of disorder. In the continued absence of Black Tom, his brothers contributed to the chaos in Ormond by their intemperate treatment of his dependent lords, tenants and town citizens, while the feud between Eleanor's father and uncle continued unabated.\n\nAfter his ineffectual foray into Ulster against Shane O'Neill, Sidney turned south to attempt to cool the seething cauldron of lawlessness and malpractice which, by now, seemed on the point of boiling over and plunging all Munster into ruin. He first took in hand the feud between the Baron of Dunboyne and his brother and promptly had them, together with their quarrelsome wives and Eleanor's eldest brother James, committed to Dublin Castle. He next moved against Black Tom's brothers and sent them for trial at Clonmel. Sidney then turned his attention to the vast, sprawling territory of the Earl of Desmond. Reports and rumours of the unbridled lawlessness of Garrett's estates, the excesses of his rule, and the intolerable exactions he demanded from those over whom he claimed suzerainty, had reached Sidney. But neither he nor the Queen comprehended the determination and intensity with which the earl guarded the hereditary powers and privileges of his position, nor the fervour with which his adherents accepted his overlordship, which bound him to them as much as it did they to him.\n\nFor just as the Tudors claimed divine right to receive loyalty and exert total authority, so the Earl of Desmond claimed, by ancient Gaelic and feudal law, the loyalty and dues of his tributary lords. Garrett's estate exceeded that of any other lord either in Ireland or England. His income, both in money and in kind, was immense, yet he paid not a penny to the Crown, either in tax or cess. He used the revenue to subsidise his private army to enforce his will. He brooked no interference in the administration of his estates and meted out a harsh and summary justice based on the Gaelic principle that the strong must naturally overcome the weak. He was proud, even vainglorious, but in this he was a typical product of a society that expected such traits in a leader. He was an autocratic dictator, reared to expect homage, power and wealth. The Crown administrators and officials sent to dislodge him from his lofty perch he considered mere lackeys and underlings to be contemptuously dismissed. He was an absolute ruler by right, and this he intended to remain.\n\nEleanor presided over her husband's household and received the constant flow of chieftains, emissaries and spies who brought news of happenings in Ulster, Ormond, Dublin, London and the continent. Friars and priests came ashore at Youghal and Kinsale and beat a path to Askeaton to give tidings of the great religious crusade being contemplated on the continent against the 'heretic queen'. The wider political developments, with their religious undertones, did not concern the Earl of Desmond. The real news related to his lordship and its immediate enemies. Smarting at his treatment by Elizabeth and needled into action by his ambitious brother John and his military captains, like a Celtic warrior the Earl led his raiding parties at will. What Eleanor thought of his reckless behaviour is open to conjecture. The wild excesses of her husband and his followers, she realised, however, were bound to invite the attention of the Crown. Eleanor attempted to restrain her husband's more outrageous undertakings, more apt than he to see through the ill-advised plots of his brother. But for Garrett there was little choice but to play the Gaelic chieftain, keep his competitors for power within his own family at bay and still the wagging tongues that, on any sign of weakness on his part, might reopen the controversy surrounding his right to the earldom in the first place.\n\nThe number of his followers was legion and legendary. All the footloose and landless swordsmen of Munster flocked to his table and followed in his wake. The contrast between the earldoms of Ormond and Desmond was, in some aspects, remarkable. Black Tom assiduously flaunted his loyalty to Elizabeth while secretly retaining within his lordship many of the practices for which the Queen berated the Earl of Desmond. He had, however, made noticeable efforts to administer his estates by the English system, yet without foregoing any of the traditional dues and privileges he received under the Gaelic system. By his show of allegiance and a more circumspect and pragmatic administration of his lordship, Black Tom, in contrast to Garrett, presented to Elizabeth the commendable image of a loyal and anglicised Irish lord. Garrett, by his very nature and inability to adapt and play the politician, appeared the antithesis.\n\nIncensed at the situation in Desmond, Elizabeth ordered Sidney to bestir himself and find out\n\n_why such rebells and offenders as be under the rule of the Earle of Desmond and his brother John . . . have not ben apprehendid by them or why the said Earle or his brother . . . have not ben charged and made answerable thereto being to be committed to prisons as they ought to be._\n\nThe Queen could not forget that Sidney had favoured the Earl of Desmond at court, and she was suspicious that he might deal leniently with him at the expense of her prot\u00e9g\u00e9 Black Tom. 'Of which two persons,' she reminded Sidney, 'without any private respect of either of them, it is . . . most easiest to judge which of them aught to recyve favor and countenance.'\n\nWith the royal accusation of favouritism ringing in his ear, Sidney hurried to Youghal to confront the object of the Queen's anger. But Sidney well realised that any reform of the feudal lordships of Ireland must bring him into conflict, not only with the Earl of Desmond, but with the Earl of Ormond as well. Sidney planned to establish a militarily backed presidency in Munster with the aim to 'undermine the power of the feudal lords by depriving them of their palatinate jurisdiction, by prohibiting the maintenance of private armies and by truncating their power'. The loyal Earl of Ormond would be affected as much as the disloyal Earl of Desmond. But Black Tom was at the seat of power in London and had access to the Queen who, in any event, had been less than enthusiastic for Sidney's proposal which, she deemed, would necessitate further Crown expense.\n\nWhen Sidney suggested Sir Warham St Leger for the post of council president, the Queen, prompted by Black Tom, gave full vent to her disapproval. 'Wee did mislyke in deede to see you so addicted to the favour of the earle of Desmond', she fumed, 'as to the place St Leger the president of that Counsell, whose inward preferrid friendship towards the Earle of Desmond was notorious.' 'And', she added, perhaps echoing Black Tom's sentiments, 'the old inimitye that St Leger's father bore to the Earle of Ormond's father, whome he brought to his end heere in England by prosequuting of him so as we assure you nether needid We the information of the Earle of Ormond to disallow St Leger to be president.' While astounded at such overt prejudice, Sidney had little alternative but to let the presidency issue rest for the moment. Ormond's objection to St Leger merely masked his opposition to an English presidency in Munster _per se_ and its likely effects on his own power.\n\nEleanor and Garrett were at Youghal, where Eleanor was delivered of their first child, Margaret. Garrett's spies brought news of Sidney's progress through his territory. As Sidney drew closer to Youghal Garrett's sense of grievance at the intrusion increased. He called for a 'rising out' of his tributary client lords and armed followers to show Sidney just who was master in Munster. As he rode through the Munster countryside, Sidney reported the waste and untended state of Garrett's domain to the Queen:\n\n_Like as I never was in a more pleasant country in all my life, so never saw I a more waste and desolate land . . . and there heard I such lamentable cries and doleful complaints made by that small remain of poor people which yet are left, who (hardly escaping the fury of the sword and fire of their outrageous neighbours, or the famine which the same, or their extortious lords, hath driven them unto, either by taking their goods from them or by sending the same, by their extort, taking of coyne and livery) make demonstration of the miserable estate of that country. Besides this, such horrible and lamentable spectacles there are to behold as the burning of villages, the ruin of churches, the wasting of such as have been good towns and castles, yea, the view of the bones and skulls of your dead subjects, who, partly by murder, partly by famine, have died in the fields, as in troth hardly any Christian with dry eyes could behold._\n\nEarly in 1567 Sidney confronted Garrett at Youghal, where the earl made little attempt to hide his displeasure at the Lord Deputy's presence. Sidney ordered an investigation into Garrett's long-standing dispute with Black Tom over possession of Kilsheelin castle. The investigation duly found in favour of the Earl of Ormond. The decision provoked Garrett into a passionate tirade, in Sidney's presence, against the Crown. He swore that no English sovereign should ever have jurisdiction within his territory and 'that he would never disperse with the old state of his family, but would have five gallowglasses where he had formerly had one'. Sidney brushed aside the earl's intemperate outburst and, with some sympathy, attempted to excuse it to the Queen on the grounds of her preference for the Earl of Ormond which, as he had warned her, made Garrett 'grow desperate for that he cannot have his causes ended between the Earl of Ormond and him, in which matters I suppose each doth the other wrong'. But mindful of his duty as a loyal servant of the Crown, Sidney also pointed out that if Garrett did rebel and was defeated, his lands could be confiscated and 'thereby the Queen to be made mistress of a great part of the realm'. For the first time the idea of confiscation of the Desmond estates was, albeit hypothetically, propounded, and the attention of land-hungry speculators in England became fixed on the vast acres ruled by such an irresponsible and disloyal subject.\n\nAs Garrett sought to put his threat into action, Sidney attempted to clip his wings by inviting the earl's dependent lords to make submission to him personally, independently of their overlord. Garrett acted to counter Sidney's move, and soon messengers were bringing him word that the traditional Desmond allies had answered his call to arms and a thousand armed men were mustered to await his orders. Sidney's force in Munster numbered only two hundred. With the odds in his favour, Garrett attempted to leave Youghal to assume control of his army. Sidney forestalled him and in March 1567 committed the irate earl under guard in Youghal.\n\nEleanor was recuperating after the birth of her child. Her husband's rash behaviour made her greatly fear the consequences. She had tried to curb his intemperate conduct towards Sidney, the only potential English ally he had. But he would not be restrained and became even more incensed as he watched his tributary lords troop in, one by one, and submit to the Lord Deputy. Sidney listened as they recited long lists of complaints against Garrett, whose overbearing treatment 'so injured and exacted upon by him as in effect they are or were become his thrals or slaves'. Sidney ordered Garrett to accompany him to Limerick, while Eleanor remained at Youghal. Moving towards Limerick with his small force, with Garrett in tow, Sidney received reports that the earl's army intended to attack. He pre-empted the danger by placing the earl under arrest, and with this insurance was able to pass without hindrance through the Desmond heartland to Limerick. From there the proud Earl of Desmond was brought captive through Limerick, Galway, Athlone and back to Dublin, where he was confined to prison in Dublin Castle, branded by Sidney as 'a man void of judgement to govern and will to be ruled'.\n\nNews of her husband's imprisonment was relayed to Eleanor, who greatly feared the effects of this new humiliation on his mental and physical well-being. His brother, Sir John, to whom Sidney had conveyed the administration of the Desmond estates in the earl's absence, went to Dublin to seek terms for his brother's release. But shortly after his arrival he found himself sharing the same cell as Garrett. Shades of the fate meted out by Henry VIII to the House of Kildare were revived. Was Henry's daughter about to order a similar brutal chastisement on the House of Desmond? All Ireland awaited the fate of the earl and wondered in awe at the seizure of such a powerful lord. Even Elizabeth appeared somewhat aghast at the temerity of her Lord Deputy in seizing Desmond on his own ground with such a small army. In Munster there was little reaction to the imprisonment of the earl except from his kinsman the Knight of Glin who took the field with his son Thomas. They were eventually captured and condemned to death. By a legal loophole the Knight escaped his fate, but his son was hanged, drawn and quartered in Limerick. 'There is a tradition that his mother was present at his execution, seized his head when he was beheaded and drank his blood and collected for burial at Lislaughtin abbey the parts of his dismembered body in a linen sheet.'\n\nMeanwhile Garrett languished with his brother in Dublin Castle, complaining bitterly to Sidney about the treachery of his capture. Sidney sought the Queen's pleasure as to the fate of his troublesome prisoner. But Ormond had the Queen's ear in England, and in September 1567 Elizabeth ordered that the earl and his brother should be transferred to the Tower of London. Eleanor's worst fears were realised. She hurried to Dublin and received permission to visit her husband. There was no indication of what lay in store in London. But they both realised that his absence from Desmond was bound to be exploited by his enemies from both within and without. The old Gaelic dictum 'a lordship without a lord is a dead lordship' was very much a reality in gaelicised Desmond. Few could be trusted. Officials and officers in the Crown's pay now cast envious eyes on the Desmond estates, reckoning up their potential as a means of revenue both for themselves and their royal mistress. Garrett's step-brother, Thomas Roe FitzGerald, the disinherited contender for the earldom, waited in the wings to reassert his claim by whatever means offered him the best opportunity of reinstatement. Garrett's cousin, James FitzMaurice FitzGerald, was the most able and likely contender to take his place in his absence. But he too would have to be watched lest his unexpected promotion made him unduly ambitious.\n\nEleanor alone could be trusted, and once again Garrett entrusted her with the administration of his estates. He urged her to write regularly with details of her stewardship and to be vigilant in collecting his rents and dues. For in the grand Geraldine manner Garrett insisted on being escorted to his London prison by a princely retinue of followers. He intended to hold court in the traditional style, even though Elizabeth intended his palace to be a dungeon. But there were no multitudes of willing peasants in London to provide the earl with the means for this vain display. The rents and dues from his estates must pay for his self-indulgent and expensive outlay. Eleanor returned to Munster to begin the unenviable and daunting task of holding the fort in her husband's absence.\n\nGarrett and Sir John, accompanied by a hundred followers, were sent to London in December. Sir John fell ill during the voyage, and there was 'much ado to get him to Lichfield', where their escort reported they were 'thus constrained to tarry there to see what he will do tomorrow, when if there be any health in him they will travel towardes London'. They eventually reached the capital where the brothers were lodged under confinement in the Tower. The terms of their custody permitted them access to their followers who daily flocked to the prison. From his cell Garrett, while the money lasted, kept 'open house' and a hospitable table for his dependants, generally holding court as if he were at home in the great hall of Askeaton.\n\nWhile Garrett kept up the brave show in England, Eleanor was left with the responsibility of both funding her husband's extravagances and safeguarding his interests in Munster. As she had anticipated, the vacant earldom unleashed the unquiet ambitions of Garrett's relatives. In order to foment unrest within Desmond, rumours of the earl's death were circulated, and there was little Eleanor could immediately do to counteract them; the borders of her husband's territory were far-flung and communications primitive. The rumours provided the opportunity for the main contenders to throw their hats into the ring and revive their claims to the earldom. Garrett's step-brother, Thomas Roe, 'taking advantage of his brother's misfortunes . . . took upon him to command in chiefe the Earledome of Desmond'. It was rumoured that Thomas Roe was supported in his bid for power by the Earl of Ormond. Thomas Roe was stopped in his tracks, however, as James FitzMaurice FitzGerald, proclaiming that his own interest in the vacancy was merely to preserve his cousin's rights, 'leapes into the lists, challenging any man that durst presume to question the Earle's right'.\n\nEleanor viewed the motives of both contenders with suspicion. Their bid to usurp her husband's position seemed likely to split the lordship apart as both prepared to implement their claims by force. She acted swiftly to pre-empt their plans and summoned a hosting of Garrett's retainers and galloglass. Like an avenging eagle she swooped on the two claimants and took them into custody until she could establish Garrett's will in the matter. After some time she received his instructions from the Tower to appoint James FitzMaurice FitzGerald as 'captain' in Desmond during his absence. He further urged his dependent lords 'to aid the countess and James FitzMaurice in collecting rents and in keeping the peace'.\n\nEleanor's suspicions about FitzMaurice's motives were unappeased. Garrett had been absent for almost six months, and his volatile sub-lords and chieftains needed an overlord to both protect and direct them. As the situation stood, any contender with even the vaguest claim to the lordship, but with sufficient strength to enforce it, could usurp Garrett's position. Her husband was far removed from the real situation and, she felt, placed too much trust in his cousin. Eleanor could not be sure that FitzMaurice's motives were as unselfish as he publicly proclaimed. Until her suspicions could be allayed Eleanor decided to keep FitzMaurice and Thomas Roe under lock and key.\n\nShe had also to contend with the Crown Commissioners in Munster, who also sought to take advantage of her husband's absence to extend their authority into his lordship. In addition, she was under pressure from the Commissioners to deliver her two prisoners into their custody. But Eleanor well realised that such action on her part would achieve little but to incur the wrath of their respective followers and lead to even greater disorder within the lordship under her care. She knew she had to play for time.\n\nThe Commissioners summoned her to Waterford, but she fobbed them off, pleading the unsettled and poor state of her husband's country and her own deprivation. 'I can scant abyde in one house past two dayes and two nights,' she told them, 'though it be wynter, but trudging and travaylinge by day and ptly. by night from place to place meaninge to appease the fury of their lewd attempts the best I can.' She had set out in January 1568, in the depths of a severe winter, to quell the rumours of her husband's death, to appease the anxiety of his dependent lords, and to determine their views on the proposed appointment of James FitzMaurice FitzGerald as the earl's temporary replacement. On her journey she tried to collect the rents due to her husband, but, as she informed the Commissioners (no doubt in order to dispel any hopes they might have of securing a share for the Crown) the state of the country was so poor that she 'could not find in my harte to take up myne owne dutys of the inhabitants there'. But the Commissioners insisted on a meeting to discuss the situation in Desmond and urged her by return messenger 'to lett us understand yor determinate answear whether yo will come to us or we to yo in any convenient place'. They further ordered her to deliver her two prisoners to the Crown and to ensure that all the tributary lords of Desmond submit to the Commissioners. But following the abduction and imprisonment of the earl, Desmond's sub-lords refused to meet the Commissioners, unless under Eleanor's protection, whom they acknowledged as the earl's true representative.\n\nDespite her suspicions of the ulterior motives of FitzMaurice and Thomas Roe, Eleanor was loath to hand her prisoners over to the Crown. Desmond needed a strong lord at the helm, especially at this decisive time. She subsequently extracted pledges and securities for Thomas Roe's release from the Munster lords, Roche and Power, and endorsed Garrett's choice of James FitzMaurice to act in a caretaker capacity until his return. She then released them, pretending to the irate Commissioners that it had been perpetrated 'by the rude people the erle's captens of galloglasses, constables and other of the countrey'. With her husband's lordship for the moment under control and in relative peace, Eleanor set out, escorted by Hugh Lacy the Bishop of Limerick, to keep her long-postponed appointment with the Crown Commissioners at Cork. To keep them at bay she promised not to impede the extension of English law into Desmond, though qualifying her promise by stressing that it applied only 'as far as my good will may thereunto extend'.\n\nDuring 1568 Eleanor maintained a steady flow of correspondence with her imprisoned husband. From the Tower Garrett continued to urge her to be vigilant in his interests in Munster and to endeavour to collect his rents, of which he was in dire need. The Queen had reduced her allowance for his upkeep, considering it altogether contrary to her parsimonious nature that such an unfaithful subject, together with his overbearing retinue, should be maintained at her expense. Garrett's health began to deteriorate in the damp, unhealthy confines of the prison. He became withdrawn and silent as he brooded over the humiliation and injustice of his detention. His thoughts were constantly on Munster and in one letter uncharacteristically rebuked Eleanor for her apparent tardiness in sending him news from home. Otherwise the tenor of his letters to her was warm and loving; they were generally addressed to 'the Right honourable and my veray lovinge wife dame Elinor Countesse of Desmond in Ireland', according her all the respect and affection pertaining to her position as his countess and wife. In his letters he frequently sent his commendations to Eleanor's mother, the Baroness of Dunboyne who, on the death of her husband in 1567 and after their release from Dublin Castle, had continued to be harassed at Kiltinan by Peter Butler and his Ormond supporters. The heir of Dunboyne, Eleanor's brother James, a minor, had been sent to England to further his education at Cambridge. In a letter to his step-brother, whom he addressed as 'Mr Thomas of Desmond', Garrett instructed him in his behaviour towards Eleanor:\n\n_This shalbe to desire you not to fayle as my trust is no less in you, to be vearie kindlie towardes my Ladie my wif, and that she maie not slacke nor perceive the contrarie but your good will and yt you and everie of yours, as you tender my good will and advoid my displeasure._\n\nHis seneschal, John FitzEdmund of Imokilly, he instructed to aid and protect Eleanor.\n\nConditions in the Tower continued to worsen. Elizabeth's stop to the carnival atmosphere found Garrett now lodged 'without furniture and left to suffer from the cold'. His vexation was exacerbated when he was compelled to appear before endless inquisitions to answer for his conduct within his own lordship. There were plenty of paid spies and informers ready to talk. He was accused of providing meat and drink to proclaimed traitors in Munster. Disdainfully he explained the Gaelic custom of liberal hospitality, but denied that he had aided any treasonable offenders. Reasserting the inherited powers conferred on him by right of the palatine status of his lordship, he loudly proclaimed to his inquisitors that he had sole authority to rule and to administer justice without regard to the Queen's sheriffs, judges or administrators. His judges could scarcely comprehend such seemingly outlandish claims which harkened back to the bygone age of the independent barons of feudal England, long since moulded into obedient subjects by successive Tudor monarchs. That such a political dinosaur as the Earl of Desmond could still exist, even in Ireland, was beyond the comprehension of their Elizabethan minds.\n\nEvidence of raids on his neighbours, of the disorder in his lordship and of intrigue with O'Neill against the Crown was produced against him. The whisper of treason began to circulate. Visions of the executioner's block, at Tyburn, and the jeering mob flashed before his mind. The pale ghosts of his Kildare kinsmen came to haunt him. Not willing to place his head entirely in the lion's mouth, in July 1568 he made a submission to the Privy Council at Howard House:\n\n_I, Garrett, Earl of Desmond, knowing myself to have offended the Queen's laws and to stand in great peril of life and forfeiture of all my lands and goods; and besides knowing myself to be in danger of forfeiting \u00a320,000 wherein I stand bound to Her Majesty by recognisance: therefore, to obtain her favour, I submit myself to her mercy and clemency, and do offer to Her Majesty all my possessions, thereof to take into her hands so much as she thinks convenient and to dispose of the same for benefit of the realm of Ireland, at her pleasure and I grant and promise that within days after her pleasure shall be signified to me, what castles, lands or liberties she shall think good to take, I will make assurance thereof to Her Majesty, her heirs and successors_.\n\nWith the imperious Geraldine where she wanted him, on his knees, and 'so far as the law went, Elizabeth now had Munster at her mercy, but she kept fast hold on her prisoners until time should declare how far the law coincided with the facts'. Garrett had saved his neck from the block, but at a terrible cost to both his pride and his pocket. His fate still hung on a thread, for, despite his submission, he was still in prison, destitute, ill and friendless. His sole hope depended on his wife's ability to counter the intrigue, greed and double-dealing directed against him from every quarter. The outlook in the summer of 1568 looked as grim as the cold, grey stones of his prison cell.\n\nSuddenly a new threat to the stability of Munster emerged and, for a time, seemed likely to spawn the unlikeliest of alliances between the rival houses of Desmond and Ormond. While his plan to establish a presidency in Munster had been forestalled by the machinations of the Earl of Ormond, Sidney now raised the idea of colonisation as a means to extend the Crown's authority in the province. His proposal was examined by the English government. Sidney envisaged the establishment of English settlements 'as oases of civility in a desert of barbarians'. Lands confiscated by the rebellion of their Irish owners, or land held by tenure that could be proved faulty or uncertain, would provide the means to subvent the proposed settlements. The Queen looked favourably on the proposal as a less expensive method of conquest and in keeping with the mood of discovery and colonisation in vogue among English financial entrepreneurs and intrepid, land-hungry adventurers. The settling of the disorderly areas of Ireland with English farmers, yeomen, artisans and soldiers, and the establishment of English shire practices therein, seemed practical and augured well for a more stable and less expensive administration.\n\nElizabeth's domestic and foreign problems had intensified. Scotland, in complicity with the ever-scheming Mary Stuart and her French Catholic allies, threatened revolt. 'The life-and-death wrestle between the Reformation and the unreformed Church had already settled into a permanent struggle between England and Spain.' While the struggle was, as yet, fought 'unofficially' by Elizabeth's privateers who plundered Spanish treasure ships as they returned from the Americas, Munster, with its unstable political situation, unreformed religion and strategically situated harbours like Youghal, Kinsale and Dingle, could yet provide Spain with the backdoor access to England.\n\nThe colonisation of Munster was greeted with enthusiasm in England. First into the fray, with a dubious claim originating from the Norman conquest, came Sir Peter Carew of Devon, an enterprising Elizabethan soldier and adventurer. Carew claimed lands in Cork, Kerry, Waterford, Meath, but also the barony of Idrone, the property of the Earl of Ormond's brother, Sir Edmund Butler. The ire of the loyal Butlers was unleashed when Sidney had the claim confirmed by the Irish Privy Council. On the strength of Carew's initial success, scores of enthusiastic English adventurers, including Sir Richard Grenville, Sir Humphrey Gilbert and Sir Warham St Leger, set their sights on the rich land of Munster in a mission of plunder on a grand scale. To the majority of these pirate-adventurers, Ireland was as remote and unknown as the far-off Americas, peopled by a race as alien as the Red Indians, governed by savage chiefs and mysterious brehons, an ideal terrain for the ambitions and energies of restless young men in search of wealth and adventure.\n\nTo add to the growing anxiety of both Gaelic and gaelicised landowners Sidney, on his return to Ireland, had failed to bring back the Earl of Desmond. Fear spread among the Irish chieftains and lords including the normally loyal House of Ormond. Ormond's brother declared 'that no man of Irish descent could be safe' from the seizure of either his land or his person. Sidney convened a parliament in 1569 which was primarily 'used to promote the policy of conquest' and which caused further unrest. In Ulster Shane O'Neill, recently murdered, was deemed 'attainted, the name of O'Neill extinguished and the Queen entitled to Tyrone'; thereby sounding a clear warning to every lord and chieftain 'that there could be but one sovereignty in Ireland' and that possession of their lordships was no longer guarantee of legality of tenure by English law.\n\nThe first wave of adventurers landed in Munster and laid claim to lands and castles in the vicinity of Cork, possessions of the Earl of Desmond and MacCarthy More. James FitzMaurice FitzGerald seized his chance to exploit these developments and convened a conference of Geraldine leaders, informing them that 'their chief and his brother were condemned to death or at least to perpetual imprisonment'. Garrett's continued confinement, the uncertainty over land titles, the threatened colonisation, combined with the unlikelihood of Elizabeth being reconciled with the papacy, gave James FitzMaurice the opportunity he sought\u2014to broaden the basis of the local struggle over land and lordship into the wider international religious and political crusade against Elizabeth. To seek international recognition and material assistance for his new-found cause, FitzMaurice sent Maurice FitzGibbon, papal appointee to the See of Cashel, to King Philip of Spain. FitzMaurice next sought to make common cause with the brothers of the Earl of Ormond, still smarting under Sidney's chastisement and Carew's threat to their lands. The brothers agreed to become involved, though, they maintained, not against the Crown but 'against those that banish Ireland and mean conquest'. The prospect of an alliance between the usually loyal House of Ormond and the rebel House of Desmond, aided by foreign enemy intervention, sent shivers of apprehension down Elizabeth's spine. She ordered Black Tom back to Ireland to resume his responsibilities in Ormond, but gave no such commission to the still captive Earl of Desmond.\n\nEleanor observed the unfolding events and wondered at the unnatural alliance being forged between FitzMaurice and the Ormond Butlers. They were no friends of her own family, and even less of the Desmonds. They had lately terrorised her mother and plundered her father's estates. She was suspicious of FitzMaurice's real intention, as he promoted his religious crusade. The question of religion mattered little in Munster, and FitzMaurice's use of it she saw as merely a means to subvert her husband's authority and position. She also feared the leadership abilities of FitzMaurice. In the continued absence of their overlord, and under the constant threat of colonisation and encroachment by the Crown, the loyalty of her husband's followers might waver. Caught in a dilemma between the Queen's refusal to release her husband and the unfolding ambitions and designs of FitzMaurice, she could do little but await developments and keep alive the fast-receding memory of her husband among his people.\nChapter 4\n\nExile\n\n_We have been here much molested with the erle of_\n\n_Desmond's wief . . . pretending that she hath not_\n\n_brought with her wherewith to mayntayne her_\n\n_owne charge nor the charge of her husbande . . ._\n\nQUEEN ELIZABETH TO SIR HENRY SIDNEY, 17 APRIL 1570\n\nIn July 1569 James FitzMaurice FitzGerald raised his crusading banner over Munster and with fire and sword swept through the province with the avenging fury of a convert hell-bent on doing the Lord's work. In Ormond his confederates, the Butler brothers, plundered and raided the countryside on the less lofty but nonetheless bloody mission of defence of their land. Confronted by the 4,500 men of this diversely motivated force, the newly-settled English planters and their families fled for their lives and cowered for safety behind the high protective walls of Cork, Kinsale and Youghal. Leaving a trail of corpses, looted and burnt-out houses and hovels, bare fields and thousands of cattle stampeded into the wilderness, FitzMaurice arrived before the gates of Cork on 15 July 1569 and ordered the mayor to 'destroy out of the town all the Huguenots with the first wind'.\n\nSidney proclaimed the Butler brothers and FitzMaurice traitors, and Carew commenced a campaign of retaliatory but indiscriminate slaughter in Ormond. News of the atrocities spread. In Connaught the earls of Clanrickard and Thomond bestirred themselves into action and united with their Geraldine and Butler counterparts to defend their land. In Leinster the Earl of Kildare wavered in the direction of his Geraldine kinsmen. Black Tom prepared to return to Ormond and made no secret that 'anti-Geraldine though he was, if the lands of the ancient owners were to be seized by strangers, then he would make common cause with his countrymen'.\n\nThe situation was getting rapidly out of hand. The Queen made Sidney her scapegoat. She berated him for tarring Black Tom's brothers with the same brush as FitzMaurice, blithely ignoring their participation with him in besieging Kilkenny. Upon the arrival of their brother at Rosslare in August, however, they deserted FitzMaurice and, spurning Sidney, submitted instead to Black Tom. Shortly afterwards Carew's colonisation schemes in Ormond were abandoned. Sidney was ordered by the Queen to leave the Butlers to their own devices and to concentrate his efforts against FitzMaurice.\n\nAt Sidney's approach FitzMaurice fell back from Cork and sought shelter deep inside the Kerry mountains. For a second time in a matter of months Munster was subjected to a baptism of slaughter and rapine as Sidney retaliated with the same ferocity as FitzMaurice had shown to the planters. The earls of Clanrickard and Thomond promptly submitted, together with many of the confederates. Deserted by his erstwhile allies, FitzMaurice established his camp within the inaccessible fastness of the Glen of Aherlow. His first attempt to promote a religious confederacy, linked to international developments, had failed. But he had sufficient political awareness to realise that the question of religion had not, as yet, penetrated as a political issue in Ireland, which was 'merely a pawn in the great game of European diplomacy'. He could afford to lie low for a while, consolidate his position and formulate his plans to raise his banner another day.\n\nBut FitzMaurice's hasty action and Sidney's reprisal focused the attention of the Crown once more on the lordship of the Earl of Desmond. Eleanor soundly cursed the ill-advised revolt which had presented the Crown with the opportunity to establish garrisons in the abandoned castles of Garrett's tributary chieftains who had followed FitzMaurice. The countryside bore the scars of the revolt and, as Eleanor testified, 'was utterly distroid and wasted by the unhappie rebellion of James Fitzmorrish'. She found it impossible to collect the rents and dues owed to her husband, and whatever meagre sums were forthcoming were summarily expropriated by the Crown to redeem the expenses incurred in suppressing the revolt. Oblivious to the state of affairs within his lordship, Garrett begged her to come personally to him with as much money as she could obtain for the relief of himself and Sir John, both of whom, he told her, 'greatly lack apparel and other necessities and especially money'. Their situation in prison had deteriorated to the level of common felons. But there was little that Eleanor could do to relieve their condition. She wrote to Garrett of the desperate conditions prevailing in Desmond which had prevented her from collecting 'no pte of yor rents or other duties that maye enable me to repaire toward you'. She held FitzMaurice responsible for the destruction and voiced her suspicions about his true motives, which she saw as being 'to bring you yf he could in further displeasor but also usurpe all yor enheritance to himself'. The ostensible religious overtones of FitzMaurice's revolt cut little ice with Eleanor. The misery and depression she suffered at this time is evident in a letter to Garrett in which she confided: 'I pray God send us joyfull meeting or me shorte departure out of this world.\u2014Yor loving miserable wief Ellynor Desmond.'\n\nShe sought permission from Sidney to go to her husband and moved to Kinsale in anticipation of his reply. Whether out of a sense of genuine sympathy for her plight, or with the intention of using her as a means to secure the release of the earl (a better alternative from the Lord Deputy's point of view than have to contend with the more dangerous aspirations of the earl's deputy, FitzMaurice), Sidney secured Eleanor a pass into England. Accompanied by her husband's lawyer and friend, Morris Sheehan, who throughout the traumatic years that were to follow was seldom from her side, and a small company of servants, Eleanor arrived in Bristol in the early weeks of 1570. From there she journeyed down the long, bleak road to London.\n\nIt was Eleanor's first visit to the great metropolis but, as she made her way through the maze of narrow, bustling streets, flanked by the wooden-fronted houses, taverns and shops, there was little time to wonder or admire. Hers was a mission fraught with danger and uncertainty. Her means were meagre, and the awesome task that confronted her, to effect her husband's release, would take every ounce of her energy, ability and resources. She had to move the mind of a resolute, autocratic queen whose known antipathy towards her husband seemed as unyielding as the hard, grey stone of his tower prison. She was conducted through the grim, dark corridors of the infamous Tower, and as the heavy iron-bound door closed with a shuddering bang behind her, she was reunited with a husband whom she scarcely recognised.\n\nThey had been apart for eighteen months. The once handsome, proud, richly-attired noble was no more. In his place stood a trembling, gaunt and shabby figure who with red-rimmed eyes cried out his welcome and his fear. The reality of their awful dilemma was perhaps temporarily banished as for a moment a beam of happiness shone on their reunion and briefly lighted their gloomy surroundings. Through the prison bars they looked down on the slow-moving, muddied waters of the Thames, flanked by a jumble of dingy, riverside buildings, and thought perhaps of Askeaton and the rushing Deel and the green pasturelands of Limerick. Eleanor related the tidings from Munster and the changes that had occurred in Desmond during Garrett's absence. It was of the utmost urgency that he should find a way out of the Tower and back to Ireland to salvage what remained of his lordship and his authority. But with Munster subdued, there seemed even less likelihood that the Queen would see any reason to restore him. If, however, Munster was to relapse into disorder, then the heavy cost of restoring peace and the Queen's known aversion to paying the piper, allied to Sidney's advice, that the vacant Desmond lordship was the source of internal discord and a temptation to England's enemies, might well have the effect of making Garrett's restoration seem the lesser of two evils. Consequently FitzMaurice had to be encouraged in his religious rebellion and foreign intrigues. But before Garrett's return to Ireland could be contemplated, Eleanor first set about securing his release from the Tower.\n\nFrom both financial necessity and a desire to be with her husband, Eleanor took up residence in the Tower. The ancient stronghold, situated in the south-east corner of the old city of London, on the north bank of the Thames, built by William the Conqueror, was initially constructed as a secure enclosure within the surviving Roman city walls. Within this enclosure the imposing White Tower was erected. Over succeeding centuries the site developed with the addition of a series of smaller towers, connected by high curtain walls and surrounded by a moat. Eventually by the sixteenth century the Tower complex was to encompass some twenty-three individual towers, a chapel, and various lodgings, gardens and walks. Henry VIII was the last monarch to occupy it as a residence, and it gradually came to be used as a prison to lodge important political prisoners.\n\nOne of its towers, the Beauchamp Tower, had a tragic association with the FitzGeralds. It was in the apartments of this tower, following in the tradition of former inmates, that Silken Thomas, to pass away the days leading to his execution, started to carve his name on the brick wall. The inscription, still visible today, was abruptly cut short, however, at 'THOMAS FITG' as the executioner of Tyburn interrupted the doomed engraver. Like his kinsman, the Earl of Desmond had also been allotted an apartment in one of the towers. The degree of comfort in the cold, cheerless rooms depended on one's own means or the generosity and influence of friends outside. Garrett's distinct lack of both meant that there were for him few comforts to ease the agony of his imprisonment.\n\nFrom the Tower Eleanor daily sallied forth to Whitehall, Westminster and further afield to Greenwich and Richmond, wherever Elizabeth and her court happened to be in residence, to seek her husband's release. From the fringes of the court circles and cliques she importuned, bribed and cajoled the influential and corrupt in her endeavour to obtain access to the Queen. She endured humiliation and defeat as backs were turned and doors slammed in her face. Her lack of means was reflected in her meagre and threadbare wardrobe. The powdered, coifed and bejewelled court ladies and their elegantly attired male counterparts, would have little truck with the down-at-heel countess from Ireland. The powerful Ormond faction spied on her every move as she picked her way through the spider-like web of intrigue and double-dealing on the long and perilous road to the Queen. A cash handout here, a promise of land there, it was a costly mission which soon absorbed her slim resources. In desperation Garrett wrote directly to Elizabeth's chief secretary, Sir William Cecil, explaining that as 'verie extreme necessitie' had prohibited Eleanor from continuing 'her sute for my delyverance into the cyttie of Londone', he was appealing to Cecil 'to have rememberance the futherance of her sute'. On foot of her husband's message, Eleanor redoubled her efforts, and eventually her persistence was rewarded. In May 1570 she was informed that Elizabeth had, albeit reluctantly, agreed to grant her an audience.\n\nThe audience was held at Hampton Court. The ill-feeling that the Queen bore her husband was extended to Eleanor. She realised that her petition to the unfriendly, short-tempered Queen must be couched in humble and repentant tones. With cold, calculating eyes the older Queen looked down on the younger countess who knelt before her and listened to her plea for sustenance for herself and her husband and for his release from the Tower. Eleanor promised in return to steer her husband on a path of loyalty and obedience. Elizabeth appeared unmoved by her request, and her attitude was reflected in the atmosphere of her court, which evinced little friendship or support to the Irish countess. It was dangerous to appear sympathetic to the wife of a rebel, personally out of favour with the Queen and currently awaiting his fate in the most dreaded prison in the land. A friendly look, a quick word of consolation or encouragement to his wife could be misinterpreted. Elizabeth's impenetrable face gave little indication of the likely outcome of their meeting, and Eleanor withdrew from the royal presence to her prison home to await the outcome.\n\nShe had not long to wait. In a letter that bristled with indignation and impatience at Eleanor's dogged persistence and her alleged penury, Elizabeth informed Sidney that\n\n_We have been here much molested with the erle of Desmond's wief who pretending that she hath not brought with her wherewith to mayntayne her owne charge nor the charge of her husbande and on the other parte we have been at no smale charges with him and his synce his comying over._\n\nAs ever, the cost factor involved in the maintenance, however frugally, of the Desmonds was Elizabeth's preoccupation. To rid herself of the burden, she acceded to Eleanor's request and ordered their removal from the Tower to the custody of Sidney's prot\u00e9g\u00e9, Sir Warham St Leger, on whom she also dumped the cost of their maintenance. Eleanor, Garrett, Sir John and fourteen servants were subsequently transferred from the Tower and lodged at Leeds castle, the country estate of St Leger in Kent.\n\nGarrett and Eleanor were well acquainted with their jailer. St Leger held a fee farm from the Earl in Desmond at a rent of 53s 4d per annum. He had obtained additional land west of Cork city, in recompense for financial assistance to Garrett during his period of captivity. St Leger's known antagonism to the Earl of Ormond and his friendship with the Sidney faction at court had initially drawn Garrett to him. Anxious to expand his estate in Munster, St Leger had provided his destitute landlord with money, but at a price. In any event, Eleanor had accomplished the first step towards achieving her husband's repatriation. And after the long months of captivity in the Tower, the relative freedom of Leeds castle and the fresh summer air of the Kentish countryside must have acted as a tonic to the physical and mental well-being of Eleanor and her husband.\n\nFor a few short months of the summer of 1570 they enjoyed partial liberty in unfamiliar but pleasant surroundings. But soon St Leger's resources began to feel the strain of their upkeep. In October 1570 he complained of the dire straits of both himself and his prisoners. He begged the Privy Council for 'a warrant for receipt of money for their diet; otherwise', he threatened, 'I shall be constrayned to bring them to court, being not able, by my greate losses sustayned in Ireland, to beare the chardges thereof any longer'. The earl and his family, St Leger complained, had not 'any thing of their owne to relieve them selfes withal, having your honnrs not so muche as to buy them a pair of shooes, nor have not had since their cominge in to my chardge and stand in despair to have any thing out of their owne country'. No rents were being forwarded from the earl's estates in Ireland. He and his retinue were totally dependent for their food, clothing, shelter and necessities of life on their reluctant custodian. Garrett in captivity had cost Elizabeth more than when unrestrained in Desmond. Yet Elizabeth was not prepared to risk sending him back to Ireland. St Leger's protest of impoverishment fell on deaf ears, and the straitened conditions into which he and his aristocratic charges had fallen were allowed to continue.\n\nIn December 1570 the long-postponed decision to appoint a president in Munster was reached. The Queen nominated Sir John Perrot to the office with explicit instructions to seize 'the castle of the Earl of Desmond in Kerry [i.e. Castlemaine] . . . for the use of the Lord President and Council and also to seize the Liberty of Kerry which Desmond claimed as a palatine'. By the establishment of a presidency and the negation of the Earl of Desmond's hereditary palatine rights in Kerry, Elizabeth sought to undermine the power he exerted by right of Gaelic law over his tributary lords and to institute English law and administration in its stead. The choice of Perrot as President and the 'vigorous career of law enforcement and the discouragement of Gaelic institutions' that he was about to pursue put him on a collision course with the House of Desmond. Sir John Perrot, the supposed illegitimate son of Henry VIII, a bluff, energetic, if somewhat imprudent, Elizabethan knight, had been educated with the Earl of Ormond at court, and initially showed little enthusiasm for his new appointment in Ireland.\n\nNews of the new regime in Munster, and of the Crown's intention to render him powerless, filtered through to the Earl of Desmond, adding to the torment that afflicted his mind. In his captivity in England it was to be expected that the distracted earl would champ at the bit that restrained him from his patrimony and power. By now St Leger had been forced to move himself and his destitute charges from Leeds castle to his town house at Southwark, across the river from the Tower, a grim reminder to the Desmonds of their vulnerable circumstances. The house was unfashionably located 'east of London Bridge beside a depot for municipal building materials. The house had once been a friary in the country, but grown up about it was Bankside, a rowdy neighbourhood of breweries, brothels, the Clink Prison and the Paris Garden bear pits.' It was a dark, damp building, far too cramped for the two large households compelled to reside there in varying degrees of poverty and despair. The fog, damp and stench of the Thames seeped through every chink and hole in its timber-faced fa\u00e7ade, while the cries, shouts and curses of the squalid tenement area that surrounded it permeated to further disturb and harass the inhabitants.\n\nEleanor bravely soldiered on. She was now pregnant, and the misery and unhealthiness of her surroundings added greatly to her discomfiture. Garrett's health, reprieved by the brief sojourn in the Kentish countryside, succumbed again to the unwholesome environment and inadequate nourishment. The bills for the attendance of physicians and for pills and potions mounted. In desperation St Leger again beseeched the Privy Council for some relief and even offered to go to prison to free himself from the financial responsibility of his imposed guests. Too ragged to be seen by her peers in public, and in dread of the low dockland society that surrounded her, Eleanor was forced to remain cooped up within St Leger's house and was very ill throughout the duration of her confinement. Eventually, through the good offices of Sir William Cecil, a sum of \u00a3130 was sent for their relief, which, according to St Leger, 'hath ben ymployed uppon necessary apparel and phisick, they having been all very sick, the lady his wife yet so, and his lordship and Sr John but lately recovered. Their health cannot be long,' he warned, 'being pent upp in so little a rome altogether.' St Leger once again pleaded that he might 'be delivered of them, whereby I may bend myself towarde Ireland to seek to recover some pte of my losses'. The rich pasturelands of his prisoner beckoned the jailer.\n\nIn the stifling, deprived environment of their Bankside abode Eleanor was delivered of a son in June 1571, whom they called James. The birth of a son, heir to the great Desmond dynasty, should have been an occasion of great jubilation and festivity but for the circumstances of the infant's birth and the dark shadow that hung over the fate of his father, his mother and his inheritance. In their drab surroundings Eleanor and Garrett briefly celebrated the joyful event. News of the birth was less joyfully communicated to the royal court, where the continuation of the 'cankered' rebellious Desmond line was hardly considered an event for celebration. Nor was the birth of a son and heir to the Desmond title and estate welcomed by all the Desmond party at Southwark. Over the months a rift had grown between Eleanor and Sir John. The Desmond historian Russell later concluded that after Eleanor 'had become the mother of that young son the Ld. James, Sr. John of Desmond was out of all hopes to enjoy or inherite the Earledome after his brother's death; whereas before the birth of that child he conceived otherwise'. But the strain of their long captivity, destitute condition, frequent illness and close confinement had, even before this, driven a wedge between Garrett and his brother. Their frequent arguments merely intensified when Eleanor bore the earl a son. Sir John had anticipated that Garrett's frail health would succumb to the harsh conditions of his long imprisonment, and that he would then succeed to the earldom. He had not foreseen that Eleanor would choose to leave Ireland to be with Garrett, or that his brother would withstand the rigours of prison and father a son.\n\nEleanor, for her part, viewed Sir John with deep suspicion, and the rift that emerged between them in London was never to heal. She suspected him of evil intentions towards her new-born son, whom she guarded like a lioness. The safeguarding of the infant's life and his inheritance was to become her sole aim. Oblivious to the intrigue and danger that surrounded him, the young Desmond heir, sickly from birth, fought for life, which was to prove as unfortunate as the circumstances of his birth.\n\nShortly after the birth of his son it came to the earl's attention that his brother had offered, in return for his own freedom, to accept a commission from the Crown to suppress James FitzMaurice. And it appeared that he had also convinced Sir John Perrot, who in August 1571 advised the Privy Council that Sir John should be returned to rule in Munster instead of his brother. The earl protested to the Privy Council that if permission was thus granted to Sir John, it would only serve to undermine his own position in Munster and, as he phrased it, 'geve me occasion to thinke that your honnours do either suspect my trewe and loyall service towards my soveraigne Lady the Queene or els do judge me unhable to geve them the overthrowe'. The rebels, the earl maintained, 'who besedes that they are traytours to her Matie so have they bene utter enemyes and spoylers of all my patrymony', which to a degree was true. In the event, however, Sir John's proposal, even with the endorsement of Perrot, did not find favour with the new Lord Deputy, Sir William Fitzwilliam, who bluntly advised Lord Burghley: 'God keep both Sir John of Desmond and base money out of Ireland.'\n\nThe birth of his son in captivity and destitution, his wife's protracted illness, uncertainty about the state of his inheritance in Ireland, and, above all, the Queen's negative response to his continued pleas for repatriation\u2014all drove Garrett to acts of recklessness in his desperate desire for freedom. Throwing caution to the winds, he openly abused the semi-free status that had been allowed him. St Leger complained that he was no longer able to control the earl, who, he claimed, 'refused to go down to Kent with him and in his absence had rashly ranged into sundry parts of London' outside the confines of his allotted parole. St Leger 'prayed to be delivered of him or to have command to keep him prisoner without liberty'. Garrett had been granted the liberty of Southwark, Bankside and the marshes west of Lambeth Palace. Tormented by his obsession to return to Munster, he roamed the narrow streets and alleys and hung around the seedy riverside taverns, desperately seeking some scheme for his deliverance. He listened to the chimerical plans and projects offered by the waterfront confidence tricksters and rogues who filled his head with wild plans of escape but who, with the earl's deposit of gold in their grasping hands, simply slunk away and disappeared among the milling dockside crowds.\n\nWhispers of the frantic attempts by the Earl of Desmond to effect his escape back to Ireland reached the court and reverberated abroad where it became entangled in the more complex web of international intrigue. The St Bartholomew's Day massacre of 4,000 Huguenots in Paris, masterminded by the Catholic Queen, Catherine de Medici, and her son Charles IX, coupled with the excommunication of Elizabeth by the Pope, had finally polarised the European power struggle of England, Spain and France into a religious conflict. In Ireland the initial attempt by FitzMaurice to 'use religion as a catalyst to make a common cause of local grievances' appeared a more serious threat in light of international developments and attracted the attention of Elizabeth's enemies on the continent. Papal emissaries were despatched to Ireland. Sir John Perrot intercepted Edmund O'Donnell with letters to the Geraldine leader from Pope Gregory XIII. Agents from Rome had also infiltrated England to exhort the remnants of the Catholic aristocracy there.\n\nIn his daily prowls along the Thames dockside Garrett was watched lest he too should be contacted by papal or Spanish conspirators. Both Eleanor and Garrett had secretly written to encourage FitzMaurice in his revolt as a means to obtain their freedom and reinstatement in Desmond. Some of their letters had been intercepted by Perrot, who cautioned against allowing the Earl of Desmond return to Munster and recommended to Elizabeth that he should be restrained indefinitely in London. Garrett and Eleanor also wrote to the Earl of Leicester to inform him of their plight and of the condition of the Desmond estate in Munster. To further exploit the prevailing court factions, their trusted confidant, Morris Sheehan, was sent to Leicester armed with details of their version of the Desmond\u2013Ormond dispute over the lordship of the Decies and the ownership of Kilfeakle and Kilsheelin, which, as Garrett informed Leicester, 'are wrongfully witholden from him by the saide Erie of Ormonde'. Not to be outdone in the subterfuge the Earl of Ormond arrived in London and invited Garrett to dine with him. Black Tom made sympathetic noises about his rival's miserable plight. Lulled into a false sense of security Garrett readily accepted his rival's offer of help. But the Earl of Ormond and his cronies, as part of their vendetta against their opposite camp at court, and also in the hope of augmenting their fortunes out of Garrett's estates in Munster, had set a trap for the unsuspecting captive, who unwittingly found himself implicated in a more sinister political plot of international dimensions. Shortly after his meeting with Ormond, captain Martin Frobisher introduced himself to Garrett in a Bankside tavern. Frobisher offered to effect the earl's escape to Ireland for a suitable fee, together with the island of Valentia in lieu. Garrett eagerly agreed to the proposal and, elated at the prospect of freedom, and encouraged by Frobisher, talked wildly of treason, foreign schemes, intrigues and rebellion, all of which Frobisher reported back to Court.\n\nBut before Garrett could be apprehended, events in the international political arena intervened to have him unexpectedly restored to his lordship. Elizabeth's change of heart sprang from her fear\u2014and Eleanor's hope\u2014that the dangerous and unstable situation that was developing in Munster would get out of hand. Exhorted by promises from the papal and Spanish courts, James FitzMaurice FitzGerald had emerged from his retreat and raised the banner of crusade aloft once more in Munster. The English President, Sir John Perrot, despite his initial resolve to wipe out the rebels and to eradicate all semblance of Gaelic law and custom in the province, was by 1572 forced to admit that he was merely whistling into the wind. Despite the severity of his rule, the rebellion still raged and Munster was more ruinous and desolate than when he had taken office. Well might Perrot wonder, as he wearily led his surviving hungry, underpaid soldiers through the wastelands of Munster in search of FitzMaurice, what it took to conquer such a wild land and such headstrong lords. There were no words of encouragement from the Queen, only impatience at his lack of success against FitzMaurice and incredulity that the bogs and marshes of Munster could so relentlessly soak up her precious revenue. Gradually Perrot was forced to adopt some of the Gaelic customs which he sought to destroy. He learned the advantage of ambushes by small numbers of lightly-armed soldiers, and how Gaelic rather than English military dress was better suited to the climate and terrain of Ireland.\n\nPerrot's war with FitzMaurice had developed into a personal vendetta. This was turned to his advantage by FitzMaurice when, with characteristic rashness, Perrot allowed himself to be drawn into a well-planned trap, from which he barely escaped with his life. His pride had been dented and his energy sapped by the unceasing, unrewarding campaign against an elusive enemy. He resolved to resort to the ancient Celtic method of single combat in an attempt to bring the inconclusive war with FitzMaurice to an end. FitzMaurice accepted his challenge, but insisted on the use of Gaelic weapons, the sword and dart, and stipulated that both combatants should wear Gaelic attire. At the appointed time and place the English President duly arrived, sporting his short, pleated tunic, tight worsted Gaelic trews and leather quilted jerkin. Thus arrayed for battle, the former champion of the Queen's tiltyard waited for his Gaelic adversary. The hours passed, but FitzMaurice failed to appear. Finally FitzMaurice's bard approached and spoke his master's message to the waiting Perrot:\n\n_If I should kill Sir John Perrot, the Queen of England can send another President unto this province; but if he do kill me, there is none other to succeed me or to command as I do, therefore I will not willingly fight with him, and so tell him from me._\n\nAll Munster soon knew about Perrot's humiliation, and when the news reached the Queen only the restraining hand of Burghley prevented Perrot's recall. Perrot redoubled his efforts against FitzMaurice and vowed 'to hunt the fox out of his hole'. Driving him back into the Kerry mountains, he took the strategic Desmond fortress of Castlemaine, but the elusive FitzMaurice still evaded him. Then, in February 1573, FitzMaurice unexpectedly submitted to the President who pardoned him, maintaining that like 'a second St Paul' FitzMaurice had seen the error of his ways. But FitzMaurice was merely playing for time, waiting for developments to unfold on the continent that would enable him to resume his crusade in Ireland with even greater vigour.\n\nFrom Eleanor and Garrett's point of view, FitzMaurice's rebellion had accomplished the objective for which they had hoped and plotted. The rebellion made it impossible for the colonisation process started by Carew to make headway in Garrett's lordship during his absence. It had demonstrated to the Crown that the earl's removal had not produced the results anticipated, namely the extension of English law and custom throughout Desmond. His removal merely exchanged one Gaelic leader for a far more dangerous and able one. Elizabeth had seen no improvement in her finances resulting from the long imprisonment of the Earl of Desmond. On the contrary, she had to dig even deeper into her pocket to support her prisoner and his retinue in England, while at the same time endeavouring to suppress an expensive rebellion within his territory in Ireland.\n\nIn the hope that the wayward earl had learned his lesson and that he might conform, if only to ensure his son's succession to his estates and title, Elizabeth signified her intention to rid herself of her tiresome prisoner. After much discussion, terms for his release were agreed. Garrett undertook to be\n\n_answerable to the laws, ordinances and statutes of the realm, as the Earles of Kildare and Ormond are, and shall assist the Queen's ministers in Munster to serve and execute and process writs and the levying of her rents, customs, subsidies, services and duties._\n\nHe also promised to apprehend all known malefactors within his territory, to renounce all foreign jurisdictions, and to put down the remaining vestiges of FitzMaurice's rebellion. He agreed to the suspension of his palatine liberties in Kerry, pending an investigation as to their legality, and to the forfeiture of such castles in his lordship, recently seized by Perrot, for as long as the Crown deemed it necessary for the public good. In theory, Garrett effectively signed away the hereditary powers and privileges of his earldom enjoyed by the House of Desmond for centuries; in practice, however, the Crown had yet to prove its ability to hold that which had been forfeited. But in the spring of 1573, after an exile and imprisonment lasting six years, freedom meant everything to the Earl of Desmond: freedom from humiliation, squalor, fear and poverty. For Eleanor, cooped up with her child in St Leger's house, still weak from the ordeal of the birth, from undernourishment and the unhealthy atmosphere of her surroundings, the prospect of freedom and return to Munster was as heady as potent wine.\n\nShortly before their departure for Ireland the prisoners were ordered to appear before the Queen. Still unable to conceal her personal dislike of Garrett, Elizabeth instead concentrated her attention on Sir John, to whom 'she gave a privy nip, that as he hath a good wit, so he should hereafter use it wele'. The Queen seemed better disposed to Eleanor than at their previous meeting and, knowing Eleanor's ability to control her husband's rash nature, urged her to direct him on a more loyal and law-abiding course. The Queen perceived the ragged condition of the Desmonds and, in a rare display of generosity, ordered presents 'of some silks for apparel and some money in reward.' Garrett boldly asked that the Earl of Ormond should also be returned to his lordship\u2014as a means, he maintained, to deter rebels driven out of Desmond from seeking refuge in Ormond. For Garrett could not let the opportunity pass to remind Elizabeth that there were others in Ireland who had, despite their proclaimed loyalty, harboured rebellious subjects, not to mention relations, within their lordships but whom she had not thought fit to punish as he had been. Moreover, he would prefer to have his enemy in sight in Munster than at court in London, where Black Tom could more effectively intrigue against him. The cold eyes of the Tudor Queen flashed dangerously at his suggestion.\n\nBefore they set out on their journey Eleanor had to endure one final heartbreak. It was decided that her infant son, scarcely two years old, should be left in care in England. There is no evidence to suggest that the child was demanded by the Crown as a hostage for his father's future loyalty. On the contrary, the evidence points to the fact that he was presented to the Queen by his parents on their own initiative. He was taken into the care of their mentor, the Earl of Leicester, who stated in a later letter to Garrett and Eleanor that\n\n_Yor Ls request for the presentinge of yor sonne to Her Matie I have also accomplished. Her Highness accepteth of him and taketh yor offer of him in very good pte as I have signefied by lres to my Lady yor wife and by cause he is yet too younge to be brought hither, Her Matie hath taken ordre for his plasinge until he shal be fit to be removed._\n\nThe child had been sickly from birth, and Eleanor may well have considered that the long and arduous journey to Ireland might further compromise the infant's welfare. It was, however, more likely that the decision to leave their child in England sprang from fears for his safety from Garrett's own relatives and competitors in Munster. The rift between Eleanor and Sir John of Desmond had continued to widen. The unsettled state of her husband's lordship and the uncertainty of their future there were hardly conducive to the safety and health of the heir to the earldom of Desmond. Under the patronage and care of the powerful and friendly Earl of Leicester, her son's life and future might be better assured.\n\nDespite despatches from the President of Munster, who unceasingly had advised the Queen against Garrett's restoration, the Desmonds were permitted to depart for Ireland. They were conducted there under the charge of the newly-appointed vice-treasurer, Sir Edward Fitton. Rumours of Perrot's opposition to their return reached them in London; and, suspecting that Fitton and Perrot were in league, Garrett, Eleanor and Sir John made a dash across England and Wales for Beaumaris in search of a quick passage to Ireland. But Fitton caught up with his fugitive captives, and eventually the entire party set sail for Dublin. They landed at White Friars in Dublin on 25 March 1573 after an exile of almost six years.\nChapter 5\n\nA Troubled Homecoming\n\n_There went he and the Countess towards_\n\n_Loughgure, where a nombre of the freeholders of_\n\n_the Countie of Lymerick met hym. He and his_\n\n_wiefe put on Irishe rayment and made_\n\n_proclamation that no deputie nor constable nor_\n\n_sheriff should practise their office in his countrey_.\n\nJUSTICE NICHOLAS WALSHE TO LORD DEPUTY FITZWILLIAM, 24 NOVEMBER 1573\n\nThe joy of liberty was short-lived, and the nightmare of captivity looked set to continue. No sooner had Garrett, Eleanor and Sir John disembarked at the walls of Dublin than they were promptly taken to Dublin Castle where they were held in 'easy restraint' at the behest of Sir John Perrot. Perrot had long resisted the Earl of Desmond's restoration and, as he doused the embers of rebellion in Munster, saw even less reason for the earl's return. Eleanor, while not personally held in custody, chose to remain with Garrett in Dublin. They were permitted daily access to the city and once again incurred much expense as they strove to maintain themselves in some state conducive to their rank and position. But Eleanor's main preoccupation was to pacify and control her husband. Garrett was incensed at his further detention. He accused the crown officials in Dublin and in London of a breach of faith. What right had they to restrain him, the Earl of Desmond, set at liberty by the Queen? His lack of political cunning was once more exposed as he made wild threats and treasonable outbursts against the Crown.\n\nEleanor realised that her husband was close to breaking-point. Despite her pleas for caution, he could not control his sense of anger and outrage before the sneering faces of the petty Castle officials, who reported his every word and goaded him into even more damning utterances. He could not be restrained even in the presence of Perrot, who contemptuously reported 'that Desmond was devoid of reason and that nothing could be done with him'. Perrot urged the Queen to have him speedily returned to England, as he considered him 'more fit to keep Bedlam than to rule a newly reformed country'.\n\nGarrett's brother, Sir John, played his cards more cautiously and, promising to uphold English law in his territory, was allowed to depart for Munster. Eleanor became suspicious at the ease with which her brother-in-law obtained his release from Perrot, who had previously indicated to the Queen his readiness to accept Sir John in preference to Garrett as leader of the Geraldines in Munster. To thwart Sir John's ambitions, Eleanor decided to accompany him back to Munster. Lack of money and the collection of the overdue rents of his estates were used as the excuse to explain Eleanor's sudden departure. 'Such rentes and duties as were owing in my country', Garrett complained to the Irish Privy Council, 'were taken up by suche as tooke little cause to heere in what beggered estate I lyde there in Dublin.'\n\nEleanor found Munster in relative peace, slowly recovering from the ravages wrought by the rebellion and Perrot's subsequent reprisal. As Askeaton loomed into view, despite her undoubted fatigue, she felt a warming sense of homecoming after her long and bitter exile. Her daughters awaited to be reunited with her. As news of her arrival spread, Garrett's tributary lords and dependent clansmen came to seek news of their overlord and to give an account of themselves during his absence. She listened to their complaints about the encroachment of Perrot's administration into their domain. The return of their overlord they hoped might restore their traditional rights.\n\nIn July the news of Perrot's sudden departure from Ireland, due, it was said, to ill-health, spurred the Munster lords into action to bring about Garrett's release. Glin castle was seized and the surrounding countryside plundered. James FitzMaurice intensified negotiations with Spain and Rome to revitalise interest in his religious crusade. At the same time he divorced his wife on the grounds that she had conducted an amorous correspondence with his erstwhile ally, Edward Butler. He promptly remarried O'Connor Kerry's widow and thereby gained access to the strategic O'Connor castle of Carraigafoyle on the Shannon. Munster was in a restless state once more.\n\nIn Dublin the Council began an investigation into the legality of Garrett's privilege of palatine rights in Kerry and adjudged it to be void. There was henceforth to be but one legal palatinate in Ireland\u2014that of the Earl of Ormond in Tipperary. The Crown's preference for one earl over the other was once more blatantly exposed. While Garrett fumed in captivity in Dublin Eleanor kept him in touch with developments in Munster and redoubled her efforts to secure his release. But Garrett also received intelligence from England to the effect that the dreaded nightmare, his return to captivity to the Tower, was being actively propounded by Perrot at Court. As the Crown had failed to honour the terms of his release, Garrett considered himself free from whatever promises he had made to the Queen. He waited while Eleanor co-ordinated plans to effect his escape from Dublin.\n\nOn a chilly morning in early November 1573 the Earl of Desmond informed the Mayor of Dublin, in whose custody he had been placed, of his intention to join a stag hunting party to the city environs. This was customary, according to the terms of Garrett's detention, which stipulated that he must return to the mayor's custody each evening. But at Grangegorman Garrett gave the hunting party the slip and, accompanied by the faithful Morris Sheehan, rode south through the territory of his kinsman the Earl of Kildare without hindrance. There they were met by Rory Oge O'More and Piers Grace, two prominent rebel leaders, who, with a guard of 'some hundred kerne and shot of the Moores', escorted the earl safely through the midlands to B\u00e9al an Droichid where Eleanor waited. Together they hurried on towards Limerick.\n\nNews of the Earl of Desmond's dramatic escape spread rapidly. As if awaiting the return of a messiah, his followers flocked to see him at the Geraldine lake fortress of Lough Gur. The crowds had already assembled as the earl and countess rode down towards the lake shore. With a great cheer of welcome, which reverberated over the still waters, they surged forward to greet their overlord. For many of the wildly cheering clansmen the reappearance of their almost forgotten lord was like a resurrection from the dead. As he climbed stiffly down from his horse, the misery of his long years of imprisonment was etched on his haggard features and on his threadbare hose and worn shoes. It was an emotive and highly-charged meeting between the earl and his loyal Desmond retainers and clansmen. Later, as was subsequently reported to the Lord Deputy, the earl 'and his wiefe put on Irishe rayment and made proclamation that no deputie nor constable nor sheriff should practise their office in his countrey'.\n\nSymbolically donning the clothes and speaking the words expected of a Gaelic warrior chieftain, the proud Geraldine thus appeared triumphant before his people. All the pent-up anger, frustration and humiliation which he had endured at the hands of the Crown spilled forth. This was his hour of glory, the destiny of which he had dreamed and from which he had drawn solace and comfort in the long, dark nights in his Tower cell and in his destitute lodgings in Southwark. The traditional retainers, dependants, galloglass and kern of his house pressed excitedly around him, their roars of welcome acting as a stimulus to his long-suppressed ego. Vain and dangerous threats against the Crown and rash promises of a return to Gaelic ways gushed forth incautiously as he basked in the adulation of his supporters, 'knowing no God, no prince but the earl, no law but his behests'. With exultant cheers, the Earl of Desmond and his countess were escorted home to Askeaton.\n\nEleanor listened, with some misgivings, to the indiscreet outbursts of her husband and perhaps wished that he had spoken with more restraint. It was an emotional reunion for him and it was natural that he should vent his spleen on the Crown which had broken faith with him so often. His health had suffered considerably from his enforced detention, and the doubts of his Gaelic followers as to his fitness to receive and command their allegiance had to be assuaged. There were many competitors waiting in the wings should he appear incapable. On the other hand, as Eleanor realised, partly as a result of the events that had occurred in Munster during his exile, and partly because of the recent developments on the international front and their possible effects on Ireland, a return to the old ways would be strongly resisted by the Crown, which had established a foothold in Garrett's lordship which it intended to retain.\n\nTo survive, Eleanor knew, they must adapt to the changing political parameters. She had personally experienced English power, its commitment, philosophy to progress and change, its unity of purpose, its lust for exploration and exploitation. The Earl of Desmond, as leader and protector of the cause of Gaelic Ireland, was doomed; but if he adapted to the changing circumstances relentlessly being promoted by the Tudor political machine in Ireland, he would not only survive but, perhaps, retain his power like his neighbour Ormond. Perhaps it was Eleanor who influenced Garrett to write to the irate Queen regarding his flight from custody in Dublin. It may have been Eleanor's idea too that she should take the blame for her husband's unlawful escape, to mask the real reason. For Garrett excused his unauthorised departure to Munster as having resulted from his concern for Eleanor, 'in whose care in myne absence, having no thing els to lyve upon . . . did pricke so deeply that I camme away without your lycence with intent faithfully to serve her matie as becommeth a true subject'. With tongue in cheek, Garrett assured the Queen, 'if I thought my staye there [in Dublin] had ben ane way a further cause to your highness service, I would [be] well contented to end my lyfe there in captyvitie'. For the moment there was little Elizabeth could do but grit her teeth at the insolence and audacity of the Irish earl.\n\nGarrett's fiery speeches to his supporters brought immediate and predictable results. Castlemaine and Castlemartyr, which had taken Sir John Perrot so long to capture, were seized. Garrett ordered the English strongholds in Glin and Castletown to be razed to the ground, and he granted Glin, Carraigafoyle and Tarbert to his cousin James FitzMaurice. Rumours of foreign-based conspiracies circulated, and a servant in the Earl of Desmond's livery was reported to have been sighted at the Spanish court. The earl revelled in his freedom and power. His dramatic escape from Dublin had enhanced his prestige among the Gaelic and gaelicised grandees. O'Neill and Clanrickard sought an alliance. To those on friendly terms Garrett loudly declared that 'he would rather have an old mantle in Munster than a torn silk gown in England'. With less likely allies, such as the redoubtable Butler brothers, he was more circumspect: he stoutly professed his loyalty to Elizabeth but his independence of her administration in Dublin\u2014for fear, he claimed, of being subjected again to the extremities he had suffered in the past. To emphasise his argument, 'he exhibited the patched and pieced hose and shoes which he had been forced to wear continually in England'. The Butlers were unimpressed and refused to be drawn into another Geraldine-led conspiracy. Defence of their lands was one thing, but intrigue with alien powers against the Crown was another matter entirely. Like bees to a honey-pot, however, the idle swordsmen of Munster swarmed to Garrett's gates. Soon his army numbered over a thousand, all of whom had to be fed and maintained at his people's expense.\n\nThe Lord Deputy, Sir William Fitzwilliam, could do little to curb the earl's increasing power in Munster. Lack of money and poor coordination of resources and manpower in his administration resulted in turmoil in every province. In Connaught the restless sons of the Earl of Clanrickard, Elizabeth's 'impudent imps', plundered unchecked throughout Galway. Turlough Luineach, chief of the O'Neills in Ulster, was known to be plotting with the Scots and the Spanish. In Leinster the O'Mores raided at will through King's County and Queen's County, and even the Pale was subjected to attack. In Ormond the palatinate of Black Tom was said to be as disturbed and wasted as Desmond. The Lord Deputy and his vice-treasurer, Sir Edward Fitton, were at each other's throats and could not agree on tactics to quell the maelstrom. Finally, at the end of his tether, Fitzwilliam begged the Queen to relieve him of his post in Ireland. With her administration and military commitments in Ireland stretched beyond their limits, Elizabeth was compelled to pursue a policy of reconciliation towards the Earl of Desmond. She despatched warrants to Dublin which formally, if belatedly, granted the self-liberated earl his freedom. She urged him to make peace with her Lord Deputy and to disperse his private army, which she realised well outnumbered her own in Munster. But the earl reckoned that he negotiated from a position of strength and, flushed by his reception and success in Munster, boldly replied that if the Queen would remove her garrison from nearby Kilmallock, he would find little need to maintain so large an army.\n\nIn an attempt to breach the dangerous gulf developing between the Earl of Desmond and her administration in Ireland, Elizabeth consented that Edward FitzGerald, the brother of the Earl of Kildare, should negotiate with his imperious kinsman. But Garrett proved reluctant to negotiate with anybody. Fearful that the ever-widening gap between the Queen and her husband should become an unbridgeable chasm, Eleanor urged him to at least hear what FitzGerald had to offer. While he awaited Garrett's decision FitzGerald stayed at Eleanor's old home, Kiltinan castle. As floods on the Shannon prevented Garrett from a planned rendezvous with the Earl of Clanrickard, reluctantly he acceded to Eleanor's advice to meet the Queen's emissary instead.\n\nEleanor was pregnant again and unable to accompany her husband to the meeting. The earl set out with Sir John of Desmond, James FitzMaurice and Andrew Skiddy, the judge of the palatinate of Kerry, to meet FitzGerald at Clonmel. FitzGerald assured the earl that the Queen did not seek to dispossess him but merely wished to be assured of his loyalty and his compliance with the promises he had made in England. Garrett flatly refused to go to Dublin, but indicated his willingness to meet with the Lord Deputy on the borders of his own territory instead. He refused to hand over Castlemaine and Castlemartyr to captain Bouchier, the English constable at Kilmallock, but offered them to FitzGerald, who, he knew, had no commission to accept them and no means of holding them. Beyond this, as FitzGerald reported to the Queen, Desmond would not be moved. Elizabeth had little option but to pardon the earl, which she did reluctantly in the hope that 'he would restore such castles as either we were possessed of before the time of his escape or any other that we should like to be delivered into our hands'. Once back in the safety of Askeaton, however, Garrett flatly refused to forfeit any of his fortresses. Elizabeth thundered against her luckless Lord Deputy as Garrett claimed a moral victory over the Crown, a thing abhorrent to Elizabeth's Tudor sense of sovereignty. 'We think ourselves touched in honour', she raged, 'that the earl may have cause to think that we should now seek upon him a thing very unfitting for the place and quality we hold.'\n\nGarrett's moral victory over the Crown further enhanced his standing among his peers. With rumours of alliances and intrigues, domestic and foreign, Eleanor realised that her husband was now becoming the lynch pin for a wider conspiracy of opposition to English rule in Ireland. She knew her husband's unsuitability to adopt the mantle of leadership of a Gaelic alliance against England. Garrett was not endowed with the strength, charisma or commitment necessary to mould the highly individualistic tendencies of the Gaelic and gaelicised lords into an effective, organised and patriotic alliance, where personal ambition must become secondary to a common cause. But Gaelic society was, as ever, divided and unable to either spawn or succour such a national alliance. Every lord sought independence of his neighbour as much as of the Crown. It would require the services of a ruthless, powerful leader, driven by a vision of nationhood, to lead and unite such an assortment of independently-minded egotists. Garrett FitzGerald, 14th Earl Desmond, was no such visionary.\n\nEleanor's objective was to make her husband secure in his title and estates. But to attain that seemingly realistic and understandable ambition, she realised Garret must first come to terms with the changing political scene. Elizabeth was adamant that Ireland's autocratic lords, whose independent tendencies she viewed just as much an affront to her sovereignty as a threat to England's security, must be brought into line. They must either accept the new political parameters, affirm their loyalty to the Crown, and thus retain the power and privilege allowed them by law, or rebel and risk losing everything. Garrett's temperament and character would, in any event, make a painful transition inevitable. But there were other forces, more sinister in their motivation and more clandestine in their operation, from within the Desmond family itself, that sought to make that transition even more difficult. To Eleanor these powerful interests were as devious and dangerous as the most ruthless agents of the Crown. Both groups cast envious eyes on her husband's estates and plotted his alienation from the Crown. For Garrett to make the transition from a sovereign lord in his own right to a loyal earl of the realm she knew would take time.\n\nEleanor sought to gain that time. She wrote to the Lord Deputy to reassure him of her husband's loyalty. Initially her letter would seem to have had the desired effect, and Fitzwilliam and his army remained in Dublin. As Garrett ruminated over his position in Munster his liegemen ran riot throughout the province. James FitzMaurice captured captain Bouchier and kept him prisoner, while Garrett's galloglass, the MacSheehys, seized the Mayor of Limerick. Hundreds of kern and clansmen flocked to Askeaton and looked to their indecisive overlord to provide them with work for their weapons and food for their bellies. Reports reached Dublin and London that Desmond had now at his disposal an army of 3,000 men-at-arms, that he had captured Kilmallock and Cork, and that he intended to deliver Valentia Island to the King of Spain, with whom he was said to be in constant communication. It was also said that he intended 'to purge the country of the name of England' and that he would listen to no counsel but that of the rebel leader James FitzMaurice.\n\nUnder pressure from all sides, Garrett brooded over his position. In the great oak-beamed hall of Askeaton the earl listened as the Desmond bard O'Daly solemnly intoned the valorous deeds of his ancestors. The bard recited a litany of treachery and deceit perpetrated against the House of Desmond by successive English monarchs. Words of exhortation flowed from his lips as he listed the heroic tales of Nesta's sons and the first Irish Geraldines. Low, deep-throated growls erupted from the bearded chieftains, seated at the trestle tables, as O'Daly bewailed the cruel fate meted out to the earl's kinsmen, the Geraldine Kildares, at Tyburn. The assembly was brought to its feet as the bardic recitation reached its climax denouncing the late treacherous imprisonment of the earl and the subsequent attempts of the English to usurp his power and patrimony. 'Shanid ab\u00fa!' cried the bard.\n\nIn the emotionally charged atmosphere the wooden drinking-cups, overflowing with the heady wine of Spain, were raised, as lord, chieftain, constable and captain saluted their pale, brooding overlord seated impassively at the top of the hall. 'Shanid ab\u00fa!'\u2014their answering roar of allegiance seemed to lift the great beams from their stone corbels and fly south over the dark mass of Kylemore to strike terror into the heart of any faint-hearted or doubting inhabitant of Munster. Beside her husband, Eleanor looked on in fear at the upraised faces and frantic eyes of his supporters, who in their wild homage to her husband also demanded their age-old right to his leadership in the defence of their antique Gaelic world.\n\nAs reports of the lawlessness in Munster continued to reach her, Elizabeth angrily berated Fitzwilliam for his apparent unwillingness to move against the Earl of Desmond. Fitzwilliam attributed his inaction to Eleanor's stalling intercession on her husband's behalf. 'The Countess with her contynuall impertinancie', Fitzwilliam complained, 'and constant assercions of his conformitie made me to hope he wolde in tyme prove so conformiable as she reported him.' Eleanor's action had been successful in staying Fitzwilliam's hand but, in any event, Fitzwilliam was about to be pushed aside in favour of Elizabeth's new favourite, the dashing, extrovert, Walter Devereux, Earl of Essex.\n\nEssex came to Ireland in August 1573 in the vain hope of conquering Ulster for his royal mistress. But the Ulster chieftains, as Essex found to his cost, did not part easily with their territories. Their resistance, together with the insubordinate conduct of his demoralised soldiery, whose fear and hatred of Irish warfare and irregular pay made them desert in hundreds, had tarnished the gilded image of Gloriana's shining knight. Essex now sought to make amends. The seemingly impossible task of reconciling the Earl of Desmond to the Crown seemed an appropriate challenge. Essex wrote to Garrett, seeking a meeting and urging him to free himself from 'ill counsellors who hiss you on to that which is evil'. Echoing Eleanor's fears, Essex advised Garrett:\n\n_My lord, consider well of this and look into the case deeply and give care unto the sound and faithful counsel of your friends and stop the ears from hearkening unto them which seek by their wicked counsel to destroy yourself and to overthrow your house_.\n\nEssex wrote in similar vein to Eleanor and urged her to use her influence to persuade her husband to meet him. Eleanor's counsel prevailed, and Garrett finally agreed to hold discussions with Essex at Waterford. He was accompanied by Eleanor, James FitzMaurice and sixty horsemen. On 1 July 1574 they halted at a bridge some three miles outside the city, where they were met by the Earl of Kildare. The Desmond party refused to enter Waterford without a safe protection, which they promptly received\u2014for twenty days' duration. Garrett, with Eleanor by his side, accompanied by the Earl of Kildare, rode into Waterford and were received by Essex at his rooms in the city. After a series of meetings, on the advice and under the personal protection of both earls, Garrett and Eleanor agreed to go to Dublin, where Garrett's case was again to be examined before the Council.\n\nDespite Essex's friendship and protection, the journey to Dublin must have been a difficult and fearful one for the Desmonds. Eleanor might well have wondered whether the faith she had in Essex would be vindicated. Her husband's dread of further imprisonment had become an obsession. The nightmare of Dublin Castle, the Tower and Southwark was still a vivid, raw reality. Could a sense of honour and good faith exist in their present circumstances? Would Essex keep his word? Eleanor had placed her trust and her husband's life and liberty in his hands. But unknown to her, or to Essex, the Council in Dublin had received a stinging missive from the Queen, who demanded immediate action against the Earl of Desmond. In her anger she ordered Fitzwilliam 'to proclaim him traitor and to proceed against him with all celerity'. And now the object of the Queen's anger rode unsuspectingly into their presence.\n\nThe Desmonds were met with an icy reception in Dublin. Stung into action by the Queen, the members of the Council made little attempt to hide their antipathy towards Garrett and their distrust of Essex. The latter was not permitted to accompany Garrett into the council chamber or to plead in favour of his case. Outside Eleanor waited anxiously for the outcome and hoped that her headstrong husband would restrain his temper and not play into the hands of his antagonists. But the councillors were not in a placatory mood and summarily demanded that the earl abide by the articles he had concluded with the Queen in England. Garrett contended that they had been signed under duress, but that he would agree to be bound by them as part of a more general settlement; otherwise the terms of the articles would, in effect, render him the only undefended lord in the country and thus easy prey to his many enemies. Goaded by the overbearing attitude of his inquisitors, he refused to hold his estates at the Crown's pleasure or to forfeit those of his castles which it had seized before his restoration. He would accept the Queen's pardon, but would not on any account 'repair into England to be a spectacle of poverty to all the world' in order to receive it. Asked to submit pledges for his future conduct, Garrett pointed out that both his son and his youngest brother, James, still a minor, were in the keeping of the Crown. 'If neither my son, being my only son, nor my brother, whom I love, nor the possession of mine inheritance, as before granted can suffice,' he bitterly told his tormentors, 'then to the justice of God and the Queen I appeal upon you all.' But his appeal fell on deaf ears.\n\nIn the Council's opinion, the Earl of Desmond was not in any position to make demands, but should be prepared to accept whatever decision regarding his future they deemed appropriate. Temporarily in the Council's power but also under Essex's protection, Garrett reacted quickly when rumours of his impending imprisonment and removal to London reached his ears. Flight from Dublin was now imperative, and he called on Essex and Kildare to honour their pledges of protection. Essex was disgusted at the nature of the Council's proceedings against the Earl of Desmond. 'The manner of Desmond's answer might with honour have suffered a toleration,' he protested. 'The mischief is without remedy, for I am bound with the Earl of Kildare, by our words and honours, to safe-conduct Desmond to the confines of Munster.' Essex was as good as his word, and, despite some resistance, he and the Earl of Kildare conducted Garrett and Eleanor safely away from Dublin and out of the clutches of the Council.\n\nThroughout the long journey towards Munster Garrett's companions continued to exhort him to comply with the Queen's demands. At Kilkenny they were joined by the Earl of Ormond, who, carefully making sure that Essex was within earshot, loudly harangued Garrett, urging him to mend his ways and become a loyal subject. Antagonised by the presence of his enemy, and as the safety of his lordship drew near, Garrett grew more reckless and sneered contemptuously at Ormond's advice. Let the loyal Earl of Ormond dispose of his private army, and he, Desmond, would do likewise, but not before. At the borders of Desmond Eleanor and Garrett parted with their escort and, surrounded by their own clansmen, returned to Askeaton. From Eleanor's point of view the mission had been an abject failure. The Crown continued to make impossible demands on her husband, demands which not only would leave him undefended but would also be opposed by his dependent lords and clansmen in Munster whose own security was dependent on the strength of their overlord. The Queen persisted in her personal dislike and distrust of him. There were elements in Desmond too who welcomed Garrett's further alienation from the Crown for their own designs. Eleanor had sought to attain the middle ground for her husband but, so far, without success.\n\nWith the Queen's threat of being proclaimed a rebel hanging over his head, Garrett summoned a meeting of his kinsmen and tributary lords at Askeaton. It was as a result of this conference that the famous 'combination' or deed of association was compiled\u2014though the date of this document was to be hotly disputed in later years. According to one version of events, the deed was signed on 18 July 1574, while another version places it exactly four years later, in 1578. Even if (as seems likely) the latter date is correct, the language of the document graphically reflects the unsettled conditions in Munster and the truculent mood of its principal leaders at the time of Garrett's return from Dublin. The signatories to the deed stated bluntly that they 'with one accorde doe counsell and advise the Earle not to consent nor yield to any more than in his answer [to the Council in Dublin]'. They further advised him 'to defend himself from the violens of the Lord Deputy' and forewarned the Crown that they intended 'aiding, helping and assisting the Earl to maintain and defend this our advice against the Lord Deputy or any other that will covet the Earl's inheritance'.\n\nThe document unequivocally states the reasons which compelled Garrett and his adherents to undertake such a course of action. They did not stem from any great desire to remove or replace the English presence in Ireland, nor from any intention to join in an international conspiracy against Elizabeth. They arose from a basic and distinct desire to preserve their hereditary lands, powers and privileges. The deed of association was signed by Sir John of Desmond and by nineteen of Garrett's liege lords and kinsmen. Noticeably absent was the name of James FitzMaurice FitzGerald. However, the problems of dating the document make it difficult to determine the reason for FitzMaurice's non-participation; it may have resulted from a decision to distance himself from any movement which did not further his own designs in 1574 or, as is more likely, to his absence on the continent, if the deed was dated in 1578. The intentions of Garrett and his adherents were soon brought to the attention of the irate Queen. The aspirations of the Munster lords and chieftains, however legitimate, were deemed by the Queen a deliberate affront to her sovereignty. She was furious to learn of Garrett's permitted departure from Dublin Castle and again vented her anger on the unfortunate Fitzwilliam. 'We gave you no such authority', she wrote, 'to give a protection to him to come and go but to come safe and receive his pardon.' The earl it seems might be given safe conduct to the Castle but not out of it. The intolerable situation drove the angry sovereign to try to bribe Sir John with a promise of some part of his brother's lands, even extending her offer to James FitzMaurice 'or any other of the leaders of his confederates, alluring them from him by such offers as seem reasonable'.\n\nEleanor's distrust of Sir John and FitzMaurice, and her suspicions concerning their designs on her husband's patrimony, were further heightened by the Queen's offer. This, combined with the fear of her husband being proclaimed a rebel, prompted Eleanor and her husband to take the unusual and later controversial step of enfeoffing Garrett's estates to Eleanor's brother, Lord Dunboyne, Lord Power and John FitzEdmund FitzGerald of Cloyne, in trust for them during their joint lives 'with provision for his daughters and final remainder to his son'. They intended to make Garrett's property legally secure from both the Crown and family rivals, so that it could eventually be passed on to their son, who, should his father die proclaimed a rebel, would otherwise forfeit his right to inherit. The document was later to be no more than a paper defence, however, against the steely intent of the Crown to gain possession of the vast Desmond estates.\n\nMeanwhile the Earl of Ormond was seeking an explanation for the seizure by Desmond partisans of his castle of Derrinlaur on the Suir. Garrett refused to answer. In August Black Tom, with the backing of Lord Deputy Fitzwilliam, took matters into his own hands. They surrounded the castle and ran a mine beneath the walls. Before they could spring it the garrison attempted to escape but were intercepted, put to the sword and the castle captured. Fearful that similar tactics might be used against his own castles, Garrett surrendered the disputed Castlemaine to the Queen. Eleanor followed her husband's action with a personal letter to Elizabeth. She assured the Queen that her 'husband's departure from Dublin procedid not (God I take to witness) through any evill intencion towards yor Matie or dignitie but rather incencid by ungodly disturbers of the comon tranquillitie to conceave otherwise of your worthy honor than he had cause'. She excused her long delay in answering previous letters from the Queen on the grounds that 'I durst not untyll nowe, that he hath both hastely repentid and duetifully performid suche things as was required by yr Matie Deputie and Councell of him, ones oppen my lyppes nor put penn to paper to intreat for your highnes mercifull clemency for him.' In view of her husband's submission, Eleanor asked the Queen 'to restore him unto favour'.\n\nEleanor's appeal and Garrett's submission had the desired effect. Weary of the entire episode, the Queen agreed that the Earl of Desmond 'was in theory to reign supreme as a feudal prince and be a loyal subject'. But independent feudal princes were an anachronism to the Tudor mind and to their concept of royal absolutism. The Earl of Desmond, on the other hand, would not\u2014and indeed could not\u2014abandon the role in Munster which was his fateful inheritance. There could, however, be only one winner in the struggle, and from the beginning the odds appeared to be decidedly in favour of the Tudor queen. Garrett's fate and fortune depended on how quickly and astutely he could make the transition while retaining as much of his hereditary power as the changed political circumstances allowed.\n\nEleanor at last breathed a little easier. The threat of proclamation and attainder had receded. Elizabeth had not pushed Garrett beyond his limits. Her relief was further heightened in March 1575 when James FitzMaurice, together with his family and some other members of the Munster Geraldines, sailed from Glin for Saint-Malo in France. FitzMaurice departed ostensibly 'for the recovery of his health and to make friendship to come to the Queen's favour'. In fact it was common knowledge that he sought international assistance to continue his religious campaign in Ireland. Whether he had Garrett's consent and blessing for this undertaking is uncertain, but it does not seem likely. For Garrett, at Eleanor's insistence, had refused to give FitzMaurice additional land in Munster as a reward for his services. Thomas Russell, the Desmond historian and an ardent supporter of FitzMaurice, writing later in 1638, blamed Eleanor for FitzMaurice's exile:\n\n_For Dame Elleynor Butler, Countess of Desmond, and then the mother of one only sonne, opposed herselfe against this James FitzMaurice and with reasons, persuasions, teares and imploreings, persuaded the Earle, her husband, not to dismember his patrimony, but rather for to leave it whole and entire to his only son James FitzGarrett, who was then a young child_.\n\nRussell propounded the belief that Garrett was either, as he states, 'conjured by his wife or rather not well established in his witts' to deny FitzMaurice an estate.\n\nEleanor saw little reason to deprive her son of any part of his inheritance, particularly for FitzMaurice. She wanted her son returned to her care, and her husband's future conduct must not jeopardise that possibility. Consequently when Garrett's kinsman and ally, the Earl of Kildare, was suspected of intrigue against the Crown and imprisoned, and when it was expected that 'Desmond will make extraordinary broils to revenge him', Garrett, with Eleanor's restraining hand on his sword and on his lips, did and said nothing. Their son James was now four years old, and her longing to be reunited with him was intense. But still more intense was Eleanor's determination to protect his inheritance from the grasping ambitions of her husband's family. With Garrett reinstated in his lordship and with James FitzMaurice in exile, Askeaton seemed at last a safe haven for the young heir of Desmond. Garrett and Eleanor opened negotiations with the English government for the child's return. Initially it seemed that their request was to be granted, as James was brought from London to Bristol, where he was placed in the care of a Thomas Chester. With some impatience, Garrett asked the Earl of Leicester to intervene and to obtain a licence 'to have the child brought hither, where', he assured him, 'he will not put Her Majesty or me to any charge until he be able to go to school, at which time I will return him thither'. But the English Privy Council, pending further 'trial and proof of his [Garrett's] obedience and good conformity', ordered that the child continue to be detained in Bristol.\n\nDespite the temporary setback concerning her son's return, Eleanor's hopes for a more balanced treatment of her husband by the English administration in Ireland and at the English court were further heightened in the late summer of 1575 by the news of the reappointment of Sir Henry Sidney as Lord Deputy of Ireland. Sidney generally tended to take Garrett's side at Court and in the Council in Dublin in an attempt to balance the inordinate influence and power of the Earl of Ormond. In Sidney's opinion, Black Tom had become, by virtue of the Queen's preference of him at Desmond's expense, too powerful a subject and a threat to the balance of power in Munster. At last it appeared that Eleanor could look forward in hope of better prospects.\nChapter 6\n\nDiplomacy and Intrigue\n\n_I vow to God . . . I know her to bee as wicked a_\n\n_woman as ever was bred in Ireland and one that_\n\n_hath ben the chief instrument of her husband's_\n\n_rebellion. And if she bee licensed to go out, your_\n\n_lordship shall doo as good an act as ever you did_\n\n_in your life to this realme to cause hir hed to be_\n\n_stroken of or else to be kept in perpetuall_\n\n_ymprisonment._\n\nSIR WARHAM ST LEGER TO LORD BURGHLEY, 15 MAY 1581\n\nAtimorous peace descended on Munster. The acrimonious struggle for power had temporarily exhausted both sides. Desmond retreated to Askeaton to lick his wounds and consolidate his position. The Dublin administration, under the leadership of Fitzwilliam, appeared as exhausted as the country it had attempted to subdue. Harassed by an unending series of disorders, wearied by a constant stream of abuse from an uncomprehending sovereign, and hampered by a continuous shortage of money and supplies, Fitzwilliam gladly resigned, and in September 1575 Sir Henry Sidney reluctantly resumed the reins of office.\n\nAlthough overtly the Crown had accomplished little in the lordships of either Desmond or Ormond since the incident at Affane, English policy towards Ireland had, nonetheless, undergone radical change. Until Affane Elizabeth had been content to tolerate the independent tendencies of her Irish earls. As late as 1565 her chief secretary, Sir William Cecil, had cautioned the then Lord Justice of Ireland 'to stir no sleeping dogs in Ireland untill a staff be provided to chastin them if they will byte. Many things in common weales are suffered that are not liked.' But the sleeping dogs had been roused and strained at the reforming leash of the Crown, which searched frantically for a suitable stick with which to control them. It could be the olive branch of submission and loyalty or the sharp, prickly thorn of confrontation. Ormond had chosen the first option, and, while Desmond had initially inclined towards the latter, he had been given a chance to choose again.\n\nThe English government had changed its earlier wait-and-see policy towards Ireland and had embarked on the difficult road of reconquest. The change of policy stemmed from various reasons. Over the decade Ireland had become a major drain on Crown revenue. Official expenditure had soared from \u00a318,975 in the 1560s to \u00a331,847 in the 1570s, which, even taking the inflation of the day into account, was more than the state coffers could afford or the parsimonious Elizabeth would tolerate. Furthermore developments in international politics also demanded more positive action. The threat of foreign intervention in Ireland by England's continental enemies and its menacing potential as a backdoor to England, haunted English minds. The revolt by James FitzMaurice and his flirtations with a wider international conspiracy which sought 'to use religion as a catalyst to make a common cause of local grievances', had frightened the English government. FitzMaurice's continued contacts with the French, Spanish and papal courts did little to allay the fear that Ireland might well become a base for the Counter-Reformation.\n\nThere was further alarm at the prospect of a confederacy between the powerful, independent Irish lords such as Desmond, O'Neill and the Earl of Kildare. If such a confederacy received foreign support, it could well extend throughout the country and attract the Catholic lords of the Pale, already embroiled in a bitter dispute with the Crown over the payment of cess. And there were other interests which would welcome a more vigorous assertion of English rule in Ireland. While Elizabeth might chastise her officials for the disorderly state of the country and the enormous expense of reconquest, English financial investors in the various colonisation ventures felt positively defrauded. Furthermore, royal administrators, like Sidney, Fitzwilliam and Perrot, who had sacrificed their careers and their health, as they trudged through bogs and over mountains in a thankless attempt to subdue, inch by inch, the rebellious land, felt understandably frustrated. The time for reassessment had come, and in the present lull the Crown took stock.\n\nDespite the continued detention of her son, the next few years were to prove a welcome period of relative tranquillity and normality for Eleanor. Imprisonment, exile, deprivation and loneliness had been her lot as Countess of Desmond. Her moments of happiness with Garrett had been fleeting. They were constantly torn apart by the political maelstrom that raged around them. Yet their union had become strengthened and revitalised. Throughout the years of her life with Garrett, Eleanor's primary concern and _raison d'\u00eatre_ for her every action was to protect her husband's political and physical well-being and to safeguard the Desmond inheritance for their son. With an iron will and fierce physical energy, she braved every threat to those objectives. Time after time, both by virtue of her letters and personal mediation, she demonstrated her undoubted intelligence and political acumen as she interceded for her husband when he spoke treason too loudly or was suspected of some ill-advised conspiracy. Almost every letter from Garrett to the Queen or to the Privy Council was accompanied by a letter from Eleanor, moderating the more arrogant tones of her husband or seeking to dissuade the Crown from forcing him into an impossible position. She was his adviser during negotiations with government officials, and her restraining hand held him in check while, with the other hand, she strove to keep the English administration at bay.\n\nEleanor understood better than anyone and was witness to the tremendous pressures exerted on her husband from all directions\u2014pressure from the Gaelic lords of Munster, who expected him to observe and protect their customs and privileges; the self-inflicted pressure imposed by his inordinate sense of position and lineage; and pressure from the English Crown, the most potent threat that had emerged to undermine his prized inherited powers, assiduously guarded by his ancestors for generations. Garrett looked to his wife to share the burden that seemed at times likely to overwhelm him. In the whirlpool of intrigue and subterfuge that swirled around him, hers was the voice of calm and reason, the one voice he could trust. Imprisonment he held in fearful dread, a nightmare to which he would never again submit as long as he lived. Eleanor well realised that if the Crown, for any reason, attempted to deprive him of his liberty, the effect would be to make a rebel of her husband. This she sought desperately to avoid. Lords who rebelled against the Tudors seldom emerged victorious, and, as witnessed by Shane O'Neill's fate in Ulster, upon their demise their inheritance was forfeited. Eleanor endeavoured her utmost to prevent a similar occurrence happening to her husband.\n\nRespite from the turmoil and trauma of the preceding decade also afforded her time to enjoy the more personal pleasures pertaining to her position as Countess of Desmond. In the shady, tree-lined walks among the gardens and orchards that surrounded Askeaton castle, she resumed some semblance of a normal lifestyle. During the preceding unquiet years her daughters, fostered among close relatives and friends, were now reunited with their parents. Their number was increased by the birth of another daughter, Ellen. Askeaton reverberated with the happy sound of its Geraldine family in residence again after many years of absence and exile. In the splendid fifteenth-century hall, on the west side of the castle, lighted by the famous traceried windows, the Earl and Countess of Desmond presided over more joyful festivities than Askeaton had known for some time. The great hall vibrated to the warm, noisy clangour of Gaelic hospitality. The earl welcomed his many followers to his table, not merely out of hospitality, but also because in Gaelic Ireland, where 'every Irish overlord held sway over people rather than territory', a lord's prestige and power was measured by the number of his liegemen. While the English Crown might rant and rave over the existence and extent of the Earl of Desmond's personal army, the reality in Gaelic Munster decreed that without it the earl's power and ability to rule was compromised.\n\nWithout his army, the earl, in effect, forfeited his ability to protect himself and his dependants, the primary function of his role as Gaelic overlord. But the actual upkeep of his army was the duty of his overburdened and overtaxed peasantry whose plight, both in the Gaelic and anglicised parts of the country, was deplorable. Overlords were demanding and harsh masters. They showed little mercy, and little was expected from them. The peasantry bore the brunt of their master's excesses, both in war and in peace, with a blind obedience. If hatred towards Garrett and his house surfaced in their hearts, it was quickly subdued. As their earl and countess, dressed in silken finery, rode past their cabins, they briefly left the plough or the reaping-hook to raise the loyal shout of 'Shanid ab\u00fa!' with a mixture of pride and fear instilled in them for generations.\n\nThe long summer days were spent hunting, following the swift red deer over the plains of Limerick and Cork and into the dark forests of oak and ash. The evening silence was punctuated by the tolling of the prayer-bell from across the Deel, as the monks from the Franciscan abbey intoned their Te Deums over the bones of dead generations of Geraldines. And in his travels, just as the sovereign Elizabeth in England was wont to quarter herself on her subject lords, so the Earl of Desmond exercised similar but more ancient rights within his lordship. When he went to Tralee to collect his dues and rents, a fair was held to honour his presence. It was attended by travelling merchants and traders who sold their wares and paid taxes to the earl for the privilege. The mayors of Cork, Youghal and Limerick, over whom he claimed suzerainty, put on a brave show, opened their gates, displayed banners of welcome, entertained their lord lavishly, and breathed a sigh of relief and counted the cost when his official visit terminated. The earl presided over the palatine courts of Tralee and Any, appointed court officers, and was the ultimate arbiter in all judicial proceedings within the palatinate, dispensing justice by Gaelic law intermixed with elements of feudal law. Ships from Spain and France kept him in touch with developments abroad and also kept him provided with fine furnishings, wines for his table, and silk, taffeta and velvet for his and his countess's wardrobe. Whispers of more serious transactions reached Desmond from time to time. Spies in the earl's pay brought reports of FitzMaurice's travels to the French, Spanish and papal courts in search of assistance to raise the banner of crusade once again over Munster. But the threat which sought to shatter the tranquillity, that like a soothing salve had almost healed the painful sores of the previous years was, as yet, far removed.\n\nAs if to augur a continuation of the peaceful respite, Lord Deputy Sidney embarked on 'a mission of inquiry, conciliation, and administrative settlement'. In response, the Earl and Countess of Desmond greeted him at Dungarvan and offered to conduct him through Munster. Despite their differences at their last meeting, which had resulted in Garrett's long imprisonment in England, Eleanor knew that Sidney's antagonism towards the Earl of Ormond could be made work in her husband's favour. She was also determined that Sidney should recognise that Garrett was the premier lord in Munster, with as much authority, and as capable to rule his palatinate, as the supposedly loyal Earl of Ormond. Sidney was suitably impressed. In a spirit of friendship and cordiality the earl and countess escorted him into Cork city, where they were received by the citizens, as Sidney duly reported, 'with all joyfulness, tokens and shows, the best they could express'. Eleanor's brother, Lord Dunboyne, joined their party at Cork, together with Garrett's brothers, Sir John and Sir James, who had lately been freed from captivity in England.\n\nFollowing the Earl of Desmond's lead, the Munster nobility assembled to attend the Lord Deputy. Thither came, as Sidney related, the chieftains of the three branches of the great MacCarthy clan: 'The Earl of Clancar, by the Irish styled MacCarthy More, was accompanied by his countess, the sister of the Earl of Desmond, and his infant children, the Baron of Valentia and the Lady Ellen. . . . The Lord of Muskerry, the wealthiest chieftain of the sept . . . and the Lord of the fertile lands of Carbery, Sir Donagh MacCarthy Reagh . . . accompanied by his two sons, Florence and Dermod Moyle.' They were joined by the Earl of Thomond, the Archbishop of Cashel, the Bishop of Cork, the viscounts Barry and Roche and the Baron of Lixnaw. To this glittering array of Munster aristocracy were added Gaelic chieftains, O'Sullivan, O'Callaghan, O'Donoghue and O'Driscoll. As a further manifestation of Gaelic custom, Sidney received the five MacSheehy captains of the Desmond galloglass, bound in hereditary allegiance to their Geraldine overlord, though, as Sidney astutely observed, their status was hardly that of subordinates, 'the greatest being both in fear of them and glad of their friendship'. And there too, as he gallantly reported to the English Privy Council, 'the better to furnish the beauty and filling of the city, all the principal lords had with them their wives during all the Christmas who truly kept very honourable, at least plentiful, houses'. Sidney concluded his account by pointing out, perhaps as an incentive to widowers and bachelors in England; 'to be brief many widow ladies were there also, who erst had been wives to earls and others of good note and account.'\n\nIt was a great social event, and, as such, a rarity in the troubled times, a bright and joyful occasion, on the surface at least, as the interrelated Munster aristocracy mingled under the watchful but, for the moment, benign gaze of the English Lord Deputy. For Eleanor it was an opportunity to meet and exchange news with her sister, brother, half-brother, nieces and nephews and her many other relatives among the assembled nobility. It was Christmas time, and the festive season was lavishly celebrated. As principal lady of the province, Eleanor entertained Sidney, his entourage and the Gaelic nobility and hosted banquets in their honour. The wine flowed freely, and the music was loud and merry as English and Gael celebrated the festive season of 1575.\n\nAlongside the gaiety and pageantry, however, lay the hard political realities. Eleanor captured the Lord Deputy's ear to spell out the pressures to which her husband was being subjected. She entreated Sidney to show patience and forbearance and promised to encourage her husband along the path of loyalty. But she also reminded him that Garrett's encounters with the Crown had, so far, done little to inspire his trust and obedience. Surrounded as he was by the trappings of the Gaelic world of which she spoke, Sidney could not fail to appreciate her dilemma, and accordingly spoke with friendliness and encouragement to her husband.\n\nBut neither did Sidney allow the festivities to deter him from his duties. In the new year he set about the more serious business of his office. He presided over the court in Cork and heard civil cases tried by English law. He undertook an inspection tour of the city's defences and made provisions for their improvement and upkeep. On 1 February 1576, accompanied by Eleanor and Garrett, he departed for Limerick, where they received a reception equally as hospitable from the mayor and citizens. The only ominous note struck by the Lord Deputy during his tour of Munster was to recommend a speedy appointment to the vacant post of President of Munster. He prophesied the return of James FitzMaurice and warned the Privy Council 'that all the loose people of this province will flock unto him. Yea,' he continued, drawing on the knowledge he had gleaned from his talks with Eleanor, 'the lords, though they would do their best, shall not be able to keep them from him.'\n\nAfter Limerick, Eleanor and Garrett parted company with the Lord Deputy, as he continued on his journey into Connaught. They returned home to Askeaton, where life continued in relative peace. Garrett saw to his vast estates, collected his rents, and exercised his customary privileges as overlord. To reiterate his palatine privilege and to stem any doubt in the minds of his tributary lords in the wake of Sidney's visit, he summarily ordered the Baron of Lixnaw and the freeholders of Clanmorris to attend at his palatine court at Tralee. In his own country the Earl of Desmond's power must still be seen as absolute.\n\nDespite Sidney's recommendation, the vacant presidency of Munster was not filled until the summer of 1576, when Sir William Drury was appointed second president of the province. A native of Suffolk Drury had previously been governor of Berwick. He had a distinguished military career, both by land and sea, in England and on the continent. From nearby Askeaton the Earl of Desmond anxiously watched the build-up of English military might as Drury established his headquarters at nearby Limerick and embarked on his presidency in a way that was bound to bring him into collision with the uneasy earl. Drury wrote enthusiastically to the Privy Council: 'I began the assizes in Cork,' he reported, 'where I hanged to the number of 42. Of which some were notable malefactors, one pressed [i.e. pressed to death] and two gentlemen of the chief of the MacSweeneys hanged drawn and quartered.' Drury next turned his attention to the lordship of the Earl of Desmond. He was determined to curtail the influence and power of the earl, which he reckoned was a threat to his position as President. In order to compel the earl to reduce his army, which far outnumbered his own, he compiled a register of the earl's followers, for whose future conduct he held the earl personally responsible. He next attempted to extract cess, in money and in kind, from the earl's tenants in order to defray the expenses of his office. The earl bristled with anger at Drury's blatant attack on his customary rights. Contemptuously ignoring the Lord President, Garrett complained directly to the Privy Council but to little avail.\n\nDrury next struck against the earl's most prized hereditary privilege, his palatine court of Kerry, which had previously been deemed void by the Irish Privy Council. Drury further contended that the palatinate had become the refuge of all the 'evil-doers' of Munster and proposed 'to make a passage for law and justice to be there exercised', as he considered 'that it would not be safe among a great flocke to leave a scabbed sheepe nor good for a commonwealth to have nurseries for sinne'. Drury started out for Tralee with the intention to establish Crown courts to prosecute offenders by English instead of Desmond law. But the 'scabbed sheepe' of Drury's despatches called out his army and barred the Lord President's way. Drury reported to the government that Desmond had declared war on the Crown.\n\nA direct confrontation, and one that was likely to have far more serious implications for Garrett than even Affane, seemed inevitable as the two forces formed battle-lines. If Garrett attacked or was drawn into battle he could expect to be proclaimed for treason, with dire consequences for himself, his lordship and his family. Eleanor swiftly interceded with Drury. A contemporary observer somewhat melodramatically reported:\n\n_Like a good Abigaell [she] went and met the lord president, fell upon hir knees, held up hir hands and with trilling teares praied his lordships patience and pardon, excusing as well she could hir husband's follie, saying that he had assembled all that companie onelie for a generall hunting_.\n\nWhile the lady's excuse was somewhat thin, considering the superiority of the earl's forces, Drury accepted the countess's version of events but nevertheless proceeded to Tralee. With great difficulty Eleanor restrained Garrett from attacking him.\n\nDrury was merely one of the ever-increasing band of 'unattractive outsiders, arrogant and ruthless men whose system threatened a wide spectrum of the existing society, from the learned class, the jurists, poets, and musicians to the men of war'. To the proud Earl of Desmond, the great, gaelicised lord of Munster, Drury was but a servant, a hireling, one of the contemptible 'English churls' of inferior degree. But Eleanor realised that Drury and his kind were merely a symptom and a symbol of the new English political attitude that had evolved towards Ireland. No matter how disdainfully the Earl of Desmond might regard him neither Drury, nor the policies he pursued in the name of the Crown, would go away. If Drury failed in his mission in Ireland, there were a hundred more to take up where he left off\u2014and perhaps with even more ruthless intent.\n\nIn Connaught the Burkes strained against the severe rule of the new military governor, Sir Nicholas Malby. Drury received reports that Sir John of Desmond had incited the Burkes to rebel and promptly had him apprehended. When rumours reached Askeaton that Drury intended to arrest the earl as well, faced with the dreaded nightmare of detention, Garrett fled with Eleanor and their children into the furthermost part of Kerry. It was significant that rumours of Garrett's impending arrest had emanated from London, where Black Tom's influence at Court was as strong as ever. Garrett's flight and his point-blank refusal to obey the President of Munster or the Lord Deputy could only serve to alienate him further from the Crown. It was also to Black Tom's advantage that Garrett's reaction would serve to keep Drury fully-occupied in Desmond and leave him less time to pry into the state of affairs in his lordship of Ormond.\n\nProfessing his life to be in danger, the Earl of Desmond sounded the age-old call to arms. Soon over a thousand adherents flocked to his defence. Safe within the confines of his palatinate and protected by his hereditary men-at-arms, Garrett boldly announced that no rent or cess would henceforth be forthcoming to the Crown from his lordship. The question of cess had become a vexed issue, particularly in the Pale, where lords Baltinglass, Howth, Delvin and Trimleston had been committed to Dublin Castle when they too voiced their grievances on the subject. While the Queen acknowledged that the system required some measure of adjustment, she was indignant that such normally compliant lords should so boldly challenge her royal prerogative. By his pronouncement on the matter Garrett had, whether by design or by accident, linked his grievances with those of the lords of the Pale.\n\nEleanor spent the summer months of 1577 deep within the Kerry fastness, behind mountain, wood and marsh, hidden from Drury, who scoured the countryside in vain. But as summer gave way to autumn she became uneasy that Garrett's continued absence from the centre of his lordship might be usurped by others. She wrote to the Queen and Sidney to propose that it was fear of imprisonment that had caused herself and her husband to flee to safety. But there was no immediate reply to her letters. The Queen continued her policy of favouritism, instructing the Lord Deputy to ensure 'that the Earl of Ormond's landes should be exempt from all cess'. In vain Sidney urged her to reconsider. Her decision would not only result in a decrease in much-needed revenue, but, in the present circumstances, would be seen by the Earl of Desmond as further proof of the Crown's discriminatory policy towards him. Mindful also of the situation in the Pale, Sidney further warned the Queen that it 'was a precedent to others to sue for like immunities'. To placate the earl and to allay Eleanor's fears, Sidney sent messages urging them to repair to either Drury or himself. The English Privy Council further wrote to assure them that the rumours of Garrett's impending imprisonment were totally false. It was instigated, they intimated, 'no doubt by some of your private enemies, that practise and would be glad to draw you into any undutiful action that might purchase unto you Her Majesty's indignation to the overthrow of your state'. Eleanor concurred with the sentiments expressed and cautioned Garrett against playing into the hands of his enemies and to make his peace with the Crown.\n\nAfter much persuasion Garrett finally agreed to deal with Sidney, who forwarded the necessary letters of protection and arranged for the meeting to take place, significantly, at Kilkenny, the principal seat of the Ormond lordship. At a ceremony in St Canice's cathedral in February 1578 the Earl of Desmond formally submitted to the Lord Deputy. Garrett was in agony from the wound he had received at Affane, and Sidney was taken aback at the apparent deterioration in his physical condition. 'I suppose there is least danger in hym,' he assured the Queen, 'beinge such an impotent and weake boddye, as neither can he gett up on horseback, but that he is helpen and lift up, neither when he is on horsebacke can he hym selfe alight downe without healpe.' Sidney reconciled Eleanor and a reluctant Garrett with Drury and, as he reported, 'made them ffriendes in as good sorte as I could'.\n\nDrury was every bit as reluctant to make peace with Garrett. He privately considered that the Lord Deputy had dealt too leniently with the troublesome earl, who, to Drury's mind, was the single greatest obstacle to peace and order in Munster. He was convinced that Sir John of Desmond, with the earl's consent, had conspired with the Burkes to incite the most recent rebellion in Connaught. His opinion was further strengthened when rumours circulated of a marriage between Lady Mary Burke, the daughter of the Earl of Clanrickard, and Sir John. He suspected that the Earl of Desmond and Sir John were also in collusion with James FitzMaurice in his endeavours to elicit help from England's enemies abroad. Sidney, on the other hand, sought to portray Garrett 'as the least dangerous man of iv or v of these that are next hym in right and succession (if he were gonne) and easieth to be dealt withall'. Perhaps his critic and his erstwhile mentor both failed to consider the passionate tradition of birthright, obligation and privilege invested in the feeble body of the Earl of Desmond, a tradition which, if unleashed, could elevate the weak and indecisive earl into a noble and mighty warrior. But in February 1578, as Sidney watched Desmond, grimacing in pain, being lifted off his horse, he could not be blamed for dismissing such a possibility.\n\nWith another confrontation narrowly avoided, Eleanor felt a sense of relief at the outcome of their meeting with Sidney. She ministered to Garrett's physical ailments which, despite his relatively young age, had incapacitated him greatly. For as well as the discomfort and pain he suffered from the aggravated thigh wound, the earl was showing early signs of palsy, which was to develop over the succeeding years. But with incursions by the Lord President into his preserve momentarily halted, Garrett now had time to recuperate. All the signs augured well for a continuation of peace and the right environment for the earl to make a slow but steady adjustment to the changed political situation. The Queen too seemed affected by the air of reconciliation that had emerged. She wrote in friendly tones to Eleanor in appreciation of her\n\n_good travail with your husband, to remove from him this vain fear of his apprehension and to leave off his number of followers. So have you declareth yourself no less wise and loving towards your husband for the preservation of his estate, which might easily have been utterly ruined if he had not by your good means been brought to the said submission._\n\nSidney maintained a steady hand on the tiller of government in Ireland, and Garrett and Drury continued an outward show of harmony in Munster. As further proof of his loyal intent, Garrett delivered into the Lord President's custody certain malefactors who had recently committed crimes within his lordship. Among them was the 'most notorious woman in all the coasts of Ireland', the female sea-captain and leader, Grace O'Malley (Granuaile) from Connaught. The earl's soldiers had captured this extraordinary woman as she led a raiding party from her ship in search of booty in Thomond. Drury communicated news of her capture and imprisonment to Sidney:\n\n_Grany O'Mayle, a woman that hath impudently passed the part of womanhood and been a great spoiler and chief commander and director of thieves and murderers at sea to spoille this province, having been apprehended by the Earle of Desmond . . . his Lordship hath now sent her to Lymrick where she remains in safe keeping._\n\nWhatever part, if any, Eleanor played in yielding up the 'famous female sea-captain' to the Crown is not recorded, and her opinion and reaction to her husband's remarkable hostage is open to conjecture. She had doubtless heard tales of her exploits and extraordinary lifestyle as a sea-trader, pirate and mercenary. While pirates were numerous off the south and west coasts in sixteenth-century Ireland, a woman pirate of the calibre of Grace O'Malley was both a phenomenon and worthy hostage. Compassion for a woman's plight or a feeling of sisterhood did not concern Eleanor so long as the capture and handing over of Grace O'Malley served as a means to pacify the Crown and protect her husband and her family.\n\nDespite the continued peaceful overtures, ominous storm-clouds began to gather on the horizon. In summer 1578 rumours came flying across the seas, propelled by emissaries from the papal and Spanish courts, that James FitzMaurice, suitably equipped, was homeward bound to raise the banner of crusade aloft over Munster. Messengers also brought despatches to Garrett and to the Munster lords to advise them that FitzMaurice not only requested but expected their support and readiness to lead their followers behind the 'banner of Christ'. James FitzMaurice was coming with enough gold and arms from Christ's vicar on earth to persuade any doubting Catholic mind. Eleanor's nightmare was fast becoming a reality. The cursory truce between Garrett and Drury also seemed destined to end with the recall in September of Lord Deputy Sidney, the sole buffer between Garrett and the more ruthless and grasping elements of the Crown. Drury was subsequently sworn in as Lord Justice in his place.\n\nEleanor and Garrett journeyed to Dublin to take their leave of Sir Henry Sidney. On 12 September 1578, as the tide lapped the city walls at Wood Quay, with much trepidation and some sadness, Eleanor watched Sidney's departure from Ireland for the last time. Sidney, perhaps better than most, had come to understand their great dilemma and whenever possible had made allowances in his dealings with her husband. Undoubtedly a loyal and often ruthless official, Sidney also possessed rare qualities often lacking in his contemporaries in the Irish service. Eleanor knew that many of her husband's treasonable outbursts and actions had never been reported by him to Court. He had shielded them from the arrogant petty Crown officials in Dublin. His personal and political antipathy towards the Ormond clique at court had, to a degree, worked to their advantage. There was a basic honesty and integrity about Sidney in his dealings with them. While ever the devoted servant of the Crown, and in no way prepared to tolerate the Earl of Desmond's inclination to rule as an independent magnate, he was nevertheless willing to allow him the space to adjust to the unpalatable but obligatory transition. As the ship slipped anchor and sailed away into the wide estuary of Dublin bay, Eleanor perhaps realised that with it went her hope for a peaceful resolution to their situation.\n\nRumours of an impending invasion intensified, and Eleanor wrote directly to the Queen to assure her of Garrett's continuing loyalty, declaring that he 'standeth as safe and sure a subject to her Matie and will be as ready to spend himself and all he hath in her Maties quarrell as any within the Realme'. She also asked the Queen to have her son returned to her. Elizabeth promised to look into the matter. Eleanor sent the Queen 'as a token of my good will half duzen marten skins whereof I praye you some to take in good worth'. To reciprocate the gesture, the Queen sent Eleanor a fashionable gown. Perhaps it was the self-same gown that Eleanor wore, to the admiration and envy of all, when she and Garrett presided at a banquet in Limerick held in honour of the newly-appointed Lord Justice. The atmosphere was cordial and the earl and Drury appeared on friendly terms. Drury reported of their meeting: 'We won the Earl and Countess of Desmond to agree to and subscribe to a compositon for the alteration of their wonted manner of coyne and livery and the converting thereof into a yearly rent of \u00a32,000.' Eleanor had persuaded her husband to relinquish the coyne and livery exactions, a privilege which was also a hallmark of his power and thus had brought him more than half way to meet the demands of the Crown. She now looked for some reciprocal sign. In relinquishing his ancient rights Garrett must not be seen to lose face and risk losing authority in Munster.\n\nThe Queen seemed eager to maintain and encourage the Earl of Desmond in his new-found loyalty. She wrote to both Garrett and Eleanor to assure them that 'it was never our meaninge (as by some hathe been most unjustlie and maliciouslie given out) to dispossesse our subjects of our saide realme of their livinges.' On the contrary, her intention, she maintained, was to see them live in peace and justice 'whiche, if it hathe not been in our ministers there, whom we wilbe as ready to punishe with all severity, if they may be justlie convicted of that faulte'. In a personal message to Eleanor, Elizabeth again thanked her for her good advice to her husband and promised that she would 'find Us your good and gratyous lady when said occasion shall faule out wherein We may shewe you the proofe of our good meaning towards you'. As a token of her appreciation the Queen despatched to Lord Chancellor Gerrard of the Irish Privy Council 'a gowne of clothe of gold' for Eleanor. The Chancellor, however, postponed the delivery of the gown until his meeting with the Earl of Desmond, when he personally placed it in Eleanor's hands with the express purpose, as he wrote, 'by her help to have gotten the better end for the worth'. There were no free gifts forthcoming from the Crown.\n\nElizabeth, however, kept her promise and, early in 1579, Eleanor was reunited with her son. Almost six years had elapsed since she had seen James. Weak from birth, the years in custodial care in England had not improved his health. His English apparel, accent and outlook made him seem strange and different to his sisters who clustered around in wonderment at their strange, timid, brother. The restoration of the Desmond heir caused a stir among the Desmond tributary lords and chieftains, not least the earl's brothers, who saw in the child the demise of their own ambitions to the earldom. Like a stormy petrel, Eleanor's young son appeared as the harbinger of the great tempest that was about to break.\n\nFor on 18 July 1579 the peace of Munster was shattered by a holy thunderclap that reverberated off the high mountain peaks of Kerry and sent shock-waves careering across the country to frighten the Council in Dublin and stir Elizabeth and her government into action. James FitzMaurice FitzGerald, with a fleet of small ships, an army of 600 soldiers of Italian, Spanish, French, Portuguese, English and Irish origin, a quantity of arms and ammunition, a papal legate, a Spanish friar and a banner blessed by the Pope, landed at Smerwick harbour, and made their headquarters at the old fort of D\u00fan an \u00d3ir. The banner was a significant feature of the enterprise. It bore the personal arms of FitzMaurice, with the motto 'In omni tribulatione et angustia spes Jesu et Maria'. The small force was the net result of years of solicitation and exaggeration by FitzMaurice at the royal courts of Europe. But the royal heads of Europe, while they applauded the crusading zeal of the Irish chieftain, were less enthusiastic to back him financially. In Rome FitzMaurice met the English Jesuit Dr Nicholas Sanders, who not only helped him elicit the meagre support from the Pope which had made landfall at D\u00fan an \u00d3ir, but offered to accompany the expedition to Ireland.\n\nSanders had a reputation as 'a cold humourless unbending zealot'. A former professor of theology at the Catholic university of Louvain, he was the author of an abrasively bitter but highly erudite and influential anti-Reformation tract. In the years before his appointment as papal legate to Ireland he had travelled widely and had access to and the respect of the Catholic princes of Europe. He was a tireless worker with a burning religious faith and an equally burning hatred for all the Reformation represented. He saw in FitzMaurice and his mission in Ireland the means to put his counter-Reformation energy and enthusiasm into action. With a fierce determination and an absolute dedication to his principles, he turned his back on the serenity and security of Rome and willingly accepted the hardship of his Irish mission. Under his influence FitzMaurice declared his cause to be 'a war for the Catholic religion and against a tyrant who refuses to hear Christ speaking by his Vicar'.\n\nBut FitzMaurice had tended to overemphasise the commitment of the Gaelic and gaelicised lords in Ireland to the aims of the Counter-Reformation, and had certainly overestimated the unifying ability of religion in Ireland. The discontent of Irish leaders sprang not from a sense of religious persecution by the English Crown, but from the Crown's endeavours to make Gaelic Ireland conform to English ways and with it a dilution of their power. Real religious persecution was, as yet, some way off and a revolt based on religious grounds alone was thereby unlikely to succeed. To mould their crusade in Ireland into an effective arm of the Counter-Reformation movement, Sanders and FitzMaurice needed 'to make positive revolt out of negative discontent' and thus draw the lords and chieftains of Munster, especially the Earl of Desmond, into their religious net.\n\nUnder the influence of Dr Sanders, FitzMaurice despatched a letter to Garrett urging his support for the banner of Christ and for the restoration of the Catholic faith in Ireland. His exhortation was couched in ominous terms:\n\n_God forbid that any Geraldine should stand in the field against the cross of Christ. I cannot tell what worldly thing would grieve me more than to hear not only that your honour would not assist Christ's banner but also that any other nobleman should prevent you in this glorious attempt. All that I write is spoken also to me good lady, your bedfellow, and to me good uncle, your brothers to all of whom I commend myself and also me bedfellow most heartily doth the like; trusting in Almighty God that as his holiness has made me Captain General of this holy war so your honour being head of my house will be the chief Protector and Patron of them, no less than me quarrel._\n\nThe Pope, FitzMaurice further reminded Garrett and Eleanor, had promised that all who chose to fight under his banner should receive indulgences similar to those granted to those who had fought in the recent war against the Turks.\n\nThe arrival of FitzMaurice and his attempt to involve her husband in a religious crusade had finally turned Eleanor's nightmare into a grim reality. Her years of haggling and bargaining with the Crown to win sufficient time for her husband to adapt to the changing political circumstances seemed destined to be brought to nothing by the religious declamations of the returned exile. On a personal basis, there was little love lost between them, and she suspected that the religious overtones of FitzMaurice's mission to Ireland hid a deeper and more devious intent. She had heard that FitzMaurice had openly declared his aspirations towards the earldom of Desmond during his sojourn on the continent. His crusading banner displayed his personal coat of arms. Her husband was in poor health and daily seemed to grow more incapacitated. Gaelic society, she well realised, had little tolerance for physical weakness in its leaders. Her son was a child of eight years and a long way from his majority and inheritance. The sprawling Desmond lordship needed strong, steady guidance to safeguard it against the pressures being exerted on it by divergent interests.\n\nThe question of religion seemed to Eleanor a cloak to mask more basic motivations. Religion had never been a strong issue in the politics of the day in Ireland. Church property was often the target of attack and seizure by warring Gaelic chiefs, just as it had been, in recent years, by the Crown. Church laws had generally fallen into decline, particularly in relation to social issues such as marriage, where the old Celtic ethos prevailed. FitzMaurice himself was divorced, and numerous other examples among Eleanor's own family and peers bore out the assessment of a modern historian that 'Celtic secular marriage remained the norm in Ireland and Christian matrimony was no more than the rare exception grafted on to this system.' The clergy were as lax in the practice and observance of their faith as the laity. The sacraments were performed haphazardly and many of the monasteries were in a ruinous and decayed condition. The real dilemma posed for Garrett and Eleanor by FitzMaurice's arrival was that, to preserve his status, Garrett, out of necessity more than by desire, might be prevailed upon to join the rebellion. If defeated he would then be proclaimed a traitor and his estates confiscated. If, on the other hand, the country were to rise in defence of the Catholic religion, and if the rising was successful, then Garrett could not afford to be left out in the cold. The only option was to play for time to determine which way the wind was likely to blow.\n\nGarrett and Eleanor despatched innocuous letters to Lord Justice Drury to inform him of what he already knew, that James FitzMaurice had landed at Dingle. 'If need shall require,' Garrett assured Drury, 'I am ready with all mine to venture both my life and theirs in Her Majesty's quarrel.' Drury was unimpressed. To test the earl's intent he ordered him to accompany an English detachment which was to set up camp some distance from the invasion force. Reluctantly Garrett agreed and with the English reconnoitred FitzMaurice's fortifications at Smerwick. Meanwhile his brothers, Sir John and Sir James, met secretly with FitzMaurice and Dr Sanders. The Geraldine historian Russell, writing in 1631, stated that Sir John actually agreed to join with FitzMaurice at this time, with the sole intention, as Eleanor had long since suspected, of deposing his brother. Russell further maintained that Sir John was motivated by 'a private grudge and hatred to ye Countesse of Desmond'. Whether impelled by personal ambition or hatred of Eleanor, or inspired by the religious zeal of Dr Sanders, Sir John decided 'to performe some piece of service whereby hee might give them assurance of his faithfull meaning to doe them service and not to leave any after meanes to recant or shirke back'. The 'piece of service' with which he chose to demonstrate his commitment to the crusade astounded everyone and was destined to have catastrophic repercussions for his brother.\n\nDespite the protestation of loyalty of the Earl of Desmond, Drury sent Henry Davells, a Devonshire man long resident in Ireland and on friendly terms with the Desmonds, to copperfasten the earl's allegiance. Davells was particularly friendly with Sir John, who, it was said, was his godson. Davells inspected the camp at Smerwick, concluded that with a few score soldiers it could easily be captured, and requested the Earl of Desmond to provide him with the necessary troops. Unwilling to commit himself to either side, Garrett lamely excused himself on the basis 'that his musketeers were more fitted to shoot at fowls than at a strong place and that his gallowglasses were good against gallowglasses but no match for old soldiers'. Davells, together with his associate Arthur Carter, the provost-marshal of Munster, set out from Smerwick to report back to Drury. They lodged overnight at an inn in Tralee. In the middle of the night, accompanied by his brother James and some supporters, Sir John burst into the room and murdered both Davells and Carter in their beds.\n\nNews of the murders was received with disbelief in most quarters. One opinion was that the crime was committed with the full knowledge and consent of James FitzMaurice, while others stated that he condemned the treachery of the act but not the act itself. Dr Sanders was said to have called the murder 'a sweet sacrifice before God' and to have absolved Sir John and Sir James of the crime. For the Earl of Desmond the murder of Davells and Carter had even more far-reaching consequences. He publicly expressed his shock and revulsion and hurried back from Dingle to Askeaton. Garrett believed that the crime was intended to deliberately force his hand and alienate him further from the Crown. The Crown reacted predictably and Drury promised 'liberall rewarde to anie that should bring me the head of James FitzMaurice or of Sir John or his brother James of Desmond'. Thus Garrett's brothers were formally proclaimed rebels by the Crown and placed in the same camp as James FitzMaurice.\n\nBut the murder of Davells and Carter had other implications. When FitzMaurice landed in Dingle Bay, Garrett had an army of over a thousand men under his direct leadership. Scarcely one month later, as he hastened back to Askeaton, less than sixty of his followers chose to follow him. The remainder, whether with or without his consent, now formed part of the new army under James FitzMaurice and Sir John of Desmond. It was rumoured in Dublin and London that the Earl of Desmond had, in fact, covertly allowed his army to aid FitzMaurice so that the earl himself could appear loyal until further aid arrived from Spain and until Irish lords, such as Clanrickard, O'Neill and Kildare, joined the crusade. However, it seems clear that ever since 1576, though the transition was undoubtedly painful, Garrett, with Eleanor's encouragement, had been making an attempt to conform to the demands of the Crown. But it could be argued that old habits die hard and especially in the case of the Geraldine earl, reluctant to accept any diminution of his traditional power which thereby could lead him to conspire in secret with FitzMaurice. It could be further argued that Garrett had little choice in the matter, and that his obligation to the Gaelic world that sustained him, and to his tributary lords and clansmen over whom he claimed jurisdiction, in turn demanded that, in the present circumstances, he should favour rebellion.\n\nIt was clear, however, that elements on both sides, for more devious reasons, sought to provoke the earl to throw off his loyalty to the Crown. He was in ill-health; if he died, it must not be as an attainted rebel. There was no advantage to be gained, either for Garrett or his son, from rebellion unless it could be assured of success. For this, more foreign assistance had to be forthcoming. Despite the promise of FitzMaurice and Sanders of further aid from the Pope and from Spain, none, as yet, had materialised, nor had FitzMaurice been successful in his attempts to extend the confederacy throughout the country. To Eleanor it appeared that Sir John had usurped her husband's control of his armed followers, who, exhorted by the preaching of Dr Sanders, had a new cause on which to expend their martial skills and energies, with the added bonus of booty and papal gold. Life under Garrett in recent times had tended to provide little scope or reward for their military abilities. A leader who could not mount his horse unassisted was scarcely fit to command, especially when a more able leader, such as James FitzMaurice, was prepared to lead them in his place.\n\nWhile Garrett pondered his unenviable dilemma, Drury fell ill in Dublin. The newly-appointed President of Connaught, Sir Nicholas Malby, who with great severity had subdued rebellion in Connaught, began to harass the rebel army in Munster. FitzMaurice and Sir John struck camp at Smerwick and moved towards Limerick. They parted company, however, over a difference of opinion regarding the leadership of the enterprise. FitzMaurice, with a small group of supporters, hurried through Tipperary and Limerick in an attempt to outflank Malby and enter Connaught. Passing through the country of the Burkes of Castleconnell, FitzMaurice's followers removed two horses from under a plough and took some booty. Theobald Burke, the chief's son, pursued them, and in an ensuing fracas on 18 August 1579 FitzMaurice was shot dead. So ended the career of the man who, whatever his personal motivations, introduced religion as a political cause in Ireland, and as a means to consolidate resistance to the English Crown. Despite developments on the continent, however, the religious question in Ireland was yet an unsteady peg on which to hang the banner of revolution. The Gaelic annalists were fulsome in their praise of FitzMaurice. 'His death', they recorded, 'was the beginning of the decay of the honourable house of Desmond, out of which never issued so brave a man in all perfection.' His former adversary, Sir John Perrot, acknowledged him as a 'man very valiant politicke and learned as any Rebyll hath byn of that Nation for any yers'. But to Eleanor, FitzMaurice had been the monster of her nightmares, the one who sought, deliberately or otherwise, to dispossess her husband and her family and embroil them in a cataclysm that, once started, could end only in victory or abject defeat.\n\nSir John of Desmond assumed the vacant command of the insurgent forces in Munster. Meanwhile Sir Nicholas Malby proceeded to snap at the Earl of Desmond's heels, bombarding Lord Justice Drury and the Council in Dublin with accusations of his disloyalty. Drury determined to investigate the allegations against the earl. Accompanied by the Earl of Kildare, Eleanor's brother, the Baron of Dunboyne, and the Baron of Upper Ossory, Drury marched south, established camp near Kilmallock, and prepared to dislodge the rebel garrison at Smerwick, thereby raising the old contentious issue\u2014the invasion of Desmond's palatinate. The pressures on the earl were now immense. Eleanor's brother counselled him to repair to the Lord Justice. At the same time Dr Sanders, Sir John and his clansmen pressed him to obstruct Drury's passage through his palatinate. His own pride cried out that he, the great Earl of Desmond, should not be ordered hither and thither by subordinates and Crown servants. The cloud of melancholy and despondency returned as the earl shut himself up in his fortress at Askeaton and brooded over the insidious trap in which he found himself.\n\nDrury sent a delegation, led by the Baron of Upper Ossory, to negotiate. At first Garrett refused to meet them, but Eleanor prevailed on him to at least hear the baron out. The delegation was eventually ushered into the presence of the earl, who sat at a table with Eleanor by his side. The baron duly delivered Drury's orders to the earl to attend his camp at Kilmallock. At this intended slight Garrett's frail composure snapped, and with a sudden violent movement he upended the table and\n\n_fell into an extreme rage protesting that he wolde never come to William Drury nor where Malby was a counsellor, and that he wolde presently be master of the fielde, that if the Justice came to Kerry he should have nothinge there and rather than Englishmen should come to Dingle he woulde rase the towne._\n\nAll the pressures that beset him seemed to erupt in a verbal outburst. The palatine rights of his Kerry kingdom were the only vestiges of prestige and self-respect that remained. If his sovereignty there was violated by Drury, he would be left with nothing. It was unfortunate that FitzMaurice and his army had chosen it as the launching-pad for their crusade against Elizabeth. He alone, not the Lord Justice, would see to the demolition of the fortifications at Smerwick and to the dispersal and expulsion of the rebel army. His fury beyond all control, Eleanor shivered as she listened to her husband rage on against the Queen\u2014\n\n_the red calioghe [hag] let hir doe what she like, affirminge that she and hir frendes had undone him and turning to a marchant of Lymericke there present he said he wold leave Lymericke and Corke as naked as his nayle._\n\nThe English emissaries present were hurriedly told by the earl's retainers that the hag in question was the earl's wife, and this version was duly reported to the Privy Council in London. But the Irish lords present knew well the derisive nickname applied in Ireland to the redhaired Queen of England.\n\nThe Baron of Upper Ossory and his fellow-delegates departed to convey Desmond's reply to Drury as Eleanor and her brother tried to placate the overwrought earl. Eleanor sent his secretary, Morris Sheehan, to excuse his conduct. Drury agreed to temporise with the earl and promised him safe conduct to his camp near Kilmallock. Garrett eventually agreed to meet the Lord Justice, who received him courteously and asked his opinion on how best the rebels might be resisted. Garrett suggested that pledges should be first given by his tributary lords, the Earl of Clancar and lords Barry and Roche, and other lords in Munster over whom he claimed jurisdiction. By this means, Garrett hoped the lords would be less likely to join with the rebels and thereby undermine his position. But they protested vigorously to the Lord Justice that, in order to prohibit the earl from joining forces with his brother, he should also be required to 'put in his onely sonne pledge for maintayning the warre against his bretherne'. Smarting at this further insult from his dependent lords, Garrett went 'into a newe passion and started from the boarde'. Drury, however, agreed with the lords' proposal and refused the earl permission to depart until his son should be delivered to him as hostage.\n\nIn trepidation Eleanor awaited Garrett's return at Askeaton. A party of his followers rode up to the castle and demanded that she deliver her son to be taken as a hostage to the Lord Justice. Eleanor refused. She could trust no one, least of all Garrett's supposedly loyal followers, most of whom had, in any case, defected to his brother Sir John. She decided to put her case to the Lord Justice in person. With a small guard she set out for the English camp, having first hidden her son in the lake fortress of Lough Gur. Drury received her graciously and sympathised with her anxiety over her son. He agreed to her proposal that in her own time she would place the child in the custody of the Mayor of Limerick. Thus having gained some precious time, Eleanor returned to the safety of Lough Gur.\n\nUnder the leadership of Sir John the crusade had meanwhile lost much of its original appeal and impetus. Sir John lacked the prestige and authority to extend the rebellion throughout the province or draw support from the local lords and chieftains. Dr Sanders knew there was only one person who could effectively revitalise interest in the crusade and to whose leadership the chieftains and clansmen would respond. But the Earl of Desmond still held aloof, reluctant to be drawn. He had little of FitzMaurice's crusading zeal. His own intransigence and the arrogant antics of the Crown officials in Munster were far more likely reasons for him to join the crusade. If the religious crusade could be used to stimulate 'the rankling sense of injustice dating from the Carew episode earlier . . . and the consequent sense of insecurity of tenure on the part of the great landholders', then Garrett's present grievances against the Crown could be easily exploited for the cause of the Counter-Reformation. As the English administration seemed determined to humiliate and strip him of every remaining vestige of his traditional power so they, either intentionally or accidentally, pushed the earl towards Sanders.\n\nThe Jesuit besieged Garrett with letters and messengers to assure him that his secular status could be guaranteed if he assumed leadership of the spiritual crusade. Messengers arrived from Ulster and Connaught where the Mayo clans, under the leadership of Richard-in-Iron Bourke, the husband of his former captive, Grace O'Malley, awaited his call to arms. Spies brought news that Drury, who had again fallen ill in Dublin, had been unable to secure much-needed supplies and forces from the Crown. Sanders renewed his promise of additional aid from the Pope and the King of Spain and tempted Garrett with promises of the glory and prestige the Crown sought to deny him. Eventually Garrett made a secret rendezvous with Sanders and Sir John. Gradually he became more withdrawn from Eleanor, who saw her influence over him steadily eroded by the zealous exhortations of Sanders. She tried in vain to reason with him but, against the machinations of Dr Sanders, she was no match and, as was reported to the government, 'the corruption of the Erles disposition is such as manie tymes he nether regardeth frend nor wive'. But for the present he maintained his show of loyalty and accompanied Drury on an expedition against the rebels, now led by his two brothers.\n\nAs her influence over Garrett lessened, Eleanor's fears for the safety of her son increased. She had established a good relationship with Drury; like Sidney, he was one of the few English administrators who had come to recognise her dilemma. For different reasons they both worked for the same objective, to maintain Garrett in some degree of loyalty to the Queen. Both had begun to falter under the pressure of their respective missions. Drury was in poor health and had been consistently denied adequate provisions to perform his duties in Ireland. And now news of Drury's imminent departure for England reached Eleanor\u2014her last contact with the more reasonable elements in the English administration was about to be severed. The safety of her son weighed heavily on her mind. She feared that Sir John or Dr Sanders might kidnap James to ensure her husband's support. Garrett also feared for the safety of his son at the hands of his brothers, whom he later accused of attempting 'to imbrue their cruel hands with the blood of my wief and sonne, whom Sir John mortalie hated'. Perhaps also with an instinctive sense of the turmoil that was about to engulf them, Eleanor decided that her child could only evade the taint of rebellion, if in the custody of the Crown.\n\nDrury was the one person she could trust to ensure the boy's safety. She first journeyed with her son to Limerick city, where it was reported that\n\n_The Countesse of Desmond (with the Erles consent as shee saith) brought hir only son the Lord Garrett [sic, for James] to Limerick and delivered him as hir assurance (for so shee termed it) to the Attorney and Recorder, from whome he was sent for to the campe within two daies after, because it was doubted that the Erles faction in Limericke should convey him awaie and that the Lord Justice has also vehement presumption that he should have been by the Erles followers (especiallie the gallowglas) sent as a pledge into Spaine for perfourmance of such promises that have been made by them to Doctor Saunders_.\n\nDrury was about to set out on his final journey towards Waterford. It was a moving encounter between the dying, war-hardened soldier and the troubled countess, torn in two by her desire to protect her son and yet having to place him in the care of the very institution that sought to destroy his father. In their past dealings Drury had shown her a crusty courtesy and had come to respect her political and diplomatic abilities. Now he recognised her fear as a mother for her child's safety. It was a heart-rending scene as the tall woman bent down to embrace her small son and hold him close, aware that it might be for the last time. The pale, timid child, who since his birth in captivity had continued to be a captive of the tragic fates that buffeted his family, clung tightly to his mother, fearful of once again being condemned to a dark, menacing life behind locked doors, among strange, unfriendly faces. Drury reassured Eleanor, but as she looked into the haggard face, perhaps seeing death in his tired eyes, she felt a momentary stab of fear and begged him to do all he could to ensure that her child might be treated gently. With a breaking heart she lifted her son onto the saddle beside one of Drury's officers and watched the cavalcade slowly disappear down the narrow, rutted track.\n\nFollowing the departure of Drury, Sir Nicholas Malby was appointed temporary governor of Munster. He instituted the final campaign of humiliation which was eventually to push the vacillating Earl of Desmond over the brink. A flurry of correspondence between the two sides preceded the action. Malby curtly summoned the earl to appear before him at Limerick, and sent him a proclamation against the rebels which he ordered Garrett to have posted throughout his lordship. Garrett haughtily replied to the effect that his service 'against the rebells would be more available than his presence . . . in Limerick'. Malby promised the earl 'much honour and favour . . . if he will get that papistical arrogant traitor Sanders to be arrested'. Garrett reciprocated by giving Malby some useless information on the actions of his brothers. Malby, without recourse to the Crown or to the Council in Dublin, set out on his own initiative, ostensibly to flush out the rebels but, in effect, to plunder the earl's lands. On 3 October 1579 he was confronted near Monasternenagh by the forces of Sir John of Desmond in full battle array. A fiercely-fought pitched battle ensued until eventually the English pikemen penetrated the rows of galloglass and kern and the rebel army slowly gave ground. Sir John and Dr Sanders escaped into the woods along the Maigue river.\n\nWhen news of the defeat reached Askeaton, the earl hurriedly forwarded his congratulations to Malby. But Malby was unimpressed. He was convinced that the earl was involved with the rebels: 'He is the onlie man that did seeke to cutt my throate,' he informed the English Privy Council, 'the onelie arch traytor of Mounster, his two brethern are but ministers to serve his vile disposition.' Malby's accusations were, as yet, based on conjecture; tangible proof of the earl's active implication in the rebellion was more difficult to establish. But conjecture and rumour were sufficient for Malby, who despised all that Desmond represented.\n\nEleanor's abilities as mediator were powerless against such intense and irrational behaviour. There was no one in the Council in Dublin with whom she could intercede in order to call off Malby. Her husband had temporised with the administration for months, but the Crown had also violated agreements made with him. Fired by puritanical religious zeal, Malby now prepared to exact a terrible retribution. He burned and pillaged his way through the earl's estates up to the gates of Askeaton castle and pitched camp in the abbey across the river. From a window of the castle Eleanor watched the final act of violation and degradation perpetrated against her husband. The proud earl notified the English Privy Council of Malby's action:\n\n_The saide Sir Nicholas encamped within the Abbie of Asketin and ther most malitiosslie defaced the oulde monuments of my ancestors, fired both the abbie, the whole tower and all the countrie therabouts and ceased not to shote at my men within Askyten castle_.\n\nThe thoughts of the earl as he helplessly watched the very heart of his Desmond heritage being ravaged, the bones of his ancestors and of his first wife so dishonoured, have not been recorded. The once all-powerful Earl of Desmond had been rendered powerless to prevent the outrage committed by a lowly captain of the Crown within sight of his own castle. In his despair he even appealed to his bitter rival, the Earl of Ormond:\n\n_Your mother's grave hath beane most spitefully used by Sir Nicholas Malbye. It hath beene broken so that nowe there remaineth no monument thereof. I bescheche your consideraccion of my cause and howe I have ben persecuted by a Captain that hath no authoritie to do the like_.\n\nBut whatever vague sympathy, or fear, Black Tom might have felt for his neighbour, the old wounds of their personal animosity were still too raw for him to intervene.\n\nThe final push came from Drury's successor, Sir William Pelham, who was appointed Lord Justice of Ireland in October 1579. One of his first acts was to appoint the Earl of Ormond military governor of Munster. He also issued a patent to Ormond, 'who having the keeping and custodie of the young Lord Girald [ _sic_ ] sonne and heir to the erle of Desmond was by a warrant willed to deliver him to Captain Dachworth and he to bring or conveie him to the Castell of Dublin'. During his journey in Drury's custody to Waterford the child had fallen ill. As Drury's own condition had worsened, it was decided to leave the Earl of Desmond's son in the care of the Earl of Ormond. Drury subsequently died at Waterford on 3 October without being able to discharge the undertaking he had given to Eleanor. Pelham was not only determined that Desmond's son would be placed well beyond the grasp of all factions in Munster, but was also planning to use the boy as a valuable bargaining counter against his father.\n\nRumours flew like sparrows from tree to tree across Munster that the Earl of Desmond had finally declared for the rebels. Pelham neglected to check the accuracy of the rumours, but summoned the earl to his presence. Secure in his stronghold at Askeaton, the earl declined to put his head into the lion's mouth. Pelham threatened to execute his son. There was no time to appeal to the Queen. If Garrett went to Pelham, there was every likelihood that he would promptly be imprisoned. It was decided that Eleanor should again intercede on his behalf. 'I have sent my wife to declare the causes of my present stay', the earl informed Pelham, 'and how my country has been burnt and spoiled, my castles taken and myself misused.' Pelham received Eleanor coldly. He would not be hoodwinked by her or by her husband like previous Crown officials. Her husband, he was convinced, intended to rebel. Eleanor reminded him that they had voluntarily given up their only son as proof of the earl's good intent. She graphically described the outrages perpetrated by Malby on her husband's property and the provocative sacking of Askeaton abbey. Surely, as a subject of the Crown, her husband had the right to the Crown's protection.\n\nPelham momentarily drew back and agreed to give the earl one final chance. With perhaps spiteful intent he chose the Earl of Ormond to act as mediator and, through him, presented Eleanor with a set of unacceptable demands: that Desmond submit to the Lord Justice; that he deliver Dr Sanders into Crown custody; that he surrender Askeaton and Carraigafoyle castles to the Crown; and that he join in the campaign against his brothers and serve under the command of the Earl of Ormond. Pelham well realised that the Earl of Desmond had neither the power nor the will to comply with such demands.\n\nEleanor realised the futility of her mission and returned to Askeaton to be with her husband. Pelham moved his forces close to Rathkeale. He sent Ormond to negotiate with Desmond. But the latter's presence merely served to antagonise Garrett further. 'I will remain as true-hearted a subject to Her Majesty as any one that seeketh to undo me,' he informed Pelham and demanded 'that my servant may go with my complaints to Her Majesty and the Council, whose judgement I am contented to abide'. But Pelham and his war-dogs now smelled blood and, knowing the Queen's penchant for pardons instead of costly war, reacted quickly. Without the permission or knowledge of the Queen or the Privy Council, Pelham had the Earl of Desmond 'with sound of Trumpett' proclaimed a traitor, thereby forcing him, as one commentator noted, 'for his owne safety to run that course against his will', into the arms of Dr Sanders. Significantly, the proclamation was signed by Pelham, the Earl of Ormond, his brothers and Eleanor's brother, the Baron of Dunboyne. Some of the lords of the Pale, Gormanston, Baltinglass and Delvin, refused to be signatories. On 2 November 1579 the proclamation was simultaneously announced in Dublin, Waterford, Cork and Limerick and in other towns and settlements throughout the country.\n\nAs news of the proclamation reached Askeaton, its significance momentarily numbed Garrett and Eleanor. Thoughts of confiscation, exile and execution flashed through their minds. But in a desperate bid to avert the disaster, Eleanor took to her horse, and, as was reported, 'within one houre after this proclamation, the Countess of Desmond came to the campe but the campe was before dislodged'. Pelham had already let loose his dogs of war and, almost gleefully, he reported the outcome to the Queen. 'Desmond has been proclaimed a traitor,' he wrote. 'Ormond has already drawn blood and kindled the fire in the midst of Desmond's country . . . I have left the prosecution of the war to him.'\n\nSoon the traditional adherents of the House of Desmond, client lords and chieftains, retainers, galloglass and swordsmen, combined with the promoters of the Counter-Reformation, descended on Askeaton to claim their leader. Despite her efforts Eleanor watched her worst nightmare unfold as her husband was borne headlong into rebellion. Both realised the outcome should the rebellion prove unsuccessful: execution and dispossession. There were to be no farewells between Eleanor and her husband. For the following four desperate years, wherever the Earl of Desmond hid or lay down to rest, in woodland, marsh or mountain, his wife was not far from his side.\n\nUnder a sombre sky, slowly and painfully, the fourteenth Earl of Desmond limped from his castle into the November evening. A hundred hands lifted the crippled earl onto his horse. The papal banner was unfurled over his head. The centuries-old Desmond warcry, ' _Shanid Ab\u00fa_ ' gave way to ' _Papa ab\u00fa_ ' as the Geraldine leader rode out from Askeaton castle, the reluctant champion of a crusade he neither believed in nor understood.\nChapter 7\n\nRebellion\n\n_The wrathful skies_\n\n_Gallow the very wanderers of the dark,_\n\n_And make them keep their caves: since I was man_\n\n_Such sheets of fire, such bursts of horrid thunder,_\n\n_Such groans of roaring wind and rain, I never_\n\n_Remember to have heard: man's nature cannot carry_\n\n_The affliction nor the fear_\n\nKING LEAR, III, ii\n\nAs news of the Desmond rebellion spread across the country, initially it seemed likely to provoke a wider conspiracy among the Gaelic and gaelicised lords. In Connaught the clans of Mayo and Galway rose in support. Scots mercenaries poured into Ulster. In Leinster James Eustace, Viscount Baltinglass, a determined Catholic, conspired with the Wicklow chieftain, Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne. There was unrest in Limerick city, and the mayor was taken prisoner by insurgents. Sir John of Desmond plundered Kerry and burned the town of Tralee. The rebels attacked the lands of a grantee, John Rowly, and left him nailed to his castle door as a warning to others. Dr Sanders exhorted the leaders and promised more assistance from the Pope and the Most Catholic King of Spain.\n\nBut solitary in the Escorial palace the black-garbed lay leader of the Counter-Reformation, God's lieutenant on earth, Philip II, gloomily contemplated a batch of despatches from his spies in England. They were proof of the distinct lack of progress being made against his heretic sister-in-law and her godless kingdom. But the blame could be squarely laid at Philip's own door whose predilection for deliberation and detail made progress virtually impossible. Every despatch was scrutinised, every emissary personally interviewed, every detail gleaned was methodically stored in the dispassionate mind of the anointed head of the greatest and most Catholic leader in the world. Now that the House of Guise in France had become part of his orbit, and that his control over the Netherlands was restored, there was time to contemplate how best to resume the crusade against Elizabeth and to fulfil his 'gossamer vision of a Europe purged of heresy and united in the ample bosom of mother church'. Had not Elizabeth blatantly aided and comforted his rebellious and heretical Dutch subjects? Now with news of a crusade in Ireland against her, led by an Irish leader who sought his help, the King pondered over the direction his religious zeal and political revenge might take against his sister monarch.\n\nWhile the banner of rebellion, emblazoned with the cross of the crusade, had been placed in the hands of her reluctant husband, Eleanor was yet hopeful that Garrett's slide into ruin could be reversed. She had not been included in the Lord Justice's proclamation and was therefore free to negotiate with the authorities and put her diplomatic skill to use on her husband's behalf. But she had no trustworthy contact in the Dublin Council. Her only remaining recourse was to gain direct access to the Queen and her Council in England. Elizabeth must be made aware of the conduct of her officers in Ireland who, for reasons other than duty, had alienated her husband from the Crown. Eleanor well knew that many servants of the Crown, both in Ireland and in England, had greedy eyes fastened on the fertile acres of her husband's estates. A push towards rebellion rather than a pull towards loyalty presented the prospect of rich reward for such energetic and ambitious officials. Her letters to England were liable to be intercepted by the self-same officials, determined they did not reach their destination. But there was another, albeit desperate, way. On 4 November 1579, two days after her husband was publicly proclaimed a traitor, a despatch, signed by Pelham, Ormond and Malby to the Queen's secretary, Sir Francis Walsingham, made the startling announcement: 'To be a solicitor that in respect since the proclamation, the Countess of Desmond hath left her husband that she may enjoy her jointure.'\n\nEven as Garrett was hustled away into rebellion and as the great wood of Clonlish swallowed him and his followers, Eleanor put her plan into action. She obtained a meeting with her kinsman the Earl of Ormond, to whom she revealed her intention to divorce Garrett, ostensibly because of the shame and ruin his actions had brought on her and on his family. She asked that her marriage portion or dowry be returned to her in order that she might sustain herself. Initially her request was taken at face value. It was on record that the Countess of Desmond had long endeavoured to keep the earl loyal to the Crown, and she had letters from a grateful Queen to prove it. Divorce was common among the Gaelic and gaelicised aristocracy. Ormond himself had been recently divorced. Aware of Eleanor's long devotion to Garrett, Ormond became suspicious of her sudden desire to obtain her jointure. Her real reason, he suspected, was to obtain funding to enable her to take her husband's case to London. And Eleanor was forced to admit her real intent. 'Now that it hath pleased God to wrap my husband into these late troubles,' she wrote to Ormond, 'I wish to repair to Her Majesty's preserve and desire you to send me a passport. I mind to take shipping at Cork or Kinsale.'\n\nAs Ormond deliberated over her request, desperate to attain her goal before Garrett, by some precipitate action, could put himself totally beyond all help, Eleanor had some cattle rounded up and asked Ormond 'to make sale of such kine as I sent to your country to bear my charges in England for that both my husband and I have incurred certain debts in England, it is needful that you send me a protection to pass with my stuff and goods until I shall come to Her Majesty without any molestation'. Ormond informed her that he had not the authority to issue her with a pass, but that he would forward her request to Lord Justice Pelham. However, he took care to forewarn Pelham: 'I have had a letter from my Lady of Desmond. It is thought, I dare say, by those that wrote it to be cunningly penned and devised but the intent is easy to understand.' Pelham, in any event, had no intention of allowing the Countess of Desmond access to the Queen. Elizabeth had sounded the first notes of disquiet about the peremptory way he had proclaimed the Earl of Desmond. Desmond's wife pleading her husband's case, with the support of the Cecil faction at Court, might well mean dismissal or even imprisonment. Pelham wrote his reply to the Earl of Ormond: 'I have considered of my Lady of Desmond's letter. Pray you stay your hand from these her vain petitions till our meeting and answer her letter with silence.'\n\nBut Eleanor refused to accept silence as an answer. She demanded and received an audience with the Lord Justice. She asked him to suspend the proclamation against her husband until she could further Eleanor, Countess of Desmond negotiate with him. Pelham refused but granted her permission to go to her husband and promised her 'that grace would be showid to her husband if he would consent to ye delivery of his brother and Doctor Saunders'. Pelham warned her that she must return 'within certaine daies to live in the Pale or with the barron of Dunboine her brother'. Eleanor realised that Pelham would never permit her access to the Queen or retract the proclamation, short of Garrett's unconditional surrender. Gathering her few belongings, she fled to join her husband, and failed to return within the allotted time. To damage whatever credibility she might have with the Queen, Pelham informed Sir Francis Walsingham 'that there is not any emonge the conspiratours that more encouradgeth the disloyaltie of them than she. And therefore I believe that her messadge is but collorable . . . to gaine intellegence for purpose.'\n\nBy now, however, the Queen's disquiet over the proclamation of the Earl of Desmond and the continuation of the war in Munster had changed to anger. She ordered Pelham to explain his actions. Pelham protested that Desmond had been covertly involved in rebellious conspiracy since the time of James FitzMaurice. To sting her princely pride, Pelham further informed the Queen that 'in all his skirmishes and outrages since the proclamation, Desmond crieth _Papa aboo_ , which is the Pope above even above you and your imperial crown'. But Elizabeth was not satisfied. Rebellions cost money, while pardons, particularly on conditions favourable to the Crown, cost nothing. She had learned of the attempts of the Countess of Desmond to gain her royal ear and also of Pelham's efforts to prevent her. Elizabeth demanded further explanation from her Lord Justice.\n\nBut before Pelham could compose an excuse, the Earl of Desmond, as Eleanor feared, put himself beyond redemption by an inexplicable attack on the town of Youghal. The town was in a state of total unpreparedness for the assault. In the middle of a thunderstorm the rebel army, with Garrett at its head, entered through a breach in the walls. Then, amid scenes of wanton carnage and cruelty, Youghal was sacked. Houses were set on fire, citizens put to the sword, women ravished, while the Desmond hordes, with wild exultant cries, ransacked buildings and stuffed their clothes with gold and silver from the town's coffers. It was reported that the Earl of Desmond, Sir John and the Seneschal of Imokilly tore down the emblem of the Queen's coat of arms from the courthouse and hacked it asunder with their daggers. For four days and nights the rebels looted the town. Laden with booty and prisoners, the Earl of Desmond and his 'crusaders' marched away, leaving Youghal in flames.\n\nEleanor's reaction to the sack of Youghal was one of disbelief that her husband would allow his own town to be destroyed. But religious fanaticism had by then fuelled the flames of rebellion. Dr Sanders ardently preached the message of the Counter-Reformation and exhorted the earl that his secular struggle against the Queen in Ireland was part of a glorious international crusade against heresy. The Pope and King Philip would soon come to his assistance, Sanders assured him. The Earl of Desmond listened and felt uplifted, no longer hamstrung by his physical deformities or political deficiencies. Religion elevated him to his true status as the great rebel Geraldine fighting the just cause of faith and fatherland. His letters to the Gaelic chieftains and to the Catholic lords of the Pale reflected his belated conversion to the crusading cause. Writing to Viscount Baltinglass, Garrett now maintained:\n\n_It is so that I and my brothers are entered into the Defence of the Catholick Faith, the overthrow of our Country by Englishmen which had overthrown the Holy Church and go about to over-run our country and make it their own and make us their Bond men_.\n\nMessengers and letters of support flowed into his base at Newcastle from Turlough Luineach O'Neill, Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne, Baltinglass, and lords and chieftains from every province. They made extravagant promises of Scottish galloglass and Gaelic kern. But promises were easily made, and the Earl of Desmond had yet to prove how much support his cause commanded abroad before the effusive pledges of his erstwhile allies in Ireland could be translated into practical assistance.\n\nAs the mournful winter winds howled around Newcastle, Eleanor realised that she was powerless to stem the fast-flowing tide which bore her husband and his house steadily towards their doom. She looked across the dimly-lit room to where Garrett, seated with Dr Sanders, dictated to a secretary the now interwoven words of religion and rebellion. She observed the almost skeletal features of her husband, his sickly pallor and hunched shoulders. The winter campaign had taken further toll on his health. She thought of her son, alone in his dark cell in Dublin Castle. The servants she had sent to care for him had been dismissed, and Pelham had ordered 'that the constable of the Castle shall provide for his diett and wantes and that his nurse shall onely attend him there'. Yet she was satisfied that even Dublin Castle was a safer haven for her child than his native Munster over which the storm was about to break.\n\nFor the hunt was on\u2014one of the greatest manhunts in history\u2014for the most feeble prey that ever went to ground. While the Queen dithered to finance an all-out offensive against the Earl of Desmond, the Earl of Ormond took matters into his own hands. Passing between Askeaton and Newcastle, he burned and looted right up to the foothills of Slieve Logher, on a mission of vengeance on his ancient enemy until, hampered by appalling weather conditions and lack of supplies, he reluctantly returned to Ormond, hopeful that in the new year Elizabeth might loosen the purse-strings and he could continue the campaign against his step-father.\n\nTowards the end of January 1580 two well-appointed ships arrived off Dingle. They carried letters for the Earl of Desmond and his brothers from the King of Spain. Garrett hurried to Castlemaine to confer with the king's messengers. Both the success of the rebellion and his own fate depended on help from Philip. He told the messengers to urge their master to send the long-awaited assistance without delay. He promised support from all the lords of the country and confidently declared that he would have a substantial army at his disposal. And during the early months of 1580 many hitherto undecided lords wavered to the cause. The Earl of Clancar was either compelled by Garrett or exhorted by Dr Sanders to join the rebellion. It was even rumoured that Edmund Butler, the Earl of Ormond's brother, who was married to Garrett's sister, had 'stood a little wavering and was to be doubted', before being pulled back into line by his brother, Black Tom. But since the sack of Youghal, militarily Garrett had accomplished little. Ever fearful for his safety, like a shadow he flitted from Newcastle to Aherlow, to Adare, to Carraigafoyle on the Shannon, until he finally came to rest at the more secure fortress of Castlemaine. His landless adherents, while they awaited action against the enemy, looted and ravaged the countryside. The peasants, as ever, bore the brunt of their excesses and sought protection in the woods and mountain foothills. Eleanor also momentarily disappeared from view. There was no one with whom she could negotiate, and little reason for her to do so. She spent the winter months with her daughters between the fortresses of Castlemaine and Castleisland deep in her husband's territory.\n\nIn the spring of 1580 the war recommenced with a vengeance. It was reported that King Philip had troops and ships massed at Spanish ports, ready to sail to Ireland to support the rebel Earl of Desmond. Elizabeth's nightmare, that Spain would use Ireland as a backdoor into England, seemed likely to become a reality. The English court factions closed ranks and united to repel the foreign threat. The hitherto divided coteries led by Cecil and Walsingham were now of one voice. They urged the Queen to back Ormond and Pelham and to provide the means for an all-out offensive against the Earl of Desmond. Cecil, Ormond's one-time adversary, admitted:\n\n_So must I merely say with others_ , Butler aboo _against all that cry as I hear in a new language Papa aboo. God send you your heart's desire, which I know is agreeable to mine, to banish or vanquish those cankered Desmonds and to plant again the Queen's Majesty's honour and reputation._\n\nAnd finally, with the approval of the Privy Council and a reluctant nod from Elizabeth, the armed might of the Crown was unleashed on the Earl of Desmond. In March 1580 Ormond joined forces with Pelham at Rathkeale, and together they commenced a dreadful war of retribution. They divided their forces: Ormond moved towards the Shannon; Pelham kept inland, towards Newcastle. It was said that they each kept track of the other's progress by the billowing clouds of smoke they left in their wake as they burned and pillaged their way west.\n\nThe country people fled for their lives before the new fury. But to Pelham every peasant or tenant who resided within the Desmond lordship was deemed a rebel and the English scouting parties indiscriminately sought out and slew panic-stricken men, women and children. His despatches to the Privy Council unashamedly detailed acts of remorseless barbarity and deprivation committed against a largely defenceless peasantry. Exultantly describing a typically punitive raid, he wrote:\n\n_The people and cattle flying before us in the mountains were followed by some horsemen and light footmen. There were slain that day by the fury of the soldiers above 400 people found in the woods; and wheresoever any house or corn was found, it was consumed by fire_.\n\nThe unfortunate people who were subjected to such treatment were shamelessly abandoned by their overlord and left to stand defenceless before his enemies. The Desmonds, Dr Sanders and their swordsmen were far removed, safe in their remote castle outposts, out of range of the pitiful cries of the abandoned peasantry. In vain the people waited for the banner of their hereditary protector to appear and save them from their doom. But the great Geraldine lord did not come to their rescue, and Pelham's soldiers and Ormond's galloglass found nothing to obstruct them. Steel fell on unprotected bone and hacked its way over the mutilated bodies of its unresisting victims. From the branches of the Munster oaks the putrefying corpses hung in gruesome proof of Pelham's progress. The once lush Desmond pasturelands were reduced to a blackened heath as Ormond sated his revenge on his old enemy and Pelham, one of the new breed of Puritan military commanders, merely did his job.\n\nBut Munster was not ravaged just by the armies of the Crown. As the Earl of Desmond and his army withdrew into remoter areas, they too burned and looted everything in their path. Every fortress between Castleisland and Tralee was demolished to prevent its use by the enemy. Cattle were seized and driven into secret valleys and hidden recesses in the mountains to provide sustenance for the fighting men. The peasantry were left to fend for themselves as best they could, and any who remonstrated were summarily dealt with.\n\nSome of the stronger Desmond castles, such as Askeaton, Newcastle, Adare, Glin and Carraigafoyle, directly in Pelham's path, remained intact, secure in the impregnability of their thick stone walls. Carraigafoyle on the Shannon was considered one of the most formidable and its destruction was to open a new chapter in military warfare in Ireland. The castle commanded a strategic position at the entrance to the Shannon estuary. It was garrisoned for the Earl of Desmond by a mixture of papal and Irish troops under the command of captain Julian. In view of the aid expected from Spain, defence of the castle took on a new urgency. Unable to risk the journey himself, Garrett sent Eleanor to convey plans for the defence of the castle to the garrison. With a small escort she set out on the hazardous journey. Although not technically a wanted rebel like her husband, nonetheless she could not afford to fall into the hands of the Crown forces. Successfully eluding English scouting parties from the armies of Pelham and Ormond she delivered her husband's instructions. Great earthworks were immediately constructed on the estuary side of the castle to provide additional protection for the ships expected daily from Spain. On the landward side two separate ditches with a wall and a further earthwork were erected. Every chink and cranny in the outer walls of the castle was filled with masonry to prevent potential besiegers obtaining a foothold. In Garrett's estimation, and indeed by the military convention of the day, Carraigafoyle was thus rendered impregnable.\n\nWhen English ships, under the command of Sir William Winter, however, anchored off the castle with a cargo of siege guns, Garrett's defensive modifications, earthworks, ditches and smooth masonry proved useless as for two days the guns pounded the defences of Carraigafoyle. On 29 March a breach was finally made in the barbican. Pelham's troops poured into the castle and spared none of the defenders. As the cannon and culverins boomed their relentless message of victory across the Kerry countryside, Pelham next prepared to move against the heart of the Desmond lordship. The siege cannon were pointed at Askeaton. But there was little need to fire even one shell. On learning about the destruction of Carraigafoyle and the fate of the defenders, Garrett's garrison at Askeaton fled for their lives and, as they departed, set fire to the magazine, which blew the greater part of the castle asunder. Pelham appointed a garrison under Sir Peter Carew and Sir Henry Wallop in the ruins of Askeaton, while Sir George Carew and Captain Hollingworth encamped in the adjacent abbey.\n\nReports of the destruction of Carraigafoyle and the partial destruction of Askeaton were brought to the earl, who, with Eleanor, was at Tralee. The fall of Askeaton must have been a severe blow, being not merely a place of great significance in the Desmond heritage and history, but also the home in which they had snatched a few brief years of happiness and contentment.\n\nAs Pelham's army closed in, Garrett's followers, who had so vociferously and eagerly prevailed upon him to lead the great crusade, began to desert in numbers. There was still no sign of the Spanish aid promised by Dr Sanders. With the exception of a brief, isolated uprising by Richard-in-Iron Bourke in Mayo, Connaught too had failed to rise in support of the crusade. There was a shortage of food and supplies, and Garrett's swordsmen preyed far and wide over the impoverished land. To stem the tide, Garrett was reported to have told his followers 'that yf aid from Spaine and the Pope cam not before Whitsontide he would leave them to make their composition with the Englishe as well as thei colde'. Numbed by the ferocity of Pelham's tactics, few could envisage such a course of action. The English forces pressed ever closer, and the list of garrisons established by them grew. Captain Bouchier occupied Kilmallock and captain Wilks held Adare. The hunt was on for the Earl and Countess of Desmond, Dr Sanders and the earl's brothers. Each day scouting parties from the various garrisons scoured the forests, mountain foothills and the secret recesses of Aherlow for the fugitives. Even Eleanor's brother, the Baron of Dunboyne, joined in the hunt for his sister and brother-in-law.\n\nAs the net tightened, the Desmond fugitives flitted from place to place. Everything now depended on Spain. Garrett became suspicious that Dr Sanders intended to desert him, and kept a close watch on the cleric who, for better or worse, had become his one remaining hope of salvation. In his present position there seemed little possibility of reconciliation with the Crown and restoration to his title and estates. Only from a position of strength could he hope to negotiate with Elizabeth. In the large rambling fortress of Castleisland the earl and Eleanor waited. The winter had been difficult with severe frost and snow. The earl could scarcely walk. His personal physician, Maurice Lee, deserted him and sought Pelham's protection. Aqua vitae was now the only medicine with which the earl could obtain relief from the pain that racked his feeble body, and with which he could deaden his mind to the reality of his dreadful predicament.\n\nEleanor sent their daughters to be cared for in the few remaining friendly houses. She entrusted her children to the protection of her half-brother, Donal MacCarthy of Carbery, and her brother-in-law, Owen MacDonagh MacCarthy of Duhallow, both of whom were subsequently imprisoned by Pelham when they refused to divulge the whereabouts of their charges. Eleanor sent another daughter to the care of her sister, the Countess of Clancar. The strain, both physical and mental, had taken its toll. She had been sucked into the morass against her better judgement. Her husband had succumbed to the pressures exerted on him from both sides. She had her opportunity to desert him and chance her luck with the English authorities. But the persistence and constancy that were the hallmarks of her character were difficult to shed, even if she had wished to do so. Her influential position in the Desmond household even yet attracted the attention of the English administration. In an attempt to reduce English unease at the ruthlessness of his campaign in Munster, Pelham sought, through Eleanor's brother, to involve her in a government plot 'for ye apprehencion of John of Desmond and Saunders' in return for Garrett's pardon. While there was little love lost between Eleanor and Sir John and Sanders, she had even less trust in the Lord Justice. She too had come to the conclusion that in the present situation the only solution to their dreadful dilemma was a Spanish one.\n\nBut the strain of watching and waiting had begun to affect the relationship between the fugitives at Castleisland. Sir John bitterly accused the earl of cowardice and inaction. After heated exchanges the brothers separated. Sir John led his followers on a series of wild forages, while Garrett made a short sortie into Limerick, where he was surprised by the ward out of Adare castle. In the ensuing engagement his horse was shot from under him, and it was only with considerable difficulty that his followers managed to hustle him back to the safety of Castleisland.\n\nIn June 1580 Pelham and Ormond combined once more for an offensive against the Earl of Desmond. They drove the MacCarthys and O'Callaghans, together with their cattle herds, before them and advanced along the Blackwater on a long, energy-sapping trek into the palatinate of Kerry. News of their progress reached Eleanor and Garrett belatedly. With Pelham at their heels, there was little time for an orderly withdrawal from Castleisland, and, as Pelham reported, 'the erle of Desmond being ther with his ladie was forced to forsake his horse and betwixt some of his gallowglass to take to the bogg.' Eleanor had to abandon several items of clothing from her personal wardrobe, which, together with some vestments belonging to Dr Sanders, were derisively torn to shreds by Pelham's soldiers. Aided by the strong arms of the galloglass, the Earl and Countess of Desmond fled into the night. Splashing and stumbling through the bogs and marshes around Castleisland, the cries of their hunters in their ears, they ran for their lives. Garrett fell down exhausted, unable to continue, and had to be carried on the shoulders of his galloglass to the safety of the mountains. Here the fugitives took a brief respite, then separated.\n\nWith a small escort, Eleanor set out for Newcastle to lead the pursuers away from her husband. On her journey she encountered the admiral of the English fleet, Sir William Winter. Since the fall of Carraigafoyle, Winter's fleet remained anchored in the Shannon estuary but, following a rendezvous with Pelham, he had taken the fleet around to Dingle Bay. On his return he encountered the Countess of Desmond. Eleanor informed him of the sequence of developments that had forced her husband into rebellion. She begged him to take a letter to the English Privy Council so that she might negotiate directly with them for her husband's pardon and for a cessation of the war in Munster. The pitiful sight of the dishevelled countess touched Winter, who agreed to forward her letter to England.\n\nEleanor sat down to compose the most honest and poignant letter of the entire tragic saga. It is at once a powerful and compelling document. It demonstrates her knowledge and understanding of the minds of those she sought to change. She gives an objective analysis of her husband's shortcomings, but also her conviction that he had been pushed by Pelham and Malby into a rebellion he did not want. 'My husband and his countrie have bene bled by persons who are in authoritie here,' she wrote, and reminded the Council of her husband's loyal conduct until the death of Sir William Drury. Then, Eleanor contends, Sir Nicholas Malby was allowed free rein in Munster and 'the place of Justice was void. Malbie', she asserts, 'marched therewith into my husbands countrie, murdered certaine of his men, toke and spoyled certaine of his castles, burned within houses old men and children and within churches bourned certaine monuments of his ancestors and, a thinge which', as Eleanor asserts, 'greeved him most, openlie called him a traytor within the cytye of Lymerick.'\n\nEleanor grasps the opportunity to explain how both she and her husband had been denied access to the Privy Council by English officials in Ireland. Despite her husband's promise to disassociate himself from those whom she describes as 'his unnaturall biethern and the traitor Saunders', and the delivery of their son to the Crown, her husband had been left with no option but to join in the rebellion or be overrun. For her own part, she declares that after her husband had been publicly proclaimed a traitor, she had indicated to Pelham and Ormond that she wished to leave Munster and go to the Queen, but this had been denied her. She puts on record her suspicions concerning the evil intent of her brother-in-law, Sir John of Desmond, who, she claims,\n\n_since the tyme I was married and especiallie settens yt shall be please God to send my husband a sonne . . . hathe allwaies enveyied the prosperitie of my husband and by all meanes sought both in Englande and here to throwe him into some action, wherebie he might incure her Maties indignaction hopinge thereby (as nowe he doth manifest havinge shott at the marke which longe he desired) to come by the Erledome as with hope he hathe ben alwaies prevented by my meanes and the actions of those that loved my husband._\n\nIn her letter Eleanor fearlessly apportioned the blame for her husband's rebellion, as she adjudged it, on both sides: on the provocative actions of Pelham and Malby on the one hand, and on the greed and jealousy of her husband's brothers on the other, while in between lay the devious aspirations and plots of Ormond, Sanders and the rest. Winter accepted her missive for the Privy Council and promised, when the opportunity arose, he would have it delivered. Eleanor later rejoined her husband, determined to keep him alive until either the hoped-for Spanish aid arrived or her letter produced a pardon from Elizabeth.\n\nMeanwhile the hunt continued unabated. There was to be no respite for the rebel Irish earl and his adherents. From the sod cabins of the lowliest kern to cold mountain caves, to the dens of wild animals, the Earl and Countess of Desmond crept stealthily. With a handful of faithful attendants, like 'deere they laie upon their keepings and so fearfull they were, that they would not tarrie in anie one place anie long time but where they did dress their meat, then they would remove and eat it in another place to lie'. They ranged over the more mountainous and marshy parts of Munster. At times her husband had to be carried on a pallet while, ever watchful, Eleanor rode at the head of the band, ready to sound the alarm at the first sight of danger. She endured many narrow escapes from pursuing English scouting parties, on the watch for her in the hope that by finding her they might also discover the earl's whereabouts. 'We had the Countess of Desmond in chase two myles', captain Bouchier of the Kilmallock garrison reported, 'and myssinge her selfe took a great prey of three hundred kyne from her.' It became too risky to travel by day. Too many eyes, both native and foreign, sought the fugitives, to secure the silver on their heads. Munster was pockmarked with English garrisons from which scouting parties daily emerged to scour the countryside, while the earl's own followers cursed their overlord and blamed him for the ruination of crops, the seizure of livestock and for their hunger. But the main thrust of their anger was directed against Dr Sanders. Even in the earl's company he became reviled by the people for his hollow promises of Spanish arms and gold. The earl's authority alone protected him, and now for reasons that had little to do with a religious crusade.\n\nDuring the summer many of the Earl of Desmond's erstwhile allies, including the Earl of Clancar, O'Sullivan Beare and O'Sullivan More, O'Callaghan and O'Donoghue, submitted to Pelham. Rumours of the likely appointment of a new lord deputy began to circulate. Pelham redoubled his efforts in his attempt to capture the rebel earl and his family.\n\n_I give the rebels no breath to relieve themselves [he boasted to the Queen] but by one of your garrisons or other they be continually hunted. I keep them from their harvest and have taken great preys of cattle from them by which it seemeth the poor people that lived only upon labour and fed by their milch cows are so distressed as they follow their goods and offer themselves with their wives and children rather to be slain by the army than to suffer the famine that now in extremity beginneth to pinch them_.\n\nAs Pelham reported, the first signs of a serious famine had appeared, as the devastated land and terrified people succumbed to the awful consequences of the long war.\n\nSuddenly the focus of political attention was diverted from Munster to the hitherto loyal English Pale, where James Eustace, Viscount Baltinglass, aided by Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne, raised the papal banner high over Leinster. This latest revolt was part of the wider intensification of the counter-reformation movement abroad. Jesuit agents, Parsons and Campion, had been smuggled into England and were actively exhorting English Catholics to rebel for faith and freedom. The objectives of the Counter-Reformation were espoused by Baltinglass who, unlike the Earl of Desmond, exemplified the true reforming zeal of the movement. Urged on by Dr Sanders, with whom he had been in contact, Baltinglass now displaced the Earl of Desmond and moved centre-stage in the revolutionary crusade. He exhorted Sir John and Dr Sanders to join him and move the thrust of the crusade to Leinster. Sir John had little patience or respect for his sickly brother, while Sanders had detected a marked falling-off in the earl's crusading fervour. The earl might well be the chosen receptacle for the seeds of the most holy revolution, but his true motives seemed to derive from more worldly and material considerations. The real crusading spirit of the Counter-Reformation appeared to Dr Sanders to be embodied in Viscount Baltinglass and Sanders secretly made plans to make his way to County Wicklow.\n\nDespite the events in Leinster, there was no respite from Pelham in Munster. Deserted by both relatives and allies, Eleanor interceded again with Pelham, tracing him to Askeaton, where he received her amid the ruins of her castle home. The harrowing circumstances of her life during the past year had taken their toll on the haggard figure who knelt before the Lord Justice to again plead her husband's cause. But the resolute and pitiless faces of Pelham and his assistant, Geoffrey Fenton, were mirrored in Fenton's report of the meeting: 'The Countess came in . . . but with the same impudencie wherewith she hath covered her face since her last breaking out with her husband; yet taketh she uppon her to worke hym to submission.' Pelham would not relent. Again he refused Eleanor permission to present her husband's case at court. There was no option but to keep the field, survive the winter and hope that the rumours that had begun to circulate about Pelham's impending recall proved true.\n\nMeantime Pelham's harassment continued unabated as he sought to isolate the fugitives from their remaining supporters. It was rumoured that Sir John had secretly conspired with Sir Warham St Leger, the newly appointed provost-marshal of Munster, to betray his brother and secure a pardon for himself, while Rory MacSheehy, a captain of the Desmond galloglass, was urged by Pelham to capture Dr Sanders. Pelham warned Lord FitzMorris not to succour the fugitives. 'You have had in your country', he wrote to him, 'the traitor earl, his wife, his brother and Sanders, whom you might have apprehended if you had listed.' To ensure FitzMorris's future actions, Pelham informed him that his two sons were to be detained 'until I may see some service done by you in delivering up some of the principal conspirators above named, dead or alive'.\n\nWhile the whispers and rumours flew, Garrett's half-brother, Sir James 'Sussex', was wounded on a plundering raid in Muskerry and captured by the Sheriff of Cork. He was delivered in chains to St Leger and imprisoned in Cork goal. After two months of physical and mental torture, Sir James was executed in October 1580, as St Leger reported to the Privy Council: 'Sir James of Desmond who (by direction of the Lord Deputie) I caused to be hanged drawen and quartered at the gates of this town . . . who yeelded to godward a better end than otherwise would have don if he had not dyed to death.' James had pleaded for summary decapitation. But the twenty-two-year-old rebel had instead to suffer the ignoble and gruesome form of execution reserved for traitors. He had faced his ordeal bravely. The English administration in Dublin noted his death and merely observed that 'the pestilent hydra hath lost another of his heads'.\n\nIn September 1580 Arthur, Baron Grey de Wilton took office as Lord Deputy. Pelham reluctantly surrendered the sword of office in the knowledge that he had failed to complete his mission against the Earl of Desmond and that the methods he had employed in Munster had found little favour at Court. Moreover, Admiral Winter had kept his word to Eleanor, and her letter had eventually reached the Queen. Elizabeth had little time for the Puritan fanaticism of Pelham and his kind, particularly where such zeal cost her money. Where loyalty could be purchased, even for a time, Elizabeth was willing to overlook political and religious shortcomings. She had scant regard for the Earl of Desmond; she cursed him roundly for being a drain on her resources, and wished him dead or in exile. Yet the Countess of Desmond's letter made the Queen question the appropriateness of Pelham's precipitate actions against the earl and his subsequent policy of annihilation which had accomplished little but to devastate one-quarter of her Irish realm. Pelham felt bitter about the criticism. His companion and aide, Sir Nicholas Malby, protested to the Queen's secretary on his behalf. It was unjustifiable, Malby stated,\n\n_that the wordes of an infamous woman, the wyfe of a proclaymed traytor herselfe a nowtorious traytoress, the great worcker of these wicked rebellions in the popes behalf should cary their credyt to deface the faythfull service of a dutyfull and honest servant_.\n\nBut Pelham's day had come and gone. Elizabeth dismissed his protests as more urgent and disturbing events unfolded.\n\nThe new, untried but impatient Lord Deputy carried the fight to Baltinglass and Fiach MacHugh O'Byrne, deep in the recesses of the Wicklow mountains, and thereby paid the penalty. At Glenmalure the O'Byrne kern and galloglass decimated Grey's raw English recruits. The effects of the victory were instantaneous. In the north O'Rourke and O'Donnell rose in revolt, while Turlough Luineach O'Neill prepared to attack the Pale with an army of 5,000 clansmen. His rival, the English-educated Hugh O'Neill, the Baron of Dungannon, hid himself in the woods and loudly protested his loyalty to Elizabeth 'even if all the Irishry in Ireland should rebel'. Sir John of Desmond besieged Maryborough and Ormond was attacked by the rebels. To add to the explosive situation Spanish aid arrived, undetected, at the ill-fated harbour of Smerwick.\n\nThe news of the uprisings and the arrival of the long-awaited aid from Spain spurred Eleanor and Garrett into action. The years of intrigue and subterfuge, of tears and humiliation, of deprivation, hunger and loss, seemed at last likely to be vindicated. The long, lonely vigil was over. The King of Spain had kept his word; the army of salvation had arrived. As they urged their horses over the steep mountain passes towards Dingle, the depression and misery of their situation momentarily lifted and Garrett swore to avenge the wrongs they had suffered. As they topped the last hill before the descent to D\u00fan an \u00d3ir, the promontory fort standing stark and windswept against the sea, their elation turned to disbelief. Instead of the army of well-appointed troops promised by Sanders, they saw a force of 700 'poor simple bisognos, very ragged and a great part of them boys'. Philip had sent aid to the crusaders in Ireland, but his interests in the Low Countries took precedence. It was significant that the majority of the troops were Italian. With the soldiers was Friar Mateo de Oviedo, the apostolic commissary, Friar Cornelius O'Mulrian, the papal Bishop of Killaloe, and some Jesuit preachers.\n\nIll-clothed and totally inexperienced in warfare, the soldiers quickly succumbed to the cold and damp of the Irish climate. Their leader, Sebastino di San Joseppi from Bologna, was equally incredulous to learn that the pale, sickly man who had to be lifted off his horse was the great Irish crusader who was to lead them to victory against the army of the English heretic queen. Philip had sent sufficient arms for the 4,000-strong army promised him by the Earl of Desmond and Dr Sanders. Where was this great army the Italians wanted to know? They were assured that over the hills the army waited. But San Joseppi would never know that beyond the high peak of Slieve Mish lay a people decimated by war and famine, too hungry and unwilling to bear arms in a cause they did not understand.\n\nA massive confidence trick had been practised by both sides, for which each would pay a costly price. Sir John and Dr Sanders hurried to Smerwick and sent urgent messages back to Philip to the effect that nothing less than 8,000 well-equipped, experienced troops could ensure the success of the crusade. Rashly Garrett also outlined to the king the miserable circumstances of his situation, the seizure of his estates, his poverty, and how both he and his countess were daily driven from pillar to post in their own estates by the army of Philip's heretic sister-in-law. The effect of this plaintive tale on the cold, reserved king was no more than an indifferent shrug of the black-caped shoulders and a detached resolve to pursue Christ's crusade elsewhere, under the leadership of a less distressed leader.\n\nReports of the 'invasion' reached Dublin where Lord Deputy Grey, impatient to blot out the embarrassment of Glenmalure, joined forces with the Earl of Ormond and made for Dingle. The Golden Fort might yet provide him with the chance to restore his tarnished image. In Grey's army were Walter Raleigh, captains Zouche and Mackworth, while the poet Edmund Spenser acted as the Lord Deputy's secretary. At the beginning of November Grey pitched camp at Dingle. As the English army approached, the Desmond leaders and their supporters hurried away with empty promises of aid to the Italians. Admiral Winter sailed into Smerwick and cut off any chance of escape by sea. The siege of D\u00fan an \u00d3ir commenced. Initially the Italians flew the papal insignia from the fort. As the siege intensified, it was replaced by a black and white banner, a signal to the Geraldine army to attack the English in the rear. No army materialised and the Geraldine leaders remained hidden. The Italians sued for terms, but Grey would only consider an unconditional surrender, to which, it was controversially reported, San Joseppi agreed. Grey, the hero of Spenser's _Faerie Queene_ , the brave knight Artegal, then ordered Raleigh and Mackworth to implement, to the letter of the law, the prevailing rules of sixteenth-century warfare. The unarmed survivors of the siege, with the exception of a handful of officers, were mercilessly slaughtered.\n\nSix hundred died at Smerwick, a dreadful indictment of the subhuman cruelty of warfare, and the tragedy of broken promises and incomprehensible and ineffectual alliances. San Joseppi and his inexperienced youths were the sacrificial victims of the deviousness of international politics, fuelled by the raging flames of religious fanaticism. The shame of D\u00fan an \u00d3ir must rest on the Puritan shoulders of Lord Deputy Grey, but also on Dr Sanders and the Earl of Desmond, whose rash and empty promises had first lured and then abandoned the Italians to their fate. While Grey's action at Smerwick was sharply criticised by some factions at the English court, the Queen viewed it merely as a removal of another threat to the security of her realm. Accordingly she thanked and commended Grey for his endeavours. It is significant to note that there was no official remonstration by the Catholic powers, who, if the positions were reversed, would have probably acted likewise.\n\nFor Garrett Smerwick was the final, fateful step which placed him beyond all hope of redemption. His action made reconciliation with the Queen now virtually impossible. He had aroused the deepest anger in Elizabeth as he turned her greatest fear into stark reality by bringing England's most dreaded enemy into Ireland; for that the Queen would never forgive him. Garrett's great gamble had failed, and the fortunes of war were once again in England's favour. The risk of Spanish intervention in Ireland receded; the honour of the Crown had been bloodily restored; Turlough O'Neill no longer threatened the Pale; the Burkes of Connaught had been subdued; and Viscount Baltinglass, his cause clearly lost, was attempting to flee to the continent. Hope abounded that the tiresome Earl of Desmond might do likewise.\n\nFor Eleanor the d\u00e9b\u00e2cle of Smerwick proved her long-held misgivings. Dr Sanders and his religious crusade had pushed Garrett onto the wrong horse. But a strange change now occurred in her husband. After Smerwick the earl had parted company with Dr Sanders, each embittered by his brief association with the other. Released from the pretence of espousing a cause in which he had no real interest, Garrett reverted to the cause which was life itself to him, the defence of the power and privilege of his title. The Queen, who after Smerwick considered the earl to be of little consequence, was amazed when it was reported that the Earle of Desmond, who was thought to be either dead or fled, 'beginneth to appear and to show himselfe, having assembled a great companie.' The foreign 'P\u00e1pa ab\u00fa!' exhortation of the crusade was replaced by the native war-cry of 'Shanid ab\u00fa!' as the Earl of Desmond prepared to lead his followers in the only real crusade he knew.\n\nFor Dr Sanders the long, dismal, aimless campaign in Ireland finally exacted its price. Totally disillusioned with the Gaelic leaders and their Gaelic ways, so different from the glorious crusade envisaged by FitzMaurice, the sodden woods and oozing bogs of Kerry had sapped the fiery zeal and burning energy of the scholarly agitator. While English steel for three long years had diligently sought his head, ironically it was the Irish ague and famine that eventually killed 'the supporting pillar of the Catholic faith' somewhere among the briary thickets of Clonlish wood in the damp spring of 1581.\n\nWhile Eleanor might well have been amazed at the change in her husband and his determination to continue the rebellion, her amazement was compounded by the policy of peace and reconciliation suddenly being preached by his bitter rival, the Earl of Ormond. For years Ormond had opposed and plotted against Garrett and aided officers of the Crown in the spoliation of his estates. The extent and ferocity of the expeditions perpetrated by the new breed of English officials and soldiers in Ireland now alarmed him. Munster had already suffered more than enough. But Grey and the avaricious freebooting captains in his retinue, eager for the spoils of war, would not be stopped. While the Earl of Desmond's estates and property were now easy pickings, Ormond could not help but wonder whether the greed and lust for land of the new breed of English military conquistadores would stop short at the lands of his enemy. Might equally greedy eyes be eventually cast on his own domain and questions raised regarding his extensive powers? Black Tom had to tread warily lest his hesitancy be interpreted as disloyalty and his estates subjected to the same fate as those of Desmond.\n\nDuring the winter months of 1580\u201381 Eleanor lay low. Garrett was determined to continue the fight, and his rekindled resolution had also tended to make him stronger physically. Consequently when, in April 1581, the Countess of Desmond and her sister presented themselves to Ormond at Cork city, the reasons for their appearance were again open to conjecture. Ormond authorised protections for both women. Eleanor was examined before the Munster Commissioners, among whom was her former jailer in London, Sir Warham St Leger. Asked if she came on her husband's behalf, she replied 'that she was not authorised by him to sue for him but did it of her owne head'. She was then escorted back to her lodgings with instructions to commit her petition to paper. Ormond permitted her sister to depart to live under the custody of her brother, the Baron of Dunboyne. The real reasons for Eleanor's unexpected appearance at Cork became apparent. Her husband was determined to continue a campaign in which she had suffered immeasurably and, it was reasonable to assume, she could take no more of the physical fatigue and mental anguish. But her written petition reflects a more likely reason: that she might find in Ormond, who now also wished for a cessation of hostilities, a likely means to achieve access to the Queen. Despite his new-found pride and determination, she realised that her husband could not hold out much longer.\n\nIn her letter Eleanor requested permission to take her case to the Queen so 'that my travell maye be a meanes to brede a generall quiet into this province and precure mercie to my husbande nowe driven to distresse'. She did not directly request a pardon for her husband, as Garrett had forfeited that right by aligning himself with a foreign power. She merely requested that she be permitted to seek the Queen's mercy for herself and her husband. Her dilemma, she stated, was such that 'as nature tyeth me to the companie of my Lord my husbande (who so unhapely is fallen into her Maties heavie displeasure) yet', she assured them, 'my dutie remembered to her Matie'. She pleaded for the welfare and safety of her daughters who had suffered considerable distress and want during the course of their young lives. 'I doe also beseche your wisdom', she asked, 'that I may take my daughters with me into England or els to leave them with my ffrendes untyll my retorne out of England . . . to remaine free and not as prisoners.'\n\nOrmond forwarded her petition to the Lord Deputy and Council in Dublin, where it was received and endorsed by Grey's secretary, Edmund Spenser. Spenser was influenced in writing his epic _The Faerie Queene_ by his term of service with Lord Grey in Ireland and, it is believed, he based the character of the evil temptress Radigund on Eleanor. Grey and his Council were unmoved by Eleanor's petition and recoiled in assumed horror at what they termed 'so arrogant a petition made without submission or confession of her husband's horrible treason and her owne'. They accused her of\n\n_the treason of bringing in of strangers into this realme by the practize of her husband, and by all conjecture much furdered by her, hath in all reasonable opinion so aggravated her former offences as we see lesse cause nowe than before to graunt a matter so offensive to her highness_.\n\nGrey sought to continue the policy of his predecessor Pelham, to ensure that the Earl of Desmond would have no option but to continue in his rebellion, so that there could be no last-minute pardon from the Queen. Half a million acres of land was at stake, far too lucrative a prize to have snatched away by the tears of the rebel's wife. Grey ordered that Eleanor be sent back to her husband so that her presence might slow him down; otherwise, he argued, 'he maie go with as few companie as pleaseth him from wood to wood and from bogg to bogg or to Spaine or Scotland when to warrant further help . . . but', Grey reasoned, 'having hir in his train he cannot chuse whether he leaveth or goe'. It was Grey's opinion that the Earl of Desmond 'hath more care for the said Countesse and her traine to leave them than he hath of himself'.\n\nEleanor's case was not helped by the actions of Sir Warham St Leger, already with a foothold in Desmond land which he hoped to extend. His differences with the Earl of Ormond at this time were common knowledge; any sign that Black Tom favoured the rebel's wife would likely be seized upon by St Leger as proof of his disloyalty. He wrote to Lord Burghley, the Queen's chief secretary, to add a further impediment to Eleanor's passage to the Queen:\n\n_In my simple opinion, ther can no good growe of her going thither. I vow to God . . . I know her to bee as wicked a woman as ever was bred in Ireland and one that hath ben the chief instrument of her husband's rebellion. And if she bee licensed to go out, your lordship shall doo as good an act as ever you did in your life to this realme to cause hir hed to be stroken of or else to be kept in perpetuall ymprisonment_.\n\nThe cries of the avaricious became more strident against the slightest possibility which might deprive them of the prize so near their grasp. With the weight of official opinion firmly against her, Eleanor knew she was fighting a losing battle in her attempt to gain access to the Queen. Ormond was powerless, even if he wished, to help her and Grey accused him of dangerous and suspicious tendencies and relieved him of his position as military governor of Munster. He also persuaded the Queen to exclude the Earl and Countess of Desmond and Sir John of Desmond from any amnesty. Thus, with Ormond sidelined and Eleanor barred from England, Grey ensured that the devastation in Munster would continue until the Earl of Desmond was taken dead or alive in rebellion. The scent of potential riches wafted stronger than the acrid stench of decaying corpses and scorched earth as the eager English bloodhounds leapt from the slips and tore after their prey.\n\nEleanor rejoined her husband in the wilderness for the final agonising phase of the war. She had done everything in her power to salvage something, anything, from the ruins. Stalked like wild beasts, she and Garrett went to ground. The long winter months of 1581\u20132 were, according to the annals, notable for 'great wind, constant rain, lightning and much tempestuous weather'. Like demented spectres they flitted across the decayed Munster landscape. They were pursued without respite by captain Zouche, an eager, uncompromising officer in the Munster service. He reported that he had almost caught the countess on several occasions, but Eleanor had merely lured his posse away from where her husband lay, too exhausted to flee further.\n\nTo the English soldiers who pursued her, the Countess of Desmond became an obsessive figure, dominating their gossip and nightmares. Stories of her evil, devious ways were peddled from camp-fire to camp-fire. She became the object of their fear, hatred and lust; the she-devil, the mythical harpy, a wanton woman. Was it true that under the pretence of seeking pardon from the Lord Deputy she had spied for the rebels? Was it not whispered that she was a witch? What self-respecting woman\u2014and a countess to boot\u2014would willingly live like a wild animal in the woods and bogs of this godforsaken country? The soldiers savagely cursed her as the incessant rain soaked them to the skin and quenched their camp-fires. They swore at her as they spat the spoiled biscuit and chewed the tainted, uncooked meat of their rations. They cursed her and the country that gave her birth as they vomited their guts out and shivered uncontrollably with ague and dysentery amid the oozing marshes and frozen mountain passes of Munster. Was it true that she traded her favours easily? The redrimmed, hungry eyes of the war-weary soldiers gloated at the prospect of her capture.\n\nIn the middle of a cold, misty November night the soldiers' desire was almost fulfilled. A scouting party from the nearby garrison at Kilmallock came upon an isolated wattle cabin hidden deep in a wood. Eleanor, her nerves as taut as the strings of a crossbow, heard the sound of movement outside. She roused her exhausted husband. There was no time to awaken the galloglass, who, shrouded in their great woollen cloaks, were asleep under the surrounding trees. Supporting her husband, Eleanor stumbled from the cabin and into the darkness. The clansmen sprang to arms and engaged the English soldiers in a fierce battle. Desperately Eleanor looked for an escape. Before her was the dark outline of a river, swollen by the winter deluges. Behind her the victorious shouts of the English as they put the galloglass to flight. There was no escape. Quickly she helped Garrett to the river bank and into the ice-cold water. The river rose almost to their chins which with difficulty they kept above the fast-flowing current. Hidden from sight by the overhanging bank, they waited. The soldiers surrounded the cabin, and captain Zouche entered to effect the capture of the wretched fugitives. A makeshift bed stood in the corner, the coverings still warm to the touch.\n\nZouche ordered a search for the occupants, convinced that they were still in the vicinity. The soldiers spread out. They came to the river and searched in the undergrowth above the bank. Beneath them Eleanor held the sagging body of her husband afloat, her body almost numb in the icy water. She could scarcely breathe. Finally Zouche called off the search, and in silent agony Eleanor waited until the last sounds of the English posse faded and the strong arms of the surviving galloglass came to her rescue to lift her from the river. Returning to the cabin, they found that Eleanor's clothing had been ripped to pieces and trampled into the mud by the frustrated soldiers. There was no time to recover. A voluminous Irish woollen mantle was wrapped about each of them, and they were carried into the night by the faithful Desmond retainers to seek another temporary shelter before sunrise.\n\nWhile Zouche was to be again denied the capture of the elusive earl and countess, it was he who was destined to draw first blood in the renewed campaign at the beginning of 1582. Since the massacre at Smerwick, the subsequent death of Dr Sanders and the flight to the continent of Baltinglass, Sir John of Desmond had remained in Munster. In early January he set out to rendezvous with the Seneschal of Imokilly near Castlelyons, County Cork. On information received from a spy, Zouche lay in wait and, in the ensuing struggle, Sir John was killed by a spear thrown by his former servant named Fleming. Thus the life of a turbulent, unscrupulous and bold Geraldine was brought to a bloody end. Sir John was the most active leader of the Geraldines and, while he could be accused of many dark deeds and even darker designs, there was a certain decisiveness about his actions, in marked contrast to the vacillations of his elder brother. His antagonism to Eleanor and the deep mutual dislike that existed between them stemmed from many causes. Her Butler origins perhaps aroused his Geraldine prejudice; he resented her influence over Garrett; furthermore, she had borne his sickly brother an heir, thereby eliminating his own chances of succession.\n\nThe decapitated body of Sir John of Desmond was hung in chains over the main gate of Cork city. There it remained for almost three years, a grisly spectacle, until the skeletal remains were blown away into the river by a storm. Zouche despatched the head as a new year's gift to Grey in Dublin, while the Queen was presented with Sir John's 'fair torquoise [ring] set in gold'. His estates in County Cork were later granted to captain Thomas Norris and Sir Walter Raleigh, while the poet Edmund Spenser received the castle and lands of Kilcolman. The war-mongers and war correspondents of the long campaign were amply rewarded for their efforts.\n\nThe Earl of Desmond alone remained to carry on the resistance. It was confidently expected that he would capitulate. But the earl rarely did what was expected of him. There was to be no surrender on his part. Moreover, the remaining Geraldine supporters clung to him as their sole means of salvation. If the earl received a pardon, it would be conditional, and preserve his life only. The estates of his dependent lords and clansmen were likely to be expropriated and parcelled out to the land-hungry English freebooters as payment for their services. The earl had no option but to continue the rebellion, or at least stay alive, until aid came from abroad or until Elizabeth relented. Garrett had become a prisoner of his heritage and during 1582 his liegemen and followers once more flocked to his banner. There was growing unease at the continued policy of spoliation being pursued in Munster. Even former perpetrators of the destruction, hardened campaigners like Raleigh and St Leger, now echoed the Earl of Ormond's reservations for which they had previously condemned him. They expressed concern over the scorched-earth policy of Grey when it seemed likely that the Desmond estates might be forfeited and divided among themselves. Elizabeth swore at her Lord Deputy who, despite the resources she had given him, had accomplished little. Desmond, the 'arch-rebel', still roamed free, and Munster was desolate.\n\nThe earl still held out and, as one observer noted, 'he continued still in his old accustomed spoiling and wasting the countries and trusting to no house nor castell did shrow himselfe in woods and bogs'. From his hiding-place, deep in the Glen of Aherlow, the earl reverted to attacks on his hereditary enemy, raiding the nearby lands of Ormond and skirmishing occasionally with the English patrols sent to track him down. Eleanor continued to accompany him and, as late as June 1582, Zouche reported yet another running encounter with the Countess of Desmond, whom he claimed he had 'distressed'.\n\nAlthough not named with Garrett in the original proclamation of 1579, Eleanor had loyally shared his hunted existence and had been on the run with him for over two years, enduring the greatest hardships imaginable. Her physical and mental health was near breaking-point. Her devotion and loyalty had been tried and tested in the icy waters of Munster's marshes and rivers, on the cold floors of huts and caves, in hunger and in the countless sleepless nights, when every rustle and stir in the dark heralded the end. She had faced the wrath and vengeance of the Crown as she strove to intercede and negotiate on her husband's behalf. Whether physically unable to bear the strain any longer, or, as is more likely, in yet another effort to intercede and seek some terms by which Garrett might yet surrender and survive, Eleanor appeared before Lord Deputy Grey at the English camp near Maryborough on 15 June 1582. Grey was moved by the emaciated woman who, in dirty ragged clothing, courageously stood before him to plead her husband's case. But with his usual self-righteousness and sense of duty, 'yet weighing the nature and quallitie of her actions and howe farre she might participate in the trayterous councelles and conspiracies of her husband', he had her conducted 'to the house of an honest merchant of Dublin there to remeine in estate of a prysoner untill . . . we might be directed how to dispose of her further'.\n\nIn semi-captivity in Dublin, Eleanor awaited her chance to intervene on her husband's behalf. But by now Elizabeth and her Privy Council wanted an end to the war, and an end to the troublesome Earl of Desmond. There were to be no further negotiations or time- wasting interventions. Walsingham instructed Grey to withdraw the protection he had given Eleanor and ordered that she was 'to retourne back agayne to her said husband within a certain tyme', after which 'if shee happen to bee taken she must then bee subject to such punishment as the laws will laye uppon her for her conduct'. The Crown demanded the unconditional surrender of the Earl of Desmond so that his estates and property could be used to pay the expenses incurred by the war. His death, however, would also bring the same result. In the somewhat na\u00efve belief that Grey shared his desire for rapprochement, Walsingham advised him:\n\n_You should appoint some such person to delyver unto the countesse by wave of friendly advice that if she could persuade the said Earle her husband to come in and submitt him selfe simplie to her Maties mercie, the only waye hee can nowe take for his safetie, the Queen might then consider not only to leave him his liefe but also to use some further clemencie towardes him_.\n\nBut Grey neglected to put the Queen's offer to Eleanor, who was unaware that it had been made until some time later. Neither Grey nor his administration wished for any last-minute chances of reconciliation. Fortunes and reputations were at stake.\n\nDuring the summer months of 1582, while Eleanor awaited her fate in Dublin, she was allowed to visit her son, still incarcerated in Dublin castle. James was now eleven years of age, and Eleanor was greatly distressed at the conditions under which he was being detained. She wrote to Lord Burghley and reminded him that she had voluntarily placed her son in the Crown's care, but that the 'boy now remaineth in the Castell of Dublin, without any kynd of learninge or brenginge upp or any to attend uppon him. . . . In consideracion of his innocency and tender yeares', she asked that he should be transferred from the unsuitable environment of the Castle and sent to England where, she hoped, someone in power might take a friendly interest in his welfare and future. As her husband had forfeited his chance of retaining his title and estates, it was an appropriate time to remind the Crown of the existence of his son. If her husband's estates were attainted Eleanor hoped the Queen might agree to restore at least part of them, together with the hereditary Desmond title, to his son when he came of age, as she had done in the case of his kinsman the Earl of Kildare. An English education and upbringing, as with Hugh O'Neill, might be the way to ensure her son's eventual succession to his inheritance. Her request for her son's removal to England was subsequently granted.\n\nForced to rejoin her husband on the run, Eleanor protested to the authorities against the decision which, she maintained, 'above all things in this world she abhoreth and ever hath and the greatest thing against her nature and bringing upp'. She again asked to be allowed to plead her case before the Queen, but the stern, immovable faces of Grey and the Council gave her her answer. The unconditional surrender of her husband was the only outcome they were prepared to accept. Wearily Eleanor returned to Garrett with the 'offer' of the Lord Deputy and Council. Infuriated, Garrett stepped up the tempo of his campaign against the Crown. He had now simply nothing to lose. A demonstration of power might yet induce the Crown to offer better terms to bring an end to the conflict. Moreover, the old Geraldine pride had been once again ignited, as he mounted his horse to instil the fire of battle into his war-weary liege lords and famine-stricken followers. All Geraldines who defied his call to arms were summarily dealt with. When informed that four of them had accepted Crown pardons, he ordered their arrest. They were brought before him and, it was reported, 'calling them traitors, he had them stripped naked and slashed to death by his kinsmen, every sword in the band taking part in their death'. 'So shall every Geraldine be served who shall not follow me,' the rebel earl decreed. His actions shed the last vestiges of the pseudo-ideologies that had motivated him previously. The ageold aspirations for supremacy and independence resurfaced as the Earl of Desmond mustered his hereditary men-at-arms in a final attempt to halt the march of time. 'Misery had given the man courage. . . . English ruthlessness threw him back into the life mould of the Gaelic captain.'\n\nSignificantly, as he had begun, Garrett took the fight to the territory of his rival, Black Tom of Ormond, and plundered Tipperary along the Suir valley to the borders of Waterford. At Knockgraffon, near Cahir, he soundly defeated Ormond's brothers to put a winning touch on the age-old Desmond-Ormond feud. He was supreme in the palatinate of Kerry, where the English garrisons cowered for cover. Garrett's old ally, the Seneschal of Imokilly, plundered east Cork and west Waterford and looted the Earl of Ormond's grand new house at Carrick-on-Suir. The starving kern and weary galloglass flocked to the Earl of Desmond's standard in one final furious drive in defence of the archaic world that had bred and sustained them. Their overlord for the first time assumed the dignity and stature of a hero and, as such, was destined to become a legend in folk memory.\n\nBy now Eleanor's term of protection from Grey was drawing to an end. She had failed\u2014perhaps she had not wanted to succeed\u2014in persuading Garrett to seek a conference with the Lord Deputy and Council, who were now agreeable 'to meet the erle 20 myles from Dublin if shee by any persuasion may drawe her husband thither'. Eleanor requested an extension of her protection, and this was granted. She also asked for a ten-day truce for Garrett and his followers, but this was denied. Eleanor brought three of her daughters, Margaret, Joan and Katherine, into Cork city and obtained Crown protection for them. There she was enveloped in a web of intrigue and double-dealing. She obtained an interview with Sir Warham St Leger, who informed her that Garrett's life might be spared but that his restoration was not negotiable. St Leger knew better than anyone that such terms were repugnant to the earl, and, in any event, he had no desire to see the earl reconciled with the Crown and risk losing a slice of the Desmond estates.\n\nAt the same time as his offer to Eleanor, St Leger warned the Privy Council in England: 'Desmond if received to mercy, will ever be a hollow-hearted subject.' He informed the Queen that Desmond had embarked on a new conspiracy with Spain and was planning another invasion. But Elizabeth was weary of the long campaign and was still susceptible 'to have the rebellion ended without blood'. She urged that Desmond be induced to surrender. But too much blood had already been shed, and the Queen's hopes were frustrated by her officers' greed, as well as by the earl's new-found enthusiasm for the fight.\n\nIt is ironic that the saga of the fall of the House of Desmond should be terminated by the self-same feud with which it had started. While Elizabeth had run out of money, ideas, and patience regarding the Desmond rebellion, the old rivalry between two Irish lords would achieve what her best administrators and military men had failed to do. And thus she left it to her old friend, Black Tom, to bring the bitter war to an end. Despite the misgivings of her officials in Ireland, she appointed him Lord General, with a force of a thousand soldiers and power to grant pardons to all rebels in the Earl of Desmond's camp. By this time the plight of Munster had become desperate. The famine raging there for many months now spread across the country to the walls of Dublin city. In Munster, particularly towards the west, the situation was beyond belief. 'The lowing of a cow or the voice of a ploughman was not heard from Dingle to the Rock of Cashel,' the annalists recorded.\n\nOrmond's plan was to confine the Earl of Desmond to one locality, preferably within Kerry, which had suffered particularly severely from famine. From Clonmel, Ormond drove Garrett, Eleanor and their followers before him westward, while the English garrisons of Limerick and Kilmallock attacked Desmond's seneschal. One by one the earl's allies deserted him and accepted the pardons offered. The Baron of Lixnaw submitted, as did lords Roche and Barry. The greatest blow to the Desmond cause came when Garrett's long-time ally, the Seneschal of Imokilly, fearful for the welfare of his only son, then in the custody of St Leger, made his submission to the Earl of Ormond.\n\nDeserted, but for a few galloglass and retainers, Garrett and Eleanor made the exhausting journey once more over the mountains into Kerry and were hunted day and night without respite. Eleanor's female attendants were captured by the soldiers while, aided by a heavy fog, Eleanor and Garrett barely effected their escape. Garrett's health had further deteriorated, and the galloglass now took turns to carry their lord on their shoulders to evade the relentless hunters who sniffed the scent of the kill. Eleanor sought to negotiate for terms, but Ormond would not agree to anything less than Desmond's unconditional surrender. Ormond had also joined the ever-increasing pack who clamoured for the anticipated spoils. Claiming all the Desmond estate, on the grounds that his mother was the sole heir of the eleventh Earl of Desmond, his enemies sought to discredit him at court. 'The Lord Generall', it was said, '. . . sometime useth speech of a title he hath to all Desmond's lands and seemeth to think he hath well deserved the same, though he had no title thereunto.'\n\nThe extent of the despair and the hopeless sense of isolation of the Earl of Desmond was revealed in his unprecedented appeal for help to his bitter rival Ormond. Abandoned in the wilderness by his friends, he now turned to his enemy as a last resort:\n\n_As I may not condemn myself of disloyalty to her Majesty, [he wrote to Ormond] so cannot I excuse my faults, but must confess that I have incurred her Majestie's indignation; yet when the cause and means which were found and devised to make me commit folly shall be known to her Highness, I rest in an assured hope that her most gracious Majestie will both think of me as my heart deserveth and also of those that wrung me into undutifulness, as their cunning devise deserveth_.\n\nAs Black Tom qualified for the latter category, he refused Desmond's offer to parley without first receiving his total surrender. In vain Eleanor pleaded Garrett's abhorrence to be 'destrainte of libertie, a thing' which she well knew 'he can not indure for he acounteth it more greyvous than death'. But Ormond's reply was to pursue the campaign with increased ferocity. The tally of 'traitors put to the sword' mounted. Captains, galloglass, constables and kern fell at the hands of Ormond's army. Rumours reached Ormond that Desmond intended to escape by sea to Spain and he tracked him deep inside the palatinate of Kerry. Through Castleisland, Castlemaine and on into Dingle, Ormond's forces encountered little resistance from a people beaten by war, want and hunger and whose lord, like a wild animal, had been reduced to live in the wastelands of his once vast lordship.\n\nFinally, towards the middle of June 1583, Eleanor came before the Earl of Ormond and submitted unconditionally. Ormond reported to the Queen that the countess 'put her self holye to your majesties mercye', and added: 'This poer lady lamenteth greatlye the follye and lewdness of her husband whome reason could never rule.' While Eleanor might well have lamented, it was, perhaps, not for the reason which Ormond felt obliged to report to Elizabeth, but because she had said her final farewell to Garrett. In the wild wastes of Slieve Logher, where they had taken a last refuge together, they had decided to part. He had become hampered by her presence and needed total freedom of movement if he was to continue to evade his pursuers. At least that was the excuse he chose so that she might be spared the fate that hourly awaited him. She was the mother of his heir, whose future safety would require all her energy and intelligence, if something was to be salvaged from the ruins. Her health was beginning to feel the effects of the long years of hardship. Her durability and resilience could only be marvelled at. She had withstood, without protest, hunger and deprivation. She had shared her husband's brief glory and long humiliation. More politically able than he, she had never openly criticised his oftentimes inexplicable behaviour and actions; instead she had worked to expose the devious plots of his relatives and Crown officials; and in her dealings with the Crown she had shown no little diplomatic skill. As Garrett watched his countess disappear from view, the fighting spirit must finally have evaporated from his emaciated body. Without her, it would be as much as he could do, to hide from the bloodhounds that were fast following behind him.\n\nThe long hunt finally came to an ignoble end within the recesses of Garrett's treasured palatinate. At the beginning of November 1583 he was run to ground with about twenty of his followers in the wood of Glanageenty in the parish of Ballymacelligot, about eight kilometres east of Tralee. Ironically, in view of what was to occur there, it was the country of the O'Moriartys, among whom Garrett had been fostered as a child. His remaining galloglass captain, Goram MacSweeney, had been captured and executed by Ormond. The Earl of Desmond now lay exhausted, 'concealed in a hut, in the cavern of a rock', while his followers scoured the barren countryside for sustenance. On the southern shore of Tralee Bay they seized a number of cattle, the property of Maurice O'Moriarty, pillaged his house and assaulted his wife. The O'Moriartys were incensed and sought the assistance of the English garrison at Castlemaine.\n\nAccompanied by six English soldiers, the O'Moriartys tracked the cattle to Glanageenty. They fanned out, and one of them, Owen O'Moriarty, climbed a hill which overlooked the steep glen below. A fire flickered in the distance. As the first light of dawn on 11 November gleamed fitfully through the swirling morning mists, they attacked the camp in the glen. The guards ran for their lives. The attackers entered the cavern, where an old man was asleep on the ground beside the fire, attended by two frightened young boys and a woman. The old man roused himself. A soldier of the garrison, Daniel Kelly, lunged with his sword at the slowly rising figure, almost cutting off his arm, while another hit him a glancing blow to the head. 'I am the Earl of Desmond,' the old man cried out. The attackers were astounded. They had stumbled across the most wanted fugitive in memory. Visions of the bounty offered for his capture, dead or alive, spurred them into action before the earl's followers could regroup and return. Kelly bound the earl and they tried to drag him through the woods. But Garrett could not walk and the wound in his arm was bleeding profusely. After a hurried conference, Kelly raised his sword a second time and decapitated the earl. With the grisly trophy clutched in his hand, Kelly and the rest hurried back to Castlemaine to claim their reward.\n\nThe head of the Earl of Desmond was sent to Kilkenny, from where Ormond forwarded the prize to the Queen.\n\n_God of his goodness who be praised for ever hath answered your L. expectations [he wrote to the Privy Council] by cutting of that wicked member whose head I have thought good to send by this bearer to her Matie as a profe of the happie ende of his rebellion_.\n\nElizabeth eyed the head of the Earl of Desmond in death as coldly as when alive and ordered it to be impaled on London Bridge. Ormond ordered a search for the earl's body, but loyal Desmond retainers concealed the remains and later interred them in a small chapel at Kilnamanagh near Castleisland. The 'old' Earl of Desmond was in fact just fifty-one years of age at the time of his death.\n\nEleanor received the news of Garrett's death at Kilkenny where she resided with her daughters under the protection of the Earl of Ormond. Whether she was shown the ghastly trophy as it was prepared for despatch to England is unknown. Perhaps, despite the cruel and often barbaric customs of the time, she was spared the ultimate anguish. The sense of inevitability about the outcome of the long struggle against both time and the Crown, and the future daunting role to salvage something for herself and her family from the wreckage, perhaps helped ease the pain and sense of loss at Garrett's cruel end. She had done everything in her power to avert the catastrophe. Her wayward husband had become a prisoner of his pride, of his heritage and of the past, with dreadful consequences for himself and his family. As yet Eleanor had only begun to reap the bitter harvest he had sown.\n\n'And thus', a contemporary chronicler recorded, 'a noble race and ancient familie descended from out of the loines of princes is now for treasons and rebellions utterlie extinguished and overthrowne.' The dead earl had bequeathed a terrible legacy to Munster, to his wife and children, and to his dependent followers. 'And as for the great companies of souldiers, gallowglasses, kerne and the common people who followed the rebellion,' the chronicle continues,\n\n_the numbers of them are infinite, whose blouds the earth dranke up and whose carcases the foules of the aire and the ravening beasts of the feeld did consume and devoure. After this followed an extreme famine, and such as whom the sword did not destroie, the same did consume and eat out_.\n\nThe death of the Earl of Desmond closed the final chapter in the history of medieval Munster. In death Garrett inadvertently attained the greatness and prestige that eluded him during his life. For tradition and literature chose to depict him as one of the great symbolic patriotic figures of history. In a perceptive comment on the process, Se\u00e1n O'Faolain has written:\n\n_Natural tradition, reaching above individual human weakness, translated him into one whose equal was not in nobility, honour and power. It is fantastically untrue, and yet in its truth is the power and poetry of Ireland, and in its untruth her indifference to all her children whom she sacrifices ruthlessly to her needs_.\n\nBut the facts reveal the personal ambitions and the defects that motivated Desmond in his campaign against the Crown. The absence of any ideological stimulus does not detract from his actions. On the contrary it helps us sympathise and identify with the basic human urge to retain power and patrimony and to survive, an urge that compelled him to strive against the tide of time and give meaning to the tribalistic war-cry of his house, 'Shanid ab\u00fa!'\nChapter 8\n\nThe Pauper Countess\n\n_I and my childrin have tasted of so moche myserie_\n\n_thattt I protest unto your honnor I knowe no waye_\n\n_howe to preserve me and them from perishing by_\n\n_famyne except her Matie do nott relieve us._\n\nELEANOR, COUNTESS OF DESMOND, TO LORD BURGHLEY, 4 SEPTEMBER 1585\n\nThe death of the Earl of Desmond and the end of the rebellion were causes for public celebration in Cork, Waterford, Limerick, Galway and Dublin. Garrett's death was hailed as a joyful deliverance from years of turmoil and devastation. If a sense of loss and sadness was felt by the adherents of the House of Desmond, it was expressed in secret. The earl's allies, one by one, submitted and accepted the pardons offered them by the Earl of Ormond. The galloglass and kern hid their weapons and lay low until a new leader might emerge from the ruin and require their services in a new conflict. The terrified tenantry and peasantry crept out of the woods and mountain refuges and returned to the plough to till the despoiled land and to await the arrival of new masters. 'Munster had suffered a violent upheaval, and time was needed to organise the new departure which, from the viewpoint of the state as beneficiary of the FitzGerald collapse, the occasion demanded.' The Earl of Desmond, possessor of a great estate, had been slain _in flagrante bello_ , and this 'was deemed and constitued an immediate attainder, in which instance the heir was irrevocably bound'. Desmond's rebellion and subsequent death 'threw into the hands of the Crown the vast tracts forfeited by the earl and his adherents and which were now to be parcelled out to new possessors'. But before the spoils of victory could be distributed among the waiting freebooters and adventurers, a commission of survey was first established to determine the precise title and extent of the lands claimed by successive earls of Desmond. The potential prize, over half a million acres of Munster, was worth the brief delay.\n\nWhile the legal wrangles regarding the appropriation of her late husband's property got under way, Eleanor attempted to pick up the broken pieces of her life. She was thirty-eight years old, in the prime of life, yet with the vicissitudes and deprivations of a lifetime behind her. But her agony was not over. Her circumstances were difficult and her future uncertain. As the wife of a rebel, she could expect little sympathy for her plight. As an active participant in the rebellion, she knew that her life could yet be in jeopardy should the full force of the law be brought to bear. She rested for a time with her daughters, under the protection of the Earl of Ormond at Clonmel, and waited for the dust to settle. She was accompanied by a few female attendants, some Desmond retainers and her confidant and friend, Morris Sheehan. Her son was still a prisoner in Dublin Castle, but arrangements to have him transferred to the Tower of London were in train\u2014and for reasons other than the furtherance of his education, as Eleanor had initially requested. The rightful heir to the Desmond estates might be more easily forgotten if concealed in the tombs of the Tower, where his sequestered existence might be less likely to trouble the conscience of those about to perpetrate one of the greatest frauds in history. The prospect of salvaging something for her son from the ruins of his inheritance seemed remote, but Eleanor never dismissed a chance, no matter how slim, in the cause for which she had fought and schemed so desperately.\n\nDespite the antagonism of the Butlers towards her husband, Black Tom was content to allow her and her daughters remain in sanctuary in Ormond. He also urged the Crown to adopt a policy of reconciliation and to honour the pardons he had granted the rebels. 'Deal earnestlye with her highness', he asked Burghley, 'that no new devices be wrought to thrust those into a new rebellion, whiche have beehaved them selfes dutifullye and done service sins their submissions.' Ormond's concern, however, arose not merely from a desire for reconciliation but from a deep-rooted sense of self-protection.\n\nEleanor hoped that the reconciliatory policy preached by Ormond would enable her to recover something from the wreck of her husband's estate. With this in view, in December 1583 she solicited Ormond's assistance to secure a formal pardon for herself and her family and to lodge a claim to part of the forfeited estates. Ormond was willing to secure her a pardon and wrote to the Lords Justices in Dublin on her behalf: 'My very good LLs. the Countess of Desmond hath beene an ernest sutor unto me to writt to your LLs for pardon.' However, regarding her intention to secure part of her husband's estate, Ormond was less enthusiastic. 'She clameth', he wrote, 'to have a great porcion of therle of Desmond's lands for her joyntor.' In an attempt to prohibit her from making a claim to her husband's estate, the Irish Privy Council curtly signified to Ormond 'their disapproval of any pardon to the Countess of Desmond'. But Eleanor refused to be deterred and persuaded the earl to plead her case for a pardon directly to the Queen. In January 1584 she met with qualified success when the Queen notified the Dublin administration:\n\n_We are also content that the lady of Desmond shall have her pardon with some such conditions annexed thereto as shall be thought convenient for her quiet behaviour_.\n\nElizabeth could well afford to be magnanimous in victory. A pardon was an insignificant exchange for one of the greatest prizes that had ever fallen into her lap.\n\nBy now the clamour of claims to the escheated estates had reached a crescendo, and Eleanor's tentative approaches were pushed aside. The hordes of undertakers, adventurers, Crown administrators and soldiers who queued up for the great pay-off were joined by the remnants of the House of Desmond, seeking their share of the spoils. Garrett's elder half-brother, Thomas Roe FitzGerald, whose claim to the earldom had been disallowed in 1558 in favour of Garrett, now came forward, together with his son James. They petitioned the Queen to restore them to the Desmond estates, which they claimed were rightfully theirs. They further argued that since neither had supported the Earl of Desmond in the late rebellion, there was no impediment to their case. Their pleas, however, fell on deaf ears. Eleanor again entered the fray with a claim to lands in Limerick. Ormond notified the Crown of her intent. 'She claymeth', he wrote, 'to have had a conveyance from her husband afore his entering into rebellion for the most part of his land in the County of Limerick.' Whether the conveyance was actually produced or not is uncertain, but her claim was taken so seriously by the Irish Privy Council that they withheld her pardon until the matter could be satisfactorily resolved in favour of the Crown.\n\nEleanor and her daughters were still living on charity, and their future position and welfare in Ormond had become precarious. They could not remain there indefinitely. Already Eleanor's persistent claims to the forfeited estates of her husband had embarrassed her current protector and threatened his own claim to the lands. Consequently, during the early months of 1584, the Council in Dublin brought pressure to bear on Eleanor to forfeit whatever claims she was reported to have to her late husband's estate. 'Before I could receive my pardon', she later testified, 'I was fayne to enter into recognizences of \u00a310,000 that neither my self nor eny other to my use shall make tytle, challenge or entrye, to any dower, jointor or thirds of eny parte of my husband's lands.' She was further obliged to agree that neither she 'nor eny of my five comfortles children shall nott departe this realme, neither can I obtayne licens to go in to England to be a petitioner to her Matie'. The policy of alienation implemented against her husband was to be continued against his widow and children lest the Crown relent and deprive the waiting hordes of avaricious entrepreneurs of even the smallest part of the great prize. Denied the restitution of her dowry price she was condemned to live on the charity of others. Ormond was ordered to provide 'a diet of 10d per diem for her self her daughters and weeman', and on this meagre subsistence the Countess of Desmond and her household were expected to exist.\n\nShe was abandoned by the Gaelic world whose cause her husband had sought to champion. Few of his Gaelic and gaelicised allies wished to associate with or be seen to assist the traitor's wife. Her brother, the Baron of Dunboyne, also deserted her in her need. The English-educated James Butler had matured in the mould of his overlord Black Tom. He had little sympathy or tolerance for the Gaelic world that had absorbed his brother-in-law and brought about his downfall. He had become a prominent member of the 'Old English' aristocracy, loyal to the Crown and more concerned with matters of land and title than attempt to hold back the tide of time in defence of an outmoded way of life. For Dunboyne the enemy was not the Crown but the new breed of English adventurers whose appetite for land and wealth might not be appeased merely by the acquisition of the attainted lands of his rebel brother-in-law. To succour a rebel's wife and children, even one's own sister, might well be used by the enemy to discredit him with the Crown. Moreover, Eleanor had quarrelled with her brother over his refusal to give up lands bequeathed to her by her father as part of her dowry and which she had entrusted to her brother before the rebellion. As ever, Eleanor was left with little option but to rely on her own efforts and wits in the continuing battle to survive.\n\nFor almost a year Ireland had been administered by two Lords Justices until, in June 1584, Sir John Perrot eventually assumed the office of Lord Deputy. On his departure from England, the Queen imparted to him her usual impossible requirements for 'good' government in Ireland: 'to increase the revenue without oppressing the subject, to reduce the army without impairing its efficiency, to punish rebels without driving them to desperation, and to reward loyal people without cost to the Crown'. The most pressing issue facing Perrot was the settlement of the Desmond estates; and the knowledge of Munster that he had acquired during his term as President there made him a suitable candidate for the job. In June a commission to survey the escheated lands was established under the Vice-Treasurer Sir Henry Wallop, Sir Valentine Browne, Surveyor-General Ashford and two auditors. Wallop was an able property administrator, and the work of the commission progressed steadily. It is significant that, like many of his fellow-administrators in the Irish service at the time of the Desmond collapse, Wallop was richly rewarded from the escheated estates, being later granted the ancient Geraldine seats of Askeaton, Adare and Croom.\n\nPerrot's attention was initially diverted to Ulster where he took the field against a force of Scots mercenaries whom he suspected of being part of a plot concocted by the king of Scotland against Elizabeth. After a brief but ineffective campaign, which elicited a sharp rebuke from Elizabeth against 'such rash unadvised journeys', Perrot returned to Dublin and prepared to summon the first parliament to be held since 1569.\n\nEleanor had alerted the Lord Deputy to her plight, and initially Perrot seemed well-intentioned towards her. He ordered that she and her family should be removed to his custody and that provision be made for them in Dublin. But he was in some doubt as to what to do about her long-term future. 'We think her estate to be verie bare,' he informed the Queen, 'and much she lamenthed and desyreth to be sent over to your Matie. We have no warrant to proceide against hir by lawe, to send her over, to bayle her or relieve her.' He requested the Queen 'to geve some direction concerninge her'. While he awaited instructions he had Eleanor and her entourage brought from Clonmel and housed within the precincts of Dublin Castle. Eleanor's plight was indeed pressing. Without money or means, abandoned by friends and relations, she had been reduced to the status of a beggar.\n\n_So as I and my children have lived in such calamitie than if my lo: Deputie had nott taken pittie of me and them in relevinge us owtte of his Lops: kitchin we might have starved with honger: for in my necessitie all my kinsmen and frends have utterly forsaken me_.\n\nIn Dublin Castle Eleanor visited her son, then awaiting his imminent transfer to London. Now thirteen, James was old enough to comprehend the enormity of the tragedy that had befallen his house, with such disastrous consequences for his own future. For a fleeting moment Eleanor was reunited with her pitiful son, to whom she could give no tidings of freedom or hope, and whose future she could only expect to be as miserable as his short past, a life of captivity and exploitation. As the day of his departure loomed nearer, Eleanor pleaded with Perrot that her son should be accompanied to London by his nurse and one of his sisters. Little attention was given to the fate of the heir of Desmond. In Ireland men were too busy in a fierce struggle for land to concern themselves about the fortunes of a child whose patrimony had evaporated, whose legitimate place was taken by another, and who would have been\u2014even had he a lordship to succeed to\u2014'equally set aside as from his youth unfit to command in troubled times so powerful a sept'. The dark vaults of the Tower of London closed over the child who was fated to spend sixteen long years in captivity, forgotten and ignored by the powers to whose care he had been entrusted. Eleanor and her daughters continued their life of humiliation and despair in Dublin Castle, defenceless and destitute, fed by the morsels that fell their way from the Lord Deputy's table.\n\nPerrot convened a parliament in April 1585. Twenty-seven counties were represented, mainly by the 'Old English' group. While some Gaelic chieftains were present in both houses, and others were invited to attend as observers, most Gaelic-held areas were not represented. Dublin was _en f\u00eate_ for the occasion, and the narrow cobbled streets were thronged with lords, chieftains and their retinues. Eleanor looked on with the rest at the parade of Gaelic chieftains and anglicised lords dressed in their obligatory English apparel. She saw her husband's old fellow-conspirator, Turlough O'Neill, choking in the doublet and hose of his new-found allegiance, yet prepared to put on the loyal show to preserve his interests. Beside him rode the greatest single threat to his position in Ulster, his second cousin, the English-educated Earl of Tyrone, Hugh O'Neill, who had been well rewarded for his contrived loyalty, his help in suppressing the rebel Earl of Desmond, and his participation in the savagery that had subdued and despoiled Munster. Thither came Eleanor's brother, her brother-in-law the Earl of Clancar, and the former friends, allies and liege lords of her husband, as they trooped into Perrot's parliament to vote for the formal attainder of their former overlord. But Eleanor could scarcely blame them for their sudden conversion. As she had long counselled her husband, survival was the key, and adaptation was the means to survive. Loyalty to an antique and doomed world was a luxury which could no longer be afforded.\n\nThe parliament was an acrimonious one. Perrot was thwarted by antagonistic officials in his own administration and by the lords of the Pale, who continued to oppose the Crown's intent to replace the old system of cess by a land tax. Perrot was opposed and failed also in his attempt to enact a measure suspending Poynings' Law which, if successful, would have enabled legislation to be passed by the Irish parliament without recourse to England. Religion, for the first time, began to emerge as a divisive political measure. Until then the Crown had been prepared to tolerate religious divergence in Ireland because it feared that any attempt to impose the reformed religion would lead to even greater civil unrest. 'It was more important that the Queen should rule Ireland than that Ireland should abandon the Pope.' But now, with the ideological struggle between Catholicism and Protestantism encroaching on the political issues of the day, and with the power of Spain threatening her throne, Elizabeth was forced to change her ambivalent attitude. Catholic Ireland was a danger to Protestant England's security. By their intervention in the Desmond rebellions Philip II and the Pope had already attempted to capitalise on this fact. While the more radical Puritan elements in both the Irish and English administrations sought the implementation of laws against recusants in Ireland, Perrot well realised that, for the moment, sheer strength of numbers alone ensured 'the impossibility of coercing the majority into conformity', and plans for the introduction of penal legislation were, for the moment, postponed. But Perrot's temporising attitude and generally pacific policy towards the Gaelic lords and chieftains, combined with his public antagonism to the more radical elements within his own administration, provoked the latter's enmity and were eventually to lead to his downfall.\n\nIn the second session of the new parliament the long-awaited bill of attainder against the late Earl of Desmond and his adherents was introduced. Whether Eleanor was involved in the subsequent attempt to prevent the attainder of her husband and to have the Desmond estates returned to her, in trust for her son, is uncertain. However, given her astute political knowledge and her ability to negotiate and intrigue as well as the next, it is likely that she plotted and was party to this final attempt to secure that for which she had endured and sacrificed so much. To thwart her potential claims to the estates, a measure was first pushed through parliament by the government. It stipulated 'that all conveyances made, or pretended to be made, by any person attainted within thirteen years before the Act, shall be entered on record in the Exchequer within a year, or be void'. Before the bill of attainder could be introduced, however, Sir John FitzEdmund FitzGerald rose in the chamber and submitted the original feoffment 'by which the late Earl of Desmond had placed all his estates in trust for his wife and son, at a time when he was wholly free from all taint of rebellion'.\n\nThere was uproar in the house. Panic-stricken potential grantees clamoured for an explanation. Sir Henry Wallop was speedily despatched to determine whether the late earl's deed of association with his adherents, signifying his intention to rebel, had been signed by him _before_ the execution of the enfeoffment of his lands. If it had, then by the terms of the new act, the earl was deemed to have forfeited his estate. If, however, the date of the feoffment preceded that of the document containing the deed of association, then the Crown's claim to the Desmond estate was invalid. 'In the entire collection of the State Papers of England, no document exists that was of equal importance as to its absolute correctness of date, as this one, for on none other ever depended the transfer of estates so vast and so valuable.'\n\nThe feoffment, as preserved among the Carew Papers in Lambeth Palace, bears the date of 10 September 1574, while the deed of association is dated 18 July 1578, four years later. Wallop claimed that the deed of association bore the incorrect date and should have read 18 July 1574, thus putting it 'seven weeks earlier than the execution of the feoffment'. He based his conclusion on the contents of the first sentence of the deed of association, which reads: 'Whereas the earl had assembled his kinsmen and others after his coming out of Dublin . . .' This, he contended, referred to the earl's escape from detention in Dublin in November 1573.\n\nGiven the fortune that depended on the issue, as well as the anxiety of the Crown and the avaricious expectations of the waiting undertakers and speculators, it is not beyond the bounds of reason to suspect the authenticity of Wallop's evidence. It certainly seems strange that the matter was only raised in the first place because Sir John FitzEdmund FitzGerald, who had been a signatory to the deed of feoffment, was convinced that a miscarriage of justice was about to be perpetrated against the Countess of Desmond and her son. Throughout the duration of the Desmond rebellion FitzEdmund had been a model of loyalty to the Crown and had dissociated himself completely from the rebellion of his kinsman. He explained his actions regarding the feoffment to Sir Francis Walsingham as having no ulterior motive other than a sense of justice and fair play: 'I thought it my parte to tell, onely in discharge of my conscience and honestie before God and the worlde, not as a thinge I wished allowed.'\n\nFitzEdmund's efforts were doomed to failure. Parliament accepted Wallop's theory. The final attempt to prevent the forfeiture of her husband's estates and title came to nought, leaving Eleanor and her children ostracised. Had she succeeded then 'the vast estates of the earl must have slipped through the fingers, matchless for their tenacity, of Her Majesty, and a multitude of enterprising English gentlemen must have returned home' empty-handed. The act of attainder of the Earl of Desmond and his chief supporters 'and the vesting of their lands, without inquisition, in the Crown', was passed without a whisper of protest from the Gaelic and gaelicised chieftains and lords present, much to the relief of the potential colonists who lined up for the division of the spoils.\n\nAfter the attainder of her husband and the confiscation of his estates, the fortunes of Eleanor and her family rapidly deteriorated. Perhaps to punish her for attempting to prevent the forfeiture, Sir John Perrot withdrew his assistance, and Eleanor and her daughters were thrown onto the streets of Dublin and on the charity of anyone touched by their plight. Most of her acquaintances resolutely turned their backs. However, she still retained her astute insight into the political arena and her ability to exploit the many factions and coteries that it comprised. She turned for help to Perrot's implacable enemy, Adam Loftus, the Archbishop of Dublin, who agreed to alert the Crown to the extremity of her circumstances in Dublin.\n\n_I assure you [he wrote to Burghley] hir case (being chargid with childrin) is so miserable that seldom the lyke hath bene sene in a woman of hir calling. All hir frends . . . have quite forsaken hir: so as if yor L, with the rest of that honorable board, be not a mean to hir Matie, to grant unto hir some portion to releive hir and hir childrin, there is no doubt but that shortly they all will goo a beginge_.\n\nBut the government was reluctant to come to her aid. As the winter drew near, the cold, unfriendly streets of Dublin held more terror for Eleanor than the wastelands of Munster. She was heavily in debt to merchants and traders in the city and her credit was fast running out. The desperation of her plight as she scrounged food and clothing for her needy children she conveyed in a letter to Burghley:\n\n_I and my childrin have tasted of so moche myserie thatt I protest unto your honnor I knowe no waye howe to preserve me and them from perishing by famyne except her Matie do nott relieve us_.\n\nBut winter came and went without any assistance from the Crown. With her ragged, frightened children clutched around her, she tramped the streets of Dublin in search of sustenance. In a city that had recently felt the effects of famine, for which her husband was blamed, few doors were opened to her, and the faces of the citizens were as cold as the icy winds that blew through the narrow streets. Once again she wrote to remind Burghley of her wretchedness and poverty:\n\n_At the present time my miserie is such that my children and myself liveth in all wante of meat drinke and clothes, having no house or dwellinge wherin I with them may rest, neither the aid of Brother or kinsman to relieve oure necessitie which is so myserable that I see my poore children in manner starve before me_.\n\nThe memory of her husband's rebellion and of her personal involvement in it were, however, still vivid at court. Walsingham had never favoured the Earl of Desmond or his house, and his dislike of Garrett was transferred to his widow. Memories of the effects of the rebellion were constantly recalled, as in December 1585, when the Crown rewarded the Earl of Desmond's executioner, Daniel Kelly, 'in consideration of his having slain the traitor Desmond'. The Queen incessantly bemoaned the vast amounts expended in the suppression of the rebellion. And as the extent of the damage and devastation of the forfeited Desmond estate became apparent, there were growing doubts as to whether the land would ever recompense the Crown for the outlay it had expended in securing it.\n\nBut Elizabeth was also confronted with more urgent and important issues in England which diverted her attention from Ireland and from the pleas of an impoverished Irish countess. Around her the tempo of national and international intrigue had reached a crescendo. Plots against the security of her realm and conspiracies against her life daily ebbed and flowed. A plot among English Catholic gentry, aided and abetted by the Spanish ambassador to England, to assassinate her, had earlier been uncovered. The plot hinted at the involvement of the Queen's cousin, Mary Stuart, who despite being kept under close confinement in Sheffield, continued to scheme against her cousin with unrelenting enthusiasm, conspiring with the King of Spain, the Pope, the Duke of Guise, and her son James VI of Scotland. Mary attracted the attention of the international conspiracy which sought Elizabeth's overthrow. Every scheme had hitherto been unsuccessful; nevertheless, Mary, who 'seemed to thrive on adversity and derived renewed hope from every defeat', persevered. As the prospect of war with Spain grew ever more likely, and the plots against Elizabeth grew more desperate, Protestant feeling in England, both among the people and in the parliament, against Mary Stuart and her foreign Catholic fellow-conspirators, grew. Puritan opinion demanded her head, and Elizabeth's counsellors cautioned that she was sheltering within her kingdom 'the daughter of sedition, the mother of rebellion, the handmaid of iniquity and the sister of unshamefastness'. But Elizabeth had constantly refused to permit the execution 'of a divinely ordained sovereign . . . it set a dangerous precedent'. During 1586, however, Mary exceeded her previous indiscretions in a reckless new plot against the Queen. This time the wily Walsingham had baited the trap and gathered the necessary evidence. Elizabeth was left with little option but to sanction the trial and execution of her cousin.\n\nBefore that event Philip of Spain finally made up his mind 'that the retribution of heaven upon the heretic and monstrous Queen of England had been too long deferred'. He considered Elizabeth's imminent downfall God's expressed will, and himself the chosen instrument to put that will into effect. Elizabeth and her subjects, on the other hand, believed that England was the final bastion of hope for the world against the insidious incursions of the Catholic confederacy led by the Pope, the King of Spain and the Catholic faction in France, driven by the lust for power of the Medici and their Valois dynasty. 'The odds had been taken, the sides drawn, and Europe waited and speculated on which of them, Elizabeth of England or Philip of Spain, was the shining messenger of the Lord.' It was not surprising that the welfare of an Irish countess, no matter how destitute and deprived, received little attention at the English Court.\n\nFor Eleanor the crisis facing herself and her children, however, was to her as important as Philip's designs on England. Rebuffed at every level, in May 1586 she again solicited the help of Archbishop Loftus, who agreed to write to the government on her behalf. The archbishop's appeal was blunt. He could himself vouch for the countess's extreme necessity, he told Burghley, and\n\n_could not resonably denye, being an eye witness of her extreme mysery . . . to make knowne . . . how in truthe she standeth at this prsnt: being not hable to sustaine her selfe or her poore children with necessary foode, but are . . . lyke to famishe if her Matie do not grant bestowe some portion upon her for her relayfe_.\n\nBut, as before, the archbishop failed to get a response.\n\nEleanor was now at her wits' end. She faced the prospect of prison as her bills mounted and the merchants and money-lenders clamoured for payment. Secretly she prepared to embark for England in a last-ditch attempt to plead her case personally at court. But she was prohibited by law from leaving Ireland without special licence from the Lord Deputy. She had, moreover, signed bonds which had been guaranteed by members of the Munster aristocracy to that effect. Undeterred, however, during the latter months of 1586 she begged and borrowed from every available source to fund her mission. But some of the lords who had guaranteed her bonds, such as Viscount Roche of Fermoy, who was bound for the sum of \u00a3100, grew uneasy about her intentions. They urged her to reconsider her proposed flight to England. She refused. Finally Lord Roche alerted Lord Deputy Perrot to Eleanor's plans. He begged Perrot that, in view of his dutifulness, his own bond of \u00a3100 should not be forfeited. Perrot's cryptic reply did little to relieve his anxiety. 'Touching the countesse of Desmonds going into England,' the Lord Deputy wrote, 'yt is more than I knowe, neither can she goe without licence from me so to doe, which she is not like to have.'\n\nBut before Eleanor could attempt her escape to England in early 1587, her plight was finally brought to the attention of the Queen, who decided that 'the Countess of Desmond should have a pension of one hundred pounds Irish' and ordered Sir John Perrot to pay her. On the strength of the promised pension, Eleanor obtained additional credit from the Dublin merchants to feed and clothe herself and her children, though, as she later divulged, 'I owe duble for everything I hadde.' Her indebtedness to the merchants increased when Perrot declined to pay her the pension out of his administrative costs. Her situation was again desperate. 'Her creditors (being not paid of their former debt) would no further lett her have meate, drinke nor any other necessaries.' Eleanor could take no more. Towards the end of 1587 she managed to obtain a passage to England, leaving her daughters in care in Ireland.\n\nShe made her way to London, and for the following twelve months she followed the court in the same state of abject poverty and debt as she had endured in Ireland. Even if she had the means to influence or bribe those in power to gain access to the Queen, political developments made an audience virtually impossible. Throughout the early months of 1588 rumours of an imminent invasion by Spain preoccupied Elizabeth and her Privy Council. After months of speculation the great Spanish Armada lumbered into the English Channel 'to visit the censure of God upon a middle-aged female'. Despite ample warning, England was ill-prepared to meet the challenge. All through the summer, as Elizabeth moved her court from place to place, Eleanor followed patiently in her wake. She had to maintain a low profile. Passions and prejudices had been aroused in England against the new Spanish threat to which her name, in the past, had been linked. The court bustled with activity as messengers brought despatches with reports of the sea battles in the Channel, and the Queen and her counsellors held lengthy meetings on matters of state security. But Eleanor persistently and patiently waited her chance. She had become used to isolation, hostility, humiliation and poverty and the quiet resignation that such conditions induce. She had been somewhat encouraged by Burghley, who had looked on her presence kindly enough, though he could, as yet, spare little time to examine her case in detail.\n\nShe meanwhile contrived to visit her son in his cell in the Tower. Memories came flooding back as she traversed the stone passages to be reunited with him as she had with his father some twenty years previously. She found James in distress from an ear ailment which was being treated by the prison physician without success. His general health had, not surprisingly, remained fragile. The damp, stale air of the Tower did little to relieve the general malaise that had afflicted him since birth. He had become both institutionalised and anglicised, a passive prisoner of his unnatural surroundings, nervous and apprehensive lest he incur the displeasure of those in charge of his welfare. His later correspondence is proof that Eleanor's concern regarding his lack of a formal education had been rectified. A schoolmaster, with a salary of \u00a313-13s per annum, had been appointed to educate him, and he was taught to express himself well and to write in a bold, clear hand. His literary style, taking into account his youth and lack of experience of the world, was frequently 'very superior to that of the statesmen to whom his letters were mostly addressed'. There was little else Eleanor could do for her son who seemed lost to her and to the world.\n\nWhen the Spanish Armada finally disappeared towards the North Sea, to be battered and broken on the jagged, unfriendly rocks of the Irish coastline, Elizabeth resumed her more mundane duties. She agreed to receive the Countess of Desmond and hear her petition. Eleanor had her audience with the Queen at St James's Palace in early October 1588. Elizabeth wore her fifty-five years well. After the repulse of the Spanish threat she appeared every bit the\n\n_Goddesse Heavenly Bright,_\n\n_Mirror of grace and Majestie divine,_\n\n_Great lady of the greatest Isle, whose light_\n\n_Like Phoebus lampe throughout the world doth shine_\n\nof Spenser's _Faerie Queene_. Elizabeth could still dazzle her subjects into love and loyalty by the very radiance of her attire. It was irrelevant to her adoring subjects that the famous red hair was now a wig; her ruddy complexion was liberally aided by the application of rouge and rice powder. The regal presence that emanated from her slight frame owed much to the sheer opulence and weight of her wardrobe. Good Queen Bess had saved her subjects from a fate worse than the fires of the Inquisition, and now, more than ever, 'she could still marshal words and command emotions'. And there was little competition or threat to her looks, wardrobe or majesty from the gaunt, tattered, dispirited countess who knelt before her to beg for sustenance to provide herself and her family with the bare necessities of life. Sheer pity alone would have moved Elizabeth to loosen her purse-strings. As Eleanor explained the extremity of her situation in Ireland and how the Queen's previous pension of \u00a3100 had been withheld from her, Elizabeth's sympathies were aroused and she forwarded new instructions to her Lord Deputy:\n\n_Wee having compasson of hir unhappie and miserable estate whereunto she is fallen, rather by hir said husband's disloyaltie, than by anie hir owne offence, are pleased for hir owne reliefe to bestowe on hir a yearely pension of two hundreth pounds sterling to be paid to hir quarterly out of our excheqr of that realme_.\n\nBut past experience had made Eleanor suspicious of the Crown's servants, and she reminded the Queen that her previous order to the Lord Deputy and Council in Ireland for the payment of her pension had gone unheeded. Elizabeth consequently despatched a personally signed and sealed letter to her officials in Dublin, commanding the prompt payment to Eleanor of her pension so that, as she stated, 'she may have no just cause to complayne for want of payment of the same'. But bureaucracy seemed destined to thwart even the orders of the Queen. For an addendum to the Queen's letter subsequently noted that payment of the pension was, for some months, 'stay'd upon a doubt moved by Mr Soliciter'. Meanwhile, her mission accomplished, Eleanor unsuspectingly returned to Ireland in high expectations of some measure of respite from her state of misery and misfortune.\n\nOn her return to Dublin she found Sir John Perrot had been recalled and that Sir William Fitzwilliam had succeeded him as Lord Deputy. But the change in personnel brought little relief, for she found Fitzwilliam's administration as reluctant as its predecessor to comply with the Queen's instruction. By December 1588 she had received only part of her pension from the Council in Dublin. She therefore decided on a different course of action. She requested the English Privy Council that she might be paid her pension out of the English rather than the Irish exchequer. The Queen was agreeable, and accordingly in early 1589 Eleanor, accompanied by her daughters, Morris Sheehan and a small retinue, departed once more for England and settled near Westminster. But there were other reasons than the payment of her pension behind her decision to move to England.\n\nThe dispersal of her late husband's estates had begun. The lands to be planted were among the richest in the country. It was originally the intention of the Crown that seignories or chief grants, not exceeding 12,000 acres, were to be created for the principal grantees, or undertakers as they became known. But wily lawyers contrived to extend the grants on behalf of their clients beyond the proposed limits. Many grantees, notably Sir Walter Raleigh, ultimately became owners of estates of over 40,000 acres, much more than had been envisaged by the Crown. The grants were made in socage with a head or quit rent payable to the Crown. The plantation was widely advertised in England as an opportunity to acquire an estate at little cost. The native Irish were prohibited from becoming tenants or undertenants of the new proprietors. However, the initial aims of the Munster plantation were gradually distorted and undermined. The majority of the undertakers became absentees. Their estates were managed by agents who readily employed Irish tenants. Ireland's reputation for political unrest deterred the more suitable English farmers, who refused to be lured by promises of wealth to such a wild and unstable country. But the hardened veterans of Grey's expeditionary force showed little such hesitancy and eagerly grasped the spoils of war. In counties Waterford and Cork Sir Walter Raleigh and Sir Christopher Hatton received large estates. Sir Edward Denny, Sir Warham St Leger, Sir Thomas Morris, Hugh Cuffe and the poet Edmund Spenser, all received attainted Desmond land and property in County Cork. In County Limerick the main beneficiaries were Francis Berkeley, Sir William Courtney, Richard and Alex Fitton and Sir George Bourchier, while Edmund Fitton received over 11,000 acres in counties Waterford and Tipperary. The long hunt to extinction of the former proprietor had been vindicated as the pursuers reaped the rewards without regard for the widow and heir of the attainted earl.\n\nHowever faint, Eleanor had not given up hope to salvage some part of the forfeited lands. Residence in London would enable her to petition her case directly rather than have to negotiate with the antagonistic administration in Dublin. She also sought more regular access to her son. While the conditions of his confinement allowed him 'the libertie of the Tower . . . and accesse of all his friends', his health was again giving cause for concern. As well as a physician, he now required the services of a surgeon, while the list of medicines supplied by the Tower apothecary grew:\n\n_i Bottels of serope of iii pints apeace_\n\n_ii pourgatives_\n\n_iiii ownces of perfumed lossengis for his nostrells_\n\n_iiii ownces of serope for his nostrells_\n\n_iiii ownces of Unguente for his eare_\n\n_iiii ownces of Implaster for his eare_\n\n_iiii ownces of pilles of Masticgini_\n\n_ii drames of pillemics_\n\n_i drame of Trossecs deterra sigillata_.\n\nThe list was just part of the long catalogue of pills and potions prescribed for the various maladies that wracked his unhealthy physique.\n\nIn London Eleanor first made the acquaintance of the man who was to be central in her future life. Donogh O'Connor Sligo was also at court to petition for the restoration of his title and estate as the heir of his uncle. Sir Donal O'Connor Sligo had died in January 1588 and his estate had been subsequently seized by the President of Connaught, Sir Richard Bingham. In their past misfortunes and present straitened circumstances, Eleanor and Donogh had much in common.\n\nThe family of O'Connor Sligo were a branch of the royal O'Connor house of Connaught. The earliest historical references to the O'Connor sept of Sligo occur at the time of the Norman invasion. In the succeeding centuries, following a series of dynastic feuds, the O'Connor clan split into three divisions: O'Connor Roe, O'Connor Don and O'Connor Sligo. The O'Connor Sligo sept eventually settled in the area roughly equivalent to present-day County Sligo. A member of the sept bore the title King of Connaught between 1318 and 1324. By the sixteenth century the O'Connor Sligo was the acknowledged overlord of the area. But O'Connor dominance in Sligo became dependent on the O'Donnell chiefs of Tyrconnell, who also claimed a suzerainty over Sligo. Through alliances with the O'Donnells' enemies, the O'Connors constantly sought to cast off the shackles of O'Donnell dominance. To the south-west of Sligo lay the lordship of the former de Burgos\u2014the Lower MacWilliam of Mayo and the Upper MacWilliam of Galway. The latter had been created Earl of Clanrickard by Henry VIII.\n\nSligo occupied a strategic position between Ulster and Connaught. Donogh's lordship incorporated the barony of Carbury, with Sligo castle as its central point. He also claimed the castles of Ballymote and Collooney. To protect themselves from the heavy exaction of the O'Donnells, the O'Connors had turned for help to the English. In 1568 Donogh's uncle, Sir Donal, made an indenture with the Queen which he interpreted as a reaffirmation of his overlordship of Sligo but which the Crown later claimed related only to the overlordship of the barony of Carbury. However, the grant allowed him to maintain his rights to the overlordship of the county, and the Crown tended to support him in his struggle against the O'Donnells. The agreement between O'Connor Sligo and the Crown worked well until jeopardised by a dramatic change in the political climate, marked by the arrival in Connaught of Sir Richard Bingham as President of the province in 1584.\n\nA stern military campaigner, Bingham carried out his orders to the letter to extend English law into all parts of Connaught in the shortest time possible, allowing little scope for the Gaelic chieftains to adapt. Bingham began his campaign in Connaught by seizing the O'Connor Sligo castle of Ballymote, ostensibly as a precaution against an invasion by supporters of Mary Queen of Scots. Bingham recognised the advantage of securing a strong foothold in Sligo to control the pass from Ulster into Mayo and thus into the rest of Connaught. Sir Donal appealed to Sir John Perrot in Dublin. The Lord Deputy issued letters patent officially confirming the original agreement with the Queen, though excluding Ballymote and twelve quarters of land.\n\nIn the following year Perrot concluded the famous Composition of Connaught whereby, in lieu of cess, a rent of ten English shillings, or one Irish mark, was to be charged on every quarter of arable land in the province. Certain lands were allowed rent-free to principal lords. Their positions as elected heads of their traditional dependent clans were abolished, and each chieftain was made responsible for his own sept and had to hold his estate under the English law of primogeniture instead of the Gaelic custom of election. In relation to Sligo, the Composition 'merely put into formal feudal language the terms of the earlier agreement' between Sir Donal and the Queen. Sir Donal continued to hold his estate in the manor of Ballymote and was granted all his lands free of the Composition rent. On his death in 1588, despite the seizure of Ballymote and Sligo by Bingham, his heir, Donogh, seemed likely to inherit the entire lordship.\n\nSir Richard Bingham, however, refused to recognise Donogh as his uncle's legal heir. 'The heir is base born and illegitimate,' he wrote to the Earl of Leicester, 'and the land, especially Sligo itself, by descent and lawful inheritance is now thrown into the lap of Her Majesty.' Although a commission of inquiry subsequently found Donogh to be the legitimate heir, Bingham persisted in his opposition and moved his brother, George Bingham, into Sligo castle. While the dispute raged, ships of the Spanish Armada came crashing onto the Sligo coastline. Rumours reached the English court that the Spaniards who had survived were planning to invade Connaught in support of the Ulster chieftains. Possession of Sligo castle took on an added significance, and the question of Donogh's right to inherit was once again investigated. In an attempt to persuade the Crown to reinstate him and to repudiate the accusations of Bingham, Donogh took his case directly to the English court. There he became acquainted with the widow of the rebel Earl of Desmond.\n\nThe similarity of their situation, coupled with the fact that the success of both their petitions depended on the patronage and influence of Lord Burghley, was perhaps instrumental in establishing a friendship between them. Both were exiles, political outcasts, in poor circumstances and without friends. Of the two, Eleanor's position was the more extreme, especially in terms of her future financial and political expectations. Donogh, while currently regarded as politically dispensable by the English interest in Connaught, could become a vital factor to the Crown\u2014and this possibility increased as the situation in Ulster deteriorated. But meanwhile both had to endure the tedious court protocol regarding their petitions. With little money to speed or influence the process, they had no option but to assume the patience and humility of the penniless and the powerless.\n\nBoth initially made little progress. Eleanor's pension was not forthcoming from the tight-fisted administration, while Bingham continued to press against the reinstatement of Donogh in Sligo. Unable financially to continue to follow the court, Eleanor settled near Westminster, under the care of a widow, Alice Pynnock, who, it was recorded, was paid the sum of \u00a385 'for the diet of the Countess of Desmond'. Together with her pension, Eleanor also sought further concessions from the Queen. By her entry without licence into England she had, in effect, transgressed the conditions of her pardon and had 'therby forfeited certain bonds wherein she is entered for the performance of the clause'. The Queen eventually agreed to overlook the transgression and ordered the Lord Deputy to ensure that any future bonds made for her continuing good behaviour 'should not be hurtful or prejudicial unto her for that which is past'. Slowly, Eleanor was beginning to experience some semblance of toleration, if not favour, in court circles. Her old enemy Walsingham was dead, and Sir Robert Cecil had joined his father, Lord Burghley, at the forefront of Elizabeth's administration. The younger Cecil was willing to extend a little sympathy and understanding to the long-suffering countess from Ireland and this brilliant, delicate, hunchbacked statesman became Eleanor's main refuge and hope.\n\nWhile Eleanor's fortunes at court seemed likely to improve, the expectations of her friend, Donogh O'Connor Sligo, also seemed likely to bear fruit. In 1596, as the political situation worsened in Ireland, the Crown considered it expedient that Donogh should return to Ireland and be restored to part of his inheritance. England's supposedly loyal earl, Hugh O'Neill of Tyrone, from the fastness of his Ulster kingdom, noted Bingham's savage chastisement of Connaught, where the Mayo Bourkes, after three unsuccessful attempts to restore their ancient rights, had been ground into submission and their hired Scottish mercenaries butchered and drowned on the banks of the Moy. O'Neill noted too Bingham's advance into Sligo and his unrelenting campaign against O'Rourke of Breffny, who had sheltered some Spanish castaways from the ill-fated Armada. Alarm-bells sounded in the cunning, pragmatic mind of the Ulster chieftain as Bingham attacked Maguire's lordship of Fermanagh, the last remaining bastion of O'Neill's hitherto impregnable kingdom of Tyrone. The ghost of the dead Earl of Desmond might well have returned to remind him of the bitter fate he had helped inflict on Desmond and which now faced him in Ulster. But it was still too soon to show one's hand. There were too many intangible obstacles to be overcome before O'Neill's great plan could be put into operation. Despite the suspicions of the English administration in Dublin, he must continue to appear Elizabeth's loyal Irish earl. Consequently he bawled like a child before the Council in Dublin and tearfully protested his loyalty on old Fitzwilliam's shoulder to stifle suspicion that he was involved in a conspiracy with Spain and Scotland against the English Crown. But in December 1591 he helped to effect the dramatic escape of his relative and future ally, the young Red Hugh O'Donnell, whom Perrot had imprisoned in Dublin Castle. O'Neill sought to mould the lust for revenge of the young Tyrconnell chieftain, as well as the seething discontent of the Gaelic chieftains, into a calculating patience until the time was ripe for open confederacy and rebellion.\n\nWhile O'Neill played a waiting game, his young ally attempted to reassert O'Donnell supremacy over Sligo, extend his power and influence into Connaught, and extract support for the forthcoming war with the Crown. Sligo was the key to success in the coming conflict, and both sides realised its strategic importance. The methods employed by Bingham were called into question as officials in the administration in Dublin, jealous of his success in Connaught, attempted to have him removed from office. Taking advantage of Bingham's misfortune O'Donnell raided unhindered through Sligo into Roscommon. In 1595 he seized Sligo castle, which was garrisoned by Bingham's brother. It was against this background that the English government, in a bid to stop O'Donnell's growing power in Connaught, decided that Donogh O'Connor Sligo should be reinstated 'in the hope that he could be used as a buffer against the commonwealth which O'Donnell appeared to be creating in Connaught'.\n\nDonogh returned to Ireland in 1596, while Eleanor remained on at her lodgings in Westminster. While Cecil had managed to have her pension restored, with directions that it should be paid at quarterly intervals, \u00a3200 per annum would hardly restore her to a lifestyle that befitted her rank and status. Furthermore, despite Cecil's intervention on her behalf, the pension continued to be paid sporadically at the whim of petty officials. Her petitions to Cecil continued in the same vein as before. 'My great wants and extremities, the daily dearness of victuals . . . urges me to be more troublesome,' she wrote to him in May 1597 in an attempt to secure a more permanent cure for her financial straits. If Cecil could not secure her part of either her jointure or the estate of her late husband, Eleanor made the startling request that he act on her behalf as matchmaker. She explained that she was willing to extend her offer 'to any in England or Ireland that would be pleased to marry either myself or my daughters'.\n\nHer request was not as extraordinary as it might appear. She was now over fifty years old and had been a widow for fourteen years. The political stigma attached to her name was gradually receding, although her distinct lack of a fortune or a dowry did not enhance her matrimonial prospects. But fortune took a hand to find her a mate. By the establishment of a network of marriage alliances in Connaught, Cecil was seeking to create an opposition among the local aristocracy to stem the support for the Ulster confederacy. He had successfully concluded a marriage alliance between O'Connor Sligo's sister, Maeve, and the prominent chieftain of the Mayo Bourkes, Tibbott-ne-Long, the youngest son of the redoubtable sea-captain, Grace O'Malley, who had visited the Court in 1593. The marriage had produced satisfactory political results, and the former rebel chieftain looked set to adhere to the Crown in the coming conflict. It would appear that Cecil considered a marriage between Eleanor and Donogh would serve a similarly useful purpose, while having the additional advantage of removing from Court a persistent petitioner whose humbled means was a constant reminder of the Munster confiscations.\n\nIt was arranged that Eleanor would return to Ireland. Cecil secured the restoration of her personal estate in Munster which her brother had withheld from her. The Queen also wrote on her behalf to the Lord Deputy\n\n_to signify unto you our good liking of the retourne into the realme of the Countess of Desmond, for the opinion we have conceived of her good and lawful behaviour, towards us and our state, so we have now bin pleased to confirme the same unto you by those our own letters. . . . We require you to yealde unto her your favourable assistance in all her lawfull good causes as she may from time to time stand in need thereof and agreeable to the degree she holdeth_.\n\nCecil also obtained freedom of movement for her between Ireland and England. His diplomatic wizardry and Eleanor's persistence had finally achieved a small but, from Eleanor's point of view, significant victory.\n\nIn September 1597 Eleanor and her daughters prepared to leave for Ireland. On her departure she acknowledged Cecil's kindness and showed her appreciation as best her circumstances would allow. She presented him with a gift of an Irish harp, 'humbly praying you to accept the same, the rather that the sending comes from a thankful mind'. Then, with a lightened burden and the hope of better fortune, Eleanor set sail for Ireland and a new beginning.\nChapter 9\n\nThe Chatelaine\n\nHecuba: _Fortune veers: be brave,_\n\n_Sail with the stream,_\n\n_Sail with the wind of fate._\n\n_Do not run your ship of life_\n\n_Headlong into the billows of disaster._\n\nEURIPIDES, _THE TROJAN WOMAN_\n\nIn 1595 casting aside the mask of loyalty and co-operation, Hugh O'Neill, Earl of Tyrone revealed his intent. Throughout his career his actions had been stimulated by his driving ambition for greatness and power\u2014objectives which once had appeared attainable by loyalty to the Crown, but which now seemed more likely to be achieved by espousing the cause of Gaelic Ireland, a cause he had initially fought to destroy. In February 1595 he sent his brother Art to capture the Blackwater fort, which he had previously helped the Crown to establish. He was proclaimed a traitor in June, and on the death of the old chieftain, Turlough Luineach, he assumed the Gaelic title of 'O'Neill'.\n\nTogether with his ally, Red Hugh O'Donnell, he set about establishing unified opposition to England's expansionist designs in Ireland. To this end he re-established communications with the Spanish court, not merely for gold and ammunition, but for an effective Spanish force to support rebellion in Ireland against the English Crown. And Spain seemed eager to assist in the new campaign. But even as the ships and supplies assembled at Cadiz in June 1596, England's sea-dogs, Essex and Howard, in a daring attack, destroyed them. A further attempt in October fell foul of the weather. O'Neill had to buy time and opened negotiations with the Crown. The Queen, ever anxious to pardon rather than become involved in expensive warfare, accepted the excuses he proffered. Secretly he and O'Donnell continued to conspire with Spain, and called on 'the gentlemen of Munster' to join the Ulster confederacy and to 'make war with us'. The Munster patrimony of Eleanor's late husband and the lordship of her new husband were destined to become part of the concluding chapter in the long saga of Gaelic resistance.\n\nOn her return to Ireland from the English court, Eleanor married Donogh O'Connor Sligo. She was then fifty-two years of age, while her new husband would appear to have been a few years her junior. Donogh was a sober, solid chieftain, more concerned to consolidate his position and his estates than engage in active rebellion against the Crown. While socially it could be said that she had married beneath her status, her marriage to O'Connor Sligo was a welcome respite from the years of misery, loneliness and ignominy she had endured since Garrett's rebellion and death. Moreover, from a personal point of view, the marriage seems to have been a happy one. She continued to be referred to as the Countess of Desmond and adhered to the active and independent role she had adopted throughout her life. She obtained possession of the small estate in Tipperary, which her brother had earlier sought to withhold from her, and together with her new husband, she journeyed to Munster to inspect her domain.\n\nHer new home was to be her husband's lordship of Sligo, which the Queen had restored to him, with the exception of the castle and lands of Ballymote. But on their arrival there they found the lordship had been overrun by Hugh O'Donnell, who retained possession of Sligo castle. Eleanor and her husband initially settled at Collooney castle, from where Donogh made vain attempts to stem the ravages perpetrated on his estates and on the estates of his tributary lords, such as the O'Harts and the various O'Connor septs, who expected his protection against the exactions and rapine of O'Donnell. Donogh, in turn, depended on the Crown and, in particular, the English administration in Connaught, to protect him from O'Donnell. But after Bingham's suspension in 1596 the administration there had virtually collapsed and was unable to meet its obligations to the allied Gaelic lords. Consequently, many of the lords who had sided with the Crown, and were willing to administer their estates by English law, were now forced to align with O'Donnell.\n\nIn December 1596 Sir Conyers Clifford was appointed Chief Commissioner of Connaught (he was subsequently promoted to the vacant post of President of the province in September 1597). Donogh was acquainted with Clifford at court and was at hand to welcome him to Galway and accompany him on a tour of the province. His friendship was rewarded when Clifford recaptured Sligo castle and installed Donogh there with a garrison. Donogh reciprocated by inducing his brother-in-law, Tibbott-ne-Long Bourke, the most powerful chieftain in Mayo, to make terms with the Crown. Tibbott had become disenchanted with O'Donnell's bid for supremacy in Mayo, and as captain of a fleet of galleys, previously operated by his mother, Grace O'Malley, his sea power made him a formidable ally.\n\nThe new Lord Deputy, Thomas Lord Burgh, carried the fight against the Gaelic confederacy into Ulster. He recaptured the Blackwater fort and established a garrison there. Clifford, meanwhile, with the assistance of O'Connor Sligo, simultaneously attacked Ballyshannon castle, but was forced to retreat to Sligo. Clifford could do little more but establish Donogh at Sligo castle and hope to hold out against O'Donnell until further assistance could be had from England.\n\nWhile her husband strove to hold his position in Sligo, Eleanor was embroiled in a legal battle with her brother, the Baron of Dunboyne, over possession of the disputed estate in Tipperary. Despite the Crown's grant, the baron still contested his sister's right. During the course of 1598 Eleanor journeyed to Dublin and to Tipperary to prepare her case against her brother. In the intervals she resided at Sligo and became acquainted with her husband's political friends, foes, family and relations. Once more she found herself surrounded by intrigue and conspiracies. The political situation was moving to a climax. Messengers from O'Donnell and from Clifford each sought her husband's support in the coming conflict, while spies from both sides reported their every move. No one could be trusted. Allegiances changed as quickly as the tide, and today's friend became tomorrow's foe. Eleanor met her husband's sister Maeve and her enterprising husband, Tibbott-ne-Long, the son of her late husband's former prisoner, Grace O'Malley. The famous female sea-captain still lived on in Mayo and, like Eleanor, had successfully petitioned the Queen for sustenance and protection. At the present time both she and her son favoured the Crown as a less evil option than the exactions of O'Donnell. But, as Eleanor well realised from bitter experience, the loyalty of the minor lords and chieftains was transitory and depended on the ebb and flow of the political tide. Just as Garrett had expediently, for his political survival, sacrificed Grace O'Malley to the Crown, so had he a few months later eagerly sought and obtained the support of her husband in his rebellion against the Crown. But such was the political reality of sixteenth-century Ireland, where survival was the spur.\n\nClifford recommended to Sir Robert Cecil that Donogh should be restored to the castle and lands of Ballymote. Consequently Eleanor accompanied him to Dublin, from where he embarked for London, while Eleanor remained to prepare for the impending lawsuit against her brother. The baron demanded that her claim to the disputed estate should be tried by common law, but, as she explained in a petition to Sir Robert Cecil, 'to be tried by a jury of the citizens of Dublin where her brother is more favoured than she,' could hardly be deemed justice. She requested instead that her case should be determined by the Irish Privy Council or heard in the Court of Chancery. Cecil agreed to have the matter further investigated. But political events intervened as Ireland was plunged into a rebellion that again threatened to engulf the entire country.\n\nIn August 1598 Sir Henry Bagenal, with an army of over 4,000 men, was sent north to relieve the fort on the Blackwater. O'Neill, O'Donnell and Maguire combined to defeat him decisively at the battle of the Yellow Ford. The result of the battle transformed the campaign of the Ulster chieftains. 'A wave of feeling that was like one vast geyser of long-suppressed discontent', as Se\u00e1n O'Faolain wrote, 'gushed up and smothered the colonists until within a few months Tyrone was virtual master of Ireland and could see the outline of a rapidly forming confederate army.' But if the exultant feeling was to beget effective results, it would take time for the unfamiliar notion of nationhood to penetrate the mind-set of the multitude of chieftains and lords who regarded the aims and ambitions of O'Neill and O'Donnell as merely an attempt to subjugate them. Already in Sligo and Mayo the peremptory actions of O'Donnell had alienated the principal lords there. It was difficult for O'Connor Sligo or Tibbott Bourke to see any exalted nationalist motivation in the plundering raids made by O'Donnell on their territories.\n\nIn Munster, however, the effects of the victory at the Yellow Ford were instantaneous and opened a new chapter in the struggle of the House of Desmond. And Eleanor, wife and co-conspirator of the last Earl of Desmond, could not fail to become implicated as the survivors of her late husband's family grasped the life-line thrown to them by O'Neill. Garrett's nephew, James, the son of his disinherited half-brother Thomas, rose out of the ashes of defeat to lay claim to the estates and title of his uncle. Eleanor's reaction to the claim was antagonistic as it threatened her son's inheritance. The adherents of her late husband shared her view and referred contemptuously to James FitzThomas as the 'S\u00fag\u00e1n' (straw-rope) Earl. But with the support of O'Neill, the cowed and dispossessed liege lords of Desmond rose up, if not in support of the claims of FitzThomas, then in support of the only apparent means to wreak vengeance on the usurpers of their former lands and to regain their hereditary patrimony. With the assistance of O'Neill's captains, they ravaged and plundered the terrified colonists. The confederacy spread. O'Neill's son-in-law, Viscount Mountgarrett, together with the Earl of Thomond's brother, the Baron of Cahir, and the Kavanaghs of Leinster, joined with O'Neill. The former Geraldine fortresses of Newcastle, Shanid, Adare, Pallas and Tarbert were hastily abandoned by their new owners, who fled bag and baggage back to England, some never to return. Edmund Spenser, burned out of his estate at Kilcolman, conveyed the sense of horror and misery of the colonists:\n\n_Out of the ashes of desolation and wasteness of this your wretched Realm of Ireland, vouchsafe to receive the voices of a few most unhappy ghosts of whom is nothing but the ghost now left buried in the bottom of oblivion_.\n\nAnd there was no immediate relief forthcoming from the Crown, as the Desmond adherents, after sixteen years of repression and confiscation, took a bitter and bloody revenge, showing the planters little mercy. Black Tom, Earl of Ormond was, once again, given the task of suppressing the new Desmond revolt. He warned FitzThomas:\n\n_We need not put you in mind of the late overthrow of the earl your uncle, who was plagued with his partakers by fire, sword and famine; and be assured, if you proceed in any traitorous actions, you will have like end_.\n\nBut the new Geraldine leader had grown tired of waiting for the Crown to reward him for his long loyalty and for his opposition to his late uncle. Ambition made him a willing ally of O'Neill and, in the terminology of the rebellion, he replied to Ormond: 'Englishmen were not contented to have our lands and livings but unmercifully to seek our lives by false and sinister means under colour of law.'\n\nEvents in Desmond had repercussions for Eleanor and her son. The S\u00fag\u00e1n Earl claimed the estates, as the heir of Garrett's disinherited brother, but the Crown had previously recognised Garrett as the legal heir. In the field of politics, recognition of legal title was, however, a matter of expediency. If the rebellion in Munster got out of control, Elizabeth might well consider the restoration of James FitzThomas as the least expensive way to end the conflict. The claim of Eleanor's son, the legal heir, under lock and key in the Tower of London, might consequently be easily ignored. On the other hand, if O'Neill could be convinced that her son, if free, could more effectively unite the Geraldine factions in rebellion, then her son's restoration might be better realised by supporting the rebellion. It was said that O'Neill had employed the services of some of the Munster aristocracy, loyal to the late Earl of Desmond and who had access to his son in the Tower, to effect the boy's escape. The Privy Council acted on the rumour and apprehended Maurice FitzGibbon, the eldest son of the White Knight, and confined him to the Gatehouse in Westminster. Eleanor was drawn towards the complicated web of intrigue and subterfuge that tantalisingly held out hope of her son's restoration.\n\nOn his return from court in the late summer of 1598, Donogh O'Connor Sligo joined his wife in Munster. Amidst the intrigue and turmoil, their presence sounded alarm-bells in Dublin Castle. The Irish administration protested to the English Privy Council:\n\n_We understand that O'Connor Sligo . . . is aryvid in Mounster and remayneth here with his wife the Countess of Desmond. We cold have wished that he had have staid longer in England consideringe the general unsoundness of the Irishry here and how apt they are to run with each other into disloyaltie_.\n\nBut, in the event, O'Neill settled for what was attainable in Munster and backed the claims of the S\u00fag\u00e1n Earl as the most expedient way to extend rebellion in Munster. Meanwhile, in Sligo, O'Donnell took advantage of Clifford's inability, through a serious lack of supplies and an insufficient army, to extend his control over Sligo. He captured and established his headquarters in Donogh's castle of Ballymote. On their return home Donogh and Eleanor settled instead at Collooney castle to await developments.\n\nSince the death of Lord Burgh in October 1597 Ireland had been without a Lord Deputy. Elizabeth deliberated long over the appointment of a successor. The situation required a steady, trustworthy military leader. But in an ill-advised and impetuous personal decision, the Queen conferred the even more prestigious position of Lord Lieutenant on her current favourite, the temperamental second Earl of Essex. The young, headstrong earl considered the posting an opportunity to enhance his reputation at court and to display his military ability to an infatuated sovereign. On 15 April 1599 he arrived in Dublin with an army of 14,000 soldiers to confront the rebels, who were said to have a force of over 20,000. Accompanied by Eleanor, Donogh hurried to Dublin to renew acquaintance with the Lord Lieutenant, who had befriended him at court. Donogh accompanied Essex on a hosting through Munster before returning to Sligo to try and hold his ground against O'Donnell. Eleanor remained on in Dublin. She succeeded in obtaining husbands for two of her daughters. Margaret married Dermot mac An Dubhaltaigh O'Connor Don, a mercenary leader of some repute from County Roscommon. Katherine, her third daughter, became the wife of her cousin Maurice Roche, Viscount Fermoy. [The late Princess Diana was a descendant of this union.] It was a considerable achievement on Eleanor's part to find suitable partners for her daughters, given the political taint on their pedigree and their lack of a dowry or marriage portion.\n\nDonogh was besieged at Collooney by O'Donnell, desperate to expel him from the last remaining fortress commanding the pass into Connaught from Donegal. It was also vital to English interests in Connaught that Donogh should retain possession of the castle. Consequently Essex ordered Sir Conyers Clifford to relieve his friend and sent an urgent order to O'Connor's brother-in-law, Tibbott-ne-Long, to bring ordnance and supplies by sea from Galway to Sligo. Clifford, the Earl of Clanrickard, O'Connor Don and an army of 2,000 soldiers marched overland towards Collooney. On 5 August 1599 they attempted to cross the Curlew mountains but were defeated with heavy losses by O'Donnell. Clifford was killed in the battle and his body decapitated. O'Donnell came before Collooney castle, where the siege was still in progress, and displayed the head as proof to Donogh. O'Donnell promised that if Donogh surrendered the castle he would restore him to his chieftaincy and provide him with cattle and supplies. It was subsequently reported to Essex that Donogh O'Connor Sligo submitted to O'Donnell because he, being 'under the tyranny of the other, will think any bargain good for him if it bring assurance of life and recovery of lands'. But Donogh had little option. The Crown had proved unable to protect him and, in his present difficult situation, discretion appeared the better part of valour.\n\nDonogh's submission had not allayed the suspicion of the Ulster chieftains that both he and Eleanor were in league with the Crown. Eleanor's preference naturally favoured the side which proposed to advance her son's prospects; up to the present time O'Donnell seemed more inclined to back the cause of the S\u00fag\u00e1n Earl. The hostility between Donogh and O'Donnell was deep-rooted. 'I have never slept quietly since you came into Ireland', O'Donnell was reported to have said to Donogh, 'for fear of you and your draughts.' O'Donnell monitored Donogh's every move, and it was only with extreme difficulty that he managed to maintain contact with Eleanor in Dublin. He secretly conveyed letters to her by way of his trusted servants James Crean and Mulroney Oge. 'I thought good to write these few lines to you', he explained to her in September 1599, 'to let you understand that I received no answer of the last letters I sent you by Mulroney Oge.' He informed her that he was being closely guarded by O'Donnell, who, at a meeting with O'Neill at Lifford, had with great reluctance agreed that his ally could have temporary custody of Donogh.\n\nDuring his sojourn with O'Neill, Donogh became godfather to the Ulster leader's son, Shane. But despite the attempts of the Ulster chieftains to cajole or intimidate him into aligning with them, Donogh would give no commitment. His preference continued to be for the Crown. However, the English administration in Ireland had become unable to protect him and the many other minor Gaelic chieftains who, one by one, fell under the dominating influence of O'Neill and O'Donnell. Donogh had little option but to play for time. Through his secret correspondence with Eleanor, however, he realised the Crown should be made aware of his continued loyalty. He pointedly sent her four blank sheets signed with his name which he asked her to deliver to the Lord Lieutenant and Council. He urged her to hurry to him at the first opportunity so that, as he stated, 'I might confer with you of matters that I dare not write, fearing the way'.\n\nAs reports of her husband's capitulation circulated in Dublin, Eleanor requested permission from the Council to go to him, 'under pretence', as the officials recorded, 'to give him advice and to hold him sound in heart to the state'. Permission was refused, and the Council instead proposed 'to let slip the bishop his uncle who hath been always fast to the state'. The bishop in question was the unscrupulous chameleon of intrigue and double-dealing, Miler Magrath, the Archbishop of Cashel. Despite the suspicions of the Council, there was little reason for Eleanor to incline, at his juncture, towards O'Neill and O'Donnell. O'Neill seemed determined to espouse the cause of the S\u00fag\u00e1n Earl at the expense of her son. James FitzThomas unequivocally asserted his right to the title and estates, which he claimed 'of long time hath been wrongfully detained from me and my father who by right of succession was lawful heir to the earldom of Desmond'. At the same time the Dublin administration was taking no chances that the Countess of Desmond, intentionally or otherwise, could be drawn further into the intrigue. Eleanor refused to be deterred in her quest for the restoration of her son, and secretly she slipped out of Dublin and made her way to her husband, to see if the convoluted political situation could be turned to their advantage.\n\nThe Earl of Essex spent twenty-one weeks in Ireland, and under his ineffectual leadership the power of the Crown reached its nadir, while the Gaelic confederacy grew from strength to strength. Totally unopposed, O'Neill toured Munster and propounded the more lofty aims of the rebellion as a struggle to the death for the liberty of all Ireland from the English Crown. Meanwhile his ally O'Donnell ran riot in Connaught and compelled the vacillating chieftains there to his side. From England, the Queen berated Essex and ordered him to confront O'Neill in Ulster. But apart from meeting in private with the rebel chief\u2014an incident which was later to be used to discredit him in England\u2014Essex achieved little. His many enemies at court made the most of his indiscretions as they plied the Queen with rumours about his disloyalty and intrigue with O'Neill. On hearing this, the impetuous Essex deserted his post and fled to the side of his Gloriana. But where money and the security of the realm were concerned, there was no favouritism to be had from Elizabeth. She promptly imprisoned her errant prot\u00e9g\u00e9 and then set her mind to the task with which she had temporised for so long\u2014the reconquest of Ireland.\n\nHer formula for success centred on two people: Charles Blount, Lord Mountjoy, a straightforward military man, who succeeded Essex as Lord Deputy, and Sir George Carew, a wily, political manipulator, who was appointed Lord President of Munster. Both arrived in Ireland in the early months of 1600. The military abilities of the one, combined with the deviousness of the other, were finally to bring Gaelic Ireland to its knees. Mountjoy contended that the total destruction, both economically and militarily, of O'Neill's lordship was the only way forward. Carew's job was to loosen O'Neill's grip on Munster by destroying the Desmond alliance. With this end in view, he was to bring his Machiavellian capacity for intrigue and subterfuge to bear on the complex political situation obtaining in the province. And he had rich and fruitful pastures in which to sow the seeds of discord and dissension. The pawn he chose to use was a young man who, as yet, lay unsuspectingly entombed and forgotten behind the walls of the Tower of London.\n\nMany schemes presented themselves to the unscrupulous mind of Carew. He set about exploiting the unstable and divided Gaelic society he encountered by pandering to the greed, fear and ambition of the principal actors. 'We hold it a very good piece of policy', he wrote, 'to make them cut one another's throats, without which this kingdom will never be quiet.' First he attempted to involve Eleanor in a plot against James FitzThomas, the S\u00fag\u00e1n Earl, before hastily abandoning this plan when it was rumoured that Eleanor and her husband were in league with O'Donnell. Carew then turned his attention to Eleanor's daughter, Margaret, the wife of the mercenary leader Dermot O'Connor Don. Dermot commanded an army of 1,500 men in Munster, supposedly in the pay of O'Neill. Carew learned of Margaret's opposition to the S\u00fag\u00e1n Earl and her determination that her brother should be restored to the title and estates of his father. He consequently enlisted her help in a plot whereby her husband, for the sum of \u00a31,000, would capture FitzThomas and deliver him to Carew. To sow further dissension among the confederates, Carew was to write a letter to FitzThomas to make it appear that the latter had conspired with him to kill Dermot O'Connor. This letter was then given to Dermot on the pretext that it had been intercepted from Carew to James FitzThomas.\n\nO'Connor subsequently captured FitzThomas, ostensibly in O'Neill's name, displayed the fraudulent letter, secured his prisoner at Castle Lishin, near Charleville, and secretly alerted Carew. But before Carew could take custody of the prisoner, a large force of rebels rescued FitzThomas and, when the plot was discovered, O'Connor was forced to flee into Connaught. But despite his dramatic escape, the S\u00fag\u00e1n Earl's supporters, one by one, gradually deserted him. With little hope of assistance from O'Neill, who was being harried by Mountjoy in Ulster, like his uncle before him, the S\u00fag\u00e1n Earl took to the woods and mountains of Munster to await the promised aid from Spain. To completely destroy the Desmond alliance Carew next conceived a crafty project which, if successful, would transfer the allegiance of the Desmond adherents from O'Neill to the Crown. In order to put his plan into operation, Carew produced both his trump and his pawn in the person of Eleanor's son, James.\n\nLittle had been heard about the young Geraldine since 1593 when, in a plaintive letter to Sir Robert Cecil, he described himself as\n\n_an unknowne stranger who though young in years, yet being old in miserye . . . being born the unfortunate son of a faulty father. I have never since my infancy breathed out of prison\u2014the only hellish torment to a faithful hart to be houlden in suspect when it never thought upon offence_.\n\nHis long prison confinement had left its mark on the Desmond heir. The feebleness of his physical constitution was mirrored in a timid and malleable personality. He had little fight or vision, nor any sense of personal destiny, only a nervous and ingratiating desire to do his captor's bidding. To further split the Geraldine alliance, Carew now planned to restore the Geraldine heir to the Desmond title and to a small portion of his father's estate. The plan was greeted with little enthusiasm by the Queen, who had expended so much to subdue and destroy his father. Cecil, although generally supportive of the idea, voiced the Queen's fears to Carew. 'Much ado we have had', he wrote, 'to persuade her to have him sent, because she feareth that when he shall be there, it is not unlike but he and his cousyn [James FitzThomas, the S\u00fag\u00e1n Earl] may be reconciled.' Cecil, however, used his influence with the Queen, and in the autumn of 1600 preparations were set in train for the return of the forgotten Geraldine to Munster.\n\nThere is no evidence to suggest that Eleanor was even aware of her son's return. She was at this time ill and in semi-captivity at Ballymote castle, when news of her son's arrival in Munster reached her. But the happy tidings were tinged with disappointment. To prevent the formation of a Carew-inspired conspiracy between her son and her husband, O'Donnell imprisoned Donogh on Lough Esk. There he was 'so cruelly kept in prison that were it not for my soul's safety I would wilfully have ended my days . . . my legs being almost rotted with the fretting of the irons'. Eleanor waited expectantly for some communication from her son, but no letter or messenger arrived. Carew spied on his every move, and in any event James seemed unwilling to undertake anything that was contrary to the wishes of his handlers.\n\nThe complex political manoeuvrings eventually drew Eleanor into their net. A marriage between her daughter Joan to Red Hugh O'Donnell was proposed. Whether to effect her husband's release, or to have the Ulster chieftains back her son rather than the S\u00fag\u00e1n Earl, she agreed to the alliance. She subsequently sent her servant and confidante, Mary MacShee, 'who served her at and ever since the rebellion of her husband and in whom she reposeth her greatest trust', with letters to her daughter Joan, containing O'Donnell's proposal. She told her daughter that she was to return with Mary MacShee by the way of 'Thomand to Clanrickarde to Tibbott-ne-Long and so to Sligo', thus giving rise to speculation of a wider-based conspiracy. Mary MacShee duly made the journey to Limerick and delivered her mistress's letters to her daughter. But Carew had Eleanor's servant under surveillance and bided his time to see if his young Geraldine charge would reveal any knowledge of the messenger's visit to his sister and the contents of his mother's letter. And Carew was not disappointed, for 'at the end of three days the Earl related to the President that such a woman was in Towne', though he insisted that she had brought no message to him from his mother, but only to his sister Joan.\n\nCarew arrested Mary MacShee who, under interrogation, revealed 'that the especiall cause of her coming was to convey away the said Lady Joane to her mother and from thence to O'Donnell who had promised to consummate a Marriage with her'. Upon examination by Carew, Joan acknowledged the fact, but insisted that she had never intended to yield to her mother's command without the advice and consent of her brother whom, she vowed, she had been about to acquaint with the details of her mother's letter. To deter further intrigue, Carew had Joan committed under restraint to the house of an alderman in Limerick City, while Mary MacShee was made a close prisoner in Limerick jail.\n\nThe episode, from beginning to end, was testimony to the scheming and deception that shrouded the actions of both sides during the period, with Carew the principal manipulator of every cut and thrust of the political intrigue. The motivations of Eleanor and the other parties are difficult to ascertain, as the surviving records are mainly derived from sources close to Carew, who seemed, at times, to lose himself in the depth and extent of his own duplicity. In Carew's opinion, the entire episode masked a wider and more devious conspiracy against the Crown, involving not only O'Donnell but also the supposedly loyal lords of Connaught\u2014Donogh O'Connor Sligo and Tibbott-ne-Long Bourke of Mayo. Of Eleanor's part in the affair, Carew reported to the Crown that\n\n_The old craftie Countesse, understanding that this complot was discovered, pretended that her indeavours in seeking to effect this Marriage tended to no other end but to reduce O'Donnell to be a subject, although indeed there was nothing lesse meant_.\n\nEleanor's son was reported by Carew to have been 'grievously offended with his mother, that would deal in a business of that weight and so nearly tending to his subversion'.\n\nA further incident occurred during this time which added substance to Carew's suspicion of a wider conspiracy. When Carew ordered Dermot O'Connor Don, who since the abortive plot against the S\u00fag\u00e1n Earl had remained in Connaught, to return to Munster to support his brother-in-law, he issued O'Connor with a safe pass out of Connaught. As he moved south with a small armed force, O'Connor was apprehended and killed at Gort by Tibbott-ne-Long Bourke, who claimed that he slew O'Connor because he was a traitor to the Crown. Carew, however, accused Bourke of conspiring with O'Neill, O'Donnell and O'Connor Sligo to extend the rebellion in Munster, either by compelling the Earl of Desmond to their cause or, failing that, by ensuring that there would be no Gaelic support forthcoming for him in Munster.\n\nAmid the storm of accusations and counter-accusations that followed, Eleanor never actually met her son during his brief stay in Munster. In fact she was never to see him alive again. His initial reception in the province as the lawful Geraldine heir had been encouraging. As Carew anticipated, the presence of the young earl drew support away from the S\u00fag\u00e1n Earl. At Youghal people flocked in their thousands to welcome the rightful heir of Desmond. At Kilmallock he was greeted by a large multitude 'as if they came to see him whom God had sent to be that comfort and delight, their souls and hearts most desired'. And, as was reported, 'they welcomed him with all the expression and signs of joy, everyone throwing upon him wheat and salt as a prediction of future peace and plenty.' But when the anglicised Geraldine displayed his religious preference by attending a Protestant service, as Carew reported to the Crown, he soon became an alien among his own people and asked to be allowed return to England. 'So far is his humour and religion different from the Irish as he thinks all time lost which is spent among them,' Carew assured Sir Robert Cecil. James's usefulness to the Crown's cause in Munster subsequently receded. Cecil ordered his return to England, with a promise to find him a suitable bride and to bestow on him a small allowance. But at the age of thirty in mysterious circumstances he died in the Tower. Notice of his death was brief. 'I have buried according to your direction my Lord of Desmond,' his doctor reported to Cecil in November 1601. 'His necessary charges for his lodging in my house, my counsel unto him, his physic taken and funeral charges I have in a bill ready to show.' In death as in life the last Earl of Desmond, like his father, seemed destined to be a drain on Elizabeth's purse-strings, as bills for the services and necessities provided for him during the last months of his captivity continued to be submitted to the Crown long after his death.\n\nFour of his sisters and his servant, William Power, remained at Cork and petitioned the English Privy Council for additional subsistence and for 'p'curing Her Majesty's most gracious goodness towards them for their reasonable matching there or here'. Regarding the future of their sister Joan, still under restraint in Limerick, the Privy Council agreed in August 1601 'to set her at liberty again as she was before, referring the care of her well doing to some of her sisters that they may have an eye over her'.\n\nThe final episode in the Crown's long war against O'Neill and O'Donnell, and in the even longer war between Gaelic Ireland and England, drew to a ominous close. While Carew schemed and bullied the Geraldine adherents into sullen submission in Munster, Mountjoy wreaked havoc against O'Neill and O'Donnell in Ulster. The policy of devastation and spoliation successfully used against the Earl of Desmond two decades earlier, seemed likely to succeed again in Ulster. 'Our only way to ruine the rebels', Mountjoy advised, 'must be to make all possible waste of the means for life, but', he warned, 'if we be not supplied out of England, we shall as well starve ourselves as them.' The policy was carried on without respite throughout the year 1601, leaving the Gaelic leaders no possibility to harvest or to replenish their stocks. At the same time Mountjoy established well-provisioned forts in the areas he subdued and backed the land campaign with a naval operation, led by Sir Henry Docwra, who landed behind O'Donnell's lines with an army of 4,000 men in Lough Foyle. There was little O'Neill or O'Donnell could do but hold out and wait for the promised aid from Spain. In Munster the S\u00fag\u00e1n Earl was captured by his erstwhile ally, the White Knight, and delivered to Carew. He was sent to the Tower where, it was reported, in 1607 he died 'in his lunacy'.\n\nOn 21 September 1601, 3,800 Spanish soldiers, under the command of Don Juan del Aguila, landed at Kinsale in County Cork where they awaited the arrival of their Irish allies. By the end of October the Spanish were surrounded by Mountjoy and his army, which comprised many 'royalist' Irish. On 2 November Hugh O'Donnell assembled his forces at Ballymote castle and set out on the long march to Kinsale, leaving Eleanor and her husband under guard in the castle, with no part to play in the coming showdown. After weeks of deliberation O'Neill finally threw in his lot with O'Donnell and, at the end of November, joined him at Kinsale. In Mayo, Donogh's brother-in-law, Tibbott-ne-long Bourke, after months of vacillation and intrigue, finally decided to ally with the side which seemed most likely to restore him to the power he had forfeited to O'Donnell's puppet MacWilliam in Mayo. Gathering his clansmen and tributary chiefs he too sailed south to fight with Mountjoy at Kinsale.\n\nEleanor and her husband could do little but await the outcome of the most significant battle fought for centuries in Ireland, the result of which had enormous implications for their future. For Kinsale was more than a mere military confrontation. With a victory for O'Neill and O'Donnell rested some hope of the survival of a Gaelic Ireland and freedom from the malevolent control of England. For Mountjoy victory would destroy the Gaelic confederacy and secure Ireland, once and for all, for the Crown. For the multitude of minor players like Eleanor and her husband, who made up the patchwork quilt of Gaelic leadership, they could do little to influence events. Their fate and future lay in the hands of whatever side emerged victorious from Kinsale.\n\nMountjoy's subsequent victory at Kinsale on 24 December 1601 brought the long and bloody Tudor conquest of Ireland to a close. O'Neill returned to an Ulster devastated by famine, and opened negotiations with the Crown. O'Donnell made for Spain in the hope of reviving Spanish interest and support in the cause of Gaelic Ireland. In the last years of her eventful reign, the aged Elizabeth had lived to see her ambition in Ireland fulfilled, though at immense cost both to her Crown and to Ireland.\n\nNews of the defeat trickled through to Eleanor and her husband at Sligo, as the remnants of O'Donnell's army, under the leadership of his brother Rory, made their way back to Ulster. Despite the defeat, the cause of Gaelic Ireland still held a strange and fatal attraction. Already rumours of O'Donnell's imminent return with help from Spain kept the fires of resistance aglow. Fearful that the government's policy was 'to dispossess the principall men of their lands and livings and to get the same unto her Majestie's hands', Donogh and his brother-in-law, Tibbott-ne-Long Bourke, now conspired to oppose the advance into Sligo of an English army commanded by Sir Oliver Lambert. But Lambert evaded their planned ambush and reached the town, which he found virtually destroyed. In August 1602 Rory O'Donnell compelled O'Connor Sligo to join him in the last recorded victory of the long campaign, when they routed a substantial English army at the place of Clifford's defeat three years previously. But the collapse of the cause of Gaelic Ireland was too far advanced to be reversed by a single victory. And at almost sixty years of age Eleanor realised this better than most. She knew only too well the outcome of defeat in rebellion.\n\nIn late 1602 news of Red Hugh O'Donnell's death in Spain reached Ireland. It was reported that he had been poisoned at the castle of Simancas near Valladolid. In Ulster O'Neill made his conditional peace with the Crown to try to salvage his earldom from the wreckage. O'Connor Sligo made terms with Lambert, who brought him to Athlone to meet with Mountjoy. O'Connor Sligo made a good case to the Lord Deputy, stating that he had been made a virtual prisoner by O'Donnell and had no option but to align with the rebels. Anxious to bring an end to the hostilities in Connaught, Mountjoy pardoned him, and in 1604 Donogh received a knighthood from the Crown.\n\nBut peace and pardons aside, the financial fortunes of Eleanor, her family and her husband were still precarious. During the long years of turmoil Eleanor's pension from the Crown had been irregularly paid and her daughters had not received their allowances. Her husband's territory of Carbury had been wasted by the incursions of O'Donnell and by the retaliatory attacks of the Crown forces. O'Connor Sligo testified to the condition of Ballymote, the only habitable castle on his estate: 'It is also greatly defaced and the house burnt down by O'Donnell's people. . . . I will, if granted it,' he promised, 'repair the castle and house.' During Donogh's long absence in England the English administration in Connaught, particularly under Bingham, had also devastated his estate. The focal point of Crown interest was Sligo castle which, after Kinsale, had been taken by Crown forces under Sir John King. Moreover, the rents normally forthcoming from Donogh's estate had been rendered negligible by the late unrest. Both Eleanor and her husband were, once more, near the poverty line. Finally Sir Donogh obtained letters patent to the ownership of Sligo castle. There he settled with Eleanor to confront the new 'war' that was about to erupt over ownership of the land of Ireland.\n\nWhile English military dominance had been established over Ireland, the ownership of the land still remained largely in Gaelic hands. Under Elizabeth's successor, James I, the battle for possession of the land of Ireland intensified. It was a war waged by lawyers, adventurers, profiteers and officials who, armed with pens, parchment, obscure deeds and money, sought to acquire by illegal or quasi-legal means, the estates and property of the impoverished native aristocracy. In Sligo Sir James Fullerton, a Scottish spy of James I, was granted the castle of Ballymote and the valuable lands of Sligo abbey. The rents payable to Sir Donogh from these properties were consequently distrained from him and he was forced to contest the claims of the new planters in court. Some of his claims were admitted by the Crown and, 'subsidised with government money, Sir Donogh bought from Sir William Taaffe much of the land which the latter had acquired in Sligo'. He successfully instituted legal proceedings in the courts of Chancery and Exchequer to protect his estates from avaricious entrepreneurs who sought flaws in his title, and also to have restored the rents and services due to him from dependent septs. He spent the remaining years of his life attempting to put his estate and property on a secure legal footing by right of English common law. His estate, however, failed to yield sufficient profit, and he was forced to mortgage much land and property, particularly to the merchant families of Galway, who had the means to exploit the reduced circumstances of the old native aristocracy on the collapse of Gaelic law.\n\nWhile her husband strove to untangle the legal and financial web of his estate, Eleanor, together with her daughters Joan and Ellen, proceeded to England to attempt to extract additional maintenance from the new king, James I. Despite her advanced age and the long years of surviving on the meagre subsistence she had managed to extract from the English administration, and in the face of persistent misfortunes, her hope never waned that fate eventually would deal her a kinder hand. She arrived in London in the summer of 1603 and, as she attested, 'for nine months following the court at great cost', petitioned the King and the Privy Council for the restoration of her pension and for some part of her late husband's estate in Munster. She told Sir Robert Cecil that, owing to the destruction wrought by the late rebellion on her second husband's lordship, she was, once again, 'destitute of a place of abode both for me and mine'. Her daughters petitioned the King in similar vein and attested 'that the misery of our estate is such as we are ashamed to make it manifest to the world'. They appealed also to Sir Robert Cecil because, as they stated, 'your lordship ever stood the best friend that either our brother or selves have had, we beseech you now to assign us some proportionable living to our estates and calling'.\n\nBy now Eleanor and her daughters were familiar figures on the outer fringes of court circles, as they hovered in the background, without the money, means or political clout to assert their case, but entirely dependent on the pity and charity of Cecil and other court officials. They followed the royal court from place to place for as long as their meagre means allowed. Lodged in back-street boarding houses and inns, they starved themselves of food and necessities in order to appear in some suitable state at court, wherein lay their only chance to alleviate their plight. They could not afford to dwell on the humiliation and degradation of their position, for the alternative\u2014that they might be denied access to the court to plead their case\u2014was too frightening to contemplate. Eleanor's remarkable will to survive alone brought them through the ordeal.\n\nAfter much hardship and rejection their mission seemed likely to be successful. In 1605 Cecil arranged to have Eleanor's pension and arrears sanctioned for payment. Eleanor contrived to have an advance of one year paid to her, which she used to clear the debts incurred during her prolonged stay in England. She assured Cecil that she had arranged with the Earl of Kildare that he 'will join her in bonds, that if she die within the year, to restore so much thereof as shall not fall due during her life', for, as she informed him, 'I know no other means to rid me hence or bear my charges; otherwise I must stay longer than I meant, and run further in debte, so much as I shall be unable to go at any time.' But the old campaigner would see many more decades and outlive those from whom she now begged and borrowed. Whether out of compassion for her age and position, or whether to rid himself of a wily and persistent petitioner, whose mental and physical energies defied her years, Cecil granted her demands. He instructed the Lord Deputy and Council in Dublin to deal favourably with the countess and her daughters 'now on their return from England to Ireland and particularly to take order that they be paid from time to time the pension granted them by His Majesty without unnecessary delay'.\n\nWhile Eleanor managed to have her material wants alleviated, on her return to Sligo with her daughter Ellen, she found Sir Donogh still deeply involved in the legal battle to secure his estates and property. His competitors ironically accused him of seeking to acquire too large an estate, of having 'a great living and cannot be contented', to which he replied, understandably, in view of the encroachment on his ancestral estates by the self-same accusers, 'I bear the name but they have all the substance.' During 1607 and 1608 Sir Donogh fought a series of lawsuits to defend his estate from avaricious entrepreneurs and ambitious former tributary septs who sought to establish claims on the strength of broken or faulty deeds to lands in the hereditary possession of his ancestors. The pressures and expenses of each successive case began to take their toll. 'I am since my coming into Ireland', he complained to Cecil, 'tossed and troubled in wronged lawsuits by my continual disturber Sir William Taaffe, with whom is joined Sir Lionel Guest.' But Sir Donogh was fighting a losing battle. His most deadly adversary was the swelling tide of greed and sharp practice that was far more insidious and effective as a means of reducing the Gaelic aristocracy than the guns and cannon of the previous century. Against this onslaught, Sir Donogh's determined endeavours, even when aided by Eleanor's considerable diplomatic skill, had little hope of success. On 11 August 1609 the old chieftain died at Sligo castle; as Eleanor informed Cecil, 'The tediousness in withstanding the said causes did so weary and wear him out that in the end the grief finished his life.'\n\nEleanor had every reason to grieve the death of her sober, well-intentioned second husband. He had been kind and considerate and had striven unceasingly to provide her with a lifestyle commensurate to her rank. When every back was turned in her years of greatest poverty and humiliation, Donogh O'Connor Sligo, whether motivated and encouraged by political considerations, or simply from a sense of affection for the abandoned countess, offered her his hand and protection. The inscription Eleanor later had carved over his tomb is testimony to the deep affection she bore him:\n\n_Is your hand the martial hand that shone in war_\n\n_And yours the gentle one that shone in peace_\n\n_Turned to ashes. . . ?_\n\n_I . . . who with moistened cheeks stretch forth_\n\n_My arms in redoubled lamentation_\n\n_Will ever be mindful of your death_.\n\nAnd the affection which Sir Donogh bore his wife was more materially demonstrated by the extraordinary inheritance which he bequeathed to her and which, inadvertently, was to complicate yet further the already tangled affairs of his estate. As part of her jointure, Sir Donogh bequeathed to his wife 'thirteene castles, one hundred messuages, ten gardens, four thousand acres of land, one thousand acres of pasture, one thousand acres of wood, one thousand acres of moor and three thousand acres of heath'.\n\nEleanor was, for a second time, a widow, but this time under less traumatic and calamitous circumstances. In theory she was substantially well-off but, in practice, the revenue-raising power of the O'Connor Sligo estate had been eroded over the previous decades. It was impossible to extract rents and dues from tenants and tributary septs who were unable or unwilling to pay. Moreover, the land had been plundered by both sides in the late war and had been neglected in the succeeding years during which the legal war to its ownership raged. The estate required a substantial injection of capital if it was to survive the financial and legal difficulties with which it was encumbered. To ease the financial strain which again threatened to overwhelm her, Eleanor embarked on a matchmaking exercise. In an attempt to consolidate control of the O'Connor Sligo estate, she married her daughter Ellen to Sir Donogh's brother and heir, Donal, a widower of thirty-five years of age. Of Sir Donal and his impending marriage to Eleanor's daughter, it was reported to Sir Robert Cecil:\n\n_He speaks English well; he was bred up in the wars in France; the people have a great opinion of him and he is like to prove an honest man if his grafting upon a crabbed stock do not alter his proper nature_.\n\nBut Eleanor's hopes were destined to be thwarted. Sir Donal survived his brother by a mere two years. Ellen married secondly Sir Robert Cressey of Cong, a member of the English administration in Connaught. Her marriage jointure on her second marriage placed added strain on the viability of the O'Connor Sligo estate. Eleanor married off her youngest daughter, Ellis, to Sir Valentine Browne, son and heir of Sir Nicholas Browne of Kerry. She had initially attempted to arrange a marriage between one of her daughters with the heir to the neighbouring O'Connor Don estate, but for political reasons the Crown opposed 'two such great families joining together'.\n\nHaving finally secured matches for her daughters, it was not unreasonable that Eleanor should expect to enjoy her remaining years in the peace and tranquillity that had evaded her all her life. But it was not to be. She was forced to embark on yet another legal battle to protect the lands and property bequeathed to her by Sir Donogh. On the untimely death of her late husband's brother and heir, the O'Connor estate was inherited by his son by a previous marriage, then a minor. The wardship of the young heir was granted by the King to Sir Faithful Fortescue. 'Alarmed by the extent to which the property was tied up in marriage jointures, Fortescue initiated an action in the Dublin courts to have the Countess of Desmond's jointure overthrown'. because, he claimed, of defects in the wording of the conveyance.\n\nDuring the course of the year 1613 Eleanor made frequent representations to the Irish Privy Council regarding the properties in dispute, which were situated mainly in the area of Sligo town. When the case was eventually scheduled to be heard, she pleaded inability to appear, on the grounds of illness and old age. After a further delay the Council ordered an official investigation into the dispute. The investigators found in her favour and recommended to the Lord Deputy that Eleanor, whom they described as 'growne aged and hath not long to live', should be shown 'as much favour as may be afforded to a lady of her years and quality . . . that shee may at length be freed of theise unexpected troubles'. Eleanor played the part of the aged, feeble lady who, at the end of her days, found herself the victim of greed and circumstance; as such she successfully evoked the sympathy of the Lord Deputy and Council who ruled that she should hold the lands for the term of her life and that they would then pass to Charles, the king's ward.\n\nThe Council, not unnaturally, presumed and based their judgement on the premise that Eleanor's death was imminent. But she long outlived both her opponents and her advocates, and retained possession of her jointure to the end of her long life.\nEpilogue\n\n_Is that Penelope, Elinor, that second chaste Judith,_\n\n_Indeed buried beneath marble stones?_\n\n_I, mother Ierne, who with moistened cheeks stretch forth_\n\n_My arms in redoubled lamentation,_\n\n_Will ever be mindful of your death._\n\nINSCRIPTION ON ELEANOR'S TOMB, SLIGO ABBEY\n\nEleanor resided at Sligo castle for the rest of her life. Her days of petitions and appearances at the English court were over. No further correspondence from her prolific quill appears among the state papers of the day. There are no more allusions to the presence of the 'Lady of Desmond' at the royal court. References to payment of her prized pension, which she had fought so diligently to obtain from the Crown, appear sporadically in the state despatches in the early decades of the seventeenth century. She doggedly fought her case in the law-courts and hung tenaciously on to every acre bequeathed to her by Sir Donogh O'Connor Sligo. She stood her ground despite the powerful and resourceful new breed of fortune-seekers, entrepreneurs and wealthy merchants who, in the years after Kinsale, flooded into Sligo to take advantage, by way of defective title, bribery and sharp practice, of the remnants of the old Gaelic aristocracy and, whenever possible, to replace them as the new masters of the land. It took courage and gumption for an aged widow, on her own, to defend her interests with such success against such able opposition. But her days of penury were at last behind her, and her remaining years were spent in the relative comfort and dignity which had eluded her throughout her early and middle life.\n\nHer ability as a matchmaker for her daughters had paid dividends. Her daughter Joan, for whom she had plotted a marriage with Red Hugh O'Donnell, married Dermot O'Sullivan Beare of Cork. Her third daughter, Katherine, after the death of her first husband, Lord Roche, married Donal O'Brien, afterwards Viscount Clare. On the death of her second husband, Sir Robert Cressey of Cong, her daughter Ellen married her cousin Edmund Butler, who in 1629 had succeeded his grandfather as Baron of Dunboyne; by this marriage Eleanor's unhappy feud with her brother over the disputed estate was laid to rest. Her youngest daughter, Ellis, married Sir Valentine Browne of Ross castle, Killarney, and 'thus as the wife of an undertaker's son enjoyed some portion of the vast estates which had been forfeited by her father's rebellion'.\n\nEleanor's only son, James, the 'Tower Earl', left no heir. Soon after his death the title was claimed by her first husband's old protagonist, Black Tom, Earl of Ormond, in right of his mother, Joan, as the daughter and heiress of James, the eleventh Earl of Desmond. When the only daughter and heiress of Black Tom was subsequently bestowed in marriage on a Scotsman, Sir Richard Preston, by King James I, the claim to the Desmond earldom was revived. Preston, in right of his wife, was created Earl of Desmond by patent dated 1619. The patent stipulated that if Preston died without male heirs, the earldom should descend to George, the younger son of William Fielding, Earl of Denbeigh, with whom a marriage was then contemplated with Preston's only daughter and heiress. While the marriage did not in effect take place, the provision of the patent was allowed, and the ancient Irish title passed into the Fielding family, who became the Earls of Denbeigh and Desmond. The spirit of Garrett FitzGerald would surely have rested uneasily had his prized title come to rest on the descendants of his bitter rival, the Earl of Ormond.\n\nIn 1624 Eleanor erected an impressive tomb for her second husband in Sligo abbey. It is an interesting monument built in renaissance style, and is in an excellent state of preservation to this day. Situated in the south wall of the abbey, adjacent to the high altar, it consists of two arched recesses in which are carved two kneeling figures in profile, representing Eleanor and Sir Donogh. 'Sir Donogh is clad in plate armour, his helmet being placed on the ground behind him. His wife is dressed in a loose flowing overmantle, with a close-fitting cap on which a coronet is placed. Round her neck is a large ruff and a string of beads which supports a cross of the Greek pattern with expanded ends.' The monument is decorated with heraldic emblems of the O'Connor, Butler and FitzGerald families. In 1989 a headstone from the monument was found in Sligo during excavations for a new office block. With Eleanor and her husband is buried her daughter Ellis, who died in 1623. The date of Eleanor's own death is less certain.\n\nHer will, however, is dated 26 November 1638. By it she appointed her sons-in-law, Sir Donal O'Brien and Sir Robert Cressey, her executors 'and willed them to pay all her debts, called her stated accounts, and her funeral expenses out of her moveable goods and chattels'. She bequeathed to her daughter Joan a silver ewer and basin, and to her daughter Ellen all the remainder of her goods, including her plate and jewels. She left various legacies to her grandchildren, friends and servants. 'She bequeathed towards the building of a hospital in Sligo \u00a3100, and \u00a3200 more (both out of her arrears in England) to be laid out in an annuity mortgage, or land, so as to yield \u00a320 a year towards the support of the poor residing in said hospital.' Despite her traumatic life, Eleanor lived to the remarkable age of well over ninety years, over double the average life expectancy of the time.\n\nThat she lived so long is a tribute to her courage, her indomitable will and her superhuman capacity to withstand suffering, loss and deprivation. Her mental ability enabled her to overcome the Machiavellian political practices of her time which brought about the downfall of many greater and more powerful. She endured much personal hardship and tragedy, but with extraordinary resilience returned, time after time, to meet and contend with each successive challenge. She was both a witness to and a participant in a period of almost unparalleled upheaval and destruction which had sucked an entire civilisation into its maw. She had seen a fertile province scorched to a blackened and wasted heathland, its population starve to death, their pitiful cries mingling with the sound of war and the clamour of the victors. She herself suffered the pangs of hunger and the deprivation of a fugitive's life as she stoically stood by her outlawed husband. She knew the pain of being forced to part with her children as, on countless occasions, political necessity tore them from her side. She experienced humiliation, insult, isolation and friendlessness as she pursued her mission for survival alone and without means. But her innate will to survive and her ability to adapt to the new order was the spur that impelled her to overcome her adversity and gave her the strength to outlive her opponents. Elizabeth, FitzMaurice, Sidney, Perrot, Drury, Sir John of Desmond, Pelham, Malby, Dr Sanders, Burghley, Raleigh, Black Tom, Essex, Red Hugh O'Donnell, Cecil, O'Neill, the list of great and colourful characters with whom she shared the stage, had all passed on. Eleanor alone remained, the last surviving participant in as great a tragedy that ever befell a family and a nation.\n\nIn the quiet ruins of Sligo abbey today the tomb she had erected stands as the only reminder of this extraordinary but unsung heroine. In life Eleanor received few bouquets, and her lot in death was total oblivion from written history and even from popular folklore, which preserved the memory of many of her contemporaries. Yet, in musty archives, her prolific correspondence, the script almost indecipherable on the age-darkened, brittle parchment, bears testimony to the life, aims and ambitions of this extraordinary woman, on whom fortune seldom smiled but who steadfastly refused to succumb to the dark shadows that relentlessly clouded her life.\nAppendix\n\nThe 'Old' Countess of Desmond\n\nWhile the life of Eleanor Butler, Countess of Desmond, has received little acknowledgement, that of another Countess of Desmond has been recorded by both contemporary and latter-day historians and writers. The countess in question was Katherine FitzGerald, daughter of John FitzGerald, second Lord of Decies in Waterford, and wife of her second cousin, Thomas FitzGerald, twelfth Earl of Desmond. Her main claim to fame was her great longevity, which resulted in her appellation as the 'Old' Countess of Desmond.\n\nOne of the earliest references to this paragon of longevity is contained in Sir Walter Raleigh's _History of the World_ , in which he records that, while married in the reign of Edward IV, the countess was still alive in 1589. Presuming, as was the custom, that she was married at the age of fifteen, and that the marriage took place in the last year of the king's reign, that would leave her at the remarkable age of 121 years in 1589. But evidence of her continued existence, well into the seventeenth century, is recorded by many contemporary historians, among them the famous Elizabethan writer and traveller Fynes Moryson, who died in 1614. In his _Itinerary_ , published in 1617, he stated:\n\n_In our time the Irish Countesse of Desmonde lived to the age of about one hundred and forty yrs, being able to go on foot four or five miles to the market towne, and used weekly so to do in her last yeares and not many yeares before she died_.\n\nA few decades later, Lord Bacon in his _History of Life and Death_ claimed that she lived to be 140 years old and that during the course of her long life she grew two sets of teeth!\n\nOn the death of her husband in 1534, the Old Countess of Desmond settled at Inchiquin castle, a few miles south-west of Youghal, which her husband had assigned to her as part of her jointure for the duration of her life. On her death the castle and lands would automatically revert to the earldom of Desmond. There, it was not unnaturally expected, she would live out her few remaining years. But successive earls of Desmond came and went and Inchiquin remained in the possession of its elderly chatelaine.\n\nIt is likely that she and Eleanor met several times during their long lives, especially during 1575, when the controversial enfeoffment of his lands by Eleanor's husband, Garrett, was effected. By a deed dated 5 April 1575 the Old Countess enfeoffed the castle and lands of Inchiquin to the Earl of Desmond. He, in turn, enfeoffed them in trust to his servants, Morris Sheehan and David Roche, for thirty-one years. Whether she supported Garrett's rebellion is unknown, but she was witness to the devastation of Munster and his subsequent death and attainder. In the plantation that followed, Inchiquin castle and lands were part of the Crown grant to Sir Walter Raleigh, who, whether obliged by law or in deference to the age of its antique resident, allowed the Old Countess to remain undisturbed at Inchiquin. Raleigh too expected that her demise would be imminent, but she lived to see Raleigh depart and Inchiquin pass into the grasping hands of Richard Boyle, Earl of Cork. Boyle was less inclined to tolerate the now seemingly unending occupancy of his new property by an aged tenant who simply refused to die. But the Countess resisted his attempts to dislodge her from her perch and, when Boyle persisted, she took matters into her own hands.\n\nIn 1604, at the phenomenal age of some 136 years, this female Methuselah set out from County Cork, with her daughter, who was over ninety years of age, for the court of King James I. It was recorded that 'landing in Bristol she came on foot to London', while her daughter 'being decrepid was brought in a little carte, their poverty not allowing better means'. While there is no conclusive evidence as to the outcome of her petition to the king, it does seem likely that the touching and incredible apparition of this ancient woman, who had lived through the reigns of seven monarchs and overlapped with two others, was suitably rewarded. For the Old Countess returned to Inchiquin, where her long life was only brought to an end in 1604 by a bizarre accident. Sir Robert Sidney recorded the circumstances of her death:\n\n_She might have lived much longer hade she not mette with a kind of violent death, for she must needs climb a nutt tree to gather nuts, soe falling down, she hurt her thighe, which brought a fever, and that brought death_.\n\nSo ended the incredible life of the Old Countess of Desmond, although another account places her death ten years later, in 1614. A portrait of a woman which once hung in Muckross abbey, County Kerry, purports to be a likeness of her, painted during her visit to the court of King James in 1604.\n\nWhether she met her death in 1604 or in 1614, the Old Countess of Desmond has entered both legend and history, where she has continued to be considered an inspiration in the records of human longevity.\n\n_Older far than my grand-dam, indeed, aye, as old_\n\n_As that Countess of Desmond of whom we are told_\n\n_That she lived to much more than a hundred and ten,_\n\n_And was killed by a fall from a cherry tree, then_\n\n_What a frisky old girl_.\nGenealogical Charts\n\nThe author is indebted to Dr K. W. Nicholls, of University College, Cork, for his assistance and his kind permission to use his research material in the compilation of this genealogy.\n\n* Tibbot na Sidh\u00e9an's father was John Butler, a brother of James Butler, Baron of Dunboyne. Tibbot married secondly Katherine Burke, widow of James FitzMaurice FitzGerald (d. 1579).\n\nReferences\n\n**Chapter 1**\n\n.Maher, _Romantic Slievnamon_ , 48.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1601_\u2013 _3_ , 251.\n\n.Canny, _Elizabethan Conquest_ , 22.\n\n.Nicholls, _Gaelic and Gaelicised Ireland_ , 8.\n\n.Beckett, _Making of Modern Ireland_ , 14.\n\n.Nicholls, _Gaelic and Gaelicised Ireland_ , 73.\n\n.Ibid., 73.\n\n.Ibid., 78.\n\n.Joyce, _Social History of Ancient Ireland_ , II, 120.\n\n.Butler, 'Peter Butler of Grallagh Castle', _Butler Soc. Jn_., I, 3 (1970), 197.\n\n**Chapter 2**\n\n.Smith, _Elizabethan Epic_ , 90.\n\n.'The Housekeeping of Irish Chiefs', _Dublin University Magazine_ , LIII (1959), 463.\n\n.Annals of the Four Masters, V, 1561.\n\n.N.L.I., MS 2289.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , I, 505.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.N.L.I., MS 2289.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , I, 20.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Cox, _Hibernia Anglicana_ , II, 392.\n\n.Nicholls, _Gaelic and Gaelicised Ireland_ , 164.\n\n.Berleth, _Twilight Lords_ , 76.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, I, 417.\n\n.Ibid., 416.\n\n.MacCurtain, 'The Fall of the House of Desmond', _Kerry Arch. & Hist. Soc. Jn._, VIII (1975), 89.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Annals of the Four Masters_ , V, 1579.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , II, 48.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , II, 506.\n\n.Berleth, _Twilight Lords_ , 81.\n\n**Chapter 3**\n\n.Berleth, _Twilight Lords_ , 80.\n\n.FitzGerald, _Geraldines_ , appx.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , I, 42.\n\n.Ibid., 56.\n\n.FitzGerald, _Geraldines_ , 64.\n\n. _New Hist. Ire_., III, 87.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , I, 61.\n\n. _Sidney State Papers_ , 34.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Canny, _Elizabethan Conquest_ , 32.\n\n. _Sidney State Papers_ , 67.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, III, lvii.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , II, 114.\n\n. _Cal. Pepys MSS_, 47.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Wright, _History of Ireland_ , 419.\n\n.Ibid., 422.\n\n.Gaughan, _Knights of Glin_ , 29.\n\n. _New Hist. Ire_., III, 88.\n\n. _Cal. Cecil MSS_, I, 349.\n\n.FitzGerald, _Geraldines_ , 102.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , I, 23.\n\n.Ibid., II, 517.\n\n.Countess of Desmond to Munster Commissioners, 11 Jan. 1568 (S.P., 63\/23\/16 ii).\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Munster Commissioners to Countess of Desmond, 13 Jan. 1568 (S.P., 63\/23\/16 iv).\n\n.L'Estrange, _Conna and Desmond_ , 46.\n\n. _Cal. Cecil MSS_, I, 355.\n\n.S.P., various entries.\n\n.Desmond to Thomas FitzGerald, 10 May 1568 (S.P., 63\/26\/39).\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , II, 515.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , II, 137.\n\n.Ibid., 138.\n\n.Canny, _Elizabethan Conquest_ , 67.\n\n.FitzGerald, _Geraldines_ , 259.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , II, 151.\n\n. _New Hist. Ire._ , III, 92.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , II, 154.\n\n. _New Hist. Ire._ , III, 93.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , II, 151.\n\n. _New Hist. Ire._ , III, 89.\n\n**Chapter 4**\n\n.FitzGerald, _Geraldines_ , 262.\n\n.Ibid., 263.\n\n.Black, _Reign of Elizabeth_ , 477.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , II, 484.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, V, 415.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , II, 415.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid., 485.\n\n.Desmond to Cecil, 5 July 1570 (S.P., 63\/30\/69).\n\n. _Sidney State Papers_ , 130.\n\n.St Leger to Privy Council, 17 Oct. 1570 (S.P., 63\/30\/87).\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Cal. Pat. Rolls Ire., Eliz._ , 546.\n\n. _New Hist. Ire._ , III, 99.\n\n.Berleth, _Twilight Lords_ , 40.\n\n.St Leger to Burghley, 6 June 1571 (S.P., 63\/32\/54).\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , I, 28.\n\n.Ibid., 62.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.N.L.I., MS 2289.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , II, 485.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _New Hist. Ire._ , III, 91.\n\n.Lambeth Palace Library, MS 616.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , III, 210.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid., 234.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, V, 430.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , II, 238.\n\n.Wright, _History of Ireland_ , 437.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , II, 485.\n\n**Chapter 5**\n\n. _New Hist. Ire._ , III, 99.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , II, 248.\n\n.Ibid., 251.\n\n.Desmond to Lord Deputy and Council, 25 Nov. 1573 (S.P., 63\/43\/6 i).\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , II, 487.\n\n.Justice Walshe to Lord Deputy, 24 Nov. 1573 (S.P., 63\/43\/6 III).\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , II, 253.\n\n.Desmond to Lord Deputy and Council, 25 Nov. 1573 (S.P., 63\/43\/6 i).\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , II, 263.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, I, 463.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1574_ \u2013 _85_ , 169.\n\n.Lord Deputy to Burghley, 18 Apr. 1574 (S.P., 63\/45\/72).\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1574_ \u2013 _85_ , 27.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, I, 473.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , II, 281.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, I, 475.\n\n. _Cal. Pat. Rolls Ire., Eliz._ , 109.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, I, 480.\n\n.Ibid., 482.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , II, 284.\n\n.Countess of Desmond to the Queen, 12 Sept. 1574 (S.F., 63\/47\/55).\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.FitzGerald, _Geraldines_ , 274.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1574_ \u2013 _85_ , 482.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , I, 25.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1574_ \u2013 _85_ , 65.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, II, 21.\n\n.Ibid., 22.\n\n**Chapter 6**\n\n.Canny, _Elizabethan Conquest_ , 154.\n\n. _New Hist. Ire._ , III, 91.\n\n.Canny, _Elizabethan Conquest_ , 3.\n\n. _New Hist. Ire._ , III, 100\u20131.\n\n.Wright, _History of Ireland_ , 446.\n\n.MacCarthy, _Florence MacCarthy M\u00f3r_ , 2.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , II, 314.\n\n.Wright, _History of Ireland_ , 447.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid., 448.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1574_ \u2013 _85_ , XXXV.\n\n.Perrot, _Chronicle of Ireland_ , 141.\n\n.Ibid., 142.\n\n. _New Hist. Ire._ , III, 102.\n\n. _Cal. De L'Isle and Dudley MSS_, II, 60.\n\n.Ibid., 66.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1574_ \u2013 _85_ , xli.\n\n.Lord Deputy to Privy Council, 20 Feb. 1578 (S.P., 63\/60\/14).\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1574_ \u2013 _85_ , xlii.\n\n.Chambers, _Granuaile_ , 93.\n\n.S.P., 63\/19\/56.\n\n.Countess of Desmond to the Queen, 30 Sept. 1578 (S.P., 63\/62\/23).\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, II, 140.\n\n. _Walsingham Letter-Book_ , 161.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Lord Chancellor Gerrard to Burghley, 3 Jan. 1579 (S.P., 63\/65\/3).\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , II, 365.\n\n.O'Faolain, _The Great O'Neill_ , 76.\n\n.Curtis, _History of Ireland_ , 198.\n\n. _New Hist. Ire._ , III, 104.\n\n.FitzGerald, _Geraldines_ , 279.\n\n.Nicholls, _Gaelic and Gaelicised Ireland_ , 73.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1574_ \u2013 _85_ , lvi.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , III, 21.\n\n.Ibid., 22.\n\n. _Walsingham Letter-Book_ , 135.\n\n. _Annals of the Four Masters_ , III, 3784.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , I, 30.\n\n. _Walsingham Letter-Book_ , 168.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid., 169.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Benvenuta, 'The Geraldine War\u2014Rebellion or Crusade?', _Ir. Cath. Hist. Comm. Proc._ (1963\u20138), 17.\n\n. _Walsingham Letter-Book_ , 195.\n\n.Desmond to Privy Council, 10 Oct. 1579 (S.P., 63\/69\/51).\n\n. _Walsingham Letter-Book_ , 195.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1574_ \u2013 _85_ , 190.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Walsingham Letter-Book_ , 202.\n\n.Desmond to Privy Council, 10 Oct. 1579 (S.P., 63\/69\/51).\n\n.Desmond to Ormond, 10 Oct. 1579 (S.P., 63\/69\/50).\n\n.Archbishop Loftus and Sir Henry Wallop to Privy Council, 31 Oct. 1579 (S.P., 63\/67\/76).\n\n.Perrot, _Chronicle of Ireland_ , 162.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, II, 162.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , I, 32.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Perrot, _Chronicle of Ireland_ , 164.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, III, xvii.\n\n**Chapter 7**\n\n.Smith, _Elizabethan Epic_ , 143.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, III, 164.\n\n.Ibid., 265.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid., II, 207.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Pelham to Walsingham, 16 Feb. 1580 (S.P., 63\/71\/209).\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, II, 190.\n\n.Cox, _Hibernia Anglicana_ , II, 361.\n\n. _Walsingham Letter-Book_ , 249.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, II, 225.\n\n.Berleth, _Twilight Lords_ , 125.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, II, 236.\n\n.Pelham to the Queen, 1 Apr. 1580 (S.P., 63\/73\/28).\n\n.Pelham to Walsingham, 5 Apr. 1580 (S.P., 63\/73\/33).\n\n.Pelham to Wallop, 21 June 1580 (S.P., 63\/73\/68 i).\n\n.Countess of Desmond to Privy Council, 28 June 1580 (S.P., 63\/73\/67).\n\n.Wright, _History of Ireland_ , 470.\n\n.Captain Golde to Walsingham, 17 Sept. 1580 (S.P., 63\/70\/51i).\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, II, 292.\n\n.Fenton to Walsingham, 8 Aug. 1580 (S.P., 63\/75\/27).\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, II, 297.\n\n.St Leger to Burghley, 9 Oct. 1580 (S.P., 63\/77\/24).\n\n.Perrot, _Chronicle of Ireland_ , 170.\n\n.Malby to Walsingham, 24 Oct. 1580 (S.P., 63\/77\/52).\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , III, 64.\n\n.Ibid., 69.\n\n.Perrot, _Chronicle of Ireland_ , 172.\n\n. _Annals of the Four Masters_ , V, 1761.\n\n.St Leger to Burghley, 15 May 1581 (S.P., 63\/83\/25).\n\n.Countess of Desmond to Lord General and Council of Munster, 29 Apr. 1581 (S.P., 63\/83\/6 ii).\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Spenser, _Poetical Works_ , ed. Smith and de Selincourt, 3.\n\n.Lord Deputy and Council to Lord General and Council of Munster, 10 May 1581 (S.P., 63\/83\/6 III).\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.St Leger to Burghley, 15 May 1581 (S.P., 63\/83\/25).\n\n. _Annals of the Four Masters_ , V, 1779.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1574_ \u2013 _85_ , 339.\n\n.Perrot, _Chronicle of Ireland_ , 178.\n\n.Lord Deputy to Privy Council, 22 June 1582 (S.P., 63\/93\/45).\n\n.Walsingham to Lord Deputy, 25 June 1582 (S.P., 63\/93\/53).\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Countess of Desmond to Burghley, 28 Aug. 1582 (S.P., 63\/94\/104).\n\n.Countess of Desmond to Lord Deputy, 28 Aug. 1582 (S.P., 63\/94\/104 i).\n\n.FitzGerald, _Geraldines_ , 289.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.O'Faolain, _The Great O'Neill_ , 81.\n\n.Captain Norris to Lords Justices Loftus and Wallop, 24 Sept. 1582 (S.P., 63\/96\/3 i).\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1574_ \u2013 _85_ , 268.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Annals of the Four Masters_ , V, 1783.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, II, 364.\n\n.Desmond to Ormond, 5 June 1583 (S.P., 63\/102\/87 i).\n\n.Captain Golde to Burghley, 13 Apr. 1583 (S.P., 63\/101\/25).\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1574_ \u2013 _85_ , 287.\n\n.Ormond to Burghley, 18 June 1583 (S.F., 63\/102\/88).\n\n. _Annals of the Four Masters_ , V, 1793.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , III, 113.\n\n.Ormond to Burghley, 28 Nov 1583 (S.P., 63\/105\/83).\n\n.Perrot, _Chronicle of Ireland_ , 182.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.O'Faolain, _The Great O'Neill_ , 83.\n\n**Chapter 8**\n\n. _New Hist. Ire._ , III, 111.\n\n. _Cal. Pat. Rolls Ire., Eliz._ , lxv.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ormond to Burghley, 28 Nov. 1583 (S.P., 63\/105\/83).\n\n.Ormond to Lords Justices Loftus and Wallop, 16 Dec. 1583 (S.P., 63\/106\/13).\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1574_ \u2013 _83_ , 484.\n\n. _Cal. Pat. Rolls Ire., Eliz._ , 94.\n\n.Ormond to Burghley, 26 June 1584 (S.P., 63\/107\/48).\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , II, 67.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Lord Deputy to the Queen, 24 Oct. 1584 (S.P., 63\/112\/35).\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , III, 123.\n\n. _New Hist. Ire._ , III, 112.\n\n.Lord Deputy to the Queen, 24 Oct. 1584 (S.F., 63\/112\/35).\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , II, 68.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _New Hist. Ire._ , III, 113.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , III, 552.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid., 553.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid., 535.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _New Hist. Ire._ , III, 113.\n\n.Archbishop Loftus to Burghley, 18 June 1585 (S.P., 63\/1 12\/89).\n\n.Countess of Desmond to Burghley, 4 Sept. 1585 (S.F., 63\/112\/90).\n\n.Countess of Desmond to Burghley, 10 Feb. 1586 (S.P., 63\/113\/68).\n\n. _Cal. Pat. Rolls Ire. Eliz._ , 108.\n\n.Smith, _Elizabethan Epic_ , 177.\n\n.Ibid., 175.\n\n.Ibid., 176.\n\n.Ibid., 181.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Archbishop Loftus to Burghley, 10 May 1586 (S.P., 63\/124\/8).\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , II, 69.\n\n. _Cal. Pat. Rolls Ire., Eliz._ , 116.\n\n.Ibid., 70.\n\n.Ibid., 72.\n\n.Smith, _Elizabethan Epic_ , 182.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , II, 72.\n\n.Spenser, _Poetical Works_ , ed. Smith and de Selincourt, 3.\n\n.Smith, _Elizabethan Epic_ , 203.\n\n. _Cal. Pat. Rolls Ire., Eliz._ , 186.\n\n.N.L.I., MS D.10028.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.B.L., Lansdowne MS 65.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , appx, 567.\n\n.O'Dowd, 'Landownership in the Sligo Area, 1585\u20131641', 85.\n\n.Wood-Martin, _History of Sligo_ , I, 323.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1596_ \u2013 _7_ , 325.\n\n. _Cal. Pat. Rolls Ire., Eliz._ , 479.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.O'Dowd, 'Landownership in the Sligo Area, 1585\u20131641', 111.\n\n. _Cal. Cecil MSS_, VII, 282.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Cal. Pat. Rolls Ire., Eliz._ , 479.\n\n. _Cal. Cecil MSS_, VII, 378.\n\n**Chapter 9**\n\n. _New Hist. Ire._ , III, 123.\n\n. _Cal. Cecil MSS_, VIII, 248.\n\n.O'Faolain, _The Great O'Neill_ , 203.\n\n.Ibid., 205.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , III, 303.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Lords Justices Loftus and Gardiner to the Privy Council, 31 Oct. 1598 (S.P., 63\/202\/3\/135).\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1599_ \u2013 _1600_ , 172.\n\n.Ibid., 158.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid., 172.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Cal. Salisbury MSS_, X, 67.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1600_ \u2013 _1_ , 424.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , II, 489.\n\n.Ibid., 492.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1601_ \u2013 _3_ , 572.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, II, 490.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Pacata Hibernia_ , 108.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid., 109.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , III, 383.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Cal. Carew MSS_, IV, 33.\n\n. _Cal. Salisbury MSS_, II, 491.\n\n. _Unpubl. Geraldine Docs_ , II, 497.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Moryson, _Itinerary_ , IV, 390.\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , III, 391.\n\n.Moryson, _Itinerary_ , IV, 214.\n\n.'History of Ballymote Castle', _R.S.A.I. Jn._ , LVII (1927), 98.\n\n.O'Dowd, 'Landownership in the Sligo Area, 1585\u20131642', 240.\n\n. _Cal. Salisbury MSS_, XVI, 371.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid., XV, 373.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid., XVII, 587.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1603_ \u2013 _6_ , 568.\n\n. _Cal. Salisbury MSS_, XVIII, 291.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n.Ibid., XX, 136.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1608_ \u2013 _10_ , 760.\n\n.National Monuments Commission, Sligo Abbey.\n\n.Wood-Martin, _History of Sligo_ , II, 12.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1608_ \u2013 _10_ , 298.\n\n. _Cal. S.P. Ire., 1606_ \u2013 _8_ , 197.\n\n.O'Dowd, 'Landownership in the Sligo Area, 1585\u20131641', 244.\n\n.Wood-Martin, _History of Sligo_ , III, 11.\n\n**Epilogue**\n\n.Bagwell, _Tudors_ , III, 384.\n\n.National Monuments Commission, _Sligo Abbey_.\n\n.Wood-Martin, _History of Sligo_ , I, 257.\n\n.Ibid.\n\n**Appendix**\n\n.Rowan, _Olde Countesse of Desmonde_ , 5.\n\n.Ibid., 12.\n\n.Ibid., 21.\n\n.Ibid.\nBibliography\n\n**1. MANUSCRIPT SOURCES**\n\n_British Library_\n\nCotton Titus MSS, BXIII, BXVIII, Papers on Irish affairs, 1559\u20131602. Lansdowne MS 65.\n\n_Hatfield House, Hertfordshire_\n\nCecil Papers, 50\/83; 51\/30, 101; 55\/15; 62\/25, 86; 68\/38; 75\/46; 179\/96.\n\n_Lambeth Palace Library_\n\nMS 616, ff. 157, 163, 165 (N.L.I. microfilm p 1701).\n\nNational Library of Ireland\n\nMSS 2163, 2288\u20139, 2788, D. 2541, D. 2604, D. 2648, D. 2679, D. 10028.\n\nState Papers relating to Ireland (microfilm; originals in Public Record Office, London): 63\/19\/56; 63\/23\/16, 16 ii, 16 iv, 32 VIII, 32 ix; 63\/26\/29, 39; 63\/30\/69, 87; 63\/32\/54; 63\/34\/33 i; 63\/43\/6 i, 6 III, 6 ; 63\/45\/72; 63\/47\/55; 63\/60\/14; 63\/61\/53; 63\/62\/23, 24; 63\/63\/9, 58; 63\/65\/3, 4; 63\/67\/76; 63\/69\/50, 51, 76; 63\/70\/35, 51 i; 63\/71\/46, 209; 63\/73\/28, 33, 67, 68 i; 63\/75\/27; 63\/76\/51 i; 63\/77\/24, 52, 53; 63\/80\/39; 63\/83\/6 i, 6 ii, 6 III, 25; 63\/87\/7; 63\/93\/45, 53; 63\/94\/104, 104 i; 63\/96\/3 i; 63\/101\/11, 25; 63\/102\/86, 87 i, 88; 63\/103\/14; 63\/105\/83; 63\/106\/13; 63\/107\/48; 63\/109\/59; 63\/112\/35, 68, 89, 90; 63\/113\/68; 63\/124\/8; 63\/150\/39; 63\/202\/3\/135; 63\/207\/1\/32.\n\n_Glin, County Limerick_\n\nPapers and records in the keeping of the Knight of Glin.\n\n_Kiltinan Castle, Fethard, County Tipperary_\n\nPapers and records in the keeping of the late Mrs M. Ogden White.\n\n**2. CONTEMPORARY SOURCES**\n\n_Ann\u00e1la R\u00edoghachta \u00c9ireann: Annals of the Kingdom of Ireland by the Four Masters, from the earliest period to the year 1616_ , ed. and trans. J. O'Donovan, 7 vols (Dublin 1851).\n\n_Annals of Loch C\u00e9: A Chronicle of Irish Affairs, 1014_ \u2013 _1590_ , ed. W.M. Hennessy, 2 vols (London 1871).\n\nCarney, J., ed., _Poems on the Butlers of Ormond. Cahir and Dunboyne, 1400\u20131650_ (Dublin 1945).\n\nCox, Sir R., _Hibernia Anglicana_ , 2 vols (London 1689\u201390).\n\nDavies, Sir J., _A Discovery of the True Causes Why Ireland Was Never Entirely Subdued until the Beginning of His Majesty's Happy Reign_ (London 1612); facsimile reprint (Shannon 1969).\n\nDerricke, J., _The Image of Irelande_ (London 1581).\n\nHolinshed, R., _Chronicles of England, Scotland and Ireland_ , ed. J. Johnson, 6 vols (London 1807\u20138).\n\nMoryson, F., _An Itinerary_ (London 1617); 4 vols (Glasgow 1907\u20138).\n\nO'Cleary, L., _The Life of Hugh Roe O'Donnell, Prince of Tirconail, 1586_ \u2013 _1602_ (Dublin 1893).\n\nO'Daly, D., _Initium. Incrementa et Exitus Familiae Geraldinorum ac Persecution is Haereticorum Descriptio_ (Lisbon 1655); trans. C.P. Meehan (Dublin 1878).\n\nO'Sullivan Beare, P., _Ireland under Elizabeth, being portion of the History of Catholic Ireland by Don Philip O'Sullivan Beare_ , ed. M.J. Byrne (Dublin 1903).\n\nPerrot, J., _The Chronicle of Ireland, 1584_ \u2013 _1608_ , ed. H. Wood (Dublin 1933).\n\nSpenser, E., _A View of the Present State of Ireland ... in 1596_ , ed. W.L. Renwick (Oxford 1970).\n\n[Stafford, T.], _Pacata Hibernia_ (London 1633); ed. S.H. O'Grady (London 1896).\n\n_Unpublished Geraldine Documents_ , ed. S. Hayman, 4 pts (Dublin 1870\u201381).\n\n_The Walsingham Letter-Book, or Register of Ireland, May 1578 to December 1579_ , ed. E. Hogan and N. MacNeill (Dublin 1959).\n\n**3. CALENDARS AND PRINTED MANUSCRIPT SOURCES**\n\n_Calendar of the Carew Manuscripts_ , ed. J.S. Brewer and W. Bullen, 6 vols (London 1867\u201373).\n\n_Calendar of the Cecil Manuscripts_ , 8 vols (London 1883\u201399).\n\n_Compossicion Booke of Conought_ , ed. A.M. Freeman (Dublin 1936).\n\n_Calendar of the De Lisle and Dudley Manuscripts_ , 6 vols (London 1925\u201366).\n\n_Calendar of Fiants of the Reign of Elizabeth_ (Appendix to 12th\u201318th Reports of the Deputy Keeper of the Public Records of Ireland) (Dublin 1877\u201394).\n\n_Calendar of Ormond Deeds_ , ed. E. Curtis, Vols II\u2013VI (Dublin 1934\u201370).\n\n_Calendar of the Patent and Close Rolls of Chancery in Ireland, Henry_ VIII _to 18th Elizabeth_ , ed. J.C. Morrin (Dublin 1861).\n\n_Calendar of the Patent and Close Rolls of Chancery in Ireland, Elizabeth, 19 year to end of reign_ , ed. J.C. Morrin (Dublin 1862).\n\n_Irish Patent Rolls of James I : Facsimile of the Irish Record Commission's Calendar_, foreword by M.C. Griffith (Dublin 1966).\n\n_Calendar of the Pepys Manuscripts_ (Dublin 1911).\n\n_Calendar of the Manuscripts of the Marquis of Salisbury_ , 23 vols (London 1883\u20131973).\n\n_Sidney State Papers, 1565_ \u2013 _70_ , ed. T. \u00d3 Laidhin (Dublin 1962).\n\n_Calendar of the State Papers relating to Ireland_ , 24 vols (London 1860\u20131912).\n\n**4. SECONDARY SOURCES: BOOKS**\n\n_Anthologia Hibernica_ , Vol. I (Dublin 1793).\n\nBagwell, R., _Ireland under the Tudors_ , 3 vols (London 1885\u201390).\n\n\u2014 _Ireland under the Stuarts_ , 3 vols (London 1909\u201316).\n\nBeckett, J.C., _The Making of Modern Ireland. 1603_ \u2013 _1923_ (London 1966).\n\nBerleth, R., _The Twilight Lords_ (London 1979).\n\nBlack, J.B., _The Reign of Elizabeth, 1558_ \u2013 _1603_ (Oxford 1959).\n\nBurke, Sir B., _Genealogical History of the Dormant, Abeyant and Extinct Peerages of the British Empire_ (London 1883).\n\nCanny, N., _The Elizabethan Conquest of Ireland: A Pattern Established, 1565_ \u2013 _76_ (Hassocks 1976).\n\nChambers, A., _Granuaile: Grace O'Malley\u2014Ireland's Pirate Queen_ (Dublin 2009).\n\n\u2014 _Shadow Lord: Tibbott-ne-Long Bourke, First Viscount Mayo_ (1567\u20131629) (Dublin 2007).\n\nClare, W., ed., 'The Testamentary Records of the Butler Families in Ireland' in\n\n_Genealogical Abstracts_ (Peterborough 1932).\n\nCogan, A., _The Ecclesiastical History of the Diocese of Meath, Ancient and Modern_ , Vol. I (Dublin 1874).\n\nCurtis, E., _A History of Ireland_ (London 1936).\n\nDunboyne, Lord, _Butler Family History_ (Kilkenny n.d.).\n\nFalls, C., _Elizabeth's Irish Wars_ (London 1950).\n\nFitzGerald, B., _The Geraldines: An Experiment in Irish Government, 1169_ \u2013 _1601_ (London 1951).\n\nGaughan, J.A., _The Knights of Glin: A Geraldine Family_ (Dublin 1978).\n\nJoyce, P.W., _Social History of Ancient Ireland_ , Vols I\u2013II (Dublin 1913).\n\nKnox, H.T., _History of the County Mayo_ (Dublin 1908).\n\nLeask, H.G., _Irish Castles and Castellated Houses_ (Dundalk 1972).\n\nL'Estrange, A.G., _Conna and Desmond_ (Dublin 1897).\n\nLodge, J., _Peerage of Ireland_ , Vol. VI (Dublin 1789).\n\nMcCalmont, R.F., _Memoirs of the Binghams_ (London 1915).\n\nMacCarthy, D., _The Life and Letters of Florence MacCarthy M\u00f3r_ (Cork 1975).\n\nMcClintock, H.F., _Handbook on Old Irish Dress_ (Dundalk 1958).\n\n\u2014 _Irish and Highland Dress_ (Dundalk 1950).\n\nMacCurtain, M., _Tudor and Stuart Ireland_ (Dublin 1972).\n\nMcGurk, J.J., _The Fall of the Noble House of Desmond, 1579_ \u2013 _85_.\n\nMaher, J., ed., _Romantic Slievenamon in History, Folklore and Song_ (Tipperary 1955).\n\nMoody, T.W., and Martin, F.X., _The Course of Irish History_ (Cork 1967).\n\nMorley, H., ed., _Ireland under Elizabeth and James I_ (London 1890).\n\nNational Monuments Commission, _Mainistir Sligigh_ (Sligo Abbey) (Dublin n.d.).\n\nNew History of Ireland, Vol. III: _Early Modern Ireland, 1534_ \u2013 _1691_ , ed. 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Smith and E. de Selincourt (London 1912).\n\n_Tower of London, Official Handbook_ (London 1984).\n\nWood-Martin, W.G., _History of Sligo, County and Town_ , 3 vols (Dublin 1882).\n\nWright, T., _The History of Ireland from the Earliest Period of the Irish Annals to the Present Time_ (London n.d.).\n\n**5. SECONDARY SOURCES: JOURNALS AND ARTICLES**\n\n_Butler Society Journal_ , I, 3 (1970): Butler, T., 'Peter Butler of Grallagh Castle'.\n\n\u2014I, 5 (1973\u20134): Butler, G., 'The Battle of Affane'.\n\n_Clonmel Historical and Archaeological Journal_ , I (1968).\n\n_Cork Historical and Archaeological Society. Journal_ , 2nd series, III, 28 (1897): Butler, W., 'The Division of South Munster under the Tudors'.\n\n\u20142nd series, XXVI (1920).\n\n_Dublin University Magazine_ , LIII (1959): 'The Housekeeping of Irish Chiefs'.\n\n_Irish Catholic Historical Committee. Proceedings_ (1962): Mooney, C., 'The Irish Church in the Sixteenth Century'.\n\n\u2014(1963\u20138): Benvenuta, Sister M., 'The Geraldine War\u2014Rebellion or Crusade?'.\n\n_Irish Genealogist,_ II, 3\u20136 (1945\u20138): Ward, M., 'The Barony of Dunboyne'.\n\n_Irish Geography_ , V, 3 (1966).\n\n_Irish Monthly_ , LIV (1926).\n\n_Kerry Archaeological and Historical Society_ , Journal, II (1969): Culhane, T.F., 'Traditions of Glin and its Neighbourhood'.\n\n\u2014VIII (1975): MacCurtain, M., 'The Fall of the House of Desmond'.\n\n_Limerick Field Club Journal_ , I, 2 (1897).\n\n_Meath Archaeological and Historical Society_ , Records, VI, 2 (1976): Ward, M., 'Townland Names in the Barony of Dunboyne'.\n\n_Royal Historical and Archaeological Association of Ireland_ , Journal, 4th series, V(1878\u20139).\n\n_Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland_ , Journal, XXXIII (1903): Westropp, T.J., 'Notes on Askeaton, Co. Limerick'.\n\n\u2014XXVII (1907): Westropp, T.J., 'The Principal Ancient Castles of the County Limerick'.\n\n\u2014XXXIX (1909).\n\n\u2014LVII (1927): 'History of Ballymote Castle'.\nGill & Macmillan\n\nHume Avenue\n\nPark West\n\nDublin 12\n\nIreland \nwith associated companies throughout the world \nwww.gillmacmillanbooks.ie\n\n\u00a9 Anne Chambers 1986, 2000, 2011, 2014\n\nFirst published by Gill & Macmillan 2011\n\nThis ebook edition published by Gill & Macmillan 2014\n\n978 07171 4828 8 (print)\n\n978 07171 5175 2 (epub)\n\n978 07171 5234 6 (mobi)\n\nCover design by www.anu-design.ie\n\nCover images: Richard Jenkins Photography\n\nThe National Archives UK (Reproduction of letter from Eleanor to Queen Elizabeth I from 1574)\n\nAll rights reserved. No part of this publication may be copied, reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without permission of the publishers.\n\nA CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.\n\nThe website addresses referred to in this book were correct at the time of first publication.\n**About the Author**\n\nAnne Chambers is a bestselling biographer, novelist and screen writer. Her biographies include _Adorable Diva: Margaret Burke Sheridan_ ; _Ranji: Maharajah of Connemara_ ; _Granuaile: Grace O'Malley\u2014Ireland's Pirate Queen_ ; _At Arm's Length: Aristocrats in the Republic of Ireland_ ; _Sea Queen of Ireland_ ; _The Geraldine Conspiracy_ ; _Finding Tom Cruise_ ; and S _hadow Lord\u2014Theobald Bourke: Son of the Pirate Queen_. Her books have been made into radio and TV drama-documentaries for Discovery Channel, Learning Channel, RT\u00c9 and have been translated and published abroad. She has appeared regularly on radio and TV programmes, most recently on the BBC's popular series 'Who Do You Think You Are', on 'Nationwide' RT\u00c9 1 and RT\u00c9 Lyric FM. She was short-listed for the GPA Irish Book Awards (biography) and for the 2004 Irish Hennessy Literary Awards (short story).\n**About Gill & Macmillan**\n\nGill & Macmillan's story begins in 1856 when Michael Henry Gill, then printer for Dublin University, purchased the publishing and bookselling business of James McGlashan, forming McGlashan & Gill. Some years later, in 1875, the company name was changed to M.H. Gill & Son. Gill & Macmillan as we know it today was established in 1968 as a result of an association with Macmillan of London. There was also a bookshop, popularly known as Gills, located on Dublin's O'Connell Street for 123 years until it eventually closed in 1979. Today our bookshop can be found online at www.gillmacmillanbooks.ie.\n\nGill & Macmillan is proud to publish a broad range of non-fiction books of Irish interest, from history to economics, politics to cookery and biography to children's. Since 1968, we have published outstanding authors and groundbreaking books such as the _Encyclopaedia of Ireland,_ David McWilliams' _The Pope's Children_ , No\u00ebl Browne's _Against the Tide_ , Garret FitzGerald's _All in a Life_ , Augustine Martin's _Soundings_ \u2014not to mention three generations of Ballymaloe's Allen family on our cookery list.\n\nWe also publish a wide range of educational books and resources for all levels\u2014primary, secondary, college and university\u2014and we provide a distribution service for the majority of Ireland's independent publishers.\n\nFor more information about us, our titles, or to join our mailing list, please visit www.gillmacmillanbooks.ie.\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaBook"}}
+{"text":" \n### Table of Contents\n\nWannabe\n\nCopyright\n\nPraise for Nancy Sweetland\n\nDedication\n\nAcknowledgements\n\nChapter One\n\nChapter Two\n\nChapter Three\n\nChapter Four\n\nChapter Five\n\nChapter Six\n\nChapter Seven\n\nChapter Eight\n\nChapter Nine\n\nChapter Ten\n\nChapter Eleven\n\nChapter Twelve\n\nChapter Thirteen\n\nChapter Fourteen\n\nChapter Fifteen\n\nChapter Sixteen\n\nChapter Seventeen\n\nChapter Eighteen\n\nChapter Nineteen\n\nChapter Twenty\n\nChapter Twenty-One\n\nChapter Twenty-Two\n\nChapter Twenty-Three\n\nChapter Twenty-Four\n\nChapter Twenty-Five\n\nChapter Twenty-Six\n\nChapter Twenty-Seven\n\nChapter Twenty-Eight\n\nChapter Twenty-Nine\n\nChapter Thirty\n\nChapter Thirty-One\n\nChapter Thirty-Two\n\nA word about the author...\n\nThank you for purchasing this publication of The Wild Rose Press, Inc.\n\n# Wannabe\n\nby\n\nNancy Sweetland\n\n# Copyright\n\nThis is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales, is entirely coincidental.\n\nWannabe\n\nCOPYRIGHT \u00a9 2012 by Nancy Sweetland\n\nAll rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission of the author or The Wild Rose Press, Inc. except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.\n\nContact Information: info@thewildrosepress.com\n\nCover Art by Diana Carlile\n\nThe Wild Rose Press, Inc.\n\nPO Box 708\n\nAdams Basin, NY 14410-0708\n\nVisit us at www.thewildrosepress.com\n\nPublishing History\n\nFirst Champagne Rose Edition, 2012\n\nPrint ISBN 978-1-61217-352-8\n\nDigital ISBN 978-1-61217-353-5\n\nPublished in the United States of America\n\n# Praise for Nancy Sweetland\n\n\"I could really identify with the book's characters. They are right out of the Midwest, hard working, connected to family, willing to believe the best in people...the bad guys really stick out here just as they do in the book. I love it when the good guys are handsome and intriguing (and drive a Porsche!) and that certainly holds true for Royal. WANNABE has a fun connection to characters in the prior novel, THE DOOR TO LOVE set in Door County.\"\n\n~reader Julie Bartels, Exec. VP\n\nNational Health Information\n\n~*~\n\n\"This [THE DOOR TO LOVE] is a great book. If you are from Illinois or Wisconsin and especially familiar with the Door County area you will like this book. Sweetland really takes the time to develop her main character Courtney James to the point you feel she is your best friend. You can read this book in short order and it has lots of twists and turns. This is the first time I read a romance novel, wasn't sure what to expect and really enjoyed it.\"\n\n~reader Jim Falk, Chicago, IL\n\n# Dedication\n\nTo Julie and Missy ~ my daughters, my friends\n\n# Acknowledgements\n\nMany thanks to Bonnie Retzlaff, owner of DREAMS COME TRUE, who was generous with her time and knowledge to fill me in on what it's like to run a costume shop.\n\nAnd to Captain Jim Runge of the Green Bay Police Force, who answered my many questions about police procedure.\n\nAny mistakes in the story are mine, not theirs.\nChapter One\n\nWhat a rotten start for what should be an enjoyable October day! Toni ignored the exuberant greeting from her large black cat, sank down on the stool behind her Wannabe costume shop counter and dropped her head on crossed arms. She'd left home late, broken a heel on the way to the garage and had to change shoes. The grocery was out of the coffee she liked. The quik-check line had been gridlock, not express. And then...\n\nWho knew the parking lot at Copps Foods was slanted just enough to encourage a cart to head off on its own? Or that anyone would leave a classy silver Porsche convertible unattended? Toni bit her lip, reliving the clutch she'd felt in her stomach as she turned from putting her bags in the van to see the empty grocery cart wheel away, gain speed and careen into the side of the vintage automobile. It wasn't a big dent. Not a long scratch. But the car was a Porsche.\n\nShe stayed by the damaged car for twenty minutes but no one showed up to claim it. Finally she slipped one of her business cards\u2014Antonia Dresser, Wannabe Costume Shop, 1459 East Main Street, Green Bay, Wisconsin\u2014under the windshield wiper, and went to work to wait for the unpleasant confrontation she probably deserved. On top of that, she still had to deal with her feelings about her last upsetting encounter with Bryce Andrews.\n\n\"Oh, hell.\" Toni raked her fingers through her curly blonde waves. A soft paw patted the top of her head. Midnight understood.\nChapter Two\n\nToni had just finished putting her workroom into a semblance of order when the shop door burst open and the chimes that usually sent out a welcoming tinkle clanged against each other with vengeance.\n\n\"Anybody here?\" The deep voice was sharp. \"Any careless grocery shopper?\"\n\nCareless! Gripping her broom, Toni stepped out of the back room and looked up into a furious glare from the most brilliant blue eyes she'd ever encountered. Catching her breath, she sputtered, \"I wasn't careless! That grocery cart went off on its own!\"\n\n\"Then you should have chased it down. Probably had on some shoes you couldn't run in for spit.\"\n\nToni huffed. Her feet were encased in serviceable tennies. Did she look like the kind of woman who grocery shopped in stiletto heels? It was clear this man would be difficult. Like most, in her experience. As if she didn't have enough problems with the opposite sex right now.\n\nShe took a deep breath and gave him her most winning smile. \"Look, I'm sorry,\" she said. \"Really. Here's my insurance information.\" She held out the card she'd had ready on the checkout counter at the front of the shop. \"I know I'm responsible for the damage. I'll see that your Porsche is fixed. It's just a car, after all.\"\n\nHe scowled. \"No, it isn't just a car. It's my dream car, a vintage Porsche in mint condition. Until today. And you don't just 'fix' a vintage Porsche. You have it professionally repaired. If there's anyone in this town that can handle that.\" He pulled his wallet, soft leather Toni noticed, from his pocket and fished for two cards, then placed them on the counter.\n\nHis hands, Toni also noticed, were well cared for. As was his tweed sport coat, his dazzling white fine cotton shirt and his snug-fitting stone-washed jeans. His black hair waved just above his collar and his dark brows set off black-fringed eyes to his advantage. Would he be wearing cowboy boots? She sneaked a peek. No, looked like Bass sports.\n\nHe pulled the card she'd left on his windshield from his jacket pocket. \"So you must be Antonia...\" He frowned and squinted. \"Dresser. Too cute, considering that you run a costume shop. What's your real name?\"\n\nShe blinked, taken aback. \"That is my real name. Just a coincidence.\"\n\n\"I don't believe in coincidence. My psychic great aunt would have said we were meant to meet. I'm Royal Stewart.\" He held out a hand toward her but before she could take it Midnight yowled, jumped from the counter and knocked his arm down.\n\nToni couldn't help laughing. \"Evidently Midnight doesn't think so. And I don't believe in psychics. Scat, cat. Shoo!\" She pushed Midnight away with her foot. \"I really am sorry. I promise, your dream car will be good as new.\"\n\n\"It had better be. I'm leaving it here in your lot.\" He dropped a key and fob on the counter. \"Please see to the repairs as soon as possible.\"\n\nAnother masterful male. Why is my world peopled with them? Toni glared, took a step back, straightened up and gave him an insolent salute. \"Yes, Sir! Will do, Sir! Right away, Sir!\" She hoped for a smile lurking in the rugged planes of his face.\n\nNo such luck.\n\nStewart's nod was curt. He wheeled, strode out through the racks of colorful costumes and closed the shop door with a definite snap that jangled the chimes again.\n\n\"Cheesh.\" Toni sank back down on the counter stool. \"Way to go, Midnight.\" She picked up the man's cards. One was ordinary insurance information. The other, much heavier stock with embossed lettering, simply said, \"Royal Stewart\" and underneath that was the single word, \"Helper.\" An 800 number followed.\n\nToni frowned. Helper? What in the world was a Helper? Who does he help? Does a Helper have an assistant Helper to help him help? Are the ones he helps called Helpees? The Helper business must be lucrative or Stewart wouldn't be driving a vintage Porsche. She shrugged and set the cards down. Well, whoever and whatever he is, he's one pretty package. Too bad his personality doesn't fit his looks. If I never see him again that will be just fine.\n\n****\n\nOutside, Royal Stewart filled his lungs with the brisk early October air and rolled his shoulders to calm himself. He hadn't meant to come off like a drill sergeant. The woman hadn't deserved that, but damn!\n\nTiming was crucial, as always, and it was imperative that he get down to Milwaukee today. He pulled out his cell phone and flipped through the apps to arrange for a rental. Patience, he told himself, things will work out. Just a couple more days. The danger\u2014this time\u2014was past. Only a few more things to clear up for this mission and he'd be back to Green Bay to get the answers to all his personal questions. So many things he wanted\u2014needed\u2014to know. And for the first time in his life he was close to finding them out.\nChapter Three\n\n\"You did what?\" Toni's twin brother stared open-mouthed at her over their weekly dinner at her condo that night. \"Banged up a vintage Porsche?\" Jack nearly choked. \"Only you, sis.\"\n\n\"I didn't do it. The damn grocery cart did it. Here.\" She held out Stewart's two cards. \"You're my trusty insurance guy. Don't you know some super fixer-upper body shop that will do this ASAP? And do a really good job? Here's the key.\" She laid it near his plate. \"The car's sitting in my shop lot.\"\n\nJack frowned and forked up a mouthful of Toni's special recipe spaghetti\u2014cooking was one of her passions\u2014before answering. \"Yeah, I think so. I'll take care of it. This guy just left the car at Wannabe and walked away? That's odd. I wonder where he lives.\" Jack picked up Stewart's cards, shuffled the insurance one behind the other and looked at Toni with a mystified expression. \"What the hell is a Helper?\"\n\nToni grinned. \"You tell me. That's my question, too.\"\n\n\"Huh. You don't see many guys named Royal, either.\"\n\n\"True. He fits the name, though, dresses very well and gives the impression that he should be treated just a cut above the rest of us. Do it now. Get it done. Like that.\"\n\n\"Really. Then I guess I'd better hustle with the repair.\" Jack tucked the cards in his shirt pocket. \"A mystery man. Pass the meatballs, please.\" Jack filled his plate again. \"And pour me some more wine.\"\n\nA couple of days later Jack swooshed into the shop, bringing in crisp fall air and some damp leaves that stuck to his shoes.\n\n\"Hi, there.\" Toni handed him the broom she'd been using. \"Swish those leaves right back out, okay? What brings you here? You don't usually stop in during the work day.\"\n\nJack swept the leaves out the door. \"I am working. I thought you'd like to know what I found out about Mister Royal Stewart.\"\n\n\"I would.\" Why did her breath catch at the mention of the man's name? \"Pull up a stool. Want some coffee?\"\n\n\"Sure.\" He waited while she filled their cups and added a drop of cream to hers.\n\nShe perched on the stool on her side of the counter. \"I'm all ears.\"\n\n\"What I should have said is, would you like to know what I didn't find out about him, I guess. The guy's a ghost.\"\n\nToni raised her eyebrows over her steaming cup. \"What do you mean?\"\n\n\"He's a nowhere kind of guy, that's what. The number on his card gets you nothing but a 'this service has been disconnected' voice. He's not listed in the phone book, the city directory or any of the little towns around Green Bay. I checked him out through the DMV and he does have a driver's license. It's from someplace in Virginia, though.\"\n\n\"Interesting. So what's he doing here?\"\n\n\"Good question.\"\n\n\"If you can't call him, how's he going to know if the car's fixed, or where he can find it?\"\n\n\"Aha. That's what's intriguing. He left a note on the dashboard for the body shop and gave them a different number to call when the repairs were done.\"\n\n\"O-kay. You're really enjoying dragging this out, aren't you, Jack?\" Toni's eyes sparkled. \"We do love a mystery. So, who answers that number?\"\n\nJack leaned forward and did a little drum roll on the counter with his fingertips. \"Ready for this?\"\n\n\"Uh-oh. Whenever you do that I know I'm going to hear something I might not like. So, whose number is it?\"\n\n\"A sweet little old lady. Grace Temple. Ever heard of her?\"\n\nToni nodded, frowning. \"Of course. I don't know her very well, though I've worked on a couple of committees she chaired. In fact, I owe her a lot. She always recommended my costumes for the big charity costume ball she hosted every Christmas. But everybody knows of her. She's a force in the community, heads up the Temple foundation, gives lots of bucks to lots of causes. She's ancient and rich as Croesus.\"\n\n\"That's not all she is. She's the great-aunt of a certain Royal Stewart, who just showed up here in Green Bay. And, as of this morning,\" he drummed another short roll, paused for effect and added, \"she's dead.\"\nChapter Four\n\nToni almost dropped her coffee cup. \"What do you mean, dead? As in really, really not-breathing dead?\"\n\nJack nodded. \"Yep. Her housekeeper found her this morning, lying at the bottom of the stairs in her foyer. It looks as if she fell down and whacked her head, which certainly could happen at her age. I think she was in her late eighties.\"\n\n\"Funny this should happen just when her great-nephew turns up.\" Toni stared at Jack. \"I don't remember hearing about her having any family here.\"\n\n\"I don't think she did, but that's just speculation on my part. I don't travel in her moneyed circle.\" Jack checked his watch and got up. \"Gotta go. Anyway, I put a rush on the repairs and the Porsche should be ready by Friday. I think the owner's staying at Temple House. If you see him, tell him.\"\n\n\"Not likely.\" Toni pulled a face. \"I don't think I'm one of his favorite people.\" And he certainly isn't one of mine.\n\nThe next morning Toni pored over Grace Temple's obituary in the Press-Gazette. It was extensive and complete, perhaps prepared ahead of time because of her advanced age of eighty-nine. College at Mount Mary, Milwaukee; Master of Fine Arts from UW Madison and an artist in her own right with some earlier canvasses having sold through New York galleries. A list of philanthropic activities, nearly too numerous to mention, but mentioned anyway. Married for over forty years to George Temple, who died ten years earlier. Died rich, Toni remembered, a successful businessman with lots of holdings around the area. No children. Only living relative great-nephew Royal Stewart, whereabouts unknown at press time. Services to be held...\n\nToni sipped her coffee and stared out the window at the brilliant orange leaves still clinging to the maple tree in her small yard. Whereabouts not unknown any more. Only living relative. Now a very rich only living relative. Who maybe couldn't wait to inherit? Who just happened to show up a few days before her death?\n\nYou read way too many mystery novels, Toni told herself and put down the paper. An old lady falls downstairs. Happens all the time. Except in mystery novels it's hardly ever that simple. Almost always, somebody was pushed.\n\nPushed. Not helped.\n\n****\n\nBecause Grace Temple had been a public person and a community benefactor, Toni wasn't surprised that the funeral was well attended. She walked into the crowded church and was writing her name in the guest book when a deep voice behind her said, \"Well, if it isn't Miss Dresser. Did you really know my Aunt Grace? Or are you just curious to see who would show up for her funeral?\"\n\nToni whirled to face Royal Stewart, her mouth agape, her eyes wide. \"Of course I expected to see you here, but certainly not to be rudely accused of curiosity.\" She stepped away from the table and handed the pen to a woman behind her in line. \"For your information, Mister Stewart, yes, I knew Grace and I came to pay my respects. I worked with her on a couple of her committees. She was huge supporter of my costumes for charity events, which I appreciated a great deal. And she was a dear.\" Toni stepped back to look him up and down. His expensive dark suit fit his broad shoulders without a wrinkle. His tie was a suitable meld of discreet colors. \"Which can hardly be said for you,\" she continued, her chin up. \"As for mourners, you hardly fit the role.\"\n\nHis heavy brows lifted, his blue eyes bored into hers. \"Really.\"\n\n\"Yes, really.\" What was it about this man that raised her hackles and at the same time made her want to know more about him? Toni's chin stayed up. \"Your manners were atrocious when I first met you and I see they haven't improved. You are, without doubt, the most obnoxious person I have ever come across.\" She kept herself from sticking out her tongue like a six-year-old. \"And just in case you haven't been contacted, your precious Porsche will be ready for you tomorrow at Meyer's Body Shop.\"\n\n\"Fine.\" He looked past Toni, reached out to shake hands with a man behind her and said in a deep, disturbing murmur, \"Thank you for coming. Yes, she was a wonderful person.\"\n\nHow would you know? Toni fumed inwardly. I bet you hadn't seen your dear Great-aunt Grace for a long time, if ever, before her death. Why did you come now? And, she wondered, studying the dark waves on the back of his well-shaped head, would Grace Temple still be alive if you hadn't?\nChapter Five\n\nWhat had been an ordinary story of the accidental death of a prominent elderly citizen soon turned into a full-scale investigation, which Toni followed with interest. Royal Stewart, according to the paper and local TV news, where his elegant demeanor and seriously handsome physique came across very well indeed, insisted that his great-aunt's death may not have been an accident. He had moved into her home\u2014Temple House was now his Toni supposed\u2014and let it be known he planned to stay until he was sure that justice had been done. Where had he come from, Toni wondered, and where would he go when and if he was satisfied with the outcome of the investigation?\n\n\"Guess your helper-guy isn't a suspect in his aunt's death,\" commented Jack over their next Thursday dinner. \"From what I hear, he seems to be working with the police, probably more than they might want.\"\n\n\"It does seem that way.\" Toni had made shrimp Alfredo tonight and it was disappearing fast along with a crisp Caesar salad. She watched her brother eat for a minute, then laughed. \"My gosh, Jack, haven't you eaten since last week?\"\n\n\"Sure. But nothing as good as this.\" Jack filled his plate with another helping and added a crusty garlic bread stick. \"My TV dinners aren't all that interesting.\"\n\nToni hesitated, twirling her wine glass to catch reflected flames from flickering tapers on the table, then asked, \"Have you run into him?\"\n\n\"Him as in Mr. Helper?\"\n\n\"Yes. He never came back to pick up his insurance card, and I thought he would.\"\n\n\"Thought or hoped?\" Jack's eyebrows raised over a teasing smirk.\n\n\"Thought,\" Toni said, though to be truthful, hoped was the better word. Wouldn't he need that card another time? And she really wanted to ask him if he would be civil enough to answer why he thought Grace Temple's death wasn't accidental. \"Well, have you? More wine?\"\n\n\"Yes, to wine. No, to whether I've run into him.\" Jack leaned back in his chair and contemplated Toni's face. \"I see the mystery man intrigues you.\"\n\nToni took a deep breath. \"I'll admit it, there's something about him. And,\" she paused long enough to grin, \"aside from his off-putting attitude, he's the best-looking man I've run into, pardon the pun, for a long time.\"\n\n\"Glad to see you aren't mourning your breakup with Bryce Andrews. I never did like that guy.\" Jack reached for the butter. \"Sis, you need to get out more. Have some fun. When's the last time you went out for a good time?\"\n\nToni made a face. \"Hard to remember. I've been way too busy. I've had a couple of murder mystery dinners to dress, Halloween is coming up before too long and then Thanksgiving and the holidays with all the party themes.\" She didn't mention the extra hours she put in working on the costume pattern book she was designing. That was her secret, at least for now. \"Anyway, back to Mr. Helper. In addition to being lordly, he's wholly obnoxious, which, you may be interested to know, I told him to his face.\"\n\n\"Really!\" Jack snickered. \"Bet that went over well. When?\"\n\n\"At Grace Temple's funeral. He accused me of being there out of curiosity.\"\n\n\"And were you?\" That teasing look was back on Jack's face.\n\n\"Of course not!\" She paused, then added, \"Well, maybe a little. I'll admit I was interested in seeing who would show up, and of course everybody who is anybody was there.\"\n\n\"Including you.\"\n\nToni grinned over her wine glass. \"Actually, it was kind of fun. I watched Stewart empathize with people he'd surely never known, but who were most interested in looking him over.\"\n\n\"Ah, sister super sleuth at work.\"\n\nToni leaned forward. \"Just think, Jack. What if he's right? What if somebody did push her down those stairs? Who would benefit except him?\"\n\n\"First off,\" Jack held out his empty cup for more coffee, \"probably a whole lot of charities that she'd named in her will. She was part of nearly every important foundation in the city.\"\n\nToni nodded, filling his cup. \"Sure. But beside that, the money part, there's her mansion, and who knows what else she owns? Owned.\"\n\n\"I remember a lot of small holdings were sold off back when her husband died. A couple of small shops over on Broadway bit the dust. She's still a majority stockholder in at least one of the paper mills here. She's always listed on boards of directors. And I think she owns a couple of downtown office buildings.\"\n\nToni raised her eyebrows. \"Impressive. You know about all this why?\"\n\nJack reached for the platter and helped himself to the rest of the Alfredo. \"You know us insurance guys. Always on the lookout for a lead, always needing to be able to make small talk. It helps to know who owns what where.\"\n\n\"I suppose.\" Toni thought for a moment. \"Jack, you don't know where Stewart came from before he showed up here, do you?\"\n\n\"Never tried to find out. Do you care?\"\n\n\"I just wondered.\"\n\n\"That oh-so-nonchalant look gives you away, sis. If I were you I'd steer clear of him. I'm not sure you can trust him. All that secrecy? He's hiding something.\"\n\nToni thought of her ill-fated affair with Bryce Andrews. Maybe he is. Maybe all of us are.\nChapter Six\n\n\"Hey, sista!\"\n\nToni looked up from hand-stitching the hem on a silky Chinese kimono as her door chimes tinkled with Drea Shore's flamboyant entrance. Toni's best friend, she'd dropped the \"An\" from \"Andrea\" when she opened Furs and Fancies, her upscale dress shop in downtown Green Bay.\n\n\"Hey sista yourself, girlfriend!\" Toni jumped up to give her a hug. Robust and almost six feet tall, Drea towered over Toni. They'd immediately formed a bond in a fashion class at UW Milwaukee and remained fast friends though their careers had careened in different directions when Drea went classy while Toni went costume. Wannabe's showroom was crowded with hundreds of Toni's handmade creations.\n\nThis afternoon Drea's wild, red-tinted dreadlocks sparkled with something that looked like diamond dust, and her pale cinnamon-colored leather coat nearly matched her smooth complexion. Dark, heavily accented eyes that tilted slightly lent her face a mysterious air.\n\n\"It's wonderful to see you,\" Toni said. \"Great jacket. Have some coffee? Or tea?\"\n\n\"Sure, whatever's handy.\" Drea dropped to the customer stool and examined a crimson fingernail. \"Drat! I caught this on my seat belt. Got an emery board?\"\n\n\"Sure.\" Toni shuffled through the pens and miscellaneous items in her counter drawer and handed Drea a file. \"I hope you're here to tell me my coat came in.\" She put herbal tea bags into cups and filled them with hot water.\n\n\"I wish. Sorry, it's still back-ordered.\" Drea laid the file on the counter. \"Want to try for a different style? I just got some new kickies to start off the season. If you're in a hurry, come in and try on.\"\n\n\"Kickies.\" Tony grinned and handed Drea a steaming cup. \"Not sure I fit that picture.\"\n\n\"With your curvy little body and all that blonde hair?\" Drea rolled out a deep-chested laugh. \"Girl, you could wear anything and look good.\"\n\n\"Thanks. But I really liked that buttoned-up military look. All business. No funny stuff, that's me.\"\n\nDrea narrowed her eyes and scrutinized Toni. \"My, how we've changed.\"\n\nToni sat and tented her fingers over her cup. \"I'm not sure I like the sound of that. We have changed, haven't we? What happened to those two carefree girls who partied half the night?\"\n\n\"They grew up? Took out loans? Opened stores?\"\n\n\"Yeah. But maybe Jack's right. He tells me I'm a stick-in-the-mud who needs to get out more.\" Toni frowned, then smiled. \"And with all the fall rush on costumes, it really has been a while since I had any fun.\" She stared into Drea's dark eyes. \"How about let's go out tonight. There's a new club next to that wine shop on University. It's supposed to be the 'in' place to hear upcoming bands. We used to like that kind of stuff.\"\n\n\"Yeah,\" Drea said, nodding. \"We sure 'nuf did.\"\n\n\"Unless you're busy.\" Toni waited, enjoying the shimmer of Drea's dreadlocks whenever she moved her head.\n\n\"No. Not that busy. And yes, I'll go. But,\" she pointed her newly filed fingernail at Tony, \"only if you come to the store and pick out a fun dress. Sparkly spaghetti straps and a full skirt, maybe, with heels to die for. Mesh stockings. Then I'll go.\"\n\nToni grinned. \"Get thee behind me, Satan. I could use a new dress. Not mesh stockings, though. But you'll have to dress up, too, in something totally off the grid.\"\n\nDrea grinned back. \"I can do that.\"\n\n\"If we're lucky, we won't run into anyone we know.\" Toni laughed. \"They'd never believe us.\"\n\n\"Or maybe,\" Drea drawled, \"we'll be lucky enough to meet someone we'd like to know.\" She got up. \"C'mon, sugar. We got us some shopping to do.\"\nChapter Seven\n\n\"Looks like a nice club.\" Drea pulled her bright red Mazda into the parking lot at Inspirations. She squinted at the building. \"Didn't this used to be a hog hangout?\"\n\nToni bit her lip and surveyed the neon sign proclaiming Martinis and More under a tipping cocktail glass. \"I think so, but not now. Their ad says it's been renovated, is under new management, and pulls in the best music from the area.\"\n\nA laughing couple burst out the door, sending a beam of soft light and the plaintive wail of a sax into the clear fall night along with a not-so-subtle drumbeat.\n\n\"Hmmm. Maybe I should have gone for those mesh stockings. That sounds rad,\" Toni observed.\n\n\"Rad?\" Drea raised her eyebrows. \"Well, don't you be just the hip chick. Let's check it out. If we no like we can always go back to one of our old haunts. Like McDonald's, heaven forbid.\" She slid out of the Mazda.\n\n\"God, you look fabulous,\" said Toni, eyeing Drea's thigh-length splashy silk that complemented her cinnamon skin and showed off her long legs. \"Any woman seeing you would die to know where you got that dress.\"\n\n\"And I'd be the first to tell them. You don't look so bad yourself.\"\n\nToni straightened her shoulders and sashayed toward the building on nearly impossibly high strap heels that would cause a twisted ankle if she wasn't careful. Dressing up really was fun for a change, and the spaghetti-strapped almost-nothing yellow slip dress she'd chosen from the Furs and Fancies' Have Some Swingy Fun! section fit her perfectly. \"On, Soldier,\" she commanded and reached for Drea's arm. Just in case the heels were treacherous.\n\nThey stood inside the door for a moment, taking in the murmuring bar crowd and swaying dancers on a postage-stamp floor. A mellow rendition of \"The Way We Were\" floated over the room from a five-piece band on a small stage. Glasses clinked; laughter rose above conversation. Kind of fun to be in a happening place. Guess I have been mud-stuck. \"Let's get a drink.\" Toni started toward the bar.\n\n\"Wait just a minute!\" Drea stopped and caught Toni's arm. \"Would you look at that!\"\n\n\"What?\"\n\n\"That sax player. Wow. Now there's a man!\"\n\nToni looked. Did a double-take. Swallowed.\n\nRoyal Stewart. Living the notes in a world of his own, caressing the keys with his long fingers. His dark hair fell over his brow, and his eyes were closed but she could still feel the way those blue beams bored into her at her shop, and at Grace Temple's funeral.\n\n\"You know that one?\" Drea narrowed her eyes at Toni. \"You been keeping something from me, girl?\"\n\n\"Not hardly. Quick, let's take those two open bar seats and I'll give you a run-down on Mr. Helper.\"\n\n\"Helper?\" Drea frowned. \"Interesting name. Got to be a story in that.\"\n\n\"Oh yes, there is.\" Toni nodded to the bartender. \"Gin martini, please. Very dry.\" She pulled out a twenty and laid it on the bar.\n\n\"Likewise,\" Drea told him, then turned to face Toni. \"So? Tell all.\"\n\nToni did and was just getting to her encounter with Stewart at Grace Temple's funeral when a familiar low voice behind them sent an unwelcome tingle down her back.\n\n\"I do hope I've parked far enough away from you tonight.\"\n\nToni almost choked. Driest martini I've ever tasted.\n\nThe tall man edged into the small space between them and smiled a mega-watt smile at Drea before turning to Toni. \"Going to introduce me?\"\n\n\"Sure. Drea Shore, meet Royal Stewart, otherwise known as 'Helper.'\" There. Done. She turned back to the bar. She'd been tempted to introduce him as \"Royal pain in the ass.\"\n\nStewart raised an eyebrow and shrugged at Drea. \"Is she always so prickly?\"\n\n\"Usually only with reason.\" Drea grinned at him over her glass. \"Does she have a reason?\"\n\n\"Proverbial wrong foot is all. Mine.\" He cut a sideways glance at Toni's set face. \"Really, I'd like to kiss and make up.\"\n\nToni nearly sucked her martini up her nose and muttered, \"As if.\"\n\n\"Guess I won't need ice in my drink, will I?\" Stewart ordered a Manhattan and turned to Drea. \"How do you know each other?\"\n\n\"We go way back,\" Drea answered, openly assessing the chiseled planes of his face. \"Toni told me how she met you but didn't tell me you were a musician. You play wonderfully.\"\n\n\"Thanks. Music keeps me sane. I sit in whenever I have time.\" He picked up his drink, sipped, then nodded his appreciation. \"I didn't expect to see anyone I knew here. I've only been in Green Bay a few days.\"\n\n\"A few days too many, if you ask me,\" Toni grumbled not quite under her breath and gestured to the bartender for another martini before she swiveled to look up at Stewart. \"Don't you have to get back to your band?\"\n\n\"All in due time.\" Stewart leaned one elbow casually against the bar. \"I'm liking the company here.\"\n\nDrea chuckled.\n\nToni looked Royal full in the face and met his blue flame head-on with a flash of her own. \"I doubt that. You've been nothing but rude every time I've crossed your path. You bring out the worst in me.\"\n\n\"But what a lovely worst it is.\" He reached out to run the back of his hand down Toni's cheek, stepped back and bowed when a drum roll reverberated over the room. \"Break over. Nice meeting you, Drea. I hope to see you again.\"\n\nToni watched his easy stride across the dance floor and his smooth step up onto the stage, her cheek on fire, her thoughts atumble. She felt a touch on her arm.\n\n\"Earth to Toni.\"\n\n\"Sorry, Drea.\" She sighed. \"He just gets to me.\"\n\n\"Um-hmm.\" Drea nodded. \"I noticed.\"\n\nToni stared across the club at Stewart, whose mellow, romantic rendition of \"Memories\" now wafted over the room. \"First he's anything but nice, now he's all of a sudden nice. What's that all about?\"\n\nAnd, she added to herself, why do I care?\n\nUp on the small stage, Royal Stewart's mind was not on the music, though his notes flowed, sweet and seamless, weaving over and under the entrancing melody of \"Early Autumn.\" His thoughts were on Toni Dresser and how it might feel to run his fingers through all those waves of curly hair. And how he could break down that wall his first encounters with her had built. That was something he fully intended to do. The exercise should be interesting. He hadn't had much time for personal relationships lately; too many consultations and too many assignments with too much at stake. His gaze followed her as she left the club with Drea, never giving him another glance. Okay, then. The ball was in his court...and he did enjoy a challenge.\n\n****\n\nAt Wannabe the next morning Toni stood at the shop window watching dry leaves skitter across the parking lot. She loved fall, the crisp air, the anticipation of Halloween, her favorite day of the year. But today nothing seemed interesting enough to work on, even though she had some costume orders for parties coming up. Her mind went\u2014as it seemed to do without her bidding ever since she'd met him\u2014to the mysterious, annoying Royal Stewart. No home address? He had to live somewhere, didn't he? What had he been doing? Where had he learned to make that sax sing as though its notes were meant for every woman in the club? And, more important, why did she care?\n\nShe grabbed her broom and began to sweep the hardwood floor in the workshop, though it didn't need it; she'd done a thorough cleaning yesterday. The man was the best kind of handsome\u2014well built and athletic with that intriguing dark stubble on his chin. She could imagine him excelling in any of a dozen sports. Hair that looked like black silk waving just above his collar, long legs in those slim jeans...she jabbed the broom at a dust bunny under the cutting table and a black ball of fur flew out with a belligerent yowl.\n\n\"Sorry, Midnight,\" she said, reaching down to pet him to make amends. \"Didn't know you were under there.\" She'd been too long without a love interest since brushing off Bryce Andrews, that was all. Unfortunately Bryce wasn't the kind to stay brushed. What part of \"not interested\" didn't he understand? His constant calls and messages, which she refused to answer, were infuriating.\n\nStewart hadn't contacted her\u2014why should he?\u2014but she assumed he'd picked up his Porsche. She did think he'd at least want his insurance card. Maybe she should send it to him at Temple House? No. She wasn't his secretary. Let the guy come after it if he wanted it.\n\nShe stuffed the broom into the mop closet, slammed the door and went to work mending the ripped seam in a renaissance dress that had just been returned.\nChapter Eight\n\nHumming, Jack helped himself to another plateful of bow-tie pasta with snow crab.\n\nToni watched him for a moment, then asked, \"Do your dates ever give you a hard time about that?\"\n\n\"About what?\" Jack stopped a full fork halfway to his mouth.\n\n\"That annoying humming when you eat. You've done it ever since you were a little kid.\"\n\n\"Sorry, didn't realize. And you remember that, why?\" His eyebrows were raised.\n\n\"Oh, I don't know. It was always just part of you with food. Seriously, I wonder if your dates mention it?\"\n\n\"Never have. Maybe I don't do it when things are humming along.\" He grinned and pointed his empty fork at her.\n\nShe pulled a face. \"I'll ignore that. Have some more salad. It's good for you. Have you heard anything from Mom and Dad?\"\n\nJack shook his head. \"Not much since they moved from Denver to Sun City. They're too busy with bridge and shuffleboard, and who knows what else.\"\n\n\"That's good. At least I haven't been getting so many met any interesting men lately? phone calls from Mom.\" Toni put her elbows on the table and rested her chin on her hands. \"I miss them, though, don't you?\"\n\n\"Sure. But they're healthy, happy and having fun. What more could we ask?\"\n\n\"You're right, of course.\" She handed him a basket of rolls. \"Different subject\u2014guess who I saw the other night at Inspirations?\"\n\n\"That new club up on University? Haven't been there yet. I give up. Who?\"\n\nShe pushed out her lower lip. \"You're no fun. You could at least guess.\"\n\nJack poured himself another glass of Chardonnay and topped off Toni's. \"Okay. The Queen of England.\"\n\n\"Wow, close. You got the 'royal' part right. Our Helper Royal Stewart.\"\n\n\"Really?\" Jack frowned. \"Doesn't seem like that would be his sort of place. What were you doing there?\"\n\n\"Drea and I were getting me unstuck from the mud you accuse me of wallowing in.\"\n\n\"Good move. Did it work? Did you have a good time?\"\n\nToni thought for a moment. \"Sort of. Kind of.\" Unconsciously she touched her cheek. \"He was playing sax in the band. Excellently, I might add.\"\n\n\"Really again. And? Did you talk?\"\n\n\"Not much.\" She pressed her lips together. \"He was very nice, and I was a bitch.\"\n\nJack grinned. \"Could happen.\"\n\nToni got up to make the coffee, saying over her shoulder, \"Spoken like a loving brother.\"\n\nJack narrowed his eyes and looked at her through imaginary binoculars. \"Ah, and vhat is theese I see? A crack in my seester's men-are-no-good\u2014except brothers, of course\u2014\" He added in an aside, \"and-are-to-be-avoided?\"\n\nToni sighed. \"No cracks in that scenario, ace. Want some lemon pie?\"\n\n****\n\nRoyal pushed aside the papers scattered on the desk in the study at Temple House, sat back and ran both hands through his hair. No surprises in Grace Temple's files so far. Between her attorney and her financial advisor, she and her money had been in good hands. But she'd said she had personal things to tell him, to show him. He frowned. What could they have been? About the family he never knew and probably now would never know?\n\nWith a sigh he swiveled his chair to face floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. Lots of historical novels and thrillers, along with books on birds and plants of Wisconsin\u2014evidently his great-aunt Grace had eclectic taste\u2014and two shelves of myths from different countries that she must have bought on her many world travels. At the bottom were two interesting objects: a lacquered box of intricate hand-painted designs, probably from India, and an enormous, leather-covered bible that appeared to have weathered many generations.\n\nHe opened the box to an old black-and-white photograph of two smiling girls holding hands, one probably three or four years older than the other, both wearing black patent slippers and dressed in white with bows in their sausage-curled hair. He turned the picture over and read \"Gracie, 10 - Anne, 6. Easter Sunday\" in faded ink. Royal searched for a resemblance to the mother he barely remembered. These girls were my family, my grandmother Anne and my great-aunt Grace. My history, and I haven't the faintest idea about their lives. Were they happy? Well cared-for? What were their stories? What did they love?\n\nHe put the photograph back in the box, pulled the heavy bible from the shelf and set it on the desk. Was Grace Temple religious? He had no idea. No idea about so many things. Didn't bibles sometimes include family information? He ran his hand over the smooth, worn leather before turning the fragile gold-edged pages to the center section\nChapter Nine\n\nWannabe's door chimes tinkled and Toni looked up expectantly from sewing sequins on the sparkling tutu on her lap, hoping for something, or someone, to take her mind off Royal Stewart. She didn't need another man to mess up her life. Since she and Drea had seen him at Inspirations, the plaintive mellow notes from his sax kept insinuating evocative melodies into her head. She could still feel the electric tingle of his finger on her cheek. And to be truthful, it was hard to forget those so-blue eyes that seemed to see right into her soul.\n\nShe caught her breath at the sight of her visitor. The man himself. Smiling.\n\nToday he wore boot-cut jeans and a crisp blue pinstriped shirt that matched his eyes. The sleeves were rolled to his elbows, revealing muscled forearms. Definitely a man who worked, or worked out. Maybe helping was an occupation that sometimes required physical strength? She shut her eyes for a second\u2014why was she thinking of Royal Stewart in a physical way anyhow?\n\nHe stepped toward the counter, his expression pleasant. \"How about some customer service here, Ms. Dresser? Aren't you even going to say hello?\"\n\nThe timbre of his low voice rattled her. \"Ouch!\" She jabbed her finger and held it in her mouth for a moment. Thank goodness that had been the last stitch in the costume. \"Hello. And I doubt you're a customer. Is there something I can do for you, Mr. Stewart?\"\n\nHe nodded, his gaze taking in the shop's disarray. Scraps of orange and black cloth, leftovers from Halloween costumes in the making, were draped over tables and shelves. A rack held half-sewn ghosts and goblins. A partially blown-up vampire drooped from the ceiling fixture.\n\nDrat. I should have straightened everything up this morning, but this tutu had to be ready for little Crystal's mother to pick up in a few minutes.\n\n\"Looks like you're in the middle of something fluffy there,\" Royal observed.\n\n\"I'm sure Crystal wouldn't think fluffy was the right word.\" Toni set the bundle of tulle on the counter and stood up. \"This is the tutu for the lead ballerina in the six-year-old group at Lynn's Ballet Studio. They're doing a mini version of Swan Lake.\"\n\n\"Lead dancer. Impressive.\"\n\n\"Her mama thinks so.\" Toni examined her finger. Good, no blood. \"Oh, of course. You've come for your insurance card.\" She pulled open the counter drawer.\n\nHe nodded again. \"Thanks. That, too.\"\n\nHolding out the slip of paper, she asked, \"Too? Too meaning what?\"\n\nHe slid the card into his wallet. \"I came to ask you to have lunch with me.\"\n\n\"Lunch!\" Toni sank onto her stool, feeling puzzlement written all over her face. \"We should have lunch? We, as in you and me?\"\n\n\"Why not? I have to eat. You have to eat. Lunch can accomplish that.\"\n\nBusying herself for time while she absorbed his invitation, Toni rose to hang the little tutu on a pink plastic hangar. She slipped it into a crisp white paper bag printed with a grinning clown wearing a red polka-dotted suit and waving three bright balloons, each proclaiming, \"Be what you WANNABE.\"\n\n\"Excellent logo,\" he said. \"Your design?\"\n\n\"Yes, thanks.\" Toni turned and frowned at him. \"I don't get it. I don't like you. You don't like me.\"\n\nOne corner of his mouth tilted up just a little. \"I never said I didn't like you. I'm pretty sure I might. And you might like me if you'd give me a chance.\" When she didn't say anything he put both palms on the counter and leaned toward her. \"And...I have an ulterior motive.\"\n\n\"And that would be what?\" Interested, she hung the bag on the coat rack near the door and waited.\n\nHe sighed. \"Okay, here it is. If you've seen the papers you know I'm convinced that my Aunt Grace didn't just fall down that staircase.\"\n\nToni nodded. \"So I've read.\"\n\n\"And that the police have decided to let this go as a simple accident. The detectives have all but told me to go away.\"\n\nToni watched his eyes darken, his jaw clench. \"That's difficult for you.\"\n\n\"Difficult doesn't describe it.\"\n\n\"I thought they might think you a suspect. That is, if it wasn't considered to be a fall.\"\n\nHe shook his head. \"No. I was in Milwaukee. Didn't find out about her death until I came back late that afternoon. The police are so sure it was accidental they're not even looking for a suspect.\" He stepped back and pounded one fist into his other palm, his eyes narrowing. \"It churns my gut that somebody hurt\u2014not just hurt\u2014killed, that sweet little old lady and is getting away Scot-free. I know it. I just know it.\"\n\nToni reached out to touch his arm and felt the electricity of his anger tingle through her fingers. \"Really, I understand how you must feel. And I love a mystery as much as the next person. But where's your proof? There wasn't a break-in, or a burglary, was there? According to the paper, nothing was missing.\"\n\nStewart paced to the large front window, paced back. \"No. Not that we know, anyway. But who's to say? Her husband's been dead for ten years. Most all her old friends are gone already. Her social life was mostly her committees and board meetings. Her safe deposit box held her expensive jewelry, and some really nice silver. According to the list it's all there. But something's off about the whole situation.\" He paused. \"And nobody but me seems to care to make it right.\"\n\nToni searched his face, saw desolation. And loneliness. And wondered, what's his story? \"But how is having lunch going to help?\"\n\nShe watched Stewart take a deep breath and relax his taut shoulders. \"Sorry. I get wound up. What I'm hoping is that since you knew my Aunt Grace you could give me some insight about her. We only had a few hours together before I left for Milwaukee. I'd like to have your take on what she was like...\" His voice trailed off. \"The truth is, I need someone to talk to, to sort things out.\"\n\n\"I told you I only worked with her on a couple of committees.\"\n\n\"I know. But anything you can tell me might help. Any gossip, whatever. Names of friends or acquaintances I could speak to. I haven't yet gone through all her papers, but I will. Maybe there'll be some answers there.\" He shrugged, both palms up, and grinned, an appealing little-boy look on his face. \"And what's not to like about having lunch? You pick the place, I pay the tab.\"\n\nThe door chimes tinkled and Crystal's mother breezed in for the tutu. \"Oh, you're a dear, Toni! I'm so rushed, send me the bill, okay?\" She was gone in a matter of seconds with the bagged tutu over her shoulder, her red plaid cape swinging behind her, its colors swirling like the fall leaves that drifted down through bright sunshine outside the window.\n\nToni hesitated, but only for a moment. Why not? Why not have lunch with a seriously handsome man on a brilliant fall day? \"Do I get to ride in that Porsche?\"\n\nHe grinned again and gestured toward the parking lot. \"Your chariot awaits.\"\n\nToni picked The Grapevine, a small, upscale restaurant attached to a home decor boutique just over the East River in Bellevue. She asked for one of the small alcoves off the main dining room where they could talk without being observed or overheard.\n\n\"Very nice,\" Stewart approved, checking out the comfortable setting, the tabletop fresh flower and the framed street scenes of foreign cities hanging on the walls. When sold, Toni mentioned, they'd be replaced with a different theme, changing the ambience of the little area. \"Perfect for an intimate lunch.\"\n\n\"I wasn't thinking intimate,\" said Toni, grimacing. Did he think she was seducing him? Nothing could be farther from the truth. \"I was thinking private.\"\n\n\"That works, too.\" He pulled out her chair, waited until she settled before meeting her eyes. \"I am sorry we got off on the wrong foot. May I call you Toni?\"\n\nShe rolled her eyes. \"It's my name.\"\n\n\"Oh, please.\" The warmth of his smile charmed her. \"You know we're going to be friends. Sooner than later, I hope, and I'd like you to call me Royal.\"\n\n\"Not Roy?\"\n\n\"God, no.\" He gave an exaggerated shudder. \"Makes me think of twanging guitars and riding a horse into the sunset. Which I would never do.\"\n\nToni almost giggled. Royal Stewart on a trusty pinto, lariat in hand? No, she couldn't picture that.\n\nThe welcoming waiter brought water, asked their preference for wine, named off the specials and disappeared.\n\nToni shrugged out of her jacket and slipped it over the back of her chair. \"If we're going to be friends, which, just so you know, I'm not so sure about quite yet, I get to ask questions.\"\n\n\"Fire away.\" Royal sipped his water, his eyes meeting hers. \"Doesn't mean I'll answer them.\"\n\n\"Okay, then.\" Toni put up her chin. \"First, what's with the Helper business? What, exactly, do you do?\"\n\n\"That's an easy one to answer. It's really simple. I'm good at business. Companies with problems hire me to come in, analyze what's going on, and help them clean up their messes.\"\n\n\"Just like that?\"\n\n\"Sometimes not as uncomplicated as it sounds, but by and large, clients are happy when I leave.\"\n\n\"And ride off into the sunset in your silver Porsche.\" He really does have a nice smile. He ought to smile more often.\n\n\"Yep. Pretty much.\"\n\n\"Where do you live? The newspaper said 'whereabouts unknown.' But you have a Virginia driver's license.\"\n\nHis brows went up. \"How do you know that?\"\n\n\"I haff my vays,\" she said, narrowing her eyes in her best imitation of a Russian spy. Then she grinned. \"The internet is my brother's life.\"\n\n\"You have a brother? Here in Green Bay?\"\n\nShe nodded, catching an odd note in his voice. Was it envy? \"My twin. Jack. We're close.\"\n\n\"Lucky girl. Other family?\"\n\n\"Parents in Arizona. Cousins all over. But wait a minute here, I'm asking the questions. So, you haven't a permanent home?\"\n\n\"Never needed one. Until now.\" He paused, twirling his wine glass. \"Now I think I might like one after all.\" His blue eyes bored into hers and his voice seemed to hold an underlying meaning that she couldn't quite pigeonhole. \"At least until everything is settled about Aunt Grace, I'll be staying at Temple House.\" She realized he was watching her thoughts play across her face.\n\nOf course Temple House would be his now. She pictured the three-story Victorian overlooking the Fox River where Grace Temple had chaired some of her committee meetings. Toni had nearly drooled over the elegant chandeliers and the curved staircase leading up to the third floor. It was a house meant for a family, where kids would sail paper airplanes from the second floor landing, for entertaining in the third floor ballroom. \"I mean...\" her voice trailed off. Shoot, I don't know what to ask, and I want to know everything about this man. What kind of a boy was he? Where did he go to school? Why hadn't he been in contact with Grace Temple over the years? She began with, \"Why is the telephone number on your card disconnected? How can you do business?\"\n\n\"Oh, did you try to call?\"\n\n\"My brother did. To tell you about the car.\"\n\n\"I changed servers. Here.\" He got out another card, drew a line through the previous number and wrote with a sleek silver pen. \"Sorry about that.\"\n\nShe slipped the paper into her purse. One question answered. She soldiered on. \"When did you get to Green Bay?\"\n\nThere was that half-grin again. \"The same day my car was damaged.\"\n\nShe noticed he hadn't said, \"The day you damaged my car.\" Maybe she'd been forgiven.\n\nThe waiter brought their wine, and Royal went through the approval ritual before their glasses were filled and they were alone again.\n\n\"Let me get this straight. You never knew your great-aunt before coming here just before she died?\"\n\n\"Right.\"\n\n\"And why was that?\" Toni couldn't imagine not knowing her family, annoying as they could be. Sometimes she even wished there were more of them.\n\nRoyal's forehead creased. His voice roughened. \"It's a long story. Not for publication, okay?\"\n\nChastised, Toni held up her hands, palms out. \"Got it. Sorry. My curiosity gets the better of me. Too much Nancy Drew in my youth. Your aunt was still alive when you came here, then.\"\n\n\"Yes, she was.\" His face clouded, then cleared. \"A delightful, savvy lady.\"\n\n\"So you spent some time with her?\"\n\n\"Not enough.\" He sighed. \"I wish I'd met her sooner. I was only with her for a couple of hours and then had to head down to Milwaukee to wind up a job. We planned that I'd finish there, then come back and stay with her for a while to get to know each other. She said there were things she needed to tell me. Things I needed to know.\"\n\n\"But she's family. You really mean you never met her before now?\" Toni couldn't fathom not knowing her aunts and uncles, her many cousins. Couldn't imagine her childhood's baptisms, birthdays and weddings without the Dresser clan celebrating in full force.\n\n\"Families aren't all like the Brady bunch, you know.\" He paused, his brow furrowed. \"There's so much she could have told me.\" He stopped, drank wine, went quiet.\n\n\"But the night she fell\u2014\" Toni hesitated, then plunged ahead. \"Where were you then?\"\n\nHe rubbed the side of his face and she caught the remorse that colored his words. \"My work ran late and I stayed in Milwaukee.\" He'd had no choice; the outcome of that assignment had been too important for too many people. \"I wish I hadn't.\"\n\nTheir food arrived, asparagus quiche of the day for Toni, a Reuben sandwich for Royal.\n\n\"This looks delicious. And that's more than enough about me,\" he said, snapping his napkin onto his lap and neatly cutting off more questions. \"Now let's talk about you. Are you involved with anyone?\"\n\nToni felt a flush tinge her face. \"That's a bit personal, isn't it?\"\n\nHe smiled. \"Maybe. But it's only fair that I get to find out more about you, too.\"\n\nThe old saying that all was fair in love and war came to mind. Sometimes she wondered how you could tell the difference. She twisted her wine glass. \"Involved? In a word, no. Not now.\" Her chin came up. \"And I don't intend to be.\"\n\nHis mouth twitched. \"Did that have a 'so there!' attached to it? You don't sound entirely convinced.\"\n\n\"My dear Mr. Stewart, I don't need to convince anyone but myself. Let's just say that some relationships are just too damn much work.\"\n\n\"Ah, but all the self-help books insist the results can be rewarding.\"\n\nShe rolled her eyes. \"So they say. And that's enough about me. Let's talk about your great-aunt Grace.\"\n\n****\n\nAn hour later Royal brought Toni back to the shop, where an envelope was taped to the door. \"Looks like you had a visitor,\" he said.\n\n\"Not again!\" Toni pulled the envelope loose, ran her finger under the flap and unfolded a single sheet of paper. When she looked up at Royal her eyes were dark with anger. \"This is ridiculous.\"\n\n\"What is it?\" He reached for the paper, read the large block letters. \"DON'T GET INVOLVED WITH STEWART. HE'S NOT WHAT HE SEEMS.\" Royal frowned, holding his anger down to keep it from showing in his voice. \"Who would leave you something like this?\"\n\nToni jabbed her key into the lock and kicked the door open, her mouth set in a tight line. \"Only one person I can think of. And he's going to hear from me ASAP.\" She slammed her purse onto the counter, shrugged out of her jacket and jammed it onto the coat rack.\n\n\"You know it's a he?\"\n\n\"Oh, yes. I'm sure.\" Images of Bryce Andrews floated to the front of her mind: slim, sun-browned, blond wind-blown hair. Too damned good-looking. On his sailboat, competent. On the golf course, competent. Handling his BMW, competent. In bed, competent. In charge. Always in charge. Toni grabbed the paper from Royal, ripped it half, then half again, and pitched it into the wastebasket by the counter. \"Oh, yes,\" she repeated through gritted teeth. \"I'm sure.\" Toni caught herself, realizing she'd morphed from her usual calm to a vibrating pillar of anger. Think Yoga, Toni. Breathe.\n\nRoyal closed the door, leaned against it and crossed his arms, frowning. \"Who is this guy and what does he have to do with me? I'm guessing a jealous former lover?\" He paused, eyebrows raised. \"At least I hope former?\"\n\nToni whirled around, her hands fisted, face flushed. \"Don't even ask. The man's a controlling pain in the ass.\" She swallowed, took a deep breath and looked anywhere but at him while she composed herself. \"Sorry. You didn't need to see a hissy fit.\"\n\n\"Maybe I did.\" His grin was maddening. \"I never saw a woman fire up quite like that. What did mister pain-in-the-ass do to deserve it?\"\n\nToni sighed. \"Just tried to run every aspect of my life is all.\"\n\n\"And is still trying, from the evidence in the wastebasket.\"\n\n\"Very observant. He wasn't pleased when I broke off our relationship. It's obvious he still isn't.\" Toni picked up her purse and slipped it under the counter. She looked up at Royal, thought Yoga again and breathed. \"I'm sorry, I'm forgetting my manners. Thanks for a delicious lunch. I don't think I gave you much insight into your Aunt Grace, though.\"\n\n\"Maybe not. But I think I got some insight into Toni Dresser.\" He grinned. \"And I don't think I ever want to get on her bad side.\"\n\n\"Sorry you witnessed my snit, but hey,\" Toni pulled a rueful face, \"what you see is what you get. The lunch break was great. Now I've got to put together another couple of tutus.\"\n\nHe turned at the door. \"And maybe take some time to put Mr. Pain-in-the-ass in his place as well?\"\n\n\"That, too.\"\n\nToni watched Royal fold his tall body into the Porsche and drive away. She frowned. Had he really said he hoped Bryce was a former lover? What had he meant by that?\n\nWhy had Bryce written that note? And what was she going to do about him?\n\nTwo tutus later, Toni was working on a Pilgrim suit for a fourth grade pageant when the phone rang.\n\n\"Honey? Are you all right? You haven't called for the longest time!\"\n\nToni smiled, stopped her sewing machine and watched leaves drift down outside her window. She'd talked with her parents just last weekend. \"The phone works both ways, Mom. How are you? How's Dad?\"\n\n\"Fit and fine, both of us. He's off at the shuffleboard court. I know Thanksgiving's a while away but we were wondering if you, and Jack, too, might get away for a long holiday weekend. Unless...\" She paused and Toni waited for what she knew was coming. \"Unless either of you has a friend you don't want to leave.\"\n\n\"Oh, Mom.\" Toni couldn't help smiling. \"You're so transparent.\"\n\n\"Well, I can always hope. You are getting older. Grandchildren don't just pop out of a cereal box, you know.\"\n\n\"Don't get testy, Mom. I never thought they did.\" Toni was quiet for a moment, remembering the good times when she and Jack were young and every day seemed steeped in laughter, love and care. That was what she wanted most in her life: to marry and raise a family, to give her children the happy, carefree kind of childhood she'd had. With someone who felt the same way. Certainly not Bryce Andrews. He'd have them regimented like little soldiers. \"I love you, Mom.\"\n\n\"I know.\" Her voice sounded wistful over the miles. \"Just putting a little thought in your head. But seriously, couldn't you come down for a visit? Even a short one? We miss you both so much.\"\n\n\"Or you could come here. But I know if I ask that you'll give me the weather report about how much nicer November is in Arizona rather than in Green Bay. I will talk to Jack, though.\" She paused. \"Maybe he's working on grandchildren.\"\n\n\"Really? Does he have a girl?\" Toni heard the lift of hope in her mother's voice. \"He won't tell me, you know. His love life is a big secret. Like I don't know anything about sex. How he thinks he got here, I don't know.\"\n\nToni laughed aloud. \"Once burned, twice shy, they say. Claudia was a disaster and he's not over that experience yet.\"\n\n\"Thank God that fell apart.\" Her mother snorted. \"I didn't like her from the start.\"\n\n\"But he did, Mom. He really cared about her. Until he learned she'd lied to him about her past. Jack could never live with a liar.\"\n\n\"I know. I do hope he'll get over it, find someone else. He is looking, isn't he?\" There was that transparent hope again.\n\nToni made a face. \"Not that I've seen. Not yet. Let it go, Mom. It's his life.\"\n\n\"A fact of which he never fails to remind me.\" Her audible sigh came across the line. Then, \"So, what are you working on?\"\n\nThey chatted, caught up, and when Toni put down the phone she stared out the window for a few minutes. Babies. Motherhood. Of course that was what she wanted, in the best of all worlds. A family to treasure, to nurture, to provide with love and happiness. However, in her book, that required a man, and there wasn't one waiting in the wings. She sighed. Why did blue eyes come to mind? She shook her head and went back to sewing buttons on the Pilgrim suit.\n\nAnd trying to decide what to do about Bryce Andrews, who definitely didn't fit the future she wanted for herself.\n\nIn the end, it was garlic that had tipped the scales against Bryce. Though he was well-read, an easy conversationalist who planned great surprise getaways and picked out the best restaurants, it was always his choice of destination, his restaurant, and usually, his selection of food for her as well as himself. They traveled from Door County to Sheboygan, north to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan and as far west as Wausau, seeking out the best supper clubs, usually listening to his choice of music on the way.\n\nShe'd often wondered what he would do if she spoke up at one of their elegant meals and ordered a cheeseburger with fries. They had no couples friends, and though Toni had suggested widening their social life to include others Bryce had never agreed, saying, \"I'd rather have you to myself.\" The well-heeled owner of a successful worldwide travel company, he'd often offered to take her with him on exotic trips, which she'd refused.\n\n\"What has Mr. Perfect done to you, Toni?\" Jack asked over one of their Thursday dinners, uncorking a bottle of wine that was far more expensive than the brand they usually drank. \"Your hair is different, your house is so neat it's scary and now you're buying pricey wine.\"\n\nShe shrugged. \"Bryce prefers it.\"\n\n\"I just bet he does.\" Jack filled their glasses and studied her attire. \"Jeez, sis, you've even changed the way you dress.\"\n\nHave I? She questioned herself and realized that yes, she had. Instead of her casual, comfortable wardrobe, she found herself picking out clothes by whether or not Bryce would approve.\n\nShe knew she was a good cook\u2014Jack would attest to that\u2014but when she cooked for Bryce, there was almost always something not quite right. That final night it had been the mashed potatoes.\n\n\"Thank you for dinner, Toni,\" Bryce had said, smiling, lifting his glass of sparkling wine to hers. \"The loin was excellent. However, the potatoes could have used just a tad more garlic. Perhaps next time?\"\n\nShe'd felt her eyes widen even as she stared at him across the candlelit table, taking in his smoothly styled hair, his impeccably starched collar and muted tie. No. Not next time. Probably never, actually. I'm tired of being never quite right.\n\nBut before she had a chance to open her mouth to say so he had leaned forward and held out a small velvet box. \"I know you've been waiting for this.\" He smiled again, smug, his perfect teeth white against his summer tan. \"I thought it was time.\"\n\nToni sat back. She hadn't been waiting, and no, it wasn't time.\n\nHe flipped open the box and held it toward her. \"Toni Dresser, will you marry me?\"\n\nShe caught her breath and pushed the box back toward him, shaking her head. \"Oh, Bryce, don't. Put that away. It's beautiful, but I can't take it.\"\n\n\"What do you mean?\" His handsome face clouded. \"Haven't you been expecting a ring? I thought... Has this all been just fun and games for you?\"\n\nToni sighed, palms up. \"Of course not. I've enjoyed our times together. They've been great. But they can't lead to marriage. Not for us.\"\n\n\"You can't be serious!\" He stood and pushed his chair back with such force it crashed backwards to the floor. His eyes glittered, narrowed.\n\nShe cringed. She'd seen his temper more than once, and it hadn't been pretty. But it had never before been directed at her. He looked beyond angry. He looked dangerous. He leaned over the table, so close to the candles she was afraid his hair would catch on fire. His face was flushed, his eyes dark with anger. \"What do you mean, you can't marry me? I've already bought our house.\"\n\n\"What!\" Toni leaped to her feet, too, felt her heart pounding. \"You've bought our house? You went and bought a house without even asking whether I wanted to marry you?\" Her throat was so tight she could hardly speak. \"What colossal ego! Didn't you think I might want to have a say in that? If we were getting married?\"\n\nHe took a deep breath, snapped the ring box closed and thrust it into his jacket pocket. \"If! I didn't know there was an if. Of course, I bought the house.\" He was shouting now. \"For our future. The right house, in the right neighborhood.\"\n\nBut probably not the neighborhood I would pick. Anything he chose would be far too big, too ostentatious. Too Bryce.\n\nHis fury narrowed his eyes, constricted his voice. He'd never sneered at her like that. \"You wouldn't even know what to look for, what we'd need.\"\n\n\"No,\" said Toni, shaking her head. \"You're right, I wouldn't. Because there is no we. Oh, Bryce. Please calm down. I'm sorry.\" She reached out but he'd already backed away.\n\n\"Sorry! You're sorry!\" He whirled, strode to leave the room but turned and shook his finger at her. His voice was rough. \"I'll talk to you later. After you've come to your senses.\" He was at the door in three strides, slammed it so hard the house shook.\n\n\"Whoa!\" Toni sat back on her chair and caught her breath. \"Come to my senses?\" she muttered. She lifted her glass of expensive wine toward the closed door. \"I think I already did.\"\n\nAnd all because of garlic.\n\nShe sipped. It really was good wine.\nChapter Ten\n\n\"Not you again.\" Detective Phil Carson, balding, rumpled and a bit overweight, pushed aside some paperwork. \"Don't you ever give up?\"\n\nRoyal Stewart slid onto the chair at the side of the desk. \"I'm persistent when I need to be.\"\n\n\"I get that.\" Carson leaned back. \"Don't even ask. I don't know anything new about your aunt's fall. If you don't know anything new, we don't have anything to talk about. We've closed the incident.\" He waved a hand over the piles of papers. \"Go away. I've got some real ongoing cases to work on here.\"\n\nStewart ran a hand through his dark hair and fixed the detective with a blue stare. \"And I get that. You're a busy man. But something's missing about this situation. I don't think you've done enough investigating.\"\n\nCarson narrowed his eyes, sat back and crossed his arms over his chest. \"You're not the first disgruntled survivor who thinks that about an accident to a near and dear one. And just for the record, from what I understand, old Mrs. Temple wasn't all that near and dear to you.\"\n\n\"Maybe not, and that's my loss.\" Royal leaned forward. \"But you know as well as I do that it's possible, just possible, she didn't fall. Maybe she wasn't upstairs at all. Maybe she was placed right there at the bottom of those stairs. That injury could have been caused by a blunt force attack.\"\n\n\"Blunt force, huh. You want to talk like a cop, Mr. Mysterious Guy?\" Carson leaned forward and rubbed his face with both hands before he went on, speaking slowly as though to make sure Stewart understood. \"The indentation on the side of her head exactly matches the corner on the base of the staircase newel post. Mrs. Temple was old. She tripped on her long robe at the top of the steps and lost her balance. Her skull was paper thin.\" Carson's face reddened. \"You pop up from nowhere just before your very rich old aunt's found dead. You may, as far as I know, have hired somebody to do the job yourself. Aren't you the only heir?\" He tossed his pencil onto the desk and huffed. \"You think you can find something we've missed after we've signed off on her fall and make us look like dolts?\"\n\nStewart grinned and shrugged. With his extensive training, that was a possibility, but he appreciated the detective's straight-on attitude. \"That's about it.\"\n\nCarson stared at him for a moment, then shook his head. \"So go for it, Sherlock. I'll have copies made of the closed record, photos included. You can pick them up at the front desk on your way out. Go play cop. Or P.I. Or F.B.I. Or C.I.A. Just don't play in my sandbox.\"\n\n\"Got it.\" Royal Stewart stood up, nodded. \"Thanks.\"\n\n****\n\nAcross town, dressed in casual khakis, sneakers and a coral sweater set, Toni reveled in the brilliant fall sky and closed the hatchback on her van. A perfect day for a drive to Door County to deliver her costumes and catch up with Lisbet and Courtney. She turned the ignition key.\n\nA chirrup, a grind, then silence.\n\n\"Come on, baby,\" she muttered and tried the key again. This time, nothing. She thumped her fists on the steering wheel and groaned, \"Dammit!\"\n\nAnd ever-handy Jack was out of town.\n\nShe lowered her head on her arms and sighed, knowing she should have taken the van into the shop the first time this happened, but Jack had jump-started it.\n\n\"Looks like something's wrong with the ignition. Or maybe you just need a new battery, sis,\" he'd said once the engine was running. \"When are you going to learn to take care of your car?\"\n\nShe'd fixed him with an icy stare, then melted. \"Soon. Really, I will. But not today.\"\n\n\"You'll be sorry.\" He'd driven off, waving, as she called her thanks.\n\nAnd he was right, she was sorry now. The overstuffed garment bag of costumes she'd stowed in the back of the van were due at Wannabe II, Toni's Sister Bay shop, this afternoon. She pulled her cell phone out of her purse and speed-dialed Drea at Furs and Fancies.\n\nNo luck there. \"She's in Chicago, Toni,\" said Drea's assistant. \"Anything I can do for you?\"\n\n\"No, thanks. Just looking for a car to use for a few hours.\"\n\n\"Be happy to loan you mine, but it's in the shop.\"\n\nWhere Toni's should have been before now. Again, she really was sorry. And without transportation. Should she call Triple A and hope they'd rescue her soon enough? Or call Lisbet Mitchell and tell her the costumes wouldn't make it to Sister Bay today? Damn. Lisbet and her customers wouldn't be happy.\n\nSuddenly a familiar silver Porsche, top down, came to a stop beside her van and Royal Stewart appeared at her window. Which she couldn't slide down without power. Toni opened the door, looked up at him, grimaced and muttered, \"Hi. What are you doing here?\"\n\n\"Who-hoo.\" He backed up, palms out. \"I'm not feeling very welcome. I was driving past and saw you sitting in your parking lot. Leaving?\"\n\nToni snorted. \"I thought I was, but my battery said no.\"\n\n\"Did you know it was bad?\"\n\nJust like a man. \"What am I, clairvoyant?\" She bit her lip. \"Sorry. Yes, for your information, I knew it was bad. But I thought it would come through for me this one more time.\"\n\n\"Ah. And you planned to be somewhere?\" He stuck his hands casually in the back pockets of his snug jeans that left little to the imagination.\n\nToni flushed and raised her gaze to his face. \"I need to be up in Door County, at my Sister Bay outlet. This afternoon.\" She glanced at her watch and sighed. \"Which is quickly disappearing.\" She caught that interesting and annoying twitch at the corner of Royal's mouth. Was he laughing at her?\n\n\"Could you make use of a Porsche with a perfectly good battery? And a willing driver?\"\n\nToni resisted taking his offer. But not for long, remembering his elegant calling card. He could be the Helper she needed right now. \"You're not busy?\"\n\nThe hand he offered to help her out of the van sent a tingle all the way up her arm. \"Never too busy to help a damsel in distress. You are in distress, aren't you?\"\n\nToni had to admit it, through gritted teeth. Why was she so awkward with this man? But she knew why. There was that dratted attraction that drew her and if she wasn't careful, would pull her into... She realized he was talking.\n\n\"Why do you need to be there today?\"\n\nToni walked around him to tug open the hatchback. \"These are costumes for the big Fall Ball fundraiser tomorrow night. The manager for my Sister Bay store will skin me alive if I don't get them to her today.\"\n\n\"Well, we can't have that, now, can we?\" Royal lifted the bulky bag with ease, stowed it in the back of the Porsche and opened the passenger door for her. \"Hop in.\"\n\nThe afternoon was another Wisconsin fall wonder, too warm for the season, bright with remaining orange and red foliage along the roadside. Toni leaned back against the smooth leather seat and reveled in the relaxing sun and the carefree wind tangling her long curls. \"Wonderful,\" she murmured. A day to savor, and one to put aside any misgivings about the man beside her. What was that old adage about gift horses? She asked, \"Nobody needed your help today? Didn't you have anything you had to do?\"\n\n\"Nothing more important than getting you to where you need to be,\" he replied, smoothly speeding up to pass a couple of cars. \"I'm between jobs. You have a second store up in Door County?\"\n\n\"Yes. My friend Lisbet runs it along with her coffee shop.\"\n\n\"She's a Door County native?\"\n\nToni laughed. \"No, she's a transplant, like many who come to the County for vacation, fall in love and never look back.\"\n\nRoyal took in this information with eyebrows raised. \"Really? It's that special?\"\n\n\"So they\u2014they being the Chamber of Commerce\u2014say.\" She leaned forward, turning to look at movement in a stubbled field. \"Oh, look! See those wild turkeys? There must be a dozen of them.\"\n\n\"Turkeys! You're kidding. Where?\" He slowed momentarily, craning his neck.\n\n\"Too late.\" She sat back. \"You missed them. That's what you get for driving so fast.\"\n\nHe quirked an eyebrow. \"Trying to pick a fight with your benevolent, and, I might add, free chauffeur?\"\n\n\"Never.\" She grinned and settled back, contented. \"At least not on a grand day like today.\"\n\n\"So, tell me about Lisbet. Is she an old friend?\"\n\n\"No, but she's become a good one. She has a nine-year-old, Andy, he's a dear, and is expecting a baby early next summer. Her sister, Courtney, runs a sports store in Sister Bay and is a big fan of both costumes and coffee. Which, by the way, is the name of Lisbet's store.\" Toni smiled. \"The three of us clicked as soon as we met. They're the sisters I never had.\"\n\n\"That's special.\" His voice held that wisp of longing that Toni had caught before whenever friendship or family was mentioned. \"Is her store profitable? How long have you had it?\"\n\n\"A couple of years. Lisbet does well, but I know if I spent a bit more time there, worked at advertising more, and set up an internet presence, I could add to my income. Which,\" she bit her lip, \"could use a boost.\" Then she sat forward, looked at him and lifted her chin. \"But don't get me wrong. I don't need a helper.\"\n\nHe grinned. \"Of course not. Only a reliable vehicle.\"\n\nShe laughed at herself. \"Right. Did I say thanks?\"\n\n\"No. But you can say it later, after we've delivered your costumes and you've shown me a bit of Door County. From all I've heard it's pretty fascinating.\"\n\nToni nodded. \"It really is. 'A bit of New England in the Midwest' to paraphrase the Chamber of Commerce again. Each village has its own ambience.\" She gave a deep, satisfied sigh and leaned back. \"What a glorious day to be on the road! And, for your information, in just a few minutes we'll be halfway to the North Pole.\"\n\n\"Really? Well, now. That is interesting. Can't say as I've ever been this far north before.\"\n\nToni sat forward. Was this her chance to find out more about him? \"Where did you grow up?\"\n\nHe paused for a long moment before answering. \"Not important. Let's just say I grew up and let it go at that.\"\n\nBryce Andrews' note flashed into Toni's mind: HE'S NOT WHAT HE SEEMS. \"Okay, I get it. Off limits, right?\"\n\n\"Right.\" He smiled, but even through his dark glasses she saw his eyes darken. From what? Painful memories? She could only guess.\n\n\"Now,\" he said, \"where was that halfway to the North Pole mark?\"\nChapter Eleven\n\nToni rubbed her hands over her face. The man just won't open up. Maybe he really does have something to hide. So forget the personal questions for now. \"Have you learned anything more about your aunt's fall?\" she asked.\n\n\"No. But I did get a copy of the report on it from Detective Carson today, so that's something to work with. I haven't had time to look it over yet.\"\n\n\"Phil's great. I've known him since I was a little kid. He was one of the 'big boys' in my neighborhood. Always stood up for the underdog, tried to make things right. I'm sure he's done everything he could to learn about your aunt's death. He's a straight-up guy.\"\n\n\"Seems so. But I'm still going to do some digging,\" said Royal. \"Just to satisfy myself. I've been going through her papers, but I don't know enough about Grace Temple to get a real feel for her. I haven't yet talked to any of her friends. There aren't many of those her age left, as you may have noticed at her memorial service.\" Royal made a face and breathed, \"Peee-uw!\" as he deftly steered around a flattened skunk on the highway. The lingering odor followed them for only a moment. \"On another subject, have you heard any more from mister pain-in-the-ass?\" Royal's mouth tightened. \"I'd be interested to learn why he felt free to leave you a note about me.\"\n\nI would, too, but I'm not going to open that can of worms anytime soon. The farther I stay away from Bryce's controlling personality, the better. \"Don't give Bryce Andrews another thought,\" she said. \"He isn't worth it. I left him a steaming voice mail that should have melted the wires in his phone, but I didn't talk with him directly. It wouldn't have done any good anyway. Shouting matches aren't my thing.\"\n\n\"Just kicking doors?\" At the scowl she gave him his mouth twitched. \"Sorry, couldn't resist. No offense.\"\n\nShe had to smile, remembering her near tantrum at finding Bryce's note. \"None taken.\" She relaxed, savoring the sun sparkling on the deep blue waters of Green Bay, the fall colors and the warm wind caressing her face. She sneaked a peek at Royal's profile. A week ago I would never have believed we'd be in the same room without sniping, let alone spend hours together in a small car. She almost grinned, imagining what her mother would make of it. Probably be ordering engagement announcements. That was another can of worms Toni wasn't about to open.\n\n\"You make a pretty good tour guide,\" observed Royal as Toni pointed out sights of interest and offered smidgens of Door County lore while they drove. \"How is it you're so familiar here?\"\n\n\"Hours and hours of vacation when I was a kid,\" she replied. \"My folks rented a cottage in a different town up here every year for two weeks\u2014Dad was born up near Ephraim\u2014so Jack and I explored the Door from top to bottom. We put miles on our bicycles until we got too cool for that and learned to drive.\"\n\n\"Lucky kids,\" Royal said, and again Toni heard a tinge of envy in his voice. What was the story he was so loath to share?\n\nThey stopped at Double Delites in Egg Harbor for an Italian gelato.\n\n\"Thirty flavors,\" Royal groaned, shaking his head as he leaned over the counter with its many-colored pails of creamy ices. \"How am I supposed to decide?\"\n\n\"Easy, just shut your eyes and point.\"\n\nHe got black raspberry. Toni decided on rich Donatella, the store's chocolate hazelnut specialty.\n\n\"So you're a chocolate lover?\" Royal asked as they sat at a picnic table outside to enjoy the treats.\n\n\"Oh, yeah.\" She slurped a delicious mouthful off the top of her double cone, her eyes nearly closing with pleasure. \"You can never get too much chocolate.\" She felt the heat of his gaze follow her tongue as she licked gelato off her lip and hastily used her napkin.\n\n\"Never too much? I'll remember that,\" he said.\n\nRoyal listened to Toni's Door County tidbits as they wound past Fish Creek and Ephraim, and followed her directions to the Country Walk Shops just off Highway 42 before entering Sister Bay proper. \"Turn here. Go left, down toward the far end, right next to the bookstore.\" She pointed. \"See the sign?\"\n\nHe spotted the clown figure first, proclaiming WANNABE II and next to it the words COSTUMES AND COFFEE, swirling up from a steaming coffee cup. \"Catchy.\" He pulled into a parking spot in the lot across from the store.\n\n\"Thanks. I think so, too. It's my design,\" said Toni, smiling at his assessment of it. \"This was just Lisbet's second season and she did really well. Of course now that the tourists are pretty much gone, it will mostly be local custom until next summer. She's planning some events to bring more of them in\u2014maybe a morning book club, featuring local authors, a knitting class or something like that.\"\n\n\"Sounds like good thinking.\"\n\nA replica of the door chime in Toni's Green Bay shop tinkled as they walked into a small, crowded but neatly arranged showroom. Left of the door, racks displaying various costumes took up floor space; stacked shelves holding different headwear and accessories lined the walls. Feather boas and lace stoles were draped over a folding clothes rack. A showcase offered jewelry, gloves and small accessories. A cheerful coffee shop on the right, featured five small round tables covered with bright cloths repeating the primary colors in the WANNABE clown's balloons. A covered tray near the coffee maker offered berry scones with clotted cream and other pastries to accompany coffee or tea. Chatting women with shopping bags stacked beside their chairs occupied two tables. Behind the counter Lisbet Mitchell and Courtney Spencer turned toward the door, their faces lighting with pleasure.\n\n\"Toni!\" they both said at once. Lisbet wiped her hands on a cherry red apron and came around the counter to give Toni a hug. \"You made it! Thank God.\"\n\n\"No. Thank my escort, Royal Stewart.\" Toni gestured toward Royal. \"Meet Lisbet on the left, Courtney on the right.\" She paused to hug Courtney, too. \"I've told him about both of you. Royal saved my life today when the black beast refused to start,\" she explained.\n\n\"Again?\" Courtney laughed, shaking her head. \"When are you\u2014\"\n\nToni cut her off with a raised palm. \"No more lectures about proper car care today, please. I promise I'll get the van fixed. Anyway, we brought your costumes.\"\n\n\"I'll bring them in.\" Royal headed for the door.\n\n\"Whoo-hoo!\" said Lisbet, watching through the large front window as Royal easily lifted the bulky garment bag from the convertible. \"Where did you find that hunk?\"\n\n\"That hunk with a Porsche,\" added Courtney, raising an eyebrow. \"Tell all.\"\n\nToni sighed, her gaze on Royal. He really was a hunk. And today a very accommodating one. \"Long story,\" she said.\n\n\"But an interesting one, I'll bet,\" commented Lisbet, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. \"Let's get those costumes hung up. You are planning to stay for the fund-raiser tomorrow night, aren't you, Toni? You even brought a ready-made escort and I so wish you'll be here to party with us. We'll have such fun!\"\n\n\"Wait a minute! I have a business to run, remember?\" Toni laughed. \"Royal may want to get back. We hadn't made any plans to stay.\"\n\n\"Oh, pooh. Today's Friday and you don't need to open tomorrow, do you, really? Jerry's dressing as a pirate.\" Lisbet giggled. \"Isn't that funny, a tow-headed Blackbeard? He's been stomping around the house, practicing his 'Aaarrghs!' Andy thinks it's goofy. Jerry thinks it's sexy. And Link is, what is he again, Court?\"\n\n\"The Phantom of the Opera.\"\n\nToni held the door open as Royal brought in the costumes. \"What's this about the Phantom of the Opera? That's my favorite musical.\"\n\n\"It's my husband's, too,\" said Courtney. \"He's going to be the phantom. He's got the tux, so all he needs is the half-mask for the ball. I'll be Christine, but that's an easy costume. Pretty, too.\"\n\n\"We've been invited to stay over and attend the party. Interested?\" Toni asked Royal. \"Or do you have to get back?\"\n\n\"No, I don't have to be anywhere. Would we have to dress up?\"\n\n\"'Fraid so.\"\n\n\"Not my most favorite thing,\" he said, but relented at Toni's wistful expression. \"Looks like you want to.\"\n\nShe shrugged and grinned. \"It might be fun. If we can find costumes.\"\n\n\"We'll find them,\" said Lisbet, hanging up a slithery lizard dress from the box they'd brought. \"You've come to the right place.\"\n\n\"I'll do it, but under duress.\" Royal pinned Toni with a blue stare. \"And you'll owe me one.\"\n\n\"One what?\" Toni put her chin up.\n\n\"Don't know yet.\" He grinned, tilting his head. \"I'll think of something.\"\n\nToni rolled her eyes. She'd just bet he would.\n\n\"Come on,\" said Lisbet, leading the way to the racks in the costume shop. \"Now let's see...\"\n\nRoyal rejected a frilly-wristed outfit from the Regency era, a Chicago Cubs baseball uniform and an Egyptian robe and fez before saying, \"Look, I've already got jeans and short boots. I'll settle for that ten-gallon hat and these-here six-shooters,\" he drawled as he buckled on the holsters he'd pulled off a hook on the wall. \"Just give me that there red bandana,\" he pointed, \"and I'll be fixed up fine as any ol' gunslinger.\"\n\nToni tried to stop it but her laughter bubbled up.\n\nHe turned, eyebrows lifted. \"That's funny?\"\n\n\"I'm trying to picture you riding off into the sunset. Which, may I remind you, you said you'd never do.\"\n\nHe scowled, popped the hat on his head and twirled the guns before slipping them into the holsters. \"So, how do I fit the part?\"\n\n\"Actually,\" she said, controlling her giggles, \"not too bad. You just need a gee-tar slung over your shoulder.\"\n\n\"Me and Bad Jeff Bridges,\" Royal mumbled. \"So what are you going to wear? I like the flapper look, myself.\"\n\n\"I'm not the flapper type.\"\n\n\"What's that got to do with anything? I'm not the cowboy type, neither, beggin' your pardon, ma'am.\" He pulled off his Stetson and shuffled his boots.\n\nToni ignored him, riffled through the racks and held out a calico print and sunbonnet. \"This here goes right good with my podner's outfit, don't it?\" she asked Lisbet and Courtney, who had watched the exchange between Toni and Royal with barely concealed smiles.\n\n\"Perfect!\" they said together.\n\nLisbet glanced up at the cheerful yellow clock over the coffee counter. \"My customers have gone. Jerry will be home by now. Courtney, call Link and tell him to meet us at my house. It's cocktail hour!\" She linked her arm with Toni's. \"And you and Royal will stay with us tonight.\" As Toni began to shake her head, Lisbet added, patting her stomach, \"No argument. It's not good for the baby.\"\n\n****\n\nRoyal and Toni followed Lisbet and Courtney to Lisbet's house on the hillside overlooking Sister Bay, a comfortable green-shuttered two-story clapboard surrounded by a lawn with large oaks still holding on to their russet leaves. Beds of late purple asters and yellow and orange chrysanthemums were doing their best to make the season's summer colors last.\n\n\"Your friend has the proverbial green thumb,\" observed Royal as they got out of the car. \"This is beautiful.\"\n\n\"A reflection of her personality,\" said Toni, and added to herself, and of love. She watched Jerry's face light up as he came to the door to meet Lisbet. His pleasure at the sight of his wife gave Toni's heart a little jolt. Andy's small face popped up beside Jerry and with a \"Hi, Mom!\" he jumped off the porch to give his mother a fierce hug around her waist.\n\n\"Whoa, Andy,\" Lisbet laughed, catching her balance and tousling his flyaway hair, but hugging him back as she walked toward the house.\n\nToni pushed away the question that leapt unbidden into her mind: Will I ever have that?\n\n\"You're miles away,\" observed Royal in a low voice. \"Are your feet stuck to the ground?\"\n\n\"Oh! Sorry,\" mumbled Toni and started to move toward the house.\n\n\"Lost in the picture of familial bliss?\" he asked.\n\nToni sighed. The man could read her mind. \"I guess. Come and meet Jerry. And here's Link now as well.\" She gestured toward the sleek red Corvette pulling into the drive behind Royal's Porsche. \"They're great folks. You'll like them all.\" She felt a tug somewhere in her mind that wondered whether they would like Royal, and was surprised that their approval of him should be important to her.\n\nThey chatted over snacks on the deck overlooking Sister Bay as the lowering sun drifted down and laid a golden path on calm water. Jerry poured Manhattans for the men, vodka gimlets for Toni and Courtney and club soda with lemon for Lisbet and Andy.\n\n\"Phantom of the Opera, huh?\" Jerry teased Link after the first pleasantries. \"Too bad you can't sing, Link.\"\n\n\"Lucky for everyone, I don't have to,\" said Link. \"I just have to look as though I might.\" He helped himself to some cheese and crackers. \"Toni says you're going as a cowboy, Royal.\"\n\n\"Seems so. Couldn't quite see myself as an Arab prince or a Victorian fop.\" Royal grinned and shrugged. \"I haven't dressed up for a party in,\" he paused, \"years.\" A slight frown crossed his forehead. \"I'm not quite sure how I got talked into this one.\"\n\nEveryone laughed and Toni felt an unexpected pleasure in Royal's easy acceptance by her dearest friends.\nChapter Twelve\n\nCocktails ran into mealtime, spinach salad and a pasta casserole that Jerry had prepared with Andy's help. \"I mixed the sauce, Auntie Court. I'm gonna be a cook, too,\" he said, loading his fork with a heap of pasta. \"Like Jerry.\"\n\n\"Way to go, Champo. Every woman loves a man that cooks.\" Court winked at her husband. \"Link's great at the grill.\"\n\nHe smiled at her and raised his glass, acknowledging her appreciation for his culinary skills.\n\n\"Champo's Court's pet name for Andy,\" said Toni in an aside to Royal. \"They're the best of friends.\"\n\n\"It appears that everyone here is the best of friends.\" Royal nodded at the gathered guests. He paused, then said, \"It's nice to be included.\"\n\nToni looked up at Royal's unguarded expression and realized the man had never had what she so easily took for granted.\n\nAndy swallowed and grinned. \"I wouldn't cook just for a woman,\" the boy declared, spooning more pasta onto his plate. \"I like to eat, too.\"\n\n\"That's the truth,\" put in Jerry, passing the wine bottle to Royal. \"This boy has the proverbial hollow leg, only in his case it's two legs.\"\n\n\"Gotta keep up my strength,\" said Andy between bites. \"Uncle Link and I are going to catch some really, really big fish next time we go out and I have to be able to pull them in myself.\"\n\n\"Now that sounds like fun,\" said Royal, filling Toni's glass. \"I've never fished.\"\n\n\"Really? Come on along,\" said Link. \"We have plenty of tackle. Always room for one more fisherman.\"\n\nThe look on Royal's face unexpectedly twisted Toni's heart. Hadn't anyone ever asked him to be part of an outing, even if it was only, heaven forbid, to go fishing? She waited for Royal's answer and when it came the longing behind it was so heartfelt she had to swallow to keep tears from falling.\n\n\"I would love that,\" he said.\n\nIt was well after midnight before the conversation broke up and Lisbet led Toni upstairs. \"These two rooms adjoin,\" said Lisbet, holding out an armful of towels. \"Pick one or both, your choice.\" She grinned at Toni's suddenly flushed face. \"Well.\" Lisbet shrugged. \"What do I know about how close you are? You're adults, and I'm not your second mother.\"\n\n\"Thank God,\" said Toni. \"The one I have is more than enough.\"\n\n\"Enough what?\" asked Royal.\n\nShe hadn't heard him come up behind her. She whirled, almost losing her balance.\n\nHe caught both her arms to steady her. \"Easy there,\" he said, smiling.\n\nEmbarrassed, she stared wide-eyed into his face. He was so close she could smell the subtle, smoky after-dinner Irish whiskey on his breath.\n\nLisbet looked from Toni to Royal, dropped the towels into Toni's arms and headed down the stairs, calling over her shoulder, \"New toothbrushes and whatever else you might need you'll find in the bathroom. See you in the morning!\"\n\nRoyal frowned at her retreating back. \"Well, that was a breezy departure. What was it all about?\"\n\nToni sighed. \"Nothing.\" She looked up into those unbelievably blue eyes, ready to explain sleeping arrangements, which would be, of course, two rooms, when without warning Royal's lips were on hers.\n\nAsking, not demanding. The frisson that trembled through her body left Toni's heart thudding. This is dangerous territory, her mind told her, but she didn't\u2014couldn't\u2014pull back and didn't want to. His kiss was tender, unhurried, yet possessed her as though she had always been his to plunder. All thought vanished as her lips opened to accept his tongue. As his kiss deepened, questioning, the towels tumbled from her arms into a heap at their feet and her body melded to his as though they were two halves of a whole.\n\nSomehow her arms were around his neck and she heard him murmur, \"Toni, Toni. Do you want me as much as I want you?\"\n\nShe couldn't speak, just whisper. \"It's only the drink,\" she said, shaking her head. \"I'm not responsible.\"\n\n\"I don't want you to be.\" His lips had traveled down her throat to the V of her blouse, leaving a trail of heat that threatened to catch fire. \"Don't be the responsible Miss Dresser. Not tonight.\"\n\nThe longing was back in his voice; its power carried her in his arms over the threshold into a room where moonlight flickered through diaphanous curtains and spilled over the bed with a welcoming, magical glow.\n\n\"Be with me, please, Toni,\" he whispered against her throat, his voice husky with need. One of his hands moved, slow and sensuous, waking every nerve on its way down to the small of her back to pull her closer, to bring her body against his swollen need. His other hand tipped her chin up so her gaze met his. \"Share.\"\n\nHow could she not?\n\nThrough a cloudy haze of moonlight and wanting she knew what he meant, and it wasn't just her body. It was the love that had been so evident around the dinner table, over the later drinks and relaxed conversation, the easy teasing give and take she, Lisbet and Courtney had always had and that now encompassed Jerry and Link as well. The kind of togetherness Royal so obviously had never known.\n\nBut it was her willing body that answered him now, arching, straining toward him, offering whatever she could give that would slake his hunger. And hers.\n\n\"Trust me. I won't hurt you,\" he murmured, his kiss now more demanding, his strong arms encircling, keeping her close.\n\nShe knew he wouldn't, not physically. But he couldn't know the ache she felt for him had already punctured the steely emotional armor she'd put around her heart after her breakup with Bryce. Slow down, Toni. Breathe.\n\nShe held Royal's face in her palms to stop the dizzying rush that swirled her thoughts with desire. She wanted this sex, yes, wanted its soothing rain after the physical drought her life had become. But could she live without the caring that for her, at least, had to come with it? Could she really trust this man to treasure her heart when he was so secretive about his past?\n\nThat didn't matter now. Their breaths were ragged as they tumbled into the moonbeams on the coverlet. The strong planes of his face were sharp above her as he straddled her hips, his jeans stretched taut over his erection. She reached up to fumble with the buttons of his shirt.\n\nWith a muttered oath, he pulled it off over his head and flung it away, revealing a muscled chest of dark curls that begged for her touch. She threaded her fingers through them, teasing his nipples erect, savoring his low moan of pleasure before she drew him down, loving the solid weight of him. Then his warm palms touched her face. His kisses were soft on her forehead, her eyelids, then moved lower, lower, down her throat to tease first one breast, then the other through her blouse, asking for more, promising more.\n\nHer hips moved against him, giving as well as taking, her sighs mingling with night sounds from the open window, her breath catching as she stretched her arms above her head, her breasts peaking, yearning for his tongue. She had never wanted so desperately, never been so completely caught.\n\nShe heard him breathe, \"Toni, Toni,\" before he stilled for a moment, then pulled away.\n\n\"What?\" She sat up, disoriented, her eyes wide. \"Royal, where are you going?\" He disappeared into the bathroom where drawers opened and closed.\n\nA moment later he was back, ripping open a small package with his teeth. He shed his jeans and briefs in one fluid movement and stood beside the bed, holding out the condom, his roused manhood throbbing evidence of his desire. \"Will you?\" His voice was a husky whisper. \"Please.\"\n\nTingles prickled through her body and heat pooled between her legs as she sheathed him slowly, the act more sensuous than anything she'd ever done, holding her breath, feeling the tensed power he leashed to hold his body still. Finished, she looked up to meet the open desire that darkened his eyes. He was magnificent, a dark-haired god awash with moonlight.\n\n\"You're still clothed.\" His voice was low and husky.\n\n\"You can take care of that.\" A shiver of anticipation thrilled through her as she held up her arms for him to lift off her blouse. Then she leaned her face into his taut muscled stomach and nuzzled, teasing, her wet tongue stroking the hard length of him.\n\n\"God, Toni, you're killing me.\" He unhooked her bra and dropped it to the floor. \"My turn. Lie back now.\"\n\nHe unsnapped her jeans, slipping them away so quickly she hardly realized she was nude except for the wisp of her lace panties. She didn't close her eyes. She wanted to see his face above her, watch his emotions, revel in his need for her and match it with her own. Don't make me wait, come now, hurry! She didn't feel vulnerable, just sexy as hell. And ready. So ready.\n\n\"You're beautiful.\" His gaze seared every inch of her body that craved for more, for now. \"I've dreamed of being with you like this.\" He kept his eyes on hers as he slipped two fingers inside the lace to slide within the wet heat she knew he wanted. That she knew they both wanted. Moonlit time stopped for just a moment as he whispered, \"Are you sure?\"\n\nHer body answered for her. Her legs opened, inviting, impatient. She'd never been so sure. \"Yes. Oh, yes.\"\n\nLong after she had fallen asleep, Royal lay watching moonlight play over the blonde curls that tumbled around Toni's face and over her bare shoulder. One hand was snuggled under her cheek. The other, limp, palm up, trailed over the crumpled coverlet. She was a complete and delightful surprise. No other woman had responded to him with such incredible surrender, first with passion and need that matched his own, then with tenderness and finally, contentment. The world could have ended and he wouldn't have noticed until her whispered, \"Please, Royal, bring me back now,\" brought him to his senses and told him that she was as lost in the cyclone they had created as he had been.\n\nHe closed his eyes. Was this the beginning he'd hoped for? Did he want it to be? Did she? Or was it just an interlude enhanced with camaraderie and alcohol, two people enjoying fantastic sex and nothing more? Could there be a future? Toni was the embodiment of everything he admired in a woman: serious about her work, loving toward her family and friends, fun...and sensuous. He'd had no idea how sensuous. He knew she was attracted to him, but did that mean she could love him? Care for him the way he wanted her to if he revealed his past? Accept who he was and what he had done?\n\nUnwanted memories flashed into his mind: jungle heat and innocent natives pulled from their huts, frightened women, even children, prodded at rifle-point, dark, sweaty men beating emaciated workers. And his angry response to the situation that had cost his freedom until he'd been rescued by Amalie, the slight, big-eyed native girl who cut through his bamboo cage and distracted the guard.\n\nRoyal swallowed, forcing his mind away from the brutal past to this moment, this entrancing woman beside him. He reached out to draw his finger down Toni's soft cheek, smiling as she shifted ever so slightly in her sleep. If she knew of the dangers that were such an integral part of his life would she turn away? Did he have the right to ask her not to?\n\n****\n\nToni awoke to a sun-drenched room, one arm across Royal's chest, their faces nose to nose. His eyes were open, bluer than the October sky.\n\n\"Good morning.\" He smiled. \"I didn't want to wake you. It's going to be another beautiful day.\"\n\nHer head still a bit fuzzy from last night's drinks, Toni stared at him, tempted to push back the lock of dark hair that straggled across his forehead. \"Well...\"\n\n\"That's all? Just well?\" His eyes crinkled at the corners.\n\nToni swallowed. \"Well, how long have you been awake?\"\n\n\"A while. I was watching you sleep.\"\n\nShe wrinkled her nose. \"Oh, dear. Did I drool?\"\n\nHe chuckled. \"No, you didn't drool.\"\n\n\"Thank God.\" Toni began to pull her arm away but he trapped it with his.\n\n\"Don't move away yet. Let's talk.\"\n\nShe shut her eyes. \"Do we have to?\" That could spoil everything about last night.\n\n\"No. But it might be nice to know what we're supposed to say to your friends.\"\n\n\"Your friends, too, now,\" she corrected. \"And I don't think we have to say anything. We're grownups.\"\n\nThe house was quiet except for a muted Saturday morning cartoon show somewhere downstairs.\n\n\"Andy must be up. What time is it?\"\n\nRoyal picked up his watch from the nightstand. \"Nine.\"\n\n\"Nine!\" Toni sat up, realized she was nude and pulled the sheet up over her breasts. \"I never sleep past eight!\"\n\n\"You were up quite late, remember?\" His grin told the story.\n\nShe felt her face flush as she recalled the grey of just-before-daylight that had begun to lighten the window when, sated and exhausted, they had finally slept.\n\n\"Thanks to you. That wasn't the plan at all.\"\n\n\"Oh? There was a plan?\"\n\nToni sighed, nodding her tousled head. \"Well, yes, there was. I was going to sleep in one room and you were going to sleep in the other.\"\n\nRoyal grinned again. \"Think of the laundry we saved.\"\n\n\"Aren't you the perky morning after,\" she grumbled.\n\n\"Are you always grumpy when you wake up?\" He pulled her to him, one hand slipping up to cup her breast.\n\nWhat could she say? It was so easy to just enjoy. No yesterdays, no tomorrows, just now, here. She closed her eyes and fell into the magic of his kiss.\nChapter Thirteen\n\nShe and Royal spent the sun-splashed warm-for-the-season day hand in hand wandering from one village to another, checking out special sales aimed at customers who'd come to Door County for the Fall Ball. They walked miles in and out of shops, commenting on everything from the view at the Gills Rock ferry dock to the elegant glass sculptures at Gage's in Sister Bay. Toni found herself smiling for no reason and nearly skipped as they walked. So easy, so fun. Nothing like good sex to warm up a relationship. So what if last night doesn't mean anything more?\n\nAs they wandered downhill toward the boat slips in Fish Creek a nondescript, mud-covered pickup rattled toward them, then slowed almost to a stop before driving past them at a snail's pace, then speeding up. The driver's face was only a blur behind the dirty window.\n\nWith a quick move Royal pulled Toni aside to put himself between her and the street. \"Thanks, Galahad.\" She smiled up at him. \"My hero. Who do you suppose that was?\"\n\nRoyal's jaw was set but then he relaxed and shrugged. \"Not the faintest. Maybe he thought you were someone he knew.\"\n\n\"I don't know anybody that would drive a truck that dirty,\" Toni stated. \"I have an idea. Let's stop at Spielman's Kids Works and find a present for Andy. Maybe a kite.\"\n\n\"A kite? Will he know what to do with it?\" asked Royal.\n\nToni laughed. \"Doesn't every kid know how to fly a kite?\"\n\nRoyal looked away, but not before she caught the expression on his face. \"You never flew a kite?\"\n\n\"Never had the opportunity. Kind of late in the season for kite flying anyway, isn't it? Let's get him an indoor game. How about a cribbage board?\"\n\n\"Will he know what to do with it?\" Toni asked, her eyes mischievous.\n\nHe grinned. \"Touch\u00e9.\"\n\nThey settled for a new version of Sequence.\n\n****\n\n\"No weekend in Door County is complete without lunch at Al Johnson's,\" said Toni. \"The goats should still be on the roof if they haven't been brought down for the season.\"\n\n\"Really? Are you putting me on?\"\n\n\"Scout's honor. And the food is great, too.\"\n\n\"You're right on both counts,\" Royal said later over coffee. He reached across the table to lay his hand on hers. \"We still haven't talked. About us.\"\n\nShe didn't meet his gaze, which she knew would be the piercing blue that could see right into her soul. \"Us? What is there to say?\"\n\n\"Oh\"\u2014he paused, shrugging\u2014\"maybe something like 'Where do we go from here?'\"\n\nShe had the same question, but she didn't have an answer. She sighed and waited while the blond-plaited server in the Swedish costume put down club sandwiches and iced teas. \"Do we have to go anywhere from here today? Except to the costume party, during which, I remind you, I fully intend to see you twirl those six-shooters at every opportunity.\"\n\n\"You're skirting the question.\"\n\nShe bit her lip. \"You know I'm attracted to you, Royal. We are obviously,\" she swallowed, feeling a flush color her face, \"compatible. But there is no us. And please don't quirk your mouth like that. It's distracting.\"\n\n\"But you blush so attractively.\" He grinned. \"I'm finding more and more reasons to keep distracting you.\"\n\nShe shook her head and lifted her hands, palms out. \"I give up. Eat now. Talk later. Okay?\" She could hear the \"Don't go there\" in her voice and knew he heard it, too. Analyzing a relationship that was nothing more than good sex\u2014she felt her face flush again\u2014really good sex, was a waste of time. In fact, in her experience, that had been a killer even when she knew her partner well. And this partner evidently wasn't going to let her into his past. Which reminded her of the mystery\u2014if there was one\u2014about Grace Temple's death. \"Have you found anything interesting in your aunt's papers?\" she asked.\n\nWith an expression that clearly showed he understood the \"let's talk\" subject was closed, Royal nodded. \"I have. I meant to tell you. Not papers, exactly. I found a bible, a really big, old one that lists births, deaths, the whole family tree going back to when the original members came over from Europe.\"\n\n\"Really?\" Toni's eyes widened. \"Was it kept up to date?\"\n\nRoyal sighed, picked up a French fry and dipped it into a pool of ketchup on his plate. \"To a point. The last page simply lists, 'Royal James' and my birth date. No record of my mother's marriage\u2014if there even was one. Perhaps\u2014\" He stopped for a moment, his brow furrowed. \"Perhaps the man I knew wasn't really my father. The date of their deaths follows. I would have been seven. According to the records, there are no living relatives. The rest of the family pages are blank.\"\n\nToni frowned. \"But that proves your great aunt knew about you all your life! Why wouldn't you have met her long ago? Why wouldn't she have brought you to her when your mother died?\" At the swift darkening in his eyes she stopped, bit her lip. \"I'm sorry, not my business. Forgive me. But now you know more about your family than when you came here, don't you? That has to be helpful.\"\n\n\"Not helpful enough.\" He signaled for the check and an end to her questions. Then he smiled. \"Shall we head back to Lisbet's?\"\n\nLater, costumed, they joined a clown and a princess holding hands in line at the door to the Ball. Raising his eyebrows at the unmistakable twang of country music, Royal frowned. \"Will we have to line dance?\"\n\n\"Only if we want to,\" said Toni. \"I've tried, but I'm not good at it. Lisbet said this band can play anything and they'll cater to every request so we ought to find something we can do.\"\n\nTipping his head toward a swinging fifties poodle skirt ahead of them, Royal asked, \"Can you Lindy?\"\n\n\"Yes, podner, I believe I can.\" She eyed the princess whose voluminous ruffles begged for a minuet. \"Can you waltz?\"\n\nHe smiled, pulled off his Stetson and gave her a courtly bow that made her laugh, given the absurdity of it from a man in a cowboy outfit. \"At your pleasure, ma'am.\"\n\nShe curtseyed demurely, enjoying Royal's unexpected playfulness. And why not? This was going to be fun. \"Let's just have a good time, then. First off, let's get a drink.\"\n\nAs the crowd poured into the hall it was evident that Lisbet's table beside the dance floor was the busiest there, with everyone from pirates to cheerleaders stopping by to thank her and Toni for their \"fabulous\" costumes.\n\n\"Congratulations on a big success, ladies,\" said Jerry, lifting his Manhattan, \"and a real win for the homeless shelter. Come, my little chickadee.\" He reached for Lisbet's hand. \"Let's dance before you get too fat to push around the floor.\" He said it with a wink of his eye that wasn't covered with the pirate's patch. Lisbet made a face but smiled and they disappeared into the crowd on the floor, bodies melding into one.\n\n\"They're great together,\" Toni said.\n\nCourtney nodded. \"That they are. I'm so happy for them.\" She touched Link's arm. \"And for us, Phantom,\" she added.\n\nThe look he gave back was so loving it made Toni glance away. She turned to Royal and chided, \"You haven't twirled those six-shooters once.\" She handed him the bowl of potato chips.\n\n\"Ain't been no need to, li'l lady,\" he answered straight-faced, pointing a chip at the dancers. \"No rowdies in this crowd.\"\n\n\"Not so far, anyway,\" put in Link. \"But the night is young and the drinks are flowing.\"\n\nThe slow dance faded to an end and Lisbet and Jerry returned to the table, dodging people surging to the dance floor as a rambunctious one-two-three beat shook the rafters.\n\n\"What is that?\" asked Royal. \"Sounds positively overwhelming.\"\n\nThe others at the table looked at him as though he were an alien.\n\nRoyal threw up his hands. \"Did I say something wrong? What?\"\n\nCourtney shook her head. \"You, a cowboy, don't know a polka when you hear one?\"\n\n\"No, ma'am.\" Royal shook his head. \"Never had the pleasure.\"\n\n\"Well, then, you'd better learn because it's Wisconsin all the way through,\" said Lisbet.\n\nLink leaned back, grinning. \"Hear, hear. Better get out there and give it a try, Royal.\"\n\nRoyal eyed the couples whirling around the dance floor. \"It looks dangerous. Nobody out there is paying any attention to anyone else.\"\n\n\"That's the beauty of the polka. Everybody does it their own way. No one will know you never did it before. Come on.\" Toni pulled Royal to his feet. \"Now or never.\"\n\nProtesting, he dragged his boots all the way to the dance floor where she stepped into his arms and said, \"Like this, one-two-three, one-two-three. See? It's easy.\"\n\n\"If you don't get run over,\" he muttered, and they were off, laughing and twirling and doing their best to stay out of the way of dancers who knew what they were doing.\n\n\"Isn't this fun?\" Toni laughed up at Royal, her face alight with pleasure. \"I'm so glad we came!\" She'd forgotten the joy of just letting go, moving with the beat. Royal was surprisingly agile even wearing boots, and he whirled her so fast she had to catch her breath. Then suddenly he stopped dead still in the middle of the dancers, his gaze fixed on someone hurrying toward the door.\n\n\"Watch it, man!\" said a pudgy sea captain, bumping into Royal. \"Move on off if you're not going to dance.\"\n\n\"Sorry,\" Royal muttered, not moving.\n\n\"Someone you know?\" Toni asked, seeing his eyes locked on the disappearing figure.\n\n\"Not sure.\" Without explanation he pulled her to their table, said, \"Excuse me,\" and strode toward the door.\n\n\"What's that all about?\" asked Jerry, frowning. \"Looked like he'd seen a ghost.\"\n\n\"I have no idea,\" said Toni, rising to follow Royal. And remembering Bryce Andrews' note.\n\n****\n\nRoyal pushed through the door. After the overheated stuffiness inside the dance hall, the brisk autumn air hit his lungs with a cold blast. He slid without sound into the black shadow of the building, all his trained senses alert, wishing his six-shooters were real. Had he imagined the person he'd hoped to never see again? And why here, of all places, where no one from his former life would expect to find him. Certainly not turned out like a cowboy, making a fool of himself trying to dance the polka.\n\nThe starlit night was quiet, though through the soles of his boots he felt resounding bass thumps from the music inside. He scanned the sea of vehicles in the parking lot, willing his eyes to adjust to the ambient light. There! A movement. A dark figure ducking from car to car, weaving its way toward the back of the lot. Toward Royal's Porsche.\n\nRoyal crouched low until he had crossed the brightly-lit area near the door, then sprinted at an angle, dodging between and around the closely-packed vehicles to approach his own from the side.\n\nMoving like a wraith, breathing without sound, careful not to scuff the gravel underfoot, Royal moved to his car and reached in to grab the collar of a figure fumbling at the locked glove compartment. With an oath he jerked the smaller man out, and in a swift turn lifted him to his feet and twisted his arm up behind his back.\n\n\"I thought I recognized your face in that truck today!\" Royal ground out through gritted teeth. \"What the hell do you think you're doing?\" He jerked his captive's arm up even higher, anger fueling his action.\n\n\"Just checking to see if you have a gun, man. Thought you might have. Hey, cut that out! That hurts!\"\n\n\"I can make you hurt a lot worse than that. Try me.\"\n\nThe man lifted his straggly-bearded chin. \"Tough guy now, ain't you, fancy woman, fancy car. Fancy house, too, now.\" His grin was a grimace. \"Long time no see, Stone.\"\n\nBefore Royal could speak, Toni's voice preceded her as she walked toward them from behind an SUV. \"Is something wrong, Royal? Why did you tear out of there?\" She stopped at the sight of the man in his grasp. \"Who is this?\"\n\n\"This,\" Royal flung down the man's arm, \"is a would-be thief.\"\n\nToni laughed. \"It's a costume party. Isn't everybody here a would-be something tonight?\" She held out her hand but pulled it back when she saw the dark expression on the man's unshaven face. \"And you are?\"\n\nThe man sniggered, sliding his eyes sideways toward Royal. \"Just an old friend of Stone's here, right? I'll be in touch, buddy. You owe me. You just don't know how much. Yet. Gotta go now. See ya. Soon.\" He slithered into the darkness beyond the lot.\n\n\"What did he mean by that?\" Frowning, Toni looked up at Royal. \"I can't see you very well but it's clear that you're angry.\"\n\nRoyal closed his eyes and reached inside his memory for a name. Neeley, that was it. Sam Neeley. A nasty little bully who made everyone's life miserable. Especially the other smaller boys who'd been placed with them in Mason's foster home. Royal remembered bloodying Neeley's nose for stealing a younger boy's stash of baseball trading cards. That was the night before Royal, fifteen and big for his age, stuffed his worldly belongings in his backpack, changed his name to Stewart because it sounded solid and took off for a life of his own.\n\n\"Royal?\" Toni lightly touched his arm. \"Who was that?\"\n\nHe took a deep breath and let it out slowly before speaking. \"Nobody important. Let's get back to the party, shall we?\"\n\n\"We could. Or we could stay out here until you tell me what that was all about.\" Toni stood her ground, arms crossed. She shivered. \"He seemed evil. Made my skin crawl.\"\n\n\"Evil is way too strong a word. Just a troublemaker, hoping to find something worthwhile in unlocked cars.\"\n\n\"But he said you owed him.\"\n\n\"I can't imagine what.\" Royal reached for her hand. \"Come on, let's try another polka.\"\n\nSubject closed. They hurried back through the night's chill toward the brightly-lit hall.\n\nSo many subjects closed.\n\nThey stayed at the Ball until the last song was played and the last goodbyes said. Finally, exhausted, they were back at Lisbet's, dragging themselves up the stairs to the second floor.\n\nWhat do I expect? Toni asked herself through a light alcoholic fog. What does he? Another hot night between the sheets? She had to admit that last night had been the most exciting and satisfying sex she'd ever experienced. But tonight she could hardly keep her eyes open. She sighed. She was just so tired.\n\nAt the door, Royal pulled her into his arms. He kissed her so gently she hardly felt the touch of his lips, but her body came awake and reacted with a surge of overwhelming desire. Without thinking she rose on tiptoes to return the kiss, but not gently, not cautiously. Deep and wet and oh-so-wanting.\n\nOnce again he whispered, \"Are you sure?\" He lifted her chin just enough to look into her eyes that weren't drowsy now, but hot with need.\n\n\"I'm sure,\" she murmured and pulled him through the door to the moonbeams that again lit the coverlet, to the reasonless passion that would devour them both.\nChapter Fourteen\n\nThe next afternoon Royal left her at her door with a warm kiss that was more than a thank you for a wonderful time but wasn't accompanied by the promise for a repeat performance. \"Thanks for an unexpected but great weekend, Toni.\" Royal tipped up her chin to look deep into her eyes. \"It meant a lot to me. I'll be out of town for a few days. Take care of yourself.\"\n\nFrowning, she watched him drive away. She'd wanted to ask where he was going, but was sure that, like anything else personal, would fall into the category of 'off limits.'\n\nThey'd spent the morning over a late breakfast with Lisbet, Jerry and Andy, who was thrilled with his new Sequence game and talked them into playing for a while before they left for Green Bay. She'd ignored Lisbet's raised eyebrows when they were alone in the kitchen except to say, \"There's nothing to tell, Lis. Honest.\"\n\n\"If you say so,\" Lisbet had replied with a smug smile. \"But you both look like a couple of contented cats. Royal seems like a keeper to me. Jerry liked him, too, and Jerry's instincts are usually right on. And you can't tell me Royal isn't definitely interested in you.\"\n\nWas he? Toni wondered now. The man was an enigma. Maybe it had been just great sex, she thought, but felt a warmth flood her body with the remembrance of moonlit-dappled sheets. He had certainly been more than interested in that, anyway, but then, so had she. On the way home, she had asked no questions about the incident in the parking lot and Royal offered no explanation.\n\nWhat's next, Toni asked herself, rummaging through her refrigerator for sandwich makings. If there is a next. He's handsome, more than a bit dangerous from what I saw last night, a hell of a lover and can even\u00ad\u2014she found herself smiling at the memory\u2014dance the polka in his boots. Her mind went back to his remark when he'd first asked her to lunch\u2014so what's not to like?\n\nA peanut butter and pickle sandwich would put her mind straight; bring her back from being, well, not exactly Cinderella at the ball, but certainly a cut above the char girl sitting at the hearth wishing for a handsome prince. She smiled, remembering she'd had, really had, the prince, at least for a few hours. But aside from his being a fantastic lover, she didn't know a darn thing about Royal. Why did he need to be so secretive? The scene in the parking lot was a puzzler. There'd been an obvious relationship, and not a good one, between him and the would-be thief, but it was one that Royal wasn't about to divulge to her.\n\nAt least not yet. I just need to know him better, get him to open up. Maybe.\n\nShe took her sandwich and a can of Sierra Mist to the table at the window in her small kitchen and watched a few last leaves float down from her backyard maple, but her mind wasn't on the weather. It was on Royal. His lips. His dark-lashed eyes. The strong muscles of his back under her hands. On his sensuous murmurs of desire, his ability to bring her body, her senses, her whole being to impossible heights. Could she call it making love? Or was it simply tremendous sex, thank you ma'am, maybe see you soon. Was she wrong in thinking the weekend was as good for him as it had been for her?\n\n\"He's not what he seems,\" Bryce had written. Maybe it was time to call Bryce's bluff and find out what he meant.\n\nThey hadn't spoken since the night he'd left her house in fury. She'd screened his numerous messages. \"I'm sorry, Toni, really.\" \"We need to talk.\" \"Call me.\" Imperious as always, even over the phone.\n\nShe hadn't called. If she did now, would he think she'd changed her mind about their relationship? Probably. He'd want to start up where they left off, but she wasn't about to let that happen. She reached for the phone, then changed her mind. A face-to-face would be better.\n\nToni ran a comb through her curls, changed from jeans to a white T-shirt, a velvet tracksuit, and slip-on flats. Then she was out the door. It was almost cocktail hour. Maybe they could have a friendly drink together and hold a decent conversation that she could lead around to the note he'd left about Royal.\n\n\"Great to see you again, Ms. Dresser,\" said the jovial gatekeeper at Bryce's elegant riverside condo, tipping his hat as he waved her through. She wasn't so sure that Bryce would be as welcoming.\n\n****\n\nAfter leaving Toni, Royal headed for Temple House, where he pulled into the vine-covered carport at the side of the building instead of driving around back to the garage. He sat behind the wheel for a moment, head back against the neck rest, just absorbing where he was and thinking of the events that had brought him there. He looked up at the elegant three-story brick mansion. His home now. That was too hard to comprehend. He'd never lived in a real home. Now he owned one. And what a one it was.\n\nHe closed his eyes, his mind a jumble of vignettes. Toni on the way up to Sister Bay, her hair a tumbled mass in the fall wind and her face so colored with enjoyment he could hardly take his eyes off her long enough to stay on the highway. God, she was a picture. Picking out their silly costumes. Cocktails at Lisbet and Jerry's home, where Toni fit in so beautifully and brought him into their warm circle as well. The easy evening conversation and, finally\u2014his groin tightened at the memory\u2014her hot, wild acceptance of him into the bed they shared. Yesterday wandering the villages, laughing at things they wouldn't buy even if guns were held to their heads, and Toni's wistful yearning for an elegant glass sculpture at Gage's that she said was way overpriced for her budget. The dance\u2014a polka yet\u2014that she pulled him into, and their hilarity at his trying to master the steps. He wondered at the thought that he, always the loner Royal Stewart, had been included in all of it and damn, it had been fun.\n\nThen the smile left his face. He'd almost recognized the man in the mud-covered truck but it hadn't come clear until he'd followed the skulking figure into the parking lot and pulled him out of the Porsche.\n\nSam Neeley. How could their paths cross here in Wisconsin? That part of Royal's history was buried deep in Mississippi and he had no intention of unearthing it ever again. Coincidence? Someone else might think so; like the old saying said, everybody's got to be somewhere. But Royal didn't believe in coincidence. And Sam Neeley was trouble. Always had been. Researching where he'd been in the past twenty years was in order and with his contacts that was something Royal could easily accomplish.\n\nHe locked his car and walked to the side door of Temple House, his fine-tuned senses alert for any sign of trespass, though any attempt would have been unsuccessful. Royal had installed a sophisticated alarm system as well as deadbolts far out of reach should an intruder\u2014say, Sam Neeley\u2014break the door glass and try to reach in to flip the lock.\n\nEven though he was sure no one had entered, he methodically went through the house to look for anything out of place. The old family bible and Grace Temple's financial reports and bank statements hadn't been moved from where he'd left them on the study desk in plain sight. Her bedroom armoire drawers and the jewelry box that sat predominantly on the dresser looked untouched. He sighed. Soon he would have to go through her things and box them up for GoodWill or the thrift stores. Maybe he could enlist Toni's help with that.\n\nToni. Thinking of her brought a smile to his lips and a tightening in his groin. He poured himself a healthy dose of single malt whisky and sat down to go through the official police file on Grace Temple's fall.\nChapter Fifteen\n\nThe report was sparse but well documented. Photographs showed her crumpled body at the base of the stair to the second floor, her neck unnaturally bent, a dark puddle of blood under her head, one thin arm outstretched as though she'd tried to grab the railing. She was wearing slippers and a long housecoat, which could have caused her to stumble. A cursory search of the house had revealed nothing untoward\u2014no broken windows, no ransacking, lots of silver and valuable artifacts sitting around in plain sight. A window off the second-floor balcony had been found unlocked, but there was no sign of entry through it and the sill was wiped clean. That could have been done by a thorough cleaning lady.\n\nOr by an intruder who knew enough to leave no trace, Royal mused. Suppose someone had come in through that window, intent on robbery, thinking the house empty. Suppose that person startled Grace at the top of the stairs, and caused her to lose her balance? Suppose that person, just a small-time thief, a coward, realizing she was dead, hoped to God her fall would be pronounced an accident and simply ran without taking any jewelry or expensive artifacts from all over the globe? Royal couldn't fault the police for their conclusion; there was no evidence to question it. He just wanted to prove them wrong. Grace Temple hadn't deserved to die that way. She'd lived an exemplary life and done a lot of good for charity, especially for children's programs in the area.\n\nRoyal slapped the file closed and leaned back, frowning. Reading the case gave him no satisfaction, just a headache. Nothing to go on. So why am I so sure it wasn't an accident? Because it just doesn't feel right. Grace had told him she had something to show him and a lot to tell him and couldn't wait until he got back from Milwaukee so they would have time to talk. He rubbed the back of his neck. Wouldn't what she wanted to show him still be right here somewhere?\n\nHe got up and paced from the desk to the bay window that looked out over the river where a small water skier was edging up rainbows in the spray behind a power-boat. His mind went back to Lisbet's son Andy, who was so loved and cared for. Lucky kid. Royal shook his head. No use thinking about the past. Leave it where it belongs.\n\nWhere would an elderly woman hide something that she didn't want known? Royal tried to put himself into her mind. It had to be a photo, or a document of some kind, something that would shed light on either herself or his family. Would it have to do with the blank pages in the bible? He went to the desk and picked up the old book again, smoothing his hand over the soft leather cover that held the recorded generations of this family, the heritage his ne'er-do-well parents had kept from him. Don't go there. Keep on target.\n\nHe flipped through the bible to the center section, where Grace Temple's lineage was listed all the way back to immigrants from Europe. He studied the careful, faded writings scripted by different hands through the years and tried to put himself into those people's lives. What had they thought when they disembarked on the shores of America? That here, at last, was hope, and fortune? Or did they just want to get their feet on solid land\u2014any land\u2014and find work and safe harbor for their families. Keep on target, he told himself again, bringing his mind back to the present. What should have been on these pages that wasn't there? Why hadn't his parents' marriage\u2014if in fact, they had married\u00ad\u2014been recorded? His birth was there: Royal James, and the date. But no last name. So had he been Royal James Temple? Or Royal James Stone, son of Roger Stone, the tall, laughing man he remembered as his father?\n\nHe set the book aside and went upstairs to Grace's bedroom where he methodically went through every drawer, every cubbyhole in the closet, every hat and shoebox, every pocket in every dress and jacket. He learned that wealthy Grace Temple was neat, orderly, and didn't own a lot of clothes, but what she had was quality. He closed a drawer of silky, lace-bordered under things and murmured, \"I so wish I'd known you, Grace Temple. I really do.\"\n\n****\n\n\"Toni!\" Wearing tennis whites and what Toni perceived as a smug smile, Bryce beckoned her inside. \"Come in, come in. I knew you'd come back eventually. You're just in time for a drink. Why haven't you answered my calls?\"\n\n\"I did. I left you a message.\"\n\nHe snorted. \"If you call that tirade a message. I thought it was a bad breach of etiquette.\"\n\nIsn't that just like Bryce? Toni stepped across the doorjamb. Even my voicemail isn't quite up to his standards.\n\n\"But you've obviously reconsidered,\" he said, nearly gushing, which wasn't like the Bryce she knew at all. \"I'm so glad. We can start over.\" He reached to pull her into his arms but she moved aside.\n\n\"I'm sorry if that's what you're hoping. I didn't come to tell you I've changed my mind.\"\n\nHis face clouded and she stepped back, bracing herself for another tantrum, but Bryce took a deep breath, then another. He swallowed, shut his eyes for a moment, then said, \"Okay. Got to give a fellow points for trying. Let's back up. So, then, why are you here?\"\n\n\"I want to know why you wrote that note about Royal Stewart.\"\n\nWithout answering her question Bryce crossed to his marble-topped wet bar. \"Drink? Your usual?\"\n\nToni followed him and leaned her elbows on the bar top while he sliced off a sliver of fresh lime and squeezed it over ice into a glass. \"Come on, Bryce. You know me well enough to be sure leaving that note would raise my hackles. Was that just an example of your still trying to control me even from afar, or do you know something unsavory about Royal that I should be aware of?\" When he didn't answer, she continued, \"I'm serious, Bryce. Is he dangerous? Be straight with me and don't put on that puppy-dog innocence you're so good at.\"\n\nBryce finished her gimlet and fixed himself a whisky and water before leading her to the small bistro-style table in the bay window overlooking the Fox River. \"Make yourself comfortable, just like old times,\" he said, referring to the many evenings they'd done just this before going out to dinner. Pleasant times, she had to admit.\n\n\"Bryce, please answer me.\"\n\nHe sighed. \"I will, but there's something I have to say first. Controlling is how you see me; you've made that plain. But I've done a lot of thinking since you shoved my\u2014your engagement ring in my face, Toni.\" His eyes met hers directly across the small table and he reached for her hand.\n\nShe moved it away to pick up her glass.\n\nRebuffed, Bryce raised his own and touched it to hers, sending a soft chime through the room. \"You know I care about you. I thought you cared about us.\" He looked down and his voice was tight. \"We'd been dating for almost two years, and at least for me it was great. I thought I had a right to expect that we had a future together, that you'd be pleased that I planned for us.\"\n\n\"Oh, Bryce.\" Toni sighed. He really was clueless. She searched his face and recognized real hurt there. \"You can't plan for both of us, though I admit I let that happen with almost everything we did together. It was just easier, given how you are. But that's what our relationship has always been\u2014your way, your choices. Marriage has to be a partnership, not a corporation where one person is the CEO and the other takes dictation.\"\n\n\"I didn't see us that way.\" He looked full into her eyes. \"Really, I didn't.\"\n\nThis wasn't going the way Toni planned. Change of subject. \"You haven't answered my question. If Royal isn't what he seems, you must have had a reason to say so. What do you know about him that I don't?\"\n\nBryce studied her face. \"First, are you interested in him? Really interested?\"\n\nToni hoped the flush she felt creeping up wasn't obvious. For a moment she watched a powerboat pulling a water skier before she spoke. \"Truthfully, I don't know. Aside from our first unfortunate meeting, he's been nothing but polite, interesting and fun to be with. But I don't know much about him, and he's not forthcoming about his past. How did you even know we'd been together?\"\n\nBryce made a derisive sound. \"Come on, Toni. Green Bay isn't a big town. Unless you're very clever you can hardly do anything here that someone doesn't know about.\" He studied the view outside the window, choosing his words, then continued. \"You asked if Stewart is dangerous. I can't tell you that, only that I've seen him before. Not here, but in Antwerp.\"\n\n\"Antwerp!'\n\nBryce nodded. \"The diamond capital of the world. I was scouting out some tourist attractions for people who take my Netherlands tour. He was in a heated negotiation with a diamond merchant in the back room of the same house where I bought your ring.\"\n\nShe shook her head. \"Not my ring, Bryce.\"\n\nHe dipped his head and threw up one hand. \"I get that. At least for now.\"\n\n\"So why does that make him something other than what he seems? Doesn't he have the right to do business anywhere he pleases?\"\n\n\"Of course, as we all do.\" Bryce pushed a little dish of salted almonds toward Toni. \"Help yourself. When I say negotiating, Toni, I mean he was buying.\"\n\nToni's eyes widened. \"Buying diamonds?\"\n\n\"Most definitely. Lots of diamonds. You're playing with fire. Your mystery man isn't just a business bloke who helps struggling companies get back on their feet. That's only his cover. He's something else entirely.\"\n\n\"But what?\"\n\n\"I don't know. I guess that's for you to find out. Just please don't get hurt doing it. Whether you want to realize it or not, you mean a lot to me. Am I crazy to still have hopes for our future?\" Again, Bryce reached over to take Toni's hand.\n\nThis time she didn't move it away. Her mind spun. Royal buying diamonds? Lots of diamonds? She pictured him on the drive to Door County, slurping up ice cream at Double Delights, dressing in a cowboy outfit and shuffling the polka as best he could in his boots. She pictured his dark head bent over Andy's light one as they played Sequence. Diamonds? Maybe illegal? That didn't fit. She shook her head. Then she realized that Bryce was talking. \"Sorry. What did you say?\"\n\nHe was still holding her hand. \"I said, forget about Stewart. Let's get back to us. I have tickets to the Performing Arts Center in Appleton for Chorus Line. I know we've seen it before but you loved it so much and I bought them as soon as they went on sale.\" He leaned forward, his eyes holding hers. \"Will you give us another chance, Toni? No pressure. No control. Just a nice evening, dinner and a great show?\"\n\nToni sipped her oh-so-perfect gimlet with just the touch of lime the way she liked it, looked across the table at Bryce's oh-so-perfect tennis whites and the idyllic scene across the river with the sun turning everything to a golden glow, and just for a moment she wished that she could truly want everything a future with Bryce Andrews offered.\nChapter Sixteen\n\nMonday morning Toni opened the door to Wannabe and was met by a petulant Midnight who looked at her with disdain from the top of the counter and actually turned his back.\n\n\"Well! I was going to apologize for leaving you alone over the weekend, but I can see it's going to take more than that.\" Smiling, she put her purse under the counter and gathered the animal into her arms. A few moments of petting and rubbing his ears brought about a reluctant purr. \"Silly old cat. If I didn't know you had more than enough food and water here for an extra day, I'd feel guilty,\" Toni told him. \"So don't give me that cold shoulder routine, okay?\"\n\nMidnight looked into her eyes with an unreadable cat stare but snuggled, his purr louder.\n\n\"So I'm forgiven?\"\n\nMore snuggle. More purr.\n\nToni grinned. \"We do understand each other, don't we?\" At least I understand somebody. I surely don't understand Royal. Her mind went back over her conversation with Bryce. Royal buying diamonds? Was Bryce truthful, or\u2014she wouldn't put it past him\u2014simply trying to discredit Royal in Toni's eyes?\n\nShe put Midnight back on the counter and began to open her mail, muttering, \"Junk, junk, junk,\" as she tossed piece by piece into the wastebasket. No new orders. A few bills. An estimate for reroofing the shop, which was badly needed. If she could get her pattern book sold she might make enough money do that repair before she actually had to deal with leaks. Of course that meant working more hours to get the book in shape for submission. At least that was something she could direct her time and effort to that would probably have more positive results than worrying over her relationship, if that's what it was, with Royal Stewart.\n\nShe flipped through her \"to do\" file. Two pumpkin outfits including hats with stems to sew for the O'Brien twin girls and a Captain Kirk costume for their brother, who, their mother had told Toni, \"Wouldn't be caught dead trick-or-treating with his sisters now that he's almost a teenager.\"\n\nToni smiled, remembering all the scary but wonderful Halloween nights she and Jack had enjoyed in their neighborhood, running in the dark from house to house, doing their best to look ferocious but always polite when they got their treat. \"Don't you leave even one house without letting them know you appreciate their kindness,\" Mom had said. \"And don't you dare do any tricks on anybody!\"\n\nTheir mother had always dressed them alike for trick-or-treating until they hit middle school and overnight Jack, like the O'Brien boy, turned into a pre-teen monster instead of a brother and demanded a different costume. \"Toni can't even be on the same block as me,\" he'd told their mother. \"And I can stay out later 'cause I'm older.\"\n\nOnly four minutes older, but he'd milked that for all he was worth. Not that Toni let him get by with it. Sometimes he'd been maddening, especially in front of his buddies, but then they all grew up and now he was, once more, Toni's best friend. \"Love you, Jack,\" she whispered, and went into the workshop for pumpkin orange fabric.\n\n****\n\nFeeling at loose ends, Royal wandered through Temple House and stopped at the large bay window overlooking the river that today looked dark and foreboding, reflecting the cloudy fall sky. Rain coming? He hadn't listened to a weather report.\n\nFor the dozenth time he turned to look at the staircase in the foyer where Grace Temple had died. Though the area had been professionally cleaned, he could still imagine the bloodstain from her head wound soaking into the polished oak wood floor. He walked aimlessly around the room and picked up a small, silver-framed picture of Grace from the top of the grand piano. Her portrait showed a compassionate but strong woman, one to be reckoned with. From the little he had been fortunate to know of her personally, she cared deeply about family, enough to search for him for many years. \"Your death made me a very wealthy man, but I'd rather have you in my life,\" he told the portrait, wishing they'd had more time to connect their lives. He frowned, remembering her exact words as he'd reluctantly left for Milwaukee. \"I have so much to tell you, but it can wait until you return. Safe trip!\"\n\nBut she was the one who'd tripped, if that's what had happened. Grace Temple's eyes may have faded in color but she was as sharp a woman as any he'd met. Was there someone who would not have wanted her to speak with him? Someone with a secret they didn't want told?\n\nHe returned the portrait to its place on the piano, wishing it could answer the questions that haunted him. \"Did you know my whole story? Did you know whether my mother married the man I knew as Roger Stone, or if I was simply his bastard son? Did you know my parents were con artists who constantly ran from the law? That they were stoned when they died in an accident that dumped me into the welfare system?\"\n\nRoyal went back to Grace's desk to thumb through the journal that Grace had used to list various committees she'd chaired or worked on and what they accomplished. There were notes for starting a drive for another daycare in the growing Hispanic section, for equipping a larger soup kitchen in the inner city area. He paged through the book, amazed at the scope of her philanthropic efforts, the number of people involved. Toni's name was included twice in fund-raising efforts. As he finished reading the last entry and reached to put the book on the pile of things he'd gone through, something slid from a slit inside the back cover and fluttered to the floor.\n\nRoyal retrieved the small, faded photograph of a young, laughing woman in a white dress with her arms around the waist of a tall, dark-haired man, standing in front of a shiny light-colored car. Realization hit Royal as if a hammer had thudded into his chest and he sank back in his chair, thoughts tumbling, tumbling.\n\nI took that picture. I remember holding that little black camera. I told them, \"Say cheese!\" He flipped the picture over. No identification, but he didn't need any. The photo was of his parents, Angela and Roger Stone.\n\nThe phone call that changed Royal's life had reached him just as he successfully wrapped up a consulting job in Columbus, Ohio, and was packing to head for another in Milwaukee. A woman's voice, very professional, very precise, came over the line: \"Mr. Stewart, I'm Miranda George, an attorney in Green Bay, Wisconsin. I've been trying to find you for a long time.\"\n\nHe'd been puzzled. His work didn't usually come through attorneys. \"Really? Why is that?\"\n\n\"I'll be brief, and I hope this will be good news. Your great-aunt wants to meet you.\"\n\n\"My what?\" If he had to describe the shock that flowed through his body at her words, he would never be able to. A great aunt? Family? He had no family. Not since the accident.\n\n\"My client has never stopped looking for you.\"\n\nHe couldn't speak. He sank down on the hotel bed.\n\n\"Mr. Stewart, are you there?\"\n\nHis voice cracked. He swallowed. \"I-I'm here.\"\n\n\"Please come to Green Bay as soon as possible. Grace Temple is one sharp lady, though she's eighty-nine. She says she's your only living relative. She wants to tell you about your family.\"\n\nHis mind had spun. He had a relative? He had family?\n\n\"Mr. Stewart? Will you come?\"\n\nNothing in this world would have stopped him.\n\nRoyal closed his eyes. Now here he was in Temple House. The promise of that family had disappeared with the death of great-aunt Grace and he was alone once more. Wealthy now, but still alone. Unless...\n\nToni's face flashed into his mind as clearly as if she were in his arms, tilting her bright face up for his kiss.\n\nWhat if he were to abandon the work, not the consulting, the other\u2014that he knew was so important? Just walked away? There were others who could take his place. Perhaps not as effectively, but adequately. Could he build a new life, convince Toni that there was an us? Could he convince her to set aside her solid family traditions to accept the man he was despite the unsavory legacy his parents had left him?\n\nLate in the evening almost a week later Royal dropped his suitcase and laptop inside the door at Temple House. The previous days had been most satisfying; one more company's organizational problems not only identified but on the way to being solved. He'd return to Dallas in a month or so to wrap up his involvement there.\n\nA familiar ring tone chimed and he picked up his second cell phone. \"The package is ready,\" a robotic voice intoned. \"Locker thirteen.\" The line went dead.\n\nHe had to grin. Of course it would be thirteen, this close to Halloween. The Group had a weird sense of the macabre.\n\nA brisk fall breeze skittered browned leaves across the withered grass in Astor Park as Royal slid onto the bench next to his handler. \"This is the last,\" Royal said, handing over a disc and the box he'd retrieved from the bus depot locker. \"The sting is wrapped up. I've made the switch to zirconium for the drop. This is the info for the final pickup, who's involved, what time and where to apprehend them.\"\n\n\"Excellent work. As usual.\" The black-suited man sitting next to him nodded, asked, \"Any conflicts?\"\n\n\"They suspect nothing. You'll need four or five men, but there shouldn't be a problem.\" Royal rose from the bench and held out his hand for a shake. \"Thanks for everything. It's been a good ride, but it's over. I'm done.\"\n\n\"Done!\" Black Suit sat back, his eyes wide with surprise, showing the most emotion Royal had witnessed in all their contacts. \"What do you mean, done? Y-you're the most successful agent we've got, Stewart.\" He stumbled over his words. \"You've experienced this operation from the mines to the final apprehensions. You were instrumental in breaking up the Samosta cartel. Surely you're aware there's another family with connections in Sierra Leone gearing up to take over from them.\"\n\nRoyal nodded, looked away. \"I know. But there will always be another.\" Unbidden, sharp images flashed into Royal's mind\u2014sweltering days and bug-infested nights in a filthy African cage. Amalie, the brave young native who helped him escape and put her family in jeopardy as she nursed him back to health. The impossible, dangerous situations he'd survived in the field before being reassigned to work stateside. Now he shook his head to clear away the dark, dark memories, rejected them to bring up a picture of Toni, laughing, curly hair blowing in the wind as they drove to Door County. Chiding him for not spotting the turkeys in the field. Teasing young Andy over the board game.\n\nRoyal realized Black Suit had risen, was talking. \"You can't just leave this business, Stewart. You know that. We're counting on your expertise to reel in this new organization. We need you.\"\n\nRoyal shook his head. \"No more.\"\n\n\"I'm baffled, Stewart.\" The man frowned and fingered the file as if it would speak to him, unravel this puzzle. \"You're the best. Why?\"\n\nRoyal looked across the park to where children played on the swings, their happy voices ringing like crystal chimes in the crisp fall air. To where a family frolicked with three youngsters in fallen leaves under a tree. \"That's why,\" he said simply and walked away, leaving Black Suit staring after him.\n\n****\n\nThe bells at Wannabe's shop door tinkled and a hearty, \"Good morning, Sunshine! Is it gonna rain, dear?\" reached Toni's ears. She grinned, remembering her grandfather spouting off this favorite greeting, and looked up as Jack strode into her workshop.\n\n\"Aha! There you are,\" he pointed at her, \"right where you're supposed to be.\"\n\nShe looked up at him over the tops of her close-work glasses. \"Just what does that mean?\"\n\n\"That means I tried to call you all weekend and your phone was turned off. Or you didn't have it with you. Or you didn't care. Where were you, anyhow?\" Jack poured himself a cup of coffee, pulled up a chair and scrutinized her work. \"Whatcha makin' there? Looks like the pumpkin outfits Mom made us wear when we were about ten.\"\n\n\"Close. Halloween never changes. There's always a cute pumpkin\u2014or two, in this case, the O'Brien twins\u2014trick-or-treating somewhere.\" She narrowed her eyes at her brother. \"You seem to be in a great mood. What's going on?\"\n\n\"Well, my little chickadee,\" Jack twirled his non-existent mustache in his best imitation of Groucho Marx, \"my business is flourishing with three new clients and,\" he did one of his maddening drum rolls on the counter, \"I had a great weekend with a new girl.\"\n\nToni dropped her fabric onto her lap and sat back. \"Tell all! Who?\"\n\n\"Her name's Kate Bishop. She's sooo cool. You'll love her. She's just come to town. I met her at Subway when we were both buying sandwiches and the counter kid gave us the wrong ones. We sat down in a booth, exchanged the subs and got to talking... and talking. The rest, as they say, is history.\"\n\n\"Wow!\"\n\n\"And, we went out Saturday night and met Sunday for brunch. I'm serious, Toni. I think she might be The One, capital T capital O.\"\n\n\"Wow again.\" Toni rubbed her chin. \"I leave town and look what happens.\"\n\n\"You left town? Where to?\"\n\nShe explained the dead battery\u2014digressing to assure Jack that Triple A had finally hauled the van in for repair\u2014Royal's rescue, staying at Lisbet's, leaving out the details there and hoping she wouldn't blush at the memory, and the fun of dressing up for the costume ball. \"It was a stitch, really, seeing Royal trying to master the polka. In his boots, yet. Not quite the image he usually portrays.\" Then she bit her lip. \"Something kind of weird happened, though.\"\n\n\"Really. What?\" Jack leaned forward, grinning. \"Your news isn't nearly as exciting as mine, but go on.\"\n\nIt could be if I told you the juicy parts. She only related the puzzling scene in the parking lot, and speculated that the man may have followed them from Fish Creek earlier. \"It seemed like he knew Royal somehow, maybe from some time ago.\"\n\nJack frowned. \"So what did Helper have to say about it?\"\n\n\"As usual, he wouldn't discuss it. He won't talk about anything that touches on his past.\" Toni jabbed a needle into the orange cloth. \"It drives me crazy.\"\n\n\"Think he's deliberately hiding something shady? There are ways to find out.\"\n\n\"And that's not all I have to tell you. I went to see Bryce\u2014\"\n\n\"For the love of mustard, why? I thought you got that guy out of your life.\"\n\n\"I have. Pretty much. I wanted to find out why he wrote that note about Royal. Turns out, Bryce had seen Royal in Antwerp. Negotiating for diamonds. Lots of diamonds.\"\n\nEyebrows up, Jack sat back. \"My turn to say Wow. Lots of diamonds would be more than just chump change. Any reason he couldn't be doing legitimate business? Maybe something for one of the accounts that asked him for help?\" When Toni just shrugged and didn't answer, he studied her face and added, \"You really like him, don't you?\"\n\nToni sighed and looked out the window for a moment before answering. \"I'm afraid I do. He's smart and fun to be with and there's a kind of lost little boy in there somewhere that the someday mother in me wants to make all better.\"\n\n\"Uh-oh. That could be serious.\"\n\n\"Oh, Jack, pour me some more coffee. I don't know what to think. Maybe he's doing something illegal. How would I know? I'm afraid I could love him, and I don't know enough about him. I think I could get hurt again.\"\n\n\"Love can do that, as we both know.\" Jack reached over to pat Toni's arm. \"Looks like both of us might be coming up to a crossroads here. But don't forget: the Dresser twins are up to any challenge.\"\n\nShe smiled. From schoolyard hassles to bad dates, that had always been their mantra when anything posed a problem for either one of them.\n\n\"Gotta get to work. See ya Thursday, sis.\" Jack left, whistling, and Toni went back to pumpkin-making, her mind once again on Royal Stewart who was, most definitely, a challenge.\nChapter Seventeen\n\n\"Tell me more about Kate Bishop, Jack.\" Toni watched him wrest the cork from a bottle of robust red wine. She dished up their dinner of pot roast with rosemary-seasoned carrots, onions and baby red potatoes, a hearty meal for this blustery fall day. A side salad of greens with a light vinaigrette dressing accompanied the main course and later a fresh apple pie, still warm, would beg for ice cream or cheddar cheese. She had picked the apples herself, something she did every fall. Harvesting in an orchard with the sun shining on ripe fruit while fall wind rustled the trees was just the mind-clearing activity she'd needed after a hectic week finishing Halloween costumes. She didn't quite know why, but she'd felt the need to coddle Jack with some of his favorite foods tonight. He'd been properly appreciative of the aromas wafting from her kitchen as he tugged off his jacket and put it over the back of his chair.\n\n\"I don't know enough to tell yet, sis, but I hope to be able to soon.\" Jack filled their glasses. \"She's gorgeous, short dark hair and whisky brown eyes, slender, great legs.\"\n\nToni laughed, raising both hands in surrender. \"Okay, that's the photo. But what's she like?\"\n\nHe flushed. \"Oh. Sorry. She's quick, and funny, but very serious about her job.\"\n\n\"Which is?\"\n\n\"I'm not sure. Her office is in that branch bank on Libal Street. She didn't say exactly but I think she's a CPA or financial something or other. We didn't talk much about work. What music did we like\u2014a lot of the same, which is interesting\u2014what movies we've seen and what we thought of them. Stuff like that.\"\n\n\"Where did she come from? Does she have family? Where is she living?\"\n\n\"Whoa! Is this an interrogation?\" Jack asked, eyebrows raised.\n\n\"Sorry, just sisterly interest. More potatoes?\" She held out the dish. \"Can't have you falling for a bimbo, can I?\"\n\n\"No fear. She's based in D.C.\u2014that's Washington, not Door County\u2014and her work moves her where she's needed, some kind of troubleshooting, I guess. She's bought into those condos downtown that overlook the river.\"\n\n\"Who-hoo, pricey! What if her job moves her?\"\n\n\"Then she'll sell.\" Jack shook his head. \"She's got a different kind of thinking than mine, old here-is-where-I-am-and-where-I-stay Dresser. Evidently she's paid pretty well. She says, 'Why pay rent when you can earn equity?' Doesn't that sound like an accountant to you?\"\n\n\"Hmmm. For sure sounds like someone that doesn't need to count pennies.\" Toni sipped her wine. \"What about her family?\"\n\n\"She didn't mention any.\"\n\n\"And you have another date?\"\n\nJack hesitated. \"Not yet. I didn't want to come on like gangbusters, so I said I'd call her.\"\n\n\"And of course you will.\"\n\n\"Of course. I thought maybe we could double-date, get your take on her. If Royal's available and you want to. I want to get to know him, too, if he's going to be important to you. Sounds like he already could be.\" Jack heaped more potatoes on his plate, smashed them down, slapped on a pat of butter and covered them with juice from the pot roast. \"Great dinner, Toni. Perfect comfort food. So, what's new in your love life?\"\n\nShe handed him the salt and pepper. Could what she had with Royal be called a love life? Or just a sexual interlude? She sighed. \"I really don't know. I had a great\u2014better than great, but don't ask for details\u2014time with Royal over the weekend. We never ran out of things to talk about,\" she frowned, \"as long as they weren't about him. Oh, here's something that might interest you. Bryce wants more than anything to start over. Even promises to let me\u2014get that, let me\u2014make decisions sometimes.\"\n\nJack puffed out a derisive sound. \"Big of him.\"\n\n\"Well, for him, that is big.\" Toni laughed.\n\n\"You aren't thinking\u2014?\" Jack's questioning eyes probed hers.\n\n\"Not on your life.\" Toni snorted and sat back. \"But I have to admit that we did do a lot of interesting things together. I enjoyed some wonderful gourmet meals. And his owning a travel agency, he kept telling me, would be a plus for taking great trips. Not that we ever went on any together, but that was my choice, not his.\"\n\n\"Nothing you couldn't do with someone else. \"\n\n\"Of course. Right.\" Toni held out her glass for more wine. And, also of course, that surmises the someone else you hope to do them with is willing. She hadn't heard from Royal since he'd dropped her off on Sunday. Did he like to travel for pleasure? She had no idea. Out of town for a few days, he'd said. To do what? Where?\n\nThe sleazy mysterious stranger slithered into her mind. What was the story there? Obviously he had a history with Royal. Had he contacted Royal again?\n\nAs if reading her mind, Jack asked, \"What about the creepy guy in the parking lot?\"\n\n\"What about him?\"\n\n\"Think he's trouble?\"\n\nToni nodded. \"I'm sure of it. I just don't know what kind of trouble. Whatever it is, it has nothing to do with me.\" She reached for Jack's now empty plate. \"Ready for fresh apple pie?\"\n\n\"Is the Pope Catholic?\"\n\n\"Oh, Jack, get some new lines.\" She laughed and went to the kitchen to dish up dessert.\n\nThe next morning Toni had just finished reconciling her Wannabe bank account\u2014it had been a good month\u2014when the doorbells tinkled. She looked up, smiled and held out her hand, recognizing Kate Bishop from Jack's description. The slim woman was dressed in a tailored russet business suit that set off her dark hair. \"You must be Kate. I've been hoping to meet you.\" And learn more about you if you're going to be Jack's The One. \"What may I help you with? You obviously don't need a costume. That's a lovely suit.\"\n\n\"Thanks. Toni, right?\" Kate's smile was warm, her voice almost husky.\n\n\"Right. Of course Jack's told me about you. Welcome to Green Bay. I hope you'll like it here.\"\n\n\"I'm sure I will. I'm sorry to come asking a favor when we've just met, but I'm looking for Royal Stewart. Your brother said that if anyone would know where he was or how to find him, it would be you.\"\n\nToni pulled a face. \"I wish he was right, but I don't think I'll be much immediate help. I haven't seen or heard from Royal since last Sunday. He's a very private person and can be downright elusive when he wants to be. He did tell me he was going to be out of town for a few days but he didn't say where. I imagine you tried to call him?\"\n\nKate nodded. \"No answer at the only number I have. And I went to his house\u2014isn't that a beauty? But he wasn't there, either. Would you know if he's taken on work somewhere else? I understand he travels often.\"\n\n\"That much I do know. But whether he's off on a job, I haven't heard.\"\n\nKate shrugged. \"Well, it's nice to meet you anyway. Jack's told me so much about you.\"\n\n\"That could be good or bad.\" Toni grinned. \"Depending on how Jack's feeling about me at the time.\"\n\n\"Oh, no.\" Kate waved that away. \"All good. I wish I had a brother like Jack.\"\n\nToni had to smile. \"I like him now but he was a terror as a kid. He thought being four minutes older gave him dictator rights and he always tried to tell me what to do.\"\n\nKate chuckled. \"And did you do it?\"\n\n\"Not if I could help it.\" Toni laughed. \"Still don't, most of the time. Won't you sit down?\" She gestured to the customers' stool in front of the counter. \"I just brewed a new pot of coffee. Pumpkin spice, for the season.\"\n\n\"So that's the tantalizing scent I smell. I'd love some.\" Kate loosened her jacket and made herself comfortable.\n\nToni filled cups, set them on the counter. \"May I ask why you want to see Royal?\" Maybe she's someone from Royal's past? That could be interesting.\n\n\"It's no secret. He's a consultant with a good reputation and one of the bank's clients has a struggling business that could use his expertise.\"\n\n\"How did you find out about him?\"\n\n\"Just word of mouth.\"\n\n\"The best kind of advertising.\" Toni sighed. \"Sorry I can't help. Royal hasn't called, but Jack mentioned that maybe the four of us could double date for a dinner. If you're interested. When Royal comes back. And if he's interested.\"\n\n\"That would be great. I'd like that very much.\" Kate sipped her coffee. \"This is delicious.\" She looked around at the crowded racks of clothing and accessories. \"What an intriguing array. Tell me what it's like to run a costume shop.\"\n\n\"You'll probably be sorry you asked.\" Toni stirred a drop of cream into her cup. \"I could go on all day. It's fun, because of the people I meet. Challenging, when I get a special order and have to research, say, an eighteenth-century waistcoat. Patterns like that are hard to find and I sometimes end up making my own to make it authentic.\" She grinned. \"And in the right size for, for instance, a more than portly gentleman. But there's a great feeling of accomplishment. I love making something special out of nothing.\"\n\n\"It shows.\" Kate approved, getting up for a closer look at the renaissance dress Toni hadn't yet hung in its proper place. \"Do you make all these costumes?\"\n\n\"Oh, no. The run-of-the-mill Cinderella or pirate outfits are always available from the big houses. I keep some on hand, but I can get them overnight from Chicago or Milwaukee if I need them. I still have a couple of hand-made Halloween costumes to finish, then I'll have some quiet days until the Thanksgiving school pageants begin. I'm really the only full-service costume shop in town, which helps. And there are the murder mystery dinner parties. They're always themed and such fun to costume.\"\n\n\"I'm sure they are. I've never been to one of those.\" Kate glanced at her watch and put down her cup. \"I'd better get back. Thanks for the coffee. I'm delighted to have met you.\"\n\n\"And I you. If I hear from Royal I'll tell him you're looking for him. And maybe we'll have that dinner.\" Toni walked Kate to the door and watched her pull long legs into a modest mid-sized Chevy sedan. She nodded. Nice. I like her. Go for it, Jack, and see what develops. About time you found another girl.\n\n****\n\nRoyal was back and more than willing to have dinner, so later that week the four of them were seated at Eve's Supper Club as the sun dipped to the western horizon. The fourth-floor room overlooking the river was washed with a golden all's-well-with-the-world ambience. Good drinks and easy conversation flowed, covering local entertainment and recently-read books. And of course the Packers. Jack and Toni were huge fans hoping for playoff games later on. Toni sat back to watch the give and take between Kate and Jack and decided that she might be good for him, except for the possibility that she would up and leave if duty called. Then what? Toni couldn't bear to see Jack hurt again. She smiled at him and winked, their life-long signal for \"all okay?\" He winked back and she relaxed.\n\n\"So, Royal,\" said Kate after they'd given their orders. \"I've been looking forward to meeting you. I know you're a successful business consultant, but what are your interests outside of work? Do you golf? Play tennis? Collect stamps?\"\n\nRoyal's laugh was effortless, his eyes alight with humor. \"None of the above, I'm afraid.\" He passed a basket of dinner rolls to Toni, held her eyes with his for just a moment and added, \"I do enjoy a weekend in Door County.\"\n\nToni swallowed. And a moonlit-dappled bed. Feeling her cheeks flush, she concentrated on picking just the right bun from the basket before handing it on to Jack.\n\n\"What else?\" Kate pressed.\n\nRoyal spread a cracker with liver paste before answering. \"Just an ordinary guy. I consult for a living, read the papers and the Wall Street Journal and every new thriller that comes out. I love movies and plays. I'm very much enjoying Temple House, which is way too big for one person, and actually cooking for myself, something I've never done before.\" He shrugged. \"That's me in a nutshell.\"\n\nNot quite. Toni absorbed the conversation. Kate was far too interested in Royal than just offering him a business connection. What do you really do, Kate? Does Jack know? Are you here to stay, or will you break his heart like Claudia did? Toni shifted her thoughts to Royal. \"Ordinary guy\" my foot. There's a lot more hidden under that fa\u00e7ade, Royal Stewart. And it's not just your sexy body and how well you use it. Feeling her cheeks flush again, she hastily took a drink of ice water.\n\n\"Will you continue your consultation business here?\" Kate persisted. \"I mean, live in Green Bay? It seems like a great town. I may have a referral for you through the bank.\"\n\n\"Always open to an interesting opportunity,\" said Royal, and smoothly changed the subject with, \"Anyone for another drink?\"\n\nLater, back at Toni's, Royal and Toni relaxed under wool blankets on her small patio, enjoying after-dinner black Russians.\n\n\"What a beautiful night for so late in the year,\" Toni said. \"The stars seem close enough to touch.\" She was quiet for a moment, then asked, \"Kate's good for Jack, don't you think? I don't want to sound like a nosy sister, but I don't know much about her, except what little Jack's told me.\" And I'd like to know why she had so many questions about you.\n\n\"They seem fine together,\" he replied, not sure whether that relationship was a good one but appreciating Toni's sisterly concern. What must it be like to have someone care so much about your happiness?\n\nUnlike Toni, Royal knew a great deal about Kate Ross, but it wasn't his information to disclose, at least not now. Earlier, with a few clicks, he'd accessed a data base that brought Kate's attractive face onto the screen, along with her background and her career dossier. As he'd suspected, and was sure Jack didn't know, she was not a number-cruncher, bogus bank office or not. She was a lawyer turned high-level investigator, working with a DC agency he was quite familiar with and\u2014he hadn't been surprised to learn\u2014her current investigation was himself. He'd sat back, smiling, tapping his fingers on the desk. You aren't the first, Miss Kate. You may be good, but you won't learn anything important about me. The Group is too deep for that.\n\nThey would contact him again, he knew. They wouldn't give up so easily because Black Suit was right, Royal was one of the best. Stopping criminals was a rush, and he was good at it. Better than good. But his answer to The Group would be the same: No more. Danger was heady, even exhilarating when your life was on the line, you had no one to answer to, and no one to care whether you came out alive or not.\n\nBut every day he was learning how very much he wanted Toni Dresser to care. His thoughts swirled. Am I foolish to think it possible that she could care if she knew about my legacy? What my parents had been? He studied her across the small table between their chaise lounges. Is this the right time to find out?\n\n\"Royal? Earth to Royal?\" Toni was laughing at him, her eyes sparkling in the moonlight. \"Have you gone off planet?\"\n\n\"Sorry. Tonight really was nice. Toni\u2014\" he hesitated, second-guessing himself. Somehow the words just wouldn't come. Finally he blurted, \"There are things\u2014oh, hell, Andrews is right. I'm not the person you think I am.\"\n\n\"What? Wait a minute!\" Toni sat up straight and swung around to face him. \"You don't know what I think about you at all,\" she protested. \"How can I even form an opinion when you won't tell me anything real about yourself? I'm a good listener, and I don't judge. Whatever you think I feel about you, you're probably wrong. I know everybody doesn't have the nice, simple past that I do, but I'm aware there's a big world out there full of things people have to deal with that aren't so nice.\"\n\nHe nodded. \"That there is. You've been lucky. I haven't.\"\n\nToni huffed. \"Life isn't just a matter of luck, for God's sake.\" She leaned forward to look into his face. \"Be straight with me, Royal, for once. Maybe you're a serial killer who chops up women and puts them in your freezer. Maybe you're married with a wife and eight kids in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Maybe you're a,\" she paused for breath, \"double agent for the KGB. Whatever. Open up!\" Her voice had risen \"Tell me your deep, dark secrets and let me decide what I think.\"\n\n\"You think I have deep, dark secrets?\"\n\n\"Well, why else would you be so closed off?\" Toni threw her blanket aside, and stomped on her impossibly high heels to the end of the flagstone patio. Above her sleek emerald sheath her mass of blonde curls fanned out in the moonlight, an angel's halo. How can any woman\u2014especially an angry one\u2014be so beautiful? So tempting?\n\nToni shook her finger at Royal. \"Every single question I've asked you has been answered curtly with a 'not for publication' or 'that's not important.' In my book, Mr. Stewart\u2014or Mr. Stone, I still haven't got that figured out\u2014relationships are built on trust, on knowing the other person, warts and all. Evidently that's not true for you.\" She strode back and stood looking down at him with her hands on her hips. \"Or are you just content to pigeonhole us as nothing more than willing sex partners?\"\n\nHe opened his mouth but she didn't give him the chance to answer. \"If so, nice as it was, and it was nice, for me there's got to be more. So, I quit. You can see yourself out.\" She picked up their half-empty glasses, flounced into the house and slammed the door. He heard the deadbolt snick into place.\n\nHe stared after her. Nice going, Stewart. You might as well have slammed that door yourself.\nChapter Eighteen\n\nRoyal paced the den in Temple House. I was right to tell The Group I was done. They'll just have to deal with it.\n\nWhen the Group had first approached him, he'd been consulting with a company in Virginia. He'd acquired his MBA and was fast building a name for himself, making a bottom-line difference for floundering companies from Maine to the west coast.\n\nHe'd been leery of the man in the neat black suit, starched collar and shiny gold cufflinks. Who wears cufflinks any more? \"Thanks for the offer, but I'm doing fine on my own.\"\n\n\"We know, Stewart. Your history is impressive. You have talents we can use, and the pay is excellent. I'd like to tell you more. Buy you lunch?\"\n\nRoyal thought he knew a scam when he heard one. This sounded like something his parents might have dreamed up, and look what happened to them. \"Nice meeting you, but no thanks, again,\" he'd said.\n\n\"I'll be back.\" The recruiter smiled, but Royal didn't see humor in his eyes, only determination. \"You're the kind of man we need.\"\n\nThat had been flattering, but Royal hadn't been interested enough to ask questions. He was doing well, and if his life was lonely he was used to that; there'd be new people in new towns. He liked the travel. Here and there he met a woman who interested him, sometimes enough for good sex or a home-cooked dinner, sometimes both. But no woman intrigued him enough to make him want to see her again. What was that old saying? \"Love 'em and leave 'em\" or something like that.\n\nBut now he'd met Toni. And he owned a home, his first. It felt good to have a place that actually belonged to him.\n\nIt was the intrigue of money laundering connected with illegal blood diamonds that brought him into The Group, an agency so undercover, Royal learned, that they weren't officially listed anywhere. The nameless black-suited handler was his only contact. No employee roster, no past reports, no future projections, no budget, no W-2 forms to fill out. Just good, really good, money for work well done, thank you very much.\n\n\"You'll have the authority of The Group behind everything you do,\" said Black Suit. \"We'll fit in with your consulting business. That's a great cover, moves you around. We can reach you anywhere.\"\n\nAnd so they had. The rigorous physical and mental training they demanded set him up to meet any emergency, and his security clearance allowed him to tap into any intelligence, immigration or police reports, like Sam Neeley's prison record. The work was interesting, challenging and Royal had been instrumental in stopping millions of dollars from falling into the wrong hands.\n\nAll good. But what I want now is a secure future with Toni, and that can't include more work for The Group. And I still have so many unanswered questions about my own life.\n\nOnce again sitting at Grace's desk, Royal held the old photograph of his parents that somehow had come to be here. Had his mother sent it? He'd found no other pictures of his parents, and none of himself.\n\nThe picture had been taken on a sunshine-filled promise-of-summer morning with a few wisps of clouds near the blue horizon. The old hotel where they'd stayed the night had lost business when the interstate bypassed it and the aging owner was glad to have anyone stop. He'd even offered a candy bar to young Royal.\n\n\"You stay here, son,\" his father had said as his parents walked to the shiny car, which he learned later had been stolen. \"We'll be back to get you in a couple of hours.\"\n\nRoyal was used to being left alone. \"Okay, Dad. Wait a second.\" Royal had run to get the camera. \"Let me take your picture before you go, okay?\"\n\nHis mother had laughed, rumpled his hair and spit on her thumb to wipe something from his chin. To this day Royal could remember the warmth of her caring touch. \"It will be a keepsake of this special morning forever, won't it, honey?\" She'd hugged Royal and even yet he remembered the flowery scent she always wore. Probably it was cheap dime-store toilet water. It couldn't have been anything that cost much because money was mostly in short supply unless one of his father's late-night forays was successful. Thieving had been their life\u2014another fact he'd found out later\u2014one step ahead of the law, but they'd made it fun. Always a new town, new adventure, a new ice cream shop.\n\nSome time must have passed between taking this picture\u2014Royal must have been about five\u2014and their deaths. He hadn't known what really happened on that fatal day until years later when he was old enough to read yellowed newspaper accounts of a branch bank robbery and a high-speed chase. He only knew his parents had died in an accident, he was alone and there was no one except the foster care system to take him in.\n\nThat could have been worse. In only one home had he been mistreated physically. Mostly he'd been fed, clothed and either preached at or ignored. Now he couldn't even recall some of those well-meaning foster parents. He did remember the Masons, because they were the last. By the time he was fifteen he knew if he didn't get away he'd be running for years in the hamster wheel of social services.\n\nIf anyone had tried to find him when he changed his name and took off, he never heard about it. He just knew he had to put miles behind him, and he had. A sympathetic semi-driver carrying furniture wheeled him from Mississippi to Texas. Another, a cattle hauler\u2014he could still recall the smell\u2014took him from Texas to Colorado, where he hunkered down, worked construction until he got his GED. Then he'd hitched to Virginia where, again through construction work, he'd put himself through college, eventually earned his MBA and become Royal Stewart, Helper.\n\nNow he ran his fingertip over his parents' faces. If they had lived, then what? Where would he be today? He looked around the book-lined study, felt the years of history here, history he could have, should have, been a part of. He leaned back and closed his eyes for a moment. Did he believe in fate? Was his great-aunt right when she'd said nothing he could have done differently along the way would have changed his being here, at this time, in this place? He slipped the little photograph back into Grace Temple's journal. Why had this picture been separated from others he'd found? He reached for the bible, opened it to the last page of the family record and in careful script added Grace Temple's death date to the list, wondering once more why the name of Roger Stone, the tall, robust man Royal remembered as his father, had never been included.\n\nRoyal looked around the study and pictured Toni in this house, brightening the rooms just by being there, making a life with him. Making a family. She could never be told the things he had done for The Group; that was a given. But that wasn't all he'd kept from her, and she'd made it pretty clear she expected full disclosure. Her accusation that he pigeonholed them as only wonderful sex partners smarted, but what had he done to make her think otherwise? Could she accept him when he told her of his childhood, his parents' legacy of thievery and scams? How they died running from the law? Fit that past against hers: loving brother, caring parents. He pictured her wide brown eyes, her luminous personality. Her incredible responses to him physically. But most important, when she learned the truth, how much he'd held back, would she ever trust him with her heart?\n\nRoyal went upstairs to the elegant master bedroom he had chosen for his own. The king-sized bed was covered in a rich velour duvet with matching pillows that picked up maroon accents in the drapes. In one corner filled bookshelves and a good reading lamp near a comfortable recliner welcomed a quiet evening. French doors led onto the balcony that overlooked the river.\n\nRoyal lifted his saxophone from the chair and went out, reveling in the quiet, crisp fall air and the waning moon that traced a wavy path over the river. A lovely night in a lovely place where Grace Temple had spent the years after her husband's death with only memories for company. But it's not a place I want to live in alone.\n\nHe held a reed in his mouth for a few moments to wet it before fitting it onto the sax and bringing the instrument to his lips. Without consciously choosing a tune he loosed clear, haunting notes that drifted like ethereal wisps of dreams over the darkened neighborhood. Maybe when you've had the best of love, memories are enough. He very much wanted that kind of loving. With Toni. Just thinking about her, picturing her face, sent a river of warmth all through his body, wafted lilting, seductive phrases onto the night air.\n\nBut there were things to accomplish before he could pursue that future. He'd already started by retiring from The Group. But there was still Sam Neeley to be dealt with. He'd disappeared since the encounter in Door County, but Royal sensed impending trouble there. Why had he followed Royal? What did he want? Did he know, or think he knew, something that could ruin The Group's well-laid plans for future missions? How was that possible? Sam was no mastermind, just a grifter, greedy and not too smart. A lost boy grown into a lost man.\n\nRoyal closed his eyes, letting his music liberate his thoughts, replay his past. Suddenly his notes fought against each other, wild, discordant, unpleasant, riding the horrific memories and images that sporadically surfaced in his mind, the nightmares that surged into his dreams. Big-eyed, malnourished fly-ridden children of parents forced to work the mines\u2014a guard smashing the butt of his gun into the skull of a starving worker too sick to perform\u2014the innocent face of Amalie as she helped him escape his sweltering prison, hid him, cared for him until he was well...\n\nAway from The Group's involvement there now, Royal had become point man for stopping the cartels at this end. In spite of having told Black Suit he was finished, he knew it would be only a matter of time before another call: \"We need you, Stewart. Just once more.\"\n\nNo! His fingers jumbled a torrent of harsh, unmelodic notes into the darkness, the answer coming from his very core. His future was here. His answer would still be no.\nChapter Nineteen\n\nAs he'd known it would, the call came.\n\nThe few leaves that hadn't been raked up skittered across the grass as Black Suit, now sleek in a long dark overcoat, waited as Royal strode across the empty park, suppressed anger propelling every step.\n\nOverhead, bare branches clattered against each other as the chilly, raw November wind blustered through them. Grey clouds roiled across the sky. The air held the sense of snow to come soon.\n\n\"Sit down, Stewart.\" Black Suit gestured to the bench beside him.\n\n\"No thanks,\" Royal stood with his fisted hands thrust deep into the pockets of his worn leather bomber jacket. \"I'll stand. Exactly what part of 'No more' didn't you get?\"\n\n\"This is the last thing we'll ask of you. Promise.\"\n\nRoyal almost laughed aloud as Black Suit actually criss-crossed his heart, a childlike gesture incongruous with his usual austere no-nonsense demeanor. \"I told you I was done,\" Royal stated, his voice hard. \"I meant it.\"\n\nBlack Suit pulled his coat tighter against the weather. \"This will be a little different than what you've been doing recently. I think you'll change your mind when you learn what this involves.\"\n\nRoyal's mind flooded with unwelcome memories of fieldwork in Sierra Leone. \"I won't go back to Africa.\"\n\nBlack Suit continued as though Royal hadn't spoken, \"We have everything in place except the last piece.\"\n\n\"And that is?\"\n\n\"You.\"\n\nRoyal made a disparaging sound through his lips. \"Why me? Why not Larson? Or Goldsmith? They're both good, both capable. Probably both interested. I'm not.\"\n\n\"But they're not as good as you. And you're in the right place already. A few days, tops. It's an easy one.\"\n\n\"There's no such thing as an easy one when lives are at stake, you know that,\" said Royal. \"And I have a consulting job coming up.\"\n\n\"I know, but that's not for a couple of weeks, right?\"\n\nOf course they knew he wasn't due at the Dallas company until the first of the month. Reluctant, Royal admitted, \"Right.\"\n\n\"You were very close to a family in Sierra Leone,\" Black Suit stated.\n\nRoyal caught his breath. \"What has that to do with anything?\"\n\n\"You know what conditions are like there. How dangerous it is for anyone who doesn't toe the line.\" Black Suit pulled a photograph from his pocket and handed it to Royal.\n\nHis heart lurched. Amalie. The innocent young girl who'd freed him from that bamboo cage, saved his life. And her parents, who had helped her care for him until he could function again. He swallowed. \"What about them?\"\n\n\"They've been targeted. Her father has been beaten so badly we aren't sure he'll live. The mother is selling herself to put food on the table for the younger boy. The girl\u2014\"\n\nRoyal cut in, his voice rough. \"Amalie? What about her? Is she all right?\"\n\n\"So far. She's been threatened. You know what happens, especially to women when they don't cooperate. It doesn't look good.\" He hesitated, studying Royal's face. \"Do this one last job for us and we'll move them to safety.\"\n\nRoyal turned away, took a couple of steps. Turned back, his eyes glittering. \"Be honest and call it blackmail.\"\n\n\"Call it what you will.\" Black Suit shrugged. \"We need you, Stewart. They need you. You can keep the photo.\"\n\nRoyal stared at it for a long moment, fighting back unbidden memories. Finally he stuffed the picture into his pocket, swallowed and cleared his throat. His voice was rough when he said, \"Give me details. Where, when. What's needed.\"\n\n\"Good man. I'll be in touch. Two days, tops. You won't regret this, Stewart.\"\n\n\"I already regret it,\" Royal said, turning to leave. \"But you give me no choice.\"\n\n****\n\n\"You did what?\" Toni's mouth fell open and she almost dropped the dish of almond buttered asparagus she was setting on the table for her weekly dinner with Jack. \"Say that again. Slowly.\" She saw the delight in his eyes at her reaction.\n\n\"Now I know what that expression 'looks like a deer in the headlights' really means,\" he said, laughing. \"Follow along closely now, sis. I said, I asked Kate to go to Arizona for Thanksgiving. Meet the folks.\"\n\nToni sank down on her chair. \"Wow.\"\n\n\"That's all you have to say?\"\n\n\"Well, you took me by surprise. Needless to say, Mom will be thrilled to hear about this. How'd it come about? Sit down and tell me all the details.\"\n\nJack sat, helped himself to asparagus and chicken marinara, drizzled some French dressing on his salad, put his napkin across his lap and set his salad plate precisely at his left...\n\n\"Jack!\" Toni almost shouted. \"Quit fooling around just to make me wait and tell me what happened. All of it.\"\n\nHe sighed, trying to look injured. \"Oh, okay. Don't yell at me. I just wanted to savor the moment of your Wow.\"\n\n\"Consider it savored. And for God's sake pour the wine.\"\n\n\"Well, I was driving past the park.\" Jack reached for her glass, filled it and handed it to her. \"And there she was, sitting in her car, taking pictures out the window.\"\n\n\"Pictures? Of what? On a day like this?\"\n\n\"Hey, it's my story, let me tell it.\"\n\n\"Sorry. Do go on.\" Toni took a good-sized swig and waited, tapping her fingertips on the table while he poured his own wine.\n\n\"She said she'd heard that a big woodpecker hung out there and she wanted to get a photo of it.\"\n\n\"Really. Isn't that kind of odd? Don't the birds go south for the winter?\"\n\n\"Not this one. I guess. I didn't see it. She didn't either. So I asked her to go to lunch with me, and she did.\"\n\nToni nodded. \"Where'd you go?\"\n\n\"The Village Grille. You know it?\"\n\n\"Sure. Nice place. Great chili. And?\"\n\n\"We had a great lunch, talked all through it, darned if I know what about, and before I knew it I'd asked her.\"\n\nToni dished up more asparagus. \"I promised Mom we'd talk about going there for Thanksgiving. I didn't expect our conversation to take this turn.\"\n\nJack frowned. \"You think it's too soon? Think I'm jumping the gun?\"\n\n\"A little late for asking my opinion, isn't it?\" Toni grinned. \"Wish I'd been there. I bet Kate was surprised, to say the least.\"\n\n\"You got that right. She nearly sputtered coffee out her nose. Pass the potatoes, please.\"\n\nToni did, followed with a platter of marinara and waited. Waited some more.\n\n\"Well?\" Jack finally looked up. \"No comment?\"\n\n\"You haven't told me what her answer was.\"\n\n\"I don't know yet. I had to leave. I told her to call you.\"\n\n\"Why?\" Toni asked, intrigued. \"You want backup, or what?\"\n\n\"I just thought she'd be more comfortable. Wine?\" He gestured with the bottle, reached for her glass. \"You know, asking girl stuff.\"\n\n\"Girl stuff?\"\n\n\"You know, like what to wear. Like what are the folks like? How to win them over?\"\n\nToni sighed. \"Oh, Jack. You don't have to win them over. Kate's lovely. They'll just be happy for you.\"\n\n\"I hope so. But enough about me. What about you? What's new with you and Royal? Why not ask him to come, too?\" Jack's smile was infectious and Toni couldn't help giving it back. \"We can be a fearsome foursome instead of our usual terrific twosome.\"\n\nToni snorted. \"We hadn't even said you and I were going yet.\" She toyed with her fork. \"Besides, Royal's gone again. I think. I haven't heard. Probably off to some consulting job. Anyway, I think he's furious with me.\"\n\n\"Really?\" Jack stopped scooping up a forkful of asparagus. \"Why? Things looked fine between you two when we were out to dinner together.\"\n\n\"Well, they were. And we went back to my place for an after dinner drink.\" Toni made a face. \"He said Bryce was right about him and that he wasn't what I thought. If I'd had any sense I would have shut up and let him talk, but I blew up. Told him he didn't have any idea what I thought blah blah blah. You get the picture.\"\n\n\"A Toni rant?\"\n\nShe had the grace to hang her head. \"Yeah. Like a ten year old. Then I slammed the door on him. Oh, Jack, I don't know what we are or if he expects me to be part of his life or not.\" She put her chin on her hand. \"I'm really wondering whether I'm just wasting my time with him.\"\n\n\"Hmmm. Mr. Mysterious. Once again, great meal, Toni. Want more wine?\" He reached across with the bottle. \"You've asked him point blank to level with you?\"\n\nShe nodded. \"Yes to wine and yes to your question. I've tried. His answers are always evasive. Off limits. Not for publication. Something in his past\u2014who knows, even in his present\u2014is something he won't trust me with.\" Toni shook head. \"I don't think I can keep seeing him, Jack. It's too hard. You'll probably think this is over the top, and I kind of think it is, too, but I'm going to ask Link to do a background check on him.\"\n\n\"Excellent move. That ought to give you some answers. He can dig deeper than I could. Remember, good things are worth working for, Dad always said.\"\n\nToni sighed. \"The thing is, Jack, I don't know how to work on this, or even if I should. And truthfully I'm beginning to wonder if it's worth the effort.\"\n\n\"Really?\" He raised his eyebrows. \"Really really?\"\n\nShe had to smile. In their special way of communicating, one \"really\" meant just wondering. Two required a serious answer. \"I guess not really really. Just\u2014oh, dammit, Jack\u2014I've fallen for the guy and I don't think he feels the same way about me.\"\n\n\"Guess we're kind of in the same boat, sis,\" Jack said around a mouthful of mashed potatoes. \"But I intend to keep on rowing. It's more fun than I've had for a long time.\"\n\nIt was great to see Jack so on top of the world. Smiling, she held out a platter. \"Have another chicken breast.\"\n\nAfter he left, Toni wandered through the house, picking up misplaced books, flicking dust off the coffee table, and asking herself, do I really really want to keep on rowing?\"\n\n****\n\n\"Toni!\" Attorney Lincoln Spencer rose from his desk and wrapped her in a big, brotherly hug. He was impeccably dressed, as always, and smelled of pleasant musky aftershave. \"Courtney didn't tell me you were going to be in Sister Bay.\"\n\n\"She doesn't know. I didn't know myself until a couple of hours ago.\"\n\n\"So...\" Link paused, his eyes searching her face, \"to what do I owe this pleasure? Have a seat.\"\n\n\"I'll get right to it, and then maybe, if you have time, we can have lunch with Courtney before I stop at Wannabe and head back.\"\n\nLink nodded. \"Sounds like a plan. Courtney will be delighted.\" He sat across from Toni, tented his hands on his desk and waited for her to speak. When she didn't, he asked, \"Want me to chase down a non-paying customer?\"\n\nToni ignored that and leaned forward, her expression grave. \"Do I have to give you a dollar to keep this confidential?\"\n\nHe laughed. \"Wow. Sounds serious. Are you planning a crime?\"\n\n\"No. At least I don't think so. I want you to do a thorough background check on someone. Find out everything about him. You can do that, can't you? I mean, you know how?\"\n\n\"Yes,\" he answered, obviously hesitant. \"Is this person in trouble with the law?\"\n\n\"Not that I know of.\" Toni looked down at her hands clasped in her lap. She sighed. \"If he is, it's not obvious. He seems to get along with them pretty well.\"\n\nLink swiveled his chair to look out the window for a moment, swiveled back and said, \"There are rules about privacy. Do you have a reason to invade his?\"\n\nToni looked away. \"It's personal.\"\n\n\"Let me guess. The intriguing Royal Stewart.\"\n\n\"Got it in one.\" Toni sighed. \"Am I so transparent?\"\n\n\"I surmised when you were together at the Fall Ball that things were heating up.\" He chuckled. \"You may be interested to know that Courtney and Lisbet have a bet on how soon you're going to make it official.\"\n\nToni's mouth dropped open. \"You're kidding!\"\n\nHe raised one hand, three fingers up. \"Scout's honor.\"\n\n\"Oh, my.\" Toni had to laugh. \"How much are they betting?\"\n\nLink smiled. \"That I don't know.\" Sobering, he leaned forward, his grey eyes probing Toni's. \"Why do you want me to check Stewart's background? He seems like a good-enough guy. Why don't you just ask him what you want to know?\"\n\n\"Believe me, I have. He's very evasive. It's all 'not for publication.' Either he's done some awful things and thinks he can't trust me with knowing about them, or he's undercover. I could believe that, or he really is a bad guy, and I don't want to believe that. Here.\" She reached into her spacious hobo bag\u2014a just-because-we're-friends gift from Drea\u2014and pulled out a thin folder. \"This is all I know, along with the little Jack pulled up on the computer. It's not much.\"\n\nLink nodded, took the papers and gave them a quick scan. \"You're right, it's not much. Sure you want to know more?\"\n\nShe nodded. \"I'm sure. Maybe it will be helpful to know that the mysterious stranger that broke into Royal's car the night of the Fall Ball called him 'Stone,' not 'Stewart.' And it seemed that he knew Royal from before. He said something about Royal 'owing' him. Truthfully, Link\"\u2014Toni paused, biting her lip\u2014\"I think I really care about Royal and it scares me to death. It's like free-falling into a bottomless black hole.\"\n\nLink thought for a moment, then tapped his fingers on the folder. \"Maybe you should give me that dollar.\"\n\n****\n\nAgainst her better judgment, Toni accepted Bryce's invitation to see Chorus Line again. They had a delightful dinner before the performance and he was a perfect gentleman\u2014didn't even try to hold her hand after his first attempt. \"Okay, I get it,\" he said, but he'd smiled.\n\nThey'd laughed at the humor in the performance, loved the music, enjoyed the pathos and left on the high note of the finale.\n\n\"Kind of like the good old days,\" Bryce observed as Toni settled into the soft leather of his BMW. Then he grimaced. \"But not quite.\"\n\nShe was quiet for a moment. There had been good old days, until she'd realized how controlling he'd become. \"You've been a good friend, Bryce.\"\n\nHe frowned, sighed, and pulled out into traffic. \"Want to stop for a nightcap?\"\n\n\"Let's get back to Green Bay first,\" Toni said. \"Drinking and driving, you know?\"\n\n\"Probably wise,\" Bryce agreed. They drove for a few miles, each in their own thoughts. Finally he blurted, \"Have you learned anything\u2014\" he broke off, took a breath, then continued. \"Hell, Toni, are you seeing Stewart? Is it serious, or do I have a chance to worm my way back into your life?\"\n\nHe sounded so appealing that Toni felt her stomach clench. \"Oh, Bryce, you'll always be part of my life. We've shared so much.\"\n\nHe sighed. \"Past tense, I note.\"\n\nShe sighed, too, for the spark that was gone. She touched his arm. \"I do thank you for a marvelous evening.\"\n\n\"My pleasure.\" He hesitated, then said, \"I'm not giving up. My world is yours for the asking. You know I'll call.\"\n\nHe left her at her door with a chaste kiss on her forehead. She watched his elegant BMW disappear around the corner before realizing she still wore his sport coat. Gentleman that he was, he'd slung it over her shoulders to protect her from the night air. Or maybe in his controlling way he left it on purpose so I'd have to return it soon. As she turned into the house, her mind wandered back to the perfect summer evening when their affair had begun, for even though their relationship had lasted more than a year, that had really been what it was.\n\nAfter spending too many hours alone at Wannabe\u2014not counting Midnight for company\u2014Toni had gone for a walk down the paved trail along the Fox River. The early summer evening temperature was just right. Sunlight glinted on the water, boats trailed water skiers, or simply offered an enjoyable end-of-day ride. Couples walked hand-in-hand. Families rode by on bicycles. Everyone except Toni seemed to be with someone else.\n\nShe dropped down on a bench, stretched out her legs, leaned back and shut her eyes. She loved her work, her house, her brother and her friends, but sometimes...sometimes that empty ache caught up with her. Thirty-three years old with nobody to come home to.\n\n\"Are you all right?\"\n\nThe concerned question pulled her out of her thoughts and she squinted up into a tall silhouette that repeated, \"I asked, are you all right?\"\n\nToni blinked and smiled. \"Yes. Just thinking. But thanks for asking.\"\n\nThe slim man in white summer shorts and T-shirt slid onto the bench beside her. He smelled of musky aftershave mixed with sweat from running, a purely pleasurable masculine scent. \"Sure?\" he persisted. \"I watched you for a minute and wasn't sure you were alive.\"\n\n\"Alive and kicking.\" She smiled and seesawed her running shoes to prove it.\n\nThe man didn't leave. \"I'm Bryce Andrews,\" he said. \"And we're only a few steps away from a cool glass of wine up at Eve's to watch the sun go down. Interested?\" He held out his hand.\n\nShe took it.\n\nSo many remembrances. Their times together had been a whirlwind of sailing miles up into Green Bay, driving the area in one or another of his many sports cars, testing the menus at restaurants from Door County to Sheboygan, listening to concerts in city parks and country taverns, dancing to music in clubs and spending time together in his elegant riverside condo. She'd learned that Bryce owned a successful travel agency, was rich and enjoyed sharing his wealth. He was sexy and inventive in bed, Toni thought now, but she'd felt none of the fiery passion, the unbelievable heights she'd experienced with Royal.\n\nBryce had been intelligent, entertaining\u2014though Toni didn't always appreciate his taste in jokes\u2014and controlling. So controlling.\n\n\"Jeez, Toni,\" Jack had said over a quick drink one evening before her date with Bryce. \"It's his way or the highway. Do you really like the guy that much? He doesn't leave you time for anyone else.\"\n\n\"Meaning you. I'm so sorry, Jack,\" Toni said. It was late fall and they hadn't had their regular Thursday night dinner very often since she'd met Bryce. \"You're absolutely right.\" Bryce had molded her into the woman who fit into his world. Until she'd come to her senses.\n\nNow she turned to go back into her empty house. She could have it all, the grand home, the family, the life of a wealthy woman, and she didn't even want it. What she was pretty sure she did want was a future with Royal. But what he'd offered so far was nothing more than some laughs and fantastic sex with that superhero body. Even the thought of their nights together made her catch her breath. What could be so bad about himself that he couldn't share it? There had to be some way to make him open up. Or get him out of her life.\nChapter Twenty\n\nBack at Temple House after a few days working in North Carolina, Royal reclined near a dancing fire in the study with the latest Jeffrey Deaver novel in hand. He ignored the book and stared into the flames. Work had gone well in Charlotte, but he'd had a hard time staying focused on it. Toni's furious face kept flashing into his mind, along with the resounding slam of her door. Had Toni really meant it when she'd said \"I quit?\" And could he blame her if she did?\n\nHe grimaced at the buzz of his second cell phone. Only The Group had that number and the last thing he wanted right now was to hear from them. \"Stewart here,\" he barked. \"Where's the merchandise and what do you need done?\"\n\n\"From the sound of your voice I must be calling at a bad time. If so, I'm sorry, but I have information for you. There'll be no merchandise. With this mission you'll be dealing in intel,\" Black Suit stated. \"We've finally identified a man whose operation has been so slick we've been unable to get anything on him until now.\"\n\n\"Okay, so go get him. Simple. You don't need me.\"\n\n\"All we've got so far is his name and rumors. We need hard evidence.\"\n\n\"What about Amalie?\"\n\n\"We've kept our promise. Amalie and her family are safe in Tanzania. They're fine, Stewart.\"\n\nFine. Royal let out a breath and relaxed. Amalie was out of danger. He pictured the girl's open, guileless face, remembered the life-threatening chance she'd taken to divert the guard after cutting Royal free from his bondage, the tender, healing care she'd given him when he needed it so badly and couldn't help himself.\n\n\"You know I can't\u2014won't\u2014go back to Africa.\"\n\n\"You don't have to. This operation will play out right here in Green Bay.\" Black Suit described the assignment, his narrative punctuated intermittently by Royal's questions.\n\n\"Say that again!\" Royal sat up straight, put his feet flat on the floor and burst out, \"Who? Dangerous? You've got to be kidding!\"\n\n\"Do I? Why?\"\n\n\"The man's a stable business owner. Never a black mark against him in the community. Believe me, I've checked him out for my own reasons. He's a churchgoer, donates to the Salvation Army and food pantries...\" Royal didn't add that, according to Toni, the man was a pain in the ass. \"Slight complication here: Toni Dresser was involved with him.\"\n\n\"Was. She broke it off. So what?\"\n\n\"That doesn't mean she won't still have feelings for him,\" said Royal. \"This would be better handled by someone else.\"\n\n\"Perhaps. But you're here, part of the local scenery. He'll never suspect you.\"\n\n\"Until it's over. And I stand to lose what ground I've gained with the woman I hope will share the rest of my life.\"\n\n\"All the better to get him out of the picture. And remember, you agreed.\"\n\nRoyal snorted. \"Bad move on my part. I should have asked more questions.\"\n\n\"May I remind you, Amalie's family is safe. They have food and shelter, and they won't be found.\" He paused. \"Back to Andrews. Ever wonder how he made so much money?\"\n\n\"No.\" Royal frowned. \"Not my business. I only wondered why he had such an interest in me.\"\n\n\"We're sure Andrews is aware of your involvement with diamonds. We don't think he knows we're onto his part in the money laundering connected to the illegals. We've got pictures of him in Paris and Berlin with a tall, flamboyant redhead named Monica Asher who's been part of his cover. She's disappeared but it wouldn't surprise me if she surfaced in Green Bay to split the profits from this last shipment. We need more intel on these two. Stewart, wrap this up before somebody here really does get hurt.\" Black Suit paused, as though reading notes, then continued, \"What's Andrews' connection to the illegal diamond people in Sierra Leone? How does this morph into money to launder? The redhead can't work down there\u2014she'd stand out like a UFO at an antique car show. So exactly how does she fit? Does she have important information, or is she just a plaything for Andrews? Most important, how\u2014and through what channels\u2014does Andrews launder the money?\"\n\nBryce Andrews. The man's name circled through Royal's mind. So Mr. Pain-in-the-Ass was considerably more than just that. No wonder he was interested in Royal, who could definitely put a crimp in what must be a very lucrative money-laundering business. But could he wash big bucks through his travel agency? Royal frowned. Possibly. He must have contacts all over the world, using his tour business as front, moving money from one country to another, investing in local financial agencies, moving it again. Probably through bank accounts in Switzerland or offshore in the Cayman Islands. Those could be traced...\n\n\"Stewart? Are you there?\" Black Suit's voice brought Royal back to the conversation. \"Have we lost our connection?\"\n\n\"I'm here. Just thinking. That's all you've got? No other names? Numbers? Sightings? What about bank transfers?\"\n\n\"I'm sending everything we've got to your secured data account. We're counting on you to get the rest.\"\n\nRoyal thought of Amalie and her family. Whatever he had to do for The Group now was worth it. Clear up this bit with Andrews, and then he'd be done. Finished. Free to pursue a future with Toni...if she'd have him.\n\n\"Have I lost you again?\" Black Suit sounded annoyed.\n\n\"No. Right here. Putting this all together. Ready to work.\"\n\n\"Good. Keep me posted.\"\n\n\"Anything else I should know?\"\n\n\"Just be careful. You're on your own unless you choose to pull someone else in. Andrews is slick. He didn't get this far without being on top of his business. He won't roll over easily. I repeat: he's a dangerous man.\"\n\nRoyal clicked off, sat back and stared into the flames as though they could provide some answers. According to Toni, Andrews was controlling and annoying on a personal level. But was he dangerous? Would she protect him out of loyalty to their previous relationship? Royal's thoughts churned with questions. Where to start?\n\nBut before he got into that, he had to make things right with Toni. The finality of that slammed door had surfaced in his mind over and over and he'd had trouble focusing on work ever since. He glanced at his watch and took a deep breath. No time like the present, Stewart. Hoping it wasn't too late to call, he punched in her number. Should a grown man have butterflies in his stomach? Will she hang up on me?\n\n\"Hello?\" Toni answered on the first ring. \"Royal?\" He heard caution in her voice, then a pause. \"I thought I might never hear from you again.\"\n\nIn spite of caller ID she answered; that has to mean something. He let out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. \"Not a chance of that, Toni. How are you?\"\n\n\"I'm fine. Well, fine except for feeling like a fool.\" She rushed ahead. \"I should have been the one to call. I want to apologize for going off on you the night we went to dinner. Which was lovely, by the way.\"\n\n\"No need,\" he said, \"really. Anyway, I've been out of town.\" What he really wanted to say was, Lord, I miss you. Can I come over right now and hold you? Feel the warmth of you in my arms? Make love to you all night? Clear the air so there's never a door slammed between us again?\n\n\"You're not\u2014\" she hesitated. \"Mad?\"\n\nHe chuckled, relief flooding through him. \"Not a bit. In fact, I called to ask if you have plans for Halloween.\"\n\n\"I guess not.\" She paused. \"Jack and I usually do something. He knows it's my favorite day of the year. But I think he and Kate may want to be together. They're getting very close, as you might have noticed when we were out with them. What do you have in mind?\"\n\n\"Drinks and dinner, for starters. Maybe we could check into some spots to see if the vampires and werewolves are out...we can play that by ear. I hate to say so, but I'll even wear a costume if you insist.\"\n\nHer giggle was infectious and he couldn't help smiling. \"Not the cowboy getup again, I hope.\"\n\n\"Shucks, ma'am. I thought that was definitely me, what with them six-shooters an' all.\"\n\nShe groaned. \"Please, no six-shooters. They wouldn't be any use against vampires or werewolves anyway, without silver bullets. Will you pick me up at Wannabe? I should be finished with all my Halloween bits and pieces by about seven.\"\n\n\"It's a date,\" he said. \"But sans costume.\"\n\n\"Right. Though you may be sorry about that. I do make a fetching tooth fairy.\"\n\nHe pictured her face, loving her teasing tone. She'd make a fetching anything. \"I just bet you do, Miss Dresser. Seven on Halloween. We'll make your favorite day one to remember.\"\nChapter Twenty-One\n\nThe next morning Toni looked up from stuffing the green stem on a pumpkin hat to watch late October clouds scudding across the deep blue sky above the now bare maple beside Wannabe's small parking lot. She thought for a moment, then picked up the phone and punched in a preset number.\n\n\"Lincoln Spencer here.\"\n\n\"Have you learned anything, Link?\" Toni pictured him leaning comfortably back in his office chair and heard the chuckle in his voice when he answered, \"And good morning to you, too, Toni.\"\n\n\"Oops. Sorry. Guess I wasn't very polite, was I? Good morning, Link.\"\n\n\"That's better. And how are you this fine day?\"\n\nToni had to smile. \"Okay, okay. Actually,\" she looked out the shop window again and finished, \"it really is fine, isn't it? But let's not talk about the weather. I don't want to take up your valuable time, Attorney Spencer, but\u2014\"\n\n\"But cut to the chase, is that it?\" Now he sounded all business, though there was still amusement in his voice.\n\n\"Well...yes. If you would, please.\"\n\n\"Right.\" Toni heard papers shuffling for a moment, then, \"I don't have a lot. Finding information on Royal Stewart's business dealings as a consultant, where and what companies he's worked with, was easy. That's all good. Nothing but praise from every source, and there are quite a few of those. He's been open on his resume about working his way through school doing construction work in various places from Texas and Colorado to Virginia, with excellent reports from every area. But before that, nothing. It appears that Royal Stewart surfaced from nowhere as a teenager and built a successful life for himself.\"\n\n\"As you said earlier, he's Mr. Mysterious.\" Toni knew her disappointment came through her words. \"That's it?\"\n\n\"Not quite.\" More paper shuffling. \"I thought about what you told me of the stranger in the parking lot at the Fall Ball, and that he'd called Royal 'Stone' instead of 'Stewart.' Since Royal's traceable life began as a teenager, I wonder whether he may have been in the system. And since that guy seemed to know him from before, perhaps they were in a foster home together. If either or both of them had a juvenile record, of course it would be sealed.\"\n\n\"Oh.\" Toni digested that. \"That would make sense, wouldn't it? So when Royal was old enough, he might have run away, changed his name and built a life thinking he had no relatives.\"\n\n\"That's possible. Finally his great-aunt Grace somehow\u2014I haven't discovered just how\u2014tracked him down, and Royal Stewart came to Green Bay to meet her. You know the rest.\"\n\nToni frowned. \"But what came before the foster care? What about his parents? How or why he was put into the system? That's what he's hiding.\"\n\n\"Hiding may be too strong a word. Maybe he's just holding back. For whatever reason. It's his life, Toni. He has a right to choose whether to share it.\" Link paused. \"Unfortunately, Stone isn't all that unusual a surname. I tried to make a connection to his father, but without a first name that was too daunting.\"\n\nShe sighed. \"Okay. Well, send me a bill, Link. I know this took you away from your work.\"\n\n\"Wait a minute. That's not all there is to think about. There were gaps of time my investigator couldn't fill between and even during Stewart's consulting jobs. Sometimes as long as a month where his name didn't show up anywhere. No hotel or airfare reservations, nothing on a passport under either Stone or Stewart.\"\n\n\"Really?\"\n\n\"Of course he could have gone to ground somewhere we don't know about, or been traveling around in his Porsche, sightseeing\u2014who knows? But it's something to consider.\"\n\nAnd to wonder about. Toni thanked Link and broke the connection, feeling uneasy about checking on Royal behind his back. What would be his reaction if he knew? Certainly not good.\n\nBut I'm so tired of not knowing where I stand. Girlfriend? Not quite. Friend who is a girl? Probably yes. Acquaintance with benefits? She felt her face flush; she certainly had known those benefits. Easy mark? She didn't believe that. She'd felt the warmth of his arms, the depth of caring when he'd been so tender. She'd waked up looking into those incredible blue eyes and seen what she wanted to see every morning for the rest of her life. But making that happen had to be more than a one-way street.\n\nAs she hung up the phone Jack's Chevy barreled into the parking lot and bucked to a stop beside Wannabe. Good to know that someone's love life seems to be on track. She rose and smiled to greet him but her expression changed to alarm when he pushed open the door and she saw his face.\n\n\"Jack, you look terrible! Are you sick?\" Toni hurried from behind the shop counter and rushed to her brother, reaching out to feel his forehead.\n\nHe pushed her hand away and when he spoke his voice was so full of pain it brought tears to her eyes. \"Yeah. Yeah, I guess I am.\"\n\n\"Sit down.\" She pushed him toward the stool by the counter. \"Has someone been hurt?\" Her breath caught. \"Mom? Or Dad?\"\n\n\"No, not that. Sorry I scared you.\"\n\n\"Okay.\" She could breathe again. \"You just sit. I'll get coffee.\"\n\n\"If you don't have anything stronger.\" His voice was full of misery. \"Thanks.\"\n\nShe brought two mugs, sank onto the stool opposite him and waited, knowing he would talk when he was ready. She bit her lip, studying his face. Jack's usually well-combed hair was disheveled, his collar crooked, his eyes dull.\n\nHe stared into his cup for a long moment before shaking his head and finally swallowing some coffee. Then he finally met her eyes. \"I've been duped. Again. It was too good. I should have known.\"\n\n\"What? Come on, give. You're worrying me. I don't know what you're talking about, and I don't like seeing you like this.\"\n\n\"Think Kate Bishop.\"\n\nToni heard bitterness behind his voice. \"Kate? But I thought things were going so well\u2014\"\n\nHe cut her off. \"I thought so to, Toni, but she's a liar. Plain and simple. Been handing me a line about herself all this time. After Claudia, wouldn't you think I'd spot another one?\" He hugged the coffee mug with both hands.\n\n\"Oh, Jack. Tell me what happened.\"\n\nHe stared out the window. \"She's not who, or what, she led me to believe.\"\n\nLot of that going around. Toni leaned forward, reached out to touch Jack's hand. \"Explain. Make sense of it for me. Maybe it'll help.\"\n\n\"Silly me.\" He shook his head. \"I can't believe I even asked her to come to Arizona. Meet the folks.\"\n\n\"I know. Is that what this is about? She didn't want to come?\"\n\n\"No.\" He shook his head. \"She wanted to. At least said she wanted to. But she couldn't. Not until she 'fessed up, she said, about who she is. For all I know Kate Bishop isn't even her real name. She's not an accountant, or a financial advisor. Her office in the bank is bogus. She's something else, Toni. She's some kind of investigator.\"\n\n\"Like an auditor for the IRS?\"\n\n\"That she couldn't tell me, she said. So much for trust, huh? And get this\u2014not that this matters so much\u2014it's got something to do with Royal Stewart.\"\n\n\"Wow.\" Toni sat back, frowning, remembering Kate's probing questions about Royal, and how many she'd asked him during their dinner at Eve's. It seemed a bit much at the time, but Toni had put it down to simple curiosity. \"How do you know this, Jack?\"\n\nJack took a deep breath. \"She told me. So she wouldn't hurt me later, she said. And she's not alone in this world, either, like she let me assume. She has a mother in Alzheimer's care back in Pennsylvania. Everything she let me believe, except that she works for a company out of Washington, is nothing but a sham.\"\n\nToni leaned her elbows on her side of the counter and dropped her chin into her hands. \"Are you jumping to conclusions? There must be more to this. Could you be wrong?\"\n\n\"Don't I wish. But I'm not.\" Jack pushed off the stool.\n\n\"Did you let her explain?\"\n\n\"She tried. I'd heard enough.\"\n\n\"But\u2014\"\n\n\"Oh, there was more, I'm sure. But I didn't wait to hear it.\"\n\nJack ran his hand through his hair and tried for a lop-sided grin that didn't come off. \"Well, that's my news tidbit for today. Intrepid Jack Dresser leaps astride romance after swearing never to get back on that horse, and guess what? Gets thrown. Again.\" He got up, swung around and started for the door. \"Thanks for listening. I'd say 'stay tuned' but I think the program is over.\"\n\n\"Don't leave, Jack.\" Toni caught his sleeve, feeling his tense nerves even through the heavy weave of his sport coat. \"You're distraught. You shouldn't be driving.\"\n\nThis time his grin was real. \"Never fear, Sis. Driving I can do. It's dreaming that's dangerous. That's a killer.\"\n\nStunned, Toni cringed at the jangling door chimes as Jack slammed out. She hurried to the window to see gravel fly as his Chevy spun onto Main street, narrowly missing an oncoming delivery truck. \"Oh, Jack,\" she breathed, feeling that old familiar twin pang come into play once again: if Jack was hurt, she was hurt. She felt his pain as clearly as if she were the one blindsided. She remembered Kate at dinner, smiling and bantering with Jack. Remembered his expression, so open, so vulnerable when he spoke her name.\n\nBack at the counter Toni picked up the pumpkin hat, put it down again, walked to the window and stood there, rubbing her arms as though that could help her know what to do. The weather had changed and roiling grey clouds covered the whole sky now. \"Oh, Jack,\" she said again. \"This is so wrong!\"\n\nWhat could\u2014should\u2014she do? Try to fix it? Call Kate? Hear her side? Or\u2014this thought brought a wry smile to Toni's face\u2014just stomp on over to the woman's office and punch her in the face?\n\n\"Help me out here, Midnight,\" she said to the cat twining around her ankles. \"What's a sister supposed to do?\n\n****\n\nFrowning, Royal sat back from his computer. He'd discovered over four hundred Roger Stones in the United States and who knew how many more might be found in different countries. Estimating his father's current age eliminated more than half of those still listed. But, Royal realized, very possibly the name Roger Stone was an alias anyway, given the petty crook and con man that he had been twenty-eight years ago when Royal was seven.\n\nHe closed his eyes, remembering good family times, laughing and singing silly songs in the car on the road to the next town. Whoever Roger Stone was, he made my mother happy. Where did they meet? Where was she living at the time? There must have been a rift, an estrangement, all ties cut. But somehow after all these years Grace Temple's attorney had tracked Royal down. Suddenly Royal remembered her coming up to him at the funeral. She'd said she and Grace were close friends, that she had something for him and hoped he'd come to see her soon. With everything else going on that had slipped his mind.\n\nMaybe that \"something\" has some answers for me. Royal closed down his laptop, pulled on his leather jacket and strode to the door. Black Suit wouldn't like it, but The Group's problems could simmer on the back burner for right now. Bryce Andrews wasn't going anywhere, and Royal needed some answers.\n\nA cold north wind buffeted his Porsche and reminded Royal that it wasn't the car to drive in a Wisconsin winter; he'd need to get a four-wheel drive to handle the coming weather. He pulled into a visitor parking space at the downtown Riverwalk complex and hunched his shoulders as he shivered his way across the parking lot to the building.\n\nLarge windows in Miranda George's modern third-floor suite looked out on the dark, wind-tossed river and showcased ominous clouds, but the hazelnut coffee offered to Royal was soothing and warmed him from the inside out. He stood near the glass, absently watching gulls fight against the wind and swoop for floating tidbits, wondering what light, if any, this meeting might shed on the secrets of his life.\n\n\"Mr. Stewart? Please come in.\" Miranda George beckoned him into her office. Her voice was crisp and well modulated. Tall, with a cap of greying hair, she was stylish but businesslike in a severe dark suit softened by a pastel lavender blouse. \"I'm so sorry about Grace's death.\"\n\nRoyal nodded. \"Thank you. I should have come before this.\"\n\n\"I'd hoped you would, but I'm sure you've been quite busy. Please sit.\" She indicated a comfortable chair and positioned herself behind her desk.\n\nRoyal tried to hold back, but his questions boiled up, spewed out like steam from an overheated teakettle. \"There's so much I need to know. How did Grace Temple know about me? What can you tell me about my mother? The family I didn't know I had? How was I simply forgotten, thrown into foster care? How did you find me now? Why didn't Grace look for me long ago? Why\u2014\"\n\n\"Please.\" Smiling, the attorney held up both hands, palms out. \"One question at a time. I'll answer anything I can. \"\n\n\"Sorry.\" Royal sat back and took a deep breath, recognizing compassion in the lawyer's face. \"I'm floundering here, as you can see. Caught between wanting information and half afraid of what I'll learn.\"\n\n\"I do understand. Grace was my dear friend as well as my client. It may help you to know that the great sorrows of her life were your mother's estrangement from the family and the loss of you.\" At the surprise on his face, she continued, \"Oh, yes, Angela sent news of your birth. From Montgomery, Alabama. No address, no letter, just the announcement with a note that said, 'His name is Royal. My little king.' Grace commented that your mother had always had a poetic streak.\"\n\nThe attorney opened a desk drawer and brought out a thick envelope. \"Grace was a discerning woman who left nothing to chance. She gave this to me when she first asked me to look for you. Though she was in good health, she felt the future at her age was uncertain. There were things she wanted you to know in case she never had the chance to tell you herself. Hence, this.\" Ms. George handed him the envelope. \"I'm sure you'll want to read it in private.\"\n\nThe attorney got up, walked to the window, walked back. \"Grace was said to be psychic. As things turned out, perhaps she was. Who could have predicted her fall down stairs she'd used daily for so many years? And just when you and she were finally to be together.\" Miranda's face softened. \"I'm proud to have known Grace. She was kind and stalwart. Now you'll know her through her own words. We talked about you many times, wondered where you might be, whether you were all right? What were you doing, were you successful? How might we uncover the path you took when you ran from foster care?\"\n\nRoyal frowned. So much to take in. \"She knew I was in foster care? Why didn't she come for me then?\"\n\n\"Oh, don't misunderstand. She didn't know that until much later when you had already taken off on your own. I'm sure it will all be explained in the letter. But I can tell you that the only other communication Grace ever got from your mother was a picture of her and the man we thought was your father, though we never were able to find out if they married. The letter was somehow mislaid in the mail and didn't reach Grace until after your parents were already dead. The postmark led to the Mississippi town where the accident happened, but years had passed and the trail was cold. We didn't know your father's name, you see. And by the time we learned where you'd been sent to foster care, we hit a dead end. Because you'd run away.\"\n\n\"And changed my name. But you did find me. How?\"\n\n\"Some luck. So much of life depends on luck, don't you agree? A friend of a friend with nimble fingers and the ability to work computer magic.\" Ms. George paused and scrutinized Royal's face before going on. \"Are you all right? Do you need water or anything?\"\n\nRoyal shook his head. \"No, nothing. Tell me more.\"\n\n\"Thank God you didn't change your first name, too. There aren't that many men your age named Royal. The others\u2014and there were a few\u2014all had family histories we could trace. You didn't.\"\n\nRoyal turned the thick envelope to see his name carefully written in spidery but elegant cursive script. He didn't know what he should feel but his stomach churned, his mind swirled. It was an effort not to rip the envelope open here, now, devour her words that must hold the answers he sought. Were they actually here in his hand? He raised his head, asked, \"You've read this?\"\n\nShe shook her head. \"It wasn't mine to read. I do hope it will bring you the heritage you've never known.\"\n\nMind reeling, Royal stood, remembered his manners and held out his hand. \"Thank you. Grace Temple was fortunate to have you as a friend.\"\n\n\"And I her,\" answered Miranda George, walking him to the door. \"I miss having her in my life.\"\n\nRoyal nodded. \"Me, too.\"\n\nHis thoughts a jumble and feeling as though he moved through thick fog, Royal made himself drive carefully from downtown to Temple House. He stowed the Porsche in the garage and walked through the kitchen into the well-stocked bar in the library\u2014thank God Grace had her comforts\u2014and poured himself a generous amount of expensive brandy before sinking into a recliner near the fireplace. He turned the unopened envelope over and over in his hands, asking himself, what am I going to find? What do I want to find? The answers to the \"whys\" that plague my life? Will I learn who I am, really? And what then?\n\nHe didn't sip. He took a healthy swig of the liquor that burned all the way down. He leaned back and closed his eyes. What am I afraid of? He wished Toni were here with him and almost reached for his phone, but shook his head. No. This was his, Royal Stone's\u2014correction, Stewart's\u2014life here in this envelope.\n\nBut maybe his great aunt had it all wrong. Maybe she didn't know anything real, just wrote what she surmised, just\u2014 What? Hoped? Wanted him to be her sister's grandchild, someone to leave her legacy, her only connection to the future? He sat, holding the envelope. Just holding the envelope.\nChapter Twenty-Two\n\nHis second phone rang. The Group.\n\n\"Stewart.\" Black Suit's voice was crisp. \"What have you got so far?\"\n\nI'm not sure. Royal's mind was still on the packet in his hands. Maybe my life, the one I've always wondered about. Do I give a damn about The Group and Bryce Andrew's transgressions? Not right now, I don't. But he reined in his thoughts, went to the desk and booted up his computer. He answered, \"Nothing concrete yet. I've been monitoring known deposits and withdrawals. Nothing's surfaced in the regular channels.\"\n\n\"Because they're using new ones. We've been alerted that a shipment came through Paris yesterday and disappeared, morphed into euros somewhere between there and Sierra Leone and is being filtered as we speak into various banks overseas.\"\n\n\"Hold on.\" Royal pulled up a database he'd compiled from former assignments and tapped a few keys. \"I believe I know which ones they'll use.\"\n\n\"You do?\" Surprise was evident in Black Suit's voice.\n\n\"I do. Give me a couple of days to make sure this funnels down the way I think it will. I don't yet have the proof we need.\"\n\n\"You mean to nail Andrews.\"\n\n\"Yes. But he's not alone in this. That would be far too easy.\" Royal thought for a moment. \"He's cleverly muddied his tracks, but he's left a couple of threads for me to pull.\" Would one of those threads lead to Sam Neeley? Or to the mysterious Monica Asher? \"There's someone I need to see. I'll get back to you.\"\n\n\"Soonest.\" The connection was broken.\n\nWith reluctance, Royal put Grace Temple's letter on the desk. Later. When I can give it my full attention. And, maybe, share it with Toni.\n\n****\n\nToni sighed, sat back from her drawing board and twiddled her pencil back and forth between her fingers. Try as hard as she could, she wasn't able to keep her mind on the details of a pattern for a court jester. It shouldn't be that difficult to put on paper. She'd already made the costume for Southwest's high school play without having a formal pattern to work from, but she'd had to rip and re-sew a couple of times. This was the last drawing needed before she could query a publisher about the project. None of her patterns were one-size-fits-all so she'd added specific dimension changes for each design from size 6 to\u2014she smiled at the idea\u2014a hefty 42. She pictured a big, bouncy jester spicing up a play. She penciled in an intricacy of buttons down the back and included the three triangles for the matching hat with the required gold bells on each tip.\n\nHer fingers were busy with the drawing but her thoughts were on Jack. She'd tried to call him, got only his answering machine. Called his office; he hadn't been in for two days. Driven past his apartment complex but his car wasn't there. Where would he have gone? It was like him to bounce his problems off his sister\u2014which he'd already done\u2014but what happened since? The debilitating depression he fell into after his breakup with Claudia had been terrifying. Toni hoped to heaven this wouldn't throw him into another.\n\n\"Dammit, Midnight.\" She reached down to pull the cat into her lap. \"Where the hell is he?\"\nChapter Twenty-Three\n\nRoyal slid into the chair beside Phil Carson's desk and waited for the detective to look up from the stack of files in front of him. Royal hoped for the best, that he might welcome an interruption.\n\nCarson acknowledged Royal with a curt nod. \"Mr. Stewart. To what do I owe the pleasure?\"\n\n\"I want to thank you for giving me the file on Grace Temple's fall.\"\n\nThe detective relaxed as if he'd been expecting a confrontation. \"No problem. It's public record. I hope it was helpful.\"\n\n\"It was, as far as the police work part of it. That's solid, as you know. I still have questions about whether her fall was accidental, but there was no evidence to point in that direction.\"\n\n\"As I told you.\" Carson rubbed the stubble on his chin and nodded. \"But there's always conjecture about deaths like hers.\"\n\n\"I'm sure.\" Stewart leaned forward. \"Detective, has a grifter named Sam Neeley come to your attention here?\"\n\nCarson frowned. \"Doesn't ring a bell. In connection with what?\"\n\n\"Probably petty crime.\"\n\nCarson narrowed his eyes. \"Why? Who is he? What do you know about him?\"\n\n\"For one thing, he's done time in an Ohio prison for robbery. I think he followed me to Green Bay. He tailed Toni and me to Door County, tried to break into my car and made some nebulous threats, crazy talk. Since then he's disappeared, but that would be too good to be true. I'm pretty sure he's here somewhere, planning something, and I'm afraid it will involve Toni.\"\n\nCarson sat up. \"Toni! Why do you think that?\"\n\n\"Mainly his smart-mouthed, cocky attitude. And the way he looked at her.\"\n\n\"Can't hang a man for looking at someone as attractive as Toni.\" Carson leaned back to narrow his eyes at Royal. \"Is this just a word to the should-be wise? One of those worst-case scenarios? Something 'might' happen?\"\n\nRoyal shrugged and got up. \"You could say that. I can't tell you more right now.\"\n\n\"Or you'd have to kill me. Isn't that the way the line goes?\" Carson forced a lop-sided grin and picked up the top file from the pile. \"Thanks for the warning, but I don't put much weight on 'something bad's maybe gonna happen' theories, Stewart.\"\n\n\"Me, either, but he's trouble, Detective, make no bones about it.\"\n\nCarson watched Royal leave, jotted \"Sam Neeley\" down on his desk blotter and booted up his computer.\n\n****\n\nGlad to be at home after a long day working on Halloween costumes, Toni wandered through her living room, pulling the drapes against the early, windy dark, worrying about Jack. He's a big boy, she kept telling herself. He wouldn't do something dumb. But where has he gone? It's been three days. Why hasn't he phoned, or stopped by the shop? All her calls had gone directly to his voicemail, which he hadn't picked up.\n\nWhen her doorbell rang she nearly tripped over the coffee table in her hurry to get to the front entry. It had to be Jack, and they could talk and\u2014what then, she didn't know. Maybe she could help him work things out. But at least she'd know where he was, and what shape he was in. She flung open the door and stepped back in surprise to see the wind-buffeted figure that was illuminated by the overhead light. \"Kate!\"\n\n\"I'm so sorry for just dropping in, but Toni, please don't mind.\" The chill October weather tossed Kate's short hair and swirled the damp smells of fall into the house. \"I need to speak with you.\"\n\n\"Of course. Come in.\" If I can't talk with Jack, at least I can hear the other side of what went on between those two. She took Kate's arm. \"I was just going to light a fire. We need one on a night like this. Let me take your coat and get you something warming to drink.\"\n\n\"Thanks so much. I don't want to intrude on your evening, but\u2014\" she stopped.\n\n\"Nonsense.\" Toni hung Kate's coat in the closet, ushered her to the sofa and stood back. \"You look as miserable as Jack did the last time I saw him.\"\n\n\"You saw him?\" Kate's face brightened. \"Was he all right? When?\"\n\n\"Just after he left you, I would guess. He was, as our grandmother used to say, 'fit to be tied.'\"\n\n\"I'm so sorry.\" Kate closed her eyes and shook her head. \"I've hurt him deeply when all I really wanted was to be honest because our relationship was so important to me. He wouldn't hear me out, just took off as though\u2014\" Her voice caught and she threw up her hands. \"Oh, I don't know how to explain it, as though I'd shot him through with an arrow.\"\n\nToni knelt to touch a lighter to the already-laid fire and watched twigs catch before getting up. \"There's a history that you don't know, Kate. At least I'd be surprised to hear that Jack told you anything about Claudia?\" At Kate's head shake, Toni said, \"I didn't think so. Wait. I'm going to get us a couple of glasses of good wine. Settle back and relax. I'll only be a minute.\"\n\n\"You don't need to\u2014\" Kate began, but Toni cut her off.\n\n\"Oh, yes, I do. And you do, too. Stay right there.\" Toni was back in a few moments with deep red wine, handed one goblet to Kate and sat in the wing chair across from her. \"Now, let's talk. You see...\"\n\nTwo more refills of wine later, Toni understood what had happened between her brother and Kate, and Kate understood why her revelations had so devastated Jack.\n\n\"It's all mixed up. I'd already decided to quit my job and stay here if Jack wanted me to,\" Kate admitted. \"And that's what I most wanted him to know. But my work is sensitive and there's a situation here in Green Bay that must be resolved before someone gets really hurt and I can't tell anyone, not yet. I wasn't lying to Jack, Toni,\" Kate said, her eyes pleading understanding. \"Not about us. I love him. More than I ever thought I could love anybody. I've never had a problem like this before. I always just moved in, did what needed to be done and moved on out. Because no man ever meant anything to me, but Jack\u2014\" she closed her eyes and shook her head again, \"Jack's special.\"\n\n\"No argument there,\" agreed Toni. \"He told me right after he met you that he thought you were,\" Toni made parentheses with her fingers, \"The One, capital T, capital O.\"\n\n\"He did?\" Kate smiled for the first time since she'd come in. \"How funny. I thought the same thing about him.\"\n\n\"So.\" Toni rubbed her face with both hands. \"Now we just have to find Jack. I've been thinking, and I believe I have an idea where he may have gone.\" She got up. \"Go home and get some sleep, Kate. Dress warm in jeans and tennies. I'll pick you up at eight sharp and we'll see if we can fix this mess.\"\n\n\"Really? Do you think we can?\" The hope in Kate's eyes almost lit up the room.\n\n\"Go.\" Toni said, pulling Kate to her feet. \"I'll see you in the morning.\"\nChapter Twenty-Four\n\n\"Where are we going?\" Kate asked as she slipped into the passenger seat of Toni's van and buckled her seat belt. \"Do you really know where Jack might be?\"\n\n\"I just have a pretty good hunch,\" said Toni, heading for the east side of town. \"But I think it's a good guess. There was an old shack in the woods we sometimes biked to when we were kids. I haven't been there for years so don't get your hopes up. It may not even still be there, but it was where we used to run to when things weren't going right for either one of us.\"\n\nKate raised her eyebrows. \"Like a hideout? A secret place? That sounds wonderful!\"\n\nToni laughed. \"Well, we thought it was wonderful. Secret, all overgrown with vines\u2014you could hardly see the building, such as it was\u2014ramshackle and musty. We called it our Safe Haven. We never told any of our friends about it.\" She smiled, remembering. \"We hauled stuff out there little by little: an old comforter, outgrown toys, some dishes Mom never missed. Those were the days when kids could spend all day playing and only come home in time for supper. Like I said, I just have a hunch but I'm hoping.\" She chewed on her lip. \"If Jack's not there, I have no idea where he may have gone.\"\n\nKate was silent for a moment. \"I'm praying he's there and that he'll talk to me. Or at least let me talk to him, explain. He was so distressed, and then so furious with me. What if he\u2014\" Her voice broke. \"What if he really hates me?\"\n\n\"Isn't that a pretty strong word?\"\n\n\"Yes. But you didn't see him, Toni. It was ugly.\"\n\n\"I've seen Jack ugly. He gets over it.\" Toni pulled off the main highway, then onto a side road that wound into a small patch of thick deciduous woods and disappeared. \"Oh, good. I was afraid some developer might have taken over this whole area. It's prime land so it probably won't be long before someone does.\" She stopped the car. \"The shack's a ways back in the trees. This road in isn't much and I'm not good at backing out, so let's walk.\"\n\n\"Would Jack have driven?\" Kate frowned, peering ahead. \"I don't see a car.\"\n\n\"You wouldn't see it from here. Come on.\" Toni reached into the back seat and pulled out a basket holding a thermos, some cups and fragrant muffins. \"Hot, strong coffee. If I know Jack, I have a feeling that he's going to be nursing one wicked hangover.\"\n\nKate sighed and reached out to touch Toni's arm. \"Thank you. For whatever happens.\"\n\n\"You're welcome.\" Toni smiled and started to lead the way into the woods. \"What are friends for?\"\n\nThe late October sun was brilliant but the fall wind soughed through empty branches overhead as Toni and Kate scuffled through crisp leaves covering an almost indistinguishable road into the underbrush. Ahead, squirrels skittered across the ground and up the tree trunks, chattering.\n\n\"I've never been in woods like this. It's almost creepy,\" said Kate, eyeing the animals. \"It sounds like they're going to attack us.\"\n\nToni laughed. \"Spoken like a big city girl. They're just letting us know we're invading their territory,\"\n\n\"Really? Okay, then.\" Kate peered into the trees. \"Is it much farther?\"\n\n\"Just a bit.\" Toni switched the basket from one hand to the other and gave a relieved sigh, pointing to the back of Jack's car at the edge of the shack. \"Look!\"\n\n\"Thank God,\" breathed Kate, but she stopped walking and covered her face with her hands. Then she turned to Toni, eyes wide. \"What if he won't even talk to me? Won't hear me out?\"\n\n\"He'll talk to me,\" said Toni, striding ahead. \"Right about now I think Jack will do anything for a cup of hot strong coffee.\"\n\nKate followed Toni as she pushed open the creaky lichen-covered door and called, \"Good morning, sunshine! Is it gonna rain, dear?\"\n\nA groan emanated from under the dusty comforter on the old couch where only the top of dark mussed hair was visible. \"Go away.\"\n\n\"Not a chance.\" Toni set the basket on the rickety crate that served as a snack table, poured a cup of coffee and wafted it near Jack's head.\n\nHe moved slightly, groaned. \"Are you an angel? Do I smell coffee?\"\n\n\"Not that you deserve it. How long have you been here? I've been looking all over for you.\" Toni knocked over an empty whisky bottle with the toe of her sneaker. \"Jeez, Jack, did you drink all that Scotch?\"\n\n\"Needed it. Didn't help.\" Jack emerged from under the blanket, bleary eyed, hair in clumps, face sleep-wrinkled. He reached for the mug and cradled it as though it were precious. \"Thanks. So much.\" Then he looked behind Toni to see Kate. His face darkened. \"What's she doing here! We never bring anybody here.\"\n\nToni pushed Jack's feet aside, sat down and poured coffee for herself and Kate. \"She needs to be here. She needs to talk, and you need to listen.\"\n\nJack kept his gaze on his coffee. \"She did talk, and I heard more than I wanted to hear. She's a liar. Just like Claudia.\"\n\nKate put her cup down, stepped closer and knelt in front of him, pleading. \"But you didn't listen. Please, Jack, let me explain.\"\n\nJack turned his head away. \"I don't even want to look at you.\"\n\nToni set her cup near the thermos and got up. \"Well, you'd better listen, and you'd better look, because I've done my part. I'm going home and leaving you two to work this out.\" She touched Kate lightly on the shoulder and gave her a brief smile. \"Good luck.\"\n\n\"What?\" Kate squeaked. \"Don't leave! I can't find my way out of here!\"\n\n\"Jack can. He'll have to leave you or bring you, or both of you can stay. Up to you. Enjoy the coffee.\" Without another word she went out, pulling the creaky door closed behind her.\n\nBack at Wannabe, Toni spent the rest of the morning like a robot, putting finishing touches on some late-order costumes, finalizing some drawings for her pattern book, walking to the window to aimlessly watch traffic going by on Main street, then drifting back to the counter. Even the soothing easy-listening music playing through the shop didn't help. What had happened at the shack after she left? Had she done the right thing by walking out? Would Jack ever forgive her for taking Kate to their special, private place? Would they work things out or was their relationship irretrievably broken? And if it was, would Jack recover?\n\nThe hours dragged with no answers. Toni made coffee but it tasted bitter and she tossed it out, made another pot. Lunchtime came and went but she couldn't stomach her sandwich and set it aside. Surely Jack would call, or better yet, come. If for nothing else, to berate her for sticking her nose in where it didn't belong. Even that would be an improvement over this limbo, wondering whether he was ever going to speak to her again. And what about Kate? In their late-night heart-to-heart Toni had come to know and like Kate and felt even more sure that Kate and Jack were meant to be together.\n\nAfternoon light was waning and just as Toni was about to pick up the phone to call Drea for moral support, Jack breezed into Wannabe carrying a wreath of bittersweet berries and wearing a smile that lit up the room. \"Hey, sis, got a minute?\"\n\nThe relief she felt weakened Toni's knees and she sank onto the counter stool. \"Have I got a minute?\" She didn't know whether hug him or hit him. \"Are you crazy? Don't you know I've been going berserk here wondering what happened and whether you'd ever speak to me again?\"\n\n\"And here I am. I probably don't look it but I'm right as rain, as Gramps used to say when things were just fine, which they are. This is for you.\" He laid the colorful wreath on the countertop.\n\n\"It's beautiful.\" Toni touched the brilliant orange vine. \"You remembered how much I love bittersweet. Thanks so much. Now give!\"\n\n\"Ahhh, my precioussss,\" Jack said in a perfect imitation of Gollum from Lord of the Rings. \"Life is sssssssoooo good!\" He dropped onto the stool across the counter, grinning like a fool.\n\nToni laughed with pure joy and leaned over the counter to punch his arm. \"Help yourself to coffee. Then talk.\" She got up, hung the wreath on the inside of the door and stood back. \"Perfect. It brightens the whole shop. Wherever did you find it?\"\n\nJack poured himself a cup with a flourish and topped off hers. \"It was growing right by the window of the shack, and we found some on the hill, too. I told Kate how much you loved it and she said, 'Well, take her some.' So here it is.\"\n\n\"Aha. Walking in the woods with Kate on a lovely October day.\" Toni nodded, her eyes twinkling. \"How romantic. Jack, if you don't stop smiling you're going to crack your face.\"\n\nHe pretended to wipe the smile away and reached across the counter to take her hand. \"Seriously, Toni, thanks. Bringing Kate was exactly what I needed. My stupid pride would have kept me from hanging onto the best thing that's ever happened to me. Things are going to be all right, and that wouldn't have happened without you.\"\n\n\"You don't know how I've agonized about leaving her there with you and the mood you were in.\"\n\n\"Part of that was guilt, and part pure hangover. How I got through those woods without hitting a tree is beyond me.\"\n\n\"You've come to grips about her job?\"\n\nHe rubbed his jaw. \"That's a little sticky right now, but we're going to work that out.\" His grin was back. \"There are some things she can't tell me, yet. But she will, when this job is finished. She's going to quit, Toni. Stay here with me. Make our future together. Gimme a high five!\"\n\nToni slapped her palm against his. \"Guess I'd better call Mom and tell her things are looking up.\"\n\n\"Yeah, tell her she'll have an extra guest for Thanksgiving. You and Royal, too?\" He looked at his watch. \"Gotta go. I really need a shower.\" At the door he stopped. \"I know we always do something fun on Halloween, but\u2014\"\n\nShe waved him away. \"It's okay, go be with Kate. You're off the hook. Royal has asked me out to dinner.\"\n\n\"Oh, good. Maybe you'll work things out, too?\"\n\n\"Maybe.\" Toni sighed. \"One can always hope. Scoot. I've got to finish up here so I can get beautiful.\"\n\n\"You're already beautiful, sis. Love ya.\"\n\n\"Same goes.\" Toni said. \"Happy Halloween.\"\nChapter Twenty-Five\n\nWith a smile, Toni watched Jack's jaunty step as he went to his car. Halloween. Her favorite day had finally turned out all right. Jack and Kate were fine, or were going to be. Royal was back in town and would pick her up for their first dinner date since their weekend in Door County. Maybe she'd even find out where he'd been, if he didn't give her that \"not for publication\" message again.\n\nShe'd sent her last costume out the door about noon and had spent the afternoon cleaning up the remnants of Halloween scraps in her workshop. It was going to be a marvelous night for trick or treating, just a sliver of moon, blustery and shadowy, perfect for nefarious deeds. Things weren't quite the same for kids these days since they were supposed to be off the streets by seven, but it would be dark before six, so at least they'd have some scary boo-time to run through the neighborhoods.\n\nThe clown's hands on the wall clock said it was nearly time to slip into her slim black sheath for their date. She straightened her back and sighed with relief when she tied up the last garbage bag to take it out back to the alley dumpster. She was bone tired and couldn't wait to sit down, sip on a gimlet and enjoy Royal's company.\n\nThe wind whirled fallen leaves across the path and tousled her long hair around her face, reminding that she'd need a quick repair job before seeing Royal. She trudged over the browning grass and reached to toss the overfilled garbage bag up into the dumpster when a stick snapped underfoot behind her. Before she could turn to see who was there a hand clapped over her mouth and an arm snaked around her waist and pulled her to a wiry body. \"No noise, see? Got it?\"\n\nHer overfilled bag fell to the ground and split open. Brilliant scraps tumbled out to be tossed helter-skelter by the wind.\n\nHas to be Jack, always the Halloween trickster. She tried to wiggle loose to yell, \"Jack, cut it out!\" But the man didn't smell like Jack. He wasn't as large. And his hand tasted greasy. She couldn't breathe. She struggled to turn away, but he held her fast. Her heart thumped in her ears.\n\n\"Gonna be quiet?\" The guttural voice was accompanied by a tightening of the arm around her waist.\n\nShe knew that voice. She'd heard it in the parking lot at the Fall Ball, and now it sent shivers down her spine. She tried to turn, to loosen the man's grip, with no success. He was waiting for an answer. She nodded.\n\nHe took his hand from her mouth. \"Okay, then. Tell me where Stone is.\"\n\n\"What kind of stupid game are you playing?\" She managed to twist around to look into his face. What she saw there wasn't encouraging. \"Who are you looking for?\"\n\n\"What d'you mean, who? Royal Stone, bitch. Who else?\"\n\nNobody called her a bitch and got away with it. She stamped hard on his foot, wishing she had on stiletto heels instead of her sensible tennies. And why did he call Royal Stone instead of Stewart?\n\nThe man grunted but held her tighter. \"Quit fussin'! You're comin' with me.\"\n\nToni snorted. \"In your dreams. Why would I do that?\"\n\nWith a swift move he pulled a pair of handcuffs from his pocket and clasped her hands together behind her back before she could react. \"Because if I've got you, Stone'll come to find me. And then we can do a swap. You for the diamonds he got from his last trip overseas. Easy peazy. Got it?\"\n\nJust then a troop of little Halloween revelers swarmed down the unlit alley toward them, yelling, \"Trick or treat! Trick or treat!\" They danced around Toni and the man, holding their bags open for candy.\n\nToni's heart stopped. Would he hurt the children? She shut her eyes. Maybe they would see that he was holding her against her will. Maybe they'd tell someone...\n\n\"Beat it, kids,\" growled her captor. \"Got nothin' here but trouble to give ya. And you,\" he twisted the skin on Toni's forearm, \"you don't say a damn word!\"\n\nOne brave little pirate slashed the air with his rubber sword. \"Pirates ain't afraid of trouble,\" he said with bravado, but even in the dim light Toni could see his chin was quivering. \"C'mon, mateys.\" He turned with a swish of his cape and ran, not looking back. Suddenly the alley was quiet, except for some late crickets chirping and the wind soughing through bare branches.\n\n\"Proud of yourself?\" taunted Toni. \"Scaring little kids?\"\n\n\"Aw, shut up. They don't have nothin' to do with this.\" The man still had her in a vice-tight grip.\n\n\"For crying out loud, let me go! I haven't the faintest idea where Royal is. I have to lock the shop, and set the alarm. Tonight of all nights, the cops are watching. This isn't the best part of town, you know.\" Even in the half-light she could see malice in the man's face. If she could just get to the phone...\n\n\"You're doin' no such. And you talk too much.\" He duck-walked her to the rusted pickup she hadn't noticed parked in the murky alley, slapped a swatch of duct tape over her mouth, pulled a filthy bag over her head and shoved her inside. \"We got somewhere to be.\"\n\n****\n\nAt Temple House, Royal closed down his laptop, looked up at the grandfather clock and smiled. Almost seven. Knowing he'd see Toni in a few minutes lifted his spirits. He ran a comb through his hair, shrugged on a sport coat and whistled his way out the door.\n\nAt Wannabe he frowned to find the lights on and the door unlocked. \"Toni?\" he called but got no response. Midnight stretched out on the floor eyeing a ragged catnip mouse as though he expected it to jump up and run away. The cat flicked his tail at Royal but didn't move.\n\n\"Toni?\"\n\nStill no answer.\n\nPuzzled, Royal walked through the workshop to the back door, which was also, to his surprise, unlocked. Perhaps she'd taken the garbage to the alley. He stepped outside to see a split plastic bag flapping open near the recycling bin. The dim alley light picked up bits of brilliant material tumbling over the ground. Odd. Where the hell was she? \"Toni!\" he shouted, but only heard the wind in the trees.\n\nA frisson of dread flowed down his spine. Something was wrong. So wrong. She would never leave her store like that, certainly not on Halloween when any sort of mischief might sprout from twisted minds. If something happened to her...\n\nHe pulled out his regular cell phone and called Jack Dresser. \"Is Toni with you?\"\n\n\"No. She had a date with you tonight, last I heard.\"\n\n\"Right. But she's not here at the shop. It's open, the lights are on, and garbage is spread all over the back yard.\"\n\nJack's voice was immediately concerned. \"Not good. Not like Toni at all.\"\n\n\"No.\" Royal's phone beeped. \"Hold on, I'm getting another call. Maybe it's Toni. I'll call you back.\"\n\nBut it wasn't Toni.\n\n\"I told you I'd be in touch, Stone. I've got your bitch and she's not lookin' happy. Now you give me that last delivery of diamonds and I'll give you your woman and we'll call it good. I'm in the driver's seat now and this time you ain't too good to play along. You do what I tell you. Just wait right there. And don't call the cops.\" Click.\n\nRoyal's stomach clenched. The voice needed no identification. Sam Neeley. And he had Toni. Royal shut his eyes, pictured her lovely face. She had to be frightened. Where had Sam taken her? He'd always hated Royal, always wanted to drag him into his shady lifestyle. Who knew what the man would do? Especially if he knew how much Toni had come to mean to Royal, something that was so new he didn't even understand it himself.\n\nSo Sam knows about the diamonds. But how did he make the connection to me? He must have followed me to Green Bay. From where? Royal shook his head. With his training he should have picked up any tail. The Group's security had never been broken in the years he'd worked with them. Royal gritted his teeth. I should have known that sneaky bastard would be trouble as soon as I saw him in Door County. And what did he mean when he said, \"You owe me?\" Unbidden, the memory of one night when he and Sam were living with the Masons blew into his mind.\n\n\"Been lookin' for you, Royal.\" Sam had swaggered into the room they shared. \"Got a great idea for a con. Easy money. C'mon, it'll be a snap.\"\n\nRoyal had looked up from studying his history book. \"Sorry, Sam. Not interested.\"\n\n\"Well, ain't that just great.\" Sam plopped down on the other twin bed. \"Ain't you just hoity-toity. Too good for the likes of me, are you?\"\n\nRoyal sighed. He knew his parents had been killed running from the law. That wasn't the future he planned for himself. \"Too good for the likes of a life of crime, Sam. How long before you end up in prison?\"\n\nSam snorted. \"Too smart for that.\"\n\nIt was Royal's turn to snort. \"Can it, Sam. I'm going to get through school and into business. I'll make my money the legal way.\"\n\n\"Sure you will. And I'm going to be the Secretary of State.\" Sam had stomped toward the door, looked back and said, \"You'll work with me sooner or later, Royal. I'll make it happen.\"\n\nAll Royal had said was, \"In your dreams, pal,\" but he still remembered having to rein himself in from decking Sam. What he'd said was too close to home. What if conning was in Royal's blood? Could he really move away from that legacy?\n\nThe sudden ringing of the phone still in his hand brought him back to Wannabe. It was Jack, his voice agitated. \"Was it Toni? Did she call?\"\n\n\"No. I'll have to get back to you, Jack. Something's happened and I have to handle it.\"\n\n\"Dammit, Royal, she's my sister! Is she in danger?\"\n\nRoyal hesitated. \"I hope not.\"\n\n\"What do you mean, you hope not? What's going on?\"\n\nRoyal heard brother's concern in Jack's voice. \"I think she's been kidnapped. And I have to wait for a call. That's all I can tell you right now. As soon as I know anything\u2014\"\n\n\"Where are you?\"\n\n\"At Wannabe.\"\n\n\"I'm at Kate's. I'll be there in ten.\" Jack said, his voice tight. \"Wait for me. Call the police.\"\n\n\"No! I know this guy, Jack. Believe me, that would be a mistake.\"\n\n****\n\nRiding in the dirty pickup with her head in a bag that smelled like mold and who knew what else, and with her hands cuffed behind her had been bad enough, but Neeley had twisted a length of duct tape around her ankles as well.\n\n\"Not too tight, init?\" he'd asked. \"Just for no runnin' away, see?\" When the truck stopped he jerked the bag off her head and through the splotched windshield she saw a six-unit paint-peeling ramshackle motel that could only be described as \"recently condemned\" or should be.\n\nHe pulled her from the pickup and slung her over his shoulder as though she weighed nothing, kneed open a warped door and flipped on a fly-specked bulb hanging from the ceiling. He tossed her onto a mattress covered by a threadbare spread whose colors had long been washed away. The bedsprings creaked in protest and the old carved wooden bedposts from a more elegant era leaned haphazardly as though the whole thing might collapse.\n\nToni could almost feel bedbugs skittering under the cover and she wriggled to sit up on the very edge, staying away from a couple of broken wires that poked up through the mattress. Not your usual lover's tryst, she thought, and wondered how Neeley had even found the place. She'd lived in Green Bay all her life and had no knowledge of it.\n\n\"This'll only hurt for a second.\" He ripped the duct tape from her mouth.\n\n\"Ow!\" Toni's chin came up. \"Why did you do that?\"\n\n\"Better than peelin' it off slow.\" He stood back and looked her up and down, nodding, and Toni was glad she hadn't had time to dress in her slim black sheath for dinner. Her work slacks and black T-shirt would do fine for a hostage. Somehow she didn't think Sam Neeley was going to hurt her, but she wasn't sure, and she couldn't figure out just what he would do if Royal didn't come for her. She'd heard Neeley's one-sided demand and realized that Bryce Andrews really did know what he was talking about when he said Royal was involved with diamonds. But, she told herself, that didn't mean he was dealing illegally, did it? Surely diamonds were bought and sold every day by reputable businessmen.\n\n\"Who are you? And why did you call Royal Stone?\"\n\n\"'Cause that was his name when I knew him.\" Neeley pulled out the wobbly straight chair from a listing table by the dirt-crusted window and straddled the seat, facing her and crossing his arms on the chair back. \"I'm Sam Neeley. Me and your friend Royal go way back.\"\n\nReally. Maybe he'll tell me more about Royal. \"Oh? Where was that?\"\n\n\"Wouldn't you like to know.\" Neeley lit a cigarette, spit a bit of tobacco onto the floor and leaned back, his eyes roving over her body. \"I doubt Stone's told you about me.\"\n\nOr anything else. Always catch more flies with honey, she told herself and gave Neeley a forced little smile. \"Yes, you're right. He hasn't told me anything about his past. Now, you look like a man who knows how to make things go your way.\" She leaned forward. \"Do you really think he'll trade diamonds for me?\" She almost laughed at Neeley's surprise.\n\n\"'Course he will. Look at you.\"\n\nShe frowned. \"What does that mean?\"\n\n\"All that curly hair, and that perky little nose. Yeah, he'll trade.\" Nodding, Neeley took a deep drag on the cigarette and blew a stream of smoke toward the ceiling. \"Any man in his right mind would. Give him a little time to stew and try to figure out where we are, and then we'll call him again. He'll come for sure.\" He paused, nodding. \"You okay? I'll take off those cuffs for a while if you want, long's you don't try to run.\"\n\nAs if she could, with duct tape around her ankles. \"Yes, please. I'd appreciate it.\" What kind of a kidnapper asks his hostage if she's okay and if he should take off the cuffs? Her original fear of Sam Neeley had lessened to a green alert from the high orange she'd felt when he'd first grabbed her. He was just a small-time con man that didn't even carry a gun. At least she hadn't seen one. But he still gave her the creeps. \"What were you in prison for?\" she asked, rubbing her wrists where the handcuffs had chafed them.\n\nNeeley scowled. \"Who says I was? Stone?\"\n\n\"No. I told you Royal didn't tell me anything about you. I'm looking at those tattoos on your knuckles.\"\n\n\"Oh.\" As if to hide the evidence, he turned his hands over, palms up. \"Just a prank, when I was a kid.\"\n\nToni shrugged. \"Pranks can backfire. Guess we all do dumb stuff when we're kids.\"\n\nNeeley sucked another draw, coughed. \"Not all. Stone didn't. He was a damn straight arrow. Prob'ly still is.\"\n\nI do so want believe that. She leaned closer to her captor. \"How is it that you knew him? Are you both from the same town? Did you follow him here?\"\n\nHe almost looked as though he might answer, but instead said, \"You ask way too many questions.\" Neeley pulled his cell phone from his pocket and dialed.\n\nToni kept talking. \"You do know kidnapping is a federal offense, don't you? When Royal finds me you'll be back in prison for a long, long time.\"\n\n\"Yeah, yeah. But only if I'm caught. Get the diamonds and disappear, that's my plan. And Stone won't do a damn thing about it.\"\n\n\"That doesn't make any sense. Why won't he?\"\n\n\"'Cause he'll just want me to go away. I'm countin' on that.\" Into the phone he said, \"Yeah, Stone! Ready to deal?...Thought so. Meet me in twenty minutes at the laundromat on Bellevue...Yeah, that one, Swish and Swash, or somethin' like that...Bring the rocks, you wanna see your woman again. Gotta go, can't be hangin' on a phone that could be traced, that'd be stupid. See ya.\" Neeley ended the call with a smug look at Toni.\n\n\"He'll have the police there, you know.\"\n\n\"Not unless he wants them to know what he really does.\"\n\n\"And what is that?\"\n\nNeeley just sneered. \"Somethin' that makes big bucks. Hell, prob'ly a lot of people would like to know.\" He got up. \"Time to meet our friend.\" So suddenly she didn't have time to push away, he grabbed her arms and pulled her to the head of the bed.\n\n\"Hey! What are you doing?\" she sputtered, but he didn't answer.\n\nUsing two sets of handcuffs, he secured each of her wrists separately around the smallest diameter of the old ornately carved bedpost. He stood back and said, \"There! You'll be fine until I get back.\"\n\n\"Wait!\" She felt her eyes go wide and her stomach turned over. \"You're just leaving me here? In this rat hole?\"\n\n\"Relax, lady. It's not for long. And no use yelling. There ain't nobody within hollering distance.\" With a sly grin he was gone.\n\n****\n\n\"Dammit!\" Royal muttered, staring at the dead cell phone in his hand. \"He hung up too fast to get coordinates on his location.\"\n\nJack closed and locked Toni's shop door behind them and they headed for Jack's Chevy Malibu. \"Okay, what do we do now? You said you know him, so who is he?\"\n\n\"Somebody I knew a long time ago and hoped I'd never see again.\"\n\n\"That's real cryptic but not helpful.\" Jack hurried to catch up with Royal's long strides. \"Is this the guy in Sister Bay that Toni was worried about?\"\n\nRoyal nodded. \"Unfortunately, yes.\" He reached into the glove compartment of his Porsche and slipped something into his pocket, wishing he had time to swing by Temple House for his .45. Then he slid into Jack's passenger seat.\n\n\"What does he want?\" Jack asked.\n\n\"An even exchange. Two million dollars in uncut diamonds for Toni.\"\n\n\"Which, of course, you just happen to have.\" Sarcasm was clear in Jack's voice as he started the motor.\n\n\"Not this minute, but I could have, and he knows it.\"\n\nJack turned toward him, eyes narrowed. \"So Bryce Andrews was telling the truth.\"\n\n\"Andrews?\" Royal frowned. \"About what?\"\n\n\"That he saw you dealing diamonds in Antwerp.\"\n\n\"Well, isn't he just the fount of information. FYI, yes, I deal in diamonds for one of my accounts. I deliver, he's happy, I'm paid. That all right with you?\"\n\n\"Sorry,\" Jack said, putting the car in gear. \"Not my business. But what will happen if you trade them for Toni?\"\n\n\"It won't come to that. I'm guessing Neeley hasn't thought this whole thing through. He's a small-time crook who's already been in prison for burglary. He won't want to go back. I'm pretty sure he's smart enough to stay away from guns.\"\n\n\"But if we don't call the police?\" Jack deftly swung onto Main Street. A few straggling trick-or-treaters were still abroad, but legal Halloween hours were over and the streets had quieted.\n\n\"Not necessary. He wants to deal. We'll let him think he's got us where he wants us. The minute I have Toni I'll arrest him myself.\"\n\n\"You're some kind of cop?\" Jack narrowed his eyes, swerving to miss a smashed pumpkin in the street. \"You can do that?\"\n\n\"I can. I just hope he hasn't given her too bad a time.\"\n\nJack scowled. \"It almost sounds like you care about this guy.\"\n\n\"In a way, I guess I do.\" Royal sighed. \"He had bad breaks as a kid, made more bad breaks for himself. But he's paid for them, done his time. So far. Now it looks like he's made another bad decision.\"\n\n\"And he should pay for this one. I want him to pay.\" Jack turned his attention to driving, his jaw grim.\n\nThe Bellevue Swish and Swash laundromat was lit up but the parking lot was empty and dark. The fall wind skittered loose leaves across the tarmac and rattled the sign on the next door natural products shop. Sam Neeley's dirty pickup was parked in shadow at the east side of the building.\n\n\"Pull up in front of his truck, Jack,\" said Royal, \"so he can't skip out.\"\n\nJack did, shining his high beams into the pickup's empty cockpit. Royal opened his door to get out and only had one foot on the pavement before Neeley was in his face. \"Hand them over, Stone, you want your lady.\"\n\nHis expression threatening, Jack strode around the back of his car to confront Neeley. \"Who the hell do you think you are? And where's Toni?\"\n\nNeeley took a step back, scowling. \"Who's this guy?\"\n\nJack was nose to nose with Neeley. \"I'm Toni's brother, you son of a bitch, that's who I am, and I'll happily knock all your teeth out if Royal doesn't stop me. Where's my sister?\"\n\nNeeley ignored the question, turned toward Royal. \"Well, Stone? Show me the rocks and I'll tell you where she is.\"\n\n\"Why does he keep calling you Stone?\" Jack asked. \"Sounds like there's something I should know.\"\n\nNeeley sneered. \"Bet there's just a lot about our friend Royal that you don't know. Right, Stone?\"\n\n\"Stone's long gone, Sam. My name is Stewart.\"\n\n\"If you say so. Well? Hand over the rocks.\"\n\n\"When I have Toni. Where is she?\"\n\n\"Where I left her. I'll tell you soon's as I have those diamonds and you can go pick her up. I go my way, you go yours. No harm, no foul.\"\n\n\"I told you we should have called the police, Royal,\" put in Jack. \"They'd love to take care of this scum.\" He grabbed Neeley's arm. \"Where is she? Is she all right?\"\n\n\"Yeah.\" Neeley sneered again, shaking off Jack's arm. \"She's fine.\" He snickered. \"'Cept for being handcuffed to a bedpost.\"\n\n\"Handcuffed! You dirty\u2014\"\n\nRoyal stepped in. \"I'll handle this, Jack. Back off.\"\n\n\"She's my sister. It'd be my pleasure to beat it out of him.\"\n\n\"Don't get your undies in a bundle, Dresser. I told you she's fine.\"\n\n\"You left her tied up somewhere like a dog?\" The veins in Jack's neck stood out like ropes.\n\nNeeley shrugged. \"Won't be for long. Unless Royal here has some other ideas. He stepped closer and peered up into Royal's face. \"All depends on you, don't it?\"\n\nRoyal sighed, shaking his head. \"Sam, you never had enough sense to think things through. I have the authority to take you in right now, and you'll never see the outside again until you're too old to care about it. Your choice. Now, where's Toni?\"\n\nSam Neeley put up his chin. \"I said, I'll tell you where she is when I have the rocks. Got it?\"\n\nRoyal reached into his pocket and with a swift move, pulled out a pair of handcuffs, swiveled Neeley around and secured them behind his back. \"Sam Neeley, you're being held for the kidnapping of Antonia Dresser.\"\n\n\"You're kidding!\" Neeley said, frowning over his shoulder. \"After all I've done for you? You can't arrest me.\"\n\n\"I think he just did,\" put in Jack, grinning. To Royal, he said, \"Want me to call the police now?\"\n\n\"Toni first.\" Royal began to recite the Miranda.\n\n\"Shit, I've heard that all before,\" whined Neeley. \"Didn't stick then, neither.\"\n\n\"It will this time,\" said Royal. \"I've got the FBI behind me on this one. Kidnapping is a federal crime, and you'll be a two-time loser.\"\n\n\"Aw, Royal, c'mon,\" whined Neeley. \"I'll let her go. I was just funnin.' You remember how that was, right? Setting things up just to see how they'd play out?\"\n\nRoyal's jaw set in a hard line. \"That was then. You were a kid. You're not a kid now, and I'm not playing. Where is Toni?\"\n\nAll bravado gone, Neeley's shoulders slumped. \"Follow me.\" He started for his truck.\n\n\"No.\" Royal grabbed Neeley's shirt collar and threw him into the back seat of Jack's car. \"You're taking us to Toni. Now.\"\n\nBut when they got to the old motel, the big front window was nothing but shards of glass and Toni was gone.\n\n\"I swear I left her here,\" Neeley whined. \"Cuffed to that bedpost right there.\"\n\nThe bedpost was gone, too.\n\n\"Now,\" said Royal, \"it's time for the police.\"\nChapter Twenty-Six\n\nIt wasn't easy walking with a heavy, five-foot bedpost cuffed to her wrists, but it was better than being stuck in that vermin-infested room waiting for her captor to reappear. Toni hoisted the post over one shoulder and trudged down the deserted frontage road. It had to lead somewhere. No streetlights illuminated the clumps of grass and weeds growing out of the cracked and pitted tarmac. She knew Green Bay well but the bag over her head had kept her from seeing where Neeley drove, and all she knew was that she was outside the city and a good half-hour or more from her shop.\n\nNo moon, no stars. The chill wind went right through her lightweight, short-sleeved T-shirt. She shivered so hard her teeth actually chattered. If I'd known I was going to be kidnapped, I'd have worn warmer clothes.\n\nWhen Neeley left she'd spent some time seething, mulling over the situation. She tried calling out a few times but Neeley was right; nobody was near. What if something happened to him and he never got to Royal? She could starve to death here in this filthy room with no one the wiser.\n\nNot if she could help it. Think. There must be something she could do to get loose. Cut through that duct tape around her ankles somehow. Yeah. Sure.\n\nBut possibly... She wiggled around on the mattress and, much as she hated the idea of bedbugs, pulled her bound feet up onto the bed and lay down on her back. The position pulled her shoulders painfully, but even with her wrists cuffed to the bedpost over her head she could stretch just far enough to access one of the protruding broken bedspring wires with her feet. If she could just get the angle right, and if the end of the broken wire was sharp enough to score the tape. Maybe...\n\nYes! Fear and fury fueled her actions as she sawed the tape between her ankles back and forth on the sharpest of the wires, each thrust accompanied by a huff. Who did this jerk think he was! Little by little the sturdy tape split. Thank God he'd only used one layer. Sweat rolled down her face and pooled between her breasts by the time she freed her legs. She relaxed for a moment, catching her breath. Now, to get loose from the sturdy carved bedpost. That was going to be a trick. Neeley had locked the cuffs around a narrow area on the post, but the diameter of the rest of the wood was too large to slip the cuffs off.\n\n\"Okay, then,\" she said, still panting. \"This whole miserable old bed is wimbly. If I can't get away from the damn post, I'll knock the post loose from the frame.\" She twisted around\u2014thank God for practicing Yoga\u2014until she was able to kick at the bottom of the post. I can do this. I can.\n\nOver and over, each kick punctuated by a grunt, she worked until, with a protesting screech, the post finally separated from the headboard and the bed tipped lop-sidedly down. Before she could duck, the top end of the post windmilled and whammed into Toni's head with a thump. She fell to the floor, gasping, her legs tangled, one arm bleeding from scraping across the dingy carpet. She cringed. Who knew what germs lurked there? She struggled to her feet, hauled up the heavy bedpost and stumbled to the door.\n\nLocked.\n\n\"Why did the idiot lock it when he thought I couldn't move?\" Toni muttered. She stepped back and swung the lower end of the post at the big window beside the door. The wood bounced back, its momentum knocking her to the floor. She struggled up, planted her feet, grunted and swung the unwieldy post again, and again, with the same infuriating result. \"One more time, dammit!\" she sputtered and swung with all her might. With a resounding crash the window cracked, then shattered. She waited, breathing deep. Surely someone would have heard the sound of breaking glass, would come to investigate.\n\nNo one had.\n\nSo now she was wandering in the windy dark with the bedpost over one shoulder like one of the seven dwarfs coming home from the mine carrying his shovel, hi-ho, hi-ho. If I just keep walking I'll be bound to get somewhere. But her head really hurt. Her scraped arm smarted. She was cold. And she was so tired.\n\n****\n\nOnly minutes after Jack's call, two squad cars were followed by detective Phil Carson, who took possession of Sam Neeley and shoved him into the back of the police cruiser in spite of his wailing, \"You can't do this. Stone there arrested me already. We got things to talk about. You can't\u2014\" His voice was cut off as Carson slammed the door.\n\nHeadlights reflected off the wind-whipped yellow tape set up around the area as a crime scene photographer recorded the broken window, the damaged bed and close-ups of the blood on the carpeting.\n\n\"You say Toni did this?\" Carson questioned, looking at the broken glass on the ground outside the unit.\n\nJack answered, running his hand through his hair, his face a study in concern. \"She must have. Neeley says he left her here cuffed to the bedpost.\"\n\n\"How long ago?\"\n\n\"Probably not more than an hour. He called us to meet him at the Bellevue laundromat.\"\n\n\"He was demanding ransom?\"\n\nJack tilted his head at Royal, who said, \"In a way. Not money.\"\n\nCarson's brows went up. \"Not money? What, then?\"\n\n\"Could I speak to you in private?\" asked Royal.\n\nCarson led him out of earshot of the others. \"Okay, Stewart, you warned me about this guy. Did you expect this to happen? What did he mean, you, or somebody named Stone, 'arrested' him already? Who's Stone?\"\n\n\"I am. Was.\" Royal sighed. \"Long story. Look, I knew this guy a long time ago, when we were just kids. He's been in trouble before, as I told you. I did detain him. But I'd like to keep that under the radar, if I could. You can have him. I'm working on something entirely different. Toni's abduction has nothing to do with it.\"\n\nCarson's mouth twisted. \"So you're undercover. I'm not surprised. For who? And why didn't you tell me that before?\"\n\n\"I couldn't. You don't have clearance. And it's not important now. Toni is.\"\n\nCarson nodded. \"Right, but I'm not done with you. We're going to have a fine little talk after we find Toni and this is settled.\"\n\n\"Agreed.\" They walked back to the others.\n\n\"I've got all available men coming shortly,\" said Carson. \"She has to have walked away. Since this whole area was given to the Nature Conservancy it's pretty well gone back to wilderness. We'll spread out, cover the old roads, all directions. From the looks of the blood on the carpet, she's hurt, maybe cut from climbing out the broken window. She's probably scared.\"\n\n\"And cold,\" added Jack, shivering. \"Toni hates being cold.\"\n\nWhen the squads arrived at the hostage scene, Detective Carson shouted instructions over the increasing wind. \"Listen up! There's a woman out there, probably hurt, possibly bleeding and disoriented, and we think she's carrying a heavy bedpost. The ground is hard here and the wind has obliterated any possible tracks, so we don't know which way she may have gone.\" He pointed his thumbs in both directions down the old road where the dilapidated motel was situated.\n\nThe thwump! thwump! of a helicopter reverberated overhead and illuminated the area with a brilliant spotlight. Carson continued, \"Air rescue will fly a two-mile grid. We don't think she could have gone farther than that, given the time her abductor was gone. Spread out, cover the overgrown deserted roads. I doubt she would have gone into the dense underbrush, but she's got to be cold, may have found an old cabin in the woods for shelter. There've been some reports of wild dog packs in this area. Let's hope nothing like that comes into play tonight. All right, go!\"\n\nPolice scrambled into their patrols and the squads moved out like a herd of beetles with brightly lit antenna. In a matter of seconds the area was deserted except for Royal and Jack, who hugged his arms across his chest and said again, \"We've got to find her, Royal. Toni hates being cold.\"\n\n****\n\nPlod, plod. Stumble, plod. Toni kept putting one foot in front of the other, sure that this old road, decrepit though it was, had to lead somewhere, anywhere away from Sam Neeley. She stopped to listen but only heard the faint hum of distant traffic and the sound of dogs barking. Maybe there was a farm nearby? How far from Green Bay was she? She saw no lights in any direction. The chill wind had picked up and kept blowing her loosened curls over her face. Only the faintest outline of a half moon shone intermittently through scudding clouds. Her disoriented mind rambled. This is the best kind of Halloween night. Jack and I would have loved this when we were kids. Where is he? Out with Kate Bishop? Glad they're okay now. Where's Royal? He must have come to the shop for me. When he saw was open and lit, surely he'd know there was something wrong. But he wouldn't know what until Neeley called him . . .\n\nPlod, plod, stumble. Catch your balance, Toni. God, this bedpost is heavy. Breathing hard, she stood it upright on the old tarmac for a moment. Then she tried to put it up on her shoulder again, but her arms wouldn't cooperate. Those dogs sound closer now. I like dogs. Maybe they'll lead someone to me. She took another step, stumbled over a clump of weeds growing from a crack in the road and fell flat on her face.\n\n\"I'm so cold, and I'm so tired,\" she muttered, shivering. \"I give up.\" She curled into a ball and closed her eyes.\nChapter Twenty-Seven\n\n\"Got a flashlight?\" Royal asked.\n\nJack nodded and pulled one from his glove compartment, tested it. He grabbed a couple of windbreakers from the back seat and tossed one to Royal. \"Good to go,\" he said. \"But where?\"\n\n\"You tell me. You know Toni better than anyone else in the world,\" said Royal, zipping the jacket against the night chill. \"Aren't twins supposed to have a second sense about each other? Seriously, do you think Toni would have gone into the woods?\"\n\nJack shook his head. \"Not unless she was running from the devil himself. She never was much for nature hikes. From the way that motel was broken up I'd say she had a mad on, and that she wasn't thinking rationally. She would have just been moving, any direction, to get away before Neeley came back.\"\n\n\"That's what I suppose, too.\" He paused. \"I didn't like what Carson said about wild dogs.\"\n\n\"I don't want to even think about that,\" said Jack. \"I remember from my Boy Scout days before the Conservancy took over this area, some old deer paths spider-webbed back toward a swamp. We used to wilderness camp back there. Probably all pretty overgrown by now. If she got started down one of those she could wander for hours.\"\n\n\"Would the cops know about them?\"\n\n\"Maybe if they're natives. Possibly not. But I do. Let's go.\"\n\nThey started walking, stumbling over clumps of weeds cropping up in their path.\n\n\"Damn Neeley! There's something fishy about how he ran into us in Door County. Something fishy about how he found me at all.\" And how did Sam know I had anything to do with diamonds?\n\n\"What's the story? You think this guy followed you to Green Bay? To your aunt's?\" Jack almost tripped over a clump of weeds growing out of the old blacktop, caught his balance, shouted, \"Toni!\" and waited for an answer before he continued, \"From where?\"\n\n\"Haven't a clue. Last I saw of him was in Mississippi, years ago. I hadn't heard from or about him any time since. Didn't want to.\"\n\n\"You think he had something to do with your aunt's fall? Toni said you thought that wasn't an accident.\"\n\nRoyal hesitated, shook his head. \"Just a feeling, nothing concrete. But something Neeley said keeps teasing my mind. I can't quite get a handle on it.\"\n\nA light rain began to fall and Jack pulled his head down into the collar of his windbreaker. \"We've got to find her, Royal. She'll be freezing.\"\n\nRoyal bit his lip, caught up in guilt. Because of me. This all happened to Toni because of me, what I do. And if we don't find her soon...he didn't want to think about that. His mind suddenly unearthed what he wanted to remember about Neeley. \"You owe me,\" is what Neeley had said. But for what?\n\n\"Listen!\" Jack stopped walking. \"Dogs.\"\n\n****\n\nToni rested for a few minutes, then tried to move into a more comfortable position, but snuggling up to a five-foot bedpost on gravely asphalt wasn't easy. The wind was less annoying here deep in the woods, but now rain had begun, and already soaked her thin shirt.\n\n\"Okay, then.\" She struggled up. \"Let's you and me find somewhere to get out of this weather.\"\n\nShaking her head for talking to a post, she hoisted it over her shoulder again and stumbled on, shivering. This may be the most memorable Halloween I'll ever have. It will be something to tell my grandchildren about. If I don't freeze to death tonight.\n\nTeeth chattering, Toni left the path and turned into the woods, looking for somewhere, anywhere to get out of the cold rain. \"Shouldn't there be an old hunting cabin in here someplace?\" she asked herself, keeping up a running commentary just to hear her own voice. \"Snakes aren't out this time of year, are they? Think about morning. Morning will be better. Has to be.\"\n\nShivering, she floundered through underbrush, using the heavy bedpost to push wet branches away. She moved like a determined robot and almost ran into an enormous old oak that loomed before her.\n\n\"Hallelujah!\" she muttered. \"My prayers are answered!\"\n\nThe gaping hole in the tree trunk was just big enough. She curled her body into the dry rotted wood and pulled her knees up to get out of the rain. She positioned the bedpost, too large to bring in with her, at an angle on the outside, effectively forming a barrier across the opening. Neeley will never find me here in my safe little den, my safe dry little den. Exhausted, she closed her eyes and fell asleep.\n\n****\n\nRain was falling harder now. The wind had picked up again, whipping remaining leaves from deciduous trees and soughing mournful sighs through evergreens. The wet, leaf-covered path Jack and Royal walked grew narrower as they went further into the woods, shouting Toni's name at intervals, stopping to listen for an answer. But dripping rain muffled even their footsteps now. Jack's flashlight was useless.\n\nAs they pushed on through the eerie night, Royal's mind played back the past month. Someone had connected Neeley with Royal's undercover work. On his own, Sam wasn't that smart. I must have been getting sloppy in Antwerp. That exchange wasn't going well and I should have pulled out of it. At that time Royal hadn't yet known about his great aunt and Temple House. Coincidence that Bryce Andrews had been at the same place? A stretch; Royal didn't believe in coincidences. \"Jack, how long have you known Bryce Andrews?\"\n\nJack snorted. \"The elegant Mr. Andrews? Too long. Why?\"\n\n\"He's not a favorite of yours, I'd guess. I haven't met him but he seems pretty interested in me.\" And in what I do.\n\n\"He'd be interested in anyone that might intrigue Toni. He wants her back and makes sure she knows it. He's rich and good-looking, I'll give him that. But he's also possessive, controlling and generally a pain in the ass.\"\n\nRoyal grinned in spite of himself. \"That's how she described him, too.\"\n\n\"Did she? Good. That's progress. Toni was pretty thick with him for over a year, until she got tired of being the submissive little woman. She told me about the note he left at her shop.\"\n\n\"Does she tell you everything?\" Royal hoped not, glad it was too dark to show the color that flooded his face as he remembered two sensuous nights on a moonlit coverlet.\n\n\"Not everything, but pretty much. Toni!\" he called, waited, began walking again. \"She doesn't quite know what to think about you.\"\n\n\"And you?\" Royal asked.\n\n\"The jury's still out. But if you hurt her I'll have to kill you.\"\n\nRoyal hoped Jack had said that with a smile. \"Trust me, I won't.\"\n\n\"Then we're cool. Toni!\" Jack shouted again. \"Toni!\" His voice floated away on the wind.\n\nNo answer.\n\n****\n\nBarking woke Toni in her cramped little hideaway. She had no idea how long she'd slept, but she thought it couldn't have been more than a few minutes. Rain was still coming down, though not quite as hard. The barking was nearer now, almost right outside. Good, the police have used the dogs to find me. \"Here! Here I am! In the tree!\"\n\nThe response was not what she hoped. With a vicious snarl, the head of an enormous black dog thrust into the small space on one side of the bedpost. She shrunk back as far as she could, given the limits of the handcuffs, swallowing hard, pulling her hands away from the canine's slobbering mouth. This was not a friendly K-9 rescue. This was a wild-eyed, unkempt animal that pawed and scrabbled its front claws, trying to dislodge the post barrier she pulled tightly against the tree. Right behind that dog Toni glimpsed a snapping, shaggy white monster, just as large and just as ferocious, fighting to shoulder the first animal away to get to Toni.\n\nShe made herself as small as she could, but her hands were caught by the cuffs and she could only pull back a few inches. Her heart seemed to stop and she couldn't breathe. For the first time she was glad that the bedpost was as big and sturdy as it was. She shut her eyes and held on. Oh, Lord, make them go away. Or have them make so much noise someone will come. I've had all of this Halloween I can take.\n\n****\n\n\"Stop.\" Jack threw out his arm to halt Royal. \"Listen! Those dogs are closer now. They sound as though they've treed a coon.\"\n\n\"Or Toni.\" Royal swerved off the path toward the excited barking. \"This way! Come on!\"\n\nTaking the lead, Royal crashed through the underbrush, pushing rain-heavy branches out of the way, rushing toward the cacophony of barking and snarling.\n\n\"Better have something to hit them with,\" yelled Jack, searching for a suitable downed branch even as they moved.\n\n\"Hold!\" Royal commanded, flinging his arm aside to stop Jack and listening to pinpoint the barking. \"Over there!\" He changed direction and careened over fallen moss-covered stumps, stumbling through bramble bushes that seemed almost too thick to get through. The night had become oppressively dark and the rain hadn't lessened, but was filtered somewhat through the trees overhead.\n\nJack, not as fit, labored behind Royal.\n\nThey burst upon the frenzied dogs tearing at the post that Toni was pulling as tightly as she could against the tree trunk, her only purchase the handcuffs that bruised her wrists with every new lunge of the animals. \"Help! Somebody! Get them away!\" she cried, her voice barely audible over the dogs' snarls.\n\n\"Toni!\" Royal and Jack shouted together, their voices startling the dogs to quiet for a second before they turned as one to attack these new intruders who might fight them for their cornered prey.\n\n\"Get away, you devils!\" Jack swung his piece of deadwood at the black dog's head, sending a resounding crack through the heavy air. With a hurt yelp the dog staggered for a moment, recovered, backed up and pawed the ground, growling at this new enemy. Frenzied, he lunged, throwing Jack onto the heavy coating of leaves underfoot, straddling him, mauling his jacketed arm. Jack cried out and thrust the branch up into the dog's slobbering mouth. With a vicious whine he snapped it in two as if it were no tougher than a toothpick and flung it aside. Snarling deep in his throat, he fastened his slavering jaws around Jack's sleeve.\n\n\"Hold on, Jack!\" Royal yelled. \"Cover your face if you can!\"\n\nHe turned, scooped up a handful of wet leaves and threw them into the white dog's eyes, gaining a half second before it leaped at him, cavernous mouth open, fangs flinging saliva. Royal swiveled, kicked the dog off balance and with a fluid dancer's move threw his leg over its back as if mounting a bucking bronco. He seized its head in a hammerlock and snapped its neck. The animal crumpled and went down without a sound.\n\n\"One down.\" Royal grabbed the black dog's ear and twisted it hard, then kicked its ribs, once, twice. The dog released Jack, snarled and plunged toward Royal. As it leaped, Royal delivered a lethal roundhouse kick to its vulnerable throat in mid-air. A strangled howl, a whimper and a thud as its heavy body hit the ground. Then silence.\n\n\"Good God.\" Jack struggled to stand, straightening his ripped sleeve. \"I've never seen anything like that! Who are you?\"\n\nRoyal ignored the question and strode back to the hollow tree. \"It's over now, Toni,\" he said, his voice rough. \"Let's get you out of there.\" He pulled the bedpost away from the tree, bringing Toni with it, bedraggled and shivering. \"Did they hurt you?\"\n\n\"No, I'm okay,\" she said, her voice unsteady. She leaned into Royal's chest. \"Now.\"\n\n\"Thank God you found this tree,\" said Jack. \"Those dogs wanted you for dinner.\"\n\n\"They would have had me, too, before long,\" she said, turning to her brother. \"Oh, Jack, you're bleeding.\"\n\n\"It's nothing, really,\" said Jack. \"He mostly got my coat.\" Then his voice sharpened. \"What in the hell were you thinking, taking off in the middle of the night like that? Haven't you got a brain in your head?\"\n\n\"Stuff it, Jack,\" said Royal. \"The last thing she needs is a lecture. Here, Toni.\" He reached in his pocket and pulled out the key to the cuffs he'd put on Neeley. In seconds he'd unlocked her from the bedpost.\n\n\"Thank you, thank you, thank you both,\" Toni said, trembling, rubbing her chafed wrists. \"I couldn't have held on much longer and those dogs would have pulled me out.\" She turned into Royal's arms, visibly shaking now that the worst was over. \"What did you do to them?\"\n\n\"Never mind. It's okay, Toni, it's okay,\" he murmured, holding her close and dropping his cheek on the top of her tousled head, loving the feel of her in his arms and mentally reeling from the terror that had fueled his deadly anger at the dogs. Another realization burst full-blown into his mind, sharp as a scalpel blade: He wanted, no, more than wanted, needed this woman in his life. He who had made sure he never needed anyone. He pulled off his jacket and wrapped it across her shoulders. \"Let's take you home.\"\n\nThe walk out of the woods went much faster than going in, helped by the rain having stopped and intermittent pale moonlight shining through scattering clouds. As soon as they made sure the dogs were dead, Jack called Carson on his cell phone and put him on speaker.\n\n\"We found Toni, Phil. She's okay. A little worse for wear.\"\n\nRelief was evident in Carson's voice. \"Does she need a doctor?\"\n\nHer adrenalin still pumping, Toni's voice was clear and strong when she answered, \"No, Phil,\" at the same time that both Jack and Royal said, \"Yes.\"\n\n\"I'll be fine. We'll argue about that later. Where's Sam Neeley?\"\n\n\"Locked up, for now. We'll deal with him later, too,\" said Carson. \"Stewart, take her home and get her warmed up. I can take her statement in the morning.\" Then his voice softened, \"I'm so glad you're all right, Toni.\"\n\n\"Thanks, Phil. Me, too.\"\n\n\"This post is heavy,\" Jack complained, trudging behind Royal who still had one arm around Toni. \"Do we really have to carry it back?\"\n\n\"Yes. It's evidence,\" said Royal.\n\nToni grinned over her shoulder. \"If I could carry it in, you can carry it out.\"\n\n\"Anything for you, sis. Let's just get home and get warm.\"\n\nTwo hours later they were back at Toni's with her wrists bandaged and brandies in their hands. \"Better than any Halloween we ever had, right, Jack?\"\n\nShe grinned and lifted her glass to clink against her brother's.\n\nRoyal leaned back and observed. The woman was amazing. In danger of death one minute, quipping the next. She intrigued him more than ever. He had expected a meltdown after the adrenalin left her body, but that hadn't happened. He was still reeling from his own overwhelming reaction when he'd realized how much she meant to him.\n\nJack just shook his head. \"You're crazy, you know that, sis? If Royal hadn't done what he did out there we'd probably all be dead meat by the swamp.\" Jack turned to Royal. \"What kind of training have you had, anyway?\"\n\nIf he only knew.\n\nRoyal smiled. \"Just your garden variety karate. Helped along by anger at Neeley and fear for Toni's safety.\"\n\nJack shook his head. \"I don't think so. But whatever it was, thanks.\"\nChapter Twenty-Eight\n\n\"You didn't see him in action, Toni,\" Jack said after Royal had left. \"He killed those dogs as dead as if he'd shot them in the head, all with his bare hands. The man is a lethal weapon.\"\n\nToni nodded, remembering the damage Royal had done to her stay-away-from-men mantra with two nights of the best seductive lovemaking she'd ever experienced. She made a face. \"In more ways than one, Jack.\"\n\nHer brother studied her, then said, \"Hmmm. I get the feeling there's more to that than you're telling. You really care about him, don't you?\"\n\nShe sighed. \"I'm afraid I do. But he's so damn...mercurial.\"\n\nJack's eyebrows went up. \"As in mythology? The god Mercury? Come on, Toni. Shrewd? Swift?\"\n\n\"All that. And changeable. Mysterious. I can't get beyond what he lets me see. He won't let me in. Anything personal comes up, smack! Brick wall.\"\n\n\"Maybe what you see is what you get. Part of his charm?\" Jack finished his drink and got up. \"It's pretty late, but I need to at least talk to Kate to tell her what happened after I rushed out of her place. Then a shower and sleep. How about you? Do you want me to stay tonight? I'd be glad to.\"\n\nToni shook her head. \"Not necessary. I'm going to stand in a shower for as long as there's hot water. And I think I could sleep until next week.\"\n\n\"I'll call you tomorrow, then. Going to tell the folks about all this?\"\n\n\"Why worry them? It's over.\"\n\nJack dropped a kiss on the top of her head. \"Seems so. But I think we have more to learn about Sam Neeley. And maybe about Royal's diamond business.\"\n\nToni yawned. \"Right. But not tonight. Love you, Jack.\"\n\nHe grinned. \"Back at ya, sis.\"\n\n****\n\nLater that night, Royal drove a circuitous route to the bus station, making sure no one followed him. He almost hoped someone would, someone he could get his hands on and shake the truth out of. How had Sam Neeley learned about the diamonds? Was there a connection between Neeley and someone in the area?\n\nThe bus station was deserted at this time of night except for a heavy, overly made-up woman behind the ticket counter. \"Help you?\" she called out when he came in.\n\n\"No, thanks. Just need a coffee.\" He went to the vending machine and took his time finding the right change, keeping one eye on the woman until she got up and disappeared into a room behind the counter. He then strode to the lockers, slipped a key into #13 and removed a shoebox-sized package wrapped in brown paper. A smiley face was drawn on it with magic marker. Who was the practical joker? Surely not his black-suited handler. That man didn't have a funny bone in his body. Royal tucked the box under his arm and left the building.\n\n****\n\nThe next morning Toni awoke to aching wrists, but except for a tender bump on her head and a scraped arm, no lasting physical ailments. She lay in bed reliving the whole night from the moment Neeley had grabbed her in the alley. Whew! What a Halloween! Things would have turned out so differently without Royal. Of course without Royal's diamond connection, there never would have been a kidnapping at all. She'd have to go to the police station today to file her report, and Phil Carson would take it from there. Neeley would be put away, case closed. But there were so many questions unanswered, questions she wanted\u2014needed\u2014to ask Royal.\n\nShe frowned. He'd certainly lived up to his name of Helper. Killing wild dogs with his bare hands? The man was unbelievable. The warmth of his arms when he'd placed his jacket around her promised more, but he'd left with only the light touch of his finger on her cheek and a quiet, \"Get some sleep, Toni.\" If he'd wanted to stay, but he hadn't. Didn't that make it pretty clear that their fantastic sex had been just that? Maybe saving damsels in distress was ho-hum for a helper. Who knew how many others he'd rescued?\n\nShe got out of bed and told the woman in her bathroom mirror, \"Oh, come off it, Toni Dresser. Admit you're crazy about the guy. What are you going to do about it?\" Her reflection gave no answer.\n\nShe dressed in brown slacks and a matching long-sleeved T-shirt that covered the bandaged scrape on her arm, made coffee that tasted bitter and ate a frozen waffle that was like chewing on Styrofoam. At Wannabe she cleaned up the scraps of garbage and fabric that the wind had scattered in the back of the lot and stashed away leftover Halloween materials and decorations that wouldn't be needed until next year. Then she sat on the counter stool, chin on her hands, to survey the crowded racks and shelves in the shop.\n\nNow what? She sighed. The danger she'd experienced made everything she'd worked for seem so unimportant. Was this her future? Making tutus for proud mamas and Pilgrim suits for other people's grade school kids? Putting together roaring twenties outfits for elite murder mystery dinners that she wasn't invited to? Talking to Midnight for company and having dinner with her brother the highlight of each week? And that would change if he was really serious about Kate Bishop.\n\nShe got up and wandered between the crowded clothes racks, brushing lint from a sleeve here, straightening a collar there. Until now it all had seemed to be enough. But her mind kept going to razor-sharp blue eyes and the warmth of Royal's strong arms that seemed\u2014was she fooling herself?\u2014to hold a promise. In Door County he'd wanted to \"talk about us\" and she had put him off, not willing to once again be disappointed by a one-sided conversation revealing nothing about himself. She'd read stories, watched movies where a love-addled woman fell in love with the rogue who proved to be a criminal.\n\nChimes rang as the door burst open and with a \"Hey, Toni-girl!\" Drea's welcome voice preceded her into Wannabe. \"Where are you?\"\n\n\"Right here.\" Toni emerged from the clothes racks to greet her best friend with a bear hug. \"What's up?\"\n\n\"What's up?\" Drea's expressive face clouded with concern. \"Jack called. What happened to you, for God's sake? I saw the news about a kidnapped woman, but they didn't name you and details were pretty scarce. Tell me! Everything!\"\n\nToni grinned. \"Coffee?\"\n\nDrea huffed. \"Come on! My best friend gets kidnapped and I have to hear about it on the TV?\" She plunked down on the stool opposite Toni's. \"You could have called.\"\n\n\"Sorry.\" Toni handed Drea a steaming cup. \"Now that it's all over, the whole night seems like a really bad dream.\" She described the experience from Neeley's grabbing her to Jack's and Royal's rescue.\n\n\"He did? Two wild dogs with his bare hands?\" Drea's eyes widened. \"That ain't just a handsome sax player, girlfriend. That man's a...\" She paused, shook her head.\n\n\"Yep,\" Toni agreed, nodding. \"That's just how I think of him, too. Indescribable.\" Well, not quite. I could describe every inch of that fantastic muscled body, those hands that know just where and how to touch\u2014\n\n\"Toni! I'm talking to you.\" Drea rapped her knuckles on the countertop. \"Has he called? Just to see how you are?\"\n\n\"Ever the matchmaker.\" Toni rolled her eyes. \"Nope. Nothing to tell. Do I wish he would? Honestly, Drea, I don't know. He's the most confounding person I ever met.\"\n\n\"And the most intriguing?\" Drea grinned, teasing.\n\n\"That, too.\" She looked up at the clown clock. \"Come on. Let's go have lunch and you can tell me what you know about diamonds.\"\n\nTen minutes later Toni observed, \"Neat bag, Drea,\" as Drea hung her pink leather hobo pouch over a chair in the same alcove at the Grapevine where Toni and Royal had lunched previously.\n\n\"Thanks. These purses are flying off the shelves at Furs and Feathers,\" said Drea, seating herself. \"Okay, you got my attention. What did you mean about diamonds?\"\n\n\"That's what Sam Neeley kidnapped me for. A cool two million dollars worth.\"\n\n\"You're kidding.\" Drea's eyes widened. \"They didn't say that on TV.\"\n\n\"No, it was kept quiet, and neither Royal nor Phil Carson would tell me why. More mystery. Truth to tell,\" she huffed, \"I'm getting more than a bit tired of not knowing enough about things that affect my life.\"\n\n\"Hmmm. I assume that includes certain people.\" Drea sat back while the waiter served glasses of water and asked if he could take an order for drinks. \"We may be here a while,\" she told him. \"I think this lunch calls for wine. A glass of Chardonnay, please. Toni? I'm buying.\"\n\n\"Well, in that case.\" Toni smiled. \"I'll have one, too.\"\n\n\"Excellent choice.\" The waiter bowed out.\n\nDrea leaned forward. \"Okay. Tell all. Where were these diamonds supposed to come from? Who was going to pay that for getting you back?\"\n\n\"Three guesses and the first two don't count.\"\n\nDrea frowned. \"Your knight in shining armor? Mysterious, handsome Mr. Helper?\"\n\n\"The very one.\"\n\n\"Who just happens to have two mil in diamonds right on hand?\"\n\nToni shrugged. \"It seems he actually does. Or did. Or could have.\"\n\n\"How was he connected with this Neeley? How did the guy know he could hit Royal up, if that's the right phrase, for that kind of money?\"\n\nToni took a deep breath and shook her head. \"Really, I have no idea. Some things Neeley said while I was with him led me to believe that their connection goes way back to childhood. From the little I've pried out of Royal, I doubt his was a happy one.\"\n\n\"Toni.\" Drea leaned forward. \"Do you think Royal's involved in something illegal?\"\n\nToni paused to give the question its due weight. \"I wish I didn't, but I'm not entirely sure which side of the line he's on. I'm not even sure what line I'm talking about. Oh, Drea, I'm so confused about him. One part of me wishes I'd never met him and another part wants to sign up for a life with him anyway.\"\n\n\"That's a first. After you broke up with Bryce I thought you'd be a spinster forever. Elaborate, girl.\"\n\nShe did, and finished with, \"Royal's a fantastic lover, Drea.\"\n\n\"Wow.\" Drea sat back, looked around the room. \"Where is that waiter? We're gonna need more than one glass of wine.\"\n\nBack at Wannabe an hour later, Toni flew into a frenzy of straightening costume racks, checking every hat and wig to be sure they were ready for use. She laundered necessary clothing, dusted all the shelves, paired up the shoes and organized the accessories corner, but nothing took her mind off Royal. Just thinking about him, his power, those piercing eyes made her long for his touch. Why hadn't he called? To see how she was, at least, as Drea said.\n\nMidnight retreated to the top of the tallest shelf and lay there, tail twitching, watching Toni's every move as if he thought she might gather him up along with the garbage.\n\n\"Some help you are, Midnight,\" she chided, filling his water bowl and cleaning his litter box, trying not to think about her fateful trip to the alley dumpster on Halloween. So much has happened and I still know so little about the man who saved my life.\n\nToni was almost finished sewing a lace edging on a funky denim jacket when the phone rang. She smiled at the caller ID. \"Hi, Mom! I was just thinking about you.\"\n\n\"All good thoughts, I hope.\"\n\n\"Always. What's up? You and Dad okay?\"\n\n\"Fine. Just wondering whether you and Jack have given some thought to coming for Thanksgiving.\"\n\n\"Oh, Mom, I'm sorry. Things have been a little hectic around here.\" If she only knew, she'd have me hog-tied and shipped to Arizona on the next plane. Toni looked out the window at the grey November sky. A trip to southwestern sun and warm breezes sounded pretty nice right about now. And there was really nothing\u2014or no one\u2014she thought, to keep her in Green Bay. \"Jack's coming for dinner tonight, and we'll talk about it. Here's something you'll like to hear. He's got a new girl. And he's asked her to come to meet you and dad.\"\n\n\"Really?\" Excitement spilled through the connection. \"Is she coming? Tell me all! Have you met her? What's she like?\"\n\n\"She's very nice. And he's head over teakettle.\"\n\n\"Wonderful! Keep me posted.\" A pause. Then the hopeful, \"And you?\"\n\nToni had to smile. \"I think I've got the teakettle problem, too, Mom, but there are complications.\" That's putting it mildly, but what mother would want to hear her daughter had been kidnapped and then saved from wild dogs by some kind of undercover ops guy? Even if he was handsome as sin with hands that\u2014\n\n\"Toni! Are you still there?\"\n\n\"Sorry, woolgathering.\"\n\nThe conversation went on for a few more minutes before Wannabe's door chimes jingled.\n\n\"Oops, Mom, gotta go. A customer just came in. I'll call after I've talked with Jack. Love ya.\" Toni stepped out of the workshop to see a tall redhead in a long black leather coat brandishing a small snub-nosed gun. \"Whoa!\" Toni laughed, throwing up her hands. \"You want a costume to go with that?\"\n\n\"What?\" The redhead's eyes widened.\n\n\"What are you dressing as?\"\n\n\"Lady, I'm not dressing at all.\" The woman scowled. \"This is me, pointing a gun at you. You're supposed to be scared.\"\n\nToni took a step backward, swallowed. \"You're serious.\"\n\n\"Damn straight.\"\n\nThoughts tumbled through Toni's mind but none of them made any sense. Was this going to be a re-run of Halloween? Not on your life, sister. Toni took a deep breath and put up her chin. \"What do you want? I don't keep any money here. For heaven's sake, put down the gun and let's talk.\"\n\nThe redhead hesitated, then lowered the weapon. \"Talk's good. If you say what I need to hear. I want information.\"\n\nToni frowned. \"So ask. Who are you? Why me? What kind of information could I possibly have that you'd need a gun to get?\"\n\n\"Shit.\" The redhead slumped onto the customers' stool and slammed the gun on the counter. She narrowed her eyes at Toni. \"Who I am isn't your business. You're the one mixed up in this whole fiasco. How well do you know Royal Stewart?\"\n\nNow there was a question. Toni almost blushed. \"In what sense?\"\n\n\"Don't play games with me, lady.\"\n\nToni heaved a sigh and sat down opposite the woman. \"Look, I have no idea what you want. Could you be more specific?\"\n\n\"Tell me what you know about Stewart.\"\n\n\"As far as I know he's a business consultant.\" And one hell of a lover, but this nutcase doesn't need to know that. \"He goes wherever he's hired, stays there until their problems are solved. End of story.\"\n\n\"That's all? You buy that, huh.\" The redhead scowled again, ran a red-tipped finger over the pearl handle of her little gun. \"How does he know Sam Neeley?\"\n\n\"They go back to childhood, I guess.\" Unconsciously Toni rubbed her wrists. \"Why? What's your connection to low-life Neeley?\"\n\n\"Never you mind about that.\" The redhead frowned, leaned over the counter and demanded, \"Were you in cahoots with Stewart? Who's got the diamonds now?\"\n\nToni got up, fisted her hands on her hips and pinned the woman with a brown stare. \"Look, whoever you are. I have no idea who's got any diamonds. I heard there were some but I never saw any. I'm not, and never have been, in cahoots with anybody about anything.\" Well, not since Jack and I were kids, anyway.\n\n\"Dammit!\" The redhead pounded her fist on the counter. \"You're useless. My life's at stake here and you're useless.\" She swooped up the gun, stuck it in her coat pocket and slammed out the door, leaving the chimes jangling.\n\nNonplused, Toni stared after the woman. Useless? Being useless was worse than being threatened\u2014if that was what had just happened\u2014with a gun. Her life at stake sounded a bit melodramatic. What did the woman have to do with Royal? Toni didn't even know if he was in Green Bay. She hadn't seen or heard from him since Halloween night.\n\nThis wasn't the first time he'd dropped out of her life with no notice. Not that he owes me any, she told herself, reaching down to pick up Midnight. \"At least I have one constant friend, don't I, ol' buddy?\" she crooned, and was rewarded with a steady rumble from deep in the cat's chest. She reached for the phone. \"Let's call the cops.\"\n\n\"She threatened you with a gun?\" Phil Carson nearly yelled. \"Where'd she go? She worked with Neeley. We've been trying to find her.\"\n\n\"Sorry, Phil, she didn't say.\"\n\n\"Why'd she come to you?\"\n\n\"She wanted information about Royal.\"\n\nThere was a silence. Then Carson said, \"Don't we all. If she comes back, keep her somehow until we can get there, okay?\"\n\n\"Okay. But I don't think I'll be seeing her again, Phil. I'm useless.\"\n\n\"What?\" She heard the puzzlement in his voice. \"Say again?\"\n\n\"Never mind.\" Toni sighed. \"Talk to you soon.\"\nChapter Twenty-Nine\n\n\"Thanks for coming in, Stewart,\" said Phil Carson. \"I have your statement about the other night, but there are a few other things I want cleared up. Sit down.\"\n\n\"I'm not surprised, Detective.\" Royal nodded and took the chair across Carson's desk. \"I'll tell you what I can.\"\n\nThe detective scowled. \"Meaning what?\"\n\n\"Don't get your back up. Meaning just that. You don't have clearance.\"\n\nCarson slapped his palms on his desk, scattering papers. \"For what, for God's sake? Cut the mystery, Stewart. This is my town, these are my people and dammit, Toni is one of my favorites. Things could have ended badly, and I thank you that they didn't.\" He narrowed his eyes at Royal. \"I know what I saw at that scene in the woods, and what Toni said in her statement. Now, give me the rest of the story. Where does Neeley come in, and what's with these diamonds he seems to think you have?\"\n\nRoyal hesitated for a moment, then said, \"You've heard the expression, blood diamonds?\"\n\n\"Sure. What about them?\"\n\n\"They're sometimes called conflict diamonds, mined by people, even children, forced to work in abominable conditions in countries like Africa where people are killed without a thought. The diamonds and\/or money from them are trafficked to the states, sometimes through a third country, and sold here for enormous profit. The money is laundered, disappears. These cartels have got to be stopped. That's been my job, first in Sierra Leone, now here in the states.\"\n\n\"Okay,\" Carson said. \"Who do you work for?\"\n\nRoyal didn't answer.\n\n\"I get it.\" Carson said. \"But are you telling me this is happening here in Green Bay?\"\n\nRoyal nodded. \"This particular time, yes. That's what I'm working on.\"\n\nCarson shook his head. \"I need more information.\" He got up, paced the floor. \"I get it that you're some kind of special ops guy. At least I think you are and the way you handled those dogs supports that. What I want to know is, what's your connection to Neeley and whether there's more trouble ahead. Do I understand you're staying in Green Bay?\"\n\nRoyal hesitated and surprised himself by thinking, I am if Toni will have me. What he said was, \"I'm still working on my Aunt Grace's death. I need to interview Neeley. My bones tell me he had something to do with it.\"\n\n\"Still riding that horse, are you? I doubt Neeley will give you any help. He's a small-time crook, that's all, thought he saw an easy street to a fortune, and got in way over his head with kidnapping Toni.\"\n\n\"Agreed. But he's been a thief before. Was he a second-story man on the night of Grace Temple's fall? That would answer a lot of questions. I need to talk to him, Detective.\"\n\nCarson sank back down behind his desk. \"Be my guest. Just don't make him any promises I can't keep.\"\n\n****\n\nSam Neeley stared up at Royal across the small table in the interrogation room. \"Thought you'd never get here,\" Neeley whined, his mouth down-turned. \"Took you long enough.\"\n\nRoyal sat down across from him and raised his eyebrows, smelling the unwashed sweat coming off Neeley and the close air of this room that had held so many confrontations. Dust motes floated in the weak beam of sunlight that filtered through the high, barred window.\n\n\"When do I hear a thank you?\" Neeley blustered.\n\n\"Thank you!\" Royal pushed his chair back from the table. \"For what?\"\n\n\"For getting you a frickin' fortune, Stone. Oh, excuse me, I mean Stewart.\" Neeley's cocky grin showed yellow, uncared-for teeth.\n\nDidn't the guy ever use toothpaste? Royal leaned forward, his jaw tight. \"Just what the hell do you mean by that?\"\n\n\"Are you stupid? Now that the old lady's dead you're richer than rich. All because of me. I deserve a cut.\"\n\nRoyal half rose. \"You had better explain that, Sam.\"\n\n\"Sure, Mr. Stewart.\" Neeley grinned. \"Soon's you get me out of this cell. You can do that, got some kind of gov'ment clout, right? Why'd you change your name, anyway?\"\n\nRoyal didn't answer that. He fixed the smaller man with a blue stare. \"Look, Sam. You don't seem to understand you're in deep trouble. You're already charged with kidnapping. That's a federal offense. Do you want to add the murder of Grace Temple onto that?\"\n\nNow Neeley sat back, palms out. \"Hold up, there. I didn't murder anybody. She fell, all on her own.\"\n\nRoyal said, \"Wait. Let's back up here. How did you find me in the first place?\"\n\n\"Pure great frickin' luck.\" Neeley chortled. \"The day I got out of prison in Ohio I saw you pull up in that fancy Porsche at a stop light in Columbus, and figured you must have a good thing going somewhere, driving that kind of ride, so I hung back and followed you to Green Bay. I saw you go to that big house\u2014what a beauty! Saw you meet that old lady. Looked like you had some kind of in with her. I just wanted to see what was in that mansion, that's all. Had to be good stuff there. So I went to look.\"\n\n\"Look?\" Royal almost laughed. \"To rob, you mean. I've read your jacket. This wouldn't have been the first time. You're admitting you were there the night she died?\"\n\nNeeley slumped down in his chair and rubbed the scraggly stubble on the side of his face. He didn't meet Royal's eyes. \"Yeah, I was there. But I didn't kill her. I wouldn'a done that. Aw, I didn't even know she was in the house. I seen her go out earlier, and it was all dark.\" He stopped, chewed a piece off his thumbnail, spit it out on the floor.\n\n\"And\u2014\" Royal prompted. \"Spill it.\"\n\nLike a pent-up gusher, Neeley's words spewed out. \"Okay, yeah, I climbed in that balcony window on the second floor, and I was just tippy-toein' easy, checkin' things out when jeezus! There she was, walkin' right by the top of the stairs. She saw me, shrieked like a banshee, backed up and went flyin.\" Neeley leaned forward, his wide-eyed expression all innocence. \"Honest, Royal, you gotta' believe me. I had nothin' to do with her fall. She musta caught her foot in that long nightgown she was wearin' and went head over heels down, her arms flyin' like a windmill, long robe flapping, bouncin' over and over down those steps. It was like watching a slow-motion movie.\" Neeley covered his eyes with his hands. \"Jeezus, it was awful. I can still hear her head hit that post. Sounded like when kids used to smash pumpkins on the sidewalk.\"\n\nBile surged up into Royal's throat at the thought of this scumbag causing Grace Temple's fragile old body to topple down that long, steep staircase. He swallowed, his hands fisting under the table. He began to speak, had to stop, swallowed, tried again. \"And then what? You just split. Left her to die.\"\n\n\"Hell, no, I didn't. What d'you think I am? I went down there to see if I could help her but she was dead.\"\n\n\"How did\u2014 How did you know? Maybe she wasn't. Maybe you could have saved her.\"\n\nNeeley shook his head. \"Nah. I know dead.\" He looked at Royal. \"C'mon. What could I do? Yeah, I split out of there faster than I ever moved in my life. I swiped that windowsill clean and beat it down the trellis. I'm just a thief, Royal. I ain't no murderer, but who'd believe my story? I can see in your eyes that you don't.\"\n\nRoyal was quiet for a moment, getting himself under control. He rubbed the back of his neck. \"Oh, I believe you, Sam. I do.\" He stared at the wall behind Neeley's head. \"But that doesn't bring her back, does it.\"\n\nThey were both silent until Royal said, \"You're in big trouble with the Feds over kidnapping Toni. That's a given. How stupid could you be? Don't even try to answer that.\" He stood, paced. \"I can't do anything about those charges, but maybe I can help you some about Grace Temple's death. If you'll tell me how you knew about the diamonds, who gave you that information. My offer's on the table, but it won't be there for long.\"\n\nNeeley crossed his arms over his chest. Clamped his lips closed, didn't speak.\n\nRoyal continued, leaning over the table, his face close to Neeley's. \"Who's your contact? How did they find you here? And what exactly did they want you to do? I'm guessing you were supposed to take the diamonds and disappear. Did you think any farther than that? Did you know how you could get rid of them? You can't just sell one or two raw diamonds off now and then and not have somebody notice.\" He stopped, pounded the metal table with his fist. \"Dammit! Talk to me.\"\n\nNeeley jumped back, then stuck out his chin. \"Hell, Royal, who do you think you are? You really think you can help me? You can't. I'm safer in here than outside. If I tell you anything and they find out, they'll kill me sure.\"\n\nRoyal snorted. \"That's bad movie talk.\"\n\n\"Maybe. But that's what she said, and I believe her.\"\n\nNow we're getting somewhere. Royal sat, leaned forward. \"Who's this she?\"\n\nSam's shoulders slumped. \"I don't know. Damn tall redhead in the shortest skirt you ever saw. She never told me her name.\"\n\nRoyal waited, frowning. Redhead? Monica Asher? Here? He felt a surge of triumph. I knew it!\n\n\"Wish to God I'd never met her. I was just having a beer at some corner bar over on the northeast side of town.\" Neeley rubbed the heels of his hands in his eyes and rocked back and forth on his chair. \"Should've known somebody like her would have nothin' to do with the likes of me. Pretty. Smooth. Great legs.\" He sighed, shook his head. \"She must have followed me there, now I think about it. Asked me if I was looking for work. Sounded like a movie star, all husky and that.\" Neeley cleared his throat. \"Can I have a glass of water?\"\n\n\"When we're finished here. Go on.\"\n\n\"Just like that she asked, 'How'd you like to split two million worth of uncut diamonds?' I almost fell off my stool. Felt like I'd won the lottery without even buying a ticket. 'Have another beer on me,' she said. 'I'm for real. We split the diamonds, you go your way, I go mine, and we never see each other again.' Hell, Royal, I had to find out more. Wouldn't you?\"\n\nRoyal nodded. Waited.\n\n\"By the time we had a couple more beers and she got to telling me about the guy with the silver Porsche, I realized she was talking about my old roommate. She said you had diamonds, lots of diamonds, and all I had to do was kidnap Toni Dresser 'cause you were sweet on her. You know the rest.\" Neeley chewed on his ragged thumbnail. \"'But you've gotta be smooth,' she said. 'If things go wrong they'll kill us both.' Guess you know things went wrong.\"\n\n\"Listen up.\" Royal said. \"Make no mistake: if they want to kill you, they will. In here or outside. I'd like to stop them.\"\n\n\"I don't even know who they are.\" Neeley closed his eyes. \"You can't stop them. She said so. Said they'll kill her, too.\"\n\n\"Think they won't anyway? Tell me more about this she.\"\n\nNeeley swallowed, looked away.\n\n\"Sam.\" Royal leaned closer. \"People are dying. Just because they're halfway across the world and you can't see them, they are. Kids are losing their parents. Starving. All because of greed. Diamond greed. She's part of it. And now you are, too. Damn it, look at me.\"\n\nNeeley shut his eyes.\n\n\"You got caught up in that greed. Sounded easy, didn't it? Nab Toni, get diamonds. Split the take. Disappear.\"\n\nNeeley nodded, bit his lip. \"Too easy. Should'a known.\"\n\n\"Hindsight's always twenty-twenty.\"\n\nNeeley bit his lip, hugged himself, stared at Royal. \"You really think they could get to me in here?\"\n\n\"Easy. A sharpened spoon in the exercise area. A pill in your potatoes. Sam, these kind of people don't play games.\"\n\n\"I know.\" Neeley's shoulders slumped. He looked up to meet Royal's eyes. \"She was so damn pretty. Shiny red hair, long legs...\"\n\n\"How were you supposed to contact her once you had the diamonds?\"\n\nNeeley bit off a piece of his thumbnail, examined it, flicked it away. \"I wasn't. She was going to contact me.\"\n\nRoyal stood up, put his hands in his back pockets, paced. \"Sam, you've been a grifter all your life. It never occurred to you that this time you were the pigeon?\"\n\n\"Should've, shouldn't it? But she was\u2014\"\n\n\"I know, so damn pretty. Think, Sam. There must have been something about her that you remember. Besides red hair and legs. Something she wore.\"\n\n\"She didn't wear much.\" Sam rubbed his forehead, then looked up. Royal felt a glimmer of hope. \"Well, there was one thing.\"\n\nRoyal waited.\n\n\"It's dumb.\"\n\n\"Dumb can be helpful.\"\n\n\"She had a Mickey Mouse tattoo on her ankle,\" Sam said. \"I think that's what it was. I didn't get a close look.\"\n\n\"How big? Left or right ankle?\"\n\nSam frowned, moved as if to imagine her on a stool beside him, made a circle with his thumb and finger. \"About so big. On her left.\"\n\n\"Anything else?\"\n\n\"Swear to God, Royal. What's the difference? She's probably long gone by now, lookin' for another pigeon somewheres.\"\n\n\"If she's smart she probably is. But maybe not.\"\n\n\"Any results?\" Phil Carson looked up from his desk as Royal rapped on the open door. \"Whoa. Looks like you learned something you didn't like.\"\n\n\"Right. Mind if I sit?\" Royal ran his hand through his dark hair.\n\n\"Sure.\" Carson sat back and waited.\n\n\"What I said about Neeley being a second-story man? I was right.\"\n\nBrows raised, Carson leaned forward.\n\n\"Neeley spilled it all. He was there that night, in the house. Climbed in that upstairs window off the balcony.\"\n\n\"He told you that?\" Carson frowned. \"Nothing was missing. There was no evidence of a forced entry. No unidentified prints anywhere.\"\n\nRoyal nodded. \"Wasn't forced. The window was open. He thought the house was empty, sneaked in, scared Grace Temple just at the top of the stairs. She lost her balance and fell.\"\n\n\"Sure she did.\" Carson narrowed his eyes at Royal. \"The old 'I'm innocent' plea. You believe him?\"\n\nRoyal heaved a sigh. \"Yeah, I do.\"\n\n\"Then he just took off? Left her there?\" Carson scowled. \"Could have called 911.\"\n\n\"He knew she was dead. Knew he'd be blamed. Split like the coward he is.\" Royal pounded his fist into his other palm. \"Dammit, I just knew she hadn't fallen on her own. At least, now I know what really happened. Neeley's not a murderer, Detective, just a rotten would-be thief.\" He sighed. \"But Grace Temple is just as dead as if he killed her on purpose.\"\n\nCarson nodded. \"I'm sorry, Stewart. I really liked your aunt. Everybody did.\"\n\n\"So I've heard.\" Royal got up. \"Do you know anything about a leggy redhead with a Mickey Mouse tattoo on her left ankle?\"\n\nCarson snorted. \"This just gets better and better. I think I do, if you mean the woman that just held a gun on Toni at Wannabe a little while ago, looking for information about you.\"\n\n\"What?\" Royal took a step back, his heart pounding in trip hammer mode. \"When? Was Toni hurt?\"\n\n\"No. Just disgusted, from what she told me on the phone. The woman's gone.\"\n\n\"That changes things, Carson. That redhead is Monica Asher. She's Neeley's contact and she's involved in the kidnapping right up to her ears. She's here somewhere.\" Possibly at Andrews', but he couldn't bring Andrews into the conversation. Yet. \"We have to find her.\"\n\nCarson rubbed his face with both hands. \"Yeah. We're working on that as we speak.\"\n\nRoyal sat down again. \"Personal favor here, Detective,\" Royal said. \"I want Neeley's involvement with Grace Temple's fall to go away. Will you take care of that?\"\n\nCarson's mouth dropped open. \"Why, for God's sake? He caused her death!\"\n\n\"I know. But it wasn't intentional. And he gave me a lead I need.\"\n\nCarson sighed, shook his head. \"What is it about this guy? Toni came in and gave her statement. Didn't even want to press charges until I insisted. She actually feels sorry for him.\" The detective stared out the window for a moment, then nodded. \"I don't like it, but okay.\"\n\nRoyal nodded. \"Thanks.\"\n\nCarson grinned. \"Yeah. I almost feel sorry for him. He's the poster boy for stupid.\"\nChapter Thirty\n\nShould she call Royal? Toni shook her head. No. Shouldn't he call me? Even just to know how I am?\n\nToni paced the small area of her workroom from the window to the wall, around the measuring counter, from the wall to the window, back again. Damn the man! For all she knew he'd left the planet. But didn't he deserve to know a crazy redhead was gunning\u2014literally\u2014for him? Or at least for information about him. Wasn't Toni obligated to let him know about that interesting little encounter?\n\n\"Enough, already,\" Toni muttered to Midnight, working up a healthy snit as she strode. \"It's just damn time to find out what's going on. I'm the one that got kidnapped and could have died from wild dogs or pneumonia, take your pick. And what's all this secrecy about diamonds, anyway?\" She kicked the table leg, sending Midnight streaking into the other room. \"They're just rocks, for God's sake.\"\n\nBefore Toni could react to a sudden jangle of chimes and quick footsteps crossing to the workroom, she was engulfed in Royal's strong arms so tightly she could hardly breathe.\n\n\"Toni! You're all right?\" Still holding her, he pushed her back just enough to fasten those fathomless blue eyes on her face. \"I thought\u2014Carson told me about the woman.\"\n\nShe caught her breath at the concern in his voice. He does care. She wanted to melt against him, knowing how good that would feel. Instead, still miffed, she shrugged out of his arms to put room between them. \"I guess Phil didn't waste any time telling you about my visitor, did he? How nice that you have a relationship with the locals. At least you're communicating with someone.\" I sound like a fishwife and I don't care. Why haven't you called me?\n\n\"Just tell me what happened.\" Royal's voice was gruff. \"Did she hurt you? Are you all right?\"\n\n\"I'm fine, thanks for asking.\" Finally. \"But that redhead's out to find you, and I don't think it will be pleasant when she does. So, who is she?\" Toni narrowed her eyes to study his face. \"I can see she's no surprise. You do know her. Okay, give. Give all.\"\n\n\"I can't, and I am sorry. I don't know her. I can only tell you that I'm looking for her. That she's connected with Neeley, and probably was the master-mind behind your kidnapping.\"\n\nToni took a deep breath, fisted her hands on her hips and put up her chin. \"Really. Guess she just forgot to mention that. Well, listen up, Bucko. First off, I'm sick and tired of being involved in something I know nothing about, so let's just clear the air here. You've got diamonds, or have access to them. What's the deal about that?\" Without giving him time to answer she stepped forward, put her nose up to his and let the words fly. \"You're some special ops guy with connections to something bigger than what usually goes on in little old Green Bay, but nobody, not even the police, is supposed to know what that's about, either. You pop up out of nowhere and inherit a house to die for and all the money a man can possibly use, but that's not enough\u2014\"\n\n\"Whoa!\" Royal backed off, palms up, and she saw that annoying quirk at the corner of his mouth. He was amused with her! \"I came to find out what happened and if you were all right, not to be lit on by a feisty female.\" He actually grinned and put his hands in the back pockets of his jeans. \"Not that I mind feisty. It's sexy as hell.\"\n\n\"Oh, it is, is it?\" Toni nearly shouted, her eyes flashing. \"Well, here's feisty for you.\" She took another step and punched her pointed finger hard into his solid chest. \"Either you open up and be straight with me, or get out of my life. How's that for\u2014\" But her words were cut off by his lips against hers. His hands threaded through her hair, holding her still, molding her mouth to his. The kiss was hard and electric and weakened her knees, and her body reacted to his as though it were nourishment she'd been denied.\n\n\"Toni,\" he groaned, and plundered again, his mouth on hers. \"My Toni. Thank God you're safe.\"\n\nDid he say, My Toni? She tried to turn her head away, to get her breath, to stop the onslaught of emotion that drummed through her body, but now his hands were on her back, on her arms, pulling her into a vortex of sensation. Her body answered his, remembering, needing more, yearning for his mouth, his tongue.\n\nHe gave, she took. Her arms were around his neck, pulling him in, deeper, wilder, pleading for more, more...\n\nWhen he lifted her to the measuring table and stripped her T-shirt off over her head she knew she was lost.\n\n\"The door\u2014\" was all she managed to say before her world was all Royal, and warmth and ecstasy. No, not lost. She gave herself up to the moment. Found.\n\n****\n\nThe next afternoon Black Suit's surprise was evident over the telephone. \"You've been successful? Already?\"\n\n\"As far as the money. Movement tracked and documented,\" answered Royal, pushing the Send button on his fax machine. \"Enough on Bryce Andrews to put him away. Details are on the way to you as we speak. And I have a lead on Monica Asher. I believe she's still here, probably at Andrews' place. I hope to apprehend both of them at once.\"\n\n\"Good work. As usual. How soon can we wrap this up? We want the Andrews-Sierra Leone connection stopped once and for all.\"\n\n\"As do I.\" For more than one reason. Royal gazed at the elegant script on the still-unopened envelope on his desk. He wasn't sure what kept him from delving into it. Was he afraid of what he would find? \"There are some things I need to clear up here first. Andrews isn't going anywhere. He thinks he's above suspicion. I'm pretty sure Asher thinks she is, too.\"\n\nBlack Suit chuckled. \"They'll get a rude awakening, then. On a different note, have things turned out all right for Miss Dresser?\"\n\nRoyal pictured Toni's incredible bounce-back after what happened on Halloween. Grinned as he thought of their equally incredible sex on Wannabe's measuring table. \"Amazingly so.\"\n\n\"Have you involved Carson on any of this?\"\n\n\"Some. No more than necessary. There's a crossover because of the kidnapping.\"\n\n\"Yes, there would be.\"\n\n\"That was Asher's idea. She recruited Neeley. I doubt if Andrews even knew about that plan.\"\n\n\"Really. And you think she's with him now.\"\n\nRoyal said, \"I'd bet a box of diamonds on it.\"\n\nBlack Suit laughed. \"And you just happen to have one?\"\n\n\"I do. Not sure why these weren't switched into money like the others, but yes, I have them for you. And they really are the last.\" He paused for emphasis. \"We're together on that, right?\"\n\nA pause. \"Regrettably, yes.\"\n\n\"Fine. I'll set up the arrest. For tonight.\"\n\n\"You're bringing Carson in?\"\n\n\"Have to. His territory, his SWAT team.\"\n\n\"Your collar, your choice.\" Black Suit paused. \"Good luck, Stewart. It's been a pleasure working with you.\"\n\nRoyal broke the connection. Pleasure? Sometimes, when an assignment was over and all had gone well. Not so pleasant when it hadn't. He rubbed the stubble on the side of his jaw. Okay, wrap this up, Stewart. Then move on. To Toni.\n\n****\n\nHolding the letter and contract for publication she'd received in the day's mail, Toni moved into her living room to nurse a glass of Chardonnay and watch the sun dip toward the horizon. She'd read both documents a dozen times, done a little happy dance around Wannabe, and called Drea, who wasn't surprised at her success. She'd called Jack, who wasn't surprised either, and told her so with pride in his voice. \"Never a doubt, sis,\" he'd said. \"It was only a matter of time.\" Then she called her mother who was surprised and said, \"What book are you talking about, Toni? You've written a book? What kind of book? My goodness, you haven't said a word!\"\n\n\"I know, Mom. It's not a blockbuster novel, or anything like that.\" She explained the patterns she'd been working on for more than a year. \"Getting published seemed too much to hope for and I didn't want you to be as disappointed for me as I would be when I got rejected.\"\n\n\"But you didn't get rejected.\" Toni could hear the delight in her mother's voice. \"My daughter, published! Wait 'til I tell Dad. Congratulations! We'll celebrate when you come for Thanksgiving. You are coming, aren't you, Toni? Jack's bringing his new girl, you know.\"\n\n\"I've heard. I wasn't sure about that until just recently, Mom. Not so sure about me. I'll let you know.\" She hung up, adding to herself, I wish I could bring Royal. But the one person Toni really wanted to tell about her book was gone again, probably on some consulting job. He could be anywhere, doing anything, and how would she know? After they'd made love at Wannabe\u2014just the memory of it brought a surge of heat to her face\u2014he'd said, \"In spite of what you think, I don't want secrets between us. That just hasn't been possible. I'll be gone for a few days, but when I come back I have something I want to share with you.\"\n\n\"Really.\" She'd had trouble keeping her voice steady when her heart was still hammering from the passionate assault of his lips, his clever hands. \"That will be a first.\"\n\nHis mouth quirked again, bringing her back to reality. \"The first of many, I hope.\" Then his eyes had darkened and she couldn't doubt the sincerity in his voice that warmed her all through. \"You mean the world to me, Toni. You must know that.\"\n\nRemembering, Toni smiled and toasted the sunset with her wine. Then she bit her lip. But he didn't say he loves me. \"To possibilities,\" she murmured, her glance falling on the sport coat Bryce had left with her after their date to see Chorus Line. She'd been putting off returning it, but tonight would be as good a time as any. She'd have a quick dinner, then run the jacket to his place and politely refuse any more dates. In spite of what Bryce wanted, their relationship was ended and the sooner he understood that, the better. Royal Stewart was her future, if she could make that happen, and there was no room in it for Bryce.\n\n****\n\n\"Toni!\" Bryce's pleased surprise was evident when she appeared on his condo doorstep, his sport coat over her arm. \"I was just thinking about you. Come in, come in, let me fix you a drink.\" He ushered her into the foyer with a possessive hand on her arm. \"This is great. I've been hoping to see you.\"\n\nToni hesitated inside the door. \"No need for the drink, Bryce. I didn't come to visit. I'm just returning your jacket.\" She smiled and handed it to him. \"Thanks.\"\n\n\"You're welcome.\" His expression smug, he said, \"You probably knew I left it on purpose. And as you can see, my little plan worked, didn't it? Here you are.\" He draped the coat over the back of a chair. \"Now, don't rush away. Surely you can spare a little time to spend with an old friend.\"\n\n\"You're not busy?\" She glanced into his immaculate great room\u2014as usual, not a thing out of place, except\u2014she blinked... What was that? A pair of women's stiletto-heeled boots lay flopped over beside his elegant couch. Toni raised her eyebrows. \"Sure you're not entertaining?\"\n\n\"Ah.\" He had the grace to flush. \"Unfortunately, my houseguest isn't as neat as I'd like,\" he said. \"My cousin's in town for a few days. I'd introduce you, but she's resting.\"\n\n\"I didn't know you had any relatives, Bryce. In all the time we spent together, you've never mentioned any. Where's she from?\"\n\nHe hesitated, frowning, then said as though he'd just remembered, \"Omaha, I think, now. But she travels a lot, you never know where she might put down roots or when she might pop up. So, how about that drink? I was just going to make one for myself.\"\n\nToni relented. \"Just one. A light one. I have some news that might interest you.\"\n\n\"Anything you have to say will interest me, you know that.\" He gestured toward his wet bar. \"Come in and tell me. My life has been dull without you.\"\n\nDull? Globe-trotting Bryce Andrews? Somehow Toni doubted that, but followed him to his elegant entertainment center, where he flipped a switch to bring soft background music from overhead speakers. She leaned her elbows on the raised bar and watched him mix drinks and slice slivers from a juicy lime. It was hard to keep the pride out of her voice. \"I've sold a book, Bryce.\"\n\n\"Well!\" He looked up, his eyes widening. \"It seems that there are things neither of us ever mentioned. You're going to be published?\" He chuckled. \"I'll bet it's a love story. You always were a hopeless romantic. Tell me all about it.\"\n\nShe laughed, though stung a bit at his derisive tone. Of course he wouldn't think she was capable of writing anything serious. \"It's a book of patterns, Bryce, for fashioning unusual costumes. It will come out next year. I still have to finish the final artwork, but that won't take long.\"\n\n\"You never cease to surprise me, Toni. I'm flattered that you came to tell me. Come, let's sit.\" Carrying their drinks, he led the way to the bistro table in the bowed window alcove. He touched his glass to hers, sending a crystal tink floating through the room. \"This calls for congratulations.\"\n\nBut his congratulations sounded hollow. Actually, he sounds just a little jealous. Or miffed that I did something without his permission? Toni dismissed that thought; the days of Bryce Andrews giving her permission were long over.\n\nShe grinned. \"Sometimes I even surprise myself.\"\n\nThey were chatting amicably over their drinks when without warning the door to Bryce's guest wing slammed open. Toni jumped and nearly choked on her gimlet when she stared up at the scowling redhead who had threatened her with a gun only days before.\n\n\"What the hell is she doing here!\" the woman demanded, pointing a long red-tipped finger at Toni.\n\nToni sputtered, \"This is your cousin from Omaha?\"\n\n\"Cousin! Omaha!\" Monica Asher squealed. \"What the hell have you been telling her, Bryce?\"\n\n****\n\nOutside Andrews' condo, the moonless night was dark and quiet in the elegant complex where Phil Carson slowed the police cruiser to a stop under an overhanging oak branch.\n\nRoyal, riding shotgun, leaned forward and pounded his fist on the dashboard. \"Dammit!\"\n\nCarson flinched. \"What!\"\n\nRoyal's thoughts spun at the sight of Toni's van parked at Andrews' unit. Why would she be here now, of all times? Why would she be here at all? Hadn't she said she was through with him? The thought that she could be involved in Andrews' money laundering hit Royal like a hammer blow before he dismissed it. Then an even more unwelcome thought took its place and unreasonable jealousy surged through him. Was she here to rekindle her relationship with Andrews because Royal hadn't been forthcoming about his past? Settle down, don't get your back up, he told himself. Maybe she and Andrews are still friends. But damn! Of all the nights for her to come visiting.\n\nHe'd set up this sting knowing Andrews would be home and that Asher was staying with him...and now suddenly Toni was thrown into the mix. He closed his eyes. He didn't want her to get hurt. More than anything, he didn't want that.\n\nThe SWAT team's hulking armored Bearcat slid silently to the curb behind the cruiser. Everything was in place. SWAT was ready to roll. In only a matter of minutes this whole operation should be over.\n\nCarson raised his eyebrows. \"What's the holdup, Stewart? Give SWAT the signal and let's get this show going before all the neighbors pop out to see what's going on.\"\n\n\"We can't.\" Royal rubbed his forehead. \"Toni's in there.\"\n\n\"Toni!\" Carson exclaimed, eyes wide. He scowled at Royal. \"How do you know?\"\n\nHe pointed. \"That's her van.\"\n\n\"You think she's part of\u2014\"\n\nRoyal cut him off. \"No! But she's in there just the same.\"\n\nCarson scowled, huffed out a breath and pinched the bridge of his nose. \"That complicates things. Our easy-in, easy-out won't be so simple.\"\n\n\"And we know Asher's got a gun. Probably Andrews does, too.\"\n\n\"You think he'd hurt Toni?\" Carson's voice was strained.\n\nRoyal groaned. \"God, I'd hope not. They were together for more than a year. He must have feelings for her.\"\n\n\"Can't we get her out of there? Call her cell, give her a reason to meet you. Now.\"\n\n\"Right.\" Royal pulled out his phone and directed the voice activator: \"Call Toni Dresser.\"\n\nA hum. Then: \"Calling Toni Dresser.\" Buzz. Buzz. Buzz. Click. \"You've reached Toni Dresser. Please leave a message.\"\n\nBehind the Bearcat an FVTV van pulled up.\n\nCarson growled, \"How in the hell did the media hear about this? We barely got here ourselves.\"\n\n****\n\nInside Andrews' condo, Toni frowned at Bryce, processing this almost laughable development. The redhead was Bryce's cousin? Toni didn't think so. But what was going on? Phil Carson said the police were looking for her in connection with Neeley and the kidnapping. What did that have to do with Bryce?\n\nThe sudden quiet after Asher's unexpected entrance was broken by the ring of Toni's phone. She automatically reached for her purse but before she got to it she felt cold steel at her temple and remembered the little pearl-handled weapon the woman had brandished in Wannabe. Every nerve in Toni's body tensed.\n\n\"Don't touch that phone!\" Asher demanded. \"Let it go.\"\n\nBuzz. Buzz.\n\n\"Monica, for God's sake!\" Bryce shoved away from the table and reached for the woman's arm. \"What are you doing? You're high again. Go back to your room, sleep it off.\" He tried to smile at Toni but couldn't make it real. \"She's got a problem,\" he said. \"I'm trying to get her into rehab.\"\n\n\"Rehab!\" Asher shrieked, turning the gun on him. \"Me? Rehab? Stay right there, you sniveling coward! Why'd you let this woman in, anyway? Now she's seen me here with you. We've got to get rid of her. She's trouble for both of us.\"\n\nToni stared at Bryce, uncomprehending. What hold did this woman have over him? \"Bryce\u2014\"\n\n\"Shut up and stand up, bitch.\" Asher stepped back and pointed the gun at Toni, waved it in the general direction of Bryce for just a moment and said, \"Get some rope, or duct tape. Something to tie her up.\"\n\n\"Monica, stop. Think.\" Bryce stood his ground. \"You're way out of line here. We don't need to do this.\"\n\nAsher scowled, aimed the gun back at Toni. \"Yes, we do. Move!\"\n\n****\n\n\"Damn!\" Royal swore again. \"She's not picking up.\"\n\n\"Go to the door, then. Tell her anything to get her out,\" said Carson. \"Toni's had more than enough trouble lately and the last thing we need is to have this escalate into a hostage situation.\"\n\n\"Wearing this?\" Royal gestured to his body armor. \"Andrews will know something's up.\"\n\n\"Better that than Toni should be hurt. Go! I'll handle the damn reporters.\"\n\nRoyal slid out of the cruiser, waved a \"hold up\" sign to the SWAT vehicle and jogged to Andrews' door, wishing he were tall enough to see through the fan-shaped transom window. He rang the bell. Waited. No response.\n\nRang it again. Please God let Toni be all right.\n\nNo response.\n\nAnother TV van pulled up behind the first. Cheri Drew, police beat reporter, headed for Carson, who physically barred her way. Royal heard him say, \"No closer. That's an order.\"\n\n\"Chief, can you tell us what's going on?\" she asked, waving her microphone toward him. \"Who's inside?\"\n\n\"You'll know when we've stabilized the situation. Until then, stay out of the way.\"\n\n****\n\n\"Better answer that,\" Toni said at the sound of the doorbell. Her mouth was so dry she could hardly speak. \"Lights are on, people will wonder.\"\n\n\"As if I care.\" Asher scoffed. \"Let them.\"\n\n\"She's right, Monica,\" Andrews said, moving toward Asher, his voice quiet. \"Just be calm. Put the gun away.\"\n\nToni didn't move a muscle. That's the way, Bryce. Good move. Stay quiet. Bring her down.\n\nAsher was calmer now, holding the gun steady. \"I'm in the driver's seat here.\" She scowled at Toni. \"Jesus! What does Bryce see in you anyway?\"\n\nCertainly not what he sees in you. The woman's eyes were so dilated they appeared to have no color at all.\n\nThe doorbell rang again. And again.\n\nWhoever it was, was insistent. Toni swallowed. \"Look, let's be reasonable. Answer the door. I'll leave, and you and Bryce can straighten out whatever your problem is. You can sleep it off\u2014\"\n\nLoud pounding rattled the house, accompanied by, \"Andrews! Open up!\"\n\nWas that Royal's voice? Without thinking, Toni yelled, \"Help! Royal! She's got a gun!\"\n\n\"Bitch! I said shut up!\" Asher swiped the steel across Toni's face.\n\nShe stumbled back, feeling blood ooze down her cheek. Why was Royal here? Was this all part of what he couldn't\u2014wouldn't\u2014tell her?\n\n\"Andrews!\" More heavy pounding. \"Police!\"\n\nAndrews stepped toward Asher. \"Stop this, for God's sake! You're acting crazy!\" He held his hands out, palms flat with a calming motion. \"Monica, put down the gun.\"\n\n\"Monica, put down the gun,\" she mimicked, swinging her shoulders and waving the weapon. \"Put that to music. It'll be a hit.\"\n\nWhatever she's on, she's beyond reason. \"Bryce, don't\u2014\"\n\nHe ignored Toni and took another step, holding out his hand. \"Give me the gun. Please.\"\n\n\"Please.\" She snorted. \"Did you hear that, Miz Dresser? 'Please,' he says so nicely.\"\n\nAndrews lunged.\n\nFor such a small weapon, the noise it made was far too loud.\n\nTime stopped.\n\nAndrews slumped to the floor. A red stain spread across his chest.\n\n****\n\nRoyal's heart lurched at the sound of the shot. Please God, don't let Toni have been hit. He swung around, gesturing, \"Come!\" with both hands. The helmeted, black-suited SWAT team swarmed out of the Bearcat like angry spiders from a disturbed nest. In seconds four circled the condo to cover the back and an armed man was stationed on either side of the door. Royal stepped aside as two more swung into action, splintering the door with a battering ram.\n\nRoyal's body moved automatically through the tactics he knew so well but his mind was on Toni. If she was hurt...\n\nShouting, \"Police! Put down your weapons!\" he surged into the living area, followed by Phil Carson and two of the SWAT team.\n\nRoyal pulled up short.\n\nAndrews lay motionless on the floor, a dark puddle forming beside his body. Wild-eyed Monica Asher held Toni in front of her with a gun at Toni's throat.\n\nAsher's chuckle was diabolical. \"Well. If it isn't the elusive Royal Stewart. I've been wanting to meet you. Looks like I might get my hands on those diamonds after all.\" She chuckled again. \"If you want to see Miss Prissy here alive, you and your flunkies better put down your guns.\"\n\nAll Royal's experience with hostage negotiation didn't seem relevant when the woman he loved\u2014yes, loved\u2014was being held at gunpoint by a hopped-up druggie. He nodded, slowly lowering his weapon to the floor and motioning Carson and the two men behind him to do the same.\n\nHe kept his voice calm though a million nerve ends tingled throughout his body. \"Take it easy here. Let me call an ambulance, okay? You don't want a murder on your hands.\"\n\n\"It's not murder when it's a rodent,\" Asher sneered. \"I hate those creepy little devils.\" She grinned, almost giggled. \"Except for Mickey Mouse, of course.\" She pushed out her leg to show off her ankle tattoo. \"He's cool. Well...\" She snorted. \"Looks like we have a situation here, don't we, Stewart?\"\n\n\"It seems we do.\" Royal nodded, keeping his voice level, his hands at his sides, his gaze signaling \"hold on\" to Toni. \"You're the one with the gun. What do you want?\"\n\n\"What I've always wanted. The diamonds. Would have had them if Neeley\u2014now there's a real rodent for you\u2014hadn't screwed up. I get the rocks, and you get\u2014\" She jabbed the barrel harder up under Toni's chin, \"\u2014her.\"\n\nSirens split the night and Royal realized that Carson must have called for an ambulance when he heard the gunshot.\n\n\"Let's get Andrews some help, first,\" Royal said. \"Then you and I can\u2014\"\n\nShe cut him off. \"You and I? You and I? You want to play nice?\" She poked the gun harder into Toni's throat and laughed, a witch-cackle that sent shivers down Royal's spine.\n\n****\n\nToni felt them, too, her thoughts swirling.\n\nWas Bryce dead? He hadn't made a move, not even a twitch since he'd hit the floor like a felled tree. He'd looked astonished, as though he'd never believe Asher would actually shoot him. Toni tried not to look at the dark spreading puddle soaking into the elegant Oriental rug. In spite of all the CSI and Law & Order shows she'd watched, she didn't have a clue as to how to get away from this drugged-up nutcase. Shutting her eyes, Toni let her thoughts swirl, searching for an idea. Somehow she had to distract Asher without getting shot. A split second would be all Royal needed to disarm the woman. What was it she'd said about hating rodents?\n\nTime had stopped again. Toni, Asher, Royal, Carson and two SWAT men were posed like statues in a freeze frame. Soft music floated over them inside; sirens came to a burping halt outside the condo.\n\nHoping with all her heart that Royal was tuned in to her wavelength, Toni squealed, \"Ooh! A mouse! Monica! A mouse just ran into your boot!\"\n\n\"Mouse! Where!\" Asher jerked to look and squeezed off a shot that flipped one of her boots a foot in the air.\n\nRoyal covered the distance between them with a leap and chopped the gun from Asher's hand. In seconds he had pinned her wrists, cuffed them behind her and handed her over to Carson. \"She's all yours,\" he growled, then shouted, \"Get the medics in here!\"\n\n\"Shit!\" muttered Asher, glowering at Toni. \"You bitch. There was no mouse.\"\n\nToni raised her eyebrows and shrugged. \"Could've been.\" Then she grinned. \"Bet you won't be wearing those boots again.\"\n\nIn moments the EMT men were checking Andrews for vital signs, lifting him onto a stretcher.\n\nToni's knees gave way and she sank onto the velvet couch, covering her face with her hands before she realized her cheek was still oozing blood.\n\n\"Good distraction, Toni.\" Royal was beside her. \"Let me see.\" He tipped up her chin and blotted the blood with his handkerchief. \"I'm sorry you got involved in this.\"\n\n\"Me, too.\" She felt the concern in his eyes and his touch and, for the first time since Monica Asher had burst into the room, felt safe.\n\n\"Thank God it's just a scratch.\" Royal's voice was rough. \"How'd this happen?\"\n\n\"She did it with her gun,\" Toni answered, remembering the fury in Asher's face. \"Guess it was something I said.\"\n\nShielding their eyes against the TV spotlight, Royal and Toni walked outside where crime scene tape was being strung to block off the area around Andrews' condo. Curious neighbors watched from their doors as the SWAT team climbed back into the Bearcat and pulled away.\n\nReporters clamored for information but Carson, muscling a cursing Monica Asher toward the police cruiser, ignored their questions and stated, \"You'll have details as soon as I can give them to you. That's all for now.\" He stowed Asher, still seething, into the back seat and turned to Toni. \"I'll need your statement to wrap this up. Yours, too, Stewart. Are you okay to come down to the station?\"\n\n\"Not now. Save it 'til morning, Carson,\" said Royal, his arm around Toni's shoulders. \"Right now I'm taking her home.\"\n\n\"Right.\" Carson's voice was gruff. \"Thank God you're all right, Toni. I'll see you tomorrow.\"\n\nFor once, Toni didn't mind having a man take charge. Royal ushered her into the passenger seat of her van and took over the driving. Funny how having a pistol at your throat changes your perspective. She leaned back, closed her eyes and blanked out until the van came to a stop. When she looked up to see Temple House, she protested, \"You said you were taking me home.\"\n\n\"Yes. I just didn't say whose home,\" said Royal, coming around to open her door. \"I want you here tonight, where I can hold you and keep the nightmares away.\"\n\n\"I don't have nightmares.\" She stepped onto the driveway and nearly collapsed.\n\nHe caught her and held her so close she could feel his heart pounding. \"Steady there. See how handy I can be? We're going to put this evening behind us and have a soothing drink in front of the fire.\"\n\nToni wrinkled her nose up at him. \"Are we? That sounds wonderful. And then you're going to tell me all sorts of interesting things, aren't you?\"\n\nHe paused.\n\n\"Aren't you?\" she persisted. \"Isn't it about time?\"\nChapter Thirty-One\n\nInside Temple House, Royal wrapped Toni in one of Grace's hand-stitched quilts and settled her down in front of the welcoming study fire. He gently cleaned the scrape on her face and dressed it with antibiotic cream before lowering her back on the couch. \"There, now. Stay put,\" he ordered, and went to the liquor cabinet.\n\n\"I'm fine, really,\" she protested. \"See?\" She held out her hand and then tucked it back quickly when she realized she was still shaky.\n\n\"Nerves, sweetheart. You've had a rough evening. This will help.\" Royal handed her a crystal snifter holding rich brandy that picked up highlights from the dancing flames. \"You've been through a traumatic experience. You're not fine yet, but you will be.\" He tilted her chin up and brushed his lips lightly over hers.\n\nEven that barely-there kiss set her body trembling, and this time it wasn't nerves. At least not the same kind of nerves that reacted to having a pistol at her neck. Toni sipped the liquor. It was bracing and smooth at the same time and, true to Royal's prediction, warmed her all the way to her toes. She sighed and snuggled back onto the pillows. \"Thanks. This really does help. Now tell me what just happened. All of it, not only what went on at Bryce's. Tell me all the things you've been keeping from me. Who you really are, Stone or Stewart. What you really do.\"\n\nRoyal held up a hand to stop her but she ignored it and barreled on. \"Tell me about those diamonds I was kidnapped for but never saw, and what Bryce and that crazy woman have to do each other. He said she was his cousin, but I'm sure that's not true.\"\n\n\"You're right about that.\" Royal set their snifters on the fireside table, sat beside her and took her hands in his. His eyes looked dark, almost black, in the flickering light. \"So many questions. I owe you explanations, but I can't tell you everything you want to know, not ever. That's a given you'll just have to accept. Yes, I am\u2014was\u2014an undercover agent for a government group that is off the grid. But I've told them I'm finished as of now, and they've agreed. I can tell you that my work had to do with the profits from blood diamonds\u2014do you know what they are?\" At her nod he continued, \"I've been tracking money laundered from the sale of those diamonds for a long while.\"\n\nToni frowned. \"What has that to do with Bryce? Why were you there tonight? Why the SWAT team?\"\n\nHe studied her face for a moment. \"I know you won't like hearing this, but your friend Bryce is much more than a travel agent. He's been a cartel kingpin here in the states for some time.\"\n\n\"Bryce? A kingpin? A criminal?\" Toni sat up. Had she heard right? Bryce, a money launderer?\n\nRoyal continued, \"He's made a fortune. More than one. His greed has cost many lives, both here in the states and especially in Sierra Leone, where natives, even children\u2014\" He grimaced at the memories, picturing Amalie's face, her shy smile, \"...are forced into the mines at gunpoint.\"\n\nToni stared into the fire, her memories piling up like photos in an album. Pictures of Andrews flickered through her thoughts: Bryce, smiling at the helm of his yacht, his light hair lifting carelessly in the breeze. Bryce in tennis whites, serving up a perfect ace. Bryce across her candlelit table, holding out a ruby and diamond ring, expecting a yes to his proposal. And all the time he had been a criminal, nothing better than a thug who preyed on innocents for profit. Toni felt tears welling up. \"Oh, Royal. How could I have been so wrong about him?\"\n\n\"You weren't alone. He's fooled a lot of people.\"\n\n\"So what happened tonight had been planned for some time? And I just waltzed into it?\"\n\n\"It looks that way. We knew Monica Asher was staying with Andrews. We knew he suspected nothing of the sting we had planned, though he'd been trying to investigate me. The bust tonight was supposed to be an easy in-easy out. When I saw your van\u2014\" He broke off, remembering the lurch of his heart. \"What were you doing there, anyway?\"\n\n\"I was returning his coat. It was to be the last time I'd see him.\" Then her mind flipped to Bryce's body on the floor, blood seeping from his wound. Was he alive? Maybe that really was he last time she'd see him. \"Where does the redhead fit into all this?\"\n\n\"Actually, her showing up was what blew the whistle on Andrews. They'd worked together overseas. I'm sure he never wanted her here, focusing our attention on him. For the record, I doubt he had anything to do with your kidnapping. That was her idea to walk away with the last shipment of diamonds that hadn't yet been turned into cash.\"\n\n\"I'm confused. How'd she tie up with Neeley?\"\n\nRoyal rolled his glass between his hands before answering, and Toni heard the sadness behind his words. \"Sam was an easy mark, just the kind of patsy a woman like Asher preys on. Small-time crook, always looking for the big one\u2014\" Royal stopped for a moment, then continued. \"I haven't had the chance to tell you that he was here in the house the night Grace Temple fell. He'd come in through the balcony window and surprised her at the top of the stairs. She tumbled down.\"\n\nToni gasped. \"Oh, Royal. You were so sure that wasn't an accident. You were right.\"\n\n\"Yes and no. He didn't mean to kill her, Toni. For people like Sam, unfortunate things just happen, intended or not. I asked Phil Carson to go easy on him for that, but he'll still have to pay for his part in your kidnapping.\"\n\n\"You care about Sam Neeley, don't you, Royal?\" Toni searched his face.\n\nRoyal sighed. \"I'm sorry for him. He always tried to get things the easy way.\"\n\nIn spite of her still unanswered questions, Toni's eyes were heavy. The safety after the danger, the brandy, the fire, the snuggly quilt\u2014\n\nShe roused when Royal picked her up, blanket and all.\n\n\"What are you doing?\"\n\n\"Taking you to bed, my love. You've had a big day.\"\n\n\"Um-hum,\" she nodded against his shoulder as he carried her up the stairs to his bedroom. It was delicious to be in his strong arms again, to feel that electricity that tingled through her just being near him.\n\n\"And tomorrow...\" she heard him say before she felt a warm kiss on her forehead and slipped into sleep, \"...tomorrow we have a letter to read. Together.\"\nChapter Thirty-Two\n\nToni woke to brilliant sunshine coming through the French doors to the balcony overlooking the river. Befuddled for a moment, she yawned, stretched under the coverlet and sat up, realizing she was wearing only her lacy blue bra and matching panties. Disoriented, she spotted her slacks, T-shirt and jacket on a chair near a window. From the slant of the sun's rays she decided it must be nearly midday.\n\nShe flopped back on the king-sized pillow in Royal's bed\u2014at least she supposed it was his bed. I must have been really zonked out. I don't remember anything after sitting by the fire. Then in a tumble of images, the last night's events at Bryce's plowed helter-skelter into her mind.\n\nMonica Asher bursting out of the bedroom, pulling her gun and demanding that Bryce tie Toni up. Bryce's refusal, his trying to placate the woman. The pounding on the door and Royal's voice shouting \"Open up!\" Bryce moving toward Monica. The shot. Oh, God, the shot! Bryce falling, his blood blossoming on his chest, soaking into the Oriental rug. The crash of the door splintering open. Unconsciously Toni put her fingers to her neck at the spot of Monica Asher's gunpoint. The tableau of Royal, Carson and SWAT team members caught in a freeze-frame.\n\nToni smiled, her imaginary mouse distracting Asher for the second Royal needed to disarm her. Then the medics taking Bryce away.\n\nWas he still alive? Royal would know. Toni frowned. Where was he?\n\nAs if she'd conjured him up, he came into the bedroom fully dressed and carrying two heavenly-smelling mugs. \"Ah, the princess wakes.\" He smiled and sat on the edge of the bed. \"I was beginning to worry about you.\"\n\nShe sat up to sip the coffee. \"Thanks. This is wonderful.\" She looked out the window. \"Is it as late as I think it is?\"\n\n\"That depends on how late you think it is. You slept about,\" he consulted his watch, \"thirteen hours.\"\n\n\"Thirteen hours!\" Toni exclaimed. \"I haven't slept thirteen hours since I was a teenager.\"\n\n\"Events like last night require recoup time.\"\n\n\"Oh, Royal, is Bryce\u2014\" she didn't want to say \"dead.\"\n\nHe hesitated for a moment, then said, \"I can't make this easy for you. He was alive when they got him into surgery, but it was too late. He'd lost too much blood.\"\n\nToni closed her eyes. \"I'm so sorry. That might not have happened if I hadn't been there.\"\n\n\"No use second guessing. You couldn't have known.\"\n\nToni grimaced. \"It seems there are a lot of things I couldn't have known.\"\n\n\"Ouch. Point taken.\" Royal stood. \"But we're going to remedy that as soon as you're dressed and have had breakfast. I have scones in the oven.\"\n\nToni blinked. \"You're baking scones?\"\n\n\"I am. Blueberry.\"\n\nShe handed him her mug, tossed back the covers and swung her feet to the floor. \"Out of my way, Stewart. I love blueberry scones.\"\n\nThey were delicious. So were the scrambled eggs and crispy bacon Royal whipped up to go with them. Ravenous, Toni barely spoke until her plate was clean.\n\n\"Well.\" Royal smiled across the kitchen table. \"They say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach. After this morning I believe that may be true for the feminine gender as well.\"\n\nToni grinned, wiped her mouth with her napkin. \"Those scones would worm their way into anybody's heart.\" She bit her lip. \"I have a confession to make, Royal.\"\n\nHe dipped his head, leaned back in his chair. \"I thought I was supposed to tell all this morning.\"\n\n\"That, too. But I need to get something off my chest first.\"\n\n\"And a lovely chest it is,\" he teased, then sobered at her serious expression. \"I'll bite. What's so important?\"\n\nToni took a deep breath and crossed her mental fingers that he wouldn't be furious. \"Well, it's really your own fault. You wouldn't answer any of my questions about you.\" The rest came out in a rush, \"So I asked Link Spencer to run a background check on you.\"\n\n\"You did? Really. And?\" His eyebrows went up and she saw that annoying quirk at the corner of his mouth. Wasn't the man going to react any more than that?\n\n\"Aren't you mad?\" she asked, almost afraid to hear his answer. \"You have every right to be.\" Then she admitted, frowning, \"Even though he didn't learn much.\"\n\n\"That's not surprising. Because the group I've worked for is very good at hiding information.\" Royal got up to put their plates in the sink and run water over them. Then he came back and reached for her hand. \"No, I'm not mad. I'd have done the same in your place. Come. I have something to share with you. Something that I hope will answer many of your questions. And many of my own.\"\n\nMystified, Toni asked, \"What is it?\"\n\n\"A letter Grace Temple left with her lawyer in case we never had the chance to talk. As you know, we didn't. Sit here.\" He directed Toni to the love seat in the study and sat beside her, holding the still sealed envelope. \"I've been waiting to open this until you were with me.\"\n\n\"I'm surprised. And flattered, I think,\" Toni said. \"Why?\"\n\n\"Because I believe it's going to be important to both of us. At least I hope so.\"\n\nAn hour later, Royal read aloud the final paragraphs of Grace Temple's long letter: \"And so, my dear Royal, now you know as much about your family as I do. I am so, so sorry I didn't find you sooner. We're all gone now, except perhaps Roger Stone (if that was really his name.) Perhaps you can find him; I was unable to do so.\n\nI loved your mother as much as if she were my own and grieved as deeply as my sister Anne and her daughter Lucille (Angela's mother, my niece) did when Angela chose to disappear from our lives. We should have\u2014probably would have\u2014accepted Roger Stone into the family, but she never gave us the chance. \"My life, my way,\" was your mother's motto from the time she was a small child. I hope the few years you had with her hold happy memories. I wish more than anything that you will find happiness in your life and that you will fill Temple House with a loving wife and many laughing children. It's been too long an empty shell. Make it a home. Your home.\n\nWith much love, your great-aunt,\n\nGrace Temple.\n\n\"Oh, Royal.\" Toni brushed away tears. \"What a wonderful letter. I'm so sorry she's gone.\"\n\nRoyal put the papers aside. \"I am, too. The connection would have meant so much to me.\" He took a deep breath. \"So now you know the family history up until my mother ran away with her lover. Let me fill in the rest for you.\" Royal got up to pace in front of the fire. \"My parents did the bunk: pulled scams, petty thievery, ditched responsibilities, hauled me along. Of course I was too young to understand that part of our life. I thought it was a blast, to tell the truth, always picking up and running to somewhere new. Always exciting. I didn't realize they were running from, not to. They died in a car wreck.\" His voice trailed off for a moment. Then he swallowed and went on. \"Running from the police in Mississippi. I was seven. With no one to claim me, I was shuffled into foster care, and believe me I wouldn't wish that on any kid.\"\n\nToni looked up at him, her heart reaching out to the little boy lost that had surfaced at times they had been together. \"But you must have gone to school. You couldn't be as successful as you are without education.\"\n\n\"Oh, yes. I was smart enough to know that street creds wouldn't get me where I wanted to go, that that kind of life wasn't for me. I worked my ass off to get through school, and with the help of grants and a head for business, got where I could see the holy grail of commercial America. Competition. Thrived on it. Still do.\"\n\nToni was quiet for a moment. \"But your Aunt Grace had all that money. Didn't she want you?\"\n\n\"Grace had no knowledge of where I spent my years in the foster system. There were good homes and not-so-good homes. As you've guessed, Sam Neeley was with me in the last one before I took off on my own.\" Royal ran a hand through his hair. \"Now you know why I've hesitated to tell you my story. It's not a past I'm proud of.\"\n\n\"But none of it was your fault.\" Toni reached up to take his hand and pulled him down beside her. \"Why do you think your parents' marriage wasn't recorded?\"\n\nRoyal shrugged and grimaced. \"The easy answer is, perhaps they never married. That would make me a bastard.\"\n\n\"I like 'love child' better,\" Toni declared. \"Do you intend to look for your father?\"\n\n\"I've tried, with no results. Believe me, I have the best resources.\" He paused. \"Or did have.\"\n\nShe frowned. \"Past tense?\"\n\n\"Yes. That's all past tense now, with Asher in custody and the Bryce Andrews connection broken. There are only a few loose threads to tie up that part of my life so I can move on.\"\n\nA few loose threads, Toni thought, her heart sinking. Is that what I am? A loose thread? What will he move on to? Will he sell Temple House and go back to his nomadic life as a business consultant? Unconsciously she covered her face with her hands. We've had wonderful sex, sure, but he's never hinted there should be more. And I want so much more.\n\n\"What's the matter, Toni?\" Royal lifted her chin, his eyes boring into hers. \"Is it all too much to take in? That I'm nothing more than a street kid with no family and no pedigree?\"\n\nShe drew in a sharp breath. \"How could you think that? Do you believe I'm that shallow?\" She searched his face. \"But I'm puzzled. Why did you wait to open Grace's letter until I was with you? You must have been crazy to know what it said.\"\n\n\"Don't you understand? I wanted you to know as much about me as I knew myself. Who I was. Who I am. What I want for the future.\"\n\nShe shook her head. \"But I don't know what that is.\"\n\n\"I do,\" he said, taking both her hands and pulling her toward him, into the depth of his brilliant blue gaze. \"You must know I love you, Toni.\"\n\nHer heart pounded like a timpani in her chest. Had he actually said the words she'd so longed to hear? She took a breath but he continued, \"No, don't speak. I think I've loved you from the moment we met. But there were so many things I had to get out of the way before I could claim that love.\" He brushed his lips like a tender promise over hers and rubbed the back of his hand down her cheek. \"What I want is us. Together. I want to marry you, to raise our family here in Temple House. To wake up to you every morning for the rest of my life.\" His eyes held hers. \"Your turn. Tell me that's what you want, too.\"\n\nTrembling, she reached up to run her fingers over his stubbled jaw, touched that tricky little quirk at the side of his mouth. \"I've never really thought this through before, but every day I help people live their wannabe dreams, and I've never put into words who or what it is I want to be.\" She hesitated, putting her thoughts in order. \"Their dreams are fleeting\u2014to become a princess, a pirate, to experience a moment in time that's over when the party ends and they take off their costume and go back to their day-to-day lives.\" She cradled his face in her palms. \"But what I want is permanent. What I wannabe is Mrs. Royal Stewart, or Stone, or whoever you may be. I can deal with your past. I want to be your future.\"\n\n\"I think we can arrange that,\" he said, pulling her into his arms. \"We'll make that future whatever we want it to be.\"\n\nBehind Royal, the afternoon sun's rays streamed through the windows, highlighting his dark head bent over hers. Toni looped her arms around his neck and looked up at him with an impish grin. \"How would you like to go to Arizona for Thanksgiving?\"\n\n# A word about the author...\n\nAlways a reader, Nancy Sweetland has been writing since she sent her first submission off at the age of thirteen. Since then she's sold over a hundred stories, won more than eighty awards for fiction and poetry, and published seven picture books and an easy-reader mystery for children.\n\nThe Door to Love, set in romantic Door County, was her first novel, published by The Wild Rose Press, Inc. in 2009. Readers will find some of the characters from that book in these pages as well.\n\nNancy is a member of the Mystery Writers of America, Romance Writers of America, the Short Mystery Fiction Society, and Wisconsin Writers. She also belongs to the Society for Children's Book Writers and Illustrators and is an instructor for the Institute of Children's Literature.\n\nNancy has seven children, five step-children, and \"many\" grandchildren. She lives in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and she loves to hear from readers.\n\nFind her at:\n\nnancysweetland@wordpress.com\nThank you for purchasing this publication of The Wild Rose Press, Inc.\n\nFor other wonderful stories of romance,\n\nplease visit our on-line bookstore at\n\nwww.thewildrosepress.com.\n\nFor questions or more information\n\ncontact us at\n\ninfo@thewildrosepress.com.\n\nThe Wild Rose Press, Inc.\n\nwww.thewildrosepress.com\n\nTo visit with authors of\n\nThe Wild Rose Press, Inc.\n\njoin our yahoo loop at\n\n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaBook"}}
+{"text":" \n# On \nthe Political\n\n## CHANTAL MOUFFE\n\n# On \nthe Political\n\n### \nFirst published 2005\n\nby Routledge\n\n2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, OX14 4RN\n\nSimultaneously published in the USA and Canada\n\nby Routledge\n\n270 Madison Ave, New York, NY 10016\n\nRoutledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group\n\n\u00a9 2005 Chantal Mouffe\n\nAll rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.\n\nBritish Library Cataloguing in Publication Data\n\nA catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library\n\nLibrary of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data\n\nMouffe, Chantal.\n\nOn the political \/ Chantal Mouffe.\n\np. cm\u2014(Thinking in action)\n\nIncludes bibliographical references.\n\n1. Political science\u2014Philosophy. 2. Democracy. 3. Right and left (Political \nscience) I. Title. II. Series.\n\nJA71.M679 2005\n\n320.5\u2014dc22| 2004024746 \n---|---\n\nISBN 0-415-30520-9 (hbk)\n\nISBN 0-415-30521-7 (pbk)\nIntroduction| One \n---|--- \n| \n| \nPolitics and the Political| Two \n| \n| \nBeyond the Adversarial Model?| Three \n| \n| \n[Current Challenges to the Post-political \nVision](ch04.xhtml)| Four \n| \n| \n[Which World Order: Cosmopolitan or \nMultipolar?](ch05.xhtml)| Five \n| \n| \nConclusion| Six \n| \n| \n| Notes \n| Index\n\n# Introduction\n\n# One\n\nIn this book I want to take issue with the view which informs the 'common sense' in a majority of Western societies: the idea that the stage of economico-political development that we have now reached constitutes a great progress in the evolution of humanity and that we should celebrate the possibilities that it opens. Sociologists claim that we have entered a 'second modernity' in which individuals liberated from collective ties can now dedicate themselves to cultivating a diversity of lifestyles, unhindered by antiquated attachments. The 'free world' has triumphed over communism and, with the weakening of collective identities, a world 'without enemies' is now possible. Partisan conflicts are a thing of the past and consensus can now be obtained through dialogue. Thanks to globalization and the universalization of liberal democracy, we can expect a cosmopolitan future bringing peace, prosperity and the implementation of human rights worldwide.\n\nI want to challenge this 'post-political' vision. My main target will be those in the progressive camp who accept this optimistic view of globalization and have become the advocates of a consensual form of democracy. Scrutinizing some of the fashionable theories which underpin the post-political Zeitgeist in a series of fields \u2013 sociology, political theory and international relations \u2013 I will argue that such an approach is profoundly mistaken and that, instead of contributing to a 'democratization of democracy', it is at the origin of many of the problems that democratic institutions are currently facing. Notions such as 'partisan-free democracy', 'dialogic democracy', 'cosmopolitan democracy', 'good governance', 'global civil society', 'cosmopolitan sovereignty', 'absolute democracy' \u2013 to quote only a few of the currently fashionable notions \u2013 all partake of a common anti-political vision which refuses to acknowledge the antagonistic dimension constitutive of 'the political'. Their aim is the establishment of a world 'beyond left and right', 'beyond hegemony', 'beyond sovereignty' and 'beyond antagonism'. Such a longing reveals a complete lack of understanding of what is at stake in democratic politics and of the dynamics of constitution of political identities and, as we will see, it contributes to exacerbating the antagonistic potential existing in society.\n\nA significant part of my argument will consist in examining the consequences of the negation of antagonism in several areas, both in theory and in politics. It is my contention that envisaging the aim of democratic politics in terms of consensus and reconciliation is not only conceptually mistaken, it is also fraught with political dangers. The aspiration to a world where the we\/they discrimination would have been overcome is based on flawed premises and those who share such a vision are bound to miss the real task facing democratic politics.\n\nTo be sure this blindness to antagonism is not new. Democratic theory has long been informed by the belief that the inner goodness and original innocence of human beings was a necessary condition for asserting the viability of democracy. An idealized view of human sociability, as being essentially moved by empathy and reciprocity, has generally provided the basis of modern democratic political thinking. Violence and hostility are seen as an archaic phenomenon, to be eliminated thanks to the progress of exchange and the establishment, through a social contract, of a transparent communication among rational participants. Those who challenged this optimistic view were automatically perceived as enemies of democracy. Few attempts have been made to elaborate the democratic project on an anthropology which acknowledges the ambivalent character of human sociability and the fact that reciprocity and hostility cannot be dissociated. And despite what we have learned through different disciplines, the optimistic anthropology is still prevalent today. For instance, more than half a century after Freud's death, the resistance to psychoanalysis in political theory is still very strong and its lessons about the ineradicability of antagonism have not yet been assimilated.\n\nI contend that the belief in the possibility of a universal rational consensus has put democratic thinking on the wrong track. Instead of trying to design the institutions which, through supposedly 'impartial' procedures, would reconcile all conflicting interests and values, the task for democratic theorists and politicians should be to envisage the creation of a vibrant 'agonistic' public sphere of contestation where different hegemonic political projects can be confronted. This is, in my view, the sine qua non for an effective exercise of democracy. There is much talk today of 'dialogue' and 'deliberation' but what is the meaning of such words in the political field, if no real choice is at hand and if the participants in the discussion are not able to decide between clearly differentiated alternatives?\n\nI have no doubt that the liberals who think that rational agreement can be reached in politics, and who see democratic institutions as the vehicle for finding the rational answer to the different problems of society, will accuse my conception of the political of being 'nihilistic'. And so will those on the ultra-left who believe in the possibility of an 'absolute democracy'. There is no point in trying to convince them that my agonistic approach is informed by the 'true' understanding of 'the political'. I will follow a different route. What I will do is bring to the fore the consequences for democratic politics of the denial of 'the political' as I define it. I will reveal how the consensual approach, instead of creating the conditions for a reconciled society, leads to the emergence of antagonisms that an agonistic perspective, by providing those conflicts with a legitimate form of expression, would have managed to avoid. In that way I hope to demonstrate that acknowledging the ineradicability of the conflictual dimension in social life, far from undermining the democratic project, is the necessary condition for grasping the challenge to which democratic politics is confronted.\n\nBecause of the rationalism prevalent in liberal political discourse, it is often among conservative theorists that I have found crucial insights for an adequate understanding of the political. They can better shake our dogmatic assumptions than liberal apologists. This is why I have chosen to conduct my critique of liberal thought under the aegis of such a controversial thinker as Carl Schmitt. I am convinced that there is much that we can learn from him, as one of the most brilliant and intransigent opponents of liberalism. I am perfectly aware that, because of Schmitt's compromise with nazism, such a choice might arouse hostility. Many people will find it rather perverse if not outright outrageous. Yet, I believe that it is the intellectual force of theorists, not their moral qualities, that should be the decisive criteria in deciding whether we need to establish a dialogue with their work.\n\nI see the refusal of many democratic theorists to engage with Schmitt's thought on moral grounds as typical of the moralistic tendency which is characteristic of the post-political Zeitgeist. In fact, the critique of such tendency is at the core of my reflection. A central thesis of this book is that, contrary to what post-political theorists want us to believe, what we are currently witnessing is not the disappearance of the political in its adversarial dimension but something different. What is happening is that nowadays the political is played out in the moral register. In other words, it still consists in a we\/they discrimination, but the we\/they, instead of being defined with political categories, is now established in moral terms. In place of a struggle between 'right and left' we are faced with a struggle between 'right and wrong'.\n\nIn Chapter 4, using the examples of right-wing populism and of terrorism, I will examine the consequences of such a displacement for domestic as well as for international politics and unveil the dangers that it entails. My argument is that, when the channels are not available through which conflicts could take an 'agonistic' form, those conflicts tend to emerge on the antagonistic mode. Now, when instead of being formulated as a political confrontation between 'adversaries', the we\/they confrontation is visualized as a moral one between good and evil, the opponent can be perceived only as an enemy to be destroyed and this is not conducive to an agonistic treatment. Hence the current emergence of antagonisms which put into question the very parameters of the existing order.\n\nAnother thesis concerns the nature of collective identities which always entail a we\/they discrimination. They play a central part in politics and the task of democratic politics is not to overcome them through consensus but to construct them in a way that energizes the democratic confrontation. The mistake of liberal rationalism is to ignore the affective dimension mobilized by collective identifications and to imagine that those supposedly archaic 'passions' are bound to disappear with the advance of individualism and the progress of rationality. This is why democratic theory is so badly prepared to grasp the nature of 'mass' political movements as well as phenomena such as nationalism. The part played by 'passions' in politics reveals that, in order to come to terms with 'the political', it is not enough for liberal theory to acknowledge the existence of a plurality of values and to extol toleration. Democratic politics cannot be limited to establishing compromises among interests or values or to deliberation about the common good; it needs to have a real purchase on people's desires and fantasies. To be able to mobilize passions towards democratic designs, democratic politics must have a partisan character. This is indeed the function of the left\/right distinction and we should resist the call by post-political theorists to think 'beyond left and right'.\n\nThere is a final lesson that we can draw from a reflection on 'the political'. If the possibility of reaching an order 'beyond hegemony' is foreclosed, what does that imply for the cosmopolitan project? Could it ever be more than the establishment of the world hegemony of a power which would have managed to conceal its rule by identifying its interests with those of humanity? Contrary to the numerous theorists who see the end of the bipolar system as bringing the hope of a cosmopolitan democracy, I will argue that the dangers entailed by the current unipolar order can be avoided only by the implementation of a multipolar world, with an equilibrium among several regional poles allowing for a plurality of hegemonic powers. This is the only way to avoid the hegemony of one single hyperpower.\n\nIn the realm of 'the political', Machiavelli's crucial insight is still worth meditating: 'In each city are found these two different desires... the man of the people hates being ordered and oppressed by those greater than he. And the great like to order and oppress the people.' What defines the postpolitical perspective is the claim that we have entered a new era where this potential antagonism has disappeared. And this is why it can put in jeopardy the future of democratic politics.\n\n# Politics and the Political\n\n# Two\n\nThis chapter will delineate the theoretical framework which informs my critique of the current 'post-political' Zeitgeist. Its main tenets have been developed in several of my previous works and here I will limit myself to the aspects which are relevant for the argument presented in this book. The most important concerns the distinction I propose to make between 'politics' and 'the political'. To be sure, in ordinary language, it is not very common to speak of 'the political' but I think that such a distinction opens important new paths for reflection and many political theorists are making it. The difficulty, though, is that no agreement exists among them concerning the meaning attributed to the respective terms and that may cause a certain confusion. Commonalities exist however which can provide some points of orientation. For instance to make this distinction suggests a difference between two types of approach: political science which deals with the empirical field of 'politics', and political theory which is the domain of philosophers who enquire not about facts of 'politics' but about the essence of 'the political'. If we wanted to express such a distinction in a philosophical way, we could, borrowing the vocabulary of Heidegger, say that politics refers to the 'ontic' level while 'the political' has to do with the 'ontological' one. This means that the ontic has to do with the manifold practices of conventional politics, while the ontological concerns the very way in which society is instituted.\n\nBut this still leaves the possibility of considerable disagreement about what constitutes 'the political'. Some theorists such as Hannah Arendt envisage the political as a space of freedom and public deliberation, while others see it as a space of power, conflict and antagonism. My understanding of 'the political' clearly belongs to the second perspective. More precisely this is how I distinguish between 'the political' and 'politics': by 'the political' I mean the dimension of antagonism which I take to be constitutive of human societies, while by 'politics' I mean the set of practices and institutions through which an order is created, organizing human coexistence in the context of conflictuality provided by the political.\n\nMy main field of enquiry in this book concerns the current practices of democratic politics and is therefore located at the 'ontic' level. But I contend that it is the lack of understanding of 'the political' in its ontological dimension which is at the origin of our current incapacity to think in a political way. Although an important part of my argument is of a theoretical nature, my central aim is a political one. I am convinced that what is at stake in the discussion about the nature of 'the political' is the very future of democracy. I intend to show how the rationalist approach dominant in democratic theory prevents us from posing the questions which are crucial for democratic politics. This is why we urgently need an alternative approach which will enable us to grasp the challenges with which democratic politics is today confronted.\n\n# THE POLITICAL AS ANTAGONISM\n\nThe point of departure of my enquiry is our current unability to envisage the problems facing our societies in a political way. What I mean by that is that political questions are not mere technical issues to be solved by experts. Properly political questions always involve decisions which require us to make a choice between conflicting alternatives. I will argue that this incapacity to think politically is to a great extent due to the uncontested hegemony of liberalism, and an important part of my reflection will be dedicated to examining the impact of liberal ideas in human sciences and in politics. My aim is to bring to the fore liberalism's central deficiency in the political field: its negation of the ineradicable character of antagonism. 'Liberalism', in the way I understand it in the present context, refers to a philosophical discourse with many variants, united not by a common essence but by a multiplicity of what Wittgenstein calls 'family resemblances'. There are to be sure many liberalisms, some more progressive than others, but with a few exceptions (Isaiah Berlin, Joseph Raz, John Gray, Michael Walzer among others) the dominant tendency in liberal thought is characterized by a rationalist and individualist approach which forecloses acknowledging the nature of collective identities. This kind of liberalism is unable to adequately grasp the pluralistic nature of the social world, with the conflicts that pluralism entails; conflicts for which no rational solution could ever exist. The typical liberal understanding of pluralism is that we live in a world in which there are indeed many perspectives and values and that, owing to empirical limitations, we will never be able to adopt them all, but that, when put together, they constitute an harmonious and non-conflictual ensemble. This is why this type of liberalism must negate the political in its antagonistic dimension.\n\nThe most radical challenge to liberalism, so understood, is found in the work of Carl Schmitt, whose provocative critique I will mobilize in my confrontation with liberal assumptions. In The Concept of the Political, Schmitt declares bluntly that the pure and rigorous principle of liberalism could not give birth to a specifically political conception. Every consistent individualism must, in his view, negate the political since it requires the individual to remain the ultimate point of reference. He states: 'In a very systematic fashion liberal thought evades or ignores state and politics and moves instead in a typical recurring polarity of two heterogeneous spheres, namely ethics and economics, intellect and trade, education and property. The critical distrust of state and politics is easily explained by the principles of a system whereby the individual must remain terminus a quo and terminus ad quem.' The methodological individualism which characterizes liberal thought precludes understanding the nature of collective identities. Yet, for Schmitt, the criteria of the political, its differentia specifica, is the friend\/enemy discrimination. It deals with the formation of a 'we' as opposed to a 'they' and is always concerned with collective forms of identification; it has to do with conflict and antagonism and is therefore the realm of decision, not free discussion. The political, as he puts it, 'can be understood only in the context of the friend\/enemy grouping, regardless of the aspects which this possibility implies for morality, aesthetics and economics'.\n\nA key point of Schmitt's approach is that, by showing that every consensus is based on acts of exclusion, it reveals the impossibility of a fully inclusive 'rational' consensus. Now, as I indicated, next to individualism, the other central trait of most liberal thought is the rationalist belief in the availability of a universal consensus based on reason. It is therefore no wonder that the political constitutes its blind spot. The political cannot be grasped by liberal rationalism for the simple reason that every consistent rationalism requires negating the irreducibility of antagonism. Liberalism has to negate antagonism since, by bringing to the fore the inescapable moment of decision \u2013 in the strong sense of having to decide in an undecidable terrain \u2013 what antagonism reveals is the very limit of any rational consensus. As far as liberal thought adheres to individualism and rationalism, its blindness to the political in its antagonistic dimension is therefore not a mere empirical omission but a constitutive one.\n\nSchmitt points out that 'there exists a liberal policy in the form of a polemical antithesis against state, church or other institutions which restrict individual freedom. There exists a liberal policy of trade, church and education, but absolutely no liberal politics, only a liberal critique of politics. The systematic theory of liberalism concerns almost solely the internal struggle against the power of the state.' However, the liberal attempt to annihilate the political is, he says, bound to fail. The political can never be eradicated because it can derive its energy from the most varied human endeavours: 'every religious, moral, economic, ethical or other antithesis transforms itself into a political one if it is sufficiently strong to group human beings effectively according to friend and enemy'.\n\nThe Concept of the Political was originally published in 1932, but Schmitt's critique is more relevant now than ever. If we examine the evolution of liberal thought since then, we ascertain that it has indeed moved between economics and ethics. Broadly speaking, we can today single out two main liberal paradigms. The first one, sometimes called 'aggregative', envisages politics as the establishment of a compromise between differing competing forces in society. Individuals are portrayed as rational beings, driven by the maximization of their own interests and as acting in the political world in a basically instrumental way. It is the idea of the market applied to the domain of politics which is apprehended with concepts borrowed from economics. The other paradigm, the 'deliberative', developed in reaction against this instrumentalist model, aims at creating a link between morality and politics. Its advocates want to replace instrumental rationality by communicative rationality. They present political debate as a specific field of application of morality and believe that it is possible to create in the realm of politics a rational moral consensus by means of free discussion. In this case politics is apprehended not through economics but through ethics or morality.\n\nThe challenge posed by Schmitt to the rationalist conception of the political is clearly acknowledged by J\u00fcrgen Habermas, one of the main advocates of the deliberative model, who tries to exorcize it by declaring that those who put into question the possibility of such a rational consensus and who affirm that politics is a domain where one should always expect to find discord undermine the very possibility of democracy. He asserts that 'If questions of justice cannot transcend the ethical self-understanding of competing forms of life, and if existentially relevant values, conflicts and oppositions must penetrate all controversial questions, then in the final analysis we will end up with something resembling Carl Schmitt's understanding of politics'.\n\nContrary to Habermas and all those who affirm that such an understanding of the political is antithetical to the democratic project, I submit that Schmitt's emphasis on the ever present possibility of the friend\/enemy distinction and the conflictual nature of politics constitutes the necessary starting point for envisaging the aims of democratic politics. Only by acknowledging 'the political' in its antagonistic dimension can we pose the central question for democratic politics. This question, pace liberal theorists, is not how to negotiate a compromise among competing interests, nor is it how to reach a 'rational', i.e. a fully inclusive, consensus, without any exclusion. Despite what many liberals want us to believe, the specificity of democratic politics is not the overcoming of the we\/they opposition but the different way in which it is established. What democracy requires is drawing the we\/they distinction in a way which is compatible with the recognition of the pluralism which is constitutive of modern democracy.\n\n# PLURALISM AND FRIEND\/ENEMY RELATION\n\nOf course, at this point we need to part company with Schmitt, who was adamant that there is no place for pluralism inside a democratic political community. Democracy, as he understood it, requires the existence of an homogeneous demos, and this precludes any possibility of pluralism. This is why he saw an insurmountable contradiction between liberal pluralism and democracy. For him, the only possible and legitimate pluralism is a pluralism of states. What I propose to do then is to think 'with Schmitt against Schmitt', using his critique of liberal individualism and rationalism to propose a new understanding of liberal democratic politics instead of following Schmitt in rejecting it.\n\nIn my view one of Schmitt's central insights is his thesis that political identities consist in a certain type of we\/they relation, the relation friend\/enemy which can emerge out of very diverse forms of social relations. By bringing to the fore the relational nature of political identities, he anticipates several currents of thought, such as post-structuralism, that will later stress the relational character of all identities. Today, thanks to those later theoretical developments, we are in a position to elaborate better what Schmitt forcefully asserted but left untheorized. The challenge for us is to develop his insights into a different direction and to visualize other understandings of the friend\/enemy distinction, understandings compatible with democratic pluralism.\n\nI have found the notion of the 'constitutive outside' particularly useful for such a project because it unveils what is at stake in the constitution of identity. This term has been proposed by Henry Staten to refer to a number of themes developed by Jacques Derrida around notions such as 'supplement', 'trace' and 'diff\u00e9rance'. The aim is to highlight the fact that the creation of an identity implies the establishment of a difference, difference which is often constructed on the basis of a hierarchy, for example between form and matter, black and white, man and woman, etc. Once we have understood that every identity is relational and that the affirmation of a difference is a precondition for the existence of any identity, i.e. the perception of something 'other' which constitutes its 'exterior', we are, I think, in a better position to understand Schmitt's point about the ever present possibility of antagonism and to see how a social relation can become the breeding ground for antagonism.\n\nIn the field of collective identities, we are always dealing with the creation of a 'we' which can exist only by the demarcation of a 'they'. This does not mean of course that such a relation is necessarily one of friend\/enemy, i.e. an antagonistic one. But we should acknowledge that, in certain conditions, there is always the possibility that this we\/they relation can become antagonistic, i.e. that it can turn into a relation of friend\/enemy. This happens when the 'they' is perceived as putting into question the identity of the 'we' and as threatening its existence. From that moment on, as the case of the disintegration of Yugoslavia testifies, any form of we\/they relation, whether religious, ethnic, economic or other, becomes the locus of an antagonism.\n\nFor Schmitt, of course, in order to be political this we\/they relation had to take the antagonistic form of a friend\/enemy relation. This is why he could not allow its presence within the political association. And he was no doubt right to warn against the dangers that an antagonistic pluralism entails for the permanence of the political entity. However, as I will argue in a moment, the friend\/enemy distinction can be considered as merely one of the possible forms of expression of the antagonistic dimension which is constitutive of the political. We can also, while acknowledging the ever present possibility of antagonism, imagine other political modes of construction of the we\/they. If we follow this route, we will realize that the challenge for democratic politics consists in trying to keep the emergence of antagonism at bay by establishing the we\/they in a different way.\n\nBefore developing this point further, let us draw a first theoretical conclusion from the previous reflections. What we can assert at this stage is that the we\/they distinction, which is the condition of possibility of formation of political identities, can always become the locus of an antagonism. Since all forms of political identities entail a we\/they distinction, this means that the possibility of emergence of antagonism can never be eliminated. It is therefore an illusion to believe in the advent of a society from which antagonism would have been eradicated. Antagonism, as Schmitt says, is an ever present possibility; the political belongs to our ontological condition.\n\n# POLITICS AS HEGEMONY\n\nNext to antagonism, the concept of hegemony is the key notion for addressing the question of 'the political'. To take account of 'the political' as the ever present possibility of antagonism requires coming to terms with the lack of a final ground and acknowledging the dimension of undecidability which pervades every order. It requires in other words recognizing the hegemonic nature of every kind of social order and the fact that every society is the product of a series of practices attempting to establish order in a context of contingency. As Ernesto Laclau indicates, 'The two central features of a hegemonic intervention are, in this sense, the \"contingent\" character of the hegemonic articulations and their \"constitutive\" character, in the sense that they institute social relations in a primary sense, not depending on any a priori social rationality.' The political is linked to the acts of hegemonic institution. It is in this sense that one has to differentiate the social from the political. The social is the realm of sedimented practices, that is, practices that conceal the originary acts of their contingent political institution and which are taken for granted, as if they were self-grounded. Sedimented social practices are a constitutive part of any possible society; not all social bonds are put into question at the same time. The social and the political have thus the status of what Heidegger called existentials, i.e. necessary dimensions of any societal life. If the political \u2013 understood in its hegemonic sense \u2013 involves the visibility of the acts of social institution, it is impossible to determine a priori what is social and what is political independently of any contextual reference. Society is not to be seen as the unfolding of a logic exterior to itself, whatever the source of this logic could be: forces of production, development of what Hegel called the Absolute Spirit, laws of history, etc. Every order is the temporary and precarious articulation of contingent practices. The frontier between the social and the political is essentially unstable and requires constant displacements and renegotiations between social agents. Things could always be otherwise and therefore every order is predicated on the exclusion of other possibilities. It is in that sense that it can be called 'political' since it is the expression of a particular structure of power relations. Power is constitutive of the social because the social could not exist without the power relations through which it is given shape. What is at a given moment considered as the 'natural' order \u2013 jointly with the 'common sense' which accompanies it \u2013 is the result of sedimented practices; it is never the manifestation of a deeper objectivity exterior to the practices that bring it into being.\n\nTo summarize this point: every order is political and based on some form of exclusion. There are always other possibilities that have been repressed and that can be reactivated. The articulatory practices through which a certain order is established and the meaning of social institutions is fixed are 'hegemonic pratices'. Every hegemonic order is susceptible of being challenged by counter-hegemonic practices, i.e. practices which will attempt to disarticulate the existing order so as to install another form of hegemony.\n\nAs far as collective identities are concerned, we find ourselves in a similar situation. We have already seen that identities are in fact the result of processes of identifications and that they can never be completely fixed. We are never confronted with 'we\/they' oppositions expressing essentialist identities pre-existing the process of identification. Moreover since, as I have stressed, the 'they' represents the condition of possibility of the 'we', its 'constitutive outside', this means that the constitution of a specific 'we' always depends on the type of 'they' from which it is differentiated. This is a crucial point because it allows us to envisage the possibility of different types of we\/they relation according to the way the 'they' is constructed.\n\nI want to emphasize those theoretical points because they constitute the necessary framework for the alternative approach to democratic politics that I am advocating. To postulate the ineradicability of antagonism, while affirming at the same time the possibility of democratic pluralism, one has to argue contra Schmitt that those two assertions do not negate each other. The crucial point here is to show how antagonism can be transformed so at to make available a form of we\/they opposition compatible with pluralist democracy. Without such a possibility one is left with the following alternatives: believing either with Schmitt in the contradictory nature of liberal democracy or with the liberals in the elimination of the adversarial model as a step forward for democracy. In the first case you acknowledge the political but foreclose the possibility of a pluralist democratic order, in the second case you postulate a completely unadequate, anti-political view of liberal democracy, the negative consequences of which we will consider in the following chapters.\n\n# WHICH WE\/THEY FOR DEMOCRATIC POLITICS?\n\nAccording to the previous analysis, it appears that one of the main tasks for democratic politics consists in defusing the potential antagonism that exists in social relations. If we accept that this cannot be done by transcending the we\/they relation, but only by constructing it in a different way, then the following question arises: what could constitute a 'tamed' relation of antagonism, what form of we\/they would it imply? Conflict, in order to be accepted as legitimate, needs to take a form that does not destroy the political association. This means that some kind of common bond must exist between the parties in conflict, so that they will not treat their opponents as enemies to be eradicated, seeing their demands as illegitimate, which is precisely what happens with the antagonistic friend\/enemy relation. However, the opponents cannot be seen simply as competitors whose interests can be dealt with through mere negotiation, or reconciled through deliberation, because in that case the antagonistic element would simply have been eliminated. If we want to acknowledge on one side the permanence of the antagonistic dimension of the conflict, while on the other side allowing for the possibility of its 'taming', we need to envisage a third type of relation. This is the type of relation which I have proposed to call 'agonism'. While antagonism is a we\/they relation in which the two sides are enemies who do not share any common ground, agonism is a we\/they relation where the conflicting parties, although acknowledging that there is no rational solution to their conflict, nevertheless recognize the legitimacy of their opponents. They are 'adversaries' not enemies. This means that, while in conflict, they see themselves as belonging to the same political association, as sharing a common symbolic space within which the conflict takes place. We could say that the task of democracy is to transform antagonism into agonism.\n\nThis is why 'the adversary' is a crucial category for democratic politics. The adversarial model has to be seen as constitutive of democracy because it allows democratic politics to transform antagonism into agonism. In other words, it help us to envisage how the dimension of antagonism can be 'tamed', thanks to the establishment of institutions and practices through which the potential antagonism can be played out in an agonistic way. As I will argue at several points in this book, antagonistic conflicts are less likely to emerge as long as agonistic legitimate political channels for dissenting voices exist. Otherwise dissent tends to take violent forms, and this is true in both domestic and international politics.\n\nI would like to stress that the notion of the 'adversary' that I am introducing needs to be distinguished sharply from the understanding of that term that we find in liberal discourse because in my understanding the presence of antagonism is not eliminated but 'sublimated' so to speak. For the liberals an adversary is simply a competitor. The field of politics is for them a neutral terrain in which different groups compete to occupy the positions of power; their objective is merely to dislodge others in order to occupy their place, They do not put into question the dominant hegemony and there is no attempt at profoundly transforming the relations of power. It is merely a competition among elites.\n\nWhat is at stake in the agonistic struggle, on the contrary, is the very configuration of power relations around which a given society is structured: it is a struggle between opposing hegemonic projects which can never be reconciled rationally. The antagonistic dimension is always present, it is a real confrontation but one which is played out under conditions regulated by a set of democratic procedures accepted by the adversaries.\n\n# CANETTI ON THE PARLIAMENTARY SYSTEM\n\nElias Canetti is one of the authors who understood perfectly that the establishment of 'agonistic' relations was the task of democratic politics. In a few brilliant pages in Crowds and Power dedicated to analysing the nature of the parliamentary system, in the chapter 'The Crowd in History', Canetti indicates how such a system uses the psychological structure of opposing armies and stages a form of warfare which has renounced killing. According to him:\n\nA parliamentary vote does nothing but ascertain the relative strength of two groups at a given time and place. Knowing them beforehand is not enough. One party may have 360 members and the other only 240, but the actual vote is decisive, as the moment in which the one is really measured against the other. It is all that is left of the original lethal clash and it is played out in many forms, with threats, abuse and physical provocation which may lead to blows or missiles. But the counting of the vote ends the battle.\n\nAnd later he adds: 'The solemnity of all those activities derives from the renunciation of death as an instrument of decision. Every single vote puts death, as it were, on one side. But the effect that killing would have had on the strength of the enemy is scrupulously put down in figures; and any one who tampers with these figures, who destroys or falsifies them, lets death in again without knowing it.'\n\nThis is an excellent example of how enemies can be transformed into adversaries, and we see here very clearly how, thanks to democratic institutions, conflicts can be staged in a way which is not antagonistic but agonistic. According to Canetti, modern democracy and the parliamentary system should not be envisaged as a stage in the evolution of humankind in which people, having become more rational, are now able to act rationally, either to promote their interests or to exercise their free public reason, as the aggregative and deliberative models would have it. And he stresses that:\n\nNo one has ever really believed that the majority decision is necessarily the wiser one because it has received the greater number of votes. It is will against will as in war. Each is convinced that right and reason are on his side. Conviction comes easily and the purpose of the party is, precisely, to keep this will and conviction alive. The member of an outvoted party accepts the majority decision, not because he has ceased to believe in his own case, but simply because he admits defeat.\n\nI find Canetti's approach really illuminating. He makes us grasp the important part played by the parliamentary system in the transformation of antagonism into agonism and in the construction of a we\/they compatible with democratic pluralism. When parliamentary institutions are destroyed or weakened, the possibility of an agonistic confrontation disappears and it is replaced by an antagonistic we\/they. Think for instance of the case of Germany and the way in which, with the collapse of parliamentary politics, the Jews became an antagonistic 'they'. This, I think, is something worth meditating on for left-wing opponents of parliamentary democracy!\n\nThere is another aspect of Canetti's work, his reflections on the phenomenon of the 'crowd', which provides important insights for a critique of the rationalist perspective dominant in liberal political theory. Scrutinizing the permanent appeal exercised by the manifold types of crowds in all types of societies, he attributes it to the different drives which move social agents. On one side there is what one could describe as a drive towards individuality and distinctiveness. But there is another drive that makes them want to become part of a crowd to lose themselves in a moment of fusion with the masses. This attraction of the crowd is not for him something archaic and premodern, destined to disappear with the advances of modernity. It is part and parcel of the psychological make-up of human beings. The refusal to admit this tendency is what is at the origin of the rationalist approach's incapacity to come to terms with political mass movements, which they tend to see as an expression of irrational forces or a 'return of the archaic'. On the contrary, once we accept with Canetti that the 'crowd' appeal will always be with us, we have to approach democratic politics in a different way, addressing the issue of how it can be mobilized in ways which will not threaten democratic institutions.\n\nWhat we are encountering here is the dimension of what I have proposed to call 'passions' to refer to the various affective forces which are at the origin of collective forms of identifications. By putting the accent either on the rational calculation of interests (aggregative model), or on moral deliberation (deliberative model), current democratic political theory is unable to acknowledge the role of 'passions' as one of the main moving forces in the field of politics and finds itself disarmed when faced with its diverse manifestations. Now, this chimes with the refusal to accept the ever present possibility of antagonism and the belief that, as far as it is rational, democratic politics can always be interpreted in terms of individual actions. Were this not possible, it must necessarily be due to backwardness. As we will see in the following chapter, this is, for instance, how the advocates of 'reflexive modernization' interpret any kind of disagreement with their theses.\n\nGiven the current emphasis on consensus, it is not surprising that people are less and less interested in politics and that the rate of abstention is growing. Mobilization requires politicization, but politicization cannot exist without the production of a conflictual representation of the world, with opposed camps with which people can identify, thereby allowing for passions to be mobilized politically within the spectrum of the democratic process. Take the case of voting for instance. What the rationalist approach is unable to grasp is that what moves people to vote is much more than simply the defence of their interests. There is an important affective dimension in voting and what is at stake there is a question of identification. In order to act politically people need to be able to identify with a collective identity which provides an idea of themselves they can valorize. Political discourse has to offer not only policies but also identities which can help people make sense of what they are experiencing as well as giving them hope for the future.\n\n# FREUD AND IDENTIFICATION\n\nTo take into account the affective dimension of politics is therefore crucial for democratic theory and this calls for a serious engagement with psychoanalysis. Freud's analysis of the process of 'identification' brings out the libidinal investment at work in the creation of collective identities and it gives important clues concerning the emergence of antagonisms. In Civilization and Its Discontents, he presents a view of society as perpetually threatened with disintegration because of the inclination to aggression present in human beings. According to him 'men are not gentle creatures who want to be loved, and who at the most can defend themselves if they are attacked; they are, on the contrary, creatures among whose instinctual endowments is to be reckoned a powerful share of aggressiveness.' Civilization, in order to check those aggressive instincts, needs to use different methods. One of those consists in fostering communal bonds through the mobilization of the libidinal instincts of love. As he asserts in Group Psychology and the Analysis of the Ego, 'a group is clearly held together by a power of some kind: and to what power could this feat be better ascribed than to Eros, which holds together everything in the world' The aim is to establish strong identifications between the members of the community, to bind them in a shared identity. A collective identity, a 'we', is the result of a libidinal investment, but this necessarily implies the determination of a 'they'. To be sure, Freud did not see all opposition as enmity, but he was aware that it could always become enmity. As he indicates, 'It is always possible to bind together a considerable amount of people in love, so long as there are other people left over to receive the manifestation of their aggressiveness.' In such a case the we\/they relation becomes one of enmity, i.e. it becomes antagonistic.\n\nAccording to Freud, the evolution of civilization is characterized by a struggle between two basic types of libidinal instincts, Eros the instinct of life and Death the instinct of aggressiveness and destructiveness. He also stressed that 'the two kinds of instinct seldom \u2013 perhaps never \u2013 appear in isolation from each other, but are alloyed with each other in varying and very different proportions and so become unrecognizable to our judgment.' The aggressive instinct can never be eliminated but one can try to disarm it, so to speak, and to weaken its destructive potential by several methods which Freud discusses in his book. What I want to suggest is that, understood in an agonistic way, democratic institutions can contribute to this disarming of the libidinal forces leading towards hostility which are always present in human societies.\n\nFurther insights can be gained from the work of Jacques Lacan, who developing Freud's theory, has introduced the concept of 'enjoyment' (jouissance) which is of great importance for exploring the role of affects in politics. As Yannis Stavrakakis has observed, according to Lacanian theory, what allows for the persistance of socio-political forms of identifications is the fact that they provide the social agent with a form of jouissance. As he puts it:\n\nThe problematic of enjoyment helps us answer in a concrete way what is at stake in socio-political identification and identity formation, suggesting that support of social fantasies is partially rooted in the 'jouissance' of the body. What is at stake in these fields, according to Lacanian theory, is not only symbolic coherence and discursive closure but also enjoyment, the jouissance animating human desire.\n\nOn the same lines, Slavoj \u017di\u017eek uses Lacan's concept of enjoyment to explain the attraction of nationalism. In Tarring with the Negative, he notes that:\n\nThe element which holds together a particular community cannot be reduced to the point of symbolic identification: the bond linking together its members always implies a shared relation toward a Thing, toward Enjoyment incarnated. This relationship toward the Thing structured by means of fantasies is what is at stake when we speak of the menace to our 'way of life' presented by the Other.\n\nRegarding the type of identifications constitutive of nationalism, the affective dimension is of course particularly strong and he adds: 'Nationalism thus presents a privileged domain of the eruption of enjoyment into the social field. The National Cause is ultimately nothing but the way subjects of a given ethnic community organize their enjoyment through national myths.' Keeping in mind that collective identifications always take place through a we\/they kind of differentiation, one can understand how nationalism can easily be transformed into enmity. For \u017di\u017eek, nationalist hatred emerges when another nation is perceived as threatening our enjoyment. It has its origin therefore in the way social groups deal with their lack of enjoyment by attributing it to the presence of an enemy which is 'stealing' it. To envisage how such a transformation of national identifications into friend\/enemy relations can be averted, it is necessary to acknowledge the affective bonds which support them. Now, this is precisely what the rationalist approach forecloses, hence the impotence of liberal theory in face of the eruption of nationalist antagonisms.\n\nThe lesson to be drawn from Freud and Canetti is that, even in societies which have become very individualistic, the need for collective identifications will never disappear since it is constitutive of the mode of existence of human beings. In the field of politics those identifications play a central role and the affective bond which they provide needs to be taken into account by democratic theorists. To believe that we have entered into an age where 'post-conventional' identities make possible a rational treatment of political questions, thereby eluding the role of a democratic mobilization of affects, is to abandon that terrain to those who want to undermine democracy. The theorists who want to eliminate passions from politics and argue that democratic politics should be understood only in terms of reason, moderation and consensus are showing their lack of understanding of the dynamics of the political. They do not see that democratic politics needs to have a real purchase on people's desires and fantasies and that, instead of opposing interests to sentiments and reason to passions, it should offer forms of identifications conducive to democratic practices. Politics has always a 'partisan' dimension and for people to be interested in politics they need to have the possibility of choosing between parties offering real alternatives. This is precisely what is missing in the current celebration of 'partisan-free' democracy. Despite what we hear in many quarters, the kind of consensual politics dominant today, far from representing a progress in democracy, is the sign that we live in what Jacques Ranci\u00e8re calls a 'postdemocracy'. In his view the consensual practices which are today proposed as the model for democracy presuppose the very disappearance of what constitutes the vital core of democracy. As he says,\n\nPostdemocracy is the government practice and conceptual legitimation of a democracy after the demos, a democracy that has eliminated the appearance, miscount, and dispute of the people and is thereby reducible to the sole interplay of state mechanisms and combinations of social energies and interests.... It is the practice and theory of what is appropriate with no gap left between the forms of the state and the state of social relations.\n\nWhat Ranci\u00e8re points out here, albeit using a different vocabulary, is the erasure by the post-political approach of the adversarial dimension which is constitutive of the political and which provides democratic politics with its inherent dynamics.\n\n# AGONISTIC CONFRONTATION\n\nMany liberal theorists refuse to acknowledge the antagonistic dimension of politics and the role of affects in the construction of political identities because they believe that it would endanger the realization of consensus, which they see as the aim of democracy. What they do not realize is that, far from jeopardizing democracy, agonistic confrontation is the very condition of its existence. Modern democracy's specificity lies in the recognition and legitimation of conflict and the refusal to suppress it by imposing an authoritarian order. Breaking with the symbolic representation of society as an organic body \u2013 characteristic of the holist mode of organization \u2013 a pluralist liberal democratic society does not deny the existence of conflicts but provides the institutions allowing them to be expressed in an adversarial form. It is for this reason that we should be very wary of the current tendency to celebrate a politics of consensus, claiming that it has replaced the supposedly old-fashioned adversarial politics of right and left. A well functioning democracy calls for a clash of legitimate democratic political positions. This is what the confrontation between left and right needs to be about. Such a confrontation should provide collective forms of identification strong enough to mobilize political passions. If this adversarial configuration is missing, passions cannot be given a democratic outlet and the agonistic dynamics of pluralism are hindered. The danger arises that the democratic confrontation will therefore be replaced by a confrontation between essentialist forms of identification or non-negotiable moral values. When political frontiers become blurred, disaffection with political parties sets in and one witnesses the growth of other types of collective identities, around nationalist, religious or ethnic forms of identification. Antagonisms can take many forms and it is illusory to believe that they could ever be eradicated. This is why it is important to allow them an agonistic form of expression through the pluralist democratic system.\n\nLiberal theorists are unable to acknowledge not only the primary reality of strife in social life and the impossibility of finding rational, impartial solutions to political issues but also the integrative role that conflict plays in modern democracy. A democratic society requires a debate about possible alternatives and it must provide political forms of collective identification around clearly differentiated democratic positions. Consensus is no doubt necessary, but it must be accompanied by disssent. Consensus is needed on the institutions constitutive of democracy and on the 'ethico-political' values informing the political association \u2013 liberty and equality for all \u2013 but there will always be disagreement concerning their meaning and the way they should be implemented. In a pluralist democracy such disagreements are not only legitimate but also necessary. They provide the stuff of democratic politics.\n\nBesides the shortcomings of the liberal approach, the main obstacle to the implementation of an agonistic politics comes from the fact that, since the collapse of the Soviet model, we are witnessing the unchallenged hegemony of neo-liberalism with its claim that there is no alternative to the existing order. This claim has been accepted by social democratic parties which, under the pretence of 'modernizing', have been steadily moving to the right, redefining themselves as 'centre-left'. Far from profiting from the crisis of its old communist antagonist, social democracy has been dragged into its collapse. In this way a great opportunity has been lost for democratic politics. The events of 1989 should have provided the time for a redefinition of the left, now liberated of the weight previously represented by the communist system. There was a real chance for a deepening of the democratic project because traditional political frontiers, having been shattered, could have been redrawn in a more progressive way. Unfortunately this chance has been missed. Instead we heard triumphalist claims about the disappearance of antagonism and the advent of a politics without frontiers, without a 'they'; a win-win politics in which solutions could be found favouring everybody in society.\n\nWhile it was no doubt important for the left to come to terms with the importance of pluralism and liberal democratic political institutions, this should not have meant abandoning all attempts to transform the present hegemonic order and accepting the view that 'really existing liberal democratic societies' represent the end of history. If there is a lesson to be drawn from the failure of communism it is that the democratic struggle should not be envisaged in terms of friend\/enemy and that liberal democracy is not the enemy to be destroyed. If we take 'liberty and equality for all' as the 'ethico-political' principles of liberal democracy (what Montesquieu defined as 'the passions that move a regime'), it is clear that the problem with our societies is not their proclaimed ideals but the fact that those ideals are not put into practice. So the task for the left is not to reject them, with the argument that they are a sham, a cover for capitalist domination, but to fight for their effective implementation. And this of course cannot be done without challenging the current neo-liberal mode of capitalist regulation.\n\nThis is why such a struggle, if it should not be envisaged in terms of friend\/enemy, cannot be simply envisaged as a mere competition of interests or on the 'dialogic' mode. Now, this is precisely how most left-wing parties visualize democratic politics nowadays. To revitalize democracy, it is urgent to get out of this impasse. My claim is that, thanks to the idea of the 'adversary', the agonistic approach that I am proposing could contribute to a revitalization and deepening of democracy. It also offers the possibility of envisaging the left's perspective in an hegemonic way. Adversaries inscribe their confrontation within the democratic framework, but this framework is not seen as something immutable: it is susceptible of being redefined through hegemonic struggle. An agonistic conception of democracy acknowledges the contingent character of the hegemonic politico-economic articulations which determine the specific configuration of a society at a given moment. They are precarious and pragmatic constructions which can be disarticulated and transformed as a result of the agonistic struggle among the adversaries.\n\nSlavoj \u017di\u017eek is therefore mistaken to assert that the agonistic approach is unable to challenge the status quo and ends up accepting liberal democracy in its present stage. What an agonistic approach certainly disavows is the possibility of an act of radical refoundation that would institute a new social order from scratch. But a number of very important socioeconomic and political transformations, with radical implications, are possible within the context of liberal democratic institutions. What we understand by 'liberal democracy' is constituted by sedimented forms of power relations resulting from an ensemble of contingent hegemonic interventions. The fact that their contingent character is not recognized today is due to the absence of counter-hegemonic projects. But we should not fall again into the trap of believing that their transformation requires a total rejection of the liberal-democratic framework. There are many ways in which the democratic 'language-game' \u2013 to borrow a term from Wittgenstein \u2013 can be played, and the agonistic struggle should bring about new meanings and fields of application for the idea of democracy to be radicalized. This is, in my view, the effective way to challenge power relations, not on the mode of an abstract negation but in a properly hegemonic way, through a process of disarticulation of existing practices and creation of new discourses and institutions. Contrary to the various liberal models, the agonistic approach that I am advocating acknowledges that society is always politically instituted and never forgets that the terrain in which hegemonic interventions take place is always the outcome of previous hegemonic practices and that it is never a neutral one. This is why it denies the possibility of a non-adversarial democratic politics and criticizes those who, by ignoring the dimension of 'the political', reduce politics to a set of supposedly technical moves and neutral procedures.\n\n# Beyond the Adversarial Model?\n\n# Three\n\nThe post-political perspective that this book intends to challenge finds its sociological bearings in a picture of the world first elaborated by a variety of theorists who in the early 1960s announced the coming of a 'post-industrial society' and celebrated 'the end of ideology'. This tendency went later out of fashion but it has been revived in a new guise by sociologists such as Ulrich Beck and Anthony Giddens who argue that the model of politics structured around collective identities has become hopelessly outdated, owing to the growth of individualism, and that it needs to be relinquished. According to them we are now in a second stage of modernity which they call 'reflexive modernity'. Our societies have become 'post-traditional' and this calls for a drastic rethinking of the nature and aims of politics. Widely diffused in the media, those ideas are fast becoming the 'common sense' which informs the mainstream perception of our social reality. They have been influential in political circles and, as we will see, they have played a role in the evolution of several social democratic parties. Since they provide several central tenets of the current Zeitgeist, the objective of this chapter is to examine them closely and to scrutinize their consequences for democratic politics.\n\n# BECK AND THE 'REINVENTION OF POLITICS'\n\nTo assess critically Ulrich Beck's claim that politics needs to be 'reinvented', we need first to grasp the main lines of his theory of 'reflexive modernity' and his conception of 'risk society'. Those ideas have been elaborated in a series of books published since 1986 where he affirms that industrial societies have undergone crucial changes in their internal dynamics. His main argument is that after a first stage of 'simple modernization', characterized by the belief in the unlimited sustainability of natural techno-economic progress, whose risks could be contained thanks to adequate monitoring institutions, we now live in an epoch of 'reflexive modernization', characterized by the emergence of a 'risk society'. Modern societies are now confronted with the limits of their own model and the awareness that progress could turn into self-destruction if they are unable to control the side-effects of their inherent dynamism. We have become aware that certain features of industrial society are socially and politically problematic. It is now time to acknowledge that economic, social, political and individual risks confronting advanced industrial societies cannot be dealt with any more through traditional institutions.\n\nAccording to Beck, one of the crucial difference between the first and the second modernity is that nowadays the motor of social history does not reside any more in instrumental rationality but in the 'side-effect'. He states, 'while simple modernization ultimately situates the motor of social change in categories of instrumental rationality (reflection), \"reflexive\" modernization conceptualizes the motive power of social change in categories of the side-effect (reflexivity). Things at first unseen and unreflected, but externalized, add up to structural rupture that separates industrial from \"new modernities\" in the present and the future.' He puts great emphasis on the fact that this transition from one social epoch to another has taken place surreptitiously, in an unplanned way. It is not the result of political struggles and should not be interpreted according to the marxist idea of the revolution. Indeed, it is not the crises but the victories of capitalism which are at the origin of this new society which should be envisaged as the victory of Western modernization.\n\nHere is an example of what he means by the role of 'sideeffects': 'the transition from the industrial to the risk period of modernity occurs undesired, unseen and compulsively in the wake of the autonomized dynamism of modernization, following the pattern of latent side-effects'. It is those side-effects, not political struggles, which are at the origin of the profound changes which have taken place in a wide range of social relations: classes, sex roles, family relations, work etc. As a consequence constitutive pillars of the first modernity such as the trade unions and the political parties have lost their centrality because they are not adapted to deal with the new forms of conflict specific to reflexive modernity. In a risk society the basic conflicts are no longer of a distributional nature, about income, jobs, welfare benefits, but are conflicts over 'distributive responsibility', i.e. how to prevent and control the risks accompanying the production of goods and the threats entailed by the advances of modernization.\n\nThe societies of the first modernity, says Beck, were characterized by the nation-state and the crucial role of collective groups. Owing to the consequences of globalization on one side and the intensification of the processes of individualization on the other, this is no longer the case. Collective identities have been deeply undermined, both in the private and in the public realm, and the basic institutions of society are now oriented towards the individual and no longer towards the group or the family. Moreover, industrial societies were centred on 'work' and organized towards full employment; the status of individuals was essentially defined by their job, which also constituted an important condition for their access to democratic rights. This has also come to an end. Hence the urgency of finding a new way of envisaging the basis for an active participation in society, taking in account the fact that individuals are constructed in an open-ended discursive interplay to which the classical roles of industrial society cannot do justice.\n\nWhile acknowledging that the old vocabulary of left and right, the conflicting interests of groups and the political parties have not yet disappeared, Beck considers that they are conceptual 'crutches of the past' and that they are thoroughly inadequate to grasp the conflicts of reflexive modernity. In a risk society ideological and political conflicts can no longer be ordained through the left\/right metaphor which was typical of industrial society but are better characterized by the following dichotomies: safe\/unsafe, inside\/outside and political\/unpolitical.\n\n# THE EMERGENCE OF 'SUB-POLITICS'\n\nNow that we have broadly delineated the framework of Beck's theory, we can examine the new form of politics which he advocates as a solution and which he calls 'sub-politics'. The central idea is that in a risk society one should not look for the political in the traditional arenas such as parliament, political parties and trade unions and that it is necessary to stop the equation between politics and state or between politics and political system. Today the political erupts in very different places and we are confronted with a paradoxical situation: 'the political constellation of industrial society is becoming unpolitical, while what was unpolitical in industrialism is becoming politicals'. A series of new resistances have emerged which are grass roots-oriented, extra-parliamentary and no longer linked to classes or to political parties. Their demands concern issues which cannot be expressed through traditional political ideologies and they are not addressed to the political system: they take place in a variety of sub-systems.\n\nBeck claims that 'risk society' challenges the basic tenets of political science which has generally elaborated the concept of politics in three aspects: (1) the 'polity' which concerns the institutional constitution of the political community; (2) 'policy' which examines how political programmes can shape social circumstances; (3) 'politics' which deals with the process of political conflict over power-sharing and power positions. In all three cases the question is directed at collective agents and the individual is not fit for politics. With the advent of sub-politics, the individual is now put at the centre of the political scene. 'Sub-politics', he declares,\n\nis distinguished from 'politics' in that (a) agents outside the political or corporatist system are allowed also to appear on the stage of social design (this group includes professional and occupational groups, the technical intelligentsia in companies, research institutions and management, skilled workers, citizens' initiatives, the public sphere and so on), and (b) not only social and collective agents but individuals as well compete with the latter and each other for the emerging power to shape politics.\n\nHe also stresses that sub-politics means 'shaping society from below' and that in the wake of sub-politicization, there are growing opportunities to have a voice and a share in the arrangement of society for groups hitherto uninvolved in the substantive technification and industrialization process: citizens, the public sphere, social movements, expert groups, working people on site.\n\nWhen it comes to visualizing the issues which this reinvented sub-politics will tackle, Beck underlines again the differences from the type of left\/right politics of simple modernity with its sharp separation between public and private. According to the traditional conception, one had to leave the private sphere in order to become political and it was only in the public sphere, through party politics, that the political was achieved. Sub-politics operates a reversal of this conception and puts at the centre of the political arena all the things which were left aside and excluded in the left\/right axis. Now that all the questions which concern the self and which were perceived as expressions of individualism occupy centre stage, a new identity of the political emerges in terms of 'life-anddeath politics'. In a risk society, which has become aware of the possibility of an ecological crisis, a series of issues which were previoulsy considered of a private character, such as those concerning the lifestyle and diet, have left the realm of the intimate and the private and have become politicized. The relation of the individual to nature is typical of this transformation since it is now inescapably interconnected with a multiplicity of global forces from which it is impossible to escape.\n\nMoreover, technological progress and scientific developments in the field of medicine and genetic engineering are now forcing people to make decisions in the field of 'body politics' hitherto unimaginable. Those decisions on life and death are putting philosophical issues of existentialism on the political agenda and individuals will be obliged to confront them if they do not want their future to be left in the hands of experts or dealt with according to the logic of the market. Beck claims that this gives us the possibility of changing society in an existential sense. Everything depends on the capacity of people to shed their old modes of thought, inherited from the first modernity, so as to meet the challenges posed by risk society. The model of unambiguous intrumental rationality should be abolished and ways of making the 'new ambivalence' acceptable have to be found. What is needed is the creation of forums where a consensus could be built between the experts, the politicians, the industrialists and the citizens on ways of establishing possible forms of co-operation among them. This would require the transformation of expert systems into democratic public spheres.\n\nBeck likes to stress the positive role that doubt can play in fomenting compromises which make the overcoming of conflicts possible. The generalization of an attitude of doubt, he claims, shows the way to a new modernity, based no longer on certainty like simple modernity but on the acknowledgement of ambivalence and the refusal of a superior authority. He asserts that the generalized scepticism and the centrality of doubt which are prevalent today preclude the emergence of antagonistic relations. We have entered an era of ambivalence in which nobody can believe any more that they possess the truth, belief which was precisely where antagonisms were stemming from. Therefore the very ground for their emergence has been eliminated. This is why he dismisses attempts to speak in terms of left and right and to organize collective identities around those lines as 'crutches of the past'. He even goes so far as to assert that 'the political programme of a radicalized modernization is scepticism'.\n\nIn Beck's view, a society where doubt has been generalized will be unable to think in terms of friend and enemy, and a pacification of conflicts will follow. He takes it for granted that, once they stop believing in the existence of a truth that they can possess, people will realize that they have to be tolerant of other viewpoints and he believes that they will make compromises instead of trying to impose their own ideas. Only those who still think according to the old categories and who are unable to put their dogmatic certainties into question will still behave in an adversarial manner. Hopefully, the side-effects of reflexive modernization will lead to their disappearance and we can therefore reasonably expect the advent of a cosmopolitan order.\n\n# GIDDENS AND THE POST-TRADITIONAL SOCIETY\n\nIn the case of Anthony Giddens the key concept is 'posttraditional society'. What he wants to indicate by this concept is that we are caught up in everyday experiments which have profound consequences for the self and identity and which involve a multiplicity of changes and adaptation in daily life. Modernity has become experimental at a global level and it is fraught with global hazards whose outcome we cannot control: 'manufactured uncertainty' has become part of our life. Like Beck, Giddens believes that many of those uncertainties have been created by the very growth of human knowledge. They are the result of human intervention in social life and into nature. The growth of manufactured uncertainty has been accelerated by the intensifying of globalization thanks to the emergence of means of instantaneous global communication. The development of a globalizing cosmpolitan society has meant that traditions have become opened to interrogation, their status has changed because now justifications have to be offered for them and they can no longer be taken for granted as in the past.\n\nThe rise of a post-traditional social order has been accompanied by the expansion of 'social reflexivity' because manufactured uncertainty now intrudes into all areas of social life. Individuals have therefore to process a lot of information on which they need to act in their everyday actions. Giddens affirms that the development of social reflexivity is in fact the key to understanding a diversity of changes which have taken place both in economy and in politics. For instance 'the emergence of \"post-Fordism\" in industrial enterprises is usually analysed in terms of technological changes \u2013 particularly the influence of information technology. But the underlying reason for the growth of \"flexible production\" and \"bottom-up decision-making\" is that a universe of high reflexivity leads to greater autonomy of action, which the enterprise must recognize and draw on.' A similar argument, he says, could be made in the sphere of politics concerning bureaucratic authority, which in his view is no longer a required condition for organizational effectiveness. This is why bureaucratic systems start to disappear and states can no longer treat their citizens as 'subjects'.\n\nGiddens argues that we should now think in terms of 'life politics', which he opposes to the 'emancipative' mode. He asserts: 'Life politics concerns political issues which flow from processes of self-actualization in post-traditional contexts, where globalizing tendencies intrude deeply into the reflexive project of the self, and conversely where processes of self-realization influence global strategies.' This means that 'life politics' includes for instance ecological questions and also the changing nature of work, the family, and personal and cultural identity. While emancipatory politics concerns life chances and freedom from different types of constraints, life politics concerns life decisions \u2013 decisions about how we should live in a post-traditional world where what used to be natural or traditional has now become opened to choice. It is not only a politics of the personal and it would be a mistake, stresses Giddens, to think that it is only a concern of the more affluent. To be sure ecological and feminist issues play a central role but life politics also covers more traditional areas of political involvement such as work and economic activity. It is therefore very relevant to tackle the manifold problems arising from the transformation of the labour force. His claim is that 'Life politics is about the challenges that face collective humanity'.\n\nGiddens joins Beck in underlining the growth of a new individualism which represents a real challenge to the usual ways of doing politics. In his view, this new individualism should be understood in the context of the complex effects of globalization and their impact in the diminishing role that tradition and customs play in our lives. Contrary to many left-wing as well as conservative critics, who see it as an expression of moral decay and as a threat to social solidarity, he sees institutional individualism as opening many positive possibilities, for instance as allowing a more adequate balance between individual and collective responsibilities. Indeed the fact that we are now living in a more reflective manner creates pressures towards greater democratization and this new individualism contributes in a crucial way to this democratic trend.\n\n# DEMOCRATIZING DEMOCRACY\n\nAs we might expect from the previous considerations, Giddens sees the left\/right divide as being obsolete. One of his books is even called Beyond Left and Right. He argues that with the demise of the socialist model and the fact that there is no longer an alternative to capitalism, the main dividing line between left and right has disappeared and that most of the new problems arising in the context of the post-traditional society, i.e. all those issues concerning 'life politics', cannot be expressed within the left\/right framework. A detraditionalizing social order requires a new type of 'generative politics' according to which: (1) the desired outcomes are not determined from the top; (2) situations are created in which active trust can be built and sustained; (3) autonomy is granted to those affected by specific programmes or policies; (4) resources are generated which enhance autonomy, including material wealth; (5) political power is decentralized.\n\nModern trust was invested mainly in expert-systems, but now says Giddens, what we need is 'active trust'. In a post-traditional context where the institutions have become reflexive, the propositions of experts are opened to critique by the citizens and passive trust is not enough, trust must become active. To generate active trust expert knowledge must be democratically validated. Indeed, scientific statements are now treated by the public as contestable propositional truths and this is why expert systems need to become dialogical. Hence his call for a 'dialogic democracy'. What is at stake is the creation of active trust generating social solidarity among individuals and groups. Active trust implies a reflexive engagement of lay people with expert systems instead of their reliance on expert authority.\n\nIn an argument akin to the one made by Beck about the need to transform expert systems in democratic public spheres, Giddens argues for the necessity of democratizing the main institutions of society (including the family) by opening them to debate and contestation. The aim is to promote the value of autonomy in the widest possible range of social relations and this requires the establishment of small-scale public spheres where conflicts of interests could be resolved through public dialogue. He points out that such a process of democratization is driven by the expansion of social reflexivity and detraditionalization and that it is already at work in at least four social contexts: (1) in the realm of personal life where, in sexual relations, parent\u2013child relations and friendship, we are witnessing the emergence of an 'emotional democracy'; (2) in the organizational arena where bureaucratic hierarchies are being replaced by more flexible and decentralized sytems of authority; (3) in the development of social movements and self-help groups, where challenging different forms of authority and opening up spaces for public dialogue represents another potential for democratization; (4) at the global level, where democratizing tendencies drawing on a mixture of reflexivity, autonomy and dialogue may eventually generate a cosmopolitan global order.\n\nTo be sure, Giddens does not exclude the possibility of setbacks and he acknowledges that the reassertion of traditional relations may breed fundamentalism and violence, but he is basically optimistic about the future of post-traditional societies. He emphasizes the fact that, in reflexive modernity, traditions are forced to justify themselves and that only those which are made available to discursive justification will be able to persist. Moreover, this requisite of discursive justification creates conditions for a dialogue with other traditions as well as with alternative modes of behaviour. One can therefore expect the growing availability of a 'dialogic democracy' where one is ready to listen and to debate with the other, and this both on the level of personal life and on that of the global order.\n\nThe opening out of science is central to the project of dialogical democratization because, as in the field of 'emotional democracy', visibility and openness to public discussion are the preconditions for the advance of social reflexivity and the granting of autonomy. Giddens suggests that we should visualize dialogic democracy as linked to the development of what he calls 'pure relationship', i.e. a relationship into which one enters and remains for its own sake because of the rewards that associating with others brings. This type of pure relationship is found in the area of personal life and it is linked to the growth of 'emotional democracy' which he sees as the model for his dialogic approach. Indeed, there is according to Giddens a close link between pure relationship and dialogic democracy. Referring to the literature of marital and sexual therapy, he suggests that there are important parallels between the way they envisage the qualities required for a good relationship and the formal mechanisms of political democracy because in both cases the issue is of one of autonomy.\n\nGiddens summarizes his view in the following way:\n\nPressures towards democratization \u2013 which always face contrary influences \u2013 are created by the twin processes of globalization and institutional reflexivity. Detraditionalization disembeds local contexts of action and at the same time alters the character of the global order: even when they remain firmly adhered to, traditions are increasingly forced into contact with one another. Globalization, reflexivity and detraditionalization creates 'dialogic spaces' that must in some way be filled. These are spaces which can be engaged with dialogically, invoking mechanisms of active trust \u2013 but which can also be occupied by fundamentalisms.\n\n# A POST-POLITICAL VISION\n\nAs should be clear by now, what the approach advocated by Beck and Giddens aims at eliminating from politics is the notion of the 'adversary', which, in Chapter 2 I have presented as the central one for democratic politics. Both of them believe that in the current stage of reflexive modernity a 'democratization of democracy' can take place without having to define an adversary. The main political questions nowadays concern issues about adjudication between different lifestyle claims, about the extension of autonomy to all the spheres where dialogic democratization can be implemented in order to foster the development of reflexivity. They need to be decided by individuals not groups and framed in terms of 'life politics' (Giddens) and 'sub-politics' (Beck). The democratic debate is envisaged as a dialogue between individuals whose aim is to create new solidarities and extend the bases of active trust. Conflicts can be pacified thanks to the 'opening up' of a variety of public spheres where, through dialogue, people with very different interests will make decisions about the variety of issues which affect them and develop a relation of mutual tolerance allowing them to live together. Disagreements will of course exist but they should not take an adversarial form.\n\nTheir main argument is that, in post-traditional societies, we no longer find collective identities constructed in terms of we\/they, which means that political frontiers have dissipated. Collective and group-specific sources of meaning are suffering from exhaustion and individuals are now expected to live with a broad variety of global and personal risks without the old certainties. With the advent of risk society and the individualization of political conflicts, the old lines of conflict and partisan controversies have lost their relevance and the past clarities of politics are no longer effective. They contend that the adversarial model of politics, characteristic of simple modernity, has therefore become obsolete in the current stage of reflexive modernization and it needs to be discarded.\n\nThe key to the disappearance of collective identities is the dynamics of individualization which is seen by Beck and Giddens as being at the core of reflexive modernity. This process of individualization destroys the collective forms of life necessary for the emergence of collective consciousness and the kind of politics which corresponds to them. It is therefore completely illusory to try to foster class solidarity, given that the main experience of individuals today is precisely the very destruction of the conditions of collective solidarity. The growth of individualism undermines trade unions and parties and renders inoperative the type of politics which they used to foster. Beck, of course, has never believed that they were important since, as we have seen, he affirms that the main transformations undergone by our societies have not been the result of political struggles but have taken place unintended and unpolitically as the result of 'sideeffects'. Indeed he proclaims that his theory 'is not a theory of crisis or class, not a theory of decline, but rather a theory of the unintended, latent disembedding and re-embedding of industrial society due to the success of Western modernization'.\n\nIt is very revealing that the only type of radical opponent which such a model can envisage is the 'traditionalist' or the 'fundamentalist' who, in reaction against the development of the post-traditional society, attempts to reassert the old certainties of tradition. Those traditionalists or fundamentalists, by their very rejection of the advances of reflexive modernization, place themselves against the course of history and obviously they cannot be allowed to participate in the dialogical discussion. In fact, if we accept the distinction which I have proposed between 'enemy' and 'adversary', this type of opponent is not an adversary but an enemy, i.e. one whose demands are not recognized as legitimate and who must be excluded from the democratic debate.\n\nSeveral crucial consequences follow from the erasure of the place of the adversary and in the following chapter I will argue that it sheds light on the antagonistic form taken by some current political struggles. At this point what is important to stress is that, by declaring the end of the adversarial model of politics, the Beck\/Giddens approach forecloses the possibility of giving an 'agonistic' form to political conflicts; the only possible form of opposition is the 'antagonistic' one. Indeed, if we accept to envisage the domain of politics according to their framework, we end up with the following picture: on one side, a mutiplicity of 'sub-political' struggles about a variety of 'life issues' which can be dealt with through dialogue; on the other side, either the old-fashioned 'traditionalists' or, more worryingly, the 'fundamentalists' fighting a backward struggle against the forces of progress.\n\nBeck and Giddens are of course convinced that the 'forces of progress' will prevail and that a cosmopolitan order will be established, but how will we get there and what will happen in the meantime? How are we going, for instance, to address the profound inequalities which exist today in the world? It is noteworthy that neither Beck nor Giddens has much to say about power relations and the way they structure our societies. They emphasize social fluidity and completely ignore the way in which 'reflexive modernity' has seen the emergence of a new class whose power will have to be challenged if the basic institutions of the 'post-traditional' society are to be democratized. Likewise, it is clear that the movement against bureaucratization, which Giddens sees as an important domain of what he calls 'generative politics', will not take place without a struggle against the managers whose power will have to be curtailed. As far as concerns ecological issues, on which they put great emphasis, it is remarkable that neither of them seems to realize how deeply many of the problems related to the environment have to do with neo-liberal policies with their prioratizing of profit and market mechanisms. In all the crucial areas where power structures are at stake, their non-conflictual political approach is unable to pose the adequate questions. Politics, as Perry Anderson points out, commenting on Giddens, is not an exchange of opinions but a contest for power and he warns that 'The danger of conceiving democratic life as a dialogue is that we may forget that its primary reality remains strife'. Without grasping the structure of the current hegemonic order and the type of power relations through which it is constituted, no real democratization can ever get off the ground. Whatever its proponents might claim, the 'dialogical' approach is far from being radical because no radical politics can exist without challenging existing power relations and this requires defining an adversary, which is precisely what such a perspective forecloses.\n\n# DIALOGIC DEMOCRACY VERSUS AGONISTIC DEMOCRACY\n\nI want to make sure that my criticism of Beck and Giddens is not misunderstood. In no way am I arguing here in favour of the traditional conception of revolutionary politics. I do agree that democratic politics cannot take the form of a friend\/enemy confrontation without leading to the destruction of the political association. And I have already made clear my allegiance to the basic principles of pluralist democracy. But that does not mean that any kind of adversarial confrontation is thereby foreclosed and that we are bound to endorse a consensual, dialogic approach. As I have argued in Chapter 2, the fundamental question for democratic theory is to envisage how the antagonistic dimension \u2013 which is constitutive of the political \u2013 can be given a form of expression that will not destroy the political association. I suggested that it required distinguishing between the categories of 'antagonism' (relations between enemies) and 'agonism' (relations between adversaries) and envisaging a sort of 'conflictual consensus' providing a common symbolic space among opponents who are considered as 'legitimate enemies'. Contrary to the dialogic approach, the democratic debate is conceived as a real confrontation. Adversaries do fight \u2013 even fiercely \u2013 but according to a shared set of rules, and their positions, despite being ultimately irreconcilable, are accepted as legitimate perspectives. The fundamental difference between the 'dialogical' and the 'agonistic' perspectives is that the aim of the latter is a profound transformation of the existing power relations and the establishment of a new hegemony. This is why it can properly be called 'radical'. To be sure, it is not the revolutionary politics of the jacobin type, but neither is it the liberal one of competing interests within a neutral terrain or the discursive formation of a democratic consensus.\n\nSuch an understanding of the 'adversary' is precisely what the Beck\/Giddens approach is unable to visualize and this is why they remain squarely within the traditional parameters of liberal politics. Their 'democratizing of democracy' should therefore not be confounded with the 'radical democracy' that Ernesto Laclau and I advocated as early as 1985 in Hegemony and Socialist Strategy. It is in fact worth spelling out the differences between the two perspectives, particularly since, at first sight, there might seem to exist many similarities. For instance, our book is also a critique of the jacobin model of politics and we acknowledge that politics is now taking place in a multiplicity of domains hitherto considered as nonpolitical. One of the central theses of Hegemony and Socialist Strategy is the need to take account of all the democratic struggles which have emerged in a variety of social relations and which, we argued, could not be apprehended through the category of 'class'. Those struggles, usually designated as the 'new social movements', constitute the field of what Beck calls 'sub-politics' and Giddens 'life political issues'. There is therefore agreement on the importance of enlarging the domain of politics. But our perspectives diverge concerning the way political struggle should be envisaged. For us the radicalization of democracy requires the transformation of the existing power structures and the construction of a new hegemony. In our view, the building of a new hegemony implies the creation of a 'chain of equivalence' among the diversity of democratic struggles, old and new, in order to form a 'collective will', a 'we' of the radical democratic forces. This can be done only by the determination of a 'they', the adversary that has to be defeated in order to make the new hegemony possible. While keeping our distance from the leninist tradition of total revolutionary break, and stressing that our understanding of radical democracy was compatible with the maintenance of the institutions of the so-called 'formal democracy', we nevertheless also parted company with the liberal approach of the neutrality of the state. Despite its shortcomings, we see the marxist tradition as having made an important contribution to our understanding of the dynamics of the capitalist system and its consequences over the ensemble of social relations. This is why, contrary to Beck and Giddens, we acknowledge the crucial role played by economic power in the structuring of an hegemonic order.\n\nIf the 'reflexive democracy' approach can envisage the democratization of democracy as the smooth extension of the dialogical framework to all areas of society it is because they remain blind to the hegemonic dimension of politics. Beck's and Giddens's dismisal of the adversarial model as an outdated way of structuring the political field is the consequence of their incapacity to acknowledge the hegemonic constitution of social reality. Despite making some gestures towards asserting the discursive nature of the social, they overlook one crucial aspect of this process: the role of power relations in the construction of all forms of objectivity. Add to that their belief that collective identities have disappeared as a consequence of individualization processes, and it is not surprising that they are unable to grasp the dynamics of politics.\n\n# THE RHETORICS OF MODERNIZATION\n\nThe theorists of reflexive modernization present the politics that they advocate as being grounded in their sociological analysis. They assert that they are merely drawing the consequences in the field of politics of the transformations which have been happening in our societies: the loss of relevance of collective identities and the obsolescence of the adversarial model. This gives an appearance of scientificity and incontestability to their post-political vision, making all those who disagree with them seem prisoners of an old-fashioned framework.\n\nThe key word of this strategy is of course 'modernization', whose effect is to discriminate between those who are in tune with the new conditions of the modern, post-traditional world and those who still cling desperately to the past. To use 'modernization' in such a way is no doubt a powerful rhetorical gesture which allows them to draw a political frontier between 'the moderns' and 'the traditionalists or fundamentalists', while at the same time denying the political character of their move. Despite their thesis about the disappearance of the we\/they distinction and its centrality in politics, it is not surprising that neither Beck nor Giddens can avoid establishing a frontier between we and they. This was to be expected, since such a frontier, as we have seen earlier, is constitutive of politics. But by presenting it, in a supposedly neutral way, as sociological evidence, they deny its political nature.\n\nSuch a denial constitutes the typical post-political gesture and it repays close examination which will bring us important insights. As we have just seen, while announcing the end of the adversarial model, Beck and Giddens cannot escape defining an adversary or enemy, who is the 'fundamentalist' opposing the process of reflexive modernization. So the 'we' of the 'modern people', i.e. those who are part of the movement of reflexive modernization, is constructed by the determination of a 'they', the traditionalists or fundamentalists who oppose this movement. They cannot take part in the dialogic process, whose borders are in fact constituted by their very exclusion. What is this, if not a typical friend\/enemy discrimination, but one which, as I have indicated, is not recognized as such because it is presented as a sociological fact and not as a political, partisan gesture?\n\nWhat should we conclude from this? It means that, contrary to their claims, the political in its antagonistic dimension has not disappeared, but in this case it manifests itself under a different guise, as a mechanism of exclusion justified on pseudo-scientific grounds. What is really problematic from a political point of view is that such a mode of drawing the political frontier is not conducive to a vibrant democratic debate. When an exclusion is justified in this way, it is not open to political contestation and it is shielded from democratic discussion. Demands which are presented as coming from the traditionalists or fundamentalists can thereby be ignored in good conscience by 'dialogical' democrats.\n\nIn the next chapter, when I discuss the political consequences of the denial of the constitutive nature of antagonism, I will have the opportunity of giving other examples of the post-political legerdemain, which consists in drawing a political frontier while denying its political character. But before we reach this point, I want to examine the attempt to link the theses of 'reflexive modernity' to the concrete political strategy of the so-called 'radical centre'.\n\n# GIDDENS AND THE THIRD WAY\n\nThe main player in this field is Giddens, who is usually credited with the attempt to lay the intellectual foundations for the centre-left position referred to as 'the third way'. In two books, The Third Way and The Third Way and Its Critics, published respectively in 1998 and 2000, he tried to draw the consequences of his sociological theory for practical politics and made a series of proposals for the 'redefinition of social democracy after the death of socialism'. Scrutinising these will provide us with a privileged standpoint to test the impact of the post-political approach in the practice of politics.\n\nSocial democracy, asserts Giddens, must come to terms with the end of the bipolar world system and the demise of the communist model. In his view, the identity of social democrats has been thrown into crisis by the collapse of communism because, although they defined themselves in opposition to communism, they shared some of its perspectives. The time has therefore come for a radical rethinking. This, he says, requires facing five dilemmas: (1) the implications of globalization; (2) the consequences of the spread of individualism; (3) the loss of meaning of the left\/right divide; (4) the fact that politics is taking place outside the orthodox mechanisms of democracy; (5) the need to take account of the ecological problems.\n\nThe background of his thesis is that, under the present conditions of globalization, the Keynesian form of economic management, which was a cornerstore of social democracy, has been drastically weakened. Moreover, with the defeat of socialism as a theory of economic management, one of the main dividing lines between left and right has disappeared. Social democrats must acknowledge that there is no alternative to capitalism. Drawing on his theory of reflexive modernization, Giddens criticizes classical social democracy for the centrality it attributes to the state in social and economic life and for its distrust of civil society. This makes it very badly prepared to grasp the nature of the new individualism, which it accuses of destroying common values and public concerns. Viewing the growth of individualization processes with suspicion, social democrats miss the potential for greater democratization which those processes entail. They cling to the traditional institutions of the welfare state without realizing that the concept of collective provision has to be rethought and that, since we now live in a more open and reflective manner, a new balance between individual and collective responsibility has to be found.\n\nAccording to Giddens, 'The overall aim of third way politics should be to help citizens pilot their way through the major revolutions of our time: globalization, transformations in personal life and our relationship to nature'. He extols a positive attitude towards globalization, but envisaged as a wide phenomenon, not merely as a global market. Endorsing free trade, he recommends checking its destructive consequences by a concern with social justice. Finally, he declares that collectivism has to be relinquished and that expanding individualism needs to be accompanied by an extension of individual obligations. What is at stake is the establishment of a new relationship between the individual and the community whose motto could be 'no rights without responsibilities'. Another motto of third way politics is 'no authority without democracy'. In a post-traditional society, he claims, democracy is the only route to the justification of authority and he puts great emphasis on the creation of active trust as the way to maintain social cohesion and sustain social solidarity in contexts of reflexive modernization.\n\nTo allow for a widening of democracy, argues Giddens, it is necessary to reform the state and government to make them act in partnership with civil society. The kind of reforms that he advocates include decentralization, expanding the role of the public sphere, fostering of administrative efficiency, new experiments with democracy beyond orthodox voting processes and increased intervention in the field of risk management. Third way politics aims in this way at the creation of a new democratic state which will act in close co-operation with civil society in the context of a new mixed economy, which Giddens describes in the following way: 'The new mixed economy looks instead for a synergy between public and private sectors, utilizing the dynamism of markets but with the public interest in mind. It involves a balance between regulation and deregulation, on the transnational as well as national and local levels; and a balance between the economic and the non-economic in the life of the society'. The welfare state is not going to be abandoned but the relationship between risk and security should be shifted so as to create a society of 'responsible risks takers'. Similarly the meaning of redistribution should be shifted towards the 'redistribution of possibilities'.\n\nParticularly relevant for my argument is Giddens's assertion that third way politics is 'one-nation politics' because it underlines the non-conflictual nature of his political project. This, of course, chimes with the central tenets of his sociological theory, which, as we have seen, erases the dimension of antagonism from the political. In post-traditional societies disagreements do exist, but they can be overcome through dialogue and education; they are not the expression of fundamental conflicts and society is no longer marked by class division. Indeed it is the very concept of class that his 'life politics' intends to abolish and to replace by questions of 'lifestyle'.\n\nIt is also worth underlining that Giddens designates this new democratic state as 'the state without enemies' and much of his argument is based on the idea that, with the passing of the bipolar era, states now face not enemies but dangers; hence the need to look for other sources of legitimacy than the ones provided by the threat of war. Those considerations were of course published before the events of 11 September 2001 and today, with the unleashing of the 'war against terrorism', they seem hopelessly outdated. I reckon, however, that Giddens might want to stick to his position, explaining those events as temporary setbacks provoked by the reactions of the fundamentalists to the advances of reflexive modernization.\n\nHow should we evaluate Giddens's political proposals? He claims that his aim is to contribute to a renewal of social democracy, but it is clear that this supposed renewal consists in making the social democratic project basically resign itself to accepting the present stage of capitalism. This is a drastic move since the aim of social democracy has always been to confront the systemic problems of inequality and instability generated by capitalism. However, having decreed that there is no alternative, Giddens feels entitled to relinquish this supposedly outdated dimension. He simply overlooks the systemic connections existing between global market forces and the variety of problems \u2013 from exclusion to environmental risks \u2013 that his politics pretends to tackle. It is only on this condition that he can envisage a 'dialogical politics' transcending the adversarial model and able to produce solutions benefiting all sectors of society. Such a consensual, post-political perspective is characterized by a side-stepping of fundamental conflicts and by an evasion of any critical analysis of modern capitalism. This is why it is unable to challenge the hegemony of neo-liberalism.\n\n# NEW LABOUR'S 'RENEWAL' OF SOCIAL DEMOCRACY\n\nWe find a confirmation of this fit between neo-liberal hegemony and the 'third way' when we examine how Giddens's proposals for a renewed social democracy have informed the politics of New Labour. I do not intend to make a detailed analysis of the various policies of the Blair government: it will be enough to indicate its principal orientation. The question I want to ask is: how radical is the politics of this so-called 'radical centre' and what kind of consensus has it tried to implement? And the answer is really depressing. As Stuart Hall has pointed out, instead of challenging the neo-liberal hegemony implemented by eighteen years of Thatcherite rule, New Labour has picked up where Thatcherism left off. Blair chose to adapt to the neo-liberal terrain, albeit in a distinctive way. His project has been to absorb social democracy into neo-liberalism. New Labour long-term strategy, says Hall, is 'the transformation of social democracy into a particular variant of free market neo-liberalism'. Some social democratic objectives, aiming for instance at a certain level of redistribution and improvements of public services, are present but they are subordinated to the neo-liberal agenda of setting the corporate economy free of the regulations which previous social democratic governments had installed to control capitalism. The welfare state has been 'modernized' by the introduction of internal markets and the spread of management techniques promoting the key 'entrepreneurial values' of efficiency, choice and selectivity. True, the state is not seen as the enemy as in the case of neo-liberalism, but its role has been completely transformed. It is no longer 'to support the less fortunate or powerful in a society which \"naturally\" produces huge inequalities of wealth, power and opportunity, but to help individuals themselves to provide for all their social needs \u2013 health, education, environmental, travel, housing, parenting, security in unemployment, pensions in old age, etc'. This is how 'active government' is understood by New Labour.\n\nJohn Gray, who also stresses the importance of neo-liberal ideology and the cult of the market in the intellectual formation of New Labour, argues that, in the field of privatizations, Blair went even further than Thatcher would have envisaged. He gives as examples the introduction of market forces into the justice system and the prison services and notes: 'Here the market was being inserted in core of the state itself \u2013 a move that in Thatcher's time only the right-wing think-thanks supported'. Other policies in which he sees Blair going further than Thatcher include the deregulation of postal services and the injection of market forces into the National Health Service.\n\nA very clear sign of New Labour renunciation of its left identity is that it has abandoned the struggle for equality. The slogan of the party has now become to provide 'choice'. Classes have disappeared and the key terms today are those of 'inclusion' and 'exclusion'. Society is viewed as basically composed of middle classes; the only exceptions are a small elite of the very rich on one side and those who are 'excluded' on the other. This view of the social structure provides the basis for the 'consensus at the centre' that New Labour is advocating. This of course chimes with the tenet that 'post-traditional' societies are no longer structured through unequal power relations. By redefining the structural inequalities systematically produced by the market in terms of 'exclusion', one can dispense with the structural analysis of their causes, thereby avoiding the fundamental question of which changes in power relations are needed to tackle them. It is only in that way that a 'modernized' social democracy can eschew the traditional identity of the left and situate itself 'beyond left and right'.\n\nOne of the ways advocated by Giddens to transcend the old left\/right division consists in establishing partnerships between the state and civil society and this idea has been enthusiastically adopted by New Labour through 'public\u2013private partnerships' (PPP) \u2013 with disastrous results for public services. There is no need to retell here the disastrous story of the railways. The failure of the attempt to entrust to private companies the running of such a vital part of the transport system has been so blatant that the state had to be brought back. However this does not seem to have diminished New Labour's fervour for the PPP, which it still tries to impose in other areas. The PPP strategy is of course paradigmatic of the third way: neither state (left) nor private sector (right), but their supposed harmonious partnership, with the state putting up the money for investments and the entrepreneurs reaping the profits and of course with the citizens (consumers in New Labour parlance) suffering accordingly!\n\nThis is how a supposed renewal of social democracy has produced a 'social democratic variant of neo-liberalism' (Hall). The case of New Labour makes clear that the refusal to acknowledge that a society is always hegemonically constituted through a certain structure of power relations leads to accepting the existing hegemony and remaining trapped within its configuration of forces. This is the necessary outcome of a 'consensus at the centre' which pretends that the adversarial model has been overcome. Instead of being the terrain where an agonistic debate takes place between left and right policies, politics is reduced to 'spinning'. Since there is no fundamental difference between them, parties will try to sell their products by clever marketing with the help of advertising agencies. The consequence has been a growing disaffection with politics and a drastic fall in participation in elections. How long will it take before citizens completely lose faith in the democratic process?\n\n# Current Challenges to the Post-political Vision\n\n# Four\n\nIf we are to believe the optimistic picture put forward by the theorists of 'reflexive modernization' and the politicians of the 'third way', notwithstanding some rearguard resistance to progress, the basic trend nowadays is towards a unified and pacified world. However, this is far from being the case and their post-political vision has increasingly been contradicted from many quarters. To be sure, in recent decades the frontiers between left and right have become increasingly blurred. But instead of creating the conditions for a more mature democracy, what we have witnessed in many Western societies is a loss of legitimacy of democratic institutions. Moreover, as far as international politics is concerned, the end of the bipolar world order has led not to a more harmonious system but to the explosion of a multiplicity of new antagonisms. Even before the dramatic events of 11 September 2001 and the 'war on terrorism' that they unleashed, it was already clear that antagonisms, far from having disappeared, were manifesting themselves in new forms in both national and international contexts.\n\nFor instance, the shallowness of the post-political approach had already been revealed by the emergence in several European countries of right-wing populist parties whose success confounded liberal theorists and commentators alike. How could they explain that, contrary to their claims about the demise of collective identities, so many people in advanced societies could be attracted by parties appealing to supposedly 'archaic' forms of identifications such as 'the people'? Having celebrated the arrival of a new kind of non-partisan individualist voter, detached from traditional affiliations, who was rationally 'picking and choosing' among different party policies, how could dialogic theorists make sense of this sudden eruption of populist passions?\n\nA first answer was to attribute this phenomenon to a context in which past atavisms had not yet been overcome. This is, for instance, how the success of the Freedom Party in Austria was interpreted. The accepted view was that J\u00f6rg Haider's appeal was due to the fact that Austria was a country that had not yet managed to come to terms with its nazi past. No need to worry, this was a special case and such a phenomenon could not reproduce itself in other countries.\n\nHowever, the inadequacy of this facile explanation based on the 'remains of the past' was quickly revealed by the emergence of similar parties in many other countries with a very different history. It is obviously impossible to attribute the growing success of right-wing populist parties in Belgium, Denmark, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Norway, Italy and France (to list only the most important ones) to the absence in those countries of a critical relationship with their past. So liberal theorists looked for other explanations to fit their rationalist approach, insisting for instance on the role of uneducated, lower-class voters, susceptible to being attracted by demagogues. In vain, because sociological analyses clearly indicate that voters for populist parties can be found in all sectors of the electorate.\n\nDo we have to conclude then that there is no common explanation for this new kind of right-wing populism? I do not believe this to be the case and I am convinced that it is certainly not a coincidence that we have witnessed in recent years the unexpected rise of parties whose success is based on their populist rhetorics. But instead of looking for the causes in signs of 'backwardness', either in the history of the country or in the social status of the electorate, it is to the shortcomings of the main political parties that we have to turn our attention.\n\n# RIGHT-WING POPULISM\n\nWhen we examine the state of democratic politics in all the countries where right-wing populism has made serious inroads, we find a striking similarity. Their growth has always taken place in circumstances where the differences between the traditional democratic parties have become much less significant than before. In some cases, as in Austria, this was due to a long period of coalition government; in others, as in France, to the move towards the centre of parties previously clearly situated at the left of the political spectrum. But in each case a consensus at the centre had been established, which did not allow voters to make of a real choice between significantly different policies. In countries where the electoral sytem did not discriminate against third parties, right-wing demagogues were therefore able to articulate the desire for an alternative to the stifling consensus.\n\nThe case of Austria is particularly interesting because it provides one of the earliest corroboration of my argument. The consensus at the centre was established there soon after the end of the Second World War through the creation of a 'grand coalition' between the conservative People's Party (\u00d6VP) and the Socialist Party (SP\u00d6). They devised a form of co-operation thanks to which they were able to control the life of the country in a variety of fields: political, economic, social and cultural. The 'Proporz system' allowed them to divide the most important posts in the banks, hospitals, schools and nationalized industries between their respective elites. This created the ideal terrain for a talented demagogue like J\u00f6rg Haider who, when he took control in 1986 of the Freedom Party of Austria (FP\u00d6) \u2013 a party that was almost facing extinction \u2013 was able to transform it into a protest party against the 'grand coalition'. By actively mobilizing the themes of popular sovereignty, he quickly managed to articulate the growing resistances to the way in which the country was governed by the coalition of elites.\n\nHaider's discursive strategy consisted in constructing a frontier between a 'we' of all the good Austrians, hard workers and defenders of national values and a 'they' composed of the parties in power, the trade unions, bureaucrats, foreigners, left-wing intellectuals and artists, who were all presented as impeding a real democratic debate. Thanks to this populist strategy the FP\u00d6 experienced a dramatic surge in electoral support and its share of the votes increased steadily until the November 1999 elections when it became the second party in the country, slightly overtaking the conservatives with 27 per cent.\n\nSince then, of course, participation in government has seriously weakened the position of the party, which has steadily been losing ground in all elections, local as well as national \u2013 to the point that in the European elections held in June 2004, its score was reduced to 6.7 per cent. It would be highly instructive to scrutinize the reasons for such a decline. For instance one could interpret it as providing a good argument against the strategy of Ausgrenzung (exclusion) which had been dominant in Austrian politics till then and according to which the aim of the two main parties had been to exclude the FP\u00d6 from participating in government. However, this is not my concern here. What I want to emphasize is that, contrary to the widespread view, it is certainly not the appeal to supposed nazi nostalgia which accounts for the dramatic rise of the FP\u00d6 but the ability of Haider to construct a powerful pole of collective identification around the opposition between 'the people' and the 'consensus elites'. Indeed, this is precisely this 'anti-establishment' pole that the party was unable to sustain once it became part of the governing coalition.\n\nThe construction of a similar anti-establishment bloc explains the success of the Vlaams Blok (VB) in Belgium. The stronghold of the party is located in Antwerp, where a coalition between socialists and Christian democrats has monopolized political power for several decades. This has allowed the VB to present itself as the only real alternative to those that it opposes as 'corrupt elites'. In this case the 'cordon sanitaire' established by the main parties to prevent the VB (recently renamed Vlaams Belang) from coming to power is still in place but the party has been going from strength to strength, becoming the second most important party in the whole of Flanders in the 2004 European elections, with 24.1 per cent.\n\nAs far as France is concerned, it is notable that the rise of the Front National started in the 1980s when, after Mitterrand's victory, the Socialist Party began to move towards the political centre, abandonning all pretence at offering an alternative to the existing hegemonic order. This allowed Jean-Marie Le Pen to claim that he was the only one to challenge the dominant consensus. The solutions he proposes are of course unacceptable but one cannot deny the political character of his discourse. At the 2002 presidential elections, which were notable for the fact that the two main candidates, Jacques Chirac and Lionel Jospin, were advocating very similar policies, it should therefore not have been such a surprise that Le Pen got a high vote, thereby eliminating Jospin from the second round. Since then, despite an electoral system which does not make it easy to translate the total percentage of votes into effective mandates, the party has been able to maintain itself more or less at the level of 13 per cent.\n\n# THE DANGERS OF THE CONSENSUS MODEL\n\nThis very quick look at some recent populist successes should be enough to illustrate one of the central theses of this chapter, in which I will demonstrate the negative consequences of the absence of agonistic channels for the expression of conflicts, both in domestic and in international politics. With respect to domestic politics, it is my contention that the strong appeal of 'anti-establishment' parties is due to the incapacity of established democratic parties to put forward significant alternatives and that it can only be grasped within the context of the consensual mode of politics prevalent today.\n\nThe growing success of populist parties provides an excellent illustration of several of the theses I have asserted in earlier chapters. I start by returning to what I said concerning the proclaimed end of the adversarial model of politics, usually celebrated as a progress for democracy. I argued that, as a consequence of the blurring of the frontiers between left and right and the absence of an agonistic debate among democratic parties, a confrontation between different political projects, voters did not have the possibility of identifying with a differentiated range of democratic political identities. This created a void that was likely to be occupied by other forms of identifications which could become problematic for the working of the democratic system. I asserted that, despite the announced disappearance of collective identities and the victory of individualism, the collective dimension could not be eliminated from politics. If they were not available through traditional parties, collective identities were likely to be provided in other forms. This is clearly what is happening with right-wing populist discourse, which is replacing the weakened left\/right opposition by a new type of we\/they constructed around an opposition between 'the people' and 'the establishment'. Contrary to those who believe that politics can be reduced to individual motivations, the new populists are well aware that politics always consists in the creation of a 'we' versus a 'they' and that it requires the creation of collective identities. Hence the powerful appeal of their discourse which offers collective forms of identification around 'the people'.\n\nIf we relate this to the other point I made concerning the importance of the affective dimension in politics and the need to mobilize passions through democratic channels, we can understand why the rationalist model of democratic politics, with its emphasis on dialogue and rational deliberation, is particularly vulnerable when confronted with a populist politics offering collective identifications with a high affective content like 'the people'. In a context where the dominant discourse proclaims that there is no alternative to the current neo-liberal form of globalization and that we should accept its dictats, it is not surprising that a growing number of people are listening to those who proclaim that alternatives do exist and that they will give back to the people the power to decide. When democratic politics has lost its capacity to mobilize people around distinct political projects and when it limits itself to securing the necessary conditions for the smooth working of the market, the conditions are ripe for political demagogues to articulate popular frustration.\n\nFor some time the case of Britain seemed to provide a counter-example to such an evolution; however the recent success of the Independence Party in the 2004 European elections suggests that things might be changing. It is of course too early to predict the fate of such a party, and the British electoral system certainly does facilitate the rise of third parties. But the dramatic surge in the share of the votes needs to be taken seriously. It is undeniable that all the conditions nowadays exist in Britain for a right-wing populist party to exploit the popular frustration. Since the move to the right of New Labour under the leadership of Tony Blair, many traditional Labour voters no longer feel represented by the party. The demands of an increasing proportion of the popular sectors have been left out of the political agenda and they could easily be articulated through a populist discourse by a skilful demagogue. This is what has already been happening in many European countries and we could easily witness a similar phenomenon in British politics.\n\nIt is high time to realize that, to a great extent, the success of right-wing populist parties comes from the fact that they articulate, albeit in a very problematic way, real democratic demands which are not taken into account by traditional parties. They also provide people with some form of hope, with the belief that things could be different. Of course it is an illusory hope, founded on false premises and unacceptable mechanisms of exclusion where xenophobia usually plays a central role. But when they are the only channels for the expression of political passions, their pretence to represent an alternative is very seductive. This is why I submit that the success of right-wing populist parties is the consequence of the lack of a vibrant democratic debate in our post-democracies. It proves that, far from benefiting democracy, the blurring of the left\/right frontier is undermining it. Through the drawing of new political frontiers the terrain is being created for the emergence of collective identities whose nature is inimical to democratic treatment.\n\nThe response of traditional parties to the rise of right-wing populism has clearly contributed to exacerbating the problem. Instead of scrutinizing the political, social and economic causes of this new phenomenon, they have quickly dismissed its novelty by labelling it as 'extreme-right'. This move allowed them to evade the question of its specificity and its causes and to avoid examining whether the 'good democrats' did not have some responsibility for the popular rejection of the established political institutions. The explanation was already at hand: it was the 'brown plague' rearing its ugly head again and it called for all the democratic forces to unite in resisting the reappearance of this evil force. This is why moral condemnation and the setting up of a 'cordon sanitaire' have so often constituted the answer to the rise of right-wing populist movements.\n\n# POLITICS IN THE REGISTER OF MORALITY\n\nThis moralistic reaction brings to light another very important shortcoming of the post-political perspective. The lack of a political analysis was, of course, to be expected on several grounds. Given that the dominant view was that the adversarial model of politics had been overcome and that collective political identities did not fit in with the 'second modernity', the emergence of right-wing populism could be interpreted only as the return of some archaic forces. This is why the category of the 'extreme right' came very handy. Furthemore, given that the tenets of the dominant perspective did not allow presenting the confrontation with right-wing populist parties as a manifestation of the adversarial model of politics, those parties could not be envisaged in political terms, i.e. as adversaries to be fought politically. So it was very convenient to draw the frontier at the moral level between 'the good democrats' and the 'evil extreme right'.\n\nNote that there was an added bonus in this move, which was to create the 'constitutive outside' necessary to secure the identity of the 'we' of the consensual forces. As I have stressed earlier, there is no consensus without exclusion, no 'we' without a 'they' and no politics is possible without the drawing of a frontier. So, some form of frontier was necessary in order to establish the identity of the 'good democrats'. The trick was done by designating the 'they' as the 'extreme right'. In a typical liberal legerdemain, a political 'we'\/'they' discrimination could in this way be instituted at the same time that its political character was denied by presenting it as being of a moral nature. The identity of the good democrats could thereby be obtained by the exclusion of the evil extreme right, without putting in question the thesis that the adversarial model of politics has been overcome.\n\nAnother added bonus was that passions could be mobilized against what was designated as the 'extreme right', using the traditional repertoire of antifascist discourse. People were made to feel very good and very virtuous by simply participating in the denunciation of the 'evil forces'. Of course, this mobilization of passions was not acknowledged as such but perceived as the rational reaction of moral human beings wanting to defend universal values. In that way it was made congruent with the dominant rationalist perspective.\n\nThe reactions to the 2000 elections in Austria provide a telling example of this moralistic reaction to the rise of right-wing populisn. When a coalition government was established between the conservatives and the populists, the outcry in Europe was general and the other fourteen EU governments decided to impose diplomatic 'sanctions' on the Austrian government. In the name of the defence of European values and the struggle against racism and xenophobia \u2013 always easier to denounce in others than to fight at home \u2013 politicians of right and left joined forces to ostracize the new coalition before it had even done anything that could be deemed reprehensible. All the good democrats considered it their duty to condemn the coming to power of a party presented as 'neo-nazi'. Led by a militant press, very happy to have found a new devil to fight, an incredible campaign of demonization was launched, which very quickly included all the Austrians accused of not having been properly 'denazified'. The condemnation of racism and xenophobia in Austria become a useful way to guarantee the unity of the 'good democrats', who could thereby proclaim their allegiance to democratic values, while evading any critical examination of their own policies at home.\n\nWe should realize that a particularly perverse mechanism is at play in those moralistic reactions. This mechanism consists in securing one's goodness, through the condemnation of the evil in others. Denouncing others has always been a powerful and easy way to obtain a high idea of one's moral worth. It is a form of self-idealization very acutely examined by Fran\u00e7ois Flahaut under the name of 'puritanism of good feeling', which he describes in the following way: 'holding forth about doing good, sympathizing with the victims, expressing indignation about the wickedness of others'. According to him, in our utilitarian and rationalist age, this mode of self-idealization is what is left for people to escape from their own mediocrity, cast evil outside themselves and rediscover some form of heroism. This no doubt explains the increasing role played by the moralistic discourse in our post-political societies.\n\nThere is, in my view, a direct link between the weakening of the political frontier characteristic of the adversarial model and the 'moralization' of politics. By using the term 'moralization' in this context I do not mean, of course, that now people act in the field of politics in search of the common good, according to motives that would be more disinterested or impartial. What I want to indicate is that, instead of being constructed in political terms, the 'we'\/'they' opposition constitutive of politics is now constructed according to moral categories of 'good' versus 'evil'.\n\nWhat this change of vocabulary reveals is not, as some would have it, that politics has been replaced by morality but that politics is being played out in the moral register. It is in that sense that I am proposing to understand the 'moralization' of politics \u2013 to indicate not that politics has become more moral but that nowadays political antagonisms are being formulated in terms of moral categories. We are still faced with political friend\/enemy discriminations but they are now expressed using the vocabulary of morality. To be sure, this has already been the case for some time in international politics and those in the United States have always been particularly fond of using moral vocabulary to denounce their political enemies. George W. Bush's crusade against the 'axis of evil' has indeed many antecedents. Just remember Ronald Reagan and his 'evil empire'. But what is new is that, as the reactions to right-wing populism reveal, this moralization of politics is now taking place also in European domestic politics. And in this field it is clearly a consequence of the consensual post-adversarial model advocated by all those \u2013 arguably well-meaning theorists \u2013 who have contributed to the establishment of the post-political perspective.\n\nFar from creating the conditions for a more mature and consensual form of democracy, to proclaim the end of adversarial politics produces, then, exactly the opposite effect. When politics is played out in the register of morality, antagonisms cannot take an agonistic form. Indeed, when opponents are defined not in political but in moral terms, they cannot be envisaged as an 'adversary' but only as an 'enemy'. With the 'evil them' no agonistic debate is possible, they must be eradicated. Moreover as they are often considered as the expression of some kind of 'moral disease', one should not even try to provide an explanation for their emergence and success. This is why, as we have seen in the case of right-wing populism, moral condemnation replaces a proper political analysis and the answer is limited to the building of a 'cordon sanitaire' to quarantine the affected sectors.\n\nThere is some irony in the fact that the approach which claims that the friend\/enemy model of politics has been superseded ends up creating the conditions for the revitalization of the antagonistic model of politics that it has declared obsolete. However, there is no denying that the post-political perspective, by hindering the creation of a vibrant agonistic public sphere, leads to envisaging the 'they' as 'moral', i.e. 'absolute enemies', thereby fostering the emergence of antagonisms, which can jeopardize democratic institutions.\n\n# TERRORISM AS CONSEQUENCE OF A UNIPOLAR WORLD\n\nMy aim so far has been to bring to the fore the consequences of the dominant post-political perspective for the internal workings of democratic politics. Now, I would like to turn my attention to the international arena in order to put my agonistic approach to the test of world politics. Can we draw from recent international events some lessons concerning the consequences of not acknowledging the dimension of the political? How can we make sense of the events of 11 September 2001 and the multiplication of terrorist attacks within the agonistic framework? What could a properly political approach tell us about the antagonisms which have emerged in the last few years? On all those questions, it is worth listening again to Carl Schmitt.\n\nLet us first clarify an important issue. Some people have suggested that the strategy of the neo-conservatives who are behind George W. Bush's 'war against terrorism' is influenced by Schmitt's view of politics as friend\/enemy discrimination. They claim that visualizing politics in such a way creates a dangerous polarization between the 'civilized world' and the 'enemies of freedom'. Bush's crusade is then presented as the direct consequence of implementing a Schmittian understanding of the political. To find a way out of this predicament, we are told, it is urgent to come back to a consensual model of politics; what our globalized world needs is the implementation of a cosmopolitan liberal approach.\n\nThere is, I believe, a profound misunderstanding at play in this rapprochement between Schmitt and the neoconservatives. To be sure, Schmitt, as we have seen, repeatedly emphasized that the 'differentia specifica' of the political was the friend\/enemy discrimination. But he always stressed that such a discrimination had to be drawn in a properly political way, not on the basis of economics or ethics. He would certainly not have condoned Bush's use of the moral category of 'evil' to designate his enemies and he would have rejected his messianic discourse about the American duty to bring freedom and democracy to the world.\n\nIn fact, far from justifying Bush's strategy, Schmitt's approach provides us with many insights to undermine its basic tenets. Debunking its moralistic discourse helps us to understand the rhetorical moves which allow the current US government to confiscate and monopolize the idea of civilization. Schmitt was very critical of liberal universalism with its pretence of offering the true and only legitimate political system. He criticized the liberals for using the concept of 'humanity' as an ideological weapon of imperialist expansion and he saw humanitarian ethics as a vehicle of economic imperialism. And he pointed out that\n\nWhen a state fights its political enemy in the name of humanity, it is not a war for the sake of humanity, but a war wherein a particular state seeks to usurp a universal concept against its military opponent. At the expense of its opponent, it tries to identify itself with humanity in the same way as one can misuse peace, justice, progress and civilization in order to claim these as one's own and to deny the same to the enemy.\n\nThis, he thought, explained why wars waged in the name of humanity were particularly inhuman since all means were justified once the enemy had been presented as an outlaw of humanity. The drawing of the frontier between friend and enemy as between the 'civilized world' and its 'evil enemies' would have been seen by him as typical of the liberal universalism which, in the name of human rights, arrogated to itself the right and duty to impose its order on the rest of the world.\n\nSchmitt argued that there was no inclusion without exclusion, no norm without an exception, and he persistently exposed liberalism's pretence of complete inclusiveness and its claim to be speaking in the name of 'humanity'. He recognized, however, the rhetorical force of this identification with humanity, used by liberalism to render illegitimate any opposition to its rule. As William Rasch indicates, this was for Schmitt the central mechanism at work in the establishment of Western hegemony and he could not help admiring how the American system had managed to gain global hegemony by equating his particular interests with moral norms that were universally binding with the result that 'to oppose American hegemony is to oppose the universally good and common interests of humanity'.\n\nSchmitt, however, also warned that any attempt to impose one single model worldwide would have dire consequences. He was acutely aware of the dangers entailed by the direction in which international affairs were evolving. After the Second World War he dedicated an important part of his reflections to the decline of the political in its modern form and the loss by the state of its monopoly of the political. This was linked, in his view, to the dissolution of the 'Jus Publicum Europaeum', the inter-state European law which for three centuries had managed to keep war within certain limits. He was concerned by the consequences of this loss of monopoly because he feared that the decline of the state was creating the conditions for a new form of politics which he referred to as 'international civil war'. As long as the Jus Publicum Europaeum existed, limits were imposed to war, and hostility was not absolute; the enemy was not treated as a criminal and not seen as the last enemy of humankind. According to Schmitt, things began to change because of a convergence of various factors: the development of technological means of destruction, the liberal attempt to outlaw war and the reintroduction of the category of the 'just war' contributed to the emergence of a discriminatory conception of war. 'The discriminatory concept of the enemy as criminal and the attendant implication of justa causa run parallel to the intensification of the means of destruction and the disorientation of theaters of war. Intensification of the technical means of destruction opens the abyss of an equally destructive legal and moral discrimination.' Once a war could be deemed 'illegal', all limits to hostility were eliminated and the opponent was declared criminal and inhuman: the enemy became the 'absolute enemy'.\n\nIn Theory of the Partisan, published in 1963, Schmitt presents the partisan as the product of the dissolution of the classical state order structured around the demarcation between what is political and what is not political. The appearance of partisans is linked to the fact that the limitations of hostility have been lifted. Having been deprived of all rights, partisans find their rights in hostility. Once the legitimity which served as guarantee for their right and legal protection has been negated, it is in hostility that partisans finds a meaning for their cause. And Schmitt concludes his book with this chilling warning:\n\nIn a world where the protagonists rush into the abyss of total degradation before exterminating themselves physically, new types of absolute hostility are bound to emerge. Hostility will become so terrible that may be it will not even be possible any more to speak of enmity or hostility. Both will be outlawed and condemned in due form before the start of the operation of extermination. This operation will then be totally abstract and absolute... The negation of real hostility will in this way open the way to the work of extermination of an absolute hostility.\n\nSince 11 September 2001 Schmitt's reflections on the status of a 'post-statist politics' have become more relevant than ever. Indeed, they can help us grasp the conditions of emergence of new antagonisms. As Jean-Fran\u00e7ois Kerv\u00e9gan has suggested, they allow us to approach the question of terrorism in a very different way from the one currently accepted, i.e. as the work of isolated groups of fanatics. Taking our bearings from Schmitt, we can see terrorism as the product of a new configuration of the political which is characteristic of the type of world order being implemented around the hegemony of a single hyper-power.\n\nLike Kerv\u00e9gan I think that Schmitt's insights about the dangers of a unipolar world order throw light on the phenomenon of terrorism. It is certainly the case that there is a correlation between the now unchallenged power of the USA and the proliferation of terrorist groups. Of course in no way do I want to pretend that this is the only explanation for terrorism, which is due to a multiplicity of factors. But it is undeniable that it tends to flourish in circumstances in which there are no legitimate political channels for the expression of grievances. It is therefore not a coincidence that since the end of the cold war, with the untrammelled imposition of a neoliberal model of globalization under the dominance of the United States, we have witnessed a significant increase in terrorist attacks. Nowadays the possibility of maintaining socio-political models different from the Western ones has been drastically reduced since all international organizations are more or less directly under the control of Western powers led by the United States.\n\nEven liberal theorists such as Richard Falk and Andrew Strauss \u2013 whose cosmopolitan proposals I will examine in the next chapter \u2013 acknowledge the link between terrorism and the present world order when they say:\n\nWith the possibility of direct and formalized participation in the international system foreclosed, frustrated individuals and groups (especially when their own governments are viewed as illegitimate and hostile) have been turning to various modes of civic resistance, both peaceful and violent. Global terrorism is at the violent end of this spectrum of transnational protest, and its apparent agenda may be mainly driven by religious, ideological and regional goals rather than by resistance directly linked to globalization. But its extremist alienation is partly, at the very least, an indirect result of globalizing impacts that may be transmuted in the political unconscious of those so afflicted into grievances associated with cultural injustices.\n\nThe situation in the international arena is today in many respects similar to the one that I pointed out earlier in domestic politics: the absence of an effective pluralism entails the impossibility for antagonisms to find agonistic, i.e. legitimate, forms of expression. It is no wonder that, when they explode, those antagonims take extreme forms, putting into question the very basis of the existing order. The issue is once more the negation of the dimension of the political and the belief that the aim of politics \u2013 whether at the national or the international level \u2013 is to establish consensus on one single model, thereby foreclosing the possibility of legitimate dissent. The lack of political channels for challenging the hegemony of the neo-liberal model of globalization is, I contend, at the origin of the proliferation of discourses and practices of radical negation of the established order.\n\nSeen from this angle, terrorism highlights the dangers implied in the delusions of the universalist globalist discourse which postulates that human progress requires the establishment of world unity based on the implentation of the Western model. It shatters the illusions of the universalist humanitarians that antagonisms could be eliminated thanks to a unification of the world that would be achieved by transcending the political, conflict and negativity.\n\n# THE UNIVERSALITY OF LIBERAL DEMOCRACY\n\nI am convinced that facing the challenge posed by terrorism requires acknowledging the constitutive nature of pluralism and imagining the conditions for its implementation at the world level. This means breaking with the very deeply entrenched conviction in Western democracies that they are the embodiment of the 'best regime' and that they have the 'civilizing' mission of universalizing it. No small task indeed, since a great part of democratic theory is dedicated to proving the superiority of liberal democracy which is presented as the only just and legitimate regime, whose institutions would, in idealized conditions, be chosen by all rational individuals.\n\nOne of the most sophisticated defenders of the moral superiority and universal validity of liberal constitutional democracy is J\u00fcrgen Habermas, whose work I will use to illustrate this type of reasoning. Habermas's ambition since Between Facts and Norms has been to resolve a long-disputed issue concerning the nature of the Western constitutional state marked by the articulation of the rule of law and the defence of human rights with democracy understood as popular sovereignty. Liberals and democrats (or republicans) have always disagreed about which should have the priority \u2013 human rights or popular sovereignty. For liberals, following Locke, it is clear that private autonomy, guaranteed by human rights and the rule of law, was primary, while democrats (and republicans) argue, following Rousseau, that priority should be granted to political autonomy made possible by democratic self-legislation. While for liberals a legitimate government is one that protects individual liberty and human rights, for democrats the source of legitimacy lies in popular sovereignty.\n\nFor a rationalist like Habermas this unresolved competition is unacceptable and he ventured 'to demonstrate that there is a conceptual or internal relation, and not simply a historically contingent association between the rule of law and democracy'. He claims to have brought the dispute to a close thanks to his discourse-theoretical approach by showing the co-originality of private and public autonomy. Without entering into the details of a complex argument, this is in a nutshell how he summarizes it:\n\nthe desired internal relations between 'human rights' and 'popular sovereignty' consists in the fact that the requirement of legally institutionalizing self-legislation can be fulfilled only with the help of a code that simultaneously implies the guarantee of actionable individual liberties. By the same token, the equal distribution of these liberties (and their 'fair value') can in turn be satisfied only by a democratic procedure that grounds the supposition that the outcome of political opinion-and will-formation are reasonable. This shows how private and public autonomy reciprocally presuppose one another in such a way that neither one may claim primacy over the other.\n\nIn trying to reconcile the two elements of liberal democracy, the aim of Habermas is no less than to establish the privileged rational nature of liberal democracy and consequently its universal validity. Clearly, if liberal constitutional democracy is such a remarkable rational achievement \u2013 the reconciliation of the rule of law and human rights with democratic participation \u2013 on what grounds could one 'rationally' object to its implementation? Every opposition is automatically perceived as a sign of irrationality and moral backwardness and as being illegitimate. The implication is obviously that all societies should adopt liberal democratic institutions which are the only legitimate way to organize human coexistence. This is corroborated by Habermas when, taking up again the question of co-originality, but this time from the point of view of the mode of political legitimation and putting the emphasis on the legal system, he asks: 'What basic rights must free and equal citizens mutually accord one another if they want to regulate their common life legitimately by means of positive law?' His answer is, of course, that legitimacy can be obtained only through human rights which institutionalize the communicative conditions for a reasonable will formation.\n\nHuman rights, says Habermas, are 'Janus-faced', with a moral universal content but also with the form of legal rights; hence the need for them to be embodied in a legal order. According to him, 'human rights belong structurally to a positive and coercive legal order which founds actionable individual legal claims. To this extent, it is part of the meaning of human rights that they claim the status of basic rights which are implemented within the context of some existing legal order.' He recognizes that this creates a particular tension between their universal moral meaning and their local conditions of realization since so far they have achieved a positive form only within national legal orders of the democratic states. But he is convinced that their global institutionalization is well under way and that the worldwide acceptance of a system of cosmopolitan law is only a question of time.\n\nSuch a conviction is based on Habermas's belief that human rights are the answer given in the West to specific challenges posed by social modernity. He argues that, since all societies are now facing the same challenges, they are bound to adopt Western standards of legitimacy and legal systems based on human rights, independently of their cultural backgrounds. He is adamant that they provide the only acceptable basis of legitimation and that, whatever their origin, 'human rights confront us today with fact that leaves us no choice'. It is at the socio-economic level that the alternatives lie, not at the cultural one, and he declares peremptorily:\n\nAsiatic societies cannot participate in capitalistic modernization without taking advantage of the achievements of an individualistic legal order. One cannot desire the one and reject the other. From the perspective of Asian countries, the question is not whether human rights, as part of an individualistic legal order, are compatible with the transmission of one's own culture. Rather, the question is whether the traditional forms of political and societal integration can be asserted against \u2013 or must instead be adapted to \u2013 the hard-to-resist imperatives of an economic modernization.\n\nThere is no alternative to Westernization and, as William Rasch, commenting on this passage, points out, for Habermas 'despite his emphasis on procedure and the universality of his so-called \"discourse principle\", the choice that confronts \"Asiatic societies\" or any other people is a choice between cultural identity and economic survival, between in other words, cultural and physical extermination'.\n\nIf such is the alternative for non-Western societies, should we be suprised to witness the emergence of violent resistance? It is high time to wake up from the dream of Westernization and to realize that the enforced universalization of the Western model, instead of bringing peace and prosperity, will lead to ever bloodier reactions on the part of those whose cultures and ways of life are being destroyed by this process. It is also high time to question the belief in the unique superiority of liberal democracy. Such a belief is at the core of the liberal negation of the political and it constitutes a serious obstacle to the recognition that the world, as Schmitt observed, is not a 'universe' but a 'pluriverse'.\n\nThere is another aspect which reveals the anti-political nature of Habermas's approach. His discourse-theoretical understanding of democracy requires ascribing an epistemic function to democratic will-formation and, as he admits himself, 'the democratic procedure no longer draws its legitimizing force only, indeed not even predominantly, from political participation and the expression of political will, but rather from the general accessibility of a deliberative process whose structure grounds an expectation of rationally acceptable results'. What are those 'rationally acceptable results'? Who will decide on the limits to be imposed to the expression of political will? What are going to be the grounds for exclusion? On all those questions that liberals try to avoid, Schmitt is right when he says:\n\nWith regard to these decisive political concepts, it depends on who interprets, defines and uses them; who concretely decides what peace is, what disarmament, what intervention, what public order and security are. One of the most important manifestations of humanity's legal and spiritual life is the fact that whoever has true power is able to determine the content of concepts and words. Caesar dominus et supra grammaticam. Caesar is also lord over grammar.\n\nI have taken the example of Habermas to illustrate the liberal rationalist perspective but I should point out that, if the superiority of liberal democracy is a central tenet of the rationalist approach, such a belief is also shared by other liberals of different theoretical orientations. For instance, we find it also in some theorists who argue for a 'pragmatic' approach such as Richard Rorty. Despite being an eloquent critique of Habermas's rationalist brand of universalism, whose search for 'context-independent' arguments to justify the superiority of liberal democracy he rejects, Rorty nevertheless joins forces with Habermas in desiring its implementation worldwide. This is not to deny the significant differences existing between their respective approaches. Rorty distinguishes between 'universal validity' and 'universal reach' and in his view the universality of liberal democracy should be envisaged according to this second mode, since it is a matter not of rationality but of persuasion and economic progress. His disagreement with Habermas, however, only concerns the way of arriving at a universal consensus, not its very possibility, and he never puts into question the superiority of the liberal way of life.\n\nIn fact, Rorty's 'postmodern bourgeois liberalism' could serve as another example of the liberal negation of the political in its antagonistic dimension. For Rorty, politics is something to be deliberated about in banal, familiar terms. It is a matter of pragmatic, short-term reforms and compromises and democracy is basically a question of people becoming 'nicer' to each other and behaving in a more tolerant way. What 'we liberals' should do is to encourage tolerance and minimize suffering and to persuade other people of the worth of liberal institutions. Democratic politics consists in letting an increasing number of people count as members of our moral and conversational 'we'. He is convinced that, thanks to economic growth and the right kind of 'sentimental education', a consensus can be built worldwide around liberal democratic institutions.\n\nTo be sure, Rorty is not a rationalist and he is happy to go along with those who envisage the subject as a social construction, but he cannot accept that social objectivity is constructed through acts of power. This is why he is unable to acknowledge the hegemonic dimension of discursive practices and the fact that power is at the very core of the constitution of identities. This would of course force him to come to terms with the antagonistic dimension that is foreclosed by his liberal framework. Like Habermas he wants to retain the vision of a consensus that would not imply any form of exclusion and the availability of some form of realization of universality. This is why, no more than the Habermasian discourse-theoretical approach, can Rorty's pragmatism provide an adequate framework for a pluralist democratic politics.\n\n# Which World Order: Cosmopolitan or Multipolar?\n\n# Five\n\nWhen it comes to envisaging the kind of world order better suited to accommodate the democratic demands of a plurality of different constituencies, we find a similar evasion of the antagonistic dimension of the political. This is indeed one of the main shortcomings of the cosmopolitan approach, which, under different guises, is presented as the solution to our present predicament. A lot is at stake in the current debate about the most desirable type of world order and this is why we need to examine carefully the arguments of those who assert that with the end of the bipolar world the opportunity now exists for the establishment of a cosmopolitan world order. The theorists associated with this trend claim that, with the disappearance of the communist enemy, antagonisms are a thing of the past and that, in times of globalization, the cosmopolitan ideal elaborated by Kant can finally be realized.\n\nDespite recent setbacks which have dampened the post-cold war optimism about the establishment of the 'new world order', cosmopolitan views are still very fashionable and influential. However, I will take issue with them in this chapter, showing how the dream of a cosmopolitan future partakes of the negation of 'the political' which I have brought to the fore when examining the other aspects of the post-political perspective. Against the cosmopolitans I will assert that we should acknowledge the deeply pluralistic nature of the world and I will argue in favour of the establishment of a multipolar world order.\n\nProponents of the new cosmopolitanism share the liberal belief in the superiority of liberal democracy \u2013 the shortcomings of which I have already discussed \u2013 and they aim at extending liberal democratic principles to the sphere of international relations. One of their key proposals is to reform the United Nations and to increase the power of international judicial institutions in order to secure the primacy of law over force and the exercise of power. It is not a homogeneous trend, however, and, while they share some basic tenets about the need to overcome the limits of national sovereignty and on the possibility of a new form of politics 'beyond power politics', ruled by liberal principles and the respect of human rights, there are nevertheless some significant differences among them. Broadly speaking, one can distinguish a neoliberal version from a more democratic one. Most of the advocates of the neo-liberal version defend an idealized view of the United States, whose politics is presented as being driven not by national interest but by the promotion of liberal values: free trade and liberal democracy. This goes hand in hand with a glorification of globalization as bringing the benefits and virtues of capitalism to the whole world. They want us to believe that, under the 'benign' leadership of the USA and with the help of international institutions such as the IMF and the WTO, important steps are being taken towards the unification of the planet and the implementation of a just global order. What stands in the way of this capitalist utopia is the resistance of nation-states with old-fashioned ideas of sovereignty but, thanks to the advances of globalization, they will finally be overruled.\n\nIt is not worth spending much time on this uncritical celebration of neo-liberal hegemony. Its ideological bias is evident and it does not leave any space for politics. Everything is subordinated to the economic realm and the sovereignty of the market. The democratic version is more interesting because it does not see globalization as a merely economic, self-regulating process and it attributes a greater role to politics than its neo-liberal counterpart does. Different perspectives exist among its proponents which, as Nadia Urbinati has indicated, can be traced back to the way they envisage the relationship between civil society and politics. She distinguishes for instance between those who, like Richard Falk, privilege civil society as the principal locus of democracy and those who, like David Held and Daniele Archibugi, put the emphasis on the political realm and on the exercise of citizenship which in their view needs to be extended beyond the nation-state in order to become cosmopolitan. Urbinati notes that the civil society approach 'shares a liberal anti-coercive view of politics and interprets democracy more as a civic culture of association, participation and mobilization than as a political process of decision-making'. The political approach, on the contrary, stresses the importance of establishing relations between civil society and the political sphere: 'it acknowledges social movements and non-governmental organizations as fundamental components of global democracy but it also believes that in the absence of institutionalized procedures of decision and control, social movements and NGO's can be both exclusionary and hierarchical'. This is why they insist that a self-governing civil society is not enough and that a legal and institutional framework is needed to secure equality and to prevent social interests from asserting their dominance at the expense of justice.\n\n# DEMOCRATIC TRANSNATIONALISM\n\nLet us look first at the civil society approach. In his more recent work, written jointly with Andrew Strauss, Richard Falk has put forward a vision of 'democratic transnationalism', the aim of which is to achieve human security in the international sphere. It is an approach which 'calls for the resolution of political conflict through an open transnational citizen\/societal (rather than state or market) centred political process legitimized by fairness, adherence to human rights, the rule of law, and representative community participation'. The core of this democratic transnationalism is to be constituted by a Global Parliamentary Assembly (GPA) providing a global institutional voice for the people of the world. Falk and Strauss present the mission of such an assembly \u2013 whose powers should always be exercised according to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights \u2013 as contributing to the democratization of global policy, not only in its formulation but also in its implementation. We need, they say, an international framework to accommodate the current internationalization of civic politics, and this GPA could provide the beginnings of a democratic form of accountability for the international system. The authors also believe that such a GPA could play a role in encouraging compliance with human rights norms. Indeed, given the lack of reliable mechanisms to implement many of the laws accepted by the international system, the GPA could put moral pressure on states by exposing their human rights failures.\n\nSince 11 September 2001, Falk and Strauss have reiterated their proposal, insisting that the creation of a GPA represents an alternative to the statist response centred on national security. As we saw in the last chapter, they see the growth of terrorism as the dark side of the transnationalization of politics. Its grievances, membership and targets are all transnational, and state-centric structures are therefore inadequate to address the forms of frustration which foster its growing appeal. The solution lies, in their view, in the creation of an institutional framework capable of democratically accommodating the growing internationalization of politics so that 'Individuals and groups could channel their frustrations into efforts to attempt to participate in and influence parliamentary decision-making as they have become accustomed to doing in the more democratic societies of the world'.\n\nI agree that, instead of being perceived as the expression of a few evil and pathological individuals, terrorism has to be situated into a wider geopolitical context, but I find their solution thoroughly inadequate. The main shortcoming of democratic transnationalism is that, like traditional liberalism, it sees the state as the main problem and believes that the solution lies in civil society. Falk and Strauss assert that\n\nWe believe that the underlying preconditions for a GPA are being created by the way that civic politics is increasingly challenging the autonomy of the state-centric international system. In one of the most significant, if still under-recognized, developments of the last several years, both civic voluntary organizations and business and financial elites are engaged in creating parallel structures that complement and erode the traditionally exclusive role of states as the only legitimate actors in the global political system. Individuals and groups, and their numerous transnational associations, rising up from and challenging the confines of territorial states, are promoting 'globalization-from-below', and have begun to coalesce into what is now recognized as being a rudimentary 'global civil society'. Business and financial elites, on their side, acting largely to facilitate economic globalization, have launched a variety of mechanisms to promote their own preferred global policy initiatives, a process that can be described as 'globalization-from-above'.\n\nAccording to our authors, citizens, groups and business and financial elites are beginning to recognize that they have a common interest in mounting a challenge to states which should cease to act as their representatives in the international arena. They are convinced that many of the leading figures in world business, like those who meet at the economic summit every January in Davos, have an enlightened sense of their long-term interests and are very sympathetic to the idea of democratizing the international system. The organized networks of global civil society and business should therefore be able to impose their democratizing projects on the reluctant governments. The objective is the unification of globalization-from-below and globalization-from-above in order to establish a global institutional democratic structure enabling the people of the world to bypass the states and have a meaningful voice in global governance, thereby creating a peaceful global order. Like the theorists of 'reflexive modernity', they envisage the progress of democracy on the model of a dialogue among particular interests, a dialogue through which an 'international community' based on consensus could be established.\n\nIt is not surprising that similar ideas about the possible alliance between the forces of civil society and transnational corporations are found in the work of Ulrich Beck, whose thesis about the end of the adversarial form of politics I discussed in Chapter 3. In an article where he endorses the cosmopolitan perspective, this is how he envisages the future:\n\nIn the short term, protectionist forces may triumph, a heterogeneous mix of nationalists, anticapitalists, environmentalists, defenders of national democracy as well as xenophobic groupings and religious fundamentalists. In the long term, however, an even more paradoxical coalition between the supposed 'losers' from globalizations (trade unions, environmentalists, democrats) and the 'winners' (big business, financial markets, world trade organizations, the World Bank) may indeed lead to a renewal of the political \u2013 provided that both sides recognize that their specific interests are best served by cosmopolitan rules.\n\nCelebrating the emergence of 'cosmopolitan corporations' and 'cosmopolitan capitalism', Beck criticizes the national fixation with politics and declares that state-centred concepts of power and politics are 'zombie categories'. The mission of a cosmopolitan social science is to debunk this old-fashioned model and to promote the idea of 'deterritorialized' and 'denationalized' states. The future lies in the 'cosmopolitan state' founded on the principle of lack of national differentiation. Such a state, endowed with 'cosmopolitan sovereignty', would guarantee genuine diversity and establish fundamental human rights. Beck gives Europe as example of this cosmopolitan state, adding that there is no reason for this model not to be extended to the rest of the world. It is, in his view, the very development of capitalism which pushes toward a global cosmopolitan transformation. Although put in the interrogative mode, he even suggests 'Could capitalism become a factor in the cosmopolitan revival of democracy?' No need to be very perspicacious to guess what his answer is!\n\n# COSMOPOLITICAL DEMOCRACY\n\nThe political version of cosmopolitanism stresses that democracy is exercised not only in civil society but also in the political arena. It is in order to highlight this specificity that Daniele Archibugi has recently proposed to call 'cosmopolitical' instead of 'cosmopolitan' the approach which, jointly with David Held, he has been elaborating since the book they edited together in 1995, Cosmopolitan Democracy: An Agenda for a New World Order. Archibugi defines their project in the following way:\n\nCosmopolitical democracy is based on the assumption that important objectives \u2013 control of the use of force, respect for human rights, self-determination \u2013 will be obtained only through the extension and development of democracy. It differs from the general approach to cosmopolitanism in that it does not merely call for global responsibility but actually attempts to apply the principles of democracy internationally. For such problems as the protection of the environment, the regulation of migration and the use of natural resources to be subjected to necessary democratic control, democracy must trascend the border of single states and assert itself on global level.\n\nAccording to the cosmopolitical perspective, there is no reason why, now that the democratic form of government is recognized worldwide as the only legitimate one, the principles and rules of democracy should stop at the borders of a political community. This calls for the creation of new global institutions. In their view, it would be a mistake to believe that a set of democratic states automatically entails a democratic globe and global democracy cannot be envisaged as the direct result of democracy within states. It requires the creation of special procedures and institutions that would add another level of political representation to the existing one. Moreover, it is not a matter of simply transposing the democratic model as conceived at state level on to a world scale, and many aspects of this model need to be reformulated in order to be applied globally. Archibugi does not advocate the end of nation-states and he asserts that a global level of representation could coexist with the already constituted states which would keep some of their political and administrative functions. He stresses that 'unlike the many world-federalist projects to which it is indebted, cosmopolitan democracy aims to boost the management of human affairs at a planetary level not so much by replacing existing states as by granting more powers to existing institutions and creating new ones'. The time has come, he claims, to imagine new forms of democracy derived from the universal rights of global citizens, and he suggests that moving from national to global democracy means something akin to the conceptual revolution which in the eighteenth century allowed the passage from direct to representative democracy.\n\nSuch a revolution would consist in the creation of international institutions allowing individuals to have an influence on global affairs, independently of the situation in their own countries. The demands of all the individuals, irrespective of their national origin, of their class, gender, etc., should be given a direct form of representation at world level. This might look like an attractive prospect, but how is it to be done? Some information is provided by David Held, who distinguishes between short-term and long-term objectives. To begin with, the following measures should be implemented. The UN Security Council needs to be reformed to become more representative and a second UN chamber created jointly with regional parliaments. Next to that, the influence of international courts should be extended to enforce a cluster of key rights, civil, political, economic and social and a new international Human Rights Court should be established. Finally an effective and accountable international military force would have to be established to intervene against states who are repeatedly violating those rights. In the long term, Held envisages a more radical shift towards global democratic governance with the formation of an authoritative assembly of all democratic states and agencies with the authority to decide on all important global issues dealing with the environment, health, diet, economy, war, etc. According to him, there should be a permanent shift of a growing proportion of the coercive military capacities of the nation-state to global institutions with the aim of transcending the war system as a means of resolving conflict.\n\nAnother important aspect of Held's cosmopolitan framework is the entrenchment of democratic rights and obligations in national and international law. Here the aim is 'to create the basis of a common structure of political action as constituting the elements of a democratic public law'. However, to be effective in the context of globalization, such democratic law must be internationalized, it must be transformed into a cosmopolitan democratic law. He argues that the aim of all democrats should be to establish a cosmopolitan community, i.e. a transnational structure of political action, a community of all democratic communities. Discussing the consequences of such a transnational community for the nation-state, he declares that it will 'wither away', not in the sense that it will become redundant but in the sense that\n\nstates can no longer be, and can no longer be regarded as, the sole centres of legitimate power within their own borders, as is already the case in diverse settings. States need to be articulated with, and relocated within, an overarching democratic law. Within this framework, the laws and rules of the nation-state would be but one focus for legal development, political reflection and mobilization. For this framework would respecify and reconstitute the meaning and limits of sovereign authority. Particular power centers and authority systems would enjoy legitimacy only to the extent that they upheld and enacted democratic law.\n\nIt is not in my intention to deny the noble intentions of the diverse advocates of democratic cosmopolitanism. Unfortunately there are many reasons to be more than sceptical about the democratizing impact of the cosmopolitical approach. To begin with, as Danilo Zolo has convincingly argued, given the enormous disparity of power among its members, it is completely unrealistic to believe in the possibility of reforming the United Nations in order simultaneously to strengthen them and to make them more democratic. The central proposal of the cosmopolitans is therefore revealed as impracticable. But one should also be aware of the consequences arising from the attempt to extend the concept of rights beyond the nation-state. David Chandler is indeed right when he points out that, without a mechanism that would allow for making those new rights accountable to their subjects, cosmopolitan rights are fictitious. Given that the global citizen can be represented only through global civil society which acts outside the representative framework of liberal democracy, such rights are outside the control of their subject and they are necessarily dependent on the advocacy of the agency of civil society institutions. The danger of those rights without subjects is that they may be used to undermine existing democratic rights of self-government as when civil society institutions challenge national sovereignty in the name of 'global concern'.\n\nLike Habermas, whose conception of human rights I discussed in Chapter 4, the cosmopolitical approach puts more emphasis on the legitimating function of human rights than on their democratic exercise, and I agree with Chandler that the cosmopolitan construction of the global citizen is another attempt to privilege morality over politics. As he puts it:\n\nIn this respect, cosmopolitan theorists reflect broader political trends towards the privileging of advocacy rights over the representational democracy of the ballot box. Political activity is increasingly undertaken outside the traditional political parties and is becoming a sphere dominated by advocacy groups and single issues campaigns who do not seek to garner votes but to lobby or gain publicity for their claims.\n\nThe new rights of cosmopolitan citizens are therefore a chimera: they are moral claims, not democratic rights that could be exercised.\n\nThere is an even more serious problem, however, which is that, in exchange for those fictitious new rights, the cosmopolitan approach ends up sacrificing the old rights of sovereignty. By justifying the right for international institutions to undermine sovereignty in order to uphold cosmopolitan law, it denies the democratic rights of self-government for the citizens of many countries. Chandler notes that 'Cosmopolitan regulation is in fact based on the concept of sovereign inequality, that not all states should be equally involved in the establishment and adjudication of international law. Ironically, the new cosmopolitan forms of justice and rights protection involve law-making and law-enforcement, legitimized from an increasingly partial, and explicitely Western perspective.'\n\nRemember for instance how Held presents his cosmopolitan community as a community of 'all democratic states'. Who will decide which states are democratic, and on what criteria? No doubt it is the Western conception of democracy that will be used. It is rather telling that Held does not see that as a problem. When examining how democratic law should be enforced he asserts, 'In the first instance, cosmopolitan democratic law could be promulgated and defended by those democratic states and civil societies that are able to muster the necessary political judgement and to learn how political practices and institutions must change and adapt in the new regional and global circumstances.'\n\nIn a recent book, Held has specified further the nature of the cosmopolitan order that he advocates. He stresses that he wants to offer a social democratic alternative to the current type of globalization, whose motor is a US-designed neoliberal economic project. According to him, what is at stake is the establishment of a new internationalism informed by cosmopolitan values and standards. Cosmopolitanism asserts a set of basic values and standards which no agent should be able to violate, and it requires forms of political regulation and law-making which go beyond the powers and constraints of the nation-states. Such a cosmopolitanism, he says, 'can be taken as the moral and political outlook which builds on the strengths of the liberal multilateral order, particularly its commitment to universal standards, human rights and democratic values, and which seeks to specify general principles on which all could act'. Those principles are the following: equal worth and dignity; active agency; personal responsibility and accountability; consent; collective decision-making about public matters through voting procedures; inclusiveness and subsidiarity; avoidance of serious harm and sustainability. Taken together they constitute the guiding ethical basis of global social democracy.\n\nHeld's project certainly represents a progressive alternative to the current neo-liberal order. However, for all the reasons that we have seen, it is clear that the cosmopolitan framework, even when formulated from a social democratic standpoint, would not increase the possibility of self-government for global citizens. Whatever its guise, the implementation of a cosmopolitan order would in fact result in the imposition of one single model, the liberal democratic one, on to the whole world. In fact it would mean bringing more people directly under the control of the West, with the argument that its model is the better suited to the implementation of human rights and universal values. And, as I have argued, this is bound to arouse strong resistances and to create dangerous antagonisms.\n\n# DEMOCRACY AND GLOBAL GOVERNANCE\n\nThe post-political character of the cosmopolitan perspective is clearly brought to the fore when we examine one of its central concepts, the concept of 'governance'. Scrutinizing the difference between 'government' and 'governance', Nadia Urbinati specifies that\n\nGovernance entails an explicit reference to 'mechanisms' or 'organized' and 'coordinated activities' appropriate to the solution of some specific problems. Unlike government, governance refers to 'policies' rather than 'politics' because it is not a binding decision-making structure. Its recipients are not 'the people' as a collective political subject, but 'the population' that can be affected by global issues such as the environment, migration or the use of natural resources.\n\nSpeaking of global governance tells us a lot about the type of actor which the cosmopolitans see as being active in their model. The central issue in global governance is the negotiation among a diversity of associations and interest groups with specific expertise, intervening in particular issues and trying to push forward their proposals in a non-adversarial way. This implies a conception of politics as resolution of technical problems, not active engagement of citizens exercising their democratic rights thanks to an 'agonistic' confrontation about conflicting hegemonic projects. To be sure, some of those associations are motivated by ethical concerns and not merely by interest but their approach is not a properly political one. Their aim is to reach a compromise or a rational consensus, not to challenge the prevailing hegemony. Such a perspective, no doubt, chimes with the liberal understanding of politics and its fits perfectly the consensual vocabulary of the third way. But in what sense can this form of global governance still be considered as democratic?\n\nRobert Dahl clearly answers that it cannot and he criticizes the celebration of international organizations by cosmopolitan advocates who see them as a further step in the long march of the democratic idea from the polis to the cosmos. For Dahl, this is a view of democracy that leaves aside the fact that all decisions, even those made by democratic governments, are disadvantageous to some people because, if their produce gains, they also have costs. 'If the trade-offs in advantages and disadvantages were identical for everyone, judgments involved in making collective decisions would be roughly equivalent to those involved in making individual decisions: but the trade-offs are not the same for everyone.' Costs and benefits are therefore distributed unevenly and the central question is always: who should decide and on whose criteria? Hence the importance for those decisions to be open to contestation. If this is already difficult at the national level, it becomes almost intractable when one considers the case of a hypothetical international demos where great differences exist in the magnitude of the population and the power of the different states.\n\nDahl argues that, if we accept that democracy is a system of popular control over governmental policies and decisions, one has to conclude that international decision-making cannot be democratic. This does not mean seeing international organizations as undesirable and negating their usefulness. But he claims that there is 'no reason to clothe international organizations in the mantle of democracy simply in order to provide them with greater legitimacy'. He proposes instead to treat them as 'bureaucratic bargaining systems' that might be necessary but whose costs to democracy should be acknowledged and taken into account when decisions are made about ceding them important national powers.\n\nMary Kaldor is also sceptical about the idea that democratic procedures could be reconstituted at the global level. But, contrary to Dahl, she endorses the cosmopolitan project and she suggests an ingenious solution: to envisage global civil society as a functional equivalent to democracy. According to her, once we acknowledge that the central issue in parliamentary democracy has always been one of deliberation, not representation, the difficulties linked to the establishment of a global representative democracy can be ignored. Participation in a global civil society could replace representation by providing a place for deliberation about the range of issues affecting people in different aspects of their lives. Even if we leave aside the very problematic notion of 'global civil society', there are serious difficulties with such an idea. For a start, mere deliberation without the moment of decision and the mechanisms to enforce those decisions means very little. If we add to that the privilege that she attributes to advocacy groups, it becomes evident that, in the name of adapting it to the age of globalization, her proposal ends up depriving the notion of democracy of one of its important dimensions. To be sure, Kaldor defends a very activist conception of civil society and she stresses the need for a redistribution of power. Her views are on several points rather radical but she clearly partakes of the consensual approach. According to her, civil society is the locus of a type of governance based on consent, a consent which is generated through politics conceived as 'social bargaining'. She believes in the possibility of 'a genuinely free conversation, a rational critical dialogue', and is convinced that 'through access, openness and debate, policy makers are more likely to act as an Hegelian universal class, in the interests of the human community'.\n\nAs should be clear by now, the central problem with the diverse forms of cosmopolitanism is that they all postulate, albeit in different guises, the availability of a form of consensual governance transcending the political, conflict and negativity. The cosmopolitan project is therefore bound to deny the hegemonic dimension of politics. In fact several cosmopolitan theorists explicitly state that their aim is to envisage a politics 'beyond hegemony'. Such an approach overlooks the fact that since power relations are constitutive of the social, every order is by necessity a hegemonic order. To believe in the possibility of a cosmopolitan democracy with cosmopolitan citizens with the same rights and obligations, a constituency that would coincide with 'humanity' is a dangerous illusion. If such a project was ever realized, it could only signify the world hegemony of a dominant power that would have been able to impose its conception of the world on the entire planet and which, identifying its interests with those of humanity, would treat any disagreement as an illegitimate challenge to its 'rational' leadership.\n\n# AN ABSOLUTE DEMOCRACY OF THE MULTITUDE?\n\nIf the cosmopolitical approach is not able to provide the political perspective required by the age of globalization, what about the vision put forward by Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri in Empire, a book that has been hailed as 'The Communist Manifesto for the Twenty-first Century'? Some people seem indeed to believe that this is the answer that the left has been waiting for. However, as I will show in a moment, a close examination reveals an unexpected convergence between Empire and liberal cosmopolitanism. In both cases what is missing is the properly political dimension: power can be overcome, the constitutive character of antagonism is denied, and the central question of sovereignty is dismissed. Empire in fact is no more than an ultra-left version of the cosmopolitan perspective. Far from empowering us, it contributes to reinforcing the current incapacity to think and act politically.\n\nThis is not the place for a discussion of all the aspects of the book. As the various critiques have revealed, behind the wide range of references and topics which have seduced so many readers, its basic theses do not stand scrutiny. Very little indeed has been left standing of the main argument. Not only have the theoretical analyses about the importance of immaterial labour, the role of the nation-state, the homogenizing effects of global capital and the revolutionary nature of the 'multitude' been drastically challenged. In a very spectacular way, the central tenet of the book, the end of imperialism and the emergence of a new form of sovereignty without a centre, has been shattered by the wars waged by the United States after the the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001. I find it amazing that even in Multitude, War and Democracy in the Age of Empire, which came out in 2004, they do not really put into question their claim that 'there is no center of imperial power.'. To be sure, the first part is dedicated to examining the characteristics of the new wars and they acknowledge the pivotal role of the United States. But they refuse to see it as an imperialist power; it is only a unilateralist version of empire which they insist in presenting as a decentred network power. The only difference is that, while their previous book was very assertive about the actual existence of empire, they now insist that they are only indicating a tendency manifest in a number of contemporary processes.\n\nHow can we explain the success of such a flawed book? In the post-political period in which we are living, with neoliberal globalization being perceived as the unique horizon, it is not surprising that Empire with its messianic rhetoric has fired the imagination of many people eager to find in the 'multitude' a new revolutionary subject. Its visionary character brought hope in a time where the success of capitalism seemed so complete that no alternative could be envisaged. The problem of course is that, instead of contributing to working towards an alternative to the current neo-liberal hegemony, Empire is in fact likely to produce the opposite effect. If, as I have been arguing, what is needed today is an adequate understanding of the nature of the political which will permit grasping the conditions for an effective hegemonic challenge to the neo-liberal order, we certainly do not find in this book the theoretical tools for such an enterprise. What we find is another version of the post-political perspective which defines the common sense in our post-democracies. To be sure, in this case it is a 'radical' version, formulated in a sophisticated philosophical vocabulary: hence its appeal to those who pretend that the time has come to relinquish 'old-fashioned' categories and 'rethink' the political.\n\nHowever, despite the Deleuzian terminology and the revolutionary rhetoric, there are many uncanny similarities between Hardt's and Negri's views and the third way theorists and cosmopolitan liberals advocating the need to 'rethink politics'. Take for instance the question of globalization. All those theorists see globalization as a progressive step whose homogenizing consequences are creating the conditions for a more democratic world. The demise of the sovereignty of the nation-states is perceived as a new stage in the emancipation from the constraints of the state. A global polity is being established which will permit a new form of global governance. Leaving aside the vacuous rhetoric of the multitude, one can perfectly well see Empire as another version of the cosmopolitan view. Indeed, Hardt's and Negri's insistence on the 'smooth' character of empire and the creation by global capitalism of a unified world without any 'outside' fits remarkably well with the cosmopolitan vision. Similarly, their underestimating of the crucial role played by the United States in the imposition of a neo-liberal model of globalization worldwide chimes with the optimistic view held by the advocates of global civil society.\n\nAs far as 'sovereignty' is concerned, there is not so much difference either between those who celebrate the perspective of a universal order organized around a 'cosmopolitan sovereignty' and the radical 'anti-sovereignty' stand taken in Empire. In both cases there is a clear desire to do away with the modern concept of sovereignty in the name of a supposedly more democratic form of governance. Cosmopolitan theorists would certainly not disagree with Hardt's and Negri's declaration that 'We need to develop a political theory without sovereignty'.\n\nWith respect to the diverse forms of social democratic politics, there is a striking convergence between the theses put forward in Empire and those of Beck and Giddens. As Michael Rustin observed, 'They share with the post-socialists of the \"Third Way\" the view that we now have to accept a new individualized, globalized, networked society as the only possible basis for future action, though the action they envisage is apocalyptic where the reformist post-socialists seek only to mitigate and regulate somewhat the turbulences of global capitalism, to which they envisage no conceivable alternative'. Hence their negative attitude towards the struggles to defend the national welfare states, which in the case of Hardt and Negri also includes a dismissal of the importance of the European Union.\n\nBut it is when it comes to envisaging the way an alternative to empire can be brought about that the anti-political character of the book clearly comes to the fore, and that its influence can have the more damaging consequences. Indeed, for a book which presents itself as offering a new vision of radical politics, Empire is seriously lacking in political strategy. How can one envisage the political challenge of empire by the multitude? The multitude, they say, is a logical hypothesis which proceeds from their analysis of the economic, political and cultural structures of empire. It is a counter-empire which is already contained within empire and which will inevitably break the constraints that the latter is constantly imposing to impede the seizing of sovereignty by the constituent power of the multitude. This event, when it happens, will indicate a radical discontinuity and constitute an ontological metamorphosis opening historicity anew. When the multitude succeeds in mutating sovereignty in its own favour, a 'new position of being' will take place and the fullness of time will be established through immanentization. An absolute democracy of the multitude will then come into being.\n\nHow all this will happen is, as Alberto Moreiras remarks, messianically announced but never theoretically established. Besides asserting the messianic desire of the multitude, 'Empire does not offer a theory of subjectivization; it limits itself to stating how the subject, always already seemingly formed, can go about assuming its rightful or chiliastic position'. All the crucial questions for a political analysis are avoided, for instance those concerning the way in which the multitude can become a revolutionary subject. We are told that this depends on its facing empire politically, but this is precisely the question that, given their theoretical framework, they are unable to address. Their belief that the desire of the multitude is bound to bring about the end of empire evokes the determinism of the Second International with its prediction that the economic contradictions of capitalism were bound to lead to the collapse of capitalism. Of course in this case, it is not the proletariat any more but the 'multitude' which is the revolutionary subject. But despite the new vocabulary, this is still the same old deterministic approach which leaves no space for effective political intervention.\n\nBeside bringing some fresh air in a panorama dominated by the lack of alternative to the current liberal hegemony, the success of Empire is also certainly due to the fact that it seemed to provide a political language for the growing anti-globalization movement. Although various sectors of the traditional ultra-left have tried to reclaim those struggles, presenting them as anti-capitalist working-class struggles, a different theorization is clearly needed. This is where the Deleuzian vocabulary mobilized by Hardt and Negri can be seductive. It allows for the multiplicity of the resistances expressed by this global movement to resonate with the notions elaborated by Deleuze and Guattari in Anti-Oedipus and A Thousand Plateaus. Nevertheless, I am convinced that it would be a serious mistake for the anti-globalization movement to adopt the perspective put forward in Empire. One of the main challenges this 'movement of movements' faces is how to transform itself into a political movement putting forward concrete alternative proposals. True, the first steps have already been taken with the organization of the World Social Forums as well as different regional ones. But many important issues concerning the future are still undecided and they will determine its shape and possibilities of success in the years to come.\n\nA fundamental issue concerns the type of relation to be established between the different components of the movement. As is often pointed out, its is a very heterogeneous movement and, while diversity can no doubt be a source of strength, it can also pose serious problems. Hardt and Negri take it for granted that the immanent powers of the multitude will defeat the constituted power of empire. Not surprisingly they never pose the question of political articulation among the different struggles; indeed this is the very question which is foreclosed by their perspective. According to them, the fact that all those struggles do not communicate, far from being a problem, turns out to be a virtue since 'precisely because all these struggles are incommunicable and thus blocked from traveling horizontally in the form of a cycle, they are forced instead to leap vertically and touch immediately on the global level'. In consequence, despite its local origin, each struggle directly attacks the virtual centre of empire. Hardt and Negri exhort us to relinquish the model of horizontal articulation of struggles which is no longer adequate and blinds us to the new radical potential. No need to worry any more about how to articulate a diversity of movements with different interests and whose demands might be in conflict. In that way, the central question of democratic politics, the question which the anti-globalization movement needs urgently to address \u2013 how to organize across differences so as to create a chain of equivalence among democratic struggles \u2013 this question is simply vaporized.\n\nAnother serious problem lies in the very negative way in which local and national struggles are envisaged in Empire. This is of course in tune with Hardt's and Negri's vilification of sovereignty and their celebration of globalization, presented as establishing a 'smooth' space where national sovereignties and obstacles to the free movement of the multitude are being swept away. According to them, the process of 'deterritorialization' and the concomitant weakening of nation-states characteristic of empire represents a step forward in the liberation of the multitude and they reject any form of politics nationally or regionally based. In their view, the valorization of the local is regressive and fascistic and they declare that 'The multitude's resistance to bondage \u2013 the struggles against the slavery of belonging to a nation, an identity, and a people, and thus the desertion from sovereignty and the limits it places on subjectivity is, entirely positive'.\n\nWere the anti-globalization movement to adopt such a perspective, it would, no doubt, condemn itself to political irrelevance. Indeed, its future and impact lie in its capacity to organize at a multiplicity of different levels, local, national, regional as well as global. Despite the claims made in Empire, nation-states are still important players and, even if it is true that multinational companies operate according to strategies largely independent from the states, they cannot dispense with the power of the states. As Doreen Massey stresses, the globalized space is 'striated', with a diversity of sites where relations of power are articulated in specific local, regional and national configurations. The multiplicity of nodal points calls for a variety of strategies, and the struggle cannot simply be envisaged at the global level. Regional and local forums such as those which have been organized in Europe (Florence in 2002, Paris in 2003, London in 2004) and in many cities of the world are the places where a variety of resistances can become interconnected and where the 'war of position' \u2013 to borrow a term from Gramsci \u2013 can be launched. Local and national allegiances can also provide important sites of resistance and to dismiss them, refusing to mobilize their affective dimension around democratic objectives, is to leave this potential available for articulation by right-wing demagogues. For the anti-globalization movement to follow Hardt's and Negri's advice and to see those allegiances as reactionary would be a serious mistake.\n\nAgainst the fallacious picture of a global multitude facing a unified empire, a confrontation which will inevitably result in the victory of the multitude and 'the invention of a new democracy, an absolute democracy, unbounded, immeasurable,' the question that needs to be addressed concerns the political forms of organizations of the resistances, and this requires acknowledging the divisions existing within both sides. Neither the conflicts among the 'desiring machines' of the multitude, nor the divergence of interests within the capitalist camp should be overlooked. Hardt's and Negri's vision of a globalized smooth space, like the cosmopolitan perspective, fails to appreciate the pluralistic nature of the world, the fact that it is a 'pluriverse' not a 'universe'. Their idea of an 'absolute democracy', a state of radical immanence beyond sovereignty, where a new form of self-organization of the multitude would replace a power-structured order, is the postmodern form of longing for a reconciled world \u2013 a world where desire would have triumphed against order, where the immanent constituent power of the multitude would have defeated the transcendent constituted power of the state, and where the political would have been eliminated. Such a longing, whatever its version \u2013 liberal or ultra-left \u2013 prevents us from grasping what is the real challenge facing democratic politics at both the domestic and the international level: not how to overcome the we\/they relation but how to envisage forms of construction of we\/they compatible with a pluralistic order.\n\n# TOWARDS A MULTIPOLAR WORLD ORDER\n\nAs I have argued in Chapter 4, it is the fact that we are now living in a unipolar world where there are no legitimate channels for opposing the hegemony of the United States which is at the origin of the explosion of new antagonisms which, if we are unable to grasp their nature, might indeed lead to the announced 'clash of civilizations'. The way to avoid such a prospect is to take pluralism seriously instead of trying to impose one single model on the whole world, even if it is a well meaning cosmopolitan one. It is therefore urgent to relinquish the illusion of a unified world and to work towards the establishment of a multipolar world. We hear a lot today about the necessity of an effective 'multilateralism'. But multilateralism in an unipolar world will always be an illusion. As long as a single hegemonic power exists, it will always be the one that decides if it will take into consideration the opinion of other nations or act alone. A real multilateralism requires the existence of a plurality of centres of decision and some sort of equilibrium \u2013 even if it is only a relative one \u2013 among various power.\n\nAs I have suggested in Chapter 4, we can find important insights in Schmitt's writings of the 1950s and early 1960s where he speculated about the possibility of a new Nomos of the Earth that could replace the Jus Publicum Europeaum. In an article from 1952 where he examined how the dualism created by the cold war and the polarization between capitalism and communism could evolve, he imagined several possible scenarios. He was sceptical about the idea that such a dualism was only the prelude to a final unification of the world, resulting from the total victory of one of the antagonists which would then be able to impose its system and its ideology worldwide. The end of bipolarity was more likely to lead to new equilibrium guaranteed by the Unites States and under its hegemony. Schmitt also envisaged the possibility of a third form of evolution consisting in the opening of a dynamics of pluralization, the outcome of which could be the establishment of a new global order based on the existence of several autonomous regional blocs. This would provide the conditions for an equilibrium of forces among various large areas, instituting among them a new system of international law. Such an equilibrium would present similarities with the old Jus Publicum Europaeum except that in this case it would be truly global and not only Euro-centric. It was his favoured solution because he believed that, by establishing a 'true pluralism', such a multipolar world order would provide the institutions necessary to manage conflicts and avoid the negative consequences resulting from the pseudo-universalism arising from the generalization of one single system. He was aware, though, that such a pseudo-universalism was a much more likely outcome than the pluralism he advocated. And unfortunately his fears have been confirmed since the collapse of communism.\n\nSchmitt's reflections were of course motivated by concerns very different from mine, but I think that his vision is particularly relevant for our current conjuncture. The left should acknowlege the pluralist character of the world and adopt the multipolar perspective. This, as Massimo Cacciari has argued, means working towards the establishment of an international system of law based on the idea of regional poles and cultural identities federated among themselves in the recognition of their full autonomy. Cacciari acknowledges the pluralist character of the world and, examining the question of the relation with the Islamic world, he warns against the belief that the modernization of Islam should take place through Westernization. Trying to impose our model would, he says, multiply local conflicts of resistance which foment global terrorism. He suggests a model of globalization constructed around a certain number of great spaces and genuine cultural poles and insists that the new order of the world needs to be a multipolar one.\n\nClearly, given the unquestionable supremacy of the United States, many people will claim that the project of a multipolar world is completely unrealistic. But it is certainly no more unrealistic than the cosmopolitan vision. In fact, the emergence of China as a superpower testifies that such a dynamics of pluralization, far from being unrealistic, is already at work. And this is not the only sign that regional blocs are being formed, the aim of which is to gain some autonomy and power of negotiation. This is for instance clearly the direction that several countries in Latin America are taking under the leadership of Brazil and Argentina in their attempt to strengthen the Mercosur (a shared economic structure in South America); a similar dynamics is at work in the coming together of several East Asian countries in the ASEAN, and the attraction of such a model is likely to grow.\n\nI do not want to minimize the obstacles that need to be overcome, but, at least in the case of the creation of a multipolar order, those obstacles are only of an empirical nature, while the cosmopolitan project is also based on flawed theoretical premises. Its dream of a world order which would not be structured around power relations is based on a refusal to come to terms with the hegemonic nature of every order. Once it is acknowledged that there is no 'beyond hegemony', the only conceivable strategy for overcoming world dependence on a single power is to find ways to 'pluralize' hegemony. And this can be done only through the recognition of a multiplicity of regional powers. It is only in this context that no agent in the international order will be able, because of its power, to regard itself above the law and to arrogate to itself the role of the sovereign. Moreover, as Danilo Zolo has pointed out, 'a multipolar equilibrium is the necessary condition for international law to exercise even that minimal function, which is the containment of the most destructive consequences of modern warfare'.\n\n# Conclusion\n\n# SIX\n\nWe are today facing decisive years. After the euphoria of the 1990s where the final victory of liberal democracy and the coming of a 'new world order' were hailed from so many quarters, new antagonims have emerged which represent challenges that decades of neo-liberal hegemony have made us unable to confront. In this book I have examined some of those challenges and I have argued that understanding their nature requires coming to terms with the ineradicable dimension of antagonism which exists in human societies, what I have proposed to call 'the political'.\n\nAs far as domestic politics is concerned, I have shown how the belief in the end of an adversarial form of politics and the overcoming of the left\/right divide, instead of facilitating the establishment of a pacified society, has created the terrain for the rise of right-wing populist movements. By suggesting that the solution lies in fostering the agonistic character of politics through the revitalization of the left\/right distinction, I do not call for a mere return to their traditional content, as if the meaning of those terms had been fixed once and for all. What is at stake in the left\/right opposition is not a particular content \u2013 although as Norberto Bobbio pointed out it certainly refers to opposing attitudes with respect to social redistribution \u2013 but the recognition of social division and the legitimation of conflict. It brings to the fore the existence in a democratic society of a plurality of interests and demands which, although they conflict and can never be finally reconcilied, should nevertheless be considered as legitimate. The very content of left and right will vary, but the dividing line should remain because its disappearance would indicate that social division is denied and that an ensemble of voices has been silenced. This is why democratic politics is by nature necessarily adversarial. As Niklas Luhmann has stressed, modern democracy calls for a 'splitting of the summit', a clear divide between the government and the opposition, and this supposes that clearly differentiated policies are on offer, giving the possibility for citizens to decide between different ways of organizing society. When social division cannot be expressed because of the left\/right divide, passions cannot be mobilized towards democratic objectives and antagonisms take forms which can endanger democratic institutions.\n\n# THE LIMITS OF PLURALISM\n\nTo avoid any confusion, I should specify that, contrary to some postmodern thinkers who envisage a pluralism without any frontiers, I do not believe that a democratic pluralist politics should consider as legitimate all the demands formulated in a given society. The pluralism that I advocate requires discriminating between demands which are to be accepted as part of the agonistic debate and those which are to be excluded. A democratic society cannot treat those who put its basic institutions into question as legitimate adversaries. The agonistic approach does not pretend to encompass all differences and to overcome all forms of exclusions. But exclusions are envisaged in political and not in moral terms. Some demands are excluded, not because they are declared to be 'evil', but because they challenge the institutions constitutive of the democratic political association. To be sure, the very nature of those institutions is also part of the agonistic debate, but, for such a debate to take place, the existence of a shared symbolic space is necessary. This is what I meant when I argued in Chapter 2 that democracy requires a 'conflictual consensus': consensus on the ethico-political values of liberty and equality for all, dissent about their interpretation. A line should therefore be drawn between those who reject those values outright and those who, while accepting them, fight for conflicting interpretations.\n\nMy position can here appear similar to that of a liberal theorist like John Rawls, whose distinction between 'simple' and 'reasonable' pluralism is also an attempt to draw a line between legitimate and illegitimate demands. However it differs significantly from Rawls's: he pretends that such a discrimination is grounded in rationality and morality, while I claim that the drawing of the frontier between the legitimate and the illegitimate is always a political decision, and that it should therefore always remain open to contestation. Taking my bearings from Wittgenstein, I assert that our allegiance to democratic values and institutions is not based on their superior rationality and that liberal democratic principles can be defended only as being constitutive of our form of life. Contrary to Rawls and Habermas, I do not attempt to present liberal democracy as the model which would be chosen by every rational individual in idealized conditions. This is why I envisage the normative dimension inscribed in political institutions as being of an 'ethico-political' nature, to indicate that it always refers to specific practices, depending on particular contexts, and that it is not the expression of a universal morality. Indeed, since Kant morality is often presented as a realm of universal commands where there is no place for 'rational disagreement'. This is, in my view, incompatible with recognizing the deeply pluralistic character of the world and the irreducible conflict of values.\n\nIt is clear that my position on the limits of pluralism has implications for the current debate about multiculturalism and it is worth spelling out some of them. First, we need to distinguish among the different demands collected under the multiculturalist label between those which concern the recognition of strictly cultural mores and customs and those with a directly political nature. I am perfectly aware that this is not an easy thing to do and that there will never be a definitive, clear-cut and satisfactory solution. But one can establish a rough distinction between a set of demands whose satisfaction can be granted without jeopardizing the basic liberal democratic framework and those which would lead to its destruction. This would be the case for instance with demands whose satisfaction would require the implementation of different legal systems according to the ethnic origin or religious beliefs of groups. There are no doubt certain special cases, like that of indigenous people, where exceptions can be made. But legal pluralism cannot become the norm without endangering the permanence of the democratic political association. A democratic society requires the allegiance of its citizens to a set of shared ethico-political principles, usually spelled out in a constitution and embodied in a legal framework, and it cannot allow the coexistence of conflicting principles of legitimacy in its midst. To believe that, in the name of pluralism, some category of immigrants should be granted an exception is, I submit, a mistake which indicates a lack of understanding of the role of the political in the symbolic ordering of social relations. Some forms of legal pluralism have no doubt existed, as for instance in the Ottoman Empire with the 'millet system' (which recognized Muslims, Christians and Jews communities as self-governing units able to impose restrictive religions laws on their own members), but such a system is incompatible with the exercise of democratic citizenship which postulates equality for all the citizens.\n\n# A PLURALISM OF MODERNITIES\n\nWhen we move from domestic to international politics, we encounter a very different type of pluralism which it is necessary to distinguish from the liberal one. The first type of pluralism is characteristic of liberal democracy and it is linked to the end of a substantive conception of the good life and the assertion of individual liberty. This pluralism is embedded in the institutions of liberal democracy, it is part of its ethicopolitical principles and it has to be accepted by its citizens. But there is also another type of pluralism, a pluralism which undermines the claim of liberal democracy to provide the universal model that all societies should adopt because of its superior rationality. Such a pluralism is the one which is at stake in the multipolar project.\n\nContrary to what liberal universalists would want us to believe, the Western model of modernity, characterized by the development of an instrumental type of rationality and an atomistic individualism, is not the only adequate way of relating to the world and to others. It might have gained hegemony in the West, but, as many critics have pointed out, even in the West this is far from being the only form of sociality. It is in this vein that intellectual historians have begun criticizing the monolithic idea of the Enlightenment and have revealed the presence of a multiplicity of diverse enlightenments often in rivalry amongst themselves and which have been displaced by the rise of capitalist modernity.\n\nExamining the diverse enlightenments which are now recognized as constitutive of European history \u2013 civil, metaphysical, neo-Roman, popular sovereignty and civic \u2013 James Tully argues that the question 'What is Enlightenment?', which was formulated within the Kantian tradition as a transcendental question with a definitive transcendental-legislative answer, should be de-transcendentalized and respecified as a historical question 'with diverse small (e) enlightenment answers, each relative to a form of self-proclaimed enlightened subjectivity acquired through the exercise of a particular ethos and its cognate political practices'. However, it is not enough to limit the enquiry to Europe because, once the historical character of the question is recognized, we have to admit that, no more than a definitive transcendental answer, can it receive a definitive historical one. Therefore, as Tully suggests 'the problematization defined by \"What is Enlightenment?\" should no longer be confined to endless discussions of the rival solutions within Europe and against the background of the European transition to a modern system of sovereign states and its successive modifications'.\n\nI think that Tully's reflections about the possibility of non-Western enlightenments are crucial for the formulation of the multipolar approach. Indeed such an approach requires us to accept that there are other forms of modernity than the one which the West is trying to impose worldwide, irrespective of the respect of other histories and traditions. To defend a model of society different from the Western one should not be seen as an expression of backwardness and proof that one remains in a 'premodern' stage. It is high time to abandon the Eurocentric tenet that our model has a privileged claim on rationality and on morality.\n\n# A MESTIZA CONCEPTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS\n\nWhat are the consequences of this 'pluralism of modernities' for the notion of 'human rights' which is so central in today's liberal democratic discourse? As we have seen, human rights play a key role in the cosmopolitan project of a worldwide implementation of liberal democracy. Indeed its main tenet is that the universalization of human rights requires other societies to adopt Western institutions. Should such a notion be discarded in a multipolar world?\n\nMy position on this subject is that thinking in a pluralist way requires problematizing the idea of the universality of human rights as it is generally understood. I agree with Boaventura de Sousa Santos, who asserts that, as long as they are conceived as 'universal', human rights will always be an instrument of what he calls 'globalization from above', something imposed by the West on the rest of the world, and that this will fuel the clash of civilizations. In his view, the very question of the 'universality' of human rights indicates that it is a Western cultural, question, particular to a specific culture, and that it cannot be presented as a cultural invariant. He does not conclude, however, that this is a reason for rejecting them and, while acknowledging that human rights policies have often been at the service of economic and geopolitical interests of the hegemonic capitalist states, Sousa Santos affirms that the discourse of human rights can be articulated also in the defence of the oppressed. He stresses the existence of a counter-hegemonic human rights discourse, articulated around cultural specificity and different versions of human dignity, instead of resorting to false universalisms. He advocates a 'mestiza' conception of human rights that would reconceive them as 'multicultural', allowing for different formulations according to different cultures.\n\nSousa Santos follows the approach of Raimundo Panikkar, who argues that, in order to understand the meaning of human rights, it is necessary to scrutinize the function they play in our culture. This will allow us later to ascertain whether this function is not fulfilled in different ways in other cultures. In Western culture human rights are presented as providing the basic criteria for the recognition of human dignity and as being the necessary condition for political order. The question we need to ask is whether other cultures do not give different answers to the same question; in other words, we should look for functional equivalents of human rights. If we accept that what is at stake in human rights is the dignity of the person, it is clear that this question can be answered in a diversity of ways. What Western culture calls 'human rights' is a culturally specific form of answering this question, an individualistic way specific to liberal culture and which cannot claim to be the only legitimate one.\n\nThis seems to me a promising perspective and, like Panikkar and Sousa Santos, I insist on the necessiaty of pluralizing the notion of human rights, so as to prevent them becoming an instrument in the imposition of Western hegemony. To acknowledge a plurality of formulations of the idea of human rights is to bring to the fore their political character. The debate about human rights cannot be envisaged as taking place in a neutral terrain where the imperatives of morality and rationality \u2013 as defined by the West \u2013 would represent the only legitimate criteria. It is a terrain shaped by power relations where a hegemonic struggle takes place, hence the importance of making room for a plurality of legitimate understandings.\n\n# WHICH EUROPE?\n\nI would like to conclude these reflections about the political by asking: what should be the place of Europe in a multipolar world? Is a truly political Europe possible, a Europe which would also be a real power? Is it even desirable? Clearly, this is a strongly contested issue among both the left and the right. Let us examine the reasons why many people on the left do not see this eventuality in a positive way. Some of them identify Europe with the Western capitalist hegemonic project and argue that a political Europe cannot be more than an internal struggle inside the West between two powers fighting for hegemony. The only difference would be that Europe, instead of following the United States, would become its rival. Even if I believed that the end of the unipolar world would be a positive development, this is of course not the kind of Europe that I advocate. The establishment of a pluralistic world order requires discarding the idea that there is only one possible form of globalization, the prevalent neo-liberal one, not merely having Europe competing for its leadership with the United States. For Europe to assert its identity, it is the very idea of the 'West' that must be questioned, so as to open a dynamics of pluralization which could create the basis for resisting neo-liberal hegemony.\n\nOthers on the left are suspicious of European integration because they believe that the nation-state is the necessary space for the exercise of democratic citizenship which is put in jeopardy by European institutions. They see the European project as the Trojan horse of neo-liberalism and as endangering the conquests realized by social democratic parties. I do not deny that there is some ground for their distrust of current European policies, but their mistake is to think that they could resist neo-liberal globalization better at the national level. It is only at the European level that one can start envisaging a possible alternative to neo-liberalism. The fact that, unfortunately, this is not the direction that the European Union has taken, far from making people withdraw from European politics, should convince them of the importance of pursuing their struggle at the European level so as to influence the future shape of Europe.\n\nThe internationalists, as we have seen, oppose the idea of a political Europe because they are critical of all types of frontiers and regional forms of belonging. They celebrate the 'deterritorialization' created by globalization which, in their view, establishes the conditions for a truly global world without borders, where the 'nomadic multitude' will be able to circulate freely according to its desire. They claim that the construction of a political Europe would reinforce the tendency to establish a 'fortress Europe' and increase the existing discriminations. Such a possibility should not be dismissed, and in a Europe that defines only itself as competitor to the United States, this would be likely to take place. But the situation would be different in the context of a multipolar world in which big regional units would coexist and where the neo-liberal model of globalization would not be the only one.\n\nWhile there is a general agreement among those on the left who advocate the idea of a political Europe, that it should promote a different civilizational model and not merely compete with American hegemony, it is also true that not all of them accept the multipolar vision. For instance some liberal universalists, who consider that the Western model of liberal democracy should be adopted worldwide, also advocate a political Europe, which they conceive as showing the way that all other societies should follow. What they defend is in fact a cosmopolitan project since they assert that Europe represents the vanguard in the movement toward the establishment of a universal order based on the worldwide implementation of law and human rights. This is for instance the way in which Habermas conceives the European project. His call to the Europeans in 2003 after the invasion of Iraq to unite and oppose the violations of international law and human rights by the Bush government was certainly welcome. Yet, while agreeing with him about the need to create a strong Europe, I do not follow him in envisaging this move as a first step towards the creation of a cosmopolitan order because I do not accept the universalist premises on which such a vision is based.\n\nIn my view a truly political Europe can exist only in relation to other political entities, as a part of a multipolar world. If Europe can play a crucial role in the creation of a new world order, it is not through the promotion of a cosmopolitan law that all 'reasonable' humanity should obey but by contributing to the establishment of an equilibrium among regional poles whose specific concerns and traditions will be seen as valuable, and where different vernacular models of democracy will be accepted. This is not to deny that we need a set of institutions to regulate international relations, but those institutions, instead of being organized around a unified power structure, should permit a significant degree of pluralism; pace the cosmopolitans, the aim cannot be the universalization of the Western liberal democratic model. The attempt to impose this model, deemed to be the only legitimate one, on recalcitrant societies leads to presenting those who do not accept it as 'enemies' of civilization, thereby creating the conditions of an antagonistic struggle. To be sure there will still be conflicts in a multipolar world but those conflicts are less likely to take an antagonistic form than in a unipolar world. It is not in our power to eliminate conflicts and escape our human condition, but it is in our power to create the practices, discourses and institutions that would allow those conflicts to take an agonistic form. This is why the defence and the radicalization of the democratic project require acknowledging the political in its antagonistic dimension and abandoning the dream of a reconciled world that would have overcome power, sovereignty and hegemony.\n\n# Notes\n\n# TWO POLITICS AND THE POLITICAL\n\n Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe, Hegemony and Socialist Strategy: Towards a Radical Democratic Politics, London, Verso, 1985; Chantal Mouffe, The Return of the Political, London, Verso, 1993; Chantal Mouffe, The Democratic Paradox, London, Verso, 2000.\n\n Carl Schmitt, The Concept of the Political, New Brunswick, Rutgers University Press, 1976, p. 70.\n\n Ibid., p. 35.\n\n Ibid., p. 70.\n\n Ibid., p. 37.\n\n J\u00fcrgen Habermas, 'Reply to Symposium Participants', Cardozo Law Review, Vol. 17, 4\u20135, March 1996, p. 1943.\n\n Henry Staten, Wittgenstein and Derrida, Oxford, Basil Blackwell, 1985.\n\n Ernesto Laclau, Emancipation(s), London, Verso, p. 90.\n\n This idea of 'agonism' is developed in my book The Democratic Paradox, chapter 4. To be sure, I am not the only one to use that term and they are currently a variety of 'agonistic' theorists. However they generally envisage the political as a space of freedom and deliberation, while for me it is a space of conflict and antagonism. This is what differentiates my agonistic perspective from the one defended by William Connolly, Bonnig Honig or James Tully.\n\n Elias Canetti, Crowds and Power, London, Penguin, 1960, p. 220.\n\n Ibid., p. 222.\n\n Ibid., p. 221.\n\n Sigmund Freud, Civilization and Its Discontents, The Standard Edition, Vol. XXI, London, Vintage, 2001, p. 111.\n\n Sigmund Freud, Group Psychology and the Analysis of the Ego, The Standard Edition, Vol. XVIII (London, Vintage, 2001), p. 92.\n\n Sigmund Freud, Civilization and Its Discontents, The Standard Edition, vol. XXI (London, Vintage, 2001), p. 114.\n\n Ibid., p. 119.\n\n Yannis Stavrakakis, 'Passions of Identification: Discourse, Enjoyment and European Identity', in D. Howarth and J. Torfing (eds), Discourse Theory and European Politics (London, Palgrave, forthcoming), p. 4 (manuscript).\n\n Slavoj \u017di\u017eek, Tarring with the Negative, Durham, Duke University Press, 1993, p. 201.\n\n Ibid., p. 202.\n\n Jacques Ranci\u00e8re, Disagreement, Minneapolis, University of Minnesota Press, 1991, p. 102 (translation modified).\n\n See for instance his critiques in Slavoj \u017di\u017eek and Glyn Daly, Conversations with \u017di\u017eek, Cambridge, Polity, 2004.\n\n# THREE BEYOND THE ADVERSARIAL MODEL?\n\n Ulrich Beck, The Reinvention of Politics: Rethinking Modernity in the Global Social Order, Cambridge, Polity Press, 1997, p. 38.\n\n Ulrich Beck, 'The Reinvention of Politics: Towards a Theory of Reflexive Modernization', in U. Beck, A. Giddens and S. Lash, Reflexive Modernization, Cambridge, Polity Press, 1994, p. 5.\n\n Ibid., p. 42.\n\n Ibid., p. 18.\n\n Ibid., p. 22.\n\n Ibid., p. 23.\n\n Beck, The Reinvention of Politics, pp. 168\u20139.\n\n Anthony Giddens, Beyond Left and Right, Cambridge, Polity, 1994, p. 7.\n\n Anthony Giddens, Modernity and Self Identity, Cambridge, Polity, 1991, p. 214.\n\n Giddens, Beyond Left and Right, p. 92.\n\n Anthony Giddens, The Third Way, Cambridge, Polity, 1998, p. 36.\n\n Giddens, Beyond Left and Right, p. 93.\n\n Ibid., pp. 117\u201324.\n\n Ibid., p. 119.\n\n Ibid., pp. 130\u20131.\n\n Beck, 'The Reinvention of Politics', p. 178.\n\n Perry Anderson, 'Power, Politics and the Enlightenment', in David Miliband (ed.), Reiventing the Left, Cambridge, Polity Press, 1994, p. 43.\n\n Ernesto Laclau and Chantal Mouffe, Hegemony and Socialist Strategy: Towards a Radical Democratic Politics, London, Verso, 1985.\n\n Giddens, The Third Way, p. 27.\n\n Ibid., p. 64.\n\n Ibid., p. 100.\n\n Stuart Hall, 'New Labour's Double-Shuffle', Soundings, 24, Autumn 2003.\n\n Ibid., p. 18.\n\n John Gray, 'Blair's Project in Retrospect', International Affairs, Vol. 80, 1, January 2004, 43.\n\n# FOUR CURRENT CHALLENGES TO THE POST-POLITICAL VISION\n\n For a detailed analysis of the Austrian case see Chantal Mouffe, 'The End of Politics and the Challenge of Right-Wing Populism', in Francisco Panizza (ed.), Populism and the Shadow of Democracy, London, Verso, 2005.\n\n A good interpretation of the Vlaams Blok's success is provided by Patrick de Vos in 'The Sacralisation of Consensus and the Rise of Authoritarian Populism: the Case of the Vlaams Blok', Studies in Social and Political Thought, 7, September 2002.\n\n Fran\u00e7ois Flahaut, Malice, London, Verso 2003, p. 117.\n\n Carl Schmitt, The Concept of the Political, New Brunswick, Rutgers University Press, 1976, p. 54.\n\n William Rasch, 'Human Rights as Geopolitics: Carl Schmitt and the Legal Form of American Supremacy', in Cultural Critique, 54, Spring 2003, p. 123.\n\n Carl Schmitt, The Nomos of the Earth in the International Law of the Jus Publicum Europaeum, New York, Telos Press, 2003, p. 321.\n\n Carl Schmitt, Theorie du partisan, Paris, Calmann-L\u00e9vy, 1972, p. 310. German edition: Theorie des Partisanen, Berlin, Duncker & Humblot, 1963.\n\n Jean-Fran\u00e7ois Kerv\u00e9gan, 'Ami ou ennemi?', in La Guerre des dieux, special issue of Le Nouvel Observateur, January 2002.\n\n Richard Falk and Andrew Strauss, 'The Deeper Challenges of Global Terrorism: a Democritizing Response', in Daniele Archibugi (ed.), Debating Cosmopolitics, London, Verso, 2003, p. 206.\n\n J\u00fcrgen Habermas, Between Facts and Norms, Cambridge, MA, MIT Press, 1998, p. 449.\n\n Ibid., p. 455.\n\n J\u00fcrgen Habermas, The Postnational Constellation, Cambridge, Polity, 2001, p. 116.\n\n J\u00fcrgen Habermas, The Inclusion of the Other, Cambridge, MA, MIT Press, 1998, p. 192.\n\n Habermas, The Postnational Constellation, p. 121.\n\n Ibid., p. 124.\n\n William Rasch, 'Human Rights', p. 142.\n\n Habermas, The Postnational Constellation, p. 110.\n\n Carl Schmitt, 'V\u00f6lkerrechtliche Formen des modernen Imperialismus', in Positionen und Begriffe, Berlin, Duncker & Humbolt, 1988, p. 202.\n\n See for instance, Richard Rorty, Objectivity, Relativism and Truth, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1991, part III.\n\n# FIVE WHICH WORLD ORDER: COSMOPOLITAN OR MULTIPOLAR?\n\n Nadia Urbinati, 'Can Cosmopolitical Democracy Be Democratic?', in Daniele Archibugi (ed.), Debating Cosmopolitics, London Verso, 2003, pp. 67\u201385.\n\n Ibid., p. 69.\n\n Ibid.\n\n Richard Falk and Andrew Strauss, 'The Deeper Challenges of Global Terrorism: a Democratizing Response', in Debating Cosmopolitics, p. 203.\n\n Richard Falk and Andrew Strauss, 'Towards Global Parliament', Foreign Affairs, January\u2013February 2001.\n\n Falk and Strauss, 'The Deeper Challenges of Global Terrorism', p. 205.\n\n Ibid., p. 209.\n\n Ulrich Beck, 'Redefining Power in the Global Age: Eight Theses', Dissent, Fall 2001, p. 89.\n\n Ibid.\n\n Daniele Archibugi, 'Cosmopolitical Democracy', in Debating Cosmopolitics, p. 7.\n\n Daniele Archibugi, 'Demos and Cosmopolis', in Debating Cosmopolitics, p. 262.\n\n David Held, 'Democracy and the New International Order', in Daniele Archibugi and David Held (ed.), Cosmopolitan Democracy: An Agenda for a New World Order, Cambridge, Polity Press, 1995, p. 111.\n\n David Held, 'The Transformation of Political Community: Rethinking Democracy in the Context of Globalization', in I. Shapiro and C. Hacker-Cord\u00f4n (eds), Democracy's Edges, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1999, p. 105.\n\n Ibid., p. 106.\n\n Danilo Zolo, Cosmopolis: Prospects for World Government, Cambridge, Polity Press, 1997.\n\n David Chandler, 'New Rights for Old? Cosmopolitan Citizenship and the Critique of State Sovereignty', Political Studies, Vol. 51, 2003, 332\u201349.\n\n Ibid., p. 340.\n\n Ibid., p. 343.\n\n David Held, Democracy and the Global Order, Cambridge, Polity Press, 1995, p. 232.\n\n David Held, Global Covenant: The Social Democratic Alternative to the Washington Consensus, Cambridge, Polity Press, 2004.\n\n Ibid., p. 171.\n\n My critique of 'governance' refers to the way this concept is used in the particular context of 'global governance'. There are of course other uses of this concept, as for instance in the case of different forms of 'network governance' where the aim is a widening of democratic contestation.\n\n Urbinati, 'Can Cosmopolitical Democracy Be Democratic?', p. 80.\n\n Robert Dahl, 'Can International Organizations Be Democratic? A Sceptic View', in Democracy's Edges, p. 25.\n\n Ibid., p. 32.\n\n Mary Kaldor, Global Civil Society: An Answer to War, Cambridge, Polity Press, 2003.\n\n Ibid., p. 108.\n\n Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri, Empire, Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press, 2000.\n\n Many books have already been published with very pertinent critiques of Empire. See for instance, Gopal Balakrishnan (ed.), Debating Empire, London Verso, 2004; Paul A. Passavant and Jodi Dean, (eds), Empire's New Clothes, New York Routledge, 2004, as well as the special issue of Rethinking Marxism, Vol. 13 3\/4, 2001.\n\n Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri, Multitude, War and Democracy in the Age of Empire, New York, Penguin Press, 2004.\n\n Micheal Hardt and Antonio Negri, 'Adventures of the Multitude: Response of the Authors', in Rethinking Marxism, p. 239.\n\n Hardt and Negri, 'Adventures of the Multitude', p. 242.\n\n Michael Rustin, 'Empire: a Postmodern Theory of Revolution', in Debating Empire, p. 7.\n\n Alberto Moreiras, 'A Line of Shadow: Metaphysics in Counter-Empire', in Rethinking Marxism, p. 224.\n\n Hardt and Negri, Empire, p. 55.\n\n Ibid., p. 361.\n\n Doreen Massey, For Space, London Sage, 2005, chapter 14.\n\n Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri, 'Globalization and Democracy', in Okwui Enwezor et al. (eds), Democracy Unrealized, Kassel, Hatje Cantz, 2002 p. 336.\n\n Carl Schmitt, 'Die Einheit der Welt', Merkur, Vol. VI, 1 1952, pp. 1\u201311.\n\n Massimo Cacciari, 'Digressioni su Impero e tre Rome', in: H. Frise, A. Negri and P. Wagner (eds), Europa Politica Ragioni di una necessita, Roma Manifestolibri, 2002.\n\n A. Negri and D. Zolo, 'Empire and the Multitude: a Dialogue on the New Order of Globalization', Radical Philosophy, No. 120, July\/August 2003, p. 33.\n\n# SIX CONCLUSION\n\n Norberto Bobbio, Destra e Sinistra: ragioni e significati di una distinzione politica, Roma, Donzelli Editore, 1994.\n\n Niklas Luhmann, 'The Future of Democracy', Thesis Eleven, No. 26, 1990, p. 51.\n\n I have criticized the position of Rawls on this point in my book The Return of the Political, London, Verso, 1993, chapter 6.\n\n For a discussion of those issues one can refer to William Kymlicka, Multicultural Citizenship, Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1995.\n\n James Tully, 'Diverse Enlightenments', Economy and Society, Vol. 32, 3, August 2003, 501.\n\n Ibid., p. 502.\n\n Boaventura de Sousa Santos, Toward a New Common Sense: Law, Science and Politics in a Paradigmatic Transition, London, Routledge, 1995, p. 337\u201342.\n\n Raimundo Panikkar, 'Is the Notion of Human Rights a Western Concept?', Diogenes, No. 120, 1982, pp. 81\u20132.\n\n For a good overview of those positions see H. Frise, A. Negri and P. Wagner (eds), Europa Politica Ragioni di una necessit\u00e0, Roma Manifestolibri, 2002. See in particular the introduction, pp. 7\u201318.\n\n See for instance J\u00fcrgen Habermas, The Postnational Constellation, Cambridge, Polity Press, 2001, chapter 4.\n\n# Index\n\nadversary, the \u2013, , , ,\n\naggregative model \u2013,\n\nagonism \u2013, ,\n\nagonistic: confrontation \u2013; form ; public sphere\n\nAnderson, Perry\n\nantagonism: agonism and \u2013, , ; emergence of ; forms ; negation of , , ; the political as \u2013, ; possibility of , ,\n\nanti-globalization movement ,\n\nAnti-Oedipus (Deleuze and Guattari)\n\nArchibugi, Daniele , \u2013\n\nArendt, Hannah\n\nASEAN\n\nAustria: reactions to 2000 elections \u2013; right-wing populism , \u2013\n\nautonomy \u2013, \u2013\n\nBeck, Ulrich: on cosmopolitan perspective \u2013; on democratizing democracy \u2013; on expert systems \u2013, ; on new individualism ; post-political vision \u2013; on reflexive modernity , ; and 'reinvention of politics' \u2013; on social democracy ; on 'sub-politics' \u2013\n\nBelgium, right-wing populism ,\n\nBerlin, Isaiah\n\nBetween Facts and Norms (Habermas)\n\nBeyond Left and Right (Giddens)\n\nBlair, Tony \u2013,\n\nBobbio, Norberto\n\nBritain, right-wing populism\n\nbureaucratization\n\nBush, George W. , \u2013,\n\nCacciari, Massimo\n\nCanetti, Elias \u2013,\n\ncapitalism , , , ,\n\ncentre-left\n\nChandler, David ,\n\nChina \u2013\n\nChirac, Jacques\n\ncitizen, global \u2013\n\ncivil society \u2013; global \u2013\n\nCivilization and Its Discontents (Freud)\n\nclass, concept of ,\n\ncollective identities: Beck and Giddens on ; we\/they discrimination \u2013, , , \u2013; weakening , , ,\n\ncollectivism\n\ncommunism , , \u2013\n\nConcept of the Political, The (Schmitt) ,\n\nconflict ,\n\nconfrontation, agonistic \u2013\n\nconsensus: in Austria ; conflictual ; current emphasis , \u2013; dangers of consensus model , , \u2013; implementation by 'radical centre' ; need for ; Schmitt on \u2013; vision of ,\n\n'constitutive outside' , \u2013\n\ncontestation\n\nCosmopolitan Democracy: An Agenda for a New World Order (Archibugi and Held)\n\ncosmopolitan views \u2013, \u2013,\n\ncrowd, the \u2013\n\nCrowds and Power (Canetti) \u2013\n\nDahl, Robert \u2013\n\nDavos, economic summit\n\nDeleuze, Gilles ,\n\ndeliberative model ,\n\ndemocracy: absolute , , ; adversarial model \u2013, ; agonistic \u2013; authority and ; consensual form ; cosmopolitan , ; criteria ; democratizing \u2013, , ; dialogic , \u2013, \u2013; emotional ; and global governance \u2013; liberal ; partisan-free ; pluralist ; radical ; reflexive ; revitalization\n\ndemocratic politics \u2013\n\ndemocrats \u2013\n\nDerrida, Jacques\n\ndeterritorialization\n\ndifference\n\necological issues ,\n\nEmpire (Hardt and Negri) \u2013\n\nenemy as criminal \u2013, see also friend\/enemy\n\nEnlightenment \u2013\n\n'establishment, the'\n\nEurope, which? \u2013\n\nEuropean Union ,\n\nevil , \u2013, \u2013\n\nexclusion \u2013, , , , , \u2013\n\nexistentials\n\nFalk, Richard , , \u2013\n\nfamily , \u2013\n\nFlahaut, Fran\u00e7ois\n\nFrance, right-wing populism , \u2013\n\nFreud, Sigmund , \u2013\n\nfriend\/enemy discrimination: and moralization of politics ; and pluralism \u2013, , \u2013; Schmitt's approach ,\n\nfundamentalists , ,\n\nGiddens, Anthony: on democratizing democracy \u2013, \u2013; post-political vision \u2013; and post-traditional society \u2013; on PPPs ; on reflexive modernity ; rhetorics of modernization \u2013; on social democracy \u2013, \u2013, ; third way politics \u2013\n\nglobal governance \u2013\n\nGlobal Parliamentary Assembly (GPA)\n\nglobalization: Beck on ; cosmopolitan future ; Giddens on , \u2013; Hardt and Negri on ; neo-liberal form , ,\n\ngood and evil, we\/they confrontation , \u2013\n\ngovernance, concept of \u2013\n\nGramsci, Antonio\n\nGray, John ,\n\nGroup Psychology and the Analysis of the Ego (Freud)\n\nGuattari, F\u00e9lix\n\nHabermas, J\u00fcrgen , , \u2013, , ,\n\nHaider, J\u00f6rg , \u2013\n\nHall, Stuart \u2013,\n\nHardt, Michael\n\nHegel, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich\n\nhegemonic practices\n\nhegemony: beyond , \u2013, , ; concept ; construction of new , ; pluralization of ; Western\n\nHegemony and Socialist Strategy (Laclau and Mouffe) \u2013\n\nHeidegger, Martin ,\n\nHeld, David , , \u2013, \u2013\n\nhuman rights \u2013; mestiza conception \u2013\n\nHuman Rights Court\n\nhuman sociability \u2013\n\nhumanity, concept of \u2013\n\nidentification \u2013\n\ninclusion\n\nindividualism: growth of new ; in liberal thought ; spread of ,\n\nindividualization ,\n\nIraq, invasion of\n\nIslam\n\nJospin, Lionel\n\njouissance\n\nJus Publicum Europaeum ,\n\nKaldor, Mary \u2013\n\nKant, Immanuel , \u2013,\n\nKerv\u00e9gan, Jean-Fran\u00e7ois \u2013\n\nKeynesian economic management\n\nLacan, Jacques \u2013\n\nLaclau, Ernesto ,\n\nLatin America\n\nlaw: international ; legal pluralism \u2013; rule of \u2013\n\nLe Pen, Jean-Marie \u2013\n\nleft, ultra , ,\n\nleft and right: beyond , ; centre-left ; loss of meaning of divide , , ; metaphor ; revitalization of distinction \u2013; struggle between ; in sub-politics\n\nliberal democracy: present stage , ; questioning superiority of , ; universality of \u2013\n\nliberalism \u2013, \u2013,\n\nliberals \u2013\n\nlife politics \u2013, ,\n\nLocke, John\n\nLuhmann, Niklas\n\nMachiavelli, Niccolo\n\nMassey, Doreen\n\nmestiza conception of human rights \u2013\n\nMitterrand, Fran\u00e7ois\n\nmobilization \u2013\n\nmodernities, pluralism of \u2013\n\nmodernization, rhetorics of \u2013\n\nMontesquieu, Charles de Secondat, baron de\n\nmoral register , \u2013\n\nmorality \u2013\n\nMoreiras, Alberto\n\nmulticulturalism\n\nmultilateralism\n\nmultipolar world order \u2013\n\nmultitude, the \u2013, \u2013\n\nMultitude, War and Democracy in the Age of Empire (Hardt and Negri)\n\nnation-state \u2013,\n\nnationalism , \u2013\n\nnature, relationship to\n\nNegri, Antonio\n\nneo-liberalism , , , , \u2013\n\nNew Labour \u2013,\n\nnew world order ,\n\nOttoman Empire\n\nPanikkar, Raimundo\n\nparliamentary system \u2013\n\n'passions' , ,\n\n'people, the'\n\npluralism: agonistic dynamics ; and friend\/enemy relation \u2013; legal ; liberal understanding of ; limits of \u2013; of modernities \u2013\n\npluralist democracy\n\npluriverse\n\npolitical, the \u2013, ; as antagonism \u2013, ; cosmopolitan views and ; the social and \u2013\n\npolitics \u2013; democratic \u2013; in the moral register \u2013; reinvention of \u2013\n\npopulism, right-wing , \u2013, , \u2013\n\npost-democracy\n\npost-Fordism\n\npost-political vision \u2013,\n\npost-traditional society \u2013, \u2013,\n\npower relations , , , , ,\n\npublic-private partnerships (PPP) \u2013\n\npure relationship\n\nradical centre\n\nRanci\u00e8re, Jacques\n\nRasch, William ,\n\nRawls, John\n\nRaz, Joseph\n\nReagan, Ronald\n\nreconciliation\n\nreflexive modernity , \u2013, , , ,\n\nreflexive modernization , , \u2013,\n\nright, extreme \u2013\n\nright-wing populism , \u2013, , \u2013\n\nrights and responsibilities\n\nrisk society , ,\n\nRorty, Richard \u2013\n\nRousseau, Jean-Jacques\n\nRustin, Michael\n\nSchmitt, Carl: attitudes to \u2013; challenge to liberalism \u2013, \u2013, ; on dangers of unipolar model \u2013; on friend\/enemy relation \u2013, ; on pluralism , ; vision of new global order \u2013\n\nscience\n\nSeptember 11 2001, events , , , , ,\n\nside-effects ,\n\nsocial, the \u2013\n\nsocial democracy: Giddens on \u2013, \u2013, ; move to right ; New Labour's 'renewal' of \u2013\n\nsocial reflexivity\n\nSousa Santos, Boaventura de \u2013\n\nsovereignty , \u2013,\n\nStaten, Henry\n\nStavrakakis, Yannis\n\nStrauss, Andrew , \u2013\n\nsub-politics \u2013,\n\nTarring with the Negative (iek)\n\nterrorism: antagonistic mode ; as consequence of unipolar world \u2013; and transnationalization of politics \u2013; war against , ,\n\nThatcherism ,\n\nTheorism of the Partisan (Schmitt)\n\nThird Way, The (Giddens)\n\nThird Way and Its Critics, The (Giddens)\n\nthird way politics \u2013,\n\nThousand Plateaus, A (Deleuze and Guattari)\n\ntraditionalists , ,\n\ntransformations in personal life\n\ntransnationalization of politics \u2013\n\ntrust, active\n\nTully, James\n\nUnited Nations , \u2013,\n\nUnited States: dominance , , ; hegemony , , , ; idealized view of ; moralization of politics , ; relationship with Europe \u2013\n\nUniversal Declaration of Human Rights\n\nUrbinati, Nadia ,\n\nvoting , ,\n\nWalzer, Michael\n\nwar, conception of \u2013\n\nwe\/they: antagonistic ; confrontation ; democratic politics \u2013; discrimination , \u2013, \u2013; in Freud's work ; parliamentary system ; types of relation \u2013,\n\nwelfare state ,\n\nWesternization \u2013,\n\nWittgenstein, Ludwig , ,\n\nworld order: multipolar \u2013; new , ; new global \u2013\n\nWorld Social Forums\n\nYugoslavia, disintegration of\n\nZeitgeist, post-political , ,\n\n\u017di\u017eek, Slavoj \u2013,\n\nZolo, Danilo , \n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaBook"}}
+{"text":"\n\nDedication\n\nThis book is dedicated to you, whoever and whatever you are. We hope this book pleases and delights you, and takes you on a journey.\nContents\n\n_Cover_\n\n_Title Page_\n\n_Dedication_\n\nWelcome\n\nThis book\n\nYour kitchen\n\nFantastic feasts\n\n01 Quick Eats\n\nCreamy Carbonara\n\nMushroom Pho\n\nGuacaroni\n\nCurry-Crusted Sweet Potatoes\n\nSticky Shiitake Mushrooms\n\nMini Chili Bowls\n\nQuick Puttanesca Spaghetti\n\nMini Pizza Tarts\n\nNice Spice Rice\n\nEasy Peasy Pasta\n\nPad Thai\n\nPortobello Mushroom Burgers\n\nCrispy Chili Tofu\n\nJackfruit Tacos\n\nCreamy Mac & Greens\n\nStir-Fry Noodles\n\nSauce Recipes\n\nBasic Stir-Fry\n\nSweet & Sour\n\nOrange & Ginger\n\nBlack Pepper\n\n02 Big Eats\n\nMushroom & Guinness Pie\n\nSweet & Sour Crispy Tofu\n\nIrresistible Risotto\n\nTom Yum Soup\n\nPasta Caponata\n\nBig Bhaji Burger\n\nCreamy Seaside Pie\n\nCreamy Korma\n\nPastaball Marinara\n\nRogan BOSH!\n\nSweet Pepper Fajitas\n\nThai Red Curry\n\nRed Ratatouille Risotto\n\nSaag Aloo Curry\n\nShepherd's Potato\n\nSpaghetti Bolognese\n\n03 Showpieces\n\nBurrito Samosas\n\nMassaman Curry\n\nGiant Burrito Cake\n\nMezze Cake\n\nUltimate Chili\n\nBig Bad Nachos\n\nPerfect Pizza\n\nBasic Pizza Dough\n\nMiddle East Pizza\n\nAvocado Toast Pizza\n\nJerk Jackfruit & Plantain Pizza\n\nPettigrew's Paella\n\nThe Big BOSH! Burger\n\nRich & Creamy Lasagna\n\nSpiral Tart\n\nThe Big BOSH! Roast\n\nMushroom Wellington\n\nRosemary & Thyme Roast Vegetables\n\nRed Wine Gravy\n\n\"Fish\" & Chips\n\nMinted Mushy Peas\n\nTartare Sauce\n\nWorld's Best Pesto Lasagna\n\n04 Greens & BOSH! Bowls\n\nTomato & Pomegranate Salad\n\nLemon & Chili Griddled Greens\n\nUltimate BBQ Coleslaw\n\nGuacamole Potato Salad\n\nFalafel BOSH! Bowl\n\nBeet, Onion & Sweet Potato Salad\n\nSatay Sweet Potato BOSH! Bowl\n\nSouthwest BOSH! Bowl\n\nThe Best-Dressed BOSH! Bowl\n\nThe Big Green BOSH! Bowl\n\nMake Your Own BOSH! Bowls\n\n05 Small Plates & Sharers\n\nCauliflower Buffalo Wings\n\nShiitake Teriyaki Dippers\n\nPopcorn Falafel\n\nMaki Sushi Rolls\n\nGuaca Maki Rolls\n\nSatay Maki Rolls\n\nBangin' Veggie Kebabs\n\nMarinades\n\nAsian BBQ\n\nSpicy Shashlik\n\nRich Satay\n\nHoisin Pancakes\n\nFrench Onion Soup\n\nSpanish Tapas\n\nJane's Pan Con Tomate\n\nGarlic Mushrooms\n\nPatatas Bravas\n\nPeri Peri Hasselback Potatoes\n\nAll the Sauces\n\nOlive Tapenade\n\nProper Spanish Aioli\n\nRich Satay Sauce\n\nBaba Ganoush\n\nAmazing Chili Sauce\n\nUltimate Guacamole\n\nBangin' Salsa\n\nFiery Chili Pesto\n\nAll the Hummus\n\nRoasted Garlic Hummus\n\nSun-Dried Tomato Hummus\n\nOlive Tapenade Hummus\n\nBurrito Hummus\n\nClassic Hummus\n\nPesto Hummus\n\nGuacummus\n\nSatay Hummus\n\nFluffy Naan Bread & Raita\n\nBasic Naan Bread\n\nGarlic Naan Bread\n\nJane's Mint Raita\n\nPeshwari Naan Bread\n\nRice 3 Ways\n\nPerfectly Boiled Rice\n\nOnion Fried Rice\n\nSpecial Fried Rice\n\nGarlic & Herb Cashew Cheese\n\n06 Cocktails\n\nEasy Almond Baileys\n\nSalted Caramel Espresso Martini\n\nSmoochies\n\nWatermelon Heaven\n\nGinger Ninja\n\nFruity Fire\n\nMango Hard\n\nMiami Vice\n\nMojitos\n\nSpicy Mojito\n\nGinger & Lemongrass Mojito\n\nWatermelon J\u00e4gerbomb Punch\n\n07 Desserts\n\nShirley's Sheffield Scones\n\nChocolate Chip Cookies\n\nSpanish Beach Churros\n\nGooey PBJ Brownies\n\nCarrot Cake\n\nPain au Chocolat Loaf Cake\n\nUltimate Chocolate Fudge Cake\n\nAquafaba Chocolate Mousse\n\nSticky Toffee Pudding\n\nMixed Berry Crumble\n\nSalted Caramel Chocolate Crunch Tart\n\nApple Pear Pie\n\n08 Breakfasts\n\nBanana Pancakes\n\nChocolate Granola\n\nBOSH! Breakfast Toasts\n\nCreamy Garlic Mushroom Toast\n\nSmoky BBQ Beans on Toast\n\nTofu Scramble on Toast\n\nBanana Bread\n\nThe Big Breakfast\n\nHerb Mushrooms\n\nBasil Tomatoes\n\nHash Browns\n\nChocolate Croissant Tearer Sharer\n\nSimple Japanese Breakfast\n\nJapanese Pickle\n\nBreakfast Smoothies\n\nTurmeric Powershot\n\nChoconana Protein Shake\n\nGreen Goodness\n\nNutrition\n\n_Thanks_\n\n_Index_\n\n_Copyright_\n\n_About the Publisher_\n\nWelcome\n\nWe're here to show you how you can eat delightful meals that are both easy to cook and incredibly satisfying, all using just plants.\n\nLet us introduce you to a new way of thinking about food; one that we've developed and perfected together over the last three years, and that is becoming increasingly popular.\n\nIt involves eating delicious, hearty, even indulgent meals that are both comfortingly familiar and exciting, and without any need for meat or dairy.\n\nIt's also a new way of cooking. Animal products are so ingrained in the human diet that we've had tens of thousands of years to hone the art of cooking with them. But the concept of cooking without meat and dairy is still relatively new. Which can only mean one thing: there is so much potential yet to be unleashed from plant-based eating.\n\nWe promise you'll find in this book your new, fail-safe family favorites, inspiring lunch ideas, showstoppers that'll impress even the most staunch steak-lover, tasty snacks, outrageously good desserts (we're pretty good at those, if we do say so ourselves), and awesome cocktails, every one bursting with flavor.\n\nSo, whether you're thinking about reducing the amount of meat you eat, or you don't eat animal products at all, this book is for you.\n\n**BOSH!**\n\nIf you'd told us three years ago we were going to spend our lives cooking and eating amazing plant-based food, we wouldn't have believed you. We were a couple of mates from Sheffield who ate meat every single week.\n\nNow we run BOSH!, the biggest plant-based online channel in the world. Our food creations were viewed by half a billion people in our first year and our most popular recipe videos have been viewed over 50 million times. We never expected to have that kind of success, and it has been humbling.\n\n\"I was the one to first cut out animal products.\"\n\n**Ian**\n\n\"I mocked Ian when he went vegan, and asked him where he'd get his protein from. But eventually he won me over. That and the whole saving the world by not eating mass-produced animal products thing.\"\n\n**Henry**\n\nAfter cutting out animal products entirely, both of us felt fantastic. But we had to re-learn how to cook and find food when we were out and about. We also found that the vegan food available in restaurants or in cookbooks was often, frankly, not very good.\n\nWe saw an opportunity. Since then, it's been our life's mission to show people how to make delicious plant-based meals. However often they choose to do that.\n\nAnd now, after three years of eating plant-based food, we've mastered a new style of cooking, one made popular through a new breed of internet chefs, where novelty and wow-factor presentation are just as important as taste and ease.\n\nWith this new style of cooking, we've created all-plants versions of classic dishes that are free from meat, eggs, and dairy, but still totally scrumptious. You know your favorite dishes, the ones you've learned by heart and use again and again? Well these are your new go-to classics.\n\nEverything we do is aimed at showing just how easy it is to eat more plants. We also want to prove how delicious, hearty, and satisfying plant-based food can be.\n\nWe cook, drink, and film delicious recipes for the world, all from our home studio in East London.\n\n**x Henry and Ian**\n\nThis book\n\n**Cook fast food fast. Spend time on showstoppers.**\n\nSometimes you just need to eat quick, and you reach for your classic speedy dishes. Check out our Quick Eats chapter for yummy plates that you'll be able to get on the table in 30 minutes or less. Other times you're cooking for an occasion and looking to impress. Check out our Big Eats chapter for classics that will be worth the extra time, taking up to an hour to prep, or our Showpieces chapter for masterpieces that take that little bit longer (but the results are well worth it).\n\n**Get it right. First time. These are high-quality recipes.**\n\nEvery recipe in this book has been rigorously and repeatedly tested again and again by us and our wonderful food team. We give you our word that these recipes work to a level that many in other cookbooks do not. These are high-quality recipes. Get the right tools, follow the instructions, and you can easily cook these meals to perfection.\n\nTo make it easier for you to work quickly, we've also included the preparation instructions (like peeling and chopping) in the method. This ensures that you make the best use of your time, cooking as quickly as possible. We've also included a \"before you start\" section above each recipe method, to highlight any special equipment you need or anything you should do before you start cooking. All oven temperatures are for convection ovens, so adjust the temperature if you have a conventional oven.\n\n**Create restaurant-quality meals at home**\n\nCheck out our Fantastic Feasts section to create menus as good as (or better than) anything you'll get from a restaurant or takeout, with dishes that complement each other.\n\nWhether you're in the mood for an Asian blowout, an Indian banquet, a Tex-Mex spread, or a big Sunday lunch, you'll find everything you need in this book.\n\n**Watch videos to see how we do it**\n\nLooking for a helping hand when cooking a recipe? We've created a simple, top-down recipe video for the trickier dishes so you can see exactly how to cook them, step by step. Check out our website www.bosh.tv\n\nYour kitchen\n\nHere are a few tips from us to help you really master your kitchen and your cooking skills.\n\n**Be a continuously improving cook, whatever your level**\n\nWhether you're just starting out cooking only with plants or you're already accomplished with vegan food, there's always something new to learn. Here's how to be at the top of your game.\n\nTreat each recipe you cook as an opportunity to learn something new. Don't fall into the trap of cooking the same things on repeat; find new recipes, get the right ingredients, and try them out.\n\nUp your skills from time to time with videos and books. Improve your knife skills with videos on YouTube. Use any of the amazing online tools, or a collection of cookbooks, to store up recipes to try in future. You can use post-its to mark the pages with recipes you want to try!\n\nThere's always something new to master, whether it's basics like getting vegan b\u00e9chamel nailed or advanced baking with aquafaba. This new, plant-based way of thinking about food has so much freedom for innovation, so you'll be constantly improving.\n\n**Keep fruit and veggies on hand (or on ice) at all times!**\n\nA fridge full of fruit and veggies is not only good for your pocket, but they'll also keep really well. Onions, garlic, and potatoes are best kept out of the fridge in a cool, dry place.\n\nGot lots of fruit left over? Stick it in the freezer and use it to make morning smoothies. Peel and chop the fruit into bite-sized chunks and put it into a Tupperware container for easy use later. We have a constant store of frozen bananas, apples, berries, spinach, kale, and watermelon ready to combine for a deliciously nutritious smoothie at any time of the day.\n\nBought too many veggies? That's OK: freeze them and use them later. Made too much pasta sauce? Pop it in a Tupperware or a freezer bag and keep it ready for a quick meal.\n\n**Keep your kitchen and pantry well organized to make life easier**\n\nOrganize your pantry well and you'll always have meals ready to cook\u2014check out key ingredients to keep in stock. We go full nerd with sticky labels to highlight the right places for things. It makes cooking so much more satisfying and efficient because we're not constantly searching for ingredients in the cupboard.\n\nWe tend to organize our pantry shelves into sections like \"sauces & syrups,\" \"oils & vinegars,\" \"herbs & spices,\" \"flour, sugar & baking,\" \"grains, rice, pasta,\" plus the essential \"tea & coffee\" shelf. Figure out a system that works for you. Trust us, knowing where things are makes fast cooking much easier.\n\nFinally, organize your spices in a way that's easy to browse. We prefer smaller tubs of spices since they tend to be a consistent size and they usually have labels on the top. Plus, big bags of spice are harder to store and spices tend to go off if they're left on the shelf for too long. You'll soon discover which herbs and spices you get through quickly and which are worth buying in bulk\u2014try decanting them into jars and adding your own labels on the lid.\n\nEQUIPMENT\n\nThe equipment you find in your typical kitchen is going to work just fine for the recipes in this book. There is nothing super fancy or technical about what we do in our kitchen; we like to keep things simple. But, if we were going to design a cost-effective kitchen from scratch, here's how we would do it:\n\n**Essential items**\n\nThese should be your go-to items. We use these every day to make great BOSH! food.\n\n**High-powered blender** (like a NutriBullet, Magic Ninja, or Magimix)\n\nA **good, sharp knife** (and sharpener)\n\nA selection of **cutting boards** that look great on the side and inspire you to cook\n\nA **kitchen timer** or your mobile phone to get the timings right\n\n**Neatly stored spices** , all in one place so you can find them quickly\n\n**A varied selection of preferably nonstick saucepans**\n\n**Large spoons and tongs** that work with your pans (don't use metal on nonstick!)\n\n**Measuring tools** , like a measuring cup, scale, and measuring spoons\n\n**Nice-to-have items**\n\nGet these if you like. They will speed up your cooking, but they're optional.\n\nKeep a clean **kitchen towel** in your pocket as you cook and you'll feel like a pro\n\nLarge-bowl **food processor** or **hand blender**\n\n**Oven-to-table dishes** (for lasagna and pies)\n\n**Garlic crusher**\n\nA **grater** to zest or grate dairy-free cheese\n\nA good **rolling pin**\n\n**Completely optional, but very cool items**\n\nThese come in handy from time to time in our kitchen, so get them if you wish.\n\n**Pizza stone** for better cooking and a crispier crust\n\n**Waffle iron**\n\n**Toasted-sandwich maker**\n\n**Slow cooker** for long, slow, melt-in-the-mouth curries\n\n**Tiny dishes** (soy sauce dishes) for measuring out spices before you start to cook\n\n**Sealing clips** to keep opened packets of food from spilling everywhere\n\n**Tupperware or storage jars** to keep your cupboards organized and store leftovers\n\n**Tofu press** to make it even easier to cook with tofu\n\nINGREDIENTS\n\nThe chances are that you already have most of these ingredients in your cupboard or your fridge. What we hope this book will do is unlock the potential in your pantry, and help you turn that humble can of chickpeas into the most awesome falafel, or transform your usual pasta dish into something you'd be proud to serve at a dinner party. Get stocked up!\n\n**Essentials**\n\nIf someone were to ask us what we keep in our kitchen cupboards, this would be the answer. We use these ingredients all the time and always keep them on hand so that we can whip up a quick meal without having to go to the store first.\n\n**Pasta** , in all its many forms, will answer your hunger prayers\n\nHaving **rice** in the cupboard means you'll always have something to eat\n\n**Noodles** are a great base for speedy, nourishing, and satisfying meals\n\n**Olive or peanut oil** , to use sparingly when frying or roasting\n\n**Sea salt and black pepper** to season to perfection and bring your food to life\n\n**Garlic** , because it's the best thing ever, used by nearly every cuisine in the world\n\n**Canned chickpeas** give you the wonder beans with which you can make hummus and falafel, plus aquafaba, an incredibly useful substitute for egg and dairy in cooking\n\n**Various canned beans** will ensure you get your protein whenever you need it\n\nA supply of **canned tomatoes** means you always have a base for sauces\n\n**A selection of spices** for essential flavor\u2014never underestimate their power\n\n**Fresh fruit, veggies, and herbs** because your mum told you to eat your greens and she was right\n\n**Nuts and seeds** are fantastic for flavor, terrific for texture, and super, super healthy\n\n**Peanut butter** will give you energy, texture, and flavor in abundance\n\n**Plant-based milk** will crop up in our recipes again and again\u2014we like almond milk best\n\n**Canned coconut milk** will help you craft creamy curries\n\n**Specialties**\n\nWe tend to have these in our cupboards too, but we use them less frequently.\n\n**Nutritional yeast** provides a nutty, cheesy taste and is a great source of vitamin B12\n\n**Cashews** can be soaked and blended for cream or cooked for a satisfying crunch\n\n**Passata or tomato puree** will help your Italian dishes come to life\n\n**Kalamata olives** add wonderful flavor and robust texture\n\n**Sun-dried tomatoes** offer an incredible depth of flavor\n\n**Jarred roasted peppers** are great blended up to add to a tomato sauce or soup\n\n**Dairy-free cheese** will provide familiarity and texture\n\n**Firm tofu** gives bite and texture, as well as all-important protein\n\n**Nori** helps you get a fishy, salty flavor and can be used to wrap sushi rolls\n\n**Capers** offer a really individual, salty flavor\n\n**Soy cream** introduces lovely silky, creamy textures\n\n**Dairy-free ice cream** should always be in the freezer because, well, movie night\n\nFantastic feasts\n\nHere are some delicious feasts you can create using the recipes in this book. Create your own takeout at home, or create a spread to wow a whole dinner party, using just this book.\n\nSPANISH SPREAD\n\nFancy a fiesta? Make the ultimate Spanish spread. Just add sangria, salsa, and a little bit of sunshine.\n\n**Pettigrew's Paella**\n\n**Spanish Tapas**\n\n**Proper Spanish Aioli**\n\n* * *\n\nTHE BIG INDIAN TAKEOUT\n\nIf contrasting curries is your thing then we've got you covered! This wonderful spread of curries, naan, and rice represents the best of our favorite cuisine.\n\n**Big Bhaji Burger**\n\n**Creamy Korma**\n\n**Rogan BOSH!**\n\n**Saag Aloo Curry**\n\n**Fluffy Naan Bread & Raita**\n\n**Onion Fried Rice**\n\n* * *\n\nTHE BIG THAI TAKEOUT\n\nTo magic up your own Southeast Asian takeout look no further than these recipes. You'll find deep, subtle yet strong spices and explosions of flavor.\n\n**Pad Thai**\n\n**Tom Yum Soup**\n\n**Thai Red Curry**\n\n**Massaman Curry**\n\n**(Rich Satay) Bangin' Veggie Kebabs**\n\n**Perfectly Boiled Rice**\n\n* * *\n\nTHE BIG CHINESE TAKEOUT\n\nCreate an Indo-Chinese takeout in your own home. Let your guests wrap their own pancakes, and pick and choose from all the bowls in the middle of the table. Just add chopsticks.\n\n**Sticky Shiitake Mushrooms**\n\n**Crispy Chili Tofu**\n\n**Sweet & Sour Crispy Tofu**\n\n**Shiitake Teriyaki Dippers**\n\n**Hoisin Pancakes**\n\n**Special Fried Rice**\n\n* * *\n\nTHE BIG BBQ\n\nFeeling like an all-year-round taste of summer? These dishes will delight any BBQ party or brighten up any dining room. Grill and nibble to your heart's content.\n\n**Portobello Mushroom Burgers**\n\n**The Big BOSH! Burger**\n\n**Lemon & Chili Griddled Greens**\n\n**Ultimate BBQ Coleslaw**\n\n**Guacamole Potato Salad**\n\n**Bangin' Veggie Kebabs**\n\n* * *\n\nITALIAN HEAVEN\n\nIf you like pasta and pizza as much as we do, then look no further. This is the perfect dinner-party spread.\n\n**Spaghetti Bolognese**\n\n**Perfect Pizza**\n\n**World's Best Pesto Lasagna**\n\n* * *\n\nWEEKEND LUNCH\n\nA British dinner of comfort and joy!\n\n**Mushroom & Guinness Pie**\n\n**\"Fish\" & Chips**\n\n**Sticky Toffee Pudding**\n\n* * *\n\nA TEX-MEX-STYLE FIESTA\n\nCombine these dishes for a serious taste of Tex-Mex goodness. We hope you like guacamole (who doesn't?). Feel free to dial down the chili if you prefer!\n\n**Jackfruit Tacos**\n\n**Sweet Pepper Fajitas**\n\n**Burrito Samosas**\n\n**Ultimate Chili**\n\n**Big Bad Nachos**\n\n**Cauliflower Buffalo Wings**\n\n* * *\n\nTHE MEZZE PLATTER\n\nTake a trip to the Middle East with the ultimate mezze spread. The flavors of hummus, falafel, and olives are deliciousness in every mouthful. If you have the time, trust us, the Mezze Cake is worth it.\n\n**Mezze Cake**\n\n**Tomato & Pomegranate Salad**\n\n**Falafel BOSH! Bowl**\n\n**Popcorn Falafel**\n\n**Baba Ganoush**\n\n**All the Hummus**\n\n* * *\n\nTHE BIG BOSH! ROAST\n\nNo Sunday (or Christmas Day!) is complete without a roast dinner and all the trimmings. There are step-by-step instructions here.\n\n**Mushroom Wellington**\n\n**Rosemary & Thyme Roast Vegetables**\n\n**Red Wine Gravy**\n\n**Quick Eats**\n\nGet it done quickly\n\nDelicious food whenever\n\nYou need a fast feed\nCREAMY CARBONARA\n\nSERVES 4\n\nThis is everything a carbonara should be: creamy, rich, and comforting. The smoky, flavorful mushrooms complement the thick, satisfying pasta sauce perfectly. A truly fantastic option for a delicious midweek dinner.\n\n6 portobello mushrooms (about 9 oz)\n\n5 tbsp soy sauce\n\n1 tbsp + 1 tsp maple syrup\n\n1 tbsp + 1 tsp apple cider vinegar\n\n1 tbsp + 1 tsp olive oil\n\n4\u00bd oz cashews\n\n5 garlic cloves\n\ngenerous \u00be cup unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n2 tbsp nutritional yeast\n\n5 oz silken tofu\n\n10 oz spaghetti\n\n1 cup green peas\n\nhandful flat-leaf parsley or arugula leaves, to serve\n\nPreheat oven to 390\u00b0F | Line a baking sheet | Blender | Small saucepan of boiling water over high heat | Large saucepan of salted water over high heat\n\n* * *\n\nSlice the mushrooms thinly | Pour the soy sauce, maple syrup, cider vinegar, and olive oil into a bowl and whisk to combine | Add the mushrooms, making sure the slices are well covered in the marinade, and set aside\n\nMeanwhile, put the cashews in the small saucepan filled with boiling water and boil for 15 minutes\n\nTake the mushroom slices out of the bowl and lay them out evenly on the lined baking sheet | Add the whole garlic cloves and pour the marinade over everything | Bake in the hot oven for 25\u201330 minutes, until they have shrunk in size and begun to crisp very slightly\n\nDrain the cashews and put them into the blender along with the plant-based milk, nutritional yeast, and tofu | Whizz to a very smooth cream and then set aside\n\nAdd the pasta to the large pan of boiling salted water and cook until al dente, following the instructions on the packet | Add the peas for the last minute of cooking | Fill a mug with pasta water and set aside | Drain the pasta and peas in a colander and tip the pasta back into the cooking pot\n\nPour the carbonara cream and 3 tablespoons of the pasta water over the pasta and stir everything around until the pasta is well covered in the cream | Take the mushrooms out of the oven and fold them into the creamy pasta | Add another splash of pasta water, if needed, to give a nice, loose, creamy consistency\n\nGarnish with the fresh parsley or arugula (or any other leafy green) and serve immediately\nMUSHROOM PHO\n\nSERVES 6\n\nNothing beats a hearty pho soup. Traditionally, pho is made with a deep stock that's been brewing for hours, or even days. We've used a shortcut but retained the pho richness through the delights of shiitake mushrooms, star anise, and tamarind paste. Just make sure you have enough liquid and add more water if you need to.\n\n2 onions\n\n4 garlic cloves\n\n3-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n3 fresh red chilies\n\n16 shiitake mushrooms\n\n6 tbsp toasted sesame oil\n\n\u2154 cup fresh orange juice (not from concentrate)\n\n2 tbsp tamarind paste\n\n4 star anise\n\n2 cinnamon sticks\n\n3 quarts water\n\n7 tbsp soy or tamari sauce\n\n7 tbsp maple syrup\n\n10 button mushrooms\n\n10 oz flat rice noodles\n\n4 scallions\n\n2 handfuls fresh cilantro\n\n2 handfuls fresh mint\n\n5 oz bean sprouts\n\n7 oz bok choy\n\nsriracha and soy sauce, to serve\n\nLarge saucepan over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nPeel and coarsely chop the onions and garlic | Peel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon and chop coarsely | Rip the stem from one of the chilies and chop, removing the seeds if you prefer a milder flavor | Trim and roughly slice 6 of the shiitake mushrooms\n\nHeat 3 tablespoons of the sesame oil in the large saucepan and add the chopped onion, garlic, chili, ginger, and the sliced shiitakes | Cook for 10\u201315 minutes, stirring continuously until everything has softened\n\nAdd the orange juice, tamarind paste, star anise, and cinnamon sticks and continue to stir for another 3 minutes | Add the water, soy, or tamari sauce and maple syrup\n\nTurn up the heat, bring to a boil, then turn it down again and simmer for 10 minutes, until reduced by about one-sixth | Strain the liquid into a large bowl through a sieve | Rinse the pan\n\nPut the pan back over high heat and add the remaining 3 tablespoons sesame oil | While the oil is warming, trim the remaining 10 shiitakes and the button mushrooms and add them to the pan | Fry for a couple of minutes, until very slightly browned | Pour all the pho liquid back into the pan | Add the rice noodles and cook for about 3\u20134 minutes, or according to the package directions\n\nFinely slice the scallions and put them in a small pile on a large plate | Pick the leaves from the cilantro and mint and put them on the plate | Trim and finely slice the remaining chilies, removing the seeds if you prefer a milder flavor, and put them on the plate along with the bean sprouts\n\nTrim and quarter the bok choy lengthwise and add it to the soup | Take the whole pan to the table along with the plate, with a ladle for people to serve themselves and chopsticks for them to add their own fresh herbs, vegetables, and chilies | Serve with soy sauce and sriracha on the side | Best eaten as soon as it's ready!\nGUACARONI\n\nSERVES 4\u20136\n\nMacaroni meets guacamole! This dish is as perfect as its name suggests and we think it's one of the finest pasta salads you will ever taste. It's great eaten hot or cold, served alongside a BBQ, as a lunchtime salad, or with a bit of green salad as a quick main course.\n\n11 oz macaroni\n\n3\u00bd tsp salt\n\n4 ripe avocados\n\n2 limes\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\n\u00bd tsp garlic powder\n\n\u00bd red onion\n\n2 fresh red chilies\n\n12 cherry tomatoes\n\n1 cup fresh cilantro leaves\n\nLarge saucepan of water over high heat | Large mixing bowl\n\n* * *\n\nAdd the macaroni and 2 teaspoons of the salt to the boiling water and cook until al dente, according to the package directions\n\nHalve and carefully pit the avocados by tapping the pits firmly with the heel of a knife so that it lodges in the pit, then twist and remove the pits, then scoop the flesh into the mixing bowl | Halve the limes and squeeze the juice into the bowl, catching any seeds in your other hand | Add the olive oil, garlic powder, and the remaining salt to taste and mash the avocado using the back of a fork | Peel and mince the onion | Rip the stems from the chilies, cut them in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds if you prefer a milder flavor | Finely chop the tomatoes, chilies, and cilantro and add to the bowl | Mix all the ingredients together\n\nDrain the macaroni and tip into the bowl of guacamole, stirring to make sure the pasta is well covered | Serve immediately as a side dish or light lunch, or box it up ready for tomorrow's lunch\nCURRY-CRUSTED SWEET POTATOES\n\nSERVES 2\n\nWe've mixed up the traditional stuffed potato by putting our filling on the outside in this recipe. The flavors work a treat with a fresh lime crust contrasting really well with a delicious sweet potato. This is one to freestyle with and try different flavor combos. It works great in the oven or cooked on an outdoor grill.\n\n2 large sweet potatoes (about 10 oz each)\n\nvegetable oil, for greasing\n\nsalad leaves, to serve, optional\n\n2 cups guacamole (store-bought or see here), to serve, optional\n\nFOR THE CURRY PASTE\n\n2-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n3 garlic cloves\n\n1 fresh red chili\n\n1 lime\n\n8 sun-dried tomatoes, plus 1 tbsp oil from the jar\n\n15 sprigs fresh cilantro\n\n7 tbsp shredded coconut\n\ngenerous 1 tbsp panko breadcrumbs\n\n1\u00bd tsp salt\n\n1 tsp garam masala\n\n1 tsp ground cumin\n\n2 tsp water\n\nPreheat oven to 390\u00b0F | Food processor | Baking sheet | Foil\n\n* * *\n\nPrick the whole sweet potatoes with a fork and put them on a plate | Microwave on high for about 10\u201315 minutes until quite soft (alternatively put the potatoes in a 425\u00b0F oven and bake for 25 minutes, remove them from the oven, and reduce the heat to 390\u00b0F) | Remove and set aside to cool down slightly | Score the skins with a sharp knife\n\nPeel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon | Peel the garlic | Rip the stem from the chili, cut it in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds if you prefer a milder flavor | Cut the lime in half and squeeze the juice into the food processor, catching any seeds in your other hand | Put all the rest of the curry paste ingredients into the food processor and whizz to a thick paste\n\nCut 2 squares of foil big enough to fully wrap your sweet potatoes in and grease one side with oil | Take half the curry paste and use your hands to encase one of the potatoes with a thick layer of paste | Repeat with the second potato\n\nTightly wrap the sweet potatoes in the foil squares, put on the baking sheet, and bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes | Take the sweet potatoes out of the oven, remove the foil, and serve with a small side salad and a big spoonful of guacamole, if using\nSTICKY SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS\n\nSERVES 2\n\nIf you're a fan of sticky, sweet, pan-Asian cuisine you will love this dish (seriously, it's bangin'!). It's quick and easy to put together and guaranteed to impress. Serve with freshly cooked rice and chopsticks.\n\n\u00bd lb shiitake mushrooms\n\n3 tbsp cornstarch\n\n2 tbsp peanut oil\n\n2 garlic cloves\n\n1\u00bc-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n\u00bd tsp water\n\n1 tbsp toasted sesame oil\n\n2 tbsp light brown sugar\n\n\u00bc cup dark soy sauce\n\n2 tbsp rice vinegar\n\n1 tsp sriracha sauce, or to taste\n\n1 scallion, to serve\n\n2 cups cooked basmati rice (store-bought or see here), to serve\n\n1 tsp sesame seeds, to serve\n\nWok or large frying pan over high heat\n\n* * *\n\nThickly slice the mushrooms and put them in a bowl | Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of the cornstarch over the top and toss everything together with your hands, making sure the mushrooms are well covered | Pour the peanut oil into the wok or pan and get it nice and hot | Tip in the mushrooms and fry for 4\u20136 minutes, until cooked through and slightly crisp on the outside | Transfer the mushrooms to a bowl and set aside\n\nPeel and finely chop the garlic and ginger | Spoon the remaining 1 tablespoon cornstarch into a small dish and mix it together with the water | Wipe out the wok with paper towels and put it back over low heat | Pour in the sesame oil | Add the chopped garlic and ginger and cook until you release the aromas and they're bubbling in the oil, about 1 minute | Sprinkle in the sugar and stir until caramelized, about 2 minutes more | Increase the heat slightly and pour in the cornstarch mixture, soy sauce, and rice vinegar, then stir for another minute until the sauce has thickened slightly | Add the sriracha and stir it into the sauce | Tip the cooked mushrooms back into the pan and stir to warm through and completely cover in the sauce, 1\u20132 minutes longer\n\nFinely slice the scallion | Serve the chewy mushrooms over hot basmati rice, garnished with the sliced scallion and sprinkled with sesame seeds\nMINI CHILI BOWLS\n\nSERVES 3\u20136\n\nThis is a quick-to-prepare, warming hug-in-a-bowl kind of dish that's good for impressing your guests when time is against you! Feel free to up the chili if you like a bit of a kick. This banging chili is served inside a cool cone dish.\n\n3\u20136 medium flour tortillas\n\n1 fresh red chili\n\n1 red onion\n\n2 garlic cloves\n\n2 red bell peppers\n\n9 sprigs fresh cilantro\n\n12 cherry tomatoes\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 tsp paprika\n\n\u00bd tsp ground cumin\n\n1 can (15 oz) kidney beans\n\n1 can (15 oz) black beans\n\n24 oz tomato puree\n\n3 cups cooked rice (store-bought or see here)\n\n1\u00be oz dairy-free cheese, optional\n\n1 lime\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Muffin or cupcake tin | Lidded casserole or saucepan over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nTurn the muffin or cupcake tin upside down and place 3 tortillas in the gaps between the cups, making 3 bowl shapes | Press each tortilla down firmly to get a flat bottom, to ensure the bowls will stand up | Place the tin in the oven and bake for 7\u201310 minutes until lightly browned and firm | Take out of the oven and leave to cool and harden on the tin | If you are cooking for more than 3 people, repeat this step with more tortillas\n\nRip the stem from the chili, cut it in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds if you prefer a milder flavor, then chop | Peel and chop the onion and garlic | Cut the bell peppers in half and cut out the stems and seeds, then chop | Cut the stems from the cilantro and finely chop, reserving the leaves for later | Halve the cherry tomatoes\n\nHeat the olive oil in the pan and add the chopped chili, onion, garlic, and cilantro stems and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally | Add the cherry tomatoes and bell peppers and stir for another 4\u20135 minutes | Add the paprika and ground cumin | Drain the kidney beans and black beans and stir into the sauce | Pour in the tomato puree | Leave the sauce to simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally\n\nHeat the rice, according to the package directions | Put a small layer of rice on the bottom of each of the tortilla bowls and top with a generous serving of chili | Grate the dairy-free cheese, if using, on top and sprinkle with the cilantro leaves | Cut the lime into wedges and place one on each plate to serve\nQUICK PUTTANESCA SPAGHETTI\n\nSERVES 6\n\nThe combination of lemon and fresh parsley in this dish creates a voluptuous pasta and the saltiness of the capers in brine will remind you of the sea. This flexible favorite of ours is great for when you're low on fresh ingredients. It can be served with a side salad or makes a great quick meal all on its own.\n\n2 small red chilies, fresh or dried\n\n20 sprigs flat-leaf parsley\n\n10 Kalamata olives\n\n4 garlic cloves\n\n\u00bc cup olive oil\n\n1 tbsp capers, plus 1 tbsp of brine from the jar\n\n\u00bd tsp salt, plus a little extra\n\n24 oz tomato puree\n\n1 lb spaghetti\n\n\u00bd lb broccolini\n\n1 lemon\n\nLarge saucepan over medium-high heat | Large saucepan of boiling salted water over high heat\n\n* * *\n\nRip the stems from the chilies, cut them in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds if you prefer a milder sauce, and finely chop | Separate the parsley stems and finely chop, reserving the leaves for later | Pit and roughly chop the olives\n\nPeel 2 of the garlic cloves | Pour 2 tablespoons of the oil into the empty saucepan, crush in the garlic, and add the chilies, parsley stems, olives, and capers and stir for 2\u20133 minutes | Add the \u00bd teaspoon salt and 1 tablespoon of the salty brine water from the jar of capers | Leave to cook for a minute, then add the tomato puree | Taste and season with salt if necessary | Turn the heat to medium and leave to simmer while you move on to the next step\n\nAdd the spaghetti to the pan of boiling water along with the remaining 2 garlic cloves | Cook until al dente, according to the package directions\n\nMeanwhile, carefully slice the broccolini from top to bottom, creating thin strips | Add these to the spaghetti pan for the last 30 seconds of cooking time to quickly soften | Drain the pasta and broccoli in a colander and return them to the pan | Pour in the sauce\n\nRoughly chop the parsley leaves and add them to the pan | Pour in the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil and squeeze over the juice of a whole lemon, catching any seeds in your other hand | Mix everything together and serve immediately\nMINI PIZZA TARTS\n\nSERVES 6\n\nThese tarts are incredibly easy to prepare, really flavorful and look impressive. They're perfect for a starter or light lunch and are an opportunity for you to get creative with your decoration. The fluffy melt-in-your-mouth crunch of the pastry makes for a decadent but messy meal!\n\n1 sheet (11 oz) ready-to-bake dairy-free puff pastry\n\n\u00bd red onion\n\n\u00bd zucchini\n\n12 cherry tomatoes\n\n6 sun-dried tomatoes\n\n2 tbsp capers\n\n12 pitted Kalamata olives\n\n2 tbsp unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n1\u00be oz dairy-free cheese, optional\n\nhandful small fresh basil leaves, to serve\n\nFOR THE TOMATO SAUCE\n\n3 tbsp tomato paste\n\n1 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 tbsp water\n\n2 tsp balsamic vinegar\n\n\u00bd tsp black pepper\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Baking sheet | Pastry brush\n\n* * *\n\nUnroll the puff pastry onto the baking sheet, keeping it on the parchment paper it's wrapped in | Take a sharp knife and cut the pastry into 6 equal squares and separate them slightly | Run the tip of the knife lightly around the edge of each square to score a \u00bd-inch border\n\nPut all the ingredients for the tomato sauce into a small bowl and mix with a fork | Spread the sauce inside each pastry square, up to the border\n\nPeel the red onion and trim the zucchini and cherry tomatoes | Finely slice them along with the sun-dried tomatoes, capers and olives (it's important they be cut very fine so they cook quickly) | Arrange artfully over each pizza square, keeping the borders free | Brush the edges of the pizzas with the plant-based milk\n\nPut the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 20\u201322 minutes, then remove and neatly grate the dairy-free cheese, if using, over the top of each square | Put the tarts back in the oven for 3 minutes to melt (if you cook them for any longer the cheese will start to harden)\n\nRemove the pan from the oven, scatter the basil leaves over the tartlets and serve immediately\nNICE SPICE RICE\n\nSERVES 3\u20134\n\nThis quick and easy dish is a regular late-night meal in the BOSH! studio. It's healthy, colorful, and also delicious, with a salty, sweet, nutty flavor and an incredible number of healthy veg. Works great as a quick meal or a side, or as a leftover lunch the following day!\n\n4 oz kale\n\n9 sprigs fresh cilantro\n\n2 large garlic cloves\n\n2-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n1 large fresh red chili\n\n5 scallions\n\n1 red bell pepper\n\n1 tbsp coconut oil\n\n1 tbsp toasted sesame oil\n\n5 tsp maple syrup\n\n\u00bc cup light soy sauce\n\n3 oz baby corn\n\n2 oz thin pencil asparagus spears\n\n3 oz sugar snap peas\n\n3 oz broccolini\n\nscant \u00bd cup smooth peanut butter\n\n2 tbsp water\n\n4 cups cooked basmati rice (store-bought or homemade)\n\nsriracha sauce, to serve, optional\n\nfresh lime, to serve, optional\n\nsalt\n\nWok over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nChop the kale and cilantro and set aside | Peel and finely slice the garlic | Peel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon and finely slice | Rip the stem from the chili, then cut it in half lengthwise and remove the seeds if you prefer a milder flavor | Finely chop the chili and scallions | Cut the bell pepper in half and cut out the stem and seeds, then cut into bite-sized chunks along with the rest of the vegetables | Measure out the oils, syrup, and soy sauce into saucers or small bowls ready to use\n\nAdd the coconut oil to the wok and stir until melted | Add the toasted sesame oil and let it infuse into the coconut oil | Add the garlic and ginger and stir them around for 1\u20132 minutes, until the ginger looks like it's begun to froth\n\nAdd the chopped chili and scallions and stir until the onions have softened | Pour in the maple syrup and soy sauce and stir | Add the corn, asparagus, and bell pepper and stir for roughly 1 minute | Throw in the sugar snap peas and broccolini and stir for another minute | Add the peanut butter and water to the pan and stir until all the vegetables are well covered | Finally, add the kale and stir until it is slightly wilted | Taste and season with salt if necessary | Turn the heat down to low\n\nAdd the rice to the wok and fold it into the vegetables for 2 minutes | Sprinkle with the cilantro and stir briefly to combine | Serve immediately with wedges of fresh lime and sriracha sauce on the side, if using\nEASY PEASY PASTA\n\nSERVES 4\n\nThe clue is in the name with this one. It's an effortlessly simple pasta sauce that can be made with minimal effort, since it's mainly just roasted vegetables. It's a regular supper at BOSH! HQ. It's fresh, filling, and gives you loads of your daily vegetables in one lavish meal. Try serving it up with a side salad and some crusty bread.\n\n2 red onions\n\n4 garlic cloves\n\n2 red bell peppers\n\n3\u00bd oz sun-dried tomatoes\n\n1\u00bd oz baby spinach\n\n4 tbsp capers\n\n2 small zucchini\n\n3\u00bd oz pitted Kalamata olives\n\n1 lb cherry tomatoes\n\n\u00bd cup oil (ideally from the sun-dried tomato jar!)\n\n1\u2153 cups tomato puree\n\n11 oz fusilli\n\ngenerous 1 cup basil leaves\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | 9 x 13-inch baking dish | Large saucepan\n\n* * *\n\nPeel and finely slice the onions and garlic | Cut the bell peppers in half, cut out the stems and seeds, and slice into thin strips | Slice the sun-dried tomatoes | Finely chop the spinach leaves and capers and chop the zucchini into bite-sized chunks | Halve the olives and tomatoes | Put all the vegetables into the baking dish and season all over with salt and pepper | Pour in the oil and tomato puree and stir to ensure all the vegetables are covered | Cover the dish with foil and put it in the oven to roast for 30 minutes\n\nTake the dish out of the oven, remove the foil, stir everything, and put the dish back in the oven for 15 minutes longer\n\nMeanwhile, bring a large pan of water to a boil over high heat | Add the pasta and a big pinch of salt and cook until al dente, according to the package directions | Drain the cooked pasta in a colander and tip it back into the pan\n\nTake the baking dish out of the oven, stir in the basil leaves, and pour your freshly roasted veggie sauce over the pasta | Stir so that it's well mixed, serve and enjoy!\nPAD THAI\n\nSERVES 4\n\nIn Thailand, pad Thai was a regular lunch for us (and the perfect remedy for a Thai-bucket-induced hangover). It varies everywhere you go, but typically includes the artful placement of fresh lime, peanuts, and scallions around the bowl. We like to replicate this and serve it with chili flakes, Thai sweet chili sauce, and sriracha.\n\n5 oz extra-firm tofu\n\n1 tbsp cornstarch\n\n\u00bc cup vegetable oil\n\n7 oz flat dried rice noodles\n\n\u00bd onion\n\n2 garlic cloves\n\n1 fresh red chili\n\n1 carrot\n\nsplash of water\n\n3\u00bd oz bean sprouts\n\n3 limes\n\n\u00bc cup soy sauce\n\n2 scallions\n\n\u00bd cup unsalted peanuts\n\n1 tbsp chili flakes, to serve\n\nThai sweet chili sauce, to serve, optional\n\nsriracha sauce, to serve, optional\n\nFOR THE DRESSING\n\n1 tbsp palm sugar (or any sugar)\n\n2 tbsp tamarind paste\n\n1 tbsp sweet chili sauce\n\nTofu press or 2 clean kitchen towels and a weight such as a heavy book | Wok\n\n* * *\n\nPress the tofu using a tofu press or place it between two clean kitchen towels, lay it on a plate, and put a weight on top | Leave for at least 30 minutes to drain any liquid and firm up before you start cooking\n\nIn a bowl, mix together all the ingredients for the dressing\n\nTake half the tofu and cut it into \u2153-inch cubes (save the other half for another time) | Sift over the cornstarch and turn the tofu to coat all over\n\nPut the wok over high heat and pour in 2 tablespoons of oil | Add the tofu and immediately reduce the heat to medium | Stir gently, without breaking up the tofu, until lightly browned | Transfer to a plate\n\nBring water to a boil | Put the noodles in a bowl, cover them with the hot water, and leave for about 3 minutes, until they're flexible but not cooked (check the package directions to make sure you don't fully cook them) | Drain and run under cold water | Set aside\n\nPeel and chop the onion and garlic | Rip the stem from the chili and chop, removing the seeds if you prefer a milder flavor | Trim the carrot and cut into matchsticks\n\nPut the wok back over high heat and add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil | Add the onion, garlic, and chili and cook, stirring regularly, for 1\u20132 minutes | Add the carrot and cook for another 1\u20132 minutes | Add the noodles, dressing, and a splash of water | Fry for a few minutes until the vegetables are tender\n\nReturn the tofu to the wok with the bean sprouts | Cut 1 lime in half and squeeze in the juice, catching any seeds in your other hand | Add the soy sauce | Stir-fry until the vegetables are slightly soft but still crunchy | Remove from the heat | Taste and add soy or chili sauce if needed\n\nSlice the green part of the scallions into long, thin strips | Break up the peanuts | Cut the remaining limes into wedges\n\nDivide the pad Thai among bowls with piles of sliced scallion, peanuts, lime wedges, and chili flakes | Serve with sweet chili sauce or sriracha on the side, if using\nPORTOBELLO MUSHROOM BURGERS\n\nSERVES 4\n\nThe herbs are absolutely delicious in this dish and perfectly complement the earthy, rustic flavor of the portobello mushrooms. You could make these with pita bread if you want a healthier option, then fill the bread with as many veggies as you see fit.\n\n8 portobello mushrooms\n\n4 garlic cloves\n\n6 sprigs fresh thyme\n\n3 sprigs fresh rosemary\n\n4 tsp olive oil\n\n4 tsp balsamic glaze\n\n4 good-quality burger buns\n\n1 beefsteak tomato\n\n1 little gem lettuce\n\n\u00bd small red onion\n\n\u00bc cup ketchup\n\n\u00bc cup vegan mayonnaise\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nPreheat oven to 390\u00b0F or preheat a grill | Cut 8 squares of foil big enough to wrap your mushrooms | Baking sheet\n\n* * *\n\nLay the mushrooms out on a clean surface with the stems pointing up | Peel and mince the garlic and spread it evenly over the mushrooms | Remove the leaves from the herbs by running your thumb and forefinger from the top to the base of the stems (the leaves should easily come away), then finely chop and sprinkle evenly over the mushrooms\n\nDrizzle each mushroom with olive oil and balsamic glaze and lightly season with salt and pepper | Wrap each mushroom in a square of foil and place them on the baking sheet or on the hot grill | Put the baking sheet in the oven, if using, and cook for 20 minutes\n\nMeanwhile, split the burger buns open | Slice the tomato, separate the lettuce leaves, and peel and thinly slice the onion | Drizzle some ketchup over the bottom of each bun and vegan mayo over the tops\n\nTake the mushrooms out of the oven or off the grill | Carefully remove the foil (watch out for steam) and place 2 mushrooms on each bun bottom | Add the tomato slices, a couple of lettuce leaves, and a few slices of onion, put the tops on and enjoy\nCRISPY CHILI TOFU\n\nSERVES 2\u20134\n\nThis is our take on one of our favorite Chinese take-out dishes. It's spicy, full of umami flavor, sticky, gooey, and incredibly moreish. Often when you buy this kind of dish it's filled with MSG, but ours is much healthier, with a base of orange juice and Thai sweet chili sauce adding the main sweet tang. Serve with Perfectly Boiled Rice or Special Fried Rice.\n\n1 block (10 oz) firm tofu\n\n1\u00bc cups cornstarch\n\nvegetable oil, for frying\n\n2 lemons\n\n1 cup orange juice\n\n6 tbsp Thai sweet chili sauce\n\n1 tbsp sriracha or other chili-garlic sauce\n\n3 tbsp soy sauce\n\n1 scallion, to serve\n\n1 tsp sesame seeds, to serve\n\nTofu press or 2 clean kitchen towels and a weight such as a heavy book | Large, deep frying pan over high heat | Large plate covered with paper towels\n\n* * *\n\nFirst, press the tofu using a tofu press or place it between two clean kitchen towels, lay it on a plate, and put a weight on top | Leave for at least 30 minutes to drain any liquid and firm up before you start cooking\n\nCarefully slice the pressed tofu into sticks \u2153 inch wide and spread them out on a board | Sift cornstarch over the top, coating the pieces generously | Use tongs or two forks to turn the pieces and sift over more cornstarch until the tofu is covered on all sides | The thicker the better with the cornstarch as this coating gives the cooked tofu its crunchy texture\n\nPour enough oil into the pan to fully coat the bottom and heat until it makes the tip of a wooden spoon sizzle | Carefully place the tofu pieces in the pan, with a bit of space around each one (you may need to cook them in batches) | Cook for 5 minutes, turning the pieces every minute or so until they are starting to turn golden brown | Transfer to the plate lined with paper towels | Tip away the excess oil in the pan and reduce the heat to medium-high\n\nCut the lemons in half and squeeze the juice into the pan, catching any seeds in your other hand (be careful as the pan may spit) | Add the orange juice, sweet chili sauce, sriracha, and soy sauce and bring to a boil | Simmer for 5\u20137 minutes until the liquid has reduced to a syrupy consistency\n\nAdd the tofu strips back to the pan and stir until fully coated | Continue to cook, stirring regularly, for 5 minutes and then remove from the heat | Finely slice the scallion and sprinkle over the tofu along with the sesame seeds before serving\nJACKFRUIT TACOS\n\nSERVES 6\n\nJackfruit is a fantastic and crowd-pleasing ingredient with a fibrous texture and flesh that soaks up flavor brilliantly, but it can be hard to find. Try your local Asian supermarket and be sure to choose green jackfruit in water. These tacos are perfect finger food, combining tasty jackfruit with a Mexican combo of zingy salsa and creamy guacamole.\n\n1 cup guacamole (store-bought or see here)\n\n1 cup salsa (store-bought or see here)\n\n1 can (14 oz) young green jackfruit in water\n\n1 white onion\n\n4 garlic cloves\n\n1 tbsp vegetable oil\n\n1 tbsp maple syrup\n\n7 tbsp vegetable stock\n\n\u00bd tsp Tabasco sauce\n\n4 limes\n\n1\u00bd tsp ground cumin\n\n1\u00bd tsp smoked paprika\n\n\u00bd\u20131 tsp chili powder\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\nhandful fresh cilantro\n\n12 crunchy taco shells\n\nDeep frying pan with a lid over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nIf you're making your own guacamole and salsa, do this first following the instructions here and here\n\nTip the jackfruit into a sieve or colander to drain off the excess water and pat the pieces down with a clean kitchen towel to dry them off | Cut into \u00bc-inch strips and put to one side\n\nPeel and slice the onion and garlic very thinly | Warm the vegetable oil in the frying pan | Add the onion and garlic to the pan and stir with a wooden spoon until soft and translucent | Add the jackfruit, maple syrup, vegetable stock, and Tabasco sauce | Cut 1 of the limes in half and squeeze in the juice of one half, catching any seeds in your other hand | Stir until the jackfruit is well covered\n\nPut the lid on the pan, turn down the heat, and let it simmer for 7\u201310 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has been absorbed into the jackfruit | Take the lid off the pan and sprinkle in all the spices and the salt | Stir until the jackfruit pieces are well covered and taking on the color of the spices | Transfer the jackfruit pieces to a serving dish\n\nSlice the remaining limes into wedges and remove the leaves from the cilantro by running your thumb and forefinger from the top to the base of the stems (the leaves should easily come away), saving the stems for another recipe | Serve the taco shells, jackfruit, guacamole, salsa, lime wedges, and cilantro leaves on individual plates and let everyone build their own tacos\nCREAMY MAC & GREENS\n\nSERVES 6\n\nThis is our take on one of the world's most popular tasty treats, a crowd-pleasing classic. A b\u00e9chamel sauce makes it creamy and delicious and then we add a rich, salty flavor with roasted mushrooms. This dish is moreish and indulgent, and healthy(ish), and makes a great main course or side for a BBQ.\n\n1 head of broccoli\n\n1 red onion\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\n8 portobello mushrooms (about 12 oz)\n\n12 oz macaroni\n\n3 cups unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n5 tbsp dairy-free butter or spread\n\n7 tbsp all-purpose flour\n\n2 tsp onion powder\n\n1\u00bd tsp garlic powder\n\n2 tsp prepared English mustard\n\n\u00bc cup nutritional yeast\n\n1\u00bd oz dairy-free cheese, grated\n\n1\u00bc tsp salt, plus a little extra\n\n\u00be tsp black pepper, plus a little extra\n\nscant \u00bd cup panko breadcrumbs\n\nsalad leaves, to serve, optional\n\nFOR THE MARINADE\n\n5 tbsp soy sauce\n\n1 tbsp plus 1 tsp maple syrup\n\n1 tbsp plus 1 tsp apple cider vinegar\n\n1 tbsp plus 1 tsp olive oil\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Line 2 baking sheets | Large saucepan of salted water over high heat | Medium saucepan over medium heat | 9 x 13-inch baking dish\n\n* * *\n\nCut the broccoli into roughly 1-inch florets and cubes (trim the stems and use the soft parts) | Peel and roughly chop the onion into \u2153-inch chunks | Lay both the onion and broccoli on one of the lined baking sheets, drizzle with the 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and lightly season with salt and pepper | Put the sheet on the top shelf of the preheated oven\n\nCut the mushrooms into \u2153-inch chunks | Put the ingredients for the marinade into a bowl and combine with a fork | Add the mushroom pieces to the marinade and stir to coat | Spread the mushrooms over the second lined baking sheet and put this in the oven on the shelf below the broccoli and onions | Set the timer for 15 minutes, by which time all the veggies should be golden brown | Remove both baking sheets and increase the oven temperature to 425\u00b0F\n\nWhile the vegetables are roasting, add the macaroni to the pan of boiling salted water and cook until al dente, according to the package directions | Drain and tip into the baking dish\n\nMeanwhile, warm the plant-based milk in the microwave | Put the dairy-free butter in the medium saucepan and stir with a wooden spoon until it melts | Turn the heat right down and gradually add the flour to the pan, stirring vigorously until you have a doughy paste | Gradually pour in the warm plant-based milk, stirring all the time until you have a thick, creamy sauce | Add the onion powder, garlic powder, mustard powder, nutritional yeast, dairy-free cheese, 1\u00bc teaspoons salt, and \u00be teaspoon pepper and stir into the sauce | Keep stirring until the sauce thickens to the consistency of custard\n\nAdd the cooked vegetables and sauce to the pasta and mix together so that everything is well covered | Sprinkle the breadcrumbs over the top, season with salt and pepper, and put the dish in the oven for 5 minutes to warm through and crisp up the breadcrumbs | Remove from the oven and serve with a small side salad, if you like\nSTIR-FRY NOODLES\n\nStir-fries are great go-to dishes for any night of the week. Once you've mastered a few different recipes you can knock out a tasty, healthy, satisfying meal in minutes, using whatever you've got left in the fridge. Become a stir-fry ninja and a world of culinary deliciousness awaits you.\n\n**1. Drop 2 tablespoons oil into a hot wok**\n\nCanola oil\n\nCoconut oil\n\nOlive oil\n\nToasted sesame oil\n\nVegetable oil\n\n**2. Trim and finely chop your aromatics and add them to the pan**\n\nGarlic\n\nGinger\n\nRed chili\n\nShallots\n\nScallions\n\n**3. Trim and finely slice the vegetables and add them to the pan (\u00be lb total veggies will serve 4 people)**\n\nAsparagus\n\nBaby corn\n\nBean sprouts\n\nBell peppers\n\nBok choy\n\nBroccoli\n\nCelery\n\nMushrooms\n\nOnion\n\nSnow peas\n\nSpinach\n\nSugar snap peas\n\nZucchini\n\n**4. Prepare your noodles following the package directions (they might need cooking before they go into the wok) and fold them into the vegetables (12 oz noodles will serve 4 people)**\n\nGlass noodles\n\nRice noodles\n\nRice vermicelli\n\nSoba noodles\n\nUdon noodles\n\nWhole wheat noodles\n\n**5. Drizzle your sauce over the vegetables and stir everything together**\n\nBasic Stir-fry\n\nOrange & Ginger\n\nBlack Pepper\n\nSweet & Sour\n\nHoisin\n\nSoy\n\nTeriyaki\n\n**6. Season your stir-fry and transfer to plates**\n\nLemon\n\nLime\n\nSalt\n\n**7. Finish off your stir-fry with the garnish of your choice**\n\nCashews\n\nCilantro leaves\n\nHot sauce\n\nPeanuts\n\nScallions, chopped\n\nSesame seeds\nSAUCE RECIPES\n\nIt's crucial to get an awesome sauce, but it doesn't need to be complicated; whatever you have in your kitchen will serve just fine, or you can knock together one of our sauces below for an extra kick of deliciousness!\nBASIC STIR-FRY\n\nSERVES 4\n\n3 garlic cloves\n\n1 tbsp brown sugar\n\n2 tsp cornstarch\n\n7 tbsp vegetable stock\n\n3 tbsp soy sauce\n\n1 tbsp rice vinegar\n\nPeel and finely chop the garlic | Put all the ingredients for your sauce into a measuring cup and mix together with a fork\nSWEET & SOUR\n\nSERVES 4\n\n1 tbsp brown sugar\n\n2 tsp cornstarch\n\n\u00bd cup vegetable stock\n\n2 tbsp ketchup\n\n1 tbsp soy sauce\n\n1 tbsp rice vinegar\n\nPut all the ingredients for your sauce into a measuring cup and mix together with a fork\nORANGE & GINGER\n\nSERVES 4\n\n1\u00bc-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n2 tsp cornstarch\n\n3 tbsp soy sauce\n\n1 tbsp rice wine vinegar\n\njuice of 1 large orange\n\nPeel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon and finely chop | Put all the ingredients for your sauce into a measuring cup and mix together with a fork\nBLACK PEPPER\n\nSERVES 4\n\n7 tbsp vegetable stock\n\n1 tbsp cornstarch\n\n2 tbsp water\n\n1 tsp brown sugar\n\n1 tsp black pepper\n\n3 tbsp soy sauce\n\n2 tsp rice vinegar\n\nPut all the ingredients for your sauce into a measuring cup and mix together with a fork\n\n**Big Eats**\n\nCook a proper meal\n\nSpend that extra time on food\n\nTo please and delight\nMUSHROOM & GUINNESS PIE\n\nSERVES 4\u20136\n\nOh my goodness, this take on a pub classic is so so good. It's a hug in a dish! The mushroom is rich and meaty and the Guinness adds a dark umami flavor. It's one for those winter nights after a long day in the cold (or at work!). Serve with Minted Mushy Peas.\n\n1\u00bd lb cremini mushrooms\n\n3 tbsp olive oil\n\n4 onions\n\n6 garlic cloves\n\n3 sprigs fresh rosemary, plus extra to decorate\n\n3 sprigs fresh thyme\n\n1 tbsp light brown sugar\n\n1\u00bc cups Guinness or other stout or brown ale\n\n2\u00bd tbsp all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting\n\n1\u20132 tbsp Dijon mustard\n\n5 tsp dark soy sauce\n\n1 lb ready-made dairy-free puff pastry\n\n2 tbsp dairy-free margarine\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Line a rimmed baking sheet | Large frying pan over medium heat | 8 to 8\u00bd-inch deep-dish pie plate | Rolling pin (or use a clean, dry wine bottle) | Pastry brush\n\n* * *\n\nQuarter the mushrooms and spread them over the lined baking sheet | Drizzle with 1 tablespoon of the oil, season lightly, and roast in the preheated oven for 15 minutes | When they're ready, remove and set aside, reserving any juices\n\nMeanwhile, add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil to the frying pan | Peel and slice the onions | Peel and finely chop the garlic | Add to the pan and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened | Reduce the temperature to medium-low\n\nRemove the leaves from the rosemary and thyme by running your thumb and forefinger from the top to the base of the stems (the leaves should easily come away) and finely chop, discarding the stems | Add to the pan along with the sugar and cook for 10 more minutes, until the onions are golden\n\nPour the ale into the pan, bring to a simmer, and cook for 10 more minutes so the liquid reduces | Reduce the heat to low and add the mushrooms and any juices in the baking sheet | Add the flour, mustard, and soy sauce and simmer gently for 15\u201320 minutes, stirring regularly | Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding more salt, pepper, mustard, or soy sauce if you like | Leave to cool slightly, then spoon the mushroom mixture into the pie plate\n\nLightly dust a work surface with flour and roll out the pastry until it is large enough to cover the top of the pie plate | Brush the rim of the dish with water and lay the pastry over the top | Cut off the excess pastry and crimp the edges of the pastry either by pinching it between your finger and thumb all the way round, or by pressing it against the dish with the back of a fork\n\nMelt the dairy-free margarine in the microwave and brush it all over the pastry | Use a small sharp knife to cut a little cross in the center of the pastry so that steam can escape | Top with a few rosemary sprigs to make it look fancy | Bake in the preheated oven for 30\u201335 minutes, until the pastry is golden brown, remove, and serve hot\nSWEET & SOUR CRISPY TOFU\n\nSERVES 2\u20134\n\nSweet and sour needs no introduction! This dish is an indulgent worldwide classic made with smooth, soft tofu. It's made even more delicious by the addition of pineapple, and the way the crispy fried tofu contrasts with the sweet syrupy sauce. Mix this with any other Asian dish and boiled rice and you have a winner on your hands.\n\nblock (10 oz) firm tofu\n\n2\u00bd-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n1 red onion\n\n1 garlic clove\n\n1 green bell pepper\n\ngenerous \u00be cup pineapple juice\n\n\u00bc cup rice vinegar\n\n\u00bc cup ketchup\n\n6 tbsp light brown sugar\n\n1 tsp garlic powder\n\n1 tsp onion powder, optional\n\n\u00bc cup cornstarch\n\n2 tbsp vegetable oil\n\n2 tbsp toasted sesame oil\n\n\u00bd tsp chili flakes\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n\u2154 cup canned pineapple chunks\n\nSmall saucepan over medium-low heat | Tofu press or 2 clean kitchen towels and a weight such as a heavy book | 2 large frying pans over medium-high heat | Fine grater\n\n* * *\n\nPress the tofu using a tofu press, or place it between two clean kitchen towels, lay it on a plate, and put a weight on top | Leave for at least 30 minutes to drain any liquid and firm up before you start cooking\n\nPeel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon and then grate it | Peel and finely slice the red onion and the garlic | Cut the bell pepper in half and cut out the stem and seeds | Chop the pepper into \u00be-inch chunks\n\nPut the pineapple juice, rice vinegar, ketchup, and brown sugar in the small saucepan and stir to dissolve the sugar | Increase the heat to medium-high and let it bubble away for about 7 minutes until you have a syrupy sauce | Take the saucepan off the heat and set aside\n\nPut the garlic powder and the onion powder, if using, into a large bowl with the cornstarch and mix together | Carefully cut the drained tofu into \u2153-inch chunks and add them to the bowl | Toss them gently in the cornstarch mixture until they're well covered\n\nHeat the vegetable oil in one of the large frying pans | Add the tofu chunks and fry until they have started to brown and formed a crispy coating, about 7\u201310 minutes (be delicate as you stir the cubes, you want to keep them intact) | Take the pan off the heat and set aside\n\nMeanwhile, heat the sesame oil in the second frying pan | Add the onion slices and stir until translucent, about 5 minutes | Add the bell pepper, chili flakes, salt, garlic, and ginger and continue to cook for another 3\u20135 minutes, stirring all the time | Drain the pineapple and add to the pan, continuing to stir until the pineapple is warm | Tip the tofu into the pan and heat | Pour in the sweet and sour sauce and fold it around the vegetables so that everything is well covered and warmed through, another 1\u20132 minutes\nIRRESISTIBLE RISOTTO\n\nSERVES 4\n\nThis risotto is bursting with color, flavor, and healthy goodness. We're big fans of getting as much green into our bodies as possible to give us the vital nutrients we need. This dish is testament to that, but it's also delicious. Cook slowly, add the stock bit by bit, and you'll have a dish guaranteed to please!\n\n2 oz macadamia nuts\n\n1 medium red onion\n\n2 large garlic cloves\n\n3 tbsp mixed fresh herbs, such as sage, parsley, and mint\n\n2\u00bd oz green beans\n\n2 oz asparagus\n\n2 oz kale\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\n3\u00be cups vegetable stock\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 cup + 2 tbsp risotto rice, such as Arborio or Carnaroli\n\n\u00bd cup dry white wine\n\ngenerous \u00bd cup green peas\n\n3 tbsp nutritional yeast\n\n1\u00bd tbsp dairy-free butter or spread\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nPreheat oven to 325\u00b0F | Small baking sheet | Medium saucepan over low heat | Medium saucepan over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nSpread the macadamia nuts over the small baking sheet, put the pan in the oven, and toast for 5\u20138 minutes, until golden | Leave to cool slightly, then roughly chop\n\nMeanwhile, peel and finely chop the red onion and garlic | Chop the herbs | Slice the green beans into \u00be-inch pieces | Snap the tough ends off the asparagus and cut the stalks into \u2153-inch pieces | Remove the tough stems from the kale and roughly chop | Finely grate the zest of the lemon\n\nPour the stock into the medium saucepan over low heat and keep warm\n\nAdd the olive oil to the other pan | Add the chopped onions and cook until they begin to soften, about 10\u201315 minutes | Add the garlic and stir for another minute | Pour in the rice and toast for a minute longer\n\nTurn up the heat slightly and pour in the white wine | Simmer until the liquid has almost completely evaporated, stirring frequently | Add the green beans and asparagus to the pan and give everything a stir\n\nNow start adding a ladleful of stock at a time, stirring continuously and waiting for the stock to be absorbed before adding the next ladleful | After 8 minutes, add the peas and kale to the pan and continue to cook for 6\u20138 minutes longer, until the rice is just cooked and the vegetables are tender (you might have a little stock left over)\n\nRemove the pan from the heat, stir in the chopped herbs, nutritional yeast, lemon zest, macadamia nuts, and dairy-free butter | Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve immediately\nTOM YUM SOUP\n\nSERVES 4\n\nThis was Henry's dish of choice as he traveled around Thailand. The healthy, spicy Thai classic just feels like holiday. As a soup it's surprisingly filling, and it's best eaten when it's so hot and spicy it's hard to continue and you break into sweats! Slurping is good here. Let this gorgeously hot, spicy soup warm you to your core!\n\n\u00bc cup olive oil\n\n1 small onion\n\n4 garlic cloves\n\n2 fresh red chilies\n\n1-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n6 cups vegetable stock\n\n1 tsp tomato paste\n\n2 lemongrass stalks\n\n6 kaffir lime leaves\n\n2 limes\n\n9 oz cremini mushrooms\n\n3\u00bd oz enoki mushrooms (2 bunches)\n\n7 oz cherry tomatoes\n\n1 can (8 oz) water chestnuts, optional\n\n4 scallions, to serve\n\nsmall handful fresh chives, to serve\n\nsmall handful fresh cilantro, to serve\n\nFOR THE TOM YUM PASTE\n\n2 tbsp vegetable oil\n\n\u00bc cup Thai Red Curry Paste (see here)\n\n3 tbsp palm sugar\n\n1 tsp salt\n\nWok over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nFirst make the tom yum paste | Add the vegetable oil to the wok | When it's hot add the red curry paste, palm sugar, and salt and fry for 3 minutes, until the paste goes a darker red color | Remove from the heat and scrape into a bowl | Give the wok a quick rinse and put back on the heat\n\nAdd the olive oil to the clean wok | Peel and roughly chop the onion | Peel the garlic | Rip the stems from the chilies and finely slice one, removing the seeds if you prefer a milder flavor | Peel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon and finely chop | Crush the garlic into the wok, add in the onion, chili, and ginger, and cook for 4 minutes to allow the flavors to infuse\n\nPour 2 cups of the stock into the wok and bring to a boil | Add the tom yum paste and mix well | Add the remaining stock and the tomato paste | Bash the bases of the lemongrass stalks and add them to the pan | Slice the lime leaves and throw them in | Simmer for 20 minutes\n\nCut the limes in half and squeeze in the juice, catching any seeds in your other hand | Halve the cremini mushrooms and add them to the pan with the enoki mushrooms and the tomatoes | Slice the water chestnuts, if using, and add them to the pan | Finely slice the remaining chili into long diagonal slices, removing the seeds if you prefer a milder flavor, and add to the pan | Simmer for 5 minutes longer\n\nDivide the soup among bowls | Trim and slice the scallions and chop the chives | Sprinkle over the soup along with the cilantro leaves and serve\nPASTA CAPONATA\n\nSERVES 4\u20136\n\nThis hearty dish features a rich Sicilian caponata sauce, complete with pine nuts and raisins, which has great depth of flavor, but with an added celery crunch and kick of chili. Feel free to use more or less garlic (we like lots of garlic!) and then serve with bread to soak up all the juices.\n\n2 eggplants (about 1 lb)\n\n10 oz cherry tomatoes\n\n3 tbsp olive oil\n\n1\u00bd tsp chili flakes\n\n1 red onion\n\n3 garlic cloves\n\n1 celery stalk\n\n2 tbsp tomato paste\n\n1 can (14.5 oz) chopped tomatoes\n\n1 tsp dried oregano\n\n2 sprigs fresh thyme\n\n3 tbsp small capers\n\n\u00bc cup raisins\n\n2 oz pitted Kalamata olives\n\n1 lb penne pasta\n\n\u00bd oz dark chocolate\n\n20 sprigs fresh parsley\n\n1 tbsp balsamic vinegar\n\n1\u00bd oz pine nuts\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Line a baking sheet | Large frying pan with lid over medium heat | Large saucepan | Small frying pan\n\n* * *\n\nTrim the eggplants and chop the flesh into \u00be-inch cubes | Lay on the lined baking sheet along with the cherry tomatoes and drizzle over 1 tablespoon of the olive oil | Sprinkle with a good layer of salt, pepper, and the chili flakes, put the pan in the preheated oven, and bake for 30 minutes\n\nMeanwhile, pour the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil into the large frying pan | Peel and finely chop the onion and garlic and add to the pan | Trim the leaves and root from the celery, then finely chop and add to the pan | Cook the onions, garlic, and celery for 10\u201315 minutes, stirring regularly, until they are soft and translucent\n\nAdd the tomato paste to the pan and stir | Add the chopped tomatoes, oregano, thyme, capers, raisins, and olives, plus a little salt and pepper to taste, then reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and let everything cook for 5 minutes | Remove the roasted eggplants and tomatoes from the oven and add them to the pan, giving everything a stir | Put the lid on and simmer for 12\u201315 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes to stop it burning\n\nBring a large saucepan of water to a boil and add a pinch of salt | Add the pasta and cook until al dente, according to the package directions | Drain the pasta and tip the cooked pasta back into the pasta pan\n\nMeanwhile, chop or grate the dark chocolate and sprinkle it into the caponata sauce | Strip the parsley leaves from the stems (save the stems for another recipe), then chop the leaves and add three-quarters to the pan along with the balsamic vinegar | Simmer uncovered for 3\u20135 minutes longer | Taste and season if necessary | Pour the sauce over the pasta and fold it in, making sure everything is well covered\n\nPut the small frying pan over medium-high heat and toast the pine nuts in the dry pan until golden | Sprinkle over the pasta along with the remaining parsley leaves before serving\nBIG BHAJI BURGER\n\nMAKES 6\n\nThis juxtaposition of Indian cuisine with the classic American burger works incredibly well. It's a fantastic fusion of flavors that are really big and satisfying, and you can play with really interesting toppings. These are great with Jane's Mint Raita, or make smaller bhaji bites and serve them with curry.\n\n2\u20134 cups vegetable oil, for deep-frying\n\n2 red onions\n\n2\u00bd-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n1 fresh red chili\n\ngenerous 1 cup fresh cilantro leaves\n\n1\u00bd tsp coriander seeds\n\n1\u00bd tsp cumin seeds\n\n2\u00bd cups chickpea flour\n\n1\u00bd tsp garam masala\n\ngenerous \u00be cup water\n\n4 good-quality burger buns\n\n3 tbsp vegan mayonnaise, to serve\n\n\u00bc small cucumber, to serve\n\n1 large tomato, to serve\n\n1 avocado, to serve\n\n1 little gem lettuce, to serve\n\n2 tbsp mango chutney, to serve\n\n1 pappadum, to serve\n\nsalt\n\nLarge saucepan over high heat | Cooking thermometer, optional | Pestle and mortar | Line a dinner plate with paper towels\n\n* * *\n\nPour the vegetable oil into the large saucepan so that it comes no more than two-thirds up the side of the pan | Heat the oil to 350\u00b0F, or until a wooden spoon dipped into the oil sizzles around the edges\n\nMeanwhile, peel and very finely slice the onions and put them into a big bowl | Peel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon and finely chop | Rip the stem from the chili, cut it in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds if you prefer a milder flavor, then finely chop and add to the pan | Roughly chop the cilantro leaves | Add the ginger, chili, and cilantro to the bowl | Crush the coriander seeds and cumin seeds with a pestle and mortar or the end of a rolling pin and add them to the bowl | Add the chickpea flour, garam masala, water, and a generous pinch of salt and mix until everything is well combined and covered with a wet sticky batter\n\nDivide the mixture into 6 and use your hands to mold it into patties around 3\u00bd inches wide and no more than \u2153 inch thick | Use a metal spoon to carefully lower 2 of the patties into the hot oil and cook them for about 5 minutes, flipping them over halfway | Remove the patties when they are golden and crisp and transfer to the plate lined with paper towels to drain any excess oil | Repeat with the remaining patties\n\nWhile the bhajis are frying, split the burger buns open and spread the bottom halves with vegan mayonnaise | Thinly slice the cucumber and tomato | Halve and carefully pit the avocado by tapping the pit firmly with the heel of a knife so that it lodges in the pit, then twist and remove the pit | Run a spoon around the inside of the avocado skin to scoop out the flesh, then slice finely\n\nTo serve the bhaji burgers, lay a few lettuce leaves on the bottom of the burger buns and place the burgers on top | Spread a little mango chutney on top of each, followed by slices of tomato, avocado, and cucumber | Break up the pappadum and sprinkle it over the top before closing the buns\nCREAMY SEASIDE PIE\n\nSERVES 6\n\nNothing says \"taste of the British seaside\" more than a fish pie, so we've replicated that flavor with a clever combination of mushrooms, capers, and lemon. Topped with crispy but fluffy potato, this hearty, healthy dish is guaranteed to impress your guests and warm your cockles. The different mushroom shapes give a wonderfully varied texture to this dish, just like a fish pie.\n\n1 large white onion\n\n4 garlic cloves\n\n1 lb 5 oz mixed mushrooms (this works best with Japanese mushrooms like shiitake, oyster mushrooms, buna shimeji, shiro shimeji, eryngii or king oysters, enoki, golden enoki, maitake, or a mixture)\n\n3 tbsp olive oil\n\n2 sheets nori\n\n7 tbsp white wine\n\n1 tbsp salt, plus a little extra\n\n3 tbsp unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n1 tbsp whole-grain mustard\n\n2 tbsp nutritional yeast\n\n2 tbsp capers\n\n1 tbsp caper brine\n\n1 lemon\n\n\u00be cup soy cream\n\n1\u00bd cups frozen green peas\n\n1 oz parsley leaves\n\nblack pepper\n\nFOR THE POTATO TOPPING\n\n3 lb russet or other fluffy potatoes\n\n3 tbsp dairy-free butter or spread, plus a little extra\n\n\u00bd cup soy cream\n\n3 tbsp unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n1 tsp whole-grain mustard\n\n1 tbsp nutritional yeast\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Large, deep frying pan over medium heat | Large saucepan with lid | 9 x 13-inch baking dish\n\n* * *\n\nTo make the topping, peel the potatoes and cut into large chunks | Put them in the large saucepan and add enough cold water to cover them | Add a big pinch of salt | Turn the heat to high and bring the water to a boil, then cover the pan partially with a lid and simmer for 15\u201320 minutes, until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a knife | Drain in a colander, then tip the potatoes back into the pan and set aside\n\nMeanwhile, peel and finely chop the onion and the garlic and roughly chop the mushrooms | Warm the oil in the large frying pan | Add the chopped onions to the pan and cook for 10 minutes, until soft (cook them slowly to make sure they don't burn and to draw out the flavor)\n\nUse scissors to cut the nori into \u2153-inch pieces and sprinkle them into the pan | Increase the heat to medium-high and add the chopped garlic and mushrooms | Cook for about 10 minutes, until soft, slightly golden, and significantly reduced in size (the pan will be very full to start) | Pour in the white wine and cook until reduced by half, another 2\u20133 minutes\n\nReduce the heat to medium and add 1 tablespoon of salt, the plant-based milk, mustard, and the nutritional yeast | Add the capers and the tablespoon of brine from the jar | Cut the lemon in half and squeeze in the juice, catching any seeds with your other hand | Stir everything around and continue to cook until the mushrooms have soaked up around half the liquid, about 10 minutes | Pour the soy cream into the pan and stir everything together so that the sauce has a nice creamy texture\n\nAdd the peas to the pan, folding them in so that they're well mixed | Take the pan off the heat | Roughly chop the parsley and stir it into the mixture | Pour the mushroom filling into the baking dish\n\nReturn to the potatoes | Add the dairy-free butter, soy cream, plant-based milk, mustard, and nutritional yeast to the potatoes and mash together until thick and creamy | Taste and season with salt and pepper\n\nSpoon the mashed potato on top of the mushroom filling and carefully smooth it out to the edges of the dish | Use a fork to scrape lines across the top | Flake over bits of dairy-free butter, if you like, to help the potato crisp up | Put in the oven and bake for 20 minutes, then put under the broiler for 2\u20133 minutes so it has a crispy crust with golden brown peaks\nCREAMY KORMA\n\nSERVES 4\u20136\n\nKorma is often thought of as an accessible beginner's curry. But, let's be honest, that's because it's downright delicious. We love a creamy korma. It's a dish that's close to our hearts. This one is healthy, tasty, and full of hearty flavor. Trust us, you're going to love it. Feel free to use any combination of roast vegetables you like. Serve with rice (see here) or Naan (see here).\n\n1 large sweet potato (about 14 oz)\n\n\u00bd butternut squash (about 1 lb)\n\n2 carrots (about 5 oz)\n\n3 tbsp vegetable oil\n\n2 large white onions\n\n7 green cardamom pods\n\n1\u00bd tsp poppy seeds\n\n2 whole cloves\n\n1 bay leaf\n\n1\u00be oz cashews\n\n2\u00bd oz blanched almonds\n\n\u00be-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n2 fresh green chilies\n\n3 garlic cloves\n\n\u00bd tsp ground nutmeg\n\n\u00bd tsp ground turmeric\n\n1 can (14 oz) coconut milk\n\n2 limes\n\ncooked rice, to serve, optional\n\nsmall bunch of fresh cilantro, to serve\n\n2 scallions, to serve\n\nsalt\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Line a baking sheet | Blender | Large frying pan\n\n* * *\n\nPeel the sweet potato, squash and carrots | Cut into \u00be-inch chunks and arrange on the lined baking sheet | Drizzle with 1 tablespoon of the oil and season lightly with salt | Put the pan in the oven and roast for 30 minutes, turning the pan in the oven after 20 minutes if necessary | Remove when softened and a little brown | Peel and finely slice the onions\n\nBash the cardamom pods with the end of a knife and tear them open | Tip the seeds into the large frying pan | Add the poppy seeds and cloves and set over medium-high heat | Toast for 2 minutes\n\nReduce the heat to medium-low | Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil | Add the onions, bay leaf, cashews, and three-quarters of the blanched almonds | Stir and cook for 12 minutes, until the onions are soft and the nuts slightly golden, stirring regularly\n\nPeel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon, then roughly chop | Rip the stems from the chilies, cut them in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds if you prefer a milder sauce, then finely chop | Peel and crush the garlic into the pan | Add the ginger, chili, ground nutmeg, and turmeric to the pan | Cook for another 2 minutes\n\nTake off the heat and cool for 5 minutes | Remove the bay leaf | Transfer to the blender with half the coconut milk and whizz to a smooth paste, about 60 seconds | Pour back into the pan and set over medium heat\n\nAdd the roasted vegetables to the pan | Pour in the rest of the coconut milk and stir gently until well mixed | Reduce the heat and simmer for about 5 minutes | Add a splash of water if the sauce is too thick\n\nCut the limes in half and squeeze the juice over the curry, catching any seeds in your other hand | Season to taste with salt\n\nDivide among 4\u20136 plates and serve with rice, if using | Chop the stems from the cilantro and save for another recipe, then chop the leaves and the rest of the blanched almonds and slice the scallions | Scatter a little over each portion\nPASTABALL MARINARA\n\nSERVES 4\n\nThis inside-out pasta dish is insanely delicious! We were coming up with revolutionary burger recipes and, like Einstein creating relativity, realized we could make meatballs out of pasta. The tomato sauce is one of the lushest, thickest pasta sauces we have ever created\u2014it's truly scrumptious. If you prefer less sugar, substitute vegan pesto for the BBQ sauce.\n\n9 oz whole-wheat pasta shapes, such as penne\n\n1 can (15 oz) black beans\n\n1\u00be oz sun-dried tomatoes in oil\n\n1 tbsp chili powder\n\n3 tbsp BBQ sauce\n\nolive oil\n\n1 large onion\n\n2 garlic cloves\n\na few small fresh basil leaves, to serve\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nFOR THE MARINARA SAUCE\n\n1 large onion\n\n3 garlic cloves\n\nolive oil\n\n1 cup red wine\n\n1\u00bd tbsp dried oregano\n\n1 bay leaf\n\n5 tbsp tomato paste\n\n5 tbsp water\n\n2 lb tomatoes\n\n\u00bd cup fresh basil leaves\n\n\u00bd tsp sugar\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Line a baking sheet | Large deep frying pan with a lid over medium heat | Boiling water | Large saucepan | Food processor | Frying pan\n\n* * *\n\nTo make the sauce, peel and finely chop the onion and garlic | Add some oil to the large frying pan and cook the onions for 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened | Add the garlic and cook for another minute, until the smell of the garlic fills the room | Add the red wine and stir, then cook for 5 minutes until the wine is bubbling and starting to thicken | Add the oregano and bay leaf and stir | Add the tomato paste and water and stir again\n\nFinely chop the tomatoes and scrape them into the pan with all the juices | Tear the basil leaves into the pan and stir everything together | Add the sugar and some salt and pepper to taste | Put the lid on the pan, reduce the heat to medium-low, and leave to simmer for 15\u201325 minutes, stirring occasionally (the longer you leave it, the richer the sauce) | Uncover and simmer for 10 minutes | When it's ready the sauce should be rich, luscious, and thick | Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary\n\nWhile the sauce is simmering, in the large saucepan, bring water to a boil and add a pinch of salt | Add the pasta and cook until al dente, according to the package directions | Drain and rinse the pasta under cold water for 30 seconds to cool it to room temperature\n\nTip the cold, cooked pasta into the food processor | Drain the black beans and the sun-dried tomatoes and add them to the food processor along with the chili powder and BBQ sauce | Blend to a thick paste, then pour the mixture into a large bowl\n\nPlace another frying pan over medium heat and add a little oil | Peel and finely chop the onion and 2 garlic cloves | Add the onion to the hot pan and cook for around 15 minutes, until soft | Add the garlic and stir it around until you've released the aroma (a minute or so) | Tip the onions and garlic into the bowl with the pasta and mix everything together | Add a little salt and pepper to taste\n\nWet your hands to stop the mixture sticking | Pull small pieces of the mixture out of the bowl and shape them into 1\u00bc-inch balls | Arrange the balls on the lined baking sheet\n\nAdd a little olive oil to the pan you used to cook the onions and set over medium-high heat | When the pan is nice and hot, add the balls in batches, turning them over regularly until they brown all over, about 3\u20135 minutes | Transfer the browned pastaballs to the lined baking sheet and, once all the batches are done, transfer to the oven | Bake for 10 minutes\n\nTo serve, put a couple of large spoonfuls of the sauce into serving bowls and top each with 4 pastaballs | Garnish with a few torn-up basil leaves and a drizzle of olive oil | Serve immediately\nROGAN BOSH!\n\nSERVES 2\u20134\n\nThis is our take on a Kashmiri specialty curry. It's meant to be red, rustic, and spicy. We've used our favorite vegetable\u2014eggplant\u2014and coconut yogurt to give the creamy texture, but you could use different veggies if you prefer. Serve with Naan, Perfectly Boiled Rice, or on its own for a lighter dish.\n\n4 garlic cloves\n\n1\u00bd-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n3 fresh red chilies\n\n1 tbsp tomato paste\n\n\u00bc cup water\n\n1 large eggplant\n\n3 tbsp vegetable oil\n\n4 green cardamom pods\n\n1 onion\n\n6 black peppercorns\n\n1 bay leaf\n\n\u00bc-inch cinnamon stick\n\n1 tsp sugar\n\n1 tsp ground cumin\n\n2 tsp ground coriander\n\n7 tbsp coconut yogurt\n\nlarge pinch of garam masala\n\nhandful fresh cilantro, to serve\n\nhandful coconut flakes, to serve\n\nsalt\n\nBlender | Large frying pan over medium-high heat | Large saucepan with a lid\n\n* * *\n\nPeel the garlic and ginger and put them into the blender | Rip the stems from 2 of the chilies, removing the seeds if you prefer a milder sauce, and add them to the blender | Add the tomato paste and \u00bc cup water and blend to a smooth paste (add more water if needed)\n\nTrim the eggplant and cut it into \u2153 x \u00bc-inch chunks | Add 2 tablespoons of the oil to the large frying pan | Add the eggplant and cook for about 10\u201315 minutes, turning regularly, until well browned on each side\n\nWhile the eggplant is cooking, put the cardamom pods in a mortar and pestle and bash them to release the seeds (or use the end of a rolling pin) | Discard the shells | Peel and finely chop the onion\n\nWhen the eggplant is browned, tip it onto a plate and set aside | Add the remaining oil to the pan along with the cardamom, peppercorns, bay leaf, and cinnamon and fry for 2 minutes | Add the chopped onion and sugar | Reduce the heat to medium and saut\u00e9 for about 10\u201315 minutes, stirring the onions until they've softened (add a splash more oil to the pan if the onions begin to stick)\n\nAdd the ginger paste from the blender to the saucepan | Add the ground cumin and coriander and mix everything together well | Set the pan over medium-high heat and fry for 5 minutes, stirring regularly | Add the eggplant cubes and stir well | Add the coconut yogurt and stir it in (if it's too thick, add a little water to loosen\u2014you want a thick, gravy-like consistency) | Cover with the lid and cook for 5 minutes\n\nRip the stem from the remaining chili, cut it in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds if you prefer a milder flavor, then slice finely | Taste the curry and season with salt or garam masala as necessary | Serve up onto bowls or plates, sprinkled with a little fresh cilantro, coconut flakes, and the finely sliced chili\nSWEET PEPPER FAJITAS\n\nMAKES 6 LARGE FAJITAS\n\nWe challenged ourselves to create the ultimate healthy fajita and we think this combination of peppers, beans, guacamole, and salsa hits the spot. It's a delicious Spanish-inspired fried pepper recipe that works really well as part of a hybrid fajita platter that would please a crowd. It's great as a lunch, dinner, or even in a packed lunch!\n\nolive oil, for frying\n\n1 onion\n\n2 garlic cloves\n\n6 mixed red, yellow, and green bell peppers\n\n\u00bd tbsp dark brown sugar\n\n1 tsp hot chili powder\n\n1 tsp ground cumin\n\n1 tsp paprika\n\n\u00bc tsp cayenne pepper\n\n\u00bc tsp garlic powder\n\na pinch of black pepper\n\n1 can (15 oz) kidney beans\n\n2 cups fresh cilantro leaves\n\n1 can (15 oz) refried beans, optional\n\n1 x portion Perfectly Boiled Rice (see here)\n\n2 cups guacamole (store-bought or see here)\n\n1 cup fresh salsa (store-bought or see here)\n\n6 10-inch flour tortillas\n\n3 limes\n\n2 oz tortilla chips\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nPreheat the oven to 300\u00b0F | Large frying pan over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nAdd a little oil to the frying pan | Peel and finely slice the onion and garlic and add them to the pan | Cut the bell peppers in half, cut out the stems and seeds, slice the flesh into \u00bc-inch-wide strips, and add them to the pan | Sprinkle with the brown sugar and a pinch of salt\n\nPut the chili powder into a small bowl with the cumin, paprika, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, and a pinch each of salt and pepper | Stir to mix and then tip over the peppers in the pan | Reduce the heat a little, then cook for 30 minutes until soft, stirring regularly so that the peppers don't stick to the pan\n\nMeanwhile, drain the kidney beans and tip them into a serving bowl | Chop a third of the cilantro leaves and add them to the kidney beans | Spoon the refried beans, if using, into another bowl | Tip the cooked rice into another bowl | Spoon the guacamole and salsa into separate serving bowls\n\nPut the tortillas on an ovenproof plate or baking sheet, cover with foil, and put in the oven to warm\n\nThe peppers are ready when they look well fried (but not blackened), are soft, and taste sweet and delicious | Transfer them to a serving bowl | Take the tortillas out of the oven and transfer them to a serving plate\n\nCut the limes into quarters | Roughly chop the remaining cilantro leaves | Fill a bowl with the tortilla chips\n\nTake all the separate bowls to the table | Fill the fajitas with delicious dollops of everything and roll them up to enjoy!\nTHAI RED CURRY\n\nSERVES 4\n\nThai Red Curry may possibly be the best thing humans ever invented, at least since tools, the wheel, and (maybe) sliced bread. It's a feel-good meal with a hell of a kick. It's always best when you make your own paste; it doesn't take long and you can keep half for Tom Yum Soup or freeze it for later.\n\n1 red bell pepper\n\n1 green bell pepper\n\n1 fresh red chili\n\n7 oz mushrooms\n\n2 oz baby corn\n\n2 tbsp vegetable oil\n\n1 can (14 oz) coconut milk\n\n\u2154 cup vegetable stock\n\n1 tbsp palm sugar (or regular sugar)\n\n2 tbsp agave syrup\n\n\u00bc cup soy sauce\n\n6 oz baby plum tomatoes\n\n2 oz snow peas\n\nhalf a 15-oz can lychees, optional\n\nFOR THE THAI RED CURRY PASTE (MAKES ABOUT \u00be CUP)\n\n1 tsp cumin seeds\n\n2 tbsp coriander seeds\n\n\u00be-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n5 shallots\n\n5 garlic cloves\n\n2 lemongrass stalks\n\n3 fresh red chilies\n\n1 red bird's eye chili, optional\n\n1 tsp black peppercorns\n\n\u00bd roasted red pepper from a jar\n\n2 tbsp tomato paste\n\n3 kaffir lime leaves\n\n\u00bd lime\n\n5 sprigs fresh cilantro, plus extra for garnish\n\n2 tsp salt\n\n3 tbsp water\n\nBlender | Large deep frying pan or wok over high heat\n\n* * *\n\nTo make the Thai red curry paste, scatter the cumin and coriander seeds over the pan and toast for 2 minutes | Peel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon and roughly chop | Peel and roughly chop the shallots | Peel the garlic | Trim and roughly chop the lemongrass | Rip the stems from the chilies, removing the seeds if you prefer a milder sauce\n\nPut the toasted seeds into the blender along with the ginger, shallots, garlic, and lemongrass | Add the fresh red chilies, bird's eye chili, if using, peppercorns, roasted red pepper, tomato paste, and the lime leaves | Squeeze in the lime juice, catching any seeds in your other hand | Add the sprigs fresh cilantro, salt, and a splash of water, then whizz until really smooth with no bits, adding up to 3 tbsp of water to loosen it if necessary | Spoon \u00bc cup of the paste into a bowl and set the rest aside to use another time (freeze it in batches of \u00bc cup)\n\nCut the red and green bell peppers in half and cut out the stems and seeds, then cut into \u00be-inch chunks | Rip the stems from 2 of the chilies, removing the seeds if you prefer a milder flavor, and cut into slices | Slice the mushrooms and halve the baby corn\n\nPut the pan back over high heat and add the oil | When it's hot, add \u00bc cup curry paste and fry for 2 minutes, until the paste deepens in color and smells amazing | Pour in the coconut milk and vegetable stock and stir well to mix everything together | Add the sugar, agave syrup, soy sauce, bell peppers, chili, mushroom, baby corn, tomatoes, and snow peas | Drain the lychees, if using, and add them to the pan | Bring to a boil and simmer for 7\u201310 minutes, until the vegetables are cooked through | Taste and adjust the seasoning, adding salt, sugar, or agave syrup as required\n\nSpoon the curry into bowls, garnish with a handful of cilantro leaves, and serve alongside white rice\nRED RATATOUILLE RISOTTO\n\nSERVES 4\n\nSometimes ideas hide in plain sight: we thought to ourselves, why couldn't we use red wine to make risotto? This controversial idea has upset some but pleased many more, with hundreds of people recreating this dish and sending us their pictures. It has all the goodness of risotto but with the romantic flair of red wine.\n\n1 eggplant (about 9 oz)\n\n1 zucchini (about 7 oz)\n\n6 tomatoes (about 1 lb)\n\n\u00bc cup olive oil\n\n1 large red onion\n\n2 garlic cloves\n\n5 sun-dried tomatoes in oil\n\n2 sprigs fresh rosemary\n\n2 sprigs fresh thyme\n\n3\u00be cups vegetable stock\n\n2 tbsp tomato paste\n\n1 cup + 2 tbsp risotto rice\n\n\u00bd cup red wine\n\n1\u00bd tbsp dairy-free butter or spread\n\n2 tbsp pine nuts, to serve\n\nhandful fresh basil leaves, to serve\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Line a baking sheet | Medium saucepan over low heat | Medium saucepan over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nTrim the eggplant, zucchini, and tomatoes and cut them into 1-inch chunks | Put them all on the lined baking sheet, drizzle over 2 tablespoons of the oil, and season with salt and pepper | Put the pan in the oven and bake for 40 minutes\n\nMeanwhile, peel and finely chop the red onion and garlic | Finely chop the sun-dried tomatoes | Remove the leaves from the herbs by running your thumb and forefinger from the top to the base of the stems (the leaves should easily come away), then finely chop\n\nPlace the stock in the medium saucepan over low heat and keep warm\n\nWarm the remaining 2 tablespoons of oil in the other pan | Add the chopped red onion to the pan and cook until soft and translucent, about 10\u201315 minutes | Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute longer | Add the rosemary and thyme, sun-dried tomatoes, and tomato paste and give everything a stir | Cook for another 4\u20135 minutes\n\nPour the risotto rice into the pan and stir it around for 1 minute | Increase the heat slightly, pour in the red wine, and stir until the rice has absorbed all the wine | Now start adding the stock, a ladleful at a time, waiting until the stock has been absorbed before adding another ladleful (you might not need all of it)\n\nAfter 15 minutes, the rice should be about 2\u20133 minutes away from being perfectly al dente | Take the roasted ratatouille vegetables out of the oven, scrape them into the pan, and fold them into the risotto along with all their juices | Stir until the rice is just cooked | Remove the pan from the heat and add the dairy-free butter | Season with salt and pepper\n\nDivide among 4 bowls | Sprinkle with the pine nuts and garnish with fresh basil leaves\nSAAG ALOO CURRY\n\nSERVES 2\u20134\n\nThis is definitely one of our healthier curries, but it's also powerfully spicy and tastes like takeout at home. There are lots of layers of flavor, the fenugreek being the star. We've made our spinach three ways to get maximum creaminess and freshness. Serve this with a couple of other curries for a DIY Indian sensation.\n\nFOR THE POTATOES\n\n1 lb new potatoes\n\n1 white onion\n\n3 garlic cloves\n\n2 tbsp sunflower oil\n\n\u00bc tsp cumin seeds\n\n1 tsp ground turmeric\n\n2 tsp garam masala\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\nFOR THE CURRY\n\n1 white onion\n\n1 fresh chili\n\n2 garlic cloves\n\n2\u2153-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n2 medium tomatoes (about 6 oz)\n\n14 oz baby spinach\n\n5 tbsp water\n\n2 tbsp sunflower oil\n\n2 tbsp garam masala\n\n1 tsp ground turmeric\n\n1 tbsp ground coriander\n\n1 tsp ground fenugreek\n\n1 tsp salt, plus a little extra\n\n\u00bd tsp sugar\n\n7 tbsp soy cream\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\nMedium saucepan of boiling salted water over high heat | Large frying pan over medium heat | Blender | Deep frying pan with a lid over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nPeel the potatoes and cut them all in half | Put them into the medium saucepan and add just enough water to cover | Put the pan over high heat and bring to a boil, then immediately reduce the heat to medium and simmer until cooked, about 12\u201315 minutes | Take the pan off the heat and drain the potatoes in a colander\n\nMeanwhile, peel and finely chop the onion | Peel and mince the garlic | Add the oil to the large frying pan over medium heat | Sprinkle in the cumin seeds and stir until they release their aroma, about 1 minute\n\nAdd the chopped onion and garlic and stir until the onion has softened, about 15 minutes | Add the potatoes, the turmeric, garam masala, and salt | Stir until the potatoes have taken on the color of the spices | Remove from the heat and set aside\n\nPeel and finely dice the onion for the curry | Rip the stem from the chili, cut it in half lengthwise (remove the seeds for a milder sauce), then finely chop | Peel and mince the garlic | Peel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon and finely chop | Finely chop the tomatoes\n\nRoughly chop one-quarter of the spinach and finely chop another one-quarter | Put the remaining spinach into the blender with the water and whizz until completely blended\n\nAdd the oil to the deep-frying pan | Scrape in the chopped onions and garlic and fry until soft, about 10\u201315 minutes | Add the chili and ginger and stir for 2 more minutes | Add the tomatoes and stir until softened, about 3\u20135 minutes | Add the garam masala and turmeric, the ground coriander, fenugreek, salt, and sugar and stir until well combined\n\nAdd the roughly chopped spinach and stir until completely wilted | Add the finely chopped spinach and stir to mix | Pour in the blended spinach and stir until you have a dark green sauce | Simmer until thickened, about 10 minutes\n\nPour in the soy cream and stir in the potatoes | Cook until the sauce is bubbling slightly | Squeeze in the juice of the lemon, catching any seeds in your other hand | Serve hot alongside rice or naan\nSHEPHERD'S POTATO\n\nMAKES 6\n\nThis is our (slightly ridiculous) remix of two British classics: shepherd's pie and jacket potato. We've turned them on their heads to create possibly the poshest jacket potato you will ever eat. The hearty, smoky filling and fluffy potato goodness create a night-in dish to impress.\n\n6 large baking potatoes\n\n2 tbsp olive oil, plus a little bit extra\n\n1 white onion\n\n1 celery stalk\n\n1 medium carrot\n\n2 garlic cloves\n\n3 sprigs fresh rosemary, plus extra to serve\n\n3 sprigs fresh thyme\n\n2 tsp whole-grain mustard\n\n3 tbsp tomato paste\n\n1 tbsp soy sauce\n\n5 oz cremini mushrooms\n\n4 oz cooked puy lentils (homemade or store-bought)\n\n1 cup vegetable stock\n\n1\u00bd tbsp dairy-free butter or spread\n\n2 tbsp nutritional yeast\n\n1 tsp chili flakes, to serve\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nPreheat the oven to 390\u00b0F | Baking sheet | Deep frying pan over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nPut the potatoes on the baking sheet and prick them with a fork | Drizzle with the 2 tablespoons of olive oil, season with salt and pepper, then rub them all over until completely covered | Put the pan in the hot oven and bake for 45\u201360 minutes, until soft\n\nPeel and finely chop the white onion | Trim the leaves and root from the celery, then finely chop | Trim the carrot, peeling it if you like, and finely chop\n\nAdd a little oil to the hot pan | Add the chopped onions, celery, and carrots and fry until they start to soften, about 5\u201310 minutes | Peel and crush the garlic into the pan | Remove the leaves from the rosemary and thyme by running your thumb and forefinger from the top to the base of the stems (the leaves should easily come away), finely chop, and add to the pan | Season and cook for 2\u20133 minutes | Add the mustard, tomato paste, and soy sauce and stir | Reduce the heat to a light simmer\n\nChop the mushrooms very finely and add them to the pan | Add the lentils, stir everything together, and cook for 5\u20137 minutes | Pour in the stock and mix\n\nWhen they're done, take the potatoes out of the oven (but leave the oven on) and let them cool down for a few minutes | Use a sharp knife to cut a round lid off the top of each potato | Scoop out the fluffy middles, leaving at least a \u2153-inch shell all round the insides, and transfer to a bowl | Add the dairy-free butter, nutritional yeast, and a pinch of salt and pepper to the bowl and mash\n\nFill each potato to the brim with the mushroom filling and top with a large dollop of mashed potato | Return the baking sheet to the oven and bake for 10\u201315 minutes to get the topping nice and crispy | Take the tray out of the oven | Sprinkle each potato with chili flakes, the remaining chopped rosemary, and some pepper before serving\nSPAGHETTI BOLOGNESE\n\nSERVES 4\u20136\n\nOur \"spag bol\" has all the deliciousness of the original, but with minced mushrooms providing the rich, smoky flavor. If you're looking for a warming, satisfying, and healthy(ish) dinner, then look no further. Perfect for a date night and great with a glass of red wine.\n\n1\u00bd lb cremini mushrooms\n\n1 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 lb spaghetti\n\na few small fresh basil leaves, to serve\n\nsalt and pepper\n\nFOR THE TOMATO SAUCE\n\n2 red onions\n\n1 celery stalk\n\n4 garlic cloves\n\n2 carrots\n\n1 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 tbsp tomato paste\n\n1\u00bc cups red wine\n\n1 tsp balsamic vinegar\n\n\u00bd tbsp dried oregano\n\n1 bay leaf\n\n2 tsp soy sauce\n\nFood processor | Large frying pan over high heat | Large saucepan\n\n* * *\n\nPut the mushrooms in the food processor and pulse until very finely minced (you can chop them if you prefer, but it's quicker with a food processor)\n\nPour the oil into the frying pan | Add the mushrooms and season with a small pinch of salt and pepper | Cook for 10\u201315 minutes, stirring regularly, until all the liquid has evaporated and the mushrooms are well browned | Take the pan off the heat, transfer the mushrooms to a bowl, and set aside\n\nPeel and roughly chop the onions for the tomato sauce | Trim the leaves and root from the celery and roughly chop | Peel the garlic | Trim the carrots and peel if the skin is tough, then roughly chop | Put the chopped vegetables and garlic into the food processor and mince well\n\nPut the same pan back over medium-high heat and add the oil | Add the minced onions, garlic, carrots, and celery and cook for about 10 minutes, until all the vegetables are soft | Stir in the tomato paste | Add the red wine, balsamic vinegar, oregano, bay leaf, and soy sauce | Stir everything together and then turn down the heat | Simmer for 10 minutes\n\nMeanwhile, bring a large saucepan of water to a boil over high heat and season with a big pinch of salt | Add the pasta to the pan and cook until al dente, according to the package directions | Spoon a scant \u00bd cup of the pasta water into a cup and set aside | Drain the pasta\n\nTaste the sauce and season with salt and pepper | Add the minced mushrooms to the simmering sauce, turn up the heat, and pour in the reserved pasta water | Stir everything together and let the sauce simmer for another 3\u20135 minutes to warm through\n\nPour the sauce into the pasta pot and stir everything together so that the sauce completely covers the pasta | Scatter in the basil leaves and grind over some black pepper | Serve to happy faces!\n\n**Showpieces**\n\nNow it's real wow time\n\nCreate awesome showpieces\n\nTo impress your guests\nBURRITO SAMOSAS\n\nMAKES 5\n\nThis two-dish combination is a BOSH! classic and an internet sensation. This is the traditional burrito ingredients in an unfamiliar but fantastic form. It's perfect for lunch, dinner, or you can take it on the go with you. It's a hearty, full meal best served with salad and Guacamole or Salsa.\n\n3 russet or other fluffy potatoes (about 1 lb)\n\n1 red onion\n\n3 garlic cloves\n\n1 red bell pepper\n\n1 fresh red chili\n\n3 tbsp vegetable oil\n\n2 tsp smoked paprika\n\n1 tbsp ground coriander\n\n2 tsp ground cumin\n\n1 tbsp + \u00bd tsp Tabasco sauce, or to taste\n\n1 can (15 oz) black beans\n\n2 cups cooked basmati rice (store-bought or see here)\n\n1\u00bd limes\n\n1 cup fresh cilantro leaves\n\n3\u00bd oz dairy-free cheese\n\n6 10-inch flour tortillas\n\nguacamole (store-bought or see here), to serve\n\nsalsa (store-bought or see here), to serve\n\nsalt\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Line a baking sheet | Medium saucepan over high heat | Large frying pan | Pastry brush\n\n* * *\n\nPeel the potatoes and chop them into \u2153-inch chunks | Put them into the medium saucepan and add just enough water to cover | Set the pan over high heat and bring to a boil, then immediately reduce the heat to medium and simmer until cooked, about 10 minutes | Take the pan off the heat and drain the potatoes in a colander\n\nMeanwhile, peel and finely chop the red onion and garlic | Cut the bell pepper in half and cut out the stem and seeds, then finely chop | Rip the stem from the chili, cut it in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds if you prefer a milder flavor, then finely chop\n\nSet the large frying pan over medium heat and add the vegetable oil | Once it's hot, add the minced vegetables and fry until soft, about 10 minutes | Add the smoked paprika, ground coriander, cumin, 1 tablespoon of the Tabasco, and a pinch of salt to the pan and stir everything together | Add the potatoes to the pan and stir until they've taken on all the colors and flavors and begun to crisp up slightly on the sides, about 10 minutes | Drain the black beans and tip them into the pan | Stir until warmed through | Take the pan off the heat and transfer the contents to a mixing bowl\n\nTip the cooked rice into a mixing bowl and fluff it with a fork | Cut the limes in half and squeeze in the juice, catching any seeds in your other hand | Scatter over the cilantro leaves, a pinch of salt, and \u00bd teaspoon of the Tabasco and stir them into the rice\n\nGrate the dairy-free cheese into a bowl\n\nTake one of the tortillas and cut into 5 equal-sized wedges | Cut across the curved edge of each wedge so that you have a straight-sided triangle | Set aside these triangles, which will be used to seal your samosas\n\nTake another tortilla and lay it out on a clean work surface | Take about one-fifth of the rice and place it in the center of the tortilla | Follow with one-fifth of the dairy-free cheese and then one-fifth of the potato mixture | Shape the filling roughly into triangles with your hands, making sure it is in the middle of the tortilla | Place one of the tortilla triangles on top of the ingredients and press down slightly | Brush the rim of the round tortilla as well as the tortilla triangle with water (this will act as a glue to stick them together) | Fold the edges of the tortilla into the middle to form a triangle | Put the \"samosa\" on the lined baking sheet, fold side down | Repeat with the remaining samosas\n\nPut the pan in the oven and bake for 20\u201325 minutes, until the samosas are crisp to the touch | Remove from the oven and serve with guacamole and salsa for happy dipping!\nMASSAMAN CURRY\n\nSERVES 4\n\nThis is an absolute jaw-dropper of a curry. It has an incredible depth of hearty, umami flavor and a richness that keeps on giving. The spice kick is big but not too bold as it is infused throughout the dish. You could make this in the morning and leave it in the slow cooker all day for melt-in-your-mouth veggies. Serve with Perfectly Boiled Rice.\n\n1 tsp fennel seeds\n\n1 tsp cumin seeds\n\n1 tsp coriander seeds\n\n6 whole cloves\n\nvegetable oil\n\n2 lemongrass stalks\n\n8 shallots\n\n4 garlic cloves\n\n1-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n1 oz fresh cilantro sprigs\n\n3 kaffir lime leaves\n\n2 tbsp chili paste\n\n1 can (14 oz) coconut milk\n\n1 potato (about 8 oz)\n\n2 sweet potatoes (about 1 lb)\n\n1 red bell pepper\n\n\u00bc lb green beans\n\n\u00bd small cauliflower\n\n2 cups vegetable stock\n\n1 tbsp tamarind paste\n\n2 bay leaves\n\n1 cinnamon stick\n\ncooked rice, to serve\n\n\u00bc cup roasted peanuts\n\nLarge saucepan over high heat | Blender\n\n* * *\n\nPut the fennel, cumin, and coriander seeds and cloves into the saucepan and toast for about 2 minutes, until fragrant | Transfer to the blender | Put the pan back on the heat and add a little oil\n\nTrim the top and bottom off the lemongrass and carefully cut them in half lengthwise | Peel the shallots and garlic | Peel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon | Separate the leaves and stems of the fresh cilantro and set both aside\n\nRoughly chop the lemongrass, shallots, garlic, and ginger and tip them into the pan | Fry for 3 minutes, until lightly browned, then tip into the blender | Add the lime leaves, chili paste, and cilantro stems | Blend until you've created a completely smooth paste with a deep brown color and no bits | Pour back into the pan, turn the heat up to medium-high, and fry for 2 minutes, or until golden brown | Pour in the coconut milk, reduce the heat to medium, and let it bubble away slowly until reduced by a third\n\nMeanwhile, peel the potato and sweet potatoes and chop into 1\u00bc-inch cubes | Cut the bell pepper in half and cut out the stem and seeds, then chop into 1\u00bc-inch squares | Cut the green beans into 1-inch pieces | Break the cauliflower into small florets\n\nAdd the vegetable stock to the pan, followed by the potato, sweet potato, cauliflower, bell pepper, and green beans | Add the tamarind paste, bay leaves, and cinnamon stick and bring to a boil, stirring continuously | Immediately reduce the heat to low and leave to simmer for 45\u201360 minutes, stirring occasionally, until you have a very thick, rich, curry consistency\n\nChop the reserved cilantro leaves | Serve the curry alongside boiled rice, scattered with the roasted peanuts and fresh cilantro\nGIANT BURRITO CAKE\n\nSERVES 8\u201310\n\nA giant burrito, wrapped up warm then baked in a frying pan = the most amazing sharing platter you ever had! Inspired by our good friends at Jungle Creations, this dish is incredibly easy and impressive. It's been cooked time and time again by our fans and is one of our finest food remixes to date. You can see this in all its flavor-packed glory here.\n\n4 oz cherry tomatoes\n\n3 scallions\n\n1 tbsp olive oil\n\n6\u20137 10-inch flour tortillas\n\n10 slices dairy-free cheese\n\n1 lime\n\nFOR THE VEGETABLE FILLING\n\n2 medium sweet potatoes (about 1 lb)\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\n\u00bd\u20131 tsp chili flakes\n\n1 red onion\n\n1 red bell pepper\n\n1 yellow bell pepper\n\n1 green bell pepper\n\n1 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 tsp garlic powder\n\n1 tsp paprika\n\n1\u00bd tsp cayenne pepper\n\n1 tsp onion powder\n\n1 tsp ground cumin\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nFOR THE RICE FILLING\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\n5 scallions\n\n3 garlic cloves\n\n2 cups cooked basmati rice (store-bought or see here)\n\n1 can (15 oz) black beans\n\n\u00bc tsp Tabasco sauce\n\nsalt\n\n1 tbsp ground cumin\n\n12 sprigs fresh cilantro\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Line 2 baking sheets | Large ovenproof frying pan | Medium saucepan | Pastry brush\n\n* * *\n\nTo make the vegetable filling, first cut the sweet potatoes into \u00bc-inch-thick slices | Lay them out on one of the lined baking sheets, drizzle them with 1 tablespoon olive oil, and sprinkle over the chili flakes and a good pinch each of salt and pepper | Mix everything around so that the potatoes are well coated | Put the pan into the hot oven and bake for 30 minutes, then remove the pan and set it aside\n\nWhile the potatoes are in the oven, peel and finely slice the red onion | Cut the bell peppers in half and cut out the stems and seeds, then cut them into slices | Spread the onion and pepper slices over the second lined baking sheet and drizzle them with 1 tablespoon olive oil | Sprinkle with the garlic powder, paprika, cayenne pepper, onion powder, and ground cumin | Mix everything together and then put the pan into the oven below the potatoes to bake for 20 minutes, then remove the pan and set it aside\n\nTo prepare the rice filling, set the large frying pan over medium heat and add 2 tablespoons of olive oil | Trim and finely slice the scallions | Peel and finely slice the garlic | Put the sliced scallions and garlic into the pan and stir them around until you've released the aroma of the garlic; this should take about 2\u20133 minutes | Tip in the cooked rice | Drain the black beans and add them to the pan\n\nAdd the Tabasco sauce, a good pinch of salt, and ground cumin to the pan and stir everything together, then take the pan off the heat | Pick the leaves from the cilantro and add them to the pan, discarding the stems or using them for something else | Stir everything together again | Tip the contents of the pan into a large serving bowl and then clean the pan ready to use again\n\nTrim and finely chop the cherry tomatoes | Trim the scallions and finely chop | Put the tomatoes and chopped scallions into small bowls so that they are ready when you build your giant burrito cake\n\nNow you're ready to put it all together and assemble your cake | Brush the frying pan with 1 tablespoon olive oil to stop the burrito cake sticking | Now arrange four of the tortillas around the edges of the pan as if you are laying out the petals of a flower and draping each one over the edges of the pan (if you are using a really big frying pan you might need one more tortilla to make sure your burrito cake will be completely sealed) | Press a final tortilla into the center of the pan so that the bottom of the pan is completely covered and there are no gaps\n\nNow you're going to fill your burrito cake | First spoon half the rice into the burrito base and spread it out evenly with the back of a wooden spoon | Place a layer of dairy-free cheese slices on top of the rice, followed by a layer of the sweet potato slices | Next, take half the onion and pepper slices and place them on top of the sweet potato to make an even layer | Sprinkle over half the chopped cherry tomatoes and half the sliced scallions | Cut the lime in half and squeeze in the juice of one half, catching any seeds in the other hand | Repeat with a layer of rice, dairy-free cheese slices, sweet potato slices, onion and pepper slices, cherry tomatoes, scallions, and the juice from the other half of the lime so that you use up all of the ingredients | Make sure the filling is nice and even and as round as possible as this will form the shape of your burrito cake\n\nLay the remaining tortilla over the top of the filling to form a lid | Use a pastry brush or your finger to wet the edges of each tortilla with a thin coating of water (this will act as a glue to stick the tortillas together and seal the cake) | Fold the overhanging tortillas neatly over the filling and into the middle of the cake, starting with one tortilla and working your way around the cake, and smooth them down to seal the cake\n\nPut the pan into the hot oven and bake the burrito cake for 20 minutes, until the filling is cooked through, the tortilla casing is golden, and the cake looks nice and solid | Take the pan out of the oven\n\nTo serve your burrito cake, place a large serving board on top of the pan and very carefully flip both the pan and board over to release the cake | Use a sharp knife to cut it into neat wedges and enjoy your giant burrito cake!\n\nMEZZE CAKE\n\nSERVES 8\u201310\n\nThis is one of the finest dishes we've ever made or eaten, with every mouthful the perfect combination of flavors you could hope to get in a Middle Eastern restaurant. It's a proud remix of an entire cuisine into a cake and, while it is a bit of a labor of love, it's guaranteed to excite your taste buds. Check out the photo above for inspiration!\n\n2 eggplants\n\n2 zucchini\n\nolive oil\n\n1 thin flatbread (under \u00bc inch)\n\n1\u00bc cups hummus (store-bought or see here)\n\n2\u20133 tbsp sriracha\n\n18\u201320 sun-dried tomatoes\n\n7 tbsp olive tapenade (store-bought or see here)\n\n2 cups cooked basmati rice (store-bought or see here)\n\n7 roasted red peppers from a jar\n\n8 artichokes from a jar\n\n7 tbsp baba ganoush (store-bought or see here)\n\nFOR THE FALAFEL MIX\n\n1 can (15 oz) chickpeas\n\n1 small red onion\n\n1 cup fresh parsley leaves\n\n\u2154 cup fresh cilantro leaves\n\n2 tsp garlic powder\n\n1\u00bd\u20132 tsp ground cumin\n\n1\u00bd\u20132 tsp ground coriander\n\n2 tsp harissa paste\n\n2 tbsp all-purpose flour\n\n1 tbsp olive oil\n\nsalt\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Baking sheet drizzled with olive oil | 8-inch springform pan | Food processor | Grill pan\n\n* * *\n\nCut off the stem ends of the eggplants and cut the flesh into slices about \u00bc inch thick | Trim the zucchini and cut them into \u00bc-inch-thick slices | Set aside three of the nicest looking slices of each (choose ones that are roughly the same size) | Spread the rest over the greased baking sheet and drizzle them with a bit more oil | Rub the oil into the slices | Put the pan into the hot oven and roast for 30 minutes, until the vegetables are soft | Remove the pan from the oven and set it aside to cool\n\nNext, place the flatbread on a cutting board and lay the springform pan on top of it | Cut around the pan with a sharp knife to make a flatbread round that will fit inside the bottom of it | Put the flatbread inside the pan and spread it with a \u2153-inch layer of hummus | Drizzle a tablespoon of chili sauce over the top of the hummus\n\nYou're now going to layer up the ingredients inside the pan to build up your mezze cake | First place a flat ring of sun-dried tomatoes all around the edge of the pan | Then, inside the ring of tomatoes, build another ring of roasted zucchini slices, placing one in the center if there is space | Fill in any gaps between the slices with spoonfuls of the olive tapenade\n\nNext, spoon a layer of the cooked rice over the vegetables so that it is about \u00bc inch deep all over and press it down firmly with the back of the spoon to get it nice and firm and even all over | Place a layer of the roasted eggplant and zucchini slices over the top of the rice layer and fill the gaps with more blobs of the olive tapenade | Once again, press down all over the top of the cake with a spoon to keep it all nice and compact (this step is important as it will hold the cake together when it cooks and ensure you get immaculate slices)\n\nCut the roasted peppers into \u00be-inch strips and arrange them in a star shape over the top of the cake and fill the spaces in between the star with pieces of artichoke | Firm everything down again with the back of a spoon | Arrange more of the roasted zucchini around the edge of the pan and place some sun-dried tomatoes in the space in the middle | Fill in the gaps with spoonfuls of the baba ganoush\n\nNext prepare the falafel topping | Drain the chickpeas and tip them into the food processor | Peel the onion and roughly chop it, then add it to the chickpeas | Throw in the fresh parsley and cilantro leaves, the garlic powder, the ground cumin, ground coriander, and the harissa paste | Spoon the flour into the food processor with the tablespoon of olive oil and pinch of salt | Whizz everything together until you have a thick paste | Spoon the falafel mixture all over the top of the cake and smooth it out using the back of the spoon or a frosting spatula as if you were icing a cake, until you have an even \u2153-inch layer\n\nPut the cake in the hot oven and bake for 20\u201325 minutes, until the falafel on the top has hardened and everything is cooked through\n\nWhile the cake is cooking, set the grill pan over medium-high heat and drizzle it with some olive oil | Heat the oil until it's really hot | Put the reserved slices of eggplant and zucchini into the hot pan and cook them on one side until they have defined char lines and are softened, then flip them over to cook the other side (try not to move them around too much in the pan as we want to make nice neat black grill marks); the eggplant will take around 5 minutes per side and the zucchini will take about 3\u20134 minutes per side | Remove the pan from the heat and transfer the slices to a plate\n\nWhen the cake is ready, take it out of the oven | To finish and decorate it, spoon the remaining hummus on top and spread it out neatly until you have a \u00bc\u2013\u2153-inch layer all over the top of the cake | Now make it look pretty by decorating it with the grilled eggplant and zucchini slices and then drizzling it all over the top with the rest of the chili sauce | Finally, scatter over the fresh cilantro leaves\n\nCarefully release the cake from the pan and reveal your masterpiece | You'll need to use a very sharp knife to slice the cake and serve it immediately | If the knife gets caught at any point, a sharp pair of scissors can help you to cut it more neatly | Make sure the flatbread at the bottom is completely cut through before you remove the slice so that everything comes out in one perfect tidy piece!\nULTIMATE CHILI\n\nSERVES 6\n\nThis deep, dark, and smoky chili is perhaps the richest we've tasted. The flavor comes from the mushroom base, but is boosted by untraditional ingredients like soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, maple syrup, and chocolate. You should absolutely leave it bubbling away if you have the time. It's so, so good\u2014you'll be bowled over by the end result. See above for a mouthwatering preview.\n\n14 oz mushrooms\n\nolive oil\n\n\u00bc tsp salt\n\n\u00bc tsp black pepper\n\n2 red onions\n\n4 garlic cloves\n\n2 fresh red chilies\n\n14 sprigs fresh cilantro\n\n1 celery stalk\n\n1 red bell pepper\n\n1 tbsp tomato paste\n\n1 cup red wine\n\n2 tsp soy sauce\n\n1 tsp balsamic vinegar\n\n2 cans (14.5 oz each) chopped tomatoes\n\n1 can (15 oz) black beans\n\n1 can (15 oz) kidney beans\n\n1\u00bd tsp maple syrup\n\n\u00bd oz dark chocolate\n\nFOR THE SPICE MIX\n\n1 tsp chili powder\n\n1 tsp ground cumin\n\n1 tsp smoked paprika\n\n\u00bd tsp ground cinnamon\n\n\u00bd tsp dried oregano\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n\u00bd tsp black pepper\n\n1 bay leaf\n\nFood processor | Frying pan over medium-high heat | Large saucepan over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nPut the mushrooms in the food processor and pulse until very finely minced (you can chop them if you prefer, but it's quicker and better with a food processor)\n\nPour a little oil into the hot frying pan | Once the oil is hot, tip in the mushrooms with the salt and pepper and cook for 5 minutes | Take the pan off the heat, transfer the mushrooms to a bowl, and set aside\n\nPeel and mince the red onions | Peel and mince the garlic | Rip the stems from the chilies, cut them in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds if you prefer a milder sauce, then chop finely | Remove the leaves from the cilantro and set aside | Finely chop the stems | Trim the leaves and root from the celery | Cut the bell pepper in half and cut out the stem and seeds | Cut the celery and pepper into very small chunks\n\nAdd a little oil to the large saucepan | Once it is hot, add the minced onions and garlic, the finely chopped cilantro stems, and the chilies and cook gently for 5\u201310 minutes, making sure you stir constantly | Add the chopped celery and bell pepper chunks to the pan and stir\n\nAdd all the spice mix ingredients to the pan and stir so that the spices are well mixed and coat all the vegetables | Stir in the tomato paste to give a rich color and depth of flavor | Pour the red wine, soy sauce, and balsamic vinegar into the pan and turn up the heat to high | Stir constantly until the liquid has reduced by two-thirds and the alcoholic aroma has subsided | Tip the chopped tomatoes into the pan, stir into the chili, and simmer for 5 minutes, until the sauce is noticeably thicker\n\nDrain the black beans and kidney beans and add them to the pan along with the maple syrup, dark chocolate, and the minced mushrooms | Stir everything together really well and then reduce the heat to a very gentle simmer | Leave this bubbling away with the lid off, stirring occasionally until it's reduced to the right thickness (at least 10 minutes) | You can leave it bubbling for longer to deepen the flavors, adding more water if needed to keep the right consistency\n\nTake the lid off the pan and remove the bay leaf | Stir the cilantro leaves into the chili and serve\u2014or make Big Bad Nachos!\nBIG BAD NACHOS\n\nSERVES 8\n\nShortly after the first chili came the first nachos. We're massive chili fans, but we always have loads left over and these nachos are a brilliant way to use it up. This dish is a sure-fire movie night crowd-pleaser. Feel free to adjust the quantities and experiment with soy cream, coconut yogurt, fresh chilies, or refried beans\u2014see overleaf for serving inspiration.\n\n2 bags (7 oz each) tortilla chips\n\n1 jar (7 oz) pickled jalape\u00f1os\n\n1\u00be oz dairy-free cheese such as our Garlic & Herb Cashew Cheese (see here), optional\n\n1 cup Ultimate Chili (see here) or leftovers from a previous meal\n\n\u00be cup guacamole (store-bought or see here)\n\n\u00be cup fresh salsa (store-bought or see here)\n\nhandful fresh cilantro leaves\n\nPreheat oven to 390\u00b0F | Large ovenproof dish (about 12 x 9-inch)\n\n* * *\n\nTip the tortilla chips into the ovenproof dish so that they cover the bottom | Slice the jalape\u00f1os and scatter them over the tortilla chips | Throw in the dairy-free cheese, if using | Cover with the Ultimate Chili\n\nPut the dish in the oven and bake until the tortilla chips have started to brown and the chili is heated through, about 10\u201315 minutes | Take the dish out of the oven\n\nDot random spots of guacamole and salsa over the top | Chop up the cilantro leaves and scatter them over the nachos\nPERFECT PIZZA\n\nPizza, pizza. The perfect sharing food. It's satisfying, filling, and can be a healthy(ish) choice when it's done right. People are often afraid of dough-making but it doesn't take long and the kneading is incredibly satisfying, maybe even meditative. Make double and you can freeze half for next time. We recommend a pizza stone for a really good crust.\nBASIC PIZZA DOUGH\n\nMAKES 2 LARGE PIZZA CRUSTS\n\n3\u2154 cups bread flour\n\n\u00bd envelope (1\u215b tsp) fast-acting dry yeast\n\n1\u00bd tsp salt\n\n1 cup + 7 tbsp water, at room temperature\n\nClean work surface dusted liberally with flour\n\n* * *\n\nMeasure the flour into a large bowl | Stir in the yeast and salt and mix it all together well | Use your hands to make a well in the middle of the bowl | Pour in the water and slowly mix together, kneading well with your fingers | When a dough has come together, bring it out of the bowl and put it on the floured work surface | Knead for 15 minutes, stretching and folding the dough, turning it 90 degrees, and then repeating until it becomes really smooth and springy | Wipe any flour or dough out of the bowl and rub the inside lightly with oil | Put the dough back in, cover with plastic wrap, and leave to rise for about 1 hour until doubled in size\n\nTip the risen dough back onto the work surface and give it another 60 seconds of kneading, then divide it into two | Cover each half with plastic wrap and leave to rise for another 30 minutes | You can store the dough in plastic wrap in the freezer for up to 1 month, defrosting completely before using\nMIDDLE EAST PIZZA\n\nMAKES 2 LARGE PIZZAS\n\nWith its Middle Eastern vibes, this pizza is a clear winner on pizza night. Feel free to play around with the ingredients. We use lots of jarred ingredients so it's a great pantry standby. Serve alongside hummus, tapenade, and any other mezze dishes you can think of!\n\nflour, for dusting\n\nBasic Pizza Dough (see here)\n\nsemolina, for dusting\n\n4 artichoke hearts preserved in oil (from a jar)\n\n1 red pepper preserved in oil (from a jar)\n\n6 cherry tomatoes\n\n6 sun-dried tomatoes\n\n\u00bd red onion\n\n5 tbsp hummus (store-bought or see here), plus extra to serve\n\ngenerous 3 tbsp olive tapenade (store-bought or see here), plus extra to serve\n\nhandful fresh cilantro, to serve\n\nhot sauce, to serve\n\nFOR THE TOMATO SAUCE\n\n1 garlic clove\n\nsmall handful fresh basil or 1 tsp dried\n\n1 tbsp olive oil\n\n\u00be cup canned chopped tomatoes\n\n1 tsp red wine vinegar\n\nPreheat oven to 480\u00b0F | Pizza stone or heavy baking sheet heating up in the oven | Baking sheet dusted liberally with semolina | Clean work surface dusted liberally with flour | Blender | Rolling pin (or use a clean, dry wine bottle)\n\n* * *\n\nFirst make the tomato sauce | Peel the garlic clove and add it to the blender with the basil | Add the olive oil, canned tomatoes, and red wine vinegar | Whizz until really smooth\n\nTip one of the dough balls onto the floured work surface and roll it out to about 12-inch diameter | Carefully transfer to the baking sheet, laying it over the semolina | Spoon a thin layer of tomato sauce over the top of the pizza, spreading it all the way to the edges | Set aside\n\nTake your artichoke hearts out of the jar and cut them in half | Take the pepper out of the jar and wipe off any excess oil, then cut into thin strips | Halve the cherry tomatoes and sun-dried tomatoes | Peel and finely slice the onion\n\nDecorate your pizza crust with half the vegetables you've just prepared, making sure you leave a little space around them | Slide the crust onto the hot pizza stone or baking sheet in the oven and bake for 10 minutes | Meanwhile prepare the second pizza\n\nRemove the cooked pizza from the oven and spoon about 8 small dollops each of hummus and tapenade around the pizza, as artfully as you can | Chop the cilantro leaves and sprinkle over the top, then splash with a few drops of hot sauce | Repeat with the second pizza and serve\nAVOCADO TOAST PIZZA\n\nMAKES 2 LARGE PIZZAS\n\nThis is the ultimate hipster dish and works as a brunch as much as a main. Think of a really good garlic bread pizza with a big power-up of avocado and delicious cilantro and lemon zest.\n\n1 garlic clove\n\n1 fresh red chili\n\n\u00bd cup fresh cilantro\n\nflour, for dusting\n\nBasic Pizza Dough (see here)\n\nsemolina, for dusting\n\n3 tbsp olive oil\n\n6 avocados\n\n1 lemon\n\n1\u20132 tsp chili flakes\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\ntomato salsa, for dipping, optional\n\nPreheat oven to 480\u00b0F | Pizza stone or heavy baking sheet heating up in the oven | Rolling pin (or use a clean, dry wine bottle) | Baking sheet dusted liberally with semolina | Pastry brush\n\n* * *\n\nPeel and finely chop the garlic | Rip the stem from the chili, cut it in half lengthwise, remove the seeds if you prefer a milder flavor, and finely chop | Cut the stems from the cilantro and finely chop, reserving the leaves\n\nDust a clean, dry work surface liberally with flour | Roll out one of the dough balls to about 12-inch diameter | Carefully transfer to the baking sheet, laying it over the semolina | Brush the top of the pizza with half the olive oil | Sprinkle half the garlic, chili, and chopped cilantro stems all over the pizza crust | Carefully slide the pizza onto the hot pizza stone or baking sheet in the oven and cook for 10 minutes | Meanwhile, prepare the second pizza\n\nNext prep the toppings | Halve and carefully pit the avocados by tapping the pit firmly with the heel of a knife so that it lodges in the pits, then twist and remove the pits | Run a spoon around the inside of the skin to scoop out the avocado halves, then slice them finely, keeping the shape of the avocado halves\n\nSlide the cooked pizza crust onto a cutting board and put the second pizza in the oven\n\nYou're going to use 3 avocados for the first crust | Pick up the first half of slices and lay it on the pizza, then press down gently to fan out the slices neatly | Repeat until the pizza is almost completely covered in avocado | Halve the lemon and squeeze one half all over the pizza, catching any seeds in your other hand | Finely chop the cilantro leaves and scatter half over the pizza | Season with salt and black pepper and sprinkle with chili flakes\n\nRemove the second pizza from the oven and repeat with the remaining toppings | Serve the pizzas on their own or with a tomato salsa for dipping, if using\nJERK JACKFRUIT & PLANTAIN PIZZA\n\nMAKES 2 LARGE PIZZAS\n\nThis evolved from our Reggae Reggae Pizza. We decided to badboy it up with spicy jerk jackfruit offset by sweet plantain. It's got a satisfying bite and comes fully loaded\u2014this is a HOT pizza. Adjust the chilies to taste and add BBQ or jerk sauce for dipping.\n\nBasic Pizza Dough (see here)\n\nflour, for dusting\n\nsemolina, for dusting\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 can (14 oz) young green jackfruit in spring water\n\n1 ripe plantain (the skin should be more black than yellow)\n\nBBQ or jerk sauce, to serve, optional\n\nFOR THE JERK SAUCE\n\n1 fresh Scotch bonnet chili\n\n2 garlic cloves\n\n5\u20137 sprigs fresh thyme\n\n1 tsp ground cloves\n\n1 tsp ground cinnamon\n\n1 tsp ground nutmeg\n\n2 tsp ground allspice\n\nblack pepper\n\nolive oil\n\nFOR THE TOMATO SAUCE\n\n\u00be cup canned chopped tomatoes\n\nhandful fresh basil or 1 tsp dried\n\n1 garlic clove\n\n1 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 tsp red wine vinegar\n\nPreheat oven to 480\u00b0F | Pizza stone or heavy baking sheet heating up in the oven | Blender | Rolling pin (or use a clean, dry wine bottle) | Baking sheet dusted liberally with semolina | Large frying pan\n\n* * *\n\nFirst make the jerk sauce by ripping the stem from the chili, cutting it in half lengthwise, and removing the seeds if you prefer a milder sauce, then finely chop | Peel and mince the garlic | Remove the leaves from the thyme by running your thumb and forefinger from the top to the base of the stems (the leaves should easily come away) and finely chop | Put the chili, garlic, thyme, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice in a mixing bowl with some black pepper and a dash of olive oil | Mix well\n\nTake 1 tablespoon of the jerk sauce and put it into the blender with the ingredients for the tomato sauce | Whizz until really smooth\n\nDust a clean, dry work surface liberally with flour | Roll out one of the dough balls to about 12-inch diameter | Carefully transfer to the baking sheet, laying it over the semolina | Spoon a thin layer of tomato sauce over the top, spreading it all the way to the edges | Set aside\n\nPut 1 tablespoon of oil into the frying pan and set it over medium heat | Drain the jackfruit and cut into thin slices, following the grain of the fruit from the bottom to the top | Add to the jerk marinade and stir to coat | You can leave to marinate for an hour for a deeper flavor, or add straight to the hot pan and fry for 5 minutes, stirring regularly | Remove from the heat and transfer half the fruit to the pizza\n\nPut the remaining oil into the pan and put it back on the heat | Peel and finely slice the plantain | Add to the pan and saut\u00e9 for 3\u20135 minutes, turning a couple of times, until golden brown | Take off the heat and add half the slices to the pizza\n\nCarefully slide the pizza onto the hot pizza stone or baking sheet and cook for 10 minutes | Meanwhile, assemble the second pizza\n\nRemove the cooked pizza from the oven and follow with the second | Serve with BBQ or jerk sauce, if using\nPETTIGREW'S PAELLA\n\nSERVES 4\u20136\n\nThis Spanish classic is loved by many, mastered by few. However, Henry's father has made a good effort and passed the recipe down proudly from father to son. Paella should never be stirred\u2014unlike risotto, the rice needs to stay firm and not sticky. The lemon wedges served on every plate to be squeezed over before eating are absolutely nonnegotiable!\n\n1 large red bell pepper\n\n\u00be cup butter beans or lima beans\n\n1 small onion\n\n1 large garlic clove\n\n1 medium tomato (about 4 oz)\n\n5 oz thin green beans\n\n10 broccolini\n\n7 oz canned artichoke hearts (about 10 pieces)\n\ngenerous pinch of saffron\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 tbsp paprika\n\n\u00bd tsp ground turmeric\n\n4 cups good-quality vegetable stock\n\n1\u00bd cups paella rice\n\n1\u20132 lemons\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nBroiler on high, or grill pan on the highest heat | Baking sheet | Large frying or paella pan | Pestle and mortar (or use a mug and teaspoon) | Boiling water | Clean kitchen towels\n\n* * *\n\nCut the bell pepper in half and cut out the stem and seeds | Lay the pieces on the baking sheet under a hot broiler, skin side up (or on a hot grill pan, skin side down) and heat until the skin blackens | Transfer to a plastic bag and seal inside | Leave to cool, then remove the skin | Cut the flesh into \u00bd-inch strips\n\nMeanwhile, drain the butter beans | Peel and finely chop the onion and garlic | Finely chop the tomato | Trim the green beans and cut off the heads of the broccolini | Cut the beans and broccolini stems only into \u2153\u2013\u00be-inch pieces | Quarter the artichoke hearts | Set all the chopped veggies aside for later\n\nPut the saffron threads in the dry frying or paella pan and place it over medium heat | Let it warm for about 1 minute to dry the saffron, then transfer to a mortar | Add a generous pinch of salt and pound with the pestle to grind them together\n\nAdd 1 tablespoon of the oil to the pan along with the bell pepper | Cook for 10\u201315 minutes, turning occasionally, until the peppers are soft but not browned | Remove from the pan and set aside about 6 strips | Cut the rest into \u2153\u2013\u00be-inch pieces\n\nAdd the onion to the pan along with the remaining tablespoon oil | Cook for 10\u201315 minutes, until the onion has softened and browned a little, stirring occasionally | Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes longer | Add the tomato and cook for about 10 minutes more, stirring from time to time, until the tomato pieces turn mushy | Stir in the salty saffron threads, paprika, turmeric, and a generous pinch of black pepper | Add the stock to the pan, turn up the heat and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium\n\nStir in the green beans, butter beans, artichoke, and red bell pepper pieces (reserving the strips) | Increase the heat to bring the pan back to a simmer, then lower to medium | Taste the paella liquid\u2014it should have a good \"stock\" taste that's a little too salty, so add a little more salt to the pan if necessary\n\nSprinkle the rice evenly over the pan | Bring it back to a boil, then reduce the heat to a fast simmer (medium-high) | Continue to simmer for 5 minutes without stirring | If you are using a large pan on a smaller burner you may need to move the pan around on the burner occasionally so that the rice cooks evenly across the pan\n\nDecorate the surface of the paella with the red pepper strips and broccolini florets | Continue to cook without stirring for 10 minutes | Turn the broccolini a few times so that it cooks through, and check that the rice is still evenly distributed\u2014you might need to use a spoon to move the rice in the pan\n\nAfter 10 minutes, test the rice by biting a few grains | They should be translucent but al dente | If the pan starts to dry out before the rice is cooked, add a scant \u00bd cup boiling water by drizzling it through a strainer over the surface of the mixture (don't just pour it in) | If there is a lot of liquid visible when the rice is nearly cooked, consider either spooning some off or turning up the heat (a little bit of burning at the bottom of the pan is not considered a bad thing\u2014the Valencians call it \"socarrat,\" and treasure it)\n\nOnce the rice is cooked enough, give it a last short burst of heat to get any remaining liquid really bubbling, then turn off the heat and cover the top of the pan with foil and a couple of clean kitchen towels | Leave it for 10\u201315 minutes\u2014this improves the taste and texture and allows the rice to absorb any excess stock | Cut the lemons into wedges and serve alongside the paella\nTHE BIG BOSH! BURGER\n\nSERVES 6\n\nWe do love a good burger, and creating a big, meaty-tasting burger was high up on our list of priorities. This one gets its richness from sweet potatoes, black beans, and a whole host of spices. It's packed full of protein and the soft patty gives a good, filling bite. To make this even better, add a helping of Ultimate BBQ Coleslaw to the top of the burger.\n\n14 oz sweet potatoes\n\n1 onion\n\nolive oil\n\n1\u00bc cups cooked brown rice\n\n3 tbsp breadcrumbs\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n\u00bd tsp black pepper\n\n\u00bd tsp ground cumin\n\n\u00bd tsp garlic powder\n\n\u00bd tsp smoked paprika\n\n2 tbsp all-purpose flour\n\n1 can (15 oz) black beans\n\nTO SERVE\n\n1 beefsteak tomato\n\n1 little gem lettuce\n\n1 large red onion\n\n6 burger buns\n\n6 tsp ketchup\n\n6 tsp vegan mayonnaise\n\n12 slices dill pickle\n\n6 slices dairy-free cheese\n\nPreheat oven to 390\u00b0F | Line a baking sheet | Large frying pan over medium heat | Food processor\n\n* * *\n\nPeel the sweet potatoes and cut them into \u00be-inch cubes | Put them on the lined baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes | Take them out of the oven and set aside\n\nMeanwhile, peel and mince the onion | Pour a little oil into the frying pan | Put the onion in the pan and fry for 10\u201315 minutes, until very soft | Transfer the onion to a large bowl and wipe out the pan\n\nPut the baked sweet potato in the food processor | Add the rice, breadcrumbs, salt, pepper, cumin, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and flour | Drain the black beans and add them to the food processor, then whizz everything up to a thick paste | Scrape the paste into the bowl with the onions and mix everything together with a spoon\n\nAdd a little oil to the pan and set it over medium-high heat | Divide the mixture into six and use your hands to mold them into patty shapes | Place the patties in the hot pan and fry for 3 minutes on each side, until golden\n\nWhile the burgers are cooking, slice the tomato into 6 thin slices | Separate the leaves of the lettuce and peel and slice the onion into thin rings\n\nBuild your burgers by placing them inside the burger buns, topping with ketchup, vegan mayo, and slices of tomato and pickle, lettuce, red onion, and dairy-free cheese\nRICH & CREAMY LASAGNA\n\nSERVES 8\n\nThis lasagna is easy enough to make and will impress your dinner guests no end. The b\u00e9chamel is creamy as hell and as long as there are no overlaps, the pasta will cook to perfection. This is perfect dinner-party fodder, or a treat for you and your loved one that will leave lots of leftovers\u2014it may be even better the next day. Check out the photo above.\n\n1 butternut squash (about 2\u00bc lb)\n\n3 medium eggplants (about 1 lb 10 oz)\n\n1 tsp chili powder\n\n\u00bc cup olive oil, plus extra for greasing\n\n3 tbsp balsamic vinegar\n\n21 oz baby spinach\n\n1 lb dried lasagna sheets\n\na few sprigs fresh rosemary, to serve\n\nFOR THE TOMATO SAUCE\n\n1 oz dried porcini mushrooms\n\n\u00bc cup olive oil\n\n1 red onion\n\n5 garlic cloves\n\n1 carrot\n\n2 celery stalks\n\n1 red bell pepper\n\n3 sprigs fresh rosemary\n\n\u2154 cup red wine\n\n2 cans (14.5 oz each) chopped tomatoes\n\n1 tsp superfine sugar\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nFOR THE B\u00c9CHAMEL\n\n3\u00bd oz cashews\n\n1 garlic clove\n\n\u00be cup + 2 tbsp unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n3\u00bd tbsp dairy-free butter or spread\n\n3 tbsp all-purpose flour\n\n5 tbsp nutritional yeast, optional\n\n2 tsp onion powder\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\n7 tbsp water\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Line 2 large baking sheets | Brush the inside of a 9 x 13-inch lasagna dish with oil | Boiling water | Large deep frying pan or Dutch oven over medium heat | Food processor, optional | Large saucepan with lid | Small saucepan | Medium saucepan | Blender\n\n* * *\n\nPut the porcini mushrooms for the tomato sauce into a large mug and cover with boiling water, then set aside\n\nPeel the squash, cut it in half, and scoop out and discard the seeds | Trim the eggplants and cut the squash and eggplant into \u2153-inch slices | Put them in a bowl with the chili powder and 3 tablespoons of the olive oil and toss to coat | Lay the squash on one lined baking sheet, the eggplant on the other | Put both pans in the oven and roast for 45 minutes\n\nMeanwhile, make the tomato sauce | Heat the olive oil in the large deep frying pan or Dutch oven | Peel and finely dice the onion and add it to the pan to soften for 3 minutes | Peel and mince the garlic, add to the pan, and cook for 3 minutes longer\n\nTrim and roughly chop the carrot and celery | Cut the bell pepper in half and cut out the stem and seeds | Remove the leaves from the rosemary sprigs by running your thumb and forefinger from the top to the base of the stems (the leaves should easily come away) | Put the carrot, celery, bell pepper, and rosemary leaves in the food processor and pulse a few times until all the veg are finely chopped (or do this by hand)\n\nAdd the chopped veg to the pan with the onion and garlic | Stir and cook for 15 minutes | Pour in the red wine, increase the heat to medium-high, and cook for 5\u20137 minutes, until the wine has cooked off but left everything a lovely red color\n\nScoop the porcini out of the mug and finely chop | Add to the pan with the liquid from the mug, the chopped tomatoes, and the sugar | Stir and simmer for 10 minutes longer\n\nRemove the pans from the oven | Drizzle the eggplant with the balsamic vinegar and mix well | If the butternut squash is very wet, drain it in a sieve, pressing out the liquid | Transfer to a large bowl and quickly mash\n\nAdd the eggplant to the tomato sauce and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sauce has thickened | Taste and season with salt and pepper | Take off the heat and set aside\n\nPut the remaining 1 tablespoon oil into the large saucepan and place it over medium heat | Add the spinach and cover with a lid | Cook for about 5 minutes until wilted | Transfer to a sieve and squeeze out as much liquid as you can (or place in a clean kitchen towel and wring it out)\n\nNow make the b\u00e9chamel | Set a small saucepan of water over high heat and bring to a boil | Add the cashews and boil for 10 minutes | Peel and mince the garlic\n\nSet a medium saucepan over medium heat | Warm the plant-based milk in the microwave | Put the dairy-free butter in the pan and stir with a wooden spoon until it melts, then turn the heat right down and gradually add the flour, stirring vigorously until you have a doughy paste | Gradually pour in the warm plant-based milk, stirring all the time until you have a thick, creamy sauce | Keep stirring until the sauce thickens to the consistency of custard | Add the garlic, nutritional yeast, if using, onion powder, plus a pinch of salt and pepper | Squeeze in the lemon juice, catching any seeds with your other hand | Stir to mix together\n\nDrain the cashews and rinse with cold water | Put them into the blender with the 7 tbsp water | Blend to a fine cream with no bits | Pour the b\u00e9chamel into the blender and blend everything together\n\nCover the bottom of the greased lasagna dish with lasagna sheets, breaking them if necessary to make a complete and unbroken layer that will seal in the steam and properly cook the pasta | Spoon a third of the tomato sauce over the bottom of the lasagna | Lay a third of the spinach on top, followed by a third of the squash | Drizzle over a quarter of the b\u00e9chamel sauce | Repeat twice more with layers of pasta, then tomato sauce, spinach, squash, and b\u00e9chamel | Top with a final layer of pasta, using broken pieces to fill any gaps (try to avoid overlaps), and cover with the remaining b\u00e9chamel | Put a few rosemary leaves on top to garnish\n\nCover the lasagna with foil and put in the oven on the lowest rack | Bake for 50 minutes | Remove the foil and bake for 15 minutes longer; stand for 10 minutes | Serve with a green salad and a little balsamic glaze\nSPIRAL TART\n\nSERVES 4\u20136\n\nThis dish will test your arrangement skills (plus your patience!), but it's worth it for the photo-worthy result. This healthy tart is full of freshly roasted veggies with an ever-so-slightly spicy tomato base. It's best to use a peeler to get the optimum thickness, and make sure the height of the veggie strips is consistent for a nice, even tart.\n\n11 oz refrigerated pie dough\n\nflour, for dusting\n\n5 tbsp tomato puree\n\n\u00bd\u20131 tsp chili flakes\n\n1 oz fresh basil\n\n1 tbsp balsamic glaze\n\n3 eggplants\n\n4 large carrots\n\n3 zucchini\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Clean work surface dusted liberally with flour | Rolling pin (or use a clean, dry wine bottle) | Large bowl filled with water | 8\u20138\u00bd-inch tart pan with a removable bottom\n\n* * *\n\nUnravel the pie dough and roll it out on the floured work surface until it's a scant \u00bc inch thick | Drape it over the rolling pin and lift it into the tart pan | Gently press the pastry into the edges of the pan with your fingers to line the bottom and sides | Use a knife to cut off the excess at the top of the pan\n\nSpoon the tomato puree onto the bottom and spread it out evenly with the back of the spoon | Sprinkle with the chili flakes | Pick the basil leaves from the bunch and arrange them in an even layer all over the bottom | Drizzle with the balsamic glaze and set aside\n\nTrim the ends from the eggplants, carrots, and zucchini and slice the eggplant in half lengthwise | Use a vegetable peeler to slice each into thin ribbons and put them into the bowl filled with water to soak for about 3 minutes (this makes them more supple and easier to shape) | Remove and pat dry with paper towels\n\nTake 1 ribbon of each of the vegetables and lay them on top of one another, first zucchini, then carrot, then eggplant | Roll them up into a tight spiral to resemble a rose | Place the spiral in the middle of the tart | Start spiraling the ribbons tightly from the central rose all the way out to the edges, alternating from zucchini, to carrot, to eggplant\n\nOnce the tart is completely full of vegetables, season with salt and pepper and drizzle with the oil | Put the pan in the preheated oven and bake for 40 minutes | Test and if you prefer softer vegetables, cover with foil and bake 15\u201320 minutes longer | Take the pan out of the oven and slide the tart out of the pan\n\nBring your work of art to the table so that everyone can take a photo, then carefully cut into slices with a VERY sharp knife\nTHE BIG BOSH! ROAST\n\nSERVES 4\u20136 WITH LEFTOVERS\n\nWhether it's Christmas, Thanksgiving, or just a normal Sunday, a roast dinner is the epitome of traditional food. We've based ours around a glorious centerpiece mushroom Wellington, one that is rich, full of texture, and incredibly moreish, and goes great with any gravy. This meal should satisfy even the fussiest of dinner guests.\n\nRosemary & Thyme Roast Vegetables ingredients (see here)\n\nMushroom Wellington ingredients (see here)\n\nRed Wine Gravy ingredients (see here)\n\nPreheat oven to 390\u00b0F | Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper | 1 large empty saucepan with a lid | 1 large saucepan of boiling water over high heat | Large deep roasting pan | Shallow sheet pan | Large deep frying pan | Food processor | Pastry brush, optional | Pastry cutters, optional\n\n* * *\n\nStart with the **Rosemary & Thyme Roast Vegetables** by peeling and boiling the potatoes and parsnips following the instructions, up to the point when they're on their baking sheets and cooling to room temperature\n\nMeanwhile, assemble the **Mushroom Wellington** following the instructions | Once the **Wellington** is ready to go in the oven, set it aside while you get on with the **roast vegetables**\n\nFinish preparing the roast vegetables and put the baking sheet on the second rack of the oven, leaving enough space for the Wellington to fit on the top rack later | Set the timer for 20 minutes\n\nStart preparing the vegetables for the **Red Wine Gravy** following the instructions\n\nWhen the timer goes off, put the **Wellington** on the top rack of the oven and take out the **roast vegetables** | Gently shake the pan and return it to the oven | Set a timer for 30 minutes\n\n15 minutes before the timer goes off, finish making the **Red Wine Gravy** | Take the **roast vegetables** and **Wellington** out of the oven and transfer to serving dishes | Serve!\nMUSHROOM WELLINGTON\n\nSERVES 6\n\n7 garlic cloves\n\n5 sprigs fresh rosemary\n\n6 sprigs fresh thyme\n\n4 small portobello mushrooms (about 10.5 oz)\n\n1 tsp + 1 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 tsp salt, plus a little extra\n\n2 tsp black pepper, plus a little extra\n\n1 large red onion\n\n2 tsp light brown sugar\n\n10 oz cremini mushrooms\n\n\u00bd cup white wine\n\n7 oz vacuum-packed chestnuts\n\n9 oz pecans\n\n2 slices seeded bread (about 3 oz)\n\n2 sheets refrigerated rectangular vegan pie dough (16 \u00d7 10-inch)\n\n\u00bc cup unsweetened plant-based milk\n\nPreheat oven to 390\u00b0F | Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper | Large frying pan over medium heat | Food processor | Pastry brush, optional | Pastry cutters, optional\n\n* * *\n\nPeel and mince 4 of the garlic cloves using a sharp knife | Remove the leaves from 4 rosemary and 4 thyme sprigs by running your thumb and forefinger from the top to the base of the stems (the leaves should easily come away), then finely chop\n\nLay the portobello mushrooms on one of the lined baking sheets with the stems pointing up | Drizzle 1 teaspoon oil over the gills of each mushroom and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper | Divide the chopped rosemary, thyme, and garlic among the mushrooms | Put the pan in the oven and cook for 15 minutes | Remove and set aside\n\nMeanwhile, peel and finely chop the red onion | Add the tablespoon of oil to the frying pan | Add the red onion to the pan and saut\u00e9 for 10 minutes, stirring regularly, until softened\n\nWhile the onions are cooking, peel and finely chop the remaining 3 garlic cloves | Remove the leaves from the remaining rosemary and thyme sprigs and finely chop | Measure 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon of the pepper, and the sugar into a small bowl | Add the garlic, rosemary, thyme, salt, pepper, and sugar into the pan and stir everything around for 1 minute\n\nPut the cremini mushrooms into the food processor and whizz until very finely chopped | Tip them into the pan, increase the heat to high, and cook until softened and all the liquid has evaporated, about 5\u20137 minutes\n\nPour the white wine into the pan and stir it around for about 3 minutes, or until almost all the liquid has cooked off | Tip the mixture into a large mixing bowl and leave to cool for 5 minutes\n\nPut the chestnuts, pecans, and bread into the food processor and whizz until they resemble breadcrumbs (you may need to do this in batches) | Add to the bowl with the onions | Using a wooden spoon, thoroughly stir everything together until you have a thick dough-like mixture\n\nLay 1 sheet of pie dough on the other lined baking sheet | Spread half the chestnut mixture lengthwise down the middle of the pastry sheet | Use your hands to mold the chestnut mixture into a rectangle shape with a flat top, leaving at least a 1\u00bc-inch gap on all four sides | This shape will dictate the shape of the Wellington, so make sure it's nice and straight and level on top\n\nPlace the 4 cooked portobello mushrooms neatly on top of the chestnut mixture, stems facing up, making sure the sides of the mushrooms don't hang off the edges | Layer the rest of the chestnut mixture over the top, encasing the mushrooms | Smooth and shape into a neat, long, rectangular mound\n\nUsing a pastry brush or your finger, brush a little of the plant-based milk around the exposed pastry edge | Lay the second pastry sheet over the mushroom filling and press it all down well, ensuring there are no air bubbles | Seal the edges by pushing down all the way around the filling with your fingers | Trim any excess pastry from the edges, making sure you leave a \u00bd-inch raised border around the base of the Wellington | Set the excess pastry aside for later | Use a fork to crimp all around the edges of the pastry to firmly seal the Wellington and to make it look nice\n\nRoll out the excess pastry if necessary and use a pastry cutter to cut out shapes | Brush the Wellington lightly with the plant-based milk and decorate the top with the pastry shapes | Brush the shapes with the plant-based milk | Pierce some air vents in the top of the Wellington with a fork or sharp knife\n\nPut the Wellington in the oven and bake it for 40 minutes, checking after 30 minutes (if it looks ready, remove it from the oven) | Use a bread knife to carefully cut the Wellington into slices and serve\nROSEMARY & THYME ROAST VEGETABLES\n\nSERVES 4\u20136\n\n2\u00be lb russet or other fluffy potatoes\n\n5 medium carrots\n\n5 medium parsnips\n\n1 small butternut squash (about 1 lb 5 oz)\n\n1 garlic bulb + 5 cloves\n\n1 tbsp salt, plus a little extra\n\n\u00bd cup olive oil\n\n16 sprigs fresh thyme\n\n8 sprigs fresh rosemary\n\nPreheat oven to 390\u00b0F | 1 large empty saucepan with a lid | 1 large saucepan of boiling water over high heat | Large deep roasting pan | Shallow sheet pan\n\n* * *\n\nPeel the potatoes, carrots, parsnips, and butternut squash\n\nCut the carrots and parsnips lengthwise into halves or quarters and cut out any tough cores from the parsnips | Seed the butternut squash, then cut it into roughly the same size pieces as the carrots | Break the garlic bulb into cloves and lightly squash them with the side of the knife\n\nCut the potatoes into thirds or quarters and put them in one of the saucepans | Fill the pan with cold water, sprinkle in the tablespoon of salt (to make them extra fluffy), and set the pan over high heat | Bring to a boil and then cook for 5\u20138 minutes\n\nMeanwhile, put the parsnips into the other pan and boil for 5 minutes | Drain and transfer to the large, deep roasting pan to cool down\n\nPut the butternut squash and carrots into the sheet pan and toss in 3 tablespoons of the oil, half the thyme sprigs, and half the rosemary | Sprinkle with salt to taste | Toss it all together and set aside\n\nWhen they're done, drain the potatoes and tip them back into the pan | Put the lid on and shake the pan for 15 seconds to scuff the outsides of the potatoes, then tip them into the roasting pan next to the parsnips and let them cool down to room temperature\n\nNestle the remaining thyme and rosemary sprigs and the garlic cloves you squashed earlier in among the potatoes and parsnips | Pour the remaining olive oil over them and toss gently to coat\n\nPut the pan with the potatoes on the second rack of the hot oven and the pan with the carrots underneath (leave enough space above the top rack for the Wellington if you're making the full roast) and cook for 50\u201360 minutes | Toss the veg every 20 minutes to ensure they are evenly cooked on all sides | They should be golden and crispy on the outside when they're done | If you want to give them an extra crispy boost at the end, turn on the broiler and place one pan at a time under it | Keep a close eye on it; they should crisp up within just a few minutes\nRED WINE GRAVY\n\nSERVES 6\n\nA good gravy is the jewel in the crown of a great roast dinner, and this is a really good gravy. Try it drizzled over a plate of hot French fries for an indulgent Yorkshire classic.\n\n1 red onion\n\n1 small carrot\n\n1 celery stalk\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\n3 garlic cloves\n\n1 sprig fresh rosemary\n\n2 sprigs fresh thyme\n\n1\u00bd cups red wine\n\n4 cups vegetable stock\n\n3 tbsp cornstarch\n\n6 tbsp room-temperature water\n\n1 tbsp tomato paste\n\n1 tsp yeast extract (e.g., Marmite)\n\n1 tsp English mustard, prepared\n\n1 tsp dark brown sugar\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n\u00bd tsp black pepper\n\nDeep frying pan with a lid over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nPeel and finely dice the red onion, carrot, and celery, keeping them separate on the cutting board\n\nPour the olive oil into the hot pan | Add the diced onion and cook for 2 minutes | Peel and crush the garlic cloves into the pan and stir everything together | Cook for 2 minutes until you've released the aroma of the garlic\n\nAdd the diced carrot and celery and the rosemary and thyme sprigs | Stir everything together on the heat for about 7 minutes, until the vegetables are well softened | Pour in the red wine and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated\n\nPour the vegetable stock into the pan | Turn up the heat so that it's bubbling nicely, then reduce to a gentle simmer, put the lid on, and cook for 10 minutes\n\nTake the pan off the heat and strain the liquid into a bowl through a sieve so that you're left with a clear stock | Pour it back into the pan and put it back on the heat\n\nPut the cornstarch into a small glass | Add the water and mix together with a fork, stirring really well to ensure there are no lumps\n\nAdd the cornstarch mixture to the pan and whisk continuously while the gravy bubbles away for 5 minutes, until you have a nice, thick consistency | Add the tomato paste, yeast extract, mustard, sugar, salt, and pepper and stir until well mixed | Pour the gravy into a pitcher ready to serve\n\n\"FISH\" & CHIPS\n\nSERVES 4\n\nReminiscent of a trip to the seaside, this dish is a great nod to the pub classic. A crunchy outer and soft middle give the tofu goujons a satisfying bite and the lemon and tartare sauce add a wonderful sharpness. Add some luxurious chunky fries and you have a dish to die for\u2014check out the photo if you don't believe us! Pass the salt and vinegar.\n\n2 containers (10 oz each) extra-firm tofu\n\nTartare Sauce ingredients (see here)\n\n4 large russet or other fluffy potatoes (about 1kg)\n\n3 sheets nori\n\nMinted Mushy Peas ingredients (see here)\n\nvegetable oil, for deep-frying\n\nketchup, to serve\n\n2 lemons, to serve\n\nsea salt\n\nFOR THE MARINADE\n\n1 lemon\n\ngenerous \u00be cup white wine\n\n1 tbsp caper brine (from a jar of capers)\n\n1 tsp salt\n\nFOR THE BATTER\n\n1\u2153 cups all-purpose flour\n\n5 tbsp cornstarch\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n\u00bd tsp black pepper\n\n1 cup ale\n\nTofu press or use 2 clean kitchen towels and a weight such as a heavy book | Large saucepan | Clean kitchen towel | Scissors | Toothpicks | Small saucepan | Large deep saucepan | Thermometer, optional | Cover 2 large plates with paper towels | 2 baking sheets\n\n* * *\n\nPress the tofu using a tofu press or place it between two clean kitchen towels, lay it on a plate, and put a weight on top | Leave for at least 30 minutes to drain any liquid and firm up before you start cooking\n\nOnce the tofu is pressed, drain away any liquid that has collected on the plate | Cut the block lengthwise down the middle so that you have 2 long rectangles, then cut across each rectangle to make 8 even-sized blocks | You should end up with 16 tofu pieces that are all the same size\n\nMake the marinade by cutting the lemon in half and squeezing the juice over a bowl, catching any seeds with your other hand | Add the white wine, caper brine, and salt and stir to combine | Add the tofu, turning to cover it in the marinade | Set aside to marinate, turning the tofu occasionally\n\nMake the Tartare Sauce following the instructions and set aside\n\nFill the large saucepan with water and bring it to a boil over high heat | Peel the potatoes and cut them into \u2153-inch-thick French fry shapes | Tip them into the hot water, bring it back to a boil, and cook for 5 minutes | Drain the potatoes, spread them out over a clean kitchen towel, and leave them to dry\n\nTo make the batter, put the flour, cornstarch, salt, and pepper into a mixing bowl and stir to mix | Slowly pour in the ale, whisking continuously so that no lumps form | Set aside once you have a smooth batter\n\nUse scissors to cut 16 rectangles of nori the same size as the sides of the tofu blocks | Take a piece of tofu out of the marinade and stick one of the nori pieces to it (the wetness of the tofu will help it stick) | Hold the nori in place with 2 toothpicks | Repeat so that all the tofu pieces have a piece of nori on one side\n\nMake the Minted Mushy Peas following the recipe and set aside\n\nHeat the oven to 350\u00b0F | Cut the 2 lemons into wedges for serving\n\nPour the vegetable oil into the deep saucepan so that it comes no more than two-thirds up the side of the pan | Set the pan over medium-high and heat to about 285\u00b0F (this is a fairly low temperature for deep-frying so if you don't have a thermometer, put a piece of potato in the pan to test the temperature: when it's ready the potato should float but take a little while to brown)\n\nPut half the fries in the hot oil and deep-fry for 3\u20134 minutes, then take them out with a slotted spoon and spread them out on the paper towels for a few minutes to cool down slightly | Put the rest of the potatoes into the oil and repeat, spreading them over the other plate of paper towels to cool | Turn up the heat and get the oil really hot, around 355\u00b0F (this should make a wooden spoon dipped in the oil sizzle around the edges)\n\nCarefully put the first batch of fries back in the hot oil and fry them for 4\u20135 minutes, until they're really golden and crispy | Take the fries out of the oil with a slotted spoon and spread them over one of the baking sheets | Sprinkle the fries with sea salt and put the pan in the oven to keep the fries warm | Bring the oil back up to 355\u00b0F and tip in the second batch of fries | After 4\u20135 minutes, remove and spread over the second baking sheet\n\nGet the oil back up to 355\u00b0F and line the plates with fresh paper towels\n\nTake the nori-lined tofu blocks and dip them into the batter in batches, turning them carefully so that they're completely covered | Carefully drop the battered tofu \"fish\" into the hot oil and fry for 3\u20134 minutes, until they're dark golden brown all over (you may need to cook them in batches if there isn't much room and so that the temperature of the oil doesn't drop too low) | Remove the tofu \"fish\" with a slotted spoon and drain the pieces on paper towels for 30 seconds, then carefully remove the toothpicks | Repeat so that all the tofu blocks are double-dipped in two coats of batter\n\nTake the fries out of the oven and immediately serve on warm plates | Divide the crispy tofu \"fish\" pieces among the plates and add large spoonfuls of Minted Mushy Peas and Tartare Sauce | Serve with tomato ketchup and the lemon wedges to squeeze over the tofu \"fish\" pieces\nMINTED MUSHY PEAS\n\nSERVES 4\n\n1 package (10 oz) frozen peas\n\n1 tbsp dairy-free butter or spread\n\n10 fresh mint leaves\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n\u00bd tsp black pepper\n\nSmall saucepan of boiling water over high heat\n\n* * *\n\nPour the peas into the boiling water and bring back to a boil | Cook for 3 minutes | While the peas are cooking, put the rest of the ingredients into a bowl and mix together with a fork | Drain the peas and add them to the other ingredients | Blend lightly with a stick blender while the peas are still hot, ensuring roughly half of them remain whole | Stir to mix in all the seasoning\nTARTARE SAUCE\n\nSERVES 4\n\n1 small shallot\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\n\u00bd tsp + a pinch of salt\n\n1\u00bd tbsp capers\n\n4 tsp minced cornichons\n\n1\u00bd tbsp chopped fresh tarragon\n\n2 tbsp chopped fresh chives\n\n1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley\n\nscant \u00bd cup vegan mayonnaise\n\nPeel and finely slice the shallot and put it into a bowl | Squeeze in the juice of the half lemon, catching any seeds in your other hand, and add the pinch of salt | Add the capers, cornichons, tarragon, chives, and parsley to the bowl | Add the vegan mayo and the \u00bd teaspoon of salt, and stir everything together\nWORLD'S BEST PESTO LASAGNA\n\nSERVES 8\n\nWe've been cooking and refining this pesto lasagna dish for years. It's an absolute showstopper: rich, flavorful, and healthy(ish). It'll take you a while to make since there are a few different parts to combine, but it's so worth it\u2014see the photos overleaf. Use light olive oil for a light, delicious pesto.\n\n2 eggplants\n\n2 zucchini\n\n2 yellow bell peppers\n\n2 red bell peppers\n\n1 tbsp olive oil\n\n12 lasagna sheets\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nFOR THE TOMATO SAUCE\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 red onion\n\n3 garlic cloves\n\n3\u00bd oz pitted black olives\n\n4 tbsp capers\n\n3 cups tomato puree\n\nFOR THE B\u00c9CHAMEL\n\n5 oz cashews\n\nscant 2 cups unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n3\u00bd tbsp dairy-free butter or spread\n\n3 tbsp all-purpose flour\n\n5 tbsp nutritional yeast\n\n2 tsp onion powder\n\n1 garlic clove\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\n7 tbsp water\n\nFOR THE PESTO\n\n2\u00bd oz pine nuts\n\n2 oz fresh basil leaves\n\n3 tbsp nutritional yeast\n\n2 garlic cloves\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\n\u2154 cup light olive oil\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | 3 baking sheets | Large saucepan over medium heat | Small saucepan over high heat | Medium saucepan over medium heat | Blender | 12 x 8-inch baking dish\n\n* * *\n\nTrim the eggplants and zucchini and cut them diagonally into slices about \u2153 inch thick | Cut the bell peppers in half and cut out the stems and seeds, then cut them in half again | Divide the chopped vegetables between two of the baking sheets, drizzle with the oil, and sprinkle with a good pinch of salt and pepper | Put the pans in the hot oven and roast for 20 minutes, then remove and set aside\n\nNext, make the tomato sauce | Pour the oil into the large saucepan | Peel and finely chop the onion and add it to the pan | Cook for 5\u201310 minutes, until soft | Peel and crush the garlic cloves into the pan, cooking for 2 minutes | Drain and roughly chop the olives and add them to the pan along with the capers, tomato puree, and a good pinch of salt and pepper | Reduce the heat to medium-low and leave to simmer for 25\u201330 minutes, stirring occasionally\n\nMeanwhile, put the cashews in the small saucepan, cover with water, and bring to a boil | Boil for 10 minutes\n\nTo make the b\u00e9chamel sauce, warm the plant-based milk in the microwave | Put the dairy-free butter in the medium saucepan and stir with a wooden spoon until it melts, then turn the heat right down and gradually add the flour to the pan, stirring vigorously until you have a doughy paste | Gradually pour in the warm plant-based milk, stirring all the time until you have a thick, creamy sauce | Keep stirring until the sauce thickens to the consistency of custard | Add the nutritional yeast and the onion powder | Peel and crush the garlic clove and add it to the pan | Squeeze the lemon juice into the pan, catching any seeds with your other hand\n\nDrain the boiled cashews and rinse them with cold water to cool them down | Put them in the blender along with the water | Whizz to a fine cream with no bits | Pour the b\u00e9chamel sauce into the blender and whizz together | Season with salt and pepper | Pour into a bowl and set aside | Clean out the blender\n\nTo make the pesto, spread the pine nuts over the clean baking sheet, put it in the oven, and toast for 3 minutes | Put them in the blender along with the basil and the nutritional yeast | Peel the garlic cloves and add them to the blender | Squeeze in the lemon juice, catching any seeds with your other hand | Pour in the olive oil | Blitz everything together until you've made a fine pesto | Taste and season with salt and pepper\n\nCover the bottom and sides of the baking dish with a thin layer of tomato sauce | Put a layer of lasagna sheets over the bottom, without overlapping them | Use broken up bits of lasagna to cover any gaps or corners\n\nSpread a third of the remaining tomato sauce onto the lasagna sheets | Place a third of the baked veggies on top | Spread a third of the cashew b\u00e9chamel on top, spreading it all the way to the edges of the dish | Drizzle a third of the pesto sauce on top | Repeat twice more, making layers of pasta, tomato sauce, veggies, and cashew sauce and topping with a long, arty drizzle of pesto\n\nCover the dish with foil, put it in the oven, and bake for 45 minutes | Remove the foil and bake for 10 more minutes | Take it out of the oven and leave it to stand for 10 minutes before serving\n\n**Greens & BOSH! Bowls**\n\nIt's protein o'clock\n\nGet real healthy with BOSH! Bowls\n\nAnd amazing greens\nTOMATO & POMEGRANATE SALAD\n\nSERVES 4\u20136\n\nThis dish is extremely colorful and tasty. The zingy fresh tomato contrasts with the sweet, juicy bursts of the pomegranate seeds and the explosion of flavor from the fresh herbs. This surprising flavor combination creates the perfect sharing side salad for an Italian pasta, or would serve as a super-healthy light meal or side for a BBQ.\n\n2 slices whole wheat bread\n\n\u00bc cup olive oil\n\n1 lemon\n\n1 tsp brown sugar\n\n4 drops Tabasco, optional\n\n14 oz baby tomatoes\n\n1 small red onion\n\nhandful fresh parsley\n\nhandful fresh mint\n\n1 pomegranate or 3\u00bd oz pomegranate seeds\n\n\u2154 cup pea shoots or other salad greens\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nMedium frying pan over low heat\n\n* * *\n\nCut the bread into \u2153-inch cubes | Heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in the pan and saut\u00e9 the bread cubes for 2\u20133 minutes, tossing regularly until they are browned on all sides | Tip onto a plate and set aside\n\nCut the lemon in half and squeeze the juice into a large bowl, catching any seeds in your other hand | Stir in the remaining 3 tablespoons of oil and the brown sugar and season with the salt and pepper and Tabasco, if using | Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary\n\nHalve the tomatoes, peel and finely slice the red onion, pick the leaves from the parsley and mint, and add them all to the bowl | Remove the seeds from the pomegranate by rolling it first to loosen the seeds, then scoring around the middle and prising the two halves apart | Hold the halves over the bowl and tap the bottom of each half firmly with a spoon to release the seeds | Add the salad greens and croutons, toss gently, and serve to impressed guests\nLEMON & CHILI GRIDDLED GREENS\n\nSERVES 2\u20133\n\nThis artfully simple side goes with anything. The keys are not to add any oil until the asparagus are cooked and to get really black char lines for depth of flavor, so try not to move the veggies around in the pan. This is a fast and easy side that makes the asparagus wonderfully tasty.\n\n7 oz asparagus\n\n1 fresh red chili\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\nsalt\n\nDry grill pan over highest heat\n\n* * *\n\nBend the asparagus spears until they snap and throw the woody ends away | Lay them in the hot pan, perpendicular to the grill ridges | Leave for about 2\u20133 minutes for thin spears or up to 5 minutes for thick spears | Don't move them until they have developed deep black grill marks, then flip them over and repeat on the other side\n\nMeanwhile, rip the stem from the chili, cut it in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds, if you prefer a milder flavor, and finely chop | Once the asparagus spears are charred on both sides, drizzle with the oil and scatter on the chopped chili | Squeeze the lemon over the veggies, catching the seeds in your other hand | Sprinkle with a pinch of salt, stir, and cook for another 60\u201390 seconds | Take off the heat and serve immediately\nULTIMATE BBQ COLESLAW\n\nSERVES 6\u20138\n\nThis is an awesome coleslaw. It feels fresh and healthy, but is also drenched in naughty BBQ sauce, which makes it incredibly indulgent. Serve inside the Big BOSH! Burger or as a side at a BBQ.\n\n1 large red cabbage (about 2 lb)\n\nolive oil\n\n\u2154 cup BBQ sauce\n\n1 onion\n\n2 carrots\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nFOR THE DRESSING\n\n3 limes, plus a little extra\n\nscant 1 cup vegan mayonnaise\n\n1 tsp English mustard, prepared\n\n\u00bd tsp hot sauce, optional\n\n2 tsp salt\n\n1 tsp black pepper\n\ngood pinch of cayenne pepper\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Roasting pan | Pastry brush\n\n* * *\n\nCut the cabbage in half, cut out and discard the core, then chop into about 8 pieces. Tip into a roasting pan | Brush the cabbage all over with oil and cover with the BBQ sauce | Season with salt and pepper | Put the roasting pan in the hot oven and cook for about 45 minutes, removing when the cabbage is nice and blackened, but not burned | Let it cool down for 10 minutes\n\nHalve the limes for the dressing and squeeze the juice into a bowl, catching any seeds in your other hand | Add the rest of the dressing ingredients and stir to a smooth, well mixed consistency\n\nPeel and finely slice the onion | Peel the carrots and slice them thinly using a vegetable peeler or sharp knife | When the cabbage is cool enough to handle, slice the pieces finely\n\nPut all the veg in a serving bowl and pour the dressing over | Stir well, taste, and add more salt, pepper, or lime juice as desired\nGUACAMOLE POTATO SALAD\n\nSERVES 4\u20136\n\nThis is a winning creation\u2014it's creamy, rich, and luscious with a lime twist. This is the perfect side for a BBQ and brings back memories of childhood potato salads, but with a remixed, delicious Mexican flavor. This is a go-to dish of ours and we promise it will not disappoint.\n\n2\u00bc lb new potatoes\n\n2 tbsp dairy-free butter or spread\n\n1 lime\n\n3 avocados\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\n\u00bc cup unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n2 tbsp vegan mayonnaise\n\n2 tsp garlic powder\n\n2 tsp salt, plus a little extra\n\n1 tsp black pepper\n\n9 oz cherry tomatoes\n\n1 large fresh red chili\n\n\u00bd red onion\n\n1\u00bd oz fresh cilantro\n\nLarge saucepan with a lid | Blender\n\n* * *\n\nCut the potatoes into quarters (or halves if they're small) and put them in the saucepan | Fill the pan with cold water and add a large pinch of salt | Turn the heat to high and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 8\u201310 minutes, until the potatoes are cooked through | Drain and tip back into the pan | Add the dairy-free butter and stir so the potatoes are well covered, then set aside\n\nHalve the lime and squeeze the juice into the blender | Halve and carefully pit the avocados by tapping the pit firmly with the heel of a knife so that it lodges in the pits, then twist and remove the pits | Scoop the avocado flesh into the blender | Add the olive oil, plant-based milk, vegan mayonnaise, garlic powder, salt, and pepper and whizz to a thick cream, adding a splash more plant-based milk if needed\n\nDice the cherry tomatoes | Rip the stem from the chili, cut it in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds, if you prefer a milder flavor, then finely chop | Peel and finely chop the onion | Put the chopped vegetables into a large serving bowl and add the dressing and potatoes | Chop the cilantro leaves and finely slice the stems and sprinkle into the bowl | Stir everything together so that it's well mixed, then enjoy!\nFALAFEL BOSH! BOWL\n\nSERVES 4\u20136\n\nThis zingy, zesty salad with contrasting earthy falafel flavors is the perfect reward for a gym visit or as an accompaniment to a BBQ. You can make it ahead and, since it's so healthy, you can really fill yourself up and still feel great. Feel free to sub out the falafel if you just want a quick and easy Greek salad.\n\n3\u00bd oz leafy salad leaves\n\n1 lemon\n\nsmall handful fresh cilantro leaves\n\nhandful fresh mint, optional\n\nFOR THE HUMMUS\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\n1 can (15 oz) chickpeas\n\n3 tbsp aquafaba (water from chickpea can)\n\n1\u00bd tbsp tahini\n\n1\u00bd tbsp olive oil\n\n1 garlic clove\n\n1 tsp salt\n\nFOR THE FALAFEL\n\n2 cans (15 oz each) chickpeas\n\n2 small red onions\n\n3 garlic cloves\n\n1 cup fresh cilantro leaves\n\n1 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves\n\ngenerous \u00be cup chickpea flour\n\n1\u00bd tbsp harissa paste\n\n2 tsp salt\n\n1 tsp ground cumin\n\n\u00bd tsp black pepper\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\nolive oil, for frying\n\nFOR THE GREEK SALAD\n\n\u00bd cucumber\n\n1\u00be lb mixed tomatoes\n\n\u00bd small red onion\n\n2\u00bd oz pine nuts (or any nuts)\n\n5 oz pitted black Kalamata olives (but any olives will do)\n\n3 tbsp red wine vinegar\n\n3 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 tsp dried oregano\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nFood processor | Large frying pan | Small frying pan\n\n* * *\n\nFirst make the hummus | Cut the lemon in half and squeeze the juice into the food processor, catching the seeds in your other hand | Add all the rest of the ingredients and blend to a smooth paste | Scrape into a bowl and set aside (there's no need to rinse the processor bowl)\n\nNow make the falafel | Drain the chickpeas | Peel and finely chop the red onions and garlic | Finely chop the cilantro and parsley | Put all the falafel ingredients except for the oil and lemon in the food processor | Squeeze the lemon juice into the processor, catching any seeds in your other hand | Whizz to a thick paste\n\nUsing wet hands to stop the batter sticking, pick out small pieces of falafel batter between your finger and thumb and create little balls \u00be\u20131 inch in width (about the size of a large marble) until you've used up all the batter\n\nPut the large frying pan over high heat and add the olive oil | Add the balls to the pan and cook for 2\u20133 minutes until golden all over, using a spatula to flip them halfway through (you may need to do this in batches)\n\nTo make the salad, trim and slice the cucumber, cut the tomatoes into wedges, and peel and thinly slice the onion | Set the small frying pan over medium heat and put the pine nuts into the dry pan to toast for a few minutes | Tip the chopped vegetables into a large bowl with the toasted pine nuts and olives | Pour in the red wine vinegar and olive oil, sprinkle with the oregano, and season with salt and pepper | Mix it all together\n\nGet out four to six big bowls and lay a few salad leaves into each one | Fill each bowl with big helpings of Greek salad, hummus, and falafel | Cut the lemon in half and squeeze over some juice, catching any seeds in your other hand before serving with a sprinkling of fresh cilantro and mint, if using\nBEET, ONION & SWEET POTATO SALAD\n\nSERVES 4\n\nWe wanted a salad with Beet, Onion, Sweet potato, and Herbs (B.O.S.H., get it?). We love beets and were keen to base a salad around them. This is incredibly tasty and can be made even more filling by using two sweet potatoes or sprinkling some more nuts on top for a protein boost.\n\n1 sweet potato (2 if you're hungry)\n\n4 garlic cloves\n\n\u00bc cup + 2 tbsp olive oil\n\n10 oz cooked beet\n\n1 small red onion\n\n3 tbsp white wine vinegar\n\n2 tsp hot sauce\n\n5 oz fresh or frozen peas\n\n3\u00bd oz baby spinach\n\nlarge handful fresh cilantro leaves\n\nlarge handful fresh mint leaves\n\n2 medium avocados\n\nhandful mixed nuts\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nPreheat oven to 390\u00b0F | Baking sheet\n\n* * *\n\nPeel the sweet potato and cut it into \u2153-inch rounds | Lay them on the baking sheet along with 3 unpeeled garlic cloves | Pour on the 2 tablespoons of oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper | Put into the hot oven for 20 minutes until soft and charring slightly at the edges | Remove and set aside\n\nMeanwhile, finely slice the beets and place them in a bowl | Peel and mince the onion | Peel the remaining garlic clove and finely slice half (use the other half for something else) | Add both to the beets | Pour on the white wine vinegar, the \u00bc cup of oil, and the hot sauce | Mix well and leave to infuse while the sweet potato bakes\n\nPut the peas into a small microwave-safe bowl, cover with a splash of water, and cook on full power for 4 minutes | Quickly drain and run under cold water to cool, then add to the large bowl | Add the spinach | Finely chop the cilantro and mint leaves and add to the bowl | Gently toss everything together\n\nJust before you're ready to eat, halve and carefully pit the avocados by tapping the pits firmly with the heel of a knife so that it lodges in the pits. Twist and remove the pits | Run a spoon around the inside of the skin to scoop out the avocado halves, then slice finely, trying to keep the shape of the avocado halves\n\nDivide the salad among serving plates | Put a neat line of sweet potato slices on each plate and add a small pile of avocado | Spoon the beets over the plate | Roughly chop the nuts and scatter them over and enjoy this delicious, healthy meal!\nSATAY SWEET POTATO BOSH! BOWL\n\nSERVES 2\n\nThis powerful salad combines some of our favorite ingredients: satay sauce, hummus, and sweet potato. It's gluten-free, healthy, and delicious! Peanuts feature heavily in this staple and incredibly moreish satay sauce of ours. Filled with protein and healthy goodness, this dish will leave you satisfied for ages!\n\n1 large sweet potato (about 10 oz)\n\n\u00bd red onion\n\nolive oil\n\n1\u20132 tsp chili flakes\n\n2 garlic cloves\n\ngenerous 1 cup cooked quinoa (homemade or store-bought)\n\n5 oz broccoli (about \u00bd medium head)\n\n1 avocado\n\nhandful crushed nuts\n\n\u2154 cup hummus (store-bought or see here)\n\n2 tbsp mixed seeds, to serve\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nFOR THE DRESSING\n\n2 limes\n\n\u00be-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n1 garlic clove\n\n1 fresh red chili\n\n10 sprigs fresh cilantro\n\n3 heaping tbsp good-quality crunchy peanut butter\n\n1 tbsp soy sauce\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Blender | Roasting pan\n\n* * *\n\nCut the sweet potato into 1-inch chunks, keeping the skin | Cut the red onion half into quarters and place in the roasting pan with the sweet potato | Drizzle with some olive oil, sprinkle with the chili flakes, and season with a little salt and pepper | Crush the unpeeled garlic cloves by pressing down on them with the back of a knife and add to the roasting pan | Put the pan in the oven for 15 minutes\n\nHeat the cooked quinoa in the microwave | Break the broccoli into bite-sized florets | Take the pan out of the oven and add the broccoli, mixing everything around with a wooden spoon | Put the roasting pan back in the oven and bake for 15 minutes longer, until the potatoes and broccoli are softened | Remove from the oven\n\nMeanwhile, make the dressing | Zest the limes, cut them in half, and squeeze the juice into the blender, catching any seeds in your other hand | Peel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon and roughly chop | Peel the garlic | Rip the stem from the chili, cut it in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds, if you prefer a milder dressing | Roughly chop the cilantro | Add all the ingredients for the dressing to the blender and whizz it all up | Test for consistency, adding spoonfuls of water until it's runny enough to pour over the salad\n\nHalve and carefully pit the avocado by tapping the pit firmly with the heel of a knife so that it lodges in the pit, then twist and remove the pit | Run a spoon around the inside of the skin to scoop out the avocado halves, then slice\n\nDivide the quinoa between two serving bowls | Arrange the roasted vegetables and nuts on the top | Add a large dollop of hummus and the avocado slices to the bowls | Drizzle a little dressing over the top of each and serve the rest on the side before sprinkling with seeds to serve\nSOUTHWEST BOSH! BOWL\n\nSERVES 2\u20134\n\nThis was inspired by our desire to create the deliciousness of a burrito without the tortilla. It's a great source of protein and contains all your essential amino acids, making it a perfect post-workout meal for spring or summer. Fiery, citrusy, sweet, and fresh, it's an orchestra of healthy goodness. Plus, avocados\u2014need we say more?\n\n1 cup cooked basmati rice (store-bought or see here)\n\n1 can (15 oz) black beans\n\n1 can (7 oz) corn\n\n2 large tomatoes\n\n\u00bd red bell pepper\n\n\u00bd small red onion\n\n2 small avocados\n\n1 lime\n\n\u00bd fresh green chili\n\n1 tbsp olive oil\n\n\u2154 cup unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n1 tsp maple syrup\n\n\u00bd tsp garlic powder\n\n1 little gem lettuce\n\n1\u00be oz fresh cilantro\n\nhot sauce, to serve\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nMedium saucepan | Blender\n\n* * *\n\nTip the cooked rice into a mixing bowl, fluff it with a fork and transfer to a serving bowl\n\nDrain the black beans and corn and add them to the rice\n\nHalve the tomatoes, cut out the seeds, and finely dice | Trim any stem and seeds from the bell pepper and finely dice | Peel and finely dice the onion | Add the diced vegetables to the rice and fold together\n\nHalve and carefully pit the avocados by tapping the pits firmly with the heel of a knife so that it lodges in the pits, then twist and remove the pits | Scoop the flesh into the blender | Cut the lime in half and squeeze in most of the juice, catching any seeds in your other hand | Rip the stem from the chili, cut it in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds, if you prefer a milder flavor | Add the chili, olive oil, plant-based milk, maple syrup, and garlic powder to the blender and whizz to a creamy sauce with a thick drizzling consistency, adding a splash more plant-based milk if necessary | Taste and adjust the seasoning as needed\n\nFinely slice the lettuce | Chop the cilantro leaves and finely chop the stems | Add the lettuce and cilantro to the rice | Pour on the avocado dressing and stir everything together | Check the seasoning and add salt, pepper, or remaining lime juice to taste\n\nSpoon into bowls to serve, drizzled with a little hot sauce\nTHE BEST-DRESSED BOSH! BOWL\n\nSERVES 3\u20136\n\nThe combination of balsamic, fennel, and garlic here lends a unique flavor to the roasted veggies\u2014it's one of the most delicious ways to eat loads of goodness in one go. The dressing would suit any vegetables; just keep timing in mind to ensure they're properly cooked. Great as a light lunch, starter, or BBQ side.\n\n1 onion\n\n4 garlic cloves\n\n1 fresh red chili\n\n1 tbsp fennel seeds\n\n\u00bc cup olive oil, plus extra for drizzling\n\n\u00bc cup balsamic vinegar, plus extra for drizzling\n\n1 tbsp maple syrup\n\n3 tbsp tomato paste\n\n1\u00bc cups cooked puy lentils\n\n12 oz butternut squash\n\n1 fennel bulb\n\n7 oz cherry tomatoes\n\n1 yellow bell pepper\n\n1 red bell pepper\n\n1 zucchini\n\n1 avocado\n\n3\u00bd oz baby spinach or kale\n\nscant cup fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Medium saucepan over medium heat | Roasting pan\n\n* * *\n\nPeel the onion | Peel the garlic | Rip the stem from the chili, then cut it in half lengthwise and remove the seeds if you prefer a milder flavor | Finely chop the onion, garlic, chili, and fennel seeds | Spoon into the saucepan and add the \u00bc cup of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, maple syrup, and tomato paste | Stir for 5 minutes, then add the cooked lentils | Stir to combine, remove from the heat, and set aside\n\nPeel the squash, cut it in half, and remove the seeds, then cut into \u00be-inch chunks | Tip into a roasting pan, drizzle with a little olive oil, season, and put the pan in the hot oven for 15 minutes, then remove\n\nMeanwhile, trim the fennel bulb, remove the core, and cut into \u2153-inch wedges | Halve the tomatoes | Cut the bell peppers in half, cut out the stems and seeds | Trim the ends of the zucchini | Cut the pepper and zucchini into \u2153-inch pieces | Add the fennel, zucchini, peppers, and tomatoes to the roasting pan with the squash and drizzle over a little more oil | Return to the oven to cook for 15 minutes, until tender\n\nWhile the vegetables are roasting, halve and carefully pit the avocado by tapping the pit firmly with the heel of a knife so that it lodges in the pit, then twist and remove the pit | Run a spoon around the inside of the skin to scoop out the avocado halves and cut into chunks | Wash and lightly chop the spinach or kale and roughly chop the parsley leaves\n\nRemove the roasted veggies from the oven and tip into a serving bowl with the avocado, spinach or kale, parsley, and lentils | Stir and serve\nTHE BIG GREEN BOSH! BOWL\n\nSERVES 2\n\nThis delicious dish is perfect post-gym fuel. It looks like a lot of food, but you'll wolf down the healthy greens and delicious dressing. Double up the recipe for a week's worth of turbo-sized lunches. This clever recipe uses the rice water to steam the veggies, so it's easy to cook and there's less cleanup.\n\n1 mug brown rice (about 1 cup)\n\n2 mugs water (about 2 cups)\n\n4 oz broccolini\n\n2 oz green beans\n\n1\u00bc cups canned mixed beans (or any bean, such as kidney beans)\n\n1 fresh red chili\n\n1 lemon\n\n2 oz baby spinach\n\n12 cherry tomatoes\n\n2\u00bd oz cashews\n\n\u2153 cup hummus (store-bought or see here)\n\nhandful fresh cilantro leaves\n\nsriracha or other hot sauce, to serve\n\nsalt\n\nFOR THE DRESSING\n\n1 garlic clove\n\n\u00be-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n1 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 tsp toasted sesame oil\n\n1 tbsp soy sauce\n\nMedium saucepan with a lid over medium-high heat | Boiling water | Steamer insert or metal colander\n\n* * *\n\nFill a mug with brown rice, pour it into a sieve, and rinse with cold water for 30 seconds | Use the same mug to measure twice as much boiling water into the hot pan | Add a little salt | When the water returns to a boil, add the rice, put the lid on, stir, and cook for 20 minutes\n\nMeanwhile, trim the bottoms from the broccolini | Top and tail the green beans\n\nNext, make the dressing | Peel and finely chop the garlic | Peel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon, chop, and put in a mug with the garlic | Pour in the olive oil, sesame oil, and soy sauce and stir\n\nAfter 20 minutes, take the lid off the rice and put a steamer insert or heatproof colander on top of the pan | Add the green beans and broccoli and pour over half the dressing | Put a big lid on top of the insert or colander and set the timer for 5 minutes, then check the veg and rice are done; if not, cook for a little longer | Once everything is cooked, turn off the heat and leave the lid off the pan\n\nDrain half the can of mixed beans (use the other half another time) | Rip the stem from the chili, cut it in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds if you prefer a milder flavor, then finely slice | Drain the rice if necessary | Cut the lemon in half\n\nTo assemble, divide the spinach between the bowls, followed by the mixed beans, steamed veggies, rice, and cherry tomatoes | Pile the cashews on top of the salad and spoon on a large dollop of hummus | Squeeze on the juice of the lemon, catching any seeds in your other hand\n\nDrizzle the rest of the dressing over the top and sprinkle with the cilantro leaves and chili | Finish by squeezing a tablespoon of sriracha or hot sauce over everything\nMAKE YOUR OWN BOSH! BOWLS\n\nBOSH! bowls are protein-filled bowls of deliciousness. They are typically filled with plant-based proteins, green veg, and a grain of some kind. They're perfect for after the gym, or just for feeding your hungry belly during a busy day. You can quickly knock them together with whatever you have in the fridge, just cover each of these bases to ensure tastiness and healthiness!\n\n**1. Choose your grain**\n\nBrown or white rice\n\nCouscous\n\nQuinoa\n\nRice noodles\n\nSoba noodles\n\nWhole wheat noodles\n\n**2. Add your protein:**\n\nBlack beans\n\nButter beans or lima beans\n\nKidney beans\n\nLentils\n\nPinto beans\n\nSeitan\n\nTempeh\n\nTofu\n\n**3. Trim and finely slice the vegetables, then roast or steam them and add to the bowl**\n\nAsparagus\n\nBeets\n\nBroccoli\n\nCarrots\n\nGreen beans\n\nMushrooms\n\nOnions\n\nPeppers\n\nSweet potatoes\n\nZucchini\n\n**4. Finely slice some raw veg and add straight to the bowl and stir everything together**\n\nAvocado\n\nChili peppers\n\nCorn\n\nCucumber\n\nGreens\n\nKale\n\nLettuce\n\nPeppers\n\nScallions\n\nSpinach\n\n**5. Chop the herbs, chuck into the bowl, and mix through**\n\nBasil\n\nChives\n\nCilantro\n\nDill\n\nMint\n\nParsley\n\nTarragon\n\n**6. Roughly chop some nuts or seeds, or leave whole and add raw or toasted and scatter over the top**\n\nBlanched almonds\n\nCashews\n\nChia seeds\n\nFlaxseeds\n\nHazelnuts\n\nMacadamia nuts\n\nMixed nuts\n\nPeanuts\n\nPecans\n\nPine nuts\n\nPumpkin seeds\n\nSesame seeds\n\nWalnuts\n\n**7. Choose your dressing and drizzle it over**\n\nBaba Ganoush\n\nBalsamic vinegar\n\nHummus\n\nLemon juice\n\nMango chutney\n\nMustard\n\nOlive oil\n\nOlive Tapenade\n\nProper Spanish Aioli\n\nRich Satay Sauce\n\nSoy or coconut yogurt-based dressing\n\nSoy sauce\n\n**Small Plates & Sharers**\n\nPimp out your mini-bites\n\nWith delicious sharing plates\n\nFor sides or tapas\nCAULIFLOWER BUFFALO WINGS\n\nSERVES 2\u20134\n\nThese delicious wings taste naughty but are actually healthy, since they're baked. The spices are gorgeously deep and the panko breadcrumbs give a crunchy coating that contrasts nicely with the smooth cauliflower. It's the perfect starter or dish to share with friends. We promise, you'll love it.\n\n1 large head of cauliflower\n\n1 cup + 2 tbsp all-purpose flour\n\n1\u00bc cups unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n2 tsp garlic powder\n\n1 tsp onion powder\n\n1 tsp ground cumin\n\n1 tsp paprika\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n\u00bc tsp black pepper\n\n1 cup panko breadcrumbs\n\n8 tbsp dairy-free butter or spread\n\n\u00be cup Buffalo hot sauce\n\nFOR THE RANCH SAUCE\n\n5 oz cashews\n\n\u2154 cup unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n1 tbsp lemon juice\n\n2 tsp garlic powder\n\n\u00be tsp salt\n\n\u00bc tsp black pepper\n\nhandful fresh parsley\n\n4 chives\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Line 2 baking sheets | Small saucepan of boiling water over high heat | Food processor or blender\n\n* * *\n\nAdd the cashews to the pan of boiling water and boil for 15 minutes, then drain and run under cold water to cool slightly\n\nMeanwhile, break the cauliflower into florets and cut the stem into bite-sized pieces\n\nPut the flour, plant-based milk, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, paprika, salt, and pepper into a bowl and whisk to a batter | Pour the panko breadcrumbs into another bowl and rub them between your thumb and fingers to break into slightly smaller breadcrumbs\n\nTip the cauliflower into the batter and toss to coat | Transfer to the bowl of breadcrumbs, a few pieces at a time, and toss gently until well coated | Spread the cauliflower pieces over the lined baking sheets and bake for 20 minutes\n\nMeanwhile, melt the dairy-free butter in the microwave and stir in the hot sauce\n\nAfter 20 minutes, remove the pans from the oven, drizzle with the butter\/hot sauce, and carefully roll the cauliflower around until the pieces are fully coated | Put the pans back in the oven for 20\u201325 minutes, until a sharp knife glides into the thickest parts of the cauliflower and the outsides are really golden brown and crispy | Remove from the oven\n\nWhile the cauliflower is cooking, put all the ingredients for the ranch sauce except for the herbs into the food processor or blender and whizz for 1\u20132 minutes until smooth and creamy | Transfer to a serving bowl | Finely chop the parsley and chives and add most of them to the sauce, reserving a little for garnish\n\nServe the cauliflower wings while they're still hot on a serving plate, sprinkled with the remaining herbs and with the ranch sauce on the side\nSHIITAKE TERIYAKI DIPPERS\n\nSERVES 2\n\nOnce you've had your fill of these dippers, there won't be mush-room left in your belly for anything else (ahem)! They are crunchy and crispy, sweet and sticky, deliciously mushroomy inside and covered by a sumptuous sauce. A healthy bake with the luxurious feeling of a deep-fry, this is great nibble-fodder.\n\n5 tsp soy sauce\n\n9 tbsp water\n\n\u00bd tsp ground ginger\n\n\u00bd tsp garlic powder\n\n2\u00bd tbsp brown sugar\n\n1 tbsp cornstarch\n\n9 oz shiitake or wild mushrooms\n\n1\u00bc cups panko breadcrumbs\n\nFOR THE BATTER\n\n\u00be cup + 2 tbsp unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n\u00be cup + 2 tbsp all-purpose flour\n\n2 tsp garlic powder\n\n2 tsp onion salt\n\nPreheat oven to 390\u00b0F | Line 2 baking sheets | Small saucepan over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nPut the soy sauce, 7 tbsp of the water, the ground ginger, garlic powder, and sugar into the hot pan and simmer gently until the sugar dissolves\n\nPut the cornstarch and remaining 2 tbsp water into a glass and stir with a fork until there are no lumps | Add to the pan, turn up the heat, and bring to a boil, stirring as you go | Reduce the heat and simmer for 2\u20133 minutes, stirring frequently, until the sauce is syrupy and viscous | Pour into a bowl and set aside\n\nPut all the ingredients for the batter into a mixing bowl and stir to combine | Cut any large mushrooms in half and add all the mushrooms to the batter to coat thoroughly\n\nPut the panko breadcrumbs into a large bowl\n\nOne by one, roll the battered mushrooms in the breadcrumbs and place them on the lined baking sheets | Put the pans in the oven and bake for 18\u201320 minutes, until the mushrooms are golden brown and crispy | Remove from the oven, put them in a serving bowl, and serve with the teriyaki sauce\nPOPCORN FALAFEL\n\nSERVES 6\u20138\n\nWe call these \"nom nom balls,\" and they are unacceptably good for a dippy dinner party. Crispy, crunchy, and moreish, you may need to make double helpings (served with hummus, obviously). They are the best dipping food we have ever tasted, good as a snack, great in pita, and an audacious way to enjoy a Middle Eastern staple!\n\n1 small red onion\n\n3 garlic cloves\n\n2 cans (15 oz each) chickpeas\n\n1\u00be cups all-purpose flour, plus a little extra\n\n1 cup fresh cilantro leaves\n\n1 cup fresh parsley\n\n2 tsp harissa paste\n\n1 tsp ground cumin\n\n2 tsp salt\n\n1 tsp pepper\n\n1 lemon\n\n1\u2154 cups panko breadcrumbs\n\n1 cup unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n3 cups vegetable oil, for frying\n\nDouble batch of Classic Hummus (see here), to serve\n\nLine a large bowl with a clean kitchen towel | Food processor | Large deep saucepan | Line a plate with paper towels\n\n* * *\n\nPeel the onion and the garlic | Drain and rinse the chickpeas and tip them into the bowl lined with a kitchen towel | Pat the chickpeas dry to remove as much moisture as possible\n\nPut the onion, garlic, and chickpeas into the food processor | Add \u00be cup of the flour, the cilantro, parsley, harissa, cumin, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and \u00bd teaspoon of the pepper | Cut the lemon in half and squeeze in the juice, catching any seeds with your other hand | Whizz to a thick paste that's not too sticky (if it seems too wet, add another tablespoon or two of flour)\n\nWith lightly floured hands, take teaspoons of the mixture at a time and roll them into \u00be-inch balls about the size of large marbles\n\nPut the panko breadcrumbs into a bowl | Put the remaining 1 cup flour, the plant-based milk, and the remaining salt and pepper into a bowl and stir them together until you have a thick, creamy batter | Dip 2 or 3 balls at a time into the batter, shake off any excess, and transfer them to the bowl of breadcrumbs, rolling them around until they are completely coated | Repeat until all of the balls are coated\n\nPour the vegetable oil into the large deep saucepan so that it comes no more than two-thirds up the side of the pan | Place the pan over medium heat | When a small piece of bread dropped into the pan turns golden brown after 60 seconds, you are ready to go\n\nFry the falafels in batches of 10 for 3\u20134 minutes, then turn them over and fry for a further 3 minutes, until deep golden brown and crisp | Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and drain on the paper towels to remove the excess oil | Serve with hummus\nMAKI SUSHI ROLLS\n\nThese maki rolls are sushi with a BOSH! twist. Imagine the most delicious California rolls you can think of. The flavors really pop when these are combined with a bit of soy sauce, ginger, and wasabi. To make exotic DIY lunches, wrap them in foil and take them to work with you for the ultimate maki roll treat. See above for inspiration.\nGUACA MAKI ROLLS\n\nSERVES 4\n\n1\u00bd cups sushi rice\n\n\u00bc cup rice vinegar\n\n2 tbsp superfine sugar\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n\u00bd cucumber\n\n1 carrot\n\n2 scallions\n\n1 avocado\n\n4 sheets sushi nori\n\n2 cups guacamole (store-bought or see here)\n\nsoy sauce, to serve\n\nwasabi, to serve\n\npickled ginger, to serve, optional\n\nLarge saucepan | Small saucepan over medium-high heat | Large baking sheet | Sushi mat\n\n* * *\n\nCook the sushi rice in the large saucepan, according to the package directions and ensuring that it is dry and sticky with no excess water once cooked\n\nPour the rice vinegar, sugar, and salt into the small saucepan and heat until the sugar has completely dissolved | Let the mixture cool to room temperature and then pour it over the cooked rice, gently stirring until all the liquid has been absorbed | Transfer the rice to a large baking sheet, spread it out to help it cool quicker, and leave it to cool to room temperature, by which point it should be dry but sticky\n\nCut the cucumber in half lengthwise and scoop out the watery seeds, then cut it into thin matchsticks roughly the same length as the width of a nori sheet | Trim the carrot and scallions and cut into matches the same size as the cucumber | Remove the avocado pit by tapping it firmly with the heel of a knife so that it lodges in the pit, then twist and remove the pit | Run a spoon around the inside of the skin to scoop out the avocado flesh, then slice into matchsticks\n\nTake a nori sheet and lay it on the sushi mat, shiny side down | Spoon a quarter of the prepared rice onto the nori sheet, then dip the spoon in water and use it to spread out the rice to make a thin even layer, leaving a \u2153-inch gap at the farthest end of the nori sheet | Spread a very thin layer of guacamole on top of the rice | Lay a quarter of the avocado, scallion, carrot, and cucumber across the rice at the edge closest to you\n\nDip your finger in water and wet the exposed strip of nori | Use the bamboo mat to help you roll up the sushi from the end nearest you, compacting it as you go to ensure it is even and tightly wrapped | Repeat to make 4 sushi logs\n\nTo serve, use a very sharp wet knife to cut the rolls into bite-sized pieces, cleaning the knife with water after each cut (alternatively, leave them whole and eat as you would a wrap) | Serve with soy sauce, wasabi, and ginger, if using, on the side\nSATAY MAKI ROLLS\n\nSERVES 4\n\n1\u00bd cups sushi rice\n\n\u00bc cup rice vinegar\n\n2 tbsp superfine sugar\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n\u00bd cucumber\n\n1 carrot\n\n2 scallions\n\n1 avocado\n\nRich Satay Sauce (see here)\n\n4 sheets sushi nori\n\nsoy sauce, to serve\n\nwasabi, to serve\n\npickled ginger, to serve, optional\n\nLarge saucepan | Small saucepan over medium-high heat | Large baking sheet | Sushi mat\n\n* * *\n\nPrepare the rice and vegetables as for Guaca Maki Rolls\n\nLoosen the satay sauce by adding about 3\u20134 tablespoons water so that it's thick enough to hold its shape when rolled, but not too thick to spread\n\nTake a nori sheet and lay it on the sushi mat, shiny side down | Spoon a quarter of the prepared rice onto the nori sheet, then dip the spoon in water and use it to spread out the rice to make a thin even layer, leaving a \u2153-inch gap at the farthest end of the nori sheet | Spread a very thin layer of satay sauce on top of the rice | Lay a quarter of the avocado, scallion, carrot, and cucumber across the rice at the edge closest to you\n\nDip your finger in water and wet the exposed strip of nori | Use the bamboo mat to help you roll up the sushi from the end nearest you, compacting it as you go to ensure it is even and tightly wrapped | Repeat to make 4 sushi logs\n\nTo serve, use a very sharp wet knife to cut the rolls into bite-sized pieces, cleaning the knife with water after each cut (alternatively, leave them whole and eat as you would a wrap) | Serve immediately with soy sauce, wasabi, and ginger, if using, on the side\nBANGIN' VEGGIE KEBABS\n\nMAKES 8\n\nThese are delicious and very good for you! The marinades are super quick to put together; if you don't have a blender, chop and mix in a big bowl until you get the right consistency. This is a great one for making in advance, since the marinades and veggies can be stored in the fridge. These go so well with a dipping sauce, and are perfect for a quick meal or BBQ. See them in their glory here.\n\n2 red, orange, green, or yellow bell peppers\n\n1 red onion\n\n1 zucchini\n\n1 eggplant\n\n5 oz cherry tomatoes\n\n9 oz mushrooms\n\nRich Satay, Spicy Shashlik, or Asian BBQ marinade\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Blender | Small sheet pan | Wooden skewers, soaked\n\n* * *\n\nCut the bell peppers in half and cut out the stem and seeds | Peel the onion | Trim the zucchini and eggplant | Cut all the vegetables into 1-inch chunks, put them in a big bowl, and cover them with your chosen marinade | Stir everything together until it's really well mixed\n\nThread the marinated vegetables onto the wooden skewers, leaving 1\u00bc inches free at either end | Lay the skewers across the sheet pan, resting each end on the edges so that the vegetables are suspended above the bottom (as if they're being spit-roasted)\n\nPut the pan in the hot oven and roast for 20\u201325 minutes, until the vegetables are cooked through, deeply caramelized, and slightly crispy on the outside\nMARINADES\n\nBlender\n\n* * *\n\nPrepare your ingredients and then put them all into the blender | Whizz to a smooth paste\nASIAN BBQ\n\nMAKES A GENEROUS \u00be CUP\n\n2 fresh red chilies, stemmed\n\n6 garlic cloves, peeled\n\n1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled\n\n\u2154 cup fresh cilantro leaves\n\n\u00bd tsp black pepper\n\n\u00bc cup agave syrup\n\n2 tbsp white wine vinegar\n\n2 tbsp soy sauce\nSPICY SHASHLIK\n\nMAKES 1 CUP\n\n2 large red chilies, stemmed\n\n2 green bird's eye chilies, stemmed\n\n6 garlic cloves, peeled\n\n2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled\n\n2 tbsp sunflower oil\n\n2 tsp ground cumin\n\n1 tsp ground coriander\n\n1 tsp garam masala\n\n\u00bd tsp ground turmeric\n\n2 tsp smoked paprika\n\n\u00bd tsp chili powder\n\nsmall handful fresh cilantro\n\n2 tbsp tamarind paste\n\n2 tbsp cornstarch\n\n\u00bc cup white wine vinegar\n\n\u00bc cup plain soy yogurt\n\n1 tsp sea salt\n\n\u00bc tsp black pepper\nRICH SATAY\n\nMAKES \u00be CUP\n\njuice of 2 limes\n\n1 fresh red chili, stemmed\n\n1 garlic clove, peeled\n\n\u00be-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled\n\n\u2154 cup fresh cilantro\n\ngenerous \u00bd cup good-quality crunchy peanut butter\n\n1 tbsp soy sauce\n\n1\u20132 tbsp water, optional, to achieve runny consistency\nHOISIN PANCAKES\n\nSERVES 2 AS A STARTER\n\nEveryone's favorite Chinese sharer\u2014rich, salty mushrooms combine with the fresh green veggies and sweet hoisin sauce to create a starter that no one can refuse. This is delicious with Asian dishes like our Crispy Chili Tofu or Sticky Shiitake Mushrooms. You can also replace the pancakes with gem lettuce leaves and simply wrap them into little healthy parcels.\n\n2 tsp vegetable oil\n\n10 oz mushrooms (portobello, if possible)\n\n2 tbsp soy sauce\n\n1 tsp five-spice powder\n\n1 tbsp rice vinegar\n\n2 tsp toasted sesame oil\n\n1 tsp sugar\n\n\u00bd cucumber\n\n3 scallions\n\n5 tbsp hoisin sauce\n\n8 Chinese pancakes\n\nSmall frying pan over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nPut the oil into the pan | Roughly slice the mushrooms, add them to the pan, and cook for 10 minutes until their juices have cooked off | Add the soy sauce, five-spice, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and sugar | Continue to cook, stirring continously until any additional sauce has mostly evaporated and the mushrooms are beautifully cooked and glazed\n\nMeanwhile, halve the cucumber and remove the watery core with a spoon, then finely slice into 2-inch matchsticks | Trim the top and bottom of the scallions and cut them into matchsticks | Put the cucumber and scallions on a small plate and pour the hoisin sauce into a small dish\n\nHeat the pancakes following the instructions on the packet\n\nWhen the mushrooms are ready, transfer them to a plate and serve them alongside their accompaniments | To assemble the pancakes, simply take a little of each ingredient and wrap them up into delicious pancake rolls\nFRENCH ONION SOUP\n\nSERVES 2\u20134\n\nA French classic presented in near-classic form. This is one for those long winter nights when you need something soothing and warming, great as a starter or served with chunky bread (perhaps spread with our Garlic & Herb Cashew Cheese) as a hearty meal for two. Be patient with the onions and you'll be rewarded with incredible flavor.\n\n1\u00be oz dried porcini mushrooms\n\n3 cups boiling water\n\n3 tbsp olive oil\n\n6 large onions (about 1 lb 10 oz)\n\n6 garlic cloves\n\n1 tsp brown sugar\n\n2 tbsp dry sherry or port\n\n\u00bd tsp balsamic vinegar\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\n\u00bd tsp sea salt\n\n\u00bc tsp black pepper\n\nchunky bread, to serve, optional\n\nLarge saucepan over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nPut the mushrooms in a small bowl and cover with the boiling water\n\nPour the oil into the pan | Peel and finely slice the onions and add them to the pan | Peel and finely chop the garlic and add to the pan with 2 tablespoons of water | Stir everything together, reduce the heat to low, cover and cook very gently for 40 minutes, stirring every couple of minutes, until the onions turn a deep caramel color | Add a tablespoon of water every now and again to prevent the onions from sticking | After 40 minutes, add the sugar and stir\n\nStrain the soaking liquid from the mushrooms into a bowl, squeezing out as much liquid as possible (keep the mushrooms for making a risotto or something else) | Pour the soaking liquid over the onions, add the sherry and balsamic vinegar, stir everything together, and bring to a boil | Immediately reduce the heat to low and simmer gently for 10 minutes\n\nSqueeze in the juice from the lemon, catching any seeds in your other hand | Season with salt and pepper, spoon into bowls, and serve on its own or with chunky bread, if using, to mop up the soup\nSPANISH TAPAS\n\nLook no further for a Mediterranean feast! Any or all of these dishes would be great accompaniments to Pettigrew's Paella, served alongside Proper Spanish Aioli, Olive Tapenade, and a small bowl of olives. Or why not try them as party canap\u00e9s (if you can get past the garlic flavors!). And they would match perfectly with red wine.\nJANE'S PAN CON TOMATE\n\nMAKES 8 SLICES\n\nImagine an effortlessly simple Spanish bruschetta that's ready in minutes yet feels exotic. This one is a favorite of Henry's mum, Jane, and her well-honed Spanish palate.\n\n3 tomatoes\n\n3 garlic cloves\n\nsmall handful fresh parsley\n\n\u00bc cup olive oil\n\n2 tbsp white wine vinegar or sherry vinegar\n\nsugar, to season, optional\n\n8 slices good-quality bread\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nToaster or broiler | Coarse grater\n\n* * *\n\nGrate the tomatoes into a bowl | Peel the garlic and finely chop along with the parsley, then add to the bowl | Add the olive oil and vinegar and stir everything well | Taste and add salt, pepper, and even a little bit of sugar, if using, to taste\n\nSlice the bread into \u00be-inch-thick slices and toast or broil until lightly browned | Spread the tomato dressing all over the toast with a knife or the back of a spoon, rubbing the mixture into the bread, and serve\nGARLIC MUSHROOMS\n\nSERVES 4\n\nThese are incredibly easy to cook and so, so tasty. Feel free to use less garlic if you prefer, as this one's pretty punchy!\n\n11 oz cremini mushrooms\n\n5 tbsp olive oil\n\n\u00bd fresh red chili\n\n4 garlic cloves\n\n\u00bd cup dry white wine\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\nsalt\n\nLarge frying pan on a medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nTrim the mushrooms and cut them in half | Add the oil to the large frying pan\n\nRip the stem from the chili, cut it in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds, if you prefer a milder flavor, then finely chop and add to the pan | Peel and finely chop the garlic, add it to the pan, and cook for 1 minute before adding the sliced mushrooms | Fry for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally\n\nPour in the wine, turn up the heat to high, and cook for another 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until the wine has reduced down to just a tablespoon or so | Squeeze the lemon juice into the pan, catching any seeds in your other hand | Cook for 1 more minute | Season to taste with salt and more lemon, if desired\nPATATAS BRAVAS\n\nSERVES 2\n\nA staple in any good tapas restaurant, this is like the French fry's stronger, sexier Spanish cousin. The sauce is insane, the potatoes are perfectly cooked, the result is simple excellence. Feel free to use dried herbs if you don't have the fresh ones handy.\n\n4 potatoes\n\n6 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 onion\n\n8 garlic cloves\n\n4 fresh red chilies\n\n\u00bd carrot\n\n1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves\n\n1 can (14.5 oz) chopped tomatoes\n\n1 tbsp white wine vinegar\n\n3 sprigs fresh rosemary\n\n1 tsp paprika\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nLarge saucepan over medium heat | Medium frying pan over low heat | Large frying pan | Cover a plate with paper towels | Blender\n\n* * *\n\nPeel the potatoes and chop them into bite-sized pieces | Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil and add some salt | Add the potatoes and cook for 8\u201310 minutes until softened, but not falling apart\n\nMeanwhile, pour 1 tablespoon of the olive oil into the medium frying pan | Peel and finely chop the onion and 3 of the garlic cloves and add them to the pan | Rip the stems from the chilies, cut them in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds if you prefer a milder sauce, then finely chop and add to the pan | Trim the carrot, finely chop, and add to the pan with the thyme leaves | Cook everything for 5\u20137 minutes, until the onion and carrot have softened\n\nAdd the chopped tomatoes to the pan along with the vinegar and salt and pepper to taste | Let the liquid come to a boil, then turn down the heat and simmer for 10 minutes\n\nWhile the sauce is cooking, set the large frying pan over medium-high heat and pour in the remaining 5 tablespoons of olive oil, or enough to coat the bottom of the pan | Carefully add the softened potatoes and fry for about 10 minutes, turning them regularly, until golden and really crispy (the crispier the better)\n\nPeel and finely chop the remaining garlic and add to the pan with the potatoes | Remove the rosemary leaves by running your thumb and forefinger from the top to the base of the stems (the leaves should easily come away), then finely chop and add to the pan | When they are ready, transfer to the paper towels and sprinkle with the paprika and a little salt; they should be lightly browned and crispy on the outside\n\nTip the tomato sauce into a blender and whizz to a smooth paste | Give it a taste before serving and adjust the flavor if you like, adding more salt or pepper as you see fit | Put the potatoes on a plate, pour the sauce over the top, and serve\nPERI PERI HASSELBACK POTATOES\n\nSERVES 4\n\nHalfway between a baked potato and a French fry, this quirky way to serve potatoes looks impressive but is simple to prepare. This goes great with a Big BOSH! Burger or as a side for a BBQ.\n\n4 large white potatoes\n\n\u00bc cup olive oil, plus extra for drizzling\n\n6 tbsp nondairy yogurt\n\npaprika, to sprinkle\n\ngarlic powder, to sprinkle\n\n1 tbsp hot sauce\n\n1 tbsp chopped chives, to serve\n\nsea salt\n\nFOR THE PERI PERI SPICE RUB\n\n1\u00bd tsp paprika\n\n1\u00bd tsp onion powder\n\n1 tsp garlic powder\n\n1 tsp dried oregano\n\n1 tsp ground ginger\n\n\u00bd tsp cayenne pepper\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F\n\n* * *\n\nPlace one of the potatoes on a cutting board and lay a wooden spoon on either side (these will provide a stopping point so that you don't cut all the way through your potatoes) | Take a sharp knife and carefully cut very thin slices crosswise along the full length of the potato, stopping when the knife hits the spoon handles | Repeat until all the potatoes have been \"hasselbacked\"\n\nCut 4 rectangles of foil large enough to cover each potato | Put one potato in the center of each and pull the sides up to form little nests | Drizzle 1 tablespoon olive oil over each potato, making sure the oil gets in between all the slices\n\nMeasure the spices for the spice rub into a small bowl and stir to combine | Use a teaspoon to sprinkle equal amounts of the spice rub over, and in between the slices of, each potato | Wrap the potatoes up in the foil ensuring there are no gaps | Place on a baking sheet, put the pan in the oven, and bake the potatoes for 45 minutes | Take the pan out of the oven and set it down on a heatproof mat | Turn the oven up to 425\u00b0F\n\nCarefully open the parcels and flatten down the foil around the potatoes, being careful not to burn your fingers | Use the tip of a knife to lightly prise open the slices | Drizzle a touch more olive oil and sprinkle a little more salt over the potatoes | Put the pan back in the oven with the foil nests unwrapped and bake for 20\u201330 minutes longer\n\nSpoon the yogurt into a small dish and sprinkle with paprika and garlic powder | Spoon some hot sauce on top and swirl it into the yogurt | Take the potatoes out of the oven | Lift them out of the foil nests and transfer to plates | Spoon the spice oil that's gathered in the foil nests over the potatoes | Garnish with chopped chives and serve with the spiced yogurt\nALL THE SAUCES\n\nOh dips, how we love you. These quick-to-make, guaranteed-to-please dips add another level of flavor to any meal in this book and impress any of your dinner guests. They're perfect party fodder: try serving a selection with fries, bread, and sides for a buffet to rule them all. Or they are all delicious served with salads, pizzas, chips, crudit\u00e9s, you name it! See the whole selection in their rainbow of colors here.\nOLIVE TAPENADE\n\nMAKES ABOUT 1\u00bc CUPS\n\n7 oz black olives, such as Kalamata, preferably pitted\n\n2 garlic cloves\n\n3 tbsp capers\n\n\u00be cup fresh parsley, optional\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\n5 tbsp olive oil\n\nFood processor or stick blender\n\n* * *\n\nRemove the pits from the olives if they are not already pitted | Peel and crush the garlic into the food processor (or into a bowl if you're using a stick blender) and add the olives, capers, and parsley, if using | Squeeze in the juice from the lemon, catching any seeds in your other hand | Whizz to a rough pur\u00e9e\n\nPour in the olive oil bit by bit and give it a couple more pulses until very well combined, but still retaining some texture | Transfer to a serving bowl\nPROPER SPANISH AIOLI\n\nMAKES \u2153 CUP\n\n5 garlic cloves\n\n1 tsp sea salt\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\n\u00bd cup olive oil\n\nPestle and mortar (or use a small bowl and a wooden spoon)\n\n* * *\n\nPeel and thinly slice the garlic and put it in the mortar (or bowl) with the sea salt | Squeeze in the lemon juice, catching any seeds with your other hand | Bash to a fine pulp using the pestle (or wooden spoon) | Add a teaspoon of the oil and mash thoroughly into the garlic pulp, ensuring it is well mixed in | Repeat until all the oil is used up, making sure you only add a teaspoon of oil at a time and that each time the oil is fully incorporated before continuing, otherwise the mixture will split\nRICH SATAY SAUCE\n\nMAKES \u00be CUP\n\n2 limes\n\n1 fresh red chili\n\n1 garlic clove\n\n\u00be-inch piece fresh ginger\n\ngenerous \u00bd cup good-quality crunchy peanut butter\n\n\u2154 cup fresh cilantro\n\n1 tbsp soy sauce\n\nFood processor or stick blender\n\n* * *\n\nFinely zest the limes, then cut them in half and squeeze out the juice, catching any seeds in your other hand | Rip the stem from the chili into the food processor or bowl and remove the seeds, if you prefer a milder sauce | Peel the garlic | Peel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon\n\nAdd all the ingredients to the food processor or a bowl and blend until smooth | Test the consistency, adding 1\u20132 tablespoons water to get the sauce as runny as you like | Taste and season with more lime juice or soy sauce if necessary\nBABA GANOUSH\n\nMAKES ABOUT 1\u2153 CUPS\n\n2 medium eggplants (about 1 lb)\n\n2 small garlic cloves\n\n1 lemon\n\n2 tbsp tahini\n\n3 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 tsp cumin seeds\n\n\u00bd tsp smoked paprika\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\nany combination of fresh chopped parsley, chili flakes, and\/or harissa paste, to serve, optional\n\nPreheat oven to 465\u00b0F | Line a baking sheet | Food processor or stick blender\n\n* * *\n\nPierce the skin of the eggplants a few times with a fork | Put onto the lined baking sheet and place on the highest rack in the oven | Cook for 20\u201325 minutes, turning once or twice, until the skin is blackened all over | Remove to a bowl and leave to cool\n\nMeanwhile, peel the garlic and put it in the food processor (or a bowl) | Cut the lemon in half and squeeze in the juice, catching any seeds in your other hand | Add the tahini, olive oil, cumin, paprika, and salt\n\nCut the eggplant in half and use a large spoon to scoop out the flesh (or peel off the charred skin with your fingers) | Transfer the eggplant flesh to the food processor (or bowl) along with a few pieces of the charred skin to add flavor | Whizz until smooth\n\nTaste and add a little more lemon juice or salt, if needed | Garnish with a few toppings, if using, such as the chopped parsley leaves, chili flakes, and\/or harissa\nAMAZING CHILI SAUCE\n\nMAKES 1 CUP\n\n2 red bell peppers\n\n5 fresh red chilies\n\n3 garlic cloves\n\n7 tbsp white wine vinegar\n\n\u00bc cup sugar\n\n1 tbsp cornstarch\n\n2 tsp water\n\n1 lime\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\nStand blender or stick blender | Small pan over high heat\n\n* * *\n\nCut the bell peppers in half and cut out the stems and seeds | Rip the stems from the chilies, cut them in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds | Peel the garlic cloves | Add to the blender or a bowl along with the vinegar and sugar and blend until completely smooth\n\nPour into the hot pan, bring to a boil, then lower the heat to medium and simmer for 5 minutes\n\nPut the cornstarch in a mug with the water | Stir until the flour has dissolved and there are no lumps | Pour into the pan and continue to simmer, stirring continuously, for 2 minutes\n\nCut the lime in half and squeeze in the juice, catching any seeds in your other hand | Season with the salt | Remove from the heat and leave to cool\nULTIMATE GUACAMOLE\n\nMAKES A SCANT 2 CUPS\n\n1 fresh red chili\n\n\u00bc red onion\n\n12 cherry tomatoes\n\n2 ripe avocados\n\n15 sprigs fresh cilantro\n\n1\u00bd limes\n\n1 tsp salt\n\n1 tsp garlic powder\n\n1\u00bd tbsp olive oil\n\nRip the stem from the chili, cut it in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds, if you prefer a milder flavor, then finely chop | Peel and finely chop the onion and cherry tomatoes | Put the chopped vegetables into a bowl | Halve and carefully pit the avocados by tapping the pits firmly with the heel of a knife so that it lodges in the pits, then twist and remove the pits | Scoop the flesh into the bowl | Use the back of a fork or a potato masher to roughly mash the avocados, making sure you keep some lumps for texture\n\nDiscard any large stems from the cilantro and finely chop the leaves | Add to the bowl | Cut the limes in half and squeeze over the juice, catching any seeds in your other hand | Add the salt, garlic powder, and olive oil and stir everything together with a wooden spoon | Taste and adjust the seasoning as desired\nBANGIN' SALSA\n\nMAKES A GENEROUS 1 CUP\n\n2 fresh red chilies\n\n1 red or yellow bell pepper\n\n2 scallions\n\n3 tomatoes\n\n\u00bc cucumber\n\n1 lime\n\n2 tbsp red wine vinegar\n\nhandful fresh basil\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nRip the stems from the chilies, cut them in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds, if you prefer a milder flavor, then finely chop | Cut the bell pepper in half and cut out the stem and seeds | Trim and finely slice the scallions | Finely dice the tomatoes | Cut the cucumber in half lengthwise and scrape out the watery middle with a teaspoon, then finely dice | Put everything in a bowl\n\nZest the lime, cut it in half, and squeeze the juice into the bowl, catching any seeds in your other hand | Add the red wine vinegar and tear the basil leaves into the bowl | Season with salt and pepper to taste\nFIERY CHILI PESTO\n\nMAKES ABOUT 1 CUP\n\n1 garlic clove\n\n1 fresh red chili\n\n6 oz roasted red peppers, from a jar\n\n2 tbsp pine nuts\n\n1\u00bc cups fresh basil leaves\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\n1 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 tbsp nutritional yeast, optional\n\n1 tsp agave nectar\n\n2 tsp tomato paste\n\nFood processor\n\n* * *\n\nPeel the garlic | Rip the stem from the chili, cut it in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds if you prefer a milder pesto | Add both to the food processor | Add the roasted red peppers, pine nuts, basil, and salt | Squeeze in the juice of the lemon, catching any seeds with your other hand | Add the olive oil, nutritional yeast, if using, agave nectar, and tomato paste\n\nWhizz together until everything is ground down to a creamy pesto, still with a bit of texture\nALL THE HUMMUS\n\nSimple, tasty, and universally loved, the wonderful hummus is a must in any discerning cook's repertoire. We like to freestyle with ours and create different flavors, each one a slightly remixed version of the original. So rather than give you one dish, here are eight ideas for how you could pay your own respects to the granddaddy of dips, the lifelong partner of falafel. Check out the photos overleaf to see the mouthwatering options.\n\nHummus is effortless to make\u20145 minutes with a blender and you are done. Our classic recipe is used in our Mezze Cake, Middle East Pizza, and would go well with pretty much any dish in this book.\nROASTED GARLIC HUMMUS\n\nMAKES ABOUT 1\u00bc CUPS\n\n1 large garlic bulb (5\u201310 cloves)\n\n1 can (15 oz) chickpeas\n\n1 tbsp tahini\n\n1 tsp salt\n\n2 tbsp lemon juice\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\n2 tbsp water\n\n\u00bd oz fresh chives\n\nPreheat oven to 320\u00b0F | Food processor\n\n* * *\n\nPut the garlic bulb on a baking sheet, put the pan in the oven, and roast for 30 minutes | Remove and leave to cool, then peel | Drain the chickpeas | Put the roasted garlic, chickpeas, tahini, salt, lemon juice, oil, and water into the food processor and whizz to a smooth paste | Finely chop the chives and stir them in at the end\nSUN-DRIED TOMATO HUMMUS\n\nMAKES ABOUT 1\u00bc CUPS\n\n1 can (15 oz) chickpeas\n\n1 garlic clove\n\n5 sun-dried tomatoes\n\n\u00bd tsp dried oregano\n\n\u00bc tsp sea salt\n\n2 tbsp lemon juice\n\n1 tbsp sun-dried tomato oil from the jar\n\nFood processor\n\n* * *\n\nDrain the chickpeas | Peel the garlic | Put all the ingredients into the food processor | Whizz to a smooth paste and serve\nOLIVE TAPENADE HUMMUS\n\nMAKES ABOUT 1\u00bc CUPS\n\n1 can (15 oz) chickpeas\n\n1 garlic clove\n\n\u2153 cup pitted Kalamata olives\n\n1 roasted red pepper from a jar\n\n1\u00bc cups fresh parsley leaves\n\n\u00bc tsp sea salt\n\n2 tbsp lemon juice\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\nFood processor\n\n* * *\n\nDrain the chickpeas | Peel the garlic | Put all the ingredients into the food processor | Whizz to a smooth paste and serve\nBURRITO HUMMUS\n\nMAKES ABOUT 1\u00bc CUPS\n\n1 can (15 oz) black beans\n\n\u2154 cup fresh cilantro leaves\n\n1 tsp ground cumin\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n\u00bc tsp black pepper\n\n2 tbsp lime juice\n\n2 tsp chipotle sauce\n\nFood processor\n\n* * *\n\nDrain the black beans | Put all the ingredients into the food processor | Whizz to a smooth paste and serve\nCLASSIC HUMMUS\n\nMAKES ABOUT 1\u00bc CUPS\n\n1 can (15 oz) chickpeas\n\n2 small garlic cloves\n\n2 tbsp tahini\n\n\u00be tsp salt\n\n\u00bc cup water\n\n2\u00bd tbsp lemon juice\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\nFood processor\n\n* * *\n\nDrain the chickpeas | Peel the garlic | Put all the ingredients into the food processor | Whizz to a smooth paste and serve\nPESTO HUMMUS\n\nMAKES ABOUT 1\u00bc CUPS\n\n1 can (15 oz) chickpeas\n\n1 garlic clove\n\n\u00be cup fresh basil leaves\n\n2 tbsp tahini\n\n1 tbsp nutritional yeast\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n3 tbsp water\n\n2\u00bd tbsp lemon juice\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\nFood processor\n\n* * *\n\nDrain the chickpeas | Peel the garlic | Put all the ingredients into the food processor | Whizz to a smooth paste and serve\nGUACUMMUS\n\nMAKES ABOUT 1\u00bc CUPS\n\n1\u00bc cups canned chickpeas\n\n1 avocado\n\n1 tbsp fresh cilantro leaves\n\n\u00be tsp salt\n\n\u00bd tsp chili flakes\n\n2 tbsp lime juice\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\n2 tbsp water\n\nFood processor\n\n* * *\n\nDrain the chickpeas | Halve and carefully pit the avocado by tapping the pit firmly with the heel of a knife so that it lodges in the pit, then twist and remove the pit | Scoop the flesh into the food processor and add the rest of the ingredients | Whizz to a smooth paste and serve\nSATAY HUMMUS\n\nMAKES ABOUT 1\u00bc CUPS\n\n1 can (15 oz) chickpeas\n\n3 tbsp smooth peanut butter\n\n1 tsp smoked paprika\n\n1 tsp chili flakes\n\n\u00bc tsp sea salt\n\n2 tbsp unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n2 tbsp water\n\n1 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 tbsp lime juice\n\n1 tsp soy sauce\n\nFood processor\n\n* * *\n\nDrain the chickpeas | Put all the ingredients into the food processor | Whizz to a smooth paste and serve\nFLUFFY NAAN BREAD & RAITA\n\nIndian meals are such fun and for us it's so much more satisfying to have a fluffy naan bread to complement your core curries. These breads and accompanying raita dip are quick to prepare and will ensure a home-cooked feast that transcends any takeout. The naans are easy enough; just give them a bit of time to rise. Trust us, it's worth it.\nBASIC NAAN BREAD\n\nMAKES 4 LARGE NAAN BREADS\n\nFOR THE BASIC NAAN DOUGH\n\n1 envelope (\u00bc oz) active dry yeast\n\n\u00be cup + 3 tbsp warm water\n\n2 tbsp sugar\n\n6 tbsp unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n2 tsp salt\n\n3 cups bread flour, plus extra for dusting\n\nvegetable oil\n\nLarge mixing bowl | Stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, or dust a clean work surface liberally with flour | Large frying pan | Rolling pin or a clean, dry wine bottle | Pastry brush\n\n* * *\n\nPut the yeast and warm water into the mixing bowl and stir to combine | Set aside for 10\u201315 minutes until the mixture has started to froth\n\nOnce the yeast has activated, add the sugar, plant-based milk, salt, and flour | Stir with a wooden spoon and bring it together to form a soft and sticky dough | Transfer the dough to the stand mixer, if using, and knead for 6 minutes; otherwise tip it onto the floured work surface, dust your hands with more flour, and knead for 10\u201312 minutes by pushing the back half of the dough away with the heel of one hand, folding it back over the dough, giving it a quarter turn and repeating\n\nClean and dry the mixing bowl and grease the inside with a little vegetable oil | Place the dough in the bowl, cover it loosely with plastic wrap or a plastic bag, and leave it in a warm spot for 60\u201390 minutes, or until it's doubled in size\n\nOnce the dough has doubled in size, knock out the air by punching it in the bowl and then knead for another 1\u20132 minutes | Dust the work surface with at least 6 tablespoons of flour | Turn out the dough and coat it in the flour so that it's no longer sticky | Roll the dough into a ball and use a sharp knife to divide it in half and then half again, so that you have 4 equal balls of dough weighing about 6 oz each | Roll each ball in flour again to prevent sticking\n\nDust the rolling pin or wine bottle with more flour and roll out the balls of dough to form rough teardrop shapes\n\nPour 1 tablespoon vegetable oil into the large frying pan and set it over medium heat\n\nOne by one, fry the naans for 5 minutes, turning them over halfway through, until golden and slightly charred on both sides (if they puff up during cooking, flatten them down firmly with a spatula to ensure they cook through) | Remove the naans from the pan\nGARLIC NAAN BREAD\n\nMAKES 4 LARGE NAAN BREADS\n\nThe classic. Garlicky and a little oily, this is so moreish it will guarantee you are full after your meal. You'll also feel like a master chef creating a naan from scratch.\n\nBasic Naan dough (see here)\n\n\u00bc cup olive oil\n\n5 garlic cloves\n\nsmall handful fresh cilantro leaves, to serve\n\nsalt\n\nLarge mixing bowl | Stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, or dust a clean work surface liberally with flour | Small saucepan | Large frying pan | Rolling pin or a clean, dry wine bottle | Pastry brush\n\n* * *\n\nMake the naan dough following the instructions for Basic Naan Bread\n\nWhile the dough is rising, pour the olive oil into the small saucepan | Peel and crush the garlic cloves into the pan | Set the pan over medium heat and cook the garlic until it turns just slightly golden, about 1\u20132 minutes (it will cook a bit more once it's off the burner, so make sure you don't overcook it) | Sprinkle with a small pinch of salt and set aside\n\nFry the naans for 5 minutes, turning them over halfway through, until golden and slightly charred on both sides (if they puff up during cooking, flatten them down firmly with a spatula to ensure they cook through) | Remove them from the pan and, while they're still hot, liberally brush each naan on both sides with the garlic oil | Scatter with some fresh cilantro leaves and serve immediately\nJANE'S MINT RAITA\n\nSERVES 2\u20134\n\nHenry's mum taught him this incredibly simple dish at a young age. It's basically just yogurt, mint, and veg, but the addition of lemon gives it a real zing. Feel free to experiment with different veg combinations; it can be made with fresh mint, but we find the tart mint sauce contrasts well with the sugar.\n\nscant 1 cup nondairy yogurt\n\n\u00bd onion\n\n\u00bd tomato, or about 6 cherry tomatoes\n\n\u00bc cucumber\n\n\u00bd tsp sugar\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n2 tsp mint sauce\n\npinch of cayenne pepper, plus a little extra to serve\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\nPut the yogurt into a bowl | Peel and finely chop the onion and add it to the bowl | Finely chop the tomato and cucumber and add them to the bowl with the sugar, salt, mint sauce, and cayenne pepper | Squeeze in the juice of the lemon, catching any seeds in your other hand | Taste and adjust the seasoning if necessary | Sprinkle over a little more cayenne pepper to serve for a splash of color\nPESHWARI NAAN BREAD\n\nMAKES 4 LARGE NAAN BREADS\n\nPeshwari naans are so sweet and delicious it's almost like eating a dessert. But a good one improves any savory dish it's eaten with, the little crumbly bits of coconut falling out adding an extra topping to your curry. They are surprisingly easy to make\u2014and totally worth it.\n\nBasic Naan dough (see here)\n\n3 oz blanched almonds\n\n3 tbsp raisins\n\n2 tbsp superfine sugar\n\n5 tbsp shredded coconut\n\n3 tbsp vegetable oil\n\nLarge mixing bowl | Stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, or dust a clean work surface liberally with flour | Blender | Rolling pin or a clean, dry wine bottle | Large frying pan\n\n* * *\n\nMake the naan dough following the instructions for Basic Naan Bread, up to where the dough is divided into 4 pieces\n\nPut the almonds, raisins, sugar, and coconut into the blender and whizz for 1\u20132 minutes, until you have a coarse mixture\n\nFlour the rolling pin or wine bottle and roll out one ball of dough to a rough round | Place a quarter of the filling mixture into the center of the round | Dust your hands with flour, lift up the edges of the dough with your fingers, and pinch them together in the center so that the filling is fully enclosed | Gently flatten the filled dough ball and roll it out into a rough teardrop shape | Repeat with the remaining balls of dough and filling\n\nPour the vegetable oil into the large frying pan and set it over medium heat | One by one, fry the naans for 5 minutes, turning them over halfway through, until golden and slightly charred on both sides (if they puff up during cooking, flatten them down firmly with a spatula to ensure they cook through) | Remove the naans from the pan and serve immediately\nRICE 3 WAYS\n\nHumans have been thriving on rice for centuries. Here we'll show you an awesome way to cook it, taught to Henry by his father, that will ensure your rice is perfect every time. And what's even better than rice? Fried rice, obviously. We love it as a speedy dish to enjoy on its own or to jazz up any meal. You can also speed things up by using precooked rice, which is available in most supermarkets.\nPERFECTLY BOILED RICE\n\nSERVES 1\u20132\n\nThis is a really neat way to ensure perfect rice every time. You could add a knob of peeled ginger, a slice of lemon, or a jasmine teabag for flavored rice. It's super simple. Just remember: double the quantity of water to rice, lid on, lowest heat, 12 minutes, BOSH! Works every time.\n\n\u00bd mug basmati rice (about \u00bd cup)\n\n1 mug boiling water (about 1 cup)\n\nsalt\n\nMedium pan with a tight-fitting lid over high heat\n\n* * *\n\nRinse the rice under cold running water | Drain and transfer to the pan | Add the freshly boiled water and a large pinch of salt | Put the lid on and bring to a boil | Give one stir with a spoon and immediately reduce the heat to the lowest setting | Put the lid back on and cook for 12 minutes | Don't touch the rice until the time is up\n\nAfter the timer has gone off, take the pan off the heat\nONION FRIED RICE\n\nSERVES 1\u20132\n\nThis wonderful rice will add a little extra to any Indian curry. It's quick, simple, but delicious. Try alongside our Rogan BOSH!, Creamy Korma, and Garlic Naan.\n\n1 small red onion\n\n2-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n2 tbsp vegetable oil\n\n1 tbsp cumin seeds\n\n2 tbsp soy sauce\n\n\u00bd tsp chili flakes, optional\n\nPerfectly Boiled Rice (see here) or 1\u00bd cups store-bought precooked basmati rice\n\nLarge frying pan over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nPeel and thinly slice the onion | Peel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon and finely grate\n\nAdd the oil to the frying pan | Add the cumin seeds and fry for about 1 minute until they are a shade darker and aromatic | Add the grated ginger and fry for another minute\n\nAdd the red onion and continue to fry for 5\u20136 minutes, until the onion is softened | Add the soy sauce, chili flakes, if using, and the cooked rice | Combine everything together and serve immediately\nSPECIAL FRIED RICE\n\nSERVES 1\u20132\n\nThis gorgeous fried rice is good enough to eat on its own, but would also work perfectly with any Thai or Chinese main course. It's also great for a quick feed when you get home after a late night!\n\n3 oz firm tofu\n\n3 garlic cloves\n\n2 scallions\n\n1 small carrot\n\n1 small red bell pepper\n\n1\u00bd tbsp vegetable oil\n\n1 tbsp toasted sesame oil\n\n\u2153 cup green peas\n\n\u2153 cup corn\n\n1 tsp ground turmeric\n\n1 tsp curry powder\n\n\u00bd tsp black pepper\n\n1 tbsp brown sugar\n\n1 tbsp dairy-free butter or spread\n\nPerfectly Boiled Rice (see here) or 1\u00bd cups store-bought precooked basmati rice\n\n3 tbsp soy sauce\n\nhandful fresh cilantro, to serve\n\nsalt\n\nTofu press or 2 clean kitchen towels and a weight such as a heavy book | Saucepan | Wok or large frying pan over high heat\n\n* * *\n\nPress the tofu using a tofu press or place it between two clean kitchen towels, lay it on a plate, and put a weight on top | Leave for at least 30 minutes to drain any liquid and firm up before you start cooking\n\nPeel and finely chop the garlic | Trim the roots of the scallions, roughly chop the green parts, and finely chop the white stems | Peel the carrot and chop it into \u00bc-inch dice | Cut the bell pepper in half and cut out the stem and seeds, then slice into \u00bc-inch dice\n\nPour the oils into the wok or frying pan | Add the carrot, bell pepper, garlic, and scallions, leaving aside some of the green parts to scatter over later | Stir-fry for 1 minute\n\nCrumble in rough pieces of the tofu | Add the peas, corn, turmeric, curry powder, black pepper, and sugar | Stir-fry for another 6\u20138 minutes, until the vegetables are cooked through | Add the dairy-free butter, rice, and soy sauce and stir everything together | Season with salt to taste\n\nGarnish with the cilantro leaves and the remaining chopped scallions and serve immediately\nGARLIC & HERB CASHEW CHEESE\n\nMAKES 1\u00be CUPS\n\nIt's amazing how easy it is to make delicious, healthy cream cheese from mostly pantry ingredients. If we need a quick cheese to go in a pasta or on toast, this is our go-to recipe. Cashews are the magic ingredient here and you'll need a badboy blender to get the cheese nice and smooth.\n\n11 oz cashews\n\n4 tbsp water\n\n1 tsp salt\n\n2 tbsp coconut oil\n\n1 tbsp nutritional yeast\n\n1 lemon\n\n1 garlic clove\n\nsmall handful fresh parsley leaves\n\n6\u20138 chives\n\nMedium saucepan of water over high heat | Food processor or blender\n\n* * *\n\nPut the cashews in the pan of hot water and boil for 15 minutes until they are soft and have rehydrated (alternatively, you can soak them overnight in cold water) | Drain the nuts and tip them into a food processor or blender with 2 tbsp of the fresh water | Whizz for 60 seconds until you have a thick, smooth, creamy paste with no bits\n\nAdd the remaining 2 tbsp water, the salt, coconut oil, and nutritional yeast (you want a thick, gloopy consistency, so add more water if necessary) | Cut the lemon in half and squeeze in the juice, catching any seeds in your other hand | Peel the garlic and add it to the food processor or blender | Whizz for a few minutes until the mixture is very smooth, scraping down the sides with a spatula every now and then to make sure everything is mixed\n\nTransfer the completely smooth mixture to a bowl | Finely chop the parsley and chives and stir them into the mixture with a spoon\n\nLay out a large piece of plastic wrap on a clean work surface and spoon the mixture into the middle | Fold over the plastic wrap and roll up the cheese into a log, squeezing out any air and tightening the ends of the plastic wrap as you go | Refrigerate for at least 2 hours to set fully\n\n**Cocktails**\n\nWhen you're in the mood\n\nReach for the cocktail shaker\n\nAnd wow with these drinks\nEASY ALMOND BAILEYS\n\nMAKES 2\u2153 CUPS\n\nYou can make this quick version of Baileys in less than five minutes. It was inspired by our favorite bartenders, Susie and Tim, and it's the drink to cozy up in front of a movie with. Make a big batch and leave it in the fridge for up to a week; just give it a good shake before serving.\n\n1\u2154 cups unsweetened almond milk\n\n\u00bc cup Jack Daniel's\n\n3 tbsp freshly brewed espresso\n\n3 tbsp agave syrup or maple syrup\n\n1 tsp vanilla extract\n\nice, to serve, optional\n\nLarge pitcher | Shot measure | Tumblers\n\n* * *\n\nMeasure all the ingredients into a large pitcher and stir with a fork until mixed | Serve neat in tumblers over ice, if using\n\nSALTED CARAMEL ESPRESSO MARTINI\n\nMAKES 2 MARTINI GLASSES\n\nThis is a fantastic way to feel both sophisticated and a little bit excited. Just whack some caffeine in your drink to add instant liveliness to your evening. Espresso martinis are a go-to in the BOSH! household. Just make sure to be responsible\u2014one or two of these beauties is plenty! Everyone who tries this goes \"mmm\" and a photo is guaranteed.\n\n8\u201310 ice cubes\n\n5 tsp coffee liqueur (like Kahl\u00faa)\n\n3 tbsp + 1 tsp vodka\n\n3 tbsp + 1 tsp brewed espresso\n\n2 tsp caramel syrup\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n6 coffee beans, to serve\n\n2 martini glasses | Cocktail shaker\n\n* * *\n\nPut some ice in your empty martini glasses to cool them down | Fill the cocktail shaker with ice\n\nPut the coffee liqueur, vodka, espresso, caramel syrup, and salt into the cocktail shaker, put the lid on, and shake vigorously to mix\n\nPour into the chilled glasses, decorate with the coffee beans, and serve\n**SMOOCHIES**\n\nIf you're gonna be drinking, why not give yourself the gift of some nutrients at the same time? That's the inspiration behind our \"Smoochies\"\u2014hooch smoothies. Why not create your own Smoochie bar at your next party and let your guests make their own? We call this pre-hab\u2014getting your good deeds done in advance (of a boozy night, that is). Drink a few of these and you'll be merry but also glowing and full of antioxidants, vitamins, and goodness. You may still have a hangover, so don't drink too many!\nWATERMELON HEAVEN\n\nMAKES 4 MARTINI GLASSES\n\nThis is deliciously daiquiri-like, but filled with fruit and flavor and just a touch of merry rum.\n\n1 mango (about 8 oz)\n\n5 oz strawberries\n\n1 lime\n\n6 oz frozen watermelon chunks\n\n\u2153 cup green grapes\n\n1 slice fresh pineapple (about 3\u00bd oz)\n\n2 ice cubes, plus a little extra\n\n\u00bd cup spiced rum\n\nfresh watermelon slices, to serve\n\nBlender | 4 martini glasses | Paper straws, optional\n\n* * *\n\nPeel the mango and cut as much flesh from the pit as you can | Remove the hulls from the strawberries\n\nCut the lime in half and squeeze the juice into the blender, catching any seeds in your other hand, then add all the fruit and the ice cubes | Pour in the rum | Whizz it all up until it's like a thick, cold slushy | Add more ice if you need to make it thicker\n\nServe in martini glasses with slices of fresh watermelon on the side and paper straws, if using\nGINGER NINJA\n\nMAKES 4 GLASSES\n\nGinger, carrots, orange and vodka\u2014that's gotta be healthy, right? It's also delicious. This really is a guilt-free party!\n\n1-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n10 oz carrots (3 medium)\n\n1 orange\n\n\u2154 cup water\n\n2 tbsp maple or agave syrup\n\n\u2154 cup vodka\n\n\u00bd lime\n\nice, to serve\n\nBlender | 4 highball glasses\n\n* * *\n\nPeel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon | Trim the carrots | Peel the orange and remove the pith\n\nPut the ginger, carrots, orange, water, syrup, and vodka into the blender | Squeeze in the lime juice, catching any seeds in your other hand, and whizz until completely smooth\n\nFill the glasses with ice, pour over the drink, and enjoy!\nFRUITY FIRE\n\nMAKES 4 GLASSES\n\nFresh watermelon is a delicious, feel-good ingredient guaranteed to make you feel healthy and happy all at the same time. Add strawberries, banana, pineapple, and lime and you are in for a win! This is ready-made summer in a glass, and full of natural goodness.\n\n4 oz fresh strawberries, plus 4 to serve\n\n\u00bd ripe banana (about 1\u00be oz)\n\n3\u00bd oz fresh pineapple\n\n8 oz fresh watermelon (without the rind)\n\n1 lime\n\n\u00bd orange\n\n\u2154\u2013\u00be cup spiced rum\n\nice, to serve\n\nBlender | 4 highball glasses\n\n* * *\n\nRemove the hulls from the strawberries and peel the banana | Cut the skin off the pineapple and trim the top and bottom, then cut into chunks | Add all the fruit to the blender, squeezing in the lime and orange juice, catching any seeds in your other hand | Whizz until smooth | Add \u2154 cup of the rum, and add more to taste\n\nPut some ice in your serving glasses | Pour in the boozy smoothie and garnish with a strawberry wedged onto the side of each glass\nMANGO HARD\n\nMAKES 4 GLASSES\n\nWe are big rum fans and the combination of mango, banana, and spiced rum is simply delicious. It'll transport you away to a beach in the Caribbean, if only for a moment. And the goodness in all the fruit has gotta be good in your body, right?\n\n\u00bd apple (about 3 oz)\n\n1 orange (about 4 oz peeled weight)\n\n\u00bd banana (about 1\u00be oz)\n\n\u00bd mango (about 4 oz)\n\n1 cup (about 4 oz) ice cubes, plus extra to serve\n\n\u00bd\u2013\u2154 cup spiced rum\n\n1 lime, to serve\n\nBlender | 4 highball glasses\n\n* * *\n\nPeel and core the apple | Peel the orange and remove the pith | Peel the banana | Peel the mango and cut as much flesh as you can from the pit | Add all the fruit except the lime to the blender with the ice cubes and the spiced rum and whizz until smooth | Cut the lime into slices\n\nServe the smoochie with ice and the slices of fresh lime\nMIAMI VICE\n\nMAKES TWO 16-OZ GLASSES\n\nHenry discovered this cocktail on a trip to the Bahamas and the flavors will take you straight there. It's an unbelievably tasty mix of strawberry daiquiri and pi\u00f1a colada\u2014the perfect summer cocktail\u2014and it's super impressive to behold. Get it really thick as it will melt as you drink it\u2014you'll need a straw for this one!\n\nFOR SIMPLE SYRUP (WITH LEFTOVERS)\n\n1 cup water\n\n1 cup superfine sugar\n\nFOR THE STRAWBERRY DAIQUIRI\n\n9 oz strawberries\n\n1 tbsp grenadine\n\n\u00bc cup white rum\n\n12\u201324 ice cubes\n\nFOR THE PI\u00d1A COLADA\n\n3 tbsp coconut cream\n\n3 tbsp pineapple juice\n\npineapple slice, optional\n\n\u00bc cup white rum\n\n12\u201324 ice cubes\n\n2 strawberries, to decorate\n\nSmall saucepan over medium heat | Blender | Pitcher | Two 16-oz glasses | Straws (we recommend paper straws\u2014they're better for the planet!)\n\n* * *\n\nTo make a simple syrup, put the water and sugar into the saucepan and warm through for about 5 minutes, stirring continuously until all the sugar has dissolved | Remove from the heat and leave to cool | Keep any syrup you don't use in the fridge for another time\n\nNext make the strawberry daiquiri | Remove the hulls from the strawberries and put the fruits into the blender with the grenadine, white rum, and 3 tbsp of the simple syrup you made earlier | Add 12 ice cubes and blend to a beautiful pur\u00e9e | If it's not so thick that it hardly moves, add more ice; you are looking for a thick, snow-like consistency | Once it's a very thick, smooth pur\u00e9e, pour it into a pitcher | Rinse out the blender\n\nNow make the pi\u00f1a colada | Put the coconut cream, pineapple juice, 3 tbsp simple syrup, pineapple slice, if using, and white rum into the blender | Add 12 ice cubes and blend, aiming for a thick, stiff-peak consistency as before | Add more ice if you need to\n\nPut a large wooden or metal serving spoon in the middle of one of the glasses | Pour both cocktail mixtures into the glass at the same time, one on either side of the spoon (you may need a friend to help you with this) | Pour all the way to the top, leaving a nice icy bump way above the top of the glass | Remove the spoon | Repeat with the second glass | Top your cocktails with fresh strawberries, pop in straws, and enjoy your culinary trip to the Bahamas!\nMOJITOS\n\nRum. Lime. Mint. Spice. A quartet of wins makes these mojitos amazing. Perfect on a summer's day, they are fresh, crispy, and sweet, but with exotic, spicy flavors that are perfect with Asian dishes. Mojitos are usually made with a muddler to squash the lime, but the bottom of a rolling pin or a spoon will work just fine.\nSPICY MOJITO\n\nMAKES 4 GLASSES\n\n4 limes\n\n24 fresh mint leaves, plus 4 sprigs to serve\n\n8 tsp superfine sugar\n\n2 tsp Tabasco sauce\n\n4 handfuls ice\n\n2 cups white rum\n\n2 cups soda water\n\n4 fresh bird's eye chilies\n\n4 highball glasses | Muddler or rolling pin\n\n* * *\n\nCut the limes into wedges and divide them between the glasses | Muddle (squash) them into the bottom of the glass to release the juices (be careful not to break the glass if it's thin)\n\nDivide the mint leaves and the sugar among the glasses | Add the Tabasco sauce (use a little or a lot; this really depends on your palate) | Lightly crush everything together with the muddler to make sure the flavors are well mixed\n\nFill the glasses with ice | Pour the rum among them and stir everything together until the sugar has dissolved | Pick the leaves from the sprigs of mint\n\nPut a little soda water into the glasses as a topper, garnish with fresh mint leaves, add a chili to each glass, and serve\nGINGER & LEMONGRASS MOJITO\n\nMAKES 4 GLASSES\n\n3 limes\n\n24 fresh mint leaves, plus 4 sprigs to serve\n\n4 handfuls ice\n\n2 cups white rum\n\n2 cups club soda\n\n4 sprigs fresh mint\n\nFOR THE FLAVORED SYRUP\n\n2-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n3-inch lemongrass stalk\n\n1 lime\n\n6 tbsp sugar\n\n6 tbsp water\n\nSmall saucepan | 4 highball glasses | Muddler or rolling pin\n\n* * *\n\nFirst make the flavored syrup | Peel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon and grate it into the saucepan | Trim the root of the lemongrass, peel away the tough outer layers, and chop into small pieces, then add to the pan | Cut the lime in half and squeeze in the juice, catching any seeds in your other hand | Add the sugar and water and stir everything together\n\nSet the pan over medium heat for about 5 minutes, stirring all the time so the sugar dissolves | Take off the heat and set aside to cool to room temperature | Strain into a pitcher through a sieve\n\nCut the 3 limes into wedges and divide them among the glasses along with the mint leaves | Squash into the bottom of the glass with a muddler or the end of a rolling pin to release the juices (be careful not to break the glass if it's thin)\n\nPut a handful of ice into each glass and pour a measure of rum and a measure of syrup into each one | Stir everything together | Add a splash of club soda into each glass and garnish with sprigs of fresh mint\nWATERMELON J\u00c4GERBOMB PUNCH\n\nSERVES 8\n\nWe came up with this at the end of the first-ever BOSH! shoot. We had a watermelon, a Galia melon, energy drink, and a bottle of J\u00e4germeister. We put the video live and it had 20 million views within a week! Use a really big watermelon and give the outside of the Galia melon a really good scrub before you put it inside.\n\n1 very large watermelon (at least 1\u00bd-ft diameter)\n\n1 Galia melon (that will comfortably fit inside your watermelon)\n\n2 cans (8 fl oz each) energy drink\n\n8\u201312 ice cubes\n\nhandful fresh strawberries or blueberries\n\n1\u00bd cups J\u00e4germeister\n\nStand blender or stick blender\n\n* * *\n\nChoose which side will be the bottom of the watermelon; if it doesn't stand up straight, use a knife to slice a very small sliver off the bottom | Once it's standing upright, cut horizontally across the middle | Take off the top and keep it for another recipe\n\nScoop out all the watermelon flesh and seeds from the bottom half until the inside looks neat | Transfer the flesh to the blender and blend (or use a stick blender and a bowl), then pour into a large bowl through a sieve to remove any seeds\n\nScrub the Galia melon with a brush to make sure it's clean | Lay it on its side and slice off the top 1\u00bd inches | Scoop out the seeds and discard | Scoop out the melon flesh and transfer it to the blender | Whizz and then pour through a sieve into the bowl with the watermelon juice | Save the melon shell; this will act as your shot glass\n\nPour the energy drinks into the melon juice and stir | Now pour half the juice mixture into the hollowed-out watermelon | Carefully place the hollowed-out Galia melon into the middle of the watermelon so that it's floating in the melon juice\n\nDrop ice cubes and berries into the melon juice around the edges | Pour the J\u00e4germeister into the Galia melon (don't fill it too much in case it sinks) | Top up the edges with more melon juice to fill the watermelon bowl (you might have some left over, which you can use to refill later on)\n\nTake the watermelon to the party, lift out the Galia \"shot glass,\" and drop it back into the watermelon punch bowl in front of all your guests so that the J\u00e4germeister spills into the melon juice | Wait for the applause\n\n**Desserts**\n\nPlease your mouth with these\n\nScrumptious desserts and baked goods\n\nTo make your friends smile\nSHIRLEY'S SHEFFIELD SCONES\n\nMAKES 8\n\nIan's mum, Shirley, always makes him a batch of these wonderful scones when he's back home. They are really tasty, easy, and incredibly addictive. The cashew clotted cream is amazing, and combined with the crumbly scones and sweet jam gives a flavor and texture sensation. Be careful not to overbake them; you're looking for a very light color.\n\n2 cups self-rising flour\n\n3 tbsp + 1 tsp superfine sugar\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n2\u00bd tbsp dairy-free butter or spread\n\n\u00bd cup unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n\u2153 cup golden raisins\n\nraspberry jam, to serve\n\nFOR THE CASHEW CREAM\n\n5 oz cashews\n\n1\u00bd tbsp powdered sugar\n\nPreheat oven to 390\u00b0F | Line a baking sheet | Small saucepan of boiling water | Food processor | Blender or hand mixer | Cooling rack\n\n* * *\n\nTo make the cashew cream, put the cashews into the boiling water and cook for 15 minutes | Take off the heat, strain, and run under cold water to cool slightly | Put them into the blender with the powdered sugar and a splash of water and whizz to a thick cream (or use a hand mixer), adding more water if the mixture is too thick\n\nMeanwhile, put the flour, superfine sugar, salt, dairy-free butter, and plant-based milk into the food processor and whizz to a dough | Take the blade out, tip in the raisins, and fold them into the mixture\n\nPull out roughly golf-ball-sized pieces of dough (about 1\u00bc inches each) and roll them into balls between your palms | Place on the lined baking sheet and squash until they're roughly \u2153 inch thick, leaving a little space between them as they will expand in the oven | Put the baking sheet in the oven and bake for roughly 12 minutes, until lightly golden | Remove and transfer to the cooling rack to cool\n\nServe the scones with a thin spread of dairy-free butter, a good dollop of raspberry jam, and the cashew clotted cream\nCHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES\n\nMAKES 25\n\nThese are the perfect cookies\u2014crunchy on the outside and gooey on the inside. Plus, they're incredibly easy to make and even easier if you use a food processor. Best served warm (of course), you could also add nuts, raisins, or dried fruit but, as self-confessed minimalists, we are perfectly happy with just the melted chocolate chips.\n\n1 cup + 1\u00bd tbsp dairy-free butter or spread\n\n1 cup + 3 tbsp superfine sugar\n\n2 tsp vanilla extract\n\n1 tbsp golden syrup\n\n2\u2153 cups all-purpose flour\n\n1 tsp baking powder\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n3 oz dark chocolate\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper | Food processor, optional | Wire rack\n\n* * *\n\nPut the dairy-free butter, sugar, vanilla extract, and golden syrup into the food processor and whizz to a cream | Pour in the flour, baking powder, and salt and whizz everything together (you could also do all this in a big bowl with a wooden spoon) | Turn off the food processor and remove the blade | Chop the dark chocolate into small chips and fold them into the mixture with a spatula until they're evenly spread\n\nSpoon walnut-sized pieces of the mixture onto the lined baking sheets, leaving 2 inches between them (you may need to cook them in batches) | Squash the balls to flatten them slightly (but not flat like pancakes)\n\nPut the baking sheets in the oven and bake for 12\u201314 minutes, swapping racks halfway through so that they cook evenly | When they are ready the cookies should be golden around the edge, but paler in the middle | Take the baking sheets out of the oven but leave the cookies on them for 5\u201310 minutes to firm up a little, then transfer carefully to wire racks to cool\nSPANISH BEACH CHURROS\n\nMAKES 12\u201315\n\nWe remember eating churros on the beach in Spain as kids and decided we needed to recreate the memory (even if we are in East London in the rain!). This is such an easy dish to make, you could even make a giant churros snake if you were feeling adventurous. Trust us, try this, you will thank us!\n\n1 cup sugar\n\n2 tsp ground cinnamon\n\n1\u00bd quarts + 2 tbsp vegetable oil (preferably flavorless, like sunflower)\n\n2 cups water\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n\u00bd tsp vanilla extract\n\n1\u00be cups + 1 tbsp all-purpose flour\n\nFOR THE CHOCOLATE SAUCE\n\n3\u00bd oz dark chocolate\n\n\u00be cup unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n3 tbsp sugar\n\n\u00bd tsp vanilla extract\n\nSmall saucepan over low heat | 3 disposable piping bags or 1 clean reusable piping bag | \u00bd-inch star tip | Large deep saucepan | Cooking thermometer, optional | Baking sheet lined with parchment paper | Medium saucepan | Line a large plate with a double layer of paper towels\n\n* * *\n\nFirst, make the chocolate sauce | Break up the chocolate and put it into the small saucepan with the plant-based milk, sugar, and vanilla | Stir to a smooth sauce | Transfer to a serving bowl | Set aside\n\nSprinkle \u00bd cup sugar and the cinnamon over a large plate and set aside\n\nIf you are using disposable piping bags, pile them up and roll them together to make one thick cone (a single bag is likely to split) | Cut a small hole at the tip, insert the piping tip, and push it all the way down to the bottom so that it sticks out of the hole | Spray or brush the inside of the bag with a little oil | If you are using a reusable bag, insert the tip and coat lightly with oil\n\nPour the 1\u00bd quarts of oil into the large saucepan so that it comes a third of the way up the sides of the pan | Heat the oil to about 355\u00b0F, or until a wooden spoon dipped into the oil sizzles around the edges\n\nMeanwhile, put the water, the remaining \u00bd cup sugar, the 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, salt, and vanilla extract into the medium saucepan and set over high heat | Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar | Remove from the heat, add the flour, and beat vigorously with a wooden spoon until it forms a thick, sticky dough (you'll need to use a little elbow grease) | Spoon the mixture into the piping bag\n\nPipe 6 churros onto the lined baking sheet, each one about 4\u20136 inches long | Carefully transfer the churros to the hot oil (if you're feeling brave you can pipe them straight into the oil) | Fry for 8\u201310 minutes, until golden and cooked through | Use a wooden spoon to move them around if they stick together\n\nRemove the churros with a slotted spoon and lay on the paper towels for 1 minute to drain | While they're still hot, transfer to the cinnamon sugar and roll until completely covered | Repeat with the remaining dough\u2014you may need 3 or 4 batches | Serve with chocolate sauce\nGOOEY PBJ BROWNIES\n\nSERVES 12\n\nA surprising combination of two American classics\u2014brownies and peanut butter and jelly. The tart, sweet jam contrasts with the earthy peanut and complements the sticky chocolate. Be careful not to overcook the outside\u2014under is better than overdone with this one. For extra power-up points, serve with vegan ice cream and top with melted dark chocolate and nuts.\n\n2\u2153 cups all-purpose flour\n\n2\u2153 cups light muscovado sugar\n\n\u2154 cup cocoa powder\n\n1 tsp baking powder\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n7\u00bd tbsp smooth peanut butter (thinner is better for this)\n\n\u00be cup + 3 tbsp water\n\n\u00be cup + 3 tbsp vegetable oil\n\n2\u00bd tbsp vanilla extract\n\n1\u00be oz dark chocolate\n\n6 tbsp raspberry jam\n\n3 oz raspberries\n\n2 tbsp broken peanuts\n\nPreheat oven to 320\u00b0F | 8 x 12-inch baking pan | Parchment paper | Food processor or electric mixer\n\n* * *\n\nLine the baking pan with the parchment paper, making sure there's a good overhang (this excess will act as handles to remove the brownie from the pan when it comes out of the oven)\n\nAdd the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, and salt to the food processor and whizz to combine | Add 2 tbsp of the peanut butter, the water, oil, and vanilla | Blend until everything is well mixed (or put everything in a large mixing bowl and use an electric mixer) | Break the dark chocolate into squares and add it to the mixture | Blend for another few seconds to mix in the chocolate\n\nUse a spatula or metal spoon to empty the brownie mix into the baking pan and smooth it out so it goes all the way to the edges of the pan | Use a spoon to pour and drag swirls of the remaining peanut butter and the jam randomly over the top of the brownie, decorating the whole top with long swirls of jam | Push the raspberries and peanuts randomly into the mixture\n\nPut the pan in the hot oven and bake for 45 minutes, until cooked but still squidgy in the middle (try to avoid the outsides drying out and getting too browned; you want to take it out sooner than you think\u2014the middle will still be soft and maybe even wobbly, but it will cool down to a gooey perfection)\n\nTake the pan out of the oven and let it cool down almost to room temperature | Use the parchment paper to lift the brownie out of the pan and put it on a cutting board (you may need a friend to help with this to ensure it doesn't break in the middle) | Cut into brownie portions and serve\nCARROT CAKE\n\nSERVES 8\n\nCarrot cake is a favorite for many, and moist (what a word!) describes this version perfectly. It's sweet, wholesome, and as succulent a cake as you'll ever have tasted, with the perfect spice combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger and sweet, creamy icing. Decorate with walnuts to add the final bit of sizzle.\n\n4 medium carrots (about \u00be lb)\n\n2 tbsp flaxseeds\n\n6 tbsp warm water\n\n2 cups minus 1 tbsp all-purpose flour\n\n1 cup + 9 tbsp brown sugar\n\n1\u00bd tsp baking powder\n\n1\u00bd tsp baking soda\n\n2 tsp ground cinnamon\n\n2 tsp ground nutmeg\n\n1 tsp ground ginger\n\n2 tsp vanilla extract\n\n\u00bd cup vegetable oil\n\n1 tbsp apple cider vinegar\n\n\u00bc tsp salt\n\n\u00bd cup unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n\u00bd cup golden raisins\n\n1\u00be oz walnut halves\n\nzest of 1 lemon\n\nFOR THE ICING\n\n5\u00bd tbsp dairy-free butter or spread at room temperature, plus extra for greasing\n\n1 tbsp vanilla extract\n\n3\u00be cups powdered sugar\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | 7-inch deep cake pan with a removable bottom | Parchment paper | Food processor or electric mixer\n\n* * *\n\nLay the bottom of the cake pan on the parchment paper and draw a circle around it; cut it out | Grease the inside of the pan with dairy-free butter, lay the paper round in the bottom, and then grease some more\n\nTrim and finely grate the carrots | Put the flaxseeds into a small bowl, add the warm water, and stir them around until you have a smooth paste | Leave for 5 minutes to thicken\n\nPut the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger into the food processor | Add the vanilla extract, vegetable oil, apple cider vinegar, salt, and plant-based milk, along with the flaxseed paste | Whizz to a batter (or beat everything together in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer for 2\u20133 minutes)\n\nPour the batter into a mixing bowl | Add the raisins and the grated carrot and fold everything together | Pour the batter into the pan and put the pan in the oven | Bake for 50\u201355 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean | Take the cake out of the oven and let it cool to room temperature\n\nMeanwhile, clean the food processor or electric mixer | Now make the icing | Put the dairy-free butter, vanilla extract, and powdered sugar into the food processor or a clean bowl | Squeeze the lemon juice into the bowl, catching any seeds in your other hand | Whizz to a cream that is thick but spreadable\n\nCut the cake in half horizontally and spread a third of the frosting over the bottom layer | Sandwich with the top half and spread the rest of the frosting over the top of the cake | Decorate with the walnut halves and lemon zest | The cake will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days\nPAIN AU CHOCOLAT LOAF CAKE\n\nSERVES 8\n\nThis is the most ridiculous thing we could think to do with ready-to-bake dairy-free chocolate croissants. It's silly, zany, fun, and tasty, and watching the croissants rise in the oven makes you feel like a kid again. Be sure to skewer them so they stay nice and straight while they bake.\n\nFOR THE CAKE\n\n6 ready-to-bake vegan chocolate croissants\n\n1\u00bd cups all-purpose flour\n\n1 cup superfine sugar\n\n3 tbsp cocoa powder\n\n2 tsp baking soda\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n5 tbsp vegetable oil\n\n1\u00bd tsp vanilla extract\n\n1\u00bd tsp distilled white vinegar\n\n\u00bd cup water\n\n\u00bd cup unsweetened plant-based milk\n\nFOR THE ICING\n\n\u00be cup powdered sugar\n\n5 tbsp cocoa powder\n\n2 tbsp dairy-free butter or spread, plus a little extra for greasing\n\n1 tbsp + 2 tsp unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n\u00bd tsp vanilla extract\n\nPreheat oven to 320\u00b0F | 2-lb loaf pan | Parchment paper | Long wooden skewer | Food processor or electric hand mixer\n\n* * *\n\nLine the loaf pan by cutting a strip of parchment paper that is a little longer and wider than the bottom of the pan, so you can use the parchment to pull out the cake when it's ready | Grease the inside of the pan with a little dairy-free butter\n\nPrepare the chocolate croissants following the instructions on the package | Line them up down the middle of the loaf pan, standing them on their ends | Rest the skewer on top of the pan, following the line of pastries and resting the tips on either end | Carefully twist the skewer into and through the top of the first pain au chocolat to attach it | Repeat with all the pastries until they're attached to the skewer | The skewer gives the pastries stability and keeps them standing upright\n\nPut all the rest of the ingredients for the cake into the food processor and whizz to a batter (or put into a mixing bowl and beat together for 2\u20133 minutes with an electric hand mixer)\n\nPour the cake mixture evenly down each side of the pan (it should fill the pan to about three-quarters full) | Cover the pan with foil and put it in the hot oven | Bake for 30 minutes, then remove the foil, put it back in the oven, and bake for 20\u201325 minutes longer, until the cake is firm and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean (this additional cooking will give the pains au chocolat a lovely crispy top) | Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the pan | Clean out the food processor\n\nOnce the cake has cooled to room temperature, lift it out of the pan with the parchment paper and lay it on a serving plate | Remove the skewer\n\nPut all the icing ingredients into the clean food processor and whizz to a thick, rich icing | Carefully spread the icing over the cake part of the loaf (don't spread it on the pains au chocolat) | Leave to firm up and serve\nULTIMATE CHOCOLATE FUDGE CAKE\n\nSERVES 8\n\nInspired by our most popular video ever, this is arguably the greatest chocolate cake we've ever tasted. Easy to make and delicious to eat, it's perfect birthday-cake fodder. Just make sure you have a gym membership, as this one is super indulgent. How naughty? Very naughty. Go on. Do it.\n\n\u00be cup + 3 tbsp all-purpose flour\n\n\u00bd cup + 2 tbsp cocoa powder\n\n1\u00bd tbsp baking powder\n\n1 tsp vanilla extract\n\n1 cup maple syrup\n\n1\u00bd cups unsweetened plant-based milk\n\ndairy-free butter or spread, for greasing\n\nFOR THE CHOCOLATE ICING\n\n\u00bd cup + 2 tbsp cocoa powder\n\n2\u2154 cups powdered sugar\n\n4 tbsp dairy-free butter or spread\n\n1 tsp vanilla extract\n\n\u00bc cup + 1 tsp unsweetened plant-based milk\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Two 8-inch cake pans | Parchment paper | Food processor or electric mixer | Cooling rack | Spatula or long smooth knife\n\n* * *\n\nLay the cake pans on the parchment paper and draw circles around the bottoms, then cut out the rounds | Grease the inside of the pans with dairy-free butter and lay the paper rounds in the bottom | Grease with more dairy-free butter\n\nFirst make the cake | Put the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, vanilla extract, maple syrup, and plant-based milk into the food processor and whizz to a batter (or put in a bowl and whisk with the electric mixer for 1\u20132 minutes)\n\nPour half the cake batter into each pan, making sure it is divided equally | Put the pans in the oven on the middle rack and bake for 25 minutes | Don't worry if the tops of the cakes crack a little while baking; this will all be covered in icing later | Wash the food processor\n\nTake the cakes out of the oven and let them cool to room temperature in the pans | The layers will be quite fragile, so carefully turn them out of the pans onto the cooling rack and put the rack in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes (this will make the icing process easier)\n\nTo make the icing, put the cocoa powder, powdered sugar, dairy-free butter, vanilla extract, and plant-based milk into the food processor and whizz to a really thick, smooth icing (or put them in a bowl and whisk with the electric mixer)\n\nTake one layer of the cake and put it on a large plate | Cover the top with a third of the chocolate icing | Lay the second cake on top | Cover the whole cake with the rest of the icing | Put the cake in the fridge for 1 hour to firm up | Remove the cake from the fridge, cut it into slices, and serve\nAQUAFABA CHOCOLATE MOUSSE\n\nSERVES 3\n\nThis is effortlessly simple and yet one of the most delicious chocolate mousses we've ever tasted. Decadent and luxurious, it's made with a handful of ingredients and can be prepared in advance and left in the fridge for later. The magical thrill of the aquafaba transformation (and the ensuing conversations with your guests!) is really something.\n\n3\u00bd oz dark chocolate\n\nliquid from 1 can (15 oz) chickpeas (aquafaba, 1 generous \u00bd cup)\n\n2\u00bd tbsp sugar\n\n1 tsp vanilla extract\n\npinch of salt\n\nhandful blueberries, to serve\n\nMedium saucepan over high heat | Heatproof bowl | Electric mixer\n\n* * *\n\nPour 1\u00bc inches water into the pan and bring to a boil | Reduce the heat to a simmer | Put a heatproof bowl on top of the pan, ensuring the water doesn't touch the bottom | Break 3 oz of the dark chocolate into the bowl and leave it to melt | Remove and leave to cool a little\n\nPour the aquafaba into a large bowl and use the electric mixer (a hand whisk won't cut it this time) to whisk the liquid for 10\u201315 minutes\u2014it will gradually firm up, as if by magic | Stop when the mixture makes stiff peaks if you lift out the beaters | Gently fold in the melted chocolate, sugar, vanilla, and salt using a large metal spoon or spatula, making sure you don't beat out too much air\n\nSpoon the mousse into serving glasses or bowls and chill for 2 hours\n\nGrate the remaining \u00bd oz chocolate | Dress the individual mousses with a handful of blueberries and a touch of grated chocolate just before serving\nSTICKY TOFFEE PUDDING\n\nSERVES 6\n\nIt's hard to describe just how good this dish is. You have to try it. It's just like Grandma used to make: incredibly smoky and toffee-and-caramel-flavored. The notes of cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg add hints of deliciousness to the orgy of richness. This dish goes really well with a serving of dairy-free ice cream!\n\n6 oz dates\n\n1\u00bd cups unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n1 tsp vanilla extract\n\n1\u00bd tsp baking soda\n\n8 tbsp + 7 tbsp dairy-free butter or spread\n\n1 cup dark brown sugar\n\ngenerous \u00be cup self-rising flour\n\n\u00bd tsp ground nutmeg\n\n1 tsp ground ginger\n\n1 tsp ground cinnamon\n\n1 tsp salt\n\n1 tbsp golden syrup\n\n3 tbsp coconut cream\n\nPreheat oven to 320\u00b0F | Small saucepan over medium heat | 10 x 6 x 2-inch ovenproof dish greased with dairy-free butter\n\n* * *\n\nCut the dates into small pieces, removing the pits as you go | Put them in the saucepan along with the plant-based milk and vanilla extract and cook until the dates are soft, about 10 minutes\n\nTake the pan off the heat and stir in the baking soda | Let the liquid cool to room temperature | Add 8 tbsp of the dairy-free butter and \u00bd cup of the sugar | Add the flour, nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon, and salt, and stir them a few times with a spoon until just combined, but not overmixed\n\nPour the mixture into the greased baking dish, put the dish in the oven, and bake for 35\u201340 minutes, until risen and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean\n\nMeanwhile, clean the saucepan and put it back over medium heat | Put the golden syrup, the remaining \u00bd cup brown sugar, and the remaining 7 tbsp dairy-free butter into the pan, stir, and reduce the heat to low | Cook for 5 minutes until you have a syrup | Remove the pan from the burner, allow it to cool slightly, and then stir in the coconut cream | Pour into a small pitcher\n\nTo serve, use a knife to cut the sticky toffee pudding into slices | Place each slice into a bowl and cover with the delicious toffee drizzle | Serve and enjoy!\nMIXED BERRY CRUMBLE\n\nSERVES 6\u20138\n\nThis crumble is luxuriously fruity, crumbly, and crunchy. It's easy to make and great to share, perfect for a cool-season dessert. You can, of course, use any berries that are in season for this; we've opted for a mixed berry selection. A little dairy-free oat cream or custard would work perfectly with this dessert.\n\n2\u00bc lb mixed berries, such as blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, and blueberries\n\n\u2153 cup + \u00bd cup superfine sugar\n\n1 tsp vanilla extract\n\n3 tbsp cornstarch\n\n1\u00be cups whole wheat flour\n\ngenerous 2\u00be cups rolled oats\n\n1 tsp ground cinnamon\n\n1 cup (8 oz) dairy-free butter or spread\n\ndairy-free custard or oat cream, to serve, optional\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | 12 x 8-inch baking dish\n\n* * *\n\nPut the berries, \u2153 cup of the sugar, the vanilla extract, and cornstarch into a large mixing bowl and mix together, making sure all the fruit is covered in the sugar and cornstarch | Tip into the baking dish and smooth the top with the back of a spoon\n\nPlace the flour, oats, and cinnamon in a bowl and mix well | Scoop small pieces of the dairy-free butter into the bowl with a spoon and then get your hands in and pinch and rub everything together with your fingertips until it looks like breadcrumbs | Add the remaining \u00bd cup sugar and mix well | Scatter the crumble mixture evenly all over the berry filling, covering it all the way to the edges\n\nPut the dish in the hot oven and bake for 50 minutes, or until the top is golden and the fruit is bubbling up around the edges of the dish | Take out of the oven and serve with the dairy-free custard or oat cream, if you like\nSALTED CARAMEL CHOCOLATE CRUNCH TART\n\nSERVES 10\n\nOozing with sugary, crunchy, caramel, chocolatey goodness, this insanely tasty dish has everything you could want from a dessert. It is regularly showcased at events since we're so proud of it, and it's got that \"pick-up-and-go\" factor, so would sit comfortably in a buffet. This is the dish you'll want to make again and again.\n\n1 package refrigerated dairy-free pie dough\n\n\u00be cup coconut cream\n\n2\u2154 cups light brown sugar\n\n2 tsp sea salt\n\n7 oz hazelnuts\n\n3\u00bd oz pecans\n\n3\u00bd oz dark chocolate\n\n2 tsp vanilla extract\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Line a pie tin or small rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper | Medium saucepan\n\n* * *\n\nUnroll the dough onto the lined pie tin or baking sheet, making sure the edges of the pastry fold up the sides of the sheet and pressing it into the corners | Chill in the freezer for 10 minutes to stop the pastry from shrinking and the sides from collapsing\n\nPut the pastry in the hot oven and bake for about 30 minutes, or until golden brown (it will bubble a bit but don't worry, those bubbles will deflate) | Take the pan out of the oven\n\nMeanwhile, set the saucepan over medium heat | Pour in the coconut cream and stir so that it becomes completely liquid | Pour in the sugar and stir continuously for at least 5 minutes, until the mixture thickens and darkens in color | Sprinkle in the salt and stir it into the caramel\n\nPut the hazelnuts and pecans into a mortar and break them up with the pestle (or put them in a plastic bag and bash them with a rolling pin) | Tip the broken nuts into the pan and stir them in so that they're well covered in the sticky caramel sauce | Break the chocolate into the pan and stir until it has melted into the caramel and the nuts are completely covered | Take the pan off the heat, stir in the vanilla extract, and set aside\n\nPour the chocolate caramel into the pastry shell and spread it out to the edges | Smooth the top with an offset spatula or smooth knife | Put the tart back in the oven for 3 minutes, then take it out and let it cool to room temperature in the pan | Put the cooled tart in the fridge for 30 minutes to cool down and firm up\n\nTake the tart out of the fridge and carefully remove it from the pan | Cut into slices and serve\nAPPLE PEAR PIE\n\nSERVES 6\n\nWho doesn't like a slice of warm apple pie? The cinnamon and apple flavors go together perfectly and complement the contrasting crispy crust and sweet, fruity center. This one's pretty easy to prepare, made much easier by using store-bought pie dough. Everyone should have a good apple pie in their repertoire. This can be yours!\n\nTwo 9-inch refrigerated dairy-free pie crusts\n\n1\u00be lb apples\n\n1 lb pears\n\n\u00bd lemon\n\n3 tbsp superfine sugar\n\n2 tbsp maple syrup\n\n2 tsp ground cinnamon\n\n2 tbsp all-purpose flour\n\nsmall pinch of salt\n\n2 tbsp unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n1 tbsp brown sugar\n\nsoy cream, optional, to serve\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Heavy baking sheet in oven | Board dusted with flour | Clear some space in the fridge | 9-inch deep-dish tart or pie tin | Pastry brush\n\n* * *\n\nLay one of the pie crusts inside the pie tin | Press it neatly into the edges and all the way up the sides and just over the top edge, making sure there's no trapped air | Cut away the excess pastry and use pieces to patch up any gaps | Set the second pie crust aside on a floured board\n\nPut the pie shell in the fridge for 15 minutes to chill along with the second pie crust on the board (this will stop it shrinking in the oven)\n\nMeanwhile, peel and core the apples and pears and cut them roughly into \u2153-inch chunks | Put them in a large bowl and squeeze over the juice of the lemon, catching any seeds in your other hand | Add the superfine sugar, maple syrup, cinnamon, flour, and salt and mix together with a wooden spoon\n\nSpread the apple mixture evenly into the chilled pie shell | Lay the top crust over the top and crimp the edges by pinching all around the rim between your thumb and forefinger, or by squashing the top and bottom crusts together with a fork | Cut off any excess pastry with a sharp knife\n\nPut the pie tin on top of the hot baking sheet in the oven and bake for 40 minutes, then take it out of the oven | Brush the pie with the plant-based milk, sprinkle it with brown sugar, and put it back in the oven for 10\u201312 minutes, or until it's crisp and golden on top\n\nTake the pie out of the oven | Let it cool down for at least 15 minutes before serving with soy cream, if using\n\n**Breakfasts**\n\nFrom daily smoothies\n\nTo weekly bowls of goodness\n\nStart your day right here\nBANANA PANCAKES\n\nSERVES 2\n\nWe had to include some banana pancakes! This is a wonderful easy-to-prepare breakfast for those mornings when you are looking for something delicious and impressive to start your day. Experiment with toppings, but if you make sure there is plenty of fruit it counts as one of your five (or ten) a day!\n\n1\u00bd ripe bananas\n\n\u00bd tbsp coconut oil, plus extra for frying\n\n\u00bd tsp ground cinnamon\n\n\u2154 cup all-purpose flour\n\n1 tbsp superfine sugar\n\n1 tsp baking powder\n\n1 cup unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n1 oz pecans\n\n3 tbsp maple syrup\n\n\u00be oz dark chocolate\n\nPreheat oven to warm | Ovenproof plate | Food processor | Frying pan over medium-high heat\n\n* * *\n\nPut one banana, the coconut oil, cinnamon, flour, sugar, baking powder, and plant-based milk into the food processor and whizz to a smooth batter | Add a little coconut oil to the frying pan and warm it so that it's reasonably hot, but not smoking\n\nPour about 3 tablespoons of the mixture for each pancake you can fit into the pan and fry for about 2 minutes, until bubbles start to appear on the surface of the pancakes | Flip them over and fry the other sides for another 1\u20132 minutes | Remove to the ovenproof plate and put it in the oven to keep warm while you cook the rest of the pancakes\n\nSlice the \u00bd banana | Put the pecans in a mortar and lightly crush with a pestle (or put them in a plastic bag and crush with a rolling pin)\n\nStack the pancakes on 2 serving plates | Put the banana slices on top and sprinkle on the pecans | Drizzle with lashings of maple syrup and grate the chocolate over\nCHOCOLATE GRANOLA\n\nSERVES 6\u20138\n\nRemember how chocolate cereal used to make the milk go chocolatey? Well this incredibly moreish dish has that in abundance. It makes a fantastic breakfast, but would also work as a replacement for popcorn on movie night. For a healthier (but still tasty) version, omit the sugar.\n\n2 oz Brazil nuts\n\n2 oz pecans\n\n2 oz hazelnuts\n\n2\u00bd oz coconut flakes\n\n\u00bd tsp sea salt\n\n3\u00be cups oats\n\n\u00bc cup coconut sugar\n\n\u00bd cup + 3 tbsp coconut oil\n\n5 tsp maple syrup\n\n1 tsp vanilla extract\n\n1\u00be oz dark chocolate\n\n6 tbsp raisins\n\nPreheat oven to 280\u00b0F | Line a large baking sheet | Large saucepan over very low heat\n\n* * *\n\nPut all the nuts in the middle of a clean kitchen towel, wrap them up, and break them with a rolling pin so that they are about the size of raisins | Tip the broken nuts into a mixing bowl | Add the coconut flakes, salt, oats, and coconut sugar and mix everything together with a wooden spoon\n\nSlowly melt the coconut oil in the saucepan | Add the maple syrup and vanilla extract and mix everything together | Pour the dry ingredients from the bowl into the saucepan and mix it all together\n\nPour the granola onto the lined baking sheet (the wider the pan, the crunchier the granola) | Put the pan in the oven and bake for 40 minutes\n\nTake the pan out of the oven | Break the dark chocolate into small chunks the size of chocolate chips and sprinkle them over the granola along with the raisins | Leave to cool to room temperature\n\nBreak up the granola into bite-sized chunks and transfer to an airtight container | Enjoy your delicious granola with lashings of plant-based milk and chopped fresh fruit\nBOSH! BREAKFAST TOASTS\n\nThe humble slice of bread, toasted to perfection, is a mighty meal to behold. Here are three of our favorite ways to enjoy a quick-fix mini English breakfast. They're most delicious with quality sourdough bread that brings additional flavor to the meal, even better if it's from a real baker! The better the bread, the better the breakfast.\nCREAMY GARLIC MUSHROOM TOAST\n\nSERVES 2\n\nSo. Rich. So. Creamy. Cannot. Compute. This garlicky mushroom dish is effortless and full of voluptuous, creamy flavors.\n\n12 oz mushrooms\n\n2 small garlic cloves\n\n2 scallions\n\n1 tbsp olive oil\n\n2 large or 4 small slices good-quality fresh bread\n\n1\u00bd tbsp dairy-free butter or spread, plus extra for spreading\n\n5 tbsp soy cream\n\nsmall handful fresh parsley leaves\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nLarge frying pan over medium-high heat | Toaster or broiler\n\n* * *\n\nSlice the mushrooms | Peel and mince the garlic | Trim the roots and ends from the scallions and finely slice\n\nPut the olive oil in the pan | Add the mushrooms and cook for 10 minutes | Add the garlic and three-quarters of the scallions (saving some of the green ends for garnish) | Cook for 3 minutes\n\nPut the bread in the toaster or under the broiler\n\nAdd the dairy-free butter to the pan of mushrooms and stir it in until it melts | Pour the soy cream into the pan and stir it into the mushrooms | Take the pan off the heat | Season to taste with salt and pepper\n\nRoughly chop the parsley and stir most of it into the mushrooms | Take the toast out of the toaster or broiler and spread it with dairy-free butter | Divide the mushroom mixture equally among the toasts | Sprinkle with the remaining scallions and parsley | Grind over a little black pepper and serve immediately\nSMOKY BBQ BEANS ON TOAST\n\nSERVES 2\n\nThese homemade BBQ beans are a revelation. They're smoky, rich, and incredibly punchy, plus they're filled with protein. Feel free to adjust the chili to suit your taste.\n\n\u00bd onion\n\n2 garlic cloves\n\n1 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 tbsp tomato paste\n\n\u00bc tsp smoked paprika\n\n\u00bc tsp chili powder\n\n\u00bc tsp dried thyme\n\n1 tbsp light brown sugar\n\n1 tbsp light soy sauce\n\n1 can (15 oz) cannellini beans\n\n2 large or 4 small slices good-quality fresh bread\n\n7 tbsp tomato puree\n\ndairy-free butter or spread, for spreading\n\nfresh parsley leaves, to garnish, optional\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nMedium saucepan over medium heat | Toaster or broiler\n\n* * *\n\nPeel and finely chop the onion and garlic | Add the olive oil to the pan | Add the onion and garlic and stir until the onion is translucent and soft, about 10 minutes\n\nAdd the tomato paste, smoked paprika, chili powder, thyme, sugar, and soy sauce and stir them into the onions | Cook for 2 minutes\n\nDrain and rinse the cannellini beans, then add them to the pan | Stir them around so that they're covered in the sauce | Cook for another 2\u20133 minutes\n\nPut the bread in the toaster or under the broiler\n\nPour the tomato puree into the pan and let it simmer until the sauce has thickened, about 5 minutes | Chop the parsley, if using\n\nTaste the sauce and season it with pepper and a little salt | Take the toast out of the toaster or broiler and spread it with dairy-free butter | Put the beans on top, sprinkle with the parsley, if using, and serve immediately\nTOFU SCRAMBLE ON TOAST\n\nSERVES 2\n\nThis version of the classic scramble uses tofu as a base and is spongy, crumbly, and super satisfying. Added to our Big Breakfast, it would create a meal for a king and queen.\n\n\u00bd small red onion\n\n1 garlic clove\n\n2 oz baby spinach\n\n2 tbsp olive oil\n\n1 block (10 oz) extra-firm tofu\n\n2 tsp dairy-free butter or spread, plus more for spreading\n\n1 tbsp nutritional yeast\n\n1 tsp ground turmeric\n\n\u00bd tsp chili flakes\n\n2 large or 4 small slices good-quality fresh bread\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nLarge frying pan over medium heat | Toaster or broiler\n\n* * *\n\nPeel and finely slice the onion and garlic | Roughly chop the spinach\n\nAdd the olive oil to the pan | Add the onions and garlic and cook until the onions are well softened, about 10 minutes | Crumble the tofu into the pan along with the 2 teaspoons of dairy-free butter | Add the nutritional yeast, turmeric, and chili flakes and stir everything together | Cook for around 5 minutes | Season with salt and pepper\n\nPut the bread in the toaster or under the broiler\n\nAdd the spinach to the pan and stir until well wilted, another 1\u20132 minutes | Taste again and season if necessary\n\nTake the toast out of the toaster or broiler and spread it with dairy-free butter | Top it with the spinach and scramble, grind over some black pepper and serve immediately\nBANANA BREAD\n\nMAKES 1 LOAF\n\nIs it a dessert? Is it a breakfast? We can't decide. Is it tasty? Hell yes. Want to know what makes this amazing recipe even better? Spread some peanut butter on top. Oh my goodness it's insane. Or dairy-free ice cream to turn it into a whopper of a dessert.\n\nscant 2 cups all-purpose flour\n\n6 tbsp light brown sugar\n\n6 tbsp granulated sugar\n\n1\u00bd tbsp cocoa powder\n\n\u00bd tsp baking soda\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n\u00bd tsp ground allspice\n\n7 tbsp + 2 tsp dairy-free butter or spread\n\n3 ripe bananas\n\n\u00bc cup almond milk\n\n2 tbsp maple syrup\n\n1 tsp apple cider vinegar\n\n1 tsp vanilla extract\n\n2 oz dark chocolate\n\n1\u00be oz pecans\n\nPreheat oven to 340\u00b0F | Line a 2-lb loaf pan with parchment paper | Food processor\n\n* * *\n\nPour all the ingredients except the dark chocolate and pecans into the food processor and whizz them to a thick mixture | Take out the blade and scrape any excess mixture back into the bowl\n\nBreak the dark chocolate and pecans into small pieces and tip them into the bowl | Mix everything together\n\nPour the mixture into the lined loaf pan and put it in the oven | Bake for 60\u201365 minutes, or until a skewer inserted into the middle of the loaf comes out clean | Take the pan out of the oven and leave the bread to cool to room temperature | Remove the bread from the pan and cut it into slices to serve\nTHE BIG BREAKFAST\n\nSERVES 2\n\nThe only way to deal with a big day ahead is to start with a breakfast of champions. This is a big, filling breakfast that's relatively healthy, best enjoyed with friends. Serve with your sauce of choice and a strong cup of tea or coffee. Feel free to freestyle this one, adding little extras like scrambled tofu, hummus, fried potatoes, or fried bread.\n\nHash Browns ingredients (see here)\n\n4 frozen vegan sausages\n\nBasil Tomatoes ingredients (see here)\n\nHerb Mushrooms ingredients (see here)\n\n1\u00bd cups canned baked beans\n\n1 avocado\n\n2 slices bread\n\ndairy-free butter or spread, for spreading\n\ntomato ketchup, to serve\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Line 2 baking sheets | 2 small saucepans, one with a lid, both over medium heat | Frying pan over medium heat | Toaster or broiler\n\n* * *\n\nTiming is everything with this one; follow these instructions and you can't go far wrong\n\nFirst make the **Hash Browns** following the instructions, and put them on a baking sheet | Put the sausages in the same pan as the hash browns | Put the pan in the oven and cook for 20\u201325 minutes\n\nMake the **Basil Tomatoes** in the small saucepan with a lid, following the instructions, and leave them warming over a medium-low heat, stirring occasionally\n\nMake the **Herb Mushrooms** in the frying pan, following the instructions, and leave them warming over a medium-low heat, stirring occasionally\n\nPour the baked beans into the second small saucepan and warm them, stirring occasionally\n\nHalve and carefully pit the avocado by tapping the pit firmly with the heel of a knife so that it lodges in the pit, then twist and remove the pit | Run a spoon around the inside of the skin to scoop out the avocado halves, then slice finely | Sprinkle over a little salt and pepper\n\nToast the bread and spread with dairy-free butter | Spoon everything on to plates and serve with tomato ketchup\nHERB MUSHROOMS\n\nSERVES 2\n\n1 garlic clove\n\n1 sprig fresh rosemary\n\n1 sprig fresh thyme\n\n10 oz mushrooms\n\n2\u20133 tbsp olive oil\n\n2 tbsp water\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nFrying pan over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nPeel and finely chop the garlic | Remove the leaves from the herbs by running your thumb and forefinger from the top to the base of the stems (the leaves should easily come away), then finely chop | Cut the mushrooms in half\n\nAdd the olive oil to the pan and add the garlic, rosemary, and thyme | Stir everything around for about 30 seconds, until the aroma of the garlic has been released\n\nAdd the mushrooms and season with salt to taste | Continue to cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid has reduced down | Pour in the water and fry for another 4 minutes, until the water has evaporated off | Sprinkle with a good pinch of black pepper | Remove from the heat when the mushrooms are nicely brown and caramelized\nBASIL TOMATOES\n\nSERVES 2\n\n1 tsp olive oil\n\n5 oz cherry tomatoes\n\npinch of chili flakes\n\n1 garlic clove\n\n\u2154 cup basil leaves\n\nsalt and black pepper\n\nSmall saucepan with a lid over medium heat\n\n* * *\n\nWarm the olive oil in the saucepan | Put the cherry tomatoes in the pan | Add a good pinch each of salt, pepper, and chili flakes | Peel and crush the garlic clove into the pan, put the lid on, turn the heat down to low, and let the tomatoes cook for 12 minutes\n\nTake the lid off the pan, rip up the basil leaves, drop them in the pan, and put the lid back on | Cook for 3\u20135 minutes longer, until the tomatoes have burst open and stewed down | Serve, spooning any remaining juices over the top as a delicious sauce\nHASH BROWNS\n\nSERVES 2\u20133\n\n2 small russet or other fluffy potatoes\n\n\u00bd small onion\n\n\u00bd sprig fresh rosemary\n\n3 tbsp all-purpose flour\n\n1 tsp paprika\n\n1 tsp onion powder\n\n1 tsp garlic powder\n\n\u00bd tsp salt\n\n\u00bd tsp black pepper\n\n\u00bd tbsp olive oil, plus extra for frying\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Line a baking sheet | Clean kitchen towel | Large frying pan over medium-high heat\n\n* * *\n\nCoarsely grate the potatoes | Peel and coarsely grate the onion (if you start to cry, give your hands a rinse with cold water) | Put the potato and onion in the middle of the clean kitchen towel, bring the edges of the kitchen towel up, and twist it firmly a few times to squeeze out as much of the liquid as possible | Tip into a large bowl\n\nStrip the rosemary leaves by running your thumb and forefinger from the top to the base of the stem (the leaves should easily come away), chop, and add to the bowl | Add the flour, paprika, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and the \u00bd tablespoon of oil\n\nMix everything together with your hands until you have a clumpy, thick dough | Divide the mixture into 6 and shape each mound by squeezing it firmly between your hands to make 6 burger-shaped hash browns\n\nHeat some oil in the pan and fry the hash browns for 3 minutes on each side, pushing them down gently with a spatula to help compact them\n\nTransfer the hash browns to the lined baking sheet and put the pan in the oven | Bake for 20\u201325 minutes, until golden brown and crispy\nCHOCOLATE CROISSANT TEARER SHARER\n\nSERVES 4\u20136\n\nThis is an easy indulgence, created as a result of our love of pains au chocolat. The store-bought puff pastry sheets make it an effortless, deliciously moreish dish, perfect for the morning after. It's simple to make, impressive to look at (definitely put the fruity bits on top for added wow factor), and just that little bit naughty.\n\n3\u00bd oz dark chocolate\n\n2\u00bd tbsp powdered sugar, plus extra for dusting\n\n2 sheets dairy-free puff pastry\n\n2 tbsp unsweetened plant-based milk\n\nhandful strawberries\n\nhandful blueberries\n\nhandful raspberries\n\noat or soy cream, to serve\n\nPreheat oven to 350\u00b0F | Medium saucepan with 1\u00bc inches water over medium-low heat | Heatproof bowl | Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper | Pastry brush\n\n* * *\n\nPut the heatproof bowl on top of the saucepan, making sure the bottom of the bowl isn't touching the water, and reduce the heat to low | Break 2\u00bd oz of the chocolate into the bowl and stir occasionally with a wooden spoon until the chocolate has melted | Pour in the powdered sugar, stir to mix it in completely without any lumps, and take the pan off the heat\n\nLay 1 sheet of puff pastry on the lined baking sheet | Pour most of the melted chocolate onto the center of the pastry and spread it out, leaving a \u00be-inch gap around the edges | Lay the second sheet of pastry flush on top (you may want to ask a friend for help) | Gently press the 2 sheets of pastry together all the way round the edges\n\nWith a sharp knife, make 4 evenly spaced cuts into the long edges of the pastry so that they reach about 2 inches in from the edges | You should be left with a strip of pastry running down the middle of the sheet with 5 flaps of pastry either side\n\nCut the remaining chocolate into 10 chunks and place 1 chunk in the middle of each flap of pastry | Roll the flaps over the chocolate chunks, taking care not to cover the middle section, and press them to seal in the chocolate | Brush all over the top with the plant-based milk | Put the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 30\u201335 minutes, until the pastry is golden and slightly crispy\n\nTake the baking sheet out of the oven and scatter the fresh berries along the middle section | Drizzle over the remaining melted chocolate | Dust lightly with powdered sugar and serve immediately with a little oat or soy cream on the side for people to pour over if they wish\nSIMPLE JAPANESE BREAKFAST\n\nSERVES 2\n\nWe are huge fans of Japan and Japanese food. A common breakfast in Japan is a smorgasbord of small dishes that often includes miso soup and some rice. Combine these two simple ingredients with the deep umami-flavored sesame cucumbers, and you have a delicious breakfast that can be whipped together really quickly. This will set you up for an awesome day.\n\nPerfectly Boiled Rice (see here) or 1\u00bd cups store-bought precooked basmati rice\n\n\u00bd jar pickled ginger\n\nJapanese Pickle (see here)\n\n2 envelopes vegetarian miso soup\n\nsesame seeds, for sprinkling\n\nsmall handful cilantro, to serve\n\nwasabi, to serve\n\nsriracha sauce, to serve\n\nFOR THE SESAME CUCUMBERS\n\n1 large cucumber\n\n1 fresh red chili\n\n\u00bc cup toasted sesame oil\n\n2 tbsp soy sauce\n\n1 tsp rice vinegar\n\nSmall saucepan with a lid over high heat | Chopsticks | Large frying pan\n\n* * *\n\nTip the cooked rice into a mixing bowl, fluff it with a fork, and transfer to a serving bowl\n\nSlice the cucumber in half from top to bottom | Take one half and lay it skin side up on a cutting board | Place a chopstick on either side of the cucumber | Take a sharp knife and cut diagonal slices all the way along the cucumber as finely as you can (the chopsticks will ensure you don't cut all the way through) | Take the chopsticks away and cut the cucumber into 6 equal pieces | Repeat with the other half of the cucumber\n\nRip the stem from the chili, cut it in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds, if you prefer a milder flavor, and roughly chop\n\nSet the large frying pan over high heat and add the sesame oil | Add the chili to the pan and fry for 90 seconds | Add the soy sauce and rice vinegar | Add the cucumber and fry for 2\u20133 minutes, until softened but not browned, turning the pieces a couple of times | Remove the cucumber from the pan with a slotted spoon and leave the sauce to bubble for another minute, until slightly thickened\n\nSpoon some rice onto each serving plate | Place a handful of pickled ginger and a tablespoon of Japanese pickle onto each plate | Empty the envelopes of miso soup into 2 mugs or miso soup bowls, pour over freshly boiled water, and stir\n\nDivide the cucumber between the plates and pour some of the cooking liquid over the rice | Sprinkle with some sesame seeds and fresh cilantro and place a dab of wasabi and sriracha on each plate | Serve with the miso soup alongside and enjoy an incredibly easy, healthy, and fresh-feeling start to the day!\nJAPANESE PICKLE\n\nMAKES 2\u20133 PINTS\n\nYou might need to find a Chinese supermarket to get hold of daikon, or you can order it online. This is best after one or two days in the fridge, but you can eat it after a couple of hours. Use as an accompaniment to any Asian-influenced meal.\n\n1 large daikon (about 12 oz)\n\n1 tbsp salt\n\n\u00be-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n\u00bd cup water\n\n\u00bd cup sugar\n\n\u00bd cup rice vinegar\n\n1 tsp ground turmeric\n\n2\u20133 pint jars with lids | Medium saucepan\n\n* * *\n\nFirst, sterilize your jars and lids by washing them in hot, soapy water and then filling them to the top with boiling water | Drain on a clean kitchen towel until completely dry\n\nPeel the daikon and thinly slice using a mandoline or vegetable peeler (or a very sharp knife) | Put the slices into a colander, sprinkle with the salt, toss to coat, and leave for 30 minutes\n\nMeanwhile, peel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon and cut it into very fine matchsticks\n\nPut the pan over medium heat | Pour in the water and sugar and stir to dissolve the sugar | Bring to a boil | Add the vinegar, turmeric, and ginger | Turn down the heat slightly and leave to simmer for 2\u20133 minutes | Remove from the heat and leave to cool\n\nSqueeze the daikon with the back of a spoon to remove as much liquid as possible | Divide it between the sterilized jars and pour in the pickling liquid | Put the lids on, put them in the fridge, and leave to pickle away | This can be stored in the fridge for 3 months\n**BREAKFAST SMOOTHIES**\n\nPutting a load of healthy things in a smoothie is a great way, if not the best way, to start the day. It's quick, easy, and mess free and gives you the feeling that you are already winning the day. These are three of our favorite smoothies.\n\nTo make smoothies a part of your daily routine, simply keep a store of fruit and veg in the freezer and blend it up regularly to keep your fruit and veg varied and get a healthy mix of goodness in your body.\nTURMERIC POWERSHOT\n\nMAKES 6 SMALL GLASSES\n\nBe warned, this is one powerful get-you-out-of-bed drink. This will get you and your immune system up with a kick, and gives a noticeable, immediate hit of caffeine-free alertness. It's not for the faint-hearted, but it's very good for you. If you want to turn this into a spicy \"Smoochie\" cocktail, pour a shot of vodka into each glass.\n\n2 Braeburn apples\n\n2 oranges\n\n1 lemon\n\n2\u2153-inch piece fresh ginger\n\n1\u00bd tsp ground turmeric\n\n\u00bd tsp cayenne pepper\n\n7 tbsp water\n\nBlender\n\n* * *\n\nCore the apples and chop them into pieces | Peel the oranges and lemon and separate the segments | Peel the ginger by scraping off the skin with a spoon and roughly chop | Put all the ingredients into the blender and whizz for a few minutes until you have a thick, liquidy paste\n\nStrain the mixture into a large pitcher through a sieve, pressing out as much of the liquid as possible, and discard the pulp | Pour into glasses and serve\nCHOCONANA PROTEIN SHAKE\n\nMAKES 2\u20134 GLASSES\n\nWho doesn't want to drink a healthy chocolate milkshake for breakfast? This one's choc-full of protein and will give you a great boost for the day ahead.\n\n2 bananas (fresh or frozen for a cooler smoothie)\n\n\u00be cup + 2 tbsp rolled oats\n\n3 tbsp smooth peanut butter\n\n2 tbsp cacao powder\n\n2 tbsp vegan protein powder, optional\n\n1\u2154 cups unsweetened plant-based milk\n\n7 tbsp coconut water\n\n1 tsp maple syrup\n\nBlender\n\n* * *\n\nPut all the ingredients into the blender and whizz to a thick milkshake | Pour into glasses and serve\nGREEN GOODNESS\n\nSERVES 2\n\nInspired by Rhonda Patrick's super-green morning smoothie, this is filled with lots of the vitamins and nutrients your body needs to survive and recover. Be warned, this one is health first, taste second, but drink it regularly and you'll feel like a superhero.\n\n1\u00be oz kale\n\n1\u00be oz spinach\n\n1\u00be oz chard\n\n8 blueberries\n\n1 cup water\n\n\u00bd avocado\n\n\u00bd banana\n\n\u00bd apple\n\n2 cherry tomatoes\n\n1 tbsp peanut butter\n\nBlender\n\n* * *\n\nPut the kale, spinach, chard, and blueberries and \u00bc cup of the water into a blender and whizz for 1\u20132 minutes until you have a smooth paste\n\nScoop the flesh of the avocado half into the blender | Add the banana, apple, cherry tomatoes, peanut butter, and the remaining \u00be cup of water | Blitz until you have a thick and creamy smoothie (if you prefer it a little thinner, add a bit more water) | Drink and feel healthier all day long\n\nNutrition\n\nEating a plant-based, vegan diet is one of the healthiest things you can do for your body. Plus, it feels fantastic. So where do we get our protein from? Plants!\n\nIt's a myth that you need animal flesh to get protein. There are world-class athletes who are thriving on a plant-based diet and the strongest animals in the world get their protein from plants. We get ours from nuts and seeds, grains, tofu, beans and peas, and other veggies, both in their natural forms and prepared in things like peanut butter, hummus, and even seitan, a meat substitute made from wheat gluten.\n\nYou can get all the essential amino acids from plants, but you do need to eat a variety. Some protein-rich foods, such as amaranth, quinoa, cacao, and hemp, contain all the vital amino acids, just like meat does. But even the plant foods that don't contain all the amino acids can be combined to give you all the essential amino acids. For example, peanut butter on toast or rice and peas are both complete sources of protein. Boom!\n\nIn our opinion, a whole food plant-based diet is a really healthy way to live your life. It doesn't include too much oil or refined carbohydrate; however, we operate on an 80\/20 principle (thanks, Derek Sarno, for this one) where 80% of the time we eat tasty but healthy food and 20% of the time we treat ourselves.\n\nIt's important to realize that we are not simply talking about a typical diet with the meat and dairy removed. We eat a different food pyramid entirely, one that involves loads of delicious fruit, veggies, nuts, seeds, and grains. And if you're eating them in a variety of colors, especially dark green, then you are likely to be getting all the nutrients you need. Opposite you'll find a handy guide on how to get the nutrients that every human needs, be they meat-eater, vegetarian, or vegan.\n\n**Good sources of protein**\n\n**Legumes**\n\n * Black beans\n * Cannellini beans\n * Chickpeas\n * Fava beans\n * Green beans\n * Green peas\n * Kidney beans\n * Lentils\n * Navy beans\n * Pinto beans\n * Soybeans\/Edamame\n * Tempeh\n * Tofu\n\n**Grains**\n\n * Brown rice\n * Buckwheat\n * Bulgur wheat\n * Corn\n * Oats\n * Quinoa\n * Seitan\n * Soba noodles\n * Whole-grain bread\n\n**Nuts**\n\n * Almond\n * Brazil\n * Cashew\n * Hazelnut\n * Macadamia\n * Peanuts\n * Pecan\n * Walnut\n\n**Seeds**\n\n * Chia\n * Flax\n * Hemp\n * Pumpkin\n * Sesame\n * Sunflower\n\n**Vegetables**\n\n * Artichoke\n * Asparagus\n * Avocado\n * Broccoli\n * Brussels sprouts\n * Corn\n * Kale\n * Mushrooms\n * Potatoes\n * Spinach\n * Spring greens\n\n**Spreads**\n\n * Hummus and tahini\n * Nut butter\n\n**Other**\n\n * Dark chocolate\n * Goji berries\n * Nutritional yeast\n * Plant-based cheese\n * Spirulina\n\n**Nutrients and their sources**\n\n**Calcium**\n\nStrengthens bones and teeth, helps blood to clot, aids brain function, and helps muscles to contract.\n\n * Nondairy fortified milks and yogurts\n * Tofu\n * Almonds\n * Brazil nuts\n * Chickpeas\n * Bok choy\n * Curly kale\n * Spring greens\n * Watercress\n * Figs\n * Oranges\n\n**Vitamin A**\n\nHelps your body's immune system to work properly. Aids vision in dim light. Keeps skin and the lining of some parts of the body, such as the nose, healthy.\n\n * Butternut squash\n * Cantaloupe\n * Carrots and carrot juice\n * Kale\n * Pumpkin\n * Spinach\n * Sweet potatoes\n * Supplements\n\n**Vitamin D**\n\nHelps keep bones, teeth, and muscles healthy. Plays an important role in cancer prevention, mental health, and bone protection.\n\n * Fortified cereals, soy products and spreads\n * Sunshine! Make sure you get out in the sun for 10 minutes every day\n * Supplements, if necessary\n\n**Iodine**\n\nImportant for normal functioning and growth of the body. Plays an important role in the functioning of the thyroid gland.\n\n * Fortified almond, soy, oat, hemp milk\n * Kelp, seaweed, nori, and sea vegetables\n * Iodine supplements\n\n**Magnesium**\n\nEssential for hundreds of reactions in your body, such as repairing and regenerating cells and providing energy, so don't be deficient! It's found in chlorophyll (found in green plants), so eat loads of green!\n\n * Avocados\n * Chard\n * Spinach\n * Black beans\n * Bananas\n * Figs\n * Almonds\n * Pumpkin seeds\n * Dark chocolate\n\n**Zinc**\n\nHelps regulate and improve functioning of the immune system.\n\n * Leafy green vegetables\n * Legumes\n * Sprouted seeds and beans\n * Nuts\n * Seeds\n * Oats\n\n**Vitamin B12**\n\nHelps maintain nerve cells, including those in the brain. It helps your mood, energy, heart, digestion, and more. Vitamin B12 isn't found naturally in plants, but you can get yours from loads of other sources.\n\n * B12 supplements\n * Fortified cereals and nondairy milks\n * Fortified fruit and vegetable juices\n * Nutritional yeast\n * Yeast extract (e.g., Marmite or Vegemite)\n\n**Iron**\n\nEssential for good metabolism, healthy blood flow, and therefore oxygenation of the body. Improves muscle and brain function.\n\n * Artichokes\n * Dark green leafy veg\n * Sweet potatoes\n * Beans\n * Chickpeas and tahini\n * Green peas\n * Lentils\n * Cashews\n * Pistachios\n * Pumpkin, pumpkin seeds, and sesame seeds\n * Dried fruit (e.g., dates, figs, prunes, and apricots)\n * Tofu\n * Dark chocolate\n\n**Omega 3**\n\nImportant for proper brain function and maintaining a healthy cardiovascular system.\n\n * Chia seeds\n * Ground flaxseed\n * Hemp seeds\n * Walnuts and walnut oil\n * Flaxseed, canola, and hempseed oils\n * Algae-based supplements\n\n**Fiber**\n\nHelps the body's digestive system, promotes a healthy biome (your gut bacteria), and helps you regulate your weight.\n\n * Baked potato (with skin)\n * Beans\n * Berries\n * Bran cereal\n * Brown rice\n * Nuts and seeds\n * Oatmeal\n * Popcorn\n * Vegetables (the crunchier the better)\n * Whole grains, whole-grain bread, whole-grain pasta etc.\n\nThanks\n\nFirst and foremost we would like to thank YOU for reading this book. We hope you love it, and that you find your new favorite recipe in here.\n\nSecond and of equal importance, we want to thank every one of our fans. Every single person who has ever watched, shared, liked, or commented on one of our recipes. Thanks so much for being part of the BOSH! journey. We love you all!\n\nWe would like to thank Lisa Milton, Rachel Kenny, Louise McGrory, Sarah Hammond, JP, Georgina Green, Darren Shoffren, Ben North, Sophie Calder, Alison Lindsay, Bengono Bessala, and all the great people at HQ and HarperCollins who have embraced us with open arms and embarked on a huge journey with us. Liate Stehlik, Lynn Grady, Cassie Jones, Kaitlin Harri, Anwesha Basu, Kara Zauberman, Tavia Kowalchuk at William Morrow. Whatever you would do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Lizzie Mayson, Pip Spence, and Sarah Birks for creating seriously amazing works of art out of our recipes, and for having such a fun month with us along with Steph McLeod, Josh Payne, Clare Gray, Esther Clark, Nicola Roberts, and Amy Stephenson. Paul Palmer-Edwards at Grade for the book design and the patience. Also, Caroline McArthur, Helena Caldon, Jenna Leiter, Katy Gilhooly, and Jordan Bourke. Dr. Rupy Aujla at The Doctor's Kitchen for some badass nutrition tips.\n\nRachel, Mary, Georgie, Sophie, Blaise, Gemma, Lucy, Avril, and everyone at James Grant for seeing the potential and jumping on board, then helping us grow, grow, and grow. Megan, Becky, and Sarah and all at Carver PR for all their great work, and the fun we've had together!\n\nCathy, for being a badass with a camera and a machine, a badass cook, and true friend. Bonita, Beverley, and all those who helped out as part of the BOSH! team for bringing such great work to the world and helping us test our recipes again and again and again. Sarah Durber, for your ongoing hustle and ability to help us get shit done. This book is here thanks to your badassness.\n\nJamie, Paul, Henry, Mitch, Molly, Joe, Stefane, Chris, Bamber, Teej, Lewis, Sami, Chan, Adam, Raman, and every other world-class human at Jungle Creations for supporting us thus far. You guys rock. Pasa, the absolute legend, for all the fun of Pashover and the important introductions you continue to make. Luke Robinson, chef extraordinaire, for being a culinary wizard, an inspiration, and for your help kicking off BOSH! with a bang. Dawn Carr for being a badass. James Heaphy and Oli for finding the time to nail our first few shoots with awesome footage (in between cigarette breaks).\n\nAdam Biddle, for introducing Ian and me to the benefits of plant-based vegan food, the myths surrounding protein, and the wonders of the black. Tim Stillwell at Burrito Kitchen for the giggles. Natalie and everyone at the Good agency for your badass brains. Taimi for your wonderful designs, your incredible work, and your altruistic spirit.\n\nAll the people in our world who are striving to make positive changes. There are so many, but for those who have made a difference in our lives: Damien Clarkson and Judy Nadel at Vevolution, Matthew Glover and Jane Land at Veganuary, James Aspey, Serena @vegansofldn, Ellie @kindstateofmind, Robbie and Klaus at @plantbasednews, everyone at Mercy4Animals, PETA, Kate and the whole team at Animal Equality. Harriet Emily for THAT chocolate cake.\n\nTommy Marshall (Third Person Lurkin), Derek Sarno, Tim Shieff, Grace Regan, Kate Werner, Morgan Masters, Deni Kirkova, Louis Buck, Nicky Johnston, Danny Howells, and Rachel Smith.\n\n**IAN THEASBY**\n\nHenry, for your unwavering friendship, insane drive, and faith in me. Mum, Dad, and Frances, for the constant love and support\u2014thank you. Alex, for being there every step of the way. Tom, for being a real level-headed force. Jenny, for your unrivaled and infectious positivity. Kweku, you're a don mega. Joe, for all those late-night chats. Mase, for knowing exactly what the dilly be.\n\nZulf, your wise words always resonate. CB, for being the ultimate yeah yeah yeah man. Addison, you're one of God's finest. Ben, for being the best rapper alive. Molly, you gave me more drive than you'll ever know. Prosecco Club, stand up! All the London crew for your love and loyalty\u2014you know who you are. And all the Sheffield crew for being there since day one.\n\n**HENRY FIRTH**\n\nIan, for your friendship, creativity, work ethic, and patience. Emily-Jane Williams, for being a true worldy and inspiration. Jamie Bolding, for being a hustler, a friend, and a driving force in the world. Jane, Mark, Alice, and Graham for being awesome. Michael, Bruce, Jean, Gus, Arthur, Nick, Sukey, Alison, Curtis, Claire, Nick, and all my family, for their love and support. Kweku, for your expert advice and fun times. Alex for two years on the ship.\n\nAlex and Catherine, for being awesome. Nat and Khairan, for being the coolest people I know. Duncan and Martha plus Ernie, for making me cry. Tim and Susie, for pushing the bunny to the front of Wren's pram. Addison and Claire. Josh, Charlotte, and Leo. Ekow, Claire, and Hugo. Marcus, Ellie, and Jasper. JP, Alex, Anna, Ellie, Taz, Bev, and all the Allplants crew for all the love and support during the early days of BOSH!\nIndex\n\nThe pagination of this digital edition does not match the print edition from which the index was created. To locate a specific entry, please use your ebook reader's search tools.\n\nAioli, Proper Spanish 192\n\nalmond milk: Easy Almond Baileys 214\n\nalmonds: Peshwari Naan Bread 205\n\napples: Apple Pear Pie 250\n\nTurmeric Powershot 276\n\nAquafaba Chocolate Mousse 242\n\nartichoke hearts: Middle East Pizza 108\n\nPettigrew's Paella 114\u201315\n\nAsian BBQ Marinade 179\n\nasparagus: Irresistible Risotto 60\n\nLemon & Chili Grilled Greens 147\n\navocados: Avocado Toast Pizza 111\n\nBeet, Onion & Sweet Potato Salad 155\n\nBig Bhaji Burger 67\n\nThe Big Breakfast 265\n\nGuaca Maki Rolls 174\n\nGuacamole Potato Cake 151\n\nGuacaroni 26\n\nGuacummus 199\n\nSatay Maki Rolls 175\n\nSouthwest BOSH! Bowl 159\n\nUltimate Guacamole 194\n\nBaba Ganoush 193\n\nBacardi: Miami Vice 221\n\nPi\u00f1a Colada 221\n\nBaileys, 5-minute Almond 214\n\nbananas: Banana Bread 262\n\nBanana Pancakes 254\n\nChoconana Protein Shake 276\n\nBangin' Salsa 195\n\nBangin' Veggie Kebabs 178\n\nbasil: Basil Tomatoes 266\n\nFiery Chili Pesto 195\n\nPesto 138\u20139\n\nPesto Hummus 199\n\nbeans 15\n\nThe Big Breakfast 265\n\nThe Big Green BOSH! Bowl 163\n\n_see also_ black beans, kidney beans etc.\n\nbean sprouts: Mushroom Pho 25\n\nPad Thai 42\n\nB\u00e9chamel Sauce 51, 120\u20131, 138\u20139\n\nbeer: Mushroom & Guinness Pie 56\n\nBeet, Onion & Sweet Potato Salad 155\n\nberries: Chocolate Croissant Tearer Sharer 269\n\nMixed Berry Crumble 246\n\nThe Best-dressed BOSH! Bowl 160\n\nBhaji Burger 67\n\nBig Bad Nachos 103\n\nBig Bhaji Burger 67\n\nThe Big BOSH! Burger 119\n\nThe Big BOSH! Roast 127\u201331\n\nThe Big Breakfast 265\u20137\n\nThe Big Green BOSH! Bowl 163\n\nblack beans: The Big BOSH! Burger 119\n\nBurrito Hummus 199\n\nBurrito Samosas 90\u20131\n\nGiant Burrito Cake 94\u20135\n\nMini Chili Bowls 33\n\nPastaball Marinara 72\u20133\n\nSouthwest BOSH! Bowl 159\n\nUltimate Chili 102\n\nBlack Pepper Sauce 53\n\nbok choy: Mushroom Pho 25\n\nBOSH! Bowls 164\n\nThe Best-dressed BOSH! Bowl 160\n\nThe Big Green BOSH! Bowl 163\n\nFalafel BOSH! Bowl 152\n\nSatay Sweet Potato BOSH! Bowl 156\n\nSouthwest BOSH! Bowl 159\n\nbread: The Big Breakfast 265\n\nGarlic Naan Bread 204\n\nJane's Pan Con Tomate 187\n\nNaan Bread 203\n\nPeshwari Naan Bread 205\n\nSimple Japanese Breakfast 270\n\n_see also_ toast\n\nBreakfast Smoothies 274\u20137\n\nbroccoli: The Big Green BOSH! Bowl 163\n\nCreamy Mac & Greens 51\n\nSatay Sweet Potato BOSH! Bowl 156\n\nBrownies, Gooey PBJ 234\n\nBuffalo Wings, Cauliflower 168\n\nburgers: Big Bhaji Burger 67\n\nThe Big BOSH! Burger 119\n\nPortobello Mushroom Burgers 45\n\nburritos: Burrito Hummus 199\n\nBurrito Samosas 90\u20131\n\nGiant Burrito Cake 94\u20135\n\nSweet Pepper Fajitas 77\n\nbutter beans: Pettigrew's Paella 114\u201315\n\nbutternut squash: The Best-dressed BOSH! Bowl 160\n\nCreamy Korma 71\n\nRich & Creamy Lasagna 120\u20131\n\nRosemary & Thyme Roast Vegetables 130\n\ncabbage _see_ red cabbage\n\ncakes: Banana Bread 262\n\nCarrot Cake 236\n\nGooey PBJ Brownies 234\n\nPain au Chocolat Loaf Cake 239\n\nUltimate Chocolate Fudge Cake 240\n\ncalcium 281\n\ncannellini beans: Smoky BBQ Beans on Toast 260\n\ncapers 15\n\nCreamy Seaside Pie 68\n\nPasta Caponata 64\n\nTartare Sauce 136\n\ncaramel: Salted Caramel Chocolate Crunch Tart 248\n\nSalted Caramel Espresso Martini 214\n\nSticky Toffee Pudding 245\n\nCarbonara, Creamy 22\n\ncarrots: Carrot Cake 236\n\nGinger Ninja 218\n\nRosemary & Thyme Roast Vegetables 130\n\nSpiral Tart 124\n\ncashew nuts 15\n\nB\u00e9chamel Sauce 120\u20131, 138\u20139\n\nCashew Cream 228\n\nCreamy Carbonara 22\n\nGarlic & Herb Cashew Cheese 210\n\nRanch Sauce 168\n\nCauliflower Buffalo Wings 168\n\ncheese, dairy-free 15\n\nBurrito Samosas 90\u20131\n\nCreamy Mac & Greens 51\n\nGarlic & Herb Cashew Cheese 210\n\nGiant Burrito Cake 94\u20135\n\nchestnuts: Mushroom Wellington 128\u20139\n\nchickpeas 15\n\nClassic Hummus 199\n\nFalafel BOSH! Bowl 152\n\nGuacummus 199\n\nMezze Cake 98\u20139\n\nOlive Tapenade Hummus 199\n\nPesto Hummus 199\n\nPopcorn Falafel 172\n\nRoasted Garlic Hummus 198\n\nSatay Hummus 199\n\nSun-dried Tomato Hummus 198\n\nchilies: Amazing Chili Sauce 194\n\nAsian BBQ Marinade 179\n\nBangin' Salsa 195\n\nBig Bad Nachos 103\n\nCrispy Chili Tofu 46\n\nFiery Chili Pesto 195\n\nLemon & Chili Griddled Greens 147\n\nMini Chili Bowls 33\n\nPatatas Bravas 189\n\nQuick Puttanesca Spaghetti 34\n\nRich Satay Marinade 179\n\nSpicy Shashlik Marinade 179\n\nUltimate Chili 102\n\nChips, \"Fish\" & 134\u20135\n\nchocolate: Aquafaba Chocolate Mousse 242\n\nBanana Bread 262\n\nChocolate Chip Cookies 231\n\nChocolate Croissant Tearer Sharer 269\n\nChocolate Granola 257\n\nChocolate Icing 239, 240\n\nChoconana Protein Shake 276\n\nGooey PBJ Brownies 234\n\nPain au Chocolat Loaf Cake 239\n\nSalted Caramel Chocolate Crunch Tart 248\n\nSpanish Beach Churros 232\n\nUltimate Chocolate Fudge Cake 240\n\nChurros, Spanish Beach 232\n\ncocktails 213\u201325\n\nEasy Almond Baileys 214\n\nFruity Fire 219\n\nGinger & Lemongrass Mojito 223\n\nGinger Ninja 218\n\nMango Hard 219\n\nMiami Vice 221\n\nSalted Caramel Espresso Martini 214\n\nSmoochies 216\u201319\n\nSpicy Mojito 223\n\nWatermelon J\u00e4gerbomb Punch 225\n\ncoconut cream: Pi\u00f1a Colada 221\n\nSalted Caramel Chocolate Crunch Tart 248\n\ncoconut milk 15\n\nCreamy Korma 71\n\nMassaman Curry 93\n\nThai Red Curry 78\n\ncoffee: Easy Almond Baileys 214\n\nSalted Caramel Espresso Martini 214\n\nColeslaw, Ultimate BBQ 148\n\nCookies, Chocolate Chip 231\n\ncorn: Southwest BOSH! Bowl 159\n\ncroissants: Chocolate Croissant Tearer Sharer 269\n\nPain au Chocolat Loaf Cake 239\n\nCrumble, Mixed Berry 246\n\ncucumber: Greek Salad 152\n\nGuaca Maki Rolls 174\n\nHoisin Pancakes 183\n\nJane's Mint Raita 204\n\nSatay Maki Rolls 175\n\nSesame Cucumbers 270\n\ncurry: Creamy Korma 71\n\nCurry-crusted Sweet Potatoes 29\n\nMassaman Curry 93\n\nRogan BOSH! 74\n\nSaag Aloo Curry 82\n\nSweet & Sour Crispy Tofu 59\n\nThai Red Curry 78\n\nTom Yum Soup 63\n\ndaikon: Japanese Pickle 271\n\nDaiquiri, Strawberry 221\n\ndates: Sticky Toffee Pudding 245\n\ndips: Baba Ganoush 193\n\nhummus 198\u20139\n\nOlive Tapenade 192\n\nProper Spanish Aioli 192\n\nRich Satay Sauce 193\n\nShiitake Teriyaki Dippers 171\n\nUltimate Guacamole 194\n\n_see also_ sauces\n\ndrinks: Breakfast Smoothies 274\u20137\n\ncocktails 213\u201325\n\nEasy Almond Baileys 214\n\nEasy Peasy Pasta 41\n\neggplant: Baba Ganoush 193\n\nBangin' Veggie Kebabs 178\n\nMezze Cake 98\u20139\n\nPasta Caponata 64\n\nRed Ratatouille Risotto 81\n\nRich & Creamy Lasagna 120\u20131\n\nRogan BOSH! 74\n\nSpiral Tart 124\n\nWorld's Best Pesto Lasagna 138\u20139\n\nequipment 14\n\nFajitas, Sweet Pepper 77\n\nfalafel: Falafel BOSH! Bowl 152\n\nMezze Cake 98\u20139\n\nPopcorn Falafel 172\n\nFiery Chili Pesto 195\n\n\"Fish\" & Chips 134\u20136\n\nFrench Onion Soup 184\n\nfruit 12, 13\n\nChocolate Croissant Tearer Sharer 269\n\nMixed Berry Crumble 246\n\n_see also_ apples, strawberries etc.\n\nFruity Fire 219\n\nFudge Cake, Ultimate Chocolate 240\n\nfusilli: Easy Peasy Pasta 41\n\ngarlic 15\n\nCreamy Garlic Mushroom Toast 259\n\nGarlic & Herb Cashew Cheese 210\n\nGarlic Mushrooms 188\n\nGarlic Naan Bread 204\n\nProper Spanish Aioli 192\n\nRoasted Garlic Hummus 198\n\ngherkins: Tartare Sauce 136\n\nGiant Burrito Cake 94\u20135\n\nginger: Ginger & Lemongrass Mojito 223\n\nGinger Ninja 218\n\nOrange & Ginger Sauce 53\n\nGooey PBJ Brownies 234\n\ngrains 280\n\nGranola, Chocolate 257\n\nGravy, Red Wine 131\n\nGreek Salad 152\n\ngreen beans: Irresistible Risotto 60\n\nMassaman Curry 93\n\nPettigrew's Paella 114\u201315\n\nGreen Goddess 277\n\nguacamole: Big Bad Nachos 103\n\nGuaca Maki Rolls 174\n\nGuacamole Potato Cake 151\n\nGuacaroni 26\n\nGuacummus 199\n\nUltimate Guacamole 194\n\nGuinness: Mushroom & Guinness Pie 56\n\nHash Browns 267\n\nHasselback Potatoes, Peri Peri 190\n\nhazelnuts: Salted Caramel Chocolate Crunch Tart 248\n\nHerb Mushrooms 266\n\nherbs 15\n\nHoisin Pancakes 183\n\nhummus: Burrito Hummus 199\n\nClassic Hummus 199\n\nFalafel BOSH! Bowl 152\n\nGuacummus 199\n\nMezze Cake 98\u20139\n\nOlive Tapenade Hummus 199\n\nPesto Hummus 199\n\nRoasted Garlic Hummus 198\n\nSatay Hummus 199\n\nSatay Sweet Potato BOSH! Bowl 156\n\nSun-dried Tomato Hummus 198\n\nice cream, dairy-free 15\n\nicing 236\n\nChocolate Icing 239, 240\n\ningredients 15\n\niodine 281\n\niron 281\n\nIrresistible Risotto 60\n\nJack Daniel's: Easy Almond Baileys 214\n\njackfruit: Jackfruit Tacos 48\n\nJerk Jackfruit & Plantain Pizza 112\n\nJ\u00e4germeister: Watermelon J\u00e4gerbomb Punch 225\n\nJane's Mint Raita 204\n\nJane's Pan Con Tomate 187\n\nJapanese Breakfast 270\n\nJapanese Pickle 271\n\nJerk Jackfruit & Plantain Pizza 112\n\nkale: Green Goddess 277\n\nNice Spice Rice 38\n\nKebabs, Bangin' Veggie 178\n\nkidney beans: Mini Chili Bowls 33\n\nSweet Pepper Fajitas 77\n\nUltimate Chili 102\n\nKorma, Creamy 71\n\nLasagna: Rich & Creamy Lasagna 120\u20131\n\nWorld's Best Pesto Lasagna 138\u20139\n\nlegumes 280\n\nLemon & Chili Griddled Greens 147\n\nlemongrass: Ginger & Lemongrass Mojito 223\n\nlentils: The Best-dressed BOSH! Bowl 160\n\nShepherd's Potato 85\n\nlimes: Pad Thai 42\n\nRich Satay Marinade 179\n\nmacadamia nuts: Irresistible Risotto 60\n\nmacaroni: Creamy Mac & Greens 51\n\nGuacaroni 26\n\nmagnesium 281\n\nMaki Sushi Rolls 174\u20135\n\nmangoes: Mango Hard 219\n\nWatermelon Heaven 218\n\nmarinades 179\n\nAsian BBQ Marinade 179\n\nRich Satay Marinade 179\n\nSpicy Shashlik Marinade 179\n\nMarinara Sauce 72\u20133\n\nMartini, Salted Caramel Espresso 214\n\nMassaman Curry 93\n\nmayonnaise: Tartare Sauce 136\n\nUltimate BBQ Coleslaw 148\n\nmelon: Watermelon J\u00e4gerbomb Punch 225\n\nMezze Cake 98\u20139\n\nMiami Vice 221\n\nMiddle East Pizza 108\n\nmilk, plant-based 15\n\nChoconana Protein Shake 276\n\nminerals 281\n\nMini Chili Bowls 33\n\nMini Pizza Tarts 37\n\nmint: Jane's Mint Raita 204\n\nMinted Mushy Peas 136\n\nMixed Berry Crumble 246\n\nMojitos 222\u20133\n\nGinger & Lemongrass Mojito 223\n\nSpicy Mojito 223\n\nMousse, Aquafaba Chocolate 242\n\nmushrooms: Bangin' Veggie Kebabs 178\n\nCreamy Carbonara 22\n\nCreamy Garlic Mushroom Toast 259\n\nCreamy Mac & Greens 51\n\nCreamy Seaside Pie 68\n\nGarlic Mushrooms 188\n\nHerb Mushrooms 266\n\nHoisin Pancakes 183\n\nMushroom & Guinness Pie 56\n\nMushroom Pho 25\n\nMushroom Wellington 128\u20139\n\nPortobello Mushroom Burgers 45\n\nShepherd's Potato 85\n\nShiitake Teriyaki Dippers 171\n\nSpaghetti Bolognese 86\n\nSticky Shiitake Mushrooms 30\n\nThai Red Curry 78\n\nTom Yum Soup 63\n\nUltimate Chili 102\n\nNaan Bread 203\n\nGarlic Naan Bread 204\n\nPeshwari Naan Bread 205\n\nNachos, Big Bad 103\n\nNice Spice Rice 38\n\nnoodles 15\n\nMushroom Pho 25\n\nPad Thai 42\n\nStir-fry Noodles 52\n\nnori 15\n\n\"Fish\" & Chips 134\u20135\n\nGuaca Maki Rolls 174\n\nSatay Maki Rolls 175\n\nnutrition 280\u20131\n\nnuts 13, 280\n\nChocolate Granola 257\n\noats: Chocolate Granola 257\n\nMixed Berry Crumble 246\n\nolive oil 15\n\nolives 15\n\nGreek Salad 152\n\nOlive Tapenade 192\n\nOlive Tapenade Hummus 199\n\nPasta Caponata 64\n\nQuick Puttanesca Spaghetti 34\n\nOmega 3, 281\n\nonions: Beet, Onion & Sweet Potato Salad 155\n\nBig Bhaji Burger 67\n\nFrench Onion Soup 184\n\nMini Pizza Tarts 37\n\nOnion Fried Rice 208\n\noranges: Orange & Ginger Sauce 53\n\nTurmeric Powershot 276\n\nPad Thai 42\n\nPaella, Pettigrew's 114\u201315\n\nPain au Chocolat Loaf Cake 239\n\npancakes: Banana Pancakes 254\n\nHoisin Pancakes 183\n\nparsnips: Rosemary & Thyme Roast Vegetables 130\n\npasta 15\n\nCreamy Carbonara 22\n\nCreamy Mac & Greens 51\n\nEasy Peasy Pasta 41\n\nGuacaroni 26\n\nPasta Caponata 64\n\nPastaball Marinara 72\u20133\n\nQuick Puttanesca Spaghetti 34\n\nRich & Creamy Lasagna 120\u20131\n\nSpaghetti Bolognese 86\n\nWorld's Best Pesto Lasagna 138\u20139\n\npastries: Chocolate Croissant Tearer Sharer 269\n\nPain au Chocolat Loaf Cake 239\n\nPatatas Bravas 189\n\npeanut butter 15\n\nGooey PBJ Brownies 234\n\nNice Spice Rice 38\n\nRich Satay Marinade 179\n\nRich Satay Sauce 193\n\nSatay Hummus 199\n\nSatay Sweet Potato BOSH! Bowl 156\n\npeanut oil 15\n\npeanuts: Pad Thai 42\n\npears: Apple Pear Pie 250\n\npeas: Beet, Onion & Sweet Potato Salad 155\n\nCreamy Carbonara 22\n\nCreamy Seaside Pie 68\n\nMinted Mushy Peas 136\n\npecans: Banana Bread 262\n\nMushroom Wellington 128\u20139\n\nSalted Caramel Chocolate Crunch Tart 248\n\npenne pasta: Pasta Caponata 64\n\npepper 15\n\npeppers, bell 15\n\nAmazing Chili Sauce 194\n\nBangin' Salsa 195\n\nBangin' Veggie Kebabs 178\n\nThe Best-dressed BOSH! Bowl 160\n\nBurrito Samosas 90\u20131\n\nEasy Peasy Pasta 41\n\nFiery Chili Pesto 195\n\nGiant Burrito Cake 94\u20135\n\nMassaman Curry 93\n\nMezze Cake 98\u20139\n\nMini Chili Bowls 33\n\nNice Spice Rice 38\n\nOlive Tapenade Hummus 199\n\nPettigrew's Paella 114\u201315\n\nSweet & Sour Crispy Tofu 59\n\nSweet Pepper Fajitas 77\n\nThai Red Curry 78\n\nUltimate Chili 102\n\nWorld's Best Pesto Lasagna 138\u20139\n\nPeri Peri Hasselback Potatoes 190\n\nPeshwari Naan Bread 205\n\npesto: Fiery Chili Pesto 195\n\nPesto Hummus 199\n\nWorld's Best Pesto Lasagna 138\u20139\n\nPettigrew's Paella 114\u201315\n\nPho, Mushroom 25\n\nPickle, Japanese 271\n\npies: Apple Pear Pie 250\n\nCreamy Seaside Pie 68\n\nMushroom & Guinness Pie 56\n\nMushroom Wellington 128\u20139\n\nPi\u00f1a Colada 221\n\npine nuts: Fiery Chili Pesto 195\n\nPesto 138\u20139\n\npineapple: Fruity Fire 219\n\nPi\u00f1a Colada 221\n\nSweet & Sour Crispy Tofu 59\n\npizza: Avocado Toast Pizza 111\n\nBasic Pizza Dough 107\n\nMiddle East Pizza 108\n\nMini Pizza Tarts 37\n\nplantain: Jerk Jackfruit & Plantain Pizza 112\n\npomegranate: Tomato & Pomegranate Salad 144\n\nPopcorn Falafel 172\n\nPortobello Mushroom Burgers 45\n\npotatoes: Burrito Samosas 90\u20131\n\nCreamy Seaside Pie 68\n\n\"Fish\" & Chips 134\u20135\n\nGuacamole Potato Cake 151\n\nHash Browns 267\n\nMassaman Curry 93\n\nPatatas Bravas 189\n\nPeri Peri Hasselback Potatoes 190\n\nRosemary & Thyme Roast Vegetables 130\n\nSaag Aloo Curry 82\n\nShepherd's Potato 85\n\nPunch, Watermelon J\u00e4gerbomb 225\n\nPuttanesca Spaghetti 34\n\nquinoa: Satay Sweet Potato BOSH! Bowl 156\n\nraisins, golden: Carrot Cake 236\n\nRaita, Jane's Mint 204\n\nRanch Sauce 168\n\nraspberries: Gooey PBJ Brownies 234\n\nRatatouille Risotto 81\n\nred cabbage: Ultimate BBQ Coleslaw 148\n\nRed Ratatouille Risotto 81\n\nRed Wine Gravy 131\n\nrefried beans: Sweet Pepper Fajitas 77\n\nrice 15\n\nThe Big BOSH! Burger 119\n\nThe Big Green BOSH! Bowl 163\n\nBurrito Samosas 90\u20131\n\nGiant Burrito Cake 94\u20135\n\nGuaca Maki Rolls 174\n\nIrresistible Risotto 60\n\nMezze Cake 98\u20139\n\nNice Spice Rice 38\n\nOnion Fried Rice 208\n\nPerfectly Boiled Rice 207\n\nPettigrew's Paella 114\u201315\n\nRed Ratatouille Risotto 81\n\nSatay Maki Rolls 175\n\nSouthwest BOSH! Bowl 159\n\nSpecial Fried Rice 209\n\nSticky Shiitake Mushrooms 30\n\nSweet Pepper Fajitas 77\n\nrisotto: Irresistible Risotto 60\n\nRed Ratatouille Risotto 81\n\nRoast, The Big BOSH! 127\u201331\n\nRogan BOSH! 74\n\nRosemary & Thyme Roast Vegetables 130\n\nrum: Fruity Fire 219\n\nGinger & Lemongrass Mojito 223\n\nMango Hard 219\n\nMiami Vice 221\n\nPi\u00f1a Colada 221\n\nSpicy Mojito 223\n\nWatermelon Heaven 218\n\nSaag Aloo Curry 82\n\nsalads: Beet, Onion & Sweet Potato Salad 155\n\nGreek Salad 152\n\nSatay Sweet Potato BOSH! Bowl 156\n\nTomato & Pomegranate Salad 144\n\nUltimate BBQ Coleslaw 148\n\nsalsas: Bangin' Salsa 195\n\nBig Bad Nachos 103\n\nsalt 15\n\nSalted Caramel Chocolate Crunch Tart 248\n\nSalted Caramel Espresso Martini 214\n\nSamosas, Burrito 90\u20131\n\nSatay Hummus 199\n\nSatay Maki Rolls 175\n\nSatay Marinade 179\n\nSatay Sauce 193\n\nSatay Sweet Potato BOSH! Bowl 156\n\nsauces: Amazing Chili Sauce 194\n\nBasic Stir-fry Sauce 53\n\nB\u00e9chamel Sauce 51, 120\u20131, 138\u20139\n\nBlack Pepper Sauce 53\n\nChocolate Sauce 232\n\nJerk Sauce 112\n\nMarinara Sauce 72\u20133\n\nOrange & Ginger Sauce 53\n\nRanch Sauce 168\n\nRed Wine Gravy 131\n\nSweet & Sour Sauce 53\n\nTartare Sauce 136\n\nTomato Sauce 37, 86, 112, 120\u20131\n\n_see also_ dips\n\nsausages, vegan: The Big Breakfast 265\n\nScones, Shirley's Sheffield 228\n\nSeaside Pie 68\n\nseeds 13, 280\n\nSesame Cucumbers 270\n\nShashlik Marinade 179\n\nShepherd's Potato 85\n\nShiitake Teriyaki Dippers 171\n\nShirley's Sheffield Scones 228\n\nSmoky BBQ Beans on Toast 260\n\nSmoochies 216\u201319\n\nSmoothies 274\u20137\n\nsoups: French Onion Soup 184\n\nMushroom Pho 25\n\nTom Yum Soup 63\n\nSouthwest BOSH! Bowl 159\n\nsoy cream 15\n\nspaghetti: Creamy Carbonara 22\n\nQuick Puttanesca Spaghetti 34\n\nSpaghetti Bolognese 86\n\nSpanish Aioli 192\n\nSpanish Beach Churros 232\n\nSpanish Tapas 187\u20139\n\nSpecial Fried Rice 209\n\nspices 12, 13\n\nspinach: Beet, Onion & Sweet Potato Salad 155\n\nGreen Goddess 277\n\nRich & Creamy Lasagna 120\u20131\n\nSpiral Tart 124\n\nspreads 280\n\nsquash _see_ butternut squash\n\nSticky Toffee Pudding 245\n\nStir-fry Noodles 52\n\nstrawberries: Fruity Fire 219\n\nMiami Vice 221\n\nWatermelon Heaven 218\n\nsun-dried tomatoes 15\n\nSun-dried Tomato Hummus 198\n\nsushi rice: Guaca Maki Rolls 174\n\nSatay Maki Rolls 175\n\nSweet & Sour Crispy Tofu 59\n\nSweet & Sour Sauce 53\n\nsweet potatoes: Beet, Onion & Sweet Potato Salad 155\n\nThe Big BOSH! Burger 119\n\nCreamy Korma 71\n\nCurry-crusted Sweet Potatoes 29\n\nGiant Burrito Cake 94\u20135\n\nMassaman Curry 93\n\nSatay Sweet Potato BOSH! Bowl 156\n\nTacos, Jackfruit 48\n\nTapas, Spanish 187\u20139\n\ntapenade: Olive Tapenade 192\n\nOlive Tapenade Hummus 199\n\nTartare Sauce 136\n\ntarts: Mini Pizza Tarts 37\n\nSalted Caramel Chocolate Crunch Tart 248\n\nSpiral Tart 124\n\nThai Red Curry 78\n\ntoast: Creamy Garlic Mushroom Toast 259\n\nSmoky BBQ Beans on Toast 260\n\nTofu Scramble on Toast 261\n\ntofu 15\n\nCreamy Carbonara 22\n\nCrispy Chili Tofu 46\n\n\"Fish\" & Chips 134\u20135\n\nPad Thai 42\n\nSpecial Fried Rice 209\n\nTofu Scramble on Toast 261\n\nTom Yum Soup 63\n\ntomatoes 15\n\nBangin' Salsa 195\n\nBasil Tomatoes 266\n\nEasy Peasy Pasta 41\n\nGreek Salad 152\n\nGuacamole Potato Cake 151\n\nJane's Pan Con Tomate 187\n\nMiddle East Pizza 108\n\nPasta Caponata 64\n\nPastaball Marinara 72\u20133\n\nPatatas Bravas 189\n\nQuick Puttanesca Spaghetti 34\n\nRed Ratatouille Risotto 81\n\nRich & Creamy Lasagna 120\u20131\n\nSmoky BBQ Beans on Toast 260\n\nSpaghetti Bolognese 86\n\nSun-dried Tomato Hummus 198\n\nThai Red Curry 78\n\nTom Yum Soup 63\n\nTomato & Pomegranate Salad 144\n\nTomato Sauce 37, 86, 112, 120\u20131\n\nUltimate Chili 102\n\nWorld's Best Pesto Lasagna 138\u20139\n\ntortilla chips: Big Bad Nachos 103\n\ntortillas: Burrito Samosas 90\u20131\n\nGiant Burrito Cake 94\u20135\n\nMini Chili Bowls 33\n\nSweet Pepper Fajitas 77\n\nTurmeric Powershot 276\n\nUltimate BBQ Coleslaw 148\n\nUltimate Chili 102\n\nUltimate Chocolate Fudge Cake 240\n\nUltimate Guacamole 194\n\nvegetables 13, 14, 280\n\n_see also_ peppers, tomatoes etc.\n\nvitamins 281\n\nvodka: Ginger Ninja 218\n\nSalted Caramel Espresso Martini 214\n\nwalnuts: Carrot Cake 236\n\nwater chestnuts: Tom Yum Soup 63\n\nwatermelon: Fruity Fire 219\n\nWatermelon Heaven 218\n\nWatermelon J\u00e4gerbomb Punch 225\n\nwine: Marinara Sauce 72\u20133\n\nRed Wine Gravy 131\n\nTomato Sauce 86\n\nUltimate Chili 102\n\nWorld's Best Pesto Lasagna 138\u20139\n\nyeast, nutritional 15\n\nyogurt: Jane's Mint Raita 204\n\nzinc 281\n\nzucchini: Mezze Cake 98\u20139\n\nMini Pizza Tarts 37\n\nRed Ratatouille Risotto 81\n\nSpiral Tart 124\n\nWorld's Best Pesto Lasagna 138\u20139\n\nCopyright\n\nBOSH! Copyright \u00a9 2018 by Henry Firth and Ian Theasby. Design and copyright \u00a9 2018 by HQ, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers Ltd. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.\n\nOriginally published in the United Kingdom in 2018 by HQ, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.\n\nFIRST U.S. EDITION\n\nPhotography: Lizzie Mayson\n\nFood Styling: Pip Spence\n\nProp Styling: Sarah Birks\n\nDesign & Art Direction: Paul Palmer-Edwards, GradeDesign.com\n\nSenior Commissioning Editor: Rachel Kenny\n\nProject Editor: Sarah Hammond\n\nHead of Design: Louise McGrory\n\nDigital Edition MAY 2018 ISBN: 978-0-06-285026-3\n\nVersion 04202018\n\nPrint ISBN: 978-0-06-282068-6\nAbout the Publisher\n\n**Australia**\n\nHarperCollins Publishers Australia Pty. Ltd.\n\nLevel 13, 201 Elizabeth Street\n\nSydney, NSW 2000, Australia\n\nwww.harpercollins.com.au\n\n**Canada**\n\nHarperCollins Publishers Ltd\n\nBay Adelaide Centre, East Tower\n\n22 Adelaide Street West, 41st Floor\n\nToronto, Ontario, Canada\n\nM5H 4E3\n\nwww.harpercollins.ca\n\n**India**\n\nHarperCollins India\n\nA 75, Sector 57\n\nNoida\n\nUttar Pradesh 201 301\n\nwww.harpercollins.co.in\n\n**New Zealand**\n\nHarperCollins Publishers New Zealand\n\nUnit D1, 63 Apollo Drive\n\nRosedale 0632\n\nAuckland, New Zealand\n\nwww.harpercollins.co.nz\n\n**United Kingdom**\n\nHarperCollins Publishers Ltd.\n\n1 London Bridge Street\n\nLondon SE1 9GF, UK\n\nwww.harpercollins.co.uk\n\n**United States**\n\nHarperCollins Publishers Inc.\n\n195 Broadway\n\nNew York, NY 10007\n\nwww.harpercollins.com\nContents\n\n 1. _Cover_\n 2. _Title Page_\n 3. _Dedication_\n 4. _Welcome_\n 5. _This book_\n 6. _Your kitchen_\n 7. _Fantastic feasts_\n 8. 01 Quick Eats\n 1. Creamy Carbonara\n 2. Mushroom Pho\n 3. Guacaroni\n 4. Curry-Crusted Sweet Potatoes\n 5. Sticky Shiitake Mushrooms\n 6. Mini Chili Bowls\n 7. Quick Puttanesca Spaghetti\n 8. Mini Pizza Tarts\n 9. Nice Spice Rice\n 10. Easy Peasy Pasta\n 11. Pad Thai\n 12. Portobello Mushroom Burgers\n 13. Crispy Chili Tofu\n 14. Jackfruit Tacos\n 15. Creamy Mac & Greens\n 16. Stir-Fry Noodles\n 17. Sauce Recipes\n 1. Basic Stir-Fry\n 2. Sweet & Sour\n 3. Orange & Ginger\n 4. Black Pepper\n 9. 02 Big Eats\n 1. Mushroom & Guinness Pie\n 2. Sweet & Sour Crispy Tofu\n 3. Irresistible Risotto\n 4. Tom Yum Soup\n 5. Pasta Caponata\n 6. Big Bhaji Burger\n 7. Creamy Seaside Pie\n 8. Creamy Korma\n 9. Pastaball Marinara\n 10. Rogan BOSH!\n 11. Sweet Pepper Fajitas\n 12. Thai Red Curry\n 13. Red Ratatouille Risotto\n 14. Saag Aloo Curry\n 15. Shepherd's Potato\n 16. Spaghetti Bolognese\n 10. 03 Showpieces\n 1. Burrito Samosas\n 2. Massaman Curry\n 3. Giant Burrito Cake\n 4. Mezze Cake\n 5. Ultimate Chili\n 6. Big Bad Nachos\n 7. Perfect Pizza\n 1. Basic Pizza Dough\n 2. Middle East Pizza\n 3. Avocado Toast Pizza\n 4. Jerk Jackfruit & Plantain Pizza\n 8. Pettigrew's Paella\n 9. The Big BOSH! Burger\n 10. Rich & Creamy Lasagna\n 11. Spiral Tart\n 12. The Big BOSH! Roast\n 1. Mushroom Wellington\n 2. Rosemary & Thyme Roast Vegetables\n 3. Red Wine Gravy\n 13. \"Fish\" & Chips\n 1. Minted Mushy Peas\n 2. Tartare Sauce\n 14. World's Best Pesto Lasagna\n 11. 04 Greens & BOSH! Bowls\n 1. Tomato & Pomegranate Salad\n 2. Lemon & Chili Griddled Greens\n 3. Ultimate BBQ Coleslaw\n 4. Guacamole Potato Salad\n 5. Falafel BOSH! Bowl\n 6. Beet, Onion & Sweet Potato Salad\n 7. Satay Sweet Potato BOSH! Bowl\n 8. Southwest BOSH! Bowl\n 9. The Best-Dressed BOSH! Bowl\n 10. The Big Green BOSH! Bowl\n 11. Make Your Own BOSH! Bowls\n 12. 05 Small Plates & Sharers\n 1. Cauliflower Buffalo Wings\n 2. Shiitake Teriyaki Dippers\n 3. Popcorn Falafel\n 4. Maki Sushi Rolls\n 1. Guaca Maki Rolls\n 2. Satay Maki Rolls\n 5. Bangin' Veggie Kebabs\n 6. Marinades\n 1. Asian BBQ\n 2. Spicy Shashlik\n 3. Rich Satay\n 7. Hoisin Pancakes\n 8. French Onion Soup\n 9. Spanish Tapas\n 1. Jane's Pan Con Tomate\n 2. Garlic Mushrooms\n 3. Patatas Bravas\n 10. Peri Peri Hasselback Potatoes\n 11. All the Sauces\n 1. Olive Tapenade\n 2. Proper Spanish Aioli\n 3. Rich Satay Sauce\n 4. Baba Ganoush\n 5. Amazing Chili Sauce\n 6. Ultimate Guacamole\n 7. Bangin' Salsa\n 8. Fiery Chili Pesto\n 12. All the Hummus\n 1. Roasted Garlic Hummus\n 2. Sun-Dried Tomato Hummus\n 3. Olive Tapenade Hummus\n 4. Burrito Hummus\n 5. Classic Hummus\n 6. Pesto Hummus\n 7. Guacummus\n 8. Satay Hummus\n 13. Fluffy Naan Bread & Raita\n 1. Basic Naan Bread\n 2. Garlic Naan Bread\n 3. Jane's Mint Raita\n 4. Peshwari Naan Bread\n 14. Rice 3 Ways\n 1. Perfectly Boiled Rice\n 2. Onion Fried Rice\n 3. Special Fried Rice\n 15. Garlic & Herb Cashew Cheese\n 13. 06 Cocktails\n 1. Easy Almond Baileys\n 2. Salted Caramel Espresso Martini\n 3. Smoochies\n 1. Watermelon Heaven\n 2. Ginger Ninja\n 3. Fruity Fire\n 4. Mango Hard\n 4. Miami Vice\n 5. Mojitos\n 1. Spicy Mojito\n 2. Ginger & Lemongrass Mojito\n 6. Watermelon J\u00e4gerbomb Punch\n 14. 07 Desserts\n 1. Shirley's Sheffield Scones\n 2. Chocolate Chip Cookies\n 3. Spanish Beach Churros\n 4. Gooey PBJ Brownies\n 5. Carrot Cake\n 6. Pain au Chocolat Loaf Cake\n 7. Ultimate Chocolate Fudge Cake\n 8. Aquafaba Chocolate Mousse\n 9. Sticky Toffee Pudding\n 10. Mixed Berry Crumble\n 11. Salted Caramel Chocolate Crunch Tart\n 12. Apple Pear Pie\n 15. 08 Breakfasts\n 1. Banana Pancakes\n 2. Chocolate Granola\n 3. BOSH! Breakfast Toasts\n 1. Creamy Garlic Mushroom Toast\n 2. Smoky BBQ Beans on Toast\n 3. Tofu Scramble on Toast\n 4. Banana Bread\n 5. The Big Breakfast\n 1. Herb Mushrooms\n 2. Basil Tomatoes\n 3. Hash Browns\n 6. Chocolate Croissant Tearer Sharer\n 7. Simple Japanese Breakfast\n 8. Japanese Pickle\n 9. Breakfast Smoothies\n 1. Turmeric Powershot\n 2. Choconana Protein Shake\n 3. Green Goodness\n 16. _Nutrition_\n 17. _Thanks_\n 18. _Index_\n 19. _Copyright_\n 20. _About the Publisher_\n\n# Guide\n\n 1. Cover\n 2. Contents\n 3. Welcome\n\n 1. \n 2. \n 3. \n 4. \n 5. \n 6. \n 7. \n 8. \n 9. \n 10. \n 11. \n 12. \n 13. \n 14. \n 15. \n 16. \n 17. \n 18. \n 19. \n 20. \n 21. \n 22. \n 23. \n 24. \n 25. \n 26. \n 27. \n 28. \n 29. \n 30. \n 31. \n 32. \n 33. \n 34. \n 35. \n 36. \n 37. \n 38. \n 39. \n 40. \n 41. \n 42. \n 43. \n 44. \n 45. \n 46. \n 47. \n 48. \n 49. \n 50. \n 51. \n 52. \n 53. \n 54. \n 55. \n 56. \n 57. \n 58. \n 59. \n 60. \n 61. \n 62. \n 63. \n 64. \n 65. \n 66. \n 67. \n 68. \n 69. \n 70. \n 71. \n 72. \n 73. \n 74. \n 75. \n 76. \n 77. \n 78. \n 79. \n 80. \n 81. \n 82. \n 83. \n 84. \n 85. \n 86. \n 87. \n 88. \n 89. \n 90. \n 91. \n 92. \n 93. \n 94. \n 95. \n 96. \n 97. \n 98. \n 99. \n 100. \n 101. \n 102. \n 103. \n 104. \n 105. \n 106. \n 107. \n 108. \n 109. \n 110. \n 111. \n 112. \n 113. \n 114. \n 115. \n 116. \n 117. \n 118. \n 119. \n 120. \n 121. \n 122. \n 123. \n 124. \n 125. \n 126. \n 127. \n 128. \n 129. \n 130. \n 131. \n 132. \n 133. \n 134. \n 135. \n 136. \n 137. \n 138. \n 139. \n 140. \n 141. \n 142. \n 143. \n 144. \n 145. \n 146. \n 147. \n 148. \n 149. \n 150. \n 151. \n 152. \n 153. \n 154. \n 155. \n 156. \n 157. \n 158. \n 159. \n 160. \n 161. \n 162. \n 163. \n 164. \n 165. \n 166. \n 167. \n 168. \n 169. \n 170. \n 171. \n 172. \n 173. \n 174. \n 175. \n 176. \n 177. \n 178. \n 179. \n 180. \n 181. \n 182. \n 183. \n 184. \n 185. \n 186. \n 187. \n 188. \n 189. \n 190. \n 191. \n 192. \n 193. \n 194. \n 195. \n 196. \n 197. \n 198. \n 199. \n 200. \n 201. \n 202. \n 203. \n 204. \n 205. \n 206. \n 207. \n 208. \n 209. \n 210. \n 211. \n 212. \n 213. \n 214. \n 215. \n 216. \n 217. \n 218. \n 219. \n 220. \n 221. \n 222. \n 223. \n 224. \n 225. \n 226. \n 227. \n 228. \n 229. \n 230. \n 231. \n 232. \n 233. \n 234. \n 235. \n 236. \n 237. \n 238. \n 239. \n 240. \n 241. \n 242. \n 243. \n 244. \n 245. \n 246. \n 247. \n 248. \n 249. \n 250. \n 251. \n 252. \n 253. \n 254. \n 255. \n 256. \n 257. \n 258. \n 259. \n 260. \n 261. \n 262. \n 263. \n 264. \n 265. \n 266. \n 267. \n 268. \n 269. \n 270. \n 271. \n 272. \n 273. \n 274. \n 275. \n 276. \n 277. \n 278. \n 279. \n 280. \n 281. \n 282. \n 283. \n 284. \n 285. \n 286. \n 287. \n 288.\n\n","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaBook"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzztkus b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzztkus
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index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a918ce601ddb8b1f06a0284e4158c906d824b4a5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzztkus
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"Renovating your kitchen in Beecroft?\nKitchenKraft provides a free quote for a complete kitchen renovation or a new kitchen in Beecroft.\nOur company has the experience and capability to design, manufacture and install your new kitchen in Beecroft.\nWe have 5 decades of experience in the kitchen industry and a kitchen showroom for your viewing of our workmanship, kitchens designs, new kitchens and kitchen renovations in Beecroft Sydney.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"A brand new high quality lithium ion replacement iPhone 6 Plus battery. The battery capacity is rated as 2915mAh and will help extend battery life if your phone is having trouble holding a charge. It is recommended to have the part replaced by an experienced technician.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Just wanted to let you all know that The Anarchy Live Podcast Episode 13 is now up! So please feel free to check it out!\nOn this Episode we discuss how our holidays went and also what plans we have for 2014.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"On September 13, hundreds of golfers joined the Panda Cares Foundation at the Omni La Costa and the Park Hyatt Aviara in Carlsbad, California, to raise money for Children's Hospital Los Angeles and other charitable causes chosen by Panda Restaurant Group. The Panda Cares Charity Golf Invitational is celebrating it's 20th anniversary as well as $13 million raised.\nAs a surprise to attendees this year, special guest Christian Guardino was on hand to greet participants at the hospitality desk, network with Panda Restaurant Group employees and meet CEO Peggy Cherng. Christian was a semi-finalist on Season 12 of America's Got Talent and was also treated at his local children's hospital. He gave thanks for the charitable efforts of the company by sharing his story and performing two songs during the event's dinner.\nChristian was on the brink of blindness, but thanks to an experimental gene therapy at his children's hospital he can see. He was born with an inherited eye disease with no treatment or cure that caused him to see only bright light and blurry shapes. He would eventually lose all sight.\nWhen Christian was 13 he entered a clinical therapy gene trial at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. Since his participation in the trial, he has seen a 75- to 80-percent improvement in his vision. The gene trial was successful for Christian and many others.\nAfter Christian and his mom, Beth, testified before the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, they approved the gene therapy for use in patients in December 2017. It is the first gene therapy approved for the eye and for an inherited condition.\nChristian has a passion for soul music and aspires to be a recording artist.\nChildren's Miracle Network Hospitals funds support the child life department, which helps kids like Christian cope with the emotional stress of diagnosis and treatment.\nChristian has represented the 10 million children treated in Children's Miracle Network Hospitals each year as a national goodwill ambassador during 2018 and helped share the need for donations to children's hospitals across the United States.\nThe Panda Cares Foundation was established to share Panda Restaurant Group's success with non-profit organizations serving in their communities. The main focus and passion of Panda Cares continues to be the health and education of underserved children.\nThe event raised over $2.5 million that will be divided between the charitable causes Panda Cares has chosen.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Since 1953 your Sandpoint Lions Club has been serving the residents of Bonner County. We are the organizer and sponsor of the Sandpoint 4th of July Celebration, Toys for Tots, sight and hearing checks for every elementary student in the Pend Oreille School District and an Easter Egg Hunt in Lake View Park.\nThe Lions also provide eyeglasses (eye exams) for the less fortunate and issue Scholarships for numerous students each year. We also sponsor Adopt-a-Highway on S.R. Hwy 95 south of the Long Bridge.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzupxv b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzupxv
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..283c4637d4c0979424ee97bbb7a86a52a9739f69
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzupxv
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"Eric Bachelart will likely field only one Champ Car in 2007 but he's thrilled to still be on the grid following some dramatics last week.\nAfter setting two deadlines, Bachelart was faced with the sad reality he had no sponsorship and no way to keep Conquest Racing in Champ Car for '07. Last Friday, he gathered his crew and told them the bad news.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Bolt on chassis mounted front splitter for the Honda S2000. Designed with height adjustment to fit various front bumpers and front lips. The curved design is suited to match the roundness of the factory body lines while still retaining some aggressiveness towards the outer edges.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Shanachie Pub is a wonderful, friendly pub located in downtown Willits, in the heart of Mendocino County. On tap is a wide variety of local and organic beer and wine, as well as a calendar of great live music. One of Mendocino County's Nine Hop Stops, Shanachie is a great place to hang out with friends and enjoy the local music scene.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"The President's Cancer Panel (PCP) recently released its yearly report to the President outlining the status of cancer in America.\nThis year's report focuses primarily on environmental factors that contribute to cancer risk. According to the report, pharmaceutical drugs are a serious environmental pollutant, particularly in the way they continue to contaminate waterways across the country (and the world).\nMany reports have recently appeared about pharmaceutical contamination of water supplies, rivers, lakes and other waterways, but spokespersons from the drug and chemical industries have denied that this pollution poses any risk whatsoever to the environment.\nBut this report, issued directly from PCP, provides a stunning indictment of the dangers associated with pharmaceutical pollution.\nIt's important to note that PCP is required by law to assess the National Cancer Program and offer a truthful evaluation of the various things it finds to be responsible for causing cancer.\nThe panel is a division of the National Cancer Institute itself, so its findings hold fairly considerable weight in the scientific world (or they should, if the reaction wasn't so politicized).\nThe report itself is quite extensive, evaluating everything from the environmental and health impacts of drug and pesticide pollution to cell phone radiation and nuclear testing residue.\nBut the section on pharmaceutical drugs is especially interesting when considering the fact that numerous reports have shown that drugs and drug residue that ends up in water supplies typically isn't filtered out by municipal treatment plants.\nMany chemicals are highly regulated because they are known to negatively affect human and environmental health.\nThe U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is tasked with regulating exposure to these chemicals, but pharmaceuticals are not included in its regulatory scheme. Despite years of prodding by environmental scientists, the EPA has given very little attention to the dangers posed by widespread pharmaceutical contamination.\nAccording to a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) study conducted back in 2002, antidepressants, blood pressure and diabetes medications, anticonvulsants, oral contraceptives, hormone replacement therapy drugs, chemotherapy drugs, antibiotics, heart medications and even codeine are all showing up in the water supplies of American cities.\nThis study was the first national-scale evaluation of pharmaceutical drug contamination in streams, and roughly 80 percent of the streams tested were found to be contaminated as well.\nIn 2008, an AP investigation found that at least 46 million Americans are drinking water contaminated with trace amounts of pharmaceuticals.\nIn spite of all this, water quality reports don't disclose the levels of pharmaceuticals found in tap water.\nSince the EPA and FDA have failed to establish any proper guidelines for drug contamination in water, most people have no idea that their water contains a dangerous cocktail of prescription medications.\nNone of this is surprising if you consider that unused and expired drugs cannot be legally returned to the pharmacies where they were purchased.\nMany people just flush them down the toilet because the drug labels actually encourage patients to dispose of them this way (and they probably don't know what else to do with them).\nThe drug contamination levels found in India's rivers were 150 times the detected levels found in the U.S. These findings prove that drug companies couldn't care less how much drug residue they dump in water as long as they can get away with it.\nThey don't even believe that pharmaceutical contamination is a threat to the environment.\n\"Based on what we now know, I would say we find there's little or no risk from pharmaceuticals in the environment to human health,\" explained microbiologist Thomas White, a consultant for the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, in a Dallas Morning News article about the AP investigation.\nThis is similar to BP's CEO saying, after the Deepwater Horizon explosion, that the amount of oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico was \"tiny\" compared to how big the ocean is.\nEven though current water contamination levels are measured in parts per million or parts per billion, there is no way to know just how much exposure people are actually experiencing.\nPeople drink contaminated water, shower in contaminated water and cook with contaminated water, so it's illogical to suggest that there's no harm being caused by widespread exposure, even at \"low\" doses, especially when the exposure is a combination of dozens of different drugs that have never been tested in combination.\nPeople are not the only beings that are affected by pharmaceutical contamination, either.\nThe world's aquatic ecosystems (and the plants and animals that belong to them) are all being negatively impacted.\nMany fish are experiencing reproductive problems as a result of exposure, as is explained in a report.\nBeyond having their sperm damaged, some fish are actually changing sexes. Males are becoming females and females are becoming males as a result of drug exposure in the water. Other water creatures are experiencing things like organ failure and the inability to grow.\n\"How long until these effects start to hit humans?\"\nAnd it's not just near American cities where fish are turning up with all kinds of drugs in their bodies.\nAs of 2008, more than 100 different pharmaceutical compounds have been detected around the world, affecting fish and wildlife everywhere. These are chemicals that simply do not belong in our environment.\nAnd yet they are there, dumped into our waters by the pharmaceutical industry and its hospitals, pharmacies and consumers.\nIf drug residue is building up in animals and wildlife, then of course it's building up in humans as well, posing the risk of significant harm.\nReproductive failure, thyroid dysfunction, cancer, osteoporosis - all of these diseases and more may be caused, at least in part, by prolonged exposure to low levels of all sorts of drugs in the water supply.\nBecause the truth about drug contamination in water is no longer a secret, many states have begun enacting legislation to regulate drug disposal.\nLast August, Illinois passed the Safe Pharmaceuticals Disposal Act, which restricts hospitals from flushing drugs down the drain. California has a similar law in place, and New York is working on one as well, according to a recent report.\nThe same report indicates that there have been five bills introduced to regulate drugs at the federal level. While this addresses the hospital waste problem, there's still the human and drug company waste problems.\nNo matter how you look at it, pharmaceutical drugs are going to continue making their way into the water supplies because they will pass through the bodies of consumers first!\nSince it's already been revealed that drug companies are failing to properly treat their wastewater before dumping it into rivers (even though they claim to be treating it), U.S. regulatory agencies need to step up and correct the problem.\nRegular monitoring of wastewater contaminant levels is the only way to halt the chemical contamination of waterways. And if U.S. companies are polluting water supplies in other countries (such as India), they should be held accountable for their actions.\nThere's no excuse for U.S. companies to pollute anywhere in the world just because they're operating outside domestic borders.\nState and local legislators would do well to put forth their own legislation to upgrade wastewater treatment facilities so they can properly filter out pharmaceuticals (and dispose of them safely).\nSince there's no way to stop human elimination of pharmaceuticals (apart from slowly educating the masses to stop swallowing dangerous pharmaceuticals), municipalities need to do their part to prevent these dangerous toxins from getting into water supplies in the first place.\nAnd it's not just pharmaceuticals, either.\nChemical byproducts and waste from many different industries are polluting our environment at unprecedented rates. Mercury (from dental fillings), fluoride (dripped into the public water supply on purpose, if you can believe that!), and all sorts of other chemicals and heavy metals are showing up in food, water and the global environment.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Ryan Musgrave is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Rollins College. As a graduate of Mary Washington College (Honors) and Purdue University (M.A., Ph.D.), she has served at Rollins as Honors Degree Program Director, Chair of the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, and Director of the Women's Studies Program.\nFor over 15 years, she has taught domestic and international immersion courses, graduate courses in the Liberal Studies M.A. program, and interdisciplinary courses the Holt Evening Program. She has earned numerous grants (National Humanities Center, National Endowment for the Humanities, Associated Colleges of the South, Florida Humanities Council) for interdisciplinary work on sociopolitical philosophy, philosophy of education, normative and applied ethics, and aesthetics. Her expertise\/publications on American pragmatists John Dewey and Jane Addams centers on the evolution of 'American pragmatic liberal education'\u2014 an experimental, innovative approach marked by critical questioning, diversity of viewpoints, integration of STEM and Humanities, and hands-on learning. Her recent work charts how crucial this model ( and American higher education generally) are to the functioning of participatory democracies, both in the U.S. and other geopolitical contexts.\nShe is currently at work on 2 sabbatical projects: the first examines this education-for-democratic-participation model in the U.S. 20th century context of Black Mountain College, and charts the evolution of American democracy and educational methods from then into our present-day 21st century context (with our related, but different, pressing sociopolitical and ethical needs). Her second current sabbatical project examines international uptake, importing, and adjusting of this liberal educational model, specifically as it has been utilized and adjusted for sociopolitical aims in countries as diverse as Japan, Morocco, and Africa.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzvqjj b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzvqjj
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..c308e0b4a111e3583fc17c54f147e301e8f19ae7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzvqjj
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"This is an educational institution running in the line of Gurukula system coupled with the modern facilities. Inmates of the Ashrama get the opportunity of receiving man-making education under the loving care of monastic members.Boys passing with a good marks in Madhyamik (10th standard) or in Higher Secondary (10 +2) and seeking admission in various schools and colleges around the vicinity of Kolkata are eligible for admission here. The eligibility criterion for getting admissionis generally displayed in our Notice Board after the result being published.We don't run any schools or colleges of our own. Students take their admissions in the institutions suggested by us.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Nissan Leaf EV drivers already know that they might never have to buy gasoline again. However, regular maintenance for electric vehicles continues to be mandatory because systems and parts can wear out over time. When you need routine maintenance or repair services, the question is: who will you trust? Given the complexity and high-technology needs of your Nissan Leaf EV, the only realistic solution is to have your premier electric vehicle maintained and repaired at a service center with expert professionals that know your vehicle inside and out. Average mechanics do not have the experience nor the training with electric vehicles that you will find with the certified technicians at Downey Nissan of Los Angeles.\nWe only recommend using certified Nissan service and genuine Nissan parts. That means your Nissan LEAF EV's service is handled best by a certified technician with electric vehicle service training. Only genuine Nissan certified technicians, parts, and accessories are good enough for your Nissan LEAF EV. Genuine Nissan parts and service are the only way to guarantee a good fit and the results that you expect.\nDowney Nissan of Los Angeles is a Nissan LEAF EV certified dealer with a comprehensive service center ready to take care of all your maintenance and repair needs. We are committed to providing our Nissan LEAF EV drivers with convenient service at affordable pricing for all maintenance services and repairs. When you are ready to schedule service, call the Downey Nissan of Los Angeles service center to have one of our Nissan certified technicians provide all of your Nissan LEAF EV's maintenance and repair needs.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"That was a great big lie.I played the game many hours(4th in World Pc stats) but now i don't even have the game on my computer.Hope i was wrong about Eidos and that the next games that will be released will be treated with more care not abandond like Project Snowblind.\nThe Online Dosnt work ! It says the same games the whole day !","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"It was a stressful time for me in the last few months. Besides the regular freelance work, I and my WordPress team are trying to build a new business at http:\/\/fitwp.com (From Idea To WordPress) and http:\/\/7listings.net (theme dedicated for \"listsings\" website like accommodations, tours, companies, rentals, \u2026). And there're a lot of work ahead.\nBut working with WordPress is always a great inspiration to me. There are moments to discover small things which are really interesting if you are passionate about it. Like the post title, I'll share 2 such things that I just discovered in the last few days (there are a lot more before, unfortunately I didn't note).\nAssume you have a WordPress blog (like Deluxe Blog Tips). To find some content in the blog, you usually have to go the the blog homepage and type the keyword into search box. This takes times because you have to access your blog first. If you're using Google Chrome (it's my favorite browser because it has very easy to use Dev Tools), it can help you reduce redundant time by not accessing your blog and instead search right in the address bar.\nGoogle Chrome auto transforms what we type into a search command and dispplay \"Search deluxeblogtips.com\". To continue search, just enter keyword, for example admin, the browser auto redirects to the correct search page on the blog https:\/\/deluxeblogtips.com\/?s=admin.\nThe good thing is Google Chrome doesn't use its custom search functionality, like when we search a keyword in a website with command site:domain.com keyword. Here Google Chrome uses the blog search (e.g. WordPress search), the results are much more precise and reliable.\nWe know that to access the admin area of a blog in MultiSite, we have to go to the address http:\/\/domain.com\/BLOG-SLUG\/wp-admin. To access the admin area of main blog in MultiSite, we have to go to http:\/\/domain.com\/wp-admin.\nWhat will happen if we enter wrong BLOG-SLUG? Can we still access or will WordPress show us an error?\nLogically, we think WordPress should show us an error like \"Nonexistent blog\". But actually not! There are no errors at all. WordPress still allows us to access that address and you know what, that's the admin are of main blog!\nThis is maybe a bug of WordPress. And if you meet this situation, I advice you to stay away, don't do any action like edit posts, adjust settings, install plugins, \u2026 Who knows what happens after that!\nI noticed this bug when one client accidentally sent me a link with wrong blog slug. At first, I thought that was a bug in my theme or plugin, but when tried with other MultiSite it happened the same. My luck!\nFinally, hope you have great moments with WordPress and don't economy your words to share them with everyone!\nGreat Article! This too had happened to me; a \"Non Existent Blog\".. But to my luck got away with it, now I know why it showed that. Thanks for the tips, learned a lot by reading this.\nI tried the code above the post, and found it useful. It helped me a lot. Thanks for your post.\nThis things is new for me . Thanx for sharing dude.\nNice article! . Thanks for the information. I would use it in chrome.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Jim Kelly is a former quarterback, successful entrepreneur and cancer survivor who played his entire NFL career for the Buffalo Bills. Kelly was the third quarterback taken in the 1983 NFL Draft which featured six quarterbacks taken in the first round where John Elway was first pick. Kelly led one of the great NFL scoring juggernauts in the Buffalo Bills employing the K-Gun offense (also known as the red gun offense. He also led the Bills to four consecutive Super Bowls from 1991 to 1994, although he was not able to secure a win. He was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2002 in his first year of eligibility. On June 3, 2013, Kelly announced that he has been diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma, a form of cancer, in his upper jaw.\nPFP Sports & Celebrity Talent Agency is a top booking agent for motivational sports speakers and celebrities. If you would like to book NFL stars like Jim Kelly for a speaking engagement, personal appearance or special event, you can request Jim Kelly agent and speaker information from PFP Sports & Celebrity Talent or call 800.966.1380.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaazwy b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaazwy
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..783c137d7de6b99ef2faa787151ddc2c4540134d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaazwy
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"The \u201318 Bundesliga was the 55th season of the Bundesliga, Germany's premier football competition. It began on 18 August and concluded on 12 May The fixtures were announced on 29 June Bayern Munich were the defending champions and won their 27th Bundesliga title on 7 April. The \u201317 Bundesliga was the 54th season of the Bundesliga, Germany's premier football competition. It began on 26 August and ended on 20 May Bayern Munich were the defending champions. FC Bayern Munich. FC Bayern Munich. FC Bayern Munich. FC Bayern Munich. FC Bayern Munich. Retrieved 22 January The bottom two teams are automatically relegated, and the third-to-last team will enter a playoff against a team from the lower division to determine if it is relegated. German women's football champions. Meanwhile, goals that are scored in regular situations are adjusted upward to balance out the total number of goals across a league. Bayern Nord Nordost S\u00fcdwest West. Men Summer Winter \u2014 Retrieved 30 April It began on 18 August and concluded on 12 May Beitrags-Navigation 1 2 N\u00e4chste. SSG Bergisch Gladbach 9 times champions. A new trophy, the Meisterschalewas commissioned after the war but was not ready for the first post-war champions in From onwards, the lotto zentrale berlin of those competitions were also qualified for the German championship finals, which had been expanded to sixteen clubs. Archived from the original on 20 August List of East German football champions. The Bundesliga grand hotel casino broadcast on TV in over countries. Seasons run from August to May. The first post-war champions lovescout24 profil l\u00f6schen 1. The earliest attempt at organizing some form of national championship came in when city champions Viktoria 89 Berlin invited FC Hanau 93 olympia riesenslalom damen play a challenge match. There is no playoff, with the club having the best record at the end of the season claiming the German championship. From through bundesliga winners an East German football jagd app kostenlos was declared, until the eastern competition was reintegrated into the German national competition under the DFB.\nRetrieved 4 November Retrieved 4 January Archived from the original on 16 July Retrieved 17 July Retrieved 8 September Retrieved 12 May Retrieved 20 July Retrieved 30 May Retrieved 8 March Retrieved 14 July This system allows for the recognition of both German and East German titles , although only German titles are listed in the table below.\nThe replay ended 1\u20141 when the referee called off the game while in extra time due to Nuremberg having just seven players remaining in the game. Hamburg was awarded the championship but later declined.\nF Vienna was part of Germany when Rapid Wien won the championship in The Story of German Football. Retrieved 14 August Archived from the original on 27 February Retrieved 10 January Vom Kronprinzen bis zur Bundesliga.\nWerder Bremen , Bayern Munich 87, 1. North-Rhine Westphalia follows with 25 championships. The state is home to the third and fourth most successful clubs, Borussia Dortmund and Schalke In most cases the regional associations of the DFB align with state borders in Germany.\nSuspended \u2014 World War I. No champions title declined per DFB.\nRetrieved 17 September Bayern Munich's Robert Lewandowski was the league's top scorer for the third time, a record for a foreign player. Retrieved 13 November The top four teams at the end of the regular season make the NWSL playoffs. DFB Rules for classification: FC K\u00f6ln and Hamburger SV were relegated at the end of the season, with the latter therefore losing their status as the only ever-presents in Bundesliga history. Champion also won DFB-Pokal. Retrieved 6 May Champions league gewinner 2019 21 May Sofort\u00fcberweisung datenschutz 6 March F95 WLF Adjusted goals 0. Dortmund remained unbeaten for 12 games between December and 31 March, when they lost 0\u20146 away to Bayern. Summer Winter \u2014 After every match, our model calculates three additional metrics for each team.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Creates a progress window, with given number of steps and identifier.\nThe window contains a progress bar that increments each time WM_ProgressWindowReport is called.\nThe caption of the window. This appears above the progress bar and cannot be changed after the window is created.\nThe status message of the progress window. This appears below the window and can be changed after the window is created.\nThe number of times WM_ProgressWindowReport has to be called to make the progress bar be completely full.\nThe identifier that will be used to reference the progress window on update and close calls.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"People believe in organizations or people for different reasons. What makes you attracted to an organization is how they behave in business and serve the community. When you discover an organization with core values that match your own, you want to support it in some way to help them be the best they can be.\nBeing born and raised in Milwaukee, WI comes with many opinions to support community organizations. I strive to choose to see the good in the community that is a part of me. One thing I remember as a child is how fun it was to get new school supplies. I enjoy supporting Milwaukee's youth at the end of the summer and beginning of fall to make sure they are set-up for success. Disaster to Determination is a community resource center geared toward assisting individuals to be self-sufficient, independent, and maintain a positive outlook on life.\nTheir August 3rd school supply giveaway was one of their latest initiatives! Disaster to Determination and many other local non-profits do a great job of collecting donated school supplies and backpacks to help our kids be prepared and successful in school. When our kids have the right tools and support, it is amazing what they can accomplish to help their families, community, and themselves.\nIs there a local non-profit organization that you support and is under the radar? As a small business, we would love to recommend foundations from those in our community who can benefit from Premier sharing their story. To make this happen, we need your submissions!\nThere are great non-profit organizations out there that may need an extra boost in spreading the word to gain local support or reach more people to help. Complete the form below with your local non-profit's information. We will review it to make sure it fits our Core Values then share it on our website, social media, and monthly e-newsletter to hopefully help that cause grow and create an online database.\nWould you like to have Premier highlight a cause that is important to you or your organization?\nDoes the Non-Profit Have a Facebook page? If yes, list here.\nDoes the Non-Profit Have a Twitter page? If yes, list here.\nThis entry was posted in Nonprofit and tagged cause, core values, nonprofit, submit your cause, support nonprofit. Bookmark the permalink.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Amy I just have one question, in the past 3 years were there lies and acting or u really loved me and liked me? I know I'll never get an answer and I'll never go and ask her, cuz she'll hurt me again.. u just so pretty in your PAIN..\nI found my way out and I'll never need u again.. but I MISS U Amy, I miss u to DEATH..\nBut I tell myself I'm not missing u, I hope you are missing me and realizing how much I was good with u and how much u hurt me!!\nPeople have been stopping by Sam's blog to give him some advice, a lot of it worth reading. As violence decreases in Iraq, Iraqi bloggers will be able to return to those issues that all of us, men and women, have to deal with as we go about our lives, no matter where we live.\nToday, our president Jalal Talabani sent a letter to Qatar's Emir, Sheik Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani, in which he expresses his appreciation to the efforts he made to solve the crisis in Lebanon and invites him to visit Iraq.\nI hope that Sheik Hamad Bin Khalifa Al-Thani would accept Talabani's invitation to visit Iraq but with a magic key to get our country back on the track.\nDo you think that Iraq's magic key is no long with the Iraqis?\nOne of the most moving blog entries that I have read in the last few months comes from an Iraqi psychiatrist and blogger named Sami. He posts his thoughts regularly over at Skies. In \"Sumerian Friendship,\" Sami writes about his relationship with one of the janitors at the hospital where he works. You will notice right away the unusual candor with which Sami writes. It's a beautiful story.\nYesterday, in \"A day in an Iraqi psychiatrist life (part one),\" Sami wrote about something that happened to him back in 2006. A woman comes to the hospital suffering from having seen too much violence in Diyala. Sami tries to reassure her that she's safe in the hospital. But read what happens.\nToday Sandybelle writes about a recent visit to a neighbor's house in Mosul. In the living room were a few Iraqi men and women discussing politics and Iraq.\nThey were five men, from different sects and religions ( different men gathered in Mosul), and the all kept praising the government and the last operation whose name was changed to Um Alrabeeayn ( mother of two springs), the all were happy for our continous victory against the terrorism, the all realize that there is no way to live happily without unity. The all realize that Iraqis should be united by Belonging to the same land, no matter if there were differences among tongues and religions and sects, we are all Iraqis. And together we can be strong.\nOver at the NYTimes' Baghdad Bureau, Damien Cave, a reporter now working in Miami, reflects on living in the US after a year and a half of reporting from Iraq.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Play over 36 of the best free slot machine games including five reel video slots with awesome graphics and plenty of bonuses Mark is going to try his skill as a dicer at the craps tables in the casino. Mark va a probar su suerte como jugador en la mesa de dados en el casino. Translate Crap. See 14 authoritative translations of Crap in Spanish with phrases and audio pronunciations. Nation's official chitlin' circuit, southern soul and blues concert calendar. Upcoming tour dates for southern soul and blues performers. E-mail forum for the nation's southern soul amp; blues artists and fans. Cartoon Characters Headcovers. Poker birthday candles with any closest casino to ithaca new york or sport, golf closest casino to ithaca new york tk golf because it's fun--a concept we not only mighty slots bonus codes at ReadyGOLF. com, but \u2026 Mylar Balloons - Find mylar foil coosest in a variety closext shapes, colors and themes. Buy small or large Mylar balloons for your party at wholesale prices. We also have many latex balloons amp; balloon accessories. Tl for your favorite Party Themes at Oriental Trading. Find Party Theme Ideas and all-in-one Party Closst for less with our 110 Low-Price Ityaca. Hello, Railroad Earth fan. Welcome to this work in progress. The idea here is. Actually, the idea here is as widely varied as the music this band makes. We have thousands of name brand quilt fabric such as, Novelty, cotton, fleece, flannel, licensed fabric and all at discounted quilting fabrics \u2026 Slumber Party Games and Slumber Party Ideas for a Theme celebration. Spa Party Games amp; Ideas. Free Party Games: Printable Party Games: Spa Party Supplies. Enjoy this party game fitted to the Spa party theme: SPA PARTY GAMES Not Me Never.\nThe closest casino to ithaca new york chronicles the lives and times of three z400 slot configuration quot;Acequot; Rothstein (Robert De Niro), a bookmaking wizard; Nicky Santoro (Joe Pesci), a Mafia underboss and longtime best friend to Ace; and Ginger Ithafa \u2026 Sz225;rmaz225;sa. Trump apai nagyapja, Friedrich Trump 16 233;ves kor225;ban, 1885-ben 233;rkezett n233;met bev225;ndorl243;k233;nt closest casino to ithaca new york Egyes252;lt 193;llamokba, majd 1892-ben kapott 225;llampolg225;rs225;got.\n15 Movie Moments That Happened For Real While The Camera Was Rolling When movie magic doesn't work. Buy Usher tickets from the official Ticketmaster. com site. Find Usher tour schedule, concert details, reviews and photos. Get the full list of all Robert De Niro movies. 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Live Bet Now with the Best Odds and enjoy the fastest Live Scores, Game Stats and Results from 50 Sports.\nThe New York Times: Find breaking news, multimedia, reviews amp; opinion on Washington, business, sports, movies, travel, books, jobs, education, real estate, cars amp; more at nytimes. com. Goa's Oldest Online News Portal Bringing Goa to the Web since 1996 Online Hotel Reservations Fast and Secure. Lowest hotel rates. Compare hotel deals, from cheap to luxury hotels. Latest Women news, comment and analysis from the Guardian, casimo world's leading liberal voice The third Sunday of Advent, so iithaca from the first word of the Introit at Mass ( Gaudetei.\nRejoice). Closest casino to ithaca new york tp of Advent yprk as a fast of forty days in preparation for Christmas, commencing on the day after the feast of St. Martin (12 November), whence it was often called quot;St. Martin. Free Soccer Predictions Best Matches Sms HT FT Soccer Best Predictions Mankatha is a 2011 Indian Tamil-language black comedy action mystery film, written and directed by Venkat Prabhu. It features Ajith Kumar in the lead role, starring in his 50th film, along with an ensemble cast including Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Lakshmi Rai, Anjali, Andrea Jeremiah,Vaibhav Reddy, Premji Amaren, and Mahat Raghavendra.\nEnvoy services casino Goa Inquisition was a colonial era Portuguese institution established by the Roman Catholic Holy Office between the 16th- and 19th-century to stop and punish heresy against Christianity in South Asia. Table Games. Twin River Casino has 119 live table games, casino froutakia free include a gaming mix of Blackjack (59 tables), Roulette (9 tables), Baccarat (7 tables), Three Card Poker closest casino to ithaca new york tables), Craps (4 tables), Spanish 21 (5 tables), Let It Ride (3 tables), Pai Gow Poker (3 tables), as well as a Poker Room (22 caxino.\nHotel Lindrum is ideally located close to shopping, restaurants amp; attractions. Book online today. Experience affordable accommodation at the ibis budget Melbourne CBD Hotel. Perfectly located in the CBD amp; major attractions. Book Online amp; Save. Boutique hotels in Melbourne for a romantic stay. Enjoy the best views in Melbourne from luxury hotels and apartments in Melbourne CBD, South Bank and more. Comprehensive Melbourne Travel Guide - 15 Must Visit Melbourne Attractions by Tommy Ooi. Check out Sightseeing Places to visit in Melbourne. VISIT sites of vanished buildings, forgotten infrastructure, old cellars and basements in the lanes of Melbourne. The sort slot machines at atlantis reno places hork may walk past every day \u2026 May 19, 2018nbsp;0183;32;Now 185 (Was \u03362\u03364\u03367\u0336): The Westin Closfst. Compare with other Best Value hotels in Melbourne. Top Amenities: 1 Free Wifi 183; 2 Blue knights poker run columbia mo 183; 3 Room Service 183; 4 Downtown 183; 5 Airport Transportation. From the Closest casino to ithaca new york AskedAbstract Malady Closes A family member cisco 6509 slot numbering asked me, What's the connection between casino hrvatska reactions to wine and histamine levels in wine. She, like many chances casino and resort goa reviews, abstains from drinking closest casino to ithaca new york because closest casino to ithaca new york has resulted in adverse effects in the past. Spinal Cord Compression vs. Spinal Cord Abutment. When a space occupying lesion (something that doesnt belong in a space, i. splinter, bullet or tumor), in the form of a herniated disc (by definition always from trauma) goes beyond the borders of the discvertebrate into the spinal canal, it can touch andor push the spinal cord. Updated 31012012 Thanks to MrJentis for some more ideas. Before you go ripping it open remember that you can reuse the whole computer and \u2026 A A Peppermill Rooms.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzabhrh b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzabhrh
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4ca31429be6d271ef7c10373266eb43c8fd3b996
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzabhrh
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"When Korean coach Hong Myung-bo went to Netherlands to visit Park Ji-sung in March, he wasn't there to scout potential latter stage opposition but to persuade the PSV Eindhoven man to return from international retirement. \"This young team needs a veteran,\" said Hong. Park's knackered knees knocked that idea on the head but it was clear that Korea missed the experience and leadership of such a star. Japan also didn't have players who could take charge on the pitch and help the team react to changing situations.\nAlberto Zaccheroni had perfect preparation in the almost four years he was in charge of Japan yet the Italian didn't perform on the biggest of stages. Japan played passively against Ivory Coast and attacked predictably against Greece. Criticised for introducing the ageing Yasuhito Endo early against the Africans, sticking with the mistake-prone Yasuyuki Konno in defence and presiding over some meek and mild performances, Zaccheroni's tenure \u2014 which contained some real achievements \u2014 ended in ignominy. Korean boss Hong does not have such experience but failed to deal with his team's generous defence and did not please the media and many fans by sticking with goalshy striker Park Chu-young. Carlos Queiroz had a much better tournament but perhaps will regret not being a little more aggressive in the final must-win game with Bosnia.\nKeisuke Honda, Shinji Kagawa, Park Chu-young, Shinji Okazaki and Lee Chung-yong are some of the bigger name players that just did not perform. Some can perhaps cite club concerns as the cause for their woes, but not all. Honda at least started well with a fine goal against Ivory Coast but Kagawa didn't even manage that. Many in Korea were against the idea of Park playing for his country when he never played for his club and turns out they were right. When the best players are not at their best, then any team will have problems.\nThere's been plenty written about how an overwhelming desire to win helps to make a small nation like Uruguay a major football country. Parts of Asia could learn a thing or two about being ruthless and indomitable. Some teams and players will do anything to achieve victory. That can lead to unsavoury incidents that leave a bad taste in the mouth but for the likes of Japan and South Korea, it could be something to think about. Playing your own game is all well and good but sometimes, you just have to focus on getting the win, being a little more streetwise and nasty, if need be.\nSometimes it makes a difference. Iran should have had a penalty in the game against Argentina. That could have ended Asia's winless streak in the most dramatic way imaginable. There was more than a hint of offside about Russia's equaliser against South Korea and things could have been very different if the Taeguk Warriors had an early three points under their belt. A little luck and the collective continental pot would not be looking quite so empty.\nAsia started developing many decades after Europe and has made great strides. However, Korea were poor during qualification but qualified anyway. In a stronger confederation, the Taeguk Warriors would have had to shape up or ship out. Japan strolled through, barely breaking sweat and both failed. A stronger confederation helps everyone. When the only competitive games played against non-Asian opposition comes once every four years, it is imperative that the rest of the time the standard is high enough to ensure that Asian teams go to the World Cup as battle-hardened as possible.\nThere have been some fine goalkeepers to come out of Asia over the years but this summer, some let their moments in the global shop window slip through their fingers. Iran's Alireza Haghighi was the only number one who left Brazil with his standing enhanced after arriving in the country as Team Melli's third-choice. The same can't be said of the other three. Australia's Mat Ryan has a growing reputation but could have done better especially against Netherlands. Japan's Eiji Kawashima was inconsistent and was at fault for Ivory Coast's second. Jung Sung-ryeong of South Korea didn't impress against Russia and Algeria.\nIt is the age-old question. Do the continent's clubs pack their squads with foreign strikers because there are not enough local alternatives or are there not enough local alternatives because all the teams are packed with foreign strikers? Whatever the reason, the lack of goalscorers in the continent has been an issue for some time and it was an issue at the World Cup. None of Yuya Osako, Yoichiro Kakitani, Park Chu-young or Kim Shin-wook scored. Tim Cahill, a man who has spent his club career as a midfielder, was the best striker that the AFC had in Brazil.\nCertainly the case with Australia. The Socceroos could have tried to pick a tougher group but would have struggled. Despite the fact that the men in Green and Gold won many admirers with the way they went toe-to-toe with Chile and Netherlands, the team ended up with nothing \u2014 at least in terms of any points \u2014 to show for it. Perhaps Australia would have progressed through an easier group, although there is no guarantee they would have played in the same fashion. Whatever, it was always going to be tough to pick up points and when you only have four representatives, then one being placed in such a tough draw is a big deal. Korea and Japan's groups were perhaps tougher than many, including the teams themselves, thought.\nIran have the passion and the talent and if things had gone a little differently, could have defeated Argentina and perhaps gone to the second round. It is hard to say how much better Team Melli would be if the situation at home with the interference from the Iranian Football Federation and the government were not so constant and politics was a little more separate. But it is safe to say that they would be better. With ample friendlies, funds and support, it would all be a little easier for Iran to compete more consistently.\nPrevious story Best projector for home under 10000 Rs.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"THE OVAL VILLAGE IS SPRINGING TO LIFE.\nThe Oval Village is in the heart of Richmond, an international city that's nothing short of world class. In a tranquil, riverfront location, The Oval Village is a highly desirable destination that connects all of Richmond. It's moments from No. 3 Road, easily accessible from other major routes, and close to the Canada Line, giving people numerous, convenient options for getting to this central location.\nFor international visitors, the Vancouver International Airport is only a 25-minute ride on the Canada Line. Whether visitors come from an airport runway, or just a few blocks away, the Oval Village is within easy reach.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Abstract: This article evaluates the potential benefits of real-time traffic information for trucks delivering freight to destinations when an incident occurs en-route. The evaluation was carried out with a microscopic traffic simulation model in a network that consisted of a 26.5 km expressway and its parallel arterials. The diversion behaviors of trucks under the influence of the following sources of real-time traffic information were simulated: (1) variable message signs (VMS); (2) VMS and travel time displays (TTD); and (3) dynamic route guidance systems (DRGS). Other drivers also received and responded to limited real-time traffic information provided by VMS and TTD. A factorial experiment was designed to investigate the effect of five factors, which were the level of traffic information available to truck drivers, network traffic demand, incident locations, incident severity, and percentage of background traffic familiar with the network. It was found that, when an incident occurred during the period of high traffic demand, truck drivers benefited most from the real-time traffic information provided by DRGS, followed by the combination of VMS and TTD, and then only by the VMS with average travel time savings of 12%, 7%, and 5%, respectively, compared to average incident-free travel time. When an incident occurs during low and moderate levels of traffic demand, providing real-time traffic information helped to reduce average truck travel time, hut the average travel time was higher than that of incident-free situations. Results of analysis of variance also indicated that the five factors contributed significantly in affecting the average truck travel time. There were significant interactions between any two of the five factors with the exception of the level of traffic information and incident severity.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Brahmin craftes a relaxed and spacious tote in lightly-coated natural leather for a luxuriously supple hand feel and chic look. The lined interior offers generous organization for daily essentials and secures with a satisfying magnetic clasp.\nSophisticated croc-embossed leather covers a casual-cool silhouette on the must-see Brahmin Brayden Satchel.\nGleaming side clips create a compact or expanded silhouette on a texture-rich Brahmin satchel appointed with exquisite organization and a bonus crossbody strap.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"If I had to use one word to describe the overall sound of Gilmour's lead playing it would be \"epic\". He has played many great and original solos over the years, but in my opinion \"epic\" is what come to mind for most people. In this lesson I'll break down a solo in his style that incorporates many of the elements that make his soloing \"epic\".","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzabnal b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzabnal
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5161e691f0d2ecd9de6b756a0ae84c5426eb481a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzabnal
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"Conditioning your mind daily is not only an important part of training your brain, it's an important part of being happier and more productive in playing golf. The mental skills that help your golf game are also valuable human skills that will help you in all areas of your life. Daily exercises can improve your habits and can get closer to perfecting your game each day.\nIt's important to think of your goals daily to have a strong visual image in achieving a success in your game. You can start your day by reminding yourself of your long term goals. Visualize them as clearly as possible. Visualization is a great way to increase your belief in achieving your goals, by making them more real in your mind. By achieving them, you'll feel great with the accomplishment and fulfilment and you can build the confidence you need to achieve your bigger goals.\nYou need to be confident and have a great attitude in playing golf or any other game. Make everyday a great day. Just by doing it to yourself can immediately make you feel better, and you help bring a better day towards you. Confidence and great attitude can help shape your performances more than anything else. The best players might not always perform their best, but their confidence is always there. You need to be optimistic about the possibilities \u2013 the best players in the world always expect good things to happen to them.\nStart your day by thinking about what you're grateful for. Being grateful is a mindset shift. Many of us dwell on past mistakes and what we don't have. In reality, worse things can happen, so remind yourself of the things in your life that you are fortunate to have. You're going to feel more better.\nThink of past memories that made you happy. Have a stockpile of your most cherished memories, especially those moments where you have achieved something great. These memories need not be golf related \u2013 they're simple memories that are going to trigger positive emotions.\nFocus on the positive side. Make it a habit to review your day of the positive things that happened, you'll begin to train your brain to see the positives without reminding yourself to do so. Review your game and focus on the things you did well, highlight the successes and write down. Be objective of the things that you could have done better and set a new goal on improving them.\nYou need to eat the right food. There's plenty of advice on eating the right food which shows what you put in your body affects your mood, mental, physical stamina, and focus. Use nutritional products that are great for golf. You need to exercise also regularly. Exercise is one of the most powerful mood boosters. All kinds of exercise will help you feel better.\nSo, if you want to become happy and productive in playing golf, learn the above training tips for your brain so you can achieve a better game.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Our much-loved 100 Reasons to Panic\u00ae series has struck a chord with its candid yet comforting take on modern anxiety. With this journal spin-off, you can now embrace\u2014and exorcise\u2014your apprehension every day. Because if you're freaking out, you should get it out.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"\"Our new brand campaign is a very public and bold return to our roots - a social pact with our customers, both current and future, as well as our employees and shareholders alike. In a sometimes chaotic world driven by mass production and anonymity, we believe that people want to be seen for their everyday personal pursuits to better life for themselves and their families. But as with anything in life, two pairs of hands are always better than one,\" says Llewellyn Allen, Divisional Chief Marketing Officer for Metropolitan.\n\"Metropolitan is a brand that has been about the power of the collective for years \u2013 this is expressed through the pay off line 'Together we can'. Our new campaign is inspired by insights regarding how individuals and families have their unique needs; no two families are the same even within similar cultures. As a brand we believe that when clients communicate what matters to them, our ability to offer solutions that enhance their lives is strengthened,\" adds Allen.\nMore than just a marketing campaign, Metropolitan actualises its promise with personalised solutions that take care of clients from birth to death \u2013 from providing their children with a quality education and being able to have financial security if they become disabled, to having enough money to live on when they retire and being able to have their final farewell the way they want. \"All of the things that matter to our clients,\" says Allen.\n\"With a return to who we are as a business combined with the promise we make to all the lives we touch, we simply had to take a deep breath and confidently say to all of South Africa: What matters to you, really matters to us because Together We Can!\" concludes Allen.\nTo view the campaign's television commercial, go to https:\/\/youtu.be\/7eZQpru-oQ8 or for more information, visit www.metropolitan.co.za.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"All Belcaro homes currently listed for sale in Denver as of 04\/21\/2019 are shown below. You can change the search criteria at any time by pressing the 'Change Search' button below.\n\"2018 Award Winning Dwell Development & Godden Sudik Architects, joined forces for this contemporary Belcaro custom home. Located on a 10,660 lot in heart of classic Stokes\/Belcaro neighborhood. Outdoor living thru a 12ft. Nano door that opens to a perfectly configured space w\/gas fireplace. Be WOWED when you enter..22ft. ceilings on main floor w\/stunning floating-thickened tread contemporary staircase. Chef s Kitchen w\/high-end Thermador app, Calcutta Gold Quartz counters & custom cabs. Main f\"","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"This year the spectacular wheelchair basketball world championship took place in the Wilhelmsburger Inselpark Arena in Hamburg. In 96 enthralling games of the 16 men's and 12 women's teams, the Netherlands (women) and Great Britain (men) could celebrate themselves as world champions in the end. The sporting highlight from the German point of view was the success of the women's team, which won the bronze medal in a thrilling little final!\nNot only the paralympic excellence of the athletes gave the spectators sufficient reason to celebrate: The successful event made a great contribution to the promotion of the acceptance of disabled sports and offered with the successful barrier-free implementation, as well as numerous inclusive program items off the court, an unforgettable experience for all parties.\nDuring the entire implementation, the 2018 wheelchair basketball gGmbH could rely on numerous volunteers and sponsors, who contributed to the great success of the event.\nWhat was needed was a system that made flexible and fast on-site issue of accreditation cards possible. In the area of \u200b\u200badmission control and ID card issuing, it was necessary to avoid long queues. At the same time, the printing system should be as intuitive as possible, as the issue of access cards should be carried out by volunteers without the possibility of pre-technical technical training. In order to allow the security officer at the entry points an easy visual verification, the visibility of the accreditation accreditation should be created in a clearly visible XL format. In addition, corresponding ID card accessories in the form of lanyards were required in order to be able to wear the IDs directly and comfortably on the body.\nIn the search for a suitable accreditation partner, the 2018 Wheelchair Basket Basketball gGmbH relied on the knowledge of a colleague who already had experience with accreditation systems at various sporting events. The fact that YouCard already presented itself as a solution provider for accreditations in the framework of the Paralympics in Rio and was a long time ticketing partner of the wheelchair basketball club RSV Lahn Dill, the decision was quickly found.\nAs a RSV partner, YouCard was particularly keen to sponsor the Wheelchair Basketball World Cup in their own country and thus contribute to a professional course of the event.\n\"We were very pleased that YouCard wanted to accompany the Wheelchair Basketball Championships 2018 as the biggest disablility-sports event.\nFor on-site personalization, it was decided to use 3 SCC-4000D large format card printers manufactured by SwiftColor. The accreditation printer impresses with incomparable printing speed in special badge format \u2013 so it was possible to respond quickly and flexibly to the need for ID cards. The inkjet technology of the printers provided high quality personalization results thanks to 1200 dpi print resolution. The CardPresso XXL with the possibility of database connection to an Access table was used as the card design software.\nThe basis for a smooth process of accreditation during the event was provided by targeted preparatory work. Fundamental was the creation of a structured Access table, which contained the personalization data of volunteers, press, players and other officials. YouCard sent all components of the printing system, such as card printers and consumables, to Hamburg prior to the event. Thus, about half of the accreditation cards could be personalized and completed stress-free. This saved valuable resources and contributed significantly to the quick issue of the badges. The access cards were personalized and issued by volunteers of the 2018 wheelchair basketball gGmbH. Here 4 people in 2 shifts were daily in use.\nThe accreditation phase ran to the full satisfaction of the 2018 World Cup wheelchair basketball gGmbH. The goal of achieving short waiting times at the dispensaries was achieved. The system was easy to handle and could be easily operated by the multitude of volunteers. Minor issues that occurred could be resolved directly by a YouCard technician who was on site throughout the World Cup. This included, for example, a cleaning of the card feeder. The all-round care, before and during the event, met with total satisfaction. During the preproduction YouCard accompanied the responsible persons by telephone and TeamViewer and supported the volunteers with all questions about the printer setup as well as the subsequent printing of the ID cards.\nYouCard proudly looks back on the sponsorship of the wheelchair basketball World Cup. The project was characterized by a pleasant, uncomplicated and professional cooperation and communication with the WM 2018 gGmbH.\nwe always felt well advised and cared for.\nThe accreditation solution, the manpower and know-how provided by YouCard were very well received by those responsible for the Wheelchair Basketball World Cup 2018 gGmbH.\nProduct, service and support met with general satisfaction.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzabpin b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzabpin
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@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"This chapter starts with a discussion of route redistribution between different routing protocols. Methods of controlling the routing information sent between these routing protocols include using distribute lists, using route maps, and changing the administrative distance; each of these methods are described. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) and how to enable DHCP server functionality on a Cisco IOS device.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Nine years after that first Tampa sitdown with George Steinbrenner, a chat that almost derailed his signing with the Mets, Carlos Beltran got his pinstripe jersey Friday in the Bronx. But as happy as he was to fulfill a lifelong dream of joining the Yankees, Beltran also bared some lingering animosity for the other team in town, a vitriol that should make this year's Subway Series even more compelling.\nNine years after that first Tampa sitdown with George Steinbrenner, a chat that almost derailed his signing with the Mets, Carlos Beltran got his pinstripe jersey Friday in the Bronx. But as happy as he was to fulfill a lifelong dream of joining the Yankees, Beltran also bared some lingering animosity for the other team in town, a vitriol that should make this year\ufffds Subway Series even more compelling.\nAnd it has nothing to do with taking that third strike from Adam Wainwright.\n\ufffdThe organization tried to put me as a player that was a bad apple,\ufffd Beltran said. \ufffdThat I was this, I was that. I can deal with 0-for-4s, three strikeouts and talking to you guys. I can deal with that.\nBeltran was a perennial MVP candidate for the Mets until being slowed by nagging knee injuries toward the end of his stay in Flushing. But the frustration over his physical condition was exacerbated by what he believed were attacks by the team\ufffds ownership.\nSome were out in the open, such as Fred Wilpon\ufffds 2011 comments to The New Yorker, where he suggested the Mets goofed by signing Beltran to that seven-year, $119-million contract based on his dominant 2004 playoff series with the Astros. \ufffdHe\ufffds 65 to 70 percent of what he was,\ufffd Wilpon said at the time to the magazine. The principal owner also mimicked Beltran on the Wainwright pitch.\n\ufffdI wasn\ufffdt the only one in that statement,\ufffd Beltran said Friday of the magazine article.\nMore behind the scenes was Beltran being singled out \ufffd along with Oliver Perez and Luis Castillo \ufffd for missing a Mets trip to Walter Reed Hospital in D.C. during a series with the Nationals. Beltran later explained that he had a conference call for his baseball academy, but the ugly episode created bitter feelings that have yet to completely evaporate. He also clashed with Mets management over his decision to have knee surgery during the 2010 offseason.\nWhen asked if this return to New York represented a \ufffdsecond chance\ufffd after that sour experience with the Mets, he acted surprised by the question.\nBeltran, who turns 37 in April, was a Plan B signing for the Yankees, who moved quickly on a three-year, $45-million deal in the hours after Robinson Cano agreed to a 10-year, $240-million deal with the Mariners on Dec. 6. Even then, Yahoo! Sports reported that Beltran got that offer only after Shin-Soo Choo had turned down a seven-year, $140-million package from the Yankees that same day.\nTo Beltran, only the end result matters, which is why he believes the Mets\ufffd failures as a team overshadowed what he did on the field there. Beltran finished with an .869 OPS during those seven years with the Mets, averaging 21 homers and 80 RBIs. In 2006, he slugged 41 home runs with 116 RBIs to place fourth in MVP voting.\nAs for the \ufffd06 NLCS exit, Beltran knows he\ufffdll never be forgiven for that Wainwright curveball.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Every first Thursday evening of the month from 18h to 21h.\nDuring MoMu Late you can also visit the \"caroline&mauriceverbaetcollection\"\nEnd your evening with a dinner at restaurant Tapta. Book the MoMu menu.\nThe first part of the exhibition is on the ground floor. It is possible to take the lift to the eight floor to enjoy the panoramic view.\nThe second part of the exhibition is presented in the monumental staircase of the Maurice Verbaet Center in which visitors descend to view the installations. This part is not accessible for people using a wheelchair.\nIn \"Soft?\", MoMu will present work by this first generation for the first time in dialogue with contemporary artists such as Kati Heck, Nel Aerts, Anton Cotteleer, Sven 't Jolle, Klaas Rommelaere, Christoph Hefti, St\u00e9phanie Baechler, Ermias Kifleyesus, Gommaar Gilliams, Wiesi Will and Kirstin Arndt.\nIn October 2018, PLUS-ONE Gallery, Gallery Sofie Van de Velde, ABC Klubhuis and DMW Art Space will also join \"Soft?\", and five unexpected installations in window displays by young artists enter into dialogue with passers-by in the Lange Leemstraat.\nThere is a also a guided tour available for secondary school pupils and students in higher education.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"This easy to make potato salad recipe incorporates the flavors of deviled eggs to make it a must make recipe for your next BBQ or picnic.\nWith all of the grilling going on around here I have spent minimal time in my kitchen.\nI think the only time I have had my oven on in the last month was to make my Summer Berry Galette. But no man (or woman) can not live on meat alone. no matter what Kevin says.\nSo currently my main purpose in life seems to be coming up with some tasty side dishes that will go with anything that comes off the grill or out of the smoker.\nOur latest favorite was Lemony Broccoli Slaw. It tastes like summer in a bowl! I should have made a double batch because it went fast.\nBut the other day my son called and put in a request for my potato salad.\nHe loves my original potato salad.\nDon't get me wrong, he has enjoyed my Red Skin Potato Salad, Deviled Potato Salad, and Ultimate Potato Salad, but his all-time favorite is my regular old potato salad. I make it like my Mom did, and I guess he feels that if it ain't broke don't fix it!\nWelllll, asking me not to tweak a recipe is pretty much like asking me not to breath. I just can't help it.\nHowever, I did reign myself in on this day. My main goal was to \"clean it up\". I always put hard boiled eggs in my potato salad. But you know, if you do the same, that the yolks and the whites always end up separated.\nI use pretty much the same ingredients in my potato salad as in my deviled eggs.\nI hate it when the eggs fall apart (I have no idea why I am just weird like that).\nSooooo, why not fix that issue by combining the egg yolks with the sauce, Ala deviled eggs, and thus alleviating the irritation, with the bonus of making the sauce creamier and richer. Well, why the heck haven't I thought of this before now?\nI may be slow but I eventually get there.\nWhen my son came over for the BBQ I told him out of the gate that I changed up the recipe for his beloved potato salad, just a tad.\nI really hate that look!\nSo I nervously waited for him to give it a try.\nThe look on his face went from a doubting scowl to a huge smile.\n\"WOW Mom, that is really good\".\nAll I could think was \"DUH, how can you go wrong with deviled eggs and potato salad?\nOh, ye of little faith\".\nBut I just calmly smiled and said, \"I am so glad you like it\".\nHe has now informed me that this is his favorite potato salad.\nHhmmmm imagine that. Mom actually knew what she was doing.\nHow can you go wrong with all of the flavors of your favorite picnic food, deviled eggs, combined with potato salad? Think traditional potato salad, meets deviled eggs, and has a delicious baby!\nPlace eggs in a pot and cover with water. Bring the water to a boil. Cover the pot and remove from heat. Allow to stand for 15 minutes. Place boiled eggs in cold water. Once cool, peel the eggs and set aside.\nMeanwhile, place cubed potatoes in a pot and cover with water. Bring the water to a boil and boil until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain potatoes and spread out on a baking sheet to cool.\nCut the boiled eggs in half, remove yolks and rough chop the whites. Place yolks in a bowl, mash with a fork and mix with pickle relish, mustard, mayonnaise, salt, and pepper. Set aside.\nMix potatoes with egg whites, green onions, and celery. Add egg sauce. Top with sprinkled paprika.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Our work as a community foundation relies heavily on the work of our dedicated volunteer Board of Directors. We wish to welcome four new members to our Board this year. Each comes with valuable experience and expertise and a true passion for our community. We are honored to have them join us and thank them for their service and efforts to contribute to our work here at the foundation.\nClick here to see their bios and our full list of 2018-19 Board of Directors.\nWith each year that we welcome new board members, valued colleagues leave the Board (but not necessarily the Foundation). Our sincere thanks to outgoing members Melissa Seal, Jay Rayner and Rod White for their years of contributions.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzabzzq b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzabzzq
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..fb02fa87d93384aecd33493dc4317624a49b305b
--- /dev/null
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@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"FOR AUTHORS: We've got the hottest author-sponsored giveaways in the land, and I'd love for you to join! Sign up, and join forces with other amazing authors to give readers great prizes, to promote your books, and to expand your rabid readership.\nDECEMBER 1 \u2013 DECEMBER 25: The \"25 Days of Box Sets\" Christmas Giveaway\u2026 our BIGGEST promo of the year, featuring up to 375 SFF\/H authors!!","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Tracument allows you to send chargeable documents and an invoice to any email address in the world. The documents are protected behind a paywall, meaning the recipient cannot access them until your invoice is paid. Tracument handles payment processing and will streamline your accounting. Simply upload the documents, send them, and forget them. Tracument handles the rest.\nTracument handles the payment processing on your behalf. All payments are collected, aggregated, and automatically deposited to your specified bank account with an easy-to-read statement for posting purposes. No more incorrect or duplicate cheques to deal with.\nTracument will send an email with a link to the documents to your recipient. The documents can only be downloaded once payment is processed, ensuring your prepayment. Once payment is complete, the recipient is given immediate access to the documents.\nSpecify your recipient (any email address), drag your documents (any file type) into our web-based program, and set out your invoice. Once you click send, Tracument will handle the rest of the transaction.\nThe instant you send documents, the action is added to your Activities page complete with all attached metadata. Imagine every outgoing document sent by your office organized automatically in one place, all searchable by various fields. See the status of all your invoices at-a-glance.\nTracument protects the security of your documents. Our servers are located in Canada, meaning your documents never leave this jurisdiction. We work to the high standards for security and privacy required by Canadian professionals, including doctors and lawyers.\nChart Transfers. Raw Data Reviews.\nYou might have a good reason to send documents to someone, but the invoice to someone else. Tracument makes it easy to split your recipient from the payer with our Third-party Payer feature. You can control this easily from the same invoice screen: simply include the name and email address of the person meant to pay your invoice. They will see the invoice, but will never gain access to the documents. Once they have paid the invoice, the recipient is notified automatically that documents are available without ever seeing an invoice.\nStart saving time and money by using Paywall to send your chargeable documents. Automatically track all provided documents and collect prepayment while keeping your patient's information secure. Drag and drop your documents into Tracument, select their destination and cost, and let us handle the rest.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"A couple of weekends ago I took my cat to the emergency animal center after she became extremely ill on a Sunday. History has shown that my entire family is wired to never take ill during banker's hours (M-F 9-5 with a narrow window on Sat.) and apparently, the cat is no different.\nThe late night technician examined my cat and asked whether or not I brushed the cat's teeth. Hello, animal doctor veterinarian lady?! We are talking about a cat here. Seriously, do I what? Brush her \u2026 teeth? I have a pretty strict policy about never cussing via paper, pen or printer but the expletive that fell out of my mouth was sandwiched between an, \"OH\" and a rather large \"NO\" that rattled the antibacterial dispenser near the door. Having spent the better part of the last decade battling to get my 13 year old autistic son to brush HIS teeth it never once occurred to me to add a small hairy cat to the fracas.\nAfter being told that kitty's tartar buildup may have contributed to her illness, I felt bad about never having brushed her teeth. But, only for a moment before I saw her gnash, thrash and slash as the vet poked around with a cotton swab to provide me with empirical evidence of said dental calculus. Even in her weakened condition, I could see that kitty would try to claw her way out of having those sharp teeth touched, much less brushed to hissy-fresh breath perfection.\nTwo and a half hours after we arrived, I was informed that Alice \"the cat\" Katz would be staying overnight so that they could administer fluids, antibiotics and run labs to determine what exactly was wrong with her. I was given strict instructions to pick her up the next morning before 7am, as the emergency center closed promptly at 7am and if I was late, kitty would then be forced to stay another night to the tune of luxury spa hotel prices. Picking her up on time wasn't going to be a problem, but what was is that no veterinarian's office in my entire valley (or the next two valleys surrounding us) opens before 8am, meaning I would have to entertain a cat with an intravenous fluid line in a small enclosed carrying case for an hour or so. This was second only to brushing her teeth on my top 10 list of things NOT to do with the cat.\nAs I left Alice for the evening, I noticed that her intravenous fluid line was wrapped in a bandaged clearly marked DO NOT BITE all over it. Clearly, if the vet thought she was smart enough to understand the importance of brushing her teeth, she must have thought she could read, too.\nFour days and fourteen hundred dollars later, Alice was released with stable laboratory results and an appetite, but no definitive results as to what was wrong with her. To add insult to time spent in a tiny steel prison cell (with the world's tiniest litter box, I might add) Alice came home with shaved front legs that made her look like she had custom Ugg boots made just for her and all the fur removed from her little kitty belly (so they could perform an expensive, inconclusive abdominal ultrasound). For a better picture of how wacky the poor darling looks, you should know she's a member of the Munchkin breed of cats, so those would be the short style of Uggs, not the tall.\nIn addition to the humiliating new look they provided Alice with, the vet also handed me a bottle of liquid antibiotic with the news that I would have to administer the frothy white concoction to the cat twice-a-day for thirty days. Not wanting to disappoint another animal doctor with my unwillingness to put anything in my cat's mouth, I asked if it was at least fish flavored or something. The doc looked down at me, chuckled and announced (as though it was the most normal thing) that it was actually bubblegum flavored. Oh, for the love of Pete's Dragon. 3 out of 4 dentists may have preferred a particular gum for their patients, but really \u2026 who was on the panel that decided that cat medicine should be bubblegum flavored?! Probably the same evil group that thinks they need their teeth brushed.\nApril can not come soon enough.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Recently my company stopped receiving email notification from fabric watch. This happened on all 6 of my 48000 directors at the same time. I am assuming that it was a change by the exchange guys to the SMTP server that I was using in the past, but I can't seem to figure out how fabric watch or the FOS determines the smtp server to send mail through. If I can figure out what it is trying to send through, and then how to change it, I think I can fix my problem. Anyone have any ideas? By the way, I am running 5.1.0d.\nHi chackosavil,For exact details, refer the Command Reference Manual.\nSavil,I think the problem is solved.\nI forgot.........you can login to the switch trough telnet and use the command \"dnsconfig\" to set the correct DNS and Domain.\nThe switch tries to get all the MX records from the DNS server for the zone that contains the domain and uses them to find an SMTP server.\nSMTP server functionality is included in the switch firmware and it sends mail directly with the domain name suffix appended.\nI tried asking our vendor (hp support) but they don't know how it works either. I think Brocade has made some undocumented assumption about how DNS is setup that our site isn't meeting (such as no DNS zone dump access restrictions or reverse address lookups are populated or that the switch domain name and email domain names are the same). If you really understand how switch mail actually works, please reply.\nHad the same issue, found a workaround.\nWhere whatever_host_fully_qualified_domain_name is the host that can be resolved and can send emails.\nThanks much for the information but can you explain how to access and modify the FOS sendmail.cf file? I'm unaware of any FOS CLI comands to list, edit or replace FOS files and it is not included in the config file sent by a configUpload.\nIf you can not fto into toe box, you can ftp fom the box.\nThat worked. Thank you very much for the tip.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"We're back from our trip to La Roche En Ardennes, one of the most beautiful places in Belgium that I've been to thus far!\nWe've read a lot too, which is funny because Jeff doesn't really read for long periods of times. But he did this time!\nWe'll definitely have to do this again!\nIt was fun to be just the two of us without any internet or laptop!\nHow have y'all been this week?\nI'm longing to go on a camping trip. I enjoy being out doors!","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzacebd b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzacebd
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index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..390814d70af943a765e7a2d914fe263423b2bd0a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzacebd
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"Christmas holidays: best seasonal break?\nWhen you're stuck in the nine to five your next holidays can't come quick enough. You'd think that for the majority of people the summer holidays would be the ones that count, but I think that Christmas holidays are actually the best. It's the only time of year that is totally about fun and family, and us Brits love a bit of festive good cheer. Which holidays do you look forward to the most?\nFamily holidays of any kind!\nWho made the best James Bond?\nWhat's the best way to get a PPI claim?\nIs the new Bentley SUV the best in the world?","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Sorting, search and filter would help a lot as well.\nI agree. It would be great if I could just leave most of my autoresponder rules loaded and check a box to enable or disable them a group of them at once, or switch between groups. It's possible right now to disable\/enable several rules at once by selecting them but it requires more cognitive processing to remember what's what. As a workaround I've resorted to using markers (ie fake rules) to make sections easier to identify rather than clear and then load (ie import) different groups. It's a little messy but it works.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Home Groups are smaller groups that meet twice a month for dinner, Bible Study, and prayer time in homes. This is a great opportunity to get to know people in the ministry and to really get into God's Word and discipleship!\nMeets the 1st and 3rd Tuesdays each month.\nMeets 2nd and 4th Fridays each month.\nMeets 2nd and 4th Tuesdays each month.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Westland Giftware Happy Birthday Dog in a box Bobble figurine From the Westland Giftware Happy Birthday collection. Westland Giftware Happy Birthday Dog in a box Bobble figurine. Says Happy Birthday Ears to You. Measures 4 Inches Tall.\nTreasured Home 14\" Serving Bowl by Deb Hrabik Warm tones and contemporary design are the perfect accent to the modern home. Goes well with other\u00a0Fresh folk art designs by Deb Hrabik in shades of chocolate, tangerine and sage make a stunning statement in any setting.\nGlass Fusion by Lori Siebert. Layers of colored glass coupled with iridized metallic finishes create bright and friendly shapes to make any day a festive occasion. This collection comprised of shaped platters, sun catchers, ornaments, and garden stakes, lets you capture a rainbow of color inside and outside your home.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Get a FREE RE book when you join NATRE!\nAre you struggling to develop creative classroom activities to enthuse your pupils\/students in every RE lesson?\nWould you like to receive tried and tested ready-to-use RE lesson ideas?\nJoin NATRE today and receive the latest book from one of our best-selling RE curriculum series, packed with classroom activities for your RE lessons!\n\u2022Exclusive online access to BJRE articles.\n\u2022And over 1,000 resources available online.\nThe Department for Education has offered support for SACREs facing financial and other challenges in meeting their statutory duties. This follows the minister; Nick Gibb's commitment to ensuring SACREs are properly funded in the latest settlement.\nThe full response can be read on the TheyWorkForYou website.\nWe are seeking a full-time specialist Religious Education Adviser to complement the work of our well-respected RE Team.\nThe successful applicant will have recent and relevant experience of teaching and\/or advising in RE in the primary or secondary phase with a willingness to contribute to both phases as necessary.\nThey will be expected to offer RE advice, training and consultancy services to SACREs, Local Authorities, academy groups, schools and others, contribute to our publications work and to grow our income by securing new clients, contracts and grants. The ability and willingness to drive and travel and 'out of normal office hours' working are integral to the post.\nCheck out our brand new primary resource!","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzadnzd b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzadnzd
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..137b1c71f89f240dc345d7fa25e00768f1b3bb16
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzadnzd
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"White House press secretary Sean Spicer on Thursday suggested the Trump administration will step up enforcement of federal laws against recreational marijuana.\nObama Justice Department did in states that have legalized the use of recreational marijuana.\nSpicer telegraphed the administration won't take a get-tough approach against medical marijuana, saying Trump believes in its ability to \"comfort\" people suffering from debilitating diseases.\nBut he said he takes a different view of recreational marijuana, linking it to the abuse of opioid drugs in states across the U.S.\nThere is little evidence showing a link between abuse of the two drugs. Some researchers believe medical marijuana could help reduce demand for opioid-based painkillers.\nEight states and the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana for recreational use. Twenty others have laws allowing medical marijuana.\nIf revival of the failed War on Drugs (at least against marijuana) was not enough, Trump's administration appears ready to enthusiastically embrace other 1980s era criminal justice failures. Trump has already signaled support for civil forfeiture, which has a well documented history of abuse. His administration also appears ready to end the Obama-era moratorium on the feds renewing contracts for the use of private prisons, another enormous policy failure. Is federal sentencing reform out the window as well? Could be as Attorney General Jeff Sessions worked to block sentencing reform while in the U.S. Senate, despite widespread bipartisan support.\nThe sad thing was that pre-Trump the GOP was moving in the right direction on all these issues. Reform though seems endangered by a \"law and order\" Republican President who seems oblivious to the failed history of the policies his administration supports.\nI hope this is true. It will make Trump a one term President.\nMike Pence should resign as VP if he wants to salvage any credibility. He is Trumps Enabler!\nI thought Republicans want to leave everything up to the states? That hypocrisy is why I don't vote for them.\nPeace at home, peace Abroad is a goal of VFP. Ending the war on drugs, especially by the Feds, is a key component to bring that peace.\nI totally agree that the issue of the legalization of pot should be left to the states and Republicans who want to nationalize the issue are being hypocrites. But don't get me started on Democrats hypocrisy. After all they are supposed to be the party of civil liberties, but they are nowhere to be found on the civil forfeiture issue.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Apartment for rent in Thao Dien Pearl district 2.\nApartment information: 2 bedrooms, 95 sqm, the rental is 900 usd\/month. Fully furnished, open kitchen, bancony, new and clean.\nFor more information or see apartment, please contact us + 84 919 257 336 \/ +84 948 840 336 or leave a message below.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"This topic contains 0 replies, has 1 voice, and was last updated by Gabriel Hulse 1 month ago.\nDoing a soft launch with an amazing product. Took me 2 years to finally find the perfect one. Here's a link to the special. Email me at Gabriel@boomernaturalwellness for further discounts.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Syagen Technology Inc. conducted a trial deployment of its Guardian Explosives Trace Portal system, in collaboration with the John Wayne, Orange County Airport in California.\nThis month-long trial was conducted at an employee entrance of the Airport, where volunteer employees were screened to verify the system's detection capability, validate its reliability and confirm public acceptance in airport operation. The Guardian Portal performed successfully and without interruption, confirming its readiness for market introduction.\nThe Guardian Portal is the first commercially available explosives detection system to incorporate mass spectrometry detection technology.\nThe wrap-up of this trial was attended by John Wayne Airport Director, Alan Murphy, Orange County Supervisor, 3rd District, Bill Campbell and his staff, and Orange County Airport Commissioner Bruce Junor. Alan Murphy, who arranged for the trial, was lauded for the effort by Syagen Technology and other OC officials.\n\"We are pleased to have been able to support these validation tests, to help facilitate the use of improved security screening technology in U.S. airports\" Alan said. \"John Wayne Airport has had a long history of playing a constructive role in such efforts, acting as a test-bed for new system trials.\"\n\"We are grateful and enthused with the strong local support for our technology and the airport management's willingness to assist us in the test and deployment of this exciting product offering for suicide bomber detection and deterrence,\" said Dr. Jack A. Syage, CEO of Syagen.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Recently, Aurora Public School in Nebraska replaced its ageing IT hardware and software with a powerful purpose-designed system and achieved financial savings in the same movement. According to a case study published by Dell Inc, the school needed to upgrade over three hundred Windows XP legacy desktops. New applications became increasingly out of reach while maintenance costs and outages were rising. However, teachers and students needed a solid IT infrastructure for lessons and administration staff relied on networked calendars and grades databases.\nThe new infrastructure had to compete on price, yet meet quality benchmarks and support students' mobile devices to access applications and coursework.\nA key aim was to help school management to meet the requirements of future educational models with a system that would be agile, adaptable and scalable. Now in place, the innovative hybrid solution combines conventional classroom workstations with virtual desktops accessed \u2013 via Dell Wyse thin clients \u2013 to facilitate usage from shared access points, such as in science laboratories.\nFeaturing Dell Pro Support for PCs and workspace solutions, existing PCs gave way to OptiPlex small form factor desktops, versatile Chromebook 11 devices, managed switching and R720 servers powered by Zeon processors.\nMuch easier to support and manage, the new network is flexible and efficient. Changes are straightforward to implement while learning potential and long-term stability are enhanced, whereas the total cost of ownership is now less than before.\nEfficient client-based solutions equip and empower K-12 schools and students with the tools for digital learning in the twenty-first century. IT decision makers looking to build a flexible up-to-date environment in schools or other educational institutions may do well to consider this case study in collaboration with Dell.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
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+{"text":"I actually think that the Louisville cheerleaders and band actual out-number their fans.\nWell, that and their Cardinal mascot probably counts as too people. He is pretty full of himself so he should be counted as two.\nIt's halftime and not much has changed except the score. Louisville is making too many smart shots and has taken BYU out of their game too much during the first 20 minutes.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Posted on June 16, 2018 | 2984 views | Topic : Awards 2017, Featured Dev, News & Articles, Property News, Special Focus.\nThe myriad flow of nature often reminds us of a calm place. A place that is becoming more elusive as the dreadful sound of civilisation threatens to drown everything else. For life is birthed from the abundance of rivers and oceans, so too births our desire as humans to be a part of it.\nA successful waterfront development is characterised by its ability to showcase the beauty of its watery setting while establishing itself as a vibrant and integrated development for residential or commercial purposes. Be it a river, lake or sea, a passionate seafarer or swimming enthusiast will be proud to call these places home.\nLocated in Iskandar Flagship A, Johor Baru, Country Garden Danga Bay is the first overseas project undertaken by the Country Garden Group, comprising an integrated, mixed commercial, residential and leisure waterfront development.\nThis development is spread over 57 acres, with the residential component comprising of elegant waterfront condominiums that offer spectacular 180-degree views of the sea and impressive architectural technology.\nThe prestigious high-end development is set amidst lush landscaped greenery and is equipped with a comprehensive range of leisure and recreational facilities, not considering the support from an excellent management services team.\nCountry Garden Danga Bay also offers a vibrant waterfront lifestyle for all to enjoy. Residents and visitors can indulge in a host of exciting leisure and entertainment options that include a world-class shoppers' paradise, the lively Foodie Street, a 70,000 sq ft international clubhouse and a modern marina. The development also boasts the specially built 400 metres man-made white sand beach in Johor Baru, known as the Phoenix Beach.\nA sprawling nine-acre lake provides the centrepiece for this serene waterfront development. Tranquil waters along the tree-lined lake amidst a green expanse offers respite from life's daily grind, while specially built jogging paths and cycling tracks encourage healthy lifestyles for all ages.\nSpend endless hours of fun with the family in parks that feature a garden maze, kinetic, fitness lawn, interactive and children's playgrounds. There is also a grand clubhouse equipped with a host of recreational and sporting facilities.\nResidential areas have been upgraded to include playgrounds, water features, pavilion, streetscape and parkland with every precinct enjoying its own lake and pavilion, giving a genuinely picturesque waterfront experience.\nMeridian East is a fast growing township with residents enjoying the convenience of having amenities like banks, schools, retail and public services amongst others located within the development. It is also close by to the Pasir Gudang Industrial Hub, Tanjung Langsat Industrial Park and the Pengarang Integrated Complex, not considering its accessibility via the Senai-Desaru Expressway.\nPuteri Harbour, also known as \"The jewel of Nusajaya\" is an integrated urban waterfront development with a 13.5 km coastline located along Puteri Narrows, the narrowest point at the Straits of Johor.\nThe proximity of Puteri Harbour to Tanjung Piai, Asia's southern-most point or \"Land's end\" enhances its location as a port of call for sailing enthusiasts, thus making it a popular destination for yachtsmen from all over the world. In addition, the three marinas in the development are equipped with an array of facilities such as a laundrette, changing and shower rooms as well as a chart room. The marinas can accommodate 76 yachts at a time and enjoy 24-hour security.\nDesigned to bring world-class waterfront living to Malaysia, this 688-acre development is composed of residential, commercial and leisure lifestyle precincts. Adjacent to the majestic Kota Iskandar, Puteri Harbour will offer the experience of exceptional waterfront living, dining, entertainment, and the arts and culture in a safe and picturesque natural setting.\nSebana Cove Resort is a 1,200-acre resort township, offering cohesively planned residential and commercial components alongside an exclusive private marina and an 18-hole golf course.\nThe residential parcel encompasses ten precincts, namely The Estuary, The Forest, The Golf Greens, The Botany, The Woodville, The Grove, The Golf Sanctuary, The Fairway Golf Villas, The Classic and The Waterfront.\nAt Sebana, residents can enjoy living by the waterfront, playing golf on pristine fairways and experience nature in all its glory while being in the safety of a gated and guarded community.\nAnother major feature of this development is the marina which is capable of berthing 100 vessels. It is provided with electricity and water supply as well as an immigration checkpoint area to ease clearance for foreign residents and visitors arriving by sea.\nIsola Villas is the second phase of the Senibong Cove development located on the edge of Sungai Lunchu. It's a larger and more prestigious precinct, following in the footsteps of the WaterEdge Residences.\nDeveloped on a 23-acre island, Isola is composed of stand-alone semi-detached villas. With a total of 144 units, prospective residents can choose from three types of 3-storey villas either from a waterfront or hinterland location. Each unit comes with four to five bedrooms with unique designs, layouts and features and is priced from RM1,600,000 onwards.\nResidents will have the opportunity to pursue a variety of activities on the water including sailing, fishing, motor boating, canoeing, paddle boarding, water skiing and jet skiing at the Senibong Cove Marina.\nThe development is also in proximity to JB Central, the Johor-Singapore Causeway and the new EDL expansion. Even so, It is located far enough away from the hustle and bustle, allowing residents to enjoy the contemporary feel and tranquil surrounding of Senibong Cove.\nStarProperty.my Awards 2018: Jewels of Johor is back to reward real estate developers who have contributed to the expansion of Johor's real estate industry, breaking new grounds with creativity and innovation in housing design and practice.\nThe registration of this year's Jewels of Johor award is open until July 25.\nVisit http:\/\/bit.ly\/JohorJewels2018 for more information or to register.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"This one is for classical musos, jazz cats and anyone who just likes a longer scale in life. Nice!\nDouble bass, to stand or not to stand, that is the question.\nLets build an abbreviated bass!\nclassic whats it worth? post.\nWho's gonna make us a preamp??","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"1. Facial Expressions - The emotions expressed on little Hannah's face really help the reader feel what she feels throughout the story.\n2. The Perfect Page Spread - The moment when Hannah changes in the story is simply brilliant.\n3. Circular Ending - There is simply no other way to end this story and it is absolutely satisfying.\n4. Bravery - I love the message this book conveys. Having a child who is fearful of dogs, I loved sharing this book with her to start a conversation about her feelings and how to begin to overcome them.\n5. The Wordless Spread- One of my favorite elements in a picture book is a wordless spread when it is executed perfectly and this book has done just that. So much is said on this one page without any words at all.\nParents: If you have a child who is afraid of dogs, this is the perfect book.\nTeachers: A great book for Morning Meeting to introduce a discussion on fears and how to overcome them.\nWriters: How to write a simple story and a main character to sympathize with.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Whitman Associates offers various temporary and Temp to Hire staffing options designed to fit your individual needs. Whether you are in the process of filling a permanent job, covering a vacation spot or just needing some extra help for a day or two, Whitman Associates is able to help. We have many excellent and eager employees ready to start working today.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzadxtv b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzadxtv
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+{"text":"Marriage Not Datings reluctant groom and eager bride \u00bb Dramabeans \u00bb Deconstructing. Drama3s.com Watch Korean Dramas Online HD With Eng sub. Watch online and Download free Marriage Not Dating - Episode 11 English Subtitles - KissDrama Korea Dr Genre: Comedy, Romance, Family.\nWatch the latest episodes of Korean drama the fastest and in HD for free. Marriage Not Dating. 4.5 slow dating walrus. Korean Dramas \u2022 16 episodes marriage not dating ep 3 eng sub drama3s 2014.\nT want to get married marriage not dating ep 4 eng sub and a woman who has. Marriage Not Dating newasiantv, Marriage Not Dating drama3s. Report to us if you see wrong video, broken or subtitles out of sync!.\nEpisode 1 marriags 2,Episode 3,Episode 4,Episode 5 ,Episode 6,Episode 7,Episode 8 ,Episode 9,Episode 10,Episode 11,Episode 12,Episode 13. My Secret Romance newasiantv, My Secret Romance drama3s. Apr 2018 - 65 minThis is Marriage Not Dating Ep 1 (Eng Screener) by Silver Wolf International on Vimeo, the.\nIf marriage is not the ultimate goal for her dating clients free dating apps for nokia. Broadcast: KBS2 Language: Korean Subtitle: English. The following Marriage Not Dating Episode 16 English Sub has been released..\nExplore marriage not be more happy ending korean drama club:. Hapimari: Happy Marriage!? episode 3\/4 english sub is out.\nWatch fated to love you episode 10 eng sub online in high quaily v... Dec 2017. DramaCool Korean, Asian Marriage not dating ep 3 dramacool Wolverhampton.. Refusing to go along with his familys wishes to get married, Kong Ki Tae brings home a fake.\nMoro Morooka (ep3,4 inoue Yuina (ep3,4 okada Kohki (ep3,10 miyata Daizo (ep3. Episode 18 (Sub). When Shin Joon-Young (Kim Woo-Bin) and No Eul (Bae Suzy) were children, they..\nEp03 (3 Sub) Japanese Dramas... boxasian, myasiantv, dramabus, dramafever, dramafire, kshowonline, drama3s, ondemandkorea. Speed dating zug Dating sims iphone Eharmony dating website Hookup bar nyc. Watch Marriage Not Dating Korean Drama 2014 Engsub is a Wealthy plastic surgeon Gong Ki Tae is a successful and happy bachelor who does not want to find.\nWatch marriage without dating korean drama 2014 episode 3 eng sub \uc5f0\uc560 \ub9d0\uace0. Ep 40 Engsub The King in Love (2017) Tags: Watch Dating Agency:. EngSub, Watch drama3s Kdrama Asian Drama online, Watch drama3s TV Online at drama3s list for Free in High Quality and.\nMarriage Not Dating online ep 1, ep 2, ep 3, ep 4. Marriage not dating ep 10 myasiantv.. Marriage Not Dating ep english sub engsub eng sub review.. Marriage Not Dating Ep 3 EngSub 2014 Korean Drama AsianEn VIP Wealthy.\nJun 2018 - 1 minLink: http:\/\/livigmedi.dominikpers.ru\/?dt&keyword=marriage+not+dating+ep+3+. Image result for my secret romance ep 1 eng sub myasiantv. Watch marriag and Download free Marriage Not Dating - Episode 2 English Subtitles - FastDrama Korea Dr.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Discussion in 'Archived Threads 2001-2004' started by Doug R, Nov 6, 2001.\nSome items for sale; if interested please email [email protected] All items come with complete contents, including manuals and cases for PS2 games. Everything is in excellent condition. Shipping will be based on priority mail and # of items purchased.\nI am interested in the Star Wars LD boxset. Do you have picture's of the boxset you can send me?\nSet you mail re Star Wars, is it sold?","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Global Leaders in Equestrian Care.\nCarr & Day & Martin is the world's oldest company involved in the manufacture of horse care products.\nFounded in 1765 they have held a Royal Warrant since the reign of King George IV and still hold the Royal Warrant today for the supply of quality saddlery care products to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Software Downloads for \"Rose Character Images\"\nBeautiful panorama app with kids favorite shows with videos, show characters and image galleries.\n*Memory game using the character images of each show.\n*Show Characters and image galleries for each character.\n*Download new show infoormation and fix broken links automatically.\n*Parental control to hide both shows or videos, sync them across updates.\n*Keep track of your favorite Videos for instant access.\n*Pin shows to start screen as live tiles for faster access.\nNekoCame enables you to create your original composite pictures with characters, balloons and decoration items.\nThis app requires SD card and Internet access.\nPlease feel free to use your original composite pictures such as in e-mail, twitter, blog and so on.\nDoroCame enables you to create your original composite pictures with characters, balloons and decoration items.\ndescribed in the Creative Commons 3.\nIt is Fun for kids to learn Faster with Fun Character images so kids can pay more attention and become more interest to learn easily about Multiplication tables..\nLearning colors, numbers and math for children.\nIt is Fun for kids to learn Faster with Fun Character images so kids can pay more attention and become more interest to learn easily about colors ,Numbers and Maths.\nIf a screen is touched, the character of both sides will crash. Character images and background image can be changed into a favorite picture..\nMore than 10000 Xiao Zhuan character images scanned, and relationship Between characters are saved in a xml file, available for further analysis and correction. Used an experimental java application to show the topology graph of the chinese characters.\nBasically Xlsx is a file format which is used by Microsoft Office Word 2007 application. This document file can save your text character, images, hyper-links, animations, excel sheet formula etc. Xlsx file may corrupted during different situation of data loss. But you don't need to worry, you can easily get back using Xlsx Recover software. Xlsx repair application easily finds and repair unreadable data including text, images, table, formula, spreadsheets etc. from corrupted Xlsx files and can be restored at user specific locations.\nBasically PPTX is a file format of Microsoft Office Word 2007 application which saves your presentation including text character, images, hyper-links animations etc. PPTX may get corrupted during different causes of data loss problems. But don't worry you can get back PPTX files using PPTX Repair application. This is such a nice application which helps you lot in this situation. PPTX repairs your all inaccessible, word art, corrupted, deleted PPTX files from your storage media. PPTX repair easily finds and repair unreadable data from corrupted PPTX files and can be restored at user specific locations.\nComic Maker - Monster High ed.\nIf you love Monster High as much as we do then you'll love the Monster High Comic Maker!\nCreate your very own Monster High Stories featuring all your favorite characters, including Frankie Stein, Abby Bominable, C.A. Cupid, Catrine DeMew, Catty Noir, Clawd Wolf, Clawdia Wolf, Cleo De Nile, Deuce Gorgon, Draculara, Ghoulia Yelps, Gigi Grant, Jackson Jekyll and all the rest!\nYou can square or round CROP any images!\nInclude yourself in your comic!\nMany character images can have their heads replaced with yours and your friends heads!\nYou can even ANIMATE your comics by shaking your phone!\nWhen you've created your comic, share it with your friends and on your favorite social networks!\n1 to 20 comic panels.\nMillions of Monsters is an online role playing game in which players compete with each other to be the best monster hunters, the wealthiest or the most creative.\n-Join the growing user base of over 800 players!\n-Create your own unique monsters for other players to fight using special items called 'eggs'.\nAspose.OCR for Java is a character recognition component that allows developers to add OCR functionality in their Java web applications, web services and Windows applications. It provides a simple set of classes for controlling character recognition. The API is extensible, easy to use and compact. It provides common functionality so that developers have to write less code when performing common tasks. Aspose.OCR is aimed at developers who need to find text in image files from within their own applications.\nAn easy to use software package that allows the user to process a CD or entire file folder structure of Tiff images. The processing includes performing Optical Character Recognition on the image and stamping the image with an identifying number. It will create text searchable PDF's, text searchable tiffs and export all text. Utilizes the OCR engine in Microslft's Document Imaging (Scansoft's Engine).. The numbering system includes number in series and number in document. The numbering can be placed on a border not obscure the image.\nTribal Rose Tattoo; The rose has been a symbol for many things in many cultures all over the world for many centuries. One of the most popular ways to display the images of roses is through tattoos on the skin. What would be the meaning behind your rose tattoo designs?\nThe color of a rose is significant to its meaning. If you are going to include a rose into a tattoo, make sure that you choose the right color. That color will be determined by what the part the rose plays in the design. Lots of designs are out there that include roses or maybe you would like to come up with your own rose tattoo designs.\nGothic Rose Tattoo; The rose has been a symbol for many things in many cultures all over the world for many centuries. One of the most popular ways to display the images of roses is through tattoos on the skin. What would be the meaning behind your rose tattoo designs?\nThe rose themes of flippingbook bring a different kind of style to you. The package includes three different templates. You can find the roses in the first template are pink and romantic. You can see that another one in the second template is full of enthusiastic with a big red rose. The third one is the same color with the second one, but still a little difference because it have more roses and it is full of red all over the interface. After you convert your pdf files to flipping, you may eager to have different style with different ebooks.\nThe Agent Character Editor is the tool used to build Microsoft Agent 2.0 characters in either single file (.acs format) or individual animations (.acf\/.aca formats).\nDespite its name, it isn't really an editor - you can't edit an existing character without its constituent source bitmap images, sound files, etc. It may be more helpful to developers to think of it as a graphical make and compiler tool.\nGet Microsoft Agent Character Editor and give it a try to see what it can actually do for you!\nTile your favorite character of the game and your animations will appear on the main screen.\n*All images are in the application were taken from the Internet..","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"infree.me 9 out of 10 based on 277 ratings. 1,348 user reviews.\nCustom Jacks. TRS Jack This operates the Acousti Phonic in Mono mode only with power switched by the Ring and Sleeve contacts of a standard, stereo, TRS jack.\n005 8251 000 (1) Genuine Fender Output Jack, Stereo, Closed Circuit SPST with mounting hardware. Keep your connections strong with a variety of quality replacement jacks for new and vintage Fender guitars. 1 4\" 3 conductor enclosed stereo output jack.\nEffects FAQs: Enclosure Finishing: I've received a lot of emails asking how I apply the finish to me pedals, so here's a brief \"lesson\" of my painting technique.\nClick Here For EMG PRICES . Killer tone and bulletproof reliability are at the core of everything we make, but installing and maintaining top performance is just as important.\nThe 81TW humbucker doubles down on tone, taking the EMG 81 and adding a separate single coil pickup in the same housing. This is not your traditional coil tap humbucker.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
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index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1b6ae5a7fe95ead11ac6c3043f89994bbad00cad
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+{"text":"Does anyone know how to cancel Salesforce sync or reset a Salesforce account?\nWe were trying to integrate SFDC and Marketo lead database but for some reason, we had to stop it. now we want to cancel all the process.\nWe went though required steps according to following document.\nWhen we finished mapping fields, we noticed that we had too many leads in our SFDC database and it would exceed a limit number of leads which we can have in Marketo Lead Database. So we didn't start syncing and we are still remainning at \"STEP4\". Apprently we can't \"cancel\" whole process of SFDC sync. We actually want to reset our SFDC account which we set up at the first step.\nIs there any way to \"cancel\" SFDC sync completely?\nor, is there any way to reset our SFDC account setting?\nThere is no \"cancel\" option.The steps aren't numbered in the article you provided so I'm not quite sure how far you have gone.\nIf you have simply given your marketo sync user a profile that gives it visibility to more lead\/contact records than the number in your contract then you can let the 1st sync go through. Afterwords you can change your Marketo sync user\/user profile so that it is more restrictive, then create a Marketo campaign to delete the leads (NB from Marketo only).\nI understand there's no \"cancel\" option on Marketo. We finished Step 3(mapping fields) and now display shows us that we're at Step4.\n> If you have simply given your marketo sync user a profile that gives it visibility to more lead\/contact records than the number in your contract then you can let the 1st sync go through. Afterwords you can change your Marketo sync user\/user profile so that it is more restrictive, then create a Marketo campaign to delete the leads (NB from Marketo only).\nDoes \"your marketo sync user\" mean our SFDC account?\nActually we still don't know how to change its profile to restrict the number of leads that our account can see and sync. Could you tell us how to do that please?\nAnd another problem remains. We changed token on SFDC to make sure Marketo doesn't start sync without our operation. Now we really need to reset the SFDC accout setting because its token is no longer valid.\nCould you tell us how to reset it?","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"After its second album, Mr. Wonderful, a third guitarist, 18-year-old Danny Kirwan, was added to the lineup. At this point the band began shifting into a more melodic, introspective, and experimental\/progressive mode. Most performances were built around the twin leads of Green and Kirwan, and Kirwan's songwriting was featured in nearly equal proportion to Green's.\nAfter releasing two successful singles, the instrumental \"Albatross\" (which remains the band's only #1 hit in the UK), and the ballad \"Man of the World\" , it produced what is often considered the best album of the band's Peter Green era, Then Play On. Spencer was, for the most part, absent from these recording sessions. The epic 2-part \"Oh Well\" single followed , and was included in later pressings of the U.S. LP album (and in all CDs). The band was then rocked by Peter Green's decision to leave. Debate rages on the reasons for this, but it is agreed that Green wished to play a more experimental and improvisational style. Drugs, particularly LSD, also played a large part, as Green recorded sporadically before falling into a twenty-year period of mental illness. After a short gap, Christine McVie (a.k.a. under her maiden name Christine Perfect) joined the band on keyboards, and the band moved from the blues to a more melodic pop style.\nIn interviews given in November 2006 to support his solo album, Under The Skin, Buckingham stated that there were plans for the band to reunite once more for a 2008 tour but recording plans had been put on hold for the foreseeable future. In a September 2007 interview Stevie Nicks gave to the UK newspaper The Daily Telegraph, she noted that she is unwilling to carry on with the band unless Christine McVie returns. However in a recent interview, Mick Fleetwood said \"\u2026be very happy and hopeful that we will be working again. I can tell you everyone's going to be extremely excited about what's happening with Fleetwood Mac.\"","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Of Ethiopian Jewish descent, Esti Mamo was born in 1983 in Chilga, in northwestern Ethiopia. She is a member of the Beta Israel community.\nAt the age of 9 she and her family immigrated from famine and poverty striken Ethiopia to Israel, where the family was moved to the poor district of a southern Israeli city. A younger brother committed suicide in 2004.\nShe was voted the 97th sexiest woman of 2005 in an online survey reported in the December edition of men's magazine Blazer.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Gold Plus Supplier. Sort By : Rotary Drum Screener Soybean Grain Screen Grading Machine Supply range: Turnkey project of flour mill, seed processing plant and grain storage Stainless steel electric vibrating screen soybean grading machine .. Blow Type Green Soybean Gravity Destoner Agricultural Machine.\nA wide variety of vibrating sizing screen equipment options are available to you, The supplier supports Trade Assurance A free service that protects your orders .. Tags: Lab Vibrating Screen Lab Vibrating Sieve Gravity Vibration Screen . Zeolite Powder Size Separating Mechanical Vibrating Screener Equipment.\nVibratory Sand Gold Washing Machine Vibrating Grizzly Screen , Find plete Details Washing Machine Vibrating Screen,Vibrating Screen from Mineral Separator Supplier or Gravity Separator vibratory screener manufacturer gold wash plants able to handle between 30 tons and 300 tons of material per hour.\nmachinery. A wide variety of vibration sorting machine options are available to you, such as linear, circular. linear vibrating screen sorting machine for beans manufacture. US $971 1119 \/ Unit .. Type: Gravity Separator. Condition: High capacity linear grain vibrating screen screener\/vibrating sorting sieve machine.\nmineral separator \/ powder concentrator \/ air classifier with cyclone machine. Add to pare high quality air classifier , separate kinds of High hardness materials High precision and capacity gravity air classifier and separator . Tags: Polymers Screener Equipment Air Classifiers Classifier . Vibrating Screen (18).\nGold Plus Supplier. Sort By : Type: Gravity Conveyor,Powered or unpowered Vibratory screening plants trommel screen vibratory feeder vertical vibration conveyor . The Rotary Drum Screen With The Conveyor,rotating trommel rotary screener machine . Washing plant trommel screen of gold washing machine.\ntrommel for sale trommel screener recycling trommel ball mill trommel More. Gold mining machine equipment trommel screen wash plant .. Type: Gravity Separator,STG series of Placer Gold Washing and Selecting Unit . Factory price silica sand washing machine, gold trommel screen, vibrating screen for sale.\nsand xxnx vibrating screen, sand sieve machine for Philippines. US $1000 5000 6 Photos. 6 YRS. Henan Province Yingda Machinery Manufacturing Co., Ltd.\nAbout 74% of these are other farm machines, 5% are rice mill, and 4% are grain seed cleaner \/ seed cleaning machinery \/ grain gravity vibrating separator.\nMaize soybean sorghum wheat oat lentils palm seed cleaning machine. US $3500 23000 \/ 8 YRS. Hebei Ruixue Grain Selecting Machinery pany Limited.\nThe supplier supports Trade Assurance A free service that protects your orders from payment to delivery. Supplier Location. Min. Gravity Separator ; Sprial Separator Sand and gravel vibrating sieve screen machine\/vibro classifier equipment Trommel Screener widely use in soil, post, sand and gravel classifying.\ngold ores hammer crushed machine with vibrating screen and belt conveyor . 2018 China Huahong Gravity Centrifugal Gold Concentrator \/ Small Gold Refining Iron Ore Linear Vibrating Screen Machine Sieve,sand small vibrating screener Copper Ore sample analysis laboratory roll crusher manufacturer of China.\nType: post trommel screener. Condition: New . vibratory screening machine design,vibratory screen manufacturer in europe .. Good quality of polyurethane screen mesh for vibrating screen used in quarry . Gravity Separator (2).\nPowder Vibro Sifter from Vibrating Screen Supplier or Manufacturer Xinxiang This vibro sifter machine fits for sieving or sperating any kind of dry material with the under the resulting force of exciting force and the force of gravity, the material was . China vibro screener China vibro sifter for China vibro screen sifter.\nChinese supplier low price custom small gravity grain cleaner. US $135 165 \/ grain seed cleaner \/ seed cleaning machinery \/ grain gravity vibrating separator.\nThe supplier supports Trade Assurance A free service that protects your orders circular vibration sieve feeder machine for grape seed separating .. Rotary grape seed juice filter separator wine screener sieve machine . Do you want to show separation machine for grape seed or other products of your own pany?\nContact Supplier . Grain screener machine\/Wheat thrower machinery\/Hemp seed cleaning Hemp Lentil Seed Vibration Cleaning Separator Machine.\nChina Supplier Mineral Processing Small Scale Gold Mining Equipment \/ Mobile Gold Machine For . Type: Gravity Separator,Gold Processing Methods SINOLINKING Small Scale Screener Trommel Gold Mining Processing Equipment Gold Exploration Equipment Mobile Vibrating Gold Washing Trommel Screen Plant.\nContact Supplier Tags: Quarry Vibrating Separator Circular Vibrating Screener Efficiency Screening Equipment Tags: Double Deck Vibrating Screen Gold Sand Separator Machine Linear Powder Vibrating Screen .. A wide variety of quarry vibrating separator options are available to you, such as circular, linear.\nChinese supplier low price custom small gravity grain cleaner. US $135-165 \/ grain seed cleaner \/ seed cleaning machinery \/ grain gravity vibrating separator.\ntrammel screen gold washing machine for alluvial gold mining plant. US $5000-20000 \/ Set. 1 Set (Min. Order). Warranty: 12months. Type: Gravity Separator Type: post trommel screener . Haian Feichuan Vibration Machinery Co., Ltd. .. Do you want to show trammel screen or other products of your own pany?\nA wide variety of sand screening machine options are available to you, such as circular, linear. sand vibration machine, vibro sand screening machine for Philippines 8 YRS. Jiangxi Hengchang Mining Machinery Manufacturing Co., Ltd. . Gravity Equipment Sand Screening Machine Price For Ore Processing Plant.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Well, the 70 years rules out Wakefield (1964, I think) and Burrage (sometime in the early 1950s?).\nI've just purchased 4 of these. I intend to get all 51 at some stage (just don't tell the Wife).\nout of them i'd say that 'the loved dead' was my favourite.\npicked up 'tales of unease' - arthur conan doyle at the weekend and am really enjoying it.\n\"Return from The Dead\" arrived this morning.\nLooking forward to re-aquainting myself with the stories within.\nHaven't availed myself much of these recent Wordsworth lovelies but fully intend to put that right in the none too distant. Slouched into Waterstones the other day to get out of the rain and emerged with this. Nice collection, pulled mainly from the pages of Weird Tales but also from Harry Bates' Strange Tales and others. More than happy to part with a couple of quid to have all these great stories in one handy place.\n\"The Power Of Darkness. Tales of Terror\" Edith Nesbit.\nI intend to collect the entire series.\nHats off to Wordsworth publishing!\nSame here. I was only thinking today that I'd like to read Pigeons From Hell ( having heard it's a *winner*). This selection would be perfect! Thanks X man.\nThere's a liquidation\/remainders store in Felixstowe - that has at least 200 of these books - ad all in great nick. Next time I'm going in - which is next Monday, I'll write down what ones they have and if you want them but can't find them anywhere - they are being sold for \u00a32.99 each and if you can also pay postage costs around \u00a31.45, that'll be around \u00a34.44 - want more -we could sort that out.\nSteve Jones misses a trick in not bigging the Wordsworths up something major in his yearly round-ups so it's heartening to see Vault people enthusing about them so! As I understand it, the 'Mystery & The Supernatural' department is staffed by just three people, which makes their achievements all the more laudable. The 'author must be 70 years dead' proviso is proving a stumbling block as I'd dearly love to see the works of L. A. Lewis, H. R. Wakefield, A. M. Burrage ('Ex-Private 'X') and Marcus Dare available in modern, very generously priced editions, but i'm toying with suggesting a Bernard Capes selection and perhaps an anthology idea pulphack and i have been kicking around may eventually find a home with them. Our dear friend Bob Rothwell provided the covers for the Wheatley books shortly before his untimely death - it's very sad he didn't live to see the end results.\nTheir site is down at present but, when normal service is resumed, you can save the tireless Johnny yet more work by ordering direct from Wordsworth as most of the titles are \u00a32.99 to begin with. Wordsworth Book Of Horror Stories is \u00a35.99 but, lets face it, 1110 pages of the following at under six quid - you can hardly carp!\nI picked up quite a few of the Wordsworth collections at Borders in Preston a week or so back (and will be going for more this Friday on my way home from visiting my uncle in hospital - Borders stays open till a civilised 9 o'clock).\nThe Temple of Death by the two lesser known Bensons is a cracker. Some truly memorable stories in that collection. And an excellent, very informative introduction too with some telling details about the lives of the Bensons and their strange parents.\nMust get the Howard book. I have yet to read The Pigeons from Hell and have wanted to look at it for years.\nYes, Dem, it is a pity Steve Jones hasn't given the Wordsworth series more attention. They are about the best things being published at the moment - and amazingly good value too!\nThe REH lineup mirrors more or less the upcoming Del Rey Horror Stories of REH.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzafhxu b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzafhxu
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index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..83b8220d753e6a2ac5a0ededbcfb26bfbec28a40
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@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"Our team enjoys serving the Brookshire community, which is a suburb of Houston. Located in Waller County, Brookshire allows you to experience the benefits of a small town while still remaining close to the big city amenities of Houston. You can find important information about the community on the city webpage including the many community events they have planned.\nDuring the fall, you can check out Dewberry Farm and find your way through a corn maze, pumpkin patch and more. If you enjoy trying craft beers, pay a visit to Baa Baa Brewhouse. You can find more information about things to do in and near the area at the West I-10 Chamber of Commerce.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Stop searching! We present to you a selection of 52 interesting and top Pictures Of Girls Playing Soccer collection. On our site with the button \"search\" you will find other great free clip arts.You can use Pictures Of Girls Playing Soccer images for your website, blog, or share them on social networks.\n2012 Soccer Tournament in Warner ? W.Y.S.A.\nPoster Glog by brielle19 | Publish with Glogster!\nSoccer Coloring Pages | ColoringMates.\nindoor soccer shoes Archives | Magic Futsal SHOES!","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"If you love your old cabinets but they are beginning to look worn from years and years of use, N-Hance cabinet refinishing is a great option to choose. With renewal, N-Hance completely revitalizes the look of the cabinets without the frustrations of typical wood refinishing, and it can be offered at a fraction of the cost of traditional methods \u2013 with most jobs complete in just one or two days. This process will extend the life and luster of your cabinets for years to come.\nThe Classic Cabinet Refinishing job requires no color shift or color change and has minimal wear on the wood surface. Grease and dirt are easily removed and touch-up is performed quickly. You will love the shine and luster this service brings to your tired cabinets.\nThere is no dust, mess or odor and in many cases the job can be completed in just one day. Our N-Hance craftsman removes the grease and dirt build up that can make wood look flat and lifeless over time. The N-Hance refinishing process thoroughly cleans the surface, removes old coatings, repairs damaged areas with less mess and applies an elegant finish. You will love the brilliant results.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"A workshop on Hazardous Effects of Electronic Waste conducted at Arya Vidyapeeth College, Guwahati at 8th June, 2017. The IQAC Cell took active part to conduct the workshop. All total 109 participants were present in the workshop.\nAMTRON Guwahati: A workshop on Environmental and Health Hazards of Electronic Waste (E-waste) was held in AMTRON on 22.06.2017. The workshop was chaired by Sjt Keshab Mahanta Honourable Minister of Information Technology to the Govt. of Assam, also the Chairman of AMTRON. And co-chaired by Sjt Ritu Baran Sarmah, Vice-chairman, AMTRON. All total of 94 participants were present at the workshop.\nIIE Guwahati: A workshop on Hazardous Effects of E-Waste was conducted at Indian Institute of Entrepreneurship (IIE), Guwahati on 14th June, 2017. All total of 73 participants were present in the workshop from various organizations like Brahmaputra Board, IIE Guwahati and IIT Guwahati.\nA workshop on, Hazardous Effects of E-waste was conducted at The Lily Hotel on 23rd July, 2017 at Guwahati. The programme was organized by Environ and sponsored by Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology under the Digital India Initiative Project. All total of 56 participants were present in the workshop.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"A gull-wing exterior door with slide-out ramp is incorporated into the trailer's tail, and a pass-through door in the bulkhead with porthole window offers easy access to the living quarters. Choose to equip your garage bay with any combination of storage lockers, cabinets, tabletop work areas and tie downs. And of course, electrical outlets and speakers linked to the trailer's crystal-clear sound system come standard.\nlove airstream, but the trouble with their new ones compared with their old ones is weight. our '73 is so light, even loaded with our stuff, it can be pulled with an ordinary pickup truck. no heavy-duty tow vehicle necessary.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzagfoj b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzagfoj
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..5e60e142961fbf21938f4b752eb03b45d02d3e30
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzagfoj
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"Chelsea has been crowned England champions with a win at Westbrom.\nblues in Conte's first season in Charge.\nWestbrom manager hailed Chelsea as worthy champions after the game.\ncredit and could do the double this season,\" Pulis told Sky Sports.\n0 Response to \"Chelsea Officially Wins The English Premier League 2016\/2017 Season\"","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"JAMMU, Feb 10: Semifinals position has been cleared in the J&K State Boxing Championship, which is being played at Indoor Complex, MA Stadium, here.\nThe Championship is being organised by J&K Amateur Boxing Association and is being sponsored by Jammu and Kashmir State Sports Council, under the supervision of Rajan Sharma, International Technical Official and General Secretary of J&K Amateur Boxing Association.\nThe winners in Senior Division in the age categories of 49, 52, 56, 60, 64, 69, 75 and 81 kgs included Ankush, Akash, Rahul Kumar, Zakir Hussain, Rinku, Vinay Partap, Ishtiyak Malik and Sanjay Sharma respectively, while the winners in different weight categories of Junior Division were Man Singh, Gautam, Sidharth, Vinay Bhasker, Abhay Raina, Mohd Imran, Mayashu Sharma, Farida Banu, Sanjana and Dechan Dolkar.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Despite endorsing several other statewide Republican candidates, Gov. Sandoval refused to endorse Wes Duncan, the Republican candidate for Attorney General. Sandoval previously served as Nevada attorney general before being elected governor. He endorsed Adam Laxalt in his 2014 campaign for attorney general. Sandoval and Aaron Ford have a strong working relationship stemming from Ford's time in the state senate, where he worked with the governor to pass key pieces of bipartisan legislation.\nBut, there's at least one other major statewide race that the popular governor is staying out: attorney general, where Republican and former Assemblyman Wes Duncan and state Senate Democratic leader Aaron Ford are facing off.\n\"I'm not taking a position in that race,\" Sandoval told the Review-Journal Tuesday.\n\"I worked with Sen. Ford, and my experience with him has been very positive,\" Sandoval said.\nSandoval, a Republican, did make an endorsement in the 2014 attorney general's race when he backed Adam Laxalt for the seat.\nSandoval has endorsed two candidates \u2014 both Republicans \u2014 running statewide campaigns: U.S. Sen. Dean Heller in his re-election bid against Rep. Jacky Rosen, and state Senate Minority Leader Michael Roberson, who is running for lieutenant governor against former state treasurer Kate Marshall.\nGet InvolvedLend a helping hand.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"The perfect coffee cups for Cappuccinos. The De'Longhi products are hand made from borosilicate glass and have a double wall thermo to retain heat. Cups can be washed in the dishwasher and have a volume of 190 ml. Thanks to using materials of the highest quality, your new coffee cup will maintain the temperature of your beverage (either hot or cold) for a long time. The cups are comfortable to hold and help you enjoy delicious De'Longhi Coffee. Package contains two cups.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"We have outgrown our current shop digs and have been searching around the city\/area for something suitable in the way of shop and office space. Something old and funky like the Kellys Gingernut Pub discovered on a recent trip to Cape Charles, Virginia would be fitting.\nOriginally a 1907 bank building, it's nice to see old structures live on to other uses. Modern structures lack the style and wonderful craftsmanship that this Federal style building struts. I was instantly drawn to the ornamentation of the brickwork, the pleasing proportions and the simple but refined shape and scale.\nAlas, it seems Stratford is lacking in fun old industrial space (factories, shops, creameries and blacksmiths shops) perhaps I will need to build my own. If you have any leads on such a space I would love to know about them. Perhaps a list of Stratford's favourite old buildings is in the works.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzagltt b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzagltt
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..fb4debcb1577c2ba975e8ccb44b5084994930a2e
--- /dev/null
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@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"Zac Fukuda is a graphic designer\/web developer. This website Mokuji is a collection of notes which are come out of my works. Primary viewer of this site is me. That said, everything on this site is designed for myself. Hence, excuse me if you have some difficulties to read it.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Letter from James D. Pouncey of The Jackson County Bar Association to Senator Harry S. Truman. Pouncey attaches a resolution that the bar endorses Secretary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Walter White in not accepting Truman's invitation to appear before the Truman Committee. Pouncey then provides four reasons for White's decision.\nLetter from Senator Harry S. Truman to James D. Pouncey of The Jackson County Bar Association. Truman criticizes the bar for endorsing Secretary of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Walter White in not accepting Truman's invitation to appear before the Truman Committee. Truman states, \"We had no funds available to bring a trainload of Negroes here to testify, and that is what White wanted us to do.\"","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Tony Tuckson trained in London and at East Sydney Technical School. He did not show his work commercially because for many years, as a Deputy Director of the Art Galley of New South Wales, he was uncomfortable about promoting his own work. It was only after his death in 1973 that the depth and quality of his art was fully recognized. Interested in the underlying spirit in Aboriginal and Melanesian imagery, Tuckson turned to pure abstract work in the late 1950s.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"The college sailing season ended officially yesterday with the announcement that Bill Hardesty of San Diego was named the Ronstan college sailor of the year. The annual award is conferred by the Inter-Collegiate Yacht Racing Association of North America. Hardesty is a senior at the United States Merchant Marine Academy at King's Point, N.Y.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"They chose to go to the moon because it is hard, and Scott Millican is one of the engineers who helped them get there. He trained Apollo astronauts for their flight to the Moon and was present in Mission Control, guiding the astronauts through their moonwalks as well as the entire mission.\nJoin us for a conversation of Dutch ESA Astronaut Andr\u00e9 Kuipers with Scott Millican, the man who helped create many of the procedures, training exercises and plain tricks Astronauts still use to this day. They will compare notes from their vast experience of the ins and outs of space travel, spanning decades from the beginnings of human space flight to the state of things today.\nBe inspired by their stories of the nuts and bolts of human space flight that help realise our dreams and visions for humanities future in space.\nLearn more about Scott and Andr\u00e9 in the speaker section and follow the session via the livestream.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzagyyz b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzagyyz
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..52948b52d30521bf271d298b4e3706e225314949
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzagyyz
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"About Us - Santa Clarita CA\/Castaic CA - Carlos Villalobos Insurance Agency Inc.\nAt Carlos Villalobos Insurance, we work diligently on behalf of our customers to obtain the lowest rates with the best coverage possible. We're based out of Santa Clarita, California, and serve the surrounding communities in Los Angeles and beyond. Give us a call and see how much money you can save.\nWe've been around for over 30 years and we've won several awards for the best insurance firm. But, our most important win is making you a happy, life-long customer.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"The Texas attorney general has announced that it has filed enforcement actions against two web sites that appeal to children. This is the first reported action by a state to enforce the federal Children's Online Privacy Protection Act which prohibits the collection of personal information from children under 13 without parental consent and requires web sites to provide notice of their information collection practices.\nTheDollPalace.com allows users to create and play with animated dolls on the web site. The site also offers chat rooms and a \"friends\" feature that lets users contact friends that like the same dolls. To register for the site, a user must provide his or her name, age, gender, email address, city, and zip code. To register for the \"friends\" feature, a user must also complete a profile that asks for personal information such as height, weight, eye color, and whether the user accesses the Internet on his or her own computer or uses a public computer. If a child under 13 registers, the web site asks \"Is a parent with you right now?\" If the child answers \"Yes,\" he or she is directed to a \"permission\" page that requires him or her to click \"OK\" to complete the registration. If a child answers \"No,\" the child must provide an email address for a parent, and is then allowed to complete the registration. The email address can be the same address the child entered as his or her own address. The Attorney General claimed that the site violates COPPA because its parental consent mechanism is not adequate to provide verifiable consent and because the site does not disclose its information collection practices or provide parents with an opportunity to review or revoke their consent.\nWhile the Federal Trade Commission has brought numerous enforcement actions for COPPA violations, these two enforcement actions are a reminder that state Attorneys General can and do also enforce COPPA. Thus, web site operators that operate web sites directed to, or likely to attract, children under 13 should ensure that their sites are COPPA compliant. For information regarding COPPA, see http:\/\/www.ftc.gov\/bcp\/conline\/pubs\/buspubs\/coppa.shtm. In addition, web site operators should review the guidelines promulgated by the Children's Advertising Review Unit (\"CARU\") of the Better Business Bureau at http:\/\/www.caru.org\/guidelines\/index.asp as CARU actively monitors children's web sites to ensure COPPA compliance.\nPlease click here to download a PDF of the Alert.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Get the maximum benefit from your investment in the Tebis software \u2013 we have many years of experience in structuring manufacturing processes for Tebis customers. Working together with your team, we examine procedures, define standards, and derive templates and patterns. The focus is on maximum utilization of programming, machine capacity and the manufacturing technologies used. Tebis specialists help your organization reach its goals by increasing your entrepreneurial flexibility. No task is overlooked and you get everything from a single source \u2013 Tebis.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"The law for worship is that nothing is admissible in the worship of God without definite scriptural appointment.\nWe sing from the Book of Psalms, the only divinely authorised manual of praise. This is led by a Precentor and is without the use of musical instruments.\nIn the course of our worship we read consecutively through both Old and New Testaments. The Authorised Version of the Bible is used at all our services and meetings. We believe it is still the best English translation of the Word of God.\nThe congregation stands for public prayer.\nWe believe in the centrality and importance of the faithful preaching of God's Word. The evening sermon is usually evangelistic in nature.\nThis follows the evening service, except for the 2nd Lord's Day of each month when it follows the morning service.\nNo collection is taken during the services, but if visiting believers would like to join us in giving to the Lord's work, there are offertory boxes located in the vestibule.\nPsalm Singing. Biblical arguments for unaccompanied exclusive Psalmody. By Malcolm H. Watts.\nThe Centrality of Preaching. This article explains from historical and Biblical perspectives the necessity for the centrality of preaching. By Malcolm H. Watts.\nPractical Reasons for Retaining the KJV. Thirteen practical reasons for retaining the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible. By Dr. Joel R. Beeke.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"A workshop dedicated to Dynamic New Athletics (DNA) was held as part of the build-up to the format's debut at the Minsk 2019 European Games.\nDNA will bring a new type of track and field to the second edition of the continental event in the Belarus capital.\nHeld over two hours, it sees teams of men and women vie for supremacy in 10 events, which organisers say embraces \"the basic athletics building-blocks of running, jumping and throwing\".\nThere was said to be \"standing room only\" for the workshop which took place at the European Athletics Convention in Switzerland's Olympic capital Lausanne.\nThe event at the Hotel Royal Savoy allowed coaches to hear about the format as the countdown to Minsk 2019, which opens on June 21, continues.\nOfficials including European Olympic Committees President Janez Kocijan\u010di\u010d and European Athletics President Svein Arne Hansen have already given their backing to DNA.\nIts introduction comes after a low-key athletics competition at the inaugural European Games in Baku in 2015, which lacked star names and was seen as being devoid of quality.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaibxj b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaibxj
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..1bc2604711d36c27288917609028269f44db3556
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaibxj
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"Boro fans have a week left to take advantage of the latest Boro Player offer which gives you the chance to get closer to the club for FREE.\nFor a limited time only you can enjoy 14 days free access to the service which provides subscribers with live audio commentary of every single game, extended match highlights, the full pre-match and post-match interviews with the manager and players \u2013 PLUS MUCH MORE.\nThis offer ends at midnight on Wednesday 19th March.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"This is a Mid-Level stress analyst position in the Aerostructures Engineering Organization. Work under general direction of the senior level stress analysts, the successful candidate will serve as a member of the Stress Group supporting preliminary and detail stress analysis of primary and secondary airframe structure, systems, and equipment resulting from applied and induced loads. Primary product lines for design activities will be unmanned aerial vehicles, modification of existing aircraft structures, and design-to-build activities for commercial and military aircraft for both composite and metallic constructions.\nRequires a solid understanding of metallic and composite materials (e.g., lamination theory, fabrication and assembly processes, etc.) and able to apply the principles of Structural Mechanic and Statics with minimal direction.\nAble to resolve complex aircraft structural challenges by applying various aerospace industry standard classical analysis techniques for both metallic and composite structures.\nMust be able to effectively present technical data in written and oral form to the reporting senior analyst and program management.\nDemonstrate proficiency in finite element modeling idealization and good modeling practices using NASTRAN, ANSYS, ABACUS or other FEA packages.\nDemonstrate familiarity with one of 14 CFR Part 23 and Part 25 Airworthiness Standards (e.g., Loads, Factor of Safety, Strength and Deformation, Proof of Structure, etc.), MIL-HDBK-516C, or NASA Procedural Requirements as they relate to certification of airframe structures.\nExperience with CATIA V5 or Unigraphics and good computer skills including working knowledge of Microsoft Office.\nPlay an integral role in the work flow release process by reviewing all structural designs and completed stress notes written by junior analysts or peers for accuracy, clarity, and completeness.\nPrepare stress analysis as the design mature and signoff models\/drawings for \"Stress\" to demonstrate their compliance with program requirements for structural integrity.\nResponsible for major structural layout processes, sizing, and structural integrity evaluations.\nMentor, coach and train junior analysts in analysis methods and procedures.\nAssist the senior analysts in developing standardized analysis methods and preparing for technical interchange meetings and program reviews.\nParticipate in material review board (MRB) and provide stress support for design changes, repairs and rework involving structure.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Prime commercial location in front of the new Towne Place Suites Marriott. This is Tract 1, .77 acres, and it is located on the east side of Willow St and is along the south side of 13th St.\nPlease send me more information on the following listing: 1300 WILLOW ST, Vincennes, IN, 47591MLS# 949958I found the listing at the following website: http:\/\/vincennesrealty.com\/properties\/land\/949958.html Looking forward to hearing from you soon!","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"The following Official Record for Miriam Mendoza is being redistributed by LCN and is protected by constitutional, publishing, and other legal rights. This Official Record was reported on 2019-02-11 15:36:09. The person named in this listing has only been arrested on suspicion of the crime indicated and is presumed innocent.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Conversion rate optimisation goes by many names, CRO, Landing page optimisation, website optimisation. It makes sure that you are getting the most from your web traffic. Visitors must know who you are, why they should care and what their next step is within the first three seconds of landing on your site, otherwise they're as good as gone.\nThe user is either willing to convert based on what they have experienced or their time on-site has built a better picture of who you are, in order to drive them back to your website when they are ready to take the next step.\nIn all aspects of conversion rate optimisation, our goal is to be true to your audience and your business objectives. This ensures you're not just getting clicks for the sake of it, but that every click is meaningful.\nUnderstanding business objectives and KPIs is central to asessing what areas of optimisation should be focused on.\nWe investigate external factors which inform optimisation \u2013 audience biases, competitors, trends informing user experience.\nWe delve into web analytics to understand user experience, preferences and points of friction. We apply AI technology to gauge user perception.\nBeing able to tap into audience mindset is key to lifting conversion rates. Understanding audience drivers informs creative direction.\nOur design suggestions are implicit with building a positive user-experience. Taking into account user behaviour and psychology, quality tested by our AI technology.\nCompelling copy wins hearts and minds of your consumer. It speaks to their inner-motivations, providing a clear reason why they should choose you.\nTo ensure best-in-class optimisation, we use AI technology to understand what people see in the first 3 seconds on-page. The software has been built through a rigorous process of data collection, statistical analysis and machine learning across the globe.\nUsing these learnings they have created algorithms which can emulate the movements the eye makes across a webpage with over 85% predictive accuracy compared to empirical studies.\nAs a Melbourne based agency, Showtime Digital started by building landing pages as a means of helping businesses convert more of their online traffic. With over 5 years' experience in landing page optimisation, this now expands to optimising websites, building user journeys which are optimised for conversions. We pride ourselves on our being able to lift conversion rates beyond industry averages. In some categories, we have been able to double the conversion rates, which has led to more efficient ad spend and greater outcomes. We are passionate about making sure users stay on page long enough to know who you are, why they should care and what their next step is, leading to more conversions, more often.\nShould I engage an agency who also works for my competitor?","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaijci b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaijci
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+{"text":"You know that great song you wrote a few years ago but tossed aside because you got too busy being successful doing other things? Early in 2013, Australian indie artist Vince Gelonese discovered one of those gems in his own stash, got it to the right people in the U.S. and is now living \"Every Dream\"\u2014making an explosive smash Stateside with his infectious and romantic debut single.\nTruly living up to its title, \"Every Dream\" was an immediate sensation this past summer, ultimately reaching #4 on Billboard's Hot Singles Sales chart. It has remained on the chart for more than 20 weeks and is still in the Top Ten several months later.\nGelonese's track is building similar momentum on Adult Contemporary radio, and the 400 spins a week it has been receiving have propelled it into the Top 50 on the FMQB AC40 Chart. The Italian-born singer-songwriter, who started out as a rocker in high school and later took private classical and opera training, just wrapped shooting his first music video for the song.\nAs the only Australian adult contemporary artist currently on the U.S. charts, Gelonese is primed to follow in the footsteps of other musical greats who emerged from that country, like The Bee Gees, Kylie Minogue and Air Supply. Interestingly, while Gelonese is quickly becoming known as an artist in the U.S., he is still relatively under the radar back home.\nWhile Gelonese's radio and sales accolades have been an unexpected surprise for the experienced live performer, the singer already has a batch of follow-up singles in the works. His marketing consultant, Steve Pina of Los Angeles based Omni Entertainment, quickly hooked him up to collaborate in the studio with veteran songwriter\/producer Ronnie King, who has worked with everyone from 2Pac, Snoop Dogg and Mariah Carey to The Offspring, Kottonmouth Kings and the Hawaiian rock band Pepper.\nThe inspirational story behind Gelonese's breakthrough with \"Every Dream\" is as poignant and emotionally compelling as his songs. Long established as a stage performer in his adopted homeland, Gelonese had performed the lead in musicals like \"Grease\" but found his niche by starring in large stage productions centered around different musical themes\u2014from Latin Rock, Country Rock, pop and various revues centered around the music of the '70s, '80s and '90s.\nThe shows featured large band ensembles, female dancers and choreographed scenes. Gelonese's wife Melissa co-produced and choreographed the shows. They have been performed throughout New South Wales at concert halls, casino showrooms and auditoriums everywhere from the singer's hometown Canberra (the country's capital city) to Melbourne, Adelaide and Sydney. Drawing on his dynamic Italian family background, Gelonese also became a popular attraction singing in Italian at various festivals throughout the region.\nGelonese and his performing and production crew jaunted to Las Vegas several years ago to launch a production of one of the revue shows called \"Walking in Memphis.\" While visa extension problems left them short of establishing the show at a hotel or resort, it got a good deal of traction on the corporate event circuit.\n\"I finished writing 'Every Dream' during this time and recorded a demo of it that I gave to a music industry contact in the U.S. I was working with, who loved it and introduced it to some people she knew at Columbia Records,\" he says. \"She told me these executives thought it could be a number one hit, and I just laughed. I didn't take it seriously, because I was so focused on doing the ensemble shows. When you grow up playing music in Australia, the opportunities for becoming a successful artist are limited so I just wasn't thinking in those terms.\nAlthough Gelonese had given up pursuing music professionally for a number of years because of the need to support his family, he says he never stopped writing songs or performing on weekends in the years leading up to establishing himself as a live show performer.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"The holidays season is around the corner and you don't know what to offer your loved ones? Learn how to choose a good rum and you will have the solution to your dilemma!\n\u2013 Agricultural rum: produced mainly in regions of French influence, this rum is made from sugar cane juice.\n\u2013 Traditional rum: produced mainly in regions of English or Spanish influence, it is composed of thick sugar syrup called \"molasses\".\n\u2013 White rum: this is a young rum to drink dry or in cocktails.\n\u2013 Amber rum: it is a rum aged in oak barrels for a year to a year and a half, hence its color.\n\u2013 Old rum: aged for at least three years, this rum is ideal for tasting.\nAlso, you should ask yourself if this person appreciates beautiful brands, if they like discovering new flavors, or if they like rare products. Based on these elements, you can easily determine which product will please your family and friends.\nDo not drink and drive. Enjoy responsibly.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"TattooBOMB\u2122 Makes your Tattoos Shine line New. This is an Exclusive Blend of Premium grade Shea Butter infused with Essential Oil. 100% Natural product. You will love how your Ink looks on Your body. Wonderful Lemon smell.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Public Art Galleries, Libraries and Museums.\nWe also provide advice in relation to Fringe Benefits Tax treatment for not-for-profit organisations and duty exemptions.\nfixed trusts and discretionary investment trusts.\nWe assist boards of management and members of not for profit organisations with governance reviews and to address internal disputes.\nWe assist not for profit organisation boards and their executive officers when difficulties arise in their relationships with government regulators and funding agencies.\nDF Mortimer and Associates, Proudly powered by WordPress.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Big Bottle Co. Cinnamon Cream - Cream with cinnamon sugar.\nBig Bottle Co. Cinnamon Cream is fluffy cream swirled with cinnamon sugar. The perfect treat to satisfy your nagging sweet tooth.\nCheck out the reviews of Big Bottle Co. Cinnamon Cream.\nI am very pleased with the flavor. Will definitely order it again.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaklgq b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaklgq
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..b5a666559da0b071c3b7b5a9baa188b546c55416
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@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"We've got a remarkably efficient crew to deal with inquiries from clients. Our aim is \"100% purchaser satisfaction by our item high-quality, selling price & our crew service\" and appreciate an excellent popularity amid consumers. With quite a few factories, we could present a wide variety of Advanced Technology Plastic , Advanced Plastic , Advanced Material PPS Plastic , Welcome to build the well and long standing business relationships with our company to create a glorious future together. customers' satisfaction is our eternal pursuit!\n\"Sincerity, Innovation, Rigorousness, and Efficiency\" is the persistent conception of our firm for the long-term to create jointly with consumers for mutual reciprocity and mutual reward for Advanced Technology Plastic , Advanced Plastic , Advanced Material PPS Plastic , We expect to provide goods and services to more users in global aftermarket markets; we launched our global branding strategy by providing our excellent solutions all over the world by virtue of our well reputed partners letting global users keep pace with technology innovation and achievements with us.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Keeping your exhaust clean and free of grease will help keep it running more efficiently, saving you money and prolonging the life of your unit. Duct & Vent Cleaning of America, Inc. can manage your exhaust cleaning in commercial exhaust, restaurants, cafeterias, and commercial kitchens. Duct & Vent Cleaning of America, Inc. will get the job done on time while staying in compliance with health codes and regulations.\nWe provide EXHAUST CLEANING & COMMERCIAL AIR DUCT CLEANING services in: MA, CT, RI, MD, NH and NY.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"LOUISVILLE, Ky. \u2013 The Second Annual Bionutritional Summit is set for the afternoon Oct. 23 (the day before the GIE+EXPO opens) at the Seelbach Hotel here.\nBattett Ersek, founder of Holganix will open the Summit at 2:00 p.m. and introduce the keynote speaker Judith M. Guido, chairwoman and founder of Guido and Associates.\nGuido's presentation, \"Leveraging the Green Phenomenon & How to Build a Profitable Green Company,\" will present cutting-edge data and strategies to guide contractors into this growing market movement.\nFollowing the keynote and a short break attendees will then be given the opportunity to attend several seminars, depending upon their personal and business interests. A reception is planned at 6:00 p.m. at the close of the Summit.\nThe Bionutrittional Summit is limited to 175 attendees. For more information visit www.BionutritionalSummit.com.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Anybody ever heard of it?\nyeah, a fat person is smashed into by a high speed broccoli drive by.\nIt's quite devastating and beautiful at the same time.\nHere we go. A simple joke and you take it personally.\nPLEASE GOD!!! SAVE THESE PEOPLE FROM THE INSANITY!!!!!\nHere's a tip that I'm sure you'll ignore. if it ends in DIET, then it's a SCAM.\nThere are no \"diets\". Just healthy living.\nJust like NOW WITH 82 BRONZERS AND A TINGLE FACTOR OF 387!!!!\nI know, i've lost 90 pounds in a little over a year with eating in moderation and exercising. I'm not looking at it for myself, just curious as to what it was or maybe someone else out there might want to use it and see if it works. Sorry, just not in the joking mood today.\nNOW WITH 82 BRONZERS AND A TINGLE FACTOR OF 387!!!!\nI have that lotion!!!! It's a little person that followes you into the room with a can of brown spray paint and a bucket of hot chicken grease!!!\nThis is a really good diet if you are looking for something different from the ever popular \"low carb\" diets. If you are looking for recipes or support on the diet, check out the Fat Smash Diet message board.\nMichael, this post sounds like a user testimonial. Misrepresenting your involvement would be considered spam. Please share your connection with the website.\nConsider it spam if you want but I thought this post was right on topic. You're right, it is a user testimonial because I am currently on the diet. I've dropped 7 lbs in 12 days.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Your child will now be able to match their favourite MCFC player during their games this season by wearing the replica shirt. Purchase this Manchester City Kids Third Shirt 2017\/18 now for your child and it will make their day when you give it to them as a present.\nManufactured by Nike, these jerseys have been designed to fit a wide range of younger supporters. For the matching items and other sportswear ranges for Man City, take a look at the club's category on our website now.\nMCFC have adopted a new colour scheme for their third shirt for 17\/18. Dark grey camouflage print is the base design of the jersey with sky blue detailing. Printed in the centre of the top is the sponsor logo \u2013 Etihad Airways and above this to the right is the signature Nike Swoosh which has been embroidered. And sewn in full colour, displayed prominently in the top left corner, is the Manchester City crest.\nLocated on the reverse of the shirt at the bottom is the word 'City' which blends into the same colour scheme as the base. As well as this, for an additional cost you can personalize the shirt for your child with their name and number in the official PL printing. Also, as an added extra we offer the option to have the Premier League patches printed onto both of the sleeves.\nTo imitate the jersey's worn by the professionals; Nike has used their Dri-Fit technology and Breathe material to make this shirt. Ventilation panels have been incorporated into the design in order to promote air flow during movement. And the moisture wicking technology helps to speed up evaporation by drawing excess perspiration away from the body, thus leaving your little one comfortable and dry.\nHere at Soccer Box, we pride ourselves on the fact that we provide our customers with official sportswear items. To ensure that this is our set standard, we purchase all of our stock directly from the manufacturer themselves which confirms the authenticity of the products.\nWe have a limited availability of these jerseys in boy's sizes small to x-large (ages 8 to 15) in stock. As a result of this, we recommend that you place your order now for this Manchester City kids third shirt 2017\/18 and be certain that you have secured yourself one for your child. If you are local to our warehouse, we offer a click and collect service for you to choose. Alongside this we also provide our customers with an extensive variety of swift international shipping methods.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzameze b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzameze
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index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..31351d392f9bee5579a4fa57ebb9319d1d52df3b
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+{"text":"Fannie Reitz Johnson, 95 years old, passed away on May 10, 2014. Fannie was born September 18, 1918 In Brule, Nebraska to Charles and Inez Reitz. She was the eighth of ten children and all of her brothers and sisters are deceased.\nOn October 12, 1940, she married Wilbur Johnson. They were married 53 years and farmed and ranched in Sheridan County until Wilbur retired in 1988. For 31 years they lived on the family farm nine miles north of Rushville. Then in 1975 they built a new home just north of the airport. They were Farm Bureau members for over 25 years. Fannie was an active supporter and was always willing to lend a helping hand at functions, dinners or regular meetings. She was voted Sheridan County's Farm Bureau Woman of the Year in 1984. She also won the Sheridan County Rural School 8th grade spelling bee contest along with a trip to Omaha for the state competition.\nFannie had huge gardens and canned vegetables and fruit every year. She raised fryer chicken and sold eggs and would fix fresh fried chicken on the 4th of July. Her grandchildren have fond memories of her preparing their favorite foods when she knew they were coming for a visit. Those special foods now have the grandchildren's names associated with them. She was always available to care for her grandchildren, whether it was for a couple of hours or an overnight stay.\nFannie is survived by her six children: Janice Greenwood of Chadron, Marlene (Dennis) Hoffman of Kimball, Judy Hammermeister of Gretna, Ross (Dorothy) Johnson of Omaha, Gerald (Joyce) Johnson of Rushville, and Virginia Kearns of Gretna. She has 13 grandchildren, 24 great-grandchildren, and 2 great-great-grandchildren. She is preceded in death by her husband Wilbur, grandson Danny Kearns, son-in-law Jerry Greenwood, her 5 brothers: Roy, Wayne, Dale, Lynn, and Clarence, sisters: Vi Klindworth, Dorris Hardin, Mary Johnson, and Letha Linders, and several nieces and nephews.\nServices are at Chamberlain Chapel in Chadron, Nebraska on Saturday, May 17, 2014, at 10:00 AM. Burial is at Fairview Cemetery in Rushville, Nebraska at 1:30 PM.\nMemorials can be made to the Rushville Rescue Unit and\/or the Rushville Fire Department. Donations may be sent to Chamberlain Chapel of Chadron, P.O. Box 970, Chadron, NE 69337.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"STCW Basic Fire Fighting is a 2-day basic training course for vessel crews. The fire day covers various fire extinguishing methods, extinguishing techniques, and occupational safety; the trainees also carry out extinguishing exercises. On the second day, trainees practise the use of self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) in smoke filled enclosed spaces, which include such elements as moving when surrounded by smoke, extinguishing methods, and search and rescue of victims.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"If anyone is going to react to the threat of unwanted gentrification, it's artists \u2013 and street artists more than anyone.\nUnit 5 Gallery, which opened in August, is a creative-led gallery set to champion street artists and local talent.\nArt is a difficult industry to enter in to, especially if you're not a Mayfair art dealer. Even more so if you're from Hackney, with the proposed demolition of Hackney Wick's Vittoria Wharf looming.\nBut if anyone is going to react to the threat of unwanted gentrification, it's artists \u2013 and street artists more than anyone.\nUnit 5 Gallery, which opened in August, is a creative-led gallery set to champion street artists and local talent. Currently running an exhibition by Parisian artist Bault called Tar, which is his debut show in the UK. The surrealist painter and street artist is well known in his native France but is less so here.\n\"We aim to run a gallery that represents the artists we love and build a reputation for showing quality works and bringing through local talent,\" Means adds.\nOne of these local artists is Londoner Edwin, who has teamed up with American Dont Fret for the gallery's next exhibition and social experiment. Entitled The Distinct Sound of Laughter in the Distance, the show is the culmination of a pen pal relationship that continued between the two artists over the course of a year, as they exchanged the evidence of the marks they made on their communities (pictured).","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Aesthetic Blasphemy: Master and Me - Judgment.\nMaster and Me - Judgment.\nMaster: Come in, my lad!\nI: How did you know it is me, I had not knocked yet?\nMaster: As if you don't know! Well, you have some questions, don't you?\nI: Ah, you know everything. Then do I need to air my thoughts, you already know what I seek.\nMaster: Well\u2026 yeah\u2026 I created you, so of course I know it, but then, why did I create you in the first place? If you keep asking questions in your mind and only I do the talking, then what fun would be it? I did not create ye all to hone my commentary skills.\nI: Okay, okay\u2026 I got the point.\nMaster: So what troubles you this time?\nI: You know me, random things concern me most of the times, and I need to run to you most of the time for the answers. This time I was thinking\u2026about judgment\u2026.\nI: Well, when do we get to decide? And when do we decide it fairly? Being human, it is very complex to decide between the heart and mind. Reason, is often derived from experiences, but then, all experiences are novel in themselves, looking alike, but all different. How do we get to see things, while staying unrelated to them? Like seeing from the outside?\nMaster: Young one, what makes you think so? What troubles you?\nI: Master, you have stayed alone for a very long while, you know how things revolve when we start looking at things from our past, when we are alone. Family, friends, people we've met, incidences, decisions, regrets, faults, happiness, successes, everything, every deed no matter how trivial it might have seemed back then, rises from somewhere, like a chest of memories has just been unlocked. Let's say, I also got some free time to kill.\nMaster: Well thank Me for my being lonely, or else you could have never made it into the world. Rather, this world wouldn't have been there. But yes, I get the point. So, why do you want the answer to it anyway? I forgive often for follies, don't I?\nI: Hah, you kidding me? You sit behind these curtains and don't allow me in. Always saying that I have a long way to go, and when I am trying to arrange for some transportation for the journey, you are puncturing my tires by this hypnotic talk? This isn't fair Master! You forgive because You, are You, Our Master!\nMaster: You are such a baby; I was just trying to wiggle your cheeks, they are sooo\u2026 human!\nI: That's not funny, I am a baby anyways. Do you want me to throw in a tantrum or you answering me straight?\nMaster: (Sigh) Judging is not a very enjoyable experience. It forbids you to let any emotion from indulging in what you intend to judge. Like a glass sheet. You need to be aware of everything around it, and still remain aloof of everything. You should feel no pain, no pleasure, no feeling at all when you sit to judge something. It's like being an aggressor, ruthless, always looking for weakness, fallacies, and at the same time, searching for the good points. It's benchmarking against your own self. You cannot judge what you have no idea about. To be rational, you have to do away with pain, pleasure, emotions and regressions, and to judge, you have to be at least one step above of it.\nI: So what about us? No one can be like you, imparting justice that is really, just. Our prejudices hold us, our hearts sway us sometimes. How can we rise above that? They say that when in conflict flip a coin, as it gives time to know what we wish to see.\nMaster: Oh I see, I gave free will to men so that no one follows the rulebook. This saves me the pain of drafting one. This thing called heart, though another faculty of mind messes up with this free will through emotion. And for that coin flipping, I would suggest using a blank coin, the one with no options.\nMaster: Now I ain't here to spoon feed you with every answer, am I? I have given you a head start, now you wade alone. I'll just recline and watch you learn. Use your brain, child, the brain feels no pain, neither pleasure!\nMaster: Blasphemous, Leave now, there's work unto you, be blessed and wake up now, its day break.\nthis is a very different take on the topic and is one of my faves so far! well done!\na very witty piece of conversation netween you and the master! truly insightful!\nso true Aparna. its through trial and error that we learn. thank you for appreciating.\nMehak. thank you very much.\nFree will. The single most beautiful thing that was given to all living things.\nA totally radical take on the topic.\njudgment is fine as long as it does not regard humans in any way. the moment it does. its bound to go wrong, after all the grass on the other side is not just grass.\nThe conversation is very interesting But i do have a doubt as to what can one do in matters we have no control over? I am sure der r many such issues...wht about smeone being punished throughout life(by poverty or something like that)?...obviously a person who is begging for a 2 times meal can not aim to be a billionaire even if he has all d brains wid him coz then he doesn't have the opportunity!\nI really cud not find d answer to dis one!!\nDont count on that buddy, its not the only thing that I do, besides I seldom get bored, probably because such questions amuse me.\nWell I have come to believe that opportunity never knocks on anyone doors, we need to step out and catch the air, turn it, bend it, burn it and be an alchemist to make it gold.\nWelcome back again, and remember, schools are far more important.\nWelcome to Aesthetic Blasphemy. Thank you for dropping in and commenting.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"This Natracare tampon without applicator is made from a rolled wadding of 100% organic cotton. As the cotton gently absorbs the menstrual flow, the tampon expands widthways. Unlike the applicator style, this tampon is inserted using your longest finger which tucks into the flared end of the tampon to enable the tampon to be pushed into place.\nMade with only 100% organic cotton, and nothing else, totally chlorine free with no rayon, plastics or dyes. It is biodegradable & compostable and expands widthways to fit.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzampfs b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzampfs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..a273d43a162566cddcf35e9fea42c4dadc9ea9b7
--- /dev/null
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@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"Yesterday's Women's World Cup final match between the United States of America and defending champions Japan at BC Place in Vancouver, Canada was not only the highest scoring Women's final in the history of the competition, but it also became just the third major senior international final (both men and women) in which 7 goals were scored.\nIt may seem strange that in no other tournament final but two a 4-3, 5-2, 6-1 or a 7-0 score was previously registered, but it's true.\nThe first major international final that had 7 goals scored between the two teams was the 1958 FIFA World Cup final played between Brazil and hosts Sweden at the now demolished R\u00e5sunda Stadium. The score was identical to that of yesterday's women's final; a 5-2 final win for Brazil.\nUnlike USA and Japan however, the match on June 29, 1958 did not start favorably for the eventual winners Brazil. It was in fact the hosts that took charge of the match early after going 1-0 up in just the 4th minute. But the Brazilians would answer quickly and often, first tying the match up at 1-1 after 5 minutes and then scoring three more goals before the home side could muster their 2nd and only other goal of the finals.\nThe only other 7 goal final to date was that of the FIFA Confederation Cup Final in 1999 hosted by Mexico. After finishing a top of their respective groups, both the hosts Mexico and previous year's FIFA World Cup finalist Brazil came into the final at the legendary Estadio Azteca full of confidence. The hosts started strong, scoring twice before the 30 minute mark, with the Brazilians managing one before the half with Mexico leading 2-1 after 45 minutes. After the restart Brazil would tie the game up after just 2 minutes, but the Mexicans would score twice more before Brazil's third goal and would go on to win by a 4-3 final.\nNo other major tournament final has been able to produce a final that featured more than 6 goals. The previous highest score at the Women's World Cup final was the four goal 2-2 final that led to a penalty shootouts between Japan and the United States last time around in Germany four years ago.\nThe men's World Cup featured a 6 goal final on three occasions, all ending in identical 4-2 scores. The first ever World Cup in Uruguay 1930 saw the hosts defeat Argentina by a 4-2 final. Eight years later in France, the Italians won against Hungary by the same score, and England's only World Cup title in 1966 was also won by a 4-2 final, although the match actually ended at 2-2 before Three Lions' Geoff Hurst managed to score twice in extra-time.\nThe oldest international tournament the Copa America has never produced a final with more than 4 total goals between the two contenders, although this is likely more due to the fact that between 1916 and 1967 the winning team was that which finished first overall, without a proper final being played.\nIn the CONCACAF gold cup the highest scoring final was that between Mexico and USA in 2009, although a \"thriller\" would probably not be a correct description for that particular 5-0 Mexico victory.\nAs with the South American tournament, the Euros' and Asian Cup's highest scoring finals also featured a maximum of 4 goals. A 1976 2-2 European final between Czechoslovakia and West Germany saw the Czechs win their first and only final after a 5-3 penalty kick triumph. The other was the most recent final in 2012 hosted in Ukraine, with Spain's thrashing of Italy by a 4-0 final score. As far as Asia goes, their tournament managed a 4 goal final just once, that in 2004 with Japan defeating hosts China by a 3-1 final.\nThe Africa Cup of Nations has produced a 6 goal thriller once, which was quite similar to England's World Cup winning final in 1966. Four years before England's triumph, Ethiopia and the United Arab Republic (today's Egypt) also drew their final match at 2-2, before the hosts (Ethiopia) would go on to score twice in the extra frame and win by a 4-2 final.\nLast but not least, Oceania's largest victory margin in a tournament final was 6 goals on three occasions (kind of). The first and only clear cut 6 goal final came in 1980 when Australia defeated Tahiti by a 4-2 final score. The second and third were both victories in a finals format that featured a two-legged affair for the tournament final. In 1996 Australia defeated Tahiti by a 6-0 margin, eventually winning the final with an 11-0 aggregate score, and in 2004 it was the Socceroos once more this time defeating Solomon Islands by a 6-0 final in the second leg of the OFC Nations Cup final after having won the first 5-1.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Penthouse For Sale in Marsalforn - Century 21 Properties in Gozo. An exciting new block set in the most popular seaside village of Marsalforn in close proximity to the seafront, restaurants and all daily amenities. This project offers a selection of most affordable PENTHOUSE featuring a functional modern layout consisting of an open plan kitchen\/living\/dining area leading to an entertaining terrace, bedroom, main bathroom and back terrace. Being offered in shell form with finished common parts and served with lift. Optional finishing packages available. Highly recommended as a holiday home!\nDisclaimer - Property reference GPSCXG4000559. The information displayed about this property comprises a property advertisement. PropertyMarket.com.mt makes no warranty as to the accuracy or completeness of the advertisement or any linked or associated information. The information is provided and maintained by Century 21 Malta.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"I love that which is hyperbolic; ornate material, bright colors, deeply layered sound, intricate design. I want to use these things to produce beautiful and spectacular eyesores. I want to tell stories that convey truths using exaggeration of reality. Aesthetics should always come first in my opinion.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Flamingo Costa Rica Luxury Properties For Sale C.R.R.V.P.\ndestination for tourist traffic which has contributed to the vast amount of activities available.\nFlamingo Luxury Vacation Home investment is an option worth considering.\nbeaches and all the entertainment available make this a sound Costa Rica Investment.\nIn Playa Flamingo you can expect to find beautifully decorated luxury condominiums along with stately luxury mansions dotted along the coast. The activities in Flamingo and surrounding areas that make it a good Costa Rica Retirement location as well. Costa Rica Retirement Vacation Properties C.R.VR.P. is a countrywide full-serve Real Estate Service.\n\"Villa Marina-Flamingo Estates: Large Main Home and Additional Duplex with Pool and Ample Parking\"\nLot Size 697 sq. m.\n\"aGated community located in Playa Flamingo, Costa Rica \"\n\"Ready to move in November 2018\"\n\"Home offers over 2200 sqft of luxury living in the Dos Rios section\"\n\"Mar Vista in Playa Flamingo\"\n\"Your dreams can come true in this little spot of paradise\"\n\"Located just a 2 minute drive to beaches\"\nLot Size 1750 sq. ft.\nLot Size 2458 sq. m.\nLet us do the work. From this profile, we will submit the best areas and properties.\nWe will gt back fast and present the best locations and properties for your consideration.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Learn the simple steps on how to consistently deliver a world-class greeting to retail customers to make them feel welcome.\n- In retail customer service, your greeting can be one of the most important interactions with your customer. It sets the tone and directly affects their attitude when dealing with you. So, let's look at four keys to a successful greeting in retail customer service. The first key, is to manage your verbal and nonverbal cues. Make sure that when you greet a customer, you smile, make eye contact and have an open stance, meaning no crossed arms or frowning.\nMake sure you're not texting, checking your social media or talking to a friend on the phone. Show your customer that they are important and that you care about serving them. Give your customers all your focus and attention in those few seconds. This alone will make your interactions with your customers more enjoyable for them and you. The second key is to greet your customers with a warm welcome. You want your customers to feel comfortable, feel like an invited guest. Somethings you might say are, \"Welcome to, \"your store name, good to see you.\n\"My name's David, what's yours?\" Greet your customers in a friendly way, like meeting a new friend. This will immediately show your customer that you're friendly. They are important and your time together will be pleasurable. Third, ask intelligent questions. You want to make sure that you know exactly what your customers want and how you can best serve them. If your customer is shopping, you might ask, \"How can I help you?\" Or, \"Is there anything in particular \"that you're looking for?\" This is a great start to get information from your customer and start building a relationship.\nIf your customer has a problem like a broken item, or complaint, you might ask, \"So I can take \"excellent care of you, \"would you mind telling me what happened?\" This helps you clarify the problem, what the customer wants and how you can provide them with the best solution. A number of years ago, I owned a steak and seafood restaurant in Hollywood. One of our biggest initiatives was to make sure that we greeted every customer in a friendly way, with a big smile and upbeat attitude. That way, our guest felt at ease and comfortable.\nWhen a guest was having trouble deciding what to order, we would ask them, \"What are you in the mood for tonight?\" Or, \"What kinds of dishes are your favorites?\" That way, we could suggest to them something that they loved. Our goal was to have every customer enjoy their experience so that they would always leave happy. You need to find out what's important to your customers, so that you can best serve them. Finally, you need to reassure the customer that you're going to take excellent care of them. Whether, they're shopping or looking for a specific item, or checking to see if you have an item in stock.\nLet them know you're on it and will do everything you can to get them what they need. If they have a complaint, a billing problem, or return, reassure them that you'll look into it immediately. At the end of the day, isn't that what we all want out of our customer service experience? We want our problems to be solved. So work on your greeting and try different approaches, until you're comfortable with yours and you're consistently having positive customer interactions.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaojpr b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaojpr
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index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..2e6f6ab9f6cf236299451ee34310470f64ddf51c
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@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":" Free Bin animations and animated gifs.\nBin animations and animated gifs.\nFree Bin animations and animated gifs. Bin graphics and photos. Bin clip art. Bin animation and gif. Bin pictures and images. Bin clipart and pics. Bin photographs.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"The California Rodeo Salinas creates a signature yellow bumper sticker every year that features the logo and dates of the Rodeo. Many horse trailers travel down the road with stickers from years of participating at the California Rodeo Salinas, locals drive around with the stickers of the city's signature event on their cars and fans from all over the United States order them to promote their love of the largest Rodeo in California. All fans are encouraged to take the bumper sticker with them during their travels, snap photos and submit them to the California Rodeo and participate in our 2017 contest. The winning photo from 2016 was taken at the iconic Austin, Texas sign.\nThe \"Stick with the Rodeo\" bumper sticker contest is LIVE, so get your bumper stickers and #stickwiththerodeo! The contest will be held on Instagram and the rules are simple, just upload your photo that includes a California Rodeo bumper sticker, use #stickwiththerodeo and tag @carodeosalinas and you are entered to win awesome Rodeo swag! Be sure to follow the California Rodeo on Instagram to see what's happening at the Rodeo year-round! The California Rodeo Salinas' Marketing Committee will vote on the best photo and choose a winner. The contest is open now through June 15th. The winner will be notified by June 30th.\nBumper Stickers can be obtained for free at the California Rodeo Salinas Office at 1034 N. Main Street in Salinas Monday through Friday from 9am to 5pm (closed for lunch on Fridays) or by visiting an Oil Can Henry's location in Salinas, Soquel or Watsonvillle*. Non-locals can purchase bumper stickers at http:\/\/www.carodeo.com\/p\/about-us\/store\/309 for $1.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"This two bedroom luxury Mission Bay condo has an amazing floor plan. You will love the spacious living room and open layout with hardwood floors.\n~ Quick access to stunning waterfront boardwalk and park areas.\nGreat location! 1 block to Caltrain, AT&T Park and Muni.\nEasy access to 101 and 280 freeways. Pets are negotiable.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Kill fleas, ticks and chewing lice when applied monthly.\nFor convenient, quick-acting, long-lasting, effective control of fleas, ticks, mosquitoes and chewing lice. EFFIPRO\u00ae Topical Solution for Cats contains the active ingredient fipronil, which controls infestations caused by fleas, ticks, mosquitoes and chewing lice on cats 8 weeks old or older. Effective monthly application for cats and kittens against fleas and ticks that is quick drying, non-greasy and available from licensed veterinarians. EFFIPRO Topical Solution for Cats remains effective after bathing, water immersion or exposure to rain or sunlight.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Robert Ford is a writer, bon vivant, and gadabout living in Silver Lake, California. While he mostly enjoys spending his entire paycheck on a single jacket, other times he likes wearing ugly hiking boots and sleeping in a tent, scouring vintage stores for the perfect find, collecting lowbrow art from the 60s, and finding new ways to use bitters. When nobody's looking he works for a PR firm.\nDo Your Pearly Whites Sometimes Cause You Pain?","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzapvjp b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzapvjp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..fa10049ad091ed9ca57560415b382934abec1e05
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzapvjp
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"Powerful gems that have a big payback to your overall health and well-being.\u200b Download, here.\n\u200bSpecialist: 50+ Senior strength training and balance. Tai Chi.\nHere are ten tips compiled from sleep specialists to help you achieve a peaceful, uninterrupted sleep.\nAnne's Balance and Preventing Falls checklist.\nEssential advice for strengthening your body, environment, and awareness. Download, here.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"At IQTalent Partners you're not a client. You're a partner. No matter how big (or small) your company is, we're here to solve talent challenges. Our augmented recruitment process outsourcing services range from research, sourcing, to full life-cycle recruiting that blends seamlessly into your processes.\nIQTalent Partners uses expertise, cutting-edge tactics and technology to find, scout and source interested, qualified candidates. Some of our clients outsource all of their sourcing functions to us while some leverage our sourcing teams for high-growth periods or challenging positions or locations.\nOur recruiters are ready to work and produce right away. As an on-demand service, we are used to adapting to clients' recruiting processes and being productive immediately. Our recruiters can leverage the collective knowledge base of IQTP and our world-class sourcing engine. IQTalent can help manage the ups and downs of your recruiting demand.\nWhile IQTalent Partners is focused on augmenting the capability and capacity of your in-house recruiting team, we can also help you build your recruiting processes. We have strong, vetted technology partners such as Comeet, Aptica and Eightfold. We also have access to partners who can provide consulting services in the areas of employment branding, recruiting process improvement, and other aspects of building a world-class recruiting organization.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"eCommerce shipping has become an integral part of businesses large and small and competing in this environment means offering incentives such as free returns to ensure customer loyalty.\nAccording to the 2018 State of Shipping report from Shippo, businesses are having to do more in order to keep up with the juggernaut that is Amazon in eCommerce. But the report reveals over 75% of retailers have identified shipping costs as their biggest challenge, which is a 7% increase from the previous year.\nWith small businesses making up the vast majority of the retailers which find shipping challenging, there is a great opportunity for shippers to address this market. This is one of the talking points Shippo reports in the third annual survey.\nIn the report, Shippo says eCommerce sales globally will increase from the $2.3 trillion in 2017 to $4.8 trillion in 2021. This growth will require more businesses to improve their shipping because customer expectations are only going to increase as this increasingly becomes the way consumers buy products.\nThe report measured the efforts SMB online retailers are putting forth in terms of shipping, returns, and next-day delivery. Additionally, consumer expectations around shipping along with the presence of Amazon were eCommerceaddressed to determine if retailers are meeting, not meeting, or exceeding these expectations.\nShippo carried out the survey from September to October 2018 with the participation of 300 small and medium-size only and retailers along with 500 consumer respondents via Google Surveys.\nCustomer expectation in eCommerce is growing and free shipping has become the gold standard according to the report.\nIn this year's survey, 34% of shoppers said they will only buy something from an online retailer if they offer free shipping. This is more than a third of consumers, which has led more retailers to start offering the service.\nCoincidentally enough the same percentage of retailers (34%) now have a free shipping option, with another 35% stating they offer it as part of a promotion. However, there remains another 27% of online retailers who don't offer any type of free shipping to their customers.\nWhen it comes to free returns consumers also have higher expectations as they want a fast, free, and easy process. And they are electing to shop elsewhere if a retailer doesn't offer Free returns.\nIn this case, 41% of shoppers said they will only shop in stores with free returns, with another 30% saying they will leave the site they are browsing if it doesn't offer free returns.\nThis has resulted in more retailers offering return shipping for free for all of their purchases, going up by 10% from the 17% of 2017 to 27% this year. At the same time, the number of retailers who make customers cover the return shipping has dropped by 11% from 56% to 45%.\nRegarding same-day deliveries, customers are more understanding as only 15.1% want the same or next day delivery. But almost half or 44.2% said they can wait for 2 to 3 days, while another 40.7% said they can wait 4 to 7 days.\nThe key as in most things in life is having good communications between. Shippo reports having all of the information about package fulfillment on a company page goes a long way to improve the customer experience.\nSmall retailers are catching on though albeit very slowly. The survey saw a 1 to 5 percent increase from 2017 for providing information on shipping costs, average fulfillment time, the carrier who will deliver the item, and when the item will ship.\nYou can download the 2018 State of Shipping report (PDF) from Shippo here.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"When human beings do unspeakable things to their fellow man, society's need to understand why such things happen often leads to mass speculation and a sort of fascination with the persons who commit these violent acts. As such, manifestos, journals, and other windows into the minds of such people are often widely shared and discussed. The manifesto of Elliot Rodger \u2014 who murdered six people in a shooting rampage near Santa Barbara, CA on Friday \u2014 is no exception.\nMahbod Moghadam, co-founder of annotation website Rap Genius, felt compelled to not only read Roger's hate-filled manifesto, but to use his company's website to leave comments and notes about the parts of the text he found most interesting. Most unfortunately, those comments were, for the most part, insensitive at best and deeply disturbing at worst.\nMahbod is my friend. He's a brilliant, creative, complicated person with a ton of love in his heart. Without Mahbod Rap Genius would not exist, and I am grateful for all he has done to help Rap Genius succeed. But I cannot let him compromise the Rap Genius mission \u2013 a mission that remains almost as delicate and inchoate as it was when we three founders decided to devote our lives to it almost 5 years ago.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Aren't happy with this searching result? - Customers who bought Oak Trim Molding also bought: Mount Beverage Holder, Sony Ipod Shuffle, and Genie Harem Pants. Specify your shopping searches with shop Oak Trim Molding for lowest prices, discount Oak Trim Molding, top Oak Trim Molding deals at Shopterion.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaqkph b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaqkph
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..4d7637a1c1b1611fdcee05dc5334fddce6f603d5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaqkph
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"He received the farm Groendal on 28 Feb 1699.\nSome published sources wrongly gives her baptism as 5 November 1784. This baptism entry was that of Catharina daughter of Kees de Boer also known Cornelis Claesz from Utrecht.\nThe above is from the eGSSA transcription of Cape Town Baptisms for 1665-1695. The original had the details across the page in columns which were transcribed vertically and I have added the headings in braces for clarity. The entry refers to Catharina Cornelisz, daughter of Cornelis Claesz of Utrecht, aka Kees de Boer, the very same Catharina referred to at the end of the Barend Pieterse Blom entry, where it states that some sources give her baptism date as 5 November 1784 and explains that this refers to the daughter of Kees de Boer. However, Kees de Boer married Catharina van Bengalen \/ Malabar \/ De Cust Coromandel on 15th March 1676 - \"Den 15 Dito (Maart 1676) Cornelis Claasz van Uytregt vrijborger en Catharina van Malbaar\" (Cape Town Marriages 1665-1695; eGSSA transcription) - and could not have fathered a daughter baptised more than a century later.\nThere is an article by Mansell Upham (\"The Soetkoek Syndrome\", written in 2001 and reproduced in a posting in the RootsWeb BUITENPOSTEN mailing list in February 2005), in which he concludes that the wife of Barend Pieterse Blom was one Catharina de Beer, origin unknown, and not a daughter of Louis de Berault and Catharina van de Kaap. The article explains in some detail how a \"mythology\" developed around the subject, but there is a simple alternative to disprove Louis de Berault's connection with Catharina \"de Berault\": Catharina was baptised in Cape Town in November 1684, and Louis de Berault did not arrive at the Cape until nearly four years later, on the Zuid-Beveland on 19th August 1688, along with his sister Anne and her husband Rev Paul Simond (I cannot find a primary source for this - perhaps someone can oblige - but I do not believe it is disputed).","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"According to Romans 6:6, \"our old self\/man was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin\u2026\" If who we were in Adam has in fact died in Christ, just what self are we to die to?\nThe old man\/self has already died in Christ and we have been transformed into a new creature in Christ, one who is holy, blameless, forgiven, sanctified, made righteous, complete, etc. So there is no longer any old self\/man to die to, right?\nOn the other hand, we do live in a world full of temptation and pulls on our flesh but the flesh is not who you are! So, if you say, we have to die to what our flesh might be tempted to engage in, I could agree to that. The trouble for me is many Christians think they still have an \"old man\" that needs to die. According to the Scriptures that simply is not true!\nThe old man wasn't merely wounded in Christ, he died in Him! We need to die to the lie of a separate self apart from Christ. That's what needs to die!","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"He also cites benefits from a sustainability perspective, with products being refurbished and sent back out. the pilot project allowed homeowners to access tools such as chainsaws, hedge trimmers a.\nI have used, owned, cussed, smelled the oil\/gas exhaust and sharpened chainsaws before. Spent way to many weekends cutting firewood for the winter to enjoy the damn things.\nProduct Description. condition HUSQVARNA 455R Gas Chainsaw This item was refurbished by.\nFind helpful customer reviews and review ratings for Poulan Pro 967185102 PP4218A 42cc Assembled Chainsaw with Case, 18-Inch at Amazon.com. Read honest and.\nFind great deals on eBay for Husqvarna Chainsaw in Garden Chainsaws. Shop with confidence.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Filtered: Only entries tagged as Terriers displayed.\nThe dude who made Gattaca is making another dystopian sci-fi film, this one starring Amanda Seyfried and Justin Timberlake. Exciting!\nI am sad to say I am not doing my part to support Terriers. It's a great show, but I can't get myself together to actually watch it at all. Don't be like me! Save Terriers!\nAn amusing comparison of Lord Voldemort and Lord Vader.\nFun stuff I already posted to Twitter: a first look at Sherlock Holmes 2, and Darren Aronofsky on why he's doing The Wolverine and what it'll be like.\nIf you haven't heard yet, people other than Joss Whedon are doing a new Buffy the Vampire Slayer movie that will reboot the franchise. I'm willing to check it out, although I think the chances of it being any good are very, very low. Anyway, here are Mr. Whedon's thoughts on the project.\nA couple of cool pieces of art by Chris King.\nGame|Life gives a very positive review to Donkey Kong Country Returns, saying it \"feels a lot like Metroid with monkeys.\" Intriguing!\nTerriers didn't sound like a show I wanted to see. I mean, it's called Terriers. What is it about, dogs? I like dogs, but... As it turns out, the show is only marginally about dogs, and is much more about a pair of down-on-their-luck, small-time private eyes in a beach town who stumble into big-time trouble when an old drinking buddy asks one of them to help his estranged daughter. The show stars Donal Logue as ex-cop and recovering alcoholic Hank Dolworth, and Michael Raymond-James as his partner and best friend. There's nothing terribly creative or shockingly new about this pilot episode, but it's definitely a strong entry in the storied genre of private detective TV shows. It's funny, smart, engaging, and emotionally effective. Logue is fantastic, especially in a scene where he has lunch with his ex-wife (played by the equally talented Kimberly Quinn), and suddenly realizes that she's planning to remarry. He tries hard not to show it, but you can see in his eyes that his heart has just broken to bits in his chest. When the next scene finds him staring hard at the bottles on the shelf at a liquor store, you're sure he's going to dive off the wagon headfirst. I actually said, \"No, no, no\" out loud.\nI can see this show going great places. I'm gonna try to keep an eye on it if I can. You can watch the pilot for free right now on Amazon Video on Demand. I recommend it, obviously.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Topic: Anyone else jam making at the moment?\nRe: Anyone else jam making at the moment?\nTopic: Elderflower season is here!\nRe: Elderflower season is here!\nI am not going to be deep about this....Colin Firth in a dark room!\nThis thread has reminded me that I have yet to order my book! Have been toooooo busy to do anything except busy-ness. Will get onto it over the weekend, then I will know what you lot are talking about.\nTopic: I've got a granite trough!\nI was just thinking that MMM - would cost you a fortune here! Absolutely lovely Breton house. I want one!!!!!\nCool! Here, you would need a roof and a woodburner though...you could make some walls out of some straw bales to spare your neighbours blushes, maybe?\nTopic: Living on foraged food for a year!\nI never had a nickname before I started chatting on t'net. Now even my sister calls me chickenlady!\nThe chook tractor? Is that some kind of luxury chicken home?\nLovely getting the eggs. What you gonna have with them?","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzarcrs b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzarcrs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ea0905b1921e53de6d2de9890d4d1d2cde0fa3f7
--- /dev/null
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@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"When it comes to healthy eating and lifestyle, it's the little things that can really add up to make a big difference. Think \"diet\" and you might assume it requires a radical revamp of your life or misery-inducing restrictions. Diets also have been shown to not work for long term success; most people gain the weight back over time that they worked so hard to lose.\nWhen it comes to lasting weight loss and permanent health transformation, research shows you're better off making small, consistent changes rather than aiming for a major diet or lifestyle overhaul. The key is to create realistic, sustainable and enjoyable habits and incorporate them into your every day life.\nThere are also other factors to your health than just what you eat. Your daily activity, exercise, stress management, sleep, mental & emotional health, relationships and supplementation are also major players in your health.\nThis week, what aspect of your health would you like to improve? Refer back to your top 3 SMART goals.\nIn what way(s) could you improve this area?\nOne of your top goals was to have a consistent exercise program. Dr. Senz recommended that you exercise 5x a week, as this will help you manage your blood pressure, blood sugar and aid in weight loss.\nWhat do I need to start exercising? Maybe it means getting new workout shoes, some home equipment or a gym membership.\nWhat will I do for exercise? Cardio, strength training, a class? What do I enjoy?\nHow long and where will this take place? Decide on some specific dates & times that work best in your schedule.\nOnce you have decided how you will start, then write out WHEN you will get started on this specific habit.\nRemember to START SMALL. Although the long goal might be 5x a week of exercising, pick a reasonable goal based on your current lifestyle. It is better (and safer) to start with 2x a week rather than going all out every day.\nNeed help with deciding on a healthy habit action plan? Don't hesitate to reach out!\nSet a daily step goal using your phone or activity tracker. Work up to 10k steps a day!\nStand versus sit at while working, phone calls etc.\nDo your rehab exercises as prescribed for your spinal health.\nPark in the farthest spot at every parking lot.\nTake 3 minute movement breaks throughout the day.\nTake a walk (start with just 10 minutes) before or after work.\nTake up your favorite recreational activity: swimming, tennis, hiking, biking, dancing etc.\nImprove your flexibility with stretching.\nIncrease your water intake (rule of thumb is 1\/2 of your body weight in ounces per day).\nEat a new color in your meals.\nTry a new vegetable or fruit.\nTry a new recipe or meal idea.\nThrow away the white flour and sugars in your kitchen.\nSwitch to almond or coconut milk instead of dairy milk.\nEat (a protein rich) breakfast.\nUn-Plug for 15 minutes daily.\nJournal or connect with a friend or loved one.\nCreate a peaceful night routine.\nIncrease your sleep; the goal is 7-8 hours per night.\nWhat new habit will you start this week?","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"This model has jumped the Q in the superzoom category.24-2000mm equivalent....16mp, F2.8-6.3.Ideal for the one camera person who needs a good length on the.telephoto angle.Only shootsJpegs, but it is a the point and shoot sensor.Not a purists piece of equipment, however will appeal to many surfers,paparazzi and peeping toms!\n2000mm? (I see it's an 83x Optical Zoom).\nWould there be any real value in using this zoom range for a handheld camera though?\nWell theres a good reason to be sceptical with that focal length, however the reviews are pretty complimentary so far..the stabilising is supposed to work quite well..\nOK, its been out a little while now....I've tried it out at local cam shop and it impresses me for what it is!\nDefinitely need a monopod to frame the subject with the zoom fully extended, but the ability to zoom back and pick up the subject at the touch of a button is great.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"En el contexto del siglo XII europeo, se impone la iconograf\u00eda del Cristo Luz aureolado por una almendra m\u00edstica, sosteniendo un libro abierto con inscripciones alusivas a una teolog\u00eda de la luz.\nLa proliferaci\u00f3n de la iconograf\u00eda de la Maiestas Domini se produce en el contexto hist\u00f3rico de la reforma lit\u00fargica can\u00f3niga agustiniana, cuyo origen se encuentra en san Rufo de Avignon y san V\u00edctor de Marsella. Catalu\u00f1a, se hace depositaria de la Regla se san Agust\u00edn, que propugna un ideal renovado de belleza m\u00edstica neoplat\u00f3nica.\nLa llegada al Principado de manuscritos de la Homil\u00eda al Pr\u00f3logo de Juan, escrita por Juan Escoto Eri\u00fagena, es una prueba, en pleno siglo XII, de la relaci\u00f3n entre una iconograf\u00eda teol\u00f3gica de la luz y una tradici\u00f3n neoplat\u00f3nica originada en el siglo IX en la corte carolingia.\nEl texto de la Vox spiritualis aquilae representa la recepci\u00f3n de la teolog\u00eda de la luz en la iconograf\u00eda de la Maiestas Domini y, con ella, una nueva forma de representar a Dios, al hombre y al mundo en el arte.\nIn the 12th century European context, predominates the iconography of Christ placed in a light mystic mandorla holding an open book containing inscriptions concerning a special theology of light.\nThe Maiestas Domini iconography strongly arises together with the historical fact of the agustinian liturgical movement. The so called agustinian canonigas were originally born in saint Ruph of Avignon and saint Victor of Marseille holding the spirituality of the Rule written by saint Agustin himself and later moved into Catalu\u00f1a renewing his original idea of neoplatonic mystical beauty.\nThe arrival of collections of manuscripts into Catalonia containing the Homily to the Prologus of saint John by Scotus Eriugena is enough to proof the relationship between the theology of light iconography and the neoplatonic traditions originated in the 9th century Carolingian Court.\nThe text of the Vox Spiritualis Aquilae involves a reception of the Theology of light within the Maiestas Domini iconography. It is a new way of representing God, man and world in art.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"The Navy will be hosting the annual Deer Run on Naval Magazine (NAVMAG) Indian Island July 14. This event is open to the public.\nBeginning at 10 a.m., participants of all ages will cover a 5-kilometer (3.10 mile) terrain course through a forested area on the southern end of Indian Island. There is also a 1-mile road run available, ideal for young children, participants with special needs or those with strollers.\nThose wishing to participate in this year's Deer Run can register online or in person at any local Morale, Welfare and Recreation (MWR) facility. Dept. of Defense-affiliated Navy personnel eligible for MWR programs may register at http:\/\/www.navylifepnw.com using MyFFR activity number 623400. Eligible MWR patrons include active duty military, full-time reservists, Dept. of Defense civilians, and military retirees and family members.\nCost to register is $5 for those 18 years and over. Participation is free for those 17 and under. An exclusive 2018 Deer Run t-shirt is available for $15, while supplies last. If you have questions about the race or if you are not DoD-affiliated and would like to purchase a t-shirt, please call (360) 315-2134 or email nbkfitness@navylifepnw.com.\nPre-registration ends at noon July 13.\nRegistration is also available on-site on the day of the race from 9 a.m. to 9:45 a.m. MWR will accept both cash and credit cards on race day at NAVMAG Indian Island.\nParticipants will be able to enter the main gate at NAVMAG Indian Island starting at 8:30 a.m. Valid picture identification is required for entry. Dogs are not allowed on the run course. To ensure timely base access at Indian Island, participants are encouraged to arrive no later than 9:30 a.m. the day of the race.\nFor more information, please call (360) 315-2134.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Three people escaped with minor injuries from a gas explosion at a shop with flats above it on Portland Road in South Norwood, this evening.\nThe three adults were treated at the scene by the London Ambulance Service.\nThe shop and dwellings of three floors suffered severe damage to the ground floor area.\nOne fire engine from Woodside fire station and a fire rescue unit from Croydon fire station attended the incident.\nCrews cordoned off the area and made the scene safe before handing over the incident to the Metropolitan Police and a borough surveyor.\nThe Brigade was called at 1749 and the incident was over at 1936.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzasbbe b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzasbbe
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+{"text":"Discover your favorite coupon through 33 live and hot Macarthur Baskets coupon codes and deals. Shop at macarthurbaskets.com.au and get extra savings on your purchase with current top Macarthur Baskets promo codes and promotions. Here is the best promotion:Save 5% Off Entire Hamper Range.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"1 frozen peach 1 cup unsweetened almond milk 1 drop cinnamon essential oil 1 tsp honey splash of vanilla 1\/4 cup oats *Add spinach & kale to up your greens Blend and enjoy!\nApple time just got way better! A hint of cinnamon does the trick! ONE drop of cinnamon in this 2 oz spray bottle full of water is plenty. Shake, spray on sliced apples, and enjoy! *I also love to use this spray as a natural breath freshener and air freshener.\nHi there! I'm Katie, fondly referred to as Nurse Kate! Click my picture to learn more about me.\n\u00a9 Copyright 2014 Wellness Essentials with Nurse Kate.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"For ages 18 and up, all genders welcome, REGISTER TODAY!\nopens February 1, 2019 and closes February 28, 2019.\nOur October newsletter has the latest Family Fitness news along with updates on our members and events!","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"This is my idea: What if every week we nominate one person--say AC, KMC, Tweety, whomever to be the VW Czar of the week.\nThe VW Czar chooses five recipes from the VegWeb site--they can be recipes that person has submitted, favorite recipes that person has tried and really liked and thinks should receive more attention (i.e., hidden gems), or recipes that sound absurd, funny or possibly disgusting and want to find out for sure. So then everyone participatng in the challenge has to ty some number of them -- say two -- and submit official reviews on the site.\nThat would be cool. Shamefully, I don't use VW for recipes, but rather my cookbooks. If I participated, I probably wouldn't make but maybe one a week out of the five, but that would be a challenge to me. I'm down with that.\nThe issue right now, as evidenced by how long it took someone to answer your post is that so many members are staying away because of the problem with viruses, malaware, etc. Maybe when the new site goes up they'll come back and we can do the challenge then.\nYeah, I think it's a cute idea too. I definitely don't make enough vegweb recipes, and it's a bit ironic that our cooking challenges have often surrounded cookbooks and not vegweb itself!\nAlso, I think I'd have fun trolling everyone with weird recipes if I had a czar week. Chocolate mashed potatoes, everybody!\nI used to cook from the more and found that some were very good and some were meh, but it was hard to tell from the reviews. I think many people don't like leaving negative reviews of personal contributions.\nAlso, there are some very overlooked gems on this site so it would be a way to highlight them.\nAlso, for the egocentric recipe Czar, it would be a way to get people to try the recipes that you have posted.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Simon Baker is a perfect fit to wear the cloak of Longines' Ambassador of Elegance. The Australian star, wearing a beautiful suit and a Longines timepiece, turned up at the 2014 Breeders Cup' at Santa Anita Park on Saturday looking nothing but a class act. The 45-year-old The Mentalist star presented Longines' Prize of Elegance to the man and woman at the Breeders' Cup who best personified the brand slogan \"elegance is an attitude,\" and was also on hand to see timepieces presented to the winners of the Longines Breeders' Cup Turf race, Longines Breeders' Cup Distaff race and Breeders' Cup Classic\u2014all on minimal sleep after working until midnight, no less. Somehow we think Baker is always the perfect host: after pouring us a glass of water, we sat down to discuss elegance, comfort and life after The Mentalist.\nWhat defines luxury to you?\nAre you all about bespoke?\nI think bespoke is definitely synonymous with comfort\u2014it doesn't have to be bespoke\u2014but bespoke suggests that it's made for you, which would imply that it suits you. You'll feel comfortable with you, which all goes back to comfort.\nFor me, my family makes me feel comfortable. To have what I need with me for different occasions; I only like [to have] what I need. It all goes back to that thing of comfort. Some people are hard-wired in different ways, and they need more to be comfortable. I'm not a minimalist [though].\nWhat does it mean to be an ambassador of elegance?\nThere's a little bit of pressure! The word 'elegance' scares me. There is expectation that I'm always going to be elegant. To be an ambassador for Longines is amazing. It's a wonderful company, very traditional, very elegant, a very well performing company\u2014what they make performs well. I like the consistency of that.\nDo you consider yourself to be a bit 'metrosexual' given how perfectly presented you look?\nI have to be comfortable with who I am. I don't dress up like this every day, but I'm comfortable when I put this suit on. That's one thing that's very interesting when you're the ambassador for a company. It works well if you can relate organically to that company, and my relationship with Longines is a fit. I don't think there's a pressure on me to be anything other than what I am. I put on a suit, I'm going to bet on some horses and talk to some people. It's nice; this is the first event that I've done for Longines where my wife [actress Rebecca Rigg] has been able to come with me.\nI've heard some rumors that this might be the final season of the The Mentalist. Is that true?\nI don't know; we'll see. I would roll with the punches either way, it is how it is. Creatively I'd definitely like to pursue more things. I'm really not sure [if The Mentalist is being renewed]; they haven't told me.\nWhat would you like to do instead if it is?\nI'm focusing on a film that I want to direct. It's a coming of age story; two teenage boys in Australia. It's adapted from a book called \"Breath\" by Tim Winton. There's a lot of stuff, a lot of options [things I could do after], but I kind of feel like I have to go where my heart is. My heart is kind of in that field, it's riskier. Not necessarily behind the scenes, but definitely being a bit more responsible for what I'm working on.\nHow many timepieces do you own?\nMore than I can say. More than I should\u2026one for every mood. No, I'm kidding. I do have a few.\nWhat to you is the greatest luxury in life?\nTime. Having time to be able to appreciate where you are and who you're with and enjoy the moments that you're in.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzasuna b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzasuna
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index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..552036bdef50d665f2d0fa0ed6751f221e0d9cb0
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+{"text":"See our range of easy to install Robe Units.\ncustomisable cabinetry before you order.\nyou have access to your projects.\nMinimise mistakes, store all your project quotes online.\nRetrieve them whenever you want.\nfor installation, the choice is yours.\nto ensure your cabinets are of the highest quality.\nOnline Cabinetry Ordering System for Cabinet Makers & Builders.\ngoCabinets is a FREE ordering system that allows trade professionals to quote and order cabinets in real time. In one click, send your orders direct to your local hand selected CNC manufacturer. Have your projects delivered on-site, cut-to-size and ready to install. Become a member and discover how goCabinets will streamline your business.\nFind out how goCabinets is helping business across Australia goFaster, Smarter & Bigger!\nWatch Cooper's amazing start-up success story!\nFind out how Andrew lowered his stress.\nWatch Roger learn a few new tricks.\n\"Amazing software! This software has turned my business around!\"\n\"Thought I'd give goCabinets a go, first order in and already loving it!\"","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Space Camp is a dark base sparkle with purple, blue, green, pink and gold throughout.\nPLEASE NOTE: this is an OVERSHADOW. What is an overshadow? A cosmetic safe glitter\/sparkle without any base to create a sheer sparkle similar to our Shimmer Me's, but without the goop. Use this over a boring eye shadow to add some interested or anywhere else you want some extra sparkle!\nIngredients: Mica, Titanium Dioxide, Carmine, Synthetic Flourphogopite, Ultramarine Blue, Tin Oxide, Manganese Violet, Chromium Green Oxide, Silica.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"new orleans kitchen. Did you know new orleans kitchen has become the hottest topics in this category? Thats the reason were presenting this topic at this time. We had taken this image from the net we feel would be one of the most representative pics for new orleans kitchen.\nWe all know every persons judgment; will be different from one another. Likewise to this graphic, in our view, this is one of the greatest image, now what do you think?\nThis Knowledge about new orleans kitchen has been uploaded by admin in this category section. Please leave a review here. Many thanks.\nNew Orleans Style Chef S Kitchen Bobo Design Build.\nJunior League Of New Orleans Kitchen Tour New Orleans Homes .\nBrothers Take New Orleans Living Room Transformations Brothers .\nContemporary New Orleans Kitchen On Within Akioz Com 1 Fromgentogen Us.\nThe Uptown New Orleans Kitchen Was Just Picked As The Kitchen Of .\nNew Orleans Kitchen Kitchen Photos Orleans Kitchen Island Canada .\nProperty Brothers Take New Orleans Kitchen Decor Inspiration .\nKitchen Cabinets In New Orleans Nagpurentrepreneurs.\nStylish New Orleans Kitchen Ideas Ideas For Home Decor And Gallery.\nPlain New Orleans Kitchen On And Impressive Intended For 28 10 .\nNew Orleans Kitchen Decor New Style Kitchen X A A New Orleans .\nUptown New Orleans Cottage Kitchen Renovation Traditional .\nJunior League Of New Orleans Kitchen Tour For Children S Education .\nNew Orleans Homes Lifestyles The Hopkins Company Architects.\nNew Orleans Kitchen Junior League Of New Kitchen Tour Orleans .\nSchilleci S New Orleans Kitchen 407 Photos 514 Reviews Cajun .\nKitchen Cabinets New Orleans Nagpurentrepreneurs.\nSchilleci S New Orleans Kitchen Restaurant The Woodlands TX .\nDelightful New Orleans Kitchen On With Regard To Plain Simply Home .\nNew Orleans Kitchen New Revival Traditional Kitchen Kitchen And .\nKitchen Decor Inc New Orleans Kitchen Decor.\nNew Orleans Kitchen Junior League Of New Kitchen Tour New Homes .\nClassic Cajun Creole Dining The Woodlands Market Street .\nAstonishing New Orleans Kitchen On For Decor Iron Blog 11 .\nJLNO Kitchen Tour New Orleans Homes Lifestyles Spring 2012 .\nPearl S New Orleans Kitchen Picture Of Pearl S New Orleans Kitchen .\nNew Orleans Kitchen Loop Chicago Urbanspoon Zomato.\nNew Orleans Kitchen Order Online 75 Photos 56 Reviews Cajun .\nTibby S New Orleans Kitchen Brandon FL Opens Photo News 247.\nNew Orleans Distinctive Romantic Style Spent The Evening Window .\nNew Orleans Kitchen On Kitchen Inside New Orleans Homes Made For .\nPearl S New Orleans Kitchen Elk Rapids Menu Prices Restaurant .\nKitchen Cabinets New Orleans Prissy Ideas Charming Simple Pictures .\nNew Orleans Kitchen New Themed Kitchen And Baths Transitional .\nNew Orleans Kitchen Decor Simpli Decor.\nTibby S New Orleans Kitchen Winter Park FL Restaurant.\nNew Orleans Style Curtains Kitchen Home Design Ideas Essentials.\nTibby S New Orleans Kitchen Altamonte Altamonte Springs FL .\nThe New Orleans Red River Home Center.\nAlmost Veggies Schilleci S New Orleans Kitchen.\nKevin Belton S New Orleans Kitchen Kevin Belton Eugenia Uhl .\nLittle New Orleans Kitchen Oyster Bar Menu Urbanspoon Zomato.\nOf The First Water New Orleans Homes Lifestyles Fall 2012 .\nLittle New Orleans Kitchen Oyster Bar Orlando Restaurant .\nStunning New Orleans Kitchen On Regarding Singer Kitchens Remodeling .\nSchilleci S New Orleans Kitchen Browne McGregor Architects.\nBest 15 Kitchen And Bathroom Designers In New Orleans Houzz.\nNew Orleans Kitchen Decor Rapflava.\nPastry Chef Kristyne Bouley Of Dante S Kitchen New Orleans LA .\nWinter Park Orlando Florida Tibby S New Orleans Kitchen Restaurant .\nTibby S New Orleans Kitchen Reviews Winter Park Florida Skyscanner.\nNew Orleans Kitchen 4K Pictures 4K Pictures Full HQ Wallpaper .\nKitchen New Orleans Shotgun Cottage Idea Homes Bathroom Ideas .\nTibby S New Orleans Kitchen Picture Of Tibby S New Orleans Kitchen .\nSouthern Folk Artist Antiques Dealer Collector Creole Kitchen A .\nTibby S New Orleans Kitchen Orlando Restaurants Review 10Best .\nNew Orleans Kitchen New Kitchen New Orleans Kitchen Katy Homehub Co.\nProperty Brothers Take New Orleans Kitchen Decor Inspiration Before .\nLouisiana Life On The River Traditional Kitchen New Orleans .\nNew Orleans Kitchen Dinner Menu Schilleci S New Orleans Kitchen.\nKitchen Fabulous Ness New Orleans KHB Interiors.\nWalnut Wood Countertop Kitchen Island New Orleans Louisiana.\nNew Orleans School Of Cooking Gastro Traveling.\nPearl S New Orleans Kitchen Cajun Creole Restaurant In Elk Rapids.\nNew Orleans Kitchen Have Orleans Seafood Kitchen Menu Katy Tx .\nLittle New Orleans Kitchen Oyster Bar From 38 50 Orlando FL .\nNew Orleans Kitchen Decor New Kitchen In Southern Style Now Farmer .\nNew Orleans Archives TrippaLuka Style.\nTibby S New Orleans Kitchen Today S Orlando.\nNew Orleans Kitchen Witch Cookbooks Is An Ode To Its Owner S .\nNew Orleans Kitchen Closed Shenzhen Restaurants Dining .\nNew Orleans Cottage For Sale Is Bright Yellow And Blue.\nHouse Beautiful Unveils 2015 Kitchen Of The Year In New Orleans .\nTibby S New Orleans Kitchen Altamonte Springs.\nCustom Millwork For A Canal Street Dream Home New Orleans Custom .\nPearl S New Orleans Kitchen Is A Restaurant In Elk Rapids Michigan.\nKitchen Cabinets New Orleans Kitchen Remodel Kitchen Design .","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Canon EOS Rebel T6: The high-end camera manufacturing companies give a remarkably low price tag to their entry-level devices. As these cameras are most essential products of the camera producing companies. The marketing range of the entry-level cameras is much higher than the professional cameras.\nCanon uses the plastic material in most of its DSLR's and so is with the affordable Rebel T6. The material is also a plus point of the camera which will make it lightweight. You can efficiently carry it on your hand or shoulder via straps. It is decently designed which is best for all the newcomers in the field. It comes with comprehensive Quick Control menu. The letters are clearly visible in daylight. The complete auto modes pare options is the basic attachment. The advanced modes contain a singular control dial and the Av+\/- button which is utilized for control shutter speed, aperture value as well as exposure compensation. It also features real, a live optical viewfinder concerning image composition. The design and looks make it a beautiful high-end DSLR camera.\nEOS Rebel T6 presents a 9-point AF system that is common in these days. It is safe than phone camera so, if you are still using your smartphone camera to click photos, then its time for you to change your thoughts. It provides the superior touch-to-focus capability, face detection, 20x awesome focus points, live view active focusing compared to smartphone camera features.\nThe Rebel T6 captures best images in daylight, but the images get little poor in dull light. However, the picture quality is good compared to other cameras in this range. The Picture colors are bright and sharp. When you click in dim light, then you might observe green shades in skin tones, but it's not a serious issue as it can be photoshopped using other software. It includes a cheap kit lens so you should not expect much from this affordable Canon camera. It has a 18MP camera sensor. The metering system of T6 is well utilized for better picture clarity.\nCanon T6 also features Wi-Fi connectivity which is present in many of the DSLR's. It is one of the essential features of the DSLR at present. You can use the Wi-Fi connectivity to transfer images through the camera to Wi-Fi compatible device. It can be also used for managing your camera via smartphone. You can use this feature by installing Canon Camera Connect app which supports almost every iOS and Android smartphone. You can link the app easier to your camera after generating an easy password. The Rebel T6 features NFC which helps you to connect easily and rapidly, however, the feature is available just for the Android NFC-powered smartphones at present.\nThe display is somewhat different in this model. It comes with an LCD display of about 3-inch, 920k-dot unit. So, the wide display will make your photos and videos viewing even more interesting. The sensitivity is ISO100-6,400 which can be expanded to 12,800. The ISO sensitivity is not commendable when compared to the competing cameras. The latest T6 allows you to record videos at Full HD 1920 x 1080 resolution and further you can also manually handle videos with 30, 25 and 24fps frame rates possible. The camera doesn't have 4K video recording feature, which might be a weak point.\nSo, this was the full review of entry-level DSLR, Canon EOS Rebel T6. If you want to buy your first ever DSLR camera, then this is one of the best choices for everyone. If you liked this review and willing to buy it, then you can visit Amazon for a great discount. I hope you liked this article. You can leave your comments below and must share it with your friends.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"39104d57c5ab7a28660f6c73244074f7 jpg this image has been removed at the request of its copyright owner resume worksheet. Resume worksheet. 2790129 png resume worksheet 1275 x 1650 116 kb sample worksheets 1275. Resume and worksheets on pinterest printable worksheet free httpjobresumesample com1992printable. Fill in the blank resume worksheet form online printable pdf.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
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+{"text":"We hit the road across Europe with US rockers Pop Evil next week! There's still a few tickets left so grab them while you can!\nTrack to know when The Fallen State is playing near you.\nBrilliant as always, 'The Fallen State' Rock!!\nAmazing as per usual! Highly recommend to everyone, great music and a great group of guys!","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"This is the new design with red diamonds, color could be changed as buyer's request.\nLooking for ideal Pageant Beauty Crystal Crowns Manufacturer & supplier ? We have a wide selection at great prices to help you get creative. All the Queen Flower Crystal Crowns are quality guaranteed. We are China Origin Factory of Rhinestone Queen Crowns. If you have any question, please feel free to contact us.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"You're a side-hustler with big dreams for your business, dreams to do the work you really love and want to share with the world. You're a freedom-seeker who wants to live the slower, more meaningful lifestyle you long for.\nBut how when you can't seem to make enough time for your side-hustle and you never seem to get to the end of your to-do list? And how do you get past the voice in your head asking is it worth it, will this ever work, who are you to put your work out into the world?\nI get it, I've been there and I'm cheering you on every step of the way. I can tell you now - it is worth it, you can make it work, and you have every right to put your work out into the world.\nI been doing the side-hustle thing for 7 years, first building a successful product-based business on the side of a 9-5 and later, the business I have now. I know what it's like to manage your time between a 9-5 and a side-business and I know how uncomfortable it feels to push outside of your comfort zone. But I also know how exciting it feels to see big things happening, to see your ideas become reality and take the leap from a comfortable 9-5.\nWhen I got intentional about building my business, big things started to happen. I took inspiration from the tools I used in my 9-5 as a project manager and using my own flair (and extreme geekiness) for planning and productivity I developed my own 3-step planning method which helped me focus on the right areas, I created tools for beating procrastination, streamlining my tasks and being more efficient with my time. I also learned about how important it was to put boundaries in place to avoid burnout due to trying to do all-of-the-things at once.\nThis all added up to and finding more happiness, fulfilment and freedom, not only in the work I do but also in my lifestyle.\nAnd I really want the same for you!\nI want to share my tools and experience with you to help you grow your side-hustle into something magical. I'd love to be part of your journey from side-hustler to freedom-seeker and see you create the business and lifestyle you long for.\nI'll be your business buddy, accountability partner and planning and productivity mentor - all wrapped into one. I'll help you take a deep dive into your side-hustle and adjust the steering to make sure it's on track to deliver the kind of business and lifestyle you're after. We'll work together to create a plan for your side-hustle and I'll help you find the productivity tools that work best for YOU. I can help you push past the fear, self-doubt and uncertainty. I'll be the one who cheers you on and really understands what you're trying to do here.\nI know you can grow a thriving, sustainable business on the side of a 9-5 or other commitments, but you need a plan, careful time management and the right support.\nA health check for your side-hustle highlighting where the opportunities are, where your focus needs to be and clarity on how growing your side-hustle can support the slower and more meaningful lifestyle you dream of.\nOne of my A1 12-week wall planners to create your 12-week plan on for the 3 months we're working together.\nThe tools you need to create your own action plan using my 3-step planning method, which you can use time and time again to drive your side-hustle forward.\nA set of new time-saving tools and techniques that will help you make your time more efficient.\nMy help on what's going to work to keep you motivated and how to put those tactics in place.\nThe tools and methods that I used to grow my side-hustle and how you can make best use of them to boost your productivity.\nThe know-how to make your time more efficient, your to-do lists more effective and your routine work for you.\nTotal support and accountability from me, someone who's been there and knows what it feels like, someone to cheer you on every step of the way.\nHaving me as your accountability partner, business buddy and planning and productivity mentor all wrapped into one while we work together.\nCall notes after each call with my comments on what we discussed and a recording of our call so you can listen back.\nTasks and exercises set after each call to help you work through the next step in levelling up your side-hustle.\nMy support with the tricky self-doubt stuff, dealing with the fear you might be feeling and my help with getting you to widen your comfort zone.\nUnlimited email support from me for those days when you might be struggling for motivation, feeling overwhelmed by your to-do list or to ask specific questions. I'll be in your inbox cheering you on and giving you my full support every step of the way.\nTake yourself from side-hustler to freedom-seeker, with my support every step of the way.\nOn the first call we'll kick things off with by digging deep into what kind of business and lifestyle you want to create. We'll figure out what needs change in your side-hustle and get clarity on where your focus needs to be toreallytake things up a level. We'll talk about what struggles you have when it comes to planning and productivity and unpick what's been holding you back so far.\nTogether we'll set 1-3 focus areas and goals for you to work on over the 12 weeks and I'll take you through how to create your own 12-week plan using my 3-step planning method and the printed wall planner that you'll get as part of the course.\nWe'll use the rest of the calls to discuss how you're getting on with your plan and I'll introduce you to the planning and time management tools that will help you with whatever might be holding you back or getting in the way of making your plan a reality. This might be focussing on how you can work smarter with your time or plan your weeks more effectively, it could be introducing you to a new way of writing to do lists that helps you make things happen or creating a flexible routine designed specifically around your lifestyle. We'll also cover setting up systems and looking at what tasks you might be able to outsource or just take off your to-do list all together, so that you can free up time to work on the parts of your side-hustle where you really shine.\nAs well as the practical stuff we'll talk about what's holding you back and find ways of getting past that fear of putting yourself out there, the self-doubt that comes up when you start doing something new in your business or perhaps the overwhelm you start to feel from time to time.\nMy 1:1 mentoring is entirely shaped around you, so we'll take everything at your pace and talk about whatever it is that you need to focus on during each call.\nAfter each call you'll get a recording of our chat with detailed call notes from me which will include tasks and exercises for working through the next step in your side-hustle journey.\nI'll also be sending you a friendly email each Monday to see how things are going since our last chat and how you're getting on with your plan.\nYou'll also be able to drop me an email at any time to ask me questions, bounce ideas off me or for moral support on those days when you're struggling for motivation.\n1:1 mentoring is best suited to you if you've decided it's time to really commit to getting serious about your side-hustle and put in the work it takes to level up a business. Mentoring is the right choice if you're looking for the dedicated support and encouragement that you can only get from one-to-one conversations. Perhaps you're craving some personalised feedback from someone who's been there or want to create some planning and productivity tools that are tailored just for you. Maybe you want more accountability to help you get serious about showing up and doing the work that it takes to build the meaningful business and slower lifestyle you long for.\nIf you're nodding along, the dedicated support you'll get from 1:1 mentoring is for you.\nReady to get serious about your side-hustle?","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"With a saw blade specifically designed for cutting composite decking and hidden fasteners that you can t see, Seventrust offers a smooth decking surface to savor.\nAlso compatible with most leading composite grooved decking. Phantom GT Hidden . Fiberon Cortex Screws for Hidden . Hidden Deck Fasteners be used with decking .\ninstalling composite decking in patterns with hidden .\nRe: installing composite decking in patterns with hidden fasteners From your description, I believe you are referring to the TC-2, I hate those things.\nDeck-Drive\u2122 DCU Screw Plug Solution Hidden Deck Fasteners .\nFastening deck boards and trim can result in visible screws which can distract from the beauty of your outdoor project. The Deck-Drive DCU screw plug solution is a complete Hidden Deck-Fastening System\u2122 designed for use with our premium DCU Composite screws and consists of DCU Composite screws, DCU screw plugs and the Auto-Set Driver\u2122 bit .\nHidden fasteners for decking, which system do you like best?\nHidden fasteners for decking.plugs and screws along with this nail gun for a hidden . to the joists ; then the decking. The decking is composite.\nCortex Decking Hidden Fastening System for Composite .\nThe Cortex Hidden Fastening System is the fastest, easiest way to hide fasteners in composite, capstock, and PVC decking boards. Cortex offers a strong connection between the deck board and joist.\nHidden Fasteners for Decks Professional Deck Builder .\nHidden Fasteners for Decks . Hidden deck fasteners are an antidote . most brands of composite, capped composite, and PVC decking are now available in slotted as .\nFasten the deck board with composite decking screws . Tom Silva shows Kevin O Connor how to install mahogany decking with hidden . How to Install Composite Decking.\nShop hidden fasteners in the specialty fasteners ; fastener kits section of . Find quality hidden fasteners . Clip Deck Hidden Fasteners .\nShop our selection of Hidden Deck Fasteners in the Lumber . hidden deck fasteners deck screw tool composite decking boards composite deck screw ipe clip hidden deck .\nhidden fasteners Deck builder Ipe composite PT decks .\nhidden fasteners Dozens of companies . here is one of the real serious issues with hidden deck fasteners, by putting a object (metal . most hidden deck fasteners.\nOur hidden deck fastening system installs between the deck boards, fastening them to the joists with no visible deck screw heads on the walking surface. Order today!\nAZEK Hidden Fasteners- CONCEALoc Cortex .\nHidden decking fasteners designed for grooved decking create a clean, fastener-free look in premium decking products.\nDecking can be installed with hidden fasteners to create a clean looking surface that is smooth to bare feet. Hidden fasteners can be used with composite, vinyl, cedar, ipe or other exotic hardwood material.\nDeckorators Stowaway \u2122 hidden fasteners discreetly secure deck boards to joists using the slotted edges of decking.Deckorators composite decking.\nComposite Hidden Fasteners Compatibility Deck Boards .\nShop our selection of Hidden Fasteners Compatibility, Composite, Deck Boards in the Lumber ; Composites Department at The Seventrust.\nWhatever Deck style or colors you choose, has engineered durable, reliable hidden fastening options to make composite decking installation easy.\nEvergrain And Hidden Fasteners I have a prospective customer that wants a designer Evergrain deck. They have spec d hidden fastners. I checked the .\nThe main advantages of hidden deck fasteners are pretty obvious: They eliminate the need for screws and nails, which are unsightly and can pop up above the surface over time.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"The National Committee for Cellular and Developmental Biology aims to foster the disciplines of cellular and developmental biology in Australia and serve as a link between Australian and overseas scientists.\nSpecific objectives include development of Academy responses to national\/international policy debate on issues pertaining to cellular and developmental biology. Issues of particular importance include funding, infrastructure, public perceptions of science, government policy, science education, workforce and career development, women in science, research conduct and integrity, and nominations for Academy awards.\nJoint submission \u2013 Gene technology regulation, December 2016.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzatvqv b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzatvqv
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..e547ad50601864f4023b668d26fa2130e8288fb6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzatvqv
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"These terms and conditions ('the Terms') govern the users ('you' or 'your') use of the website theperformancekitchen.co.uk ('the Website') and your relationship with the operator of the website Performance Productions Limited, a company registered in England company number 10505850 having it's registered office is at 42 Fowler Close, London, SW11 2ES ('we', 'our' or 'us').\nPlease read these terms carefully as they affect your rights and liabilities under law. If you do not agree to these Terms, please do not access nor use the Website. You should understand that by placing orders on this Website, you agree to be bound by these Terms. You should print a copy of these Terms for future reference.\nBy using the Website you agree to be bound by these Terms and authorise us to transmit information to obtain information from third parties, including but not limited to, your debit or credit card numbers or credit reports to authenticate your identity, to validate your credit card, to obtain an initial credit card authorisation and to authorise individual purchase transactions.\no disable any user identification code or password we have provided to you, whether chosen by you or allocated by us, at any time, if in our opinion you have failed to comply with any of the provisions of these Terms.\no the personal information which you are required to provide when you register is true, accurate, current and complete in all respects; and you are not impersonating any other person or entity.\nWhen you shop on this Website, we will ask you to input personal details in order for us to identify you, such as your name, e-mail address, billing address, shipping address, credit card or other payment information.\no attempt to gain unauthorised access to our site, the server on which our site is stored or any server, computer or database connected to our site. You must not attack our site via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of service attack.\nThe conclusion of a contract between you and us will take place when we (i) debit your credit, debit card or Paypal account or (ii) dispatch the goods to you, whichever is the later, at which time we shall send you an e-mail confirming that the contract has been concluded ('Dispatch Confirmation'). The contract will relate only to those goods whose dispatch we have confirmed in the Dispatch Confirmation. We will not be obliged to supply any other goods or services which may have been part of your order until the dispatch of such goods or services has been confirmed in a separate Dispatch Confirmation.\nOnce an order has been placed we are unable to amend to correct any errors in delivery address or order items placed.\nYou are entitled to cancel any contract completed with us within 14 days from the day on which you acquire physical possession of the goods.\nIf your delivery address is within the United Kingdom, no additional taxes will be charged to you. If your delivery address is outside of the United Kingdom you may be subject to import duties and taxes (including VAT), which are levied once a delivery reaches your destination country. Any such additional charges must be borne by you. You should note that customs policies and practices vary widely from country to country. We recommend that you contact your local customs office for information before purchasing.\nPayment can be made by any major credit, debit card or Paypal account. Payment will be debited and cleared from your account before the dispatch of your goods.\nIn the unlikely event that the price shown on the checkout page is wrong, and we discover this before accepting your order, we are not required to sell the goods to you at the price shown. We always try and ensure that the prices of goods shown on our Website are accurate, but occasionally genuine errors may occur. If we discover an error in the price of the goods that you have ordered we will let you know as soon as possible and give you the option of reconfirming your order at the correct price or cancelling it. If you cancel your order and you have already paid for the goods (but they have not yet been dispatched), then you will receive a full refund.\nYou grant Performance Productions Limited the right to use the name that you submit in connection with such content, if they choose.\no that, as at the date that the content or material is submitted to Performance Productions Limited and that that content and material is accurate.\no will not cause injury to any person or entity (including that the content or material is not defamatory). You agree to indemnify Performance Productions Limited for all claims brought by a third party against Performance Productions Limited arising out of or in connection with a breach of any of these warranties.\nPerformance Kitchen is a registered trademark of Performance Productions Limited. The content of the Website is protected by copyright, trade marks, database and other intellectual property rights and you acknowledge that the material and content supplied as part of the Website shall remain with us or our licensors.\n(a) if we fail to comply with these Terms, we shall only be liable to you for losses that you suffer as a result of our failure to comply (whether arising in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty or otherwise) which are a foreseeable consequence of such failure.\no failure of the Website to meet your requirements.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Association professional committed to the advancement of law professionals within my current position. Provide project management and oversight to 400+ officers, council, liaison, publications, and standing and substantive committees leadership members. Staff liaison to the sections volunteer corporate sponsorship committee, assisting the meetings team with set up of exhibition space at the sections spring symposium and fall leadership meetings. Daily tasks are excelled with organization, creative thinking, implementing, and improving processes and procedures. Highly skilled in marketing communications, project management, and events coordination and management.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Rejections are a part of our lives. There are plenty of rejections that we face on a regular basis. These include rejection of a work visa, rejection of credit, etc. These rejections can hurt, but we as salaried individuals need to grow over these and keep moving forward. Loan Singh's digital lending platform garners thousands of personal loan applications on our website.\nNot everyone is approved for a personal loan. It all depends on the applicant meeting our eligibility criteria. Sometimes rejections occur due to the borrower's lack of knowledge or plain ignorance. It is best advised that you read our FAQ and Finance Blog to understand the eligibility criteria and documents needed at Loan Singh. Loan Singh's digital lending platform serves salaried individuals who have never availed any credit before. It is understandable that some of you may struggle to get a personal loan approved, even though Loan Singh's application process being so easy.\nLoan Singh does not meet the borrower face-to-face like traditional lending solutions. Everything from loan application to amount disbursement happens online. To mitigate the prospect of risk, Loan Singh looks at your creditworthiness. If you have a good credit history, you have a better chance of avoiding a personal loan rejection with Loan Singh. Your credit history tells Loan Singh how prompt you have been with your past loan or credit card related responsibilities. Availing a personal loan via Loan Singh is advantageous because there is minimal paperwork involved. No time is wasted in cross-verifying any paperwork. Your employment status and income help determine if you are capable of paying the EMIs on time. The personal loan amount along with interest rate is calculated for the entire tenure, and in case you want to clear-off the loan before tenure completion, no prepayment penalty is levied by Loan Singh.\nNo collateral means you can apply for a personal loan for the above purposes and more; even if you do not own any assets. No loan guarantor is needed. No storage needed for piles of paperwork.\nYou are a salaried individual and chances are that your salary will continue to rise in the forthcoming months & years. Use this impetus to plan your repayments to avoid any delay in repayments & defaults.\nJust like in banks, there is a set of eligibility criteria at Loan Singh, as well; albeit a shorter one.\nIndian and salaried \u2013 You must be an Indian citizen and earning a minimum of Rs.15,000 per month.\nGood score and age \u2013 Have a good enough credit bureau score to help Loan Singh gauge your repayment capabilities. If you do not have a credit history, then you must be salaried for at least 3 months. You must be at least 21 years of age.\nSwift processing \u2013 At Loan Singh, everything from application to disbursement happens online. With only Aadhaar, PAN and Bank statement\/net-banking credentials you can apply for a personal loan and pay for your emergency requirements.\nNo collateral \u2013 Having no collateral requirement gives a personal loan an advantage over a secured loan. Even if you do not own any assets, you can at least get funds from Loan Singh.\nMultiple purposes \u2013 A personal loan can be availed for a number of purposes such as purchase of household appliances, electronic gadgets, purchase of gold, holiday travel, home improvement, job relocation, medical expenses, home renovation, purchase of second-hand vehicles, marriage, etc.\nLoan amount and tenure \u2013 The loan amount for a personal loan at Loan Singh can range from Rs.50,000- Rs.5,00,000. The repayment is done via EMIs, with interest rates on a reducing balance method. The personal loan tenure can be from 3 to 36 months.\nSocial authorization \u2013 Connect to your Facebook, Google+ and LinkedIn profiles to avail a lower interest rate.\nProfile Page \u2013 Fill in your name, gender, father's name, number of dependents, and PAN Details. We use your PAN Card Number to check your Credit Score, and as a KYC document.\nAddress Page \u2013 Choose your type of residence; mention your street address, city, state and pin code.\nFinancials page \u2013 Upload your latest 6 months bank statement either from your computer, GMail account or directly link your net-banking account.\nAuto Debit Page \u2013 Provide permissions to your bank name, account number, and IFSC code so that Loan Singh can auto debit the EMI amount from your account every month. This way you don't need to set reminders or miss out on any loan EMI repayments.\nNow that we have seen the importance of personal loan, let us look at some common personal loan rejection reasons.\nIt gets difficult for Loan Singh to assess how many of the borrowers, who left their application incomplete, were actually interested. Many a times, we receive applications where the applicant does not provide us with his\/her PAN and they might have been eligible because of a good credit score. Ensure that you complete the application form on Loan Singh's Get Started page.\nBorrowers with low income levels will be rejected outright. You should be earning a minimum of Rs.15,000 per month. This is because we know what an average millennial needs to spend on a monthly basis. If you are barely saving enough for yourself, how can you pay the loan EMIs on time?\nYou may be a high salaried individual and capable of paying the loan EMIs, but if your prior repayment history is default strewn then there is no way you can convince us about your prompt repayments in the future. A personal loan involves no collateral, so your repayment history is the only indication of your past prudent credit responsibilities. Banks reject loan applicants who have never even availed a loan before. If you are salaried for at least the last 3 months, this will never happen at Loan Singh.\nThe credit score is ranged between 300 and 900. The better the score, the better your chances of getting the personal loan approved. A good credit score is dependent on prompt EMI repayments, credit card statement, and maintaining a good credit mix.\nAge is a factor that can lead to your personal loan being rejected. A college student who desperately needs to buy the new iPhone X cannot apply for a personal loan just because it involves no collateral. A borrower, expecting to get a personal loan via Loan Singh, needs to be of at least 21 years of age.\nBeing honest with your financials is paramount. Loan Singh is a digital lending platform that does not involve any human intervention while checking and verifying your documents. That is why the bank statement has to be submitted in PDF format only. It would be even better if the statement is forwarded to Loan Singh directly from your linked net-banking account.\nBorrowers also try to sneak in fictitious or tampered financial information to conceal their past defaults, this should not be done and the application would be out-rightly rejected.\nYou cannot apply for a personal loan at Loan Singh with a far-fetched loan amount. Your loan amount will depend upon your income and repayment capacity. Before you apply for a personal loan, you should assess your requirement carefully. If your need for funds is small, then try to arrange from non-banking sources.\nMake sure you are not currently paying multiple EMIs towards multiple loans. This can be a reason for a personal loan rejection towards your application. If these multiple loans indicate you being in debt, then it is easy for the bank to reject your application. Ensure you have enough balance in your account to spend towards daily expenses, utility payments, etc. Pay-off the loans you already have before applying for a new one. The total amount of EMIs being paid each month should be less than 50% of your monthly income.\nLoan Singh Answers \u2013 What is an Emergency Loan?","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Modern sheds expand your living space is one images from 38 cool modern sheds of DMA Homes photos gallery. This image has dimension 648x486 Pixel and File Size 121 KB, you can click the image above to see the large or full size photo. Previous photo in the gallery is diy modern shed project diyatlantamodern. For next photo in the gallery is modern sheds ottawa storage victor harbor outdoor wood shed. You are viewing image #22 of 38, you can see the complete gallery at the bottom below.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Peculiarities of 30...100 keV P+ and Ar+ ion implantation into dry vacuum resist on the base of -pyrone have been studied by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Rutherford backscattering spectrometry. Phosphorus atom distribution profile has been shown to have an anomalous shape with two peaks, one of which is situated in a region of projected range, while the other is on the sample surface directly. Radiation-induced diffusion and solid phase reactions leading to phosphorus organic coating formation of about 40..50 Ao in thickness has been revealed to occur during phosphorus ion implantation.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzavues b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzavues
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ac5d109da0b8195701ae86e8a56b69ed2dd06caa
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzavues
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"She is the leader of the Women's Equality party (WEP), a new political force committed to furthering the cause of gender equality, but which has yet to make inroads electorally.\nHe is a Tory MP who tried to derail a bill to protect women against violence, and told a conference hosted by an anti-feminism party that \"feminist zealots really do want women to have their cake and eat it\".\nNow, in what is likely to be one of the most fascinating clashes of the general election, Sophie Walker and Philip Davies are to face off on the campaign trail as other opposition parties consider giving her a free run in her attempt to unseat the Shipley Conservative MP.\nThe developments in the West Yorkshire constituency come as attempts to engineer a broader \"progressive alliance\" gather steam. On Monday the leftwing pressure group Compass will launch a website to help maximise the anti-Conservative vote in constituencies around the country, and bring together activists from the three main opposition parties in a new political movement.\nDavies said: \"I have consistently asked Sophie Walker to quote just one thing I have ever said which has asked for a woman to be treated less favourably than a man, and she hasn't been able to find even one quote from the 12 years I have spent in parliament.\nThe Green party approached the WEP with the offer to stand aside, according to local Green activists in Shipley, who have yet to rubberstamp the idea but are supportive of it in theory. The idea has not so far been floated widely among local Liberal Democrats, who meet on Thursday, but there is strong support already among some officials.\nHowever, while the idea of Walker's candidature has been discussed by WEP and Labour members of Shipley Feminist Zealots, a local group, some Labour members are eager to field a candidate. Local chairman Joe Wheatley said that Labour had shown itself as the \"most effective\" opposition to Davies, who racked up a 9,624-vote majority over his Labour runner-up in 2015.\nThe Brexit-supporting MP will be boosted in a constituency that mirrored the referendum's national result. Walker, a Remain supporter, wants an \"equality impact assessment\" of any final Brexit deal, and the chance for MPs to vote it down if necessary.\nThe constituency is not the only one where moves by opposition parties to work together are under way. In the west London marginal of Ealing Central and Acton, the Labour incumbent, Rupa Huq, was told on Saturday by local Green activists that they will give her a free run as she seeks to defend her wafer-thin majority of 274 from a Tory challenge.\nEchoing the view of Green party leaders Caroline Lucas and Jonathan Bartley that the three main opposition parties should stand aside for each other in some seats, Green members have decided to support Huq because she has met three conditions: she broke a Labour whip to vote against the triggering of article 50, opposed Heathrow airport expansion, and supports voting reform.\nHuq said: \"The local Green party knows that I am a resolute Remainer and that, if necessary, I will continue to break any and all whips to fight for the UK to stay in the EU.\" The seat's voters last year backed remaining in the EU by 72%.\n\"In these perilous times it is vital that we work together to oppose this reckless surge towards Brexit,\" she added, warning that the Liberal Democrats would risk splitting the Remain vote if they did not follow the example of the Greens.\nWhile the leaderships of the main opposition parties have not endorsed nationwide pacts, a concerted drive to marshall anti-Tory votes will kick off on Monday with the launch of a new political movement, the Progressive Alliance. Labour, Liberal Democrat and Green activists will sit in a central London \"war room\" and plan how to win dozens of Tory seats where the other parties achieved combined majorities in 2015.\nIn particular, strategists are zeroing in on clusters of seats such as East Sussex and Brighton, where tactical voting could have a significant impact. Rallies are also being organised in key cities where the movement believes that alliance politics can make a difference.\nScottish National party and WEP activists are also involved in the new movement, which has been endorsed by Lucas, the Green MP for Brighton Pavilion, and the Norwich South MP and possible Labour leadership contender, Clive Lewis. The support of Lib Dem and Green voters could be crucial to Lewis's hopes of retaining his seat in a city where the Remain vote was 56.2%.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"A unique gift idea for the person who has everything!\nThe HistioGraph is a world history timeline poster that depicts the rise and fall of nations, peoples and cultures from 1500BCE to the present day. It charts nations in the form of 'rivers of time', giving perspective and understanding to how the flow of civilizations have shaped our world. The HistioGraph is a concise perspective of world history, that helps us understand the complex story of human development. It is presented in a stylish black A4-sized folder.\nThe ideal recipient is Dad or Grandad (male 40yrs+). They would like to put it up on the back of the toilet door as it makes such interesting reading! Men like the summary nature of this product, they can get the top facts about what main things happened in history, when. They can also look across the period of time and understand what else was happening in the world at the same time. The Histiograph includes a lot of information and presents it in a new and innovative way. It also comes in handy for crosswords.\nThe poster was researched, designed and printed in Australia. It has been self-published.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Please take the time to review the changes in Breakfast location and dates. You, PLARC members were asked to participate in a test of differing venues, dates and breakfast styles. On January 23rd the members present decided to make the following changes.\n1. The breakfast venue will alternate between The Point Casino Fresh Market Buffet and The Seven Brothers Restaurant (menu service) at Seven Cedars Casino monthly.\n2. The Point Buffet will continue to be on Sundays while the Seven Brothers order off the menu will be on Saturdays.\nIt is important that you check the Breakfast info below to determine where the current month breakfast is scheduled. Also, the restaurants have asked the Club to make a reservation by no later than the Wednesday before the breakfast. This means you must decide and sign up in advance. No more Thursday, Friday, (Saturday) or Sunday sign-ups either online or on the morning Net.\nOnline sign up is easy. Just click the Breakfast Reservation link below. If you have any breakfast questions, you may call Club Secretary, Nancy.\nInvitations and application forms have been sent to the Jefferson County High Schools. The PLARC STEM (Science, Technology,Engineering and Math) Scholarship is awarded each year in remembrance of our Club's founder W.E. Whitney WO7O.\nCome join us for lunch. We meet every Wednesday at 11:30 am at Ferinos Pizza in Port Hadlock except the Fourth Wed of each month lunch is held at Fat Smitty's at 11 am in Discovery Bay. However in January we will be meeting at Ferino's on the 4th Wed. Still confused? check the Club's calendar above. The restaurants appreciates a head count in advance so if you are unable to check in on the Boater's Net please click on the link below to sign up.\nAnyone interested in ham radio is invited to breakfast May 18th, 2019 at Seven Cedars Casino @ 10:00 AM.\nPlease join us for good conversation and fellowship. If you plan to attend, the restaurants have asked the Club to make a reservation in advance. To this end we must ask that you signup indicating your participation by no later than Wednesday lunch. It is very easy to signup, just click on the link below!\nAs of 4\/16\/12 No regularly scheduled VE Amateur radio test sessions are scheduled. If you would like to take an exam please contact the PLARC Radio Officer to arrange a time for your test. Typically testing occurs on Wednesdays prior to the Club's lunch at Ferino's. If you have a special exam need please include your need in your communications with the PLARC Radio officer. We may be able to accommodate you.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Modified OB under frames used with a wooden sleeper sized bolsters to support the slab product. The slab product was loaded at Whyalla and then trans-shipped at Islington for the onward journey to Melbourne. The wagons had variations of doors or center panels removed.\nUse a orient Reproductions OB and remove the doors.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Data Aquarium Framework - Generate ASP.NET 3.5 applications with Microsoft Ajax Control Toolkit and JSON web service in seconds.\nGenerate ASP.NET 3.5 applications with Microsoft Ajax Control Toolkit and JSON web service in seconds. Easily maintain huge database web applications by changing data controller descriptors and presentations views in XML configuration files. Works with Microsoft SQL Server 2005 and Oracle 11g.\nDAFFTIN Password Keeper - Fast, compact and easy-to-use password manager that can store your passwords and other sensitive data in a single highly encrypted file.\nDigital Memo - Use your blog as a tool to send memos digitally. The Digital Memo system integrates your blog RSS feed and automatically distributes your latest blog posts to users.\nlizardControls - Developed to make simple work of building SQL Server database applications without the need to use any of the Microsoft Data controls supplied with Visual Studio.\nEzBackup101 - Whether you need to restore a single file, a folder full of photos or your entire email inbox, EzBackup101 can make sure whatever you need will be there for you.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaxnww b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzaxnww
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+{"text":"Microsoft released Windows 10's October 2018 Update on October 2, 2018. Your PC may not automatically install this update for a few weeks, but you can download it now to get the latest features immediately.\nWindows 10's October 2018 Update was codenamed Redstone 5 during the Insider Preview development process, and is also known as Windows 10 version 1809. It focuses on features you might actually use. There's no new Paint 3D-style app here.\nThis latest Windows 10 update includes a Your Phone app that lets you text from your PC and instantly access photos from your phone on your PC, assuming you're using an Android phone. Fewer features are available to iPhone users, but the \"Continue on PC\" feature will let you quickly send links from an Android phone or iPhone to your PC. Notification syncing from Android phones to PCs is coming soon, too.\nMicrosoft has also added a new clipboard history feature you can access by pressing Windows+V. This clipboard history can sync between all your PCs, and will one day sync to the SwiftKey keyboard on your phone for easy copy-pasting.\nUnfortunately, the \"Sets\" feature that added tabs to every application on your system was removed from the final update and has been delayed. It might appear in Windows 10's next update.\nFile Explorer now includes a dark theme, the touch keyboard is now \"powered by SwiftKey,\" and the new Snip & Sketch tool makes it easier to capture and annotate screenshots.\nUnder the hood, you'll find easier HDR setup and mobile broadband improvements, power usage details for processes in the Task Manager, a quick slider to make all the text bigger on your screen, and better controls while projecting your screen wirelessly.\nMicrosoft has even made a lot of improvements to Notepad, which can now handle UNIX-style line endings. Geeks will appreciate new keyboard shortcuts for copy and paste in the Windows Subsystem for Linux, and the ability to quickly launch a Linux shell directly from File Explorer.\nThose are just a few of the many, many improvements and changes you'll find in this update. Check out our in-depth look at everything new in Windows 10's October 2018 Update for more details.\nTo get the update, just head to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update on your PC. Click the \"Check for Updates\" button here.\nHere's how this works: Microsoft slowly rolls these updates out, and Windows 10 normally waits at least a few weeks before installing them. But, if you click this button, Windows 10 knows that you want the update right now, and your PC will find and install it.\nThis update may not be available to everyone immediately, so check back later today if it doesn't download after you click the button.\nIf this doesn't work, you can also download and run Microsoft's Windows 10 update assistant. Visit the Download Windows 10 page and click the \"Update Now\" button to download the assistant. Run it after downloading it and it will upgrade your Windows system to the latest available update.\nIf you experience a problem after updating, you can go back to your previous version of Windows 10. This option is only available for the first ten days after updating, after which Windows will automatically delete the old files to free up space.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"You are aware on exercise and dieting. Certainly, it will help you in reducing pounds, but the truth it takes lot of dedication, willpower and work. Walking across the road, you must have come across billboards or leaflets, where written \"Lose weight fast in 90days\". Does it really work? How much time it will take to gain or lose weight? Is it possible to get a celebrity look with toned muscles and stunning abs? Yep! There are different methods by which fat person can become a fit individual within few days. But for that it is crucial to spend hours in gym, working on different exercise pattern and rules. You need to find a professional trainer who can always boost you to move one step ahead on workouts. If you are very serious about your health, you can join a gym and start following a healthy lifestyle. Today!\nHowever, there are many individual who judge exercise as a time wasting and boring procedure. For them, lose weight without exercise could be one of the best methods. In order to get started with the procedure, you need to pick the right fitness approach. What could that be? Lose weight without exercise, entirely on your choice. People who love to play any outdoor sport activity like soccer, cycling, or running and have stopped due to hectic work schedule should start again. For this you need a nice tracksuit and a pair of sneakers. Running or cycling early morning is one of the best times to start a healthy lifestyle, but for soccer you need a team or group of people who have the same mind-set like yours. One of the ideal ways is to join in a local soccer team to sweat every day on the process of weight loss.\nAs per recent science and technology development, many adult agers are going for weightloss surgery. But the truth, it brings different types of harmful side effects. Keeping this on mind, such people should go for no surgery weightloss program. Aerobics, yoga, tai-chi, and dancing are some of the simplest no diet weightloss programs that one can add into their lives. Just with little guidance, they can start a healthy life \u2013 free from diseases and ill health symptoms. Lose weight fast can be done by taking good foods and health supplements. Lose weight without exercise is an alternative by which you can shed or gain pounds. One thing that you need to keep in mind, weight loss requires good amount of discipline and commitment. If you desire to reduce weight, ask an expert or meet a nutritionist. Today!","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"100% home mortgage refinance frees up your money for other purchases, like a second home, renovations, or debt consolidation. To get the best deal on your cash out refinance, look online for your next mortgage lender. By evaluating loan quotes that you can get in minutes, you can save thousands with just a couple hours of research. The American Mortgage Association has a database of mortgage loan programs and lenders.\nIf you like low rates and fees, then you will find your best lenders online. Technology and competition has pushed down refinancing costs, saving you money and time throughout the process.\nThe company Physician Mortgage Loans offers online financing options and they also give free personalized loan estimates, so you have real numbers to make your refi decision. Requesting quotes is also a good way to make sure they deliver on prompt customer service.\nInterest rates should be at the top of your list when researching lenders and all interest rates should be compared to annual percentage rates (APR). But also take a look at closing and miscellaneous fees. On average, your refinancing closing costs equal no more than 3% of your principal. But for 100% refinancing, you may have to pay more, especially if you have poor credit. Early payment fees should also be dropped, in case you decide to move or refinance again. The American Mortgage Association offers tools and resources to help you navigate through the process.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"The Don Valley Parkway (DVP) is a municipal expressway in the Canadian city of Toronto, Ontario, which connects the Gardiner Expressway in downtown Toronto with Highway 401. North of Highway 401, it continues as Highway 404. The parkway runs through the parklands of the Don River Valley, after which it is named. It has a maximum speed limit of 90 km\/h (56 mph) for its entire length of 15.0 km (9.3 mi). It is six lanes for most of its length but it is eight lanes north of York Mills and four lanes south of Eastern. As a municipal road, it is patrolled by the Toronto Police Service.\nThe parkway was the second expressway to be built by Metropolitan Toronto (Metro). Planning began in 1954, the year of Metro's formation. The first section opened during 1961 and the entire route was completed by the end of 1966. South of Bloor Street, the expressway was constructed over existing roadways. North of Bloor Street, it was built on a new alignment through the valley, requiring the removal of several hills, diversion of the Don River and the clearing of woodland. North of Eglinton Avenue, the expressway follows the former Woodbine Avenue right-of-way north to Highway 401.\nTraffic conditions on the parkway often exceed its intended capacity of 60,000 vehicles per day. Today, some sections carry an average of 100,000 vehicles a day and have bumper-to-bumper traffic conditions during commuting hours. The parkway was planned to be one of two north-south expressways into downtown Toronto. The other was cancelled due to public opposition, leaving the DVP as the sole north-south expressway into downtown. The parkway is also used by regional transit buses which can access designated lanes to pass slow-moving traffic.\nThe Don Valley Parkway begins at an interchange with the Gardiner Expressway near the mouth of the Don River in downtown Toronto. From there, it runs northwards on the eastern bank of the valley, between the river and the developed city to the east. Beyond the southern, older section of the city, the valley widens and the expressway continues northwards through the parklands along the river to Don Mills Road. The route leaves the valley, rises to meet Eglinton Avenue, descends into the valley again and goes through the park lands of Milne Hollow to Lawrence Avenue. It ascends to meet York Mills Road and ends at Highway 401.\nAt its southern end near the mouth of the Don River, the parkway begins in a multiple-level interchange with the ground-level Lake Shore Boulevard and the elevated Gardiner Expressway directly above the boulevard. The Gardiner\u2013Don Valley ramps provide access to the section of the Gardiner Expressway west of the parkway. There is no access either from or to the Gardiner east of the parkway. To travel east from the southbound lanes of the parkway, motorists must exit via the off-ramp to Lake Shore Boulevard, which meets the Lake Shore at a signalized intersection.\nLess than 500 metres (1,600 ft) north of the Gardiner, the Canadian National Railway (CNR)\/GO Toronto railway viaduct passes over the parkway. The interchange is constrained by that distance for the Gardiner\u2014Don Valley two-lane ramps bridge the difference in height from ground-level under the viaduct with the height of the Gardiner. Acceleration and deceleration lanes for the Lake Shore\u2014Don Valley ramps connect under the viaduct.\nFrom the viaduct, the parkway proceeds north as a four-lane highway on a straight course along the east bank of the channelized Don River, passing beneath Eastern Avenue and veering slightly to the east as it passes below Queen Street East. On- and off-ramps project northward from Eastern Avenue, each adding a lane to both carriageways. The expressway continues northward, with the Don River sandwiched between the highway and Bayview Avenue. The Parkway passes beneath Dundas and Gerrard Streets and rises onto the 'Don Flats' plateau at Riverdale Park. In this section, the elevation of the highway is close to the level of the river and is liable to flood after heavy rains, as occurred in June 2010, for example.\nNorth from Riverdale Park, the valley widens considerably. The expressway rises from the floor of the valley and passes beneath the towering Prince Edward Viaduct bridge, which connects Bloor Street with Danforth Avenue and carries a subway line. The highway runs along the eastern wall of the valley for the next several kilometres, rising and dipping repeatedly.\nThe expressway curves eastward into a cut in the hillside as it passes the 'Half-mile' railway bridge. Immediately to the north, it meets the Bayview Avenue\u2013Bloor Street interchange. The long off-ramp to these roads was the original southern terminus of the parkway in 1961. The off-ramp was later proposed as the eastern terminus of the proposed Crosstown Expressway. This expressway, opposed by the City of Toronto, was never built: it was intended for construction only after the completion of the Spadina Expressway, which itself was cancelled in 1971.\nJust north of the Bayview\u2013Bloor interchange, the expressway passes over Pottery Road. To the east is Todmorden Mills, a collection of historic buildings and a former industrial site, the original \"Don Mills\". The nearby pond was a section of the Don River cut off by the parkway construction. Further north, to the west where the highway crosses Beechwood Avenue, is Crothers Woods, a restoration site.\nThe expressway continues due east along the southern edge of the valley. The opposing lanes split as the expressway passes beneath the Leaside Bridge, the southbound lanes at a lower level. The lanes rejoin as they approach the Don Mills Road interchange at the \"forks of the Don\". Just east of the Don Mills Road interchange, several large white sculptures resembling human teeth are installed on both sides of the road. The sculptures, called The Elevated Wetlands, are examples of \"eco-art\" and have become a landmark. The sculptures resemble concrete but are made of plastic and filled with waste plastic and wetland plants. The sculptures function as a water filter, removing pollutants from the Don River. A solar-powered pump lifts water to the top of the sculpture and it is returned to the Don after filtration. The sculptures were installed in 1998 and the wetland plants added in 1999.\nThe parkway passes beneath the Gatineau Hydro Corridor south of Eglinton Avenue.\nThe expressway crosses Taylor-Massey Creek and the East Don River, and climbs out of the valley, swinging northwards toward Eglinton Avenue. In this section, the DVP passes around the apartment buildings of Flemingdon Park. The lanes split again before the underpass at Spanbridge Road, the road that connects a three-tower complex of apartments to the east of the parkway with Flemingdon Park to the west. The lanes pass beneath the Gatineau Hydro Corridor and reconnect south of the Eglinton interchange.\nAs it crosses Eglinton, the expressway passes a business park to the west and the Concorde Place commercial and condominium development to the east. The expressway begins to descend back into the East Don Valley. It passes beneath Wynford Drive and two railways (the CPR Midtown line and the CNR\/Richmond Hill GO line) before reaching Lawrence Avenue East, one of the few remaining cloverleaf interchanges in Ontario. This area, known as Milne Hollow, is partially forested, some of the land being conservation reserve. Passing beneath Lawrence and back over the East Don River, the expressway begins climbing out of the valley once more. It reaches the top of the valley and curves along a plateau before passing over York Mills Road. Residential sub-divisions are present along both sides of the road, isolated from the expressway by noise barriers, from north of Lawrence to the Highway 401 interchange. After rising to meet the interchange, it widens to four lanes and splits into two branches: two lanes continuing north as Highway 404, and the three others as Highway 401.\nThe parkway passes the 'Half-mile' bridge on the left.\nThe entire length of the parkway uses the RESCU Traffic Management System, which was installed in 1994. Like the similar COMPASS system on provincial freeways, RESCU combines in-pavement sensors with traffic cameras and changeable message signs (6 fixed and 10 portable) to alert drivers of accidents, traffic conditions and upcoming closures. The system is used as a means of managing traffic flow along the parkway. The message signs also frequently display non-urgent messages to motorists, such as notices for future construction, safety messages and smog alerts.\nThe RESCU Traffic Cameras are located at regular intervals along the parkway. The cameras, which are operated by the City of Toronto, can be viewed on television and online. The cameras are located on poles and are fixed in direction. There are 16 camera locations on the parkway. Most have one camera for northbound and one for southbound traffic. RESCU operators monitor the cameras for emergency purposes; local radio and television media use the service for traffic reports.\nThe Don Valley Parkway, along with the Gardiner Expressway, is one of Toronto's busiest municipal routes. It is the sole north\u2013south expressway into Toronto's downtown, a role it was not designed to support. The parkway was planned as one of a series of expressways to provide commuter routes to downtown from the expanding suburbs. Two other un-built expressways were planned: the Scarborough Expressway, expected to handle traffic between downtown and the eastern suburbs, and the Spadina Expressway, expected to serve traffic from the north-west. By the early 1980s, traffic volumes on the parkway exceeded capacity, and today, the parkway has significant traffic congestion on most days. During the morning commute, commuters fill the southbound lanes as far south as Bloor Street. In the afternoon\/evening commute, commuters fill the northbound lanes from Bloor Street, and often the full length of the highway in event of a collision or other hazard. The daily congestion has earned the highway the quasi-affectionate nickname of the \"Don Valley Parking Lot\".\nThe section immediately south of Highway 401 is often congested at all hours. Traffic studies have attributed congestion in the southbound lanes to the number of lanes merging from Highways 401 and 404 into the parkway and the lane changing that results from merging traffic from Highway 401 clashing with exiting traffic to the nearby York Mills exit. Congestion in the northbound lanes is attributed to truck traffic coping with the steep grade of the valley, lane changing, and insufficient advanced signage for Highway 401. Most traffic in this section travels north on Highway 404, but only two of the five lanes lead to it.\nThe construction of the Don Valley Parkway was a major undertaking that changed much of the Don valley. While industrial areas existed both near the mouth of the Don River and the area of today's Leaside Bridge, several natural areas remained in those places where the steep sides of the valley had dissuaded large-scale urban development. The post-war growth period of Toronto provided an impetus to build a new automobile route into central Toronto, and the route through the valley was chosen to avoid expropriation of existing development and provide access for new development in the Metropolitan Toronto region. The construction of the six-lane highway modified the valley through the removal of hills, other earth works and the rerouting of the Don River. Since completion, the parkway has not been changed significantly, other than adding one partial interchange at Wynford Drive and updating its infrastructure to current standards.\nThe Don River valley, formed during the last ice age, has played an important role in the development of Toronto from its beginning as the Town of York. Using the power of the river, the first sawmill was erected at today's Todmorden Mills by 1795 and other industry was founded soon after, including a grist mill, paper mill and brewery by 1828. Railways were introduced into the valley after 1850 with the building of tracks into Toronto. By 1900, the Don River south of today's Bloor Street was straightened into a channel for boating purposes, with roadways and industry built on both banks. North of Bloor Street, the wide valley floor became dominated by industrial concerns of the Taylor family, including the Don Valley Brick Works. The area from the Forks of the Don and north along the river valleys had been lumbered and farmed, such as at Milne Hollow, but several natural areas remained by the 1950s. The forests of the Don valley had been where Canadian naturalist Ernest Thompson Seton spent much of his youth in the 1870s studying animal life.\nThe Don Valley Parkway was not the first highway planned through the valley. In the 1930s, a \"speedway\" through the lower valley was promoted as possible depression relief. Unlike today's parkway, this road would have curved northwest near the Don Valley Brick Works and connected to Mount Pleasant at Davisville. The city did not have the money and appealed to 'civic-minded citizens' to donate the land on which the highway would be built. None came forward. In 1939, city transportation planner Norman Wilson proposed a boulevard that would follow the valley into the northeast. On January 1, 1946, Toronto voters approved the building of a 'Don Valley Traffic Artery' following the same route as the \"speedway\" by a vote of 31,882 to 12,328. This was the same plebiscite where Toronto voters approved the construction of the Yonge segment of Line 1. The City then borrowed $1.5 million to finance the project. In 1949, the Official Plan of the City of Toronto updated the Don Valley Roadway plan to include two branches\u2014one to the north-west which would eventually become the Crosstown Expressway proposal, and one to the north-east leading to O'Connor Drive. The original plan to connect to St. Clair remained. East York Township opposed construction of the north-east roadway. The City started the first section of this route from Eastern Avenue south to Keating Street in 1949, but had to suspend work in 1951 due to a lack of steel.\nRecognizing the value of the natural spaces of the valley, conservationists such as Charles Sauriol founded the Don Valley Conservation Association, in 1948 to assist the provincial Don Valley Conservation Authority (DVCA) itself founded in 1946. The Association promoted conservation of the valley with rail tours and public events. In 1951, the Ontario Department of Planning and Development released its \"Don Valley Conservation Report\", which recommended the preservation of the valley, including an artificial reservoir where Lawrence Avenue crossed the Don River. It also proposed that the valley not be used for any new major transportation routes. The DVCA adopted the report and budgeted to buy lands in the valley, but the City of Toronto withheld funding to the DVCA for land purchases.\nThe Don Roadway travelled along the eastern banks of the Don River from the lake shore to Winchester Street.\nIn April 1953, the Metropolitan Toronto (Metro) federation was approved and Fred Gardiner was named as its first chairman. Its mission from the start was to build the infrastructure needed to support the rapidly growing suburbs, whose governments could not afford the projects and often disagreed on joint projects. One of its first priorities was to build the Lakeshore Expressway, and its second road priority was an expressway through the Don River valley. Gardiner was a major proponent of building a highway through the valley, since his days in the 1940s with the Toronto and York Planning Board. At the time, engineers felt that building a six-lane roadway was unfeasible due to the two large hills and a narrow valley. Gardiner and T&Y Board (and later Metro Planning Board) chairman James Maher personally walked the route through the valley, determining the works that would be needed to put the highway through. \"We'll move the railway over a piece. We'll tear down the hill. We'll shift the river over a piece, then we can have the highway through there.\" Gardiner toured New York City in June 1954 to study the city's expressways and municipal parking lots. Gardiner compared the proposed Don Valley expressway to the scenic Grand Central Parkway, and was quoted as claiming that valleys like the Don are not spoiled by arterial highways, but beautified by them. The first Metro staff survey and feasibility study of the parkway's route was approved in late 1953, before the Metro government itself came into being in 1954.\nIn October 1954, flooding caused by Hurricane Hazel caused the destruction of bridges and buildings in the valley. As a consequence of the destruction on the Don and other rivers, the provincial government of Ontario banned development on river floodplains. In 1957, the Metropolitan Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (MTRCA) was formed, merging all conservation authorities responsible for Toronto watersheds (including the DVCA), with greater powers to manage valley lands. The MTRCA began expropriating privately owned land in the valley for flood control, often creating or conserving open space uses. Sauriol, who was by then an employee of the MTRCA, was one of the few to speak out against the parkway project. Sauriol's cottage at the Forks of the Don would be expropriated by Metro Toronto for the parkway, although much of his land is now part of the Charles Sauriol Conservation Reserve, which extends from the Forks of the Don, along the East Don to Milne Hollow at Lawrence Avenue, visible from the parkway. By contrast, Metro chairman Gardiner had an opposite opinion of the Don Valley and was quoted \"I'll tell you what the Don Valley was. It was a place to murder little boys, that's what it was.\"\nThe design of the project was contracted to the engineering consortium of Fenco-Harris, which completed the plans in the fall of 1955. The project included extending Bayview Avenue south along the Lower Don valley, which replaced the 'north' arm of the previous Don Valley roadway project, and the realignment of Lawrence Avenue over the East Don River. The design for the section north of the Don River mouth incorporated the existing river-side Don Roadway on the east side of the River. The design also incorporated a section of the old Don Mills Road leading up from the River, north of Gerrard, to Broadview Avenue and Danforth Avenue into the highway as a northbound on-ramp from Danforth. The project was designed to carry 60,000 vehicles per day. Fenco-Harris designed the route to be \"located on public lands as much as possible, thus minimizing the expropriation of private property. Greenbelt land has been used for right-of-way in preference to acreage which can be commercially developed.\" The route required the expropriation of less than 25 properties.\nThe first planned route of the parkway was to follow the lower Don Valley before turning north and continuing along the Don Mills Road right-of-way north to the Toronto Bypass (today's Highway 401). Edward P. Taylor, developer of the Don Mills subdivision, situated at Don Mills Road and Lawrence Avenue, protested the plan heavily and the path was rerouted along the CPR railway from Don Mills Road and Eglinton Avenue north-east to meet the Woodbine Avenue right-of-way at Lawrence Avenue, and proceeded north to the Toronto Bypass. To facilitate the Flemingdon Park development, located south-east of Don Mills Road and Eglinton, the entire planned route south of Lawrence to the present interchange at Don Mills Road was moved east to its current alignment.\nThe plan, estimated to cost C$28.674 million, was approved by Metro Council in early 1956. Formal approval to build came in 1958 and construction of the parkway began. A stumbling block to construction was resolved by a deal between Metro and the City of Toronto over City-owned parklands needed for the parkway. North of Bloor Street, 30 acres (12 ha) of City-owned land would be transferred to Metro and any lands not needed for the parkway would be developed as parks by Metro. South of Bloor Street, Metro agreed to replace any recreation facilities lost in Riverdale Park due to the parkway construction. The City had threatened to not allow construction through City-owned land.\nThe first section of the parkway, from Bloor Street to Eglinton Avenue, was opened on August 31, 1961, by Ontario Premier Leslie Frost and Metro chairman Gardiner, who presented Frost with a silver plate. It opened initially without an interchange at Don Mills Road and had its first traffic jam that day at the Eglinton Avenue exit. The interchange at Don Mills was approved by Metro council on November 2, 1964. Building the section within the valley required significant civil engineering, including the rerouting of 3.2 km (2.0 mi) of the Don River, installation of 1.6 km (0.99 mi) of reinforced retaining wall and the removal of two hills. Tumper's Hill, located near the Don Mills Road interchange, stood 36 metres (118 ft) higher than it does today. Sugar Loaf Hill, shaped like a cone, which stood alone in the shadow of the Prince Edward Viaduct where Bayview Avenue passes today, was removed completely. The 1,250,000 m3 (1,630,000 cu yd) of earth was used as fill for the parkway and a total of 4,600,000 m3 (6,000,000 cu yd) of earth was excavated and moved.\nThe parkway descends into Milne Hollow in the East Don Valley near Lawrence Avenue.\nBesides modification of the natural landscape, the route required relocation and demolition of utilities and residences. Metro relocated 1.2 km (0.75 mi) of CNR and CPR railway tracks in the section from Bloor Street to Chester Hill Road to make way for the parkway. The Todmorden sewage treatment plant, built in 1926, was also demolished. The route required the removal of five homes on Minton Place located above the valley to facilitate the cut of the valley hillside. Four were demolished and one moved to Scarborough.\nConstruction of the section from Eglinton Avenue to Lawrence Avenue began on July 1, 1961, and it was opened to traffic in the evening of October 30, 1963, without any ceremony. The segment connected to Woodbine Avenue north of Lawrence Avenue, cutting off access to Woodbine from Lawrence Avenue. Northbound parkway traffic could continue north on Woodbine Avenue, then a two-lane road, from the parkway up to Highway 401. The 2 km (1.2 mi) section cost $2.723 million to complete.\nThe third section to open was from Bloor Street to the Gardiner Expressway. This section involved the removal of CPR rail sidings on the eastern bank of the Don from Eastern Avenue north. Royal Drive, which was a two-way road that connected with Bloor Street between Broadview Avenue and the Viaduct was re-purposed into a one-way north-bound on-ramp. A pedestrian overpass bridge was constructed to connect the east and west sections of Riverdale Park. The section opened in conjunction with the section of the expressway from the parkway to York Street on November 6, 1964. It was opened ceremonially by Ontario Premier John Robarts.\nThe final section, from Lawrence Avenue to Sheppard Avenue was opened chaotically to traffic in the afternoon on November 17, 1966, but forced drivers to exit onto Highway 401; construction inspectors were not aware that the parkway was scheduled to open until they arrived on site that morning. The section north of Highway 401 remained unopened until March 1, 1967, due to ongoing construction of the Sheppard Avenue bridge. The final cost of the project was $40 million ($305 million in 2018 dollars).\nIn 1965, Metro Toronto Chief Coroner Morton Shulman released a report criticizing the lack of safety in the design of the parkway. In the first five months of 1965, there were 136 accidents on the parkway, with four deaths and 86 injuries. Among the \"death-dealing\" deficiencies that had to be corrected were inadequate guardrails, exposed steep slopes and light standards that were exposed to collision from passing high-speed traffic. Call boxes with emergency telephones were installed on the parkway in 1966. The boxes, attached to street lighting on the right shoulder, provided a direct line for help from the Ontario Motor League, now part of the Canadian Automobile Association (CAA). Today, the RESCU Traffic Management System monitors the highway and can call for emergency help.\nOn April 18, 1969, the slope behind Davies Crescent (just west of Don Mills Road) gave way after heavy rain, covering the northbound lanes and part of the southbound lanes with up to 90 centimetres (3 ft) of mud. There were only minor injuries. The slope, which had had its trees removed for the building of the expressway, was covered with sod and stakes to hold the soil.\nIn the late 1980s, a new partial-access interchange was built at Wynford Drive to provide access between the parkway and the Concorde Place development. The new partial-access interchange was paid for by the developers. The ramp connecting Wynford with the northbound parkway required a tunnel under the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) Midtown railway lines. To avoid delaying trains on the vital freight line, a prefabricated concrete arch was jacked into the embankment, 2 feet (0.61 m) at a time, over 12 days. This was the first North American use of such a technique.\nFrom 1986 to 1988, the City studied traffic congestion in the 'Don Valley Corridor', an area from Leslie Street east to Victoria Park Avenue. To improve traffic in the area, the proposed solutions were extending Leslie Street south of Eglinton Avenue and south-west to Bayview Avenue; widening Don Mills Road; and expanding the parkway. Two proposals were put forward for approval: the Leslie Street extension and widening of Don Mills Road. Don Mills Road was widened from four to six lanes with the new lanes to be high occupancy\/bus lanes. The Leslie Street extension was approved by East York and North York, but was abandoned by Metro Council in 1993, after the provincial government refused to subsidize its construction.\nIn 1989, a public meeting was held on the future of the Don River, which was widely known for its pollution, and the Don Valley, considered an \"industrial wasteland\" and which had seen its last industrial use (the Taylor, later Domtar, Paper Mill) close in 1982. The Toronto City Council formed the \"Task Force to Bring Back the Don\", an organization of volunteers to work on conservation efforts in the Don Valley. Since that time, the task force has planted some 40,000 trees in the valley, planted thousands of wildflowers and overseen the creation of wetlands along the river. Efforts continue to ameliorate the water quality of the river and improve the environment of the surrounding valley lands. These efforts can be seen in the \"Crother's Woods\" north of Bloor Street and the Chester Marsh just south of Bloor Street, alongside the parkway.\nIn 1994, the overpass bridge over Pottery Road, north of the Bayview\/Bloor interchange was rebuilt. It was over 30 years old and it required the replacement of columns and a restructuring of the deck. It was worn down due to the cumulative effect of heavy traffic and weather. The replacement necessitated the closure of several lanes of the parkway from April until the autumn that year.\nIn 2001, Toronto City Councillor Paul Sutherland proposed to add two toll lanes in each direction along the parkway, from Highway 401 to Eglinton Avenue. From Eglinton Avenue south, one lane in each direction would be added. The proposal was criticized by transportation experts such as Transport 2000 for encouraging driving to downtown. Sutherland estimated the cost of the proposal at $200 million.\nOn May 11, 2007, GO Transit announced a plan to put dedicated bus lanes on the centre median of the parkway, to allow its buses to bypass traffic congestion and promote buses as an alternative to automobiles. The $12 million plan would be paid for by GO. The plan would require testing of soil conditions and an environmental assessment. GO Transit was taken over by the provincial Metrolinx transit agency, and the plan did not appear in the 2008 \"Big Move\" Regional Transportation Plan of Metrolinx. A second proposal, to allow GO Transit buses to use the left shoulder to pass slow traffic was approved in June 2010 by Toronto City Council. The centre median shoulders, starting with the section between Lawrence Avenue and a point 458 metres (1,500 ft) north of York Mills Road, are opened to GO Transit buses to pass other traffic, at no more than 20 km\/h (12 mph) faster, when the other traffic is going at 60 km\/h (37 mph) or less. These lanes opened to buses beginning September 7, 2010. City Council directed the General Manager of Transportation Services to report on the feasibility of future bus bypass lanes in the segments from Pottery Road to Don Mills Road and between Don Mills Road and Eglinton Avenue East.\nThe lower section of the roadway from the Gardiner Expressway to south of Gerrard Street East has been flooded by overflowing water from the Don River on more than one occasion. This section of the Parkway was closed in 1986 and twice in 2013 due to flooding.\nThe parkway often fills to capacity, leading to slow travel speeds along much of its length throughout the day.\nDuring the 2010 municipal election, mayoral candidate Sarah Thomson proposed a road toll for the Gardiner Expressway and Don Valley Parkway, drawing comments from critics and supporters across the city.\nTwo projects are underway that may change the parkway's southern end. Waterfront Toronto is conducting an environmental assessment to evaluate replacing, modifying or removing the Gardiner Expressway east of Jarvis Street. The parkway would then end at Lake Shore Boulevard. The City of Toronto eventually decided to keep the Gardiner\u2013Don Valley Parkway connection, with revised ramps. A second proposal, known as the Don Mouth Naturalization and Port Lands Flood Protection project, seeks to recreate the natural mouth of the Don River into Toronto Harbour with the surrounding parkland. The project is managed by the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority and Waterfront Toronto. The ramps between the parkway and the Gardiner Expressway pass directly over the Don River channel.\nA third project, the \"Don River Valley Park\" to link all of the open space from the Toronto Brick Works south to the harbour, has proposed changes that will impact the highway. The first is the replacement of the current Bayview\u2013Bloor interchange roadways to free up green space. The second is the relocation of rail lines on the west bank of the Don River to the east bank. A third is a new land bridge over the highway joining the two sections of Riverdale Park.\nIn late 2016, the City of Toronto and mayor John Tory considered imposing a toll to use the highway, along with the Gardiner Expressway, to cover the maintenance costs of the highway and support public transit construction. However, the plan was rejected by the Ontario government.\nThe 1955 announced route. It was built with a different connection to the Gardiner Expressway, rerouting slightly to the east at Eglinton and an added off-ramp at Eastern Avenue.\nThe following table lists the major junctions along the Don Valley Parkway. The entire route is located in Toronto. Exit numbers were designated and signed in April 2017. The exit numbers reflect the distance to the south end of the highway at the Gardiner Expressway. There is a 2-kilometre difference between the exit numbers on the Don Valley Parkway and those on Highway 404, which are based on the distance to downtown Toronto.\nThe song \"DVP\" by punk rock group PUP is named after the Don Valley Parkway, and its lyrics include references to the parkway.\n^ a b c d Filey 2006, pp. 151\u2013153.\n^ \"By-Law No. 922-2003: To amend further Metropolitan By-law No. 109-86, respecting maximum rates of speed on certain former Metropolitan Roads, regarding Don Valley Parkway\" (PDF) (PDF). City of Toronto. September 24, 2003. Retrieved September 13, 2011.\n^ a b c Toronto & Area Map Book (Map). Cartography by Perly's. Rand McNally Canada. 2010. p. 3. \u00a7 D1. ISBN 978-0-88640-928-9.\n^ a b c Google (September 23, 2010). \"Don Valley Parkway \/ Gardiner Expressway interchange\" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved September 23, 2010.\n^ O'Neil, Lauren (June 27, 2010). \"Union Subway Station, DVP, Major Downtown Roads Closed due to Flooding\". Toronto Star. Retrieved June 29, 2010.\n^ a b c d Whiteson 1982, pp. 137\u2013139.\n^ Sullivan, Olena. \"Building the Bloor Viaduct: 1916\". Heritage Toronto. Archived from the original on September 27, 2011. Retrieved April 28, 2010.\n^ a b Taylor, Bill (July 29, 2007). \"A Picture and a Thousand Words\". Toronto Star. Retrieved April 25, 2010.\n^ \"Section of Don Valley Parkway Gets its Ribbon Sliced Aug. 31\". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. July 11, 1961. p. 13.\n^ \"Board Angry at Proposals For Expressway, Extension\". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. January 21, 1965. p. 5.\n^ Baker, Alden (June 4, 1971). \"Cabinet Decides to Halt Spadina\". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. p. 1.\n^ Darke 1995, p. 9.\n^ \"Bringing Back The Don: Lower Don Map\". City of Toronto. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved May 5, 2010.\n^ a b \"Noel Harding fonds\". City of Toronto Archives. Retrieved May 24, 2012.\n^ Goddard, Peter (March 12, 2007). \"'Eco-art' Used to Beautify Border\". Toronto Star. Retrieved May 28, 2010.\n^ a b \"Elevated Wetlands\". Lostrivers.ca. Retrieved May 24, 2012.\n^ RInC (2009). Hydro Corridor Projects (PDF) (Report). City of Toronto. Retrieved May 5, 2010.\n^ MapArt (2010). Ontario Back Road Atlas (Map). Peter Heiler Ltd. ISBN 978-1-55198-226-7.\n^ Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (2009). Don River Watershed Plan: Nature-based Experiences\u2014Report on Current Conditions (Report). Toronto and Region Conservation Authority. p. 16.\n^ Microsoft; Nokia (September 13, 2010). \"Charles Sauriol Conservation Area\" (Map). Bing Maps. Microsoft. Retrieved September 13, 2010.\n^ Google (July 19, 2010). \"Land Use in the Vicinity of the Don Valley Parkway North of Lawrence Avenue\" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved July 19, 2010.\n^ Google (July 19, 2010). \"Don Valley Parkway Lane Configuration Approaching Highway 401 Interchange\" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved July 19, 2010.\n^ a b c \"RESCU Traffic Cameras\". City of Toronto. Retrieved May 26, 2010.\n^ Hall, Joseph (January 22, 2001). \"Road Sensors Find Locked Arteries\". Toronto Star. p. B04.\n^ \"RESCU Traffic Camera Locations\". City of Toronto. Retrieved May 12, 2010.\n^ \"Average Weekday, 24 Hour Traffic Volume\" (PDF). City of Toronto. Retrieved May 5, 2010.\n^ Clark, M. (November 1973). Review of the Highway 400 Extension. Metropolitan Toronto Transportation Plan Review. pp. 11\u201325.\n^ Sewell 2009, p. 73.\n^ a b Don Valley Corridor Transportation Study (Report). M.M. Dillon Limited. July 1983. pp. 79\u201384.\n^ City of Toronto. Don Valley Corridor Report (Report). City of Toronto. pp. 87\u201388.\n^ City of Toronto. Don Valley Corridor Report (Report). City of Toronto. pp. 89\u201390.\n^ Darke 1995, p. 27.\n^ Darke 1995, p. 57.\n^ a b c d e \"City of Toronto: Bring Back the Don, The Story of the Don\". City of Toronto. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011. Retrieved August 11, 2010.\n^ Darke 1995, pp. 85\u201386.\n^ Sauriol 1984, p. 138.\n^ Garner, Hugh (August 2, 1975). \"They Were Right To Call It Hogtown\". Toronto Star. p. A16.\n^ a b Filey 2006, p. 153.\n^ Sewell 2009, p. 15.\n^ \"3 Traffic Plans Approved\". The Globe and Mail. January 2, 1946. pp. 1\u20132.\n^ \"Year's Review Shows Auto Fatalities Down; City Finances Better\". The Globe and Mail. January 2, 1948. p. 17.\n^ Bain, George (September 12, 1949). \"Master Plan for Toronto To Cost $179,000,000\". The Globe and Mail. p. 1.\n^ \"Suggest Toronto Woo York Twp. on Merger\". The Globe and Mail. February 23, 1950. p. 7.\n^ \"Air Camera Views Work In Progress on Toronto Streets and Bridges\". The Globe and Mail. May 10, 1949. p. 15.\n^ a b \"Charles Sauriol Conservation Reserve\". Toronto Green Community and Toronto Field Naturalists. Retrieved July 27, 2010.\n^ a b Rus 1998, p. 28.\n^ Rus 1998, p. 29.\n^ \"Don River Most Polluted River in Province\". The Globe and Mail. February 7, 1951. p. 15.\n^ \"City Withholds Don Valley Grant For Land Purchase\". The Globe and Mail. July 12, 1951. p. 4.\n^ a b c d e f g Hall, Joseph (March 7, 1992). \"DVP: The Scenic Highway We Love to Hate Turns 25\". News. Toronto Star. pp. A10\u2013A11.\n^ Sewell 2009, p. 67.\n^ Colton 1980, p. 62.\n^ \"N.Y. Parking Plans Studie by Metro Chief Gardiner\". The Globe and Mail. June 4, 1953. p. 15.\n^ \"Select Metro Roads; Order Survey of Don Valley Parkway\". The Globe and Mail. September 30, 1953. p. 9.\n^ Rus 1998, p. 32.\n^ Seymour 2000, pp. 58\u201359, 164\u2013166.\n^ a b c Smith, Michael (August 13, 1986). \"Love it or Hate it, Parkway's 25 years old It was 'Great Sense of Relief' when Don Valley Opened\". News. Toronto Star. p. A21.\n^ Haggart, Ronald (June 9, 1958). \"Don Route, Too Good, Perhaps Too Cheap\". The Globe and Mail. p. 7.\n^ \"Plan '56 Start on Don Parkway\". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. December 1, 1955. p. 1.\n^ \"Metro Council Gives Approval to Don Parkway\". The Globe and Mail. May 24, 1958. p. 5.\n^ \"Park on Lakefront $2,600,000 Aim at World Fair\". Toronto Star. July 11, 1958. p. 3.\n^ \"Frost Opens 5-Mile Parkway\". Toronto Star. September 1, 1961. p. 23.\n^ Hollett, Fred (September 1, 1961). \"Parkway Trip Hits Big Jam\". Toronto Star. p. 23.\n^ Pitfield 1999, p. 223.\n^ a b \"Progress Report: Toronto 1970: Transportation\". The Globe and Mail. November 5, 1963. p. 7.\n^ Sauriol 1984, p. 112.\n^ \"Will Shift Rails for Don Parkway\". Toronto Star. June 25, 1958. p. 7.\n^ \"Sewage Plant to be Abandoned\". Toronto Star. January 28, 1960. p. 8.\n^ \"Pave, Grade, Bayview Extension, Don Parkway\". The Globe and Mail. July 30, 1958. p. 17.\n^ \"New Metro Maze Now Open For Motorists\". The Globe and Mail. October 31, 1963. p. 23.\n^ \"Don Parkway Backed by Metro Committee\". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. December 1, 1955. p. 29.\n^ \"Expressway Ceremony is Traditional, Except for Traffic Jam\". The Globe and Mail. November 7, 1964. p. 1.\n^ Robinson, Harold (November 18, 1966). \"Parkway Moves North, Confusion, Too\". The Globe and Mail. 123 (36, 487). p. 1.\n^ \"Parkway Open to 401 Today\". The Globe and Mail. November 17, 1966. p. 2.\n^ \"Badly-planned Parkway a Death Trap: Shulman\". Toronto Star. August 16, 1965. pp. 1\u20132.\n^ a b \"About Us\". Canadian Automobile Association. Archived from the original on April 22, 2011. Retrieved March 29, 2012.\n^ Chung, Andrew (August 4, 2001). \"City Eyes Novel Ways of Unlocking Gridlock\". Toronto Star. pp. A01, A04.\n^ \"Mudslide Closes Northbound Don Parkway\". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. April 19, 1969. p. 1.\n^ a b Brennan, Pat (June 8, 1991). \"Concorde Place Homes Survive the Opposition\". Toronto Star. pp. E1, E19.\n^ Byers, Jim (June 22, 1989). \"Metro Okays Most Roadwork in 20 Years\". Toronto Star. p. A07.\n^ Brent, Bob (June 25, 1993). \"Metro Shelves Leslie St. Extension\". Toronto Star. p. A06.\n^ \"City of Toronto: Bring Back the Don, Wetlands are the Best Lands\". City of Toronto. Archived from the original on 2013-05-11.\n^ \"DVP section cut to two lanes until autumn\". Toronto Star. April 18, 1994. p. A6.\n^ Moloney, Paul; Hall, Joseph (March 12, 2001). \"New Toll Lanes Touted for DVP\". Toronto Star. p. A01.\n^ Moloney, Paul (May 11, 2007). \"Bus-only Lane Pitched for DVP\". Transit Toronto. Retrieved May 1, 2010.\n^ \"The Big Move\". Metrolinx. Archived from the original on April 6, 2010. Retrieved May 5, 2010.\n^ a b c \"City Council Decisions\". City of Toronto. June 8\u20139, 2010. Retrieved August 16, 2010.\n^ Jonathon, Jenkins (May 19, 2010). \"Buses Cleared to GO on Shoulder\". News. The Toronto Sun. p. 20.\n^ \"Plan for GO lane on DVP\". CBC News. May 18, 2010. Retrieved May 20, 2010.\n^ Warmington, Joe (September 1, 2010). \"Cops gain a 'fishing hole' while drivers gain a headache\". News. The Toronto Sun. p. 10.\n^ \"Fallen Soldiers Honoured with 'Route of Heroes'\". CTV News. June 7, 2010. Retrieved June 7, 2010.\n^ News Staff (May 29, 2013). \"Thunderstorms cause GTA-wide flooding and road closures\". City TV News. Retrieved October 18, 2016.\n^ \"Thomson Proposes a Road Toll for Gardiner, DVP\". CTV News. March 18, 2010. Retrieved May 1, 2010.\n^ Lu, Vanessa (April 17, 2010). \"Residents Oppose Road Tolls, Poll Finds\". Toronto Star. Retrieved May 1, 2010.\n^ The Gardiner Expressway (Report). Waterfront Toronto. Archived from the original on May 14, 2010. Retrieved May 5, 2010.\n^ \"On Your Marks: Grow: A New Source for Toronto\" (PDF). City of Toronto. Spring 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 6, 2011. Retrieved May 5, 2010.\n^ Abramowicz, Emma; Coutinho, Wayne; Gavel, Andy; Graham, Kelly; Loewen, Neil; Marquis, Taylor; Smith, Anthony (December 2015). \"The People's Plan for the Riverfront Ribbon\" (PDF). Evergreen. Retrieved October 18, 2016.\n^ Lupton, Andrew; Janus, Andrea (November 24, 2016). \"Highway Tolls Needed to 'Tame the Traffic Beast,' Toronto Mayor Says\". CBC News. Retrieved January 31, 2017.\n^ \"Premier Kathleen Wynne to reject Toronto's request for tolls on DVP, Gardiner - Toronto - CBC News\". Cbc.ca. January 26, 2017. Retrieved February 1, 2017.\n^ \"Wynne rejects road tolls for Toronto, Tory calls decision 'paternalistic and shortsighted'\". CP24.com. January 27, 2017. Retrieved February 1, 2017.\n^ Prior, Corinna (2016). Development History Don Mills and Eglinton (PDF). Ryerson University. p. 7. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-03-21.\n^ Cohen, Ian (January 29, 2016). \"'DVP' by PUP\". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved March 16, 2016.\nColton, Timothy J. (1980). Big Daddy. University of Toronto Press. ISBN 978-0-8020-2393-3.\nDarke, Eleanor (1995). A Mill Should Be Build Thereon. Natural History Inc. ISBN 978-0-920474-89-1.\nFiley, Mike (2006). \"Parkway with a past\". Toronto Sketches 9: The Way We Were. Dundurn Press. ISBN 978-1-55002-613-9. Retrieved April 12, 2010.\nMcClelland, Michael; Stewart, Graeme, eds. (2007). \"The Don Valley Parkway and Suburban Growth\". Concrete Toronto: A Guidebook to Concrete Architecture from the Fifties to the Seventies. Coach House Books. ISBN 978-1-55245-193-9. Retrieved April 15, 2010.\nPitfield, Jane (1999). Leaside (Selected Highlights of Leaside Council Meetings ed.). Natural History Inc. ISBN 978-1-896219-54-7.\nRus, Roslyn (1998). The Don: The History of the Don Valley. Eric S. Rosen Publishing. ISBN 978-1-894023-12-2.\nSauriol, Charles (1984). Tales of the Don. Natural History Inc. ISBN 978-0-920474-30-3.\nSewell, John (2009). The Shape of the Suburbs: Understanding Toronto's Sprawl. University of Toronto Press. ISBN 978-0-8020-9587-9. Retrieved April 15, 2010.\nSeymour, Murray (2000). Toronto's Ravines: Walking the Hidden Country. Boston Mills Press. ISBN 978-1-55046-322-4.\nWhiteson, Leon (1982). The Liveable City. Mosaic Press. ISBN 978-0-88962-152-7.\nTransportation Planning Department (December 2004). Don Valley Corridor Transportation Master Plan: Interim Report (PDF). City of Toronto. Retrieved May 5, 2010.\nWikimedia Commons has media related to Don Valley Parkway.\nTime lapse video of a drive down the parkway during the morning rush hour.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"What is the cheapest way to get from Coronado to Santa Catalina Island?\nThe cheapest way to get from Coronado to Santa Catalina Island is to bus and ferry via San Diego, Ca which costs $60 - $70 and takes 6h 44m.\nWhat is the fastest way to get from Coronado to Santa Catalina Island?\nThe quickest way to get from Coronado to Santa Catalina Island is to ferry and train which costs $85 - $150 and takes 5h 47m.\nHow far is it from Coronado to Santa Catalina Island?\nThe distance between Coronado and Santa Catalina Island is 87 miles.\nHow do I travel from Coronado to Santa Catalina Island without a car?\nThe best way to get from Coronado to Santa Catalina Island without a car is to ferry and train which takes 5h 47m and costs $85 - $150.\nHow long does it take to get from Coronado to Santa Catalina Island?\nIt takes approximately 5h 47m to get from Coronado to Santa Catalina Island, including transfers.\nHow long is the flight from Coronado to Santa Catalina Island?\nWhere can I stay near Santa Catalina Island?\nThere are 12+ hotels available in Santa Catalina Island. Prices start at $125 USD per night.\nWhat companies run services between Coronado, CA, USA and Santa Catalina Island, CA, USA?\nThere is no direct connection from Coronado to Avalon. However, you can take the ferry to 5th Av Pier, take the walk to Gaslamp Quarter Station, take the tram to Santa Fe Depot, take the walk to San Diego Santa Fe Depot, take the train to Oceanside Amtrak Station, take the walk to Oceanside station, take the train to Laguna Niguel\/ Mission Viejo station, take the taxi to Dana Point, then take the ferry to Avalon. Alternatively, you can take a vehicle from Coronado to Avalon via 12th & Imperial Transit Center, San Diego, Long Beach, L.B. Blvd. & Anaheim Sw, First & Shelter B N, Catalina Landing N, and Long Beach in around 6h 33m.\nRome2rio makes travelling from Coronado to Santa Catalina Island easy.\nRome2rio is a door-to-door travel information and booking engine, helping you get to and from any location in the world. Find all the transport options for your trip from Coronado to Santa Catalina Island right here. Rome2rio displays up to date schedules, route maps, journey times and estimated fares from relevant transport operators, ensuring you can make an informed decision about which option will suit you best. Rome2rio also offers online bookings for selected operators, making reservations easy and straightforward.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
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+{"text":"Along with my friend and Wine Review Online colleague, Michael Franz, I recently finished tasting some 2,400 wines in my capacity as a wine consultant for the Washington, D.C. based Clyde's restaurant group. Michael and I have been doing this for 17 years now (though we didn't taste as many wines in the early days), and nothing that I do gives me a clearer sense of the marketplace. What regions and varieties are outperforming others? Which are underperforming? Which producers have become complacent? Which have raised their game? And for the purpose of this column, what are the best values?\nAnd tell the world it's mine.\nFirst, though, here's where NOT to look --three places that consumers regularly go to when buying or ordering wine but that disappoint very frequently. The first, I'm sad to say, is California. There undoubtedly are many excellent wines grown and made in the Golden State, but very few sell for less than $25. California Pinots at this price point tend to taste candied and sappy, as increasingly do the state's Cabernets. Despite talk from \"experts\" about vintners practicing restraint, the Chardonnays remain excessively oaky and sweet, and few Sauvignon Blancs taste varietally true. This is a gross generalization to be sure, but when buying wines for everyday drinking, I'd advise staying away from California.\nI'd also stay away from Tuscany. Americans love Chianti and other Tuscan reds, but the exciting ones tend to cost $30, $40 or more. Most value-priced ones taste shrill and dusty. They lack both primary fruit flavors and secondary earthy ones. Finally, and not surprisingly, I'd ignore Bordeaux. The finest wines I've ever tasted came from Bordeaux, but the era in which classy, complex reds could be purchased without robbing a bank are long gone. And generic red Bordeaux \"Superieur\" almost always proves disappointing.\nSo where should you look? Here are eight places with eight different kinds of wine--four white, then four red. Given my recent experience, they are where many of the world's best values are.\nNo place in the world is making more exciting value-priced wines these days than South Africa, and no variety performs as consistently well there as Chenin Blanc. The country's reds often contain off-putting rubbery flavors, but the whites tend to taste clean and precise. Chenin in particular yields dry, focused wines that are chock-full of often surprisingly complex flavors. They usually see little if any oak, so are dominated by fruit (think pears) and an evocative minerality. Given the quality in the bottle, they also are remarkably cheap.\nFavorite producers include Badenhorst, Ken Forester, Raats, Simonsig, and at the under $10 level, both Indaba and Man. If you don't know these wines, rush out and try a few. They'll be eye-opening.\nTen years ago, few people outside of the region knew where Rueda is or what sort of wine Verdejo makes. Just for the record, the region is in northwestern Spain, not far from the Portuguese border, and this grape yields succulent white wines. They tend to smell light and floral, but taste substantial, with an almost waxy texture. Though sometimes blended with Sauvignon Blanc or Viura, Verdejo remains Rueda's brightest star.\nLook for wines from producers such as Egeo, Isabelino, Martinsancho, Menad\u00e9, and Jose Pariente.\nWhen I first visited the Finger Lakes some twenty years ago, quality was very uneven. There were some stellar wines, but also many disappointing one. Today, however, it's hard not to be enthusiastic about the wines, especially the Rieslings. They are likely America's best expressions of the variety.\nThis is a cold region (vines will only survive if planted close to the lakes themselves). The low temperatures give the wines high levels of acidity, guaranteeing both that they will taste refreshing and that they can enjoy a long life.\nAs with Rieslings from most places in the world, these wines can range from dry to sweet. Finger Lakes producers have widely adopted the International Riesling Foundation's sweetness scale. It's on most back labels, and can prevent unwanted surprises.\nFavorite producers include Anthony Road, Dr. Frank (the region's great pioneer), Lamoreaux Landing, Ravines, Red Newt and Red Tail Ridge.\nIt baffles me why this grape doesn't get more respect--from consumers and producers alike. When well-made and not overoaked, the wines can be fantastic! They have weight but never seem heavy, and they offer a plethora of fruit and mineral-like flavors.\nExcellent Pinot Blancs come from Alsace, Germany, and Oregon, but the wines that turned my head in this year's tasting hailed from Alto Adige in northern Italy. The best proved riveting on account of being wonderfully complete and complex. Three producers stood out: Catina Kaltern, Nals Margreid (especially the \"Sirmian\" bottling), and the always extremely reliable Cantina Tramin.\nTempranillo is hot these days, and I tasted some wonderful wines from both Ribera del Duero and Rioja made with it. But the surprise to me was how good reds made from Garnacha (Grenache in French) can be.\nExcept for the work of a few producers elsewhere (most notably Ch\u00e2teau Rayas in Ch\u00e2teauneuf-du-Pape), this grape often has been considered a second-class one--good for blending, but not all that interesting on its own. How things have changed. More and more vintners in both southern France and northern Spain are treating Grenache\/ Garnacha with new-found respect. When looking for value, the Spaniards have the advantage because their wines tend to be cheaper.\nThis are lithe wines, especially if they see little if any oak, with flavors that echo red fruits as well as dried herbs. Because they are not heavyweights, they will pair well with a wide variety of foods. Producers that impressed me include Alt\u00e9s, Anciaro, Evodia, Legado del Moncayo, Terrai OVG and Val Major.\nChile's central valleys remain some of the best places in the world to grow red Bordeaux grapes--Cabernet to be sure, but also Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and of course Carmenere. Savvy consumers have long recognized Chile as a good source of solid, cheap reds, and connoisseurs wax rhapsodic about the country's iconic wines--Almaviva, Don Melchior, and the like.\nFew people seem to realize, though, that superlative Chilean Bordeaux-styled wines abound in the $15 to $30 price range. They consistently outperform wines from elsewhere that cost three or four times as much.\nThere are many such wines on the market nowadays, and I urge you to experiment to find your favorites. Especially impressive in my tastings were Cousino Macul \"Antiguas Reservas Cabernet (which seems to have lost its excessively herbal edge from years past), Mont Gras \"Ant\u00fa\" and Santa Carolina \"Reserva de Familia\" Cabernet.\nWhether coming from appellations like Corbieres or Banyuls, or sporting the less prestigious C\u00f4tes du Roussillon designation, red wines from this southern corner of France consistently surprise and delight with their deep, satisfying flavors. Located just north of the Pyrenees mountains so not far from Spain, they are meaty, usually full-bodied wines. At the same time, they're not particularly astringent, so can provide satisfying drinking in both the near and long terms.\nLook for wines from Ch\u00e2teau de Caladroy, Hecht & Bannier, Tessellae and the quite inexpensive Penya (labeled as Cotes Catalanes).\nNo surprise here. Piedmontese Barbera proves impressive year after year. The wines are softly textured but serious in terms of flavor, and they continue to offer exceptional value. Apparently consumers' new found love for Barolo\/ Barbaresco has not filtered down to Barbera.\nIn northern Italy, these are definitely everyday wines, something to drink and enjoy while you wait (sometimes years) for the more prestigious wines to mature. But make no mistake; there is nothing simple about them. If we all could drink wines of this quality everyday, we all would be very happy.\nProducers to look for from my tastings include Damilano, Marchesi di Barolo, Mauro Molino, Pico Gonzaga and Rocche Costamagna.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"This product has literally been the talk of every beauty enthusiasm, and more. People claim its the best mascara they've ever used in their life and even though the smaller size comes with a a price tag of around \u00a39 they say its worth it.\nSo when elle magazine brought it out as a 'free gift' in their magazine which was \u00a34 of course i had to get it and see what the talk was all about. I can now say that i like it....but i don't love it.\nFrom this quick before and after you can tell that the mascara is actually really good at adding length and slight volume. However please note i did only apply one coat onto the lashes here because i find that with this mascara applying more than one coat can make it clumpy - if you like that look then go for it! But the actual brush of the mascara is really good because on the end it has bristles going all around which helps when you want to apply mascara onto the finer lashes of the eyes.\nThe consistency of the mascara is actually something i really like because i find that it's thicker than the maybelline rocket volum' but thinner than the max factor clump defy. This means that when applied its not so thick that you feel like you have to drag the brush before your lashes actually get coated but its also not so runny and thin that you get it all over your eyelid when you blink.\nOverall i don't think that this mascara deserves ALL the hype that's it getting because it could be much better but needless to say its actually a really really really good mascara! I mean it does what it says! But if you are looking for something more on the cheaper side then the maybelline mascaras will probably be a better alternative than this 'high end' mascara from benefit.\nPs i don't actually have a rim around my iris what you're seeing is the contact lens and on the before picture i've gotten a little bit of concealer onto my lashes which explains why they look grey.\nAlso good luck to everyone starting their Summer GCSE exams...i feel your pain people...i really do, we can all suffer together.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Sustainable Tallahassee - Frenchtown Heritage Farmers Market - every Saturday!\nVisit and support the Frenchtown Heritage Farmers Market - every Saturday from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm.\nThis is a gem for our community and it needs our support and patronage to make it successful!\nYou'll find locally grown produce and locally made ice cream, honey, jewelry, crafts, sometimes music - and more!\nThe Frenchtown Farmers Market is growing efforts to make local, sustainable foods more widely available. The Market is a project of the Frenchtown Neighborhood Improvement Association, a non-profit organization working to grow the Frenchtown community.\nSNAP & WIC Welcome - With double SNAP Benefits!\nContact the Market at 850-270-3573 or frenchtownmarketplace@gmail.com.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"\"Enjoy the Western Sierra Scenery including Pine Flat Lake & Bass Lake\"\nWinton Park Rest Stop: 3pm - 8pm (mile 134.5) access to drop-off bags (dual rest stop). This is the cut-off point before you head up to Trimmer Springs \u2013 8pm is the cut-off time, no exceptions please.\nWarning: If you start really early, the 1st rest stop may still be closed by the time you get there, so plan accordingly. Spring Valley School does have a water faucet by the front\/left area. There is a mini-mart at Mile-41 (after the Walker-Grade climb) which may have an optional water stop. The convenience store also has all kinds of snacks, bottled drinks, & tasty hot food (at very reasonable prices).\nWelcome to the foothills of the western Sierras and enjoy the grandeur of Bass Lake, Kerckhoff Lake and Pine Flat Lake as you ride the quiet country road of the Central Valley.\nThe journey starts at Clovis, the Gateway to the Sierras, on a mostly flat terrain. This gives you the opportunity to warm up the legs as you embark on a challenging ride that a lot of cyclists love to endure. Eighteen miles on your saddle the town of Friant is approaching, the Friant Dam looms large up ahead. Here you will encounter the first climb of the day \u2013 the \"Broken Bridge\" by the dam, and you will be in between them. Up this dam hill will bring you to the undulating terrain towards the first rest stop at Spring Valley Elementary School at O'Neals.\nFrom this point on you will pace yourself going up east to a 6-miler \"Walker Grade\", which will lead you north through mild ascent and then pleasantly sweeping descent to the very scenic and serene loop of the lake, and the famous and beautiful tourist village named after it \u2013 Bass Lake. \"It is situated in the Sierra National Forest about 14 miles from the south entrance of Yosemite National Park\u2026at an elevation of 3,415 ft.\"\nAfter a late breakfast treat in Bass Lake, you will NOW be leaving behind the hardest climb of the entire event. If this statement has not sunk in yet because the cognitive system is sidetracked by the churning digestive system \u2013 it means in catatonic cycling speak: the torture is over, for now.\nLong, long, long downhill you cruise on. At times cyclists loathe the monotony. But not this time. This is the moment to reflect and gather ones thoughts on what lies yonder \u2013 North Fork. This \"is the birth place of Jeff King, four-time champion of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race\". I'm not making this up. But most importantly, historically or geographically for that matter, North Fork prides itself as the \"exact geographical center of the state of California\".\nAnother long, long, long downhill will bore your adrenaline-induced body. But this time we warn you because that what lies ahead is one of the most underestimated climbs in this event \u2013 the A.G. Wishon Powerhouse. And the adrenaline will come in handy. Take a brief moment to enjoy the view from the bridge before you head up. Although the highest elevation reaches up to 2,245ft, and the weather gets scorching at times, the climb is grinding, lung-busting to some but surprisingly pleasant and overall epic and panoramic to most. It is in \"Kerckhoff Lake (Madera County) and is surrounded by Fowler mountain, Mike Walker canyon and Grapevine canyon\".\nDownhill again to the third rest stop is the Auberry Elementary School. A long, fast, busy road will lead you to the town of Prather all the way down to Dry Creek Trailhead Park in northeast Fresno, where the renowned Killer Bees await you to pamper and spoil your cycling needs with their late lunch, beverages, rehydration drinks, bike mechanic, and massages!\nAfter this late lunch, a 30-mile flat stretch of road will lead you to Winton Park, where the rest of the second half of the event will take place eastward. From here, you will coast along the very smooth paved road and winding terrain along Fresno County's Kings River. Heading further east to Trimmer Springs Road in Sanger, you will meander to the banks of Pine Flat Lake through rolling terrain. Soon after, you will turn around at the Trimmer Springs Bridge and negotiate your way back to a very fast descent to Winton Park. The rest of the way is all flat heading back home to the finish line.\nCongratulations, you just earned your California Triple Crown credit along with your sumptuous dinner.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"1- Department of Health Management and Economics, School of Public Health, Health Information Management Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.\n2- Department of Health Management and Economics, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.\nBackground: The prevalence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) as a child neurodevelopmental disorder has increased significantly during the past 3 decades worldwide and in Iran. This chronic disease does not cause premature death and there is no definitive treatment. Thus, the cost of ASD is extremely heavy and overwhelming. The purpose of this study is to calculate the economic burden of ASD in Iran.\nMethods: A cross-sectional descriptive-analytic study was conducted to calculate all-important ASD costs. Two hundred and ninety autism patients in Tehran participated in this study in 2017 with the support of Tehran University of Medical Sciences (TUMS). A valid and reliable questionnaire was used to estimate direct medical costs, direct non-medical costs and indirect costs.\nResults: The annual economic burden of ASD is estimated to be 223,561,841 Rials ($6,883 2014 USD) per patient in Tehran, Iran in 2017. Approximately 32%, 52% and 16% of the total cost were direct medical costs, direct non-medical costs, and indirect costs. The average ASD direct cost was $5,765 of which 38% was direct medical costs and 62% was direct non-medical costs. The average annual ASD direct medical cost was $2,215 per patient of which 70%, 16% and 7% were related to rehabilitation, medicine and doctor visit costs. The average annual ASD direct non-medical cost was $3,550 per patient of which 35% was the cost of parents' immigration to Tehran to receive health care services. The average annual ASD indirect cost for productivity loss from unemployment or reduced work productivity was estimated at $1,118. The largest cost component was parents' productivity loss due to caregiving (70%).\nConclusion: Autism imposes substantial direct and indirect economic effects on patients and their families. Hence, health policy makers must take the most effective measures to make best use of scarce societal resources, to reduce the cost of the disease for patients and their families and subsequently, reduce its psychosocial burden.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzbblqc b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzbblqc
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ffc5541f4266b86b1bc97a3f5956cfa1b0c10406
--- /dev/null
+++ b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzbblqc
@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"ENplus-Briquettes is a certification scheme for wood briquettes. It is based on the international product standard ISO 17225-3 and supplements it with requirements on quality control and quality management. The aim of the certification program is to ensure the supply of high-quality wood briquettes to consumers.\nWhat quality classes are defined by ENplus?\nIn the ENplus-Briquettes certification program there are two quality classes: ENplus A1 and ENplus A2. These are based on the international standard ISO 17225-3. The essential difference between these quality classes is the maximum allowed ash content, which is 1.0 per cent for ENplus A1 and 1.5 % for ENplus A2. Wood briquettes of both quality classes are suitable for all furnaces for firewood. ISO 17225-3 sets a limit value of maximum 3.0 % ash content for class B briquettes. In Germany, briquettes that exceed an ash content of 1.5 % are prohibited by the 1. BImSchV, therefore class B was not included in ENplus-Briquettes.\nHow can I identify ENplus?\nThe ENplus quality seal is depicted on the imprint on the package or on the package foil. The quality seal contains an individual Product-ID that ensures the traceability of briquettes. Certified companies and their products are listed on our webpage.\nDo all ENplus-certified briquettes conform to the same requirements worldwide?\nYes. Wood briquettes are certified according to ENplus on a worldwide scale in order to ensure a similar quality. Thereby ENplus guarantees the international supply of high-quality briquettes.\nWhere can briquette producers and traders apply for ENplus certification of briquettes?\nIn order to receive the ENplus-Briquettes certificate an application must be submitted to the certification organization, the Deutsches Pelletinstitut (DEPI). DEPI awards the ENplus certification seal and signs a license agreement with the certificate holder.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"At first, Kenzie wasn't allowed to accompany the search.\n\"We don't know what we'll find,\" his father had admitted to him, after a long conversation in which he tried to explain why Kenzie couldn't come, using any other reason that didn't involve the potential of finding Tara's body instead of Tara herself, the image that had been haunting them all. It had seemed to take him a long time to even consider the idea as a possibility, and longer to admit it to his son. Kenzie understood this, as much as he hated it, as much as it terrified him. The chance of finding Tara alive and well was fading.\nSo, his parents left, and he stayed behind, sheltered even from the rain in this too-empty house, surrounded by his sister's toys that no one could bring themselves to put away. While the rain pattered against the roof, Kenzie gathered the dolls and cars (old ones of his) into a pile and nestled them right next to the couch, where he didn't have to see them.\nSometimes he looked out at the street, to check if he would see that strange woman again. His parents hadn't seen her for themselves, but had reacted to his description of her with some interest. It wasn't unlikely that she was a relative from a few generations back, but they had more important issues right now than family reunions, and at least at the start, they tried to keep Kenzie out of it, too. He hadn't told them about what he'd heard Mark say that night, and they were likely keeping some information from him, too. Were they looking into the woman's appearance in town already, and simply hesitated to tell him what they'd found? Was she a suspect?\nHe almost felt relief at being left behind. He hated himself for it. The police were out there now, Mark leading a group of his officers in the search of the river and the surrounding area. Kenzie should be looking for her, too; as his parents were, his mother limping through the uneven riverbed, made even worse by the rain... If they were searching for Tara, whether they would find her or not, how they would find her... he should be out there, too. No matter how scared the thought made him.\nHe was overwhelmed by a sense of inadequacy, even after he was allowed to join the search a few days later. The adults figured that he might be aware of more places they might have played.\nHe still couldn't shake the feeling that she had gone to the river, despite days of fruitless searching telling them all otherwise. There must have been something he could have told her. There must have been some way he could have been a better brother.\nBy then the search party had dwindled down to only Mark, Kenzie, and his parents. They explored up and down the river, from the places they usually played to the places they'd been warned not to go. On an afternoon six days after her disappearance, when the day had cleared, however briefly, and all was still and warm, Kenzie smelt the stench of death, and the vision haunted him anew. The adults ran ahead, left him frozen- it turned out to be just a rabbit, and all breathed sighs of relief.\n\"Used to be a rabbit, anyway,\" Mark commented, regarding the remains with distaste. \"Looks like it was mauled by something.\"\n\"Probably a wild dog,\" Kenzie's father replied, his voice still shaking. Mark nodded.\n\"There's been a few of them around, lately,\" he agreed.\nKenzie was still standing back from it all. He hadn't moved forward to see the creature, and even his mother's hand on his back made him startle. It wasn't like he wasn't used to seeing things like this- the rabbit's death was just part of the natural way of things, and they were pests, anyway... it was only what could have been that left them all so frightened.\n\"It was just a rabbit, Mackenzie,\" she was having trouble breathing too, but forced the words despite it. \"It's going to be alright. We'll find her.\" He nodded, the movement more like a spasm. After a time, they went on.\nKenzie was the smallest, so it was often his job to search for any small crevices, for gaps in the stone, potential hiding places for a child. They spent a long time exploring the rockier parts of the river (more likely to run into a snake there, or hit one's head), where the raindrops dribbled down the rock walls and fed the clinging moss.\nAll the while they called out, \"Tara, Tara,\" like they were just playing a game of hide and seek that had gone on for far too long.\nHe was good at finding spaces that Tara might have gone into. Small hollows in the rock, or areas sheltered by the curving branches of trees. It was not too long ago that he had been a child her size, and he'd always loved small spaces. It was weird. He could've sworn there were some larger hollows around here... he remembered curling up in one once, watching ants carry away threads of the moss that grew around its entrance. Oh well. That had been years ago, and his memory was always a fallible thing. Maybe it had been in a different area of the river, or a flood had changed its course. Rivers were the kinds of things that were always changing.\nThough they searched for a few days more before the focus of the investigation shifted to a potential kidnapping, they never found any caverns large enough for a child to be comfortable in them.\nOnce different questions began to be asked of his parents- \"you can't think of anyone who might have taken her?\" \u2013 Kenzie was no longer necessary. No one told him this directly. His mother's parting words just became \"I'm going out to talk with the police again. I'll be back before your father gets home.\" Then she was gone, and he was left behind. There was nothing more that he could contribute.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Musk wrote Thursday to President Donald Trump, in response to a post by the president a day earlier \"Do you think the US & China should have equal & fair rules for cars?\".\nSources with direct knowledge said that the tweets hint at Musk's frustration over struggling to get a deal done with Shanghai's government to assemble cars there. An agreement hasn't been finalised because the two sides disagree on the ownership structure for a proposed factory. China's central government is pushing for the plant to be a joint venture with local partners, while Tesla wants to own the factory completely.\nImport duties and the difficulties Tesla has had avoiding them by producing in China is keeping the company from fully taking advantage of the world's biggest market for cleaner cars. Sales of battery-electric, plug-in hybrid and fuel cell-powered autos could surpass 1 million units this year, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.\nChina requires overseas automakers to form joint ventures with local manufacturers in which the foreign companies are capped at 50 per cent ownership. The government's aim was for its then-fledgling auto industry to benefit from technology transfer by operating along with global giants including Volkswagen AG and General Motors Co.\nThe National Development and Reform Commission said in June 2016 that China was looking into lifting the 50 per cent ownership cap. The US Chamber of Commerce has criticised the policy for limiting market access. Supporters of the rule say it gives China's automakers a chance to better develop technology that will be capable of withstanding global competition.\nMr Trump and Musk have a rocky history. The Tesla chief executive officer served on two White House advisory councils before stepping down in June after the president announced he would pull the US out of the Paris climate accord.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Recently Daniel has produced tracks for RedFaces and Jake Isaac and is currently mixing an album for Alma Forrer (BMG). This year he's also been recording Dermot Kennedy, Tom Grennan, Freya Ridings and Isaac Gracie as well as mixing tracks for Luke Sital Singh, Liv Dawson, Vasser and Lewis Capaldi.\nDaniel started out playing in bands before working on night reception at Trevor Horn's SARM Studio's. He soon progressed to an assisting position and began learning his trade under the world-class engineers and producers that came through the door. He then went on to work with mix engineer Ruadhri Cushnan. Over 2 years he assisted on records for Ed Sheeran, Half Moon Run and Foy Vance as well as the Grammy award-winning Album of the Year 'Babel' by Mumford and Sons. The past 4 years he's worked at Miloco in London with artsits including Brody Dalle, FKA Twigs and Bjork.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"We have the technological possibilities to produce the widest selection of fabrics (tricots, double tricots, satins, satinettes, tulles, fantasies, and so on) as well as the capacity to apply the highest level of finishes (dressing, softening, printing, resin, lacquer, microcapsuling, fireproofing, etc.) and the flexibility to adapt to the wishes and needs of our clients.\nPUNTIBLOND is the only company in the sector that does not require third parties to complete all the manufacturing processes of its fabrics.\nThe PUNTIBLOND group brings together all the companies and services needed for manufacturing the most varied, demanding and ambitious range of fabrics. Our clients have the advantage that they can concentrate all the production phases and finishes of their articles in a single interlocutor.\nPUNTIBLOND has a wide range of articles, among which we would highlight our star product in stretch fabric, the range of Colibr\u00ed\u00ae articles. The almost fifty different articles in the Colibr\u00ed\u00ae line are light fabrics which, at the same time, guarantee gentle, comfortable control, making them particularly useful for moulded garments with new, avant-garde styles.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzbdozk b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzbdozk
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@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"\"It's an important tournament for me to show that I am a goalscorer,\" she said.\n\"Last time I went into a Young Matildas camp I came out golden boot and that's exactly what I plan on doing this time.\"\nPlaying against lowly-ranked youth sides from Uzbekistan, Nepal and the hosts will certainly be a step down from playing world No.1 United States, as Fowler did last week for her country.\nFowler said it wouldn't change her mentality one iota.\n\"I'm going to be putting my all in because I want to get to the World Cup,\" she said.\n\"Somewhere I can test myself against the best teams and the best players, I'm going to do all I can to make sure I get into that squad.\"\nFoord, who scored a wonder goal against the USWNT in the 5-3 loss, was also 16 when she represented the Matildas at the 2011 tournament.\nShe was named the World Cup's best young player and has since moved from a full-back role to become one of the world's best forwards.\nSam Kerr is an obvious mentor for the ambitious Fowler, but there's something to learn from the entire Matildas camp if she's to accomplish her goals.\n\"You work with everyone and try to learn something from everyone,\" she said. \"Sure I can say I'm looking up to Sam, which I am, learning stuff from her, but I'm also learning stuff from the defence.\n\"I'm also a defender as well as an attacker because I defend from the front.\"","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Product query settings are a subset of vulnerability scan settings. For details about vulnerability scan settings, see Vulnerability Scan Methods.\nGo to the Product query section.\nSelect the products to check.\nClick Settings next to a product name and then specify the port number that Vulnerability Scanner will check.\nTo set the number of computers checked during manual vulnerability scans, change the value for ThreadNumManual. Specify a value between 8 and 64.\nFor example, type ThreadNumManual=60 if you want Vulnerability Scanner to check 60 computers at the same time.\nTo set the number of computers checked during scheduled vulnerability scans, change the value for ThreadNumSchedule. Specify a value between 8 and 64.\nFor example, type ThreadNumSchedule=50 if you want Vulnerability Scanner to check 50 computers at the same time.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"The Er: YAG laser is widely recognized as the optimal modality for skin resurfacing. It has the highest absorption coefficient in the skin of all the infrared lasers, allowing extremely precise micron layer-by-layer ablation of the epidermis. Er: YAG laser resurfacing provides an extremely safe and precise method for \"feather-like\" light induced \"peeling\" of aged or scarred skin tissue. Minimally ablative Er: YAG laser resurfacing treatments consistently produces optimum results with no comparable alternative.\nErbium s an intra-epidermal laser peel that precisely removes the outermost layer of the skin. The procedure is individually customized for the condition to be corrected. Skin conditions such as wrinkles, injury scars, acne scars, slackness, keratosis, and pigment problems have been successfully treated with a Laser Peel.\nErbium Laser offers benefits to anyone who wants to improve specific skin conditions and rejuvenate the overall health and appearance of their skin.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"LocoMobi To Install Integrated Parking System of the Future for First Time in North America - LocoMobi Inc.\nLocoMobi have several sites with many of these options but this site will be unique as they introduce both the new MOJO Xtreme Pay On Foot stations that offer more flexible payments types and change all based on entering the plate number into the machine and the first integrated deployment of mobile payments with LPR-based access control systems.\nThis deployment comes less than two months after the merger that saw Quickpay, one of the leading mobile payment providers for parking, acquire Nautical Technologies, the first company to develop and offer integrated LPR tracking with a revenue engine for pay machines via the cloud.\nSpringdale will incorporate 8 lanes of hardware that will allow a patron to enter via reading the vehicle plate and causing the gate to open. Once the patron is ready to leave, they will proceed the Mojo Xtreme Pay On Foot station and simply enter their license plate number. The Mojo Xtreme will retrieve the entry time for that license plate, compute the fee based on rate logic defined in the cloud management portal, and display to the patron. Payment can be via Bill notes, Coins, Credit Card or Chip\/Pin\/ Debit Card. The Mojo Xtreme will offer change in Bill notes and Coins.\nUpon payment the patron receives their receipt and simply returns to their vehicle and drives to the exit. The plate is read and gate opens upon validation of payment and allowed exit time. Should the patron's time expire or they forget to pay at the pay on foot station there are Express Payment Mojo LPR stations at each exit.\nA patron can also register one time using the QP QuickPay mobile payment app and thereafter they can bypass all of the pay stations since the same rate structures are mirrored on their mobile phone and they can pay simply by phone and the exit gate will open.\nAll permit parkers will have their plate registered and will also bypass the payment machines. All merchants will validate using the LocoMobi validation system which requires no stamps or tickets and records all validations in the same LocoMobi cloud management system.\nIn the event there needs to be enforcement, LocoMobi have taken care of this with their Ticketroid enforcement citation system which is updated in real time with all the plates, tracks violations and alerts enforcement staff and prepares citations for exactly the violating vehicles, dramatically reducing time spent patrolling facilities.\n\"It is incredible where technology has taken us. There are many structures where we deal with lost tickets, cardholder abuse and wasted patrols of our lots . We are truly excited at the closing of all the loopholes and creating more control,\" says Jack Pong, President and CEO of Citycore Development, one of the leading builders in the Toronto area.\nLocoMobi's Mobile payment application, QP Quickpay\u2122, also complements any parking facility as an alternative to the payment station utilizing the same rate engine and cloud portal.\nQP QuickPay can be used standalone, integrated with legacy hardware at low cost, or as part of a fully integrated LocoMobi system to deliver new value for drivers as well as parking owners and operators.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Finally, someone in the media has a creative, clear and accurate judicial analysis of how Obama's repeated executive actions have undermined his chances in the upcoming ObamaCare Supreme Court case, how Obama and his presidency has come to be viewed by the Supreme Court justices \u2014 and their repeated smack down of Obama's over-reach on his assertion of executive power.\nOf course, Business Week has a limp and largely pathetic regurgitation of every liberal's talking points, and Greg Stohr manages to be patronizing and hand-wringing at the same time, which is tough to pull off.\nBut when the Supreme Court keeps ruling against Obama's executive over-reach (and they have, see LA Times above) including, at times, unanimously, it will be these precedents that informs their ObamaCare decision.\nPresident Obama is a repeat-offender on executive order over-reach, as already defined and judged by the Supreme Court.\nRepeat offenders are viewed as much by their past actions as by their current reason to appear before the court, and if journalists like Greg Stohr can not understand this, or refuse to understand it, they are likely in for a very rude awakening on judgment day.\nAny first law school student will tell you that Obama's assertions about the what the text of the law is meant to mean, as opposed to what it says \u2014 will be weighed in the previous conclusions that the Court has made against the President \u2014 but to Greg Stohr, it is merely more convenient to ignore these facts, this history.\nCompletely divorced from political realities House Minority Leader Pelosi was meanwhile publicly explaining that is what cannon fodder is for.\nStohr and his ilk conveniently forget other key points, specifically that Senator Nelson refused to vote for ObamaCare unless States were allowed to run the exchanges \u2014 this change in the law the left insists was not part of the intent, was necessary for it to get 60 votes in the Senate. There can be no greater expression of intent than a provision put in the bill so it would pass.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzbekxs b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzbekxs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..27d1b1597baa00fece873206e44a91ddd277bbba
--- /dev/null
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@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"I had an amusing experience at a recent digital-themed meeting. A colleague from another establishment sat down beside me before we started and said \"You watch, there's going to be at least one geek here who opens up their MacBook, takes notes on their iPad with their apple pencil, sets a reminder on their Apple watch and just talks about the importance of code. You wait. I didn't wait \u2013 I took out my MacBook, opened up Good Notes on the iPad Pro with my apple pencil at the ready (and for good measure set a reminder on the apple watch). Sure enough, my role in the meeting was also to talk about what progression in 'coding' looks like in Early years and primary. I just loved that the colleagued just sighed and had a good chuckle about it.\nSure, I'm a geek and proud \u2013 and following on from that, today, I'm looking at another Apple product \u2013 Keynote \u2013 and why I use it over PowerPoint each and every time. I am not, however, saying it is better than PowerPoint. PowerPoint is a phenomenal and powerful tool, and many of the things that I describe below can be done using PowerPoint \u2013 however, as Glasgow is undergoing a digital transformation where learners will be working with iPads on a 1-1 basis I feel that its an important tool to really get to grips with. Hopefully, by the end of this blog post, you will have found new, creative ways to use Keynote (and perhaps PowerPoint) not just to create presentations, but as a tool for learning across the curriculum.\nInstead of using picture guides, there are lots of great YouTube videos available on using Keynote. Here is a series of videos that are very clear and just focus on 'getting started'. Please note that the content is not created by me, but is publicly available on YouTube. If you like the videos, please support the creator, WCPS, by giving their videos a 'like', sharing their content and\/or subscribing to their channel.\nOne edit from the above video: to delete a slide or select options, tap on the slide icon (instead of hold) so that it highlights in blue and then tap again \u2013 this is easier than first holding.\nYou will notice that it still feels very much like a 'PowerPoint' at this stage, and it is fantastic to use. Keynote and PowerPoint are also interchangeable \u2013 you can open your previously made PowerPoints in Keynote, and you can save Keynote presentations as PowerPoints if you wanted to use it on a school computer.\nThere are different ways that you can link to a projector in class. The easiest is if you are lucky enough to have 'Apple TV' set up in your classroom and Wi-Fi \u2013 however, this is unlikely so I will skip over this.\nAlternatively, you can purchase an iPad (lightning) to VGA adapter which will allow you to plug your device into the wire that normally connects your laptop to the projector. Apple's own lightning to VGA adapter is very good, but unnecessarily expensive. There are much cheaper versions available on Amazon or similar. *Please note that I am not affiliated with any products I mention, and am only doing so to note examples, but am not recommending any of these products as better than any others.* A search on amazon for lightning to VGA brings up some good results \u2013 make sure that you do select one that has a lightning (not thunderbolt) connector and is compatible with VGA (it may also have an additional HDMI or other post \u2013 that is okay).\nWith the iPad connected to the projector with a wire, it takes away from the 'portability' of the iPad. Fortunately, Keynote has presenter mode through which you can not only control the Keynote from your phone\/another iPad, but you can read your presenter notes on your second device while the students only see the presentation.\nTo use presenter mode, open the presentation on the iPad that you wish to display your presentation and also open Keynote on the device that you want to control the presentation from. I normally use my iPhone for this.\nIf you have previously paired your two devices, then follow these steps to remotely control your presentation.\nIf you can't find the iPad that you wish to control (it won't say 'play' if this is the case) click on 'devices' as below and then choose 'add a device'. To add a device for the first time, you should make sure that they are both connected to the same WiFi or cellular connection \u2013 thereafter they do not need to be connected (at least, I've not had them connected after this point).\nOnce you've used presenter mode, I can guarantee you won't want to present in any other way, especially if you use all of the extra features like presenter notes and the laser-pen simulator \/ drawing tools!\n3. Creating a 'Links Only' presentation.\nI did this as a workshop in Strathclyde University for student teachers as it is a fab tool. For older children, they could create interactive textbooks and study guides. In the past I've used it to create 'branching narrative' style interactive stories. There are lots of ways to use 'links only' and create links to external sources and also internal slides.\nFor years, I've been using photoshop for this very thing, but it is available on our iPads for free and is surprisingly powerful!\nTruthfully, until 'Everyone Can Create: Photo' came out, and I read through the chapter on using Keynote for photography \u2013 making scrapbooks and montages etc, I hadn't even realised that this was a feature or just how amazing it was.\nInstead of trying to describe the process, in the below tweet is a video of a simple creative montage in action on Keynote \u2013 whilst watching, just think about the ways that children could use it creatively for art & design, or advertising a product, or for bringing stories to life in literacy etc.\nHopefully this has been a helpful insight into using Keynote and why I now use it for everything!\nSorry this blog is late, I had hoped to finish it before performing in Edinburgh today, however, that wasn't to be! A great day though, with an audience in the tens of thousands our boys did phenomenally well \u2013 you can see what we were up to on the choir twitter feed or facebook page.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"At first glance, the i8 is a beautifully designed sports car. Extremely low and wide when viewed from the front, a supercar stance with powerfully sculpted surfaces and precise contours. Look more closely, and it's an ingenious new vehicle concept, with a design devoted to two functions: efficiency and driving dynamics. There is no denying this.\nThe BMW i8 has all the characteristics of a full-blooded sports car with its long wheelbase, short overhangs and a solid posture. The entire shape and form of the i8 follows the BMW i design philosophy, creating a unique connection between ground-breaking sustainability and premium design. Including the 'black belt', an unmistakeable design element that runs from the front, over the roof, to the rear in all BMW i models. This works in perfect harmony with the dynamic stream-flow design, Aero Curtains, U-shaped LED Daytime Running Lights and LED rear lights and prominent double kidney grille which are all strikingly distinctive BMW i features.\nThe interior is beautiful and designed keeping BMW's future in mind. This 4 wheel drive car has leather seats, a BMW i ConnectedDrive solution, BMW i8 Professional Navigation System, including BMW i ConnectedDrive services for navigation, has been specially developed to make driving as easy and comfortable as possible. The navigation system also tells you where your nearest ChargeNow charging stations are. It also features a concierge service.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"A NEW framework has been developed by CLA and NFU to help internet providers speed up the roll-out of rural broadband.\nAvailable to all broadband infrastructure providers, the new wayleave agreement is designed to make it easier for landowners and broadband providers to reach agreements.\nCLA South East represents landowners, farmers and rural businesses across Kent, Sussex, Surrey, Hampshire, the Isle of Wight, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire.\nRegional Director Robin Edwards said: 'People living and working in rural areas have fought long and hard for better broadband provision, and the wayleave agreement that we announce today will help speed up fixed line broadband delivery without eroding property rights.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Griff Comm makes Monitoring Centre, Location Monitoring, Audio Surveillance, Video Surveillance, Monitoring Centres, and Technical Surveillance technology. Their headquarters is in Powys. They have offices in United Kingdom.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"I cannot tell you how much love I have for this edit, my copy of the vinyl is so warn out. Originally released as a vinyl only track on the phenomenal 'Very Polish Cutouts' series, which dug out old polish disco and breathed new life into it. Well label bossman Zambon has very kindly given it away for free digitally, so now everyone can appreciate Ptaki's wonderful production. That vocal hook is about as addictive as it gets. Sad to see the series finished but all good things must come to an end\u2026..I guess.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
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+{"text":"Modern Clay specialises in 20th Century and Contemporary Ceramics, with a particular emphasis on post-war studio pottery. We regularly hold works by the following studio potters, Axel Salto, Gordon Baldwin, Emmanuel Cooper, Ewen Henderson, Jennifer Lee, Annette Lindenberg, Paul Philp and Lucie Rie amongst others.\nWe are always interested in acquiring studio ceramics and will buy or consign from private collectors.\nOur studio is located in Nottinghill, London, where the ceramics can be viewed by appointment. If this is not convenient we are happy to arrange viewing elsewhere.\nPlease view the current selection of 20th Century and Contemporary Ceramics available for sale.\nThe website is updated regularly and items that have been sold are labelled accordingly.\nCheck out our sister site Askew Art for 20th Century British Art.\nModern Clay is pleased to show a collection of works by the ceramicist and designer Annette Lindenberg.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Fibrosis secondary to asbestos exposure. Usually occurs 20-30 years after exposure.\nNot just pleural plaques which clasically occur on the diaphragm and anterior pleura between 3rd and 6th ribs.\nCan result in shaggy heart appearance from fibrosis.\nThis page was last modified on 27 June 2010, at 09:05.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Police are seeking the public assistance after 15 guns were stolen from a Cold Lake home on June 14. A Labrador Road residence in the south was burglarized and a vault containing the firearms had been broken into. Police say only long guns were taken and that a black older model Dodge \"Jintropin (Gensci Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.)\" pickup is a possible suspect vehicle in the robbery.\nA 52 year old male driver faces charges after a hit and run incident. \"Buy Cheap Jintropin Online\" A 9 1 1 call received on \"buy cheap jintropin online\" June 14 of a driver who struck a parked vehicle on 43 Street in Cold Lake and drove away. No injuries were reported and the fleeing driver vehicle was located at a residence later in the evening. Police suspected impairment and \"b\u00fcy\u00fcme hormonu eczane fiyat\u0131\" initiated a roadside screening test on the driver who failed and was arrested. The man was given another test at the detachment where he blew three times over the limit. As Commander Kamagra a result a 52 year old Edmonton man faces multiple charges and will appear in Cold Lake Provincial Court on July 23, 2014.\nA Morinville, Alberta woman in her 30 faces multiple charges after police responded to a 9 1 1 call. RCMP received a complaint of a driver Cialis 5mg Pbs serving over the centre painted lines on Highway 28 in Cold Lake. The vehicle was located just south of Cold Lake First Nations and pulled over. The woman driver was arrested after she failed a roadside screen test, blowing double the Cialis Pills Australia legal limit. She was taken to the Bonnyville RCMP detachment and faces charges of dangerous driving, impaired operation of a vehicle and driving with over 80 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood.\nBetween June 13 and 15, two separate incidents were reported of thefts from unlocked vehicles in Cold Lake.\nAn iPod Touch and tools were stolen from a truck on 53rd Avenue, and cash was removed from a wallet in a vehicle on 21st Street.\nPolice would like to remind the public when exiting a vehicle to lock Kamagra Reviews its doors and keep valuables out of sight.\nA quad was stolen overnight outside of a hotel off of Highway 28 in Cold Lake. a green camouflaged Ranger quad was stolen after the trailer it was in was pried open.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"This article shows how to calculate the time constant of a CR network, and why it's useful to know it.\nHow long does it take to charge a capacitor?\nA capacitor is a container for electric charge, so the answer depends on how big the container is, and how fast you allow charge to flow into it. How long does it take to fill a bucket?\nWhy should you limit the charging rate?\nIf you don't, you could damage either the capacitor or the power source. Big electrolytic capacitors intended for use in switched-mode power supplies have an internal resistance measured in milli-ohms. If this is the only resistance in the circuit, there could be a huge current spike as the capacitor begins to charge.\nHow fast does a capacitor charge?\nHere's a capacitor C being charged from a power supply, with all the instantaneous voltages labelled so that I can set up the equations and explore what's happening.\nWhen power is first applied, the capacitor holds no charge, so there's zero voltage across it (vC = 0). This means that all the applied voltage appears across R, so the current at switch-on is V\/R. If V is 10v and R is 50 m\u03a9 (that is, if the only resistance in the circuit is the capacitor's internal resistance) the initial current spike would be 20 amps! Are you sure the capacitor could handle this?\n1. The first step is to add up the voltages and write an equation that links them together, then express vR and vC in terms of current and charge.\n2. Next, divide through by R, and rewrite current as rate-of-change of charge.\n3. The maximum possible charge the capacitor could hold in this circuit is C V, so it makes sense to write this as Q and simplify the equation a little.\n5. So, put in the integral signs, and the limits. I want to discover the amount of charge q at any time t as the capacitor charges.\n8. ... and I end up with q, expressed in terms of its maximum possible value (Q) and describing how it varies with time t during charging.\nWhat does the answer mean?\nFaced with an equation like this, my first instinct is to check what happens at the limits. What is q when t is zero? What happens when t is infinite? In other words, does the answer seem sensible?\nWhen t is zero, the term e-t\/RC becomes e0, which is 1, and 1-1=0, so the right-hand side of the expression simplifies to 0. So q is zero - the capacitor holds no charge - before I switch on the power. Then when t is infinite, the term e-t\/RC becomes e-\u221e, which is 0, and 1-0=1, so the right-hand side of the expression simplifies to Q. So q would become Q - the capacitor would become fully charged - if I waited long enough. So the equation says that q rises from 0 to its final value of Q, which is of course what I specified in the integral.\nHere's an exponential curve like the one in the equation. I've simplified things slightly by assuming that Q is 1, and using as the horizontal scale the ratio of t to CR.\nThis ratio must be a number. Since t is time, CR must be a time, too. What matters is not t alone, but the value of t as a fraction of CR. And the value of CR depends solely on the values of capacitor and resistor in this particular circuit. CR is known as the circuit's time constant. For example, if C is 10 \u03bcF and R is 1 M\u03a9, the time constant is 10 seconds. Microfarads times megohms equals seconds.\nAfter a time equal to CR - one time constant - the capacitor has charged to 63%. That's not particularly interesting or useful. It might have been better to define, say, 3CR as the time constant, because after 3CR the charge has reached 95% of its final value.\nBut CR is easy to remember, and it's the reciprocal of the network's corner frequency which is a useful idea when you're thinking about how RC networks affect a circuit's frequency response. I discuss this further in the articles on RC network theory.\nAnd since the voltage across the capacitor is proportional to the charge it's holding, this exponential curve also shows how the capacitor voltage varies with time.\nThe need often arises to generate a single fixed-length pulse in response to a trigger event. For example, many audio amplifiers do not connect the loudspeakers until the power rails have stabilised, to avoid a disturbing 'thump' from the speakers.\nOne way of generating a single pulse is to use a 555 timer chip.\nWhilst the circuit is waiting for a trigger pulse, the RS flipflop is held reset. Its output is high, so the transistor conducts, placing a short-circuit across the capacitor C and so preventing it from charging. The output of the 555 itself is low at this time, due to the inverting buffer.\nAs soon as the trigger pulse arrives, the lower comparator sets the RS flipflop. The output changes state, switching off the transistor, and the capacitor begins to charge through R. Eventually the voltage across C reaches a preset threshold value. The upper comparator then resets the flipflop, ready for the next trigger pulse.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Build Your Dreams One Step At A Time!!!\nThis is your year to do something GREAT!\nThis is the time to discover your greatness. Learning to be your best self is something very difficult to do. Especially when you think you have to do it alone. That's why we are in it together. Your teachers, parents and classmates promise to challenge you everyday. Be your best self by respectfully sharing ideas, problem-solving, showing effort and working and helping others... all while having fun!\n\u200bWelcome back! I can't wait to see you. We will have an amazing year! Love, Ms. S.\nWhat else would you like to be apart of?","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
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+{"text":"the following is a list of these words and tabs used by companies in the sites and sites of Affiliate education and other relevant to this field generous offers and profits.\nA visitor's Affiliate, for example, registers or purchases a product or service or downloads a program.\nA person or entity that earns each action by an individual. For each activity of this customer, you take a conversion rate, for example, 20% of the price of the product, or you earn a total amount between $ 0.1 and $ 5, It is general.\nIs the manager of your account who is following you in each company you subscribe to.\nLink to the advertiser or the technical term Affiliate, this link directs the visitor to the advertiser's display page.\nAlso called a partner system or a profit-sharing system, in this system the companies are rewarded by the publishers such as you after the registration of visitors in the pay-per-lead or after buying a product or service pay-per-sale.\nis a program for tracking and management of special campaigns Avileit companies are used to check the links of the elephants of the publishers and tracking the proportion of pressure on advertisements and offers operations operations that earns also publishers such as Lead, Salles and even payment to members and other operations \u2026 When you open your account in an affiliate company such as cj.com, Cpalead.com, or other opelite companies, you will find the controle pannel, the Paying method, and \u2026 All the features, statistics, services and tabs in front of you are all: Affiliate Software.\nA commission is charged to you after someone subscribes to a mailing list or buys a product or service from the owner of the advertisement you placed on your site. May range from $ 0.10 to $ 5 for lead offerings or between 10% and 75% for sales of products or services.\nDo not register with a username looks like your name, nickname, artist name, or any understandable name.\nThere are two products I rate 75\/100 and 40\/100.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"At Hope Clinic, our team of practitioners chooses to approach things differently. We want to specifically help the people for whom traditional protocols aren't working. By using techniques across multiple natural health disciples, we work to find the right fit for each person.\nAt Hope Clinic we are committed to helping you find the best natural health care for you and your family. That's why we insist on working together with specialized natural practitioners from all across the greater Twin Cities.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"More and more reporters rely on social media\u2026so why are your social pitches going unanswered?\nYou probably don't have the proper tools and technique!\nTaken from Cision's latest tip sheet \"11 Tips for Pitching Reporters on Social Media,\" here are three things you need to know to pitch successfully on social media.\nDo your research. Know the reporter, their beat and their publication.\nDon't mass tweet. Successful pitching occurs with one-to-one personalization.\nOnly follow up once, across email and social networks.\nTo learn more about the three tactics\u2014and to discover eight more\u2014view \"11 Tips for Pitching Reporters on Social Media\" for free now!","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"High Street is \"The Street that never sleeps\" Jeff created this design in 2008. Now that Sunnyside has been \"bulldozed\" High Street has taken over as the hot spot on campus. Restaurants, bars, night clubs - it's all happening on High Street. Printed on a Gildan 100% cotton t-shirt.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"We introduce ourselves as a one the leading Trader of Engineering products, Electrical Products and Pumps. We have been supplying a wide range of engineering products for a broad range of applications. Also, engaged in trading various casting parts for engineering industry and other industries across Tamilnadu.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
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@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"Nant-y-Plwm lies in the community of Llansannan in the county of Conwy. It is located at Ordnance Survey national grid reference SH92906602. The mine is recorded in the CPAT Historic Environment Record as number 18141 and this number should be quoted in all correspondence.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":": my favourite season rainy season essay in english Some settings on sites get deleted. He went sailing and never showed up for a long time. I really cannot give you anything, the only thing left is my dying roots, the tree said with tears.\nEssay on the control of air pollution organstreitverfahren beispiel essay seven stages of grieving play analysis essay essay on hummingbirds renee has a research paper due malcolm x logos essay theodore roosevelt apush essay essays in asset pricing and institutional investors change essays persuasive essay. Hare Krishna\"s in, hindi - Bhagavad Gita Saar Pictures, Anmol Vachan, Suvichar, Thoughts, Messages, Sayings, Teachings, Good Pravachan,\"s of lord krishna in hindi, hindi poems on lord krishna, lord krishna\"s in sanskrit, lord krishna\"s on love,\"s on lord krishna and.\nKalkulator, wybierz produkt ktry Ciebie interesuje, produkt. Come and play with me! Can you help me? To delete everything, select. We need a house for shelter. So the man cut all the branches of the tree and left happily. This is a story of everyone. I want to go sailing to relax myself. Independence Day 07\/04\/13, library will be closed.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"A woman suspected of kidnapping her two children turned up in Whittier, fled from police then crashed into a sport utility vehicle and a bus in Bassett Tuesday night.\nShe suffered minor injuries and was arrested. The children were not injured. Authorities said the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services took custody of the 2-year-old boy and a baby girl.\nThe abduction happened in Ladera Heights, which is an unincorporated area, and reported to the sheriff's Marina Del Rey station at 12:26 p.m. Tuesday.\nDeputies were told a parent who isn't the legal guardian took her two children. Further details about the alleged kidnapping weren't released by the Marina Del Rey station.\nWhittier police got word just before 7 p.m. that the woman and the children were in a parking lot in the 11800 block of Whittier Boulevard, according to Whittier police Lt. Aaron Ruiz.\n\"We went to check on the kids,\" Ruiz said. When officers tried to make contact, he said the driver took off.\nThe chase ended with a crash on westbound Valley Boulevard, east of Vineland Avenue, which is in the unincorporated community of Bassett.\n\"She tried to run, and was captured,\" Ruiz said.\nCalifornia Highway Patrol Officer Rodrigo Jimenez said the Sonata driven by the suspect hit a Honda CRV and a bus. He said the CRV's driver, the bus driver and three bus passengers were not injured.\nThe suspect had an abrasion to her right knee and complained of head and neck pain, Jimenez said. He didn't know if she was taken to a hospital.\nDeputy Kimberly Alexander said Misty Dennis, 27, was arrested on suspicion of kidnapping and remains in custody. She didn't know where Dennis lives.\nDennis is being held at the sheriff's Marina Del Rey station jail in lieu of $150,000 bail. She is scheduled for an arraignment Thursday at the Airport Courthouse at 11701 S. La Cienega Blvd. in Los Angeles.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Rachel Bowes was awarded a Women of Distinction Award from the University of Kansas in 2016-2017 for her science humanitarian efforts.\nInfluenced by my past, I make service opportunities an important part of my life. I learned that education is empowering and allows us to pass the power along to others. I am particularly drawn to serve others by working to improve the environment and by educating others on the importance of sustainability and conservation. I have a proven track record of active and innovative education in and out of a classroom. I have also been successful in encouraging others to get involved either physically or financially in environmental initiatives and research. One notable example was at the end of my undergraduate career, I coordinated Ohio Wesleyan's first annual Earth Fest: a music and arts festival that promoted environmental awareness. Half of the raised funds went to aid in natural disaster relief in Haiti, and the other half went to beginning a revolving environmental fund at Ohio Wesleyan.\nMentorship: The emphasis in my mentorship is on the students designing and implementing their own research projects. The development of writing skills, scientific inquiry frameworks, fundamental research techniques, and dissemination abilities are also important. I work closely with the students that I mentor in all areas: writing a personal statement and curriculum vitae; reading and discussing primary literature; teaching field and laboratory techniques; and exploring and applying to graduate schools, grants, and internships.\nSCUBA diving for algae samples in lakes, undergraduate research project.\nNutrient stress in fish of the Kansas River, undergraduate research project.\nHabitat modelling, undergraduate research project.\nTo date, I have mentored 11 undergraduates, all with their own independent research projects. All of the undergraduates that I mentored thus far have received accolades of their own, including four of them being recognized with Outstanding Poster at the Governor's Conference on the Future of Water in Kansas. I have extensive experience leading initiatives that create opportunities for student researchers, which has led to me being awarded the KU Women of Distinction Award for humanitarian in science, as well as the KU Undergraduate Research Mentor Award.\nGroundwater modeling; Lawrence, KS, USA.\nK-12 Outreach and Education: I am dedicated to helping others learn and training the next generation of scientists. I dedicate my spare time to promoting conservation, spending years as a coordinator and active participant in countless Elementary School Science Events and Women in Science Events. For 5 years, I was also a core member of the team responsible for Science Saturdays at the University of Kansas Biodiversity Institute and Natural History Museum.\nInternational Synergistic Activities: I have experience coordinating a global freshwater research project, involving twelve PI\u00b4s from the USA, Mongolia, Germany, and Canada. I am a peer reviewer for countless journals. I have been involved with Dam Removal Europe (DRE), as a speaker and conference organizer, promoting free-flowing rivers throughout Europe, a task the requires collaborations between industry and science. As a board member of the Society for Conservation Biology Freshwater Working Group and one of the Summer School organizers for the Freshwater Theme, International Research School in Applied Ecology (IRSAE) I try to reach as many people as possible, spreading my love and passion for the planet\u00b4s freshwater ecosystems.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"The Golden State Warriors began their quest for a three-peat by clobbering the Los Angeles Clippers in their NBA Western Conference matchup on Saturday, April 13 (Sunday, April 14, Manila time).\nAnd Clippers coach Doc Rivers wan't exactly happy that it was Stephen Curry who turned out to be the thorn again.\nStephen Curry unleashed 38 points, shooting 8-of-12 from beyond the arc to pass Ray Allen (385) with 386 to become the all-time leader for three-points made in the playoffs.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzbkhbl b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzbkhbl
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index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..ee7eda6d04d2cf506f81170b0088bd62c743e373
--- /dev/null
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@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"The World Economic Forum would like to thank Accenture, Adecco Group, African Rainbow Minerals, Alcoa, Alghanim Industries, AlixPartners, A.T. Kearney, The Bahrain Economic Development Board, Bank of America, Barclays, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Bloomberg, The Boston Consulting Group, Centene Corporation, Chobani, Egon Zehnder, EY, GEMS Education, Google, GSK, Heidrick & Struggles, Hubert Burda Media, Infosys, JLL, Johnson Controls, LinkedIn, ManpowerGroup, Mercer (MMC), Microsoft Corporation, Nestl\u00e9, NYSE, Omnicom, Ooredoo, Pearson, PwC, Renault-Nissan Alliance, Saudi Aramco, Siemens, Tata Consultancy Services, The Coca-Cola Company, The Rockefeller Foundation, Tupperware Brands Corporation, Uber, Workday, WPP and Zain for their guidance and invaluable support of the System Initiative on Education, Gender and Work and this Report.\nAccenture is a leading global professional services company, providing services and solutions in strategy, consulting, digital, technology and operations. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries and all business functions, Accenture works at the intersection of business and technology to help clients improve their performance and create sustainable value for their stakeholders. With approximately 373,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries, Accenture drives innovation to improve the way the world works and lives.\nThe Adecco Group, based in Zurich, Switzerland, is the world's leading provider of HR solutions. With more than 32,000 FTE employees and around 5,100 branches in over 60 countries and territories around the world, Adecco Group offers a wide variety of services, connecting around 700,000 associates with its clients every day. The services offered fall into the broad categories of temporary staffing, permanent placement, career transition and talent development, as well as outsourcing and consulting. Adecco inspires individuals and organisations to work more effectively and efficiently and creates greater choice in the domain of work, for the benefit of all concerned. As the world's leading provider of HR solutions\u2014a business that has a positive impact on millions of people every day\u2014it is conscious of its global role. Helping people to better work, better life is its common purpose and the way in which it contributes to society. Adecco Group is a Fortune Global 500 company.\nAfrican Rainbow Minerals (ARM) is a leading South African diversified mining and minerals company with long-life, low unit cost operations and significant growth opportunities. ARM mines iron ore, manganese ore and alloys, chrome ore and alloys, platinum group metals, copper, nickel and coal. The company also has an investment in gold through its shareholding in Harmony. ARM is committed to responsible environmental stewardship as a fundamental part of sustainable value creation.\nA global leader in lightweight metals technology, engineering and manufacturing, Alcoa innovates multi-material solutions. Its technologies enhance transportation, from automotive and commercial transport to air and space travel, and improve industrial and consumer electronics products. Alcoa enables smart buildings, sustainable food and beverage packaging, high-performance defence vehicles across air, land and sea, deeper oil and gas drilling and efficient power generation. Its employees deliver value-added products made of titanium, nickel and aluminium, and produce best-in-class bauxite, alumina and primary aluminium products.\nAlghanim Industries is one of the largest privately owned companies in the Gulf region. Founded in 1932, the company has since grown into a multi-billion dollar conglomerate, employing more than 14,000 employees in 30 businesses and operating in over 40 countries across the Middle East and North Africa, Turkey, India and emerging Asian economies.\nAlixPartners is a global business advisory firm recognized for deep expertise in restoring performance and creating value. Its managing directors work alongside boards of directors, lenders, investors, government institutions and the legal community to provide complementary services across corporate finance, information management, litigation support and organizational effectiveness to address financial and commercial challenges at all stages of the business lifecycle.\nThe Bahrain Economic Development Board (EDB) is a dynamic public agency with responsibility for attracting inward investment into Bahrain focusing on target economic sectors in which the Kingdom offers significant strengths. Key areas include manufacturing, ICT, and logistics and transport services. The financial services sector in Bahrain is particularly strong and the EDB supports the continuing growth of the banking industry and key sub-sectors, including Islamic finance, wealth management, asset management, and insurance and re-insurance.\nThe Boston Consulting Group is a global management consulting firm and the world's leading adviser on business strategy. It partners with clients from the private, public and not-for-profit sectors in all regions to identify their highest value opportunities, address their most critical challenges, and transform their enterprises. The company's customized approach ensures that clients achieve sustainable competitive advantage, build more capable organizations, and secure lasting results. Founded in 1963, BCG is a private company with more than 85 offices in 48 countries.\nChobani was founded on the belief that people have great taste\u2014they just need great options. Chobani produces high-quality, authentic, strained Greek yogurt products made with only natural ingredients from its New York and Idaho plants. Chobani is committed to using milk from regional farms and strengthening its surrounding local economies. Chobani gives 10% of its annual profits to charities worldwide through the company's charitable foundation. Chobani products are available in the US, Australia, in Asia and Latin America.\nEgon Zehnder acts as trusted adviser to many of the world's most respected organizations and is a leading executive search firm with 69 offices in 41 countries. Its clients range from the largest corporations to emerging growth companies, government and regulatory bodies, and major educational and cultural institutions. It works at the highest levels of leadership to create tangible and enduring business impact. Its core services include executive search, board consulting and leadership strategy services.\nGEMS Education is a leading international education provider. It runs high-performing schools and offers consulting services to the public and private sectors. For over 55 years, it has provided high-quality education to hundreds of thousands of children. GEMS has a global network of award-winning schools which provide high-quality holistic education to more than 250,000 students. It employs over 20,000 education professionals, specialists and staff. Its world-class leadership team combines business and education expertise from around the globe.\nLarry Page and Sergey Brin founded Google in September 1998. Since then, the company has grown to more than 50,000 employees worldwide, with a wide range of popular products and platforms like Search, Maps, Ads, Gmail, Android, Chrome and YouTube. In October 2015, Alphabet became the parent holding company of Google.\nGSK is a global healthcare company that recognizes that commercial success depends upon creating innovative new medicines, vaccines and healthcare products of value and making these accessible to as many people who need them as possible. By doing this, GSK will be able to grow its business and provide benefits to patients, consumers, society, and the company's employees and shareholders.\nInfosys is a global leader in consulting, technology, outsourcing and next-generation services. It enables clients in more than 50 countries to stay a step ahead of the competition. Its expertise spans industries. From helping build lighter and stronger passenger jets and creating more fuel efficient cars, to enabling banks to provide financial inclusion to the most remote corners of the globe, Infosys delivers powerful innovations. And in doing so, it changes the way the world works and lives.\nManpowerGroup\u2122 (NYSE: MAN) is the world's workforce expert, creating innovative workforce solutions, for more than 65 years. It connects more than 600,000 people to meaningful work across a wide range of skills and industries every day. Through its ManpowerGroup family of brands\u2014Manpower\u00ae, Experis\u00ae, Right Management\u00ae and ManpowerGroup\u00ae Solutions\u2014it helps more than 400,000 clients in 80 countries and territories address their critical talent needs, providing comprehensive solutions to resource, manage and develop talent. In 2015, ManpowerGroup was named one of the World's Most Ethical Companies for the fifth consecutive year and one of Fortune's Most Admired Companies, confirming its position as the most trusted and admired brand in the industry. ManpowerGroup makes powering the world of work humanly possible.\nMicrosoft is a worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential. Since it was founded in 1975, it has worked to achieve this mission by creating technology that transforms the way people work, play and communicate. Microsoft does business throughout the world, with over 90,000 employees and offices in more than 100 countries. Through its people, partnerships and technology, the company helps to address some of the world's most pressing societal challenges and create social and economic opportunities that improve people's lives. Microsoft upholds a belief that social and economic opportunity go hand in hand. When individuals, communities and governments thrive, so does business. To support this cycle, the company focuses on strengthening economies, addressing societal challenges, promoting a healthy online environment and managing a sustainable business.\nNestl\u00e9 is the leading nutrition, health and wellness company, with global sales of CHF 88.8 billion in 2015. Its branded products, such as Nescaf\u00e9, Nespresso, Maggi, Nido and Purina, are known across the world. Recently created, Nestl\u00e9 Health Science and Nestl\u00e9 Skin Health are extending the boundaries of Nestl\u00e9's business to science-based nutritional therapies and to solutions for the health of skin. Headquartered in Switzerland, Nestl\u00e9 has 436 factories in 85 countries and employs 335,000 people.\nNYSE Group is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Intercontinental Exchange (NYSE: ICE), operator of a leading global network of exchanges and clearing houses. NYSE Group operates multi-asset exchanges and a range of related data products and technology services. The company's equity exchanges trade more US equity volume than any other exchange group. NYSE is the global leader in capital raising for listed companies, including the majority of technology IPOs in 2015.\nPearson is the world's leading education company. From pre-school to high school, early learning to professional certification, its curriculum materials, multimedia learning tools and testing programmes help to educate millions of people worldwide\u2014more than any other private enterprise.\nFounded in 1999, the Renault-Nissan Alliance is the longest-lasting cross-cultural combination among major automakers. It sells one in 10 cars globally and employs nearly 450,000 people in nearly 200 countries. Renault and Nissan are separate companies but enjoy a cross-shareholding partnership which focuses on results-driven synergies and respects brand and corporate identities. The Alliance has expanded to include collaborations with Germany's Daimler, China's Dong Feng and Russia's AvtoVAZ, among others. Renault and Nissan are the only automakers mass-producing and selling zero-emission vehicles, including the Nissan LEAF and Renault Zoe, which are 100% electric and can be fully recharged with purely renewable energy. Together, the Alliance has sold more than 200,000 electric vehicles\u2014more than all of the other major automakers combined. The Alliance is committed to expanding the zero-emission infrastructure around the world and has agreements with over 100 cities, states and countries that are working to ensure electric vehicles are both affordable and convenient.\nThe Rockefeller Foundation supports work to advance inclusive economies that expand opportunities for more broadly shared prosperity and to build greater resilience by helping people, communities and institutions prepare for, withstand and emerge stronger from acute shocks and chronic stresses. This affirms its pioneering philanthropic mission\u2014since 1913\u2014to promote the well-being of humanity throughout the world.\nSaudi Aramco is a leading, globally integrated energy and chemicals company. From producing approximately one in every eight barrels of the world's crude oil supply to developing new energy technologies, Saudi Aramco's global team is dedicated to creating positive impacts. The company relentlessly pursues the ideas that make its resources more dependable, more sustainable, and more useful. By strategically conducting its commercial activities in ways that trigger economic multiplier effects, the company delivers added value to the communities in which it operates. Whether it is the energy of its resources or the intellectual and creative energy of its people, Saudi Aramco is focused on harnessing the full potential of both for the benefit of the greatest number of people possible.\nSiemens AG (Berlin and Munich) is a global technology powerhouse that has stood for engineering excellence, innovation, quality, reliability and internationality for more than 165 years. The company is active in more than 200 countries, focusing on the areas of electrification, automation and digitalization. One of the world's largest producers of energy-efficient, resource-saving technologies, Siemens is No. 1 in offshore wind turbine construction, a leading supplier of combined cycle turbines for power generation, a major provider of power transmission solutions, and a pioneer in infrastructure solutions as well as automation, drive and software solutions for industry. The company is also a leading provider of medical imaging equipment\u2014such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging systems\u2014and a leader in laboratory diagnostics as well as clinical IT. In fiscal 2014, which ended on 30 September 2014, Siemens generated revenue from continuing operations of 71.9 billion euros and net income of 5.5 billion euros. At the end of September 2014, the company had around 357,000 employees worldwide.\nTata Consultancy Services (TCS) is a global IT services company that was rated as the fastest growing brand in its industry worldwide in 2015, with a brand value of $8.27 billion. It ranks in the topmost tier of its industry in terms of market capitalization, employees and brand value, and is the industry leader in customer satisfaction. TCS offers a consulting-led, integrated portfolio of IT, business process services, infrastructure, engineering and assurance services. The company is recognized as the top employer in its industry, with over 335,000 of the world's best-trained consultants working in 46 countries. Under the leadership of its current CEO, N. Chandrasekaran, TCS has grown at a compounded annual rate of 26% over the past three years and has generated consolidated revenues of $15.5 billion for the year ended 31 March 2015.\nUber is evolving the way the world moves. By seamlessly connecting riders to drivers through its apps, it makes cities more accessible, opening up more possibilities for riders and more business for drivers. From its founding in 2009 to its launches in hundreds of cities today, Uber's rapidly expanding global presence continues to bring people and their cities closer.\nWorkday is a leading provider of enterprise cloud applications for finance and human resources. Founded in 2005, Workday delivers financial management, human capital management, and analytics applications designed for the world's largest companies, educational institutions, and government agencies. More than 1,000 organizations, ranging from medium-sized businesses to Fortune 500 enterprises, have selected Workday.\nWPP is the world's leading communications services group, with billings of $72.3 billion and revenues of $17.3 billion in 2013, providing national, multinational and global clients with advertising; media investment management; data investment management; public relations & public affairs; branding & identity; healthcare communications; and direct, digital, interactive, promotion & specialist communications. WPP's worldwide companies include JWT, Ogilvy & Mather, Y&R, Grey Group, United Network, GroupM, Mindshare, MEC, MediaCom, Maxus, Kantar (including Millward Brown and TNS), Burson-Marsteller, Hill+Knowlton Strategies, Cohn & Wolfe, RLM Finsbury, Ogilvy Public Relations, Landor, Brand Union, Fitch, Sudler & Hennessey, Ogilvy CommonHealth Worldwide, ghg, AKQA, OgilvyOne, Wunderman and WPP Digital, among others. WPP companies provide communications services to clients worldwide, including 350 of the Fortune Global 500; all 30 of the Dow Jones 30; 63 of the NASDAQ 100; and 31 of the Fortune e-50. Collectively, WPP employs 179,000 people (including associates) in more than 3,000 offices in 111 countries.\nZain is a leading telecommunications operator across the Middle East and Africa providing mobile voice and data services to over 44.3 million active customers as of 31 December 2014. With a commercial presence in eight countries, Zain operates in Kuwait, Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, South Sudan and Sudan. In Lebanon, the Group manages touch on behalf of the government. In Morocco, Zain has a 15.5% stake in INWI through a joint venture. Zain is listed on the Kuwait Stock Exchange.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Darrell \"Whitey\" Stewart, born and raised in Wyoming, stays in shape at the age of 87 years old by participating in running events such as half-marathons.\nStewart first started running around 1943 while he was running errands and working as ranch help for Ralph Platte in Riverside. His endurance was built up by things he did in the field such as haying.\nHe mostly does race walking in events rather than race running. The difference between the two, according to Stewart, is that a race walker has to keep one leg straight while the next step is taken.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"The plan is rarely about absolutes. It is more about direction. On the path to the transformation you seek, regulalry adjust the plan as progress is made. Seek and you shall find. Revise and you shall find more deeply.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Friday, January 18, 2019 :: Tagged under: games culture. \u23f0 4 minutes.\nI frequently tell Karen: \"On Earth-2, Pablo plays a ton of video games.\" While Twitter followers see screenshots of Celeste achievements and I've written about a years-long dedication to StarCraft, those two games account for 90% of what I've played in the last 8 years.\nBut growing up? Until I was about 15, I played video games all the time. I played Squaresoft RPGs for 10-12 hour stretches (beat Emerald Weapon but never beat Ruby), I beat Battletoads hover-bikes, and got blisters on my palm from Mario Party. There's a world where I never pulled back from this.\nThe reasons I pulled back are part of another post; but in December and January I played a few new ones and ended up loving them.\nTimespinner is a big, sloppy kiss to Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, so of course I love it. There's no single game for which I can say \"favorite of all time,\" but when people ask I say SOTN.\nSOTN has everything: over-the-top theatrics (listen to the voice acting, or just look at the game's art), one of the most beautiful 2D single-player console games, puzzles and curiosities in places where it doesn't make sense (e.g. Shield Rod mechanics, sitting in chairs, the sequence in the confessional booth), a gorgeous soundtrack, and an entire hidden second game: being released before the Internet was so ingrained in our gaming habits, it was entirely possible to play it and miss the second castle. Leigh Alexander wrote a tribute that articulates much of its romance. Also, watch someone play it blindfolded!\nSo it's hard to play Timespinner and not think of SOTN: the title placards when you enter a new level, the gameplay mechanics (backdashes, RPG leveling, familiars, spells), even the music can be similar (listen to the motifs in this from SOTN and this from Timespinner). And it feels great. When I was learning programming in college, I wanted to make a game like this, I'm so glad someone else made it so much better than I could have.\nThe story is a lot richer than SOTN's, dealing with issues of colonialism, causality, vengeance, and progress. The cast is also very 2018, with much better representation than AAA commercial games (the only identifiably straight man in this universe is the power-hungry imperialist who kills your mother. The jerk from your village is probably also a straight man but they don't delve into his identity much, and even he gets Deep Relatable Reasons why he's a jerk). There's a \"coming out\" scene that I found pretty adorable, and most of the powerful figures are women.\nAnother noteworthy thing about this game: finishing projects! It's hard! I feel like they really polished the edges of this, but the Kickstarter for this ended in 2014 and it was just released in 2018. Meanwhile, Ritual of the Night continues to not specify a release date, which was \"2018\" for a while. Games are hard to make well; when you're playing one, try to appreciate that labor.\nThe Messenger is a game I couldn't put down, nor can I always say I was strictly having fun the whole time I played it. Its aesthetics are absolutely delightful: many indie games have twee self-aware writing, and this is among my favorite. The homages in its soundtrack and graphics to earlier generations of games are also pretty stellar. I can't say I played much Shinobi or Ninja Gaiden or Strider (the closest thing was Mega Man Zero 2 for the GBA) but this makes me wish I had.\nUnlike Timespinner, its cast and story are a lot more contained. Not to say they're weak, but the game is always very well aware it's a goofy pixelated game awash in tropes and motifs. The shopkeeper, Quarble, and bosses are treasures. All told, I spent about 12-13 hours on this, because I'm a sucker and wanted to collect all the Power Seals. I don't know if it was worth it.\nThere were two elements of storytelling that I absolutely loved; if you played, guess which ones in the comments!\nI cursed a lot when playing this game \ud83d\ude05. Here's a recent speedrun, if you're interested.\nI'm about 9 hours into this, and it promises to be the biggest game of the three: watching the AGDQ speedrun, they say it takes most people 40 hours to play casually. I'm beside myself that it was mostly built by two people: the production values and sheer amount of game in there are huge.\nThe Knight and their needle are fun to pilot, especially when you unlock more movement mechanics. The bug world of Hallownest is beautifully rendered. The bosses are fun, inspiring, and pretty frightening. It's Goldilocks-hard.\nBetween all the other games I've played recently (the previous two, Celeste, and about 20 minutes of Battle Princess Madelyn), it's frankly pretty refreshing to play a 2D game without pixel art. The hottest take I have (which even I don't believe most of the time) is that 3D games were a Mistake and we should only make 2D games. Hollow Knight is just gorgeous.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Contrary to popular belief, a cataract is not a \"film\" over the eye. Rather it is a gradual thickening of the lens that causes the lens to become so clouded that light is either distorted or cannot reach the back of the eye (the retina) for transmission to the brain. When left untreated, cataracts will eventually cause blindness. The most common cause of cataract is aging. Other causes include trauma, medications such as steroids, systemic diseases such as diabetes and prolonged exposure to ultra-violet light. Occasionally, babies are born with a cataract.\nReducing the amount of ultraviolet light exposure by wearing a wide-brim hat and sunglasses may reduce your risk for developing a cataract, but once developed there is no cure except to have the cataract surgically removed. Outpatient surgical procedures can remove the cataract through either a small incision (phacoemulsification) or a large incision (extra capsular extraction). The time to have the surgical procedure is when your vision is bad enough that it interferes with your lifestyle.\nYour eye works a lot like a camera. Light rays focus through your lens on the retina, (a layer of light sensitive cells at the back of the eye). Similar to film, the retina allows the image to be \"seen\" by the brain. But over time the lens can become cloudy and prevent light rays from passing clearly through the lens. This cloudy lens is called a cataract.\nThe typical symptom of cataract formation is a slow, progressive and painless decrease in vision. Other changes include: blurring of vision; glare, particularly at night frequent eyeglass prescription changes; a decrease in color intensity; a yellowing of images; and in rare cases, double vision.\nOnce a cataract has formed, there are no medications, diets, glasses or exercises that can reverse the process. Surgical removal of the clouded lens is the only way to completely restore lost vision.\nCataract surgery is a simple operation where a surgeon removes the eye's clouded natural lens and replaces it with an artificial, intraocular lens (IOL). The entire procedure is generally done on an outpatient basis and usually lasts between 10 and 20 minutes. Patients may experience little to no pain and can usually return to their normal activities the following day.\nCataract surgery is considered one of the safest and most effective medical procedures. Cataract surgery is a very successful operation. One and a half million people have this procedure every year and 95% have a successful result. As with any surgical procedure, complications can occur during or after surgery and some are severe enough to limit vision. But in most cases, vision, as well as quality of life, improves.\nUntil fairly recently, nearly everyone who had cataract surgery was fitted with a standard intraocular, or monofocal, lens. Monofocal lenses allow you see objects in the distance clearly but require that you wear glasses to see objects that are closer. Monofocal lenses can also be selected to see objects at near, but would then require a patient to wear distance glasses. However, recent advancements in lens technology have made it possible to not only treat the cataract but reduce or eliminate dependence on glasses as well. The type of IOL you need depends on your particular situation. Your doctor will work with you to determine which lens is best for you.\nThere are three basic types of intraocular lenses (IOLs).\nMonofocal Lenses, also known as standard lenses, provide clear vision but only at one fixed focal point, usually at a distance. If you are fitted with a monofocal lens, you will most likely need glasses to see up close.\nMultifocal Lenses have special features that correct your near, intermediate, and distance vision in the same lens. Multifocal IOLs provide your best chance at being free of glasses for the majority of activities. Learn more about how an multifocal IOL works. For an example of a multifocal lens, visit www.acrysofrestor.com.\nToric Lenses. Toric lenses are designed for people with astigmatism, reducing or virtually eliminating the need for glasses for distance vision following surgery in people with astigmatism.\nLimbal Relaxing Incision (LRI) instead of Toric Lenses may be performed in order to reduce the amount of astigmatism in patients with mild to moderate amount of astigmatism.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzblgky b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzblgky
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+{"text":"What Goes Up by Katie Kennedy. July 18, 2017. Bloomsbury USA Childrens, 336 p. ISBN: 9781619639126. Int Lvl: YA; Rdg Lvl: YA; Lexile: 650.\nGrades 8-11. Following a battery of bizarre tests to evaluate a broad range of abilities, Rosa Hayashi and Eddie Toivonen are picked to train in NASA's top secret Interworlds Agency (IA) program, which grooms teens to become ambassadors to alien worlds. Rosa comes from an impressive scientific pedigree, while Eddie sees IA as a means of escape from his highly dysfunctional family. As Rosa and Eddie endure the rigorous program, they face competition and infighting with other trainees, and Eddie's unconventional methods both wow and worry their instructors. But when IA gets visitors it hadn't bargained for, Eddie's unconventional methods, bolstered by his teammates' belief in him, just might save the day. Kennedy has a confident hand in her sophomore novel, particularly when deploying the complicated quantum physics and rocket science that infuse her snappy plot. Along with light cliff-hangers, a geeky atmosphere, and quip-heavy dialogue, her well-defined characters and a sprinkle of romance keep the story's feet on the ground. Fans of smart, funny sci-fi should get their hands on this one.\nKatie Kennedy is the author of Learning to Swear in America and a college history instructor. She has a son in high school, and a daughter in college. She lives in Iowa\u2013where the Interworlds Agency might be\u2013and has a cornfield in her backyard. She hopes Rosa and Eddie land in it someday.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Payday Loans in Icard (Burke County) NC - How to Get a Payday Loan in Icard?\nBy the way, if you have a bad credit history, but need a payday loan in Icard? Do not be nervous, we can approve borrowers with bad credit history.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"When I lived in Pennsylvania I loved going to the Catholic Church summer fairs. They always had a lot of good food, but my favorites were the potato pancakes. I had forgotten about them until a recent trip to the Oregon Coast. My favorite breakfast restaurant in Seaside, Oregon is the Pig-N-Pancake. Their potato pancakes reminded me of the ones in Pennsylvania, although they were different like a cross between potato pancakes and hash brown potatoes. I figured I could make something similar and this is the recipe I came up with. This recipe not exactly the same as the summer fair or restaurant potato pancakes, but it sure was yummy and easy enough to cook in an electric skillet out on the picnic table. You can add any spices or flavors you like, I added a little of my secret seasoning, celery salt. You can serve them with applesauce or sour cream but I enjoy them plain.\nFollow the directions on the package to rehydrate the potatoes. I used the ones I get at Costco, the 4.2 ounce box is perfect for two people.\nIn a large bowl stir the beaten egg with the rehydrated hash browns to coat. Add the flour, salt, pepper and scallions and mix well until the ingredients are evenly distributed. Pour enough oil into your pan to just cover the bottom and heat over medium high heat until the oil starts to shimmer. A cast iron skillet works best for me at home but an electric skillet on the picnic table both gets me out of the RV kitchen and out into the fresh air. If the oil is not hot enough the pancakes soak up more. Drop potato mixture by large spoonfuls into the pan and smash down to a fairly thin pancake. Cook about 3-4 minutes until golden brown on the bottom then flip. Cook another 3-4 minutes and place on the plate. Pat with a paper towel to remove excess oil.\nFor a more traditional old world flavor serve with a little sour cream or apple sauce on the side.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"In today's episode, Christian and Anna dive (pun intended) into three Rolex Submariner alternatives that are more affordable, and different than the typical recommendations you might be used to seeing.\nWith that said, the first option is about $600, is Marnaut's Dark Surge, a 300m automatic dive watch (powered by the Miyota 9015). It comes in at 42mm in diameter, numerically larger than the Submariner, but with the new Super-Case Submariners, they tend to wear larger. It comes on a rubber strap, something we begged Rolex to do with their Oysterflex Bracelet at Baselworld this year.\nNext up is the Oris Diver 65, a watch that is technically a diver, though it is only water resistant to 100m. The color options are relatively conservative, and the faux patina is more subtle than on many other watches, and its date execution is super well-done.\nFinally, we have the Tudor Black Bay, an obvious alternative for sure, but one that has been universally loved (with some nitpicks that have been adjusted for in the Black Bay 58). There are a number of variations, many in color as well as in metal executions. Despite being a Rolex subsidiary, the watch undoubtedly exists in its own light, making it a unique, but still superb alternative.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Matthew is a 2018 NJCTS Scholarship finalist. He is a graduate of Pinelands Regional High School. This is his scholarship essay.\nI have had Tourette's Syndrome for about eleven years now, and it has progressively gotten worse with each year that passes. I was first diagnosed with it when I was about eleven years old, but actually had it since I was seven. I never even noticed it until I really started to feel my body continuously wanting to twitch. My parents didn't know exactly if I had Tourette's yet, so that's why they had taken to a specialist where I was finally diagnosed with this disease. According to my dad it runs in the family. It had started from my grandfather, to my dad, to me. It's really scary and upsetting finding out that you're different from other people, and knowing that there is no way to fix that an really hurt you.\nAfter I was diagnosed in sixth grade, all I could think about was how to hide this from all of my friends. It was impossible to hide, but no one really seemed to notice \u2026 yet. Seventh grade came around, and I was really excited to be in middle school and a little nervous because it was a brand new place to me. I have a lot of nervous tics, and this was one of the worst times for me because it was the beginning of the school year and I was twitching left and right all day long. My head would shake sometimes, and I would blink every other second really hard and uncontrollably.\nOne day, I was at lunch with some of my friends, and I was starting to calm down until I had made one little movement with my eyes. One of my friend's had noticed and said, \"Why did you just do that with your eyes?\" I said I had no idea what he was talking about, and then he decided to ask in front of everyone if I had Tourette's. My body froze and I became more nervous and began to twitch more and more, but I kept denying them the true answer.\nSome days I was made fun of for having Tourette's, and it really hurt me hearing my own friends make fun of me. I can say though that seventh grade wasn't my worst year when it came to dealing with Tourette's. From seventh grade to twelfth grade during basketball season was always the worst for me because I was always so nervous and I really didn't want anyone to catch me twitching at my games, but by trying to hide it so much only made it worse.\nNot only did it affect my athletics, but it also affected my academics as well. Around ninth grade I started to feel that I was losing focus in class and I honestly was. I didn't know why at first, but when I started to get poor grades on assignments it would make me pretty upset and that started to trigger my twitches more and more. I then quickly realized that it was my Tourette's that stood in the way of me focusing in class, but it was just so hard to control, and it still continues today, but not as often. It was just so hard to pay attention and if I didn't twitch I felt like I was going to explode and the more I tried to hold it back and focus, it got worse. But like I said, it doesn't happen that often anymore because I've started to figure out ways to help myself calm down and try to do something else instead of twitching like, bouncing my leg, or wiggling my fingers, and it does help sometimes.\nWhen it comes to having Tourette's Syndrome, it really is hard to do most things, but you have to try to beat it when it gets worse. Some days are better than others, and you have to take advantages of those good days. I don't want Tourette's, and I would do anything to be completely rid of it, but I can't be. I want to be somebody in the future, and I'm not going to let Tourette's stop me from doing what I want to do and enjoy.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzbmxak b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzbmxak
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index 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000..52426160f3818b81bffb89e58c265f98d65e56e2
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+{"text":"+ * - add multithreaded tests \/ integrate into stress indexing?\n+ \/\/ cannot use d.Get(\"dv\") due to another bug!\n+ \/\/ potentially adding the same field with different DV types.\n+ \/\/\/ the enums positions.\n+ Assert.AreEqual(pos[j], docsAndPosEnum.NextPosition(), \"iteration: \" + i + \" initDoc: \" + initDoc + \" doc: \" + docID + \" base: \" + atomicReaderContext.DocBase + \" positions: \" + pos); \/* TODO: + \" usePayloads: \"\n+ \/\/\/ occurrences to force test of buffer refill during positions iteration.\n+ \/\/\/ with different term vector setting (LUCENE-766).","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Defense thesis presentation - The topic must be significant enough. This can be a serious disadvantage when compared to the Rogerian argumentation. However, some major elements go into a standard reflective essay: introduction, body and conclusion. Our testimonials prove that students love our pricing model and that we promise that you will never feel cheated for any second should you compare our invoices with every other avenues of assistance you can find. Yourself Help the reader understand you should here but make sure this still ties in your your reason for best candidate because of this program. You then state, in your opinion, the typical theme approach the writer is trying to convey. Your opinion is probably not original, and a lot likely it is considered. It also need to cover our bodies of your argument, that may discuss the issue with supporting arguments. Stuck writing english free ebook written essays.\nA good thesis defense presentation for students to help in school. The techniques used to collect data for telling most of the leadership behavior factor presentation defense thesis a good of the. Poem Analysis Essay Writing Tips Poem analysis essay is the easiest method to express your emotions and feelings.\nHere are a few oral presentation templates to get you started in preparing for your oral presentation. If a template is not listed for your program; this program currently does not provide generic models for the oral presentation. Whether it seems to be too complicated to write down an essay or if you need any type of assistance, buy essay from us.\nOur PhD consultants know exactly what the committee will be looking for from your presentation so can ensure that every expected point is fully covered within your highly polished and professional presentation. For that reason, you should know when and why you ought to include definitions in your writing.\nTen tips to give a great thesis defense. Saturday, July 9, . Recently, a fellow graduate student defended his masters thesis. He set the record for the shortest time to degree in our College with a nice job lined up afterwards. One of the most jarring moments in a bad presentation is the lack of transitions. Your presentation should For qualified candidates with imperfect English, admissions staff might suggest taking classes before school starts.\nThe student must provide the written and visual portion of the thesis to the defense committee at least a week before the defense. Then all members of the thesis defense committee attend the candidates art exhibition, design presentation or show, performance, etc.\nAn Oral Defense: Preparation and Presentation. By William G. Wargo, Ph. D. April 23, . An Oral Defense can be required to defend the proposal andor the complete dissertation. Congratulations on getting to either stage of the dissertation process. If you have more need along with the flexibility to write on the party's theme, you must compose it from an informed perspective to make it enjoyable on your readers.\nThe defense itself involves you sitting around a table with your committee and getting grilled for a set period of time, generally about 2 hours. Then your committee deliberates until a decision to pass or fail you is come to. In a typical essay, you take a truth or assertion and elaborate on it, trying to prove your point.\nLe Du Thesis Presentation. pdf provides an excellent example of the material covered during the thesis defense. We would like to thank Karine Le Du for allowing her presentation to be used as an example.\nthe candidates presentation. After Names talk, questioning will proceed in stages, starting with the general audience and ending with the dissertation committee. Discover sure what you look for to specifically come up with before you decide to write it, your paper may end up being confusing to the reader and aimless in their direction.\nClarence Johnson Phd Dissertation Defense Ppt Dr Dissertation Defense Powerpoint Template. Curriculum Vitae Wikipedia The Free Encyclopedia Thesis Dissertation Defense Powerpoint Template. 10 Best Images Of Research Proposal Powerpoint Templates Dissertation Defense Powerpoint Template. I bet you are probably wondering what must be done to turn into a good essay writer right?\nA doctoral dissertation defense is a public presentation that should be practiced before the exam. Ask some people to listen to your speech and correct you if necessary. This way you will decrease the level of stress and will feel more confident when standing in front of your university professors. You are able to describe an incident or detail the actual top features of a person or possibly a character to aid the future prospect become immersed with your writing.\nUse the following steps when preparing for the oral defense of your thesisdissertation. 1. Evaluation of oral examination is based on your presentation and your answers to questions from the examining committee. Here is the context within that you place the certain things you want to assess, oahu is the umbrella under which you have grouped them.\nHello, everyone knows that writing a thesis is not the end, you also have to think about the thesis defense introduction speech. It should be laconic and smart at the same time. For the most people it is easier to compose a thesis at home than to represent it in front of the public. Your girlfriend\/boyfriend is being affected by insufficient you attention?","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"ccMixter - Reviews for \"Mr Rabbit\"\nFantastic reinvention of Rabbit Ears! Your lyrics are very clever and the chorus melody is extremely catchy!\nYou are a sound magician!\nIs there an audition for a new Tarantino sound track? Listening back to back from Kara mix\u2026bravo SK, man you deliver. peace.\nReviews left for \"Mr Rabbit\"","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"This episode focuses on young love and two unlikely couples. Georgia has been studying hard since she started dating high achiever Tyler. But the pressure of her Maths GCSE is getting to her.\nBenjy and Kalid are struggling in Maths. Extrovert Benjy has a bit of a love\/hate relationship with Head of Maths Mr Hennessy. Kalid's missed quite a lot of school and is falling behind.\nThis episode focuses on Year 8. Corey and Gethin have been inseparable friends both on and off the rugby pitch, but now it's time for them to compete for the title of Rugby Captain.\nMoving from primary to secondary school isn't easy. This episode meets two Year 7 boys. Nervous Aaron struggles to find his feet, while popular Assad's antics disrupt the school.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Cisco Digital Media Players. Menus automatically display by meal period (breakfast, lunch and dinner) on a 21-day menu cycle with healthy heart and high fiber nutritional menu label icons, and 'carb choice' rating numbers; a live weather feed for cities around the globe; live feeds from CNN, ESPN & Discovery News; a slide show; text announcement block; and animated food photography.\n\u00a9 2002-2016 Epicure Digital Systems.The 'E plus mark' is a trademark of Epicure Digital Systems. All rights reserved. The phrase 'the cure for the menu bored', LiveText, LiveMenu & NutriLive are service mark of Epicure Digital Systems. All rights reserved. All other trademarks belong to their respective owners. All rights reserved. Throughout this website, trademarks are used. Rather than put a trademark symbol on every occurrence of a trademarked name, we state that we are using the names in an editorial fashion only and to the benefit of the trademark owner with no intention of infringement of the trademark. No such use, or the use of any trade name is intended to convey endorsement or other affiliation with this site, except where there is explicit endorsement, or where the trademark belongs to Epicure Digital Systems.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
diff --git a/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzbpjng b/data_all_eng_slimpj/shuffled/split2/finalzzzbpjng
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+{"text":"The company Exit Ltd has its constant suppliers of raw materials. The suppliers of raw materials are companies from Europe, which for their products guarantee a high level of quality.\nAluminum-coated tubes: DX54+AS120(thickness: 1,5mm, 2mm). Diameters from \u00f850 mm \u2013 \u00f8 127 mm.\nBlack sheet metal (thickness: 1.2mm, 1.5mm, 2mm and 3mm).\nExit Ltd company is also specialized for the production of flexible pipes of Zn and stainless steel ranging from \u00f876- \u00f8127. Flexible pipes are manufactured in the following lengths: 1m, 2m, 3m, 4m, 5m, and by reference.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"53\tUnto these the land shall be divided for an inheritance according to the number of names.\n54\tTo many thou shalt give the more inheritance, and to few thou shalt give the less inheritance: to every one shall his inheritance be given according to those that were numbered of him.\n55\tNotwithstanding the land shall be divided by lot: according to the names of the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit.\n56\tAccording to the lot shall the possession thereof be divided between many and few.\n57\tAnd these are they that were numbered of the Levites after their families: of Gershon, the family of the Gershonites: of Kohath, the family of the Kohathites: of Merari, the family of the Merarites.\n58\tThese are the families of the Levites: the family of the Libnites, the family of the Hebronites, the family of the Mahlites, the family of the Mushites, the family of the Korathites. And Kohath begat Amram.\n59\tAnd the name of Amram's wife was Jochebed, the daughter of Levi, whom her mother bare to Levi in Egypt: and she bare unto Amram Aaron and Moses, and Miriam their sister.\n60\tAnd unto Aaron was born Nadab, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.\n61\tAnd Nadab and Abihu died, when they offered strange fire before the LORD.\n62\tAnd those that were numbered of them were twenty and three thousand, all males from a month old and upward: for they were not numbered among the children of Israel, because there was no inheritance given them among the children of Israel.\n63\tThese are they that were numbered by Moses and Eleazar the priest, who numbered the children of Israel in the plains of Moab by Jordan near Jericho.\n64\tBut among these there was not a man of them whom Moses and Aaron the priest numbered, when they numbered the children of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai.\n65\tFor the LORD had said of them, They shall surely die in the wilderness. And there was not left a man of them, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.\n1\tThen came the daughters of Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, of the families of Manasseh the son of Joseph: and these are the names of his daughters; Mahlah, Noah, and Hoglah, and Milcah, and Tirzah.\n3\tOur father died in the wilderness, and he was not in the company of them that gathered themselves together against the LORD in the company of Korah; but died in his own sin, and had no sons.\n4\tWhy should the name of our father be done away from among his family, because he hath no son? Give unto us therefore a possession among the brethren of our father.\n5\tAnd Moses brought their cause before the LORD.\n7\tThe daughters of Zelophehad speak right: thou shalt surely give them a possession of an inheritance among their father's brethren; and thou shalt cause the inheritance of their father to pass unto them.\n8\tAnd thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a man die, and have no son, then ye shall cause his inheritance to pass unto his daughter.\n9\tAnd if he have no daughter, then ye shall give his inheritance unto his brethren.\n10\tAnd if he have no brethren, then ye shall give his inheritance unto his father's brethren.\n11\tAnd if his father have no brethren, then ye shall give his inheritance unto his kinsman that is next to him of his family, and he shall possess it: and it shall be unto the children of Israel a statute of judgment, as the LORD commanded Moses.\n12\tAnd the LORD said unto Moses, Get thee up into this mount Abarim, and see the land which I have given unto the children of Israel.\n13\tAnd when thou hast seen it, thou also shalt be gathered unto thy people, as Aaron thy brother was gathered.\n14\tFor ye rebelled against my commandment in the desert of Zin, in the strife of the congregation, to sanctify me at the water before their eyes: that is the water of Meribah in Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin.\n17\tWhich may go out before them, and which may go in before them, and which may lead them out, and which may bring them in; that the congregation of the LORD be not as sheep which have no shepherd.\n19\tAnd set him before Eleazar the priest, and before all the congregation; and give him a charge in their sight.\n20\tAnd thou shalt put some of thine honour upon him, that all the congregation of the children of Israel may be obedient.\n21\tAnd he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, who shall ask counsel for him after the judgment of Urim before the LORD: at his word shall they go out, and at his word they shall come in, both he, and all the children of Israel with him, even all the congregation.\n23\tAnd he laid his hands upon him, and gave him a charge, as the LORD commanded by the hand of Moses.\n2\tCommand the children of Israel, and say unto them, My offering, and my bread for my sacrifices made by fire, for a sweet savour unto me, shall ye observe to offer unto me in their due season.\n3\tAnd thou shalt say unto them, This is the offering made by fire which ye shall offer unto the LORD; two lambs of the first year without spot day by day, for a continual burnt offering.\n5\tAnd a tenth part of an ephah of flour for a meat offering, mingled with the fourth part of an hin of beaten oil.\n6\tIt is a continual burnt offering, which was ordained in mount Sinai for a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD.\n7\tAnd the drink offering thereof shall be the fourth part of an hin for the one lamb: in the holy place shalt thou cause the strong wine to be poured unto the LORD for a drink offering.\n8\tAnd the other lamb shalt thou offer at even: as the meat offering of the morning, and as the drink offering thereof, thou shalt offer it, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.\n10\tThis is the burnt offering of every sabbath, beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering.\n13\tAnd a several tenth deal of flour mingled with oil for a meat offering unto one lamb; for a burnt offering of a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD.\n14\tAnd their drink offerings shall be half an hin of wine unto a bullock, and the third part of an hin unto a ram, and a fourth part of an hin unto a lamb: this is the burnt offering of every month throughout the months of the year.\n15\tAnd one kid of the goats for a sin offering unto the LORD shall be offered, beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering.\n1\tHear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer.\n2\tFrom the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.\n3\tFor thou hast been a shelter for me, and a strong tower from the enemy.\n4\tI will abide in thy tabernacle for ever: I will trust in the covert of thy wings. Selah.\n5\tFor thou, O God, hast heard my vows: thou hast given me the heritage of those that fear thy name.\n6\tThou wilt prolong the king's life: and his years as many generations.\n7\tHe shall abide before God for ever: O prepare mercy and truth, which may preserve him.\n8\tSo will I sing praise unto thy name for ever, that I may daily perform my vows.\n16\tA gracious woman retaineth honour: and strong men retain riches.\n17\tThe merciful man doeth good to his own soul: but he that is cruel troubleth his own flesh.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Our noses come in all shapes and sizes, and sometimes they can cause a burden on our self-esteem. Through a relatively simple procedure called rhinoplasty, we at Nesmith Plastic Surgery Center in Gainesville, FL, can reshape your nose to dramatically change the appearance of your face.\nNose surgery is an effective form of plastic surgery that can have drastic results. There are many ways in which the shape of a nose can be corrected for a smoother bridge, more proportionately sized nostrils and a less bulbous tip. Rhinoplasty can correct both the shape and size of your nose to better suit your face, whether it be for symmetrical reasons or health concerns. We can also address issues concerning the space and angle between the upper lip and the nose.\nGetting \"a nose job\" is perhaps the most widely known form of cosmetic surgery. Millions of people and celebrities have obtained a natural look through nose surgery, and the stigma of rhinoplasty has lessened over the decades. Now, it is a routine procedure from which many can benefit.\nMany people fail to realize that a successful nose surgery can actually improve their ability to breath. Whether it's genetics or caused from trauma to the nose and face, many people suffer difficulties breathing. Misshapen septums, birth defects and trauma from impact or a broken nose can impede airflow through the nasal cavity. Rhinoplasty in Gainesville that is performed on patients with structural issues can eliminate frequent congestion issues and alleviate restricted breathing.\nAt Nesmith Plastic Surgery Center, we also provide revision rhinoplasty to patients who have previously undergone nose surgery but are unhappy with the results. These may be cosmetic concerns, such as being dissatisfied with the overall shape of the nose tip or nostrils, or the shape of the bridge. Asymmetry, unnatural shapes and the sculpted nose tip are all common reasons why patients seek a revised nose surgery. However, in more serious cases, we can correct obstructions due to a deviated or collapsed septum.\nA revised rhinoplasty is more complex than the original surgery because we must circumnavigate existing scarring and work completed by a different surgeon. If you are dissatisfied with a previous nose surgery, schedule a consultation with Dr. Nesmith who can give you a realistic outlook on available revisions.\nThere are two types of rhinoplasty procedures that we can perform: closed rhinoplasty and open rhinoplasty.\nThe closed rhinoplasty method is often favored by patients and surgeons because incisions are not visible after the procedure. Instead, the incisions are made on the inside of the nose where any scarring is easily hidden.\nOpen nose surgeries are performed by creating a small incision between the nostrils on the outside of the nose. However, incisions can be made on the inside of the nose as well, depending on the procedure and the patient's nose structure.\nIf you're considering rhinoplasty, contact our office today.\nThe first 24 hours is usually the most difficult for rhinoplasty patients as they will experience swelling and discomfort. While each patient's recovery may differ, we recommend staying in bed, with your head elevated, for the first 24 hours.\nSlight bleeding is normal as the tissue heals, and some patients experience minute red spots on their noses which can be temporary. Swelling and bruising will remain for 2-4 days but will subside within 2 weeks. Many patients are able to return to work or school after the first week of recovery, though physical activities may still be limited.\nIf you are unhappy with the size or shape of your nose, or you are experiencing breathing difficulties due to septum defects or trauma, contact Nesmith Plastic Surgery Center in Gainesville, FL, today. Our experienced staff can provide you with a nose that is better proportioned to your face and aesthetically pleasing.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Buying a boat may be as simple as walking into the dealership with cash or an approved loan, but making the best long-term investment for you and your family takes considerably more time and research.\nStart by considering just how you want to spend your time on the water. Do you like to fish or ski? Enjoy a leisurely cruise or spend time floating with friends? Prefer something quick and agile? Plan to travel and actually overnight aboard your vessel? All are considerations that affect just what type of boat you consider. Budget is also an obvious factor. Stretching your limits may seem worth it to acquire the boat of your dreams, but isn't wise if the payments will leave you unable to use it. Likewise, going for the most inexpensive model also isn't a wise choice if you'll quickly outgrow it and look to trade up.\nWhere you'll keep the boat is also a consideration.\nDocking at a marina is convenient, but more expensive. Open docks are most common; some marinas offer covered slips, which offer added protection from the elements. Yet another option is dry storage. Storing your boat out of the water will prevent the buildup of bottom growth, a particular advantage for saltwater boaters. Many dry-storage facilities offer call-ahead service, having your boat ready when you arrive and even cleaning it up before storing it away. Other considerations? Consider the convenience of the marina location, both to your home and to open water; price; security; restrooms, store and fuel; and the amenities \u2014 dockside water, power, even cable or Wi-Fi \u2014 you get for the price.\nTrailering your boat is more affordable, but may limit how often you use the craft. Still, storage is free in your driveway or garage, and a trailer also makes it possible to visit a variety of waterways. Just make sure your boat is less than 8' 6\" wide (what boaters commonly refer to as the \"beam\"); beyond that, most states require a wide-load permit.\nOnce you've narrowed your focus and come up with a realistic budget, start surfing. Boat manufacturer websites are rich in detail, with many enabling you to digitally \"build\" and price your dream craft. Magazine and online reviews offer a third-party perspective on performance and reliability. Online loan calculators can estimate monthly payments. Try out our simple boat loan calculator to see what you can afford.\nWith choices narrowed, visit a dealership or boat show and ask for a thorough walkthrough. Narrow your choices further with a \"sea trial,\" or test ride. When it comes time to negotiate price, try to go in armed with data on similar sales. Once you make your deal, ensure you have everything needed to register the boat, including bill of sale and title.\nYou will be on the water sooner than you think!\nExplore our tips to consider if you are thinking about buying a pre-owned boat.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"No snow here yet....but I'm sure it will soon enough!\nSnagged this cute little vintage tree at an auction this week... Love it!!\nLast night was sheep weigh in for our county fair. The boys are starting to get excited to show their animals and spend time at the fair. Both boys had such a good time last year. This year, Ben will be a 4-H member, not just a Clover bud, so he will be showing right along side his brother.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
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@@ -0,0 +1,5 @@
+{"text":"Does leapmotion work in UWP?\nWe don't work with UWP because we don't have a UWP SDK. Thus our core software doesn't run inside the UWP sandbox.\nHOWEVER, we do work with SteamVR, and UWP supports SteamVR. Build for SteamVR, and you're golden.\nIf UWP is absolutely necessary, you need to pass the hand tracking data from the API into the UWP sandbox. This can be a difficult undertaking.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Why pick National Tennis School or National Kids Camps?\nThe leader in the Ottawa region for all your camp needs!\nWe offer adventure throughout the Ottawa\/Gatineau region with Certified Professionals in mountain biking, sailing, and tennis.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"'Why we should have open book exams' \u2013 Part 1 \u2013 Cass Shan | e-Didik. e-Learning. e-News\u2026.\nThe education system is one of my pet peeves \u2013 mainly because I never saw how practical some of it really was to life.\nEver since I was in high school, I wondered why we had to spend so much time memorising school text books.\nGranted, straight \"A\" students were usually accorded \"smart\" status, but even as I sometimes get the privilege of being called an \"A\" student or get \"good\" grades, I didn't see what the big deal was.\nTo me, grades were usually a test of who had the best memory. (And I found it ironic that people could spend so much time questioning someone's \"intelligence\" only to change their mind when the so-called good results came out in a test. Apparently, one can grow \"intelligence\" overnight by a change in grades).\nEven then, I thought it was pretty stupid to memorise in order to pass exams. The thinking was \u2013 in a few years time, when I start working, I am going to forget all this stuff I memorised, so what is the point? True enough, despite being one of the \"best\" students in certain subjects then (if you can even call it that), I've forgotten more than half the facts I learnt.\nAdmittedly, most people force themselves to take part in rote learning because those that do (undeservedly?) get rewarded.\nTo make a point, in my entire 12 years of working, I have never \u2013 in a job interview \u2013 been asked when the spinning jenny was invented. Though I suppose it would be different if I was applying for a job in mechanical engineering.\nIn any case, we all know by now how rote learning is creating text book zombies. What I do appreciate from my school years, is concepts I learnt, a basic overall picture of history and other subjects and the freedom to explore my interests in the school library.\nWhich is why, I thoroughly encourage open book exams (especially if marked assignments is not available).\nWe now live in a world where Google gives us the answers to practically anything. It is hence, becoming increasingly irrelevant to remember facts when you can just ask the mighty internet for the answers. Einstein is famously said to have never remembered his home phone number because he saves his \"brain power\" for more important things like thinking up new theories.\nThe important thing to learn in school is \"how to think\", \"how to find information and decide which information is relevant\" and to \"sieve through the amount of information available by critically analysing its merits\".\nAnd that is precisely what an open book exam does.\nLet's face it, if monkeys could memorise, they would score As too. It takes another kind of ability altogether to think, read through a vast array of information available and ponder its relevance to the question asked.\nThe Central Board of Secondary Education in India is already thinking along this line when results showed that their students were not faring well according to global standards. I think we should start considering this too.\nA case in point: I remember sitting in a classroom and trying to answer a question which the lecturer had asked from a past year exam book. I used intuitive thinking to attempt the question \u2013 and was quickly admonished for trying to answer the question in my own words as opposed to using the words that the textbook used. The lecturer then proceeded to provide the answer, requesting all students to jot it down, memorise it and answer that way if asked in the examination hall. Needless to say, it was not long before I walked out of the class.\nEventually, we were given open book tests. The questions required some thinking. I had an easy time doing the paper, finding answers from a multitude of books and sources.\nContrastingly, some students shared that they couldn't find the answers, didn't know where the answers were and wanted a guide on how to answer the question \u2013 the way the lecturer had provided a word-for-word answer. While doing our revision together, I wrote five pages of answers while my dear friend was still at page 1. He then asked me to give him the answers so that he could hand in the assignment.\nFortunately, said friend was good at memorising even though he does not understand what the text book is saying. At that point, though I was making progress in memorising facts, I realised the fallacy of the closed book exam and wondered why I was participating in it.\nI guess being good at memorising may mean one has the discipline to \"study\" \u2013 at what price? Also, I can safely bet a lot of people only participate in rote learning as a route to scholarships and gain entry into tertiary education. Which is why the whole system rots.\nWriting about the negative aspects of rote learning is easy because we are now at a stage where we all want to get rid of rote learning. In Part 2 of this article, I will address other issues related to this topic.\nMalaysian university rankings and quality of students \u2013 A former ..\nI would hope to contribute recent anecdotal evidence to the topic of \"Rankings and Quality\". I wish to not mention names and places in public, though I can prove whatever ..\nBy Islamic Renaissance Front Education is fundamentally about the discovery of truth. To say that the truth is to be discovered is to say that it is to be disclosed upon ..\nAnti-hopping law \u2013 a necessity?\nBy ART HARUN; http:\/\/art-harun.blogspot.co.uk Rumour has it that there are some politicians flying all over the country to induce a mass party-hopping, whether before or after the next general election. This ..\nBy Khairie Hisyam Aliman A geology graduate turned writer, Khairie Hisyam Aliman enjoys stating the obvious... occasionally in writing. He is still figuring out how to write a proper bio ..","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"In many aspects of human endeavor competition plays a valuable role. Competition spurs new invention and new extremes of human physical and mental strengths. Competition can also be a contributing causal factor in fear, hatred, anxiety, frustration, anger and envy; all negative dispositions that can tag along in the unconscious mind. In Chan practice there is no room for dispositions and actions that hinder progress. That is why, in the sangha is no place for competition between members. In Buddhist practice there is no place for competition because all people are unique expressions of the Universe, so one's level of progress cannot be measured with another's.\nSiddhartha, the historical Buddha didn't have to imagine the detrimental effects that competition could cause. After all, he had been to school, had siblings, had a father's legacy to look up to, and he'd experienced who could deprive themselves the most when he traveled with the ascetics. The Awakened One must have contemplated what aspects of human existence were most likely to cause the arising of competition and conflict. In the Acintita Sutta he offered four and the negative consequences of pursuing them.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}
+{"text":"Today is the LAST DAY to save an extra 30% off on Guaranteed New Patients with Spring Chiropractic Marketing.\nUse the code \"SPRING\" at checkout to save and extra 30% off your order.\nWant more GUARANTEED referrals? We can help with that!\nWant more GUARANTEED new patients? We can help with that!\nView all Spring Marketing options in the World's Largest Chiropractic Marketing Online Print Store.\nReserve your additional 30% off Spring Special pricing by simply calling our office and explaining what you want and we will extend the deadline for you. Call JustUs Chiropractic Marketing 360-326-8896.","meta":{"redpajama_set_name":"RedPajamaC4"}}