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The wide-area deployment of WiFi hot spots challenges IP access providers. While new profit models are sought after by them, profitability as well as logistics for large-scale deployment of 802.11 wireless technology are still to be proven. Expenditure for hardware, locations, maintenance, connectivity, marketing, billing and customer care must be considered. Even for large carriers with infrastructure, the deployment of a large-scale WiFi infrastructure may be risky. This paper proposes a multi-level scheme for hot spot distribution and customer acquisition that reduces financial risk, cost of marketing and cost of maintenance for the large-scale deployment of WiFi hot spots.
We study the Wigner function for massive spin-1/2 fermions in electromagnetic fields. The Wigner function is analytically solved in five cases when electromagnetic fields are constants. For a general space-time dependent field configuration, we use the method of semi-classical expansion and solved the Wigner function at linear order in the Planck's constant. At the same order, we obtained a generalized Boltzmann equation for particle distribution, and a generalized BMT equation for spin polarization. Using the Wigner function, we calculated some physical quantities in a thermal equilibrium system.
This paper provides a theoretical assessment of gestures in the context of authoring image-related hypertexts by example of the museum information system WikiNect. To this end, a first implementation of gestural writing based on image schemata is provided (Lakoff in Women, fire, and dangerous things: what categories reveal about the mind. University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1987). Gestural writing is defined as a sort of coding in which propositions are only expressed by means of gestures. In this respect, it is shown that image schemata allow for bridging between natural language predicates and gestural manifestations. Further, it is demonstrated that gestural writing primarily focuses on the perceptual level of image descriptions (Hollink et al. in Int J Hum Comput Stud 61(5):601–626, 2004). By exploring the metaphorical potential of image schemata, it is finally illustrated how to extend the expressiveness of gestural writing in order to reach the conceptual level of image descriptions. In this context, the paper paves the way for implementing museum information systems like WikiNect as systems of kinetic hypertext authoring based on full-fledged gestural writing.
The paper presents a study which was based on the hypothesis that wikis that are initiated bottom up by students might be used more deliberately than wikis which are introduced top down by teachers. Therefore it examines the specific effects observed in nine different wiki projects at the university of Frankfurt ranging from student wiki projects up to wikis used in seminars and as information tool for institutions.
This paper investigates whether exchanging the Social Security delayed retirement credit, currently paid as an increase in lifetime annuity benefits, for a lump sum would induce later claiming and additional work. We show that people would voluntarily claim about half a year later if the lump sum were paid for claiming any time after the Early Retirement Age, and about two-thirds of a year later if the lump sum were paid only for those claiming after their Full Retirement Age. Overall, people will work one-third to one-half of the additional months, compared to the status quo. Those who would currently claim at the youngest ages are likely to be most responsive to the offer of a lump sum benefit.
One of the crucial steps during trials for Zika and other vaccines is to recruit participants and to understand how participants’ attitudes and sociodemographic characteristics affect willingness to participate (WTP). This study was conducted to assess WTP, its explanatory variables, and the impact of financial compensation on WTP in Indonesia. A health facility-based cross-sectional study was conducted in eleven regencies in the Aceh and West Sumatra provinces of Indonesia. Participants were recruited via a convenience sampling method and were interviewed. The associations between explanatory variables and WTP were assessed using a two-step logistic regression analysis. A total of 1,102 parents were approached, and of these 956 (86.8%) completed the interview and were included in analysis. Of those, 144 (15.1%) were willing to participate in a Zika vaccine trial without a financial compensation. In the multivariate analysis, WTP was tied to an age of more than 50 years old, compared to 20–29 years (odds ratio (OR): 5.0; 95% confidence interval (CI): 2.37–10.53), to being female (OR: 2.20; 95% CI: 1.11–4.37), and to having heard about Zika (OR: 2.41; 95% CI: 1.59–3.65). Participants’ WTP increased gradually with higher financial compensation. The rate of WTP increased to 62.3% at the highest offer (US$ 350.4), and those who were still unwilling to participate (37.7%) had a poorer attitude towards childhood vaccination. This study highlights that pre-existing knowledge about Zika and attitudes towards childhood vaccination are important in determining community members being willing to participate in a vaccine trial. Financial incentives are still an important factor to enhance participant recruitment during a vaccine trial.
There are many aspects of Haas' life and experiences in India which deserve greater attention. I would like to refer briefly only to his attempts as a litterateur to come to terms with 'India' as presented in his autobiographical recollection and to some comparative cultural reflections in his essays. Like all reconstructions his autobiographical recollection of India is also a construct in which the site of India as a place of exile is justified by an achieved awareness between conscious individual choice and inevitability. An individual acts out a personal history, the prefiguration of which he only becomes aware of in the form of a subsequent epiphanic realization. Given Haas' literary background, it is not surprising that this is articulated through a literary association.
Chern numbers can be calculated within a frame of vortex fields related to phase conventions of a wave function. In a band protected by gaps the Chern number is equivalent to the total number of flux carrying vortices. In the presence of topological defects like Dirac cones this method becomes problematic, in particular if they lack a well-defined winding number. We develop a scheme to include topological defects into the vortex field frame. A winding number is determined by the behavior of the phase in reciprocal space when encircling the defect's contact point. To address the possible lack of a winding number we utilize a more general concept of winding vectors. We demonstrate the usefulness of this ansatz on Dirac cones generated from bands of the Hofstadter model.
Chern numbers can be calculated within a frame of vortex fields related to phase conventions of a wave function. In a band protected by gaps the Chern number is equivalent to the total number of flux carrying vortices. In the presence of topological defects like Dirac cones this method becomes problematic, in particular if they lack a well-defined winding number. We develop a scheme to include topological defects into the vortex field frame. A winding number is determined by the behavior of the phase in reciprocal space when encircling the defect's contact point. To address the possible lack of a winding number we utilize a more general concept of winding vectors. We demonstrate the usefulness of this ansatz on Dirac cones generated from bands of the Hofstadter model.
Chern numbers can be calculated within a frame of vortex fields related to phase conventions of a wave function. In a band protected by gaps the Chern number is equivalent to the total number of flux carrying vortices. In the presence of topological defects like Dirac cones this method becomes problematic, in particular if they lack a well-defined winding number. We develop a scheme to include topological defects into the vortex field frame. A winding number is determined by the behavior of the phase in reciprocal space when encircling the defect's contact point. To address the possible lack of a winding number we utilize a more general concept of winding vectors. We demonstrate the usefulness of this ansatz on Dirac cones generated from bands of the Hofstadter model.
Over the past fifteen years, Weaver Press has published seven anthologies of some one hundred short stories giving voice to new and established Zimbabwean writers. In Windows into Zimbabwe Franziska Kramer and Jürgen Kramer have selected from these anthologies twenty-three stories, which they consider the best or most representative of a particular period in the Zimbabwean narrative since 1980. They present the stories within sections which frame certain themes such as Independence, Gukurahundi, Land, Gender Relations, Money Matters, Social Relations, Exile and Resilience. For the general reader, Windows into Zimbabwe contains some wonderful stories rich in insight, perception, nuance and humour. Writers such as Charles Mungoshi, Petina Gappah, NoViolet Bulawayo, Valerie Tagwira and Shimmer Chinodya are included as well as relative newcomers with new perceptions and fresh voices. The compilers have also provided an introductory overview casting light on the relationship between fiction and society; and for teachers(in schools, colleges and universities) each story is accompanied by explanatory notes, questions and study tasks to further the reader's understanding. Windows into Zimbabwe will positively deepen your appreciation of the country and its people.
Ebola virus (EBOV) infection causes a high death toll, killing a high proportion of EBOV-infected patients within 7 days. Comprehensive data on EBOV infection are fragmented, hampering efforts in developing therapeutics and vaccines against EBOV. Under this circumstance, mathematical models become valuable resources to explore potential controlling strategies. In this paper, we employed experimental data of EBOV-infected nonhuman primates (NHPs) to construct a mathematical framework for determining windows of opportunity for treatment and vaccination. Considering a prophylactic vaccine based on recombinant vesicular stomatitis virus expressing the EBOV glycoprotein (rVSV-EBOV), vaccination could be protective if a subject is vaccinated during a period from one week to four months before infection. For the case of a therapeutic vaccine based on monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), a single dose might resolve the invasive EBOV replication even if it was administrated as late as four days after infection. Our mathematical models can be used as building blocks for evaluating therapeutic and vaccine modalities as well as for evaluating public health intervention strategies in outbreaks. Future laborator experiments will help to validate and refine the estimates of the windows of opportunity proposed here.
Background: Correct species identification of blow flies is a crucial step for understanding their biology, which can be used not only for designing fly control programs, but also to determine the minimum time since death. Identification techniques are usually based on morphological and molecular characters. However, the use of classical morphology requires experienced entomologists for correct identification; while molecular techniques rely on a sound laboratory expertise and remain ambiguous for certain taxa. Landmark-based geometric morphometric analysis of insect wings has been extensively applied in species identification. However, few wing morphometric analyses of blow fly species have been published.
Methods: We applied a landmark-based geometric morphometric analysis of wings for species identification of 12 medically and forensically important blow fly species of Thailand. Nineteen landmarks of each right wing of 372 specimens were digitised. Variation in wing size and wing shape was analysed and evaluated for allometric effects. The latter confirmed the influence of size on the shape differences between species and sexes. Wing shape variation among genera and species were analysed using canonical variates analysis followed by a cross-validation test.
Results: Wing size was not suitable for species discrimination, whereas wing shape can be a useful tool to separate taxa on both, genus and species level depending on the analysed taxa. It appeared to be highly reliable, especially for classifying Chrysomya species, but less robust for a species discrimination in the genera Lucilia and Hemipyrellia. Allometry did not affect species separation but had an impact on sexual shape dimorphism.
Conclusions: A landmark-based geometric morphometric analysis of wings is a useful additional method for species discrimination. It is a simple, reliable and inexpensive method, but it can be time-consuming locating the landmarks for a large scale study and requires non-damaged wings for analysis.
We radio-tracked two male and one female Virginia northern flying squirrels (Glaucomys sabrinus fuscus) in the Allegheny Mountains of West Virginia at Snowshoe Mountain Resort, in winter 2003 and Canaan Valley National Wildlife Refuge in winter 2004, respectively, to document winter home range and habitat use in or near ski areas. Male home range size in the winter was larger than that reported for males during summer and fall, whereas the female home range we observed was smaller than those reported for summer and fall. However, winter habitat use was similar to summer and fall habitat use reported in other studies. Virginia northern flying squirrels foraged and denned in both red spruce (Picea rubens)-dominated forests and northern hardwood forests; however, selection of red spruce-dominated forests and open areas was greater than expected based on availability. Use of northern hardwood forest occurred less than expected based on availability. Male squirrels denned near, and routinely crossed, downhill ski slopes and unimproved roads during foraging bouts, whereas the female approached, but did not cross forest edges onto roads or trails.
Winter's law again
(2007)
Since I discussed the scholarly literature on Winter’s law twenty years ago (1988), several important articles on the subject have appeared (Young 1990, Campanile 1994, Matasovic 1995, Derksen 2002, Dybo 2002, Patri 2005, Derksen 2007). As the law evidently continues to be controversial, it is important to look into the nature of the evidence and counter-evidence which is adduced. It appears that doubts about Winter’s law are largely the result of four types of misunderstanding.
The northern plains of Saudi Arabia are an area of approximately 231,000 km2, or roughly equivalent to the size of the whole of the United Kingdom. During previous ABBA Surveys in this area in late winter and spring significant numbers of wintering species such as Dotterel Charadrius morinellus, sandgrouse Pterocles sps and eagles and vultures have been recorded, as well as the threatened Sociable Plover Vanellus gregarius. The main objective of ABBA Survey 40 (30 January - 28 February 2009) was to assess wintering populations of these birds in northern Arabia through sampling methods. In all 21 timed walked censuses in the early morning and 25 driven transect counts (over a total distance of 1511 km) were carried out. Unfortunately most of the region had suffered a severe drought over an extended period, perhaps the previous ten years or longer, and in most of the survey area there had been no rain at all during the winter/spring period of 2008/2009. This lack of rain had resulted in a complete lack of green vegetation in most of the western part of the area studied. Consequently the census results showed low species diversity and small populations.
This article provides an overview and critical assessment of WIPO ALERT. It locates this initiative in the broader context of transnational IP enforcement schemes on the Internet. These initiatives are classified into two categories according to their point of attachment and geographical effect. Whereas source-related measures (e.g. website takedowns) tend to have a transnational and possibly even a global effect, recipient-related measures (e.g. website and ad blockings) typically mirror the territorially fragmented IPR landscape. This fragmentation is where WIPO ALERT comes into play. It can be understood as a matching service which interconnects holders of information about copyright infringing websites (“Authorized Contributors”) and actors of the online ad industry who want to avoid these outlets (“Authorized Users”). The critical assessment of WIPO ALERT calls for more transparency and the establishment of uniform substantive and procedural standards that have to be met if a new “site of concern” is added to the global ad blacklist.
The influence and power of some OECD states is under threat but China appears to remain astonishingly flexible, economically potent, and politically strong. How accurate is this view? To answer this question, major aspects of Chinese economic regulation that were adopted in the country’s progress towards capitalist modernization are examined. The analysis requires a historical reconstruction of how China changed the way it intervenes economically and politically, especially with regard to the institutions of the central state. Such a reconstruction reveals that, since the 1990s, the central state has indeed increased its steering capacities. These capacities have a distinctive basis that includes acceptance of a state-centered approach, idiosyncratic innovation policies taking place in the "shadow" of the state’s hierarchy, and the ongoing influence of the communist party. An all-embracing controlling power is, however, not detectable. What does exist in China’s competition-driven system of “statecapitalist” regulation, is a set of limits on the state’s capacity to govern.
In 1905, the managing editor of the Jewish Encyclopedia, Isidore Singer (1859–1939), published an article in the journal Ost und West from a "bird’s eye perspective on the development of American Jewry in the last 250 years." In this historical overview, Singer eventually attested that Jewish scholarship in America had an "absolute dependency on the European motherland." This judgment was based on his disapproving view of the two American rabbinical seminaries that existed at that time. According to Singer, there were still no scholars at the Hebrew Union College (HUC) in Cincinnati of the "already American[-born] generation of Israel." In fact, Singer’s observation was appropriate because it applied to the Jewish Theological Seminary of America (JTSA) in New York as much as to the HUC.3 Despite the history of Jewish settlement in America, around 1900 there was still no native Jewish scholarship in America. The scene was dominated by scholars educated in Europe, who often came with broken English and a strict academic sense of mission. In 1903, Kaufmann Kohler (1843–1926), born in Bavaria and trained at German universities, was chosen as the president of HUC. And a year earlier, Solomon Schechter (1847–1915) had been called to the JTSA in New York as its new president. ...
Witch Girl
(2015)
This is modern Lusaka, Zambia, where the line between magic and religion is blurred, the arcane and the mundane muddle and nothing is what it seems. Luse is a sharp street child combing the gang-ridden city in a desperate search for Doctor Georgia Shapiro who she hopes can offer her a way back into her once-bright past. The doctor is trying to unravel the mystery of a friend's sudden death while attending to the AIDS crisis laying waste to the country around her. Meanwhile The Blood Of Christ Church and its enigmatic leader Priestess Selena Clark gain popularity with their murky promises of salvation and violent clandestine rituals. A small silver box links them in ways they cannot foretell. It will force Luse and Georgia to question who they trust, who they are and for whom they fight. Tanvi Bush's Witch girl is a crime thriller that juggles the past and the present effortlessly, blending AIDS activism, witchcraft, religious extremism and romance to create a well-paced narrative. Luse is so feisty, charming and resourceful that you'll miss her after you finish the book.
This is a comparative ethnographic study of witchcraft and associated violence between the kingdoms of Kom and Venda in Cameroon and South Africa respectively. The book shows why despite its prevalence in both societies, witchcraft does not lead to open violence in Kom, while such large-scale violence is commonplace in Venda. It reveals that this difference can be explained by factors such as the variations in local ideas on witches, differences in the role of traditional authorities, and various state interventions on witchcraft matters. The book demonstrates, through a rich collection of detailed cases, that contrary to anthropological theory that views witchcraft as a mechanism for the expression and resolution of social tensions and conflicts, witchcraft may at times become a disturbance of amicable social relations. Witchcraft accusations may occur in a context where strained social relations have not preceded them. The knowledge and experience that people have about witchcraft is sufficient to trigger an accusation and a violent reaction. Different forms of witchcraft account for variations in witchcraft attributions and accusations. This comparison provides a valuable contribution to ongoing witchcraft policy discourse amid widespread citizen anxiety over witchcraft, and the increasing call on the post-colonial state to intervene and protect its citizens against occult aggression.
This book is largely the personal account by Patrick Mbunwe Samba, of how life in his home village of Binshua has been permeated throughout by belief in witchcraft. The book not only provides a historical account informed by his reminiscences of his childhood, it shows as well that even today, belief in witchcraft is very widespread. Witchcraft exerts a profound influence on society in Binshua and in Cameroon in general. The book also provides accounts of the experiences of others, some of them very recent, and gives examples of what injustices and suffering can be caused by the notion that any misfortune must have been caused by witchcraft. For the overwhelming majority of people in village communities such as Binshua, Samba argues, anything not immediately understandable is witchcraft - which is synonymous with mystery. Many educated Africans, too, revert to such traditional attitudes in stressful situations. It may be thought surprising that in spite of the impact of Christianity, Western culture and the improved level of education, the majority of people still believe in witchcraft, and that this phenomenon not only persists but is actually increasing. The book perplexes and challenges by avoiding to provide simple answers to the question whether which witchcraft is real or imagined.
Background: Using data from the COHERE collaboration, we investigated whether primary prophylaxis for pneumocystis pneumonia (PcP) might be withheld in all patients on antiretroviral therapy (ART) with suppressed plasma human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) RNA (≤400 copies/mL), irrespective of CD4 count.
Methods: We implemented an established causal inference approach whereby observational data are used to emulate a randomized trial. Patients taking PcP prophylaxis were eligible for the emulated trial if their CD4 count was ≤200 cells/µL in line with existing recommendations. We compared the following 2 strategies for stopping prophylaxis: (1) when CD4 count was >200 cells/µL for >3 months or (2) when the patient was virologically suppressed (2 consecutive HIV RNA ≤400 copies/mL). Patients were artificially censored if they did not comply with these stopping rules. We estimated the risk of primary PcP in patients on ART, using the hazard ratio (HR) to compare the stopping strategies by fitting a pooled logistic model, including inverse probability weights to adjust for the selection bias introduced by the artificial censoring.
Results: A total of 4813 patients (10 324 person-years) complied with eligibility conditions for the emulated trial. With primary PcP diagnosis as an endpoint, the adjusted HR (aHR) indicated a slightly lower, but not statistically significant, different risk for the strategy based on viral suppression alone compared with the existing guidelines (aHR, .8; 95% confidence interval, .6–1.1; P = .2).
Conclusions: This study suggests that primary PcP prophylaxis might be safely withheld in confirmed virologically suppressed patients on ART, regardless of their CD4 count.
Within the Walls of Hell
(2011)
The Land of Eternal Discomfort is a place where no one wants to go. It is hot and dirty. One is sure to experience depression once there and sleep is a luxury no longer attainable in that place. Unbelievable though it may seem one enters the Land of Eternal Discomfort by choice. It is a place destined for those who did not live a righteous life according to the Creator. The kind of life one lives down below determines where they go thereafter. For the seven characters in this play, the love of power and the hatred for those different and inferior to themselves leads them to choose a life of luxury gained through deceit, theft, adultery and murder. Against all the Creator's commands, they chose to live lives of self-gratification ignoring their obligations to their fellow man. The choice they made was for their lives down there but they will forever live with the consequences in their lives thereafter. Life down there does not last forever and the characters are destined to meet the Messenger at which time the choice will have already been made. When you finally meet the Messenger, pray that he is ushering you into the Land of Eternal Happiness because in the other place you are doomed forever. In the Land of Eternal Discomfort the gate can only open to let someone in. It cannot open to let anyone out. Once you are in there you can never get out again.
An illustrated description of Withius hispanus (L. Koch, 1873) is provided based on its morphological and morphometric characters. This finding of W. hispanus is the first record of the family Withiidae in Slovakia. The present re-description of this species allows an assessment of the variability of its morphological and morphometric characters.
In view of the tremendous success of Victor Klemperer's diaries testimoning his personal experience as a Jew in Nazi Germany, this article discusses the specific contribution of witness literature to the knowledge of history. During the Holocaust period, in the face of death, true historical knowledge was essentially reduced to personal experience. Klemperer's clandestine journal exposes how the collective trauma affected everybody through the daily speech patterns, dictated by the Nazis' appropriation of the German language. In this memory of Alltagsgeschichte as a critical history of language can be seen the specific contribution of Literature of testimony. The function of Klemperers chronicle of 'Lingua Tertii Imperii' to develop the readers linguistic sensitivity, in order to enable them to reappropriate their language.
This article aims to shed light on some core challenges of liberating social criticism. Its centerpiece is an intuitively attractive account of the nature and difficulty of critical social thought that nevertheless goes missing in many philosophical conversations about critique. This omission at bottom reflects the fact that the account presupposes a philosophically contentious conception of rationality. Yet the relevant conception of rationality does in fact inform influential philosophical treatments of social criticism, including, very prominently, a left Hegelian strand of thinking within contemporary Critical Theory. Moreover, it is possible to mount a defense of the conception by reconstructing, if with various qualifications and additions, an argument from classic—i.e., mid twentieth-century—Anglo-American philosophy of the social sciences, in particular, the argument that forms the backbone of Peter Winch’s The Idea of a Social Science. Winch draws his guiding insights from the later philosophy of Wittgenstein, and one of the payoffs of considering Winch’s Wittgenstein-inspired work against the backdrop of Hegel-inspired work in Critical Theory is to contest the artificial professional strictures that are sometimes taken to speak against reaching across the so-called ‘Continental Divide’ in philosophy. The larger payoff is advancing, by means of this philosophically ecumenical approach, the enterprise of liberating social thought.
In this brief excursion into the poetry of Dante and Montale, Rebecca West suggests some approaches to only a few issues that emerge out of the creation of both the primary beloveds of Dante and Montale and of those feminine figures that have been characterized as ostensibly 'antitranscendental' and more secondary in their roles and meanings. As regards Montale's primary feminine figure, Clizia, West argues that she is, to use Teodolinda Barolini's term for Beatrice, a 'hybrid' poetic character, and ultimately exceeds the limits of the poetic beloved as traditionally conceived and read, not only in the courtly tradition upon which she is modelled but well beyond it. In the case of the so-called secondary 'other women' in Dante's and Montale's poetry, West seeks to show that they are much less separable from the primary feminine figures than such binaries as major/minor, transcendent/erotic, soul/body, and traditional/experimental may lead us to believe. Lastly, West considers specifically the wife-figure, in her conspicuous absence from Dante's corpus and in her late appearance in Montale's. For both poets, there are complex intertwinings, interferences, and non-dualistic patterns that form a densely textured poetic weave, in which both the primary and the secondary feminine figures provide "fili rossi" as well as not so easily graspable dangling threads of meaning. These threads have to do with the preoccupation of both poets with the possible integration of immanence and transcendence, embodiment and abstraction, and with the very limits of poetic language. West's topic is also motivated by a feminist-oriented search for modes of deciphering the figure of the feminine beloved in lyric poetry that are not conditioned exclusively by the traditional emphasis on the male poet-creator, but which allow for a shift in focus onto the female figure who is, of course, the creature of the poet's imagination and skill, but who also often takes him into regions in which the excesses (commonly associated with the female) of non-binary thought and the mysteries of alterity - the feminine symbolic sphere, in short - do not so much allow the emergence of neatly squared-off meanings as the evolution of more oblique, circular conduits of potential significance. As a specialist of modern literature, Rebecca West concentrates on Montale more than on Dante, mainly noting the Dantesque aspects of the former's poetry.
Reproducing the characteristics and the functional responses of the blood–brain barrier (BBB) in vitro represents an important task for the research community, and would be a critical biotechnological breakthrough. Pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries provide strong demand for inexpensive and easy-to-handle in vitro BBB models to screen novel drug candidates. Recently, it was shown that canonical Wnt signaling is responsible for the induction of the BBB properties in the neonatal brain microvasculature in vivo. In the present study, following on from earlier observations, we have developed a novel model of the BBB in vitro that may be suitable for large scale screening assays. This model is based on immortalized endothelial cell lines derived from murine and human brain, with no need for co-culture with astrocytes. To maintain the BBB endothelial cell properties, the cell lines are cultured in the presence of Wnt3a or drugs that stabilize β-catenin, or they are infected with a transcriptionally active form of β-catenin. Upon these treatments, the cell lines maintain expression of BBB-specific markers, which results in elevated transendothelial electrical resistance and reduced cell permeability. Importantly, these properties are retained for several passages in culture, and they can be reproduced and maintained in different laboratories over time. We conclude that the brain-derived endothelial cell lines that we have investigated gain their specialized characteristics upon activation of the canonical Wnt pathway. This model may be thus suitable to test the BBB permeability to chemicals or large molecular weight proteins, transmigration of inflammatory cells, treatments with cytokines, and genetic manipulation.
The blood–brain barrier (BBB) is confined to the endothelium of brain capillaries and is indispensable for fluid homeostasis and neuronal function. In this study, we show that endothelial Wnt/beta-catenin (beta-cat) signaling regulates induction and maintenance of BBB characteristics during embryonic and postnatal development. Endothelial specific stabilization of beta-cat in vivo enhances barrier maturation, whereas inactivation of beta-cat causes significant down-regulation of claudin3 (Cldn3), up-regulation of plamalemma vesicle-associated protein, and BBB breakdown. Stabilization of beta-cat in primary brain endothelial cells (ECs) in vitro by N-terminal truncation or Wnt3a treatment increases Cldn3 expression, BBB-type tight junction formation, and a BBB characteristic gene signature. Loss of beta-cat or inhibition of its signaling abrogates this effect. Furthermore, stabilization of beta-cat also increased Cldn3 and barrier properties in nonbrain-derived ECs. These findings may open new therapeutic avenues to modulate endothelial barrier function and to limit the devastating effects of BBB breakdown.
Background: Wnt signaling controls the balance between stem cell proliferation and differentiation and body patterning throughout development. Previous data demonstrated that non-canonical Wnts (Wnt5a, Wnt11) increased cardiac gene expression of circulating endothelial progenitor cells (EPC) and bone marrow-derived stem cells cultured in vitro. Since previous studies suggested a contribution of the protein kinase C (PKC) family to the Wnt5a-induced signalling, we investigated which PKC isoforms are activated by non-canonical Wnt5a in human EPC. Methodology/Principal Findings: Immunoblot experiments demonstrated that Wnt5a selectively activated the novel PKC isoform, PKC delta, as evidenced by phosphorylation and translocation. In contrast, the classical Ca2+-dependent PKC isoforms, PKC alpha and beta2, and one of the other novel PKC isoforms, PKC epsilon, were not activated by Wnt5a. The PKC delta inhibitor rottlerin significantly blocked co-culture-induced cardiac differentiation in vitro, whereas inhibitors directed against the classical Ca2+-dependent PKC isoforms or a PKC epsilon-inhibitory peptide did not block cardiac differentiation. In accordance, EPC derived from PKC delta heterozygous mice exhibited a significant reduction of Wnt5a-induced cardiac gene expression compared to wild type mice derived EPC. Conclusions/Significance: These data indicate that Wnt5a enhances cardiac gene expressions of EPC via an activation of PKC delta.
Wolf spiders (Araneae: Lycosidae) on the overgrowing peat bog in Dubravica (north-western Croatia)
(2002)
The peat bog in Dubravica is of spread interest due to its overgrowing by the process of natural succession, causing the habitat to become dryer and shadier. The dominance structure and phenology of wolf spiders on the Dubravica bog was studied. The spiders were collected during the period 09.04.-9.10.1995, using 20 pitfall traps. Altogether 10 lycosid species were found among 723 adult individuals. For six more abundant species phenology graphs are presented. Three species are found to be eudominant: Pardosa lugubris, Trochosa spinipalpis and Hygrolycosa rubrofasciata. The lycosids habitat preferences and dominance structure according the habitat condition and species occurrences on some other European bogs are discussed. 55,2 % caught specimens are hygrophilous species, and only 7,6 % are photophilous. The lycosid fauna and dominance structure does reflect the habitat condition. As overgrowing is not fully progressed yet, the lycosid fauna of this bog is still relatively bog-characteristic.
Les études critiques sur Gabriela Zapolska (1857-1921), féministe polonaise aux brillants et multiples talents littéraires, ont systématiquement relevé dans ses oeuvres son goût passionné pour les couleurs (impressionnisme) et les formes (beauté et laideur du corps féminin). Dans cet article, nous montrerons que Zapolska n'accordait pas moins d'importance à la musicalité du monde qu'à sa beauté plastique: le son dans toutes ses variations et gradations accompagne le parcours de ses protagonistes féminines dans leur quête d'identité. Murmures ou rires révèlent déjà leur féminité, mais ne suffisent encore pas pour lui permettre de s'épanouir. Le travail de libération ne s'accomplit que grâce à la musique. La réciprocité entre la féminité et la musique est posée comme allant de soi: l'expression par la voix ou l'instrument devient l'expression d'une essence cachée et matrilinéaire de l'existence. Pour Zapolska, la musicalité du monde est genrée et elle est marquée d'une signature féminine.
WOMANDLA! Women Power!
(2018)
Rolene Miller registered Mosaic, Training, Service and Healing Centre to empower abused women, and like a Mosaic to put the broken pieces of their lives together and make their lives more beautiful, Womandla! Women Power! is an account of Mosaics Community Workers and Court Workers lives, training and services and Rolenes writings describing the journey. Their humour and laughter is present whilst constantly moving through the difficult days at Mosaic. This book describes Mosaics support from our caring God. It is a human story where honest values are realised and peoples lives are changed forever. It is for readers who want to know the Herstory of a ground-breaking and innovative Mosaic working with abused women for 25 successful years and still surviving today. Womandla! Women Power! belongs to everyone who in our patriarchal culture and society wants to prevent and stop Women Abuse and Domestic Violence and who needs to seriously and critically condemn it.
Background: Scientifically evaluated cognitive intervention programs are essential to meet the demands of our increasingly aging society. Currently, one of the “hottest” topics in the field is the improvement of working memory function and its potential impact on overall cognition. The present study evaluated the efficacy of WOME (WOrking MEmory), a theory-based working memory training program, in a double-blind, placebo-controlled, and randomized controlled trial (www.drks.de, DRKS00013162).
Methods: N = 60 healthy older adults were allocated to (1) the WOME intervention, (2) an active low-level intervention, or (3) a passive control group. Overall, the intervention groups practiced twelve sessions of 45 min within 4 weeks of their respective training. Transfer effects were measured via an extensive battery of neuropsychological tests and questionnaires both pre-/post-training and at a 3-month follow-up.
Results: WOME led to a significant improvement in working memory function, demonstrated on a non-trained near transfer task and on two different composite scores with moderate to large effect sizes. In addition, we found some indication of relevant impact on everyday life. The effects were short-term rather than stable, being substantially diminished at follow-up with only little evidence suggesting long-term maintenance. No transfer effects on other cognitive functions were observed.
Conclusion: WOME is an appropriate and efficient intervention specifically targeting the working memory system in healthy older adults.
Trial Registration: German Clinical Trials Register (DRKS), Identifier: DRKS00013162.
Women and Halakha Shiur
(2008)
Education is an important tool for the development of human potential. Organizations and individuals interested in development consider knowledge, skills and attitudes, obtained through formal, non-formal and incidental learning, as invaluable assets. Therefore, it is necessary to reflect on fundamental elements that shape the process through which education is attained: How do people learn, and what are the conditions that facilitate effective learning? Answers to these questions demonstrate that no education can be politically neutral, because there is no value-free education. The traditional or indigenous education systems in Nigeria, which covered (and still cover) physical training, development of character, respect for elders and peers, development of intellectual skills, specific vocational trainings, developing a sense of belonging and participation in community affairs, and understanding, appreciating and promoting the cultural heritage of the community were, and are, not value-free. In other words, the goals and purpose of education, the content, the entire process and the procedures chosen for evaluation in education are all value-laden. This book attempts to show that the teaching-learning process in higher education, and religion, taught and learned through non-formal and informal education (or the hidden curriculum), and other socialization processes within and outside the formal school system, all interface to determine the persons that women become. This education enhances or limits women's capabilities, whether in the civic-political sphere or in their attempts to resist violence. Hence, education and religion have ways of empowering or disempowering women.
We test two hypotheses, based on sexual selection theory, about gender differences in costly social interactions. Differential selectivity states that women invest less than men in interactions with new individuals. Differential opportunism states that women’s investment in social interactions is less responsive to information about the interaction’s payoffs. The hypotheses imply that women’s social networks are more stable and path dependent and composed of a greater proportion of strong relative to weak links. During their introductory week, we let new university students play an experimental trust game, first with one anonymous partner, then with the same and a new partner. Consistent with our hypotheses, we find that women invest less than men in new partners and that their investments are only half as responsive to information about the likely returns to the investment. Moreover, subsequent formation of students’ real social networks is consistent with the experimental results: being randomly assigned to the same introductory group has a much larger positive effect on women’s likelihood of reporting a subsequent friendship.
This study investigates the experiences of women journalists during the last phase of Namibia's liberation struggle against South African rule. Black or white, women journalists in Namibia made significant contribu-tions to the liberation cause -including the founding of a high-profiled newspaper -whilst others worked for media sympathetic to the apart-heid government. Based on interviews and deploying feminist media theory, Maria Mboono Nghidinwa pays close attention to the gendered power relationships in the newsrooms of newspapers and radio stations at the time. She looks at the intense political intimidations which tar-geted women and, in particular, the constraints experienced by black women journalists.
Women Writing Zimbabwe
(2008)
The fifteen stories in Women Writing Zimbabwe offer a kaleidoscope of fresh, moving, and comic perspectives on the way in which events of the last decade have impacted on individuals, women in particular. Several stories (Tagwira, Ndlovu and Charsley) look at the impact that AIDS has on women who become the care-givers, often without emotional or physical support. It is often assumed that women will provide support and naturally make the necessary sacrifices. Brickhill and Munsengezi focus on the hidden costs and unexpected rewards of this nurturing role. Many families have been separated over the last decade. Ndlovu, Mutangadura, Katedza, Mhute and Rheam all explore exile's long, often painful, reach and the consequences of deciding to remain at home. In lighter vein, but with equal sharpness of perception, Gappah, Manyika, Sandi, and Holmes poke gentle fun at the demands of new-found wealth, status and manners. Finally, Musariri reminds us that the hidden costs of undisclosed trauma can continue to affect our lives for years afterwards. All of the writers share a sensitivity of perception and acuity of vision. Reading their stories will enlarge and stimulate our own understanding.
This posthumous publication is a collection of essays some of which are based on the author's research work while others record her thoughts on issues she regarded as important. The materials, which were written between 1991 and 1996, cover a range of subjects that have been tied together under the theme of women, law and justice in Uganda. They represent the author's central concerns, interests and views as they developed over the years.
Women, visibility and morality in Kenyan popular media explores familiar constructions of femininity to assess ways in which it circulates in discourse, both stereotypically and otherwise. It assesses the meanings of such discourses and their articulations in various public platforms in Kenya. The book draws together theoretical questions on 'pre-convened' scripts that contain or condition how women can circulate in public. The book asks questions about particular interpretations of women's bodies that are considered transgressive or unruly and why these bodies become significant symbolic sites for the generation of knowledge on morality and sexuality. The book also poses questions about genre and representations of femininity. The assertion made is that for knowledges of femininity to circulate effectively, they must be melodramatic, spectacular and scandalous. Ultimately, the book asks how such a theorisation of popular modes of representation enable a better understanding of the connections between gender, sexuality and violence in Kenya.
Women’s Megilla Reading
(2003)
This poetry anthology offers a feast and face of poetry as it currently is in Uganda. It is all encompassing and presents a variety of writers ranging from seasoned voices to new ones of great promise. The voices are adventurous, reflective, provocative and even sassy. The poets explore with passion diverse themes from the private to the public realm reassuring the reader that poetry is about everything and is perhaps everything. The pages of this anthology pulsate with rhythmic variations that give unexpected pleasure and provoke the reader to be exceptionally alert. This is a welcome and priceless addition to Uganda Poetry Anthology 2000.
In this paper I investigate a change in the word order patterns of Greek nominalizations that took place from the Classical Greek (CG) period to the Modem Greek (MG) one. Specifically, in CG both the patterns in (A), with its two subtypes, and (B) were possible; the MG system, on the other hand, exhibits only the (B) pattern. The difference between the two systems is that agents can only be introduced in the form of prepositional phrase in MG nominals in a position following the head noun, while they could appear in a prenominal position bearing genitive case in CG. Moreover, the theme genitive, i.e. the objective genitive, could precede the head nominal in CG; this is no longer the case in MG, where the theme genitive follows the head noun obligatorily:
(A) i) Det-(Genagent)-Nprocess-Gentheme 1 ii) Det-Gentheme-Nprocess
(B)Det-Nprocess-Gentheme (Ppagent)
I argue that the unavailability of (A) in MG is linked to the nature and the properties associated with a nominal functional projection contained within process non~inals and to other related changes in the nominal system of Greek.
Rawang [...] is a Tibeto-Burman language spoken by people who live in the far north of Kachin State in Myanmar (Burma), particularly along the Mae Hka ('Nmai Hka) and Maeli Hka (Mali Hka) river valleys (see map on back page); population unknown, although Ethnologue gives 100,000. In the past they had been called ‘Nung’, or (mistakenly) ‘Hkanung’, and are considered to be a sub-group of the Kachin by the Myanmar government. Until government policies put a stop to the clearing of new land in 1994, the Rawang speakers still practiced slash and burn farming on the mountainsides (they still do a bit, but only on already claimed land), in conjunction with planting paddy rice near the river. They are closely related to people on the other side of the Chinese border in Yunnan classified as either Dulong or Nu(ng) (see LaPolla 2001, 2003 on the Dulong language). In this paper, I will be discussing the word-class-changing constructions found in Rawang, using data of the Mvtwang (Mvt River) dialect of Rawang, which is considered the most central of those dialects in Myanmar and so has become something of a standard for writing and inter-group communication.
The German causal preposition durch ('by', 'through') poses a challenge to formal-semantic analyses applying strict compositionality. To deal with this challenge, a formalism which builds on recent important developments in Discourse Representation Theory is developed, including a more elaborate analysis of presuppositional phenomena as well as the integration into the theory of unification as a mode of composition. It is argued that that the observed unificational phenomena belong in the realm of pragmatics, providing an argument for presuppositional phenomena at a sentence- and word-internal level.
Words of wisdom within the African context, conjure the foundational thoughts of ancestors, thoughts which, today find themselves in the public sphere. With its focus on individual thoughts, this pan-African collection, among other things, amplifies the African-centred prism of knowledge as a collective creation, while stretching the boundaries of the concept of wisdom. They depict the intricate and unique African perception and relation to the universe. As Molefi K. Asante wonders, what could be any more correct for any people than to see with their own eyes? Collectively, these sayings constitute a pillar in the edification of a culture that departs from mere hearing, seeing and consumption to the creation of narratives and, hence, knowledge. They focus on the shared experiences and aspirations for freedom, a philosophical outlook heavily anchored on balance, as well as on community. Unfortunately, some are still tempted to dismiss words of wisdom as having no bearing on todays hi-tech and, even, post-modernist global village. Yet, if anything, these words have even more relevance in a cacophonic, estranged and even brutish world tightly in the grip of forces bent on twisting all thought processes toward a particular status quo. Each saying should be perceived as a coin with two sides and should, therefore, not be taken at face value. For, like virtue, each one is capable of turning into vice when stretched too far! As a vital prompt in the project of living, this collection proposes to the reader the advantage and a philosophy of balance as the worthwhile and healthy modus vivendi.
Words That Matter
(2019)
Words That Matter attempts to spark conversation around social issues that are often neglected either for their lack of beauty or sheer rigidity. These issues are mainly cultural and political. It further seeks to community hope in its purest form, unfailing and evermore willingly to rewrite situations brightly however dark initially. Find thusly sarcasm and humour, folly and wisdom, discord and harmony, and death and life, all interwoven in revealing just how sound existence can be (or should be henceforth). Above all, get lost and find new paths in these verses!
This article deals with the Tashlhiyt dialect of Berber (henceforth TB) spoken in the southern part of Morocco. In TB, words may consist entirely of consonants without vowels and sometimes of only voiceless obstruents, e.g. tft#tstt "you rolled it (fem)". In this study we have carried out acoustic, video-endoscopic and phonological analyses to answer the following question: is schwa, which may function as syllabic, a segment at the level of phonetic representations in TB? Video-endoscopic films were made of one male native speaker of TB, producing a list of forms consisting entirely of voiceless obstruents. The same list was produced by 7 male native speakers of TB for the acoustic analysis. The phonological analysis is based on the behaviour of vowels with respect to the phonological rule of assibilation. This study shows the absence of schwa vowels in forms consisting of voiceless obstruents.
The information and communication technology (ICT) sector within the Netherlands is a major driver of globalization, the country’s economic growth and innovation. The Dutch ICT sector’s performance is increasingly becoming dependent upon employee driven innovations in order to address the needs of the sectors they service. In other words, the ICT sector within the Netherlands is largely dependent upon the performance and innovative capacity of its employees; both of which are functions of employee engagement. Given the high demand, and low supply of talent within this sector, ICT organizations need to develop innovative ways to enhance the performance capacities of its people. Developing an engaged and highly innovative workforce seems to be an efficient way to activate employees’ performance. As such, the aim of this paper was to investigate the mediating function of employee driven innovative work behaviors in the relationship between work engagement and task performance within the a Dutch ICT consulting firm. A cross-sectional survey-based research design, employing a census-based sampling method, was employed to obtain data from a global ICT consulting firm within the Netherlands (n = 232). The Utrecht Work Engagement Scale, the Innovative Work Behavior Scale and the Task Performance Scale was used to assess the associative subjective experiences of ICT employees. The results showed that work engagement is a significant driver for innovative work behaviors, which in turn affects the task performance of employees. Further, innovative work behaviors are therefore important to translate the engaging energies of employees into performance. This paper discusses the theoretical and practical implications of these findings.
Background: The aim of this study was to investigate the acceptance and assessment of work shadowing carried out by students and dentists in dental practices. Furthermore, the extent to which students perceive an improvement in their specialised, communication and social competencies, was to be examined.
Methods: 61 dental students in their clinical semesters at a German university participated in work shadowing placements at 27 different general dental practices. Before beginning, they received checklists of various competencies that they self-assessed using school grades (from 1 = "very good", to 6 = "failed"), which they also repeated after completion. The dentists supplemented this with their external assessments. In addition, the students were requested to fill out a 54-item questionnaire and compose a freely-structured report after the work shadowing; the dentists filled out a questionnaire containing 16 items. The statistical analysis was carried out by means of the Friedman Test, including a post-hoc test (Bonferroni-Holm correction).
Results: The analysis showed a significant overall improvement in the students’ self-assessed competencies by 0.71* ± 0.43 grades. With an average of 0.33* ± 0.36, the dentists’ external assessment proved significantly higher than the self-assessment. The greatest improvements were perceived by the students in the areas of accounting (1.17* ± 0.77), practice organisation (1.05* ± 0.61) and dentist’s discussions (0.94* ±0.80) [*p < 0.05]. The students confirmed experiencing an expansion of knowledge, an improvement in their communication skills and indicated a high degree of satisfaction in regard to the dentists (school grade 1.58 ± 0.93). A maximum amount of satisfaction towards the work shadow students was demonstrated by the dentists, and this form of teaching was assessed with a school grade of 1.69 ± 0.89.
Conclusion: Both students and dental practitioners demonstrated a high level of satisfaction in regard to the work shadowing. The students felt their knowledge had increased, viewed the dentists as motivating role models and acknowledged a significant improvement in their specialised, communication and social competencies. Work shadowing in dental teaching practices presents a sensible addition to academic teaching at a university.
Background: Only few studies deal with the workload of physical therapists and the health consequences, although this occupational group is quite important for the health care system in many industrialized countries (e.g. ca. 136 000 people are currently employed as physical therapists in Germany). Therefore, the current state of knowledge of work-related diseases and disorders of physical therapists is insufficient. The aim of the "Physical Therapist Cohort" (PTC) study is to analyze the association between work-related exposures and diseases among physical therapists in Germany. This article describes the protocol of the baseline assessment of the PTC study.
Methods/Design: A cross-sectional study will be conducted as baseline assessment and will include a representative random sample of approximately 300 physical therapists employed in Germany (exposure group), and a population-based comparison group (n = 300). The comparison group will comprise a sample of working aged (18–65 years) inhabitants of a German city. Variables of interest will be assessed using a questionnaire manual including questions regarding musculoskeletal, dermal, and infectious diseases and disorders as well as psychosocial exposures, diseases and disorders. In addition to subjective measures, a clinical examination will be used to objectify the questionnaire-based results (n = 50).
Discussion: The study, which includes extensive data collection, provides a unique opportunity to study the prospective association of work-related exposures and associated complaints of physical therapists. Baseline results will give first clues with regard to whether and how prevalent main exposures of physiotherapeutic work and typical work areas of physical therapists are associated with the development of work-related diseases. Thereby, this baseline assessment provides the basis for further investigations to examine causal relationships in accordance with a longitudinal design.
BIOfid is a specialized information service currently being developed to mobilize biodiversity data dormant in printed historical and modern literature and to offer a platform for open access journals on the science of biodiversity. Our team of librarians, computer scientists and biologists produce high-quality text digitizations, develop new text-mining tools and generate detailed ontologies enabling semantic text analysis and semantic search by means of user-specific queries. In a pilot project we focus on German publications on the distribution and ecology of vascular plants, birds, moths and butterflies extending back to the Linnaeus period about 250 years ago. The three organism groups have been selected according to current demands of the relevant research community in Germany. The text corpus defined for this purpose comprises over 400 volumes with more than 100,000 pages to be digitized and will be complemented by journals from other digitization projects, copyright-free and project-related literature. With TextImager (Natural Language Processing & Text Visualization) and TextAnnotator (Discourse Semantic Annotation) we have already extended and launched tools that focus on the text-analytical section of our project. Furthermore, taxonomic and anatomical ontologies elaborated by us for the taxa prioritized by the project’s target group - German institutions and scientists active in biodiversity research - are constantly improved and expanded to maximize scientific data output. Our poster describes the general workflow of our project ranging from literature acquisition via software development, to data availability on the BIOfid web portal (http://biofid.de/), and the implementation into existing platforms which serve to promote global accessibility of biodiversity data.
To what extent does cultural distance interfere with or limit literary experience? What kind of intimacy is needed to make a text into a work? This essay seeks to answer these questions by focusing on the writings of Arvind Krishna Mehrotra. In doing so, it suggests that the challenges of cultural distance may be most acute when dealing with texts from homo-linguistic literary environments, and that we might overcome these challenges by undertaking a world literary criticism that attends to localized fields and materials without forgetting the charge of particular works.
Previous research on working memory (WM) in children with poor mathematical skills has yielded heterogeneous results, possibly due to inconsistent consideration of the IQ-achievement discrepancy and additional reading and spelling difficulties. To examine the impact of both, the WM of 68 average-achieving and 68 low-achieving third-graders in mathematics was assessed. Preliminary analyses showed that poor mathematical skills were associated with poor WM. Afterwards, children with isolated mathematical difficulties were separated from those with additional reading and spelling difficulties. Half of each group fulfilled the IQ-achievement discrepancy, resulting in a 2 (additional reading and spelling difficulties: yes/no) by 2 (IQ-achievement discrepancy: yes/no) factorial design. Analyses revealed that not fulfilling the IQ achievement discrepancy was associated with poor visual WM, whereas additional reading and spelling difficulties were associated with poor central executive functioning in children fulfilling the IQ-achievement discrepancy. Therefore, WM in children with poor mathematical skills differs according to the IQ-achievement discrepancy and additional reading and spelling difficulties.
Congenitally blind individuals have been shown to activate the visual cortex during non-visual tasks. The neuronal mechanisms of such cross-modal activation are not fully understood. Here, we used an auditory working memory training paradigm in congenitally blind and in sighted adults. We hypothesized that the visual cortex gets integrated into auditory working memory networks, after these networks have been challenged by training. The spectral profile of functional networks was investigated which mediate cross-modal reorganization following visual deprivation. A training induced integration of visual cortex into task-related networks in congenitally blind individuals was expected to result in changes in long-range functional connectivity in the theta-, beta- and gamma band (imaginary coherency) between visual cortex and working memory networks. Magnetoencephalographic data were recorded in congenitally blind and sighted individuals during resting state as well as during a voice-based working memory task; the task was performed before and after working memory training with either auditory or tactile stimuli, or a control condition. Auditory working memory training strengthened theta-band (2.5-5 Hz) connectivity in the sighted and beta-band (17.5-22.5 Hz) connectivity in the blind. In sighted participants, theta-band connectivity increased between brain areas typically involved in auditory working memory (inferior frontal, superior temporal, insular cortex). In blind participants, beta-band networks largely emerged during the training, and connectivity increased between brain areas involved in auditory working memory and as predicted, the visual cortex. Our findings highlight long-range connectivity as a key mechanism of functional reorganization following congenital blindness, and provide new insights into the spectral characteristics of functional network connectivity.
This book addresses itself to mobilisation and involvement of rural people in development projects. It describes an imperfect but, nonetheless, exciting and thought-provoking exercise that drew social science researchers and students from four public universities in Kenya into an experiment in participatory research, community education and development in two locations. The experiment was grounded on the assumptions that the people of Kenya are a primary resource and that given proper roles and contribution of planners, researchers and programme implementers, self-sustainable development can become a reality. The contributors of this book have focused on the potential of the university to facilitate participation of the people in development. They have given specific suggestions on how this might be accomplished.
The Child Language Data Exchange System (CHILDES) consists of Codes for the Human Analysis of Transcripts (CHAT), Computerized Language Analysis (CLAN), and a database. There is also an online manual which includes the CHILDES bibliography, the database, and the CHAT conventions as well as the CLAN instructions. The first three parts of this paper concern the CHAT format of transcription, grammatical coding, and analyzing transcripts by using the CLAN programs. The fourth part shows examples of transcribed and coded data.
Background: Depression and anxiety are the most prevalent mental health difficulties in the workplace, costing the global economy $1 trillion each year. Evidence indicates that symptoms may be reduced by interventions in the workplace. This paper is the first to systematically review psychosocial interventions for depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation and behaviours in small-to medium-size enterprises (SMEs).
Methods: A systematic search following PRISMA guidelines, registered in PROSPERO (CRD42020156275), was conducted for psychosocial interventions targeting depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation/behaviour in SMEs. The PubMed, PsycINFO, Scopus, and two specific occupational health databases were searched, as well as four databases for grey literature, without time limit until 2nd December 2019.
Results: In total, 1283 records were identified, 70 were retained for full-text screening, and seven met the inclusion criteria: three randomised controlled trials (RCTs), three before and after designs and one non-randomised trial, comprising 5111 participants. Study quality was low to moderate according to the Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies. Five studies showed a reduction in depression and anxiety symptoms using techniques based on cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), two reported no significant change.
Limitations: Low number and high heterogeneity of interventions and outcomes, high attrition and lack of rigorous RCTs.
Conclusions: Preliminary evidence indicates CBT-based interventions can be effective in targeting symptoms of depression and anxiety in SME employees. There may be unique challenges to implementing programmes in SMEs. Further research is needed in this important area.
An annotated world catalogue and bibliography of the cucujoid family Propalticidae (Coleoptera) is presented. Each taxon is accompanied by a complete taxonomic history, including a full annotated synonymy with original references cited, and current location and status of primary types. The name Slipinskogenia nom. nov. is proposed to replace Discogenia Kolbe, 1897, junior homonym of Discogenia LeConte, 1866, resulting in 11 new combinations. A key is provided for separation of the two genera included in the family. Complete published and previously unpublished distributional data are given.
A preliminary checklist of Calpini is provided, incorporating corrections and changes to publication dates and nomenclature as presented in the checklists of Poole (1989), Fibiger and Lafontaine (2005), and Holloway (2005). Culasta Moore is removed from synonymy with Calyptra Ochsenheimer. Eudocima talboti (Prout) and Graphigona antica Walker are placed in synonymy with E. cajeta (Cramer) and G. regina (Guenée), respectively. Africalpe Krüger, Ferenta Walker, Gonodonta Hübner, Graphigona Walker, Oraesia Guenée, and Tetrisia Walker, are added to the tribe based on shared characters. The genera Cecharismena Möschler, Goniapteryx Perty, Pharga Walker, Phyprosopus Grote, Psammathodoxa Dyar, and Radara Walker are removed and considered incertae sedis. Hemiceratoides and Phyllodes are not considered to be members of Calpini.
This essay identifies in the materialist strand of world literature theory, especially Pascale Casanova and the Warwick Research Collective, a reliance upon a priori structures (the worldsystem) and prioritisation of the literary registration of inequality. By contrast, I contend, world-literary critics who wish to maintain the dissident spirit of postcolonialism ought to demonstrate a shared equality. By reference to the philosophies of Bruno Latour, Gilles Deleuze and Jacques Rancière, this essay sets out the case for an alternative to world-systems critique: one that maintains literature's potential for creating new forms of resistance, dissent, and, crucially, equality.
This short story collection is the outcome of the writing residency for African women writers held in Jinja, Uganda, in January 2011. Writers from across English-speaking Africa contribute stories as diverse as the continent itself, stories that explore universal concerns in acutely individual ways. Among others, an upper-class Ghanaian confronts the irony of race from a prison cell; a Zambian mourns her sister and tackles the restrictions of tradition in a surprisingly humorous way; in Tanzania, two strangers go to extremes to seek elusive health; a Ugandan housewife reflects on personal and world politics as she watches a dog fight; another Ghanaian remembers a love affair that led her into an ancestor's embrace; two Nigerians shopping in London get more than they bargained for; and in a 2011 Caine Prize nominated story by Ugandan writer Beatrice Lamwaka, children cry tears of pain and happiness during an armed conflict.
Unique publication on the worldwide distribution of industrial robots based on company reports: about 40 country reports 2007 - 2012; by application areas; by industrial branches; by types of robots; and by other technical and economic variables. Data on production, exports and imports; Trends in robot densities, i.e. number of robots; per 10,000 persons employed in relevant sectors; Forecast 2013 - 2016; Special Features: Case Studies on Profitability of Robot Investments
It is common knowledge that plants have been the world-wide most important source of medicines and that they still play this role in developing countries. However, up to now, complete lists of medicinal and aromatic plants (MAP) exist for comparatively few countries. A review of all lists know to the authors reveals the following results: A total of 20.7 % of the plant species analyzed by either publications or own research are or were used as MAP. However, regarding single countries, the differences are considerably high. Absolutely leading the list are China (36.2 %), Burkina Faso (35.2 %) and the Korean Republic (34.5 %). Also ahead of other countries or regions are the North of Benin (32.8 %) and the entire Pakistan (30.3 %). Still above average rank Great Britain (26.7 %) and Nepal (23.3 %), while the figures for Bul¬garia (21.0 %), Germany (20.2 %) and France (19.4 %) almost represent the average. Jordan (17.3 %), Vietnam (17.1 %), Sri Lanka (16.6 %), India (16.1 %) and Thailand (15.5 %) rank slightly beneath. Clearly below the average are the percentages of MAP for Hungary (12.2 %) and the USA (11.8 %). The average numbers of MAP in the Philippines (9.5 %) and Malaysia (7.7 %) fall far behind. Calculated on a worldwide scale, every fifth plant can be regarded as MAP. This number matches that from Bulgaria, France and Germany. In northern Benin, Burkina Faso, Korea, China and Pakistan, however, every third plant is or was used as MAP, whereas in Hungary and the USA only every eighth plant can be regarded as MAP. This number drops even further for the Philippines ore Malaysia where only every tenth or thirteenth plant can be attributed to medicinal or aromatic use. These differences might be due to various factors. A geographical component of the results is obvious: in most cases geographically close countries show similar percentages. A correlation between the total number of species and the fraction of those used as MAP cannot be confirmed. The countries with percentage of MAP > 30 % in common show that they belong either entirely (Burkina Faso, Benin) or at least in their rural areas to the poorest countries of the world so that it is (was) impossible for the majority of the people to buy "modern" MAP. In those countries the number of traditional healers outnumbers largely the number of modern doctors. Therefore, the tradition of folk medicine was maintained until today. Additionally, China, Korea and partially Pakistan have a very old and well documented tradition of folk medicine. Due to this documentation even in areas where today "modern MAP" are used, the knowledge was not lost. In neighboring countries or regions, which differ with respect to a more arid or a more humid climate, for the arid country (region) more MAPs are reported than for the humid one. The potential reasons for this phenomenon are discussed in the paper. For many countries the percentage given for MAP in literature is too low. But even these low values represent a striking argument for the importance of a world-wide conservation of biodiversity.
Background: Despite the numerous associations of vitamin D with health and disease, vitamin D deficiency is still common from a global perspective. While basic research, clinical and preventive activities grow constantly in vitamin D research, there is no in-depth analysis of the related global scientific productivity available so far.
Methods: Density equalizing mapping procedures (DEMP) were combined with socioeconomic benchmarks using the NewQIS platform.
Results: A total of 25,992 vitamin D-related research articles were identified between 1900 to 2014 with a significant increase (r2 = .6541) from 1900 to 2014. Authors located in Northern America – especially in the USA – distributed the majority of global vitamin D research, followed by their Western European counterparts. DEMP-analysis illustrates that Africa and South America exhibit only minor scientific productivity. Among high-income group countries, Scandinavian nations such as Denmark or Finland (2147.9 and 1607.7 vitamin D articles per GDP in 1000 billion USD) were highly active with regard to socioeconomic figures.
Conclusion: Networks dedicated to vitamin D research are present around the world. Overall, the Northern American and Western European nations occupy prominent positions. However, South American, African and Asian countries apart from Japan only play a minor role in the global research production related to vitamin D. Since vitamin D deficiency is currently increasing in the Americas, Europe and parts of the Middle East, research in these regions may need to be encouraged.
Shigeko Kubota's pioneering video "Sexual Healing" (1998) presents an ambivalent take on her disabled husband Nam June Paik in physical therapy. Accompanied by Marvin Gaye's titular pop song, it considers love, sex, and care in old age within the much-debated field of Fluxus collaborations, and its ideal of working together as equals when fusing life and art. "Worlding Love, Gender, and Care" delves into the four decades of Kubota and Paik's time together, reflects on feminist worlding, and investigates the vital contribution of female Fluxus artists to art history.
Background: A large number of idiosyncratic drug induced liver injury (iDILI) and herb induced liver injury(HILI) cases of variable quality has been published but some are a matter of concern if the cases were not evaluated for causality using a robust causality assessment method (CAM) such as RUCAM (Roussel Uclaf Causality Assessment Method) as diagnostiinjuryc algorithm. The purpose of this analysis was to evaluate the worldwide use of RUCAM in iDILI and HILI cases. Methods: The PubMed database (1993–30 June 2020) was searched for articles by using the following key terms: Roussel Uclaf Causality Assessment Method; RUCAM; Idiosyncratic drug induced liver injury; iDILI; Herb induced liver injury; HILI. Results: Considering reports published worldwide since 1993, our analysis showed the use of RUCAM for causality assessment in 95,885 cases of liver injury including 81,856 cases of idiosyncratic DILI and 14,029 cases of HILI. Among the top countries providing RUCAM based DILI cases were, in decreasing order, China, the US, Germany, Korea, and Italy, with China, Korea, Germany, India, and the US as the top countries for HILI. Conclusion: Since 1993 RUCAM is certainly the most widely used method to assess causality in IDILI and HILI. This should encourage practitioner, experts, and regulatory agencies to use it in order to reinforce their diagnosis and to take sound decisions.
Highlights
• We present a novel alternative to the die-in-the-cup experiment.
• Participants’ payoffs depend on their reported mothers’ birthdays.
• We find that subjects lied to obtain real monetary payoffs.
• The extent of lying is small and insensitive to several design variations.
Abstract
We ask a representative sample of German household decision-makers to enter their mother's birthday, with potential payments depending on the month and the day they state. Thus, we create an incentive to lie. Compared to the die-under-the-cup experiment, our alternative has a lower probability that the income-maximizing outcome is true. Furthermore, it is better suited for online surveys and samples in which gambling is socially stigmatized. We conduct different variations of this game to crystalize design recommendations for researchers interested in our tool. Participants lied to receive higher payoffs, but only with real monetary incentives and only to a relatively small extent. Our results are largely insensitive to several design elements that we vary, such as the probability of being paid and the magnitude of the payoffs.
In the past, the genetically diabetic-obese diabetes/diabetes (db/db) and obese/obese (ob/ob) mouse strains were used to investigate mechanisms of diabetes-impaired wound healing. Here we determined patterns of skin repair in genetically normal C57Bl/6J mice that were fed using a high fat diet (HFD) to induce a diabetes-obesity syndrome. Wound closure was markedly delayed in HFD-fed mice compared to mice which had received a standard chow diet (CD). Impaired wound tissue of HFD mice showed a marked prolongation of wound inflammation. Expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was delayed and associated with the disturbed formation of wound margin epithelia and an impaired angiogenesis in the reduced granulation tissue. Normal wound contraction was retarded and disordered. Wound disorders in obese C57Bl/6J mice were paralleled by a prominent degradation of the inhibitor of NFκB (IκB-α) in the absence of an Akt activation. By contrast to impaired wound conditions in ob/ob mice, late wounds of HFD mice did not develop a chronic inflammatory state and were epithelialized after 11 days of repair. Thus, only genetically obese and diabetic ob/ob mice finally developed chronic wounds and therefore represent a better suited experimental model to investigate diabetes-induced wound healing disorders.
Wozu Dichter?
(2010)
Goethe's Tasso is no "Dichter in duerftiger Zeit." He is rather duerftig himself, unbalanced and impulsive in the extreme. In fact, in an annoyed moment, the diplomat Antonio sees him as a useless and pampered brat and undiplomatically says so, triggering a fateful sequence of events that generate a seemingly unstoppable momentum.
Wrack burial reduces germination and establishment of the invasive cordgrass Spartina densiflora
(2014)
Germination and emergence of halophytes may decrease significantly by seed burial in dead plant material, or wrack, which is common and abundant in tidal marshes. The effects of plant debris (wrack) burial on seed germination and seedling establishment of Spartina densiflora, an invasive cordgrass, were studied under greenhouse conditions and compared with field observations. Five wrack burial depths were applied: control without wrack, 1 cm (1235 ± 92 g DW wrack m-2), 2 cm (3266 ± 13 g DW m-2), 4 cm (4213 ± 277 g DW m-2), and 8 cm (6138 ± 227 g DW m-2). Sediment pH, electrical conductivity, redox potential and temperature were recorded. Quiescence increased with wrack load up to ~20% at 8 cm deep. Germination decreased with wrack load from 96% to 14%, which could be related with anoxic conditions under the debris since sediment redox potential was as low as -83 ± 7 mV at 8 cm. Germination percentage increased and quiescent and dormant percentages decreased at higher daily sediment temperatures and with higher daily temperature fluctuations, conditions that were recorded without or under low loads of wrack. Spartina densiflora did not show primary dormancy, but its seeds entered into a non-deep physiological dormancy below 1 cm deep in plant debris. The establishment of S. densiflora seedlings was also greatly reduced by wrack burial since only 6 seedlings (11 ± 5 % of germinated seeds) emerged above plant debris from 1 cm and all seedlings died from deeper than 1 cm. S. densiflora seedling development was also reduced by wrack burial. The inverse relationship between germination and emergence of S. densiflora with wrack burial recorded in our study is useful to predict its invasion dynamics and to plan the management of invaded marshes.
Focused electron beam induced deposition (FEBID) is a direct-write nanofabrication technique able to pattern three-dimensional magnetic nanostructures at resolutions comparable to the characteristic magnetic length scales. FEBID is thus a powerful tool for 3D nanomagnetism which enables unique fundamental studies involving complex 3D geometries, as well as nano-prototyping and specialized applications compatible with low throughputs. In this focused review, we discuss recent developments of this technique for applications in 3D nanomagnetism, namely the substantial progress on FEBID computational methods, and new routes followed to tune the magnetic properties of ferromagnetic FEBID materials. We also review a selection of recent works involving FEBID 3D nanostructures in areas such as scanning probe microscopy sensing, magnetic frustration phenomena, curvilinear magnetism, magnonics and fluxonics, offering a wide perspective of the important role FEBID is likely to have in the coming years in the study of new phenomena involving 3D magnetic nanostructures.