The print artifact in the age of the digital : the writings of Mark Z. Danielewski and Steve Tomasula

vi, 91 leaves ; 29 cmThe primacy of the print novel as the main mode for knowledge dissemination and communication is being challenged today by the vast influx and pervasiveness of digital media. Print literature, then, is at potential risk for obsolescence, as digital technology creates new modes of narrative distribution. The novel, therefore, is in the midst of a metamorphosis, having to adapt in order to properly situate itself within the new media ecology. Somewhat paradoxically, the same digital technology that challenges print literature’s primacy is responsible for the novel’s adaption. The changing face of the page creates new novels that reflect the digital in print, through changes in typography, layout, and design. These changes illuminate the need for a material-specific methodology in literary theory, and brings about the death of postmodernism in the new, digital environment. i

Morphology and AFLP markers suggest three Hordeum chilense ecotypes that differ in avoidance to rust fungi

In Hordeum chilense Roem. & Schult., a high variation in the level of avoidance to infection of barley leaf rust (Puccinia hordei Otth) occurs. Probably resulting from the properties of the stomata, the rust germ tube overgrows stomata, and the infection process fails in an early stage. In the present study we tested the hypothesis that the avoidance character occurs in certain morphologically and molecularly distinct ecotypes of H. chilense. Eighty-eight H. chilense accessions were inoculated with P. hordei to assess the level of avoidance. The accessions were described for 30 morphological characters and three AFLP primer combinations. Cluster analysis using both morphological and AFLP fingerprint data suggested three distinct clusters of accessions. One of the clusters had a particularly high level of avoidance. This putative subspecific taxon was characterized by shorter and wider spikes, more erect culms, a greater number of stomata per square centimetre on the abaxial leaf side, and a shorter uppermost internode until flag leaf. All accessions clustered in this subspecific taxon were collected from humid habitats. We conclude that H. chilense consists of at least three rather well defined, morphologically and genetically distinct subspecific taxa, one of which has a very high level of avoidance to barley leaf rust

Strong and reliable synaptic communication between pyramidal neurons in adult human cerebral cortex

Synaptic transmission constitutes the primary mode of communication between neurons. It is extensively studied in rodent but not human neocortex. We characterized synaptic transmission between pyramidal neurons in layers 2 and 3 using neurosurgically resected human middle temporal gyrus (MTG, Brodmann area 21), which is part of the distributed language circuitry. We find that local connectivity is comparable with mouse layer 2/3 connections in the anatomical homologue (temporal association area), but synaptic connections in human are 3-fold stronger and more reliable (0% vs 25% failure rates, respectively). We developed a theoretical approach to quantify properties of spinous synapses showing that synaptic conductance and voltage change in human dendritic spines are 3-4-folds larger compared with mouse, leading to significant NMDA receptor activation in human unitary connections. This model prediction was validated experimentally by showing that NMDA receptor activation increases the amplitude and prolongs decay of unitary excitatory postsynaptic potentials in human but not in mouse connections. Since NMDA-dependent recurrent excitation facilitates persistent activity (supporting working memory), our data uncovers cortical microcircuit properties in human that may contribute to language processing in MTG

Strong and reliable synaptic communication between pyramidal neurons in adult human cerebral cortex

Synaptic transmission constitutes the primary mode of communication between neurons. It is extensively studied in rodent but not human neocortex. We characterized synaptic transmission between pyramidal neurons in layers 2 and 3 using neurosurgically resected human middle temporal gyrus (MTG, Brodmann area 21), which is part of the distributed language circuitry. We find that local connectivity is comparable with mouse layer 2/3 connections in the anatomical homologue (temporal association area), but synaptic connections in human are 3-fold stronger and more reliable (0% vs 25% failure rates, respectively). We developed a theoretical approach to quantify properties of spinous synapses showing that synaptic conductance and voltage change in human dendritic spines are 3-4-folds larger compared with mouse, leading to significant NMDA receptor activation in human unitary connections. This model prediction was validated experimentally by showing that NMDA receptor activation increases the amplitude and prolongs decay of unitary excitatory postsynaptic potentials in human but not in mouse connections. Since NMDA-dependent recurrent excitation facilitates persistent activity (supporting working memory), our data uncovers cortical microcircuit properties in human that may contribute to language processing in MTG

Strong and reliable synaptic communication between pyramidal neurons in adult human cerebral cortex

Synaptic transmission constitutes the primary mode of communication between neurons. It is extensively studied in rodent but not human neocortex. We characterized synaptic transmission between pyramidal neurons in layers 2 and 3 using neurosurgically resected human middle temporal gyrus (MTG, Brodmann area 21), which is part of the distributed language circuitry. We find that local connectivity is comparable with mouse layer 2/3 connections in the anatomical homologue (temporal association area), but synaptic connections in human are 3-fold stronger and more reliable (0% vs 25% failure rates, respectively). We developed a theoretical approach to quantify properties of spinous synapses showing that synaptic conductance and voltage change in human dendritic spines are 3-4-folds larger compared with mouse, leading to significant NMDA receptor activation in human unitary connections. This model prediction was validated experimentally by showing that NMDA receptor activation increases the amplitude and prolongs decay of unitary excitatory postsynaptic potentials in human but not in mouse connections. Since NMDA-dependent recurrent excitation facilitates persistent activity (supporting working memory), our data uncovers cortical microcircuit properties in human that may contribute to language processing in MTG