On the divine in Husserl

The paper deals with the ways in which Edmund Husserl develops the question of God. Six ways to reach God are shown as present in Husserl’s writings, some of them seem to be very close to the traditional philosophical ways to go as far as God (the objective and the subjective ways) others are very original, in particular the way that starts from the analysis of the hyletic sphere of the human being, a sphere which is present in all the reality too. At last it is possible to notice Husserl’s interest in the mystical approach to God

On the Covariant Quantization of the 2nd-Ilk Superparticle

This paper is devoted to the quantization of the second-ilk superparticle using the Batalin-Vilkovisky method. We show the full structure of the master action. By imposing gauge conditions on the gauge fields rather than on coordinates we find a gauge-fixed quantum action which is free. The structure of the BRST charge is exhibited and the BRST cohomology yields the same physical spectrum as the light- cone quantization of the usual superparticle.Comment: 17 page

Genetic diagnosis as a tool for personalized treatment of Duchenne muscular dystrophy

Accurate definition of genetic mutations causing Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) has always been relevant in order to provide genetic counseling to patients and families, and helps to establish the prognosis in the case where the distinction between Duchenne, Becker, or intermediate muscular dystrophy is not obvious. As molecular treatments aimed at dystrophin restoration in DMD are increasingly available as commercialized drugs or within clinical trials, genetic diagnosis has become an indispensable tool in order to determine eligibility for these treatments. DMD patients in which multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) or similar techniques show a deletion suitable to exon skipping of exons 44, 45, 51, or 53, may be currently treated with AONs targeting these exons, in the context of clinical trials, or, as is the case for exon 51 skipping in the United States, with the first commercialized drug (eteplirsen). Patients who test negative at MLPA, but in whom DMD gene sequencing shows a nonsense mutation, may be amenable for treatment with stop codon readthrough compounds such as ataluren. Novel molecular approaches such as CRISPR-Cas9 targeting of specific DMD mutations are still in the preclinical stages, but appear promising. In conclusion, an accurate genetic diagnosis represents the entrance into a new scenario of personalized medicine in DMD

Profiling Corruption Perception in Africa: the Role of Religion, Gender, Education and Age

This study investigates attitude towards corruption and the role of gender, religion, education and age using a Nigerian survey data. It also seeks to establish how attitudes towards corruption relates to some other reported ethical measures such as Islamic work ethics, money ethic and corruption perception. Over 3800 questionnaires were administered with 1833 or about 48% response rate. Results revealed no significant gender differences in corruption but women reported being more religious. Also Christians rated the incidence of corruption as higher than Muslims although the sample size skews significantly in favour of the former. Older and more educated people also rated corruption incidence higher

The King’s New Clothes in the Eyes of the Beholder: Developing a Measurement Scale for Attitude Towards Corruption.

This study investigates the validity and reliability of a developing scale on attitude towards corruption. It correlates this scale with existing and related behavioural measures, both ethical (money ethic, work ethic and corruption perception) and non-ethical (organisational commitment and job satisfaction). Survey data was obtained from 1833 respondents in Nigeria. Findings confirm the 20-item measure as a multidimensional construct loading on 4 factors with a reliability coefficient (0.62) and with evidence of construct validity. Significant relationships were also found between attitude towards corruption and both the ethical and non-ethical behavioural measures investigated. Some further research directions were suggested