Exploring the Combination of Subtitling and Revoicing Tasks: A Proposal for Maximising Learning Opportunities in the Italian Language Classroom

Research has proven that audiovisual translation as an instructional tool is certainly beneficial to the enhancement of language skills, mainly listening, reading and writing. The relationship between the pragmatics of audiovisual (AV) material and the way they are learned, is still a topic that requires more investigation. In this study, clips form an Italian TV series are exploited as context-rich scaffolding on which students can build up vocabulary and develop an awareness of L2 pragmatics. This article presents an innovative didactic methodology that capitalised on the linguistic richness of audiovisual texts and sees in subtitling and revoicing tasks a great didactic potential that provides students with numerous opportunities for learning vocabulary and L2 pragmatic. In the course proposed, exposure to AV input is integrated with subtitling and revoicing tasks as well as with multimodal analysis of the video clips in order to maximise learning opportunities in the FL classroom

Why can crude oil traders take advantage of a Super-Contango while agriculural traders cannot?

In 2009 and 2015, crude oil traders had the opportunity to take advantage of an arbitrage opportunity between the spot market and the future market, the phenomena is famous in the industry and is well known as Super-Contango. On the other hand, the same arbitrage opportunity was never observed in the grain andwe do not hear about any Super-Carry. This study aims to investigate what are the possible explanations that would prevent similar arbitrage opportunity to happen in the grain market and why a Super-Carry never occurred during the last decades. The author motivation to work on this project is mainly due to variety of possible researches that could be done as well as the wide range of possible parameters that must be considered. This research mixes the derivatives market, the physical market and also the inventory management of the commodities. The methods used to conduct the research is the collection of secondary quantitative data found in the balance sheet and income statement incorporated in companies’ annual reports. The analysis of the data has been conducted with the help of inventory ratio in order to understand the trends in term of inventory management between oil and grain firms. Ultimately the author had the opportunity to discuss with professionals that work for agricultural companies in order to collect qualitative data that helped the author to understand new perspectives and possible reasons that prevents Super-Carry from happening. The studies have shown multiple findings that could be help to answer the research question. The overall storage capacity compared to the daily average production is much more important in agriculture that oil and thus, under a situation of oversupply, oil tanks are quickly becoming full and as a result creates a lot of pressure on the spot price. Agricultural companies hold their inventory for longer period of time comparing to oil companies which means that storing grains is profitable for trading firms. Farmers have more incentive to own their storage facility compared to oil producers because the supply and demand balance is more predictable in agriculture due to the seasonality. As a result, there is much more players in agriculture than in oil that are capable of taking advantage of arbitrage opportunity. This research paper demonstrates that buying physical grains, store them and sold them forward is actually common in agriculture and because it is part of the usual manner of trading grains, the market structure prevents the arbitrage opportunity to become as profitable as it was in 2009 and 2015

The risk of cancer progression in women with gynecological malignancies and thrombophilic polymorphisms: a pilot case-control study.

Cancer produces a hypercoagulable state, which might lead to thrombosis, and on contrary, unprovoked venous thromboembolism might be the manifestation of an occult cancer. In this pilot case-control study, we assessed the risk of gynecological malignant diseases related to the presence of the factor V Leiden and prothrombin G20210A polymorphisms. Fifty-two women underwent an operation for gynecological malignancy and were enrolled in the study. Women who underwent an operation for gynecological nonmalignant disease in the same days of cases were considered as controls. The presence of factor V Leiden and prothrombin G20210A was assessed in case and control groups. In all, 7 out of 52 cases were carriers of the 2 polymorphisms compared with 20 out of 198 controls (odds ratio = 1.3; 95% confidence interval, 0.6-3.0). The results were also similar when the risk was considered separately for the site of cancer. As for advanced and metastatic malignancies, the odds ratios were 2.3 (95% confidence interval, 0.9-6.0) and 3.3 (95% confidence interval, 1.0-11), respectively, compared to noncancer patients. When these 2 groups were compared to nonadvanced cancer group, the odds ratios for carriers of polymorphisms were 2.7 (95%confidence interval, 0.7-11.0) and 3.9 (95%confidence interval, 0.8-18.6) for advanced cancer and metastatic malignancies, respectively. Women with factor V Leiden or prothrombin G20210A polymorphisms who developed gynecological malignancy might present with a higher stage of cancer at the time of surgery. Larger case-control studies in similar cohort of patients are needed to confirm these findings

Diretrizes iniciais para o desenvolvimento de comportamentos científicos em educadores

Objetivo. Apresentar diretrizes iniciais que possam auxiliar educadores e pesquisadores na produção de conhecimento científico na Educação.Desenvolvimento. Dada a importância dos educadores no desenvolvimento das novas gerações, o conhecimento científico desses profissionais é essencial para garantir uma educação de qualidade. Portanto, é fundamental fornecer condições para que esses profissionais desenvolvam o comportamento de avaliar a validade e a confiabilidade das informações com base em conhecimentos lógicos e científicos.Implicações. As informações apresentadas neste texto podem auxiliar a Educação formal e continuada de educadores, desenvolvendo seu comportamento científico e aumentando a qualidade das atividades educacionais. Ressalta-se também a importância de que os cursos de formação incluam o desenvolvimento desse repertório como objetivos pedagógicos para uma formação comprometida com a ciência e a ética.Palavras-chave. Comportamentos científicos; Educadores; Ciência; Formação de professores; Educação científica. AbstractObjective. Present initial guidelines that may help educators and researchers produce scientific knowledge in Education.Development. Given the importance of educators on new generations' development, the scientific knowledge of these professionals is essential to ensure quality education. Therefore, it is fundamental to provide conditions for these professionals to develop the behavior of evaluating the validity and reliability of information based on logical and scientific knowledge.Implications. The information presented in this text can help educators' formal and continuing Education by developing their scientific behavior and, consequently, increasing the quality of educational activities. It is also highlighted the importance that training courses include the development of this repertoire as teaching objectives to provide training committed to science and ethics.Keywords. Scientific behaviors; Educators; Science; Teacher’s education; Scientific education

Therapeutic efficacy of antibodies lacking FcgammaR against lethal Dengue virus infection Is due to neutralizing potency and blocking of enhancing antibodies

<div><p>Dengue hemorrhagic fever and dengue shock syndrome (DHF/DSS) are life-threatening complications following infection with one of the four serotypes of dengue virus (DENV). At present, no vaccine or antiviral therapies are available against dengue. Here, we characterized a panel of eight human or mouse-human chimeric monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) and their modified variants lacking effector function and dissected the mechanism by which some protect against antibody-enhanced lethal DENV infection. We found that neutralizing modified MAbs that recognize the fusion loop or the A strand epitopes on domains II and III of the envelope protein, respectively, act therapeutically by competing with and/or displacing enhancing antibodies. By analyzing these relationships, we developed a novel <em>in vitro</em> suppression-of-enhancement assay that predicts the ability of modified MAbs to act therapeutically against antibody-enhanced disease <em>in vivo</em>. These studies provide new insight into the biology of DENV pathogenesis and the requirements for antibodies to treat lethal DENV disease.</p> </div

Immunogenetic Mechanisms Driving Norovirus GII.4 Antigenic Variation

Noroviruses are the principal cause of epidemic gastroenteritis worldwide with GII.4 strains accounting for 80% of infections. The major capsid protein of GII.4 strains is evolving rapidly, resulting in new epidemic strains with altered antigenic potentials. To test if antigenic drift may contribute to GII.4 persistence, human memory B cells were immortalized and the resulting human monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) characterized for reactivity to a panel of time-ordered GII.4 virus-like particles (VLPs). Reflecting the complex exposure history of the volunteer, human anti-GII.4 mAbs grouped into three VLP reactivity patterns; ancestral (1987–1997), contemporary (2004–2009), and broad (1987–2009). NVB 114 reacted exclusively to the earliest GII.4 VLPs by EIA and blockade. NVB 97 specifically bound and blocked only contemporary GII.4 VLPs, while NBV 111 and 43.9 exclusively reacted with and blocked variants of the GII.4.2006 Minerva strain. Three mAbs had broad GII.4 reactivity. Two, NVB 37.10 and 61.3, also detected other genogroup II VLPs by EIA but did not block any VLP interactions with carbohydrate ligands. NVB 71.4 cross-neutralized the panel of time-ordered GII.4 VLPs, as measured by VLP-carbohydrate blockade assays. Using mutant VLPs designed to alter predicted antigenic epitopes, two evolving, GII.4-specific, blockade epitopes were mapped. Amino acids 294–298 and 368–372 were required for binding NVB 114, 111 and 43.9 mAbs. Amino acids 393–395 were essential for binding NVB 97, supporting earlier correlations between antibody blockade escape and carbohydrate binding variation. These data inform VLP vaccine design, provide a strategy for expanding the cross-blockade potential of chimeric VLP vaccines, and identify an antibody with broadly neutralizing therapeutic potential for the treatment of human disease. Moreover, these data support the hypothesis that GII.4 norovirus evolution is heavily influenced by antigenic variation of neutralizing epitopes and consequently, antibody-driven receptor switching; thus, protective herd immunity is a driving force in norovirus molecular evolution

Effectiveness of the computerization of a YALE insulin infusion modified protocol in reducing the nursing workload in an Internal Medicine Department

Hyperglycemia is a negative prognostic factor in both critical and non-critical patients. Many critically ill patients admitted to internal medicine wards present hyperglycemia and may benefit from an IV insulin therapy. The Yale Insulin Infusion Protocol (YIIP) is effective and safe in achieving the desired glucose range. However, to be used properly and safely, it requires a considerable availability of nursing resources. This probably represents the main limiting factor in using these protocols outside intensive care units. This study was performed to assess the effectiveness of a computer application which reduces the nursing workload related to managing a nurse implemented modified YIIP in our internal medicine department. Our experience showed that computerizing the YIIP algorithm is safe and effective. It leads on average to a net 30-min nursing time saving per day per patient

Emergence of New Pandemic GII.4 Sydney Norovirus Strain Correlates With Escape From Herd Immunity

Background. GII.4 noroviruses are a significant source of acute gastroenteritis worldwide, causing the majority of human norovirus outbreaks. Evolution of the GII.4 major capsid protein occurs rapidly, resulting in the emergence of new strains that produce successive waves of pandemic disease. A new pandemic isolate, GII.4 2012 Sydney, largely replaced previously circulating strains in late 2012. We compare the antigenic properties of GII.4 2012 Sydney with previously circulating strains. Methods. To determine whether GII.4-2012 Sydney is antigenically different from recently circulating strains GII.4-2006 Minerva and GII.4-2009 New Orleans in previously identified blockade epitopes, we compared reactivity and blockade profiles of GII.4-2006, GII.4-2009, and GII.4-2012 virus-like particles in surrogate neutralization/blockade assays using monoclonal antibodies and human polyclonal sera. Results. Using monoclonal antibodies that map to known blockade epitopes in GII.4-2006 and GII.4-2009 and human outbreak polyclonal sera, we demonstrate either complete loss or significantly reduced reactivity and blockade of GII.4.2012 compared to GII.4-2006 and GII.4-2009. Conclusions. GII.4-2012 Sydney is antigenically different from GII.4-2006 Minerva and GII.4-2009 New Orleans in at least 2 key blockade epitopes. Viral evolution in key potential neutralization epitopes likely allowed GII.4-2012 to escape from human herd immunity and emerge as the new predominant strai

Patient-specific detection of cerebral blood flow alterations as assessed by arterial spin labeling in drug-resistant epileptic patients

Electrophysiological and hemodynamic data can be integrated to accurately and precisely identify the generators of abnormal electrical activity in drug-resistant focal epilepsy. Arterial Spin Labeling (ASL), a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technique for quantitative noninvasive measurement of cerebral blood flow (CBF), can provide a direct measure of variations in cerebral perfusion associated with the epileptic focus. In this study, we aimed to confirm the ASL diagnostic value in the identification of the epileptogenic zone, as compared to electrical source imaging (ESI) results, and to apply a template-based approach to depict statistically significant CBF alterations. Standard video-electroencephalography (EEG), high-density EEG, and ASL were performed to identify clinical seizure semiology and noninvasively localize the epileptic focus in 12 drug-resistant focal epilepsy patients. The same ASL protocol was applied to a control group of 17 healthy volunteers from which a normal perfusion template was constructed using a mixed-effect approach. CBF maps of each patient were then statistically compared to the reference template to identify perfusion alterations. Significant hypo- and hyperperfused areas were identified in all cases, showing good agreement between ASL and ESI results. Interictal hypoperfusion was observed at the site of the seizure in 10/12 patients and early postictal hyperperfusion in 2/12. The epileptic focus was correctly identified within the surgical resection margins in the 5 patients who underwent lobectomy, all of which had good postsurgical outcomes. The combined use of ESI and ASL can aid in the noninvasive evaluation of drug-resistant epileptic patients