Woe from stones: commemoration, identity politics and Estonia's 'War of Monuments'

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Quantitative projections of a quality measure: Performance of a complex task

AbstractComplex data series that arise during interaction between humans (operators) and advanced technology in a controlled and realistic setting have been explored. The purpose is to obtain quantitative measures that reflect quality in task performance: on a ship simulator, nine crews have solved the same exercise, and detailed maneuvering histories have been logged. There are many degrees of freedom, some of them connected to the fact that the vessels may be freely moved in any direction. To compare maneuvering histories, several measures were used: the time needed to reach the position of operation, the integrated angle between the hull direction and the direction of motion, and the extent of movement when the vessel is to be manually kept in a fixed position. These measures are expected to reflect quality in performance. We have also obtained expert quality evaluations of the crews. The quantitative measures and the expert evaluations, taken together, allow a ranking of crew performance. However, except for time and integrated angle, there is no correlation between the individual measures. This may indicate that complex situations with social and man–machine interactions need complex measures of quality in task performance. In general terms, we have established a context-dependent and flexible framework with quantitative measures in contact with a social-science concept that is hard to define. This approach may be useful for other (qualitative) concepts in social science that contain important information on the society

Comparison of spontaneous with controlled mode of ventilation in tonsillectomy

Methods: This randomized study compares spontaneous versus controlled ventilation in 60 ASA I and II patients undergoing tonsillectomy as regards haemodynamic stability, recovery characteristics, intra- and immediate postoperative complications and surgical impressions.Results: The patients in the balanced anaesthesia (B) group showed less haemodynamic variability compared to baseline after tracheal intubation, mouth gag application and removal and incision. Two patients had dysrhythmias in the B group compared to six in the spontaneous breathing (S) group. Six patients in the S group had a rise in endtidal carbon dioxide concentration above 7.8 kPa (60 mmHg). Recovery scores were higher in the B group at 10 and 20 min into recovery. The surgical impression of bleeding and jaw relaxation was similar with both groups. The incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting and agitation was higher in the S group but did not achieve statistical significance.CONCLUSION: Use of balanced anaesthesia offered more haemodynamic stability and a rapid recovery

Translational outcomes in a full gene deletion of ubiquitin protein ligase E3A rat model of Angelman syndrome.

Angelman syndrome (AS) is a rare neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by developmental delay, impaired communication, motor deficits and ataxia, intellectual disabilities, microcephaly, and seizures. The genetic cause of AS is the loss of expression of UBE3A (ubiquitin protein ligase E6-AP) in the brain, typically due to a deletion of the maternal 15q11-q13 region. Previous studies have been performed using a mouse model with a deletion of a single exon of Ube3a. Since three splice variants of Ube3a exist, this has led to a lack of consistent reports and the theory that perhaps not all mouse studies were assessing the effects of an absence of all functional UBE3A. Herein, we report the generation and functional characterization of a novel model of Angelman syndrome by deleting the entire Ube3a gene in the rat. We validated that this resulted in the first comprehensive gene deletion rodent model. Ultrasonic vocalizations from newborn Ube3am-/p+ were reduced in the maternal inherited deletion group with no observable change in the Ube3am+/p- paternal transmission cohort. We also discovered Ube3am-/p+ exhibited delayed reflex development, motor deficits in rearing and fine motor skills, aberrant social communication, and impaired touchscreen learning and memory in young adults. These behavioral deficits were large in effect size and easily apparent in the larger rodent species. Low social communication was detected using a playback task that is unique to rats. Structural imaging illustrated decreased brain volume in Ube3am-/p+ and a variety of intriguing neuroanatomical phenotypes while Ube3am+/p- did not exhibit altered neuroanatomy. Our report identifies, for the first time, unique AS relevant functional phenotypes and anatomical markers as preclinical outcomes to test various strategies for gene and molecular therapies in AS

Digestibility in selected rainbow trout families and modelling of growth from the specific intake of digestible protein

The experiments aimed to clarify variations in digestibility of dietary nutrients in rainbow trout. Furthermore, the objective was to study how differences in digestibility might be related to growth and feed utilisation at various growth rates. When comparing the results from the experiments it appeared that particularly protein digestibility was closely related to specific growth rate and feed conversion ratio at high growth rates. As a tool to visualise the relationship between protein digestibility and growth of rainbow trout a growth model was developed based on the specific intake of digestible protein, and general assumptions on protein content and protein retention efficiency in rainbow trout. The model indicated that increased protein digestibility only partly explained growth increase and that additional factors were important for growth increment

Virtual Machining: Capabilities and Challenges of Process Simulations in the Aerospace Industry

AbstractMilling processes for the manufacturing of parts for aerospace applications can be influenced by various effects. When machining structural parts with high material removal rates, the stiffness of the machine tool can be a limiting factor because chatter vibrations. Additionally, vibrations of thin-walled structures, e. g., the blades of impellers or turbines, can lead to chatter vibrations and surface location errors. Thermo-mechanical deformations are another cause for violations of given shape tolerances. Geometric physically-based process simulations can be used to analyze milling processes with regard to these effects in order to optimize the process parameters. In this paper, an overview of several applications of a geometric physically-based simulation system for analyzing different effects during milling processes is presented. Depending on the relevant effects, process forces, the dynamic behaviour of the tool-spindle-machine system, vibrations of workpieces and fixture systems, as well as thermo-mechanical deformations are calculated

Dimensionality and dynamics in the behavior of C. elegans

A major challenge in analyzing animal behavior is to discover some underlying simplicity in complex motor actions. Here we show that the space of shapes adopted by the nematode C. elegans is surprisingly low dimensional, with just four dimensions accounting for 95% of the shape variance, and we partially reconstruct "equations of motion" for the dynamics in this space. These dynamics have multiple attractors, and we find that the worm visits these in a rapid and almost completely deterministic response to weak thermal stimuli. Stimulus-dependent correlations among the different modes suggest that one can generate more reliable behaviors by synchronizing stimuli to the state of the worm in shape space. We confirm this prediction, effectively "steering" the worm in real time.Comment: 9 pages, 6 figures, minor correction

Recommendations for a core outcome set for measuring standing balance in adult populations: a consensus-based approach

Standing balance is imperative for mobility and avoiding falls. Use of an excessive number of standing balance measures has limited the synthesis of balance intervention data and hampered consistent clinical practice.To develop recommendations for a core outcome set (COS) of standing balance measures for research and practice among adults.A combination of scoping reviews, literature appraisal, anonymous voting and face-to-face meetings with fourteen invited experts from a range of disciplines with international recognition in balance measurement and falls prevention. Consensus was sought over three rounds using pre-established criteria.The scoping review identified 56 existing standing balance measures validated in adult populations with evidence of use in the past five years, and these were considered for inclusion in the COS.Fifteen measures were excluded after the first round of scoring and a further 36 after round two. Five measures were considered in round three. Two measures reached consensus for recommendation, and the expert panel recommended that at a minimum, either the Berg Balance Scale or Mini Balance Evaluation Systems Test be used when measuring standing balance in adult populations.Inclusion of two measures in the COS may increase the feasibility of potential uptake, but poses challenges for data synthesis. Adoption of the standing balance COS does not constitute a comprehensive balance assessment for any population, and users should include additional validated measures as appropriate.The absence of a gold standard for measuring standing balance has contributed to the proliferation of outcome measures. These recommendations represent an important first step towards greater standardization in the assessment and measurement of this critical skill and will inform clinical research and practice internationally

Trapped lipopolysaccharide and LptD intermediates reveal lipopolysaccharide translocation steps across the Escherichia coli outer membrane

Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is a main component of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria, which is essential for the vitality of most Gram-negative bacteria and plays a critical role for drug resistance. LptD/E complex forms a N-terminal LPS transport slide, a hydrophobic intramembrane hole and the hydrophilic channel of the barrel, for LPS transport, lipid A insertion and core oligosaccharide and O-antigen polysaccharide translocation, respectively. However, there is no direct evidence to confirm that LptD/E transports LPS from the periplasm to the external leaflet of the outer membrane. By replacing LptD residues with an unnatural amino acid p-benzoyl-L-phenyalanine (pBPA) and UV-photo-cross-linking in E.coli, the translocon and LPS intermediates were obtained at the N-terminal domain, the intramembrane hole, the lumenal gate, the lumen of LptD channel, and the extracellular loop 1 and 4, providing the first direct evidence and “snapshots” to reveal LPS translocation steps across the outer membrane

Modeling E. coli Tumbles by Rotational Diffusion. Implications for Chemotaxis

The bacterium Escherichia coli in suspension in a liquid medium swims by a succession of runs and tumbles, effectively describing a random walk. The tumbles randomize incompletely, i.e. with a directional persistence, the orientation taken by the bacterium. Here, we model these tumbles by an active rotational diffusion process characterized by a diffusion coefficient and a diffusion time. In homogeneous media, this description accounts well for the experimental reorientations. In shallow gradients of nutrients, tumbles are still described by a unique rotational diffusion coefficient. Together with an increase in the run length, these tumbles significantly contribute to the net chemotactic drift via a modulation of their duration as a function of the direction of the preceding run. Finally, we discuss the limits of this model in propagating concentration waves characterized by steep gradients. In that case, the effective rotational diffusion coefficient itself varies with the direction of the preceding run. We propose that this effect is related to the number of flagella involved in the reorientation process