Improvisation for Actor Training and Performance in 20th Century America (with Special Emphasis on the Spolin and Sills Tradition)

This dissertation explores the methods and value of using improvisation to train actors in their craft and to help them perform scripted material more effectively. The period and place covered is primarily America in the 20th century. The dissertation also analyzes the use of improvisation from a theoretical, historical and practical perspective and discusses the work of various acting teachers and companies who use (or used) improv to create theatre and who have been influenced by the basic teachings of Spolin, Sills or, in some significant instances, Stanislavski. After a brief introductory chapter on the use of improv in the late 19th century, the dissertation compares and contrasts various theories of improvisation, including those of Constantin Stanislavski, Viola Spolin, Lee Strasberg and Keith Johnstone. This analysis uncovers both a theoretical basis for improv training for actors and some historical progression of the methods used. Then, in separate chapters, groups and people important to the topic are discussed. The Compass Players of the 1950\u27s are discussed, as are The Second City Company of Chicago, IL and the Open Theatre of New York. The contributions of Paul Sills and David Shepherd as teachers of improv are shown, as well as the uses of improvisation by directors such as Terry Schreiber and Sheldon Patinkin. There is a chapter utilizing the comments of contemporary actors and their views on the value and use of improvisation for actor training, as well as a short concluding chapter. This dissertation makes use of much published material, including books and reviews of performances, as well as twenty personal interviews (conducted by the author) with acting teachers, actors and directors

Le problème d'amélioration génétique du porc en République du Zaïre et sa solution par l'importation de sperme liquide

L'importation de verrats en Afrique Centrale est une opération onéreuse et ne donne pas satisfaction à cause de la mauvaise acclimatation des géniteurs importés. Malgré les difficultés qui caractérisent classiquement l'insémination artificielle du porc, les auteurs ont opéré un transport à longue distance de sperme liquide, de Belgique jusqu'en Afrique Centrale (Zaïre). La semence était préparée à l'aide du dilueur d'HULSENBERG, originellement mis au point pour du sperme congelé et saturé en CO2. Les chaleurs des truies étaient synchronisées par sevrage simultané de leurs nichées. Au total, 15 truies sur 20 (75 p. 100) accouchèrent après avoir été inséminées une seule fois. La grandeur moyenne des nichées était de 8,4 porcelets. Les meilleurs résultats furent obtenus avec les inséminations pratiquées au 4e et 5e jour après le sevrage. Tous les géniteurs nés de ces inséminations ont fourni des performances excellentes. Leur bonne conformation zootechnique n'a entravé en rien leur acclimatation aux tropiques et leur aptitude à la reproductio

Size Segregation and Convection of Granular Mixtures Almost Completely Packed in the Rotating Thin Box

Size segregation of granular mixtures which are almost completely packed in a rotating drum is discussed with an effective simulation and a brief analysis. Instead of a 3D drum, we simulate 2D rotating thin box which is almost completely packed with granular mixtures. The phase inversion of radially segregated pattern which was found in a 3D experiment are qualitatively reproduced with this simulation, and a brief analysis is followed. Moreover in our simulation, a global convection appears after radial segregation pattern is formed, and this convection induces axially segregated pattern.Comment: 9 pages, 5 figures, PACS number(s): 45.70.-n, 45.70.M

Binding to Na(+) /H(+) exchanger regulatory factor 2 (NHERF2) affects trafficking and function of the enteropathogenic Escherichia coli type III secretion system effectors Map, EspI and NleH.

Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) strains are diarrhoeal pathogens that use a type III secretion system to translocate effector proteins into host cells in order to colonize and multiply in the human gut. Map, EspI and NleH1 are conserved EPEC effectors that possess a C-terminal class I PSD-95/Disc Large/ZO-1 (PDZ)-binding motif. Using a PDZ array screen we identified Na(+)/H(+) exchanger regulatory factor 2 (NHERF2), a scaffold protein involved in tethering and recycling ion channels in polarized epithelia that contains two PDZ domains, as a common target of Map, EspI and NleH1. Using recombinant proteins and co-immunoprecipitation we confirmed that NHERF2 binds each of the effectors. We generated a HeLa cell line stably expressing HA-tagged NHERF2 and found that Map, EspI and NleH1 colocalize and interact with intracellular NHERF2 via their C-terminal PDZ-binding motif. Overexpression of NHERF2 enhanced the formation and persistence of Map-induced filopodia, accelerated the trafficking of EspI to the Golgi and diminished the anti-apoptotic activity of NleH1. The binding of multiple T3SS effectors to a single scaffold protein is unique. Our data suggest that NHERF2 may act as a plasma membrane sorting site, providing a novel regulatory mechanism to control the intracellular spatial and temporal effector protein activity

Puzzle based teaching versus traditional instruction in electrocardiogram interpretation for medical students – a pilot study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Most medical professionals are expected to possess basic electrocardiogram (EKG) interpretation skills. But, published data suggests that residents' and physicians' EKG interpretation skills are suboptimal. Learning styles differ among medical students; individualization of teaching methods has been shown to be viable and may result in improved learning. Puzzles have been shown to facilitate learning in a relaxed environment. The objective of this study was to assess efficacy of teaching puzzle in EKG interpretation skills among medical students.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>This is a reader blinded crossover trial. Third year medical students from College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University participated in this study. Two groups (n = 9) received two traditional EKG interpretation skills lectures followed by a standardized exam and two extra sessions with the teaching puzzle and a different exam. Two other groups (n = 6) received identical courses and exams with the puzzle session first followed by the traditional teaching. EKG interpretation scores on final test were used as main outcome measure.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The average score after only traditional teaching was 4.07 ± 2.08 while after only the puzzle session was 4.04 ± 2.36 (p = 0.97). The average improvement after the traditional session was followed up with a puzzle session was 2.53 ± 1.94 while the average improvement after the puzzle session was followed with the traditional session was 2.08 ± 1.73 (p = 0.67). The final EKG exam score for this cohort (n = 15) was 84.1 compared to 86.6 (p = 0.22) for a comparable sample of medical students (n = 15) at a different campus.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Teaching EKG interpretation with puzzles is comparable to traditional teaching and may be particularly useful for certain subgroups of students. Puzzle session are more interactive and relaxing, and warrant further investigations on larger scale.</p

PDZ domains and their binding partners: structure, specificity, and modification

PDZ domains are abundant protein interaction modules that often recognize short amino acid motifs at the C-termini of target proteins. They regulate multiple biological processes such as transport, ion channel signaling, and other signal transduction systems. This review discusses the structural characterization of PDZ domains and the use of recently emerging technologies such as proteomic arrays and peptide libraries to study the binding properties of PDZ-mediated interactions. Regulatory mechanisms responsible for PDZ-mediated interactions, such as phosphorylation in the PDZ ligands or PDZ domains, are also discussed. A better understanding of PDZ protein-protein interaction networks and regulatory mechanisms will improve our knowledge of many cellular and biological processes