Relational und dimensional: heuristische Dimensionen in der Situationsanalyse am Beispiel von Care-Praktiken und ihrer Materialität

Die Berücksichtigung von Materialität ist ein wesentlicher Bestandteil der Sozialwissenschaften des 21. Jahrhunderts. Für die empirische Sozialforschung ergeben sich daraus methodologische und methodische Herausforderungen, insbesondere in Bezug auf nicht-menschliche Akteur*innen und deren Körperlichkeit. Dies erfordert spezifische Analyseverfahren. Die Situationsanalyse mit ihrer Fokusverschiebung auf die Relationalität von heterogenen Akteur*innen, die eine Handlungssituation generieren, bietet dazu eine entsprechende Möglichkeit. Im vorliegenden Beitrag gehen wir auf der Basis zweier empirischer Projekte zu Care-Praktiken im medizinischen Bereich der Frage der Multidimensionalität von materiellen Beziehungen nach. Die Beispiele beziehen sich zum einen auf das Einschläfern von Pferden in der Tiermedizin und zum anderen auf automatisierte Technologien bei der Behandlung von Typ-1-Diabetes. Im Zentrum der Analyse steht die Materialität des Beziehungsgeflechts. Wir schlagen vor, den Werkzeugkasten der Situationsanalyse um ein dimensionalisierendes Relations-Mapping zu erweitern, indem die Beziehungen zwischen Elementen in Dimensionen unterteilt werden. In den Beispielen nutzen wir eine Dimensionalisierung, bei der wir uns an der Care-Theorie orientieren. Die Verwendung von unterschiedlichen Farben im Mapping macht die Multidimensionalität der Situation erst sichtbar und ermöglicht es, der Komplexität der materiellen und körperlichen Beziehungen analytisch mehr Raum zu geben.The consideration of materiality is an essential component of the social sciences of the 21st century. For empirical social research, this poses methodological challenges, especially concerning non-human actors and their corporeality. Therefore, specific analytical strategies are required. Situational analysis, focusing on the relationality of heterogeneous actors generating a situation, offers one such possibility. In this article, we explore the multidimensionality and relationality of materiality through two empirical projects about care practices in the medical field. Examples are euthanizing of horses in veterinary medicine and automated technologies in managing type 1 diabetes. In the analysis, we focus on the materiality of the relational network. We propose to extend the situation analysis toolbox by adding dimensionalizing relational mapping, where we categorize the relations between elements into dimensions. In the examples, we use a dimensionalization inspired by care theory. The use of different colors in the mapping practice highlights the multidimensionality of the situation and gives more analytical space to the complexity of the material and embodied connections

Effects of increased salinity on the diatom assemblage in Fonda Lake, Michigan

A salt storage facility has been located adjacent to Fonda Lake since 1953. In February 1981 a core was taken from the profundal sediments of the lake and analyzed to determine the effects of salt perturbation on the diatom community over a 32-year period. Diatom assemblages from different levels were compared using multivariate techniques including cluster analysis and principal component analysis. Shifts in diatom composition related to salinification were revealed most clearly by subdominant taxa. Five distinct groups of diatom taxa were found to correspond with 5 depth intervals. The diatom component of the lake up to 1960 included two groups of taxa which were alkaliphilous and chloride indifferent. A reduction in species diversity beginning in 1960 may indicate a salt effect. By 1968, when diversity reached a minimum, a variety of halophilic taxa (including Diatoma tenue, Navicula gregaria and Synedra fasciculata ) attained their highest relative abundances. At the top of the core, diversity increased slightly and some halophilic taxa decreased in relative abundance, which suggests a possible decrease in salt loading to the lake.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/42866/1/10750_2004_Article_BF00011577.pd

Detailed Analysis of a Contiguous 22-Mb Region of the Maize Genome

Most of our understanding of plant genome structure and evolution has come from the careful annotation of small (e.g., 100 kb) sequenced genomic regions or from automated annotation of complete genome sequences. Here, we sequenced and carefully annotated a contiguous 22 Mb region of maize chromosome 4 using an improved pseudomolecule for annotation. The sequence segment was comprehensively ordered, oriented, and confirmed using the maize optical map. Nearly 84% of the sequence is composed of transposable elements (TEs) that are mostly nested within each other, of which most families are low-copy. We identified 544 gene models using multiple levels of evidence, as well as five miRNA genes. Gene fragments, many captured by TEs, are prevalent within this region. Elimination of gene redundancy from a tetraploid maize ancestor that originated a few million years ago is responsible in this region for most disruptions of synteny with sorghum and rice. Consistent with other sub-genomic analyses in maize, small RNA mapping showed that many small RNAs match TEs and that most TEs match small RNAs. These results, performed on ∼1% of the maize genome, demonstrate the feasibility of refining the B73 RefGen_v1 genome assembly by incorporating optical map, high-resolution genetic map, and comparative genomic data sets. Such improvements, along with those of gene and repeat annotation, will serve to promote future functional genomic and phylogenomic research in maize and other grasses

Investigation of O/N Ordering in Perovskite-Type Oxynitrides La₁₋ₓYₓTa(O,N)₃ on Long Range and Short Scale

Oxynitrides such as LaTa(O,N)₃ are attractive materials as photoelectrodes for photoelectrocatalytic solar water splitting. The potential anionic ordering in their perovskite-type structure has been shown to impact the materials’ properties. Given the importance attributed to it, the present study reports a detailed experimental analysis supported by simulations of the anionic ordering of La₁₋ₓYₓTa(O,N)₃. The influence of O/N and yttrium content on the anionic order was assessed. Neutron diffraction analysis was performed on four different nominal compositions — LaTaON₂, LaTaO₂N, La₀.₉Y₀.₁TaON₂, and La₀.₉Y₀.₁TaO₂N — at 10 K and 300 K to study potential long-range ordering. Neutron pair distribution function (PDF) analysis was performed on all samples at 10 K and on non-Y-substituted samples at 300 K to evaluate short-range ordering. There was no evidence of long-range O/N order in any of the compounds. In contrast, at a short range (1.5 Å ≤ r < 6 Å), a Pnma (a⁻b⁺a⁻) tilting pattern and local cis-ordering of the anions were seen. The latter faded rapidly, leaving the Pnma tilting pattern in a 6 Å ≤ r ≤ 11 Å range. At higher distances, the PDF analysis agreed with the Imma (a⁻b⁰a⁻) O/N disordered long-range structure. As the O/N content changed, not much difference in behavior was observed. Yttrium substitution introduced some disorder in the structure; nonetheless, it showed marginal influence on octahedral tilting and anionic ordering

The grand challenge of computer Go: Monte Carlo Tree Search and Extensions

The ancient oriental game of Go has long been considered a grand challenge for artificial intelligence. For decades, computer Go has defied the classical methods in game tree search that worked so successfully for chess and checkers. However, recent play in computer Go has been transformed by a new paradigm for tree search based on Monte-Carlo methods. Programs based on Monte-Carlo tree search now play at human-master levels and are beginning to challenge top professional players. In this paper, we describe the leading algorithms for Monte-Carlo tree search and explain how they have advanced the state of the art in computer Go

Cytokine Profiles of Severe Influenza Virus-Related Complications in Children

RationaleEffective immunomodulatory therapies for children with life-threatening “cytokine storm” triggered by acute influenza infection are lacking. Understanding the immune profiles of children progressing to severe lung injury and/or septic shock could provide insight into pathogenesis.ObjectivesTo compare the endotracheal and serum cytokine profiles of children with influenza-related critical illness and to identify their associations with severe influenza-associated complications.MethodsChildren with influenza-related critical illness were enrolled across 32 hospitals in development (N = 171) and validation (N = 73) cohorts (December 2008 through May 2016). Concentrations of 42 cytokines were measured in serum and endotracheal samples and clustered into modules of covarying cytokines. Relative concentrations of cytokines and cytokine modules were tested for associations with acute lung injury (ALI), shock requiring vasopressors, and death/ECMO.Measurements and main resultsModules of covarying cytokines were more significantly associated with disease severity than individual cytokines. In the development cohort, increased levels of a serum module containing IL6, IL8, IL10, IP10, GCSF, MCP1, and MIP1α [shock odds ratio (OR) = 3.37, family-wise error rate (FWER) p &lt; 10−4], and decreased levels of a module containing EGF, FGF2, SCD40L, and PAI-1 (shock OR = 0.43, FWER p = 0.002), were both associated with ALI, shock, and death-ECMO independent of age and bacterial coinfection. Both of these associations were confirmed in the validation cohort. Endotracheal and serum cytokine associations differed markedly and were differentially associated with clinical outcomes.ConclusionWe identified strong positive and negative associations of cytokine modules with the most severe influenza-related complications in children, providing new insights into the pathogenesis of influenza-related critical illness in children. Effective therapies may need to target mediators of both inflammation and repair