896 research outputs found
Control of hepatic fatty acid synthesis in rats and mice
Imperial Users onl
Logics, rhetoric and 'the blob': populist logic in the Conservative reforms to English schooling
A lot has been written about the lasting implications of the Conservative reforms to English schooling, particularly changes made by Michael Gove as Education Secretary (2010â2014). There is a lot less work, however, on studying the role that language, strategy and the broader political framework played in the process of instituting and winning consent for these reforms. Studying these factors is important for ensuring that any changes to education and schooling are not read in isolation from their political context. Speeches particularly capture moments where intellectual and strategic political traditions meet, helping us to form a richer understanding of the motives behind specific reform goals and where they fit into a political landscape. This article analyses speeches and policy documents from prominent politicians who led the Conservative education agenda between 2010â2014 to illustrate how politicians mobilised a deliberate populist strategy and argumentation to achieve specific educational goals, but which have had broader social and political implications. Concepts from interpretive political studies are used to develop a case analysis of changes to teacher training provision and curriculum reform, illustrating how politicians constructed a frontier between âthe peopleâ (commonly teachers or parents) and an illegitimate âeliteâ (an educational establishment) that opposed change. This antiâelite populist rhetoric, arguably first tested in the Department for Education, has now become instituted more widely in our current British politics
The effect of distance on observed mortality, childhood pneumonia and vaccine efficacy in rural Gambia.
We investigated whether straight-line distance from residential compounds to healthcare facilities influenced mortality, the incidence of pneumonia and vaccine efficacy against pneumonia in rural Gambia. Clinical surveillance for pneumonia was conducted on 6938 children living in the catchment areas of the two largest healthcare facilities. Deaths were monitored by three-monthly home visits. Children living >5 km from the two largest healthcare facilities had a 2·78 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1·74-4·43] times higher risk of all-cause mortality compared to children living within 2 km of these facilities. The observed rate of clinical and radiological pneumonia was lower in children living >5 km from these facilities compared to those living within 2 km [rate ratios 0·65 (95% CI 0·57-0·73) and 0·74 (95% CI 0·55-0·98), respectively]. There was no association between distance and estimated pneumococcal vaccine efficacy. Geographical access to healthcare services is an important determinant of survival and pneumonia in children in rural Gambia
A comparison of the autecology of two seed-taking ant genera, Rhytidoponera and Melophorus
Members of the genus Rhytidoponera and, to a lesser extent, certain Melophorus spp. are keystone mutualists for the dispersal of seeds in the southwest of Western Australia, with important ramifications for the ecology and speciation of plants in this biodiversity hotspot. For this reason, it is important to understand the autecology of the relevant ant species and the way in which they interact with plant seeds. This paper addresses key aspects of the ecology of three such ant species, Rhytidoponera violacea (Forel), R. inornata Crawley and Melophorus turneri perthensis Wheeler. Data are presented on their geographic distribution, seasonality of foraging, diurnal activity, response to fire, nest site preference, nest structure, colony size, feeding habits, foraging response to seed availability, and seedling emergence from nests. The role of all three species as seed dispersers is confirmed, and all three species have ecologies that are well-suited for dispersal and survival of native plant seeds. Preservation of this interaction is important for the conservation of plants, and it is fortuitous that all three species are able to survive disturbance and return to rehabilitated areas. However, the smaller R. inornata, and to a lesser extent, the larger R. violacea, are vulnerable to invasive ant [Pheidole megacephala (Fabricius)] incursions. M. turneri perthensis is able to coexist with the invasive ant unless this is at high densities, probably as a result of its ability to forage during high temperatures when the invasive species is inactive
Solar Neutrinos from CNO Electron Capture
The neutrino flux from the sun is predicted to have a CNO-cycle contribution
as well as the known pp-chain component. Previously, only the fluxes from beta+
decays of 13N, 15O, and 17F have been calculated in detail. Another neutrino
component that has not been widely considered is electron capture on these
nuclei. We calculate the number of interactions in several solar neutrino
detectors due to neutrinos from electron capture on 13N, 15O, and 17F, within
the context of the Standard Solar Model. We also discuss possible non-standard
models where the CNO flux is increased.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figure, submitted to Phys. Rev. C; v2 has minor changes
including integration over solar volume and addition of missing reference to
previous continuum electron capture calculation; v3 has minor changes
including addition of references and the correction of a small (about 1%)
numerical error in the table
Brain Differently Changes Its Algorithms in Parallel Processing of Visual Information
Feedback from the visual cortex (Vl) to the Lateral Geniculate Nucleus (LGN) in macaque monkey increase contrast gain of LGN neurons for black and white (B&W) and for color (C) stimuli. LGN parvocellular cells responses to B&W gratings are enhanced by feedback multiplicatively and in contrast independent manner. However, in magnocellular neurons corticofugal pathways enhance cells responses in a contrast~dependent non-linear manner. For C stimuli cortical feedback enhances parvocellular neurons responses in a very strong contrast-dependent manner. Based on these results [13] we propose a model which includes excitatory and inhibitory effects on cells activity (shunting equations) in retina and LGN while taking into account the anatomy of cortical feedback connections. The main mechanisms related to different algorithms of the data processing in the visual brain are differences in feedback properties from Vl to parvocellular (PC) and to magnocellular (MC) neurons. Descending pathways from Vl change differently receptive field (RF) structure of PC and MC cells. For B&W stimuli, in PC cells feedback changes gain similarly in the RF center and in the RF surround, leaving PC RF structure invariant. However, feedback influence MC cells in two ways: directly and through LGN interneurons, which together changes gain and sizes of their RF center differently than gain and size of the RF surround. For C stimuli PC cells operate like MC cells for B&W. The first mechanism extracts from the stimulus an important features in a independent way from other stimulus parameters, whereas the second channel changes its tuning properties as a function of other stimulus attributes like contrast and/or spatial extension. The model suggests novel idea about the possible functional role of PC and MC pathways
Ethical Issues in the Development of Readiness Cohorts in Alzheimer's Disease Research.
There is growing interest in the development of novel approaches to secondary prevention trials in Alzheimer's disease to facilitate screening and recruitment of research participants and to reduce the time and costs associated with clinical trials. Several international research collaborations are setting up research infrastructures that link existing research cohorts, studies or patient registries to establish 'trial-ready' or 'readiness' cohorts. From these cohorts, individuals are recruited into clinical trial platforms. In setting up such research infrastructures, researchers must make ethically challenging design decisions in at least three areas: re-contacting participants in existing research studies, obtaining informed consent for participation in a readiness cohort, and disclosure of Alzheimer's disease-related biomarkers. These ethical considerations have been examined by a dedicated workgroup within the European Prevention of Alzheimer's Dementia (EPAD) project, a trans-European longitudinal cohort and adaptive proof-of-concept clinical trial platform. This paper offers recommendations for the ethical management of re-contact, informed consent and risk disclosure which may be of value to other research collaborations in the process of developing readiness cohorts for prevention trials in Alzheimer's disease and other disease areas.This work was funded through the Ethical Legal and Social Implications work package of the European Prevention of Alzheimerâs Dementia (EPAD) study EPAD receives support from the Innovative Medicines Initiative Joint Undertaking under grant agreement n° 115736, resources of which are composed of financial contribution from the European Unionâs Seventh Framework Programme (FP7/2007-2013) and EFPIA companiesâ in kind contribution. RM was also funded through the UK National Institute of Health Research grant to the Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre
Deformation of the N=Z nucleus 76Sr using beta-decay studies
A novel method of deducing the deformation of the N=Z nucleus 76Sr is
presented. It is based on the comparison of the experimental Gamow-Teller
strength distribution B(GT) from its beta decay with the results of QRPA
calculations. This method confirms previous indications of the strong prolate
deformation of this nucleus in a totally independent way. The measurement has
been carried out with a large Total Absorption gamma Spectrometer, "Lucrecia",
newly installed at CERN-ISOLDE.Comment: Accepted in Phys. Rev. Letter
Positron-neutrino correlation in the 0^+ \to 0^+ decay of ^{32}Ar
The positron-neutrino correlation in the decay of
Ar was measured at ISOLDE by analyzing the effect of lepton recoil on
the shape of the narrow proton group following the superallowed decay. Our
result is consistent with the Standard Model prediction. For vanishing Fierz
interference we find , which yields improved
constraints on scalar weak interactions
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