Assessing the Impact of Unilingualism at the Supreme Court of Canada: Panel Composition, Assertiveness, Caseload, and Deference

This paper is a first empirical foray in the debate concerning mandatory bilingualism for Supreme Court judges in Canada. The paper summarizes the main arguments, discusses the framing of bilingualism as a “legal” or an “identity” requirement, and uses empirical data to assess whether unilingualism has had an impact on four dimensions of the decision-making process at the Supreme Court of Canada: panel composition, assertiveness, individual caseloads and deference towards lower courts by unilingual and bilingual judges. Our results suggest that there is a correlation between the fluency in French and the first three elements but that there is no difference in the level of deference across linguistic groups towards francophone lower courts. Even if the paper is exploratory in nature and warrants further research, the general picture that emerges is that language proficiency superimposes itself as another kind of legal specialization in the inner-working of the Court

Le rap est-il soluble dans la chanson française ?

Le rap français renouvèle-t-il le patrimoine de la chanson française ou puise-t-il surtout aux racines de l’esthétique afro-américaine ? La réponse dépend d’abord de l’auditeur, sensible à une culture musicale et poétique ou à une autre. Mais l’expérience artistique que poursuivent les rappeurs est essentiellement initiée par un écartèlement culturel, qui les conduit à se défier d’une chanson française dont ils recyclent parfois des fragments, mais avec distance. Leurs textes sont d’une autre nature énonciative et rythmique, la relation entre le texte et le rappeur étant aussi originale que celle qui existe entre son texte et le support musical

Le rap est-il soluble dans la chanson française ? (suite)

La réponse d’Anthony Pecqueux à mon précédent article situe bien le débat et en particulier certainspoints forts de sa position. Je suis ravi d’être invité à nuancer et à préciser certains arguments, en espérant être aussi respectueux et constructif que lui. Il ne s’agit pas ici de répondre point par point. Pour limiter le volume de mon propos, je me fonderai sur un seul texte, pour lequel les points de désaccord sont plus limités que dans d’autres cas – car il suffit de survoler les textes d..

Le rap est-il soluble dans la chanson française ? (suite)

La réponse d’Anthony Pecqueux à mon précédent article situe bien le débat et en particulier certainspoints forts de sa position. Je suis ravi d’être invité à nuancer et à préciser certains arguments, en espérant être aussi respectueux et constructif que lui. Il ne s’agit pas ici de répondre point par point. Pour limiter le volume de mon propos, je me fonderai sur un seul texte, pour lequel les points de désaccord sont plus limités que dans d’autres cas – car il suffit de survoler les textes d..

Configurations rythmiques et progression textuelledans un extrait d’un rap de Casey

La scansion d’un texte de rap se caractérise par une impression de mouvement induite par divers phénomènes rythmiques. Il s'agit surtout de la superposition de plusieurs systèmes d'accents textuels et vocaux, souvent décalés par rapport aux temps forts du support musical. L'analyse même partielle d'un rap de Casey permet de repérer la forte densité des phénomènes accentogènes, exacerbés par un tempo plutôt lent et par la vigueur combative de la rappeuse.Le texte lui-même ("Suis ma plume") invite le lecteur-auditeur à prêter attention à ses principes poétiques : il explicite et réalise sa propre genèse à travers des thèmes exprimant la sortie des abîmes, le choc et le tournoiement.En effet, l'analyse met en évidence divers phénomènes stylistiques générateurs d'accentuation donc de rythme : des alternances d'allitérations avec quelques glissements de l'une à l'autre ; des jeux d'assonances associées à une allitération donnée pour former une sorte de cadence, avec des effets d'accélération ou de ralentissement dus aux changements de la fréquence de ces appuis accentuels ; des jeux sur la paronymie consistant à répéter presque à l'identique une assez longue séquence phonétique ou à synthétiser une nouvelle séquence à partir d'un brassage plus complet des phonèmes précédents.Ainsi le propos métapoétique du texte est confirmé par l'analyse de son écriture, privilégiant le cyclique et la multiplication des impacts : ses rythmes tournoyants et ses rebonds accentuels semblent s'alimenter d'eux-mêmes, sous une plume rendant possible l'émergence d'une parole souveraine

Long-term results from the EARLY study of bosentan in WHO functional class II pulmonary arterial hypertension patients.

Abstract BACKGROUND: The double-blind phase of the EARLY study of bosentan remains the only randomized controlled trial of a PAH-targeted therapy in World Health Organization functional class (FC) II patients. We report on the efficacy, safety, disease worsening, survival and prognostic factors in mildly symptomatic pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) patients treated with bosentan in the open-label extension phase of the EARLY study. METHODS: Exploratory efficacy outcomes included 6-minute walk distance (6 MWD) and WHO FC. Adverse events were recorded. Kaplan-Meier analysis was used to estimate time to first PAH worsening event (death, initiation of intravenous or subcutaneous prostanoids, atrial septostomy or lung transplantation) and survival. Cox regression analysis determined factors prognostic of survival. RESULTS: Median exposure to bosentan (n=173) was 51 months. At the end of the bosentan-treatment assessment period, 77.8% of patients were in WHO FC I/II. Adverse events led to discontinuation of bosentan in 20.2% of patients. Aminotransferase elevations>3× upper limit of normal occurred in 16.8%. Four-year PAH-event-free survival and survival were 79.5% (95% confidence intervals [95% CI] 73.4, 85.6) and 84.8% [95% CI 79.4, 90.2], respectively. Low 6 MWD, low mixed venous oxygenation, high N-terminal pro hormone of brain natriuretic peptide levels and PAH associated with connective tissue disease were associated with a higher risk of death. CONCLUSIONS: The majority of patients exposed to long-term bosentan maintained or improved their functional class. Approximately 20% of the patients discontinued treatment because of adverse events, which were most commonly PAH worsening and elevated liver enzymes

Mechanically Induced Focal Adhesion Assembly Amplifies Anti-Adipogenic Pathways in Mesenchymal Stem Cells

The fate of pluripotent mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) is determined through integration of chemical, spatial, and physical signals. The suppression of MSC adipogenesis by mechanical stimuli, which requires Akt-induced inhibition of glycogen synthase kinase 3β (GSK3β) with β-catenin activation, can be enhanced by repetitive dosing within a single day. Here, we demonstrate that reapplication of cyclic strain within a 24-hour period leads to amplification of both Akt activation and its subsequent inhibition of GSK3β, such that total cycle number can be reduced while still inhibiting adipogenesis. Amplification of Akt signaling is facilitated by a dynamic restructuring of the cell in response to mechanical signals, as evidenced by a transient increase in focal adhesion (FA) number and increased RhoA activity. Preventing FA assembly or development of tension blocks activation of Akt by mechanical signals, but not by insulin. This indicates that the FA infrastructure is essential to the physical, but not necessarily the chemical, sensitivity, and responsiveness of the cell. Exploiting the transient nature of cytoskeletal remodeling may represent a process to enhance cell responsiveness to mechanical input and ultimately define the fate of MSCs with a minimal input

Mechanically Activated Fyn Utilizes mTORC2 to Regulate RhoA and Adipogenesis in Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Mechanical strain provides an anti-adipogenic, pro-osteogenic stimulus to mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) through generating intracellular signals and via cytoskeletal restructuring. Recently, mTORC2 has been shown to be a novel mechanical target critical for the anti-adipogenic signal leading to preservation of β-catenin. As mechanical activation of mTORC2 requires focal adhesions (FAs), we asked whether proximal signaling involved Src and FAK, which are early responders to integrin-FA engagement. Application of mechanical strain to marrow-derived MSCs was unable to activate mTORC2 when Src family kinases were inhibited. Fyn, but not Src, was specifically required for mechanical activation of mTORC2 and was recruited to FAs after strain. Activation of mTORC2 was further diminished following FAK inhibition, and as FAK phosphorylation (Tyr-397) required Fyn activity, provided evidence of Fyn/FAK cooperativity. Inhibition of Fyn also prevented mechanical activation of RhoA as well as mechanically induced actin stress fiber formation. We thus asked whether RhoA activation by strain was dependent on mTORC2 downstream of Fyn. Inhibition of mTORC2 or its downstream substrate, Akt, both prevented mechanical RhoA activation, indicating that Fyn/FAK affects cytoskeletal structure via mTORC2. We then sought to ascertain whether this Fyn-initiated signal pathway modulated MSC lineage decisions. siRNA knockdown of Fyn, but not Src, led to rapid attainment of adipogenic phenotype with significant increases in adipocyte protein 2, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma, adiponectin, and perilipin. As such, Fyn expression in mdMSCs contributes to basal cytoskeletal architecture and, when associated with FAs, functions as a proximal mechanical effector for environmental signals that influence MSC lineage allocation

Neurotensin Receptor 1 Is Expressed in Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors but Not in Interstitial Cells of Cajal

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) are thought to derive from the interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC) or an ICC precursor. Oncogenic mutations of the KIT or PDGFRA receptor tyrosine kinases are present in the majority of GIST, leading to ligand-independent activation of the intracellular signal transduction pathways. We previously investigated the gene expression profile in the murine KitK641E GIST model and identified Ntsr1 mRNA, encoding the Neurotensin receptor 1, amongst the upregulated genes. Here we characterized Ntsr1 mRNA and protein expression in the murine KitK641E GIST model and in tissue microarrays of human GIST. Ntsr1 mRNA upregulation in KitK641E animals was confirmed by quantitative PCR. Ntsr1 immunoreactivity was not detected in the Kit positive ICC of WT mice, but was present in the Kit positive hyperplasia of KitK641E mice. In the normal human gut, NTSR1 immunoreactivity was detected in myenteric neurons but not in KIT positive ICC. Two independent tissue microarrays, including a total of 97 GIST, revealed NTSR1 immunoreactivity in all specimens, including the KIT negative GIST with PDGFRA mutation. NTSR1 immunoreactivity exhibited nuclear, cytoplasmic or mixed patterns, which might relate to variable levels of NTSR1 activation. As studies using radio-labeled NTSR1 ligand analogues for whole body tumor imaging and for targeted therapeutic interventions have already been reported, this study opens new perspectives for similar approaches in GIST