INSTITUTING FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS ACTIONS IN NIGERIA: UNRESOLVED ISSUES

Instituting fundamental Right actions has become one of the most popular forms of litigations in Nigeria; and for this credit must be given to the very liberal Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules, 2009 (FREP RULES) as against the FREP Rules, 1979 which is repealed. One cannot boldly say, without fear of contradiction that our courts are as proactive in their approach to some basic issues in fundamental rights litigation as the FREP Rules intend. This paper set out to re-visit the issue of jurisdiction in respect of fundamental rights litigations and the required number of applicants permitted to institute such actions; reviewing some authorities in the course and finally resolving that there is a need for the apex court to finally distinguish between its decisions in Turku v. Government of Gongola State (1988) All NLR 42  and Grace Jack v. University of Agriculture Makurdi (2004) LPELR – 1587 SC, (2004); 5NWLR (Pt. 865) 208  and to pronounce on the issue of the number of applicants that may present fundamental rights' cause in court; at any time it is called upon to do so. The paper also recommended in the alternative, tinkering of the FREP Rules to specifically handle the issues

Surviving heatwaves:Thermal experience predicts life and death in a Southern Ocean diatom

Extreme environmental fluctuations such as marine heatwaves (MHWs) can have devastating effects on ecosystem health and functioning through rapid population declines and destabilization of trophic interactions. However, recent studies have highlighted that population tolerance to MHWs is variable, with some populations even benefitting from MHWs. A number of factors can explain variation in responses between populations including their genetic variation, previous thermal experience and the cumulative heatwave intensity (°C d) of the heatwave itself. We disentangle the contributions of these factors on population mortality and post-heatwave growth rates by experimentally simulating heatwaves (7.5 or 9.2°C, for up to 9 days) for three genotypes of the Southern Ocean diatom Actinocyclus actinochilus. The effects of simulated heatwaves on mortality and population growth rates varied with genotype, thermal experience and the cumulative intensity of the heatwave itself. Firstly, hotter and longer heatwaves increased mortality and decreased post-heatwave growth rates relative to milder, shorter heatwaves. Secondly, growth above the thermal optimum before heatwaves exacerbated heatwave-associated negative effects, leading to increased mortality during heatwaves and slower growth after heatwaves. Thirdly, hotter and longer heatwaves resulted in more pronounced changes to thermal optima (Topt) immediately following heatwaves. Finally, there is substantial intraspecific variation in post-heatwave growth rates. Our findings shed light on the potential of Southern Ocean diatoms to tolerate MHWs, which will increase both in frequency and in intensity under future climate change

Shape-from-Template dans Flatland

International audienceLe Shape-from-template (SfT) consiste en la reconstruction d'un objet déformable observé sur une image grâce à sa forme de référence. Le 2DSfT est le cas usuel du SfT où la forme de référence est une surface plongée dans un espace 3D et l'image une projection 2D. Nous présentons le 1DSfT, un nouveau cas du SfT où la forme de référence est une courbe plongée dans un espace 2D et l'image une projection 1D. Nous nous concentrons sur les déformations isométriques, pour lesquelles le 2DSfT est un problème bien posé. À travers une étude théorique du 1DSfT avec projection perspective, nous montrons que ce cas est lié au 2DSfT, mais qu'il possède des propriétés différentes : (i) le 1DSfT ne possède pas de solution à la fois exacte et locale et (ii) le 1DSfT ne possède pas de solution unique, mais un nombre fini d'au moins deux solutions. Ensuite, nous proposons deux méthodes d'initialisation convexes: une solution locale et analytique basée sur la linéarité infinitésimale et une solution globale basée sur l'inextensibilité. Nous montrons comment le raffinement non-convexe peut être implémenté et comment l'isométrie peut être contrainte avec une nouvelle paramétrisation basée sur l'angle. Enfin, notre méthode est testée sur des données simulées et réelles

Estimation de l'échelle en coloscopie monoculaire par quantification du flou optique : étude de faisabilité

Session "Articles"National audienceLa coloscopie est aujourd'hui la procédure médicale privilégiée dans le cadre du diagnostic et du traitement des pathologies en gastroentérologie. Ce mode opératoire qualifié de "mini-invasif" repose sur l'utilisation d'un instrument optique flexible, le flexoscope, qui est introduit par voie basse dans le corps du patient pour permettre l'exploration du côlon. L'intervention est réalisée par un gastroentérologue qui s'appuie sur les images diffusées sur un moniteur afin d'établir un diagnostic et éventuellement procéder à la résection d'excroissances tumorales (néoplasies) si celles ci s'avèrent malignes. La taille de ces excroissances constitue une information essentielle a leurs diagnostics mais elles s'avèrent difficile à estimer pour le praticien qui ne dispose pas de l'information d'échelle de l'organe exploré. Les paramètres du système optique monofocale des flexoscope sont fixes et l'équipement est difficilement modifiable pour envisager l'intégration de méthodes actives de mesures. Cette étude de faisabilité propose une procédure permettant l'estimation de l'échelle des scènes coloscopiques basée sur l'estimation de la fonction de transfert du système optique du flexoscope par quantification du flo

Deep Shape-from-Template: Single-image quasi-isometric deformable registration and reconstruction

Shape-from-Template (SfT) solves 3D vision from a single image and a deformable 3D object model, called a template. Concretely, SfT computes registration (the correspondence between the template and the image) and reconstruction (the depth in camera frame). It constrains the object deformation to quasi-isometry. Real-time and automatic SfT represents an open problem for complex objects and imaging conditions. We present four contributions to address core unmet challenges to realise SfT with a Deep Neural Network (DNN). First, we propose a novel DNN called DeepSfT, which encodes the template in its weights and hence copes with highly complex templates. Second, we propose a semi-supervised training procedure to exploit real data. This is a practical solution to overcome the render gap that occurs when training only with simulated data. Third, we propose a geometry adaptation module to deal with different cameras at training and inference. Fourth, we combine statistical learning with physics-based reasoning. DeepSfT runs automatically and in real-time and we show with numerous experiments and an ablation study that it consistently achieves a lower 3D error than previous work. It outperforms in generalisation and achieves great performance in terms of reconstruction and registration error with wide-baseline, occlusions, illumination changes, weak texture and blur.Agencia Estatal de InvestigaciónMinisterio de Educació

Lobes on Alnus glutinosa nodules contain a single major ribotype of Frankia

This work investigated the microbial content of nodules from alders to determine how many ribotypes of Frankia were present and which, if any, other bacteria existed within nodes from the nodules. The bacterial content of alder nodules was investigated by 454 sequencing of 16S rDNA genes. Over half of the sequences were from a single ribotype of Frankia, with nearly all other sequences coming from the chloroplast of the host plant, and other sequences (including other ribotypes of Frankia) being at < 1%. It is concluded that a single ribotype of Frankia is the major, although not unique, bacterium present in an individual lobe from an alder nodule

Differential Contribution of Subunit Interfaces to α 9 α 10 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Function

Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors can be assembled from either homomeric or heteromeric pentameric subunit combinations. At the interface of the extracellular domains of adjacent subunits lies the acetylcholine binding site, composed of a principal component provided by one subunit and a complementary component of the adjacent subunit. Compared with neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine cholinergic receptors (nAChRs) assembled from α and β subunits, the α9α10 receptor is an atypical member of the family. It is a heteromeric receptor composed only of α subunits. Whereas mammalian α9 subunits can form functional homomeric α9 receptors, α10 subunits do not generate functional channels when expressed heterologously. Hence, it has been proposed that α10 might serve as a structural subunit, much like a β subunit of heteromeric nAChRs, providing only complementary components to the agonist binding site. Here, we have made use of site-directed mutagenesis to examine the contribution of subunit interface domains to α9α10 receptors by a combination of electrophysiological and radioligand binding studies. Characterization of receptors containing Y190T mutations revealed unexpectedly that both α9 and α10 subunits equally contribute to the principal components of the α9α10 nAChR. In addition, we have shown that the introduction of a W55T mutation impairs receptor binding and function in the rat α9 subunit but not in the α10 subunit, indicating that the contribution of α9 and α10 subunits to complementary components of the ligand-binding site is nonequivalent. We conclude that this asymmetry, which is supported by molecular docking studies, results from adaptive amino acid changes acquired only during the evolution of mammalian α10 subunits.Fil: Boffi, Juan Carlos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; ArgentinaFil: Marcovich, Irina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; ArgentinaFil: Gill Thind, JasKiran K.. University College London; Reino UnidoFil: Corradi, Jeremias. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Bahía Blanca. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Bahía Blanca; ArgentinaFil: Collins, Toby. University College London; Reino UnidoFil: Lipovsek, Maria Marcela. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; ArgentinaFil: Moglie, Marcelo Javier. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; ArgentinaFil: Plazas, Paola Viviana. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; ArgentinaFil: Craig, Patricio Oliver. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Química Biológica de la Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales; ArgentinaFil: Millar, Neil S.. University College London; Reino UnidoFil: Bouzat, Cecilia Beatriz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Bahía Blanca. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Instituto de Investigaciones Bioquímicas de Bahía Blanca; ArgentinaFil: Elgoyhen, Ana Belen. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Instituto de Investigaciones en Ingeniería Genética y Biología Molecular "Dr. Héctor N. Torres"; Argentin

Evaluation of the microbiome of decaying alder nodules by next generation sequencing

This work investigated the microbial content of decaying nodules from alders. The 16S rDNA composition of the microbiome of six senescent alder nodules was investigated by 454 sequencing. All nodules still had some Frankia sequences present, but in each case it was only detected at minor levels, with other organisms predominating. Although organisms from three different phyla (Bacteroidetes, Proteobacteria and Actinobacteria) constituted almost all (98% or more) of all sequences, Bacteroidetes were most abundant in four nodules with Proteobacteria being most abundant in the other two. In addition a few families were represented at a level of 10% or more of the total sequences: Sphingobacteriaceae (all 6 nodules); Chitinophagaceae (5 of 6); non-Frankia Actinomycetales (2 of 6); Caulobacteraceae (2 of 6); Flavobacteriaceae (2 of 6); Oxalobacteraceae (1 of 6); and Xanthomoadaceae (1 of 6). Analysis at the genus level showed a diverse range of organisms, with members of the genus Pedobacter being found at an abundant level within most nodules

Portfolio Vol. IV N 4

Wager, Dick. Collective Bargaining. Prose. 3-5. Raymond, Toby. Lochinvar Rides Again. Poetry. 6. Wyman, John. Lily of the Alley. Prose. 8-9. Benson, Virginia. Lost Cause. Prose. 10. Collins, Peg. The Curtain Falls. Prose. 11. Dorsey, Ann. Jack. Picture. 12. Sulke, Jim. Old Pete. Picture. 12. Myers, Sue. Jerry. Picture. 12. Rosenthal, Joan. Canadian Farmhouse. Picture. 13. Deeds, Ed. Mirror Lake. Picture. 13. Peters, Doris. Trees. Picture. 13. Seagrave, Leslie. Chinese Coins. Poetry. 14. White, Molly. Thoughts in the Rain. Poetry. 14. Smith, Duke. Keeping the Records Straight. Prose. 15. Stocker, Ed. Joe. Prose. 16-17. Saunders, John. Seven Year\u27s Luck. Prose. 19-22