“That You May Know”. The Preface to Luke’s Gospel (Lk 1:1–4)

The preface to Luke’s Gospel (cf. Lk 1:1–4) has been the object of extensive debate, especially since the publication of the thesis of L. Alexander who maintained that the preface should be treated not so much as historiographic but scientific. For years, therefore, the discussion has been focused on the literary genre of the preface. This article seeks to explore the question, recalling, briefly, the research of the twentieth century up to the present day. It starts out with Cadbury, examines Alexander’s volume, reviews the positions of her critics, and concludes that, although the Oxford scholar highlighted a series of important texts for comparison, her neat opposition between historiographical and scientific prefaces does not stand up to critical control. At this point, there is a re-examination of the ancient examples, comparing them with Luke. Then, Luke’s preface is analysed according to the criteria of narrative analysis, highlighting the text’s many semantic and syntactical ambiguities. A careful philological study shows that many of the preface’s terms and expressions are ambiguous since they support at least two different interpretations. Proceeding as if on shifting sand, the reader has more questions than certainties, but, ironically, he is brought to recognise the truth of the element of faith into which he has been initiated. Why, then, does Luke choose to begin his work in such an ambiguous way? What is the effect on his reader of an initial frame that is so deliberately obscure? The various questions find their complete answer only in the episode of the Emmaus disciples (cf. Lk 24:13–35) where the same logic re-emerges: the reader is brought from lack of recognition to the effective recognition of Jesus in the form of faith.“Abyś się mógł przekonać”. Przedmowa do Ewangelii według św. Łukasza (Łk 1,1–4)Przedmowa do Ewangelii według św. Łukasza (por. Łk 1, 1–4) jest przedmiotem szeroko zakrojonych debat, zwłaszcza od czasu publikacji tezy L. Aleksander, która twierdzi, że należy ją traktować nie tyle historiograficznie, co naukowo. Dlatego od lat dyskusja koncentruje się na gatunku literackim przedmowy. W artykule podjęto próbę zgłębienia tej kwestii, przypominając pokrótce badania od XX wieku do dnia dzisiejszego. Autor rozpoczyna od studium Cadbury’ego, analizuje pracę autorstwa Aleksander, rozpatruje stanowiska jej krytyków i dochodzi do wniosku, że chociaż badaczka z Oksfordu zwróciła uwagę na szereg ważnych tekstów do przeprowadzenia analizy porównawczej, jej zgrabne przeciwstawienie historiograficznych i naukowych wstępów nie wytrzymuje krytycznej kontroli. W kolejnym podrozdziale autor przeprowadza ponowną analizę starożytnych przykładów wstępów, porównując je z Ewangelią św. Łukasza. Następnie przedmowa Łukasza jest badana według kryteriów analizy narracyjnej, podkreślając liczne niejasności semantyczne i syntaktyczne tekstu. Dokładne studium filologiczne pokazuje, że wiele terminów i wyrażeń przedmowy jest niejednoznacznych, ponieważ wspierają one co najmniej dwie różne interpretacje. Poruszając się jak na ruchomym piasku, czytelnik ma więcej pytań niż pewników, ale, jak na ironię, zostaje zmuszony do rozpoznania prawdziwości elementu wiary, w który został wtajemniczony. Dlaczego więc Łukasz decyduje się rozpocząć swoją Ewangelię w tak niejednoznaczny sposób? Jaki wpływ wywiera na czytelnika początkowa rama, która jest tak celowo niejasna? Poszczególne pytania znajdują pełną odpowiedź dopiero w opisie drogi uczniów do Emaus (por. Łk 24, 13–35), z którego wyłania się ta sama logika: czytelnik zostaje przeprowadzony od braku rozpoznania do rzeczywistego rozpoznania Jezusa poprzez wiarę

Deep intrauterine insemination in sow: results of a field trial

RiassuntoTraditional insemination techniques in pigs depose a high number of spermatozoa (2 to 3x109 spermatozoa) in a large volume of liquid (80-100 ml) into the cervix channel. The dose can be reduced markedly deposing it directly into the uterine horn. Previous studies showed that fertility rate and litter size were not significantly different with 5 or 15x107 spermatozoa in 10 ml into the uterus. The goal of this study was to determine the on-farm application and the reproductive performance of the deep intrauterine insemination (Firflex® probe, MAGAPOR, Spain) in sows. Experiments were conducted under field conditions in 4 commercial pig farms in the North of Italy (September 2003 and March 2004). A total of 166 crossbred multiparous sows were randomly selected after weaning and assigned to one of the following groups: Group 1 – traditional insemination with 3x109 sperm./dose, two insemination per oestrus (n=94) and Group 2 – deep intrauterine insemination with 15x107 sperm./dose, one insemination pe..

Dairy production in urban and periurban area of Extrême-Nord in Cameroon: milk yield and microbial contamination

Local dairy production plays a very important role in developing countries in order to promote the health status of the population. To determine the weight and the hygiene level of milk products, available in the market of the capital city of the Extrême-Nord region, a survey on the milk yield and microbial contamination was developed. Milk samples from 89 dairy farmers in the urban and periurban area of Maroua, divided in 11 groups, matching the Groupe d'Initiative Commune (groups of common interest - GICs), were analyzed for yield, pH value, temperature, density and microbial contamination. The belonging to the different groups of farmers had a statistical influence on milk quantity and density, according to the feed availability. As well the season had an influence on all the quality and quantity parameters. The time and season of delivery affected significantly the milk quality, instead no influence was attributed to the microbial contamination. The results of this survey showed an adequate qualitative level of the local milk production, which may be improved with a higher feeding system and with a better organisation of the delivery

La Razza bovina modicana della Sardegna: 1. le caratteristiche morfologiche e biologiche

The Authors report on the results of a study concerning the modicano cattle of Sardinia; they have surveyd the morphological (body measurements and somatic indexes) and biological (blood groups and ematic polymorphisms) characteristics. These results were obtained with cows of 20 herds from 2 Sardinian typical areas (Italy)

Laser assisted electrodeposition of binary metallic alloys from water-based electrolytes: The case of palladium‐platinum

The present work investigates the applicability of laser assisted electrodeposition (LAE) to the plating of binary metallic alloys from aqueous solutions and in absence of any external polarization. PdPt was chosen as proto-typical system and the deposition was carried out from phosphate-based electrolytes. The effect of electrolyte formulation and laser parameters on the composition, thickness and physical properties of the alloys was studied. In order to provide more insight on the LAE deposition process of alloys, the electrochemical properties of the electrolytes employed were correlated with the properties of the materials obtained. In analogy with standard alloy plating processes, a clear link between the currents observed for the reduction of the two single metals and the composition/thickness of the coated PdPt layers could be established. Compositionally tunable and continuous PdPt coatings were obtained and their chemical, morphological and mechanical properties were determined. Finally, the possibility to selectively deposit the PdPt alloy was demonstrated by patterning a complex figure

La Razza bovina sarda: 1. le caratteristiche morfologiche e biologiche

The Authors report on the results of a study concerning the Sardinian cattle; they have surveyed the morphological (body measurements and somatic indexes) and biological (blood groups and ematic polymorphisms) characteristics. These results were obtained with cows of 20 herds from 2 Sardinian typical areas (ltaly)

Recognised-by-law versus other identification systems in pigs: piglets discomfort evaluation and performance testing

The aim of the study was to evaluate the performance of recognised by Italian law (tattoos) and other (ear tags and injectable transponders) identification systems and to investigate if they caused different levels of short-term discomfort in piglets. Ninety-six ten-day-old piglets – equally assigned to four experimental groups – were identified with electronic ear tags (EET), transponders injected in the auricle base (TAB), in intraperitoneal position (TIP), or ear tattoo (T). Losses, breakages and readability of the identification devices were recorded to evaluate their efficiency. Forty-eight piglets were observed continuously for 5 min after identification. Behavioural indicators of pain, discomfort or ease were recorded in terms of duration of occurrence or frequency. Non-parametric analyses of variance were used to compare time required for the application of the devices and behavioural reactions of piglets. No healing problems or breakages of the electronic devices were observed during the trial. The readability after nine months was 93.8% for EET and TIP, 86.7% for TAB and 0% for T. The time required for the application differed significantly (P<0.001) among the four identification devices. EET and TIP showed better results than T considering losses, breakages, readability and time required for application. Behaviours most frequently recorded were head shaking and ear scratching, observed more frequently in piglets after the application of EET (P<0.001). The application of these identification devices caused a mild discomfort in piglets; further studies should investigate in detail the intensity and duration of reactions to the identification procedure

Annealing of bismuth telluride-based thick films by laser irradiation

Interest towards fabrication and post-processing of thermoelectric micro-sized devices has increased in recent years. The coupling of inexpensive deposition technologies and fast laser treatments on “as-deposited” films is an attractive solution for industrial scalability. In this work, we propose an approach never reported before in literature: the utilization of a ns-pulsed active fibre laser to directly densify p-type bismuth telluride-based thick films deposited on silicon. A feasibility study was conducted on the material to determine optimal laser parameters: the treated products were characterized, and it was concluded that a value of laser fluence as low as 4.5 mJ cm−2 is sufficient for densification. The material resulted cracked after the laser treatment, and it was demonstrated by SEM and profilometric analyses that shrinking occurs and sintering necks are formed; further, the arising of second phases after annealing was excluded by means of XRD analysis. Envisioning an industrial large area process with linear diode arrays source, a prediction of the laser power requirements to irradiate 1 mm2 films in selected conditions is presented. More extensive studies will be performed to determine a narrower parameters window and determine a relationship between the film thickness and laser parameters for future applications to as-deposited films

Electronic identification in rabbits: two body sites of injectable transponder

AbstractIdentification and monitoring of farm animals are effective tools for traceability. Actual livestock identification systems (ear-tags, tattoos, etc.) are not completely efficient and offer some inconveniences. The use of injectable transponders might be a reliable method for individual identification, allowing the improvement of the data recording and the farm management. The aim of this experiment was to evaluate the applicability of injectable transponder in live rabbits. A total of 40 fattening rabbits of 55 days old were injected with 23 mm passive FDX-B transponders (Datamars, Switzerland), preloaded into a needle in a sterilised packaged and applied by using a transponder injector (Planet ID, Germany). Two body locations for transponder's injection were studied: laterally to the neck (n=20) and armpit (n=20). Readings of the transponders were performed using portable ISO transceiver, before injection, after injection, the day after, after one week, after one month, before the slaughtering pr..