Artificial Intelligence: A Tale of Social Responsibility

Conversely to the legislation that struggles to develop, regulate and supervise the use of artificial intelligence (AI), the civil society, that gradually realizes the fundamental issues and perspectives induced by this new technology, slowly starts to take responsibility and to mobilize. Social responsibility expresses itself through the emergence of new voluntary standards, that could integrate the concept of social good with the use of AI. More precisely, this paper proposes to develop three axes of tools for the social responsibility in AI, including stakeholder awareness, the integration of ethical and technical standards to induce good behaviors, and the incitement to a responsible AI

Le rôle des associations locales dans l’effectivité de la protection juridique de l’animal

« Les hommes ont oublié cette vérité, dit le renard.Mais tu ne dois pas l’oublier.Tu deviens responsable pour toujours de ce que tu as apprivoisé. » Si dans leurs desseins de développement anthropocentré, les hommes ont oublié cette vérité, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry nous rappelle à nos devoirs avec une grande sagesse. Au cours de son évolution, l’être humain s’est approprié le monde, exploitant tout ce qui s’y trouvait de manière démesurée pour ses propres intérêts. Cependant, l’œuvre citée pr..

From dust bowl to dust bowl:soils are still very much a frontier of science

When the Soil Science Society of America was created, 75 yr ago, the USA was suffering from major dust storms, causing the loss of enormous amounts of topsoil as well as human lives. These catastrophic events reminded public officials that soils are essential to society’s well-being. The Soil Conservation Service was founded and farmers were encouraged to implement erosion mitigation practices. Still, many questions about soil processes remained poorly understood and controversial. In this article, we argue that the current status of soils worldwide parallels that in the USA at the beginning of the 20th century. Dust bowls and large-scale soil degradation occur over vast regions in a number of countries. Perhaps more so even than in the past, soils currently have the potential to affect populations critically in several other ways as well, from their effect on global climate change, to the toxicity of brownfield soils in urban settings. Even though our collective understanding of soil processes has experienced significant advances since 1936, many basic questions still remain unanswered, for example whether or not a switch to no-till agriculture promotes C sequestration in soils, or how to account for microscale heterogeneity in the modeling of soil organic matter transformation. Given the enormity of the challenges raised by our (ab)uses of soils, one may consider that if we do not address them rapidly, and in the process heed the example of U.S. public officials in the 1930s who took swift action, humanity may not get a chance to explore other frontiers of science in the future. From this perspective, insistence on the fact that soils are critical to life on earth, and indeed to the survival of humans, may again stimulate interest in soils among the public, generate support for soil research, and attract new generations of students to study soils

Deglaciation history at the Alpine-Mediterranean transition (Argentera-Mercantour, SW Alps) from 10Be dating of moraines and glacially polished bedrock

International audienceEstimating the extent and age of the last glacial maxima as well as the chronology of glacial recessions in various environmental contexts is key to source-to-sink studies and paleoclimate reconstructions. The Argentera-Mercantour massif being located at the transition between the Alps and the Mediterranean Sea, its deglaciation chronology can be compared to the sediment budget of the Var River marine delta. In this paper, the deglaciation is constrained by 13 new and 22 reassessed Cosmic-Ray Exposure (CRE) 10Be datings of moraines and polished crystalline bedrocks. These data allow for the first time to fully reconstruct the deglaciation history at the scale of the entire massif, in agreement with a major glacier recession at ca. 15 ka, at the onset of Bølling transition. This contribution reveals a glacier–climate relationship more sensitive to warming phases in the southern Alps highlighted by a major decrease of glaciers after ca. 15 ka. This major deglaciation is correlated with a 2.5 fold decrease of sediment discharge of rivers into the Mediterranean Sea. Main deglaciation of the massif upper slopes (2,700-2,800 m a.s.l.) occurred after the LGM at 20.8-18.6 ka, followed by the lower slopes (2,300 m a.s.l.) at 15.3-14.2 ka. Finally, the flat polished surfaces above 2,600 m a.s.l. and the zones confined within narrow lateral valleys were likely affected by progressive ice melting of remaining debris covered glaciers and moraine erosion following the Younger Dryas re-advance stage between 12 and 8-9 ka. At lower elevations, a sediment core in the Vens Lake located at 2,300 m a.s.l., shows onset of lake sedimentation at ca. 14 ka and a transition towards a vegetated environment after 8 ka. Final stabilization of moraines occurred at 5 ka, which might reflect denudation acceleration during the Holocene humid phase

Mosaicism in domestic carnivores

Le mosaïcisme est un phénomène génétique retrouvé dans l’ensemble du monde vivant et notamment chez toutes les femelles de mammifères, qui sont des mosaïques du fait du phénomène d’inactivation aléatoire du chromosome X. Chez le chat, ce phénomène épigénétique a la particularité de pouvoir être directement visible sur la robe de certains individus : les chats à robe écaille de tortue et tricolore. Les rares mâles portant ces robes sont le plus souvent stériles du fait d’une anomalie chromosomique. Chez le chien, comme chez le chat, un mosaïcisme fréquemment décrit concerne les chromosomes sexuels et peut être la cause de troubles du développement de l’appareil génital entraînant le plus souvent une stérilité. Les tests génétiques sont un nouvel outil à envisager par le praticien face à des hypothèses de mosaïcisme, voire de chimérisme.Mosaicism is a common genetic phenomenon that occurs in many pluricellular organisms and more particularly in female mammals. They are mosaics because of the X-chromosome inactivation. In domestic cats, this epigenetic phenomenon can moreover be seen at first glance on some individuals: tortie and calico cats. In fact, some males are very rarely seen with such a coat color, but they are most of the time sterile because of a chromosomic anomaly. Moreover, in dogs and cats, sex chromosome mosaicism, often described, may induce disorders of sexual development leading to sterility. Genetic tests could be a useful tool for clinicians in order to identify and distinguish mosaicism or chimerism

Hydrologic Modeling of Urban Development Scenarios and Low-Impact Design Systems on an Undisturbed Coastal Forested Watershed under Extreme Rainfall-Runoff Events and Hydro-Meteorological Conditions in a Changing Climate

Watershed 80 (WS80), a reference watershed located in the USDA Forest Service Santee Experimental Forest, has been undisturbed since 1937, including from the silviculture that has historically characterized the region. Therefore, the results from this study are assumed to serve as a baseline of the developmental behavior for similar watersheds along the Southeastern Coastal Plain. The purpose of this study was first to analyze and compare the outputs of two rainfall-runoff models, the NRCS program WinTR-55 and the USGS Regional Regression Equations (RREs), with historical data gathered from WS80 to examine which model most accurately fits existing peak flow data. An accurate sense of peak flows is crucial in both the conservation and planning of sites, as proper stormwater management and infrastructure preserve the integrity of both natural resources and humanmade structures. Second, the study sought to analyze the impact of hypothetical development on design peak flow rate with up to 15% watershed imperviousness using each model. Additionally, two hypothetical scenarios of low-impact design (LID) practices such as vegetative rooftops and permeable pavements on development within the watershed were examined using the Purdue University software L-THIA. The USGS RREs overpredicted peak flows by 84% at a 5-yr return period to 12% at a 100-yr return period. WinTR-55 underpredicted peak flows by 31% at a 5-yr return period to 52% at a 100-yr return period. Increases in impervious surfaces led to subsequent increases in modeled design peak flows, with the greatest post-development change in design peak flow rate occurring within the USGS model. Although results showed that neither the USGS nor WinTR-55 models accurately predicted the design peak flow data from the watershed, USGS predictions were closer to the observed values for 50-yr or higher return periods than that from WinTR-55. Though LID practices were only applied up to a hypothetical 15% of the watershed, when fully implemented they were estimated to exert a 98% reduction in runoff which translated to a total reduction in volume by 20% and depth by 16% as compared to traditional design counterparts. This hypothesized evidence indicates the merit for using LID practices for runoff management even in situations of low imperviousness

Idiopathic club foot treated with the Ponseti method. Clinical and sonographic evaluation of Achilles tendon tenotomy. A review of 221 club feet

SummaryThe Ponseti method applied to treating idiopathic club foot consists in placing successive corrective casts, possibly an Achilles tendon tenotomy, then derotation braces, a method that has proven its efficacy. This study compared 221 cases of club foot treated with this method between 2002 and 2007 divided into two groups, based on whether or not Achilles tendon tenotomy was performed. Assessment was both clinical and sonographic. We observed clear improvement of the results in the group that underwent Achilles tendon tenotomy and a significant difference in the rate of secondary surgery. The sonographic evaluation also showed improvement of the morphological results. We now systematically propose Achilles tendon tenotomy however severe club foot may be

The crystal structure of Fe₄S₄ quinolinate synthase unravels an enzymatic dehydration mechanism that uses tyrosine and a hydrolase-type triad.

International audienceQuinolinate synthase (NadA) is a Fe4S4 cluster-containing dehydrating enzyme involved in the synthesis of quinolinic acid (QA), the universal precursor of the essential nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) coenzyme. A previously determined apo NadA crystal structure revealed the binding of one substrate analog, providing partial mechanistic information. Here, we report on the holo X-ray structure of NadA. The presence of the Fe4S4 cluster generates an internal tunnel and a cavity in which we have docked the last precursor to be dehydrated to form QA. We find that the only suitably placed residue to initiate this process is the conserved Tyr21. Furthermore, Tyr21 is close to a conserved Thr-His-Glu triad reminiscent of those found in proteases and other hydrolases. Our mutagenesis data show that all of these residues are essential for activity and strongly suggest that Tyr21 deprotonation, to form the reactive nucleophilic phenoxide anion, is mediated by the triad. NadA displays a dehydration mechanism significantly different from the one found in archetypical dehydratases such as aconitase, which use a serine residue deprotonated by an oxyanion hole. The X-ray structure of NadA will help us unveil its catalytic mechanism, the last step in the understanding of NAD biosynthesis

Movement of Cryptosporidium parvum Oocysts through Soils without Preferential Pathways: Exploratory Test

Groundwater contamination by oocysts of the waterborne pathogen Cryptosporidium parvum is a significant cause of animal and human disease worldwide. Although research has been undertaken in the past to determine how specific physical and chemical properties of soils affect the risk of groundwater contamination by C. parvum, there is as yet no clear conclusion concerning the range of mobility of C. parvum that one should expect in field soils. In this context, the key objective of this research was to determine the magnitude of C. parvum transport in a number of soils, under conditions in which fast and preferential transport has been successfully prevented. C. parvum oocysts were applied at the surface of different soils and subjected to artificial rainfall. Apparently for the first time, quantitative PCR was used to detect and enumerate oocysts in the soil columns and in the leachates. The transport of oocysts by infiltrating water, and the considerable retention of oocysts in soil was demonstrated for all soils, although differences in the degree of transport were observed with soils of different types. More oocysts were found in leachates from sandy loam soils than in leachates from loamy sand soils and the retention of oocysts in different soils did not significantly differ. The interaction of various processes of the hydrologic system and biogeochemical mechanisms contributed to the transport of oocysts through the soil matrix. Results suggest that the interplay of clay, organic matter, and Ca2+ facilitates and mediates the transfer of organic matter from mineral surfaces to oocysts surface, resulting in the enhanced breakthrough of oocysts through matrices of sandy loam soils compared to those of loamy sand soils. Although the number of occysts that penetrate the soil matrix account for only a small percentage of initial inputs, they still pose a significant threat to human health, especially in groundwater systems with a water table not too distant from the soil surface. The results of the research demonstrate a critical need for the simultaneous study of the interaction of various processes affecting oocysts transport in the subsurface, and for its expansion into complex systems, in order to obtain a coherent picture of the behavior of C. parvum oocysts in soils