Prophets, Creation, and Sacramentality

Throughout the prophets, one may find a certain \u27sacramentality\u27 in God\u27s presence in time. The prophets use the theme of creation to illustrate God\u27s grace and redeeming power. God has not abandoned his creation, no matter to what depths humans have sunk into chaos. He is with them to protect, chastise, and redeem when necessary. The prophets speak of not only reconciliation between God and his people, but also between the forces of nature and the world of animals. Creation is an ongoing event in which God has chosen to be involved

The Gut Microbiota Composition in Dichorionic Triplet Sets Suggests a Role for Host Genetic Factors

peer-reviewedMonozygotic and dizygotic twin studies investigating the relative roles of host genetics and environmental factors in shaping gut microbiota composition have produced conflicting results. In this study, we investigated the gut microbiota composition of a healthy dichorionic triplet set. The dichorionic triplet set contained a pair of monozygotic twins and a fraternal sibling, with similar pre- and post-natal environmental conditions including feeding regime. V4 16S rRNA and rpoB amplicon pyrosequencing was employed to investigate microbiota composition, and the species and strain diversity of the culturable bifidobacterial population was also examined. At month 1, the monozygotic pair shared a similar microbiota distinct to the fraternal sibling. By month 12 however, the profile was more uniform between the three infants. Principal coordinate analysis (PCoA) of the microbiota composition revealed strong clustering of the monozygotic pair at month 1 and a separation of the fraternal infant. At months 2 and 3 the phylogenetic distance between the monozygotic pair and the fraternal sibling has greatly reduced and by month 12 the monozygotic pair no longer clustered separately from the fraternal infant. Pulse field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) analysis of the bifidobacterial population revealed a lack of strain diversity, with identical strains identified in all three infants at month 1 and 12. The microbiota of two antibiotic-treated dichorionic triplet sets was also investigated. Not surprisingly, in both triplet sets early life antibiotic administration appeared to be a major determinant of microbiota composition at month 1, irrespective of zygosity. By month 12, early antibiotic administration appeared to no longer exert such a strong influence on gut microbiota composition. We hypothesize that initially host genetics play a significant role in the composition of an individual’s gut microbiota, unless an antibiotic intervention is given, but by month 12 environmental factors are the major determinant.This study was performed as part of the INFANTMET project (10/RD/Infantmet/MFRC/705) and was funded by the Government of Ireland's Department of Agriculture Fisheries and in part by Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre. KM is a Teagasc Walsh Fellow. CS, RPR and PWOT are members of The Alimentary Pharmabiotic Centre, which is a Centre for Science and Technology (CSET) funded by the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI), through the Irish Government’s National Development Plan (Grant no. 02/CE/B124 and 07/CE/B1368)

The Composition of Human Milk and Infant Faecal Microbiota Over the First Three Months of Life: A Pilot Study

peer-reviewedHuman milk contains a diverse array of bioactives and is also a source of bacteria for the developing infant gut. The aim of this study was to characterize the bacterial communities in human milk and infant faeces over the first 3 months of life, in 10 mother-infant pairs. The presence of viable Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus in human milk was also evaluated. MiSeq sequencing revealed a large diversity of the human milk microbiota, identifying over 207 bacterial genera in milk samples. The phyla Proteobacteria and Firmicutes and the genera Pseudomonas, Staphylococcus and Streptococcus were the predominant bacterial groups. A core of 12 genera represented 81% of the microbiota relative abundance in milk samples at week 1, 3 and 6, decreasing to 73% at week 12. Genera shared between infant faeces and human milk samples accounted for 70–88% of the total relative abundance in infant faecal samples, supporting the hypothesis of vertical transfer of bacteria from milk to the infant gut. In addition, identical strains of Bifidobacterium breve and Lactobacillus plantarum were isolated from the milk and faeces of one mother-infant pair. Vertical transfer of bacteria via breastfeeding may contribute to the initial establishment of the microbiota in the developing infant intestine

Review of Susanne Scholz (ed.), Feminist Interpretation of the Hebrew Bible in Retrospect; Panel from the 2017 SBL Annual Meeting in Boston (MA)

The current flourishing of varieties of feminist interpretation among religious organizations and in the academy has been going on since at least the 1970s, and has grown to display an amazing diversity of emphases and forms. At the same time, much work still needs to be done. The appearance from Sheffield Phoenix of Susanne Scholz’s three-volume edited work, Feminist Interpretation of the Hebrew Bible in Retrospect,1 by its breadth of coverage and its conscious attempt to reflect on the work of past decades, offered the Feminist Hermeneutics of the Bible Section of the Society of Biblical Literature an opportunity to assess the distance feminist interpretations have traveled in the last 40–50 years and where we should focus energy for the future. The following papers share the reviews offered by five colleagues at a panel session at the SBL Annual Meeting in Boston, Massachusetts, on Sunday, November 19, 2017, and Prof. Scholz’s response. The reviewers represent an array of feminist perspectives that is diverse in race/ethnicity, nationality/culture, gender, age, and stream of religious tradition. The reviews probe not only a variety of dimensions of Prof. Scholz’s work, but also a variety of points of progress and ongoing issues in feminist interpretation

Quasibrittle fracture scaling and size effect

The report attempts a broad review of the problem of size effect or scaling of failure, which has recently come to the forefront of attention because of its importance for concrete and geotechnical engineering, geomechanics, arctic ice engineering, as well as in designing large loadbearing parts made of advanced ceramics and composites, e.g. for aircraft or ships. First the main results of Weibull statistical theory of random strength are briefly summarized and its applicability and limitations described. In this theory as well as plasticity, elasticity with a strength limit, and linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM), the size effect is a simple power law because no characteristic size or length is present. Attention is then focused on the deterministic size effect in quasibrittle materials which, because of the existence of a non-negligible material length characterizing the size of the fracture process zone, represents the bridging between the simple powerlaw size effects of plasticity and of LEFM. The energetic theory of quasibrittle size effect in the bridging region is explained and then a host of recent refinements, extensions and ramifications are discussed. Comments on other types of size effect, including that which might be associated with the fractal geometry of fracture, are also made. The historical development of the size effect theories is outlined and the recent trends of research are emphasized

Quasibrittle fracture scaling and size effect

The report attempts a broad review of the problem of size effect or scaling of failure, which has recently come to the forefront of attention because of its importance for concrete and geotechnical engineering, geomechanics, arctic ice engineering, as well as in designing large loadbearing parts made of advanced ceramics and composites, e.g. for aircraft or ships. First the main results of Weibull statistical theory of random strength are briefly summarized and its applicability and limitations described. In this theory as well as plasticity, elasticity with a strength limit, and linear elastic fracture mechanics (LEFM), the size effect is a simple power law because no characteristic size or length is present. Attention is then focused on the deterministic size effect in quasibrittle materials which, because of the existence of a non-negligible material length characterizing the size of the fracture process zone, represents the bridging between the simple powerlaw size effects of plasticity and of LEFM. The energetic theory of quasibrittle size effect in the bridging region is explained and then a host of recent refinements, extensions and ramifications are discussed. Comments on other types of size effect, including that which might be associated with the fractal geometry of fracture, are also made. The historical development of the size effect theories is outlined and the recent trends of research are emphasized

Untapping the health enhancing potential of vigorous intermittent lifestyle physical activity (VILPA): rationale, scoping review, and a 4-pillar research framework

Recently revised public health guidelines acknowledge the health benefits of regular intermittent bouts of vigorous intensity incidental physical activity done as part of daily living, such as carrying shopping bags, walking uphill, and stair climbing. Despite this recognition and the advantages such lifestyle physical activity has over continuous vigorous intensity structured exercise, a scoping review we conducted revealed that current research in this area is, at best, rudimentary. Key gaps include the absence of an empirically-derived dose specification (e.g., minimum duration of lifestyle physical activity required to achieve absolute or relative vigorous intensity), lack of acceptable measurement standards, limited understanding of acute and chronic (adaptive) effects of intermittent vigorous bouts on health, and paucity of essential information necessary to develop feasible and scalable interventions (e.g., acceptability of this kind of physical activity by the public). To encourage collaboration and research agenda alignment among groups interested in this field, we propose a research framework to further understanding of vigorous intermittent lifestyle physical activity (VILPA). This framework comprises four pillars aimed at the development of: (a) an empirical definition of VILPA, (b) methods to reliably and accurately measure VILPA, (c) approaches to examine the short and long-term dose–response effects of VILPA, and (d) scalable and acceptable behavioural VILPA-promoting interventions