Multilingualism, affiliation and spiritual insecurity. From phenomena to process in language documentation

Documentary linguists have often been urged to integrate language ideologies and other topics more closely to ethnography than to linguistics in their research, but these recommendations have seldom coincided, in literature, with practical directions for their implementation. This paper aims to contribute to filling this gap. After re-considering current documentary approaches, a case study from a documentation project in NW Cameroon is presented to show how an ethnographically-informed sociolinguistic survey on multilingualism can lead to progressively deeper insights into the local language ideology. The methodological implications that this research perspective brings to both documentary linguistics and language support and revitalization projects are discussed. A number of practical suggestions are finally proposed, illustrating the importance of language documentation projects being carried out by multidisciplinary teams.National Foreign Language Resource Cente

I Kalasha del Hindu Kush: ricerche linguistiche e antropologiche

The Kalush are the last Kafirs (pagans) of Hindu Kush and speak an Indo-European language, which makes them a particularly precious resource for the Indo-European scholar. This thesis offers an in-depth study of their language and of some aspects of their culture. Starting from the data collected during a field study in the least well-known of the three Kalasha valleys, on the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan, the author proposes a contrastive analysis of the everyday language and that used for poetry. This analysis, and the mass of ethnographic data considered, enable the author to identify the socio-cultural reasons behind certain linguistic choices that can be observed in the poetic discourse, thus bringing to light the essence of the relations between language and culture

A Multiphysics Co-Simulation Framework of a Gas Engine and Three-Way Catalyst toward a Complete Vehicle Design Model

In view of the increasingly stringent emission regulations, the automotive sector needs considerable support from the development of robust and reliable engine and aftertreatment models. Accurate reproduction of engine-out and tailpipe pollutants plays a crucial role in complying with these legislations. Given the difficulty in characterizing some critical phenomena, frequently caused by strong dynamics and related to experimental uncertainties, communication between several calibrated and reliable models is mandatory. This is certainly valid for powertrains that will be powered with alternative gas fuels such as natural gas, bio-methane and hydrogen in the future. This paper describes a methodology to co-simulate a 1D CNG HD 6-cyl engine model and a 1D quasi-steady three-way catalyst model in a global framework for high-fidelity virtual prototyping of the vehicle system. Through the implementation of a dedicated control logic in MATLAB/Simulink, the modeling architecture allows for the reproduction of the engine performance parameters together with the evaluation of the TWC pollutants’ conversion efficiency. An extensive database of experimental tests was used to assess the model response. The latter was validated in multiple steady-state operating conditions of the engine workplan. Using a semi-predictive combustion model, the validation was carried out over a wide range of different air-to-fuel ratios and during fast rich/lean transitions to evaluate the formation and conversion phenomena of the main chemical species, both engine-out and tailpipe. Subsequently, the complete model was validated in dynamic conditions throughout a WHTC, accurately reproducing the cut-off phases and their sudden accelerations. The numerical–experimental agreement on pollutant reproduction is generally good and globally below 3%. Larger deviations occur in extremely rich conditions and in CH4 emission evaluation due to the lack of information related to the combustion process and chemical mechanisms involving the Pd surface

Implementation of a new automatic blending detection procedure in modern diesel engines by means of direct measurement of the indicated mean effective pressure

Within the cooperative research project DAX605 between GM Powertrain Europe and Istituto Motori - CNR, the capability to develop a method (economic and simple) for on-board biodiesel blending detection was studied. The method is based on the direct measurement of the Indicated Mean Effective Pressure (IMEP). The present research report summarizes the main results of this activity. The study was carried out on a 2.0L 4-cylinder “torque-controlled” Euro 5 diesel engine for passenger car (PC) application. This engine, equipped with instrumented glow plug for combustion closed loop control, represents the state of the art of the diesel engine control technology. Two biodiesels were chosen for the experiments: a Rapeseed-Methyl-Ester (RME) and an aged RME, while the conventional diesel fuel was an European (EU) certification diesel fuel. Results indicate generally a good response in blending detection of the method. However, in order to attain an acceptable accuracy, a pre-calibration appears necessary

Hyperhomocysteinemia in women with unexplained sterility or recurrent early pregnancy loss from Southern Italy: a preliminary report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Hyperhomocysteinemia has been described as a risk factor for unexplained recurrent pregnancy loss. Increased levels of homocysteine may be due to inadequate dietary intake of folate and vitamin B12 and inherited defects within the methionine-homocysteine pathway such as MTHFR C677T gene polymorphism. However, the association between hyperhomocysteinemia and sterility problems have been underlined only for recurrent pregnancy loss while a relationship between hyperhomocysteinemia and female sterility is still matter of discussion.</p> <p>Aim</p> <p>This study sought to find out a possible relationship between sterility (primary sterility or secondary sterility due to recurrent pregnancy loss) and homocysteine metabolism.</p> <p>Patients and Methods</p> <p>We selected 20 patients with recurrent pregnancy loss, 20 patients with unexplained female sterility and 20 healthy women as control group. Several whole blood samples were collected by venipuncture. Firstly homocysteinemia and other related variables were tested (i.e. folate and vitamin B12 levels); thereafter DNA was extracted by a further whole blood sample collected in EDTA in order to screen MTHFR C677T gene polymorphism. Statistical analysis was performed by chi square test; differences were considered to be significant if p < 0.05.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The median fasting total plasma homocysteine concentration was 19.2 ± 6.14 μM for patients with recurrent pregnancy loss, while was 21.05 ± 8.78 μM for patients with unexplained sterility, vs 7.85 ± 3.31 μM of control group (p < 0.05). Fifteen patients with unexplained female sterility showed MTHFR C677T homozigosity vs 17 with recurrent pregnancy loss and 3 in the control group (p < 0.05). On the other hand no significant differences were found in the levels of vitamin B 12 in the three groups, while reduced folate concentrations were found in women with unexplained female sterility and recurrent pregnancy loss (p < 0.05 vs control group.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>MTHFR C677T gene polymorphism is frequent in the studied populations. These data raise questions on the role of the homocysteine metabolism in sterility problems. Even though increased homocysteine (i.e. > 15 μM) and MTHFR C677T homozigosity have already been described as risk factors for recurrent pregnancy loss, few studies evaluated their role in women with unexplained sterility. Further studies on larger series are needed to better understand the role of homocysteine metabolism, including folate metabolism, in this clinical setting.</p

The beneficial effects of physical exercise on visuospatial working memory in preadolescent children

The relationship between physical exercise and improvement in specific cognitive domains in children and adolescents who play sport has been recently reported, although the effects on visuospatial abilities have not yet been well explored. This study is aimed at evaluating in school-age children practicing artistic gymnastics the visuospatial memory by using a table version of the Radial Arm Maze (table-RAM) and comparing their performances with those ones who do not play any sport. The visuospatial performances of 14 preadolescent girls practicing artistic gymnastics aged between 7 and 10 years and those of 14 preadolescent girls not playing any sport were evaluated in the table-RAM forced-choice paradigm that allows disentangling short-term memory from working memory abilities. Data showed that the gymnasts obtained better performances than control group mainly in the parameters evaluating working memory abilities, such as within-phase errors and spatial span. Our findings emphasizing the role of physical activity on cognitive performances impel to promote physical exercise in educational and recreational contexts as well as to analyse the impact of other sports besides gymnastics on cognitive functioning

factors underlying the development of chronic temporal lobe epilepsy in autoimmune encephalitis

Abstract Purpose Limbic encephalitis (LE) is an autoimmune condition characterized by amnestic syndrome, psychiatric features and seizures. Early diagnosis and prompt treatment are crucial to avoid long-term sequelae, including psycho-cognitive deficits and persisting seizures. The aim of our study was to analyze the characteristics of 33 LE patients in order to identify possible prognostic factors associated with the development of chronic epilepsy. Methods This is a retrospective cohort study including adult patients diagnosed with LE in the period 2010–2017 and followed up for ≥12 months. Demographics, seizure semiology, EEG pattern, MRI features, CSF/serum findings were reviewed. Results All 33 LE patients (19 M/14F, mean age 61.2 years) presented seizures. Thirty subjects had memory deficits; 22 presented behavioural/mood disorders. Serum and/or CSF auto-antibodies were detected in 12 patients. In 31 subjects brain MRI at onset showed typical alterations involving temporal lobes. All patients received immunotherapy. At follow-up, 13/33 had developed chronic epilepsy; predisposing factors included delay in diagnosis (p = .009), low seizure frequency at onset (p = .02), absence of amnestic syndrome (p = .02) and absence/rarity of inter-ictal epileptic discharges on EEG (p = .06). Conclusions LE with paucisymptomatic electro-clinical presentation seemed to be associated to chronic epilepsy more than LE presenting with definite and severe "limbic syndrome"