A representation theorem for MV-algebras

An {\em MV-pair} is a pair $(B,G)$ where $B$ is a Boolean algebra and $G$ is a subgroup of the automorphism group of $B$ satisfying certain conditions. Let $\sim_G$ be the equivalence relation on $B$ naturally associated with $G$. We prove that for every MV-pair $(B,G)$, the effect algebra $B/\sim_G$ is an MV- effect algebra. Moreover, for every MV-effect algebra $M$ there is an MV-pair $(B,G)$ such that $M$ is isomorphic to $B/\sim_G$

Smearing of Observables and Spectral Measures on Quantum Structures

An observable on a quantum structure is any $\sigma$-homomorphism of quantum structures from the Borel $\sigma$-algebra of the real line into the quantum structure which is in our case a monotone $\sigma$-complete effect algebras with the Riesz Decomposition Property. We show that every observable is a smearing of a sharp observable which takes values from a Boolean $\sigma$-subalgebra of the effect algebra, and we prove that for every element of the effect algebra there is its spectral measure

Sharp and fuzzy observables on effect algebras

Observables on effect algebras and their fuzzy versions obtained by means of confidence measures (Markov kernels) are studied. It is shown that, on effect algebras with the (E)-property, given an observable and a confidence measure, there exists a fuzzy version of the observable. Ordering of observables according to their fuzzy properties is introduced, and some minimality conditions with respect to this ordering are found. Applications of some results of classical theory of experiments are considered.Comment: 23 page

Assessing the conservation value of waterbodies: the example of the Loire floodplain (France)

In recent decades, two of the main management tools used to stem biodiversity erosion have been biodiversity monitoring and the conservation of natural areas. However, socio-economic pressure means that it is not usually possible to preserve the entire landscape, and so the rational prioritisation of sites has become a crucial issue. In this context, and because floodplains are one of the most threatened ecosystems, we propose a statistical strategy for evaluating conservation value, and used it to prioritise 46 waterbodies in the Loire floodplain (France). We began by determining a synthetic conservation index of fish communities (Q) for each waterbody. This synthetic index includes a conservation status index, an origin index, a rarity index and a richness index. We divided the waterbodies into 6 clusters with distinct structures of the basic indices. One of these clusters, with high Q median value, indicated that 4 waterbodies are important for fish biodiversity conservation. Conversely, two clusters with low Q median values included 11 waterbodies where restoration is called for. The results picked out high connectivity levels and low abundance of aquatic vegetation as the two main environmental characteristics of waterbodies with high conservation value. In addition, assessing the biodiversity and conservation value of territories using our multi-index approach plus an a posteriori hierarchical classification methodology reveals two major interests: (i) a possible geographical extension and (ii) a multi-taxa adaptation

Comprehensive Cell Surface Protein Profiling Identifies Specific Markers of Human Naive and Primed Pluripotent States

Human pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) exist in naive and primed states and provide important models to investigate the earliest stages of human development. Naive cells can be obtained through primed-to-naive resetting, but there are no reliable methods to prospectively isolate unmodified naive cells during this process. Here we report comprehensive profiling of cell surface proteins by flow cytometry in naive and primed human PSCs. Several naive-specific, but not primed-specific, proteins were also expressed by pluripotent cells in the human preimplantation embryo. The upregulation of naive-specific cell surface proteins during primed-to-naive resetting enabled the isolation and characterization of live naive cells and intermediate cell populations. This analysis revealed distinct transcriptional and X chromosome inactivation changes associated with the early and late stages of naive cell formation. Thus, identification of state-specific proteins provides a robust set of molecular markers to define the human PSC state and allows new insights into the molecular events leading to naive cell resetting.Imaging was performed at the Live Cell Imaging Facility/Nikon Center of Excellence, Department of Biosciences and Nutrition, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, Sweden, supported by grants from the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation, the Swedish Research Council, the Centre for Innovative Medicine, and the Jonasson donation to the School of Technology and Health, Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden. We would like to acknowledge the MedH Flow Cytometry facility at Karolinska Institutet, supported by grants from Karolinska Institutet and the Stockholm County Council. We thank Céline Vallot and Claire Rougeulle at the Université Paris Diderot for providing X chromosome SNP coordinates. We are grateful to Rudolph Jaenisch at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research for providing WIBR3 cells and Austin Smith at the WT–MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute for providing H9 NK2 and FiPS cells. We thank all couples who donated embryos to this study. S.P., A.P.R., J.P.S., and F.L. are supported by grants from the Swedish Research Council (2013-2570), Ragnar Söderberg Foundation (M67/13), Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research (ICA-5), Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation (4-1205/2016 and 4-148/2017), and Centre for Innovative Medicine and by a Lau fellowship. R.W. is an ISAC Shared Resource Laboratory Emerging Leader. A.J.C. is supported by an MRC DTG Studentship (MR/J003808/1). P.J.R.G. is supported by the Wellcome Trust (WT093736) and BBSRC (BBS/ E/B/000C0402)

Socially and biologically inspired computing for self-organizing communications networks

The design and development of future communications networks call for a careful examination of biological and social systems. New technological developments like self-driving cars, wireless sensor networks, drones swarm, Internet of Things, Big Data, and Blockchain are promoting an integration process that will bring together all those technologies in a large-scale heterogeneous network. Most of the challenges related to these new developments cannot be faced using traditional approaches, and require to explore novel paradigms for building computational mechanisms that allow us to deal with the emergent complexity of these new applications. In this article, we show that it is possible to use biologically and socially inspired computing for designing and implementing self-organizing communication systems. We argue that an abstract analysis of biological and social phenomena can be made to develop computational models that provide a suitable conceptual framework for building new networking technologies: biologically inspired computing for achieving efficient and scalable networking under uncertain environments; socially inspired computing for increasing the capacity of a system for solving problems through collective actions. We aim to enhance the state-of-the-art of these approaches and encourage other researchers to use these models in their future work

Metal Bioavailability in the Sava River Water

Metals present one of the major contamination problems for freshwater systems, such as the Sava River, due to their high toxicity, persistence, and tendency to accumulate in sediment and living organisms. The comprehensive assessment of the metal bioavailability in the Sava River encompassed the analyses of dissolved and DGT-labile metal species of nine metals (Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, and Zn) in the river water, as well as the evaluation of the accumulation of five metals (Cd, Cu, Fe, Mn, and Zn) in three organs (liver, gills, and gastrointestinal tissue) of the bioindicator organism, fish species European chub (Squalius cephalus L.).This survey was conducted mainly during the year 2006, in two sampling campaigns, in April/May and September, as periods representative for chub spawning and post-spawning. Additionally, metal concentrations were determined in the intestinal parasites acanthocephalans, which are known for their high affinity for metal accumulation. Metallothionein concentrations were also determined in three chub organs, as a commonly applied biomarker of metal exposure. Based on the metal concentrations in the river water, the Sava River was defined as weakly contaminated and mainly comparable with unpolluted rivers, which enabled the analyses of physiological variability of metal and metallothionein concentrations in the chub organs, as well as the establishment of their constitutive levels

Ovarian damage from chemotherapy and current approaches to its protection

BACKGROUND: Anti-cancer therapy is often a cause of premature ovarian insufficiency and infertility since the ovarian follicle reserve is extremely sensitive to the effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy. While oocyte, embryo and ovarian cortex cryopreservation can help some women with cancer-induced infertility achieve pregnancy, the development of effective methods to protect ovarian function during chemotherapy would be a significant advantage.OBJECTIVE AND RATIONALE: This paper critically discusses the different damaging effects of the most common chemotherapeutic compounds on the ovary, in particular, the ovarian follicles and the molecular pathways that lead to that damage. The mechanisms through which fertility-protective agents might prevent chemotherapy drug-induced follicle loss are then reviewed.SEARCH METHODS: Articles published in English were searched on PubMed up to March 2019 using the following terms: ovary, fertility preservation, chemotherapy, follicle death, adjuvant therapy, cyclophosphamide, cisplatin, doxorubicin. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied to the analysis of the protective agents.OUTCOMES: Recent studies reveal how chemotherapeutic drugs can affect the different cellular components of the ovary, causing rapid depletion of the ovarian follicular reserve. The three most commonly used drugs, cyclophosphamide, cisplatin and doxorubicin, cause premature ovarian insufficiency by inducing death and/or accelerated activation of primordial follicles and increased atresia of growing follicles. They also cause an increase in damage to blood vessels and the stromal compartment and increment inflammation. In the past 20 years, many compounds have been investigated as potential protective agents to counteract these adverse effects. The interactions of recently described fertility-protective agents with these damage pathways are discussed.WIDER IMPLICATIONS: Understanding the mechanisms underlying the action of chemotherapy compounds on the various components of the ovary is essential for the development of efficient and targeted pharmacological therapies that could protect and prolong female fertility. While there are increasing preclinical investigations of potential fertility preserving adjuvants, there remains a lack of approaches that are being developed and tested clinically

Pot, kettle: Nonliteral titles aren’t (natural) science

© 2020 The Author. Published by MIT Press. This is an open access article available under a Creative Commons licence. The published version can be accessed at the following link on the publisher’s website: https://doi.org/10.1162/qss_a_00078Researchers may be tempted to attract attention through poetic titles for their publications, but would this be mistaken in some fields? Whilst poetic titles are known to be common in medicine, it is not clear whether the practice is widespread elsewhere. This article investigates the prevalence of poetic expressions in journal article titles 1996-2019 in 3.3 million articles from all 27 Scopus broad fields. Expressions were identified by manually checking all phrases with at least 5 words that occurred at least 25 times, finding 149 stock phrases, idioms, sayings, literary allusions, film names and song titles or lyrics. The expressions found are most common in the social sciences and the humanities. They are also relatively common in medicine, but almost absent from engineering and the natural and formal sciences. The differences may reflect the less hierarchical and more varied nature of the social sciences and humanities, where interesting titles may attract an audience. In engineering, natural science and formal science fields, authors should take extra care with poetic expressions, in case their choice is judged inappropriate. This includes interdisciplinary research overlapping these areas. Conversely, reviewers of interdisciplinary research involving the social sciences should be more tolerant of poetic licens