Ambiguous Contracting: Natural Language and Judicial Interpretation

We study the relationship between ambiguity (which comes into the picture since contracts have to be written in natural language), and contractual incompleteness. The contracting process is modelled as a signalling game between the parties and the judge, with the contract as the signal. The judge is assumed to be bound by the content of the contract (in as far as it can be ascertained unambiguously). Two kind of examples are presented: The first set of examples shows how ambiguity can lead to incompleteness. Here incompleteness is a way of hedging against adverse judgements on the part of an imperfectly informed judge. The remaining example illustrates a sort of converse intuition: It shows how incompleteness might lead the contracting parties to write ambiguous contracts in order to afford a relatively well-informed judge freedom to enforce the parties'willincomplete contracts, natural language

Failure of E. coli bacteria to induce preterm delivery in the rat

Abstract Background We sought to develop a model of bacterially induced preterm delivery in rats to parallel similar models in mice. Methods Female Sprague-Dawley rats on day 17 of gestation (normal term = 21–22 days) were inoculated into the uterus with either 2 × 109 – 7 × 1010 killed E. coli organisms, 1 – 4 × 108 live E. coli or sterile solution. These inoculations were made either via trans-cervical catheter or by direct intrauterine injection at laparotomy. Animals were then observed for delivery for variable periods up to term. Necropsies were performed and fetal viability was assessed. Results No rats delivered prematurely after bacterial exposure (27 animals observed for at least 48 hours), and all animals followed to term (n = 3) delivered live pups. No dams exhibited signs of systemic illness. There was a statistically significant but small negative effect of killed E. coli on fetal viability (100% of 80 fetuses from 6 control pregnancies and 93% of 182 fetuses from 14 bacterially-treated pregnancies were alive at necropsy, p = 0.014). Live bacteria had a larger effect on fetal viability, with only 64% of 14 fetuses, 47% of 28 fetuses and 32% of 31 fetuses surviving after trans-cervical administration of 7 × 107, 2 × 108 and 4 × 108 E. coli, respectively. Conclusion Unlike mice, it has proven difficult to induce preterm labor in the rat using E. coli as a stimulating agent. The relevant literature is reviewed and hypotheses are offered to explain this phenomenon

High lymphoid enhancer-binding factor-1 expression is associated with disease progression and poor prognosis in chronic lymphocytic leukemia

We determined lymphoid enhancer-binding factor-1 (LEF1) mRNA expression in 112 chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) samples and assessed correlations with the prognostic markers ZAP70 and CD38, Binet stages, the percentage of lymphocytes in the peripheral blood, and fibromodulin (FMOD) transcripts. The mean LEF1 relative expression ratios (RER) were 53.72 and 37.10 in ZAP70-positive and ZAP70-negative patients, respectively (P=0.004). However, we did not observe a significant difference in LEF1 expression between CD38-positive and CD38-negative patients. Moreover, patients requiring treatment showed a mean LEF1 RER of 85.61 whereas patients in recently diagnosed Binet A stage had a mean of only 22.01 (P<0.001). We also found significant correlations of LEF1 with the percentage of lymphocytes and FMOD expression. Our results suggest that high LEF1 expression is associated with poor prognosis and disease progression. Thus, LEF1 might be involved in the process of disease progression and possibly can serve as a molecular parameter for risk assessment and/or monitoring of CLL

Realization of the Child's Right to Preserve its Individuality in the Comprehensive Examination Procedure

The article discusses the private rights of the child and the importance of their observance in the procedure of a comprehensive examination. For their full implementation, an ecological model of the psychological, medical and pedagogical commission is proposed, as well as taking into account the normality of a child's life.В статье рассматриваются частные права ребенка и важность их соблюдения в процедуре комплексного обследования. Для их полной реализации предлагается экологическая модель психолого-медико-педагогической комиссии, а также учет нормативности жизни ребенка

The composition of amphibole phenocrysts in Neogene mafic volcanic rocks from the Puna plateau: Insights on the evolution of hydrous back-arc magmas

In typical Andean arc magmas, amphibole appears as a phenocryst phase only after considerable differentiation. However, some near-primitive volcanic rocks (high-Mg andesites and basalts) from monogenetic centers in the Puna plateau of Argentina also contain amphibole phenocrysts, implying special conditions of hydrous magma generation in this back-arc setting. This study documents typical examples from Southern and Northern Puna regions and uses the major and trace-element compositions of amphibole to constrain a petrogenetic model for the hydrous magmas. There are significant differences in the nature of amphiboles and their host lavas depending on location of the volcanic centers in the Southern and the Northern Puna regions. In the Southern Puna, basaltic andesitic lavas have Sr/Y values >40 and amphiboles show skeletal forms and occur in an assemblage with olivine and pyroxene. The amphibole compositions are relatively Al- and Ti-poor compared to the Northern Puna. Thermobarometry indicates amphibole crystallization temperatures of 960–1000 °C at moderate pressure (1000 °C) and pressures (6–8 kbar). Furthermore, the chemical composition of amphibole phenocrysts in the Northern Puna Campo Negro center suggests an alkaline affinity of the parental magmas which, together with radiogenic isotope data from earlier studies, indicates a significant contribution of the enriched lithosphere in the magma source. The new data collectively suggest high pressure evolution of hydrous magmas in the Southern Puna, whereas the Northern Puna magmas underwent more differentiation at higher levels in the crust. This contrast in the evolution history of magmas below both regions can be connected with their position relative to partial melting zones in the mid-upper crust, which are larger and longer-lived in the north than in the south, thus favoring a slower ascent of magmas in that region.Fil: Maro, Guadalupe. Universidad Nacional de Jujuy. Instituto de Ecorregiones Andinas. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Instituto de Ecorregiones Andinas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Trumbull, Robert. German Research Centre for Geosciences; AlemaniaFil: Caffe, Pablo Jorge. Universidad Nacional de Jujuy. Instituto de Ecorregiones Andinas. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Instituto de Ecorregiones Andinas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Jofré, Cynthia Betina. Universidad Nacional de Jujuy. Instituto de Ecorregiones Andinas. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Instituto de Ecorregiones Andinas; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Filipovich, Ruben Eduardo. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Salta. Instituto de Bio y Geociencias del NOA. Universidad Nacional de Salta. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales. Museo de Ciencias Naturales. Instituto de Bio y Geociencias del NOA; ArgentinaFil: Frick, Daniel A.. German Research Centre for Geosciences; Alemani

Individual educational trajectory of teaching Russian language to students with hearing impairments in general education school

The article is devoted to the problems of improving the quality of education of children with hearing impairments in secondary general education school.Статья посвящена проблемам совершенствования качества обучения детей младшего школьного возраста с нарушениями слуха (слабослышащих) в условиях общеобразовательной школы

Distinct modulation of microglial amyloid β phagocytosis and migration by neuropeptidesi

Microglial activation plays an integral role in the development and course of neurodegeneration. Although neuropeptides such as bradykinin (BK), somatostatin (SST), and endothelin (ET) are known to be important mediators of inflammation in the periphery, evidence of a similar function in brain is scarce. Using immunocytochemistry, we demonstrate the expression of receptors for BK (B1, B2 subtypes), ET (ETA, ETB subtypes) and SST (SST 2, 3, 4 subtypes) in primary microglia and microglial cell lines. Exposure of BV2 and N9, as well as primary microglial cells to BK or SST increased Aβ uptake in a concentration-dependent manner, whereas endothelin decreased Aβ uptake. This was caused by increased phagocytosis of Aβ since the rate of intracellular Aβ degradation remained unaffected. All neuropeptides increased chemotactic activity of microglia. In addition, BK reduced Aβ-induced expression of proinflammatory genes including iNOS and COX-2. ET decreased the Aβ-induced expression of monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 and interleukin-6. These results suggest that neuropeptides play an important role in chemotaxis and Aβ clearance and modulate the brain's response to neuroinflammatory processes