Communication between animals and humans: language, understanding and matters of attitude in human-animal interaction

[Abstract] Sandra Grötsch, University of Oulu, Finland Conversation strategies between animals and humans. Language,understanding and matters of attitude in human-animal interaction. Literature and especially fantasy literature provides us with numerous examples of conversation types between animals and humans. This presentation is going to look at texts from among others J. R. R. Tolkien and J. K. Rowling in order to analyse communication between human and non-human participants. In this presentation the difference between animals and non-humans possessing human language to those that do not is examined. Rhetoric as well as silence in animal communication and their meanings will also be taken into consideration. Interesting questions raise about the definition of language, its use and communication between different species. What does it mean to possess language? How does human attitude change towards animals that are able to communicate? How do different languages influence the strategies for conversation and the role of the speakers? Literature provides a window into the struggle humans go through when trying to understand animals or fantastic creatures especially in such cases where a common language is missing. The desire to converse with animals and understand them can be found also in the reality outside of texts where engaged scientific examinations try to shed light on the languages and communication realm of animals. The literary instances used in this presentation will show the tradition from myths transported into modern texts to let non-humans express themselves in various ways connected to communication and the relationships humans build with their bestial opposite number

Analysis of the Coupling Behavior of PEM Fuel Cells and DC-DC Converters

The connection between PEM fuel cells and common DC-DC converters is examined. The analysis is model-based and done for boost, buck and buck-boost converters. In a first step, the effect of the converter ripples upon the PEM fuel cell is shown. They introduce oscillations in the fuel cell. Their appearance is explained, discussed and possibilities for their suppression are given. After that, the overall behaviors of the coupled fuel cell-converter systems are analyzed. It is shown, that neither stationary multiplicities nor oscillations can be introduced by the couplings and therefore separate control approaches for both the PEMFC and the DC-DC converters are applicable

Implementing compartmentalized oxygen control to a neuronal cell culture chip

To study the effects of low oxygen concentrations (hypoxia) on epileptic cells in neuronal cell culture, an existing cell culture device with three separate cell compartments connected by microtunnels was modified to incorporate targeted oxygen control capabilities to adjust oxygen levels in a single cell compartment. Subsequent cell culture experiments, not included in this study, will determine whether these hypoxic conditions influence seizure initiation or drug response. Several concepts were conceived and compared using a weighted evaluation. Two concepts were then simulated and a two-layered polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-based chip design was selected for implementation. The lower layer contained the microtunnels and the second layer, bonded on top, a scavenging channel routed around one cell compartment. Inside the cell compartment, an oxygen-blocking structure was submerged to limit the scavenging effect to the bottom. Two molds, one for each PDMS layer, were produced using SU-8 photolithography on a silicon wafer to achieve micrometer-scale structures. One of the two molds was a micro-macro mold which is a combination of SU-8 structures and 3D-printed parts to achieve micrometer and millimeter-scale features within a single mold. These parts were 3D-printed using a stereolithography (SLA) printer and bonded with a two-component epoxy adhesive to assemble the mold. The two cast PDMS layers were punched to add the inlets and outlets, cut to open the top, then aligned, and permanently bonded together using oxygen plasma. Leak tests were performed to verify the seal tightness of the scavenging channel prior to further processing. To verify the chosen concept and the numerical simulations, ratiometric two-dimensional oxygen measurements on three built chips were performed. For this purpose, the chips were permanently fixed to a ratiometric measuring plate and imaged over several hours while different known oxygen concentrations were applied as calibration points, followed by the application of pure nitrogen as an oxygen scavenger. The numerical simulations were in agreement with the measurements, proving their use as a valuable tool for further design iterations. Oxygen control within the target cell compartment was possible with the implemented design, reaching hypoxic oxygen levels in at least one measurement. The oxygen profile along the bottom of the scavenged cell compartment agreed well with the two-dimensional simulation result with a maximum deviation of 0.4 % O2 compared to the measurement setup it was adapted to. The time constants obtained varied considerably and no clear conclusion was drawn from the results of the three measured chips except that they were in the same range predicted by the numerical simulations. In the later cell cultures, cellular oxygen consumption and nutrient supply affect the cell responses, both of which were not considered in this work. Due to the small volume of culture media available, cells may reach hypoxic conditions significantly faster. In addition, their nutrient supply is limited, which may cause additional cellular responses or cell death in long-term experiments. However, recommendations for their consideration in future work are given in the conclusions

High-resolution vehicle headlamps: Technologies and scanning prototype

The introduction of adaptive front lighting systems for vehicles has increased road safety and drivers' comfort significantly within the last years. A next step in this development is the realization of higher resolution systems to further increase the functionality of vehicle headlamps toward fully adaptive front lighting systems. In this paper, we present a short overview on highly dynamic front lighting systems and the essential technologies for their realization. Different approaches are compared and evaluated regarding their applications for headlamp systems. As an example for on-road projection systems, a laser-based scanning unit is set up and evaluated. © 2016 THOSS Media & De Gruyte

Enzymuria in Streptozotocin-Diabetic Rats

Peer Reviewe

Die zerebrale Amyloidangiopathie - Langzeitverlauf im Vergleich bei Patienten mit Erstmanifestation symptomatische Blutung, corticale superficiale Siderose, isolierte Mikroblutungen oder zerebrale Ischämie

Unterschiedlicher Langzeitverlauf bei Patienten mit cerebraler Amyloidangiopathie, Untersuchung anhand des Indexereignisse

Zur integrativen Funktion von Ost-West-Vergleichen in ostdeutschen Familientischgesprächen

"In diesem Beitrag soll anhand des Beispiels einer thüringischen Familie fallanalytisch dargestellt werden, wie die durch die deutsche Vereinigung hervorgerufenen Unsicherheiten ihren Niederschlag im Alltag finden und welche kommunikativen Strategien angewendet werden, um den Erfordernissen der Umbruchssituation gerecht zu werden. Schon bei der ersten Durchsicht des Materials fiel auf, daß - weitgehend unabhängig von den jeweils behandelten Themen - permanent der Vergleich mit dem Westen gesucht wird: Immer wieder erfolgt in den Familiengesprächen ein Abgleichen 'östlicher' und 'westlicher' Kategorien über Kontrastpaare wie 'früher/heute', 'wir/die' oder 'hier/drüben'. Diese auffallende Häufung kontrastiver indexikaler Elemente auf temporaler, personaler und lokaler Ebene ermöglicht eine Qualifizierung von 'alten' und 'neuen' Erfahrungen, die miteinander verglichen werden. Die situative Aktivierung gemeinsamen Vorwissens, der Rückgriff auf die gemeinsame Vergangenheit legt eine geteilte Bewertungsebene nahe, die zur entscheidenden Ressource im Umgang mit neuen Wissensbeständen wird. Es erfolgt also im Zuge der notwendigen Aneignung und Anwendung neuer Wissensbestände keine Substituierung oder passive Delegitimierung des bisherigen Wissensbestandes, sondern eine Kontrastierung und Inbezugsetzung alter und neuer Werte bzw. Erfahrungen mittels des dichotomen Verortungsschemas Ost-West, das beinahe unbegrenzt anwendbar wird. Die permanente Präsenz des Ost-West-Vergleichs, der mit routinisierter Selbstverständlichkeit bemüht wird, um den Kontrast zum 'Westen' und damit die Konturen des 'Ostens' zu schärfen, muß als Symptom des Übergangs gelten: Da die Alltagsregeln der Westdeutschen nicht wie die institutionellen Regeln einfach übernommen werden konnten, offenbarte sich eine 'Leerstelle', die immer dann mit althergebrachten Werten und Normen aufgefüllt wird, wenn das Fremde (also die BRD) in seiner Eigenart erfaßt werden muß. Der solchermaßen unterstellte Ost-West-Kontrast wird durch die Gegenüberstellung 'östlicher' und 'westlicher' Werte in den Vergleichen am Leben erhalten, und zwar nicht auf politischer, sondern auf sozialer Ebene. Der Ost-West-Vergleich wird demnach als identitätsstiftendes Medium eingesetzt, da dessen implizites Wissen in der schwierigen Phase des Übergangs eine verwertbare Leitlinie bildet und so den Beteiligten einen Status sichert, der in der angemahnten Form nicht mehr existiert." (Autorenreferat

Hybrid gamma Doradus/delta Scuti Stars: Comparison Between Observations and Theory

Gamma Doradus are F-type stars pulsating with high order g-modes. Their instability strip (IS) overlaps the red edge of the delta Scuti one. This observation has led to search for objects in this region of the HR diagram showing p and g-modes simultaneously. The existence of such hybrid pulsators has recently been confirmed (Handler 2009) and the number of candidates is increasing (Matthews 2007). From a theoretical point of view, non-adiabatic computations including a time-dependent treatment of convection (TDC) predict the existence of gamma Dor/delta Sct hybrid pulsators (Dupret et al. 2004; Grigahcene et al. 2006). Our aim is to confront the properties of the observed hybrid candidates with the theoretical predictions from non-adiabatic computations of non-radial pulsations including the convection-pulsation interaction.Comment: 3 pages, 3 figures, Poster at "Stellar Pulsation: challenges for theory and observation", Santa Fe, June 200

Validation of a Commercial Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay for Allopregnanolone in the Saliva of Healthy Pregnant Women

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) for saliva are simple, non-invasive methods for hormone detection. Allopregnanolone (ALLO) is a neuroactive steroid hormone that plays a crucial role in the aetiology of reproductive mood disorders. To better understand the relationship between ALLO and mood, a validated method to measure peripheral hormone levels is required. Currently, there is no commercially available ELISA with which to measure ALLO in saliva. We validated two ELISAs, developed for use with blood, with the saliva samples of 25 pregnant women, examining the range and sensitivity, intra- and inter-assay precision, parallelism, linearity of dilution, and recovery. The samples were simultaneously analysed using the liquid-chromatography–mass-spectrometry (LC-MS) method. The kits differed in range (31.2–2000 pg/mL vs. 1.6–100 ng/mL) and sensitivity (<9.5 pg/mL vs. 0.9 ng/mL), with the latter showing significant matrix effects and the former fulfilling the acceptance criteria of all the parameters. The concentrations measured with LC–MS were below the lower limit of quantification (<1.0 ng/mL) and no signal was detected. One of the tested ELISAs is a valid method for detecting ALLO in the saliva of pregnant women. It has a suitable measurement range and higher sensitivity than the conventional LC–MS method