The ground-based solar observations database BASS 2000

BASS 2000 is the French solar database for ground-based instruments. We describe hereafter our organization, our tasks and the products we can deliver to the international community. Our prospects cover data mining into the THeMIS archive, a participation to the EST endeavour and the creation and curation of the ESPaDOnS/NARVAL stellar spectra database.Comment: 3 pages, 1 figure (to appear in the Procs. of Solar Polarization Workshop #5, eds. Berdyugina, Nagendra and Ramelli

0343 : Essential role of P2Y6 UDP receptor in Angiotensin-II dependent arterial hypertension

Extracellular nucleotides are responsible for pleiotropic effects in the vasculature. Uracyl nucleotides are vasoactive and trophic agents and promote inflammation. The participation of specific P2 receptors in these effects remains undefined and their potential contribution in arterial hypertension is unknown.ObjectiveTo evaluate the contribution of the UDP receptor P2Y6 in hypertension in mouse.MethodsArterial contraction was evaluated using a wire myograph. Blood pressure was measured following nucleotides iv infusion and experimental hypertension was induced either by Angiotensine-II (Ang-II 1mg/kg/j) or DOCA-salt (1%) in uni-nephrectomized mice. Histological approaches, immunofluorescence and RTqPCR were used to evaluate the nature of vascular remodeling.ResultsP2Y6 displayed the highest arterial expression level among other P2Y receptors. Contraction of conductance (thoracic aorta) and resistance (mesenteric) arteries was abrogated in P2ry6-/- mice in response to UDP and UTP while other vasoconstrictor induced normal responses. P2Y6 receptor triggered a moderated intracellular calcium increase while RhoA (calcium facilitating pathway) activation was abrogated in P2ry6-/- mice. Both genetic deletion and pharmacological blockade of P2Y6 receptor abolished Ang-II-induced blood pressure increase (40 mmHg in wild type mice). By contrast, hypertensive response in DOCA-salt was equivalent in both genotypes. Following Ang-II treatment, P2ry6-/- mice developed a reduced arterial hypertrophic remodeling and fibrosis but equivalent immune cell recruitment/infiltration compared to wild type. These changes were corroborated to reduced mRNA expressions of TGFβ and NADPH oxidase subunits.ConclusionsVascular P2Y6 receptor contributes to exaggerated vascular tone, hypertrophy and fibrosis in the context of Ang-II-dependent hypertension. Its absence or pharmacological blockade limits vascular damages and prevents blood pressure increase associated to hypertension

Napoleon I and Education in the Sciences: One Aspect of the Two Cultures in Conflict

Several years ago the position was taken that Napoleon\u27s patronage of the sciences when weighed against the provisions for the teaching of science in the schools seems to be in the nature of propaganda. According to the research on the subject, science, under the Napoleonic aegis, was defined in a narrow, utilitarian manner and any attempt to institutionalize a concept of science which went beyond this utilitarianism was immediately thwarted. Hence, Napoleon\u27s contribution was merely to continue the close link between science and the military which the Revolution introduced. In fact, in Napoleon\u27s regime the pursuit of a scientific education was ... tantamount to enlisting .... Napoleon\u27s reforms, it was further concluded, paradoxically brought about the reduction of science and thereby contributed to the continuous gap in France between the pure scientist and the skilled worker that has never been adequately filled. An investigation of the sources at the French archives and national library forces me to an entirely different conclusion. My thesis claims that Napoleon\u27s educational structure, despite the pressures of reconstruction, war, and imperial expansion attempted to resolve the gap or disparity between the two cultures ; in other words, the world of science and experimentation, including applied science, was approaching a position in Western culture that could not be retained in the traditionally inferior status; the accumulated evidence and successes of science abetted by a growing belief in progress and happiness during the past three centuries confronted a society (1789-1815) undergoing radical change. Thus the problem was posed and answered about the relationship and relative utility of the traditional studies in the humanities and education in the materially beneficent sciences along with their application. The National Convention (1792-95) was unable to deal satisfactorily with the problem; being faced with practical exigencies, it perforce emphasized the sciences, especially applied science, in its educational institutions. The following discussion and explication convince me of the credibility of my thesis

Inaccurate Age and Sex Data in the Census PUMS Files: Evidence and Implications

We discover and document errors in public use microdata samples ("PUMS files") of the 2000 Census, the 2003-2006 American Community Survey, and the 2004-2009 Current Population Survey. For women and men ages 65 and older, age- and sex-specific population estimates generated from the PUMS files differ by as much as 15% from counts in published data tables. Moreover, an analysis of labor force participation and marriage rates suggests the PUMS samples are not representative of the population at individual ages for those ages 65 and over. PUMS files substantially underestimate labor force participation of those near retirement ages and overestimate labor force participation rates of those at older ages. These problems were an unintentional by-product of the misapplication of a newer generation of disclosure avoidance procedures carried out on the data. The resulting errors in the public use data could significantly impact studies of people ages 65 and older, particularly analyses of variables that are expected to change by age.Current Population Survey, American Community Survey, Census, disclosure avoidance, aging, data, sex, labor force participation, marriage

Implementation, Compilation, Optimization of Object-Oriented Languages, Programs and Systems - Report on the Workshop ICOOOLPS'2006 at ECOOP'06

ICOOOLPS'2006 was the first edition of ECOOP-ICOOOLPS workshop. It intended to bring researchers and practitioners both from academia and industry together, with a spirit of openness, to try and identify and begin to address the numerous and very varied issues of optimization. This succeeded, as can be seen from the papers, the attendance and the liveliness of the discussions that took place during and after the workshop, not to mention a few new cooperations or postdoctoral contracts. The 22 talented people from different groups who participated were unanimous to appreciate this first edition and recommend that ICOOOLPS be continued next year. A community is thus beginning to form, and should be reinforced by a second edition next year, with all the improvements this first edition made emerge.Comment: The original publication is available at http://www.springerlink.co

La frontera terrestre argelino-marroquí: de herencia colonial a instrumento de presión

Durante el año 2012 han vuelto a aparecer noticias anunciando una posible apertura de la frontera terrestre entre Argelia y Marruecos, la cual permanece cerrada desde 1994 y es uno de los factores que impiden un mayor desarrollo socio-económico de la región magrebí. Este artículo tiene por objetivo, primero, explicar las razones históricas que originan el conflicto fronterizo entre Argelia y Marruecos, aportando nuevos datos que recientemente han salido a la luz gracias a testimonios de personajes políticos de relevancia; y segundo, analizar la situación actual de esta cuestión, valorando el posible impacto de la denominada “primavera árabe”.  The algerian-moroccan border: from colonial legacy to instrument of pressureAbstract: During 2012, news reports announcing the opening of the border between Algeria and Morocco have reappeared. This border has been closed since 1994 and its closure is one of the factors preventing a higher socio-economic development along the Maghreb region. This article's objective is, first, to explain the historical reasons that cause the border dispute between Algeria and Morocco, providing new data that have recently come to light thanks to the testimony of relevant political figures; and second, to analyze the current situation of this question, assessing whether the so-called "Arab Spring" may have an impact on the evolution of this issue.</p