Characterizing Cautious Choice

The class of maximin actions in general decision problems is characterized.Maximin actions;Decision problems

Transfers, Contracts and Strategic Games

This paper analyses the role of transfer payments and strategic con- tracting within two-person strategic form games with monetary pay- offs. First, it introduces the notion of transfer equilibrium as a strat- egy combination for which individual stability can be supported by allowing the possibility of transfers of the induced payoffs. Clearly, Nash equilibria are transfer equilibria, but under common regularity conditions the reverse is also true. This result typically does not hold for finite games without the possibility of randomisation, and transfer equilibria for this particular class are studied in some detail. The second part of the paper introduces, also within the setting of finite games, contracting on monetary transfers as an explicit strategic option, resulting in an associated two-stage contract game. In the first stage of the contract game each player has the option of proposing transfer schemes for an arbitrary collection of outcomes. Only if the players fully agree on the entire set of transfer proposals, the payoffs of the game to be played in the second stage are modified accordingly. The main results provide explicit characterisations of the sets of payoff vectors that are supported by Nash equilibrium and virtual subgame perfect equilibrium, respectively.monetary transfer scheme;transfer equilibrium;contract game;virtual subgame perfect equilibrium;Folk theorems

Vulvar Tuberculosis-A Rare Manifestation of the Disease

Tuberculosis is an infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. According to data from the World Health Organization, this disease remains one of the leading causes of death worldwide. Although it most commonly affects the lungs, tuberculosis can compromise any organ. The present study reports a rare case of vulvar tuberculosis in a postmenopausal woman with a history of asymptomatic pulmonary and pleural tuberculosis, with no prior documented contact with the bacillus. Diagnosis was based on vulvar lesion biopsies, with histological findings suggestive of infection and isolation of M. tuberculosis by microbiological culture and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) essays. The lesions reverted to normal after tuberculostatic therapy.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Portuguese Adaptation of Students Engagement in Schools International Scale (SESIS)

The importance of student’s engagement has been recently pointed out in research. However, there has been a lack of engagement assessment instrument, pertaining psychometric qualities. Objective: This paper presents the Portuguese adaptation of the “Student’s Engagement in School International Scale” (SESIS), drawn up from a12 countries international study (Lam et al., 2012; Lam et al., in press). Method: Psychometric properties of this scale were examined with data from 685 students from different grades (6th, 7th, 9th and 10th), from both sexes, and different regions of the country. Results: Factorial analysis of the results, with varimax rotation, lead to three different factors which explain 50.88% of the variance. The scale integrates the original 33 items, and cognitive, affective and behavioural dimensions. For the external validity study, the relationship between student’s engagement in school results and other school variables — academic performance, self-concept — was considered, and significant relations were observed, as expected. Conclusion: The data presented highlights the qualities of SESIS, as well as its usefulness for research purposes. Suggestion: It is suggested the investigation of the extension of SESIS’s three-dimensionality, in future studiesKeywords: Innovation, technology, research projects, etc. [Arial 10-point, justified alignment]

Transfers, Contracts and Strategic Games

This paper analyses the role of transfer payments and strategic con- tracting within two-person strategic form games with monetary pay- offs. First, it introduces the notion of transfer equilibrium as a strat- egy combination for which individual stability can be supported by allowing the possibility of transfers of the induced payoffs. Clearly, Nash equilibria are transfer equilibria, but under common regularity conditions the reverse is also true. This result typically does not hold for finite games without the possibility of randomisation, and transfer equilibria for this particular class are studied in some detail. The second part of the paper introduces, also within the setting of finite games, contracting on monetary transfers as an explicit strategic option, resulting in an associated two-stage contract game. In the first stage of the contract game each player has the option of proposing transfer schemes for an arbitrary collection of outcomes. Only if the players fully agree on the entire set of transfer proposals, the payoffs of the game to be played in the second stage are modified accordingly. The main results provide explicit characterisations of the sets of payoff vectors that are supported by Nash equilibrium and virtual subgame perfect equilibrium, respectively.

Characterizing Cautious Choice

The class of maximin actions in general decision problems is characterized.

Implication of Trimethylamine N-Oxide (TMAO) in disease: Potential biomarker or new therapeutic target

Trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) is a molecule generated from choline, betaine, and carnitine via gut microbial metabolism. The plasma level of TMAO is determined by several factors including diet, gut microbial flora, drug administration and liver flavin monooxygenase activity. In humans, recent clinical studies evidence a positive correlation between elevated plasma levels of TMAO and an increased risk for major adverse cardiovascular events. A direct correlation between increased TMAO levels and neurological disorders has been also hypothesized. Several therapeutic strategies are being explored to reduce TMAO levels, including use of oral broad spectrum antibiotics, promoting the growth of bacteria that use TMAO as substrate and the development of target-specific molecules. Despite the accumulating evidence, it is questioned whether TMAO is the mediator of a bystander in the disease process. Thus, it is important to undertake studies to establish the role of TMAO in human health and disease. In this article, we reviewed dietary sources and metabolic pathways of TMAO, as well as screened the studies suggesting possible involvement of TMAO in the etiology of cardiovascular and neurological disorders, underlying the importance of TMAO mediating inflammatory processes. Finally, the potential utility of TMAO as therapeutic target is also analyzed

Ocurrencia simultánea de neurofibromatosis y esclerosis tuberosa, adquiridas como neomutaciones

Introducción. La neurofibromatosis tipo 1 y la esclerosis tuberosa son dos síndromes neurocutáneos distintos, resultado de la mutación de genes supresores tumorales, que aumentan la propensión a la génesis tumoral. Ambas tienen una herencia autosómica dominante y la mitad de los casos corresponden a nuevas mutaciones. Estas enfermedades raramente se presentan asociadas. Caso clínico. Niño sin antecedentes familiares de enfermedades neurocutáneas, que presenta características de neurofibromatosis y de esclerosis tuberosa, principalmente manchas ‘café con leche’ (seis de ellas con un diámetro superior a 0,5 cm), macrocefalia, glioma del nervio óptico y alteraciones focales de vacuolización de la mielina en la sustancia blanca de los hemisferios cerebelosos, tronco cerebral y ganglios de la base, características de la neurofibromatosis tipo 1. Por otro lado, presenta manchas hipopigmentadas, espasmos infantiles y evaluación imaginológica de las áreas de alteración de la mielinización de la corteza para la sustancia blanca, calcificaciones en el surco talamocaudado a la izquierda, tuberosidades corticales, displasia cortical focal de Taylor y múltiples nódulos subependimarios, características que son compatibles con la esclerosis tuberosa. El niño también presenta retraso en el desarrollo psicomotor. Conclusión. El diagnóstico de ambas enfermedades se confirmó gracias al estudio genético. La evaluación de los progenitores fue negativa, por lo que se puede confirmar la presencia de dos neomutaciones concomitantes, un hecho que es excepcionalmente raro