Efraïm, een fase die voorbij ging?

Dit onderzoek gaat over de volgende onderzoeksvraag: Is er op basis van de theologie van het boek Rechters en specifiek in de vier teksten waarin de stam Efraïm expliciet wordt gepresenteerd (1,22-36; 5,13-18; 7,23-8,3 en 12,1-7), ondersteuning te vinden voor de hypothese van een aflopende Efraïmitische fase in Israëls Bijbelse geschiedenis, zoals Henk de Jong die presenteert in zijn boek Efraïm - Gods eerste liefde? In hoofdstuk twee is vastgesteld dat de naam Efraïm in de Bijbel voorkomt als naam voor de zoon van Jozef en Asnat, als één van de stammen van Israël, als geografische aanduiding en als synoniem voor het tienstammenrijk. Efraïm als naam voor het tienstammenrijk wordt vaak gebruikt in contrast met het tweestammenrijk. Op basis van recent onderzoek lijkt Efraïm een dominante stam geweest te zijn in de vroege geschiedenis van Israël, maar zeker ook ten tijd van het tienstammenrijk. Dit onderzoek is echter beperkt. Bijbels-theologisch lijkt Efraïm binnen het geheel van stammen van Israël naast en tegenover Juda te staan. In de theologie van Rechters is sprake van een neerwaartse spiraal van verval en afval van JHWH waarin alle stammen deelnemen. Deze spiraal van afval lijkt bij de noordelijke stammen zijn dieptepunt te vinden. De kanaänisering van het volk is daarbij de kern. Tevens wordt duidelijk dat de onderlinge broederschap, die zijn basis vindt in het verbond met JHWH, duidelijk onder druk staat en uit elkaar valt. Er zijn aanwijzingen dat Juda een bijzondere plek krijgt binnen het geheel van de stammen. Dit komt het duidelijkst tot uiting in de proloog, Rechters 1, waar het Huis van Juda tegenover het Huis van Jozef wordt gezet. Het onvermogen om de inwoners te verdrijven uit de proloog wordt gekoppeld aan het sluiten van een verbond met de inwoners van het land door het Huis van Jozef. Efraïm heeft in deze perikoop echter niet dezelfde betekenis als het Huis van Jozef. In Rechters 1 valt Efraïm niet bijzonder op ten opzichte van de andere stammen van het noordelijke rijk. Vanuit Rechters 5 kunnen geen concrete signalen worden afgeleid die van belang zijn voor het onderzoek. Efraïm lijkt niet bijzonder negatief of positie te worden afgeschilderd. In Rechters 7,23-8-3 en Rechters 12,1-7 wordt Efraïm afgeschilderd als een twistzieke stam die verhaal komt halen omdat hij meent dat er geen recht is gedaan aan zijn positie. Efraïm fungeert hier als verbindend element binnen de neerwaartse spiraal. Aan het slot van deze verhalen wordt Efraïm getekend als één van de buitenlandse volken die Israël aanvallen. Binnen het onderzoek is gebleken dat op de elementen verbond, broederschap en de neerwaartse spiraal er signalen zijn voor een aflopende fase in de Bijbelse geschiedenis van het volk Israël. Deze stuiten echter allen op het methodologisch bezwaar dat Efraïm en het tienstammenrijk c.q. het Huis van Jozef in Rechters niet zonder meer aan elkaar gelijk gesteld kunnen worden. De conclusie van dit onderzoek is derhalve dat er te weinig ondersteuning te vinden is in Rechters voor de hypothese van een aflopende Efraïmitische fase. Nader systematisch onderzoek zou nodig zijn om vast te stellen in hoeverre Efraïm in het hele Oude Testament bijbels-theologisch als beeld voor heel Israël fungeert. Daarnaast is het aan te bevelen om nader onderzoek te doen naar de positie van Efraïm in de beginfase van Israëls Bijbelse geschiedenis

Effectiveness of distributed temperature measurements for early detection of piping in river embankments

Abstract. Internal erosion is the cause of a significant percentage of failure and incidents involving both dams and river embankments in many countries. In the past 20 years the use of fibre-optic Distributed Temperature Sensing (DTS) in dams has proved to be an effective tool for the detection of leakages and internal erosion. This work investigates the effectiveness of DTS for dike monitoring, focusing on the early detection of backward erosion piping, a mechanism that affects the foundation layer of structures resting on permeable, sandy soils. The paper presents data from a piping test performed on a large-scale experimental dike equipped with a DTS system together with a large number of accompanying sensors. The effect of seepage and piping on the temperature field is analysed, eventually identifying the processes that cause the onset of thermal anomalies around piping channels and thus enable their early detection. Making use of dimensional analysis, the factors that influence this thermal response of a dike foundation are identified. Finally some tools are provided that can be helpful for the design of monitoring systems and for the interpretation of temperature data

Geobrain: Dutch Feasibility Database for Installing Sheet Pile Walls

In this paper it is shown how the knowledge embedded in case histories can be used to explicate some of the uncertainties contributing to the gap between theory and practice. With the help of computational intelligence techniques, collections of case histories in data-bases, as a type of collective memory of the geotechnical profession may be explored to turn this memory into collective brains in geo-technics: a GeoBrain. Regarding the scarcity of soil investigation data and the translation of the available data into a model, the ‘schematization factor’ has been introduced as a partial safety factor to account for the influence of data availability and the role of human expertise. Using a database of increasing size on the feasibility of installing sheet pile walls, the determination of optimal parameter values for prediction models is illustrated. It is shown that computational intelligence techniques like Bayesian Belief Networks and Genetic Algorithms can be very helpful to improve predictions of what is likely to happen in geotechnical practice

Motor-cortical beta oscillations are modulated by correctness of observed action

Contains fulltext : 73550.pdf (Publisher’s version ) (Closed access)How humans understand the intention of others’ actions remains controversial. Some authors have suggested that intentions are recognized by means of a motor simulation of the observed action with the mirror-neuron system [1–3]. Others emphasize that intention recognition is an inferential process, often called ‘‘mentalizing’’ or employing a ‘‘theory of mind,’’ which activates areas well outside the motor system [4–6]. Here, we assessed the contribution of brain regions involved in motor simulation and mentalizing for understanding action intentions via functional brain imaging. Results show that the inferior frontal gyrus (part of the mirror-neuron system) processes the intentionality of an observed action on the basis of the visual properties of the action, irrespective of whether the subject paid attention to the intention or not. Conversely, brain areas that are part of a ‘‘mentalizing’’ network become active when subjects reflect about the intentionality of an observed action, but they are largely insensitive to the visual properties of the observed action. This supports the hypothesis that motor simulation and mentalizing have distinct but complementary functions for the recognition of others’ intentions

Lessons Learned from a Full-Scale Dyke Failure Test

A full-scale failure test has been performed on an old river dyke in the Netherlands, to determine its actual strength against failure due to the uplift mechanism and to validate the Van model for the stability analysis of dykes prone to uplift induced failure. The test has been a success and clearly showed the relevance and significance of the uplift mechanism. In combination with earlier verifications, the Van model was found to be suitable, which has already lead to significant reductions on dyke reinforcement projects. The large gap between the actual strength and the calculated strength was confirmed. This gap appeared to be partly necessary because of the large variation in the results of dyke stability analyses by different geotechnical consultants. For the near future, the test may serve as an important benchmark for the development of a more rationally based safety philosophy

Overflow Tests on Grass-Covered Embankments at the Living Lab Hedwige-Prosperpolder: An Overview

In regions with a temperate climate, a well-maintained grass sod on a clay layer is considered a reliable protection for dams and dikes. In the Living Lab Hedwige-Prosperpolder, on the left bank of the Scheldt river straddling the border between Belgium and the Netherlands, a series of 27 overflow tests with a purpose-built overflow generator has been executed to determine the strength of the protective layer against erosion at various conditions. The goal of this paper is to inform on the executed test program and the initial results. From the results, it was concluded that in general, a high-quality grass cover on the landside dike slope can withstand high overflow discharges well for 12 to 30 h, without severe erosion damage. Anomalies, such as the presence of animal burrows, reed vegetation, and already present deformations can strongly reduce the resistance of the cover layer and may lead to failure within a couple of hours

Sensory testing in leprosy:Comparison of ballpoint pen and monofilaments

The 10 g monofilament has been replaced by the ballpoint pen in routine sensory testing of nerves in leprosy control in Ethiopia. Results of sensory testing between the ballpoint pen and different monofilaments on hands and feet were compared. Ballpoint pen underdiagnosis of loss of sensation was defined to occur when the pen was felt and the monofilament was not. Differences were evaluated both for individual test points (test point level) and for the test points of extremities collectively (extremity level). An extremity (either a hand or a foot) was defined as having sensory nerve function impairment (SNFI) if a supplying nerve had SNFI, which was the case when sensation was absent in two or more test points in the area supplied by that nerve. At test point level, the percentages with ballpoint pen underdiagnosis relative to the 2, 10, 20 and 50 g monofilaments were 40, 21, 9 and 7%, respectively, in the hands, and 47, 30, 15 and 7% in the feet. Ballpoint pen underdiagnosis percentages of SNFI at extremity level were 32, 18, 8 and 9% in the hands, and 37, 26, 14 and 6% in the feet. The risk of ballpoint pen underdiagnosis appears to be higher in extremities without visible damage. In conclusion, substantial levels of underdiagnosis of sensory loss with the ballpoint pen were observed. However, the consequences for the prognosis of treatment with corticosteroids in patients with the more subtle sensation loss noted here need to be established. Development and testing of guidelines is a prerequisite for the use of the ballpoint pen

Nonlinear parameter‐varying state‐feedback design for a gyroscope using virtual control contraction metrics

In this article, we present a virtual control contraction metric (VCCM) based nonlinear parameter-varying approach to design a state-feedback controller for a control moment gyroscope (CMG) to track a user-defined trajectory set. This VCCM based nonlinear (NL) stabilization and performance synthesis approach, which is similar to linear parameter-varying (LPV) control approaches, allows to achieve exact guarantees of exponential stability and (Formula presented.) -gain performance on NL systems with respect to all trajectories from the predetermined set, which is not the case with the conventional LPV methods. Simulation and experimental studies conducted in both fully- and under-actuated operating modes of the CMG show effectiveness of this approach compared with standard LPV control methods

Studying genetics of adaptive variation in model organisms: flowering time variation in Arabidopsis lyrata

Arabidopsis thaliana has emerged as a model organism for plant developmental genetics, but it is also now being widely used for population genetic studies. Outcrossing relatives of A. thaliana are likely to provide suitable additional or alternative species for studies of evolutionary and population genetics. We have examined patterns of adaptive flowering time variation in the outcrossing, perennial A. lyrata. In addition, we examine the distribution of variation at marker genes in populations form North America and Europe. The probability of flowering in this species differs between southern and northern populations. Northern populations are much less likely to flower in short than in long days. A significant daylength by region interaction shows that the northern and southern populations respond differently to the daylength. The timing of flowering also differs between populations, and is made shorter by long days, and in some populations, by vernalization. North American and European populations show consistent genetic differentiation over microsatellite and isozyme loci and alcohol dehydrogenase sequences. Thus, the patterns of variation are quite different from those in A. thaliana, where flowering time differences show little relationship to latitude of origin and the genealogical trees of accessions vary depending on the genomic region studied. The genetic architecture of adaptation can be compared in these species with different life historie

Manual blood exchange transfusion does not significantly contribute to parasite clearance in artesunate-treated individuals with imported severe Plasmodium falciparum malaria

Background: Exchange transfusion (ET) has remained a controversial adjunct therapy for the treatment of severe malaria. In order to assess the relative contribution of ET to parasite clearance in severe malaria, all patients receiving ET as an adjunct treatment to parenteral quinine or to artesunate were compared with patients treated with parenteral treatment with quinine or artesunate but who did not receive ET. ET was executed using a standardized manual isovolumetric exchange protocol. Methods. All patients in the Rotterdam Malaria Cohort treated for severe P. falciparum malaria at the Institute for Tropical Diseases of the Harbour Hospital between 1999 and 2011 were included in this retrospective follow-up study. Both a two-stage approach and a log-linear mixed model approach were used to estimate parasite clearance times