Seismic slip on the west flank of the Upper Rhine Graben (France-Germany) : evidence from tectonic morphology and cataclastic deformation bands

Intraplate large and moderate earthquakes have occurred along the Upper Rhine Graben (URG) in the past but no coseismic surface faulting has been reported so far. We investigate the 25-km-long linear Riedseltz-Landau normal fault scarp affecting late Pleistocene and Holocene deposits of the western edge of the northern URG. The fault zone with cataclastic deformation textures is exposed in the Riedseltz quarry where it affects Pliocene and late Pleistocene (Wurm) units. Cataclasis is demonstrated by spalling and transgranular fractures in quartz grains concentrated in deformation bands with reduced grain size. The observed microstructures suggest multiple phases of deformation with cataclasis followed by emplacement of Fe-oxide matrix into deformation bands, and later emplacement of a clay-rick matrix into fractures. Previous studies along the fault show late Pleistocene (Wurm) loess deposits and early Holocene sand-silty deposits with 1.5 m and 0.7 m surface slip, respectively. New and previous results provide a minimum 0.15 mm/yr slip rate. A dislocation model suggests a minimum Mw 6.6 earthquake as a plausible scenario in the western edge of northern URG. Surface faulting in young sediments associated with cataclasis provides new evidence for assessing the occurrence of large earthquakes and seismic hazard assessment in the northern URG

Early detection of markers for synaesthesia in childhood populations

We show that the neurological condition of synaesthesia-which causes fundamental differences in perception and cognition throughout a lifetime-is significantly represented within the childhood population, and that it manifests behavioural markers as young as age 6 years. Synaesthesia gives rise to a merging of cognitive and/or sensory functions (e.g. in grapheme-colour synaesthesia, reading letters triggers coloured visual photisms) and adult synaesthesia is characterized by a fixed pattern of paired associations for each synaesthete (e.g. if a is carmine red, it is always carmine red). We demonstrate that the onset of this systematicity can be detected in young grapheme-colour synaesthetes, but is an acquired trait with a protracted development. We show that grapheme-colour synaesthesia develops in a way that supersedes the cognitive growth of non-synaesthetic children (with both average and superior abilities) in a comparable paired association task. With methodology based on random sampling and behavioural tests of genuineness, we reveal the prevalence of grapheme-colour synaesthesia in children (over 170 000 grapheme-colour synaesthetes ages 0-17 in the UK, and over 930 000 in the US), the progression of the condition in longitudinal testing, and the developmental differences between synaesthetes and non-synaesthetes in matched tasks. We tested 615 children age 6-7 years from 21 primary schools in the UK. Each child was individually assessed with a behavioural test for grapheme-colour synaesthesia, which first detects differences between synaesthetes and non-synaesthetes, and then tracks the development of each group across 12 months (from ages 6/7 to 7/8 years). We show that the average UK primary school has 2-3 grapheme-colour synaesthetes at any time (and the average US primary school has five) and that synaesthetic associations (e.g. a = carmine red) develop from chaotic pairings into a system of fixed, consistent cogno-sensory responses over time. Our study represents the first assessment of synaesthesia in a randomly sampled childhood population demonstrating the real-time development of the condition. We discuss the complex profile of benefits and costs associated with synaesthesia, and our research calls for a dialogue between researchers, clinicians and educators to highlight the prevalence and characteristics of this unusual condition

The Prevalence of Grapheme-Colour Synaesthesia in 6-7 year olds

Grapheme-colour synaesthesia, (i.e., the automatic and consistent association of colours with letters and/or numbers), is estimated to be prevalent in just over 1% of the adult population. As yet, few published studies have assessed this relatively common phenomenon in children, nor do we understand its developmental patterns. Experiment 1 (immediate-retest condition) tested 383 primary school children (aged 6-7) for grapheme-colour synaesthesia by asking participants to choose the ‘best’ colour for each of 36 graphemes, and then performing an immediate surprise retest. Data was combined with that from Simner, Creed and Faulkes (2005) in order to provide a large sample size of 618 children, from which to gain a prevalence estimate. An initial estimate of grapheme-colour synaesthesia was found to be 4.2%. However, this value confounds true synaesthetes with children who performed well by superior memory alone. Hence Experiment 2 (1-year retest) retested 59 participants (40 controls, 19 potential synaesthetes) who originally took part in a childhood prevalence study by Simner, Creed et al. (2005). Findings showed that five of the potential synaesthetes (26.3%) continued to consistently associate colours to letters and numbers one year later. Applying this proportion to the data of Experiment 1 suggests that 1.1% of the 618 children tested (age 6-7) were true synaesthetes. Finally, the scores in immediate-retest consistency at Time 1 and Time 2 (1 year apart) were also compared, in order to assess developmental patterns of the condition. There was an average increase in consistency by true synaesthetes of 2.6 graphemes, compared to controls, who showed a smaller average increase of 1.1 graphemes, and to superior memory performers who showed an average decrease of 3.5 graphemes. This suggests that child synaesthetes have a distinct developmental pattern

Seismic slip on the west flank of the Upper Rhine Graben (France-Germany): Evidence from tectonic morphology and cataclastic deformation bands

International audienc

The Effect of Cold Treatment of Parboiled Rice with Lowered Glycaemic Potency on Consumer Liking and Acceptability

A significant reduction in rice starch digestibility and subsequent postprandial blood glucose responses following extended cold treatment (at 4 °C for 24 h) have been demonstrated in both in vitro and in vivo studies, respectively. The impact of cold treatment was more significant for parboiled rice compared to other rice varieties. This study aimed to investigate consumer liking of sensory characteristics that may influence consumer acceptability of three available rice products in the Auckland region (medium grain white, medium grain brown and parboiled rice, which were either freshly boiled or cold-treated and reheated). The consumer liking of sensory characteristics (colour, taste, flavour, and texture) of each rice sample were accessed using visual analogue scales (VAS) in a randomized single blind setting. In the second stage, the participants evaluated their acceptability on VAS after the nutritional value and the characteristics of the rice samples were revealed. Sixty-four rice consumers reported higher likings of sensory characteristics of cold-treated parboiled rice and medium grain brown rice. The effect of cold treatment on the liking of sensory characteristics was more significant for parboiled rice (p < 0.05). Participants who are between 36 and 55 years old and consume rice domestically more than 10 times per month preferred cold-treated brown rice (73.8% of the participants’ population (67.4%, 80.2%)) and parboiled rice (74.3% of the participants’ population (67.9%, 80.7%)) (p < 0.001). As a result, cold-treated reheated parboiled rice received higher likings and acceptability and could be recommended and accepted as a healthier replacement of the daily staple meal

Effect of Cold Storage and Reheating of Parboiled Rice on Postprandial Glycaemic Response, Satiety, Palatability and Chewed Particle Size Distribution

Background: Globally, hot cooked refined rice is consumed in large quantities and is a major contributor to dietary glycaemic load. This study aimed to compare the glycaemic potency of hot- and cold-stored parboiled rice to widely available medium-grain white rice. Method: Twenty-eight healthy volunteers participated in a three-treatment experiment where postprandial blood glucose was measured over 120 min after consumption of 140 g of rice. The three rice samples were freshly cooked medium-grain white rice, freshly cooked parboiled rice, and parboiled rice stored overnight at 4°C. All rice was served warm at 65°C. Chewing time was recorded. Results: incremental area under the curve (iAUC) of the control rice, freshly cooked medium-grain white rice, was the highest: 1.7-fold higher (1.2, 2.6) than reheated parboiled rice (p < 0.001) and 1.5-fold higher (1.0, 2.2) than freshly cooked parboiled rice (p = 0.001). No significant difference in postprandial glycaemic response was observed between freshly cooked and reheated parboiled rice samples (p = 0.445). Chewing time for 10 g cold-stored parboiled rice was 6 s (25%) longer and was considered more palatable, visually appealing and better tasting than freshly cooked medium-grain (all p < 0.05). Conclusions: For regular consumers of rice, reheating cooked rice after cold storage would lower the dietary glycaemic load and, in the long term, may reduce the risk for type 2 and gestational diabetes. More trials are needed to identify the significance

Autotransfusion decreases blood usage following cardiac surgery - a prospective randomized trial

Introduction: 10% of blood issued by the National Blood Service (220 000) is utilised in cardiac procedures. Transfusion reactions, infection risk and cost should stimulate us to decrease this transfusion rate. We tested the efficacy of autotransfusion of washed postoperative mediastinal fluid in a prospective randomized trial.Patients and methods: 166 patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), valve or CABG+valve procedures were randomized into three groups. The indication for transfusion was a postoperative haemoglobin (Hb) &lt;10g/l or a packed cell volume (PCV) &lt;30. When applicable, group A patients received washed post-operative drainage fluid. Group B all received blood processed from the cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) circuit following separation from CPB and if appropriate washed post-operative drainage fluid. Group C were controls. Groups were compared using analysis of variance.Results: There was no significant difference in age, sex, type of operation, CPB time and preoperative Hb and PCV between the groups. Blood requirements were as shown. [see table 3 in main text]Twelve patients in group A and 10 in group B did not require a homologous transfusion following processing of the mediastinal drainage fluid.Conclusion: Autotransfusion of washed postoperative mediastinal fluid can decrease the amount of homologous blood transfused following cardiac surgery. There was no demonstrable benefit in processing blood from the CPB circuit as well as mediastinal drainage fluid