Approach to the production and distribution of Inca Pacajes style: Archaeometric study of fabrics

En este trabajo se pretende avanzar en el conocimiento acerca de la manufactura y circulación de vasijas de estilo Inca Pacajes o Saxamar. Para ello se pusieron a prueba dos estrategias analíticas (a) la petrografía de pastas en secciones delgadas (N = 33) y (b) el análisis químico por fluorescencia de rayos X (N = 18). Los resultados obtenidos de las muestras analizadas procedentes de sitios arqueológicos del noroeste argentino (NOA), sur de Bolivia y norte de Chile indicaron que la mayoría de las pastas conforman un mismo grupo composicional caracterizado por la presencia de abundantes inclusiones de pómez y trizas vítreas, aunque en las muestras del NOA se registraron las mayores diferencias composicionales. Se plantean alternativas para explicar dicha variación en un estilo con amplia distribución geográfica pero mínimamente representado en sitios de época incaica en el NOA.This paper aims to advance knowledge about the manufacture and circulation of Inca Pacajes or Saxamar style vessels. Two analytical strategies were tested: (a) fabric petrography in thin sections (N = 33), and (b) chemical analysis by X-ray Fluorescence (N = 18). The results obtained from the analyzed samples from archaeological sites in northwestern Argentina, southern Bolivia and northern Chile indicated that most of the fabrics are included in the same compositional group characterized by abundant fragments of pumiceous rock and volcanic glass, although more compositional differences were recorded in northwestern Argentine samples. Different alternatives to explain variation in a style with wide geographic distribution but minimally represented in northwestern Argentine Inca sites are provided.Fil: Cremonte, Maria Beatriz. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro de Investigaciones y Transferencia de Jujuy. Universidad Nacional de Jujuy. Centro de Investigaciones y Transferencia de Jujuy; ArgentinaFil: Maro, Guadalupe. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Universidad Nacional de Jujuy; ArgentinaFil: Albarracín de Díaz, Claudia. Universidad Nacional de Jujuy. Instituto de Geología Minera; Argentin

Cytostatic factor inactivation is induced by a calcium-dependent mechanism present until the second cell cycle in fertilized but not in parthenogenetically activated mouse eggs

Cytostatic factor (CSF) is an activity responsible for the metaphase II arrest in vertebrate oocytes. This activity maintains a high level of maturation promoting factor (MPF) in the oocyte and both activities are destroyed after fertilization or parthenogenetic activation. To study some of the characteristics of the mechanism involved in MPF and CSF destruction, we constructed hybrid cells between metaphase II arrested oocytes and early embryos obtained after fertilization or artificial activation. We found that the behavior of hybrid cells differed depending upon the type of oocyte activation. Initially, the reaction of both types of hybrid cells was similar, the nuclear envelope broke down and chromatin condensation was induced. However, while metaphase II oocytes fused with parthenogenetic eggs remained arrested in M-phase, the oocytes fused with fertilized eggs underwent activation and passed into interphase. This ability of fertilized eggs to induce oocyte activation was still present at the beginning, but not at the end of the second embryonic cell cycle. Oocyte activation induced by fusion with a fertilized egg could be prevented when calcium was chelated by BAPTA. Thus, element(s) of the mechanism involved in calcium release triggered by a sperm component at fertilization remain(s) active until the second cell cycle and is (are) inactivated before the end of the 2-cell stage

"Shouldn't I use a polarquestion?" Proper Question Forms Disentangling Inconsistencies in Dialogue Systems

This work reports on the description of a specific class of clarification requests, adopted for the negotiation of pieces of information part of the common ground for argumentation strategies in human-machine interaction. Two studies are carried out to prove the adequateness of a specific form of polar question in a specific pragmatic situation, where a presupposition is contradicted by a new evidence. Whereas the first one proves the appropriateness of the negative form, the second one also demonstrate how the use of such a form, in the aforementioned pragmatic situation, can affect the principle of robustness, in terms of observability and recoverability, important in human–machine interaction applications. Given the results obtained in the two studies, dialogue systems with such capabilities are, therefore, a desirable goal, as they are expected to lead to improved usability and naturalness in conversation. For this reason, I present here a system capable of detecting conflicts and of using argumentation strategies to signal them consistently with previous observations

Targeting CXCR4 reverts the suppressive activity of T-regulatory cells in renal cancer

With the intent to identify biomarkers in renal cell carcinoma (RCC) the functional status of T-regulatory cells (Tregs) was investigated in primary RCC. Tregs were isolated from tumoral-(TT), peritumoral tissue-(PT) and peripheral blood-(PB) of 42 primary RCC patients and function evaluated through effector T cells (Teff) proliferation, cytokines release and demethylation of Treg Specific Region (TSDR). The highest value of Tregs was detected in TT with the uppermost amount of effector-Tregs-(CD4+CD25hiFOXP3hiCD45RA-). PB-RCC Tregs efficiently suppress Teff proliferation compared to healthy donor (HD)-Tregs and, at the intrapatient evaluation, TT-derived Tregs were the most suppressive. Higher demethylation TSDR was detected in TT- and PB-RCC Tregs vs HD-Tregs (P <0,001). CXCR4 is highly expressed on Tregs, thus we wished to modulate Tregs function through CXCR4 inhibition. CXCR4 antagonism, elicited by a new peptidic antagonist, Peptide-R29, efficiently reversed Tregs suppression of Teff proliferation. Thus Tregs functional evaluation precisely reflects Tregs status and may be a reliable biomarker of tumoral immune response. In addition, treatment with CXCR4 antagonist, impairing Tregs function, could improve the anticancer immune response, in combination with conventional therapy and/or immunotherapy such as checkpoints inhibitors

Silent pauses as clarification trigger

Among possible pragmatic feedback an interlocutor can use to acknowledge the degree of understanding of an utterance, clarification requests (CRs) are to be considered. The functional role of CRs can furthermore be expressed via silent pauses - or failed turn-giving moves - which express an understanding problem and are solved through a clarify speech act. In this work, we therefore hypothesise that some silent pauses, in specific conditions, may also have an interactional role which is interpreted by the speaker as a clarification need

Common Ground inconsistencies in dialogue systems: conflict patterns implied by polar question forms

In linguistics, research on dialogue systems has accentuated the need to focus on various pragmatic aspects for their management and modelling. Among the most important pragma-linguistic speech acts in dialogue systems studies are Clarification Requests, corrective feedback that in some circumstances require access to the set of shared knowledge known as Common Ground. Regarding Common Ground management, pragmatic studies suggest differences in the type of polar questions that people prefer be used in Clarification Requests, where polar questions can have two possible answers: true or false. This preference appears to depend on the relationship between bias and contextual evidence. In this work, we show that varying the form of polar questions in a given pragmatic setting can influence the capability of people to track Common Ground inconsistencies. As a result, we demonstrate that using a negative polar question in Italian has functional consequences when communicating conflicting material in the Common Ground. This can improve the quality of human interactions with dialogue systems, in terms of an improved identification of the conflict. The results obtained in this work provide insights into design of error reporting approaches in natural interactions

Common Ground inconsistencies in dialogue systems: conflict patterns implied by polar question forms

In linguistics, research on dialogue systems has accentuated the need to focus on various pragmatic aspects for their management and modelling. Among the most important pragma-linguistic speech acts in dialogue systems studies are Clarification Requests, corrective feedback that in some circumstances require access to the set of shared knowledge known as Common Ground. Regarding Common Ground management, pragmatic studies suggest differences in the type of polar questions that people prefer be used in Clarification Requests, where polar questions can have two possible answers: true or false. This preference appears to depend on the relationship between bias and contextual evidence. In this work, we show that varying the form of polar questions in a given pragmatic setting can influence the capability of people to track Common Ground inconsistencies. As a result, we demonstrate that using a negative polar question in Italian has functional consequences when communicating conflicting material in the Common Ground. This can improve the quality of human interactions with dialogue systems, in terms of an improved identification of the conflict. The results obtained in this work provide insights into design of error reporting approaches in natural interactions