Letter to Sonora Dodd from M. E. Hay, February 27, 1933

Letter to Sonora Dodd from M. E. Hay of Spokane, Washington. Marion E. Hay served as Governor of Washington State from 1909 to 1913.https://digitalcommons.whitworth.edu/fathers-day-correspondence/1039/thumbnail.jp

Effets d'un entraînement cognitif et d'une immersion en réalité virtuelle sur la cognition et la conduite automobile des seniors

The main objective of this dissertation was to assess the effectiveness of a computerized cognitive training program, combined or not with a driving simulator immersion, on calibration, cognitive and driving performances and subjective well-being of 88 drivers aged 70 and older who were over or under-estimators of their cognitive abilities. Weekly interventions were conducted during three months. An active control group was engaged in a reading magazine activity. Our results show that the cognitive training and the active control activity both improved visual selective attention abilities and driving style (regarding speed adaptation and safety distances). Almost half of the sample (41/88, with 2/3 who were under-estimators), corrected their calibration bias. The driving simulator immersion did not influence the transfer of cognitive training benefits on road. The benefits of the intervention on the self-regulation process to promote the preservation of the driving activity in safe conditions, which is essential for the successful ageing, are discussed. The second objective was to assess the effectiveness of a countermeasure to reduce the simulator sickness, which is a major limitation to the driving simulator use for the older drivers. The effects of the neck galvanic cutaneous stimulation were assessed and did not reduce simulator sickness symptoms of older drivers, contrarily to young drivers. New research avenues are suggested in order to consider the driving simulator as an intervention tool to promote the driving safety.Le premier objectif de cette thèse était d'évaluer l'efficacité d'un programme d'entraînement cognitif informatisé, associé ou non à une immersion sur simulateur de conduite, sur les performances cognitives et de conduite, sur la calibration des capacités cognitives et sur le bien-être de 88 conducteurs âgés de 70 ans et plus qui sur ou sous-estimaient leurs capacités. Des interventions hebdomadaires ont été menées durant trois mois. Un groupe contrôle a effectué une activité de lecture de magazines. Nos résultats indiquent que l'entraînement cognitif, comme l'activité contrôle, ont amélioré les capacités d'attention visuelle sélective et les adaptations comportementales au volant (choix de vitesse et distances de sécurité). Près de la moitié des participants (41/88, dont 2/3 de sous-estimateurs), ont corrigé leur biais de calibration. L'immersion sur simulateur de conduite n'a pas eu d'effet de transfert sur la conduite réelle. Les bénéfices des interventions sur l'initiation du changement de comportement et la mise en place de stratégies d'autorégulation afin de maintenir la conduite dans des conditions sûres, essentielle au vieillissement réussi, sont discutés. Le second objectif de ce travail était d'évaluer l'efficacité d'une contremesure au mal du simulateur, qui limite son utilisation chez les seniors. Les effets d'une stimulation galvanique cutanée de la nuque ont été évalués et n'ont pas révélé de diminution du mal du simulateur chez les seniors, contrairement aux effets observés chez des sujets jeunes. De nouvelles pistes de recherche sont suggérées afin de d'envisager le simulateur comme moyen d'intervention pour promouvoir une conduite automobile sécuritaire

Chemical Defense of the Eastern Newt (Notophthalmus viridescens): Variation in Efficiency against Different Consumers and in Different Habitats

Amphibian secondary metabolites are well known chemically, but their ecological functions are poorly understood—even for well-studied species. For example, the eastern newt (Notophthalmus viridescens) is a well known secretor of tetrodotoxin (TTX), with this compound hypothesized to facilitate this salamander's coexistence with a variety of aquatic consumers across the eastern United States. However, this assumption of chemical defense is primarily based on observational data with low replication against only a few predator types. Therefore, we tested the hypothesis that N. viridescens is chemically defended against co-occurring fishes, invertebrates, and amphibian generalist predators and that this defense confers high survivorship when newts are transplanted into both fish-containing and fishless habitats. We found that adult eastern newts were unpalatable to predatory fishes (Micropterus salmoides, Lepomis macrochirus) and a crayfish (Procambarus clarkii), but were readily consumed by bullfrogs (Lithobates catesbeianus). The eggs and neonate larvae were also unpalatable to fish (L. macrochirus). Bioassay-guided fractionation confirmed that deterrence is chemical and that ecologically relevant concentrations of TTX would deter feeding. Despite predatory fishes rejecting eastern newts in laboratory assays, field experiments demonstrated that tethered newts suffered high rates of predation in fish-containing ponds. We suggest that this may be due to predation by amphibians (frogs) and reptiles (turtles) that co-occur with fishes rather than from fishes directly. Fishes suppress invertebrate consumers that prey on bullfrog larvae, leading to higher bullfrog densities in fish containing ponds and thus considerable consumption of newts due to bullfrog tolerance of newt chemical defenses. Amphibian chemical defenses, and consumer responses to them, may be more complex and indirect than previously appreciated

Review of the Performance of Residential PV systems in Belgium

The main objective of this paper is to review the state of the art of residential PV systems in Belgium by the analysis of the operational data of 993 installations. For that, three main questions are posed: how much energy do they produce? What level of performance is associated to their production? Which are the key parameters that most influence their quality? This work brings answers to these questions. A middling commercial PV system, optimally oriented, produces a mean annual energy of 892 kWh/kWp. As a whole, the orientation of PV generators causes energy productions to be some 6% inferior to optimally oriented PV systems. The mean performance ratio is 78% and the mean performance index is 85%. That is to say, the energy produced by a typical PV system in Belgium is 15% inferior to the energy produced by a very high quality PV system. Finally, on average, the real power of the PV modules falls 5% below its corresponding nominal power announced on the manufacturer's datasheet. Differences between real and nominal power of up to 16% have been detected

Effectiveness of two cognitive training programs on the performance of older drivers with a cognitive self-assessment bias

Purpose: Depending on the calibration of their cognitive abilities, some older drivers (ODs) might stop driving prematurely (under-estimators, UEs) and others could expose themselves to risky situations (over-estimators, OEs). The aim of the study was to compare the effectiveness of two cognitive training (CT) programs intended for ODs presenting a cognitive calibration bias. We hypothesized that CT with feedback on performance can help ODs to correctly calibrate their abilities and consequently adapt their driving behavior.Method: One hundred and six ODs (≥70 years) were assigned to two CT groups (with or without a driving simulator experience, DS). These interventions lasted about 36 h and were distributed over a 3-month period. ODs completed objective and subjective cognitive evaluations and an on-road driving evaluation before and after training.Results: The first results on 67 participants (40 from the CT group, and 27 from the CT + DS group) showed an improvement of their visual processing speed, their divided attention and their selective attention after training. Participants from both groups also had an improved TRIP tactical sub-score (Test Ride for Investigating Practical fitness to drive), indicating a better driving behavioral adaptation. Finally, although both training programs seemed to be equally effective in correcting cognitive calibration bias, the results indicated that 21 UEs and 10 OEs were well calibrated and thus correctly self-assessed their cognitive abilities after training.Conclusion: Both CT programs (with or without DS experience) seem to improve the visual attention of ODs. UEs appeared to be more susceptible than OEs to this training and were better calibrated after it. Document type: Articl

Synthesis of diverse indole-containing scaffolds by gold(I)-catalyzed tandem reactions of 3-propargylindoles initiated by 1,2-indole migrations: scope and computational studies

Similar to propargylic carboxylates and sulphides, 3- propargylindoles undergo 1,2-indole migrations under cationic gold(I)- catalysis. The intermediate Aucarbenoid complex may evolve through different pathways depending on the substituents at the propargylic and terminal positions of the alkyne moiety. Thus, 3-indenylindole derivatives were easily obtained through formal iso- Nazarov or Nazarov cyclizations. DFT computations support the formation of an alkylidenecyclopropane intermediate that undergoes aura-iso-Nazarov or aura-Nazarov cyclizations upon torquoselective ring opening. In addition, 3-dienylindoles could be accessed when none of the referred pathways were accessible and so the intermediate Au-carbenoid complex evolved via a 1,2-CH insertion reaction. We have also demonstrated that the final products can be obtained in a one-pot protocol from easily available propargylic alcohols and indolesMEC/FEDER (CTQ2007-61436/BQU) and Junta de Castilla y León (BU021A09) for financial support. We are also grateful to MEC (FPU predoctoral fellowship to D.M., “Young Foreign Researchers” contract (SB2006-0215) to M.G., “Ramón y Cajal” contract to M.A.F.-R., and “Juan de la Cierva” contract to P.G.-G.) and Fundación Ramón Areces (predoctoral fellowship to A.G.P.).This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Sanz, R., Miguel, D., Gohain, M., García-García, P., Fernández-Rodríguez, Manuel A., González-Pérez, A., Nieto-Faza, O., de Lera, Ángel R. and Rodríguez, F. (2010), Synthesis of Diverse Indole-Containing Scaffolds by Gold(I)-Catalyzed Tandem Reactions of 3-Propargylindoles Initiated by 1,2-Indole Migrations: Scope and Computational Studies. Chem. Eur. J., 16: 9818–9828. doi:10.1002/chem.201001162, which has been published in final form at doi:10.1002/chem.201001162. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archivin

Asymptomatic Carriage of Plasmodium in Urban Dakar: The Risk of Malaria Should Not Be Underestimated

Introduction: The objective of this study was to measure the rate of asymptomatic carriage of plasmodium in the Dakar region two years after the implementation of new strategies in clinical malaria management. Methodology: Between October and December 2008, 2952 households selected in 50 sites of Dakar area, were visited for interviews and blood sampling. Giemsa-stained thick blood smears (TBS) were performed for microscopy in asymptomatic adult women and children aged 2 to 10 years. To ensure the quality of the microscopy, we performed a polymerase chai

Present state and future perspectives of using pluripotent stem cells in toxicology research

The use of novel drugs and chemicals requires reliable data on their potential toxic effects on humans. Current test systems are mainly based on animals or in vitro–cultured animal-derived cells and do not or not sufficiently mirror the situation in humans. Therefore, in vitro models based on human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) have become an attractive alternative. The article summarizes the characteristics of pluripotent stem cells, including embryonic carcinoma and embryonic germ cells, and discusses the potential of pluripotent stem cells for safety pharmacology and toxicology. Special attention is directed to the potential application of embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) for the assessment of developmental toxicology as well as cardio- and hepatotoxicology. With respect to embryotoxicology, recent achievements of the embryonic stem cell test (EST) are described and current limitations as well as prospects of embryotoxicity studies using pluripotent stem cells are discussed. Furthermore, recent efforts to establish hPSC-based cell models for testing cardio- and hepatotoxicity are presented. In this context, methods for differentiation and selection of cardiac and hepatic cells from hPSCs are summarized, requirements and implications with respect to the use of these cells in safety pharmacology and toxicology are presented, and future challenges and perspectives of using hPSCs are discussed