Joseph-Thomas LeBlanc et les « vieilles chansons acadiennes »

The folklorist Joseph-Thomas LeBlanc was a pioneering figure in the study of intangible cultural heritage in Acadia. Between 1938 and 1941, he managed a column entitled “Nos vielles chansons acadiennes” (“our old Acadian songs”) in the periodical La Voix d’Évangéline (The Voice of Evangeline). In order to collect the songs in which he was interested, LeBlanc used an unusual ethnographic method that involved asking his readers to send him song lyrics by mail. The short studies that he produced inspired the research of Marius Barbeau and his Romancero du Canada. LeBlanc had incidentally dreamt of publishing his own analytical work, a kind of “Acadian romancero,” but he died prematurely in 1943.Le folkloriste Joseph-Thomas LeBlanc fait figure de pionnier en ce qui concerne l'étude du patrimoine immatériel en Acadie. Entre 1938 et 1941, il tient une chronique intitulée « Nos vieilles chansons acadiennes » dans le journal La Voix d'Évangéline. Afin de collecter les oeuvres auxquelles il s'intéresse, LeBlanc recourt à une méthode ethnographique inusitée en demandant à ses lecteurs de lui envoyer des paroles de chansons par la poste. Ces courtes études qu'il réalise s'inspirent des recherches de Marius Barbeau et de son Romancero du Canada. LeBlanc caresse d'ailleurs le rêve de publier son propre ouvrage critique, un « romancero acadien » en quelque sorte, mais il décède prématurément en 1943

Genome-wide acceleration of protein evolution in flies (Diptera)

BACKGROUND: The rate of molecular evolution varies widely between proteins, both within and among lineages. To what extent is this variation influenced by genome-wide, lineage-specific effects? To answer this question, we assess the rate variation between insect lineages for a large number of orthologous genes. RESULTS: When compared to the beetle Tribolium castaneum, we find that the stem lineage of flies and mosquitoes (Diptera) has experienced on average a 3-fold increase in the rate of evolution. Pairwise gene comparisons between Drosophila and Tribolium show a high correlation between evolutionary rates of orthologous proteins. CONCLUSION: Gene specific divergence rates remain roughly constant over long evolutionary times, modulated by genome-wide, lineage-specific effects. Among the insects analysed so far, it appears that the Tribolium genes show the lowest rates of divergence. This has the practical consequence that homology searches for human genes yield significantly better matches in Tribolium than in Drosophila. We therefore suggest that Tribolium is better suited for comparisons between phyla than the widely employed dipterans

Climate Change in Northern Quebec: Adaptation Strategies from Community-Based Research

Arctic communities are recently reporting warmer and shorter winters, which have implications for the ice season and, consequently, on the access to local territories and resources by members of these communities. These climatic shifts are resulting in increased risks for travel during the winter season associated with less stable and thinner ice. An integrated community-based monitoring (ICBM) program was developed in Nunavik to generate adaptation tools to support safe access to land and resources and to enhance local adaptive capacity through participation in community-based monitoring activities. The Nunavik ICBM approach brings together partners (northern communities, Canadian universities, and various organizations) that have different perspectives on the issues surrounding land and resources in Nunavik. The ICBM project also brings together traditional knowledge and scientific knowledge, linking data collected through semi-structured interviews, local ethnocartographic interviews, and ice-monitoring activities with data gathered at weather stations. The partnership-based Nunavik ICBM program dealing with territory and resource access is an example of communities and scientists working together to improve our understanding of climate change impacts in the North, their importance for aboriginal people, and the ways in which an integrated, cooperative research process can develop local adaptive capacity.Les communautés arctiques rapportent depuis quelques années des hivers plus chauds et plus courts qui ont des implications sur la saison de glace et par conséquent sur l’accès au territoire et aux ressources locales par les membres de ces communautés. Ces conditions climatiques ont comme conséquence d’augmenter les risques lors des voyages hivernaux en raison de glaces instables et plus minces. Un programme intégré de surveillance des glaces (PISG) a été développé au Nunavik pour produire des outils d’adaptation visant à soutenir l’accès sécuritaire au territoire et aux ressources et pour augmenter la capacité d’adaptation locale par la participation communautaire aux activités de surveillance. L’approche du PISG rassemble plusieurs partenaires (les communautés nordiques, universités canadiennes et différents organismes) qui s’intéressent particulièrement aux questions d’accès au territoire et aux ressources au Nunavik et y apportent des perspectives variées. Le projet du PISG intègre le savoir traditionnel et le savoir scientifique utilisant plusieurs sources de données (provenant des entrevues semi-structurées, des entrevues ethno-cartographiques locales, de la surveillance de glace et des données météorologiques). Le PISG est un exemple de partenariat entre les communautés nordiques et les scientifiques qui permet de mieux comprendre les impacts des changements climatiques en cours dans le nord, leur importance sur les peuples autochtones et la façon dont la capacité d’adaptation locale peut être développée par une recherche intégrée et coopérative

Reliability and Validity of the Ethiopian Version of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) in HIV Infected Patients

The hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS) is a widely used instrument for evaluating psychological distress from anxiety and depression. HADS has not yet been validated in Ethiopia. The aim of this study was to evaluate the reliability and validity of the Amharic (Ethiopian language) version of HADs among HIV infected patients.The translated scale was administered to 302 HIV/AIDS patients on follow up for and taking anti-retroviral treatment. Consistency assessment was conducted using Cronbach's alpha, test-retest reliability using intra-class correlation coefficients (ICC). Construct validity was examined using principal components analysis (PCA). Parallel analysis, Kaiser's criterion and the scree test were used for factor extraction.The internal consistency was 0.78 for the anxiety, 0.76 for depression subscales and 0.87 for the full scale of HADS. The intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) was 80%, 86%, and 84% for the anxiety and depression subscales, and total score respectively. PCA revealed a one dimensional scale.This preliminary validation study of the Ethiopian version of the HADs indicates that it has promising acceptability, reliability and validity. The adopted scale has a single underlying dimension as indicated by Razavi's model. The HADS can be used to examine psychological distress in HIV infected patients. Findings are discussed and recommendations made

Using sulphide indicator mineral chemistry for ore discrimination and targeting in the Churchill Province, northern Quebec, Canada

The Churchill Province in northern Quebec consists of Archean to Proterozoic basement rocks, which have undergone a complex orogenic and metamorphic history. The vast majority of these rocks are covered by Quaternary glacial deposits that display a complex geomorphology reflecting important variations in the glacial dynamics. Occasional mineralized outcrops have been identified south from the Ungava Bay in the Churchill Province during mapping surveys. However, this area has been underexplored owing to the thick sedimentary cover, which limits the effectiveness of conventional exploration methods. Heavy mineral separation from till and esker samples reveals the presence of thousands of sulphide grains, namely pyrite and chalcopyrite, and lesser amounts of sulfarsenides (löllingite and arsenopyrite), which is indicative of the presence of underlying mineralized rocks. As a result, this area is ideal to test the use of sulphide indicator mineral chemistry for mineral assessment and vectoring. In this study, we focus on integrating sulphide indicator mineral chemistry determined by laser ablation inductively coupled mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) with the geology of glacial deposits. Trace-element signatures of pyrite and chalcopyrite grains indicate two distinct compositions for the sulphide minerals present in the glacial deposits and suggest there is strong potential for magmatic and hydrothermal mineralisation. Integrated maps combining sample locations and sulphide grain compositions and populations allow to delineate vectors toward potential economic targets

The Large Enriched Germanium Experiment for Neutrinoless Double Beta Decay (LEGEND)

The observation of neutrinoless double-beta decay (0${\nu}{\beta}{\beta}$) would show that lepton number is violated, reveal that neutrinos are Majorana particles, and provide information on neutrino mass. A discovery-capable experiment covering the inverted ordering region, with effective Majorana neutrino masses of 15 - 50 meV, will require a tonne-scale experiment with excellent energy resolution and extremely low backgrounds, at the level of $\sim$0.1 count /(FWHM$\cdot$t$\cdot$yr) in the region of the signal. The current generation $^{76}$Ge experiments GERDA and the MAJORANA DEMONSTRATOR utilizing high purity Germanium detectors with an intrinsic energy resolution of 0.12%, have achieved the lowest backgrounds by over an order of magnitude in the 0${\nu}{\beta}{\beta}$ signal region of all 0${\nu}{\beta}{\beta}$ experiments. Building on this success, the LEGEND collaboration has been formed to pursue a tonne-scale $^{76}$Ge experiment. The collaboration aims to develop a phased 0${\nu}{\beta}{\beta}$ experimental program with discovery potential at a half-life approaching or at $10^{28}$ years, using existing resources as appropriate to expedite physics results.Comment: Proceedings of the MEDEX'17 meeting (Prague, May 29 - June 2, 2017

Search for Kaluza-Klein Graviton Emission in ppˉp\bar{p} Collisions at s=1.8\sqrt{s}=1.8 TeV using the Missing Energy Signature

We report on a search for direct Kaluza-Klein graviton production in a data sample of 84 ${pb}^{-1}$ of \ppb collisions at $\sqrt{s}$ = 1.8 TeV, recorded by the Collider Detector at Fermilab. We investigate the final state of large missing transverse energy and one or two high energy jets. We compare the data with the predictions from a $3+1+n$-dimensional Kaluza-Klein scenario in which gravity becomes strong at the TeV scale. At 95% confidence level (C.L.) for $n$=2, 4, and 6 we exclude an effective Planck scale below 1.0, 0.77, and 0.71 TeV, respectively.Comment: Submitted to PRL, 7 pages 4 figures/Revision includes 5 figure