Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus as an Unusual Presentation of Supratentorial Extraventricular Space-Occupying Processes: Report on Two Cases

Normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) is a clinical and radiographic syndrome characterized by ventriculomegaly, abnormal gait, urinary incontinence, and dementia. The condition may occur due to a variety of secondary causes but may be idiopathic in approximately 50% of patients. Secondary causes may include head injury, subarachnoid hemorrhage, meningitis, and central nervous system tumor. Here, we describe two extremely rare cases of supratentorial extraventricular space-occupying processes: meningioma and glioblastoma multiforme, which initially presented with NPH

Divided Differences & Restriction Operator on Paley-Wiener Spaces PWtaupPW_{tau}^{p} for N−N-Carleson Sequences

For a sequence of complex numbers $\Lambda$ we consider the restriction operator $R_{\Lambda}$ defined on Paley-Wiener spaces $PW_{\tau}^{p}$ ($1<p<\infty$). Lyubarskii and Seip gave necessary and sufficient conditions on $\Lambda$ for $R_{\Lambda}$ to be an isomorphism between $PW_{\tau}^{p}$ and a certain weighted $l^{p}$ space. The Carleson condition appears to be necessary. We extend their result to $N-$Carleson sequences (finite unions of $N$ disjoint Carleson sequences). More precisely, we give necessary and sufficient conditions for $R_{\Lambda}$ to be an isomorphism between $PW_{\tau}^{p}$ and an appropriate sequence space involving divided differences

The Specifics of the City Chronotope in L. Andreev’s Story “The Curse of the Beast”

Благодарности: выражаю благодарность своему научному руководителю, заведующей кафедрой русской, зарубежной литературы и массовых коммуникаций БГУ Никитиной Ирине Николаевне за помощь в проделанной работе, мудрые наставления и профессионализм.Acknowledgments: I express my gratitude to my scientific supervisor, Head of the Department of Russian, Foreign Literature and Mass Communications of Bryansk State University Irina N. Nikitina for her help in the work done, wise instructions and professionalism.В статье рассматривается образ города, его роль и функции в сюжете произведения, анализируется рассказ «Проклятие зверя» как художественная система с позиции мотивной структуры, концепции личности, хронотопа города, поэтики и психологизма. Выявляются закономерности воздействия образа города на идейно-тематический комплекс рассказа.The article examines the image of the city, its role and functions in the plot of the work. The stories “The Curse of the Beast” is analyzed as an artistic system from the perspective of the motive structure, the concept of personality, the chronotope of the city, poetics, and psychologism. On the basis of thematic and aesthetic criteria, the regularities of the impact of the city image on the ideological and thematic complex of the story are revealed

Experimental Designs for Binary Data in Switching Measurements on Superconducting Josephson Junctions

We study the optimal design of switching measurements of small Josephson junction circuits which operate in the macroscopic quantum tunnelling regime. Starting from the D-optimality criterion we derive the optimal design for the estimation of the unknown parameters of the underlying Gumbel type distribution. As a practical method for the measurements, we propose a sequential design that combines heuristic search for initial estimates and maximum likelihood estimation. The presented design has immediate applications in the area of superconducting electronics implying faster data acquisition. The presented experimental results confirm the usefulness of the method. KEY WORDS: optimal design, D-optimality, logistic regression, complementary log-log link, quantum physics, escape measurement

Economic performance or electoral necessity? Evaluating the system of voluntary income to political parties

Whilst the public funding of political parties is the norm in western democracies, its comprehensive introduction has been resisted in Britain. Political and electoral arrangements in Britain require parties to function and campaign on a regular basis, whilst their income follows cycles largely related to general elections. This article shows that the best predictor of party income is the necessity of a well-funded general election campaign rather than party performance. As a result, income can only be controlled by parties to a limited degree, which jeopardises their ability to determine their own financial position and fulfil their functions as political parties

‘The longest suicide vote in history’: the Labour Party leadership election of 2015

The Labour leadership contest of 2015 resulted in the election of the veteran Left-wing backbencher, Jeremy Corbyn, who clearly defeated the early favourite, Andy Burnham. Yet Corbyn enjoyed very little support among Labour MPs, and his victory plunged the PLP into turmoil, particularly as he was widely viewed as incapable of leading the Party to victory in the 2020 general election. Given that, much of the established academic literature on Party leadership contests emphasises the ability to foster unity, and thereby render a party electable, as two of the key criteria for electing a new leader, coupled with overall competence, important questions are raised about how and why the Labour Party chose someone to lead them who clearly does not meet these criteria. We will argue that whilst these are the natural priorities of MPs when electing a new leader, in Corbyn’s case, much of the extra-parliamentary Labour Party was more concerned about ideological conviction and purity of principles, regardless of how far these diverged from public opinion. This was especially true of those who signed-up to the Labour Party following the 2015 general election defeat. Indeed, many of these only did so after Corbyn had become a candidate. This clearly suggests a serious tension between maximising intra-party democracy and ensuring the electability of the parliamentary party itself

Objects as Curricula: rethinking the capacities and affects of Blackfoot material artefacts

The late Frank Weasel Head, a Blackfoot Elder, observed of Blackfoot artefacts held in museum collections worldwide that these were not merely objects, but curricula. This paper will discuss the Mootookakio’ssin/Distant Awareness project, which brings together Indigenous and Non-Indigenous artists, museum professionals, archaeologists and anthropologists, led by Blackfoot ceremonial leaders, which has made digital captures of Blackfoot items in UK museum collections (Clark et. al. 2022; Minkin et. al. 2022). This paper asks what capacities were supported and permitted by the process of digital imaging, and what is the effect of considering material artefacts as curricula? Over the last twenty years or more, material culture studies have become an intellectual battleground, with competing accounts of the proper way to study material artefacts debated; from symmetrical archaeology and object oriented ontology, to new materialism. All of these accounts have been influenced by metaphysics, while some of them have also been influenced by, often unacknowledged, Indigenous accounts (see e.g., Todd 2016). Rather than merely giving Indigenous accounts lip service, this paper asks what happens when we take Indigenous philosophies seriously? How does this guide our practices and interpretations? What capacities do digital models have to teach us

Paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) toxin binders for optical biosensor technology: problems and possibilities for the future: a review

This review examines the developments in optical biosensor technology, which uses the phenomenon of surface plasmon resonance, for the detection of paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP) toxins. Optical biosensor technology measures the competitive biomolecular interaction of a specific biological recognition element or binder with a target toxin immobilised onto a sensor chip surface against toxin in a sample. Different binders such as receptors and antibodies previously employed in functional and immunological assays have been assessed. Highlighted are the difficulties in detecting this range of low molecular weight toxins, with analogues differing at four chemical substitution sites, using a single binder. The complications that arise with the toxicity factors of each toxin relative to the parent compound, saxitoxin, for the measurement of total toxicity relative to the mouse bioassay are also considered. For antibodies, the cross-reactivity profile does not always correlate to toxic potency, but rather to the toxin structure to which it was produced. Restrictions and availability of the toxins makes alternative chemical strategies for the synthesis of protein conjugate derivatives for antibody production a difficult task. However, when two antibodies with different cross-reactivity profiles are employed, with a toxin chip surface generic to both antibodies, it was demonstrated that the cross-reactivity profile of each could be combined into a single-assay format. Difficulties with receptors for optical biosensor analysis of low molecular weight compounds are discussed, as are the potential of alternative non-antibody-based binders for future assay development in this area

Mootookakio’ssin Distant Awareness: Digital Imaging, Remote Viewing and Blackfoot items in the collections of Marischal Museum and National Museums Scotland

‘New and changing technologies can work against the people or be harnessed and used in their own worldview’: Narcisse Blood. Mootookakio’ssin began with a circle gathering of Blackfoot Elders and researchers in July 2018 to discuss the digitization of Blackfoot items currently held in museum collections in the UK, and has since expanded to create a trans-Atlantic network of Indigenous and non-Indigenous artists, museum professionals, digital specialists, anthropologists, and archaeologists, guided by Blackfoot ceremonial leaders. Knowledge Holders felt that virtual access utilising digital imaging techniques and spatial web technology would fit with their ongoing efforts to assist in processes of knowledge renewal and transmission. The name, Mootookakio’ssin, was given to the project by Dr. Leroy Little Bear. In English it means distant awareness. The name proved prescient as our collaboration moved from in person events and collection visits to virtual interactions over the pandemic period. Prior to the COVID 19 pandemic, we were planning for members of our group to visit Marischal Museum at the University of Aberdeen, where staff have a long-standing connection with the Blackfoot nations, and the National Museums Collection Centre (NMCC) in Edinburgh, which cares for Blackfoot items never before visited by Blackfoot people. Once it became clear that this visit would not be happening, a new research question emerged: how might we design a remote viewing experience to support the cultural revitalization for Indigenous communities when in-person access is not an option? In this paper we bring our interdisciplinary perspectives to bear on the practicalities, benefits and possibilities of remote viewing. Drawing on our virtual visits to Marischal Museum and NMCC we illustrate how interdisciplinary learning can be used as a methodology to interrogate complex problems and advocate for a greater understanding of the usage and impact of digital imaging practices across disciplines

Synchrotron x-ray fluorescence and extended x-ray absorption fine structure analysis

The advent of dedicated synchrotron radiation sources has led to a significant increase in activity in many areas of science dealing with the interaction of x-rays with matter. Synchrotron radiation provides intense, linearly polarized, naturally collimated, continuously tunable photon beams, which are used to determine not only the elemental composition of a complex, polyatomic, dilute material but also the chemical form of the elements with improved accuracy. Examples of the application of synchrotron radiation include experiments in synchrotron x-ray fluorescence (SXRF) analysis and extended x-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) analysis. New synchrotron radiation x-ray microprobes for elemental analysis in the parts per billion range are under construction at several laboratories. 76 references, 24 figures