Can one believe in the results of science insofar as doubt is one of the first qualities of the scientist?

Le doute pratiqué par les hommes de sciences n’est pas celui que proposent les sceptiques aux yeux de qui nos savoirs sont des illusions liées à notre crédulité. Les scientifiques ont la conviction que le monde est intelligible et que l’on peut y accéder de façon efficace en mettant en œuvre une méthode critique basée sur l’approche empirique, l’observation, l’expérimentation, l’induction et la mise en équation mathématiques des résultats. Cette pratique rigoureuse permet à l’homme d’anticiper de mieux en mieux la manifestation de certains phénomènes, donc d’augmenter notre confiance vitale et notre sentiment de sécurité face à un monde improbable auquel les êtres vivants sont confrontés.The role of vitamin D in the organism in general and on the liver particularly, firstly depends on the genetic heritage and also on environmental factors, especially sun exposure and in lesser measure on dietary intakes. The main part of vitamin D is related to phosphocalcic and bone metabolism but, as it affects the activity of more than 200 genes, it is also involved in nonspecific acquired immunity in the cardiovascular system, liver and infections. Regarding the liver, deficiency is frequently observed in chronic hepatic diseases and severe deficiency might be involved in the worsening of liver condition. Clinical trials are nevertheless necessary to assess the interest, the efficiency and the optimal mode of supplementation. The HAS reminded in October 2013 the rules of good practice and limits the dosage of vitamin D to well-defined cases: diagnosis of rickets and osteomalacia, some drug prescription against osteoporosis, adult kidney transplant or after obesity surgery, elderly who are victims of repeated falls and eventually at high risk of fractures. In all other situations, currently available data is inadequate to determine the clinical usefulness of vitamin D dosage. Finally, taking into account the frequency of the deficit, it might be interesting to redefine, in a near future, the thresholds of normality and review the recommended daily intake

Les cercles fonctionnels de von Uexküll en tant que modes existentiels

L’idée de naturaliser la phénoménologie peut paraître comme une réduction de la perspective transcendantale au rêve d’une science de la nature animée du désir de connaître le réel tel qu’il est. Or, les dérives du positivisme ont montré l’intérêt qu’il y a, pour le scientifique, d’un regard aux conditions subjectives a priori de la libido sciendi. Faut-il rappeler von Uexküll : les vivants se comportent à l’égard de leur environnement comme des sujets équipés pour s’y orienter activement et assurer leur existence ? Vues sous cet angle, les sciences de la nature apparaissent dès lors pour ce qu’elles sont, – des sciences de l’homme !The idea of naturalizing phenomenology might evoque that of reducing the transcendantal viewpoint to the dream of a natural science anxious to know reality as it is. Thus, the former lapses of positivism showed how important it is for the scientist to look at the a priori subjective conditions of libido sciendi. Let’s remember von Uexküll: living beings behave in their environment as agents provided with the necessary means to orient themselves and ensure their living in it. Considered from the same point of view, natural sciences appear as what they are: nothing other than sciences of man

Anxiety in Mice: A Principal Component Analysis Study

Two principal component analyses of anxiety were undertaken investigating two strains of mice (ABP/Le and C57BL/6ByJ) in two different experiments, both classical tests for assessing anxiety in rodents. The elevated plus-maze and staircase were used for the first experiment, and a free exploratory paradigm and light-dark discrimination were used for the second. The components in the analyses produced definitions of four fundamental behavior patterns: novelty-induced anxiety, general activity, exploratory behavior, and decision making. We also noted that the anxious phenotype was determined by both strain and experimental procedure. The relationship between behavior patterns and the use of specific tests plus links with the genetic background are discussed