Negation in modern Arabic varieties from a typological point of view

This thesis considers negation in 54 modern Arabic varieties from a typological point of view (as in Song 2001, Croft 2003 and Miestamo 2005). The types of negation investigated here are: standard negation, non-verbal negation, negative imperatives, negative existential clauses, negation with pseudo-verbs, negative indefinite pronouns and negative concord constructions. This approach results in 30 generalizations capturing different ways of expressing different types of negation among the contemporary varieties of Arabic; for example: the construction for standard negation in modern Arabic varieties is almost always symmetric (done by the addition of the negative morpheme to the affirmative clause only) and very rarely asymmetric (an example is the dialect of ʔAbha); there is no š-variety (a variety that uses …-š negatively in standard negation) where …-š is not, at least optionally, omitted in emphatic negation; the negator mā can commonly negate imperatives in every Arabic region, except in the Arabian Peninsula where this is extremely rare. One of the most interesting results the study reveals is that negation in Arabic is going through a cycle additional to the Jespersen’s cycle which is already identified by several studies (e.g., Lucas, 2009 and Diem, 2014). In the first stage of this additional cycle, a single negator is used to negate both verbal and non-verbal clauses. In the second stage, this negator is attached to a personal pronoun to negate non-verbal clauses only. In the third stage, a new single morpheme is coined and generalized to negate any non-verbal clause. In the fourth stage, this new morpheme is used to negate certain types of verbal clauses. In the last stage, verbal and non-verbal clauses return to be negated similarly, in that this new coined morpheme can negate both of them. In the study, this cycle is referred to as the Arabic negative cycle

Factors influencing organizational change and health:evidences from the Indian pharmaceutical sector

Dynamics and interplay among various drivers and competencies in any organizational set-up shape the configurations of the systems black box. Structural flexibility, information management, decision making and leadership are critical components which manage the intra-organizational interactions for a collective meaningful outcome in terms of organizational change capability and superior performance. In the recent past, the Indian pharmaceutical sector has witnessed impressive global consolidation and expansion. The organizational health recipes which have been designed by the Indian pharmaceutical sector for its healthy growth need to be explored and understood. Identifying how these variables interact and how they have contributed to the success of the pharmaceutical sector is the key research agenda of this paper. The responses obtained from 216 mid- and senior-level executives of the Indian pharmaceutical industry have been processed by structural equation modeling to investigate interactive dynamics. Therefore, the outcomes are of value to scholars as well as practitioners

Broad targeting of resistance to apoptosis in cancer

Apoptosis or programmed cell death is natural way of removing aged cells from the body. Most of the anti-cancer therapies trigger apoptosis induction and related cell death networks to eliminate malignant cells. However, in cancer, de-regulated apoptotic signaling, particularly the activation of an anti-apoptotic systems, allows cancer cells to escape this program leading to uncontrolled proliferation resulting in tumor survival, therapeutic resistance and recurrence of cancer. This resistance is a complicated phenomenon that emanates from the interactions of various molecules and signaling pathways. In this comprehensive review we discuss the various factors contributing to apoptosis resistance in cancers. The key resistance targets that are discussed include (1) Bcl-2 and Mcl-1 proteins; (2) autophagy processes; (3) necrosis and necroptosis; (4) heat shock protein signaling; (5) the proteasome pathway; (6) epigenetic mechanisms; and (7) aberrant nuclear export signaling. The shortcomings of current therapeutic modalities are highlighted and a broad spectrum strategy using approaches including (a) gossypol; (b) epigallocatechin-3-gallate; (c) UMI-77 (d) triptolide and (e) selinexor that can be used to overcome cell death resistance is presented. This review provides a roadmap for the design of successful anti-cancer strategies that overcome resistance to apoptosis for better therapeutic outcome in patients with cancer

A systemic transformation of an arts and sciences curriculum to nurture inclusive excellence of all students through course-based research experiences

IntroductionWe describe herein a large-scale, multidisciplinary course-based undergraduate research experience program (CRE) developed at Lawrence Technological University (LTU). In our program, all students enrolled in CRE classes participate in authentic research experiences within the framework of the curriculum, eliminating self-selection processes and other barriers to traditional extracurricular research experiences.MethodsSince 2014, we have designed and implemented more than 40 CRE courses in our College of Arts and Sciences involving more than 30 instructors from computer science, mathematics, physics, biology, chemistry, English composition, literature, philosophy, media communication, nursing, and psychology.ResultsAssessment survey data indicates that students who participate in CRE courses have an enhanced attitude towards research and discovery, as well as increased self-efficacy. This intervention is particularly relevant for non-traditional students, such as students who commute and/or have significant work or childcare commitments, who often experience limited access to research activities.DiscussionHerein we highlight the importance of a systemic institutional change that has made this intervention sustainable and likely to outlast the external funding phase. Systemic change can emerge from a combination of conditions, including: (1) developing a critical mass of CRE courses by providing instructors with both incentives and training; (2) developing general principles on which instructors can base their CRE activities; (3) securing and maintaining institutional support to promote policy changes towards a more inclusive institution; and (4) diversifying the range of the intervention, both in terms of initiatives and disciplines involved

Analysis of Bolton's tooth size discrepancy for a referred UK population

Objectives The aims of this study are: • To study the incidence of tooth size discrepancy in a UK population • To establish whether there are differences between males and females. • To assess racial differences for tooth size discrepancies in different malocclusion categories. Malocclusion groups included: Class I, Class II division 1, Class II division II, Class III Racial groups included: Caucasian, Asian, Afro-Caribbean Method A retrospective study using dental casts of patients in the orthodontic departments of Birmingham Dental Hospital and Kings College Hospital, London. 30 sets of casts were assessed from each malocclusion group for each race. i.e 30 Class I Caucasian, 30 Class I Asian, 30 Class I Afro-Caribbean, with an equal male to female ratio. In total 360 dental casts were used. Mesiodistal tooth dimensions were measured from right first molar to left first molar in the maxillary and mandibular arches. Measurements were taken using HATS digital callipers accurate to 0.1mm. Anterior and overall Bolton discrepancies were calculated for each model. Results Gender Significant differences between males and females for the overall ratio only existed for the Class II/I Afro-Carribean group. There were significant differences in the anterior ratio for all the racial groups with Class III malocclusion, and for Class I Asian and Class II/II Afro-Carribeans. Malocclusion group There were significant differences between the means of the malocclusion groups for the combined overall and anterior ratios. These differences arose because of the differences between the Class III subjects and the remaining malocclusion groups. There was also a significant difference in the anterior ratio in the Asian subjects due to the difference between the Class I and Class III groups. Race Significant differences only arose in the anterior ratio of the Class I group due to the differences between the Asian and the Caucasian groups. No significant differences were found in the combined overall or anterior ratios. Conclusion Differences between males and females existed mainly in the anterior ratio for the Class III groups. The Class III groups showed significantly higher combined overall and anterior ratios, compared to the other malocclusion groups. In addition the anterior ratio of the Asian group was higher in Class III than Class I subjects, indicating mandibular tooth size excess in Class III subjects. No significant differences were found when comparing racial groups, except the anterior ratio of the Class I Caucasian group was significantly greater than the Class I Asian group