Space-time clustering of Burkitt's lymphoma in the West Nile district of Uganda: 1961-1975.

Epidemiological data relating to all 202 patients diagnosed with Burkitt's Lymphoma (BL) in the West Nile District of Uganda in the period 1961 to 1975 have been reviewed and analysed. Statistically significant evidence of space-time clustering of cases, first reported for the period 1961-65, was also present during 1972-73, but not during other periods. The patients involved in such clusters were found to be older than other patients (P less than 0.001). The average annual incidence of BL in the District was 2.45 x 10(-5) and overall there was no change in the incidence during the study period. However, there were statistically significant changes in incidence in different counties, which could not be explained as case-ascertainment artifacts. One sib pair of patients with BL was found and the series also included 7 instances of BL in two cousins. It is suggested that study of variation in the intensity and type of malarial infestation in different areas at different times may help explain the epidemiological findings and suggest what, if any, aspects of this infection are critical for inducing BL

The dependency pair framework: Combining techniques for automated termination proofs

Abstract. The dependency pair approach is one of the most powerful techniques for automated termination proofs of term rewrite systems. Up to now, it was regarded as one of several possible methods to prove termination. In this paper, we show that dependency pairs can instead be used as a general concept to integrate arbitrary techniques for termination analysis. In this way, the benefits of different techniques can be combined and their modularity and power are increased significantly. We refer to this new concept as the “dependency pair framework ” to distinguish it from the old “dependency pair approach”. Moreover, this framework facilitates the development of new methods for termination analysis. To demonstrate this, we present several new techniques within the dependency pair framework which simplify termination problems considerably. We implemented the dependency pair framework in our termination prover AProVE and evaluated it on large collections of examples.

Does \u2018bigger\u2019mean \u2018better\u2019? Pitfalls and shortcuts associated with big data for social research

\u2018Big data is here to stay.\u2019 This key statement has a double value: is an assumption as well as the reason why a theoretical reflection is needed. Furthermore, Big data is something that is gaining visibility and success in social sciences even, overcoming the division between humanities and computer sciences. In this contribution some considerations on the presence and the certain persistence of Big data as a socio-technical assemblage will be outlined. Therefore, the intriguing opportunities for social research linked to such interaction between practices and technological development will be developed. However, despite a promissory rhetoric, fostered by several scholars since the birth of Big data as a labelled concept, some risks are just around the corner. The claims for the methodological power of bigger and bigger datasets, as well as increasing speed in analysis and data collection, are creating a real hype in social research. Peculiar attention is needed in order to avoid some pitfalls. These risks will be analysed for what concerns the validity of the research results \u2018obtained through Big data. After a pars distruens, this contribution will conclude with a pars construens; assuming the previous critiques, a mixed methods research design approach will be described as a general proposal with the objective of stimulating a debate on the integration of Big data in complex research projecting

Pregnancy in multiple system atrophy: a case report

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Introduction</p> <p>Multiple system atrophy is a late, adult-onset α-synucleinopathy with no data on the effect of pregnancy on the disease course. Early stage multiple system atrophy can be difficult to distinguish from Parkinson's disease.</p> <p>Case presentation</p> <p>We describe the case of an Irish woman with parkinsonism starting at age 31, initially diagnosed as having dopa-responsive, idiopathic Parkinson's disease, who successfully delivered a full-term child at age 35. Her pregnancy was complicated by severe orthostatic hypotension and motor fluctuations. Two years post-partum, she underwent bilateral subthalamic nuclei deep brain stimulation for intractable motor fluctuations and disabling dyskinesia. After this treatment course she experienced deterioration of motor symptoms and death eight years after disease onset. Post-mortem neuropathological examination revealed striatonigral degeneration and α-synuclein-positive glial cytoplasmic inclusions in brain stem nuclei, basal ganglia and white matter tracts, consistent with a neuropathological diagnosis of multiple system atrophy.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Multiple system atrophy can affect women of child-bearing age and pregnancy may be associated with marked disease progression.</p

Groups, organizations, families and movements: The sociology of social systems between interaction and society

Kühl S. Groups, organizations, families and movements: The sociology of social systems between interaction and society. Systems Research and Behavioral Science. 2020;37(3):496-515.In enhancing a proposal by Luhmann, this contribution shows that it is possible to locate different types of systems between ‘face‐to‐face‐interaction’ and ‘society’: groups, organizations, families and protest movements. The common ground of these is that they use membership to attribute persons to the system or not. However, they differ fundamentally in regard to how they understand membership. In contrast to Luhmann's differentiation between interaction, organization and society, it is not only possible to imagine different types of interlocking systems but also coequal combinations of and transitions between the different types of social systems