Latin American Indigenous Language Research

Latin American Studie

Marking Aspect and Mood and Inferring Time in Mam (Mayan)

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Multiple novel prostate cancer susceptibility signals identified by fine-mapping of known risk loci among Europeans

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified numerous common prostate cancer (PrCa) susceptibility loci. We have fine-mapped 64 GWAS regions known at the conclusion of the iCOGS study using large-scale genotyping and imputation in 25 723 PrCa cases and 26 274 controls of European ancestry. We detected evidence for multiple independent signals at 16 regions, 12 of which contained additional newly identified significant associations. A single signal comprising a spectrum of correlated variation was observed at 39 regions; 35 of which are now described by a novel more significantly associated lead SNP, while the originally reported variant remained as the lead SNP only in 4 regions. We also confirmed two association signals in Europeans that had been previously reported only in East-Asian GWAS. Based on statistical evidence and linkage disequilibrium (LD) structure, we have curated and narrowed down the list of the most likely candidate causal variants for each region. Functional annotation using data from ENCODE filtered for PrCa cell lines and eQTL analysis demonstrated significant enrichment for overlap with bio-features within this set. By incorporating the novel risk variants identified here alongside the refined data for existing association signals, we estimate that these loci now explain ∼38.9% of the familial relative risk of PrCa, an 8.9% improvement over the previously reported GWAS tag SNPs. This suggests that a significant fraction of the heritability of PrCa may have been hidden during the discovery phase of GWAS, in particular due to the presence of multiple independent signals within the same regio

Lawson criterion for ignition exceeded in an inertial fusion experiment

For more than half a century, researchers around the world have been engaged in attempts to achieve fusion ignition as a proof of principle of various fusion concepts. Following the Lawson criterion, an ignited plasma is one where the fusion heating power is high enough to overcome all the physical processes that cool the fusion plasma, creating a positive thermodynamic feedback loop with rapidly increasing temperature. In inertially confined fusion, ignition is a state where the fusion plasma can begin "burn propagation" into surrounding cold fuel, enabling the possibility of high energy gain. While "scientific breakeven" (i.e., unity target gain) has not yet been achieved (here target gain is 0.72, 1.37 MJ of fusion for 1.92 MJ of laser energy), this Letter reports the first controlled fusion experiment, using laser indirect drive, on the National Ignition Facility to produce capsule gain (here 5.8) and reach ignition by nine different formulations of the Lawson criterion

A identidade maya-poqomchi’ guatemalteca em suas manifestações espirituais e religiosas

Guatemala es un país caracterizado por una diversidad cultural considerable. Entre los más de veinte grupos mayas que pueblan su geografía, los poqomchi´es que habitan en Alta y Baja Verapaz han mantenido gran parte de su idiosincrasia particular, heredada de los antiguos mayas. El principal objeto de este artículo es analizar los aspectos más destacados de la espiritualidad y religiosidad poqomchi´, como herencia del pueblo maya del que proceden y producto tanto de la interacción con otros colectivos mayas cercanos como del sincretismo como respuesta de supervivencia. Para ello, nos basaremos en la observación sistemática y participante y la entrevista, para llegar a la conclusión de cómo aún en la actualidad los principales rasgos de la espiritualidad poqomchi´ continúan vigentes, no exentos de la influencia de los pueblos con los que comparte espacio.Guatemala is a country of considerable cultural diversity. Among the more than twenty Mayan groups that populate its territory, the Poqomchi´ who inhabit Alta and Baja Verapaz have preserved a great deal of their particular idiosyncrasy inherited from the ancient Maya. The main purpose of this article is to analyze the most important aspects of Poqomchi´ spirituality and religiosity as the legacy of the ancient Maya from whom they descend, as well as a product both of their constant interaction with other Mayan groups and syncretism as a survival mechanism. For this purpose, it is based on systematic participant observation and interviews which have led to conclude that the main features of Poqomchi´ spirituality remain alive even today, although not free from the influence of the peoples with whom they share space.A Guatemala é um país caracterizado por uma diversidade cultural considerável. Entre os mais de 20 grupos maias que povoam sua geografia, os poqomchi’es que habitam na Alta e Baixa Verapaz têm mantido grande parte de sua idiossincrasia, herdada dos antigos maias. O principal objetivo deste artigo é analisar os aspectos mais destacados da espiritualidade e religiosidade poqomchi’, como herança do povo maia do qual procedem e produto tanto da interação com outros grupos maias próximos quanto do sincretismo como resposta de sobrevivência. Para isso, tomaremos como base a observação sistemática e participante e a entrevista para chegar à conclusão de como ainda na atualidade os principais traços da espiritualidade poqomchi’ continuam vigentes, não isentos da influência dos povos com os quais compartilham espaço.Este artículo es el resultado de las investigaciones etnográficas llevadas a cabo por el investigador dentro del grupo HUM 556 (Universidad de Huelva, España), Mundialización e Identidad, y forma parte de una investigación sobre la esencia identitaria, los procesos de preservación cultural y transculturación de los pueblos mayas de Guatemala

Training speakers of indigenous languages of Latin America at a US university

Poster from the 2006 LSA annual meeting