Aneurysm of the meningeal branch of the occipital artery connecting with the distal portion of the posteroinferior cerebellar artery by the dural fistula

We describe a case involving a ruptured intradural aneurysm of the meningeal branch of the occipital artery arising from the external carotid artery and connecting with the caudal loop of the posteroinferior cerebellar artery (PICA) by the dural fistula. Angiography of the left external carotid artery showed a saccular aneurysm of the occipital artery, but the picture of the left vertebral artery was normal and no vascular pathology such as an aneurysm or a dural fistula was noticeable between the meningeal branch of the occipital artery and the PICA. The diagnosis was confirmed by three-dimensional reconstruction computed tomography (CT) angiography, magnetic resonance imaging and magnetic resonance angiography (MRA). In the knowledge, based on the radiological examinations, that the aneurysm was located intracranially below the tonsil, compressing the lateral surface of the medulla oblongata at the level of the foramen magnum, we decided to operate from the far-lateral suboccipital approach, without removing the arc of the C1. An aneurysm was visualised at the site of the connection of the caudal loop of the PICA and an anastomosis of the meningeal branch of the occipital artery. The aneurysm was successfully clipped and the vascular fistula was coagulated and dissected in the extradural section. To our knowledge, the case presented here is the first report of this kind of vascular pathology. Careful analysis of a cross-sectional CT angiogram, MRA and arteriography is necessary for the proper diagnosis of such atypical vascular pathology. In the study presented we focus our attention on the diversity of the PICA anatomy

Dutch parallel corpus: a balanced parallel corpus for Dutch-English and Dutch-French

status: publishe

Ruimte voor de toekomst in het landelijk gebied : trendverkenning 2020-2030 voor gemeenten met veel landelijk gebied /

Hoe het landelijk gebied er in 2040 uit zal zien, weet niemand. Toch is een aantal trends aan te wijzen dat nu al zichtbaar is en voor een groot deel de richting zal bepalen waarin het zich gaat ontwikkelen. Het landelijk gebied wordt steeds meer een multifunctionele leef- en werkomgeving, waarbinnen initiatieven van burgers en bedrijven oplossingen aandragen voor lokale problemen. Schaalvergroting van (agrarische) bedrijven en voorzieningen gaat gelijk op met een toename van kleinschalige en lokale initiatieven van burgers en bedrijven. Technologische innovatie kan de bedrijvigheid en de leefbaarheid in het landelijk gebied vergroten. Tot slot is een toename van extreme gebeurtenissen mogelijk door klimaatverandering of de uitbraak van dierziekten. Dit rapport beschrijft een aantal van de belangrijkste trends voor gemeenten met veel landelijk gebied. De trends worden besproken aan de hand van verschillende thema's

Metabolic evolution and the self-organization of ecosystems

Metabolism mediates the flow of matter and energy through the biosphere. We examined how metabolic evolution shapes ecosystems by reconstructing it in the globally abundant oceanic phytoplankter Prochlorococcus To understand what drove observed evolutionary patterns, we interpreted them in the context of its population dynamics, growth rate, and light adaptation, and the size and macromolecular and elemental composition of cells. This multilevel view suggests that, over the course of evolution, there was a steady increase in Prochlorococcus' metabolic rate and excretion of organic carbon. We derived a mathematical framework that suggests these adaptations lower the minimal subsistence nutrient concentration of cells, which results in a drawdown of nutrients in oceanic surface waters. This, in turn, increases total ecosystem biomass and promotes the coevolution of all cells in the ecosystem. Additional reconstructions suggest that Prochlorococcus and the dominant cooccurring heterotrophic bacterium SAR11 form a coevolved mutualism that maximizes their collective metabolic rate by recycling organic carbon through complementary excretion and uptake pathways. Moreover, the metabolic codependencies of Prochlorococcus and SAR11 are highly similar to those of chloroplasts and mitochondria within plant cells. These observations lead us to propose a general theory relating metabolic evolution to the self-amplification and self-organization of the biosphere. We discuss the implications of this framework for the evolution of Earth's biogeochemical cycles and the rise of atmospheric oxygen.Simons Foundation (Grant SCOPE 329108)Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation (Grant 3778)Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation (Grant 495.01

Variability in fluvial suspended and streambed sediment phosphorus fractions among small agricultural streams

Agriculture is a major source of sediment and particulate phosphorus (P) inputs to freshwaters. Distinguishing between P fractions in sediment can aid in understanding its eutrophication risk. Although streams and rivers are important parts of the P cycle in agricultural catchments, streambed sediment and especially fluvial suspended sediment (FSS) and its P fractions are less studied. To address this knowledge gap, seasonal variations in FSS P fractions and their relation to water quality and streambed sediment were examined in three Swedish agricultural headwater catchments over 2 yr. Sequential fractionation was used to characterize P fractions in both streambed sediment and FSS. All catchments had similar annual P losses (0.4-0.8 kg ha(-1)), suspended solids (124-183 mg L-1), and FSS total P concentrations (1.15-1.19 mg g(-1)). However, distribution of P fractions and the dominant P fractions in FSS differed among catchments (p < .05), which was most likely dependent on differences in catchment geology, clay content, external P sources, and flow conditions. The most prominent seasonal pattern in all catchments was found for iron-bound P, with high concentrations during low summer flows and low concentrations during winter high flows. Streambed sediment P fractions were in the same concentration ranges as in FSS, and the distribution of the fractions differed between catchments. This study highlights the need to quantify P fractions, not just total P in FSS, to obtain a more complete understanding of the eutrophication risk posed by agricultural sediment losses

STUDY ON THE DISPOSAL OF WASTE FROM THE HYDROGEN GENERATION BY ALUMINUM OXIDATION IN ALKALINE SOLUTION

In face of the current high energy consumption and demand worldwide, a change to a sustainable energy matrix became one of the pillars for global sustainability. The use of renewable energy has been one of the most attractive subjects in recent years. Several public policies in this matter have been suggested and there are ongoing efforts toward their implementation. The United Nations (UN) proposed what is called the 2030 Agenda, which considers 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) to be achieved by the year 2030. In support of the 2030 Agenda, research on the production of fuels from clean and sustainable sources is being conducted by the scientific community around the world. Fossil fuels are finite and also a major source of environmental pollutants, therefore the choice of using renewable sources of energy tends to be an increasingly growing and attractive alternative. Hydrogen is a fuel with a high heating value and is known as the most abundant gaseous element and simplest in chemical structure. The scientific community researching fuel cells has given much attention to the generation and storage of hydrogen. Besides the electrolytic hydrogen production and the reforming of fossil fuels (e.g., natural gas), hydrogen can be generated by metallic means, for example, by oxidation of aluminum in an alkaline solution. The use of recyclable metals, such as aluminum in this study, is an option for sustainable hydrogen generation processes. Nevertheless, like any chemical reaction, part of the products generated are waste, and some are even harmful to the environment, which makes the production of sustainable fuels unfeasible in case of not finding an appropriate technological industrial destination for such waste. The herein study comprises the investigation of the industrial and technological applications of the products of the hydrogen generation reaction from aluminum. Mastering the chemical reaction parameters of that reaction is paramount for the optimal design of a hydrogen generation system. The disposal of the waste is relevant since it makes the energy supply chain complete and sustainable

Cross-lingual C*ST*RD: English access to Hindi information

We present C*ST*RD, a cross-language information delivery system that supports cross-language information retrieval, information space visualization and navigation, machine translation, and text summarization of single documents and clusters of documents. C*ST*RD was assembled and trained within 1 month, in the context of DARPA’s Surprise Language Exercise, that selected as source a heretofore unstudied language, Hindi. Given the brief time, we could not create deep Hindi capabilities for all the modules, but instead experimented with combining shallow Hindi capabilities, or even English-only modules, into one integrated system. Various possible configurations, with different tradeoffs in processing speed and ease of use, enable the rapid deployment of C*ST*RD to new languages under various conditions

HappyHier: hoe gelukkig is men waar? : Gegevensverzameling en bepaling van de invloed van het type grondgebruik, deel I

This study set out to measure what influence the type of environment has on how happy people say they feel at a certain moment in time, with the aim of formulating rules for quantifying the effect of spatial changes on wellbeing. A smartphone app was developed for use by a broad sample population in the Netherlands, with push notifications prompting people to report how they felt at a certain moment. From 1 May to 28 July of 2016, 4318 unique participants made use of this HappyHier app, filling in at least one questionnaire on location. The results show that people are happier outdoors than indoors. And when they are outdoors, they are happier in predominantly natural surroundings than in more built-up areas. Moreover, from the ratings given to the surroundings, it can be concluded that they have a more positive effect when the participants found them more restful or stimulating. People’s impressions of the beauty of their surroundings had less influenc

Hygienic characteristics of radishes grown in soil contaminated with Stenotrophomonas maltophilia

Background: Stenotrophomonas maltophilia is a plant growth-promoter. This bacterium is also implicated in human diseases. Thus, after the use of this bacterium in agriculture, the safety of the final products has to be verified. Due to the ubiquitous presence of S. maltophilia in soil, in this study a massive contamination was simulated to evaluate the growth and safety of Raphanus sativus L.. Results: Different inoculums and soil treatment conditions were tested. Soils were analysed weekly and the radishes at harvest for their microbial loads and presence/persistence of S. maltophilia LMG 6606. The concentration of the bacterium added in the different trials decreased during the first week, but increased thereafter and determined a significant increase of growth parameters of radishes. Conclusions: The addition of S. maltophilia LMG 6606 to non-autoclaved soil enhanced the productivity of radishes. The bacterium did not internalize in the hypocotyls, but colonized the external surface ensuring the safety of the products. Thus, a sanitizing bath of hypocotyls before consumption is necessary

The implications of autonomy: Viewed in the light of efforts to uphold patients dignity and integrity

This article focuses on Danish patients’ experience of autonomy and its interplay with dignity and integrity in their meeting with health professionals. The aim is to chart the meanings and implications of autonomy for persons whose illness places them in a vulnerable life situation. The interplay between autonomy and personal dignity in the meeting with health care staff are central concepts in the framework. Data collection and findings are based on eight qualitative semi-structured interviews with patients. Patients with acute, chronic, and life threatening diseases were represented including surgical as well as medical patients. The values associated with autonomy are in many ways vitalising, but may become so dominant, autonomy seeking, and pervasive that the patient's dignity is affected. Three types of patient behaviour were identified. (1) The proactive patient: Patients feel that they assume responsibility for their own situation, but it may be a responsibility that they find hard to bear. (2) The rejected patient: proactive patients take responsibility on many occasions but very active patients are at risk of being rejected with consequences for their dignity. (3) The knowledgeable patient: when patients are health care professionals, the patient's right of self-determination was managed in a variety of ways, sometimes the patient's right of autonomy was treated in a dignified way but the opposite was also evident. In one way, patients are active and willing to take responsibility for themselves, and at the same time they are “forced” to do so by health care staff. Patients would like health professionals to be more attentive and proactive