Colliding Wave Solutions in a Symmetric Non-metric Theory

A method is given to generate the non-linear interaction (collision) of linearly polarized gravity coupled torsion waves in a non-metric theory. Explicit examples are given in which strong mutual focussing of gravitational waves containing impulsive and shock components coupled with torsion waves does not result in a curvature singularity. However, the collision of purely torsion waves displays a curvature singularity in the region of interaction.Comment: 16 pages, 1 ps figure, It will appear in Int. Jour. of Theor. Physic

Inositols: From established knowledge to novel approaches

Myo-inositol (myo-Ins) and D-chiro-inositol (D-chiro-Ins) are natural compounds involved in many biological pathways. Since the discovery of their involvement in endocrine signal transduction, myo-Ins and D-chiro-Ins supplementation has contributed to clinical approaches in ameliorating many gynecological and endocrinological diseases. Currently both myo-Ins and D-chiro-Ins are well-tolerated, effective alternative candidates to the classical insulin sensitizers, and are useful treatments in preventing and treating metabolic and reproductive disorders such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), and male fertility disturbances, like sperm abnormalities. Moreover, besides metabolic activity, myo-Ins and D-chiro-Ins deeply influence steroidogenesis, regulating the pools of androgens and estrogens, likely in opposite ways. Given the complexity of inositol-related mechanisms of action, many of their beneficial effects are still under scrutiny. Therefore, continuing research aims to discover new emerging roles and mechanisms that can allow clinicians to tailor inositol therapy and to use it in other medical areas, hitherto unexplored. The present paper outlines the established evidence on inositols and updates on recent research, namely concerning D-chiro-Ins involvement into steroidogenesis. In particular, D-chiro-Ins mediates insulin-induced testosterone biosynthesis from ovarian thecal cells and directly affects synthesis of estrogens by modulating the expression of the aromatase enzyme. Ovaries, as well as other organs and tissues, are characterized by a specific ratio of myo-Ins to D-chiro-Ins, which ensures their healthy state and proper functionality. Altered inositol ratios may account for pathological conditions, causing an imbalance in sex hormones. Such situations usually occur in association with medical conditions, such as PCOS, or as a consequence of some pharmacological treatments. Based on the physiological role of inositols and the pathological implications of altered myo-Ins to D-chiro-Ins ratios, inositol therapy may be designed with two different aims: (1) restoring the inositol physiological ratio; (2) altering the ratio in a controlled way to achieve specific effects

The genetic architecture of membranous nephropathy and its potential to improve non-invasive diagnosis

Membranous Nephropathy (MN) is a rare autoimmune cause of kidney failure. Here we report a genome-wide association study (GWAS) for primary MN in 3,782 cases and 9,038 controls of East Asian and European ancestries. We discover two previously unreported loci, NFKB1 (rs230540, OR = 1.25, P = 3.4 × 10-12) and IRF4 (rs9405192, OR = 1.29, P = 1.4 × 10-14), fine-map the PLA2R1 locus (rs17831251, OR = 2.25, P = 4.7 × 10-103) and report ancestry-specific effects of three classical HLA alleles: DRB1*1501 in East Asians (OR = 3.81, P = 2.0 × 10-49), DQA1*0501 in Europeans (OR = 2.88, P = 5.7 × 10-93), and DRB1*0301 in both ethnicities (OR = 3.50, P = 9.2 × 10-23 and OR = 3.39, P = 5.2 × 10-82, respectively). GWAS loci explain 32% of disease risk in East Asians and 25% in Europeans, and correctly re-classify 20-37% of the cases in validation cohorts that are antibody-negative by the serum anti-PLA2R ELISA diagnostic test. Our findings highlight an unusual genetic architecture of MN, with four loci and their interactions accounting for nearly one-third of the disease risk

Development in Malaysia: poverty, wealth and trusteeship.

Malaysia represents a successful case of a developing country which has achieved an impressive and sustained rate of growth in the last 25 years, but has failed to eradicate mass poverty and equalize opportunity for all. The ruling elites in assuming the role of trustees, have emerged as a cartel, and have cornered economic planning and decisionmaking to enrich themselves while paying lip-service to poverty eradication. Inter-racial income inequality, historically a major source of conflict in Malaysia, is now being replaced by widening intra-ethnic inequality, especially among the Malays.-from Autho

On globalization and capitalization

The last two centuries, roughly from the publication of Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations, have witnessed a remarkable process of globalization of Western capitalism. The principal institutions facilitating this process were originally the chartered companies and, in the more recent times, the multinational corporations headquartered in the West. Search for global profits has always been the driving force behind this globalization. But the deeper inner logic of this process is capitalization on a world-scale

The ‘International University’ in the Age of Globalisation: A Unifier of Knowledge or an Information Factory?

In a small, but insightful book, Civilization on Trial, written more than half a century ago, the great English historian, Arnold Toynbee, expressed great pessimism about the prospects of Western civilisation which he found to be Eurocentric (Toynbee, 1948). Toynbee's study of history was universalistic, reflecting a deep knowledge and respect for non-Western cultures and civilisations. For Toynbee history was unified whole; it was a universal history of the entire humanity, not just of some Western people. In this sense, Toynbee is similar to the great Muslim scholar, Ibn Khaldun, the author of Muqaddimah, written almost six centuries ago, as an inquiry into the causes of the rise and decline of civilisations (Mehmet, 1990: 81–4)

Turkey and the European Union: A troubled relationship or a historic partnership?

This chapter seeks to provide an account of the attitudes hampering Turkish accession from both the Turkish as well as the European perspectives. It focuses on the road to full Turkish membership, utilizing the Copenhagen Criteria (CC) to summarize and highlight the potential obstacles and irritations for both sides. In the economic field, Turkey has, even despite the February 2001 crisis, ‘achieved most of the hallmarks of a market economy’. The European Union (EU) has to realize that the pace of human rights reform, and the o democratization of politics, must be commensurate with the institutional and financial capacity of the state to implement these reforms, while taking into account the mood of Turkish public opinion. The portion of the guidelines in CC about ‘institutional preparedness’ is a minefield of competing values and norms between Turkey and the EU, and trouble always lurks just beneath the surface