Stuck on the Rubicon? The Resonance of Ideas of Demoi-cracy in Media Debates

Final draftTheories of demoi-cracy have recently gained salience in the continuous debate on a legitimate democratic Euro polity. Demoi-crats argue that multiple demoi can provide the European Union (EU) with its much sought-after democratic legitimacy. This article aims to offer an empirical contribution to the literature on the EU as a legitimate demoi-cracy. The media debates in the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and France were analysed in order to identify resonance of demoi-cratic ideas. Comparative analysis of legitimation statements in opinion articles in two quality newspapers per country shows that the debates often share a similar point of departure as demoi-cratic theories. However, the evaluation of this situation and the existing EU structures' legitimacy relies on either intergovernmental or supranational democratic idea(l)s. In conclusion, the analysis offers little evidence of ideas of demoi-cracy resonating in these élite debates on the EU's legitimacy except for a few potentially promising exceptions

Visions of Lopes Beyond

In his book Beyond Art, Dominic McIver Lopes presents a multitude of arguments about main problems in the philosophy of art but centred on the problem of defining what is art and what is a work of art. He argues for “buck passing” theory of art. According to this theory, the task is passed to philosophical theories which, first, have to find necessary and sufficient conditions, or at least, some non-trivial conditions what makes each kind of art exactly that kind of art. It has a form: “X is a work of art if and only if X is a work of K, where K is an art”. Lopes offers support for his theory through many arguments around problems of aesthetic appreciation, aesthetic properties, value, appreciative kinds and practices, media used in various artforms, etc. He tries to show that theory is more viable and more informative than its competitors. I present and critically assess some of the claims from the book; it seems that, according to a form of the theory, we can do without the concept of “art” altogether

Correlation between Soluble Triggering Receptor Expressed on Myeloid Cells-1 and Endoscopic Activity in Intestinal Behçet's Disease

PURPOSE: The serum levels of soluble triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells-1 (sTREM-1) have recently been shown to be correlated highly with disease activity in patients with intestinal Behçet's disease (BD). However, it remains unclear whether sTREM-1 levels reflect endoscopic activity in intestinal BD. This study aimed to evaluate the correlation of sTREM-1 levels with endoscopic activity in intestinal BD. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 84 patients with intestinal BD were enrolled. Endoscopic activity was compared with sTREM-1 levels as well as other laboratory findings, including erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP). RESULTS: sTREM-1 levels were significantly increased in intestinal BD patients compared with controls (37.98±27.09 pg/mL vs. 16.65±7.76 pg/mL, p=0.002), however, there was no difference between endoscopically quiescent and active diseases (43.53±24.95 pg/mL vs. 42.22±32.68 pg/mL, p=0.819). Moreover, serum sTREM-1 levels did not differ in terms of number, shape, depth, size, margin, or type of ulcer in patients with intestinal BD. However, mean ESR and CRP levels in patients with active disease were significantly higher than those in patients with quiescent disease (p=0.001, p<0.001, respectively). In addition, endoscopic activity scores for intestinal BD were correlated significantly with both CRP levels (γ=0.329) and ESR (γ=0.298), but not with sTREM-1 levels (γ=0.166). CONCLUSION: Unlike CRP levels and ESR, serum sTREM-1 levels were not correlated with endoscopic activity in patients with intestinal BD.ope

Visions of Lopes Beyond

In his book Beyond Art, Dominic McIver Lopes presents a multitude of arguments about main problems in the philosophy of art but centred on the problem of defining what is art and what is a work of art. He argues for “buck passing” theory of art. According to this theory, the task is passed to philosophical theories which, first, have to find necessary and sufficient conditions, or at least, some non-trivial conditions what makes each kind of art exactly that kind of art. It has a form: “X is a work of art if and only if X is a work of K, where K is an art”. Lopes offers support for his theory through many arguments around problems of aesthetic appreciation, aesthetic properties, value, appreciative kinds and practices, media used in various artforms, etc. He tries to show that theory is more viable and more informative than its competitors. I present and critically assess some of the claims from the book; it seems that, according to a form of the theory, we can do without the concept of “art” altogether

Clare N. Wright v. University of Utah and the State of Utah : Reply Brief

Case No. 930217-CA Priority No. 15 APPELLANT\u27S REPLY BRIEF APPEAL FROM FINAL ORDER OF THE THIRD JUDICIAL DISTRICT COURT, SALT LAKE COUNTY, STATE OF UTAH THE HONORABLE LESLIE A. LEWIS, PRESIDING

Lactate in the intensive care unit: pyromaniac, sentinel or fireman?

Lactate, indispensable substrate of mammalian intermediary metabolism, allows shuttling of carbons and reducing power between cells and organs at a high turnover rate. Lactate is, therefore, not deleterious, although an increase in its concentration is often a sensitive sign of alteration in energy homeostasis, a rise in it being frequently related to poor prognosis. Such an increase, however, actually signifies an attempt by the body to cope with a new energy status. Hyperlactatemia, therefore, most often represents an adaptive response to an acute energy disorder. Investigation of lactate metabolism at the bedside is limited to the determination of its concentration. Lactate metabolism and acid-base homeostasis are both closely linked to cellular energy metabolism, acidosis being potentially a cause or a consequence of cellular energy deficit