In the time of Bergson: the influence of the philosophical thoughts of Henri Bergson on the writings and music of Dane Rudhyar

This thesis examines the influence of Bergsonian philosophy in the music and musical aesthetics of Dane Rudhyar. While most studies dealing with the music of Rudhyar acknowledge his early interest in the philosophies of Bergson (1859-1941), the extent of their influence on his musical writings and musical style have been largely underrated. Although Rudhyar became highly involved with esoteric thought shortly after his arrival in America in 1916, Bergsonian concepts continued to permeate Rudhyar's aesthetic writings on the mystical power of the arts throughout his life. Concepts discussed in Bergson's book volution cratrice (Creative Evolution; 1907), can be seen at work in Rudhyar's music. When analyzed using the Bergsonian concepts of duration, lan vital, Becoming, and Creative Evolution, Rudhyar's music begins to yield interesting and fascinating results, and particular aspects of his musical style come to the forefront. In addition, a certain metaphysical meaning begins to emerge

High sensitivity detection of nanoparticles permeation through polymer membranes: A physico-chemical and nuclear imaging measurement approach

Diffusion cells are devices made of donor and acceptor compartments (DC and AC), separated by a membrane. They are widely used in pharmaceutical, cosmetic, toxicology, and protective equipment tests (e.g., gloves) to measure the kinetics of permeants (molecules and nanoparticles) across biological membranes as the skin. However, rarely is the concentration of permeants in the AC measured in continuous or in real-time, and this limitation leads to significant discrepancies in the calculations of kinetic parameters that define the permeation mechanisms. In this study, a diffusion cell compatible with positron emission tomography was used to measure the permeation kinetics of nanoparticles across glove membranes. The technology allows for the measurement of nanoparticle concentration in real-time in the two compartments (DC and AC) and at a detection sensitivity several orders of magnitude higher compared with conventional spectroscopies, thus allowing a much more precise extraction of kinetic parameters. Ultra-small (<10 nm) gold nanoparticles were used as a model nanoparticle contaminant. They were radiolabeled, and their diffusion kinetics was measured in continuous through latex and nitrile polymer membranes. Permeation profiles were recorded at sub-nanomolar sensitivity and in real-time, thus allowing the high precision extraction of kinetic permeation parameters. The technology, methodology, and data extraction process developed in this work could be applied to measure in real-time the kinetics of diffusion of a whole range of potentially toxic molecules and nanoparticles across polymer membranes, including glove membranes

Projet IPERDMX : Biodiversité et structuration des principaux stocks de poissons démersaux comme aide à la définition de zones fonctionnelles halieutiques à La Réunion

 L’approche des communautés a été utilisée dans cette étude pour contribuer à la définition de zones fonctionnelles halieutiques, à des fins de gestion de la pêcherie des poissons démersaux à la Réunion. Les données d’occurrence des espèces dénombrées sur les stations vidéos (STAVIRO) et dans les pêches observées durant le projet IPERDMX sont utilisées. Une Classification Ascendante Hiérarchique appliquée sur des indices de dissimilarité de Bray-Curtis par classe de profondeur de 50 mètres, a permis d’établir 4 grandes zones fonctionnelles : 0-100 m ; 100-250 m ; 250-400 m ; 400-600 m. Les communautés d’espèces les caractérisant ont été déterminées grâce à une Analyse Factorielle des Correspondances (AFC) et une analyse de similarité (SIMPER). Les résultats obtenus permettent de fournir des outils, aussi bien pour préciser l’allocation des efforts de pêches multispécifiques, que pour aider à la gestion des pêches avec la possible mise en œuvre de mesures de gestion ajustées à la communauté d’espèces halieutiques ciblées

Data on milk composition in bighorn sheep

This .csv file contains data to reproduce multivariate analyses of milk composition in bighorn sheep. We provided the R code to run most analyses in the article's Supplementary Material

Data from: Causes and short-term consequences of variation in milk composition in wild sheep

1.Ecologists seek to understand the fitness consequences of variation in physiological markers, under the hypothesis that physiological state is linked to variability in individual condition and life history. 2.Thus, ecologists are often interested in estimating correlations between entire suites of correlated traits, or biomarkers, but sample size limitations often do not allow us to do this properly when large numbers of traits or biomarkers are considered. 3.Latent variables are a powerful tool to overcome this complexity. Recent statistical advances have enabled a new class of multivariate models – Multivariate Hierarchical Modeling (MHM) with latent variables − which allow to statistically estimate unstructured covariances/correlations among traits with reduced constraints on the number of degrees of freedom to account in the model. It is thus possible to highlight correlated structures in potentially very large numbers of traits. 4.Here, we apply MHM to evaluate the relative importance of individual differences and environmental effects on milk composition and identify the drivers of this variation. We ask whether variation in bighorn sheep milk affects offspring fitness. 5.We evaluate whether mothers show repeatable individual differences in the concentrations of 11 markers of milk composition and we investigate the relative importance of annual variability, maternal identity and morphological traits in structuring milk composition. We then use variance estimates to investigate how a subset of repeatable milk markers influence lamb summer survival. 6.Repeatability of milk markers ranged from 0.05 to 0.64 after accounting for year‐to‐year variations. Milk composition was weakly but significantly associated with maternal mass in June and September, summer mass gain and winter mass loss. Variation explained by year‐to year fluctuations ranged from 0.07 to 0.91 suggesting a strong influence of environmental variability on milk composition. Milk composition did not affect lamb survival to weaning. 7.Using joint models in ecological, physiological or behavioural contexts has the major advantage of decomposing a (co)variance/correlation matrix while being estimated with fewer parameters than in a ‘traditional’ mixed‐effects model. The joint models presented here complement a growing list of tools to analyse correlations at different hierarchical levels separately and may thus represent a partial solution to the conundrum of physiological complexity

Projet IPERDMX : Bioécologie et état des principales ressources démersales exploitées à La Réunion

A l’aide de données de vidéos sous-marines et de pêches, le projet IPERDMX a permis de caractériser l'état de santé et la dynamique des stocks de poissons démersaux, épipélagiques et benthopélagiques à l’échelle des différents habitats exploités (récifaux et profonds) autour de l’île de La Réunion, au regard des pressions de pêche et en tenant compte de la présence des Aires Marines Protégées (AMP). Il a ainsi contribué à compléter les connaissances acquises dans des projets de recherche antérieurs, connaissances indispensables à la compréhension des relations complexes entre les activités humaines et la singularité des écosystèmes récifaux et profonds de l’île de La Réunion, éléments essentiels pour la recherche et l’expertise halieutique. Ce projet a mis en œuvre des protocoles d’étude et de suivi des ressources halieutiques déjà appliqués dans d’autres régions et adaptés aux différents habitats exploités et statuts réglementaires existants, entre 1 et 500 mètres de profondeur, y compris au sein des AMP existantes. Ainsi, une description et un suivi des pratiques des pêches, à pied, sous-marine et embarquée ont été mis en œuvre principalement au niveau de la Réserve Naturelle Marine de La Réunion et de la Réserve de pêche de Sainte-Rose. L'état des ressources ichtyologiques a été évalué en combinant 2 approches complémentaires : 1°/ des comptages par vidéos sous-marines sur les habitats compris entre 1 et 85 mètres de profondeur et 2°/ l’analyse de données de pêche entre 1 et 500 mètres de profondeur. Ces nouvelles données, spatialisées et structurées en taille pour les principales espèces d’intérêt halieutique, contribuent significativement à la connaissance de la diversité et de l'abondance de l’ichtyofaune sur les principaux habitats. Le volet sclérochronologie a permis d'évaluer les paramètres de croissance chez 12 nouvelles espèces locales non encore étudiées précédemment. De plus, les structures populationnelles, permettant de définir les unités de gestion pour les principaux stocks exploités autour de La Réunion ont été précisées à partir d'analyses de la forme externe des otolithes. A partir de toutes les observations collectées, une approche au niveau des communautés prenant en compte l’habitat a été menée dans la zone euphotique (1-80 m de profondeur), et jusqu’à 500 m de profondeur. Un état initial des peuplements exploités a été réalisé dans les différents habitats de vie et a permis de disposer de données pour contribuer à la définition de zones fonctionnelles halieutiques. Les observations de vidéos sous-marines ont notamment permis d’évaluer les efficacités respectives de deux modèles de gestion distincts d’AMP, la Réserve Naturelle Marine de La Réunion et la Réserve de pêche de Sainte-Rose. Enfin, la présente étude synthétise les paramètres bioécologiques obtenus au cours des différents projets scientifiques réalisés au cours des 20 dernières années. De plus, des fiches espèces renseignent de manière didactique sur les connaissances acquises pour dix-neuf espèces démersales, indicatrices de la situation de ces ressources exploitées autour de La Réunion. Pour chacune d’elle, un diagnostic de leur état de santé a été établi en 2021, correspondant à la situation récente de leur exploitation à l’échelle de la pêcherie réunionnaise (2018/2020), pêches professionnelle et de plaisance confondues

528 REM Sleep Without Atonia in Idiopathic REM Sleep Behavior Disorder in the North American Prodromal Synucleinopathy Cohort

Abstract Introduction Idiopathic/isolated REM sleep behavior disorder (iRBD) is a prodromal alpha-synucleinopathy characterized by dream enactment behavior and REM sleep without atonia (RSWA). We sought to define quantitative RSWA diagnostic thresholds in the North American Prodromal Synucleinopathy (NAPS) Consortium cohort. We analyzed RSWA between iRBD patients across participating NAPS sleep centers, compared to normative controls, and hypothesized that previous diagnostic RSWA thresholds were overestimates. Methods All digital polysomnography files were converted to European Data Format and scored at a central laboratory (Mayo Clinic) which standardized display scoring montages, channel sensitivities, and filtering, and scripted computational analyses for visual scoring. RSWA was quantitatively analyzed in the submentalis (SM) and anterior tibialis (AT) muscles in iRBD (n=86) patients and controls (n=118) utilizing well validated visual (Mayo) and automated (RAI) methods. Parametric statistics were used to compare RSWA metrics, and RSWA thresholds were developed using receiver operating characteristic curves. Results RSWA was significantly higher for the RAI and all visual individual and combined muscle activity metrics in iRBD compared to controls (all p&lt;0.001). Average SM phasic measures were: 14.2% (Mayo), 17.9% (McGill), 18.5% (UCLA), and 9.4% (Washington University). Average AT phasic measures at each site were: 26.7% (Mayo), 17.1% (McGill), 23.3% (UCLA), and 17.4% (Washington University). Average SM/AT ‘any’ measures at each site were: 45.4% (Mayo), 35.9% (McGill), 53.4% (UCLA), and 23.5% (Washington University). Overall cohort RBD diagnostic thresholds (AUC, specificity/sensitivity) were: SM phasic 4.9% (90.0, 82.2%/83.7%); AT phasic 7.6% (88.7%, 82.2%/81.4%) and combined SM/AT ‘any’ 13% (94.6, 83.9%/96.5%). Conclusion RSWA thresholds in the NAPS cohort were substantially lower than previously reported, suggesting previously overestimated diagnostic RSWA thresholds due to smaller, enriched patient samples and overfit statistical modeling. Confirmation of these findings in the complete NAPS cohort (n=300 iRBD patients across all 10 NAPS centers) is planned. Support (if any)

A single-question screen for rapid eye movement sleep behavior disorder:a multicenter validation study

BACKGROUND: Idiopathic REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD) is a parasomnia that is an important risk factor for PD and Lewy body dementia. Its prevalence is unknown. One barrier to determining prevalence is that current screening tools are too long for large-scale epidemiologic surveys. Therefore, we designed the REM Sleep Behavior Disorder Single-Question Screen (RBD1Q), a screening question for dream enactment with a simple yes/no response. METHODS: Four hundred and eighty-four sleep-clinic– based participants (242 idiopathic RBD patients and 242 controls) completed the screen during a multicenter case-control study. All participants underwent a polysomnogram to define gold-standard diagnosis according to standard criteria. RESULTS: We found a sensitivity of 93.8% and a specificity of 87.2%. Sensitivity and specificity were similar in healthy volunteers, compared to controls or patients, with other sleep diagnoses. CONCLUSIONS: A single-question screen for RBD may reliably detect disease, with psychometric properties favorably comparable to those reported for longer questionnaires

Family history of idiopathic REM behavior disorder: a multicenter case-control study

OBJECTIVE: To compare the frequency of proxy-reported REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD) among relatives of patients with polysomnogram-diagnosed idiopathic RBD (iRBD) in comparison to controls using a large multicenter clinic-based cohort. METHODS: A total of 316 patients with polysomnography-confirmed iRBD were recruited from 12 RBD study group centers, along with 316 controls matched on sex and age group. All subjects completed a self-administered questionnaire that collected proxy-reported information on family history of tremor, gait trouble, balance trouble, Parkinson disease, memory loss, and Alzheimer disease. The questionnaire also included a single question that asked about possible symptoms of RBD among first-degree relatives (siblings, parents, and children). RESULTS: A positive family history of dream enactment was reported in 13.8% of iRBD cases compared to 4.8% of controls (odds ratio [OR] = 3.9, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.0-7.7). ORs were increased for both siblings (OR = 6.1, 95% CI 2.1-18.1) and parents (OR = 3.2, 95% CI 1.4-7.8). We found no significant difference in sex, current age (65.3 10.2 vs 66.9 10.2 years), or age at self-reported RBD onset (55.2 11.7 vs 56.6 15.1 years) in possible familial vs sporadic iRBD. No differences were found in family history of tremor, walking and balance troubles, Parkinson disease, memory loss, or Alzheimer disease. CONCLUSION: We found increased odds of proxy-reported family history of presumed RBD among individuals with confirmed iRBD. This suggests the possibility of a genetic contribution to RBD