Le projet DYLAN ou les enjeux politiques, cognitifs et stratégiques du plurilinguisme

Composed of 19 universities from 12 countries, the Dylan Project is an integrated project (IP) of the 6th Framework Programme of the European Union, under Priority 7 « Citizenship and governance in a knowledge-based society ».The project addresses the core issue underlying topic 3.3.1: establish whether and how a European knowledge based society designed to ensure economic competitiveness and social cohesion can be created within a European Union that is linguistically more diverse than ever. The overarching objectives are to show that, in this respect, the linguistic diversity prevalent in Europe is potentially an asset rather than an obstacle and to identify the conditions under which individual and societal multilingualism can be turned to advantage.It will show in what ways the usage of multilingual repertoires can promote the creation and the transfer of knowledge (cognitive asset) and have an impact on communication control, problem solving and decision making (strategic asset), in the diversity of economic, political and educational contexts

A cysteine proteinase in the penetration glands of the cercariae of Cotylurus cornutus (Trematoda, Strigeidae)

A cysteine proteinase from the penetration glands of Cotylurus cornutus cercariae was examined with histochemical and biochemical methods. The enzyme hydrolyzed gelatin, azocoll, azocasein, azoalbumin, N-blocked-l-arginine-4-methoxy-2-naphthylamide, and N-blocked-p-nitroanilide, but did not degrade elastin. The metal ion complexane ethylenediamine tetraacetate and the thiol-reducing compound dithioerythritol enhanced the proteinase activity, whereas the thiol-blocking compounds p-hydroxymercuribenzoate and N-ethylmaleimide (NEM) inhibited it. The enzyme was also sensitive to leupeptin but insensitive to soybean trypsin inhibitor. An electrophoretic separation of extract proteins from the cercariae under acidic, non-denaturing conditions and in the presence of 0.1% gelatin in a polyacrylamide gel revealed the presence of two distinct and three weak transparent bands in the gel resulting from a gelatinolytic activity at pH 6.8. The distinct bands apparently resulted from the activity of the glandular enzyme and lysosomal cathepsin B, whereas the weak ones presumably indicated these enzymes partially degraded in the course of the preparative procedure. No gelatinolysis occurred following treatment of an extract sample with 0.1 mM NEM

Unexpected luminescence of Cr5+ and Cr3+ ions in ZrSiO4 zircon crystals

Luminescence, decay-times and EPR spectroscopy of Cr-doped ZrSiO4 show the presence of both Cr3+ and Cr5+ active centers, which can be connected with Zr4+ and Si4+ adjacent two-cation replacement. Cr5+ emission occurs within a similar spectral range as for Cr4+ and hence confusion is possible

A depth-averaged model for non-isothermal thin-film rimming flow

A model for non-isothermal shear-driven thin-film flow on the inside surface of a stationary circular cylinder is presented. Motivated by an application to film flow in an aero-engine bearing chamber the model extends lubrication theory analysis of thin films to retain the important effects of inertia and heat convection.The accuracy of the depth-averaged temperature model is tested and comparisons illustrate the model is accurate for both conduction- and convection-dominant flows although local inaccuracies are introduced in regions exhibiting sharp changes in boundary temperature when convective effects are strong.Three rimming-flow configurations are considered: uni-directional flow with slowly-varying film height, a solution containing a steep front termed a shock, and a pooling solution where fluid accumulates in a recirculation at the base of the cylinder. The temperature field in the latter two which include recirculation features are greatly influenced by the strength of convection in the film

A Symmetry Metric for Graphs and Line Diagrams

Symmetry is often considered a desirable feature of diagrams. However, quantifying the exact amount of symmetry present is often difficult. We propose a novel symmetry metric that can score the amount of rotational, translational, and reflective symmetry present in a graph or line diagram

Adapting detection sensitivity based on evidence of irregular sinus arrhythmia to improve atrial fibrillation detection in insertable cardiac monitors

Intermittent change in p-wave discernibility during periods of ectopy and sinus arrhythmia is a cause of inappropriate atrial fibrillation (AF) detection in insertable cardiac monitors (ICM). To address this, we developed and validated an enhanced AF detection algorithm.Atrial fibrillation detection in Reveal LINQ ICM uses patterns of incoherence in RR intervals and absence of P-wave evidence over a 2-min period. The enhanced algorithm includes P-wave evidence during RR irregularity as evidence of sinus arrhythmia or ectopy to adaptively optimize sensitivity for AF detection. The algorithm was developed and validated using Holter data from the XPECT and LINQ Usability studies which collected surface electrocardiogram (ECG) and continuous ICM ECG over a 24-48 h period. The algorithm detections were compared with Holter annotations, performed by multiple reviewers, to compute episode and duration detection performance. The validation dataset comprised of 3187 h of valid Holter and LINQ recordings from 138 patients, with true AF in 37 patients yielding 108 true AF episodes ≥2-min and 449 h of AF. The enhanced algorithm reduced inappropriately detected episodes by 49% and duration by 66% with <1% loss in true episodes or duration. The algorithm correctly identified 98.9% of total AF duration and 99.8% of total sinus or non-AF rhythm duration. The algorithm detected 97.2% (99.7% per-patient average) of all AF episodes ≥2-min, and 84.9% (95.3% per-patient average) of detected episodes involved AF.An enhancement that adapts sensitivity for AF detection reduced inappropriately detected episodes and duration with minimal reduction in sensitivity.Helmut Pürerfellner, Prashanthan Sanders, Shantanu Sarkar, Erin Reisfeld, Jerry Reiland, Jodi Koehler, Evgeny Pokushalov, Ľuboš Urban, Lukas R C Dekke