Mozart & Salieri, Cain & Abel: A Cinematic Transformation of Genesis 4

The story of Amadeus becomes poetry and myth when one learns it is far from the official biography of Mozart. For in fact Salieri first became Mozart\u27s lethal enemy in a poem by Pushkin, written 40 years after the great composer\u27s death. Robbins clarifies many historical inaccuracies regarding both Mozart and Salieri in the film, but proposes that playwright Shaffer and screenwriter Milos Forman have made the story a myth better than history, a masterpiece of drama which reveals deep truths about the human condition. The film confronts the viewer with the sheer givenness of human inequality, the pride that gives way to envy, and the sometimes relentless character of efforts that may be finally deemed mediocre. It is the mysterious story of Cain and Abel: one loved by God, the other for whom God had, inexplicably, no regard

“Aftertones of Infinity”: Biblical and Darwinian Evocations in Terrence Malick’s The Tree of Life and To the Wonder

In this article I argue that in The Tree of Life and To the Wonder Terrence Malick continues to explore, on an epic scale, a theme that permeates the previous four (Badlands, 1973; Days of Heaven, 1978; The Thin Red Line, 1998; The New World, 2005): innocence to experience. I suggest that Malick’s oeuvre reflects a recurring evocation of and commentary on the primeval, biblical stories of Genesis 1-11. The title of his 2011 installment betrays, however, a more encompassing vision. Viewers whose gaze is oriented by biblical studies will associate “the tree of life” with Genesis 2 and Revelation 22. Few will recognize “the tree of life” as the name Charles Darwin gives to the only diagram in his On the Origin of Species (1859). The Tree of Life is a sprawling meditation on both “trees.” To the Wonder continues in the same vein. Malick, I maintain, is reckoning with those forces that seem to be built into the cosmic and societal scheme of things—energies that are at once creative and nurturing, destructive and tragic—and the mythic traditions to which moderns have explanatory recourse. By contrast, To the Wonder is a smaller film. While its title seems to promise something both grandiose and mystical, the film offers only fleeting glimpses of the transcendent, the numinous. Like The Tree of Life, it is consumed with disappointment and loss, with yearning and the desire for return, and, in the end, resonates with the sentiment Joseph Schwanter captures in his poem and his Pulitzer Prize-winning musical setting of it: “Celestial voices echo the lost dreams of the children of the universe/the aftertones of infinity.

Stability and change in embedded relationships: Broken ties in Japanese automotive keiretsu

This study examines how destabilizing pressures interact with embedded exchange relationships in an analysis of broken ties between Japanese auto manufacturers and their suppliers. While functional, political and social pressures all led to broken ties, their effect differed depending on the nature of the tie. We define two types of embeddedness, relational and normative, and argue that while political and social pressures lead to breakage of normatively embedded ties, relationally embedded ties are robust to these pressures. In contrast, functional pressures, specifically, performance, lead to breakage of relationally embedded ties. Our theory and empirical findings have implications for the study of networks and embeddedness and for research on institutional change in business systems

Mechanism for Pre-B Cell Loss in Mutant Ali/Ali Rabbits

Pre-B cell receptor (pre-BCR) signaling is a critical checkpoint in B cell development in which B-lineage cells expressing functional μ-chains undergo selective expansion. My dissertation work used a rabbit model system to study how VH structure affects the early stages of B cell development in the bone marrow (BM). Developing B cells in mutant ali/ali rabbits predominantly utilize VH4 during VDJ gene rearrangement. However, most of the VH4-utilizing B cells encounter a severe block early in B cell development. In contrast, wildtype rabbit B cells predominantly rearrange VH1, a gene \u3e90% identical to VH4, and develop normally. We hypothesized that VH4-utilizing cells are blocked at the pro- to pre-B cell transition due to defects in pre-BCR signaling. The pre-BCR is a complex of the μ-chain and a light chain-like molecule called surrogate light chain (SL). The fact that some VH4-utilizing B cells survive development in BM and undergo expansion in the periphery suggests that VH4-mu chains in the context of conventional BCR are functional. My studies indicate that VH4-utilizing pre-B cells fail to expand normally and that VH4-mu chains do not form pre-BCR. These data are consistent with a cell intrinsic model of VH4-utilizing pre-B cell loss resulting from insufficient pre-BCR signaling. My studies also identified a possible mechanism by which select VH4-utilizing B- lineage cells survive development through expression of conventional IgL during the early B cell stages. These data suggest that early expression of IgL and signaling through the conventional BCR is a plausible mechanism by which VH4-utilizing cells bypass the developmental block at the early pre-B cell stage. My work identified the stage and mechanism by which VH4-utilizing B-lineage cells are lost during development in the BM, and suggests that select VH4-utilizing cells bypass the block at the pre-B cell stage through early rearrangement and expression of IgL. These studies lay the ground work for future experiments aimed at identifying the structural parameters encoded by VH genes that allow for pre-BCR formation and normal pre-B cell expansion

Factors influencing the public\u27s choice of eye doctors

A questionnaire was developed to sample a general population in order to ascertain the relative importance of factors influencing the choice of an eye doctor. The questionnaire also sampled knowledge and personal preferences with regard to eye doctors. Of the 160 respondents 38.8% have been to an optometrist, 13.1% to an ophthalmologist, 34.4% had been to both. 1.9% were not sure, finally 11.9% had never been to an eye doctor. The strongest drawing factor leading to a choice of an eye doctor was that he stays current in his field. This population also shows a low reliance on the media, including the yellow pages, to make their choice. The majority of the respondents have no preference in terms of the eye doctor\u27s age or gender, and those who solely visit ophthalmologists tend to be more loyal. Finally, basic knowledge of an optometrist includes an underestimation of schooling required, as well as not being sure what vision therapy involves

Poverty in the Aftermath of Katrina: Reimagining Citizen Leadership in t he Context of Federalism

It is a cruel irony that a lead singer with the name Katrina and a back-up band called the Waves performed a pop song in the 1980s with bright lyrics and happy beat. Many years later, a natural disaster bearing the same name, backed by a surge of seawater, consumed the city of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast. In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, America and the rest of the world witnessed the desperate side of the world\u27s wealthiest nation. Many people, who had neither time nor resources to escape the storm\u27s surge, and the destruction that followed, became first-hand witnesses to America\u27s failure to adequately address its poverty problem. The world was shocked to see Americans displaced and immobilized. Chilling reports of the disintegration of the community with rampant plundering and lawlessness punctuated media broadcasts. The ravages of death and deprivation were graphically depicted even as relief providers scrambled to address the massive needs of the displaced and injured. The failed infrastructure and lack of services to help the unfortunates who remained behind to weather the storm resurrected the national debate on poverty-who is responsible for giving willing Americans the tools to remove themselves from poverty to become contributing members of society

High Rates of Uncontrolled Blood Pressure: Pulse Wave Velocity and Future Opportunities

The recent commentary on high rates of uncontrolled blood pressure (BP) and opportunities for health care providers in this Journal prompted an examination of treated but uncontrolled BP in relation to pulse wave velocity (PWV) in the Maine Syracuse Longitudinal Study (MSLS). Cohen and Townsend noted that a Center for Disease Control analysis2 of National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data (2003–2010) indicated that the presence of uncontrolled hypertension (≥140 mm Hg systolic and ≥90 mm Hg diastolic) in US adults was 53.5%. They further noted that approximately 45% of these individuals with uncontrolled hypertension were aware of their hypertension and were receiving treatment

Methods for treating bone deficit conditions with benzothiazole

" Compounds containing two aromatic systems covalently linked through a linker containing one or more atoms, or ""linker"" defined as including a covalent bond per se so as to space the aromatic systems at a distance 1.5-15 .ANG., are effective in treating conditions associated with bone deficits. The compounds can be administered to vertebrate subjects alone or in combination with additional agents that promote bone growth or that inhibit bone resorption. They can be screened for activity prior to administration by assessing their ability to effect the transcription of a reporter gene coupled to a promoter associated with a bone morphogenetic protein and/or their ability to stimulate calvarial growth in model animal systems. "Board of Regents, University of Texas Syste