Resource Use in the Trinational Sangha River Region of Equatorial Africa: Histories, Knowledge Forms, and Institutions

This volume is based on an international conference, “Natural Resource Use Relations in the Trinational Sangha River Region of the Northwest Congo Basin,” held at Yale University in September 1997. In recognition of the bilingual context in which conservation occurs in the three countries of the Sangha region — Cameroon, Central African Republic, and Congo — all sessions of the conference were conducted simultaneously in French and English. This publication, which is a complete rendering of the conference papers and discussion sessions, is available in its entirety in both French and English

Triggered telecom C-band single-photon source with high brightness, high indistinguishability and sub-GHz spectral linewidth

Long-range, terrestrial quantum networks will require high brightness single-photon sources emitting in the telecom C-band for maximum transmission rate. Many applications additionally demand triggered operation with high indistinguishability and narrow spectral linewidth. This would enable the efficient implementation of photonic gate operations and photon storage in quantum memories, as for instance required for a quantum repeater. Especially, semiconductor quantum dots (QDs) have shown these properties in the near-infrared regime. However, the simultaneous demonstration of all these properties in the telecom C-band has been elusive. Here, we present a coherently (incoherently) optically-pumped narrow-band (0.8 GHz) triggered single-photon source in the telecom C-band. The source shows simultaneously high single-photon purity with $g^{(2)}(0) = 0.026$ ($g^{(2)}(0) = 0.014$), high two-photon interference visibility of 0.508 (0.664) and high application-ready rates of 0.75 MHz (1.45 MHz) of polarized photons. The source is based on a QD coupled to a circular Bragg grating cavity combined with spectral filtering. Coherent (incoherent) operation is performed via the novel SUPER scheme (phonon-assisted excitation)

EEG-Based Neurocognitive Metrics May Predict Simulated and On-Road Driving Performance in Older Drivers

The number of older drivers is steadily increasing, and advancing age is associated with a high rate of automobile crashes and fatalities. This can be attributed to a combination of factors including decline in sensory, motor, and cognitive functions due to natural aging or neurodegenerative diseases such as HIV-Associated Neurocognitive Disorder (HAND). Current clinical assessment methods only modestly predict impaired driving. Thus, there is a need for inexpensive and scalable tools to predict on-road driving performance. In this study EEG was acquired from 39 HIV+ patients and 63 healthy participants (HP) during: 3-Choice-Vigilance Task (3CVT), a 30-min driving simulator session, and a 12-mile on-road driving evaluation. Based on driving performance, a designation of Good/Poor (simulator) and Safe/Unsafe (on-road drive) was assigned to each participant. Event-related potentials (ERPs) obtained during 3CVT showed increased amplitude of the P200 component was associated with bad driving performance both during the on-road and simulated drive. This P200 effect was consistent across the HP and HIV+ groups, particularly over the left frontal-central region. Decreased amplitude of the late positive potential (LPP) during 3CVT, particularly over the left frontal regions, was associated with bad driving performance in the simulator. These EEG ERP metrics were shown to be associated with driving performance across participants independent of HIV status. During the on-road evaluation, Unsafe drivers exhibited higher EEG alpha power compared to Safe drivers. The results of this study are 2-fold. First, they demonstrate that high-quality EEG can be inexpensively and easily acquired during simulated and on-road driving assessments. Secondly, EEG metrics acquired during a sustained attention task (3CVT) are associated with driving performance, and these metrics could potentially be used to assess whether an individual has the cognitive skills necessary for safe driving

"I could cry, the amount of shoes I can't get into": A qualitative exploration of the factors that influence retail footwear selection in women with rheumatoid arthritis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Studies have reported that women with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) are not wearing NHS supplied therapeutic footwear; therefore it is likely they are wearing footwear sourced through retailers. Previous research gives limited information (largely associated with cosmesis) on people's perceptions on the relationships that exist between retail footwear, well-being and quality of life. This study aimed to explore the perceptions of women with RA regarding their choice of retail footwear and identify the factors influencing retail footwear selection.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Eleven women with RA wearing normal retail footwear were recruited from an out-patient podiatry clinic in the south east of England. Semi-structured interviews were carried out and an interpretative phenomenological approach was adopted for data collection and transcript analysis.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Six key themes were revealed from the analysis: (1) the nature of foot complaints and deformities, (2) aesthetic appearance and design of footwear, (3) body image, (4) psychosocial aspects, (5) Perceptions of footwear and (6) the therapeutic value of retail shoes. These contributed to an overarching concept of loss of choice associated with retail footwear. In particular, the areas discussed most frequently throughout were themes (2), (3) and (4), which were notably more 'emotional' in nature.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Limitations in retail footwear for these women have impacted on their individuality, linking significantly with their body image. The loss of choice in footwear as a consequence of the disease impacts negatively on emotions, wellbeing and was identified in reduced self-perceived quality of life.</p

Programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1, CD274) in cholangiocarcinoma – correlation with clinicopathological data and comparison of antibodies

Background: Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) may arise in the intra- or extrahepatic biliary tract and is associated with a poor prognosis. Despite recent advances, to date there is still no established targeted therapeutic approach available. Non-surgical therapeutic agents are urgently needed, as most patients are non-eligible to surgical resection. Anti-PD-L1 therapy prevents cancer cells from evading the immune system and has emerged as a new treatment option in several cancer entities. Recently, PD-L1 expression has been analyzed in comparably small CCA patient cohorts. However, a systematic validation of different PD-L1 antibodies has not been performed in CCA so far. Methods: We stained a tissue microarray consisting of 170 patients, including 72 intrahepatic cholangiocarcinomas (iCCAs), 57 perihilar cholangiocarcinomas (pCCAs) and 41 distal cholangiocarcinomas (dCCAs) by immunohistochemistry and evaluated PD-L1 positivity in tumor and stromal cells. We analyzed three different PD-L1 antibodies (clones 28–8, SP142, and SP263) that are frequently used and recommended for predictive diagnostic testing in other cancer types. Results: For PD-L1 antibody clone SP263, 5% of iCCAs, 4% of pCCAs and 3% of dCCAs exhibited PD-L1 expression on tumor cells, thereby showing the highest frequencies of PD-L1 positivity. Accordingly, highest PD-L1 positivity rates of stromal cells with 31% in iCCA, 40% in pCCA and 61% in dCCA were detected for clone SP263. Agreement of PD-L1 positivity in tumor cells was moderate for clone 28–8 and SP263 (κ = 0.44) and poor between 28-8 and SP142 (κ = 0.13), as well as  SP142 and SP263 (κ = 0.11), respectively. Statistical analyses of PD-L1 expression (clone SP263) on tumor cells with clinicopathological data revealed a positive correlation with shortened overall survival in CCA patients. Conclusions: Selection of appropriate PD-L1 antibodies and careful evaluation of immunohistochemical staining patterns have a significant impact on PD-L1 testing in CCA. Clinical trials are necessary to investigate the putative beneficial effects of PD-L1 targeted immunotherapy in CCA patients

Low frequency of mismatch repair deficiency in gallbladder cancer

Background: DNA mismatch repair (MMR) deficiency is a major pathway of genomic instability in cancer. It leads to the accumulation of numerous mutations predominantly at microsatellite sequences, a phenotype known as microsatellite instability (MSI). MSI tumors have a distinct clinical behavior and commonly respond well to immune checkpoint blockade, irrespective of their origin. Data about the prevalence of MSI among gallbladder cancer (GBC) have been conflicting. We here analyzed a well-characterized cohort of 69 Western-world GBCs. Methods: We analyzed the mononucleotide MSI marker panel consisting of BAT25, BAT26, and CAT25 to determine the prevalence of MMR deficiency-induced MSI. Results: MSI was detected in 1/69 (1.4%) of analyzed GBCs. The detected MSI GBC had a classical histomorphology, i.e. of acinar/tubular/glandular pancreatobiliary phenotype, and showed nuclear expression of all four MMR proteins MLH1, MSH2, MSH6, and PMS2. The MSI GBC patient showed a prolonged overall survival, despite having a high tumor stage at diagnosis. The patient had no known background or family history indicative of Lynch syndrome. Conclusions: Even though the overall number of MSI tumors is low in GBC, the potentially therapeutic benefit of checkpoint blockade in the respective patients may justify MSI analysis of GBC

Interethnic Relations in Southeastern Cameroon: Challenging the "Hunter- Gatherer" – "Farmer" Dichotomy

By slotting forest communities into reductive categories such as "hunter-gatherer"/ "farmer" and "pygmy"/ "villager, " analyses of social relations in tropical forests are reduced to two dimensions based on contrasting subsistence strategies and polar relations of power. As a result of this flattened perspective of the social landscape, other ways of reckoning social relations as expressed by contemporary forest peoples may be rendered analytically invisible and ideologically irrelevant to outside observers and analysts. This paper examines the formation and transformation of social relationships among Bangando, Baka, Bakw´el´e, and Mbomam, four distinct communities that intermingle in the forests of southeastern Cameroon. Far from conforming to these simplified, paired classifications of social identity based on presumed economic strategies and political relationships, the diverse communities of southeastern Cameroon pursue numerous and flexible production techniques, engage in manifold and changing relationships, and identify self and other in multiple and shifting ways. This paper demonstrates that, rather than maintaining strict ethnic divisions according to subsistence production, Bangando, Baka, Bakw´el´e, and Mbomam individuals participate in interfamilial, interethnic, and interregional networks that are social, economic, ritual, and political in nature

Wortschatzförderung bei früh sukzessiv deutschlernenden Kindern : eine modellgeleitete empirische Untersuchung

Kinder, die in ihrem häuslichen Umfeld eine andere Erstsprache als das Deutsche sprechen, sind in ihrem Deutscherwerb häufig direkt abhängig vom sprachlichen Input und Sprechgelegenheiten in institutionellen Kontexten. Da Zusammenhänge zwischen Sprachentwicklungsständen und Bildungschancen bestehen, wird eine wichtige Möglichkeit darin gesehen, mehr Chancengerechtigkeit durch eine frühe effektive Sprachförderung zu schaffen. Um den Spracherwerbsprozess möglichst effektiv unterstützen zu können, ist es sinnvoll, Erwerbs- und Lernmechanismen besser zu verstehen. In dem Buch „Wortschatzförderung bei früh sukzessiv deutschlernenden Kindern - Eine modellgeleitete empirische Untersuchung“ wird zunächst die bildungspolitische Relevanz sprachlicher Förderung erläutert. Der Wortschatzerwerb von Kindern wird besprochen und es wird auf die Besonderheiten und Herausforderungen der Wortschatzentwicklung mehrsprachiger Kinder eingegangen. Die Autorin beschreibt die Modellierung konnektionistischer Sprachverarbeitung anhand derer viele lexikalische Phänomene der ein- und mehrsprachigen Sprachverarbeitung erklärt werden können. Bei dem hier vorliegenden Buch handelt es sich um die überarbeitete Version der Dissertation der Autorin. Hierin wird erstmals eine modellgeleitete Wortschatzförderung bei sukzessiv deutschlernenden Kindern im Vorschulalter konzipiert und evaluiert. Die durchgeführte Studie, die phonologisch geprägte Wortschatzarbeit mit semantisch orientierter Wortschatzarbeit vergleicht, und den Aspekt der Förderintensität berücksichtigt, wird vorgestellt und die Ergebnisse werden diskutiert. Diese Arbeit zeigt einen am individuellen Vorwissen des Kindes orientierten Ansatz sowie die Wichtigkeit der Förderintensität auf