Narrative and Empathy: The 2015 ‘Refugee Crisis’ in Vladimir Vertlib’s Viktor hilft and Olga Grjasnowa’s Gott ist nicht schüchtern

This article examines Vladimir Vertlib's Viktor hilft (2018) and Olga Grjasnowa's Gott ist nicht schüchtern (2017) in relation to the 2015 ‘refugee crisis’ and specifically the disillusionment of humanitarianism that has become evident in recent years following the war on terror, the 2008 economic crisis, the rise of popularism, and the rapid explosion of humanitarian need. In the main body of the article, it is argued that both novels engage critically with the long-established motif of empathy as a foundation for humanitarian action, but that only Gott ist nicht schüchtern points to a way out of the disillusionment of humanitarianism by relativising European perspectives on the suffering of others (including repeated references to the Holocaust) and by encouraging the reader to think and act politically. Concretely, this means that the reader should focus on the political and moral responsibility of the state even towards non-citizens and should agitate for the state's adherence to international conventions (e.g. the right to asylum). At the close of the article, Hannah Arendt is invoked, as is a possible definition of ‘ironic solidarity’ in literary texts dealing with the suffering of others. Dieser Artikel untersucht Vladimir Vertlibs Viktor hilft (2018) und Olga Grjasnowas Gott ist nicht schüchtern (2017) in Bezug auf die Flüchtlingskrise von 2015 und spezifisch auf die Ernüchterung des Humanitarismus, die infolge des Krieges gegen den Terror, der Wirtschaftskrise von 2008, des Aufstiegs des Populismus und des rapide steigenden humanitären Bedarfs in Erscheinung getreten ist. Im Hauptteil des Artikels wird argumentiert, dass sich beide Romane – von zwei ansonsten sehr verschiedenen Autoren mit sowjetisch-jüdischem Hintergrund – kritisch mit dem längst etablierten Motiv der Empathie als Grundlage für das humanitäre Handeln auseinandersetzen. Darüber hinaus bietet Gott ist nicht schüchtern aber auch einen möglichen Ausweg aus der Ernüchterung des Humanitarismus, indem der Roman die europäische Perspektive (inklusive wiederholter Verweise auf den Holocaust) auf das Leid fremder Menschen relativiert und den Leser dazu auffordert, anstatt von Empathie geleitet zu werden politisch zu denken und zu handeln. Konkret bedeutet dies, dass der Leser auf die politische und moralische Verantwortung westlicher Staaten auch gegenüber Nichtbürgern fokussieren und sich für die Befolgung konventionsrechtlicher Verpflichtungen mobilisieren soll. Im Schlussteil des Artikels wird auf Hannah Arendt hingewiesen sowie auf eine mögliche Definition einer ‘ironic solidarity’ in literarischen Texten, die fremdes Leid thematisieren

Novel exogenous Calcium treatment strategies effectively mitigate physiological disorders in late season peach cultivars

7 Pags.- 3 Tabls.- 1 Fig. This work was presented by the authors into Session 2.3 of the VIII International Postharvest Symposium (2016) as the P.9 Poster. Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) License.To maintain fruit firmness and mitigate physiological alterations in a late season peach cultivar (Prunus persica ‘58GC-76’), environmentally friendly strategies including especial foliar calcium treatments, were developed. The innovation of these treatments consists of using an aqueous solution of the active matter (CaCl2) and a separate organic phase containing a concentrated adjuvant (tara gum) which confers to the final applied solution good characteristics of sticking and wettability, among others. This permits the spreading of calcium on the fruit surface and when environmental humidity increases, calcium solution can penetrate the fruit surface. This way of applying exogenous calcium, is only used in our laboratory so far. Conventional foliar applied calcium was not considered in this work because our previous results demonstrated their lack of effectiveness to mitigate physiological disorders in this commodity. Treatments at semi-industrial scale were conducted during 2014 and 2015 growing seasons. The very same pattern of treatments was applied to 58GC-76 peach orchards located in several sites of the ‘Bajo Aragón’ zone (NE Spain). The 58GC-76 variety suffers an emerging physiological disorder so called "corky spot" that has some similarities with vitrescent dark spot, which is affecting other late season peaches from the Protected Designation of Origin ‘Calanda’ in the same geographical region. The evolution of fruit nutrients (Ca, Mg and K), both in skin and pulp, demonstrated the effectiveness of calcium treatments during the two seasons in terms of increasing calcium concentration in both tissues. Regarding the evaluation of corky spot, a significant decrease in the severity and percentage of fruits affected was recorded in those fruits treated with calcium compared to control fruits which remained untreated.This work has been funded by the project ‘Mejora de la calidad del melocotón de Calanda: material vegetal, técnicas culturales, conservación y comercialización’ and by the grant from de Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitively ‘Mejora Genética de patrones Prunus y variedades de melocotonero’ (AGL2014-52063-R).Peer reviewe

Postnatal pelvic floor muscle stiffness measured by vaginal elastometry in women with obstetric anal sphincter injury : a pilot study

Introduction and hypothesis Vaginal childbirth is associated with pelvic floor muscle (PFM) damage in a third of women. The biomechanics prediction, detection and management of PFM damage remain poorly understood. We sought in this pilot study to determine whether quantifying PFM stiffness postnatally by vaginal elastometry, in women attending a perineal trauma clinic (PTC) within 6 months of obstetric anal sphincter injury, correlates with their antecedent labour characteristics, pelvic floor muscle damage, or urinary/bowel/sexual symptoms, to inform future definitive prospective studies. Methods In this pilot study, we measured postnatal PFM stiffness by vaginal elastometry in 54 women. A subset of participants (n = 14) underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to define any levator ani (LA) muscle defects from vaginal childbirth. We investigated the association of PFM stiffness with demographics, labour and delivery characteristics, clinical features and MRI evidence of LA damage. Results Raised maternal BMI was associated with reduced pelvic floor stiffness (r = −0.4; p < 0.01). Higher stiffness values were associated with forceps delivery for delayed second stage of labour (n = 14) vs non-forceps vaginal delivery (n = 40; 630 ± 40 N/m vs 500 ± 30 N/m; p < 0.05), and a non-significant trend towards longer duration of the second stage of labour. Women with urinary, bowel or sexual symptoms (n = 37) demonstrated higher pelvic floor stiffness values than those without (570 ± 30 N/m vs 450 ± 40 N/m; p < 0.05). Conclusions A history of delayed second stage of labour and forceps delivery was associated with higher PFM stiffness values in the postnatal period. Whether high pelvic muscle stiffness antenatally is a risk factor for instrumental vaginal delivery and LA avulsion is unknown

Resolving an inconsistency in the estimation of the energy for excitation of cardiac muscle contraction

In the excitation of muscle contraction, calcium ions interact with transmembrane transporters. This process is accompanied by energy consumption and heat liberation. To quantify this activation energy or heat in the heart or cardiac muscle, two non-pharmacological approaches can be used. In one approach using the “pressure-volume area” concept, the same estimate of activation energy is obtained regardless of the mode of contraction (either isovolumic/isometric or ejecting/shortening). In the other approach, an accurate estimate of activation energy is obtained only when the muscle contracts isometrically. If the contraction involves muscle shortening, then an additional component of heat associated with shortening is liberated, over and above that of activation. The present study thus examines the reconcilability of the two approaches by performing experiments on isolated muscles measuring contractile force and heat output. A framework was devised from the experimental data to allow us to replicate several mechanoenergetics results gleaned from the literature. From these replications, we conclude that the choice of initial muscle length (or ventricular volume) underlies the divergence of the two approaches in the estimation of activation energy when the mode of contraction involves shortening (ejection). At low initial muscle lengths, the heat of shortening is relatively small, which can lead to the misconception that activation energy is contraction mode independent. In fact, because cardiac muscle liberates heat of shortening when allowed to shorten, estimation of activation heat must be performed only under isometric (isovolumic) contractions. We thus recommend caution when estimating activation energy using the “pressure-volume area” concept

Use of materials in nest construction by Pied Flycatchers Ficedula hypoleuca reflects localised habitat and geographical location.

Capsule Pied Flycatchers use different materials to construct their nests according to localised habitat and geographical location. Aims This study tested the hypotheses that birds would use the leaves they normally encountered within their breeding territories and that nest composition varied between geographical locations. Methods In Lancashire, Pied Flycatcher nests were collected from nestboxes built in locations dominated by different tree species and were deconstructed to determine which materials were used. Results Materials found in nests generally reflected the localised habitat around the nest rather than showing evidence of active collection from distant sources of material. Nests from Lancashire were significantly different in composition when compared with published data for nests from north Wales and central Spain. The use of moss was dominated by the use of one species in all but two nests. Conclusion Pied Flycatchers exhibit plasticity in nest construction behaviour because they were opportunistic in their choice of most nesting materials although they may be selective in their choice of moss

Radiology contribution for the evaluation of secondary hyperparathryroidism

Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Departamento de Diagnóstico por ImagemUniversidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP)UNIFESP, Depto. de Diagnóstico por ImagemUNIFESPSciEL

Functional and Molecular Characterization of Mechanoinsensitive "Silent" Nociceptors.

Mechanical and thermal hyperalgesia (pain hypersensitivity) are cardinal signs of inflammation. Although the mechanism underlying thermal hyperalgesia is well understood, the cellular and molecular basis of mechanical hyperalgesia is poorly described. Here, we have identified a subset of peptidergic C-fiber nociceptors that are insensitive to noxious mechanical stimuli under normal conditions but become sensitized to such stimuli when exposed to the inflammatory mediator nerve growth factor (NGF). Strikingly, NGF did not affect mechanosensitivity of other nociceptors. We show that these mechanoinsensitive "silent" nociceptors are characterized by the expression of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunit alpha-3 (CHRNA3) and that the mechanically gated ion channel PIEZO2 mediates NGF-induced mechanosensitivity in these neurons. Retrograde tracing revealed that CHRNA3+ nociceptors account for ∼50% of all peptidergic nociceptive afferents innervating visceral organs and deep somatic tissues. Hence, our data suggest that NGF-induced "un-silencing" of CHRNA3+ nociceptors significantly contributes to the development of mechanical hyperalgesia during inflammation

We ask: What is the diagnosis?

Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP) Escola Paulista de Medicina Departamento de Diagnóstico por ImagemUniversity of British Columbia Vancouver General Hospital Departamento de RadiologiaUNIFESP, EPM, Depto. de Diagnóstico por ImagemSciEL