The ambiguous utility of psychometrics for the interpretative foundation of socially relevant avatars

Accepted for publication in Theory & PsychologyInternational audienceThe persisting debates that measurement in psychology elicits can be explained by the conflict between two aspiration types. One, the epistemologic aspiration, resting on the search for scientific truth, and two, the social aspiration, resting on the demonstration of a capacity to contribute to psychological assessment problems in particular. Psychometrics answer essentially to psychology's demand for social utility, leading to the quasi-exclusive attribution of importance to quantitative interpretation. For psychology to be considered an empirical science, it has to establish its capacity for the measurement of psychological phenomena, even if this means that it recognizes that these phenomena are essentially qualitative

Impact of land use on the hydraulic properties of the topsoil in a small French catchment

The hydraulic properties of the topsoil control the partition of rainfall into infiltration and runoff at the soil surface. They must be characterized for distributed hydrological modelling. This study presents the results of a field campaign documenting topsoil hydraulic properties in a small French suburban catchment (7 km2) located near Lyon, France. Two types of infiltration tests were performed: single ring infiltration tests under positive head and tension disk infiltration using a mini-disk. Both categories were processed using the BEST Beerkan Estimation of Soil Transfer parameters- method to derive parameters describing the retention and hydraulic conductivity curves. Dry bulk density and particle size data were also sampled. Almost all the topsoils were found to belong to the sandy loam soil class. No significant differences in hydraulic properties were found in terms of pedologic units, but the results showed a high impact of land use on these properties. The lowest dry bulk density values were obtained in forested soils with the highest organic matter content. Permanent pasture soils showed intermediate values, whereas the highest values were encountered in cultivated lands. For saturated hydraulic conductivity, the highest values were found in broad leaved forests and small woods. The complementary use of tension disk and positive head infiltration tests highlighted a sharp increase of hydraulic conductivity between near saturation and saturated conditions, attributed to macroporosity effect. The ratio of median saturated hydraulic conductivity to median hydraulic conductivity at a pressure of -20 mm of water, was about 50. The study suggests that soil texture, such as used in most pedo-transfer functions, might not be sufficient to properly map the variability of soil hydraulic properties. Land use information should be considered in the parameterizations of topsoil within hydrological models to better represent in situ conditions, as illustrated in the paper

Gene and protein expression in response to different growth temperatures and oxygen availability in Burkholderia thailandensis.

Published onlineJournal ArticleResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tThis is the final version of the article. Available from Public Library of Science via the DOI in this record.Burkholderia thailandensis, although normally avirulent for mammals, can infect macrophages in vitro and has occasionally been reported to cause pneumonia in humans. It is therefore used as a model organism for the human pathogen B. pseudomallei, to which it is closely related phylogenetically. We characterized the B. thailandensis clinical isolate CDC2721121 (BtCDC272) at the genome level and studied its response to environmental cues associated with human host colonization, namely, temperature and oxygen limitation. Effects of the different growth conditions on BtCDC272 were studied through whole genome transcription studies and analysis of proteins associated with the bacterial cell surface. We found that growth at 37°C, compared to 28°C, negatively affected cell motility and flagella production through a mechanism involving regulation of the flagellin-encoding fliC gene at the mRNA stability level. Growth in oxygen-limiting conditions, in contrast, stimulated various processes linked to virulence, such as lipopolysaccharide production and expression of genes encoding protein secretion systems. Consistent with these observations, BtCDC272 grown in oxygen limitation was more resistant to phagocytosis and strongly induced the production of inflammatory cytokines from murine macrophages. Our results suggest that, while temperature sensing is important for regulation of B. thailandensis cell motility, oxygen limitation has a deeper impact on its physiology and constitutes a crucial environmental signal for the production of virulence factors.This work was supported by Fondazione CARIPLO (Progetto Vaccini, contract number 2009–3577) and by Ministero dell’Istruzione, dell’Università e della Ricerca (MIUR) (project FIRB RBLA039LSF). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript

Unpredictable shoe midsole perturbations provide an instability stimulus to train ankle posture and motion during forward and lateral gym lunges

Unstable footwear may enhance training effects to the lower-limb musculature and sensorimotor system during dynamic gym movements. This study compared the instability of an unstable shoe with irregular midsole deformations (IM) and a control shoe (CS) during forward and lateral lunges. Seventeen female gym class participants completed two sets of ten forward and lateral lunges in CS and IM. Ground reaction forces, lower-limb kinematics and ankle muscle activations were recorded. Variables around initial ground contact, toe-off, descending and ascending lunge phases were compared statistically (p < .05). Responses to IM compared to CS were similar across lunge directions. The IM induced instability by increasing the vertical loading rate (p < .001, p = .009) and variability of frontal ankle motion during descending (p = .001, p < .001) and ascending phases (p = .150, p = .003), in forward and lateral lunges, respectively. At initial ground contact, ankle adjustments enhanced postural stability in IM. Across muscles, there were no activation increases, although results indicate peroneus longus activations increased in IM during the ascending phase. As expected, IM provided a more demanding training stimulus during lunge exercises and has potential to reduce ankle injuries by training ankle positioning for unpredictable instability

Coefficient of restitution for elastic disks

We calculate the coefficient of restitution, $\epsilon$, starting from a microscopic model of elastic disks. The theory is shown to agree with the approach of Hertz in the quasistatic limit, but predicts inelastic collisions for finite relative velocities of two approaching disks. The velocity dependence of $\epsilon$ is calculated numerically for a wide range of velocities. The coefficient of restitution furthermore depends on the elastic constants of the material via Poisson's number. The elastic vibrations absorb kinetic energy more effectively for materials with low values of the shear modulus.Comment: 25 pages, 12 Postscript figures, LaTex2

"They think we're OK and we know we're not". A qualitative study of asylum seekers' access, knowledge and views to health care in the UK

&lt;i&gt;Background&lt;/i&gt;: The provision of healthcare for asylum seekers is a global issue. Providing appropriate and culturally sensitive services requires us to understand the barriers facing asylum seekers and the facilitators that help them access health care. Here, we report on two linked studies exploring these issues, along with the health care needs and beliefs of asylum seekers living in the UK. &lt;i&gt;Methods&lt;/i&gt;: Two qualitative methods were employed: focus groups facilitated by members of the asylum seeking community and interviews, either one-to-one or in a group, conducted through an interpreter. Analysis was facilitated using the Framework method. &lt;i&gt;Results&lt;/i&gt;: Most asylum seekers were registered with a GP, facilitated for some by an Asylum Support nurse. Many experienced difficulty getting timely appointments with their doctor, especially for self-limiting symptoms that they felt could become more serious, especially in children. Most were positive about the health care they received, although some commented on the lack of continuity. However, there was surprise and disappointment at the length of waiting times both for hospital appointments and when attending accident and emergency departments. Most had attended a dentist, but usually only when there was a clinical need. The provision of interpreters in primary care was generally good, although there was a tension between interpreters translating verbatim and acting as patient advocates. Access to interpreters in other settings, e.g. in-patient hospital stays, was problematic. Barriers included the cost of over-the-counter medication, e.g. children's paracetamol; knowledge of out-of-hours medical care; and access to specialists in secondary care. Most respondents came from countries with no system of primary medical care, which impacted on their expectations of the UK system. &lt;i&gt;Conclusion&lt;/i&gt;: Most asylum seekers were positive about their experiences of health care. However, we have identified issues regarding their understanding of how the UK system works, in particular the role of general practitioners and referral to hospital specialists. The provision of an Asylum Support nurse was clearly a facilitator to accessing primary medical care. Initiatives to increase their awareness and understanding of the UK system would be beneficial. Interpreting services also need to be developed, in particular their role in secondary care and the development of the role of interpreter as patient advocate

Companions of Stars: From Other Stars to Brown Dwarfs to Planets: The Discovery of the First Methane Brown Dwarf

The discovery of the first methane brown dwarf provides a framework for describing the important advances in both fundamental physics and astrophysics that are due to the study of companions of stars. I present a few highlights of the history of this subject along with details of the discovery of the brown dwarf Gliese 229B. The nature of companions of stars is discussed with an attempt to avoid biases induced by anthropocentric nomenclature. With the newer types of remote reconnaissance of nearby stars and their systems of companions, an exciting and perhaps even more profound set of contributions to science is within reach in the near future. This includes an exploration of the diversity of planets in the universe and perhaps soon the first solid evidence for biological activity outside our Solar System.Comment: 31 pages, 13 figure

Scenario of Accelerating Universe from the Phenomenological \Lambda- Models

Dark matter, the major component of the matter content of the Universe, played a significant role at early stages during structure formation. But at present the Universe is dark energy dominated as well as accelerating. Here, the presence of dark energy has been established by including a time-dependent $\Lambda$ term in the Einstein's field equations. This model is compatible with the idea of an accelerating Universe so far as the value of the deceleration parameter is concerned. Possibility of a change in sign of the deceleration parameter is also discussed. The impact of considering the speed of light as variable in the field equations has also been investigated by using a well known time-dependent $\Lambda$ model.Comment: Latex, 9 pages, Major change

Primary skin fibroblasts as a model of Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease is the second most frequent neurodegenerative disorder. While most cases occur sporadic mutations in a growing number of genes including Parkin (PARK2) and PINK1 (PARK6) have been associated with the disease. Different animal models and cell models like patient skin fibroblasts and recombinant cell lines can be used as model systems for Parkinson's disease. Skin fibroblasts present a system with defined mutations and the cumulative cellular damage of the patients. PINK1 and Parkin genes show relevant expression levels in human fibroblasts and since both genes participate in stress response pathways, we believe fibroblasts advantageous in order to assess, e.g. the effect of stressors. Furthermore, since a bioenergetic deficit underlies early stage Parkinson's disease, while atrophy underlies later stages, the use of primary cells seems preferable over the use of tumor cell lines. The new option to use fibroblast-derived induced pluripotent stem cells redifferentiated into dopaminergic neurons is an additional benefit. However, the use of fibroblast has also some drawbacks. We have investigated PARK6 fibroblasts and they mirror closely the respiratory alterations, the expression profiles, the mitochondrial dynamics pathology and the vulnerability to proteasomal stress that has been documented in other model systems. Fibroblasts from patients with PARK2, PARK6, idiopathic Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, and spinocerebellar ataxia type 2 demonstrated a distinct and unique mRNA expression pattern of key genes in neurodegeneration. Thus, primary skin fibroblasts are a useful Parkinson's disease model, able to serve as a complement to animal mutants, transformed cell lines and patient tissues