A Study Of Regional Language And Identities In A Small Occitan Village

This exploratory study utilized qualitative methods to approach regional language abilities of local respondents and how it affects their regional identity. The theoretical framework of this study explored some of the tenets of symbolic interaction emphasizing on identity theory and how the flexible aspect of face-to-face interaction can define the self and someone\u27s regional identity as it relates to their regional language use. Data for this study were collected in a small Occitan village in Southern France. In particular, the study explored the link between an individual residential setting, his/her age and his/her ability to speak the regional language. The results indicate that the ability to speak the specific regional or even sub regional language does not greatly affect an individual\u27s regional identity, thus potentially contributing to the continuing decline of that language in the region. Furthermore, that future studies are merited to explore whether these results are specific or if they can more broadly be applied to other Occitan regions or elsewhere where regional languages are spoken

New high-resolution radio observations of the SNR CTB 80

We report new high resolution and high sensitivity radio observations of the extended supernova remnant (SNR) CTB 80 (G69.0+2.7) at 240 MHz, 324 MHz, 618 MHz, and 1380 MHz. The imaging of CTB 80 at 240 MHz and 618 MHz was performed using the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT) in India. The observations at 324 MHz and 1380 MHz were obtained using the Very Large Array (VLA, NRAO) in its C and D configurations. The new radio images reveal faint extensions for the asymmetric arms of CTB 80. The arms are irregular with filaments and clumps of size 1' (or 0.6 pc at a distance of 2 kpc). The radio image at 1380 MHz is compared with IR and optical emission. The correspondence IR/radio is excellent along the N arm of CTB 80. Ionized gas observed in the [SII] line perfectly matches the W and N edges of CTB 80. The central nebula associated with the pulsar PSR B1951+32 was investigated with an angular resolution of 10" x 6". The new radio image obtained at 618 MHz shows with superb detail structures in the 8' x 4' E-W ``plateau'' nebula that hosts the pulsar on its western extreme. A twisted filament, about 6' in extent (~3.5 pc), trails behind the pulsar in an approximate W-E direction. In the bright ``core'' nebula (size \~45"), located to the W of the plateau, the images show a distortion in the morphology towards the W; this feature corresponds to the direction in which the pulsar escapes from the SNR with a velocity of ~240 km/s. Based on the new observations, the energetics of the SNR and of the PWN are investigated.Comment: 11 pages, Latex, 6 eps figures, To appear in AJ Vol 126., No. 5, November 200

Navigation à l'aide d'un gravimètre atomique

International audienceCold atom interferometer is a promising technology to obtain a highly sensitive and accurate absolute gravimeter. With the help of an anomalies gravity map, local measurements of gravity allow a terrain-based navigation. This paper follows the one we published in Fusion 2017. Based on an atomic gravimeter we present a method to map the gravity anomaly. We propose a modification of the Laplace-based particle filter so as to make it more robust. Some simulation results demonstrate a better robustness of the proposed filter.L'interférométrie à atomes froids est une technologie prometteuse pour obtenir un gravimètre absolu de grande sensibilité et précision. A partir d'une carte d'anomalies gravimétriques, la mesure locale de la gravité permet une navigation par corrélation de terrain. Ce papier fait suite à celui publié au congrès Fusion 2017. Nous présentons une méthode d'élaboration de cartes d’anomalies gravimétriques à partir du gravimètre atomique. Nous proposons une modification du filtre Particulaire de Laplace qui offre une meilleure robustesse. Des résultats de simulation montrent une meilleure robustesse de ce filtre

Liver transplantation for patients with acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) in Europe: Results of the ELITA/EF-CLIF collaborative study (ECLIS)

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Liver transplantation (LT) has been proposed to be an effective salvage therapy even for the sickest patients with acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF). This large collaborative study was designed to address the current clinical practice and outcomes of ACLF patients wait listed (WL) for LT in Europe. METHODS: Retrospective study including 308 consecutive ACLF patients, listed in 20 centres across 8 European countries, from January 2018 to June 2019. RESULTS: 2677 patients received a LT, 1216 (45.4%) for decompensated cirrhosis (DC). Of these, 234 (19.2%) had ACLF at LT: ACLF-1, 58 (4.8%); ACLF-2, 78 (6.4%); and ACLF-3, 98 (8.1%). Wide variations were observed amongst countries: France and Germany had high rates of ACLF-2/3 (27-41%); Italy, Switzerland, Poland and Netherlands had medium rates (9-15%); and United Kingdom and Spain had low rates (3-5%) (p 4 mmol/L (HR 3.14, 95% CI 1.37-7.19), recent infection from multi-drug resistant organisms (HR 3.67, 95% CI 1.63-8.28), and renal replacement therapy (HR 2.74, 95% CI 1.37-5.51) were independent predictors of post-LT mortality. During the same period, 74 patients with ACLF died on the WL. In an intention-to-treat analysis, one-year survival of ACLF patients on the LT WL was 73% for ACLF-1 or -2 and 50% for ACLF-3. CONCLUSION: The results reveal wide variations in listing patients with ACLF in Europe despite favorable post-LT survival. Risk factors for mortality were identified, allowing a more precise prognostic assessment of ACLF patients for potential LT. LAY SUMMARY: Acute on chronic liver failure (ACLF) is a severe clinical condition for which liver transplantation is an effective therapeutic option. This study has demonstrated that in Europe, referral and access to liver transplantation (LT) for patients with ACLF needs to be harmonized to avoid inequities. Post-LT survival for patients with ACLF was >80% after 1 year and some factors have been identified for selecting patients with favorable outcomes

Randomized-controlled trial of the DIALIVE liver dialysis device vs. standard of care in patients with acute-on-chronic liver failure

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Acute on chronic liver failure (ACLF) is characterized by severe systemic inflammation, multi-organ failure and high mortality rates. Its treatment is an urgent unmet need. DIALIVE is a novel liver dialysis device that aims to exchange d ysfunctional albumin and remove damage- and pathogen-associated molecular patterns. This first-in-man randomized, controlled clinical trial was performed with the primary aim of assessing its safety in ACLF patients with secondary aims to evaluate its clinical effects, device performance and effect on pathophysiologically-relevant biomarkers. METHODS: 32 alcoholic cirrhosis patients with ACLF were included. Patients were treated with DIALIVE for up to 5-days and end points were assessed at Day-10. Safety was assessed in all patients (n=32). The secondary aims were assessed in a pre-specified subgroup that had at least 3-treatment sessions with DIALIVE (n=30). RESULTS: There were no significant differences in 28-day mortality or occurrence of serious adverse events between the groups. Significant reduction in the severity of endotoxemia and improvement in albumin function was observed in DIALIVE group, which translated into a significant reduction in the CLIF-C (Chronic Liver Failure consortium) organ failure (p=0.018) and CLIF-C ACLF scores (p=0.042) at Day-10. Time to resolution of ACLF was significantly faster in DIALIVE group (p=0.036). Biomarkers of systemic inflammation such as IL-8 (p=0.006), cell death [cytokeratin-18: M30 (p=0.005) and M65 (p=0.029)], endothelial function [asymmetric dimethylarginine (p=0.002)] and, ligands for toll-like receptor 4 (p=0.030) and inflammasome (p=0.002) improved significantly in DIALIVE group. CONCLUSIONS: These data indicate that DIALIVE appears to be safe and impacts positively on prognostic scores and pathophysiologically relevant biomarkers in patients with ACLF. Larger, adequately powered studies are warranted to further confirm its safety and efficacy. LAY SUMMARY: This is the first-in-man clinical trial which tested DIALIVE, a novel liver dialysis device for the treatment of liver cirrhosis and acute on chronic liver failure, a condition associated with severe inflammation, organ failures and a high risk of death. The study met the primary end point confirming DIALIVE system to be safe. Additionally, it reduced inflammation with improved clinical parameters. It did not, however, reduce mortality in this small study and requires further larger clinical trials to re-confirm its safety and evaluate efficacy. CLINICAL TRIAL NUMBER: NCT03065699

A unified dynamic account of auxiliary placement in Rangi

The Tanzanian Bantu language Rangi exhibits a comparatively and typologically unusual word order alternation in the future tense. Whilst declarative main clauses exhibit post-verbal auxiliary placement, the auxiliary appears pre-verbally in wh-questions, sentential negation, relative clauses, cleft constructions and subordinate clauses. This paper examines this alternation from the perspective of Dynamic Syntax (Cann et al., 2005; Kempson et al., 2001). Dynamic Syntax (DS) is a parsing-oriented framework which aims to capture the way in which meaning is established incrementally as a result of lexical input encountered in context. The paper presents a unified analysis of this construction found in Rangi, locating it within the wider workings of the language. It shows that this seemingly idiosyncratic constituent order is in fact predictable on the basis of a general constraint operative in the DS framework which prohibits the co-occurrence of more than one unfixed node, thereby also confirming the claim of Dynamic Syntax to constitute a grammar framework rather than merely a parsing device

Transfer of Swahili ‘until’ in contact with East African languages

Swahili has transformed the noun mpaka ‘boundary, border’ into a function word ‘until’, which has successfully spread to many other East African languages with locative and temporal readings. The grammaticalisation originated in a N-N construction without an associative ‘of’ interpreted as limiting the action adverbially. The main function is in the time interpretation of ‘until’. I provide an overview of this transfer in East Africa by looking at a large number of languages and argue that parallel independent grammaticalisation is not what is at stake but rather transfer of the function word and the preposition-like function.Descriptive and Comparative Linguistic

African Linguistics in Central and Eastern Europe, and in the Nordic Countries

Non peer reviewe

Language endangerment and language documentation in Africa

Non peer reviewe

Randomized, controlled clinical trial of the DIALIVE liver dialysis device versus standard of care in patients with acute-on- chronic liver failure

Background & Aims Acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) is characterized by severe systemic inflammation, multi-organ failure and high mortality rates. Its treatment is an urgent unmet need. DIALIVE is a novel liver dialysis device that aims to exchange dysfunctional albumin and remove damage- and pathogen-associated molecular patterns. This first-in-man randomized-controlled trial was performed with the primary aim of assessing the safety of DIALIVE in patients with ACLF, with secondary aims of evaluating its clinical effects, device performance and effect on pathophysiologically relevant biomarkers. Methods Thirty-two patients with alcohol-related ACLF were included. Patients were treated with DIALIVE for up to 5 days and end points were assessed at Day 10. Safety was assessed in all patients (n = 32). The secondary aims were assessed in a pre-specified subgroup that had at least three treatment sessions with DIALIVE (n = 30). Results There were no significant differences in 28-day mortality or occurrence of serious adverse events between the groups. Significant reduction in the severity of endotoxemia and improvement in albumin function was observed in the DIALIVE group, which translated into a significant reduction in the CLIF-C (Chronic Liver Failure consortium) organ failure (p = 0.018) and CLIF-C ACLF scores (p = 0.042) at Day 10. Time to resolution of ACLF was significantly faster in DIALIVE group (p = 0.036). Biomarkers of systemic inflammation such as IL-8 (p = 0.006), cell death [cytokeratin-18: M30 (p = 0.005) and M65 (p = 0.029)], endothelial function [asymmetric dimethylarginine (p = 0.002)] and, ligands for Toll-like receptor 4 (p = 0.030) and inflammasome (p = 0.002) improved significantly in the DIALIVE group. Conclusions These data indicate that DIALIVE appears to be safe and impacts positively on prognostic scores and pathophysiologically relevant biomarkers in patients with ACLF. Larger, adequately powered studies are warranted to further confirm its safety and efficacy. Impact and implications This is the first-in-man clinical trial which tested DIALIVE, a novel liver dialysis device for the treatment of cirrhosis and acute-on-chronic liver failure, a condition associated with severe inflammation, organ failures and a high risk of death. The study met the primary endpoint, confirming the safety of the DIALIVE system. Additionally, DIALIVE reduced inflammation and improved clinical parameters. However, it did not reduce mortality in this small study and further larger clinical trials are required to re-confirm its safety and to evaluate efficacy. Clinical trial number NCT03065699