Rhetorical evolution of oppositional discourse in French academic writing. Oppositional discourse in academic writing

We here analyze the quantitative and qualitative evolution of academic conflict (AC) in a corpus of 90 medical articles published between 1810 and 1995. The linguistic means expressing AC were recorded in each paper and classified according to whether they expressed a direct or an indirect conflict.  The frequency of each category of AC was first recorded in each paper, and then calculated per 20–year periods. Our results were analyzed using Chi–square tests. In the whole corpus, direct AC were more frequent than indirect ones (p = .0001). When analyzed per 20–year periods, our quantitative results allowed us to divide the 185 years studied into 2 distinct periods, the cutting–off point being the 1910’s when the frequency of indirect AC started a slow but continuous ascent. In each Block direct AC outnumbered indirect ones (p =.0001), but indirect AC were more frequent in Block B than in Block A (p = .039). A qualitative analysis of the AC recorded revealed that both 19th and 20th century AC were expressed in a personal, polemical and authoritarian manner, although the confrontational stance of late 20th century AC tends to be mitigated either by means of hedging expressions or through the shifting of person to object thematization. We conclude that when formulating their professional disagreement, French-speaking scientists have always been authoritative, categorical, direct and personal, although the tone of voice of confrontations tends to be more “low key” as we approach the turn of the 21st century

Lithiation of silicon via lithium Zintl-defect complexes

An extensive search for low-energy lithium defects in crystalline silicon using density-functional-theory methods and the ab initio random structure searching (AIRSS) method shows that the four-lithium-atom substitutional point defect is exceptionally stable. This defect consists of four lithium atoms with strong ionic bonds to the four under-coordinated atoms of a silicon vacancy defect, similar to the bonding of metal ions in Zintl phases. This complex is stable over a range of silicon environments, indicating that it may aid amorphization of crystalline silicon and form upon delithiation of the silicon anode of a Li-ion rechargeable battery.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figure

An innovative device for determining the soil water retention curve under high suction at different temperatures

To characterise the water retention behaviour of fine soils, high suction values are applied. In this range of values, the vapour equilibrium technique is usually used. This paper presents an innovative device, a sorption bench that permits the determination of the water retention curve of soil. With this new testing method, the time required for testing is significantly reduced. In addition, this apparatus enables the thermal conditions of a test to be controlled; thus, the applied suction can be better controlled, and the water retention curve for different temperatures can be determined. Another valuable aspect of the device is the adopted technical solution that permits weighing of the samples inside the desiccators at any time. Consequently, the water content kinetics can be defined without disturbing the drying or wetting processe

Characterization and Emulsification Properties of Rhamnolipid and Sophorolipid Biosurfactants and Their Applications

Due to their non-toxic nature, biodegradability and production from renewable resources, research has shown an increasing interest in the use of biosurfactants in a wide variety of applications. This paper reviews the characterization of rhamnolipid and sophorolipid biosurfactants based on their hydrophilicity/hydrophobicity and their ability to form microemulsions with a range of oils without additives. The use of the biosurfactants in applications such as detergency and vegetable oil extraction for biodiesel application is also discussed. Rhamnolipid was found to be a hydrophilic surfactant while sophorolipid was found to be very hydrophobic. Therefore, rhamnolipid and sophorolipid biosurfactants in mixtures showed robust performance in these applications

Grain scale mechanisms for capillary collapse in a loose unsaturated pyroclastic soil

Soil collapse may occur passing from unsaturated to saturated conditions, thus causing major problems, among which one can mention a poor performance of the structures or the occurrence of landslides turning into flows. The mechanisms of the soil collapse have been studied at macroscopic scale since many years, while few observations at microscopic level are available. In this work, the mechanisms of capillary collapse were investigated for a volcanic (air-fall) pyroclastic soil of Southern Italy, which is characterized by an open metastable structure and is frequently involved into catastrophic rainfall-induced landslides. The experimental investigation was performed through X-ray Computed Tomography, which allows reconstructing 3D images of the specimen from the spatial distribution of the linear attenuation coefficient. The tests were carried out on coarse sand. During the tests, the specimens were loaded by its self-weight without any external load, and the suction was gradually reduced until the specimen collapse occurs. The aims of the experimental program were: i) follow the transformation of the specimen's microstructure; ii) evaluate the variation in terms of water content, porosity and grains spatial distribution; iii) analyse the effect of grain size distribution on the development of capillary forces and mass forces. The experimental evidences outline that, for the coarse pyroclastic sand, the collapse occurs at a very low suction, while it is not mandatory to reach the complete saturation

Medical case reports and titleology: a diachronic perspective (1840-2009)

This paper is a diachronic analysis of a corpus of 180 titles drawn from CRs published in the BMJ and the BMJ Case Reports between 1840 and 2009. The frequency of occurrence of 69 variables (e.g. title type and length, punctuation, grammatical and syntactic data, number of authors and collaboration practices) was recorded for each title. The corpus was divided into three blocks (1840-1850, 1920-1930 and 2009) and between-block comparisons were carried out. Our findings show that CR titles have evolved over the 160-year period studied in the sense that they have increased in length, syntactic complexity, semantic richness and title type diversity. Authorship patterns and collaboration practices have changed, too. Although internationalization of case reporting has increased over time, today’s preferred practice is still local collaboration. The only variable that has remained constant over the years is the nominal nature of CR titles. We put forth several social and scientific factors that could account for the various shifts observed. The non-informativeness of CR titles that persisted over time can be explained by the fact that CR authors are reluctant to give a generalization flavor to their findings based on single cases.This paper forms part of a wider research that is supported by Grant M-976-09-06A from the Scientific, Technological, Humanistic and Artistic Research Center (CDCHT) from the University of The Andes, Mérida (Venezuela)

Género y crítica en la prosa médica escrita en español: Función comunicativa y relación de poder

This study addresses the issue of academic conflict (AC) in four different genres of medical discourse, viz., editorials, review and research papers and case reports. The rhetorical strategies used to convey AC were recorded and their qualitative features (their level of commitment or detachment, their overall tone, the presence of irony, sarcasm, etc.) were analyzed in 40 medical articles written in Spanish in the last decade of the 20th century. Our results show that the communicative function of each genre and the rank/status power relations that exist between authors and their audience have a direct bearing on the way medical researchers express their dissension