Editorial for the Bibliometric-enhanced Information Retrieval Workshop at ECIR 2014

This first "Bibliometric-enhanced Information Retrieval" (BIR 2014) workshop aims to engage with the IR community about possible links to bibliometrics and scholarly communication. Bibliometric techniques are not yet widely used to enhance retrieval processes in digital libraries, although they offer value-added effects for users. In this workshop we will explore how statistical modelling of scholarship, such as Bradfordizing or network analysis of co-authorship network, can improve retrieval services for specific communities, as well as for large, cross-domain collections. This workshop aims to raise awareness of the missing link between information retrieval (IR) and bibliometrics / scientometrics and to create a common ground for the incorporation of bibliometric-enhanced services into retrieval at the digital library interface. Our interests include information retrieval, information seeking, science modelling, network analysis, and digital libraries. The goal is to apply insights from bibliometrics, scientometrics, and informetrics to concrete practical problems of information retrieval and browsing.Comment: 4 pages, Bibliometric-enhanced Information Retrieval Workshop at ECIR 2014, Amsterdam, N

Aus- und Weiterbildung in Kulturerbemanagement in der Schweiz. Analyse des aktuellen Angebots und der Nachfrage 2020–2022

Dieser Bericht ist das Ergebnis einer aus Eigeninitiative der Verfassenden zwischen 2020 und 2022 durchgeführten Studie. Die Studie verfolgte zwei Ziele: 1) Erarbeiten eines Überblicks über das aktuelle Angebot an Aus- und Weiterbildungen mit Bezügen zum Kulturerbemanagement in der Schweiz, 2) Evaluation einer potenziellen Nachfrage nach Weiterbildungsangeboten im Bereich Kulturerbemanagement. Die Erhebung des Angebots erfolgte mittels Online-Recherchen, wobei Studienpläne sowie Weiterbildungsangebote (Nachdiplom) der Universitäten und Fachhochschulen in allen Sprachregionen der Schweiz erfasst wurden (letztes Update Herbstsemester 2022). Zum Vergleich wurden ausgewählte, explizit als Studiengänge in Cultural Heritage Management (Kulturerbemanagement) deklarierte Ausbildungen aus weiteren europäischen Ländern beigezogen. Die Resultate der Angebotserhebung zeigen, dass in der Schweiz derzeit kein Studiengang bzw. kein Weiterbildungsangebot existiert, das explizit das Kulturerbemanagement nach dessen Definition zum Inhalt hat. Indessen besteht ein recht breit gefächertes Angebot an Aus- und Weiterbildungen, die auch und bisweilen grosse Bereiche des Kulturerbemanagements behandeln. Die Erhebung der Nachfrage erfolgte durch eine Online-Umfrage. Befragt wurden alle kantonalen Fachstellen für Archäologie und Baudenkmalpflege. Die Umfrage wurde zudem weiteren Institutionen wie dem Bundesamt für Kultur (Sektion Baukultur) sowie der NIKE (Nationale Informationsstelle zum Kulturerbe) zugesandt. Die Auswertung der Rückmeldungen der Online-Umfrage zeigt, dass ein grundsätzlicher Bedarf an Aus- und Weiterbildungsmöglichkeiten im Bereich der Kulturpflege besteht. Die Nachfrage richtet sich jedoch weniger auf eine umfassende Ausbildung in Kulturerbemanagement, sondern vielmehr auf spezifische, meist stark praxisorientierte Themen und Teilaspekte. Hierbei stehen im Tagesgeschäft der Fachstellen für Archäologie und Denkmalpflege benötigte Kompetenzen in Bereichen wie Projektmanagement und Kommunikation sowie ein grundlegendes Verständnis politischer Prozesse im Vordergrund. Ferner besteht der Wunsch nach praxisorientierten Grundlagen und Handreichungen sowie nach der Entwicklung von Best Practices. Weniger nachgefragt werden indessen theoretische Grundlagen. Angesichts des heterogenen und dynamischen Angebots an bereits bestehenden Aus- und Weiterbildungsmöglichkeiten einerseits und der sehr auf die Praxis fokussierten Bedürfnisse der befragten Fachstellen und Institutionen andererseits kann konstatiert werden, dass (zumindest unter den befragten Institutionen) in der Schweiz derzeit kein Bedarf an einem expliziten Studiengang oder einem Nachdiplomstudium in Kulturerbemanagement besteht. Zu klären wäre nun, wie dem doch manifesten Wunsch nach Handreichungen und Praxisbeispielen Rechnung getragen werden kann. Vorgeschlagen wird hierzu der Aufbau einer schweizweiten Informations und Austauschplattform zum Kulturerbemanagement. Eine Publikation der vorliegenden Studie ist nicht vorgesehen. Der vorliegende Bericht wird in digitaler Form bei der Sektion Baukultur des Bundesamtes für Kultur sowie bei den Sekretariaten der Konferenz der Schweizer Kantonsarchäologinnen und Kantonsarchäologen KSKA und der Konferenz der Schweizer Denkmalpflegerinnen und Denkmalpfleger KSD abgelegt. Die Identifikation mit einem DOI und Ablage im Repositorium BORIS der Universität Bern ist vorgesehen, womit die Studie für ein breiteres interessiertes Publikum nutzbar wird.Le présent rapport est le résultat d'une étude menée entre 2020 et 2022 à l'initiative des auteurs. Elle poursuivait deux objectifs: 1) élaborer une vue d'ensemble de l'offre actuelle de formations et de formations continues ayant trait à la gestion du patrimoine culturel en Suisse 2) évaluer la demande potentielle en formations continues dans le domaine de la gestion du patrimoine culturel. Un état des lieux a été réalisé au moyen de recherches en ligne, en vérifiant les plans d'études et les offres de formation continue (postgrade) des universités et des hautes écoles spécialisées de toutes les régions linguistiques de Suisse (dernière mise à jour: semestre d'automne 2022). À titre de comparaison, on a tenu compte de formations proposées dans d'autres pays européens et présentées explicitement comme des cursus de gestion du patrimoine culturel (Cultural Heritage Management). Les résultats de cette enquête révèlent qu'il n'existe actuellement en Suisse aucune filière d'études ou de formation continue consacrée explicitement de la gestion du patrimoine culturel au sens propre. En revanche, on dispose d’une offre assez vaste de formations et de formations continues traitant également, et parfois pour une large part, de la gestion du patrimoine culturel. Pour évaluer la demande, on a effectué une enquête en ligne. Tous les services cantonaux d'archéologie et de conservation du patrimoine bâti ont été interrogés. Le questionnaire a également été envoyé à d'autres institutions telles que l'Office fédéral de la culture (section culture du bâti) et le Centre national d'information sur le patrimoine culturel (NIKE). L'analyse des réponses à l'enquête en ligne montre la nécessité de proposer des formations et des cours de perfectionnent dans le domaine de la gestion culturelle. Toutefois, la demande ne porte pas tant sur une formation complète en gestion du patrimoine culturel que sur des sujets et des aspects plus spécifiques, généralement très axés sur la pratique. Au premier plan, on trouve les compétences permettant d’assurer les tâches quotidiennes au sein des services spécialisés en archéologie et en conservation du patrimoine, dans des domaines tels que la gestion de projets et la communication, ainsi que la nécessité de mieux comprendre les processus politiques. Il s’en dégage également le souhait de bénéficier d’une transmission du savoir de base, consigné dans des guides, ainsi que la mise en place de bonnes pratiques. En revanche, les bases théoriques sont moins demandées. Compte tenu de l'offre hétérogène et dynamique de possibilités de formation et de formation continue déjà existantes d'une part, et des besoins très axés sur la pratique des services spécialisés et des institutions interrogés d'autre part, on peut constater qu'il n'existe pas actuellement en Suisse (du moins parmi les institutions ayant pris par à l’étude) la nécessité de créer une filière d'études spécifiques ou d'études postdiplôme en gestion du patrimoine culturel. Il s'agit à présent de déterminer comment répondre à la demande impliquant guides et exemples pratiques. On propose de mettre en place une plateforme d'information et d'échange sur la gestion du patrimoine culturel à l'échelle nationale. Il n'est pas prévu de publier la présente étude. Le rapport est déposé sous forme numérique auprès de la section «culture du bâti» de l'Office fédéral de la culture ainsi qu'auprès du secrétariat de la Conférence suisse des archéologues cantonales et des archéologues cantonaux CSAC, de même que de la Conférence suisse des conservatrices et conservateurs des monuments historiques CSCM. L'identification par un DOI et le dépôt au «Repositorium BORIS» de l'Université de Berne sont prévus, ce qui permettra à un large public intéressé d’avoir recours à l’étude.This report is the result of a study carried out on the authors' own initiative between 2020 and 2022. The study pursued two objectives: 1) to develop an overview of the current range of training and further education courses on offer relating to cultural heritage management in Switzerland, 2) to evaluate the potential demand for further education in the field of heritage management. The survey of courses currently on offer was conducted by means of online research, in which the curricula as well as documentation relating to further education courses (postgraduate diploma) of universities and technical colleges in all language regions of Switzerland were registered (last update autumn semester 2022). For comparison, selected courses explicitly declared as cultural heritage management from other European countries were included. The results of the survey show that in Switzerland there is currently neither a degree nor any kind of continuing education programme explicitly dealing with cultural heritage management according to its definition. However, there is a fairly broad range of training and further education courses that cover (sometimes substantial elements) of heritage management. Evaluation of demand for further education in the field. In order assess the demand, an online questionnaire was carried out. All cantonal offices for archaeology and built heritage were surveyed. The questionnaire was also sent to other institutions such as the Federal Office of Culture (Section Baukultur) and NIKE (National Information Centre for Cultural Heritage).The evaluation of the answers from the online questionnaire shows that there is a fundamental need for training and further education opportunities in the field of cultural management. However, the demand is less directed towards comprehensive training in cultural heritage management, but rather towards specific, mostly practice-oriented topics and aspects thereof. In the day-to-day business of archaeology and heritage management, the focus is on the skills needed in areas such as project management and communication, as well as a basic understanding of political processes. Furthermore, there is a desire for practice-oriented basics and documentation along with the development of best practices. There is, however, less demand for theoretical approaches at a basic level. In view of the heterogeneous and dynamic range of existing training and further education opportunities on the one hand, and the very practice-focused needs of the offices and institutions surveyed on the other, it can be stated (at least among the institutions surveyed) that there is currently no need in Switzerland for an explicit degree or postgraduate course in cultural heritage management. It is now necessary to clarify how the apparent demand for documentation and practical examples can be met. To this end, one possibility would be to set up a nationwide information and exchange platform on cultural heritage management. A publication of the present study is not planned. The present report will be filed in digital form with the Federal Office of Culture Section for Baukultur and with the Secretariats of the Conference of Swiss Cantonal Archaeologists KSKA and the Conference of Swiss Conservators of Built Heritage KSD. The identification with a DOI and storage in the BORIS repository of the University of Bern is planned, thus making it usable for the broader interested public

Caracterización socio-ambiental de un paisaje transformado: el caso de la Laguna Negra.Trelew. Chubut. Argentina

La ciudad de Trelew se encuentra en la Provincia del Chubut, departamentoRawson, a los 43o 14' de Latitud Sur y 65o 19' de Longitud Oeste, su EjidoMunicipal cubre una superficie total de 248 km2.Aproximadamente el 70% de los líquidos cloacales domiciliarios y pluviales dela ciudad de Trelew, son vertidos desde principios de la década del 70’ a un sistema lagunar. Originalmente estas lagunas eran cuencas naturales, algunas permanentes y otras temporarias, alimentadas por aguas subterráneas y por precipitaciones. Los bajos, hoy convertidos en lagunas permanentes, hidrológicamente representaban áreas de descarga -evaporación- alimentadas por los aportes de cañadones que drenan desde la terraza intermedia y el valle o bien por crecientes y desbordes del Río Chubut. Hoy el proceso se ha revertido, y las lagunas aportan agua en forma constante al sistema freático, habiéndose convertido entonces, en áreas de recarga -infiltración-, con consecuencias ambientales, paisajísticas y sociales.El objetivo del presente trabajo fue determinar la variación multitemporal de laslagunas de estabilización de la ciudad de Trelew, desde los años 1969 a 2005 paraestimar las consecuencias producidas en el paisaje y caracterizar social yeconómicamente la población aledaña a las lagunas.Metodológicamente, para caracterizar el área de estudio y realizar unaevolución de la misma desde las características originales hasta la actualidad seutilizó la teledetección y un relevamiento censal a campo con aplicación deencuestas y observación directa.La población aledaña a las lagunas presenta características particulares encuanto a las actividades económicas que desarrollan, las condiciones en las queviven y llevan adelante esas actividades, conformando “asentamientos aislados”,precarios, que le dan cierto carácter de espacio rural marginal, como categoría en el continuo rural-urbano.Cuando se cambian artificialmente las condiciones originales de la formacióndel paisaje, comienzan a presentarse una serie de fenómenos encadenados queconllevan consecuencias tanto ambientales como sociales

Comparison of the oxidative reactivity of recombinant fetal and adult human hemoglobin: implications for the design of hemoglobin-based oxygen carriers.

Hemoglobin based oxygen carriers (HBOCs) have been engineered to replace or augment the oxygen carrying capacity of erythrocytes. However, clinical results have generally been disappointing due, in part due to the intrinsic oxidative toxicity of hemoglobin. The most common HBOC starting material is adult human or bovine hemoglobin. However, it has been suggested that fetal hemoglobin may offer advantages due to decreased oxidative reactivity. Large scale manufacturing of a HBOC will likely ultimately require recombinant sources of human proteins. We therefore directly compared the functional properties and oxidative reactivity of recombinant fetal (rHbF) and recombinant adult (rHbA) hemoglobin. rHbA and rHbF produced similar yields of purified functional protein. No differences were seen in the two proteins in: autoxidation rate; the rate of hydrogen peroxide reaction; NO scavenging dioxygenase activity; and the NO producing nitrite reductase activity. The rHbF protein was: less damaged by low levels of hydrogen peroxide; less damaging when added to human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) in the ferric form; and had a slower rate of intrinsic heme loss. The rHbA protein was: more readily reducible by plasma antioxidants such as ascorbate in both the reactive ferryl and ferric states; less readily damaged by lipid peroxides; and less damaging to phosphatidylcholine liposomes. In conclusion in terms of oxidative reactivity there are advantages and disadvantages to the use of recombinant adult or fetal Hb as the basis for an effective HBOC

Phagocytosis is the main CR3-mediated function affected by the lupus-associated variant of CD11b in human myeloid cells.

The CD11b/CD18 integrin (complement receptor 3, CR3) is a surface receptor on monocytes, neutrophils, macrophages and dendritic cells that plays a crucial role in several immunological processes including leukocyte extravasation and phagocytosis. The minor allele of a non-synonymous CR3 polymorphism (rs1143679, conversation of arginine to histidine at position 77: R77H) represents one of the strongest genetic risk factor in human systemic lupus erythematosus, with heterozygosity (77R/H) being the most common disease associated genotype. Homozygosity for the 77H allele has been reported to reduce adhesion and phagocytosis in human monocytes and monocyte-derived macrophages, respectively, without affecting surface expression of CD11b. Herein we comprehensively assessed the influence of R77H on different CR3-mediated activities in monocytes, neutrophils, macrophages and dendritic cells. R77H did not alter surface expression of CD11b including its active form in any of these cell types. Using two different iC3b-coated targets we found that the uptake by heterozygous 77R/H macrophages, monocytes and neutrophils was significantly reduced compared to 77R/R cells. Allele-specific transduced immortalized macrophage cell lines demonstrated that the minor allele, 77H, was responsible for the impaired phagocytosis. R77H did not affect neutrophil adhesion, neutrophil transmigration in vivo or Toll-like receptor 7/8-mediated cytokine release by monocytes or dendritic cells with or without CR3 pre-engagement by iC3b-coated targets. Our findings demonstrate that the reduction in CR3-mediated phagocytosis associated with the 77H CD11b variant is not macrophage-restricted but demonstrable in other CR3-expressing professional phagocytic cells. The association between 77H and susceptibility to systemic lupus erythematosus most likely relates to impaired waste disposal, a key component of lupus pathogenesis

Increased expression of endothelial lipase in symptomatic and unstable carotid plaques

The aim of this study was to evaluate endothelial lipase (EL) protein expression in advanced human carotid artery plaques (HCAP) with regard to plaque (in)stability and the incidence of symptoms. HCAP were collected from 66 patients undergoing carotid endarterectomy (CEA). The degree of plaque (in)stability was estimated by ultrasound and histology. In HCAP sections, EL expression was determined by immunostaining and the intensity was assessed on a semi-quantitative scale (low: <25%, high: >25% positive cells). Monocytes and macrophages in adjacent HCAP sections were stained with a CD163 specific antibody. High EL staining was more prevalent in histologically unstable plaques (in 33.3% of fibrous plaques, 50% of ulcerated non-complicated plaques and 79.2% of ulcerated complicated plaques; χ2 test, p = 0.004) and in the symptomatic group (70.8 vs. 42.9% in the asymptomatic group; χ2 test, p = 0.028). The majority of EL immunostaining was found in those HCAP regions exhibiting a strong CD163 immunostaining. EL in HCAP might be a marker and/or promoter of plaque instability and HCAP-related symptomatology

The image biomarker standardization initiative: Standardized convolutional filters for reproducible radiomics and enhanced clinical insights

Standardizing convolutional filters that enhance specific structures and patterns in medical imaging enables reproducible radiomics analyses, improving consistency and reliability for enhanced clinical insights. Filters are commonly used to enhance specific structures and patterns in images, such as vessels or peritumoral regions, to enable clinical insights beyond the visible image using radiomics. However, their lack of standardization restricts reproducibility and clinical translation of radiomics decision support tools. In this special report, teams of researchers who developed radiomics software participated in a three-phase study (September 2020 to December 2022) to establish a standardized set of filters. The first two phases focused on finding reference filtered images and reference feature values for commonly used convolutional filters: mean, Laplacian of Gaussian, Laws and Gabor kernels, separable and nonseparable wavelets (including decomposed forms), and Riesz transformations. In the first phase, 15 teams used digital phantoms to establish 33 reference filtered images of 36 filter configurations. In phase 2, 11 teams used a chest CT image to derive reference values for 323 of 396 features computed from filtered images using 22 filter and image processing configurations. Reference filtered images and feature values for Riesz transformations were not established. Reproducibility of standardized convolutional filters was validated on a public data set of multimodal imaging (CT, fluorodeoxyglucose PET, and T1-weighted MRI) in 51 patients with soft-tissue sarcoma. At validation, reproducibility of 486 features computed from filtered images using nine configurations × three imaging modalities was assessed using the lower bounds of 95% CIs of intraclass correlation coefficients. Out of 486 features, 458 were found to be reproducible across nine teams with lower bounds of 95% CIs of intraclass correlation coefficients greater than 0.75. In conclusion, eight filter types were standardized with reference filtered images and reference feature values for verifying and calibrating radiomics software packages. A web-based tool is available for compliance checking

31st Annual Meeting and Associated Programs of the Society for Immunotherapy of Cancer (SITC 2016) : part two

Background The immunological escape of tumors represents one of the main ob- stacles to the treatment of malignancies. The blockade of PD-1 or CTLA-4 receptors represented a milestone in the history of immunotherapy. However, immune checkpoint inhibitors seem to be effective in specific cohorts of patients. It has been proposed that their efficacy relies on the presence of an immunological response. Thus, we hypothesized that disruption of the PD-L1/PD-1 axis would synergize with our oncolytic vaccine platform PeptiCRAd. Methods We used murine B16OVA in vivo tumor models and flow cytometry analysis to investigate the immunological background. Results First, we found that high-burden B16OVA tumors were refractory to combination immunotherapy. However, with a more aggressive schedule, tumors with a lower burden were more susceptible to the combination of PeptiCRAd and PD-L1 blockade. The therapy signifi- cantly increased the median survival of mice (Fig. 7). Interestingly, the reduced growth of contralaterally injected B16F10 cells sug- gested the presence of a long lasting immunological memory also against non-targeted antigens. Concerning the functional state of tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), we found that all the immune therapies would enhance the percentage of activated (PD-1pos TIM- 3neg) T lymphocytes and reduce the amount of exhausted (PD-1pos TIM-3pos) cells compared to placebo. As expected, we found that PeptiCRAd monotherapy could increase the number of antigen spe- cific CD8+ T cells compared to other treatments. However, only the combination with PD-L1 blockade could significantly increase the ra- tio between activated and exhausted pentamer positive cells (p= 0.0058), suggesting that by disrupting the PD-1/PD-L1 axis we could decrease the amount of dysfunctional antigen specific T cells. We ob- served that the anatomical location deeply influenced the state of CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes. In fact, TIM-3 expression was in- creased by 2 fold on TILs compared to splenic and lymphoid T cells. In the CD8+ compartment, the expression of PD-1 on the surface seemed to be restricted to the tumor micro-environment, while CD4 + T cells had a high expression of PD-1 also in lymphoid organs. Interestingly, we found that the levels of PD-1 were significantly higher on CD8+ T cells than on CD4+ T cells into the tumor micro- environment (p < 0.0001). Conclusions In conclusion, we demonstrated that the efficacy of immune check- point inhibitors might be strongly enhanced by their combination with cancer vaccines. PeptiCRAd was able to increase the number of antigen-specific T cells and PD-L1 blockade prevented their exhaus- tion, resulting in long-lasting immunological memory and increased median survival