Coastlines of the Eastern Arctic

A computer approach was developed and used to analyse the characteristics of coastlines present in the eastern Arctic. Results of this analysis indicate that: 1) almost 75% of all coastlines include a beach; 2) backshores are mostly steep and made up of bedrock; 3) beaches are made up mostly of coarse sediments; 4) the most abundant types of coastal zones consist of steep rocky backshores without beach, and steep rocky backshores with colluvium and continuous boulder beaches; 5) the average slope of backshores and the size of the dominant beach sediment decrease towards the north; 6) fetch has little influence on coastal characteristics; and 7) coastal characteristics are determined primarily by the physiography of the adjacent land and by the nature of backshores.Key words: eastern Arctic, coastlines, geomorphologyMots clés: l'Arctique de l'est, côtes, géomorphologi

Active Matter Alters the Growth Dynamics of Coffee Rings

How particles are deposited at the edge of evaporating droplets, i.e. the {\em coffee ring} effect, plays a crucial role in phenomena as diverse as thin-film deposition, self-assembly, and biofilm formation. Recently, microorganisms have been shown to passively exploit and alter these deposition dynamics to increase their survival chances under harshening conditions. Here, we show that, as the droplet evaporation rate slows down, bacterial mobility starts playing a major role in determining the growth dynamics of the edge of drying droplets. Such motility-induced dynamics can influence several biophysical phenomena, from the formation of biofilms to the spreading of pathogens in humid environments and on surfaces subject to periodic drying. Analogous dynamics in other active matter systems can be exploited for technological applications in printing, coating, and self-assembly, where the standard coffee-ring effect is often a nuisance.Comment: 7 pages, 5 figure

The Coastal Morphology and Sedimentology of Cape Hatt Peninsula

A small peninsula located on northern Baffin Island was selected as the site for an experimental oil spill. The experiment required three similar bays, one to serve as control and two to compare the fate and behaviour of oil and an oil-dispersant mix spilled in the nearshore zone. Geomorphic and sedimentologic observation indicate that (1) the shoreline sediments of Cape Hatt are reworked glacial deposits, (2) bays facing Eclipse Sound are the most exposed to wave and ice action and those of Z-Lagoon are the most sheltered, (3) there is a westerly sediment transport direction in the bays of Eclipse Sound, a winnowing of fines from the most exposed bays of Z-Lagoon and several transport directions in Ragged Channel and (4) ice action is the most important process at Cape Hatt. Qualitative assessment of these features was used to recommend that Bay 10 be used for control, Bay 9 for the oil-alone experiment and Bay 11 for the oil-dispersant mix experiment. Geological features, however, reflect the integration of all processes operating at Cape Hatt over long periods of time and do not warrant as high a priority as meteorological and oceanographic criteria in the final selection of bays for the BIOS Project.Key words: Eastern Arctic, Cape Hatt, shoreline morphology, sedimentologyMots clés: Arctique de l’est, cap Hatt, morphologie des côtes, sédimentologi

Genitoplasty in newborn females with adrenogenital syndrome : focus on the reconstruction technique and its outcomes

The adrenogenital syndrome is an autosomal recessive disorder in which an enzyme defect in the steroid pathway leads to excessive prenatal exposure of androgens. In the female fetus, masculinization of the external genitalia is observed. Surgery aims for functional and aesthetical reconstruction. Many techniques have been described. A video of our modified pull-through reconstruction technique is hereby presented. A retrospective descriptive database was created with patients who underwent genitoplasty for a CAH-associated genital condition. A video demonstrating the reconstructive technique was recorded while operating on a 9-month-old girl. Prior to surgery a cystoscopy is performed to evaluate the length of the urogenital sinus. Surgery starts with creating a reversed U-flap, after which the urogenital sinus is mobilized. The corpora cavernosa are released and the neurovascular bundle is isolated. To create vaginal space the urogenital sinus is subsequently separated. The vaginal introitus is anchored to the perineal skin flap. Labia minora are created by splitting the preputial skin. Finally excessive skin tissue is resected. Twenty-two female patients underwent reconstructive surgery for the adrenogenital syndrome in a tertiary referral centre over 16 years. Median age at surgery was 3 months (0-190). Median follow-up was 36 months (0-108) after surgery. A good functional and aesthetical outcome was observed. The modified pull-through technique, illustrated by this video, provided satisfactory results with a low complication rate. Follow-up until adulthood is needed to evaluate long-term outcomes

Open and Laparoscopic Partial Nephrectomy: Comparison and Validation of Preoperative Scoring Systems, Including PADUA, RENAL, ABC Nephrometric Scores and Perinephric Fat Evaluation with Mayo Adhesive Probability Score

peer reviewedPurpose: To evaluate potential associations between 4 nephrometric scoring systems, namely the PADUA (preoperative aspects and dimensions used for anatomical classification), RENAL (radius endophytic/exophytic nearness anterior posterior location), ABC (arterial-based com- plexity), and MAP (Mayo adhesive probability) scores and their individual components, with surgical and oncological outcomes of patients undergoing a partial nephrectomy. Materials and Methods: A consecutive, monocentric cohort of partial nephrectomy patients was retrospectively analyzed. PADUA, RENAL, ABC and MAP nephrometry scores were determined from preoperative axial images. Unadjusted and adjusted associations between overall scores, individual components, surgical approach, complications and onco- logical outcomes were determined using univariate and multivariate logistic regressions. Results: A total of 189 partial nephrectomies were performed in 181 patients, via an open or a laparoscopic approach. Among scoring systems, only the MAP classification, which assesses adherent perinephric fat, was associated with severe surgical complications as well as with operative time (p<0.05). Among all components of the PADUA and RENAL scores, only proximity of the tumor to the collecting system was associated with overall surgical complication rates, while the diameter of the tumor influenced the operative time (p<0.05). The ABC score was not relevant. Male gender, antiplatelet therapy, and a laparoscopic approach were associated with higher overall surgical complication rates (p<0.05). The number of oncologic recurrences during follow-up was too low to run statistical analyses. Conclusion: Nephrometry scores could be simplified to predict surgical complications after partial nephrectomy. In this framework, adherent perinephric fat seemed to be strongly associated with an increased risk of surgical complications

Ryanodine receptor cluster fragmentation and redistribution in persistent atrial fibrillation enhance calcium release

In atrial fibrillation (AF), abnormalities in Ca(2+) release contribute to arrhythmia generation and contractile dysfunction. We explore whether RyR cluster ultrastructure is altered and is associated with functional abnormalities in AF.status: publishe

Biomimetic Locomotion on Water of a Porous Natural Polymeric Composite

This is the pre-peer reviewed version of the following article: Biomimetic Locomotion on Water of a Porous Natural Polymeric Composite. Advanced Materials Interfaces, 3 (11), DOI: 10.1002/admi.201500854, which has been published in final form at http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/admi.201500854. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving.Observation of the natural world can provide invaluable information on the mechanisms that semiaquatic living organisms or bacteria use for their self-propulsion. Microvelia, for example, uses wax excreted from its legs to move on water in order to escape from predators or reach the bank of the river. Mimicking such mechanism, few self-propelled materials on water, as camphor, have been previously developed, but weak points like slow locomotion, short movement duration or shape-restrictions still need to be improved. Herein we present a totally green self-assembled porous system, formed by the combination of a natural polymer with an essential oil, that spontaneously moves on water for hours upon expulsion of the oil, with high velocities reaching 15 cm/s. The structural characteristics of the natural polymeric composite are carefully analyzed and associated to its spontaneous movement. Surface tension change experiments are also presented that connect the essential oil release with the locomotion of the porous composite films. This research work opens novel routes towards bio-inspired natural materials that can be used for mimicking and studying the motion of bio-organisms and microorganisms, and for applications such as energy harvesting, aquatic pollution monitoring, drug delivery, to name few

Mechanisms of pattern formation from dried sessile drops

The formation of patterns after the evaporation of colloidal droplets deposited on a solid surface is an everyday natural phenomenon. During the past two decades, this topic has gained broader audience due to its numerous applications in biomedicine, nanotechnology, printing, coating, etc. This paper presents a detailed review of the experimental studies related to the formation of various deposition patterns from dried droplets of complex fluids (i.e., nanofluids, polymers). First, this review presents the fundamentals of sessile droplet evaporation including evaporation modes and internal flow fields. Then, the most observed dried patterns are presented and the mechanisms behind them are discussed. The review ends with the categorisation and exhaustive investigation of a wide range of factors affecting pattern formation

Impact de la marque de service et des associations à la marque sur le processus detangibilisation des services : proposition de recherche

Avant la fin des années 70, les techniques de marketing étaient utilisées de manière indifférenciée pour les services et pour les produits (Rust, Zahorik et Keiningham, 1996). Néanmoins, dès la fin des années 70 et le début des années 80, la pertinence des outils marketing traditionnels – c’est-à-dire développés pour des produits – a été remise en cause pour l’application aux services. En effet, certains auteurs – dont Shostack en 1977 – ont noté que les services différaient des produits sur plusieurs caractéristiques, ce qui rendaient nécessaires la mise en place d’outils spécifiques. Parmi les caractéristiques qui différencient un service d’un produit, l’intangibilité a été reconnue par un grand nombre d’auteurs comme étant la plus importante (p.ex., Zeithaml et Bitner, 2000 ; Zeithaml, Parasuraman et Berry, 1985 ; Bebko, 2000 ; Rust, Zahorik et Keiningham, 1996 ; Rushton et Carson, 1989 ; Flipo, 1988). De plus, l’intangibilité est la seule caractéristique qui soit commune à tous les services, à des degrés divers (Flipo, 1988). L’objectif de cet article consiste à présenter notre proposition de recherche, qui vise à évaluer si le développement et la gestion d’une marque de service dotée d’une image appropriée permet – et le cas échéant, comment - de contribuer à la tangibilisation perçue du service. L’article s’articule en trois parties. Dans un premier temps, nous définissons et explicitons le concept d’intangibilité et ses deux grandes composantes (physique et mentale). Ensuite, nous expliquons brièvement les raisons qui rendent nécessaires la tangibilisation des services, et nous évoquons différentes techniques de tangibilisation émanant de la littérature. Finalement, parmi ces techniques, la marque de service, et plus particulièrement le développement d’une image de marque appropriée, vont retenir notre attention, et vont nous permettre de développer notre proposition de recherche