Thomas Constantinesco, Ralph Waldo Emerson. L’Amérique à l’essai, Paris, Editions Rue d’Ulm, 2012, 267 pages

Près de cinquante ans après l’ouvrage fondateur de Maurice Gonnaud (Individu et société chez Ralph Waldo Emerson, Paris, Didier, 1964), voici que paraît enfin en français un nouveau livre entièrement consacré au penseur et écrivain américain Ralph Waldo Emerson. L’attente aura été récompensée : l’auteur de Ralph Waldo Emerson. L’Amérique à l’essai, Thomas Constantinesco, mérite d’être salué pour cet ouvrage qui fera date par l’ampleur et la qualité de ses analyses. Alors que, depuis l’approch..

« Some Recent Thoreau Editions »

In our fast-paced era, scholarly editions have become laden with a kind of magic aura, and a new volume is always a much-expected event. After a five-year break, Princeton University Press has brought out a new volume in its much-admired edition of The Writings of Henry D. Thoreau, whose first one appeared thirty-seven years ago. Many people would probably wonder why it should be necessary for scholars to spend several years of their lives preparing editions whose textual apparatus is arcane ..

Arne Neset, Arcadian Waters and Wanton Seas: The Iconology of Waterscapes in Nineteenth-Century Transatlantic Culture, New York, Peter Lang, 2009

In Arcadian Waters and Wanton Seas, Norwegian Americanist Arne Neset provides a clearly written and well-documented study of landscape paintings featuring rivers, lakes, or the sea—what he broadly refers to as “waterscapes”—in nineteenth-century America. Or, rather, in nineteenth-century “Transatlantic culture,” since he argues vigorously against any attempt at restricting American landscape paintings to a national, not to mention nationalistic, perspective. Indeed, the main thread of his boo..

Alain Suberchicot, Littérature et environnement. Pour une écocritique comparée, Paris, Honoré Champion, 2012, 274 pages

Alors que les approches écocritiques se développent peu à peu en France, Alain Suberchicot offre un ouvrage fort bienvenu, l’un des premiers de cette ampleur en français. Et il le fait en prenant clairement ses distances par rapport à l’écocritique d’inspiration nord-américaine, que ce spécialiste des États-Unis connaît fort bien. Le sous-titre de l’ouvrage, Pour une écocritique comparée, indique d’emblée qu’il s’agira de sortir l’écocritique de son tropisme encore fortement nord-américain, e..

Character and the space of Clarel

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Effects of moderate hyperbilirubinemia on nutritive swallowing and swallowing-breathing coordination in preterm lambs

Background: Hyperbilirubinemia (HB) occurs in 90% of preterm newborns. HB induces acute neurological disorders (somnolence, abnormal tone, feeding difficulties, auditory dysfunction) and alterations in respiratory control. These findings suggest brainstem neurotoxicity that could also affect swallowing centers. Objective: To test the hypothesis that HB impairs nutritive swallowing (NS) and swallowing-breathing coordination. Methods: Two groups of preterm lambs (born 14 days prior to term), namely control (n = 6) and HB (n = 5), were studied. On day 5 of life (D0), moderate HB (150-250 µmol/l) was induced during 17 h in the HB group. Swallowing was assessed via recording of pharyngeal pressure and respiration by respiratory inductance plethysmography and pulse oximetry. The effect of HB on NS was assessed during standardized bottle-feeding. A second recording was performed 48 h after recovery from HB (D3). Results: Swallows were less frequent (p = 0.003) and of smaller volume (p = 0.01) in HB lambs while swallowing frequency was decreased (p = 0.004). These differences disappeared after HB normalization. Swallowing-breathing coordination was impaired in HB lambs, with a decrease in percent time with NS burst-related apneas/hypopneas at D0 and D3. Simultaneously, HB lambs tended to experience more severe desaturations (<80%) during bottle-feeding. Finally, following bottle-feeding, the respiratory rate was significantly lower, along with an increased apnea duration in HB lambs. Conclusions: Swallowing and swallowing-breathing coordination are altered by acute moderate HB in preterm lambs. Decreased efficiency at bottle-feeding is accompanied by continuation of breathing during swallow bursts, which may promote lung aspiration

Influence of Moderate Hyperbilirubinemia on Cardiorespiratory Control in Preterm Lambs

Hyperbilirubinemia (HB) is responsible for neonatal jaundice in 60% of term newborns and 90% of preterm infants. Neonatal HB can induce neurological damage (acute HB encephalopathy) and has been associated with persistent apneas. The objective of the present study was to investigate the immediate and delayed effects of moderate, clinically-relevant HB on cardiorespiratory control in preterm lambs. Two groups of five preterm lambs, namely control and HB, were studied. At day five of life, moderate HB (150–250 μmol/L) was induced and maintained during 17 h in the HB group while control lambs received a placebo solution. Six hours after HB onset, 7-h polysomnographic recordings with electrocardiogram (ECG) and respiratory (RESP) signals were performed to assess the immediate effects of HB on heart rate variability (HRV), respiratory rate variability (RRV), and cardiorespiratory interrelations. Identical recordings were repeated 72 h after HB induction to examine the delayed effects of HB on HRV, RRV and cardiorespiratory interrelations. Our results demonstrate a higher HRV and vagal activity immediately after induction of moderate HB. Meanwhile, a decrease in respiratory rate with an increase in both long- and short-term RRV was also noted, as well as a higher amplitude of the respiratory sinus arrhythmia and cardiorespiratory coupling. Seventy-two hours later, the alterations in HRV, RRV, and cardiorespiratory interrelations were attenuated, although a number of them were still present, suggesting a lasting influence of HB on the basal control of the cardiorespiratory system. Our results pave the way for studies in human preterms to assess the relevance of monitoring HRV, RRV, and cardiorespiratory interrelations to detect the acute neurological effects of HB and consequently adapt the treatment of neonatal jaundice

Radio telemetry devices to monitor breathing in non-sedated animals

Radio telemetry equipment has significantly improved over the last 10-15 years and is increasingly being used in research for monitoring a variety of physiological parameters in non-sedated animals. The aim of this review is to provide an update on the current state of development of radio telemetry for recording respiration. Our literature review found only rare reports of respiratory studies via radio telemetry. Much of this article will hence report our experience with our custom-built radio telemetry devices designed for recording respiratory signals, together with numerous other physiological signals in lambs. Our current radio telemetry system allows to record 24 simultaneous signals 24h/day for several days. To our knowledge, this is the highest number of physiological signals, which can be recorded wirelessly. Our devices have been invaluable for studying respiration in our ovine models of preterm birth, reflux laryngitis, postnatal exposure to cigarette smoke, respiratory syncytial virus infection and nasal ventilation, all of which are relevant to neonatal respiratory problems

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