Civil-Military Relations in a Civilized State: Panama

This article traces and analyzes civil-military relations in Panama. After a brief overview of the role of the National Guard in the country politics, the article concentrates on political developments since the 1989 U.S. invasion to overthrow the Noriega regime and the subsequent elimination of the Panamanian military. The study seeks to shed light on political life in an armyless and politically and socially fractionalized country occupying a sensitive strategic location. The concluding part of the study speculates on the possibility that terrorism, domestic security concerns, and regional considerations may prompt Washington and Panamanian leaders to reverse the decision to abolish the country\u27s military institution

Refugee Socio-Cultural Integration and Peaceful Co-Existence in Uganda

The dramatic increase in the number of refugees globally has led to increased attention to conflicts between refugees and communities in the countries where they have sought refuge. Three durable solutions are used for the placement of refugees: voluntary repatriation to their home country if conditions there permit; permanent settlement and local integration in the receiving country; and resettlement in a third country. Permanent settlement and local integration is seen as good option although there still exists gaps in understanding the integration process and if it leads to peaceful co-existence between refugees and members of the host community. This study therefore set out to hepl fill this information gap The study employed descriptive analysis on cross-sectional data collected from 328 refugees respondents in Kiryandongo refugee settlement in Uganda. The legal integration process was generally not strong: many respondents still felt they were not legally integrated though they were optimistic about full legal integration in the future. The socio-cultural integration process was more successful. A large majority of refugee respondents in Kiryandongo interact with members of the host community and some are involved in joint projects and partnerships, such as businesses, with them. A large majority of refugees do not wish to be separate from the host community and want to settle in Uganda and have learned the local language; a majority want to bring their families to Uganda, and want good relations with the local host community, all positive indicators of behavioral and attitudinal socio-cultural integration and the development of social connection. A large majority of refugee respondents also believe that their interactions with members of the host community have not led to tensions but rather have contributed to peaceful co-existence with them. Refugee respondents also made suggestions for promoting peaceful co-existence. The study concludes with the recommendation of increasing opportunities for refugees and host community members to interact positively and develop relationships through educational and cultural events, and to develop partnerships/collaborative projects, especially in the use of resources such as water, and the generation of resources by such means as collaboration on business and economic ventures

Molecular analysis of cDNA clones and the corresponding genomic coding sequences of the Drosophila dunce' gene, the structural gene for cAMP phosphodiesterase

We have isolated and sequenced cDNA clones representing portions of the polyadenylylated transcripts of the dunce+ gene. These define an open reading frame of 1086 bases and some of the 5'- and 3'-untranslated regions of the transcripts. The deduced amino acid sequence is strikingly homologous to the amino acid sequence of a Ca^2+/calmodulin-dependent cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterase isolated from bovine brain and more weakly related to the predicted amino acid sequence of a yeast cAMP phosphodiesterase. These homologies, together with prior genetic and biochemical studies, provide unambiguous evidence that dunce^+ codes for a phosphodiesterase. In addition, the dunce^+ gene product shares a seven-amino acid sequence with a regulatory subunit of cAMP-dependent protein kinase that is predicted to be part of the cAMP binding site. We also identify a weak homology between a region of the dunce+ gene product and the egg-laying hormone precursor of Aplysia californica. The open reading frame is divided in the genome by four introns

Pengaruh Senam Bugar Lansia Terhadap Kadar Trigliserida

: Triglycerides are one of fat body. Elevated levels of triglycerides occur because of obesity, alcohol consumption, sugar, and lack of activity, induced accumulation of triglycerides in the blood. Elderly is individuals with a restriction of physical activity due to physical conditions or disallowance of the family. This restriction leads to reduced physical activity that very useful for lowering triglycerides level. This causes an increase triglyceride levels. This study aims to look at the influence of elderly aerobics exercise on triglyceride levels. This research was an experimental design of the field with pre-post one group test. Samples were 30 elderly that lived in BPLU Senja Cerah, Paniki Bawah. Samples fasting for 8 hours to blood sampling. Tests performed are elderly aerobics exercise performed for 30 minutes in a 3x a week for 3 weeks. The results analyze with paired sample t-test to determine the differenc e in the results triglyceride levels before and after exercise. The obtained results showed a highly significant difference between triglycerides levels before and after exercise with α = 0,004 ( Ttabel (2.045) Elderly aerobics exercise showed a significant effect in reducing trigiyceride levels in the blood

Transport of N-acetylaspartate via murine sodium/dicarboxylate cotransporter NaDC3 and expression of this transporter and aspartoacylase II in ocular tissues in mouse

AbstractCanavan disease is a genetic disorder associated with optic neuropathy and the metabolism of N-acetylaspartate is defective in this disorder due to mutations in the gene coding for the enzyme aspartoacylase II. Here we show that the plasma membrane transporter NaDC3, a Na+-coupled transporter for dicarboxylates, is able to transport N-acetylaspartate, suggesting that the transporter may function in concert with aspartoacylase II in the metabolism of N-acetylaspartate. Since Canavan disease is associated with ocular complications, we investigated the expression pattern of NaDC3 and aspartoacylase II in ocular tissues in mouse by in situ hybridization. These studies show that NaDC3 mRNA is expressed in the optic nerve, most layers of the retina, retinal pigment epithelium, ciliary body, iris, and lens. Aspartoacylase II mRNA is coexpressed in most of these cell types. We conclude that transport of N-acetylaspartate into ocular tissues via NaDC3 and its subsequent hydrolysis by aspartoacylase II play an essential role in the maintenance of visual function

IDENTIFIKASI ATRIBUT-ATRIBUT INOVATIF LAYANAN KARAOKE KELUARGA: INTEGRASI MODEL NSD-EMF-KANO

Hiburan saat ini telah menjadi kebutuhan masyarakat Jakarta untuk menghilangkan kelelahan dan kebosanan dalam kegiatan pekerjaan sehari-hari. Dengan ketatnya persaingan di industri hiburan, karaoke keluarga dituntut untuk mempunyai strategi dalam berbisnis yang tepat dengan selalu melakukan inovasi. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengembangkan desain layanan yang inovatif bisnis karaoke keluarga untuk meningkatkan daya saingnya di industri hiburan. Wawancara, FGD, dan kuesioner dirancang untuk mendapatkan data-data yang diperlukan. Model integrasi NSD-EMF-Kano digunakan sebagai kerangka kerja dalam mengidentifikasi atribut layanan inovatif. Model new service development (NSD) digunakan untuk menggali ide-ide pelanggan untuk mengembangkan atribut-atribut layanan inovatif. Hasilnya digabungkan dengan 5 elemen experiential marketing framework (EMF), yaitu: sense, feel, think, act dan relate yang dikembangkan berdasarkan hasil pengalaman pelanggan. Setelah itu, akan dievaluasi dengan kuesioner Kano untuk menentukan kategori Kano. Hasilnya terdapat 19 atribut layanan inovatif karaoke keluarga yang teridentifikasi untuk dikembangkan lebih lanju

Mammographic Findings after Intraoperative Radiotherapy of the Breast

Intraoperative Radiotherapy (IORT) is a form of accelerated partial breast radiation that has been shown to be equivalent to conventional whole breast external beam radiotherapy (EBRT) in terms of local cancer control. However, questions have been raised about the potential of f IORT to produce breast parenchymal changes that could interfere with mammographic surveillance of cancer recurrence. The purpose of this study was to identify, quantify, and compare the mammographic findings of patients who received IORT and EBRT in a prospective, randomized controlled clinical trial of women with early stage invasive breast cancer undergoing breast conserving therapy between July 2005 and December 2009. Treatment groups were compared with regard to the 1, 2 and 4-year incidence of 6 post-operative mammographic findings: architectural distortion, skin thickening, skin retraction, calcifications, fat necrosis, and mass density. Blinded review of 90 sets of mammograms of 15 IORT and 16 EBRT patients demonstrated a higher incidence of fat necrosis among IORT recipients at years 1, 2, and 4. However, none of the subjects were judged to have suspicious mammogram findings and fat necrosis did not interfere with mammographic interpretation

Behavioral evidence for host races in Rhagoletis pomonella flies

One of the most controversial putative cases of host race formation in insects is that of the apple maggot fly, Rhagoletis pomonella (Diptera: Tephritidae). A principal cause of the controversy is lack of relevant data. In laboratory and field enclosure experiments, we compared the host acceptance behavior of sympatric populations of flies originating from naturally infested hawthorn (the native host) and apple (an introduced host) in Amherst, Massachusetts or East Lansing, Michigan. In general, hawthorn fruit were accepted for ovipositional attempts nearly equally by apple and hawthorn origin females, whereas apples were accepted much more often by apple than hawthorn origin females. Similarly, males of apple and hawthorn origin exhibited about equal duration of residence on hawthorn fruits as sites at which to acquire potential mates, while males of apple origin tended to reside substantially longer than males of hawthorn origin on apples. Irrespective of fly origin, both sexes always responded more positively to hawthorn fruit than to apples. Because all flies assayed were naive (ruling out effects of prior host experience of adults) and because tests revealed no influence of pre-imaginal fruit exposure on pattern of host fruit acceptance by females, the combined evidence suggests the phenotypic differences we observed in host response pattern between hawthorn and apple origin flies may have an underlying genetic basis. Further tests showed that while larval progeny of flies of each origin survived better in naturally growing hawthorn fruit than in naturally growing apples, there was no differential effect of fly origin on larval survival ability in either host. We discuss our findings in relation to restriction in gene flow between sympatric populations of R. pomonella and in relation to current models of host shifts in insects.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/47773/1/442_2004_Article_BF00379612.pd

Mutual Interaction of Phenolic Compounds and Microbiota : Metabolism of Complex Phenolic Apigenin-C- and Kaempferol-O-Derivatives by Human Fecal Samples

PL, FMF, and SHD receive financial support from the Scottish Government Rural and 701 Environment Science and Analytical Services Division (RESAS)Peer reviewedPostprin

Quantitative analysis of manual annotation of clinical text samples

International audienceBackground: Semantic interoperability of eHealth services within and across countries has been the main topic in several research projects. It is a key consideration for the European Commission to overcome the complexity of making different health information systems work together. This paper describes a study within the EU-funded project ASSESS CT, which focuses on assessing the potential of SNOMED CT as core reference terminology for semantic interoperability at European level.Objective: This paper presents a quantitative analysis of the results obtained in ASSESS CT to determine the fitness of SNOMED CT for semantic interoperability.Methods: The quantitative analysis consists of concept coverage, term coverage and inter-annotator agreement analysis of the annotation experiments related to six European languages (English, Swedish, French, Dutch, German and Finnish) and three scenarios: (i) ADOPT, where only SNOMED CT was used by the annotators; (ii) ALTERNATIVE, where a fixed set of terminologies from UMLS, excluding SNOMED CT, was used; and (iii) ABSTAIN, where any terminologies available in the current national infrastructure of the annotators' country were used. For each language and each scenario, we configured the different terminology settings of the annotation experiments.Results: There was a positive correlation between the number of concepts in each terminology setting and their concept and term coverage values. Inter-annotator agreement is low, irrespective of the terminology setting.Conclusions: No significant differences were found between the analyses for the three scenarios, but availability of SNOMED CT for the assessed language is associated with increased concept coverage. Terminology setting size and concept and term coverage correlate positively up to a limit where more concepts do not significantly impact the coverage values. The results did not confirm the hypothesis of an inverse correlation between concept coverage and IAA due to a lower amount of choices available. The overall low IAA results pose a challenge for interoperability and indicate the need for further research to assess whether consistent terminology implementation is possible across Europe, e.g., improving term coverage by adding localized versions of the selected terminologies, analysing causes of low inter-annotator agreement, and improving tooling and guidance for annotators. The much lower term coverage for the Swedish version of SNOMED CT compared to English together with the similarly high concept coverage obtained with English and Swedish SNOMED CT reflects its relevance as a hub to connect user interface terminologies and serving a variety of user needs