What makes a good online dictionary? Empirical insights from an interdisciplinary research project

This paper presents empirical fmdings from two online surveys on the use of online dictionaries, in which more than 1,000 participants took part. The aim of these studies was to clarify general questions of online dictionary use (e.g. which electronic devices are used for online dictionaries or different types of usage situations) and to identify different demands regarding the use of online dictionaries. We will present some important results ofthis ongoing research project by focusing on the latter. Our analyses show that neither knowledge of the participants’ (scientific or academic) background, nor the language Version of the online survey (German vs. English) allow any significant conclusions to be drawn about the participant’s individual user demands. Subgroup analyses only reveal noteworthy differences when the groups are clustered statistically. Taken together, our fmdings shed light on the general lexicographical request both for the development of a user-adaptive interface and the incorporation of multimedia elements to make online dictionaries more user-friendly and innovative

Wörterbücher im muttersprachlichen Deutschunterricht der Sekundarstufe II – zur Nutzbarkeit der Bedeutungserläuterungen von "elexiko"

Seit Jahrzehnten fordern zahlreiche Metalexikografen und Lexikografen immer wieder eine umfangreichere Beschäftigung mit Wörterbüchern im muttersprachlichen Deutschunterricht, auch in der gymnasialen Oberstufe. Trotzdem spielen die Wortschatzarbeit und der Umgang mit Wörterbüchern in Lehrplänen, Didaktiken und Lehrwerken in den meisten Fällen allenfalls eine marginale Rolle. Im Anschluss an eine überblicksartige Bestandsaufnahme dazu untersucht der vorliegende Beitrag, inwieweit elexiko, ein Onlinewörterbuch zur deutschen Gegenwartssprache, sinnvoll in den muttersprachlichen Deutschunterricht der Sekundarstufe II integriert werden könnte. Am Beispiel des Angabebereichs der Bedeutungserläuterung wird überprüft, ob Schüler der gymnasialen Oberstufe als Zielgruppe für elexiko infrage kommen und für welche linguistischen Themen sich die Wortschatzarbeit mit den semantischen Paraphrasen für elexiko anbietet.For decades, numerous metalexicographers and lexicographers have repeatedly demanded a more extensive study of dictionaries in the teaching of German as a mother tongue in the upper classes at school. In spite of this, vocabulary work and the use of dictionaries generally play at best a marginal role in curricula, teaching methodology and textbooks. Following a survey of current practice, the present article examines the extent to which elexiko, an online dictionary of the contemporary German language, could be usefully integrated into secondary level teaching of German as a mother tongue. The range of meaning specified in dictionary definitions is used to test whether secondary school pupils could be a target group for elexiko and which linguistic topics offer scope for vocabulary work with the semantic paraphrases offered by this dictionary

Endoluminal Repair of a Contained Thoracic Aortic Rupture Due to Primary Staphylococcal Aortitis

AbstractWe report a case of primary infectious thoracic aortitis with contained rupture of the descending thoracic aorta caused by Staphylococcus aureus and successfully treated with a rifampicin-rinsed aortic stent graft

The impact of superficial femoral artery (SFA) occlusion on the outcome of proximal sartorius muscle transposition flaps in vascular surgery patients

ObjectivesTo demonstrate the feasibility and safety of proximal sartorius muscle rotational flaps in patients with peripheral occlusive artery disease.MethodsRetrospective analysis of 53 patients with 56 proximal sartorius muscle flaps. Indication for a flap procedure was postoperative calcitrant lymphorrhea in nine, graft at risk in 13, and graft infection in 34 procedures. Pre- and postoperative patencies of the superficial femoral artery (SFA) and profundal femoral artery (PFA) were documented. Flap viability, wound healing, and limb salvage were examined at follow-up.ResultsIn 59% of the procedures in this series, the SFA was occluded. The PFA was patent in all patients. Flap viability (100% vs 94%), rate of new (4% vs 6%), and recurrent infections (9% vs 6%), loss of vascular reconstruction rate (9% vs 9%), and limb salvage rate (100% vs 88%) did not differ significantly between the SFA patent and the SFA occluded group. There were four new infections (7%) and three recurrent infections (5.5%) during follow-up, five of which led to a loss of reconstruction. In four of those five patients, the sartorius flap was viable. Two patients died during the immediate postoperative period from septic multi-organ failure (3%). At a median follow-up of 6.4 months, 54 flaps were viable and wound closure was achieved in all surviving 51 patients. Limb salvage rate was 93%.ConclusionsBiologic protection procedures as local muscle flaps are vital adjuncts to vascular surgery techniques in the treatment of complicated wounds in the groin. Occlusion of the SFA in the presence of a patent PFA is not associated with an increased risk of flap loss in proximal sartorius muscle rotational flaps

Mining metadata from unidentified ITS sequences in GenBank: A case study in Inocybe (Basidiomycota)

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The lack of reference sequences from well-identified mycorrhizal fungi often poses a challenge to the inference of taxonomic affiliation of sequences from environmental samples, and many environmental sequences are thus left unidentified. Such unidentified sequences belonging to the widely distributed ectomycorrhizal fungal genus <it>Inocybe </it>(<it>Basidiomycota</it>) were retrieved from GenBank and divided into species that were identified in a phylogenetic context using a reference dataset from an ongoing study of the genus. The sequence metadata of the unidentified <it>Inocybe </it>sequences stored in GenBank, as well as data from the corresponding original papers, were compiled and used to explore the ecology and distribution of the genus. In addition, the relative occurrence of <it>Inocybe </it>was contrasted to that of other mycorrhizal genera.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Most species of <it>Inocybe </it>were found to have less than 3% intraspecific variability in the ITS2 region of the nuclear ribosomal DNA. This cut-off value was used jointly with phylogenetic analysis to delimit and identify unidentified <it>Inocybe </it>sequences to species level. A total of 177 unidentified <it>Inocybe </it>ITS sequences corresponding to 98 species were recovered, 32% of which were successfully identified to species level in this study. These sequences account for an unexpectedly large proportion of the publicly available unidentified fungal ITS sequences when compared with other mycorrhizal genera. Eight <it>Inocybe </it>species were reported from multiple hosts and some even from hosts forming arbutoid or orchid mycorrhizae. Furthermore, <it>Inocybe </it>sequences have been reported from four continents and in climate zones ranging from cold temperate to equatorial climate. Out of the 19 species found in more than one study, six were found in both Europe and North America and one was found in both Europe and Japan, indicating that at least many north temperate species have a wide distribution.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Although DNA-based species identification and circumscription are associated with practical and conceptual difficulties, they also offer new possibilities and avenues for research. Metadata assembly holds great potential to synthesize valuable information from community studies for use in a species and taxonomy-oriented framework.</p

Guiding cell adhesion and motility by modulating cross-linking and topographic properties of microgel arrays

Biomaterial-driven modulation of cell adhesion and migration is a challenging aspect of tissue engineering. Here, we investigated the impact of surface-bound microgel arrays with variable geometry and adjustable cross-linking properties on cell adhesion and migration. We show that cell migration is inversely correlated with microgel array spacing, whereas directionality increases as array spacing increases. Focal adhesion dynamics is also modulated by microgel topography resulting in less dynamic focal adhesions on surface-bound microgels. Microgels also modulate the motility and adhesion of Sertoli cells used as a model for cell migration and adhesion. Both focal adhesion dynamics and speed are reduced on microgels. Interestingly, Gas2L1, a component of the cytoskeleton that mediates the interaction between microtubules and microfilaments, is dispensable for the regulation of cell adhesion and migration on microgels. Finally, increasing microgel cross-linking causes a clear reduction of focal adhesion turnover in Sertoli cells. These findings not only show that spacing and rigidity of surface-grafted microgels arrays can be effectively used to modulate cell adhesion and motility of diverse cellular systems, but they also form the basis for future developments in the fields of medicine and tissue engineering

Chloroplast magnesium transporters play essential but differential roles in maintaining magnesium homeostasis

Magnesium (Mg2+) is essential for photosynthesis in the chloroplasts of land plants and algae. Being the central ion of chlorophyll, cofactor and activator of many photosynthetic enzymes including RuBisCO, magnesium-deficient plants may suffer from leaf chlorosis symptoms and retarded growth. Therefore, the chloroplast Mg2+ concentration is tightly controlled by magnesium transport proteins. Recently, three different transporters from two distinct families have been identified in the chloroplast inner envelope of the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana: MGT10, MGR8, and MGR9. Here, we assess the individual roles of these three proteins in maintaining chloroplast Mg2+ homeostasis and regulating photosynthesis, and if their role is conserved in the model green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. Phylogenetic analysis and heterologous expression revealed that the CorC-like MGR8 and MGR9 transport Mg2+ by a different mechanism than the CorA-like MGT10. MGR8 and MGT10 genes are highest expressed in leaves, indicating a function in chloroplast Mg2+ transport. MGR9 is important for chloroplast function and plant adaptation in conditions of deficiency or excess of Mg2+. Transmission electron microscopy indicated that MGT10 plays a differential role in thylakoid stacking than MGR8 and MGR9. Furthermore, we report that MGR8, MGR9, and MGT10 are involved in building up the pH gradient across the thylakoid membrane and activating photoprotection in conditions of excess light, however the mechanism has not been resolved yet. While there are no chloroplast MGR-like transporters in Chlamydomonas, we show that MRS4 is a homolog of MGT10, that is required for photosynthesis and cell growth. Taken together, our findings reveal that the studied Mg2+ transporters play essential but differential roles in maintaining chloroplast Mg2+ homeostasis