Experiment K-6-08. Biochemical and histochemical observations of vastus medialis

Muscles of the hindlimb in the rat have been used to demonstrate the effects of unloading in weightlessness and in animal models used to mimic weightlessness. The vastus medialis (VM) is discussed here. Samples were obtained from rats exposed to weightlessness for 12 days in Cosmos 1887 (Experiment K-6-08, coordinated by Dr. V.S. Oganov). The principal objective of this study was to ascertain if the vastus medialis responded to 12 days of microgravity exposure. The loss in muscle mass is greatest, -43 percent, when comparing F vs B, and least, -13 percent, when comparing F vs. V. Taken at face value these differences may be misleading. Due to the variability of the muscle weight in the basal group, these muscle mass losses may be exaggerated. In terms of percent water, there were no differences between the flight and the control groups. In spite of the limited sample, researchers conclude that muscle mass changes in the VM are not significant. Although some of the morphological parameters suggest a small degree of atrophy in the vastus medialis, the biochemical analyses (protein, RNA and DNA) suggest that these may be minimal and functionally nonsignificant. The relatively similar CS and LDH activities of VM from F and various control groups, as well as the lack of difference in LPL activity between F and S rats, suggests that there is little or no effect on the oxidative or glycolytic function of this muscle. Since the VM is chiefly a mixed fast twitch muscle, these metabolic indices of energy production are relatively unchanged. The results of VM studies are in agreement with previous observations of another type II fast twitch muscle, the EDL, from SL-3 rats which did not respond markedly to weightlessness and whole body suspension

UK universities: choosing the right partner

This paper offers an overview of British universities from the perspective of a prospective international student or educational manager looking for international collaboration. The authors explain criteria used to rank UK universities in University League Table 2015. They give an overview of specific terminology and jargon associated with British higher education explaining terms such as Oxbridge, Russell Group universities, Red brick universities, Scottish MA etc

Meaning making in communication processes: the role of a human agency

Social theorists often neglect the fact that human beings are not only recipients but also producers of cultural meanings. Peirce's theory of semiosis highlights the active character of human agency. Introducing the notion of interpretant into semiotics, Pierce consideres the process of interpretation or interpretive thought to be a condition of signification, which necessarily involves an interpreting agent, a meaning-making human being. This paper offers a comparative analysis of Peirce's and Eco's theories of semiosis and examines the role of an interpreting agent involved in the semiotic process which is only possible in communication

Fast food and the semiotics of gastronomy

Nourishment stands apart from other physiological events: whilst we normally exercise discretion in relation to bodily functions, food consumption takes place in public. We dine, snack and nibble in front of others, and the imagery associated with food takes on the manifold of meanings—religious, cultural, historic and so forth. Gastronomic practices unite or divide people, and as such are a powerful communication tool. As the twenty-first century confrontational stance between fast food and family meal traditions intensifies, we investigate fast food’s visual imagery and its ability to attract consumers

Internet of things as a symbolic resource of power

The resources of power are usually understood as the entirety of means of influencing the object of power in accordance with the subject's aims. This paper investigates the phenomenon of Internet of Things (IoT, or Cloud of Things, or CoT) as an emerging resource used in the formation of the symbolic capital of power. As well as evaluating the potential of IoT already used in this capacity, the authors are also interested in clarifying and evaluating specific characteristics involved in its usage

Career construction: inclusive education from school to college and university

This article presents the obstacles that Russian schoolchildren with special needs face when considering vocational and professional education. Using the analysis of official reports, applied research methods and sociological methods, the researchers identified the following obstacles: lack of specific career guidance at school; disabled students’ fear that they lack physical strength to study and the negative attitude of others

Localizations at infinity and essential spectrum of quantum Hamiltonians: I. General theory

We isolate a large class of self-adjoint operators H whose essential spectrum is determined by their behavior at large x and we give a canonical representation of their essential spectrum in terms of spectra of limits at infinity of translations of H. The configuration space is an arbitrary abelian locally compact not compact group.Comment: 63 pages. This is the published version with several correction

QED theory of the nuclear recoil effect in atoms

The quantum electrodynamic theory of the nuclear recoil effect in atoms to all orders in \alpha Z is formulated. The nuclear recoil corrections for atoms with one and two electrons over closed shells are considered in detail. The problem of the composite nuclear structure in the theory of the nuclear recoil effect is discussed.Comment: 20 pages, 6 figures, Late

Seasonal trivalent influenza vaccination during pregnancy and the incidence of stillbirth: population-based retrospective cohort study

Concern for the safety to the fetus is a commonly cited reason for vaccine refusal during pregnancy. Results from this investigation support the safety of seasonal influenza vaccination during pregnancy and suggest seasonal influenza vaccination may be protective against stillbirth