Provoking Taste: Experimenting With New Ways of Sensing

A man sits at a table in a museum and tastes something he has never seen before. He is not sure what it is, but he is prompted to taste orange-red jelly-like cubes—and to do so as if it were an honor to eat such a thing. He hesitates, he looks at it, then, he closes his eyes and slowly takes a bite. He writes down some notes. He takes another bite. He reads along in a document, where he is told to taste again, but this time as if he were ashamed. After completing a series of other, similar experiments, he creates a new dish from the ingredients assembled in front of him, and writes down a title for the dish in his tasting notes. This is the setting of an exhibition called “Schmeck!” (German for “taste!”), that we set up in autumn 2020 at the Museum of Natural History (MfN) in Berlin.1 Why did we create an exhibition in which we asked people to taste unknown foods as if they were honored or ashamed? We sought to first explore how taste changes in relation with various elements of the eating situation (such as sounds, previous knowledge about ingredients and expectations) and, secondly, to use these experiences to provoke participants to create new tasting practices and dishes. In the introduction to this volume, the editors develop the notion of “sensing collectives” to study the intertwining of aesthetic and political practices. In this chapter, we discuss the exhibition as a case of engaging visitors in experiments that were at the same time aesthetic (i.e. inducing and shaping sensory perceptions) as well as political (i.e. inducing and shaping collective subjectivity)

A cytosolic disulfide bridge‐supported dimerization is crucial for stability and cellular distribution of Coxsackievirus B3 protein 3A

RNA viruses in the Picornaviridae family express a large 250 kDa viral polyprotein that is processed by virus-encoded proteinases into mature functional proteins with specific functions for virus replication. One of these proteins is the highly conserved enteroviral transmembrane protein 3A that assists in reorganizing cellular membranes associated with the Golgi apparatus. Here, we studied the molecular properties of the Coxsackievirus B3 (CVB3) protein 3A with regard to its dimerization and its functional stability. By applying mutational analysis and biochemical characterization, we demonstrate that protein 3A forms DTT-sensitive disulfide-linked dimers via a conserved cytosolic cysteine residue at position 38 (Cys38). Homodimerization of CVB3 protein 3A via Cys38 leads to profound stabilization of the protein, whereas a C38A mutation promotes a rapid proteasome-dependent elimination of its monomeric form. The lysosomotropic agent chloroquine (CQ) exerted only minor stabilizing effects on the 3A monomer but resulted in enrichment of the homodimer. Our experimental data demonstrate that disulfide linkages via a highly conserved Cys-residue in enteroviral protein 3A have an important role in the dimerization of this viral protein, thereby preserving its stability and functional integrity

Mupirocin prophylaxis against nosocomial Staphylococcus aureus infections in nonsurgical patients: a randomized study

BACKGROUND: Staphylococcus aureus nasal carriage is a major risk factor for nosocomial S. aureus infection. Studies show that intranasal mupirocin can prevent nosocomial surgical site infections. No data are available on the efficacy of mupirocin in nonsurgical patients. OBJECTIVE: To assess the efficacy of mupirocin prophylaxis in preventing nosocomial S. aureus infections in nonsurgical patients. DESIGN: Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. SETTING: 3 tertiary care academic hospitals and 1 nonacademic hospital. PATIENTS: 1602 culture-proven S. aureus carriers hospitalized in nonsurgical departments. INTERVENTION: Therapy with mupirocin 2% nasal ointment (n = 793) or placebo ointment (n = 809), twice daily for 5 days, started 1 to 3 days after admission. MEASUREMENTS: Nosocomial S. aureus infections according to defined criteria, in-hospital mortality, duration of hospitalization, and time to nosocomial S. aureus infection. Staphylococcus aureus isolates were genotyped to assess whether infection was caused by endogenous strains. RESULTS: The mupirocin and placebo groups did not statistically differ in the rates of nosocomial S. aureus infections (mupirocin, 2.6%; placebo, 2.8%; risk difference, 0.2 percentage point [95% CI, -1.5 to 1.9 percentage points]), mortality (mupirocin, 3.0%; placebo, 2.8%; risk difference, -0.2 percentage point [CI, -1.9 to 1.5 percentage points]), or duration of hospitalization (median for both, 8 days). However, time to nosocomial S. aureus infection was decreased in the mupirocin group from 12 to 25 days (P > 0.2). A total of 77% of S. aureus nosocomial infections were endogenous. LIMITATIONS: A few infections in both groups may have been missed because investigators assessed a patient for infection only if microbiology culture results were positive for S. aureus. CONCLUSION: Routine culture for S. aureus nasal carriage at admission and subsequent mupirocin application does not provide effective prophylaxis against nosocomial S. aureus infections in nonsurgical patients

The HUTUBS head-related transfer function (HRTF) database

The database contains head-related transfer functions, 3D head meshes, anthropometric features, and headphone transfer functions of 96 subjects

Travel-related control measures to contain the COVID-19 pandemic: an evidence map

OBJECTIVES To comprehensively map the existing evidence assessing the impact of travel-related control measures for containment of the SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19 pandemic. DESIGN Rapid evidence map. DATA SOURCES MEDLINE, Embase and Web of Science, and COVID-19 specific databases offered by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the WHO. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA We included studies in human populations susceptible to SARS-CoV-2/COVID-19, SARS-CoV-1/severe acute respiratory syndrome, Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus/Middle East respiratory syndrome or influenza. Interventions of interest were travel-related control measures affecting travel across national or subnational borders. Outcomes of interest included infectious disease, screening, other health, economic and social outcomes. We considered all empirical studies that quantitatively evaluate impact available in Armenian, English, French, German, Italian and Russian based on the team's language capacities. DATA EXTRACTION AND SYNTHESIS We extracted data from included studies in a standardised manner and mapped them to a priori and (one) post hoc defined categories. RESULTS We included 122 studies assessing travel-related control measures. These studies were undertaken across the globe, most in the Western Pacific region (n=71). A large proportion of studies focused on COVID-19 (n=59), but a number of studies also examined SARS, MERS and influenza. We identified studies on border closures (n=3), entry/exit screening (n=31), travel-related quarantine (n=6), travel bans (n=8) and travel restrictions (n=25). Many addressed a bundle of travel-related control measures (n=49). Most studies assessed infectious disease (n=98) and/or screening-related (n=25) outcomes; we found only limited evidence on economic and social outcomes. Studies applied numerous methods, both inferential and descriptive in nature, ranging from simple observational methods to complex modelling techniques. CONCLUSIONS We identified a heterogeneous and complex evidence base on travel-related control measures. While this map is not sufficient to assess the effectiveness of different measures, it outlines aspects regarding interventions and outcomes, as well as study methodology and reporting that could inform future research and evidence synthesis

Development of outdoor luminescence imaging for drone-based PV array inspection

This work has the goal to perform outdoor defect detection imaging that will be used in a fast, accurate and automatic drone-based survey system for PV power plants. The imaging development focuses on techniques that do not require electrical contact, permitting automatic drone inspections to be perform quicker and with less manpower. The final inspection method will combine several techniques such as, infrared (IR), electroluminescence (EL), photoluminescence (PL), and visual imaging. Solar plant inspection in the future can be restricted only by imaging speed requirements, allowing an entire new perspective in large-scale PV inspection

Outdoor Electroluminescence Acquisition Using a Movable Testbed

The experimentation with a movable outdoor electroluminescence (EL) testbed is performed in this work. For EL inspections of PV power plants, the fastest scenario will include the use of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) performing image acquisition in continuous motion. With this motivation, we investigate the EL image quality of an acquisition in motion and the extent of image processing required to correct scene displacement. The results show processed EL images with a high level of information even when acquired at 1 m/s camera speed and at frame rate of 120 fps.</p

Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus in Meat Products, the Netherlands

A new methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) clone related to pig and cattle farming was detected in the Netherlands. We investigated the extent of S. aureus presence in meat and found 36 S. aureus strains in 79 samples. Two strains were MRSA; 1 was multilocus sequence type 398, the clone related to farming

Views on the Past, Present, and Future of Business and Information Systems Engineering

‘‘The times they are a-changin,’’ a famous song title by Bob Dylan, also applies to our profession and our subject of study. Information technology has always been a driver for innovation. The recent years, however, have seen IT-based innovations that truly impact everybody’s lives. Everything that can be digitized will be digitized, and this trend is continuing at an amazing speed. For a discipline that looks at the design and utilization of information systems these are exciting times. Yet, it is also a time full of challenges. While our discipline has much to contribute, it competes with other disciplines for topics and ideas. Also, the scope of topics studied has become broader and broader, and so have our methods. While initial work in Business and Information Systems Engineering (BISE) was often rooted in artificial intelligence, database systems, or operations research, the community has adopted new approaches to address new types of problems. Nowadays, we also have a strong group of academics working primarily with empirical methods or methods from microeconomics, to name just a few. This development towards a more multiparadigmatic discipline also had its challenges and there were controversial discussions along the way