Visual novels as a method of foreign language project competence development

One of the main competencies developed in the process of future programmers training is a competence in project activities. The purpose of this study is to describe the methodological support of the process of creating visual novels as a way foreign language project competence development. The research methodology is based on an experimental methodology based on the principles of interdisciplinary integration and the principles of communication. We specified the definition of the foreign language project competence as a set of knowledge, skills and abilities to organize project activities using a foreign language, experience in creating and presenting final professional products in a foreign language, as well as value orientations of a modern IT-specialist. The content of foreign-language project competence includes linguistic-structural, communicative and presentation components. The practical focus of the research is to create final products that can be used for further improvement of foreign language communication skills, and can also be used as independent interactive projects for the IT-sphere.Одной из основных компетенций, формируемых в процессе подготовки будущих программистов, является компетенция в проектной деятельности. Цель данного исследования заключается в описании методического сопровождения процесса создания визуальных новелл как способа формирования иноязычной проектной компетенции. В основе методологической базы исследования лежит экспериментальная методика, которая строится на принципах междисциплинарной интеграции и принципах коммуникативности. Мы уточнили, что иноязычная проектная компетенция представляет собой совокупность знаний, умений и навыков организации проектной деятельности средствами иностранного языка, опыта создания и презентации конечных профессиональных продуктов на иностранном языке, а также ценностных ориентаций современного IT-специалиста. Содержание иноязычной проектной компетенции включает в себя лингво-структурный, коммуникативный и презентационный компоненты. Практическая направленность исследования заключается в создании студентами конечных продуктов, которые могут иметь применение для дальнейшего совершенствования иноязычных коммуникативных навыков, а также могут быть использованы как самостоятельные интерактивные проекты для IT-сферы

Influence of substituents of the conformation of molecules with two geminal C-SR bonds

1,1-Bis(arylthio)ethanes exist in solutions in the form of conformers with trans-gauche and trans-trans conformations of the C-S-C-S-C chain, while geminal disulfones based on them exist in transgauche and gauche-gauche conformations, with the radicals situated on different sides of the plane of S-C-S. © 1975 Plenum Publishing Corporation

The politics of in/visibility: carving out queer space in Ul'yanovsk

<p>In spite of a growing interest within sexualities studies in the concept of queer space (Oswin 2008), existing literature focuses almost exclusively on its most visible and territorialised forms, such as the gay scene, thus privileging Western metropolitan areas as hubs of queer consumer culture (Binnie 2004). While the literature has emphasised the political significance of queer space as a site of resistance to hegemonic gender and sexual norms, it has again predominantly focused on overt claims to public space embodied in Pride events, neglecting other less open forms of resistance.</p><p> This article contributes new insights to current debates about the construction and meaning of queer space by considering how city space is appropriated by an informal queer network in Ul’ianovsk. The group routinely occupied very public locations meeting and socialising on the street or in mainstream cafés in central Ul’ianovsk, although claims to these spaces as queer were mostly contingent, precarious or invisible to outsiders. The article considers how provincial location affects tactics used to carve out communal space, foregrounding the importance of local context and collective agency in shaping specific forms of resistance, and questioning ethnocentric assumptions about the empowering potential of visibility.</p&gt

Contribution of Aquaporins to Cellular Water Transport Observed by a Microfluidic Cell Volume Sensor

Here we demonstrate that an impedance-based microfluidic cell volume sensor can be used to study the roles of aquaporin (AQP) in cellular water permeability and screen AQP-specific drugs. Human embryonic kidney (HEK-293) cells were transiently transfected with AQP3- or AQP4-encoding genes to express AQPs in plasma membranes. The swelling of cells in response to hypotonic stimulation was traced in real time using the sensor. Two time constants were obtained by fitting the swelling curves with a two-exponential function, a fast time constant associated with osmotic water permeability of AQP-expressing cells and a slow phase time constant associated mainly with water diffusion through lipid bilayers in the nontransfected cells. The AQP-expressing cells showed at least 10× faster osmotic water transport than control cells. Using the volume sensor, we examined the effects of Hg2+ and Ni2+ on the water transport via AQPs. Hg2+ inhibited the water flux in AQP3-expressing cells irreversibly, while Ni2+ blocked the AQP3 channels reversibly. Neither of the two ions blocked the AQP4 channels. The microfluidic volume sensor can sense changes in cell volume in real time, which enables perfusion of various reagents sequentially. It provides a convenient tool for studying the effect of reagents on the function and regulation mechanism of AQPs

Stable multicolor periodic-wave arrays

We study the existence and stability of cnoidal periodic wave arrays propagating in uniform quadratic nonlinear media and discover that they become completely stable above a threshold light intensity. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first example in physics of completely stable periodic wave patterns propagating in conservative uniform media supporting bright solitons.Comment: 12 pages, 3 figure

Potassium Dependent Regulation of Astrocyte Water Permeability Is Mediated by cAMP Signaling

Astrocytes express potassium and water channels to support dynamic regulation of potassium homeostasis. Potassium kinetics can be modulated by aquaporin-4 (AQP4), the essential water channel for astrocyte water permeability regulation. We investigated whether extracellular potassium ([K+]o) can regulate astrocyte water permeability and the mechanisms of such an effect. Studies were performed on rat primary astrocytes and a rat astrocyte cell line transfected with AQP4. We found that 10mM [K+]o caused an immediate, more than 40%, increase in astrocyte water permeability which was sustained in 5min. The water channel AQP4 was a target for this regulation. Potassium induced a significant increase in intracellular cAMP as measured with a FRET based method and with enzyme immunoassay. We found that protein kinase A (PKA) could phosphorylate AQP4 in vitro. Further elevation of [K+]o to 35mM induced a global intracellular calcium response and a transient water permeability increase that was abolished in 5min. When inwardly rectifying potassium (Kir)-channels were blocked, 10mM [K+]o also induced a calcium increase and the water permeability increase no longer persisted. In conclusion, we find that elevation of extracellular potassium regulates AQP4 and astrocyte water permeability via intracellular signaling involving cAMP. A prolonged increase of astrocyte water permeability is Kir-channel dependent and this response can be impeded by intracellular calcium signaling. Our results support the concept of coupling between AQP4 and potassium handling in astrocytes

Immunohistochemical localization and mRNA expression of aquaporins in the macula utriculi of patients with Meniere’s disease and acoustic neuroma

Meniere’s disease is nearly invariably associated with endolymphatic hydrops (the net accumulation of water in the inner ear endolymphatic space). Vestibular maculae utriculi were acquired from patients undergoing surgery for Meniere’s disease and acoustic neuroma and from autopsy (subjects with normal hearing and balance). Quantitative immunostaining was conducted with antibodies against aquaporins (AQPs) 1, 4, and 6, Na+K+ATPase, Na+K+2Cl co-transporter (NKCC1), and α-syntrophin. mRNA was extracted from the surgically acquired utricles from subjects with Meniere’s disease and acoustic neuroma to conduct quantitative real-time reverse transcription with polymerase chain reaction for AQP1, AQP4, and AQP6. AQP1 immunoreactivity (−IR) was located in blood vessels and fibrocytes in the underlying stroma, without any apparent alteration in Meniere’s specimens when compared with acoustic neuroma and autopsy specimens. AQP4-IR localized to the epithelial basolateral supporting cells in Meniere’s disease, acoustic neuroma, and autopsy. In specimens from subjects with Meniere’s disease, AQP4-IR was significantly decreased compared with autopsy and acoustic neuroma specimens. AQP6-IR occurred in the sub-apical vestibular supporting cells in acoustic neuroma and autopsy samples. However, in Meniere’s disease specimens, AQP6-IR was significantly increased and diffusely redistributed throughout the supporting cell cytoplasm. Na+K+ATPase, NKCC1, and α-syntrophin were expressed within sensory epithelia and were unaltered in Meniere’s disease specimens. Expression of AQP1, AQP4, or AQP6 mRNA did not differ in vestibular endorgans from patients with Meniere’s disease. Changes in AQP4 (decreased) and AQP6 (increased) expression in Meniere’s disease specimens suggest that the supporting cell might be a cellular target