FinBook: literary content as digital commodity

This short essay explains the significance of the FinBook intervention, and invites the reader to participate. We have associated each chapter within this book with a financial robot (FinBot), and created a market whereby book content will be traded with financial securities. As human labour increasingly consists of unstable and uncertain work practices and as algorithms replace people on the virtual trading floors of the worlds markets, we see members of society taking advantage of FinBots to invest and make extra funds. Bots of all kinds are making financial decisions for us, searching online on our behalf to help us invest, to consume products and services. Our contribution to this compilation is to turn the collection of chapters in this book into a dynamic investment portfolio, and thereby play out what might happen to the process of buying and consuming literature in the not-so-distant future. By attaching identities (through QR codes) to each chapter, we create a market in which the chapter can ‘perform’. Our FinBots will trade based on features extracted from the authors’ words in this book: the political, ethical and cultural values embedded in the work, and the extent to which the FinBots share authors’ concerns; and the performance of chapters amongst those human and non-human actors that make up the market, and readership. In short, the FinBook model turns our work and the work of our co-authors into an investment portfolio, mediated by the market and the attention of readers. By creating a digital economy specifically around the content of online texts, our chapter and the FinBook platform aims to challenge the reader to consider how their personal values align them with individual articles, and how these become contested as they perform different value judgements about the financial performance of each chapter and the book as a whole. At the same time, by introducing ‘autonomous’ trading bots, we also explore the different ‘network’ affordances that differ between paper based books that’s scarcity is developed through analogue form, and digital forms of books whose uniqueness is reached through encryption. We thereby speak to wider questions about the conditions of an aggressive market in which algorithms subject cultural and intellectual items – books – to economic parameters, and the increasing ubiquity of data bots as actors in our social, political, economic and cultural lives. We understand that our marketization of literature may be an uncomfortable juxtaposition against the conventionally-imagined way a book is created, enjoyed and shared: it is intended to be

Genome-Wide Mapping of Susceptibility to Coronary Artery Disease Identifies a Novel Replicated Locus on Chromosome 17

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a leading cause of death world-wide, and most cases have a complex, multifactorial aetiology that includes a substantial heritable component. Identification of new genes involved in CAD may inform pathogenesis and provide new therapeutic targets. The PROCARDIS study recruited 2,658 affected sibling pairs (ASPs) with onset of CAD before age 66 y from four European countries to map susceptibility loci for CAD. ASPs were defined as having CAD phenotype if both had CAD, or myocardial infarction (MI) phenotype if both had a MI. In a first study, involving a genome-wide linkage screen, tentative loci were mapped to Chromosomes 3 and 11 with the CAD phenotype (1,464 ASPs), and to Chromosome 17 with the MI phenotype (739 ASPs). In a second study, these loci were examined with a dense panel of grid-tightening markers in an independent set of families (1,194 CAD and 344 MI ASPs). This replication study showed a significant result on Chromosome 17 (MI phenotype; p = 0.009 after adjustment for three independent replication tests). An exclusion analysis suggests that further genes of effect size λ(sib) > 1.24 are unlikely to exist in these populations of European ancestry. To our knowledge, this is the first genome-wide linkage analysis to map, and replicate, a CAD locus. The region on Chromosome 17 provides a compelling target within which to identify novel genes underlying CAD. Understanding the genetic aetiology of CAD may lead to novel preventative and/or therapeutic strategies

Protective effect of human amniotic fluid stem cells in an immunodeficient mouse model of acute tubular necrosis.

Acute Tubular Necrosis (ATN) causes severe damage to the kidney epithelial tubular cells and is often associated with severe renal dysfunction. Stem-cell based therapies may provide alternative approaches to treating of ATN. We have previously shown that clonal c-kit(pos) stem cells, derived from human amniotic fluid (hAFSC) can be induced to a renal fate in an ex-vivo system. Herein, we show for the first time the successful therapeutic application of hAFSC in a mouse model with glycerol-induced rhabdomyolysis and ATN. When injected into the damaged kidney, luciferase-labeled hAFSC can be tracked using bioluminescence. Moreover, we show that hAFSC provide a protective effect, ameliorating ATN in the acute injury phase as reflected by decreased creatinine and BUN blood levels and by a decrease in the number of damaged tubules and apoptosis therein, as well as by promoting proliferation of tubular epithelial cells. We show significant immunomodulatory effects of hAFSC, over the course of ATN. We therefore speculate that AFSC could represent a novel source of stem cells that may function to modulate the kidney immune milieu in renal failure caused by ATN

Efficacy and safety of statin therapy in older people: a meta-analysis of individual participant data from 28 randomised controlled trials

Background: Statin therapy has been shown to reduce major vascular events and vascular mortality in a wide range of individuals, but there is uncertainty about its efficacy and safety among older people. We undertook a meta-analysis of data from all large statin trials to compare the effects of statin therapy at different ages. Methods: In this meta-analysis, randomised trials of statin therapy were eligible if they aimed to recruit at least 1000 participants with a scheduled treatment duration of at least 2 years. We analysed individual participant data from 22 trials (n=134 537) and detailed summary data from one trial (n=12 705) of statin therapy versus control, plus individual participant data from five trials of more intensive versus less intensive statin therapy (n=39 612). We subdivided participants into six age groups (55 years or younger, 56–60 years, 61–65 years, 66–70 years, 71–75 years, and older than 75 years). We estimated effects on major vascular events (ie, major coronary events, strokes, and coronary revascularisations), cause-specific mortality, and cancer incidence as the rate ratio (RR) per 1·0 mmol/L reduction in LDL cholesterol. We compared proportional risk reductions in different age subgroups by use of standard χ2 tests for heterogeneity when there were two groups, or trend when there were more than two groups. Findings: 14 483 (8%) of 186 854 participants in the 28 trials were older than 75 years at randomisation, and the median follow-up duration was 4·9 years. Overall, statin therapy or a more intensive statin regimen produced a 21% (RR 0·79, 95% CI 0·77–0·81) proportional reduction in major vascular events per 1·0 mmol/L reduction in LDL cholesterol. We observed a significant reduction in major vascular events in all age groups. Although proportional reductions in major vascular events diminished slightly with age, this trend was not statistically significant (ptrend=0·06). Overall, statin or more intensive therapy yielded a 24% (RR 0·76, 95% CI 0·73–0·79) proportional reduction in major coronary events per 1·0 mmol/L reduction in LDL cholesterol, and with increasing age, we observed a trend towards smaller proportional risk reductions in major coronary events (ptrend=0·009). We observed a 25% (RR 0·75, 95% CI 0·73–0·78) proportional reduction in the risk of coronary revascularisation procedures with statin therapy or a more intensive statin regimen per 1·0 mmol/L lower LDL cholesterol, which did not differ significantly across age groups (ptrend=0·6). Similarly, the proportional reductions in stroke of any type (RR 0·84, 95% CI 0·80–0·89) did not differ significantly across age groups (ptrend=0·7). After exclusion of four trials which enrolled only patients with heart failure or undergoing renal dialysis (among whom statin therapy has not been shown to be effective), the trend to smaller proportional risk reductions with increasing age persisted for major coronary events (ptrend=0·01), and remained non-significant for major vascular events (ptrend=0·3). The proportional reduction in major vascular events was similar, irrespective of age, among patients with pre-existing vascular disease (ptrend=0·2), but appeared smaller among older than among younger individuals not known to have vascular disease (ptrend=0·05). We found a 12% (RR 0·88, 95% CI 0·85–0·91) proportional reduction in vascular mortality per 1·0 mmol/L reduction in LDL cholesterol, with a trend towards smaller proportional reductions with older age (ptrend=0·004), but this trend did not persist after exclusion of the heart failure or dialysis trials (ptrend=0·2). Statin therapy had no effect at any age on non-vascular mortality, cancer death, or cancer incidence. Interpretation: Statin therapy produces significant reductions in major vascular events irrespective of age, but there is less direct evidence of benefit among patients older than 75 years who do not already have evidence of occlusive vascular disease. This limitation is now being addressed by further trials. Funding: Australian National Health and Medical Research Council, National Institute for Health Research Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, UK Medical Research Council, and British Heart Foundation

A genome-wide association study in Europeans and South Asians identifies five new loci for coronary artery disease

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Genome-wide association identifies nine common variants associated with fasting proinsulin levels and provides new insights into the pathophysiology of type 2 diabetes.

OBJECTIVE: Proinsulin is a precursor of mature insulin and C-peptide. Higher circulating proinsulin levels are associated with impaired β-cell function, raised glucose levels, insulin resistance, and type 2 diabetes (T2D). Studies of the insulin processing pathway could provide new insights about T2D pathophysiology. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: We have conducted a meta-analysis of genome-wide association tests of ∼2.5 million genotyped or imputed single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and fasting proinsulin levels in 10,701 nondiabetic adults of European ancestry, with follow-up of 23 loci in up to 16,378 individuals, using additive genetic models adjusted for age, sex, fasting insulin, and study-specific covariates. RESULTS: Nine SNPs at eight loci were associated with proinsulin levels (P < 5 × 10(-8)). Two loci (LARP6 and SGSM2) have not been previously related to metabolic traits, one (MADD) has been associated with fasting glucose, one (PCSK1) has been implicated in obesity, and four (TCF7L2, SLC30A8, VPS13C/C2CD4A/B, and ARAP1, formerly CENTD2) increase T2D risk. The proinsulin-raising allele of ARAP1 was associated with a lower fasting glucose (P = 1.7 × 10(-4)), improved β-cell function (P = 1.1 × 10(-5)), and lower risk of T2D (odds ratio 0.88; P = 7.8 × 10(-6)). Notably, PCSK1 encodes the protein prohormone convertase 1/3, the first enzyme in the insulin processing pathway. A genotype score composed of the nine proinsulin-raising alleles was not associated with coronary disease in two large case-control datasets. CONCLUSIONS: We have identified nine genetic variants associated with fasting proinsulin. Our findings illuminate the biology underlying glucose homeostasis and T2D development in humans and argue against a direct role of proinsulin in coronary artery disease pathogenesis

Reducing the environmental impact of surgery on a global scale: systematic review and co-prioritization with healthcare workers in 132 countries

Abstract Background Healthcare cannot achieve net-zero carbon without addressing operating theatres. The aim of this study was to prioritize feasible interventions to reduce the environmental impact of operating theatres. Methods This study adopted a four-phase Delphi consensus co-prioritization methodology. In phase 1, a systematic review of published interventions and global consultation of perioperative healthcare professionals were used to longlist interventions. In phase 2, iterative thematic analysis consolidated comparable interventions into a shortlist. In phase 3, the shortlist was co-prioritized based on patient and clinician views on acceptability, feasibility, and safety. In phase 4, ranked lists of interventions were presented by their relevance to high-income countries and low–middle-income countries. Results In phase 1, 43 interventions were identified, which had low uptake in practice according to 3042 professionals globally. In phase 2, a shortlist of 15 intervention domains was generated. In phase 3, interventions were deemed acceptable for more than 90 per cent of patients except for reducing general anaesthesia (84 per cent) and re-sterilization of ‘single-use’ consumables (86 per cent). In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for high-income countries were: introducing recycling; reducing use of anaesthetic gases; and appropriate clinical waste processing. In phase 4, the top three shortlisted interventions for low–middle-income countries were: introducing reusable surgical devices; reducing use of consumables; and reducing the use of general anaesthesia. Conclusion This is a step toward environmentally sustainable operating environments with actionable interventions applicable to both high– and low–middle–income countries

A guidebook on consolidated financial statement at municipal level : case company City of Vantaa

Consolidated financial statement is regulated by accounting law and it is monitored by accounting authorities. Corporations’ parent companies must prepare it by law. The structure of consolidated financial statement varies: municipalities must follow different regulations than for example international corporations. The similarity is that a consolidated financial statement is highly complicated to prepare. This thesis presents a consolidated financial statement for a municipality. The case company is a Finnish capital area municipality, City of Vantaa. The thesis is supervised by the corporation accounting team at the Economy Service Center. The purpose of the thesis is to prepare a detailed training manual, a guidebook, to the case company. The guidebook allows employees to work more independently and efficiently when preparing the consolidated financial statement. It aims to support employees’ previous experience of consolidated financial statement. First, the thesis introduces the consolidated financial statement at a municipal level. Secondly, it studies how to write an accurate guidebook and lastly according to these instructions, the guidebook is prepared. The guidebook is prepared in tight cooperation with the corporation accounting team and it was visualized and structured according to their wishes. The guidebook is found in the appendices of the thesis. The corporation accounting team is pleased with the result. It ended up to be versatile and accurate as to its contents but also visually attractive. The guidebook is a useful tool to the case company and the thesis was a great learning experience for the author. Although the thesis does not necessarily provide a basis for further research it may bring value for future students

Alley Coppice : an innovative agroforestry system that combines timber and energy wood production

International audienceThe push to combat climate change and greenhouse gas emissions and reduce our dependency on non-renewable energy sources has never been more topical. One aspect of this is the need to decrease human pressure on natural forests, which poses questions as to how timber, food, and bioenergy production on agricultural land can best be obtained. Agroforestry and Short Rotation Coppice (SRC) are recognised as separate economically viable and sustainable cropping systems. But little is known about the agricultural and ecological interactions if the two are combined. This mixed approach, which we call alley coppice, has potential advantages, including: (i) regular income guaranteed from the SRC component; (ii) improved stem formation of timber trees and reduced pruning intensity in mixed systems, because of competition for light between species; (iii) planting of timber trees at final density, avoiding expensive thinning costs; (iv) reduced wind and storm damage to timber trees during the initial years of tree growth, due to the protection provided by the SRC component, and; (v) improved ecological impacts, such as increased biodiversity, reduced spread of diseases, reduced soil erosion, and reduced soil nutrient depletion. This approach is being assessed within the European AGROCOP project (Woodwisdom-Eranet EUPF7; http://www.agrocop.com/) and involves seven research institutes from five countries: France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, and the United Kingdom. One of our research objectives is to evaluate the yield of alley coppice system in comparison to monocultural systems, using the Land Equivalent Ratio (LER). We also focus on water, nutrient and light competition. Results presented were obtained in a seven-year old experimental field, located in Northern Italy. This has Pyrus and Sorbus as timber trees, and poplar SRC grown in a two-year rotation cycle. We analysed the yield and survival rate of SRC poplars, and the leaf phenology and stem form of timber trees