Thermoanalytical characterization of several Antarctic meteorites

Thermodynamic data for several meteorites from Antarctica (5 achondrites, 2 chondrites, and 1 iron) were derived. The thermochemical response to heating in air was examined. The effects of oxidation processes can often be better identified by comparing the differential thermal analysis (DTA)-curves for heating in air with those obtained for heating in an oxidation-suppressed argon atmosphere. The thermoanalytical method can be helpful in determining the degree of weathering of meteoritic material

Can co-authorship networks be used to predict author research impact? A machine-learning based analysis within the field of degenerative cervical myelopathy research.

INTRODUCTION: Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy (DCM) is a common and disabling condition, with a relatively modest research capacity. In order to accelerate knowledge discovery, the AO Spine RECODE-DCM project has recently established the top priorities for DCM research. Uptake of these priorities within the research community will require their effective dissemination, which can be supported by identifying key opinion leaders (KOLs). In this paper, we aim to identify KOLs using artificial intelligence. We produce and explore a DCM co-authorship network, to characterise researchers' impact within the research field. METHODS: Through a bibliometric analysis of 1674 scientific papers in the DCM field, a co-authorship network was created. For each author, statistics about their connections to the co-authorship network (and so the nature of their collaboration) were generated. Using these connectedness statistics, a neural network was used to predict H-Index for each author (as a proxy for research impact). The neural network was retrospectively validated on an unseen author set. RESULTS: DCM research is regionally clustered, with strong collaboration across some international borders (e.g., North America) but not others (e.g., Western Europe). In retrospective validation, the neural network achieves a correlation coefficient of 0.86 (p<0.0001) between the true and predicted H-Index of each author. Thus, author impact can be accurately predicted using only the nature of an author's collaborations. DISCUSSION: Analysis of the neural network shows that the nature of collaboration strongly impacts an author's research visibility, and therefore suitability as a KOL. This also suggests greater collaboration within the DCM field could help to improve both individual research visibility and global synergy

French impressionism and German Jews - the making of modernist art collectors and art collections in imperial Germany 1896-1914.

This interdisciplinary thesis is the first dedicated study of German Jewish patronage of French Impressionist and post-Impressionist art in Wilhelmine Germany. It investigates the disproportionately strong impact of German Jewish patronage from three perspectives. It examines the significance of Paul Cassirer's modernist art dealership, the prominence of German Jewish art collectors and their modernist art collections and the presence of German Jewish sponsorship at the Nationalgalerie Berlin, the Pinakothek Munich and the Stadelsche Kunstinstitut in Frankfurt am Main. First it examines Impressionism as the 'painting of modern life' in its original French context, focussing on French Jewish dealer-patrons and collectors whose association with French modernist artists influenced not only its iconography, but also involved French Jews in modern art promotion and marketing. The French model serves as a basis for understanding the reception of such art amongst a liberal circle of Germans and German Jews. The study examines the Wilhelmine reaction to French modernism and shows how antagonism toward Jews and France was often linked and interpreted by conservatives as 'alien elements' in nationalist Germany, thus highlighting Impressionism as a threat of a new Weltanschauung. This thesis suggests that although some German Jews acculturated to the dominant Wilhelmine culture, the championing of modernist art actually emphasized their Jewishness and their role as the 'Other' in German society, despite their patriotism. Yet, in the long run, German Jewish taste for the avant-garde had as much influence on German modernism as German taste had on Jews. The study hypothesizes that German Jews embraced French Impressionism as an 'iconography of inclusion' that coincided with their own experience of modern life and thus their patronage served as a component in the construction of their secular identities. The study concludes that strong German Jewish patronage changed the modern art market irrevocably and by doing so it was not only a turning point for the writing of modern art histories, but also for the reassessment of German Jewish cultural identities, thereby proving that the history of modernist European art patronage encompassed also a history of ideas

Nanobiotechnology: the promise and reality of new approaches to molecular recognition

Nanobiotechnology is the convergence of engineering and molecular biology that is leading to a new class of multifunctional devices and systems for biological and chemical analysis with better sensitivity and specificity and a higher rate of recognition. Nano-objects with important analytical applications include nanotubes, nanochannels, nanoparticles, nanopores and nanocapacitors. Here, we take a critical look at the subset of recent developments in this area relevant to molecular recognition. Potential benefits of using nano-objects (nanotubes, quantum dots, nanorods and nanoprisms) and nanodevices (nanocapacitors, nanopores and nanocantilevers) leading to an expanded range of label multiplexing are described along with potential applications in future diagnostics. We also speculate on further pathways in nanotechnology development and the emergence of order in this somewhat chaotic, yet promising, new field