An Invading Army of Rockettes: How US Military Policy on Homosexuality and the Voyeurism of the Vietnam War Era Shaped the Gay Rights Movement, 1956-1969

This paper seeks to trace the complex attitudes towards homosexuality in the 1960s through the lens of the Vietnam War. I postulate that adopting the cause of protesting the ban on homosexuals in the military, coupled with the expansion of voyeuristic and sensationalized depictions of homosexuals, served to unify the gay community and strengthen homosexual identity. The voyeurism of Vietnam as the “Living Room War” brought the homosexual man out from the shadows, and though homosexuality continued to be considered a marker of mental illness and instability, the desire to see the taboo world of the gay man changed the baseline and ultimately began to normalize homosexuality overall

Peutz-Jeghers LKB1 mutants fail to activate GSK-3β, preventing it from inhibiting Wnt signaling

Peutz-Jeghers syndrome (PJS) is caused by germline mutations in the LKB1 gene, which encodes a serine-threonine kinase that regulates cell proliferation and polarity. This autosomal dominant disorder is characterized by mucocutaneous melanin pigmentation, multiple gastrointestinal hamartomatous polyposis and an increased risk of developing various neoplasms. To understand the molecular pathogenesis of PJS phenotypes, we used microarrays to analyze gene expression profiles in proliferating HeLa cells transduced with lentiviral vectors expressing wild type or mutant LKB1 proteins. We show that gene expression is differentially affected by mutations that impair the kinase activity (K78I) or alter the cellular localization of the LKB1 protein. However, both mutations abrogate the ability of LKB1 to up-regulate the transcription of several genes involved in Wnt signaling, including DKK3, WNT5B and FZD2. In addition—and in contrast to the wild type protein—these LKB1 mutants fail to activate the GSK-3β kinase, which otherwise phosphorylates β-catenin. The increase in β-catenin phosphorylation that occurs upon expression of wild-type LKB1 results in transcriptional inhibition of a canonical Wnt reporter gene. This suggests that pathogenic LKB1 mutations that lead to activation of the Wnt/β-catenin pathway could contribute to the cancer predisposition of PJS patient

Research for transition: Europeans deserve a better agricultural and food policy

Research is a key element in the exploration of new pathways in farming systems. Organic farming relies on specific methods and a strict regulation. By design, organic farming harmonizes the environmental and productive dimensions of farming systems. The report covers four sections. 1. Funding of organic farming research is low both at EU and national levels, but at the EU and national levels, statistics on the financial support to the different models of agriculture are neither precise nor comprehensive. This lack of transparency impairs any comparative analysis. 2. Several countries have specific programmes for organic farming research The total amounts of money are limited but in most cases the programmes are multi-annual and help to build long-term expertise for the sector. Countries with long-term programmes include Denmark, France, Germany and Sweden 3. Organic farming provides better answer to sustainability challenges than conventional farming. Funding of organic farming research is important because organic farming represents an efficient pathway to sustainable agriculture. A comparison of organic and conventional farming for the different dimensions of sustainability has been compiled based on scientific publications. This assessment does not claim to be fully comprehensive in all areas but it may serve to illustrate he potential of organic farming. 4. Inspiring case studies. By design, organic farming is multi-functional and based on an ecosystem approach rather than the use of artificial inputs that boost production. This is also reflected in the organisation of knowledge exchanges. Most organic farmers are in favour of a participatory vision of research, with active exchange of experience between scientists and practitioners, a collective assessment of problems and a co-design of solutions. Programmes such as the European Innovation Partnership are in line with this research and innovation process. Experience in organic farming shows the potential of such an approach. Case studies at meso and micro levels illustrate new ways of producing knowledge in a participatory way

Antiferromagnetic effects in Chaotic Map lattices with a conservation law

Some results about phase separation in coupled map lattices satisfying a conservation law are presented. It is shown that this constraint is the origin of interesting antiferromagnetic effective couplings and allows transitions to antiferromagnetic and superantiferromagnetic phases. Similarities and differences between this models and statistical spin models are pointed out.Comment: 14 pages including 9 figure