Intergenerational Transmission of Risk Attitudes: A Revealed Preference Approach

This study investigates whether the willingness to take income risks revealed by occupational choice is transmitted from parents to their children. Using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP), we find that fathers' riskiness of job is a significant determinant of children's occupational risk, in particular sons' (excluding parent-child pairs with identical occupations). This is the first piece of evidence for intergenerational transmission of risk attitudes relying on real world behavior. It shows that not only individuals' own assessments of their risk attitudes correlate (found by previous studies) but also risk preferences shown in exactly the same situation.Risk preferences, intergenerational transmission, occupational choice

Hereditary colorectal cancer : assessment of genotype-phenotype correlations and analysis of rare susceptibility genes in familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) and hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC)

Each year 3500 people in Switzerland are diagnosed with colorectal cancer. Approximately 20 percent of all affected patients have two or more first or second-degree relatives with colorectal cancer (at-risk family members). About five percent of these are inherited in an autosomal dominant manner. This thesis has focused on genotype-phenotype correlations in two hereditary colorectal cancer syndromes, familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP) and hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer (HNPCC). In addition, rare susceptibility genes were analyzed: MYH in FAP and PMS2 and MSH3 in HNPCC. The works encompassed investigations of a consecutive series of 101 Swiss polyposis patients and establishment of genotype-phenotype correlations, delineation of somatic APC alterations in attenuated familial adenomatous polyposis (AFAP), genetic characterization of the MYH gene recently associated with a multiple colorectal adenoma and carcinoma phenotype, and finally, the assessment of the role of rarely mutated mismatch repair genes PMS2 and MSH3 in HNPCC. In the first part of the thesis, phenotypic differences between APC germline mutation carriers and APC/MYH mutation-negative individuals in a consecutive cohort of 101 FAP patients were characterized. Furthermore, we wanted to assess possible genotype-phenotype correlations in APC mutation carriers. In our study population, no genotype-phenotype correlations with regard to polyp number or extracolonic disease manifestations could be established. The data challenge the prevailing view on genotype-phenotype correlations and advise great caution when basing clinical management decisions for an individual patient on the site of the APC germline mutation. In the second part of the thesis 235 tumors from 35 AFAP patients out of 16 families were screened for APC mutations to find out the somatic APC mutation spectrum, to determine phenotypic differences among AFAP families, and to delineate the pathways of somatic APC mutation in AFAP. It has been shown that colonic polyp number varies greatly among AFAP patients, but members of the same family tended to have more similar disease severity. 5’-mutants generally had more polyps than the other patients. In some polyps bi-allelic changes (“third hits”) have been found, which probably initiated tumorigenesis. Taken together, AFAP is phenotypically and genetically heterogeneous and modifier genes may be acting on the AFAP phenotype. Biallelic changes in the MYH gene have been shown to predispose to a multiple adenoma and carcinoma phenotype. In the third part of the thesis, 79 unrelated APC-negative Swiss polyposis patients were screened for germline mutations in MYH to assess the frequency of MYH mutations and to identify phenotypic differences between MYH mutation carriers and APC/MYH mutation-negative polyposis patients. Colorectal cancer was significantly more frequent in biallelic as compared to monoallelic mutation carriers or those without MYH alterations. With regard to other phenotypic properties (age of onset, extracolonic disease manifestations), it is virtually impossible to discriminate biallelic from monoallelic MYH mutation carriers and MYH mutation-negative polyposis patients. In HNPCC alterations in PMS2 have been documented only in extremely rare cases. In the fourth part of the thesis, DNAs of colorectal cancer patients with immunohistochemically proven loss of PMS2 in the tumor (n = 16) were screened for PMS2 germline mutations. It was possible to identify heterozygous PMS2 germline mutations in six patients. To detect germline mutations in the remaining 10 patients, additional mutation screening methods (cDNA sequencing and MLPA technique) have been applied. In conclusion it was shown that PMS2 defects account for a small but significant proportion of CRCs. In the fifth part of the thesis MSH3, a MMR gene, which has thus far not been implicated in HNPCC, has been investigated in a 46 years old colorectal cancer patient with immunohistochemical loss of MSH3 only. A MSH3 missense mutation (c.2383C>T, p.Arg795Trp) was identified and the possible pathogenicity of the alteration was assessed. It was found that the mutation is present in a hemizygous state in the tumor. Furthermore, 100 healthy probands did not carry the alteration and sequence and amino acid alignment with vertebrates showed that it is located in a conserved region of the gene. Taken together, our findings indicate that the alteration in MSH3 may indeed be pathogenic

Birds standing on one leg: mechanisms and possible functions - a review

Viele Vögel ruhen auf einem Bein ohne erkennbare Spezialisierungen. Das Bein wird so positioniert, dass der Körper auch ohne besonderen Energieaufwand stabil steht. Bei langbeinigen Vögeln sind Sperr- oder Schnappmechanismen beschrieben worden, die das Intertarsalgelenk zwischen Unterschenkel und Lauf beim Stehen auf einem Bein am Einknicken hindern sollen. Beim Strauß (Struthio camelus) scheint ein Schnappmechanismus tatsächlich zu existieren, allerdings steht der Strauß nie auf einem Bein. Für ein Vorkommen solcher Mechanismen bei Stelzvögeln, die auf einem Bein stehen, gibt es bisher keine Belege. Beim Stehen auf einem Bein könnte ein kürzlich entdecktes zusätzliches Gleichgewichtsorgan im Beckenbereich der Wirbelsäule eine wichtige Rolle spielen, da es im Bereich der Beine direkt auf die Beinmotorik wirkt. Eine thermoregulatorische Funktion des Stehens auf einem Bein steht mit den thermoregulatorischen Eigenschaften der Beine in Einklang. Das Verbergen eines Beines im Gefieder reduziert die Wärmeabgabe in kalter Umgebung und trägt damit zur Konstanthaltung der Körpertemperatur bei. Eine thermoregulatorische Funktion scheint allerdings nicht die alleinige Funktion des Stehens auf einem Bein zu sein, da das Bein nicht immer im Gefieder versteckt wird und die Vögel auch in warmer Umgebung auf einem Bein stehen. Eine weitere Möglichkeit, die diskutiert wird, ist eine Entlastung der Muskulatur durch das Stehen auf einem Bein. Da das Anziehen des Beines aber mit Muskelaktivität verbunden ist, wäre es wichtig, den Energieverbrauch beim Stehen auf einem Bein, mit dem beim Stehen auf beiden Beinen zu vergleichen. Das gleiche gilt für die thermoregulatorische Funktion. Solche Messungen, die Klarheit über die Bedeutung des Stehens auf einem Bein schaffen könnten, fehlen bisher.Many birds stand on one leg when resting on the ground. The leg is positioned in a way which needs not much energy. In long-legged birds the body is far from the ground which may require special adaptations to keeping balance. Snapping mechanisms which serve to “lock” the intertarsal joint when standing are reviewed. Such a mechanism is obviously present in the ostrich which does, however, not stand on one leg. There is so far no convincing evidence that a snapping mechanism exists in long-legged birds which stand on one leg. It seems that normal mechanisms of keeping balance also work in long-legged birds. A recently discovered sense organ of equilibrium in the lumbosacral vertebral canal which controls leg movements may play an important role in standing on one leg. Hiding one foot in the plumage reduces heat loss in a cold environment. However, the foot is not always hidden in the plumage and standing on one leg occurs also in a warm environment, i.e. thermoregulation probably is not the only function of standing on one leg. Another function of standing on one leg may be to avoid muscle fatigue. However, to tuck up one leg means muscle activity and it is not clear whether it saves energy. There is a need for comparing energy (oxygen) consumption when standing on one leg as compared to standing on both legs both as to a thermoregulatory and muscle relaxation function

Search for High-Energy Neutrinos from TDE-like Flares with IceCube

The collected data of IceCube, a cubic kilometre neutrino detector array in the Antarctic ice, reveal a diffuse flux of astrophysical neutrinos. The extragalactic sources of the majority of these neutrinos however have yet to be discovered. Tidal Disruption Events (TDEs), disruption outbursts from black holes that accrete at an enhanced rate, are candidates for being the sources of extragalactic, high-energy neutrinos. Stein et al. (2021) and Reusch et al. (2022) have reported the coincidence of two likely TDEs from supermassive black holes and public IceCube neutrino events (alerts). Further work by van Velzen et al. (2021) identified a third event in coincidence with a high-energy neutrino alert and a $3.7 \sigma$ correlation between a broader set of similar TDE-like flares and IceCube alerts. We conducted a stacking analysis with a 29-flare subset of the TDE-like flares tested by van Velzen et al. This work was done with neutrinos with energies above $\mathcal{O}(100)$ GeV. The resulting p-value of 0.45 is consistent with background. In this contribution, I will discuss the results of the stacking analysis, as well as the impact of using different reconstruction algorithms on the three correlated realtime alerts.Comment: Presented at the 38th International Cosmic Ray Conference (ICRC2023). See arXiv:2307.13047 for all IceCube contribution

Scientific Misbehavior in Economics: Unacceptable research practice linked to perceived pressure to publish.

Upholding research integrity depends on our ability to understand the extent of misconduct. Sarah Necker describes her landmark study on economists’ research norms and practices. Fabrication, falsification and plagiarism are widely considered to be unjustifiable, but misbehaviour is still prevalent. For example, 1-3% of economists surveyed admit that they have accepted or offered gifts, money, or sex in exchange for co-authorship, data, or promotion. Economists’ perceived pressure to publish is found to be positively related to their admission of being involved in several rejected research practices

A Novel Algorithm for Distributed Dynamic Interference Coordination in Cellular Networks

Wireless systems based on Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) multiplex different users in time and frequency. One of the main problems in OFDMA-systems is the inter-cell interference. A promising approach to solve this problem is interference coordination (IFCO). In this paper, we present a novel distributed IFCO scheme, where a central coordinator communicates coordination information in regular time intervals. This information is the basis for a local inner optimization in every basestation. The proposed scheme achieves an increase of more than 100% with respect to the cell edge throughput, and a gain of about 30% in the aggregate spectral efficiency compared to a reuse 3 system

XIII. On the Determination of the Position of Strata in Stratified Rocks

It has always appeared to me, that the study of the stratification of rocks and of mountain masses, ought to be one of the principal objects of a geological observer. Many of the most important facts in geology have been ascertained by the consideration of the position of strata. Among these facts, the relation existing between the direction and the inclination of the strata and the unstratified rocks, to whose presence the change in the position of the beds from an horizontal to an inclined, and sometimes even to a vertical situation, is now generally attributed, is one of the most conspicuous. It is only by an accurate determination of the position of the strata in any mountain-chain that the real direction of the line of elevation of that chain or its mineralogical axis may be determine

The trophic dynamics of the broadnose sevengill shark (Notorynchus cepedianus) in False Bay, South Africa, using multiple tissue stable isotope analysis

Despite their important ecological role, there is limited quantitative information on the trophic ecology of large, apex predator sharks. This is largely a consequence of their occupying naturally low population densities, being highly mobile and elusive and ranging over large distances. Stable isotopes provide a low cost, non-lethal method for investigating the short and long-term diet of a predator, which when combined with prey data can be used to understand the trophic interactions and the potential regulatory effects they may have on the structure and function of marine ecosystems. In this study, I used non-lethal stable isotope analysis to investigate the trophic dynamics of sevengill sharks, Notorynchus cepedianus, within False Bay, South Africa. A total of 39 muscle biopsies (33 female, six male), and 28 blood plasma samples (25 female, three male) were collected from sevengill sharks. These were analysed together with 161 prey samples from 32 different species, including cephalopods, crustaceans, teleosts, chondrichthyans and marine mammals. In addition, seven white shark, Carcharodon carcharias, muscle samples were collected from False Bay and analysed for comparison with those of sevengills. Sevengills in False Bay had the highest δ15N values of all species sampled in this study (including white sharks) and appear to feed predominantly on a variety of coastal prey species from various functional groups. A stable isotope mixing model revealed that inshore chondrichthyans were their most important prey, with Cape fur seals and inshore teleost species also being important prey groups. There was no apparent seasonal shift in the diet of sevengills, despite clear seasonal aggregation in coastal kelp forests during the summer months. δ15N decreased significantly with sevengill size, with immature females having higher δ15N values than mature females, while δ13C increased with sevengill size. These trends are hypothesised to be linked to dietary shifts associated with the relative use of different habitat types when individuals become sexually mature. There is a need to combine stable isotope data with movement patterns and habitat use to better understand the relationship between isotope ratios and habitat use. Ongoing research on sevengill and white shark movement patterns in False Bay, together with the results presented in this study, will provide important information on the trophic and ecological role that two top predatory sharks play in False Bay. Keywords: Notorynchus cepedianus, sevengill shark, stable isotopes, trophic ecolog