Rwanda's Voice: An Ethnomusicological Biography of Jean-Paul Samputu

Rwandan international recording artist Jean-Paul Samputu is one of few musicians from Rwanda who have gained international acclaim. In this dissertation, I will delineate how his life and works serve as a reflection of and a mediator for Rwandan identity, as well as East/Central African popular music identity. Specifically, I will use elements of his biography to situate him in these contexts, and will analyze his works via timbral analysis, transcription, and studio production techniques to demonstrate how his music reflects the aforementioned identities. Mr. Samputu's life and music reflect the complicated narrative(s) of Rwandan identity. He was born in Rwanda, but fled to Uganda just before the 1994 genocide; speaks about forgiveness (a central focus of the RPF's--Rwandan Patriotic Front--Commission for Unity and Reconciliation) around the world; sings in Kinyarwanda, French, English, Luganda, Lingala, and Kiswahili; wrote pro-RPF songs in the early 1990s and still supports current government in various functions within the country and abroad; and performs and records all styles of Rwandan traditional and popular music, as well as many popular and traditional styles found in East/Central Africa. He is one of the key figures in the Rwandan music scene, as he performs regularly there and serves as a mentor for up-and-coming Rwandan popular and traditional musicians

Senior Recital: Macy Swanson, mezzo-soprano and Marielle Reed, soprano

This recital is presented in partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree Bachelor of Music in Music Education. Ms. Swanson and Ms. Reed study voice with Nathan Munson.https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/musicprograms/1999/thumbnail.jp

Sorghum grain, urea or soybean meal as a protein source in all-concentrate cattle finishing rations

Results of previous similar research have been reported in Kansas Agicu1tural Experiment Station Bulletins 483, 493, 507, and 518. Trials at several research centers and here have shown that roughage may be satisfactorily omitted from finishing rations for cattle often, reducing feed required per pound of gain. Cattle nay be finished on all-grain diets with only mineral and vitamin supplements when the grain has sufficient protein

Design and Testing of a Cryogenic Capillary Pumped Loop Flight Experiment

This paper details the flight configuration and pre-flight performance test results of the fifth generation cryogenic capillary pumped loop (CCPL-5). This device will fly on STS-95 in October 1998 as part of the CRYOTSU Flight Experiment. This flight represents the first in-space demonstration of a CCPL, a miniaturized two-phase fluid circulator for thermally linking cryogenic cooling sources to remote cryogenic components. CCPL-5 utilizes N2 as the working fluid and has a practical operating range of 75-110 K. Test results indicate that CCPL-5, which weighs about 200 grams, can transport over 10 W of cooling a distance of 0.25 m (or more) with less than a 5 K temperature drop

Sperm morphology and the evolution of intracellular sperm-egg interactions

This is the final version of the article. Available from Wiley via the DOI in this record.Sperm morphology is incredibly diverse, even among closely related species, yet the coevolution between males and females of fertilization recognition systems is necessary for successful karyogamy (male and female pronuclear fusion). In most species, the entire sperm enters the egg during fertilization so sperm morphological diversity may impact the intracellular sperm–egg interactions necessary for karyogamy. We quantified morphological variation of sperm inside eggs prior to and following karyogamy in several species of Drosophila to understand whether evolution of sperm morphology could influence intracellular sperm–egg interactions (ISEIs). We measured seven parameters that describe ISEIs among species to determine whether these parameters varied both within a species across development and across species at the same developmental stage. We used heterospecific crosses to test the relative role of male origin, female origin, and interaction between the male and female in determining ISEIs. We found that sperm shape changed within a species as development proceeded and, at particular development stages, species varied in some ISEIs. Parental origin had an effect on some ISEIs, with a general trend for a stronger female effect. Overall, our findings identify conserved and variable ISEIs among species and demonstrate the potential to contribute understanding to gamete evolution and development.Leverhulme Trus

Strengthening the reporting of observational studies in epidemiology using mendelian randomisation (STROBE-MR): explanation and elaboration.

Mendelian randomisation (MR) studies allow a better understanding of the causal effects of modifiable exposures on health outcomes, but the published evidence is often hampered by inadequate reporting. Reporting guidelines help authors effectively communicate all critical information about what was done and what was found. STROBE-MR (strengthening the reporting of observational studies in epidemiology using mendelian randomisation) assists authors in reporting their MR research clearly and transparently. Adopting STROBE-MR should help readers, reviewers, and journal editors evaluate the quality of published MR studies. This article explains the 20 items of the STROBE-MR checklist, along with their meaning and rationale, using terms defined in a glossary. Examples of transparent reporting are used for each item to illustrate best practices

Early brain development in infants at high risk for autism spectrum disorder

Brain enlargement has been observed in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), but the timing of this phenomenon and its relationship to the appearance of behavioral symptoms is unknown. Retrospective head circumference and longitudinal brain volume studies of 2 year olds followed up at age 4 years, have provided evidence that increased brain volume may emerge early in development.1, 2 Studies of infants at high familial risk for autism can provide insight into the early development of autism and have found that characteristic social deficits in ASD emerge during the latter part of the first and in the second year of life3,4. These observations suggest that prospective brain imaging studies of infants at high familial risk for ASD might identify early post-natal changes in brain volume occurring before the emergence of an ASD diagnosis. In this prospective neuroimaging study of 106 infants at high familial risk of ASD and 42 low-risk infants, we show that cortical surface area hyper-expansion between 6-12 months of age precedes brain volume overgrowth observed between 12-24 months in the 15 high-risk infants diagnosed with autism at 24 months. Brain volume overgrowth was linked to the emergence and severity of autistic social deficits. A deep learning algorithm primarily using surface area information from brain MRI at 6 and 12 months of age predicted the diagnosis of autism in individual high-risk children at 24 months (with a positive predictive value of 81%, sensitivity of 88%). These findings demonstrate that early brain changes unfold during the period in which autistic behaviors are first emerging

ANSI/NISO Z39.99-2017 ResourceSync Framework Specification

This ResourceSync specification describes a synchronization framework for the web consisting of various capabilities that allow third-party systems to remain synchronized with a server’s evolving resources. The capabilities may be combined in a modular manner to meet local or community requirements. This specification also describes how a server should advertise the synchronization capabilities it supports and how third-party systems may discover this information. The specification repurposes the document formats defined by the Sitemap protocol and introduces extensions for them

Genome-culture coevolution promotes rapid divergence of killer whale ecotypes.

Analysing population genomic data from killer whale ecotypes, which we estimate have globally radiated within less than 250,000 years, we show that genetic structuring including the segregation of potentially functional alleles is associated with socially inherited ecological niche. Reconstruction of ancestral demographic history revealed bottlenecks during founder events, likely promoting ecological divergence and genetic drift resulting in a wide range of genome-wide differentiation between pairs of allopatric and sympatric ecotypes. Functional enrichment analyses provided evidence for regional genomic divergence associated with habitat, dietary preferences and post-zygotic reproductive isolation. Our findings are consistent with expansion of small founder groups into novel niches by an initial plastic behavioural response, perpetuated by social learning imposing an altered natural selection regime. The study constitutes an important step towards an understanding of the complex interaction between demographic history, culture, ecological adaptation and evolution at the genomic level