Inter-species variation in colour perception

Inter-species variation in colour perception poses a serious problem for the view that colours are mind-independent properties. Given that colour perception varies so drastically across species, which species perceives colours as they really are? In this paper, I argue that all do. Specifically, I argue that members of different species perceive properties that are determinates of different, mutually compatible, determinables. This is an instance of a general selectionist strategy for dealing with cases of perceptual variation. According to selectionist views, objects simultaneously instantiate a plurality of colours, all of them genuinely mind-independent, and subjects select from amongst this plurality which colours they perceive. I contrast selectionist views with relationalist views that deny the mind-independence of colour, and consider some general objections to this strategy

Tooth Discoloration in Patients With Neonatal Diabetes After Transfer Onto Glibenclamide: A previously unreported side effect

PublishedJournal ArticleMulticenter StudyResearch Support, N.I.H., ExtramuralResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tOBJECTIVE To assess if tooth discoloration is a novel side effect of sulfonylurea therapy in patients with permanent neonatal diabetes due to mutations in KCNJ11. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS A total of 67 patients with a known KCNJ11 mutation who had been successfully transferred from insulin injections onto oral sulfonylureas were contacted and asked about the development of tooth discoloration after transfer. RESULTS Altered tooth appearance was identified in 5 of the 67 patients. This was variable in severity, ranging from mild discoloration/staining (n = 4) to loss of enamel (n = 1) and was only seen in patients taking glibenclamide (glyburide). CONCLUSIONS These previously unreported side effects may relate to the developing tooth and/or to the high local concentrations in the children who frequently chewed glibenclamide tablets or took it as a concentrated solution. Given the multiple benefits of sulfonylurea treatment for patients with activating KCNJ11 mutations, this association warrants further investigation but should not preclude such treatment.This work was funded by the Welcome Trust (grant 067463/Z/2/Z), National Institutes of Health Grants DK-44752 and DK-20595, and a gift from the Kovler Family Foundation. S.E.F. is the Sir Graham Wilkins, Peninsula Medical School Research Fellow. A.T.H. is a Welcome Trust Research Leave Fellow. O.R.-C. was supported by an “Ayuda para contratos post-Formacio´n Sanitaria Especializada” from the “Instituto de Salud Carlos III” (FIS CM06/00013

Development of a validated patient-reported symptom metric for pediatric Eosinophilic Esophagitis: qualitative methods

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Previous attempts to measure symptoms in pediatric Eosinophilic Esophagitis (EoE) have not fully included patients and parents in the item development process. We sought to identify and validate key patient self-reported and parent proxy-reported outcomes (PROs) specific to EoE.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We developed methodology for focus and cognitive interviews based on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) guidelines for PROs, the validated generic PedsQL™ guidelines, and the consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (COREQ). Both child (ages 8-12 and 13-18) and parent-proxy (ages 2-4, 5-7, 8-12, and 13-18) interviews were conducted.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We conducted 75 interviews to construct the new instrument. Items were identified and developed from individual focus interviews, followed by cognitive interviews for face and content validation. Initial domains of symptom frequency and severity were developed, and open-ended questions were used to generate specific items during the focus interviews. Once developed, the instrument construct, instructions, timeframe, scoring, and specific items were systematically reviewed with a separate group of patients and their parents during the cognitive interviews.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>To capture the full impact of pediatric EoE, both histologic findings and PROs need to be included as equally important outcome measures. We have developed the face and content validated Pediatric Eosinophilic Esophagitis Symptom Score (PEESS™ v2.0). The PEESS™ v2.0 metric is now undergoing multisite national field testing as the next iterative instrument development phase.</p

Experimental investigation in the TOSQAN facility of heat and mass transfers in a spray for containment application

TOSQAN is an experimental program undertaken by the Institut de Radioprotection et de Sûreté Nucléaire (IRSN) in order to perform thermal hydraulic containment studies. The TOSQAN facility is a large enclosure devoted to simulate typical accidental thermal hydraulic flow conditions in nuclear-pressurized water reactor (PWR) containment. The TOSQAN facility which is highly instrumented with non-intrusive optical diagnostics is particularly adapted to nuclear safety CFD code validation. The present work is devoted to studying the interaction of a water spray injection used as a mitigation means in order to reduce the gas pressure and temperature in the containment, to produce gases mixing and washout of fission products. In order to have a better understanding of heat and mass transfers between spray droplets and the gas mixture, and to analyze mixing effects due to spray activation, we perform detailed characterization of the two-phase flow. © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved