Purpose and Innovation in Family Guy’s Musical Numbers

Seth MacFarlane is well known for his groundbreaking animated series Family Guy (Fox, 1999-), a trademark of which is the inclusion musical numbers that reflect MacFarlane’s knowledge of the film musical. While many criticize the controversial approach and seeming arbitrary nature of not just the show’s jokes, but also its musical numbers, the way MacFarlane integrates them into his animated series allows todays cynical audience to enjoy a taste of the rather dormant genre. MacFarlane does so by employing elements of the Warner Brothers/Berkeley musical, the integrated and aggregate musical forms, the myth of integration, The Great American Songbook, the folk musical, the backstage musical, the MGM musical, and studio-era-style choreography. Through the analysis of some of Family Guy’s most impressive musical numbers, I propose to show that Family Guy boasts the most musically informed and detailed numbers in an animated television series today. MacFarlane employs these numbers for either one, two, or all three of the following purposes: to create a sense of community among the characters of the narrative and in the show’s audience, to simultaneously pay homage to and satirize the traditional film musical genre, and to facilitate controversial sociopolitical commentary

Three Garden Visitors by Vivien Russe

Three Garden VisitorsBeside a cup of tea, I am a spotted leopard on pajamas.Outside in the garden, this early summer morning,Staying sly, quiet, not wanting to draw any attention from the neighbors. A birdie is hidden in the Emerald Green Arborvitae,After lunch, Owen comes over, asking politely if he can come into the yard to find it.I reply, “Certainly, you can retrieve anything that lands in the yard without asking”.Coming unannounced, no matter when, full of presumptionIt comes with the lightest, gentle touch or the hardest hit, knocking flowers off center.Below the fine roots rejoice or weep.https://digitalcommons.usm.maine.edu/art-rsp-299/1006/thumbnail.jp

Anti-CCP: History and its Usefulness

Antibodies directed to cyclic citrullinated peptides (anti-CCP) are highly specific for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and can easily be detected in sera by using commercially available immunoassays. The second version of the anti-CCP test (anti-CCP2) demonstrated high specificity (89-98%) and good sensitivity (41-88%) for RA. Commercially available ELISA methods from three different companies are on the market. All three CCP2 assays show similar results as all CCP2 assays use the same antigen-coated plates. This study was an evaluation of a new automated method for the determination of anti-CCP2 in a routine laboratory setting. Five hundred and fourty three serum samples were tested for anti-CCP2 within normal routine diagnostic using a commercially available ELISA and retested with a prelaunch version of a new and fully-automated method (EliA™). The results were comparable. The new automated assay is easy to use and demonstrated a diagnostic sensitivity of 80% and specificity of 97%

Regulation of fibrillins and modulators of TGFβ in fetal bovine and human ovaries

Fibrillins 1–3 are stromal extracellular matrix proteins that play important roles in regulating TGFβ activity, which stimulates fibroblasts to proliferate and synthesize collagen. In the developing ovary, the action of stroma is initially necessary for the formation of ovigerous cords and subsequently for the formation of follicles and the surface epithelium of the ovary. FBN3 is highly expressed only in early ovarian development and then it declines. In contrast, FBN1 and 2 are upregulated in later ovarian development. We examined the expression of FBN1–3 in bovine and human fetal ovaries. We used cell dispersion and monolayer culture, cell passaging and tissue culture. Cells were treated with growth factors, hormones or inhibitors to assess the regulation of expression of FBN1–3. When bovine fetal ovarian tissue was cultured, FBN3 expression declined significantly. Treatment with TGFβ-1 increased FBN1 and FBN2 expression in bovine fibroblasts, but did not affect FBN3 expression. Additionally, in cultures of human fetal ovarian fibroblasts (9–17 weeks gestational age), the expression of FBN1 and FBN2 increased with passage, whereas FBN3 dramatically decreased. Treatment with activin A and a TGFβ family signaling inhibitor, SB431542, differentially regulated the expression of a range of modulators of TGFβ signaling and of other growth factors in cultured human fetal ovarian fibroblasts suggesting that TGFβ signaling is differentially involved in the regulation of ovarian fibroblasts. Additionally, since the changes in FBN1–3 expression that occur in vitro are those that occur with increasing gestational age in vivo, we suggest that the fetal ovarian fibroblasts mature in vitro.Nicole A Bastian, Rosemary A Bayne, Katja Hummitzsch, Nicholas Hatzirodos, Wendy M Bonner, Monica D Hartanti, Helen F Irving-Rodgers, Richard A Anderson and Raymond J Rodger

Does milling one-piece titanium dental implants induce osteocyte and osteoclast changes?

SummaryOne-piece dental implants avoid adverse effects sometimes associated with the traditional implant-abutment interface and may provide a suitable alternative to two-piece implants; however, one-piece implants often need in situ milling, which may exacerbate cell apoptosis from excessive heat at the bone-implant interface and induce secondary crestal bone loss. Twelve implants were placed in the metaphyses of two sheep under general anesthesia. Six implants were milled with a diamond bur while the other six implants remained intact. Animals were euthanized after four days, and bone blocks were harvested. Bone samples were studied without decalcification. Osteocytes were stained with Hoechst 33342 and osteoclasts by the TRAcP reaction. Both cell types, in the cortical and trabecular bone around the implant\u27s cervical region, were counted utilizing morphometric methods. Values were compared to areas at a distance from the cervical region. No difference was observed between milled and unmilled implants, which suggested that the amount of generated heat did not provoke osteocyte loss or induce osteoclastogenesis. Intraoral abutment preparations did not increase cellular apoptosis at the bone-implant interface after four days in the ovine model