bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Elusive Traces: Baobabs and the African Diaspora in South Asia
Authors: Rangan Haripriya , Bell Karen L.
Published: January 2015

The history of botanical exchanges between Africa and the Indian subcontinent reaches back in time over 5,000 years. Recent advances in archaeobotany have revealed these connections through evidence of food crops of African origin found at various archaeological sites in the subcontinent. However, little is known about the people that brought the crops to these places and other parts of the Indian Ocean world. This is also the case with other plants from Africa such as the charismatic baobab tree (
Adansonia digitata L.
) that appears to have had a longstanding presence in South Asia. Most scholarly accounts assume that 'Arab traders' were responsible for introducing baobabs to this region but do not offer any reasons for their doing so. Few scholars, if any, have sought to relate the dispersal of baobabs with the history of African migrations to the region. This paper reveals the elusive traces of their entwined environmental histories by linking baobab genetics with historical accounts and cultural evidence of the presence of African diasporic communities in South Asia.
Food Traditions and Landscape Histories of the Indian Ocean World: Theoretical and Methodological Reflections
Authors: Rangan Haripriya , Alpers Edward A. , Denham Tim , Kull Christian A. , Carney Judith
Published: January 2015

Environmental histories of plant exchanges have largely centred on their economic importance in international trade and on their ecological and social impacts in the places where they were introduced. Yet few studies have attempted to examine how plants brought from elsewhere become incorporated over time into the regional cultures of material life and agricultural landscapes. This essay considers the theoretical and methodological problems in investigating the environmental history, diversity and distribution of food plants transferred across the Indian Ocean over several millennia. It brings together concepts of creolisation, syncretism, and hybridity to outline a framework for understanding how biotic exchanges and diffusions have been translated into regional landscape histories through food traditions, ritual practices and articulation of cultural identity. We use the banana plant - which underwent early domestication across New Guinea, South-east Asia and peninsular India and reached East Africa roughly two thousand years ago - as an example for illustrating the diverse patterns of incorporation into the cultural symbolism, material life and regional landscapes of the Indian Ocean World. We show that this cultural evolutionary approach allows new historical insights to emerge and enriches ongoing debates regarding the antiquity of the plant's diffusion from South-east Asia to Africa.
An Image Encryption Scheme Based on Hyperchaotic Rabinovich and Exponential Chaos Maps
Authors: Tong Xiaojun , Liu Yang , Zhang Miao , Xu Hui , Wang Zhu
Published: January 2015

This paper proposes a new four-dimensional hyperchaotic map based on the Rabinovich system to realize chaotic encryption in higher dimension and improve the security. The chaotic sequences generated by Runge-Kutta method are combined with the chaotic sequences generated by an exponential chaos map to generate key sequences. The key sequences are used for image encryption. The security test results indicate that the new hyperchaotic system has high security and complexity. The comparison between the new hyperchaotic system and the several low-dimensional chaotic systems shows that the proposed system performs more efficiently.
Association between Temperature Change and Outpatient Visits for Respiratory Tract Infections among Children in Guangzhou, China
Authors: Liu Yu , Guo Yong , Wang Changbing , Li Weidong , Lu Jinhua , Shen Songying , Xia Huimin , He Jianrong , Qiu Xiu
Published: January 2015

The current study examined the association between temperature change and clinical visits for childhood respiratory tract infections (RTIs) in Guangzhou, China. Outpatient records of clinical visits for pediatric RTIs, which occurred from 1 January 2012 to 31 December 2013, were collected from Guangzhou Women and Children’s Hospital. Records for meteorological variables during the same period were obtained from the Guangzhou Meteorological Bureau. Temperature change was defined as the difference between the mean temperatures on two consecutive days. A distributed lag non-linear model (DLNM) was used to examine the impact of temperature change on pediatric outpatient visits for RTIs. A large temperature decrease was associated with a significant risk for an RTI, with the effect lasting for ~10 days. The maximum effect of a temperature drop (−8.8 °C) was reached at lag 2~3 days. Children aged 0–2 years, and especially those aged <1 year, were particularly vulnerable to the effects of temperature drop. An extreme temperature decrease affected the number of patient visits for both upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) and lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs). A temperature change between consecutive days, and particularly an extreme temperature decrease, was significantly associated with increased pediatric outpatient visits for RTIs in Guangzhou.
Factor XIII B Subunit Polymorphisms and the Risk of Coronary Artery Disease
Authors: Mezei Zoltán , Bereczky Zsuzsanna , Katona Éva , Gindele Réka , Balogh Emília , Fiatal Szilvia , Balogh László , Czuriga István , Ádány Róza , Édes István , Muszbek László
Published: January 2015

The aim of the case-control study was to explore the effect of coagulation factor XIII (FXIII) B subunit (FXIII-B) polymorphisms on the risk of coronary artery disease, and on FXIII levels. In the study, 687 patients admitted for coronary angiography to investigate suspected coronary artery disease and 994 individuals representing the Hungarian population were enrolled. The patients were classified according to the presence of significant coronary atherosclerosis (CAS) and history of myocardial infarction (MI). The F13B gene was genotyped for p.His95Arg and for intron K nt29756 C>G polymorphisms; the latter results in the replacement of 10 C-terminal amino acids by 25 novel amino acids. The p.His95Arg polymorphism did not influence the risk of CAS or MI. The FXIII-B intron K nt29756 G allele provided significant protection against CAS and MI in patients with a fibrinogen level in the upper tertile. However, this effect prevailed only in the presence of the FXIII-A Leu34 allele, and a synergism between the two polymorphisms was revealed. Carriers of the intron K nt29756 G allele had significantly lower FXIII levels, and FXIII levels in the lower tertile provided significant protection against MI. It is suggested that the protective effect of the combined polymorphisms is related to decreased FXIII levels.
Excited States and Photodebromination of Selected Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers: Computational and Quantitative Structure—Property Relationship Studies
Authors: Luo Jin , Hu Jiwei , Wei Xionghui , Li Lingyun , Huang Xianfei
Published: January 2015

This paper presents a density functional theory (DFT)/time-dependent DFT (TD-DFT) study on the lowest lying singlet and triplet excited states of 20 selected polybrominateddiphenyl ether (PBDE) congeners, with the solvation effect included in the calculations using the polarized continuum model (PCM). The results obtained showed that for most of the brominated diphenyl ether (BDE) congeners, the lowest singlet excited state was initiated by the electron transfer from HOMO to LUMO, involving a π–σ* excitation. In triplet excited states, structure of the BDE congeners differed notably from that of the BDE ground states with one of the specific C–Br bonds bending off the aromatic plane. In addition, the partial least squares regression (PLSR), principal component analysis-multiple linear regression analysis (PCA-MLR), and back propagation artificial neural network (BP-ANN) approaches were employed for a quantitative structure-property relationship (QSPR) study. Based on the previously reported kinetic data for the debromination by ultraviolet (UV) and sunlight, obtained QSPR models exhibited a reasonable evaluation of the photodebromination reactivity even when the BDE congeners had same degree of bromination, albeit different patterns of bromination.
Trans-Splicing Improvement by the Combined Application of Antisense Strategies
Authors: Koller Ulrich , Hainzl Stefan , Kocher Thomas , Hüttner Clemens , Klausegger Alfred , Gruber Christina , Mayr Elisabeth , Wally Verena , Bauer Johann , Murauer Eva
Published: January 2015

Spliceosome-mediated RNA trans-splicing has become an emergent tool for the repair of mutated pre-mRNAs in the treatment of genetic diseases. RNA trans-splicing molecules (RTMs) are designed to induce a specific trans-splicing reaction via a binding domain for a respective target pre-mRNA region. A previously established reporter-based screening system allows us to analyze the impact of various factors on the RTM trans-splicing efficiency in vitro. Using this system, we are further able to investigate the potential of antisense RNAs (AS RNAs), presuming to improve the trans-splicing efficiency of a selected RTM, specific for intron 102 of COL7A1. Mutations in the COL7A1 gene underlie the dystrophic subtype of the skin blistering disease epidermolysis bullosa (DEB). We have shown that co-transfections of the RTM and a selected AS RNA, interfering with competitive splicing elements on a COL7A1-minigene (COL7A1-MG), lead to a significant increase of the RNA trans-splicing efficiency. Thereby, accurate trans-splicing between the RTM and the COL7A1-MG is represented by the restoration of full-length green fluorescent protein GFP on mRNA and protein level. This mechanism can be crucial for the improvement of an RTM-mediated correction, especially in cases where a high trans-splicing efficiency is required.
Telomerase Reverse Transcriptase Regulates microRNAs
Authors: Lassmann Timo , Maida Yoshiko , Tomaru Yasuhiro , Yasukawa Mami , Ando Yoshinari , Kojima Miki , Kasim Vivi , Simon Christophe , Daub Carsten , Carninci Piero , Hayashizaki Yoshihide , Masutomi Kenkichi
Published: January 2015

MicroRNAs are small non-coding RNAs that inhibit the translation of target mRNAs. In humans, most microRNAs are transcribed by RNA polymerase II as long primary transcripts and processed by sequential cleavage of the two RNase III enzymes, DROSHA and DICER, into precursor and mature microRNAs, respectively. Although the fundamental functions of microRNAs in RNA silencing have been gradually uncovered, less is known about the regulatory mechanisms of microRNA expression. Here, we report that telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) extensively affects the expression levels of mature microRNAs. Deep sequencing-based screens of short RNA populations revealed that the suppression of TERT resulted in the downregulation of microRNAs expressed in THP-1 cells and HeLa cells. Primary and precursor microRNA levels were also reduced under the suppression of TERT. Similar results were obtained with the suppression of either BRG1 (also called SMARCA4) or nucleostemin, which are proteins interacting with TERT and functioning beyond telomeres. These results suggest that TERT regulates microRNAs at the very early phases in their biogenesis, presumably through non-telomerase mechanism(s).
Profiling of Ubiquitination Pathway Genes in Peripheral Cells from Patients with Frontotemporal Dementia due to C9ORF72 and GRN Mutations
Authors: Serpente Maria , Fenoglio Chiara , Cioffi Sara , Bonsi Rossana , Arighi Andrea , Fumagalli Giorgio , Ghezzi Laura , Scarpini Elio , Galimberti Daniela
Published: January 2015

We analysed the expression levels of 84 key genes involved in the regulated degradation of cellular protein by the ubiquitin-proteasome system in peripheral cells from patients with frontotemporal dementia (FTD) due to C9ORF72 and GRN mutations, as compared with sporadic FTD and age-matched controls. A SABiosciences PCR array was used to investigate the transcription profile in a discovery population consisting of six patients each in C9ORF72, GRN, sporadic FTD and age-matched control groups. A generalized down-regulation of gene expression compared with controls was observed in C9ORF72 expansion carriers and sporadic FTD patients. In particular, in both groups, four genes, UBE2I, UBE2Q1, UBE2E1 and UBE2N, were down-regulated at a statistically significant (p < 0.05) level. All of them encode for members of the E2 ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme family. In GRN mutation carriers, no statistically significant deregulation of ubiquitination pathway genes was observed, except for the UBE2Z gene, which displays E2 ubiquitin conjugating enzyme activity, and was found to be statistically significant up-regulated (p = 0.006). These preliminary results suggest that the proteasomal degradation pathway plays a role in the pathogenesis of FTD associated with TDP-43 pathology, although different proteins are altered in carriers of GRN mutations as compared with carriers of the C9ORF72 expansion.
Scalable Electrophysiological Investigation of iPS Cell-Derived Cardiomyocytes Obtained by a Lentiviral Purification Strategy
Authors: Friedrichs Stephanie , Malan Daniela , Voss Yvonne , Sasse Philipp
Published: January 2015

Disease-specific induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells can be generated from patients and differentiated into functional cardiomyocytes for characterization of the disease and for drug screening. In order to obtain pure cardiomyocytes for automated electrophysiological investigation, we here report a novel non-clonal purification strategy by using lentiviral gene transfer of a puromycin resistance gene under the control of a cardiac-specific promoter. We have applied this method to our previous reported wild-type and long QT syndrome 3 (LQTS 3)-specific mouse iPS cells and obtained a pure cardiomyocyte population. These cells were investigated by action potential analysis with manual and automatic planar patch clamp technologies, as well as by recording extracellular field potentials using a microelectrode array system. Action potentials and field potentials showed the characteristic prolongation at low heart rates in LQTS 3-specific, but not in wild-type iPS cell-derived cardiomyocytes. Hence, LQTS 3-specific cardiomyocytes can be purified from iPS cells with a lentiviral strategy, maintain the hallmarks of the LQTS 3 disease and can be used for automated electrophysiological characterization and drug screening.
Araguspongine C Induces Autophagic Death in Breast Cancer Cells through Suppression of c-Met and HER2 Receptor Tyrosine Kinase Signaling
Authors: Akl Mohamed , Ayoub Nehad , Ebrahim Hassan , Mohyeldin Mohamed , Orabi Khaled , Foudah Ahmed , Sayed Khalid
Published: January 2015

Receptor tyrosine kinases are key regulators of cellular growth and proliferation. Dysregulations of receptor tyrosine kinases in cancer cells may promote tumorigenesis by multiple mechanisms including enhanced cell survival and inhibition of cell death. Araguspongines represent a group of macrocyclic oxaquinolizidine alkaloids isolated from the marine sponge Xestospongia species. This study evaluated the anticancer activity of the known oxaquinolizidine alkaloids araguspongines A, C, K and L, and xestospongin B against breast cancer cells. Araguspongine C inhibited the proliferation of multiple breast cancer cell lines in vitro in a dose-dependent manner. Interestingly, araguspongine C-induced autophagic cell death in HER2-overexpressing BT-474 breast cancer cells was characterized by vacuole formation and upregulation of autophagy markers including LC3A/B, Atg3, Atg7, and Atg16L. Araguspongine C-induced autophagy was associated with suppression of c-Met and HER2 receptor tyrosine kinase activation. Further in-silico docking studies and cell-free Z-LYTE assays indicated the potential of direct interaction between araguspongine C and the receptor tyrosine kinases c-Met and HER2 at their kinase domains. Remarkably, araguspongine C treatment resulted in the suppression of PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling cascade in breast cancer cells undergoing autophagy. Induction of autophagic death in BT-474 cells was also associated with decreased levels of inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor upon treatment with effective concentration of araguspongine C. In conclusion, results of this study are the first to reveal the potential of araguspongine C as an inhibitor to receptor tyrosine kinases resulting in the induction of autophagic cell death in breast cancer cells.
Optimization of Astilbin Extraction from the Rhizome of Smilax glabra, and Evaluation of Its Anti-Inflammatory Effect and Probable Underlying Mechanism in Lipopolysaccharide-Induced RAW264.7 Macrophages
Authors: Lu Chuan-Li , Zhu Yan-Fang , Hu Meng-Mei , Wang Dong-Mei , Xu Xiao-Jie , Lu Chuan-Jian , Zhu Wei
Published: January 2015

Astilbin, a dihydroflavonol derivative found in many food and medicine plants, exhibited multiple pharmacological functions. In the present study, the ethanol extraction of astilbin from the rhizome of smilax glabra Roxb was optimized by response surface methodology (RSM) using Box-Behnken design. Results indicated that the obtained experimental data was well fitted to a second-order polynomial equation by using multiple regression analysis, and the optimal extraction conditions were identified as an extraction time of 40 min, ethanol concentration of 60%, temperature of 73.63 °C, and liquid-solid ratio of 29.89 mL/g for the highest predicted yield of astilbin (15.05 mg/g), which was confirmed through validation experiments. In addition, the anti-inflammatory efficiency of astilbin was evaluated in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced RAW 264.7 cells. Results showed that astilbin, at non-cytotoxicity concentrations, significantly suppressed the production of nitric oxide (NO) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), as well as the mRNA expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and TNF-α in LPS-induced RAW 264.7 cells, but did not affect interleukin-6 (IL-6) release or its mRNA expression. These effects may be related to its up-regulation of the phosphorylation of p65, extracellular signal-regulated kinases 1/2 (ERK1/2) and c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK).
Molecules after 20 Years—Looking Back and Looking Forward
Authors: McPhee Derek
Published: January 2015

Twenty years—a long time—so what happens after 20 years? Well if you live in New Zealand, according to [1], if you are adopted you can apply to Births, Deaths and Marriages for a copy of your birth certificate to find the names of your birth parents, you can apply to adopt a child who is related to you and you can gamble or work in a casino [1], but more seriously, our 20th anniversary is an appropriate time to look back at the history of Molecules and perhaps offer some speculations about its future.[...]
Antinociceptive Effect of Hydantoin 3-Phenyl-5-(4-ethylphenyl)-imidazolidine-2,4-dione in Mice
Authors: De Queiroz Ronaldo , De Carvalho Fabíola , Fonsêca Diogo , Barbosa-Filho José , Salgado Paula , Paulo Luciano , De Queiroz Ana , Pordeus Liana , De Souza Severino , Souza Helivaldo , Lira Bruno , De Athayde-Filho Petrônio
Published: January 2015

Imidazolidine derivatives, or hydantoins, are synthetic compounds with different therapeutic applications. Many imidazolidine derivatives have psychopharmacological properties, such as phenytoin, famous for its anticonvulsant efficacy, but also effective in the treatment of neuropathic pain. The hydantoin, 3-phenyl-5-(4-ethylphenyl)-imidazolidine-2,4-dione (IM-3), synthesized from the amino acid, glycine, was selected for psychopharmacological studies in mice on the basis of its chemical and structural similarity with phenytoin. The first step of this study was to define the LD50, which determined the doses of 50, 100 and 200 mg/kg for subsequent tests. The results obtained from the behavioral screening indicated that IM-3 produces decreased ambulation and analgesia in mice. Motor coordination and anxiety behavior were not affected by treatment with IM-3, as observed in the rotarod and elevated plus-maze tests, respectively. Regarding its antinociceptive properties, IM-3 showed efficacy in the acetic acid-induced writhing test by increasing the latency of the first writhe and reducing the number of writhes, as well as reducing the paw licking time in the second phase of the formalin test. The behavior of treated animals exposed to the hot plate test, however, did not differ from that of the control group. These data suggest that IM-3 has antinociceptive effects in mice, which is probably mediated by anti-inflammatory mechanisms.
Application of Humidity-Controlled Dynamic Mechanical Analysis (DMA-RH) to Moisture-Sensitive Edible Casein Films for Use in Food Packaging
Authors: Bonnaillie Laetitia , Tomasula Peggy
Published: January 2015

Protein-based and other hydrophilic thin films are promising materials for the manufacture of edible food packaging and other food and non-food applications. Calcium caseinate (CaCas) films are highly hygroscopic and physical characterization under broad environmental conditions is critical to application development and film optimization. A new technology, humidity-controlled dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA-RH) was explored to characterize CaCas/glycerol films (3:1 ratio) during isohume temperature (T) ramps and steps, and isothermal RH ramps and steps, to determine their mechanical and moisture-sorption properties during extensive T and RH variations. When RH and/or T increased, CaCas/Gly films became strongly plasticized and underwent several primary and secondary humidity-dependent transition temperatures (or transition humidities); the CaCas/Gly network hypothetically rearranged itself to adapt to the increased water-content and heat-induced molecular mobility. Between 5–40 °C and 20%–61% RH, moisture-sorption was rapid and proportional to humidity between transition points and accelerated greatly during transitions. CaCas/Gly films seemed unsuitable for storage or utilization in warm/humid conditions as they lost their mechanical integrity around Tm ~ 40 °C at 50% RH and Tm decreased greatly with increased RH. However, below Tm, both moisture- and heat-induced structural changes in the films were fully reversible and casein films may withstand a variety of moderate abuse conditions.
Electronic-Nose Applications for Fruit Identification, Ripeness and Quality Grading
Authors: Baietto Manuela , Wilson Alphus
Published: January 2015

Fruits produce a wide range of volatile organic compounds that impart their characteristically distinct aromas and contribute to unique flavor characteristics. Fruit aroma and flavor characteristics are of key importance in determining consumer acceptance in commercial fruit markets based on individual preference. Fruit producers, suppliers and retailers traditionally utilize and rely on human testers or panels to evaluate fruit quality and aroma characters for assessing fruit salability in fresh markets. We explore the current and potential utilization of electronic-nose devices (with specialized sensor arrays), instruments that are very effective in discriminating complex mixtures of fruit volatiles, as new effective tools for more efficient fruit aroma analyses to replace conventional expensive methods used in fruit aroma assessments. We review the chemical nature of fruit volatiles during all stages of the agro-fruit production process, describe some of the more important applications that electronic nose (e-nose) technologies have provided for fruit aroma characterizations, and summarize recent research providing e-nose data on the effectiveness of these specialized gas-sensing instruments for fruit identifications, cultivar discriminations, ripeness assessments and fruit grading for assuring fruit quality in commercial markets.
Single-Sample Face Recognition Based on Intra-Class Differences in a Variation Model
Authors: Cai Jun , Chen Jing , Liang Xing
Published: January 2015

In this paper, a novel random facial variation modeling system for sparse representation face recognition is presented. Although recently Sparse Representation-Based Classification (SRC) has represented a breakthrough in the field of face recognition due to its good performance and robustness, there is the critical problem that SRC needs sufficiently large training samples to achieve good performance. To address these issues, we challenge the single-sample face recognition problem with intra-class differences of variation in a facial image model based on random projection and sparse representation. In this paper, we present a developed facial variation modeling systems composed only of various facial variations. We further propose a novel facial random noise dictionary learning method that is invariant to different faces. The experiment results on the AR, Yale B, Extended Yale B, MIT and FEI databases validate that our method leads to substantial improvements, particularly in single-sample face recognition problems.
L'évolution géomorphologique quaternaire au sud-ouest du Sahara (Mauritanie)
Authors: Daveau Suzanne
Published: January 2015

Cet article résume l'état actuel des recherches poursuivies au sein de la R.C.P. (n° 72 du C.N.R.S.) sur le Quaternaire du Sahel mauritanien. Ont été étudiés surtout les massifs gréseux du centre de la Mauritanie (Adrar, Tagant, Assaba), la vallée du Sénégal et les régions littorales, le programme de travail futur comportant essentiellement la corrélation entre ces domaines à travers les grandes plaines de la Mauritanie occidentale. Le modelé quaternaire des plateaux gréseux est caractérisé par deux niveaux emboîtés de versants, glacis et terrasses datant de l'Acheuléen et par l'existence locale de dépressions fermées d'origine inégalement ancienne qui ont été occupées par de grands lacs vers 9 000-7 000 ans B.P. La vallée du Sénégal a connu au cours du Quaternaire une succession complexe de creusements et de remblaiements dont le dernier épisode est constitué par le colmatage rapide d'un golfe marin long de 230 km. Sur le littoral, quatre transgressions successives paraissent pouvoir être distinguées, dont les plus récentes dateraient de 40 000-30 000 ans B.P. et 5 500-4 000 ans B.P. De légères déformations tectoniques sont postulées tandis qu'une série d'indices commencent à jeter quelques lueurs sur le problème des paléoclimats.
Un étonnant paysage : les cannelures gréseuses du Bembéché (N. du Tchad). Essai d'explication géomorphologique
Authors: Mainguet Monique
Published: January 2015

Au cœur du Tchad septentrional, région gréseuse paléozoïque, bord méridional du vaste synclinorium des Erdis, le Borkou a subi lors des mouvements du Tibesti des déformations cassantes selon deux axes majeurs NE-SW et NW-SE. La question de l'existence d'un modelé spécifiquement aride et éolien s'est souvent posée. Le modelé gréseux à cannelures périodiques du Bembéché est une réponse affirmative, de même que les yardangs géants. La corrosion éolienne ne peut être remise en question ; elle ne se contente pas d'oblitérer l'action de l'eau, mais crée un paysage propre en suivant les lois des ondes stationnaires.
Notes sur l'évolution récente de l'agglomération du Caire
Authors: Poncet Edmond
Published: January 2015

Dans le mouvement d'urbanisation qui s'accélère en R.A.U., Le Caire occupe la place primordiale aux dépens de la quasi-totalité des autres villes. En 1966, l'agglomération comptait environ 5 500 000 habitants.

Leur répartition dans le corps urbain évolue de façon nettement différenciée : de 1960 à 1966, la City (Qasr el Nil, Ezbekia) voit sa population diminuer, entraînant avec elle les quartiers contigus (Boulaq, Mouski, Bab el Sharia). C'est une des raisons de l'accroissement rapide des banlieues, qui reçoivent en outre l'apport des quartiers "historiques" dégradés ainsi que de l'exode rural, de plus en plus important. Difficile à chiffrer, ce dernier tout en conservant certaines tendances anciennes (poids de la Haute Vallée et de la province de Manoufia, les plus peuplées) se modifie : le déséquilibre entre les sexes disparaît, au moins chez les migrants venus du Delta.

L'attrait de la capitale par la concentration d'une grande partie des activités du pays (40 p. 100 des emplois industriels en 1962) aggrave la crise du logement et celle des transports, liée aussi à une mobilité accrue de la population.

L'extension de l'aire du centre aux dépens des quartiers populaires dégradés provoque également une lente mutation du patrimoine immobilier de ces quartiers ; et la croissance accélérée des banlieues très différenciées (aisées à l'est et l'ouest, populaires au nord et sud) se fait dans l'anarchie. La nécessaire planification est en cours d'élaboration.
L'« impact spatial » de l'industrie. Essai méthodologique : le cas de la localisation de la sidérurgie en Argentine
Authors: Schneier Graziella
Published: January 2015

Le présent article propose une application de l'analyse de l'impact spatial à la localisation de la sidérurgie en Argentine. L'observation montre que toute création d'établissements industriels exerce une série d'effets induits sur l'utilisation de l'espace, groupés sous le vocable général d'urbanisation. Le terme d'impact exprime l'ensemble des effets directs et indirects de l'installation de l'industrie. Il sera retenu comme expression d'une relation dynamique entre l'établissement et l'espace, impliquant des effets récurrents (action/réaction).

L'article discute les bases méthodologiques pour l'analyse et présente la formulation et l'évaluation pour trois types (impact structurant, transformant, non-structurant) retenus pour la sidérurgie argentine.
Tibet, Andes : catastrophes, plaques et rétroaction
Authors: Cailleux André de
Published: January 2015

Parmi les reliefs terrestres de plus de 8 000 m d'altitude, on passe du plus étendu en surface au moins étendu par transitions graduelles (fig. 1) ; de même pour les reliefs de plus de 7 000 m et de plus de 6 000 m. Mais parmi ceux de plus de 3 050 m apparaît une énorme coupure : le Tibet, avec ses annexes, et les Andes forment 89 % de la surface totale ; le plus grand massif suivant, 1 % seulement. Tibet et Andes sont des catastrophes, au sens de Thom ; une rétroaction positive a dû jouer pour eux. Pour le Sud-Asiatique, on peut envisager celle-ci : 1. Seule façade continentale large (5 000 km) ouverte sur les parties chaudes d'un océan. 2. D'où régime de mousson, pluies fortes. 3. Erosion forte, transport par des fleuves puissants. 4. Edification du cône de déjection sous-marin le plus imposant du Monde, dans le golfe du Bengale. 5. D'où tendance à un déséquilibre isostatique entre terres et mers. 6. Courant de matière profond compensateur, dirigé en sens inverse, des mers vers les terres. 7. Ce courant contribuerait à engendrer plissements (Dutton, Haug) et surélévations. Et ainsi le cycle est bouclé.
Manganese oxide phases and morphologies: A study on calcination temperature and atmospheric dependence
Authors: Augustin Matthias , Fenske Daniela , Bardenhagen Ingo , Westphal Anne , Knipper Martin , Plaggenborg Thorsten , Kolny-Olesiak Joanna , Parisi Jürgen
Published: January 2015

Manganese oxides are one of the most important groups of materials in energy storage science. In order to fully leverage their application potential, precise control of their properties such as particle size, surface area and Mnx+ oxidation state is required. Here, Mn3O4 and Mn5O8 nanoparticles as well as mesoporous α-Mn2O3 particles were synthesized by calcination of Mn(II) glycolate nanoparticles obtained through an economical route based on a polyol synthesis. The preparation of the different manganese oxides via one route facilitates assigning actual structure–property relationships. The oxidation process related to the different MnOx species was observed by in situ X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements showing time- and temperature-dependent phase transformations occurring during oxidation of the Mn(II) glycolate precursor to α-Mn2O3 via Mn3O4 and Mn5O8 in O2 atmosphere. Detailed structural and morphological investigations using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and powder XRD revealed the dependence of the lattice constants and particle sizes of the MnOx species on the calcination temperature and the presence of an oxidizing or neutral atmosphere. Furthermore, to demonstrate the application potential of the synthesized MnOx species, we studied their catalytic activity for the oxygen reduction reaction in aprotic media. Linear sweep voltammetry revealed the best performance for the mesoporous α-Mn2O3 species.
Prévenir l'exclusion scolaire et sociale des jeunes
Authors: Cornwall John
Published: January 2015

Ce chapitre traite de la formation continue universitaire et post-universitaire des enseignants. Il est centré plus particulièrement sur les professeurs qui travaillent avec des jeunes démotivés et décrocheurs par rapport à toute forme de réalisation scolaire. Ce faisant, il explore aussi les voies par lesquelles des projets de recherche-action à petite échelle ont un effet positif sur tout le développement et les progrès scolaires des élèves. Le but d’une telle recherche des praticiens est de répondre à un ensemble de questions de base sur la nature des études scolaires et sur ses relations avec le développement personnel et social des individus. Son analyse permet aussi de mettre en évidence quelques différences entre les systèmes éducatifs anglais et français. Les projets de recherche des enseignants dans leur établissement traduisent leur conception des pratiques professionnelles, de l’atmosphère de la classe, des tensions entre les attentes scolaires et les besoins individuels ou les difficultés des élèves. Finalement, la recherche-action par les membres du personnel de l’établissement accroît leur savoir professionnel et améliore leurs pratiques relativement à la motivation des élèves perturbés et perturbateurs dans les salles de classe. Les résultats de ces projets de recherche à petite échelle jettent des lumières sur la conformité du comportement attendu et sur les relations entre les établissements scolaires et leurs « autorités locales ». Dans ce cas, l’Université joue le rôle de donner aux enseignants les moyens de s’interroger sur « l’opinion la plus répandue » et sur ce qui constitue une bonne pratique d’enseignement au sens large.
Prévenir l'exclusion scolaire et sociale des jeunes
Authors: Loison Marc
Published: January 2015

Les pratiques de classe éprouvées au quotidien et les rapports humains au sein d’une communauté professionnelle sont-ils susceptibles de produire des savoirs d’expérience capables de prendre en compte et de remédier à l’échec scolaire ? La mutualisation de ces derniers, dans le cadre d’actions de formation continue, permet-elle aux perceptions et aux représentations des enseignants, en matière d’efficacité des dispositifs pédagogiques, d’évoluer ? Cette évolution entraîne-t-elle pour autant une réelle modification des pratiques chez les maîtres ? Pour tenter de répondre à ces questions essentielles, ce rapport prend appui sur quatre objets de recherche : l’éducation prioritaire dans l’académie de Lille, la recherche inrp (Institut national de recherche pédagogique) « Mission école primaire » dans le département du Pas-de-Calais, une recherche-action conduite par la cellule de recherche et d’innovation pédagogiques du rectorat de Lille dans la circonscription primaire de Beuvry et l’accompagnement des enseignants dans le Kent.
Jeunesse(s)
Authors: Dupont Nathalie
Published: January 2015

Résumé : Définir la jeunesse renvoie actuellement à des définitions ambivalentes et des marqueurs de plus en plus complexes. Doit-on parler d’une ou des jeunesses, de leur dimension biologique ou culturelle ? Doit-on l’appréhender comme groupe générationnel, groupe social, groupe ethnique ou groupe genré ? La ou les jeunesse(s) correspond(ent) à une organisation sociale de la vie qui renouvelle le passage de l’enfance à l’âge adulte. Réfléchir sur les jeunesses, c’est donc poser des questions sociales, culturelles et psychologiques de construction, dissolution et transformation des identités juvéniles, mais aussi des questions politiques d’histoires de vie entre dépendance, autonomie ou indépendance ; c’est identifier des marqueurs culturels de la « jeunesse » et les rôles d’une ou plusieurs « générations » dans ce passage entre enfance et âge adulte ; c’est encore tenter de comprendre des rituels et des choix de trajectoires.
La présence contemporaine du sujet masculin sur la scène périnatale : une dynamique familiale modifiée
Authors: Abécassis Marie-Laure , Bidaud Éric
Published: January 2015

Résumé : Jusqu’à une période récente, les positions paternelle et maternelle étaient nettement distinguées. Or, il apparaît que c’est l’enfant, en tant qu’objet de désir, qui redéfinit actuellement les contours d’une configuration familiale devenue protéiforme. Si durant des millénaires, les hommes se sont tenus à l’écart de la scène périnatale, ils sont de plus en plus amenés à investir cette sphère au même titre que leur compagne, notamment dès l’instant où s’est installée avec l’échographie l’illusion « imagée » d’être en présence du fœtus dans le corps maternel. En prenant appui sur la clinique, il s’agit d’examiner les effets au niveau psychique de ces transformations dans la dynamique relationnelle de la triade père-mère-enfant.
Valuation et évaluation dans la pensée de Dewey
Authors: Prairat Eirick
Published: January 2015

Résumé : À partir de l’introduction de la notion de valuation par Dewey, l’auteur propose une réflexion critique sur la question des valeurs en éducation. Le texte est divisé en quatre parties. La première présente la conception défendue par Dewey et indique les deux grandes perspectives qu’il récuse (l’émotivisme et le réalisme classique). La seconde est consacrée à décrire le processus de valuation, en restant au plus près de la pensée de Dewey pour en restituer le mouvement et les arguments. Dans la troisième partie intitulée « Retour sur la “loi de Hume” », il s’agit de saisir l’originalité de la pensée deweyienne d’une autre manière, en montrant notamment ce qui l’oppose à ses contemporains. Enfin, la quatrième et dernière partie a un caractère plus prospectif, elle tente de tirer quelques leçons ou comment comprendre les faits éducatifs après Dewey.
La jeunesse controversée de Makarenko : un espace propice à l'émergence du mythe ?
Authors: Rakovitch Jean
Published: January 2015

Résumé : Depuis les années 1950, la figure d’Anton S. Makarenko est le jouet d’une instrumentalisation aussi bien politique qu’idéologique. De toutes les périodes de la vie du pédagogue soviétique, c’est sa jeunesse – de loin la moins connue – qui cristallise les fantasmes, offrant un lieu privilégié à l’élaboration d’un « mythe Makarenko ». Mythe singulier mais qui se décline au pluriel ? Les sources, inédites en français, que mobilise et confronte cette recherche – des monographies officielles et hagiographiques, proposées par la littérature soviétique, aux mémoires résolument acerbes du frère du pédagogue, publiés par des universitaires de Marbourg – dressent deux portraits pour le moins antithétiques du jeune Makarenko. Aussi lequel de ces deux portraits est-il le plus crédible ? À travers cette question, ce que le présent article se propose d’interroger, c’est, de façon plus large, la possibilité même d’établir une biographie d’Anton S. Makarenko.
Atypical Depression: History and Future
Authors: Stewart Jonathan W.
Published: January 2015

Initially described in 1959 and followed by a variety of similar concepts, specific criteria for atypical depression were established in 1984. These criteria differentiated atypical depression from melancholia using treatment, course of illness, and family and biological studies, sufficiently validating the concept so that the
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
, fourth edition (
DSM-IV
) included an atypical features modifier of Major Depression and Dysthymia, essentially adopting the 1984 criteria intact. Subsequently, problems were raised with the
DSM-IV
criteria, the most extensively pursued being that they produce a heterogeneous group of patients who likely have different illnesses. One suggestion for producing more homogeneous groups of patients is to limit use of depression with atypical features to patients who report very early onset (before age 20 years) and very chronic illness since onset (no spontaneous 2-month period of well-being since onset). It is suggested that these criteria be added to the
DSM
.

[
Psychiatr Ann
. 2014;44(12):557–562.]
Multi-Agent Systems for Urban Planning
Authors: Crooks Andrew T. , Patel Amit , Wise Sarah
Published: January 2015

Cities provide homes for over half of the world's population, and this proportion is expected to increase throughout the next century. The growth of cities raises many questions and challenges for urban planning including which cities and regions are most likely to grow, what the pattern of urban growth will be, and how the existing infrastructure will cope with such growth. One way to explore these types of questions is through the use of multi-agent systems (MAS) that are capable of modeling how individuals interact and how structures emerge through such interactions, in terms of both the social and physical environment of cities. Within this chapter, the authors focus on how MAS can lead to insights into urban problems and aid urban planning from the bottom up. They review MAS models that explore the growth of cities and regions, models that explore land-use patterns resulting from such growth along with the rise of slums. Furthermore, the authors demonstrate how MAS models can be used to model transportation and the changing demographics of cities. Through these examples the authors also demonstrate how this style of modeling can give insights into such issues that cannot be gleamed from other modeling methodologies. The chapter concludes with challenges and future research directions of MAS models with respect to capturing the dynamics of human behavior in urban planning.
A 3D City Model as User Interface Connected to an Energy Model
Authors: Kjems Erik , Østergaard Poul Alberg
Published: January 2015

Back in 2007 the municipality of Frederikshavn in Northern Jutland in Denmark decided to use only 100% renewable energy for electricity, heat and transport by the year of 2015. Frederikshavn, the largest city in the municipality, was naturally chosen as case city. To be able to verify whether the green energy balance is possible to achieve, it was necessary to create energy scenarios for the whole city and also give the possibility to alter the current energy production and consumption. At the same time the city decided to involve as many people living in the city as possible, making it a project for the citizens of Frederikshavn. One result of this decision was an interactive Web application developed at Aalborg University. The application uses a 3D city model of the city of Frederikshavn as interface and gives the possibility to alter inputs for the energy consumption and energy production of the city using sliders and buttons as part of the interface. While the 3D model gives an immediate visual result, a connection to an underlying numerical energy model developed in earlier years at the University delivers a quite precise calculation on all vital data involved in the overall calculation of renewable energy within a closed energy system. This chapter describes the underlying theories and methods for creating such a system and presents the system, which can be understood as a case story among many.
Detection and Employment of Biological Sequence Motifs
Authors: Trutschl Marjan , Kilgore Phillip C. S. R. , Scott Rona S. , Birdwell Christine E. , Cvek Urška
Published: January 2015

Biological sequence motifs are short nucleotide or amino acid sequences that are biologically significant and are attractive to scientists because they are usually highly conserved and result in structural and regulatory implications. In this chapter, the authors show practical applications of these data, followed by a review of the algorithms, techniques, and tools. They address the nature of motifs and elucidate on several methods for de novo motif discovery, covering the algorithms based on Gibbs sampling, expectation maximization, Bayesian inference, covariance models, and discriminative learning. The authors present the tools and their requirements to weigh their individual benefits and challenges. Since interpretation of a large set of results can pose significant challenges, they discuss several methods for handling data that span from visualization to integration into pipelines and curated databases. Additionally, the authors show practical applications of these data with examples.
Common Problems Faced When Developing Applications for Mobile Devices
Authors: Curran Kevin , Carlin Sean , McMahon Joseph
Published: January 2015

Mobile application development is relatively new and has seen growth of late. With this rapid expansion, there are growing pains within industry, as the usual time given to the evolution of an industry to learn from past mistakes has been significantly shortened and is even going on within the currently saturated market. Because of this, inexperienced developers are attempting to design applications based on what is of yet a shady set of design principals. This is providing problems during the development process and can be seen to be stifling innovation, as many developers have yet to get a grasp on the shift between traditional software engineering and what it means to implicate these designs on a mobile device. This chapter analyses these difficulties in depth, as well as attempting to draw solutions to these problems based on development in the context of the characteristics of mobile devices.
CAFCLA
Authors: García Óscar , Alonso Ricardo S. , Tapia Dante I. , Corchado Juan M.
Published: January 2015

Ambient Intelligence (AmI) promotes the integration of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in daily life in order to ease the execution of everyday tasks. In this sense, education becomes a field where AmI can improve the learning process by means of context-aware technologies. However, it is necessary to develop new tools that can be adapted to a wide range of technologies and application scenarios. Here is where Agent Technology can demonstrate its potential. This chapter presents CAFCLA, a multi-agent framework that allows developing learning applications based on the pedagogical CSCL (Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning) approach and the Ambient Intelligence paradigm. CAFCLA integrates different context-aware technologies so that learning applications designed, developed, and deployed upon it are dynamic, adaptive, and easy to use by users such as students and teachers.