Stochastic evolution of rules for playing normal form games

The evolution of boundedly rational rules for playing normal form games is studied within stationary environments ofstochastically changing games. Rules are viewed as algorithms prescribing strategies for the different normal formgames that arise. It is shown that many of the folk results of evolutionary game theory typically obtained witha fixed game and fixed strategies carry over to the present case. The results are also related to recent experimentson rules and games.

Homologous DNA pairing domain peptides of RecA protein: intrinsic propensity to form beta-structures and filaments.

The 20 amino acid residue peptides derived from RecA loop L2 have been shown to be the pairing domain of RecA. The peptides bind to ss- and dsDNA, unstack ssDNA, and pair the ssDNA to its homologous target in a duplex DNA. As shown by circular dichroism, upon binding to DNA the disordered peptides adopt a beta-structure conformation. Here we show that the conformational change of the peptide from random coil to beta-structure is important in binding ss- and dsDNA. The beta-structure in the DNA pairing peptides can be induced by many environmental conditions such as high pH, high concentration, and non-micellar sodium dodecyl sulfate (6 mM). This behavior indicates an intrinsic property of these peptides to form a beta-structure. A beta-structure model for the loop L2 of RecA protein when bound to DNA is thus proposed. The fact that aromatic residues at the central position 203 strongly modulate the peptide binding to DNA and subsequent biochemical activities can be accounted for by the direct effect of the aromatic amino acids on the peptide conformational change. The DNA-pairing domain of RecA visualized by electron microscopy self-assembles into a filamentous structure like RecA. The relevance of such a peptide filamentous structure to the structure of RecA when bound to DNA is discussed.

Overexpression of a mutant form of TGFBI/BIGH3 induces retinal degeneration in transgenic mice.

PURPOSE: Despite ubiquitous expression of the keratoepithelin (KE) protein encoded by the transforming growth factor beta induced/beta induced gene human clone 3 (TGFBI/BIGH3) gene, corneal dystrophies are restricted to the cornea, and no other tissues are affected. We investigated the role of TGFBI/BIGH3 in Groenouw corneal dystrophies by generating transgenic mice overexpressing TGFBI/BIGH3 containing the R555W mutation. METHODS: Transgenic animals expressing the Groenouw mutation of human TGFBI/BIGH3 were generated using lentiviral vectors. The line expressed TGFBI/BIGH3 containing the R555W mutation under the control of the phosphoglycerate kinase (PGK) promoter. Expression of the transgene was monitored by Southern and western blotting and by RT-PCR. Electroretinogram analysis was performed and four mice were subjected to complete necroscopy. RESULTS: Transgene expression was observed in different organs although without specific expression in the cornea. The overall morphology of the transgenic animals was not severely affected by KE overexpression. However, we observed an age-dependent retinal degeneration both functionally and histologically. Female-specific follicular hyperplasia in the spleen and increased levels of lipofuscin in the adrenal gland were also seen in transgenic animals. CONCLUSIONS: Cellular degeneration in the retina of transgenic animals suggest that perturbation of the transforming growth factor beta (TGFbeta) family regulation may affect photoreceptor survival and may induce possible accelerated aging in several tissues. No corneal phenotype could be observed, probably due to the lack of transgene expression in this tissue.

Validation of the Mini Nutritional Assessment short-form (MNA-SF): a practical tool for identification of nutritional status.

OBJECTIVE: To validate a revision of the Mini Nutritional Assessment short-form (MNA(R)-SF) against the full MNA, a standard tool for nutritional evaluation. METHODS: A literature search identified studies that used the MNA for nutritional screening in geriatric patients. The contacted authors submitted original datasets that were merged into a single database. Various combinations of the questions on the current MNA-SF were tested using this database through combination analysis and ROC based derivation of classification thresholds. RESULTS: Twenty-seven datasets (n=6257 participants) were initially processed from which twelve were used in the current analysis on a sample of 2032 study participants (mean age 82.3y) with complete information on all MNA items. The original MNA-SF was a combination of six questions from the full MNA. A revised MNA-SF included calf circumference (CC) substituted for BMI performed equally well. A revised three-category scoring classification for this revised MNA-SF, using BMI and/or CC, had good sensitivity compared to the full MNA. CONCLUSION: The newly revised MNA-SF is a valid nutritional screening tool applicable to geriatric health care professionals with the option of using CC when BMI cannot be calculated. This revised MNA-SF increases the applicability of this rapid screening tool in clinical practice through the inclusion of a "malnourished" category.

Slip-Form Paving as Developed and Pioneered in Iowa,1961.

Summarizes Iowa's 14 years of experience in pioneering and developing slip-form paving methods

Recueil de pièces relatives au prieuré de Dhuisy, diocèse de Meaux, formé par Charles de Chantecler, prieur et seigneur de Dhnisy, pour les besoins de son procès contre Henri de Bourbon, prince de Condé, en 1573.

L'acte de fondation de ce prieuré (fol. 17) porte la date de 1170. — Ce ms. a appartenu à « l'abbé de Sencour, chanoine de Rouen. »

Recueil de pièces, manuscrites et imprimées, formé par le président Achille III DE HARLAY, relatives principalement à l'histoire religieuse, politique, administrative, diplomatique et littéraire des XVIe et XVIIe siècles. VIII.

Contient : Lettre d'Innocent XI ; « Observations sur l'Histoire du luthérianisme du P. Maimbourg » ; Extraits des Registres capitulaires de l'Église de Paris, 1654 ; Copies de pièces du XIIIe et du XIVe siècles relatives à différentes affaires ecclésiastiques ; Copie d'une lettre à Baluze sur un manuscrit chaldéen reçu du Levant par Colbert ; Sur la « Conférence de Cartage » ; Fragment orig . d'Ismaël Boulliau sur l'échéance du jour de Pâques ; « Observations sur un Traité de l'Usure fait par M. Poncet » ; « Oraison funèbre de M. de Candale par M. l'abbé Roquette, depuis évêque d'Autun » ; « Éclaircissement par M. Bernier sur le livre de Monsr de La Ville » pour la défense d'opinions de Descartes ; Mémoire pour la liberté de la Faculté de théologie de Paris ; Extraits impr. des Registres capitulaires de l'Église de Paris ; Sur la Visitation d'Angers ; Mémoires de procédure impr. relatifs à la Sainte-Chapelle ; Recueil de pièces mss et impr., bulles pontificales, lettres royales, etc., relatives à la Régale, 1198-1681 ; Établissement d'une Chambre royale à Metz, et extraits des Registres de cette Chambre royale, impr ; Lettre orig. de D. Godefroy, 1680 ; Pièces relatives à la principauté de Charleville ; Entrée de la reine de Suède Ulrique-Éléonore à Stockholm, 1680 ; Pièces impr. relatives à l'Hôpital général de Paris ; Ordonnances impr. du magistrat d'Amsterdam portant interdiction des carrosses dans ladite ville, en hollandais

Recueil de pièces, manuscrites et imprimées, formé par le président Achille III DE HARLAY, relatives principalement à l'histoire religieuse, politique, administrative, diplomatique et littéraire des XVIe et XVIIe siècles. XXXI.

Contient : Pièces sur les Jésuites (f. 1), — sur les Frères Prêcheurs, impr. (f. 34), — sur la Sorbonne (f. 48) ; Pièces sur Descartes ; Extrait des Registres du Conseil d'État relatif à l'acquisition, pour la Bibliothèque du roi, d'une partie de la bibliothèque de Mazarin, 1668 ; « Epistola » R. Rapini, S. J., « ad... Cl. Pelterium », impr., 1684, in-8° ; Extraits de Registres du Parlement ; « Procédures faites... contre Antoine, comte de Shaftsbury », 1681 ; Sur la « Prévention » en Anjou ; Factums divers impr., affaire Bruant des Carrières ; Pièces relatives à la Compagnie des Indes orientales ; Factums impr., affaire Marcara Avachins ; Pièces relatives au commerce : « Avis sur le fait des ardoises », impr., 1683, in-4° ; Notes sur « Les édits et règlements des libraires, imprimeurs, relieurs et doreurs » ; Note sur le commerce des harengs

Recueil, formé de 1573 à 1578, d'extraits (généalogies, chartes, épitaphes, etc.) concernant l'histoire des familles de Lorraine, attribué à Nicolas Bousmard, chanoine de l'église de Verdun (d'après D. Calmet, Bibl. lorr., 165).

Contient : Épitaphes des Cordeliers de Neufchâteau ; Épitaphes de Bayon ; Épitaphes de l'abbaye de Beaupré ; Épitaphes de Magnières ; Épitaphes des Cordeliers de Mirecourt ; Épitaphes des Carmes de Besançon ; Épitaphes des Cordeliers de Besançon ; Épitaphes de Bourbonne ; Épitaphes de l'abbaye de Morimond ; Épitaphes de Beaufrémont ; Épitaphes de Remennecourt ; Copie abrégée de l'épitomé de Jean Daucy ; Extrait du Trésor de l'évêché de Verdun

Modular support for developing mobile ad hoc applications

Abstract This PhD thesis addresses the issue of alleviating the burden of developing ad hoc applications. Such applications have the particularity of running on mobile devices, communicating in a peer-to-peer manner and implement some proximity-based semantics. A typical example of such application can be a radar application where users see their avatar as well as the avatars of their friends on a map on their mobile phone. Such application become increasingly popular with the advent of the latest generation of mobile smart phones with their impressive computational power, their peer-to-peer communication capabilities and their location detection technology. Unfortunately, the existing programming support for such applications is limited, hence the need to address this issue in order to alleviate their development burden. This thesis specifically tackles this problem by providing several tools for application development support. First, it provides the location-based publish/subscribe service (LPSS), a communication abstraction, which elegantly captures recurrent communication issues and thus allows to dramatically reduce the code complexity. LPSS is implemented in a modular manner in order to be able to target two different network architectures. One pragmatic implementation is aimed at mainstream infrastructure-based mobile networks, where mobile devices can communicate through fixed antennas. The other fully decentralized implementation targets emerging mobile ad hoc networks (MANETs), where no fixed infrastructure is available and communication can only occur in a peer-to-peer fashion. For each of these architectures, various implementation strategies tailored for different application scenarios that can be parametrized at deployment time. Second, this thesis provides two location-based message diffusion protocols, namely 6Shot broadcast and 6Shot multicast, specifically aimed at MANETs and fine tuned to be used as building blocks for LPSS. Finally this thesis proposes Phomo, a phone motion testing tool that allows to test proximity semantics of ad hoc applications without having to move around with mobile devices. These different developing support tools have been packaged in a coherent middleware framework called Pervaho.

Transformation rules form OntoProcED to OntoOKI

This file contains the transformtion rules in SWRL to translate formal specifications of two lower ontology levels (patterns and organization) to the upper level (implementation according to the OKI specification).

Animal Tissue Response To Mid-Term Electronic Modular Artificial Sphincter Implantation

Introduction and objectives: The AMS 800TM is considered the gold standard for sphincter replacement. However, the one-ring design can erode the urethra and lead to severe complications. A mechanism that could alternatively compress successive segments of the urethra would limit such deleterious outcome. We report 12 weeks animal urethral tissue analysis following implantation of a new modular artificial sphincter. METHODS: The device is composed by three parts: the contractile unit, two rings and an integrated microprocessor. The contractile unit is made of Nitinol fibers. The rings are placed around the urethra to control the flow of urine by squeezing the urethra. They work in a sequential alternative mode and are controlled by a microprocessor connected to an external computer. The computer can reveal specific failure of device components. The device was impkanted in eight male sheep. The rings were positioned around the urethra and the control unit was placed 5cm away. The device was working twenty hours per day; it was open 10min. per hour to allow urination. The animals were sacrificed after 12 weeks. The urethra and the tissues surrounding the control unit were macroscopically and microscopically examined. Two transversal sections crossing the sphincter and two transversal sections crossing the urethra alone were obtained and stained with modified Paragon after resin embedding. Urethra was also embedded in paraffin. The first section was stained with safranin-hematoxylin-eosin, the second section was stained with Masson's Trichrome and the remaining eight sections were available for immunolabelling of the macrophages.Results: The chronic study went uneventful. No clinical infection or pain was observed. The computer registered no specific failure in ring function, Nitinol wires and tube connectors. At explantation, except for a slight grade of lymphocytes in two out of eight specimens, no urethral stricture or atrophy could be observed. Immunohistochemistry confirmed the absence of macrophages. Tissue structure and organization of the urethra with and without artificial sphincter were similar. No migration of the device was observed.Conclusions: The study clearly showed no tissue damage or inflammation of the urethra. Electronic design, preservation of urethral vascularisation and adjustability after implantation are the key ideas to improve the actual AUS. Further studies will be carried out to evaluate this potential.

Arithmetical problems in number fields, abelian varieties and modular forms

Number theory, a fascinating area in mathematics and one of the oldest, has experienced spectacular progress in recent years. The development of a deep theoretical background and the implementation of algorithms have led to new and interesting interrelations with mathematics in general which have paved the way for the emergence of major theorems in the area. This report summarizes the contribution to number theory made by the members of the Seminari de Teoria de Nombres (UB-UAB-UPC) in Barcelona. These results are presented in connection with the state of certain arithmetical problems, and so this monograph seeks to provide readers with a glimpse of some specific lines of current mathematical research.