The Meta in Meta-object Architectures

Behavioral reflection is crucial to support for example functional upgrades, on-the-fly debugging, or monitoring critical applications. However the use of reflective features can lead to severe problems due to infinite metacall recursion even in simple cases. This is especially a problem when reflecting on core language features since there is a high chance that such features are used to implement the reflective behavior itself. In this paper we analyze the problem of infinite meta-object call recursion and solve it by providing a first class representation of meta-level execution: at any point in the execution of a system it can be determined if we are operating on a meta-level or base level so that we can prevent infinite recursion. We present how meta-level execution can be represented by a meta-context and how reflection becomes context-aware. Our solution makes it possible to freely apply behavioral reflection even on system classes: the meta-context brings stability to behavioral reflection. We validate the concept with a robust implementation and we present benchmarks.

The New Swiss Patent Ligitation System

Switzerland is about to implement a completely new patent litigation system, following the establishment of a new specialized federal patent trial court and the replacement of twenty-six cantonal codes of civil procedure with a single uniform federal code of civil procedure. This article provides an overview of the general structure and the most important features of the new patent litigation system that may be of interest to international patent litigants and litigators.

Flame Synthesis of Complex Fluoride-Based Nanoparticles as Upconversion Phosphors

Recent improvements in precursor chemistry, reactor geometry and run conditions extend the manufacturing capability of traditional flame aerosol synthesis of oxide nanoparticles to metals, alloys and inorganic complex salts. As an example of a demanding composition, we demonstrate here the one-step flame synthesis of nanoparticles of a 4-element non-oxide phosphor for upconversion applications. The phosphors are characterized in terms of emission capability, phase purity and thermal phase evolution. The preparation of flame-made beta-NaYF4 with dopants of Yb, Tm or Yb, Er furthermore illustrates the now available nanoparticle synthesis tool boxes based on modified flamespray synthesis from our laboratories at ETH Zurich. Since scaling concepts for flame synthesis, including large-scale filtration and powder handling, have become available commercially, the development of industrial applications of complex nanoparticles of metals, alloys or most other thermally stable, inorganic compounds can now be considered a feasible alternative to traditional top-down manufacturing or liquid-intense wet chemistry.

The SAKK cancer-specific geriatric assessment (C-SGA): a pilot study of a brief tool for clinical decision-making in older cancer patients

BACKGROUND Recommendations from international task forces on geriatric assessment emphasize the need for research including validation of cancer-specific geriatric assessment (C-SGA) tools in oncological settings. The objective of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of the SAKK Cancer-Specific Geriatric Assessment (C-SGA) in clinical practice. METHODS A cross sectional study of cancer patients >=65 years old (N = 51) with pathologically confirmed cancer presenting for initiation of chemotherapy treatment (07/01/2009-03/31/2011) at two oncology departments in Swiss canton hospitals: Kantonsspital Graubunden (KSGR N = 25), Kantonsspital St. Gallen (KSSG N = 26). Data was collected using three instruments, the SAKK C-SGA plus physician and patient evaluation forms. The SAKK C-SGA includes six measures covering five geriatric assessment domains (comorbidity, function, psychosocial, nutrition, cognition) using a mix of medical record abstraction (MRA) and patient interview. Five individual domains and one overall SAKK C-SGA score were calculated and dichotomized as below/above literature-based cut-offs. The SAKK C-SGA was evaluated by: patient and physician estimated time to complete, ease of completing, and difficult or unanswered questions. RESULTS Time to complete the patient questionnaire was considered acceptable by almost all (>=96%) patients and physicians. Patients reported slightly shorter times to complete the questionnaire than physicians (17.33 +/- 7.34 vs. 20.59 +/- 6.53 minutes, p = 0.02). Both groups rated the patient questionnaire as easy/fairly easy to complete (91% vs. 84% respectively, p = 0.14) with few difficult or unanswered questions. The MRA took on average 8.32 +/- 4.72 minutes to complete. Physicians (100%) considered time to complete MRA acceptable, 96% rated it as easy/fairly easy to complete. Individual study site populations differed on health-related characteristics (excellent/good physician-rated general health KSGR 71% vs. KSSG 32%, p = 0.007). The overall mean C-SGA score was 2.4 +/- 1.12. Patients at KSGR had lower C-SGA scores (2.00 +/- 1.19 vs. 2.81 +/- 0.90, p = 0.009) and a smaller proportion (28% vs.65%, p = 0.008) was above the C-SGA cut-off score compared to KSSG. CONCLUSIONS These results suggest the SAKK C-SGA is a feasible practical tool for use in clinical practice. It demonstrated discriminative ability based on objective geriatric assessment measures, but additional investigations on use for clinical decision-making are warranted. The SAKK C-SGA also provides important usable domain information for intervention to optimize outcomes in older cancer patients.

The Role of Small and Medium-sized Centers for Territorial Development in Switzerland

This paper describes the role of small and medium-sized urban centers in Switzerland. Switzerland is a highly urbanized country where small and medium-sized urban centers play an important role in ensuring a balanced national urban system. Besides the four largest metropolitan regions （Zurich, Geneva, Basel and Bern）, small and medium-sized towns function as central places for a wider, often extensive hinterland. They provide opportunities for living and working and they connect rural and mountain regions to national and international networks. Using secondary statistics and a case study, the paper shows that small and medium-sized urban centers are home to significant concentrations of export-oriented industries. Firms in these value-adding secondary sectors are rooted in these places and benefit from strong local embeddedness while also being oriented towards global markets. Small and medium-sized urban centers also profit from their strong local identities. While these places face various challenges, they function as important pillars in creating a balanced regional development pattern. Swiss regional development policy follows the goal of polycentric spatial development and it employs various instruments that aim to ensure a balanced urban system.

When Shareholders choose not to Maximize Value: The Union Bank of Switzerland's 1994 Proxy Fight

The staid Union Bank of Switzerland, in a very close vote, won the support of its shareholders in its battle against an attempt by dissidents to guide the way the nation's biggest bank is run. The special shareholder vote, held in a packed Zurich sports hall, was one of the most keenly awaited events in recent Swiss financial histroy. The Wall Street Journal, November 23, 1994

A paradigm shift in mechanical biofilm management? Subgingival air polishing: a new way to improve mechanical biofilm management in the dental practice

In the past few years indications for the use of the air polishing technology have been expanded from supragingival use (airflow) to subgingival air polishing (perioflow) by the development of new low-abrasive glycine-based powders and devices with a subgingival nozzle. Several studies on the subgingival use of air polishing have been completed. On 7 June 2012, during the Europerio 7 Congress in Vienna, a consensus conference on mechanical biofilm management took place aiming to review the current evidence from the literature on the clinical relevance of the subgingival use of air polishing and to make practical recommendations for the clinician. Bernita Bush (Bern), Prof Johannes Einwag (Stuttgart), Prof Thomas Flemmig (Seattle), Carmen Lanoway (Munich), Prof Ursula Platzer (Hamburg), Prof Petra Schmage (Hamburg), Brigitte Schoeneich (Zurich), Prof Anton Sculean (Bern), Dr Clemens Walter (Basel), and Prof Jan Wennström (Gothenburg) discussed under the moderation of Klaus-Dieter Bastendorf and Christian Becker (both ADIC Association for Dental Infection Control) the available clinical studies to reach a consensus on available clinical evidence. This paper summarizes the main conclusions of the consensus conference and points to the clinical relevance of the findings for the dental practitioner.

HIV infection disrupts the sympatric host-pathogen relationship in human tuberculosis

The phylogeographic population structure of Mycobacterium tuberculosis suggests local adaptation to sympatric human populations. We hypothesized that HIV infection, which induces immunodeficiency, will alter the sympatric relationship between M. tuberculosis and its human host. To test this hypothesis, we performed a nine-year nation-wide molecular-epidemiological study of HIV-infected and HIV-negative patients with tuberculosis (TB) between 2000 and 2008 in Switzerland. We analyzed 518 TB patients of whom 112 (21.6%) were HIV-infected and 233 (45.0%) were born in Europe. We found that among European-born TB patients, recent transmission was more likely to occur in sympatric compared to allopatric host-pathogen combinations (adjusted odds ratio [OR] 7.5, 95% confidence interval [95% CI] 1.21-infinity, p = 0.03). HIV infection was significantly associated with TB caused by an allopatric (as opposed to sympatric) M. tuberculosis lineage (OR 7.0, 95% CI 2.5-19.1, p<0.0001). This association remained when adjusting for frequent travelling, contact with foreigners, age, sex, and country of birth (adjusted OR 5.6, 95% CI 1.5-20.8, p = 0.01). Moreover, it became stronger with greater immunosuppression as defined by CD4 T-cell depletion and was not the result of increased social mixing in HIV-infected patients. Our observation was replicated in a second independent panel of 440 M. tuberculosis strains collected during a population-based study in the Canton of Bern between 1991 and 2011. In summary, these findings support a model for TB in which the stable relationship between the human host and its locally adapted M. tuberculosis is disrupted by HIV infection.

Right ventricle best predicts the race performance in amateur ironman athletes

PURPOSE The ironman (IM) triathlon is a popular ultraendurance competition, consisting of 3.8 km of swimming, 180.2 km of cycling, and 42.2 km of running. The aim of this study was to investigate the predictors of IM race time, comparing echocardiographic findings, anthropometric measures, and training characteristics. METHODS Amateur IM athletes (ATHL) participating in the Zurich IM race in 2010 were included. Participants were examined the day before the race by a comprehensive echocardiographic examination. Moreover, anthropometric measurements were obtained the same day. During the 3 months before the race, each IM-ATHL maintained a detailed training diary. Recorded data were related to total IM race time. RESULTS Thirty-eight IM finishers (mean ± SD age = 38 ± 9 yr, 32 men [84%]) were evaluated. Total race time was 684 ± 89 min (mean ± SD). For right ventricular fractional area change (45% ± 7%, Spearman ρ = -0.33, P = 0.05), a weak correlation with race time was observed. Race performance exhibited stronger associations with percent body fat (15.2 ± 5.6%, ρ = 0.56, P = 0.001), speed in running training (11.7 ± 1.2 km · h(-1), ρ = -0.52, P = 0.002), and left ventricular myocardial mass index (98 ± 24 g · m(-2), ρ = -0.42, P = 0.009). The strongest association was found between race time and right ventricular end-diastolic area (22 ± 4 cm2, ρ = -0.64, P < 0.0001). In multivariate analysis, right ventricular end-diastolic area (β = -16.7, 95% confidence interval = -27.3 to -6.1, P = 0.003) and percent body fat (β = 6.8, 95% confidence interval = 1.1-12.6, P = 0.02) were independently predictive of IM race time. CONCLUSIONS In amateur IM-ATHL, RV end-diastolic area and percent body fat were independently related to race performance. RV end-diastolic area was the strongest predictor of race time. The role of the RV in endurance exercise may thus be more important than previously thought and needs to be further studied.

Schul-, Praxis- und habituelles Herrschaftswissen. Bildung ländlicher Eliten mit Blick auf die korporative Selbstverwaltung in der frühmodernen Schweiz (18. und 19. Jahrhundert)

Knowledge taught at schools, everyday skills and practical know-how. The relevancy of formation for local elites and the corporative self-government of Early Modern Switzerland Daniel Schläppi, Bern There were different kinds of rural elites in Early Modern Switzerland. The diverse parts of the country developed in very dissimilar ways politically and economically. Some regions were dominated by traditional types of agriculture. Some territories were ruled by major cities. In some of the rural Cantons like Uri, Schwyz, Unterwalden, Glarus and Zug a political elite took control over generations and practiced a cultural lifestyle comparable to the famous aristocracies in cities like Bern, Basel, Freiburg, Luzern, Solothurn and Zurich. Intense proto-industrialization formed a completely different sort of elite with strong affinities to industry and trade in other regions. Meanwhile the habitants of the valley close-by stayed farmers like their ancestors (like in Appenzell). In the most conservative parts of the country mercenary business played an important role till the very end of the Ancien Regime and even furthermore. In summery the variety of historical circumstances caused heterogeneous elites all over. Such socio-political diversity provoked a variety of educational backgrounds. I an academic understanding of the term we know only little about literacy in local rural elites. But there is strong evidence that a lively culture of reading and story-telling existed. This means that even simple countrymen seem to have been in possession of some books. The organisation and capacity of the school system is subject of controversial discussions among up to date researchers. The state of research makes us suppose that the people designed to political careers learned their essential skills not only in school but also in everyday life or on the job. Based on the fact that every community and countless public corporations managed their affairs by their own it’s evident that the local elite’s key-players had a large repertoire of techniques and skills like writing, calculating, strategic thinking or knowledge of oral tradition, old usage or important rituals. Unfortunately the historical actors left not that many sources that would tell us precisely how knowledge and know-how were transferred in former times. Hardly any private account books or common correspondence have been conserved. But a huge bunch of sources that originate from corporative self-administration shows us that most local elites were well-educated and had the necessary skills anyway. Above all other sources like for instance the «Topographische Beschreibungen» (topographic descriptions) that were initiated by the «Ökonomische Gesellschaft» of Berne since the sixties of the 18th century provide an insight into pre-modern classrooms. More important information on the historical formation-reality can be gained by the autobiography of the famous poor peasant Ulrich Bräker (1735‒1798) or some of the novels by Albert Bitzius (1797‒1854, better known as Jeremias Gotthelf). The pedagogic writings by Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi (1746‒1827) and the influences by his mentors Johann Rudolf Tschiffeli (1716‒1780) or Philipp Emanuel von Fellenberg (1771‒1884) are quite illustrative as well.