Production and comprehension of English and Hindi in multilingual transcortical aphasia

This study investigates the two later-acquired but proficient languages, English and Hindi, of two multilingual individuals with transcortical aphasia (right basal ganglia lesion in GN and brain stem lesion in GS). Dissociation between lexical and syntactic profiles in both the languages with a uniform performance across the languages at the lexical level and an uneven performance across the languages at the syntactic level was observed. Their performances are discussed in relation to the implicit/explicit language processes (Paradis, 1994 and Paradis, 2004) and the declarative/procedural model (Ullman, 2001b and Ullman, 2005) of bilingual language processing. Additionally, their syntactic performance is interpreted in relation to the salient grammatical contrasts between English and Hindi.

Continuity and discontinuity: illuminating and interlacing the adventures of Viviane and Merlin in the 'Prose Merlin'

La rareté des miniatures consacrées à l'histoire amoureuse de Merlin et Viviane, dont le développement est à la fois épisodique et structuré par le recours au procédé de l'entrelacement, souligne son caractère marginal au sein de la narration. Les artistes et concepteurs de ces ouvrages manifestent une certaine réticence à l'égard d'aventures qui peuvent affecter l'autorité morale de Merlin, même si elles sont étroitement liées à la disparition du personnage et à la clôture du récit.

Varieties of capitalism and investments in human capital

This paper explores the relationship between national institutional archetypes and investments in training and development. A recent trend within the literature on comparative capitalism has been to explore the nature and extent of heterogeneity within the coordinated market economies (CMEs) of Europe. Based on a review of the existing comparative literature on training and development, and comparative firm-level survey evidence of differences in training and development practices, we both support and critique existing country clusters and argue for a more nuanced and flexible categorization.

The role of fimbriae and flagella in the adherence of avian strains of Escherichia coli O78:K80 to tissue culture cells and tracheal and gut explants

To investigate the role of fimbriae and flagella in the pathogenesis of avian colibacillosis, isogenic insertionally inactivated mutant strains of Escherichia coil O78:K80 strain EC34195 defective in the elaboration of type-1 and curli fimbriae and flagella were constructed by allelic exchange, Single and multiple non-fimbriate and non-flagellate mutant strains were compared to the wild-type in vitro in adherence assays with a HEp-2 cell line, a mucus-secreting cell line HT2916E, a non-mucus-secreting cell line HT2919A, tracheal explant and proximal gut explant, Mutant strains defective in the elaboration of type-1 fimbriae were significantly less adherent - in the order of 90% reduction - than the wild-type strain in all assays. Mutant strains defective in the elaboration of flagella were generally as adherent as the wild-type strain except when assayed with the mucus-secreting cell line HT2916E, for which a significant reduction of adherence - of the order of 90% - compared with the wild-type strain was observed. Mutant strains defective for the elaboration of curb fimbriae adhered as well as the wild-type strain in all assays, except when assayed in tests with gut explant tissue for which a significant reduction of adherence - of the order of 80% - compared with the wild-type strain was observed, Adherence to explants was to epithelial, not serous, surfaces and was 10-fold greater to tracheal than to gut explants, Together, these data support the hypothesis that type-1 fimbriae are significant factors in adherence, aided by flagella for penetration of mucus and curli fimbriae for adherence to the gut.

The role of fimbriae and flagella in the colonization, invasion and persistence of Escherichia coli O78 : K80 in the day-old-chick model

To understand the role of flagella and fimbriae of Escherichia coli O78:K80 in avian colibacillosis, day-old chicks were dosed orally with defined afimbriate and or aflagellate mutants and colonization, invasion and persistence compared with that of the wild-type. In an invasion model, chicks were dosed with 1 x 10(5) c.f.u. of a single strain and mutants defective for type 1 fimbriae, curli fimbriae or flagella colonized livers by 24 h although the numbers of bacteria present were significantly less than the wild-type, Mutants colonized between 50 and 75 % of spleens whereas the wild-type colonized 100 % of spleens. Additionally, the numbers of mutant bacteria in colonized spleens were significantly less than the wild-type. Surprisingly, mutants defective for the elaboration of more than one appendage were no more attenuated than single mutants. In a persistence model, chicks were dosed with 1 x 10(2) c.f.u. of a single strain and mutants defective for type 1 or curli or flagella or any combination thereof persisted as assessed by cloacal swabbing for 5 weeks of the experiment less well than the wild-type. In an additional persistence model, chicks were dosed with 5 x 10(2) c.f.u. of each of wild-type and one mutant together. All mutants were significantly less persistent than the wild-type (P < 0.001) and one mutant which lacked type 1, curli and flagella, was eliminated within 2 weeks. Analysis of the trends of elimination indicated that flagella contributed to persistence more than curli, which contributed more than type 1 fimbriae. Here was evidence for a major role in colonization, invasion and persistence played by type 1, curli and flagella.

Dietary quebracho tannins are not absorbed, but increase the antioxidant capacity of liver and plasma in sheep

A total of sixteen lambs were divided into two groups and fed two different diets. Of these, eight lambs were fed a control diet (C) and eight lambs were fed the C diet supplemented with quebracho tannins (C+T). The objective of the present study was to assess whether dietary quebracho tannins can improve the antioxidant capacity of lamb liver and plasma and if such improvement is due to a direct transfer of phenolic compounds or their metabolites, to the animal tissues. Feed, liver and plasma samples were purified by solid-phase extraction (SPE) and analysed by liquid chromatography–MS for phenolic compounds. Profisitinidin compounds were identified in the C+T diet. However, no phenolic compounds were found in lamb tissues. The liver and the plasma from lambs fed the C+T diet displayed a greater antioxidant capacity than tissues from lambs fed the C diet, but only when samples were not purified with SPE. Profisetinidin tannins from quebracho seem not to be degraded or absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract. However, they induced antioxidant effects in animal tissues.

O_3-N_2O correlations from the Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment: revisiting a diagnostic of transport and chemistry in the stratosphere

Our knowledge of stratospheric O3-N2O correlations is extended, and their potential for model-measurement comparison assessed, using data from the Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment (ACE) satellite and the Canadian Middle Atmosphere Model (CMAM). ACE provides the first comprehensive data set for the investigation of interhemispheric, interseasonal, and height-resolved differences of the O_3-N_2O correlation structure. By subsampling the CMAM data, the representativeness of the ACE data is evaluated. In the middle stratosphere, where the correlations are not compact and therefore mainly reflect the data sampling, joint probability density functions provide a detailed picture of key aspects of transport and mixing, but also trace polar ozone loss. CMAM captures these important features, but exhibits a displacement of the tropical pipe into the Southern Hemisphere (SH). Below about 21 km, the ACE data generally confirm the compactness of the correlations, although chemical ozone loss tends to destroy the compactness during late winter/spring, especially in the SH. This allows a quantitative comparison of the correlation slopes in the lower and lowermost stratosphere (LMS), which exhibit distinct seasonal cycles that reveal the different balances between diabatic descent and horizontal mixing in these two regions in the Northern Hemisphere (NH), reconciling differences found in aircraft measurements, and the strong role of chemical ozone loss in the SH. The seasonal cycles are qualitatively well reproduced by CMAM, although their amplitude is too weak in the NH LMS. The correlation slopes allow a "chemical" definition of the LMS, which is found to vary substantially in vertical extent with season.

Influence of earthworm Eisenia fetida on removal efficiency of N and P in vertical flow constructed wetland.

This study investigates biomass, density, photosynthetic activity, and accumulation of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) in three wetland plants (Canna indica, Typha augustifolia, and Phragmites austrail) in response to the introduction of the earthworm Eisenia fetida into a constructed wetland. The removal efficiency of N and P in constructed wetlands were also investigated. Results showed that the photosynthetic rate (P n), transpiration rate (T r), and stomatal conductance (S cond) of C. indica and P. austrail were (p < 0.05) significantly higher when earthworms were present. The addition of E. fetida increased the N uptake value by above-ground of C. indica, T. augustifolia, and P. australis by 185, 216, and 108 %, respectively; and its P uptake value increased by 300, 355, and 211 %, respectively. Earthworms could enhance photosynthetic activity, density, and biomass of wetland plants in constructed wetland, resulting in the higher N and P uptake. The addition of E. fetida into constructed wetland increased the removal efficiency of TN and TP by 10 and 7 %, respectively. The addition of earthworms into vertical flow constructed wetland increased the removal efficiency of TN and TP, which was related to higher photosynthetic activity and N and P uptake. The addition of earthworms into vertical flow constructed wetland and plant harvests could be the significantly sustainable N and P removal strategy

Neural processing of reward and punishment in young people at increased familial risk of depression

Background Abnormalities in the neural representation of rewarding and aversive stimuli have been well-described in patients with acute depression, and we previously found abnormal neural responses to rewarding and aversive sight and taste stimuli in recovered depressed patients. The aim of the present study was to determine whether similar abnormalities might be present in young people at increased familial risk of depression but with no personal history of mood disorder. Methods We therefore used functional magnetic resonance imaging to examine the neural responses to pleasant and aversive sights and tastes in 25 young people (16–21 years of age) with a biological parent with depression and 25 age- and gender-matched control subjects. Results We found that, relative to the control subjects, participants with a parental history of depression showed diminished responses in the orbitofrontal cortex to rewarding stimuli, whereas activations to aversive stimuli were increased in the lateral orbitofrontal cortex and insula. In anterior cingulate cortex the at-risk group showed blunted neural responses to both rewarding and aversive stimuli. Conclusions Our findings suggest that young people at increased familial risk of depression have altered neural representation of reward and punishment, particularly in cortical regions linked to the use of positive and negative feedback to guide adaptive behavior.

Seasonal cycles and variability of O3 and H2O in the UT/LMS during SPURT

Airborne high resolution in situ measurements of a large set of trace gases including ozone (O3) and total water (H2O) in the upper troposphere and the lowermost stratosphere (UT/LMS) have been performed above Europe within the SPURT project. SPURT provides an extensive data coverage of the UT/LMS in each season within the time period between November 2001 and July 2003. In the LMS a distinct spring maximum and autumn minimum is observed in O3, whereas its annual cycle in the UT is shifted by 2–3 months later towards the end of the year. The more variable H2O measurements reveal a maximum during summer and a minimum during autumn/winter with no phase shift between the two atmospheric compartments. For a comprehensive insight into trace gas composition and variability in the UT/LMS several statistical methods are applied using chemical, thermal and dynamical vertical coordinates. In particular, 2-dimensional probability distribution functions serve as a tool to transform localised aircraft data to a more comprehensive view of the probed atmospheric region. It appears that both trace gases, O3 and H2O, reveal the most compact arrangement and are best correlated in the view of potential vorticity (PV) and distance to the local tropopause, indicating an advanced mixing state on these surfaces. Thus, strong gradients of PV seem to act as a transport barrier both in the vertical and the horizontal direction. The alignment of trace gas isopleths reflects the existence of a year-round extra-tropical tropopause transition layer. The SPURT measurements reveal that this layer is mainly affected by stratospheric air during winter/spring and by tropospheric air during autumn/summer. Normalised mixing entropy values for O3 and H2O in the LMS appear to be maximal during spring and summer, respectively, indicating highest variability of these trace gases during the respective seasons.

Introduction to politics of climate change: discourses of policy and practice in developing countries

This Themed Section aims to increase understanding of how the idea of climate change, and the policies and actions that spring from it, travel beyond their origins in natural sciences to meet different political arenas in the developing world. It takes a discursive approach whereby climate change is not just a set of physical processes but also a series of messages, narratives and policy prescriptions. The articles are mostly case study-based and focus on sub-Saharan Africa and Small Island Developing States (SIDS). They are organised around three interlinked themes. The first theme concerns the processes of rapid technicalisation and professionalisation of the climate change ‘industry’, which have sustantially narrowed the boundaries of what can be viewed as a legitimate social response to the problem of global warming. The second theme deals with the ideological effects of the climate change industry, which is ‘depoliticisation’, in this case the deflection of attention away from underlying political conditions of vulnerability and exploitation towards the nature of the physical hazard itself. The third theme concerns the institutional effects of an insufficiently socialised idea of climate change, which is the maintenance of existing relations of power or their reconfiguration in favour of the already powerful. Overall, the articles suggest that greater scrutiny of the discursive and political dimensions of mitigation and adaptation activities is required. In particular, greater attention should be directed towards the policy consequences that governments and donors construct as a result of their framing and rendition of climate change issues.

Biochar alteration of the sorption of substrates and products in Soil Enzyme Assays

Pine wood and barley straw biochar amendments to Kettering and Cameroon sandy silt loam soils (15, 30, or 150 mg biochar g−1 soil) caused significant reductions (up to 80%,

High-speed Keck spectroscopy of flares and oscillations in AE Aquarii

Using high-time-resolution (72 ms) spectroscopy of AE Aqr obtained with LRIS on Keck II we have determined the spectrum and spectral evolution of a small flare. Continuum and integrated line fluxes in the flare spectrum are measured, and the evolution of the flare is parametrized for future comparison with detailed models of the flares. We find that the velocities of the flaring components are consistent with those previously reported for AE Aqr by Welsh, Horne & Gomer and Horne. The characteristics of the 33-s oscillations are investigated: we derive the oscillation amplitude spectrum, and from that determine the spectrum of the heated regions on the rotating white dwarf. Blackbody fits to the major and minor pulse spectra and an analysis of the emission-line oscillation properties highlight the shortfalls in the simple hotspot model for the oscillations.

Linguistic and cognitive motivations for the typological primacy model of third language (L3) transfer: considering the role of timing of acquisition and proficiency in the previous languages

This article elucidates the Typological Primacy Model (TPM; Rothman, 2010, 2011, 2013) for the initial stages of adult third language (L3) morphosyntactic transfer, addressing questions that stem from the model and its application. The TPM maintains that structural proximity between the L3 and the L1 and/or the L2 determines L3 transfer. In addition to demonstrating empirical support for the TPM, this article articulates a proposal for how the mind unconsciously determines typological (structural) proximity based on linguistic cues from the L3 input stream used by the parser early on to determine holistic transfer of one previous (the L1 or the L2) system. This articulated version of the TPM is motivated by argumentation appealing to cognitive and linguistic factors. Finally, in line with the general tenets of the TPM, I ponder if and why L3 transfer might obtain differently depending on the type of bilingual (e.g. early vs. late) and proficiency level of bilingualism involved in the L3 process.