Communication breakdowns and repair strategies in oral communication and total communication children with cochlear implants

This study assesses communication breakdowns in children with cochlear implants from oral and total communications backgrounds. More communication breakdowns occurred between the total communication child and the conversational partner than the oral communication child and the conversational partner. Both total and oral communication children used non-specific repair strategies.

La heterogeneidad de la imagen de China en la política exterior latinoamericana. Perspectivas para la concertación de políticas (Tema Central)

The text shows the heterogeneous views of various Latin American countries, like Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Colombia and Venezuela, in terms of their analyses of and studies about foreign policy. This paper aims to make clear the different images that China generates as a rising power in the world economy, particularly as a major trade partner of these countries. The goal of this article is to provide elements for analysis about policy coordination vis-àvis China. The central argument states that there should be coordination between regional integration strategies and foreign policies in relation to China. However, these heterogeneous visions can work against that goal as well.

The EEAS and the Eastern Partnership: let the blame game stop. CEPS Commentary, 4 September 2012

In the first year and a half of its existence, the EEAS and its head have become the target of extensive criticism for the shortcomings of EU foreign policy; shortcomings that in fact date back to the creation of the European Union. The EU’s diplomatic service has been blamed variously for ‘lacking clarity,’ ‘acting too slowly’ and ‘being unable to bridge the institutional divide’. In this Commentary author Hrant Kostanyan argues that the EEAS’ discretionary power in the Eastern Partnership multilateral framework is restricted by the decision-making procedures between a wide range of stakeholders: the member states and the partner countries, as well as by the EU institutions, international organisations and the Civil Society Forum. Since this decision-making process places a substantial number of brakes on the discretionary power of the EEAS, any responsible analysis or critique of the service should take these constraints into consideration. Ultimately, the EEAS is only able to craft EU foreign policy insofar as it is allowed to do so.

Collaborative eLearning Assistant Network: caring agents are conscious agents

Would a research assistant - who can search for ideas related to those you are working on, network with others (but only share the things you have chosen to share), doesn’t need coffee and who might even, one day, appear to be conscious - help you get your work done? Would it help your students learn? There is a body of work showing that digital learning assistants can be a benefit to learners. It has been suggested that adaptive, caring, agents are more beneficial. Would a conscious agent be more caring, more adaptive, and better able to deal with changes in its learning partner’s life? Allow the system to try to dynamically model the user, so that it can make predictions about what is needed next, and how effective a particular intervention will be. Now, given that the system is essentially doing the same things as the user, why don’t we design the system so that it can try to model itself in the same way? This should mimic a primitive self-awareness. People develop their personalities, their identities, through interacting with others. It takes years for a human to develop a full sense of self. Nobody should expect a prototypical conscious computer system to be able to develop any faster than that. How can we provide a computer system with enough social contact to enable it to learn about itself and others? We can make it part of a network. Not just chatting with other computers about computer ‘stuff’, but involved in real human activity. Exposed to ‘raw meaning’ – the developing folksonomies coming out of the learning activities of humans, whether they are traditional students or lifelong learners (a term which should encompass everyone). Humans have complex psyches, comprised of multiple strands of identity which reflect as different roles in the communities of which they are part – so why not design our system the same way? With multiple internal modes of operation, each capable of being reflected onto the outside world in the form of roles – as a mentor, a research assistant, maybe even as a friend. But in order to be able to work with a human for long enough to be able to have a chance of developing the sort of rich behaviours we associate with people, the system needs to be able to function in a practical and helpful role. Unfortunately, it is unlikely to get a free ride from many people (other than its developer!) – so it needs to be able to perform a useful role, and do so securely, respecting the privacy of its partner. Can we create a system which learns to be more human whilst helping people learn?

Analysing institutional partnerships in development: a contract between equals or a loaded process?

Partnerships are complex, diverse and subtle relationships, the nature of which changes with time, but they are vital for the functioning of the development chain. This paper reviews the meaning of partnership between development institutions as well as some of the main approaches taken to analyse the relationships. The latter typically revolve around analyses based on power, discourse, interdependence and functionality. The paper makes the case for taking a multianalytical approach to understanding partnership but points out three problem areas: identifying acceptable/unacceptable trade-offs between characteristics of partnership, the analysis of multicomponent partnerships (where one partner has a number of other partners) and the analysis of long-term partnership. The latter is especially problematic for long-term partnerships between donors and field agencies that share an underlying commitment based on religious beliefs. These problems with current methods of analysing partnership are highlighted by focusing upon the Catholic Church-based development chain, linking donors in the North (Europe) and their field partners in the South (Abuja Ecclesiastical Province, Nigeria). It explores a narrated history of a relationship with a single donor spanning 35 years from the perspective of one partner (the field agency).

Creating a greater partnership: analysing partnership in the Catholic Church development chain

This paper presents results from a project designed to explore the meaning and function of partnership within the Catholic Church development chain. The geography literature has had little to say about such aid chains, especially those founded on faith-based groups. The relationships between three Catholic Church-based donors - referred to as A, B and C - with development personnel of the diocese of the Abuja Ecclesiastical Province (AEP) as well as other Catholic Church structures in Nigeria were analysed. The aim was to explore the forces behind the relationships and how 'patchy' these relationships were in AEP. Respondents were asked to give each of the donors a score in relation to four questions covering their relationship with the donors. Results suggest that the modus operandi of donor 'A' allows it to be perceived as the 'best' partner, while 'B' was scored less favourably because of a perception that it attempts to act independently of existing structures in Nigeria rather than work through them. There was significant variation between diocese in this regard, as well as between the diocese and other structures of the Church (Provinces, Inter-Provinces and National Secretariat). Thus 'partnership' in the Catholic Church aid chain is a highly complex, contested and 'visioned' term and the development of an analytical framework has to take account of these fundamentals.

Speciation in fig wasps

There are over 700 species of fig trees in the tropics and several thousand species of fig wasps are associated with their syconia (inflorescences). These wasps comprise a monophyletic family of fig pollinators and several diverse lineages of non-pollinating wasps. The pollinator larvae gall fig flowers, while larvae of non-pollinating species either initiate their own galls or parasitise the galls of other wasps. A single fig species has 1-4 pollinator species and also hosts up to 30 non-pollinating wasp species. Most wasps show a high degree of host plant specificity and are known from only a single fig species. However, in some cases wasps may be shared across closely related fig species. There is impressive morphological coevolution between figs and fig wasps and this, combined with a high degree of partner specificity, led to the expectation that figs and pollinators have cospeciated extensively. Comparison of deep phylogenies supports long-term codivergence of figs and pollinators, but also suggests that some host shifts have occurred. Phylogenies of more closely related species do not match perfectly and may even be incongruent, suggesting significant roles for processes other than strict cospeciation. Combined with recent evidence on host specificity patterns, this suggests that pollinator wasps may often speciate by host shifts between closely related figs, or by duplication (the wasp speciates but the fig doesn't). The frequencies and biological details of these different modes of speciation invite further study. Far less is known about speciation in non-pollinating fig wasps. Some lineages have probably coevolved with figs and pollinators for most of the evolutionary history of the symbiosis, while others appear to be more recent colonisers. Many species appear to be highly host plant specific, but those that lay eggs through the fig wall without entering the syconium (the majority of species) may be subject to fewer constraints on host-shifting than pollinators. There is evidence for substantial host shifting in at least one gens, but also evidence for ecological speciation on the same host plant by niche shifts in other cases. Finally, recent work has begun to address the issue of “community phylogeny” and provided evidence for long-term co-divergence of multiple pollinating and non-pollinating wasp lineages with their host figs.

Non-genomic signalling of the retinoic X receptor through inhibition of Gq signalling in human platelets

Retinoid X receptors (RXRs) are important transcriptional nuclear hormone receptors, acting as either homodimers or the binding partner for at least one fourth of all the known human nuclear receptors. Functional nongenomic effects of nuclear receptors are poorly understood; however, recently peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) gamma, PPARbeta, and the glucocorticoid receptor have all been found active in human platelets. Human platelets express RXRalpha and RXRbeta. RXR ligands inhibit platelet aggregation and TXA(2) release to ADP and the TXA(2) receptors, but only weakly to collagen. ADP and TXA(2) both signal via the G protein, Gq. RXR rapidly binds Gq but not Gi/z/o/t/gust in a ligand-dependent manner and inhibits Gq-induced Rac activation and intracellular calcium release. We propose that RXR ligands may have beneficial clinical actions through inhibition of platelet activation. Furthermore, our results demonstrate a novel nongenomic mode for nuclear receptor action and a functional cross-talk between G-protein and nuclear receptor signaling families.

Nongenomic signaling of the retinoid X receptor through binding and inhibiting Gq in human platelets

Retinoid X receptors (RXRs) are important transcriptional nuclear hormone receptors, acting as either homodimers or the binding partner for at least one fourth of all the known human nuclear receptors. Functional nongenomic effects of nuclear receptors are poorly understood; however, recently peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR) gamma, PPAR beta, and the glucocorticoid receptor have all been found active in human platelets. Human platelets express RXR alpha, and RXR beta. RXR ligands inhibit platelet aggregation and TXA(2) release to ADP and the TXA(2) receptors, but only weakly to collagen. ADP and TXA(2) both signal via the G protein, Gq. RXR rapidly binds Gq but not Gi/z/o/t/gust in a ligand-dependent manner and inhibits Gq-induced Rac activation and intracellular calcium release. We propose that RXR ligands may have beneficial clinical actions through inhibition of platelet activation. Furthermore, our results demonstrate a novel nongenomic mode for nuclear receptor action and a functional cross-talk between G-protein and nuclear receptor signaling families. (C) 2007 by The American Society of Hematology.

Amino acid pairing preferences in parallel beta-sheets in proteins

Statistical approaches have been applied to examine amino acid pairing preferences within parallel beta-sheets. The main chain hydrogen bonding pattern in parallel beta-sheets means that, for each residue pair, only one of the residues is involved in main chain hydrogen bonding with the strand containing the partner residue. We call this the hydrogen bonded (HB) residue and the partner residue the non-hydrogen bonded (nHB) residue, and differentiate between the favorability of a pair and that of its reverse pair, e.g. Asn(HB)-Thr(nHB)versus Thr(HB)-Asn(nHB). Significantly (p < or = 0.000001) favoured pairings were rationalised using stereochemical arguments. For instance, Asn(HB)-Thr(nHB) and Arg(HB)-Thr(nHB) were favoured pairs, where the residues adopted favoured chi1 rotamer positions that allowed side-chain interactions to occur. In contrast, Thr(HB)-Asn(nHB) and Thr(HB)-Arg(nHB) were not significantly favoured, and could only form side-chain interactions if the residues involved adopted less favourable chi1 conformations. The favourability of hydrophobic pairs e.g. Ile(HB)-Ile(nHB), Val(HB)-Val(nHB) and Leu(HB)-Ile(nHB) was explained by the residues adopting their most preferred chi1 and chi2 conformations, which enabled them to form nested arrangements. Cysteine-cysteine pairs are significantly favoured, although these do not form intrasheet disulphide bridges. Interactions between positively and negatively charged residues were asymmetrically preferred: those with the negatively charged residue at the HB position were more favoured. This trend was accounted for by the presence of general electrostatic interactions, which, based on analysis of distances between charged atoms, were likely to be stronger when the negatively charged residue is the HB partner. The Arg(HB)-Asp(nHB) interaction was an exception to this trend and its favorability was rationalised by the formation of specific side-chain interactions. This research provides rules that could be applied to protein structure prediction, comparative modelling and protein engineering and design. The methods used to analyse the pairing preferences are automated and detailed results are available (http://www.rubic.rdg.ac.uk/betapairprefsparallel/).

Amino acid pairing preferences in parallel beta-sheets in proteins

Statistical approaches have been applied to examine amino acid pairing preferences within parallel beta-sheets. The main chain hydrogen bonding pattern in parallel beta-sheets means that, for each residue pair, only one of the residues is involved in main chain hydrogen bonding with the strand containing the partner residue. We call this the hydrogen bonded (HB) residue and the partner residue the non-hydrogen bonded (nHB) residue, and differentiate between the favourability of a pair and that of its reverse pair, e.g. Asn(HB)-Thr(nHB) versus Thr(HB)-Asn(nHB). Significantly (p <= 0.000001) favoured pairings were rationalised using stereochemical arguments. For instance, Asn(HB)-Thr(nHB) and Arg(HB)-Thr(nHB) were favoured pairs, where the residues adopted favoured chi(1) rotamer positions that allowed side-chain interactions to occur. In contrast, Thr(HB)-Asn(nHB) and Thr(HB)-Arg(nHB) were not significantly favoured, and could only form side-chain interactions if the residues involved adopted less favourable chi(1) conformations. The favourability of hydrophobic pairs e.g. Ile(HB)-Ile(nHB), Val(HB)-Val(nHB) and Leu(HB)-Ile(nHB) was explained by the residues adopting their most preferred chi(1) and chi(2) conformations, which enabled them to form nested arrangements. Cysteine-cysteine pairs are significantly favoured, although these do not form intrasheet disulphide bridges. Interactions between positively and negatively charged residues were asymmetrically preferred: those with the negatively charged residue at the HB position were more favoured. This trend was accounted for by the presence of general electrostatic interactions, which, based on analysis of distances between charged atoms, were likely to be stronger when the negatively charged residue is the HB partner. The Arg(HB)-Asp(nHB) interaction was an exception to this trend and its favourability was rationalised by the formation of specific side-chain interactions. This research provides rules that could be applied to protein structure prediction, comparative modelling and protein engineering and design. The methods used to analyse the pairing preferences are automated and detailed results are available (http:// www.rubic.rdg.ac.uk/betapairprefsparallel/). (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effects of fungicide dose and mixtures on selection for triazole resistance in Mycosphaerella graminicola under field conditions

The effects of varying doses of fungicides, alone or in mixtures, on selection for triazole resistance were examined under field conditions. Two experiments were conducted using the triazole fungicide fluquinconazole with the strobilurin fungicide azoxystrobin as a mixture partner. Inoculated wheat plots with a known ratio of more sensitive to less sensitive isolates of the leaf blotch fungus Mycosphaerella graminicola were sprayed with fungicide and sampled once symptoms had appeared. Selection for fluquinconazole resistance increased in proportion to the dose, up to one-half of the full dose (the maximum tested) in both experiments. At the higher doses of fluquinconazole, the addition of azoxystrobin was associated with a decrease in selection (nonsignificant in the first experiment) for triazole resistance. Control by low doses of fluquinconazole was increased by mixture with azoxystrobin, but at higher doses mixture with azoxystrobin sometimes decreased control, so that reduced selection was obtained at the cost of some reduction in control. The effects on resistance are not necessarily general consequences of mixing fungicides, and suggest that the properties of any specific mixture may need to be demonstrated experimentally. Selection was inversely related to control in the unmixed treatments in both experiments, but the relationship was weaker in the mixtures with azoxystrobin.

The effect of potato variety mixtures on epidemics of late blight, in relation to plot size and level of resistance

Potatoes of a number of varieties of contrasting levels of resistance were planted in pure or mixed stands in four experiments over 3 years. Three experiments compared the late blight severity and progress in mixtures with that in pure stands. Disease on susceptible or moderately resistant varieties typical of those in commercial use was similar in mixtures and pure stands. In 2 of 3 years, there were slight reductions on cv. Sante, which is moderately susceptible, in mixture with cv. Cara, which is moderately resistant. Cara was unaffected by this mixture. Mixtures of an immune or near-immune partner with Cara or Sante substantially reduced disease on the latter. The effect of the size of plots of individual varieties or mixtures on blight severity was compared in two experiments. Larger plots had a greater area under the disease progress curve, but the average rate of disease progress was greater in smaller plots; this may be because most disease progress took place later, under more favourable conditions, in the smaller plots. In one experiment, two planting densities were used. Density had no effect on disease and did not interact with mixture effects. The overall conclusion is that, while mixtures of potato varieties may be desirable for other reasons, they do not offer any improvement on the average of the disease resistance of the components.

Double coupling reactions of 3,4-bis(stannyl)furanone: facile preparation of diaryl- and dibenzylfuranones

The palladium-catalyzed cross-coupling reaction of 3,4-bis(tributylstannyl)furan-2(5H)-one using chelating ligand or polar solvent gives mixtures of single and double coupled products, even when one equivalent of halide coupling partner is used. After optimization, the double coupling reaction was shown to be general, with the use of two equivalents of aryl iodides giving 3,4-disubstituted furanones, The reaction using benzyl bromides proceeds at lower temperatures than the corresponding coupling using aryl iodides, giving dibenzylfuranones. The methodology has been exemplified in a synthesis of (+/-)-hinokinin.

Social factors and postpartum depression in Khayelitsha, Cape Town

Social factors, including poverty, are known risk factors for depression. In a previous study conducted in Khayelitsha, a very poor peri-urban settlement near Cape Town, a 34.7% prevalence rate for postpartum depression was found, roughly three times the expected rate internationally. This article is a report on a logistical regression analysis, showing that the odds ratios for the probability of maternal depression at two months were: for the infant being unwanted, OR=4.33, 95% CI: (1.75; 11.60); for the father's negative attitude towards the infant, OR=6.03, 95% CI: (2.01; 20.09); and for the mother cohabiting with (as opposed to not living with) a male partner, OR=2.77, 95% CI: (1.08; 7.69). The odds ratios for the probability of the mother being insensitive towards the infant at two months were: for the mother aged 20 to 24 years, OR=0.40, 95% CI: (0.10; 1.42); for the mother aged 25 to 29 years, OR=0.24, 95% CI: (0.06; 0.77); for the mother aged 30 years or older, OR=0.27, 95% CI: (0.07; 0.90); and for the mother receiving no help from her partner, OR=2.12, 95% CI: (1.05; 4.33). Since data were collected cross-sectionally, it is not possible to draw conclusions about causal pathways. The findings support further investigation into the precursors of, and risk factors for, postpartum depression amongst poor South African women.