Salif Keita: "Les belles choses derrière le mur" /// Arbeitspapiere / Institut für Ethnologie und Afrikastudien ; 48

Salif Keita; Mali; moderne afrikanische Musik;Weltmusik; Albinismus;"Tradition"; Mande; Jeliw; Horonw; Musik und Politik; Rail Band ; Les Ambassadeurs ; Ambassadeurs Internationaux ; Film "Destiny of a Noble Outcast"

A new model to study healing of a complex femur fracture with concurrent soft tissue injury in sheep

High energy bone fractures resulting from impact trauma are often accompanied by subcutaneous soft tissue injuries, even if the skin remains intact. There is evidence that such closed soft tissue injuries affect the healing of bone fractures, and vice versa. Despite this knowledge, most impact trauma studies in animals have focussed on bone fractures or soft tissue trauma in isolation. However, given the simultaneous impact on both tissues a better understanding of the interaction between these two injuries is necessary to optimise clinical treatment. The aim of this study was therefore to develop a new experimental model and characterise, for the first time, the healing of a complex fracture with concurrent closed soft tissue trauma in sheep. A pendulum impact device was designed to deliver a defined and standardised impact to the distal thigh of sheep, causing a reproducible contusion injury to the subcutaneous soft tissues. In a subsequent procedure, a reproducible femoral butterfly fracture (AO C3-type) was created at the sheep’s femur, which was initially stabilised for 5 days by an external fixator construct to allow for soft tissue swelling to recede, and ultimately in a bridging construct using locking plates. The combined injuries were applied to twelve sheep and the healing observed for four or eight weeks (six animals per group) until sacrifice. The pendulum impact led to a moderate to severe circumferential soft tissue injury with significant bruising, haematomas and partial muscle disruptions. Posttraumatic measurements showed elevated intra-compartmental pressure and circulatory tissue breakdown markers, with recovery to normal, pre-injury values within four days. Clinically, no neurovascular deficiencies were observed. Bi-weekly radiological analysis of the healing fractures showed progressive callus healing over time, with the average number of callus bridges increasing from 0.4 at two weeks to 4.2 at eight weeks. Biomechanical testing after sacrifice showed increasing torsional stiffness between four and eight weeks healing time from 10% to 100%, and increasing ultimate torsional strength from 10% to 64% (relative to the contralateral control limb). Our results demonstrate the robust healing of a complex femur fracture in the presence of a severe soft tissue contusion injury in sheep and demonstrate the establishment of a clinically relevant experimental model, for research aimed at improving the treatment of bone fractures accompanied by closed soft tissue injuries.

Precision and long-term stability of clumped-isotope analysis of CO2 using a small-sector isotope ratio mass spectrometer

RATIONALE The ratio of the measured abundance of 13C18O bonding CO2 to its stochastic abundance, prescribed by the delta 13C and delta 18O values from a carbonate mineral, is sensitive to its growth temperature. Recently, clumped-isotope thermometry, which uses this ratio, has been adopted as a new tool to elucidate paleotemperatures quantitatively. METHODS Clumped isotopes in CO2 were measured with a small-sector isotope ratio mass spectrometer. CO2 samples digested from several kinds of calcium carbonates by phosphoric acid at 25 degrees C were purified using both cryogenic and gas-chromatographic separations, and their isotopic composition (delta 13C, delta 18O, Delta 47, Delta 48 and Delta 49 values) were then determined using a dual-inlet Delta XP mass spectrometer. RESULTS The internal precisions of the single gas Delta 47 measurements were 0.005 and 0.02 parts per thousand (1 SE) for the optimum and the routine analytical conditions, respectively, which are comparable with those obtained using a MAT 253 mass spectrometer. The long-term variations in the Delta 47 values for the in-house working standard and the heated CO2 gases since 2007 were close to the routine, single gas uncertainty while showing seasonal-like periodicities with a decreasing trend. Unlike the MAT 253, the Delta XP did not show any significant relationship between the Delta 47 and delta 47 values. CONCLUSIONS The Delta XP gave results that were approximately as precise as those of the MAT 253 for clumped-isotope analysis. The temporal stability of the Delta XP seemed to be lower, although an advantage of the Delta XP was that no dependency of delta 47 on Delta 47 was found. Copyright (c) 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Insight into the limited electrochemical activity of NaVP2O7

Recently, LiVP2O7 has been investigated as a possible high-voltage substitute for Li2FeP2O7. However, its Na-equivalent, NaVP2O7, as an economic replacement for Li2FeP2O7 has not yet been well understood. Here, for the first time, we report the feasibility of NaVP2O7 as a 3.4 V cathode material for Na-ion batteries. Having a theoretical capacity of 108 mA h g(-1), it shows an initial discharge capacity of 38.4 mA h g(-1) at 1/20C (1C = 108 mA g(-1)) in the voltage range of 2.5-4.0 V. Our study suggests that part of the sodium ions in the lattice structure exist as structural stabilizers and bring lattice distortion upon desodiation. This study also shows that the title compound, NaVP2O7, suffers from high intrinsic internal resistance, which limits the phase transition kinetics between pristine NaVP2O7 and desodiated Na1-xVP2O7.

Tracking the migration of the Indian continent using the carbonate clumped isotope technique on Phanerozoic soil carbonates

Approximately 140 million years ago, the Indian plate separated from Gondwana and migrated by almost 90 degrees latitude to its current location, forming the Himalayan-Tibetan system. Large discrepancies exist in the rate of migration of Indian plate during Phanerozoic. Here we describe a new approach to paleo-latitudinal reconstruction based on simultaneous determination of carbonate formation temperature and delta O-18 of soil carbonates, constrained by the abundances of C-13-O-18 bonds in palaeosol carbonates. Assuming that the palaeosol carbonates have a strong relationship with the composition of the meteoric water, delta O-18 carbonate of palaeosol can constrain paleo-latitudinal position. Weighted mean annual rainfall delta O-18 water values measured at several stations across the southern latitudes are used to derive a polynomial equation: delta(18)Ow = -0.006 x (LAT)(2) - 0.294 x (LAT) - 5.29 which is used for latitudinal reconstruction. We use this approach to show the northward migration of the Indian plate from 46.8 +/- 5.8 degrees S during the Permian (269 M. y.) to 30 +/- 11 degrees S during the Triassic (248 M. y.), 14.7 +/- 8.7 degrees S during the early Cretaceous (135 M. y.), and 28 +/- 8.8 degrees S during the late Cretaceous ( 68 M. y.). Soil carbonate delta O-18 provides an alternative method for tracing the latitudinal position of Indian plate in the past and the estimates are consistent with the paleo-magnetic records which document the position of Indian plate prior to 135 +/- 3 M. y.

Life cycle assessment in the supply chain: a review and case study

The paper addresses the use of Life Cycle Assessment as a tool for analysing freight transport activity in product supply chains. Published works that have assessed freight transport energy use in supply chain operations are reviewed and their results summarized. A case study of the energy use in the supply chains for jeans sold in both the UK and France is presented. The results of this case study indicate that the location from which cotton is sourced can have a major impact on the total energy used in commercial transport in the jeans supply chain. However, overall, this has a limited impact on the total energy used in producing and supplying jeans. This is because the vast majority of total energy used in the supply chain is consumed during cotton cultivation, denim production and jeans manufacture. The work also demonstrates that the amount of energy used by consumers transporting jeans to their homes by car can be greater than the total commercial transport energy used in the supply chain (per kg of jeans transported).

Pathfinding of corticothalamic axons relies on a rendezvous with thalamic projections.

Major outputs of the neocortex are conveyed by corticothalamic axons (CTAs), which form reciprocal connections with thalamocortical axons, and corticosubcerebral axons (CSAs) headed to more caudal parts of the nervous system. Previous findings establish that transcriptional programs define cortical neuron identity and suggest that CTAs and thalamic axons may guide each other, but the mechanisms governing CTA versus CSA pathfinding remain elusive. Here, we show that thalamocortical axons are required to guide pioneer CTAs away from a default CSA-like trajectory. This process relies on a hold in the progression of cortical axons, or waiting period, during which thalamic projections navigate toward cortical axons. At the molecular level, Sema3E/PlexinD1 signaling in pioneer cortical neurons mediates a "waiting signal" required to orchestrate the mandatory meeting with reciprocal thalamic axons. Our study reveals that temporal control of axonal progression contributes to spatial pathfinding of cortical projections and opens perspectives on brain wiring.

Impacts des migrations forcées sur les pays hôtes

Thèse numérisée par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

Securitización en el desierto: Una respuesta al terrorismo en Malí y en Níger, 2009 - 2013.

Este es un estudio sobre las dinámicas de seguridad en Malí durante el periodo de 2009 a 2013. La investigación busca explicar de qué manera se ha dado un proceso de securitización de los grupos insurgentes frente a la amenaza generada por la proliferación de grupos armados no estatales en el territorio comprendido entre Malí y Níger. Se toma a Níger con el ánimo de ver la existencia de un subcomplejo regional de seguridad entre este país y Malí. De esta manera se afirma que el aumento de las actividades insurgentes y terroristas en la zona compuesta por Malí y Níger se da por la proliferación de actores armados no estatales, entre los cuales se encuentran los grupos seculares e insurgentes Tuareg, las agrupaciones islamistas fundamentalistas y los grupos que se componen entre rebeldes Tuareg, criminales e islamistas, éstos actores han afectado la percepción que tiene Malí sobre su seguridad.

“El florecimiento del terrorismo islámico en el Sahel, un reto para la seguridad de Europa Occidental. Estudio de caso: Malí y España (2011- 2013)”

El objetivo central de este Estudio de Caso, consiste en investigar en qué sentido la proximidad geográfica y el hecho de que la región del Sahel constituya una zona de tránsito, influyen a que el crecimiento del terrorismo islámico en Malí comprenda una amenaza tanto para la seguridad nacional, como para la estabilidad de España. Se avanzará posteriormente con la descripción de herramientas específicas, tanto judiciales como de cooperación que el gobierno español ha buscado apoyar a nivel global y local, con el fin de repeler los desafíos que se generan como consecuencia del terrorismo; especial énfasis se hará, en aquellas medidas que este Estado europeo ha implementado con el propósito de enfrentar particularmente las amenazas que se generan hacia su territorio como resultado de la crisis terrorista en Malí.

Traduction d'un texte de Tahar Ben Jelloun tiré du recueil pour une litterature-monde

In questo elaborato ho realizzato una breve analisi del concetto di 'Littérature-Monde' così come sostenuto da vari autori di lingua francese che rivendicano un mondo letterario più variegato e aperto, cosa che si realizzerebbe soprattutto nel pari riconoscimento tra scrittori francesi e scrittori francofoni: questi ultimi infatti sono stati per lungo tempo considerati ai margini della letteratura francese in quanto stranieri. Questa analisi è stata propedeutica per arrivare a capire il senso profondo del testo 'La cave de ma mémoire, le toit de ma maison sont des mots français' di Tahar Ben Jelloun, tratto dalla raccolta di testi "Pour une littérature-monde", che ho poi tradotto dal francese all'italiano.