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For Martin Buber, a person participates in two kinds of relationship: the I-Thou and the I-It. In the case of the former, the wholeness of being is employed resulting in genuine dialogue, while the latter objectifies things and is thus devoid of anything genuine. Among the influences on Buber’s thought, that of Daoism has not gone unnoticed by scholars of comparative philosophy. This paper will contribute to said discourse by examining Buber’s concept of the interhuman and its employment of the following themes: oneness and the genuine person, non-deliberate action (wuwei) and the in-between, and genuine dialogue as a turning towards being. What our analysis will show is that Buber’s interhuman philosophy bears witness to the transcendence of words by bringing to life the silence from which they arise and recede, attuning participants in genuine dialogue to the spiritual resonance between themselves and the primal Thou, while elevating their faith in human life in the process. The interhuman was seen by Buber as a viable solution for the societal ills of his time and it remains so half a century after his passing.

The fluid motion in an unbounded domain is an appealing and difficult problem in fluid mechanics. The 2D unbounded free decaying flow was studied and simulated with the traditional extended domain Fourier spectral scheme and the newly developed Hermite spectral algorithm, respectively. The results show that, in the case of only same-signed vortices existing in the domain at the beginning of simulations, both methods give correct results; on the other hand, in the case of positive and negative vortices coexisting initially, the new Hermite spectral method still gives satisfactory results for the problem efficiently even after longtime simulation, but the traditional Fourier method hardly yields correct results even in a greatly extended computing domain. Moreover, the numerical simulations of the examples with the Hermite spectral method prove the existence of the theoretically predicted Oseen vortices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

OBJECTIVES Athletic performance and injury prevention are important for athletes and coaches. Different types of movement analyses have been created to aid in injury prevention and performance. The reliability of the Microsoft Kinect™ for movement analysis has not been widely tested. If reliable and accurate it could decrease the cost and time necessary for movement analysis. The purpose of this study was to determine if the Microsoft Kinect™ is an accurate measure of knee displacement during the parallel squat when compared to the Dartfish Team Pro Software 6.0. METHODS Twenty nine healthy recreational athletes participated in the study and used the Dartfish Team Pro Software 6.0 to validate the Microsoft Kinect™ as a tool to measure knee displacement. Subjects performed a parallel squat with a 2.1m long dowel rod. This exercise was used to compare value between systems. The intraclass correlation coefficient and paired-samples t-test were used to compare Dartfish Team Pro Software 6.0 and Microsoft Kinect™. Intrarater reliability of each system was also assessed. RESULTS There were 29 participants in the study. The interclass correlation coefficient for Dartfish Team Pro Software 6.0 and Microsoft Kinect™ showed that the Microsoft Kinect™ had a high-reliability ICC = 0.96. Intrarater reliability for Kinect™ and Dartfish were .98 and .99, respectively. The mean difference between systems for measured knee displacement was 1.06 cm. The mean for the Microsoft Kinect™ was 49.11 ± 1.9 and 50.16 ± 96 for the Dartfish (p > 0.05). CONCLUSIONS The Microsoft Kinect™ is reliable against the Dartfish Team Pro Software 6.0 as a tool to measure knee displacement using the parallel squat. It appears for healthy young adults, the Microsoft Kinect™ is reliable for movement analysis.

Objective: Standardization of and training in adult male circumcision can significantly reduce its complication rate. Currently no such program exists for its standardization and training, making it difficult to guarantee the quality of male circumcision services. We therefore established a standardized surgical protocol for adult male circumcision in China using the Shang Ring, and applied it to a clinical study examining the performance of the Shang Ring in adult male circumcision., Methods: A total of 328 adult men aged 18-58 (mean 27.8) years, 25 with phimosis and 303 with redundant prepuce, underwent circumcision with the Shang Ring, and evaluation of the operation time, pain scores (using the visual analog scale), postoperative complications, time for wound healing, and their satisfaction with the postoperative appearance., Results: The operation time was 4.7 +/- 1.3 minutes. The pain scores were 0. 2 +/- 0.6 during the surgery, 1.6 +/- 1.0 twenty hours postoperatively, 1.7 +/- 1.1 twenty hours prior to the ring removal, and 2.7 +/- 1.4 during the ring removal. Complications included infection in 2 (0.6%), bleeding in 2 (0.6%), and wound dehiscence in 2 (0.6%) of the patients. None of the patients with wound dehiscence required postoperative suturing and all were managed conservatively instead. Sixteen of the patients (4.9%) experienced penile edema. The time for complete wound healing after circumcision was 20.3 +/- 6.7 days. The rate of the patients'satisfaction was 99.7% (327/328)., Conclusion: The standard protocol of adult male circumcision with the Shang Ring has the advantages of short operation time, slight pain, low rate of complications, and high satisfaction and acceptance of the patients. Strict standardization of the surgical protocol can maximize its clinical advantages for adult male circumcision.

Although HIV is a significant problem in Africa, HIV infection rates are rising rapidly in other regions such as Asia and South America. International health organizations have recognized the need to develop effective strategies to check the worldwide transmission of HIV. Studies have demonstrated the significant reduction of HIV, HPV, HSV-2 and other STD infection rates with male circumcision (MC). Although numerous MC techniques are available, there are no standardized protocols and surgical training programs. Studies have shown that the standardization of MC techniques coupled with training programs can significantly reduce complication rates. High complication rates have been a primary obstacle to the implementation of MC services. We recommend the establishment of surgical standards and training protocols prior to the promotion of MC services in China.

Objective: To investigate the association between polymorphisms in the microsomal epoxide hydrolase (mEH) gene and susceptibility to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in a Chinese population., Methods: Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) were performed to genotype mEH polymorphisms in exon3 (Tyr113-->His) and exon4 (His139-->Arg) in 100 COPD patients and 100 age and sex matched healthy controls., Results: (1) The proportion of mEH heterozygotes in exon3 was significantly higher in the patients with COPD than that in the control subjects (42% vs 32%). The odds ratio (OR) adjusted by age, sex, body mass index (BMI) and cigarettes years was 2.96 (95% CI 1.24 - 7.09). (2) There was no marked difference in very slow activity genotype versus other genotypes between COPD patients and controls. (3) When COPD patients were nonsmokers, the OR of very slow activity genotype versus other genotypes was more than 1.00, and when COPD patients were smokers (Current smokers and ex-smokers), the OR was less than 1.00., Conclusions: (1) mEH heterozygotes in exon3 might be associated with the susceptibility to COPD in China. (2) The interaction might be existed between mEH genotype and smoke.

Objective: To investigate the association between polymorphisms in the gene coding for glutathione S-transferase P1 (GSTP1) and susceptibility to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in a Chinese population., Methods: This was a pilot study of the molecular epidemiology in patients with COPD. The research design was a case-control study. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) were performed to genotype GSTP1 polymorphisms in exon 5 in 100 COPD patients and 100 age and sex matched healthy controls. Logistic regression analysis method was used to calculate the odds ratio (OR) and the 95% confidence interval (CI)., Result: There was no significant difference in GSTP1 polymorphisms adjusted by age, sex, body mass index and smoking between COPD patients and controls., Conclusion: The gene polymorphism for GSTP1 was not associated with susceptibility to COPD in the Chinese population.