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Il s’agit de tracer l’influence de François de Belleforest sur William Shakespeare à travers le personnage de Gertrude (nommé « Geruthe » chez Belleforest) dans la pièce Hamlet. S’appuyant sur la légende danoise originale de Saxo Grammaticus (Historia Danica), c’est Belleforest dans les Histoires tragiques qui donne une voix à celle qui est à la fois mère du protagoniste (se nommant « Amleth » chez Belleforest) et reine du Danemark. Par la suite, Shakespeare élabore et approfondit le portrait de Gertrude. S’inspirant largement de l’exemple de Belleforest, le dramaturge élisabéthain met en valeur la rupture psychologique entre Hamlet et sa mère, soulignant surtout l’évolution de leur rapport qui passe du conflit à la réconciliation au cours de la tragédie. La représentation belleforestienne de Geruthe comprend aussi son rôle ambigu dans les nombreux complots du roi contre Amleth. Ces manigances sont adaptées par Shakespeare pour augmenter la tension du drame et pour faire de Gertrude elle-même un personnage tragique.

In 1960 Stanley Milgram wondered if ordinary people would, as many Germans did during the Holocaust, obey higher orders to harm innocent people. Soon after, he ran the New Baseline experiment: at the behest of a scientific authority, 65 percent of subjects inflicted what appeared to be potentially lethal shocks on another person with a mild heart condition. Although, to date, there is no widely accepted explanation that can account for this finding, three theories continue to attract a disproportionate amount of attention: the Incredulity Hypothesis, Agentic State, and Engaged Followership. The aim of this paper is to present an overview of how Milgram invented his basic procedure and then use the insights gained from his journey of discovery as a foundation from which to critically review these three explanatory accounts. Succeeding this critical review, a lesser well-known theory will be presented; one that is supported by Milgram’s original results.

With the opening of Milgram’s personal archive, from the mid-1990s there has been a “second wave” of literature on the Obedience Studies. Some of this literature convincingly suggests Milgram’s research is so ethically and methodologically problematic that it does not deserve the enormous attention it receives. At the other end of the spectrum, some scholars argue there is still much to be learnt from these experiments. With such divergent (contradictory?) views, what is one to believe? After reviewing this literature, this article addresses two questions: are the Obedience Studies unethical and do they remain methodologically valid? This article concludes that although the Obedience Studies are, for many reasons, highly unethical, they remain methodologically valid. It also concludes that it is because of Milgram’s unethical practices that his research remains so relevant to the world beyond his laboratory walls.

The media today is full of violence and death, in films, world news, and in comic books. Not many citizens want their countries to go to war, but leaders and politicians spend vast amounts of money to increase the militarization of their country. The argument being to “prevent war”. The separation of women and children from the men in their families. Deaths and destruction. How can we understand “the reality surrounding us, the way we interact with it, and transform it.” This paper will discuss the relationship between women and war, based on various utopian and dystopian fictions, from Ruskin to today.

Abstract Background Bovine lactoferrin (Lf) is an iron absorbing whey protein with antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal activity. Lactoferrin is economically valuable and has an extremely variable concentration in milk, partly driven by environmental influences such as milking frequency, involution, or mastitis. A significant genetic influence has also been previously observed to regulate lactoferrin content in milk. Here, we conducted genetic mapping of lactoferrin protein concentration in conjunction with RNA-seq, ChIP-seq, and ATAC-seq data to pinpoint candidate causative variants that regulate lactoferrin concentrations in milk. Results We identified a highly-significant lactoferrin protein quantitative trait locus (pQTL), as well as a cis lactotransferrin (LTF) expression QTL (cis-eQTL) mapping to the LTF locus. Using ChIP-seq and ATAC-seq datasets representing lactating mammary tissue samples, we also report a number of regions where the openness of chromatin is under genetic influence. Several of these also show highly significant QTL with genetic signatures similar to those highlighted through pQTL and eQTL analysis. By performing correlation analysis between these QTL, we revealed an ATAC-seq peak in the putative promotor region of LTF, that highlights a set of 115 high-frequency variants that are potentially responsible for these effects. One of the 115 variants (rs110000337), which maps within the ATAC-seq peak, was predicted to alter binding sites of transcription factors known to be involved in lactation-related pathways. Conclusions Here, we report a regulatory haplotype of 115 variants with conspicuously large impacts on milk lactoferrin concentration. These findings could enable the selection of animals for high-producing specialist herds.

Este artigo explora a aplicação da abordagem decolonial nas práticas pedagógicas de professores brasileiros, com um foco especial nas complexidades do Atlântico Pós-colonial. A estratégia pedagógica proposta enfatiza a busca por interpretações simbólicas, estimulando a reflexão e a construção do saber dentro de um contexto educacional marcado pela diversidade cultural. Ao adotar uma abordagem interdisciplinar e crítica no ensino de Língua e Literatura, este estudo desafia as narrativas eurocêntricas, incentivando uma compreensão mais ampla sobre os impactos da colonização. O papel do professor como agente de transformação é crucial, destacando a importância da ressignificação de narrativas históricas em prol de uma pedagogia decolonial efetiva no Brasil.

There are numerous “positivity” movements circulating such as sex positivity and body positivity that affect how sexuality and bodies are discussed, including in educational contexts. These movements have provided alternative discourses that challenge constructions of sexualities and bodies as “dangerous”, aberrant, or “other”. There is potential for “food positivity” to do the same given how food is frequently constructed as “risky”, reflecting anxieties about industrial food production and the impacts of “bad” food on human health, appearance, and the environment. Food practices, and the discourses that support them act as moral signifiers and can be exclusionary, exacerbating marginalization and inequities. Alternatively, food pedagogies can prioritize inclusion, diversity, and sustainable, resilient communities. How might the discourses that circulate in post-secondary food education construct and support positive relationships with food? Two major, and largely silo-ed, fields in Canadian higher education are Nutritional Sciences and Food Studies. Using publicly available syllabi (n=97) from undergraduate courses across Canada, this study investigated how food positivity is being enacted. In Nutritional Sciences, food positivity emphasizes nutritionism ideology whereby the composition and quantity of nutrients can add up to an (undefined) healthy diet. In Food Studies, food positivity is associated with local, equity-promoting, and culturally-sensitive approaches. In both fields, “food negativity” also appears in relation to “obesogenic” foods and systems, revealing an underlying fatphobia. Greater transdisciplinary collaboration with Fat Studies would benefit both fields in enacting a broader and more inclusive food positivity.

This article reviews the two most recent English-language translations of medieval sagas of Icelandic bishops, both from 2021: Margaret Cormack's The Saga of St. Jón of Hólar, published with the Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies, and Theodore M. Andersson's Bishops in Early Iceland, published with the Viking Society for Northern Research. Both translations represent valuable new contributions to the field. In addition to a critical overview of these texts, the article overviews the history of English translations of the genre of medieval Icelandic bishops' sagas.

Abstract This special issue of Cadernos EBAPE.BR sought to provoke a reflection focused on uncertain consumption practices in an uncertain future. While prior marketing and consumer research has explored consumer practices framed by an institutionalized, known, and more or less predictable context, the set of articles approved in this edition reveals different nuances. From experiential accounts of grief to the role of music in coping with the struggles of isolation to the overlap of social roles, these papers may help us to reflect on what we can do together, as a society, to tackle the challenges brought by COVID-19 not only at the local level but also globally.

Abstract Background Milk samples from 10,641 dairy cattle were screened by a mass spectrometry method for extreme concentrations of the A or B isoforms of the whey protein, β-lactoglobulin (BLG), to identify causative genetic variation driving changes in BLG concentration. Results A cohort of cows, from a single sire family, was identified that produced milk containing a low concentration of the BLG B protein isoform. A genome-wide association study (GWAS) of BLG B protein isoform concentration in milk from AB heterozygous cows, detected a group of highly significant single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within or close to the BLG gene. Among these was a synonymous G/A variation at position + 78 bp in exon 1 of the BLG gene (chr11:103256256G > A). The effect of the A allele of this SNP (which we named B’) on BLG expression was evaluated in a luciferase reporter assay in transfected CHO-K1 and MCF-7 cells. In both cell types, the presence of the B’ allele in a plasmid containing the bovine BLG gene from -922 to + 898 bp (relative to the transcription initiation site) resulted in a 60% relative reduction in mRNA expression, compared to the plasmid containing the wild-type B sequence allele. Examination of a mammary RNAseq dataset (n = 391) identified 14 heterozygous carriers of the B’ allele which were homozygous for the BLG B protein isoform (BB’). The level of expression of the BLG B’ allele was 41.9 ± 1.0% of that of the wild-type BLG B allele. Milk samples from three cows, homozygous for the A allele at chr11:103,256,256 (B’B’), were analysed (HPLC) and showed BLG concentrations of 1.04, 1.26 and 1.83 g/L relative to a mean of 4.84 g/L in milk from 16 herd contemporaries of mixed (A and B) BLG genotypes. The mechanism by which B’ downregulates milk BLG concentration remains to be determined. Conclusions High-throughput screening and identification of outliers, enabled the discovery of a synonymous G > A mutation in exon 1 of the B allele of the BLG gene (B’), which reduced the milk concentration of β-lactoglobulin B protein isoform, by more than 50%. Milk from cows carrying the B’ allele is expected to have improved processing characteristics, particularly for cheese-making.

ABSTRACT This article reports on a preliminary investigation into the language practices of three groups of deaf learners of English, all users of British Sign Language (BSL), and myself as their tutor in an adult education setting. These practices were explored through the lens of translanguaging, viewed as both a description of a linguistic process, and a theory of language, to learn more about how we draw on the totality of our resources to communicate and make meaning. The purpose of this investigation was to learn more about how BSL and English are used together in the same context and how that interplay works to our advantage. Additionally, consideration was also given to the contribution manually-coded English systems such as Sign Supported English (SSE) and Signed English (SE) make, together with the other written and sign languages, as well as gesture, enactment, pointing and other semiotic resources. Video recorded interactional data were collected from the classroom and supported by reflective notes and lesson plans. Both the video data, uploaded for analysis to ELAN, a multi-media annotation tool for creating time-aligned transcripts that supports a tier-based data model, and the written data corpus were examined using a thematic analysis. The findings revealed an illuminating picture of the interplay between languages, but also a movement beyond language as part of a broader semiotic repertoire to construct meaning in the classroom.

Andrew Chadwick’s view of today’s “hybrid media system,” as outlined first in his 2013 book of the same name, has moved scholars to understand how changes in politics are linked to changes in communication infrastructures and tools and to the ways people negotiate power in the networked media environment. His work has provided readers with a blueprint to follow that moves focus beyond the usual categories of media and the usual sites of power. In this interview, conducted in November, 2019, Chadwick discusses what he calls “dysfunctional hybridity” and the urgency that kind of hybridity brings to the need to update our thinking about media, power and society.

Abstract Expert forecasts by consumer researchers and epidemiologists, consumer forecasts, and evidence from China are used to assess how consumer behavior will change after the pandemic subsides. Then hopes for bigger ideas are assessed including really addressing climate change, moving away from fossil fuels, addressing income inequality with a guaranteed income, and decoupling the economy from growth.

Abstract Background In tropically-adapted beef heifers, application of genomic prediction for age at puberty has been limited due to low prediction accuracies. Our aim was to investigate novel methods of pre-selecting whole-genome sequence (WGS) variants and alternative analysis methodologies; including genomic best linear unbiased prediction (GBLUP) with multiple genomic relationship matrices (MGRM) and Bayesian (BayesR) analyses, to determine if prediction accuracy for age at puberty can be improved. Methods Genotypes and phenotypes were obtained from two research herds. In total, 868 Brahman and 960 Tropical Composite heifers were recorded in the first population and 3695 Brahman, Santa Gertrudis and Droughtmaster heifers were recorded in the second population. Genotypes were imputed to 23 million whole-genome sequence variants. Eight strategies were used to pre-select variants from genome-wide association study (GWAS) results using conditional or joint (COJO) analyses. Pre-selected variants were included in three models, GBLUP with a single genomic relationship matrix (SGRM), GBLUP MGRM and BayesR. Five-way cross-validation was used to test the effect of marker panel density (6 K, 50 K and 800 K), analysis model, and inclusion of pre-selected WGS variants on prediction accuracy. Results In all tested scenarios, prediction accuracies for age at puberty were highest in BayesR analyses. The addition of pre-selected WGS variants had little effect on the accuracy of prediction when BayesR was used. The inclusion of WGS variants that were pre-selected using a meta-analysis with COJO analyses by chromosome, fitted in a MGRM model, had the highest prediction accuracies in the GBLUP analyses, regardless of marker density. When the low-density (6 K) panel was used, the prediction accuracy of GBLUP was equal (0.42) to that with the high-density panel when only six additional sequence variants (identified using meta-analysis COJO by chromosome) were included. Conclusions While BayesR consistently outperforms other methods in terms of prediction accuracies, reasonable improvements in accuracy can be achieved when using GBLUP and low-density panels with the inclusion of a relatively small number of highly relevant WGS variants.

Turf is not a material frequently associated with construction. However, as a cheap, easily available, and versatile material it was used in antiquity (and has been used in various contexts since) to form unit-based and mass walls, embankments, and ramparts. Some of the best-preserved evidence for historical turf use comes from the Roman period, when it was a mainstay of military construction, being widely used in forts (e.g. along the Rhine and in Britain) and large-scale linear earthworks, most notably thewalls of Hadrian (northern England) and Antoninus Pius (central Scotland). To our knowledge, turf has never been examined as a construction material; its interest has, until now, been restricted to the soil and agricultural sciences and sports engineering. This paper presents the first exploration of turf water retention properties, assessed to understand whether turf behaviour can be collated with that of more traditionalearthen materials, for example cob or rammed earth. Tensiometer and psychrometer methods were used to estimate the water retention curves of turf, representative of that used for construction, harvested from two sites near Crieff, Scotland. The obtained data were analysed in terms of unimodal type functions to understand qualities of the full range of the soil water retention curve for Scottish turf. This work supports a larger project examining how engineering materials principles can explain ancient construction practices. In so doing, we will be well positioned to reintroduce this low-carbon material to the modern construction market.

A water retention curve (WRC) enables the quick determination of suction in a soil or tailings using the gravimetric water content or degree of saturation. However, establishing the WRC is reliant on time consuming laboratory testing. Here an empirical method is presented that allows the WRC to be estimated quickly, including its void ratio dependency, by relating the fractal and other characteristics of the soil or tailings particle size distributions (PSD) to the parameters which define the WRC. The defining parameters, from a fractal mathematics viewpoint, depend on the particle and pore surface areas and shapes as well as their fractal dimensions. More generally, the clay percentage must also have an important role as it has a major influence on these properties, especially the surface areas. Twelve WRCs for soils and tailings were compiled and compared and used to establish the new empirical expressions. Estimated WRCs using these new empirical expressions compare well with those fitted directly to experimental results. Guidelines are also given on how to quantify suction’s contribution to strength using the location of the hydraulic state on the WRC, adding to the practical appeal of this work.

Instabilities mostly happen in fully saturated and loose non-cohesive geomaterials like sands or silts or tailings, but it is also possible in unsaturated geomaterials. When unsaturated they can experience a reduction in effective stress and strain soften during water (and air) undrained loading, attaining a very low residual strength. This study focuses on modelling the conditions required to cause instability in unsaturated silty tailings, giving particular consideration to the presence of air and the way it alters the ability for volume change when it remains trapped inside the tailings. A gold tailings is used to calibrate the UNSW boundingsurface plasticity model. The effect of air, including the volumetric change caused by air compression, the alteration of air pressure, the contribution of suction to the effective stress, and suction hardening, are explored. Collapse lines (sometimes referred to as instability lines or flow liquefaction lines which represent boundaries between stable and potentially unstable stress states) in the 𝑞𝑞 − 𝑝𝑝′ plane are explored. The undrained shear strength ratios and slopes of the collapse lines are compared to those of other tailings andsands when unsaturated.

Laboratory-controlled cone penetration test results of a silty gold tailings in a variety of saturated and unsaturated states, obtained using two calibration chambers, are presented then interpreted using a state parameter-based approach. The research was conducted as part of the TAILLIQ project (tailliq.com), funded by the Australian Research Council and six mining companies, and involving four Australian universities.Cone penetration resistances, which increase due to the presence of suction when the tailings are unsaturated, can be normalised using the initial mean effective stress to establish a relationship with the initial state parameter. The relationship is applicable to saturated and unsaturated conditions, as long as the presence of suction hardening as well as the influence of suction on the mean effective stress are accounted for, and as long as the cone penetrations occur under pseudo drained conditions. The relationships enable state parameters and void ratios to be back-calculated from normalised cone penetration resistances.

Unsaturated loess and loess-derived soils in the Akaroa harbour area of New Zealand are vulnerable to shallow landsliding during rainfall events. Laboratory testing and long-term field instrumentation has been conducted to characterise the water retention and unsaturated shear strength of these materials, and better understand temporal changings in slope stability. Laboratory test results indicate that the same soil-water characteristic curve can be applied to both recompacted and intact loess when suction is normalised by the air entry value. Conversely the stress-strain behaviours of the recompacted and intact loess were different due to the unique microstructure of the intact loess that contributes to its shear strength. Long-term field instrumentation data showed that, for the duration of the monitoring period, the hydraulic state of the loess remained on a scanning curve. These data, combined with the laboratory testing, confirm that temporal variation in slope stability can be attributed to seasonal variability in suction and its contribution to unsaturated shear strength. These hydromechanical variabilities, resulting from wetting and drying, are affected by rainfall intensity and duration that occurs at the site.

Oxford Economics forecasts that concrete construction will grow by 85% to USD 8 trillion worldwide by 2030 and will lead to significant usage of Portland cement (PC). Every 1 kg of PC production generates ≈0.8 kg of CO2, which is about 1.5 Gt of CO2 emission per year for PC production. One of the ways to reduce the carbon footprint of concrete is by sequestrating CO2 using of the following approaches: (i) pre-carbonation; (ii) wet-carbonation; or (iii) CO2 curing of concrete in various types of carbonation chambers. The efficiency of these methods is measured by calculating CO2 Sequestration Factor (CSF). It is reported that the CSF of carbonation curing approach is 10 to 15%. However, it was found that the method used for calculating CSF does not consider the un-carbonated parts of the specimens, hence it does not represent the actual efficiency of the CO2 sequestration methods. Therefore, modification for calculating the CSF is proposed in this paper. Using the modified method, it was found that the CSF of carbonation curing method is less than 2% and wet carbonation is the most efficient method (≈30%). Further, a way forward is proposed to enhance the CO2 sequestration in concrete, which will not compromise fresh or hardened properties of concrete and would significantly contribute to the net zero carbon agenda compared to existing approaches

Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen, além de poemas, escreveu uma série de ensaios que, embora não estejam ainda copilados em livro, mostram a proximidade de sua voz com a de outros autores em língua portuguesa, como Cecília Meireles. O encontro desta com aquela, que nunca se deu fisicamente, não deixou de acontecer e de ser celebrado na poesia, que permitiu, sobretudo para Sophia, a reflexão sobre o seu próprio lirismo.

Abstract Background White spotting of the coat is a characteristic trait of various domestic species including cattle and other mammals. It is a hallmark of Holstein–Friesian cattle, and several previous studies have detected genetic loci with major effects for white spotting in animals with Holstein–Friesian ancestry. Here, our aim was to better understand the underlying genetic and molecular mechanisms of white spotting, by conducting the largest mapping study for this trait in cattle, to date. Results Using imputed whole-genome sequence data, we conducted a genome-wide association analysis in 2973 mixed-breed cows and bulls. Highly significant quantitative trait loci (QTL) were found on chromosomes 6 and 22, highlighting the well-established coat color genes KIT and MITF as likely responsible for these effects. These results are in broad agreement with previous studies, although we also report a third significant QTL on chromosome 2 that appears to be novel. This signal maps immediately adjacent to the PAX3 gene, which encodes a known transcription factor that controls MITF expression and is the causal locus for white spotting in horses. More detailed examination of these loci revealed a candidate causal mutation in PAX3 (p.Thr424Met), and another candidate mutation (rs209784468) within a conserved element in intron 2 of MITF transcripts expressed in the skin. These analyses also revealed a mechanistic ambiguity at the chromosome 6 locus, where highly dispersed association signals suggested multiple or multiallelic QTL involving KIT and/or other genes in this region. Conclusions Our findings extend those of previous studies that reported KIT as a likely causal gene for white spotting, and report novel associations between candidate causal mutations in both the MITF and PAX3 genes. The sizes of the effects of these QTL are substantial, and could be used to select animals with darker, or conversely whiter, coats depending on the desired characteristics.

Abstract Background Over many years, artificial selection has substantially improved milk production by cows. However, the genes that underlie milk production quantitative trait loci (QTL) remain relatively poorly characterised. Here, we investigate a previously reported QTL located at the CSF2RB locus on chromosome 5, for several milk production phenotypes, to better understand its underlying genetic and molecular causes. Results Using a population of 29,350 taurine dairy cows, we conducted association analyses for milk yield and composition traits, and identified highly significant QTL for milk yield, milk fat concentration, and milk protein concentration. Strikingly, protein concentration and milk yield appear to show co-located yet genetically distinct QTL. To attempt to understand the molecular mechanisms that might be mediating these effects, gene expression data were used to investigate eQTL for 11 genes in the broader interval. This analysis highlighted genetic impacts on CSF2RB and NCF4 expression that share similar association signatures to those observed for lactation QTL, strongly implicating one or both of these genes as responsible for these effects. Using the same gene expression dataset representing 357 lactating cows, we also identified 38 novel RNA editing sites in the 3′ UTR of CSF2RB transcripts. The extent to which two of these sites were edited also appears to be genetically co-regulated with lactation QTL, highlighting a further layer of regulatory complexity that involves the CSF2RB gene. Conclusions This locus presents a diversity of molecular and lactation QTL, likely representing multiple overlapping effects that, at a minimum, highlight the CSF2RB gene as having a causal role in these processes.

Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi’s novel Kintu (2014) places alongside forms of historical fiction familiar to European readers, a form of historical causality that obeys a different logic, namely, one governed by the long-term efficacity of a curse uttered in pre-colonial Buganda. The novel can be read as a historiographical experiment. It sets in a relationship of ‘proximity’ linear historical narration as understood within the framework of European historicism and the genre of the historical novel theorised by Lukács, and notions of magical ‘verbal-incantatory’ and ‘somatic’ history that elude the logic of hegemonic European historicism but nonetheless cohabit the same fictional space. Makumbi’s novel thus sketches an ‘entanglement’ of various historical temporalities that are articulated upon one another within the capacious realm of fiction, thereby reinforcing a cosmic ontology and axiology of reciprocity and fluid duality whose infringement in fact triggers the curse at the origin of the narrative.

El concepto de legitimidad democrática, tal como se aplica a los servicios de inteligencia de un país, aún no se ha definido ni sus factores contribuyentes están sistemáticamente aislados y operacionalizados. Los acontecimientos recientes en Colombia son la oportunidad para intentar hacer esas dos cosas. Los servicios de inteligencia legítimamente democráticos satisfacen la necesidad de información y análisis de un país, de acuerdo con la aplicación de principios internacionales de derechos humanos, para preservar y proteger un sistema de gobierno de soporte constitucional. El concepto de legitimidad combina el respeto mutuo y la rendición de cuentas de legalidad existente entre la administración política de un país y sus ciudadanos, y las acciones y reputación a largo plazo de sus servicios de inteligencia. Tres elementos contribuyen a la evaluación de la legitimidad de la inteligencia colombiana: primero, a medida que los profesionales reflexionan sobre su entorno laboral, las memorias publicadas ilustran los aspectos sociales y culturales de la vida en los servicios de inteligencia. Segundo, el marco legal legitimante –la Ley de Inteligencia de Colombia 1621 del 2013 y las medidas del país para llevar a cabo y monitorear las actividades de inteligencia– indican un nivel de buena disposición institucional. Tercero, los artículos en línea de tres años antes y después de la promulgación de la ley de 2013, publicados por tres importantes medios de comunicación impresa, proporcionan datos empíricos. La legitimidad de los servicios de inteligencia colombianos ha aumentado desde la promulgación de la ley de inteligencia. El logro de una mayor libertad de expresión entre periodistas ha conducido a un aumento convincente en la cobertura de asuntos de inteligencia en Colombia.

INTRODUCTION: Chronic subdural hematoma is not uncommon in sub-Saharan Africa and has a striking morbidity and mortality if not managed adequately. With the limited number of neurosurgeons in resource poor countries, general surgeons should be trained in the skills of craniotomy and burr-hole craniostomy. METHODS: we conducted a retrospective review of all medical records of patients with CSHD, who underwent flap craniotomy at the Choithrams Memorial Hospital, Sierra Leone, between January 2016 and March 2018. The case notes, operative records and computerized axial tomography (CT) scans were reviewed and all pertinent data extracted. RESULTS: a total of 23 patients had surgical drainage of the CSHD. The mean age of the patients was 65.8 years (ranging from 54 -78) with a male: female ratio of 3.2:1. The main predisposing risk factors were head trauma (60.9%) and antiplatelet medications (39.1%). Hypertension was the most common comorbid disease, followed by diabetes mellitus. Ten (62.5%) out of sixteen patients referred for Head CT-scan by the primary physicians, had an initial missed clinical diagnosis until CT scan confirmation report of CSDH was obtained. Flap craniotomy under general anesthesia with a subdural drainage left in situ (100%) was done for all patients. Duration of Intensive Care Unit admission was a mean of 10.6 days (range 6-16 days with twenty-one (91.3%) patients recovering fully. There was a favorable outcome in 95.6% of patients with a recurrence rate of 4.3% and mortality of 0%. CONCLUSION: flap craniotomy for CSDH was safely performed by a trauma general surgeon in a developing country where there is no neuro-surgical service. The outcome of the patients was favorable as there was co-management with the surgical and medical team.

Background: The Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine expanded its medical education across three campus sites (Hamilton, Niagara Regional and Waterloo Regional) in 2007. Ensuring the efficacy and equivalency of the quality of training are important accreditation considerations in distributed medical education. In addition, given the social accountability mission implicit to distributed medical education, the proportion of learners at each campus that match to family medicine residency programs upon graduation is of particular interest. Methods: By way of between campus comparisons of Canadian Residency Matching Service (CaRMS) match rates, this study investigates the family medicine match proportion of medical students from McMaster’s three medical education campuses. These analyses are further supported by between campus comparisons of Personal Progress Index (PPI), Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE), Medical Council of Canada Qualifying Examination-Part 1 (MCCQE1) performances that offer insight into the equivalency and efficacy of the educational outcomes at each campus. Results: The Niagara Regional Campus (NRC) demonstrated a significantly greater proportion of students matched to family medicine. With respect to education equivalency, the proportion of students’ PPI scores that were more than two SD below the mean was comparable across campuses. OSCE analysis yielded less than 2% differences across campuses with no differences in the last year of training. The MCCQE1 pass rates were not statistically significant between campuses and there were no differences in CaRMS match rates. With respect to education efficacy, there were no differences among the three campuses’ pass rates on the MCCQE1 and CaRMS match rates with the national rates. Conclusions: Students in all campuses received equivalent educational experiences and were efficacious when compared to national metrics, while residency matches to family medicine were greater in the NRC. The reasons for this difference may be a factor of resident and leadership role-models as well as the local hospital and community environment.

We created a clinical ultrasound (CUS) elective in clerkship, which gave medical students the opportunity to enhance their knowledge and technical skills while refining their CUS-related clinical decision making. This elective uniquely allowed medical students to integrate their CUS knowledge and skills into real patient care within the clinical environment (discipline) of their choice. As such, beyond supporting increasing technical competence, students learned to advocate for appropriate use of CUS, an important skill for trainees to develop.

Background: International health experiences (IHEs) are popular among medical learners and provide a valuable learning experience. IHE participants have demonstrated an increased intention to care for underserved populations in the future, but what is its actual impact on practice? This study evaluates the effect of postgraduate IHE participation on the future careers of clinicians regarding their work among underserved populations. Methods: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of peer-reviewed articles comparing the populations served by physicians who had participated in an IHE with those of physicians who had not participated in an IHE. Results: 764 titles were scanned, 28 articles were reviewed, with an eventual 3 studies of fair-good or good quality identified. These addressed physicians’ service to domestic underserved populations, and also addressed future service in a low- or middle-income country (LMIC). Meta-analysis demonstrated a statistically-significant increase in service by IHE graduates to domestic underserved populations (OR = 2.12; CI = 95%; P = 0.03). The certainty of the evidence was low due to limitations in study design (non-randomised studies) and inconsistency in effects. Conclusion: Participation in an IHE may cause an increase in care for domestic underserved populations in future clinical practice, though further research from high quality randomised trials is needed to increase the certainty of the effect. Further study is needed to establish whether there is a similar effect with increased future service in a LMIC setting

Feminist activism has played an important role in documenting, highlighting and challenging carceral violence against women within and beyond prison walls. Using the campaign against the punitive segregation of women in high-security men’s prisons in the 1980s and 1990s in Victoria, Australia, as a case study, we illustrate the value of the activist archive for critical prisons research. The activist archive has the potential to expose continuities in carceral violence, highlight the limitations and potentialities of legal and official oversight processes, and debunk official rhetoric of the prison’s reformative and rehabilitative potential. Our discussion demonstrates the extent to which the activist archive can yield a powerful arsenal of accounts, critiques and organising strategies for anti-carceral feminist movements. El activismo feminista ha desempeñado un importante papel a la hora de documentar, subrayar y cuestionar la violencia carcelaria contra las mujeres, dentro y fuera de las prisiones. Utilizando como estudio de caso la campaña contra la segregación punitiva de mujeres en prisiones de alta seguridad para hombres en los años 80 y 90 en Victoria, Australia, ilustramos el valor del archivo del activismo para la investigación crítica sobre las prisiones. Dicho archivo tiene el potencial de exponer la continuidad de la violencia carcelaria, subrayar las limitaciones y potencialidades de los procesos de revisión legales y oficiales, y desmontar el discurso oficial sobre la capacidad reformatoria y rehabilitadora de la prisión. Nuestra tesis demuestra que el archivo activista puede dotar al movimiento feminista anticarcelario de un rico muestrario de testimonios, críticas y estrategias organizativas. DOWNLOAD THIS PAPER FROM SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=3099424

People experiencing homelessness are known to be highly food insecure, but outside of emergency aid little is known about their overall experiences with food, particularly in Canada’s northern communities. This study examined experiences that influenced access to food for people experiencing homelessness in a small city in northern British Columbia. Early findings underscored the importance of the impacts of colonization when seeking to understand food access in this context, and the value of lived experiences (including people with experiences of homelessness) when seeking to understand Indigenous food systems and food sovereignty as part of a re-emerging food system. The research drew on ethnography and case study methodology with modified community mapping to explore the food systems of the participants, who identified as First Nations, Métis or had mixed Indigenous and European ancestry. A focus group and subsequent interviews revealed a dynamic and complex food system. The flexible research design enabled participants to creatively express the food-related issues, challenges and successes most pertinent to their lives. Key food-related themes were social connections, as well as connections to the land and to culture. Participants’ experiences, actions and desires regarding food, health and well-being highlighted Indigenous food sovereignty as an overarching concept which offers an adaptable, holistic approach that can accommodate complexity. It is a valuable direction for future research and practice seeking to improve food security and health.

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Beards are a sort of dwelling. Much like Heidegger's linguistic play with related etymologies of building and dwelling, beards are in a constant state of becoming, forever changing length, shape, and color. To the person—usually, but not always, a man—who grows a beard, the end product is always projected out into the future, like Heidegger’s concept of being. The beard is trimmed and groomed constantly; it is cultivated in a way that feels authentic to its wearer. But the same ontological problems that Heidegger applies to dwelling in a home also apply to beards. Long facial hair symbolizes wisdom in many cultures, but anyone who has grown a beard can attest to the existential dilemma of long facial hair. I didn’t recognize you with the beard, someone will say. Beards can serve as symbols of erudition, yes, but they are also masks for our social selves. The beard is, after all, is a curious appendage, as it is an extension of the self, but not the self per se. Herman Melville called beards “suburbs of the chin.” If, like Heidegger, we are to see being as not a fixed entity divorced from other beings, but a being-in-the-world, a set of relations among other beings, then beards are not simply static accessories or styles, but an example of the slippery nature of being itself.

The publicly accessible archive of Landsat imagery and increasing regional-scale LiDAR acquisitions offer an opportunity to periodically estimate aboveground forest biomass (AGB) from 1990 to the present to align with the reporting needs of National Greenhouse Gas Inventories (NGHGIs). This study integrated Landsat time-series data, a state-wide LiDAR dataset, and a recent cycle of the national forest inventory (NFI) records in Minnesota, USA, to obtain a spatially explicit inventory of AGB across a large region of space and time back to the 1990 baseline used by the US NGHGI. Pixel-level polynomial models were fit to 6 time-series metrics of Landsat data to obtain fitted predictors that were ultimately coupled with the NFI data in a nonparametric modeling framework to map temporal AGB baselines. Eighteen candidate models, formulated using different combinations of LiDAR and Landsat metrics, revealed that the model using both Landsat and LiDAR metrics consistently performed better than the alternative models. The RMSE of the model using both Landsat and LiDAR was 27.2 Mg ha−1, against 31.39 Mg ha−1 for the model using only LiDAR metrics. We conclude that the fitted Landsat-based model (RMSE = 47.64 Mg ha−1) provides acceptable accuracy for the 1990-baseline mapping of AGB.

Negative attitudes and beliefs about individuals with obesity (also known as weight bias) have negative consequences for physical and mental health for individuals with obesity and impact the quality of care provided by health professionals. A preliminary environmental scan of college and university training programs was conducted consisting of 67 degree and diploma granting programs from 22 institutions in Alberta, targeting programs training future health professionals. Publicly available online course descriptions were examined for weight-related keywords. Keyword frequency was used to determine the extent that coursework addressed weight-related issues. The results suggested that courses are structured to include learning about general health promotion as well as lifestyle factors that may contribute to obesity but may not systematically include learning about weight bias or its potential impact. Our findings highlight the need for further in-depth investigations as well as the need to enhance current curricula in higher education by including information related to weight, obesity and weight bias. Les attitudes et les croyances négatives concernant les personnes obèses (également connues comme partialité contre les obèses) ont des conséquences négatives sur la santé physique et mentale des personnes obèses et affectent la qualité des soins qui leur sont prodigués par les professionnels de la santé. Nous avons mené une étude environnementale préliminaire des programmes de formation universitaires et collégiaux qui a porté sur 67 programmes menant à un certificat ou à un diplôme dans 22 établissements d’Alberta, et nous avons principalement visé les programmes de formation de futurs professionnels de la santé. Les descriptions de cours en ligne accessibles au grand public ont été examinées et les mots clés faisant référence aux problèmes de poids ont été identifiés. Les résultats suggèrent que les cours sont structurés de manière à inclure l’apprentissage de la promotion de la santé en général ainsi que les facteurs relatifs au style de vie qui peuvent contribuer à l’obésité mais ils n’incluent pas l’apprentissage systématique de la partialité contre les obèses ou ses effets potentiels. Nos résultats illustrent le besoin de mener des enquêtes approfondies ainsi que celui de renforcer les programmes de cours actuels en enseignement supérieur pour y inclure des informations relatives au poids, à l’obésité et à la partialité contre les obèses.

Swahili, a national and official language in Kenya, is in wide use in the country as an inter-ethnic medium of communication and, generally, as a lingua franca. The operative language policy for lower primary – up to grade three – provides for the use of languages of the catchment as languages of instruction. The languages of the catchment refer to the more than 42 indigenous languages spoken in the country. The purpose of this study was to determine and discuss institutional and extra-institutional factors that might favour adoption of Swahili as the best medium – in the current sociolinguistic realities – in the ‘language-of-the-catchment-based’ literacy learning in Ekegusii-speaking areas of western Kenya. Data were obtained through classroom observations, teacher and church leaders’ interviews, observation and analysis of language trends at church worship services, and critical literature review. Findings indicate that acquisition-based factors, attitude-based factors, technical factors, and statutory factors – all supported by second language learning theory and research in diverse settings – are in favour of Swahili being used in Gusii as the language of the catchment. We observe that, in the absence of compelling conditions against the foregoing factors, the language might not bear significant adverse learning consequences on learners at the basic education level in the region. We do, however, state that the use of Ekegusii (the mother tongue) for early literacy teaching would have been the best choice were it not for the local sociolinguistic dynamics and the prevailing technical factors.

Background: Increasing numbers of residency graduates desire global health (GH) fellowship training. However, the full extent of training options is not clear. Objective: To identify clinical GH fellowships in all specialties in the U.S. and Canada and to describe their demographics, innovative features, and challenges. Methods: The authors surveyed program directors or designees from GH fellowships with a web-based tool in 2017. Program directors reported demographics and program characteristics. Results: The authors identified 85 potential programs. Fifty-four programs (63.5%) responded confirming 50 fellowships. The number of U.S. GH fellowship programs increased by 89.7% since 2010. One-third of fellowships accepted graduates from more than one specialty. The most common single-specialty programs were Emergency Medicine or Family Medicine. Fellowship duration was most commonly 24 months. Median size was one fellow per year. Funding and lack of qualified applicants were significant challenges. Most programs were funded through fellow billing for patient care or other means of self-support. Conclusions: The number of U.S. and Canadian GH fellowship programs has nearly doubled since 2010. Programs reported lack of funding and qualified applicants as their most significant challenges. Consensus amongst stakeholders regarding training requirements may improve outcomes for future fellows, their employers, and the patients they serve.