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Interregional neuronal communication is pivotal to instructing and adjusting cortical circuit assembly. Subcortical neuromodulatory systems project long-range axons to the cortex and affect cortical processing. However, their roles and signaling mechanisms in cortical wiring remain poorly understood. Here, we explored whether and how the cholinergic system regulates inhibitory axonal ramification of neocortical chandelier cells (ChCs), which control spike generation by innervating axon initial segments of pyramidal neurons. We found that acetylcholine (ACh) signaling through nicotinic ACh receptors (nAChRs) and downstream T-type voltage-dependent calcium (Ca 2+ ) channels cell-autonomously controls axonal arborization in developing ChCs through regulating filopodia initiation. This signaling axis shapes the basal Ca 2+ level range in varicosities where filopodia originate. Furthermore, the normal development of ChC axonal arbors requires proper levels of activity in subcortical cholinergic neurons. Thus, the cholinergic system regulates inhibitory network arborization in the developing neocortex and may tune cortical circuit properties depending on early-life experiences.

As Adam Smith memorably observed, commerce is replete with positive externalities (Smith, 1776). Much good comes to societies in which profit-seeking entrepreneurship flourishes, including gainful employment and the generation of income for expenditure on life’s necessities and luxury goods and services. Alas, the externalities are not always positive and individuals, groups and societies also suffer from the negative externalities of commerce. Lately there has been heightened concern that left to its own self-interested devices, commerce is responsible for increasing social and environmental harm. Porter and Kramer (2011) remark that “business increasingly has been viewed as a major cause of social, environmental, and economic problems. Companies are widely perceived to be prospering at the expense of the broader community” (p. 62).

'Transcend' comes from the Latin 'tran(s)cendere': 'to climb over or beyond, surmount.' Obsolete uses of 'transcend' reflect this origin, having to do with the surmounting of some obstacle. 'A transcends B' has also been used to imply the relative superiority of A to B. 'Transcendent' has had a technical use in philosophy, where it tends to represent that which falls outside the bounds of some standard classification. Running through the various senses of 'transcendent' is the idea of surmounting limits of various kinds. These may be spoken of in a 'neutral' or a 'loaded' way. In the loaded sense, limits constitute relative disabilities; in which case we are apt to call them 'limitations' . In general, transcendence has to do with rising above limits or limitations. Talk of divine transcendence broadly accords with this. God's being 'above', independent of and distinct from the world, may be construed as his being; unbounded in many ways that the world and its parts are bounded. [Please see pdf. for rest of abstract.]

This chapter is based on a case study of one UK university sociology department and shows how sociology knowledge can transform the lives of ‘non-traditional’ students. The research from which the case is drawn focused on four departments teaching sociology-related subjects in universities positioned differently in UK league tables. It explored the question of the relationship between university reputation, pedagogic quality and curriculum knowledge, challenging taken-for-granted judgements about ‘quality’ and in conceptualising ‘just’ university pedagogy by taking Basil Bernstein’s ideas about how ‘powerful’ knowledge is distributed in society to illuminate pedagogy and curriculum. The project took the view that ‘power’ lies in the acquisition of specific (inter)disciplinary knowledges which allows the formation of disciplinary identities by way of developing the means to think about and act in the world in specific ways. We chose to focus on sociology because (1) university sociology is taken up by all socio-economic classes in the UK and is increasingly taught in courses in which the discipline is applied to practice; (2) it is a discipline that historically pursues social and moral ambition which assists exploration of the contribution of pedagogic quality to individuals and society beyond economic goals; (3) the researchers teach and research sociology or sociology of education - an understanding of the subjects under discussion is essential to make judgements about quality. ‘Diversity’ was one of four case study universities. It ranks low in university league tables; is located in a large, multi-cultural English inner city; and, its students are likely to come from lower socio-economic and/or ethnic minority groups, as well as being the first in their families to attend university. To make a case for transformative teaching at Diversity, the chapter draws on longitudinal interviews with students, interviews with tutors, curriculum documents, recordings of teaching, examples of student work, and a survey. It establishes what we can learn from the case of sociology at Diversity, arguing that equality, quality and transformation for individuals and society are served by a university curriculum which is research led and challenging combined with pedagogical practices which give access to difficult-to-acquire and powerful knowledge.

As 2006 draws to a close, Current Oncology is marking its most successful year to date, with a record number of manuscripts submitted and a record number published. We are close to maintaining our objective of an eight-week turnaround for acceptances, and our electronic submission software at www.current-oncology.com is proving robust—although not without the occasional “issue.” But we are advised that an improved version is in the offing. The Editorial Board continues to grow in both quantity and quality, and I am particularly pleased to welcome Dr. Phil Gold, Douglas G. Cameron Professor of Medicine, McGill University, as Deputy Editor. Ongoing support from industry in the form of advertising revenue and unrestricted educational grants is a primary reason that Current Oncology continues to grow in strength and can be delivered without charge to its readership. The publisher and I therefore take this opportunity to express our gratitude for this support. From everyone at Current Oncology, best wishes to all for a happy and prosperous holiday season.

ILO pub-WEP pub. Working paper using a model to indicate development policy priorities by providing regional level forecasts of basic needs, income growth and income distribution requirements up to the year 2000 - constitutes part of a WEP research project on population and employment. References and statistical tables.

Objectives: Student evaluation of individual teachers is important in the quality improvement cycle. The aim of this study was to explore medical student and faculty perceptions of teacher evaluation in the light of dwindling participation in online evaluations. Methods: This study was conducted at the United Arab Emirates University College of Medicine & Health Sciences between September 2010 and June 2011. A 21-item questionnaire was used to investigate learner and faculty perceptions of teacher evaluation in terms of purpose, etiquette, confidentiality and outcome on a five-point Likert scale. Results: The questionnaire was completed by 54% of faculty and 23% of students. Faculty and students generally concurred that teachers should be evaluated by students but believed that the purpose of the evaluation should be explained. Despite acknowledging the confidentiality of online evaluation, faculty members were less sure that they would not recognise individual comments. While students perceived that the culture allowed objective evaluation, faculty members were less convinced. Although teachers claimed to take evaluation seriously, with Medical Sciences faculty members in particular indicating that they changed their teaching as a result of feedback, students were unsure whether teachers responded to feedback. Conclusion: Despite agreement on the value of evaluation, differences between faculty and student perceptions emerged in terms of confidentiality and whether evaluation led to improved practice. Educating both teachers and learners regarding the purpose of evaluation as a transparent process for quality improvement is imperative.

Background: Although a ‘patient-centred’ approach to general practice consultation is widely advocated, there is mixed evidence of its benefits.

To develop an interactive multimedia-based computer-aided instruction (CAI) programme, to determine its educational worth and efficacy in a multicultural academic environment and to evaluate its usage by students with differing levels of computer literacy.A prospective descriptive study evaluating pre- and post-module testing, student usage tracking and a questionnaire survey.University of Natal Medical School.Thirty-four volunteers from the class of 125 second-year M.B. Ch.B. students who participated in the CAI study; 13 of these were not computer-literate.The study group used the CAI module for 2 weeks as part of the course.Post-test scoring and evaluation of questionnaire responses.Results of pre- and post-tests show that CAI users' scores were slightly lower on pre-testing (22.1% v. 23.2%), while their post-test scores were higher (65.6% v. 60.7%). Lack of computer literacy did not restrict or hinder students in their use of the programme. Responses to a questionnaire completed by all CAI users indicate consensus that the programme helped the students to learn (94%), that it provided important basic knowledge (88%) and that it was a helpful learning experience (88%). All but 1 student wished to have more programmes like this available in histology.The CAI programme reduced the time spent by students in the histology microscopy laboratory and did not negatively affect their marks in post-course evaluation. The concept of multimedia-based CAI in medical education was positively received by the students who participated.

Mouse B cell precursors containing Ig DHJH junctions in one particular reading frame are selectively lost during B cell development. In this register, arbitrarily referred to as reading frame 2, DHJH junctions give rise to an open reading frame starting upstream of the DH element and including the DHJH-peptide fused to the constant region of IgM. Expression of this protein, called D mu, has been strongly implicated in the loss of B cell precursors containing reading frame 2 DHJH junctions. In an attempt to elucidate the means of D mu counterselection, we have examined the reading frame distribution of DHJH junctions in peripheral B cells from mice transgenic for either the human bcl-2 oncogene or for a functionally rearranged Ig mu heavy chain. In bcl-2 transgenic mice, reading frame 2 accounted for < 5% of the DHJH junctions in peripheral B cells, a value not significantly different from controls. Reading frames 1 and 3 were equally represented among the remaining junctions. By contrast, the reading frame distribution of endogenous DHJH junctions in splenic B cells from Ig mu heavy chain transgenic mice showed no evidence of bias against D mu encoding DHJH junctions. Reading frames 2 and 3 accounted for 27% and 30% of the sequenced DHJH junctions, respectively, and the remaining 43% were reading frame 1. Thus although the presence of BCL-2 cannot prevent the selective loss of reading frame 2 DHJH B cells, a functional mu heavy chain can. These results suggest that D mu-expressing B cell precursors may be selectively lost because of the premature and inappropriate cessation of heavy chain gene rearrangement rather than because of the induction of an apoptotic process which can be blocked by BCL-2.