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The concept of rationality is broad and has attracted elaborate, critical discussions by numerous philosophers and social thinkers over the years. A paper such as this is thus incapable of dealing exhaustively with the concept. Nonetheless, it attempts to interpret the Akan conception of rationality. It begins with an explanation of how rational beliefs and actions are determined in Akan thought, arguing that logical rules including some of the rules that apply without exception to any subject matter of thought are respected in the assessment of beliefs and actions in Akan culture. From this practical dimension of rationality, the paper proceeds to the conceptual sense of rationality where all humans are deemed as rational (irrespective of the way they act). Here, the paper shows how Akan conception of rationality encompasses or revolves around morality, pointing out that this moral foundation of rationality makes the Akan perspective quite different from that of the West, as particularly expressed by Aristotle. In spite of the conceptual inseparability of rationality from morality, Akan thought recognizes a practical separation and possible clash between the two. In such a situation, the latter is preferred. Finally, this paper corrects some misconceptions concerning rationality in African thought that undermine the basic rational cum moral identity of the human being held in Akan thought, in favor of emotional identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Al-Qadisiah Medical Journal is the property of Republic of Iraq Ministry of Higher Education & Scientific Research (MOHESR) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Arguments against the practice of religion and, in general, against belief in metaphysical entities have been made in different cultures and at different times in human history. This article, however, does not offer a historical outline of such arguments. Rather, it reflects on some contemporary remarks made, especially in Western thought, against religion. It illustrates how a correct understanding of Traditional Akan Religion renders untrue claims that seek to dismiss religion on the grounds of irrationality. Utilising philosophical reflection, it shows how justifiable (or rational) belief in a Traditional African Religion such as the Akan one is. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: the wound infection is the most common complication following operation for perforated appendix. Drainage and systemic antibiotic agents have not altered the incidence of wound sepsis in cases of perforated appendicitis with primary wound closure. Aims of study: to study the delayed primary wound closure in preventing wound infection in cases of perforated appendicitis. Patients and methods: This is a prospective study conducted on 216 patients with appendicitis who underwent operation at surgical wards of Al - Yarmouk Teaching Hospital, from January 2005- august 2008. The range of age from 11- 56year, mean age was 33.5 years. For comparison purposes, the patients were divided into three groups: Group I:- uncomplicated (non perforated) appendicitis. Group II:- perforated appendicitis were treated with appendicectomy and primary wound closure. Group III: perforated appendicitis who were treated with appendicectomy and delayed primary wound closure. All the three groups patients were treated in the following manner:- Grid-iron incision done. Aspiration or swabs of peritoneal fluid or pus and appendix stump and wound edges were taken &send to the laboratory &cultured for aerobic and anaerobic bacteria, appendicectomy done after ligation of the mesoappendix and tube drains used. Results: There were no deaths encountered in the series of 216 patients. Wound infection was defined as any purulent discharge from the wound requiring drainage or repeated dressing, or any collection of purulent exudates in the wound requiring repeated dressing or drainage. Group I:-wound infection occurred in5.26%. Group II:- wound infection was noted in29.03%. Group III. wound infection occurred in 3.03%. Conclusion: the wound becomes contaminated during operation for perforated appendix by manipulation and seepage of purulent exudates into the wound. Primary closure of such a wound creates a potential closed space for infection. The high incidence 29.o3% of superficial wound infection occurring in group II bears out this observation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Contemporary Journal of African Studies is the property of Institute of African Studies and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

We demonstrate a three-step laser stabilization scheme for excitation to nP and nF Rydberg states in Rb, with all three lasers stabilized using active feedback to independent Rb vapor cells. The setup allows stabilization to the Rydberg states 36P-70P and 33F-90F, with the only limiting factor being the available third step laser power. We study the scheme by monitoring the three laser frequencies simultaneously against a self-referenced optical frequency comb. The third step laser, locked to the Rydberg transition, displays an Allan deviation of 30 kHz over 1 second and <80 kHz over 1 hour. The scheme is very robust and affordable, and it would be ideal for carrying out a range of quantum information experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Unlabelled: A new autosomal recessive syndrome of chronic recurrent multifocal osteomyelitis (CRMO) and congenital dyserythropoietic anaemia (CDA) with microcytosis has recently been described in four children (two sibships) of one consangineous Arab family. In this report, we describe the clinical features and course of the syndrome of CRMO and CDA in two additional patients (one sibship) from another consanguineous Arab family and review the literature. The two patients (brother and sister), the products of a consanguineous marriage, developed the syndrome at an early age of 3 weeks and 2 months respectively. The diagnosis of CRMO was confirmed by radiological and technetium isotope bone scans. Bone marrow studies confirmed the diagnosis of CDA. Peripheral blood films showed hypochromia and microcytosis. The sites involved by CRMO were periarticular, mainly around the elbow, knee, wrist and small joints of the hand. The brother is now 21 years old and the sister 3.5 years old and CRMO is still active with frequent relapses. The brother developed flexion deformities at the age of 13 years. Both patients failed to thrive; weight and height were below the 5th percentile.Conclusion: This is the second report of the syndrome of chronic recurrent multifocal osteomyelitis and microcytic congenital dyserythropoietic anaemia, confirming it as a clinical entity, inherited as an autosomal recessive trait. The disease is characterised by an early onset, long clinical course of remissions and relapses, and seems to be different from the sporadic form of chronic recurrent multifocal osteomyelitis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A pair of monozygotic twin girls with coeliac disease is reported. The diagnosis was made on clinical and biochemical evidence of malabsorption, characteristic histological findings, and clinical, biochemical, and histological response to gluten elimination. Monozygosity was established on finding a single placenta at birth, exact similarity of physical appearance, similar blood group, and histocompatibility antigens, and negative reaction in mixed lymphocyte culture. This is one of six well documented cases of coeliac disease in monozygotic twins and may throw light on the importance of genetic and environmental factors in the causation and expression of the disease. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The occurrence of IgE and IgG antibodies to penicillin G and V in children on long-term treatment with penicillin as secondary prophylaxis for rheumatic fever was studied using Phadebas® RAST (Pharmacia Diagnostics, Uppsala, Sweden) and ELISA respectively. The duration of the prophylaxis ranged between 1.5 months and 5 years (mean 1.8 years). Of 18 patients who had been given penicillin for more than 1.5 months, two had IgE antibodies and 12 had IgG antibodies to penicillin. Patients with acute rheumatic fever who had not yet received long-term treatment with penicillin had antibodies of the IgG class in two out of 12 cases. The patients gave no history of adverse reactions to the penicillin injections and there were no signs of immune complex-mediated disease. The two children who had IgE antibodies were switched to oral erythromycin instead of the penicillin injections. Penicillin is the drug of choice in the prophylaxis of rheumatic fever and can apparently be safely given as intramuscular injections of depot-penicillin to prevent recurrences of the disease and ensuing cardiac damage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A 4-year-old girl with seronegative systemic juvenile rheumatoid arthritis developed acute cardiac tamponade. Pericardiocentesis and systemic corticosteroids resulted in complete recovery of the pericardial involvement. This was followed by complete remission of rheumatoid disease. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

IgG4-related disease is an evolving immune-mediated condition. The hallmark of this condition is IgG4(+) plasma cells infiltration of the affected organs accompanied by a variable degree of fibrosis and occasionally elevated serum IgG4 level. It links many conditions that were once recognized as isolated unrelated idiopathic single organ disorders (e.g., autoimmune pancreatitis, Mikulicz syndrome, and retroperitoneal fibrosis) under one umbrella. It usually presents clinically as tumor-like swelling of the involved organs that can be misdiagnosed as neoplasia. In this case series, we present four cases that were considered as neoplasia but turned out to be IgG4-related disease, we demonstrate the protean manifestations of this condition and variable organs involvement, and we share our experience in using rituximab as the steroid sparing immunosuppressant agent to control this disease.

A letter to the editor is presented in response to an article about atraumatic rupture of the spleen published in previous issue.

Over a period of 7 years, among 175 boys under the age of 16 years with familial Mediterranean fever (FMF), 16 (9%) developed 28 episodes of scrotal swelling that was unilateral in 26 (93%) and bilateral in 2 (7%). Fever and pain were present in 15 (94%) children; fever was characterized by a gradual onset and pain was moderate in intensity. The episodes were self-limiting and lasted from 8 h to 5 days. Scrotal swelling was the presenting feature of FMF in 4 (25%) patients. Six (38%) children underwent surgery; the operative findings, available in 3, showed a normal testis and epididymis and inflammation of the tunica vaginalis. The self-limiting nature of the episodes lasting for a few days was similar to the clinical course of serositis seen in FMF. This strongly suggests that inflammation of the tunica vaginalis, resulting in scrotal swelling, is another feature of FMF serositis. The gradual onset of fever, pain, swelling, and recurrence in a boy of Mediterranean origin, especially in the presence of a relevant family history, strongly points toward the diagnosis of FMF and conservative management. Early diagnosis and prophylactic colchicine therapy are expected to avert recurrences, which may result in ischemic testicular necrosis and FMF nephropathy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We demonstrate the ability of linear mode single carrier multiplication (SCM) avalanche photodiode (APD)-based optical receivers to discriminate single-photon-initiated avalanche events from dark-current-initiated events. Because of their random spatial origin in discrete regions of the depletion region, in the SCM APD the dark-generated carriers multiply differently than the photon-generated carriers. This causes different count distributions and necessitates different statistical descriptions of the signal contributions from photon- and dark-originating impulse responses. To include dark carriers in the performance models of the SCM APD, we considered the influence of the spatial origin of the ionization chains on a receiver's noise performance over the times the optical pulse is integrated by the receiver's decision circuits. We compare instantaneous (time-resolved) numeric and pseudo-DC analytical models to measured SCM APD data. It is shown that it is necessary to consider both the distribution of spatial origin and the instantaneous properties of the ionization chains to describe statistically an SCM APD receiver. The ability of SCM APD receivers to discriminate single photon events from single dark events is demonstrated, and the effective gain and excess noise contributions of the light- and dark-initiated avalanche events and their influence on receiver sensitivity and signal-to-noise characteristics are shown.

When a change occurs in a process, one expects to receive a signal from a control chart as quickly as possible. Upon the receipt of signal from the control chart a search for identifying the source of disturbance begins. However, searching for assignable cause around the signal time, due to the fact that the disturbance may have manifested itself into the rocess sometimes back, may not always lead to successful identification of assignable cause(s). If process engineers could identify the change point, i.e. the time when the disturbance first manifested itself into the process, then corrective actions could be directed towards effective elimination of the source of disturbance. In this paper we develop a maximum likelihood estimator (MLE) for process change point designed to detect changes in process variance of a normal quality characteristic when the change follows a linear trend. We describe how this estimator can be used to identify the change point when a Shewhart S-control chart signals a change in the process variance. Numerical results reveal that the proposed estimator outperforms the MLE designed for step change when a linear trend disturbance is present.

Rheumatic fever is associated with exaggerated activity of B cells with massive production of antibody to the Group A streptococcus. Gc (vitamin D-binding protein) is constitutively expressed on B-cell membranes in association with membrane immunoglobulin, and could be involved in cell activation. We therefore looked for associations between the three major Gc alleles and susceptibility to rheumatic fever in a homogeneous Arab population. Patients with tuberculosis or rheumatoid arthritis and control donors, were studied in parallel. Allele frequencies in the controls, rheumatoid and tuberculosis patients were identical to those found in a previous study of normal Arab donors. However, there was a striking association between Gc2 and rheumatic fever. This allele was twice as common in these patients as in controls (p =0.0024), and was present in 56.4% of all rheumatic fever patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]