Throughout the biological and biomedical sciences there is a growing need for, prescriptive ‘minimum information’ (MI) checklists specifying the key information to include when reporting experimental results are beginning to find favor with experimentalists, analysts, publishers and funders alike. Such checklists aim to ensure that methods, data, analyses and results are described to a level sufficient to support the unambiguous interpretation, sophisticated search, reanalysis and experimental corroboration and reuse of data sets, facilitating the extraction of maximum value from data sets (...) them. However, such ‘minimum information’ MI checklists are usually developed independently by groups working within representatives of particular biologically- or technologically-delineated domains. Consequently, an overview of the full range of checklists can be difficult to establish without intensive searching, and even tracking thetheir individual evolution of single checklists may be a non-trivial exercise. Checklists are also inevitably partially redundant when measured one against another, and where they overlap is far from straightforward. Furthermore, conflicts in scope and arbitrary decisions on wording and sub-structuring make integration difficult. This presents inhibit their use in combination. Overall, these issues present significant difficulties for the users of checklists, especially those in areas such as systems biology, who routinely combine information from multiple biological domains and technology platforms. To address all of the above, we present MIBBI (Minimum Information for Biological and Biomedical Investigations); a web-based communal resource for such checklists, designed to act as a ‘one-stop shop’ for those exploring the range of extant checklist projects, and to foster collaborative, integrative development and ultimately promote gradual integration of checklists. (shrink)

G protein‐coupled receptors (GPCRs) constitute the largest family of transmembrane proteins and play a crucial role in regulating diverse cellular functions. They transmit their signaling via binding to intracellular signal transducers and effectors, such as G proteins, GPCR kinases, and β‐arrestins. To influence specific GPCR signaling behaviors, β‐arrestins recruit effectors to form larger signaling complexes. Intriguingly, they facilitate divergent functions for the binding to different receptors. Recent studies relying on advanced structural approaches, novel biosensors and interactome analyses bring us closer (...) to understanding how this specificity is achieved. In this article, we share our hypothesis of how active GPCRs induce specific conformational rearrangements within β‐arrestins to reveal distinct binding interfaces, enabling the recruitment of a subset of effectors to foster specialized signaling complexes. Furthermore, we discuss methods of how to comprehensively assess β‐arrestin conformational states and present the current state of research regarding the functionality of these multifaceted scaffolding proteins. (shrink)

J. N. Adams, Michael Lapidge, and Tobias Reinhardt: IntroductionJ. H. W. Penney: Connections in Archaic Latin ProseJ. Briscoe: Language and Style of the Fragmentary Republican HistoriansJ. N. Adams: The Bellum AfricumChristina Shuttleworth Kraus: Hair, Hegemony, and Historiography: Caesar's Style and its Earliest CriticsJ. G. F. Powell: Cicero's Adaptation of Legal Latin in the De legibusTobias Reinhardt: Language of Epicureanism in Cicero: The Case of AtomismG. O. Hutchinson: Pope's Spider and Cicero's WritingR. G. Mayer: The Impracticability of 'Kunstprosa'H. M. (...) Hine: Poetic Influence on Prose: The Case of the Younger SenecaHarm Pinkster: The Language of Pliny the ElderD. R. Russell: Omisso speciosiore stili genereS. J. Harrison: The Poetics of Fiction: Poetic Influence on the Languages of Apuleius' MetamorphosesD. R. Langslow: 'Langues réduites au lexique'? The Languages of Latin Technical ProseDanuta Shanzer: of Tours and Poetry: Prose into Verse and Verse into ProseMichael Lapidge: Poeticism in Pre-Conquest Anglo-Latin ProseRichard Sharpe: The Varieties of Bede's ProseCarlotta Dionisotti: Translator's LatinWalter Berschin: Realistic Writing in the Tenth Century: : Gerhard of Ausburg's Vita S. UodalriciR. M. Thomson: William of Malmesbury and the Latin Classics RevisitedGiovanni Orlandi: Metrical and Rhythmical Clausulae in Medieval Latin Prose: Some Aspects and Problems. (shrink)

Superman and Batman are close friends and colleagues in the Justice League. But they are very different, especially when it comes to their views on humanity and their opinions of human nature. This chapter discusses the philosophy of Thomas Hobbes and G.W.F. Hegel to better understand these friends’ difference of opinion on humanity and human nature. Superman's view of human nature is much more optimistic than that of Batman and Hobbes. The author claims that Superman and Batman have radically different (...) views on human nature, the state, and society. So perhaps the difference between Superman and Batman is not simply that the former thinks that people are inherently good, whereas the latter believes they are inherently bad. Superman shares Hegel’s belief that human beings rely on and need recognition and external validation of their own worth from other human beings. (shrink)

Chantal Mouffe har altid sat spørgsmålet om sociale bevægelser i relation til spørgsmålet om demokratisering. Hendes ideer om agonistisk og radikalt demokrati har fået gennemslag i den europæiske samfundsmæssige debat, men i den sammenhæng glemmer man måske, at hun først og fremmest er engageret i en radikalisering af det liberale demokrati. I hendes nuancerede debatstil kan de mange begreber, nogle af hvilke hun selv er ophavet til, godt få læseren til at fokusere på enkelte træer, som for eksempel netop agonistisk (...) og radikalt demokrati. Dermed kan selve skoven, det liberale demokrati og dets udvikling, forsvinde ud af fokus. Det gør det imidlertid ikke i dette interview, der fandt sted i hendes hjem i Hampstead, Nordlondon, primo 2012, omtrent samtidig med, at hendes seneste bog Agonistics blev afsluttet. (shrink)

Although established in the law and current practice, the determination of death according to neurological criteria continues to be controversial. Some scholars have advocated return to the traditional circulatory and respiratory criteria for determining death because individuals diagnosed as ‘brain dead’ display an extensive range of integrated biological functioning with the aid of mechanical ventilation. Others have attempted to refute this stance by appealing to the analogy between decapitation and brain death. Since a decapitated animal is obviously dead, and ‘brain (...) death’ represents physiological decapitation, brain dead individuals must be dead. In this article we refute this ‘decapitation gambit.’ We argue that decapitated animals are not necessarily dead, and that, moreover, the analogy between decapitation and the clinical syndrome of brain death is flawed. (shrink)

Mechanisms that help people in their lives have existed for centuries, and every year they become not only more and more complex and perfect, but also smarter. It is impossible to imagine modern production without smart machines, but today, with the advent of robotic android robots, their participation in our private lives and, consequently, their influence on us, becomes much more obvious. After all, the robots that are increasingly taking root in our lives today, are no longer perceived by us (...) simply as mechanisms, we endow them with human properties of character and often experience different emotions in relation to them. The appearance of a robot capable of experiencing emotions can be considered a qualitatively new step in the life of a person with robots. With such robots, it will be possible to be friends with them, to look for support from them. It is expected that they will be able to brighten up the loneliness of a variety of people, including disabled people, lonely old people, to help in caring for the sick and at the same time entertain them with communication. Speaking about the relationship with robots, it is difficult not to mention such an important aspect of human communication as sex, which, on the one hand, is not only a need, as in all living beings, but also the highest form of human love and intimacy, and on the other - can exist and be satisfied completely separate from love. It is this duality of human nature that has contributed to the transformation of sex and the human body into a commodity and the development of prostitution, pornography and the use of sexual images in advertising. The emergence of android robots can radically change our lives, including the most intimate areas of life. The development of the artificial intelligence sex industry opens up a whole new era of human-machine interaction. When smart machines become not only comfortable and entertaining, but literally enter our flesh, become our interlocutors, friends and lovers who share our feelings and interests, what will be the consequences of this unprecedented intimacy between man and machine? (shrink)

Der Beschreibung der zeitlichen Entwicklung lebender Systeme kann eine reine Differentialanalyse nicht genügen. In solchen Fällen muss man sich an Stelle der gewöhnlichen Differentialgleichungen der integraldifferentiellen, bezw. der Integralgleichungen bedienen. Zur leichteren Veranschaulichung der mathematischen Darstellung betrachtet Verfasser zuerst diejenigen Systeme, deren innerer Zustand sich durch ein einziges Parameterc bestimmen lässt. Die zeitliche Entwicklung eines leblosen Systems dieser Klasse werde durch die Differentialgleichung $$\frac{{dc}}{{dt}} = kf...$$ dargestellt, wot=Zeit, undk eine Funktion der äusseren Parameterα, Β, γ. ist. Im Falle eines jeden (...) Systems sind die äusseren Parameterα, Β, γ. charakteristische individuelle Funktionen der Zeit. Misst manc am. Zeitpunktt, so lässt sich die Zukunft des Systems vermittelst der Gleichung berechnen, wenn die zukünftigen Werte der äusseren Parameter gegeben sind. Solche Systeme nennt Verfasser nicht-historische Systeme. Im Falle der lebenden Systeme werde die zeitliche Entwicklung durch die Integral-differentialgleichung $$\frac{{dc}}{{dt}} = k_1 f_1 + \mathop \smallint \limits_{t - \lambda }^t k_2 f_2 dt........$$ dargestellt, wof 1 undf 2 Funktionen des Zustandsparametersc, undk 1 undk 2 Funktionen der äusseren Parameter sind. Das Zeitintegral erstreckt sich auf das vergangene Zeitintervalt-λ →t, woλ einen positiven endlichen konstanten Wert besitzt. Diese Systeme nennt Verfasser historische Systeme. Setzt manH für das darin enthaltene Integralglied, so verwandelt sich die Gleichung in: $$\frac{{dc}}{{dt}} = k_1 f_1 + H..........$$ Misst man nunc am Zeitpunktt, so kann man in diesem Fall die Zukunft des Systems ohne Kenntnis des historischen GliedsH nicht berechnen. Das Vorkommen des historischen IntegralgliedsH nennt Verfasser Chronoholismus. Man kann deshalb die historischen Systeme auch chronoholistische Systeme nennen. Die biologische Interpretation dieser Betrachtungsweise wird vom Verfasser diskutiert, und die Gleichung auf Systeme mit erblichen Eigenschaften ausgedehnt. Es werden zuletzt Systeme mit vielen Zustandsparametern in gewissen einfachen Fällen kurz behandelt. L'analyse différentielle ne suffit pas, selon l'avis de de l'auteur, pour la description de l'évolution des systèmes vivants au cours des temps. Il faut utiliser dans ces cas les équations intégro-différentielles ou intégrales. Pour faciliter le traÎtement mathématique, on peut considérer d'abord les systèmes dont l'état intérieur est défini par un seul paramètrec. L'évolution d'un système inanimé de cette classe se laisse décrire par l'équation différentielle $$\frac{{dc}}{{dt}} = k f,...........$$ oùt=temps, etk est une fonction déterminée des paramètres extérieurs α,Β, γ. Si l'on connaÎtc à un temps donnét, l'état du système à un temps futurt′ se laisse prévoir au moyen de l'équation, quand les valeurs des paramètres extérieurs dans l'intervallet → t∼' sont fixées. L'auteur appelle les systèmes de cette classe des systèmes non-historiques. Pour les systèmes vivants, il faut se servir, selon l'avis de l'auteur, des équations intégro-différentielles. Pour les systèmes définis par un seul paramètrec, on peut se servir, par exemple, de l'équation $$\frac{{dc}}{{dt}} = k_1 f_1 + \mathop \smallint \limits_{t - \lambda }^t k_2 f_2 dt........$$ où k1 et k2 sont des fonctions déterminées des paramètres extérieurs. L'intégrale s'étend sur l'intervallet-λ→ t où λ est positif et constant. En indiquant le terme intégral par le symboleH, on peut écrire $$\frac{{dc}}{{dt}} = k_1 f_1 + H..........$$ La connaissance de c à un temps donnét ne laisse pas prévoir l'état du système à un temps futurt′ sans connaissance du terme historiqueH, quand mÊme les paramètres α, Β, γ,..., seraient des fonctions déterminées du temps dans l'intervallet→t′. L'auteur appelle l'existence du terme intégral historiqueH le chronoholisme. On peut appeler les systèmes de cette classe des systèmes historiques ou chronoholistiques. L'interprétation biologique de cette faÇon de traÎter les systèmes vivants est discutée par l'auteur, qui étend l'équation pour le faire représenter aussi les propriétés héréditaires des Êtres vivants. Quelques cas de systèmes dont l'état intérieur est défini par plusieurs paramètres et plusieurs phases sont traités brièvement. (shrink)

(1926). Notes by the way. Australasian Journal of Psychology and Philosophy: Vol. 4, No. 4, pp. 247-247.

The practice of transplantation of vital organs from “brain-dead” donors is in a state of theoretical disarray. Although the law and prevailing medical ethics treat patients diagnosed as having irreversible total brain failure as dead, scholars have increasingly challenged the established rationale for regarding these patients as dead. To understand the ethical situation that we now face, it is helpful to revisit the writings of the philosopher Hans Jonas, who forcefully challenged the emerging effort to redefine death in the late (...) 1960s. (shrink)

Data monitoring committees often are employed to review interim findings of randomised controlled trials. Interim findings are kept confidential until the data monitoring committee finds that they provide sufficiently compelling evidence regarding efficacy, typically because they have crossed the pre-defined statistical boundaries, or they raise serious concerns about safety. While this practice is vital to maintaining the scientific integrity of controlled trials and thereby ensuring their social value, it has been criticised as unethical. Commentators argue that withholding interim findings from (...) research participants is deceptive, inconsistent with valid informed consent, and a violation of respect for participants’ autonomy. The present article examines these arguments, focusing specifically on confidential data monitoring for efficacy. This practice need not be deceptive provided its use is disclosed to prospective research participants. In addition, confidential data monitoring does not make research participants worse off than they would be in the clinical setting and represents an acceptable limitation on the options available to prospective research participants. Taken together, these considerations suggest confidential data monitoring, subject to adequate safeguards, is ethically acceptable. (shrink)

Reviewed Works:G. Priest, R. Routley, Graham Priest, Richard Routley, Jean Norman, First Historical Introduction. A Preliminary History of Paraconsistent and Dialethic Approaches.Ayda I. Arruda, Aspects of the Historical Development of Paraconsistent Logic.G. Priest, R. Routley, Systems of Paraconsistent Logic.G. Priest, R. Routley, Applications of Paraconsistent Logic.G. Priest, R. Routley, The Philosophical Significance and Inevitability of Paraconsistency.