Discrete Stages Research Articles

A Developmental Staging Table for Physalaemus biligonigerus (Cope, 1861) (Anura: Leptodactylidae)

Physalaemus biligonigerus is a leptodactylid frog that is widely distributed in southern South America and a common member of anuran assemblages that breed in temporary ponds near human settlements. Herein, we analyzed its embryonic and larval morphology through the completion of metamorphosis and constructed a normal table of development. In addition, the timing of development and growth data are provided. Development of P. biligonigerus from fertilization through metamorphosis takes 20–24 days. We recognized 46 discrete developmental stages on the basis of readily discerned, unambiguous, external traits that can be identified in preserved specimens. In contrast with the standard Gosner developmental table, we recognized several particularities in the development of this species. The staging criterion based on external gill morphology presented here is a novel approach to distinguish pre- and post-hatching stages, which could also be employed in other anuran species. We found that anal tube loss in P. biligonigerus occurs earlier than Gosner Stage 41; this trait is highly variable among species and should not be used as a standard criterion. Our analysis demonstrates the value of detailed specific staging tables to characterize anuran life cycles. Furthermore, we point out that the use of generalized standard tables might mask the richness of phenotypic variation during the ontogeny of anuran species.

An urban stormwater runoff mortality syndrome in juvenile coho salmon

Untreated urban runoff poses significant water quality threats to aquatic organisms. In northwestern North America, ongoing development in coastal watersheds is increasing the transport of toxic chemical contaminants to river and stream networks that provide spawning and rearing habitats for several species of Pacific salmon. Adult coho (Oncorhynchus kisutch) are particularly vulnerable to a stormwater-driven mortality syndrome. The phenomenon may prematurely kill more than half of the coho that return each fall to spawn in catchments with a high degree of imperviousness. Here we evaluate the coho mortality syndrome at the juvenile life stage. Freshwater-stage juveniles were exposed to stormwater collected from a high traffic volume urban arterial roadway. Symptoms characteristic of the mortality syndrome were evaluated using digital image analysis, and discrete stages of abnormal behavior were characterized as the syndrome progressed. At a subset of these stages, blood was analyzed for ion homeostasis, hematocrit, pH, glucose, and lactate. Several of these blood chemistry parameters were significantly dysregulated in symptomatic juvenile coho. Affected fish did not recover when transferred to clean water, suggesting a single runoff event to stream habitats could be lethal if resident coho become overtly symptomatic. Among coho life stages, our findings indicate the urban runoff mortality syndrome is not unique to adult spawners. Therefore, the consequences for wild coho populations in developing watersheds are likely to be greater than previously anticipated.

Opx–Cpx exsolution textures in lherzolites of the Cretaceous Purang Ophiolite (S. Tibet, China), and the deep mantle origin of Neotethyan abyssal peridotites

ABSTRACT We investigated lherzolitic peridotites in the Cretaceous Purang ophiolite along the Yarlung Zhangbo suture zone (YZSZ) in SW Tibet to constrain their mantle–melt evolution history. Coarse-grained Purang lherzolites contain orthopyroxene (Opx) and olivine (Ol) porphyroclasts with embayments filled by small olivine (Ol) neoblasts. Both clinopyroxene (Cpx) and Opx display exsolution textures represented by lamellae structures. Opx exsolution (Opx1) in clinopyroxene (Cpx1) is made of enstatite, whose compositions (Al2O3 = 3.85–4.90 wt%, CaO = <3.77 wt%, Cr2O3 = 0.85–3.82 wt%) are characteristic of abyssal peridotites. Host clinopyroxenes (Cpx1) have higher Mg#s and Na2O, with lower TiO2 and Al2O3 contents than Cpx2 exsolution lamellae in Opx, and show variable LREE patterns. Pyroxene compositions of the lherzolites indicate 10–15% partial melting of a fertile mantle protolith. P–T estimates (1.3–2.3 GPa, 745–1067°C) and the trace element chemistry of pyroxenes with exsolution textures suggest crystallization depths of ~75 km in the upper mantle, where the original pyroxenes became decomposed, forming exsolved structures. Further upwelling of lherzolites into shallow depths in the mantle resulted in crystal–plastic deformation of the exsolved pyroxenes. Combined with the occurrence of microdiamond and ultrahigh-pressure (UHP) mineral inclusions in chromites of the Purang peridotites, the pyroxene exsolution textures reported here confirm a multi-stage partial melting history of the Purang lherzolites and at least three discrete stages of P-T conditions in the course of their upwelling through the mantle during their intra-oceanic evolution.

Aging women and their endothelium: probing the relative role of estrogen on vasodilator function.

Despite significant decreases in cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality in the past three decades, it still remains the leading cause of death in women. Following menopause and the accompanying loss of estrogen, women experience a unique, accelerated rise in CVD risk factors. Dysfunction of the endothelium represents an important antecedent to CVD development, with rapid declines in endothelial vasodilator function reportedly taking place across the menopause transition. Importantly, the decline in endothelial function is independent of chronological age and is associated with estrogen deficiency. Estrogen-mediated effects, including increasing nitric oxide bioavailability and attenuating oxidative stress and inflammation, contribute to preserving endothelial health. This review will discuss studies that have probed the role of estrogen on endothelial vasodilator function in women at discrete stages of the menopause transition and the effects of estradiol supplementation in postmenopausal women. Estrogen receptor signaling is also an important aspect of endothelial function in women, and studies suggest that expression is reduced with both acute and prolonged estrogen deficiency. Changes in regulatory mechanisms of estrogen receptor-α expression as well as sensitivity to estrogen may underlie the differential effects of estrogen therapy in early (≤5 yr past final menstrual period) and late postmenopausal women (>5 yr past final menstrual period). Lastly, this review presents potential therapeutic targets that include increasing l-arginine bioavailability and estrogen receptor activation to prevent endothelial dysfunction in postmenopausal women as a strategy for decreasing CVD mortality in this high-risk population.

Reproductive den selection and its consequences for fisher neonates, a cavity-obligate mustelid

AbstractSelection of habitat characteristics by reproductive females during neonate development can mediate the influence of adverse environmental conditions on the fitness of offspring. Previous research has suggested that cavities and burrows used for reproduction by cavity-obligate species offer thermoregulatory benefits, access to prey, and can limit predation pressure. As fishers (Pekania pennanti) are secondary cavity-obligate breeders, we hypothesized that they select particular characteristics of reproductive den cavities at discrete stages of offspring development to mediate adverse biotic and environmental effects on their neonates. To test our hypothesis, we located 406 reproductive dens and 154 cavity rest sites used by 65 individual adult female fishers during 11 reproductive seasons (2005–2016) in northwestern California. We counted 53 (27 F, 26 M) kits in 31 litters born to 19 females during six of these reproductive seasons. The weight of kits varied significantly by sex and by age, whereas the length of kits varied only by age, suggesting that adult females in this population might be preferentially investing in male kits. We found that natal and early-maternal dens buffered minimum temperatures significantly more than late-maternal dens and cavities used during the nonreproductive season. A male fisher skull was also less likely to fit through the cavity openings of natal dens than through the openings of cavities used by adult females during the nonreproductive season. Litter survival was significantly lower at natal dens than at late-maternal dens. The age of adult female fishers did not affect the probability of litter survival. Our results emphasize the vulnerability of vertebrate offspring during early developmental periods and how cavity-obligate species select cavities to mediate environmental conditions during reproduction.

PB1988 CANCER‐ASSOCIATED MECHANISMS OF MESENCHYMAL STEM CELLS REVEALED BY SINGLE‐CELL TRANSCRIPTOME ANALYSIS

Background:The detrimental effects of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in some reports eclipse their benefits in clinical application, despite the support and adoption in bone marrow transplantation (BMT). Tumorigenicity has been observed and reported in experimental MSC therapies without clear explanation.Aims:Here we report a subpopulation of MSCs, which are resisted to oste single‐cell transcriptome analysis of individual MSCs at various stages of osteocyte differentiation and gene expression profiles in three discrete stages of osteogenesis.Methods:We identified a subpopulation of osteogenesis‐resistant MSCs which have cancer stem cell chatcteristics. Further pathway analysis indicated that the YAP1, β‐Catenin and Cadherin4/6 pathway involved in osteogenesis‐resistance.. Clinical surveys using 51 clinical databases across 6,965 patients revealed a correlation between YAP1/ β‐Catenin/Cadherin4/6 overexpression and cancer progression.Results:This study suggested that a differentiation‐resistant population of MSC is repsoible for the tumorogenicity of MSC, and intervention of the YAP1, β‐Catenin and Cadherin4/6 pathway could potentially prevent tumorgenicity in MSC therapies. suggests that there is a pre‐exist subpopulation of MSCs with cancer stem cell characteristics.Summary/Conclusion:Those OR‐MSC associated with active YAP1‐Cadherin pathway. Biologically active molecules targeting YAP1/ β‐Catenin/Cadherin could improve MSC therapy for a defined subset of patients by minimize the tumorgenicity of MSCs.

Hf isotopic fingerprinting of geodynamic settings: Integrating isotopes and numerical models

Hf isotopes have proven invaluable in understanding the evolution of Earth's crust-mantle system, but their use in reconstructing tectonic environments, in many cases, remains equivocal. In this study, we introduce a new approach to predict the Hf isotopic evolutionary pattern for rifting and collision based on the integration of numerical models and 176Hf/177Hf isotopes. The geodynamic numerical models allow us to estimate the proportion of juvenile material added to the crust through time. On the basis of this proportion, we calculate changing 176Hf/177Hf ratios using mixing models. Predicted Hf isotopic patterns generated through this numerical approach imply that juvenile signals are observed during back-arc extension, whereas evolved signatures dominate collisional settings. We use this novel modeling approach in the case study region of the Halls Creek Orogen to elucidate its tectonic setting through time. In addition, the geochemical features of magmatic rocks in the case study region imply partial melting of a sub-arc mantle wedge with magma-crust interaction on ascent in a convergent margin setting. The links between predicted Hf isotopic evolution, geodynamic numerical models, whole rock geochemistry and measured zircon Hf isotopic evolution trend resolve three discrete stages in the tectonomagmatic development of the Halls Creek Orogen: (1) oceanic crust subduction; (2) back-arc formation with addition of juvenile mantle input; and (3) docking of the North Australian and Kimberley cratons resulting in the development of mixed-source magmatism formed in a collisional setting. We provide a new method to validate geodynamic models with isotopic datasets, which should lead to more rigorous understanding of crustal evolution.

Free Speech and Hate Speech

Should hate speech be banned? This article contends that the debate on this question must be disaggregated into discrete analytical stages, lest its participants continue to talk past one another. The first concerns the scope of the moral right to freedom of expression, and whether hate speech falls within the right's protective ambit. If it does, hate speech bans are necessarily unjust. If not, we turn to the second stage, which assesses whether speakers have moral duties to refrain from hate speech. The article canvasses several possible duties from which such a duty could be derived, including duties not to threaten, harass, offend, defame, or incite. If there is a duty to refrain from hate speech, it is yet a further question whether the duty should actually be enforced. This third stage depends on pragmatic concerns involving epistemic fallibility, the abuse of state power, and the benefits of counter-speech over coercion.

Alternating contraction and extension in the Southern Central Andes (35°–37°S)

The Andes are thought to be formed through discrete contractional stages separated by periods of little to no orogenic construction. This paper analyzes the intervals between the main contractional phases that built the Southern Central Andes between 35° and 37°S in order to determine whether they were characterized by neutral, contractional or extensional conditions. During an interruption in orogenesis between the Late Cretaceous and the Miocene shortening phases, two extensional stages are recorded through the opening of a series of intra- and retro-arc basins. U-Pb dating of detrital zircons in a sample collected from the Los Angeles unit, a syn-extensional volcano-sedimentary succession located at ∼35°409S along the Chile and Argentina international border, provided a maximum depositional age of 67.1 +2.4/−0.9 Ma. This age, in association with evidence of regional crustal thinning, suggests a previously unrecognized extensional phase during latest Cretaceous times. Limited shortening succeeded this extensional event and was followed by a second extensional episode during late Oligocene and earliest Miocene times. While the first extensional event was restricted to the core of the Late Cretaceous orogen, the second episode affected a wide area ranging between the present forearc and retroarc areas. A structural section across the Malargue fold-thrust belt at ∼36°S indicates inversion of normal faults where extension was focused and new thrust generation in areas not affected by extensional deformation. Our data reveal that the growth of the Southern Central Andes is the product of a complex alternation of contractional and extensional phases, with inherited structures playing a role in their tectonic evolution. A comparison with other Cordilleran orogenic systems such as the Puna-Altiplano plateau, the northern Peruvian Andes and the North American Sevier-Laramide orogenic belt, suggests that extensional deformation in the Southern Central Andes responds better to changes in plate kinematics, rather than to localized events within a continuous contractional setting.

MKP1 acts as a key modulator of stomatal development

ABSTRACTThe MAPK signaling cascade is universal among eukaryotes and mediates a variety of environmental and developmental responses. Two Arabidopsis MAPKs, MPK3 and MPK6, have been shown to be activated by various stimuli and suggested as a convergence point of different signaling pathways. It is known that these MAPKs, MPK3/MPK6, control the discrete stages of stomatal development in Arabidopsis, but how they are regulated and how the same MAPK components can achieve signaling specificity is largely unknown. We recently demonstrated that MAP Kinase Phosphatase 1 (MKP1) promotes stomatal differentiation by suppressing activation of MPK3/MPK6 in the stomatal lineage. By expressing MKP1 in discrete stomatal precursor cell types, we further identified that MKP1 plays an important role at the early stage of stomatal development for the cell fate transition leading to stomatal differentiation. While MKP1 was previously known as a key regulator of environmental stress responses, our data illustrate a novel role of MKP1 in plant development: it acts as one of the specificity-determining regulators of MAPK signaling to enforce proper stomatal development in Arabidopsis.

Dynamic transcriptome profiles within spermatogonial and spermatocyte populations during postnatal testis maturation revealed by single-cell sequencing.

Spermatogenesis is the process by which male gametes are formed from a self-renewing population of spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) residing in the testis. SSCs represent less than 1% of the total testicular cell population in adults, but must achieve a stable balance between self-renewal and differentiation. Once differentiation has occurred, the newly formed and highly proliferative spermatogonia must then enter the meiotic program in which DNA content is doubled, then halved twice to create haploid gametes. While much is known about the critical cellular processes that take place during the specialized cell division that is meiosis, much less is known about how the spermatocytes in the “first-wave” in juveniles compare to those that contribute to long-term, “steady-state” spermatogenesis in adults. Given the strictly-defined developmental process of spermatogenesis, this study explored the transcriptional profiles of developmental cell stages during testis maturation. Using a combination of comprehensive germ cell sampling with high-resolution, single-cell-mRNA-sequencing, we have generated a reference dataset of germ cell gene expression. We show that discrete developmental stages of spermatogenesis possess significant differences in the transcriptional profiles from neonates compared to juveniles and adults. Importantly, these gene expression dynamics are also reflected at the protein level in their respective cell types. We also show differential utilization of many biological pathways with age in both spermatogonia and spermatocytes, demonstrating significantly different underlying gene regulatory programs in these cell types over the course of testis development and spermatogenic waves. This dataset represents the first unbiased sampling of spermatogonia and spermatocytes during testis maturation, at high-resolution, single-cell depth. Not only does this analysis reveal previously unknown transcriptional dynamics of a highly transitional cell population, it has also begun to reveal critical differences in biological pathway utilization in developing spermatogonia and spermatocytes, including response to DNA damage and double-strand breaks.

Big data, small concepts: histosophy as an approach to longue-durée history

ABSTRACT In this essay, we sketch out a method, histosophy, which makes possible the study of intellectual history and conceptual genealogy both in depth and over long periods of time. Histosophy uses digital tools to survey ‘large issues within small compasses.’ A genealogy of signifiers, it considers metonymic parts of a problem in order to contribute precisely and coherently to a larger perspective. We outline the theoretical contours of our approach. We exemplify how it works in practice by looking at the signifier ‘esprit de corps’, the study of which is presented in detail in the histosophical book The Genealogy of Esprit de Corps (Edinburgh University Press, 2019). The phrase ‘esprit de corps’ has been widely used since the eighteenth century in different discourses (political, military, sociological, etc.), but it is sufficiently limited that its genealogy can be traced across centuries and nations with precision, coherence, clarity, and with the help of automated search engines. By contrast, related but bigger concepts like freedom, individualism or solidarity are part of dozens of disparate and fuzzy discourses, so often uttered that the analysis of modern uses is problematic. The histosophical methodology is applicable in six discrete stages, here outlined.

Delivering on the promise of competency based medical education – an institutional approach

The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada (RCPSC) adopted a plan to transform, over a seven-year horizon (2014-2021), residency education across all specialties to competency-based medical education (CBME) curriculum models. The RCPSC plan recommended implementing a more responsive and accountable training model with four discrete stages of training, explicit, specialty specific entrustable professional activities, with associated milestones, and a programmatic approach to assessment across residency education. Embracing this vision, the leadership at Queen's University (in Kingston, Ontario, Canada) applied for and was granted special permission by the RCPSC to embark on an accelerated institutional path. Over a three-year period, Queen's took CBME from concept to reality through the development and implementation of a comprehensive strategic plan. This perspective paper describes Queen's University's approach of creating a shared institutional vision, outlines the process of developing a centralized CBME executive team and twenty-nine CBME program teams, and summarizes proactive measures to ensure program readiness for launch. In so doing, Queen's created a community of support and CBME expertise that reinforces shared values including fostering co-production, cultivating responsive leadership, emphasizing diffusion of innovation, and adopting a systems-based approach to transformative change.

Explanations by arbitrated argumentative dispute

Explaining outputs determined algorithmically by machines is one of the most pressing and studied problems in Artificial Intelligence (AI) nowadays, but the equally pressing problem of using AI to explain outputs determined by humans is less studied. In this paper we advance a novel methodology integrating case-based reasoning and computational argumentation from AI to explain outcomes, determined by humans or by machines, indifferently, for cases characterised by discrete (static) features and/or (dynamic) stages. At the heart of our methodology lies the concept of arbitrated argumentative disputesbetween two fictitious disputants arguing, respectively, for or against a case’s output in need of explanation, and where this case acts as an arbiter. Specifically, in explaining the outcome of a case in question, the disputants put forward as arguments relevant cases favouring their respective positions, with arguments/cases conflicting due to their features, stages and outcomes, and the applicability of arguments/cases arbitrated by the features and stages of the case in question. We in addition use arbitrated dispute trees to identify the excess features that help the winning disputant to win the dispute and thus complement the explanation.We evaluate our novel methodology theoretically, proving desirable properties thereof, and empirically, in the context of primary legislation in the United Kingdom (UK), concerning the passage of Bills that may or may not become laws. High-level factors underpinning a Bill’s passage are its content-agnostic features such as type, number of sponsors, ballot order, as well as the UK Parliament’s rules of conduct. Given high numbers of proposed legislation (hundreds of Bills a year), it is hard even for legal experts to explain on a large scale why certain Bills pass or not. We show how our methodology can address this problem by automatically providing high-level explanations of why Bills pass or not, based on the given Bills and their content-agnostic features.

Evolution stages of aircraft manufacturing firms

AbstractAeronautics is one of the highest value‐adding industrial sectors in an economy, and many regions have sought to develop aeronautics industries for economic diversification. Aircraft production, however, is complex and capital‐intensive, and efforts to establish aircraft manufacturing firms have led to mixed results. Here, we present a study of development of six international aeronautical manufacturing firms, across four continents, using a mixed‐method approach. Using empirical quantitative data and results from 103 semistructured interviews with senior executives and policy makers, we identify a set of discrete stages: inception, base production, competitive growth, inventive development, and maturity that characterize the evolution pathways of aeronautics firms. We find that firms do not necessarily follow a linear development path, and they can jump and skip stages or may regress back to earlier stages under financial or other pressures. We find that aeronautics firms are more likely to reach a self‐sustaining maturity stage once they establish independent contracts with multiple partners and are able to develop their own technologies. The results indicate that firms should establish strategies to acquire independent contracts through competitive bidding and should plan for achieving innovation capabilities early on as this is crucial for their long‐term viability.

Origin of trondhjemite and albitite at the expense of A-type granite, Aravalli orogen, India: Evidence from new metasomatic replacement fronts

The A-type Harsora-Dadikar granites in the Alwar complex of northern Aravalli orogen, NW India provide evidence for subsolidus-requilibration of feldspars. They record three new discrete stages of albitisation, producing trondhjemite and albitite sequentially at the expense of original granite. Stage-I metasomatism deanorthised the magmatic oligoclase and transformed the grey least-albitised granite to pinkish grey microcline-oligoclase granite. Stage-II converted the latter to trondhjemite by replacement of microcline to oligoclase. Stage-III metasomatism led to the formation of albitite/albite granite from trondhjemite, where the metasomatically formed oligoclase was replaced by albite. This stage of metasomatism resulted in nearly complete disappearance of amphibole and biotite, producing a monomineralic rock (albitite), which is consistent with Korzhinskii theory of infiltration metasomatism. The reaction fronts delineating the Stage-II and Stage-III are sharp and easily discernible by their prominent color differences in Harsora on the outcrop scale. Chemically, the mineral transformations during three stages are manifested by the differential gains/losses in Na, K, Ca, Rb, Ba, Sr, Fe and Mg. The formation of albite, Cl-rich marialitic scapolite and Cl-rich amphibole in the albitised granites are suggestive of Na- and Cl-brines as the metasomatising fluids. The fluid-rock interactions, which can significantly transform the pristine mineralogy of granitoids, should be carefully considered to avoid any misinterpretations about their petrological history.

Stages of change in smoking cessation and health information behavior

ABSTRACTThe study aimed at investigating the health information behavior of consumers who attempt to quit smoking and analyzing the effects of the information obtained on health behavior changes. The researchers interviewed 35 college students who were in different stages of smoking cessation for seven months. The study participants in precontemplation or contemplation stages tended to demonstrate passive information‐seeking modes, whereas the participants in more advanced stages tended to perform active and direct information‐seeking. The participants in these stages tended to search more for professional information or firsthand experiences related to pros and cons as well as strategies for smoking cessation. The findings identified the different cognitive or affective effects of the information on individuals at the discrete stages. In particular, the study bridges the gaps of the research that focuses on information behavior related to changes of addictive health behavior by applying the transtheoretical model (TTM) to the concepts of health information behavior.

Arp2/3 and Mena/VASP Require Profilin 1 for Actin Network Assembly at the Leading Edge

There are many different actin networks within a cell, but it is poorly understood how they assemble from a common monomer pool. One emerging concept is that monomers are limited and heterogenous, which manipulates network assembly through biased polymerization and internetwork competition. Previous work demonstrated that actin bound to the monomer-binding protein profilin favors filament assembly by formins and Mena/VASP over Arp2/3. Although, profilin can transfer monomers to Arp2/3 networks through nucleation promoting factors. It remains largely unknown how profilin influences network behavior in complex environments where multiple assembly factors are present. Here, we assess assembly factor dependence on profilin 1 (PFN1) in mammalian cells by carefully controlling PFN1 concentration. We demonstrate that PFN1 determines global actin assembly, organization, and network homeostasis. At the leading edge, PFN1 is required for both Arp2/3 and Mena/VASP activity, with discrete stages of internetwork competition and collaboration occurring at different PFN1 concentrations. These results demonstrate that the majority of actin assembly is gated by PFN1 and that dramatic changes to actin architecture can be made by modifying PFN1 availability.

Historical Books

Historical Books Christopher T. Begg, Isaac M. Alderman, and Gerald A. Klingbeil 762. [Joshua 2] Andrzej Toczyski, SDB, The 'Geometrics' of the Rahab Story: A Multidimensional Analysis of Joshua 2 (LHBOTS 664; New York/London/Oxford/New Delhi/Sidney: T&T Clark, 2018). Pp. xv + 196. $114. ISBN 978-0-5676-7904-8. This study examines the relationship between the text, conceived as the vehicle of narrative communication, and the reader in an asessment of the story of Rahab in Joshua 2. In it, T. surveys the ways in which the story has been read by various audiences across time, the different interpretative perspectives and methodologies that have been brought to bear on the text, and the influence these have had on the story's interpretation. T. gives particular attention to the internal literary analysis of Joshua 2 as well as to the external historical approach and what this can tell us about readers of the text. His purpose in so doing is to identify how successive interpretations overlap and thereby set the interpretative agenda for subsequent generations of readers. On the basis of this conceptual framework, T. situates the Rahab story, which has posed a challenge to readers for centuries, within the broader context of the communicative process. T.'s deep immersion in both the story's internal and external contexts brings to light a generally overlooked thread within the Rahab story, i.e., "the power of storytelling," which might prove relevant for contemporary readers by providing a basis for intercultural dialogue in the postmodern world. [Adapted from published abstract.] The volume comprises an introduction and conclusion, framing its five component chapters: (1) Developing the Research Model; (2) The Reader's Vantage Point in Joshua 2; (3) The Mental Library of the Reader; (4) "Rahab in 3D"; and (5) The Power of Story-Telling.—C.T.B. 763. [1–2 Samuel] Moshe Garsiel, The Book of Samuel: Studies in History, Historiography, Theology and Poetics Combined. Part One. The Story and History of David and His Kingdom (Jerusalem: Rubin Mass, 2018). Pp. xiii + 561. N.P. ISBN 978-965-09-0348-0. G.'s approach to the Samuel material is multidisciplinary, as suggested by his book's subtitle. A lengthy introduction covers previous approaches to the study of 1 Samuel and concludes with the suggestion that the book was begun during the reign of Solomon and completed in discrete stages of editing. Drawing heavily from archaeology as well as from other texts such as Chronicles, G. begins his analysis of the book with the rise of David to prominence following his encounter with Goliath, his conflicts with Saul, and Saul's downfall at the hand of the Philistines, with whom David had allied himself. He then turns to David's kingship, his development of a military force, and the creation of a "miniempire." After reflecting on the sin of David and his confrontations with Joab and Nathan, G. addresses internal family disputes, and concludes with David's crushing of Absalom's coup.—I.M. A. 764. [1–2 Samuel] Roberto Reggi and Martina Cavallari, Samuele (La Bibbia Quadriforme; Bologna: EDB, 2018). Pp. 299. Paper €32. ISBN 978-88-10-82139-8. Part of a project that will eventually encompass the entire OT, this volume provides the MT and LXX (Codex Vaticanus) versions of the Books of Samuel on facing pages along with interlinear translations of each version. At the foot of the facing pages one finds, respectively, the translations of the Nova Vulgata and of the 2008 Italian Episcopal Conference. See also #766.—C.T.B. [End Page 243] 765. [2 Samuel 7, 12; 1 Kings 1] Ionel Ababi, Nathan et la succession de David: Une étude synchronique de 2 Samuel 7 et 12, et 1 Rois 1 (Biblical Tools and Studies 32; Leuven/Paris/Bristol, CT: Peeters, 2017). Pp. xiv + 298. €78. ISBN 978-90-429-4515-0. Previous studies of the three chapters of A.'s title have mostly been diachronically and historically oriented and have tended to see the portrayals of the prophet Nathan in those chapters as deriving from different authors with divergent images of Nathan...

Advanced professional library information education: Conceptual and methodological foundations and mechanisms

The role of advanced professional library and information education as an essential part of continuous education system and its importance in educating new generation of library professionals are substantiated. The author reveals the role of the advanced professional education as an efficient site to apply and generate new ideas, to promote innovative experience and professional communicationsб and to modernize librarianship. She concludes that the main task of modern advanced library and information education is to assist librarians’ professional socialization. The methodological basics of the advanced professional training are characterized: teaching innovativeness, integration with library practice, social transparency and dynamic character. The author describes the mechanism for the transfer from the discrete stage of the advanced professional education to a systematic approach: the vertical-horizontal interaction of the advanced professional training structures, consistency and continuity of the educational process, education quality control, efficient combining online and offline education. The author emphasizes that the key factor for improving advanced education is to engage practicing professionals who master innovations introduction technologies. The need for public professional accreditation and certification for alternative education programs (including that of libraries), and systematic monitoring of the education system is proved.