Natural Way Of Life Research Articles

Assessment of Aspergillus niger biofilm growth kinetics in minibioreactors by carbon dioxide evolution

Aspergillus niger ATCC 10864 was grown on bubble minicolumns aerated with pure oxygen either as biofilm or free-mycelium submerged systems. Growth kinetics was followed by estimating biomass from released carbon dioxide using a titration method and mathematical models. Submerged cultures showed increased endogenous respiration rates (0.0298 vs. 0.0004 g biomass/g biomass.h) possibly related to stress condition since this type of growth is not the natural way of life of A. niger . On the other hand, A. niger biofilm growth followed a logistic model having higher maximal specific growth rate than submerged cultures (0.061 vs. 0.045 h -1 ). This may be related to better mass transfer processes due to a channeled mycelial microstructure. Biofilm growth can be easily and reliable assessed by evaluating the CO 2 released during the fermentation in minibioreactors. Key words : Aspergillus niger, biofilm, mathematical modeling, endogenous respiration, Cryo-SEM.

Non-Urban Noirs: Rural Space in <i>Moonrise</i>, <i>On Dangerous Ground</i>, <i>Thieves’ Highway</i>, and <i>They Live by Night</i>

Despite the now-traditional tendency of noir scholarship to call attention to the retrospective and constructed nature of this genre— James Naremore argues that film noir is best regarded as a “mythology”— one feature that has rarely come under question is its association with the city (2). Despite the existence of numerous rural noirs, the depiction of urban space is associated with this genre more consistently than any other element. Even in critical accounts that attempt to deconstruct the solidity of the noir genre, the city is left as an implicit inclusion, and the country, an implict exclusion. Naremore, for example, does not include the urban environment in a list of the central tenets of film noir that he calls into question: “nothing links together all the things described as noir—not the theme of crime, not a cinematographic technique, not even a resistance to Aristotelian narratives or happy endings” (10). Elizabeth Cowie identifies film noir a “fantasy,” whose “tenuous critical status” has been compensated for “by a tenacity of critical use” (121). As part of Cowie’s project, to revise the assumption that noirs are almost exclusively male-centered, she cites character types, visual style, and narrative tendencies, but never urban spaces, as familiar elements of noir that ought to be reconsidered. If the city is rarely tackled as an unnecessary or part-time element of film noir in discursive studies, it is often the first trait identified by critics in the kind of formative, characteristic-compiling studies that Cowie and Naremore work against.

Le syndrome de Diogène, une approche transnosographique

Diogenes syndrome is a behavioural disorder of the elderly. Symptoms include living in extreme squalor, a neglected physical state and unhygienic conditions. This is accompanied by a self-imposed isolation, the refusal of external help and a tendency to accumulate heteroclite objects. This particular geriatric syndrome has been described for the first time only quite recently, as the 2 primary descriptions by geriatricians and psychiatrists date from 1966 and 1975 respectively. Its rare occurrence contrasts with the fact that it is well-known, partly due to it being named after the Greek philosopher "Diogene de Sinope", who taught cynicism philosophy and a return to a natural way of life, and partly because of its rare characteristics. The Diogenes syndrome is a fascinating object of study for the clinician who takes care of patients living in uncommon conditions, on the edge of society and unaware of the particularity of their lifestyles. Patients suffering from Diogenes syndrome are usually discovered by chance, either because of a somatic illness, or as a result of social intervention related to their behavioural problems. Management of the syndrome is difficult and ethically challenging, as the patient does not seek help. Moreover, 46% of patients have a 5 year mortality rate. Hospitalisation has to be avoided whenever possible and ambulatory treatment and social measures should be favoured. Psychotropic treatment prescription may be necessary, depending on clinical features and the possible underlying psychiatric disease. Although several clinical hypotheses have been suggested, the true ethiopathogeny of the syndrome remains unclear. Most authors agree that this behaviour does not reflect free will and has consequently no theoretical relationship to the Greek philosopher. There is no true consensus about diagnostic criteria. They include the main features of the syndrome and exclude known psychiatric syndromes. Clark and Mankikar, who named this syndrome, reckon it may represent stress-related defence mechanisms of the elderly or may be related to natural ageing process. However, psychiatric pathologies as paranoid and paranoiac psychoses, mood disorders and obsessive and compulsive disorders have been described to be associated with it in the literature. Dementia, in particular temporo-frontal dementia, should be looked for and excluded clinically. Alcohol abuse seems to be an aggravating rather than a precipitating factor. Finally, the link between these pathologies and Diogenes syndrome is not yet determined: are they triggering, co-morbid or etiological factors? Should this syndrome be considered as a true illness or as a symptom? This paper presents Diogenes syndrome as a behavioural disorder and distinguishes 2 types: the "active type"--patients who collect from outside to clutter inside--and the "passive type"--patients who passively become invaded by their rubbish. Active type patients fill their home to fill in the vacuum of their life, as it deteriorates and looses its narcissical appeal. Passive type patients accumulate by default and emptiness. A psychopathological understanding is presented here, referring to psychoanalytical theories of the Moi-peau (ego-skin) described by Anzieu. The Moi-peau represents a structure of the psyche founded on the following principle: any psychic function develops itself according to a bodily function from which it transposes its functioning at a mental level. The skin has three functions: the containing shell, the protective barrier of the psyche, and a medium of exchange. The Moi-peau is organised as a double-wall acting both as a defence mechanism and as a filter between the psyche and the external world. It preserves the relationship and the cohesion "container-content". As a result of a narcissical wound, the Moi-peau is damaged and looses its function of a container. In the case of Diogenes Syndrome, the accumulated items repair the Moi-peau and the home becomes an "exterior-proof", thus playing the role of the Moi-peau. This behaviour therefore plays a repairing role for psychic functioning, allowing psychic survival.

“It's just a natural way of life…” an investigation of wildfire preparedness in rural Australia

This study explores the preparedness of residents living in a rural community in Victoria, Australia, for wildfires, and the factors influencing their preparedness. Overall, participants were well aware of wildfire risks and appeared well prepared for the event of a fire. However, residents involved in agriculture and with a long-standing association with the area appeared better prepared than were those on small properties and newcomers. Their social networks, previous experiences with wildfires and grassfires, and involvement with the local fire brigade influenced preparedness of long-term residents. Characteristics of agricultural communities, including a culture of self-reliance, experience with fires as part of farming, and social cohesion, appeared to contribute to wildfire preparedness within this community. Included are recommendations encouraging preparedness for wildfires.

?It's just a natural way of life...? an investigation of wildfire preparedness in rural Australia

?It's just a natural way of life...? an investigation of wildfire preparedness in rural Australia

Tamed Imagination: A Re-reading of Heidi

The impossibility of children's fiction has been a clichA© ever since expression was first used in title of Jacqueline Rose's well-known work in 1984. While Rose and several scholars after her focus on dilemma of adult writers' frustrated attempts to recapture their lost childhood, and while other critics, like Karin Lesnik-Oberstein, inter- rogate writers' distorted conceptions of fictional child, relatively little attention has been paid to a more profound contradiction in essence of children's literature: that between adults' almost compulsory need to socialize chil- dren and adults' nostalgic idealization of childhood as innocent and blissful. In this essay I will discuss this contradiction using Johanna Spyri's classic children's novel Heidi (1880), which represents very essence of idyllic, Arcadian children's fiction. It has, however, also been read by Malcolm Usrey as a convert-and-reform novel in which the reformation and conversion of Heidi's grandfather is major plot (Usrey 233). That is, format of a children's novel is merely a pretext for Spyri to portray a child protagonist who is a vehicle for more important work of portraying a sinful but repentant adult's redemption. Usrey's is a fully legiti- mate interpretation, but in my eyes it considerably reduces dimensions of novel and does not account for its vast popularity among young readers. Its chief appeal seems to be affirmation of childhood, firmly connected with affirmation of nature and a natural way of life, rather than emphasizing, as Usrey suggests, adulthood and oppressive values of civilization. With beauty of set- ting underscoring Heidi's innocence, she is an irresistibly attractive character who presents adult author with a way of interrogating values surrounding adulthood that she represents. Ultimately, Heidi and her grandfather com- bined provide reader with a depiction of inevitable effects of fully entering Symbolic Order, so Heidi pro- vides us with opportunity to demonstrate some of psychoanalytic theories that inform children's literature. Heidi starts with archetypal pattern of myth, fairy tale, and children's literature: protagonist experiences physical and emotional dislocation, as five-year-old or- phan Heidi is sent to stay with her grandfather, who is called the Aim-Uncle. This is, however, not a Cinderella-like exile connected with humiliation in which a formerly uplifted protagonist is deprived of her privileges. In fact, we do not know much about Heidi's life prior to her arrival at Aim- Uncle's mountain hut, other than what we learn from her

The Impact of Horticulture Courses for Non-Majors

Abstract The student generation of today has grown up in an era when environmental issues and energy concerns have been paramount. Concurrently, there has been a gradual societal shift toward a more natural way of life and self-sufficiency. The increased use of plant materials in and around the home and home fruit and vegetable production reflect these trends, as do the record enrollments in horticulture courses during the last 10 years.