Effet d'un facteur alimentaire sur la pathologie néonatale : Résultats d'une enquête rétrospective sur la distribution de mangrove aux chamelons en République de Djibouti

Une enquête rétrospective réalisée dans 23 campements de nomades afars de la région d'Obock (Djibouti) a porté sur les modes d'utilisation traditionnelle de la végétation lagunaire (mangrove à palétuviers) et leur relation avec la pathologie observée, notamment chez les chamelons. Quatre types d'exploitation de la mangrove peuvent être décrits : distribution de branches de palétuvier aux chamelons âgés de moins d'un an dans les campements et pâturage des adultes dans la mangrove; utilisation permanente de la mangrove associée à une complémentation; exploitation occasionnelle par émondage; utilisation permanente sans complémentation. Le risque d'observer des troubles sanitaires (pertes d'appétit, boiterie, paralysie, maladies de peau) est 4,28 fois plus élevé en l'absence de complémentation de la ration de base de mangrov

D-LITe : Distributed Logic for Internet of Things sErvices

International audienceSmartphones, PDA, Sensors, Actuators, Phidgets and Smart Objects (i.e. objects with processing and networking capabilities) are more and more present in everyday's life. Merging all these technologies with the Internet is often described as 'Internet of Things' (IoT). In the IoT vision, Things around us provide a pervasive network of interacting and interconnected devices. However building IoT applications is a long and arduous work, reserved for specialists, requiring specific knowledges in terms of network protocols and programming languages. The lack of widespread and easy-to-configure solutions is an obstacle for the development of this area. A universal framework, offering simplification and standardization, could facilitate the emergence of this promising field in terms of applications and business. IoT needs a solid foundation for rapid, simple development and deployment of new services. In this paper, we present DLITe, a universal framework for building IoT applications over heterogeneous sets of small devices. D-LITe offers solutions for deploying application's logic, and executing it on Smart Objects despite their heterogeneity. An implementation of DLITe on tiny devices, such as TelosB motes, allows to show that our framework is realistic even with the constraints of such devices

The number of metastable states in the generalized random orthogonal model

We calculate the number of metastable states in the generalized random orthogonal model. The results obtained are verified by exact numerical enumeration for small systems sizes but taking into account finite size effects. These results are compared with those for Hopfield model in order to examine the effect of strict orthonormality of neural network patterns on the number of metastable states.Comment: 12 pages, 4 EPS figure

Estimates for the Sobolev trace constant with critical exponent and applications

In this paper we find estimates for the optimal constant in the critical Sobolev trace inequality S\|u\|^p_{L^{p_*}(\partial\Omega) \hookrightarrow \|u\|^p_{W^{1,p}(\Omega)} that are independent of $\Omega$. This estimates generalized those of [3] for general $p$. Here $p_* := p(N-1)/(N-p)$ is the critical exponent for the immersion and $N$ is the space dimension. Then we apply our results first to prove existence of positive solutions to a nonlinear elliptic problem with a nonlinear boundary condition with critical growth on the boundary, generalizing the results of [16]. Finally, we study an optimal design problem with critical exponent.Comment: 22 pages, submitte

A compactness theorem for scalar-flat metrics on manifolds with boundary

Let (M,g) be a compact Riemannian manifold with boundary. This paper is concerned with the set of scalar-flat metrics which are in the conformal class of g and have the boundary as a constant mean curvature hypersurface. We prove that this set is compact for dimensions greater than or equal to 7 under the generic condition that the trace-free 2nd fundamental form of the boundary is nonzero everywhere.Comment: 49 pages. Final version, to appear in Calc. Var. Partial Differential Equation

An Exploratory Study into the Factors Impeding Ethical Consumption

Although consumers are increasingly engaged with ethical factors when forming opinions about products and making purchase decisions, recent studies have highlighted significant differences between consumers’ intentions to consume ethically, and their actual purchase behaviour. This article contributes to an understanding of this “ethical purchasing gap” through a review of existing literature, and the inductive analysis of focus group discussions. A model is suggested which includes exogenous variables such as moral maturity and age which have been well covered in the literature, together with further impeding factors identified from the focus group discussions. For some consumers, inertia in purchasing behaviour was such that the decision-making process was devoid of ethical considerations. Several manifested their ethical views through post-purchase dissonance and retrospective feelings of guilt. Others displayed a reluctance to consume ethically due to personal constraints, a perceived negative impact on image or quality, or an outright negation of responsibility. Those who expressed a desire to consume ethically often seemed deterred by cynicism, which caused them to question the impact they, as an individual, could achieve. These findings enhance the understanding of ethical consumption decisions and provide a platform for future research in this area

‘All the corridors are the same’: a qualitative study of the orientation experiences and design preferences of UK older adults living in a communal retirement development

Environments need to be designed such that they support successful orientation for older adults and those with dementia who often experience marked difficulties in their orientation abilities. To better understand how environments can compensate for decreasing orientation skills, voice should be given directly to those experiencing dementia to describe how they find their way and to understand their design preferences. This study explored the navigational experiences and design preferences of older adults with memory difficulties living in a retirement development. In-depth semi-structured interviews with 13 older adults experiencing memory difficulties were conducted. All participants were residents of one retirement development in the United Kingdom. Questions began broadly, for example, to describe their experiences of navigating in their living environment, before discussing any specific navigation difficulties in detail. Thematic analysis identified three main themes: highlighting environmental design that causes disorientation, strategies to overcome disorientation, and residents’ suggestions to improve the design. The design suggestions were particularly informative, heavily focusing on the importance of having memorable and meaningful spaces which were favoured more than signage as an orientation aid. The findings demonstrate the need to consider environmental design to support orientation for those with memory difficulties. Of particular importance is the use of meaningful and relevant landmarks as orientation aids which can additionally stimulate conversation and increase wellbeing. Given the range of suggestions in dementia-friendly design guidelines aimed to support orientation, it is crucial to speak directly to those living in different environments to learn how they find their way around and what design works in their environment

Recognition of Biometric Unlock Pattern by GMM-UBM

International audienceUnlock patterns are used for authentication in mobile smart devices, yet they are vulnerable to attacks, since only the pattern draw is required. Extra biometric data of the user while drawing the unlock pattern passwords may strengthen the authentication, such as the speed of drawing, the pressure of the finger on the touch screen. Such biometric modality is referred to as behavioral biometrics. Besides, voice is also a behavioral biometric modality, as well as a physiological one. Hence, statistical models such as Gaussian mixture models (GMM) with universal background modeling (UBM) are widely used in speaker verification systems. In this work, we propose to apply and adapt a framework usually dedicated to speaker verification to recognize the unlock patterns based on users' behavior. We evaluate the performance using equal error rate for different combinations of features and varying number of mixtures. As a result of the combination of features, an equal error rate as low as 9.25% on average is obtained, which is promising for a preliminary study on GMM-UBM applied to unlock pattern based biometric recognition

Leaving A Bequest: Living on Through Charitable Gifts

Decisions taken in respect of the disposition of possessions often parallel a life transition or change in identity. In this article, we examine decisions taken in a will where disposition can be viewed not as a representation of the identities an individual wishes to shed, but rather as the continuation of those for which the deceased wishes to be remembered. We examine the meaning that such donors ascribe to their giving and the rich pattern of utility it offers both the individual and those he or she will ultimately leave behind. Using grounded theory, we report the results of 20 in-depth interviews conducted with individuals who had pledged a bequest to at least one U.K. charity. We demonstrate how the bequest gift is laden with symbolism, a function of the reminiscences of the individual and reflective of the need for the self to live on and achieve a degree of symbolic immortality

How do we get there? Effects of cognitive aging on route memory

© 2017 The Author(s) Research into the effects of cognitive aging on route navigation usually focuses on differences in learning performance. In contrast, we investigated age-related differences in route knowledge after successful route learning. One young and two groups of older adults categorized using different cut-off scores on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), were trained until they could correctly recall short routes. During the test phase, they were asked to recall the sequence in which landmarks were encountered (Landmark Sequence Task), the sequence of turns (Direction Sequence Task), the direction of turn at each landmark (Landmark Direction Task), and to identify the learned routes from a map perspective (Perspective Taking Task). Comparing the young participant group with the older group that scored high on the MoCA, we found effects of typical aging in learning performance and in the Direction Sequence Task. Comparing the two older groups, we found effects of early signs of atypical aging in the Landmark Direction and the Perspective Taking Tasks. We found no differences between groups in the Landmark Sequence Task. Given that participants were able to recall routes after training, these results suggest that typical and early signs of atypical aging result in differential memory deficits for aspects of route knowledge