论《变异人》中的“9·11”反叙事

乔伊斯·卡罗尔·欧茨的短篇小说《变异人》描绘了2001年美国“9 · 11”恐怖袭击事件发生时一位女主人公的遭遇,是一篇“去9·11”化的“9·11”小说.欧茨避开当下“9· 11”文学叙事的主旋律,以“缺场叙事”策略再现恐怖主义对普通美国民众的冲击,并将“变异”这一科幻元素引入“9· 11”文学,独辟蹊径地应对历史灾难的文学表征危机,折射出后“9· 11”社会的“反乌托邦”特性,同时表达了对人类命运的讽刺、希冀和绝望.

揭开变异人的X档案：狼人不是传说？

在风靡欧美的悬疑电视系列剧《X档案》中，有一集变形狼人的剧情：牧场主帕克父子，误杀了一位印第安青年乔，他们坚称看见种怪物在伤害牛只，当时黑漆漆的，小帕克也因此遭到攻击，留有伤痕FBI联邦警探穆德仔细观察现场，看到不同的脚印．同时发现了像蛇脱皮般的透明皮及乔身上的旧伤口与一副獠牙，穆德相信传说中的印第安人故事：有种人平时与常人一样，人夜之后，就会变成狼，并且像狼一样攻击他人或牲畜吸血吃肉穆德找到老印第安人伊许，询问有关人变狼之事，伊许告诉他，只要被怪物“马尼吐”攻击之后，就会变成野兽伤人，而自己没有知觉．一直循环下去到死为止由于电视剧《X档案》的大量素材都取自美国联邦调查局的不明事件档案。

“赛博格”与“变异人”:神话思维在科幻电影中的叙事呈现及转化

在当下的科幻电影创作中,借助神话思维的叙事转化以实现人类传统神话资源与现代视听语言的融合,已成为重要的发展趋势。漫威系列电影中的英雄形象塑造具有代表性,钢铁侠、蜘蛛侠分别以“赛博格”与“变异人”的身体形态,标示出神话思维影像转化的外化与内化模式。前者象征着人类对技术的驾驭及对其反噬力量的反思,后者则更注重人类对自我潜能的发掘,从而预示着技术与人类本有能力相融合的未来方向。以漫威科幻电影为代表的现代神话,既生动呈现了神话思维对人类艺术创作产生的深刻影响,也在一定程度上影响着中国科幻电影的未来创新路径。

Genetic variability of CYP2B6 polymorphisms in four southern Chinese populations

AIM： To investigate the genotype and allelic frequencies of Cytochrome P450 2B6 polymorphisms in four southern Chinese populations.METHODS： DNA was obtained from blood samples from Han Chinese from Hong Kong and three minority groups,the Wa, Bulang and Lahu from Yunnan in southern China. Genotyping was performed using real-time PCR and confirmed by direct sequencing.RESULTS： A total of 507 subjects from southern China were studied. Results showed there is a high prevalence of 516G 〉 T （34.5%） in ethnic Chinese compared to literature reports on other Asian populations and Caucasians. The frequency of the 516TT genotype is higher in the Hah majority （23.1%） than in three other ethnic minority groups （i.e., 7.4%, 9.1% and 15.8%） in southern China.CONCLUSION： This was the first study to document the spectrum of CYP2B6 allelic variants and genotypes in a southern Chinese population. The 516G 〉 T allele is associated with a defective metabolism of efavirenz （EFV）, which therefore may predispose to drug toxicity.Treatment regimens for human immunodeficiency virus （HIV） and heroin addiction may need to be optimized in different populations because of the marked variability of the key metabolizing enzyme.

Characterization of New Allelic Variation for Glutenin in EMS-Mutant Durum Wheat Population （Triticum turgidum L. subsp, durum （Desf.））

The High Molecular Weight HMW-GS and Low-Molecular-Weight LMW-GS Glutenin Subunits are major determinants of wheat dough processing qualities. Tilling populations was generated by EMS mutagenesis from Chaml durum variety. Protein quality was investigated by SDS sedimentation, protein content, gluten content and thousand kernel weights. 21 mutants were selected from 1,500 lines of tilling population depending on the variations of their electrophoresis profiles. The analysis of Glu-B 1 HMW-GS has showed two types of profiles： lines deficient on Bx7 and lines with expression of new protein between （Bx7-ByS） allelic pair combination. The majority of these mutant lines have showed quality compounds associated with bad technological characteristics like the parent Cham l with the exception of two mutant lines expressing new protein that have significantly stronger gluten properties an one mutant deficient on Bx7 HMW-GS that developed high value of SDS. For Glu-B3 LMW-GS coding for LMW glutenin type 1 and 2, new mutant line showing expression of new protein pattern. The mutant showing over-expression of bands on gel SDS-PAGE for LMW typel like Chaml, have produced the highest protein and gluten content, while the new mutant showing new profile have showed high value of Gluten and SDS.

SPATIAL-TEMPORAL CHANGES AND TRENDS OF AGEING IN CHINA

This study focuses on the development stages of ageing and its regional differences in China based on examination of official statistics and documents. The development of ageing in China has experienced three major stages. Firstly, in the 1950s, low coefficient of elderly population (over 65 years) paced up to primary adult type. Secondly, there was a deeply drop of the elderly population because of natural disaster and political factors in the 1960s. Thirdly, from the 1970s to the end of 20th century, the constant increasing of elderly coefficient made China close to elderly society. With statistic data of population, Logistic model is used to simulate the future development of ageing, and two characteristics of development of ageing are presented. Firstly, as for ageing from 2005 to 2050, the elderly coefficient will grow up significantly from 8.48% to 16.30%. Secondly, after 2025, the increasing rate of elderly coefficient will slow down gradually. The regional differences of elderly population in China can be summarized as follows: 1) the eastern China possesses higher elderly coefficient and huger elder population than the western China; 2) about 47.4% of municipalities and provinces in the eastern China become elderly especially Shanghai, Zhejiang Province, Jiangsu Province, Beijing, Tianjin and Shandong Province; 3) ageing intensity is higher in rural area than urban area but getting close each other, and there are more elderly people in rural area than in urban area. Therefore, these will arose aged care problems, and it becomes important issue to establish the social security system in rural areas as soon as possible for elderly people.

Robust stability for the perturbed sampled-data systems

Robust stability for a class of sampled-data systems whose underlying continuous-time systems were subjected to additive structured perturbations was considered. The proposed upper bounds of the induced perturbations in discrete-time model were similar to those obtained in reference. A stable digital optimal state feedback controller whose design was based on the solution of Riccati equation was given. By considering stability based on the second method of Lyapunov, the robust stability bounds for discrete-time model was obtained. Combining the above findings, one sufficient condition of robust stability and a new region of robust stability on the underlying continuous-time system were obtained. Example was given to illustrate the proposed results. It was shown that the sampling period was a crucial design parameter.

Spatial heterogeneity in a deep artificial lake plankton community revealed by PCR-DGGE fingerprinting

To explore the spatial heterogeneity of plankton communities in a deep artificial lake （Songhua Lake, China）, samples were collected at seven sites. Samples were investigated by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis （DGGE） analysis of the PCR-amplified 16S and 18S rRNA genes and specific bands were sequenced. Cluster analysis of the DGGE profiles revealed that all of the samples grouped into two distinct clusters, in accordance with sampling site; while in each cluster, the divergence of sub-clusters correlated with sampling depth. Sequence analysis of selected dominant DGGE bands revealed that most sequenced phylotypes （84%） exhibited 〉97% similarity to the closest sequences in GenBank, and were affiliated with ten common freshwater plankton phyla （Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Cyanobacteria, Bacillariophyta, Pyrrophyta, Cryptophyta, Ciliophora, Stramenopiles, and Rotifera）. Several of these groups are also found worldwide, indicating the cosmopolitan distribution of the phylotypes. The relationships between DGGE patterns and environmental factors were analyzed by redundancy analysis （RDA）. The results suggested that, total nitrogen, nitrate, nitrite, temperature were strongly correlated with the variation ammonia, and CODMn concentrations, and water in plankton composition.

A City between Metamorphosis and Mutation from 19th to 21st Century

Constantine is a big city, particular because of its site and history. But it is especially a city that currently polarizes a huge interest from public authorities, researchers, as well as citizens represented by associations that are militating to safeguard and promote the city. Making Constantine ＂a regional capital, a metropolis＂ is the ambitious urban project of this city authorities. It is a prestigious project, but at the same time, a double-edged sword. With the emergence of this project, a new conception of the city and its image is induced, the one that conjures new canons of urban modernity, with the whole discourse that sustains it and indicators that materialize it. A new attitude toward the current city of Constantine has emerged, from both the authorities and citizens. The inhabitants are continuing in spite of all to invest their city and do not accept that the natural process of appropriation of space may be stopped indefinitely. The author will try to expose the conflict situationof a changing city inside numerous and varied issues, as well as stakes and challenges.

Dynamic friction modelling and parameter identification for electromagnetic valve actuator

A new modified LuGre friction model is presented for electromagnetic valve actuator system.The modification to the traditional LuGre friction model is made by adding an acceleration-dependent part and a nonlinear continuous switch function.The proposed new friction model solves the implementation problems with the traditional LuGre model at high speeds.An improved artificial fish swarm algorithm(IAFSA)method which combines the chaotic search and Gauss mutation operator into traditional artificial fish swarm algorithm is used to identify the parameters in the proposed modified LuGre friction model.The steady state response experiments and dynamic friction experiments are implemented to validate the effectiveness of IAFSA algorithm.The comparisons between the measured dynamic friction forces and the ones simulated with the established mathematic friction model at different frequencies and magnitudes demonstrate that the proposed modified LuGre friction model can give accurate simulation about the dynamic friction characteristics existing in the electromagnetic valve actuator system.The presented modelling and parameter identification methods are applicable for many other high-speed mechanical systems with friction.

NEW ANTIMICROBIAL SENSITIVITY TESTS OF BIOFILM OF STREPTOCOCCUS MUTANS IN ARTIFICIAL MOUTH MODEL

Objective To develop a new antimicrobial sensitivity test model for oral products in vitro.Methods A biofilm artificial mouth model for antimicrobial sensitivity tests was established by modifying the LKB chromatography chamber. Using sodium fluoride and Tea polyphenol as antimicrobial agent and Streptococcus mu-tans as target, sensitivity tests were studied. Results The modeling biofilm assay resulted in a MIC of 1. 28mg/ ml for fluoride against S. mutans, which was 32 times the MIC for broth maco-dilution method. The differential resistance of bacteria bioflim to antimicrobial agent relative to planktonic cells was also demonstrated. Conclusion The biofilm artificial mouth model may be useful in oral products test.

Debates on the Causes of Global Warming

The controversy between the IPCC and Non-governmental IPCC(NIPCC) on the attribution of global warming are reviewed.IPCC holds that today's global warming is mainly due to anthropogenic activities rather than natural variability,which is emphasized by NIPCC.The surface temperature observations since the mid-20th century support the hypothesis of anthropogenic impact,but for the last one hundred years or so,natural forcings such as solar activity, volcanic eruptions and thermohaline circulation variations also have had great influences on the Earth's climate,especially on inter-decadal timescales.In addition,evidence suggests that the Medieval Warm Period(MWP) and Little Ice Age (LIA) are closely associated with the solar activity over the past 1 thousand years.Over the past 10 thousand years, the North Atlantic cold events and solar activity are closely correlated.Nevertheless,the physical mechanisms of the solar-climate variability and interrelation are not well understood,yet.Notably,a prevailing view recently indicates that galactic cosmic rays may result in climatic cooling through modulating global low cloud cover.However,its process and mechanism need to be further investigated.

Relationship between β3-AR Gene and Obesity, Type 2 Diabetes, Insulin Resistance in Chinese Han Population

Objective: To explore the relationship between the β 3-adrenergic receptor(β 3-AR)gene and obesity, T2DM, insulin resistance in Chinese Han population. Methods: Fifty-three healthy subjects, 105 subjects with simple obesity, 63 type 2 diabetic patients without obesity, and 114 type 2 diabetic patients with obesity were studied with the technique of PCR-RFLP in codon 64 of the exon region of β 3-AR gene representing the variation Trp/Arg. Results: Compared with the subjects of Trp homozygous group, the individuals with Arg allele were more elevated in WHR,MBP,SBP,DBP,FBS,PBS,FINS,PINS,FCP,PCP and lower in ISI. Frequency of Arg allele was higher in HINS subgroup without T2DM. Conclusion: The results indicate that the Trp/Arg variation might lead to insulin resistance, obesity and T2DM.β 3-AR gene is supposed to be the candidate gene of insulin resistance, obesity and T2DM in Chinese Han population.

Characteristics of dental morphology in the Xinjiang Uyghurs and correlation with the EDARV370A variant

Teeth are one of the most important materials for anthropological studies because they are likely to be preserved in ancient remains.While the frequencies of dental characteristics can provide clues to the phylogeny of populations,genetic studies at the individual level can further reveal the biological mechanisms and evolutionary context of dental characteristics.In this study,by analyzing 38 dental characteristics of 242 Xinjiang Uyghur individuals,we found that(i)the dental characteristics of the Uyghurs showed evidence of admixture between European and East Asian populations.The admixture proportions were in line with those previously reported in population genetic studies;(ii)the Xinjiang Uyghur dental characteristics formed three clusters in pairwise correlation analysis.One of the main clusters consisted of characteristics including incisor shoveling,double shoveling and mesial ridge;and(iii)all the characteristics in this cluster were significantly correlated with the genetic variant EDARV370A.The extracted composite phenotypic factor was also significantly associated with EDARV370A,which explained 18%of the total phenotypic variance.This indicated a pleiotropic effect,i.e.,the same genetic factor affects a number of dental characteristics at the same time.Our results confirmed that EDARV370A,a genetic variant that first originated in East Asia about 30000 years ago,played an important role in incisor shoveling in East Asia.This finding suggested that incisor shoveling in modern humans in East Asia is likely to have appeared after the late Pleistocene.

Antigenic variation of the human influenza A(H3N2) virus during the 2014–2015 winter season

The human influenza A （H3N2） virus dominated the 2014-2015 winter season in many countries and caused massive morbid- ity and mortality because of its antigenic variation. So far, very little is known about the antigenic patterns of the recent H3N2 virus. By systematically mapping the antigenic relationships of H3N2 strains isolated since 2010, we discovered that two groups with obvious antigenic divergence, named SW13 （A/Switzerland/9715293/2013-1ike strains） and HK14 （A/Hong Kong/5738/2014-1ike strains）, co-circulated during the 2014-2015 winter season. HK14 group co-circulated with SW13 in Europe and the United States during this season, while there were few strains of HK14 in China's Mainland, where SW13 has dominated since 2012. Furthermore, we found that substitutions near the receptor-binding site on hemagglutinin played an im- portant role in the antigenic variation of both the groups. These findings provide a comprehensive understanding of the recent antigenic evolution of H3N2 virus and will aid in the selection of vaccine strains.

Evolution of Cooperation in Evolutionary Games for Heterogeneous Interactions

When a population structure is modelled as a square lattice,the cooperation may be improved for an evolutionary prisoner dilemma game or be inhibited for an evolutionary snowdrift game.In this work,we investigate cooperation in a population on a square lattice where the interaction among players contains both prisoner dilemma game and snowdrift game.The heterogeneity in interaction is introduced to the population in two different ways:the heterogenous character of interaction assigned to every player(HCP) or the heterogenous character of interaction assigned to every link between any two players(HCL).The resonant enhancement of cooperation in the case of HCP is observed while the resonant inhibition of cooperation in the case of HCL is prominent.The explanations on the enhancement or inhibition of cooperation are presented for these two cases.

Screening and identification of human Zn T8-specific single-chain variable fragment (scFv) from type 1 diabetes phage display library

Zinc transporter 8 （ZnT8） is a major autoantigen and a predictive marker in type 1 diabetes （T1D）. To investigate ZnT8-specific antibodies, a phage display library from TID was constructed and single-chain antibodies against ZnT8 were screened and identified. Human T1D single-chain variable fragment （scFv） phage display library consists of approximately 1 ~ l0s clones. After four rounds of bio-panning, seven unique clones were positive by phage ELISA. Among them, C27 and C22, which demonstrated the highest affinity to ZnT8, were expressed in Escherichia coli Topl0F＇ and then purified by affin- ity chromatography. C27 and C22 specifically bound ZnT8 N/C fusion protein and ZnT8 C terminal dimer with one Arg325Trp mutation. The specificity to human islet cells of these scFvs were further confirmed by immunohistochemistry. In conclusion, we have successfully constructed a T1D phage display antibody library and identified two ZnT8-specific scFv clones, C27 and C22. These ZnT8-specific scFvs are potential agents in immunodiagnostic and immunotherapy of T1D.

Current hypotheses to explain genetic chaos under the sea

Chaotic genetic patchiness （CGP） refers to surprising patterns of spatial and temporal genetic structure observed in some marine species at a scale where genetic variation should be efficiently homogenized by gene flow via larval dispersal. Here we review and discuss 4 mechanisms that could generate such unexpected patterns： selection, sweepstakes reproductive success, collective dispersal, and temporal shifts in local population dynamics. First, we review examples where genetic differentiation at specific loci was driven by diversifying selection, which was historically the first process invoked to explain CGP. Second, we turn to neutral demographic processes that may drive genome-wide effects, and whose effects on CGP may be enhanced when they act together. We discuss how sweepstakes reproductive success accelerates genetic drift and can thus generate genetic structure, provided that gene flow is not too strong. Collective dispersal is another mechanism whereby genetic structure can be maintained regardless of dispersal intensity, because it may prevent larval cohorts from becoming entirely mixed. Theoretical analyses of both the sweepstakes and the collective dispersal ideas are presented. Finally, we discuss an idea that has received less attention than the other ones just mentioned, namely temporal shifts in local population dynamics.

A graded index for evaluating precipitation heterogeneity in China

Precipitation heterogeneity has a nontrivial influence on human life. Many studies have analyzed precipitation heterogeneity but none have proposed a systematic graded index for its evaluation, and therefore, its true characteristics have not been expressed. After comparisons of various methods, the precipitation concentration degree(PCD) method was selected to study precipitation heterogeneity. In addition to the PCD, normal distribution functions, cumulative frequencies, and percentiles were used to establish a graded index for evaluating precipitation heterogeneity. A comprehensive evaluation of precipitation heterogeneity was performed, and its spatiotemporal variation in China from 1960 to 2013 was analyzed. The results indicated that(1) seven categories of precipitation heterogeneity were identified(high centralization, moderate centralization, mild centralization, normal, mild dispersion, moderate dispersion, and high dispersion) and(2) during the study period, the precipitation in more parts of China tended to be normal or dispersed, which is beneficial to human activities.

Genetic variation and population dispersal of Yangtze voles Microtus fortis calamorum in the Dongting Lake region

To understand genetic variation and population dispersal in the Yangtze vole Microtusfortis calamorum distributed in the Dongting Lake region, 144 individuals were collected from six habitat patches. The mitochondrial DNA control region was sequenced and 17 haplotypes were observed. Of the six investigated populations, haplotype and nucleotide diversities of those from larger patches were higher than those from smaller patches. Nonparametric correlation analysis showed that patch size had a positive correlation with haplotype diversity （r = 0.943, P 〈 0.01）. A neighbour-joining tree of the 17 haplotypes showed no geo- graphic genetic structure among the six populations. Analysis of isolation by distance showed that genetic differentiation among the six populations was not positively related to geographic distance. Analysis of mismatch distribution indicated that the voles had passed through a population expansion. The pattern of haplotype distribution in the Changsha population suggests that the population was established by a founder effect