In the 20 years since Vladimir Putin came to power, Russia has developed a soft power strategy for dealing with Western politics – where Switzerland is not immune. Sociologist Tornike Metreveli looks at some of the evidence.

Background: Mitral valve (MV) and tricuspid valve (TV) apparatus geometry are essential to define mechanisms and etiologies of regurgitation and to inform surgical or transcatheter interventions. Given the increasing use of cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) for the evaluation of valvular heart disease, we aimed to establish CMR-derived age- and sex-specific reference values for mitral annula

The dynamics of isolated-photon plus two-jet production in pp collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV are studied with the ATLAS detector at the LHC using a dataset corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 36.1 fb−1. Cross sections are measured as functions of a variety of observables, including angular correlations and invariant masses of the objects in the final state, γ + jet + jet.

A numerical model was developed to simulate the evolution of a mound placed in the offshore (i.e., outside the zone of wave breaking), exposed to varying non-breaking waves and water levels. The net sediment transport rate is assumed to be mainly dominated by bed load transport, where wave asymmetry plays an important role. The net transport over a wave cycle is expressed with reference to an equi

Aberrant soluble oligomers formed by the amyloid-β peptide (Aβ) are major pathogenic agents in the onset and progression of Alzheimer’s disease. A variety of biomolecules can influence the formation of these oligomers in the brain, although their mechanisms of action are still largely unknown. Here, we studied the effects on Aβ aggregation of DOPAL, a reactive catecholaldehyde intermediate of dopa

On 6 January 2019, the Ecumenical Patriarch (EP) of Constantinople Bartholomew signed a decree on autocephaly that allowed Ukraine to have its canonical independent church a separate from the Russian one. This marked a monumental event for Orthodox Christianity in general and the beginning of a new era for religion in Ukraine in particular. This article briefly examines the process of the making o

Objective: Blind and low-vision individuals often have severely reduced mobility, affecting their quality of life and associated socioeconomic cost. Despite numerous efforts and great technological progress, the only used primary mobility aids are still white canes and seeing-eye dogs. Furthermore, there is a permeating tendency in the field to ignore knowledge of both mobility and the target grou

The unique diagnostic possibilities of X-ray diffraction, small X-ray scattering and phase-contrast imaging techniques applied with high-intensity coherent X-ray synchrotron and X-ray free-electron laser radiation can only be fully realized if a sufficient dynamic range and/or spatial resolution of the detector is available. In this work, it is demonstrated that the use of lithium fluoride (LiF) a

A numerical model was developed to simulate hydrodynamics (waves, currents, and mean water level), cross-shore sediment transport, and beach profile evolution in the nearshore assuming negligible longshore transport gradients. Particular focus was put on describing the response of the subaerial region of the profile, including the foreshore and the berm, as well as the exchange of material between

Cerium-based intermetallics are currently attracting much interest as a possible alternative to existing high-performance magnets containing scarce heavy rare-earth elements. However, the intrinsic magnetic properties of Ce in these systems are poorly understood due to the difficulty of a quantitative description of the Kondo effect, a many-body phenomenon where conduction electrons screen out the

In this study, thermal and hydraulic performance of supercritical liquefied natural gas (LNG) is numerically studied in a printed circuit heat exchanger (PCHE) with airfoil fins under a rolling condition. Effects of operating pressures and rolling parameters are investigated. Results indicate that the PCHE has better thermal performance but worse hydraulic performance at a lower pressure condition

Aims: The population of immigrants from the Middle East in Sweden show a higher prevalence of type 2 diabetes (T2D) compared to native Swedes. The exact reason for this is unknown. Here, we have performed metabolite profiling to investigate these differences. Methods: Metabolite profiling was conducted in Iraqi immigrants (n = 93) and native Swedes (n = 77) using two complementary mass spectrometr

Crystal growth of semiconductor nanowires from a liquid droplet depends on the stability of this droplet's liquid-solid interface. Because of the assisting property of the droplet, growth will be hindered if the droplet is displaced onto the nanowire sidewalls. Using real-time observation of such growth by in situ transmission electron microscopy combined with theoretical analysis of the surface e

AbstractBreast cancer incidence is increasing, and despite major progress in the treatment, breast cancer is still the leading cause of death from cancer among women. Thus, there is a constant need for new treatment options. Statins are peroral drugs that have been widely used since the early 1990s, due to their well-documented effect of lowering plasma cholesterol levels and preventing cardiovasc

The purpose of the present study is to introduce a point process model for characterizing the pattern of atrial fibrillation (AF) episodes. A variant of the bivariate Hawkes process is proposed, accounting for clustered episodes. The model parameters are inferred by the maximum likelihood method. The goodness-of-fit analysis show that model fits the data in most of the recordings (27 out of 32). T

In the last two decades, extracellular vesicles (EVs) from the three domains of life, Archaea, Bacteria and Eukaryotes, have gained increasing scientific attention. As such, the role of EVs in host-pathogen communication and immune modulation are being intensely investigated. Pivotal to EV research is the determination of how and where EVs are taken up by recipient cells and organs in vivo, which

Background: Nutrition and lifestyle have been long established as risk factors for colorectal cancer (CRC). Modifiable lifestyle behaviours bear potential to minimize long-term CRC risk; however, translation of lifestyle information into individualized CRC risk assessment has not been implemented. Lifestyle-based risk models may aid the identification of high-risk individuals, guide referral to sc