Actomyosin (actin‐myosin II complex)‐mediated contractile forces are central to the generation of multifaceted uni‐ and multi‐cellular material properties and dynamics such as cell division, migration, and tissue morphogenesis. In the present article, we summarize our recent researches addressing molecular mechanisms that ensure actomyosin‐mediated directional cell–cell junction remodeling, either shortening or extension, driving cell rearrangement for epithelial morphogenesis. Genetic perturbation clarified two points concerning cell–cell junction remodeling: an inhibitory mechanism against negative feedback in which actomyosin contractile forces, which are well known (...) to induce cell–cell junction shortening, can concomitantly alter actin dynamics, oppositely leading to perturbation of the shortening; and tricellular junctions as a point that organizes extension of new cell–cell junctions after shortening. These findings highlight the notion that cells develop underpinning mechanisms to transform the multi‐tasking property of actomyosin contractile forces into specific and proper cellular dynamics in space and time. (shrink)

Susan Sontag once remarked that since the invention of the camera, photography has “kept company with death.” And indeed, images of suffering human beings and devastated landscapes appear regularly in the popular media and even in contemporary art. This volume explores these painful images from the past few decades of photography, weighing in on the intense critical debate that has arisen in recent years around depictions of acute human suffering—especially those that are beautifully rendered. Drawing on works from advertising, photojournalism, (...) art photography, and conceptual art, Beautiful Suffering features reproductions of all the pieces in the Williams College Museum of Art exhibition that shares its name—including portrayals of AIDS sufferers, Abu Ghraib prisoners, refugees, and casualties of war. It also includes five critical essays that engage the works themselves as well as the larger issues the exhibition confronts: Is it inherently problematic to seek aesthetic pleasure in a rendering of pain? And if so, why? These essays, composed by scholars in fields as diverse as art history and political science, are perfect complements to the powerful images of suffering that probe some of the most pressing issues we face today. (shrink)

This article describes the UniversAAL platform, an open platform intended to facilitate the development, distribution, and deployment of technological solutions for Ambient assisted living. The platform is intended to benefit end users, authorities with responsibility for AAL, and organizations involved in the development and deployment of AAL services. It consists of an extensive set of resources aimed at these different groups. The resources are classified into three main groups: runtime support, development support, and community support. The article presents the benefits (...) that can be expected from the widespread adoption of the platform. The article also describes progress on prototype implementations of some of the software resources, and the results of initial evaluations of the platform. The work is partially based on results from earlier European Union-funded research projects in the area. (shrink)