Modulation of rotation-induced lift force for cell filtration in a low aspect ratio microchannel

Cell filtration is a critical step in sample preparation in many bioapplications. Herein, we report on a simple, filter-free, microfluidic platform based on hydrodynamic inertial migration. Our approach builds on the concept of two-stage inertial migration which permits precise prediction of microparticle position within the microchannel. Our design manipulates equilibrium positions of larger microparticles by modulating rotation-induced lift force in a low aspect ratio microchannel. Here, we demonstrate filtration of microparticles with extreme efficiency (>99%). Using multiple prostate cell lines (LNCaP and human prostate epithelial tumor cells), we show filtration from spiked blood, with 3-fold concentration and >83% viability. Results of a proliferation assay show normal cell division and suggest no negative effects on intrinsic properties. Considering the planar low-aspect-ratio structure and predictable focusing, we envision promising applications and easy integration with existing lab-on-a-chip systems.     

The Bologna Process and Integration Theory: Convergence and Autonomy

This paper focuses on two theoretical frameworks of integration (neo‐functionalism and liberal inter‐governmentalism), exploring their implications for current trends of integration in European higher education: the marketization of and trade in educational services, the involvement of supranational institutions, and the focus on quality assessment at the possible expense of academic freedom.     

The language of objects: Christian Jürgensen Thomsen's science of the past

The Danish amateur scholar Christian Jürgensen Thomsen has often been described as a founder of modern "scientific" archaeology. Thomsen's innovation, this essay argues, reflects developments within neighboring fields, such as philology and history. He reacted against historians who limited themselves to histories of texts and therefore abandoned the earliest human history. Instead, he proposed a new history of objects, which included the entire history of humankind. Thomsen's work as director of the Royal Museum of Nordic Antiquities in Copenhagen was especially important for this renewal. The arrangement of artifacts not only helped him formulate his theories, but also allowed him to present his arguments in a language of objects. At the same time, Thomsen's definition of archaeology as a museum science placed his branch of archaeology in a closer relationship with other museum sciences, such as geology and comparative anatomy. From the 1840s, Thomsen's museum became a model for how the study of human artifacts could deliver scientific insights into human nature and the laws of human development.     

Social reproduction and sex in German primary schools

To understand the relationship between social background and sex in schooling, we use Bourdieu’s theory of social reproduction and a feminist perspective of gender as practice. We pose two questions: (1) What is the relationship between economic and cultural capital and achievement for 4th-grade females versus males studying in Germany? (2) Is the relationship between school composition and student achievement different for 4th-grade females versus males? We report no differences between females and males in the relationships between social background and achievement (p > 0.05). However, the relationship between class-aggregated social background and achievement is halved in female-majority mathematics classrooms (β = -12.6, p < 0.05).