Beneficial effect of gelatin on iron gall ink corrosion

Iron gall Inks corrosion causes paper degradation (browning, embrittlement) and treatments were developed to tackle this issue. They often include resizing with gelatin to reinforce the paper and its cellulosic fibers (of diameter approx. 10 µm). This work aimed at measuring the distribution of ink components at the scale of individual paper fibers so as to give a better understanding of the impact of gelatin (re-)sizing on iron gall ink corrosion. For this purpose, scanning transmission X-ray microscopy (STXM) was used at the Canadian light source synchrotron (CLS, Saskatoon). This technique combines nano-scale mapping (resolution of 30 nm) and near edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) analysis. Fe L-edge measurements enabled to map iron distribution and to locate iron(II) and iron(III) rich areas. N K-edge measurement made it possible to map gelatin distribution. C K-edge measurements allowed mapping and discrimination of cellulose, gallic acid, iron gall ink precipitate and gelatin. Three fibers were studied: an inked fiber with no size, a sized fiber that was afterwards inked and an inked fiber sprayed with gelatin. Analysis of gelatin and ink ingredients distribution indicated a lower amount of iron inside the treated cellulosic fiber, which may explain the beneficial effect of gelatin on iron gall ink corrosion.

Gelatin, a protective agent against iron gall ink corrosion?

Iron gall Inks are known to promote paper degradation, thus jeopardizing the conservation of written Heritage. This phenomenon, also called iron gall ink corrosion, is not only governed by chemical reactions occurring between ink constituents and cellulose (the main constituent of paper) but also by the penetration of ink components inside the paper. This penetration depends on the ability of water and ink soluble components to migrate inside the sheet. This latter is composed of hydrophilic cellulosic fibers (of diameter approx. 10 µm) embedded in a size that lowers water affinity and thus makes it suitable for writing. This work aims to better understand the impact of gelatin size on iron gall ink corrosion by investigating the distribution of gelatin and ink components at the scale of individual paper fibers. STXM, a nano-scale mapping technique (resolution of 30 nm) that also allows NEXAFS analysis was used for this purpose. Fe L-edge measurements enabled to map iron distribution and to locate iron(II) and iron(III) rich areas. N K-edge measurement made it possible to map gelatin distribution. C K-edge measurements allowed mapping and discrimination of cellulose, gallic acid, iron gall ink precipitate and gelatin. Three fibers were studied: an inked fiber with no size, a sized fiber that was afterwards inked and an inked fiber sprayed with gelatin (to model the impact of conservation treatments that use gelatin as a re-sizing agent). Analysis of gelatin and ink ingredients distribution inside and outside the cellulosic fiber gave some clues to account for the limiting impact of gelatin on iron gall ink corrosion.

Language, culture and ideology in discursive practices

Discursive practices are looked upon as the core notion of discourse theory and the main instrument linguists can operate with studying language in connection with society and a human being. In this introductory article we will look into how language, culture and ideology are intertwined in diverse discursive practices and how these practices are shaped by people representing various cultures, ideologies and social entities. As part of linguistic discourse theory, we will briefly outline the major objectives and tenets of discourse theory or discourse analysis and track down the reasons why discourse theory turned into a dominant linguistic paradigm in the new millennium. Besides, some light will be thrown on the advancements and debatable questions arising within discourse theory as reflected in its methodology. Then we will give a brief synopsis of each individual paper and highlight theoretical and methodological contributions and innovations proposed by our authors. The results of the discussion as well as a brief outlook on future research will be summed up at the end of the introductory article.

Influence of image of individual paper-only production on strategy of production system develop-ment

The paper presents a new approach to the development strategy of the production system based on a formalized description of bifurcations arising in the creative activities of specialists as part of the solution to the problem of assessing the usefulness of targeted changes in the principles and approaches in the organization of production. In the framework of the producer-production approach to the analysis of production, the term bifurcation producer is proposed, describing a targeted change affecting the development of production. An important task is found to create a unified model that describes the relationship between a person as a thinking active subject and production. This description allows making objective decisions on the production development strategy. A formal-logical apparatus is proposed, that uses as identifiers the characteristics deter-mining the image of production or thought activity, which includes creation of a description mech-anism on the basis of common identifiers for the decision-making model for the production development strategy. There has been illustrated the scheme of interaction of an active thinking person and production. A formal logical apparatus is proposed, using identifiers as characteristics determining the image of production activity or mental activity; including the creation of a description mechanism based on common identifiers for a decision-making model for a production development strategy. The choice of the development strategy of the production system is proposed to be carried out on the basis of the methodology of structural similarity of production types. A similarity matrix for the similarity of bifurcation producers is presented, which contains the following bifurcation producers: ergatic model of transformation of production, division of labor, in-line production, technological specialization, ergodynamic cooperative. The purpose of the development of the production system in the desire to approach the appearance of individual-paper-only production has been substantiated. It is stated that the efficient producer of the strategic development process is the bifurcation producer, which is the result of creative activity. As a primary measure of performance of strategy of development of production system there has been proposed the approximate method of calculating the similarity factor of the bifurcation producers for the individual paper-only production.

Introduction to Politeness and Impoliteness Research in Global Contexts

Im/politeness research has been a solid and growing research field in sociolinguistics, pragmatics and discourse analysis during the last four decades. The scientific interest in this topic is not accidental and may be explained by the general pragmatic turn of modern interdisciplinary linguistic studies which are not focused on language as an abstract system, but on its functioning in various contexts and types of interaction. Knowledge of the strategies and politeness mechanisms used in various social and cultural contexts promotes mutual understanding in communication. In this introduction to the special issue on im/politeness in global contexts we will briefly position the topic of im/politeness research, and highlight advancements in im/politeness theory, method and data. We then turn to a brief synopsis of each individual paper and highlight the theoretical and methodological contributions and innovations proposed by our authors. We end with a discussion of the results and a brief outlook on future research.

A Radical Shift to a Profound and Rigorous Investigation in Political Discourse: An Integrated Approach

Drawing on overarching methodological frameworks of Hallidayan grammatical metaphor, Fairclough’s perspective on critical discourse analysis and rhetoric, this study attempts to posit a novel, integrated and practical approach to political, the media, advertisement and other discourses. To this end and based on the proposed approach, it aims to critically and eclectically exemplify and dissect three speeches delivered by Mr. Barack Obama, former president of the US, to first manifest the integrated approach practicality and adeptness through analysis; then by virtue of analysis to unveil how language is manipulated and distorted by orators in order to convey seamlessly intended messages and political creeds to the audience. Surveying recent annals of literature, to date no one has conducted an integrated study applying these disciplines in an individual paper and this study as a trial one can be useful for upcoming research. The analysis depicts practicality and efficiency of the integrated approach and displays that the speeches abound with nominalizations, modal verbs, parallelisms and antitheses. Furthermore, there are some three-part listing, the use of passivization, quotations and modality metaphors. Therefore, a tendency to utilize more nominalizations, parallelism and other devices by the speaker can be a fundamental reason for making his political language more powerful, impressive, persuasive and ambiguous as well.

Article-level metrics and what they tell us about the impact of PLOS publications

PLOS launched its Article-Level Metrics (ALMs) programme in 2009 as an alternative to the crude journal-level metrics that scientists have relied upon for so long to identify important research. ALMs allow readers to see how many views, downloads, citations and shares an individual paper has received, and thus to determine its impact on a field. Over the past year, the ALMs programme has been expanded to include social media information, such as Facebook likes and Tweets, and novel web tools such as Mendeley and Citeulike. Researchers are now using this information to examine the links between early activity indicators and long-term citation data, and to identify what tools best predict truly impactful research. In this session I will present the latest additions to PLOS's ALMs suite, and show some data on what these metrics tell us about the impact of papers published in PLOS journals.