Not so long ago, Africa was being described as the ‘Hopeless Continent’. Recently, though, talk has turned to ‘Africa Rising’, with enthusiastic voices exclaiming the potential for economic growth across many of its countries. What, then, is the truth behind Africa’s growth, or lack of it?In this provocative book, Morten Jerven fundamentally reframes the debate, challenging mainstream accounts of

What do we know about economic development in Africa? The answer is that we know much less than we would like to think. This collection assesses the knowledge problem present in statistics on poverty, agriculture, labour, education, health, and economic growth. While diverse in origin, the contributors to this book are unified in two conclusions: the quality and quantity of data needs to be improv

Background: Previous studies were conflicting regarding the associations between HPV vaccination, cervical cancer risk perceptions, high-risk sexual behaviors and STIs. This study compared the HPV-vaccinated and non-vaccinated young women in Uganda regarding cervical cancer risk perceptions, high-risk sexual behaviors, syphilis and HIV infections 5 years after vaccine implementation. Methods: This

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Ionotropic glutamate receptors are tetrameric ligand gated ion channels that mediate in ux and ef ux of metal ions in response to glutamate. Positive allosteric modulators of the ionotropic glutamate receptor 2 (GluA2) are promising lead compounds for drugs against cognitive disorders. These compounds bind within the dimeric interface formed by the receptor ligand binding domains (LBDs) attenuatin

TheEl Niño SouthernOscillation(ENSO) isEarth's dominant source of interannual climate variability, but its response to globalwarming remainshighly uncertain1.To improve ourunder standing of ENSO's sensitivity to external climate forcing, it is paramount to determine its past behaviour by using palaeoclimate data and model simulations. Palaeoclimate records show that ENSO has varied considerably si

Most fermentative microorganisms grow well-under anaerobic conditions managing a balanced redox and appropriate energy metabolism, but a few species do exist in which cells have to cope with inadequate energy recovery or capture and/or redox balancing. Two cases of these species, i.e., the metabolically engineered Saccharomyces cerevisiae enabling it to ferment xylose and Lactobacillus reuteri fer

Immunoglobulins are the effector molecules of the adaptive humoral immune system. In a genome-wide association study of 19,219 individuals, we found 38 new variants and replicated 5 known variants associating with IgA, IgG or IgM levels or with composite immunoglobulin traits, accounted for by 32 loci. Variants at these loci also affect the risk of autoimmune diseases and blood malignancies and in

AbstractAim: Although imaging of In vitro labeled leukocytes is commonly used for diagnosing inflammation and infection, data concerning the use of this technique to monitor neutrophil trafficking are scarce. Here we investigated thepotential of 111In-in vitro labeled leukocytes (InWBC) to monitor neutrophil trafficking in an animal model of pulmonary inflammation.Methods: F344 rats were divided i

Communities all over the world are using traditional technologies to extract drinkingwater, irrigate their lands and feed their livestock. But these often sustainable and ancient ways to make use of groundwater are in rapid decline worldwide. A research project started in 1999 to study the rehabilitation of 1500-year old water tunnels called "qanats"in Syria. To Cooperate or not to Cooperate...? d

The chief economist for the World Bank's Africa region, Shanta Devarajan, delivered a devastating assessment of the capacity of African states to measure development in his 2013 article "Africa's Statistical Tragedy". Is there a "statistical tragedy" unfolding in Africa now? If so, it becomes important to examine the roots of the problem as far as the provision of statistics in poor economies is c