Discovering the Literary Relevancy of Watchmen: A Review of the Graphic Novel\u27s Philosophical Themes

The American comic book, specifically those of the superhero genre, is a medium that has been associated with stagnant, morally upright characters and formulaic plots. However, author Alan Moore and artist Dave Gibbons changed said stigma with their groundbreaking series Watchmen. An analysis of the work’s storyline, as well as some of the main characters, will reveal the deep philosophical and psychological underpinnings of the graphic novel, and, more importantly, its literary merit. A Christian interpretation of the work will also be presented

A global history of happiness

Happiness is an increasingly prominent topic of interest across numerous academic fields. However, the literature can sometimes imply it is predominantly a modern concern. Relatedly, critics have argued that contemporary scholarship on happiness is Western-centric, yet in so doing can appear to suggest that happiness is mainly a Western preoccupation. However, taking an expansive view of happiness – defining it broadly as a desirable mental experience – one can appreciate that versions of this phenomenon have been of interest to humans across cultures and throughout history. To articulate this perspective, this paper offers a brief overview of 14 different eras, spanning a range of global regions, in each case highlighting concepts and concerns that bear some close resemblance to happiness. In so doing, the paper encourages a deeper and more inclusive understanding of this vital topic

A combinatorial extracellular matrix platform identifies cell-extracellular matrix interactions that correlate with metastasis

Extracellular matrix interactions play essential roles in normal physiology and many pathological processes. While the importance of ECM interactions in metastasis is well documented, systematic approaches to identify their roles in distinct stages of tumorigenesis have not been described. Here we report a novel screening platform capable of measuring phenotypic responses to combinations of ECM molecules. Using a genetic mouse model of lung adenocarcinoma, we measure the ECM-dependent adhesion of tumor-derived cells. Hierarchical clustering of the adhesion profiles differentiates metastatic cell lines from primary tumor lines. Furthermore, we uncovered that metastatic cells selectively associate with fibronectin when in combination with galectin-3, galectin-8, or laminin. We show that these molecules correlate with human disease and that their interactions are mediated in part by α3β1 integrin. Thus, our platform allowed us to interrogate interactions between metastatic cells and their microenvironments, and identified ECM and integrin interactions that could serve as therapeutic targets

1999 Quadrantids and the lunar Na atmosphere

Enhancements of the Na emission and temperature from the lunar atmosphere were reported during the Leonids meteor showers of 1995, 1997 and 1998. Here we report a search for similar enhancement during the 1999 Quadrantids, which have the highest mass flux of any of the major streams. No enhancements were detected. We suggest that different chemical-physical properties of the Leonid and Quadrantid streams may be responsible for the difference.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figure, accepted for publication in MNRA

Probing the extragalactic fast transient sky at minute timescales with DECam

Searches for optical transients are usually performed with a cadence of days to weeks, optimised for supernova discovery. The optical fast transient sky is still largely unexplored, with only a few surveys to date having placed meaningful constraints on the detection of extragalactic transients evolving at sub-hour timescales. Here, we present the results of deep searches for dim, minute-timescale extragalactic fast transients using the Dark Energy Camera, a core facility of our all-wavelength and all-messenger Deeper, Wider, Faster programme. We used continuous 20s exposures to systematically probe timescales down to 1.17 minutes at magnitude limits $g > 23$ (AB), detecting hundreds of transient and variable sources. Nine candidates passed our strict criteria on duration and non-stellarity, all of which could be classified as flare stars based on deep multi-band imaging. Searches for fast radio burst and gamma-ray counterparts during simultaneous multi-facility observations yielded no counterparts to the optical transients. Also, no long-term variability was detected with pre-imaging and follow-up observations using the SkyMapper optical telescope. We place upper limits for minute-timescale fast optical transient rates for a range of depths and timescales. Finally, we demonstrate that optical $g$-band light curve behaviour alone cannot discriminate between confirmed extragalactic fast transients such as prompt GRB flashes and Galactic stellar flares.Comment: Published in MNRA

Prison-Based Dog Training Programs: Standard Protocol

Across the United States, the number of prison-based dog training programs (PDPs) has increased substantially over the past several years. Currently, there are approximately 255 PDPs across 47 states that operate in a variety of correctional settings; however, there is little information available on how to successfully develop and implement a PDP. As a result, the research team from the Institute for Human-Animal Connection (IHAC) has developed a standard protocol to help guide PDP development and implementation. This report identifies common practices of PDPs and incorporates both general and context-specific recommendations that were gathered from interviews with PDP staff, relevant literature, and content experts. In total, 21 interviews with 20 programs were conducted. PDPs were asked about several program features, including policies and procedures, key personnel, funding, materials, physical spaces, supervision and monitoring, safety considerations, animal welfare, handler selection and training, and program benefits. This report highlights the benefits of PDPs to dogs, humans, prisons, local communities, and society as a whole and identifies challenges related to funding, staffing, and operating in a correctional setting. Findings from the protocol point to the importance of planning, staffing, communication, internal support, and training curriculum in successful program implementation

Unsupervised machine learning for transient discovery in deeper, wider, faster light curves

Identification of anomalous light curves within time-domain surveys is often challenging. In addition, with the growing number of wide-field surveys and the volume of data produced exceeding astronomers’ ability for manual evaluation, outlier and anomaly detection is becoming vital for transient science. We present an unsupervised method for transient discovery using a clustering technique and the ASTRONOMALY package. As proof of concept, we evaluate 85 553 min-cadenced light curves collected over two ∼1.5 h periods as part of the Deeper, Wider, Faster program, using two different telescope dithering strategies. By combining the clustering technique HDBSCAN with the isolation forest anomaly detection algorithm via the visual interface of ASTRONOMALY, we are able to rapidly isolate anomalous sources for further analysis. We successfully recover the known variable sources, across a range of catalogues from within the fields, and find a further seven uncatalogued variables and two stellar flare events, including a rarely observed ultrafast flare (∼5 min) from a likely M-dwarf