Integrative biological simulation praxis: Considerations from physics, philosophy, and data/model curation practices

Integrative biological simulations have a varied and controversial history in the biological sciences. From computational models of organelles, cells, and simple organisms, to physiological models of tissues, organ systems, and ecosystems, a diverse array of biological systems have been the target of large-scale computational modeling efforts. Nonetheless, these research agendas have yet to prove decisively their value among the broader community of theoretical and experimental biologists. In this commentary, we examine a range of philosophical and practical issues relevant to understanding the potential of integrative simulations. We discuss the role of theory and modeling in different areas of physics and suggest that certain sub-disciplines of physics provide useful cultural analogies for imagining the future role of simulations in biological research. We examine philosophical issues related to modeling which consistently arise in discussions about integrative simulations and suggest a pragmatic viewpoint that balances a belief in philosophy with the recognition of the relative infancy of our state of philosophical understanding. Finally, we discuss community workflow and publication practices to allow research to be readily discoverable and amenable to incorporation into simulations. We argue that there are aligned incentives in widespread adoption of practices which will both advance the needs of integrative simulation efforts as well as other contemporary trends in the biological sciences, ranging from open science and data sharing to improving reproducibility.Comment: 10 page

Information Literacy in the Workplace: A Cross-cultural Perspective

This cross-cultural study has two main purposes: to investigate how information literacy is perceived in the workplace and to discover how employees obtain information to carry out their jobs in an effective and timely fashion. This project applies a mix of research methods, including site visits, interviews, and a survey. More than 120 participants from forty companies were involved in this study. They were from a wide variety of industries in Taiwan and Silicon Valley, in Northern California, where many companies base offices or operations from around the world. Major obstacles in conducting cross-continent research are cost, time demands, scheduling, and adaptation to local culture. In this global economy, cross-cultural and cross-border research will help educators, such as librarians, understand the complexity of skills expected in the workplace. Much has been written on information literacy, yet very few can relate how information literacy is applied in the workplace. This primary study sheds some light to help academic librarians reposition themselves as researchers-educators integral to student success

The Prospects of M-Voting Implementation in Nigeria

Since independence, an average of 50% of registered voters participates in voting [1]. Similarly, an increasing rate of apathy was observed between the electorate and the elect, which was not unconnected with lack of transparency, accountability, and probity on the part of government [2]. Thus the electorate did not see the need to subject itself to any stress. Consequently, government is very committed to implementing the forth coming elections through e-voting. This paper proposes the prospects of m-voting implementation in Nigeria through the use of mobile phones, PDAs, etc. with guaranteed security, secrecy, and convenience in a democratization process. It also reviews the level of adoption of GSM in Nigeria, the implication of voting through the GSM, and finally introducing m-voting innovation in the voting process to increase voters’ access and participation rate in election

Projected pH reductions by 2100 might put deep North Atlantic biodiversity at risk

This study aims to evaluate the potential for impacts of ocean acidification on North Atlantic deep-sea ecosystems in response to IPCC AR5 Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs). Deep-sea biota is likely highly vulnerable to changes in seawater chemistry and sensitive to moderate excursions in pH. Here we show, from seven fully coupled Earth system models, that for three out of four RCPs over 17% of the seafloor area below 500 m depth in the North Atlantic sector will experience pH reductions exceeding ?0.2 units by 2100. Increased stratification in response to climate change partially alleviates the impact of ocean acidification on deep benthic environments. We report on major pH reductions over the deep North Atlantic seafloor (depth >500 m) and at important deep-sea features, such as seamounts and canyons. By 2100, and under the high CO2 scenario RCP8.5, pH reductions exceeding ?0.2 (?0.3) units are projected in close to 23% (~15%) of North Atlantic deep-sea canyons and ~8% (3%) of seamounts – including seamounts proposed as sites of marine protected areas. The spatial pattern of impacts reflects the depth of the pH perturbation and does not scale linearly with atmospheric CO2 concentration. Impacts may cause negative changes of the same magnitude or exceeding the current target of 10% of preservation of marine biomes set by the convention on biological diversity, implying that ocean acidification may offset benefits from conservation/management strategies relying on the regulation of resource exploitation

Satellite Navigation for the Age of Autonomy

Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) brought navigation to the masses. Coupled with smartphones, the blue dot in the palm of our hands has forever changed the way we interact with the world. Looking forward, cyber-physical systems such as self-driving cars and aerial mobility are pushing the limits of what localization technologies including GNSS can provide. This autonomous revolution requires a solution that supports safety-critical operation, centimeter positioning, and cyber-security for millions of users. To meet these demands, we propose a navigation service from Low Earth Orbiting (LEO) satellites which deliver precision in-part through faster motion, higher power signals for added robustness to interference, constellation autonomous integrity monitoring for integrity, and encryption / authentication for resistance to spoofing attacks. This paradigm is enabled by the 'New Space' movement, where highly capable satellites and components are now built on assembly lines and launch costs have decreased by more than tenfold. Such a ubiquitous positioning service enables a consistent and secure standard where trustworthy information can be validated and shared, extending the electronic horizon from sensor line of sight to an entire city. This enables the situational awareness needed for true safe operation to support autonomy at scale.Comment: 11 pages, 8 figures, 2020 IEEE/ION Position, Location and Navigation Symposium (PLANS

Locating the information: applications, technologies and future aspects

In today’s world, the demand for information is growing rapidly with respect to the human curiosity to explore the inside and the outside of our planet. In a simple analogy, the human body has thousands of sensors called receptor neurons to obtain information such as temperature or pressure from the environment. Similarly, recent developments in electronics and wireless communications lead engineers to the design of small-sized, low-power, low-cost sensor nodes which have the ability to communicate with each other over short distances and collect the information that is gathered

Current approaches and future role of high content imaging in safety sciences and drug discovery

High content imaging combines automated microscopy with image analysis approaches to simultaneously quantify multiple phenotypic and/or functional parameters in biological systems. The technology has become an important tool in the fields of safety sciences and drug discovery, because it can be used for mode-of-action identification, determination of hazard potency and the discovery of toxicity targets and biomarkers. In contrast to conventional biochemical endpoints, high content imaging provides insight into the spatial distribution and dynamics of responses in biological systems. This allows the identification of signaling pathways underlying cell defense, adaptation, toxicity and death. Therefore high content imaging is considered a promising technology to address the challenges for the Toxicity testing in the 21st century approach. Currently high content imaging technologies are frequently applied in academia for mechanistic toxicity studies and in pharmaceutical industry for the ranking and selection of lead drug compounds or to identify/confirm mechanisms underlying effects observed in vivo. A recent workshop gathered scientists working on high content imaging in academia, pharmaceutical industry and regulatory bodies with the objective to compile the state-of-the-art of the technology in the different institutions. They defined technical and methodological gaps, addressed the need for quality control, suggested control compounds and acceptance criteria, highlighted cell sources and new readouts and discussed future requirements for regulatory implementation. This review summarizes the discussion, proposed solutions and recommendations of the specialists contributing to the workshop.JRC.I.5-Systems Toxicolog