5,038 research outputs found

    Southern Adventist University Undergraduate Catalog 2023-2024

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    Southern Adventist University\u27s undergraduate catalog for the academic year 2023-2024.https://knowledge.e.southern.edu/undergrad_catalog/1123/thumbnail.jp

    Multidisciplinary perspectives on Artificial Intelligence and the law

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    This open access book presents an interdisciplinary, multi-authored, edited collection of chapters on Artificial Intelligence (‘AI’) and the Law. AI technology has come to play a central role in the modern data economy. Through a combination of increased computing power, the growing availability of data and the advancement of algorithms, AI has now become an umbrella term for some of the most transformational technological breakthroughs of this age. The importance of AI stems from both the opportunities that it offers and the challenges that it entails. While AI applications hold the promise of economic growth and efficiency gains, they also create significant risks and uncertainty. The potential and perils of AI have thus come to dominate modern discussions of technology and ethics – and although AI was initially allowed to largely develop without guidelines or rules, few would deny that the law is set to play a fundamental role in shaping the future of AI. As the debate over AI is far from over, the need for rigorous analysis has never been greater. This book thus brings together contributors from different fields and backgrounds to explore how the law might provide answers to some of the most pressing questions raised by AI. An outcome of the Católica Research Centre for the Future of Law and its interdisciplinary working group on Law and Artificial Intelligence, it includes contributions by leading scholars in the fields of technology, ethics and the law.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

    Functional Nanomaterials and Polymer Nanocomposites: Current Uses and Potential Applications

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    This book covers a broad range of subjects, from smart nanoparticles and polymer nanocomposite synthesis and the study of their fundamental properties to the fabrication and characterization of devices and emerging technologies with smart nanoparticles and polymer integration

    Ecology of methanotrophs in a landfill methane biofilter

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    Decomposing landfill waste is a significant anthropogenic source of the potent climate-active gas methane (CH₄). To mitigate fugitive methane emissions Norfolk County Council are trialling a landfill biofilter, designed to harness the methane oxidizing potential of methanotrophic bacteria. These methanotrophs can convert CH₄ to CO₂ or biomass and act as CH₄ sinks. The most active CH₄ oxidising regions of the Strumpshaw biofilter were identified from in-situ temperature, CH₄, O₂ and CO₂ profiles. While soil CH₄ oxidation potential was estimated and used to confirm methanotroph activity and determine optimal soil moisture conditions for CH₄ oxidation. It was observed that most CH₄ oxidation occurs in the top 60cm of the biofilter (up to 50% of CH4 input) at temperatures around 50ÂșC, optimal soil moisture was 10-27.5%. A decrease in in-situ temperature following CH₄ supply interruption suggested the high biofilter temperatures were driven by CH₄ oxidation. The biofilter soil bacterial community was profiled by 16S rRNA gene analysis, with methanotrophs accounting for ~5-10% of bacteria. Active methanotrophs at a range of different incubation temperatures were identified by ÂčÂłCH₄ DNA stable-isotope probing coupled with 16S rRNA gene amplicon and metagenome analysis. These methods identified Methylocella, Methylobacter, Methylocystis and Crenothrix as potential CH₄ oxidisers at the lower temperatures (30ÂșC/37ÂșC) observed following system start-up or gas-feed interruption. At higher temperatures typical of established biofilter operation (45ÂșC/50ÂșC), Methylocaldum and an unassigned Methylococcaceae species were the dominant active methanotrophs. Finally, novel methanotrophs Methylococcus capsulatus (Norfolk) and Methylocaldum szegediense (Norfolk) were isolated from biofilter soil enrichments. Methylocaldum szegediense (Norfolk) may be very closely related to or the same species as one of the most abundant active methanotrophs in a metagenome from a 50ÂșC biofilter soil incubation, based on genome-to-MAG similarity. This isolate was capable of growth over a broad temperature range (37-62ÂșC) including the higher (in-situ) biofilter temperatures (>50ÂșC)

    The Salvation Testimony of African-American Converts in the Protestant Faith: A Phenomenological Study

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    Humanity\u27s frailty and mortal existence create the space for a spiritual conversion experience that resolves matters of life and death. However, spirituality is an abstract concept with an ambiguous definition, and activities surrounding the application of its concepts are interpreted differently from one religious group or community to the next. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the salvation testimony of African-American males and females in the Protestant faith. A semi-structured interview and Conversation analysis are used for data collection and analysis to identify emerging themes for the descriptive essence of the salvation testimony. At this stage in the research, a salvation testimony is defined as an intrinsic revelation of one\u27s redemption towards God through faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God (Bergel, 2019; Estes, 2011; Oliver, 2018). Three theories guided the study: Identity and Social Theory (Stets & Burke, 2000), Structural-Functional theory (Murray, 1998a; Stryker, 2008a), and Symbolic Interactionism (Blumer, 1969). Each theory assisted with interpretations about behavior adaptation within the social constructs for African-American converts in the Protestant faith. The researcher claimed that a salvation testimony is an incipient mechanism contributing to Christian identity formation and connectedness for African-American converts within the Protestant faith

    Multiplexed High-Resolution Imaging Approach to Decipher the Cellular Heterogeneity of the Kidney and its Alteration in Kidney Disease and Nephrolithiasis

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    Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)Kidney disease and nephrolithiasis both present a major burden on the health care system in the US and worldwide. The cellular and molecular events governing the pathogenesis of these diseases are not fully understood. We propose that defining the cellular heterogeneity and niches in human and mouse kidney tissue specimens from controls and various models of renal disease could provide unique insights into the molecular pathogenesis. For that purpose, a multiplexed fluorescence imaging approach using co-detection by Indexing (CODEX) was used, using a panel of 33 and 38 markers for mouse and human kidney tissues, respectively. A customized computational analytical pipeline was developed and applied to the imaging data using unsupervised and/or semi-supervised machine learning and statistical approaches. The goal was to identify various cell populations present within the tissues, as well as identify unique cellular niches that may be altered with disease and/or injury. In mice, we examined disease models of acute kidney injury (AKI) and in human tissues we analyzed specimens from patients with AKI, IgA nephropathy, chronic kidney disease, systemic lupus erythematosus, and nephrolithiasis. In both mice and humans, the disease and reference samples show similar broad cell populations for the main segments of the nephron, endothelium, as well as similar groups of immune cells, such as resident macrophages and neutrophils. When comparing between health and disease, however, a change in the distribution of few sub-populations occurred. For example, in human kidney tissues, the abundance and distribution of a subpopulation of proximal tubules positive for THY1 (a marker of differentiation and repair), was markedly reduced with disease. Changes observed in mouse tissues included shifts in the immune cell population types and niches with disease. We propose that our analytical workflow and the observed changes in situ will play an important role in deciphering the pathogenesis of kidney disease

    Sensing Collectives: Aesthetic and Political Practices Intertwined

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    Are aesthetics and politics really two different things? The book takes a new look at how they intertwine, by turning from theory to practice. Case studies trace how sensory experiences are created and how collective interests are shaped. They investigate how aesthetics and politics are entangled, both in building and disrupting collective orders, in governance and innovation. This ranges from populist rallies and artistic activism over alternative lifestyles and consumer culture to corporate PR and governmental policies. Authors are academics and artists. The result is a new mapping of the intermingling and co-constitution of aesthetics and politics in engagements with collective orders

    EvolutionÀre DiversitÀt der CLCA Gene zwischen Vögeln und SÀugetieren

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    The chloride channel regulators, calcium activated (CLCA) gene family has mainly been associated with cancer and chronic inflammatory airway diseases but the presumably complex cellular functions of these gene products are still widely unknown. The family comprises four distinct genetic clusters in mammals, termed CLCA1 to CLCA4. It is highly complex and diverse and includes amplified or inactivated genes with a high degree of variation between species. For example, in contrast to mice with eight CLCAs including one inactivated gene, humans have only three intact CLCAs and one inactivated gene. The tissue and cellular expression patterns of different CLCA homologues within a species are also often redundant. This complexity and redundancy of the CLCA members might be a reason, why the function of this gene family has not been revealed yet based on a mammalian model organism. The complexity and redundancy of mammalian CLCAs raise two questions: Are the complexity and diversity of these genes unique features of mammals? And second, what is the evolutionary background of these peculiar developments? To address these questions, data on CLCA homologues obtained from evolutionarily more distant species are needed. Recently, a rather simple CLCA gene locus was predicted for the chicken, comprising only two CLCA genes. In a phylogenetic analysis, the first galline CLCA gene product, gCLCA1, was found closely related to mammalian CLCA1, 3 and 4. In contrast, the second one, gCLCA2, seemed more closely related to mammalian CLCA2 than to gCLCA1 or mammalian CLCA1, 3 and 4. In this cumulative thesis, the galline CLCA genes and their genomic structures were analyzed and both members were cloned. Their protein architecture and biochemical properties were investigated in silico and in vitro. In addition, their mRNA as well as their cellular protein expression patterns were analyzed. All data were compared to mammalian CLCA1, 2, 3, and 4. Both avian proteins are encoded by 14 exons and are located in a conserved locus between the Outer Dense Fiber of Sperm Tails 2-Like (ODF2L) and SH3-Domain GRB2-Like Endophilin B1 (SH3GLB1) genes. gCLCA1 combines many properties of mammalian CLCA1, 3 and 4 as it was shown to be a cleaved protein with a typical CLCA domain architecture. Despite its relatively high phylogenetic distance to mammalian CLCA4, it shares most common traits with this member. This includes heavy asparagine-linked glycosylation, the presence of a transmembrane domain in the carboxy-terminal cleavage product and protein expression in the apical membrane of enterocytes. In contrast, gCLCA2 was highly similar to mammalian CLCA2 in terms of its protein architecture, cleavage and glycosylation. These findings were in line with results from in silico analyses of CLCA2 sequences from other avian species.Furthermore, the presence of a transmembrane domain in the carboxy-terminal cleavage product and its expression in keratinocytes are traits of avian CLCA2, which are also found in mammalian CLCA2. Interestingly, and as opposed to the expression patterns of mammalian CLCA proteins, no overlapping tissue or cellular expression patterns were detected for the two galline CLCA members. Based on these findings, CLCA2 appears to be highly conserved among birds and mammals. The results allow to speculate that a hypothetical gene ancestor was expressed in keratinocytes of a common ancestral species before mammalian and avian lineages diverged. This high degree of CLCA2 conservation is in contrast to gCLCA1 and mammalian CLCA1, 3 and 4. During evolution, a hypothetical ancient ancestor of gCLCA1 / mammalian CLCA1, 3, and 4, was likely expressed by enterocytes of a common ancestral species of mammals and birds. The hypothetical ancestral gene seems to have expanded by gene duplications in the mammalian lineage, which did not occur in birds. Besides that, these findings cannot only be used to unveil the evolutionary history of the CLCA family but should be taken into account with regard to the selection of an animal model for the functional analysis of these genes. The chicken might serve as a promising species for knockout models to study CLCA2 functions in vivo. Results obtained from such a knockout chicken are likely transferable to mammalian CLCA2 due to the high degree of conservation. A chicken gCLCA1 knockout model might provide data, which might be transferred most likely to mammalian CLCA4 genes in the gut, as both share a similar cell type specific protein expression in this microenvironment, a similar protein architecture as well as similar biochemical properties. At the transition to the post-genomic era with publically accessible information on gene structures as well as nucleotide and protein sequences of various species, comprehensive analyses of gene families across species have become possible. The comparison of such data in combination with the comparison of gene related information, including cellular expression patterns and biochemical properties, is a powerful approach to enlighten the evolutionary background of proteins. Furthermore, it might be beneficial to identify the most suitable animal model for further functional and biomedical studies.Die CLCA, engl. „chloride channel regulator, calcium-activated“ Genfamilie wird hauptsĂ€chlich mit Krebserkrankungen sowie chronisch entzĂŒndlichen Atemwegserkrankungen in Zusammenhang gebracht. Die mutmaßlich komplexen Funktionen dieser Gene sind bisher jedoch noch weitgehend unbekannt. Die CLCA Genfamilie umfasst bei SĂ€ugetieren vier verschiedene Cluster, die als CLCA1 bis CLCA4 bezeichnet werden. Sie zeichnet sich durch eine außerordentliche KomplexitĂ€t und VielfĂ€ltigkeit aus und beinhaltet tierartlich variierend amplifizierte und inaktivierte Gene. So besitzt der Mensch beispielsweise drei intakte CLCAs sowie ein inaktiviertes Gen, wohingegen die Maus ĂŒber 8 CLCAs verfĂŒgt, von denen ebenfalls eines als inaktiviertes Gen vorliegt. DarĂŒber hinaus sind die Gewebe- und Zellexpressionsmuster der CLCA-Homologen auch innerhalb einer Spezies hĂ€ufig redundant. Diese KomplexitĂ€t und Redundanz von CLCA könnten GrĂŒnde sein, welche die Aufdeckung der Funktion dieser Genfamilie im SĂ€ugetiermodell bisher erschwerte. Damit stellen sich zwei Fragen: Ist die KomplexitĂ€t dieser Genfamilie eine Eigenart der SĂ€ugetiere? Und was ist der evolutionĂ€re Hintergrund fĂŒr diese Entwicklungen? Um diese Fragen zu beantworten, werden Daten ĂŒber CLCA benötigt, die von evolutionĂ€r weiter entfernten Arten stammen. KĂŒrzlich wurde fĂŒr das Huhn ein relativ einfacher CLCA Genlokus vorhergesagt, welcher nur zwei CLCA Gene umfasst. Das erste CLCA Genprodukt des Huhns, gCLCA1, zeichnet sich durch eine besondere phylogenetische NĂ€he zu CLCA1, 3 und 4 der SĂ€ugetiere aus. Im Gegensatz dazu ist das zweite CLCA Genprodukt, gCLCA2, nĂ€her mit SĂ€uger-CLCA2 verwandt als mit gCLCA1 oder SĂ€uger-CLCA1, 3 oder 4. In dieser kumulativen These wurden die gallinen CLCA Gene sowie deren genomische Struktur analysiert und beide Homologe wurden kloniert. DarĂŒber hinaus wurde deren Proteinarchitektur und die biochemischen Eigenschaften in silico und in vitro untersucht. Weiterhin wurden die mRNA- und zellulĂ€ren Proteinexpressionsmuster im Vergleich zu CLCA1, 2, 3 und 4 bei SĂ€ugetieren analysiert. Beide Vogelproteine werden von 14 Exons kodiert und befinden sich an einem konservierten Ort zwischen den ODF2L, engl. „Outer Dense Fiber of Sperm Tails 2-Like” und SH3GLB1, engl „SH3-Domain GRB2-Like Endophilin B1“ Genen. gCLCA1 vereint mit seiner Proteinspaltung sowie der Proteinarchitektur viele Eigenschaften von CLCA1, 3 und 4 der SĂ€ugetiere. Trotz einer relativ großen phylogenetischen Entfernung zu SĂ€uger-CLCA4 weist es jedoch die meisten gemeinsamen Merkmale mit diesem CLCA-Vertreter auf. Hierzu zĂ€hlen eine starke, an Asparagin gekoppelte Glykosylierung, eine TransmembrandomĂ€ne im carboxyterminalen Spaltprodukt und eine Proteinexpression in der apikalen Membran von Enterozyten. Im Gegensatz dazu ist gCLCA2 dem SĂ€ugetier-CLCA2 in Bezug auf dessen Phylogenie, Proteinarchitektur, Spaltung und Glykosylierung sehr Ă€hnlich. Diese Befunde ließen sich mittels in silico Analysen auch fĂŒr weitere aviĂ€re CLCAs nachweisen. Daneben sind die PrĂ€senz einer TransmembrandomĂ€ne im carboxyterminalen Spaltprodukt und die Expression in Keratinozyten Merkmale des aviĂ€ren CLCA2, die auch bei SĂ€ugetier-CLCA2 vorzufinden sind. Bemerkenswerterweise fanden sich im Gegensatz zu den SĂ€uger-CLCAs bei den gallinen CLCA-Mitgliedern keine ĂŒberlappenden gewebe- und zellspezifischen Expressionsmuster. Unter Betrachtung dieser Befunde erscheint CLCA2 bei Vögeln und SĂ€ugetieren stark konserviert zu sein. Weiterhin lĂ€sst sich auf Basis der in dieser kumulativen These erhobenen Daten spekulieren, dass ein hypothetischer gemeinsamer genetischer Vorfahre wahrscheinlich in Keratinozyten eines gemeinsamen Vorfahren von Vögeln und SĂ€ugern exprimiert wurde. Dieser hohe Grad an Konservierung von CLCA2 steht im Gegensatz zu demjenigen von gCLCA1 und SĂ€ugetier-CLCA1, 3 und 4. Im Laufe der Evolution scheint ein hypothetischer genetischer Vorfahre von gCLCA1/SĂ€ugetier-CLCA1, 3 und 4 vermutlich in Enterozyten eines gemeinsamen Vorfahren von Vögeln und SĂ€ugern exprimiert worden zu sein. Dieser hypothetische genetische Vorfahre scheint durch Genduplikationen bei SĂ€ugetieren expandiert zu sein, nicht jedoch bei Vögeln. Neben diesen Aussagen zu einem wahrscheinlichen evolutionĂ€ren Szenario der CLCA Genfamilie zwischen Vogel und SĂ€uger lassen sich die Ergebnisse jedoch auch zur Auswahl eines Modellorganismus zur funktionalen Analyse dieser Gene nutzen. Hierbei erscheint das Huhn zur Untersuchung der CLCA2-Funktion in vivo ein vielversprechender Kandidat fĂŒr knockout-Modelle, deren Untersuchungsergebnisse durch den Grad an Konservierung mit hoher Wahrscheinlichkeit auf SĂ€ugetiere ĂŒbertragbar sind. Ein gCLCA1-Knockoutmodell könnte hingegen Daten liefern, die hochwahrscheinlich auf CLCA4 Gene von SĂ€ugetieren im Darm ĂŒbertragbar sind, da beide in dieser anatomischen Lokalisation ein vergleichbares zellspezifisches Expressionsmuster sowie eine Ă€hnliche Proteinarchitektur und biochemische Eigenschaften besitzen. Im Anbruch des postgenomischen Zeitalters, in dem Genstrukturen sowie Nukleotid- und Proteinsequenzen verschiedener Spezies öffentlich leicht zugĂ€nglich sind, werden umfassende, vergleichende Analysen von Genfamilien ĂŒber verschiedene Spezies hinweg möglich. In Kombination mit dem Vergleich von genbezogenen Daten wie zellulĂ€ren Expressionsmustern oder biochemischen Eigenschaften der Genprodukte ist dies ein wirkungsvolles Vorgehen, um den evolutionĂ€ren Hintergrund von Proteinen aufzudecken und das geeignetste Tiermodell fĂŒr weitere wissenschaftliche Fragestellung auszuwĂ€hlen
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