Relative Sound Localization for Sources in a Haphazard Speaker Array

A rapidly deployable, easy to use method of automatically configuring multi-channel audio systems is described. Compensating for non-ideal speaker positioning is a problem seen in immersive audio-visual art installations, home theater surround sound setups, and live concerts. Manual configuration requires expertise and time, while automatic methods promise to reduce these costs, enabling quick and easy setup and operation. Ideally the system should outperform a human in aural sound source localization. A naïve method is proposed and paired software is evaluated aiming to cut down on setup time, use readily available hardware, and enable satisfactory multi-channel spatialization and sound-source localization

Wet Laws, Drinking Establishments, and Violent Crime

Drawing on county-level data from Kansas for the period 1977-2011, we examine whether plausibly exogenous increases in the number of establishments licensed to sell alcohol by the drink are related to violent crime. During this period, 86 out of 105 counties in Kansas voted to legalize the sale of alcohol to the general public for on-premises consumption. We provide evidence that these counties experienced substantial increases in the total number of establishments with on-premises liquor licenses (e.g., bars and restaurants). Using legalization as an instrument, we show that a 10 percent increase in drinking establishments is associated with a 4 percent increase in violent crime. Reduced-form estimates suggest that legalizing the sale of alcohol to the general public for on-premises consumption is associated with an 11 percent increase in violent crime

Chinese and English speakers’ neural representations of word meaning offer adifferent picture of cross-language semantics than corpus and behavioral measures

Speakers of Chinese and English share decodable neuralsemantic representations, which can be elicited by words ineach language. We explore various, common models ofsemantic representation and their correspondences to eachother and to these neural representations. Despite very strongcross-language similarity in the neural data, we find that twoversions of a corpus-based semantic model do not show thesame strong correlation between languages. Behavior-basedmodels better approximate cross-language similarity, butthese models also fail to explain the similarities observed inthe neural data. Although none of the examined modelsexplain cross-language neural similarity, we explore how theymight provide additional information over and above cross-language neural similarity. We find that native speakers’ratings of noun-noun similarity and one of the corpus modelsdo further correlate with neural data after accounting forcross-language similarities

Mapping Low-Density Intergalactic Gas: a Third Helium Lyman-alpha Forest

We present a new HST/STIS spectrum of the z=3.18 quasar PKS 1935-692 and summarize the spectral features shortwards of 304A in the rest frame likely to be caused by foreground HeII Lyman-alpha absorption. In accord with previous results on two other quasars at similar redshifts, we demonstrate a correlation with the HI Lyman-alpha forest absorption, and show that much of the helium absorption is caused by a comparable quantity of more diffuse gas with Omega~0.01, that is not detected in HI. The helium ionization zone around the quasar is detected as well as a void seen in both HI and HeII. The properties of the absorption are in broad agreement with those of the other quasars and with models of the protogalactic gas distribution and ionization at this redshift.Comment: 17 pages including 5 figures. As accepted for publication in The Astronomical Journal (minor revisions

Short versus long silver nanowires: a comparison of in vivo pulmonary effects post instillation.

BackgroundSilver nanowires (Ag NWs) are increasingly being used to produce touchscreens for smart phones and computers. When applied in a thin film over a plastic substrate, Ag NWs create a transparent, highly-conductive network of fibers enabling the touch interface between consumers and their electronics. Large-scale application methods utilize techniques whereby Ag NW suspensions are deposited onto substrates via droplets. Aerosolized droplets increase risk of occupational Ag NW exposure. Currently, there are few published studies on Ag NW exposure-related health effects. Concerns have risen about the potential for greater toxicity from exposure to high-aspect ratio nanomaterials compared to their non-fibrous counterparts. This study examines whether Ag NWs of varying lengths affect biological responses and silver distribution within the lungs at different time-points.MethodsTwo different sizes of Ag NWs (2 μm [S-Ag NWs] and 20 μm [L-Ag NWs]) were tested. Male, Sprague-Dawley rats were intratracheally instilled with Ag NWs (0, 0.1, 0.5, or 1.0 mg/kg). Broncho-alveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and lung tissues were obtained at 1, 7, and 21 days post exposure for analysis of BAL total cells, cell differentials, and total protein as well as tissue pathology and silver distribution.Results and conclusionsThe two highest doses produced significant increases in BAL endpoints. At Day 1, Ag NWs increased total cells, inflammatory polymorphonuclear cells (PMNs), and total protein. PMNs persisted for both Ag NW types at Day 7, though not significantly so, and by Day 21, PMNs appeared in line with sham control values. Striking histopathological features associated with Ag NWs included 1) a strong influx of eosinophils at Days 1 and 7; and 2) formation of Langhans and foreign body giant cells at Days 7 and 21. Epithelial sloughing in the terminal bronchioles (TB) and cellular exudate in alveolar regions were also common. By Day 21, Ag NWs were primarily enclosed in granulomas or surrounded by numerous macrophages in the TB-alveolar duct junction. These findings suggest short and long Ag NWs produce pulmonary toxicity; thus, further research into exposure-related health effects and possible exposure scenarios are necessary to ensure human safety as Ag NW demand increases

Microbial populations are shaped by dispersal and recombination in a low biomass subseafloor habitat

© The Author(s), 2022. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Anderson, R., Graham, E., Huber, J., & Tully, B. Microbial populations are shaped by dispersal and recombination in a low biomass subseafloor habitat. MBio, 13(4), (2022): e0035422, https://doi.org/10.1128/mbio.00354-22.The subseafloor is a vast habitat that supports microorganisms that have a global scale impact on geochemical cycles. Many of the endemic microbial communities inhabiting the subseafloor consist of small populations under growth-limited conditions. For small populations, stochastic evolutionary events can have large impacts on intraspecific population dynamics and allele frequencies. These conditions are fundamentally different from those experienced by most microorganisms in surface environments, and it is unknown how small population sizes and growth-limiting conditions influence evolution and population structure in the subsurface. Using a 2-year, high-resolution environmental time series, we examine the dynamics of microbial populations from cold, oxic crustal fluids collected from the subseafloor site North Pond, located near the mid-Atlantic ridge. Our results reveal rapid shifts in overall abundance, allele frequency, and strain abundance across the time points observed, with evidence for homologous recombination between coexisting lineages. We show that the subseafloor aquifer is a dynamic habitat that hosts microbial metapopulations that disperse frequently through the crustal fluids, enabling gene flow and recombination between microbial populations. The dynamism and stochasticity of microbial population dynamics in North Pond suggest that these forces are important drivers in the evolution of microbial populations in the vast subseafloor habitat.This work was supported by NSF OCE-1062006, OCE-1745589, and OCE-1635208 to J.A.H. The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation sponsored observatory components at North Pond through grant GBMF1609. The Center for Dark Energy Biosphere Investigations (C-DEBI) (OCE-0939564) supported J.A.H. and B.J.T. This is C-DEBI contribution 598

Regulation of DNA Synthesis: The Identification of New Drosophila melanogaster Cdc7 Regulatory Subunits

Cell division cycle 7 (Cdc7) is an enzyme required for the initiation of DNA replication. Cdc7 cannot act alone requiring the binding of its regulatory subunit Dbf4 to perform its enzymatic function. Previous studies show that Dbf4 and Cdc7 are well conserved across eukaryotic organisms. Humans and Xenopus have multiple Cdc7 regulatory subunits, and recent studies suggest that Drosophila melanogaster might as well. Human Dbf4 was discovered because of its similarity to yeast Dbf4. It is possible that finding additional Cdc7 regulatory subunits in D. melanogaster could reveal related proteins in humans. As cancer is a disease caused by improper cell cycling, furthering our understanding of Cdc7 and the cell cycle regulation could lead to advances in cancer treatment. This study seeks to identify possible Cdc7 regulatory subunits by screening for D. melanogaster proteins that directly interact with Cdc7. The first goal was to use a Yeast 2-Hybrid assay to repeat results that indicated an interaction between Cdc7 and Drosophila Dbf4, known as Chiffon. This allowed for testing media and the effectiveness of the assay. While not preformed yet, screening will be completed using a Yeast 2-Hybrid assay to determine interactions between Cdc7 and proteins from a D. melanogaster cDNA library. Further testing will remove false positives. Any remaining plasmids be sequenced and identified by the sequence comparison software, BLAST. Our study will test for D. melanogaster proteins that interact with Cdc7, but once these proteins are found further experimentation will be required to confirm interaction and function with Cdc7