Functional role of a consensus peptide which is common to α-, β-, and γ-tubulin, to actin and centractin, to phytochrome A, and to the TCP1α chaperonin protein

AbstractThe TRiC (TCP1 Ring Complex) chaperonin complex participates in the functional folding of actin, centractin, α-,β-,γ-tubulin, and phytochrome. Each of the cytoskeletal proteins contain a peptide, RK(A,C,T)F/KRAF, located towards the C-terminus, which is homologous to a TCP1α peptide, while the equivalent phytochrome peptide (RLKAF in certain isoforms) is very similar to the KLRAF peptide of TCP1α. We propose that this TCP1α peptide binds to the nascent polypeptides as they emerge from the ribosome, that this binding restricts the folding pathway, and that the TCP1α peptide is subsequently displaced by the synthesis of the consensus peptide. This hypothesis is strongly supported by the crystallographic structure of actin

Electrophysiological Correlates of Intellectual and Emotional Intelligence

This thesis examines the electrophysiology of several inspection time (IT) tasks, specifically extending two strands of work from Edinburgh by Austin (2004 and 2005) and Zhang et al. (1989a and 1989b). Austin designed a new emotional inspection-time task using human faces as stimulus items. The original pi-figure IT task, extensively investigated since 1970, has been found to generate robust correlations with assorted IQ measures. A potential confound in existing IT methodologies is that the IT-IQ relationship may not arise from particular stimulus presentation methodologies, but be due to a process of rapid strategy formulation. Variation in the stimulus forms (e.g. pifigures, human faces, geometric shapes or auditory tones) affects the robustness of the IT-IQ relationship. Austin’s tasks were modified to permit the acquisition of ERP data to examine the effect of stimulus emotional expression and to explore the relationship with existing psychometric scales. Early differences in ERP related to IQ were reported by Zhang. A key additional element of this thesis is the examination of relationships between ERP and the emotion shown on stimulus faces, since differences in emotional expression form the basis of the emotional-IT task. Four major experiments were conducted. Experiment 1 piloted the face presentation task and set baseline timing values for presenting human face stimuli; participants identified gender from each stimulus. A psychophysical curve was constructed, and the difficulty scaling of the task suggested that the longer timing durations should be removed in favour of additional, shorter durations in subsequent experiments. Experiment 2 was the first attempt in the literature to collect ERP data from the emotional-IT task. The expected negative correlations between psychometric IT and IQ measures were reproduced, but the correlation between IT and EI scores was found to be positive; higher EI scores resulted in slower IT values. A P100 -> N170 -> P300 ERP complex was evoked, with maximal amplitudes at parietal electrode sites, and maximal activations in response to happy-face stimuli, especially among males. When divided into high- and low-IQ groups, higher-IQ individuals showed steeper mean gradients, and gradient-IQ correlations 50ms earlier than among the lower-IQ group. Experiment 3 evaluated different backward masking techniques. In the ERP data, traces elicited by the stimulus face could potentially be contaminated by activity related to the backward mask. A P100®N170®P300 ERP complex was reproduced, but despite very high participant success rates (95.3%), effects of stimulus emotion within this ERP were not pronounced. A newer non-face mask was adopted for future studies to minimise other mask-contamination confounds from larger population samples in subsequent experiments, and to avoid potential apparent motion effects, another known confound in IT methodologies. Experiment 4 featured three consecutive ERP acquisitions (face-IT-1, line-IT and face-IT-2) and was analysed in two stages. ERP effects related to stimulus emotion were inconsistent; the responses to stimulus emotion were neither identical nor prominent in each emotional-IT task. Psychometric effects were more consistent. IQ and IT were negatively correlated as expected, while IQ, IT and emotional intelligence were positively correlated. Throughout the present series of experiments, the expected relationships between IT and IQ were robust across non-traditional emotional-IT tasks. The effects of stimulus emotion on ERP traces were not prominent despite relatively large sample sizes and adequate effect-size estimates. The ERP relationships with IQ previously found at Edinburgh and by others in line-IT tasks were not replicated here, although the lack of such a relationship has precedence in the broader literature

Using fNIRS to Verify Trust in Highly Automated Driving

Trust in automation is crucial for the safe and appropriate adoption of automated driving technology. Current research methods to measure trust mainly rely on subjective scales, with several intrinsic limitations. This empirical experiment proposes a novel method to measure trust objectively, using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Through manipulating participants’ expectations regarding driving automation credibility, we have induced and successfully measured opposing levels of trust in automation. Most notably, our results evidence two separate yet interrelated cortical mechanisms for trust and distrust. Trust is demonstrably linked to decreased monitoring and working memory, whereas distrust is event-related and strongly tied to affective (or emotional) mechanisms. This paper evidence that trust in automation and situation awareness are strongly interrelated during driving automation usage. Our findings are crucial for developing future driver state monitoring technology that mitigates the impact of inappropriate reliance, or over trust, in automated driving systems

How do drivers perceive risks during automated driving scenarios? An fNIRS neuroimaging study

Objective Using brain haemodynamic responses to measure perceived risk from traffic complexity during automated driving. Background Although well-established during manual driving, the effects of driver risk perception during automated driving remain unknown. The use of fNIRS in this paper for assessing drivers’ states posits it could become a novel method for measuring risk perception. Methods Twenty-three volunteers participated in an empirical driving simulator experiment with automated driving capability. Driving conditions involved suburban and urban scenarios with varying levels of traffic complexity, culminating in an unexpected hazardous event. Perceived risk was measured via fNIRS within the prefrontal cortical haemoglobin oxygenation and from self-reports. Results Prefrontal cortical haemoglobin oxygenation levels significantly increased, following self-reported perceived risk and traffic complexity, particularly during the hazardous scenario. Conclusion This paper has demonstrated that fNIRS is a valuable research tool for measuring variations in perceived risk from traffic complexity during highly automated driving. Even though the responsibility over the driving task is delegated to the automated system and dispositional trust is high, drivers perceive moderate risk when traffic complexity builds up gradually, reflected in a corresponding significant increase in blood oxygenation levels, with both subjective (self-reports) and objective (fNIRS) increasing further during the hazardous scenario. Application Little is known regarding the effects of drivers’ risk perception with automated driving. Building upon our experimental findings, future work can use fNIRS to investigate the mental processes for risk assessment and the effects of perceived risk on driving behaviours to promote the safe adoption of automated driving technology

How do drivers perceive risks during automated driving scenarios? An fNIRS neuroimaging study

Objective Using brain haemodynamic responses to measure perceived risk from traffic complexity during automated driving. Background Although well-established during manual driving, the effects of driver risk perception during automated driving remain unknown. The use of fNIRS in this paper for assessing drivers’ states posits it could become a novel method for measuring risk perception. Methods Twenty-three volunteers participated in an empirical driving simulator experiment with automated driving capability. Driving conditions involved suburban and urban scenarios with varying levels of traffic complexity, culminating in an unexpected hazardous event. Perceived risk was measured via fNIRS within the prefrontal cortical haemoglobin oxygenation and from self-reports. Results Prefrontal cortical haemoglobin oxygenation levels significantly increased, following self-reported perceived risk and traffic complexity, particularly during the hazardous scenario. Conclusion This paper has demonstrated that fNIRS is a valuable research tool for measuring variations in perceived risk from traffic complexity during highly automated driving. Even though the responsibility over the driving task is delegated to the automated system and dispositional trust is high, drivers perceive moderate risk when traffic complexity builds up gradually, reflected in a corresponding significant increase in blood oxygenation levels, with both subjective (self-reports) and objective (fNIRS) increasing further during the hazardous scenario. Application Little is known regarding the effects of drivers’ risk perception with automated driving. Building upon our experimental findings, future work can use fNIRS to investigate the mental processes for risk assessment and the effects of perceived risk on driving behaviours to promote the safe adoption of automated driving technology

The stransverse mass, MT2, in special cases

This document describes some special cases in which the stransverse mass, MT2, may be calculated by non-iterative algorithms. The most notable special case is that in which the visible particles and the hypothesised invisible particles are massless -- a situation relevant to its current usage in the Large Hadron Collider as a discovery variable, and a situation for which no analytic answer was previously known. We also derive an expression for MT2 in another set of new (though arguably less interesting) special cases in which the missing transverse momentum must point parallel or anti parallel to the visible momentum sum. In addition, we find new derivations for already known MT2 solutions in a manner that maintains manifest contralinear boost invariance throughout, providing new insights into old results. Along the way, we stumble across some unexpected results and make conjectures relating to geometric forms of M_eff and H_T and their relationship to MT2.Comment: 11 pages, no figures. v2 corrects minor typos. v3 corrects an incorrect statement in footnote 8 and inserts a missing term in eq (3.9). v4 and v5 correct minor typos spotted by reader

Early Observations And Analysis Of The Type Ia SN 2014J In M82

We present optical and near infrared (NIR) observations of the nearby Type Ia SN 2014J. Seventeen optical and 23 NIR spectra were obtained from 10 days before (-10d) to 10 days after (+10d) the time of maximum B-band brightness. The relative strengths of absorption features and their patterns of development can be compared at one day intervals throughout most of this period. Carbon is not detected in the optical spectra, but we identify C I lambda 1.0693 in the NIR spectra. Mg II lines with high oscillator strengths have higher initial velocities than other Mg II lines. We show that the velocity differences can be explained by differences in optical depths due to oscillator strengths. The spectra of SN 2014J show that it is a normal SN Ia, but many parameters are near the boundaries between normal and high-velocity subclasses. The velocities for OI, Mg II, Si II, S Ca a, and Fell suggest that SN 2014J has a layered structure with little or no mixing. That result is consistent with the delayed detonation explosion models. We also report photometric observations, obtained from -10d to +29d, in the UBVRIJH and K-s bands. The template fitting package SNooPy is used to interpret the light curves and to derive photometric parameters. Using R-v = 1.46, which is consistent with previous studies, SNooPy finds that A(v) = 1.80 for E(B - V)(host) = 1.23 +/- 0.06 mag. The maximum B-band brightness of -19.19 +/- 0.10 mag was reached on February 1.74 UT +/- 0.13 days and the supernova has a decline parameter, Delta m(15), of 1.12 +/- 0.02 mag.Department of Space, Government of IndiaHungarian OTKA NN-107637NSF AST-1109801, AST-1151462, AST-1211196NSF Astronomy and Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellowship AST-1302771NASA through a grant from the Space Telescope Science Institute GO-12540NASA NAS5-26555Swedish Research CouncilSwedish National Space BoardDanish Agency for Science and Technology and Innovation realized through a Sapere Aude Level 2 grantAstronom

The impact of migration on the sexual health, behaviours and attitudes of Central and East European gay/bisexual men in London

Extensive social psychological research emphasises the importance of groups in shaping individuals' thoughts and actions. Within the child sexual abuse (CSA) literature criminal organisation has been largely overlooked, with some key exceptions. This research was a novel collaboration between academia and the UK's Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre (CEOP). Starting from the premise that the group is, in itself, a form of social situation affecting abuse, it offers the first systematic situational analysis of CSA groups. In-depth behavioural data from a small sample of convicted CSA group-offenders (n =3) were analysed qualitatively to identify factors and processes underpinning CSA groups' activities and associations: group formation, evolution, identity and resources. The results emphasise CSA groups' variability, fluidity and dynamism. The foundations of a general framework are proposed for researching and assessing CSA groups and designing effective interventions. It is hoped that this work will stimulate discussion and development in this long-neglected area of CSA, helping to build a coherent knowledge-base