1,023 research outputs found
Costs and Consequences of Traffic Fines and Fees: A Case Study of Open Warrants in Las Vegas, Nevada
Traffic stops and tickets often have far-reaching consequences for poor and marginalized communities, yet resulting fines and fees increasingly fund local court systems. This paper critically explores who bears the brunt of traffic fines and fees in Nevada, historically one of the fastest growing and increasingly diverse states in the nation, and one of thirteen US states to prosecute minor traffic violations as criminal misdemeanors rather than civil infractions. Drawing on legislative histories, we find that state legislators in Nevada increased fines and fees to raise revenues. Using descriptive statistics to analyze the 2012–2020 open arrest warrants extracted from the Las Vegas Municipal Court, we find that 58.6% of all open warrants are from failure to pay tickets owing to administrative-related offenses—vehicle registration and maintenance, no license or plates, or no insurance. Those issued warrants for failure to pay are disproportionately for people who are Black and from the poorest areas in the region. Ultimately, the Nevada system of monetary traffic sanctions criminalizes poverty and reinforces racial disparities
Inflammatory Cytokine Gene Expression in Mesenteric Adipose Tissue during Acute Experimental Colitis
BACKGROUND: Production of inflammatory cytokines by mesenteric adipose tissue (MAT) has been implicated in the pathogenesis of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Animal models of colitis have demonstrated inflammatory changes within MAT, but it is unclear if these changes occur in isolation or as part of a systemic adipose tissue response. It is also unknown what cell types are responsible for cytokine production within MAT. The present study was designed to determine whether cytokine production by MAT during experimental colitis is depot-specific, and also to identify the source of cytokine production within MAT.
METHODS: Experimental colitis was induced in 6-month-old C57BL/6 mice by administration of dextran sulfate sodium (2% in drinking water) for up to 5 days. The induction of cytokine mRNA within various adipose tissues, including mesenteric, epididymal, and subcutaneous, was analyzed by qRT-PCR. These adipose tissues were also examined for histological evidence of inflammation. The level of cytokine mRNA during acute colitis was compared between mature mesenteric adipocytes, mesenteric stromal vascular fraction (SVF), and mesenteric lymph nodes.
RESULTS: During acute colitis, MAT exhibited an increased presence of infiltrating mononuclear cells and fibrotic structures, as well as decreased adipocyte size. The mRNA levels of TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 were significantly increased in MAT but not other adipose tissue depots. Within the MAT, induction of these cytokines was observed mainly in the SVF.
CONCLUSIONS: Acute experimental colitis causes a strong site-specific inflammatory response within MAT, which is mediated by cells of the SVF, rather than mature adipocytes or mesenteric lymph nodes
Comprehensive genomic characterization of five canine lymphoid tumor cell lines
Abstract Background Leukemia/lymphoma cell lines have been critical in the investigation of the pathogenesis and therapy of hematological malignancies. While human LL cell lines have generally been found to recapitulate the primary tumors from which they were derived, appropriate characterization including cytogenetic and transcriptional assessment is crucial for assessing their clinical predictive value. Results In the following study, five canine LL cell lines, CLBL-1, Ema, TL-1 (Nody-1), UL-1, and 3132, were characterized using extensive immunophenotyping, karyotypic analysis, oligonucleotide array comparative genomic hybridization (oaCGH), and gene expression profiling. Genome-wide DNA copy number data from the cell lines were also directly compared with 299 primary canine round cell tumors to determine whether the cell lines represent primary tumors, and, if so, what subtype each most closely resembled. Conclusions Based on integrated analyses, CLBL-1 was classified as B-cell lymphoma, Ema and TL-1 as T-cell lymphoma, and UL-1 as T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. 3132, originally classified as a B-cell lymphoma, was reclassified as a histiocytic sarcoma based on characteristic cytogenomic properties. In combination, these data begin to elucidate the clinical predictive value of these cell lines which will enhance the appropriate selection of in vitro models for future studies of canine hematological malignancies
Deuteron cross section evaluation for safety and radioprotection calculations of IFMIF/EVEDA accelerator prototype
under construction in Japan. Interaction of these deuterons with matter will generate high levels of
neutrons and induced activation, whose predicted yields depend strongly on the models used to calculate
the different cross sections. A benchmark test was performed to validate these data for deuteron energies
up to 20 MeV and to define a reasonable methodology for calculating the cross sections needed for
EVEDA. Calculations were performed using the nuclear models included in MCNPX and PHITS, and the
dedicated nuclear model code TALYS. Although the results obtained using TALYS (global parameters)
or Monte Carlo codes disagree with experimental values, a solution is proposed to compute cross sections
that are a good fit to experimental data. A consistent computational procedure is also suggested to
improve both transport simulations/prompt dose and activation/residual dose calculations required for
EVEDA
Disorder Dynamics in Battery Nanoparticles During Phase Transitions Revealed by Operando Single-Particle Diffraction
Structural and ion-ordering phase transitions limit the viability of
sodium-ion intercalation materials in grid scale battery storage by reducing
their lifetime. However, the combination of phenomena in nanoparticulate
electrodes creates complex behavior that is difficult to investigate,
especially on the single nanoparticle scale under operating conditions. In this
work, operando single-particle x-ray diffraction (oSP-XRD) is used to observe
single-particle rotation, interlayer spacing, and layer misorientation in a
functional sodium-ion battery. oSP-XRD is applied to
Na[NiMn]O, an archetypal P2-type sodium-ion
positive electrode material with the notorious P2-O2 phase transition induced
by sodium (de)intercalation. It is found that during sodium extraction, the
misorientation of crystalline layers inside individual particles increases
before the layers suddenly align just prior to the P2-O2 transition. The
increase in the long-range order coincides with an additional voltage plateau
signifying a phase transition prior to the P2-O2 transition. To explain the
layer alignment, a model for the phase evolution is proposed that includes a
transition from localized to correlated Jahn-Teller distortions. The model is
anticipated to guide further characterization and engineering of sodium-ion
intercalation materials with P2-O2 type transitions. oSP-XRD therefore opens a
powerful avenue for revealing complex phase behavior in heterogeneous
nanoparticulate systems.Comment: 23 pages, 4 main figures, 9 supplemental figure
A Survey of z>5.7 Quasars in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey II: Discovery of Three Additional Quasars at z>6
We present the discovery of three new quasars at z>6 in 1300 deg^2 of SDSS
imaging data, J114816.64+525150.3 (z=6.43), J104845.05+463718.3 (z=6.23) and
J163033.90+401209.6 (z=6.05). The first two objects have weak Ly alpha emission
lines; their redshifts are determined from the positions of the Lyman break.
They are only accurate to 0.05 and could be affected by the presence of broad
absorption line systems. The last object has a Ly alpha strength more typical
of lower redshift quasars. Based on a sample of six quasars at z>5.7 that cover
2870 deg^2 presented in this paper and in Paper I, we estimate the comoving
density of luminous quasars at z 6 and M_{1450} < -26.8 to be (8 +/-
3)x10^{-10} Mpc^{-3} (for H_0 = 50 km/s/Mpc, Omega = 1). HST imaging of two
z>5.7 quasars and high-resolution ground-based images (seeing 0.4'') of three
additional z>5.7 quasars show that none of them is gravitationally lensed. The
luminosity distribution of the high-redshfit quasar sample suggests the bright
end slope of the quasar luminosity function at z 6 is shallower than Psi
L^{-3.5} (2-sigma), consistent with the absence of strongly lensed objects.Comment: AJ in press (Apr 2003), 26 pages, 9 figure
QUANTIFICATION OF RESIDUAL CLOVE OIL, BENZOCAINE AND TRICAINE IN FISH FILLETS USING SPE AND UPLC-DAD
Residual quantification of the anesthetics clove oil (CO) – isoeugenol (ISO), eugenol (EUG) and methyleugenol (MET) –,benzocaine (BZN) and tricaine (MS-222) was made in fillets of two fish species: Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) and acatfish hybrid, cachadia (Pseudoplatystoma reticulatum x Leiarius marmoratus). Samples (n=4) of each fish wereevaluated after submitted to anesthesia in five dosages defined based on the induction time of each species afterdepuration times (0h, 12h, 24h and 48h). Different methodologies of sample preparation were tested and selectedaccording to the better recovery. The quantification of anesthetics was performed by UPLC-DAD. The variance of residualmeans among anesthetics, dosages and fish species was compared. After anesthesia (0h) both species, tilapia andcachadia, presented residual anesthetics. Fishes depurated during 12h, 24h and 48h did not present detectable values, itmeans, values were below the limits of detection. BZN presented the highest mean residual concentration for tilapia andcachadia (p=0.01), while MS-222 presented the lowest residual amounts in tilapias and EUG in cachadias, what may berelated to the metabolism and carcass composition of each fish species. There were no significant differences among thefive dosages, except the lowest MS-222 concentration in tilapias that resulted in higher residual concentrations becauselow dosages increase the induction time and consequently the permanence of the fish in anesthesia. Ultimately, meanvalues of residues in cachadia were higher than in tilapia, and MS-222 and EUG presented the lowest residual values fortilapia and cachadia, respectively
Average Metallicity and Star Formation Rate of Lya Emitters Probed by a Triple Narrow-Band Survey
We present the average metallicity and star-formation rate of Lya emitters
(LAEs) measured from our large-area survey with three narrow-band (NB) filters
covering the Lya, [OII]3727, and Ha+[NII] lines of LAEs at z=2.2. We select 919
z=2.2 LAEs from Subaru/Suprime-Cam NB data in conjunction with Magellan/IMACS
spectroscopy. Of these LAEs, 561 and 105 are observed with KPNO/NEWFIRM
near-infrared NB filters whose central wavelengths are matched to redshifted
[OII] and Ha nebular lines, respectively. By stacking the near-infrared images
of the LAEs, we successfully obtain average nebular-line fluxes of LAEs, the
majority of which are too faint to be identified individually by narrow-band
imaging or deep spectroscopy. The stacked object has an Ha luminosity of
1.7x10^{42} erg s^{-1} corresponding to a star formation rate (SFR) of 14
M_{sun} yr^{-1}. We place, for the first time, a firm lower limit to the
average metallicity of LAEs of Z>~0.09 Z_{sun} (2sigma) based on the
[OII]/(Ha+[NII]) index together with photo-ionization models and empirical
relations. This lower limit of metallicity rules out the hypothesis that LAEs,
so far observed at z~2, are extremely metal poor (Z<2x10^{-2} Z_{sun}) young
galaxies at the 4sigma level. This limit is higher than a simple extrapolation
of the observed mass-metallicity relation of z~2 UV-selected galaxies toward
lower masses (5x10^{8} M_{sun}), but roughly consistent with a recently
proposed fundamental mass-metallicity relation when the LAEs' relatively low
SFR is taken into account. The Ha and Lya luminosities of our NB-selected LAEs
indicate that the escape fraction of Lya photons is ~12-30 %, much higher than
the values derived for other galaxy populations at z~2.Comment: 21 pages, 15 figures, 8 tables. Accepted for publication in Ap
Open string modes at brane intersections
We study systematically the open string modes of a general class of BPS
intersections of branes. We work in the approximation in which one of the
branes is considered as a probe embedded in the near-horizon geometry generated
by the other type of branes. We mostly concentrate on the D3-D5 and D3-D3
intersections, which are dual to defect theories with a massive hypermultiplet
confined to the defect. In these cases we are able to obtain analytical
expressions for the fluctuation modes of the probe and to compute the
corresponding mass spectra of the dual operators in closed form. Other BPS
intersections are also studied and their fluctuation modes and spectra are
found numerically.Comment: 58 pages, 3 figures, LaTeX;v2: typos correcte
Early-type galaxies in the SDSS. I. The sample
A sample of nearly 9000 early-type galaxies, in the redshift range 0.01 < z <
0.3, was selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey using morphological and
spectral criteria. This paper describes how the sample was selected, presents
examples of images and seeing corrected fits to the observed surface brightness
profiles, describes our method for estimating K-corrections, and shows that the
SDSS spectra are of sufficiently high quality to measure velocity dispersions
accurately. It also provides catalogs of the measured photometric and
spectroscopic parameters. In related papers, these data are used to study how
early-type galaxy observables, including luminosity, effective radius, surface
brightness, color, and velocity dispersion, are correlated with one another.Comment: 63 pages, 21 figures. Accepted by AJ (scheduled for April 2003). This
paper is part I of a revised version of astro-ph/0110344. The full version of
Tables 2 and 3, i.e. the tables listing the photometric and spectroscopic
parameters of ~ 9000 galaxies, are available at
http://astrophysics.phys.cmu.edu/~bernardi/SDSS/Etypes/TABLE
- …