Note On Endomorphism Algebras Of Separable Monoidal Functors

We recall the Tannaka construction for certain types of split monoidal functor into Vect_{k}, and remove the compactness restriction on the domain

Limits of small functors

For a small category K enriched over a suitable monoidal category V, the free completion of K under colimits is the presheaf category [K*,V]. If K is large, its free completion under colimits is the V-category PK of small presheaves on K, where a presheaf is small if it is a left Kan extension of some presheaf with small domain. We study the existence of limits and of monoidal closed structures on PK.Comment: 17 page

Wild systems theory as a 21st century coherence framework for cognitive science

The present paper examines the historical choice points the led twentieth-century cognitive science to its current commitment to correspondence approaches to reality and truth. Such a “correspondence”-driven approach to reality and truth stands in contrast to coherence-driven approaches, which were prominent in the 1800s and early 1900s. Coherence approaches refused to begin the conversation regarding reality with the assumption that the important thing about it was its independence of observers because the reality-observer split inherent in correspondence-driven views often led to objective-subjective divides, which, within scientific theorizing, tended to render the latter causally unnecessary and in need of ontological justification. The present paper fleshes out the differences between coherence- and correspondence-driven approaches to reality and truth, proposes an explanation of why cognitive science came to favor correspondence approaches, describes problems that have arisen in cognitive science because of its commitment to correspondence theorizing, and proposes an alternative framework (i.e., Wild Systems Theory— WST) that is inspired by a coherence approach to reality and truth, yet is entirely consistent with science

After naturalism : wild systems theory and the turn to holism ; a reply to Saskia K. Nagel

We agree with Dr. Nagel’s assertion that explanations within cognitive science can be thickened by an infusion of pragmatism and anthropology. We further propose that because of its direct challenge of the correspondence thinking that tends to underlie contemporary indirect- and direct realism, Wild Systems Theory provides a coherence framework that conceptualizes reality as inherently context dependent and, therefore, inherently meaning-full. As a result, pragmatists can appeal to the reality of lived experience, anthropologists can appeal to the meaningful, multi-scale influences that shape an individual, and both can do so without having to justify the reality status of meaning in relation to the meaning-less view of reality we have been led to via the indirect- and direct-realism inherent in contemporary naturalism

Macropinocytosis of Extracellular Glutathione Ameliorates Tumor Necrosis Factor α Release in Activated Macrophages

A number of inflammatory lung diseases have abnormally low glutathione (GSH) levels in the airway fluids. Lung macrophages are common mediators of inflammation, make up the majority of cells that are found in the airway epithelial lining fluid (ELF), and are commonly elevated in many lung diseases. Several animal models with altered ELF GSH levels are associated with similar alterations in the intracellular GSH levels of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) cells. The possible mechanisms and outcomes for this association between ELF GSH levels and intracellular BAL cell GSH are unknown. To investigate these issues, macrophages were grown in media supplemented with 500 µM GSH. GSH supplementation resulted in a 2–3 fold increase in macrophage intracellular GSH levels. The increase in macrophage intracellular GSH levels was associated with a significant reduction in NF-κB nuclear translocation and tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα) release upon LPS stimulation. Furthermore, co-treatment of macrophages with GSH and inhibitors of GSH breakdown or synthesis did not block GSH accumulation. In contrast, treatment with cytochalasin D, an inhibitor of actin dependent endocytosis, and amiloride, an inhibitor of macropinocytosis blocked, at least in part, GSH uptake. Furthermore, using two cigarette smoke exposure paradigms that result in two different GSH levels in the ELF and thus in the BAL cells resulted in modulation of cytokine release when stimulated with LPS ex vivo. These data suggest that macrophages are able to utilize extracellular GSH which can then modulate inflammatory signaling in response to proinflammatory stimuli. This data also suggests the lung can modulate inflammatory responses triggered by proinflammatory stimuli by altering ELF GSH levels and may help explain the dysregulated inflammation associated with lung diseases that have low ELF GSH levels

A systematic review of transitions between cigarette and smokeless tobacco product use in the United States

Abstract Background Smokeless tobacco use is becoming an increasingly important public health issue in the US and may influence cigarette smoking behavior. Systematic information on transitions between smokeless tobacco and cigarette use in the US is limited. Methods We conducted a systematic review of published literature on transitions between smokeless tobacco and cigarette use in the US. We searched PubMed, Web of Science and EbscoHost databases for all published articles from January 2000 to March 2014 that presented estimates of transitions in US youth and adult study populations over time between at least one of the following tobacco use states: exclusive cigarette smoking, exclusive smokeless tobacco use, dual use of both products, and use of neither product. We excluded non-English language studies, studies published before 2000, clinical trials, controlled cessation programs, and clinical studies or evaluations of smokeless tobacco cessation programs. Results The review identified six studies on US populations published since 2000 with longitudinal data on some or all of the transitions that users can undergo between smokeless tobacco and cigarette use. There was considerable heterogeneity across studies in design and tobacco use definitions. Despite these differences, the existing data indicate that switching behaviors from exclusive smoking to exclusive smokeless tobacco use are limited (adults: 0%-1.4%, adolescents: 0.8%-3.8%) but may be more common from exclusive smokeless tobacco use to exclusive smoking (adults: 0.9%-26.6%, adolescents: 16.6%-25.5%). Among adults, exclusive cigarette smoking was generally stable and consistent (79.7% to 87.6%) over follow-up across studies but less stable in adolescents (46.8%-78.7%). Exclusive smokeless tobacco use was less stable than exclusive cigarette smoking over time (adults: 59.4%-76.6%, adolescents: 26.2%-44.8%). Conclusion This review provides published estimates of the proportions of adults and adolescents transitioning between tobacco use categories from the most recently available studies on longitudinal transitions between smokeless tobacco and cigarettes in the US. These data can be used to track tobacco use behaviors and evaluate their effect on public health; however, the data for these studies were generally collected more than a decade ago. Additional research including nationally representative longitudinal estimates using consistent definitions and designs, would improve understanding of current tobacco transition behaviors.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/110803/1/12889_2015_Article_1594.pd