The national in the network society: UKUncut, the English Defence League and the challenge for social democracy

This chapter argues that the European crisis in social democracy is partially to do with a failure to engage publics at the level of the national. It looks at how two groups in the UK, one broadly left and the other far-right, have used social media to engage with the discourse of nation in the construction of identity networks to further their political goals. The argument is that social democratic parties need to learn from these groups if they are to continue to be a force in European politics

Balsam Woolly Adelgid and Host Forest Characteristics: Impacts and Interactions in Recently Invaded Areas of Northern Utah and Southeastern Idaho

The balsam woolly adelgid (BWA), is an invasive forest insect native to central and southern Europe. In 2017, it was detected in Utah for the first time. While BWA had limited impact as a pest in its native European range, it has caused considerable damage to true fir populations in North America. In the Intermountain region, subalpine fir has been identified as the tree species most at risk of BWA infestation. Subalpine fir provides a variety of ecosystem services and is a critical component of the spruce-fir alpine forests of the area. With an expected increase in the severity and impact of BWA to the forests of the Intermountain region, a study was undertaken to investigate ecological factors influencing BWA\u27s impact and apply that knowledge to predict future impact. To accomplish this, over forty research plots were established across Utah and southeastern Idaho in BWA-infested areas. Data on various aspects of trees and stands, including tree size, observed damage and health of the trees, forest community composition, stand structure, and abiotic factors were collected. The aim was to understand the relationships between these factors and the severity of BWA infestations. Additionally, the occurrence data of other pests affecting subalpine fir were gathered to explore potential interactions within the subalpine fir mortality complex.” The study yielded significant findings. Firstly, it provided an assessment of recent BWA infestations within Utah and southern Idaho, estimating the severity and mortality levels caused by the insect. Secondly, the analysis of forest characteristics revealed crucial insights. It highlighted the importance of forest structure in influencing the severity of BWA infestations. Moreover, the study shed light on the previously unexplored interactions between BWA and other pests affecting subalpine fir. These findings were then used in the creation of a hazard rating system for categorizing forests within the study area into risk levels based on forest and climate characteristics

Characterization of a Novel Prostate Tumor-Associated Antigen

The murine monoclonal antibodies (MAb) TURP-27 and HNK-1 have been shown to detect antigens that are heavily expressed by benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and carcinoma of the prostate (CaP). Western blot analysis of prostate extracts, showed that MAb TURP-27 and MAb HNK-1 bound glycoproteins of 180, 140, 120, 100, 90 and 69 kDa. Studies have shown that the HNK-1 carbohydrate epitope may be involved in cell adhesion and that it is a component of several characterized adhesion proteins. TURP-27 was found to bind at least three of these adhesion proteins: neural cell adhesion molecules (N-CAM), myelin-associated glycoprotein (MAG) and a second myelin glycoprotein, P0. Western blot analysis of prostate extracts showed that an anti-N-CAM serum bound the 180 and 140 kDa proteins. On the basis of reciprocal blocking and chemical tests, it was determined that the TURP-27 and HNK-1 epitopes are not identical. These data imply that the TURP-27 epitope may be a variant of the HNK-1 epitope or that the two epitopes are closely linked, and that the TURP-27 and HNK-1 epitopes on prostate cells are positioned on N-CAM like proteins

Fluctuation-Driven Molecular Transport in an Asymmetric Membrane Channel

Channel proteins, that selectively conduct molecules across cell membranes, often exhibit an asymmetric structure. By means of a stochastic model, we argue that channel asymmetry in the presence of non-equilibrium fluctuations, fueled by the cell's metabolism as observed recently, can dramatically influence the transport through such channels by a ratchet-like mechanism. For an aquaglyceroporin that conducts water and glycerol we show that a previously determined asymmetric glycerol potential leads to enhanced inward transport of glycerol, but for unfavorably high glycerol concentrations also to enhanced outward transport that protects a cell against poisoning.Comment: REVTeX4, 4 pages, 3 figures; Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev. Let

Influence of fluoride on the mineralization of collagen via the polymer-induced liquid-precursor (PILP) process.

ObjectiveThe polymer-induced liquid-precursor (PILP) mineralization process has been shown to remineralize artificial dentin lesions to levels consistent with those of native dentin. However, nanoindentation revealed that the moduli of those remineralized lesions were only ∼50% that of native dentin. We hypothesize that this may be due to the PILP process having been previously optimized to obtain high amounts (∼70wt%) of intrafibrillar crystals, but without sufficient interfibrillar mineral, another significant component of dentin.MethodsFluoride was added to the PILP-mineralization of collagen from rat tail tendon at varying concentrations to determine if a better balance of intra- versus inter-fibrillar mineralization could be obtained, as determined by electron microscopy. Nanoindentation was used to determine if fluoridated apatite could improve the mechanical properties of the composites.ResultsFluoride was successfully incorporated into the PILP-mineralization of rat tail tendon and resulted in collagen-mineral composite systems with the mineral phase of hydroxyapatite containing various levels of fluoridation. As the fluoride concentration increased, the crystals became larger and more rod-like, with an increasing tendency to form on the fibril surfaces rather than the interior. Nanomechanical testing of the mineralized tendons revealed that fluoride addition did not increase modulus over PILP mineralization alone. This likely resulted from the separated nature of collagen fibrils that comprise tendon, which does not provide lateral reinforcement and therefore may not be suited for the compressive loads of nanoindentation.SignificanceThis work contributes to the development of minimally invasive approaches to caries treatment by determining if collagen can be functionally mineralized

Big Data for a Deep Problem: Exploring Natural Deep Eutectic Solvent (NADES) Properties through RDKIT and Data Analytics

https://tigerprints.clemson.edu/csrp/1014/thumbnail.jp

Respiration and Heart Rate at the Surface between Dives in Northern Elephant Seals

All underwater activities of diving mammals are constrained by the need for surface gas exchange. Our aim was to measure respiratory rate (fb) and heart rate (fh) at the surface between dives in free-ranging northern elephant seals Mirounga angustirostris. We recorded fb and fh acoustically in six translocated juveniles, 1.8-2. 4 years old, and three migrating adult males from the rookery at Ano Nuevo, California, USA. To each seal, we attached a diving instrument to record the diving pattern, a satellite tag to track movements and location, a digital audio tape recorder or acoustic datalogger with an external hydrophone to record the sounds of respiration and fh at the surface, and a VHF transmitter to facilitate recovery. During surface intervals averaging 2.2+/−0.4 min, adult males breathed a mean of 32.7+/−5.4 times at a rate of 15. 3+/−1.8 breaths min(−)(1) (means +/− s.d., N=57). Mean fh at the surface was 84+/−3 beats min(−)(1). The fb of juveniles was 26 % faster than that of adult males, averaging 19.2+/−2.2 breaths min(−)(1) for a mean total of 41.2+/−5.0 breaths during surface intervals lasting 2.6+/−0.31 min. Mean fh at the surface was 106+/−3 beats min(−)(1). fb and fh did not change significantly over the course of surface intervals. Surface fb and fh were not clearly associated with levels of exertion, such as rapid horizontal transit or apparent foraging, or with measures of immediately previous or subsequent diving performance, such as diving duration, diving depth or swimming speed. Together, surface respiration rate and the duration of the preceding dive were significant predictors of surface interval duration. This implies that elephant seals minimize surface time spent loading oxygen depending on rates of oxygen uptake and previous depletion of stores

Manual vs. automated CTA: Psychosocial Adaptation in Young Adolescents with Spina Bifida

Compared to the manually-derived model, the enumerated CTA model was 20% more parsimonious, 3.6% more accurate and 30% more efficient, and was more consistent with a priori hypotheses