National Security CAPPS Individual Civil Liberties in Times of Crisis

This note attempts to objectively compare and contrast instances of past national emergencies with the ongoing “war on terror;” from the Supreme Court’s World War II decision of Korematsu, through the Warren Court and the Communist threat, then ending with the Rehnquist Court’s recent decisions of Hamdi, Rasul, and Padilla. In addition, the Computer Assisted Passenger Pre-screening System [CAPPS II] is used as an illustration of a current erosion of individual rights as a result of the “war on terror.” Finally, the note concludes by suggesting that when the war-making branches, based on a perceived threat to national security, infringe on constitutionally protected rights, the Supreme Court must be judicially active to counterbalance the depravation

Extending Molecular Docking Desktop Applications with Cloud Computing Support and Analysis of Results

Structure-based virtual screening simulations, which are often used in drug discovery, can be very computationally demanding. This is why user-friendly domain-specific web or desktop applications that enable running simulations on powerful computing infrastructures have been created. This article investigates how domain-specific desktop applications can be extended to use cloud computing and how they can be part of scenarios that require sharing and analysing previous molecular docking results. A generic approach based on interviews with scientists and analysis of existing systems is proposed. A proof of concept is implemented using the Raccoon2 desktop application for virtual screening, WS-PGRADE workflows, gUSE services with the CloudBroker Platform, the structural alignment tool DeepAlign, and the ligand similarity tool LIGSIFT. The presented analysis illustrates that this approach of extending a domainspecific desktop application can use different types of clouds, thus facilitating the execution of virtual screening simulations by life scientists without requiring them to abandon their favourite desktop environment and providing them resources without major capital investment. It also shows that storing and sharing molecular docking results can produce additional conclusions such as viewing similar docking input files for verification or learning

‘It's like the bad guy in a movie who just doesn't die’ : a qualitative exploration of young people's adaptation to eczema and implications for self‐care

Background Eczema is a common childhood inflammatory skin condition, affecting more than one in five children. A popular perception is that children ‘outgrow eczema’, although epidemiological studies have shown that, for many, eczema follows a lifelong episodic course. Objectives To explore the perceptions of young people about the nature of their eczema and how these perceptions relate to their self‐care and adapting to living with eczema. Methods This is a secondary inductive thematic analysis of interviews conducted for Healthtalk.org. In total 23 interviews with young people with eczema were included. Of the 23 participants, 17 were female and six male, ranging from 17 to 25 years old. Results Participants generally experienced eczema as an episodic long‐term condition and reported a mismatch between information received about eczema and their experiences. The experience of eczema as long term and episodic had implications for self‐care, challenging the process of identifying triggers of eczema flare‐ups and evaluating the success of treatment regimens. Participants’ experiences of eczema over time also had implications for adaptation and finding a balance between accepting eczema as long term and hoping it would go away. This linked to a gradual shift in treatment expectations from ‘cure’ to ‘control’ of eczema. Conclusions For young people who continue to experience eczema beyond childhood, a greater focus on self‐care for a long‐term condition may be helpful. Greater awareness of the impact of early messages around ‘growing out of’ eczema and provision of high‐quality information may help patients to manage expectations and support adaptation to treatment regimens

Use of bioinformatics and PCR in the search for ABC transporter homology among various bacteria

Bioinformatics databases and search tools are utilised to produce polymerase chain reaction (PCR) primers for the amplification of an ABC transporter gene from the clinically important anaerobe Finegoldia magna. On sequencing, a 450 base pair amplicon showed homology with the amino acid transporter of Enterococcus faecalis. Little sequence data is available for F. magna and the newly isolated DNA could be a useful tool in the identification of this organism in clinical specimens

Influence of gender, sexual orientation, and need on treatment utilization for substance use and mental disorders: Findings from the California Quality of Life Survey

Abstract Background Prior research has shown a higher prevalence of substance use and mental disorders among sexual minorities, however, the influence of sexual orientation on treatment seeking has not been widely studied. We use a model of help-seeking for vulnerable populations to investigate factors related to treatment for alcohol or drug use disorders and mental health disorders, focusing on the contributions of gender, sexual orientation, and need. Methods Survey data were obtained from a population-based probability sample of California residents that oversampled for sexual minorities. Logistic regression was used to model the enabling, predisposing, and need-related factors associated with past-year mental health or substance abuse treatment utilization among adults aged 18–64 (N = 2,074). Results Compared with individuals without a diagnosed disorder, those with any disorder were more likely to receive treatment. After controlling for both presence of disorder and other factors, lesbians and bisexual women were most likely to receive treatment and heterosexual men were the least likely. Moreover, a considerable proportion of sexual orientation minorities without any diagnosable disorder, particularly lesbians and bisexual women, also reported receiving treatment. Conclusion The study highlights the need to better understand the factors beyond meeting diagnostic criteria that underlie treatment utilization among sexual minorities. Future research should also aim to ascertain the effects of treatment provided to sexual minorities with and without diagnosable disorders, including the possibility that the provision of such treatment may reduce the likelihood of their progression to greater severity of distress, disorders, or impairments in functioning.</p