Divergent Discourse: A Case Study Analyzing the Effects of Campus Communication About Sexual Assault

This research analyzes campus discourse at a university in south central Appalachia in an effort to highlight the role of communication in the prevention of sexual assault and its powerful effects on communities and individuals. Using a critical feminist lens, this qualitative case study identifies the communication goals, interpretations, and strategies of two important speech communities who participate in sexual assault discourse on college campuses—campus professionals who communicate about the issue of sexual assault (issue managers) and sexual assault survivors whose identity is shaped by sexual assault (identity managers). While both groups talk about the problem, the parties diverge on the core function of sexual assault communication. Findings from these speech communities suggest the need for targeted efforts to decimate rape myths on university campuses, as well as the necessity to create safe spaces for survivors to report and talk about sexual assault and form solidarity with other survivors

Lifetimes of ultralong-range Rydberg molecules in vibrational ground and excited state

Since their first experimental observation, ultralong-range Rydberg molecules consisting of a highly excited Rydberg atom and a ground state atom have attracted the interest in the field of ultracold chemistry. Especially the intriguing properties like size, polarizability and type of binding they inherit from the Rydberg atom are of interest. An open question in the field is the reduced lifetime of the molecules compared to the corresponding atomic Rydberg states. In this letter we present an experimental study on the lifetimes of the ^3\Sigma (5s-35s) molecule in its vibrational ground state and in an excited state. We show that the lifetimes depends on the density of ground state atoms and that this can be described in the frame of a classical scattering between the molecules and ground state atoms. We also find that the excited molecular state has an even more reduced lifetime compared to the ground state which can be attributed to an inward penetration of the bound atomic pair due to imperfect quantum reflection that takes place in the special shape of the molecular potential

Thermalization of coupled atom-light states in the presence of optical collisions

The interaction of a two-level atomic ensemble with a quantized single mode electromagnetic field in the presence of optical collisions (OC) is investigated both theoretically and experimentally. The main accent is made on achieving thermal equilibrium for coupled atom-light states (in particular dressed states). We propose a model of atomic dressed state thermalization that accounts for the evolution of the pseudo-spin Bloch vector components and characterize the essential role of the spontaneous emission rate in the thermalization process. Our model shows that the time of thermalization of the coupled atom-light states strictly depends on the ratio of the detuning and the resonant Rabi frequency. The predicted time of thermalization is in the nanosecond domain and about ten times shorter than the natural lifetime at full optical power in our experiment. Experimentally we are investigating the interaction of the optical field with rubidium atoms in an ultra-high pressure buffer gas cell under the condition of large atom-field detuning comparable to the thermal energy in frequency units. In particular, an observed detuning dependence of the saturated lineshape is interpreted as evidence for thermal equilibrium of coupled atom-light states. A significant modification of sideband intensity weights is predicted and obtained in this case as well.Comment: 14 pages, 12 figures; the content was edite

Assessment and Student Learning – a fundamental relationship and the role of information and communication technologies

This paper reviews the role of assessment in student learning and its relationship with the use of information and communication technologies (ICT). There is ample evidence of technology-led innovations failing to achieve the transformations expected by educators. We draw upon existing research to illustrate the links between aspects of student learning, assessment practices and the use of ICT. Assessment influences not only what parts of a course get studied, but also how those parts are studied. While the adoption of ICT does not, in itself, change student behaviours, appropriately designed assessment that exploits the potential of ICT can change students’ approaches to learning. We argue that ICT can enable important learning outcomes to be achieved, but these must be underpinned by an assessment strategy that cues students to adopt a suitable approach to learning

Reconstitution of Human Pdac Using Primary Cells Reveals Oncogenic Transcriptomic Features at Tumor Onset

Animal studies have demonstrated the ability of pancreatic acinar cells to transform into pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC). However, the tumorigenic potential of human pancreatic acinar cells remains under debate. To address this gap in knowledge, we expand sorted human acinar cells as 3D organoids and genetically modify them through introduction of common PDAC mutations. The acinar organoids undergo dramatic transcriptional alterations but maintain a recognizable DNA methylation signature. The transcriptomes of acinar organoids are similar to those of disease-specific cell populations. Oncogenic KRAS alone do not transform acinar organoids. However, acinar organoids can form PDAC in vivo after acquiring the four most common driver mutations of this disease. Similarly, sorted ductal cells carrying these genetic mutations can also form PDAC, thus experimentally proving that PDACs can originate from both human acinar and ductal cells. RNA-seq analysis reveal the transcriptional shift from normal acinar cells towards PDACs with enhanced proliferation, metabolic rewiring, down-regulation of MHC molecules, and alterations in the coagulation and complement cascade. By comparing PDAC-like cells with normal pancreas and PDAC samples, we identify a group of genes with elevated expression during early transformation which represent potential early diagnostic biomarkers

Enhancement of Rydberg-mediated single-photon nonlinearities by electrically tuned Förster resonances

We demonstrate experimentally that Stark-tuned Förster resonances can be used to substantially increase the interaction between individual photons mediated by Rydberg interaction inside an optical medium. This technique is employed to boost the gain of a Rydberg-mediated single-photon transistor and to enhance the non-destructive detection of single Rydberg atoms. Furthermore, our all-optical detection scheme enables high-resolution spectroscopy of two-state Förster resonances, revealing the fine structure splitting of high-n Rydberg states and the non-degeneracy of Rydberg Zeeman substates in finite fields. We show that the ∣50S1/2,48S1/2⟩↔∣49P1/2,48P1/2⟩ pair state resonance in 87Rb enables simultaneously a transistor gain G>100 and all-optical detection fidelity of single Rydberg atoms F>0.8. We demonstrate for the first time the coherent operation of the Rydberg transistor with G>2 by reading out the gate photon after scattering source photons. Comparison of the observed readout efficiency to a theoretical model for the projection of the stored spin wave yields excellent agreement and thus successfully identifies the main decoherence mechanism of the Rydberg transistor

Formation and interactions of cold and ultracold molecules: new challenges for interdisciplinary physics

Progress on researches in the field of molecules at cold and ultracold temperatures is reported in this review. It covers extensively the experimental methods to produce, detect and characterize cold and ultracold molecules including association of ultracold atoms, deceleration by external fields and kinematic cooling. Confinement of molecules in different kinds of traps is also discussed. The basic theoretical issues related to the knowledge of the molecular structure, the atom-molecule and molecule-molecule mutual interactions, and to their possible manipulation and control with external fields, are reviewed. A short discussion on the broad area of applications completes the review.Comment: to appear in Reports on Progress in Physic

Van Gogh and Frizzled Act Redundantly in the Drosophila Sensory Organ Precursor Cell to Orient Its Asymmetric Division

Drosophila sensory organ precursor cells (SOPs) divide asymmetrically along the anterior-posterior (a-p) body axis to generate two different daughter cells. Planar Cell Polarity (PCP) regulates the a-p orientation of the SOP division. The localization of the PCP proteins Van Gogh (Vang) and Frizzled (Fz) define anterior and posterior apical membrane domains prior to SOP division. Here, we investigate the relative contributions of Vang, Fz and Dishevelled (Dsh), a membrane-associated protein acting downstream of Fz, in orienting SOP polarity. Genetic and live imaging analyses suggest that Dsh restricts the localization of a centrosome-attracting activity to the anterior cortex and that Vang is a target of Dsh in this process. Using a clone border assay, we provide evidence that the Vang and fz genes act redundantly in SOPs to orient its polarity axis in response to extrinsic local PCP cues. Additionally, we find that the activity of Vang is dispensable for the non-autonomous polarizing activity of fz. These observations indicate that both Vang and Fz act as cues for downstream effectors orienting the planar polarity axis of dividing SOPs