Lattice gas models derived from effective field theory

We start from a low-energy effective field theory for interacting fermions on the lattice and expand in the hopping parameter to derive the nearest-neighbor interactions for a lattice gas model. In this model the renormalization of couplings for different lattice spacings is inherited from the effective field theory, systematic errors can be estimated a priori, and the breakdown of the lattice gas model description at low temperatures can be understood quantitatively. We apply the lattice gas method to neutron matter and compare with results from a recent quantum simulation.Comment: 13 pages, 4 figure

Public knowledge about polar regions increases while concerns remain unchanged

The authors of this brief conduct the first comparative analysis of the polar questions that were part of the National Opinion Research Center\u27s 2006 and 2010 General Social Survey. Developed by scientists at the National Science Foundation\u27s Office of Polar Programs, these questions covered topics such as climate change, melting ice and rising sea levels, and species extinction. The authors report that the public\u27s knowledge about the north and south polar regions significantly improved between 2006 and 2010--before and after the International Polar Year. In addition, respondents who know more about science in general, and polar facts specifically, tend to be more concerned about polar changes. More knowledgeable respondents also tend to favor reserving the Antarctic for science, rather than opening it for commercial development

Optimization of Fluidized Bed Isothermal Reactor in a Styrene Production Process

The focus of this thesis is to explain the optimization of a fluidized bed isothermal reactor in a styrene production process. The first section of the thesis gives a summary of chemical process optimization in general. The next portion of the thesis gives an introduction to chemical process simulation software, and it explains how simulation software aids in the design and optimization of chemical processes. The third section of the thesis gives a brief overview of an optimization project of a styrene production process that was completed in the previous semester with a group of three. The final section explains the optimization of a fluidized bed reactor in the styrene production process discussed in the previous section of the thesis. The results of the reactor optimization produced a reactor system that has a total fluidized catalyst bed volume of 75.4 m3 with 15 reactors in parallel. The optimized reactor operates at a temperature of 715°C and a pressure of 75 kPa, and it produces a total flowrate of styrene of 193 kmol/hr and yield of ethylbenzene to styrene of 68 %

The Valuable Role of Endoscopy in Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Endoscopy is a valuable clinical tool for the clinician who takes care of patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The role of endoscopy in the diagnosis, management, and treatment of IBD is discussed in this review. The central role that colonoscopy plays in screening for colon cancer in patients with longstanding IBD is also addressed

Annotated Bibliography Part 1

Romero, Robert Chao, and Jeff M. Liou. Christianity and Critical Race Theory: A Faithful and Constructive Conversation. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2023. 196 pages. $21.32. ISBN 9781540965196. Fink, David C. Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs. Reformation Commentary on Scripture Old Testament IX. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2023. 516 pages.$53.98. ISBN: 978-0-8308-2959-0. Macchia, Frank D. Introduction to Theology: Declaring the Wonders of God. Foundations for Spirit-Filled Christianity. Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2023. $18.28. ISBN 978149344161

Role of CYP2B6 in Perfluorooctanesulfonic Acid (PFOS)-Induced Toxicity and Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD)

Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) is a persistent, toxic fluorosurfactant foam used in firefighting foams, textiles, and other industrial products. Human CYP2B6 is predominantly expressed in the liver and responsible for metabolizing xeno- and endobiotics. CYP2B is induced by PFOS and high-fat diets in rodents and therefore it was hypothesized that CYP2B contributed to PFOS-induced steatosis. Cyp2b-9/10/13-null (Cyp2b-null) and humanized CYP2B6-Tg (hCYP2B6-Tg) mice were treated with PFOS (0, 1, or 10 mg/kg/day) by oral gavage in mice fed either a typical chow diet (ND) or a high-fat diet (HFD). Our studies show human CYP2B6 is also inducible in vivo by PFOS. In addition, three ND-fed hCYP2B6-Tg female mice treated with 10 mg/kg/day PFOS died during the exposure period. Similarly treated HFD-fed mice did not die. Interestingly, hCYP2B6-Tg mice retained significantly more PFOS in the serum and liver than Cyp2b-null mice presumably leading to the observed toxicity. Serum PFOS retention was significantly reduced in the HFD-fed hCYP2B6-Tg mice, which is the opposite trend observed in HFD-fed Cyp2b-null mice. Hepatotoxicity biomarkers, ALT and ALP, were higher in PFOS-treated mice and lowered by a HFD. However, PFOS combined with a HFD exacerbated hepatic lipid accumulation in all mice, especially in the hCYP2B6-Tg mice with significant disruption of key lipid metabolism genes such as Srebp1, Pparg, and Cpt1a. In conclusion, CYP2B6 is induced by PFOS and protects from PFOS-mediated steatosis in ND-fed mice; however, it’s presence increases hepatic triglyceride content in HFD-PFOS co-treated mice and increases toxicity in ND-fed mice

Characterization of Chemosensing in the Alphaproteobacterium \u3ci\u3e Azospirillum brasilense \u3c/i\u3e

Motile bacteria must navigate their environment in constant search of nutrients to sustain life. Thus they have evolved precise and adaptable sensory systems to achieve this goal, making the navigation system of the model bacterium Escherichia coli the best characterized signal transduction pathway in Biology. However, many bacteria have evolved more sophisticated arsenals for sensing and responding to their environment including chemoreceptors to identify novel attractants in the microenvironment. The diazotrophic alphaproteobacterium Azospirillum brasilense inhabits the soil and colonizes the roots of cereals like rice, corn, and wheat. Like most proteobacterial, A. brasilense encodes multiple chemotaxis-like pathways, 4, of which only Che1 has been characterized in detail. Also, of the approximately 50 chemoreceptors encoded within the genome, only the function of AerC and Tlp1 have been determine and their role in energy taxis, the dominant behavior of A. brasilense. In this dissertation, I will describe the characterization of another chemoreceptor, Tlp2, with a sensing domain of unknown function and the role it plays in A. brasilense behavior. I will also describe my work in expanding knowledge of the chemotaxis-like pathway of Che1. Also, the role of Tlp1 in root colonization, chemotaxis, and aerotaxis, the ability to navigate oxygen gradients, has been published. My work will detail the role of the C-terminal PilZ domain, a domain shown to bind the ubiquitous bacterial second messenger cyclic-di-GMP. I will characterize the necessity of c-di-GMP binding to Tlp1 for cells to maintain the ability to remain sensitive to temporal changes in aeration. I will also discuss the novel role c-di-GMP plays in modulating the cell’s ability to remain motile and remain sensitive to addition changes in oxygen availability

Paleomagnetic and petrological investigation of Long Mountain Granite, Wichita Mountains, Oklahoma

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Oklahoma, 2011Includes bibliographical references (leaves 100-110)The Long Mountain Granite, a member of the Cambrian- aged Wichita Granite Group, is exposed in the western Wichita Mountains. The rock is red at the surface which grades into a dark gray to green core that has been exposed by quarrying operations. The Long Mountain Granite is a highly granophyric, fluorite- bearing alkali feldspar granite with hedenbergite as the dominant magic phase. The formation of red granite is not associated with significant geochemical change. Hematite occurs as fracture fill, grain boundary coatings and as slivers inserted along cleavage and exsolution planes in alkali feldspars. The Fe in the hematite appears to be sourced from the oxidation of magnetie and ilmenite and the breakdown of magic minerals. Anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility analysis shows that the green granite contains what appears to be a primary magnetic fabric that is consistent with the sill- like emplacement of Wichita-group granites. Demagnetization yields a characteristic remanent magnetization (ChRM) with a pole at 8.8 °S, 134.7°E. This is interpreted as a primary Cambrian thermal remanent magnetization residing in magnetite, and is consistent with several other paleomagnetic poles of similar age, providing a new constraint to the Cambrian apparent polar wander path (APWP) for Laurentia. Red granite has approximately two orders of magnitude lower magnetic susceptibility and natural remanent intensity. The degree of magnetic anisotropy is reduced relative to green granite and the fabrics are incompatible. The ChRM of red granite yields a paleopole at 44.9 °N , 124 .9°E and is interpreted as a chemical remanent magnetization residing in hematite. This pole is consistent with the late Paleozoic segment of the North American APWP and is consistent with inferred timing of uplift or exposure. Alteration was likely caused by fluid interactions during this time, either by high-temperature fluids mobilized by uplift or by low-temperature weathering fluids while exposed at the surface

Avian habitat relationships in the Mojave Desert

The relationship between bird community composition and plant community composition and structure was studied over three years (1994-1996) in a variety of Mojave Desert habitat types. This study addressed two fundamental questions: what plant community characteristics are statistically related to bird species diversity and the density of individual bird species, and what is the affect of neighboring habitat on bird species composition? Three habitat types were surveyed, Larrea scrub, Larrea scrub with Yucca and Opuntia, and Coleogyne scrub with Yucca. Bird species richness varied from 1 to 10 species, with the Coleogyne sites having the most species and the Larrea sites having the least. The black-throated sparrow (Amphispiza bilineata) was the only species found on all sites. Bird community parameters were found to be significantly different between habitat types but there was no affect of neighboring habitat on bird communities. Physiognomic cover diversity explained most of the variation in the bird community parameters based upon linear regression. In summary, bird species richness increased with increasing plant structural diversity due presumably to an increase in nest site niches