Towards Interactive Logic Programming

Linear logic programming uses provability as the basis for computation. In the operational semantics based on provability, executing the additive-conjunctive goal $G_1 \& G_2$ from a program $P$ simply terminates with a success if both $G_1$ and $G_2$ are solvable from $P$. This is an unsatisfactory situation, as a central action of \& -- the action of choosing either $G_1$ or $G_2$ by the user -- is missing in this semantics. We propose to modify the operational semantics above to allow for more active participation from the user. We illustrate our idea via muProlog, an extension of Prolog with additive goals.Comment: 8 pages. It describes two execution models for interactive logic programmin

Cytochrome P450 endoplasmic reticulum-associated degradation (ERAD): therapeutic and pathophysiological implications.

The hepatic endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-anchored cytochromes P450 (P450s) are mixed-function oxidases engaged in the biotransformation of physiologically relevant endobiotics as well as of myriad xenobiotics of therapeutic and environmental relevance. P450 ER-content and hence function is regulated by their coordinated hemoprotein syntheses and proteolytic turnover. Such P450 proteolytic turnover occurs through a process known as ER-associated degradation (ERAD) that involves ubiquitin-dependent proteasomal degradation (UPD) and/or autophagic-lysosomal degradation (ALD). Herein, on the basis of available literature reports and our own recent findings of in vitro as well as in vivo experimental studies, we discuss the therapeutic and pathophysiological implications of altered P450 ERAD and its plausible clinical relevance. We specifically (i) describe the P450 ERAD-machinery and how it may be repurposed for the generation of antigenic P450 peptides involved in P450 autoantibody pathogenesis in drug-induced acute hypersensitivity reactions and liver injury, or viral hepatitis; (ii) discuss the relevance of accelerated or disrupted P450-ERAD to the pharmacological and/or toxicological effects of clinically relevant P450 drug substrates; and (iii) detail the pathophysiological consequences of disrupted P450 ERAD, contributing to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)/non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) under certain synergistic cellular conditions

Cultural analysis of hero frames in American and North Korean media: focusing on tragedy and glorification

Title from PDF of title page (University of Missouri--Columbia, viewed on September 11, 2013).The entire thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file; a non-technical public abstract appears in the public.pdf file.Thesis advisor: Dr. Sandra DavidsonIncludes bibliographical references.M.A. University of Missouri--Columbia 2013.Dissertations, Academic -- University of Missouri--Columbia -- Journalism."May 2013"Both the U.S. media and The Rodong Sinmun, the state news website of North Korea, used hero frames to describe each other. The hero frame of the United States described itself as a hero, North Korea and Middle Eastern countries as villains, and the people of those countries and sometimes the United States as victims. Meanwhile, The Rodong Sinmun of North Korea used "hero" and "heroic" without a refined symbol system. In The Rodong Sinmun, Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-Il were the utmost heroes in that they enabled the heroic working class of North Korea to realize their historic importance and led North Korean soldiers in their success against imperialists. The hero frame used to describe Kim Il-Sung included metaphors such as an affectionate father, the sun, and a tiger. The hero frame for Kim Jong-Il used metaphors such as a mother, the sunshine, and a crane. Kim Il-Sung and Kim Jong-Il were perceived to be optimistic heroes who were not allowed in Korean traditional culture, as featured as the emotion of "han" and in the fable "Baby Commander.

Structure analysis of single- and multi-frequency subspace migrations in inverse scattering problems

In this literature, we carefully investigate the structure of single- and multi-frequency imaging functions, that are usually employed in inverse scattering problems. Based on patterns of the singular vectors of the Multi-Static Response (MSR) matrix, we establish a relationship between imaging functions and the Bessel function. This relationship indicates certain properties of imaging functions and the reason behind enhancement in the imaging performance by multiple frequencies. Several numerical simulations with a large amount of noisy data are performed in order to support our investigation.Comment: 11 pages, 10 figure

Online Appendix to: Peace through Cooperation or Peace through Strength? How to Achieve Peace in the Very Intractable Conflict Society

The Korean War, having started on June 25, 1950, has never formally ended. As the two Koreas are technically still at war, the conflict on the Korean Peninsula has become intractable. The goal of this study is to explore the attitudes of South Koreans living in the intractable conflict about how to achieve peace. To fulfill this goal, we conducted a nation-wide survey to investigate attitudes toward militant and cooperative internationalism. We also measured various variables involved with the intractable conflict. Our results indicate that the value of international harmony and equality as well as attitudes toward peace are the best predictors of cooperative internationalism, while the value of international harmony and equality as well as the attitudes toward war were the strongest predictors of militant internationalism. Our results also suggest that the tendency to regard inter-Korean relations as zero-sum relations and the attitudes toward peace mediated the relationship between international harmony and cooperative internationalism, while the zero-sum perception and attitudes toward war on the Korean Peninsula mediated the same value factor and the cooperative internationalism. Possible implications are discussed

Peace through Cooperation or Peace through Strength? How to Achieve Peace in the Very Intractable Conflict Society

The Korean War, having started on June 25, 1950, has never formally ended. As the two Koreas are technically still at war, the conflict on the Korean Peninsula has become intractable. The goal of this study is to explore the attitudes of South Koreans living in the intractable conflict about how to achieve peace. To fulfill this goal, we conducted a nation-wide survey to investigate attitudes toward militant and cooperative internationalism. We also measured various variables involved with the intractable conflict. Our results indicate that the value of international harmony and equality as well as attitudes toward peace are the best predictors of cooperative internationalism, while the value of international harmony and equality as well as the attitudes toward war were the strongest predictors of militant internationalism. Our results also suggest that the tendency to regard inter-Korean relations as zero-sum relations and the attitudes toward peace mediated the relationship between international harmony and cooperative internationalism, while the zero-sum perception and attitudes toward war on the Korean Peninsula mediated the same value factor and the cooperative internationalism. Possible implications are discussed

Matrix metalloproteinases as therapeutic targets in breast cancer

Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are the most prominent proteinases involved in tumorigenesis. They were initially recognized to promote tumor progression by remodeling the extracellular matrix through their proteolytic activity. However, accumulating evidence has revealed that some MMPs have protective roles in cancer progression, and the same MMP can exert opposing roles depending on the cell type in which it is expressed or the stage of cancer. Moreover, studies have shown that MMPs are involved in cancer progression through their roles in other biological processes such as cell signaling and immune regulation, independent of their catalytic activity. Despite the prognostic significance of tumoral or stromal expression of MMPs in breast cancer, their roles and molecular mechanisms in breast cancer progression remain unclear. As the failures of early clinical trials with broad-spectrum MMP inhibitors were mainly due to a lack of drug specificity, substantial efforts have been made to develop highly selective MMP inhibitors. Some recently developed MMP inhibitory monoclonal antibodies demonstrated promising anti-tumor effects in preclinical models of breast cancer. Importantly, anti-tumor effects of these antibodies were associated with the modulation of tumor immune microenvironment, suggesting that the use of MMP inhibitors in combination with immunotherapy can improve the efficacy of immunotherapy in HER2-positive or triple-negative breast cancer. In this review, the current understanding of the roles of tumoral or stromal MMPs in breast cancer is summarized, and recent advances in the development of highly selective MMP inhibitors are discussed