A Multi-scale View of the Emergent Complexity of Life: A Free-energy Proposal

We review some of the main implications of the free-energy principle (FEP) for the study of the self-organization of living systems – and how the FEP can help us to understand (and model) biotic self-organization across the many temporal and spatial scales over which life exists. In order to maintain its integrity as a bounded system, any biological system - from single cells to complex organisms and societies - has to limit the disorder or dispersion (i.e., the long-run entropy) of its constituent states. We review how this can be achieved by living systems that minimize their variational free energy. Variational free energy is an information theoretic construct, originally introduced into theoretical neuroscience and biology to explain perception, action, and learning. It has since been extended to explain the evolution, development, form, and function of entire organisms, providing a principled model of biotic self-organization and autopoiesis. It has provided insights into biological systems across spatiotemporal scales, ranging from microscales (e.g., sub- and multicellular dynamics), to intermediate scales (e.g., groups of interacting animals and culture), through to macroscale phenomena (the evolution of entire species). A crucial corollary of the FEP is that an organism just is (i.e., embodies or entails) an implicit model of its environment. As such, organisms come to embody causal relationships of their ecological niche, which, in turn, is influenced by their resulting behaviors. Crucially, free-energy minimization can be shown to be equivalent to the maximization of Bayesian model evidence. This allows us to cast natural selection in terms of Bayesian model selection, providing a robust theoretical account of how organisms come to match or accommodate the spatiotemporal complexity of their surrounding niche. In line with the theme of this volume; namely, biological complexity and self-organization, this chapter will examine a variational approach to self-organization across multiple dynamical scales

Septic arthritis as a severe complication of elective arthroscopy:clinical management strategies

Infection of a peripheral joint following arthroscopic surgery presents with an incidence of approximately 0.42% an extremely rare entity. However, septic arthritis is a serious situation possibly leading to an irreparable joint damage. Especially at delayed diagnosis patients' safety can be endangered severely. Only few precise statements regarding diagnosis and therapy have been published so far. Besides an accurate analysis of the patient's anamnesis and the assessment of the C-reactive protein especially arthrocentesis is required for diagnostic workup. For early stage infections arthroscopic therapy is proven to be of value. In addition a calculated and consecutive germ-adjusted antibiotic therapy is essential. In case of persisting signs of infection the indication for re-arthroscopy or conversion to open revision has to be stated in time. The number of necessary revisions is dependent on the initial stage of infection. For pain therapy postoperative immobilization of the affected joint is occasionally essential, if otherwise possibly early mobilization of the joint should be performed

NEMO: Real-Time Noise and Exhaust Emissions Monitoring for Sustainable and Intelligent Transportation Systems

Research and development efforts on sustainable and intelligent transportation systems are accelerating globally as the transportation sector contributes significantly to environmental pollution and produces a variety of noise and emissions that impact the climate. With the emergence of ubiquitous sensors and Internet of Things (IoT) applications, finding innovative transport solutions, including adequate climate change mitigation, will all be vital components of a sustainable transport future. Thus, it is essential to continuously monitor noise and exhaust emissions from road vehicles, trains, and ships. As a contribution to addressing this as part of an effort of the European Union project called “NEMO: Noise and Emissions Monitoring and Radical Mitigation", in this paper, we propose the design and development of a real-time noise and exhaust emissions monitoring for sustainable and intelligent transportation systems. We report real-world field testing in some European cities where vehicle noise and exhaust emissions data are gathered in the cloud-enabled Nautilus platform and evaluated using artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms to determine their categorization into different classes of emitters and thereby enabling the infrastructure managers to define logic and actions to be taken by high emitters in near real-time. We outline the creation of a complete NEMO solution to monitor and reduce noise and emissions in real time for sustainable and intelligent transportation systems.acceptedVersio

The Code of Protest. Images of Peace in the West German Peace Movements, 1945-1990

The article examines posters produced by the peace movements in the Federal Republic of Germany during the ColdWar, with an analytical focus on the transformation of the iconography of peace in modernity. Was it possible to develop an independent, positive depiction of peace in the context of protests for peace and disarmament? Despite its name, the pictorial selfrepresentation of the campaign ‘Fight against Nuclear Death’ in the late 1950s did not draw on the theme of pending nuclear mass death. The large-scale protest movement in the 1980s against NATO’s 1979 ‘double-track’ decision contrasted female peacefulness with masculine aggression in an emotionally charged pictorial symbolism. At the same time this symbolism marked a break with the pacifist iconographic tradition that had focused on the victims of war. Instead, the movement presented itself with images of demonstrating crowds, as an anticipation of its peaceful ends. Drawing on the concept of asymmetrical communicative ‘codes’ that has been developed in sociological systems theory, the article argues that the iconography of peace in peace movement posters could not develop a genuinely positive vision of peace, since the code of protest can articulate the designation value ‘peace’ only in conjunction with the rejection value ‘war’

Tetherin-Driven Adaptation of Vpu and Nef Function and the Evolution of Pandemic and Nonpandemic HIV-1 Strains

Vpu proteins of pandemic HIV-1 M strains degrade the viral receptor CD4 and antagonize human tetherin to promote viral release and replication. We find that Vpus from SIVgsn, SIVmus and SIVmon infecting Cercopithecus primate species also degrade CD4 and antagonize tetherin. In contrast, SIVcpz, the immediate precursor of HIV-1, whose Vpu shares a common ancestry with SIVgsn/mus/mon Vpu, uses Nef rather than Vpu to counteract chimpanzee tetherin. Human tetherin, however, is resistant to Nef and thus poses a significant barrier to zoonotic transmission of SIVcpz to humans. Remarkably, Vpu from non-pandemic HIV-1 O strains are poor tetherin antagonists while those from the rare group N viruses do not degrade CD4. Thus, only HIV-1 M evolved a fully functional Vpu following the three independent cross-species transmissions that resulted in HIV-1 groups M, N, and O. This may explain why group M viruses are almost entirely responsible for the gobal HIV/AIDS pandemic

Commercial production of Florida pompano (Trachinotus carolinus) larvae at low salinity induces variable changes in whole-larvae microbial diversity, gene expression, and gill histopathology

IntroductionSalinity presents economic and technical challenges in land-based recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) in the U.S. warm water marine finfish aquaculture industry. Many studies have shown euryhaline fish reared at salinities closer to their iso-osmotic salinity can yield enhanced production performance as well as potential reduced costs to farms. However, there is potential for osmotic stress in fish larvae to negatively impact larvae microbiome and innate immune system. Florida pompano (Trachinotus carolinus) is a popular sportfish has been targeted for land-based RAS due to its impressive market value and euryhaline capacity. This study investigated the impacts of rearing Florida pompano larvae at salinities closer to their iso-osmotic salinity.Materials and methodsLarvae were cultured at 10, 20, and 30 ppt in triplicates, and larvae samples were collected for histopathology, microbiome, and whole transcriptomics analysis every three days from hatching until the time of weaning (24 days post hatch [DPH]). Water samples were also taken for microbiome analysis on every other larval sampling day. DiscussionThese changes were driven more by metamorphosis, causing an increase in expression of antioxidant genes (cat, gss, gsto1, and scara3) than by the presence of potentially pathogenic genera, which failed to induce an immune response (low or unchanged expression of downstream elements of the NOD1 or TLR5 pathways). These findings provide baseline information on Florida pompano low salinity tolerance in larviculture during early developmental stages. In addition, we have shown minimal effects on the immune system at salinities as low as 10 ppt. This work has important implications for larval health management and can be used to refine and direct future research regarding improving commercial production of warm water marine specie

SIV Nef Proteins Recruit the AP-2 Complex to Antagonize Tetherin and Facilitate Virion Release

Lentiviral Nef proteins have multiple functions and are important for viral pathogenesis. Recently, Nef proteins from many simian immunodefiency viruses were shown to antagonize a cellular antiviral protein, named Tetherin, that blocks release of viral particles from the cell surface. However, the mechanism by which Nef antagonizes Tetherin is unknown. Here, using related Nef proteins that differ in their ability to antagonize Tetherin, we identify three amino-acids in the C-terminal domain of Nef that are critical specifically for its ability to antagonize Tetherin. Additionally, divergent Nef proteins bind to the AP-2 clathrin adaptor complex, and we show that residues important for this interaction are required for Tetherin antagonism, downregulation of Tetherin from the cell surface and removal of Tetherin from sites of particle assembly. Accordingly, depletion of AP-2 using RNA interference impairs the ability of Nef to antagonize Tetherin, demonstrating that AP-2 recruitment is required for Nef proteins to counteract this antiviral protein

ANSI/NISO Z39.99-2017 ResourceSync Framework Specification

This ResourceSync specification describes a synchronization framework for the web consisting of various capabilities that allow third-party systems to remain synchronized with a server’s evolving resources. The capabilities may be combined in a modular manner to meet local or community requirements. This specification also describes how a server should advertise the synchronization capabilities it supports and how third-party systems may discover this information. The specification repurposes the document formats defined by the Sitemap protocol and introduces extensions for them