11,383 research outputs found
Studying Migrant Assimilation Through Facebook Interests
Migrants' assimilation is a major challenge for European societies, in part
because of the sudden surge of refugees in recent years and in part because of
long-term demographic trends. In this paper, we use Facebook's data for
advertisers to study the levels of assimilation of Arabic-speaking migrants in
Germany, as seen through the interests they express online. Our results
indicate a gradient of assimilation along demographic lines, language spoken
and country of origin. Given the difficulty to collect timely migration data,
in particular for traits related to cultural assimilation, the methods that we
develop and the results that we provide open new lines of research that
computational social scientists are well-positioned to address.Comment: Accepted as a short paper at Social Informatics 2018
(https://socinfo2018.hse.ru/). Please cite the SocInfo versio
CW high intensity non-scaling FFAG proton drivers
Accelerators are playing increasingly important roles in basic science,
technology, and medicine including nuclear power, industrial irradiation,
material science, and neutrino production. Proton and light-ion accelerators in
particular have many research, energy and medical applications, providing one
of the most effective treatments for many types of cancer. Ultra high-intensity
and high-energy (GeV) proton drivers are a critical technology for
accelerator-driven sub-critical reactors (ADS) and many HEP programs (Muon
Collider). These high-intensity GeV-range proton drivers are particularly
challenging, encountering duty cycle and space-charge limits in the synchrotron
and machine size concerns in the weaker-focusing cyclotrons; a 10-20 MW proton
driver is not presently considered technically achievable with conventional
re-circulating accelerators. One, as-yet, unexplored re-circulating
accelerator, the Fixed-field Alternating Gradient, or FFAG, is an attractive
alternative to the cyclotron. Its strong focusing optics are expected to
mitigate space charge effects, and a recent innovation in design has coupled
stable tunes with isochronous orbits, making the FFAG capable of
fixed-frequency, CW acceleration, as in the classical cyclotron. This paper
reports on these new advances in FFAG accelerator technology and references
advanced modeling tools for fixed-field accelerators developed for and unique
to the code COSY INFINITY.Comment: 3 pp. Particle Accelerator, 24th Conference (PAC'11) 2011. 28 Mar - 1
Apr 2011. New York, US
Don't break a leg: Running birds from quail to ostrich prioritise leg safety and economy in uneven terrain
Cursorial ground birds are paragons of bipedal running that span a 500-fold mass range from quail to ostrich. Here we investigate the task-level control priorities of cursorial birds by analysing how they negotiate single-step obstacles that create a conflict between body stability (attenuating deviations in body motion) and consistent leg force–length dynamics (for economy and leg safety). We also test the hypothesis that control priorities shift between body stability and leg safety with increasing body size, reflecting use of active control to overcome size-related challenges. Weight-support demands lead to a shift towards straighter legs and stiffer steady gait with increasing body size, but it remains unknown whether non-steady locomotor priorities diverge with size. We found that all measured species used a consistent obstacle negotiation strategy, involving unsteady body dynamics to minimise fluctuations in leg posture and loading across multiple steps, not directly prioritising body stability. Peak leg forces remained remarkably consistent across obstacle terrain, within 0.35 body weights of level running for obstacle heights from 0.1 to 0.5 times leg length. All species used similar stance leg actuation patterns, involving asymmetric force–length trajectories and posture-dependent actuation to add or remove energy depending on landing conditions. We present a simple stance leg model that explains key features of avian bipedal locomotion, and suggests economy as a key priority on both level and uneven terrain. We suggest that running ground birds target the closely coupled priorities of economy and leg safety as the direct imperatives of control, with adequate stability achieved through appropriately tuned intrinsic dynamics
A genome-wide screen in macrophages identifies new regulators of IFNγ-inducible MHCII that contribute to T cell activation [preprint]
Cytokine-mediated activation of host immunity is central to the control of pathogens. A key cytokine in protective immunity is interferon-gamma (IFNγ), which is a potent activator of antimicrobial and immunomodulatory effectors within the host. A major role of IFNγ is to induce major histocompatibility complex class II molecules (MHCII) on the surface of cells, which is required for CD4+ T cell activation. Despite its central role in host immunity, the complex and dynamic regulation of IFNγ-induced MHCII is not well understood. Here, we integrated functional genomics and transcriptomics to comprehensively define the genetic control of IFNγ-mediated MHCII surface expression in macrophages. Using a genome-wide CRISPR-Cas9 library we identified genes that control MHCII surface expression, many of which have yet to be associated with MHCII. Mechanistic studies uncovered two parallel pathways of IFNγ-mediated MHCII control that require the multifunctional glycogen synthase kinase 3 beta (GSK3β) or the mediator complex subunit MED16. Both pathways are necessary for IFNγ-mediated induction of the MHCII transactivator CIITA, MHCII expression, and CD4+ T cell activation. Using transcriptomic analysis, we defined the regulons controlled by GSK3β and MED16 in the presence and absence of IFNγ and identified unique networks of the IFNγ-mediated transcriptional landscape that are controlled by each gene. Our analysis suggests GSK3β and MED16 control distinct aspects of the IFNγ-response and are critical for macrophages to respond appropriately to IFNγ. Our results define previously unappreciated regulation of MHCII expression that is required to control CD4+ T cell responses by macrophages. These discoveries will aid in our basic understanding of macrophage-mediated immunity and will shed light on mechanisms of failed adaptive responses pervasive in infectious disease, autoimmunity, and cancer
Improving health and well-being through community health champions: a thematic evaluation of a programme in Yorkshire and Humber.
AIMS: The contribution that lay people can make to the public health agenda is being increasingly recognised in research and policy literature. This paper examines the role of lay workers (referred to as 'community health champions') involved in community projects delivered by Altogether Better across Yorkshire and Humber. The aim of the paper is to describe key features of the community health champion approach and to examine the evidence that this type of intervention can have an impact on health. METHODS: A qualitative approach was taken to the evaluation, with two strands to gathering evidence: interviews conducted with different stakeholder groups including project leads, key partners from community and statutory sectors and community workers, plus two participatory workshops to gather the views of community health champions. Seven projects (from a possible 12) were identified to be involved in the evaluation. Those projects that allowed the evaluation team to explore fully the champion role (training, infrastructure, etc.) and how that works in practice as a mechanism for empowerment were selected. In total, 29 semi-structured interviews were conducted with project staff and partners, and 30 champions, varying in terms of age, gender, ethnicity and disability, took part in the workshops. RESULTS: Becoming a community health champion has health benefits such as increased self-esteem and confidence and improved well-being. For some champions, this was the start of a journey to other opportunities such as education or paid employment. There were many examples of the influence of champions extending to the wider community of family, friends and neighbours, including helping to support people to take part in community life. Champions recognised the value of connecting people through social networks, group activities, and linking people into services and the impact that that had on health and well-being. Project staff and partners also recognised that champions were promoting social cohesiveness and helping to integrate people into their community. CONCLUSIONS: The recent public health White Paper suggested that the Altogether Better programme is improving individual and community health as well as increasing social capital, voluntary activity and wider civic participation. This evaluation supports this statement and suggests that the community health champion role can be a catalyst for change for both individuals and communities
Friends of the Hilton M. Briggs Library Newsletter: Spring 2016
Features: Native American artwork coming to Briggs Library Notes from the Chief University LibrarianBartling maintains unique collectionhttps://openprairie.sdstate.edu/library_news/1000/thumbnail.jp
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