INFORMATION, ENERGY, AND EVOLUTION

Within the current theory of evolution, the development in the direction of higher complexity is taken to be a necessary condition. This gives birth to a problem why this direction is prevalent for evolution. Philosophers and scientists tried to substantiate this condition and to explain it, yet the question still remains open. Our aim is to find specific regularities in nature that make complexity the chosen direction. Three main causes for this direction are deduced from initial principles, assuming that information and energy are the vital nutrients for evolution. Consequently, we base our explication and explanation of causes on the principles of information theory, Ashby’s principle of requisite variety/complexity, as well as we suggest and ground some additional principles of the system development. This makes possible to separate three principal stages for evolution of living organisms: biological, neurological, and epistemological

Institutional Influence on Documentary Form: an Analysis of PBS and HBO Documentary Programs

INSTITUTIONAL INFLUENCE ON DOCUMENTARY FORM - A COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF PBS and HBO DOCUMENTARY PROGRAMS by Mark Irving The University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee, 2015 Under the Supervision of Professor Michael Z. Newman Beginning in the 1980s, the documentary genre has undergone a transformation to accommodate modes of stylistic expression and subjective thematic exposition previously not evident in the genre. This deviation from the form’s traditional modes of expression typically associated with fact-based, journalistic pursuits can be attributed to the institutional underpinnings of media outlets that exhibit documentary programming. These institutional factors, a consequence of an evolving marketplace and shifts in the political and regulatory landscape, have motivated programming mandates or practices often discordant with a media outlet’s stated or presumed mission. This research identifies documentary themes and modes of representation and notes their evolution over time by examining documentary programming on two dominant television networks. I relate these shifts to institutional factors such as fluctuations and changes in funding, administration, regulations and the marketplace - factors such as the decrease in public/tax and consequent rise in private/underwriter funding of public television, and the diversification and increase of programming by commercial media outlets in response to an expanding marketplace. I also draw conclusions about the function of the documentary genre and the nature and purpose of the television institutions that exhibit them - documentary as popular entertainment, journalistic inquiry or historic artifac

Oh How I Miss You Tonight / words by Benny Davis, Mark Fisher, and Joe Burke

Key of Bb. Cover: a drawing of a woman sitting on a sofa thinking; photo inset of Eva Clark; Publisher: Irving Berlin Inc. (New York)https://egrove.olemiss.edu/sharris_d/1061/thumbnail.jp

Ariel - Volume 9 Number 2

Executive Editor Emily Wofford Business Manager Fredric Jay Matlin University News John Patrick Welch World News George Robert Coar Editorials Editor Steve Levine Features Mark Rubin Brad Feldstein Photo Rick Spade Circulation Victor Onufreiczuk Lee Wugofsk

Introduction to stochastic error correction methods

We propose a method for eliminating the truncation error associated with any subspace diagonalization calculation. The new method, called stochastic error correction, uses Monte Carlo sampling to compute the contribution of the remaining basis vectors not included in the initial diagonalization. The method is part of a new approach to computational quantum physics which combines both diagonalization and Monte Carlo techniques.Comment: 11 pages, 1 figur

A Silver Lining to Russia’s Sanctions-Busting Clause

In 2018, Russia began inserting an unusual clause into euro and dollar sovereign bonds, seemingly designed to circumvent future Western sanctions. The clause worked by letting the government pay in roubles if sanctions cut off access to dollar and euro payment systems. The clause received little scrutiny at the time, perhaps because Russia used a state-owned bank, rather than a global investment bank, as underwriter. But with the invasion of Ukraine and the ensuing sanctions imposed by the United States and other governments, the relevance of the clause has become clear. This Essay examines how the market reacted to the clause before and after the invasion. Our expectation was that the market would charge a premium for bonds with the clause. Investors bought euro and dollar bonds, after all, because they did not want to be paid in roubles. Yet contrary to expectations, investors seemed to prefer bonds that allowed for payment in roubles over bonds that did not. This surprising finding has considerable implications for other countries that may lose access to foreign currency for reasons that are more benign than Russia’s war of aggression. Despite its sordid provenance, Russia’s sanctions-busting clause might turn out to be a positive innovation that could benefit countries facing unexpected crises. Indeed, had Ukraine included such a clause in its bonds, the benefit would have been enormous

Influenza epidemiology, vaccine coverage and vaccine effectiveness in sentinel Australian hospitals in 2013: the Influenza Complications Alert Network

The National Influenza Program aims to reduce serious morbidity and mortality from influenza by providing public funding for vaccination to at-risk groups. The Influenza Complications Alert Network (FluCAN) is a sentinel hospital-based surveillance program that operates at 14 sites in all states and territories in Australia. This report summarises the epidemiology of hospitalisations with confirmed influenza, estimates vaccine coverage and influenza vaccine protection against hospitalisation with influenza during the 2013 influenza season. In this observational study, cases were defined as patients admitted to one of the sentinel hospitals, with influenza confirmed by nucleic acid testing. Controls were patients who had acute respiratory illnesses who were test-negative for influenza. Vaccine effectiveness was estimated as 1 minus the odds ratio of vaccination in case patients compared with control patients, after adjusting for known confounders. During the period 5 April to 31 October 2012, 631 patients were admitted with confirmed influenza at the 14 FluCAN sentinel hospitals. Of these, 31% were more than 65 years of age, 9.5% were Indigenous Australians, 4.3% were pregnant and 77% had chronic co-morbidities. Influenza B was detected in 30% of patients. Vaccination coverage was estimated at 81% in patients more than 65 years of age but only 49% in patients aged less than 65 years with chronic comorbidities. Vaccination effectiveness against hospitalisation with influenza was estimated at 50% (95% confidence interval: 33%, 63%, P<0.001). We detected a significant number of hospital admissions with confirmed influenza in a national observational study. Vaccine coverage was incomplete in at-risk groups, particularly non-elderly patients with medical comorbidities. Our results suggest that the seasonal influenza vaccine was moderately protective against hospitalisation with influenza in the 2013 season. This work i

CD24 signalling through macrophage Siglec-10 is a target for cancer immunotherapy.

Ovarian cancer and triple-negative breast cancer are among the most lethal diseases affecting women, with few targeted therapies and high rates of metastasis. Cancer cells are capable of evading clearance by macrophages through the overexpression of anti-phagocytic surface proteins called 'don't eat me' signals-including CD471, programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1)2 and the beta-2 microglobulin subunit of the major histocompatibility class I complex (B2M)3. Monoclonal antibodies that antagonize the interaction of 'don't eat me' signals with their macrophage-expressed receptors have demonstrated therapeutic potential in several cancers4,5. However, variability in the magnitude and durability of the response to these agents has suggested the presence of additional, as yet unknown 'don't eat me' signals. Here we show that CD24 can be the dominant innate immune checkpoint in ovarian cancer and breast cancer, and is a promising target for cancer immunotherapy. We demonstrate a role for tumour-expressed CD24 in promoting immune evasion through its interaction with the inhibitory receptor sialic-acid-binding Ig-like lectin 10 (Siglec-10), which is expressed by tumour-associated macrophages. We find that many tumours overexpress CD24 and that tumour-associated macrophages express high levels of Siglec-10. Genetic ablation of either CD24 or Siglec-10, as well as blockade of the CD24-Siglec-10 interaction using monoclonal antibodies, robustly augment the phagocytosis of all CD24-expressing human tumours that we tested. Genetic ablation and therapeutic blockade of CD24 resulted in a macrophage-dependent reduction of tumour growth in vivo and an increase in survival time. These data reveal CD24 as a highly expressed, anti-phagocytic signal in several cancers and demonstrate the therapeutic potential for CD24 blockade in cancer immunotherapy

919-15 Rotational Atherectomy in Chronic Total Occlusions

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the success rate, complication profile and predictors of outcome of rotational atherectomy (RA) after guidewire crossing of chronic total occlusions (CTO). 145 total occlusions were treated in 139 procedures between 1988 and 1993. Of these, there were 112 single lesion procedures. Compared to pts with non-total occlusions (NTOI, pts with CTO were more likely to be male, younger and have a prior MI, but less likely to present with unstable angina or to have diabetes. Lesions were more likely type C (68.7% vs 15.1%, P&lt;0.0001) and longer (14.8±7.8 vs 8.0±5.6 mm, p&lt;0.0001). Mean baseline stenosis was 100.0%. Post-Rotablator stenosis was 45.6±17.5%. Post-adjunctive balloon stenosis was 24.6±15.9% while final residual stenosis was 26.9±16.8%. The maximum mean burr size was 1.8±0.26 mm while average vessel diameter was 2.74±0.65mm. Success without major complications occurred in 91.0%. Dissection occurred in 18.0%, acute in-lab closure in 3.6%, post-Cath lab reocclusion in 3.6%, emergency bypass surgery on 0%, death in 1.4% and NOMI in 4.3% of pts. Based on 49.2% angiographic follow-up, restenosis occurred in 62.5% of pts. Univariate predictors of RA success were pt age (p=0.02), lesion eccentricity (p=0.04) and vessel diameter (p=0.02). In a multivariable logistic regression model, only larger vessel diameter remained as an independent predictor of success (2.8±0.6 vs 2.0±0.5mm). Older age (p=0.04) and diabetes (p=0.01) were univariate predictors of restenosis. However, in the final multivariable logistic model, only diabetes remained a significant predictor.In conclusion, RA for the treatment of CTO has acceptable success and restenosis. Non-diabetics with relatively larger vessel diameter appear to benefit most