Critical Pebbling Numbers of Graphs

We define three new pebbling parameters of a connected graph $G$, the $r$-, $g$-, and $u$-critical pebbling numbers. Together with the pebbling number, the optimal pebbling number, the number of vertices $n$ and the diameter $d$ of the graph, this yields 7 graph parameters. We determine the relationships between these parameters. We investigate properties of the $r$-critical pebbling number, and distinguish between greedy graphs, thrifty graphs, and graphs for which the $r$-critical pebbling number is $2^d$.Comment: 26 page

Lesion mapping the four-factor structure of emotional intelligence

Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 9 (2015): 649 This Document is Protected by copyright and was first published by Frontiers. All rights reserved. it is reproduced with permissionEmotional intelligence (EI) refers to an individual’s ability to process and respond to emotions, including recognizing the expression of emotions in others, using emotions to enhance thought and decision making, and regulating emotions to drive effective behaviors. Despite their importance for goal-directed social behavior, little is known about the neural mechanisms underlying specific facets of EI. Here, we report findings from a study investigating the neural bases of these specific components for EI in a sample of 130 combat veterans with penetrating traumatic brain injury. We examined the neural mechanisms underlying experiential (perceiving and using emotional information) and strategic (understanding and managing emotions) facets of EI. Factor scores were submitted to voxel-based lesion symptom mapping to elucidate their neural substrates. The results indicate that two facets of EI (perceiving and managing emotions) engage common and distinctive neural systems, with shared dependence on the social knowledge network, and selective engagement of the orbitofrontal and parietal cortex for strategic aspects of emotional information processing. The observed pattern of findings suggests that sub-facets of experiential and strategic EI can be characterized as separable but related processes that depend upon a core network of brain structures within frontal, temporal and parietal cortexThis work was supported by funding from the US National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke intramural research program and a project grant from the US Army Medical Research and Materiel Command administered by the Henry M. Jackson Foundation (Vietnam Head Injury Study Phase III: a 30-year post-injury follow-up study, grant number DAMD17-01-1-0675). R. Colom was supported by grant PSI2010-20364 from Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación [Ministry of Science and Innovation, Spain] and CEMU-2012-004 [Universidad Autonoma de Madrid

Impact of Multimedia Interventions for Musculoskeletal Health Amidst COVID-19 Pandemic

Lower extremity joint pain is a leading cause of disability and immobility in the United States. Movement is Life seeks to educate and empower patients to break the cycle that immobility starts in efforts to improve musculoskeletal and overall emotional and physical wellbeing. Studies in the past have described the correlation that exists between using Movement is Life education materials as well as a home exercise program to improve lower extremity pain and overall health short term but did not account for confounding factors during the COVID-19 pandemic. The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on health goes beyond patients that have contracted the illness by promoting a sedentary lifestyle in the general public. This study aims to expand on previous research by comparing the short-term effects of this combined approach in lieu of the COVID-19 pandemic to results from previous years. Eligible patients were surveyed in a clinical setting in South Texas before educational and exercise intervention and then re-surveyed 2 weeks and 4 weeks following initial intervention with additional questions regarding health during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results were compared to results from similar studies from previous years. Paired and unpaired 2-tailed T-Tests were used to analyze the mean response differences when applicable. Overall mean improvements were observed when comparing follow up 2 and 4 weeks after intervention to baseline survey responses in previous studies, but no such clear or significant improvements were seen in our current cohort. Based on these data, we can conclude that although a combined approach of multimedia education and home exercise program can be a useful treatment alternative for patients with lower extremity joint pain, positive results are strongly influenced by the available opportunities patients have to physical activity. The COVID-19 pandemic has had a negative effect on patients’ physical and emotional health especially in areas with high prevalence of health care disparities and physicians should be aware of this reality when initiating such treatments

Organophilic, Superparamagnetic, and Reversibly Thermoresponsive Silica-Polypeptide Core-Shell Particles

Particles with a superparamagnetic cobalt inner core, silica outer core, and covalently bound homopolypeptide shell were investigated under thermal and magnetic stimuli. The homopolypeptide was poly(ϵ-carbobenzyloxy-l-lysine), PCBL, which is known to exhibit a thermoreversible coil → helix transition when dissolved as a pure polymer in m-cresol. Tethering to a core particle did not prevent PCBL from undergoing this conformational transition, as confirmed by dynamic light scattering and optical rotation, but the transition was broadened compared to that of the untethered polymer. The Co@SiO2-PCBL hybrid particles retained the superparamagnetic properties of the cobalt inner nougat. Indeed, some response remains even after aging for \u3e5 years. The aged PCBL shell also preserved its responsiveness to temperature, although differences in the shape of the size vs temperature transition curve were observed compared to the freshly made particles. A reversible coil → helix transition for a particle-bound polypeptide in a pure organic solvent is rare. In addition to providing a convenient tool for characterizing coil → helix transitions for surface-bound polypeptides without interference from pH or the strong ionic forces that dominate behavior in aqueous systems, the Co@SiO2-PCBL/m-cresol system may prove useful in studies of the effect of shell polymer conformation on colloid interactions. The stability of the magnetic core and polypeptide shell suggest a long shelf life for Co@SiO2-PCBL, which can, in principle, be deprotected to yield positively charged Co@SiO2-poly(l-lysine) particles for possible transfection or antimicrobial applications or chained magnetically to produce responsive poly(colloids)

Korean traditional foods as antiviral and respiratory disease prevention and treatments: a detailed review

Background: Korean traditional food (KTF), originated from ancestral agriculture and the nomadic traditions of the Korean peninsula and southern Manchuria, is based on healthy food that balances disease prevention and treatment. Fermented foods that include grains, herbs, fruits, and mushrooms are also an important practice in KTF, providing high levels of Lactobacilli, which confer relevant health benefits, including antiviral properties. Some of these probiotics may also protect against the Influenza virus through the modulation of innate immunity. Scope and approach: The emerging of the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to other diseases of viral origin, and the problems associated with other respiratory disorders, highlight how essential is a healthy eating pattern to strengthen our immune system. Key Findings and Conclusions: The present review covers the information available on edible plants, herbs, mushrooms, and preparations used in KTF to outline their multiple medicinal effects (e.g., antidiabetic, che- mopreventive, antioxidative, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial), emphasizing their role and effects on the immune system with an emphasis on modulating properties of the gut microbiota that further support strong respiratory immunity. Potential functional foods commonly used in Korean cuisine such as Kimchi (a mixture of fermented vegetables), Meju, Doenjang, Jeotgal, and Mekgeolli and fermented sauces, among others, are highlighted for their great potential to improve gut-lung immunity. The traditional Korean diet and dietary mechanisms that may target viruses ACE-2 receptors or affect any step of a virus infection pathway that can determine a patient’s prognosis are also highlighted. The regular oral intake of bioactive ingredients used in Korean foods can offer protection for some viral diseases, through protective and immunomodulatory effects, as evidenced in pre- clinical and clinical studies.publishe

Training of Instrumentalists and Development of New Technologies on SOFIA

This white paper is submitted to the Astronomy and Astrophysics 2010 Decadal Survey (Astro2010)1 Committee on the State of the Profession to emphasize the potential of the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) to contribute to the training of instrumentalists and observers, and to related technology developments. This potential goes beyond the primary mission of SOFIA, which is to carry out unique, high priority astronomical research. SOFIA is a Boeing 747SP aircraft with a 2.5 meter telescope. It will enable astronomical observations anywhere, any time, and at most wavelengths between 0.3 microns and 1.6 mm not accessible from ground-based observatories. These attributes, accruing from the mobility and flight altitude of SOFIA, guarantee a wealth of scientific return. Its instrument teams (nine in the first generation) and guest investigators will do suborbital astronomy in a shirt-sleeve environment. The project will invest $10M per year in science instrument development over a lifetime of 20 years. This, frequent flight opportunities, and operation that enables rapid changes of science instruments and hands-on in-flight access to the instruments, assure a unique and extensive potential - both for training young instrumentalists and for encouraging and deploying nascent technologies. Novel instruments covering optical, infrared, and submillimeter bands can be developed for and tested on SOFIA by their developers (including apprentices) for their own observations and for those of guest observers, to validate technologies and maximize observational effectiveness.Comment: 10 pages, no figures, White Paper for Astro 2010 Survey Committee on State of the Professio