Study abroad and track II diplomacy

Track II diplomacy, or person-to-person diplomacy is one of the most basic, but also most important types of international relations. Track II diplomacy requires not just effective legislature to be in place, but also requires individuals to have cross-cultural competency. One question that arises is how is this type of connectivity between cultures is formed. One of the most direct links can be found in students. As the political environment changes, young minds and rising experts will be the people who need to handle future international problems, that are possibly different from what we have seen in the past. How will they be prepared for this task? The purpose of this thesis paper is to look at the relationship between study abroad and track II diplomacy

A Security Threat Analysis of Smart Home Network with Vulnerable Dynamic Agents

This chapter presents a security analysis of a smart home network containing vulnerable dynamic agents in the form of smart toys. As a case study, a smart toy is used as an example of an Internet of Things (IoT) device which could be potentially used as a vector into the smart home network. This chapter discusses a threat model for smart home security with a focus on the smart toy as an entry point into the network and what a threat actor could potentially achieve through this relatively new type of threat to the home

Optical IFU Observations of the Brightest Cluster Galaxy NGC 4696: The Case for a Minor Merger and Shock-excited Filaments

We present deep optical integral-field spectroscopic observations of the nearby (z ~ 0.01) brightest cluster galaxy NGC 4696 in the core of the Centaurus Cluster, made with the Wide Field Spectrograph (WiFeS) on the ANU 2.3m telescope at Siding Spring Observatory. We investigate the morphology, kinematics, and excitation of the emission-line filaments and discuss these in the context of a model of a minor merger. We suggest that the emission-line filaments in this object have their origin in the accretion of a gas-rich galaxy and that they are excited by v ~100-200 km/s shocks driven into the cool filament gas by the ram pressure of the transonic passage of the merging system through the hot halo gas of NGC 4696.Comment: 19 pages, 15 figures, accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journa

Improved constraints on dark energy from Chandra X-ray observations of the largest relaxed galaxy clusters

We present constraints on the mean matter density, Omega_m, dark energy density, Omega_de, and the dark energy equation of state parameter, w, using Chandra measurements of the X-ray gas mass fraction (fgas) in 42 hot (kT>5keV), X-ray luminous, dynamically relaxed galaxy clusters spanning the redshift range 0.05<z<1.1. Using only the fgas data for the 6 lowest redshift clusters at z<0.15, for which dark energy has a negligible effect on the measurements, we measure Omega_m=0.28+-0.06 (68% confidence, using standard priors on the Hubble Constant, H_0, and mean baryon density, Omega_bh^2). Analyzing the data for all 42 clusters, employing only weak priors on H_0 and Omega_bh^2, we obtain a similar result on Omega_m and detect the effects of dark energy on the distances to the clusters at ~99.99% confidence, with Omega_de=0.86+-0.21 for a non-flat LCDM model. The detection of dark energy is comparable in significance to recent SNIa studies and represents strong, independent evidence for cosmic acceleration. Systematic scatter remains undetected in the fgas data, despite a weighted mean statistical scatter in the distance measurements of only ~5%. For a flat cosmology with constant w, we measure Omega_m=0.28+-0.06 and w=-1.14+-0.31. Combining the fgas data with independent constraints from CMB and SNIa studies removes the need for priors on Omega_bh^2 and H_0 and leads to tighter constraints: Omega_m=0.253+-0.021 and w=-0.98+-0.07 for the same constant-w model. More general analyses in which we relax the assumption of flatness and/or allow evolution in w remain consistent with the cosmological constant paradigm. Our analysis includes conservative allowances for systematic uncertainties. The small systematic scatter and tight constraints bode well for future dark energy studies using the fgas method. (Abridged)Comment: Published in MNRAS. 20 pages, 11 figures. The data and analysis code (in the form of a patch to CosmoMC) are now available at http://www.stanford.edu/~drapetti/fgas_module

The impact of mergers on relaxed X-ray clusters - III. Effects on compact cool cores

(Abridged) We use the simulations presented in Poole et al. 2006 to examine the effects of mergers on compact cool cores in X-ray clusters. We propose a scheme for classifying the morphology of clusters based on their surface brightness and entropy profiles. Three dominant morphologies emerge: two hosting compact cores and central temperatures which are cool (CCC systems) or warm (CWC systems) and one hosting extended cores which are warm (EWC systems). We find that CCC states are disrupted only after direct collisions between cluster cores in head-on collisions or during second pericentric passage in off-axis mergers. By the time they relax, our remnant cores have generally been heated to warm core (CWC or EWC) states but subsequently recover CCC states. The only case resulting in a long-lived EWC state is a slightly off-axis 3:1 merger for which the majority of shock heating occurs during the accretion of a low-entropy stream formed from the disruption of the secondary's core. Compression prevents core temperatures from falling until after relaxation thus explaining the observed population of relaxed CWC systems with no need to invoke AGN feedback. The morphological segregation observed in the L_x-T_x and beta-r_c scaling relations is reflected in our simulations as well. However, none of the cases we have studied produce sufficiently high remnant central entropies to account for the most under-luminous EWC systems observed. Lastly, systems which initially host central metallicity gradients do not yield merger remnants with flat metallicity profiles. Taken together, these results suggest that once formed, compact core systems are remarkably stable against disruption from mergers. It remains to be demonstrated exactly how the sizable observed population of extended core systems was formed.Comment: 19 pages, 8 figures, submitted for publication in MNRA

Aberrant epithelial GREM1 expression initiates colonic tumorigenesis from cells outside the stem cell niche

Hereditary mixed polyposis syndrome (HMPS) is characterized by the development of mixed-morphology colorectal tumors and is caused by a 40-kb genetic duplication that results in aberrant epithelial expression of the gene encoding mesenchymal bone morphogenetic protein antagonist, GREM1. Here we use HMPS tissue and a mouse model of the disease to show that epithelial GREM1 disrupts homeostatic intestinal morphogen gradients, altering cell fate that is normally determined by position along the vertical epithelial axis. This promotes the persistence and/or reacquisition of stem cell properties in Lgr5-negative progenitor cells that have exited the stem cell niche. These cells form ectopic crypts, proliferate, accumulate somatic mutations and can initiate intestinal neoplasia, indicating that the crypt base stem cell is not the sole cell of origin of colorectal cancer. Furthermore, we show that epithelial expression of GREM1 also occurs in traditional serrated adenomas, sporadic premalignant lesions with a hitherto unknown pathogenesis, and these lesions can be considered the sporadic equivalents of HMPS polyps

Now, switch! Individuals’ responses to imposed switches between exploration and exploitation

Individual ambidexterity is an important micro-foundation of organizational ambidexterity. However, switching back-and-forth between exploration and exploitation can be challenging for individuals. Prior research has mostly focused on bottom-up approaches to stimulating individual ambidexterity, yet many organizations are characterized by greater top-down control. Exercising control may complicate the pursuit of individual ambidexterity because it amplifies switching resistance. We draw on an observational study of facilitated strategy workshops to explore the role of switching resistance and steps that can be taken to deal with it in top-down settings. Our findings suggest that imposing switches on individuals tends to trigger a distinct pattern of behavioral responses. Furthermore, we find that increasing control and offering emotional support can reduce switching resistance and help individuals execute ambidextrous work tasks. Our study contributes to the literature on individual ambidexterity by extending it from bottom-up to top-down settings. Specifically, we identify emotional, cognitive and behavioral drivers of switching resistance and unpack the process leading up to resistance. Furthermore, we identify organizational measures relevant for addressing such resistance and resolving ambidexterity at the individual level.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Meta Modeling for Business Process Improvement

Conducting business process improvement (BPI) initiatives is a topic of high priority for today’s companies. However, performing BPI projects has become challenging. This is due to rapidly changing customer requirements and an increase of inter-organizational business processes, which need to be considered from an end-to-end perspective. In addition, traditional BPI approaches are more and more perceived as overly complex and too resource-consuming in practice. Against this background, the paper proposes a BPI roadmap, which is an approach for systematically performing BPI projects and serves practitioners’ needs for manageable BPI methods. Based on this BPI roadmap, a domain-specific conceptual modeling method (DSMM) has been developed. The DSMM supports the efficient documentation and communication of the results that emerge during the application of the roadmap. Thus, conceptual modeling acts as a means for purposefully codifying the outcomes of a BPI project. Furthermore, a corresponding software prototype has been implemented using a meta modeling platform to assess the technical feasibility of the approach. Finally, the usability of the prototype has been empirically evaluated

Structural and functional characterization of NanU, a novel high-affinity sialic acid-inducible binding protein of oral and gut-dwelling Bacteroidetes species

Many human-dwelling bacteria acquire sialic acid for growth or surface display. We identified previously a sialic acid utilization operon in Tannerella forsythia that includes a novel outer membrane sialic acid-transport system (NanOU), where NanO (neuraminate outer membrane permease) is a putative TonB-dependent receptor and NanU (extracellular neuraminate uptake protein) is a predicted SusD family protein. Using heterologous complementation of nanOU genes into an Escherichia coli strain devoid of outer membrane sialic acid permeases, we show that the nanOU system from the gut bacterium Bacteroides fragilis is functional and demonstrate its dependence on TonB for function. We also show that nanU is required for maximal function of the transport system and that it is expressed in a sialic acid-responsive manner. We also show its cellular localization to the outer membrane using fractionation and immunofluorescence experiments. Ligand-binding studies revealed high-affinity binding of sialic acid to NanU (Kd ~400 nM) from two Bacteroidetes species as well as binding of a range of sialic acid analogues. Determination of the crystal structure of NanU revealed a monomeric SusD-like structure containing a novel motif characterized by an extended kinked helix that might determine sugar-binding specificity. The results of the present study characterize the first bacterial extracellular sialic acid-binding protein and define a sialic acid-specific PUL (polysaccharide utilization locus)