Trapped by Credit: Racial Disparities in Financial Well-Being and Opportunity in Illinois

This report examines an important aspect of economic racial disparity -- disparity in credit scores. The relationship between credit scores and minority presence illustrates a clear racial disparity in credit in Illinois. Though many related factors help to explain some variability in credit scores, even when controlling for them, racial differences in credit persist.Having a credit score is important for gaining access to things like education, better jobs, homeownership -- the very things that feed financial and social opportunity. While credit disparities exist in large measure due to the same historic policies that have limited access to broader financial opportunities for minorities, credit scores are particularly important to consider because they also impact individuals' future financial opportunities.In effect, credit scores can create a trap, one that minorities are more likely to fall into, thereby feeding the continued growth of income and wealth disparities

The Z/2\mathbb{Z}/2-equivariant cohomology of complex projective spaces

In this article we compute the cohomology of complex projective spaces associated to finite dimensional representations of $\mathbb{Z}/2$ graded on virtual representations of its fundamental groupoid. This fully graded theory, unlike the classical $RO(G)$-graded theory, allows for the definition of push-forward maps between projective spaces, which we also compute. In the computation we use relations and generators coming from the fully graded cohomology of the projective space of $\mathscr {U}$, the complete complex $\mathbb{Z}/2$-universe, as carried out by the first author. This work is the first step in a program for developing $\mathbb{Z}/2$-equivariant Schubert calculus.Comment: 42 pages, this is a minor update. The proof of the multiplicative additive structure has been uniformized with the rest of the paper. Typos have been correcte

The Magic Sky

At the moment, I\u27m in pursuit of the in-between. It\u27s tricky to talk about the in-between because it\u27s not this or that, here nor there, but rather a transitional space in-between the two. This space resides amidst presence and absence, physcial and energetic, figure and ground. Like an archway, it is both the arch and the way

An Analysis of Botnet Vulnerabilities

Botnets are a significant threat to computer networks and data stored on networked computers. The ability to inhibit communication between servers controlling the botnet and individual hosts would be an effective countermeasure. The objective of this research was to find vulnerabilities in Unreal IRCd that could be used to shut down the server. Analysis revealed that Unreal IRCd is a very mature and stable IRC server and no significant vulnerabilities were found. While this research does not eliminate the possibility that a critical vulnerability is present in the Unreal IRCd software, none were identified during this effort

The determinants of individual load carriage economy

Energy saving phenomena have been identified for load carriage on the head, the back, and evenly distributed between the back and front of the torso (back/front-loading), but the mechanics explaining these phenomena are unknown. This research aimed to identify the determinants of individual load carriage economy. Three empirical studies and the development of a theoretical deterministic model (TDM) are presented. Study 1 showed that the Extra Load Index (ELI), a measure of relative load carriage economy, and loaded walking gait kinematics have good test-retest reliability with 7 and 20 kg (e.g. largest coefficients of variation (CV) = 4.17%). Study 2 showed that there is no significant difference in ELI for head-, back- and back/front-loading across a range of load mass (3 – 20 kg) for experienced head-loaders. However, there were significant differences in gait kinematics between methods. For example, forward lean increased from 3 to 20 kg for back- (10.7°) and back/front-loading (2.4°) but decreased for head-loading (-2.2°). Study 2 also supported the existence of considerable inter-individual variation for both ELI (e.g. CV of up to 16%) and load carriage kinematics (e.g. change in forward lean from unloaded walking of +24% to –8% for back-loading with 20 kg). The TDM provides a framework to analyse the biomechanics of load carriage, as in study 3. Study 3 showed that a combination of reduced trunk movement and stride pattern perturbations from unloaded walking are associated with an improved economy for some load conditions (back/front-loading with 20 kg and head-loading with 12 kg), however this finding was not consistent across all load method and masses. In conclusion, a loaded walking gait closer to that of unloaded walking is beneficial for some load carriage conditions and may be an important determinant of load carriage economy. However, this does not explain individual load carriage economy variability

MODISTools - downloading and processing MODIS remotely sensed data in R

Remotely sensed data – available at medium to high resolution across global spatial and temporal scales – are a valuable resource for ecologists. In particular, products from NASA's MODerate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), providing twice-daily global coverage, have been widely used for ecological applications. We present MODISTools, an R package designed to improve the accessing, downloading, and processing of remotely sensed MODIS data. MODISTools automates the process of data downloading and processing from any number of locations, time periods, and MODIS products. This automation reduces the risk of human error, and the researcher effort required compared to manual per-location downloads. The package will be particularly useful for ecological studies that include multiple sites, such as meta-analyses, observation networks, and globally distributed experiments. We give examples of the simple, reproducible workflow that MODISTools provides and of the checks that are carried out in the process. The end product is in a format that is amenable to statistical modeling. We analyzed the relationship between species richness across multiple higher taxa observed at 526 sites in temperate forests and vegetation indices, measures of aboveground net primary productivity. We downloaded MODIS derived vegetation index time series for each location where the species richness had been sampled, and summarized the data into three measures: maximum time-series value, temporal mean, and temporal variability. On average, species richness covaried positively with our vegetation index measures. Different higher taxa show different positive relationships with vegetation indices. Models had high R2 values, suggesting higher taxon identity and a gradient of vegetation index together explain most of the variation in species richness in our data. MODISTools can be used on Windows, Mac, and Linux platforms, and is available from CRAN and GitHub (https://github.com/seantuck12/MODISTools)

THE EFFECT OF STEP WIDTH CONTROL ON LOAD CARRIAGE ECONOMY

The purpose of this study was to assess the influence of step width on load carriage economy. Fifteen healthy volunteers (age = 25 ± 3 years; stature = 1.78 ± 0.07 m; body mass = 73.6 ± 10.1 kg) completed three trials in a randomised order. Each trial differed by load carriage method and involved walking on a force-instrumented at 3km.h-1 with 0, 3, 12 and 20 kg. This protocol was then repeated with step width controlled to each participant’s preferred unloaded width. Relative load carriage economy was measured using the Extra Load Index (ELI). Load carriage economy was significantly worse in the head loading method compared to the other two method with step width uncontrolled (p = 0.02) and controlled (p = 0.02). For the trials where step width was uncontrolled, there was a significant difference in step width from unloaded walking between the different loading methods (p = 0.01) but no significant difference between load mass (p = 0.39). There was no difference in ELI between preferred and controlled step widths. Based on the data presented here, moderate alterations in step width caused by load carriage do not appear to influence load carriage economy

Microscale structural changes of individual fibrin fibers during fibrinolysis

Fibrinolysis is the enzymatic digestion of fibrin, the primary structural component in blood clots. Mechanisms of fibrin fiber digestion during lysis have long been debated and obtaining detailed structural knowledge of these processes is important for developing effective clinical approaches to treat ischemic stroke and pulmonary embolism. Using dynamic fluorescence microscopy, we studied the time-resolved digestion of individual fibrin fibers by the fibrinolytic enzyme plasmin. We found that plasmin molecules digest fibers along their entire lengths, but that the rates of digestion are non-uniform, resulting in cleavage at a single location along the fiber. Using mathematical modeling we estimated the rate of plasmin arrival at the fiber surface and the number of digestion sites on a fiber. We also investigated correlations between local fiber digestion rates, cleavage sites, and fiber properties such as initial thickness. Finally, we uncovered a previously unknown tension-dependent mechanism that pulls fibers apart during digestion. Taken together these results promote a paradigm shift in understanding mechanisms of fibrinolysis and underscore the need to consider fibrin tension when assessing fibrinolytic approaches.ECU Open Access Publishing Support Fun

(-)-Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) maintains k-casein in its pre-fibrillar state without redirecting its aggregation pathway

The polyphenol (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) has recently attracted much research interest in the field of protein-misfolding diseases because of its potent anti-amyloid activity against amyloid-beta, alpha-synuclein and huntingtin, the amyloid-fibril-forming proteins involved in Alzheimer\u27s, Parkinson\u27s and Huntington\u27s diseases, respectively. EGCG redirects the aggregation of these polypeptides to a disordered off-folding pathway that results in the formation of non-toxic amorphous aggregates. whether this anti-fibril activity is specific to these disease-related target proteins or ismore generic remains to be established. In addition, the mechanism by which EGCG exerts its effects, as with all anti-amyloidogenic polyphenols, remains unclear. To address these aspects, we have investigated the ability of EGCG to inhibit amyloidogenesis of the generic model fibril-forming protein RCMkappa-CN (reduced and carboxymethylated kappa-casein) and thereby protect pheochromocytoma-12 cells from RCMkappa-CN amyloid-induced toxicity. We found that EGCG potently inhibits in vitro fibril formation byRCMkappa-CN [the IC50 for 50 uM RCMkappa-CN is 1 uM]. Biophysical studies reveal that EGCG prevents RCMkappa-CN fibril formation by stabilising RCMkappa-CN in its nativelike state rather than by redirecting its aggregation to the disordered, amorphous aggregation pathway. Thus, while it appears that EGCG is a generic inhibitor of amyloid-fibril formation, the mechanism by which it achieves this inhibition is specific to the target fibril-forming polypeptide. It is proposed that EGCG is directed to the amyloidogenic sheet-turn-sheet motif of monomeric RCMkappa-CN with high affinity by strong non-specific hydrophobic associations. Additional non-covalent pi-pi stacking interactions between the polyphenolic and aromatic residues common to the amyloidogenic sequence are also implicated

(-)-Epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) maintains k-casein in its pre-fibrillar state without redirecting its aggregation pathway

The polyphenol (-)-epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) has recently attracted much research interest in the field of protein-misfolding diseases because of its potent anti-amyloid activity against amyloid-beta, alpha-synuclein and huntingtin, the amyloid-fibril-forming proteins involved in Alzheimer\u27s, Parkinson\u27s and Huntington\u27s diseases, respectively. EGCG redirects the aggregation of these polypeptides to a disordered off-folding pathway that results in the formation of non-toxic amorphous aggregates. whether this anti-fibril activity is specific to these disease-related target proteins or ismore generic remains to be established. In addition, the mechanism by which EGCG exerts its effects, as with all anti-amyloidogenic polyphenols, remains unclear. To address these aspects, we have investigated the ability of EGCG to inhibit amyloidogenesis of the generic model fibril-forming protein RCMkappa-CN (reduced and carboxymethylated kappa-casein) and thereby protect pheochromocytoma-12 cells from RCMkappa-CN amyloid-induced toxicity. We found that EGCG potently inhibits in vitro fibril formation byRCMkappa-CN [the IC50 for 50 uM RCMkappa-CN is 1 uM]. Biophysical studies reveal that EGCG prevents RCMkappa-CN fibril formation by stabilising RCMkappa-CN in its nativelike state rather than by redirecting its aggregation to the disordered, amorphous aggregation pathway. Thus, while it appears that EGCG is a generic inhibitor of amyloid-fibril formation, the mechanism by which it achieves this inhibition is specific to the target fibril-forming polypeptide. It is proposed that EGCG is directed to the amyloidogenic sheet-turn-sheet motif of monomeric RCMkappa-CN with high affinity by strong non-specific hydrophobic associations. Additional non-covalent pi-pi stacking interactions between the polyphenolic and aromatic residues common to the amyloidogenic sequence are also implicated