Molecular causes of primary microcephaly and related diseases: a report from the UNIA Workshop

The International University of Andalucía (UNIA) Current Trends in Biomedicine Workshop on Molecular Causes of Primary Microcephaly and Related Diseases took place in Baeza, Spain, November 18–20, 2019. This meeting brought together scientists from Europe, the USA and China to discuss recent advances in our molecular and genetic understanding of a group of rare neurodevelopmental diseases characterised by primary microcephaly, a condition in which head circumference is smaller than normal at birth. Microcephaly can be caused by inherited mutations that affect key cellular processes, or environmental exposure to radiation or other toxins. It can also result from viral infection, as exemplified by the recent Zika virus outbreak in South America. Here we summarise a number of the scientific advances presented and topics discussed at the meeting

I Am Ready for College. Are You Ready for Me?: Investing in Inclusive Higher Education for Young Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities in Minnesota

Minnesota has made a nominal investment in the education of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) beyond high school. Young adults with IDD face many barriers to access and enrollment in Minnesota inclusive postsecondary education (PSE). Barriers include a lack of postsecondary education options, a limited capacity in Minnesota\u27s three existing Comprehensive Transition and Postsecondary programs (CTPs), and unclear available funding options. Young adults with IDD deserve the same opportunity to pursue postsecondary education in Minnesota as their peers, particularly in our public higher education institutions. The Minnesota State system must include adults with IDD in their 2020-2023 Equity and Inclusion Strategic Plan

Curve-lifted codes for local recovery using lines

In this paper, we introduce curve-lifted codes over fields of arbitrary characteristic, inspired by Hermitian-lifted codes over $\mathbb{F}_{2^r}$. These codes are designed for locality and availability, and their particular parameters depend on the choice of curve and its properties. Due to the construction, the numbers of rational points of intersection between curves and lines play a key role. To demonstrate that and generate new families of locally recoverable codes (LRCs) with high availabilty, we focus on norm-trace-lifted codes. In some cases, they are easier to define than their Hermitian counterparts and consequently have a better asymptotic bound on the code rate.Comment: 22 pages. Comments welcom

On the Hardness of Computing Endomorphism Rings of Supersingular Elliptic Curves

Cryptosystems based on supersingular isogenies have been proposed recently for use in post-quantum cryptography. Three problems have emerged related to their hardness: computing an isogeny between two curves, computing the endomorphism ring of a curve, and computing a maximal order associated to it. While some of these problems are believed to be polynomial-time equivalent based on heuristics, their relationship is still unknown. We give the first reduction between these problems, with the aid of one more problem which we call Action-on-$\ell$-Torsion. We show that computing $\ell$-power isogenies reduces to computing maximal orders and Action-on-$\ell$-Torsion. We also define the notion of a compact representation of an endomorphism, and use this to show that endomorphism rings always have polynomial representation size. We then reduce the endomorphism ring problem to computing maximal orders and Action-on-$\ell$-Torsion, thus laying the foundation for analysis of the hardness of endomorphism ring computation. This identifies these last two problems as one possible way to attack some systems, such as hash functions based on the $\ell$-isogeny graph of supersingular elliptic curves. This gives the potential to use algebraic tools in quaternion algebras to solve the problems. We also discuss how these reductions apply to attacks on a hash function of Charles, Goren, and Lauter

Towards a Classification of Isolated jj-invariants

We develop an algorithm to test whether a non-CM elliptic curve $E/\mathbb{Q}$ gives rise to an isolated point of any degree on any modular curve of the form $X_1(N)$. This builds on prior work of Zywina which gives a method for computing the image of the adelic Galois representation associated to $E$. Running this algorithm on all elliptic curves presently in the $L$-functions and Modular Forms Database and the Stein-Watkins Database gives strong evidence for the conjecture that $E$ gives rise to an isolated point on $X_1(N)$ if and only if $j(E)=-140625/8, -9317,$ $351/4$, or $-162677523113838677$.Comment: With an appendix by Maarten Derickx and Mark van Hoei

Hydrothermal Synthesis and Structural Investigation of a Crystalline Uranyl Borosilicate

The relevance of multidimensional and porous crystalline materials to nuclear waste reme-diation and storage applications has motivated exploratory research focused on materials discovery of compounds, such as actinide mixed-oxoanion phases, which exhibit rich structural chemistry. The novel phase K1.8 Na1.2 [(UO2)BSi4 O12 ] has been synthesized using hydrothermal methods, rep-resenting the first example of a uranyl borosilicate. The three-dimensional structure crystallizes in the orthorhombic space group Cmce with lattice parameters a = 15.5471(19) Å, b = 14.3403(17) Å, c = 11.7315(15) Å, and V = 2615.5(6) Å3, and is composed of UO6 octahedra linked by [BSi4 O12 ]5− chains to form a [(UO2)BSi4 O12 ]3− framework. The synthesis method, structure, results of Raman, IR, and X-ray absorption spectroscopy, and thermal stability are discussed

Young people today: news media, policy and youth justice

The new sociology of childhood sees children as competent social agents with important contributions to make. And yet the phase of childhood is fraught with tensions and contradictions. Public policies are required, not only to protect children, but also to control them and regulate their behaviour. For children and young people in the UK, youth justice has become increasingly punitive. At the same time, social policies have focused more on children's inclusion and participation. In this interplay of conflict and contradictions, the role the media play is critical in contributing to the moral panic about childhood and youth. In this article, we consider media representations of “antisocial” children and young people and how this belies a moral response to the nature of contemporary childhood. We conclude by considering how a rights-based approach might help redress the moralised politics of childhood representations in the media

Cancer-related chronic pain

BACKGROUND: Disparities in cancer survival and pain rates negatively impact quality of life (QOL). This study examines cancer-related chronic pain (CP) and its impact on QOL in diverse cancer survivors. METHODS: This survey study focused on current and past pain, health, and QOL in black and white cancer survivors. Participants with breast, colorectal, lung, and prostate cancer and multiple myeloma were recruited through the Michigan State Cancer Registry. Analysis of variance was used to examine outcome differences by pain status, race, and sex. Hierarchical regressions explored predictors for experiencing pain. RESULTS: The subjects (N = 199) were 31% black, 49% female, and 57 to 79 years old; 19.5% experienced current pain, and 42.6% reported pain since diagnosis. Women experience more pain ( P < .001) and greater pain severity ( P = .04) than men. Blacks experienced more pain interference and disability ( P < .05). Experiencing pain is related to greater depressive symptoms, poorer functioning, and more symptoms. In hierarchical regressions, female sex predicted pain since diagnosis; pain severity for pain since diagnosis was predicted by black race and female sex. CONCLUSIONS: The authors extend the literature by showing that 20% of diverse cancer survivors had cancer-related CP, and 43% had experienced pain since diagnosis, revealing racial and sex disparities in cancer-related CP's incidence and impact on QOL. Having pain was related to poorer QOL in several domains and was more frequently experienced by women. Although black race was not related to pain prevalence, it was related to greater severity. This study reveals an unaddressed cancer survivorship research, clinical, and policy issue. Cancer 2011. © 2010 American Cancer Society.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/83753/1/25761_ftp.pd