The Order and Significance of the Sealed Tribes of Revelation 7:4-8

Problem. John’s list of twelve tribes of Israel in Rev 7, representing those who are sealed in the last days, has been the source of much debate through the years. This present study was to determine if there is any theological significance to the composition of the names in John’s list. Of particular interest to this study is the meaning of the inclusion of Levi and Manasseh and the exclusion of Dan and Ephraim. -- Methodology. Intertextual comparisons between John’s list and the many Old Testament lists of Israelite tribes were used to identify any theological significance to the composition of the list in Revelation. In addition, two Old Testament stories (the Passover in Exod 12 and the sealing in Ezek 9), which provide the historical background for John’s sealing passage in Rev 7, were compared for the purpose of ascertaining the meaning of the sealing and the composition and nature of the twelve tribes as presented by John. -- Conclusions. Of the nearly twenty Old Testament listings of the twelve tribes, there are not even two lists that are the same. There are various names excluded from these lists without any explicit significance attached to their exclusion. However, John places his list of the twelve tribes and their sealing in the context of the coming of Christ and the outpouring of His wrath, apparently supporting his theological intent of answering chapter 6’s question, “Who shall be able to stand?” John’s list of the twelve tribes presents an end-time remnant of the church, spiritual Israel, who overcome by the Lamb’s blood, and who are thus sealed in preparation to go through the final crisis of the mark of the beast. The exclusion of Dan and Ephraim, which are in the Old Testament associated with the idolatrous apostasy of the northern tribes of Israel, seems to indicate that God’s last-day servants will be cleansed from all idolatry and compromise to stand as a pure army for earth’s final battle

Transcriptional Responses of Leptospira interrogans to Host Innate Immunity: Significant Changes in Metabolism, Oxygen Tolerance, and Outer Membrane

Leptospirosis is an important tropical disease around the world, particularly in humid tropical and subtropical countries. As a major pathogen of this disease, Leptospira interrogans can be shed from the urine of reservoir hosts, survive in soil and water, and infect humans through broken skin or mucous membranes. Recently, host adaptability and immune evasion of L. interrogans to host innate immunity was partially elucidated in infection or animal models. A better understanding of the molecular mechanisms of L. interrogans in response to host innate immunity is required to learn the nature of early leptospirosis. This study focused on the transcriptome of L. interrogans during host immune cells interaction. Significant changes in energy metabolism, oxygen tolerance and outer membrane protein profile were identified as potential immune evasion strategies by pathogenic Leptospira during the early stage of infection. The major outer membrane proteins (OMPs) of L. interrogans may be regulated by the major OmpR specific transcription factor (LB333). These results provide a foundation for further studying the pathogenesis of leptospirosis, as well as identifying gene regulatory networks in Leptospira spp

An EMT-Driven Alternative Splicing Program Occurs in Human Breast Cancer and Modulates Cellular Phenotype

Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), a mechanism important for embryonic development, plays a critical role during malignant transformation. While much is known about transcriptional regulation of EMT, alternative splicing of several genes has also been correlated with EMT progression, but the extent of splicing changes and their contributions to the morphological conversion accompanying EMT have not been investigated comprehensively. Using an established cell culture model and RNA–Seq analyses, we determined an alternative splicing signature for EMT. Genes encoding key drivers of EMT–dependent changes in cell phenotype, such as actin cytoskeleton remodeling, regulation of cell–cell junction formation, and regulation of cell migration, were enriched among EMT–associated alternatively splicing events. Our analysis suggested that most EMT–associated alternative splicing events are regulated by one or more members of the RBFOX, MBNL, CELF, hnRNP, or ESRP classes of splicing factors. The EMT alternative splicing signature was confirmed in human breast cancer cell lines, which could be classified into basal and luminal subtypes based exclusively on their EMT–associated splicing pattern. Expression of EMT–associated alternative mRNA transcripts was also observed in primary breast cancer samples, indicating that EMT–dependent splicing changes occur commonly in human tumors. The functional significance of EMT–associated alternative splicing was tested by expression of the epithelial-specific splicing factor ESRP1 or by depletion of RBFOX2 in mesenchymal cells, both of which elicited significant changes in cell morphology and motility towards an epithelial phenotype, suggesting that splicing regulation alone can drive critical aspects of EMT–associated phenotypic changes. The molecular description obtained here may aid in the development of new diagnostic and prognostic markers for analysis of breast cancer progression.National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (R01-HG002439)National Science Foundation (U.S.) (equipment grant)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Integrative Cancer Biology Program Grant U54-CA112967)David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT (Ludwig Center for Metastasis Research)David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MITMassachusetts Institute of Technology (Croucher Scholarship)Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Ludwig Fund postdoctoral fellowship)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (NIH CA100324)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (AECC9526-5267

Visitor presence and a changing soundscape, alongside environmental parameters, can predict enclosure usage in captive flamingos

This is the final version. Available on open access from Wiley via the DOI in this recordData availability statement: The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request. Raw data from this project are available upon reasonable request from the corresponding author.The sound environment of a zoo animal is a complex milieu of animal and human‐generated sounds; coming from the species itself, other species, visitors, keepers and other zoo‐users. Research determining how different components of the sound environment affect animal behaviour is surprisingly lacking but could have real‐world impacts for animal welfare and zoo enclosure design. The current study investigated the effects of the sound environment on two flocks of flamingos housed in open‐air enclosures at British zoos. Measures of how each flock used its enclosure (as a response variable) and environmental variables (Inband Power and Peak Frequency were recorded as characteristics of the sound environment, as well as temperature, humidity and cloud cover, and finally visitor presence—all as potential predictor variables) were made over a 2‐month period. Assessment of space use by zoo animals is often used as a measure of the appropriateness of an exhibit and to understand welfare. Given that flamingo activity is influenced by weather and that the sound environment of the zoo is likely to be influenced by the number and the presence of visitors, it was assumed that these predictor variables would influence where the flamingos were located at different times of the day. As expected, there was a complicated relationship between enclosure use and Inband Power (average spectral density, a measure of sound energy) in both flocks; visitors generated salient sound but other visitor characteristics such as their physical presence may have impacted the movement of the birds around their enclosures. Results show a complex picture where environmental conditions influence flamingo enclosure usage as well as visitor presence and sounds around/in the enclosure. Findings are not consistent between the two flocks, with one flock demonstrating distinct temporal change to enclosure zone occupancy and the other responsive to humidity and cloud cover variation. We believe enclosure use can provide a valuable indication of how birds react to their soundscape; however, our findings suggest more work is needed to unpick the components of captive sound environments, and their relative effects on how animals use their space.Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC

Naval Logistics simulator

This thesis provides initial development of an interactive simulation for training Operational Logistics students in the management of Naval Operational Logistics. The model is designed with a modular architecture, enabling the flexibility to upgrade or modify selected components without altering the rest of the simulation. The simulation is implemented in the Java programming language, allowing the model to run on all major operating systems. The major components of the model include a discrete event simulation, a Graphical User Interface (GUI), and controller classes that connect the two. These controller classes pass user commands to the non-visual simulation for execution and information from the simulation to the GUI for display. Data required by the non-visual simulation is inputted from a separate database and configuration files. This feature allows the simulation to run different scenarios with distinct maps and graphics with no modification to the compiled computer code. The simulation and data structure developed in this thesis provide a solid foundation for further expansion into a fully featured interactive naval logistics training simulation.http://archive.org/details/navallogisticssi1094513727U.S. Navy (U.S.N.) author.Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited

Land Clearing with the Bulldozer

Excerpts from the report: Before the white man came with his saw and axe, almost the entire area of Oregon and Washington west of the Cascade Mountains was covered by a dense forest of big trees, principally Douglas fir, but also cedar, spruce, and other species. The forest has been the base of the economy of this region, but to settlers following in the wake of logging operations it has not been an unmixed blessing. Measured by ordinary standards the stumps are enormous. Diameters of 4 to 5 feet are common, and occasional stumps 8 feet or larger are encountered. Little imagination is needed to picture the back-breaking labor required to clear a few acres of this cut-over land without the aid of machinery. Blasting, stump-pullers, donkey engines, and special methods of burning have reduced the labor and cost of preparing the land for agriculture, but until recently it remained an expensive and laborious undertaking. About 10 years ago the bulldozer was developed for trail and road building. A bulldozer is a steel blade 7 to 10 feet long, mounted in front of a tractor in such fashion that it can be raised or lowered by the operator. It is an efficient instrument for shallow digging in loose soil, leveling ground, and similar operations. This device came into use for land clearing only a few years ago, end has effected an astonishing reduction in costs

Data from: Nathusius' bats optimize long-distance migration by flying at maximum range speed.

Metabolic rate of 12 Pipistrellus nathusii in relation to varying airspeed. We measured the metabolic rate of flying bats in a wind tunnel using the 13C labeled Na-bicarbonate method. The relationship between metabolic rate and airspeed was U-shaped in the majority of individuals. We could not find a U-shaped curve in a few individuals that engaged in flight manoeuvers, including landing. We used the shape of the U-shaped power curve to estimate minimum flight speed and maximum range speed for the study species. Further we present data on migration speed (n=37) and foraging flight speed (n=40) in wild Pipistrellus nathusii at a major miratory corridor in Latvia