Of Shining Sea and Rising Sun: cultural storytelling in the genre of horror in video games

In the modern era, video games are hardly the simple, mindless medium that they used to be. Rather, they are now being used as a vehicle for artistic expression and storytelling worldwide, creating a colorful and comprehensive new approach to the storytelling experience that was previously reserved for books or movies. The immersive nature of the medium provides for a richer and more stimulating experience, from which the genre of horror greatly benefits. Rather than the more passive experience the viewer gets from watching a movie or reading a book, video games allow for the player to be completely immersed, experiencing the story rather than just witnessing it. This general aspect combined with the opportunity for unique artistic expression and storytelling, provides for a better overall horror experience. Within the horror genre, there are two schools of storytelling: the Eastern Style (primarily from Japan and countries in the Far East), and the Western Style (particularly the United States). These styles are both unique with their approaches to the genre, begging the question: what do different cultures find scary? Through careful analysis of the Eastern and Western styles, we can understand the characteristics and unique components, identifying the reasoning behind them. An examination of broader social implications in the areas of religion, history, and psychology, will expand the scope of the digital media studies, providing a greater understanding of the continued evolution of human storytelling. The evolution and future possibilities of storytelling are explored in this study by examining the techniques and implications specific to these two identified schools within the horror genre of video games.https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/uresposters/1243/thumbnail.jp

Protocol: developing a conceptual framework of patient mediated knowledge translation, systematic review using a realist approach

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Patient involvement in healthcare represents the means by which to achieve a healthcare system that is responsive to patient needs and values. Characterization and evaluation of strategies for involving patients in their healthcare may benefit from a knowledge translation (KT) approach. The purpose of this knowledge synthesis is to develop a conceptual framework for patient-mediated KT interventions.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>A preliminary conceptual framework for patient-mediated KT interventions was compiled to describe intended purpose, recipients, delivery context, intervention, and outcomes. A realist review will be conducted in consultation with stakeholders from the arthritis and cancer fields to explore how these interventions work, for whom, and in what contexts. To identify patient-mediated KT interventions in these fields, we will search MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, and EMBASE from 1995 to 2010; scan references of all eligible studies; and examine five years of tables of contents for journals likely to publish quantitative or qualitative studies that focus on developing, implementing, or evaluating patient-mediated KT interventions. Screening and data collection will be performed independently by two individuals.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The conceptual framework of patient-mediated KT options and outcomes could be used by healthcare providers, managers, educationalists, patient advocates, and policy makers to guide program planning, service delivery, and quality improvement and by us and other researchers to evaluate existing interventions or develop new interventions. By raising awareness of options for involving patients in improving their own care, outcomes based on using a KT approach may lead to greater patient-centred care delivery and improved healthcare outcomes.</p

Primordial argon isotope fractionation in the atmosphere of Mars measured by the SAM instrument on Curiosity and implications for atmospheric loss

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/102170/1/grl51048.pd

Clinical Assessment of a Recombinant Simian Adenovirus ChAd63: A Potent New Vaccine Vector

Background. Vaccine development in human Plasmodium falciparum malaria has been hampered by the exceptionally high levels of CD8+ T cells required for efficacy. Use of potently immunogenic human adenoviruses as vaccine vectors could overcome this problem, but these are limited by preexisting immunity to human adenoviruses

Dynamic changes of cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs), natural killer (NK) cells, and natural killer T (NKT) cells in patients with acute hepatitis B infection

<p>Abstract</p> <p><b>Background</b></p> <p>The goal of this study is to observe changes in HBcAg-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs), natural killer (NK) and natural killer T (NKT) cells from peripheral blood and to relate such changes on viral clearance and liver injury in patients with acute hepatitis B (AHB).</p> <p><b>Methods</b></p> <p>Dynamic profiles on the frequency of HLA-A0201-restricted HBcAg18-27 pentamer complex (MHC-Pentamer)-specific CTLs and lymphocyte subsets in AHB patients were analyzed in addition to liver function tests, HBV serological markers, and HBV DNA levels. ELISPOT was used to detect interferon-gamma (INF-γ) secretion in specific CTLs stimulated with known T cell epitope peptides associated with HBV surface protein, polymerase, and core protein.</p> <p><b>Results</b></p> <p>HBV-specific CTL frequencies in AHB patients were much higher than in patients with chronic hepatitis B (CHB) (p < 0.05). HBeAg and HBV DNA disappeared earlier in AHB patients with a high frequency of HBV-specific CTLs compared with those with a low frequency of HBV-specific CTLs (p = 0.001 and 0.024, respectively). INF-γ spots of effector cells stimulated by Pol575-583, Env348-357, or Core18-27 epitope peptides were significantly greater in AHB patients than in CHB patients (p < 0.01). CD3⁺CD8⁺T cell numbers in AHB patients was more than observed in the healthy control group from the first to the fourth week after admission (p <it>= </it>0.008 and 0.01, respectively); the number of CD3⁺CD8⁺T cells and frequency of HBcAg18-27-specific CTLs in AHB patients reached peak levels at the second week after admission. NK and NKT cell numbers were negatively correlated with the frequency of HBcAg-specific CTLs (<it>r </it>= -0.266, p = 0.05).</p> <p><b>Conclusions</b></p> <p>Patients with AHB possess a higher frequency of HBcAg-specific CTLs than CHB patients. The frequency of specific CTLs in AHB patients is correlated with HBeAg clearance indicating that HBV-specific CTLs play an important role in viral clearance and the self-limited process of the disease. Furthermore, NK and NKT cells are likely involved in the early, non-specific immune response to clear the virus.</p

Latest update of the clinical trials landscape in Australia (2006 – 2020)

The latest update of the clinical trials landscape in Australia (2006 – 2020) uses trial registration data to gain an understanding of the clinical trials occurring in Australia. This report is an update of the original report covering 2006-2015 and includes new data from 2016 to 2020. These data are sourced from the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ANZCTR) and US-based ClinicalTrials.gov registry. The purpose of this report is to provide a comprehensive outline of the key characteristics of clinical trials over time. Reporting on clinical trial activity is a crucial step in understanding where improvements may be needed in the clinical trials sector. This report can be used as a reference point when promoting Australian clinical trial activity at national or international forums. It is intended to be used by all those working in or with clinical trials including clinical trial investigators, researchers, funders, industry, policymakers, trial participants and the public. Previous reports analysing trial activity in Australia have helped to identify research gaps and prioritise funding schemes and to inform the design of new national infrastructure that facilitates clinical trial data sharing. We hope this updated report will be of similar use and help to inform the health research agenda in government and industry

Latest update of the clinical trials landscape in Australia (2006 – 2020)

The latest update of the clinical trials landscape in Australia (2006 – 2020) uses trial registration data to gain an understanding of the clinical trials occurring in Australia. This report is an update of the original report covering 2006-2015 and includes new data from 2016 to 2020. These data are sourced from the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (ANZCTR) and US-based ClinicalTrials.gov registry. The purpose of this report is to provide a comprehensive outline of the key characteristics of clinical trials over time. Reporting on clinical trial activity is a crucial step in understanding where improvements may be needed in the clinical trials sector. This report can be used as a reference point when promoting Australian clinical trial activity at national or international forums. It is intended to be used by all those working in or with clinical trials including clinical trial investigators, researchers, funders, industry, policymakers, trial participants and the public. Previous reports analysing trial activity in Australia have helped to identify research gaps and prioritise funding schemes and to inform the design of new national infrastructure that facilitates clinical trial data sharing. We hope this updated report will be of similar use and help to inform the health research agenda in government and industry

Ensemble coding of color and luminance contrast

Ensemble coding has been demonstrated for many attributes including color, but the metrics on which this coding is based remain uncertain. We examined ensemble percepts for stimulus sets that varied in chromatic contrast between complementary hues, or that varied in luminance contrast between increments and decrements, in both cases focusing on the ensemble percepts for the neutral gray stimulus defining the category boundary. Each ensemble was composed of 16 circles with four contrast levels. Observers saw the display for 0.5 s and then judged whether a target contrast was a member of the set. False alarms were high for intermediate contrasts (within the range of the ensemble) and fell for higher or lower values. However, for ensembles with complementary hues, gray was less likely to be reported as a member, even when it represented the mean chromaticity of the set. When the settings were repeated for luminance contrast, false alarms for gray were higher and fell off more gradually for out-of-range contrasts. This difference implies that opposite luminance polarities represent a more continuous perceptual dimension than opponent-color variations, and that “gray” is a stronger category boundary for chromatic than luminance contrasts. For color, our results suggest that ensemble percepts reflect pooling within rather than between large hue differences, perhaps because the visual system represents hue differences more like qualitatively different categories than like quantitative differences within an underlying color “space.” The differences for luminance and color suggest more generally that ensemble coding for different visual attributes might depend on different processes that in turn depend on the format of the visual representation

Genetic barriers to historical gene flow between cryptic species of alpine bumblebees revealed by comparative population genomics

Evidence is accumulating that gene flow commonly occurs between recently diverged species, despite the existence of barriers to gene flow in their genomes. However, we still know little about what regions of the genome become barriers to gene flow and how such barriers form. Here, we compare genetic differentiation across the genomes of bumblebee species living in sympatry and allopatry to reveal the potential impact of gene flow during species divergence and uncover genetic barrier loci. We first compared the genomes of the alpine bumblebee Bombus sylvicola and a previously unidentified sister species living in sympatry in the Rocky Mountains, revealing prominent islands of elevated genetic divergence in the genome that colocalize with centromeres and regions of low recombination. This same pattern is observed between the genomes of another pair of closely related species living in allopatry (B. bifarius and B. vancouverensis). Strikingly however, the genomic islands exhibit significantly elevated absolute divergence (dXY) in the sympatric, but not the allopatric, comparison indicating that they contain loci that have acted as barriers to historical gene flow in sympatry. Our results suggest that intrinsic barriers to gene flow between species may often accumulate in regions of low recombination and near centromeres through processes such as genetic hitchhiking, and that divergence in these regions is accentuated in the presence of gene flow

Parent-of-origin-specific allelic associations among 106 genomic loci for age at menarche.

Age at menarche is a marker of timing of puberty in females. It varies widely between individuals, is a heritable trait and is associated with risks for obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, breast cancer and all-cause mortality. Studies of rare human disorders of puberty and animal models point to a complex hypothalamic-pituitary-hormonal regulation, but the mechanisms that determine pubertal timing and underlie its links to disease risk remain unclear. Here, using genome-wide and custom-genotyping arrays in up to 182,416 women of European descent from 57 studies, we found robust evidence (P < 5 × 10(-8)) for 123 signals at 106 genomic loci associated with age at menarche. Many loci were associated with other pubertal traits in both sexes, and there was substantial overlap with genes implicated in body mass index and various diseases, including rare disorders of puberty. Menarche signals were enriched in imprinted regions, with three loci (DLK1-WDR25, MKRN3-MAGEL2 and KCNK9) demonstrating parent-of-origin-specific associations concordant with known parental expression patterns. Pathway analyses implicated nuclear hormone receptors, particularly retinoic acid and γ-aminobutyric acid-B2 receptor signalling, among novel mechanisms that regulate pubertal timing in humans. Our findings suggest a genetic architecture involving at least hundreds of common variants in the coordinated timing of the pubertal transition