Cudgel or Carrot: How \u3cem\u3eRoper v. Simmons\u3c/em\u3e Will Affect Plea Bargaining in the Juvenile System

In 2005, the United States Supreme Court held, in Roper v. Simmons, that the execution of convicted juveniles violated the Eighth Amendment\u27s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment. In addressing the issue, the Court determined that a national consensus had developed against the execution of juveniles. Ultimately, a majority of the court decided that a national public consensus had been reached against the execution of juveniles under 18 in age. With Roper, no longer can juveniles of any age be executed. This decision will undoubtedly affect the entire juvenile penal system, from how cases enter the system, to how they exit the system. And in a system so reliant on plea bargaining, Roper has now removed the ultimate retributive factor-the possibility that a jury will sentence the juvenile to death-from the prosecutor\u27s deck of cards. No longer can the prosecutor seek the death penalty in juvenile cases, in order to receive a plea bargain for a lesser sentence. This comment examines the effect Roper v. Simmons will have on plea bargaining in the juvenile system

Catalytic Reactions of Carbene Precursors on Bulk Gold Metal

Bulk gold metal powder, consisting of particles (5−50 μm) much larger than nanoparticles, catalyzes the coupling of carbenes generated from diazoalkanes (R2C═N2) and 3,3-diphenylcyclopropene (DPCP) to form olefins. It also catalyzes cyclopropanation reactions of these carbene precursors with styrenes. The catalytic activity of the gold powder depends on the nature of the gold particles, as determined by TEM and SEM studies. The reactions can be understood in terms of mechanisms that involve the generation of carbene R2C: intermediates adsorbed on the gold surface

Immune DNA signature of T-cell infiltration in breast tumor exomes.

Tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) have been associated with favorable prognosis in multiple tumor types. The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) represents the largest collection of cancer molecular data, but lacks detailed information about the immune environment. Here, we show that exome reads mapping to the complementarity-determining-region 3 (CDR3) of mature T-cell receptor beta (TCRB) can be used as an immune DNA (iDNA) signature. Specifically, we propose a method to identify CDR3 reads in a breast tumor exome and validate it using deep TCRB sequencing. In 1,078 TCGA breast cancer exomes, the fraction of CDR3 reads was associated with TILs fraction, tumor purity, adaptive immunity gene expression signatures and improved survival in Her2+ patients. Only 2/839 TCRB clonotypes were shared between patients and none associated with a specific HLA allele or somatic driver mutations. The iDNA biomarker enriches the comprehensive dataset collected through TCGA, revealing associations with other molecular features and clinical outcomes

Resting-state EEG, impulsiveness, and personality in daily and nondaily smokers

OBJECTIVES: Resting EEG is sensitive to transient, acute effects of nicotine administration and abstinence, but the chronic effects of smoking on EEG are poorly characterized. This study measures the resting EEG profile of chronic smokers in a non-deprived, non-peak state to test whether differences in smoking behavior and personality traits affect pharmaco-EEG response. METHODS: Resting EEG, impulsiveness, and personality measures were collected from daily smokers (n=22), nondaily smokers (n=31), and non-smokers (n=30). RESULTS: Daily smokers had reduced resting delta and alpha EEG power and higher impulsiveness (Barratt Impulsiveness Scale) compared to nondaily smokers and non-smokers. Both daily and nondaily smokers discounted delayed rewards more steeply, reported lower conscientiousness (NEO-FFI), and reported greater disinhibition and experience seeking (Sensation Seeking Scale) than non-smokers. Nondaily smokers reported greater sensory hedonia than nonsmokers. CONCLUSIONS: Altered resting EEG power in daily smokers demonstrates differences in neural signaling that correlated with greater smoking behavior and dependence. Although nondaily smokers share some characteristics with daily smokers that may predict smoking initiation and maintenance, they differ on measures of impulsiveness and resting EEG power. SIGNIFICANCE: Resting EEG in non-deprived chronic smokers provides a standard for comparison to peak and trough nicotine states and may serve as a biomarker for nicotine dependence, relapse risk, and recovery

Serpin genes AtSRP2 and AtSRP3 are required for normal growth sensitivity to a DNA alkylating agent in Arabidopsis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The complex responses of plants to DNA damage are incompletely understood and the role of members of the serpin protein family has not been investigated. Serpins are functionally diverse but structurally conserved proteins found in all three domains of life. In animals, most serpins have regulatory functions through potent, irreversible inhibition of specific serine or cysteine proteinases via a unique suicide-substrate mechanism. Plant serpins are also potent proteinase inhibitors, but their physiological roles are largely unknown.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Six <it>Arabidopsis </it>genes encoding full-length serpins were differentially expressed in developing seedlings and mature tissues. Basal levels of <it>AtSRP2 </it>(At2g14540) and <it>AtSRP3 </it>(At1g64030) transcripts were highest in reproductive tissues. <it>AtSRP2 </it>was induced 5-fold and <it>AtSRP3 </it>100-fold after exposure of seedlings to low concentrations of methyl methanesulfonate (MMS), a model alkylating reagent that causes DNA damage. Homozygous T-DNA insertion mutants <it>atsrp2 </it>and <it>atsrp3 </it>exhibited no differential growth when mutant and wild-type plants were left untreated or exposed to γ-radiation or ultraviolet light. In contrast, <it>atsrp2 </it>and <it>atsrp3 </it>plants exhibited greater root length, leaf number and overall size than wild-type plants when exposed to MMS. Neither of the two serpins was required for meiosis. GFP-AtSRP2 was localized to the nucleus, whereas GFP-AtSRP3 was cytosolic, suggesting that they target different proteinases. Induction of cell cycle- and DNA damage-related genes <it>AtBRCA1</it>, <it>AtBARD1</it>, <it>AtRAD51</it>, <it>AtCYCB1;1 </it>and <it>AtCYCD1;1</it>, but not <it>AtATM</it>, was reduced relative to wild-type in <it>atsrp2 </it>and <it>atsrp3 </it>mutants exposed to MMS.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Expression of specific serpin genes (<it>AtSRP2 </it>and <it>AtSRP3 </it>in <it>Arabidopsis</it>) is required for normal responses of plants following exposure to alkylating genotoxins such as MMS.</p

An intelligent agent for adapting and delivering electronic course materials to mobile learners

The concept of mobile learning is often defined as learning that takes place with the help of mobile devices to access course materials; however, these devices operate in different ways and have different capabilities. To make course materials available on these mobile devices as well as on desktop systems, a software program is required to allow course material to be delivered in heterogeneous computing platforms. Because of these heterogeneous computing platforms, some course materials may not be in a format that different mobile devices would accept. This project developed an intelligent software agent capable of adapting to the heterogeneous mobile computing environment. The agent can search for a conversion tool according to the desired format and convert the course materials automatically. The agent is able to understand mobile clients’ capabilities. In order for the server to know what type of course material the client wishes to receive, the client needs to feed information on the software and hardware capabilities of the device to the server. However, devices do not normally carry any information about their capabilities. We have chosen the Resource Description Framework (RDF) represented Composite Capabilities/Preferences Profile (CC/PP) promoted by the W3C to describe the device capabilities and user preferences