Financial reporting of cryptocurrency

Cryptocurrency is a digital form of currency that uses mathematical equations to encrypt data. This type of currency has significantly grown in popularity over the past 5 years due to more people and companies using it. Some companies have started accepting it as payment in exchange for goods and services. More people are going to be turning to cryptocurrency in the future. Businesses will have to come up with ways to deal with cryptocurrency; however, the FASB has yet to define cryptocurrency, leaving businesses with no formal guidance on the subject. The purpose of this paper is to recommend a solution on how companies should report cryptocurrency in the future

Analysis of Repeated Measures Data Under Circular Covariance

Circular covariance is important in modelling phenomena in epidemiological, communications and numerous physical contexts. We introduce and develop a variety of methods which make it a more versatile tool. First, we present two classes of estimators for use in the presence of missing observations. Using simulations, we show that the mean squared errors of the estimators of one of these classes are smaller than those of the Maximum Likelihood (ML) estimators under certain conditions. Next, we propose and discuss a parsimonious, autoregressive type of circular covariance structure which involves only two parameters. We specify ML and other types of estimators of these parameters, and present techniques for selection between various covariance structures related to circular covariance. Finally, we consider estimation assuming that observations on different individuals are correlated in various ways. This model is generalized for use when varying numbers of observations are taken on individuals. In all these contexts, we combine the measurements on individuals with covariates of varying dimensions, and consider estimation of the correlation between the observations and the covariates

Agricultural Policy: High Commodity and Input Prices

Because of high commodity prices, beginning in 2006, subsidies to farmers in the United States, the European Union, and Canada have been reduced significantly. However, significant losses have been experienced by the red meat sector, along with escalating food prices. Because of rising input costs, the “farm boom†may not be as great as first thought. Ethanol made from corn and country-of-origin labeling cloud the U.S. policy scene. Higher commodity prices have caused some countries to lower tariff and non-tariff barriers, resulting in freer commodity trade worldwide. Policymakers should attempt to make these trade-barrier cuts permanent and should rethink current policy legislation to deal with the possibility of a collapse of world commodity markets. Agricultural commodity prices have dropped significantly since early 2008.agricultural policy, high commodity prices, input prices, Agricultural and Food Policy,

The Assessment of African Protected Areas

In order to achieve goals for reduction in the rate of biodiversity loss, it is vital that geographically flexible conservation funding is focused on the areas where biodiversity is the highest and is most threatened. There is currently a shortage of systematic and repeatable methods for the assessment of priority areas for conservation. Furthermore, existing prioritisations tend to focus on large biogeographical units, defined by regional experts. We propose a continental scale repeatable methodology, using existing geographical databases, for the prioritisation of African protected areas. This information is utilised to develop 6 indicators for each protected area, quantifying its value with regards to amphibian, bird and mammal species diversity, irreplaceability of habitat, and threat from population pressure and agricultural boundary pressure. These indicators are then summarised to show how the protected area performs, for each indicator, in comparison to other protected areas from the same country or the same ecoregion. Results are also synthesised to show the most valuable protected areas for a given taxa. Finally, the prioritisation is presented via the internet in conjunction with phenology, climate, and environmental information specific to each protected area.JRC.H.3-Global environement monitorin

Selenium supplementation of lactating dairy cows: effects on milk production and total selenium content and speciation in blood, milk and cheese

Forty-multiparous Holstein cows were used in a 16-wk continuous design study to determine the effects of either selenium (Se) source, selenized yeast (SY) (derived from a specific strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae CNCM I-3060 Sel-Plex®) or sodium selenite (SS), or inclusion rate of SY on Se concentration and speciation in blood, milk and cheese. Cows received ad libitum a TMR with 1:1 forage:concentrate ratio on a dry matter (DM) basis. There were four diets (T1-T4) which differed only in either source or dose of Se additive. Estimated total dietary Se for T1 (no supplement), T2 (SS), T3 (SY) and T4 (SY) was 0.16, 0.30, 0.30 and 0.45 mg/kg DM, respectively. Blood and milk samples were taken at 28 day intervals and at each time point there were positive linear effects of SY on Se concentration in blood and milk. At day 112 blood and milk Se values for T1-T4 were 177, 208, 248, 279 ± 6.6 and 24, 38, 57, 72 ± 3.7 ng/g fresh material, respectively and indicate improved uptake and incorporation of Se from SY. While selenocysteine (SeCys) was the main selenised amino acid in blood its concentration was not markedly affected by treatment, but the proportion of total Se as selenomethionine (SeMet) increased with increasing inclusion rate of SY. In milk, there were no marked treatment effects on SeCys content, but Se source had a marked effect on the proportion of total Se as SeMet. At day 112 replacing SS (T2) with SY (T3) increased the SeMet concentration of milk from 36 to 111 ng Se/g and its concentration increased further to 157 ng Se/g as the inclusion rate of SY increased further (T4) to provide 0.45 mg Se/kg TMR. Neither Se source nor inclusion rate effected the keeping quality of milk. At day 112, milk from T1, T2, and T3 was made into a hard cheese and Se source had a marked effect on total Se and the proportion of total Se comprised as either SeMet or SeCys. Replacing SS (T2) with SY (T3) increased total Se, SeMet and SeCys content from 180 to 340 ng Se/g, 57 to 153 ng Se/g and 52 to 92 ng Se/g, respectively. Key words: dairy cow, milk and cheese, selenomethionine, selenocysteine, milk keeping qualit

Investigating ARID1A in prostate cancer

Prostate cancer (PC) is the most common cancer in men in the developed world, and the second leading cause of cancer death in the U.K. Most of these deaths are caused by the advanced and metastatic forms of this disease which have no curative options. Understanding and targeting metastatic prostate cancer remains one of the primary research goals in prostate cancer research. The Sleeping Beauty screen used a forward-mutagenesis transposon-based system to try to identify novel drivers of prostate cancer which cooperated with loss of Pten in vivo. This screen showed that reduced Arid1a expression correlated with a poorer survival and elevated metastasis in vivo. ARID1A functions as part of the BAF chromatin remodelling complex, an epigenetic regulator of gene expression which controls chromatin accessibility. Using a genetically engineered mouse (GEM) model, we were able to delete Arid1a and Pten from the mouse prostate genome to investigate the genetic interaction of these two genes. This showed that Pb-Cre+ve Ptenfl/fl Arid1afl/fl mice developed clinical endpoint tumours very rapidly compared to Pb-Cre+ve Ptenfl/fl Arid1a+/+ (median 4 months vs 10 months respectively). These Pb-Cre+ve Ptenfl/fl Arid1afl/fl tumours also have an invasive phenotype. Pb-Cre+ve Ptenfl/fl Arid1afl/+ tumours however showed no significant change in survival compared to Pb-Cre+ve Ptenfl/fl Arid1a+/+ . RNA-Seq and ChIP-Seq were performed to understand how loss of Arid1a influenced tumorigenesis in our GEM model. This showed that following loss of Arid1a, tumours upregulated growth and cell cycle signalling pathways. Ki67, a marker of proliferation, confirmed that Pb-Cre+ve Ptenfl/fl Arid1afl/fl tumours had a higher rate of proliferation compared to Pb-Cre+ve Ptenfl/fl Arid1a+/+ tumours. ChIP-Seq findings suggested that Arid1a directly binds genes involve in migration and invasion which were subsequently upregulated following loss of Arid1a. This suggested that the increased proliferation may be due to a re-targeting of the BAF complex rather than direct repression of growth by Arid1a itself. Immunohistochemistry (IHC) and GSEA suggests that P53-dependent senescence signalling is still present in Pb-Cre+ve Ptenfl/fl Arid1afl/fl though has likely been bypassed. Generating ARID1A knockout clones with CRISPR-Cas9 of DU145, a human PC cell line, phenotypically increases their growth and survival following ARID1A loss, though decreases their invasion abilities. RNA-Seq on DU145 ARID1AKO clones shows an elevation in growth and cell cycle signalling following ARID1A loss, though a reduction in migration signalling. RNA-Seq suggests however that these cells may be capable of local extracellular matrix remodelling through matrix metalloprotease upregulation. Comparisons between the GEM model and DU145 show overlapping upregulation in pathways relating to cell cycle and DNAdamage response. DNA damage response findings correlate with clinical data suggest ARID1A mutant PC has high mutational burden. Data presented in this thesis therefore shows that Arid1a loss in vivo cooperated with Pten loss and produced aggressive and invasive prostate tumours. Loss of Arid1a upregulated growth and cell cycle signalling, though this is likely due to a retargeting of the BAF complex itself as Arid1a was only shown to directly repress genes involved in migration and invasion. Using ARID1AKO PC cell line DU145 also shows an elevation in cell cycle signalling. Understanding how loss of ARID1A causes BAF complex retargeting warrants additional research

Rcf2 revealed in cryoEM structures of hypoxic isoforms of mature mitochondrial III-IV supercomplexes

The organisation of the mitochondrial electron transport chain proteins into supercomplexes (SCs) is now undisputed, however their assembly process, or the role of differential expression isoforms, have yet to be determined. In Saccharomyces cerevisiae, cytochrome c oxidase (CIV) forms SCs of varying stoichiometry with cytochrome bc1 (CIII). Recent studies have revealed, in normoxic condition of growth, an interface made exclusively by Cox5A, the only yeast respiratory protein that exists as one of two isoforms depending on oxygen levels. Here, we present the cryo-EM structures of the III2-IV1 and III2-IV2 SCs containing the hypoxic isoform Cox5B solved at 3.4 and 2.8 Å, respectively. We show that the change of isoform doesn’t affect SC formation or activity and that SC stoichiometry is dictated by the level of CIII/CIV biosynthesis. Comparison of the CIV5B and CIV5A-containing SC structures highlighted few differences, mainly found in the region of Cox5. Additional density was revealed in all SCs, independent of CIV isoform, in a pocket formed by Cox1, Cox3, Cox12 and Cox13, away from the CIII-CIV interface. In the CIV5B-containing hypoxic SCs, this could be confidently assigned to the hypoxia-induced gene 1 (Hig1) type 2 protein Rcf2. With conserved residues in mammalian Hig1 proteins and Cox3/Cox12/Cox13 orthologues, we propose that Hig1 type 2 proteins are stoichiometric subunits of CIV, at least when within a III-IV SC

Australian Homelessness Monitor 2022

Australian Homelessness Monitor 2022 presents an independent analysis of this important social problem. Its overarching purpose is to better inform housing and homelessness policymaking. To this end the report investigates the changing scale and nature of the problem and assesses recent policy and practice developments seen in response

C34, a Membrane Fusion Inhibitor, Blocks HIV Infection of Langerhans Cells and Viral Transmission to T Cells

Development of topical microbicides that prevent sexual transmission of HIV is an active area of investigation. The purpose of this study was to test the ability of the potent membrane fusion inhibitor C34, an HIV gp41 antagonist, to block HIV infection of human Langerhans cells (LCs) in an epithelial environment that mimics a major route of HIV infection. We incubated freshly isolated epidermal explants containing LCs with various doses of C34 before, during, and after exposing explants to HIV. Although C34 only partially blocked HIV infection of LCs when pre-incubated with skin, it displayed full, dose-dependent inhibition when present during and after viral exposure. The poor protection from HIV infectivity in pre-incubated samples is consistent with mechanism of C34 inhibition and starkly contrasts to the full protection provided by PSC-RANTES, an entry inhibitor that prevents HIV gp120 interaction with its co-receptor CCR5. Real-time PCR confirmed that C34 blocked HIV infection of LCs before reverse transcription and inhibited LC-mediated transfer of virus to T cells. We conclude that C34, if used topically at susceptible mucosal sites, and if continually present, has the potential to block sexual transmission of HIV

Chapter 23- Advancing Institutional Mentoring Excellence (AIME): An Institutional Inclusion Initiative

The Advancing Institutional Mentoring Excellence (AIME) pilot project was created at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center to address concerns by faculty of color regarding feelings of isolation, lack of representation, and suboptimal retention. The purpose of AIME was to foster an institutional culture of belonging and rigorously evaluate best practices for mentoring faculty of color toward promotion and tenure. AIME used a reciprocal mentoring model, in which both mentors and mentees increased self-efficacy and skills through a structured series of exercises and encounters. Senior faculty mentors were matched with junior faculty of color mentees through an electronic mentoring platform. The curriculum featured in-person training sessions based on an adapted RESPECT model and an AIME case study, designed to improve cross-cultural communication and interpersonal skills. The signature feature of this mentoring program was an emphasis on cognitive diversity, that is, the diverse mental tools that result from different identities and cultural backgrounds, experiences, education, and training. A mixed-methods evaluation used formative measures to gather feedback from mentors and mentees about the electronic mentoring platform and curriculum. Summative measures were used for demographic profiles and preprogram, postprogram, and follow-up surveys, as well as for focus group discussions and the “most significant change” narratives. Participants reported increased job satisfaction and satisfaction with the Health Sciences Center, as well as increased institutional connectedness and knowledge of promotion and tenure processes. Further expansion and assessment of AIME is needed to confirm findings from this pilot project regarding faculty of color retention and inclusion outcomes