Blacks, Basketball, and the Predominately White Institution: The Maafa Continues

“Along with the effect of the Maafa, Blacks have been programmed to accept only dehumanizing instance that gives the illusion of freedom, fame, and fortune. One such illusion is college athletics.

Metamusing on object persistence

Journal ArticleThe need to "open up languages" has led to object-oriented programming languages with object-oriented implementations. By encapsulating the fundamental aspects of a language semantics within a set of default classes and giving t h e programmer t h e flexibility of deriving new versions of these base classes, a language whose semantics can be tailored to the needs of individual programmers can be provided. The degree of success in designing a language in this way to achieve flexibility and efficiency simultaneously is an open question. The Common Lisp Object System is designed with these techniques and we address this question by reporting our experience with the CLOS metaobject protocol in incorporating support for persistence into CLOS. For many aspects of our implementation we found that the metaobject protocol was perfectly suitable. In other cases we had to variously extend the protocol, pay an unacceptable performance penalty, or modify the language implementation directly. Based on our experience we propose some improvements to the protocol. We also present some performance measurements that reveal the need for improved language implementation techniques

Reflections on metaprogramming

Journal ArticleThe spread of object-oriented technology has led to object-oriented programming languages with object-oriented implementations. By encapsulating part of t h e semantics of a language within a set of default classes and empowering the programmer to derive new versions of these base classes, a designer can provide a language whose semantics can be tailored by individual programmers. The degree to which such languages are simultaneously flexible and efficient is an open question. We address this question by reporting our experience with using this technique to incorporate support for persistence into the Common Lisp Object System via its metaobject protocol. For many aspects of our implementation we found that the metaobject protocol was perfectly suitable. In other cases we had to variously extend the protocol, pay an unacceptable performance penalty, or modify the language implementation directly. Based on our experience we propose some improvements to the protocol. We also present some performance measurements that reveal the need for improved language implementation techniques

Using metaprogramming to add persistence to CLOS

Journal ArticleThe need to "open up" languages and the spread of object-oriented technology have led to object-oriented programming languages with object-oriented implementations. By encapsulating the fundamental aspects of language semantics within a set of default classes and giving the programmer the flexibility of deriving new versions of these base classes, a language whose semantics can be tailored to the needs of individual programmers can be provided. The degree to which such languages are simultaneously flexible and efficient is an open question. We address this question by reporting our experience with using this technique to incorporate support for persistence into the Common Lisp Object System via its metaobject protocol. For many aspects of our implementation we found that the metaobject protocol was perfectly suitable. In other cases we had to variously extend the protocol, pay an unacceptable performance penalty, or modify the language implementation directly. Based on our experience we propose some improvements to the protocol. We also present some performance measurements that reveal the need for improved language implementation techniques

Intracranial fusarium fungal abscess in an immunocompetent patient: case report and review of the literature.

Introduction Fusarium spp is an omnipresent fungal species that may lead to fatal infections in immunocompromised populations. Spontaneous intracranial infection by Fusarium spp in immunocompetent individuals is exceedingly rare. Case Report An immunocompetent 33-year-old Hispanic woman presented with persistent headaches and was found to have a contrast-enhancing mass in the left petrous apex and prepontine cistern. She underwent a subsequent craniotomy for biopsy and partial resection that revealed a Fusarium abscess. She had a left transient partial oculomotor palsy following the operation that resolved over the next few weeks. She was treated with long-term intravenous antifungal therapy and remained at her neurologic baseline 18 months following the intervention. Discussion To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of Fusarium spp brain abscess in an immunocompetent patient. Treatment options include surgical intervention and various antifungal medications. Conclusion This case demonstrates the rare potential of intracranial Fusarium infection in the immunocompetent host, as well as its successful treatment with surgical aspiration and antifungal therapy

NtGCM User's Manual: 1.1 (High Pressure High Temperature Laser based) Nanotube Growth Chamber Monitor

This manual describes the installation and use of NtGCM software. NtGCM is software designed for monitoring the growth of nanotubes in a high temperature and high pressure chamber using a laser*. NtGCM software monitors a dozen dierent parameters that are important to understanding the growth of the nanomaterials including the laser input power, the temperature at eight separate locations inside and outside the growth chamber, as well as the pressure and ow rate of the gaseous media that control the environment in the chamber. The measurements are all made in real time. The program features a robust user account management layer and a rich data display manager that allows plotted data, displayed units and other parameters to be changed on the y for the operator's convenience

Genomic Analysis of Immune Response against Vibrio Cholerae Hemolysin in Caenorhabditis elegans

Vibrio cholerae cytolysin (VCC) is among the accessory V. cholerae virulence factors that may contribute to disease pathogenesis in humans. VCC, encoded by hlyA gene, belongs to the most common class of bacterial toxins, known as poreforming toxins (PFTs). V. cholerae infects and kills Caenorhabditis elegans via cholerae toxin independent manner. VCC is required for the lethality, growth retardation and intestinal cell vacuolation during the infection. However, little is known about the host gene expression responses against VCC. To address this question we performed a microarray study in C. elegans exposed to V. cholerae strains with intact and deleted hlyA genes. Many of the VCC regulated genes identified, including C-type lectins, Prion-like (glutamine [Q]/asparagine [N]-rich)-domain containing genes, genes regulated by insulin/ IGF-1-mediated signaling (IIS) pathway, were previously reported as mediators of innate immune response against other bacteria in C. elegans. Protective function of the subset of the genes up-regulated by VCC was confirmed using RNAi. By means of a machine learning algorithm called FastMEDUSA, we identified several putative VCC induced immune regulatory transcriptional factors and transcription factor binding motifs. Our results suggest that VCC is a major virulence factor, which induces a wide variety of immune response- related genes during V. cholerae infection in C. elegans

Metastatic model of HPV+ oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma demonstrates heterogeneity in tumor metastasis

Human papillomavirus induced (HPV+) cancer incidence is rapidly rising, comprising 60–80% of oropharyngeal squamous cell carcinomas (OPSCCs); while rare, recurrent/metastatic disease accounts for nearly all related deaths. An in vivo pre-clinical model for these invasive cancers is necessary for testing new therapies. We characterize an immune competent recurrent/metastatic HPV+ murine model of OPSSC which consists of four lung metastatic (MLM) cell lines isolated from an animal with HPV+ OPSCC that failed cisplatin/radiation treatment. These individual metastatic clonal cell lines were tested to verify their origin (parental transgene expression and define their physiological properties: proliferation, metastatic potential, heterogeneity and sensitivity/resistance to cisplatin and radiation. All MLMs retain expression of parental HPV16 E6 and E7 and degrade P53 yet are heterogeneous from one another and from the parental cell line as defined by Illumina expression microarray. Consistent with this, reverse phase protein array defines differences in protein expression/activation between MLMs as well as the parental line. While in vitro growth rates of MLMs are slower than the parental line, in vivo growth of MLM clones is greatly enhanced. Moreover, in vivo resistance to standard therapies is dramatically increased in 3 of the 4 MLMs. Lymphatic and/or lung metastasis occurs 100% of the time in one MLM line. This recurrent/metastatic model of HPV+ OPSCC retains the characteristics evident in refractory human disease (heterogeneity, resistance to therapy, metastasis in lymph nodes/lungs) thus serving as an ideal translational system to test novel therapeutics. Moreover, this system may provide insights into the molecular mechanisms of metastasis

Muon-Spin Rotation Measurements of an Unusual Vortex-Glass Phase in the Layered Superconductor Bi2.15Sr1.85CaCu2O8+δ

Muon-spin rotation measurements, performed on the mixed state of the classic anisotropic superconductor Bi2.15Sr1.85CaCu2O8+δ, obtain quantities directly related to two- and three-body correlations of vortices in space. A novel phase diagram emerges from such local probe measurements of the bulk, revealing an unusual glassy state at intermediate fields which appears to freeze continuously from the equilibrium vortex liquid but differs both from the lattice and the conventional high-field vortex glass state in its structure.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe