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MIND BLOWN: U.S. INTELLIGENCE AGENCY RESEARCH INTO MIND CONTROL AND PSYCHIC ABILITIES, 1952–1995
No full textStarting in 1952, U.S. intelligence agencies dedicated resources to funding scientific research into mind control and psychic abilities, leading to the creation of the programs MK-ULTRA and STAR GATE. The U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) established the MK-ULTRA program in 1952 to research methods of brainwashing, and both the CIA and the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency funded the STAR GATE program from 1972 to 1995, investigating methods of clairvoyant remote viewing. Both topics are today considered “pseudoscience,” but while STAR GATE researchers faced labels of “pseudoscientist,” brainwashing was not considered pseudoscience during the 1950s. I argue that the assumed reality of brainwashing meant that MK-ULTRA researchers did not feel pressure to make their experiments “scientific,” while skepticism and the controversy around the existence of psychic phenomena influenced STAR GATE researchers to make their experiments “scientific.
Analysis of Recent Trends in Global Mean Surface Temperature: Implications for Achieving the Paris Agreement and Quantification of the Role of Maritime Emissions on Global Warming
No full textUnderstanding how human influence affects various components of Earth’s climate is a crucial economic and social question of our time. In this dissertation, a set of questions relevant to climate policy and regulations are examined using a reduced complexity climate model, the Empirical Model of Global Climate (EM−GC). First, model simulations are performed to quantify the global mean surface temperature (GMST) in this century, using the projections for the Effective Radiative Forcing (ERF) of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and tropospheric aerosols that were introduced by the AR6 Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) in 2021. These updated estimates for ERF are found to result in highly elevated projections of the GMST, relative to estimates from simulations based on pre-AR6 ERF datasets, for allfour Shared Socioeconomic Pathway (SSP) scenarios investigated. The SSP2−4.5 scenario, which is considered to be the most consistent with recent trends in anthropogenic emissions of GHGs, offers only 8% chance of limiting the GMST anomaly to the upper limit of 2.0 ⁰C prescribed by the Paris Agreement (PA), relative to pre-industrial conditions. Model simulations are presented to quantify the contributing factors to the record high temperature anomalies observed in 2023 and 2024. The temperature anomalies observed in 2023 and 2024 can be reconstructed using existing trends in the rise of GMST, alongside a combination of short-term natural and anthropogenic factors. The reduced emissions of sulfur from maritime traffic, starting in 2020, is found to have contributed at least 0.028 ⁰C to the GMST, relative to 2019. This estimate was obtained from simulations performed with a new version of the EM−GC model that has been outfitted with an updated ocean module, which is also described in this work. The shift from La Niña to El Niño conditions, combined with a strong Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) event account for over 50% of the sudden rise in GMST between 2022 and 2023. Short-term variability in the sea surface temperatures (SSTs) of the North Atlantic region were found to have contributed substantially to the GMST anomalies observed in 2023 and 2024, but whether this short-term variability is a direct result of reduced sulfur emissions remains unclear
Da Void of Nothing
No full textHow to begin to talk about “nothing”? …Space! The vast expanse of “empty space’ is not actually empty. It is not nothing. The distance
between phenomena in space is a part of the phenomenon of space. This characteristic, the
interconnectedness of, and the gaps between phenomena Timothy Morton calls “the Mesh” in defining
“Hyperobjects”. Utilizing the phenomenology of the Hyperobject, which attempts to describe the
invisible and visible threads of climate change, the visibility and invisibility of other systems
can also be put into question. Blackness, as a phenomenon, is contingent upon, disrupts, and
expands beyond the systems it is enmeshed with. Blackness is a Hyperobject. This work defines
Blackness as a Hyperobject while allowing it to perform a dissolution of its own edges, in the
manner of Hyperobjects. Recalling Morton, Moten, and Motown, this work seeks to decenter
conventional methods of reading which render the systems invisible, a refusal that (re)performs the
disappearance, making visible the reader/viewer, instead of defining the constraints of the
subject. If ‘Nothing’ is ‘space’, it requires a repositionable awareness to notice
that the void is not empty, because you are in it
Hero or Victim: The Consequences of Moral Stigma on Necessary Evil Practitioners
No full textNecessary evil practitioners (NEPs) perform tasks that cause harm for a greater societal good, placing them in morally complex roles. Across three studies, this research examined how NEPs apply moral accounting to justify their harm-doing, and how this shapes their hero versus victim self-identification. Results showed moral accounting predicted greater hero identification, which promoted prosocial outcomes such as restitution support for their targets of harm and greater work transparency. Under elevated levels of perceived moral stigma, the pathway from hero to victim identification counteracted these prosocial effects, rendering them statistically non-significant. These findings contribute to both the theoretical and practical understanding of enacting necessary evil tasks, as they relate to occupational stigma and relevant work outcomes
A PSYCHOPHYSIOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION OF VISUALIZING SUCCESS: THE INFLUENCE OF MENTAL IMAGERY ON PERFORMANCE AND NEURAL EFFICIENCY IN A TARGETED MOTOR TASK IN SPORT
No full textExisting literature has laid the theoretical groundwork positing that mental imagery of a motor task is beneficial to performance. Other variables held constant, individuals tend to engage in
more optimal motor performance after using mental imagery, especially that which follows the
Physical, Environment, Task, Timing, Learning, Emotion, Perspective (PETTLEP) model,
mimicking real experience with the involvement of all sensory modalities. Psychological data
suggest that imagery’s effect on performance may be mediated by internal emotions and
cognitions, such as confidence and anxiety. Physiological data suggest that imagery primes and
activates muscles similar to actual execution of a motor event. Neurological data suggest that
imagery acts as mental practice and activates similar regions in the brain as executing an actual
motor event, and like the muscles, primes the brain by strengthening neural pathways for
efficient movement. Although previous efforts have examined cerebral cortical dynamics during
mental imagery, the resulting adaptations in psychomotor efficiency made in the brain are not
well defined. Therefore, the present investigation compared the effects of neurological (i.e.,
neural correlates of activation) and psychological constructs (i.e., confidence and anxiety) as
mediators of the imagery-performance relationship as well as their interactions, exploring how
the brain is affected after imagery use. As such, the present multi-level research aimed to explore
the effectiveness of mental imagery from a psychophysiological lens. The present study
examined the extent to which a single guided, programmatic mental imagery intervention and
application of a practiced imagery script influenced the neural correlates of activation and
performance of free throw shooters. Using a pretest-posttest mixed-model design, participants (N
= 26) were randomly assigned to either a mental imagery (MI) or control (CON) group.
Electroencephalography (EEG) was used to assess neural activation, including temporal alpha
power, fronto-midline theta power, central mu rhythm, and alpha coherence, while self-reported
confidence and anxiety were examined as potential psychological mediators. Subjective
cognitive workload and conscious motor processing were also examined. A series of repeated
measures ANOVAs and Hayes’ PROCESS analyses were conducted to evaluate the direct and
indirect effects of mental imagery on performance through neural and psychological pathways.
Results indicated that mental imagery did not significantly enhance free throw performance
compared to the control condition. While confidence significantly increased following imagery,
this did not translate into improved performance, nor did anxiety demonstrate a meaningful
mediating role. Similarly, EEG measures of neural efficiency did not show significant changes
attributable to imagery. Neural activation patterns such as increased left temporal alpha and
decreased coherence did, however, support expectations of engagement during a motor task.
Although the overall moderated-mediation models were not significant, a more specific
examination of the elements of the model revealed that confidence moderated the relationship
between mental imagery and change in performance, such that imagery was associated with
more stable performance only when confidence was high. However, anxiety did not significantly
moderate the effects of mental imagery on neural efficiency. These findings suggest that while
mental imagery can enhance confidence, its effectiveness in improving motor performance is
highly dependent on individual psychological states. The absence of significant neural
adaptations further calls into question the role of psychophysiological mechanisms in short-term
imagery interventions. Future research should explore individual differences in response to
imagery and examine the long-term effects of repeated imagery training on motor performance
and neural efficiency
Next Generation Mass Spectrometry Data Acquisitions for Low-input to Single-Cell Proteomics.
No full textSingle-cell proteomics provides an excellent opportunity to understand cellular heterogeneity and design functional experiments to test the role of individual cells in complex biochemical systems. However, profiling proteins from individual cells presents many analytical challenges, including how to process single-cell samples, detect trace peptide ion signals, quantify proteins accurately, and improve analysis throughput to measure large numbers of cells within a reasonable timeframe to draw meaningful biological conclusions. This work presents the development of novel strategies to address these analytical needs using capillary electrophoresis-mass spectrometry (CE-MS) for studying single-cell heterogeneity and its formation in live Xenopus laevis (frog) embryos. Specifically, to improve detection sensitivity, three novel data acquisition techniques, termed electrophoresis correlative mass spectrometry (Eco-MS), were developed for use with both Orbitrap and timsTOF Pro mass spectrometers. By efficiently utilizing the limited duty cycle of the mass spectrometer, Eco-MS was able to detect 4.5-times more proteins than the conventional data acquisition when analyzing single-cell equivalent proteome digests. Additionally, an ultra-fast CE-MS workflow was developed, requiring only a 15-minute effective separation window to profile over 1,000 proteins from the subcellular proteome. Using the ultra-sensitive and high-throughput CE-MS platforms developed in this dissertation, single-cell proteome heterogeneity was uncovered in early-blastula stage Xenopus embryos. To understand the formation of single-cell proteome heterogeneity, the subcellular proteome contents were analyzed before asymmetric cell division. The knowledge gained from this study provided valuable insights into the possible mechanisms of asymmetric cell division, a fundamental process for generating heterogeneous cells during embryonic development
Unraveling Molecular-Scale Nanoparticle Formation Mechanisms by Liquid Phase Transmission Electron Microscopy
No full textUnderstanding nanoparticle nucleation and growth is essential for controlling size and shape and composition. This thesis explores the synthesis and growth mechanism of metallic nanoparticles using liquid phase transmission electron microscopy (LPTEM). Systematic wet synthesis and LPTEM were performed to elucidate the formation mechanism of high-entropy alloy (HEA) nanoparticles. Direct real-time observations with LPTEM imaging showed that the HEA nanoparticles exhibited cluster-cluster aggregation during synthesis, which suggested metal cluster intermediates as an important synthetic handle for multi-metallic nanoparticle synthesis. The role of molecular intermediates during nanoparticle synthesis is not widely studied and their contribution to nanoparticle formation is unclear. LPTEM and reaction kinetic modeling were combined to establish the nucleation and growth mechanisms of silver nanoparticles. Quantitative LPTEM measurements of nanoparticle growth rate and nucleation rate were performed as a function of the electron dose rate. Reaction kinetic simulations established the concentration of 11 silver intermediate species as a function of the electron dose rate. Experimental data fitting enabled uncovering the critical intermediate species during nucleation and growth. Experimental growth rates aligned with a diffusion-limited growth mechanism, where the predominant species contributing to nanoparticle growth were Ag- and Ag4. The nucleation kinetics were consistent with aggregation of Ag42+ clusters at millisecond time scales. This study highlights the power of combining experimental LPTEM study and kinetic modeling in unraveling molecular scale nanoparticle formation mechanisms.
Another important factor to consider in nanoparticle formation is temperature. Systematic synthesis experiments showed that gold nanoparticle size increased as a function of temperature. Temperature dependent LPTEM study on the gold nanoparticle growth was conducted over a range of electron dose rates. We observed that the effect of temperature on gold nanoparticle growth rate depended on the electron dose rate. At relatively high dose rate the nanoparticle growth rate was not significantly impacted by temperature, while at lower dose rate increasing temperature increased nanoparticle growth rate. We consider several factors controlling nanoparticle growth kinetics as a function of temperature and dose rate, including gold monomer concentration, monomer diffusion coefficient, and gold solubility. This work establishes foundational understanding for utilizing LPTEM to investigate temperature dependent nanoparticle formation mechanisms
IMPACT OF ACCOUNTABLE CARE ORGANIZATIONS ON MEDICARE COSTS AND HEALTHCARE QUALITY FOR PEOPLE WITH ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE AND RELATED DEMENTIAS
No full textAlzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) is one of the costliest health conditions, with total annual payments reaching $360 billion in 2024. With an accelerated aging population in the US, the number of people affected by ADRD is projected to double by 2060, significantly increasing pressure on the healthcare system. Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) have the potential to save costs and improve the quality of care for high-need, high-cost beneficiaries, including those with ADRD. Despite the potential benefits of improved care coordination and chronic condition management, ACOs are unevenly distributed, and ADRD patients are less likely to enroll in ACOs. Using retrospective longitudinal cohort datasets, this dissertation aimed to examine the impact of ACO enrollment on total and subtypes of healthcare costs and how this effect varies by ACO quality among fee-for-service (FFS) beneficiaries with ADRD. Three independent studies are presented in this dissertation: the first examines the impact of ACO enrollment on total healthcare costs, focusing on neighborhood social vulnerability and its subcategories; the second examines the effect of ACO enrollment on prescription drug and non-drug costs, with a focus on comorbidity burden; and the third explores the role of ACO quality in reducing drug and non-drug costs among ACO enrollees with ADRD. Several important findings were identified. First, ACO enrollment was associated with reduced total costs across specific indicators of neighborhood social vulnerability. The highest cost savings from ACO enrollment were found among beneficiaries living in neighborhoods with high proportions of racial and ethnic minorities, highlighting the need to expand ACO enrollment to these vulnerable populations. Second, despite increasing cost trends in prescription drug spending, ACO enrollment was significantly associated with reduced drug and non-drug costs, particularly among ADRD patients with multiple coexisting comorbidities. This result suggests that higher medication costs in ACOs can more than offset non-drug costs and generate net cost savings for complex and high-cost ADRD patients. Finally, improving ACO quality was linked to reduced total, drug, and non-drug costs. These findings suggest that quality improvement and cost reduction can be achieved simultaneously, potentially due to improved care coordination and systematic efficiency
PREVENTING THE NEXT PANDEMIC: ELUCIDATING THE ROLE OF THE LASSA VIRUS FUSION DOMAIN IN INFECTIONS
No full textInfection with Lassa virus (LASV), an arenavirus endemic to West Africa, results in Lassa fever (LF) – a severe hemorrhagic fever with high morbidity and mortality. There are presently no FDA-approved therapeutic options for the explicit treatment of LF, largely due to a lack of knowledge surrounding LASV’s lifecycle. A notable component of LASV’s lifecycle is the delivery of its genetic material into the host cell. This is accomplished via membrane fusion, a process initiated by a hydrophobic sequence known as the fusion domain (FD). The LASV FD (G260 – N295) consists of two structurally distinct regions, an N-terminal fusion peptide (FP, G260 – T274) and an internal fusion loop (FL, C279 – N295), which are conjoined by a short linker region (P275 – Y278). However, the molecular mechanisms underlying LASV FD-initiated fusion remain unclear, limiting the ability to develop antiviral therapies. Here, we provide critical insights into how the LASV FD initiates membrane fusion. We demonstrate that the LASV FD exists in a nonfusogenic, random coil conformation until a pH akin to the lysosomal compartment is achieved, at which point it adopts a fusogenic, helical conformation. This was followed by the discovery that acidic bicelles are the optimal membrane mimic for the stabilization of the FD for structural studies. In turn, we were able to elucidate the pH-dependent structural changes undergone by the FP and FL throughout the fusion process. We provide evidence that the entire LASV FD samples alternative conformations before fusion occurs, but only the FP continues to do so after membrane association. This is because the helix adopted by the LASV FD at a low pH occurs within the FL, particularly from R282 – L290, which inserts itself into the lipid head group of the host cell to mediate fusion, whereas the FP remains solvent-exposed to interact with the environment. Moreover, we demonstrate that LASV FD-initiated fusion is specifically influenced by bis(monoacylglycero)phosphate (BMP), an anionic lipid abundant in the lysosomal membrane, but this preference is not mediated by ionic interactions. In conclusion, our findings provide details into the mechanistic details underlying LASV FD-initiated fusion and, hopefully, can be employed to develop targeted therapeutics
GENOMIC ANALYSIS OF INSECTICIDE RESISTANCE CANDIDATE GENES IN THE COLORADO POTATO BEETLE, LEPTINOTARSA DECEMLINEATA
No full textSince the advent of modern agriculture, humans have continuously developed and deployed chemical compounds with novel modes of action to manage pest populations, while insects have repeatedly responded by evolving resistance. To date, at least 625 arthropod species have evolved resistance to over 360 pesticidal technologies. As a global super pest, the Colorado potato beetle (CPB) has developed resistance to at least 56 different insecticidal active ingredients. Comprehensive genomic scanning of resistance candidate genes can facilitate downstream applications, including mode-of-action analysis, functional interpretation of resistance mutations, development of molecular resistance monitoring tools, and the formulation of sustainable pest management strategies. However, I note that the cys-loop ligand-gated ion channel (cysLGIC) gene superfamily, encoding important target sites, such as nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptors remain poorly characterized in CPB. In addition, previously suspected resistance-associated mutations have not been systematically surveyed across U.S. CPB populations. In the current research, leveraging the chromosome-level genome assembly of the Colorado potato beetle (CPB), I systematically characterized the cys-loop ligand-gated ion channel (cysLGIC) gene superfamily in the Colorado potato beetle. This work provides a foundational reference for the annotation of DNA and protein sequences of these receptors and can support future functional and comparative studies. In particular, I highlighted unique patterns observed in specific subunits, such as nAChR α4 and nAChR β1, and discussed their potential roles in mediating insecticide resistance. Furthermore, I conducted high-throughput genomic scanning of 31 resistance candidate genes using whole-genome sequencing data from 74 CPB samples, aiming to identify resistance-associated mutations. My results include the first detection of a super-kdr-like mutation (T929I in the voltage-sensitive sodium channel) conferring pyrethroid resistance in U.S. CPB populations, and the first identification of the A301S mutation in the Rdl gene, associated with resistance to both dieldrin and fiproles. Additionally, I provide evidence of selection acting on neonicotinoid resistance candidate genes and report novel genetic variants statistically associated with resistance phenotypes