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S(+)-Propylnorapomorphine Hydrochloride Alters Mutant Huntingtin Aggregation and Membrane Interactions
Get PDFHuntington’s disease (HD) is an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disorder resulting from an abnormally long CAG repeat in the huntingtin gene. This results in an expanded polyglutamine (polyQ) domain in the huntingtin protein (htt) that directly leads to self-assembly of huntingtin (htt) into a variety of aggregate species that underlie cellular toxicity. Interaction of protein aggregates with a variety of lipid membranes has been linked to disease pathology. Here, the ability of a small molecule S(+)-propylnorapomorphine (NM) hydrochloride to modulate htt-exon1(46Q) aggregation and interactions with lipid membranes was determined. ThT assays were performed to quantify fibril formation of htt in the presence and absence of lipid vesicles. As the concentration of NM increases, the formation of fibrils decreases. In addition, atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used to directly monitor the formation of aggregates containing doses of NM both in the presence and absence of lipid vesicles. In situ AFM was performed on supported liquid bilayers exposed to huntingtin and drug to monitor membrane damage. Morphological changes in aggregate height and volume are observed in the presence of the small molecule. NM reduced fibril formation and reduced the ability of htt to bind membranes
Resource Affluence and Sustainable Consumer Behavior
No full textWhile resource affluence is desired by most individuals, it may not always be advantageous for a collective group. Recent research documents some “dark side” effects associated with resource affluence, such as reducing people’s willingness to help others or leading to unethical behaviors (e.g., Piff et al. 2012; Vohs et al. 2016). Building on this body of work and advances in sustainability research, this study investigates the impact of financial affluence on sustainable consumer behavior. Using a multi-method approach (archival data and experiments), this study demonstrates that financial affluence leads to less sustainable consumer behaviors compared to a control group, across various methods of measurement. Furthermore, this study hypothesizes that the main mechanism through which financial affluence affects sustainability is perceived time pressure. Specifically, financial affluence may heighten people’s perceived time pressure, as they place a higher value on time and pursue a faster-paced lifestyle. This, in turn, results in less sustainable consumer behaviors, particularly less effort-based (vs. monetary-based) ones. Nevertheless, the proposed mediation mechanism is not supported, through either the measured or the manipulated perceived time pressure variable. However, the moderation effect of sustainability type on the primary effect receives partial support. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed based on the conclusions of the study
Evaluation of 50’ FRP Truss Bridges with Timber Decks
Get PDFFiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composites have become mainstream structural materials and are being utilized in many different structural applications because of their outstanding thermos-mechanical properties and other characteristics. These characteristics include exceptional corrosion resistance, energy absorption, durability, high strength-to-weight, stiffness-to-weight ratios, and others. Also, FRP composites are cost effective especially when accounting for the service life of such a material.
In this study, testing and analysis were performed at both the component as well as a structural system levels. Herein, two FRP truss bridges of different widths with 50 ft. spans underwent extensive testing and analysis in accordance with AASHTO specifications. Data analyzed includes strains, deflections, and frequencies under static and dynamic loads. Individual members were tested to explain how the behavior of a member alone influences the response of a structural system. Structural responses of the two FRP truss bridges under static, vertical, and pseudo-static wind loads were analyzed and reported, and future design recommendations are made.
FRP bridge components under axial compression testing exhibited crushing, local buckling, and lateral torsional buckling failures depending on the span to depth ratio of the components and also as a function of stiffness to induced stress ratio. In depth analysis and recommendations are presented pertaining to stress concentrations resulting from the manufacturing process of FRP composite shapes. Strain data of bridge members were analyzed to arrive at factors of safety for different categories of member shapes utilized in the structural systems. Further strain data analysis pertaining to members of a bridge system are related to the response phenomenon occurring in individual component testing
Uncovering the Emotional Line: An Analysis of Three David Maslanka Wind Ensemble Works Using Formal Emotive Intensity Analysis
Get PDFDavid Maslanka (1943–2017) was a prolific American composer who wrote most frequently for the medium of concert band/wind ensemble. His music is frequently performed by ensembles around the world. Due to his more intuitive and idiosyncratic compositional style, Maslanka would center what he described as the “emotional line” of the work, certain aspects of his music are undetected by traditional analytical models. Formal Emotive Intensity Analysis bridges that gap to focus on the supposed emotional line within Maslanka’s work. Through a case study of three of Maslanka’s works for wind band, The Seeker, Concerto No. 3 for Piano and Wind Ensemble, and Symphony No. 10 “River of Time,” Formal Emotive Intensity Analysis presents a new way to apply an understanding of Maslanka compositional approach to the analysis of his works
Advancing Opportunities for the Autistic Community at West Virginia University
Get PDFStudents with Autism Spectrum Disorder often have difficulties with social integration and sensory challenges on collegiate campuses. These difficulties are sometimes tied together as social integration spaces are not always sensory-friendly and can be overwhelming for the individual. Creating a sensory-friendly space within the potentially overstimulating environment can provide the student with a place to recharge and recover and still access the desired social events. This capstone project focused on the design and development of a sensory room in the West Virginia University Mountain Lair Student Union, working directly with the students in the West Virginia University Autism Support Program to attend social events with peers, and assisting students in meeting their academic, social, executive functioning, and independent living goals to independently excel in their collegiate careers. Students met many of their goals and succeeded academically throughout the semester, and the sensory room in the Mountain Lair is scheduled to open for the Fall 2024 semester
Quantifying chemical erosion in the lithologically-heterogenous Appalachian Valley and Ridge
Get PDFQuantifying chemical erosion in the lithologically-heterogenous Appalachian Valley and Ridge
Amelia J. Zanoni
The interplay between physical and chemical erosion is well understood in landscapes underlain by a uniform rock type, but many regions are underlain by a mixture of rock types with varying erosion resistance and solubility. We used measurements of stream-water chemistry to estimate chemical erosion rates in the Appalachian Valley and Ridge, a region where the mechanisms of lithologic control over topography are poorly understood. Newly acquired stream water samples were collected from 51 locations across the research area during the Fall of 2023. The sampled waters were combined with existing USGS data to create a stream water chemistry dataset consisting of ~15,200 samples. We calculated chemical erosion rates for Valley and Ridge watersheds using the chemistry of both our new stream water samples and the existing USGS data. Chemical erosion rates were greater in parts of the research area underlain by carbonate rock. We compared our calculated chemical erosion rates with denudation rates determined from detrital cosmogenic radionuclide measurements. By using published 10Be denudations rates for the Valley and Ridge, physical erosion rates were estimated, and it was found that physical erosion was the dominant process in the portions of the study underlain primarily by siliciclastic rocks. Our results indicate a conceptual model in which the carbonate valleys of the Valley and Ridge experience significant chemical erosion, while the ridges maintain steep topography that enables predominantly physical erosion. Future studies are needed to further constrain chemical erosion rate estimates in the Appalachian Valley and Ridge through improved estimates of runoff, rock density, and other key parameters
An investigation into secondary transfer of trace DNA to evidentiary items via nitrile gloves during crime scene examination
No full textAn investigation into secondary transfer of trace DNA to evidentiary items via nitrile gloves during crime scene examination
Molly G. Younker, B.S.
The introduction of highly sensitive DNA profiling kits has led to an increase in success with samples containing sub-nanogram amounts of DNA such as touched or handled objects including doorknobs, tools, steering wheels, etc. Such trace DNA is easily transferred between individuals and objects. Studies have shown that in addition to primary transfer due to direct contact, trace DNA can also be indirectly transferred in secondary and tertiary transfer steps which do not require direct contact. Nitrile gloves worn by investigators at crime scenes can be high risk vectors for secondary transfer and investigator-mediated contamination. This can be detrimental to the interpretation of evidence and can lead to incorrect associations between the profile obtained and the crime event itself. We examined the prevalence of secondary transfer of trace DNA via nitrile gloves worn by examiners during mock crime scene examinations. Using human volunteers who acted as ‘Perpetrator’, ‘Innocent Person’ or ‘Examiner’, for each simulation, we got an ‘Innocent Person’ to touch one of three commonly encountered target surfaces (door handle, door edge, or light switch) followed by the ‘Examiner’ touching one of the surfaces while wearing nitrile gloves and subsequently collecting and packaging an evidence item (screwdriver or rope) left behind by a ‘Perpetrator’. Each simulation was performed in triplicate for each target surface and using six innocent persons per evidence item for a total of 108 simulations. Swabs were taken of the glove, evidence item, and surface from each simulation. DNA was extracted, quantified, and amplified using the GlobalFiler™ kit. Profiles generated were compared to reference profiles to determine the number of unique transferred ‘Innocent Person’ alleles, number of shared alleles between the ‘Innocent Person’ and the ‘Perpetrator’, and number of unique ‘Perpetrator’ alleles. We observed alleles unique to the ‘Innocent Person’ on the evidentiary item in 51% (55/108) of the simulations, with up to 13 in a single sample. We also estimated Likelihood Ratios (LRs) for the ‘Innocent Person’ being included as a contributor to the mixed DNA profile recovered from the evidence item using EuroForMix v. 4.0.7. Although the vast majority of LRs were (64/82), we obtained high LRs of 1221, 6.1 x 107, and 1.5 x 108 in three simulations, highlighting that nitrile gloves pose a high risk for DNA transfer and reinforcing the importance of proper training for investigators and the need for frequent and strategic glove changes during examinations
Theorizing Mathematical Proof as Becoming: A Deleuzio-Guattarian Investigation
Get PDFIn this dissertation, I utilize the post-structural philosophy of Gilles Deleuze and Félix Guattari as a lens for investigating the proof process. Deleuze and Guattari were both post- structural philosophers who, like many in this tradition, troubled traditional notions related to stable identities, meaning, language, and mathematics. For Deleuze, sense and meaning is not the result of a sterile, transcendent effect or condition that is associated with propositions and states of affairs. Rather, it is the result of a material production that emerges from the world and that has independence from language and the mind. I apply this framework to the notion of proof, situating the work of the mathematician not in terms of the problem-solving subject, cognition, and mental processes but rather as something that emerges from constructed material assemblages.
I demonstrate this theoretical approach via a story written by Dr. David Neel from the 2019 book Living Proof: Stories of Resilience Along the Mathematical Journey published by the American Mathematical Society. Neel’s story is an autobiographical account that takes place near the end of his dissertation work in which both he and his supervisor go hiking while working out the details regarding a challenging result that is related to his research. This story illustrates that, while proof involves logical reasoning and mental processes, these aspects are only part of the construction. The axiomatic proof which they try to obtain becomes entangled with the hike and, at the level of the assemblage, what they are constructing is a “proof-hike” that serves as the genesis for the production of an actualized proof solution. Not only does this “proof-hike” eventually lead to a mathematical resolution but it also leads to a sort of ethical disposition in which Neel (2019) sees the axiomatic aspect of mathematics as only a part of an entire universe that opens up to him. The result is an intensity, an “affect,” that is both compassionate as well as embracing of the “cosmic” wonder of proof at its material genesis on the plane of immanence. It is a becoming-proof.
Drawing on the literature, I end the dissertation by formulating potential possibilities for how this approach might affect our thinking about the teaching and learning of proof. For example, I suggest approaching proof from a problematic standpoint, as opposed to an axiomatic one, where the role of exploration and wonder is foregrounded rather than solutions that lead to theorems. These approaches, I argue, have the potential to deterritorialize proof and proof instruction so that those who may not feel connected to the axiomatic side of proof can still desire it immanently