37495 research outputs found
Sort by
The Impact of Non-Athletic, Flat-Soled Sneakers on Gait Kinematics: A Comparative Analysis with Socks
Get PDFThis study investigates the kinematic effects of non-athletic, flat-soled sneakers on lower extremity joints during walking. Ten healthy gym-goers (24.4 ± 1.7 years) underwent treadmill gait analysis under two conditions: wearing non-athletic sneakers and walking with only socks. Gait was captured using the Gait Real-time Analysis and Interactive Lab (GRAIL). Dependent variables included cadence, support times, and stride length. Walking with socks significantly increased cadence (p \u3c .0001) and single support time (p = .0103), and decreased initial (p = .018), terminal (p = .0056), and total double support times (p = .0092). No significant difference in stride length was observed. These findings suggest non-athletic sneakers may impair proprioception and balance compared to walking in socks. Further research should explore how footwear types influence gait and postural stability
More Than A Mirror: Investigating Social Media’s Role in Shaping Social Comparisons and Identity Around Perceptions of Beauty
Get PDFThe rapid expansion of social media has transformed interpersonal communication and the way that individuals engage in social comparisons in their daily life. While existing literature emphasizes the negative psychological effects of both social comparison and the use of social media platforms, there remains a need to better understand the positive experiences of users in these digital spaces. Guided by social comparison theory (SCT; Festinger, 1954) and social identity theory (SIT; Tajfel & Turner, 1979), the current study applied an interpretative phenomenological approach (IPA, Smith et al., 2022) to explore how social media users interacted with beauty-centered narratives and the content creators who produce them. 32 social media users and 13 content creators were interviewed about their lived experiences interacting with beauty-centered narratives on social media. Findings revealed that participants perceived social media as a predominantly positive experience in their day-to-day lives. While participants often struggled to conceptualize what constituted “beauty content” on social media, they shared notable insights into the role social media played in shaping contemporary standards of beauty, emphasizing that beauty was deeply intertwined with identity and unique to each individual. Participants also showed hesitancy around engaging in comparisons, often finding it challenging to frame social comparisons in a positive light. Future research is needed to continue the exploration of positive social comparisons on social media, in order to better understand social comparison dynamics and inform future policy and practice to promote healthier digital environments
A Genetically-Engineered Thyroid Gland Built for Selective Triiodothyronine Secretion
Get PDFThyroid hormones (thyroxine, T4, and triiodothyronine, T3) are indispensable for sustaining vertebrate life, and their deficiency gives rise to a wide range of symptoms characteristic of hypothyroidism, affecting 5–10% of the world’s population. The precursor for thyroid hormone synthesis is thyroglobulin (Tg), a large iodoglycoprotein consisting of upstream regions I-II-III (responsible for synthesis of most T4) and the C-terminal CholinEsterase-Like (ChEL) domain (responsible for synthesis of most T3, which can also be generated extrathyroidally by T4 deiodination). Using CRISPR/Cas9-mediated mutagenesis, we engineered a knock-in of secretory ChEL into the endogenous TG locus. Secretory ChEL acquires Golgi-type glycans and is properly delivered to the thyroid follicle lumen, where T3 is first formed. Homozygous knock-in mice are capable of thyroidal T3 synthesis but largely incompetent for T4 synthesis such that T4-to-T3 conversion contributes little. Instead, T3 production is regulated thyroidally by thyrotropin (TSH). Compared to cog/cog mice with conventional hypothyroidism (low serum T4 and T3), the body size of ChEL-knock-in mice is larger; although, these animals with profound T4 deficiency did exhibit a marked elevation of serum TSH and a large goiter, despite normal circulating T3 levels. ChEL knock-in mice exhibited a normal expression of hepatic markers of thyroid hormone action but impaired locomotor activities and increased anxiety-like behavior, highlighting tissue-specific differences in T3 versus T4 action, reflecting key considerations in patients receiving thyroid hormone replacement therapy
A Multi-Measurement Study of the Relation Between Deliberation and Volition
Get PDFHistorically, voluntary action and volition more generally have been investigated through the lens of meaningless decisions. Importantly, these findings have been used in the debate about key notions like free will and moral responsibility. However, more recent claims have challenged the possibility of generalizing findings from a meaningless context to a more meaningful one. The current study investigates the markers of volition, specifically comparing meaningful and meaningless decisions. In an effort to maximize their monetary gain, 50 participants repeatedly deliberated between two options, making either rewarded choices—hard-deliberation decisions (where the options differed along two dimensions) or easy-deliberation decisions (where the options differed along a single dimension)—or unrewarded choices, a.k.a. arbitrary decision. This enabled us to contrast rewarded and unrewarded decisions as well as the degree of deliberation between easy- and hard-deliberation choices. We found evidence that rewarded and unrewarded decisions differed along several measures related to volition: participants reported a higher sense of volition, exhibited a stronger Readiness Potential, had increased temporal binding (mostly inconclusive), and demonstrated increased Effort Exerted in the rewarded condition. In contrast, we found evidence for similarity across these measures between easy-deliberation and hard-deliberation conditions. Our results suggest that it is not the complexity of the deliberation process prior to the action that makes it more volitional, but rather that the decision serves a meaningful goal. Our study also introduced a new implicit measure of volition— effort exerted—that well aligned with other measures of volition and should therefore prove useful in future studies
Adaptive Crop Switching for Irrigated Agriculture in Response to Climate Change in the Western U.S.
Get PDFAdaptive irrigation strategies are crucial for balancing water use, economic viability, and food security in the arid Western United States. However, as a key indicator vital in regulating agricultural productivity and crop irrigation, water use efficiency (WUEc) is becoming increasingly complex to estimate due to climate change. This study explores the critical role of key meteorological drivers, such as maximum temperature (tmax) and vapor pressure deficit (vpd), and their impacts on crop-specific WUEc. Future impacts are also assessed through integrating machine learning models with climate projections from the CMIP6 framework under SSP2–4.5 and SSP5–8.5 scenarios to forecast WUEc trends from 2025 to 2099. Based on WUEc projections, crop-switching strategies were designed to optimize land allocation among cereals in the Imperial Valley and Lower Gila River regions. Results suggest that reallocating cereal crops under SSP2–4.5 can reduce water consumption by up to 13.7 %, while increasing farmers’ profits (up to 44.8 %) and calorie production (up to 2.7 %). Under the warmer SSP5–8.5 scenario, sustaining profit (up to 39 %) and calorie gains (up to 10.2 %) would require up to 9.5 % more water. These findings highlight the importance of crop-switching as a practical adaptation strategy and emphasize the need for region-specific approaches to ensure resilience to climate change. The research underscores the potential of climate-driven decision-making to enhance agricultural sustainability in water-scarce environments
Assembly of Non-close-packed Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) Microgels on Metal Halide Perovskite Films
No full textHypothesis Poly(N-isopropylacryamide) microgels (PNIPAM MGs) are interesting model colloids with remarkable self-ordering properties. Metal halide perovskites (MHPs) are solution processable semiconductors that have attracted great interest for optoelectronics applications. Very few studies have considered complex co-crystallizing systems and their effects on structural order formation. This work examines PNIPAM MG ordering within a MHP matrix and investigates whether these pure PNIPAM MGs could form arrays on the MHP surface, passivate MHP defects and provide structurally colored films and solar cells. Experiments We use a mixed cation MHP (FA0.88MA0.12PbI3) (FA and MA are formamidinium and methylammonium) and investigate the effects of MG size and PNIPAM MG/MHP composite composition on two-dimensional non-closed packed hexagonal array (2D-NCPHA) formation and structural color. SEM and angle-dependent observations of illuminated films are used to assess structural order as well as the colors of light generated within composite films and MHP solar cells. The colors observed were converted to CIE1931 values and the color trends predicted by a simple ray-tracing equation. Findings We show that spontaneous ordering of PNIPAM MGs occurred on the MHP matrix and caused color generation from a relatively thick co-crystallizing MHP matrix. An optimum PNIPAM MG diameter is identified and the mechanisms operative are elucidated. Structurally colored solar cells are also demonstrated and their efficiency improvement is due to PNIPAM passivation of MHP defects. The results of this study indicate that PNIPAM 2D-NCPHA formation is highly tolerant to solution species and would allow, in principle, such phenomena to be achieved in other co-crystallizing matrices
Peptide-Drug Conjugates in Precision Oncology: Engineering Next-Generation Targeted Therapies
No full textPeptide-drug conjugates (PDCs) offer a revolutionary approach to cancer therapy by combining tumor-homing peptides, cleavable linkers, and cytotoxic payloads. This article explores their design, therapeutic advantages, and emerging applications, highlighting how precision bioengineering is shaping safer, more selective, and scalable oncologic treatments beyond antibody-drug conjugates
Associations Between Individual and Structural Level Discrimination and Psychological and Physiological Stress Indicators During Pregnancy
No full textIn the United States (U.S.) pervasive health disparities in prenatal care disproportionately impact marginalized individuals. The present study investigates whether discrimination at the individual and structural levels are associated with indicators of psychological and physiological stress among pregnant Latinx people living in the U.S., including both U.S. and foreign-born individuals. Pregnant participants (n = 109) reported on birthplace, lifetime experiences of racial and ethnic discrimination, perceived levels of stress, acculturation, social support, and provided residential address data and hair samples for cortisol analysis. Regression analysis revealed that individual level discrimination was linked to higher psychological stress during pregnancy (p = .003), and structural level discrimination was related to lower physiological stress (cortisol; p = .056). Notably, these associations varied by birthplace: U.S.-born individuals showed higher levels of psychological stress in response to individual level discrimination, while foreign-born individuals appeared more resilient to structural level discrimination. The results are discussed within the framework of immigrant health paradox
Holidays, Religiosity, and Democratic Attitudes
No full textDecades of research have linked religion and religiosity to support for democracy and authoritarianism. This study uses a temporal religious prime during national surveys – the European Social Survey and the National Election Survey – to identify the effect of religion on regime-type preferences. Jewish Israelis who took surveys on Friday or Saturday, the Jewish Sabbath, expressed more openness to non-democratic governance. They also interpreted the word democracy in a more populist way. Furthermore, non-religious Jews were less democratic on the Sabbath and more interested in strongman rule than they were on days without the religious connotation. Similarly, more religious respondents were less willing to tolerate rule breaking on the Sabbath. Thus, it seems that the ambient religious prime reduces democratic interest among Jewish Israelis. Most crucially, these findings suggest that while a religious social environment is associated with lower democratic commitment, that pattern derives from the less religious segments of society, not the most religious
Phi Beta Kappa, Psi of California Chapter, Induction Ceremony 2025
No full texthttps://digitalcommons.chapman.edu/pbk_induction_ceremony_2025/1006/thumbnail.jp