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Bibliography for Vacation Reads Display: Exploring Places to Travel and Hobbies to Take Up This Summer
Full text linkA bibliography created to support a display about vacation reads, travel, and hobbies in summer 2025 at the Leatherby Libraries at Chapman University
A Tent Census: How Counting Tents Informs an Understanding of Unsheltered Homelessness in Seattle
Full text linkTents are a familiar sight across many U.S. cities, especially West Coast cities. In Seattle, given the high visibility of tents, public perceptions of a widespread problem, the uncertainty surrounding the city’s number of tents, and national data showing a rise in unsheltered homelessness, the authors decided to count tents. They conducted a tent census to obtain a full count of the number of tents in the city of Seattle as well as two resamples of highly populated areas of tents. In the tent census, and in the two resamples, the authors find support for three general expectations: the census revealed a greater number of tents than official counts, there were clear spatial patterns to the locations of tents, and the total number of tents in Seattle increased during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic. The data reveal some surprises regarding the size and change of tent clusters, the proportion of solo tents versus tent camps, and the “amenability” or proximity of tents to infrastructure and social services. To conclude, the authors discuss the policy implications of this research
Molecular Insights into the Role of Estrogen Receptor Beta in Ecdysterone Mediated Anabolic Activity
Full text linkEcdysterone, often dubbed a “natural steroid,” has garnered significant attention among athletes for its reputed growth-promoting and anabolic properties. Unlike synthetic anabolic steroids, which are classified as controlled substances, ecdysteroids remain largely unregulated in many countries and are widely marketed as dietary supplements. Notably, ecdysterone has been included in the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) monitoring program, highlighting its potential impact on athletic performance and raising questions about its regulation. Emerging evidence indicates that, unlike traditional anabolic steroids that act primarily via the Androgen Receptor (AR), ecdysterone’s anabolic effects may be mediated through Estrogen Receptors (ERs), particularly Estrogen Receptor beta (ERβ). Despite these insights, the precise molecular mechanisms underlying ecdysterone’s biological activity remain poorly characterized, particularly from an in-silico perspective. This paper aims to address these gaps by exploring ecdysterone’s mechanism of action through computational and molecular modeling approaches. This study employs an advanced computational framework to unravel the binding dynamics and interaction mechanisms of ecdysterone with Androgen Receptor (AR), Estrogen Receptor alpha (ERα), and Estrogen Receptor beta (ERβ). Using chemical descriptor analysis, inter-molecular interaction mapping, and all-atom molecular dynamics simulations spanning 250 ns for each system, the study reveals that ecdysterone preferentially binds to ERβ, forming stable and compact complexes characterized by minimal per-residue fluctuations as evident in the average RMSD, RMSF, and Rg values observed for ERβ - Ecdysterone as 1.98 ± 0.31 Å, 1.07 ± 0.52 Å, and 18.44 ± 0.08 Å respectively which are significantly comparable with the ERβ - native complex, while high hydrogen bond occupancy was also observed for ERβ - Ecdysterone complex. Although binding free energy calculations suggest stronger interactions with ERα, the associated high fluctuations diminish its binding efficacy. In contrast, interactions with ERβ remain consistent and robust. Machine learning-based principal component analysis highlights coordinated motion patterns, while free energy profiles demonstrate stable energy basins with minimal variation. These findings underscore the pivotal role of ERβ in mediating ecdysterone’s anabolic effects, distinguishing it from traditional androgenic steroids, and provide critical insights into its unique mechanism of action. This work lays the foundation for further exploration of ecdysterone as a potential anabolic agent
Panel 2: The Quest for Accountability
No full textThe struggles that come with prosecuting bad actors involved in looted art. The panelists will discuss methods museums use to stay in compliance in light of the recent movement for provenance transparency and cultural restitution.
Jason Felch, Investigative Reporter and Subject Matter Expert, Museum of Looted Antiquities
Nicholas M. O\u27Donnell, Partner, Sullivan & Worcester
Dylan Price, Partner, Sheppard Mullin
Moderator:Professor Michael Bazyler, Professor of Law, 1939 Law Scholar in Holocaust and Human Rights Studies, Chapman University, Fowler School of La
Evaluation of Topographic Effect Parameterizations in Weather Research and Forecasting Model over Complex Mountainous Terrain in Wildfire-Prone Regions
Full text linkRecent trends of intense forest fires in the Korean Peninsula have increased concerns about more extreme burning in the future under a warming climate. Accurate and reliable fire weather information has become more critical to reduce the risk of forest-related disasters over complex terrain. In this study, two parameterizations reflecting complex topographic effects were implemented in the Weather Research and Forecasting (WRF) model. The model performance was evaluated over the mountainous region in Gangwon-do, South Korea’s most significant forest area. The simulation results of the wildfire case in 2019 show that subgrid-scale orographic parameterization considerably improves model performance regarding wind speed, with a lower root mean square error (RMSE) and bias by 53% and 57%, respectively. Another parameterization, reflecting slope and shading, effectively reflected sunrise and sunset effects. The second parametrization produced little effect on the daily averages of meteorological elements. However, thermodynamic components such as temperature and heat flux show more realistic values during sunset or sunrise when the solar altitude angle is low. The results imply that applying topographic parameterizations is required in numerical simulations, especially for hazardous weather conditions over complex terrain in mountainous regions
Cultural Self-Harm Differences
Full text linkThis study is based on the evident cultural differences in self-harm behaviors and what those behaviors look like specifically for individuals that identify as Black or African American. Previous literature suggests that cultural differences in self-harm exist but very little research centers Black experiences and their connection to self-harm. Self-harm is considered a broad term, and it encompasses a variety of behaviors, some more common than others, but these common behaviors are typically exclusively explored within only a few demographics with a low Black participant pool. This contributes to the assumed lack of self-harm among the Black community but through the lens of culture, self-harm behaviors may be present differently for individuals of color. Exploring this topic supports mental health professionals better identify and acknowledge self-harm as it uniquely appears for Black clients. This reframes how self-harm is currently viewed for Black clients and can aid in the identification and treatment for various mental illnesses for Black clients. This study also contributes to a large gap in research and general mental health support for individuals that identify as Black or African American. Considering the partially supported hypotheses, it is important to inform Black communities on behaviors that are considered self-harm but currently may not be viewed as such and what those behaviors may signify about one\u27s life and mental health/ behavioral health needs. This supports individuals in seeking care when identifying these behaviors within themselves and positively benefit the Black community
Identification of Subtypes of Post-Stroke and Neurotypical Gait Behaviors Using Neural Network Analysis of Gait Cycle Kinematics
Full text linkGait impairment post-stroke is highly heterogeneous. Prior studies classified heterogeneous gait patterns into subgroups using peak kinematics, kinetics, or spatiotemporal variables. A limitation of this approach is the need to select discrete features in the gait cycle. Using continuous gait cycle data, we accounted for differences in magnitude and timing of kinematics. Here, we propose a machine-learning pipeline combining supervised and unsupervised learning. We first trained a Convolutional Neural Network and a Temporal Convolutional Network to extract features that distinguish impaired from neurotypical gait. Then, we used unsupervised time-series k-means and Gaussian Mixture Models to identify gait clusters. We tested our pipeline using kinematic data of 28 neurotypical and 39 individuals post-stroke. We assessed differences between clusters using ANOVA. We identified two neurotypical gait clusters (C1, C2). C1: normative gait pattern. C2: shorter stride time. We observed three post-stroke gait clusters (S1, S2, S3). S1: mild impairment and increased bilateral knee flexion during loading response. S2: moderate impairment, slow speed, short steps, increased knee flexion during stance bilaterally, and reduced paretic knee flexion during swing. S3: mild impairment, asymmetric swing time, increased ankle abduction during the gait cycle, and reduced dorsiflexion bilaterally. Our results indicate that joint kinematics post-stroke are mostly distinct from controls, and highlight kinematic impairments in the non-paretic limb. The post-stroke clusters showed distinct impairments that would require different interventions, providing additional information for clinicians about rehabilitation targets
Self-Compassion Around the World: Measurement Invariance of the Short Form of the Self-Compassion Scale (SCS-SF) Across 65 Nations, 40 Languages, Gender Identities, and Age Groups
Full text linkObjectives
The 12-item Self-Compassion Scale–Short Form (SCS–SF) is a widely used instrument for the assessment of self-compassion. To date, there have been few examinations of this instrument’s psychometric properties, particularly across nations and languages. Therefore, we used data from the Body Image in Nature Survey (BINS) to assess measurement invariance of the SCS–SF across nations, languages, gender identities, and age groups. Methods
Participants (N = 56,968) from 65 nations completed the SCS–SF in 40 languages. Using these data, we tested various hypothesised models of the SCS–SF in the total sample and, using multi-group confirmatory factor analysis, tested for invariance of the optimal model across national groups, languages, gender identities, and age groups. Results
In the total dataset, we found that an 11-item, 2-factor model (i.e., SCS-11) provided best fit to the data, with the two factors tapping distinct constructs of compassionate and uncompassionate self-responding. The SCS-11 was found to be partially scalar invariant across national groups and languages, and fully scalar invariant across gender identities and age groups. There was wide variation in latent means for the two factors, particularly across national groups and languages. Further analyses showed negligible associations between the two factors and sociodemographic variables, including marital status, financial security, and urbanicity. Conclusions
Our results suggest that it may be possible to derive a stable 2-factor model of the SCS–SF for use in cross-cultural research, but also highlight the likelihood of cross-national and cross-linguistic variations in the way that self-compassion is understood