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Integrative Computational Modeling of Distinct Binding Mechanisms for Broadly Neutralizing Antibodies Targeting SARS-CoV-2 Spike Omicron Variants: Balance of Evolutionary and Dynamic Adaptability in Shaping Molecular Determinants of Immune Escape
Get PDFIn this study, we conducted a comprehensive analysis of the interactions between the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and four neutralizing antibodies—S309, S304, CYFN1006, and VIR-7229. Using integrative computational modeling that combined all-atom molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, mutational scanning, and MM-GBSA binding free energy calculations, we elucidated the structural, energetic, and dynamic determinants of antibody binding. Our findings reveal distinct dynamic binding mechanisms and evolutionary adaptation driving the broad neutralization effect of these antibodies. We show that S309 targets conserved residues near the ACE2 interface, leveraging synergistic van der Waals and electrostatic interactions, while S304 focuses on fewer but sensitive residues, making it more susceptible to escape mutations. The analysis of CYFN-1006.1 and CYFN-1006.2 antibody binding highlights broad epitope coverage with critical anchors at T345, K440, and T346, enhancing its efficacy against variants carrying the K356T mutation, which caused escape from S309 binding. Our analysis of broadly potent VIR-7229 antibody binding to XBB.1.5 and EG.5 Omicron variants emphasized a large and structurally complex epitope, demonstrating certain adaptability and compensatory effects to F456L and L455S mutations. Mutational profiling identified key residues crucial for antibody binding, including T345, P337, and R346 for S309 as well as T385 and K386 for S304, underscoring their roles as evolutionary “weak spots” that balance viral fitness and immune evasion. The results of the energetic analysis demonstrate a good agreement between the predicted binding hotspots, reveal distinct energetic mechanisms of binding, and highlight the importance of targeting conserved residues and diverse epitopes to counteract viral resistance
Islamism and Women’s Movements in Iran: Hijab as a Burden of Representation
Get PDFThroughout history, Islamic discourse, political Islam, and the status of Muslim women have been subjects of study. Still, few research efforts have concentrated on the changes and dynamics between Islamic discourse and feminist resistance. Particularly in Iran, attention has primarily been given to the Islamism project, often treated as separate from social movements in post-Islamism. This thesis explores how social movements have used the symbolism of the veil in their resistance, focusing specifically on the women\u27s social movement during the Islamic Revolution. Drawing on Assef Bayat\u27s approach of Islamism and social movements and Gender and power dynamics theory, the main argument of the thesis is that the interplay between Islamic discourse and women’s movements in the context of Iran, It posits that social movements have strategically used the symbolism of the veil as a form of resistance against the political and ideological constraints imposed by Islamic regimes. By integrating Assef Bayat\u27s framework on Islamism and social movements with theories of gender and power dynamics, the thesis seeks to illuminate the nuance relationship between these forces. This research expands the literature on the cultural changes initiated by various Iranian regimes and how social movements have utilized these changes to resist laws, or more dramatically, to oppose the regimes themselves
The Parallel Jury: Describing Its Processes and Procedures and Evaluating Its Effectiveness in Predicting Jury Verdicts
No full textDue to skepticism and fear surrounding jury trials, 99% of cases in the U.S. are settled and less than 1% make it to a jury trial (AO Reports, 2023). To address the uncertainty surrounding jury trials, which are nearing extinction, lawyers have relied on methods, like trial simulations to predict jury verdicts (Bornstein & Kleynhans, 2018; Wiener & Bornstein, 2011). However, in legal practice there has been significant unease about the ability of jury research to generalize findings to actual trial settings (Ross, 2023, 2024). What is needed is a description of a single legal research method that when practiced in courtroom trial settings, (1) can support lawyers by providing insights to how a jury is making verdict decision, and (2) predict actual juries’ verdicts. Currently, because of costs, time, and accessibility, there is no systematic over time analysis that evaluates the predictive efficacy of a single research method and compares surrogate jurors’ verdict findings to those of actual juries. The purpose of this study was to introduce a specific legal research method, The Parallel Jury, describe its processes and procedures, examine its usefulness in supporting lawyers during trial, and evaluate its effectiveness in predicting the verdicts of real juries. This study was a longitudinal content analysis that compared parallel and actual jury verdict findings in 82 civil litigation trials, in 40 states across the nation. The results revealed the parallel juries’
liability findings were predictive in 88% of the cases. An Odds Ratio test confirmed the parallel juries’ liability verdicts were significant and highly associated with the actual juries (OR = 53.833). In addition, for damage awards parallel juries were predictive (within a 25% range) in 70% of the trial cases. Similarly, an Odds Ratio test confirmed the parallel juries’ damage awards were significant and highly associated with the actual juries’ damage awards (OR = 9.714). If the odds ratios are viewed as probabilities, the probability of an accurate prediction for either liability or damage award outcomes for any one case over baseline increases by over .90 with the use of parallel juries. This study makes a valuable contribution by being the first to systematically describe the process and procedures of a specific legal research method, examine its usefulness in supporting lawyers during trial, and evaluate its effectiveness in predicting jury verdicts in live trials with real jurors. Additionally, this study offers lawyers a practical framework for understanding jury decision-making, removing layers of uncertainty associated with a jury trial, and strengthening practitioners’ ability to make strategic litigation decisions with increased clarity and confidence
“More than What [They] Made Us to Be”: From Passing to Perception in Victorian and Modern Vampire Media
Get PDFThroughout Victorian Gothic horror fiction, vampires function as deviant figures, maneuvering within social confines of passing until their status quo-threatening identity is exposed. Of the popular vampires from this period, most gradually fail to maintain status as social insiders—as demonstrated with Bram Stoker’s Count Dracula or Sheridan Le Fanu’s Carmilla, who possess the temporary capacity to pass until their hidden monstrosity is revealed over time. Even if Gothic monsters are confined to a limited space and time far from society, this is still not enough; in accordance with the Victorian culture of morality policing by dominant groups, the vampiric Other must be eradicated regardless of how they perform identity, and their perspective is wholly neglected.Comparably, numerous modern vampires rebel against these confines; figures like Ana Lily Amirpour’s skateboarding, chador-wearing Girl or Gilda from Jewelle Gomez’s The Gilda Stories demand perception and prioritize radical humanization (both alone and within Othered communities)—often through reclaiming their Otherness by spurning notions of passing altogether. In the process, these vampires’ narratives bring sociopolitical standards to light; yet unlike their Gothic counterparts, these vampires thrive, calling for active change and reimagination as told from the monster’s perspective.This thesis combines approaches to passing within existing scholarship (Goffman, Butler) with foundational monster theory texts to explore a key transition from historic to modern horror. I argue that whilst Gothic vampire media reflects the inevitable and “necessary” exposure, subjugation, and destruction of a foreign Other (depicting the vampire’s failed efforts to pass wherein performativity dissipates, unmasking underlying monstrosity and Victorian era racial/cultural/sexual/gender anxieties), the modern vampire tears itself from its predecessors’ closet, asking audiences to imagine a reality in which self-actualization, community empowerment, restorative justice, and challenging dominant norms can enable greater connection
Supershift Properties for Nonanalytic Signals
Get PDFThe phenomenon of superoscillations is of great interest in microscopy, antenna design, and material sciences. This phenomenon has been generalized and has given rise to the concept of supershift, which is a far reaching extension that applies to functions that may present discontinuous derivatives. From this perspective, this is a notion that might have significant applications. This paper will provide an up to date report on the complex connections between the concept of supershift and that of analyticity
An Analysis of Bias Towards Women in Large Language Models Using Likert Scale Evaluations
Get PDFClosed-source large language models (LLMs) developed by large technology companies continue to grow in popularity. However, ethical conversations surrounding the safety of model outputs have been a prominent topic of discussion. This project aims to assess three leading closed-source LLMs: OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Google’s Gemini, and Anthropic’s Claude, to analyze how their outputs perform when treated as a subject of several psychological evaluation scales measuring biased behaviors against women. The Ambivalent Sexism Index, Modern Sexism Scale, and Belief in Sexism Shift evaluations were used to get descriptions of how the LLMs respond to traditional and modern prompts involving sexism and gender bias. The three evaluations used Likert scale response scores, providing quantitative scoring data. Results from evaluation trials were obtained using each LLMs API, collecting Likert scores in response to the evaluation prompts. Free-response data was also collected to understand output reasoning. Ordinal regression modeling with mixed effects aim to further understand how certain variables affect scoring. To understand patterns in reasoning, thematic analysis of the free response data was completed. Three significant themes were found across all model responses: recognizing women’s challenges, understanding variation in gender experience, and feminism and progressive initiatives. These themes emphasize the ways in which LLMs respond to biased statements against women
\u3cem\u3ePláticas, Reflexiones, y Resistencia\u3c/em\u3e: Exploring How First-Generation Latino Males Leverage Community Cultural Wealth in Education-Based Doctoral Programs
No full textThe Latino/a community is the largest ethnic minority group in the United States and continues to grow. Although enrollment in higher education is on the rise, Latino/a students complete their degrees at lower rates than their white counterparts. This disparity is further magnified when accounting for gender, with Latina women outpacing Latino men at every educational milestone. Disparities in doctorate attainment lead to the underrepresentation of Latino men in student support or leadership positions, which may negatively impact the success of Latino students. This qualitative study examines how First-Generation Latino males leverage Community Cultural Wealth (CCW) to navigate systemic barriers in education-based doctoral programs at predominantly white institutions. Grounded in Critical Race Theory (CRT), Latino Critical Legal Theory (LatCrit), and Chicana Feminist Epistemology (CFE), this research employs a Mestiza Methodology to center participants’ lived experiences during their doctoral program. Findings revealed how participants utilized CCW’s cultural capital to make meaning of their experiences and situate their lived experiences in the broader context of systemic issues in academia
Exploring Secondary Teachers’ Mental Health Self-Efficacy, Perceptions of Supporting Student Mental Health and Well-Being
Get PDFResearch has indicated that over half of all lifetime cases of mental health conditions begin before the age of 14 years (NAMI, 2024a), making the adolescent period a critical and formative time. The unprecedented effect of the COVID-19 pandemic has been linked to more mental health problems in children and adolescent youth (Sayed et al., 2024), particularly affecting southern California school districts that implemented distance or hybrid learning models (K. Brann et al., 2022). Secondary teachers are essential referral sources and gatekeepers for linking adolescent children to mental health support (Owens et al., 2014). Given the essential role teachers play in promoting student mental health, it is imperative that teachers feel confident in fulfilling their responsibilities in supporting students with mental health problems. A quantitative approach was employed, utilizing the School Mental Health Self-Efficacy Teacher Survey (K. L. Brann et al., 2020) and additional researcher-created questions to assess secondary teacher’s mental health self-efficacy and their perceived role in preventing mental health problems and promoting mental well-being among students, including identifying obstacles and facilitators to addressing adolescent mental health. The findings indicated a significant difference between levels of teacher mental health self-efficacy and gender, years of experience, teaching role, mental health literacy training in teacher education programs, evidence of on-the-job training, and frequency in interactions with school-based mental health professionals, including a strong positive correlational relationship between teachers’ perceived roles and levels of mental health self-efficacy. Teachers’ views on the barriers and facilitators that either get in the way or aid in their ability to support students’ mental health needs were explored. The study’s discussion included outlining its strengths, gaps, and recommendations for future inquiry. Additionally, the study outlined implications for preservice and in-service teachers, school-based mental health professionals, and school leadership