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Prentice Post (Spring 2014)
No full textHighlights the Prentice Institute's activities, initiatives and research affiliations.Inside this issue:
Spring 2014
The Prentice Institute does research on
the changing human population and its
potential impacts on social and economic
issues, and communicates its findings
widely.
The Prentice Institute and its research
collaborators seek to understand long-term
changes in the human and economic
environments, within a historical context,
with particular attention to the role human
actions play in influencing those out-comes.
We conduct and integrate research on the
dynamics of Canadian and global demog-raphy
and their impacts on economic well-being
through migration, culture, trade
and natural resource availability.
We communicate widely the output of our
work and that of others to stimulate fur-ther
research and to enable individuals,
governments, and corporations to make
better-informed decisions. We educate
students and future researchers.
Director’s Note 1
Our New Postdoctoral Fellow 1
Five Year Celebration 2
Prentice Institute Outreach 3
Prentice Institute Ph.D. Student 4
Prentice Institute Research
Assistant
4
In the News 5
In the News...continues 6
Brown Bag Seminars 7
Prentice Institute Spotlight 8
Mission Statement
1
Di rec tor’ s Note
Prentice Post
Our New Postdoctoral Fellow
The highlight of 2014 was the 5-year celebration of
the Prentice Institute for Global Population and
Economy. We hosted a delightful celebratory party in
April, just as the spring academic term was ending.
Photos of the event are included in this issue. We also
produced a 5-year report, which if you have not seen,
is available on our website: www.uleth.ca/
prenticeinstitute/news/prentice-institute-five-year-report
It has been a busy five years indeed, and we are only
beginning. With the many successes we have had and
the recognition locally, regionally, nationally and
internationally we have received, we anticipate a very bright future for the Prentice
Institute.
The awarding of scholarship funds by the Society of Edmonton Demographers to
the Prentice Institute for graduate studies in Population and Demography is a
welcome indication of our growing prominence in Population Studies. We were
honoured that Peter Kellett, a Prentice Institute Ph.D. student was officially
awarded the first SED Scholarship in March in Edmonton at the 22nd Kalbach
Conference.
A second banner event of spring 2014 were the successful defenses of two of our
Masters students, Celeste Barnes and Tanya Byrne. Celeste is continuing her
studies, working toward a Ph.D., while Tanya is employed in Calgary.
As usual for active researchers in global population, we present our research and
work with collaborators across Canada and the world. Our travels in 2014 have
taken us to China, Hong Kong, Japan, the United States, Cuba, Mexico, Greece,
Turkey, Iran, and various countries in Africa.
Ye (Oscar) Liu joined the
Prentice Institute for Global
Population and Economy and the
Department of Geography,
University of Lethbridge, as a
Post-doctoral fellow in
November 2013.
He received his B.Sc. and M.Sc.
in China and in 2013, his Ph.D. in
Geography and Resource
Management at the Chinese
University of Hong Kong. His
research interests include migration, urban labour market and spatial
analysis and modelling. He is currently working on wage inequality and wage
determinants in China by using China 2005 Population Sample Survey Data.
Welcome Oscar!
Prentice Post Spring 2014
2
Five Year Celebrat ion
For five years The Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy has
been conducting, integrating and stimulating research. Our reach is global with
our nine international Research Affiliates and our 25 University of Lethbridge
Affiliates providing relevant, world-class research. Under the leadership of our
Director, Professor Susan McDaniel,
The Prentice Institute addresses the many
challenges faced in both the Canadian and
global population. The research of the
numerous disciplines represented by the
Institute reaches deeply into the long-term
consequences of our human story, how we
interact in our societies, in our economies,
and in our environments.
These five years have seen much collaboration, many millions in research funding and many of our researchers acknowledged
by their peers as leaders in their various disciplines. Dozens of books, hundreds of research articles and book chapters, dozens
of research reports and projects, and hundreds of conference presentations are all evidence of the success of our various
research teams. Along with active academic research and publication, many of our
Affiliates are engaged in flourishing programs of graduate education. Mentoring the
next generation of Masters and Ph.D.’s is another layer of passing knowledge on. It
doesn’t stop at the door of academia: our Research Affiliates are actively involved
in public outreach and education.
The Prentice Institute has, in the
past five years, been the host of
a lecture series which attract
students, faculty, staff and
members of the community to the
wide variety of subjects. We have been fortunate to come together with a
number of community partners and our interaction with them has been one
of our many highlights. Many of our Affiliates are called on to speak as
experts in their disciplines and can be found as active members of our
community in the news and public speaking forums.
We, at The Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy, have
had an amazing five years. We live in a complex and global world and
we are excited to be in a position of knowledge and growth, ready to
help meet the challenges of both the present and the future. We look
forward to many more years of association with our Affiliates, the
University, and our community.
3
Spring 2014 Prentice Post
www.uleth.ca/prenticeinstitute @PrenticInst The Prentice Institute
Prent ice Inst itute Outreach
In February 2014, at the O-Sho Family Restaurant, the Prentice
Institute for Global Population and Economy held its third Café
Conversation community outreach event. Two previous Café
Conversation events were on global health and on climate change/
challenges. The February panel shared findings from grant-sponsored
research looking into whether there are labour or skills shortages in
Canada now or in the near future. The event was attended by
university faculty and students as well as a number of people from the
community, including prominent business people.
The Labour/Skills Shortage Conundrum in Canada
Panelists included:
Heather McIntosh-Rivera, BMgt
Master of Arts Candidate
University of Lethbridge
Dr. Susan McDaniel, Ph.D.
FRSC, Canada Research Chair
in Global Population & Life
Course, Prentice Research Chair
in Global Population & Economy
& Professor of Sociology,
University of Lethbridge
Dr. Bonnie Watt-Malcolm, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Secondary Education
University of Alberta
moderated by Alexander Darku
U n i v e r s i t y o f L e t h b r i d g e s o c i o l o g i s t
D r . S u s a n A . McD a n i e l a p p o i n t e d
C h a i r o f CC A ’ s S c i e n t i f i c A d v i s o r y
C ommi t t e e
T h e C o u n c i l o f C a n a d i a n Ac a d e mi e s i s p l e a s e d t o
a n n o u n c e t h e a p p o i n tme n t o f S u s a n A. McD a n i e l , FR SC , a s
C h a i r o f t h e S c i e n t i f i c Ad v i s o r y C o mmi t t e e ( SAC ) f o r t h e
C o u n c i l o f C a n a d i a n Ac a d emi e s . T h e C o u n c i l wo u l d a l s o
l i k e t o e x t e n d a s i n c e r e t h a n k s t o T o m B r z u s t o ws k i , FR SC ,
FC AE , f o r t h e f u l f i l lme n t o f h i s r o l e a s C h a i r s i n c e 2 0 1 0 .
D r . McD a n i e l p r e v i o u s l y s e r v e d a s V i c e C h a i r o f SAC.
Congratulations to
Dr. Susan McDaniel
one of Alberta’s 50 most influential people
2014
“...when Alberta’s 50 Most Influential
People wield their influence, things happen.
They shape our province’s destiny.”
The list of Alberta’s 50 Most Influential
People is published in the July issue of
Alberta Venture.
albertaventure.com/rankings
Prentice Post Spring 2014
4
Prent ice Inst itute Ph.D. Student
To be added or removed from the Prentice Institute Newsletter list
please email [email protected]
“The issue of men’s depression is relatively
hidden, but in another way it’s completely in our
face,” says Kellett. “Men don’t want to talk about
being depressed, but we see and feel the results of
it. When left undiagnosed and untreated, men’s
depression has a huge impact on the overall health
of society. We need to be able to identify men’s
depression and understand all the social contexts
that are tied to it.”
Peter presented his research at the “Aging Across Borders: A Transnational Look at Just Social Policies of Care”
Symposium held in late January 2014 at the University of Southern California.
~
Peter was awarded the Society of Edmonton Demographers Graduate Student Scholarship. He is the first recipient of
this award so it is a particular honour. Peter’s name will go down in history as he sets precedent for those that follow.
The scholarship was presented to Peter at this years Warren Kalbach Conferenced in Edmonton held in March where he
presented a research paper. Congratulations again, Peter.
Rebecca Deutsch, awarded the competitive Chinook Summer Research Award, began
working at the Prentice Institute in May 2014 for the summer as a research assistant.
Rebecca is currently majoring in Sociology at the University of Lethbridge. Over the past
semester her interests have been increasingly drawn to the way that ideas about bodies are
involved in the conceptualization of individuality and individual rights. Her curiosity lies
in whether or not different approaches to bodies based on gender or race contribute to
increased or decreased levels of violence. She has been exploring the work of Foucault,
Durkheim and Butler. At the Prentice Institute Rebecca is involved in the big Gender
Migration and the Work of Care project, looking at available literature on supply and
demand, income inequality, and various other aspects of care work.
Welcome Rebecca.
Peter Kellett
wants to
change the way
we think about
depression.
www.uleth.ca/prenticeinstitute/news/
shedding-new-light-dark-subject
You can find the full article here:
Photo by Rob Olson in UofL SAM Volume 5, Issue 2, Spring 2014
Prent ice Inst itute Research Assistant
Spring 2014 Prentice Post
In the News
5
Greece still has a long way to go. Trevor Harrison, Prentice Institute Associate Director, Lethbridge Herald, May 22, 2014.
As the country heads into elections, Greeks hoping worst of financial crisis is behind them.
You can find the Prentice Institute highlighted on the UofL New
Research website and landing page along with several other centres and
institutes considered among the best in Canada here:
www.uleth.ca/research/prentice-institute-global-population-and-economy
Susan A. McDaniel, Amber Gazso, and Seonggee Um. 2013. “Generationing Relations in Challenging Times: Americans
and Canadians in Mid-Life in the Great Recession,” Current Sociology 61(3):301-321.
THERE ARE ENOUGH EMPLOYEES IN THE WORKFORCE:
TRAINING THEM IS KEY
April 10, 2014
@Globe_Education
When it comes to the current debate on skills and
employment in Canada, however, it may be the
“unknown knowns” that are most important...
ASKING THE RIGHT QUESTIONS, SOLVING THE RIGHT
PROBLEMS. As we rethink our labour market policy we need to
improve the collection and analysis of data, and we must also engage
employers and educational institutions in an
analysis of skills. Tyler Meredith Policy Options,
April 9, 2014. www.irpp.org
"Research is the process of going up alleys to see if they are blind." --- Marston Bates
Prentice Institute Research Affiliate, Bonnie Lee, Faculty of Health Sciences Associate Professor, developed a new model
for couples counselling, Congruence Couples Therapy. In March 2014, she hosted a national workshop at the University of
Lethbridge on this model for problem gamblers. It proved to be a big success.
Glenda Tibe Bonifacio, Prentice Institute Affiliate and University of Lethbridge Women and Gender Studies professor
officially launched her new book Pinay on the Prairies late January 2014 at a special event held at the U of L’s Penny
Building. “This book is, I would say, the first one to work on Filipino women, their migration pattern and experiences in a
more nuanced way outside of Montreal, Vancouver and Toronto,” states Bonifacio.
S u s a n McD a n i e l p u s h e s t h e p r o v e r b i a l s n o wb a l l . .
ww w. p r e s s p r o g r e s s . c a “ A s t u d y h e a d e d b y t h e P r e n t i c e I n s t i t u t e r e s e a r c h e r D r . S u s a n McD a n i e l h a s
f o u n d t h a t t h e n u mb e r o f t em p o r a r y f o r e i g n wo r k e r s h a s i n c r e a s e d d r a m a ti c a l l y , f r o m 8 9 , 0 0 0 p e r y e a r
i n 2 0 0 0 to 2 1 3 , 0 0 0 i n 2 0 1 2 . A n d T FWs , a p p r o v e d t o wo r k i n C a n a d a b y t h e f e d e r a l g o v e r n m e n t , a r e
b e i n g u s e d p r im a r i l y i n l o we r p a y i n g j o b s , p a r t i c u l a r l y i n t h e h o s p i t a l i t y , a n d fo o d a n d b e v e r a g e
i n d u s t r i e s . "
T h i s wa s t h e b e g i n n i n g o f s e v e r a l r i c o c h e t a r t i c l e s , a b a n o n T FW’ s i n v a r i o u s c o mp a n i e s a c r o s s
C a n a d a a n d a n e w l o o k a t w h a t i s b e i n g r e f e r r e d t o a s C a n a d a ' s s l a v e ma r k e t .
Ottawa To Cut Size And Scope Of Temporary Foreign Worker Program CBC News | June 20, 2014
Few provinces track complaints by temporary foreign workers C B C N e ws
Thousands of temporary foreign workers hired at minimum wage shows program is 'off the rails': AFL
E d mo n t o n J o u r n a l
Temporary foreign worker program 'completely out of hand' C B C N e ws
Restaurant owners seek meeting with PM over foreign worker freeze C B C N ews etc.
I n th e News… c ont inues
6
Please take the time to check out all of our affiliates publications, news releases, conferences and opportunities on the
Prentice Institute website www.uleth.ca/prenticeintsitute
Congratulations to two of our Prentice Institute students
who successfully completed their Final Masters Thesis Defenses
Name of Candidate: Ms. Tanya Byrne April 14, 2014
Title of Thesis: Household Adaptive Capacity and Current Vulnerability to Future Climate Change in Rural
Nicaragua
Name of Candidate: Ms. Celeste Barnes April 17, 2014
Title of Thesis: Coastal Population Vulnerability to Sea Level Rise and Tropical Cyclone Intensification
Under Global Warming
Prentice Institute for Global Population and Economy Seed Grant recipients:
Prentice Institute Research Affiliate William Ramp as principal investigator and Trina Filan as co-investigator were awarded a
Prentice Seed Grant in March of 2014. The title of their project, Mapping Social and Organizational Networks within the
Lethbridge, Alberta Food System.
With the assistance of the seed grant, this project will essentially help community members engage in developing and
strengthening the local food system to identify points of commonality, collaborate in effective knowledge and skill sharing,
and identify resource needs and avenues for filling those needs.
Looking forward to the findings from this project in a future Prentice Brown Bag event.
~
Our former Prentice Seed Grant recipients include Prentice Institute Research Affiliates Glenda Bonifacio and Bonnie Lee.
Income Inequality and Infant Mortality: A Panel Analysis
of Canadian Provinces (1979-2009)
Adébiyi Germain Boco
Prentice Institute for Global Population & Economy
University of Lethbridge
To examine whether annual changes in
income inequality are associated with
annual changes in infant mortality rates
in the period 1979-2009 in Canadian
provinces.
Research objective Context
Most past studies, looking across countries, states/provinces, and metropolitan areas, has found positive and statistically significant associations
between income inequality and overall mortality (Lynch and Kaplan 1997). However, in recent years more robust statistical methods using larger
and richer data sources have generally pointed to little or no relationship between inequality and mortality (Mayer and Sarin 2005; Spencer 2004).
Ross et al. (2000) conducted a cross-sectional data analysis, using census data and vital statistics, to report that income inequality (median share of
income) in the state or province and metropolitan area is associated with mortality in the United States but not in Canada.
Evidence for a cross-sectional relationship between income and health is strong but is probably biased by substantial confounding (Gunasekara et al
2012). Longitudinal data with repeated income inequality and health measures on the same individuals can be analysed to control completely for
time-invariant confounding, giving a more accurate estimate of the impact of changes in income inequality on health (Gunasekara et al 2014).
Data
The panel data used that contains 10 Canadian provinces for
the years 1979-2009 were obtained from Statistics Canada’s
Canadian Socio-economic Information Management
(CANSIM) database (http://www.statcan.gc.ca/). The data
analyzed were extracted from:
(1): Statistics Canada. Table 102-0030 - Infant mortality, by sex and
birth weight, Canada, provinces and territories, annual, CANSIM
(database). (accessed: 2014-02-10).
(2): Statistics Canada. Table 202-0705 - Gini coefficients of market,
total and after-tax income, by economic family type, annual
(number), CANSIM (database). (accessed: 2014-02-10) .
(3): Statistics Canada. Table 202-0804 - Persons in low income, by
economic family type, annual, CANSIM (database). (accessed: 2014-
02-10).
Table 1. Definitions and sources of the
variables used in the analysis
Method of Estimation
Results
Figure 1. Over time trend of income inequality
(A) and infant mortality (B)
0 5
10 15
Infant mortality rate per 1,000 live births
1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010
Year
AB
BC
MB
NB
NL
NS
ON
PE
QC
SK
25 30 35 40
Houshold Adjusted Income Gini Coefficient
1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010
Year
AB
BC
MB
NB
NL
NS
ON
PE
QC
SK
(B): Infant mortality rate for ten
provinces: 1979-2009
(A): Income inequality for ten provinces
: 1979-2009
NOTE. AB: Alberta; BC: British Columbia; MB: Manitoba; NB: New Brunswick; NL: Newfoundland and
Labrador; NS: Nova Scotia; ON: Ontario; PE: Prince Edward Island; QC: Quebec; SK: Saskatchewan.
Table 2. Descriptive Statistics 1979-2009
Variable
Number of
observations Mean
Standard
deviation
Minimu
m
Maxi
mum
Dependent Variable
Infant mortality rate per
1,000 live births 310 6.9 2.2 1.5 13.2
Independent Variables
Year 310 1994 9.0 1979 2009
Adjusted household income
inequality (Gini coef. X100) 310 32.7 2.0 26.9 37.8
Percentage of persons in low
income 310 16.9 3.3 7.8 27.1
Sources: Statistics Canada CANSIM Table 102-0030; Table 202-0705 and Table 202-0804 (see Table 1).
Table 3. Fixed-Effects Regression Predicting Infant
Mortality Rate in Canada Provinces (1979–2009)
0 5
10 15
Infant mortality rate per 1,000 live births
25 30 35 40
Gini Coefficient x100 (Adjusted Household Income)
Infant mortality rate per 1,000 live births Fitted values
Summary of findings
and conclusion
References
Avendano, M. 2012. "Correlation or causation? Income inequality and infant mortality in fixed effects
models in the period 1960–2008 in 34 OECD countries." Social Science & Medicine 75:754-760.
Gunasekara, F.I., K. Richardson, K. Carter, and T. Blakely. 2014. "Fixed effects analysis of repeated measures
data." International Journal of Epidemiology 43:264-269.
Gunasekara, I.F., K.N. Carter, I. Liu, K. Richardson, and T. Blakely. 2012. "The relationship between income
and health using longitudinal data from New Zealand." Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health
66:e12.
Leigh, A. and C. Jencks. 2007. "Inequality and mortality: Long-run evidence from a panel of countries."
Journal of Health Economics 26:1-24.
Lynch, J.W. and G.A. Kaplan. 1997. "Understanding How Inequality in the Distribution of Income Affects
Health." Journal of Health Psychology 2:297-314.
Mayer, S.E. and A. Sarin. 2005. "Some mechanisms linking economic inequality and infant mortality." Social
Science & Medicine 60:439-455.
Ross, N.A., M.C. Wolfson, J.R. Dunn, J.-M. Berthelot, G.A. Kaplan, and J.W. Lynch. 2000. "Relation between
income inequality and mortality in Canada and in the United States: cross sectional assessment using
census data and vital statistics." BMJ 320:898-902.
Spencer, N. 2004. "The effect of income inequality and macro-level social policy on infant mortality and low
birthweight in developed countries – a preliminary systematic review." Child: Care, Health and Development
30:699-709.
Wooldridge, J.M. 2002. Advanced panel data methods. Econometric analysis of cross section and panel data.
Cambridge: MIT Press.
Acknowledgments
I am grateful to The Prentice Institute for Global Population & Economy at the University
of Lethbridge for providing support in printing, transporting, and posting this poster.
Contact information
Adébiyi Germain Boco
Prentice Institute for Global Population & Economy
University of Lethbridge
E-mail: [email protected]
Data and Method
Variable Definition Data sources
Infant
mortality
rate
Infant mortality corresponds to the death of a child
under one year of age (per thousand live births)
Statistics
Canada CANSIM
Table 102-0030
Provincial
income
inequality
(Gini
coefficient
of adjusted
household
income)
The Gini coefficient is a number between zero and one
that measures the relative degree of inequality in the
distribution of income. The coefficient would register
zero (minimum inequality) for a population in which
each family (or unattached individu
Wavelength-Multiplexed Polymer LEDs: Towards 55 Mb/s Organic Visible Light Communications
No full textWe present recent progress on visible light communication systems using polymer light-emitting diodes as the transmitters and a commercial silicon photodetector as the receiver. In this paper, we use transmitters at red, green, and blue wavelengths to investigate the maximum on-off keying link performance of each device type as the first steps toward a wavelength-division multiplexed link. We show that a total transmission speed of 13 Mb/s is achievable when considering the raw bandwidth of each of the RGB PLEDs. Such a rate represents a 30% gain over previously demonstrated systems. Further capacity improvement can be achieved using high performance artificial neural network equalizer offering a realistic prospect for transmission speeds up to 54.9 Mb/s
Receiver Windowing Design for Narrowband Interference Mitigation in MB-OFDM UWB System
No full textIn 2005, the WiMedia Alliance working with the European Computer Manufacturers Association (ECMA) announced the establishment of the WiMedia MB-OFDM (Multiband Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing) UWB radio platform as their global UWB standard. It was also chosen as the physical layer (PHY) of high data rate wireless specifications for high speed Wireless USB (W-USB), Bluetooth 3.0 and Wireless High-Definition Media Interface (HDMI). However, due to the low power and wide bandwidth nature of UWB systems, in-band narrowband interference (NBI) may hinder the receiver performance. This thesis presents an analysis of NBI impact on the MB-OFDM system for UWB communication. The intent of our analysis is to provide practical solutions for interference mitigation under different NBI models. In our work, a new receiver windowing for zero padding (ZP) OFDM system is proposed to reduce NBI spreading in the MB-OFDM UWB system. Simulations demonstrate the effectiveness of windowing under different NBI models.Microelectronics & Computer EngineeringElectrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Scienc
Altered immunolocalization of FGF23 in murine femora metastasized with human breast carcinoma MDA-MB-231 cells
No full textIntroduction After the onset of bone metastasis, tumor cells appear to modify surrounding microenvironments for their benefit, and particularly, the levels of circulating fibroblast growth factor (FGF) 23 in patients with tumors have been highlighted. Materials and methods We have attempted to verify if human breast carcinoma MDA-MB-231 cells metastasized in the long bone of nu/nu mice would synthesize FGF23. Serum concentrations of calcium, phosphate (Pi) and FGF23 were measured in control nu/nu mice, bone-metastasized mice, and mice with mammary gland injected with MDA-MB-231 cells mimicking primary mammary tumors. Results and conclusions MDA-MB-231 cells revealed intense FGF23 reactivity in metastasized lesions, whereas MDA-MB-231 cells cultured in vitro or when injected into the mammary glands (without bone metastasis) showed weak FGF23 immunoreactivity. Although the bone-metastasized MDA-MB-231 cells abundantly synthesized FGF23, osteocytes adjacent to the FGF23-immunopositive tumors, unlike intact osteocytes, showed no FGF23. Despite significantly elevated serum FGF23 levels in bone-metastasized mice, there was no significant decrease in the serum Pi concentration when compared with the intact mice and mice with a mass of MDA-MB-231 cells in mammary glands. The metastasized femora showed increased expression and FGFR1 immunoreactivity in fibroblastic stromal cells, whereas femora of control mice showed no obvious FGFR1 immunoreactivity. Taken together, it seems likely that MDA-MB-231 cells synthesize FGF23 when metastasized to a bone, and thus affect FGFR1-positive stromal cells in the metastasized tumor nest in a paracrine manner
ASIC FFT processor for MB-OFDM UWB system
No full textThe physical layer (PHY) standard of Multi-band Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (MB-OFDM) Ultra Wideband (UWB) system was defined by ECMA International. In this standard, the data sampling rate from the analog-to-digital converter to the physical layer is up to 528 Msample/s. Therefore, it is a challenge to realize the physical layer of the UWB system-especially the components with high computational complexity in Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) implementation. Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) block is one of these components. FFT plays an important role in Multi-band OFDM UWB system, which is the demodulation block of OFDM signals. The purpose of this project is to design an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) FFT solution for this system. The specification is defined from the system analysis and literature research. All the design choices and considerations are concluded and explained.Based on the algorithm and architecture analysis, a novel Radix22Parallel processor is proposed, which is a small-area and low-power-consumption solution for MB-OFDM UWB system. Both Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) and ASIC targeted synthesis results of this architecture are presented.Electrical Engineering, Mathematics and Computer Scienc
Characterization of the tertiary structure of the de novo designed protein MB-1
No full textMilk Bundle-1 (MB-1) is a de novo designed protein with 100 amino acids, having a molecular weight of 11.4 kilodaltons. MB-1 is enriched with 57% of selected essential amino acids (methionine, threonine, lysine and leucine), which are known to be limiting in dairy cattle. Recently, on the basis of a digestibility study, MB-1 was predicted to be unstable in rumen conditions.Characterization of the protein's structure was achieved using fluorescence spectroscopy (steady state measurements). MB-1 contains one tyrosine at position 62, expected to be in position "d" of helix III, in the hydrophobic core. Data obtained using fluorescence quenching indicates that the tyrosine is protected from the solvent in the putative hydrophobic core, as per design.Once it was established that MB-1 was not misfolded, further experiments were done to assess the fluidity of its hydrophobic core. For this, the amphiphillic dye ANSA was used. Results obtained for MB-1 compare favourably to those of many natural proteins, suggesting that MB-1 has achieved some degree of nativeness. Interestingly, MB-1 was found to exclude ANSA from its hydrophobic core more efficiently than all other de novo designed proteins reported to date.Finally, an analysis of folding thermodynamics of MB-1 was attempted. It was found that the fluorescence intensity of tyrosine was not sensitive to unfolding, making thermodynamic data impossible to obtain.Analysis of the data on MB-1 as compared to other natural proteins indicates that MB-1 is folded and compact. The lack of resistance to proteases must be caused by other factors other than the lack of compactness or misfolding. (Abstract shortened by UMI.).Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 36-06, page: 1623.Adviser: Marc Beauregard
Stochastic Lie bracket (derivation, derivation) in MB-algebras
No full textBy a stochastic controller, we make stable the pseudo stochastic Lie bracket (derivation, derivation) in complex MB-algebras. Next, we get an approximation by a stochastic Lie bracket (derivation, derivation) and calculate the maximum error of the estimate. © 2020, The Author(s)
Long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in relation to gut integrity, growth and cognitive development of rural African children
No full textBackground
and
rationale:
Weaning
foods
fed
to
infants
in
rural
Gambia
are
often
contaminated,
resulting
in
infections
which
contribute
to
initiating
a
persistent
inflammation
of
the
gut.
This
enteropathy,
which
causes
intestinal
damage
and
malabsorption,
is
strongly
associated
with
the
high
degree
of
growth
faltering
seen
in
Gambian
infants.
There
is
evidence
that
supplementary
omega-3
long-chain
polyunsaturated
fatty
acids
(n-3
LCPs)
might
ameliorate
this
damage
by
reducing
gastro-intestinal
inflammation.
Additionally,
n-3
LCPs
have
been
shown
to
benefit
mental
development
and
problem-solving
ability
in
infants,
but
this
has
not
yet
been
tested
in
an
African
population.
Methods:
A
randomised,
double-blind,
controlled
trial
(500mg
combined
n-3
LCPs
per
day
for
six
months)
was
conducted
in
a
population
of
rural
African
infants
aged
3
months
-
9
months.
The
primary
outcomes
were
infant
anthropometric
indicators
and
gut
integrity
(measured
by
urinary
lactulose-mannitol
ratios).
Plasma
fatty
acid
status
(plasma
fatty
acid
profiles),
cognitive
development
(Willatts
Test
and
an
attention
assessment
at
12
months
of
age),
intestinal
mucosal
inflammation
(faecal
calprotectin),
and
daily
morbidities
were
the
secondary
outcome
measures.
Results:
One-hundred
and
seventy-two
Gambian
infants
completed
the
trial.
Except
for
an
increase
in
mid-upper-arm
circumference
z-scores
in
the
intervention
group
(95%
Cl:
0.06,0.56;
p=0.017),
no
significant
differences
between
treatment
groups
were
detected
for
growth
and
lactulose-mannitol
ratios
at
9
months.
At
12
months
mid-upper-arm
circumference
remained
greater
in
the
intervention
group,
and
significant
increases
in
skinfold
thicknesses
were
detected
(pSO.022
for
ali).
Supplementation
resulted
in
a
significant
increase
in
plasma
n-3
LCP
levels
(p<O.001)
and
decrease
in
n-6
LCP:n-3
LCP
ratios
(p<O.OOl).
Plasma
n-6
fatty
acid
levels
were
not
affected.
No
difference
was
detected
for
the
other
secondary
outcomes.
Conclusion:
Fish
oil
supplementation
proved
safe
and
successfully
increased
plasma
n-3
fatty
acid
status,
but
the
results
of
this
trial
do
not
support
the
use
of
supplementary
n-3
LCPs
in
young,
breast-fed,
rural
Gambian
infants
for
improving
overall
growth
performance,
intestinal
integrity,
and
cognitive
development,
or
reducing
intestinal
and
systemic
inflammatio
Weerkat: An extensible semantic Wiki
No full textWikis are Web applications that blur the boundaries between readers and authors, allowing non-technical people to author hypertexts through a web interface. A Semantic Wiki is a Wiki that attempts the same thing with the Semantic Web, allowing non-technical users to create semantic resources and/or ontologies. In this paper we characterise the different ways in which a Wiki might support the Semantic Web and present Weerkat, a modular and extensible Wiki that has ontological hypertext support. Key to this has been the design and development of a highly flexible Wiki architecture which allows easy modification and augmentation of functionality
Analysis of Safe and Effective Next-Generation Rail Signalling Systems using a FTA-SAN Approach
No full textMoving Block (MB) and Virtual Coupling (VC) rail signalling will change current train operation paradigm by migrating vital equipment from trackside to onboard to reduce train separation and maintenance costs. Their actual deployment is however constrained by the industry’s need to identify configurations of MB and VC signalling equipment which can effectively guarantee safe train movements even under degraded operational conditions involving component faults. In this paper, we analyse the effectivity of MB and VC in safely supervising train separation under nominal and degraded conditions by using an innovative approach which combines Fault Tree Analysis (FTA) and Stochastic Activity Network (SAN). A FTA model of unsafe train movement is defined for both MB and VC capturing functional interactions and cause effect relations among the different signalling components. The FTA is then used as a basis to apportion signalling component failure rates needed to feed the SAN model. Effective MB and VC train supervision is analysed by means of SAN-based simulations in the specific scenario of an error in the Train Position Reporting (TPR) for five rail market segments featuring different traffic characteristics, namely high-speed, mainline, regional, urban and freight. Results show that the overall approach can support infrastructure managers, railway undertakings, and rail system suppliers in investigating effectiveness of MB and VC in safely supervising train movements in scenarios involving different types of degraded conditions and failure events. The proposed method can hence support the railway industry in identifying effective and safe design configurations of next-generation rail signalling systems.Green Open Access added to TU Delft Institutional Repository ‘You share, we take care!’ – Taverne project https://www.openaccess.nl/en/you-share-we-take-care Otherwise as indicated in the copyright section: the publisher is the copyright holder of this work and the author uses the Dutch legislation to make this work public.Transport and Plannin
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