Digital Commons Network^™

The Beacon, January 19, 2024, Beacon Staff

The Beacon, 2023-2024

A day in the life of Julie Elliot; NW looks forward to 2024 events; Movie musical brings new color to classic; Art exhibit bridges reality and whimsy; Student's semester study abroad recap; Leaders are Readers book study returns; Julie Elliot impacts student life daily; High school theatre competition returns to campus; We are no strangers to injustice; Embracing the virtue of gentleness; A promising season for NW tennis teams; Pro athletes inspiring the next generation; Track warms up for a busy upcoming season; The election year begins in Iowa; MLK day: celebrating a great man of the past;

Fibrin Glue Acutely Blocks Distal Muscle Contraction After Confirmed Polyethylene Glycol Nerve Fusion: An Animal Study., Alec H Fisher, Parker H Johnsen, Andrew Simon, Cameron J Burns, Vineeth Romiyo, Elliot B Bodofsky, Sebastian Vega, David A Fuller

Cooper Medical School of Rowan University Departmental Research

BACKGROUND: Polyethylene glycol (PEG) is a synthetic, biodegradable, and hyperosmotic material promising in the treatment of acute peripheral nerve injuries. Our team set out to investigate the impact of fibrin glue upon PEG fusion in a rat model.

METHODS: Eighteen rats underwent sciatic nerve transection and PEG fusion. Electrophysiologic testing was performed to measure nerve function and distal muscle twitch. Fibrin glue was applied and testing repeated. Due to preliminary findings, fibrin glue was applied to an uncut nerve in five rodents and testing was conducted before and after glue application. Mann-Whitney U tests were used to compare median values …

Virtual Stardom: The Case For Protecting The Intellectual Property Rights Of Digital Celebrities As Software, Alexander Plansky

University of Miami Business Law Review

For the past several decades, technology has allowed us to create digital human beings that both resemble actual celebrities (living or deceased) or entirely virtual personalities from scratch. In the near future, this technology is expected to become even more advanced and widespread to the point where there may be entirely virtual celebrities who are just as popular as their flesh-and-blood counterparts—if not more so. This raises intellectual property questions of how these near-future digital actors and musicians should be classified, and who will receive the proceeds from their performances and appearances. Since, in the near-term, these entities will probably …

Non-Invasive Methods For Monitoring Weasels: Emerging Technologies And Priorities For Future Research, David S. Jachowski, Scott M. Bergeson, Stacy Cotey, Elizabeth Croose, Tim R. Hofmeester, Jenny Macpherson, Et Al.

Michigan Tech Publications

Weasels (genus Mustela and Neogale) are of management concern as declining native species in some regions and invasive species in others. Regardless of the need to conserve or remove weasels, there is increasingly a need to use non-invasive monitoring methods to assess population trends. We conducted a literature review and held the first ever International Weasel Monitoring Symposium to synthesise information on historical and current non-invasive monitoring techniques for weasels. We also explored current limitations, opportunities, and areas of development to guide future research and long-term monitoring. Our literature search revealed that in the past 20 years, camera traps were …

Conservatism, Ideology, Skepticism, Brandon Turner

The Journal of Contemporary Legal Issues

The occasion for this essay concerns the prospects of modern conservative political philosophy; more directly, it calls for the provision of “a systematic and comprehensive account of conservatism.” Given our present moment, at which the political parties and institutions of the political right seem increasingly unmoored from any philosophical anchor, such an occasion appears altogether appropriate. Yet there is good reason to think that accounts of conservatism will not be systematic in the way desired and will in fact tend to rule out entirely systematic approaches—at least according to the commonplace understanding of “systematic”—to government or political philosophy. The belief—often …

Contemporary Conservative Thought: The View From San Diego, William A. Galston

The Journal of Contemporary Legal Issues

At the conference on “Modern Conservative Political Philosophy” convened at the University of San Diego on September 16–17, 2022, eleven authors presented papers. They fall into four broad categories.

Three of the papers offer broad defenses of conservatism as it has been theorized and practiced in the United States since the 1950s. William Voegeli observes—accurately—that “by following their own premises, an increasingly postmodern Left and an increasingly premodern Right have ended up questioning the worth and feasibility of republican self-government.” This leaves the beleaguered Center, long the common ground between traditional liberals and traditional conservatives. According to Voegeli, this “increasingly …

Synthesis And Biological Evaluation Of New Nicotinic Acid Derivatives As Potential Anti-Inflammatory Agents With Enhanced Gastric Safety Profile, Eman Ramadan, Zeinab Mahmoud, Nadia Khalil

Pharmacy

Two innovative series derived from nicotinic acid scaffold were synthesized and evaluated for their anti-inflammatory activity. Ibuprofen, celecoxib and indomethacin were used as standard drugs. All the newly synthesized compounds were in vitro screened for their anti-inflammatory activity adopting 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide dye (MTT), as well as Griess assays. The results showed that all compounds exhibited significant anti-inflammatory activity without affecting the viability of the macrophages compared to ibuprofen. In addition, compounds 4d, 4f, 4g, 4h and 5b exhibited the most potent nitrite inhibition activity and consequently superior anti-inflammatory activity with MTT results ranging between values 86.109 ± 0.51 to 119.084 …

Weakened Pelagic-Benthic Coupling On An Arctic Outflow Shelf (Northeast Greenland) Suggested By Benthic Ecosystem Changes, Yasemin V. Bodur, Paul E. Renaud, Lidia Lins, Luana Da Costa Monteiro, William G. Ambrose, Janine Felden, Thomas Krumpen, Frank Wenzhöfer, Maria Włodarska-Kowalczuk, Ulrike Braeckman

Marine Science

Arctic marine ecosystems are becoming more boreal due to climate change. Predictions of ecosystem change focus mainly on Arctic inflow or interior shelves, with few comprehensive studies on Arctic outflow regions. During September–October 2017, soft-bottom communities were sampled and benthic ecosystem processes were quantified at 12 stations on the Northeast Greenland shelf (outflow shelf) and compared to the last regional ecosystem study, conducted in 1992 and 1993. The benthic habitat was characterized in terms of sediment granulometry, pigment concentrations, and porewater chemistry (dissolved inorganic carbon, nutrients). Total abundance and biomass of macrobenthos and meiobenthos, bacterial abundance, porewater dissolved inorganic carbon …

Sphingosine-1-Phosphate Receptor Modulator – Siponimod: An Evaluation To Ameliorate Aluminium Chloride Induced Behavioural Change And Biochemical Effects, Ashwija Kolakemar, Shivaprakash Gangachannaiah, Sadhana N. Holla, K. G. Mohandas Rao

Open Access archive

Introduction: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative condition characterised by the gradual loss of hippocampal and cortical neurons, resulting in diminished memory and cognitive function. Siponimod (SPM) a selective modulator of sphingosine 1-phosphate receptor subtype 1 and 5(S1P1,S1P5 receptors), was found to have neuroprotective effect in neurological disorders. The present study was conducted to evaluate its beneficial effects in AD. Materials and Methods: In-silico molecular docking and molecular dynamic simulation studies were carried to know its potential interactions with selected target proteins. In-vivo study was conducted inthirty rats divided randomly into five groups with six rats per group: Control group …

Performance Of Automated Machine Learning In Predicting Outcomes Of Pneumatic Retinopexy, Arina Nisanova, Arefeh Yavary, Jordan Deaner, Ferhina Ali, Priyanka Gogte, Richard Kaplan, Kevin Chen, Eric Nudleman, Dilraj Grewal, Meenakashi Gupta, Jeremy Wolfe, Michael Klufas, Glenn Yiu, Iman Soltani, Parisa Emami-Naeini

Wills Eye Hospital Papers

PURPOSE: Automated machine learning (AutoML) has emerged as a novel tool for medical professionals lacking coding experience, enabling them to develop predictive models for treatment outcomes. This study evaluated the performance of AutoML tools in developing models predicting the success of pneumatic retinopexy (PR) in treatment of rhegmatogenous retinal detachment (RRD). These models were then compared with custom models created by machine learning (ML) experts.

DESIGN: Retrospective multicenter study.

PARTICIPANTS: Five hundred and thirty nine consecutive patients with primary RRD that underwent PR by a vitreoretinal fellow at 6 training hospitals between 2002 and 2022.

METHODS: We used 2 AutoML …

The Effects Of Police Officer Education And Academy Training Methods On Fair Decision Making, Benjamin Chapman

Research Papers

No abstract provided.

Bispecific Bcma/Cd24 Car-T Cells Control Multiple Myeloma Growth, Fumou Sun, Yan Cheng, Visanu Wanchai, Wancheng Guo, David Mery, Hongwei Xu, Dongzheng Gai, Eric Siegel, Clyde Bailey, Cody Ashby, Samer Al Hadidi, Carolina Schinke, Sharmilan Thanendrarajan, Yupo Ma, Qing Yi, Robert Z Orlowski, Maurizio Zangari, Frits Van Rhee, Siegfried Janz, Gail Bishop, Guido Tricot, John D Shaughnessy, Fenghuang Zhan

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Anti-multiple myeloma B cell maturation antigen (BCMA)-specific chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapies represent a promising treatment strategy with high response rates in myeloma. However, durable cures following anti-BCMA CAR-T cell treatment of myeloma are rare. One potential reason is that a small subset of minimal residual myeloma cells seeds relapse. Residual myeloma cells following BCMA-CAR-T-mediated treatment show less-differentiated features and express stem-like genes, including CD24. CD24-positive myeloma cells represent a large fraction of residual myeloma cells after BCMA-CAR-T therapy. In this work, we develop CD24-CAR-T cells and test their ability to eliminate myeloma cells. We find that CD24-CAR-T cells …

Office Of Research, Economic Engagement And Outreach Update, January 19, 2024, Office Of Research, Economic Engagement And Outreach

Office of Research, Economic Engagement and Outreach

No abstract provided.

Faculty Feed January 19th, 2024, College Of Arts & Sciences

News, Magazines and Reports

Student and faculty accomplishments.

The Shifting Landscape Of Adolescent Wellness In Boarding Schools: Can Time Spent Off Screens And Outdoors Improve Adolescent Wellbeing?, Kristen H. Peterson

Dartmouth College Master’s Theses

For nearly twenty years I have worked directly with adolescents as an independent school educator. Whether in the classroom, on the field, or in the dorm, I have observed and supported students through their middle and high school experiences. During this time, I have witnessed an alarming shift in adolescent physical, emotional, and social wellbeing. Concurrently, I have observed a dramatic increase in the amount of time students spend using screen-based devices, and a decrease in their time spent outdoors.

Using research to ground my anecdotal accounts in empirical understanding, my thesis examines whether or not screen use might help …

Induced Degradation Of Lineage-Specific Oncoproteins Drives The Therapeutic Vulnerability Of Small Cell Lung Cancer To Parp Inhibitors, Chiho Kim, Xu-Dong Wang, Zhengshuai Liu, Jianwei Hao, Shuai Wang, Peng Li, Zhenzhen Zi, Qing Ding, Seoyeon Jang, Jiwoong Kim, Yikai Luo, Kenneth E Huffman, Shreoshi Pal Choudhuri, Sofia Del Rio, Ling Cai, Han Liang, Benjamin J Drapkin, John D Minna, Yonghao Yu

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Although BRCA1/2 mutations are not commonly found in small cell lung cancer (SCLC), a substantial fraction of SCLC shows clinically relevant response to PARP inhibitors (PARPis). However, the underlying mechanism(s) of PARPi sensitivity in SCLC is poorly understood. We performed quantitative proteomic analyses and identified proteomic changes that signify PARPi responses in SCLC cells. We found that the vulnerability of SCLC to PARPi could be explained by the degradation of lineage-specific oncoproteins (e.g., ASCL1). PARPi-induced activation of the E3 ligase HUWE1 mediated the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS)-dependent ASCL1 degradation. Although PARPi induced a general DNA damage response in SCLC cells, this …

The Student Movement Volume 108 Issue 12: Leaping Into The New Year!, Anneliese Tessalee, Savannah Tyler, Grace No, Aiko J. Ayala Rios, Madison Vath, Lexie Dunham, Daena Holbrook, Andrew Francis, Melissa Moore, Katie Davis, Nate Miller, Sumin Lee, Wambui Karanja, Alyssa Caruthers, Anna Rybachek, Chris Ngugi

The Student Movement v. 108 (2023-2024)

HUMANS

A Farewell and Goodbye From Your Graduates, Interviewed by Anneliese Tessalee

Making Peace with 2023, Interviewed by Savannah Tyler

Professor Jean Cadet and the NYC Marathon, Interviewed by Grace No

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Upcoming events at HPAC, Aiko J. Ayala Rios

Music: The Forming of the Andrews University Symphony Orchestra, Madison Vath

The Media BREAKdown, Interviewed by Lexie Dunham

Christmas Traditions Across Andrews University, Daena Holbrook

NEWS

Michigan Football Ends Undefeated Season with NCAA Championship

Holiday Weekend Blast Brings Subzero Temperatures, Melissa Moore

Who is J.N. Andrews?, Andrew Francis

IDEAS

2024 the Plot, Katie Davis

Improving Andrews - Dorm …

Dietary Folate And Cofactors Accelerate Age-Dependent P16 Epimutation To Promote Intestinal Tumorigenesis, Li Yang, Robert C Peery, Leah M Farmer, Xia Gao, Yiqun Zhang, Chad J Creighton, Lanjing Zhang, Lanlan Shen

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

The extent to which non-genetic environmental factors, such as diet, contribute to carcinogenesis has been long debated. One potential mechanism for the effects of environmental factors is through epigenetic modifications that affect gene expression without changing the underlying DNA sequence. However, the functional cooperation between dietary factors and cancer-causing epigenetic regulation is largely unknown. Here, we use a mouse model of age-dependent p16 epimutation, in which the p16 gene activity is directly controlled by promoter DNA methylation. We show p16 epimutation is modulated by folate and cofactors in dietary supplementation, which leads to increased colon cancer risk. Importantly, our findings …

Teaching Philosophy As A Pedagogic Practice-Ing: Are You The Type Of Person That Says, “Everything Happens For A Reason”?, Valerie Oved Giovanini Ph.D.

Artizein: Arts and Teaching Journal

In this paper, I discuss a classroom activity that was intended to create an environment attentive enough for students to scrutinize whether their touted beliefs matched their implicit assumptions. Drawing upon Emmanuel Levinas’s ethics of the face-to-face relation, Carol A. Taylor’s posthuman orientations for pedagogical practice-ings, and Bickel’s and Fisher’s emergent theory of art-care, I explore my pedagogical approach in teaching philosophy to explain how affective encounters in communitas between teacher and learners can expand personal understandings and imagine new meaningful possibilities together. These affective encounters serve an ethic of concern where each is capable of a unique response and …

Borders And Bridges In Virtual Work: Between Real And Imaginary, Valeria Rocío Gonzales González Cueva, Carmiella Salzberg Zorzi

Artizein: Arts and Teaching Journal

This article discusses our reflections on how to holistically integrate reality embodied in virtual workspaces--what we perceive within our work and interaction with technology-and highlights the importance of documenting our exploration in times while Artificial Intelligence is developing. Our approach is divided into three parts: the boundaries and bridges between the real and the imaginary, the possibilities of existence and non-existence offered by technology, and the experiences of expressive arts practitioners within virtuality.

Resumen

Este artículo habla de nuestras reflexiones sobre cómo integrar de forma holística la realidad encarnada en los espacios de trabajo virtuales, lo que percibimos dentro de …

Editoral Foreword: A Métissage Of Presence-Ing, Darlene St.Georges, Barbara Bickel

Artizein: Arts and Teaching Journal

Artizein; Art & Teaching Journal, issue 8, volume 1, Editoral Foreword: A Métissage of Presenc-ing

Artizein_ Full Issue 2023, Barbara Bickel, Darlene St.Georges, Jeeyeon Ryu

Artizein: Arts and Teaching Journal

Full issue of Artizein: Arts & Teaching Journal Volume 8, Issue 1, 2023

Animal Liberation Front: Threat To Kentucky, Zoe E. Hunt

Posters-at-the-Capitol

The Animal Liberation Front (ALF) is a global terrorist organization that was founded in 1976. Since the creation of ALF, the group has spread rapidly as well as turned into a domestic terrorist organization in the United States. With this project, the group's potential threat to Kentucky was evaluated. ALF was evaluated using four structured analytic techniques and an intelligence collection plan. A better understanding of what ALF is was formed by the discussion of the group’s origins, ideology, and organization. In addition, the group's goals, objectives, and capabilities were discussed. Using the information gathered during the threat profile, the …

Vol.51 N.26 January 18th 2024, Voice Media Ventures

Black Voice News

No abstract provided.

Colloidal Calcium Phosphate (Ccp) Causes Problematic Acid Variation In Cheddar Cheese, Sakshi Singh

Research on Capitol Hill

pH variation in cheese during the early ripening stages causes changes in the texture, body, and flavor of cheese. The dairy industry, encompassing over 50,000 dairy farms nationwide and several regional dairy farmers and companies in Utah, suffers substantial financial loss as cheese with varying pH is rendered mostly useless.

Montana Kaimin, January 18, 2024, Students Of The University Of Montana, Missoula

Montana Kaimin, 1898-present

Student newspaper of the University of Montana, Missoula.

Mo-Doped Titanate Nanofibers From Hydrothermal Syntheses For Improving Bone Scaffold, Yang Tian

Materials Science and Engineering Faculty Publications and Presentations

A longstanding interest in bone tissue engineering is the development of new bio- scaffolds that can be manufactured on a large scale with high throughput at low cost. Here, we report a low-cost and systematically optimized hydrothermal synthesis for producing Mo- doped potassium titanate nanofibers with high structural purity. This new nanosynthesis is based on bone tissue growth on an undoped titanate nanowires-entangled scaffold, as previously reported by our team. The morphological and structural characterization data suggest that the crystal structure of Mo-doped titanate nanofibers closely resembles that of the undoped ones. This resemblance is potentially valuable for assessing the …

Ranking Of Neutrosophic Number Based On Values And Ambiguities And Its Application To Linear Programming Problem, Manas Karak, Pramodh Bharati, Animesh Mahata

Neutrosophic Sets and Systems

No abstract provided.

Making The Connection: How Membrane Contact Sites Have Changed Our View Of Organelle Biology, G. Voeltz, E. Sawyer, G. Hajnóczky, W. Prinz

Department of Pathology, Anatomy, and Cell Biology Faculty Papers

The view of organelles and how they operate together has changed dramatically over the last two decades. The textbook view of organelles was that they operated largely independently and were connected by vesicular trafficking and the diffusion of signals through the cytoplasm. We now know that all organelles make functional close contacts with one another, often called membrane contact sites. The study of these sites has moved to center stage in cell biology as it has become clear that they play critical roles in healthy and developing cells and during cell stress and disease states. Contact sites have important roles …

Australian Cool-Season Pulse Seed-Borne Virus Research: 1. Alfalfa And Cucumber Mosaic Viruses And Less Important Viruses, Roger A C Jones, Benjamin S. Congdon

Biosecurity Research Articles

Here, we review the research undertaken since the 1950s in Australia’s grain cropping regions on seed-borne virus diseases of cool-season pulses caused by alfalfa mosaic virus (AMV) and cucumber mosaic virus (CMV). We present brief background information about the continent’s pulse industry, virus epidemiology, management principles and future threats to virus disease management. We then take a historical approach towards all past investigations with these two seed-borne pulse viruses in the principal cool-season pulse crops grown: chickpea, faba bean, field pea, lentil, narrow-leafed lupin and white lupin. With each pathosystem, the main focus is on its biology, epidemiology and management, …