scholarly journals Realizing the Complex Nature of the Libyan Crises

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (II) ◽  
pp. 377-393
Author(s):  
Khurshid Khan
Keyword(s):  
Author(s):  
M.B. Braunfeld ◽  
M. Moritz ◽  
B.M. Alberts ◽  
J.W. Sedat ◽  
D.A. Agard

In animal cells, the centrosome functions as the primary microtubule organizing center (MTOC). As such the centrosome plays a vital role in determining a cell's shape, migration, and perhaps most importantly, its division. Despite the obvious importance of this organelle little is known about centrosomal regulation, duplication, or how it nucleates microtubules. Furthermore, no high resolution model for centrosomal structure exists.We have used automated electron tomography, and reconstruction techniques in an attempt to better understand the complex nature of the centrosome. Additionally we hope to identify nucleation sites for microtubule growth.Centrosomes were isolated from early Drosophila embryos. Briefly, after large organelles and debris from homogenized embryos were pelleted, the resulting supernatant was separated on a sucrose velocity gradient. Fractions were collected and assayed for centrosome-mediated microtubule -nucleating activity by incubating with fluorescently-labeled tubulin subunits. The resulting microtubule asters were then spun onto coverslips and viewed by fluorescence microscopy.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-18
Author(s):  
Syabeela Syahali ◽  
Ewe Hong Tat ◽  
Gobi Vetharatnam ◽  
Li-Jun Jiang ◽  
Hamsalekha A Kumaresan

This paper analyses the backscattering cross section of a cylinder both using traditional method model and a new numerical solution model, namely Relaxed Hierarchical Equivalent Source Algorithm (RHESA). The purpose of this study is to investigate the prospect of incorporating numerical solution model into volume scattering calculation, to be applied into microwave remote sensing in vegetation area. Results show a good match, suggesting that RHESA may be suitable to be used to model the more complex nature of vegetation medium.


2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 657-676
Author(s):  
Constance Gikonyo

Criminal forfeiture is an asset confiscation mechanism used to seize benefits gained from an offence that one is convicted of. In Kenya, the Proceeds of Crime and Anti-Money Laundering Act provides the facilitating legislation. The present state of the regime's underutilisation prompts an examination of the substantive law and procedure provided in this statute. The analysis indicates that the provisions are technical in nature and the process is systematic. This ensures that a procedurally and substantively fair process is undertaken, in keeping with constitutional provisions. Nonetheless, identified challenges, including the complex nature of the provisions, translate to unclear interpretation and consequently ineffective implementation. This state of affairs is reversible through increased understanding of the criminal forfeiture provisions and their operation. This can potentially lead to an upsurge in its use and facilitate depriving offenders of criminal gains, removing the incentive for crime and reducing proceeds available to fund criminal activities.


2018 ◽  
Vol 41 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 9-18
Author(s):  
Peter Crowley

Northern Ireland’s Troubles conflict, like many complex conflicts through the world, has often been conceived as considerably motivated by religious differences. This paper demonstrates that religion was often integrated into an ethno-religious identity that fueled sectarian conflict between Protestants and Catholics in Northern Ireland during the Troubles period. Instead of being a religious-based conflict, the conflict derived from historical divides of power, land ownership, and civil and political rights in Ireland over several centuries. It relies on 12 interviews, six Protestants and six Catholics, to measure their use of religious references when referring to their religious other. The paper concludes that in the overwhelming majority of cases, both groups did not use religious references, supporting the hypothesis on the integrated nature of ethnicity and religion during the Troubles. It offers grounding for looking into the complex nature of sectarian and seemingly religious conflicts throughout the world, including cases in which religion acts as more of a veneer to deeply rooted identities and historical narratives.


2016 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 522-568
Author(s):  
Cory M. Gavito

Among the roughly 150 Italian songbooks published between 1610 and 1665 with the guitar tablature known as alfabeto, about thirteen are anthologies. These anthologies often advertise the role of a compiler who has gathered together music by diverse authors. The extent to which compilers also functioned as authors and editors is not well understood. This essay considers the case of Giovanni Stefani, a compiler who, in the preface to his Scherzi amorosi of 1622, describes the anthology as a collection of his choosing that contains “varie compositioni de Virtuosi della prima classe” (various compositions of first-class virtuosos). Intriguingly, none of the settings Stefani prints (in both this alfabeto anthology and two others) include attributions. Since the 1880s, scholars have been preoccupied with matters of transmission and attribution, unearthing a network of textual and musical concordances. This article expands the nexus of Stefani’s songs and their concordant sources, revealing an array of examples that range from identical copies to “partial” concordances that take over motives, phrases, refrains, or harmonic schemes. These examples indicate that in preparing his anthologies, Stefani mined a corpus of existing prints and manuscripts while also relying heavily on oral transmission. The complex nature of Stefani’s approach, taken together with his complete avoidance of composer attributions, points toward an editorial process shaped by a fluid exchange between oral and written musical practices.


2003 ◽  
Vol 773 ◽  
Author(s):  
James D. Kubicek ◽  
Stephanie Brelsford ◽  
Philip R. LeDuc

AbstractMechanical stimulation of single cells has been shown to affect cellular behavior from the molecular scale to ultimate cell fate including apoptosis and proliferation. In this, the ability to control the spatiotemporal application of force on cells through their extracellular matrix connections is critical to understand the cellular response of mechanotransduction. Here, we develop and utilize a novel pressure-driven equibiaxial cell stretching device (PECS) combined with an elastomeric material to control specifically the mechanical stimulation on single cells. Cells were cultured on silicone membranes coated with molecular matrices and then a uniform pressure was introduced to the opposite surface of the membrane to stretch single cells equibiaxially. This allowed us to apply mechanical deformation to investigate the complex nature of cell shape and structure. These results will enhance our knowledge of cellular and molecular function as well as provide insights into fields including biomechanics, tissue engineering, and drug discovery.


2011 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Ashirgade ◽  
P. B. Harakuni ◽  
W. J. Vanooij

Abstract Adhesion between rubber compound and brass-plated steel tire cord is crucial in governing the overall performance of tires. The rubber-brass interfacial adhesion is influenced by the chemical composition and thickness of the interfacial layer. It has been shown that the interfacial layer consists mainly of sulfides and oxides of copper and zinc. This paper discusses the effect of changes in the chemical composition and the structure of the interfacial layers due to addition of adhesion promoter resins. Grazing incidence x-ray diffraction (GIXRD) experiments were run on sulfidized polished brass coupons previously bonded to five experimental rubber compounds. It was confirmed that heat and humidity conditions lead to physical and chemical changes of the rubber-steel tire cord interfacial layer, closely related to the degree of rubber-brass adhesion. Morphological transformation of the interfacial layer led to loss of adhesion after aging. The adhesion promoter resins inhibit unfavorable morphological changes in the interfacial layer, thus stabilizing it during aging and prolonging failure. Tire cord adhesion tests illustrated that the one-component resins improved adhesion after aging using a rubber compound with lower cobalt loading. Based on the acquired diffraction profiles, these resins were also found to impede crystallization of the sulfide layer after aging, leading to improved adhesion. Secondary ion mass spectrometry depth profiles and scanning electron microscopy micrographs strongly corroborated the findings from GIXRD. This interfacial analysis adds valuable information to our understanding of the complex nature of the rubber-brass bonding mechanism.


Author(s):  
А.Б. Салтыков ◽  
С.В. Грачев

Редукционистский подход в медицине рассматривает живые системы в качестве закрытых (замкнутых) образований, функции которых полностью детерминированы свойствами соответствующих материальных компонентов. Каждое нарушение функции объясняется предшествующими изменениями структур, реализующих эту функцию. Из этого следует, что любая патология структурно-функциональна по своей сути, а понятие «функциональные заболевания» - принципиально ошибочно из-за искажения причинно-следственных отношений. По мере прогресса медицины ожидается открытие собственно первичных структурных маркеров «функциональных» заболеваний, что будет иметь решающее значение для их ранней диагностики и патогенетического лечения (ориентированного прежде всего, на устранение первичного звена расстройств). Вместе с тем, в медицине существует более общий холистический (функционально ориентированный) подход, формирующий иной стереотип клинического мышления. В этих рамках любая патология объясняется недостаточностью адаптивных функций организма в изменившихся условиях существования. Обычно сложный характер функциональных взаимодействий делает невозможным их описание на основе текущих характеристик материальных компонентов системы, особенно при воздействии на организм внешних патогенных факторов. Именно внешние воздействия способны инициировать первичный дефицит адаптивных механизмов с заведомо вторичными структурными изменениями, что позволяет перестать рассматривать «функциональные болезни» как принципиально ошибочное понятие. Первичный дефицит функций наиболее нагляден при информационной патологии, идеальная природа которой не сводится к соответствующим материальным носителям. Все это ставит под сомнение возможность обнаружения собственно первичных структурных маркеров некоторых заболеваний, особенно если в их основе лежит информационная патология (невроз, нервная анорексия, психическая аменорея, морская болезнь, некоторые формы фантомных болей и др.). Reductionist approach in medicine considers living systems as closed (closed) formations whose functions are completely determined by the properties of the corresponding material components. Each disturbance of the function is explained by previous changes in the structures that realize this function. From this it follows that any pathology is structurally functional in its essence, and the concept of «functional diseases» is fundamentally erroneous because of the distortion of cause-effect relationships. As medicine progresses, the actual primary structural markers of «functional» diseases are expected to be discovered, which will be crucial for their early diagnosis and pathogenetic treatment (primarily aimed at eliminating the primary link of disorders). At the same time, in medicine there is a more general holistic (functionally oriented) approach, forming a different stereotype of clinical thinking. Within this framework, any pathology is due to the lack of adaptive functions of the organism in the changed conditions of existence. Usually the complex nature of functional interactions makes it impossible to describe them on the basis of the current characteristics of the material components of the system, especially when external pathogenic factors influence the organism. It is external actions that can initiate a primary deficit of adaptive mechanisms with known secondary structural changes, which allows us to stop treating «functional diseases» as a fundamentally wrong concept. The primary deficit of functions is most evident in information pathology, the ideal nature of which is not reduced to the corresponding material carriers. All this calls into question the possibility of detecting the primary structural markers of certain diseases, especially if they are based on information pathology (neurosis, anorexia nervosa, mental amenorrhea, seasickness, some forms of phantom pains, etc.).


2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Sanz García ◽  
Martial Boggio-Pasqua ◽  
Ilaria Ciofini ◽  
Marco Campetella

<div>The ability to locate minima on electronic excited states (ESs) potential energy surfaces (PESs) both in the case of bright and dark states is crucial for a full understanding of photochemical reactions. This task has become a standard practice for small- to medium-sized organic chromophores thanks to the constant developments in the field of computational photochemistry. However, this remains a very challenging effort when it comes to the optimization of ESs of transition metal complexes (TMCs), not only due to the presence of several electronic excited states close in energy, but also due to the complex nature of the excited states involved. In this article, we present a simple yet powerful method to follow an excited state of interest during a structural optimization in the case of TMC, based on the use of a compact hole-particle representation of the electronic transition, namely the natural transition orbitals (NTOs). State tracking using NTOs is unambiguously accomplished by computing the mono-electronic wavefunction overlap between consecutive steps of the optimization. Here, we demonstrate that this simple but robust procedure works not only in the case of the cytosine but also in the case of the ES optimization of a ruthenium-nitrosyl complex which is very problematic with standard approaches.</div>


2019 ◽  
Vol 118 (11) ◽  
pp. 255-268
Author(s):  
Amit Kumar

Modern politics, particularly prevalent in the Western Democracies, is replete with instances wherein communication has come to play a pivotal role in the formation or dislodging a government. This is not to say that in traditional political scenario, the role of communication was any lesser. Far from it, communication has always characterized the build-up of events in politics. However, the significance of the same has increased manifold thanks to the advent of social media and complex nature of modern politics as well as due to rise of such concepts as political branding which has gained traction in the wake of proliferation of technology. The same holds true in the Indian political scenario as well. The last few years have redefined the role of communication and its tools in Indian politics, especially during a mega-political event like election. The last two general elections were testimonies to the same. The might of social media has been realized by even its staunchest critics. Along with it, the popular concept of permanent campaign has also characterized the phenomenon of political communication. This paper goes on to explore the underlying concept of political communication and how the same has come to influence the turn of events as well as the final outcome of an election.


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