A primary effect of palmitic acid on mouse oocytes is the disruption of the structure of the endoplasmic reticulum.

Exposure of mouse oocytes to saturated fatty acids such as palmitic acid has been shown to increases lipid content and cause an endoplasmic reticulum stress response and changes in the mitochondrial redox state. The links between these changes, or whether they are prevented by mono-unsaturated fatty acids such as oleic acid is unclear. Here, we have investigated the effects of fatty acids on mouse oocytes, that are maturated in vitro, using coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering and two-photon fluorescence microscopy. When oocytes were matured in the presence of palmitic acid there were changes in the aggregation pattern and size of lipid droplets. Maturation in palmitic acid alone also caused a distinctive disruption of the endoplasmic reticulum structure. This effect was prevented by incubation of oleic with palmitic acid. In contrast, maturation of mouse oocytes in medium containing palmitic acid was not associated with any significant change in the redox state of mitochondria or the Ca2+ content of intracellular stores. These data suggest that a primary effect of saturated fatty acids such as PA on oocytes, is to disrupt the structure of the endoplasmic reticulum and this is not due to any other effect on mitochondria or Ca2+ stores.

blocks_3d: software for general 3d conformal blocks

We introduce the software blocks_3d for computing four-point conformal blocks of operators with arbitrary Lorentz representations in 3d CFTs. It uses Zamolodchikov-like recursion relations to numerically compute derivatives of blocks around a crossing-symmetric configuration. It is implemented as a heavily optimized, multi-threaded, C++ application. We give performance benchmarks for correlators containing scalars, fermions, and stress tensors. As an example application, we recompute bootstrap bounds on four-point functions of fermions and study whether a previously observed sharp jump can be explained using the “fake primary” effect. We conclude that the fake primary effect cannot fully explain the jump and the possible existence of a “dead-end” CFT near the jump merits further study.

Electroviscous Effects in Stationary Solid Phase Suspensions

Flowing through porous media is a matter of interest in different research fields such as medicine, engineering and science. The spontaneous appearance of ionic distribution at the solid liquid interface gives place to a reduction in the flow rate, which is generally named electroviscous effect. However, this should be differentiated in two more specific effects, the primary effect due to the distortion of ionic clouds, and the secondary effect due to the overlapping of ionic clouds. Theoretical and experimental works have not always been clearly conducted in order to separate both effects. Instead, they have been globally grouped. The purpose of this review is to revise theoretical and experimental bibliography on the electroviscous effect in stationary solid phase suspensions (porous plugs, membranes, microchannels, capillaries). The main conclusions of this brief revision are: (i) when ionic clouds are relatively small, it is possible to accept that only the primary effect is the cause for the apparent increase of the viscosity of the liquid phase when it is forced to flow relative to the stationary solid phase; (ii) although theory predicts a maximum for the variation of the overall electroviscous effect vs the relative size of the ionic cloud, it has been experimentally observed but not properly reasoned that its existence depends on the salt type; and (iii) it is necessary to justify why, if the fluid is non-Newtonian, electrokinetic parameters dominate the characteristics of the flow due to high pressure gradients, but the rheological parameters are more decisive when the flow is generated by low pressure gradients.

Psychological Effects of Caffeine on Players Performance

The present study conducted to check the effects of caffeine on players performance through survey research. A caffeine-based 20 Statements (questionnaire) filed to the players, who were regular consumers of caffeine. 20 statements mentioned related to the positive effects of caffeine. Most of the players, who addicted to take caffeine on regularly basis approved all statements which showed that caffeine could affect the athlete's performance. The majority athletes agreed that caffeine enhanced their concentration, alertness and attention level. The primary effect of caffeine on vigilance granted by most of the players. Caffeine can enhance the working capacity of players by increasing their vigilances. Results show that caffeine helped them to train longer and harder which showed its benefits between male and female athletes, especially in off-season training periodization.

The Association Between Dietary Pattern Adherence, Cognitive Stimulating Lifestyle, and Cognitive Function Among Older Adults From the Quebec Longitudinal Study on Nutrition and Successful Aging

Objectives This study examined the effect of dietary patterns and engagement in cognitive stimulating lifestyle (CSL) behaviors on the trajectory of global cognition, executive function (EF), and verbal episodic memory (VEM). Methods Western and prudent dietary patterns were empirically derived using food frequency questionnaire responses from 350 community-dwelling older adults (mean age: 73.7 years) participating in the Quebec Longitudinal Study on Nutrition and Successful Aging. CSL was represented by a binary composite indicator based on education, occupational complexity, and social engagement. Global cognition, EF, and VEM were assessed prospectively. Results Primary effect models revealed an association between higher Western dietary pattern score and a greater rate of decline in global cognition and EF. Higher Western dietary pattern adherence was also associated with poorer baseline VEM. Primary effect models also revealed that CSL was independently associated with baseline global cognition and EF. Effect modification models suggested an interactive effect between Western dietary pattern and CLS on global cognition only. No associations were found for prudent dietary pattern score. Discussion Contributing to existing research supporting the negative impact of consuming an unhealthy diet on cognitive function, the current study suggests increased vulnerability among older adults who do not engage in a CSL. These findings can inform the development of lifestyle intervention programs that target brain health in later adulthood.

Conclusion

For most evangelical executives, being an evangelical Christian in a corner office is not so much confusing or tension-filled as lonely. While the faith at work movement encourages evangelical business leaders to integrate their faith and their work, evangelical executives do not lack ways to implement their faith. Rather, they thirst for companionship and legitimation—for reassurance that their vocational choices have been sound and their time and energy well spent. Such is the primary effect of the faith at work movement for evangelical executives, the gist of whose rhetoric is to baptize business, or provide symbolic justification of business as a sacred enterprise. Eager indeed to integrate faith and work, for them, integration works in reverse. Evangelical business leaders are as likely to export business concepts into other contexts as to import religious concepts into the corporate domain, prompting reconsideration of the direction of influence between religious and economic life.

Association of Exercise with Inhibitory Control and Prefrontal Brain Activity Under Acute Psychosocial Stress

Psychosocial stress has negative effects on cognition in adolescents. The aim of this study was to investigate whether physical exercise can buffer such effects on inhibitory control and associated cortical brain areas. Forty-two male high school students aged 16–20 years and with either low or high exercise levels performed a Stroop task under stress-free conditions and after the Trier Social Stress Test (TSST). Oxygenation of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) was measured with functional near-infrared spectroscopy. For inhibitory control, there was no significant primary effect of condition (F(1,40) = 1.09, p = 303., ηp² = 0.027) and no significant condition × group interaction (F(1,40) = 2.40, p = 0.129, ηp² = 0.057). For DLPFC oxygenation, a significant primary effect of condition was observed (F (1,38) = 6.10, p = 0.018, ηp² = 0.138). However, the condition × group interaction (F (1,38) = 0.05, p = 0.823, ηp² = 0.001) remained not significant. Adolescents’ exercise level was not associated with inhibitory control before and after stress. An impact of stress on a neurocognitive level was observed.

The Effect of the #MeToo Movement on Political Engagement and Ambition in 2018

Conventional wisdom holds that the #MeToo movement increased awareness of sexual harassment and drove sympathizers, particularly women, to increased participation in the 2018 midterm elections. In this paper, we assess whether #MeToo increased awareness of sexual harassment, as well as whether #MeToo increased self-reported interest in various forms of political participation. Using an original dataset from October 2018, we find that although the #MeToo movement increased awareness and concern about sexual harassment and sexual assault, it did not affect interest in political participation among most Americans. We also find that the people most likely to report being aware of and mobilized by the movement were Democrats, those with high levels of political interest, and those who have personally experienced sexual harassment in professional settings. Surprisingly, in most of our models, women were no more likely to report that #MeToo increased their interest in participating than men. The results suggest that the primary effect of #MeToo may have been increasing the salience of sexual harassment and interest in political participation in 2018 among those who possessed the resources to participate and who were ideologically predisposed to support the movement’s goals from the beginning.

Stalking z perspektywy sprawcy i ofiary

Stalking as a crime has been punishable under Polish law since 2011. Etymologic-ally, the term comes from the word “to stalk” — tracking. The criminal perpetrator of the crime violates the social order by violating its rules, motivated by the desire to take control of the victim. The basis of the stalker’s causative actions are usually strong emo-tions such as love, hate or revenge. The victim is a person who most often has or had a personal relationship with the perpetrator, for example a former partner who ended the relationship. The primary effect on the victim’s psyche is fear, anxiety, and a sense of danger, followed by mental disorders and even death by murder or suicide. The feeling of social disorder occurs on both the perpetrator’s and victim’s side. The phenomenon of stalking is plastic, because depends on the boundaries set by norms and values recognized in society.