Looking for Trouble: Preventive Genomic Sequencing in the General Population and the Role of Patient Choice

Advances in genomics have led to calls for developing population-based preventive genomic sequencing (PGS) programs with the goal of identifying genetic health risks in adults without known risk factors. One critical issue for minimizing the harms and maximizing the benefits of PGS is determining the kind and degree of control individuals should have over the generation, use, and handling of their genomic information. In this article we examine whether PGS programs should offer individuals the opportunity to selectively opt out of the sequencing or analysis of specific genomic conditions (the menu approach) or whether PGS should be implemented using an all-or-nothing panel approach. We conclude that any responsible scale-up of PGS will require a menu approach that may seem impractical to some, but that draws its justification from a rich mix of normative, legal, and practical considerations.     

Turning students into scholars: using digital methods to teach the critical study of religion

Incorporating digital tools into Religious Studies courses provides experiences and conditions that transform students into scholars. In this essay we discuss two courses we taught in conjunction with the Religious Soundmap Project of the Global Midwest, a collaborative digital humanities project that we co-directed from 2014 to 2016. Engaging students as contributors to a collaborative digital research project helped them to appreciate some of the key practical, theoretical, and ethical challenges that we face as scholars of religion. In particular, our work together brought to the fore critical questions about definition, classification, and representation. Even more, because they knew their work would be accessible to broader audiences outside the classroom, potentially including the very communities whom they were studying, students were able to perceive the stakes of these questions in ways we had not previously experienced. Incorporating digital tools enabled our students to see themselves as scholars of religion.     

Potential mapping of ZnO by off-axis electron holography

Off-axis electron holography has been used to map the electric potential derived from the spontaneous polarity in a ZnO film. A wedge-shaped ZnO film, in which the holograms and the object wave were reconstructed, was used. To interpret the phase image correctly, the reconstructed amplitude image was used to obtain information on the thickness, which was then applied to eliminate the thickness effect on the phase shift. The electric potential distribution was characterized and the polarity of the ZnO film determined.     

Dielectric relaxation in ternary systems of alcohols and nitriles in benzene at microwave frequency

The permittivity and the dielectric loss of ternary mixtures of equimolar concentrations of m-cresol, o-cresol with acetonitrile, acrylonitrile and benzonitrile in benzene have been measured at 8.33 GHz and 308 K. The distribution parameter α, the most probable relaxation time τ, the relaxation time for overall rotation of the molecule τ(1), the relaxation time for group rotation τ(2), and the excess dipole moment for various systems have been calculated by the Cole-Cole and Higasi methods. Data has been analyzed in terms of two-relaxation processes: overall rotation and group rotation.     

Scaling of stacking fault energy and deformation temperature on strain hardening of FCC metals and alloys

The strain-hardening behaviour of metals and alloys are significantly affected by the dynamic recovery process, the rate of which can be increased by increases in deformation temperature and/or stacking fault energy (SFE). In the present work, the decay slope of the strain-hardening rate with flow stress as a function of both temperature and stacking fault energy is quantitatively evaluated for several face-centered cubic metals and alloys. A universal and quantitative approach to the scaling of the effects of temperature and stacking fault energy on strain-hardening behaviour is developed, which could be useful for predicting deformation behaviour or for material design.     

Electrical properties of thin films of a-Ga x Te100− x composed of nanoparticles

Thin films of Ga _x Te_{100? x} (x?=?3, 6, 9 and 12) have been synthesized by thermal evaporation. From SEM images, it is observed that all the films contain nanoparticles of sizes varying from 100 to 200?nm. The dc electrical conductivity of the as-deposited films of Ga _x Te_100?x nanoparticles is measured as a function of temperature range from 298 to 383?K, and increases exponentially with temperature. The value of the activation energy, calculated from the slope of ln?σ _dc versus 1000/T plots, is found to decrease with increase in the Ga content. On the basis of the value of the pre-exponential factor σ _o, it is suggested that the conduction is due to thermally assisted tunneling of carriers in localized states near the band edges. The optical measurements suggest an indirect optical band gap in this system. The value of the optical band gap decreases on increasing the Ga concentration.     

Midgap photon effects in As2S3 glass

Photo-induced phenomena in glasses excited by two-photon absorption have been studied and compared with those produced by bandgap illumination. The two-photon excitation of As₂S₃ gives a refractive-index increase, unaccompanied by photodarkening. Raman-scattering spectra show that the excitation increases the density of ‘wrong’ bonds. These observations are discussed and compared with photo-induced changes in SiO₂.     

The evolution of consciousness as a self‐organizing information system in the society of other such systems

The evolution of consciousness is seen in the context of energy driven evolution in general in which energy and information, or the in‐forming of complex structure, are seen as two sides of the same coin. From this perspective consciousness is viewed as an ecological system in which streams of cognitive, perceptual, and emotional information form a rich complex of interactions, analogous to the interactive metabolism of a living cell. The result is an organic, self‐generating, or autopoietic, system, continuously in the act of creating itself. Evidence suggests that this process is chaotic, or at least chaotic‐like, and capable of assuming a number of distinct states best understood as chaotic attractors. Such systems do not exist in isolation, but function most normally in hypercomplex attractor patterns termed societies.     

The personal life of the behavior analyst

The human species faces crises of critical proportions. Excessive population, global warming, and the anticipated descent from peak fossil-fuel extraction promise to change our future in far-reaching ways. Operant conditioning prepares the individual for a world similar to the selecting past, but our world is changing more rapidly than our adaptation. As individuals, we cannot make substantial changes in the world at large because we do not control enough reinforcers, but we can turn to the sources of our personal behavior and manipulate them. We will need help. Better organized social networks and the self-management techniques they support can promote immediate changes in consumption at home, work, and moving about in our personal worlds. Surprisingly, consuming less can lead to more satisfying and happier lives, but a better understanding of reinforcement contingencies is necessary. We can recover the strengthening effects of personal daily accomplishments that are eroded when conditioned generalized reinforcers intervene. When we get our own personal lives in order we can reduce our carbon footprints, restore the connections between our behavior and its strengthening effects, and become models worthy of imitation.     

临床药学生人文教育现状与反思

为了探讨临床药学生人文课程设置必要性,为临床药学专业建设提出建议,考察了临床药师人文素质情况,分析临床药学专业课程设置。结果显示,临床药师在实际工作中表现出人文底蕴不足,且对自身人文素质并不满意,我国临床药学专业人文课程设置不理想,因此,临床药学生需加强人文素质培养,人文课程设置十分重要。