In the modern world, alien rulers are generally perceived to lack legitimacy. Political legitimacy is important because it is thought to be the principal alternative to coercive institutions. Little empirical evidence supports these claims, however. We devise a laboratory experiment that isolates alienness from other ruler characteristics. The experiment tests whether alien rulers have less legitimacy than native rulers, and whether the ability to punish compensates for this disadvantage. Using American and Israeli college student samples, we find that alien rulers receive less compliance than native rulers, and that the ability to punish does not allow alien rulers to "catch-up" with native rulers.
The life-review experience (LRE) is a most intriguing mental phenomenon that fascinated humans from time immemorial. In LRE one sees vividly a succession of one's own life-events. While reports of LRE are abundant in the medical, psychological and popular literature, not much is known about LRE's cognitive and psychological basis. Moreover, while LRE is known as part of the phenomenology of near-death experience, its manifestation in the general population and in other circumstances is still to be investigated.
METHODS:
In a first step we studied the phenomenology of LRE by means of in-depth qualitative interview of 7 people who underwent full LRE. In a second step we extracted the main characters of LRE, to develop a questionnaire and an LRE-score that best reflects LRE phenomenology. This questionnaire was then run on 264 participants of diverse ages and backgrounds, and the resulted score was further subjected to statistical analyses.
RESULTS:
Qualitative analysis showed the LRE to manifest several subtypes of characteristics in terms of order, continuity, the covered period, extension to the future, valence, emotions, and perspective taking. Quantitative results in the normal population showed normal distribution of the LRE-score over participants.
CONCLUSION:
Re-experiencing one's own life-events, so-called LRE, is a phenomenon with well-defined characteristics, and its subcomponents may be also evident in healthy people. This suggests that a representation of life-events as a continuum exists in the cognitive system, and maybe further expressed in extreme conditions of psychological and physiological stress.
Although Mn2+ is the most abundant substrate of versatile peroxidases (VPs), repression of Pleurotus ostreatus vp1 expression occurred in Mn2+-sufficient medium. This seems to be a biological contradiction. The aim of this study was to explore the mechanism of direct oxidation by VP1 under Mn2+-deficient conditions, as it was found to be the predominant enzyme during fungal growth in the presence of synthetic and natural substrates. The native VP1 was purified and characterized using three substrates, Mn2+, Orange II (OII), and Reactive Black 5 (RB5), each oxidized by a different active site in the enzyme. While the pH optimum for Mn2+ oxidation is 5, the optimum pH for direct oxidation of both dyes was found to be 3. Indeed, effective in vivo decolorization occurred in media without addition of Mn2+ only under acidic conditions. We have determined that Mn2+ inhibits in vitro the direct oxidation of both OII and RB5 while RB5 stabilizes both Mn2+ and OII oxidation. Furthermore, OII was found to inhibit the oxidation of both Mn2+ and RB5. In addition, we could demonstrate that VP1 can cleave OII in two different modes. Under Mn2+-mediated oxidation conditions, VP1 was able to cleave the azo bond only in asymmetric mode, while under the optimum conditions for direct oxidation (absence of Mn2+ at pH 3) both symmetric and asymmetric cleavages occurred. We concluded that the oxidation mechanism of aromatic compounds by VP1 is controlled by Mn2+ and pH levels both in the growth medium and in the reaction mixture. IMPORTANCE VP1 is a member of the ligninolytic heme peroxidase gene family of the white rot fungus Pleurotus ostreatus and plays a fundamental role in biodegradation. This enzyme exhibits a versatile nature, as it can oxidize different substrates under altered environmental conditions. VPs are highly interesting enzymes due to the fact that they contain unique active sites that are responsible for direct oxidation of various aromatic compounds, including lignin, in addition to the well-known Mn2+ binding active site. This study demonstrates the limits of versatility of P. ostreatus VP1, which harbors multiple active sites, exhibiting a broad range of enzymatic activities, but they perform differently under distinct conditions. The versatility of P. ostreatus and its enzymes is an advantageous factor in the fungal ability to adapt to changing environments. This trait expands the possibilities for the potential utilization of P. ostreatus and other white rot fungi.
Side effects and acquired resistance by cancer cells limit the use of platinum anticancer drugs. Modification of oxaliplatin (OXA) into a lipophilic Pt(IV) complex [Pt(DACH)(OAc)(OPal)(ox)] (1), containing both lipophilic and hydrophilic axial ligands, was applied to improve performance and facilitate incorporation into polymeric nanoparticles. Complex 1 exhibited unique potency against a panel of cancer cells, including cisplatin-resistant tumor cells. [Pt(DACH)(OAc)(OPal)(ox)] incorporated nanoparticles (2) presented a mean diameter of 146 nm with encapsulation yields above 95% as determined by HPLC. Complexes 1 and 2 showed enhanced in vitro cellular Pt accumulation, DNA platination, and antiproliferative effect compared to OXA. Results of an orthotopic intraperitoneal model of metastatic ovarian cancer (SKOV-3) and a xenograft subcutaneous model of colon (HCT-116) tumor in SCID-bg mice showed that the activity of 1 and 2 significantly decreased tumor growth rates compared to control and OXA treatment groups. Consequently, these findings warrant further development toward clinical translation.
While many countries define poverty in a relative manner, whereby poverty threshold is set at 40% to 60% of median income, some countries use absolute definitions, according to which being poor implies lacking the minimum amount of income for meeting some basic living conditions, e.g. proper nutrition, shelter, physical and mental health, access to clean water, and so on. Recently conservative politicians and parties have suggested that the relative definition of poverty should be abandoned and that absolute measures should be applied. Those promoting defining poverty in relative terms answer, quite rightly, that the most important reason for sticking to the relative measure is that it is more sensitive to inequalities in society. In that sense Living in dignity in the 21st Century is timely and important as it relates to poverty and inequality as a single issue. Moreover, the authors also tie in the two with human rights as well. Therefore this book can be described as a non-neutral (although very objective) treatment of poverty, and should be of interest not only to students and researchers of poverty but also to NGOs and decision makers. It is written in a very accessible manner, and while the book is not jargon free, the authors explain all the concepts very clearly, using, among other things, comics.
Improved efficiency and cyclability of cells containing LiBr demonstrate that the appropriate choice of electrolyte solution is the key to a successful Li–O 2 battery.
This philosophical work lays the groundwork for a game-theoretic account of (romantic) love, substantiating the folk-psychological conception of love as 'a unification of souls'. It does so by setting up an appropriate universal framework of cognitive agency, that accommodates such unifications and motivates them. This framework applies the gene s eye view of evolution to the evolution of cognition, integrating it with a distributed, dynamic theory of selfhood "and the game-theoretic principles of agent-unification that govern these dynamics. The application of this framework to particular biological settings produces love as a theoretical evolutionary prediction (unveiling its rationality). Through this, the connection of the strategic normativity to love's real-life behavioral and phenomenological expressions is systematically explored.
Cognitive performance during high-stakes exams can be affected byrandom disturbances that, even if transitory, may have permanentconsequences. We evaluate this hypothesis among Israeli studentswho took a series of matriculation exams between 2000 and 2002. Exploiting variation across the same student taking multiple exams, we find that transitory PM2.5 exposure is associated with a significant decline in student performance. We then examine these students in 2010 and find that PM2.5 exposure during exams is negatively associated with postsecondary educational attainment and earnings. The results highlight how reliance on noisy signals of student quality can lead to allocative inefficiency.
This paper investigates whether the 9/11 attacks affected the assimilation rate of Muslims in the United States. Terror attacks by Islamic groups are likely to induce a backlash against Muslims, thereby raising their costs of assimilation. We find that Muslim immigrants living in states with the sharpest increase in hate crimes also exhibit: (i) greater chances of marrying within their own ethnic group; (ii) higher fertility; (iii) lower female labour force participation; and (iv) lower English proficiency. These findings shed light on the increasing use of terror and concurrent rise in social tensions surrounding Muslim immigrants in the West.
Over the last 150 years, the Paleolithic era was divided into the Lower, Middle and Upper Paleolithic. This scheme is an arbitrary research construct that confounds chronological, behavioral, and evolutionary meanings. Transitions between these discrete units, and in particular the Lower/Middle Paleolithic transition, received lesser attention. At present, the Lower/Middle Paleolithic transition is still depicted as a worldwide change from biface production to Levallois technology, similar to the way it has been perceived in the initial stages of research. Some key questions remain open for further inquiry: What changed technologically and typologically beyond those guide fossils? What is the geographical variation of this global change(s)? Did changes occur as a result of autochthonous developments in each region or by a diffusion wave (s)? What is the societal process(es) that promoted this evolutionary change? In this paper, I explore the techno-typological variations (reduction sequences and tool kits) in Europe north of the Pyrenees and how these traits pattern diachronically and spatially in the interval of MIS 9–7, the period during which the transition between Lower and Middle Paleolithic is suggested to occur. The first step will be to describe the range of behaviors that existed during each MIS. The presentation of those variants will track the decision-making processes within reduction sequences. The techno-typological variants will be studied in relation to their relative abundance within each assemblage. Then, I will attempt to estimate if observed changes in those traits resulted from a continuous processes or whether the record constitutes of segmented local histories.
Fatty liver hemorrhagic syndrome (FLHS) is a metabolic condition of chicken and other birds caused by diverse nutritional, hormonal, environmental, and metabolic factors. Here we studied the effect of different diet composition on the induction of FLHS in single comb White Leghorn (WL) Hy-line laying hens. Seventy six (76) young WL (26 wks old) laying hens and 69 old hens (84 wks old) of the same breed were each divided into 4 treatment groups and provided 4 different diet treatments. The diet treatments included: control (C), 17.5% CP, 3.5% fat (F); normal protein, high fat (HF), 17.5% CP, 7% F; low protein, normal fat (LP), 13% CP, 3.5% F; and low protein, high fat (LPHF), 13% CP, 6.5% F. The diets containing high fat also had a higher ME of 3,000 kcal/kg of feed while the other 2 diets with normal fat had a regular lower amount of ME (2750 kcal/kg). Hen-day egg production (HDEP), ADFI, BW, egg weight, plasma enzymes indicating liver damage (alkaline phosphatase [ALP], aspartate aminotransferase [AST], gamma-glutamyl transferase [GGT]), liver and abdominal fat weight, liver color score (LCS), liver hemorrhagic score (LHS), liver fat content (LFC), liver histological examination, lipid peroxidation product in the liver, and genes indicating liver inflammation were evaluated. HDEP, ADFI, BW, and egg weight were significantly decreased in the LPHF diet group, while egg weight was also decreased in the LP diet group. In the young hens (LPHF group), ALP was found significantly higher at 30 d of diet treatment and was numerically higher throughout the experiment, while AST was significantly higher at 105 d of treatment. LCS, LHS, and LFC were significantly higher in young hens on the LPHF diet treatment. A liver histological examination shows more lipid vacuolization in the LPHF treatment diet. HF or LP alone had no significant effect on LFC, LHS, or LCS. We suggest that LP in the diet with higher ME from fat can be a possible natural cause for predisposing laying hens to FLHS.
Fatty liver hemorrhagic syndrome (FLHS) is a metabolic condition of chicken and other birds caused by diverse nutritional, hormonal, environmental, and metabolic factors. Here we studied the effect of different diet composition on the induction of FLHS in single comb White Leghorn (WL) Hy-line laying hens. Seventy six (76) young WL (26 wks old) laying hens and 69 old hens (84 wks old) of the same breed were each divided into 4 treatment groups and provided 4 different diet treatments. The diet treatments included: control (C), 17.5% CP, 3.5% fat (F); normal protein, high fat (HF), 17.5% CP, 7% F; low protein, normal fat (LP), 13% CP, 3.5% F; and low protein, high fat (LPHF), 13% CP, 6.5% F. The diets containing high fat also had a higher ME of 3,000 kcal/kg of feed while the other 2 diets with normal fat had a regular lower amount of ME (2750 kcal/kg). Hen-day egg production (HDEP), ADFI, BW, egg weight, plasma enzymes indicating liver damage (alkaline phosphatase [ALP], aspartate aminotransferase [AST], gamma-glutamyl transferase [GGT]), liver and abdominal fat weight, liver color score (LCS), liver hemorrhagic score (LHS), liver fat content (LFC), liver histological examination, lipid peroxidation product in the liver, and genes indicating liver inflammation were evaluated. HDEP, ADFI, BW, and egg weight were significantly decreased in the LPHF diet group, while egg weight was also decreased in the LP diet group. In the young hens (LPHF group), ALP was found significantly higher at 30 d of diet treatment and was numerically higher throughout the experiment, while AST was significantly higher at 105 d of treatment. LCS, LHS, and LFC were significantly higher in young hens on the LPHF diet treatment. A liver histological examination shows more lipid vacuolization in the LPHF treatment diet. HF or LP alone had no significant effect on LFC, LHS, or LCS. We suggest that LP in the diet with higher ME from fat can be a possible natural cause for predisposing laying hens to FLHS.
