The Politics of Culture and the Culture of Politics: Examining the Role of Politics and Diplomacy in Cultural Property Disputes

This paper constitutes the first systematic attempt to synthesise the role of politics as an affecting dynamic during the negotiation of cultural property disputes. The paper limits its scope to disputes concerning the ownership of cultural artefacts between States and museums settled through negotiation and to the subsequent claims for the return of the contested objects. The discussion focuses on four ways in which the negotiation process is affected when States act as claimants including: the discourse and argumentation used, the available means to pressure the other party to negotiate, the possible political interventions and the international political scene and its effect on the development of the dispute. Through the examination of multiple case studies, it is argued that in such disputes, several elements related to the role of politics are at interplay affecting the evolution of the negotiation process. Finally, it is also argued that the role of politics as an affecting dynamic during the negotiation process is multidimensional, consisting of many different interrelated dynamics that can potentially alter the course of the process

Exploring the experiences of non-statutory homeless individuals who engaged in an Adventure Therapy intervention

It has been suggested that homeless people might struggle with access to accommodation, health services and experience poor mental health. Although housing support is suggested to be the most important service-provision, it has been recommended that integrated approaches, incorporating both housing and psychosocial support, are required. Nevertheless, there is limited research exploring therapeutic interventions for homeless people. This study focuses on experiences of individuals experiencing ‘non-statutory’ homelessness with self-reported mental health difficulties who were living in supported hostel accommodation and had engaged in an Adventure Therapy intervention. Semi-structured interviews with the use of use of Repertory-grid Technique were carried out with seven participants. Transcripts were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Three master themes were identified: 1) Respite from negative experiences of homelessness; 2) Empowerment in relation to developing a sense of purpose and increased perceived self-efficacy; and 3) Changed Worldviews in relation to themselves and others. Participants’ reported development of a community which provided a holding environment to meet their expressed support and psychological healthcare needs. The psychological implications of this study points towards therapeutic interventions which involve meaningful activities, encourage contact with the natural environment, provide a space of emotional containment and develop a sense of community as a means of improving sense of wellbeing

Cholesterol and LDL receptors in ubiquinone treated primary hepatocytes and HepG2 cells -

Thesis. M.Sc. American University of Beirut. Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics 2014. W 4 R564ch 2014Advisor: Dr. Julnar Usta, Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics ; Co-advisor: Dr. Pascale Karam, Assistant Professor, Department of pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, AUBMC- Associate-Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics, AUB; Committee members: Dr. Firas Kobeissy, Assistant Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 72-83)Cholesterol is a vital component of cell membranes and a precursor of many biomolecules: cholesterol esters, steroid hormones and bile acids. Its synthesis involves the intermediate mevalonic acid (MVA) which serves also as a precursor for isoprenoids, dolichol and ubiquinone (UQ). UQ is a lipid soluble molecule that mediates the transfer of electrons in the respiratory chain. The role of its antioxidant property in enhancing mitochondrial function and in reducing LDL oxidation has been reported. In this study, we investigate the possible role of UQ in regulating MVA pathway and subsequently cholesterol level. Two types of ubiquinones were used UQ1 and the naturally occurring UQ10. Isolated rat primary rat hepatocytes and HepG2 were pre-treated with UQ1 (25 and 50 µM) and UQ10 (50µM) followed by addition of 2-14C MVA (for 24 hours), bypassing thus the HMGCoA reductase catalyzed step. Lipids were then extracted (Bligh and Dyer), evaporated, and separated by Thin Layer Chromatography using Heptane-Ethyl acetate as solvent system. The radioactivity incorporated into each of cholesterol, lanosterol, squalene and UQ10 was counted (Cpm) and were normalized to inorganic phosphate. Expression of LDL receptor in UQ1 and UQ10 treated cells was also examined using immuno-staining and western blotting. The effect of different inhibitors of MVA pathway in the presence or absence of UQ1-UQ10 was also examined. These include HMGCoA Reductase (Statin-50µM); Farnesyl-geranylgeranyl transferase (FPT-I-47µM); 4-hydroxybenzoate polyprenyl transferase (Bacitracin-50µM). Our results showed a significant decrease in the radioactivity incorporated into cholesterol in both UQ1 and UQ10 treated cells, whereas it increased in lanosterol and squalene. UQ1 exhibited a more potent effect than UQ10 while it increased the incorporation of radioactivity in UQ10. Level of labeled cholesterol did not change in mevastatin treated primary hepatocytes while it decreased in HepG2 treated cells. Mevastatin co-treatment w

Multiscale Discrete Dislocation Dynamics Plasticity

The Discrete Dislocation (DD) analysis and its computional modeling have been advanced significantly over the past decade. This progress has been further magnified by the idea to couple DD with continuum mechanics analysis in association with computational algorithms such as finite elements. This coupling may pave the way to better understanding of the local response of materials at the micro scale and globally at the macroscale, increasing the potential for future applications in material, mechanical, structural and process engineering analyses.Comment: 44 pages, 9 figures in pd

Search for new phenomena in final states with an energetic jet and large missing transverse momentum in pp collisions at √ s = 8 TeV with the ATLAS detector

Results of a search for new phenomena in final states with an energetic jet and large missing transverse momentum are reported. The search uses 20.3 fb−1 of √ s = 8 TeV data collected in 2012 with the ATLAS detector at the LHC. Events are required to have at least one jet with pT > 120 GeV and no leptons. Nine signal regions are considered with increasing missing transverse momentum requirements between Emiss T > 150 GeV and Emiss T > 700 GeV. Good agreement is observed between the number of events in data and Standard Model expectations. The results are translated into exclusion limits on models with either large extra spatial dimensions, pair production of weakly interacting dark matter candidates, or production of very light gravitinos in a gauge-mediated supersymmetric model. In addition, limits on the production of an invisibly decaying Higgs-like boson leading to similar topologies in the final state are presente

Search for direct stau production in events with two hadronic tau-leptons in root s=13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for the direct production of the supersymmetric partners ofτ-leptons (staus) in final stateswith two hadronically decayingτ-leptons is presented. The analysis uses a dataset of pp collisions corresponding to an integrated luminosity of139fb−1, recorded with the ATLAS detector at the LargeHadron Collider at a center-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. No significant deviation from the expected StandardModel background is observed. Limits are derived in scenarios of direct production of stau pairs with eachstau decaying into the stable lightest neutralino and oneτ-lepton in simplified models where the two staumass eigenstates are degenerate. Stau masses from 120 GeV to 390 GeV are excluded at 95% confidencelevel for a massless lightest neutralino

Search for chargino-neutralino production with mass splittings near the electroweak scale in three-lepton final states in √s=13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for supersymmetry through the pair production of electroweakinos with mass splittings near the electroweak scale and decaying via on-shell W and Z bosons is presented for a three-lepton final state. The analyzed proton-proton collision data taken at a center-of-mass energy of √s=13  TeV were collected between 2015 and 2018 by the ATLAS experiment at the Large Hadron Collider, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139  fb−1. A search, emulating the recursive jigsaw reconstruction technique with easily reproducible laboratory-frame variables, is performed. The two excesses observed in the 2015–2016 data recursive jigsaw analysis in the low-mass three-lepton phase space are reproduced. Results with the full data set are in agreement with the Standard Model expectations. They are interpreted to set exclusion limits at the 95% confidence level on simplified models of chargino-neutralino pair production for masses up to 345 GeV

Elucidation Of The Molecular Mechanisms Of Orthosiphon Aristatus Extract In Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common form of liver disease, beginning with simple hepatic steatosis and potentially leading to hepatic inflammation, fibrosis, and cirrhosis. Despite extensive research on NAFLD, there is no approved standard therapy for it as of now. Natural agents could potentially serve as alternative or supportive therapeutic options. Orthosiphon aristatus (Blume) Miq, a traditional plant in Southeast Asia, holds promise due to its potential to mitigate obesity and hyperglycaemic conditions. A plethora of chemical constituents in the ethanolic extract of O. aristatus (EOA) have been identified in previous studies, underscoring its potent antioxidant properties and broad ethnopharmacological usage. This study evaluated the potential anti-NAFLD effects of the EOA using a variety of in vitro, in vivo, and in silico methods. This included feeding C57BL/6 mice a high-fat diet, inducing multilineage 3D spheroids of HepG2 and LX-2 cells using palmitic-oleic acid induced-NAFLD, and employing various bioinformatics tools, such as molecular docking, to identify the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties of the bioactive compounds of the EOA. Our findings identified 20 bioactive compounds corresponding to 45 potential NAFLD-related targets. Mice fed with the standardized EOA (400 mg/kg) for eight weeks showed inhibited NAFLD progression. Significant reductions in liver enzymes such as alanine aminotransferase and aspartate transaminase, as well as serum levels of glucose, insulin, total cholesterol, triglycerides, and low-density lipoprotein were observed