Potentialities of proteinoids for nutritional investigation

Simultaneous synthesis of amino acids and proteinoid production for nutritional investigatio

Simulation of organismic morphology and behavior by synthetic poly-alpha-amino acids

Simulation of organismic morphology and behavior by synthetic poly-amino acid

Internal transcribed spacer dimorphism and diversity in Dientamoeba fragilis.

The internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region of the ribosomal RNA operon is frequently used for detecting sequence variation among closely related species as it is usually homogeneous within strains but evolves more rapidly than ribosomal RNA coding regions. We have studied this region in both genotypes of the human intestinal parasite Dientamoeba fragilis. In contrast to most organisms, we have identified extensive variation between copies of the sequence within the same strain. The ITS occurs in 2 major forms in each genotype but additional heterogeneity is also present within each form. The significance of this finding is unclear, but the only precedent for such variation is in the Apicomplexa, which have multiple dispersed ribosomal RNA operons in contrast to the tandem arrays found in most other eukaryotes

Bad apples in bad barrels revisited: Cognitive moral development, just world beliefs, rewards, and ethical decision-making

In this study, we test the interactive effect on ethical decision-making of (1) personal characteristics, and (2) personal expectancies based on perceptions of organizational rewards and punishments. Personal characteristics studied were cognitive moral development and belief in a just world. Using an in-basket simulation, we found that exposure to reward system information influenced managers' outcome expectancies. Further, outcome expectancies and belief in a just world interacted with managers' cognitive moral development to influence managers' ethical decision-making. In particular, low-cognitive moral development managers who expected that their organization condoned unethical behavior made less ethical decisions while high cognitive moral development managers became more ethical in this environment. Low cognitive moral development managers also behaved less ethically when their belief in a just world was high

Electron-phonon coupling in the conventional superconductor YNi2_2B2_2C at high phonon energies studied by time-of-flight neutron spectroscopy

We report an inelastic neutron scattering investigation of phonons with energies up to 159 meV in the conventional superconductor YNi$_2$B$_2$C. Using the SWEEP mode, a newly developed time-of-flight technique involving the continuous rotation of a single crystal specimen, allowed us to measure a four dimensional volume in (Q,E) space and, thus, determine the dispersion surface and linewidths of the $A_{1g}$ (~ 102 meV) and $A_u$ (~ 159 meV) type phonon modes for the whole Brillouin zone. Despite of having linewidths of $\Gamma = 10 meV$, $A_{1g}$ modes do not strongly contribute to the total electron-phonon coupling constant $\lambda$. However, experimental linewidths show a remarkable agreement with ab-initio calculations over the complete phonon energy range demonstrating the accuracy of such calculations in a rare comparison to a comprehensive experimental data set.Comment: accepted for publication in PR

WISEA J114724.10-204021.3: A Free-Floating Planetary Mass Member of the TW Hya Association

We present WISEA J114724.10−204021.3, a young, low-mass, high probability member of the TW Hya association. WISEA J114724.10−204021.3 was discovered based on its red AllWISE color (W1−W2 = 0.63 mag) and extremely red 2MASS J−K_S color (> 2.64 mag), the latter of which is confirmed with near-infrared photometry from the VISTA Hemisphere Survey (J−K_S = 2.57±0.03). Follow-up near-infrared spectroscopy shows a spectral type of L7 ± 1 as well as several spectroscopic indicators of youth. These include a peaked H-band shape and a steeper K-band slope, traits typically attributed to low surface gravity. The sky position, proper motion, and distance estimates of WISEA J114724.10−204021.3 are all consistent with membership in the ∼10 Myr old TW Hya association. Using the age of the TW Hya association and evolutionary models, we estimate the mass of WISEA J114724.10−204021.3 to be 5−13 M_(Jup), making it one of the youngest and lowest mass free-floating objects yet discovered in the Solar neighborhood