Most Popular Books by Eric Thomas

The beaches of Jeju are beautiful, epic, and . . . full of shoes.

Additional characters and organizations for use in the CARBON GREY Roleplaying Game.

Neutrophils are thought to cause tissue damage following hemorrhagic shock. The initial injury resulting from trauma can initiate a cascade of events leading to a non-specific inflammatory response. This inflammatory response results in the priming of neutrophils, which, upon activation by a secondary stimulus, release their armament of cytotoxic substances indiscriminately. This results in tissue damage away from the initial insult. The renin-angiotensin system and its major signaling molecule angiotensin II (angll) play an important role in stimulating mesenteric vasoconstriction and ischemia which is thought to be a key step in provoking the systemic inflammatory response. Evidence for a stimulatory effect of angll directly on neutrophils suggests that it might play an additional role in the inflammatory response following trauma. In this study, I planned to confirm results obtained in other labs which have implicated angll as a stimulator of ROS production and CD11b up regulation. Rat neutrophils were isolated and incubated with angll, fMLP, PMA, or losartan followed by angll. Reactive oxygen species production was quantified using dihydrorhodamine 123 oxidation to fluorescent rhodamine 123, and the effects of angll on CD11b expression were detected using FITC conjugated anti-CD11b antibodies. The mean fluorescent intensity of rhodamine 123 and FITC was measured using flow cytometry. Angiotensin II at concentrations of 500 nM, 1 nM, and 500 pM stimulated increased expression of CD11b but had no effect on ROS production. This data confirms the effect of angll on CD11b expression, but contradicts previous findings by others in regards to the effect on ROS production. Despite the lack of ROS production, stimulation of increased CD11b expression still implicates angll as a molecule capable of modulating neutrophil function (CD11b is a pivotal player in neutrophil mediated tissue damage). Combined with its established vacular effects and evidence that angll concentrations can remain elevated several days after traumatic insult, the observed CD11b elevation adds to the data suggesting that angll might be an important target for therapeutic intervention in the prevention of MODS.

Pi-Conjugated polymers and small molecules are useful for their semiconductor properties in organic electronic devices such as organic photovoltaics, light emitting diodes, and thin film transistors. They also find application in chemical detection for their high sensitivity to fluorescence quenching species. Described herein are the syntheses of two new electron deficient monomer units for polymers and small molecules. 5-acetyl-1,3-dibromo-4H- cyclopenta[c]thiophene-4,6(5H)-dione was synthesized for the first time. It can be conveniently polymerized by Stille coupling to form polymers initially insoluble in common solvents, which can be rendered soluble by deprotonation with various organic amines. Solutions in methanol are highly fluorescent and show strong quenching when exposed to Ni2+ and Cu2+. Additionally, films can be cast from chloroform or dichlorobenzene solutions with triethylamine. New polymers and small molecules based on the recently reported thiophene substituted isoindigo were also synthesized and employed in photovoltaic devices reaching a maximum of 3.75 % power conversion efficiency, the highest yet reported for this unit. Also discussed is a series of low band gap small molecule semiconductors incorporating two diketopyrrolopyrrole units and their photovoltaic applications. The best power conversion efficiency for a molecule in this series was 2.22 %.

We have made systematic studies of rubidium (Rb) number density and polarization with the purpose of comparing a variety of techniques used to make these measurements. We have used five different temperatures, 40°C to 100°C in 15° increments, to compare number density measurements made using optical absorption with those made using Faraday rotation. A diode laser operating in the region near the Rb D1 transition was used in the case of the former, while for the latter two different lasers were used, one each operating in the vicinity of the Rb D1 and D2 transitions. These number density results are compared with those obtained from vapor temperature formulae (e.g., Killian, CRC, etc.). We have also made a systematic study of Rb optical pumping using an amplified tunable diode laser which has been incrementally broadened in order to determine the effect of linewidth broadening on Rb polarization. We vary the frequency of the circularly-polarized pump laser across the D1 transition absorption profile for each of four linewidths (0.01, 0.5, 2, and 8 GHz) and measure the Rb polarization using Faraday rotation. The Rb number density for these measurements is on the order of 1012 cm-3, with 1 Torr of N2 as the buffer gas. These results are then compared with polarization measurements taken using a re-pump laser operating near the Rb D2 transition, and with theoretical calculations of the rubidium polarization.

In October 2019, Houston Rockets General Manager tweeted in support of the Hong Kong Protests. The tweet was met with outrage by the Chinese government and many Chinese fans. After calling the tweet "regrettable" the NBA then found itself under fire in the United States for seeming to have bowed to Chinese censorship demands. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver must now decide how to balance the league''s business interests in the Chinese market with support for free expression.

Poetry- Adult content.Warning: A few pages within this 360 page volume includes profanity.

Vocabulary is a realm within the realm we live in; a combination of endless codes, each combination offers entry into a new dimension and escape from repetition of daily lifestyle. This book contains figurative words, slang, metaphors, entendres, ambiguities, sarcasm, etc., while the viewpoints of many different characters are depicted; portrayed, described and delivered in a volume of poetry that defines brevity: clear and concise; expressing much in few words. No long and overdrawn explanations. Factual information has been formatted for easy reference; nearly each page contains footnotes and text boxes with words, definitions, and reference information. Dialects of English have been incorporated into this volume. Every odd page has been custom-margined for comfort so the reader does not have to wrench the book open to get to the text. All poetry is alphabetized and all poetry titles are listed and page numbered in the index. Much time and effort was put into the layout of the interior. 8.5 x 11 Bright white paper. 360 pages: over 280 poems. Gloss finish paperback cover (in color): grayscale interior. All text is plain, simple and easy to read. Most of the poetry is in 16pt. and all footnotes are in 11pt. text. Prepared to appeal to diverse groups of every social class and contains many categories: history, romance, science, comedy, mystery, drama, horror, fiction and non-fiction, adventure, youth and old age, nature (wildlife and botanical names; descriptions and definitions). As much thought went into what to include in this book as what to not include. Within just over two years, I have worked full time as well as weekends and holidays to produce over 300 poems with reference information. I included approximately 284 poems in this volume. Poetry has been an obsession of mine while I race for my goal to become an acoustical artist/guitarist within the realm of the music industry. While I intend to bring these lyrics to life in the future, I welcome other musicians to incorporate them into song. This book is introduced for enjoyment, the simple beauty of friendship, entertainment in general, and for educational purposes. All footnotes and text boxes contain information from a variety of dictionaries and internet sources. Dictionary.com and Wikipedia.com have been most helpful regarding the words and definitions in this book. Definitions from internet sources have been compared to hardcopy desk references and slightly modified or shortened before publishing because the Poetry of the Author is the focal point. Wikipedia.com has proven to be a great resource for reference, provides links for further investigation pertaining to in depth study of a specific word or topic, and provides source information to further reading which may provide leads to other sources of information regarding origin. All poetry is original work of the Author.

Neurofibromatosis type 2 (NF2) is an autosomal dominant cancer predisposition in which loss of heterozygosity at the NF2 gene locus leads to the development of tumors of neural crest derived origin, most commonly bilateral vestibular schwannomas. There are currently no FDA approved chemotherapeutic agents for treatment in patients with NF2. Development of therapeutic agents has been hampered by our incomplete knowledge of how Merlin, the protein product of the NF2 gene, functions as a tumor suppressor. In order develop a deeper understanding for how loss of Merlin leads to oncogenic transformation in Schwann cells we have developed a genetically engineered mouse model (GEMM) of Neurofibromatosis Type 2 in which functional expression of Merlin is lost in Schwann cell precursors. In parallel studies utilizing these mice, we have sought to understand the pathophysiology driving tumor formation in Merlin deficient Schwann cells. In Chapter 1, we explore the role of Merlin as a negative regulator of the Group A p21 activated kinases, PAK1 and PAK2. We demonstrate that PAK1, a previously well established oncogene in solid tumors and Merlin binding partner, is hyperactivated in Merlin deficient schwannomas. Through therapeutic interventions and genetic manipulations we demonstrate that inhibition of PAK1 was capable of reducing tumor formation and alleviating sensorineural hearing loss in our NF2 GEMM. In Chapter 2, we investigate the role of NF-kB inducing kinase (NIK) and NF-kB signaling in the formation and growth of Merlin deficient Schwann cell tumors. Prior work in our lab as well as by others demonstrated elevated NF-kB signaling in Merlin deficient Schwann cell tumors. We observed accumulation of a catalytically active fragment of NF-kB inducing kinase and present data that accumulation of a 55Kd constitutively active fragment of NIK is sufficient trigger wild type Schwann cells to form tumors. In vivo however, Schwann cell intrinsic expression of NIK is not required for tumor formation or growth.

Canadian hunting regulations for migratory game birds are reviewed annually with input from the provinces and territories and a range of other interested stakeholders. Migratory Birds Regulations in Canada, issued in July, summarizes the hunting regulations for the upcoming 2007-2008 hunting season. This report also includes information on 2007 breeding population surveys, American black duck harvest strategy, management of overabundant snow geese, band encounter reporting on the Web, Environment Canada and Canada Post hunting permit sales, the wildlife habitat conservation stamp, and updates to migratory birds regulations.--Includes text from document.