The cytoskeleton, the system of protein filaments that permeate the cytoplasmic space of all eukaryotic cells, is primarily responsible for the structural integrity exhibited by a cell and determines its deformation in response to a given stress. This fibrous matrix is instrumental to a wide variety of essential cell functions ranging from migration to adhesion to mitosis to mechanotransduction...

We describe an efficient technique for measuring the effective interaction potential for pairs of colloidal particles. The particles to be tested are confined in an extended optical trap, also known as a line tweezer, that is projected with the holographic optical trapping technique. Their diffusion along the line reflects not only their intrinsic interactions with each other, but also the infl...

Global fits to precision cosmological data which show that there is a dark energy component comprising about 2/3 of the total cosmological energy also hint that a dark energy with w = P/ρ < −1 is viable, even favored. Here we discuss implications of such a surprising w, including whether it jeopardizes vacuum stability. It appears to be secure in microscopic processes, but why bulk dark energy ...

African Americans remain substantially less likely than other physicians to hold academic appointments. The roots of these disparities stem from different extrinsic and intrinsic forces that guide career development. Efforts to ameliorate African American underrepresentation in academic medicine have traditionally focused on modifying structural and extrinsic barriers through undergraduate and ...

After a short review of the arguments for the existence of Particle Dark Matter in the Universe, I list the most plausible candidates provided by particle physics, i.e. neutrinos, axions, and WIMPs. In each case I briefly describe how to estimate the relic density, and discuss attempts at detecting these particles. At the end I discuss my personal favorite, the lightest supersymmetric particle,...

In July 2014, Sweden’s full crisis response system engaged in a major operation as a small forest fire spun out of control, turning into the largest forest fire in Sweden in modern times. A number of investigations have been undertaken to understand the course of the fire and identify lessons for future crisis management. This paper presents one approach to identifying such lessons, the lessons...

Dark matter is presumably made of some new, exotic particle that appears in extensions of the Standard Model. After giving a brief overview of some popular candidates, I discuss in more detail the most appealing case of the supersymmetric neutralino.

In this review article, the traditional viewpoint of how neurulation occurs is evaluated in light of recent advances. This has led to the formulation of the following fundamentals: (1) neurulation, specifically neural plate shaping and bending, is a multifactorial process resulting from forces both intrinsic and extrinsic to the neural plate; (2) neurulation is driven by both changes in neuroep...

BACKGROUND Limb movements are generally driven by active muscular contractions working with and against passive forces arising in muscles and other structures. In relatively heavy limbs, the effects of gravity and inertia predominate, whereas in lighter limbs, passive forces intrinsic to the limb are of greater consequence. The roles of passive forces generated by muscles and tendons are well u...