Drew University

When designing a chemical process, the local balance of transport and kinetics, collectively referred to as the diffuse microenvironment, plays a critical role in performance but is difficult to directly observe. This work demonstrates a method of two-dimensional spatial chemical mapping of the diffuse microenvironment in the context of alkali metal hydroxide direct air capture of carbon dioxide using a custom operando gas-absorption flow cell along with confocal Raman spectroscopy. Notably, we observe the concentration boundary layer near the gas-liquid interface and elucidate the interplay of carbonate and bicarbonate ions within it while inferring local hydroxide depletion through continuum modeling. These first of their kind observations provide a technique to compare the performance of direct air capture solvents based on diffuse microenvironment dynamics while also providing metrics important for air contactor design such as boundary layer thickness. Overall, this work showcases a new experimental platform to study interfacial diffuse microenvironments in and outside of the field of direct air capture of carbon dioxide.

Abstract As same-sex marriage has become legal in many places, churches have struggled with their response. Authorized rites for all couples for both lifelong covenants and marriage are available in a few Anglican Provinces, but many others still limit the church’s pastoral response to same-sex couples. This chapter argues that, while broad changes in cultural understanding regarding marriage are the primary factor in acceptance and authorization of same-sex marriage in many Anglican Provinces, there is a developmental pattern in the Book of Common Prayer in Provinces such as the Episcopal Church (U.S.) that has aided in adopting a more inclusive theology of marriage as well as new and adapted rites in places where marriage equality is available.

Combretastatin A-1 and A-4, cis -stilbenes, have been involved in numerous anticancer clinical trials and have received orphan drug designation from the FDA. The Wittig synthesis yielded 90 % of the cis -isomer of A-1. This study examines the cis -selectivity of stilbenes observed with mono-, di-, and trisubstituted benzaldehydes and phosphonium bromides. Substituents considered include alkoxy, alkyl, halo, and trifluoromethyls. In mono-substituted systems, a C-2 methoxy or C-2 bromo-benzaldehyde combined with an unsubstituted phosphorane typically results in approximately 70 % cis -stilbene, while bulky alkoxy groups reverses the selectivity. The 2,2′-disubstituted stilbene system, featuring C-2 substituents on both the benzaldehyde and the benzyl phosphorane, achieves 90–96 % cis -selectivity, with steric bulk at C-2 on either or both reactants increases selectivity, even at ambient temperature. These findings indicate that steric factors primarily influence the high selectivity, not the electronic effects. For highly substituted combretastatin-type stilbene systems, 2,3,4-trialkoxybenzaldehyde determines cis -selectivity, and symmetrical 3,4,5-trimethoxy benzyl phosphorane enhances this effect. Additionally, 2-methoxy-5-iodo benzaldehyde alone governs the cis -selectivity regardless of benzyl phosphoranes used. In this case, the high cis -selectivity appears to result mainly from the iodo group, although the specific mechanism is not fully understood. These results are exemplified with 54 examples. • Synthesis of combretastatin class of stilbenes, 54 examples, • ortho – ortho steric directed high cis -selectivity. • Di- and tri-alkoxy-aldehyde directed high cis -selectivity. • Steric factors show opposite effect in selectivity in mono versus disubstituted stilbenes. • High selectivity achieved even at ambient temperature.

The origin of kidney stones is multifactorial, involving a complex interplay of genetic, metabolic, and environmental factors. This review aims to detail the relationship between the molecular pathogenesis of kidney stone disease and the impact diet can have on stone formation and patient outcomes. Diet is an important part of managing kidney stones at a molecular level. Oxalate can be absorbed from the diet through the digestive system into the urine where calcium and oxalate can combine to form stones. Evidence supports that low dietary calcium contributes to first time and recurrent stones, and high dietary sodium elevates the risk of calcium stone formation. Diets high in animal protein cause high levels of urinary uric acid and calcium and low levels of urinary citrate. Low urine pH favors uric acid stone development, and fructose increases serum and urinary uric acid levels. Alternatively, consuming fruits and vegetables raises urinary pH and citrate excretion. Adequate hydration also dilutes urinary solutes and reduces supersaturation. Potassium citrate, magnesium, and calcium supplementation are thought to prevent stone formation. Diet and adequate hydration can manipulate the pathogenesis of stones to prevent recurrence and improve patient outcomes. Calcium oxalate stones are the most common, followed by calcium phosphate, uric acid, struvite, and cystine stones. By aligning nutritional interventions with stone type and metabolic profile, healthcare providers can offer non-invasive methods for improving outcomes.

Abstract Eco-religious studies, also known as the study of religion, nature and culture, or ‘religion and ecology’, examines the role of religious and spiritual texts, traditions, worldviews, ethics, practices and movements in shaping human perceptions of, and interactions with, non-human others and our shared environs. This chapter gives an overview of the formation and development of this multidisciplinary and cross-cultural field from the early 1990s, in conjunction with the rise of faith-based environmental activism. We highlight the place of religion and religious studies in the critique of anthropocentrism and the role of religious organisations and ideas in the emergence of concerns around (gender-, class-, race-, and/or species-based) environmental injustice. We proceed to outline the key methods, questions and concepts in eco-religious studies, noting points of tension arising from different disciplinary approaches, discourses, and matters of primary concern. In the final section, we point to some new directions in the field relating to biodiversity conservation, climate change and religion and ecology in the Global South.

Combretastatin A-1 and A-4, cis-stilbenes, have been involved in numerous anticancer clinical trials and have received orphan drug designation from the FDA. The Wittig synthesis yielded 90% of the cis-isomer of A-1. This study examines the cis-selectivity of stilbenes observed with mono-, di-, and trisubstituted benzaldehydes and phosphonium bromides. Substituents considered include alkoxy, alkyl, halo, and trifluoromethyls. In mono-substituted systems, a C-2 methoxy or C-2 bromo-benzaldehyde combined with an unsubstituted phosphorane typically results in approximately 70% cis-stilbene, while bulky alkoxy groups reverses the selectivity. The 2,2’-disubstituted stilbene system, featuring C-2 substituents on both the benzaldehyde and the benzyl phosphorane, achieves 90–96% cis-selectivity, with steric bulk at C-2 on either or both reactants increase selectivity, even at the ambient temperature. These findings indicate that the steric factors primarily influence the high selectivity, not the electronic effects. For highly substituted combretastatin-type stilbene systems, 2,3,4-trialkoxybenzaldehyde determines cis-selectivity, and symmetrical 3,4,5-trimethoxy benzyl phosphorane enhances this effect. Additionally, 2-methoxy-5-iodo benzaldehyde alone governs the cis-selectivity regardless of benzyl phosphoranes used. In this case, the high cis-selectivity appears to result mainly from the iodo group, although the specific mechanism in not fully understood. These results are exemplified with 54 examples.

The transformer architecture has triggered groundbreaking works in multimodal vision and language (V+L). This article offers brief look into the two main modeling paradigms—generative and discriminative—from their roots in natural language processing (NLP) specifically generative pre-trained transformer (GPT) and bidirectional encoder representations from transformers (BERT), respectively. The core ideas of these two paradigms are then examined to show how they have been modified to handle V+L tasks, resulting in different architectural paths and pre-training methods. The paradigms are also surveyed by core dimensions, analyzing the challenges along the path from distributed paradigms to unified models (e.g., model hallucination, limited evaluation capability and scalability). This work aims to provide a well-organized and clear view on how V+L modeling has evolved and possibly evolved into for researchers as well as practitioners.