Digital Commons Network^™

The 2006 Nescent Phyloinformatics Hackathon: A Field Report, Hilmar Lapp, Sendu Bala, James P. Balhoff, Amy Bouck, Naohisa Goto, Mark Holder, Richard Holland, Alisha Holloway, Toshiaki Katayama, Paul O. Lewis, Aaron J. Mackey, Brian I. Osborne, William H. Piel, Sergei L. Kosakovsky Pond, Art F.Y. Poon, Wei-Gang Qiu, Jason E. Stajich, Arlin Stoltzfus, Tobias Thierer, Albert J. Vilella

Publications and Research

In December, 2006, a group of 26 software developers from some of the most widely used life science programming toolkits and phylogenetic software projects converged on Durham, North Carolina, for a Phyloinformatics Hackathon, an intense five-day collaborative software coding event sponsored by the National Evolutionary Synthesis Center (NESCent). The goal was to help researchers to integrate multiple phylogenetic software tools into automated workflows. Participants addressed deficiencies in interoperability between programs by implementing “glue code” and improving support for phylogenetic data exchange standards (particularly NEXUS) across the toolkits. The work was guided by use-cases compiled in advance by both developers and …

Fish Gelatin-Nanoclay Composite Film. Mechanical And Physical Properties, Effect Of Enzyme Cross-Linking, And As A Functional Film Layer, Hojae Bae

All Dissertations

The effect of clay content, homogenization RPM, and pH on the mechanical and barrier properties of fish gelatin/nanoclay composite films was investigated. The addition of clay increased the tensile strength (TS) from 30.31±2.37 MPa to 40.71±3.30 MPa. The nanoclay composite film had improved oxygen and water barrier properties when compared to neat fish gelatin film. Oxygen permeability decreased from 0.0004028±0.0000007 gm/m2dayatm to 0.0001144±0.0000162 gm/m2dayatm and the water vapor permeability decreased from 0.0312±0.0016 ngm/m2sPa to 0.0081±0.0001 ngm/m2sPa. The Small angle x-ray scattering (SAXS) and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) observations confirmed that the ultrasonification treatment (30 min at 40% output) resulted in …

The Statesman, V. 51, I. 27, Stony Brook University

Stony Brook Statesman-Sucolian

v. 51, i. 27

The Daily Egyptian, December 13, 2007, Daily Egyptian Staff

December 2007

No abstract provided.

The Weekly Challenger, December 13, 2007, The Weekly Challenger, Et Al

Weekly Challenger Newspaper Collection

The December 13, 2007, issue of The Weekly Challenger.

The Hidden Impact Of A Criminal Conviction: A Brief Overview Of Collateral Consequences In Alaska, Deborah Periman

UAAJC Occasional Papers

Collateral consequences, a term used in this paper to refer generally to the effect of any measure that might increase the negative consequences of a criminal conviction, fall roughly into three categories: impaired access to, or enjoyment of, the ordinary rights and benefits associated with citizenship or residency, such as voting or driving; impaired economic opportunity, primarily through reduction of the range of available employment; and increased severity of sanctions in any subsequent criminal proceeding brought against the offender. These indirect but significant consequences of a felony or misdemeanor conviction are receiving increasing attention from policy makers, ethicists, and the …

Laboratory Evaluation Of Microbial Aggregation In Activated Sludge, Xiaoling Liu

All Theses

Microbial aggregation was investigated in this study using the activated sludge process as a model system, the performance of which is highly dependent on effective bioaggregation. This research includes two experiments. First, four laboratory-scale activated sludge sequencing batch reactors (SBRs) were constructed in order to evaluate the effect of solids retention time (SRT) on microbial aggregation. These SBRs were operated at SRT of 4, 8, 16, and 32 days, respectively, fed with a protein-based synthetic wastewater, and monitored over a period of 268 days for performance and sludge settling characteristics including soluble COD in the effluent (sCOD), sludge volume index …

Effects Of Time-Compressed Audio And Adjunct Images On Learner Recall, Recognition, And Satisfaction, Albert Dieter Ritzhaupt

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of time-compressed narration and representational adjunct images on undergraduate college students' 1) ability to recall and recognize information in a multimedia learning environment, and 2) overall satisfaction with this type of learning environment. The goals of this research were to shed light on time-compression technology incorporated into multimedia learning environments, help fill the existing gap in the research literature by merging two disjoint bodies of research, and aid instructors and instructional designers to better understand time-compression technology while creating rigorous multimedia materials.

This research was guided by the underlying principles …

Public Health Campaigns To Change Industry Practices That Damage Health: An Analysis Of 12 Case Studies, Nicholas Freudenberg, Sarah Picard Bradley, Monica Serrano

Publications and Research

Industry practices such as advertising, production of unsafe products, and efforts to defeat health legislation play a major role in current patterns of U.S. ill health. Changing these practices may be a promising strategy to promote health. The authors analyze 12 campaigns designed to modify the health-related practices of U.S. corporations in the alcohol, automobile, food and beverage, firearms, pharmaceutical, and tobacco industries. The objectives are to examine the interactions between advocacy campaigns and industry opponents; explore the roles of government, researchers, and media; and identify characteristics of campaigns that are effective in changing health-damaging practices. The authors compared campaigns …

The Murray Ledger And Times, December 12, 2007, The Murray Ledger And Times

The Murray Ledger & Times

No abstract provided.

December 12th 2007, Hispanic News

Inland Empire Hispanic News

No abstract provided.

Perceptions Of Dyspnea, Physical Activity, And Functional Status In Obese Women, Donna Althea Jewell

Dissertations

PURPOSE: King's Theory of Goal Attainment guided this study exploring the physical sensation of dyspnea that obese women feel and how it affects their functioning. BACKGROUND AND SIGNIFICANCE: Obesity prevalence has doubled since 1980. Current research is investigating how to reduce prevalence and examining obesity's impact on the respiratory system. Little research was found that investigated the impact obesity has on routine activities because of dyspena and function and whether physical activity has a mitigating effect. METHODS: A comparative descriptive research design was used. A survey of dyspnea felt during routine activities was created; IRB approval to survey community-dwelling women …

State Income Tax Deduction For Dietary Supplements And Certain Foods. Statute.

Initiatives

Allows medical expense deductions on state income tax returns for costs of dietary supplements and food for special dietary needs. Dietary supplements include tablets, capsules, powder, and measured doses of liquid that contain vitamins, minerals, herbs, amino acids, or dietary substances, but do not include conventional food products. Foods for special dietary needs are those consumed due to a medical condition, for supplementing the diet, or as the sole item of the diet. Medical condition includes disease, pregnancy, lactation, infancy, food allergy, overweight and underweight. Summary of estimate by Legislative Analyst and Director of Finance of fiscal impact on state …

Improving Human Health With Beef Products, Marilynn Schnepf

Range Beef Cow Symposium

The optimum diet for humans has been the subject of much debate ever since it was discovered in the nineteenth century that certain nutrients in food were essential for human health. Nutrition science is a relatively young science with new information being presented about the role that foods and the nutrients they contain play in human health. The connection between the foods we eat and overall health is becoming more evident. The role that meat and specifically beef plays in our diets continues to be a topic of interest among the public as well as nutrition researchers. The purpose of …

Colorado Homestead Ranches – Our Success Story: How Do We Sell Branded Beef Direct To The Consumer, Robbie Baird Levalley, Dawn D. Thilmany, Dale Dexter, Jim Ayer, Susan Ayer, Karl And Joetta Burns, Jess, Lynda, Calvin, Tracy, And Chad Campbell, Steve And Wendy Kossler, Mark, Hank, And Robbie Levalley, Mark And Jody Roeber, Norm And Susan Smith

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Colorado Homestead Ranches (CHR) markets natural beef, pork and lamb direct to Western Slope consumers. CHR is a partnership of six ranches that own their own USDA packing plant, a wildgame processing facility, and two storefronts. CHR markets direct to consumers via retail and farmers markets, restaurants, and wholesale distributors. CHR produces and markets value added sausage, jerky, meat sticks, and ready to cook entrees. The current strategic position of CHR is marketing of a niche, differentiated line of beef products, targeted at consumers who want a consistent quality product, raised on Colorado ranches, with natural production practices.

Cow Condition And Reproductive Performance, Julie Walker, George Perry

Range Beef Cow Symposium

It has been understood for decades that reproductive performance is the most important factor affecting production efficiency of a cow-calf enterprise. To maintain a yearly calving interval (one calf every 365 days), a cow must re-breed in 80 to 85 days after calving. With the nutrient priority of beef cattle being body maintenance, growth, lactation, fetal growth, breeding, and body reserve according to Short et al. (1990) indicates that reproduction is low on the list. Body condition score at parturition has been implicated as the single most important factor affecting postpartum interval to estrus and pregnancy in multiparous cows.

Why Did We Change To June Calving?, Paul D. Redd

Range Beef Cow Symposium

We finally admitted we were violating our own principles, for 50 years we have said:
We believe it makes good cow sense to:
1- Use yearling bulls
2- Sell the old bull
3- Buy only top end performance bulls
4- Buy the best bulls you can find.
5- Take advantage of hybrid vigor
6- Don’t buy fat bulls
7- Make Mother Nature your partner. Build a cow herd adapted to work efficiently in your country (your environment). Keep those good producing cows that wean a good calf every year. Cull the cows that don’t pull their weight.
8- Select four …

Benefits Of Weaning Calves At Younger Than Traditional Ages, Trey Patterson

Range Beef Cow Symposium

The term “Early Weaning” tends to be used rather loosely in the Beef Industry, and producers can find many articles claiming benefits of early weaning. A few questions arise. How early is early weaning? Is there economic benefit to weaning early? We will address these questions in this paper.

At the Range Beef Cow Symposium XIV, Whittier (1995) categorized early weaning as 1) weaning before the start of the breeding season (birth to 90 days) or 2) weaning during the breeding season (90 to 160 days). Weaning calves before the start of the breeding season has shown to improve reproductive …

Successful Ai And Synchronization Secrets: It’S In The Details, G. Cliff Lamb

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Estrous synchronization and artificial insemination (AI) are reproductive management tools that have been available to beef producers for over 30 years. Synchronization of the estrous cycle has the potential to shorten the calving season, increase calf uniformity, and enhance the possibilities for utilizing AI. Artificial insemination allows producers the opportunity to infuse superior genetics into their operations at costs far below the cost of purchasing a herd sire of similar standards. These tools remain the most important and widely applicable reproductive biotechnologies available for beef cattle operations (Seidel, 1995). However, beef producers have been slow to utilize or adopt these …

Heifer Development – Then And Now, Richard N. Funston, Jeremy Martin, Andy Roberts

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Studies in numerous species provide evidence that diet during development can partially control physiological changes necessary for puberty (Frisch, 1984). Energy balance or plane of nutrition influences reproductive performance in heifers and cows (Short and Adams, 1988; Butler and Smith, 1989; Swanson, 1989; Randel, 1990; Robinson, 1990). Numerous studies have reported inverse correlations between post-weaning growth rate and age at puberty (Wiltbank et al., 1966, 1969, 1985; Short and Bellows, 1971; Arije and Wiltbank, 1971; Ferrell, 1982), and pregnancy rates in heifers were shown to be dependent upon the number displaying estrus prior to or early in the breeding season …

Nutrition During Gestation And Fetal Programming, K. A. Vonnahme

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Historically, considerable efforts have been made to understand how nutrition impacts health and productivity during the postnatal period. While maternal nutrition during pregnancy plays an essential role in proper fetal and placental development, less is known about how maternal nutrition impacts the health and productivity of the offspring. Indeed, the prenatal growth trajectory is sensitive to the direct and indirect effects of maternal dietary intake from the earliest stages of embryonic life when the nutrient requirements for conceptus growth are negligible (Robinson et al., 1977). Not only is neonatal health compromised, but the subsequent health may be “programmed” as offspring …

Preparing Calves For The Feedlot, Daniel U. Thomson

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Evidence based medicine is a balancing act between data and experience (Apley and Thomson, 2003). Decision making with just experience and no data has been termed “wizardry.” This would be similar as to saying we used drug A last year and they all died. This year we used drug B and they all lived. Great! Scientists and statisticians need not apply to work in this environment. The friendly drug representative that sells drug B is the expert. Paralyzed indecision is using only data with no experience to make decisions. This is the art of trying to fix problems from a …

The Immune System And Recovery From Sickness In Cattle, Gordon W. Brumbaugh

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Ideally, all diseases could be prevented and beef animals on-feed would finish healthy and with the highest quality of meat. That isn’t realistic for most diseases. In spite the best efforts, some animals will become sick and require treatment. Calves with bovine respiratory disease (BRD) that required more than one treatment had decreased quality of meat and economic returns than did calves that did not develop BRD or responded after one treatment. (Hicks, 2006; McNeill, 1999; Wagner, et al., 2006) Calf-hood diseases in heifer calves had measurable effects on maternal performance for several years. (Waltner-Toews et al., 1986; van der …

I. Basic Principles Used In The “Sandhills Calving System” And How They Apply To Other Production Environments, David R. Smith

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Diarrhea is one of the most likely reasons young beef calves become sick or die.(45) Besides its detriment to calf health and well-being, calf scours is costly to cattle producers due to poor calf performance, death, and the expense of medications and labor to treat sick calves. (3, 41) In addition, catching and treating young calves puts herd owners and their employees at risk of injury, and many producers become disheartened after investing long hours to treat scouring calves during an already exhausting calving season.

Calf scours is a complex disease, with many interrelated causes.(1, 2, 37) Agent, host, and …

Delivery Of Supplements Of Rangelands, Kenneth C. Olson, Adele Harty

Range Beef Cow Symposium

Supplementation of cows grazing rangelands is often beneficial to overcome nutrient deficiencies or imbalances. However, supplemental feeds and their delivery to the cow herd are expenses and thus supplementation decisions should be carefully made to ensure that costs are minimized and benefits in terms of cow performance exceed supplementation costs. When supplementing cows, there are questions that producers should ask themselves to determine the best management practices to provide the most cost effective supplement program for their operation. The first among these is the type of supplement to be provided in terms of whether it will provide the correct nutrient …

Creating Value And Preserving Margin With Commercial Cows, Jim Lerwick

Range Beef Cow Symposium

If the object of the game is to do what one enjoys while making outstanding margin, we in the cow business have enjoyed one of the greatest opportunities in decades. Even though drought has made it an unequal distribution, and disease and politics have added considerable confusion, turning grass and other feed stuffs into marketable calves has been good. We have had challenges to enhance value for specific markets with new technologies. We have seen our aged cow and bull markets influenced heavily by border issues as well as premium meat markets disrupted by embargos and restrictions. Feed price has …

A Developmental Cycle Masks Output From The Circadian Oscillator Under Conditions Of Choline Deficiency In Neurospora, Mi Shi, Luis F. Larrondo, Jennifer J. Loros, Jay C. Dunlap

Dartmouth Scholarship

In Neurospora, metabolic oscillators coexist with the circadian transcriptional/translational feedback loop governed by the FRQ (Frequency) and WC (White Collar) proteins. One of these, a choline deficiency oscillator (CDO) observed in chol-1 mutants grown under choline starvation, drives an uncompensated long-period developmental cycle ( approximately 60-120 h). To assess possible contributions of this metabolic oscillator to the circadian system, molecular and physiological rhythms were followed in liquid culture under choline starvation, but these only confirmed that an oscillator with a normal circadian period length can run under choline starvation. This finding suggested that long-period developmental cycles elicited by nutritional stress …

The Bg News December 11, 2007, Bowling Green State University

BG News (Student Newspaper)

The BGSU campus student newspaper. December 11, 2007. Volume 98-Issue 75.

Risk Characterization For Boron And Aquatic Plants And Animals, Basma Damiri

All Theses

In aqueous mixtures, boron can be toxic to plants or animals at relatively low concentrations. Boron may occur at concentrations that can pose risk to plants used in constructed wetland treatment systems designed to treat constituents of concerned in a complex matrix such as flue gas desulfurization water and boron may adversely affect survival, growth, and consequently, plant performance. The three major objectives of this research are: 1) to measure responses of Typha latifolia (seed germination and root and shoot elongation) and Schoenoplectus californicus early seedlings (survival, and shoot and root elongation) to aqueous exposures of boron in diluted FGD …

Minutes December 10, 2007

Minutes

No abstract provided.