Wind energy\u27s bycatch: Offshore wind deployment impacts on hydropower operation and migratory fish

Hydropower plays a key role in maintaining grid reliability, but there is uncertainty regarding the ecological implications of using hydropower to balance variability from high penetration of intermittent renewable resources, such as solar and wind. Hydropower can offer advantages at the macro-ecological level (e.g., reduced greenhouse gas emissions), however it may have significant environmental impact on a local level (e.g., increased risk to fish species during migration and breeding periods). Using the New England region as a case study, we use an electricity model to estimate how hydropower operation changes as offshore wind capacity increases at a system level. We then tie alterations in hydropower energy production to local impacts on riverine ecosystems and the lifecycle of migratory fish. We find that increasing offshore wind capacity from 1600 to 10,000 MW more than doubles the average hourly hydropower ramping need and the associated river flowrate during April. This increased flowrate aligns with the migration timing of the lone endangered fish species on the Connecticut River, the shortnose sturgeon. Alternatively, the majority of months in which hydropower operation is most strongly impacted by the addition of offshore wind capacity do not coincide with key fish lifecycle events. Other sustainability benefits, including reduced air pollution and water consumption, can be achieved through deployments of offshore wind. Our results suggest that in order to balance global (i.e., CO2 mitigation) and local (i.e., fish migration) environmental issues, a portfolio of solutions is needed to address grid integration of renewables

First-Generation Vulnerabilities, Gender, and Help-Seeking

There are large inequalities in who successfully navigates higher education. In this undergraduate thesis project, I explore the ways in which gender may mitigate or exacerbate first-generation student familial background inequalities by examining student help-seeking behavior. What specifically are the vulnerabilities first-generation students experience, and how, if at all, do gendered dynamics shape first-generation response strategies in higher education? My data were collected and are drawn from a longitudinal and semi-structured interviewing across four years with 62 first-generation college students at Midwestern University. The results point to academic, social and financial challenges faced by first-generation students across their college years and a few key differences in help-seeking. First, female first-generation students are more likely to communicate mental health issues and family tension as challenges in college. And secondly, female first-generation students help-seeked sooner when confronted with a challenge, in contrast to male students, who waited longer. However, female first-generation students also describe difficulty in finding successful help-seeking strategies. Finally, I discuss implications for first-generation integration and success in higher education.No embargoAcademic Major: Sociolog

Je vlog donc je suis : analyse multimodale de la performance des vloggers gais, lesbiennes et bisexuel.les

Le vlog (aussi appelé « vidéo-blog ») a connu une hausse de popularité spectaculaire ces dernières années, notamment sur YouTube. La nature intime de cet assemblage multimodal donne un statut particulier aux vloggers, celui d’un.e ami.e, mais également celui d’un.e mentor.e. Au travers d’une analyse des profils et des vidéos de quatre créateur.ices de contenu qui s’identifient comme gais, lesbiennes et bisexuel.les, je tente de répondre à la question suivante : Comment les vloggers lesbiennes, gais et bisexuel.les mobilisent-illes les différents modes du vlog dans leurs performances et dans leurs interactions avec l’audience ? Pour cela, j’emprunte une perspective de l’interactionnisme symbolique, des concepts de l’analyse multimodale et des outils des études culturelles. Ce travail de recherche traite de la performance de l’identité sexuelle dans les vlogs, de l’utilisation des différents modes dans la création de sens, ainsi que de la relation qui se crée entre les vloggers et leurs audiences.Video blogs, or “vlogs” as they’ve come to be known, have experienced an incredible increase in popularity over the last few years. Offering us an intimate insight into their lives, vloggers create a particular relationship with their audience acting sometimes as a friend and other times as a mentor. This research uses a symbolic interactionist perspective, as well as concepts and tools from multimodal analysis and cultural studies to analyse the profiles and videos of 4 vloggers who identify as gay, lesbian, or bisexual. This paper will discuss the importance of sexual identity and the ways it is performed in the vlogs, how different modes are used in the process of sense-making, and the relationship between vloggers and their audiences

Cinnamon Use in Type 2 Diabetes: An Updated Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

PURPOSE Cinnamon has been studied in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) for its glycemic-lowering effects, but studies have been small and show conflicting results. A prior meta-analysis did not show significant results, but several RCTs have been published since then. We conducted an updated systematic review and meta-analysis of RCTs evaluating cinnamon’s effect on glycemia and lipid levels. METHODS MEDLINE, Embase, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) were searched through February 2012. Included RCTs evaluated cinnamon compared with control in patients with type 2 diabetes and reported at least one of the following: glycated hemoglobin (A1c), fasting plasma glucose, total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), or triglycerides. Weighted mean differences (with 95% confidence intervals) for endpoints were calculated using random-effects models. RESULTS In a meta-analysis of 10 RCTs (n = 543 patients), cinnamon doses of 120 mg/d to 6 g/d for 4 to 18 weeks reduced levels of fasting plasma glucose (−24.59 mg/dL; 95% CI, −40.52 to −8.67 mg/dL), total cholesterol (−15.60 mg/dL; 95% CI, −29.76 to −1.44 mg/dL), LDL-C (−9.42 mg/dL; 95% CI, −17.21 to −1.63 mg/dL), and triglycerides (−29.59 mg/dL; 95% CI, −48.27 to −10.91 mg/dL). Cinnamon also increased levels of HDL-C (1.66 mg/dL; 95% CI, 1.09 to 2.24 mg/dL). No significant effect on hemoglobin A1c levels (−0.16%; 95%, CI −0.39% to 0.02%) was seen. High degrees of heterogeneity were present for all analyses except HDL-C (I2 ranging from 66.5% to 94.72%). CONCLUSIONS The consumption of cinnamon is associated with a statistically significant decrease in levels of fasting plasma glucose, total cholesterol, LDL-C, and triglyceride levels, and an increase in HDL-C levels; however, no significant effect on hemoglobin A1c was found. The high degree of heterogeneity may limit the ability to apply these results to patient care, because the preferred dose and duration of therapy are unclear

Metabolic Roles of Uncultivated Bacterioplankton Lineages in the Northern Gulf of Mexico "Dead Zone".

This is the final version of the article. Available from American Society for Microbiology via the DOI in this record.Marine regions that have seasonal to long-term low dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations, sometimes called "dead zones," are increasing in number and severity around the globe with deleterious effects on ecology and economics. One of the largest of these coastal dead zones occurs on the continental shelf of the northern Gulf of Mexico (nGOM), which results from eutrophication-enhanced bacterioplankton respiration and strong seasonal stratification. Previous research in this dead zone revealed the presence of multiple cosmopolitan bacterioplankton lineages that have eluded cultivation, and thus their metabolic roles in this ecosystem remain unknown. We used a coupled shotgun metagenomic and metatranscriptomic approach to determine the metabolic potential of Marine Group II Euryarchaeota, SAR406, and SAR202. We recovered multiple high-quality, nearly complete genomes from all three groups as well as candidate phyla usually associated with anoxic environments-Parcubacteria (OD1) and Peregrinibacteria Two additional groups with putative assignments to ACD39 and PAUC34f supplement the metabolic contributions by uncultivated taxa. Our results indicate active metabolism in all groups, including prevalent aerobic respiration, with concurrent expression of genes for nitrate reduction in SAR406 and SAR202, and dissimilatory nitrite reduction to ammonia and sulfur reduction by SAR406. We also report a variety of active heterotrophic carbon processing mechanisms, including degradation of complex carbohydrate compounds by SAR406, SAR202, ACD39, and PAUC34f. Together, these data help constrain the metabolic contributions from uncultivated groups in the nGOM during periods of low DO and suggest roles for these organisms in the breakdown of complex organic matter.IMPORTANCE Dead zones receive their name primarily from the reduction of eukaryotic macrobiota (demersal fish, shrimp, etc.) that are also key coastal fisheries. Excess nutrients contributed from anthropogenic activity such as fertilizer runoff result in algal blooms and therefore ample new carbon for aerobic microbial metabolism. Combined with strong stratification, microbial respiration reduces oxygen in shelf bottom waters to levels unfit for many animals (termed hypoxia). The nGOM shelf remains one of the largest eutrophication-driven hypoxic zones in the world, yet despite its potential as a model study system, the microbial metabolisms underlying and resulting from this phenomenon-many of which occur in bacterioplankton from poorly understood lineages-have received only preliminary study. Our work details the metabolic potential and gene expression activity for uncultivated lineages across several low DO sites in the nGOM, improving our understanding of the active biogeochemical cycling mediated by these "microbial dark matter" taxa during hypoxia

The Grizzly, March 29, 2012

Airband Benefits Crime Victims Center • Blues Writer Sharon Bridgforth Reads Work • Gilmore Visits Berman Art Museum • UC Recyclemania Holds Green Day Carnival • Alabama Civil Rights Trip was Living History for Students • Rosati Embraces Opportunity at Frederick Living • Greek Week in Progress, Helps to Unite UC Sororities and Fraternities • Opinion: Trayvon Martin Case is a Wake-Up Call • Ursinus Celebrates St. Patrick\u27s Weekend • Player Spotlight: Amanda Laurito, Track and Field • Rugby Continues Building Tradition • Senior Spotlight: Jeff Ocampo, Men\u27s Lacrossehttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/grizzlynews/1856/thumbnail.jp

Early mortality and loss to follow-up in HIV-infected children starting antiretroviral therapy in Southern Africa.

BACKGROUND: Many HIV-infected children in Southern Africa have been started on antiretroviral therapy (ART), but loss to follow up (LTFU) can be substantial. We analyzed mortality in children retained in care and in all children starting ART, taking LTFU into account. PATIENTS AND METHODS: Children who started ART before the age of 16 years in 10 ART programs in South Africa, Malawi, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe were included. Risk factors for death in the first year of ART were identified in Weibull models. A meta-analytic approach was used to estimate cumulative mortality at 1 year. RESULTS: Eight thousand two hundred twenty-five children (median age 49 months, median CD4 cell percent 11.6%) were included; 391 (4.8%) died and 523 (7.0%) were LTFU in the first year. Mortality at 1 year was 4.5% [95% confidence interval (CI): 2.8% to 7.4%] in children remaining in care, but 8.7% (5.4% to 12.1%) at the program level, after taking mortality in children and LTFU into account. Factors associated with mortality in children remaining in care included age [adjusted hazard ratio (HR) 0.37; 95% CI: 0.25 to 0.54 comparing > or =120 months with <18 months], CD4 cell percent (HR: 0.56; 95% CI: 0.39 to 0.78 comparing > or =20% with <10%), and clinical stage (HR: 0.12; 95% CI: 0.03 to 0.45 comparing World Health Organization stage I with III/IV). CONCLUSIONS: In children starting ART and remaining in care in Southern Africa mortality at 1 year is <5% but almost twice as high at the program level, when taking LTFU into account. Age, CD4 percentage, and clinical stage are important predictors of mortality at the individual level

Corticosterone Potentiation of Cocaine-Induced Reinstatement of Conditioned Place Preference in Mice is Mediated by Blockade of the Organic Cation Transporter 3

The mechanisms by which stressful life events increase the risk of relapse in recovering cocaine addicts are not well understood. We previously reported that stress, via elevated corticosterone, potentiates cocaine-primed reinstatement of cocaine seeking following self-administration in rats and that this potentiation appears to involve corticosterone-induced blockade of dopamine clearance via the organic cation transporter 3 (OCT3). In the present study, we use a conditioned place preference/reinstatement paradigm in mice to directly test the hypothesis that corticosterone potentiates cocaine-primed reinstatement by blockade of OCT3. Consistent with our findings following self-administration in rats, pretreatment of male C57/BL6 mice with corticosterone (using a dose that reproduced stress-level plasma concentrations) potentiated cocaine-primed reinstatement of extinguished cocaine-induced conditioned place preference. Corticosterone failed to re-establish extinguished preference alone but produced a leftward shift in the dose–response curve for cocaine-primed reinstatement. A similar potentiating effect was observed upon pretreatment of mice with the non-glucocorticoid OCT3 blocker, normetanephrine. To determine the role of OCT3 blockade in these effects, we examined the abilities of corticosterone and normetanephrine to potentiate cocaine-primed reinstatement in OCT3-deficient and wild-type mice. Conditioned place preference, extinction and reinstatement of extinguished preference in response to low-dose cocaine administration did not differ between genotypes. However, corticosterone and normetanephrine failed to potentiate cocaine-primed reinstatement in OCT3-deficient mice. Together, these data provide the first direct evidence that the interaction of corticosterone with OCT3 mediates corticosterone effects on drug-seeking behavior and establish OCT3 function as an important determinant of susceptibility to cocaine use

The Grizzly, February 16, 2012

Professor Debuts A Bright Swarm of Beetles • SPINTfest Offers Alternative Housing Options • S.U.N.\u27s Poetry Slam Entertains with a Variety of Guests • Commencement Awards to be Chosen by Students • UC Roller Hockey Program is Looking to Expand and Improve with New Recruits • UC Students Aid Spring-Ford School District after Tragic Suicide • Neuman Interns as Education Coordinator in Lancaster, PA • Opinion: Valentine\u27s Day Hype is Overblown; Celebrate February 14 Regardless of Relationship Status • Coach Profile: Joe Groff, Women\u27s Volleyball • Senior Spotlight: Lindsay Teuber, Women\u27s Basketball • Senior Wrestlers Exemplify Leadership, Excellencehttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/grizzlynews/1852/thumbnail.jp

The Grizzly, April 19, 2012

Berman Director Announces Departure • Lantern Celebrates 81 Years • McGown to Join Math Department • Professors Host Facebook Discussion in New Hall • Ursinus Students Promote Autism Awareness • Passion for Historical Reenactments • Hon. Richard Murphy Addressed Campus • Meerbergen Co-Leads Therapy Sessions in Pottstown • Opinion: Obama Will Need Help Come November; New York City Isn\u27t All It\u27s Cracked Up to Be • Class of 2012 Athletes Leave Holes to Fill • Field Hockey: Heading to Hollandhttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/grizzlynews/1859/thumbnail.jp