789 research outputs found
Resilience for Multi-filter All-source Navigation Framework with Integrity
Get PDFThe Autonomous and Resilient Management of All-source Sensors (ARMAS) framework monitors residual-space test statistics across unique sensor-exclusion banks of filters, (known as subfilters) to provide a resilient, fault-resistant all-source navigation architecture with assurance. A critical assumption of this architecture, demonstrated in this paper, is fully overlapping state observability across all subfilters. All-source sensors, particularly those that only provide partial state information (altimeters, TDoA, AOB, etc.) do not intrinsically meet this requirement. This paper presents a novel method to monitor real-time overlapping position state observability and introduces an observability bank within the ARMAS framework, known as Stable Observability Monitoring (SOM). SOM uses real-time stability analysis to provide an intrinsic awareness to ARMAS of the capabilities of the fault detection and exclusion (FDE) functionality. We define the ability to maintain consistent all-source FDE to recover failed sensors as navigation resilience. A resilient FDE capability then is one that is aware of when it requires more sensor information to protect the consistency of the FDE and integrity functions from corruption. SOM is the first demonstration of such a system, for all-source sensors, that the authors are aware. A multi-agent 3D environment simulating both GNSS and position and velocity alternative navigation sensors was created and individual GNSS pseudorange sensor anomalies are utilized to demonstrate the capabilities of the novel algorithm. This paper demonstrates that SOM seamlessly integrates within the ARMAS framework, provides timely prompts to augment with new sensor information from other agents, and indicates when framework stability and preservation of all-source navigation integrity are achieved
Consumer Preferences for Cluster Raisins: A Focus Group Investigation
Get PDFThe U.S. raisin industry has experienced a decline in acreage and in number of growers in recent years. One firm is trying a novel approach to marketing raisins, namely, by marketing them still attached to the vine. This product is called cluster raisins. In order to explore consumer preferences related to cluster raisins, and to generate new product ideas and preferred marketing methods, two focus group interviews were implemented. Findings included that a young (i.e., 18 - 25 years) market segment would be a recommended target market. Also included are recommendations regarding price, packaging, and methods of increasing consumer awareness. Recommended marketing channels include specialty markets (e.g., Trader Joe's or Whole Foods) and gift baskets.Marketing,
Coyote, Canis latrans - Rio Grande Turkey, Meleagris gallopavo intermedia, Interactions
Get PDFCoyotes (Canis latrans) are widely known to be predators of Wild Turkeys (Meleagris gallopauo sspp.). We describe two observations of single Coyotes coming within 10 m of feeding Wild Turkey flocks without attempting to predate them in Stevens County, Kansas. We relate these observations to Coyote predation on turkeys and mobbing behavior
Vacuum energy in a spherically symmetric background field
Get PDFThe vacuum energy of a scalar field in a spherically symmetric background
field is considered. It is expressed through the Jost function of the
corresponding scattering problem. The renormalization is discussed in detail
and performed using the uniform asymptotic expansion of the Jost function. The
method is demonstrated in a simple explicit example.Comment: 14 pages, 1 Postscript figur
<html>Induction of Murine Intestinal Inflammation by Adoptive Transfer of Effector CD4<sup>+</sup>CD45RB<sup>high</sup> T Cells into Immunodeficient Mice</html>
Get PDFThere are many different animal models available for studying the pathogenesis of human inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), each with its own advantages and disadvantages. We describe here an experimental colitis model that is initiated by adoptive transfer of syngeneic splenic CD4+CD45RBhigh T cells into T and B cell deficient recipient mice. The CD4+CD45RBhigh T cell population that largely consists of naĂŻve effector cells is capable of inducing chronic intestinal inflammation, closely resembling key aspects of human IBD. This method can be manipulated to study aspects of disease onset and progression. Additionally it can be used to study the function of innate, adaptive, and regulatory immune cell populations, and the role of environmental exposures, i.e., the microbiota, in intestinal inflammation. In this article we illustrate the methodology for inducing colitis with a step-by-step protocol. This includes a video demonstration of key technical aspects required to successfully develop this murine model of experimental colitis for research purposes
Extreme volunteering : a holistic perspective on international women sport volunteers
Get PDFThis thesis explores the lives of a group of fifteen exceptional women who were dedicated to the cause of advancing girls and women in sport and physical activity. Over several decades, they worked in a voluntary capacity to transform women in sport through practice and policy development. Moreover, they aligned such unpaid work with personal and local experiences of volunteering that eventually led to their participation in international sport circles and policies. The key settings for their voluntary service came from their roles in the emergence and maintenance of two international womenâs sport organisations â International Association of Physical Education and Sport for Girls and Women (IAPESGW) and WomenSport International (WSI). In addition, their voluntary roles were so substantial that they were inextricably interwoven within all aspects of their lives. Therefore, the purpose of this thesis is to explore the participantsâ relationships with sport volunteering, in the particular settings of IAPESGW and WSI, whilst analysing the role of volunteering in their lives. The study utilised a holistic framework to gain an in-depth understanding about the womenâs commitment to the cause and how volunteering fits into their lifestyle. As there were no models from the sport volunteering field that were appropriate for this study, the research drew upon and developed Hustinx and Lammertynâs (2003) non-sport model called the Collective and Reflexive Styles of Volunteering (SOV). The SOV was valuable because it offered a multi-dimensional approach to explain how, why, and when the participants got involved with advancing womenâs sport and physical activity, and how their involvement related to and influenced their wider lifestyles. A critical realist and social constructionist philosophy was employed to have a greater understanding of the womenâs realities, and life history interviews were conducted to gain a greater understanding about how they constructed their knowledge about themselves, sport, and the world around them. The study illustrated the complexity of the womenâs volunteer participation. The findings suggested that their sport passion and identity guided many of their actions and activities throughout their life, such as choices for higher education and within professional work. In addition, the findings showed that it was their personal experiences and gained knowledge about gender disadvantages in sport that initially stimulated and then repeatedly reinforced their interests and commitment. Although these had strong impacts on the womenâs entrance into and commitment to the cause, the findings highlighted that the women had to identify the conditions of their relationships, family, and types of paid work to be compatible with levels of volunteering. The study concluded that sport researchers can benefit from examining volunteers from a holistic perspective to gain a better understanding of the conditions under which individuals make such an extreme, voluntary contribution to sport.EThOS - Electronic Theses Online ServiceGBUnited Kingdo
Plasma zonulin levels in childhood nephrotic syndrome
Get PDF© 2019 Trachtman, Gipson, Lemley, Troost, Faul, Morrison, Vento, Ahn and Goldberg. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms. Objective: We conducted this study to test the hypothesis that plasma zonulin levels are elevated in pediatric patients with nephrotic syndrome compared to healthy controls. Study Design: Plasma zonulin levels were measured by ELISA in 114 children enrolled in the NEPTUNE study. Clinical and laboratory data were retrieved from the NEPTUNE database. Results: The median age of the patients was 10 (IQR = 5 to 14) years, 59 were male, 64 had minimal change disease, 47 focal segmental glomerulosclerosis, median eGFR was 96 (IQR = 80 to 114) ml/min/1.73 m2, and median urine protein:creatinine ratio was 0.5 (IQR = 0.1 to 3.4) (g:g). The plasma zonulin level was 14.2 ± 5.0 vs. 10.2 ± 2.5 ng/ml in healthy adults in a report using the same assay kit, P = 0.0025. These findings were confirmed in an independent cohort of children with nephrotic syndrome compared to healthy age-matched controls, P = 0.01. Zonulin concentrations did not differ in children with minimal change disease vs. focal segmental glomerulosclerosis, frequently relapsing vs. steroid-dependent vs. steroid-resistant clinical course, and were not influenced by the immunosuppressive treatment regimen. There was no relationship between plasma zonulin levels and the absolute or percentage change in proteinuria from enrollment until the time of the zonulin assay. Conclusion: Plasma zonulin levels are elevated in childhood nephrotic syndrome regardless of level of proteinuria or specific treatment. The cause of the high plasma zonulin levels and whether zonulin contributes to glomerular injury requires further study
Text Messaging for Disease Monitoring in Childhood Nephrotic Syndrome
Get PDF© 2019 International Society of Nephrology Introduction: There is limited information on effective disease monitoring for prompt interventions in childhood nephrotic syndrome. We examined the feasibility and effectiveness of a novel text messaging system (SMS) for disease monitoring in a multicenter, prospective study. Methods: A total of 127 patients results, symptoms, and medication adherence were sent to a designated caregiver (n = 116) or adolescent patient (n = 3). Participants responded by texting. Feasibility of SMS was assessed by SMS adoption, retention, and engagement, and concordance between participant-reported results and laboratory/clinician assessments. The number of disease relapses and time-to-remission data captured by SMS were compared with data collected by conventional visits. Results: A total of 119 of 127 (94%) patients agreed to SMS monitoring. Retention rate was 94%, with a median follow-up of 360 days (interquartile range [IQR] 353â362). Overall engagement was high, with a median response rate of 87% (IQR, 68â97). Concordance between SMS-captured home urine protein results and edema status with same-day in-person study visit was excellent (kappa values 0.88 and 0.92, respectively). SMS detected a total of 108 relapse events compared with 41 events captured by scheduled visits. Median time to remission after enrollment was 22 days as captured by SMS versus 50 days as captured by scheduled visits. Conclusion: SMS was well accepted by caregivers and adolescent patients and reliably captured nephrotic syndrome disease activity between clinic visits. Additional studies are needed to explore the impact of SMS on disease outcomes
Molecular Population Structure for Feral Swine in the United States
Get PDFFeral swine (Sus scrofa) have invaded most of the United States and continue to expand throughout North America. Given the ecological and economic threats posed by increasing feral swine abundance, it is imperative to develop an understanding of their patterns of natural range expansion and human-mediated introductions. Towards this goal, we used molecular markers to elucidate the genetic structure of feral swine populations throughout the United States and evaluated the association between historical introductions and contemporary patterns of genetic organization. We used STRUCTURE and discriminant analysis of principal components (DAPC) to delineate genetic clusters for 959 individuals genotyped at 88 single nucleotide polymorphism loci. We identified 10 and 12 genetic clusters for the 2 clustering approaches, respectively. We observed strong agreement in clusters across approaches, with both describing clusters having strong geographic association at regional levels reflecting past introduction and range expansion patterns. In addition, we evaluated patterns of isolation by distance to test for and estimate spatial scaling of population structure within western, central, and eastern regions of North America. We found contrasting spatial patterns of genetic relatedness among regions, suggesting differences in the invasion process, likely as a result of regional variation in landscape heterogeneity and the influence of human mediated introductions. Our results indicate that molecular analyses of population genetic structure can provide reliable insights into the invasion processes of feral swine, thus providing a useful basis for management focused on minimizing continued range expansion by this problematic species
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