Jackson Creek Federal Navigation Project: Stove Point Placement Area Analysis Final Draft

The purpose of this study is to perform a shore assessment around Jackson Creek in order to determine what processes are affecting sedimentation in the creek mouth. In addition, the placement of sandy dredge material from Jackson Creek onto Stove Point also was to be determined. The Jackson Creek-Stove Point-Stingray Point evaluation includes an assessment of shore conditions and historic shore changes as well as a wave climate and sediment transport analysis. The product of this study is a recommendation as to the location of placement of dredge spoil for beach nourishment along the Stove Point Shoreline

Environmental Effects on Glass Fiber Reinforced Polyester and Vinylester Composites

The effects of environment on glass fiber reinforced polyester and vinylester composites immersed in liquids and in humid air were investi gated. Tests were performed at temperatures 23 C and 93 C with the materials exposed to humid air at 50 and 100 percent relative humidities, and to five different liquids: saturated salt water, No. 2 diesel fuel, lubrica ting oil, antifreeze, and indolene. Changes in weight, ultimate tensile strength, tensile modulus, short beam shear strength, and shear modulus were measured over a six month period, and the effects of the environment on these parameters were assessed.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/66642/2/10.1177_002199838001400304.pd

Chimeric Investigations into the Diamide Binding Site on the Lepidopteran Ryanodine Receptor

Alterations to amino acid residues G4946 and I4790, associated with resistance to diamide insecticides, suggests a location of diamide interaction within the pVSD voltage sensor-like domain of the insect ryanodine receptor (RyR). To further delineate the interaction site(s), targeted alterations were made within the same pVSD region on the diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella) RyR channel. The editing of five amino acid positions to match those found in the diamide insensitive skeletal RyR1 of humans (hRyR1) in order to generate a human−Plutella chimeric construct showed that these alterations strongly reduce diamide efficacy when introduced in combination but cause only minor reductions when introduced individually. It is concluded that the sites of diamide interaction on insect RyRs lie proximal to the voltage sensor-like domain of the RyR and that the main site of interaction is at residues K4700, Y4701, I4790 and S4919 in the S1 to S4 transmembrane domains

Shoreline Management Plan with Habitat Enhancement for Town of Saxis, Virginia

The goal of the present study is to identify the best course of action to manage shoreline erosion in Saxis and to provide a detailed Shoreline Management Plan with Habitat Enhancement which can be presented to potential State and Federal funding agencies. While the Plan itself will not resolve the erosion conditions in Saxis, it will allow the Town to market its need and the method of resolution of this need, to agencies and leaders with the resources to implement the Plan’s suggested actions. The shoreline management plan will provide the necessary level of shoreline stabilization while minimizing adverse impacts to estuarine habitat and providing maximum habitat enhancement opportunities. The habitats needed to fulfill the life history requirements of target species desirable for Saxis Island were emphasized in the Plan. The Plan also will present opportunities to enhance local fisheries and provide increased opportunities in eco-tourism

A first-principles study of oxygen vacancy pinning of domain walls in PbTiO3

We have investigated the interaction of oxygen vacancies and 180-degree domain walls in tetragonal PbTiO3 using density-functional theory. Our calculations indicate that the vacancies do have a lower formation energy in the domain wall than in the bulk, thereby confirming the tendency of these defects to migrate to, and pin, the domain walls. The pinning energies are reported for each of the three possible orientations of the original Ti-O-Ti bonds, and attempts to model the results with simple continuum models are discussed.Comment: 8 pages, with 3 postscript figures embedded. Uses REVTEX and epsf macros. Also available at http://www.physics.rutgers.edu/~dhv/preprints/lh_dw/index.htm

Health and social care staff responses to working with people with a learning disability who display sexual offending type behaviours

This study found that 59% of social care staff were currently supporting a client with a learning disability who had offended or displayed an offending type behaviour. The range of behaviours was similar to that displayed by clients in a secure health facility and included rape, sexual assault and exposure. Only 22.9% of social care staff had received training in this area, while none of the health stuff had. Both groups expressed low levels of confidence in supporting this client group. The areas of difficulty were common to both groups and included personal attitudes and attitudes of others to the behaviour, and concern over risk, responsibility and safety. In respect of attitudes, social care staff were found to be significantly more likely to hold negative attitudes towards the person's behaviour, while health staff were significantly more likely to feel negatively towards the person. Health staff were significantly more likely to identify training as a means of further support, while social care staff identified professional input. Both groups identified the need for theoretical training about working with this client group. Despite this no significant differences were found between those who had and had not received training and confidence, attitudes and the need for further support

Low muscularity and myosteatosis is related to the host systemic inflammatory response in patients undergoing surgery for colorectal cancer

This is an author's accepted manuscript of an article published by Wolters Kluwer Health in Annals of Surgery, available online: http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/SLA.0000000000001113 For re-use please see the publisher's terms and conditions.Objective: We examined the relationships between computed tomography (CT)-defined skeletal muscle parameters and the systemic inflammatory response (SIR) in patients with operable primary colorectal cancer (CRC). Background: Muscle depletion is characterized by a reduced muscle mass (myopenia) and increased infiltration by inter-and intramuscular fat (myosteatosis). It is recognized as a poor prognostic indicator in patients with cancer, but the underlying factors remain unclear. Methods: A total of 763 patients diagnosed with CRC undergoing elective surgical resection between 2006 and 2013 were included. Image analysis of CT scans was used to calculate Lumbar skeletal muscle index (LSMI), and mean muscle attenuation (MA). The SIR was quantified by the preoperative neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and albumin levels. Correlation and multivariate regression analysis was performed to identify independent relationships between patient SIR and muscle characteristics. Results: Patients with NLR > 3 had significantly lower LSMI and lower MA than those with NLR < 3 [LSMI = 42.07 cm2m-2 vs 44.27 cm2m-2 (P = 0.002) and MA = 30.04 Hounsfield unit (HU) vs 28.36 HU (P = 0.016)]. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that high NLR [odds ratio (OR) = 1.78 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.29-2.45), P < 0.001] and low albumin [OR = 1.80 (95% CI: 1.17-2.74), P = 0.007] were independent predictors of reduced muscle mass. High NLR was significantly related with a low mean MA and hence myosteatosis [OR = 1.60 (95% CI: 1.03-2.49), P = 0.038]. Conclusions: These results highlight a direct association between myopenia, myosteatosis, and the host SIR in patients with operable CRC. A better understanding of factors that regulate muscle changes such as myopenia and myosteatosis may lead to the development of novel therapies that influence a more metabolically "healthy" skeletal muscle and potentially alter cancer outcomes.Published versio

Dimensional Reduction of the Heterotic String over nearly-Kaehler manifolds

Our aim is to derive the effective action in four dimensions resulting by reducing dimensionally the ten-dimensional ${\cal N}=1$ heterotic supergravity coupled to ${\cal N}=1$ super Yang-Mills over manifolds admitting a nearly-K\"{a}hler structure. Given the fact that all six-dimensional nearly-K\"{a}hler manifolds are included in the class of the corresponding non-symmetric coset spaces plus a group manifold, our procedure amounts in applying the Coset Space Dimensional Reduction scheme using these coset spaces as internal manifolds. In our examination firstly the rules of the reduction of the theory over a general six-dimensional non-symmetric manifold are stated and subsequently a detailed case by case analysis is performed for all the three non-symmetric coset spaces. For each case the four-dimensional scalar potential is derived and the corresponding nearly-K\"{a}hler limit is obtained. Finally, we determine the corresponding supergravity description of the four-dimensional theory employing the heterotic Gukov-Vafa-Witten formula and results of the special K\"{a}hler geometry.Comment: version published in JHEP, minor corrections, added reference