University of Vermont Community Tobacco Use and Attitudes Survey

Introduction: Smoking remains an important public health issue in U.S. Colleges. 17.3% of U.S. smokers are 18-24 years old. 28% of U.S. college students began smoking at age 19 or older. Currently 1,104 U.S. Colleges have adopted Tobacco-Free policies.https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/comphp_gallery/1216/thumbnail.jp

A Survey of Proper-Motion Stars. XIV. Spectroscopic Binaries among Metal-poor Field Blue Stragglers

We summarize the results from a program of monitoring the radial velocities of 10 metal-poor, high-velocity field stars whose colors are 0.01 to 0.13 mag bluer than main-sequence turnoffs of comparable-metallicity globular clusters. Two of the candidate halo blue stragglers (BD +72 94 and BD +40 1166) show no signs of velocity variability, one (HD 84937) shows only weak signs of variability, one (BD +25 1981) appears to be a very long-period binary, and six (BD -12 2669, HD 97916, HD 106516, BD +51 1817, G66-30, and G202-65) are single-lined spectroscopic binaries, with periods ranging from 167 to 844 days. Velocity coverage for the four candidates without orbital solutions ranges from 15.9 to 19.0 years. The orbital eccentricities are all low, e < 0.30 and e = 0.11. Five of the six binary orbits have very low eccentricities, with e = 0.07. We have reanalyzed the velocity data from Preston & Sneden and have derived orbital solutions similar to theirs for 10 of the spectroscopic binaries among their "blue metal-poor" stars with [Fe/H] ≤ -0.6. We confirm their conclusion that the binary frequency is high; we find 47 ± 10% if we include only the definite binaries with [Fe/H] ≤ -0.6. Our orbital solutions for the seven binaries with periods longer than 20 days all have low eccentricities, with e ≤ 0.26 and e = 0.11. These orbital characteristics are very similar to the Ba II, CH, subgiant CH, and dwarf carbon stars, suggesting that mass transfer has been involved in their formation. Of the five binary stars in our program with published abundances of lithium, all have been found to be deficient (and one in beryllium as well). In contrast, two of the three apparently single stars have published lithium abundances and show no deficiency. The mass functions for the six binaries in our program and seven similar systems studied by Preston & Sneden are consistent with their unseen companions all being white dwarfs with M ≈ 0.55 M and random orbital inclinations. Taking all of our observations and those of others together, we argue that the results are consistent with all field blue stragglers being binary systems with long periods and low eccentricities, the primary stars being deficient in lithium and the secondary stars being normal-mass white dwarfs. All these properties are suggestive of a blue-straggler formation model that involves mass transfer. For six of the 13 stars in the two programs for which s-process elemental abundances are available, no signs of enhancement are discernible, suggesting that the donor star was a first-ascent red giant. For the star with the longest orbital period (1307 days), CS 22956-028, s-process abundance enhancements have been reported. This star may be a precursor to the subgiant CH class, as suggested by Luck & Bond

Species differences and interspecific interactions in wild Peromyscus ultrasonic vocalizations

Ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) are commonly produced by many rodents, including all muroids investigated to date (18 genera). The overall adaptive significance of USVs within muroid rodents is not well understood. Most research has focused on the muroid genera Mus and Rattus. Within even these two relatively closely related genera, USV functions vary. Additionally, research on Mus and Rattus has been conducted exclusively in the laboratory and may be subject to laboratory effects. In order to contribute toward understanding the function of Peromyscus USVs, the context in which USVs are produced in the wild is investigated. Wild syntopic Peromyscus californicus and P. boylii are used as an example to explore 1) species differences in the spectral characteristics of USVs, and 2) interactions in USV production between two syntopic species. Both species vocalized, and the most commonly recorded USV motifs were 1-5 syllable vocalizations (SV). There are species differences in spectral characteristics of 1-5 SV USVs, but there is also high variability within each species. On average, P. boylii vocalizes 8 kHz higher than P. californicus. Frequencies do overlap between species, but frequency measurements can be used reliably to assign USVs to one of the two species, based on binary logistic regression and/or discriminant function analysis. Sixty-two percent of P. californicus and 82% of P. boylii USVs recorded occurred on the 42 nights (out of 123) when both species vocalized. Thirty-seven percent of P. californicus USVs and 52% of P. boylii USVs occurred within 5 minutes of an USV from a heterospecific. There were positive correlations between species in USV production on 8 out of 11 nights when each species produced more than 3 USVs, suggesting interactions between P. californicus and P. boylii do occur. Further research is warranted to understand the context and extent of the interactions

Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor–Independent Toxicity of Weathered Crude Oil during Fish Development

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), derived largely from fossil fuels and their combustion, are pervasive contaminants in rivers, lakes, and nearshore marine habitats. Studies after the Exxon Valdez oil spill demonstrated that fish embryos exposed to low levels of PAHs in weathered crude oil develop a syndrome of edema and craniofacial and body axis defects. Although mechanisms leading to these defects are poorly understood, it is widely held that PAH toxicity is linked to aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) binding and cytochrome P450 1A (CYP1A) induction. Using zebrafish embryos, we show that the weathered crude oil syndrome is distinct from the well-characterized AhR-dependent effects of dioxin toxicity. Blockade of AhR pathway components with antisense morpholino oligonucleotides demonstrated that the key developmental defects induced by weathered crude oil exposure are mediated by low-molecular-weight tricyclic PAHs through AhR-independent disruption of cardiovascular function and morphogenesis. These findings have multiple implications for the assessment of PAH impacts on coastal habitats

Barriers to Pediatric Blood Lead Screening

Background: The pernicious effects of lead on the health of children are well-documented. The severity of many of these effects directly correlates with increasing blood lead levels (BLLs). The current recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is that BLLs 10 g/dL are dangerous. However, new evidence demonstrates that there is no safe BLL and that children with BLLs /dL exhibit neurological and social deficits. The Vermont Department of Health (VDH) currently recommends universal blood lead screening for 12 and 24 month-old children. In 2006, 79% of 12 month-old children and 41% of 24 month-old children were screened in Vermont.https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/comphp_gallery/1003/thumbnail.jp

Differences in Ultrasonic Vocalizations between Wild and Laboratory California Mice (Peromyscus californicus)

BACKGROUND: Ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) emitted by muroid rodents, including laboratory mice and rats, are used as phenotypic markers in behavioral assays and biomedical research. Interpretation of these USVs depends on understanding the significance of USV production by rodents in the wild. However, there has never been a study of muroid rodent ultrasound function in the wild and comparisons of USVs produced by wild and laboratory rodents are lacking to date. Here, we report the first comparison of wild and captive rodent USVs recorded from the same species, Peromyscus californicus. METHODOLOGY AND PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We used standard ultrasound recording techniques to measure USVs from California mice in the laboratory (Peromyscus Genetic Stock Center, SC, USA) and the wild (Hastings Natural History Reserve, CA, USA). To determine which California mouse in the wild was vocalizing, we used a remote sensing method that used a 12-microphone acoustic localization array coupled with automated radio telemetry of all resident Peromyscus californicus in the area of the acoustic localization array. California mice in the laboratory and the wild produced the same types of USV motifs. However, wild California mice produced USVs that were 2-8 kHz higher in median frequency and significantly more variable in frequency than laboratory California mice. SIGNIFICANCE: The similarity in overall form of USVs from wild and laboratory California mice demonstrates that production of USVs by captive Peromyscus is not an artifact of captivity. Our study validates the widespread use of USVs in laboratory rodents as behavioral indicators but highlights that particular characteristics of laboratory USVs may not reflect natural conditions

The application of creative practice as a means of disrupting or re-defining the dynamics of power in, with or for different communities

In this exposition, seven research practitioners investigate how creative practice can be applied as a form of knowledge production in order to disrupt or re-define the dynamics of power in a range of different contexts. These applications of creative practice take varied and complex forms, often transferring creativity from the practitioner-researcher to their participants, increasing participant agency or re-defining existing hierarchies, as they form, empower, and enlighten real and conceptual communities. This collaborative exposition has been developed through presentations and discussions over the course of two years. Although each researcher applies different methodologies to their individual projects, our work as a group followed a pattern of creative practice, reflection, and reformulation, as we responded to each other’s research, creating a research community of our own. We want to emphasize that creative practice can not only disrupt or re-define the dynamics of power in a range of different contexts, but that it can do this in an infinite number of ways. In this variety and adaptability lies the potential of creative research