SIMULATING BST INTRODUCTION IN CALIFORNIA FOR DAIRY POLICY ANALYSIS

An econometric model is estimated to simulate the impact of introducing bovine somatotropin (BST) on the California dairy industry. Forecasts of 1991-94 milk production and prices without BST are compared to those with BST under the 1990 Farm Bill. The effects are evaluated under a range in assumptions, given the uncertainty about BST's commercial benefits and costs. Results indicate the aggregate returns of BST introduction for California are positive, but small, assuming no adverse consumer reaction.Agricultural and Food Policy, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies,

Should health professionals screen women for domestic violence? : systematic review

Objective To assess the evidence for the acceptability and effectiveness of screening women for domestic violence in healthcare settings. Design Systematic review of published quantitative studies. Search strategy Three electronic databases (Medline, Embase, and CINAHL) were searched for articles published in the English language up to February 2001. Included studies Surveys that elicited the attitudes of women and health professionals on the screening of women in health settings; comparative studies conducted in healthcare settings that measured rates of identification of domestic violence in the presence and absence of screening; studies measuring outcomes of interventions for women identified in health settings who experience abuse from a male partner or ex­partner compared with abused women not receiving an intervention. Results 20 papers met the inclusion criteria. In four surveys, 43­85% of women respondents found screening in healthcare settings acceptable. Two surveys of health professionals' views found that two thirds of physicians and almost half of emergency department nurses were not in favour of screening. In nine studies of screening compared with no screening, most detected a greater proportion of abused women identified by healthcare professionals. Six studies of interventions used weak study designs and gave inconsistent results. Other than increased referral to outside agencies, little evidence exists for changes in important outcomes such as decreased exposure to violence. No studies measured quality of life, mental health outcomes, or potential harm to women from screening programmes. Conclusion Although domestic violence is a common problem with major health consequences for women, implementation of screening programmes in healthcare settings cannot be justified. Evidence of the benefit of specific interventions and lack of harm from screening is needed

Wave-Forced Hydrogeology and Diagenesis, Tague Reef, St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands.

Wave driven pressure variations in reef porewater were used to investigate the physical processes that affect early marine carbonate cementation in a bank-barrier reef. Cores taken along a transect, and porewater geochemistry sampled from wells were used to characterize sedimentary and geochemical environments. The cores show an Acropora palmata framework with a patchily cemented sandy matrix composes the forereef and reef crest, with dominantly loose sediments in the backreef. Hydraulic conductivities are approximately 1 $\times$ 10\sp{-4} m/s. The wave climate is moderate, with up to 75 % wave height attenuation across the reef crest. Porewater pressure variations correspond to surface waveforms, and are attenuated with increasing depth. Hydraulic head gradients are approximately 0.01. The resulting instantaneous porewater velocities are about 1 $\times$ 10\sp{-6} m/s. Time series of pressure variations suggest flow is dominantly oscillatory, with no apparent net motion. Shallow reef porewater is well oxygenated and supersaturated for aragonite or Mg-calcite. Deeper porewater becomes nearly anoxic, with some sulfate reduction, both due to biological respiration. A corresponding decrease in pH causes carbonate saturation values also to decrease, limiting the potential for cementation to the shallow reef surface. Oxide and sulfide coatings on sediments are thought to reflect porewater redox conditions. The distribution of coatings suggests deeper porewater exchange in the forereef and reef crest than in the backreef. Modeling of symmetrical and asymmetrical linear wave motion suggests net advective transport is negligible. Instead, mechanical dispersion is believed to dominate porewater exchange processes. Gradients from wave generated setup, tides and infragravity waves also drive porewater circulation, and may contribute to porewater exchange. Typical early marine carbonate cements are present throughout the reef, although more abundant in the forereef and reef crest, especially intergranular, sediment binding Mg-calcite cements. The abundance of cements in the shallow reef apparently reflects a greater intensity of wave driven porewater exchange with supersaturated seawater. Minor occurrences of cathodoluminescent cements were observed, apparently precipitated in the anoxic zone. The resulting pattern of early marine carbonate cementation in the reef directly reflects oceanographic conditions as a fundamental control on cement distribution, with biological activity and sedimentation as additional influences

Investigating the relationship between corporate brand personality and employee brand commitment

Corporate brands in today’s business landscape are complex and multifaceted, with employees playing a critical role in the building of those brands. As employee brand commitment forms an important part of building a corporate brand, it would be beneficial to understand the drivers of employee brand commitment in order to better understand the corporate brand. One of the main aspects of employee brand commitment is the personality of the corporate employer brand. This research aims to determine the relationship between corporate brand personality and employee brand commitment. By utilising the Corporate Brand Personality Scale and employee brand commitment measures, a quantitative survey was administered to 250 members of an online research panel. Exploratory factor analysis was used to determine the most common elements of the Corporate Brand Personality Scale. Thereafter, regression analysis was performed to determine the role of brand personality in predicting an employee’s commitment to their corporate brand. The results of this study show that factors of corporate brand personality have a significant influence on employee brand commitment. Further discussion into factor analysis shows that progressive and steadfast personality traits have a significantly positive effect on employee brand commitment, whilst supercilious personality traits have a negative effect on employee brand commitment.Dissertation (MBA)--University of Pretoria, 2011.Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS)unrestricte

Autonomous space processor for orbital debris

This work continues to develop advanced designs toward the ultimate goal of a GETAWAY SPECIAL to demonstrate economical removal of orbital debris utilizing local resources in orbit. The fundamental technical feasibility was demonstrated last year through theoretical calculations, quantitative computer animation, a solar focal point cutter, a robotic arm design and a subscale model. During this reporting period, several improvements are made in the solar cutter, such as auto track capabilities, better quality reflectors and a more versatile framework. The major advance has been in the design, fabrication and working demonstration of a ROBOTIC ARM that has several degrees of freedom. The functions were specifically tailored for the orbital debris handling. These advances are discussed here. Also a small fraction of the resources were allocated towards research in flame augmentation in SCRAMJETS for the NASP. Here, the fundamental advance was the attainment of Mach numbers up to 0.6 in the flame zone and a vastly improved injection system; the current work is expected to achieve supersonic combustion in the laboratory and an advanced monitoring system

Using Cluster Analysis to Explore Associations between Cardiovascular Risk and Lifestyle Factors in a Workplace Wellness Program

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the number one cause of death in the United States with risk factors including hypertension, hyperlipidemia, diabetes, obesity, smoking, physical inactivity, age, genetics, and unhealthy diets. A university-based workplace wellness program (WWP) consisting of an annual biometric screening assessment with targeted, individualized health coaching was implemented in an effort to reduce these risk factors while encouraging and nurturing ideal cardiovascular health.Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine and describe the prevalence of single and combined, or multiple, CVD risk factors within a workplace wellness dataset.Methods: Cluster analysis was used to determine CVD risk factors within biometric screening data (BMI, waist circumference, LDL, total cholesterol, HDL, triglycerides, blood glucose age, ethnicity, and gender) collected during WWP interventions.Results: The cluster analysis provided visualizations of the distributions of participants having specific CVD risk factors. Of the 8,802 participants, 1,967 (22.4%) had no CVD risk factor, 1,497 (17%) had a single risk factor, and 5,529 (60.5%) had two or more risk factors. The majority of sample members are described as having more than one CVD risk factor with 78% having multiple.Conclusion: Cluster analysis demonstrated utility and efficacy in categorizing participant data based on their CVD risk factors. A baseline analysis of data was captured and provided understanding and awareness into employee health and CVD risk. This process and analysis facilitated WWP planning to target and focus on education to promote ideal cardiovascular health

Multiple Captures of White-footed Mice (Peromyscus leucopus): Evidence for Social Structure?

Multiple captures (34 double, 6 triple) in standard Sherman live traps accounted for 6.3% of 1355 captures of Peromyscus leucopus (white-footed mice) in forested habitat in southern Illinois, from Oct. 2004 through Oct. 2005. There was a significant positive relationship between both the number and the proportion of multiple captures and estimated monthly population size. Multiple captures were all intraspecific and occurred significantly more often from Nov. through Mar. when animals were not reproductively active, but this was confounded by seasonal changes in abundance. Age/gender distribution of animals in double captures did not differ from that expected from random pairing. We suggest that sociality and synchronous entry of two white-footed mice into traps were the primary determinants of double captures; sensitivity of traps may have been the primary factor in triple capture