A Numerical Study of the Mid-field River Plume

Idealized and realistic simulations of the Merrimack River plume on the east coast of the U.S. are performed using the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS). The effect of discharge, tides and rotation on the evolution of the tidal plume are examined. Experiments investigating the deceleration of the plume body through mixing and the relaxation of the tidal plume front are performed. Three primary findings result from this research. First, more ambient water interacts with the tidal plume front than source water. Because it takes several hours for source water to translate the plume and it is strongly diluted in the plume interior, only a small fraction of source water reaches the front. Therefore, the front is responsible for a small portion of mixing of the total ebb discharge. Second, the mouth and the tidal plume front communicate on an advective time scale. When the ebb discharge is stopped at the estuary mouth, the inertia of the discharge is enough to keep previously released source water necessary to sustain frontal propagation moving frontward. The front begins to slow when the withheld estuarine discharge is not supplied to the front. Third, the net plume mixing, defined as the total mixing of a parcel of source water before it enters the far-field, is altered by rotation. As discharge increases, an irrotational plume will exhibit an increasing trend in net mixing, while a rotational plume will exhibit a decreasing trend. These experiments bridge engineering and geophysical scale plume studies and provide a framework for understanding results reported in literature

Nonlinear growth generates age changes in the moments of the frequency distribution: the example of height in puberty

Higher moments of the frequency distribution of child height and weight change with age, particularly during puberty, though why is not known. Our aims were to confirm that height skewness and kurtosis change with age during puberty, to devise a model to explain why, and to test the model by analyzing the data longitudinally. Heights of 3245 Christ's Hospital School boys born during 1927-1956 were measured twice termly from 9 to 20 years (n = 129 508). Treating the data as independent, the mean, standard deviation (SD), skewness, and kurtosis were calculated in 40 age groups and plotted as functions of age t. The data were also analyzed longitudinally using the nonlinear random-effects growth model H( t) = h( t - epsilon) + alpha, with H( t) the cross-sectional data, h( t) the individual mean curve, and epsilon and alpha subject-specific random effects reflecting variability in age and height at peak height velocity (PHV). Mean height increased monotonically with age, while the SD, skewness, and kurtosis changed cyclically with, respectively, 1, 2, and 3 turning points. Surprisingly, their age curves corresponded closely in shape to the first, second, and third derivatives of the mean height curve. The growth model expanded as a Taylor series in e predicted such a pattern, and the longitudinal analysis showed that adjusting for age at PHV on a multiplicative scale largely removed the trends in the higher moments. A nonlinear growth process where subjects grow at different rates, such as in puberty, generates cyclical changes in the higher moments of the frequency distribution

Incentivization Towards Advancement in Professionalism:Underlining the Impact and Importance of BSN Completion

Over 1000 Registered Nurses from across the United States will be surveyed in regards to their RN to BSN journey. These RNs have enrolled in Fort Hays State University’s (FHSU) RN to BSN program in the time since the IOM and RJWF report was released, and are either currently active in the degree completion process or have graduated. This study will allow us to determine if as a profession and a program, we are making an impact on the goals set forth by the IOM and RJWF report. Key concepts included in the study survey include motivation, incentivization, understanding, education, and professionalism

Helping preschoolers and elementary-age children adjust to divorce (2016)

"Focus on kids. ""This guide is part of a series aimed at helping families in which parents are separated or divorcing and who share parenting responsibilities for children. We will use the terms divorce and separation interchangeably to describe parents who are separated from each other.""Reviewed by Jane Hunter (Regional Specialists, Human Development and Family Science), Jessica Trussell (Regional Specialist, Human Development and Family Science)." "This guide was originally developed by Kim Leon and Kelly Cole.""Families and relationships."Revised 4/16/1M

Protecting children from unintentional injuries (2002)

"Information from Human Environmental Sciences Extension.""Human relations."Revised 10/00, Reprinted 8/02/5M

Helping preschoolers and elementary-age children adjust to divorce (2016, pdf from web page)

"Reviewed by Jane Hunter (Regional Specialists, Human Development and Family Science), Jessica Trussell (Regional Specialist, Human Development and Family Science)." "This guide was originally developed by Kim Leon and Kelly Cole."Pdf created from webpage, June 29, 2016.New April 2016

The Effects of Rotation and River Discharge on Net Mixing in Small-Mouth Kelvin Plumes

Small-mouth Kelvin number plumes, or plumes with a source width smaller than the deformation radius, are characterized by near-field plume regions of rapid lateral expansion and strong vertical mixing. Net plume mixing, or the dilution of a plume by ocean water between the estuary mouth and the far-field plume, is examined using idealized numerical experiments with the Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS). The density anomaly of plume water entering the far field is determined from isohaline analysis of the modeled salinity field. The experiments indicate that when estuarine discharge increases, net plume mixing decreases in a rotating environment but increases in a nonrotating environment. Scaling analysis supports that this opposite trend in behavior is related to rotation turning the plume, limiting the lateral expansion and suppressing shear mixing. The results of this study explain different trends in net plume mixing reported in previous studies and compare favorably to observations of the Fraser River plume

An Evaluation of Physical Activity Levels amongst University Employees

Approximately 60% of the world’s population do not meet the physical activity (PA) guidelines. Physical inactivity is increasing in occupations, with work-related health issues becoming more prevalent. University employees’ work in a range of job roles and PA levels in this population is unclear. Thus, this study aimed to evaluate PA levels amongst university employees in a UK Higher Education institution. Four hundred employees (male = 131, female = 269) partook in this quantitative study and completed an online International Physical Activity Questionnaire Long Form (IPAQ-LF) to assess total moderate to vigorous PA (MVPA) and work-related MVPA. A Mann-Whitney U test examined differences in total MVPA and work-related MVPA between genders and a Kruskal-Wallis H test examined differences in total MVPA and work related MVPA between job roles. The findings showed that university employees engaged in a median of 330 minutes and 1770 METs of MVPA across all domains of IPAQ-LF. Further, the median time spent in total work PA was 30 minutes and 123 METs. There was a significant difference between genders, as males engaged in 150 minutes more total MVPA compared to females (p 0.05). Findings suggest that job role does not affect PA levels within university workplace, although they do propose that males engage in more MVPA compared to females. As a result of the subjective nature of this research, objective research is required to confirm current findings

Promoting family strengths (1999)

"Human relations.""Information from Human Environmental Sciences Extension."New 10/99/5M