Descriptive Characteristics and Risk Factors for Trauma: An Evidence-Based Practice Project

This Evidence-Based Practice (EBP) project examined the following question: What are the perspectives, experiences, and self-reports of adult individuals, groups, or populations who have MCI or report problems with Functional Cognition (and / or their caregivers)

Electronic Word-of-Mouth and the Crowdfunding Environment: A Store Environment Approach to Crowdfunding Success

Crowdfunding has transformed the new venture financing process by expanding the possibilities for not only who can receive funding but also who can become a funder in new venture projects. Rewards-based crowdfunding platforms such as Indiegogo.com offer individuals a “reward” in return for their contribution. The rewards-based crowdfunding environment is imbued with aspects of both new venture funding and internet-based consumer purchasing. A funder may hope to obtain a valued commodity in return for their contribution to a crowdfunding project. Yet, the uncertainty associated with the outcomes requires the funder to infer quality by considering the viability of the project plan and the abilities of the project team. Building upon the complementary perspectives of a rewards-based crowdfunding contribution as both an investment and a purchase, I use the store environment model from the consumer behavior literature as a lens for identifying the informational cues project teams use to convey the worth of their project to funders. Since crowdfunding relies on the interaction of the community, I draw from research on electronic word-of-mouth (eWoM) and social media to understand how social media “buzz” can act as a social cue within the crowdfunding environment, transforming the nature of the message conveyed by the project team. My findings indicate that crowdfunding environment does impact the total amount received for a project, alone and in tandem. More importantly, the type of cue matters; design cues (vividness and structuredness) work best when combined with other design cues and social cues (project team cues and social media “buzz”) work best with other social cues. First, vividness matters –particularly when combined with a well-structured text. Next, neither project team attributes not community discourse matter in isolation, but in combination they do. Finally, too much social media “buzz” has a negative effect on funding, particularly later in the campaign. My research presents the store environment model as a valuable lens for understanding crowdfunding outcomes. By illuminating the complementarities between the new venture financing and internet-based consumer purchasing perspectives of crowdfunding, I utilize a more comprehensive application of the store environment model than has been employed in online contexts previously and present social media eWoM (i.e. social media “buzz”) as a social cue having a significant impact in online store environments and the rewards-based crowdfunding environment in particular. I also highlight the importance of eWoM, in the form of social media “buzz,” as an indirect force on organizational outcomes, acting in tandem with other environment cues and differentially over time

The effects of temperature on the kinetics of aluminium evaporation from the Ti-6Al-4V alloy

In the paper, results of the study on temperature effects on the rate of aluminium evaporation from the Ti-6Al-4V alloy during smelting in a vacuum induction furnace are presented. During smelting at 1 973 – 2 023 K, 10 Pa and 100 Pa, up to 26 % reduction in the aluminium content in the alloy compared to the initial value is observed. The determined values of overall mass transport coefficient are 1,48∙10-5 m∙s sup>-1 – 1,95∙10 sup>-5m∙s sup>-1

Integrated Soil Fertility Management: Contributions of framework and practices to climate-smart agriculture

Updated on 13/09/2016. Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM) is a set of practices related to cropping, fertilizers, organic resources and other amendments on smallholder farms to increase production and input use efficiency. ISFM delivers productivity gains, increased resilience, and mitigation benefits. ISFM benefits food security and incomes enhances yield stability in rainfed systems, and reduces greenhouse gas emissions from soils and fertilizers making it of value to climate-smart agriculture

Evaluating the efficiency of Decon Gel 1101 for removal of Cs-137, Co-60, and Eu-154 on common commercial construction materials

Decon Gel 1101, is an uncomplicated, low odor, peelable polymer hydrogel for use with radiological decontamination, manufactured by Cellular Bioengineer Inc. The gel allows for single or multiple material applications to contaminated surfaces. As the gel dries it binds the contaminant by encapsulating and lifting the contaminant into the gel. The result is a non-sticky rubber-like substance that is easily removed. Through a series of evaluations conducted with Decon Gel 1101, the removal efficiency for materials contaminated with liquid forms of Cs-137, Co-60, and Eu-154 was determined on concrete (both old and new), painted concrete, porcelain tile (with and without grout), granite (with grout), and vinyl composite tile. Initial application with all three nuclides on un-grouted porcelain tile and vinyl composite tile showed greater than 95% removal from the material surface and 80% or greater encapsulated in the gel itself. Both the porcelain and granite grouted tiles showed large standard deviations between repetitions, removing between 25% and 85% of the contaminate from the material, with between 25% and 65% encased in the gel. Painted concrete resulted in greater than 95% removal from the material surface and between 45% and 85% contained in the gel. Results for both the old and new concrete were similar: between 27% and 71% removal from the material surface and between 19% and 40% encapsulated in the gel

Increased Epithelial Expression of CTGF and S100A7 with Elevated Subepithelial Expression of IL-1 beta in Trachomatous Trichiasis

Purpose: To characterize the histological appearance and expression of pro-inflammatory mediators, growth factors, matrix metalloproteinases and biomarkers of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in healthy control and trachomatous trichiasis (TT) conjunctival tissue. Methods: Conjunctival biopsies were taken from 20 individuals with TT and from 16 individuals with healthy conjunctiva, which served as controls. Study participants were of varying ethnicity and were living in a trachoma-endemic region of northern Tanzania. Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue sections were stained using hematoxylin and eosin or by immunohistochemistry using antibodies against: IL-1β, IL-6, IL-17A, IL-22, CXCL5, S100A7, cleaved caspase 1 (CC1), PDGF, CTGF, TGFβ2, MMP7, MMP9, E-cadherin, vimentin, and αSMA. Results: Tissue from TT cases had a greater inflammatory cell infiltrate relative to controls and greater disruption of collagen structure. CTGF and S100A7 were more highly expressed in the epithelium and IL-1β was more highly expressed in the substantia propria of TT cases relative to controls. Latent TGFβ2 was slightly more abundant in the substantia propria of control tissue. No differences were detected between TT cases and controls in the degree of epithelial atrophy, the number of myofibroblasts or expression of EMT biomarkers. Conclusions: These data indicate that the innate immune system is active in the immunopathology of trachoma, even in the absence of clinical inflammation. CTGF might provide a direct link between inflammation and fibrosis and could be a suitable target for therapeutic treatment to halt the progression of trachomatous scarring

(E)-1-(3,4-Dimeth­oxy­phen­yl)-3-[4-(methyl­sulfan­yl)phen­yl]prop-2-en-1-one

In the title compound, C18H18O3S, the C=C double bond exists in an E configuration and the dihedral angle between the two benzene rings is 11.74 (8)°. In the crystal, mol­ecules are linked into a three-dimensional network by C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds. The crystal structure is also stabilized by weak C—H⋯π inter­actions

7-Chloro-3-phenyl­benzo[4,5]thia­zolo[2,3-c][1,2,4]triazole

In the title compound, C14H8ClN3S, the dihedral angle between the approximately planar triple-fused ring system (r.m.s. deviation = 0.065 Å) and the pendant phenyl ring is 62.25 (5)°. In the crystal, mol­ecules are linked into infinite chains along the c-axis direction by C—H⋯N hydrogen bonds. Aromatic π–π stacking inter­actions [centroid–centroid distances = 3.7499 (8) and 3.5644 (8) Å] and weak C—H⋯π inter­actions are also observed

Microbial Interventions to Control and Reduce Blood Pressure in Australia (MICRoBIA): rationale and design of a double-blinded randomised cross-over placebo controlled trial

Background: Hypertension is a prevalent chronic disease worldwide that remains poorly controlled. Recent studies support the concept that the gut microbiota is involved in the development of hypertension and that dietary fibre intake may act through the gut microbiota to lower blood pressure (BP). Resistant starch is a type of prebiotic fibre which is metabolised by commensal bacteria in the colon to produce short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs), including acetate, propionate, and butyrate. Previous work in pre-clinical models provides strong evidence that both prebiotic fibre as well as SCFAs (i.e. postbiotics) can prevent the development of hypertension. The aim of this clinical trial is to determine if acetylated and butyrylated modified resistant starch can decrease BP of hypertensive individuals via the modulation of the gut microbiota and release of high levels of SCFAs.Methods: This is a phase IIa double-blinded, randomised, cross-over, placebo controlled trial. Participants are randomly allocated to receive either a diet containing 40 g/day of the modified resistant starch or placebo (corn starch or regular flour) for 3 weeks on each diet, with a 3-week washout period between the two diets. BP is measured in the office, at home, and using a 24-h ambulatory device. Arterial stiffness is measured using carotid-to-femoral pulse wave velocity. Our primary endpoint is a reduction in ambulatory daytime systolic BP. Secondary endpoints include changes to circulating cytokines, immune markers, and modulation to the gut microbiome.Discussion: The findings of this study will provide the first evidence for the use of a combination of pre- and postbiotics to lower BP in humans. The results are expected at the end of 2021

Selective Breeding for Divergence in Novelty-seeking Traits: Heritability and Enrichment in Spontaneous Anxiety-related Behaviors

Outbred Sprague–Dawley rats can be classified as high responders (HR) or low responders (LR) based on their levels of exploratory locomotion in a novel environment. While this novelty-seeking dimension was originally related to differential vulnerability to substance abuse, behavioral, neuroendocrine and gene expression studies suggest a fundamental difference in emotional reactivity between these animals. Here, we report the first study to selectively breed rats based on this novelty-seeking dimension. Response to novelty was clearly heritable, with a >2-fold difference in behavior seen after eight generations of selection. Three tests of anxiety-like behavior consistently showed significantly greater anxiety in LR-bred rats compared to HR-bred animals, and this difference was diminished in the open field test by administration of the anxiolytic benzodiazepine drug, chlordiazepoxide. Cross-fostering revealed that responses to novelty were largely unaffected by maternal interactions, though there was an effect on anxiety-like behavior. These selected lines will enable future research on the interplay of genetic, environmental and developmental variables in controlling drug seeking behavior, stress and emotional reactivity.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/42783/1/10519_2006_Article_9058.pd