Analysis of 15 years of University of Tennessee continuous forest inventory data

In 1962 and 1963, permanent inventory plots were established on six University of Tennessee forest tracts to implement a continuous forest inventory (CFI) system. A wide diversity of forest types and physiographic regions within the state was represented by these forests. The permanent plots were measured on five year intervals to meet the following long-term objectives: (1) to relate soil and other site factors, such as aspect, topography, position, and slope to species composition and growth rate; (2) establish a modern timber inventory system for all forest tracts. During 1977 and 1978, these permanent sample plots were measured for the fourth time. The objectives of the present study were as follows: (1) identify errors and inconsistencies in measurements and (2) calculate volume and growth estimates for each forest tract. Sawtimber and pulpwood volumes and various types of growth were calculated with computer programs previously developed. Initial volume, final volume, ingrowth, mortality, loss to cull, outgrowth to sawtimber, gross growth of initial volume, gross growth, net growth of initial volume, net growth and net increase were estimated. Net growth of sawtimber (331.79 bd.ft./acre/year) in pine plantations at Ames Plantation during the 1973 to 1978 growth period was greater than any other inventory unit. The Scott County tract and the natural stands at Ames Plantation also had rather high net growth of sawtimber. Growth on the Highland Rim was less than on any other inventory unit; furthermore, it was the only tract in which net growth of sawtimber decreased over the 15-year inventory period. Net growth of pulpwood fluctuated between growth periods for each inventory unit; however, Ames Plantation pine stands recorded the largest pulpwood net growth (64.83 cu.ft./acre/year) during the 1968 to 1973 growth period. Due to the large amount of outgrowth to sawtimber, net growth of pulpwood in Scott County and on Wilson Mountain was negative for the last growth period. Growth information gained from this study provides a strong data base for making forest management decisions. Even though the University of Tennessee\u27s forests have not been managed intensively, this information provides input for answering such questions as the desirable level, structure, composition of growing stock, and the number and intensity cuttings. Timbergrowth, cutting, and the development of the forest is a continuous process. Continuous forest inventory, while providing these growth data, also performs a function of even greater importance--it provides a means of systematically controlling the forest and shows at all times the progress of management

STRATEGIES TO MODEL AND CIRCUMVENT ACQUIRED RESISTANCE TO THERAPEUTICS IN SMALL CELL LUNG CANCER

Small cell lung cancer (SCLC) is an extremely aggressive, pulmonary malignancy linked to lifetime smoking of cigarette tobacco. Most SCLC is diagnosed in the metastatic setting and surgical resection is rarely performed. However, SCLC is one of the most chemosensitive tumors, with >50% objective responses observed in de novo disease. These responses are impressive, but brief. Median progression free survival remains less than 5 months in current clinical trials. Recent studies have characterized the genome and epigenome of primary, untreated SCLC tumors. These studies have revealed near universal inactivation of the tumor suppressors TP53 and RB1, with frequent alterations in chromatin modifying enzymes, Notch signaling and amplification of MYC family members. Little in known about what factors permit acquired resistance and enable such a rapid shift in chemosensitive to chemorefractory disease within the same patient. No studies to date have comprehensively characterized paired sensitive and resistant disease states. The research presented below describes three studies aimed at determining how acquired resistance to chemotherapy is generated in vivo and targeted therapeutic approaches to chemoresistant disease. The first study details the discovery of genetic and epigenetic mediators of acquired chemoresistance in vivo through the development and characterization of paired chemosensitive and chemoresistant patient derived xenograft (PDX) models of SCLC. This work establishes a central role for EZH2 in promoting resistance to DNA damaging agents by silencing the gene SLFN11 and is highlighted by the impressive efficacy of EZH2 inhibition with first or second line standard of care chemotherapy. The second study describes a targeted approach to overcoming resistance to programmed cell death (apoptosis) by chemically inhibiting a protein-protein interaction between BCL-2 family members in SCLC. This study relied on the small molecule ABT-263 and attempts to explain disappointingly transient responses in SCLC patients observed in clinical testing. Finally, the third study builds on the second study, highlighting the importance of combinatorial strategies to improve the efficacy of this targeted agent in vivo, with a focus on potential mechanisms of acquired resistance, notably genomic loss of BAX. Research presented in these studies is directly informing the design of proposed clinical trials in SCLC

Factores que inciden en la dificultad de aprendizaje del idioma extranjero inglés en estudiantes de una universidad privada Limeña, 2023

El estudio presentado tiene como objetivo: Determinar de qué manera los factores del aprendizaje inciden en la dificultad de aprendizaje del idioma extranjero inglés en estudiantes de una universidad privada limeña, 2023. Metodología: Para el estudio con enfoque cuantitativo, nivel descriptivo explicativo o causal, diseño no experimental, se diseñó dos cuestionarios debidamente validados, los cuales se aplicaron a una población de 180 estudiantes de inglés de una universidad privada de Lima. Resultados: En cumplimiento del objetivo central se halló que los factores del aprendizaje no inciden de manera significativa en la dificultad de aprendizaje del idioma extranjero inglés en estudiantes de una universidad privada limeña, 2023 (p=0,491; r=0,052). Conclusiones: Se concluye que entre los factores del aprendizaje que se relacionan con significancia estadística con la dificultad de aprendizaje, a nivel de dimensiones están las ‘limitaciones internas’ y los ‘factores económicos’; y a nivel de factores específicos está el ‘mobiliario adecuado’ correspondiente a los aspectos institucionales y la ‘inseguridad económica’ correspondientes a los factores económicos

Architectural performance analysis of FPGA synthesized LEON processors

Current processors have gone through multiple internal opti- mization to speed-up the average execution time e.g. pipelines, branch prediction. Besides, internal communication mechanisms and shared resources like caches or buses have a sig- nificant impact on Worst-Case Execution Times (WCETs). Having an accurate estimate of a WCET is now a challenge. Probabilistic approaches provide a viable alternative to single WCET estimation. They consider WCET as a probabilistic distribution associated to uncertainty or risk. In this paper, we present synthetic benchmarks and associated analysis for several LEON3 configurations on FPGA targets. Benchmarking exposes key parameters to execution time variability allowing for accurate probabilistic modeling of system dynamics. We analyze the impact of architecture- level configurations on average and worst-case behaviors

Randomised controlled trials in plastic surgery: a systematic review of reporting quality

Background: We recently conducted a systematic review of the methodological quality of randomised controlled trials (RCTs) in plastic surgery. In accordance with convention, we are here separately reporting a systematic review of the reporting quality of the same RCTs. Methods: MEDLINE® and the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews were searched by an information specialist from 1 January 2009 to 30 June 2011 for the MESH heading ‘Surgery, Plastic’. Limitations were entered for English language, human studies and randomised controlled trials. Manual searching for RCTs involving surgical techniques was performed within the results. Scoring of the eligible papers was performed against the 23-item CONSORT Statement checklist. Independent secondary scoring was then performed and discrepancies resolved through consensus. Results: Fifty-seven papers met the inclusion criteria. The median CONSORT score was 11.5 out of 23 items (range 5.3–21.0). Items where compliance was poorest included intervention/comparator details (7 %), randomisation implementation (11 %) and blinding (26 %). Journal 2010 impact factor or number of authors did not significantly correlate with CONSORT score (Spearman rho = 0.25 and 0.12, respectively). Only 61 % declared conflicts of interest, 75 % permission from an ethics review committee, 47 % declared sources of funding and 16 % stated a trial registry number. There was no correlation between the volume of RCTs performed in a particular country and reporting quality. Conclusions: The reporting quality of RCTs in plastic surgery needs improvement. Better education, awareness amongst all stakeholders and hard-wiring compliance through electronic journal submission systems could be the way forward. We call for the international plastic surgical community to work together on these long-standing problems