A Comparison of Synovex ONE® Alone to Synovex Choice® Followed by Synovex Plus® as Implant Strategies for Finishing Heifers

A commercial feedlot study utilizing 1,737 crossbred heifers (initial BW 690 lb) compared the effect of two implant strategies [Synovex ONE Feedlot (day 0) or Synovex Choice (day 0) followed by Synovex Plus (day 95)] on performance and carcass characteristics. No differences were observed in carcass weight, final body weight, or gain, but heifers implanted with Synovex ONE Feedlot had slightly greater feed conversion and greater intake than heifers implanted using Synovex Choice/Synovex Plus. Heifers implanted with Synovex Choice/Synovex Plus had lower marbling score and yield grade, higher dressing percentage, and greater loin muscle area compared to heifers implanted with Synovex ONE Feedlot. Cattle implanted with Synovex ONE Feedlot showed a tendency for better quality grading compared to heifers implanted with Synovex Choice/Synovex Plus. These data suggest that implanting heifers with Synovex ONE Feedlot gives comparable growth to heifers implanted with Synovex Choice followed by Synovex Plus, with some changes in fatness when fed equal days

Effect of Feeding Different Types of Byproducts and Concentrations Throughout a Beef Growing System on Ground Beef Color and Lipid Oxidation

The objective of this trial was to evaluate the effect of feeding different concentrations of wet distillers grains during winter backgrounding and either modified wet distillers grains or Sweet Bran® during the finishing phase on ground beef color and lipid oxidation. After a 14 day aging period, ground beef patties were made and placed in a simulated retail display for seven days. There were no overall differences in lipid oxidation between treatments but was a treatment by day interaction for discoloration. Ground beef from heifers finished with modified wet distillers grains discolored at a greater extent when compared to ground beef from heifers finished with Sweet Bran

Holographic Description of AdS Cosmologies

To gain insight in the quantum nature of the big bang, we study the dual field theory description of asymptotically anti-de Sitter solutions of supergravity that have cosmological singularities. The dual theories do not appear to have a stable ground state. One regularization of the theory causes the cosmological singularities in the bulk to turn into giant black holes with scalar hair. We interpret these hairy black holes in the dual field theory and use them to compute a finite temperature effective potential. In our study of the field theory evolution, we find no evidence for a "bounce" from a big crunch to a big bang. Instead, it appears that the big bang is a rare fluctuation from a generic equilibrium quantum gravity state.Comment: 34 pages, 8 figures, v2: minor changes, references adde

Precision Measurement of the Weak Mixing Angle in Moller Scattering

We report on a precision measurement of the parity-violating asymmetry in fixed target electron-electron (Moller) scattering: A_PV = -131 +/- 14 (stat.) +/- 10 (syst.) parts per billion, leading to the determination of the weak mixing angle \sin^2\theta_W^eff = 0.2397 +/- 0.0010 (stat.) +/- 0.0008 (syst.), evaluated at Q^2 = 0.026 GeV^2. Combining this result with the measurements of \sin^2\theta_W^eff at the Z^0 pole, the running of the weak mixing angle is observed with over 6 sigma significance. The measurement sets constraints on new physics effects at the TeV scale.Comment: 4 pages, 2 postscript figues, submitted to Physical Review Letter

Training of Instrumentalists and Development of New Technologies on SOFIA

This white paper is submitted to the Astronomy and Astrophysics 2010 Decadal Survey (Astro2010)1 Committee on the State of the Profession to emphasize the potential of the Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) to contribute to the training of instrumentalists and observers, and to related technology developments. This potential goes beyond the primary mission of SOFIA, which is to carry out unique, high priority astronomical research. SOFIA is a Boeing 747SP aircraft with a 2.5 meter telescope. It will enable astronomical observations anywhere, any time, and at most wavelengths between 0.3 microns and 1.6 mm not accessible from ground-based observatories. These attributes, accruing from the mobility and flight altitude of SOFIA, guarantee a wealth of scientific return. Its instrument teams (nine in the first generation) and guest investigators will do suborbital astronomy in a shirt-sleeve environment. The project will invest $10M per year in science instrument development over a lifetime of 20 years. This, frequent flight opportunities, and operation that enables rapid changes of science instruments and hands-on in-flight access to the instruments, assure a unique and extensive potential - both for training young instrumentalists and for encouraging and deploying nascent technologies. Novel instruments covering optical, infrared, and submillimeter bands can be developed for and tested on SOFIA by their developers (including apprentices) for their own observations and for those of guest observers, to validate technologies and maximize observational effectiveness.Comment: 10 pages, no figures, White Paper for Astro 2010 Survey Committee on State of the Professio

DEVELOPMENT AND TURBINE ENGINE PERFORMANCE OF THREE ADVANCED RHENIUM CONTAINING SUPERALLOYS FOR SINGLE CRYSTAL AND DIRECTIONALLY SOUDIFIED BLADES AND VANES

ABSTRACT Turbine inlet temperatures over the next few years will approach 1650°C (3000°F) at maximum power for the latest large commercial turbofan engines, resulting in high fuel efficiency and thrust levels approaching 445 kN (100,000 lbs). High reliability and durability must be intrinsically designed into these turbine engines to meet operating economic targets and ETOPS certification requirement This level of performance has been brought about by a combination of advances in air cooling for turbine blades and vanes, design technology for stresses and airflow, single crystal and directionally solidified casting process improvements and the development and use of rhenium (Re) containing high y' volume fraction nickel-base superalloys with advanced coatings, including full-airfoil ceramic thermal bather coatings. Re additions to cast airfoil superalloys not only improve creep and thermo-mechanical fatigue strength but also environmental properties, including coating performance. Re dramatically slows down diffusion in these alloys at high operating temperatures. A team approach has been used to develop a family of two nickel-base single crystal alloys (CMSX-4. containing 3% Re and CMSX0-10 containing 6% Re) and a directionally solidified, columnar grain nickel-base alloy (CM 186 LC: containing 3% Re) for a variety of turbine engine applications. A range of critical properties of these alloys is reviewed in relation to turbine component engineering performance through engine certification testing and service experience. Industrial turbines are now commencing to use this aero developed turbine technology in both small and large frame units in addition to aero-derivative industrial engines. These applications are demanding with high reliability required for turbine airfoils out to 25,000 hours, with perhaps greater than 50% of the time spent at maximum power. Combined cycle efficiencies of large frame industrial engines is scheduled to reach 60% in the U.S. ATS programme. Application experience to a total 1.3 million engine hours and 28,000 hours individual blade set service for CMSX-4 first stage turbine blades is reviewed for a small frame industrial engine. INTRODUCTION During the last 30 years, turbine inlet temperatures have increased by about 500°C (900°F). About 70% of this increase is due to more efficient design of air cooling for turbine blades and vanes, particularly the advent of serpentine convection an

Noncanonical Compensation of Zygotic X Transcription in Early Drosophila melanogaster Development Revealed through Single-Embryo RNA-Seq

Mmany genes from the X chromosome are expressed at the same level in female and male embryos during early Drosophila development, prior to the establishment of MSL-mediated dosage compensation, suggesting the existence of a novel mechanism

An improved predictive recognition model for Cys2-His2 zinc finger proteins

Cys2-His2 zinc finger proteins (ZFPs) are the largest family of transcription factors in higher metazoans. They also represent the most diverse family with regards to the composition of their recognition sequences. Although there are a number of ZFPs with characterized DNA-binding preferences, the specificity of the vast majority of ZFPs is unknown and cannot be directly inferred by homology due to the diversity of recognition residues present within individual fingers. Given the large number of unique zinc fingers and assemblies present across eukaryotes, a comprehensive predictive recognition model that could accurately estimate the DNA-binding specificity of any ZFP based on its amino acid sequence would have great utility. Toward this goal, we have used the DNA-binding specificities of 678 two-finger modules from both natural and artificial sources to construct a random forest-based predictive model for ZFP recognition. We find that our recognition model outperforms previously described determinant-based recognition models for ZFPs, and can successfully estimate the specificity of naturally occurring ZFPs with previously defined specificities

Experimental annotation of post-translational features and translated coding regions in the pathogen Salmonella Typhimurium

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Complete and accurate genome annotation is crucial for comprehensive and systematic studies of biological systems. However, determining protein-coding genes for most new genomes is almost completely performed by inference using computational predictions with significant documented error rates (> 15%). Furthermore, gene prediction programs provide no information on biologically important post-translational processing events critical for protein function.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We experimentally annotated the bacterial pathogen <it>Salmonella </it>Typhimurium 14028, using "shotgun" proteomics to accurately uncover the translational landscape and post-translational features. The data provide protein-level experimental validation for approximately half of the predicted protein-coding genes in <it>Salmonella </it>and suggest revisions to several genes that appear to have incorrectly assigned translational start sites, including a potential novel alternate start codon. Additionally, we uncovered 12 non-annotated genes missed by gene prediction programs, as well as evidence suggesting a role for one of these novel ORFs in <it>Salmonella </it>pathogenesis. We also characterized post-translational features in the <it>Salmonella </it>genome, including chemical modifications and proteolytic cleavages. We find that bacteria have a much larger and more complex repertoire of chemical modifications than previously thought including several novel modifications. Our <it>in vivo </it>proteolysis data identified more than 130 signal peptide and N-terminal methionine cleavage events critical for protein function.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>This work highlights several ways in which application of proteomics data can improve the quality of genome annotations to facilitate novel biological insights and provides a comprehensive proteome map of <it>Salmonella </it>as a resource for systems analysis.</p