A Modular Low-clearance Wrist Orthosis for Improving Wrist Motion in Children with Cerebral Palsy

Children with Cerebral Palsy (CP) often exhibit impairments in the coordination of the grip and lift phases of arm movements that directly impact their ability to perform activities of daily living (ADLs). The application of assistive robotic therapy to children with spastic hemiplegic CP has shown that augmented movement training can lead to improved functional outcomes and improved arm kinematics. Assistive robotic therapy of the wrist has been shown to help improve motor skills in stroke patients, but the devices employed are often large and obtrusive, focusing on a repeated motion rather than a task-based itinerary. Here, we propose a lightweight low clearance wrist orthosis for use in children with Cerebral Palsy that actuates pronation/supination and flexion/extension of the wrist

Evaluation of Italian ryegrass and Palmer amaranth control in Mississippi

Italian ryegrass is a problematic weed in Mississippi corn production due to the development and proliferation of glyphosate resistance. Studies were conducted to assess Italian ryegrass control prior to planting using herbicides. Effects of fall and spring applied burndown herbicide applications for Italian ryegrass control and subsequent corn grain yield were investigated at the R.R. Foil PSRC in Starkville, MS, at the Coastal Plain Experiment Station in Newton, MS, and the Black Belt Experiment Station in Brooksville, MS on soil textures ranging from sandy loam to silt clay loam. A fall preemergence (PRE) application of S-metolachlor + metribuzin followed by paraquat in the spring provided 99% Italian ryegrass control 28 days after paraquat application. Four spring burndown treatments provided Italian ryegrass control similar to that observed following application of the fall PRE application followed by paraquat in the spring. Applications clethodim + glufosinate + paraquat + dimethenamid-P; clethodim + glufosinate + paraquat + S-metolachlor; clethodim + paraquat + dimethenamid-P; and clethodim + oxyfluorfen + paraquat + S-metolachlor resulted in similar levels of Italian ryegrass control at 96%, 98%, 94%, and 99%, respectively. Corn yield following the fall PRE followed by spring paraquat application was 10,687 kg ha-1. Corn yield following clethodim + paraquat + dimethenamid-P as well as clethodim + oxyfluorfen + paraquat + S-metolachlor applied in the spring resulted in similar corn grain yield to that following the fall PRE followed by spring paraquat application at 9,649 kg ha-1 and 9,567 kg ha-1, respectively. Spring burndown herbicide treatments could be used to control Italian ryegrass while producing similar corn yield to the standard fall herbicide followed by paraquat application in the spring

An Examination of Educators\u27 Perceptions of the School\u27s Role in the Prevention of Childhood Obesity

Childhood obesity is a prevalent subject of research currently, and many researchers have studied the effectiveness of school programs in battling obesity among students. This case study, utilizing ethnographic tools of observation, interviews, and investigation of artifacts, examines educators\u27 perceptions of the role of the school in the prevention of this epidemic, how perceptions affect practices, and the barriers to prevention efforts. The lens of caring theory, social justice, and critical theory frame the analysis of how educators in a medium-sized elementary school contend with the problem of childhood obesity. Educators in this setting perceived their role in the prevention of childhood obesity as limited and tended to blame parents for the condition of obese students. Because of this perception, attempts at prevention were somewhat sporadic and individualistic in nature. Barriers included a lack of training in critical reflection and the stresses of mandated testing and budget cuts. Teachers and staff members cared for their obese students\u27 well-being, but generally lacked the resources to help them. They were often uncomfortable discussing obesity with parents and tended to avoid the subject, and unfortunately, this conversation needs to occur in order to find help for their obese students

David Harris

A biography of David Harris with photoshttps://mds.marshall.edu/african_american_pub/1007/thumbnail.jp

Oscillatory Flows Induced by Microorganisms Swimming in Two-dimensions

We present the first time-resolved measurements of the oscillatory velocity field induced by swimming unicellular microorganisms. Confinement of the green alga C. reinhardtii in stabilized thin liquid films allows simultaneous tracking of cells and tracer particles. The measured velocity field reveals complex time-dependent flow structures, and scales inversely with distance. The instantaneous mechanical power generated by the cells is measured from the velocity fields and peaks at 15 fW. The dissipation per cycle is more than four times what steady swimming would require.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

Singularities of free group character varieties

Let X be the moduli space of SL(n,C), SU(n), GL(n,C), or U(n)-valued representations of a rank r free group. We classify the algebraic singular stratification of X. This comes down to showing that the singular locus corresponds exactly to reducible representations if there exist singularities at all. Then by relating algebraic singularities to topological singularities, we show the moduli spaces X generally are not topological manifolds, except for a few examples we explicitly describe.Comment: 33 pages. Version 4 is shorter and more focused; cut material will be expanded upon and written up in subsequent papers. Clarifications, and expository revisions have been added. Accepted for publication in Pacific Journal of Mathematic

Characterization of Flake Orientation in Flakeboard By The Von Mises Probability Distribution Function

The orientation of flakes in thin experimental wood composite boards was characterized by the von Mises distribution function. An in situ measuring procedure was developed for acquiring wood flake grain angle data within the board. Parameters characterizing the extent of orientation for a variety of boards with prespecified degrees of alignment were verified using the measurement procedure

Water Use of Kentucky Bluegrass Varieties Grown Under Greenhouse Conditions

Drought tolerance is an important trait for turfgrass in order to create more sustainable urban landscapes. One part of this trait is plant water use. Lower water use rates may translate to less irrigation needed to maintain turfgrass quality and function. My study addressed this issue by measuring actual water use rates of nine Kentucky bluegrass varieties in greenhouse conditions. I also evaluated the visual quality of the grasses, and their growth rate. Each variety differed in all traits that we measured. The variety Diva used the least water in the study and maintained good turfgrass quality. Chateau exhibited the highest water use rate while also maintain good quality

Brain connectivity Patterns Dissociate action of specific Acupressure Treatments in Fatigued Breast cancer survivors

Funding This work was supported by grants R01 CA151445 and 2UL1 TR000433-06 from the National Institutes of Health. The funding source had no role in the design and conduct of the study; collection, management, analysis, and interpretation of the data; preparation, review, or approval of the manuscript; and decision to submit the manuscript for publication. We thank the expert assistance by Dr. Bradley Foerster in acquisition of 1H-MRS and fMRI data.Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Bioelectric-calcineurin signaling module regulates allometric growth and size of the zebrafish fin

AbstractThe establishment of relative size of organs and structures is paramount for attaining final form and function of an organism. Importantly, variation in the proportions of structures frequently underlies adaptive change in morphology in evolution and maybe a common mechanism underlying selection. However, the mechanism by which growth is integrated within tissues during development to achieve proper proportionality is poorly understood. We have shown that signaling by potassium channels mediates coordinated size regulation in zebrafish fins. Recently, calcineurin inhibitors were shown to elicit changes in zebrafish fin allometry as well. Here, we identify the potassium channelkcnk5bas a key player in integrating calcineurin’s growth effects, in part through regulation of the cytoplasmic C-terminus of the channel. We propose that the interaction between Kcnk5b and calcineurin acts as a signaling node to regulate allometric growth. Importantly, we find that this regulation is epistatic to inherent mechanisms instructing overall size as inhibition of calcineurin is able to bypass genetic instruction of size as seen insofand wild-type fins, however, it is not sufficient to re-specify positional memory of size of the fin. These findings integrate classic signaling mediators such as calcineurin with ion channel function in the regulation of size and proportion during growth.</jats:p