Profile of Iowa farms and farm families: 1976

This report is the first of several publications from a major research project initiated in the fall of 1976 by the Iowa Agriculture and Home Economics Experiment Station at Iowa State University with the cooperation of University Extension. The project is the Iowa Family Farm Research Project. One phase of this project is a sample survey, conducted in the spring of 1977, of farms and farm households in all of Iowa’s 99 counties. Only farms with $2,500 or more gross farm sales in 1976 were included in the survey. Information was gathered from a sample of 933 farm households. The questionnaire was divided into two parts: one relating to the farm household, and the other relating to the farm business. The person determined to be the operator by a separate screening process responded to the farm business section of the questionnaire, and the spouse of this person, when one was present, responded to the household section. The operator was identified as the primary decision maker for the farm business, except where more than one decision maker was identified, in which case the number of days worked on the farm became the criterion for selecting between them. Seven persons within these households were identified as second operators having their own separate farming operation, and information relating to these operations was gathered also. Eleven female operators were identified out of the total of 940 farm business operations studied

Open-Educational Resources (OERs) in the College Classroom: A Case Study

Rising textbook costs are creating additional debt for college students and in some cases, are causing students to forgo purchasing a textbook (Mitchell, 2014). Open educational resources (OER), which are typically free or low-cost, have become an increasingly popular alternative to traditional paper textbooks. In this study, we examined perceptions and effectiveness of an OER in an introductory psychology course at a small, public university in Georgia. We compared 1) perceptions of the type of textbook students were using (perceptions of OERs among students using an OER and traditional paper texts among students using traditional paper texts) and 2) course performance (i.e., exam grades). First, we found that students preferred the textbook format they were given: Students who used the OER preferred using the OER to a traditional paper text, and students using a traditional paper text preferred using a paper text. Second we compared exam grades across the two courses. Although initial differences were found, these differences were not statistically significant, t(64) = -1.329, p = 1.88. This presentation is based on a completed research project. Implications for using OER in all disciplines will be discussed

Relationship Between Body Satisfaction and Exercise Behavior: A Cross Cultural Comparison

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Processing and Transmission of Information

Contains research objectives and reports on one research projects.Lincoln Laboratory, Purchase Order DDL B-00368U. S. ArmyU. S. NavyU. S. Air Force under Air Force Contract AF19(604)-7400National Institutes of Health (Grant MH-04737-02

Testing T Invariance in the Interaction of Slow Neutrons with Aligned Nuclei

The study of five-fold (P even, T odd) correlation in the interaction of slow polarized neutrons with aligned nuclei is a possible way of testing the time reversal invariance due to the expected enhancement of T violating effects in compound resonances. Possible nuclear targets are discussed which can be aligned both dynamically as well as by the "brute force" method at low temperature. A statistical estimation is performed of the five-fold correlation for low lying p wave compound resonances of the $^{121}$Sb, $^{123}$Sb and $^{127}$I nuclei. It is shown that a significant improvement can be achieved for the bound on the intensity of the fundamental parity conserving time violating (PCTV) interaction.Comment: 22 pages, 5 figures, published versio

Long-Lasting Effects of Prenatal Ethanol Exposure on Fear Learning and Development of the Amygdala

Prenatal ethanol exposure (PrEE) produces developmental abnormalities in brain and behavior that often persist into adulthood. We have previously reported abnormal cortical gene expression, disorganized neural circuitry along with deficits in sensorimotor function and anxiety in our CD-1 murine model of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders, or FASD (El Shawa et al., 2013; Abbott et al., 2016). We have proposed that these phenotypes may underlie learning, memory, and behavioral deficits in humans with FASD. Here, we evaluate the impact of PrEE on fear memory learning, recall and amygdala development at two adult timepoints. PrEE alters learning and memory of aversive stimuli; specifically, PrEE mice, fear conditioned at postnatal day (P) 50, showed deficits in fear acquisition and memory retrieval when tested at P52 and later at P70–P72. Interestingly, this deficit in fear acquisition observed during young adulthood was not present when PrEE mice were conditioned later, at P80. These mice displayed similar levels of fear expression as controls when tested on fear memory recall. To test whether PrEE alters development of brain circuitry associated with fear conditioning and fear memory recall, we histologically examined subdivisions of the amygdala in PrEE and control mice and found long-term effects of PrEE on fear memory circuitry. Thus, results from this study will provide insight on the neurobiological and behavioral effects of PrEE and provide new information on developmental trajectories of brain dysfunction in people prenatally exposed to ethanol

Accelerated aging of solid lubricants for the W76-1 TSL : effects of polymer outgassing.

The behavior of MoS{sub 2} lubricants intended for the W76-1 TSL was evaluated after 17 and 82 thermal cycles, each lasting seven days and including a low temperature of -35 C and a high temperature of 93 C, in a sealed container containing organic materials. The MoS{sub 2} was applied by tumbling with MoS{sub 2} powder and steel pins (harperized), or by spraying with a resin binder (AS Mix). Surface composition measurements indicated an uptake of carbon and silicon on the lubricant surfaces after aging. Oxidation of the MoS{sub 2} on harperized coupons, where enough MoS{sub 2} was present at the surface to result in significant Mo and S concentrations, was found to be minimal for the thermal cycles in an atmosphere of primarily nitrogen. Bare steel surfaces showed a reduction in friction for exposed coupons compared to control coupons stored in nitrogen, at least for the initial cycles of sliding until the adsorbed contaminants were worn away. Lubricated surfaces showed no more than a ten percent increase in steady-state friction coefficient after exposure. Initial coefficient of friction was up to 250 percent higher than steady-state for AS Mix films on H950 coupons after 82 thermal cycles. However, the friction coefficient exhibited by lubricated coupons was never greater than 0.25, and more often less than 0.15, even after the accelerated aging exposures

An exploration of personal benefits reported by students of a health and wellness coach training programme

This study explores the ‘personal benefits’ of training reported by graduates of a health and wellness coach training programme. In particular, we investigated reported benefits, areas of life affected by the training, and whether changes occurred in health and wellness or more broadly. Using a semi-structured interview design, we incorporated an atheoretical qualitative approach to data collection and analysis. Thematic analysis was used at a semantic level to identify the major themes. The findings indicate a blend of personal and professional benefits for the graduate. As a result of participation in the programme, graduates gained greater self-knowledge, and better connection with others. They also improved their professional optimism and noted positive changes in personal health and wellbeing. Further research is needed to see if trainees from other health and wellness coach training programmes report similar personal benefits, and to identify key training elements instrumental to generating these benefits

A comparative study of sleep and diurnal patterns in house mouse (Mus musculus) and spiny mouse (Acomys cahirinus)

Most published sleep studies use three species: human, house mouse, or Norway rat. The degree to which data from these species captures variability in mammalian sleep remains unclear. To gain insight into mammalian sleep diversity, we examined sleep architecture in the spiny basal murid rodent Acomys cahirinus. First, we used a piezoelectric system validated for Mus musculus to monitor sleep in both species. We also included wild M. musculus to control for alterations generated by laboratory-reared conditions for M. musculus. Using this comparative framework, we found that A. cahirinus, lab M. musculus, and wild M. musculus were primarily nocturnal, but exhibited distinct behavioral patterns. Although the activity of A. cahirinus increased sharply at dark onset, it decreased sharply just two hours later under group and individual housing conditions. To further characterize sleep patterns and sleep-related variables, we set up EEG/EMG and video recordings and found that A. cahirinus sleep significantly more than M. musculus, exhibit nearly three times more REM, and sleep almost exclusively with their eyes open. The observed differences in A. cahirinus sleep architecture raise questions about the evolutionary drivers of sleep behavior

A Comparative Study of Sleep and Diurnal Patterns in House Mouse (\u3cem\u3eMus musculus\u3c/em\u3e) and Spiny Mouse (\u3cem\u3eAcomys cahirinus\u3c/em\u3e)

Most published sleep studies use three species: human, house mouse, or Norway rat. The degree to which data from these species captures variability in mammalian sleep remains unclear. To gain insight into mammalian sleep diversity, we examined sleep architecture in the spiny basal murid rodent Acomys cahirinus. First, we used a piezoelectric system validated for Mus musculus to monitor sleep in both species. We also included wild M. musculus to control for alterations generated by laboratory-reared conditions for M. musculus. Using this comparative framework, we found that A. cahirinus, lab M. musculus, and wild M. musculus were primarily nocturnal, but exhibited distinct behavioral patterns. Although the activity of A. cahirinus increased sharply at dark onset, it decreased sharply just two hours later under group and individual housing conditions. To further characterize sleep patterns and sleep-related variables, we set up EEG/EMG and video recordings and found that A. cahirinus sleep significantly more than M. musculus, exhibit nearly three times more REM, and sleep almost exclusively with their eyes open. The observed differences in A. cahirinus sleep architecture raise questions about the evolutionary drivers of sleep behavior