Evaluation of a putatively very high yielding "miracle" spring wheat

Non-Peer ReviewedA supposedly very high yielding branched spike wheat (BSW) was shown to yield as much as 75 % less than standard Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS) cultivars when severely infected with leaf and stem rust. With little or no disease pressure BSW still yielded 25-30% less than semi-dwarf wheat cultivars under both dryland and irrigated conditions. The BSW was very tall and later maturing than HY 320. Kernel and quality characteristics of BSW would appear to limit its market potential regardless of yield

Evaluation of a putatively very high yielding "miracle" spring wheat

Non-Peer ReviewedA supposedly very high yielding branched spike wheat (BSW) was shown to yield as much as 75 % less than standard Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS) cultivars when severely infected with leaf and stem rust. With little or no disease pressure BSW still yielded 25-30% less than semi-dwarf wheat cultivars under both dryland and irrigated conditions. The BSW was very tall and later maturing than HY 320. Kernel and quality characteristics of BSW would appear to limit its market potential regardless of yield

Use of a CPD Plan Template with SMART Goals as Part of a Diabetes Pharmacotherapy Module

Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of a Continuing Professional Development (CPD) plan template used in Fall of 2017 on quality of SMART goal development and student quiz scores. Innovation: The gap in time from when pharmacology is taught and when it is applied has contributed to poor student retention and performance in the diabetes pharmacotherapy course. To address this gap, the diabetes pharmacotherapy learning sequence was redesigned and included a self-assessment (pre-test), and the completion of a “CPD plan template”, which involved writing 1-3 SMART goals for each question missed on the pre-test. Following sequence completion, students took an identical post-quiz. Pre- and post- quiz scores were compared. Quality of CPD plan SMART goals was evaluated. Key Findings: The CPD plan template was completed by 98% of students.  The majority, 62.5% of students, wrote SMART goals at the intermediate or good level, while 37.5% were evaluated as needs improvement. The average pre-quiz score was 7.4 points and average post-quiz score was 17.1 points with an average improvement of 9.8 points (p<0.0001). There was a statistically significant improvement for top 25% post-quiz scoring students who wrote “good” SMART goals compared to those who wrote goals needing improvement (p= 0.002). For students scoring in the lowest 25%, students with goals needing improvement scored higher than those with intermediate quality goals (p< 0.04). Next Steps: It may be beneficial to introduce CPD to students sooner, as well as teach students more intentionally how to create and use SMART goals to improve learning. Finally, instructor follow up with students regarding use of their plan during a learning sequence may have additional benefit.   Article Type: Not

Role of gas cooling in tomorrow`s energy services industry

This article discusses the marketing approach and opportunities for suppliers and manufacturers of gas cooling equipment to partner with energy service companies (ESCOs). The author`s viewpoint is that in educating and partnering with ESCOs the gas cooling industry enables their technology to reach its potential in the projects that the ESCOs develop

Wildlife Harvesting and Sustainable Regional Native Economy in the Hudson and James Bay Lowland, Ontario

To assist the Omushkego Cree in planning a community and regional economic development strategy that takes into account the traditional economy, we developed appropriate methodologies to investigate the quantitative importance and economic value of hunting and fishing for the Mushkegowuk region, Hudson and James Bay Lowland. Harvests of wildlife by the 6500 aboriginal residents of eight communities - Moose Factory, Moosonee, New Post, Fort Albany, Kashechewan, Attawapiskat, Peawanuck and Fort Severn - were estimated by means of a questionnaire study. A total of 925 persons were interviewed for 56% coverage in a stratified sampling design. Four species (moose, Canada goose, caribou, lesser snow goose) accounted for about two-thirds of the 1990 bush food harvest of 687 000 kg, the equivalent of 402 g meat or 97 g protein per adult per day. The replacement value of the bush food harvested in the region was about $7.8 million in 1990. Including other products of the land (fur, fuelwood, berries), the total value of the traditional economy,$9.4 million for the region or $8400 per household per year, was about one-third as large as the total cash economy. The results show that the traditional economy is a cornerstone of the regional mixed economy, and that such a mixed economy may persist as a culturally and environmentally sustainable base for the region.Key words: Hudson Bay and James Bay Lowland, Canadian subarctic, Cree, sustainable development, subsistence, wildlife, fisheriesDans le but d'aider les Cris Omushkego à planifier une stratégie de développement économique communautaire et régional qui tienne compte de l'économie traditionnelle, on a mis au point des méthodologies appropriées permettant d'enquêter sur l'importance quantitative et sur la valeur économique de la chasse et de la pêche pour la région de Mushkegowuk, dans les basses-terres de la baie d'Hudson et de la baie James. Une étude faite à l'aide d'un sondage a permis d'évaluer le nombre de prises d'animaux par les 6500 autochtones habitant les huit communautés de Moose Factory, Moosonee, New Post, Fort Albany, Kashechewan, Attawapiskat, Peawanuck et Fort Severn. Un total de 925 personnes ont été interviewées formant 56 p. cent d'un plan d'échantillonnage stratifié. Quatre espèces (l'orignal, la bernache du Canada, le caribou et la petite oie blanche) comptaient pour environ les deux tiers des prises provenant de la nature au cours de l'année 90. Le poids de ces prises était de 687 000 kg, soit l'équivalent quotidien de 402 g de viande ou de 97 g de protéine par adulte. La valeur de remplacement de la nourriture tirée de la nature dans la région était d'environ 7,8 millions de dollars en 1990. Si l'on inclut les autres produits de la nature (fourrure, bois de feu, baies), la valeur totale de l'économie traditionnelle - 9,4 millions de dollars pour la région ou 8400 dollars annuels par foyer - équivalait à environ un tiers de l'économie monétaire totale. Les résultats montrent que l'économie traditionnelle est un pilier de l'économie mixte régionale et que cette dernière peut persister en tant qu'assise durable sur le plan culturel et environnemental pour la région.Mots clés: basses-terres de la baie d’Hudson et de la baie James, subarctique canadien, Cris, développement durable, subsistance, faune, pêcherie

The Persistence of Aboriginal Land Use: Fish and Wildlife Harvest Areas in the Hudson and James Bay Lowland, Ontario

The question of the extent and importance of contemporary aboriginal land use in the Canadian North remains controversial, despite more than 20 studies undertaken since the mid-1970s to document Native land claims and to assess impacts of development projects. In planning a community and regional development strategy that takes into account traditional land use and economy, methodologies were developed for a computer-based, integrated land use and wildlife harvest study that could be applied over large geographic areas. Wildlife harvesting areas used in 1990 by the aboriginal people of the Mushkegowuk region, Hudson and James Bay Lowland, were documented by interviewing 925 hunters from eight communities (Moose Factory, Moosonee, New Post, Fort Albany, Kashechewan, Attawapiskat, Peawanuck and Fort Severn). Results show that geographically extensive land use for hunting and fishing persists in the Mushkegowuk region, some 250 000 sq km. However, the activity pattern of Omushkego (West Main) Cree harvesters has changed much over the decades; contemporary harvesting involves numerous short trips of a few days' duration instead of the traditional long trips. Although the First Nations control only 900 sq km (0.36% of the region) as Indian reserve land, they continue to use large parts of their traditional territory.Key words: land use, aboriginal territories, Hudson Bay and James Bay Lowland, Canadian subarctic, Cree, subsistence, wildlife, fisheriesLa question du niveau et de l'importance de l'utilisation actuelle des terres aborigènes dans le Nord canadien demeure controversée, malgré plus de 20 études entreprises depuis le milieu des années 70 afin de documenter les revendications territoriales des autochtones et d'évaluer l'impact des projets de développement. Dans le but de planifier une stratégie de développement communautaire et régional qui tienne compte de l'utilisation des terres et de l'économie traditionnelles, on a mis au point des méthodologies pour une étude intégrée de l'utilisation des terres et prélèvement faunique, en se servant d'ordinateurs, méthodologies qui pourraient être appliquées à de vastes régions géographiques. On a documenté les zones de prélèvement faunique utilisées en 1990 par les peuples autochtones de la région de Mushkegowuk, basse-terre de la baie d'Hudson et de la baie James, en interviewant 925 chasseurs de huit communautés (Moose Factory, Moosonee, New Post, Fort Albany, Kashechewan, Attawapiskat, Peawanuck et Fort Severn). Les résultats montrent qu'une utilisation intensive, du point de vue géographique, pour la chasse et la pêche persiste dans la région de Mushkegowuk, soit quelque 250 000 km². Cependant, le type d'activité de prélèvement des Cree Omushkego (West Main) a beaucoup changé au cours des ans; les prélèvements contemporains sont réalisés lors de nombreuses expéditions de quelques jours seulement, plutôt que lors de longues expéditions traditionnelles. Bien que les Premières Nations ne contrôlent que 900 km² (0,36 p. cent de la région) en tant que terres de réserve indienne, elles continuent d'utiliser une grande superficies du territoire traditionnel.Mots clés: utilisation des terres, territoires autochtones, basse-terre de la baie d’Hudson et de la baie James, subarctique canadien, Cree, subsistance, faune, pêcherie

Steiner t-designs for large t

One of the most central and long-standing open questions in combinatorial design theory concerns the existence of Steiner t-designs for large values of t. Although in his classical 1987 paper, L. Teirlinck has shown that non-trivial t-designs exist for all values of t, no non-trivial Steiner t-design with t > 5 has been constructed until now. Understandingly, the case t = 6 has received considerable attention. There has been recent progress concerning the existence of highly symmetric Steiner 6-designs: It is shown in [M. Huber, J. Algebr. Comb. 26 (2007), pp. 453-476] that no non-trivial flag-transitive Steiner 6-design can exist. In this paper, we announce that essentially also no block-transitive Steiner 6-design can exist.Comment: 9 pages; to appear in: Mathematical Methods in Computer Science 2008, ed. by J.Calmet, W.Geiselmann, J.Mueller-Quade, Springer Lecture Notes in Computer Scienc

Preventing acute infection in total hip prostheses implanted after external fixation of the femur: is there a need for a staged procedure?

We report two cases of acute infection of an uncemented femoral component in a hip prosthesis implanted after external fixation of a femoral fracture. In both cases, the surgical access did not cross over the pin scars. When the prosthesis was implanted the stem crossed one or more pin tracts. The preoperative clinical examination, laboratory tests and bone scintigraphy with marked granulocytosis did not show signs of local infection in either case. We suggest that every patient destined to receive a prosthesis after external fixation should be treated with a staged procedure, the first step being excision of the soft tissues around the pin tracts and curettage or drilling of the bony holes, followed by prosthesis implant

Block-Transitive Designs in Affine Spaces

This paper deals with block-transitive $t$-$(v,k,\lambda)$ designs in affine spaces for large $t$, with a focus on the important index $\lambda=1$ case. We prove that there are no non-trivial 5-$(v,k,1)$ designs admitting a block-transitive group of automorphisms that is of affine type. Moreover, we show that the corresponding non-existence result holds for 4-$(v,k,1)$ designs, except possibly when the group is one-dimensional affine. Our approach involves a consideration of the finite 2-homogeneous affine permutation groups.Comment: 10 pages; to appear in: "Designs, Codes and Cryptography