Indiana Center for Brain Rehabilitation, Advanced Imaging, and Neuroscience (ICBRAIN): An IUPUI Signature Center Initiative

poster abstractThe Mission of the Indiana Center for Brain Rehabilitation, Advanced Imaging, and Neuroscience (ICBRAIN) is: to develop and disseminate techniques and methodologies for advanced neuroimaging and precision behavioral measurement to evaluate novel rehabilitation interventions for people with acquired brain injury. Traumatic and other types of acquired brain injury (ABI) affect millions of U.S. citizens each year, many of whom experience persistent disabilities. For example, among the estimated 1.4 million civilians who sustain a traumatic brain injury (TBI) each year, 50,000 die and a minimum of 80,000 sustain injuries of sufficient severity to require extended rehabilitation. The current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan have increased awareness and mobilized interest in medical treatment and rehabilitation for returning soldiers with TBI (designated as the “signature injury” of these conflicts). A 2008 study by the RAND corporation based on a random sample of 1,965 veterans estimated that, among 1.64 million returning veterans, approximately 320,000 experienced a probable TBI (19%). Over the past decade there has been a notable rise in research activities to address serious gaps in the knowledge base of ABI, including neuroimaging, outcome measurement, and intervention studies to change function. However, brain injury researchers have not yet established solid links between these research agendas. Such links are crucial for moving the evidence base forward to improve treatment outcomes. ICBRAIN will fill this gap in neuroscience by bringing together an interdisciplinary team of clinical researchers to (1) advance basic science and clinical knowledge to the next level of integration, (2) translate the knowledge gained directly into clinical care for improved patient outcomes, and (3) use the newly integrated knowledge to drive the leading edge of future research. ICBRAIN represents a unique collaboration among established clinical rehabilitation and measurement researchers in PM&R and at RHI and established researchers at the IU Center for Neuroimaging

In vivo Observation of Tree Drought Response with Low-Field NMR and Neutron Imaging

Using a simple low-field NMR system, we monitored water content in a livingtree in a greenhouse over two months. By continuously running thesystem, we observed changes in tree water content on a scale of halfan hour. The data showed a diurnal change in water content consistentboth with previous NMR and biological observations. Neutron imaging experiments showthat our NMR signal is primarily due to water being rapidly transported through the plant, and not to other sources of hydrogen, such as water in cytoplasm, or water in cell walls. After accountingfor the role of temperature in the observed NMR signal, we demonstratea change in the diurnal signal behavior due to simulated drought conditionsfor the tree. These results illustrate the utility of our system toperform noninvasive measurements of tree water content outside of a temperature controlled environment

Beneficial Aerodynamic Effect of Wing Scales on the Climbing Flight of Butterflies

It is hypothesized that butterfly wing scale geometry and surface patterning may function to improve aerodynamic efficiency. In order to investigate this hypothesis, a method to measure butterfly flapping kinematics optically over long uninhibited flapping sequences was developed. Statistical results for the climbing flight flapping kinematics of 11 butterflies, based on a total of 236 individual flights, both with and without their wing scales, are presented. Results show, that for each of the 11 butterflies, the mean climbing efficiency decreased after scales were removed. Data was reduced to a single set of differences of climbing efficiency using are paired t-test. Results show a mean decrease in climbing efficiency of 32.2% occurred with a 95% confidence interval of 45.6%–18.8%. Similar analysis showed that the flapping amplitude decreased by 7% while the flapping frequency did not show a significant difference. Results provide strong evidence that butterfly wing scale geometry and surface patterning improve butterfly climbing efficiency. The authors hypothesize that the wing scale\u27s effect in measured climbing efficiency may be due to an improved aerodynamic efficiency of the butterfly and could similarly be used on flapping wing micro air vehicles to potentially achieve similar gains in efficiency

Exploring First Responders\u27 Use and Perceptions on Continuous Health and Environmental Monitoring

First responders lose their lives in the line of duty each year, and many of these deaths result from strenuous physical exertion and exposure to harmful environmental agents. Continuous health monitoring may detect diseases and alert the first responder when vital signs are reaching critical levels. However, continuous monitoring must be acceptable to first responders. The purpose of this study was to discover first responders\u27 current use of wearable technology, their perceptions of what health and environmental indicators should be monitored, and who should be permitted to monitor them. The survey was sent to 645 first responders employed by 24 local fire department stations. A total of 115 (17.8%) first responders answered the survey and 112 were used for analysis. Results found first responders perceived a need for health and environmental monitoring. The health and environmental indicators that respondents perceived as most important for monitoring in the field were heart rate (98.2%) and carbon monoxide (100%), respectively. Overall, using and wearing monitoring devices was not age-dependent and health and environmental concerns were important for first responders at any stage of their career. However, current wearable technology does not seem to be a viable solution for first responders due to device expense and durability issues

U.S. Billion-ton Update: Biomass Supply for a Bioenergy and Bioproducts Industry

The Report, Biomass as Feedstock for a Bioenergy and Bioproducts Industry: The Technical Feasibility of a Billion-Ton Annual Supply (generally referred to as the Billion-Ton Study or 2005 BTS), was an estimate of “potential” biomass within the contiguous United States based on numerous assumptions about current and future inventory and production capacity, availability, and technology. In the 2005 BTS, a strategic analysis was undertaken to determine if U.S. agriculture and forest resources have the capability to potentially produce at least one billion dry tons of biomass annually, in a sustainable manner—enough to displace approximately 30% of the country’s present petroleum consumption. To ensure reasonable confidence in the study results, an effort was made to use relatively conservative assumptions. However, for both agriculture and forestry, the resource potential was not restricted by price. That is, all identified biomass was potentially available, even though some potential feedstock would more than likely be too expensive to actually be economically available. In addition to updating the 2005 study, this report attempts to address a number of its shortcoming

Pennsylvania Folklife Vol. 16, No. 3

• Reminiscences of a Boyhood in Reading, 1883-1890 • Preserving York\u27s Architectural Heritage • Jordan Museum of the Twenty • Pennsylvania Broadsides: II • Memoirs of a Lutheran Minister, 1850-1881 • Notes and Documents: Nicknames from a Mennonite Family • The Crafts at Newport • Anglicizing the Pennsylvania Dutch, 1966 and 1875 • Nicknames: Folk-Cultural Questionnaire #3https://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/pafolklifemag/1027/thumbnail.jp

Pennsylvania Folklife Vol. 16, No. 1

• Indian Readers and Healers by Prayer • Bayard Taylor\u27s Portrait of Pennsylvania Quakerism • Gypsy Stories from the Swatara Valley • Stump-Pulling • Occult Tales from Union County • Beekeeping and Bee Lore in Pennsylvania • New Materials on the 18th Century Emigration from the Speyer State Archives • The Snake-Bitten Dutchman • Notes and Documents: A Letter to Germany (1806) ; Midwestern Diary of Joel Vale Garretson (1863-1864) • Questionnaire on Hominyhttps://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/pafolklifemag/1025/thumbnail.jp

Developmental functions of the dynamic DNA methylome and hydroxymethylome in the mouse and zebrafish: similarities and differences

5-methylcytosine (5mC) is the best understood DNA modification and is generally believed to be associated with repression of gene expression. Over the last decade, sequentially oxidized forms of 5mC (oxi-mCs) have been discovered within the genomes of vertebrates. Their discovery was accompanied by that of the ten-eleven translocation (TET) methylcytosine dioxygenases, the enzymes that catalyse the formation of the oxi-mCs. Although a number of studies performed on different vertebrate models and embryonic stem cells demonstrated that both TET enzymes and oxi-mCs are likely to be important for several developmental processes it is currently unclear whether their developmental roles are conserved among vertebrates. Here, we summarise recent developments in this field suggesting that biological roles of TETs/oxi-mCs may significantly differ between mice and zebrafish. Thus, although the role of TET proteins in late organogenesis has been documented for both these systems; unlike in mice the enzymatic oxidation of 5mC does not seem to be involved in zygotic reprogramming or gastrulation in zebrafish. Our analysis may provide an insight into the general principles of epigenetic regulation of animal development and cellular differentiation

Exercise is Medicine- On Campus

Exercise is Medicine® (EIM), led by the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), promotes physical activity as a key part of healthcare. Its campus initiative, Exercise is Medicine On Campus (EIM-OC), encourages colleges to make movement a daily part of student life. Cal Poly Humboldt is one of only 149 institutions worldwide recognized by EIM® with a Gold Level designation for its efforts, including the Daily 5K and other activities that promote campus wellness and student well-being