Using Horticulturalists\u27 Input to Inform a Home Horticultural Website Redesign Process

The Internet is a growing source of information for consumers. Website design and development become important factors in website usability as consumers’ Internet access increases and they seek home horticulture and gardening resources. The University of Nebraska–Lincoln developed a website in the 1990s to supplement its Backyard Farmer television program. Consumers’ expectations of websites changed as technology changed, which resulted in the site no longer meeting visitors’ needs. Two focus groups evaluating the website’s usefulness as an information source were conducted with home and professional horticulturalists. Participants were most interested in locating concise information about horticulture and gardening on a website that was easy to navigate; had many links to additional information; and contained timely and current information. Overall, content quality, usability and aesthetics were highly ranked as important for a “perfect” website

L’eriçó africà, Atelerix algirus (Lereboullet, 1842) (Erinaceidae), i els passos de bestiar canadencs del Cap de Cavalleria (Es Mercadal, Menorca)

During the period of 2007 to 2010, every two days we visited the three cattle grids on the road to the Cap of Cavalleria, where it was possible to observe the fauna that fell into the grids. The first cattle grid is the closest to es Mercadal, the second cattle grid is 300 meters from the first, and the third is a further 700 meters and is closest to the lighthouse of Cavalleria. Therefore, the distance between the first and the third is one kilometer. During this four year period we recovered 118 hedgehogs (106 alive and 12 dead), two turtles, a rabbit, a stone curlew and a snake that otherwise would have died of thirst or drowned when the grids filled with water following rain. The chance to periodically visit an area where hedgehogs are relatively abundant allowed for an accurate estimation of the density of the population in the area and to take notes of their behavior

Using International, Interprofessional Service Learning to Promote Transcultural Self-Efficacy and Interprofessional Attitudes in Health Science Students

Interprofessional teams of occupational therapy, physical therapy, physician assistant, and dental hygiene students from the University of South Dakota participated in a service-learning experience in Guatemala. Student perceptions were measured using the Interprofessional Attitudes Scale and the Transcultural Self-Efficacy Tool. Qualitative data were obtained through written reflections and discussions during the immersion component of the service-learning experience. Students reported statistically significant improvements in transcultural self-efficacy as defined by their confidence in interviewing individuals from different cultures; their values, attitudes, and beliefs regarding cultural awareness, acceptance, appreciation, recognition, and advocacy; and their knowledge on how cultural factors influence care. Slightly different findings emerged concerning students’ attitudes about interprofessional practice. Qualitative analysis of personal reflections showed that many students felt purposeful when working as part of an interprofessional team and appreciated the dialogue with other professionals when discussing patient care

L’eriçó africà, Atelerix algirus (Lereboullet, 1842) (Erinaceidae), i els passos de bestiar canadencs del Cap de Cavalleria (Es Mercadal, Menorca)

Durant el període 2007-2010, es va realitzar un recorregut cada dos dies, visitant els tres passos de bestiar de la carretera que va al Cap de Cavalleria per observar la possible caiguda de fauna. El pas de bestiar 1 és el més proper a es Mercadal, el segon pas està a una distància de 300 metres del primer, i a uns 700 metres del tercer (el més proper al far de Cavalleria), per tant la distància entre el primer i el tercer és d’un quilòmetre. Durant aquest 4 anys s'han recuperat 118 eriçons (106 eriçons vius i 12 morts), dues tortugues, un conill, una serp i un sebel·lí que haguessin mort de set o ofegats rere una inundació dels passos en casos de pluja. La possibilitat de fer un recorregut periòdic per una zona en la que els eriçons són relativament abundants, ofereix la possibilitat de realitzar una estima fidel sobre la seva densitat de població a la zona. Així mateix també es donen apunts sobre el seu comportament.During the period of 2007 to 2010, every two days we visited the three cattle grids on the road to the Cap of Cavalleria, where it was possible to observe the fauna that fell into the grids. The first cattle grid is the closest to es Mercadal, the second cattle grid is 300 meters from the first, and the third is a further 700 meters and is closest to the lighthouse of Cavalleria. Therefore, the distance between the first and the third is one kilometer. During this four year period we recovered 118 hedgehogs (106 alive and 12 dead), two turtles, a rabbit, a stone curlew and a snake that otherwise would have died of thirst or drowned when the grids filled with water following rain. The chance to periodically visit an area where hedgehogs are relatively abundant allowed for an accurate estimation of the density of the population in the area and to take notes of their behavior

Genomes of diverse isolates of the marine cyanobacterium Prochlorococcus

The marine cyanobacterium Prochlorococcus is the numerically dominant photosynthetic organism in the oligotrophic oceans, and a model system in marine microbial ecology. Here we report 27 new whole genome sequences (2 complete and closed; 25 of draft quality) of cultured isolates, representing five major phylogenetic clades of Prochlorococcus. The sequenced strains were isolated from diverse regions of the oceans, facilitating studies of the drivers of microbial diversity—both in the lab and in the field. To improve the utility of these genomes for comparative genomics, we also define pre-computed clusters of orthologous groups of proteins (COGs), indicating how genes are distributed among these and other publicly available Prochlorococcus genomes. These data represent a significant expansion of Prochlorococcus reference genomes that are useful for numerous applications in microbial ecology, evolution and oceanography.Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation (Grant GBMR #495.01)National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant OCE-1153588)National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant OCE-0425602)National Science Foundation (U.S.) (Grant DBI-0424599)Center for Microbial Oceanography: Research and Educatio

Effects of Coping Skills Training on Quality of Life, Disease Biomarkers and Clinical Outcomes in Patients with Heart Failure: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Heart failure (HF) is a chronic disease that compromises patients’ quality of life (QoL). Interventions designed to reduce distress and improve disease self-management are needed. We evaluated the efficacy of a telephone-based coping skills training (CST) intervention

Peat Bog Wildfire Smoke Exposure in Rural North Carolina Is Associated with Cardiopulmonary Emergency Department Visits Assessed through Syndromic Surveillance

Background: In June 2008, burning peat deposits produced haze and air pollution far in excess of National Ambient Air Quality Standards, encroaching on rural communities of eastern North Carolina. Although the association of mortality and morbidity with exposure to urban air pollution is well established, the health effects associated with exposure to wildfire emissions are less well understood. Objective: We investigated the effects of exposure on cardiorespiratory outcomes in the population affected by the fire. Methods: We performed a population-based study using emergency department (ED) visits reported through the syndromic surveillance program NC DETECT (North Carolina Disease Event Tracking and Epidemiologic Collection Tool). We used aerosol optical depth measured by a satellite to determine a high-exposure window and distinguish counties most impacted by the dense smoke plume from surrounding referent counties. Poisson log-linear regression with a 5-day distributed lag was used to estimate changes in the cumulative relative risk (RR). Results: In the exposed counties, significant increases in cumulative RR for asthma [1.65 (95% confidence interval, 1.25–2.1)], chronic obstructive pulmonary disease [1.73 (1.06–2.83)], and pneumonia and acute bronchitis [1.59 (1.07–2.34)] were observed. ED visits associated with cardiopulmonary symptoms [1.23 (1.06–1.43)] and heart failure [1.37 (1.01–1.85)] were also significantly increased. Conclusions: Satellite data and syndromic surveillance were combined to assess the health impacts of wildfire smoke in rural counties with sparse air-quality monitoring. This is the first study to demonstrate both respiratory and cardiac effects after brief exposure to peat wildfire smoke

Free energy of bubbles and droplets in the quark-hadron phase transition

Using the MIT bag model, we calculate the free energy of droplets of quark-gluon plasma in a bulk hadronic medium, and of hadronic bubbles in a bulk quark-gluon plasma, under the assumption of vanishing chemical potentials. We investigate the validity of the multiple reflection expansion approximation, and we advise a novel procedure for calculating finite-size corrections to the free energy of hadronic bubbles in a bulk quark-gluon plasma. While our results agree largely with earlier calculations, we show that the usual multiple reflection expansion should be used with caution, and we propose a modification of the multiple reflection expansion, which makes this approximation agree nicely with direct numerical calculations. The results should be of relevance in connection with the cosmological quark-hadron transition as well as for ultrarelativistic heavy ion collisions.Comment: Published version, 25 pages including 16 figure

Surface ocean-lower atmosphere study: Scientific synthesis and contribution to Earth system science

The domain of the surface ocean and lower atmosphere is a complex, highly dynamic component of the Earth system. Better understanding of the physics and biogeochemistry of the air-sea interface and the processes that control the exchange of mass and energy across that boundary define the scope of the Surface Ocean-Lower Atmosphere Study (SOLAS) project. The scientific questions driving SOLAS research, as laid out in the SOLAS Science Plan and Implementation Strategy for the period 2004-2014, are highly challenging, inherently multidisciplinary and broad. During that decade, SOLAS has significantly advanced our knowledge. Discoveries related to the physics of exchange, global trace gas budgets and atmospheric chemistry, the CLAW hypothesis (named after its authors, Charlson, Lovelock, Andreae and Warren), and the influence of nutrients and ocean productivity on important biogeochemical cycles, have substantially changed our views of how the Earth system works and revealed knowledge gaps in our understanding. As such SOLAS has been instrumental in contributing to the International Geosphere Biosphere Programme (IGBP) mission of identification and assessment of risks posed to society and ecosystems by major changes in the Earth́s biological, chemical and physical cycles and processes during the Anthropocene epoch. SOLAS is a bottom-up organization, whose scientific priorities evolve in response to scientific developments and community needs, which has led to the launch of a new 10-year phase. SOLAS (2015–2025) will focus on five core science themes that will provide a scientific basis for understanding and projecting future environmental change and for developing tools to inform societal decision-making

Effects of the DASH Diet Alone and in Combination With Exercise and Weight Loss on Blood Pressure and Cardiovascular Biomarkers in Men and Women With High Blood Pressure: The ENCORE Study

Although the DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diet has been shown to lower blood pressure (BP) in short-term feeding studies, it has not been shown to lower BP among free-living individuals, nor has it been shown to alter cardiovascular biomarkers of risk