THE ALLOCATION OF STATE APPROPRIATIONS AND STUDENTS ACROSS DIFFERENT TYPES OF PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER EDUCATION

Public higher education has evolved over time under the control of each individual state. The public system in each state is made up of distinctive types of institutions that together provide higher education in different formats. Public institutions may largely be classified into three groups based on the level of education provided including community colleges, regional institutions, and research universities. While the institutions employed are largely the same in each state, the extent to which each is utilized and the support given reflect the individual characteristics of the state. This dissertation examines appropriations and enrollments by state and year in three classifications of universities: research universities, regional universities, and community colleges. The appropriations and enrollments in regional and community settings are measured relative to the same for research universities. The explanatory variables are political, economic, and demographic variables relevant in state finance to the allocation of state budgets. There are three empirical chapters. The first uses Granger causality concepts to examine whether appropriations and enrollment have strong predictive effects on each other in the following year. Enrollment has no such effect on appropriations, while there is a weak effect the other way. The second chapter studies relative appropriations, finding that the proportion of appropriations allocated to regional institutions has remained consistent, while states have proportionally shifted toward community colleges. The third chapter studies enrollment, which is very stable for regional universities and has shifted toward community colleges relative to research universities. Again, political and economic factors are somewhat different in these models. Examining year effects net of economics and politics, there are no such effects on appropriations; but for enrollment, regional universities grew somewhat relative to research universities in the earlier years (1986 to 1993), and community colleges grew throughout the period with pauses. The Great Recession is clearly visible in community college enrollments, growing as usual during an economic downturn

Phase Field Modeling Of Thermotransport In Multicomponent Systems

Nuclear and gas turbine power plants, computer chips, and other devices and industries are running hotter than ever for longer than ever. With no apparent end to the trend, the potential arises for a phenomenon known as thermotransport to cause undesirable changes in these high temperature materials. The diffuse-interface method known as the phase-field model is a useful tool in the simulation and prediction of thermotransport driven microstructure evolution in materials. The objective of this work is to develop a phase-field model using practical and empirical properties of thermodynamics and kinetics for simulating the interdiffusion behavior and microstructural evolution of single and multiphase binary alloy system under composition and/or temperature gradients. Simulations are carried out using thermodynamics and kinetics of real systems, such as the U-Zr solid metallic fuel, with emphasis on the temperature dependencies of the kinetics governing diffusional interactions in single-phase systems and microstructural evolution in the presence of multiple driving forces in multi-phase systems. A phase field model is developed describing thermotransport in the γ phase of the U-Zr alloy, a candidate for advanced metallic nuclear fuels. The model is derived using thermodynamics extracted from the CALPHAD database and temperature dependent kinetic parameters associated with thermotransport from the literature. Emphasis is placed upon the importance of the heat of transport, Q*, and atomic mobility, β. Temperature dependencies of each term are estimated from empirical data obtained directly from the literature, coupled with the textbook phenomenological formulae of each parameter. A solution is obtained via a finite volume approach with the aid of the FiPy® partial differential equation solver. Results of the simulations are described based on individual flux contributions from the gradients of both composition and temperature, and are found to be remarkably similar to experimental results from the literature. iv In an additional effort the thermotransport behavior of a binary two-phase alloy is modeled, for the first time, via the phase-field method for a two-phase (γ + β) U-Zr system. The model is similarly built upon CALPHAD thermodynamics describing the γ and β phases of the U-Zr system and thermotransport parameters for the γ phase from literature. A parametric investigation of how the heats of transport for U and Zr in the β phase affect the redistribution is performed, and the interplay between system kinetics and thermodynamics are examined. Importantly, a strict control over the microstructure that is placed into the temperature gradient ( ) is used to eliminate the randomness associated with microstructural evolution from an initially unstable state, allowing an examination of exactly how the β phase thermotransport parameters affect the redistribution behavior of the system. Results are compared to a control scenario in which the system evolves only in the presence of thermodynamic driving forces, and the kinetic parameters that are associated with thermotransport are negligible. In contrast to the single-phase simulations, in the presence of a large thermodynamic drive for phase transformation and stability, the constituent redistribution caused by the thermotransport effect is comparatively smaller

The Financial Impact of Strategic Development and High Potential Programs

We examined the talent management practices and financial performance of 300 organizations across 31 countries. Results demonstrated that organizations investing in strategic development and high potential programs financially outperformed their competitors over the course of seven years. Further, organizations’ ability to make effective succession decisions was one likely explanation (mediator) for this relationship. We discuss surprising findings regarding the combination of strategic development and high potential programs on succession effectiveness. Finally, we offer theoretical explanations towards why and when high potential programs may not provide additional value and provide practical recommendations regarding strategic talent management or high potential programs

Rehabilitation Following Hip Arthroscopy – A Systematic Review

CONTEXT: Rehabilitation following hip arthroscopy is an integral component of the clinical outcome of the procedure. Given the increase in quantity, complexity, and diversity of procedures performed, a need exists to define the role of rehabilitation following hip arthroscopy.OBJECTIVES: 1) To determine the current rehabilitation protocols utilized following hip arthroscopy in the current literature, 2) to determine if clinical outcomes are significantly different based on different post-operative rehabilitation protocols; and 3) to propose the best-available evidence-based rehabilitation program following hip arthroscopy.DATA SOURCES: Per PRISMA guidelines and checklist, Medline, SciVerse Scopus, SportDiscus, and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched.STUDY SELECTION: Level I-IV evidence clinical studies with minimum two-year follow-up reporting outcomes of hip arthroscopy with post-operative rehabilitation protocols described were included. DATA EXTRACTION: All study, subject, and surgery parameters were collected. All elements of rehabilitation were extracted and analyzed. Descriptive statistics were calculated. Study methodological quality was analyzed using the Modified Coleman Methodology Score (MCMS).RESULTS: 18 studies were included (2,092 subjects; 52% male, mean age 35.1 +/- 10.6 years, mean follow-up 3.2 +/- 1.0 years). Labral tear and femoroacetabular impingement were the most common diagnoses treated and labral debridement and femoral/acetabular osteochondroplasty the most common surgical techniques performed. Rehabilitation protocol parameters (weight-bearing, motion, strengthening, and return-to-sport) were poorly reported. Differences in clinical outcomes were unable to be assessed given heterogeneity in study reporting. Time-, phase-, goal-, and precaution-based guidelines were extracted and reported.CONCLUSIONS: The current literature of hip arthroscopy rehabilitation lacks high-quality evidence to support a speci

Model-Based Systems Engineering and F’: Proof of Concept Via the Creation of an On-Orbit Textual Command Parsing Component for the ABEX Mission

The Alabama Burst Energetics eXplorer (ABEX) mission is defining spacecraft architecture, behavior, mission phases, operational states, risks, and requirements in a Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) Integrated Systems Model (ISM) using SysML in Cameo Enterprise Architecture (CEA). The satellite structural design can be exported from CEA as Extensible Markup Language (XML) specifications and imported to F’, an open-source Flight Software (FSW) framework from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. F’ contains background components intended to be connected to user-defined components in the XML after it is exported from the ISM; in this work, ABEX is representing F’ background components in SysML Internal Block Diagrams from which the XML is generated. As a proof of concept for this MBSE-centric FSW implementation, the ABEX FSW team has created a Command Reader component from MBSE-generated XML and tested command enaction on a Raspberry Pi breadboard system for three test cases representing on-orbit command triggers

Resistant potato starch supplementation reduces serum histamine levels in healthy adults with links to attenuated intestinal permeability

Histamine from our diet or gut microbes can trigger gastrointestinal disturbances, and resistant potato starch (RPS) has previously been shown to alleviate these symptoms while increasing levels of health-associated bacteria such as Akkermansia through unknown mechanisms. Post hoc exploratory metabolomic analysis of serum amino acid, amine, and carnitine metabolites in participants consuming 3.5 g/day RPS or placebo (n = 48) was performed using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry to determine whether RPS positively influences histamine metabolism and related parameters. Histamine levels were significantly reduced by RPS treatment, but histamine-degrading enzyme products were unaffected by RPS. RPS also reduced histamine-secreting Haemophilus and Lactobacillus. Further, metabolites associated with intestinal permeability, including 5-hydroxylysine, acetylspermidine, and short- and medium-chain carnitines ratios, were significantly reduced by RPS treatment, suggesting decreased serum histamine might be related to enhanced gut barrier function. These metabolomic findings expand the value of supplementing the diet with RPS

Association Between Community Social Vulnerability and Preventable Hospitalizations

Preventable hospitalizations are common and costly events that burden patients and our health care system. While research suggests that these events are strongly linked to ambulatory care access, emerging evidence suggests they may also be sensitive to a patient’s social, environmental, and economic conditions. This study examines the association between variations in social vulnerability and preventable hospitalization rates. We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of county-level preventable hospitalization rates for 33 states linked with data from the 2020 Social Vulnerability Index (SVI). Preventable hospitalizations were 40% higher in the most vulnerable counties compared with the least vulnerable. Adjusted regression results confirm the strong relationship between social vulnerability and preventable hospitalizations. Our results suggest wide variation in community-level preventable hospitalization rates, with robust evidence that variation is strongly related to a community’s social vulnerability. The human toll, societal cost, and preventability of these hospitalizations make understanding and mitigating these inequities a national priority