The science of cover crops in Iowa

Iowa Cover Crop Working Group (ICCWG) is under the leadership of the Iowa Learning Farms program and includes core members from the following agencies and organizations: Practical Farmers of Iowa (PFI), Iowa State University Extension and Outreach (ISUEO), USDA-Agricultural Research Service-National Laboratory for Agriculture and the Environment (USDA-ARS-NLAE), Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship (IDALS)

Complications of botulinum toxin and fillers: A narrative review.

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Next-Generation Optical Fronthaul in the iCirrus Project

We discuss next-generation fronthaul solutions for 5G and legacy radio access networks. Architectures, findings and experimental results from recent lab and field trial activities are reported

Testbed Verification of New Fronthaul Technology for 5G Systems

The fronthaul for 5th generation mobile systems (and beyond) has evolved with new splits for the radio access network functions defined, and the transport for these split interfaces having very different requirements. Testing of the transport for such split interfaces is reported, and it is shown that an Ethernet fronthaul transport network, which is capable of bringing efficiency gains through statistical multiplexing, can meet stringent latency and latency variation requirements, assuming buffering and playout of the radio waveforms and that timing/synchronization signals are prioritized. An aggregation technique for a 100 Gb/s Ethernet trunk which provides for such timing signals is demonstrated. Real-time monitoring of the Ethernet fronthaul for software-defined networking control and performance optimization is also shown

Practical examination of bystanders performing Basic Life Support in Germany: a prospective manikin study

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>In an out-of-hospital emergency situation bystander intervention is essential for a sufficient functioning of the chain of rescue. The basic measures of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (Basic Life Support – BLS) by lay people are therefore definitely part of an effective emergency service of a patient needing resuscitation. Relevant knowledge is provided to the public by various course conceptions. The learning success concerning a one day first aid course ("LSM" course in Germany) has not been much investigated in the past. We investigated to what extent lay people could perform BLS correctly in a standardised manikin scenario. An aim of this study was to show how course repetitions affected success in performing BLS.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The "LSM course" was carried out in a standardised manner. We tested prospectively 100 participants in two groups (<b>Group 1: </b>Participants with previous attendance of a BLS course; <b>Group 2: </b>Participants with no previous attendance of a BLS course) in their practical abilities in BLS after the course. Success parameter was the correct performance of BLS in accordance with the current ERC guidelines.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Twenty-two (22%) of the 100 investigated participants obtained satisfactory results in the practical performance of BLS. Participants with repeated participation in BLS obtained significantly better results (<b>Group 1: </b>32.7% vs. <b>Group 2: </b>10.4%; p < 0.01) than course participants with no relevant previous knowledge.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Only 22% of the investigated participants at the end of a "LSM course" were able to perform BLS satisfactorily according to the ERC guidelines. Participants who had previously attended comparable courses obtained significantly better results in the practical test. Through regular repetitions it seems to be possible to achieve, at least on the manikin, an improvement of the results in bystander resuscitation and, consequently, a better patient outcome. To validate this hypothesis further investigations are recommended by specialised societies.</p

Predicting Groundwater Trading Participation in the Upper Republican River Natural Resource District

The goal of this thesis is to predict participation in groundwater trading and the directions of trades among participants. Specifically, the paper considers both formal and informal trading of groundwater used for crop irrigation purposes and attempts to identify those characteristics that predict the probability of trade participation and whether an individual is a buyer or seller of groundwater rights. While the public benefits from efficient use of groundwater include adequate stream flow in hydrologically connected areas and future use of groundwater supplies, there are significant private benefits to landowners especially in water-short areas. Groundwater trading can help move water from low-value to high-value areas of use for the benefit of the participating traders and general public. Previous research on water trading has focused on surface water trading and theoretical approaches to analyzing groundwater trading. Empirical analysis of groundwater trading is a relatively new area of study due in part to the previous lack of recorded usage, trade data and binding constraints on groundwater use by landowners. Results from this research indicate a strong desire to participate in trades, but high transactions costs have limited the number of trades that have occurred. Utilizing empirical models improves the accuracy of predicting trade participation and direction, and therefore the accuracy of models of trade effects on water supplies and stream flows used in policy and decision making. Adviser: Karina Schoengol

Predicting Groundwater Trading in the Upper Republican Natural Resource District

While surface water trading has occurred regularly throughout the Western United States and the rest of the world for decades, the use of any type of groundwater trading has been very limited. However, groundwater is increasingly under stress from overuse and many areas are starting to regulate groundwater use. While the public benefits from efficient use of groundwater include adequate stream flow in hydrologically connected areas and future availability of groundwater supplies, there are significant private benefits to landowners, especially in water short areas. Groundwater trading can help move water from low-value to high-value areas of use. Previous work on water trading has focused on surface water trading and theoretical approaches to analyzing groundwater trading. Empirical analysis of groundwater trading is a new area of research, due in part to the lack of recorded usage, trade data and binding constraints on groundwater use by landowners

Constructing value in the medial prefrontal cortex

Humans and other animals are remarkably adept at integrating a vast array of information into their choices. For instance, they seamlessly integrate their own internal states and goals (e.g. being thirsty or aspiring to obtain a PhD) into their actions without extensive training. How does the brain enable them to do this efficiently? In this thesis, I will investigate three key components of this behaviour: i) how humans track accumulation of resources as information about the current state of their goals, ii) how they arbitrate between two competing goals, and iii) how remembered value information is efficiently re-weighted to support pursuit of novel goals. All reported experiments employed functional magnetic resonance imaging to localize neural responses. In the first line of research, covering points i) and ii), I will review two experiments, which investigate the neural correlates in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) during goal-directed decision-making. In Chapter 3, I report results from a study in which participants accumulated rewards from risky gambles over time. A key value-related area in the prefrontal cortex (PFC), the ventromedial PFC, encoded both the momentary receipt of reward and the participants’ current cumulative rewards. Next, in Chapter 4, I ask how humans arbitrate between two competing goals based on such latent accumulation signals. Another PFC region, the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), reflected both the pressure to act on one goal over another as well as participants’ likelihood to act according to this pressure. Importantly, the vmPFC encoded how much participants’ choices redressed the imbalance between goals, indicating that its value correlates may represent an integration of multiple goals and momentary receipt. If goals exert pressure to re-direct choices towards certain courses of action, then the areas supporting such decision-making must be able to flexibly re-weight information according to these new goals. Thus, in Chapter 5, I present a study showing that the frontopolar cortex as well as the ACC are key areas supporting this dynamic re-weighting and the representation of opportunity costs. Lastly, I will review a framework of primary rewards, homeostatic reinforcement learning, and how it may be adapted to encompass cognitive goals.</p