Exploring the Demand for Retirement Planning Advice: The Role of Financial Literacy

This research extends previous literature on the relationship between financial literacy and financial advice seeking in three ways: (1) we examine financial planner use specifically within the context of retirement planning, (2) we incorporate Huston’s (2010) framework of financial literacy, and (3) we use longitudinal data to investigate the initiation, maintenance, and termination of financial planner use. Results from the 2010 and 2012 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (NLSY79) show a positive association between the components of financial literacy and financial planner use for retirement planning

Challenges and opportunities of centrifugal microfluidics for extreme point-of-care testing

The advantages offered by centrifugal microfluidic systems have encouraged its rapid adaptation in the fields of in vitro diagnostics, clinical chemistry, immunoassays, and nucleic acid tests. Centrifugal microfluidic devices are currently used in both clinical and point-of-care settings. Recent studies have shown that this new diagnostic platform could be potentially used in extreme point-of-care settings like remote villages in the Indian subcontinent and in Africa. Several technological inventions have decentralized diagnostics in developing countries; however, very few microfluidic technologies have been successful in meeting the demand. By identifying the finest difference between the point-of-care testing and extreme point-of-care infrastructure, this review captures the evolving diagnostic needs of developing countries paired with infrastructural challenges with technological hurdles to healthcare delivery in extreme point-of-care settings. In particular, the requirements for making centrifugal diagnostic devices viable in developing countries are discussed based on a detailed analysis of the demands in different clinical settings including the distinctive needs of extreme point-of-care settings.ope

Household Use of Financial Planners: Measurement Considerations for Researchers

Citation: Heckman, Stuart J. and Seay, Martin C and Kim, Kyoung Tae and Letkiewicz, Jodi, Household Use of Financial Planners: Measurement Considerations for Researchers (November 2, 2016). Financial Services Review, Vol. 25, p. 427-446, 2016.Using the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) Board’s definition of financial planning, this paper evaluates the validity of the measures of financial planner use in publicly available datasets. A review of Financial Services Review, Journal of Personal Finance, Journal of Financial Planning, Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Journal of Consumer Affairs, and Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning identified seven datasets that were commonly used to investigate financial planner use. Of these, the two most promising measures were found in the Survey of Consumer Finances and the National Longitudinal Study of Youth (1979). However, an evaluation of these measures raises significant concerns related to their validity. This article critically evaluates these measures and provides insights into the development of better measures of financial planner use for the future

Chiral magnetoresistance in Pt/Co/Pt zigzag wires

The Rashba effect leads to a chiral precession of the spins of moving electrons while the Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI) generates preference towards a chiral profile of local spins. We predict that the exchange interaction between these two spin systems results in a 'chiral' magnetoresistance depending on the chirality of the local spin texture. We observe this magnetoresistance by measuring the domain wall (DW) resistance in a uniquely designed Pt/Co/Pt zigzag wire, and by changing the chirality of the DW with applying an in-plane magnetic field. A chirality-dependent DW resistance is found, and a quantitative analysis shows a good agreement with a theory based on the Rashba model. Moreover, the DW resistance measurement allows us to independently determine the strength of the Rashba effect and the DMI simultaneously, and the result implies a possible correlation between the Rashba effect, the DMI, and the symmetric Heisenberg exchange

Daam2 Phosphorylation by CK2α Negatively Regulates Wnt Activity During White Matter Development and Injury

Wnt signaling plays a vital role in oligodendrocyte (OL) development and has been implicated as an adverse event for myelin repair after white matter injury. Emerging studies have shed light on multimodal roles of Wnt effectors in the OL lineage, but the underlying molecular mechanisms and modifiable targets in OL remyelination remain unclear. Using genetic mouse development and injury model systems, we delineate a unique stage-specific function of Daam2 in Wnt signaling and OL development via a S704/T705 phosphorylation mechanism and determine a different role of the kinase CK2α in the regulation of OL development and myelin regeneration

Far-Ultraviolet Cooling Features of the Antlia Supernova Remnant

We present far-ultraviolet observations of the Antlia supernova remnant obtained with Far-ultraviolet IMaging Spectrograph (FIMS, also called SPEAR). The strongest lines observed are C IV 1548,1551 and C III 977. The C IV emission of this mixed-morphology supernova remnant shows a clumpy distribution, and the line intensity is nearly constant with radius. The C III 977 line, though too weak to be mapped over the whole remnant, is shown to vary radially. The line intensity peaks at about half the radius, and drops at the edge of the remnant. Both the clumpy distribution of C IV and the rise in the C IV to C III ratio towards the edge suggest that central emission is from evaporating cloudlets rather than thermal conduction in a more uniform, dense medium.Comment: 9 pages, 4 figures, will be published in ApJ December 1, 2007, v670n2 issue. see http://astro.snu.ac.kr/~jhshinn/ms.pd

COMPARATIVE STUDY ON THE WAVE IMPACT LOAD IN A SLOSHING TANK

ABSTRACT Wave impact load occurring in a liquid storage tank during a sloshing motion is numerically simulated. Due to a violent sloshing, an excessive impact load can cause a critical damage to the tank structure. Recently this type of the accidents are reported and the problem becomes an important research topic in LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas) Tanker and FPSO (Floating Production Storage Offloading) design. To predict the sloshing impact load, Morison's formula could be used for a practical reason. But using the Morison formula may provide directly an inaccurate estimation for the impact load because this formula is based on the linear model in the present nonlinear dominating phenomena. In this study, the wave impact load on the structure is obtained by imposing the exact nonlinear free surface conditions numerically and compared with that predicted by Morison's formula. As a numerical method, a three-dimensional free surface flow in a tank is formulated in the scope of potential flow theory with the nonlinear freesurface conditions. A finite-element method based on Hamilton's principle is employed as a numerical scheme. The problem is treated as an initial-value problem. The nonlinear problem is numerically solved through an iterative method at each time step

Systems approach reveals photosensitivity and PER2 level as determinants of clock-modulator efficacy

In mammals, the master circadian clock synchronizes daily rhythms of physiology and behavior with the day-night cycle. Failure of synchrony, which increases the risk for numerous chronic diseases, can be treated by phase adjustment of the circadian clock pharmacologically, for example, with melatonin, or a CK1delta/epsilon inhibitor. Here, using in silico experiments with a systems pharmacology model describing molecular interactions, and pharmacokinetic and behavioral experiments in cynomolgus monkeys, we find that the circadian phase delay caused by CK1delta/epsilon inhibition is more strongly attenuated by light in diurnal monkeys and humans than in nocturnal mice, which are common preclinical models. Furthermore, the effect of CK1delta/epsilon inhibition strongly depends on endogenous PER2 protein levels, which differs depending on both the molecular cause of the circadian disruption and the patient\u27s lighting environment. To circumvent such large interindividual variations, we developed an adaptive chronotherapeutics to identify precise dosing regimens that could restore normal circadian phase under different conditions. Our results reveal the importance of photosensitivity in the clinical efficacy of clock-modulating drugs, and enable precision medicine for circadian disruption

A study on Pb removal kinetics using modified agricultural wastes from Tanzania

This research article published by Springer Nature Switzerland AG., 2020Lignocellulosic materials, abundant and renewable materials, are gaining popularity as metal scavenging agents because of their high sorption capacities, relatively low cost and environmental-friendliness. However, there is not much research to discover how the modification of different lignocellulosic materials can enhance their metal sorption capacities. In the present study, corn hulls and rice husks were pyrolyzed at 500 °C to produce biochars and these biochars were then activated using KOH and ZnCl2 as activating agents. Material characterization was done using Field Emission-Scanning Electron Microscope (FE-SEM), Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) analysis, and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) analysis. Equilibrium concentrations were measured using Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES). Results indicated that the modified biosorbents removed Pb2+ more efficiently and faster than the raw hulls and husk. The KOH-treated corn husk biochar (KOH-CHB) achieved a removal capacity of >97 mg/g in the first 15 min compared to a sorption capacity of 15 mg/g achieved by raw corn husk (CH). High Pb2+ removal by activated biochars at a relatively shorter contact time was probably attributable to enhanced structures as indicated in the FT-IR, SEM, and BET results. The results also indicated that, for all eight biosorbents, the removal of Pb2+ from water followed a pseudo-second-order kinetic model with R2 values >0.94. This model was able to predict the experimental qe values with greater precision than the pseudo-first-order kinetic model. Low-cost materials used in the current study have the potential to remove toxic Pb2+ from water and this Pb2+ removal can be attained at a relatively low cost