The Iowa Pork Production Industry—Descriptive Characteristics

The Iowa pork production industry has experienced a reduced number of producers and increased size of operation over time. Results of a survey conducted in 2002 showed that about one-in-four producers (23 percent) marketed from 5,000 to 9,999 market hogs annually. About one-in-three (31 percent) marketed from 2,000 to 4,999 pigs annually. The predominant operation type was a farrow-to-finish producer (40 percent of producers). Confinement production with mechanical ventilation was the primary type of farrowing and nursery production system used. There was a wide range of types of finishing facilities in use. Open lots with shelters or pastures represented the largest number of breeding/gestation facilities. The nearest neighbor for most producers was from one-eighth to one-half mile from the production facility. One-third had the nearest neighbor one-eighth to one-fourth mile from the facility. Slightly more than one-third had the nearest neighbor one-fourth to one-half mile from the facility. Most producers had only one hog production site. A few producers (10) had ten or more production sites. Only about six percent of the producers were under 30 years old. One-in-eight producers were 60 years old or older. About the same number had 40 or more years experience as a pork producer. Most had from 20 to 35 years of production experience

Pork Producer Efforts to Improve Neighbor Relations

As part of a pork producer odor survey conducted in 2002, respondents were asked to provide information on things they were doing to improve neighbor relations. The open-ended question provided a wide range of responses. It was evident that many producers are working with neighbors to better inform them about their pork production operation and when they may be doing activities such as applying manure, etc. Primary items producers are doing to improve neighbor relations are communication, treating them with respect, and considering weather before applying manure. This would include wind direction, air temperature, etc. Another grouping of items included manure application timing, providing pork/gifts, keeping facilities and landscaping looking nice, and facility location or siting. Producers do things to improve neighbor relations. About 30 percent indicated they check the weather before deciding to apply manure; and/or they communicate with the neighbors informing them when manure will be applied. Another one-in-six respondents indicated they use landscaping around the facility to improve its appearance

Air/Odor Control Technology Used By Iowa Pork Producers

An issue that has received attention in the livestock industry is that of air quality/odor. An Iowa pork producer survey showed that about two-thirds of the respondents felt air quality/odor was an issue that needed evaluation. This report is aimed at developing a baseline of air quality/odor control measures currently in use by Iowa pork producers. Information is obtained on use of selected odor control technologies and user level of satisfaction. Two survey methods were utilized; a mail survey and a telephone survey. The telephone survey followed the mail survey and was used to test the representativeness of the mail survey respondents and obtain information on why selected odor control technologies were not used. Level of use and level of satisfaction with selected odor control methods varied. A deep pit was used by 77 percent of the respondents. About seven-in-ten injected manure. About half of the respondents immediately incorporated manure. One-half composted pig mortalities. About four-in-ten had a windbreak, used manure additives, and/or had a bedded system somewhere in the production system. Level of satisfaction was high for windbreaks, bedded systems, bio-covers, deep pits, composting pigs/manure, and incorporating manure. Satisfaction was low for bio-filters, ozone, manure storage plastic covers, and manure additives. Reasons why odor control technologies were not used varied. A dominant reason was that the technology was not applicable to the production facility. For example, a biocover, plastic cover, etc. would not be applicable for a deep pit manure storage system. Another response for nonadoption of some technologies was that odors are managed sufficiently already. This was related to the response for building odors. About one-third of the respondents indicated they did not use selected building odor control technologies because they were too expensive and/or they were not familiar with the technology. Responses for not using modified diets and/or manure additives included too expensive, not effective for odor control, and not familiar with the technology. This survey shows that swine producers are using a wide variety of techniques to minimize off-site odor and air quality effects. The most common type of manure storage used is deep pits (68 percent of producers) followed by solid manure systems (20 percent). While a large number of technologies are available, none provides a perfect solution to air quality

Gender-related differences in infrarenal aortic aneurysm morphologic features: Issues relevant to Ancure and Talent endografts

AbstractPurpose: The purpose of this study was to determine whether gender-related anatomic variables may reduce applicability of aortic endografting in women. Methods: Data on all patients evaluated at our institution for endovascular repair of their abdominal aortic aneurysm were collected prospectively. Ancure (Endovascular Technologies (EVT)/Guidant Corporation, Menlo Park, Calif) and Talent (World Medical/Medtronic Corporation, Sunrise, Fla) endografts were used. Preoperative imaging included contrast-enhanced computed tomography and arteriography or magnetic resonance angiography. Results: One hundred forty-one patients were evaluated (April 1998–December 1999), 19 women (13.5%) and 122 men (86.5%). Unsuitable anatomy resulted in rejection of 63.2% of the women versus only 33.6% of the men (P = .026). Maximum aneurysm diameter in women and men were similar (women, 56.94 ± 8.23 mm; men, 59.29 ± 13.22 mm; P = .5). The incidence of iliac artery tortuosity was similar across gender (women, 36.8%; men, 54.9%; P = .2). The narrowest diameter of the larger external iliac artery in women was significantly smaller (7.29 ± 2.37 mm) than in men (8.62 ± 2.07 mm; P = .02). The proximal neck length was significantly shorter in women (10.79 ± 12.5 mm) than in men (20.47 ± 19.5 mm; P = .02). The proximal neck width was significantly wider in women (30.5 ± 2.4 mm) than in men (27.5 ± 2.5 mm; P = .013). Proximal neck angulation (>60 degrees) was seen in a significantly higher proportion of women (21%) than men (3.3%; P = .012). Of the patients accepted for endografting, a significantly higher proportion of women required an iliofemoral conduit for access (women, 28.6%; men, 1.2%; P = .016). Conclusion: Gender-related differences in infrarenal aortic aneurysm morphologic features may preclude widespread applicability of aortic endografting in women, as seen by our experience with the Ancure and Talent devices. In addition to a significantly reduced iliac artery size, women are more likely to have a shorter, more dilated, more angulated proximal aortic neck. (J Vasc Surg 2001;33:S77-84.

Imaging of poly(α-hydroxy-ester) scaffolds with X-ray phase-contrast microcomputed tomography

Porous scaffolds based on poly(α-hydroxy-esters) are under investigation in many tissue engineering applications. A biological response to these materials is driven, in part, by their three-dimensional (3D) structure. The ability to evaluate quantitatively the material structure in tissue-engineering applications is important for the continued development of these polymer-based approaches. X-ray imaging techniques based on phase contrast (PC) have shown a tremendous promise for a number of biomedical applications owing to their ability to provide a contrast based on alternative X-ray properties (refraction and scatter) in addition to X-ray absorption. In this research, poly(α-hydroxy-ester) scaffolds were synthesized and imaged by X-ray PC microcomputed tomography. The 3D images depicting the X-ray attenuation and phase-shifting properties were reconstructed from the measurement data. The scaffold structure could be imaged by X-ray PC in both cell culture conditions and within the tissue. The 3D images allowed for quantification of scaffold properties and automatic segmentation of scaffolds from the surrounding hard and soft tissues. These results provide evidence of the significant potential of techniques based on X-ray PC for imaging polymer scaffolds

Factors affecting individual foraging specialization and temporal diet stability across the range of a large “generalist” apex predator

Individual niche specialization (INS) is increasingly recognized as an important component of ecological and evolutionary dynamics. However, most studies that have investigated INS have focused on the effects of niche width and inter- and intraspecific competition on INS in small-bodied species for short time periods, with less attention paid to INS in large-bodied reptilian predators and the effects of available prey types on INS. We investigated the prevalence, causes, and consequences of INS in foraging behaviors across different populations of American alligators (Alligator mississippiensis), the dominant aquatic apex predator across the southeast US, using stomach contents and stable isotopes. Gut contents revealed that, over the short term, although alligator populations occupied wide ranges of the INS spectrum, general patterns were apparent. Alligator populations inhabiting lakes exhibited lower INS than coastal populations, likely driven by variation in habitat type and available prey types. Stable isotopes revealed that over longer time spans alligators exhibited remarkably consistent use of variable mixtures of carbon pools (e.g., marine and freshwater food webs). We conclude that INS in large-bodied reptilian predator populations is likely affected by variation in available prey types and habitat heterogeneity, and that INS should be incorporated into management strategies to efficiently meet intended goals. Also, ecological models, which typically do not consider behavioral variability, should include INS to increase model realism and applicability

On the General Ericksen-Leslie System: Parodi's Relation, Well-posedness and Stability

In this paper we investigate the role of Parodi's relation in the well-posedness and stability of the general Ericksen-Leslie system modeling nematic liquid crystal flows. First, we give a formal physical derivation of the Ericksen-Leslie system through an appropriate energy variational approach under Parodi's relation, in which we can distinguish the conservative/dissipative parts of the induced elastic stress. Next, we prove global well-posedness and long-time behavior of the Ericksen-Leslie system under the assumption that the viscosity $\mu_4$ is sufficiently large. Finally, under Parodi's relation, we show the global well-posedness and Lyapunov stability for the Ericksen-Leslie system near local energy minimizers. The connection between Parodi's relation and linear stability of the Ericksen-Leslie system is also discussed

Asymptotic Behavior for a Nematic Liquid Crystal Model with Different Kinematic Transport Properties

We study the asymptotic behavior of global solutions to hydrodynamical systems modeling the nematic liquid crystal flows under kinematic transports for molecules of different shapes. The coupling system consists of Navier-Stokes equations and kinematic transport equations for the molecular orientations. We prove the convergence of global strong solutions to single steady states as time tends to infinity as well as estimates on the convergence rate both in 2D for arbitrary regular initial data and in 3D for certain particular cases

Where do students in the health professions want to work?

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Rural and remote areas of Australia are facing serious health workforce shortages. While a number of schemes have been developed to improve recruitment to and retention of the rural health workforce, they will be effective only if appropriately targeted. This study examines the factors that most encourage students attending rural clinical placements to work in rural Australia, and the regions they prefer.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The Careers in Rural Health Tracking Survey was used to examine the factors that most influence medical, nursing and allied health students' preference for practice locations and the locations preferred.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Students showed a preference for working in large urban centres within one year, but would consider moving to a more rural location later in life. Only 10% of students surveyed said they would never work in a rural community with a population of less than 10 000. Almost half the sample (45%) reported wanting to work overseas within five years. The type of work available in rural areas was found to be the factor most likely to encourage students to practice rurally, followed by career opportunities and challenge</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>The decision to practise rurally is the result of a complex interaction between a number of factors including ethnicity, discipline, age and sex, among others. Incentives that aim to entice all students to rural practice while considering only one of these variables are likely to be inadequate.</p

Structure of Chimpanzee Gut Microbiomes across Tropical Africa

Understanding variation in host-associated microbial communities is important given the relevance of microbiomes to host physiology and health. Using 560 fecal samples collected from wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) across their range, we assessed how geography, genetics, climate, vegetation, and diet relate to gut microbial community structure (prokaryotes, eukaryotic parasites) at multiple spatial scales. We observed a high degree of regional specificity in the microbiome composition, which was associated with host genetics, available plant foods, and potentially with cultural differences in tool use, which affect diet. Genetic differences drove community composition at large scales, while vegetation and potentially tool use drove within-region differences, likely due to their influence on diet. Unlike industrialized human populations in the United States, where regional differences in the gut microbiome are undetectable, chimpanzee gut microbiomes are far more variable across space, suggesting that technological developments have decoupled humans from their local environments, obscuring regional differences that could have been important during human evolution. IMPORTANCE Gut microbial communities are drivers of primate physiology and health, but the factors that influence the gut microbiome in wild primate populations remain largely undetermined. We report data from a continent-wide survey of wild chimpanzee gut microbiota and highlight the effects of genetics, vegetation, and potentially even tool use at different spatial scales on the chimpanzee gut microbiome, including bacteria, archaea, and eukaryotic parasites. Microbial community dissimilarity was strongly correlated with chimpanzee population genetic dissimilarity, and vegetation composition and consumption of algae, honey, nuts, and termites were potentially associated with additional divergence in microbial communities between sampling sites. Our results suggest that host genetics, geography, and climate play a far stronger role in structuring the gut microbiome in chimpanzees than in humans