PRODUCER VALUATION OF HERD BULL CHARACTERISTICS

This study evaluates the importance of certain bull characteristics (disposition, EPD's, conformation, etc.) on a cow-calf producer's herd bull purchase decision. Data were collected from the Auburn University Bull Test Sale from 1997 to 2004. A total of 260 buyers purchased a total of 370 bulls during this six-year period. These buyers will be surveyed to determine demographics, farm characteristics, and the importance of factors influencing their bull purchase decision. A hedonic pricing model will be utilized to determine the value that individual buyers place on various factors or bull characteristics when purchasing a bull.Livestock Production/Industries,

Is there a correlation between infection control performance and other hospital quality measures?

Quality measures are increasingly reported by hospitals to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), yet there may be tradeoffs in performance between infection control (IC) and other quality measures. Hospitals that performed best on IC measures did not perform well on most CMS non–IC quality measures

Passion-Driven Statistics: A course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE)

This paper describes the use of scientific practices in the Passion-Driven Statistics CURE and presents the results of surveys from the implementation of this CURE at three different colleges. Overall, students experienced positive changes in thinking and working like a scientist, personal gains related to research, and gains in research skills, attitudes and behaviors. The Passion-Driven Statistics CURE aims to equip the future STEM workforce with the data analysis skills and reasoning needed across industries

Computational Study Of Molecular Hydrogen In Zeolite Na-A. I. Potential Energy Surfaces And Thermodynamic Separation Factors For Ortho And Para Hydrogen

We simulate H-2 adsorbed within zeolite Na-A. We use a block Lanczos procedure to generate the first several (9) rotational eigenstates of the molecule, which is modeled as a rigid, quantum rotor with an anisotropic polarizability and quadrupole moment. The rotor interacts with Na cations and O anions; interaction parameters are chosen semiempirically and the truncation of electrostatic fields is handled with a switching function. A Monte Carlo proceedure is used to sample a set of states based on the canonical distribution. Potential energy surfaces, favorable adsorbtion sites, and distributions of barriers to rotation are analyzed. Separation factors for ortho-parahydrogen are calculated; at low temperatures, these are controlled by the ease of rotational tunneling through barriers. (C) 1999 American Institute of Physics

The effect of adding comorbidities to current centers for disease control and prevention central-line–associated bloodstream infection risk-adjustment methodology

BACKGROUNDRisk adjustment is needed to fairly compare central-line–associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) rates between hospitals. Until 2017, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) methodology adjusted CLABSI rates only by type of intensive care unit (ICU). The 2017 CDC models also adjust for hospital size and medical school affiliation. We hypothesized that risk adjustment would be improved by including patient demographics and comorbidities from electronically available hospital discharge codes.METHODSUsing a cohort design across 22 hospitals, we analyzed data from ICU patients admitted between January 2012 and December 2013. Demographics and International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Edition, Clinical Modification (ICD-9-CM) discharge codes were obtained for each patient, and CLABSIs were identified by trained infection preventionists. Models adjusting only for ICU type and for ICU type plus patient case mix were built and compared using discrimination and standardized infection ratio (SIR). Hospitals were ranked by SIR for each model to examine and compare the changes in rank.RESULTSOverall, 85,849 ICU patients were analyzed and 162 (0.2%) developed CLABSI. The significant variables added to the ICU model were coagulopathy, paralysis, renal failure, malnutrition, and age. The C statistics were 0.55 (95% CI, 0.51–0.59) for the ICU-type model and 0.64 (95% CI, 0.60–0.69) for the ICU-type plus patient case-mix model. When the hospitals were ranked by adjusted SIRs, 10 hospitals (45%) changed rank when comorbidity was added to the ICU-type model.CONCLUSIONSOur risk-adjustment model for CLABSI using electronically available comorbidities demonstrated better discrimination than did the CDC model. The CDC should strongly consider comorbidity-based risk adjustment to more accurately compare CLABSI rates across hospitals.Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2017;38:1019–1024</jats:sec

Testosterone Amplifies the Negative Valence of an Agonistic Gestural Display by Exploiting Receiver Perceptual Bias

Many animals communicate by performing elaborate displays that are incredibly extravagant and wildly bizarre. So, how do these displays evolve? One idea is that innate sensory biases arbitrarily favour the emergence of certain display traits over others, leading to the design of an unusual display. Here, we study how physiological factors associated with signal production influence this process, a topic that has received almost no attention. We focus on a tropical frog, whose males compete for access to females by performing an elaborate waving display. Our results show that sex hormones like testosterone regulate specific display gestures that exploit a highly conserved perceptual system, evolved originally to detect \u27dangerous\u27 stimuli in the environment. Accordingly, testosterone makes certain gestures likely to appear more perilous to rivals during combat. This suggests that hormone action can interact with effects of sensory bias to create an evolutionary optimum that guides how display exaggeration unfolds

Biofilm assists recognition of avian trackways in Late Pleistocene coastal aeolianites, South Africa

Fourteen fossil avian tracksites have been identified in Late Pleistocene aeolianite deposits on the Cape south coast of SouthAfrica. One of these sites is unusual because of the preferential adherence of organic material (biofilm) to the natural cast tracks. This has enabled the recognition and identification of two ~6 m long, approximately parallel trackways that would otherwise not have been noticed. The trackways are visible from a distance of over 100 metres and contain 20 and 14 individual tracks, respectively. Up to 50 avian tracks are evident at this site. As the biofilm layer continues to thicken, the trackways become increasingly visible. Avian trackways of this length are globally rare.We propose that the biofilm adheres to sections with higher relief on a sedimentary surface, and that an understanding of this mode of preservation can be useful to more easily identify trackways in areas of comparable geological setting.JN

Stat3 is required to maintain the full differentiation potential of mammary stem cells and the proliferative potential of mammary luminal progenitors.

Stat3 has a defined role in mammary gland where it is a critical mediator of cell death during post-lactational regression. On the other hand, Stat3 is required for the self-renewal of embryonic stem cells and is sufficient for the induction of a naïve pluripotent state in epiblast stem cells. Mammary stem cells (MaSCs) have a high capacity for self-renewal and can grow robustly in transplantation experiments in vivo. However, a role for Stat3 in MaSCs has not been investigated. Here we show that depletion of Stat3 from basal cells results in reduced primary transplantation efficiency and diminishes the potential to generate ductal, but not alveolar, outgrowths. In addition, Stat3 is required for maximal proliferation of luminal progenitors

Environmental Enrichment: Disentangling the Influence of Novelty, Social, and Physical Activity on Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy in a Transgenic Mouse Model

Cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) is the deposition of amyloid protein in the cerebral vasculature, a common feature in both aging and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). However, the effects of environmental factors, particularly cognitive stimulation, social stimulation, and physical activity, on CAA pathology are poorly understood. These factors, delivered in the form of the environmental enrichment (EE) paradigm in rodents, have been shown to have beneficial effects on the brain and behavior in healthy aging and AD models. However, the relative importance of these subcomponents on CAA pathology has not been investigated. Therefore, we assessed the effects of EE, social enrichment (SOC), and cognitive enrichment (COG) compared to a control group that was single housed without enrichment (SIN) from 4 to 8 months of age in wild-type mice (WT) and Tg-SwDI mice, a transgenic mouse model of CAA that exhibits cognitive/behavioral deficits. The results show that individual facets of enrichment can affect an animal model of CAA, though the SOC and combined EE conditions are generally the most effective at producing physiological, cognitive/behavioral, and neuropathological changes, adding to a growing literature supporting the benefits of lifestyle interventions