A Mixed-Methods Study of the Variables that Influence Southern Baptists’ Affirmation of the Inerrancy of the Bible

The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) had discovered by the late 1970s that belief in the inerrancy of the Bible was not consistently affirmed by their leadership. After a twenty year battle, the SBC attempted to clarify the doctrine of inerrancy through the Baptist Faith and Message 2000. A mixed-method analysis was conducted by surveying 502 Florida Southern Baptist (FSB) church members with a 68-question survey instrument to determine the degree to which they affirmed the doctrine of inerrancy. The study revealed that a large percentage of FSB church members affirmed the doctrine, but the underlining beliefs were not always consistently acknowledged

Linking glacial-interglacial states to multiple equilibria of climate

Glacial-Interglacial cycles are often described as an amplified global response of the climate to perturbations in solar radiation caused by oscillations of Earth's orbit. However, it remains unclear whether internal feedbacks are large enough to account for the radically different Glacial and Interglacial states. Here we provide support for an alternative view: Glacial-Interglacial states are multiple equilibria of the climate system which exist for the same external forcing. We show that such multiple equilibria resembling Glacial and Interglacial states can be found in a complex coupled General Circulation Model of the ocean-atmosphere-sea ice system. The multiple states are sustained by ice-albedo feedback modified by ocean heat transport and are not caused by the bi-stability of the ocean's overturning circulation. In addition, expansion/contraction of the Southern Hemisphere ice pack over regions of upwelling, regulating outgassing of CO$_2$ to the atmosphere, is the primary mechanism behind a large pCO$_2$ change between states

Quantification of nutrient supply in forage-based diets for beef cattle

End of Project ReportIntroduction Cattle rearing systems in Ireland are predominantly grass-based as 80% of agricultural land is dedicated to grassland (silage, hay and pasture) (CSO, 2007). Feed costs represent the largest single variable cost in beef production in Ireland. Grazed grass is generally the cheapest source of food available for beef (and milk) production provided that the environment and management permit high yields of high quality herbage to be utilised (McGee, 2000). Environmental legislation and the rules of environmental schemes such as the European Union (EU) Rural Environmental Protection Scheme are progressively restricting the application of fertilizer Nitrogen (N), and many grazing systems are becoming more extensive. Over 80% of all farms in Ireland make grass silage (O’Kiely et al., 1998) and it accounts for 87% of total grass conserved (Mayne and O’Kiely, 2005). The deficiencies in nutrient supply to beef cattle from grass silage are usually overcome by supplementing with concentrates (McGee, 2005), which are primarily cereal-based (Drennan et al., 2006). However, diverse types of concentrates containing a variety of feed ingredients, particularly non-cereal by-products are available and frequently fed as supplements to grass silage or as highconcentrate diets. The relatively small amount of information available on feeding these contrasting concentrates to beef cattle is inconsistent. Moreover, there has been an increased use of other ensiled forages such as maize and whole-crop cereals. These forages have high intake potential and can reduce the concentrate feeding level, while maintaining or increasing performance of beef cattle (Keady, 2005). With increasing costs of beef production and increasing constraints of environmental regulations, efficient utilisation of consumed nutrients by cattle is imperative in providing sustainable production and income to farmers. Feed evaluation systems are used to match the dietary nutrient supply with animal requirements for a specific level of production (Dijkstra et al., 2007). These systems are important in order to optimise the efficiency of feed utilisation, to improve animal performance and to reduce nutrient losses to the environment (Dijkstra et al., 2007). Although the reticulo-rumen is central to the profile of nutrients available for absorption, yet quantitative knowledge of the rates of passage and the digestion of nutrients in the rumen is limited compared with that on degradation rates (Dijkstra et al., 2007). There is a lack of information that adequately characterises the supply of nutrients from forages and feedstuffs specific to Ireland, especially for fresh grass-based diets of which, there are very few studies reported in the literature. This shortcoming impedes our ability to capitalise on the merits of evolving feeding systems. This project aimed to: 1. Increase the knowledge and advance the understanding on rumen digestion and nutrient flow from the rumen of the main forages / forage-based diets offered to beef cattle in Ireland. 2. Evaluate strategies for optimal utilization of nutrients consumed by cattle

Operations Global Lab in Hong Kong and China

STEP Category: Education AbroadThe Ohio State University Second-year Transformational Experience Program (STEP)Academic Major: Industrial and Systems Engineerin

The Amsler Integrator and the Burden of Calculation

British naval architects of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries are often accused of failing to take a scientific approach to shipbuilding. This article explains this "failure" through an investigation of the context and culture of ship design practice, focusing on the relationship between plan drawing, scientific calculation and the advent of the Amsler Integrator. Measured plans drawings made predictive calculations possible. But calculations were so extremely long and tedious for so little gain that they were very rarely made. The Amsler Integrator promised to relieve designers of this "burden." A form of mechanical computer introduced in the 1880s, the integrator dramatically reduced the time it took to calculate a ship's stability and thus promised to make the application of science to shipbuilding a practical possibility. Résumé On accuse souvent les architectes navals britanniques des xvilf et XIXe siècles de ne pas avoir adopté d'approche scientifique à la construction des bâtiments maritimes. L'article que voici explique cette « omission » en menant enquête sur le cadre et la culture des méthodes de conception navale. Il s'attarde notamment aux liens entre la production de plans, le calcul scientifique et l'avènement de l'intégrateur d'Amsler. La production de dessins avec mesures a permis d'effectuer des prévisions. Néanmoins, ces calculs longs et fastidieux apportaient si peu qu 'on y recourait rarement. L'intégrateur d'Amsler promettait de soulager les concepteurs de ce «fardeau ». Sorte d'ordinateur mécanique introduit dans les années 1880, cet appareil a diminué de beaucoup le temps qu'il fallait pour calculer la stabilité d'un navire et rendu possible l'application des principes scientifiques à la construction navale