Wisteria and Other Stories

We are forever shaped by the worlds we live in. The following stories are musings on the importance of time and place and on the conflicts that arise for characters who are born into and who live with or rail against those forces. The stories are set in and around Laurel County, Georgia over a period of decades. They look at the people who are made there and the lessons they learn or fail to learn as they work to make their way there

Was There a Structural Break in Barry Bonds’ Bat?

We utilize time series tests to investigate if Barry Bonds’ batting has a deterministic or stochastic trend and to test if structural breaks occur. Bonds’ monthly on base percentage plus slugging percentage (OPS) is examined from 1986 to 2007. We find that Bonds’ OPS is stationary around two level and trend breaks. We find that Bonds’ OPS initially follows a positive trend to the age of 28.9 (June 1993), which coincides roughly with the expected peak performance age (27.6) for a MLB batter as identified by Fair (2008). Following this break, we find that Bonds’ OPS was on a plateau until a second break in September 2000. At this point, at the age of 36.1, Bonds’ OPS jumps up unexpectedly and declines slowly thereafter until his retirement in September 2007 at age 43. Key Words: age-effects, peak performance, baseball, OPS, structural break

Relative Hepatotoxocity, Carcinogenicity, and Toxicogenomics of Select Dehydropyrrolizidine Alkaloids in Mice

Dehydropyrrolizidine alkaloids are arguably the most important plant derived toxins in terms of impact on human and animal health. Dehydropyrrolizidine alkaloids are a large group of chemically related compounds found in 3% of flowering plants worldwide. Human exposure occurs from ingestion of herbal products including teas supplements or contaminated grain. Animals are exposed through contaminated feed or grazing. There are at least 350 identified toxic PAs, from more than 6,000 plants. The toxins primarily cause liver damage, but some are proven to cause cancer. Indidvidual dehydropyrrolizidine alkaloids vary in their toxic effects. Riddelliine is the only dehydropyrrolizidine alkaloid with extensive evidence of its cancer-causing effects. The purpose of the research presented herein is to characterize and compare the relative toxic and cancer-causing effects of select dehydropyrrolizidine alkaloids. In the first experiment, seven compounds are administered to C57BL6/j mice by oral gavage for ten days at varying doses. Microscopic liver damage, liver enzymes, and liver concentrations of the toxic metabolite were compared. There was variation in the characteristics and severity of liver damage between compounds. Liver enzymes indicative of liver damage were observed. Riddelliine caused the greatest concentration of the toxic metabolite in the liver. In the second experiment, five dehydropyrrolizidine alkaloids were administered to genetically modified mice for ten days at the same dose. These mice are designed to develop cancer more readily. There was no statistically significant difference in the development of cancer between the mice exposed to any of the five compounds compared to the control group, in. This indicates that short-duration exposure to dehydropyrrolizidine alkaloids at high doses may be less likely to cause cancer than long term low-dose exposure. In the third experiment, three dehydropyrrolizidine alkaloids were administered to mice at a common dose for 8 days. Whole genome RNA expression was compared for each compound at two time-points. Two of the compounds, riddelliine and senecionine, caused liver damage and similar gene expression changes. The dysregulated genes were related to cancer development and metabolism, indicating that senecionine may also cause cancer. Dysregulated genes tended to return to normal expression levels after 28 days, indicating recovery

Strategically Engaging the Third Mission: A Comparative International Case Study of Alternative Revenue Strategies Between the U.S. Flagship University and the European World Class University (WCU)

ABSTRACT The risk of financial sustainability for the university in the U.S. and Europe has been stressed by the reign of political authority in higher education disinvestment in the last four decades. The institution’s purpose has since been questioned, weighted by economics versus academics. Institutional priority and expanded centrality for strategic planning of societal engagement––the Third Mission––coupled with the Education and Research missions, promote clarity of the university’s purpose in this knowledge-based economy. Transparency of intended opportunities for regional economic engagement and societal development is then demonstrated to university communities. A comparative international case study of financial strategies between the U.S. Flagship and European World Class University (WCU) was explored in a qualitative analysis of viewpoints from four notable academics in higher education––two from the U.S. and two from Europe––and a gap analysis of strategic plans between Louisiana State University in the U.S. and the University of Bologna in Italy. Significant to the findings of this study, favorable institutional priority shifts in Third Mission strategic resources can imply ongoing university-community partnerships and growing revenue streams. Organizational change and strategic alignment from the traditional disciplinary university structure to an interdisciplinary framework design enables an external orientation that can maximize community partnerships, and engages academics, research, and service to promote economic development and innovative social growth. Leadership of the University of Bologna reframed its strategic framework in 2017, adapting all 17 of the United Nations 2030 Agenda Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to assist in achieving financial stability. Further research may indicate university networks of common SDGs translate into a new model for success in university community and regional engagement, social growth, and significant influence on political power shifts across the globe