Nonperiodic Optical Flickering In Hz Herculis

NASA NGR 44-012-209NSF GP-25901, GP-41796Astronom

Persistence to Graduation: Does Financial Aid Matter?

This mixed methods research study used a QUAN-QUAL Model to examine the impact that various factors have on student persistence to graduation in postsecondary education. A documentary research approach was used to collect existing data for first-time full-time freshmen in the Fall 2008 Cohort who graduated within six years at a private Historically Black College or University. A correlational research design was employed to determine if a significant relationship existed between the dependent variables—Persistence to Graduation within Six Years and Final GPA at Time of Degree Completion and independent variables. Descriptive statistical analyses were used to describe, summarize, and interpret the data collected. A case study research approach was used to gain an in-depth understanding into the real-life experiences of a small group of students who did not graduate within six years and who were still persisting toward degree attainment. Selected findings revealed that persistence to graduation within six years was significantly and positively related to the number of occurrences of financial aid awarded. As the number of financial aid occurrences decreased, the number of years to graduate decreased. Alternatively, an increase in the number of financial aid occurrences resulted in an increase in years to graduate

Placental Implantation Disorders

Primary disorders of placental implantation have immediate consequences for the outcome of a pregnancy. These disorders have been known to clinical science for more than a century, but have been relatively rare. Recent epidemiologic obstetric data have indicated that the rise in their incidence over the last 2 decades has been iatrogenic in origin. In particular, the rising numbers of pregnancies resulting from in vitro fertilization (IVF) and the increased use of caesarean section for delivery have been associated with higher frequencies of previa implantation, accreta placentation, abnormal placental shapes, and velamentous cord insertion. These disorders often occur together

Persistence to Graduation: Is It the Money, High School Preparation, or First Semester College Matriculation?

This research study examined the relationship between persistence to graduation within six years and selected variables including financial aid awarded, high school GPA, ACT composite scores, SAT combined scores, and first-year first-semester GPA. It is well documented in research literature that high school preparation, college entrance examinations, and freshman year academic performance play a significant role in degree completion; however, studies on the impact of financial aid have not been as abundant. The researchers developed the College Persistence – Financial Aid Coding Technique System (CP-FACTS) to explore the influences of finances on degree attainment. In this study, a documentary research approach was used to collect existing data for first-time full-time freshmen who graduated within six years at a private Historically Black University. A correlational research design was employed to determine the level of significance and descriptive statistical analyses were used to describe, summarize, and interpret the data collected. The results revealed that persistence to graduation within six years was significantly related to the frequency of financial aid awards, high school GPA, SAT combined scores, and first-year first-semester GPA. Persistence to graduation within six years was not found to be significantly related to ACT composite scores for the population in this study

The role of the maternal immune system in the regulation of human birth weight

This is the accepted manuscript version. It will be embargoed until 12 months after publication by RSC. The final version is available from RCS at http://rstb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/370/1663/20140071.longHuman birth weight is subject to stabilizing selection. Large babies are at risk of obstetric complications such as obstructed labour, which endangers both mother and child. Small babies are also at risk with reduced survival. Fetal growth requires remodeling of maternal spiral arteries to provide an adequate maternal blood supply to the placenta. This arterial transformation is achieved by placental trophoblast cells, which invade into the uterine wall. Under invasion is associated with fetal growth restriction; but if invasion is excessive large babies can result. A growing body of evidence suggests that this process is controlled by interactions between KIR receptors expressed on maternal uterine NK cells (uNK) and their corresponding HLA-C ligands on invading trophoblast. Mothers with the KIR AA genotype and a fetus with a paternal HLA-C2 allele tend to have small babies, because this combination inhibits cytokine secretion by uNK. Mothers with the activating KIR2DS1 gene and an HLA-C2 fetus are more likely to have large babies. When KIR2DS1 binds to HLA-C2 this increases secretion of cytokines that enhance trophoblast invasion. We conclude that specific combinations of the highly polymorphic gene systems, KIR and HLAC, contribute to successful reproduction by maintaining birth weight between two extremes.This work was supported by funding from the Wellcome Trust [090108/Z/09/Z], [085992/Z/08/Z] and the British Heart Foundation [PG/09/077/27964]. This work was also supported by a Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research Contract [HHSN261200800001E] and by the Intramural Research Program of National Institutes of Health, Frederick National Laboratory, Center for Cancer Research. The authors also thank the Centre for Trophoblast Research, Cambridge for generous support

Convergent evolution of levee building behavior among distantly related ant species in a floodplain ant assemblage

Flooding impacts ground nesting ant colonies by destroying the infrastructure housing and organizing societal function. Here, we report the convergent evolution in distantly related ant species of a behavioral trait that minimizes costs of flooding: the construction of earthen levees around nest entrances. In a South American floodplain ecosystem, we observed five ant species constructing prominent earthen berms encircling nest entrances shortly after large rainfall events. In four of these species, experimental flooding of nests demonstrated that earthen berms sufficed to prevent floodwaters from entering the below ground portions of the nest. Additional manipulations revealed that levee breaching caused, pronounced, and extended reductions in food collection for two distantly related species. Foraging was preempted by the allocation of workers to repair the internal structure of the nest. These findings represent convergent evolution of a functionally important nest construction behavior in response to comparable selective forces

Wheat as a cattle feed

Cover title.Includes bibliographical references

Yearling heifers and steers for beef production

Cover title.Includes bibliographical references

Do Exergames Allow Children To Achieve Physical Activity Intensity Commensurate With National Guidelines?

The purpose of this study was to determine if two popular exergames, Wii Fit™ and EA Sports Active™, both games for the Nintendo Wii™ console, help children achieve intensity consistent with recommended physical activity guidelines. Thirty children (19 males and 11 females, Mean age = 9.4 ± 1.8 years) participated in this study by playing each game during one research session. During the session participants wore a heart rate monitor and accelerometer to measure exercise intensity. Perceived exertion (RPE) was measured with the children’s run/walk OMNI scale. All three measures of exercise intensity (heart rate, accelerometer counts, and RPE) found that the EA Sports Active™ game session elicited higher exercise intensity. However, heart rate data found both games to achieve moderate intensity (65-68% age-predicted HRmax). When using heart rate as an indicator of exercise intensity it appears that both exergames were of sufficient intensity to achieve physical activity guidelines. Future studies should continue to investigate the utility of exergaming in helping children to become more physically active