Clinician, Educator, and Student Perceptions of Entry-level Academic Degree Requirements in Occupational Therapy Education

Entry-level occupational therapy degree requirements have varied since the establishment of the profession. Currently multiple degree paths exist. There are cited benefits for a multiple degree path system; however, barriers also exist. Most notable among these are confusion among recipients of services and other health care providers. As other healthcare professional programs have transitioned to a single point of entry at the doctoral level, occupational therapy, until recently, had not yet made this change. A nationwide online survey was used to assess perceptions of the entry-level doctorate. Participants included current occupational therapy practitioners (clinicians or educators) and students in entry-level occupational therapy or occupational therapy assistant programs. Results indicated decreased awareness of the benefits of an entry-level doctorate and suggested that the majority of occupational therapy practitioners, educators, and students surveyed were in favor of an optional entry-level doctorate. Fewer respondents believed that the doctorate should be required for entry-level competence. Education among current occupational therapists and occupational therapy students regarding the benefits of a mandatory entry-level clinical doctorate would be beneficial as the profession moves towards this as the mandated degree. Future research should address to what extent experiential learning, carried out during a doctoral rotation, increases student preparation, as well as how these experiences influence clinical practice and scholarship

Do Stress Trajectories Predict Mortality in Older Men? Longitudinal Findings from the VA Normative Aging Study

We examined long-term patterns of stressful life events (SLE) and their impact on mortality contrasting two theoretical models: allostatic load (linear relationship) and hormesis (inverted U relationship) in 1443 NAS men (aged 41–87 in 1985; M = 60.30, SD = 7.3) with at least two reports of SLEs over 18 years (total observations = 7,634). Using a zero-inflated Poisson growth mixture model, we identified four patterns of SLE trajectories, three showing linear decreases over time with low, medium, and high intercepts, respectively, and one an inverted U, peaking at age 70. Repeating the analysis omitting two health-related SLEs yielded only the first three linear patterns. Compared to the low-stress group, both the moderate and the high-stress groups showed excess mortality, controlling for demographics and health behavior habits, HRs = 1.42 and 1.37, ps <.01 and <.05. The relationship between stress trajectories and mortality was complex and not easily explained by either theoretical model

Coulomb oscillations in three-layer graphene nanostructures

We present transport measurements on a tunable three-layer graphene single electron transistor (SET). The device consists of an etched three-layer graphene flake with two narrow constrictions separating the island from source and drain contacts. Three lateral graphene gates are used to electrostatically tune the device. An individual three-layer graphene constriction has been investigated separately showing a transport gap near the charge neutrality point. The graphene tunneling barriers show a strongly nonmonotonic coupling as function of gate voltage indicating the presence of localized states in the constrictions. We show Coulomb oscillations and Coulomb diamond measurements proving the functionality of the graphene SET. A charging energy of $\approx 0.6$ meV is extracted.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figure

Local gating of a graphene Hall bar by graphene side gates

We have investigated the magnetotransport properties of a single-layer graphene Hall bar with additional graphene side gates. The side gating in the absence of a magnetic field can be modeled by considering two parallel conducting channels within the Hall bar. This results in an average penetration depth of the side gate created field of approx. 90 nm. The side gates are also effective in the quantum Hall regime, and allow to modify the longitudinal and Hall resistances

Research Note: Benefits and Drawbacks of Pre-bloom Applications of Gibberellic Acid (GA3) for Stem Elongation in Sauvignon blanc

Dense grape clusters have a high predisposition to bunch rot. An elongation of cluster stems could resultin a loosening of the cluster structure. To achieve such an elongation, gibberellic acid (GA3; 10 ppm)was applied to Sauvignon blanc either when three, five, seven, nine, 11 or 13 leaves were unfolded or atfull bloom in the 2010 season. In the present season, all applications led to stem elongation, a reductionof cluster compactness as well as a reduction of bunch rot severity. The density index proved to be anefficient tool to describe the predisposition of grape clusters to bunch rot. Best success was achieved if theapplication took place when seven leaves were unfolded. In the subsequent season (2011; the year followingthe year of application), the number of inflorescences per shoot, the length of the clusters, as well as theyield were considerably reduced, especially in the treatments with promising positive effects on the clusterstructure and disease severity. Hence, the present study shows the loosening potential as well as the riskof pre-bloom gibberellic acid applications. Due to the observed negative resultant effects, the pre-bloomapplication of GA3 at the present concentration (10 ppm) cannot yet be recommended for practical use inSauvignon blanc

Evaluation of LS-DYNA MAT162 for Modeling Composite Fastener Joints for High Rates of Loading

In the present work, the behavior of composite-fastener joints in bearing failure at dynamic stroke rates of 500 in/s, 300 in/s and 100 in/s has been evaluated through progressive damage analysis (PDA) material model in LS-DYNA, namely MAT162. Two joint types: titanium pin and Hi-Lok fastener were analyzed to identify the differences between without and with preload conditions. A meso-level approach where each lamina was modeled separately was employed and a contact definition based on fracture toughness data was defined to represent composite delamination behavior. Test fixture had been modeled in a detailed manner to account for the dynamic effects and the simulation results were validated against experimental data. Preliminary test-analysis correlation indicated that MAT162 predicted results conservatively when compared to tests. Debris accumulation were observed to greatly affect the test results which were not considered in the current modelling strategies

Effect of cell separation on gene expression and DNA methylation profiles in intestinal epithelial cells

RIGHTS : This article is licensed under the BioMed Central licence at http://www.biomedcentral.com/about/license which is similar to the 'Creative Commons Attribution Licence'. In brief you may : copy, distribute, and display the work; make derivative works; or make commercial use of the work - under the following conditions: the original author must be given credit; for any reuse or distribution, it must be made clear to others what the license terms of this work are

Crop cultural and chemical methods to control grey mould on grapes

The efficiency of crop cultural (leaf removal) as well as of chemical methods (plant growth regulator, botryticide) to control grey mould caused by Botrytis cinerea was investigated in two seasons (2008 and 2009) on the varieties 'Pinot blanc' and 'Pinot gris' in the Moselle valley (Luxembourg). The application of the plant growth regulator Regalis® (a.i. prohexadione-Ca) led to a considerably more flexible cluster structure and a slight decrease of grey mould disease severity. The reduction of bunch rot infestation was of the same level than obtained by a single application of a botryticide (a.i. fenhexamid) before berries touching. Leaf removal reduced the cluster density slightly and proved to be more efficient against B. cinerea than the chemical treatments (reduction of grey mould disease severity of 57 % on average). Thus, leaf removal in the cluster-zone shortly after bloom can be recommended as an important tool in integrated as well as in organic bunch rot protection strategies. The best loosening effect on the cluster structure as well as the best B. cinerea reduction efficiency (75 % on average) was achieved when combining leaf removal and Regalis® application. The combination of leaf removal and botryticide application showed comparable results. Simulation of the B. cinerea epidemiology demonstrated that all treatments tested might allow for a longer maturation time due to lower infestation. The longest potential harvest delay until reaching an assumed threshold of 5 % disease severity was achieved by combining leaf removal and application of Regalis® or a botryticide (on average 11.6 or 9.9 days, respectively). The here presented strategies can thus be recommended to maximize wine quality in two ways – through a reduction of fungal contamination and/or an improvement of grape maturity.