575 research outputs found
Effects of Sire EPD, Dam Traits and Calf Traits on Calving Difficulty and Subsequent Reproduction of Two-Year-Old Heifers
A three-year study evaluated effects of sire birth weight EPD, heifer and calf traits on valuing difficulty and subsequent rebreeding of two-year-old cows. MARC II yearling heifers (n=550) were assigned for breeding to one of four angus sires with birth weight EPD of -2.1, -1.8, +6.3 and +5.9 lb. Of all heifer weights, only dam birth weight affected calving difficulty score. Heifers requiring caesareans had smallest pelvic areas. Calving difficulty increased as calf birth weight and external measurements increased. Low EPD sires produced calves with smaller head and foot circumferences and less dystocia. Degree of calving difficulty did not affect subsequent pregnancy rates, but did delay rebreeding conception date
Monitoring the Impact of Influenza by Age: Emergency Department Fever and Respiratory Complaint Surveillance in New York City
Don Olson and colleagues report that influenza-related morbidity in NYC from 2001 to 2006 was highly age- and strain-specific and conclude that surveillance using electronic data can provide timely and representative information about the epidemiology of circulating influenza viruses
A review of the 1918 herald pandemic wave:Importance for contemporary pandemic response strategies
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Determination of Background Uranium Concentration in the Snake River Plain Aquifer under the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory's Radioactive Waste Management Complex
Uranium occurs naturally in the environment and is also a contaminant that is disposed of at the Radioactive Waste Management Complex (RWMC) at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory. To determine whether uranium concentrations in the Snake River Plain Aquifer, which underlies the laboratory, are elevated as a result of migration of anthropogenic uranium from the Subsurface Disposal Area in the RWMC, uranium background concentrations are necessary. Guideline values are calculated for total uranium, 234U, 235U, and 238U from analytical results from up to five datasets. Three of the datasets include results of samples analyzed using isotope dilution thermal ionization mass spectrometry (ID-TIMS) and two of the datasets include results obtained using alpha spectrometry. All samples included in the statistical testing were collected from aquifer monitoring wells located within 10 miles of the RWMC. Results from ID-TIMS and alpha spectrometry are combined when the data are not statistically different. Guideline values for total uranium were calculated using four of the datasets, while guideline values for 234U were calculated using only the alpha spectrometry results (2 datasets). Data from all five datasets were used to calculate 238U guideline values. No limit is calculated for 235U because the ID-TIMS results are not useful for comparison with routine monitoring data, and the alpha spectrometry results are too close to the detection limit to be deemed accurate or reliable for calculating a 235U guideline value. All guideline values presented represent the upper 95% coverage 95% confidence tolerance limits for background concentration. If a future monitoring result is above this guideline, then the exceedance will be noted in the quarterly monitoring report and assessed with respect to other aquifer information. The guidelines (tolerance limits) for total U, 234U, and 238U are 2.75 pCi/L, 1.92 pCi/L, and 0.90 pCi/L, respectively
Human sensory-evoked responses differ coincident with either "fusion-memory" or "flash-memory", as shown by stimulus repetition-rate effects
BACKGROUND: A new method has been used to obtain human sensory evoked-responses whose time-domain waveforms have been undetectable by previous methods. These newly discovered evoked-responses have durations that exceed the time between the stimuli in a continuous stream, thus causing an overlap which, up to now, has prevented their detection. We have named them "A-waves", and added a prefix to show the sensory system from which the responses were obtained (visA-waves, audA-waves, somA-waves). RESULTS: When A-waves were studied as a function of stimulus repetition-rate, it was found that there were systematic differences in waveshape at repetition-rates above and below the psychophysical region in which the sensation of individual stimuli fuse into a continuity. The fusion phenomena is sometimes measured by a "Critical Fusion Frequency", but for this research we can only identify a frequency-region [which we call the STZ (Sensation-Transition Zone)]. Thus, the A-waves above the STZ differed from those below the STZ, as did the sensations. Study of the psychophysical differences in auditory and visual stimuli, as shown in this paper, suggest that different stimulus features are detected, and remembered, at stimulation rates above and below STZ. CONCLUSION: The results motivate us to speculate that: 1) Stimulus repetition-rates above the STZ generate waveforms which underlie "fusion-memory" whereas rates below the STZ show neuronal processing in which "flash-memory" occurs. 2) These two memories differ in both duration and mechanism, though they may occur in the same cell groups. 3) The differences in neuronal processing may be related to "figure" and "ground" differentiation. We conclude that A-waves provide a novel measure of neural processes that can be detected on the human scalp, and speculate that they may extend clinical applications of evoked response recordings. If A-waves also occur in animals, it is likely that A-waves will provide new methods for comparison of activity of neuronal populations and single cells
Race, Ethnicity, and Prosecution in Cook County, Illinois
The analyses reveal few differences in outcomes across racial/ ethnic groups in Cook County. When looking at case approval, dispositions, and charge reductions for all felony offenses combined, differences in the probability of specific outcomes by race/ethnicity are relatively small after accounting for other case factors such as offense severity or number of charges. For many decision points, differences in the probability of specific outcomes range from just 0 percentage points to 4 percentage points across racial/ethnic groups. When looking at specific offense types – person, weapons, property, drugs – differences in the probability of case approval, dispositions, and charge reductions across racial/ethnic groups remain relatively small. Differences in outcomes, however, are more pronounced when examining the use of alternative prosecution and the imposition of custodial sentences. For drug offenses, Black defendants are less likely than White defendants to be referred to an alternative prosecution program (e.g., deferred prosecution, drug court) – differences in the probability of entering an alternative prosecution are roughly 8 percentage points lower for Black defendants than for White defendants. In contrast, differences in the probability of entering an alternative prosecution program are just 2 percentage points lower for Hispanic defendants than for White defendants. In turn, for all offense types, Black defendants are more likely than White defendants to receive a custodial sentence following conviction – differences between Black and White defendants in the probability of custodial sentence range from 6 percentage points for property offenses to 21 percentage points for drug offenses. Again, the probability of receiving a custodial sentence following conviction is more similar for Hispanic and White defendants. Despite these findings, there are limitations to the analyses that prevent drawing strong conclusions. First, the analyses are unable to account for differences in defendant eligibility for alternative prosecution programs, defendant interest in such programs, economic or geographic barriers to participation in alternative prosecution programs – factors that may explain differences in outcomes across groups. Second, the analyses are unable to account for differences in defendant criminal history – a factor that affects both eligibility for alternative prosecution and the imposition of custodial sentences. Differences in criminal history across racial/ethnic groups likely explain much of the difference in custodial sentences across these groups; as such, these results should be viewed very cautiously. There are additional findings to consider beyond differences across racial/ethnic groups. For example, the no probable cause rates and dismissal rates for felony drug cases both appear to be high: roughly 11% of felony drug cases receive a finding of no probable cause and 32% are dismissed (nolle pros). Felony drug cases are unique since they are direct filed by law enforcement and do not go through felony review; thus, after case initiation or at preliminary hearing is the first opportunity a prosecutor has to review a case, which explains some of the higher rates. Relative to other offense types, however, the rates appear high even after accounting for the proportion of person, weapons, and property cases rejected at felony review. The findings suggest opportunities to conserve resources and reduce the burden on defendants by examining how felony drug cases enter the system and how long it takes to dismiss such cases
Observation of Postcollision Effects in the Scattered Projectile Spectra for Ionizing Proton-Helium Collisions
We have measured and calculated doubly differential single ionization cross sections as a function of the scattering angle and the projectile energy loss for 50 to 150 keV proton-helium collisions. These cross sections show unexpected structures as a function of both the energy loss and the scattering angle, which are interpreted as due to the postcollision interaction. Although the effects of postcollision interactions have previously been observed in electron spectra, this is the first observation of such effects for the scattered protons
Solution mixing and the emission of light in flow-cells for chemiluminescence detection
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