Feasibility study of the solar scientific instruments for Spacelab/Orbiter

The feasibility and economics of mounting and operating a set of solar scientific instruments in the backup Skylab Apollo Telescope Mount (ATM) hardware was evaluated. The instruments used as the study test payload and integrated into the ATM were: the Solar EUV Telescope/Spectrometer; the Solar Active Region Observing Telescope; and the Lyman Alpha White Light Coronagraph. The backup ATM hardware consists of a central cruciform structure, called the "SPAR', a "Sun End Canister' and a "Multiple Docking Adapter End Canister'. Basically, the ATM hardware and software provides a structural interface for the instruments; a closely controlled thermal environment; and a very accurate attitude and pointing control capability. The hardware is an identical set to the hardware that flow on Skylab

Arkansas Cooperative Beef Bull Performance Test 1991

Performance testing of beef bulls was initiated to improve productivity of Arkansas beef cattle through breeding. This cooperative testing program provides cattlemen with reliable information for identifying animals with superior breeding value for the traits of production measured in the test. By using the information as a basis for herd sire selection, a breeder can greatly increase the chances of obtaining a bull that will sire rapid-gaining, more efficient, highquality calves. Such calves can increase profits for both the breeder and the feeder. This testing program provides information that is useful to financial institutes in arranging their lending programs and to companies in developing their educational, promotional and marketing programs

Repeated Calm Handling Can Lead to More Docile Cattle

Changes in temperament in heifers when handled either frequently or infrequently were evaluated subjectively based on their behavior when restrained in (chute score) and exiting from (exit score) a squeeze chute. Chute scores decreased over time–a favorable direction–with more dramatic declines in heifers handled more frequently. Heifers with higher chute scores on the first day of handling had the largest reduction in score. Exit scores changed less over time. Chute score therefore may be more indicative of acclimation to a novel environment than exit score. Both scores appear to offer a fast, easy and inexpensive way to quantify docility in cattle. Heifers became calmer with repeated gentle handling. Producers therefore may benefit from allowing cattle a few days to acclimate to new working facilities before assessing docility

Thermal ablation versus cryotherapy or loop excision to treat women positive for cervical precancer on visual inspection with acetic acid test: pilot phase of a randomised controlled trial

Background: Cryotherapy is standard practice for treating patients with cervical precancer in see-and-treat programmes in low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs). Because of logistical difficulties with cryotherapy (eg, the necessity, costs, and supply chain difficulties of refrigerant gas; equipment failure; and treatment duration >10 min), a battery-operated thermal ablator that is lightweight and portable has been developed. We aimed to compare thermal ablation using the new device with cryotherapy. Methods: We report the pilot phase of a randomised controlled trial in routine screen-and-treat clinics providing cervical screening using visual inspection with acetic acid (VIA) in Lusaka, Zambia. We recruited non-pregnant women, aged 25 years or older, who were eligible for ablative therapy. We randomly assigned participants (1:1:1) to thermal ablation, cryotherapy, or large loop excision of the transformation zone (LLETZ), using computer-generated allocation. The randomisation was concealed but the nurses providing treatment and the participants were unmasked. Thermal ablation was achieved using the Liger thermal ablator (using 1–5 overlapping applications of the probe heated to 100°C, each application lasting for 40 s), cryotherapy was carried out using the double-freeze technique (freeze for 3 min, thaw for 5 min, and freeze again for 3 min), and LLETZ (using a large loop driven by an electro-surgical unit to excise the transformation zone) was done under local anaesthesia. The primary endpoint was treatment success, defined as either human papillomavirus (HPV) type-specific clearance among participants who were positive for the same HPV type at baseline, or a negative VIA test at 6-month follow-up, if the baseline HPV test was negative. Per protocol analyses were done. Enrolment for the full trial is ongoing. Here, we present findings from a prespecified pilot phase of the full trial. The final analysis of the full trial will assess non-inferiority of the groups for the primary efficacy endpoint. The study is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02956239. Findings: Between Aug 2, 2017, and Jan 15, 2019, 750 participants were randomly assigned (250 per group). 206 (84%) participants in the cryotherapy group, 197 (81%) in the thermal ablation group, and 204 (84%) in the LLETZ group attended the 6-month follow-up examination. Treatment success was reported in 120 (60%) of 200 participants in the cryotherapy group, 123 (64%) of 192 in the thermal ablation group, and 134 (67%) of 199 in the LLETZ group (p=0·31). Few participants complained of moderate to severe pain in any group immediately after the procedure (six [2%] of 250 in the cryotherapy group, four [2%] of 250 in the thermal ablation group, and five [2%] of 250 in the LLETZ group) and 2 weeks after the procedure (one [<1%] of 241 in the cryotherapy group, none of 242 in the thermal ablation group, and two [<1%] of 237 in the LLETZ group). None of the participants reported any complication requiring medical consultation or admission to hospital. Interpretation: Results from this pilot study preliminarily suggest that thermal ablation has similar treatment success to cryotherapy, without the practical disadvantages of providing cryotherapy in an LMIC. However, the study was not powered to establish the similarity between the techniques, and results from the ongoing randomised controlled trial are need to confirm these results. Funding: US National Institutes of Health

A KIR B centromeric region present in Africans but not Europeans protects pregnant women from pre-eclampsia.

In sub-Saharan Africans, maternal mortality is unacceptably high, with >400 deaths per 100,000 births compared with <10 deaths per 100,000 births in Europeans. One-third of the deaths are caused by pre-eclampsia, a syndrome arising from defective placentation. Controlling placentation are maternal natural killer (NK) cells that use killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptor (KIR) to recognize the fetal HLA-C molecules on invading trophoblast. We analyzed genetic polymorphisms of maternal KIR and fetal HLA-C in 484 normal and 254 pre-eclamptic pregnancies at Mulago Hospital, Kampala, Uganda. The combination of maternal KIR AA genotypes and fetal HLA-C alleles encoding the C2 epitope associates with pre-eclampsia [P = 0.0318, odds ratio (OR) = 1.49]. The KIR genes associated with protection are located in centromeric KIR B regions that are unique to sub-Saharan African populations and contain the KIR2DS5 and KIR2DL1 genes (P = 0.0095, OR = 0.59). By contrast, telomeric KIR B genes protect Europeans against pre-eclampsia. Thus, different KIR B regions protect sub-Saharan Africans and Europeans from pre-eclampsia, whereas in both populations, the KIR AA genotype is a risk factor for the syndrome. These results emphasize the importance of undertaking genetic studies of pregnancy disorders in African populations with the potential to provide biological insights not available from studies restricted to European populations.This work was supported by the Wellcome Trust (090108/Z/09/Z, 085992/Z/08/Z, 089821/Z/09/Z), the British Heart Foundation (PG/ 09/077/27964), the Centre for Trophoblast Research at the University of Cambridge, a Wellcome Trust Uganda PhD Fellowship in Infection and Immunity held by Annettee Nakimuli, funded by a Wellcome Trust Strategic Award (084344), the US National Institutes of Health (AI017892), and the UK Medical Research Council (G0901682).This is the accepted manuscript of a paper published in PNAS (A Nakimuli, O Chazara, SE Hiby, L Farrell, S Tukwasibwe, J Jayaraman, JA Traherne, J Trowsdale, F Colucci, Emma Lougee, RW Vaughan, AM Elliott, J Byamugishaa, P Kaleebu, F Mirembe, N Nemat-Gorgani, P Parham, PJ Norman, A Moffett, PNAS 2015, 112, 845-850

A genome-wide association study suggests that a locus within the ataxin 2 binding protein 1 gene is associated with hand osteoarthritis: the Treat-OA consortium

To identify the susceptibility gene in hand osteoarthritis (OA) the authors used a two-stage approach genome-wide association study using two discovery samples (the TwinsUK cohort and the Rotterdam discovery subset; a total of 1804 subjects) and four replication samples (the Chingford Study, the Chuvasha Skeletal Aging Study, the Rotterdam replication subset and the Genetics, Arthrosis, and Progression (GARP) Study; a total of 3266 people). Five single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) had a likelihood of association with hand OA in the discovery stage and one of them (rs716508), was successfully confirmed in the replication stage (meta-analysis p = 1.81×10−5). The C allele conferred a reduced risk of 33% to 41% using a case–control definition. The SNP is located in intron 1 of the A2BP1 gene. This study also found that the same allele of the SNP significantly reduced bone density at both the hip and spine (p<0.01), suggesting the potential mechanism of the gene in hand OA might be via effects on subchondral bone. The authors' findings provide a potential new insight into genetic mechanisms in the development of hand OA

Multidimensional Model of Racial Identity: A Reconceptualization of African American Racial Identity

Research on African American racial identity has utilized 2 distinct approaches. The mainstream approach has focused on universal properties associated with ethnic and racial identities. In contrast, the underground approach has focused on documenting the qualitative meaning of being African American, with an emphasis on the unique cultural and historical experiences of African Americans. The Multidimensional Model of Racial Identity (MMRI) represents a synthesis of the strengths of these two approaches. The underlying assumptions associated with the model are explored. The model proposes 4 dimensions of African American racial identity: salience, centrality, regard, and ideology. A description of these dimensions is provided along with a discussion of how they interact to influence behavior at the level of the event. We argue that the MMRI has the potential to make contributions to traditional research objectives of both approaches, as well as to provide the impetus to explore new questions.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/68695/2/10.1207_s15327957pspr0201_2.pd

Statistical analysis of the velocity field in a mechanical precessing jet flow

An experimental investigation of a precessing jet issuing from a mechanically rotating nozzle directed at an angle of α=45° relative to the axis of rotation is reported. Both conventional and conditional statistics of the velocity field of the jet were measured using a combined hot-wire and cold-wire (to identify any reverse flow) probe. Three distinct values (≈0.005, 0.01, and 0.02) of the precession Strouhal number Stp (≡ rotation frequency × nozzle diameter / jet exit bulk velocity) were used to assess the effect of varying Stp. The measurements reveal that the Strouhal number in general has significant influence on the entire mixing field generated by a precessing jet. The occurrence of precession at all the Strouhal numbers of investigation produces a central recirculation zone at x ≤ 7d, where x is a distance measured from the rotating nozzle exit. A critical Strouhal number, i.e., Stp,cr ≈0.008 for the present case, is identified: at Stp ≥ Stp,cr the core jet converges to the axis of rotation while at Stp ≥ Stp,cr it does not. The characteristics of the turbulent flow in the near and intermediate regions are quite different and depend upon the magnitude of Stp. The near-field region, x/d ≤ 10-15, is dominated by a regime of global precession of the entire jet. As a result, the large-scale entrainment of the ambient fluid is substantially enhanced while the fine-scale turbulent mixing is suppressed. Under the supercritical regime (i.e., Stp ≥ Stp,cr), the jet in the far field resembles some features of the nonprecessing counterpart. Nevertheless, significant differences still retain in the statistical properties. © 2005 American Institute of Physics.J. Mi and G. J. Natha