Collecting and preserving waste and wastewater samples for analysis

"Waste handling systems as part of livestock production layouts are being developed and used to protect the environment. One part of waste management is sampling and analyzing the waste and wastewater to know what you have. Information from samples can be valuable for properly operating the system. If results of analyses of waste samples are to be meaningful, then the sample collection and preservation must be done properly. Procedures outlined in this guide are for field sampling from livestock operations. They are not meant as a guide to sampling for scientific research, which in many instances requires specific and highly sophisticated sampling methods."--Page 1.Reviewed by David Brune (Department of Agricultural Engineering). Charles D. Fulhage, Jim Porter and Dennis Sievers (Department of Agricultural Engineering

Fluid pumping system based on electrochemically-induced surface tension changes

A pump for exerting a pumping force on a fluid in an attached conduit, the pump being actuated by a voltage from a power supply, the pump comprising a liquid metal pool, a containment vessel for confining the pool, an inner tubular member in hydraulic contact with the attached conduit and with an open end disposed in the pool to divide a free upper surface of the pool into an actuation surface and a working surface, an electrolyte in contact with the actuation surface, an electrode in contact with the electrolyte, and an electrode in contact with the pool, such that application of a voltage to the electrodes causes a surface tension change in the actuation surface and a resulting height change in the working surface, whereby a pumping action is transferred to the fluid in the attached conduit

Risk Analysis of Organic Cropping Systems in Minnesota

When all strategies received conventional market prices, 4-year cropping sequences had greater net returns than 2-year sequences, and the organic input, 4-year strategy had the highest net return. Adding 50% of the estimated organic premium, the 4-year, organic strategy dominated all low- and high-purchased input strategies.Crop Production/Industries, Risk and Uncertainty,

A Prospective Randomized Comparison of Patient Specific Instruments with Standard TKA Instrumentation

Introduction: Patient specific instruments (PSI), an alternative to standard total knee arthroplasty (TKA) technology, have shown mixed results regarding effectiveness in previous studies. This study evaluated the accuracy of the predicted PSI plan, compared incremental cost savings with PSI, and compared outcomes of PSI and standard TKA patients. Patients and Methods: This randomized, prospective feasibility study included 19 primary TKA patients receiving a cruciate-retaining cemented prosthesis from a single surgeon (DCA). 9 patients randomized to PSI received a pre-operative knee MRI for PSI fabrication using proprietary software.10 standard TKAs were completed. Operative data collected included operating times, implant details, femoral (medial/lateral distal and posterior) and tibial (medial/lateral) resections, and instrument trays used. Hospitalization data collected included length of stay, blood loss, drain output, and transfusions. SF-36 and WOMAC scores, routine radiographic analysis, and femoral-tibial angles were collected pre- and post-operatively. Costs of operating room use and anesthesia, implants, and hospitalization were collected. Statistical analyses included t-tests and chi-square tests. Results: All implant sizes matched surgical team adjusted PSI software plans. Flexion gap resection (posterior medial/lateral femur) was extremely accurate (averagemm). Sagittal plane tibial component posterior slope was larger in PSI TKA (mean 7.3 degrees) than standard instrumentation (mean 4.2 degrees) (p0.05). There were no differences in operating room times or hospitalization data, and there were no significant differences in functional outcomes between the two groups (p\u3e0.05). PSI patients used 4 fewer instrument trays per case (p\u3c0.0001). Conclusion: PSI TKA demonstrated outstanding accuracy in bone resection when compared with the pre-operative plan, and resulted in appropriate limb and component alignment with primary TKA. The number of instrument trays used in PSI TKA was significantly less than standard TKA, which led to less cost for instrument sterilization and assembly

Advances in Salish Sea Acoustic Telemetry: 2015 Array Deployments and Promising Transmitter Performance

The first fish tracking arrays were deployed in the Salish Sea over a decade ago. These arrays have yielded a rich data set which have provided the first direct estimates of early marine-survival and migratory behavior for acoustic-tagged juvenile sockeye, Chinook, Coho and steelhead \u3e130 mm in fork length (FL). In spring of 2015, as part of the Salish Sea Marine Survival Project, the Pacific Salmon Foundation, the Ocean Tracking Network and Kintama Research deployed additional arrays in the Discovery Islands and Johnstone Strait (north of the Strait of Georgia) to provide higher resolution survival data. These new arrays use receivers that can detect VEMCO acoustic tags that transmit at 69 kHz, as well as new, smaller tags that transmit at 180 kHz. These new tags can be implanted into smaller salmon smolts (\u3e100 mm FL), but the disadvantage is reduced detection range and battery life. When designing the array, we considered the tradeoffs between detection efficiency, survival estimation, array design, and costs, and then tested the performance of the smaller tag by double-tagging 50 steelhead smolts with both tag types. We used high powered 69 kHz V9 tags to estimate presence because these tags have had excellent detection efficiency in past studies. The smaller 180 kHz V4 tag programming emulated the programming typically used to track small salmon smolts through the SOG. To estimate the detection efficiency of the smaller tag, we compared the number of 180 kHz ID codes to the number of 69 kHz ID codes detected on each array. The resulting detection efficiency of the V4 tag on the Discovery Islands sub-array was 74% (SE=0.10). Thus for the many salmon populations that migrate north through the Salish Sea (e.g. many Fraser River populations), it is now possible to estimate early-marine survival over a wider range of smolts sizes

Efficacy of gold weight implants in facial nerve palsy: quantitative alterations in blinking

AbstractDeficient eyelid closure is a major visual threat to patients with unresolved facial nerve palsy. Gold weight implants assisted eyelid closure in patients with paresis of the orbicularis oculi, ameliorating patient complaints of dry eye, excessive tearing, and corneal epithelial breakdown. We used dynamic measures to assess the efficacy of upper eyelid gold weight implantation surgery for facial nerve palsy. The search coil technique was used to record spontaneous blinks bilaterally in six patients, before and after unilateral gold weight implantations into the upper eyelid in severe facial nerve palsy. In uncomplicated facial nerve palsy, the amplitude of blink down-phases for the paretic eyelid was 28.6±5.7% of the amplitude of the contralateral, normal eyelid. Following corrective surgery, closure of the paretic eyelid improved to 42.6±7.5% (P<0.05). There was not a commensurate increase in the peak velocity of blink down-phases, suggesting that gold weight effects are mediated by a passive improvement in blink dynamics

Clustering Phase Transitions and Hysteresis: Pitfalls in Constructing Network Ensembles

Ensembles of networks are used as null models in many applications. However, simple null models often show much less clustering than their real-world counterparts. In this paper, we study a model where clustering is enhanced by means of a fugacity term as in the Strauss (or "triangle") model, but where the degree sequence is strictly preserved -- thus maintaining the quenched heterogeneity of nodes found in the original degree sequence. Similar models had been proposed previously in [R. Milo et al., Science 298, 824 (2002)]. We find that our model exhibits phase transitions as the fugacity is changed. For regular graphs (identical degrees for all nodes) with degree k > 2 we find a single first order transition. For all non-regular networks that we studied (including Erdos - Renyi and scale-free networks) we find multiple jumps resembling first order transitions, together with strong hysteresis. The latter transitions are driven by the sudden emergence of "cluster cores": groups of highly interconnected nodes with higher than average degrees. To study these cluster cores visually, we introduce q-clique adjacency plots. We find that these cluster cores constitute distinct communities which emerge spontaneously from the triangle generating process. Finally, we point out that cluster cores produce pitfalls when using the present (and similar) models as null models for strongly clustered networks, due to the very strong hysteresis which effectively leads to broken ergodicity on realistic time scales.Comment: 13 pages, 11 figure

Pre-operative Emotional Health Affects Post-operative Patient Function but not Patient Satisfaction Following Primary Total Hip Arthroplasty

Introduction: Total hip (THA) and knee (TKA) arthroplasty are highly successful treatments for end-stage arthritis. However, a subset of patients experience suboptimal post-operative gain in function. 1, 2 Previous studies have shown that pre-operative emotional health influences outcomes after TKA,3 but there is limited evidence on THA patients. We hypothesized that pre-operative emotional health does not affect patient satisfaction in THA patients. Methods: A secondary analysis of an existing registry at UMass of primary THA patients between 2008 and 2011 was conducted. Baseline demographic, clinical, emotional health (SF-36 MCS), and physical health (SF-36 PCS) data were collected electronically at the pre-operative visit. Post-operative SF-36 MCS, SF-36 PCS, and satisfaction scores were collected electronically between 6 months through 2 years follow-up. Bivariate analyses and multivariate logistic regression models were used. Results: The analysis included 316 primary THA patients with mean age 62±11 years, 55% female, mean BMI 30±5, mean PCS 31±8, and mean MCS 51±11. Patients with lower baseline emotional health scores reported significantly reduced mean post-operative physical function and emotional health (p45 (indicating excellent function, national norm = 50); whereas patients with baseline MCS≥50 had a mean 17±11 point increase in post-operative PCS with 71% of these patients reporting PCS\u3e45 (p\u3c0.001). Conclusion: In THA patients, post-operative emotional health and physical health are positively correlated with baseline emotional health, however post-operative patient satisfaction remains independent of baseline emotional health