Restoration of Aspen-Dominated Ecosystems in the Lake States

A reserve tree method (RTM) of harvesting was installed in six 70 to 75 year old aspen dominated stands to determine if retaining 10 to 15 dominant aspen per acre would decrease sucker density to facilitate restoration of a conifer component. A reserve shelterwood cut was applied to three additional stands to evaluate performance of white pine planted under 50% crown cover. After the first full growing season following harvest, 96% of the RTM harvested areas were stocked; sucker density averaged 27000 per acre versus 38.2 k per acre on a clearcut control, 41% greater. Basal diameter of dominant suckers averaged 0.45 inch, 28% greater than the control, and mean height was 60 inches, 33% greater. The control site had 3.1k stems per acre of associated commercial species versus 5.8 k on the RTM sites, an 87% difference. Four of the nine stands have been planted; first-year survival ranged from 75% to near 100%. The RTM shows promise for reducing sucker density, increasing their early growth, maintaining species diversity, and providing abundant regeneration of commercial species on a high proportion of the areas harvested. Early results indicate that both the RTM and shelterwood methods can facilitate restoring a component of native conifer species in these ecosystems

Cultural norm fulfillment, interpersonal belonging, or getting ahead? A large-scale cross-cultural test of three perspectives on the function of self-esteem.

What is the function of self-esteem? We classified relevant theoretical work into 3 perspectives. The cultural norm-fulfillment perspective regards self-esteem a result of adherence to cultural norms. The interpersonal-belonging perspective regards self-esteem as a sociometer of interpersonal belonging. The getting-ahead perspective regards self-esteem as a sociometer of getting ahead in the social world, while regarding low anxiety/neuroticism as a sociometer of getting along with others. The 3 perspectives make contrasting predictions on the relation between the Big Five personality traits and self-esteem across cultures. We tested these predictions in a self-report study (2,718,838 participants from 106 countries) and an informant-report study (837,655 informants from 64 countries). We obtained some evidence for cultural norm fulfillment, but the effect size was small. Hence, this perspective does not satisfactorily account for self-esteem's function. We found a strong relation between Extraversion and higher self-esteem, but no such relation between Agreeableness and self-esteem. These 2 traits are pillars of interpersonal belonging. Hence, the results do not fit the interpersonal-belonging perspective either. However, the results closely fit the getting-ahead perspective. The relation between Extraversion and higher self-esteem is consistent with this perspective, because Extraversion is the Big Five driver for getting ahead in the social world. The relation between Agreeableness and lower neuroticism is also consistent with this perspective, because Agreeableness is the Big Five driver for getting along with others.We acknowledge support from the German Research Foundation (DFG; Grant GE 2515/2-1).This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from the American Psychological Association via http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/pspp000005

Luminescence Properties of Thin Film Ta2 Zn3 O8 and Mn Doped Ta2 Zn3 O8

Blue luminescence from TaZZn30g and green luminescence from Mn doped TaZZn30g has been observed under low voltage cathodoluminescent excitation, In this article , the luminescence mechanisms of TaZZn30g and Mn doped TaZZn30 g are discussed in detail. The results suggest that the intrinsic blue luminescence of TaZZn30g results from a metal-to-ligand transition, whereas the green luminescence of Mn doped TaZZn30g results from the Mn 4T 1-6A I transition. The suppression of the blue intrinsic luminescence in Mn doped TaZZn30g suggests that efficient energy transfer from the host material to the Mn occurs. This energy transfer phenomenon is also discussed by comparing the photoluminescence excitation spectra of both thin film materials. Finally, the relative efficiency versus voltage and current density is demonstrated and discussed pertaining to field emission device operation

Building a Leadership Culture for Environmental Health in a Nurse-Led Clinic

Climate change is the biggest global health threat of the 21st century (Costello et al., 2009). Temperature shifts caused by greenhouse gases have negative health impacts such as worsening of chronic diseases and increases in vector-borne diseases (American Public Health Association, 2016), which nurses are ethically responsible to address (American Nurses Association, 2015). At an interdisciplinary nurse-led clinic, staff were not prepared to assist patients in building resiliency related to the health impacts of climate change or to implement environmental sustainability in their workplace. Based on principles of partnership-based healthcare (Eisler & Potter, 2014), this project included Climate Conversations - sharing stories, values, and knowledge about climate change – (Minnesota Interfaith Power & Light, 2010) and evidence-based transformational leadership. The Nurses’ Environmental Awareness Tool (Schenk et al., 2015) was used to survey staff before and after they participated in behavioral interventions to incorporate environmental sustainability at their workplace. Compared to baseline, staffs’ knowledge of environmental sustainability increased significantly (p

Small-polaron hopping conductivity in bilayer manganite La1.2_{1.2}Sr1.8_{1.8}Mn2_{2}O7_{7}

We report anisotropic resistivity measurements on a La$_{1.2}$Sr$_{1.8}$Mn$_{2}$O$_{7}$ single crystal over a temperature $T$ range from 2 to 400 K and in magnetic fields $H$ up to 14 T. For $T\geq 218$ K, the temperature dependence of the zero-field in-plane $\rho_{ab}(T)$ resistivity obeys the adiabatic small polaron hopping mechanism, while the out-of-plane $\rho_{c}(T)$ resistivity can be ascribed by an Arrhenius law with the same activation energy. Considering the magnetic character of the polarons and the close correlation between the resistivity and magnetization, we developed a model which allows the determination of $\rho_{ab,c}(H,T)$. The excellent agreement of the calculations with the measurements indicates that small polarons play an essential role in the electrical transport properties in the paramagnetic phase of bilayer manganites.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures, to appear in Physical Review

Open a GLAM lab

Defining a GLAM Lab: A Galleries, Libraries, Archives and Museums (GLAM) Lab is a place for experimenting with digital collections and data. It is where researchers, artists, entrepreneurs, educators and the interested public can collaborate with an engaged group of partners to create new collections, tools, and services that will help transform the future ways in which knowledge and culture are disseminated. The exchanges and experimentation in a Lab are open, iterative and shared widely. This book describes why and how to open a GLAM Lab and encourages participation in a movement that can transform organisations and the communities they partner with. Building a GLAM Lab: Building a GLAM Lab involves defining its core values to guide future work, fostering a culture that is open, transparent, generous, collaborative, creative, inclusive, bold, ethical, accessible and encourages a mindset of exploration. The Lab should be grounded in user-centred and participatory design processes and its staff should be able to clearly communicate what the Lab is about. It's important to think big but start small and establish quick wins to get up and running. GLAM Lab teams: There are recommendations for the qualities and skills to look for in Labs teams, how to go about finding allies within and outside the institution, and ideas on how to create a nurturing environment for teams to thrive in. Labs teams have no optimal size or composition, and its team members can come from all walks of life. Teams need a healthy culture to ensure a well-functioning Lab which might be augmented intermittently by fellows, interns or researchers-inresidence. For a Lab to have lasting impact it must be integrated into the parent organisation and have the support of staff at all levels. User communities: GLAM Labs will need to engage and connect with potential users and partners. This means rethinking these relationships to help establish clear and targeted messages for specific communities. In turn, this enables Labs to adjust their tools, services and collections to establish deeper partnerships based on co-creation, and open and equal dialogue. Rethinking collections and Data: The book discusses the digital collections which are an integral part of Labs. It provides insights on how to share the collections as data, and how to identify, assess, describe, access, and reuse the collections. In addition, there is information about messy and curated data, digitisation, metadata, rights and preservation. Transformation: Experimentation is the critical core of the Lab's process. Insights about how to transform tools into operational services are demonstrated. It shows that experimentation can prepare the organisational culture and services for transformation. There is an examination of funding and the advantages and disadvantages of various models through discussion of the different mechanisms and options that an organisation can apply to Lab set-ups. Funding and Sustainability: We share insights on how to plan for a Lab's sustainability as well as a step-by-step guide for when an organisation is retiring or decommissioning a Lab. Labs have a pivotal role in the transformation of GLAMs and the book highlights the critical importance of Labs in changing the future of digital cultural heritage.Funded by UCL Qatar (Mmember of Qatar Foundation) and Qatar University Library. There has also been support from the British Library Labs, and the Library of Congress Labs

Medication Complications in Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation.

The need for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) therapy is a marker of disease severity for which multiple medications are required. The therapy causes physiologic changes that impact drug pharmacokinetics. These changes can lead to exposure-driven decreases in efficacy or increased incidence of side effects. The pharmacokinetic changes are drug specific and largely undefined for most drugs. We review available drug dosing data and provide guidance for use in the ECMO patient population

The changing face of major trauma in the UK

Aim Major trauma (MT) has traditionally been viewed as a disease of young men caused by high-energy transfer mechanisms of injury, which has been reflected in the configuration of MT services. With ageing populations in Western societies, it is anticipated that the elderly will comprise an increasing proportion of the MT workload. The aim of this study was to describe changes in the demographics of MT in a developed Western health system over the last 20 years. Methods The Trauma Audit Research Network (TARN) database was interrogated to identify all cases of MT (injury severity score >15) between 1990 and the end of 2013. Age at presentation, gender, mechanism of injury and use of CT were recorded. For convenience, cases were categorised by age groups of 25 years and by common mechanisms of injury. Longitudinal changes each year were recorded. Results Profound changes in the demographics of recorded MT were observed. In 1990, the mean age of MT patients within the TARN database was 36.1, the largest age group suffering MT was 0–24 years (39.3%), the most common causative mechanism was road traffic collision (59.1%), 72.7% were male and 33.6% underwent CT. By 2013, mean age had increased to 53.8 years, the single largest age group was 25–50 years (27.1%), closely followed by those >75 years (26.9%), the most common mechanism was low falls (39.1%), 68.3% were male and 86.8% underwent CT. Conclusions This study suggests that the MT population identified in the UK is becoming more elderly, and the predominant mechanism that precipitates MT is a fall from <2 m. Significant improvements in outcomes from MT may be expected if services targeting the specific needs of the elderly are developed within MT centres