Grainy Gray Ped Coatings in Brunizem Soils

The presence of light colored, granular material on structural units in the lower B horizon is considered to be an atypical morphological feature in the Brunizem soils of Iowa. This study indicates that there are appreciable areas of Brunizem soils, derived from Wisconsin loess and Iowan till, in eastern Iowa with such coatings in the lower B horizon. Because the grainy gray ped coatings cannot readily be accounted for by any soil-forming factor other than vegetation, and because they are similar to coatings in some associated Gray-Brown Podzolic soils, it is inferred that their presence is generally related to a prior influence of deciduous forest. Their proper classification needs further attention

First principles investigations of the electronic, magnetic and chemical bonding properties of CeTSn (T=Rh,Ru)

The electronic structures of CeRhSn and CeRuSn are self-consistently calculated within density functional theory using the local spin density approximation for exchange and correlation. In agreement with experimental findings, the analyses of the electronic structures and of the chemical bonding properties point to the absence of magnetization within the mixed valent Rh based system while a finite magnetic moment is observed for trivalent cerium within the Ru-based stannide, which contains both trivalent and intermediate valent Ce.Comment: 6 pages, 7 figures, for more information see http://www.physik.uni-augsburg.de/~eyert

Use of the Morphology of Buried Soil Profiles in the Pleistocene of Iowa

Buried profiles of weathering have been recognized and utilized by many geologists in the determination and classification of Pleistocene deposits (1) * (2) (10) (20). In Iowa, Kay (5) used the term gumbotil for super drift clays. The gumbotil was found on tabular divides and other remnants of the Kansan drift plain, and was considered to be the result of weathering of glacial drift (8). Kay and Apfel (7) recognized gumbotil as a weathered product, but as something distinct from soil. For example, the Aftonian interglacial stage was stated by them as being represented in Iowa by wide-spread Nebraskan gumbotil, peat, mucks, old soils, weathered sands and gravels. In Illinois, Leighton and MacClintock (9) also identified buried profiles of weathering in stratigraphic sections. Ruhe (12) recognized variations in texture of weathered tills in Shelby County, Iowa, which were a reflection of drainage conditions due to differences in topography

Estimate of Slope Classes by Counties in Iowa

The proportion of land in given slope classes has been estimated for Iowa counties from a randomly selected sample. The sample, approximately 2 percent of the land area of the state, consists of about 4,500 individual tracts, each about 160 acres in size. A detailed soil map was made of each tract, using a 4-inch-to-the-mile aerial photograph as a base map, thus providing the basic information for a physical land-condition inventory. The data from the soil maps were projected to give estimates of physical land conditions by counties and for the state as a whole. On a state basis, nearly 60 percent of the state has slopes of less than 5 percent gradient, and almost 75 percent of the state has slopes of less than about 9 percent gradient. Summarized estimates of percent land in the 0-1, 2-4, 5-8, 9-13, 14-17, 18-24, and 24 plus percent slope classes are given for all counties of the state, and for the state

What’s on trial? The making of field experiments in international development

In the last 20 years, the drive for evidence‐based policymaking has been coupled with a concurrent push for the use of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) as the “gold‐standard” for generating rigorous evidence on whether or not development interventions work. Drawing on content analysis of 63 development RCTs and 4 years of participant observation, I provide a rich description of the diverse set of actors and the transnational organizational effort required to implement development RCTs and maintain their “scientific status.” Particularly, I investigate the boundary work that proponents of RCTs—also known as randomistas—do to differentiate the purposes and merits of testing development projects from doing them, as a way to bypass the political and ethical problems presented by adopting the experimental method with foreign aid beneficiaries in poor countries. Although randomistas have been mostly successful in differentiating RCTs from the projects evaluated, I also examine cases where they were not able to do so, as a means to highlight the controversies associated with implementing RCTs in international development.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/154964/1/bjos12723_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/154964/2/bjos12723.pd

A Developmental Perspective on Community Service in Adolescence

A substantial number of U.S. adolescents currently participate in community service and there is increased national interest in service programs. This article assesses the assumption of developmental benefits to service participants by critically reviewing 44 empirical studies. It offers a theoretical framework for understanding the findings by connecting them to identity development and delineating three pertinent concepts: agency, social relatedness, and moral-political awareness. These concepts are applied to studies that investigate: ( 1) the characteristics and motivations of participants, ( 2) the effects of service, and ( 3) the process of service. The findings support the conclusion that service activities which provide opportunities for intense experiences and social interactions are often associated with prosocial development. The findings also point to the need for more studies focused on particular service programs and on relationships between service providers and those served

“We’re just stuck in a daily routine”:Implications of the temporal dimensions, demands and dispositions of mothering for leisure time physical activity

The reduced physical activity of women when they become mothers is a public health priority. Existing studies show that mothers have little time for leisure, or time that is fragmented and requiring negotiation with others. However, the temporal features of mothering are undertheorised and qualitative studies tend to focus on how mothers can skilfully construct physically active identities and balance societal expectations about being a "good mother". In line with other research that focuses on the configuration of everyday practices that condition the "possibilities" for health-related practices like physical activity, we shift our focus away from the resisting capacities of mothers to the temporal features of mothering practices. We interrogate the lived experiences of 15 mothers of preschool children in deprived urban areas and illuminate the inherent temporal dimensions, demands and dispositions of mothering practices that condition the possibility of leisure time physical activity being undertaken. Together, these temporal features mean mothering practices can readily work against leisure time physical activity. The focus on the mothering practices rather than mothers brings a novel perspective for developing public health policy designed to support mothers into regular leisure time physical activity

Preventing Violence in Seven Countries: Global Convergence in Policies

Do governments take the measures that are supported by the best scientific evidence available? We present a brief review of the situation in: Australia, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Our findings show surprisingly similar developments across countries. While all seven countries are moving towards evidence-based decision making regarding policies and programs to prevent violence, there remain a number of difficulties before this end can be achieved. For example, there continue to be few randomized controlled trials or rigorous quasi-experimental studies on aggression and violence. Results from experimental research are essential to both policy makers and researchers to determine the effectiveness of programs as well as increase our knowledge of the problem. Additionally, all noted that media attention for violence is high in their country, often leading to management by crisis with the result that policies are not based on evidence, but instead seek to appease public outrage. And perhaps because of attendant organizational problems (i.e., in many countries violence prevention was not under the guise of one particular agency or ministry), most have not developed a coordinated policy focusing on the prevention of violence and physical aggression. It is hypothesized that leaders in democratic countries, who must run for election every 4 to 6 years, may feel a need to focus on short-term planning rather than long-term preventive policies since the costs, but not the benefits for the latter would be incurred while they still served in office. We also noted a general absence of expertise beyond those within scientific circles. The need for these ideas to be more widely accepted will be an essential ingredient to real and sustaining change. This means that there must be better communication and increased understanding between researchers and policy makers. Toward those ends, the recent establishment of the Campbell Collaboration, formed to provide international systematic reviews of program effectiveness, will make these results more available and accessible to politicians, administrators and those charged with making key policy decision

FasL is more frequently expressed in liver metastases of colorectal cancer than in matched primary carcinomas

Colorectal carcinoma cells have recently been shown to express Fas ligand (FasL). This ligand could allow the tumour cells to evade activated tumour-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) by inducing their apoptosis and would thus promote tumour survival and possibly metastasis formation. To test this hypothesis in vivo we analysed the expression of FasL mRNA and protein in paired tissue samples of normal colonic mucosa (N), primary colorectal carcinomas (T) and their metastases (M) from a total of 21 patients by four different methods. Additionally, the presence and activation status of infiltrating lymphocytes, which might contribute to the total amount of FasL in the tissue, was determined by semiquantitative reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction (RT–PCR) in the same samples. The frequency of FasL detection was 30–40% in T and was 60–100% in M, depending on the sensitivity of the method. Simultaneously, the amount of CD25 mRNA, used as a measure of the number of activated TILs, was in 90% of patients lower in M than in T. The increased frequency of FasL detection in liver metastases was therefore not due to the presence of activated TILs. We conclude that metastasizing subpopulations of colorectal tumour cells express FasL more frequently than the primary carcinomas and may be able to eliminate activated TILs in vivo via Fas/FasL-induced apoptosis or other hitherto unknown mechanisms. © 1999 Cancer Research Campaig