Comparing Performance Category Criteria for U.S. Navy Alternate Physical Readiness Tests

The current Navy Physical Readiness Test (PRT) allows for several alternative methods, in lieu of the 1.5-mile run, with which to assess aerobic fitness. Two of these methods (elliptical trainer and stationary bike) and two additional devices (2-Km rower and 5-Km bike) were evaluated to determine if maximal effort on all devices produced the same performance category as the 1.5-mile run. One hundred thirty-two active-duty military and midshipmen were recruited from the United States Naval Academy and Naval Support Activity Annapolis. Subjects participated in six testing sessions over a six-week period. Subjects performed a 1.5-mile run (n = 118), 12-minute elliptical trainer test (n = 108), 12-minute stationary bike test (n = 115), 2-Km rower test (n = 115), and 5-Km bike test (n = 114). Each performance category attained from the alternate aerobic test device was compared to the performance category attained for the 1.5-mile run. None of the aerobic testing devices performance categories matched well to the 1.5-mile run. The results of the testing sessions support the mandated use of the 1.5-mile run as the sole method of assessing aerobic fitness. Additionally, if an alternate method must be used, the 12-minute stationary bike test using the revised Naval Health Research Center (NHRC) performance categories might be the best option because it has the largest number of performance matching categories. Finally, the results do not support the use of the 12-minute elliptical test, as an authorized alternative, due to its minimal number of matching categories

Vitamin D receptor distribution in intestines of domesticated sheep Ovis ammon f. aries

The biologically active form of vitamin D, i.e., 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol or calcitriol, plays an important role in bone metabolism and calcium homeostasis, which is often disturbed at the onset of lactation in high milk-yielding domestic ruminants. Gene transcription is modulated via vitamin D receptors, but nongenomic effects of vitamin D via membrane receptors have also been described. In the intestines, vitamin D promotes calcium absorption via vitamin D receptors. Vitamin D receptors are of clinical relevance, but have not been systematically assessed within all segments of the intestine in any species. Thus, we present for the first time an immunohistochemical study of the distribution patterns of the vitamin D receptor protein in sheep, which may be the basis for present and future investigations on mineral homeostasis in domestic ruminants. Tissue probes of the intestines were collected from five lambs and five nonlactating and nonpregnant dams, fixed in formalin, embedded in paraffin, and used for the assessment of vitamin D receptor protein. Nuclear vitamin D receptor immunoreaction was scored semiquantitatively and exhibited a segment-specific distribution pattern. Goblet cells always were devoid of any vitamin D receptor immunoreaction. Surface epithelial cells and enterocytes of the crypt openings generally demonstrated only a weak immunoreaction. Basally and/or intermediately located crypt epithelial cells exhibited stronger immunoreactions in duodenum, jejunum, and colon descendens. This basal/intermediate to superficial gradient was most pronounced in the duodenum and less evident in jejunum and colon descendens and not observed in ileum and cecum. There were no age-dependent variations in vitamin D receptor protein expression. Results demonstrate that intestinal vitamin D receptor distribution patterns are segment-specific and strongest immunoreactions correlate with highest intestinal calcium absorptive activities, as reported in literature. Strong expression of vitamin D receptors within the lower half of crypts also suggests a role for calcitriol in epithelial differentiation and cellular homeostasis

The Global Albedo of the Moon at 1064 nm from LOLA

The Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA) measures the backscattered energy of the returning altimetric laser pulse at its wavelength of 1064 nm, and these data are used to map the reflectivity of the Moon at zero-phase angle with a photometrically uniform data set. Global maps have been produced at 4 pixels per degree (about 8 kilometers at the equator) and 2 kilometers resolution within 20 deg latitude of each pole. The zero-phase geometry is insensitive to lunar topography, so these data enable characterization of subtle variations in lunar albedo, even at high latitudes where such measurements are not possible with the Sun as the illumination source. The geometric albedo of the Moon at 1064 nm was estimated from these data with absolute calibration derived from the Kaguya Multiband Imager and extrapolated to visual wavelengths. The LOLA estimates are within 2 sigma of historical measurements of geometric albedo. No consistent latitude-dependent variations in reflectance are observed, suggesting that solar wind does not dominate space weathering processes that modify lunar reflectance. The average normal albedo of the Moon is found to be much higher than that of Mercury consistent with prior measurements, but the normal albedo of the lunar maria is similar to that of Mercury suggesting a similar abundance of space weathering products. Regions within permanent shadow in the polar regions are found to be more reflective than polar surfaces that are sometimes illuminated. Limiting analysis to data with slopes less than 10 deg eliminates variations in reflectance due to mass wasting and shows a similar increased reflectivity within permanent polar shadow. Steep slopes within permanent shadow are also more reflective than similar slopes that experience at least some illumination. Water frost and a reduction in effectiveness of space weathering are offered as possible explanations for the increased reflectivity of permanent shadow; porosity is largely ruled out as the sole explanation. The south polar crater Shackleton is found to be among the most reflective craters in its size range globally but is not the most reflective, so mass wasting cannot be ruled out as a cause for the crater's anomalous reflectance. Models of the abundance of ice needed to account for the reflectance anomaly range from 3 to 14% by weight or area depending on assumptions regarding the effects of porosity on reflectance and whether ice is present as patches or is well mixed in the regolith. If differences in nanophase iron abundances are responsible for the anomaly, the permanently shadowed regions have between 50 and 80% the abundance of nanophase iron in mature lunar soil

Mercury's low-reflectance material: Constraints from hollows

Unusually low reflectance material, within which depressions known as hollows appear to be actively forming by sublimation, is a major component of Mercury's surface geology. The observation that this material is exhumed from depth by large impacts has the intriguing implication that the planet's lower crust or upper mantle contains a significant volatile-rich, low-reflectance layer, the composition of which will be key for developing our understanding of Mercury's geochemical evolution and bulk composition. Hollows provide a means by which the composition of both the volatile and non-volatile components of the low-reflectance material (LRM) can be constrained, as they result from the loss of the volatile component, and any remaining lag can be expected to be formed of the non-volatile component. However, previous work has approached this by investigating the spectral character of hollows as a whole, including that of bright deposits surrounding the hollows, a unit of uncertain character. Here we use high-resolution multispectral images, obtained as the MESSENGER spacecraft approached Mercury at lower altitudes in the latter part of its mission, to investigate reflectance spectra of inactive hollow floors where sublimation appears to have ceased, and compare this to those of the bright surrounding products and the parent material. This analysis reveals that the final lag after hollow-formation has a flatter spectral slope than that of any other unit on the planet and reflectance approaching that of more space-weathered parent material. This indicates firstly that the volatile material lost has a steeper spectral slope and higher reflectance than the parent material, consistent with (Ca,Mg) sulfides, and secondly, that the low-reflectance component of LRM is non-volatile and may be graphite

The Binational/Crosscultural Health Enhancement Center

poster abstractThe Binational/Cross-Cultural Health Enhancement Center (BiCCHEC) fosters multidisciplinary research collaborations that address the biological, cultural, historical, legal, behavioral and demographic issues that impact the health status of communities where Latinos are born and where they live in Indiana. Since its inception, BiCCHEC projects have been multidisciplinary, 80% of the projects involve two or more IUPUI schools. BiCCHEC projects are also collaborative, 70% of the projects have one or more community partners. BiCCHEC researchers have also established a strong commitment to teaching and service, actively involving students in research (25% of current projects are student led) and servicelearning activities, developing exchange programs through our partnerships and providing direct health services in community organized events. Signature center funds have been utilized to fund internal pilot projects. The current poster will highlight four of those projects that have received pilot funding from signature center funds and have resulted in external grant applications or have already received funding, or have resulted in peer reviewed-publications. These projects are considered representative of BiCCHEC’s activities, because of their collaborative, multidisciplinary and community-based nature and include: • Study on oral health disparities using community-based participatory research • Study on the attitudes regarding children with disabilities, beliefs regarding death, coping skills and supports used during bereavement in communities in Indiana and rural Mexico • Building of a bi-national research partnership for healthful eating and diabetes prevention among Mexican and Mexican-American children • Study on emigration and return migration in 20th Century Mexico: Across the border and back again • Study on the effects of migrants' acculturation on oral health and diet in Indianapolis and Tala, Jaliscco using social network theor

The Social Studies Curriculum in Atlanta Public Schools During the Desegregation Era

This historical investigation explores how teachers, students, and education officials viewed the social studies curriculum in the local context of Atlanta, and the broader state of Georgia, during the post-Civil Rights era, when integration was a court-ordered reality in the public schools. During the desegregation era, Atlanta schools were led by Atlanta Public Schools (APS) Superintendent, Dr. Alonzo Crim. Brought to Atlanta as part of a desegregation compromise, Dr. Crim became APS\u27s first African American superintendent. In particular, the authors investigate how national social studies movements, such as Man: A Course of Study (MACOS), inquiry-based learning, co-curriculum activities, and standards movements, adapted to fit this Southeastern locale, at a time when schools were struggling to desegregate. Local curriculum documents written in the 1970s reveal a traditional social studies curriculum. By the 1980s, APS\u27s social studies curriculum guides broadened to include a stronger focus on an enacted community—inside the classroom and around the world. In oral history interviews, however, former teachers, students, and school officials presented contrasting perspectives of how the social studies curriculum played out in the reality of Atlanta\u27s public schools during the desegregation era

A geographical population analysis of dental trauma in school-children aged 12 and 15 in the city of Curitiba-Brazil

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The study presents a geographical analysis of dental trauma in a population of 12 and 15 year-old school-children, in the city of Curitiba, Brazil (n = 1581), using a database obtained in the period 2005-2006. The main focus is to analyze dental trauma using a geographic information system as a tool for integrating social, environmental and epidemiological data.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Geostatistical analysis of the database and thematic maps were generated showing the distribution of dental trauma cases according to Curitiba's Health Districts and other variables of interest. Dental trauma spatial variation was assessed using a generalized additive model in order to identify and control the individual risk-factors and thus determine whether spatial variation is constant or not throughout the Health Districts and the place of residence of individuals. In addition, an analysis was made of the coverage of dental trauma cases taking the spatial distribution of Curitiba's primary healthcare centres.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>The overall prevalence of dental trauma was 37.1%, with 53.1% in males and 46.7% in females. The spatial analysis confirms the hypothesis that there is significant variation in the occurrence of dental trauma, considering the place of residence in the population studied (Monte Carlo test, p = 0,006). Furthermore, 28.7% of cases had no coverage by the primary healthcare centres.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The effect of the place of residence was highly significant in relation to the response variable. The delimitation of areas, as a basis for case density, enables the qualification of geographical territories where actions can be planned based on priority criteria. Promotion, control and rehabilitation actions, applied in regions of higher prevalence of dental trauma, can be more effective and efficient, thus providing healthcare refinement.</p

Efficacy Results of a Trial of a Herpes Simplex Vaccine

Two previous studies of a herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) subunit vaccine containing glycoprotein D in HSV-discordant couples revealed 73% and 74% efficacy against genital disease in women who were negative for both HSV type 1 (HSV-1) and HSV-2 antibodies. Efficacy was not observed in men or HSV-1 seropositive women