Returning to the True Goal of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act: Self-Sufficiency

This country has long recognized the necessity of an education in order to function productively in society. As suggested by one of the founding fathers, Thomas Jefferson, some degree of education is necessary to prepare citizens to participate effectively and intelligently in our open political system. More recently, the Supreme Court recognized the importance of education in Brown v. Board of foreclose the means by which that group might raise the level of es- teem in which it is held by the majority .... Illiteracy is an enduring disability. Today this need to educate remains just as pressing. Our country is plagued by economic and social costs because of its failure to provide this basic tool. Without an education, adults are unable to provide for themselves financially, much less for their families. As a result, many turn to crime. Theft, drugs, and violence become the solution, and society is left the victim of the very problem it helped to create. This Note focuses on children with mental impairments and the public school system\u27s current attempts to meet their needs. Historically, despite the American judicial system\u27s recognition of the importance of education, children with disabilities were routinely denied the benefits of the free public education the Court required for children of all races in Brown. This denial took two forms. The first was outright exclusion of children with mental impairments from public schools, and the second was more subtle, lying in the system\u27s tendency to see only the impairment, not the unique individual. Children\u27s advocates began responding to these injustices in the 1960s and early 1970s, relying on the strong language in Brown to argue that the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment protects not only children of different races, but also children with disabilities: Such an [educational] opportunity, where the state has undertaken to provide it, is a right which must be made available to all on equal terms. \u27 The fruits of these advocates\u27 labor were realized in two federal court cases in 1972

Ecological and Trophic Distribution of Pesticides in Lack Poinsett, South Dakota

Ecological and trophic distributions of chlorinated hydrocarbon residues in Lake Poinsett, South Dakota were studies. Components of the ecosystem analyzed were water, bottom sediment, zooplankton, benthic algae, crayfish, aquatic insects and fish. Concentrations of aldrin, DDD, DDE, DDT, dieldrin, endrin, heptachlor, heptachlor epoxide, lindane, methoxychlor, and toxaphene were determined by gas chromatography and thin-layer chromatography. DDT and its metabolites, DDD and DDE, were the highest residues detected in all trophic levels examined. Heptachlor, heptachlor epoxide, aldrine, dieldrin, and lindane were present in the majority of sample types, while neither endrin nor methoxyshlor was detected above analytical confidence limits in any sample. Toxaphene was present in only four fish. The DDT complex was found to increase in percentage of total residue with higher trophic levels. A change in ratio of DDT to DDD plus DDE was found with increase in trophic level. While DDT was most abundant in water, fish and bottom sediment had greater concentrations of DDD plus DDE. Higher trophic levels had greater percentages of the epoxide form of heptachlor and aldrin. Water had the lowest total residue reported. Bottom sediment and crayfish had 16 times the residue level of water, while zooplankton and benthic algae showed a 37-fold increase over water. Total residue in fish averaged 790 times that of water, and aquatic insects had the highest magnification over water (7300-fold). Analysis of fish tissue gave the order of increasing residue concentration as testes, muscle, liver, egg and depot fat. Fish fat content was correlated (r= 0.40, d.f. = 72) with higher insecticide levels. Analysis of variance showed residue levels increased with age (P\u3c.05). No significant difference was found by analysis of variance between sexes, or between fall and spring collections. Residue levels in Lake Poinsett water were similar to levels reported for other areas, but fish displayed a much lower magnification over water than has been reported in the literature. DDT complex levels detected in Lake Poinsett fish were well below the Food and Drug Administration’s 5 ppm tolerance limit set on a wet-weight, whole-body basis (sager pers. comm. 1969). No residues were found above tentative Food and Drug Administration tolerance limits in any sample

Sex-Specific Heterosis in Line Crosses of Mice Selectively Bred for High Locomotor Activity

When populations with similar histories of directional selection are crossed, their offspring may differ in mean phenotype as compared with the average for the parental populations, often exhibiting enhancement of the mean phenotype (termed heterosis or hybrid vigor). We tested for heterosis in a cross of two replicate lines of mice selectively bred for high voluntary wheel running for 53 generations. Mice were paired to produce four sets of F1 offspring: two purebred High Runner (HR) lines and the hybrid reciprocal crosses. The purebred HR showed statistically significant, sex-dependent differences in body mass, wheel revolutions, running duration, mean running speed, and (controlling for body mass) organ masses (heart ventricles, liver, spleen, triceps surae muscle). Hybrid males ran significantly more revolutions than the purebred males, mainly via increased running speeds, but hybrid females ran intermediate distances, durations, and speeds, as compared with the purebred females. In both sexes, ventricles were relatively smaller in hybrids as compared with purebred HR. Overall, our results demonstrate differential and sex-specific responses to selection in the two HR lines tested, implying divergent genetic architectures underlying high voluntary exercise

NXFit: A program for simultaneously fitting X-ray and neutron diffraction pair-distribution functions to provide optimized structural parameters

NXFit is a program for obtaining optimized structural parameters from amorphous materials by simultaneously fitting X-ray and neutron pair-distribution functions. Partial correlation functions are generated in Q space, summed and Fourier transformed for comparison with the experimental data in r space. NXFit uses the Nelder-Mead method to vary a set of 'best guess' parameters to achieve a fit to experimentally derived data. The output parameters from NXFit are coordination number, atomic separation and disorder parameter for each atomic correlation used in the fitting process. The use of NXFit has been demonstrated by fitting both X-ray and neutron diffraction data from two quite different amorphous materials: a melt-quenched (Na2O) 0.5(P2O5)0.5glass and a (TiO2)0.18(SiO2)0.82sol-gel

Retinopathy predicts progression of fasting plasma glucose: An Early Diabetes Intervention Program (EDIP) analysis

Background Retinopathy is increasingly recognized in prediabetic populations, and may herald increased risk of metabolic worsening. The Early Diabetes Intervention Program (EDIP) evaluated worsening of glycemia in screen-detected Type 2 diabetes, following participants for up to 5 years. Here we have evaluated whether the presence of retinopathy at the time of detection of diabetes was associated with accelerated progression of glycemia. Methods We prospectively studied 194 participants from EDIP with available baseline retinal photographs. Retinopathy was determined at baseline using 7-field fundus photography and defined as an Early Treatment of Diabetic Retinopathy Study Scale grading score of ≥ 20. Results At baseline, 12% of participants had classical retinal lesions indicating retinopathy. In univariate Cox proportional hazard analysis, the presence of retinopathy at baseline was associated with a doubled risk of progression of fasting plasma glucose (HR 2.02; 95% CI 1.05–3.89). The retinopathy effect was robust to individual adjustment for age and glucose, the most potent determinants of progression in EDIP. Conclusion Retinopathy was associated with increased risk of progression of fasting plasma glucose among adults with screen-detected, early diabetes. Early detection of retinopathy may help individualize more aggressive therapy to prevent progressive metabolic worsening in early diabetes

Comparison of β-Cell Function Between Overweight/Obese Adults and Adolescents Across the Spectrum of Glycemia

OBJECTIVE: Type 2 diabetes is a growing health problem among both adults and adolescents. To better understand the differences in the pathogenesis of diabetes between these groups, we examined differences in β-cell function along the spectrum of glucose tolerance. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: We evaluated 89 adults and 50 adolescents with normal glucose tolerance (NGT), dysglycemia, or type 2 diabetes. Oral glucose tolerance test results were used for C-peptide and insulin/glucose minimal modeling. Model-derived and direct measures of insulin secretion and insulin sensitivity were compared across glycemic stages and between age-groups at each stage. RESULTS: In adolescents with dysglycemia, there was marked insulin resistance (insulin sensitivity index: adolescents, median [interquartile range] 1.8 [1.1-2.4] × 10-4; adults, 5.0 [2.3-9.9]; P = 0.01). The nature of β-cell dysfunction across stages of dysglycemia differed between the groups. We observed higher levels of secretion among adolescents than adults (total insulin secretion: NGT, 143 [103-284] × 10-9/min adolescent vs. 106 [71-127], P = 0.001); adults showed stepwise impairments in static insulin secretion (NGT, 7.5 [4.0-10.3] × 10-9/min; dysglycemia, 5.0 [2.3-9.9]; type 2 diabetes, 0.7 [0.1-2.45]; P = 0.003), whereas adolescents showed diabetes-related impairment in dynamic secretion (NGT, 1,905 [1,630-3,913] × 10-9; dysglycemia, 2,703 [1,323-3,637]; type 2 diabetes, 1,189 [269-1,410]; P = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Adults and adolescents differ in the underlying defects leading to dysglycemia, and in the nature of β-cell dysfunction across stages of dysglycemia. These results may suggest different approaches to diabetes prevention in youths versus adults

Evaluation of nanopore sequencing for epigenetic epidemiology: a comparison with DNA methylation microarrays

Most epigenetic epidemiology to date has utilized microarrays to identify positions in the genome where variation in DNA methylation is associated with environmental exposures or disease. However, these profile less than 3% of DNA methylation sites in the human genome, potentially missing affected loci and preventing the discovery of disrupted biological pathways. Third generation sequencing technologies, including Nanopore sequencing, have the potential to revolutionise the generation of epigenetic data, not only by providing genuine genome-wide coverage but profiling epigenetic modifications direct from native DNA. Here we assess the viability of using Nanopore sequencing for epidemiology by performing a comparison with DNA methylation quantified using the most comprehensive microarray available, the Illumina EPIC array. We implemented a CRISPR-Cas9 targeted sequencing approach in concert with Nanopore sequencing to profile DNA methylation in three genomic regions to attempt to rediscover genomic positions that existing technologies have shown are differentially methylated in tobacco smokers. Using Nanopore sequencing reads, DNA methylation was quantified at 1779 CpGs across three regions, providing a finer resolution of DNA methylation patterns compared to the EPIC array. The correlation of estimated levels of DNA methylation between platforms was high. Furthermore, we identified 12 CpGs where hypomethylation was significantly associated with smoking status, including 10 within the AHRR gene. In summary, Nanopore sequencing is a valid option for identifying genomic loci where large differences in DNAm are associated with a phenotype and has the potential to advance our understanding of the role differential methylation plays in the aetiology of complex disease

A wristwatch-based wireless sensor platform for IoT health monitoring applications

A wristwatch-based wireless sensor platform for IoT wearable health monitoring applications is presented. The paper describes the platform in detail, with a particular focus given to the design of a novel and compact wireless sub-system for 868 MHz wristwatch applications. An example application using the developed platform is discussed for arterial oxygen saturation (SpO2) and heart rate measurement using optical photoplethysmography (PPG). A comparison of the wireless performance in the 868 MHz and the 2.45 GHz bands is performed. Another contribution of this work is the development of a highly integrated 868 MHz antenna. The antenna structure is printed on the surface of a wristwatch enclosure using laser direct structuring (LDS) technology. At 868 MHz, a low specific absorption rate (SAR) of less than 0.1% of the maximum permissible limit in the simulation is demonstrated. The measured on-body prototype antenna exhibits a −10 dB impedance bandwidth of 36 MHz, a peak realized gain of −4.86 dBi and a radiation efficiency of 14.53% at 868 MHz. To evaluate the performance of the developed 868 MHz sensor platform, the wireless communication range measurements are performed in an indoor environment and compared with a commercial Bluetooth wristwatch device

Profound defects in β-cell function in screen-detected type 2 diabetes are not improved with glucose-lowering treatment in the Early Diabetes Intervention Program (EDIP)

BACKGROUND: Few studies have measured the ability of interventions to affect declining β-cell function in screen-detected type 2 diabetes. The Early Diabetes Intervention Programme (ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01470937) was a randomized study based on the hypothesis that improving postprandial glucose excursions with acarbose would slow the progression of fasting hyperglycaemia in screen-detected type 2 diabetes. In the Early Diabetes Intervention Programme, the effect of acarbose plus lifestyle advice on progression of fasting hyperglycaemia over a 5-year period was not greater than that of placebo. However, there was an early glucose-lowering effect of the trial. The objective of the current secondary analysis was to describe β-cell function changes in response to glucose lowering. METHODS: Participants were overweight adult subjects with screen-detected type 2 diabetes. β-cell function was measured using hyperglycaemic clamps and oral glucose tolerance testing. The primary outcome was the change in β-cell function from baseline to year 1, the time point where the maximal glucose-lowering effect was seen. RESULTS: At baseline, participants exhibited markedly impaired first-phase insulin response. Despite significant reductions in weight, fasting plasma glucose (PG) and 2-h PG, there was no clinically significant improvement in the first-phase insulin response. Late-phase insulin responses declined despite beneficial glycaemic effects of interventions. CONCLUSIONS: Insulin secretion is already severely impaired in early, screen-detected type 2 diabetes. Effective glucose-lowering intervention with acarbose was not sufficient to improve insulin secretion or halt the decline of β-cell function

Magnetic Differences on GEM - direct observation of closest R...R approach in rare-earth phosphate glasses

Rare-earth (R) phosphate glasses have shown great promise in the laser and optoelectronics industry. Their structure plays an important role in their physical characteristics, with the R...R closest approach affecting their optical and magnetic properties. A novel characterisation method for amorphous materials which makes use of magnetic field effects has enabled the first direct experimental evidence of nearest neighbour R...R separation in these materials