The Community Garden: Addressing Food Security & Much More!

The Manhattan Community Garden, sponsored by the UFM Community Learning Center, has been a centerpiece of the city for over 42 years, making it the oldest community garden in Kansas. In 2015, the 283 plots of land were gardened by 183 families. Despite its contribution to self-sustaining community food security, the Manhattan garden provide space for mentorship, social interaction among community members, and education for children on nutrition and biology

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis in a Patient with a Family History of Huntington Disease: Genetic Counseling Challenges

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and Huntington disease (HD) are generally considered to be distinct and easily differentiated neurologic conditions. However, there are case reports of the co‐occurrence of ALS with HD. We present a 57‐year‐old male with a clinical diagnosis of sporadic ALS in the context of a family history of HD. This case adds to the limited literature regarding individuals with a family history of HD who present with features of ALS. There were several genetic counseling challenges in counseling this patient including the diagnostic consideration of two fatal conditions, complex risk information, the personal and familial implications, and the patient’s inability to communicate verbally or through writing due to disease progression. DNA banking effectively preserved the right of our patient and his wife not to learn his HD genetic status during a stressful time of disease progression while providing the option for family members to learn this information in the future if desired. We present lessons learned and considerations for other clinical genetics professionals who are presented with similar challenging issues.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/147074/1/jgc40725.pd

A Grassroots Effort to Renew the Schoolyard: The Learning Garden

Like thousands of schools across the United States, Northview Elementary School in Manhattan, Kansas plans to infuse kids’ lives with nature. Educators, community advocates, and parents gathered funds, drew plans, and constructed a learning garden because they saw its potential to affect students. This paper documents the case of Northview and reviews research relevant to the establishment and success of schoolyard gardens

Dysregulation of Sodium Channel Gating in Critical Illness Myopathy

Critical illness myopathy (CIM) is the most common caused of acquired weakness in critically ill patients. While atrophy of muscle fibers causes weakness, the primary cause of acute weakness is loss of muscle excitability. Studies in an animal model of CIM suggest that both depolarization of the resting potential and a hyperpolarized shift in the voltage dependence of sodium channel gating combine to cause inexcitability. In active adult skeletal muscle the only sodium channel isoform expressed is Nav1.4. In the animal model of CIM the Nav1.5 sodium channel isoform is upregulated, but the majority of sodium current is still carried by Nav1.4 sodium channels. Experiments using toxins to selectively bock the Nav1.4 isoform demonstrated that the cause of the hyperpolarized shift in sodium channel inactivation is a hyperpolarized shift in inactivation of the Nav1.4 isoform. These data suggest that CIM represents a new type of ion channel disease in which altered gating of sodium channels is due to improper regulation of the channels rather than mutation of channels or changes in isoform expression. The hypothesis that dysregulation of sodium channel gating underlies inexcitability of skeletal muscle in CIM raises the possibility that there maybe dysregulation of sodium channel gating in other tissues in critically ill patients. We propose that there is a syndrome of reduced electrical excitability in critically ill patients that affects skeletal muscle, peripheral nerve, the heart and central nervous system. This syndrome manifests as CIM, critical illness polyneuropathy, reduced cardiac contractility and septic encephalopathy

Dysregulation of Sodium Channel Gating in Critical Illness Myopathy

Critical illness myopathy (CIM) is the most common caused of acquired weakness in critically ill patients. While atrophy of muscle fibers causes weakness, the primary cause of acute weakness is loss of muscle excitability. Studies in an animal model of CIM suggest that both depolarization of the resting potential and a hyperpolarized shift in the voltage dependence of sodium channel gating combine to cause inexcitability. In active adult skeletal muscle the only sodium channel isoform expressed is Nav1.4. In the animal model of CIM the Nav1.5 sodium channel isoform is upregulated, but the majority of sodium current is still carried by Nav1.4 sodium channels. Experiments using toxins to selectively bock the Nav1.4 isoform demonstrated that the cause of the hyperpolarized shift in sodium channel inactivation is a hyperpolarized shift in inactivation of the Nav1.4 isoform. These data suggest that CIM represents a new type of ion channel disease in which altered gating of sodium channels is due to improper regulation of the channels rather than mutation of channels or changes in isoform expression. The hypothesis that dysregulation of sodium channel gating underlies inexcitability of skeletal muscle in CIM raises the possibility that there maybe dysregulation of sodium channel gating in other tissues in critically ill patients. We propose that there is a syndrome of reduced electrical excitability in critically ill patients that affects skeletal muscle, peripheral nerve, the heart and central nervous system. This syndrome manifests as CIM, critical illness polyneuropathy, reduced cardiac contractility and septic encephalopathy

UFM's solar energy project

This presentation will overview UFM's Solar Energy Project, discuss the practical logistics of using passive and active solar energy production and will look at ways to share this information across Kansas and the region. UFM Community Learning Center's Solar Addition began as a demonstration of alternative energy and energy conservation in 1980 with the construction of the passive solar Green House. The initial project was funded with a grant from the U.S. Department of Energy and the City of Manhattan. It has served as a regional model of innovative uses of passive solar energy for many years. Recently, the facility has been renovated, updating examples of energy efficiency and adding a photovoltaic array to the existing passive solar features. The UFM Solar Project now provides a demonstration of both active and passive solar energy. The photovoltaic project, attached to Westar energy's electrical grid, went live in late July, 2008. Data collected from this project will show the production and cost savings of using solar energy to produce electricity. The UFM Solar Addition Project has two primary goals. The first goal is to create a regional demonstration project of alternative energy technologies. The project provides a demonstration of practical, usable active and passive solar technology available for home and small-scale commercial use. Technologies include passive solar energy collection, using a greenhouse wall with movable insulation, a demonstration of active photovoltaic technology collecting and using the sun's energy for electricity, energy conservation through windows, doors and strategic sun shading. The second goal is to provide unique educational programming to K-State, the Manhattan community and to the region utilizing the updated UFM Solar Addition facility. Classes, tours, demonstrations, and production greenhouse activities are available. Information on the advantages and challenges of alternative energy will be discussed. An outgrowth of the active photovoltaic technology has been the opportunity to advance the agenda of grid-connected solar technology use and energy policy in Kansas. The presenters can provide insight and suggestions on how to work with energy companies to move the region closer to small consumer use of grid-connected solar arrays

Integrating Renewable Energy at the the Kgora Farmer’s Training Center

In 2019, a partnership was established between the Kgora Farmer Training Center in Mahikeng, South Africa, and the Sustainability Without Borders group at the University of Michigan’s School for Environment and Sustainability. The partnership at the time uncovered a ripe opportunity for implementing renewable energy at Kgora as a means to support economic growth through more reliable income activities, reduce electricity expenses, and demonstrate renewable energy practices for local small- and medium-scale farmers. Additionally, the University of Michigan team secured funding from the Institute for Research on Women and Gender to study the unique challenges faced by women in agriculture and understand their interest in renewable energy. The scope of this project is designed to assess the resource potential of a renewable energy system, model the financial outlook of such a system, and understand perceptions around renewable energy from local farmers. The model demonstrates financially optimized renewable energy system size based on real load data from Kgora and parameters gathered through stakeholder engagement and research. The financially optimal system size would be a 27.6 kW photovoltaic system paired with 8 kWh of battery storage and 30 kW of biomass gasification capacity. Using the UN’s Bioenergy and Food Security approach and information from Kgora staff, storage and labor costs associated with the biomass feedstock supply chain were estimated to amount to $17.5 per metric ton of feedstock. A sensitivity analysis of the energy model demonstrated that the levelized cost of electricity would improve upon the business-as-usual case for feedstock costs between$10-20 per metric ton. With the goal to act as a renewable energy demonstration site for local farmers, the survey results indicate that sunflowers and maize are likely the most promising feedstocks and that nearly all farmers interviewed have some interest in implementing renewable energy into their practices in order to reduce long-term costs and improve electricity reliability.Master of ScienceSchool for Environment and SustainabilityUniversity of Michiganhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/172199/1/Kgora Final Report.pd

Total quality management: three steps to continuous improvement/ Teener

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