Adolescent Sexual Onset: An Intergenerational Analysis

Adolescents have begun to initiate sexual activity at increasingly early ages in the past few decades. Using a sample of 2,494 adolescents from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY97), structural and parental process variables were examined in the prediction of sexual onset. Results indicated that the age at which youth initiate sexual intercourse is related to the structural characteristics of their grandmothers and mothers, as well as puberty, gender, and race. There is support for partial mediation of the effects of these grandmother characteristics via mother characteristics and parental process. Results are discussed within the framework of the life course perspective and provide support for the importance of previous generations in the explanation of adolescent sexual behavior. Implications for families and adolescents are also addressed

Adolescent Sexual Onset: An Intergenerational Analysis

Adolescents have begun to initiate sexual activity at increasingly early ages in the past few decades. Using a sample of 2,494 adolescents from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY97), structural and parental process variables were examined in the prediction of sexual onset. Results indicated that the age at which youth initiate sexual intercourse is related to the structural characteristics of their grandmothers and mothers, as well as puberty, gender, and race. There is support for partial mediation of the effects of these grandmother characteristics via mother characteristics and parental process. Results are discussed within the framework of the life course perspective and provide support for the importance of previous generations in the explanation of adolescent sexual behavior. Implications for families and adolescents are also addressed

High-power broadband laser source tunable from 3.0 μm to 4.4 μm based on a femtosecond Yb:fiber oscillator

We describe a tunable broadband mid-IR laser source based on difference-frequency mixing of a 100 MHz femto second Yb:fiber laser oscillator and a Raman-shifted soliton generated with the same laser. The resulting light is tunable over 3.0 μm to 4.4 μm, with a FWHM bandwidth of 170 nm and maximum average output power up to 125 mW. The noise and coherence properties of this source are also investigated and described

Assessment of the Mankato Area\u27s young Adult Population\u27s Knowledge of Mall Video Mining for Marketing Research

The most modern form of gathering marketing information is not as new as many people believe. The trepidation of Big Brother’s cameras watching down on us puts a chill down most peoples’ backs. In numerous mall stores, cameras are located in each store and are examining you. Most believe that the cameras are positioned for the purpose of shoplifting and crime, but the truth is many are also used for the purpose of marketing. Video mining as it is known has emerged as the latest method of conducting market research. The stores that are participating in this study are diligently watching an assortment of things. Marketing analysts watch what a customer has picked up, what they have looked at, the amount purchased, colors that attract them, their facial expressions, and many other forms of movement. This information is gathered and recorded, then shot across the nation via computer to a company such as Shopper Trak that views and analyzes clips of customers shopping. Shopper Trak presently has 40,000 cameras in various stores across the nation. Most customers have little knowledge of this marketing tactic or that there are no laws prohibiting this action. Do stores and business’s have an ethical duty to reveal their practices to their customers? Is it legal for them to use the personal information or preferences of their customers to exploit them without their knowledge or consent? Finally, where is the line drawn on what is considered personal, private information

The Effects of the Type of Skill Test, Choice, and Gender on the Situational Motivation of Physical Education Students

The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of (a) skill test type, (b) choices, and (c) gender on the situational motivation profiles of adolescents during skill testing in physical education. Participants were 507 students (53% male) aged 12–16 years (M = 13.87; SD = 0.94) attending a suburban junior high school in a western state in the U.S. All participants experienced either a norm-referenced, summative or a criterion-referenced, formative skill test with or without choices. The Situational Intrinsic Motivation Scale (SIMS) was administered to assess situational motivation. A 2 (test type) × 2 (choice) × 2 (gender) MANOVA was used to test for significant differences on each of the four SIMS indices. Significant test type and gender and a significant test type by gender interaction were found. These findings suggest practitioners should use criterion-referenced, formative skill tests especially when teaching girls in physical education

High-power broadband laser source tunable from 3.0 um to 4.4 um based on a femtosecond Yb:fiber oscillator

We describe a tunable broadband mid-infrared laser source based on difference-frequency mixing of a 100 MHz femtosecond Yb:fiber laser oscillator and a Raman-shifted soliton generated with the same laser. The resulting light is tunable over 3.0 um to 4.4 um, with a FWHM bandwidth of 170 nm and maximum average output power up to 125 mW. The noise and coherence properties of this source are also investigated and described.Comment: To appear in Optics Letter

Over-reaction to the CALPERS focus list?

The California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) has over $ 200 billion in assets. Over the years it has gained an activist reputation. The size of investment provides it with a strong voice and the incentive to incur monitoring costs. CalPERS nudges the management and the board to act in the best interest of the shareholders. CalPERS regularly examines its portfolio and seeks change in firms that can potentially perform better. Some firms heed to this attention while those that ignore the attention end up on the focus list. This study examines the reaction of the market to the publishing of the CalPERS focus list. On one hand, an investor could interpret this news positively: A large shareholder is actively pushing management and the board, to improve operations. In the remaining sections, the literature is reviewed, we present our results and the paper ends with a discussion

Streamlined Project Closeout for Construction at KYTC

Project closeout is the period between the end of construction and when a contract is finalized. During closeout, resources are held in encumbered funds intended for the project and in the contractor’s bonding capacity. Although the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s (KYTC) stated goal is to close out projects within 240 days of their ending, in 2016 the average duration of project closeout was 366 days. This report analyzes the Cabinet’s project closeout procedures, summarizes project closeout best practices adopted by other state transportation agencies, and recommends ways to improve KYTC’s practices. Streamlining project closeouts would free up sufficient funds to resurface approximately 2,000 to 7,000 total lane miles that would otherwise not be rehabilitated. To begin reforming project closeout, the Cabinet may benefit from 1) investigating ways to improve the preparation of final documentation and 2) reducing the amount of time allocated for development and completion of the materials check. Other recommendations for revamping project closeout include establishing a KYTC task force to conduct high-level analysis of the project closeout process; thoroughly implementing e-Construction methodologies, which can reduce paperwork and centralize record-keeping within tightly controlled and monitored databases; revising project closeout checklists to standardize the process and eliminate all steps that are unneeded or outdated; and optimizing project closeout processes at the district level to help personnel adopt best practices. More efficient project closeouts will benefit the public because of their potential to increase the amount of funding that can be dedicated to critical transportation projects that would otherwise remain unaddressed. As the Cabinet investigates ways to begin this process, it is important to keep in mind that strategies or methods for streamlining project closeout should be implemented by KYTC personnel, as this increases the likelihood that staff buy-in across the agency

Global Properties of Neutral Hydrogen in Compact Groups

Compact groups of galaxies provide a unique environment to study the evolution of galaxies amid frequent gravitational encounters. These nearby groups have conditions similar to those in the earlier universe when galaxies were assembled and give us the opportunity to witness hierarchical formation in progress. To understand how the compact group environment affects galaxy evolution, we examine the gas and dust in these groups. We present new single-dish GBT neutral hydrogen (HI) observations of 30 compact groups and define a new way to quantify the group HI content as the HI-to-stellar mass ratio of the group as a whole. We compare the HI content with mid-IR indicators of star formation and optical [g-r] color to search for correlations between group gas content and star formation activity of individual group members. Quiescent galaxies tend to live in HI-poor groups, and galaxies with active star formation are more commonly found in HI-rich groups. Intriguingly, we also find "rogue" galaxies whose star formation does not correlate with group HI content. In particular, we identify three galaxies (NGC 2968 in RSCG 34, KUG 1131+202A in RSCG 42, and NGC 4613 in RSCG 64) whose mid-IR activity is discrepant with the HI. We speculate that this mismatch between mid-IR activity and HI content is a consequence of strong interactions in this environment that can strip HI from galaxies and abruptly affect star-formation. Ultimately, characterizing how and on what timescales the gas is processed in compact groups will help us understand the interstellar medium in complex, dense environments similar to the earlier Universe.Comment: Accepted to A

Lipophilic stinging nettle extracts possess potent anti-inflammatory activity, are not cytotoxic and may be superior to traditional tinctures for treating inflammatory disorders.

Extracts of four plant portions (roots, stems, leaves and flowers) of Urtica dioica (the stinging nettle) were prepared using accelerated solvent extraction (ASE) involving water, hexanes, methanol and dichloromethane. The extracts were evaluated for their anti-inflammatory and cytotoxic activities in an NF-κB luciferase and MTT assay using macrophage immune (RAW264.7) cells. A standardized commercial ethanol extract of nettle leaves was also evaluated. The methanolic extract of the flowering portions displayed significant anti-inflammatory activity on par with a standard compound celastrol (1) but were moderately cytotoxic. Alternatively, the polar extracts (water, methanol, ethanol) of the roots, stems and leaves displayed moderate to weak anti-inflammatory activity, while the methanol and especially the water soluble extracts exhibited noticeable cytotoxicity. In contrast, the lipophilic dichloromethane extracts of the roots, stems and leaves exhibited potent anti-inflammatory effects greater than or equal to 1 with minimal cytotoxicity to RAW264.7 cells. Collectively these results suggest that using lipophilic extracts of stinging nettle may be more effective than traditional tinctures (water, methanol, ethanol) in clinical evaluations for the treatment of inflammatory disorders especially arthritis. A chemical investigation into the lipophilic extracts of stinging nettle to identify the bioactive compound(s) responsible for their observed anti-inflammatory activity is further warranted