Comparison of Northern Bobwhite Chick Fecal and Crop Analyses

Impacts of modem agriculture on gamebird brood ecology have been studied in a number of species. One common factor cited has been the decline in available invertebrate food available to foraging chicks. In the United Kingdom, assessment of chick diet has been accomplished mainly through fecal analysis of wild chicks, whereas in North America crop analysis of human-imprinted chicks has become a commonly applied technique. We compared results of both techniques on groups of human-imprinted northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) chicks to determine if these different techniques provide similar results. Chicks were allowed to forage in groups of 6-8 in cotton fields with various cover crops. We euthanized half the chicks for crop analysis and isolated the other half of the chicks for 12 hours to collect feces. We found a positive relationship between total number of invertebrates/chick in crops and feces (P = 0.01, R2 = 0.51). However, among important chick-food Orders the relationship varied greatly: Coleoptera (P = 0.10, R2 = 0.34), Homoptera (P \u3c 0.001, R2 = 0.41), and Hymenoptera (P = 0.81, R2 = 0.05). Our results suggest that there is a positive relationship between the 2 techniques, but that composition of the diet relative to what foods might be available in a particular site could be biased. We suggest more detailed research on technique development and standardization of techniques for assessing this important component of bobwhite life history

Photoexcitation of valley-orbit currents in (111)-oriented silicon metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors

We demonstrate the injection of pure valley-orbit currents in multivalley semiconductors and present the phenomenological theory of this effect. We studied photoinduced transport in (111)-oriented silicon metaloxide-semiconductor field effect transistors at room temperature. By shining circularly polarized light on exact oriented structures with six equivalent valleys, nonzero electron fluxes within each valley are generated, which compensate each other and do not yield a net electric current. By disturbing the balance between the valley fluxes, we demonstrate that the pure valley-orbit currents can be converted into a measurable electric current

Update of the Swiss source model for road traffic noise

In Switzerland, the calculation method of road traffic noise is specified in the Ordonnance sur la protection contre le bruit (OPB) (Noise Protection Ordonnance (NPO)). This method is mainly based on observations that were realized in the 80s, and that are not satisfactory many situations anymore. Since the 80s, the traffic volumes have increased, new developments in car and road technologies have occurred, behaviors of users have changed. All these parame-ters contribute to lower reliability of the initial method. Even if the model is still correct in some case such as for fluid traffic, the obtained levels in different types of traffic are hardly reliable. In collaboration with the Swiss Federal Office for the Environment (FOEN), a re-search program has been setup to update the method according to those observations. The ob-jective was to give new guidelines to evaluate emission levels of roads. An important collect of data from cantons and others acoustics partners has been performed as well as measure-ments in real traffic conditions. That made it possible to gather about 7500 points of mea-surement through all Switzerland for several types of road and traffic conditions

Adenosine kinase inhibition selectively promotes rodent and porcine islet β-cell replication

Diabetes is a pathological condition characterized by relative insulin deficiency, persistent hyperglycemia, and, consequently, diffuse micro- and macrovascular disease. One therapeutic strategy is to amplify insulin-secretion capacity by increasing the number of the insulin-producing β cells without triggering a generalized proliferative response. Here, we present the development of a small-molecule screening platform for the identification of molecules that increase β-cell replication. Using this platform, we identify a class of compounds [adenosine kinase inhibitors (ADK-Is)] that promote replication of primary β cells in three species (mouse, rat, and pig). Furthermore, the replication effect of ADK-Is is cell type-selective: treatment of islet cell cultures with ADK-Is increases replication of β cells but not that of α cells, PP cells, or fibroblasts. Short-term in vivo treatment with an ADK-I also increases β-cell replication but not exocrine cell or hepatocyte replication. Therefore, we propose ADK inhibition as a strategy for the treatment of diabetes.Stem Cell and Regenerative Biolog

Connected Health User Willingness to Share Personal Health Data: Questionnaire Study

Abstract Background: Connected health has created opportunities for leveraging health data to deliver preventive and personalized health care services. The increasing number of personal devices and advances in measurement technologies contribute to an exponential growth in digital health data. The practices for sharing data across the health ecosystem are evolving as there are more opportunities for using such data to deliver responsive health services. Objective: The objective of this study was to explore user attitudes toward sharing personal health data (PHD). The study was executed within the first year after the implementation of the new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) legal framework. Methods: The authors analyzed the results of an online questionnaire survey to explore the willingness of 8004 people using connected health services across four European countries to share their PHD and the conditions under which they would be willing to do so. Results: Our findings indicate that the majority of users are willing to share their personal PHD for scientific research (1811/8004, 22.63%). Age, education level, and occupation of the participants, in addition to the level of digitalization in their country were found to be associated with data sharing attitudes. Conclusions: Positive attitudes toward data sharing for scientific research can be perceived as an indication of trust established between users and academia. Nevertheless, the interpretation of data sharing attitudes is a complex process, related to and influenced by various factors

Chemical Reaction Dynamics at Surfaces

Contains reports on three research projects.Joint Services Electronics Program Contract DAAL03-89-C-0001Joint Services Electronics Program Contract DAAL03-92-C-0001National Science Foundation Grant CHE 90-2062

Chemical Reaction Dynamics at Surfaces

Contains reports on three research projects.Joint Services Electronics Program Contract DAAL03-92-C-0001National Science Foundation Grant CHE 90-20623U.S. Department of Energy Grant DE-FG02-89-ER1403

Heidelberg standard examination and "Heidelberg standard procedures" - Development of faculty-wide standards for physical examination techniques and clinical procedures in undergraduate medical education

The competent physical examination of patients and the safe and professional implementation of clinical procedures constitute essential components of medical practice in nearly all areas of medicine. The central objective of the projects "Heidelberg standard examination" and "Heidelberg standard procedures", which were initiated by students, was to establish uniform interdisciplinary standards for physical examination and clinical procedures, and to distribute them in coordination with all clinical disciplines at the Heidelberg University Hospital. The presented project report illuminates the background of the initiative and its methodological implementation. Moreover, it describes the multimedia documentation in the form of pocketbooks and a multimedia internet-based platform, as well as the integration into the curriculum. The project presentation aims to provide orientation and action guidelines to facilitate similar processes in other faculties

Childhood maltreatment and adulthood victimization:An evidence-based model

There is ample evidence showing that childhood maltreatment increases two to three fold the risk of victimization in adulthood. Various risk factors, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, dissociation, self-blame, and alcohol abuse are related to revictimization. Although previous research examined associations between risk factors for revictimization, the evidence is limited and the proposed models mostly include a handful of risk factors. Therefore, it is critical to investigate a more comprehensive model explaining the link between childhood maltreatment and adulthood (re)victimization. Accordingly, this study tested a data-driven theoretical path model consisting of 33 variables (and their associations) that could potentially enhance understanding of factors explaining revictimization. Cross-sectional data derived from a multi-wave study were used for this investigation. Participants (N = 2156, age mean = 19.94, SD = 2.89) were first-year female psychology students in the Netherlands and New Zealand, who responded to a battery of questionnaires and performed two computer tasks. The path model created by structural equation modelling using modification indices showed that peritraumatic dissociation, PTSD symptoms, trauma load, loneliness, and drug use were important mediators. Attachment styles, maladaptive schemas, meaning in life, and sex motives connected childhood maltreatment to adulthood victimization via other factors (i.e., PTSD symptoms, risky sex behavior, loneliness, emotion dysregulation, and sex motives). The model indicated that childhood maltreatment was associated with cognitive patterns (e.g., anxious attachment style), which in turn were associated with emotional factors (e.g., emotion dysregulation), and then with behavioral factors (e.g., risky sex behavior) resulting in revictimization. The findings of the study should be interpreted in the light of the limitations. In particular, the cross-sectional design of the study hinders us from ascertaining that the mediators preceded the outcome variable.</p