Mossbauer-effect data-collection system

Automated data collection system which uses a small, general-purpose digital computer provides data acquisition from, and minor control of, four Mossbauer-effect experiments. This system is economical with no loss of versatility to the experimenter and is useful in handling large volumes of data from research experiments

Laser measuring system accurately locates point coordinates on photograph

Laser activated ultraprecision ranging apparatus interfaced with a computer determines point coordinates on a photograph. A helium-neon gas CW laser provides collimated light for a null balancing optical system. This system has no mechanical connection between the ranging apparatus and the photograph

The Effect of Dietary Starch Concentration on Glycogen Replenishment in Performance Horses

Four Quarter Horses (2 to 3 yr; 401 to 432 kg BW) were used in a simple crossover design for a 49-d study to determine the effect of dietary starch levels on post-exercise glycogen replenishment. Horses were fed either high starch (HS) or low starch (LS) concentrates at 0.75% BW/d plus l.0% BW/d Coastal Bermudagrass hay for 14 d, and then worked to fatigue in a standardized exercise test (SET). After a 14-d washout period, horses were switched to the opposite diet for 14 d and then again performed the SET. The LS and HS concentrates were commercially available feeds. Total diets provided an average of 997.6 g of starch and 553.7 g of starch/d in the HS and LS diets, respectively. Throughout the trial, horses were lightly exercised for 30 min, 3 d/wk. The SET consisted of a 30-min warm-up period at a brisk trot in a panel exerciser, followed by 27 min of gradually ascending high-intensity work on a treadmill. Skeletal muscle biopsies were taken from the biceps femoris at rest, immediately after the SET, and again at 6-, 24- and 48-h post-exercise. Samples were flash frozen in liquid nitrogen and stored at -80°C until analysis for later muscle glycogen concentration using a commercial kit. Venous blood samples were taken at rest, immediately post exercise and every 15 min for 3 h post-exercise. Blood samples were analyzed for lactate, glucose, total protein and Ca concentration. Data were analyzed using Proc Mixed (SAS) procedure with main effects of sample time, horse, period, trt and time x trt interaction. Horses on the HS diet had a higher muscle glycogen concentration (P <0.05) at 48 h post exercise than the LS horses (18.1 vs. 10.6 µg/mg wet wt). At 6 h, HS horses had a more rapid rate of repletion, as observed by the higher glycogen concentration (P<0.05) compared to the immediate post-exercise samples (15.4 vs. 7.9 µg/mg wet wt); whereas, the LS horses did not return to normal levels until 24 h post SET. Results indicated that horses on the LS diet, which is representative of low-starch feeding programs commonly observed in the industry, replenish their skeletal muscle glycogen slower than horses on the HS diet. Based on this study, performance horses undergoing multiple bouts of intense exercise may benefit physiologically from receiving diets that contain more than 553.7 g of starch/day

Poverty Simulations for Human Services Professionals: Impacts and Implications

We examined the program outcomes of a poverty simulation offered by Nebraska Extension. Using qualitative and quantitative data sets collected from 582 participants, we investigated their emotional, attitudinal, and learning outcomes. The overall findings suggest that poverty simulations can enable participants to empathize with people living in poverty, reduce their misconceptions about people living in poverty and about governmental support, and improve their awareness of financial hardship, economic difficulties, government programs, and community resources. We provide recommendations for poverty simulation implementation, such as more rigorous use of orientation, group discussion, and community resources

From Crypt Depths to Carbon Dioxide Equivalents: Characterizing the Interactions between Swine Nutrition, Health and the Environment

There are many ways to measure the relative success and sustainability of a swine production system. The most economically relevant measures are growth performance and feed conversion. However, other measures such as greenhouse gas emissions, nutrient excretion, health and degree of intestinal inflammation can also be significant reflections of the interaction between nutrition, genetics and environment. Three experiments were conducted to characterize how swine nutrition and management affect the environmental footprint of swine production. The objective of experiment 1 was to determine the effect of reducing dietary crude protein and supplementing synthetic amino acids on growth performance, greenhouse gas emissions and nutrient excretion in wean to finish pigs. Three diets were fed: 1) control diet, balanced on lysine with no synthetic amino acids, 2) a diet containing a CP concentration intermediate between diets 1 and 3, balanced to meet all amino acid requirements, using synthetic amino acids where needed, and 3) a low CP diet balanced to the 7th limiting amino acid with synthetic amino acids, replacing soy proteins. Pigs fed the lower crude protein diet had reduced N excretion and NH3 emissions, however growth performance in the pigs fed the diet balanced to the 7th limiting amino acid was reduced compared to the control. The objective of experiment 2 was to determine how antibiotic-free management affected growth performance, frequency of clinical signs, and the environmental footprint of swine production. Pigs were either reared with antibiotics or antibiotic alternatives. There were no observed differences in greenhouse gas emissions, nutrient excretion, growth performance or feed conversion, but significantly more animals were removed when reared without antibiotics than reared with antibiotics due to health concerns. The objective of experiment 3 was to evaluate and validate a novel, digital method for measuring intestinal inflammation. Intestinal tissues from pigs selected for high, mild or no allergic response to soy protein were collected, fixed in 10% NBF, embedded and stained with Hematoxylin and Eosin, Alcian blue, and CD3+ IHC. The H and E slides were analyzed for villus height and crypt depth by two technicians in Aperio ® Imagescope and Adobe Photoshop software to compare the accuracy and consistency of measures. The measures taken in Aperio® Imagescope more accurately reflected the severity of soy allergy than the measures taken in Photoshop, but Photoshop measures were more consistent between observers. The H and E, Alcian Blue and CD3+ IHC slides were colorimetrically analyzed by Aperio® Imagescope software using algorithms designed to quantify eosinophils, goblet cells and CD3+ T cells. These counts were compared to manual cell counts performed by two blinded observers, and analyzed to determine how accurately the cellular infiltrate reflected the severity of soy allergy and inter-observer variation. There was greater ( P \u3c 0.05) inter-observer variation in cell count observations collected manually than cell counts calculated by Aperio® Imagescope software and the Aperio® Imagescope measurements did not correlate, in nearly all measures, with the manual counts. In conclusion, the methods used can significantly alter the conclusions reached about holistic animal health and the sustainability of a swine production system, therefore it is important to use a variety of methods, from intestinal histology to production system-level greenhouse gas emissions to support these conclusions

Implementation of GPS controlled highway construction equipment - phase II

103 p.During 2006, WisDOT and the Construction Materials and Support Center at UW-Madison worked together to develop a specification and QC/QA procedures for GPS machine guidance on highway construction grading operations. These specifications and procedures are intended for incorporation in contracts on two to five pilot projects during the 2007 construction season. The 2006 work, and the 2007 pilot projects are the first two steps in a phased implementation plan that includes refinement of the specification and procedures after the 2007 pilots, additional pilots during 2008, and potential statewide implementation of optional GPS machine guidance for grading on 2009 contracts. To be effective, the goals, objectives, and methods for data collection and analysis for the 2007 pilot projects must be well-articulated; the project sites must be carefully selected; and a set of deliverables and management plan for coordination of the effort must be developed