Modified Friedman scenario from the Wheeler-DeWitt equation

We consider the possible modification of the Friedman equation due to operator ordering parameter entering the Wheeler-DeWitt equation.Comment: 2 pages, 1 figur

Valuing Fed Cattle Using Slice Shear Force Measurements

Marketing fed cattle using grid pricing has become a popluar way to sell cattle. One of the most important beef characteristics, according to consumers, is beef tenderness. USDA quality grades are poor predictors of meat tenderness. However, mechanical shear force does objectively measure tenderness. This study illustrates how problematic USDA quality grades are at assessing accurate beef tenderness and proposes and evaluates a tenderness-based valuation system based on slice shear force technology. We show that cattle of all quality grades are substantially over- or under-valued when using a grid realtive to a tenderness-based valuation system.Marketing,

Valuing Fed Cattle Using Objective Tenderness Measures

Beef tenderness is critical in consumer satisfaction with beef steak products. Current fed cattle valuation systems do not differentiate carcasses based upon tenderness variation. However, considerable research indicates consumers are willing to pay more for tender relative to tough beef steak. This article develops a tenderness-augmentation to current fed cattle grid pricing systems. Using a large set of actual carcasses, we determine that a tenderness-augmented price grid would reorder fed cattle value by on average nearly $5.00/cwt dressed relative to current valuation methods. Substantial opportunity is present to improve beef tenderness through new price signals to producers.beef quality, meat tenderness, cattle value, cattle price, Agribusiness, Farm Management, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Livestock Production/Industries, Q11, Q13, M31,

A Teacher’s Checklist for Evaluating Treatment Intrusiveness

Teachers are frequently involved in developing and evaluating treatments for problematic behaviors. Along with other members of the interdisciplinary team, they must determine the level of intrusiveness that a treatment may have on a student. Several factors that influence the intrusiveness of treatment procedures are described. These factors were used to develop a checklist that could be used systematically by teachers to evaluate the intrusiveness of treatments recommended by treatment teams. After the checklist was administered to a group of preservice teachers, it was found to be capable of discriminating among several treatment options described in a series of case vignettes. The implications of incorporating such a checklist into the design and implementation of treatments for problem behavior are discussed.Les enseignants sont souvent impliqués dans le développement et l’évaluation de traitements des problèmes de comportement. De concert avec d’autres membres d’une équipe interdisciplinaire, ils doivent déterminer dans quelle mesure un traitement est intrusif pour l’élève. L’article décrit plusieurs facteurs qui influencent le degré de discrétion des procédures. À partir de ces facteurs, on a dressé une liste de vérification dont pourraient se servir les enseignants de façon systématique pour évaluer à quel point les procédures recommandées par les équipes de traitement sont intrusives. La liste a été présentée à un groupe de stagiaires et s’est avérée capable de distinguer plusieurs options de traitement décrites dans une série de vignettes d’étude de cas. S’ensuit une discussion portant sur les conséquences d’incorporer une telle liste de vérification dans la conception et la mise en œuvre de traitements pour les problèmes de comportement

Pemasaran Hijau Yang Semakin Menjadi Kebutuhan Dalam Dunia Bisnis

Green marketing is a type of marketing where a company sells a product that is envi-ronmentally friendly. In the concept of green marketing, a company has done greenmarketing since the beginning of the production process which transform raw materi-als into environmentally friendly finished product, called green product. The growingglobal warming make the green marketing is a major issue in today\u27s business world.Green marketing has become a necessity for both producers and consumers for thecreation of a healthy environment. A company can do green marketing that matchesto the company\u27s business. Implementation of green marketing can cover many ac-tivities depending on what the company wants to do. Automotive manufacturers arean example of a company that must implement a comprehensive green marketingbecause its products could potentially damage the environment due to pollution fromvehicle fumes

Intrusiveness of behavioral treatments for children with autism and developmental disabilities: An initial investigation.

The behaviors frequently displayed by students with autism can place them at risk for overly reactive behavior interventions with unwanted side effects. The current study examined the level of intrusiveness of behavioral treatments developed for 198 students with disabilities from 13 different states. Results demonstrated that students diagnosed with autism had proportionally more intrusive behavior interventions when compared to students in five other disability categories and indicated that many students with autism were unnecessarily subjected to highly intrusive behavior interventions. The implications of these findings are discussed, and recommendations for future research are provided

Normalization and centering of array-based heterologous genome hybridization based on divergent control probes

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Hybridization of heterologous (non-specific) nucleic acids onto arrays designed for model-organisms has been proposed as a viable genomic resource for estimating sequence variation and gene expression in non-model organisms. However, conventional methods of normalization that assume equivalent distributions (such as quantile normalization) are inappropriate when applied to non-specific (heterologous) hybridization. We propose an algorithm for normalizing and centering intensity data from heterologous hybridization that makes no prior assumptions of distribution, reduces the false appearance of homology, and provides a way for researchers to confirm whether heterologous hybridization is suitable.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Data are normalized by adjusting for Gibbs free energy binding, and centered by adjusting for the median of a common set of control probes assumed to be equivalently dissimilar for all species. This procedure was compared to existing approaches and found to be as successful as Loess normalization at detecting sequence variations (deletions) and even more successful than quantile normalization at reducing the accumulation of false positive probe matches between two related nematode species, <it>Caenorhabditis elegans </it>and <it>C. briggsae</it>. Despite the improvements, we still found that probe fluorescence intensity was too poorly correlated with sequence similarity to result in reliable detection of matching probe sequence.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Cross-species hybridizations can be a way to adapt genome-enabled tools for closely related non-model organisms, but data must be appropriately normalized and centered in a way that accommodates hybridization of nucleic acids with diverged sequence. For short, 25-mer probes, hybridization intensity alone may be insufficiently correlated with sequence similarity to allow reliable inference of homology at the probe level.</p

An Analysis of Evidence-Based Practices in the Education of Learners with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Horner et al. (2005) present a review substantiating how single-subject research methodology can be utilized to determine whether interventions are evidence-based practices (EBPs). The current study utilized the Horner et al. research piece to: (a) systematically identify a set of quality standards for the evaluation of single-case research methodology used with learners with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), (b) operationalize these standards for evaluators, (c) investigate three additional quality indicators related to external validity (multiple studies, locations, and researchers), (d) create a protocol for evaluators, and (e) gather and analyze data from studies that meet a set of predefined criteria. Published in seven journals across ten years, identified studies (N = 160) were subjected to an analysis across 23 EBP quality standards that revealed increasing compliance with EBP standards over time yet persistent and pervasive difficulty in adequately satisfying at least five indicators integrally tied to external validity