Evaluating Downtown Dynamics

The goal of this thesis is to present an improved methodology for evaluating the overall quality of downtowns. The result is a set of Quality of Downtown Indicators that can be summarized by a comprehensive Quality of Downtown Index (QDI). This evaluation framework has three distinct advantages over current practice: It is comprehensive: Real estate professionals, demographers, economists and urban planners have differing concerns regarding urban places and thus evaluate places with different criteria. The QDI includes performance indicators used in all of these fields, organized by four key elements of a quality downtown: accessibility (urban form and transportation), economy (employment and real estate), community (downtown as a residential neighborhood) and identity (distinctiveness, culture and activity). It provides unprecedented geographic precision: A major shortcoming of existing downtown research is its dependence upon data collected at the census tract level. Census tracts are defined based on residential population, so downtowns with few residents have very large tracts. These coarse units are often a poor fit for downtown geographies. The QDI was developed for fine geographic precision; its indicators primarily use data available at point, parcel and block levels. It is transparent: This paper explains each step in the development of the QDI; it justifies the underlying assumptions behind each indicator of the index. It presents the sources where data for each indicator can be found, including the limitations of each data source. The next chapter presents a review of the literature that informed the assumptions and methodology of the QDI. Chapter 3 explains the key decisions that went into its development, including the geographic definition of downtown, the reasoning behind selected performance idnicators, and the process of constructing a composite index. Chapter 4 applies the methodology to two case cities in North Carolina and discusses how the results align with local perceptions of downtown change. The paper concludes by identifying areas for further research and potential improvements to the QDI and by describing potential applications for academics, professionals, policy-makers and the public.Bachelor of Art

Functional interaction between BMPR-II and Tctex-1, a light chain of Dynein, is isoform-specific and disrupted by mutations underlying primary pulmonary hypertension

Diverse heterozygous mutations of bone morphogenetic receptor type II (BMPR-II) underlie the inherited form of the vascular disorder primary pulmonary hypertension (PPH). As yet, the molecular detail of how such defects contribute to the pathogenesis of PPH remains unclear. BMPR-II is a member of the transforming growth factor-beta cell signalling superfamily. Ligand binding induces cell surface receptor complex formation and activates a cascade of phosphorylation events of intracellular intermediaries termed Smads, which initiate transcriptional regulation. Some 30% of PPH-causing mutations localize to exon 12, which may be spliced out forming an isoform depleted of the unusually long BMPR-II cytoplasmic tail. To further elucidate the consequences of BMPR2 mutation, we sought to characterize aspects of the cytoplasmic domain function by seeking intracellular binding partners. We now report that Tctex-1, a light chain of the motor complex dynein, interacts with the cytoplasmic domain of BMPR-II and demonstrate that Tctex-1 is phosphorylated by BMPR-II, a function disrupted by PPH disease causing mutations within exon 12. Finally we show that BMPR-II and Tctex-1 co-localize to endothelium and smooth muscle within the media of pulmonary arterioles, key sites of vascular remodelling in PPH. Taken together, these data demonstrate a discrete function for the cytoplasmic domain of BMPR-II and justify further investigation of whether the interaction with and phosphorylation of Tctex-1 contributes to the pathogenesis of PPH

The Limits of Foreign Aid Diplomacy: How Bureaucratic Design Shapes Aid Distribution

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/113691/1/isqu12191-sup-0001-appendixS1.pdfhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/113691/2/isqu12191.pd

Drosophila OBP LUSH Is Required for Activity of Pheromone-Sensitive Neurons

AbstractOdorant binding proteins (OBPs) are extracellular proteins localized to the chemosensory systems of most terrestrial species. OBPs are expressed by nonneuronal cells and secreted into the fluid bathing olfactory neuron dendrites. Several members have been shown to interact directly with odorants, but the significance of this is not clear. We show that the Drosophila OBP lush is completely devoid of evoked activity to the pheromone 11-cis vaccenyl acetate (VA), revealing that this binding protein is absolutely required for activation of pheromone-sensitive chemosensory neurons. lush mutants are also defective for pheromone-evoked behavior. Importantly, we identify a genetic interaction between lush and spontaneous activity in VA-sensitive neurons in the absence of pheromone. The defects in spontaneous activity and VA sensitivity are reversed by germline transformation with a lush transgene or by introducing recombinant LUSH protein into mutant sensilla. These studies directly link pheromone-induced behavior with OBP-dependent activation of a subset of olfactory neurons

Key factors determining biochar sorption capacity for metal contaminants: a literature synthesis

The sorption capacity and affinity of biochar for metals are both important attributes that determine biochar’s suitability as a soil amendment for contaminant mitigation, yet few analyses have considered both characteristics simultaneously. We present a systematic review of literature published between 2010 and 2018 to test the hypothesis that sorption capacity and affinity are affected by biochar properties, attributes of the metal contaminant, and experimental conditions, in that order. We used random forest (RF) and multi-objective optimization to analyze data of 559 individual Langmuir adsorption isotherms extracted from 133 studies covering the sorption capacity (Cmax) and affinity (KL) of biochar for 17 different metals, elaborated from six different feedstock classes, three different types of feedstock pretreatment, and five types of post-pyrolysis treatment. Highest sorption values were obtained for Pb(II), Cr(IV), and Cd(II). The feedstock used was the key determinant influencing biochar’s capacity and affinity to sorb metal contaminants (first and fourth most important variable in RF models for Cmax and KL, respectively) with best results obtained for biochar elaborated from nutrient-dense feedstocks (animal biowaste, sludge, and manure). Biochars that had both high sorption capacity and affinity were the result of a longer duration of pyrolysis; they had lower C and higher N and O content, as well as lower C/N and higher O/C and H/C ratios, higher pore volumes and higher pH. Applying some form of pretreatment was better than none, whereas chemical modification was the best of the post-treatment methods analyzed. This review demonstrates clearly that multiple parameters during the preparation process influence the effectiveness of biochar to immobilize metal contaminants. Future research that focuses on mechanisms and the underlying factors for the correlations observed should allow the development of biochar formulations that are even more effective at immobilizing metal contaminants in soils and sediments

Consistency of metabolic responses and appetite sensations under postabsorptive and postprandial conditions

The present study aimed to investigate the reliability of metabolic and subjective appetite responses under fasted conditions and following consumption of a cereal-based breakfast. Twelve healthy, physically active males completed two postabsorption (PA) and two postprandial (PP) trials in a randomised order. In PP trials a cereal based breakfast providing 1859 kJ of energy was consumed. Expired gas samples were used to estimate energy expenditure and fat oxidation and 100 mm visual analogue scales were used to determine appetite sensations at baseline and every 30 min for 120 min. Reliability was assessed using limits of agreement, coefficient of variation (CV), intraclass coefficient of correlation and 95% confidence limits of typical error. The limits of agreement and typical error were 292.0 and 105.5 kJ for total energy expenditure, 9.3 and 3.4 g for total fat oxidation and 22.9 and 8.3 mm for time-averaged AUC for hunger sensations, respectively over the 120 min period in the PP trial. The reliability of energy expenditure and appetite in the 2 h response to a cereal-based breakfast would suggest that an intervention requires a 211 kJ and 16.6 mm difference in total postprandial energy expenditure and time-averaged hunger AUC to be meaningful, fat oxidation would require a 6.7 g difference which may not be sensitive to most meal manipulations

(Re)distribution and Growth: What is the Role of Social Protection?

Considerations of social justice, as opposed to growth, must provide the linchpin of a social protection agenda because the chronically vulnerable and poor are typically in their predicament because of institutionalised patterns of disadvantage. Furthermore, if the primary purpose of social protection programming is to transform the lives of large numbers of vulnerable people, only a radical agenda based on considerations of (re)distribution, recognition and representation will suffice, precisely because resource transfers alone (including provision of assets or jobs) will not be able to transform the terms of engagement upon which the vulnerable and poor interface with society