Embedded library services : beyond chance encounters for students from low SES backgrounds

This paper reports research that examined how the embedding of library services through the learning management system contributed to the experience of students from low socio-economic status (SES) backgrounds. To evaluate the embedded practice, the researchers used a mixed-method approach involving surveys with students and interviews with library and academic staff. Survey results showed gains in students\u27 awareness of library resources and in their confidence and satisfaction using them. Staff participants reported benefits to students from the improved visibility of the library and involvement of students in conversations about information literacy. The teacher derived personal benefits in learning more about digital information resources while library staff benefitted from the research-driven nature of the practice which strengthened their collaborative partnership with academic staff. Based on the evaluation, an embedded approach has been adopted at the university in additional courses which have similar student profiles. The outcomes are relevant more widely in demonstrating both the potential benefits of embedded practice for supporting diverse student populations and how libraries can target their activities more effectively to national and university agendas for improving student outcomes

The Effects of Yoga on Balance, Strength, Flexibility, and Mindfulness in Typical Children Ages 4-9 Years

Yoga improves a variety of impairments in typical pediatric populations: cardiovascular, neuromuscular, musculoskeletal, and pulmonary conditions, balance, strength, and flexibility. Yoga improves mindfulness in adult populations, and emerging evidence shows a similar effect among pediatric populations.https://ecommons.udayton.edu/dpt_symposium/1024/thumbnail.jp

Farm-scale costs and returns for second generation bioenergy cropping systems in the US Corn Belt

While grain crops are meeting much of the initial need for biofuels in the US, cellulosic or second generation (2G) materials are mandated to provide a growing portion of biofuel feedstocks. We sought to inform development of a 2G crop portfolio by assessing the profitability of novel cropping systems that potentially mitigate the negative effects of grain-based biofuel crops on food supply and environmental quality. We analyzed farm-gate costs and returns of five systems from an ongoing experiment in central Iowa, USA. The continuous corn cropping system was most profitable under current market conditions, followed by a corn–soybean rotation that incorporated triticale as a 2G cover crop every third year, and a corn–switchgrass system. A novel triticale–hybrid aspen intercropping system had the highest yields over the long term, but could only surpass the profitability of the continuous corn system when biomass prices exceeded foreseeable market values. A triticale/sorghum double cropping system was deemed unviable. We perceive three ways 2G crops could become more cost competitive with grain crops: by (1) boosting yields through substantially greater investment in research and development, (2) increasing demand through substantially greater and sustained investment in new markets, and (3) developing new schemes to compensate farmers for environmental benefits associated with 2G crops

Subfield profitability analysis reveals an economic case for cropland diversification

Public agencies and private enterprises increasingly desire to achieve ecosystem service outcomes in agricultural systems, but are limited by perceived conflicts between economic and ecosystem service goals and a lack of tools enabling effective operational management. Here we use Iowa—an agriculturally homogeneous state representative of the Maize Belt—to demonstrate an economic rationale for cropland diversification at the subfield scale. We used a novel computational framework that integrates disparate but publicly available data to map ∼3.3 million unique potential management polygons (9.3 Mha) and reveal subfield opportunities to increase overall field profitability. We analyzed subfield profitability for maize/soybean fields during 2010–2013—four of the most profitable years in recent history—and projected results for 2015. While cropland operating at a loss of US$ 250 ha−1 or more was negligible between 2010 and 2013 at 18 000–190 000 ha (\u3c2% of row-crop land), the extent of highly unprofitable land increased to 2.5 Mha, or 27% of row-crop land, in the 2015 projection. Aggregation of these areas to the township level revealed ‘hotspots’ for potential management change in Western, Central, and Northeast Iowa. In these least profitable areas, incorporating conservation management that breaks even (e.g., planting low-input perennials), into low-yielding portions of fields could increase overall cropland profitability by 80%. This approach is applicable to the broader region and differs substantially from the status quo of ‘top-down’ land management for conservation by harnessing private interest to align profitability with the production of ecosystem services

Instruction set extensions for software defined radio on a multithreaded processor

Software dened radios, which provide a programmable solu-tion for implementing the physical layer processing of multi-ple communication standards, are widely recognized as one of the most important new technologies for wireless com-munication systems. Emerging communication standards, however, require tremendous processing capabilities to per-form high-bandwidth physical-layer processing in real time. In this paper, we present instruction set extensions for sev-eral important communication algorithms including convo-lutional encoding, Viterbi decoding, turbo decoding, and Reed-Solomon encoding and decoding. The performance bene ts of these extensions are evaluated using a supercom-puter class vectorizing compiler and the Sandblaster low-power multithreaded processor for software dened radio. The proposed instruction set extensions provide signicant performance improvements, while maintaining a high degree of programmability. Categories and Subject Descriptors C.3 [Computer Systems Organization]: Special-purpose and Application-based Systems|Real-time and embedded sys

The University of Iowa Biomass Energy Sustainability Index: A decision-making tool for the University of Iowa Biomass Partnership Project

Work continued on a plan to increase the renewable, sustainable fuel sources available to power operations at the University of Iowa in Iowa City. A team of researchers from multiple institutions collaborated to create a tool that would allow the UI to evaluate its alternative energy options more effectively

Healthcare Resource Availability, Quality of Care, and Acute Ischemic Stroke Outcomes

Background: Healthcare resources vary geographically, but associations between hospital‐based resources and acute stroke quality and outcomes remain unclear. Methods and Results: Using Get With The Guidelines‐Stroke and Dartmouth Atlas of Health Care data, we examined associations between healthcare resource availability, stroke care, and outcomes. We categorized hospital referral regions with high‐, medium‐, or low‐resource levels based on the 2006 national per‐capita availability median of 6 relevant acute stroke care resources. Using multivariable logistic regression, we examined healthcare resource level and in‐hospital quality and outcomes. Of 1 480 308 admitted ischemic stroke patients (2006–2013), 28.8% were hospitalized in low‐, 44.4% in medium‐, and 26.9% in high‐resource hospital referral regions. Quality‐of‐care/timeliness metrics, adjusted length of stay, and in‐hospital mortality were similar across all resource levels. Conclusions: Significant variation exists in regional availability of healthcare resources for acute ischemic stroke treatment, yet among Get With the Guidelines‐Stroke hospitals, quality of care and in‐hospital outcomes did not differ by regional resource availability