Development of an Optimal Replenishment Policy for Human Capital Inventory

A unique approach is developed for evaluating Human Capital (workforce) requirements. With this approach, new ways of measuring personnel availability are proposed and available to ensure that an organization remains ready to provide timely, relevant, and accurate products and services in support of its strategic objectives over its planning horizon. The development of this analysis and methodology was established as an alternative approach to existing studies for determining appropriate hiring and attrition rates and to maintain appropriate personnel levels of effectiveness to support existing and future missions. The contribution of this research is a prescribed method for the strategic analyst to incorporate a personnel and cost simulation model within the framework of Human Resources Human Capital forecasting which can be used to project personnel requirements and evaluate workforce sustainment, at least cost, through time. This will allow various personnel managers to evaluate multiple resource strategies, present and future, maintaining near “perfect” hiring and attrition policies to support its future Human Capital assets

The Design and Operation of The Keck Observatory Archive

The Infrared Processing and Analysis Center (IPAC) and the W. M. Keck Observatory (WMKO) operate an archive for the Keck Observatory. At the end of 2013, KOA completed the ingestion of data from all eight active observatory instruments. KOA will continue to ingest all newly obtained observations, at an anticipated volume of 4 TB per year. The data are transmitted electronically from WMKO to IPAC for storage and curation. Access to data is governed by a data use policy, and approximately two-thirds of the data in the archive are public.Comment: 12 pages, 4 figs, 4 tables. Presented at Software and Cyberinfrastructure for Astronomy III, SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation 2014. June 2014, Montreal, Canad

Local Civic Health: A Guide to Building Community and Bridging Divides

In the same way that doctors conduct an annual check-up to assess our health, we can collect information to assess the civic health of our communities. Civic health includes factors such as how much people trust each other, show up at public meetings, get involved, vote, and help out neighbors. This seven-part guide is designed to help people at the local level collect data to better understand what factors bring people together or push them apart. This information can help communities to thrive and strengthen democracy at the local level. The guide includes exercises around mapping the different populations who live in your community, evaluating how local spaces build or discourage community, building equity into local engagement processes, and collecting and analyzing data about civic health including surveys, dialogues, interviews, and civic photojournalism

Subsurface structure of Planum Boreum from Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Shallow Radar soundings

We map the subsurface structure of Planum Boreum using sounding data from the Shallow Radar (SHARAD) instrument onboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Radar coverage throughout the 1,000,000- km2 area reveals widespread reflections from basal and internal interfaces of the north polar layered deposits (NPLD). A dome-shaped zone of diffuse reflectivity up to 12 ls (1-km thick) underlies twothirds of the NPLD, predominantly in the main lobe but also extending into the Gemina Lingula lobe across Chasma Boreale. We equate this zone with a basal unit identified in image data as Amazonian sand-rich layered deposits [Byrne, S., Murray, B.C., 2002. J. Geophys. Res. 107, 5044, 12 pp. doi:10.1029/2001JE001615; Fishbaugh, K.E., Head, J.W., 2005. Icarus 174, 444–474; Tanaka, K.L., Rodriguez, J.A.P., Skinner, J.A., Bourke, M.C., Fortezzo, C.M., Herkenhoff, K.E., Kolb, E.J., Okubo, C.H., 2008. Icarus 196, 318–358]. Elsewhere, the NPLD base is remarkably flat-lying and co-planar with the exposed surface of the surrounding Vastitas Borealis materials. Within the NPLD, we delineate and map four units based on the radar-layer packets of Phillips et al. [Phillips, R.J., and 26 colleagues, 2008. Science 320, 1182– 1185] that extend throughout the deposits and a fifth unit confined to eastern Gemina Lingula. We estimate the volume of each internal unit and of the entire NPLD stack (821,000 km3), exclusive of the basal unit. Correlation of these units to models of insolation cycles and polar deposition [Laskar, J., Levrard, B., Mustard, J.F., 2002. Nature 419, 375–377; Levrard, B., Forget, F., Montmessin, F., Laskar, J., 2007. J. Geophys. Res. 112, E06012, 18 pp. doi:10.1029/2006JE002772] is consistent with the 4.2-Ma age of the oldest preserved NPLD obtained by Levrard et al. [Levrard, B., Forget, F., Montmessin, F., Laskar, J., 2007. J. Geophys. Res. 112, E06012, 18 pp. doi:10.1029/2006JE002772]. We suggest a dominant layering mechanism of dust–content variation during accumulation rather than one of lag production during periods of sublimation

Methodological challenges in collecting social and behavioural data regarding the HIV epidemic among gay and other men who have sex with men in Australia

©2014 Zablotska et al. Background: Behavioural surveillance and research among gay and other men who have sex with men (GMSM) commonly relies on non-random recruitment approaches. Methodological challenges limit their ability to accurately represent the population of adult GMSM. We compared the social and behavioural profiles of GMSM recruited via venue-based, online, and respondent-driven sampling (RDS) and discussed their utility for behavioural surveillance. Methods: Data from four studies were selected to reflect each recruitment method. We compared demographic characteristics and the prevalence of key indicators including sexual and HIV testing practices obtained from samples recruited through different methods, and population estimates from respondent-driven sampling partition analysis. Results: Overall, the socio-demographic profile of GMSM was similar across samples, with some differences observed in age and sexual identification. Men recruited through time-location sampling appeared more connected to the gay community, reported a greater number of sexual partners, but engaged in less unprotected anal intercourse with regular (UAIR) or casual partners (UAIC). The RDS sample overestimated the proportion of HIV-positive men and appeared to recruit men with an overall higher number of sexual partners. A single-website survey recruited a sample with characteristics which differed considerably from the population estimates with regards to age, ethnically diversity and behaviour. Data acquired through time-location sampling underestimated the rates of UAIR and UAIC, while RDS and online sampling both generated samples that underestimated UAIR. Simulated composite samples combining recruits from time-location and multi-website online sampling may produce characteristics more consistent with the population estimates, particularly with regards to sexual practices. Conclusion: Respondent-driven sampling produced the sample that was most consistent to population estimates, but this methodology is complex and logistically demanding. Time-location and online recruitment are more cost-effective and easier to implement; using these approaches in combination may offer the potential to recruit a more representative sample of GMSM

A preliminary study of the effect of closed incision management with negative pressure wound therapy over high-risk incisions

Background Certain postoperative wounds are recognised to be associated with more complications than others and may be termed high-risk. Wound healing can be particularly challenging following high-energy trauma where wound necrosis and infection rates are high. Surgical incision for joint arthrodesis can also be considered high-risk as it requires extensive and invasive surgery and postoperative distal limb swelling and wound dehiscence are common. Recent human literature has investigated the use of negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) over high-risk closed surgical incisions and beneficial effects have been noted including decreased drainage, decreased dehiscence and decreased infection rates. In a randomised, controlled study twenty cases undergoing distal limb high-energy fracture stabilisation or arthrodesis were randomised to NPWT or control groups. All cases had a modified Robert-Jones dressing applied for 72 h postoperatively and NPWT was applied for 24 h in the NPWT group. Morphometric assessment of limb circumference was performed at six sites preoperatively, 24 and 72 h postoperatively. Wound discharge was assessed at 24 and 72 h. Postoperative analgesia protocol was standardised and a Glasgow Composite Measure Pain Score (GCPS) carried out at 24, 48 and 72 h. Complications were noted and differences between groups were assessed. Results Percentage change in limb circumference between preoperative and 24 and 72 h postoperative measurements was significantly less at all sites for the NPWT group with exception of the joint proximal to the surgical site and the centre of the operated bone at 72 h. Median discharge score was lower in the NPWT group than the control group at 24 h. No significant differences in GCPS or complication rates were noted. Conclusions Digital swelling and wound discharge were reduced when NPWT was employed for closed incision management. Larger studies are required to evaluate whether this will result in reduced discomfort and complication rates postoperatively

Odorant-Binding Proteins OBP57d and OBP57e Affect Taste Perception and Host-Plant Preference in Drosophila sechellia

Despite its morphological similarity to the other species in the Drosophila melanogaster species complex, D. sechellia has evolved distinct physiological and behavioral adaptations to its host plant Morinda citrifolia, commonly known as Tahitian Noni. The odor of the ripe fruit of M. citrifolia originates from hexanoic and octanoic acid. D. sechellia is attracted to these two fatty acids, whereas the other species in the complex are repelled. Here, using interspecies hybrids between D. melanogaster deficiency mutants and D. sechellia, we showed that the Odorant-binding protein 57e (Obp57e) gene is involved in the behavioral difference between the species. D. melanogaster knock-out flies for Obp57e and Obp57d showed altered behavioral responses to hexanoic acid and octanoic acid. Furthermore, the introduction of Obp57d and Obp57e from D. simulans and D. sechellia shifted the oviposition site preference of D. melanogaster Obp57d/e(KO) flies to that of the original species, confirming the contribution of these genes to D. sechellia's specialization to M. citrifolia. Our finding of the genes involved in host-plant determination may lead to further understanding of mechanisms underlying taste perception, evolution of plant–herbivore interactions, and speciation

Milk Lacking α-Casein Leads to Permanent Reduction in Body Size in Mice

The major physiological function of milk is the transport of amino acids, carbohydrates, lipids and minerals to mammalian offspring. Caseins, the major milk proteins, are secreted in the form of a micelle consisting of protein and calcium-phosphate