On the influence of molecular structure on the conductivity of electrolyte solutions - sodium nitrate in water

Theoretical calculations of the conductivity of sodium nitrate in water are presented and compared with experimental measurements. The method of direct correlation force in the framework of the interionic theory is used for the calculation of transport properties in connection with the associative mean spherical approximation (AMSA). The effective interactions between ions in solutions are derived with the help of Monte Carlo and Molecular Dynamics calculations on the Born-Oppenheimer level. This work is based on earlier theoretical and experimental studies of the structure of concentrated aqueous sodium nitrate solutions.Comment: 12 pages, 9 figure

Dying the Good Death: Cultural Competence and Variance in Hospice Care

This paper examines the intersections between death and culture in the context of hospice care. The patient demographics of modern hospice care are overwhelmingly White; through an analysis of the formation of Korean-American culture and its distinct values, I conclude that hospice as we know it today primarily adheres to the Western conceptualization of a “good death”, and therefore is not accessible to those who belong to different cultures. In order to remedy this and to explain the racial disparities among hospice patients, I apply a model of cultural competency that specifically caters to Korean-American death traditions. While the effects of implementation are unknown, this model reimagines hospice to be a critical nexus between cultural variance and a good death

EVALUATION OF ALGORITHM THRESHOLDS FOR CROP CANOPY SENSOR-BASED IN-SEASON NITROGEN APPLICATION IN CORN

Nitrogen fertilizer is frequently the most limiting nutrient in corn production. Typically most nitrogen is applied before planting. Since nitrogen can leave the soil system fairly easily, the result can be an inefficient use of nitrogen fertilizer. Previous research has shown increased efficiency with no reduction in yield by applying nitrogen later in the season when the crop is actively growing, with rates regulated spatially through the use of active crop canopy sensors. This study evaluated the potential for N cutoff thresholds using a sufficiency index as the threshold value for areas with poor stand or an unrecoverable N deficiency. In this study the algorithm developed by Solari, et al. (2010) was used. Field scale treatments were imposed on six irrigated fields in south-central and western Nebraska to evaluate performance of the active crop canopy sensor-based in-season N management algorithm with and without predicted permanent yield loss thresholds. The study found no consistent advantage in yield, nitrogen use efficiency, or profit with sensor-based treatments using algorithm thresholds. The uniform, soil-test-based UNL treatment was most often the most profitable treatment. Further research is needed to revise the Solari, et al. (2010) method to account for soil-N supply prior to and following in-season N application. Adviser: Richard Ferguso

Positive electrodes of nickel-cadmium batteries

Ni hydroxide sintered electrodes which are filled electrochemically are superior to chemically treated electrodes. In the electrochemical process, the hydroxide grows on the Ni grains and possesses a well-defined porous structure. Diffusion and conducting mechanisms are therefore facilitated

«Il principio liberale ha fallito»? Il liberalismo sui generis dell’economia sociale di mercato come umanesimo economico e le sue radici nella cultura protestante

The cultural-historical roots of the social market economy are not to be found in the tradition of Catholic social thought or the Social Doctrine of the Church, which until the 1960s opposed (neo-)liberalism, criticizing its individualism and the principle of competition. Rather, they are located in the culture and philosophy of German Protestantism and cannot be understood without this religious reference. In a cultural milieu hostile to liberalism, a sui generis liberal economic-social model developed, around which academic resistance during the Third Reich could be organized. Today it can be considered an economic model consistent with the principles of the Social Doctrine of the Church.The cultural-historical roots of the social market economy are not to be found in the tradition of Catholic social thought or the Social Doctrine of the Church, which until the 1960s opposed (neo-)liberalism, criticizing its individualism and the principle of competition. Rather, they are located in the culture and philosophy of German Protestantism and cannot be understood without this religious reference. In a cultural milieu hostile to liberalism, a sui generis liberal economic-social model developed, around which academic resistance during the Third Reich could be organized. Today it can be considered an economic model consistent with the principles of the Social Doctrine of the Church

Evaluierung durchflusszytometrischer Verfahren zur Beurteilung der Qualität von kryokonserviertem Hengstsperma

The aim of these examinations was to check various flow cytometric methods to establish whether they are suitable objective methods for assessing the quality of cryopreserved sperm from stallions. The plasma membrane integrity, the mitochondrial membrane potential, the acrosomal status and the integrity of the chromatin structure in cryopreserved sperm from stallions were assessed. For this purpose various fluorescent stainings were carried out both immediately after the semen samples were thawed and after a three-hour period of incubation at 37 C with SYBR® 14, JC-1 and SYTO® 17 / propidium iodide / FITC-PNA and a sperm chromatin structure analysis (SCSA™) and were then evaluated. The sperm quality parameters obtained by flow cytometry showed good reproducibility. The results of measurements of three different straws of an ejaculate which were carried out independently of each other did not differ significantly. The intra-class correlation coefficients were between 0.88 and 0.98. The flow cytometric tests evaluated in this examination were therefore considered to be reliable. In order to demonstrate the correlations between the routine examination methods for assessing the sperm quality and the analysis processes evaluated in this study, the viability and the morphology of the sperms after thawing were assessed by light microscopy using bromide phenol blue nigrosine smears. A computer controlled motility analysis was also carried out. Moderate correlations (0.60 > r > 0.58; p < 0.0001) were obtained between the viability assessed by light microscopy and the percentage of vital sperms obtained by flow cytometry. The proportion of progressively forward moving sperms correlated positively (r = 0.50; p < 0.01) to the proportion of sperms with a high mitochondrial membrane potential. The relationships between the results of the SCSA™ test and the proportions of both primary and secondary sperm anomalies were weakly pronounced (r = 0.24; p < 0.01). In the flow cytometric assessment of the viability, the mitochondrial membrane potential and the integrity of the acrosome it was shown that the ejaculate-related variations were approximately the same as the variations between the stallions. Regarding the results of the sperm chromatin structure the individual variations (88 - 91%) were considerably greater than those dependent on the ejaculate (9 – 12%). It was also shown that the results of the flow cytometric sperm quality assessment did not vary significantly in stallions which had a period (four months) of sexual rest before providing ejaculate compared to stallions which ejaculates were collected with a regular frequency. In terms of the animals’ age there was only a weak relationship (r = 0.43; p < 0.01) with integrity of the sperm chromatin structure. The results of the flow cytometric methods for assessing the viability (SYBR® 14/PI, JC-1 and SYTO® 17/FITC-PNA/PI combination staining) were comparable (r > 0.96; p < 0.0001). The latter is the only one of these tests which provides additional information about the integrity of the acrosome of the sperms. The combination of this triple staining with the sperm chromatin structure analysis (SCSA™) also provides further important information about the sperm quality. To check the relationships between fertility of the stallions and the various sperm quality parameters obtained by flow cytometry, only seasonal pregnancy rates from fresh semen insemination were available. In terms of the viability and the acrosomal status of the sperms after thawing, these showed no correlations (p > 0.05) with the fertility of the stallions. On the other hand, a negative relationship was established between the integrity of the chromatin structure and the fertility of the stallions (r = - 0.51 / - 0.59). This study shows that the flow cytometric assessment of the quality of cryopreserved sperm from stallions represents a reliable and objective method. In addition to the routine assessment of sperm quality, it provides important additional information, for example about the intactness of the acrosome and the integrity of the sperm chromatin structure.Ziel der vorliegenden Untersuchungen war es, verschiedene durchflusszytometrische Verfahren dahingehend zu überprüfen, ob sie geeignete objektive Methoden zur Beurteilung der Qualität von kryokonserviertem Hengstsperma darstellen. Es wurde die Plasmamembranintegrität, das Mitochondrienmembranpotential, der akrosomale Status und die Integrität der Chromatinstruktur bei kryokonserviertem Hengstsperma beurteilt. Hierfür wurden verschiedene Fluoreszenzfärbungen sowohl direkt nach dem Auftauen der Samenproben als auch nach dreistündiger Inkubation bei 37 C mit SYBR® 14, JC-1 und SYTO® 17 / Propidiumjodid / FITC-PNA und eine Spermachromatinstrukturanalyse (SCSA™) durchgeführt und anschließend ausgewertet. Die durchflusszytometrisch erhobenen Spermaqualitätsparameter wiesen eine hohe Reproduzierbarkeit auf. Die Ergebnisse der unabhängig von einander durchgeführten Messungen von 3 verschiedenen Pailletten eines Ejakulats unterschieden sich nicht signifikant voneinander. Die Intra-Class-Korrelationskoeffizienten lagen zwischen 0,88 und 0,98. Daher sind die in dieser Untersuchung evaluierten durchflusszytometrischen Tests als zuverlässig zu bezeichnen Um die Zusammenhänge zwischen den herkömmlichen Untersuchungsmethoden zur Beurteilung der Spermaqualität und den in dieser Arbeit evaluierten Analyseverfahren darzustellen, wurde mit Hilfe von Bromphenolblau-Nigrosin- Ausstrichen lichtmikroskopisch die Vitalität und die Morphologie der Spermien nach dem Auftauen beurteilt. Zusätzlich wurde eine computergestützte Motilitätsanalyse durchgeführt. Zwischen der lichtmikroskopisch beurteilten Vitalität und dem durchflusszytometrisch erfassten prozentualen Anteil an vitalen Spermien bestanden mittelgradige Korrelationen (0,60 > r > 0,58; p < 0,0001). Der prozentuale Anteil an vorwärtsbeweglichen Spermien korrelierte positiv (r = 0,50; p < 0,01) mit dem prozentualen Anteil an Spermien mit hohem Mitochondrienmembranpotential. Die Beziehungen zwischen den Ergebnissen des SCSA-Tests und den prozentualen Anteilen sowohl an primären als auch an sekundären Spermienanomalien waren schwach ausgeprägt (r = 0,24; p < 0,01). Bei der flowzytometrischen Beurteilung der Vitalität, des Mitochondrienmembranpotentials und der Integrität des Akrosoms zeigte sich, dass die ejakulatbedingten Schwankungen in etwa gleich groß wie die Schwankungen zwischen den Hengsten waren. Nur bei der Beurteilung der Spermachromatinstruktur waren die individuellen Schwankungen (88 - 91 %) erheblich größer als die ejakulatbedingten (9 – 12 %). Weiter zeigte sich, dass die Ergebnisse der durchflusszytometrischen Spermaqualtitätsbeurteilung bei Hengsten, die eine mehrmonatige Deckpause vor der Ejakulatgewinnung einhielten, sich nicht signifikant von denen der Hengste, die im regelmäßigen Deckeinsatz standen, unterschieden. Bezüglich des Alters der Tiere bestand nur eine schwache Beziehung (r = 0,43; p < 0,01) zu der Integrität der Spermachromatinstruktur. Die für die Beurteilung der Vitalität der Spermien verwendeten durchflusszytometrischen Verfahren (SYBR® 14/PI, JC-1 und SYTO® 17/FITC-PNA/PI-Kombinationsfärbung) führten zu vergleichbaren Ergebnissen (r > 0,96; p < 0,0001). Die letztere lieferte als einzige dieser drei Tests zusätzliche Informationen über die Integrität des Akrosoms. Die Kombination dieser Dreifachfärbung mit der Spermachromatinstrukturanalyse (SCSA™) bringt darüber hinaus weitere wichtige Informationen über die Spermaqualität. Zur Überprüfung der Zusammenhänge zwischen der Fertilität der Hengste und den verschiedenen durchflusszytometrisch ermittelten Spermaqualitätsparametern standen in der vorliegenden Untersuchung nur die saisonalen Trächtigkeitsraten der Hengste aus der Frischsamenübertragung zur Verfügung. Hier ergaben sich hinsichtlich der Vitalität und des akrosomalen Status der Spermien nach dem Auftauen keine Zusammenhänge (p > 0,05) zu der Fertilität der Hengste. Dagegen war zwischen der Integrität der Chromatinstruktur und der Fertilität der Hengste eine negative Beziehung festzustellen. (r = - 0,51 bzw. r = - 0,59; p < 0,01). Die hier durchgeführten Untersuchungen zeigten, dass die durchflusszytometrische Beurteilung der Qualität von kryokonserviertem Hengstsperma eine zuverlässige und objektive Methode darstellt. Sie liefert in Ergänzung der herkömmlichen Spermaqualitätsbeurteilung weitere wichtige Informationen, wie z.B. über die Unversehrtheit des Akrosoms und die Integrität der Spermachromatinstruktur