Elasticity measurement using holographic interferometry double exposure technique

Holographic measurement of modulus elasticity was performed on samples of aluminum can. It is based upon the measurement of the displacement as a function number of fringes appeared on the body of the loaded can. The value of the modulus elasticity for the aluminum can is obtained as (1.00 ± 0.03) × 108 nm–2. This result is found in good agreement with a mechanical measurement by taking into account any experimental erro

SAT-158 Offspring Exposed to Maternal High Fat Diet Exhibits Systemic Inflammation and Pancreatic Islet Dysfunction

Offspring born to overweight mothers are more likely to develop dysregulated immune response1, obesity1 and pancreatic islet dysfunction2. These offspring have increased inflammation at birth3 and at least until childhood4. We hypothesize that heightened inflammation in offspring of overweight mothers increases offspring risks of pancreatic islet dysfunction. We induced maternal overweight by providing 45% high fat diet (HFD) to female mice 2 - 4 weeks before pregnancy until weaning. When compared to controls, P21 weanlings of HFD mothers had impaired glucose tolerance in dose and gender dependent manner [GTT AUC: male 2-week HFD* 30 ± 6% higher; male 4-week HFD* 37± 3% higher: 9-11/group; female 2-week HFD 13 ± 5% higher; female 4-week HFD* 22 ± 3% higher: 3-9/group, *p<0.05 compared to controls]. Glucose intolerance persisted in 8-week-old male from 2-week HFD mothers (p<0.05, n=6-9/group), with decreased pancreatic islets glucose induced calcium response measured using Fura-2AM calcium imaging (F1/F0 Con:2.00 ± 0.06, HFD2W: 1.69±0.12*, HFD4w: 0.71±0.09*, n =3/group). Cytokines production in the serum, macrophage response and metabolic phenotypes of offspring were assessed on postnatal day 21 (P21) and at 8 weeks old. Compared to control pups, weanling of HFD mothers had elevated serum/plasma IL-1b level along with increased polarization of M1 macrophages and decreased M2 macrophages, as well as an increase of IL-1b secretion in LPS-stimulated macrophages. At 8 weeks of age, HFD male offspring had increased activation markers of splenic dendritic cells indicating a development of systemic inflammatory response early in life. Taken together, our findings suggest that mice offspring from HFD mothers have pancreatic dysfunction, and an inflammatory response. This work is funded by the Riley Children’s Foundation. 1. Kelishadi, R., Roufarshbaf, M., Soheili, S., Payghambarzadeh, F. & Masjedi, M. Association of Childhood Obesity and the Immune System: A Systematic Review of Reviews. Child. Obes. Print 13, 332-346 (2017). 2. Graus-Nunes, F. et al. Pregestational maternal obesity impairs endocrine pancreas in male F1 and F2 progeny. Nutrition 31, 380-387 (2015). 3. Dosch, N. C. et al. Maternal Obesity Affects Inflammatory and Iron Indices in Umbilical Cord Blood. J. Pediatr. 172, 20-28 (2016). 4. Leibowitz, K. L. et al. Maternal obesity associated with inflammation in their children. World J. Pediatr. WJP 8, 76-79 (2012)

Mother tongue literacy in a refugee setting: A Sourcebook for the Massalit literacy program

The purpose of this Master’s Capstone Project is to synthesize information and answer questions related to a mother tongue literacy program among Darfur refugees in eastern Chad. As the literacy specialist providing technical assistance to this program, I have selected questions that, from my perspective, are relevant to the program at this particular point in time. Some, like “Can children learn to read in two scripts at the same time?” or “How can we assess literacy development in a feasible way?” are questions that I wanted to revisit. Others, like “How can we create a literate environment at school, at home, and in the community?” are potential priorities for the program going forward. While looking for research related to my program, I found very little literature that addresses all the aspects of our context—a mother tongue literacy program in a non-dominant language, encompassing both adult and children’s literacy in a refugee camp environment. There is a growing body of literature on refugee education and education in crisis and conflict settings. There are longitudinal studies of mother tongue-based multilingual education efforts. There are guides to community-based mother tongue literacy programs. And there are reports of adult literacy programs and early grade reading interventions in developing countries. However, whether in peer-reviewed journals or in the grey literature, articles are usually relevant to one or two of the aspects above, not all of them

Some Aspects Of The Life Cycle Of Fish Blood Fluke, Sanguinicola Armata Plehn, 1905 (Digenea: Sanguinicolidae) In Grass Carp (Ctenopharyngodon Idellus Cuvler And Valenciennes, 1884) Fingerlings

The life - cycle of the fish blood fluke , Sanguinicola armata Plehn , 1905 was studied in the laboratory . The snail Gyraulus convexiusculus Hutton , 1849 was identified as the intermediate host of S. armata from grass carp ( ctenopharyngodon idellus ) finger lings. Two types of experiment ( pre-trial and laboratory experimental infections ) were carried out in order to infect the laboratory bred snails. The pre -trial study was divided into three experiments. In the firs texperiment , twenty infected fish were exposed to the thirty uninfected snail sand was left for the duration of the experiment. For the second experiment , similar number of fish and snails were left together for 24 hours

Multi-physical model for describing self-healing mortar containing biochar- immobilized bacteria

This work aims to analytically and numerically describe and predict the ability of a particular kind of bacteria (Bacillus sphaericus) to heal cracks in mortar. The ureolytic bacteria induces microbial calcium carbonate by releasing urease enzyme, which in turn stimulates the degradation of urea into carbonate and ammonium; the carbonate then reacts with the calcium ions (in calcium nitrate) to produce calcite to heal cracks. A novel feature of our study is that the bacteria is immobilized in biochar, which is the solid by-product of pyrolysis. The biochar and bacteria are included in the mortar mixture together with special nutrient solution; the mixture of bacteria and nutrients is called the “spore solution”. Our prior (and published) studies found that biochar-immobilized bacteria heal cracks more efficiently. The modeling approach consists of 4 major steps or sub-models. Firstly, a Pore Wall Bubbling model is created to describe the protrusion and expansion of pores in biochar. The predicted pore size distribution, hence porosity, was then used to calculate the overall porosity of the biochar-containing mortar using a second sub-model known as the Fractional Porosity Model. Next, an absorption model was used to describe uptake of the spore solution and then estimate the spore concentration within the biochar of a certain theoretical porosity. Finally, the rate of healing of a hypothetical cylindrical crack in mortar was estimated from the rate of production of calcite (due to the spore concentration calculated above), which depends on the rate of urea hydrolysis - the latter of which was described using a hydrolysis-diffusion model solved using Galerkin’s finite element method. Theoretical predictions agree very well with experimental results. Several deductions and possible improvements to the model are also suggested

Water warming effects on the behavior of the African cichlid, Julidochromis ornatus

Human-induced rapid environmental change (HIREC) is threatening the world’s flora and fauna. Aquatic ecosystems have proven to be particularly vulnerable to HIREC. Many of the world’s largest lakes (e.g., Lake Tanganyika, East Africa) have seen rapid increases in water temperature. While previous research have shown that increased environmental temperature generally increases metabolic rates in ectotherms (e.g., fish), we know little about how this increase might affect their behavior (e.g., aggression). Since a heightened metabolism would raise the required energy for basic life functions, we hypothesized that aggression levels would be higher in individuals exposed to warmer temperatures relative to cooler ones. To test this hypothesis, we conducted a controlled laboratory experiment in which adult Julidochromis ornatus from Lake Tanganyika were exposed to low and high temperature treatments. As expected, average aggression levels were significantly higher in the warm (projected future) temperature treatment relative to the cooler (baseline) temperature. Despite this change in average aggression, individual aggression levels (measured before and at the end of the experiment) were positively correlated when all individuals were analyzed together. Collectively, these findings indicate that, while aggression in J. ornatus is plastic, individuals also have a personality that might constrain their response to HIREC. Ultimately, our findings suggest that continued warming in Lake Tanganyika, and many similar ecosystems, will change the behavior of its native fish fauna. As behavior appears critical to the reproductive success and social standing in many cichlid fishes, such changes might have major consequences for the ability of these fish species to persist in the face of continued HIREC.The Ohio State University Office of Undergraduate Research Summer Research FellowshipThe Ohio State University Office of Undergraduate Research Research Scholar AwardThe Ohio State University Arts and Sciences College Honors Program Undergraduate Research ScholarshipSigma Xi Grant-in-Aid of ResearchNo embargoAcademic Major: Evolution and Ecolog

Beginning primary teachers' induction and mentoring practices in Papua New Guinea

Professional development of beginning teachers through induction and mentoring has been commonly viewed as important for teachers' success and continuation in the teaching profession. Induction and specifically mentoring programs focus attention on transitions from one stage of teacher development to another. The three phases of teacher development are initial teacher education, known as pre-service, the induction phase and the ongoing teacher in-service education. The move from student to teacher is the most demanding change in learning to teach. The beginning teacher in this change must adjust from thinking and acting as a student, absorbed with his or her own learning and performance, to thinking and acting as a teacher, accepting responsibility for the learning and performance of others. Beginning teachers are fully engaged in this essential development, and mentoring programs are purposely intended to support them through this period of change. This study has established that beginning teachers in Papua New Guinea (PNG) do experience challenges in the first few months of teaching but these issues lapse over time with the support and assistance of mentors/supervisors. Mentoring has great potential for group effort and transformational teacher learning within schools as professional learning communities. In order for mentors to perform their tasks well and draw benefits from mentoring, appropriate support and training for mentors is recommended. As well as support and training, other incentives for mentors such as salary increments and reduced teaching loads would be a welcome step to enhancing induction and mentoring programs in PNG primary schools

The Influence Of Customer Perceived Value And Attitude Toward Local Supermarket Choice

In the competitive environment of retailing, the income and popularity of grocery stores are much dependent on customer’s choice to their stores. Many studies have focused on shoppers on evaluating store attributes such as merchandise prices, store atmosphere, quality and store convenience that form their attitude toward store and in turn affect supermarket choice. Dalam persekitaran peruncitan yang kompetitif, pendapatan dan populariti stor runcit banyak bergantung kepada pilihan pengguna untuk memilih stor tersebut. Banyak kajian telah memberi tumpuan kepada pembeli yang menilai ciri-ciri stor seperti contoh harga barangan, persekitaran stor, kualiti and kemudahan stor yang akan membentuk sikap mereka terhadap stor yang kemudianya mempengaruhi pilihan stor pasaraya