Prediction of Flight-Level Radiation Hazards Due To Solar Energetic Protons

The radiation environment at aircraft altitudes is caused primarily by high-energy particles originating from outside the near-earth environment. These particles generally come from outside our solar system and are called galactic cosmic rays. Occasionally however, a transient solar event will also accelerate energetic protons toward the earth. If these protons reach the upper atmosphere, they produce secondary particles via collisions, resulting in increased radiation levels in the atmosphere. Air crews and electronic systems flying at high altitudes during one of these events are subjected to these increased levels of radiation which can result in health problems for personnel and soft errors in electronics. Much work has been performed to calculate radiation dose rates at flight levels due to non-solar energetic particles, however very few dose rate measurements have been made shortly after the eruption of a large solar flare. Using energetic proton data measured at geosynchronous orbits and Monte Carlo transport codes, an attempt is made to estimate radiation dose rates at different altitudes and locations during solar events. The goal is to provide accurate information about the radiation environment at high altitudes, which will allow aircraft and personnel to avoid locations where health or the mission may be negatively impacted

Influence of PCB-Contaminated Water Bodies on the PCB Content of Riparian Vegetation Through Foliar Deposition

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are a class of persistent organic pollutants that are generally considered semi-volatile. Volatilization and transport of PCBs from contaminated water bodies can result in PCB accumulation on terrestrial plant surfaces, acting as an entry point for contaminants into terrestrial food webs. Evergreen plants can serve as biomonitors of this PCB accumulation, as they often retain foliage for several years, allowing for greater concentrations to accumulate and subsequently be measured. Rhododendron maximum plants often grow in the riparian zone adjacent to water bodies in the Appalachian region, such as near Town Creek, Pickens, South Carolina. This research aimed to determine if PCBs in rhododendron leaves adjacent to PCB-contaminated Town Creek were due to gas phase deposition, primarily as a result of volatilization from the creek

Preliminary Survey of Autumn Hawk Migration in the Inner Piedmont of Virginia

A hawkwatch was conducted in September 1997-1999 in the Inner Piedmont of Virginia near Lynchburg, to assess the magnitude and species composition of the flight relative to the Blue Ridge. The flight density in the Piedmont averaged one-third to one-half that of two nearby Blue Ridge lookouts, but among years ranged from onefifth to two-thirds that of those two ridge lookouts. The species composition of the Inner Piedmont flight was similar to that on the Blue Ridge, with Broad-winged Hawks (Buteo platypterus) making up over 95% of the September flight. A close-site study in 1998 suggested that the Broad-winged Hawk flight is greater over Lynchburg than to the immediate southeast. Hawk migration studies in this area certainly warrant further attention

Industry-Based Competitive Strategies for Ohio: Managing Three Portfolios

Deloitte Consulting, LLP, Cleveland State University, OSA Strategy. Political and business leaders have recognized a need to chart a new economic course for Ohio’s future. This study represents a step toward determining effective uses for limited development dollars in the state and filling in Ohio’s economic development strategy. This statewide industry study has been designed to provide economic development officials with insight, analysis, and strategic tools to help businesses compete more efficiently in an increasingly global marketplace

Strategy for the Implementation of an Industrial Land Bank

The City of Cleveland plans to create a long-term vision for industrial and commercial land reuse in order to better serve the business and neighborhood interests of its citizens. The implementation of an industrial land bank is one critical way in which to fulfill this goal. This study aimed to develop a strategy to aid the city in the operation and management of rehabilitating commercial and industrial properties for reuse. The objectives of the project were to: * Incorporate a strategy understood by senior managers at the city that identifies a broad economic redevelopment vision, especially for brownfields. * Include in the plan strategies for financing the acquisition and/or transfer of properties into the land bank. * Establish elements in the plan to include both short- and long-term implementation

Systematics of Desmognathus monticola

Undergraduate Basi

Strategy for the Implementation of an Industrial Land Bank

The City of Cleveland plans to create a long-term vision for industrial and commercial land reuse in order to better serve the business and neighborhood interests of its citizens. The implementation of an industrial land bank is one critical way in which to fulfill this goal. This study aimed to develop a strategy to aid the city in the operation and management of rehabilitating commercial and industrial properties for reuse. The objectives of the project were to: * Incorporate a strategy understood by senior managers at the city that identifies a broad economic redevelopment vision, especially for brownfields. * Include in the plan strategies for financing the acquisition and/or transfer of properties into the land bank. * Establish elements in the plan to include both short- and long-term implementation

Best Practices in Land Bank Operation

In preparation for the development of a strategic business plan for the City of Cleveland to create an industrial/commercial land bank, the GLFEC conducted a best practices scan that encompassed two phases of primary research. The first phase included a thorough review of more than 41 sources of academic and trade literature on the topics of vacant land utilization and management, land banking, land assembly, and vacant and abandoned property policy. The second phase was a survey of 34 land banks and land redevelopment authorities in the United States. This report summarizes the findings of the research and identifies those practices in land-bank operation in the United States that currently define the models of operation and point to the best policies and practices in use today

A metagenomic snapshot of taxonomic and functional diversity in an Alpine glacier cryoconite ecosystem:Alpine cryoconite metagenome

Cryoconite is a microbe–mineral aggregate which darkens the ice surface of glaciers. Microbial process and marker gene PCR-dependent measurements reveal active and diverse cryoconite microbial communities on polar glaciers. Here, we provide the first report of a cryoconite metagenome and culture-independent study of alpine cryoconite microbial diversity. We assembled 1.2 Gbp of metagenomic DNA sequenced using an Illumina HiScanSQ from cryoconite holes across the ablation zone of Rotmoosferner in the Austrian Alps. The metagenome revealed a bacterially-dominated community, with Proteobacteria (62% of bacterial-assigned contigs) and Bacteroidetes (14%) considerably more abundant than Cyanobacteria (2.5%). Streptophyte DNA dominated the eukaryotic metagenome. Functional genes linked to N, Fe, S and P cycling illustrated an acquisitive trend and a nitrogen cycle based upon efficient ammonia recycling. A comparison of 32 metagenome datasets revealed a similarity in functional profiles between the cryoconite and metagenomes characterized from other cold microbe–mineral aggregates. Overall, the metagenomic snapshot reveals the cryoconite ecosystem of this alpine glacier as dependent on scavenging carbon and nutrients from allochthonous sources, in particular mosses transported by wind from ice-marginal habitats, consistent with net heterotrophy indicated by productivity measurements. A transition from singular snapshots of cryoconite metagenomes to comparative analyses is advocated

CBL Is Frequently Altered in Lung Cancers: Its Relationship to Mutations in MET and EGFR Tyrosine Kinases

Background: Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is a heterogeneous group of disorders with a number of genetic and proteomic alterations. c-CBL is an E3 ubiquitin ligase and adaptor molecule important in normal homeostasis and cancer. We determined the genetic variations of c-CBL, relationship to receptor tyrosine kinases (EGFR and MET), and functionality in NSCLC. Methods and Findings: Using archival formalin-fixed paraffin embedded (FFPE) extracted genomic DNA, we show that c-CBL mutations occur in somatic fashion for lung cancers. c-CBL mutations were not mutually exclusive of MET or EGFR mutations; however they were independent of p53 and KRAS mutations. In normal/tumor pairwise analysis, there was significant loss of heterozygosity (LOH) for the c-CBL locus (22%, n = 8/37) and none of these samples revealed any mutation in the remaining copy of c-CBL. The c-CBL LOH also positively correlated with EGFR and MET mutations observed in the same samples. Using select c-CBL somatic mutations such as S80N/H94Y, Q249E and W802* (obtained from Caucasian, Taiwanese and African-American samples, respectively) transfected in NSCLC cell lines, there was increased cell viability and cell motility. Conclusions: Taking the overall mutation rate of c-CBL to be a combination as somatic missense mutation and LOH, it is clear that c-CBL is highly mutated in lung cancers and may play an essential role in lung tumorigenesis and metastasis