Book Review: Expanding Horizons for American Lutherans: The Story of Abdel Ross Wentz

Abdel Ross Wentz (1883-1976) of the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg joked about his small physical stature but he was a giant of American Lutheranism, noted religious historian and theological educator, and exemplar of a great generation of church leaders working in national and world arenas from the 1920s through the 1950s. This biography by his son, himself a historian and seminary professor and president, traces Wentz’s life from childhood in Lineboro, Maryland through his significant career in Gettysburg and much wider circles to his retirement near the Seminary campus. Obviously a labor of love and written in a style many readers will enjoy, this is far more than just a family memoir or contribution to local or institutional history. [excerpt

Control of Four-Level Quantum Coherence via Discrete Spectral Shaping of an Optical Frequency Comb

We present an experiment demonstrating high-resolution coherent control of a four-level atomic system in a closed (diamond) type configuration. A femtosecond frequency comb is used to establish phase coherence between a pair of two-photon transitions in cold Rb atoms. By controlling the spectral phase of the frequency comb we demonstrate the optical phase sensitive response of the diamond system. The high-resolution state selectivity of the comb is used to demonstrate the importance of the signs of dipole moment matrix elements in this type of closed-loop excitation. Finally, the pulse shape is optimized resulting in a 256% increase in the two-photon transition rate by forcing constructive interference between the mode pairs detuned from an intermediate resonance.Comment: 5 pages, 4 figures Submitted to Physical Review Letter

Some Evidence of Information Aggregation in Auction Prices

Paper was previously titled "The Informativeness of Prices as Quality Signals in the Thoroughbred Industry"Efficient Markets Hypothesis, information aggregation, auctions, Thoroughbred industry, Agribusiness, Livestock Production/Industries,

Consideration for care for your patient with cerebral palsy

Cerebral palsy (CP) is a common developmental neurological disorder affecting about 2-3 children out of 1,000. CP is the result of infant brain damage or abnormal development resulting in impaired muscle control, coordination, tone, reflex, posture, and balance. These patients are unable to control motor movements of their muscles of mastication and facial expression, causing excessive drooling, clenching, bruxism, and other oral health-related issues. This lack of motor control affects their ability to swallow and often limits these patients to a liquid diet. This can lead to vitamin deficiencies and result in further developmental problems. As an example, a deficiency in vitamin D may lead to osteoporosis, which manifests in the oral cavity as periodontal disease. Even into adulthood, these individuals are often reliant on the care of others. It becomes the caregiver’s responsibility to ensure the individual with cerebral palsy is receiving consistent and effective oral hygiene, and to monitor the oral tissues for signs of disease or injury. The researchers reviewed primary and secondary literature published after 2014 on the subjects of cerebral palsy, general health considerations, and oral care. The aim of this investigation focuses on unique issues faced by patients with cerebral palsy, and how to effectively educate caregivers on risks and proper techniques for providing oral hygiene to these individuals.https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/denh_student/1001/thumbnail.jp

Two-photon transitions driven by a combination of diode and femtosecond lasers

We report on the combined action of a cw diode laser and a train of ultrashort pulses when each of them drives one step of the 5S-5P-5D two-photon transition in rubidium vapor. The fluorescence from the 6P_{3/2} state is detected for a fixed repetition rate of the femtosecond laser while the cw-laser frequency is scanned over the rubidium D_{2} lines. This scheme allows for a velocity selective spectroscopy in a large spectral range including the 5D_{3/2} and 5D_{5/2} states. The results are well described in a simplified frequency domain picture, considering the interaction of each velocity group with the cw laser and a single mode of the frequency comb.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

D-region ion chemistry

D-region ion chemistry, nitrogen oxides and oxygen allotropes in mesosphere, and ionization source

Mitochondrial Approaches to Protect Against Cardiac Ischemia and Reperfusion Injury

The mitochondrion is a vital component in cellular energy metabolism and intracellular signaling processes. Mitochondria are involved in a myriad of complex signaling cascades regulating cell death vs. survival. Importantly, mitochondrial dysfunction and the resulting oxidative and nitrosative stress are central in the pathogenesis of numerous human maladies including cardiovascular diseases, neurodegenerative diseases, diabetes, and retinal diseases, many of which are related. This review will examine the emerging understanding of the role of mitochondria in the etiology and progression of cardiovascular diseases and will explore potential therapeutic benefits of targeting the organelle in attenuating the disease process. Indeed, recent advances in mitochondrial biology have led to selective targeting of drugs designed to modulate or manipulate mitochondrial function, to the use of light therapy directed to the mitochondrial function, and to modification of the mitochondrial genome for potential therapeutic benefit. The approach to rationally treat mitochondrial dysfunction could lead to more effective interventions in cardiovascular diseases that to date have remained elusive. The central premise of this review is that if mitochondrial abnormalities contribute to the etiology of cardiovascular diseases (e.g., ischemic heart disease), alleviating the mitochondrial dysfunction will contribute to mitigating the severity or progression of the disease. To this end, this review will provide an overview of our current understanding of mitochondria function in cardiovascular diseases as well as the potential role for targeting mitochondria with potential drugs or other interventions that lead to protection against cell injury

Battery Energy Storage System Mitigation Strategies for the Grid Impacts of Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure

The face of transportation is changing as a greater number of companies and private individuals switch from traditional automobiles to electric vehicles. This surge has been bolstered by improvements in technology, increased marketing, and a heightened focus on the role humanity plays in climate change. This advancement brings a growth in electrical demand caused by the charging loads of these vehicles. Due to the quick, sudden rise of this technology, the utility energy industry is still in the early stages of preparing for electric vehicle loads beyond the traditional load growth. Though the technology for battery energy storage has been around for some time, there has been a recent resurgence of interest in using it at the grid level. Improvements in technology have made batteries cheaper and more efficient, while the interest in integrating more renewable energy sources has increased their production. With these improvements, battery energy storage may now be useful in mitigating the adverse effects of electric vehicle integration and improving the otherwise accelerated financial impact of these new charging loads. In this thesis, the grid impacts of electric vehicle growth and integration are observed on provided models of real-world feeders. Using this data, the effectiveness of battery energy storage systems in mitigating these impacts in a manner that is economical and beneficial to the utility, the customer, and the environment is analyzed. Following this, a general approach for analyzing electric vehicle impacts and potential mitigation strategies is presented

Technological Issues: The Citizen Initiated Performance Assessment (CIPA) Initiative through Wireless Technology

Many governments, including my own that serves a population of about 200,000 Central Iowans, have been reluctant to invest in technologies supporting e-government services. The operating assumption for this reluctance is that the digital divide delivers the benefits of e-government to the wealthiest and often most educated citizens, effectively diverting resources to constituencies traditionally less reliant on government services than the poor who are often left on the down side of the digital divide . While digital divide considerations are and should continue to be a focal point in deciding allocation of scarce financial resources supporting technological improvements, reallocation of resources to bridge the digital divide should be a countervailing consideration in debates about the impact of e-government. Without doubt, this use of technologies to communicate citizen requests for service is more direct and arguably more effective than the process available to more affluent residents, effectively using technologies to turn the digital divide to the advantage of those less likely to have ready access to their own technologies