Investigating the Magnitude and Range of the Urban Heat Island within Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

Cities experience UHIs due to the thermal properties (albedo, thermal emittance, radiative flux, and heat capacity) of human-made substances and urban geometry. This study investigated the existence of an urban heat island (UHI) in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The goal of this project was to assess whether a small-scale city like Gettysburg demonstrates an UHI effect and, if present, the extent and magnitude of the UHI. We hypothesized that (1) temperatures within the city are significantly higher than the surrounding area, (2) the magnitude of the UHI will diminish as distance from the city center increases, and (3) the UHI will not extend further than 0.5 miles outside the city center. Air temperatures were collected using digital thermometers over four weeks along two different transects that each extended one mile from the center square of Gettysburg. Our results show that Gettysburg, despite its small size, has an UHI. A linear regression model shows that there is a strong correlation between temperature and distance from the center square. The magnitude of the UHI lessens with increasing distance from the center of town. The first two hypotheses were supported while the hypothesis that the UHI will be localized was not. Statistically analyses show that the temperature change remains significant past 0.5 miles. The results of this study demonstrate that even a small-scale city like Gettysburg create a UHI

Characterization of the Function and Regulation of the HMPV Phosphoprotein

Human metapneumovirus (HMPV) is a non-segmented, negative strand RNA virus (NNSV) that frequently causes respiratory tract infections in infants, the elderly, and the immunocompromised. Despite the initial identification of HMPV in 2001, there are currently no FDA approved antivirals or vaccines available. Therefore, understanding the mechanism of HMPV replication is critical for the identification of novel therapeutic targets. A key feature in the replication cycle of HMPV and other NNSVs is the formation of membrane-less, liquid-like replication and transcription centers in the cytosol termed inclusion bodies (IBs). Recent work on NNSV IBs suggests they display characteristics of biomolecular condensates formed through a liquid-to-liquid phase transition. Intrinsically disordered proteins are common drivers of biomolecular condensate formation, and post-translational modifications have been shown to regulate condensate properties. The HMPV phosphoprotein (P) and nucleoprotein (N) are the minimal viral proteins necessary to form IB-like structures and are both required for the viral polymerase to synthesize RNA during infection. HMPV P is a necessary co-factor for the viral polymerase, has regions of intrinsic disorder, and has several known and predicted phosphorylation sites. I hypothesized that 1) the HMPV P intrinsically disordered domains facilitate IB formation and 2) changes to P phosphorylation state regulates the properties of IBs and the function of P as a polymerase co-factor. Upon deletion of regions of HMPV P, we found that the C-terminal intrinsically disordered domain (CTD) must be present to facilitate IB formation with HMPV N, while either the N-terminal intrinsically disordered domain or the central oligomerization domain were dispensable. Alanine substitution at a single tyrosine residue in the CTD was a minimal mutation which abrogated IB formation and reduced co-immunoprecipitation with HMPV N, identifying this residue as a key interaction site for N and as a facilitator of IB formation. Phospho-dead and phosphomimetic mutations to C-terminal phosphorylation sites revealed a potential role for phosphorylation in regulating RNA synthesis and P binding partners within IBs. Phosphorylation mutations which reduced RNA synthesis in a reporter assay produced comparable results in a recombinant viral rescue system, measured as an inability to produce infectious viral particles with genomes containing these single P mutations. This work highlights the critical role HMPV P plays in facilitating a key step of the viral life cycle and reveals the potential role for phosphorylation in regulating the function of this significant viral protein

Burkholderia cenocepacia J2315-mediated destruction of Staphylococcus aureus NRS77 biofilms.

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is an inherited disorder that affects over 30,000 people in the US and more than 70,000 people worldwide. Recurring bacterial infections in CF patients result in tissue damage that dramatically lowers respiratory function and are ultimately fatal. The formation of bacterial biofilms in the mucus and on lung epithelial tissue allows pathogens to be protected from antibiotics and the host immune system, making treatment of infection difficult. The interactions between CF pathogens in co-culture biofilms are not well understood and were examined in this study. Staphylococcus aureus and Burkholderia cenocepacia, two common CF pathogens, were used to examine the effects of co-culture on biofilm formation. We found that S. aureus biofilm formation and maintenance is inhibited when grown in co-culture with B. cenocepacia. In fact, supernatant from 3-day-old biofilms of B. cenocepacia was sufficient to reduce S. aureus biofilms, suggesting that a secreted compound may be responsible for this antagonism. The results of this study can be used to better understand the complex microenvironments bacteria experience in CF lungs. Further exploration of this interaction could lead to discovery of a novel therapeutic or a target for treatment of persistent S. aureus infection

Ethical and Governance Challenges in Population Biobanking: the case of the global Anti-Doping Administration & Management System

This study is an ethical analysis of the governance and regulatory dimensions of biobanking with specific reference to the Anti-Doping Administration Management System (ADAMS) of the global regulator of anti-doping in sports, the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA). The study focuses on four key ethico-governance issues: (i) consent; (ii) benefit-sharing; (iii) harmonization of ethics and governance; and (iv) conditions for the secondary research uses of data originally collected for doping control purposes. It is argued that the consent process prior to data collection, storage and analysis is problematic, since athletes may not refuse the request to provide data sought by anti-doping authorities without forfeiting their eligibility to compete. The process requires simultaneous permission for research and testing which creates ambiguity, compounded by the unequal relationship between athletes and WADA. A range of alternative models are explored and a case is made for an approach that combines broad consent with iterative, or ‘reflexive’ governance and stakeholder involvement including education around research. Furthermore, ethical issues remain concerning governance and regulation for population research and use of data more generally between legal jurisdictions and within diverse populations. It is also argued that WADA’s claim to harmonization through its operational methods, regulation and governance, is not sufficiently well-defined outside of specific legal uses and is therefore too blunt a tool for ethical governance in global sport contexts. This thesis proposes reforms to existing WADA processes including consent processes and moves toward more reflexive governance frameworks that allow contextual nuance and iterative development, respecting differing needs within a shared structure. Specific recommendations are made to enhance accountability for potential secondary uses of ADAMS data for research. A distinction is drawn between anti-doping and broader biomedical research in developing ethically justifiable pathways that reduce the potential for coercion and empower athletes as contributors and potential beneficiaries

Networks in the shadow of markets and hierarchies : calling the shots in the visual effects industry

The nature and organisation of creative industries and creative work has increasingly been at the centre of academic and policy debates in recent years. The differentiation of this field, economically and spatially, has been tied to more general arguments about the trend towards new trust-based, network forms of organization and economic coordination. In the first part of this paper, we set out, unpack and then critique the conceptual and empirical foundations of such claims. In the main section of the paper, we draw on research into a particular creative sector of the economy - the visual effects component of the film industry - a relatively new though increasingly important global production network. By focusing both on firms and their workers, and drawing on concepts derived from global value chain, labour process and institutional analysis, we aim to offer a more realistic and grounded analysis of creative work within creative industries. The analysis begins with an attempt to explain the power dynamics and patterns of competition and collaboration in inter-firm relations within the Hollywood studio-dominated value chain, before moving to a detailed examination of how the organisation of work and reemployment relations are central to the capturing of value. On the basis of that evidence, we conclude that trust-based networks and collaborative communities play some part in accessing and acquiring leverage in the value chain, but do not explain the core mechanisms of resource allocation, coordination and work organisation

Musculoskeletal Loads during Stationary Cycling and the Effects of Pedal Modifications for Knee Osteoarthritis

Knee OA is a deteriorating joint disease affecting 27 million people in the US and current exercise prescriptions may be improved with new knowledge of their effects on muscle forces and joint contact loads. Cycling rather than other exercise modalities is generally considered an alternative for people with knee OA. If these research objectives were achieved, clinicians would have additional tools related to joint contact loads for treating people with OA with an cycling exercise while controlling progression of OA. The long-term goal of this research is to provide a scientific basis for planning, evaluation and improvement of subject-specific rehabilitation for subjects with knee osteoarthritis (OA). The principles governing relationships between muscle forces, joint contact loads and movements in people with knee OA, have not been discovered. Determining how to adjust movements to optimize joint contact loads is difficult because experiments do not account for these loads. In combination with experimental approaches, muscle-actuated inverse dynamic simulations provide a scientific framework to estimate important variables and identify cause-and- effect relationships. These activities challenge existing paradigms for exercise prescriptions by including movements specifically designed for decreasing knee joint contact loads. The research objective is to investigate muscle forces and joint contact loads that are experienced by the knee during cycling. The overall hypothesis is a combination of biomechanical cycling modifications that contribute to altered muscle forces and a reduction in knee joint contact loads in subjects with and without knee OA during cycling; this may be mitigated with a novel pedal design. The overall purpose of this research was to discover relationships between muscle forces, joint contact loads, cycling and OA-friendly cycling modifications for improving exercise prescriptions. The following objectives were addressed: 1) determine the effects of lateral pedal wedges and toe-in on joint biomechanics during cycling and 2) examine the potential of optimization to design subject-specific cycling modifications for decreasing knee joint contact loads

A direct method for Bloch wave excitation by scattering at the edge of a lattice. Part II: Finite size effects

A method for determining the reflection and transmission properties of a periodic structure occupying a half-space, previously developed for lattices formed from point scatterers, is generalised to allow for finite size effects. This facilitates the consideration of much higher frequencies (or more precisely, much higher scatterer size to wavelength ratios), and also a wider range of boundary conditions. The method is presented in a general context of linear wave theory, and physical interpretations are given for acoustics, elasticity, electromagnetism and water waves

Medical Versus Surgical Methods of Early Abortion: Protocol for a Systematic Review and Environmental Scan of Patient Decision Aids

Introduction: Currently, we lack understanding of the content, quality and impact of patient decision aids to support decision-making between medical and surgical methods of early abortion. We plan to undertake a systematic review of peer-reviewed literature to identify, appraise and describe the impact of early abortion method decision aids evaluated quantitatively (Part I), and an environmental scan to identify and appraise other early abortion method decision aids developed in the US (Part II). Methods and analysis: For the systematic review, we will search PubMed, Cochrane Library, CINAHL, EMBASE and PsycINFO databases for articles describing experimental and observational studies evaluating the impact of an early abortion method decision aid on women\u27s decision-making processes and outcomes. For the environmental scan, we will identify decision aids by supplementing the systematic review search with Internet-based searches and key informant consultation. The primary reviewer will assess all studies and decision aids for eligibility, and a second reviewer will also assess a subset of these. Both reviewers will independently assess risk of bias in the studies and abstract data using a piloted form. Finally, both reviewers will assess decision aid quality using the International Patient Decision Aid Standards criteria, ease of readability using Flesch/Flesch-Kincaid tests, and informational content using directed content analysis. Ethics and dissemination: As this study does not involve human subjects, ethical approval will not be sought. We aim to disseminate the findings in a scientific journal, via academic and/or professional conferences and among the broader community to contribute knowledge about current early abortion method decision-making support