Oral History Interview: Rachel Weisenberger

Discussion of home remedies, including the phenomena of blood- stopping and fire-drawing. Mrs. Weisenberger discusses a variety of topics concerning her life in Ohio: kinship relations, coal mining, church activities, and matters related to the domestic sphere, such as quilting and food preservation. She also provides illuminating anecdotes concerning the traditional healing practices of fire- drawing and blood-stopping.https://mds.marshall.edu/oral_history/1237/thumbnail.jp

An Absence of Meaningful Appellate Review : Juries and Patent Obviousness

The rise in the number of patent infringement trials heard by juries has brought criticisms of the jury\u27s expansive role to the forefront of patent law commentary. Under current Federal Circuit practice, the jury is permitted to deliver a verdict on patent obviousness. Especially in light of the 2007 Supreme Court decision KSR International Co. v. Teleflex, Inc., the role of the jury in obviousness determinations has come under particular scrutiny. This Note examines the effect of the jury\u27s expansive role in obviousness determinations on appellate review of these verdicts. It begins by examining the two conflicting views of the jury in patent cases; the traditional view limits the jury to deciding the factual considerations underlying the test for obviousness, while the modern view allows the jury to decide the ultimate issue of obviousness. The Note then analyzes the issues that arise under the two theories of the jury\u27s appropriate role in obviousness determinations. Finally, this Note suggests that the Federal Circuit should require either special verdicts or special interrogatories addressing the underlying facts of the obviousness inquiry in order to preserve de novo review of the legal conclusion of obviousness injury trials

Craniocervical Arterial Dissection

The annual incidence for spontaneous carotid artery dissection (CAD) ranges from 2 to 3/100,000 patients and is even lower for a spontaneous vertebral artery dissection (VAD). Furthermore, there is only a .08% - .04% chance for the incidence of a traumatic dissection (TD), of the entire trauma population (Mortazvi, Verma, Tubbs, Harrigan, 2011). However, despite these low levels, CAD/VADs pose a serious threat to a patient’s plan of care if not identified and treated early

Gamma-ray imaging detector for small animal research

A novel radiation imaging technology for in vivo molecular imaging in small mammals is described. The goal of this project is to develop a new type of imaging detector system suitable for real-time in vivo probe imaging studies in small animals. This technology takes advantage of the gamma-ray and x-ray emission properties of the radioisotope iodine 125 (125I) which is employed as the label for molecular probes. The radioisotope 125I is a gamma-ray emitting radioisotope that can be commercially obtained already attached to biomedically interesting molecules to be used as tracers for biomedical and molecular biology research.;The isotope 125I decays via electron capture consequently emitting a 35 keV gamma-ray followed by the near coincident emission of several 27--32 keV Kalpha and Kbeta shell x-rays. Because of these phenomena, a coincidence condition can be set to detect 125I thus enabling the reduction of any background radiation that could contaminate the image. The detector system is based on an array of CsI(Na) crystal scintillators coupled to a 125 mm diameter position sensitive photomultiplier tube. An additional standard 125 mm diameter photomultiplier tube coupled to a NaI(Tl) scintillator acts as the coincident detector. to achieve high resolution images the detector system utilizes a custom-built copper laminate high resolution collimator. The 125I detector system can achieve a spatial resolution of less than 2 mm FWHM for an object at a distance of 1.5 cm from the collimator. The measured total detector sensitivity while using the copper collimator was 68 cpm/muCi.;Results of in vivo mouse imaging studies of the biodistribution of iodine, melatonin, and a neurotransmitter analog (RTI-55) are presented. Many studies in molecular biology deal with following the expression and regulation of a gene at different stages of an organism\u27s development or under different physiological conditions. This detector system makes it possible for laboratories without access to standard nuclear medicine radiopharmaceuticals to perform in vivo imaging research on small a mammals using a whole range of 125I labeled markers that are obtainable from commercial sources

Lightweight Thermal Management Material for Enhancement of Through-Thickness Thermal Conductivity

A flexible sheet of aligned carbon nanotubes includes an array of aligned nanotubes held in a polymer matrix material. The carbon nanotubes have an average length of between about 50 microns and about 500 microns. The polymer matrix has an average thickness of between about 10 microns and about 500 microns. The flexible sheet has a density of about 0.2 to about 1.0 glee and includes between about 98 to about 60 weight percent aligned carbon nanotubes and between about 2 and about 40 weight percent polymer. A tape of aligned carbon nanotubes, a method for producing a tape of aligned carbon nanotubes, a method of producing the flexible aligned carbon nanotube sheet material and a method of increasing unidirectional heat conduction from a work piece are also disclosed

Analyzing the Relative Equity of School Aid Distribution Relating to Oil and Gas Tax, Employing Impact Aid, Property Tax, and Severance Tax Systems

Statement of the problem: The purpose of this study was to define relative equity and then propose an alternative to the present system for more equitable financial assistance to school districts in which taxes on severed resources are substituted for taxes on increment of property wealth related to existence of resources. There apparently was a great deal of dissatisfaction among school administrators in North Dakota, as well as those individuals in the public sector who are informed of the issues, concerning the present system of generation and distribution of oil and gas tax revenues in North Dakota. It has been argued that the present formula for generation and distribution of oil and gas tax revenue does not meet the intent of the North Dakota State Foundation Aid Program. The intent of the foundation program was to provide equal educational opportunity, as reflected by weighted dollars, for every student in the state. An additional need for this study was outlined in federal legislation which addresses itself to providing equity guidelines to use in developing state foundation aid programs. House Concurrent Resolution 1037 of the Forty-Fifth Legislative Assembly indicated the need for this study when it stated that recent court decisions, e.g., (Serrano versus Priest) have focused attention on the fact that the state had an obligation to provide an equal opportunity for all students and that local support could not be the function of the wealth of the local school district. This resolution further resolved that there was a need to study the financial effect on school districts of large industrial plants, both those subject to property taxes and those subject to taxes in lieu of property taxes, including a study of deductions from state foundation program payments for taxes received from such plants and other sources of tax revenue. Method of the Study: Four alternative models were tested to determine the difference in the amount of state and local aid received by sample school districts. Plan A which was the present severance tax model; Plan B which was the capitalization of income model; Plan C which was the property tax model; and Plan D which was an impact aid model, were tested using the statistical method of multiple linear regression in this study. Comparisons were made by analyzing the present North Dakota model and the three alternative models, identified later in the study. These comparisons were made to determine which elements within each model contributed most significantly to an equitable distribution of the tax on severed resources. An equitable distribution was a distribution where the actual per pupil cost of education matched the predicted per pupil cost of education. After determining the effect of elements within the present North Dakota model and the three alternative models, a composite model for generation and distribution of oil and gas tax was to be developed. Attempts to construct a composite model failed. As a result, a composite model is not presented in this study. A systematic sample was taken of all school districts in North Dakota which received oil and gas tax revenue during the 1976-77 school term. The sample was obtained by listing all oil and gas districts by county in alphabetical order. Every third district was selected from this list. The Results: Research Hypothesis number one stated whether school districts were being compensated excessively, sufficiently, or insufficiently for additional students generated by oil and gas activity. As a result of an analysis using an established range it was found that fifteen school districts received certain amounts of oil and gas tax revenue that were above the hypothetical equity range. One school district received revenue which was below the hypothetical equity range, while five school districts received sufficient revenue according to the present formula of generation and distribution of oil and gas tax revenue and based on the hypothetical equity range. Research hypothesis number two stated what features of alternative systems of generation and distribution of oil and gas taxes to school districts provided them with more relative equity than the present system. Using a descriptive statistical procedure it was found that there were differences in relative equity for various school districts from one alternative model to the other. Although these differences were evident between models for various school districts, none of the four alternative models were more equitable than the present model. Research question number three asked whether there was an eclectic model of generation and distribution of oil and gas tax that would be more equitable than the present system. As a result of analyzing the variable data from the four alternative plans of generation and distribution of oil and gas revenue, the writer was unable to determine any characteristics of any of the four plans that seemed to be consistently more equitable. Since no apparent commonality was identified in any of the variables in any of the four plans no eclectic model was presented. Conclusions: The following conclusions were drawn from the analysis of the data collected and from the review of the literature.1. There was a high correlation between the per pupil cost of education and the per pupil oil and gas tax fevenue.2. The utilization of a hypothetical equity range showed that certain school districts received sufficient revenue from oil and gas taxes which were within the range, while others received amounts above the range, and one district received revenue below the range under the present system of generation and distribution of oil and gas tax revenue.3. The identified independent variables contributed a low percentage to the prediction of the dependent variable.4. The size of a school district had a substantial effect on the relative equity of generation and distribution of oil and gas tax revenue.5. There seemed to be no consistent similarities in data that could have a causal effect on high or low residuals. The writer could not determine the reason for this inconsistency other than conjecture that some other variable or variables, that had not yet been identified, were having an effect on the dependent variable.6. The variables identified did not determine the relative equity of generation and distribution of oil and gas taxes.7. The relative equity of the distribution of oil and gas tax revenue affected individual districts differently in four alternative plans.8. The mean mill levy for school districts that received oil and gas taxes was low in comparison to the state average local mill levy

Silicon Carbide Capacitive High Temperature MEMS Strain Transducer

Air Force Research Lab Air Vehicles directorate performs research on hypersonic vehicles. To verify materials or designs of hypersonic vehicles, they have a need to measure strain at temperatures exceeding 700°C. Strain sensors have the ability to measure strain. Strain is the deformation of materials due to internal stresses in a material. Internal stresses occur when a material is subjected to a force. Traditional strain sensors use Piezoresistive effects to measure strain, which is temperature dependent and making them unusable at high temperatures. This paper discusses a novel strain sensing device, sensing capacitance instead of piezoresistance. The strain sensor is modeled mathematically and simulated using Coventorware?. The results are presented here, along with recommendations for future work

Lightweight Thermal Management Material for Enhancement of Through-Thickness Thermal Conductivity

A flexible sheet of aligned carbon nanotubes includes an array of aligned nanotubes held in a polymer matrix material. The carbon nanotubes have an average length of between about 50 microns and about 500 microns. The polymer matrix has an average thickness of between about 10 microns and about 500 microns. The flexible sheet has a density of about 0.2 to about 1.0 g/cc and includes between about 98 to about 60 weight percent aligned carbon nanotubes and between about 2 and about 40 weight percent polymer. A tape of aligned carbon nanotubes, a method for producing a tape of aligned carbon nanotubes, a method of producing the flexible aligned carbon nanotube sheet material and a method of increasing unidirectional heat conduction from a work piece are also disclosed

Explorations in Distributed Ray Tracing and Photometry of Large Scenes

This work encapsulates three explorations into different implementations of distributed ray tracing, that is to say, ray tracing that has been distributed across multiple machines. Our goals lie in the rendering of scenes with more geometry than can fit within the memory of a single computer, so we focus on the distribution of memory. Ultimately, this work discusses a Spark standard (or classical) distributed ray tracer, a Spark photometric distributed ray tracer, and a single-machine Akka Typed photometric ray tracer with some basis for future distribution. Individual timing results for each ray tracer are included, but they cannot be compared due to differences in their generation. Qualitative comparisons between the ray tracers and their approaches are made, and recommendations are given to future researchers in this niche