6,088 research outputs found
Appendange deployment mechanism for the Hubble Space Telescope program
The key requirements, a design overview, development testing (qualification levels), and two problems and their solutions resolved during the mechanism development testing phase are presented. The mechanism described herein has demonstrated its capability to deploy/restow two large Hubble Space Telescope deployable appendages in a varying but controlled manner
Design and fabrication of noncondensing radiator for environmental evaluation of space power mercury Rankine system
Conceptual and mechanical design analyses, and fabrication of noncondensing radiator for environmental testing of space power mercury Rankine syste
Book Reviews
THE ASSAULT ON PRIVACY. By Arthur R. Miller. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 1971. Pp. xiv, 333. 17.50 (Paperback)
Multidisciplinary group performanceâmeasuring integration intensity in the context of the North West London Integrated Care Pilot
Introduction: Multidisciplinary Group meetings (MDGs) are seen as key facilitators of integration, moving from individual to multidisciplinary decision-making, and from a focus on individual patients to a focus on patient groups. We have developed a method for coding MDG transcripts to identify whether they are or are not vehicles for delivering the anticipated efficiency improvements across various
providers and apply it to a test case in the North West London Integrated Care Pilot.
Methods: We defined âintegratingâ as the process within the MDG meeting that enables or promotes an improved collaboration, improved understanding, and improved awareness of self and others within the local healthcare economy such that efficiency improvements could
be identified and action taken. Utterances within the MDGs are coded according to three distinct domains grounded in concepts from communication, group decision-making, and integrated care literaturesâthe Valence, the Focus, and the Level. Standardized weighted integrative intensity scores are calculated across ten time deciles in the Case Discussion providing a graphical representation of its integrative intensity. Results: Intra- and Inter-rater reliability of the coding scheme was very good as measured by the Prevalence and Bias-adjusted Kappa
Score. Standardized Weighted Integrative Intensity graph mirrored closely the verbatim transcript and is a convenient representation of complex communication dynamics. Trend in integrative intensity can be calculated and the characteristics of the MDG can be pragmatically described.
Conclusion: This is a novel and potentially useful method for researchers, managers and practitioners to better understand MDG dynamics and to identify whether participants are integrating. The degree to which participants use MDG meetings to develop an integrated way
of working is likely to require management, leadership and shared values
Characterization of early cortical population response to thalamocortical input in vitro
The in vitro thalamocortical slice preparation of mouse barrel cortex allows for stimulation of the cortex through its natural afferent thalamocortical pathway. This preparation was used here to investigate the first stage of cortical processing in the large postsynaptic dendritic networks as revealed by voltage sensitive dye imaging (VSDI). We identified the precise location and dimensions of two clearly distinguishable dendritic networks, one in the granular layer (GL) IV and one in the infragranular layer (IGL) V and VI and showed that they have different physiological properties. DiI fluorescent staining further revealed that thalamocortical axons project on to these two networks in the typical barrel like form, not only in the granular but also in the IGL. Finally we investigated the short-term dynamics of both the VSDI signal and the local field potential (LFP) in response to a train of eight-pulses at various frequencies in both these layers. We found evidence of differences in the plasticity between the first two response peaks compared to the remaining six peaks as well as differences in short-term plasticity between the VSDI response and the LFP. Our findings suggest, that at least early cortical processing takes place in two separate dendritic networks that may stand at the beginning of further parallel computation. The detailed characterization of the parameters of these networks may provide tools for further research into the complex dynamics of large dendritic networks and their role in cortical computation
Development of an integrated cognitive behavioral therapy for anxiety and opioid use disorder: Study protocol and methods
Opioid use disorder is a highly disabling psychiatric disorder, and is associated with both significant functional disruption and risk for negative health outcomes such as infectious disease and fatal overdose. Even among those who receive evidence-based pharmacotherapy for opioid use disorder, many drop out of treatment or relapse, highlighting the importance of novel treatment strategies for this population. Over 60% of those with opioid use disorder also meet diagnostic criteria for an anxiety disorder; however, efficacious treatments for this common co-occurrence have not be established. This manuscript describes the rationale and methods for a behavioral treatment development study designed to develop and test an integrated cognitive-behavioral therapy for those with co-occurring opioid use disorder and anxiety disorders. The aims of the study are (1) to develop and pilot test a new manualized cognitive behavioral therapy for co-occurring opioid use disorder and anxiety disorders, (2) to test the efficacy of this treatment relative to an active comparison treatment that targets opioid use disorder alone, and (3) to investigate the role of stress reactivity in both prognosis and recovery from opioid use disorder and anxiety disorders. Our overarching aim is to investigate whether this new treatment improves both anxiety and opioid use disorder outcomes relative to standard treatment. Identifying optimal treatment strategies for this population are needed to improve outcomes among those with this highly disabling and life-threatening disorder.This study was funded by NIDA grant DA035297. The funding source had no involvement in the study design, analysis and interpretation of data, writing of the report, or the decision to submit the article for publication. (DA035297 - NIDA)Accepted manuscrip
Diversity, Dilemmas and Transformation in Post-Compulsory Education: an Introduction to the Special Issue on Work Based Research
As governments recognize the central place of post-compulsory education in regenerating and modernizing the economic and social fabric of society (BIS 2008), it is appropriate for us as educational researchers to question whether this recognition beckons a different role for research in post-compulsory education. Much of this research is work based, using a broad interpretation of this term, and the majority of articles received by this journal (though the proportion published is a lower one) reflect this balance. Work based research in education poses particular challenges for the researcher and the practitioner, whether the focus is practitioner research, in which case the dilemmas can centre on potential role conflict between practitioner and researcher roles, or whether the work based research is observational â analyzing othersâ professional practice, in which case the dilemmas can centre on power relations between researcher and researched, the politics of research, and ethical questions around care for participants and the degree of their involvement or non-involvement in the total research enterprise. This article reviews the prospects for work based research in post-compulsory education and introduces the articles in this special issue
Mechanism of action of 5-arninosalicylic acid
5-Aminosalicylic Acid (5-ASA) has been used for over 50 years in the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease in the pro-drug form sulphasalazine (SASP). SASP is also used to treat rheumatoid arthritis. However whether the therapeutic properties of SASP are due to the intact molecule, the 5-ASA or sulphapyridine components is unknown. Several mechanisms of action have been proposed for 5-ASA and SASP including interference in the metabolism of arachidonic acid to prostaglandins and leukotrienes, scavenging,of reactive oxygen species, effects on leucocyte function and production of cytokines. However, it is unlikely that the anti-inflammatory properties of SASP and 5-ASA are due to several different properties but more likely that a single property of 5-ASA explains the theraapeutic effects of 5-ASA and SASP. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are involved in the metabolism of prostaglandins and leukotrienes and can act as second messengers, and so the scavenging of ROS may be the single mechanism of action of 5-ASA that gives rise to its antiinflammatory effects in both inflammatory bowel disease and rheumatoid arthritis
A Statistics Primer
Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/67032/2/10.1177_036354659702500425.pd
Sexual selection and population divergence III : interspecific and intraspecific variation in mating signals
Funding: Orthopterists' Society, Natural Environment Research Council (Grant Number(s): NE/G00949X/1, NE/G014906/1, NE/L011255/1), ARC (Grant Number(s): DP180101708).A major challenge for studying the role of sexual selection in divergence and speciation is understanding the relative influence of different sexually selected signals on those processes in both intraâ and interspecific contexts. Different signals may be more or less susceptible to coâoption for species identification depending on the balance of sexual and ecological selection acting upon them. To examine this, we tested three predictions to explain geographic variation in longâ versus shortârange sexual signals across a 3,500Â +Â km transect of two related Australian field cricket species (Teleogryllus spp.): (a) selection for species recognition, (b) environmental adaptation and (c) stochastic divergence. We measured male calling song and male and female cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) in offspring derived from wild populations, reared under common garden conditions. Song clearly differentiated the species, and no hybrids were observed suggesting that hybridization is rare or absent. Spatial variation in song was not predicted by geography, genetics or climatic factors in either species. In contrast, CHC divergence was strongly associated with an environmental gradient supporting the idea that the climatic environment selects more directly upon these chemical signals. In light of recently advocated models of diversification via ecological selection on secondary sexual traits, the different environmental associations we found for song and CHCs suggest that the impact of ecological selection on population divergence, and how that influences speciation, might be different for acoustic versus chemical signals.Publisher PDFPeer reviewe
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