Convergence science in the Anthropocene: Navigating the known and unknown

Rapidly changing ecological and social systems currently pose significant societal challenges. Navigating the complexity of social-ecological change requires ap- proaches able to cope with, and potentially solve, both foreseen and unforeseen societal challenges. The emergent field of convergence addresses the intricacies of such challenges, and is thus relevant to a broad range of interdisciplinary issues. This paper suggests a way to conceptualize convergence research. It discusses how it relates to two major societal challenges (adaptation, transformation), and to the generation of policy-relevant science. It also points out limitations to the further development of convergence research

Evaluate the efficacy of heat stress audits of your cooling system through core body temperature

A project to evaluate the degree of heat stress in individual dairies was carried out in the summer of 2005. The object of this project was to develop a method to evaluate or audit how effective an individual dairy is in manag-ing heat stress. Approximately 45 herds in 20 different states were audited for the degree of heat stress cows experienced during a 72-hr period. Dairies were selected based on geog-raphy, climate, and facility design. Lactating cows 40 to 100 days in milk (DIM) and dry cows within 30 days of calving were evalu-ated. Vaginal temperatures of 8 cows located in the same group were collected every 5 min by using data loggers (HOBO U12®) attached to a vaginally placed insert (blank CIDR®). Ambient climatic data were collected on the project dairies by using logging devices that collected temperature and relative humidity at 5-min intervals. Census data were collected at each dairy, and included pen sizes, milking frequency, milking times, average milk pro-duction, DIM, parity, holding-pen design, and timing of cow movements. Data were im-ported into Excel (Microsoft, Redmond, WA) as individual cow files aligned by time. The data for an individual cow were then averaged with all other cows in the pen in hourly incre-ments over a 24-hr period. Each hour of the 24-hr period is then a summary of that hour on 3 consecutive days, with 8 devices contribut-ing 12 points per hour per day to the sum-mary. So each hour is a summary of 12 data points x 8 cows x 3 days, or 288 data points per hour. Information was summarized graphically in PowerPoint (Microsoft, Red-mond, WA) and presented to the individual producers, along with recommendations on how to improve their heat-stress abatement practices. The project was not designed as a controlled experiment; therefore, caution is advised in over-interpreting the results. That being said, the project does demonstrate the feasibility and usefulness of using intra-vaginal temperature recording to monitor how well an; Dairy Day, 2006, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, 2006

Running Electroweak Couplings as a Probe of New Physics

The energy dependence of the electroweak gauge couplings has not been measured above the weak scale. We propose that percent-level measurements of the energy dependence of $\alpha_{1,2}$ can be performed now at the LHC and at future higher energy hadron colliders. These measurements can be used to set limits on new particles with electroweak quantum numbers without relying on any assumptions about their decay properties. The shape of the high invariant mass spectrum of Drell-Yan, $p p \rightarrow Z^*/\gamma^* \rightarrow \ell^+ \ell^-$, constrains $\alpha_{1,2}(Q)$, and the shape of the high transverse mass distribution of $p p \rightarrow W^* \rightarrow \ell \nu$ constrains $\alpha_{2}(Q)$. We use existing data to perform the first fits to $\alpha_{1,2}$ above the weak scale. Percent-level measurements are possible because of high precision in theoretical predictions and existing experimental measurements. We show that the LHC already has the reach to improve upon electroweak precision tests for new particles that dominantly couple through their electroweak charges. The 14 TeV LHC is sensitive to the predicted Standard Model (SM) running of $\alpha_2$, and can show that $\alpha_2$ decreases with energy at $2-3 \sigma$ significance. A future 100 TeV proton-proton collider will have significant reach to measure running weak couplings, with sensitivity to the SM running of $\alpha_2$ at $4-5 \sigma$ and sensitivity to winos with masses up to $\sim$ 1.3 TeV at $2\sigma$.Comment: 34 pages + appendices; v2: references and minor changes to text added, version to appear in JHE

A mobile visual diary for personal pain management

Back-pain is one of the most prolific health problems within the population and costs industry lost revenue due to the amount of days people have to take off in order to recover. In this paper, we have targeted this problem and suggested a mobile app for visually diarizing the pain experience of patients. The Android platform is utilized and its technology stack forms the basis for this 3D centric application. Positive evaluations obtained provide evidence of the promising nature of the approach and indicate several future directions of research within mobile pain management

Rainbow domination and related problems on some classes of perfect graphs

Let $k \in \mathbb{N}$ and let $G$ be a graph. A function $f: V(G) \rightarrow 2^{[k]}$ is a rainbow function if, for every vertex $x$ with $f(x)=\emptyset$, $f(N(x)) =[k]$. The rainbow domination number $\gamma_{kr}(G)$ is the minimum of $\sum_{x \in V(G)} |f(x)|$ over all rainbow functions. We investigate the rainbow domination problem for some classes of perfect graphs

Gendered racial microaggressions scale: Measurement invariance across sexual orientation

Gendered racial microaggressions are often assessed using the Gendered Racial Microaggressions Scale. Despite its use with mixed samples of heterosexual and sexual minority Black women, this instrument has yet to be evaluated for its measurement invariance across sexual orientation. This study evaluated the measurement invariance of the Gendered Racial Microaggressions Scale across sexual orientation (heterosexual [n=1,147] versus lesbian, gay, or bisexual [LGB], n=359) in a sample of 1,506 Black cisgender women ages 18–30 years old. The Gendered Racial Microaggressions Scale’s four-factor structure, including Beauty and Sexual Objectification, Silenced and Marginalized, Strong Black Woman, and Angry Black Woman, was replicated with our sample. Results from the multigroup confirmatory factor analysis indicated the Gendered Racial Microaggressions Scale had configural, metric, and scalar invariance across sexual orientation groups. Strict invariance was not established. Multi-group comparison of latent factor mean scores revealed Black LGB women as having higher Beauty and Sexual Objectification scores than Black heterosexual women on the Gendered Racial Microaggressions stress appraisal scale. The Gendered Racial Microaggressions Scale can be recommended in meaningfully assessing differences in latent factor mean scores among Black heterosexual and LGB women. Practitioners, researchers, and policy makers should seek to address the role of intersectional microaggressions in the lived experiences of sexual and gender minorities of color, including as it relates to systemic disadvantage and health, mental health, and social disparitie

Repetitive mild traumatic brain injury causes optic nerve and retinal damage in a mouse model

There is increasing evidence that long-lasting morphologic and functional consequences can be present in the human visual system after repetitive mild traumatic brain injury (r-mTBI). The exact lo- cation and extent of the damage in this condition are not well un- derstood. Using a recently developed mouse model of r-mTBI, we assessed the effects on the retina and optic nerve using histology and immunohistochemistry, electroretinography (ERG), and spectral- domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) at 10 and 13 weeks after injury. Control mice received repetitive anesthesia alone (r-sham). We observed decreased optic nerve diameters and increased cellularity and areas of demyelination in optic nerves in r-mTBI versus r-sham mice. There were concomitant areas of decreased cellularity in the retinal ganglion cell layer and approximately 67% decrease in brain- specific homeobox/POU domain protein 3AYpositive retinal ganglion cells in retinal flat mounts. Furthermore, SD-OCT demonstrated a de- tectable thinning of the inner retina; ERG demonstrated a decrease in the amplitude of the photopic negative response without any change in a- or b-wave amplitude or timing. Thus, the ERG and SD-OCT data correlated well with changes detected by morphometric, histologic, and immunohistochemical methods, thereby supporting the use of these noninvasive methods in the assessment of visual function and morphology in clinical cases of mTBI

Evaluation of the stock structure of cobia (Rachycentron canadum) in the southeastern United States by using dart-tag and genetics data

Available tag-recapture and population genetics data for cobia (Rachycentron canadum) in the south-eastern United States were evaluated to provide information on population structure and determine the geographic boundary between stocks in the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. The movements of 1750 cobia were evaluated on the basis of assigned tagging and recapture zones. Genetic samples from an additional 2796 cobia collected during the presumed spawning season were genotyped at 10 microsatellite loci, and standard population genetic statistical analyses were applied to the resulting sample data set. Tag- recapture results indicate that cobia tagged south of Cape Canaveral, Florida, primarily move between that area and the Gulf of Mexico and that cobia tagged north of Georgia have little interaction with the area south of Cape Canaveral. Cobia tagged at Cape Canaveral distributed widely throughout the entire southeastern coast of the United States. Genetic analysis results agree, indicating separate stocks that occur from Texas through Hobe Sound on the east coast of Florida and from Savannah, Georgia, to the Chesapeake Bay in Virgina, with distinct genetic groupings within the Atlantic Ocean stock. The results indicate a transition area that occurs from Cape Canaveral through northern Georgia, and additional data from this region are necessary to further refine the stock boundary