Seasonal Changes of Benthic Macroinvertebrate Functional Feeding Group Biomass Within Forest and Meadow Habitats of a First-order Michigan (USA) Stream

Little is known about seasonal changes in stream benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages. We determined the ash-free dry mass of macroinvertebrates within a forested and a meadow reach of Fairbanks Creek in northern Lower Michigan throughout all seasons of 2018 and 2019. The macroinvertebrate assemblage of the forested reach was dominated by invertebrates in the shredder functional feeding group (FFG), whereas the meadow reach was composed primarily of scrapers and filtering collectors. Regardless of reach, the biomass of all FFGs was low during the winter and early spring, peaked in May or June, and gradually declined throughout the summer and fall. General trends in biomass were the same for both years of the study, although 2018 had overall higher biomass despite being a slightly cooler year

REGIONAL WATER USE PRACTICES IN THE KWAHU EAST DISTRICT OF GHANA AND THE POTENTIAL INFLUENCE ON DIARRHEAL DISEASE

Background: In low income countries, the Daily Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) of unsafe water, sanitation, and hygiene is 530/100,000 and is the 6th leading cause of death in children. Ghana, located in West Africa, is greatly impacted by poor sanitation and unsafe water supply. The objective of this study is to assess local water use and sanitation practices in the Kwahu East district of Ghana and how they relate to diarrheal disease. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was administered to 236 households in the Kwahu East district. It was divided into four sections: demographics, water use practices, water related illness, and water related sanitation. Prevalence data for certain variables were calculated and simple t-tests compared difference in water practices for different demographic groups based on gender, age, and education status. Results: Surface water and pump-well/borehole were the main sources of water for this area. Household demographics played a role in determining the household water collector. Over 95% of the responders did not treat their water. Moreover, gender, education, and age played significant roles in the degree of knowledge about diarrheal disease. Conclusions: Gender, education, age, and household size are all key factors that impact water practices. The results of this study can be used for the development of culturally sustainable interventions directed towards the improvement of access to safe drinking water, and in turn, reduce waterborne illness

Fast ultrasonic phased array inspection of complex geometries delivered through robotic manipulators and high speed data acquisition instrumentation

Performance of modern robotic manipulators has enabled research and development of fast automated non-destructive testing (NDT) systems for complex geometries. This paper presents recent outcomes of work aimed at removing the bottleneck due to data acquisition rates, to fully exploit the scanning speed of modern 6-DoF manipulators. State of the art ultrasonic instrumentation has been integrated into a large robot cell to enable fast data acquisition, high scan resolutions and accurate positional encoding. A fibre optic connection between the ultrasonic instrument and the server computer enables data transfer rates up to 1.6GB/s. Multiple data collection methods are compared. Performance of the integrated system allows traditional ultrasonic phased array scanning as well as full matrix capture (FMC). In FMC configuration, linear scan speeds up to 156mm/s with 64 pulses per frame are achieved - this speed is only constrained by the acoustic wave propagation in the component. An 8x increase of the speed (up to 1.25m/s) can be achieved using multiple transmission elements, reaching the physical limits for acceptable acoustic alignment of transmission and reception paths. Scan results, relative to a 1.2m x 3m carbon fibre sample, are presented

Acidosis Potentiates the Host Proinflammatory Interleukin-1β Response to Pseudomonas Aeruginosa Infection

Infection by Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and bacteria in general, frequently promotes acidification of the local microenvironment, and this is reinforced by pulmonary exertion and exacerbation. However, the consequence of an acidic environment on the host inflammatory response to P. aeruginosa infection is poorly understood. Here we report that the pivotal cellular and host proinflammatory interleukin-1β (IL-1β) response, which enables host clearance of the infection but can produce collateral inflammatory damage, is increased in response to P. aeruginosa infection within an acidic environment. Synergistic mechanisms that promote increased IL-1β release in response to P. aeruginosa infection in an acidic environment are increased pro-IL-1β induction and increased caspase-1 activity, the latter being dependent upon a functional type III secretion system of the bacteria and the NLRC4 inflammasome of the host. Using an in vivo peritonitis model, we have validated that the IL-1β inflammatory response is increased in mice in response to P. aeruginosa infection within an acidic microenvironment. These data reveal novel insights into the regulation and exacerbation of inflammatory responses to P. aeruginosa

So Small, So Loud: Extremely High Sound Pressure Level from a Pygmy Aquatic Insect (Corixidae, Micronectinae)

To communicate at long range, animals have to produce intense but intelligible signals. This task might be difficult to achieve due to mechanical constraints, in particular relating to body size. Whilst the acoustic behaviour of large marine and terrestrial animals has been thoroughly studied, very little is known about the sound produced by small arthropods living in freshwater habitats. Here we analyse for the first time the calling song produced by the male of a small insect, the water boatman Micronecta scholtzi. The song is made of three distinct parts differing in their temporal and amplitude parameters, but not in their frequency content. Sound is produced at 78.9 (63.6–82.2) SPL rms re 2.10−5 Pa with a peak at 99.2 (85.7–104.6) SPL re 2.10−5 Pa estimated at a distance of one metre. This energy output is significant considering the small size of the insect. When scaled to body length and compared to 227 other acoustic species, the acoustic energy produced by M. scholtzi appears as an extreme value, outperforming marine and terrestrial mammal vocalisations. Such an extreme display may be interpreted as an exaggerated secondary sexual trait resulting from a runaway sexual selection without predation pressure

Matrix Metalloproteinases in Cytotoxic Lymphocytes Impact on Tumour Infiltration and Immunomodulation

To efficiently combat solid tumours, endogenously or adoptively transferred cytotoxic T cells and natural killer (NK) cells, need to leave the vasculature, traverse the interstitium and ultimately infiltrate the tumour mass. During this locomotion and migration in the three dimensional environment many obstacles need to be overcome, one of which is the possible impediment of the extracellular matrix. The first and obvious one is the sub-endothelial basement membrane but the infiltrating cells will also meet other, both loose and tight, matrix structures that need to be overridden. Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are believed to be one of the most important endoprotease families, with more than 25 members, which together have function on all known matrix components. This review summarizes what is known on synthesis, expression patterns and regulation of MMPs in cytotoxic lymphocytes and their possible role in the process of tumour infiltration. We also discuss different functions of MMPs as well as the possible use of other lymphocyte proteases for matrix degradation

Termite sensitivity to temperature affects global wood decay rates.

Deadwood is a large global carbon store with its store size partially determined by biotic decay. Microbial wood decay rates are known to respond to changing temperature and precipitation. Termites are also important decomposers in the tropics but are less well studied. An understanding of their climate sensitivities is needed to estimate climate change effects on wood carbon pools. Using data from 133 sites spanning six continents, we found that termite wood discovery and consumption were highly sensitive to temperature (with decay increasing >6.8 times per 10°C increase in temperature)-even more so than microbes. Termite decay effects were greatest in tropical seasonal forests, tropical savannas, and subtropical deserts. With tropicalization (i.e., warming shifts to tropical climates), termite wood decay will likely increase as termites access more of Earth's surface

Dreams deflected: The Ann Arbor King School "Black English" case.

This dissertation investigates the causes and consequences of the Ann Arbor King School "Black English" case. Filed in Federal District Court in 1977, the King School lawsuit sought to hold the Ann Arbor School District Board responsible for the low academic achievement of the plaintiff children, all residents of a low-income housing project. Chapter One introduces from the theory of Michel Foucault the metaphor of "archaeology," using it to describe the discrete sites out of which the King School case arose. Chapter Two analyzes the discourse of sociolinguistics which formed the core of the testimony presented in during the trial, focusing on the gap between the discourse of the sociolinguistic description of the structure of Black English Vernacular, and the testimony attesting to the "language barrier" present in the "unconscious but evident" attitudes in the King School teachers. Chapter Three challenges the epistemological and political position claimed in the discourse of "bidialectalism." It sets the King School case within a larger context, another site from which the assumptions in the King School case regarding Standard English and the aims and goals of literacy education--social, economic, and cultural integration in the mainstream--can be viewed. Chapter Four plays out the implications for literacy educators of a "double perspective" on difference, juxtaposing speaking of "difference" as an epistemological category with "difference" as a strategic category.Ph.D.English and EducationUniversity of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studieshttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/105559/1/9135629.pdfDescription of 9135629.pdf : Restricted to UM users only

Ash-free dry mass values for northcentral USA caddisflies (Insecta, Trichoptera)

Ash-free dry mass (AFDM) values are presented for the adult stage of 63 caddisfly species commonly found throughout the northcentral US. Weights ranged from 0.01 mg for the smallest species to 7.22 mg for the largest. These values represent the first published data on the AFDM of the adult stage of Trichoptera, and can be used in other studies for more precise assessments of stream conditions without destruction of specimens. This increased precision is demonstrated herein by re-analyzing a previously published data set