Radar transponder antenna pattern analysis for the space shuttle

In order to improve tracking capability, radar transponder antennas will soon be mounted on the Shuttle solid rocket boosters (SRB). These four antennas, each being identical cavity-backed helices operating at 5.765 GHz, will be mounted near the top of the SRB's, adjacent to the intertank portion of the external tank. The purpose is to calculate the roll-plane pattern (the plane perpendicular to the SRB axes and containing the antennas) in the presence of this complex electromagnetic environment. The large electrical size of this problem mandates an optical (asymptotic) approach. Development of a specific code for this application is beyond the scope of a summer fellowship; thus a general purpose code, the Numerical Electromagnetics Code - Basic Scattering Code, was chosen as the computational tool. This code is based on the modern Geometrical Theory of Diffraction, and allows computation of scattering of bodies composed of canonical problems such as plates and elliptic cylinders. Apertures mounted on a curved surface (the SRB) cannot be accomplished by the code, so an antenna model consisting of wires excited by a method of moments current input was devised that approximated the actual performance of the antennas. The improvised antenna model matched well with measurements taken at the MSFC range. The SRB's, the external tank, and the shuttle nose were modeled as circular cylinders, and the code was able to produce what is thought to be a reasonable roll-plane pattern

Healthy Living An In-Depth Look

Features Dr. Ritu Grewal, pulmonologist and attending physician at Jefferson Sleep Disorder Center Women\u27s Program

The Effect of Emergency Department Length of Stay on Clinical Outcomes for Critically Ill or Injured Patients

The purpose of the study was to identify the effects of the emergency department length of stay on clinical outcomes for critically ill or injured patients in the regional referral community hospital. Delays in transfer have been associated with increased mortality rates, prolonged length of stays, and poor outcomes. Emergency departments are designed to respond to immediate life or limb threatening emergencies. A quantitative, descriptive, retrospective design was used in this study. Data was collected from APACHE II, trauma databases, and ED logs. The study was conducted in a 752 bed hospital in the western North Carolina. Data was analyzed from 1520 patients. Critically ill or injured patients who stayed in the ED greater than 3 hours and less than 6 hours were more likely to die in the critical care unit (n = 46, p = 0.033). Five patients developed a ventilator associated pneumonia (p = 0.042). The study results suggest significant effects on mortality when transfer to the critical care unit is delayed 3-6 hours. The delay in implementing best clinical practices affects the patient outcomes as suggested from the significance of the ventilator associated pneumonia rates

Does the church in Scotland still need theology?

In this paper, which was highly commended by the Fraser Prize 2013 Reading Panel, Jason Radcliff argues that the church should be theologically conditioned as the Body and Bride of Christ. Following Athanasius, Dr Radcliff argues that theology is the work of the Spirit who enables human understanding of God, allowing us, as Calvin maintained, to be ourselves. He concludes by emphasizing the necessity of theology in preaching and in discussions regarding the nature of ministry.Publisher PD

Sanctification: words for the weary

Within Reformed circles there has been a long and continuing debate on the relation of justification and sanctification. By drawing on the work of Andrew Murray, J. B. Torrance, T. F. Torrance and Gary Deddo, Alexandra Radcliff gives a succinct account of our justification and sanctification as inseparable in Christ, arguing that our sanctification in Christ is, then, the source of a new identity which liberates us, progressively, to live life in holiness.Publisher PD

Effects of Teaching Argument to First-Year Community-College Students Using a Structural and Dialectical Approach

The purpose of this study was to measure to what extent an experimental method of teaching argument incorporating elements from both Toulmin’s (2004) structural approach and Walton’s (2013) dialectical approach effects first-year college students’ ability to write strong arguments. This experimental instruction used critical questioning as a strategy in building a strong argument, incorporating alternative viewpoints, and creating a dialogue between claims and counterclaims, backed logically by verifiable evidence from reliable sources. Using the Analytic Scoring Rubric of Argumentative Writing (ASRAW; Stapleton & Wu, 2015) that includes the argument elements of claims, data, counterclaim, counterclaim data, rebuttal claim, and rebuttal data, the efficacy of the experimental instruction method was evaluated by collecting and scoring students’ preand postoutlines of arguments on topics involving controversial issues and students\u27 argument research-paper outlines. Scores on these three sets of outlines in each class included in the study (Spring n=20 and Fall n=23 2020) were compared to investigate the efficacy of using the experimental instructional approach. The rubric analysis was based on outlines that incorporate the basic elements of a strong argument as defined above, both before and after this instructional method was employed. The instruction was designed to develop students’ understanding of bias in the context of building an argument by helping students learn to explore and integrate alternative viewpoints, to reflect on their own assumptions, to discover bias in sources, and ultimately to build strong arguments from reliable sources that take more than one perspective into account. The instruction consisted of an interactive lecture and pair and group work on a controversial issue in class. This study took place at a medium-sized community college in an “extended” 6- unit composition course designed for students needing more support than a traditional 3- or 4-unit first-year English Composition course. The student population of this community college and of this course was very diverse and representative of Northern California’s demographics, with many students being first- or second-generation immigrants, from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, the first in their family to attend college, or a combination. Overall, based on the paired-sample t tests for the pre- and postoutline pair, the pre- and research-paper outline pair on the total scores and on the counter-argument and evidence and rebuttals and evidence scores for both Spring and Fall 2020 classes were statistically significant, except for post- and research-paper outlines for Fall 2022 for total, counter-argument and evidence, pre- and postoutlines, and post- and research-paper outlines for rebuttal and rebuttal evidence. Effect size, as measured by Cohen’s d, for pairs that were statistically significant were all large, ranging from 0.80 to 1.26 except for counter-argument and counter-argument evidence for pre- and postoutlines for the Spring 2020 class that were both medium, ranging from 0.58 to 0.65

Implementing Integrated Care in Family Medicine: Description and Outcomes in an Underserved Population

Introduction: Family physicians provide access to medical and behavioral healthcare for many underserved populations. Integrating behavioral health clinicians into primary care practices has been proposed as one of the most effective ways to increase access to necessary behavioral health services for many Americans. Integrated behavioral healthcare (IBHC) has begun to be implemented in family medicine practices but there is limited research examining the impact for patients and clinic staff. This study begins to fill this gap in the literature by examining the effects of implementing integrated behavioral healthcare in an urban family medicine clinic in a medically underserved area. Objective: The objective of this study is to describe patients who use IBHC services, examine behavioral health outcomes, and study patient and staff satisfaction with IBHC services. This is done in the context of the Quadruple Aim of Healthcare which purposes to improve population health, provide a better patient experience, create smarter healthcare spending, and improve medical staff work quality of life. Aspects of implementation are addressed as well, namely the appropriateness, acceptability, adoption, feasibility, and penetration of IBHC services. Methods: IBHC services were introduced to an urban family medicine clinic in a medically underserved area with a census of greater than 4,500 patients (56.17% African American, 24.4% White, 1% Asian, 22.9% Latino/a; 33.3 % Children under 18). Using information from medical records, a description and comparison of the general clinic population and those that use IBHC services is provided. Behavioral health outcomes were measured by tracking patient anxiety and depression over time, from initial session through follow-up at least 3 months after their final session for a subset of patients. Patient and clinic staff satisfaction were assessed using qualitative and quantitative methods. Supplemental analysis compare behavioral health outcomes against a previous sample of patients from the same clinic before IBHC services were present. Results: Demographic information is presented and compared to highlight the unique difference between race/ethnicity, age, and gender. This study showed that adult patients experienced a significant reduction over time from initial session to follow-up with regards to anxiety, F(1.77, 130.63) = 65.65, p \u3c .001, and depression, F(1.78, 131.68) = 37.88, p \u3c .001. Patient interviews and surveys were analyzed and found that patients generally reported high satisfaction with IBHC services and found their behavioral health needs where addressed in the way they wanted them to be. Finally, medical staff reported high satisfaction with IBHC services and reported that they had reduced stress, increased comfort in caring for patients with behavioral health needs, and improved work quality of life. Discussion: IBHC services were implemented at a family medicine clinic with a population that is overrepresented by minorities and uninsured patients. This study showed that implementation of IBHC addressed components of the Quadruple Aim of Healthcare, namely improvement of population health, enhanced patient experience, and improvement of clinic staff work life. IBHC services were found by patients and staff to be acceptable, appropriate, and feasible. Further, this study demonstrated the ability of a clinic to adopt IBHC services with sufficient penetration (10.8% of patients received at least brief services) after 2 years. Implications for practice and research and future directions are also discussed

QUANTIFYING THE SOURCE AND PATHWAY OF DISSOLVED REACTIVE PHOSPHATE IN KARST DRAINAGE OF THE INNER-BLUEGRASS

In the Midwestern U.S. seasonal hypoxia experienced in the Gulf of Mexico and harmful algal blooms in inland freshwater ponds, lakes, and rivers are partly fueled by dissolved orthophosphate loadings from disturbed landscapes. Efforts to reduce dissolved reactive phosphate (DRP) loadings have had varying levels of success and have led to insufficient water quality improvements. Inefficiencies in conservation strategies can stem from poor understanding of phosphate source and flow pathway dynamics. This study focused on monitoring sources and flow pathways of dissolved reactive P in a karst agroecosystem with phosphatic limestone. We collected event water samples at the Camden Creek watershed outlet in Woodford County, Kentucky and characterized P sources by sampling spring water and soils across the watershed. Oxygen isotope results for orthophosphate at springs suggested significant differences in isotope signatures at high and low flows, despite similar concentrations, likely reflecting differences in connectivity to anthropogenic and ambient P sources. Multiple linear regression models to predict DRP concentrations revealed that a mass-balance unmixing approach may help distinguish between DRP pathways in a heterogeneous karst system better than commonly used hydrograph recession methods. Soils from our study site had high extractable P concentrations at both the surface and deeper soil zones, with high heterogeneity reflecting soil composition and spatial variability in management. Overall, this work provides insight into phosphate source and transport in a karst agroecosystem and provides broader implications for implementing best management strategies to reduce DRP loading in such systems