Residential Real Estate Prices: A Room with a View

This article is the winner of the Real Estate Broker / Agency manuscript prize (sponsored by the Center for the Study of Real Estate Brokerage/ Agency at Cleveland State University) presented at the 2001 American Real Estate Society Annual Meeting. This study examines the effect that a view of Lake Erie has on the value of a home. Unlike previous studies, the current investigation is able to successfully control for view. That is, because of the unique building codes of lakefront homes in this sample, homes analyzed either do or do not have a view. Moreover, transaction-based home prices are used which is an improvement over previous studies that rely on appraisal-based data. The results indicate that square footage and lot size also significantly affect a home’s value. More importantly, having this very desirable view adds $256,544.72 (an 89.9% premium) to the value of the home.

Cell specific analysis of Arabidopsis leaves using fluorescence activated cell sorting

After initiation of the leaf primordium, biomass accumulation is controlled mainly by cell proliferation and expansion in the leaves1. However, the Arabidopsis leaf is a complex organ made up of many different cell types and several structures. At the same time, the growing leaf contains cells at different stages of development, with the cells furthest from the petiole being the first to stop expanding and undergo senescence1. Different cells within the leaf are therefore dividing, elongating or differentiating; active, stressed or dead; and/or responding to stimuli in sub-sets of their cellular type at any one time. This makes genomic study of the leaf challenging: for example when analyzing expression data from whole leaves, signals from genetic networks operating in distinct cellular response zones or cell types will be confounded, resulting in an inaccurate profile being generated. To address this, several methods have been described which enable studies of cell specific gene expression. These include laser-capture microdissection (LCM)2 or GFP expressing plants used for protoplast generation and subsequent fluorescence activated cell sorting (FACS)3,4, the recently described INTACT system for nuclear precipitation5 and immunoprecipitation of polysomes6. FACS has been successfully used for a number of studies, including showing that the cell identity and distance from the root tip had a significant effect on the expression profiles of a large number of genes3,7. FACS of GFP lines have also been used to demonstrate cell-specific transcriptional regulation during root nitrogen responses and lateral root development8, salt stress9 auxin distribution in the root10 and to create a gene expression map of the Arabidopsis shoot apical meristem11. Although FACS has previously been used to sort Arabidopsis leaf derived protoplasts based on autofluorescence12,13, so far the use of FACS on Arabidopsis lines expressing GFP in the leaves has been very limited4. In the following protocol we describe a method for obtaining Arabidopsis leaf protoplasts that are compatible with FACS while minimizing the impact of the protoplast generation regime. We demonstrate the method using the KC464 Arabidopsis line, which express GFP in the adaxial epidermis14, the KC274 line, which express GFP in the vascular tissue14 and the TP382 Arabidopsis line, which express a double GFP construct linked to a nuclear localization signal in the guard cells (data not shown; Figure 2). We are currently using this method to study both cell-type specific expression during development and stress, as well as heterogeneous cell populations at various stages of senescence

Form and Function: X-Ray Scattering and Spectroscopy of Transition Metal-Based Nanoparticles

In recent decades, nanoparticles have been found to possess unique, tunable properties with an enormous variety of applications. The atomic and nanoscale structures govern these functional properties, and structural deviations from the bulk, in part, are responsible for the vast technological uses of nanoparticles. This dissertation tackles the understanding of structure in a number of metal, metal phosphide, and metal oxide nanoparticle systems. Additionally, the syntheses of monodispersed nanoparticle systems allow for correlating their structure with functional properties. Real space analysis using pair distribution functions of monometallic (Ni, Pd) nanoparticles of less than 5 nm in diameter revealed a deviation from the bulk face-centered cubic structure. Their local atomic packing disorder and lack of long-range order resemble that of bulk metallic glasses, which often consist of complex mixtures of a multitude of elements. Bulk metallic glasses have high mechanical strength and can sustain elastic deformations. The significant connection between these two seemingly disparate systems lie in the short-range ordering of their atomic packing motifs, which consist of icosahedral symmetry as seen in their pair distribution functions. Cobalt phosphide (Co2P) nanorods are promising as inexpensive, earth abundant catalysts for the oxygen reduction reaction in fuel cells. Additionally, their 1-D structures demonstrated greater stability as compared to conventional Pt catalysts. Their structure was investigated using high-resolution electron microscopy and a suite of X-ray scattering and absorption techniques. The dynamic structural nature of the solid-solid phase transition in vanadium dioxide (VO2) thin films was investigated using X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy. Substitution of transition metal dopants into lattice sites revealed the structurally-driven depression of the metal-to-insulator transition temperature. Bridging form and function, this dissertation reports the colloidal synthesis of monodispersed nanoparticles alongside structural investigations and functional testing

ANALISA PENGGUNAAN SILICON CONTROLLED RECTIFIER PADA ELEKTROPLATING TEMBAGA/BAJA KARBON RENDAH

Electroplating is one of the engineering improvements in the characteristics of metal materials. Copper coating is a pre-coating before further coating for steel. The surface area of the material is in line with the strong current requirements required for the normal coating process. However, too much current flowing into the cathode results in erosion at the anode. Silicon Controlled Rectifier (SCR) is a component made of semiconductor silicon. It has a function as a controller or switch. Silicon Controlled Rectifiers can be used to reduce coating currents in copper electroplating. The setting of the coating current can be done on copper electroplating of low carbon steel cathodes with a cross-sectional area of 7500 mm2 of 4.5 A; 5 A; 6 A; 6.5 A and 6.7 A. The best copper coating results with a 10 minute coating time are shown in the current 6.5 A with a coating mass of 1.11 grams and 1.06 grams. This proves the need for a reduction in the maximum flow so that optimal coating is achieved

Pseudoaneurysm of profunda femoris artery: a rare complication after intramedullary fixation for an intertrochanteric femur fracture

Intertrochanteric fracture fixation with a trochanteric femoral nail rarely leads to any vascular or neurological complications. The aim of this case report is to identify a patient with post-operative Pseudoaneurysm of profunda femoris artery and how to manage it. We report a case of 79-year-old male who developed a Pseudoaneurysm of the profunda femoris artery 3 days after intramedullary femoral nailing for a intertrochanteric femur fracture. Percutaneous embolization was performed with subsequent resolution of the symptoms. Diagnosis of vascular complications after hip surgery may be very challenging because symptoms are often nonspecific. Despite their rarity, it is important to know this type of complications to address the diagnostic pathway in the right direction and to treat them promptly

Subjective Outcome Evaluation and Factors Related to Perceived Effectiveness of the Project P.A.T.H.S. in Hong Kong

Based on a sample of 24,457 participated students, the present study investigated participants' subjective evaluation of the Tier 2 Program of the Project P.A.T.H.S. in the 2009/2010 academic year. Participants generally held positive views toward the Tier 2 Program and program instructor and perceived the program to be beneficial to their development. Programs involving adolescents alone were evaluated more positively than programs involving parents and/or teachers. Students' grade and program type did not show significant impact on participants' subjective evaluation of the project. Consistent with previous reports, perceived effectiveness of the program was significantly predicted by students' perceptions about the program and program instructor. These findings provide further support that the Tier 2 Program is effective in promoting positive development among adolescents with greater psychosocial needs

A new way of understanding the customer, for fibre manufacturers

This paper describes a collaborative research project run as part of the UK based Textile & Clothing Industry Forum, that aimed to investigate new ways of understanding the end customer. In deciding to ‘speak’ to the end customer, the fibre manufacturer Tencel Limited made a radical move to break away from the traditional structure of the apparel supply chain. This paper describes how a combination of a Kano questionnaire and empathic design techniques developed for the automotive industry were effectively used to gather new insights into how customers really perceived Tencel’s fibre, and enable the product development team to ‘walk in the shoes’ of the people they design for. The paper concludes that applying these techniques to the textiles industry is a very effective way of obtaining rich and genuine opinions from the end customer and saw that the ‘raw’ video data generated proved to be a very successful way of communicating with senior management

cDNA cloning of MCT1, a monocarboxylate transporter from rat skeletal muscle

AbstractPCR was used to amplify the coding region of CHO MCT1 cDNA. This was then used to screen a rat skeletal muscle cDNA library which lead to the isolation of a full length cDNA encoding MCT1 from rat. The cDNA derived amino acid sequence shows 94% and 86% identity to CHO and human MCT1, respectively