Search

Political action has a long history in the health workforce. There are multiple historical examples, from civil disobedience to marches and even sabotage that can be attributed to health workers. Such actions remain a feature of the healthcare community to this day; their status with professional and regulatory bodies is far less clear, however. This has created uncertainty for those undertaking such action, particularly those who are engaged in what could be termed 'contentious' forms of action. This study explored how advocacy and activism were presented in nursing and medical codes of ethics, comparing disciplinary and temporo‐spatial differences to understand how such action may be promoted or constrained by codes. The data for this study comes from 217 codes of ethics. Because of the size of the corpus and to facilitate analysis, natural language processing was utilised, which allowed for an automated exploration of the data and for comparisons to be drawn between groups. This was complemented by a manual search and contextualisation of the data. While there were noticeable differences between medical and nursing codes, overall, advocacy, activism and even politics were rarely discussed explicitly in most codes. When such action was spoken about, this was often vague and imprecise with codes speaking of 'political action' and 'advocacy' in general terms. While some codes were far more forthright in what they meant about advocacy or broader political action (i.e., Nursing codes in Denmark, Norway, Canada) more forceful language that spoke in specific terms or in terms of oppositional or specific actions (e.g., civil disobedience or marches) was almost completely avoided. These results are discussed in relation to the broader literature on codes and the normative questions they raise, namely whether such action should be included in codes of ethics at all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peter Geach offers a novel argument for the immaterialist conclusion that thinking is not a physical activity performed. Two crucial premises of Geach's argument are that thinking is a basic activity and that thinking is a non‐clockable activity. It is argued that since Geach does not clarify in exactly what sense thinking is supposed to be a basic activity, the first premise of his argument has not been justified. It is then argued that the same Wittgensteinian considerations Geach takes to show that there are no interior acts of meaning also show that there are no interior acts of thinking and hence no non‐clockable interior acts of thinking. Thus the second premise of Geach's argument also has not been justified. Therefore, Geach's argument is unconvincing as it stands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Overtaxed by the realities laid bare in the pandemic, nursing has imminent decisions to make. The exigencies of pandemic times overextend a health care infrastructure already groaning under the weight of inequitable distribution of resources and care commodified for profit. We can choose to prioritise different values. Invoking philosopher of science Isbelle Stengers's manifesto for slow science, this is not the only nursing that is possible. With this paper, I pick up threads of nursing's historical ontology, drawing previous scholarship on the historical narratives nurses use to understand themselves. Peeling back nursing's myth to alternate points of origin allows me to consider alternate lines of flight, a speculative adventure in paths not taken but paths that exist nonetheless. I go on to examine what a collective ethic of nursing could be, when we make space for these alternate histories, considering the confluences and conflicts that enable nurses to care and those that inhibit them from doing so. The imperative for this lies in the central importance of the reproductive labour of nursing health care, which leads me to a critique of nursing's capitulation to the pressures of late stage capitalism. This is a problem with ethical and ontological implications both for nursing, and also for those who require nursing care, an imperative to think about the kinds of present/futures for health, care, and health care we might cocreate in collaboration and solidarity with the communities in which nurses are imbricated, shedding the trappings of neoliberalism. There is significant power in the vision and praxis of 28 million nurses and midwives worldwide. Our ethics can guide our imagination which can in turn create possibility. This kind of endeavour—that of dreams and imagination—leads us to what could be, if only we leap. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Healthcare under the auspices of late‐stage capitalism is a total institution that mortifies nurses and patients alike, demanding conformity, obedience, perfection. This capture, which resembles Deleuze's enclosure, entangles nurses in carceral systems and gives way to a postenclosure society, an institution without walls. These societies of control constitute another sort of total institution, more covert and insidious for their invisibility (Deleuze, 1992). While Delezue (1992) named physical technologies like electronic identification badges as key to understanding these societies of control, the political economy of late‐stage capitalism functions as a total institution with no cohesive, centralized, connected material apparatus required. In this manuscript, we outline the ways in which the healthcare industrial complex demands nurse conformity and how that, in turn, operationalizes nurses in service to the institution. This foundation leads to the assertion that nursing must foster a radical imagination for itself, unbound by reality as it presently exists, in order that we might conjure more just, equitable futures for caregivers and care receivers alike. To tease out what a radical imagination might look like, we dwell in paradox: getting folks the care they need in capitalist healthcare systems; engaging nursing's deep history to inspire alternative understandings for the future of the discipline; and how nursing might divest from extractive institutional structures. This paper is a jumping‐off place to interrogate the ways institutions telescope and where nursing fits into the arrangement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With this paper, we walk out some central ideas about posthumanisms and the ways in which nursing is already deeply entangled with them. At the same time, we point to ways in which nursing might benefit from further entanglement with other ideas emerging from posthumanisms. We first offer up a brief history of posthumanisms, following multiple roots to several points of formation. We then turn to key flavors of posthuman thought to differentiate between them and clarify our collective understanding and use of the terms. This includes considerations of the threads of transhumanism, critical posthumanism, feminist new materialism, and the speculative, affirmative ethics that arise from critical posthumanism and feminist new materialism. These ideas are fruitful for nursing, and already in action in many cases, which is the matter we occupy ourselves with in the final third of the paper. We consider the ways nursing is already posthuman—sometimes even critically so—and the speculative worldbuilding of nursing as praxis. We conclude with visions for a critical posthumanist nursing that attends to humans and other/more/nonhumans, situated and material and embodied and connected, in relation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores the potentiality of transdisciplinary methodologies of caring and care that are important to nurses and non-nurses. Topics discussed include importance of extending care beyond healthcare institutions from human to more than human matter, manifestation of care in various spaces, and ways to create networks of care, the necessity of care for survival and its being collaborative by embracing an ethic of joy that is enduring and combines vulnerability with resilience.

The Vitruvian Man is a metaphor for the "ideal man" by feminist posthuman philosopher Rosi Braidotti (2013) as a proxy for eurocentric humanist ideals. The first half of this paper extends Braidotti's concept by thinking about the metaphor of the "ideal nurse" (Vitruvian nurse) and how this metaphor contributes to racism, oppression, and burnout in nursing and might restrict the professionalization of nursing. The Vitruvian nurse is an idealized and perfected form of a nurse with self‐sacrificial language (re)producing self‐sacrificing expectations. The second half of this paper looks at how regulatory frameworks (using the example of UK's Nursing and Midwifery Council Code of Conduct) institutionalize the conditions of possibility through collective imaginations. The domineering expectations found within the Vitruvian nurse metaphor and further codified by regulatory frameworks give rise to boredom and burnout. The paper ends by suggesting possible ways to diffract regulatory frameworks to practice with affirmative ethics and reduce feelings of self‐sacrifice and exhaustion among nurses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing from a keynote panel held at the hybrid 25th International Philosophy of Nursing Conference, this discussion paper examines the question of epistemic silence in nursing from five different perspectives. Contributors include US‐based scholar Claire Valderama‐Wallace, who meditated on ecosystems of settler colonial logics of nursing; American scholar Lucinda Canty discussed the epistemic silencing of nurses of colour; Canadian scholar Amelie Perron interrogated the use of disobedience and parrhesia in and for nursing; Canada‐based scholar Ismalia De Sousa considered what nursing protects in its silences; and Australian scholar Janice Gullick spoke to trans invisibility in nursing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With this paper, I will interrogate some of the implications of nursing's dominant historiography, the history written by and about nursing, and its implications for nursing ethics as a praxis, invoking feminist philosopher Donna Haraway's mantra that 'it matters what stories make worlds, what worlds make stories.' First, I will describe what I have come to understand as the nursing imaginary, a shared consciousness constructed both by nurses from within and by those outside the discipline from without. This imaginary is fashioned in part by the histories nursing produces about the discipline, our historical ontology, which is demonstrative of our disciplinary values and the ethics we practice today. I assert that how we choose to constitute ourselves as a discipline is itself an ethical endeavour, bound up with how we choose to be and what we allow as knowledge in nursing. To animate this discussion, I will outline the received historiography of nursing and dwell in the possibilities of thinking about Kaiserswerth, the training school that prepared Nightingale for her exploits in Crimea and beyond. I will briefly consider the normative values that arise from this received history and consider the possibilities that these normative values foreclose upon. I then shift the frame and ask what might be possible if we centred Kaiserswerth's contested legacy as a training school for formerly incarcerated women, letting go of the sanitary and sanitised visions of nursing as Victorian angels in the hospital. Much energy over the past 250 years has been invested in the professionalisation and legitimation of nursing, predicated (at least in our shared imaginary) on the interventions of Florence Nightingale, but this is one possibility of many. I conclude with a speculative dream of the terrain opens up for nursing if we shed this politics and ethos of respectability and professionalism and instead embrace community, abolition and mutual aid as organising values for the discipline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Niche differentiation and intraguild predation (IGP) can allow ecologically similar species to coexist, although it is unclear which coexistence mechanism predominates in consumer communities. Until now, a limited ability to quantify diets from metabarcoding data has precluded the use of sequencing data to determine the relative importance of these mechanisms.Here, we pair a recent metabarcoding quantification approach with stable isotope analysis to examine diet composition in a wolf spider community.We compare the prevalence of resource partitioning and IGP in these spiders and test whether factors that influence foraging performance, including individual identity, morphology, prey community and environmental conditions, can explain variation in diet composition and IGP.Extensive IGP is likely the primary coexistence mechanism in this community, and other factors to which foraging variation is often attributed do not explain diet composition and IGP here. Rather, IGP increases as prey diversity decreases.Foragers are driven to IGP where resource niches are limited. We highlight the need to examine how drivers of predator–prey interaction strengths translate into foraging in natural systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Equity for students includes access to a healthy teacher workforce across all school settings. This study sought to disentangle the role of racial/ethnic (in)congruence in teacher stress from school resources by using propensity score analysis to match Black, Hispanic, and White elementary teachers on individual, classroom, and school characteristics, and examining whether these matched teachers reported differences in stress outcomes when working in schools where the predominant student demography was either congruent or incongruent with their own. Data from the 2015−2016 National Teacher and Principal Survey was used to find propensity score matches among 7540 Black, Hispanic, and White elementary teachers. Black, Hispanic, and White teachers all reported stronger occupational health outcomes in higher‐resourced, majority‐White schools. Black and Hispanic teachers reported higher levels of occupational health outcomes than White teachers when teaching in under‐resourced, majority−minority schools. These findings suggest important implications for teacher training and support, such as considering increased training and reflection opportunities on culturally responsive teaching, broadening policies that homogeneously categorize and aim to uniformly support "teachers of color," and examining the ways in which teacher identity uniquely informs their workplace experiences and may necessitate differentiated resources. Practitioner points: (1)Black, Hispanic, and White teachers all reported stronger occupational health in well‐resourced schools serving a majority White student population.(2)In under‐resourced schools serving a majority of Black and Brown students, Black and Hispanic teachers reported stronger occupational health than White teachers.(3)The reported occupational health differences between Black and Hispanic teachers and White teachers in under‐resourced schools suggests teacher identity uniquely informs workplace experiences and may necessitate differentiated resources for teachers to thrive across a variety of settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: About 11.4 million individuals admitted to misusing an opioid in the past year. The purpose of this study was to determine if nurses' definitions of pain management differed by location, and to assess the challenges treating patients with pain management concerns. This study fills a gap by comparing quantitative and qualitative feedback from nurses on pain management concerns in their practice location. Methods: Data were collected using an electronic survey emailed to licensed nurses across the United States. The mixed methods survey used multiple choice, select all that apply, and open‐ended responses to gather data on nurses' perceptions of pain management. One hundred and eighty nurses completed the survey and were included in the study. Sixty‐six percent practiced in an urban hospital. Findings: Rural and urban nurses defined pain management as nonopioids and opioids. Seventy‐one percent of urban nurses defined pain management as physical therapy compared to only 61% of rural nurses. Similarly, 62% of urban nurses identified homeopathic medicines and treatments as pain management techniques compared to 52% of rural nurses. From the qualitative data, 32% of rural nurses stated that patients with pain management concerns only want pain medications compared to 14% of urban nurses. Conclusions: Nurses have a critical position in and valuable perspective on the opioid epidemic. Rural communities are relatively disadvantaged in combatting the opioid epidemic. The finding that rural residents only want pain medication instead of alternative pain management options further challenges the country's rural health care workforce. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Critical posthumanism as a philosophical, antifascist nonhierarchical imagination for nursing offers a liberatory passageway forward amidst environmental collapse, an epic pandemic, global authoritarianism, extreme health and wealth disparities, over‐reliance on technology and empirics, and unjust societal systems based in whiteness. Drawing upon philosophical and theoretical works from Black and Indigenous scholars, Haraway's idea of the Chthulucene, Deleuze and Guattari's rhizomatic thought, and Kaba's abolitionist organizing among others, we as activist nurse scholars continue the speculative discussion outlined in prior papers. Here we further imagine how we can engage a radical philosophical mission of care for all beings human and non, walking and working alongside the people and communities nurses accompany, connected as we are on this dystopian celestial orb. Discussion is centred on critical analyses of traditional justice framing in nursing, and on the praxis possibilities found within rhizomatic thought, making kin, and just episteme while knitting filaments of nursing theory and history, humming song lyrics from collective memory, and critically dismantling received wisdoms to stumble toward a more emancipatory present future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The vagina undergoes large finite deformations and has complex geometry and microstructure, resulting in material and geometric nonlinearities, complicated boundary conditions, and nonhomogeneities within finite element (FE) simulations. These nonlinearities pose a significant challenge for numerical solvers, increasing the computational time by several orders of magnitude. Simplifying assumptions can reduce the computational time significantly, but this usually comes at the expense of simulation accuracy. This study proposed the use of reduced order modeling (ROM) techniques to capture experimentally measured displacement fields of rat vaginal tissue during inflation testing in order to attain both the accuracy of higher‐fidelity models and the speed of simpler simulations. The proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) method was used to extract the significant information from FE simulations generated by varying the luminal pressure and the parameters that introduce the anisotropy in the selected constitutive model. A new data‐driven (DD) variational multiscale (VMS) ROM framework was extended to obtain the displacement fields of rat vaginal tissue under pressure. For comparison purposes, we also investigated the classical Galerkin ROM (G‐ROM). In our numerical study, both the G‐ROM and the DD‐VMS‐ROM decreased the FE computational cost by orders of magnitude without a significant decrease in numerical accuracy. Furthermore, the DD‐VMS‐ROM improved the G‐ROM accuracy at a modest computational overhead. Our numerical investigation showed that ROM has the potential to provide efficient and accurate computational tools to describe vaginal deformations, with the ultimate goal of improving maternal health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ingestion of certain plants belonging to the genus Senna in animals can cause a rapidly progressive disease with myonecrosis. Natural senna intoxication was suspected in cattle that were grazing on contaminated pasture. Three calves presented with clinical signs of acute illness, characterised by sternal recumbency and absent patellar and withdrawal reflexes. Senna obtusifolia and Senna occidentalis plants were found in the grazing pastures. Serum biochemistry levels of creatine kinase and aspartate aminotransferase were higher than the reference ranges. Major pathologic findings included multifocal pale tan and dry skeletal muscle with severe segmental monophasic myonecrosis. Senna seeds were identified in the ruminal contents. A diagnosis of Senna intoxication was made given the clinical history and the compatible clinicopathological and pathologic findings. In addition, Senna plants in the pasture along with the Senna seeds were found in the ruminal contents in the affected heifer. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prevalence of smoking is higher in Alaska Native and American Indian (ANAI) populations living in Alaska than the general US population. Genetic factors contribute to smoking and cessation rates. The objective of this study was to compare CYP2A6 genetic variation and CYP2A6 enzyme activity toward nicotine in an ANAI population. ANAI (N = 151) people trying to quit smoking were recruited. DNA samples were genotyped for CYP2A6 variants *1X2A, *1B, *2, *4, *9, *10, *12, and *35. Multiple nicotine metabolites were measured in plasma and urine samples, including cotinine and 3′‐hydroxycotinine used to determine CYP2A6 activity (e.g., nicotine metabolite ratio [NMR]). We calculated summary statistics for all of the genotypes and metabolites and assigned CYP2A6 activity scores based on known information. We studied the association of CYP2A6 variants with the NMR and smoking histories. The overall frequency of the CYP2A6*1B gain of function allele was high in the ANAI versus non‐ANAI populations in other studies. Both *4 null and *9 decrease of function alleles had frequencies similar to previous studies of ANAI populations. In a multivariate analysis, the genotype‐inferred CYP2A6 activity score was associated with both plasma and urine NMR (p value = 8.56E‐08 and 4.08E‐13, respectively). Plasma NMR was also associated with duration of smoking (p value < 0.01) but not urinary total nicotine equivalents uncorrected for creatinine (TNE9uc) or biological sex. Urine NMR was significantly associated (p value < 0.01) with TNE9uc. Variation in NMR in this ANAI population is explained in part by CYP2A6 genetic variation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

During tumor growth—when nutrient and anabolic demands are high—autophagy supports tumor metabolism and growth through lysosomal organelle turnover and nutrient recycling. Ras‐driven tumors additionally invoke non‐autonomous autophagy in the microenvironment to support tumor growth, in part through transfer of amino acids. Here we uncover a third critical role of autophagy in mediating systemic organ wasting and nutrient mobilization for tumor growth using a well‐characterized malignant tumor model in Drosophila melanogaster. Micro‐computed X‐ray tomography and metabolic profiling reveal that RasV12; scrib−/− tumors grow 10‐fold in volume, while systemic organ wasting unfolds with progressive muscle atrophy, loss of body mass, ‐motility, ‐feeding, and eventually death. Tissue wasting is found to be mediated by autophagy and results in host mobilization of amino acids and sugars into circulation. Natural abundance Carbon 13 tracing demonstrates that tumor biomass is increasingly derived from host tissues as a nutrient source as wasting progresses. We conclude that host autophagy mediates organ wasting and nutrient mobilization that is utilized for tumor growth. Synopsis: Autophagy maintains mitochondrial health and nutrient recycling in tumor cells, and promotes the transfer of amino acids from microenvironmental to tumor cells, thereby sustaining tumor metabolism and growth. In this study, X‐ray tomography, metabolomics and carbon tracing reveal that autophagy‐mediated wasting of distal tissues provides amino acids and sugars that increase eye tumor biomass in Drosophila melanogaster. RasV12, scrib−/− tumors induce organ wasting and cause release of amino acids and sugar into circulation.Systemic autophagy mediates muscle wasting and nutrient release.Tumor biomass increasingly derive from host tissues as wasting ensues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Success of adoptive cell therapy mainly depends on the ability of immune cells to persist and function optimally in the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. Although present at the cancer site, immune cells become exhausted and/or inhibited, due to the presence of inhibitory receptors such as PD‐L1 on malignant cells. Novel genetic strategies to manipulate the PD1/PD‐L1 axis comprise (i) PD‐1 reversion where the receptor intracellular domain is replaced with an activating unit, (ii) the use of anti‐PD‐L1 CAR or (iii) the disruption of the PD‐1 gene. We here present an alternative strategy to equip therapeutic cells with a truncated PD‐1 (tPD‐1) to abrogate PD‐1/PD‐L1 inhibition. We show that engagement of tPD‐1 with PD‐L1‐positive tumor unleashes NK‐92 activity in vitro. Furthermore, this binding was sufficiently strong to induce killing of targets otherwise not recognized by NK‐92, thus increasing the range of targets. In vivo treatment with NK‐92 tPD‐1 cells led to reduced tumor growth and improved survival. Importantly, tPD‐1 did not interfere with tumor recognition in PD‐L1 negative conditions. Thus, tPD‐1 represents a straightforward method for improving antitumor immunity and revealing new targets through PD‐L1 positivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines the impact of untreated and treated hearing loss on the quality of life among adults in the United States. The study reveals that hearing loss affects a significant portion of adults over the age of 70 and has negative consequences for their overall health-related quality of life. However, the use of hearing aids and cochlear implants can help alleviate these effects. By utilizing a simulation model, the researchers estimated the changes in quality-adjusted life expectancy caused by hearing loss and its treatment in the US population. The findings underscore the importance of early intervention and treatment to enhance the overall quality of life for individuals with hearing loss. [Extracted from the article]

Warm‐season annual forages are a viable option to complement perennial forage systems. Sugarcane aphid [SCA; Melanaphis sacchari] has emerged as a significant pest in Sorghum spp. compromising forage production. This study evaluated herbage responses and SCA incidence in monoculture and mixtures of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp), crabgrass (Digitaria sanguinalis L.), and sorghum × sudangrass [(Sorghum bicolor L. Moench) × (Sorghum × drummondii)]. Crude protein (CP), lignin, acid detergent fiber (ADF) and neutral detergent fiber (NDF) concentrations were determined. Incidence of SCA was evaluated weekly on sorghum × sudangrass treatments. Herbage mass was not affected (P =.522) by treatments and ranged from 1,361 to 2,104 lb dry matter (DM) acre–1. Greater herbage mass was observed in Year 1 than 2 (1,678 vs. 1,050 lb DM acre–1) most likely associated with higher rainfall on Year 1. Greater (P <.001) CP was observed in Year 2 and was also associated with mixtures containing cowpea. For treatments containing sorghum × sudangrass, the use of insecticide decreased losses in forage production, although sorghum × sudangrass mixtures did not result in a reduction of SCA when compared to its monoculture. This response is most likely associated with less sorghum × sudangrass plant density in mixtures which may have resulted in a higher SCA incidence per plant. Based on our results, the use of warm‐season annuals is a viable option to complement forage production; however, the use of insecticide may be needed to reduce yield and economical losses due to SCA. Core Ideas: Forage mass was not affected by species composition.Mixtures containing cowpea had greater nutritive value.The use of forage mixtures did not reduce aphid density.The use of insecticide is recommended to decrease losses in sorghum × sudangrass yield. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The frequencies of genetic variants in the CYP3A4 and CYP3A5 genes differ greatly across global populations, leading to profound differences in the metabolic activity of these enzymes and resulting drug metabolism rates, with important consequences for therapeutic safety and efficacy. Yet, the impact of genetic variants on enzyme activity are incompletely described, particularly in American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) populations. To characterize genetic variation in CYP3A4 and CYP3A5 and its effect on enzyme activity, we partnered with AIAN people living in two regions of Alaska: Yup'ik Alaska Native people living in the Yukon‐Kuskokwim Delta region of rural southwest Alaska and AIAN people receiving care at the Southcentral Foundation in Anchorage, Alaska. We identified low frequencies of novel and known variation in CYP3A4 and CYP3A5, including low frequencies of the CYP3A4*1G and CYP3A5*1 variants, and linkage disequilibrium patterns that differed from those we previously identified in an American Indian population in western Montana. We also identified increased activity of the CYP3A4*1G allele in vitro and in vivo. We demonstrated that the CYP3A4*1G allele confers increased protein content in human lymphoblastoid cells and both increased protein content and increased activity in human liver microsomes. We confirmed enhanced CYP3A4‐mediated 4β‐vitamin D hydroxylation activity in Yup'ik people with the CYP3A4*1G allele. AIAN people in Alaska and Montana who carry the CYP3A4*1G allele—coupled with low frequency of the functional CYP3A5*1 variant—may metabolize CYP3A substrates more rapidly than people with the reference CYP3A4 allele. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Altered sleep neurophysiology has consistently been reported in adult patients with schizophrenia. Converging evidence suggests that childhood onset schizophrenia (COS), a rare but severe form of schizophrenia, is continuous with adult onset schizophrenia. The aim of the current study was to characterize sleep neurophysiology in COS. An overnight sleep electroencephalogram (EEG) was recorded in 17 children and adolescents with COS (16 years ± 6.6) and 17 age and gender‐matched controls. Non‐rapid eye movement (NREM) and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep EEG power and coherence for the frequency bands delta (1.6–4.8 Hz), theta (5–8.4 Hz), alpha (8.6–11 Hz), beta 1 (16.4–20.2 Hz) and beta 2 (20.4–24.2 Hz) were compared between COS patients and controls. COS patients exhibited significant and widespread deficits in beta power during NREM and REM sleep. With regard to coherence, we found increases in COS patients across brain regions, frequency bands and sleep states. This study demonstrates the utility of the sleep EEG for studying vulnerable populations and its potential to aid diagnosis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to Charles Parsons, a liar sentence does not express a proposition at the level of its primary use but does at the level where it is subjected to semantic interpretation. Thus, richer ontological resources unavailable at the level of primary use are available at the level of interpretation. In response to the objection that the correct semantic interpretation of a liar sentence is thereby distorted, I explain how Wittgenstein's repudiation of "logical objects" and the Tractarian notion of an intrinsically iterative operation show that the liar sentence's primary use anticipates but does not presuppose the richer interpretive ontology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Objective: Effectiveness of behavioural obesity treatments in adolescents is modest. Thus, incorporating participant feedback may lead to improvement of intervention acceptability. This qualitative study's objective was to assess perceived barriers/facilitators to weight loss and healthy lifestyles among diverse adolescents with overweight/obesity (OW/OB). Methods: Adolescents ages 14–19 with BMI ≥ 85th percentile participated in focus groups and identified perceived barriers/facilitators to weight loss and healthy lifestyles. Results: Ten sex‐stratified focus groups (n = 41; n = 13 males, n = 28 females) were conducted in 2018 and 2019. Females reported experiencing weight struggles, whereas males often stated no struggles with weight, despite all participants meeting criterion for OW/OB. Barriers included eating behaviours, family members and internal motivation, with additional barriers of physical activity, friends, time and support cited in females. Facilitators included parental, familial and peer support of healthy eating and exercise, modelling behaviours, internal motivation and organized sports. Two additional findings regarding adolescents' perceived barriers/facilitators include substantial overlap and sex differences of perceived barriers/facilitators. Conclusions: Adolescent males and females with OW/OB experience weight status differently, affecting their perceived barriers/facilitators to weight loss and healthy lifestyles. Tailoring weight management interventions to the unique needs of adolescent females versus adolescent males has the potential to improve intervention quality and effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapidly controlling and switching adhesion is necessary for applications in robotic gripping and locomotion, pick and place operations, and transfer printing. However, switchable adhesives often display a binary response (on or off) with a narrow adhesion range, lack post‐fabrication adhesion tunability, or switch slowly due to diffusion‐controlled processes. Here, pneumatically controlled shape and rigidity tuning is coupled to rapidly switch adhesion (≈0.1 s) across a wide range of programmable adhesion forces with measured switching ratios as high as 1300x. The switchable adhesion system introduces an active polydimethylsiloxane membrane supported on a compliant, foam foundation with pressure‐tunable rigidity where positive and negative pneumatic pressure synergistically control contact stiffness and geometry to activate and release adhesion. Energy‐based modeling and finite element computation demonstrate that high adhesion is achieved through a pressure‐dependent, nonlinear stiffness of the foundation, while an inflated shape at positive pressures enables easy release. This approach enables adhesion‐based gripping and material assembly, which is utilized to pick‐and‐release common objects, rough and porous materials, and arrays of elements with a greater than 14 000x range in mass. The robust assembly of diverse components (rigid, soft, flexible) is then demonstrated to create a soft and stretchable electronic device. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bacterial type IV secretion systems (T4SSs) can mediate conjugation. The T4SS from Neisseria gonorrhoeae possesses the unique ability to mediate DNA secretion into the extracellular environment. The N. gonorrhoeae T4SS can be grouped with F‐type conjugative T4SSs based on homology. We tested 17 proteins important for DNA secretion by N. gonorrhoeae for protein interactions. The BACTH‐TM bacterial two‐hybrid system was successfully used to study periplasmic interactions. By determining if the same interactions were observed for F‐plasmid T4SS proteins and when one interaction partner was replaced by the corresponding protein from the other T4SS, we aimed to identify features associated with the unique function of the N. gonorrhoeae T4SS as well as generic features of F‐type T4SSs. For both systems, we observed already described interactions shared by homologs from other T4SSs as well as new and described interactions between F‐type T4SS‐specific proteins. Furthermore, we demonstrate, for the first‐time, interactions between proteins with homology to the conserved T4SS outer membrane core proteins and F‐type‐specific proteins and we confirmed two of them by co‐purification. The F‐type‐specific protein TraHN was found to localize to the outer membrane and the presence of significant amounts of TraHN in the outer membrane requires TraGN. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phosphodiesterase 3 (PDE3), of which there are two isoforms, PDE3A and PDE3B, hydrolyzes cAMP and cGMP—cyclic nucleotides important in the regulation of pulmonary vascular tone. PDE3 has been implicated in pulmonary hypertension unresponsive to nitric oxide (NO); however, contributions of the two isoforms are not known. Furthermore, adenosine monophosphate‐activated protein kinase (AMPK), a critical regulator of cellular energy homeostasis, has been shown to be modulated by PDE3 in varying cell types. While AMPK has recently been implicated in pulmonary hypertension pathogenesis, its role and regulation in the pulmonary vasculature remain to be elucidated. Therefore, we utilized human pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells (hPASMC) to test the hypothesis that NO increases PDE3 expression in an isoform‐specific manner, thereby activating AMPK and inhibiting hPASMC proliferation. We found that in hPASMC, NO treatment increased PDE3A protein expression and PDE3 activity with a concomitant decrease in cAMP concentrations and increase in AMPK phosphorylation. Knockdown of PDE3A using siRNA transfection blunted the NO‐induced AMPK activation, indicating that PDE3A plays an important role in AMPK regulation in hPASMC. Treatment with a soluble guanylate cyclase (sGC) stimulator increased PDE3A expression and AMPK activation similar to that seen with NO treatment, whereas treatment with a sGC inhibitor blunted the NO‐induced increase in PDE3A and AMPK activation. These results suggest that NO increases PDE3A expression, decreases cAMP, and activates AMPK via the sGC‐cGMP pathway. We speculate that NO‐induced increases in PDE3A and AMPK may have implications in the pathogenesis and the response to therapies in pulmonary hypertensive disorders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A two-year, small-plot study was conducted to evaluate plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) for biofertilization of fall-stockpiled bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pres.]. Eighteen, 10.8-ft2 bermudagrass (cultivar 'Coastal') plots were mowed to 1-inch stubble height prior to stockpiling. Experimental treatments included a negative control, synthetic fertilizer, PGPR single-strain DH 44, DH 44 + fertilizer, PGPR multiple-strain Blend 20, and Blend 20 + fertilizer (n = 3). Two PGPR applications were made, one at the beginning of each stockpiling season in mid-August, and again 30 days later. Ammonium sulfate was applied at 50 lb N/acre concurrent with the first PGPR application. Each plot was divided into three subplots, which were harvested at different periods (i.e., mid-November, mid-December, and mid-January) of each year to determine forage dry matter (DM) yield and nutritive value. Forage DM yield was greatest (P = .03) for Blend 20 + fertilizer, but it was not different (P = .26) from that of the synthetic fertilizer treatment. Concentration of crude protein was least (P < .04) for DH 44 and Blend 20 treatments. Concentrations of acid detergent fiber were not different among treatments, except for the negative control which was lower (P < .05). In vitro true digestibility was not different (P < .05) among treatments. These results indicate that PGPR may be a viable option for biofertilization; however, further investigation into the effect of PGPR inoculants at field level is needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Most processing snap bean fields are treated with fungicides at flowering to suppress white mould, one of the more significant diseases of this crop. Farmers would like to know when their fields are at sufficient risk of white mould, to plan fungicide applications or avoid spraying if the risk is below a tolerable threshold. In 2006, 2007 and 2008, observational data were collected from processing snap bean fields across western and central New York State, USA. White mould was found in 20% of fields. Boosted regression trees were used to model white mould presence or absence in a field (a binary response variable) as a function of agronomic and edaphic variables, and macroscale drought indices. The five most important predictors were canopy openness during pod development, the number of days after planting, hydrologic soil group, canopy openness during bloom and elevation. The risk of white mould increased by about 20% when canopy openness was less than 20 cm at the bloom stage and c. 30% when canopy openness was less than 30 cm at the pod stage. The most relevant interaction was between canopy openness at the pod stage and hydrologic soil group. A random forest model for predicting the presence of white mould by bloom had an estimated classification accuracy of 73%. The extension of these results to remote forecasting of white mould in processing snap bean production is discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tall fescue (Lolium arundinaceum [Schreb.] Darbysh.) is one of the most widely grown grasses in the United States. Most plants are infected with an endophyte, Epichloë coenophiala Bacon and Schardl. This endophyte produces high concentrations of ergot alkaloids, which cause fescue toxicosis in livestock. The economic losses to the US livestock industry are estimated to be approximately $1 billion annually. The objectives were to evaluate the variability in total ergot alkaloid concentrations ([TEA]) and ergovaline concentrations ([E]) in leaf blades and sheaths, and whole tillers from cultivars containing different wild‐type and novel endophytes across two seasons and environments. This study was conducted in 2012 and 2014 at two sites: Watkinsville, GA and Lexington, KY. There was no location effect for [TEA] or [E] in whole tillers. Measurements in 2012 showed no ergovaline‐producing tillers for cultivars infected with MaxQ or MaxQ II. Cultivars BarOptima Plus E34 and IS‐FTF 31‐UArk9 produced tillers expressing ergovaline but at lesser levels than endophyte‐infected KY 31. In leaf blades, [TEA] and [E] were greater in 2012 than 2014 at both sites for KY 31 (1861 and 402 vs. 1473 and 135 µg kg–1, respectively). Large variability can occur in KY 31, BarOptima Plus E34, and IS‐FTF 31‐UArk9 for ergot alkaloid content over years, within seasons, and between cultivars. This research indicates the importance of testing fields for ergot alkaloid content to determine risk from grazing and hay feeding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Family caregivers are at increased risk for experiencing multiple negative health outcomes, yet unpaid caregivers provide the majority of care for people living with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD).1‐3 Among Native Hawaiians (NHs), family or ʻohana caregiving is an important and common responsibility.4,5 As NHs face substantial health disparities, including a high burden of chronic disease across the lifespan, family caregivers are an important population to prioritize to promote health.6‐8 While effective evidence‐based interventions have been developed to promote caregiver mastery and wellbeing,9‐11 there are no programs specifically tailored to NH culture, language, and values. Method: We aimed to culturally adapt the Savvy Caregiver program with the NH community, while maintaining fidelity to the original program. We invited community members with expertise in NH culture, caregiving, and ʻōlelo Hawaiʻi (Hawaiian language) to participate in monthly meetings and work alongside the research team in adapting the Savvy Caregiver program. The goals, scope of work, and expectations for the research team and CAB were established from the outset. The Community Action Board (CAB) intentionally chose to be an "action" board as they serve as cultural experts that suggest, review, and approve all changes to the curriculum and will support the dissemination of the program. Result: The CAB suggested modifications ranging from surface (e.g., images, terms) to deep structural adaptation (e.g., "talk story," storytelling, cultural values, norms, and Hawaiian ways of knowing). The research team reviewed and incorporated the CAB members' expertise. All deep structural changes were reviewed to maintain program fidelity resulting in an adapted intervention that will be pilot tested in the community. Conclusion: While this is an ongoing and iterative process, we anticipate our approach and inclusion of a CAB has led to the effective adaptation of the Savvy Caregiver program. We also anticipate these partnerships will support the institutionalization and scaling up of the program to reach the NH community. Next steps will assess whether fidelity and the core components of the original intervention were maintained after cultural adaptation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Why do some fast-track managers derail? Why do some recover and return to the fast track? This study investigates these questions by analyzing managerial skills and self-awareness during different career stages. The results suggest that derailers have significantly lower skill profiles than do successful managers at all career stages. The study also identifies specific skills that managers need to be successful in their careers; furthermore, it reports that derailers overestimate their skills in comparison to successful managers at all career stages. The results imply that one can avoid derailment or recover from derailment by developing both self-awareness and specific managerial skills. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article provides information on the 2022 International Philosophy of Nursing Conference and the special issue of Nursing Philosophy associated with it. The conference theme, "What has philosophy ever done for nursing anyway?" explored the impact of philosophy on nursing practice and care. The special issue includes various dialogues and discussions on topics such as post humanism, critical perspectives in nursing, and the ethics of nursing history, offering diverse perspectives.

A 4‐unit, single‐flow continuous culture fermenter system was developed to assess in vitro nutrient digestibility, volatile fatty acid (VFA) concentration and daily enteric methane (CH4) production of ruminant diets. The objective was to develop a closed‐vessel system that maintained protozoal populations and provided accurate predictions of total CH4 production. A diet of 50% orchardgrass (Dactylis glomerata L.) and 50% alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) was fed during 4, 10‐day periods (7‐day adaptation and 3‐day collection). Fermenters were fed 82 g of dry matter (DM)/day in four equal feedings. pH and temperature were taken every 2 min, and CH4 concentration was measured every 10 min. Samples for DM and protozoal counts were taken daily, and daily effluent samples were collected for determination of DM, VFA and NH3‐N concentrations. There was no effect (p > 0.17) of adaptation versus collection days on vessel and effluent DM, temperature or pH. Initial protozoal counts decreased (p < 0.01), but recovered to initial counts by the collection period. Total VFA, acetate, propionate and isobutyrate concentrations did not differ (p ≥ 0.13) among periods or days of the collection period. There was no difference (p ≥ 0.37) among days or periods in total daily CH4 production and CH4 production per g of OM, NDF, digestible OM or digestible NDF fed. Data collected throughout 4 experimental periods demonstrated that the system was able to reach a steady state in fermentation well within the 7‐day adaptation period and even typically variable data (i.e., CH4 production) were stable within and across periods. While further research is needed to determine the relationship between this system and in vivo data, this continuous culture fermenter system provides a valid comparison of in vitro ruminal fermentation and enteric CH4 production of ruminant diets that can then be further validated with in vivo studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alaska Native and American Indian (AN/AI) people have unique pharmacogene variation that may affect warfarin disposition and therapeutic response. We performed targeted genotyping for cytochrome P450 (CYP)2C9, vitamin K epoxide oxidase reductase complex subunit 1 (VKORC1), CYP4F2,CYP4F11, and gamma‐glutamyl carboxylase (GGCX) variants in AN/AI people receiving warfarin. The primary outcome was stable warfarin dose, defined as one dose, and associated international normalized ratio within the target range, at least 6 months after starting therapy, with two matching doses at least 2 weeks apart. Genotype–phenotype relationships were assessed by multivariate regression analysis, adjusted for self‐reported heritage, age, gender, and concurrent statin use. VKORC1 genotype explained 34% of dose variability, with VKORC1 −1639G>A and 1173C>T associated with a 1.7 mg/day (P = 1.4e‐05) dose reduction. Additionally, CYP2C9 N218I was suggestively significant (P = 0.077), with heterozygotes requiring 1.1 mg/day less than reference individuals. Self‐reported heritage was significantly associated with dose, largely driven by differences in the diagnostic VKORC1 allele frequencies among AN/AI people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study proposes a novel method to mechanically characterize the performance of individual bonds in low‐density, thermomechanically bonded nonwoven fabrics. Commercial bicomponent, polyethylene/polypropylene (PE/PP), nonwoven fabric was laser cut into bowtie‐shaped specimens for uniaxial tensile testing so that the central region of each specimen contained an individual bond. Three groups, each composed of 20 specimens, were tested with their longitudinal axes oriented along the machine direction (MD), the cross direction (CD), and at 45° between these two directions (DD). Prior to testing, the intrinsic variation in areal density and fiber orientation in the region surrounding the individual bond were quantified via orientation and relative basis weight parameters. During testing, images of the specimens were acquired to determine the occurrence of fiber breakage, bond deformation, and bond cohesive failure. Maximum force, stiffness, and orientation parameters were found to be significantly different among the three specimen groups (p < 0.01) but the relative basis weight was not (p > 0.01). The stiffness and maximum load were linearly correlated with both the areal density and fiber orientation. Pre‐existing voids or windows within the bond lowered the maximum force for specimens with the longitudinal axes aligned with the MD. These voids had no influence on the maximum force achieved by the specimens aligned with the CD and DD. The bonds in these specimens were observed to deform less than the bonds in the specimens with the longitudinal axes aligned with the MD. The results indicate the importance of the fiber structure surrounding the bond on the tensile properties, deformation and failure mode of individual bonds within the nonwoven fabric. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 59:311–322, 2019. © 2018 Society of Plastics Engineers [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fear of infectious disease often motivates people to protect themselves. But, it can also produce negative bio‐social‐psychological effects whose severity is on par with those of the disease. The WHO declaration of Zika as a world health crisis presented an opportunity to study factors that bring about fear. Beginning nine days after the WHO announcement, data were gathered from women aged 18–35 living in the southern United States (N = 719). Respondents reported experiencing fear of Zika at levels akin to those reported following other significant crises/disasters (e.g., the terrorist attacks of 9/11). Fear increased as a function of (1) personal, but not other‐relevance, (2) frequency of media exposure, but not media content, and (3) frequency of interpersonal exposure and interpersonal content. It is argued that media and interpersonal message sources may be innately predisposed to amplify, rather than attenuate, risk. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: According to the prototype willingness model, risky behaviours such as heavy drinking may be influenced by images of others who engage in this behaviour. In this study, we examined whether college students' prototypes of an individual who frequently drinks "over the limit" were associated with their own alcohol consumption and experience of alcohol-related problems during their first 2 years in college.Methods: We assessed students' (N = 340) prototypes of excessive drinkers and their own alcohol consumption and problems at four time points, across their first 2 years in college. Along with examining the trajectory of prototypes, consumption, and problems, we tested whether prototypes significantly predicted consumption and problems across the 2 years. Additional analyses examined whether the predictive value of prototypes was unique from related variables including perceived descriptive norms, perceived injunctive norms, and peer pressure to drink alcohol.Results: Primary analyses indicated that more positive prototypes of an excessive drinker were significantly associated with greater alcohol consumption in both year 1 and year 2. More positive prototypes were also significantly associated with experiencing more alcohol-related problems in year 2. These findings held when controlling for perceived descriptive and injunctive norms, and peer pressure.Conclusions: Findings further support the importance of drinker prototypes to one's own drinking behaviour. By examining prototypes over time and their relationship to alcohol-related problems, this study makes a novel contribution to the existing research. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? Perceived norms (beliefs about how much others drink and what they approve of) are associated with own drinking. Individuals construct "risk prototypes," or images of people who engage in risky behaviours like drinking alcohol. Positive risk prototypes of drinkers have been associated with own willingness to drink and subsequent drinking. What does this study add? This study shows the trajectory of drinker prototypes across the first 2 years of college. Findings highlight consistent patterns of positive associations between drinker prototypes and own drinking. More positive drinker prototypes are associated with a greater number of problems with alcohol. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Wind tunnel test campaigns involve a large number of experimental data points, can take a long time to accomplish, and can consume tremendous resources. Design of experiments is a systematic approach to experimental design and analysis that has the potential to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of wind tunnel testing. We use a legacy wind tunnel test campaign and compare the resulting data from that campaign to data generated using smaller experimental design strategies. The comparison is accomplished using a Monte Carlo sampling methodology coupled with a statistical comparison of the estimated surfaces. Initial results from a 2‐phase experiment suggest a tremendous opportunity to reduce wind tunnel test efforts without losing test information and provide suggestions on the types of designs to use to best realize the test matrix reductions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: Neisseria gonorrhoeae is the causative agent of the sexually transmitted infection gonorrhea and is adapted to survive in humans, its only host. The N. gonorrhoeae cell wall is critical for maintaining envelope integrity, resisting immune cell killing and production of cytotoxic peptidoglycan (PG) fragments. Deletion of the N. gonorrhoeae strain FA1090 genes encoding two predicted low‐molecular‐mass, penicillin‐binding proteins (LMM PBPs), DacB and DacC, substantially altered the PG cross‐linking. Loss of the DacB peptidase resulted in global alterations to the PG composition, while loss of the DacC protein affected a much narrower subset of PG peptide components. A double ΔdacB/ΔdacC mutant resembled the ΔdacB single mutant, but had an even greater level of cross‐linked PG. While single ΔdacB or ΔdacC mutants did not show any major phenotypes, the ΔdacB/ΔdacC mutant displayed an altered cellular morphology, decreased resistance to antibiotics and increased sensitivity to detergent‐mediated death. Loss of the two proteins also drastically reduced the number of Type IV pili (Tfp), a critical virulence factor. The decreased piliation reduced transformation efficiency and correlated with increased growth rate. While these two LMM PBPs differentially alter the PG composition, their overlapping effects are essential to proper envelope function and expression of factors critical for pathogenesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Physical inactivity is a leading cause of hypokinetic diseases - obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and certain types of cancers. Increased city walkability, better access to fitness facilities, and remediation of socioeconomic barriers prove successful for limited populations within the confines of stringently controlled environments; however, these strategies fail to reverse the ever-increasing physical inactivity epidemic on a global scale indicating the existence of other unidentified factors. These purported biological factors remain critical targets to understand the regulation of this complex phenotype. An estrogenic mechanism that incompletely or slowly adjusts physical activity levels following reintroduction of estrogenic compounds to surgically gonadectomized mice has been postulated to exist. Currently, this mechanism remains scrutinized due to concerns that elevated estrogen levels induce urinary bladder distension. The distension of the urinary bladder may mechanically disrupt physical activity, masking any physiological effects estrogen has on physical activity. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of estrogen on physical activity levels while employing dose-related strategies to alleviate distension in mice. Wheel running data were collected under normal physiological conditions, following removal of endogenous sex steroids via orchidectomy, and during estrogen replacement at various doses (0%, 10%, 50% or 100% estrogen- containing implants) to induce varying degrees of urinary bladder distension. Wheel running distance (P = 0.005) and duration (P = 0.006) decreased after orchidectomy, but slowly increased following estrogen replacement. During the study, wheel running did not return to the levels observed in physiologically intact mice. Significant distension was not observed between estrogen treatment groups indicating that a slow-responding estrogen effect exists in male mice that prevents wheel running from returning to normal levels immediately following steroid reintroduction. The limited increase in wheel running during estrogen treatment following orchidectomy is not an artifact of induced urinary bladder distension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Despite evidence that pharmacogenetics can improve tamoxifen pharmacotherapy, there are few studies with American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) people. We examined variation in cytochrome P450 (CYP) genes (CYP2D6, CYP3A4, CYP3A5, and CYP2C9) and tamoxifen biotransformation in AIAN patients with breast cancer (n = 42) from the Southcentral Foundation in Alaska and the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes in Montana. We tested for associations between CYP diplotypes and plasma concentrations of tamoxifen and metabolites. Only the CYP2D6 variation was significantly associated with concentrations of endoxifen (P = 0.0008) and 4‐hydroxytamoxifen (P = 0.0074), tamoxifen's principal active metabolites, as well as key metabolic ratios. The CYP2D6 was also the most significant predictor of active metabolites and metabolic ratios in a multivariate regression model, including all four genes as predictors, with minor roles for other CYP genes. In AIAN populations, CYP2D6 is the largest contributor to tamoxifen bioactivation, illustrating the importance of validating pharmacogenetic testing for therapy optimization in an understudied population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Limitations on the acceptable proportion (incidence) of pods with white mould may lead to the rejection of entire fields of processing snap bean. The low tolerances (no more than 2% to 6% of pods with white mould) are difficult to estimate with sufficient precision in the field when time is limited. These constraints motivated this study of white mould across three spatial hierarchical levels: pods, plants and quadrats consisting of two adjacent plants within rows. Hierarchical relationships are required when designing formal rules for estimating the incidence of pods with white mould from units higher in the spatial hierarchy. Disease assessments were made on all pods from 38 within-row transects of 40 plants each of the snap bean cultivar Hystyle. Using probability-based principles, equations were derived and fitted to data on the incidence of white mould on pods ( ipod), plants ( ipad) and quadrats ( iq(2)), which led to a function directly linking ipod to iq(2). The variance of ipod increased with iq(2), but that may be of little consequence at the lower values of iq(2) likely to be associated with ipod values at processor-set tolerances. For example, at iq(2) = 0.1 there was a 92% probability that ipod was less than 0.02. Assessing iq(2) may be more efficient than directly estimating ipod because iq(2) was about an order of magnitude higher than ipod. Results suggest it may be feasible to design sampling plans for estimating the proportion of pods with white mould from an assessment of the proportion of diseased quadrats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elastomeric gaskets are commonly used between cells within a fuel cell stack to ensure that the reactant gases are isolated. Failure of a fuel cell gasket can cause the reactant gases to mix and can lead to failure of the fuel cell. An investigation of the durability of a hydrocarbon elastomeric seal material developed for proton exchange membrane fuel cells was performed by comparing the tearing energy required for crack propagation of as-received and environmentally aged samples. Tear force was recorded as a function of crosshead displacement rate and the critical strain energy release rate was calculated and plotted against crack growth rate. Data obtained at different temperatures were then used to generate a fracture energy master curve. Additional samples were aged in selected relevant environments and compared to the as-received material to study the effect of environmental aging on tear energy master curves. Comparison of tearing energy master curves for different test conditions showed an increase in the tearing energy for all aging environments. The tear energy master curve for testing carried out in water suggested that the crack propagation rates as low as of 10-8 ms-1 can be seen as the fracture energy approaches 80 Jm-2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

White mould, caused by Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, is one of the most recalcitrant diseases of snap bean. Probability distributions suitable for describing the total number of marketable pods (hereafter simply referred to as pods) per plant, as well as for the number of pods and stems with white mould per plant, have not been identified. The total number of pods and the number of pods and stems with white mould were measured on a per plant basis in plots of processing snap bean (var. Hystyle) in New York. The total number of pods per plant ranged from 0 to 29, and was best described by the Pólya-Aeppli distribution. The number of pods and the number of stems with white mould per plant were well-described by the negative binomial ( NB) distribution. A Sarmanov bivariate distribution with NB marginals was derived and fitted to the joint data on the number of pods and stems with white mould per plant, accounting for correlation between pods and stems with white mould on the same plant. The bivariate distribution was used to formulate an empirical equation for the incidence of plants with white mould as a function of the average number of pods and stems with white mould per plant. The results represented a more complete understanding of the distributional properties of white mould in snap bean. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

1. Crayfish represent one of the most imperilled animal groups on the planet. Habitat degradation, destruction and fragmentation, introduction of invasive crayfishes, and a lack of applied biological information have all been identified as agents thwarting crayfish conservation. 2. Cambarus callainus was warranted federal protection by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in April, 2016. As part of the USFWS listing procedure, a survey for C. callainus in the Big Sandy River catchment was conducted to determine points of occurrence with a secondary objective of determining reach level physical habitat and physicochemical correlates of C. callainus presence and absence. 3. At each site, physicochemical and physical habitat data were collected to determine the influence of abiotic covariates on the presence of C. callainus. Cambarus callainus presence or absence and associated site covariates were modelled using logistic regression. 4. Survey results recorded C. callainus at 39 sites in the Upper Levisa Fork (ULF) and Tug Fork (TF) drainages of the Big Sandy River; no C. callainus were collected in the Lower Levisa Fork (LLF). An additive effects model of physical habitat quality (Basin + Boulder presence/embeddedness) was the only model selected, supporting an association of C. callainus with slab boulders, open interstitial spaces, and moderate to no sedimentation. All sites lacking C. callainus were experiencing some degree of sedimentation. Physicochemical covariates were not supported by the data. 5. Results indicated that good quality habitat was lacking in the LLF, but was present in the ULF and TF catchments, with ULF supporting the most robust populations and most suitable habitat. Effective conservation for C. callainus should focus on efforts that limit sedimentation as well as restore good quality instream habitat in the greater Big Sandy catchment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]