College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University
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Calcium concentration in tree sap of five species of Minnesota trees as an indicator of sugar sand
Get PDFTree sap can be collected from a variety of species (sugar maple, birch, ironwood, box elder, red maple) in Minnesota. When the sap of sugar maple trees and others are cooked into syrup, a cloudy mixture of minerals precipitates out. This precipitate, called sugar sand, gives syrup an unpleasant taste and can clog up machinery if improperly managed. Sugar sand primarily consists primarily of calcium malate. Thus, calcium concentration can be a good indicator of how much sugar sand would precipitate out if sap is processed into syrup. In general, previous literature has shown that sugar maple sap has the highest calcium concentration, followed by box elder, red maple, and paper birch. The purpose of this study was to determine the possible variations in amount of sugar sand found in syrup produced from different species of trees by measuring the calcium concentration in the trees’ sap. In addition, we aimed to determine the pattern of change in concentration of calcium over the course of the season (from March 21 to late April). Two trees each of the five following species were tapped: (Acer saccharum), box elder (Acer negundo), red maple (Acer rubrum), paper birch (Betula papyrifera), and ironwood (Ostrya virginiana). Trees were tapped with 5/16 spiles using standard procedures and the sap collected daily. The volume was measured and calcium concentration of the sap measured using a ion-selective calcium electrode. Results will be presented
Case Study: Workplace Wellness Programming for an Individual with Mild Mental Retardation
Get PDFObesity is a major health problem in the world, especially for people with mental retardation. Additionally, individuals with mental retardation frequently demonstrate low fitness levels and work productivity. At WACOSA, a place for individuals with disabilities to work and serve their community, wellness classes are incorporated every day for a fourteen-week period. This case study will examine the effect of a 14-week wellness program on one individual’s health related variables and work productivity. The results of this case study indicate workplace wellness programming can be an effective strategy to improve health and work productivity
Heart Rate Variability and Empathy
Get PDFThis study sought to determine if there is a correlation between an individual’s heart rate variability (HRV) and their score on the Empathy Quotient test. This experiment was designed as an ABAB model, where a baseline experiment is run, and then an experimental run follows. A baseline measurement was taken for each participant. Then participants were instructed to either read an emotionally triggering excerpt from Browning’s Reflection on a Massacre first or a neutral excerpt from The Constitution of Liberty by Friedrich Hayek. The participants were then be instructed to stop reading the excerpt to have them return to baseline HRV. A baseline measure was taken again. Then participants were then instructed to read the second article. Researchers observed and calculated any differences between a participants HRV during the baseline testing and the manipulation period of the two readings, then correlated those with their scores on the Empathy Quotient Test. The design of our study is a two by three factorial design. We measured participants on whether they score high or low of the Empathy Quotient and how much HRV was observed during both the neutral reading and emotionally triggering reading. Our hypothesis is: the higher a participant scores on the Empathy Scale, the higher their HRV will be
Responding to a Code Blue
Get PDFFor this project, there was an identified lack of proficiency and confidence in running a code blue at local long-term care facility. A questionnaire was distributed to registered nurses, licensed practical nurses and nursing assistants in the facility to determine primary concerns related to initiating and running a code blue. In addition, code blue policies and procedures as well as current practices of the facility were reviewed. Combining data collected from the questionnaires, results from the policy/procedure review and review of evidence-based research, it was determined there is an importance and benefit to running a mock code to improve proficiency and confidence. The mock code took place during the regular workday and included registered nurses, licensed practical nurses and nursing assistants from both the day and evening shift. The group will compare participant data collected prior to and following the mock code blue experience to determine effectiveness of this experience on participant knowledge, confidence and proficiency in performing a code blue
Ring Opening Polymerization
Get PDFThe goal of the research discussed in this paper is to demonstrate that N-heterocyclic carbenes can be bonded to a transition metal center resulting in a complex that is able to effectively catalyze the ring opening polymerization of caprolactone. While N-Heterocyclic carbene ligands have been documented as effective catalysts for the ring opening polymerization (ROP) of lactones and lactides, less is known about the catalytic abilities of these ligands when bound to a labile metal center. This article focuses on examining the synthesis and reactivity of different transition metal complexes containing tin, zinc, aluminium and titanium metal centers. In addition to comparing metal centers, the performance of a uni-functional alcohol initiator, benzyl alcohol, was compared to a bifunctional alcohol initiator 1,4-butanediol. The aluminium based complex combined with the uni-functional initiator resulted in some of the highest degrees of polymerization and increased control over the polymer chain length. Lastly, a series of studies were performed to better understand the kinetics of this optimized system. The findings detailed in this paper indicate that transition metal complexes containing N-Heterocyclic carbene ligands are capable of polymerizing caprolactone monomers resulting in good product yields and the ability to grow chains ranging from 10-30 units in length by varying feed ratios. One of the most pertinent uses of these short chained polyesters is their ability to be grafted into other polymers providing an efficient method of manufacturing specialty polyurethanes
Synthesis and Characterization of a Model Multi-Copper Oxidase
Get PDFMulti-copper oxidases possess an unusual triangular copper complex; ceruloplasmin is an example. Ceruloplasmin oxidizes iron from the ferrous state to the ferric state, assisting in iron transport. This oxidn. is coupled with the redn. of dioxygen to water, the mechanism of which is unclear. In order to elucidate more the mechanism of redn., this study focuses on the synthesis and characterization of a novel copper (I) complex with a new tapma-based ligand. This tapma ligand is modeled after the tris (2-pyridylmethyl) amine-based (tpma) ligand family where nitrogen based donors are employed. This tapma ligand is synthesized from 1,3,5-tris(azidomethyl)-2,4,6-triethylbenzene in a click chem. step; the tri-substituted Et groups force the nitrogen ligand branches to adopt a conformation that brings the nitrogenous bases close to each other. NMR interpretation showed partial substitution of desired ligand product
Plenary Remarks
No full textHow do we reframe the current narrative about teaching and learning in our institutions? Specifically, we will discuss efforts to make curricula more inclusive by decentering the curriculum and engaging in experiential learning and other high-impact practices; and, by making explicit the disciplinary links to employment and professional development
Review of Making Refuge: Somali Bantu Refugees and Lewiston, Maine by Catherine Besteman
Get PDFCatherine Besteman conduced fieldwork in the late 1980’s in the small village of Banta in southern Somalia. Implausibly, she was reunited with many of her former friends and interlocutors in Lewiston, Maine two decades later, laying the ground for this impressive ethnographic study. In Making Refuge, Besteman traces the experiences of Somali Bantu refugees from Somalia, through the Kenyan refugee camps, and to their resettlement in the United States. She shows how the prevailing view of refugees as “apolitical, docile, and dependent recipients” (Pg. 29), and as passive and grateful objects of humanitarian aid is both misconstrued and morally deficient. By tracing the particular journey of Somali Bantu families, she also underscores that not all immigrants are alike, and assimilation is not a universally desirable or feasible expectation. Finally, she shows the complex ways in which immigrants and host communities grapple with “the seepages, mutual transformations, and slow border crossings of all kinds,” (Pg. 31) which characterize human mobility. While a transcontinental coincidence of migration brought Besteman back into close contact with her former interlocutors in this methodologically innovative work, it is Besteman’s skill as an ethnographer that provides the emotional and intellectual rigor for this outstanding book