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Proposed Updates to ABA Standards on Distance/Remote Education
Get PDFOutside of the legal academy, distance education has expanded greatly over the past decade and this Article provides an overview of the history of distance education, generally and in law schools. In Part III, it assesses the pros and cons of this type of education. In Part IV, it concludes as to whether the system should be expanded, remain the same, or contract
Validating an Electronics Cooler Experiment and Optimizing Its Performance Using ANSYS Icepak
Get PDFResearchers at the University of Arkansas\u27 Mechanical and Electrical Engineering Research Departments have designed and built a cold plate and substrate design for a 10 kV SiC MOSFET power module. Many variables define the design of the cold plate and substrate system and have quantifiable effects on the device’s performance. These variables include but are not limited to geometry and material selection of the fins and substrate. Manufacturing many test designs, running experiments, and comparing their performance is a time-consuming and expensive design optimization method that may be effective for some low-cost applications. Still, simulation is often a more cost-effective optimization method for designs comprised of costly components. This project uses numerical modeling to model and simulate a digital twin of the cold plate-substrate system. Specifically, ANSYS Electronics Desktop Icepak was used. The conductivity of the complex substrate design will be modeled in CAD and simulated with an 80W digital MOSFET that mimics the thermal properties of a physical chip. Furthermore, the cold plate\u27s ability to channel the heat out of the chip, into the fluid region, and out of the system will be modeled and tested across different flow rates (0.05 – 0.55 L/min). Experimental testing was compared to the mirror computational setup and indicated strong agreement for flow rates above 0.16 L/min, with deviations at lower flow rates being attributed to potential measurement inaccuracies or modeling limitations. Finally, design iterations were explored, including modifications to the outlet configuration, straight fins, and a slimmed design, to maximize cooling efficiency while reducing system weight, volume, and pressure drop
Palliative Care Training Webinar and its Role in Self-Efficacy Among Oncology Providers.
Get PDFABSTRACT
PURPOSE: The purpose of this project was to increase oncology providers’ self-efficacy in palliative care and thus increase referrals to palliative care. This study aimed to compare provider self-efficacy before and after an online educational webinar about principles of palliative care, clinical practice guidelines, shared decision-making, and end-of-life care.
METHODS: This was a single-center quasi-experimental study conducted in a medical oncology department at a large outpatient cancer treatment center. The study took place between October 2024 and March 2025. The General Self-Efficacy (GSE) scale was administered to participants before and after the 4-month implementation period to measure the change in self-efficacy after the webinar. A post-webinar satisfaction survey was also administered. Referral patterns were monitored through the research site informatics department and compared before and after the education.
RESULTS: The observations for the pre-test GSE scale had an average of 30.00 (SD = 4.97). The observations for the post-test scores had an average of 35.43 (SD = 3.41). Wilcoxon Signed Rank test revealed a statistically significant difference in self-efficacy scores before and after the webinar (p = .027.)
CONCLUSIONS: The palliative care webinar training program significantly improved participants’ self-efficacy scores and thus positively increased third-party palliative care referrals. This suggests that the training had a positive effect on oncology providers’ self-efficacy in palliative care
Assessing Biochar and Industrial Hemp to Remediate Heavy-metal-contaminated Soil
Get PDFEnvironmental degradation is becoming increasingly prevalent as global industrialization runs rampant. Anthropogenic activity, such as mining, deposits inorganic pollutants into the environment, leading to potential soil and water contamination. Traditional, engineering-based remediation and containment procedures alter soil structure and aggregate stability and affect the biological function of the area impacted by mining activities. Phytoremediation is a more energy-efficient, and therefore cost-effective, method of environmental restoration. Phytoremediation, on its own, works in soils that are less contaminated so that the selected plant can actually grow. Soil amendments, such as biochar, can be added to improve remediation potential in more contaminated soils. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of soil-contamination level (i.e., low, medium, and high), industrial hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) cultivar (i.e., \u27Carmagnola\u27and \u27Jinma\u27), Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii)-derived biochar rate (i.e., 0, 2, 5, and 10% by volume), and their interactions on root tissue Cd, Pb, and Zn concentrations and uptakes, whole-plant Cd, Pb, and Zn uptakes, and translocation factors after 90 days of hemp growth in contaminated soil from the Tar Creek Superfund Site near Picher, Oklahoma. Hemp removal of Cd, Pb, and Zn differed among soil-contamination levels (P \u3c 0.01), but was unaffected (P\u3e 0.05) by hemp cultivar or biochar rate, except for total Zn uptake. Total Cd uptake was greatest from the high- (0.0058 mg cm-2), which did not differ from the medium-, and was significantly greater than from the low-contaminated soil (0.0004 mg cm-2). Total Pb uptake was greatest from the high- (0.09 mg cm-2) than the other two soils, while the medium- (0.0084 mg cm-2) was also greater than from the low-contaminated soil (0.0031 mg cm-2). Total Zn uptake was affected (P = 0.02) by biochar rate in the medium- and high-contaminated soils, where total plant Zn uptake in the high- was numerically largest with 10% biochar (0.28 mg cm-2) and, in the medium- was numerically largest with 2% biochar (0.07 mg cm-2), but was unaffected (P \u3e 0.05) by biochar rate in the low-contaminated soil. The translocation factor for Zn uptake in the low and medium soils was \u3e 1, indicating industrial hemp as a potential Zn hyperaccumulator up to a threshold soil-contamination level. Results demonstrate that biochar amendment has the potential to enhance hemp’s ability to remediate heavy-metal-contaminated soils
Protein Structural Changes of Envelope Glycoprotein in Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1
Get PDFThe envelope glycoprotein (Env), present on the viral surface of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) facilitates host cell infection, making it a critical target for immune responses and vaccine development. Env is able to transition through three prevalent prefusion conformational states, state-1 (pre-triggered), state-2 (closed), and state-3 (open). By transitioning through these conformation states, Env can successfully evade immune responses and initiate viral entry into the host cell. This study uses molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to analyze the conformational dynamics of the mature, cleaved Env glycoprotein in the state-2 conformation (PDB ID: 4ZMJ). Simulations were conducted with five replicates, each simulation running for 500 nanoseconds. Structural stability and flexibility were assessed through root mean square deviation (RMSD), root mean square fluctuation (RMSF), hydrogen bonding, and salt bridge analyses. Results indicate that the variable loop regions, particularly V2 in gp120, contribute significantly to Env flexibility, while gp41 remains rigid. Strong hydrogen bonds and salt bridges were identified. These findings enhance the understanding of Env conformational dynamics and highlight critical structural elements that could contribute to laying a foundation for a functional HIV-1 vaccine
Developing Protective Measures to Reduce the Incidence of Bacterial-Induced Chondronecrosis with Osteomyelitis in Broiler Chickens
Get PDFBacterial Chondronecrosis with Osteomyelitis (BCO) lameness is a significant animal welfare and food safety issue affecting the commercial broiler industry in the United States and worldwide. Bacteria can translocate from the respiratory system and/or the gastrointestinal tract into the bloodstream, eventually settling in bone microfractures leading to necrosis and BCO lameness.
This study evaluated the effects of Probiotic 1 and Probiotic 2 on the incidence of BCO lameness in broiler chickens. Probiotic 1 was applied as a spray on Day 1-old chicks, while Probiotic 2 was administered prophylactically (orally in feed) from Day 1 to Day 56. Birds were assigned to five groups: a positive control (PC) group (T1) and a negative control (NC) group (T2), both receiving no treatment, and three treatment groups: one receiving the Probiotic 1 program (T3), another receiving Probiotic 2 (T4), and a third receiving a combination of Probiotic 1 and Probiotic 2 (T5). The positive control group was raised on a wire floor and used as a source of BCO infection. This model replicates the epidemic spread of BCO lameness in broiler production facilities. Our objective is to identify management protocols that can mitigate BCO lameness. Effective Prophylactic protocols would be of great interest to the commercial broiler sector, particularly in facilities with a history of high lameness related mortality. Probiotic 1 and Probiotic 2 have been recognized for enhancing gut health and immune function, which are critical factors in decreasing the incidence of BCO lameness in broiler chickens. According to this study probiotics do decrease the instance of symptoms correlating to BCO induced lameness. When the tested probiotics (Probiotic 1 and Probiotic 2) were administered independently, there was a significantly lower number of BCO infected birds when compared to the control groups who were not administered any probiotic. However, when the probiotics are given in tandem, there was a greater decrease of incidence. This study concludes Probiotics 1 and 2 are effective in preventing BCO lameness when administered appropriately to Broiler chickens
Analyzing the Role of Donald Trump as a Catalyst for the Surging European Far Right
Get PDFOnly about a quarter of the world population is currently living under a democracy, down from 54 percent in 2006 (Owens, 2023). In the United States, President Donald Trump’s sweeping executive actions and increasingly unchecked power have many worried about a possible deterioration in the sturdiness of American democracy in the coming years (Barrow, 2025). Meanwhile in Europe, far-right movements such as Germany’s Alternative for Deutschland and Marine Le Pen’s National Rally in France have scored historic wins at the ballot box (Green, 2024).
The parallel rise of authoritarianism in so many different nations suggest a potential connection between these far-right movements. Previous literature has posited that nearby countries caving in to authoritarianism could cause others to do the same (O’Sullivan, 1996). This recent far-right wave could be the result of something very similar. In the United States, this began in 2016 with Trump’s first electoral triumph on an anti-establishment, populist platform that aimed to “Make America Great Again” with policies such as tax cuts and immigration restrictions. Europe’s far-right turn less than a decade later closely mirrors the playbook of the American right. This presents the possibility of the United States as a sort of patient zero for the subsequent rise of far-right populism in Europe, with like-minded sentiments traversing the Atlantic Ocean and leading to a rapid decline in western democracy accelerated by the digital age.
This research will test two hypotheses on the causes of the recent far-right wave in Europe. The first posits that Europe’s far right surge is merely a symptom of the global economic slump coming out of the pandemic. The second suggests that the European far right’s rise is an example of policy diffusion from the United States, with politicians adopting the tenets of “Trumpism” to generate electoral success. The first hypothesis will be tested using a variety of socioeconomic metrics from the IMF and other international organizations as well as tracking electoral support of far-right parties over the last decade, while the second will be examined via a rhetorical analysis of multiple speeches from far-right leaders through the lens of the Narrative Policy Framework (Jones et al., 2022)
Effects of intradermal injections of lipopolysaccharide on the local and systemic acute inflammatory responses in turkeys
Get PDFIn chickens, the growing feather (GF) pulp has been established as a cutaneous bioassay to monitor and assess tissue/cellular immune activities in response to intradermal (i.d.) injections of test materials. The objective of this pilot study was to determine the suitability of the GF bioassay in turkeys by examining the acute inflammatory responses initiated by i.d. GF-pulp injections of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). For this, three, 5-wk-old turkey poults were used. Two poults had 8 GFs injected (10 μL/GF) with low (L)-LPS (0.1 μg/GF) and 8 GFs with high (H)-LPS (1 μg/GF), while a third poult had 8 GFs injected with endotoxin-free PBS and 9 GFs with H-LPS. Heparinized blood and GFs were collected before (0h) and at 3h and 6h post GF-pulp injection. Blood and pulp cell suspensions were stained with a panel of chicken leukocyte-specific fluorescence-conjugated antibodies with cross-reactivity for turkey cells to identify total leukocytes, heterophils, MHC II+ cells, B cells, and T cell subsets by flow cytometry analysis. Two-way ANOVA was used to test the effects of LPS dose, time, and their interactions on leukocyte profiles in GFs, and one-way repeated measures ANOVA to test the effect of LPS on blood leukocyte (WBC) profiles over time. Tukey’s HSD test was conducted when appropriate. Significance was set at P ≤ 0.05. In GFs, both L-LPS and H-LPS stimulated leukocyte-infiltration, primarily heterophils, by 3h p.i., reaching maximal levels (% pulp cells) at 6h (P ≤ 0.05), but did not affect levels of MHCII+-, CD4+-, and CD8+--cells. However, L-LPS triggered a marginally higher αβ T cell recruitment (P = 0.052) than H-LPS. PBS also recruited heterophils but at lower levels than LPS. In the blood, i.d. LPS injection resulted in a doubling (P ≤ 0.05) of heterophil concentrations by 6h p.i., caused a transient drop in concentrations of WBC, CD4+ T cells and αβ T cells at 3h (P ≤ 0.05), but did not affect those of CD8+ T cells. For the proportions among blood leukocytes, i.d. GF-pulp injection of LPS caused an increase in % heterophils (P = 0.037), and a drop in % monocytes (P = 0.032) and % lymphocytes (P = 0.013) by 3 h and remained near these levels by 6 h p.i. There was not an effect of time on the percentage of eosinophils and basophils, however, a marginal effect of time (P = 0.090) was observed on the heterophil to lymphocyte ratio characterized by an increase at 3 h and 6 h p.i. This pilot study highlights the similarities in the inflammatory responses initiated by LPS in turkeys and chickens and demonstrates the applicability of the two-window (GF and blood) approach to study local and systemic immune system responses in turkeys. A study is underway to further assess the inflammatory response to LPS from its initiation to resolution in turkeys
Is “Stress” Structured?: Examining Patterns of Dental Asymmetry in a Pedigreed Sample of Captive Baboons
No full textFluctuating asymmetry (FA) refers to small, random deviations from bilateral symmetry that are thought to arise due to developmental instability and an inability to fully buffer against genetic and environmental stressors. In primates, early life is a critical period of increased vulnerability, making FA a valuable tool in assessing potential developmental stress events. Teeth are ideal for these analyses because their enamel crowns do not remodel after mineralizing, and while FA has been extensively studied in skeletal structures of humans, few studies have examined FA in the dentitions of non-human primates. This study investigates FA in the postcanine dentition (premolars and molars) of pedigreed hamadryas baboons using three-dimensional scans of stone dental casts collected from a captive population. This study examines the relationship between FA and documented demographic and genealogical variables that represent proxies for stress during dental development. Results indicate no significant association between FA and sex, age (cohort), birth order, or sibling count. For individuals with high levels of FA (two standard deviations above the sample mean), no significant relationship was found for pedigree membership or maternal/paternal lineage. However, 63% of high FA individuals were male, and 75% belonged to the younger cohort, which suggests higher vulnerability to environmental stress for these demographic groups. These findings contribute to our understanding of developmental instability and variables that approximate early life stress in individuals with marked FA in their postcanine dentition
Improving Cervical Cancer Screening in Rural Primary Care: A Quality Improvement DNP Project
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Purpose This quality improvement project addresses the inconsistencies in patient identification of those indicated for cervical cancer screening and targets provider practice change to improve screening rates. The purpose of this project is to standardize the cervical cancer screening practice in a rural health clinic system to increase the rate of screening.
Methods A paired samples comparison was used to measure the difference in participating providers’ number of cervical cancer screenings pre and post implementation.
Results Despite seeing nearly 5% fewer patients within the intended population, the screening practice remained consistent at nearly 3% of all encounters before and after implementation.
Conclusion Improving the clinical workflow and identification of eligible patients to promote better rates of CCS is possible with chart review and feedback, but additional measures are needed to further increase the rate significantly