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The Association of Acute Stress and Lower Quarter EMG During a Single Leg Balance Dexterity Task
No full textBackground There is a well-established connection between psychosocial stress and low back pain, however studies demonstrating a connection between motor control and acute stress are lacking. Research Question What is the potential interaction of acute stress (the Feigned Annoyance and Frustration Test, or the FAF Test) with lower quarter motor control and stance stability during a standing lower-extremity dexterity task in individuals with and without low back pain? Methods This prospective cohort study included 30 individuals with low back pain (15 men and 15 women) with an equal number of sex-matched controls for a total sample of 60 participants. Participants were fitted with surface electromyography sensors over the trunk and lower extremities. The lower extremity dexterity task was performed on 2 in-ground force plates while center of pressure data was collected. Participants were exposed to the FAF Test and the lower extremity dexterity task was repeated. Results Stress resulted in decreased muscle activation for muscles of the trunk and gluteals, as well as decreased total excursion and velocity of the center of pressure. Significance Acute stress appears to alter trunk control during a standing lower extremity dexterity task, with more pronounced changes apparent in participants with low back pain. These findings provide novel insight into the influence of stress on trunk control and balance stability
Family Dementia Caregivers’ Disaster Preparedness in Chinese American Communities in New York City
No full textDisaster preparedness is a significant public health concern. Disasters manifest in different forms and often lead to disruption of daily life. This is especially challenging for family dementia caregivers and their care recipients in the community. There remains much unknown regarding dementia caregiver disaster preparedness, especially in ethnic and racial communities. Guided by Protection Motivation Theory, with the backdrop of Hurricane Ida, this study explored the association between caregiving-related characteristics, cognitive appraisals, and disaster preparedness among caregivers in Chinese American communities. Data came from a pilot study on Chinese American family dementia caregivers in New York City between November 2021 and June 2022. Purposive sampling was used to recruit caregivers to participate in a survey (online or telephone). Current caregivers (n = 76) were included. The dependent variable was caregiver disaster preparedness, measured by preparedness for Hurricane Ida (prepared or others). From group comparisons, caregivers caring for someone with mild dementia were less likely to report disaster preparedness. Caregivers with higher levels of response efficacy, having an emergency plan in place, and with lower levels of avoidance toward death tended to report disaster preparedness. From logistic regressions, spousal caregivers were 4.46 times more likely to report disaster preparedness. Caregivers with lower levels of avoidance toward death were 1.52 times more likely to report disaster preparedness. Caregivers with higher levels of response efficacy were 2.36 times more likely to report disaster preparedness. This study offers theoretical and practical implications on how to engage and support Chinese American communities in disaster planning
Comparative Effects of Gamma Irradiation and Chemical Treatments on Superficial Scald and Quality of ‘Granny Smith’ Apples
No full textFresh produce is highly perishable, necessitating various postharvest treatments to minimize quality loss, extend shelf-life, and facilitate international trade. This study investigated the potential of a single low-dose gamma irradiation treatment as an alternative to commercially used chemical treatments for protecting ‘Granny Smith’ apples against insect pests and postharvest disorders. ‘Granny Smith’ apples harvested in 2019 and 2020 were treated with gamma irradiation at doses of 240 or 860 Gray (Gy) or with commercial chemical applications of 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP), diphenylamine (DPA), or methyl bromide (MeBr). The impact on fruit quality, physiology, and the development of postharvest disorders was evaluated after cold storage for up to 150 days. Apples treated with gamma irradiation at 240 Gy developed superficial scald like MeBr-treated and control apples, despite lower ethylene production and α-farnesene concentrations. Apples treated with 1-MCP and DPA had the least superficial scald development. The irradiated apples also exhibited internal browning. Our results suggest that the combination of irradiation and cold storage can lead to oxidative stress and manifestation of these storage disorders in the fruit. Gamma irradiation is not an effective substitute for 1-MCP or DPA in reducing superficial scald in stored ‘Granny Smith’ apples
AI Project Facilitation Guidance for Research Computing and Data (RCD) Professionals
Get PDFThe role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in research and education continues to rapidly grow, resulting in increased collaboration between researchers in AI and Research Computing and Data (RCD) professionals to meet the research and teaching demands. RCD professionals bridge the gap between research and technology by guiding and collaborating with researchers and educators through the process of selecting the hardware, software, and services best suited for executing their AI projects. This includes ensuring compliance with funding and regulatory requirements across the entire lifecycle of the project. In this paper, we present an overview of the AI project lifecycle and how RCD professionals can facilitate its execution
Gamete Size Is Essential for Understanding Sex and Sexual Selection in Humans, Animals, Plants, and Algae But Configurations of Sex-Linked Traits Are Practically Important for Understanding Sex
Get PDFFirst, I briefly highlight recent discussions of sex and how they contrast with a gametic central understanding of sex in the executive order. I then provide some background on why gametes have been central to defining sex across species in evolutionary biological sciences. Understanding this perspective is important because it helps understand the competing frames people are using when they talk of sex as binary instead of as a spectrum or a multidimensional configuration of traits. The gametic central framing is essential for understanding sex and sexual selection across species, whereas the multidimensional configuration framing is practically useful in medical, psychological, and social sciences when studying emergent sex-related structures and how they relate to social roles (e.g., Lee, 2018)
Evaluation of the Quality of Pacific White Shrimp Under Different Storage Conditions
No full textThis study focused on the inhibition of melanosis formation, shelf-life extension, and the correlation between quality indices under different treatment conditions during the storage of Pacific white shrimp at 0 °C. The treatment groups included: a control sample, samples treated with 0.5% benzaldehyde solution, samples treated with 2% chitosan solution, and samples treated with a combination of 0.5% benzaldehyde and 2% chitosan. Sensory, chemical, and microbiological evaluation methods were applied using quality indicators such as melanosis score, TVB-N, TMA-N, hypoxanthine, and TVC. TVC results demonstrated that the antibacterial and antioxidant properties of benzaldehyde and chitosan extended the shelf life to 12 days (benzaldehyde), 11 days (chitosan), and 15 days (benzaldehyde/chitosan), compared to 8 days for the control. The formation of a Schiff base from the reaction between benzaldehyde and tyrosine was shown to inhibit tyrosinase activity, thereby reducing melanosis. The benzaldehyde and benzaldehyde/chitosan samples maintained acceptable melanosis scores (≤ 6) up to days 12 and 15, respectively, compared to days 8 and 11 for the control and chitosan samples. Changes in TVB-N and TMA-N were analyzed across two stages, autolysis and decomposition, allowing for the development of linear regression equations with high correlation coefficients (R2 ≈ 0.99). Similar linear trends were observed for melanosis and hypoxanthine. The study established strong linear correlations between melanosis score, TVB-N, TMA-N, and hypoxanthine across all treatment groups, providing a foundation for predictive modelling of shrimp quality under different preservation conditions
The Analysis of Functions in Some Algebras of Order 3 with Unit
No full textIn this paper we consider the analogue of analytic functions defined on algebras of order 3 with unit. One of these algebras had already been studied in earlier works, but we offer here an intrinsic approach to the notion of analyticity and we discuss how it relates to total derivability. We also discuss properties coming from algebraic analysis considerations of the systems associated with analyticity
Twist and Snout: Head and Body Morphologies Determine Feeding Kinematics in Substrate-Biting Fishes
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Across teleosts, feeding by biting substrate-attached prey has evolved multiple times and is associated with convergent morphologies that include a deep body and an elongated, tapered head. However, the functional role of these morphologies in substrate-biting fish is not established. Here, we tested the hypothesis that these morphologies function as control surfaces that affect feeding kinematics during biting. To test this hypothesis, we used simplified physical models of substrate-biting reef fish and examined the role of head, body, and fin morphology in determining feeding kinematics that facilitate the removal of substrate-attached prey. Models simulated the swift lateral movement of the head, previously documented in species biting substrate-attached algae. Using models that capture the natural morphological variation of biters, we tested (i) how different head morphologies affect the speed of the head and (ii) how different body morphologies affect the stability of the body during head movements. We found that the moment of inertia (MOI) of the head and body explained most of the variation in head speed and body displacement. A decrease in head MOI resulted in faster lateral head movements, known to facilitate removal of attached prey. An increase in body MOI, relative to that of the head, stabilized the lateral displacement of the body during bites. Overall, our results suggest that the laterally compressed bodies and tapered snouts function as control surfaces during feeding in substrate-biting fish. We propose that a selective pressure to extend the lateral surface area underlies the prevailing morphological convergence of biting reef fishes. Résumé
Chez les téléostéens, le mécanisme d\u27alimentation consistant à mordre des proies fixées au substrat a évolué à plusieurs reprises et est associé à des convergences morphologiques telles qu\u27un corps profond et une tête allongée et effilée. Toutefois, le rôle fonctionnel de ces morphologies chez les poissons qui mordent le substrat reste encore à établir. Nous avons ici testé l\u27hypothèse selon laquelle ces morphologies fonctionnent comme des surfaces de contrôle affectant la cinématique d\u27alimentation lors de la morsure. Pour ce faire, nous avons développé des modèles physiques simplifiés d\u27espèces de poissons de récif connues pour utiliser la morsure du substrat comme mécanisme d\u27alimentation. Ces maquettes expérimentales nous ont permis d\u27examiner le rôle de la morphologie de la tête, du corps et des nageoires dans la cinématique d\u27alimentation, en particulier dans le cadre de l\u27extraction de proies fixées au substrat. Ces modèles ont simulé le mouvement latéral rapide de la tête ; mouvement déjà documenté chez les espèces qui se nourrissent d\u27algues fixées au substrat par morsure. À l\u27aide de ces modèles qui reflètent la variation morphologique naturelle de poissons qui mordent le substrat, nous avons testé (i) l\u27influence de différentes morphologies de la tête sur la vitesse de déplacement de celle-ci, et (ii) l\u27effet de différentes morphologies du corps sur la stabilité du corps pendant les mouvements de la tête. Nous avons ainsi montré que le moment d\u27inertie (MOI) de la tête et le MOI du corps expliquent la majorité des variations de la vitesse de la tête et du déplacement du corps, respectivement. Une diminution du MOI de la tête a entraîné des mouvements latéraux plus rapides de celle-ci, facilitant ainsi l\u27extraction des proies fixées au substrat. Une augmentation du MOI du corps, relative à celui de la tête, a minimisé le déplacement latéral du corps lors des morsures, et ainsi amélioré la stabilité. Globalement, nos résultats suggèrent que les corps comprimés latéralement et les museaux effilés fonctionnent comme des surfaces de contrôle chez les poissons qui mordent le substrat. Nous proposons qu\u27une pression sélective favorisant l\u27expansion de la surface latérale sous-tend la convergence morphologique dominante observée chez les poissons de récif qui recourent à la morsure pour se nourrir
Self-initiated Action Rescues Visual Targets from Backwards Masking
No full textWhen a visual target is followed by a visual mask stimulus, the target sometimes goes unseen. This is visual masking. In an experiment treating a masked visual stimulus as the sensory outcome of self-initiated action, we demonstrate that self-initiated action can rescue visual targets from backwards masks. Specifically, participants were correct about a visual target more often when the target-mask sequence appeared after their self-initiated action than when its onset was triggered externally. While self-initiated action sometimes induces sensory attenuation, whereby the perception of sensory events that follow actions is dampened, we observed that self-initiated action promotes the perception of the visual target. This effect could not be explained by the temporal (also called intentional) binding effect, another anticipatory effect that arises from self-initiated action. In addition to this effect, we also demonstrate the successful execution of a visual masking paradigm delivered online using a crowd-sourcing platform