Miami University, Ohio
Not a member yet
805 research outputs found
Sort by
Cryoprotectants and extreme freeze tolerance in a subarctic population of the wood frog.
Get PDFWood frogs (Rana sylvatica) exhibit marked geographic variation in freeze tolerance, with subarctic populations tolerating experimental freezing to temperatures at least 10-13 degrees Celsius below the lethal limits for conspecifics from more temperate locales. We determined how seasonal responses enhance the cryoprotectant system in these northern frogs, and also investigated their physiological responses to somatic freezing at extreme temperatures. Alaskan frogs collected in late summer had plasma urea levels near 10 μmol ml-1, but this level rose during preparation for winter to 85.5 ± 2.9 μmol ml-1 (mean ± SEM) in frogs that remained fully hydrated, and to 186.9 ± 12.4 μmol ml-1 in frogs held under a restricted moisture regime. An osmolality gap indicated that the plasma of winter-conditioned frogs contained an as yet unidentified osmolyte(s) that contributed about 75 mOsmol kg-1 to total osmotic pressure. Experimental freezing to –8°C, either directly or following three cycles of freezing/thawing between –4 and 0°C, or –16°C increased the liver’s synthesis of glucose and, to a lesser extent, urea. Concomitantly, organs shed up to one-half (skeletal muscle) or two-thirds (liver) of their water, with cryoprotectant in the remaining fluid reaching concentrations as high as 0.2 and 2.1 M, respectively. Freeze/thaw cycling, which was readily survived by winter-conditioned frogs, greatly increased hepatic glycogenolysis and delivery of glucose (but not urea) to skeletal muscle. We conclude that cryoprotectant accrual in anticipation of and in response to freezing have been greatly enhanced and contribute to extreme freeze tolerance in northern R. sylvatica
Describing and Assessing Leadership for Person-Centered Care: Final Project Report
Get PDFThis report provides brief highlights from a study of leadership in nursing homes with a person-centered or traditional approach to care
Information Overload in Today's Digital Environment
Get PDFPresentation given to Miami University Alumni on June 13, 2015 as a part of Alumni Weekend's Alumni College
Giving up the keys: How driving cessation affects engagement in later life
No full textPurpose of the study. Many older adults consider driving vital to maintaining their preferred lifestyle and engagement with society, yet it is normative for individuals to eventually stop driving. This study examined the impact of driving cessation on older adults’ productive and social engagement, and whether mental and physical health mediated this relationship.
Design and Methods. Multilevel modeling was used to analyze longitudinal data (N = 4,788 adults age 65+) from the Health and Retirement Study (1998 – 2010).
Results. Productive engagement (paid work, formal and informal volunteering) was negatively affected when older adults stopped driving, but social engagement was not immediately compromised by the transition to non-driver status. The role of health and mental health as mediators in explaining this relationship was negligible.
Implications. The results suggest that interventions aimed at maintaining non-drivers’ participation in productive roles should focus on factors other than enhancement of health and well-being to spur greater engagement (e.g., availability of and barriers to use of public transportation). Also important in the intervention process is planning for mobility transitions. Future research should test for geographic (e.g., urban vs. rural) differences in the impact of driving cessation on productive and social engagement
A longitudinal study of website accessibility: Have social work education websites become more accessible?
Get PDFThis study (N = 45 schools) sought to determine the accessibility of baccalaureate social work program websites in 2003 and 2008 using Priority 1 checkpoints from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) 1.0 guidelines. Paired t-test results indicate that the mean accessibility scores of five of the nine items (plus the website accessibility scale as a whole) was statistically higher after five years. However, 75.6% of programs still had one or more Priority 1 accessibility barriers in 2008 and thus did not meet the lowest W3C accessibility guidelines. This highlights the need for more education about barriers to accessibility and methods for making websites more accessible
Retirement transitions among married couples
No full textRetirement is often viewed as an event when someone completely withdraws from paid employment. The purpose of the present study was to examine the patterns of retirement transitions evidenced in married couples in the Health and Retirement Study over an 8-year period (1992-2000). The sample consisted of White and Black married couples (N = 1,118) where both spouses were working and at least one spouse was aged 51-61 at baseline. A variety of complex retirement patterns were found. Husbands were more likely than wives to show a linear pattern (i.e., a transition directly from work to complete retirement). Transitions were related within couples. Policy and practice implications are discussed
