196,603 research outputs found
The effects of the Pro12Ala polymorphism of the PPAR?-2 gene on lipid metabolism interact with body size at birth
No full textBody size at birth is an indicator of the intrauterine environment. The effects of the Pro12Pro genotype and the 12Ala allele of the PPAR?-2 gene on glucose and insulin metabolism in adult life depend on body size at birth. A low birth weight is associated with insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. The peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-? (PPAR?s) are also regulators of adipocyte differentiation, and the PPAR?-2 gene could also contribute to the development of dyslipidemia. Therefore, the effects of the Pro12Ala polymorphisms of the PPAR?-2 gene on lipid metabolism were measured in 476 elderly persons whose birth weight was known. The Ala12 allele was associated with increased serum total, low-density lipoprotein (LDL), and non-high-density lipoprotein (non-HDL) cholesterol concentrations but only among those who had birth weights below 3000 g. These interactions between the effects of the PPAR?-2 gene on adult traits and the effects of birth weight may be interpreted as examples of gene–environmental interactions, which underlie plasticity during development
Interactions between peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-[gamma] 2 gene polymorphisms and size at birth on blood pressure and the use of antihypertensive medication
No full textObjective: The combination of small birth size and the Pro12Pro variant of the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-[gamma]2 (PPAR-[gamma]2) gene has been shown to be associated with insulin resistance, which is linked to hypertension. We examined whether the association between small body size at birth and adult blood pressure is modulated by PPAR-[gamma]2 gene polymorphism, and whether the use of any class of antihypertensive medication is related to birth size.Design and Methods: A total of 500 subjects from an original epidemiological cohort of 7086 men and women aged 65-75 years attended a clinical study. Two hundred and eight of them (73 men and 135 women) were taking antihypertensive medication and are included in this study. The Pro12Ala polymorphism of the PPAR-[gamma]2 gene was determined using the polymerase chain reaction single-strand conformation polymorphism method.Results and Conclusions: Hypertensive subjects with low birth weight or short length at birth and the Pro12Pro variant had raised systolic blood pressure. We suggest that insulin resistance enhances the regulatory responses of the renin-angiotensin system, leading to raised blood pressure levels. Those hypertensive subjects who had small birth size and the Pro12Pro variant tended to use angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors or angiotensin-receptor blockers (ACEI/ARB). This could be because insulin resistance interacts with the renin-angiotensin system in ways that make ACEI/ARB an effective therapy. Alternative explanations include more severe and teatment resistant hypertension, leading to application of ACEI/ARB, or co-morbid conditions, such as myocardial infarction and type 2 diabetes, known to be linked to low birth weight
Dr. Duane M. Jackson, Morehouse College, July 2011
No full textThis video is a conversation with Dr. Duane M. Jackson. Dr. Jackson talks about his paper, "Recall and the Serial Position Effect: The Role of Primacy and Recency on Accounting Students' Performance." Jackie Daniel, AUC Woodruff Library, is the interviewer
"Reflections on the subject of Emigration from Europe with a view to Settlement in the United States" By M. Carey.
No full text"Reflections on the subject of Emigration from Europe with a view to Settlement in the United States: containing bried sketches of the moral and political character of those states.
By M. Carey, member of the American philosophical, and of the American Antiquarian Society, and author of The Olive Branch, Cindiciae Hibernicae, essays on banking, on political economy, and on internal improvement.
To which are now added the English editor's comments on the subject; together with Important Advice to Emigrants, and Cautions Against Impositions Practiced in the Outports
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
No full textWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
Dr. Glendon Swarthout
No full textHosted by Roger M. Busfield, MSU Assistant Professor of Speech and Theater, Meet the Author is designed to introduce a general audience to a contemporary author and their work through in-depth interviews. This episode features a conversation between Dr. Glendon Swarthout, prolific author and English professor at MSU, and assistant professors Sam S. Baskett and Theodore B. Strandness
Studying electromagnetic wave-guiding and resonating devices
No full textVarious electromagnetic wave-guiding and resonating structures are studied. The structures in question are rather complicated and thus, significant part of the used analysis methods are numerical. Numerical field computation is based on finite-difference method (FD) or on finite-difference time-domain method (FDTD). When possible, analytical methods have been used, often in conjunction with numerical computation. Most of the structures, if not all, find real-life applications. Thus, the focus has been much on such issues as fluency of structure design and quickness of analysis.
Firstly, combline-filter structures are investigated. These components are widely used in mobile communication devices, in radio-frequency and microwave regime, for example. A semianalytic analysis method, which is based on multiconductor-transmission-line theory and 2-D numerical field computation via FD method, is found very efficient. Computationally costly 3-D numerical field computation is avoided. This speeds up the design process of combline filters.
Secondly, so-called hard-surface-waveguide components are analytically studied. When approximating the longitudinally corrugated waveguide wall with an ideal hard surface, one can concentrate on the effects caused by the media inside the tube. First waveguide component is filled with uniaxial anisotropic medium. For this structure, which can be used as a polarisation transformer, analytical solutions are found for transmitted and reflected field, and especially for the helicity of the transmitted field. Second waveguide component is filled with gyrotropic medium, which is electrically controllable ferrite in this case. This component can be used as a mode transformer, for example, from TM to TE mode. Analytical solutions are found for reflected and transmitted fields.
Finally, wave-guiding structures based on photonic-bandgap (PBG) material are studied. This kind of periodically inhomogeneous material is also known as photonic crystal (PhC), having the ability to inhibit the propagation of electromagnetic wave inside the crystal. Carefully designed PBG components may find several applications, for example, in the integrated optics. In this thesis, the focus has been on PBG material based on triangular lattice of air holes etched through dielectric background. Further, waveguide bends have been of special interest, partly because they give a chance of realising tight light-channel bends for integrated optics. Various issues related to FDTD analysis and design of PBG structures are discussed. The importance of PBG-component optimisation is demonstrated. Promising results are obtained for extremely tight bends, although radiation losses in real 3-D structures are recognized as a problem. Some basic components, 60 and 120 degree waveguide bends, and a taper, have been designed.reviewe
Simulation of thermal plant optimization and hydraulic aspects of thermal distribution loops for large campuses
No full textFollowing an introduction, the author describes Texas A&M University and its utilities system. After that, the author presents how to construct simulation models for chilled water and heating hot water distribution systems. The simulation model was used in a $2.3 million Ross Street chilled water pipe replacement project at Texas A&M University. A second project conducted at the University of Texas at San Antonio was used as an example to demonstrate how to identify and design an optimal distribution system by using a simulation model. The author found that the minor losses of these closed loop thermal distribution systems are significantly higher than potable water distribution systems. In the second part of the report, the author presents the latest development of software called the Plant Optimization Program, which can simulate cogeneration plant operation, estimate its operation cost and provide optimized operation suggestions. The author also developed detailed simulation models for a gas turbine and heat recovery steam generator and identified significant potential savings. Finally, the author also used a steam turbine as an example to present a multi-regression method on constructing simulation models by using basic statistics and optimization algorithms. This report presents a survey of the author??s working experience at the Energy Systems Laboratory (ESL) at Texas A&M University during the period of January 2002 through March 2004. The purpose of the above work was to allow the author to become familiar with the practice of engineering. The result is that the author knows how to complete a project from start to finish and understands how both technical and nontechnical aspects of a project need to be considered in order to ensure a quality deliverable and bring a project to successful completion. This report concludes that the objectives of the internship were successfully accomplished and that the requirements for the degree of Degree of Engineering have been satisfied
Fish oil, insulin sensitivity, insulin secretion and glucose tolerance in healthy people: is there any effect of fish oil supplementation in relation to the type of background diet and habitual dietary intake of n-6 and n-3 fatty acids?
No full textAim: To evaluate whether a moderate supplementation of long-chain n-3 fatty acids is able to modulate insulin sensitivity, insulin secretion, beta-cell function and glucose tolerance in healthy individuals consuming a diet rich in either saturated or monounsaturated fat, also in relation to their habitual dietary intake of n-6 and n-3 fatty acid.Methods and results: One hundred and sixty-two healthy individuals were randomly assigned to follow either one of two isoenergetic diets for 3 months, one rich in monounsaturated fats and the other rich in saturated fats. Within each group there was a second randomisation to fish oil (n-3 fatty acids 3.6 g/day) or placebo. At the beginning and at the end of the treatment periods insulin sensitivity (SI), first phase insulin response (FPIR) and glucose tolerance (K-G-value) were evaluated by the intravenous glucose tolerance test (IVGTT).Fish oil did not have any effect on SI, FPIR, K-G-value and disposition index in either diet. Even after dividing subjects according to the median value of n-6/n-3 ratio of serum phospholipids at baseline, there was no change in SI (Delta SI 0.42 +/- 0.34 on fish oil vs 0.14 +/- 0.23 on placebo for those with n-6/n-3 4.85) (M +/- SE), FPIR (Delta FPIR 135.9 +/- 78.9 vs 157.2 +/- 157.5 pmol/L; 38.8 +/- 181.7 vs 357.1 +/- 181.7 pmol/L), K-G-value (Delta K-G 0.14 +/- 0.15 vs 0.12 +/- 0.11; -0.32 +/- 0.16 vs 0.15 +/- 0.15) or disposition index (Delta disposition index 1465.4 +/- 830.4 vs 953.8 +/- 690.0; -1641.6 +/- 1034.3 vs 446.6 +/- 905.1). Considering the 75th percentile of n-6/n-3 ratio (5.82) the results on insulin sensitivity, insulin secretion and disposition index were confirmed, while, in this more extreme situation, n-3 fatty acid supplementation induced a significant deterioration of KG-value (p = 0.02).Conclusions: in healthy individuals a moderate supplementation of fish oil does not affect insulin sensitivity, insulin secretion, beta-cell function or glucose tolerance. The same is true even when the habitual dietary intake of n-6 and n-3 fatty acids is taken into account
Intern experience at CH���M Hill, Inc.: an internship report
No full textIncludes author's vita"Submitted to the College of Engineering of Texas A&M University in partial
fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of Engineering."Includes bibliographical referencesA review of the author's internship experience with CH���M HILL, Inc.
during the period September 1975 through May 1976 is presented. During this nine month
internship the author worked as an Engineer II in the Industrial Processes discipline of this
large consulting engineering firm... The author's prime responsibility was as one of three
lead design engineers on the design of a large wastewater treatment facility for a pulp mill
in Hoquiam, Washington owned by ITT Rayonier Inc. The work generally consisted of the design
of individual treatment units and associated piping and pumping. The purpose of the project
was to provide wastewater treatment capabilities that would satisfy the effluent limitations
(standards) imposed upon the mill by the State of Washington Department of Ecology and the
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The author's assignment also entailed necessary
interaction with the project manager and other CH���M HILL design engineers and support staff
members, the client's representatives, and representatives of two other consulting engineering
firms working on the project. Thus, the internship position at CH���M HILL provided considerable
experience coordinating the author's work with the work of other engineers, guiding the design
and administrative efforts of a support staff, and interacting regularly with the client and
other consulting firms. This broad exposure to a variety of engineering and organizational
problems provided a valuable educational experience
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