Factors predictive of black students' communication with the administration and students at a predominantly white university

Black students' interaction with a predominantly white university's administration, faculty, and students appears to be a central issue in current study of black student success in college. This study examined personality and situational factors predictive of black students' communication with such a university's administration, faculty, and students. The development of an instrument describing environmental and social concerns of black students demonstrated reasonable predictive validity of communication with the administration and white students. Feelings about the social environment and tendencies of communication anxiety were among the strongest predictors of black students' communication.     

Quantifying physical activity in first-through fourth-grade physical education via pedometry

The aim of this study was to determine pedometry steps per minute (SPM) cutscores that accurately quantify physical activity (PA) time in first- through fourth-grade physical education. A total of 257 participants were grouped in two data pools, first- and second-grade (n = 126), and third- and fourth-grade (n = 131). Systematic observation was the PA criterion instrument and pedometry was the predictor instrument. Correlations between physical activity measures were strong (r = .82-.89, p < .01). Ten min of PA and 33.33% of the lesson time engaged in PA within a 30-min class can be quantified by 61-63 SPM for first- and second-grade, and 58-61 SPM for third- and fourth-grade. IN CONCOLUSION: (a) SPM values were a valid indicator of students achieving or not achieving PA criteria, and (b) pedometry is a valid and practical tool for physical activity surveillance within physical education.     

Rapid and cost-effective fabrication of selectively permeable calcium-alginate microfluidic device using ��modified�� embedded template method

In this paper, we have presented a non-lithographic embedded template method for rapid and cost-effective fabrication of a selectively permeable calcium-alginate (Ca-alginate) based microfluidic device with long serpentine delay channel. To demonstrate the versatility of the presented method, we have demonstrated two different strategies to fabricate serpentine long delay channels without using any sophisticated microfabrication techniques, in formal lab atmosphere. The procedure presented here, also, enables the preparation of a multilayered microfluidic device with channels of varying dimensions, in a single device without using any sophisticated micromachining instrumentation. In addition, we have also qualitatively studied the diffusion of small and large molecules from a Ca-alginate based microfluidic device and proposed a method to effectively control the out-flow of macro biomolecules from the crosslinked Ca-alginate matrix to create a selectively permeable matrix required for various biological and biomimetic applications, as mentioned in the Introduction section of this work.     

Gravity-oriented microfluidic device for uniform and massive cell spheroid formation

We propose a simple method for forming massive and uniform three-dimensional (3-D) cell spheroids in a multi-level structured microfluidic device by gravitational force. The concept of orienting the device vertically has allowed spheroid formation, long-term perfusion, and retrieval of the cultured spheroids by user-friendly standard pipetting. We have successfully formed, perfused, and retrieved uniform, size-controllable, well-conditioned spheroids of human embryonic kidney 293 cells (HEK 293) in the gravity-oriented microfluidic device. We expect the proposed method will be a useful tool to study in-vitro 3-D cell models for the proliferation, differentiation, and metabolism of embryoid bodies or tumours.     

Adaptive controller design for spacecraft formation flying using sliding mode controller and neural networks

A spacecraft formation flying controller is designed using a sliding mode control scheme with the adaptive gain and neural networks. Six-degree-of-freedom spacecraft nonlinear dynamic model is considered, and a leader–follower approach is adopted for efficient spacecraft formation flying. Uncertainties and external disturbances have effects on controlling the relative position and attitude of the spacecrafts in the formation. The main benefit of the sliding mode control is the robust stability of the closed-loop system. To improve the performance of the sliding mode control, an adaptive controller based on neural networks is used to compensate for the effects of the modeling error, external disturbance, and nonlinearities. The stability analysis of the closed-loop system is performed using the Lyapunov stability theorem. A spacecraft model with 12 thrusts as actuators is considered for controlling the relative position and attitude of the follower spacecraft. Numerical simulation results are presented to show the effectiveness of the proposed controller.     

Successful recanalization of chronic total occlusion of the superior mesenteric artery by transradial approach

It is a challenge to confirm chronic mesenteric ischemia (CMI) as a cause of gastrointestinal (Gl) symptoms such as postprandial epigastric bloating,anorexia,and debilitating weight loss.Endovascular intervention for CMI has been gaining popularity because of the high morbidity associated with surgical revascularization.However,in EVI for superior mesenteric artery (SMA) occlusion,the transfemoral approach is limited by difficulty in coaxial alignment of the guiding catheter,which leads to insufficient back-up support.Herein,we report on a 58-year-old male patient with chronic total occlusion of the SMA,which was successfully revascularized by endovascular intervention via the left radial artery.Transradial endovascutar therapy may be another treatment option for the treatment of CMI.     

Distributed framework for yard planning in container terminals

This study discusses a yard planning system,which considers various resources such as storage space,yard cranes,and traffic areas in container terminals.The system is based on the function for estimating resource requirements of yard plans.For a given yard plan,the proposed system allows planners to check the feasibility of the plan which requires a certain amount of workload of resources in related blocks during a planning horizon.The yard planning system in this study is aimed at balancing workloads among the blocks and providing the ability to modify current yard plans by detecting blocks and periods with overloaded workloads.The system implements its planning function in a distributed manner in which planners construct yard plans under their individual control and send and receive only limited necessary information for the negotiation.