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AbstractReclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) has been widely implemented in asphalt pavement construction due to its cost benefits along with its reasonable engineering performance. With the trend of h...

lafond c.m. & van hulle vincent c. (2012) A critique of the National League for Nursing/Jeffries simulation framework. Journal of Advanced Nursing00(0), 000–000. doi: 10.1111/j.1365‐2648.2012.06048.xAbstractAims.  To present a critique of the National League for Nursing/Jeffries simulation framework.Design.  Fawcett’s criteria for theory analysis and evaluation are used.Background.  Use of simulated learning experiences in nursing education is widespread; a sound framework to guide educators across the globe in implementing these experiences effectively is essential. The basic assertion of the National League for Nursing/Jeffries simulation framework is that student‐learning outcomes are influenced by the concepts of teacher, student, educational practices, and simulation design characteristics.Data sources.  A literature search was performed using Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, PubMed and Google Scholar to identify studies published in the English language, between 2005–June 2011, where the National League for Nursing/Jeffries simulation framework was tested or used as a theoretical framework for research.Discussion.  Sixteen publications (two articles in press) from the USA and UK were identified using the framework to guide research; outcomes included increased student satisfaction, confidence, and improved skill performance.Implications for nursing.  As a newer theoretical framework, the National League for Nursing/Jeffries simulation framework offers promise to guide the construction and implementation of simulation experiences resulting in positive student outcomes.Conclusion.  Empirically supported definitions of concepts would strengthen the framework and help educators to consistently produce and identify positive outcomes. Additional rigorous research is necessary to further test relationships among concepts and the associated concept variables in the framework. More studies outside of the United States are needed to confirm the framework is relevant to nursing programs in other countries.

Multi-aperture coherent LADAR techniques can be applied to generate high resolution images. When setting up a system with multiple sub-apertures, misalignment of the sub-apertures causes the beams entering the sub-apertures to have mismatched optical path lengths, which will degrade the image resolution. Post-processing using image sharpening techniques to correct for piston phase, as well as other aberration corrections, require computing power and time. We study whether the processing time can be shortened by providing measured piston phase information to the image sharpening algorithms. Simulations are used to demonstrate the usefulness of piston phase measurements. Simulations are presented showing the benefits of piston phase measurements for two or more sub-apertures. The speed of convergence for the sharpening algorithm both with and without the piston phase measurements are compared for multiple sub-aperture imaging.

Obstructive sleep apnea is increasing worldwide, leading to disordered sleep patterns and inflammatory responses in brain and peripheral tissues that predispose individuals to chronic disease. Pro-inflammatory cytokines activate the inflammatory response and are normally regulated by glucocorticoids secreted from adrenal glands. However, the temporal dynamics of inflammatory responses and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis activation in relation to acute sleep fragmentation (ASF) are undescribed. Male C57BL/6J mice were exposed to ASF or control conditions (no ASF) over specified intervals (1, 2, 6, or 24 h) and cytokine gene expression (IL-1β, TNF-α) in brain and peripheral tissues as well as serum glucocorticoid and interleukin-6 (IL-6) concentration were assessed. The HPA axis was rapidly activated, leading to elevated serum corticosterone from 1–24 h of ASF compared with controls. This activation was followed by elevated serum IL-6 concentration from 6–24 h of ASF. The tissue to first exhibit increased pro-inflammatory gene expression from ASF was heart (1 h of ASF). In contrast, pro-inflammatory gene expression was suppressed in hypothalamus from 1 h of ASF, but elevated at 6 h. Because the HPA axis was activated throughout ASF, this suggests that brain, but not peripheral, pro-inflammatory responses were rapidly inhibited by glucocorticoid immunosuppression.

Anaerobic homofermentative production of reduced products requires additional reducing power (NADH and/or NADPH) output from glucose catabolism. Previously, with an anaerobically expressed pyruvate dehydrogenase operon (aceEF-lpd), we doubled the reducing power output to four NADH per glucose (or 1.2 xylose) catabolized anaerobically, which satisfied the NADH requirement to establish a non-transgenic homoethanol pathway (1 glucose or 1.2 xylose --> 2 acetyl-CoA + 4 NADH --> 2 ethanol) in the engineered strain, Escherichia coli SZ420 (∆frdBC ∆ldhA ∆ackA ∆focA-pflB ∆pdhR::pflBp6-pflBrbs-aceEF-lpd). In this study, E. coli SZ420 was further engineered for reduction of xylose to xylitol by (1) deleting the alcohol dehydrogenase gene (adhE) to divert NADH from the ethanol pathway; (2) deleting the glucose-specific PTS permease gene (ptsG) to eliminate catabolite repression and allow simultaneous uptake of glucose and xylose; (3) cloning the aldose reductase gene (xylI) of Candida boidinii to reduce xylose to xylitol. The resulting strain, E. coli AI05 (pAGI02), could in theory simultaneously uptake glucose and xylose, and utilize glucose as a source of reducing power for the reduction of xylose to xylitol, with an expected yield of four xylitol for each glucose consumed (YRPG = 4) under anaerobic conditions. In resting cell fermentation tests using glucose and xylose mixtures, E. coli AI05 (pAGI02) achieved an actual YRPG value of ~3.6, with xylitol as the major fermentation product and acetate as the by-product.

Bench-scale investigations are continuing on the NRRI Coal Conversion Process at the Department of Mineral Engineering, University of Wyoming, under the sponsorship of the Office of Coal Research, Department of the Interior. The process uses a multiple catalyst composed of an alkali carbonate and a nickel methanation catalyst in a one-stage batch charge reactor to convert coal and steam to synthetic natural gas. A gas of over 800 Btu/SCF (CO/sub 2/ free) composed predominantely of methane has been produced at 650/sup 0/C and 32 psia. Under these conditions significant improvements on the methane yields are realized by employing the alkali carbonate along with the nickel catalyst. By optimizing the amount of alkali carbonate, the total methane yield can be increased by over 40 percent. The methane yields are discussed in regard to varying amounts of the alkali carbonate. Supporting analytical and x-ray diffraction data are presented.