Experience with 3-D composite grids

Experience with the three-dimensional (3-D), chimera grid embedding scheme is described. Applications of the inviscid version to a multiple-body configuration, a wind/body/tail configuration, and an estimate of wind tunnel wall interference are described. Applications to viscous flows include a 3-D cavity and another multi-body configuration. A variety of grid generators is used, and several embedding strategies are described

The Effects of Sea Level Rise on Displacement and Health in the Pacific Northwest

https://louis.uah.edu/rceu-hcr/1309/thumbnail.jp

The Effects of Sea Level Rise on Health and Displacement in the Pacific Northwest

Coastal Washington and Oregon are vulnerable to future inundation due to sea level rise. Inundation would most likely lead to people displaced from their homes and lead to health issues of both mental and physical natures. Using ArcMap, areas most likely to be inundated were identified and the number of people that may be displaced were estimated for 1, 2, and 5 ft of sea level rise scenarios. The amount of Native Americans who live on federally recognized reservations and entities that may be displaced was also estimated. It was found that many of the inundated areas, particularly those within reservations or entities, were in medically underserved areas and health professional shortage areas. It was found that over 200,000 people would be displaced by 1 ft of sea level rise, over 225,000 people by 2 ft, and over 300,000 people by 5 ft. Of those displaced, over 2,100 Native Americans who live on reservations or entities would be displaced by 1 ft of sea level rise, 3,700 Native Americans by 2 ft, and 5,900 Native Americans by 5 ft. About a third of those displaced live in medically underserved areas and over two thirds live in areas that lack primary care and mental health professionals

The Effects of Sea Level Rise on Health and Displacement in the Pacific Northwest

Coastal Washington and Oregon are vulnerable to future inundation due to sea level rise. Inundation would most likely lead to people displaced from their homes and lead to health issues of both mental and physical natures. Using ArcMap, areas most likely to be inundated were identified and the number of people that may be displaced were estimated for 1, 2, and 5 ft of sea level rise scenarios. The amount of Native Americans who live on federally recognized reservations and entities that may be displaced was also estimated. It was found that many of the inundated areas, particularly those within reservations or entities, were in medically underserved areas and health professional shortage areas. It was found that over 200,000 people would be displaced by 1 ft of sea level rise, over 225,000 people by 2 ft, and over 300,000 people by 5 ft. Of those displaced, over 2,100 Native Americans who live on reservations or entities would be displaced by 1 ft of sea level rise, 3,700 Native Americans by 2 ft, and 5,900 Native Americans by 5 ft. About a third of those displaced live in medically underserved areas and over two thirds live in areas that lack primary care and mental health professionals

Slowing Growth among Public Charities: Implications of Increasing Concentration of Donations to America's Largest Charities

Abstract: Growth among 501(c)(3) charitable organizations is generally taken for granted. However, there is almost no scholarship that systematically examines the trend of growth in this critical portion of the nonprofit sector. My research examines the change over a twenty year period in number of economically significant charities, their total revenue, and donations they received while adjusting for inflation and growth in both the economy and within the population of charitable organizations. Data from Forms 990 is compared alongside the consolidated data of America's largest fundraising charities in the Philanthropy 400, an annual ranking published by The Chronicle of Philanthropy. Inflation adjustment of the filing threshold is imperative because the cheapening effect inflation nearly guarantees growth if all filers are indiscriminately included. Categorization of organizations based on the National Taxonomy of Exempt Entities reveals different patterns within the population of charitable organizations. Growth slowed for the population of charities over the last twenty years in terms of number of organizations and total revenue, while concentration is revealed by the largest fundraising charities received an increasing share of overall donations and revenue. Sensitivity analysis reveals the growth trend has nothing to do with the recent recession. A much longer trend suggests the population of charities is reaching a point of industry maturation in an extremely similar trajectory to that previously observed in the market structure of other industries like brewing and automobile manufacturing. This study provides a context for better understanding short term changes among charities and changes among subpopulations of charitable organizations. This study raises significant implications about how the nonprofit sector is measured, the competitiveness of fundraising, and the potential growth of various categories of charities in the coming years

Persistence and change in donations received by America's largest charities

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)This dissertation explores growth among American charities by examining 25 years of the Philanthropy 400, an annual ranking published by The Chronicle of Philanthropy of the 400 charities receiving the most donations. Data preparation for the Philanthropy 400’s first analysis remedied publication deadline constraints by aligning data by fiscal years and adding 310 charities omitted from the published rankings, resulting in a study population of 1,101 charities. Most studies of charity finance examine individual Forms 990. The Philanthropy 400 uses consolidated financial information from entire organizational networks, creating the same basis for charities filing a single Form 990, like the American Red Cross, and charities with affiliates filing more than 1,000 Forms 990, like Habitat for Humanity. Organizational ecology theory frames examination of aggregate changes in the Philanthropy 400. Two questions examine how age and dependence on donations as a percentage of total income affect persistence in the rankings. A third question examines the changing share of total U.S. giving received by ranked charities. Despite stability resulting from the same charities occupying 189 of the 400 ranking positions every year, the median age of ranked charities decreased. Younger charities generally climbed within the rankings, while older charities tended to decline or exit the rankings. Younger new entrants often persisted in the rankings, suggesting some donors embrace various new causes or solutions. Charities ranked only once or twice decreased in number with each successive ranking. Most charities ranked only once entered the rankings by receiving two or more times their typical amount of donations, suggesting that sustained fundraising programs regularly outperform charities that periodically experience years of extraordinarily high donations. The aggregate inflation-adjusted donations received by the Philanthropy 400 increased during the study period and increased as a percentage of total U.S. giving. As predicted by organizational ecology, the increasing percentage of total U.S. giving received by the Philanthropy 400 coincided with slowing growth in both the number of U.S. charities and total U.S. giving. If the Philanthropy 400 continues to increase its percentage of total U.S. giving, this could affect financing for smaller charities

Cause and prevention of demyelination in a model multiple sclerosis lesion

OBJECTIVE: Demyelination is a cardinal feature of multiple sclerosis, but it remains unclear why new lesions form, and whether they can be prevented. Neuropathological evidence suggests that demyelination can occur in the relative absence of lymphocytes, and with distinctive characteristics suggestive of a tissue energy deficit. The objective was to examine an experimental model of the early multiple sclerosis lesion and identify pathogenic mechanisms and opportunities for therapy. METHODS: Demyelinating lesions were induced in the rat spinal dorsal column by microinjection of lipopolysaccharide, and examined immunohistochemically at different stages of development. The efficacy of treatment with inspired oxygen for 2 days following lesion induction was evaluated. RESULTS: Demyelinating lesions were not centered on the injection site, but rather formed 1 week later at the white-gray matter border, preferentially including the ventral dorsal column watershed. Lesion formation was preceded by a transient early period of hypoxia and increased production of superoxide and nitric oxide. Oligodendrocyte numbers decreased at the site shortly afterward, prior to demyelination. Lesions formed at a site of inherent susceptibility to hypoxia, as revealed by exposure of naive animals to a hypoxic environment. Notably, raising the inspired oxygen (80%, normobaric) during the hypoxic period significantly reduced or prevented the demyelination. INTERPRETATION: Demyelination characteristic of at least some early multiple sclerosis lesions can arise at a vascular watershed following activation of innate immune mechanisms that provoke hypoxia, and superoxide and nitric oxide formation, all of which can compromise cellular energy sufficiency. Demyelination can be reduced or eliminated by increasing inspired oxygen to alleviate the transient hypoxia. Ann Neurol 2016;79:591-604

Immune modulation by group B Streptococcus influences host susceptibility to urinary tract infection by uropathogenic Escherichia coli

Urinary tract infection (UTI) is most often caused by uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC). UPEC inoculation into the female urinary tract (UT) can occur through physical activities that expose the UT to an inherently polymicrobial periurethral, vaginal, or gastrointestinal flora. We report that a common urogenital inhabitant and opportunistic pathogen, group B Streptococcus (GBS), when present at the time of UPEC exposure, undergoes rapid UPEC-dependent exclusion from the murine urinary tract, yet it influences acute UPEC-host interactions and alters host susceptibility to persistent outcomes of bladder and kidney infection. GBS presence results in increased UPEC titers in the bladder lumen during acute infection and reduced inflammatory responses of murine macrophages to live UPEC or purified lipopolysaccharide (LPS), phenotypes that require GBS mimicry of host sialic acid residues. Taken together, these studies suggest that despite low titers, the presence of GBS at the time of polymicrobial UT exposure may be an overlooked risk factor for chronic pyelonephritis and recurrent UTI in susceptible groups, even if it is outcompeted and thus absent by the time of diagnosis

Circulating Neuronatin Levels Are Positively Associated with BMI and Body Fat Mass but Not with Psychological Parameters

Human genetic studies have associated Neuronatin gene variants with anorexia nervosa (AN) and obesity. Studies on the expression of the Neuronatin gene product, a proteolipid, are lacking. We investigated the relationship between circulating Neuronatin, body mass index (BMI), body composition (BC), physical activity (PA), and psychometric outcomes in patients with AN, normal weight, and obesity. Plasma Neuronatin was measured by ELISA in (1) 79 subjects of five BMI categories (AN/BMI 50 kg/m2) with assessment of BC (bioimpedance analysis; BIA); (2) 49 women with AN (BMI 14.5 ± 1.8 kg/m2) with measurements of BC (BIA) and PA (accelerometry); (3) 79 women with obesity (BMI 48.8 ± 7.8 kg/m2) with measurements of anxiety (GAD-7), stress (PSQ-20), depression (PHQ-9) and eating behavior (EDI-2). Overall, a positive correlation was found between Neuronatin and BMI (p = 0.006) as well as total fat mass (FM; p = 0.036). In AN, Neuronatin did not correlate with BMI, FM, or PA (p > 0.05); no correlations were found between Neuronatin and psychometric outcomes in obesity (p > 0.05). The findings suggest an FM-dependent peripheral Neuronatin expression. The decreased Neuronatin expression in AN provides evidence that Neuronatin is implicated in the pathogenesis of eating disorders