Microwave amplification with nanomechanical resonators.

The sensitive measurement of electrical signals is at the heart of modern technology. According to the principles of quantum mechanics, any detector or amplifier necessarily adds a certain amount of noise to the signal, equal to at least the noise added by quantum fluctuations. This quantum limit of added noise has nearly been reached in superconducting devices that take advantage of nonlinearities in Josephson junctions.

Preferences of dairy cows for three stall surface materials with small amounts of bedding.

Farmers' concerns about the economy, cost of labor, and hygiene have resulted in reduced use of organic bedding in stalls for dairy cows; however, the reduced use of organic bedding possibly impairs cow comfort. The effects of different stall surface materials were evaluated in an unheated building in which only a small amount of bedding was used. The lying time and preferences of 18 cows using 3 stall surface materials (concrete, soft rubber mat, and sand) were compared.

Equol in milk of dairy cows is derived from forage legumes such as red clover.

The intake of isoflavones and the resulting equol contents of both plasma and milk of the same red clover-fed cows are reported for the first time in cyclic change-over design study. Cows were fed four different red clover silages and two timothy-meadow fescue silages as controls. The red clover silages contained daidzein, formononetin, biochanin A and genistein, whereas the timothy-meadow fescue silages contained no isoflavones.

Effects of providing water from a bucket or a nipple on the performance and behavior of calves fed ad libitum volumes of acidified milk replacer.

Little information is available on how much water ad libitum milk-fed calves consume during the milk-feeding stage and during weaning to solid feed. Further, no information exists on the effects on calf behavior and performance of different water delivery systems during these stages. Therefore, the objectives of this study were first, to examine the water intake of calves fed acidified milk replacer ad libitum during the milk-feeding and weaning stages, and second, to determine whether the method of water delivery affected water and feed intake and growth during these periods or oral behavior during weaning.

Effects of sand and straw bedding on the lying behavior, cleanliness, and hoof and hock injuries of dairy cows.

This experiment compared the effects of sand and straw bedding in free stalls on resting time, cleanliness, hock injuries, and hoof health of dairy cows and tested whether cow preferences for a bedding material depended on the familiarity with the material. A total of 52 dairy cows were kept either on straw bedded concrete stalls or sand stalls for at least 21 wk. The lying behavior was observed, and hock lesions, hoof health, and cleanliness of the cows and stalls were measured.