Predicting the Effects of Ozone on Long-Term Growth of Aspen Trees Using Response Functions Developed From Seedlings Grown in Field Chambers.

Tropospheric ozone (O) is among the most pervasive and harmful air pollutants known to affect ecosystems. In the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency and other agencies are tasked with protecting plants and ecosystems from harmful O exposures. Controlled exposure experiments conducted in field open-top chambers (OTCs) with small tree seedlings have been used to estimate empirical models of tree growth in response to O exposure for more than 16 species.

The Effects of Mental Fatigue Induced by the Stroop Test on Muscular Endurance Performance and Neuromuscular Activation in Division III Female Athletes.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect that mental fatigue, as induced by a Stroop test, has on resistance training performance outcomes such as muscular endurance, power output, and neuromuscular activation. Seven female college-aged NCAA Division III student-athletes with at least one year of resistance training experience and were within the 50th percentile for maximal aerobic capacity provided informed consent for participation. During two separate visits, using a within-subject crossover experimental design, subjects completed either the experimental or control condition.

Microscopic characteristics of peri- and postmortem fracture surfaces.

This study investigated if microscopic surface features captured with a scanning electron microscope (SEM) effectively discriminate fracture timing. We hypothesized that microscopic fracture characteristics, including delamination, osteon pullout, and microcracks, may vary as bone elasticity decreases, elucidating perimortem and postmortem events more reliably than macroscopic analyses. Thirty-seven unembalmed, defleshed human femoral shafts from males (n=18) and females (n=2) aged 33-81 years were fractured at experimentally simulated postmortem intervals (PMIs) ranging from 1 to 60 warm weather days (250-40,600 ADH).

Comparative Study of Two Semi-Occluded Vocal Tract Protocols: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Introduction: Semi-occluded vocal tract exercises (SOVTEs) are widely used as a therapeutic tool to create flow resistance in the upper airway. The current study was a randomized controlled clinical trial to establish the efficacy of two SOVTE protocols, flow-resistant tube (FRT) and Lessac-Madsen Resonant Voice Therapy (LMRVT). Exploratory investigations included a noninferiority analysis of FRT to the widely adopted therapy protocol (LMRVT), as well as examining the dosing required to improve acoustic measures and subjective ratings.