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Recent elevated temperatures and prolonged droughts in many already water-limited regions throughout the world, including the southwestern United States, are likely to intensify according to future climate-model projections. This warming and drying can negatively affect perennial vegetation and lead to the degradation of ecosystem properties., To better understand these detrimental effects, we formulate a conceptual model of dryland ecosystem vulnerability to climate change that integrates hypotheses on how plant species will respond to increases in temperature and drought, including how plant responses to climate are modified by landscape, soil and plant attributes that are integral to water availability and use. We test the model through a synthesis of fifty years of repeat measurements of perennial plant species cover in large permanent plots across the Mojave Desert, one of the most water-limited ecosystems in North America., Plant species ranged in their sensitivity to precipitation in different seasons, capacity to increase in cover with high precipitation and resistance to decrease in cover with low precipitation., Our model successfully explains how plant responses to climate are modified by biophysical attributes in the Mojave Desert. For example, deep-rooted plants were not as vulnerable to drought on soils that allowed for deep-water percolation, whereas shallow-rooted plants were better buffered from drought on soils that promoted water retention near the surface., Synthesis. Our results emphasize the importance of understanding climate-vegetation relationships in the context of biophysical attributes that influence water availability and provide an important forecast of climate-change effects, including plant mortality and land degradation in dryland regions throughout the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses research on the prevalence as well as the differences in the antigens of the subgenotypes of the Bovine viral diarrhea virus in cattle in the southwestern part of the U.S. and Australia. It references a study by John D. Neill and colleagues, published in the 2010 issue of the "Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation." The researchers performed phylogenetic analysis among the subjects on two blinded panels which feature 351 viral isolates.

The article focuses on the impact of knowledge gaps to the development of U.S. control programs on bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV). It states that the primary objective of the study is to evaluate the effect of knowledge gaps that exist in BVDV studies on achieving comprehensive U.S. programs. It emphasizes the need to conduct researches on the efficacy of BVDV vaccines to understand which immune responses are effective. It concludes that test methods will help improve the control programs.

The article presents a study which investigated the prevalence of bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) in persistently infected (PI) beef herds in south central U.S. Results show that issues concerning biosecurity remain an important concern. It concludes that an effective BVDV vaccination program should be emphasized.

Objective--To evaluate economic effects and health and performance of the general cattle population after exposure to cattle persistently infected (PI) with bovine viral diarrhea virus (BVDV) in a feedlot. Animals--21,743 high-risk calves from the southeastern United States. Procedures--PI status was determined by use of an antigen-capture ELISA (ACE) and confirmed by use of a second ACE, reverse transcriptase-PCR assay of sera, immunohistochemical analysis, and virus isolation from sera. Groups with various amounts of exposure to BVDV PI cattle were used. After being placed in the feedlot, identified PI cattle were removed from 1 section, but PI cattle remained in another section of the feedlot. Exposure groups for cattle lots arriving without PI animals were determined by spatial association to cattle lots, with PI animals remaining or removed from the lot. Results--15,348 cattle maintained their exposure group. Performance outcomes improved slightly among the 5 exposure groups as the risk for exposure to BVDV PI cattle decreased. Health outcomes had an association with exposure risk that depended on the exposure group. Comparing cattle lots with direct exposure with those without direct exposure revealed significant improvements in all performance outcomes and in first relapse percentage and mortality percentage in the health outcomes. Economic analysis revealed that fatalities accounted for losses of $5.26/animal and performance losses were $88.26/animal. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance--This study provided evidence that exposure of the general population of feedlot cattle to BVDV PI animals resulted in substantial costs attributable to negative effects on performance and increased fatalities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses various research on the taboo that surrounded death, and attitudes concerning death in the U.S. Various factors and social trends played part in death avoidance. Other developments such as urbanization also reinforced the avoidance and denial of death. From the end of World War II until the late 1960s, public discussion of death was, to a large extent, muted and almost always euphemistic. Death was an omnipotent specter, beyond human understanding and control, something one did not discuss. Indeed, it was considered impolite to talk about death, as though to utter the word was to evoke its presence. In the 1970s, interest in the subject of death grew rapidly. Many significant events that led to the interest in death occurred in the 1970s. Expressions of professional and public interest on the subject of death were generated by the stresses and strains placed on our social relations and institutional facilities at the time and by the particular problems that death presented by the American family and community. Regardless of one's viewpoint, the fact remains that death is inevitable. These two fundamental conditions of existence, death and separation, have forever beleaguered humankind.

The article reports on the employment of standard puretone and Békésy audiometric procedures to mentally retarded children in the U.S. The program was designed to measure the intellectual performance of children with mental disabilities under average conditions. However, the program requires extreme sensibility personality of the examiner to differential responses which result from poor subject control.

The article presents a study on the reliability of standard puretone technique relative to the functioning level of mentally retarded individuals in an institution in the U.S. It determines the auditory thresholds of four functioning levels such as Borderline-Dull Normal, Mild, Moderate, and Severe.

Death is an institutionalized phenomenon. An examination of the relevant material in the field reveals only a handful of studies which deal with this aspect of life. Moreover, none of the studies reviewed treats death from the point of view of a culture complex; rather they deal solely with particular aspects or segments of this complex. The purpose of this article is to call attention to the sociology of death as a neglected area of study and to suggest some of the rich research possibilities within this area. Authors also included here a discussion of a research project dealing with attitudes toward death along with some findings from this study. The paucity of research and apparent lack of interest in this area on the part of American sociologists is of some sociological interest in itself. Even in so important a study as "The American Soldier" there is no attempt by the researchers to take advantage of their singular opportunity to investigate the correlates of particular attitudes toward death.

Reports on the restructuring of analytical chemistry courses at St. John's University in Collegeville, Minnesota. Application of active and cooperative learning techniques; Controversy regarding the differences between teaching and learning of chemistry; Features of the analytical sequence.

The article focuses on the speech improvement program conducted to mentally retarded individuals in the U.S. The program was administered to 40 retarded subjects from the Fort Wayne State Hospital and Training Center for three weeks per sound of a 28-week period. It emphasized consonantal presentation in the initial, final and medial positions, phonetic placement, and auditory training with the use of the overhead projector, "Talking Time" filmstrips and Language Master. The study revealed that the presentation of a speech improvement program to institutionalized groups of retardates did not provide significant treatment effects.