Within biological systems water molecules undergo continuous stochastic Brownian motion. The rate of this diffusion can give clues to the structure of underlying tissues. In some tissues the rate is anisotropic -faster in some directions than others. Diffusionrate images are second-order tensor fields and can be calculated from diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance images. A 2D diffusion tensor image (DTI) and an associated anatomical scalar field, created during the tensor calculation, define seven values at each spatial location. Visually representing these images is a challenge because they contain so many inter-related components. We present two new methods for visually representing DTIs. The first method displays an array of ellipsoids where the shape of each ellipsoid represents one tensor value. The novel aspect of this representation is that the ellipsoids are all normalized to approximately the same size so that they can be displayed simultaneously in context. The second method uses concepts from oil painting to represent the seven-valued data with multiple layers of varying brush strokes. Both methods successfully display most or all of the information in DTIs and provide exploratory methods for understanding them. The ellipsoid method has a simpler interpretation and explanation than the painting-motivated method; the painting-motivated method displays more of the information and is easier to read quantitatively. We demonstrate the methods on images of the mouse spinal cord. The visualizations show significant differences between spinal cords from mice suffering from Experimental Allergic Encephalomyelitis (EAE) and spinal cords from wild-type mice. The differences are consistent with differences shown histologically and suggest that our new non-invasive imaging methodology and visualization of the results could have early diagnostic value for neurodegenerative diseases.

Each year, millions of people around the world are affected by natural disasters. Following these disasters, many students from colleges and universities arrive to support the affected areas. These seamless leadership learning opportunities engage students by allowing them to implement the concepts they learned in a classroom. Humanitarian relief requires leadership and logistics to mobilize essential resources to aid vulnerable groups affected by these disasters. This qualitative study evaluates two separate relief projects that were hands-on, weeklong service trips involving college students responding to two natural disasters in the United States of America. Using data collected from prompt-based journals, the researchers in this study sought to develop a deeper understanding of participant service experiences in relation to leadership education. Leadership education provides valuable reflection points for students and this manuscript outlines key themes from two unique service experiences. This project showcases these reflections and provides a potential qualitative assessment process for similar endeavors useful for both educators and researchers alike.

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As escassas informações, referentes ao beneficiamento de sementes de Lupinus angustifolius (L.), motivaram a avaliação dos efeitos da ação dos equipamentos sobre as qualidades física, fisiológica e sanitária do lote de sementes processado. O estudo, realizado com sementes de tremoço azul cv. IAPAR 24, considerou tratamentos obtidos no processamento, isolado e conjunto, em máquina de ventilador e peneiras e mesa de gravidade. Foram avaliados os rendimentos das máquinas e as qualidades sanitária, física e fisiológica das sementes processadas. Concluiu-se que, o uso da mesa gravitacional, associado ou não ao da máquina de ventilador e peneiras, proporciona ganhos qualitativos às sementes de tremoço.

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