Hydration of the vocal folds is important for the production of normal voice. Dehydration makes voice production more difficult and increases vocal effort. Laryngeal desiccation has been shown to increase phonation threshold pressure (PTP) and self-perceived phonatory effort (PPE) in females. Nebulized saline may reverse or offset this effect. However, few data exist regarding the effects of laryngeal desiccation and nebulized treatments in males. Further, the dose-response relationship between laryngeal desiccation and nebulized hydration treatments is unknown. This study examined the effects of two doses of nebulized isotonic saline following a laryngeal desiccation challenge in healthy male speakers. In a double-blinded, within-subjects design, 10 male college students (age range 18-26 years) attended two data collection sessions involving a 30-minute desiccation challenge followed by 3 mL or 9 mL of nebulized isotonic saline. PTP for the 10th and 80th fundamental frequency (F0) percentiles and PPE were collected before and after the desiccation challenge and at 5, 35, and 65 minutes after the nebulized treatment. PPE increased significantly following the laryngeal desiccation challenge (p < .01). Following nebulization, PPE decreased toward baseline for both doses of isotonic saline (p < .01), but failed to reverse the desiccation effect completely. No statistically significant changes in PTP occurred following the laryngeal desiccation challenge or subsequent treatments. Compared with previous research involving females, these results suggest males may respond differently to laryngeal desiccation and nebulized hydration treatments.

Vocal fold hydration is important for healthy function of the vocal mechanism. Vocal fold surface fluid protects the mucosa and facilitates efficient vocal fold oscillation. Dry air exposure, mouth breathing, insufficient intake of liquids, and behavioral factors may contribute to laryngeal dehydration. Singers are believed to be particularly at risk for voice problems related to dehydration due to environmental and voice use factors. Laryngeal desiccation and nebulized hydration treatments have been shown to influence phonation threshold pressure (PTP) and self-perceived phonatory effort (PPE) in females. However, little research exists exploring the effects of hydration in males. Additionally, few studies have examined the dose-response relationship of hydration treatments. This investigation examined the effects of a laryngeal desiccation challenge and two different doses of nebulized isotonic saline on voice production in trained male singers. In a double-blind, within-subjects repeated measures crossover investigation, 10 male singers (ages 18 to 24) received a 30 minute laryngeal desiccation challenge followed by either 3 mL or 9 mL of nebulized isotonic saline on two consecutive weeks. PTP, PPE, and self-perceived mouth and throat dryness were sampled during the following observations: predesiccation, post-desiccation, and at 5, 35, and 65 minutes post-nebulization. No differences in PTP were observed after desiccation or nebulized treatment. PPE, however, rose significantly after desiccation and returned near baseline after treatment. No significant differences between dosages were observed.

A systematic investigation using molecular dynamics (MD) simulation involving particle volume fraction, size, wettability and system temperature is performed and the effect of these parameters on the thermal conductivity of water based nanofluids is discussed. Nanofluids are a colloidal suspension of 10 -100 nm particles in base fluid. In the last decade, significant research has been done in nanofluids, and thermal conductivity increases in double digits were reported in the literature. This anomalous increase in thermal conductivity cannot be explained by classical theories like Maxwell's model and Hamilton-Crosser model for nanoparticle suspensions. Various mechanisms responsible for thermal conductivity enhancement in nanofluids have been proposed and later refuted. MD simulation allows one to predict the static and dynamic properties of solids and liquids, and observe the interactions between solid and liquid atoms. In this work MD simulation is used to calculate the thermal conductivity of water based nanofluid and explore possible mechanisms causing the enhancement. While most recent MD simulations have considered Lennard Jones (LJ) potential to model water molecule interactions, this work uses a flexible bipolar water molecule using the Flexible 3 Center (F3C) model. This model maintains the tetrahedral structure of the water molecule and allows the bond bending and bond stretching modes, thereby tracking the motion and interactions between real water molecules. The choice of the potential for solid nanoparticle reflects the need for economic but insightful analyses and reasonable accuracy. A simple two body LJ potential is used to model the solid nanoparticle. The cross interaction between the solid and liquid atoms is also modeled by LJ potential and the Lorentz-Berthelot mixing rule is used to calculate the potential parameters. The various atomic interactions show that there exist two regimes of thermal conductivity enhancement. It is also found that increasing particle size and decreasing particle wettability cause lower thermal conductivity enhancement. In contrast to the previous studies, it is observed that increasing system temperature does not enhance thermal conductivity significantly. Such enhancement with temperature is proportional to the conductivity enhancement of base fluid with temperature. This study demonstrates that the major cause of thermal conductivity enhancement is the formation of ordered liquid layer at the solid-liquid interface. The enhanced motion of the liquid molecules in the presence of solid particles is captured by comparing the mean square displacement (MSD) of liquid molecules in the nanofluid to that of the base fluid molecules. The thermal conductivity is decomposed into three modes that make up the microscopic heat flux vector, namely kinetic, potential and collision modes. It was observed by this decomposition analyses that most of the thermal conductivity enhancement is obtained from the collision mode and not from either the kinetic or potential mode. This finding also supports the observation made by comparing the MSD of liquid molecules with the base fluid that the interaction between solid and liquid molecules is important for the enhancement in thermal transport properties in nanofluids. These findings are important for the future research in nanofluids, because they suggest that if smaller, functional nanoparticles which have higher wettability compared to the base fluid can be produced, they will provide higher thermal conductivity compared to the regular nanoparticles.

Hydration is a critical element for many physiological processes in vertebrates, such as protein production, innate immunity, and behavioral processes such as daily activity and thermoregulation. Few studies have directly assessed the effect of hydration on these animals in nature. While it seems intuitive that drought is stressful to animals, studies examining drought are typically observational and fail to assess how the hydration state of these animals influences their physiology and behavior. We tested for an effect of hydration on several physiological and behavioral parameters in Northern Pacific rattlesnakes (Crotalus oreganus oreganus) by experimentally manipulating hydration levels in the field. Two treatment groups were created: one of these received supplemental hydration twice a month from May to September (hydrated) while the other did not (control). Pregnant females were brought to the lab before parturition to collect data on litter characteristics. We radio-tracked snakes to examine any effects on movement, measured SVL and mass of each snake throughout the study for assessment of body condition, and collected blood samples for stress hormone physiology. Finally, we used intra-coelomic temperature data loggers to track body temperature data for each individual snake every two hours. Our results suggest that supplemental water and thus hydration has a significant effect on reproduction as all four hydrated females gave birth to a litter, while no control females gave birth. We saw no effect on movement parameters; however, males had larger home ranges and moved a larger total distance than females, regardless of hydration status. Interestingly, body condition was significantly higher in hydrated snakes, suggesting that hydrated individuals were acquiring more food than control snakes. We saw no effect on stress hormone physiology. There was no influence of hydration on any behavioral parameters such as time spent above or below ground, or time spent in a particular body position. Finally, there was a significant interaction of treatment group and sex on seasonal body temperature. Hydrated females had higher mean body temperatures than all other treatment group and sex combinations. However, all hydrated females were also pregnant, which confounds this result. Similar results were seen when body temperature was analyzed by time of day. Females overall had higher body temperature than males. These results suggest that hydration may have a profound influence on reproduction and has the potential to affect body condition and thermoregulation. The lack of an effect on movement and stress physiology should not be overlooked, however. This study is the first to experimentally manipulate hydration in free-ranging rattlesnakes and one of the few to manipulate hydration in vertebrates. More studies are needed to support a pivotal role of hydration in physiology and behavior of reptiles and we encourage the use of experimental field manipulations to answer these questions.

There is a common belief that children compared with adults are at a greater risk for exercise-induced heat illness. However, a limitation of previous studies involves different exercise intensities used in the comparison between children and adults. Dehydration impairs aerobic performance, but its effects on strength are not well understood. Sports drinks are often used as ergogenic aids. There is some evidence to suggest children have a greater reliance on exogenous carbohydrate compared to adults, which could require special considerations when children exercise in the heat. The overall purpose of this thesis was to compare physiological and metabolic responses during exercise in the heat between boys and men. Three studies were conducted to 1) compare the thermoregulatory responses of boys and men exercising in the heat at a fixed absolute metabolic heat production or a fixed metabolic heat production per unit of body mass; 2) compare the effects of 2% hypohydration or, euhydration with and without carbohydrate ingestion during exercise in the heat on subsequent strength in boys and men; and 3) examine the effects of exogenous carbohydrate on endogenous metabolism in boys and men exercising in the heat. Age and body size differences between boys and men did not influence thermoregulatory responses at a fixed metabolic heat production per unit of body mass. No differences in strength were observed among trials. When exercising in the heat, the relative contribution of ingested carbohydrate and endogenous substrate to total energy yield were not different between groups. These findings together have practical implications for boys and men who exercise in the heat. Specifically, moderate exercise in the heat is equally safe for boys and men. The effects of hypohydration and a carbohydrate drink compared to water on muscle strength performance following exercise in the heat are minimal. An important practical application is that carbohydrate intake spared endogenous fuels during exercise in the heat in both groups. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / Children may not adapt to temperature extremes as effectively as adults. Thermoregulatory differences may be due to variable exercise intensities prescribed in available child-adult comparisons. Dehydration affects aerobic performance, but its effects on strength are not well understood. Sports drinks are often used to offset dehydration and improve performance; however, the body may have a harder time using sugar drinks when exercising in the heat. The purpose of this thesis was to compare bodily responses of boys and men during exercise in the heat. Our findings have important practical implications for boys and men who exercise and play sports in hot temperatures. Specifically, exercise in the heat is equally safe for boys and men. The effects of hypohydration and a sports drink on muscle strength performance following exercise in the heat are minimal. Finally, although exercise in the heat may affect the use of a sugar drink, boys and men may use this drink to improve aerobic performance, while maintaining hydration levels.

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