French Medium Research Articles

Bovine pregnancy and nonreturn rates following artificial insemination using a covered sheath

Contamination transferred into the uterus from external genitalia during artificial insemination (AI) has been hypothesized to cause lowered bovine pregnancy rates (PR). Using aseptic techniques, there is still a possibility of uterine contamination during routine AI. Two experiments were conducted to evaluate the effect of two types of sheath covers (CS) placed over the conventional French Medium Syringe assembly (FMS) used for AI. Their use entailed passing the assembly to the external os of the cervix, pushing the FMS through the CS and manipulating the FMS to the cervical uterine junction in the normal manner. Fifty-six day non-return rate (NRR) in dairy and actual PR in beef cattle were evaluated. In Experiment 1, 30 professional technicians were employed to inseminate 7, 387 dairy cows, while in Experiment 2, six technicians with varying levels of experience inseminated 416 beef cows. Least-squares means for NRR in dairy cattle were 78% using a CS and 79% without. Means for PR in beef cattle were 57% using a CS and 62% without. In Experiment 2, the overall PR was lower in Trial l than in other trials (P<0.05). Since some technicians improved with time, the difference due to trial was attributed to technician variation in gaining experience with a CS. Results indicate that general use of a CS in routine AI of apparently healthy cows will not increase PR.

Linguistic influences on professional communication and recognition: A study of chemists and engineers in two Quebec universities

Linguistic influences on networks of professional communication and recognition among engineers at two Quebec universities were examined. It was hypothesized that chemists and engineers affiliated with the French medium University of Montreal and the Ecole Polytechnique would be less active in research and more likely to obtain scientific recognition locally and to feel professionally unrecognized outside Quebec compared to their colleagues at McGill University. The findings suggest that the localizing effects of using a medium of scientific training which is not the predominant language of international scientific communication and recognition (French) are ambiguous. Although chemists and engineers at the French medium institutions were less active researchers, their language of professional communication with other scientific communities was English and there was little sense of isolation.

Aerosol Studies with Avian Mycoplasma. 2. Infectivity of Mycoplasma gallisepticum for Chickens and Turkeys

Aerosol equipment. The aerosol exposure was accomplished with equipment and techniques previously described (1,2). The birds were exposed for 5 min followed by 5 min of air washing of the exposure chamber. An air sample was taken from the animal exposure chamber at the time each group of birds was exposed. These samples were immediately plated on solid modified French medium (3) in serial dilutions for quantitation. For the exposure of chickens to the aged aerosol, the exposure box was attached to the steel drum described in the first paper (2) by a 4-inch flexible tube. The exhaust hose to the filters and fan was attached to the other end of the exposure box. Animals. The chickens were White Leghorns from a mycoplasma-free flock under constant surveillance including regular testing for hemagglutination-inhibition (HI) antibodies against Mycoplasma gallisepticum. The turkeys were University Bronze birds hatched by the Poultry Science Department and reared by the Veterinary Science Department at the University of Wisconsin. These turkeys were serologically negative for HI antibodies against