Moderate Distances Research Articles

Association between sexually selected traits and allelic distance in two unlinked MHC II loci in white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus)

Body size and secondary sexual characteristics are drivers of male reproductive success among polygynous species. A gene complex found to be associated with morphology in several species is the major histocompatibility complex (MHC). However, while several studies have found that greater MHC diversity is associated with larger body size and secondary sexual characteristics, other studies have demonstrated that maximal MHC diversity is not always optimal for the individual’s fitness. This study tested if MHC diversity, measured as pairwise allelic distances at each of two unlinked MHC II loci (exon 2 for the classical antigen-binding protein MHC-DRB and exon 2 for the accessory protein MHC-DOB), was associated with body size (male and female) or antler size in a semi-wild enclosed population of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus). After accounting for the effect of age on body and antler size, we used residual analysis to assess whether MHC allelic distances explained any of the remaining variation in body and antler size. While we found no associations between physical characteristics and MHC-DRB, we found that both male body and antler size were associated with MHC-DOB nucleotide allelic distances. Specifically, we found a quadratic relationship between MHC-DOB and male body size, where body size peaked at moderate MHC-DOB nucleotide allelic distance. However, we found a positive linear association between MHC-DOB nucleotide allelic distances and antler size. Neither MHC-DRB nor MHC-DOB influenced female body size, even though the average allelic distances of males and females were not significantly different. Our results suggest that MHC-DOB, or a gene genetically linked to this locus, may influence male morphological characteristics in white-tailed deer.

Language Familiarity and Proficiency Leads to Differential Cortical Processing During Translation Between Distantly Related Languages.

In the midst of globalization, English is regarded as an international language, or Lingua Franca, but learning it as a second language (L2) remains still difficult to speakers of other languages. This is true especially for the speakers of languages distantly related to English such as Japanese. In this sense, exploring neural basis for translation between the first language (L1) and L2 is of great interest. There have been relatively many previous researches revealing brain activation patterns during translations between L1 and English as L2. These studies, which focused on language translation with close or moderate linguistic distance (LD), have suggested that the Broca area (BA 44/45) and the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC; BA 46) may play an important role on translation. However, the neural mechanism of language translation between Japanese and English, having large LD, has not been clarified. Thus, we used functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to investigate the brain activation patterns during word translation between Japanese and English. We also assessed the effects of translation directions and word familiarity. All participants’ first language was Japanese and they were learning English. Their English proficiency was advanced or elementary. We selected English and Japanese words as stimuli based on the familiarity for Japanese people. Our results showed that the brain activation patterns during word translation largely differed depending on their English proficiency. The advanced group elicited greater activation on the left prefrontal cortex around the Broca’s area while translating words with low familiarity, but no activation was observed while translating words with high familiarity. On the other hand, the elementary group evoked greater activation on the left temporal area including the superior temporal gyrus (STG) irrespective of the word familiarity. These results suggested that different cognitive process could be involved in word translation corresponding to English proficiency in Japanese learners of English. These difference on the brain activation patterns between the advanced and elementary group may reflect the difference on the cognitive loads depending on the levels of automatization in one’s language processing.

Computed tomography analysis of coronary ostia location following valve-in-valve transcatheter aortic valve replacement with the ACURATE neo valve: Implications for coronary access.

Valve-in-valve transcatheter aortic valve replacement (ViV-TAVR) is an emerging alternative to re-do surgery. However, the challenge of coronary access (CA) following ViV-TAVR is a potential limitation as TAVR expands to younger lower-risk populations. Using post-implantation computed tomography (CT) scans to evaluate the geometrical relationship between coronary ostia and valve frame in patients undergoing ViV-TAVR with the ACURATE neo valve. Post-implant CT scans of 18 out of 20 consecutive patients treated with the ACURATE neo valve were analyzed. Coronary ostia location in relation to the highest plane (HP) (highest point of the ACURATE neo or surgical valve) was determined. Ostia located below the highest plan were further subclassified according to the gap available between the transcatheter heart valve frame and ostium (transcatheter-to-coronary [TTC] distance). The impact implantation depth has on these geometrical relationships was evaluated. A total of 21 out of 36 coronary ostia (58%) were located below the level of the HP with the left coronary artery (36%) more likely to be affected than the right (22%). Further sub-classification of these ostia revealed a large (>6 mm), moderate (4-6 mm), and small (<4 mm) TTC distance in 57% (12/21), 38% (8/21), and in 6% (1/18) of cases, respectively. At an implantation depth <4 mm compared to >4 mm, all ostia were located below the HP with no difference in post-procedural mean gradients (14.5 mmHg ± 4.7 vs. 12.6 mmHg ± 5.8; p=.5, 95%CI 3.8-7.5). CA following ACURATE neo implantation for ViV-TAVR could potentially be challenging in a significant proportion of patients and specific consideration should be given to the implantation depth.

List-Decoding with Double Samplers

We strengthen the notion of double samplers, first introduced by Dinur and Kaufman [``High dimensional expanders imply agreement expanders,” in Proc. 58th IEEE Symp. on Foundations of Comp. Science, IEEE, 2017, pp. 974--985], which are samplers with additional combinatorial properties, and whose existence we prove using high-dimensional expanders. The ABNNR code construction [N. Alon et al., IEEE Trans. Inform. Theory, 38 (1992), pp. 509--516] achieves large distance by starting with a base code $C$ with moderate distance, and then amplifying the distance using a sampler. We show that if the sampler is part of a larger double sampler, then the construction has an efficient list-decoding algorithm. Our algorithm works even if the ABNNR construction is not applied to a base code $C$ but rather to any string. In this case the resulting code is approximate-list-decodable, i.e., the output list contains an approximation to the original input. Our list-decoding algorithm works as follows: It uses a local voting scheme from which it constructs a unique games constraint graph. The constraint graph is an expander, so we can solve unique games efficiently. These solutions are the output of the list-decoder. This is a novel use of a unique games algorithm as a subroutine in a decoding procedure, as opposed to the more common situation in which unique games are used for demonstrating hardness results. Double samplers and high-dimensional expanders are akin to pseudorandom objects in their utility, but they greatly exceed random objects in their combinatorial properties. We believe that these objects hold significant potential for coding theoretic constructions and view this work as demonstrating the power of double samplers in this context.

Geographic Distance and Social Isolation Among Family Caregivers Providing Care to Older Adults

Family caregiving is associated with social isolation, but the role of geographic distance between caregiver and receiver in caregiving experience is unclear with mixed research findings. This study examined the relationship between geographic distance and caregiver social isolation (CSI), and explored the interaction between geographic distance and caregiving intensity in association with CSI. Based on the Ecological Model of Caregiver Isolation, hierarchical linear regression and ANCOVA analyses were applied to conduct data analysis with the 2012 Canadian General Social Survey (N=2,881). Caregivers living a short distance from receivers reported the lowest CSI than coresident, moderate and long distance caregivers. Being involved in higher intensity caregiving as the primary caregiver, undertaking more caregiving tasks, and providing care more frequently resulted in higher CSI scores. Additionally, long and moderate distance caregivers reported greater CSI than coresident and short distance caregivers only when providing higher intensity caregiving. Geographic distance is a salient contextual factor affecting CSI, and longer distance creates environmental barriers for caregiving provision. Employing a granulated measure of geographic distance positioned within an ecological framework facilitates an understanding of the nuanced association between geographic proximity and CSI. Furthermore, the identified interactive effects between geographic distance and caregiving intensity on CSI further reveal the complexity of caregiving experience. The findings are relevant for programs supporting caregivers in different contexts, especially physical distance.

Updates on Vision From the Global Burden of Disease Study

The Global Burden of Disease study estimates the prevalence of vision loss by WHO severity group, and the distribution of vision loss due to underlying causes such as cataract, glaucoma, and uncorrected refractive error. Data sources include national and local surveys, and scientific literature, with over 500 sources in 113 countries. Cause-specific prevalence estimates were proportionally fit into estimates of total vision loss by severity. Globally, 821.9 million (95% UI=682.2–970.4) people experienced moderate or worse distance vision loss or near vision loss in 2019 (age-standardized prevalence = 0.10, UI=0.08–0.12). Of these, 41.9 million (UI=36.4–46.8) were blind. The majority of Years Lived with Disability due to vision loss occurred in people with cataract and uncorrected refractive error. Vision loss numbers will continue to increase due to aging populations. Main causes of vision loss are correctable and, therefore, should be major targets of interventions.

‘The moon quivered like a snake’: A medieval chronicler, lunar explosions, and a puzzle for modern interpretation

Despite some scepticism, the suggestion by Hartung in 1976 that the report in the chronicle of Gervase of Canterbury corresponded to a meteorite impact with the moon in 1178, creating the Giordano Bruno crater, retains considerable support, particularly in popular scientific writing. Nevertheless, a series of studies of images of the crater from orbiting satellites, although confirming its young geological age, have indicated that it was not created within recorded human history. In this paper, we examine astronomical entries in Gervase’s chronicle relating to eclipses and conclude that, despite there being descriptions of miracles elsewhere in the manuscript, he himself was a reliable reporter of astronomical events. On this basis an alternative suggestion can be put forward for the splitting of the horns and writhing of the body of the new moon, reported to Gervase: atmospheric turbulence. Although general atmospheric turbulence has been previously dismissed as too small an effect, it is possible to show that the description is consistent with viewing the new moon through a column of hot air from a fire, at a moderate distance and out of the line of sight of the observers. This interpretation of the medieval evidence as credible but unrelated to a lunar event is consistent with twenty-first century lunar studies.

High-resolution spectroscopic study of massive blue and red supergiants in Perseus OB1

Context.The Perseus OB1 association, including thehandχPersei double cluster, is an interesting laboratory for the investigation of massive star evolution as it hosts one of the most populous groupings of blue and red supergiants (Sgs) in the Galaxy at a moderate distance and extinction.Aims.We discuss whether the massive O-type, and blue and red Sg stars located in the Per OB1 region are members of the same population, and examine their binary and runaway status.Methods.We gathered a total of 405 high-resolution spectra for 88 suitable candidates around 4.5 deg from the center of the association, and compiled astrometric information fromGaiaDR2 for all of them. This was used to investigate membership and identify runaway stars. By obtaining high-precision radial velocity (RV) estimates for all available spectra, we investigated the RV distribution of the global sample (as well as different subsamples) and identified spectroscopic binaries (SBs).Results.Most of the investigated stars belong to a physically linked population located atd= 2.5 ± 0.4 kpc. We identify 79 confirmed or likely members, and 5 member candidates. No important differences are detected in the distribution of parallaxes when stars inhandχPersei or the full sample are considered. In contrast, most O-type stars seem to be part of a differentiated population in terms of kinematical properties. In particular, the percentage of runaways among them (45%) is considerable higher than for the more evolved targets (which is lower than ∼5% in all cases). A similar tendency is also found for the percentage of clearly detected SBs, which already decreases from 15% to 10% when the O star and B Sg samples are compared, respectively, and practically vanishes in the cooler Sgs. Concerning this latter result, our study illustrates the importance of taking the effect of the ubiquitous presence of intrinsic variability in the blue-to-red Sg domain into account to avoid the spurious identification of pulsating stars as SBs.Conclusions.All but 4 stars in our working sample (including 10 O giants/Sgs, 36 B Sgs, 9 B giants, 11 A/F Sgs, and 18 red Sgs) can be considered as part of the same (interrelated) population. However, any further attempt to describe the empirical properties of this sample of massive stars in an evolutionary context must take into account that an important fraction of the O stars is or likely has been part of a binary/multiple system. In addition, some of the other more evolved targets may have also been affected by binary evolution. In this line of argument, it is also interesting to note that the percentage of spectroscopic binaries within the evolved population of massive stars in Per OB1 is lower by a factor 4−5 than in the case of dedicated surveys of O-type stars in other environments that include a much younger population of massive stars.

An Integrative Method for Characterizing Marine Habitat Features Associated With Predation: A Case Study on Juvenile Steller Sea Lions (Eumetopias jubatus)

Characterizing the habitat associated with predation events can inform on predator-prey dynamics. Despite being evaluated extensively in terrestrial systems, quantifying and characterizing the role predation plays in upper trophic marine ecosystems is challenging due to the cryptic nature of pelagic predators and the difficulty of observing predatory behavior. We developed a multi-step method to characterize habitat associated with predation that integrates data from post-mortem pop-up style mortality transmitters, and data from traditional external tracking devices, both of which use the Argos satellite system. In our case study with juvenile Steller sea lions (SSL, Eumetopias jubatus) in the Gulf of Alaska, 20 mortality events were previously described, of which 18 were attributed to predation. The locations of 13 of these at-sea predation events with post-mortem tracking data were estimated, with spatial uncertainty calculated using movement-based approaches of backwards step-length and state-space modeling. We then generated a Mortality Occurrence Probability Distribution (MOPD), resampled points within the MOPD based on isopleth weighting, and extracted habitat variables (i.e. slope, depth, distance to haulout-rookery) associated with these locations. This final dataset represented ‘case’ points (n=115) in terms of predation and was compared to the habitat associated with ‘control’ points (n=1000), locations within juvenile SSL distribution in this region (i.e. population home range), in a resource-selection function (GAM). Predation events were associated with habitats characterized by greater depths and moderate distances from SSL haulouts and rookeries. This information enabled us to generate a risk-map for juvenile SSL in the Gulf of Alaska, spatially representing areas of high predation probability. Our study provides important information about threats to this vulnerable age-class, and establishes a novel approach to characterizing risk in marine ecosystems that can be applied to other management and ecosystem concerns.

Does e-shopping for intangible services attenuate the effect of spatial attributes on travel distance and duration?

Abstract E-shopping for intangible services (e.g., eating out services, hairdressing, and visits to movie theatres) refers to searching and paying for services online, but it requires e-shoppers to travel to use these services. In theory, e-shoppers’ search space via the internet is less constrained by spatial attributes. As a result, spatial attributes may barely affect the distance and duration of trips resulting from e-shopping for intangible services. The present study used data from 714 valid face-to-face interviews in Beijing, China, to verify this hypothesis. The results showed that e-shoppers were likely to travel farther after purchasing intangible services online. The effect of spatial attributes on the distance of a single trip was largely attenuated due to online purchases of these services, and the effect on the duration was correspondingly weaker to a limited extent. Therefore, spatial interventions aiming to moderate travel distances and durations may not be as effective in the age of online shopping.

Will 37Ar emissions from light water power reactors become an obstacle to its use for nuclear explosion monitoring?

37Ar is a promising candidate for complementing radioxenon isotopes as indicators of underground nuclear explosions. This study evaluates its potential anthropogenic background caused by emissions from commercial pressurized water reactors. Various 37Ar production pathways, which result from activation of 36Ar and of 40Ca, respectively, are identified and their emissions quantified. In-core processes include (1) the restart of operation and degassing of the primary cooling water after maintenance and refueling shutdown, (2) the replacement of primary coolant water for limiting its tritium concentrations, and (3) the leakage of 37Ar produced from calcium impurities in UO2 after fuel rod failures. Activation of air and of calcium in concrete within the biological shield are major out-of-core production pathways. Whereas emissions from in-core processes are transient, a rather constant 37Ar source term results from its out-of-core production. Generic atmospheric dispersion simulations indicate that already at moderate distances from the emitter, concentrations of 37Ar caused by routine reactor operations are far below its cosmogenic background in air. The only exception results from an inadvertent reactor re-start without operation of the primary cooling water degassing system for prolonged time. Such an event also causes high emissions of 41Ar which can be used for discriminating its 37Ar signal from an underground nuclear explosion.

Pygmalion: 볼로쉬노프의 언어철학에 입각한 고찰

This article is aimed at observing multifaceted signs and analyzing their class attributes and ideological properties in lots of lines of verbal wit in Pygmalion (1912), a Shavian comedy, in the light of the main theories of Marxism and the Philosophy of Language by Valentin Nikolaevič Vološinov.<BR> Vološinov says that word is the ideological phenomenon par excellence and an individual consciousness is only a tenant lodging in the social edifice of ideological signs. He focuses on the dynamic of parole or utterance rather than langue and emphasizes the ideological multiaccentuality and refraction of a sign in utterance while regarding the sign as an arena of class struggle.<BR> The signifier ‘Miss Doolittle’ of Pickering, which affected Eliza"s heart deeply, conceals a cunning class ideology where he intends to keep a moderate distance from the lower class. A signifier of Eliza, ‘good girl’, expresses a protesting ideology with connoting a virtuous and independent woman. Two signifiers, ‘undeserving’ and ‘marrying’, of Alfred Doolittle imply the defiant class consciousness rejecting the morality of the middle class. Freddy’s ‘Ahdedo?’ replacing ‘How do you do?’ reflects and refracts an outdated desire of a ruined nobleman.<BR> Another signifier of Eliza, ‘lady’, deviates from the way of economic desire slightly through the ideological refraction. The screech of Eliza, ‘Ah—ah—ow —oo!,’ is a signal of primitive and raw feeling which is hardly structuralized ideologically as a sign of ‘I-experience,’ a term of Vološinov. These signifiers suggest that the human properties and the relative autonomy of ideological superstructure exist in the process of the refraction of signs.

Effect of operating and geometrical parameters of tangential entry type dual swirling flame burner on impingement heat transfer

An experimental study has been carried out to investigate the impingement heat transfer characteristics of a tangential entry type dual swirling flame burner. The effects of variation of operating parameters viz.; Reynolds numbers (Re(i) = 700–1000, Re(o) = 5000–13,000), equivalence ratio (ϕ(o) = 0.8–1.2), dimensionless separation distance (H/Dh = 1–5), and ratio of tangential to axial in-flows (T:A = 40:60–100:0) have been analyzed. The effects of geometrical design parameters including position of tangential entry port, port diameter (Dp) and number of ports (Np) have also been investigated. The flame shapes are examined under different geometrical design parameters and operating conditions. Heat transfer characteristics revealed that moderate separation distances (H/Dh ~ 3) and moderate values of T:A (~60:40) are the most favorable operating variables for optimum utilization of heat to the impingement surface. Also, moderate values of Re(o) (~9000) at fuel rich conditions (ϕ(o) ~ 1.1) are more appropriate for maximum heat transfer to the surface. Although, Reynolds number (representing firing rate) is the most significant parameter but other parameters like, T:A, H/Dh and ϕ(o) also contribute notably to the transmission efficiency. Intensity of swirl changes significantly with variation of the geometrical design parameters, which showed a major influence on the impingement heat transfer. The present study concludes that tangential entry type dual swirling flame burner offers flexibility in optimizing the heat transfer to the impingement surface for a given set of burner geometrical design parameters and operating conditions.

Modeling Differential Faraday Rotation in the Solar Corona

For decades, radio remote-sensing techniques have been used to probe the plasma structure of the solar corona at distances of 2 – $20~\mathrm{R}_{\odot }$ . Measurement of Faraday rotation, the change in the polarization position angle of linearly polarized radiation as it propagates through a magnetized plasma, has proven to be one of the best methods for determining the coronal magnetic-field strength and structure. Faraday-rotation observations of spatially extended radio sources provide the unique opportunity to measure differential Faraday rotation [ $\Delta $ RM] the difference in the Faraday-rotation measure between two closely spaced lines of sight (LOS) through the corona. $\Delta $ RM is proportional to the electric current within an Amperian loop formed, in part, by the two closely spaced LOS. We report the expected $\Delta $ RM for two sets of models for the corona: one set of models for the corona employs a spherically symmetric plasma density, while the other breaks this symmetry by assuming that the heliospheric current sheet (HCS) is a finite-width streamer-belt region containing a high-density plasma. For each plasma-density model, we evaluate the $\Delta \mathrm{RM}$ for three model coronal magnetic fields: a radial dipole and interplanetary magnetic field (DIMF), a dipole + current sheet (DCS), and a dipole + quadrupole + current sheet (DQCS). These models predict values of $0.01\lesssim \Delta \mathrm{RM}\lesssim 120~\mbox{rad}\,\mbox{m}^{-2}$ over the range of parameter space accessible by modern instruments such as the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array. We conclude that the HCS contribution to $\Delta $ RM is not negligible at moderate heliocentric distances ( $<8~\mathrm{R}_{\odot }$ ) and may account for $\lesssim 20\,\%$ of previous observations of $\Delta $ RM (e.g. made by Spangler, Astrophys. J. 670, 841, 2007).

Cultural Distance and Cross-Border Replication of China Multinational Corporations

The growing research interest in sociocultural issues in relation to global economic activity motivates this article to postulate a set of behavioural mechanisms that contribute to the debate on cultural distance and Multinational Corporations (MNC) cross-border replication production of economic activity. The empirical tests draw on a data base comprising 289 managers (R&D and product development professionals) employed by China MNC (CMNC) subsidiaries operating across 150 countries. First, the results reveal a negative relationship between cultural distance and CMNC cross-border replication. Second, the negative coefficients are moderated by social norms, reciprocity, and prosocial behaviours in cooperation. Finally, in using the moderator and mediator in the analysis, the results demonstrate that the mediator variables (capacity for cross-cultural adaptation, and language) positively lead to CMNC replication, and subsidiary operating years and managerial experience significantly moderate cultural distance. The findings support the model that contributes to the extant literature by demonstrating sociocultural determinants of economic growth.

Quality‐improving R&amp;D and merger policy in a differentiated duopoly: Cournot and Bertrand equilibria

We combine a model of product research and development (R&amp;D) and technological spillover with the concept of technological distance and examine horizontal mergers in a duopolistic market with R&amp;D. The results are fourfold. First, a merger can better encourage R&amp;D investment than the competition case. Second, with a small degree of product differentiation (PD), the merger criterion under the Cournot duopoly is stricter than that of the Bertrand case. By contrast, with a moderate or large degree of PD, the opposite is true. Third, with a small technological distance, a merger should be allowable. Finally, with a small degree of PD and moderate technological distance, a merger should be allowable.

Elucidation of anti-HIV mechanism of sulfated cellobiose–polylysine dendrimers

Three new spherical sulfated cellobiose–polylysine dendrimers of increasing generations bearing negatively charged sulfate groups were prepared by sulfating the corresponding cellobiose–polylysine dendrimers. The first, second, and third-generation derivatives exhibited potent anti-HIV activity with EC50 values of 3.7, 0.6, and 1.5 μg/mL, respectively, in constant to sulfated oligosaccharides with low anti-HIV activity, while the second-generation sulfated dendrimer was the most active. Surface plasmon resonance measurements with poly-l-lysine bearing positively charged amino acids as a model of the HIV surface glycoprotein gp120, indicated that the second-generation dendrimer had the lowest dissociation constant (KD = 1.86 × 10−12 M). Both the particle size and ζ potential increased in the presence of poly-l-lysine. It was proven that the moderate distance between the terminal sulfated cellobiose units in the second-generation dendrimer favored the high anti-HIV activity, owing to the electrostatic interactions developed due to the cluster effect.

Impact of an Antiresonant Oxide Island on the Lasing of Lateral Modes in VCSELs.

Use of antiresonant structures is a proven, efficient method of improving lateral mode selectivity in VCSELs. In this paper, we analyze the impact of a low-refractive antiresonant oxide island buried in a top VCSEL mirror on the lasing conditions of lateral modes of different orders. By performing comprehensive thermal, electrical, and optical numerical analysis of the VCSEL device, we show the impact of the size and location of the oxide island on the current-crowding effect and compute threshold currents for various lateral modes. If the island is placed close to the cavity, the threshold shows strong oscillations, which for moderate island distances can be tuned to increase the side mode discrimination. We are therefore able to pinpoint the most important factors influencing mode discrimination and to identify oxide island parameters capable of providing single-lateral-mode emission.

Feedbackless Relaying for Enhancing Reliability of Connected Vehicles

This paper considers the network- and application-level reliabilities for connected vehicles under path loss environments. We derive a probabilistic framework for estimating reliabilities that is applicable with various path loss models. We also build a realistic connected vehicle traffic simulation environment and use it to perform extensive experiments considering semi-urban traffic. The results show that the achievable reliability performances differ significantly with the path loss models considered. For a moderate communication distance between a transmitter and a receiver, with established deterministic and stochastic path loss models, the network-level reliability is around 55%, whereas with the realistic path loss models that consider obstacles and traffic, the reliability falls below 30%. To improve the network- and application-level reliabilities, we propose a feedbackless relaying mechanism that can be deployed on top of IEEE 802.11p, where, the relay vehicle selection is done autonomously. The relaying mechanism improves the network-level and application-level reliabilities by at least 35% for the studied path loss models.

Distance to Hospital-based Intrapartum Care and Planned Home Birth in Minnesota.

Loss of hospital-based intrapartum services is associated with increases in out-of-hospital births, but less is known about associations with planned home birth. This study explores the impact of distance to hospital-based intrapartum care on planned home birth. Public-use Minnesota birth certificate data were merged with Minnesota Hospital Annual Report data (2011-2016) to test the relationship of miles from maternal residence to hospital-based intrapartum care with planned home birth in Minnesota. Logistic regression models estimated the odds of a planned home birth versus hospital birth as a function of miles to hospital-based intrapartum care. The number of hospitals offering birth services in Minnesota declined by 11% from 2011 to 2016. Moderate (>20-50 miles) and great (>50 miles) distances to nearest hospital-based intrapartum care were associated with increased odds of planned home birth compared with short distances (≤20 miles). Adjusted odds ratios were 3.31 (95% CI, 3.04-3.61) and 3.89 (95% CI, 2.37-6.37), respectively, after adjusting for maternal education, age, and race. Planned home birth was the intended birth setting in 4.3% of births among those living great distances from hospital-based intrapartum care, compared with 1.0% among those living a short distance from hospital-based intrapartum care. Better understanding of how geographical barriers affect preferred birth settings can inform efforts to reduce the impact of hospital-based intrapartum service loss on rural women and their birth outcomes.