The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of far-infrared (FIR) heat on quality of life (QOL) in older adults. Participants were assigned to either a convective heat group (CON) or a convective and FIR group. Participants received six, 30-min heat sessions over the course of three weeks. Pre- and post-assessments included physical measures such as range of motion, gait speed, Timed Up and Go, and hand grip strength. Standardized questionnaires were used to determine pain severity and its interference with daily life, and the impact pain had on overall QOL. Pain severity was significantly reduced (from 3.31 to 2.5, p < .05) in the FIR group from pre-to-post, and pain interference was significantly reduced (from 1.26 to 0.43, p < .05) in the CON group from pre-to-post testing. Findings suggest that heat therapy was successful in reducing pain over time.

Mentoring underrepresented students in aging research during the COVID-19 pandemic affords many opportunities for innovation and learning, for both students and program leaders. Here, we describe lessons learned from an Advancing Diversity in Aging Research (ADAR) program at a women-centered, minority-serving undergraduate institution. We share program elements and assessment results related to scholars’ education in aging, support through community-building and mentorship, and research experiences in gerosciences. Notably, we highlight lessons learned for retaining and training undergraduate students as graduate school-ready researchers: 1) draw students into a community focused on social justice, 2) show students that geroscience is inclusive and integrative, 3) model professionalism with flexibility, 4) keep open lines of communication, and 5) build a team of mentors around each scholar. By sharing insights from our community of practice in geroscience research and education, we hope to model best practices for URM student support in aging research.

While the effect of artificial limb loads on the cost of locomotion has been established, we do not know how this situation differs from natural variation in limb mass distribution. In addition, there is no consensus on the major determinants of the cost of locomotion. Several factors (body mass, speed, stride frequency) have shown simple and strong correlations with cost under certain circumstances, but so far, a comprehensive mechanistic model has not been found. In Chapter 2 of this thesis, I have experimentally uncoupled speed, stride frequency and mass distribution as a means of studying the determinants of the cost of running in humans along a section of the VO2 response surface. My data support a mechanistic model of the cost of running in which the mechanical power that must be generated by muscular contractions is an important determinant of VO2. Although I found no evidence of a simple relationship between contact time and the cost of running, it is reasonable to assume that cost is influenced by the rate at which muscle shortening occurs, but that this effect can be mitigated by concomitant changes in the amount of elastic strain energy stored and recovered. In Chapter 3, I have characterized the relationships between limb length and shape and other important variables in dog forelimbs and hindlimbs. I found that the straightened fore- and hindlimbs in these dogs had very similar natural pendular periods, radii of gyration, and centers-of-mass, even though they differed significantly in mass, length, moment-of- ‘]inertia and other limb proportions. Agreement between the natural pendular periods of forelimb-hindlimb pairs was attributed to systematic differences in shape--forelimbs being more cylindrical, hindlimbs more conical. I suggest that this arrangement has evolved to minimize the energetic cost of locomotion by taking more complete advantage of the pendular exchange of potential and kinetic energy. In combination, these two studies provide strong evidence that the design of animal limbs is importantly influenced by the need to minimize the metabolic cost of locomotion.