Factors affecting yearly and monthly visits to Taipei Zoo

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Su, Ai-Tsen; Lin, Yann-Jou

2018-02-01

This study investigated factors affecting yearly and monthly numbers of visits to Taipei Zoo. Both linear and nonlinear regression models were used to estimate yearly visits. The results of both models showed that the "opening effect" and "animal star effect" had a significantly positive effect on yearly visits, while a SARS outbreak had a negative effect. The number of years had a significant influence on yearly visits. Results showed that the nonlinear model had better explanatory power and fitted the variations of visits better. Results of monthly model showed that monthly visits were significantly influenced by time fluctuations, weather conditions, and the animal star effect. Chinese New Year, summer vacation, numbers of holidays, and animal star exhibitions increased the number of monthly visits, while the number of days with temperatures at or below 15 °C, the number of days with temperatures at or above 30 °C, and the number of rainy days had significantly negative effects. Furthermore, the model of monthly visits showed that the animal star effect could last for over two quarters. The results of this study clarify the factors affecting visits to an outdoor recreation site and confirm the importance of meteorological factors to recreation use.

Feeding patterns and diet - children 6 months to 2 years

MedlinePlus

Feeding children 6 months to 2 years; Diet - age appropriate - children 6 months to 2 years; Babies - feeding solid food ... 6 to 8 MONTHS At this age, your baby will probably eat about 4 to 6 times per day, but will eat more ...

Variability and Extremes of Precipitation in the Global Climate as Determined by the 25-Year GEWEX/GPCP Data Set

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Adler, R. F.; Gu, G.; Curtis, S.; Huffman, G. J.; Bolvin, D. T.; Nelkin, E. J.

2005-01-01

The Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP) 25-year precipitation data set is used to evaluate the variability and extremes on global and regional scales. The variability of precipitation year-to-year is evaluated in relation to the overall lack of a significant global trend and to climate events such as ENSO and volcanic eruptions. The validity of conclusions and limitations of the data set are checked by comparison with independent data sets (e.g., TRMM). The GPCP data set necessarily has a heterogeneous time series of input data sources, so part of the assessment described above is to test the initial results for potential influence by major data boundaries in the record. Regional trends, or inter-decadal changes, are also analyzed to determine validity and correlation with other long-term data sets related to the hydrological cycle (e.g., clouds and ocean surface fluxes). Statistics of extremes (both wet and dry) are analyzed at the monthly time scale for the 25 years. A preliminary result of increasing frequency of extreme monthly values will be a focus to determine validity. Daily values for an eight-year are also examined for variation in extremes and compared to the longer monthly-based study.

Ten-year global distribution of downwelling longwave radiation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pavlakis, K. G.; Hatzidimitriou, D.; Matsoukas, C.; Drakakis, E.; Hatzianastassiou, N.; Vardavas, I.

2004-01-01

Downwelling longwave fluxes, DLFs, have been derived for each month over a ten year period (1984-1993), on a global scale with a spatial resolution of 2.5x2.5 degrees and a monthly temporal resolution. The fluxes were computed using a deterministic model for atmospheric radiation transfer, along with satellite and reanalysis data for the key atmospheric input parameters, i.e. cloud properties, and specific humidity and temperature profiles. The cloud climatologies were taken from the latest released and improved International Satellite Climatology Project D2 series. Specific humidity and temperature vertical profiles were taken from three different reanalysis datasets; NCEP/NCAR, GEOS, and ECMWF (acronyms explained in main text). DLFs were computed for each reanalysis dataset, with differences reaching values as high as 30 Wm-2 in specific regions, particularly over high altitude areas and deserts. However, globally, the agreement is good, with the rms of the difference between the DLFs derived from the different reanalysis datasets ranging from 5 to 7 Wm-2. The results are presented as geographical distributions and as time series of hemispheric and global averages. The DLF time series based on the different reanalysis datasets show similar seasonal and inter-annual variations, and similar anomalies related to the 86/87 El Niño and 89/90 La Niña events. The global ten-year average of the DLF was found to be between 342.2 Wm-2 and 344.3 Wm-2, depending on the dataset. We also conducted a detailed sensitivity analysis of the calculated DLFs to the key input data. Plots are given that can be used to obtain a quick assessment of the sensitivity of the DLF to each of the three key climatic quantities, for specific climatic conditions corresponding to different regions of the globe. Our model downwelling fluxes are validated against available data from ground-based stations distributed over the globe, as given by the Baseline Surface Radiation Network. There is a

Globally Averaged Atmospheric CFC-11 Concentrations: Monthly and Annual Data for the Period 1975-1992 (DB1010)

DOE Data Explorer

Khalil, M. A.K. [Oregon Graduate Institute of Science and Technology Portland, Oregon (USA); Rasmussen, R. A. [Oregon Graduate Institute of Science and Technology Portland, Oregon

1996-01-01

This data set presents globally averaged atmospheric concentrations of chlorofluorocarbon 11, known also as CFC-11 or F-11 (chemical name: trichlorofluoromethane; formula: CCl3F). The monthly global average data are derived from flask air samples collected at eight sites in six locations over the period August 1980-July 1992. The sites are Barrow (Alaska), Cape Meares (Oregon), Cape Kumukahi and Mauna Loa (Hawaii), Cape Matatula (American Samoa), Cape Grim (Tasmania), Palmer Station, and the South Pole (Antarctica). At each collection site, monthly averages were obtained from three flask samples collected every week. In addition to the monthly global averages available for 1980-992, this data set also contains annual global average data for 1975-1985. These annual global averages were derived from January measurements at the South Pole and in the Pacific Northwest of the United States (specifically, Washington state and the Oregon coast).

Climate Prediction Center global monthly soil moisture data set at 0.5° resolution for 1948 to present

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Fan, Yun; van den Dool, Huug

2004-05-01

We have produced a 0.5° × 0.5° monthly global soil moisture data set for the period from 1948 to the present. The land model is a one-layer "bucket" water balance model, while the driving input fields are Climate Prediction Center monthly global precipitation over land, which uses over 17,000 gauges worldwide, and monthly global temperature from global Reanalysis. The output consists of global monthly soil moisture, evaporation, and runoff, starting from January 1948. A distinguishing feature of this data set is that all fields are updated monthly, which greatly enhances utility for near-real-time purposes. Data validation shows that the land model does well; both the simulated annual cycle and interannual variability of soil moisture are reasonably good against the limited observations in different regions. A data analysis reveals that, on average, the land surface water balance components have a stronger annual cycle in the Southern Hemisphere than those in the Northern Hemisphere. From the point of view of soil moisture, climates can be characterized into two types, monsoonal and midlatitude climates, with the monsoonal ones covering most of the low-latitude land areas and showing a more prominent annual variation. A global soil moisture empirical orthogonal function analysis and time series of hemisphere means reveal some interesting patterns (like El Niño-Southern Oscillation) and long-term trends in both regional and global scales.

Mars Global Surveyor: 7 Years in Orbit!

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2004-01-01

12 September 2004 Today, 12 September 2004, the Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) Mars Orbiter Camera (MOC) team celebrates 7 Earth years orbiting Mars. MGS first reached the red planet and performed its critical orbit insertion burn on 12 September 1997. Over the past 7 years, MOC has returned over 170,000 images; its narrow angle camera has covered about 4.5% of the surface, and its wide angle cameras have viewed 100% of the planet nearly everyday.

At this time, MOC is not acquiring data because Mars is on the other side of the Sun relative to Earth. This period, known as Solar Conjunction, occurs about once every 26 months. During Solar Conjunction, no radio communications from spacecraft that are orbiting or have landed on Mars can be received. MOC was turned off on 7 September and is expected to resume operations on 25 September 2004, when Mars re-emerges from behind the Sun.

The rotating color image of Mars shown here was compiled from MOC red and blue wide angle daily global images acquired exactly 1 Mars year ago on 26 October 2002 (Ls 86.4o). In other words, Mars today (12 September 2004) should look about the same as the view provided here. Presently, Mars is in very late northern spring, and the north polar cap has retreated almost to its summer configuration. Water ice clouds form each afternoon at this time of year over the large volcanoes in the Tharsis and Elysium regions. A discontinuous belt of clouds forms over the martian equator; it is most prominent north of the Valles Marineris trough system. In the southern hemisphere, it is late autumn and the giant Hellas Basin floor is nearly white with seasonal frost cover. The south polar cap is not visible, it is enveloped in seasonal darkness. The northern summer and southern winter seasons will begin on 20 September 2004.

Variations and Trends in Global and Regional Precipitation Based on the 22-Year GPCP (Global Precipitation Climatology Project) and Three-Year TRMM (Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission) Data Sets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Adler, Robert F.; Curtis, Scott; Huffman, George; Bolvin, David; Nelkin, Eric; Einaudi, Franco (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

This paper gives an overview of the analysis of global precipitation over the last few decades and the impact of the new TRMM precipitation observations. The 20+ year, monthly, globally complete precipitation analysis of the World Climate Research Program's (WCRP/GEWEX) Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP) is used to study global and regional variations and trends and is compared to the much shorter TRMM(Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission) tropical data set. The GPCP data set shows no significant trend in global precipitation over the twenty years, unlike the positive trend in global surface temperatures over the past century. The global trend analysis must be interpreted carefully, however, because the inhomogeneity of the data set makes detecting a small signal very difficult, especially over this relatively short period. The relation of global (and tropical) total precipitation and ENSO events is quantified with no significant signal when land and ocean are combined. Identifying regional trends in precipitation may be more practical. From 1979 to 2000 the tropics have pattern of regional rainfall trends that has an ENSO-like pattern with features of both the El Nino and La Nina. This feature is related to a possible trend in the frequency of ENSO events (either El Nino or La Nina) over the past 20 years. Monthly anomalies of precipitation are related to ENSO variations with clear signals extending into middle and high latitudes of both hemispheres. The El Nino and La Nina mean anomalies are near mirror images of each other and when combined produce an ENSO signal with significant spatial continuity over large distances. A number of the features are shown to extend into high latitudes. Positive anomalies extend in the Southern Hemisphere (S.H.) from the Pacific southeastward across Chile and Argentina into the south Atlantic Ocean. In the Northern Hemisphere (N.H.) the counterpart feature extends across the southern U.S. and Atlantic Ocean into Europe

Reliability and Reproducibility of Advanced ECG Parameters in Month-to-Month and Year-to-Year Recordings in Healthy Subjects

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Starc, Vito; Abughazaleh, Ahmed S.; Schlegel, Todd T.

2014-01-01

Advanced resting ECG parameters such the spatial mean QRS-T angle and the QT variability index (QTVI) have important diagnostic and prognostic utility, but their reliability and reproducibility (R&R) are not well characterized. We hypothesized that the spatial QRS-T angle would have relatively higher R&R than parameters such as QTVI that are more responsive to transient changes in the autonomic nervous system. The R&R of several conventional and advanced ECG para-meters were studied via intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) and coefficients of variation (CVs) in: (1) 15 supine healthy subjects from month-to-month; (2) 27 supine healthy subjects from year-to-year; and (3) 25 subjects after transition from the supine to the seated posture. As hypothesized, for the spatial mean QRS-T angle and many conventional ECG parameters, ICCs we-re higher, and CVs lower than QTVI, suggesting that the former parameters are more reliable and reproducible.

Ten-year global distribution of downwelling longwave radiation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pavlakis, K. G.; Hatzidimitriou, D.; Matsoukas, C.; Drakakis, E.; Hatzianastassiou, N.; Vardavas, I.

2003-10-01

Downwelling longwave fluxes, DLFs, have been derived for each month over a ten year period (1984-1993), on a global scale with a resolution of 2.5° × 2.5°. The fluxes were computed using a deterministic model for atmospheric radiation transfer, along with satellite and reanalysis data for the key atmospheric input parameters, i.e. cloud properties, and specific humidity and temperature profiles. The cloud climatologies were taken from the latest released and improved International Satellite Climatology Project D2 series. Specific humidity and temperature vertical profiles were taken from three different reanalysis datasets; NCEP/NCAR, GEOS, and ECMWF (acronyms explained in main text). DLFs were computed for each reanalysis dataset, with differences reaching values as high as 30 Wm-2 in specific regions, particularly over high altitude areas and deserts. However, globally, the agreement is good, with the rms of the difference between the DLFs derived from the different reanalysis datasets ranging from 5 to 7 Wm-2. The results are presented as geographical distributions and as time series of hemispheric and global averages. The DLF time series based on the different reanalysis datasets show similar seasonal and inter-annual variations, and similar anomalies related to the 86/87 El Niño and 89/90 La Niña events. The global ten-year average of the DLF was found to be between 342.2 Wm-2 and 344.3 Wm-2, depending on the dataset. We also conducted a detailed sensitivity analysis of the calculated DLFs to the key input data. Plots are given that can be used to obtain a quick assessment of the sensitivity of the DLF to each of the three key climatic quantities, for specific climatic conditions corresponding to different regions of the globe. Our model downwelling fluxes are validated against available data from ground-based stations distributed over the globe, as given by the Baseline Surface Radiation Network. There is a negative bias of the model fluxes when compared

Your Child's Development: 1.5 Years (18 Months)

MedlinePlus

... 5 Years (18 Months) Print en español El desarrollo de su hijo: 1,5 años (18 meses) ... takes off some clothes scribbles with a crayon Social and Emotional Development begins to engage in pretend ...

Renal denervation reduces office and ambulatory heart rate in patients with uncontrolled hypertension: 12-month outcomes from the global SYMPLICITY registry.

PubMed

Böhm, Michael; Ukena, Christian; Ewen, Sebastian; Linz, Dominik; Zivanovic, Ina; Hoppe, Uta; Narkiewicz, Krzysztof; Ruilope, Luis; Schlaich, Markus; Negoita, Manuela; Schmieder, Roland; Williams, Bryan; Zeymer, Uwe; Zirlik, Andreas; Mancia, Giuseppe; Mahfoud, Felix

2016-12-01

Renal denervation (RDN) can reduce sympathetic activity and blood pressure (BP) in patients with hypertension. The effects on resting and ambulatory heart rate (HR), also regulated by the sympathetic nervous system, are not established. Herein, we report 12-month outcomes from the Global SYMPLICITY Registry on office and ambulatory HR and BP in patients with uncontrolled hypertension (n = 846). HR declined in correlation with the HR at baseline and at 12 months, in particular, in patients in the upper tertile of HR (>74 bpm). BP reduction was similar in the tertiles of HR at baseline. Similar effects were observed when 24-h ambulatory HR and SBP were determined. Office HR was similarly decreased when patients were on a β-blocker or not. Antihypertensive treatment remained unchanged during the 12-month period of the Global SYMPLICITY Registry. RDN reduces BP independent from HR. A HR reduction is dependent on baseline HR and unchanged by β-blocker treatment. The effects of RDN on SBP and HR are durable up to 1 year. HR reduction might be a target for RDN in patients with high HR at baseline, which needs to be scrutinized in prospective trials.

Assessment of the global monthly mean surface insolation estimated from satellite measurements using global energy balance archive data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Li, Zhanqing; Whitlock, Charles H.; Charlock, Thomas P.

1995-01-01

Global sets of surface radiation budget (SRB) have been obtained from satellite programs. These satellite-based estimates need validation with ground-truth observations. This study validates the estimates of monthly mean surface insolation contained in two satellite-based SRB datasets with the surface measurements made at worldwide radiation stations from the Global Energy Balance Archive (GEBA). One dataset was developed from the Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE) using the algorithm of Li et al. (ERBE/SRB), and the other from the International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP) using the algorithm of Pinker and Laszlo and that of Staylor (GEWEX/SRB). Since the ERBE/SRB data contain the surface net solar radiation only, the values of surface insolation were derived by making use of the surface albedo data contained GEWEX/SRB product. The resulting surface insolation has a bias error near zero and a root-mean-square error (RMSE) between 8 and 28 W/sq m. The RMSE is mainly associated with poor representation of surface observations within a grid cell. When the number of surface observations are sufficient, the random error is estimated to be about 5 W/sq m with present satellite-based estimates. In addition to demonstrating the strength of the retrieving method, the small random error demonstrates how well the ERBE derives from the monthly mean fluxes at the top of the atmosphere (TOA). A larger scatter is found for the comparison of transmissivity than for that of insolation. Month to month comparison of insolation reveals a weak seasonal trend in bias error with an amplitude of about 3 W/sq m. As for the insolation data from the GEWEX/SRB, larger bias errors of 5-10 W/sq m are evident with stronger seasonal trends and almost identical RMSEs.

Global Distribution of Extreme Precipitation and High-Impact Landslides in 2010 Relative to Previous Years

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kirschbaum, Dalia; Adler, Robert; Adler, David; Peters-Lidard, Christa; Huffman, George

2012-01-01

It is well known that extreme or prolonged rainfall is the dominant trigger of landslides worldwide. While research has evaluated the spatiotemporal distribution of extreme rainfall and landslides at local or regional scales using in situ data, few studies have mapped rainfall-triggered landslide distribution globally due to the dearth of landslide data and consistent precipitation information. This study uses a newly developed Global Landslide Catalog (GLC) and a 13-year satellite-based precipitation record from TRMM data. For the first time, these two unique products provide the foundation to quantitatively evaluate the co-occurrence of precipitation and landslides globally. Evaluation of the GLC indicates that 2010 had a large number of high-impact landslide events relative to previous years. This study considers how variations in extreme and prolonged satellite-based rainfall are related to the distribution of landslides over the same time scales for three active landslide areas: Central America, the Himalayan Arc, and central-eastern China. Several test statistics confirm that TRMM rainfall generally scales with the observed increase in landslide reports and fatal events for 2010 and previous years over each region. These findings suggest that the co-occurrence of satellite precipitation and landslide reports may serve as a valuable indicator for characterizing the spatiotemporal distribution of landslide-prone areas in order to establish a global rainfall-triggered landslide climatology. This study characterizes the variability of satellite precipitation data and reported landslide activity at the globally scale in order to improve landslide cataloging, forecasting and quantify potential triggering sources at daily, monthly and yearly time scales.

An evaluation of procedures to estimate monthly precipitation probabilities

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Legates, David R.

1991-01-01

Many frequency distributions have been used to evaluate monthly precipitation probabilities. Eight of these distributions (including Pearson type III, extreme value, and transform normal probability density functions) are comparatively examined to determine their ability to represent accurately variations in monthly precipitation totals for global hydroclimatological analyses. Results indicate that a modified version of the Box-Cox transform-normal distribution more adequately describes the 'true' precipitation distribution than does any of the other methods. This assessment was made using a cross-validation procedure for a global network of 253 stations for which at least 100 years of monthly precipitation totals were available.

Technical note: 3-hourly temporal downscaling of monthly global terrestrial biosphere model net ecosystem exchange

DOE PAGES

Fisher, Joshua B.; Sikka, Munish; Huntzinger, Deborah N.; ...

2016-07-29

Here, the land surface provides a boundary condition to atmospheric forward and flux inversion models. These models require prior estimates of CO 2 fluxes at relatively high temporal resolutions (e.g., 3-hourly) because of the high frequency of atmospheric mixing and wind heterogeneity. However, land surface model CO 2 fluxes are often provided at monthly time steps, typically because the land surface modeling community focuses more on time steps associated with plant phenology (e.g., seasonal) than on sub-daily phenomena. Here, we describe a new dataset created from 15 global land surface models and 4 ensemble products in the Multi-scale Synthesis andmore » Terrestrial Model Intercomparison Project (MsTMIP), temporally downscaled from monthly to 3-hourly output. We provide 3-hourly output for each individual model over 7 years (2004–2010), as well as an ensemble mean, a weighted ensemble mean, and the multi-model standard deviation. Output is provided in three different spatial resolutions for user preferences: 0.5° × 0.5°, 2.0° × 2.5°, and 4.0° × 5.0° (latitude × longitude).« less

Orthogonal stack of global tide gauge sea level data

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Trupin, A.; Wahr, J.

1990-01-01

Yearly and monthly tide gauge sea level data from around the globe are fitted to numerically generated equilibrium tidal data to search for the 18.6 year lunar tide and 14 month pole tide. Both tides are clearly evident in the results, and their amplitudes and phases are found to be consistent with a global equilibrium response. Global, monthly sea level data from outside the Baltic sea and Gulf of Bothnia are fitted to global atmospheric pressure data to study the response of the ocean to pressure fluctuations. The response is found to be inverted barometer at periods greater than two months. Global averages of tide gauge data, after correcting for the effects of post glacial rebound on individual station records, reveal an increase in sea level over the last 80 years of between 1.1 mm/yr and 1.9 mm/yr.

50 years of Global Seismic Observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anderson, K. R.; Butler, R.; Berger, J.; Davis, P.; Derr, J.; Gee, L.; Hutt, C. R.; Leith, W. S.; Park, J. J.

2007-12-01

Seismological recordings have been made on Earth for hundreds of years in some form or another, however, global monitoring of earthquakes only began in the 1890's when John Milne created 40 seismic observatories to measure the waves from these events. Shortly after the International Geophysical Year (IGY), a concerted effort was made to establish and maintain a more modern standardized seismic network on the global scale. In the early 1960's, the World-Wide Standardized Seismograph Network (WWSSN) was established through funding from the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) and was installed and maintained by the USGS's Albuquerque Seismological Laboratory (then a part of the US Coast and Geodetic Survey). This network of identical seismic instruments consisted of 120 stations in 60 countries. Although the network was motivated by nuclear test monitoring, the WWSSN facilitated numerous advances in observational seismology. From the IGY to the present, the network has been upgraded (High-Gain Long-Period Seismograph Network, Seismic Research Observatories, Digital WWSSN, Global Telemetered Seismograph Network, etc.) and expanded (International Deployment of Accelerometers, US National Seismic Network, China Digital Seismograph Network, Joint Seismic Project, etc.), bringing the modern day Global Seismographic Network (GSN) to a current state of approximately 150 stations. The GSN consists of state-of-the-art very broadband seismic transducers, continuous power and communications, and ancillary sensors including geodetic, geomagnetic, microbarographic, meteorological and other related instrumentation. Beyond the GSN, the system of global network observatories includes contributions from other international partners (e.g., GEOSCOPE, GEOFON, MEDNET, F-Net, CTBTO), forming an even larger backbone of permanent seismological observatories as a part of the International Federation of Digital Seismograph Networks. 50 years of seismic network operations have provided

2016 Resembles Past Global Dust Storm Years on Mars

NASA Image and Video Library

2016-10-05

This graphic indicates a similarity between 2016 (dark blue line) and five past years in which Mars has experienced a global dust storm (orange lines and band), compared to years with no global dust storm (blue-green lines and band). The arrow nearly midway across in the dark blue line indicates the Mars time of year in late September 2016. A key factor in the graph is the orbital angular momentum of Mars, which would be steady in a system of only one planet orbiting the sun, but varies due to relatively small effects of having other planets in the solar system. The horizontal scale is time of year on Mars, starting at left with the planet's farthest distance from the sun in each orbit. This point in the Mars year, called "Mars aphelion," corresponds to late autumn in the southern hemisphere. Numeric values on the horizontal axis are in Earth years; each Mars year lasts for about 1.9 Earth years. The vertical scale bar at left applies only to the black-line curve on the graph. The amount of solar energy entering Mars' atmosphere (in watts per square meter) peaks at the time of year when Mars is closest to the sun, corresponding to late spring in the southern hemisphere. The duration of Mars' dust storm season, as indicated, brackets the time of maximum solar input to the atmosphere. The scale bar at right, for orbital angular momentum, applies to the blue, brown and blue-green curves on the graph. The values are based on mass, velocity and distance from the gravitational center of the solar system. Additional information on the units is in a 2015 paper in the journal Icarus, from which this graph is derived. The band shaded in orange is superimposed on the curves of angular momentum for five Mars years that were accompanied by global dust storms in 1956, 1971, 1982, 1994 and 2007. Brown diamond symbols on the curves for these years in indicate the times when the global storms began. The band shaded blue-green lies atop angular momentum curves for six years when no

Visual Attention at Three Months as a Predictor of Cognitive Functioning at Two Years of Age.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lewis, Michael; Brooks-Gunn, Jeanne

1981-01-01

The predictive power of various cognitive skills at three months of age in terms of later cognitive functioning was examined. Visual habituation and recovery predicted later intellectual functioning at 24 months better than global intelligence or object permanence scores. Changes in cognitive functioning may be a transformation of skills.…

TerraClimate, a high-resolution global dataset of monthly climate and climatic water balance from 1958-2015.

PubMed

Abatzoglou, John T; Dobrowski, Solomon Z; Parks, Sean A; Hegewisch, Katherine C

2018-01-09

We present TerraClimate, a dataset of high-spatial resolution (1/24°, ~4-km) monthly climate and climatic water balance for global terrestrial surfaces from 1958-2015. TerraClimate uses climatically aided interpolation, combining high-spatial resolution climatological normals from the WorldClim dataset, with coarser resolution time varying (i.e., monthly) data from other sources to produce a monthly dataset of precipitation, maximum and minimum temperature, wind speed, vapor pressure, and solar radiation. TerraClimate additionally produces monthly surface water balance datasets using a water balance model that incorporates reference evapotranspiration, precipitation, temperature, and interpolated plant extractable soil water capacity. These data provide important inputs for ecological and hydrological studies at global scales that require high spatial resolution and time varying climate and climatic water balance data. We validated spatiotemporal aspects of TerraClimate using annual temperature, precipitation, and calculated reference evapotranspiration from station data, as well as annual runoff from streamflow gauges. TerraClimate datasets showed noted improvement in overall mean absolute error and increased spatial realism relative to coarser resolution gridded datasets.

TerraClimate, a high-resolution global dataset of monthly climate and climatic water balance from 1958-2015

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abatzoglou, John T.; Dobrowski, Solomon Z.; Parks, Sean A.; Hegewisch, Katherine C.

2018-01-01

We present TerraClimate, a dataset of high-spatial resolution (1/24°, ~4-km) monthly climate and climatic water balance for global terrestrial surfaces from 1958-2015. TerraClimate uses climatically aided interpolation, combining high-spatial resolution climatological normals from the WorldClim dataset, with coarser resolution time varying (i.e., monthly) data from other sources to produce a monthly dataset of precipitation, maximum and minimum temperature, wind speed, vapor pressure, and solar radiation. TerraClimate additionally produces monthly surface water balance datasets using a water balance model that incorporates reference evapotranspiration, precipitation, temperature, and interpolated plant extractable soil water capacity. These data provide important inputs for ecological and hydrological studies at global scales that require high spatial resolution and time varying climate and climatic water balance data. We validated spatiotemporal aspects of TerraClimate using annual temperature, precipitation, and calculated reference evapotranspiration from station data, as well as annual runoff from streamflow gauges. TerraClimate datasets showed noted improvement in overall mean absolute error and increased spatial realism relative to coarser resolution gridded datasets.

Keratocyte density 3 months, 15 months, and 3 years after corneal surface ablation with mitomycin C.

PubMed

de Benito-Llopis, Laura; Cañadas, Pilar; Drake, Pilar; Hernández-Verdejo, José Luis; Teus, Miguel A

2012-01-01

To study the effects of surface ablation with mitomycin C (MMC) on keratocyte population. Prospective, nonrandomized, interventional, comparative case series. Thirty two eyes treated with surface ablation with 0.02% MMC were compared with nontreated eyes at Vissum Santa Hortensia, Madrid, Spain. Keratocyte density was measured with the Heidelberg Retina Tomograph II (Rostock Cornea Module) 3, 15, and 36 to 42 months after the surgery in the anterior, mid, and posterior stroma, and compared with control eyes. Three months postoperatively, we found a lower stromal bed density compared to controls (16 993 ± 8001 vs 29 660 ± 5904 cells/mm(3), P = .0001), while there was a significantly higher cell density in the mid (30 783 ± 9300 vs 18 505 ± 1996 cells/mm(3), P = .0001) and deep stroma (30 268 ± 8321 vs 18 438 ± 2139 cells/mm(3), P = .0001). Three years after the surgery, the cellularity in the stromal bed had not significantly changed from the 3-month follow-up, but the density in the mid (18 889 ± 3474 cells/mm(3)) and posterior stroma (18 992 ± 3402 cells/mm(3)) had decreased to show no difference from controls. The mean cell density between the anterior, mid, and posterior stroma was not significantly different from controls 15 months and 3 years after the surgery. Our study suggests that there is a reorganization of the stromal cell population soon after surface ablation with MMC, with a decrease in the stromal bed compensated initially with an increase in the mid and posterior stroma. Corneal cellularity tends to normalize over time, and 3 years postoperatively the mean cell density throughout the cornea seems to maintain normal values. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

MISR L3 Global Products

Atmospheric Science Data Center

2016-10-31

Global Products The MISR Level 3 Products are global or regional maps of select parameters from the Level 2 products and ... from multiple orbits are combined to make complete Level 3 global maps at daily (D), monthly (M), quarterly (Q), and yearly (Y) time ...

Haida Months of the Year.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cogo, Robert

Students are introduced to Haida vocabulary in this booklet which briefly describes the seasons and traditional seasonal activities of Southeastern Alaska Natives. The first section lists the months in English and Haida; e.g., January is "Taan Kungaay," or "Bear Hunting Month." The second section contains seasonal names in…

Prevalence and Predictive Factors of Chronic Postsurgical Pain and Poor Global Recovery 1 Year After Outpatient Surgery.

PubMed

Hoofwijk, Daisy M N; Fiddelers, Audrey A A; Peters, Madelon L; Stessel, Björn; Kessels, Alfons G H; Joosten, Elbert A; Gramke, Hans-Fritz; Marcus, Marco A E

2015-12-01

To prospectively describe the prevalence and predictive factors of chronic postsurgical pain (CPSP) and poor global recovery in a large outpatient population at a university hospital, 1 year after outpatient surgery. A prospective longitudinal cohort study was performed. During 18 months, patients presenting for preoperative assessment were invited to participate. Outcome parameters were measured by using questionnaires at 3 timepoints: 1 week preoperatively, 4 days postoperatively, and 1 year postoperatively. A value of >3 on an 11-point numeric rating scale was considered to indicate moderate to severe pain. A score of ≤80% on the Global Surgical Recovery Index was defined as poor global recovery. A total of 908 patients were included. The prevalence of moderate to severe preoperative pain was 37.7%, acute postsurgical pain 26.7%, and CPSP 15.3%. Risk factors for the development of CPSP were surgical specialty, preoperative pain, preoperative analgesic use, acute postoperative pain, surgical fear, lack of optimism, and poor preoperative quality of life. The prevalence of poor global recovery was 22.3%. Risk factors for poor global recovery were recurrent surgery because of the same pathology, preoperative pain, preoperative analgesic use, surgical fear, lack of optimism, poor preoperative and acute postoperative quality of life, and follow-up surgery during the first postoperative year. Moderate to severe CPSP after outpatient surgery is common, and should not be underestimated. Patients at risk for developing CPSP can be identified during the preoperative phase.

The First Year Inventory: a longitudinal follow-up of 12-month-old to 3-year-old children.

PubMed

Turner-Brown, Lauren M; Baranek, Grace T; Reznick, J Steven; Watson, Linda R; Crais, Elizabeth R

2013-09-01

The First Year Inventory is a parent-report measure designed to identify 12-month-old infants at risk for autism spectrum disorder. First Year Inventory taps behaviors that indicate risk in the developmental domains of sensory-regulatory and social-communication functioning. This longitudinal study is a follow-up of 699 children at 3 years of age from a community sample whose parents completed the First Year Inventory when their children were 12 months old. Parents of all 699 children completed the Social Responsiveness Scale-Preschool version and the Developmental Concerns Questionnaire to determine age 3 developmental outcomes. In addition, children deemed at risk for autism spectrum disorder based on liberal cut points on the First Year Inventory, Social Responsiveness Scale-Preschool, and/or Developmental Concerns Questionnaire were invited for in-person diagnostic evaluations. We found 9 children who had a confirmed diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder from the sample of 699. Receiver operating characteristic analyses determined that a two-domain cutoff score yielded optimal classification of children: 31% of those meeting algorithm cutoffs had autism spectrum disorder and 85% had a developmental disability or concern by age 3. These results suggest that the First Year Inventory is a promising tool for identifying 12-month-old infants who are at risk for an eventual diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder.

Visual Attention to Global and Local Stimulus Properties in 6-Month-Old Infants: Individual Differences and Event-Related Potentials

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Guy, Maggie W.; Reynolds, Greg D.; Zhang, Dantong

2013-01-01

Event-related potentials (ERPs) were utilized in an investigation of 21 six-month-olds' attention to and processing of global and local properties of hierarchical patterns. Overall, infants demonstrated an advantage for processing the overall configuration (i.e., global properties) of local features of hierarchical patterns; however,…

Trajectories and associated factors of quality of life, global outcome, and post-concussion symptoms in the first year following mild traumatic brain injury.

PubMed

Chiang, Chia-Chen; Guo, Su-Er; Huang, Kuo-Chang; Lee, Bih-O; Fan, Jun-Yu

2016-08-01

To investigate the associated factors and change trajectories of quality of life (QoL), global outcome, and post-concussion symptoms (PCS) over the first year following mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI). This was a prospective longitudinal study of 100 participants with mTBI from neurosurgical outpatient departments in Chiayi County District Hospitals in Taiwan. The checklist of post-concussion syndromes (CPCS) was used to assess PCS at enrollment and at 1, 3, and 12 months after mTBI; the glasgow outcome scale extended (GOSE), the quality of life after brain injured (QOLIBRI), Chinese version, and the Short Form 36 Health Survey (SF-36), Taiwan version, were used to assess mTBI global outcome and QoL at 1, 3, and 12 months after mTBI. Latent class growth models (LCGMs) indicated the change trajectories of QOLIBRI, PCS SF-36, MCS SF-36, GOSE, and PCS. Classes of trajectory were associated with age ≥40 years, unemployment at 1 month after injury, and educational level ≤12 years. Univariate analysis revealed that employment status at 1 month post-injury was correlated with the trajectories of QOLIBRI, PCS SF-36, MCS SF-36, and GOSE, but not PCS. Employment status was the most crucial associated factor for QoL in individuals with mTBI at the 1-year follow-up. Future studies should explore the benefits of employment on QoL of individuals with mTBI.

The global war on terror: four years on.

PubMed

Rogers, Paul

2006-01-01

The progress of the global war on terror in the four years since the 9 September 2001 attack on New York and Washington is surveyed, with particular reference to its objective of curtailing the activities of al-Qaida, the situation in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the threat to the United States from the 'axis of evil'. It is suggested that the US is unlikely to withdraw from Iraq in particular because of its dependency upon access to Middle East oil in the foreseeable future, and accordingly that the global war on terror is likely to continue for several years at least.

The Magnitude and Variability of Global and Regional Precipitation Based on the 22-Year GPCP (Global Precipitation Climatology Project) and Three-Year TRMM (Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission) Data Sets

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Adler, Robert F.; Curtis, Scott; Huffman, George; Bolvin, David; Nelkin, Eric

2001-01-01

This paper gives an overview of the analysis of global precipitation over the last few decades and the impact of the new TRMM precipitation observations. The 20+ year, monthly, globally complete precipitation analysis of the World Climate Research Program's (WCRP/GEWEX) Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP) is used to study global and regional variations and trends and is compared to the much shorter TRMM (Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission) tropical data set. The GPCP data set shows no significant trend in precipitation over the twenty years, unlike the positive trend in global surface temperatures over the past century. The global trend analysis must be interpreted carefully, however, because the inhomogeneity of the data set makes detecting a small signal very difficult, especially over this relatively short period. Identifying regional trends in precipitation may be more practical. From 1979 to 1999 the northern mid-latitudes appear to be drying, the southern mid-latitudes have gotten wetter, and there is a mixed signal in the tropics. The relation between this field of trends and the relation to the frequency of El Nino events during this time period is explored. Monthly anomalies of precipitation are related to ENSO variations with clear signals extending into middle and high latitudes of both hemispheres. The El Nino and La Nina mean anomalies are near mirror images of each other and when combined produce an ENSO signal with significant spatial continuity over large distances. These El Nino minus La Nina composites of normalized precipitation show the usual positive, or wet, anomaly over the central and eastern Pacific Ocean with the negative, or dry, anomaly over the maritime continent along with an additional negative anomaly over Brazil and the Atlantic Ocean extending into Africa and a positive anomaly over the Horn of Africa and the western Indian Ocean. A number of the features are shown to extend into high latitudes. Positive anomalies

Data Descriptor: TerraClimate, a high-resolution global dataset of monthly climate and climatic water balance from 1958-2015

Treesearch

John T. Abatzoglou; Solomon Z. Dobrowski; Sean A. Parks; Katherine C. Hegewisch

2018-01-01

We present TerraClimate, a dataset of high-spatial resolution (1/24°, ~4-km) monthly climate and climatic water balance for global terrestrial surfaces from 1958–2015. TerraClimate uses climatically aided interpolation, combining high-spatial resolution climatological normals from the WorldClim dataset, with coarser resolution time varying (i.e., monthly) data from...

Rates of pediatric injuries by 3-month intervals for children 0 to 3 years of age.

PubMed

Agran, Phyllis F; Anderson, Craig; Winn, Diane; Trent, Roger; Walton-Haynes, Lynn; Thayer, Sharon

2003-06-01

Mortality and morbidity data on childhood injury are used to construct developmentally appropriate intervention strategies and to guide pediatric anticipatory counseling on injury prevention topics. Effective anticipatory guidance depends on detailed injury data showing how risks change as children develop. Conventional age groupings may be too broad to show the relationship between children's development and their risk of various causes of injury. Previous studies revealed differences in overall rates and specific causes of injury by year of age. However, single year of age rates for children younger than 4 years may not reflect the variations in risk as a result of rapid developmental changes. This study was designed to analyze injury rates for children younger than 4 years by quarter-year intervals to determine more specifically the age period of highest risk for injury and for specific causes. We used data from 1996-1998 California hospital discharges and death certificates to identify day of age and external cause of injury (E-code) for children younger than 4 years. The number of California residents for each day of age was estimated from US Census of estimates of California's population by year of age for the midpoints (1996-1998). Rates were calculated by 3-month intervals. We grouped the E-codes into major categories that would be particularly relevant for developmentally related risks of injury specific to young children. The categorization took into account physical, motor, behavioral, and cognitive developmental milestones of children 0 to 3 years. There were a total of 23,173 injuries; 636 resulted in death. The overall annual rate for children aged 0 to 3 years was 371/100,000. Beginning at age 3 to 5 months, the overall rate of injury rapidly increased with increased age, peaking at 15 to 17 months. The mean injury rate calculated for each single year of age did not reflect the variation and the highest rate of injury by quarter year of age for

Infant Humor Perception from 3- to 6-months and Attachment at One Year

PubMed Central

Mireault, Gina; Sparrow, John; Poutre, Merlin; Perdue, Brittany; Macke, Laura

2012-01-01

Infancy is a critical time for the development of secure attachment, which is facilitated by emotionally synchronous interactions with parents. Humor development, which includes shared laughter and joint attention to an event, emerges concurrently with attachment, but little is known regarding the relationship, if any, between humor development and attachment in the first year. Thirty 3-month-old infants were videoed at home each month until they were 6-months old while their parents attempted to amuse them. Frequency of infants’ smiles and laughs served as a measure of “state humor”, and the smiling/laughing subscale of the Infant Behavior Questionnaire-Revised served as a measure of “trait humor”. State and trait humor were not correlated. Lower trait humor as 6 months predicted higher attachment security on the Attachment Q-sort at 12-months (r=. 46), suggesting that less good-humored infants elicit greater parental engagement, which works to the benefit of attachment, or vice versa. Future studies should examine the importance of smiling and laughter as they relate to other developmental phenomena in the first year. PMID:22982281

Infant humor perception from 3- to 6-months and attachment at one year.

PubMed

Mireault, Gina; Sparrow, John; Poutre, Merlin; Perdue, Brittany; Macke, Laura

2012-12-01

Infancy is a critical time for the development of secure attachment, which is facilitated by emotionally synchronous interactions with parents. Humor development, which includes shared laughter and joint attention to an event, emerges concurrently with attachment, but little is known regarding the relationship, if any, between humor development and attachment in the first year. Thirty 3-month-old infants were videoed at home each month until they were 6-months old while their parents attempted to amuse them. Frequency of infants' smiles and laughs served as a measure of "state humor", and the smiling/laughing subscale of the Infant Behavior Questionnaire-Revised served as a measure of "trait humor". State and trait humor were not correlated. Lower trait humor as 6 months predicted higher attachment security on the Attachment Q-sort at 12-months (r=.46), suggesting that less good-humored infants elicit greater parental engagement, which works to the benefit of attachment, or vice versa. Future studies should examine the importance of smiling and laughter as they relate to other developmental phenomena in the first year. Published by Elsevier Inc.

The "Global" Formulation of Thermodynamics and the First Law: 50 Years On

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gislason, Eric A.; Craig, Norman C.

2011-01-01

Nearly 50 years ago, Henry Bent published his groundbreaking article in this "Journal" introducing the "global" formulation of thermodynamics. In the following years, the global formulation was elaborated by Bent and by one of the present authors. The global formulation of the first law focuses on conservation of energy and the recognition that…

Global Web-Enabled Landsat Data (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Roy, D. P.; Kovalskyy, V.; Kommareddy, I.; Votava, P.; Nemani, R. R.; Egorov, A.; Hansen, M.; Yan, L.

2013-12-01

The 40+ year series of Landsat satellites provides the longest temporal record of space-based observations acquired with spatial resolutions appropriate for monitoring anthropogenic change. The need for 'higher-level' Landsat products, i.e., beyond currently available radiometrically and geometrically corrected Landsat scenes, has been advocated by the user community and by the Landsat science team. The NASA funded Web-enabled Landsat Data (WELD) project has demonstrated this capability by systematically generating 30m weekly, seasonal, monthly and annual composited Landsat mosaics of the conterminous United States (CONUS) and Alaska for 10+ years (http://weld.cr.usgs.gov/). Recently, the WELD code has been ported to the NASA Earth Exchange (NEX) high performance super computing and data platform to generate global 30m WELD products from contemporaneous Landsat 5 and 7 data. The WELD products and select applications that take advantage of the consistently processed WELD time series are showcased. Prototype global monthly 30m products and plans to expand the production to provide Landsat 30m higher level products for any terrestrial non-Antarctic location for six 3-year epochs from 1985 to 2010 are presented. Prototype monthly global NEX 30m WELD product

A new integrated and homogenized global monthly land surface air temperature dataset for the period since 1900

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xu, Wenhui; Li, Qingxiang; Jones, Phil; Wang, Xiaolan L.; Trewin, Blair; Yang, Su; Zhu, Chen; Zhai, Panmao; Wang, Jinfeng; Vincent, Lucie; Dai, Aiguo; Gao, Yun; Ding, Yihui

2018-04-01

A new dataset of integrated and homogenized monthly surface air temperature over global land for the period since 1900 [China Meteorological Administration global Land Surface Air Temperature (CMA-LSAT)] is developed. In total, 14 sources have been collected and integrated into the newly developed dataset, including three global (CRUTEM4, GHCN, and BEST), three regional and eight national sources. Duplicate stations are identified, and those with the higher priority are chosen or spliced. Then, a consistency test and a climate outlier test are conducted to ensure that each station series is quality controlled. Next, two steps are adopted to assure the homogeneity of the station series: (1) homogenized station series in existing national datasets (by National Meteorological Services) are directly integrated into the dataset without any changes (50% of all stations), and (2) the inhomogeneities are detected and adjusted for in the remaining data series using a penalized maximal t test (50% of all stations). Based on the dataset, we re-assess the temperature changes in global and regional areas compared with GHCN-V3 and CRUTEM4, as well as the temperature changes during the three periods of 1900-2014, 1979-2014 and 1998-2014. The best estimates of warming trends and there 95% confidence ranges for 1900-2014 are approximately 0.102 ± 0.006 °C/decade for the whole year, and 0.104 ± 0.009, 0.112 ± 0.007, 0.090 ± 0.006, and 0.092 ± 0.007 °C/decade for the DJF (December, January, February), MAM, JJA, and SON seasons, respectively. MAM saw the most significant warming trend in both 1900-2014 and 1979-2014. For an even shorter and more recent period (1998-2014), MAM, JJA and SON show similar warming trends, while DJF shows opposite trends. The results show that the ability of CMA-LAST for describing the global temperature changes is similar with other existing products, while there are some differences when describing regional temperature changes.

Tuition Fees and Student Financial Assistance: 2010 Global Year

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marcucci, Pamela; Usher, Alex

2011-01-01

Since the start of the global financial crisis a little over two years ago, many concerns have been raised on how it might affect funding to higher education and whether or not it might hasten moves toward greater cost sharing. While, globally, some steps have been taken in this direction, in most countries, hard decisions have yet to be taken on…

Global monthly water scarcity: blue water footprints versus blue water availability.

PubMed

Hoekstra, Arjen Y; Mekonnen, Mesfin M; Chapagain, Ashok K; Mathews, Ruth E; Richter, Brian D

2012-01-01

Freshwater scarcity is a growing concern, placing considerable importance on the accuracy of indicators used to characterize and map water scarcity worldwide. We improve upon past efforts by using estimates of blue water footprints (consumptive use of ground- and surface water flows) rather than water withdrawals, accounting for the flows needed to sustain critical ecological functions and by considering monthly rather than annual values. We analyzed 405 river basins for the period 1996-2005. In 201 basins with 2.67 billion inhabitants there was severe water scarcity during at least one month of the year. The ecological and economic consequences of increasing degrees of water scarcity--as evidenced by the Rio Grande (Rio Bravo), Indus, and Murray-Darling River Basins--can include complete desiccation during dry seasons, decimation of aquatic biodiversity, and substantial economic disruption.

Probabilistic global maps of the CO2 column at daily and monthly scales from sparse satellite measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chevallier, Frédéric; Broquet, Grégoire; Pierangelo, Clémence; Crisp, David

2017-07-01

The column-average dry air-mole fraction of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere (XCO2) is measured by scattered satellite measurements like those from the Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO-2). We show that global continuous maps of XCO2 (corresponding to level 3 of the satellite data) at daily or coarser temporal resolution can be inferred from these data with a Kalman filter built on a model of persistence. Our application of this approach on 2 years of OCO-2 retrievals indicates that the filter provides better information than a climatology of XCO2 at both daily and monthly scales. Provided that the assigned observation uncertainty statistics are tuned in each grid cell of the XCO2 maps from an objective method (based on consistency diagnostics), the errors predicted by the filter at daily and monthly scales represent the true error statistics reasonably well, except for a bias in the high latitudes of the winter hemisphere and a lack of resolution (i.e., a too small discrimination skill) of the predicted error standard deviations. Due to the sparse satellite sampling, the broad-scale patterns of XCO2 described by the filter seem to lag behind the real signals by a few weeks. Finally, the filter offers interesting insights into the quality of the retrievals, both in terms of random and systematic errors.

Dependence of global radiation on cloudiness and surface albedo in Tartu, Estonia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tooming, H.

The dependence of global and diffuse radiation on surface albedo due to multiple reflection of radiation between the surface and the atmosphere (base of clouds) is found on the basis of data obtained at the Tartu-Tõravere Actinometric Station over the period 1955-2000. It is found that the monthly totals of global radiation increase by up to 1.38-1.88 times, particularly in the winter half-year between November and March, when snow cover albedo may be high. A semi-empirical formula is derived for calculating with sufficient accuracy the monthly totals of global radiation, considering the amount of cloudiness and the surface albedo. In the time series of the monthly total by global radiation a downward trend occurs in winter months. A decrease in global radiation by up to 20% in the past 46 years can be explained primarily by a relatively high negative trend in the snow cover duration and surface albedo (up to -0.24). As a result, days are growing darker, a new phenomenon associated with climate change, which undoubtedly affects human mood to some extent.

GLOBAL CHANGE MULTI-YEAR PLAN

EPA Science Inventory

The Global Change Research Act of 1990 establishes the U.S. Global Change Research Program to coordinate a comprehensive research program on global change. This is an inter-Agency effort, with EPA bearing responsibility to assess the consequences of global change on human health,...

Weight change in the first 2 months of a lifestyle intervention predicts weight changes 8 years later.

PubMed

Unick, Jessica L; Neiberg, Rebecca H; Hogan, Patricia E; Cheskin, Lawrence J; Dutton, Gareth R; Jeffery, Robert; Nelson, Julie A; Pi-Sunyer, Xavier; West, Delia Smith; Wing, Rena R

2015-07-01

Examine the relationship between 1- and 2-month weight loss (WL) and 8-year WL among participants enrolled in a lifestyle intervention. 2,290 Look AHEAD participants (BMI: 35.65 ± 5.93 kg/m(2) ) with type 2 diabetes received an intensive behavioral WL intervention. 1- and 2-month WL were associated with yearly WL through Year 8 (P's < 0.0001). At Month 1, participants losing 2-4% and >4% had 1.62 (95% CI: 1.32, 1.98) and 2.79 (95% CI: 2.21, 3.52) times higher odds of achieving ≥5% WL at Year 4 and 1.28 (95% CI: 1.05,1.58) and 1.77 (95% CI: 1.40, 2.24) times higher odds of achieving ≥5% WL at Year 8, compared to those losing <2% initially. At Month 2, 3-6% WL resulted in greater odds of achieving ≥5% WL at Year 4 (OR = 1.85; CI: 1.48, 2.32), and >6% WL resulted in the greatest odds of achieving ≥5% WL at Year 4 (OR = 3.85; CI: 3.05, 4.88) and Year 8 (OR = 2.28; CI: 1.81, 2.89), compared to those losing <3%. Differences in adherence between WL categories were observed as early as Month 2. 1- and 2-month WL was associated with 8-year WL. Future studies should examine whether alternative treatment strategies can be employed to improve treatment outcomes among those with low initial WL. © 2015 The Obesity Society.

Similar Antibody Levels in 3-Year-Old Children Vaccinated Against Measles, Mumps, and Rubella at the Age of 12 Months or 18 Months.

PubMed

Kontio, Mia; Palmu, Arto A; Syrjänen, Ritva K; Lahdenkari, Mika; Ruokokoski, Esa; Davidkin, Irja; Vaarala, Outi; Melin, Merit

2016-06-15

Measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccinations have been offered to Finnish children at 14-18 months and 6 years of age. In May 2011, the recommended age for the first vaccine dose was lowered to 12 months because of the European measles epidemic. Fingertip capillary blood samples were collected from 3-year-old Finnish children vaccinated once with MMR vaccine at 11-19 months of age. The immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies to all 3 MMR antigens were measured with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Neutralizing antibodies and the avidity of antibodies were measured for measles virus. From April through October 2013, 187 children were enrolled. Equally high proportions of the samples were seropositive for measles virus, mumps virus, or rubella virus antibodies, and there were no significant differences in the IgG antibody concentrations in children vaccinated at 11-13 months of age, compared with those vaccinated at 17-19 months of age. However, among children vaccinated at 11-13 months of age, boys had lower antibody concentrations than girls. Neutralizing measles virus antibody titers were above the threshold for protective immunity in all 78 samples analyzed. The measles virus antibody avidity indexes were high for all children. MMR induces similar antibody responses in 12-month-old children as compared to 18-month-old children, but in boys increasing age appears to improve the antibody responses. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press for the Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, e-mail journals.permissions@oup.com.

A hybrid SVM-FFA method for prediction of monthly mean global solar radiation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shamshirband, Shahaboddin; Mohammadi, Kasra; Tong, Chong Wen; Zamani, Mazdak; Motamedi, Shervin; Ch, Sudheer

2016-07-01

In this study, a hybrid support vector machine-firefly optimization algorithm (SVM-FFA) model is proposed to estimate monthly mean horizontal global solar radiation (HGSR). The merit of SVM-FFA is assessed statistically by comparing its performance with three previously used approaches. Using each approach and long-term measured HGSR, three models are calibrated by considering different sets of meteorological parameters measured for Bandar Abbass situated in Iran. It is found that the model (3) utilizing the combination of relative sunshine duration, difference between maximum and minimum temperatures, relative humidity, water vapor pressure, average temperature, and extraterrestrial solar radiation shows superior performance based upon all approaches. Moreover, the extraterrestrial radiation is introduced as a significant parameter to accurately estimate the global solar radiation. The survey results reveal that the developed SVM-FFA approach is greatly capable to provide favorable predictions with significantly higher precision than other examined techniques. For the SVM-FFA (3), the statistical indicators of mean absolute percentage error (MAPE), root mean square error (RMSE), relative root mean square error (RRMSE), and coefficient of determination ( R 2) are 3.3252 %, 0.1859 kWh/m2, 3.7350 %, and 0.9737, respectively which according to the RRMSE has an excellent performance. As a more evaluation of SVM-FFA (3), the ratio of estimated to measured values is computed and found that 47 out of 48 months considered as testing data fall between 0.90 and 1.10. Also, by performing a further verification, it is concluded that SVM-FFA (3) offers absolute superiority over the empirical models using relatively similar input parameters. In a nutshell, the hybrid SVM-FFA approach would be considered highly efficient to estimate the HGSR.

Global Monthly Water Scarcity: Blue Water Footprints versus Blue Water Availability

PubMed Central

Hoekstra, Arjen Y.; Mekonnen, Mesfin M.; Chapagain, Ashok K.; Mathews, Ruth E.; Richter, Brian D.

2012-01-01

Freshwater scarcity is a growing concern, placing considerable importance on the accuracy of indicators used to characterize and map water scarcity worldwide. We improve upon past efforts by using estimates of blue water footprints (consumptive use of ground- and surface water flows) rather than water withdrawals, accounting for the flows needed to sustain critical ecological functions and by considering monthly rather than annual values. We analyzed 405 river basins for the period 1996–2005. In 201 basins with 2.67 billion inhabitants there was severe water scarcity during at least one month of the year. The ecological and economic consequences of increasing degrees of water scarcity – as evidenced by the Rio Grande (Rio Bravo), Indus, and Murray-Darling River Basins – can include complete desiccation during dry seasons, decimation of aquatic biodiversity, and substantial economic disruption. PMID:22393438

Take a Bite Out of Crime: Get Ready To Celebrate 20 Years. Crime Prevention Month Action Kit.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Crime Prevention Council, Washington, DC.

This Crime Prevention Month kit is designed to help plan crime prevention month activities for 1999 and into 2000, the year the Take a Bite Out of Crime character, McGruff the Crime Dog, celebrates 20 years of existence. This 15-month planning calendar provides long-term strategies for preventing crime in the community, which can be carried out…

The Global Historical Climatology Network: Long-Term Monthly Temperature, Precipitation, Sea Level Pressure, and Station Pressure Data (NDP-041)

DOE Data Explorer

Vose, Russell S. [Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center (CDIAC),; Schmoyer, Richard L.; Steurer, Peter M. [National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Climatic Data Center, Asheville, NC (USA); Peterson, Thomas C. [National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Climatic Data Center, Asheville, NC (USA); Heim, Richard [National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Climatic Data Center, Asheville, NC (USA); Karl, Thomas R. [National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Climatic Data Center, Asheville, NC (USA); Eischeid, Jon K. [Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences, Boulder, CO (USA)

1992-01-01

The GHCN data base contains mean monthly temperature data (in tenths of degrees celsius) for 6039 stations throughout the world. The majority (61%) have records for fewer than 50 years, but a significant proportion (10%) have records in excess of 100 years. It also contains total monthly precipitation data (in tenths of millimeters) for 7533 stations throughout the world. A slight majority (55%) have records in excess of 50 years, and a significant proportion (13%) have records in excess of 100 years. Also in this content is mean monthly sea level pressure data (in tenths of millibars) for 1883 stations throughout the world. The monthly station pressure data from those stations is also available here.

Methyl-Donor and Cofactor Nutrient Intakes in the First 2–3 Years and Global DNA Methylation at Age 4: A Prospective Cohort Study

PubMed Central

Taylor, Rachael M.; Smith, Roger; Collins, Clare E.; Mossman, David; Wong-Brown, Michelle W.; Chan, Eng-Cheng; Evans, Tiffany-Jane; Attia, John R.; Smith, Tenele; Butler, Trent

2018-01-01

Background: During the early postnatal period, the impact of nutrition on DNA methylation has not been well studied in humans. The aim was to quantify the relationship between one-carbon metabolism nutrient intake during the first three years of life and global DNA methylation levels at four years. Design: Childhood dietary intake was assessed using infant feeding questionnaires, food frequency questionnaires, 4-day weighed food records and 24-h food records. The dietary records were used to estimate the intake of methionine, folate, vitamins B2, B6 and B12 and choline. The accumulative nutrient intake specific rank from three months to three years of age was used for analysis. Global DNA methylation (%5-methyl cytosines (%5-mC)) was measured in buccal cells at four years of age, using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) commercial kit. Linear regression models were used to quantify the statistical relationships. Results: Data were collected from 73 children recruited from the Women and their Children’s Health (WATCH) study. No association was found between one-carbon metabolism nutrient intake and global DNA methylation levels (P 0.05). Global DNA methylation levels in males were significantly higher than in females (median %5-mC: 1.82 vs. 1.03, males and females respectively, (P 0.05)). Conclusion: No association was found between the intake of one-carbon metabolism nutrients during the early postnatal period and global DNA methylation levels at age four years. Higher global DNA methylation levels in males warrants further investigation. PMID:29495543

Tympanogram findings in patients with cleft palates aged six months to seven years

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yanti, A.; Widiarni, D.; Alviandi, W.; Tamin, S.; Mansyur, M.

2017-08-01

Cleft palate is one of the most common congenital craniofacial deformities. Otitis media with effusion (OME) is a middle ear disease having a prevalence of almost 90% in patients with cleft palates. Tympanometry is a fast, safe, non-invasive, and easy tool for diagnosing middle ear disease qualitatively and quantitatively. Studies have been conducted using tympanometry to detect middle ear conditions in patients with cleft palates, but no research has studied tympanogram findings in patients with cleft palates in Indonesia. The aim of this study is to determine the tympanogram findings in Indonesian children aged six months to seven years with cleft palates. This is a cross-sectional study of 30 patients (17 males and 13 females) with Veau classification of palatal clefts aged six months to seven years (median 26.5 months) who underwent tympanometry examinations using a 226 Hztympanometer. Tympanograms were classified using the Jerger/Liden classification. Examinations of 58 ears found that type B tympanograms occurred most frequently (70.7%). The quantitative values of tympanometry analyzed included SAA (0.1-0.2 cm3), TPP value (-197.2-(-146.8 daPa)), Vec value (0.5-0.6 cm3), and gradient value (0.03-0.07 cm3). Using the Fisher test, a significant relationship was found between age and type of tympanogram (p = 0.0039) with the risk of type B and C tympanograms in infants (6-60 months) as high as 4.8 times that of children without cleft palates. The type B tympanogram was most frequently seen in patients with cleft palates aged six months to seven years old with the quantitative values of tympanometry lower than the normal values. Therefore, there was a significant difference in the type of tympanogram seen with age.

Predictors (0-10 months) of psychopathology at age 11/2 years - a general population study in The Copenhagen Child Cohort CCC 2000.

PubMed

Skovgaard, A M; Olsen, E M; Christiansen, E; Houmann, T; Landorph, S L; Jørgensen, T

2008-05-01

Epidemiological studies of mental health problems in the first years of life are few. This study aims to investigate infancy predictors of psychopathology in the second year of life. A random general population sample of 210 children from the Copenhagen Child Birth Cohort CCC 2000 was investigated by data from National Danish registers and data collected prospectively from birth in a general child health surveillance programme. Mental health outcome at 1(1/2) years was assessed by clinical and standardised measures including the Child Behavior Check List 1(1/2)-5 (CBCL 1(1/2)-5), Infant Toddler Symptom Check List (ITSCL), Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (CHAT), Bayley Scales of Infant Development (BSID II), Mannheim Eltern Interview (MEI), Parent Child Early Relational Assessment (PC ERA) and Parent Infant Relationship Global Assessment Scale (PIR-GAS), and disordered children were diagnosed according to the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-10) and Diagnostic Classification Zero to Three (DC: 0-3). Deviant language development in the first 10 months of life predicted the child having any disorder at 1(1/2) years, OR 3.3 (1.4-8.0). Neuro-developmental disorders were predicted by deviant neuro-cognitive functioning, OR 6.8 (2.2-21.4), deviant language development, OR 5.9 (1.9-18.7) and impaired social interaction and communication, OR 3.8 (1.3-11.4). Unwanted pregnancy and parents' negative expectations of the child recorded in the first months of the child's life were significant predictors of relationship disturbances at 1(1/2) years. Predictors of neuro-developmental disorders and parent-child relationship disturbances can be identified in the first 10 months of life in children from the general population.

Global Monthly CO2 Flux Inversion Based on Results of Terrestrial Ecosystem Modeling

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deng, F.; Chen, J.; Peters, W.; Krol, M.

2008-12-01

Most of our understanding of the sources and sinks of atmospheric CO2 has come from inverse studies of atmospheric CO2 concentration measurements. However, the number of currently available observation stations and our ability to simulate the diurnal planetary boundary layer evolution over continental regions essentially limit the number of regions that can be reliably inverted globally, especially over continental areas. In order to overcome these restrictions, a nested inverse modeling system was developed based on the Bayesian principle for estimating carbon fluxes of 30 regions in North America and 20 regions for the rest of the globe. Inverse modeling was conducted in monthly steps using CO2 concentration measurements of 5 years (2000 - 2005) with the following two models: (a) An atmospheric transport model (TM5) is used to generate the transport matrix where the diurnal variation n of atmospheric CO2 concentration is considered to enhance the use of the afternoon-hour average CO2 concentration measurements over the continental sites. (b) A process-based terrestrial ecosystem model (BEPS) is used to produce hourly step carbon fluxes, which could minimize the limitation due to our inability to solve the inverse problem in a high resolution, as the background of our inversion. We will present our recent results achieved through a combination of the bottom-up modeling with BEPS and the top-down modeling based on TM5 driven by offline meteorological fields generated by the European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecast (ECMFW).

Spurious One-Month and One-Year Periods in Visual Observations of Variable Stars

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Percy, J. R.

2015-12-01

Visual observations of variable stars, when time-series analyzed with some algorithms such as DC-DFT in vstar, show spurious periods at or close to one synodic month (29.5306 days), and also at about a year, with an amplitude of typically a few hundredths of a magnitude. The one-year periods have been attributed to the Ceraski effect, which was believed to be a physiological effect of the visual observing process. This paper reports on time-series analysis, using DC-DFT in vstar, of visual observations (and in some cases, V observations) of a large number of stars in the AAVSO International Database, initially to investigate the one-month periods. The results suggest that both the one-month and one-year periods are actually due to aliasing of the stars' very low-frequency variations, though they do not rule out very low-amplitude signals (typically 0.01 to 0.02 magnitude) which may be due to a different process, such as a physiological one. Most or all of these aliasing effects may be avoided by using a different algorithm, which takes explicit account of the window function of the data, and/or by being fully aware of the possible presence of and aliasing by very low-frequency variations.

A Month in the Life of a Writing Six-Year-Old.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Baghban, Marcia

In order to document the self-directed, spontaneous growth in literary output of a six-year-old child, her writings during a one month period were collected and compiled. It was discovered that the child used writing to organize knowledge about the environment and the operations of print, to maintain personal relations, to establish impersonal or…

High Predictive Skill of Global Surface Temperature a Year Ahead

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Folland, C. K.; Colman, A.; Kennedy, J. J.; Knight, J.; Parker, D. E.; Stott, P.; Smith, D. M.; Boucher, O.

2011-12-01

We discuss the high skill of real-time forecasts of global surface temperature a year ahead issued by the UK Met Office, and their scientific background. Although this is a forecasting and not a formal attribution study, we show that the main instrumental global annual surface temperature data sets since 1891 are structured consistently with a set of five physical forcing factors except during and just after the second World War. Reconstructions use a multiple application of cross validated linear regression to minimise artificial skill allowing time-varying uncertainties in the contribution of each forcing factor to global temperature to be assessed. Mean cross validated reconstructions for the data sets have total correlations in the range 0.93-0.95,interannual correlations in the range 0.72-0.75 and root mean squared errors near 0.06oC, consistent with observational uncertainties.Three transient runs of the HadCM3 coupled model for 1888-2002 demonstrate quite similar reconstruction skill from similar forcing factors defined appropriately for the model, showing that skilful use of our technique is not confined to observations. The observed reconstructions show that the Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation (AMO) likely contributed to the re-commencement of global warming between 1976 and 2010 and to global cooling observed immediately beforehand in 1965-1976. The slowing of global warming in the last decade is likely to be largely due to a phase-delayed response to the downturn in the solar cycle since 2001-2, with no net ENSO contribution. The much reduced trend in 2001-10 is similar in size to other weak decadal temperature trends observed since global warming resumed in the 1970s. The causes of variations in decadal trends can be mostly explained by variations in the strength of the forcing factors. Eleven real-time forecasts of global mean surface temperature for the year ahead for 2000-2010, based on broadly similar methods, provide an independent test of the

A 7.5-Year Dataset of SSM/I-Derived Surface Turbulent Fluxes Over Global Oceans

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chou, Shu-Hsien; Shie, Chung-Lin; Atlas, Robert M.; Adizzone, Joe; Nelkin, Eric; Starr, David OC. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

The global air-sea turbulent fluxes are needed for driving ocean models and validating coupled ocean-atmosphere global models. A method was developed to retrieve surface air humidity from the radiances measured by the Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I) Using both SSM/I-retrieved surface wind and air humidity, they computed daily turbulent fluxes over global oceans with a stability-dependent bulk scheme. Based on this method, we have produced Version 1 of Goddard Satellite-Based Surface Turbulent Fluxes (GSSTF) dataset from the SSM/I data and other data. It provides daily- and monthly-mean surface turbulent fluxes and some relevant parameters over global oceans for individual F8, F10, and F11 satellites covering the period July 1987-December 1994. It also provides 1988-94 annual- and monthly-mean climatologies of the same variables, using only F8 and F1 1 satellite data. It has a spatial resolution of 2.0 degrees x 2.5 degrees lat-long and is archived at the NASA/GSFC DAAC. The purpose of this paper is to present an updated assessment of the GSSTF 1.0 dataset.

An analysis of the first two years of GASP data. [Global Atmospheric Sampling Program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Holdeman, J. D.; Nastrom, G. D.; Falconer, P. D.

1978-01-01

Distributions of mean ozone levels from the first two years of data from the NASA Global Atmospheric Sampling Program (GASP) show spatial and temporal variations in agreement with previous measurements. The standard deviations of these distributions reflect the large natural variability of ozone levels in the altitude range of the GASP measurements. Monthly mean levels of ozone below the tropopause show an annual cycle with a spring maximum which is believed to result from transport from the stratosphere. Correlations of ozone with independent meteorological parameters, and meteorological parameters obtained by the GASP systems show that this transport occurs primarily through cyclogenesis at mid-latitudes. The GASP water vapor data, analyzed with respect to the location of the tropopause, correlates well with the simultaneously obtained ozone and cloud data.

Global, Regional, and National Estimates of Rotavirus Mortality in Children <5 Years of Age, 2000-2013.

PubMed

Tate, Jacqueline E; Burton, Anthony H; Boschi-Pinto, Cynthia; Parashar, Umesh D

2016-05-01

Rotavirus vaccine is recommended for routine use in all countries globally. To facilitate decision making on rotavirus vaccine adoption by countries, help donors prioritize investments in health interventions, and monitor vaccine impact, we estimated rotavirus mortality for children <5 years of age from 2000 to 2013. We searched PubMed using the keyword "rotavirus" to identify studies that met each of the following criteria: data collection midpoint in year 1998 or later, study period of a 12-month increment, and detection of rotavirus infection by enzyme immunoassay in at least 100 children <5 years of age who were hospitalized with diarrhea and systematically enrolled through active surveillance. We also included data from countries that participated in the World Health Organization (WHO)-coordinated rotavirus surveillance network between 2008 and 2013 that met these criteria. To predict the proportion of diarrhea due to rotavirus, we constructed a multiple linear regression model. To determine the number of rotavirus deaths in children <5 years of age from 2000 to 2013, we multiplied annual, country-specific estimates of the proportion of diarrhea due to rotavirus from the regression model by the annual number of WHO-estimated child deaths caused by diarrhea in each country. Globally, we estimated that the number of rotavirus deaths in children <5 years of age declined from 528 000 (range, 465 000-591 000) in 2000 to 215 000 (range, 197 000-233 000) in 2013. The predicted annual rotavirus detection rate from these studies declined slightly over time from 42.5% (95% confidence interval [CI], 37.4%-47.5%) in 2000 to 37.3% (95% CI, 34.2%-40.5%) in 2013 globally. In 2013, an estimated 47 100 rotavirus deaths occurred in India, 22% of all rotavirus deaths that occurred globally. Four countries (India, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Democratic Republic of Congo) accounted for approximately half (49%) of all estimated rotavirus deaths in 2013. While rotavirus vaccine had been

From local perception to global perspective

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lehner, Flavio; Stocker, Thomas F.

2015-08-01

Recent sociological studies show that over short time periods the large day-to-day, month-to-month or year-to-year variations in weather at a specific location can influence and potentially bias our perception of climate change, a more long-term and global phenomenon. By weighting local temperature anomalies with the number of people that experience them and considering longer time periods, we illustrate that the share of the world population exposed to warmer-than-normal temperatures has steadily increased during the past few decades. Therefore, warming is experienced by an increasing number of individuals, counter to what might be simply inferred from global mean temperature anomalies. This behaviour is well-captured by current climate models, offering an opportunity to increase confidence in future projections of climate change irrespective of the personal local perception of weather.

Sensitive study of the climatological SST by using ATSR global SST data sets

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Xue, Yong; Lawrence, Sean P.; Llewellyn-Jones, David T.

1995-12-01

Climatological sea surface temperature (SST) is an initial step for global climate processing monitoring. A comparison has been made by using Oberhuber's SST data set and two years monthly averaged SST from ATSR thermal band data to force the OGCM. In the eastern Pacific Ocean, these make only a small difference to model SST. In the western Pacific Ocean, the use of Oberhuber's data set gives higher climatological SST than that using ATSR data. The SSTs were also simulated for 1992 using climatological SSTs from two years monthly averaged ATSR data and Oberhuber data. The forcing with SST from ATSR data was found to give better SST simulation than that from Oberhuber's data. Our study has confirmed that ATSR can provide accurate monthly averaged global SST for global climate processing monitoring.

Associations between Infant Feeding Practice Prior to Six Months and Body Mass Index at Six Years of Age

PubMed Central

Imai, Cindy Mari; Gunnarsdottir, Ingibjorg; Thorisdottir, Birna; Halldorsson, Thorhallur Ingi; Thorsdottir, Inga

2014-01-01

Rapid growth during infancy is associated with increased risk of overweight and obesity and differences in weight gain are at least partly explained by means of infant feeding. The aim was to assess the associations between infant feeding practice in early infancy and body mass index (BMI) at 6 years of age. Icelandic infants (n = 154) were prospectively followed from birth to 12 months and again at age 6 years. Birth weight and length were gathered from maternity wards, and healthcare centers provided the measurements made during infancy up to 18 months of age. Information on breastfeeding practices was documented 0–12 months and a 24-h dietary record was collected at 5 months. Changes in infant weight gain were calculated from birth to 18 months. Linear regression analyses were performed to examine associations between infant feeding practice at 5 months and body mass index (BMI) at 6 years. Infants who were formula-fed at 5 months of age grew faster, particularly between 2 and 6 months, compared to exclusively breastfed infants. At age 6 years, BMI was on average 1.1 kg/m2 (95% CI 0.2, 2.0) higher among infants who were formula fed and also receiving solid foods at 5 months of age compared to those exclusively breastfed. In a high-income country such as Iceland, early introduction of solid foods seems to further increase the risk of high childhood BMI among formula fed infants compared with exclusively breastfed infants, although further studies with greater power are needed. PMID:24747694

Renal Tumors in Children Younger Than 12 Months of Age: A 65-Year Single Institution Review.

PubMed

Lamb, Margaret G; Aldrink, Jennifer H; O'Brien, Sarah H; Yin, Han; Arnold, Michael A; Ranalli, Mark A

2017-03-01

Wilms tumor (WT) is the most prevalent pediatric renal tumor and most commonly occurs between ages 1 and 5 years. Data are lacking on children younger than 12 months with renal tumors. The cancer registry at the authors' institution was queried to identify patients 12 months and younger with renal masses. Demographics, clinical presentation, histopathology, stage, and survival outcomes were reviewed. The most common presenting symptoms included an asymptomatic abdominal mass (73%) and hematuria (9%). Histopathology revealed WT in 73% of patients, mesoblastic nephroma in 20%. Of those infants younger than 1 month of age, mesoblastic nephroma was the most common histopathology (68%). The 5-year overall survival (OS) was 93%, and 5-year event-free survival (EFS) was 93% for the entire group. For patients with WT, 5-year OS was 88% and 5-year EFS was 83%. Outcomes for congenital mesoblastic nephroma were excellent with 5-year OS and EFS of 100%. Reasons for good prognosis may be multifactorial and may include frequent well child checks in the first year of life and favorable histology. Patients in this age group are more likely to be classified as very low risk and may be treated with surgical resection alone.

The association between observed non-verbal maternal responses at 12 months and later infant development at 18 months and IQ at 4 years: a longitudinal study.

PubMed

Pearson, R M; Heron, J; Melotti, R; Joinson, C; Stein, A; Ramchandani, P G; Evans, J

2011-12-01

An infant's early environment has an important influence on their development. For example, the sensitivity and warmth of a mother's responses towards her infant is associated with the infant's later socio-emotional development. However, it is less clear whether maternal responses are associated with the infant's later cognitive development. We used data from a large UK cohort study to investigate the association between non-verbal maternal responses and later infant development and IQ. Maternal responses were rated at 12 months during an observed mother-infant interaction. Infant development was assessed using the Griffiths scales at 18 months and IQ at 4 years was assessed using the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence (WPPSI). Data on the infant's developmental level at 6 months (prior to the maternal response ratings) was also available. The complete case sample comprised 732 mother-infant pairs. There was evidence for an association between positive maternal responses and infant development at 18 months. After adjusting for infant developmental level at 6 months and other confounders, we found a difference of 0.25 standard deviations (coef 2.0, 95% CI (0.8-3.2), p=0.002) on the Griffiths scales between infant's whose mothers showed positive compared to neutral non-verbal responses at 12 months. However, an association between positive maternal responses and IQ at 4 years diminished following adjustment for maternal educational attainment. The results provide evidence that positive maternal responses are associated with improved development in infants at 18 months. However, the association between maternal response and IQ at 4 years may be explained by higher educational attainment in mothers who show positive responses. Future studies are needed to explore the influence of maternal responses on different aspects of infant development as well as the role of maternal factors such as education. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

20 CFR 404.435 - Excess earnings; months to which excess earnings can or cannot be charged; grace year defined.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... be charged; grace year defined. (a) Monthly benefits payable. We will not reduce your benefits on... your grace year (see paragraph (b) of this section). A non-service month is any month in which you... reason of having a child in his or her care), or to mother's or father's benefits is entitled to a...

20 CFR 404.435 - Excess earnings; months to which excess earnings can or cannot be charged; grace year defined.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... be charged; grace year defined. (a) Monthly benefits payable. We will not reduce your benefits on... your grace year (see paragraph (b) of this section). A non-service month is any month in which you... reason of having a child in his or her care), or to mother's or father's benefits is entitled to a...

20 CFR 404.435 - Excess earnings; months to which excess earnings can or cannot be charged; grace year defined.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... be charged; grace year defined. (a) Monthly benefits payable. We will not reduce your benefits on... your grace year (see paragraph (b) of this section). A non-service month is any month in which you... reason of having a child in his or her care), or to mother's or father's benefits is entitled to a...

Deaths and years of life lost due to suboptimal breast-feeding among children in the developing world: a global ecological risk assessment.

PubMed

Lauer, Jeremy A; Betrán, Ana Pilar; Barros, Aluísio J D; de Onís, Mercedes

2006-09-01

We estimate attributable fractions, deaths and years of life lost among infants and children < or = 2 years of age due to suboptimal breast-feeding in developing countries. We compare actual practices to a minimum exposure pattern consisting of exclusive breast-feeding for infants < or = 6 months of age and continued breast-feeding for older infants and children < or = 2 years of age. For infants, we consider deaths due to diarrhoeal disease and lower respiratory tract infections, and deaths due to all causes are considered in the second year of life. Outcome measures are attributable fractions, deaths, years of life lost and offsetting deaths potentially caused by mother-to-child transmission of HIV through breast-feeding. Developing countries. Infants and children < or = 2 years of age. Attributable fractions for deaths due to diarrhoeal disease and lower respiratory tract infections are 55% and 53%, respectively, for the first six months of infancy, 20% and 18% for the second six months, and are 20% for all-cause deaths in the second year of life. Globally, as many as 1.45 million lives (117 million years of life) are lost due to suboptimal breast-feeding in developing countries. Offsetting deaths caused by mother-to-child transmission of HIV through breast-feeding could be as high as 242,000 (18.8 million years of life lost) if relevant World Health Organization recommendations are not followed. The size of the gap between current practice and recommendations is striking when one considers breast-feeding involves no out-of-pocket costs, that there exists universal consensus on best practices, and that implementing current international recommendations could potentially save 1.45 million children's lives each year.

On nonstationarity and antipersistency in global temperature series

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

KäRner, O.

2002-10-01

Statistical analysis is carried out for satellite-based global daily tropospheric and stratospheric temperature anomaly and solar irradiance data sets. Behavior of the series appears to be nonstationary with stationary daily increments. Estimating long-range dependence between the increments reveals a remarkable difference between the two temperature series. Global average tropospheric temperature anomaly behaves similarly to the solar irradiance anomaly. Their daily increments show antipersistency for scales longer than 2 months. The property points at a cumulative negative feedback in the Earth climate system governing the tropospheric variability during the last 22 years. The result emphasizes a dominating role of the solar irradiance variability in variations of the tropospheric temperature and gives no support to the theory of anthropogenic climate change. The global average stratospheric temperature anomaly proceeds like a 1-dim random walk at least up to 11 years, allowing good presentation by means of the autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA) models for monthly series.

An 11-year and 10-month-old girl with purpura and chest pain.

PubMed

Chen, Pei-Hsuan; Chiang, Bor-Luen; Lu, Meng-Yao; Yang, Yao-Hsu

2014-10-01

Mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue lymphoma (MALToma) is a type of B-cell lymphoma. Case reports of childhood thymic MALToma and its association with vasculitis are rarely found in the related literature. Herein, we present a report of an 11-year and 10-month-old girl who was initially diagnosed with cutaneous vasculitis characterized by nonthrombocytopenic palpable purpura, positive antinuclear antibody and anti-SSA (Ro) antibody. Eight months later, a thymic mediastinal mass was found. Surgical excision was performed and results of pathological analysis revealed an extranodal marginal zone CD20(+) B-cell MALToma. Benign response to the chemotherapeutic regimen of Berlin-Frankfurt-Münster group NHL-BFM 90 R2 without relapse was noted in 2 years of follow-up. For the first time, our case demonstrated some clinical evidence of the association between vasculitis and childhood MALToma. Copyright © 2012. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Understanding the Relationship Between 3-Month and 2-Year Pain and Function Scores After Total Knee Arthroplasty for Osteoarthritis.

PubMed

Gandhi, Rajiv; Mahomed, Nizar N; Cram, Peter; Perruccio, Anthony V

2018-05-01

Research to understand predictors of poor outcomes after total knee arthroplasty (TKA) has largely focused on presurgery factors. We examined whether pain and function 3-month postsurgery were predictive of longer-term outcomes ascertained 2 years after TKA. Western Ontario McMaster University Osteoarthritis Index pain and physical function scores (scaled 0-20 and 0-68; higher = worse) were recorded pre-TKA and 3, 12, and 24 months post-TKA. A sequential series of regression models was used to examine the relative contribution of baseline score and baseline to 3-month and 3 to 12-month change score to explaining variability (R 2 ) in 2-year pain and function scores, with consideration for presurgery covariates. Data from 560 patients were analyzed. Mean pain and function scores improved significantly presurgery to 2 years postsurgery; 10-4 and 33-16 (P < .001), respectively. Considerable variability in 2-year scores was observed. Overall, 80.3% and 79.9% of changes in pain and function scores over the 2 years occurred within the first 3 months. Change over these 3 months explained the greatest proportion of variability in 2-year scores, 16% and 23% for pain and function, respectively. The influences of these early changes were similar to those of baseline status. Changes in patient-reported pain and function occurring within the first 3 months post-TKA strongly determine pain and function status at 2 years. Research to identify pre-/intra-/early postoperative factors associated with change in this early postoperative period that may be amenable to modification or used to better inform education and decision-making is warranted. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Correlates and Prevalence of Aggression at Six Months and One Year After First-Time Traumatic Brain Injury.

PubMed

Roy, Durga; Vaishnavi, Sandeep; Han, Dingfen; Rao, Vani

2017-01-01

Few studies have examined clinical correlates of aggression after first-time traumatic brain injury (TBI) within the first year after injury. The authors aimed to identify the rates of aggression at 6 and 12 months post-TBI and establish clinical and demographic correlates. A total of 103 subjects with first-time TBI were seen within 12 months postinjury and evaluated for aggression. Post-TBI social functioning and new-onset depression (within 3 months of the TBI) may serve as particularly important predictors for aggression within the first year of TBI, as these factors may afford intervention and subsequent decreased risk of aggression.

Developing Global Nurse Influencers.

PubMed

Spies, Lori A

2016-01-01

How can universities create engaged citizens and global leaders? Each year, a select group of advanced practice nursing students at Baylor University Louise Herrington School of Nursing travel to Africa for a month-long clinical mission experience. Students work alongside local and missionary healthcare providers in a comprehensive Christian outreach to the community at a high-volume clinic. Creating rich learning experiences in a global setting in significant and sustainable ways is difficult, but intentionally focusing on what we are called to do and who we serve provides ballast for faculty and students. The success of the trip in preparing students to be global influencers is evident by the work graduates elect to do around the world, following graduation.

Drug-Coated Balloon Treatment of Femoropopliteal Lesions for Patients With Intermittent Claudication and Ischemic Rest Pain: 2-Year Results From the IN.PACT Global Study.

PubMed

Micari, Antonio; Brodmann, Marianne; Keirse, Koen; Peeters, Patrick; Tepe, Gunnar; Frost, Martin; Wang, Hong; Zeller, Thomas

2018-05-28

The IN.PACT Global Study is the largest prospective, multicenter, independently adjudicated trial to evaluate a paclitaxel drug-coated balloon in patients with lifestyle-limiting claudication and/or ischemic rest pain due to atherosclerotic disease of the femoropopliteal artery and includes complex lesions beyond what are typically included in randomized controlled trials. Randomized controlled trials have demonstrated the safety and efficacy of drug-coated balloons for the treatment of Trans-Atlantic Inter-Society Consensus Document II A and B lesions, but there is a need for large-scale prospective studies to evaluate a broader range of lesions. The IN.PACT Global Study enrolled 1,535 subjects, and 1,406 (1,773 lesions) were included in the pre-defined clinical cohort analysis. Freedom from clinically driven target lesion revascularization was evaluated at 24 months. The safety composite endpoint was freedom from device- and procedure-related death through 30 days and freedom from target limb major amputation and clinically driven target vessel revascularization within 24 months. Mean lesion length was 12.1 cm, 35.5% were total occlusions, and 18.0% had in-stent restenosis. Freedom from clinically driven target lesion revascularization at 24 months was 83.3%, the composite safety endpoint was met in 81.7%, the 2-year all-cause mortality rate was 7.0%, and the major target limb amputation rate was 0.7%. Increased lesion length and the presence of de novo in-stent restenosis or coronary artery disease were associated with increased risk for clinically driven target lesion revascularization by 24 months. This real-world study of femoropopliteal artery disease treatment with drug-coated balloons confirmed positive findings reported from more strictly designed randomized controlled trials and showed that outcomes are durable in this population up to 2 years after treatment. (IN.PACT Global Clinical Study; NCT01609296). Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by

Admission glucose does not improve GRACE score at 6 months and 5 years after myocardial infarction.

PubMed

de Mulder, Maarten; van der Ploeg, Tjeerd; de Waard, Guus A; Boersma, Eric; Umans, Victor A

2011-01-01

Admission plasma glucose (APG) is a biomarker that predicts mortality in myocardial infarction (MI) patients. Therefore, APG may improve risk stratification based on the GRACE risk score. We collected data on baseline characteristics and long-term (median 55 months) outcome of 550 MI patients who entered our hospital in 2003 and 2006. We determined the GRACE risk score at admission for each patient, which was entered in a logistic regression model, together with APG, to evaluate their prognostic value for 6-month and 5-year mortality. Patients with APG ≥7.8 mmol/l had a higher mortality than those with APG levels <7.8 mmol/l; 6 months: 13.7 versus 3.6%, p value <0.001; 5 years: 20.4 versus 11.1%, p value 0.003. After adjustment for the GRACE risk score variables, APG appeared a significant predictor of 6-month and 5-year mortality, adjusted OR 1.17 (1.06-1.29) and 1.12 (1.03-1.22). The combination of the GRACE risk score and APG increased the model's performance (discrimination C-index 0.87 vs. 0.85), although the difference was not significant (p = 0.095). Combining the GRACE risk score and APG reclassified 12.9% of the patients, but the net reclassification improvement was nonsignificant (p = 0.146). APG is a predictor of 6-month and 5-year mortality, each mmol/l increase in APG being associated with a mortality increase of 17 and 12%, respectively, independent of the GRACE risk score. However, adding APG to the GRACE model did not result in significantly improved clinical risk stratification. Copyright © 2012 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Multi-year global climatic effects of atmospheric dust from large bolide impacts

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Thompson, Starley L.

1988-01-01

The global climatic effects of dust generated by the impact of a 10 km-diameter bolide was simulated using a one-dimensional (vertical only) globally-averaged climate model by Pollack et al. The goal of the simulation is to examine the regional climate effects, including the possibility of coastal refugia, generated by a global dust cloud in a model having realistic geographic resolution. The climate model assumes the instantaneous appearance of a global stratospheric dust cloud with initial optical depth of 10,000. The time history of optical depth decreases according to the detailed calculations of Pollack et al., reaching an optical depth of unity at day 160, and subsequently decreasing with an e-folding time of 1 year. The simulation is carried out for three years in order to examine the atmospheric effects and recovery over several seasons. The simulation does not include any effects of NOx, CO2, or wildfire smoke injections that may accompany the creation of the dust cloud. The global distribution of surface temperature changes, freezing events, precipitation and soil moisture effects and sea ice increases will be discussed.

Global Change Encyclopedia - A project for the international space year

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Cihlar, J.; Simard, R.; Manore, M.; Baker, R.; Clark, D.; Kineman, J.; Allen, J.; Ruzek, M.

1991-01-01

'Global Change Encyclopedia' is a project for the International Space Year in 1992. The project will produce a comprehensive set of satellite and other global data with relevance to studies of global change and of the earth as a system. These data will be packaged on CD-ROMs, accompanied by appropriate software for access, display and manipulation. On behalf of the Canadian Space Agency, the project is being carried out by the Canada Centre for Remote Sensing, with the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration as major contributors. This paper highlights the background leading to the project, the concept and principal characteristics of the Encyclopedia itself, and the current status and plans.

Monthly Sea Surface Salinity and Freshwater Flux Monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ren, L.; Xie, P.; Wu, S.

2017-12-01

Taking advantages of the complementary nature of the Sea Surface Salinity (SSS) measurements from the in-situ (CTDs, shipboard, Argo floats, etc.) and satellite retrievals from Soil Moisture Ocean Salinity (SMOS) satellite of the European Space Agency (ESA), the Aquarius of a joint venture between US and Argentina, and the Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP) of national Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), a technique is developed at NOAA/NCEP/CPC to construct an analysis of monthly SSS, called the NOAA Blended Analysis of Sea-Surface Salinity (BASS). The algorithm is a two-steps approach, i.e. to remove the bias in the satellite data through Probability Density Function (PDF) matching against co-located in situ measurements; and then to combine the bias-corrected satellite data with the in situ measurements through the Optimal Interpolation (OI) method. The BASS SSS product is on a 1° by 1° grid over the global ocean for a 7-year period from 2010. Combined with the NOAA/NCEP/CPC CMORPH satellite precipitation (P) estimates and the Climate Forecast System Reanalysis (CFSR) evaporation (E) fields, a suite of monthly package of the SSS and oceanic freshwater flux (E and P) was developed to monitor the global oceanic water cycle and SSS on a monthly basis. The SSS in BASS product is a suite of long-term SSS and fresh water flux data sets with temporal homogeneity and inter-component consistency better suited for the examination of the long-term changes and monitoring. It presents complete spatial coverage and improved resolution and accuracy, which facilitates the diagnostic analysis of the relationship and co-variability among SSS, freshwater flux, mixed layer processes, oceanic circulation, and assimilation of SSS into global models. At the AGU meeting, we will provide more details on the CPC salinity and fresh water flux data package and its applications in the monitoring and analysis of SSS variations in association with the ENSO and other major climate

A 7.5-Year Dataset of SSM/I-Derived Surface Turbulent Fluxes Over Global Oceans

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chou, Shu-Hsien; Shie, Chung-Lin; Atlas, Robert M.; Ardizzone, Joe; Nelkin, Eric; Einaudi, Franco (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

The surface turbulent fluxes of momentum, latent heat, and sensible heat over global oceans are essential to weather, climate and ocean problems. Wind stress is the major forcing for driving the oceanic circulation, while Evaporation is a key component of hydrological cycle and surface heat budget. We have produced a 7.5-year (July 1987-December 1994) dataset of daily, individual monthly-mean and climatological (1988-94) monthly-mean surface turbulent fluxes over the global oceans from measurements of the Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I) on board the US Defense Meteorological Satellite Program F8, F10, and F11 satellites. It has a spatial resolution of 2.0x2.5 latitude-longitude. Daily turbulent fluxes are derived from daily data of SSM/I surface winds and specific humidity, National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) sea surface temperatures, and European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) air-sea temperature differences, using a stability-dependent bulk scheme. The retrieved instantaneous surface air humidity (with a 25-km resolution) IS found to be generally accurate as compared to the collocated radiosonde observations over global oceans. The surface wind speed and specific humidity (latent heat flux) derived from the F10 SSM/I are found to be -encrally smaller (larger) than those retrieved from the F11 SSM/I. The F11 SSM/I appears to have slightly better retrieval accuracy for surface wind speed and humidity as compared to the F10 SSM/I. This difference may be due to the orbital drift of the F10 satellite. The daily wind stresses and latent heat fluxes retrieved from F10 and F11 SSM/Is show useful accuracy as verified against the research quality in si -neasurerrients (IMET buoy, RV Moana Wave, and RV Wecoma) in the western Pacific warm pool during the TOGA COARE Intensive observing period (November 1992-February 1993). The 1988-94 seasonal-mean turbulent fluxes and input variables derived from FS and F11 SSM/Is show reasonable

Variations of global gravity waves derived from 14 years of SABER temperature observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Liu, Xiao; Yue, Jia; Xu, Jiyao; Garcia, Rolando R.; Russell, James M.; Mlynczak, Martin; Wu, Dong L.; Nakamura, Takuji

2017-06-01

The global gravity wave (GW) potential energy (PE) per unit mass is derived from SABER (Sounding of the Atmosphere using Broadband Emission Radiometry) temperature profiles over the past 14 years (2002-2015). Since the SABER data cover longer than one solar cycle, multivariate linear regression is applied to calculate the trend (means linear trend from 2002 to 2015) of global GW PE and the responses of global GW PE to solar activity, to QBO (quasi-biennial oscillation) and to ENSO (El Niño-Southern Oscillation). We find a significant positive trend of GW PE at around 50°N during July from 2002 to 2015, in agreement with ground-based radar observations at a similar latitude but from 1990 to 2010. Both the monthly and the deseasonalized trends of GW PE are significant near 50°S. Specifically, the deseasonalized trend of GW PE has a positive peak of 12-15% per decade at 40°S-50°S and below 60 km, which suggests that eddy diffusion is increasing in some places. A significant positive trend of GW PE near 50°S could be due to the strengthening of the polar stratospheric jets, as documented from Modern Era Retrospective-analysis for Research and Applications wind data. The response of GW PE to solar activity is negative in the lower and middle latitudes. The response of GW PE to QBO (as indicated by 30 hPa zonal winds over the equator) is negative in the tropical upper stratosphere and extends to higher latitudes at higher altitudes. The response of GW PE to ENSO (as indicated by the Multivariate ENSO Index) is positive in the tropical upper stratosphere.

Longitudinal motor development of "apparently normal" high-risk infants at 18 months, 3 and 5 years.

PubMed

Goyen, Traci Anne; Lui, Kei

2002-12-01

Motor development appears to be more affected by premature birth than other developmental domains, however few studies have specifically investigated the development of gross and fine motor skills in this population. To examine longitudinal motor development in a group of "apparently normal" high-risk infants. Developmental follow-up clinic in a perinatal centre. Longitudinal observational cohort study. Fifty-eight infants born less than 29 weeks gestation and/or 1000 g and without disabilities detected at 12 months. Longitudinal gross and fine motor skills at 18 months, 3 and 5 years using the Peabody Developmental Motor Scales. The HOME scale provided information of the home environment as a stimulus for development. A large proportion (54% at 18 months, 47% at 3 years and 64% at 5 years) of children continued to have fine motor deficits from 18 months to 5 years. The proportion of infants with gross motor deficits significantly increased over this period (14%, 33% and 81%, p<0.001), particularly for the 'micropreemies' (born <750 g). In multivariate analyses, gross motor development was positively influenced by the quality of the home environment. A large proportion of high-risk infants continued to have fine motor deficits, reflecting an underlying problem with fine motor skills. The proportion of infants with gross motor deficits significantly increased, as test demands became more challenging. In addition, the development of gross and fine motor skills appears to be influenced differently by the home environment.

Monthly Representations of Mid-Tropospheric Carbon Dioxide from the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Pagano, Thomas S.; Olsen, Edward T.; Chahine, Moustafa T.; Ruzmaikin, Alexander; Nguyen, Hai; Jiang, Xun

2011-01-01

The Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) on NASA's Earth Observing System Aqua spacecraft was launched in May of 2002 and acquires hyperspectral infrared spectra used to generate a wide range of atmospheric products including temperature, water vapor, and trace gas species including carbon dioxide. Here we present monthly representations of global concentrations of mid-tropospheric carbon dioxide produced from 8 years of data obtained by AIRS between the years of 2003 and 2010. We define them as "representations" rather than "climatologies" to reflect that the files are produced over a relatively short time period and represent summaries of the Level 3 data. Finally, they have not yet been independently validated. The representations have a horizontal resolution of 2.0 deg x 2.5 deg (Latitude x Longitude) and faithfully reproduce the original 8 years of monthly L3 CO2 concentrations with a standard deviation of 1.48 ppm and less than 2% outliers. The representations are intended for use in studies of the global general circulation of CO2 and identification of anomalies in CO2 typically associated with atmospheric transport. The seasonal variability and trend found in the AIRS CO2 data are discussed.

Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission: Monitoring the Global Tropics for 3 Years and Beyond. 1.1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Shepherd, Marshall; Starr, David OC. (Technical Monitor)

2001-01-01

The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) was launched in November 1997 as a joint U.S.-Japanese mission to advance understanding of the global energy and water cycle by providing distributions of rainfall and latent heating over the global tropics. As a part of NASA's Earth System Enterprise, TRMM seeks to understand the mechanisms through which changes in tropical rainfall influence global circulation. Additionally, a goal is to improve the ability to model these processes in order to predict global circulations and rainfall variability at monthly and longer time scales. Such understanding has implications for assessing climate processes related to El Nino/La Nina and Global Warming. TRMM has also provided unexpected and exciting new knowledge and applications in areas related to hurricane monitoring, lightning, pollution, hydrology, and other areas. This CD-ROM includes a self-contained PowerPoint presentation that provides an overview of TRMM and significant science results; a set of data movies or animation; and listings of current TRMM-related publications in the literature.

A Temperature-Based Model for Estimating Monthly Average Daily Global Solar Radiation in China

PubMed Central

Li, Huashan; Cao, Fei; Wang, Xianlong; Ma, Weibin

2014-01-01

Since air temperature records are readily available around the world, the models based on air temperature for estimating solar radiation have been widely accepted. In this paper, a new model based on Hargreaves and Samani (HS) method for estimating monthly average daily global solar radiation is proposed. With statistical error tests, the performance of the new model is validated by comparing with the HS model and its two modifications (Samani model and Chen model) against the measured data at 65 meteorological stations in China. Results show that the new model is more accurate and robust than the HS, Samani, and Chen models in all climatic regions, especially in the humid regions. Hence, the new model can be recommended for estimating solar radiation in areas where only air temperature data are available in China. PMID:24605046

65 Years of influenza surveillance by a WHO-coordinated global network.

PubMed

Ziegler, Thedi; Mamahit, Awandha; Cox, Nancy J

2018-05-04

The 1918 devastating influenza pandemic left a lasting impact on influenza experts and the public, and the importance of global influenza surveillance was soon recognized. The WHO Global Influenza Surveillance Network (GISN) was founded in 1952 and renamed to Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System in 2011 upon the adoption by the World Health Assembly, of the Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Framework for the Sharing of Influenza Viruses and Access to Vaccines and Other Benefits ("PIP Framework"). The importance of influenza surveillance had been recognized and promoted by experts prior to the years leading up to the establishment of WHO. In the 65 years of its existence, the Network has grown to comprise 143 National Influenza Centers recognized by WHO, 6 WHO Collaborating Centers, 4 Essential Regulatory Laboratories, and 13 H5 Reference Laboratories. The Network has proven its excellence throughout these 65 years, providing detailed information on circulating seasonal influenza viruses, as well as immediate response to the influenza pandemics in 1957, 1968, and 2009, and to threats caused by animal influenza viruses and by zoonotic transmission of coronaviruses. For its central role in global public health, the Network has been highly recognized by its many partners and by international bodies. Several generations of world renown influenza scientists have brought the Network to where it is now and they will take it forward to the future, as influenza will remain a pre-eminent threat to humans and to animals. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Five year global dataset: NMC operational analyses (1978 to 1982)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Straus, David; Ardizzone, Joseph

1987-01-01

This document describes procedures used in assembling a five year dataset (1978 to 1982) using NMC Operational Analysis data. These procedures entailed replacing missing and unacceptable data in order to arrive at a complete dataset that is continuous in time. In addition, a subjective assessment on the integrity of all data (both preliminary and final) is presented. Documentation on tapes comprising the Five Year Global Dataset is also included.

Model-Derived Global Aerosol Climatology for MISR Analysis ("Clim-Likely" Data Set)

Atmospheric Science Data Center

2018-04-19

Model-Derived Global Aerosol Climatology for MISR Analysis Multi-angle Imaging ... (MISR) monthly, global 1° x 1° "Clim-Likely" aerosol climatology, derived from 'typical-year' aerosol transport model results are available for individual 1° x 1° boxes or ...

Monthly paleostreamflow reconstruction from annual tree-ring chronologies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stagge, J. H.; Rosenberg, D. E.; DeRose, R. J.; Rittenour, T. M.

2018-02-01

Paleoclimate reconstructions are increasingly used to characterize annual climate variability prior to the instrumental record, to improve estimates of climate extremes, and to provide a baseline for climate-change projections. To date, paleoclimate records have seen limited engineering use to estimate hydrologic risks because water systems models and managers usually require streamflow input at the monthly scale. This study explores the hypothesis that monthly streamflows can be adequately modeled by statistically decomposing annual flow reconstructions. To test this hypothesis, a multiple linear regression model for monthly streamflow reconstruction is presented that expands the set of predictors to include annual streamflow reconstructions, reconstructions of global circulation, and potential differences among regional tree-ring chronologies related to tree species and geographic location. This approach is used to reconstruct 600 years of monthly streamflows at two sites on the Bear and Logan rivers in northern Utah. Nash-Sutcliffe Efficiencies remain above zero (0.26-0.60) for all months except April and Pearson's correlation coefficients (R) are 0.94 and 0.88 for the Bear and Logan rivers, respectively, confirming that the model can adequately reproduce monthly flows during the reference period (10/1942 to 9/2015). Incorporating a flexible transition between the previous and concurrent annual reconstructed flows was the most important factor for model skill. Expanding the model to include global climate indices and regional tree-ring chronologies produced smaller, but still significant improvements in model fit. The model presented here is the only approach currently available to reconstruct monthly streamflows directly from tree-ring chronologies and climate reconstructions, rather than using resampling of the observed record. With reasonable estimates of monthly flow that extend back in time many centuries, water managers can challenge systems models with a

Year 2000--A Global Report.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blai, Boris, Jr.

By 2000 A.D. there is a great potential for progressive impoverishment of world resources and degradation of the global environment. This adaptation of the report "Global Future: Time to Act", summarizes a reconnaisance of the future as it might be if no preventative measures are taken. As the world becomes more crowded, polluted, vulnerable to…

Results of a second year of therapy with the 12-month histrelin implant for the treatment of central precocious puberty.

PubMed

Rahhal, Samar; Clarke, William L; Kletter, Gad B; Lee, Peter A; Neely, E Kirk; Reiter, Edward O; Saenger, Paul; Shulman, Dorothy; Silverman, Lawrence; Eugster, Erica A

2009-01-01

Background. Gonadotropin releasing hormone analogs (GnRHas) are standard of care for central precocious puberty (CPP). The histrelin subcutaneous implant is safe and effective in the treatment of CPP for one year. Objective. The study evaluates a second year of therapy in children with CPP who received a new implant after one year of treatment. Methods. A prospective one-year study following an initial 12-month treatment period was conducted. Results. Thirty-one patients (29 girls) aged 7.7 +/- 1.5 years received a second implant. Eighteen were naïve to GnRHa therapy at first implantation. Peak LH declined from 0.92 +/- 0.58 mIU/mL at 12 months to 0.51 +/- 0.33 mIU/mL at 24 months (P < .0001) in naïve subjects, and from 0.74 +/- 0.50 mIU/mL at 12 months to 0.45 +/- 0.35 mIU/mL at 24 months (P = .0081) in previously treated subjects. Predicted adult height increased by 5.1 cm at 24 months (P = .0001). Minor implant site reactions occurred in 61%, while minor difficulties with explantation occurred in 32.2% of subjects. Conclusion. The histrelin implant demonstrates profound hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis suppression when a new implant is placed for a second year of treatment. Prospective follow-up of this therapeutic modality for the treatment of CPP is needed.

33 Years of Near-Global Daily Precipitation from Multisatellite Observations and its Application to Drought Monitoring

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ashouri, H.; Hsu, K.; Sorooshian, S.; Braithwaite, D.; Knapp, K. R.; Cecil, L. D.

2013-12-01

PERSIANN Climate Data Record (PERSIANN-CDR) is a new retrospective satellite-based precipitation data set that is constructed for long-term hydrological and climate studies. The PERSIANN-CDR is a near-global (60°S-60°N) long-term (1980-2012), multi-satellite, high-resolution precipitation product that provides rain rate estimates at 0.25° and daily spatiotemporal resolution. PERSIANN-CDR is aimed at addressing the need for a consistent, long-term, high resolution precipitation data set for studying the spatial and temporal variations and changes of precipitation patterns, particularly in a scale relevant to climate extremes at the global scale. PERSIANN-CDR is generated from the PERSIANN algorithm using GridSat-B1 infrared data from the International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP). PERSIANN-CDR is adjusted using the Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP) monthly precipitation to maintain consistency of two data sets at 2.5° monthly scale throughout the entire reconstruction period. PERSIANN-CDR daily precipitation data demonstrates considerable consistency with both GPCP monthly and GPCP 1DD precipitation products. Verification studies over Hurricane Katrina show that PERSIANN-CDR has a good agreement with NCEP Stage IV radar data, noting that PERSIANN-CDR has better spatial coverage. In addition, the Probability Density Function (PDF) of PERSIANN-CDR over the contiguous United States was compared with the PDFs extracted from CPC gauge data and the TMPA precipitation product. The experiment also shows good agreement of the PDF of PERSIANN-CDR with the PDFs of TMPA and CPC gauge data. The application of PERSIANN-CDR in regional and global drought monitoring is investigated. Consisting of more than three decades of high-resolution precipitation data, PERSIANN-CDR makes us capable of long-term assessment of droughts at a higher resolution (0.25°) than previously possible. The results will be presented at the meeting.

Predicting Intentions to Breastfeed for Three Months, Six Months, and One Year Using the Theory of Planned Behavior and Body Satisfaction.

PubMed

Johnson-Young, Elizabeth A

2018-02-27

Breastfeeding is one of the top maternal priorities for many organizations, including the World Health Organization (WHO), The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), and the Center for Disease Control (CDC). Focusing on the goals of Healthy People 2020, as well as the recommendations of other organizations, this paper investigates the impacts on women's intentions to breastfeed newborns for 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year. This research used the theory of planned behavior (TPB) as a model to predict intentions for each duration of time. Body satisfaction was included as a moderating variable given research demonstrating a possible connection of body satisfaction to breastfeeding. A survey of 156 pregnant women was conducted. Results demonstrated the importance of the three TPB measures in predicting intentions. Further, significant interactions between body satisfaction and attitudes, as well as body satisfaction and subjective norms were present in predicting intentions to exclusively breastfeed one's baby from infant to 6 months of age. Theoretical implications are discussed, as well as practical implications for breastfeeding interventions and campaigns.

Live Attenuated Influenza Vaccine, Trivalent, Is Safe in Healthy Children 18 Months to 4 Years, 5 to 9 Years, and 10 to 18 Years of Age in a Community-Based, Nonrandomized, Open-Label Trial

PubMed Central

Piedra, Pedro A.; Gaglani, Manjusha J.; Riggs, Mark; Herschler, Gayla; Fewlass, Charles; Watts, Matt; Kozinetz, Claudia; Hessel, Colin; Glezen, W. Paul

2006-01-01

Objective Influenza-associated deaths in healthy children that were reported during the 2003–2004 influenza season heightened the public awareness of the seriousness of influenza in children. In 1996–1998, a pivotal phase III trial was conducted in children who were 15 to 71 months of age. Live attenuated influenza vaccine, trivalent (LAIV-T), was shown to be safe and efficacious. In a subsequent randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled LAIV-T trial in children who were 1 to 17 years of age, a statistically significant increase in asthma encounters was observed for children who were younger than 59 months. LAIV-T was not licensed to children who were younger than 5 years because of the concern for asthma. We report on the largest safety study to date of the recently licensed LAIV-T in children 18 months to 4 years, 5 to 9 years, and 10 to 18 years of age in a 4-year (1998–2002) community-based trial that was conducted at Scott & White Memorial Hospital and Clinic (Temple, TX). Methods An open-label, nonrandomized, community-based trial of LAIV-T was conducted before its licensure. Medical records of all children were surveyed for serious adverse events (SAEs) 6 weeks after vaccination. Health care utilization was evaluated by determining the relative risk (RR) of medically attended acute respiratory illness (MAARI) and asthma rates at 0 to 14 and 15 to 42 days after vaccination compared with the rates before vaccination. Medical charts of all visits coded as asthma were reviewed for appropriate classification of events: acute asthma or other. We evaluated the risk for MAARI (health care utilization for acute respiratory illness) 0 to 14 and 15 to 42 days after LAIV-T by a method similar to the postlicensure safety analysis conducted on measles, mumps, and rubella and on diphtheria, tetanus, and whole-cell pertussis vaccines. Results All children regardless of age were administered a single intranasal dose of LAIV-T in each vaccine year. In the 4 years of

Global surface temperature change analysis based on MODIS data in recent twelve years

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mao, K. B.; Ma, Y.; Tan, X. L.; Shen, X. Y.; Liu, G.; Li, Z. L.; Chen, J. M.; Xia, L.

2017-01-01

Global surface temperature change is one of the most important aspects in global climate change research. In this study, in order to overcome shortcomings of traditional observation methods in meteorology, a new method is proposed to calculate global mean surface temperature based on remote sensing data. We found that (1) the global mean surface temperature was close to 14.35 °C from 2001 to 2012, and the warmest and coldest surface temperatures of the global in the recent twelve years occurred in 2005 and 2008, respectively; (2) the warmest and coldest surface temperatures on the global land surface occurred in 2005 and 2001, respectively, and on the global ocean surface in 2010 and 2008, respectively; and (3) in recent twelve years, although most regions (especially the Southern Hemisphere) are warming, global warming is yet controversial because it is cooling in the central and eastern regions of Pacific Ocean, northern regions of the Atlantic Ocean, northern regions of China, Mongolia, southern regions of Russia, western regions of Canada and America, the eastern and northern regions of Australia, and the southern tip of Africa. The analysis of daily and seasonal temperature change indicates that the temperature change is mainly caused by the variation of orbit of celestial body. A big data model based on orbit position and gravitational-magmatic change of celestial body with the solar or the galactic system should be built and taken into account for climate and ecosystems change at a large spatial-temporal scale.

Evolution of record-breaking high and low monthly mean temperatures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anderson, A. L.; Kostinski, A. B.

2011-12-01

We examine the ratio of record-breaking highs to record-breaking lows with respect to extent of time-series for monthly mean temperatures within the continental United States (1900-2006) and ask the following question. How are record-breaking high and low surface temperatures in the United States affected by time period? We find that the ratio of record-breaking highs to lows in 2006 increases as the time-series extend further into the past. For example: in 2006, the ratio of record-breaking highs to record-breaking lows is ≈ 13 : 1 with 1950 as the first year and ≈ 25 : 1 with 1900 as the first year; both ratios are an order of magnitude greater than 3-σ for stationary simulations. We also find record-breaking events are more sensitive to trends in time-series of monthly averages than time-series of corresponding daily values. When we consider the ratio as it evolves with respect to a fixed start year, we find it is strongly correlated with the ensemble mean. Correlation coefficients are 0.76 and 0.82 for 1900-2006 and 1950-2006 respectively; 3-σ = 0.3 for pairs of uncorrelated stationary time-series. We find similar values for globally distributed time-series: 0.87 and 0.92 for 1900-2006 and 1950-2006 respectively. However, the ratios evolve differently: global ratios increase throughout (1920-2006) while continental United States ratios decrease from about 1940 to 1970. (Based on Anderson and Kostinski (2011), Evolution and distribution of record-breaking high and low monthly mean temperatures. Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology. doi: 10.1175/JAMC-D-10-05025.1)

A 24.5-Year Global Dataset of Direct Normal Irradiance: Result from the Application of a Global-to-Beam Model to the NASA GEWEX SRB Global Horizontal Irradiance

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, T.; Stackhouse, P. W.; Chandler, W.; Hoell, J. M., Jr.; Westberg, D. J.

2015-12-01

The DIRINDEX model has previously been applied to the NASA GEWEX SRB Release 3.0 global horizontal irradiances (GHIs) to derive 3-hourly, daily and monthly mean direct normal irradiances (DNIs) for the period from 2000 to 2005 (http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.solener.2014.09.006), though the model was originally designed to estimate hourly DNIs from hourly GHIs. Input to the DIRINDEX model comprised 1.) the 3-hourly all-sky and clear-sky GHIs from the GEWEX SRB dataset; 2.) the surface pressure and the atmospheric column water vapor from the GEOS4 dataset; and 3.) daily mean aerosol optical depth at 700 nm derived from the daily mean aerosol data from the Model of Atmospheric Transport and CHemistry (MATCH). The GEWEX SRB data is spatially available on a quasi-equal-area global grid system consisting of 44016 boxes ranging from 1 degree latitude by 1 degree longitude around the Equator to 1 degree latitude by 120 degree longitude next to the poles. The derived DNIs were on the same grid system. Due to the limited availability of the MATCH aerosol data, the model was applied to the years from 2000 to 2005 only. The results were compared with ground-based measurements from 39 sites of the Baseline Surface Radiation Network (BSRN). The comparison statistics show that the results were in better agreement with their BSRN counterparts than the current Surface meteorology and Solar Energy (SSE) Release 6.0 data (https://eosweb.larc.nasa.gov/sse/). In this paper, we present results from the model over the entire time span of the GEWEX SRB Release 3.0 data (July 1983 to December2007) in which the MERRA atmospheric data were substituted for the GEOS4 data, and the Max-Planck Aerosol Climatology Version 1 (MAC-v1) data for the MATCH data. As a consequence, we derived a 24.5-year DNI dataset of global coverage continuous from July 1983 to December 2007. Comparisons with the BSRN data show that the results are comparable in quality with that from the earlier application.

The Global Spine Care Initiative: a summary of the global burden of low back and neck pain studies.

PubMed

Hurwitz, Eric L; Randhawa, Kristi; Yu, Hainan; Côté, Pierre; Haldeman, Scott

2018-02-26

This article summarizes relevant findings related to low back and neck pain from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) reports for the purpose of informing the Global Spine Care Initiative. We reviewed and summarized back and neck pain burden data from two studies that were published in Lancet in 2016, namely: "Global, regional, and national incidence, prevalence, and years lived with disability for 310 diseases and injuries, 1990-2015: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015" and "Global, regional, and national disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) for 315 diseases and injuries and healthy life expectancy (HALE), 1990-2015: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2015." In 2015, low back and neck pain were ranked the fourth leading cause of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) globally just after ischemic heart disease, cerebrovascular disease, and lower respiratory infection {low back and neck pain DALYs [thousands]: 94 941.5 [95% uncertainty interval (UI) 67 745.5-128 118.6]}. In 2015, over half a billion people worldwide had low back pain and more than a third of a billion had neck pain of more than 3 months duration. Low back and neck pain are the leading causes of years lived with disability in most countries and age groups. Low back and neck pain prevalence and disability have increased markedly over the past 25 years and will likely increase further with population aging. Spinal disorders should be prioritized for research funding given the huge and growing global burden. These slides can be retrieved under Electronic Supplementary Material.

Speed of Language Comprehension at 18 Months Old Predicts School-Relevant Outcomes at 54 Months Old in Children Born Preterm.

PubMed

Marchman, Virginia A; Loi, Elizabeth C; Adams, Katherine A; Ashland, Melanie; Fernald, Anne; Feldman, Heidi M

2018-04-01

Identifying which preterm (PT) children are at increased risk of language and learning differences increases opportunities for participation in interventions that improve outcomes. Speed in spoken language comprehension at early stages of language development requires information processing skills that may form the foundation for later language and school-relevant skills. In children born full-term, speed of comprehending words in an eye-tracking task at 2 years old predicted language and nonverbal cognition at 8 years old. Here, we explore the extent to which speed of language comprehension at 1.5 years old predicts both verbal and nonverbal outcomes at 4.5 years old in children born PT. Participants were children born PT (n = 47; ≤32 weeks gestation). Children were tested in the "looking-while-listening" task at 18 months old, adjusted for prematurity, to generate a measure of speed of language comprehension. Parent report and direct assessments of language were also administered. Children were later retested on a test battery of school-relevant skills at 4.5 years old. Speed of language comprehension at 18 months old predicted significant unique variance (12%-31%) in receptive vocabulary, global language abilities, and nonverbal intelligence quotient (IQ) at 4.5 years, controlling for socioeconomic status, gestational age, and medical complications of PT birth. Speed of language comprehension remained uniquely predictive (5%-12%) when also controlling for children's language skills at 18 months old. Individual differences in speed of spoken language comprehension may serve as a marker for neuropsychological processes that are critical for the development of school-relevant linguistic skills and nonverbal IQ in children born PT.

Evaluation of Multi-Model Ensemble System for Seasonal and Monthly Prediction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Q.; Van den Dool, H. M.

2013-12-01

Since August 2011, the realtime seasonal forecasts of U.S. National Multi-Model Ensemble (NMME) have been made on 8th of each month by NCEP Climate Prediction Center (CPC). During the first year, the participating models were NCEP/CFSv1&2, GFDL/CM2.2, NCAR/U.Miami/COLA/CCSM3, NASA/GEOS5, IRI/ ECHAM-a & ECHAM-f for the realtime NMME forecast. The Canadian Meteorological Center CanCM3 and CM4 replaced the CFSv1 and IRI's models in the second year. The NMME team at CPC collects three variables, including precipitation, 2-meter temperature and sea surface temperature from each modeling center on a 1x1 global grid, removes systematic errors, makes the grand ensemble mean with equal weight for each model and constructs a probability forecast with equal weight for each member. The team then provides the NMME forecast to the operational CPC forecaster responsible for the seasonal and monthly outlook each month. Verification of the seasonal and monthly prediction from NMME is conducted by calculating the anomaly correlation (AC) from the 30-year hindcasts (1982-2011) of individual model and NMME ensemble. The motivation of this study is to provide skill benchmarks for future improvements of the NMME seasonal and monthly prediction system. The experimental (Phase I) stage of the project already supplies routine guidance to users of the NMME forecasts.

Monthly mean global satellite data sets available in CCM history tape format

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hurrell, James W.; Campbell, G. Garrett

1992-01-01

Satellite data for climate monitoring have become increasingly important over the past decade, especially with increasing concern for inadvertent antropogenic climate change. Although most satellite based data are of short record, satellites can provide the global coverage that traditional meteorological observations network lack. In addition, satellite data are invaluable for the validation of climate models, and they are useful for many diagnostic studies. Herein, several satellite data sets were processed and transposed into 'history tape' format for use with the Community Climate Model (CCM) modular processor. Only a few of the most widely used and best documented data sets were selected at this point, although future work will expand the number of data sets examined as well as update the archived data sets. An attempt was made to include data of longer record and only monthly averaged data were processed. For studies using satellite data over an extended period, it is important to recognize the impact of changes in instrumentation, drift in instrument calibration, errors introduced by retrieval algorithms and other sources of errors such as those resulting from insufficient space and/or time sampling.

Maturation of cortical auditory evoked potentials (CAEPs) to speech recorded from frontocentral and temporal sites: three months to eight years of age.

PubMed

Shafer, Valerie L; Yu, Yan H; Wagner, Monica

2015-02-01

The goal of the current analysis was to examine the maturation of cortical auditory evoked potentials (CAEPs) from three months of age to eight years of age. The superior frontal positive-negative-positive sequence (P1, N2, P2) and the temporal site, negative-positive-negative sequence (possibly, Na, Ta, Tb of the T-complex) were examined. Event-related potentials were recorded from 63 scalp sites to a 250-ms vowel. Amplitude and latency of peaks were measured at left and right frontal sites (near Fz) and at left and right temporal sites (T7 and T8). In addition, the largest peak (typically corresponding to P1) was selected from global field power (GFP). The results revealed a large positive peak (P1) easily identified at frontal sites across all ages. The N2 emerged after 6 months of age and the following P2 between 8 and 30 months of age. The latencies of these peaks decreased exponentially with the most rapid decrease observed for P1. For amplitude, only P1 showed a clear relationship with age, becoming more positive in a somewhat linear fashion. At the temporal sites only a negative peak, which might be Na, was clearly observed at both left and right sites in children older than 14 months and peaking between 100 and 200 ms. P1 measures at frontal sites and Na peak latencies were moderately correlated. The temporal negative peak latency showed a different maturational timecourse (linear in nature) than the P1 peak, suggesting at least partial independence. Distinct Ta (positive) and Tb (negative) peaks, following Na and peaking between 120 and 220 ms were not consistently found in most age groups of children, except Ta which was present in 7 year olds. Future research, which includes manipulation of stimulus factors, and use of modeling techniques will be needed to explain the apparent, protracted maturation of the temporal site measures in the current study. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Global Motion Perception in 2-Year-Old Children: A Method for Psychophysical Assessment and Relationships With Clinical Measures of Visual Function

PubMed Central

Yu, Tzu-Ying; Jacobs, Robert J.; Anstice, Nicola S.; Paudel, Nabin; Harding, Jane E.; Thompson, Benjamin

2013-01-01

Purpose. We developed and validated a technique for measuring global motion perception in 2-year-old children, and assessed the relationship between global motion perception and other measures of visual function. Methods. Random dot kinematogram (RDK) stimuli were used to measure motion coherence thresholds in 366 children at risk of neurodevelopmental problems at 24 ± 1 months of age. RDKs of variable coherence were presented and eye movements were analyzed offline to grade the direction of the optokinetic reflex (OKR) for each trial. Motion coherence thresholds were calculated by fitting psychometric functions to the resulting datasets. Test–retest reliability was assessed in 15 children, and motion coherence thresholds were measured in a group of 10 adults using OKR and behavioral responses. Standard age-appropriate optometric tests also were performed. Results. Motion coherence thresholds were measured successfully in 336 (91.8%) children using the OKR technique, but only 31 (8.5%) using behavioral responses. The mean threshold was 41.7 ± 13.5% for 2-year-old children and 3.3 ± 1.2% for adults. Within-assessor reliability and test–retest reliability were high in children. Children's motion coherence thresholds were significantly correlated with stereoacuity (LANG I & II test, ρ = 0.29, P < 0.001; Frisby, ρ = 0.17, P = 0.022), but not with binocular visual acuity (ρ = 0.11, P = 0.07). In adults OKR and behavioral motion coherence thresholds were highly correlated (intraclass correlation = 0.81, P = 0.001). Conclusions. Global motion perception can be measured in 2-year-old children using the OKR. This technique is reliable and data from adults suggest that motion coherence thresholds based on the OKR are related to motion perception. Global motion perception was related to stereoacuity in children. PMID:24282224

20 CFR 404.435 - Excess earnings; months to which excess earnings can or cannot be charged; grace year defined.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... her. Example 1: Don, age 62, will retire from his regular job in April of next year. Although he will... month of your taxable year until you show to our satisfaction that in a particular month you did not... annual net income or loss (see § 404.429). (e) Presumption regarding services for wages. You are presumed...

Quantity and Quality of Caregivers' Linguistic Input to 18-Month and 3-Year-Old Children Who Are Hard of Hearing.

PubMed

Ambrose, Sophie E; Walker, Elizabeth A; Unflat-Berry, Lauren M; Oleson, Jacob J; Moeller, Mary Pat

2015-01-01

The primary objective of this study was to examine the quantity and quality of caregiver talk directed to children who are hard of hearing (CHH) compared with children with normal hearing (CNH). For the CHH only, the study explored how caregiver input changed as a function of child age (18 months versus 3 years), which child and family factors contributed to variance in caregiver linguistic input at 18 months and 3 years, and how caregiver talk at 18 months related to child language outcomes at 3 years. Participants were 59 CNH and 156 children with bilateral, mild-to-severe hearing loss. When children were approximately 18 months and/or 3 years of age, caregivers and children participated in a 5-min semistructured, conversational interaction. Interactions were transcribed and coded for two features of caregiver input representing quantity (number of total utterances and number of total words) and four features representing quality (number of different words, mean length of utterance in morphemes, proportion of utterances that were high level, and proportion of utterances that were directing). In addition, at the 18-month visit, parents completed a standardized questionnaire regarding their child's communication development. At the 3-year visit, a clinician administered a standardized language measure. At the 18-month visit, the CHH were exposed to a greater proportion of directing utterances than the CNH. At the 3-year visit, there were significant differences between the CNH and CHH for number of total words and all four of the quality variables, with the CHH being exposed to fewer words and lower quality input. Caregivers generally provided higher quality input to CHH at the 3-year visit compared with the 18-month visit. At the 18-month visit, quantity variables, but not quality variables, were related to several child and family factors. At the 3-year visit, the variable most strongly related to caregiver input was child language. Longitudinal analyses

Body Composition within the First 3 Months: Optimized Correction for Length and Correlation with BMI at 2 Years.

PubMed

Hawkes, Colin P; Zemel, Babette S; Kiely, Mairead; Irvine, Alan D; Kenny, Louise C; O'B Hourihane, Jonathan; Murray, Deirdre M

2016-01-01

Although early infant growth has implications for future health, body composition reference data in infancy are limited. The aim of this study was to describe reference data for fat mass (FM) and fat-free mass (FFM) corrected for length (L) within the first 3 months and to evaluate if these measures predict the body mass index (BMI) at 2 years. Term infants had air displacement plethysmography performed at birth (n = 1,063) and approximately 2 months later (n = 922, between 49 and 86 days). Age- and sex-specific reference data were generated for FM, FFM, FM/L 3 and FFM/L 2 and compared with BMI at 2 years. FM/L 3 and FFM/L 2 were the optimal indices independent of length. In the first 3 months, mean FM/L 3 increased (males, from 2.7 to 5.9 kg/m 3 ; females, from 3.2 to 6.1 kg/m 3 ), whereas FFM/L 2 remained relatively stable (males, from 11.8 to 12.7 kg/m 2 ; females, from 12.8 to 12.1 kg/m 2 ). The odds of a BMI Z-score ≥2 at 2 years increased with increasing FM (OR 2.7, 95% CI 1.97-3.7) and weight (OR 2.27, 95% CI 1.64-3.13) Z-scores at 2 months. FM/L 3 and FFM/L 2 provide length-independent measures of FM and FFM in infancy. During the first 3 months, there is an increase in FM/L 3 , but not in FFM/L 2 . The weight Z-score at 2 months is as good at predicting BMI at 2 years as body composition parameters. © 2016 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Global temperature patterns 6000 years ago. Progress report

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Webb, T. III

The overall goal is to illustrate the climatic patterns of 5000 to 7000 years ago over as wide an area of the northern hemisphere as possible. Mapping of the patterns in selected climatic variables at 5000 to 7000 years ago that can be reconstructed from pollen and marine-plankton data is planned. Multivariate statistical methods permit using the modern distribution of these data in order to transform their fossil remains into climate estimates of past times. Given these goals and methods, research during the first eight months focused on assembling the available modern and fossil data from each of the mainmore » areas under study. Two workshop conferences were held to help organize the joint work.« less

Development of a global historic monthly mean precipitation dataset

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Yang, Su; Xu, Wenhui; Xu, Yan; Li, Qingxiang

2016-04-01

Global historic precipitation dataset is the base for climate and water cycle research. There have been several global historic land surface precipitation datasets developed by international data centers such as the US National Climatic Data Center (NCDC), European Climate Assessment & Dataset project team, Met Office, etc., but so far there are no such datasets developed by any research institute in China. In addition, each dataset has its own focus of study region, and the existing global precipitation datasets only contain sparse observational stations over China, which may result in uncertainties in East Asian precipitation studies. In order to take into account comprehensive historic information, users might need to employ two or more datasets. However, the non-uniform data formats, data units, station IDs, and so on add extra difficulties for users to exploit these datasets. For this reason, a complete historic precipitation dataset that takes advantages of various datasets has been developed and produced in the National Meteorological Information Center of China. Precipitation observations from 12 sources are aggregated, and the data formats, data units, and station IDs are unified. Duplicated stations with the same ID are identified, with duplicated observations removed. Consistency test, correlation coefficient test, significance t-test at the 95% confidence level, and significance F-test at the 95% confidence level are conducted first to ensure the data reliability. Only those datasets that satisfy all the above four criteria are integrated to produce the China Meteorological Administration global precipitation (CGP) historic precipitation dataset version 1.0. It contains observations at 31 thousand stations with 1.87 × 107 data records, among which 4152 time series of precipitation are longer than 100 yr. This dataset plays a critical role in climate research due to its advantages in large data volume and high density of station network, compared to

Seven-Year SSM/I-Derived Global Ocean Surface Turbulent Fluxes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chou, Shu-Hsien; Shie, Chung-Lin; Atlas, Robert M.; Ardizzone, Joe

2000-01-01

A 7.5-year (July 1987-December 1994) dataset of daily surface specific humidity and turbulent fluxes (momentum, latent heat, and sensible heat) over global oceans has been retrieved from the Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I) data and other data. It has a spatial resolution of 2.0 deg.x 2.5 deg. latitude-longitude. The retrieved surface specific humidity is generally accurate over global oceans as validated against the collocated radiosonde observations. The retrieved daily wind stresses and latent heat fluxes show useful accuracy as verified by those measured by the RV Moana Wave and IMET buoy in the western equatorial Pacific. The derived turbulent fluxes and input variables are also found to agree generally with the global distributions of annual-and seasonal-means of those based on 4-year (1990-93) comprehensive ocean-atmosphere data set (COADS) with adjustment in wind speeds and other climatological studies. The COADS has collected the most complete surface marine observations, mainly from merchant ships. However, ship measurements generally have poor accuracy, and variable spatial coverages. Significant differences between the retrieved and COADS-based are found in some areas of the tropical and southern extratropical oceans, reflecting the paucity of ship observations outside the northern extratropical oceans. Averaged over the global oceans, the retrieved wind stress is smaller but the latent heat flux is larger than those based on COADS. The former is suggested to be mainly due to overestimation of the adjusted ship-estimated wind speeds (depending on sea states), while the latter is suggested to be mainly due to overestimation of ship-measured dew point temperatures. The study suggests that the SSM/I-derived turbulent fluxes can be used for climate studies and coupled model validations.

Fundamental statistical relationships between monthly and daily meteorological variables: Temporal downscaling of weather based on a global observational dataset

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sommer, Philipp; Kaplan, Jed

2016-04-01

Accurate modelling of large-scale vegetation dynamics, hydrology, and other environmental processes requires meteorological forcing on daily timescales. While meteorological data with high temporal resolution is becoming increasingly available, simulations for the future or distant past are limited by lack of data and poor performance of climate models, e.g., in simulating daily precipitation. To overcome these limitations, we may temporally downscale monthly summary data to a daily time step using a weather generator. Parameterization of such statistical models has traditionally been based on a limited number of observations. Recent developments in the archiving, distribution, and analysis of "big data" datasets provide new opportunities for the parameterization of a temporal downscaling model that is applicable over a wide range of climates. Here we parameterize a WGEN-type weather generator using more than 50 million individual daily meteorological observations, from over 10'000 stations covering all continents, based on the Global Historical Climatology Network (GHCN) and Synoptic Cloud Reports (EECRA) databases. Using the resulting "universal" parameterization and driven by monthly summaries, we downscale mean temperature (minimum and maximum), cloud cover, and total precipitation, to daily estimates. We apply a hybrid gamma-generalized Pareto distribution to calculate daily precipitation amounts, which overcomes much of the inability of earlier weather generators to simulate high amounts of daily precipitation. Our globally parameterized weather generator has numerous applications, including vegetation and crop modelling for paleoenvironmental studies.

NCEP Global Aerosols Forecast. NOAA/NWS/NCEP/EMC

Science.gov Websites

Documentations Select Domain Global Regional Year: 2016 2017 2018 Month: Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct 31 Select Field: Total AOD Total AOD Dust AOD Sea salt AOD Black carbon AOD POM AOD Sulfate AOD Get

Global, Regional, and National Cancer Incidence, Mortality, Years of Life Lost, Years Lived With Disability, and Disability-Adjusted Life-Years for 29 Cancer Groups, 1990 to 2016: A Systematic Analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study.

PubMed

Fitzmaurice, Christina; Akinyemiju, Tomi F; Al Lami, Faris Hasan; Alam, Tahiya; Alizadeh-Navaei, Reza; Allen, Christine; Alsharif, Ubai; Alvis-Guzman, Nelson; Amini, Erfan; Anderson, Benjamin O; Aremu, Olatunde; Artaman, Al; Asgedom, Solomon Weldegebreal; Assadi, Reza; Atey, Tesfay Mehari; Avila-Burgos, Leticia; Awasthi, Ashish; Ba Saleem, Huda Omer; Barac, Aleksandra; Bennett, James R; Bensenor, Isabela M; Bhakta, Nickhill; Brenner, Hermann; Cahuana-Hurtado, Lucero; Castañeda-Orjuela, Carlos A; Catalá-López, Ferrán; Choi, Jee-Young Jasmine; Christopher, Devasahayam Jesudas; Chung, Sheng-Chia; Curado, Maria Paula; Dandona, Lalit; Dandona, Rakhi; das Neves, José; Dey, Subhojit; Dharmaratne, Samath D; Doku, David Teye; Driscoll, Tim R; Dubey, Manisha; Ebrahimi, Hedyeh; Edessa, Dumessa; El-Khatib, Ziad; Endries, Aman Yesuf; Fischer, Florian; Force, Lisa M; Foreman, Kyle J; Gebrehiwot, Solomon Weldemariam; Gopalani, Sameer Vali; Grosso, Giuseppe; Gupta, Rahul; Gyawali, Bishal; Hamadeh, Randah Ribhi; Hamidi, Samer; Harvey, James; Hassen, Hamid Yimam; Hay, Roderick J; Hay, Simon I; Heibati, Behzad; Hiluf, Molla Kahssay; Horita, Nobuyuki; Hosgood, H Dean; Ilesanmi, Olayinka S; Innos, Kaire; Islami, Farhad; Jakovljevic, Mihajlo B; Johnson, Sarah Charlotte; Jonas, Jost B; Kasaeian, Amir; Kassa, Tesfaye Dessale; Khader, Yousef Saleh; Khan, Ejaz Ahmad; Khan, Gulfaraz; Khang, Young-Ho; Khosravi, Mohammad Hossein; Khubchandani, Jagdish; Kopec, Jacek A; Kumar, G Anil; Kutz, Michael; Lad, Deepesh Pravinkumar; Lafranconi, Alessandra; Lan, Qing; Legesse, Yirga; Leigh, James; Linn, Shai; Lunevicius, Raimundas; Majeed, Azeem; Malekzadeh, Reza; Malta, Deborah Carvalho; Mantovani, Lorenzo G; McMahon, Brian J; Meier, Toni; Melaku, Yohannes Adama; Melku, Mulugeta; Memiah, Peter; Mendoza, Walter; Meretoja, Tuomo J; Mezgebe, Haftay Berhane; Miller, Ted R; Mohammed, Shafiu; Mokdad, Ali H; Moosazadeh, Mahmood; Moraga, Paula; Mousavi, Seyyed Meysam; Nangia, Vinay; Nguyen, Cuong Tat; Nong, Vuong Minh; Ogbo, Felix Akpojene; Olagunju, Andrew Toyin; Pa, Mahesh; Park, Eun-Kee; Patel, Tejas; Pereira, David M; Pishgar, Farhad; Postma, Maarten J; Pourmalek, Farshad; Qorbani, Mostafa; Rafay, Anwar; Rawaf, Salman; Rawaf, David Laith; Roshandel, Gholamreza; Safiri, Saeid; Salimzadeh, Hamideh; Sanabria, Juan Ramon; Santric Milicevic, Milena M; Sartorius, Benn; Satpathy, Maheswar; Sepanlou, Sadaf G; Shackelford, Katya Anne; Shaikh, Masood Ali; Sharif-Alhoseini, Mahdi; She, Jun; Shin, Min-Jeong; Shiue, Ivy; Shrime, Mark G; Sinke, Abiy Hiruye; Sisay, Mekonnen; Sligar, Amber; Sufiyan, Muawiyyah Babale; Sykes, Bryan L; Tabarés-Seisdedos, Rafael; Tessema, Gizachew Assefa; Topor-Madry, Roman; Tran, Tung Thanh; Tran, Bach Xuan; Ukwaja, Kingsley Nnanna; Vlassov, Vasiliy Victorovich; Vollset, Stein Emil; Weiderpass, Elisabete; Williams, Hywel C; Yimer, Nigus Bililign; Yonemoto, Naohiro; Younis, Mustafa Z; Murray, Christopher J L; Naghavi, Mohsen

2018-06-02

The increasing burden due to cancer and other noncommunicable diseases poses a threat to human development, which has resulted in global political commitments reflected in the Sustainable Development Goals as well as the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Action Plan on Non-Communicable Diseases. To determine if these commitments have resulted in improved cancer control, quantitative assessments of the cancer burden are required. To assess the burden for 29 cancer groups over time to provide a framework for policy discussion, resource allocation, and research focus. Cancer incidence, mortality, years lived with disability, years of life lost, and disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) were evaluated for 195 countries and territories by age and sex using the Global Burden of Disease study estimation methods. Levels and trends were analyzed over time, as well as by the Sociodemographic Index (SDI). Changes in incident cases were categorized by changes due to epidemiological vs demographic transition. In 2016, there were 17.2 million cancer cases worldwide and 8.9 million deaths. Cancer cases increased by 28% between 2006 and 2016. The smallest increase was seen in high SDI countries. Globally, population aging contributed 17%; population growth, 12%; and changes in age-specific rates, -1% to this change. The most common incident cancer globally for men was prostate cancer (1.4 million cases). The leading cause of cancer deaths and DALYs was tracheal, bronchus, and lung cancer (1.2 million deaths and 25.4 million DALYs). For women, the most common incident cancer and the leading cause of cancer deaths and DALYs was breast cancer (1.7 million incident cases, 535 000 deaths, and 14.9 million DALYs). In 2016, cancer caused 213.2 million DALYs globally for both sexes combined. Between 2006 and 2016, the average annual age-standardized incidence rates for all cancers combined increased in 130 of 195 countries or territories, and the average annual age

Southern Ocean monthly wave fields for austral winters 1985-1988 by Geosat radar altimeter

USGS Publications Warehouse

Josberger, E.G.; Mognard, N.M.

1996-01-01

Four years of monthly averaged wave height fields for the austral winters 19851988 derived from the Geosat altimeter data show a spatial variability of the scale of 500-1000 km that varies monthly and annually. This variability is superimposed on the zonal patterns surrounding the Antarctic continent and characteristic of the climatology derived from the U.S. Navy [1992] Marine Climatic Atlas of the World. The location and the intensity of these large-scale features, which are not found in the climatological fields, exhibit strong monthly and yearly variations. A global underestimation of the climatological mean wave heights by more than l m is also found over large regions of the Southern Ocean. The largest monthly averaged significant wave heights are above 5 m and are found during August of every year in the Indian Ocean, south of 40??S. The monthly wave fields show more variability in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans than in the Indian Ocean. The Seasat data from 1978 and the Geosat data from 1985 and 1988 show an eastward rotation of the largest wave heights. However, this rotation is absent in 1986 and 1987; the former was a year of unusually low sea states, and the latter was a year of unusually high sea states, which suggests a link to the El Nin??o-Southern Oscillation event of 1986. Copyright 1996 by the American Geophysical Union.

Growing up with Down syndrome: Development from 6 months to 10.7 years.

PubMed

Marchal, Jan Pieter; Maurice-Stam, Heleen; Houtzager, Bregje A; Rutgers van Rozenburg-Marres, Susanne L; Oostrom, Kim J; Grootenhuis, Martha A; van Trotsenburg, A S Paul

2016-12-01

We analysed developmental outcomes from a clinical trial early in life and its follow-up at 10.7 years in 123 children with Down syndrome. To determine 1) strengths and weaknesses in adaptive functioning and motor skills at 10.7 years, and 2) prognostic value of early-life characteristics (early developmental outcomes, parental and child characteristics, and comorbidity) for later intelligence, adaptive functioning and motor skills. We used standardized assessments of mental and motor development at ages 6, 12 and 24 months, and of intelligence, adaptive functioning and motor skills at 10.7 years. We compared strengths and weaknesses in adaptive functioning and motor skills by repeated-measures ANOVAs in the total group and in children scoring above-average versus below-average. The prognostic value of demographics, comorbidity and developmental outcomes was analysed by two-step regression. Socialisation was a stronger adaptive skill than Communication followed by Daily Living. Aiming and catching was a stronger motor skill than Manual dexterity, followed by Balance. Above-average and below-average scoring children showed different profiles of strengths and weaknesses. Gender, (the absence or presence of) infantile spasms and particularly 24-month mental functioning predicted later intelligence and adaptive functioning. Motor skills, however, appeared to be less well predicted by early life characteristics. These findings provide a reference for expected developmental levels and strengths and weaknesses in Down syndrome. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A New Synthetic Global Biomass Carbon Map for the year 2010

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Spawn, S.; Lark, T.; Gibbs, H.

2017-12-01

Satellite technologies have facilitated a recent boom in high resolution, large-scale biomass estimation and mapping. These data are the input into a wide range of global models and are becoming the gold standard for required national carbon (C) emissions reporting. Yet their geographical and/or thematic scope may exclude some or all parts of a given country or region. Most datasets tend to focus exclusively on forest biomass. Grasslands and shrublands generally store less C than forests but cover nearly twice as much global land area and may represent a significant portion of a given country's biomass C stock. To address these shortcomings, we set out to create synthetic, global above- and below-ground biomass maps that combine recently-released satellite based data of standing forest biomass with novel estimates for non-forest biomass stocks that are typically neglected. For forests we integrated existing publicly available regional, global and biome-specific biomass maps and modeled below ground biomass using empirical relationships described in the literature. For grasslands, we developed models for both above- and below-ground biomass based on NPP, mean annual temperature and precipitation to extrapolate field measurements across the globe. Shrubland biomass was extrapolated from existing regional biomass maps using environmental factors to generate the first global estimate of shrub biomass. Our new synthetic map of global biomass carbon circa 2010 represents an update to the IPCC Tier-1 Global Biomass Carbon Map for the Year 2000 (Ruesch and Gibbs, 2008) using the best data currently available. In the absence of a single seamless remotely sensed map of global biomass, our synthetic map provides the only globally-consistent source of comprehensive biomass C data and is valuable for land change analyses, carbon accounting, and emissions modeling.

Aspen Global Change Institute: 25 Years of Interdisciplinary Global Change Science

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Meehl, Gerald A.; Moss, Richard

Global environmental changes such as climate change result from the interaction of human and natural systems. Research to understand these changes and options for addressing them requires the physical, environmental, and social sciences, as well as engineering and other applied fields. In this essay, we describe how the Aspen Global Change Institute (AGCI) has provided leadership in global change science over the past 25 years—in particular how it has contributed to the integration of the natural and social sciences needed to research the drivers of change, Earth system response, natural and human system impacts, and options for risk management. Wemore » illustrate the ways the history of AGCI has been intertwined with the evolution of global change science as it has become an increasingly interdisciplinary endeavor.« less

Global Burden of Leptospirosis: Estimated in Terms of Disability Adjusted Life Years

PubMed Central

Torgerson, Paul R.; Hagan, José E.; Costa, Federico; Calcagno, Juan; Kane, Michael; Martinez-Silveira, Martha S.; Goris, Marga G. A.; Stein, Claudia; Ko, Albert I.; Abela-Ridder, Bernadette

2015-01-01

Background Leptospirosis, a spirochaetal zoonosis, occurs in diverse epidemiological settings and affects vulnerable populations, such as rural subsistence farmers and urban slum dwellers. Although leptospirosis can cause life-threatening disease, there is no global burden of disease estimate in terms of Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) available. Methodology/Principal Findings We utilised the results of a parallel publication that reported global estimates of morbidity and mortality due to leptospirosis. We estimated Years of Life Lost (YLLs) from age and gender stratified mortality rates. Years of Life with Disability (YLDs) were developed from a simple disease model indicating likely sequelae. DALYs were estimated from the sum of YLLs and YLDs. The study suggested that globally approximately 2·90 million DALYs are lost per annum (UIs 1·25–4·54 million) from the approximately annual 1·03 million cases reported previously. Males are predominantly affected with an estimated 2·33 million DALYs (UIs 0·98–3·69) or approximately 80% of the total burden. For comparison, this is over 70% of the global burden of cholera estimated by GBD 2010. Tropical regions of South and South-east Asia, Western Pacific, Central and South America, and Africa had the highest estimated leptospirosis disease burden. Conclusions/Significance Leptospirosis imparts a significant health burden worldwide, which approach or exceed those encountered for a number of other zoonotic and neglected tropical diseases. The study findings indicate that highest burden estimates occur in resource-poor tropical countries, which include regions of Africa where the burden of leptospirosis has been under-appreciated and possibly misallocated to other febrile illnesses such as malaria. PMID:26431366

Monthly mean forecast experiments with the GISS model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spar, J.; Atlas, R. M.; Kuo, E.

1976-01-01

The GISS general circulation model was used to compute global monthly mean forecasts for January 1973, 1974, and 1975 from initial conditions on the first day of each month and constant sea surface temperatures. Forecasts were evaluated in terms of global and hemispheric energetics, zonally averaged meridional and vertical profiles, forecast error statistics, and monthly mean synoptic fields. Although it generated a realistic mean meridional structure, the model did not adequately reproduce the observed interannual variations in the large scale monthly mean energetics and zonally averaged circulation. The monthly mean sea level pressure field was not predicted satisfactorily, but annual changes in the Icelandic low were simulated. The impact of temporal sea surface temperature variations on the forecasts was investigated by comparing two parallel forecasts for January 1974, one using climatological ocean temperatures and the other observed daily ocean temperatures. The use of daily updated sea surface temperatures produced no discernible beneficial effect.

Association between depression in carers and malnutrition in children aged 6 months to 5 years

PubMed Central

Ganiyu, Adewale B.; Firth, Jacqueline A.

2017-01-01

Background Childhood malnutrition is an important risk factor for child mortality and underlies close to 50% of child deaths worldwide. Previous studies have found an association between maternal depression and child malnutrition, but it is not known whether this association exists in Botswana. In addition, previous studies excluded non-maternal primary caregivers (PCGs). It is unclear whether the association between primary caregiver depression and child malnutrition remains when non-maternal PCGs are included. Aim The aim of this study was to determine if there is an association between PCG depression and malnutrition in children aged between 6 months and 5 years in Mahalapye, Botswana. Setting The study was conducted in the child welfare clinics of Xhosa and Airstrip clinics, two primary health care facilities in Mahalapye, Botswana. Methods This was a case control study. Cases were malnourished children aged between 6 months and 5 years, and controls were non-malnourished children matched for age and gender. The outcome of interest was depression in the PCGs of the cases and controls, which was assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ 9), a depression screening tool. Results From a sample of 171 children, 84 of whom were malnourished, we found that the malnourished children were significantly more likely to have depressed PCGs (odds ratio = 4.33; 95% CI: 1.89, 9.89) than non-malnourished children in the 6-month to 5-year age group; the PCGs of malnourished children also had lower educational status. Conclusion This study found a significant association between PCG depression and child malnutrition. PMID:28155288

Global temperature change potential of nitrogen use in agriculture: A 50-year assessment

PubMed Central

Fagodiya, R. K.; Pathak, H.; Kumar, A.; Bhatia, A.; Jain, N.

2017-01-01

Nitrogen (N) use in agriculture substantially alters global N cycle with the short- and long-term effects on global warming and climate change. It increases emission of nitrous oxide, which contributes 6.2%, while carbon dioxide and methane contribute 76% and 16%, respectively of the global warming. However, N causes cooling due to emission of NOx, which alters concentrations of tropospheric ozone and methane. NOx and NH3 also form aerosols with considerable cooling effects. We studied global temperature change potential (GTP) of N use in agriculture. The GTP due to N2O was 396.67 and 1168.32 Tg CO2e on a 20-year (GTP20) and 439.94 and 1295.78 Tg CO2e on 100-year scale (GTP100) during years 1961 and 2010, respectively. Cooling effects due to N use were 92.14 and 271.39 Tg CO2e (GTP20) and 15.21 and 44.80 Tg CO2e (GTP100) during 1961 and 2010, respectively. Net GTP20 was 369.44 and 1088.15 Tg CO2e and net GTP100 was 429.17 and 1264.06 Tg CO2e during 1961 and 2010, respectively. Thus net GTP20 is lower by 6.9% and GTP100 by 2.4% compared to the GTP considering N2O emission alone. The study shows that both warming and cooling effects should be considered to estimate the GTP of N use. PMID:28322322

Nationwide measles vaccination campaign for children aged 6 months-12 years--Afghanistan, 2002.

PubMed

2003-04-25

The public health infrastructure in Afghanistan has been devastated by 23 years of civil war, and both the infant mortality rate (165 per 1,000 live-born infants) and the mortality rate for children aged <5 years (256 per 1,000 live-born infants) are among the highest in the world. The major causes of death among children aged <10 years are diarrhea (32%), measles (25%), respiratory tract infections (13%), and other causes (30%), including malnutrition, scurvy, chronic diseases, and fever of unknown origin. Measles accounts for an estimated 30,000-35,000 deaths each year in Afghanistan. To reduce measles-related mortality, during 2002, the Ministry of Health (MoH) of the Interim Government of Afghanistan, with the support of international organizations, organized a nationwide measles vaccination campaign for children aged 6 months-12 years. This report describes the planning, implementation, and impact of this campaign. The findings suggest that the campaign had a major impact on reducing measles-related mortality. Similar campaigns might be feasible in countries affected by complex emergencies.

Posttraumatic Stress in Survivors 1 Month to 19 Years after an Airliner Emergency Landing

PubMed Central

Arnberg, Filip K.; Michel, Per-Olof; Lundin, Tom

2015-01-01

Posttraumatic stress (PTS) is common in survivors from life-threatening events. Little is known, however, about the course of PTS after life threat in the absence of collateral stressors (e.g., bereavement, social stigma, property loss) and there is a scarcity of studies about PTS in the long term. This study assessed the short- and long-term course of PTS, and the influence of gender, education and age on the level and course of PTS, in survivors from a non-fatal airliner emergency landing caused by engine failure at an altitude of 1 km. There were 129 persons on board. A survey including the Impact of Event Scale was distributed to 106 subjects after 1 month, 4 months, 14 months, and 25 months, and to 95 subjects after 19 years (response rates 64–83%). There were initially high levels of PTS. The majority of changes in PTS occurred from 1 to 4 months after the event. There were small changes from 4 to 25 months but further decrease in PTS thereafter. Female gender was associated with higher levels of PTS whereas gender was unrelated to the slope of the short- and long-term trajectories. Higher education was related to a quicker recovery although not to initial or long-term PTS. Age was not associated with PTS. The present findings suggest that a life-threatening experience without collateral stressors may produce high levels of acute posttraumatic stress, yet with a benign prognosis. The findings further implicate that gender is unrelated to trajectories of recovery in the context of highly similar exposure and few collateral stressors. PMID:25734536

A Year-Long Comparison of GPS TEC and Global Ionosphere-Thermosphere Models

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perlongo, N. J.; Ridley, A. J.; Cnossen, I.; Wu, C.

2018-02-01

The prevalence of GPS total electron content (TEC) observations has provided an opportunity for extensive global ionosphere-thermosphere model validation efforts. This study presents a year-long data-model comparison using the Global Ionosphere-Thermosphere Model (GITM) and the Thermosphere-Ionosphere-Electrodynamics General Circulation Model (TIE-GCM). For the entire year of 2010, each model was run and compared to GPS TEC observations. The results were binned according to season, latitude, local time, and magnetic local time. GITM was found to overestimate the TEC everywhere, except on the midlatitude nightside, due to high O/N2 ratios. TIE-GCM produced much less TEC and had lower O/N2 ratios and neutral wind speeds. Seasonal and regional biases in the models are discussed along with ideas for model improvements and further validation efforts.

Separating the Sheep from the Goats: Differentiating Global Categories.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mandler, Jean M.; And Others

1991-01-01

The conceptual categories that children have developed in their second year were studied in five experiments using object manipulation tasks. Subjects included 152 children from 18 to 31 months of age. These very young children had formed global conceptions of many domains of objects. (SLD)

Global motion perception is associated with motor function in 2-year-old children.

PubMed

Thompson, Benjamin; McKinlay, Christopher J D; Chakraborty, Arijit; Anstice, Nicola S; Jacobs, Robert J; Paudel, Nabin; Yu, Tzu-Ying; Ansell, Judith M; Wouldes, Trecia A; Harding, Jane E

2017-09-29

The dorsal visual processing stream that includes V1, motion sensitive area V5 and the posterior parietal lobe, supports visually guided motor function. Two recent studies have reported associations between global motion perception, a behavioural measure of processing in V5, and motor function in pre-school and school aged children. This indicates a relationship between visual and motor development and also supports the use of global motion perception to assess overall dorsal stream function in studies of human neurodevelopment. We investigated whether associations between vision and motor function were present at 2 years of age, a substantially earlier stage of development. The Bayley III test of Infant and Toddler Development and measures of vision including visual acuity (Cardiff Acuity Cards), stereopsis (Lang stereotest) and global motion perception were attempted in 404 2-year-old children (±4 weeks). Global motion perception (quantified as a motion coherence threshold) was assessed by observing optokinetic nystagmus in response to random dot kinematograms of varying coherence. Linear regression revealed that global motion perception was modestly, but statistically significantly associated with Bayley III composite motor (r 2 =0.06, P<0.001, n=375) and gross motor scores (r 2 =0.06, p<0.001, n=375). The associations remained significant when language score was included in the regression model. In addition, when language score was included in the model, stereopsis was significantly associated with composite motor and fine motor scores, but unaided visual acuity was not statistically significantly associated with any of the motor scores. These results demonstrate that global motion perception and binocular vision are associated with motor function at an early stage of development. Global motion perception can be used as a partial measure of dorsal stream function from early childhood. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Four years of global cirrus cloud statistics using HIRS

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wylie, Donald P.; Menzel, W. Paul; Woolf, Harold M.; Strabala, Kathleen I.

1994-01-01

Trends in global upper-tropospheric transmissive cirrus cloud cover are beginning to emerge from a four-year cloud climatology using NOAA polar-orbiting High-Resolution Infrared Radiation Sounder (HIRS) multispectral data. Cloud occurrence, height, and effective emissivity are determined with the CO2 slicing technique on the four years of data (June 1989-May 1993). There is a global preponderance of transmissive high clouds, 42% on the average; about three-fourths of these are above 500 hPa and presumed to be cirrus. In the Inter-tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ), a high frequency of cirrus (greater than 50%) is found at all times; a modest seasonal movement tracks the sun. Large seasonal changes in cloud cover occur over the oceans in the storm belts at midlatitudes; the concentrations of these clouds migrate north and south with the seasons following the progressions of the subtropical highs (anticyclones). More cirrus is found in the summer than in the winter in each hemisphere. A significant change in cirrus cloud cover occurs in 1991, the third year of the study. Cirrus observations increase from 35% to 43% of the data, a change of eight percentage points. Other cloud forms, opaque to terrestrial radiation, decerase by nearly the same amount. Most of the increase is thinner cirrus with infrared optical depths below 0.7. The increase in cirrus happens at the same time as the 1991-92 El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo. The cirrus changes occur at the start of the ENSO and persist into 1993 in contrast to other climatic indicators that return to near pre-ENSO and volcanic levels in 1993.

Prevalence and risk factors for neurological disorders in children aged 6 months to 2 years in northern India.

PubMed

Kumar, Rashmi; Bhave, Anupama; Bhargava, Roli; Agarwal, Girdhar G

2013-04-01

To study prevalence and risk factors for neurological disorders--epilepsy, global developmental delay, and motor, vision, and hearing defects--in children aged 6 months to 2 years in northern India. A two-stage community survey for neurological disorders was conducted in rural and urban areas of Lucknow. After initial screening with a new instrument, the Lucknow Neurodevelopment Screen, screen positives and a random proportion of screen negatives were validated using predefined criteria. Prevalence was calculated by weighted estimates. Demographic, socio-economic, and medical risk factors were compared between validated children who were positive and negative for neurological disorders by univariate and logistic regression analysis. Of 4801 children screened (mean age [SD] 15.32mo [5.96]; 2542 males, 2259 females), 196 were positive; 190 screen positives and 269 screen negatives were validated. Prevalence of neurological disorders was 27.92 per 1000 (weighted 95% confidence interval 12.24-43.60). Significant risk factors (p≤0.01) for neurological disorders were higher age in months (p=0.010), lower mean number of appliances in the household (p=0.001), consanguineous marriage of parents (p=0.010), family history of neurological disorder (p=0.001), and infants born exceptionally small (parental description; p=0.009). On logistic regression, the final model included age (p=0.0193), number of appliances (p=0.0161), delayed cry at birth (p=0.0270), postneonatal meningoencephalitis (p=0.0549), and consanguinity (p=0.0801). Perinatal factors, lower socio-economic status, and consanguinity emerged as predictors of neurological disorders. These factors are largely modifiable. © The Authors. Developmental Medicine & Child Neurology © 2013 Mac Keith Press.

Developmental trajectories in siblings of children with autism: cognition and language from 4 months to 7 years.

PubMed

Gamliel, Ifat; Yirmiya, Nurit; Jaffe, Dena H; Manor, Orly; Sigman, Marian

2009-08-01

We compared the cognitive and language development at 4, 14, 24, 36, 54 months, and 7 years of siblings of children with autism (SIBS-A) to that of siblings of children with typical development (SIBS-TD) using growth curve analyses. At 7 years, 40% of the SIBS-A, compared to 16% of SIBS-TD, were identified with cognitive, language and/or academic difficulties, identified using direct tests and/or parental reports. This sub-group was identified as SIBS-A-broad phenotype (BP). Results indicated that early language scores (14-54 months), but not cognitive scores of SIBS-A-BP and SIBS-A-nonBP were significantly lower compared to the language scores of SIBS-TD, and that the rate of development was also significantly different, thus pinpointing language as a major area of difficulty for SIBS-A during the preschool years.

SSE Global Data

Atmospheric Science Data Center

2018-04-12

SSE Global Data Text files of monthly averaged data for the entire ... Version:  V6 Location:  Global Spatial Coverage:  (90N, 90S)(180W,180E) ... File Format:  ASCII Order Data:  SSE Global Data: Order Data SCAR-B Block:  ...

Anemia on admission increases the risk of mortality at 6 months and 1 year in hemorrhagic stroke patients in China.

PubMed

Zeng, Yi-Jun; Liu, Gai-Fen; Liu, Li-Ping; Wang, Chun-Xue; Zhao, Xing-Quan; Wang, Yong-Jun

2014-07-01

The relationship between anemia and intracerebral hemorrhage is not clear. We investigated the associations between anemia at the onset and mortality or dependency in patients with intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) registered at the China National Stroke Registry (CNSR). The CNSR recruited consecutive patients with diagnoses of ICH in 2007-2008. Their vascular risk factors, clinical presentations, and outcomes were recorded. The mortality and dependency at 1, 3, and 6 months and at 1 year were compared between ICH patients with and without anemia. A favorable outcome was defined as a modified Rankin Scale (mRS) score of 2 or less and a poor outcome as an mRS score of 3 or more. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to analyze the association between anemia and the 2 outcomes after adjusting for age, gender, body mass index, history of smoking and heavy drinking, National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale score on admission, random glucose value on admission, and hematoma volume. Anemia was identified in 484 (19%) ICH patients. Compared with ICH patients without anemia, patients with anemia had no difference in mortality rate at discharge and at 1 month. The rate of mortality at 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, and dependency at 1 year were significantly higher for those patients with anemia than those without (P<.05, P<.001, P<.001, and P<.05, respectively). After adjusting for potential confounders, anemia was an independent risk factor for death at 6 months and 1 year (adjusted odds ratio [OR]=1.338, 95% confidence interval 1.01-1.78, and adjusted OR=1.326, 95% confidence interval 1.00-1.75) in ICH patients. Anemia independently predicted mortality at 6 months and 1 year after the initial episode of intercerebral hemorrhage. Copyright © 2014 National Stroke Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Parental Co-Construction of 5- to 13-Year-Olds' Global Self-Esteem Through Reminiscing About Past Events.

PubMed

Harris, Michelle A; Donnellan, M B; Guo, Jen; McAdams, Dan P; Garnier-Villarreal, Mauricio; Trzesniewski, Kali H

2017-11-01

The current study explored parental processes associated with children's global self-esteem development. Eighty 5- to 13-year-olds and one of their parents provided qualitative and quantitative data through questionnaires, open-ended questions, and a laboratory-based reminiscing task. Parents who included more explanations of emotions when writing about the lowest points in their lives were more likely to discuss explanations of emotions experienced in negative past events with their child, which was associated with child attachment security. Attachment was associated with concurrent self-esteem, which predicted relative increases in self-esteem 16 months later, on average. Finally, parent support also predicted residual increases in self-esteem. Findings extend prior research by including younger ages and uncovering a process by which two theoretically relevant parenting behaviors impact self-esteem development. © 2017 The Authors. Child Development © 2017 Society for Research in Child Development, Inc.

Association between depression in carers and malnutrition in children aged 6 months to 5 years.

PubMed

Motlhatlhedi, Keneilwe; Setlhare, Vincent; Ganiyu, Adewale; Firth, Jacqueline

2017-01-30

 Childhood malnutrition is an important risk factor for child mortality and underlies close to 50% of child deaths worldwide. Previous studies have found an association between maternal depression and child malnutrition, but it is not known whether this association exists in Botswana. In addition, previous studies excluded non-maternal primary caregivers (PCGs). It is unclear whether the association between primary caregiver depression and child malnutrition remains when non-maternal PCGs are included. The aim of this study was to determine if there is an association between PCG depression and malnutrition in children aged between 6 months and 5 years in Mahalapye, Botswana. The study was conducted in the child welfare clinics of Xhosa and Airstrip clinics, two primary health care facilities in Mahalapye, Botswana. This was a case control study. Cases were malnourished children aged between 6 months and 5 years, and controls were non-malnourished children matched for age and gender. The outcome of interest was depression in the PCGs of the cases and controls, which was assessed using the Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ 9), a depression screening tool. From a sample of 171 children, 84 of whom were malnourished, we found that the malnourished children were significantly more likely to have depressed PCGs (odds ratio = 4.33; 95% CI: 1.89, 9.89) than non-malnourished children in the 6-month to 5-year age group; the PCGs of malnourished children also had lower educational status. This study found a significant association between PCG depression and child malnutrition.

Status and Plans for the WCRP/GEWEX Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP)

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Adler, Robert F.

2007-01-01

The Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP) is an international project under the auspices of the World Climate Research Program (WCRP) and GEWEX (Global Water and Energy Experiment). The GPCP group consists of scientists from agencies and universities in various countries that work together to produce a set of global precipitation analyses at time scales of monthly, pentad, and daily. The status of the current products will be briefly summarized, focusing on the monthly analysis. Global and large regional rainfall variations and possible long-term changes are examined using the 27-year (1 979-2005) monthly dataset. In addition to global patterns associated with phenomena such as ENSO, the data set is explored for evidence of long-term change. Although the global change of precipitation in the data set is near zero, the data set does indicate a small upward change in the Tropics (25s-25N) during the period,. especially over ocean. Techniques are derived to isolate and eliminate variations due to ENS0 and major volcanic eruptions and the significance of the linear change is examined. Plans for a GPCP reprocessing for a Version 3 of products, potentially including a fine-time resolution product will be discussed. Current and future links to IPWG will also be addressed.

Prevalence and correlates of past 12-month suicide attempt among adults with past-year suicidal ideation in the United States.

PubMed

Han, Beth; Compton, Wilson M; Gfroerer, Joseph; McKeon, Richard

2015-03-01

To examine the prevalence and correlates of attempting suicide in the past 12 months among adults with past-year suicidal ideation in the United States. Data were from 229,600 persons aged 18 years or older who participated in the 2008-2012 National Survey on Drug Use and Health. Among them, 12,300 reported having past-year suicidal ideation, and over 2,000 of those reported attempting suicide within the past 12 months prior to survey interview. Descriptive analyses and pooled and stratified (by suicide plan and major depressive episode [MDE]) multivariate logistic regression models were applied. Major depressive episode was based on assessments of individual diagnostic criteria from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV). Among persons aged 18 years or older in the United States, 3.8% reported having suicidal ideation in the past 12 months. Among past-year suicidal ideators, 13.2% attempted suicide in the past 12 months. The prevalence of past 12-month suicide attempt among past-year ideators with MDE was higher than among those without MDE (14.1% vs 12.0%). Past 12-month suicide attempt was more common among ideators with a suicide plan than among ideators without a plan (37.0% vs 3.7%). However, the prevalence of suicide attempt was higher among ideators with a plan but without MDE than among ideators with a plan and MDE (42.1% vs 32.9%). Compared with ideators without a plan, ideators with a plan had a higher (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 2.2; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.47-3.45) suicide attempt risk among those without MDE (AOR = 22.4; 95% CI,16.55-30.27) than among those with MDE (AOR = 10.7; 95% CI, 7.91-14.49). Among adult suicidal ideators, factors associated with their progression from ideation to suicide attempt may vary by their suicide plan and major depression status. Focusing attention on high-risk subgroups may be warranted. © Copyright 2015 Physicians Postgraduate Press, Inc.

The 12-Month Prevalence of DSM-IV Anxiety Disorders among Nigerian Secondary School Adolescents Aged 13-18 Years

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Adewuya, Abiodun O.; Ola, Bola A.; Adewumi, Tomi A.

2007-01-01

Aims: To estimate the 12-month prevalence of DSM-IV-specific anxiety disorders among Nigerian secondary school adolescents aged 13-18 years. Method: A representative sample of adolescents (n=1090) from senior secondary schools in a semi-urban town in Nigeria was assessed for the 12-month prevalence of DSM-IV-specific anxiety. Results: The 12-month…

100+ years of instrumental seismology: the example of the ISC-GEM Global Earthquake Instrumental Catalogue

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Storchak, Dmitry; Di Giacomo, Domenico

2015-04-01

Systematic seismological observations of earthquakes using seismic instruments on a global scale began more than 100 years ago. Since then seismologists made many discoveries about the Earth interior and the physics of the earthquakes, also thanks to major developments in the seismic instrumentation deployed around the world. Besides, since the establishment of the first global networks (Milne and Jesuit networks), seismologists around the world stored and exchanged the results of routine observations (e.g., picking of arrival times, amplitude-period measurements, etc.) or more sophisticated analyses (e.g., moment tensor inversion) in seismological bulletins/catalogues. With a project funded by the GEM Foundation (www.globalquakemodel.org), the ISC and the Team of International Experts released a new global earthquake catalogue, the ISC-GEM Global Instrumental Earthquake Catalogue (1900 2009) (www.isc.ac.uk/iscgem/index.php), which, differently from previous global seismic catalogues, has the unique feature of covering the entire period of instrumental seismology with locations and magnitude re-assessed using modern approaches for the global earthquakes selected for processing (in the current version approximately 21,000). During the 110 years covered by the ISC-GEM catalogue many seismological developments occurred in terms of instrumentation, seismological practice and knowledge of the physics of the earthquakes. In this contribution we give a brief overview of the major milestones characterizing the last 100+ years of instrumental seismology that were relevant for the production of the ISC-GEM catalogue and the major challenges we faced to obtain a catalogue as homogenous as possible.

Predictors of early versus late smoking abstinence within a 24-month disease management program.

PubMed

Cox, Lisa Sanderson; Wick, Jo A; Nazir, Niaman; Cupertino, A Paula; Mussulman, Laura M; Ahluwalia, Jasjit S; Ellerbeck, Edward F

2011-03-01

Standard smoking cessation treatment studies have been limited to 6- to 12-month follow-up, and examination of predictors of abstinence has been restricted to this timeframe. The KanQuit study enrolled 750 rural smokers across all stages of readiness to stop smoking and provided pharmacotherapy management and/or disease management, including motivational interviewing (MI) counseling every 6 months over 2 years. This paper examines differences in predictors of abstinence following initial (6-month) and extended (24-month) intervention. Baseline variables were analyzed as potential predictors of self-reported smoking abstinence at Month 6 and at Month 24. Chi-square tests, 2-sample t tests, and multiple logistic regression analyses were used to identify predictors of abstinence among 592 participants who completed assessment at baseline and Months 6 and 24. Controlling for treatment group, the final regression models showed that male gender and lower baseline cigarettes per day predicted abstinence at both 6 and 24 months. While remaining significant, the relative advantage of being male decreased over time. Global motivation to stop smoking, controlled motivation, and self-efficacy predicted abstinence at 6 months but did not predict abstinence at Month 24. In contrast, stage of change was strongly predictive of 24-month smoking status. While the importance of some predictors of successful smoking cessation appeared to diminish over time, initial lack of interest in cessation and number of cigarettes per day strongly predicted continued smoking following a 2-year program.

Progress in global surveillance and response capacity 10 years after severe acute respiratory syndrome.

PubMed

Braden, Christopher R; Dowell, Scott F; Jernigan, Daniel B; Hughes, James M

2013-06-01

Ten years have elapsed since the World Health Organization issued its first global alert for an unexplained illness named severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS). The anniversary provides an opportunity to reflect on the international response to this new global microbial threat. While global surveillance and response capacity for public health threats have been strengthened, critical gaps remain. Of 194 World Health Organization member states that signed on to the International Health Regulations (2005), <20% had achieved compliance with the core capacities required by the deadline in June 2012. Lessons learned from the global SARS outbreak highlight the need to avoid complacency, strengthen efforts to improve global capacity to address the next pandemic using all available 21st century tools, and support research to develop new treatment options, countermeasures, and insights while striving to address the global inequities that are the root cause of many of these challenges.

Global Quality of Life Among WHI Women Aged 80 Years and Older

PubMed Central

Brunner, Robert L.; Hogan, Patricia E.; Danhauer, Suzanne C.; Brenes, Gretchen A.; Bowen, Deborah J.; Snively, Beverly M.; Goveas, Joseph S.; Saquib, Nazmus; Zaslavsky, Oleg; Shumaker, Sally A.

2016-01-01

Abstract Background. The number of older adults living to age 80 and older is increasing rapidly, particularly among women. Correlates of quality of life (QOL) in very advanced ages are not known. We examined the association of demographic, social-psychological, lifestyle, and physical health variables with global QOL in a Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) cohort of women aged 80 and older. Methods. 26,299 WHI participants, who had completed a recent psychosocial and medical update, were included in these analyses. Global QOL was assessed by a single item, asking the women to rate their overall QOL on a scale from 0 to 10. Characteristics of the women were examined by the level of their transformed global QOL scores (≤50, 50–70, ≥70), and multiple regression was used to examine which demographic, social-psychological, lifestyle and health variables were independently associated with higher global QOL. Results. Social-psychological and current health variables were more strongly associated with global QOL than a history of selected comorbid conditions. In particular, higher self-rated health and fewer depressive symptoms were the most strongly associated with better global QOL in WHI women ≥80 years. Conclusions. Interventions to reduce depressive symptoms and improve health may lead to better self-reported health and global QOL among older women. Physical and mental health screenings followed by evidence-based interventions are imperative in geriatric care. PMID:26858327

Our paper 20 years later: 1-year survival and 6-month quality of life after intensive care.

PubMed

Capuzzo, Maurizia; Bianconi, Margherita

2015-04-01

In the early 1990s, the in-hospital mortality rate of intensive care unit (ICU) patients dropped, and interest in the quality of life (QOL) of ICU survivors increased. In 1996, we published a study to investigate 1-year survival after hospital discharge and 6-month QOL after intensive care. Now, we compare our previous results with those reported in the recent literature to appraise any changes, and new knowledge in the area. The 1-year survival of ICU patients after hospital discharge is substantial, lower than in the general population, and different among subgroups. Some studies showed a reduction in QOL at 6 months, as in our study, while others showed an improvement. Different results seem to be related mainly to the case mix. Studies on different types of patients found long-term cognitive impairment in ICU survivors, possibly not disease specific. The proportions of patients with neuropsychological morbidities such as posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and depression, described after our study, did not show any change over time. Differences between studies on long-term survival and QOL do not allow conclusions to be drawn about change over time. No change was found in neuropsychological morbidities. However, a lack of change may not be viewed negatively, because critically ill patients who survive ICU today may be at higher risk for poor long-term outcome than in the past due to the higher severity of their illness and the more aggressive treatments received. Future studies may provide understanding of the relationships between psychiatric symptoms, cognitive impairment, functional disability, and QOL.

A seven-month solar cycle observed with the Langmuir probe on Pioneer Venus Orbiter

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Hoegy, W. R.; Wolff, C. L.

1989-01-01

Data collected by the Langmuir probe aboard the Pioneer Venus orbiter (PVO) over the years 1979 though 1987 were normalized to remove the long-period 11-year solar maximum to minimum trend and were analyzed for periodicity. Results yield evidence for the existence of an approximately 7-month solar cycle, which was also observed from SME Lyman alpha and 2800-MHz radio flux measurements carried out from an earth-based platform. This coincidence suggests that the cycle is an intrinsic periodicity in the solar output. The cycle has a frequency independent of the orbital frequency of the PVO and is distinct from a 'rotating beacon' cycle whose period depends on the orbital motion of the PVO about the sun. The second most dominant cycle discovered was a 5-month period. Results of an oscillation model of solar periodicity indicate that the 7-month and 5-month cycles are caused by long-lived flux enhancements from nonlinear interactions of global oscillation modes in the sun's convective envelope (r modes) and radiative interior (g modes).

Renal function is associated with 1-month and 1-year mortality in patients with ischemic stroke.

PubMed

Wang, I-Kuan; Liu, Chung-Hsiang; Yen, Tzung-Hai; Jeng, Jiann-Shing; Sung, Sheng-Feng; Huang, Pai-Hao; Li, Jie-Yuan; Sun, Yu; Wei, Cheng-Yu; Lien, Li-Ming; Tsai, I-Ju; Sung, Fung-Chang; Hsu, Chung Y

2018-02-01

Renal dysfunction is a potent risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, including stroke. This study aimed to evaluate the impact of admission estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) levels on short-term (1-month) and long-term (1-year) mortality in patients with acute ischemic stroke. From the Taiwan Stroke Registry data, we classified ischemic stroke patients, identified from April 2006 to December 2015, into 5 groups by eGFR at admission: ≥ 90, 60-89, 30-59, 15-29, and <15 mL/min/1.73 m 2 or on dialysis. Risks of 1-month mortality and 1-year mortality after ischemic stroke were investigated by the eGFR level. Among 52,732 ischemic stroke patients, 1480 died within one month. The 1-month mortality rate was over 5-fold greater in patients with eGFR <15 mL/min/1.73 m 2 or dialysis than in patients with eGFR ≥90 mL/min/1.73 m 2 (2.88 versus 0.56 per 1000 person-days). The adjusted hazard ratio (HR) of 1-month mortality increased from 1.31 (95% CI = 1.08-1.59) for patients with eGFR 60-89 mL/min/1.73 m 2 to 2.33 (95% CI = 1.80-3.02) for patients with eGFR < 15 mL/min/1.73 m 2 or on dialysis. 3226 patients died within one year. The adjusted HR of mortality increased from 1.38 (95% CI = 1.21-1.59) for patients with eGFR 60-89 mL/min/1.73 m 2 to 2.60 (95% CI 2.18-3.10) for patients with eGFR < 15 mL/min/1.73 m 2 or on dialysis, compared to patients with eGFR ≥ 90 mL/min/1.73 m 2 . After acute ischemic stroke, patients with reduced eGFR are at elevated risks of short-term and long-term deaths in a graded relationship. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

The Development of the Classroom Social Climate during the First Months of the School Year

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mainhard, M. Tim; Brekelmans, Mieke; den Brok, Perry; Wubbels, Theo

2011-01-01

In this study the mean stability of classroom social climates during the first months of the school year and the deviation of individual classrooms (N = 48) and students (N = 1208) from this general trend were investigated by taping students' interpersonal perceptions of their teachers. Multilevel growth modeling was used to identify the average…

Global Sea Ice Coverage from Satellite Data: Annual Cycle and 35-Yr Trends

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Parkinson, Claire L.

2014-01-01

Well-established satellite-derived Arctic and Antarctic sea ice extents are combined to create the global picture of sea ice extents and their changes over the 35-yr period 1979-2013. Results yield a global annual sea ice cycle more in line with the high-amplitude Antarctic annual cycle than the lower-amplitude Arctic annual cycle but trends more in line with the high-magnitude negative Arctic trends than the lower-magnitude positive Antarctic trends. Globally, monthly sea ice extent reaches a minimum in February and a maximum generally in October or November. All 12 months show negative trends over the 35-yr period, with the largest magnitude monthly trend being the September trend, at -68200 +/- 10500 km sq yr(exp -1) (-2.62% +/- 0.40%decade(exp -1)), and the yearly average trend being -35000 +/-5900 km sq yr(exp -1) (-1.47% +/- 0.25%decade(exp -1)).

Inter-Comparison of MODIS and VIIRS Vegetation Indices Using One-Year Global Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Miura, T.; Muratsuchi, J.; Obata, K.; Kato, A.; Vargas, M.; Huete, A. R.

2016-12-01

The Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) sensor series of the Joint Polar Satellite System program is slated to continue the highly calibrated data stream initiated with the Earth Observing System Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) sensors. A number of geophysical products are being/to be produced from VIIRS data, including the "Top-of-the-Atmosphere (TOA)" Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), "Top-of-Canopy (TOC)" Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI), and TOC NDVI. In this study, we cross-compared vegetation indices (VIs) from the first VIIRS sensor aboard the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership satellite with the Aqua MODIS counterparts using one-year global data. This study was aimed at developing a thorough understanding of radiometric compatibility between the two VI datasets across globe, seasons, a range of viewing angle, and land cover types. VIIRS and MODIS VI data of January-December 2015 were obtained at monthly intervals when their orbital tracks coincided. These data were projected and spatially-aggregated into a .0036-degree grid while screening for cloud and aerosol contaminations using their respective quality flags. VIIRS-MODIS observation pairs with near-identical sun-target-view angles were extracted from each of these monthly image pairs for cross-comparison. The four VIs of TOA NDVI, TOC NDVI, TOC EVI, and TOC EVI2 (a two-band version of the EVI) were analyzed. Between MODIS and VIIRS, TOA NDVI, TOC NDVI, and TOC EVI2 had very small overall mean differences (MD) of .014, .013, and .013 VI units, respectively, whereas TOC EVI had a slightly larger overall MD of 0.023 EVI units attributed to the disparate blue bands of the two sensors. These systematic differences were consistent across the one-year period. With respect to sun-target-viewing geometry, MDs were also consistent across the view zenith angle range, but always lower for forward- than backward-viewing geometry. MDs showed large land cover

Improving the Global Precipitation Record: GPCP Version 2.1

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Huffman, George J.; Adler, Robert F.; Bolvin, David t.; Gu, Guojun

2009-01-01

The GPCP has developed Version 2.1 of its long-term (1979-present) global Satellite-Gauge (SG) data sets to take advantage of the improved GPCC gauge analysis, which is one key input. As well, the OPI estimates used in the pre-SSM/I era have been rescaled to 20 years of the SSM/I-era SG. The monthly, pentad, and daily GPCP products have been entirely reprocessed, continuing to enforce consistency of the submonthly estimates to the monthly. Version 2.1 is close to Version 2, with the global ocean, land, and total values about 0%, 6%, and 2% higher, respectively. The revised long-term global precipitation rate is 2.68 mm/d. The corresponding tropical (25 N-S) increases are 0%, 7%, and 3%. Long-term linear changes in the data tend to be smaller in Version 2.1, but the statistics are sensitive to the threshold for land/ocean separation and use of the pre-SSM/I part of the record.

Early response to therapy predicts 6-month and 1-year disease activity outcomes in psoriatic arthritis patients.

PubMed

Schoels, Monika M; Landesmann, Uriel; Alasti, Farideh; Baker, Daniel; Smolen, Josef S; Aletaha, Daniel

2018-06-01

In PsA management, remission and low disease activity represent preferential treatment targets. We aimed at evaluating the predictive value and clinical use of initial therapeutic response for subsequent achievement of these targets. Based on data of 216 patients enrolled in a randomized controlled trial of golimumab (GO-REVEAL), we performed diagnostic testing analyses using 3- and 6-month disease activity as tests for treatment outcomes to understand the implications of early response. In regression analyses, we estimated the probabilities for achieving at least LDA. Disease activity was measured by the disease activity index for PsA (DAPSA). Three-month DAPSA levels were excellent tests for disease activity at 6 months (and at 1 year), with areas under the receiver operating characteristic curves of 0.92 (and 0.88, respectively). The estimated probability for 6-month LDA could be quantified as <22% if patients did not reach at least moderate disease activity after 3 months on golimumab. Similar data were seen for early DAPSA response: patients achieving a DAPSA 85% at 3 months had an 84% probability for 6-month LDA or REM. All results were validated in an independent trial cohort of patients treated with infliximab (IMPACT 2). Three months after implementation of therapy in PsA, it is already possible to evaluate the potential for accomplishing therapeutic goals. This substantiates the choice of the 3-month assessment as essential for treatment adaptations.

Global assessment of surfing conditions: seasonal, interannual and long-term variability

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Espejo, A.; Losada, I.; Mendez, F.

2012-12-01

International surfing destinations owe a great debt to specific combinations of wind-wave, thermal conditions and local bathymetry. As surf quality depends on a vast number of geophysical variables, a multivariable standardized index on the basis of expert judgment is proposed to analyze surf resource in a worldwide domain. Data needed is obtained by combining several datasets (reanalyses): 60-year satellite-calibrated spectral wave hindcast (GOW, WaveWatchIII), wind fields from NCEP/NCAR, global sea surface temperature from ERSST.v3b, and global tides from TPXO7.1. A summary of the global surf resource is presented, which highlights the high degree of variability in surfable events. According to general atmospheric circulation, results show that west facing low to middle latitude coasts are more suitable for surfing, especially those in Southern Hemisphere. Month to month analysis reveals strong seasonal changes in the occurrence of surfable events, enhancing those in North Atlantic or North Pacific. Interannual variability is investigated by comparing occurrence values with global and regional climate patterns showing a great influence at both, global and regional scales. Analysis of long term trends shows an increase in the probability of surfable events over the west facing coasts on the planet (i.e. + 30 hours/year in California). The resulting maps provide useful information for surfers and surf related stakeholders, coastal planning, education, and basic research.; Figure 1. Global distribution of medium quality (a) and high quality surf conditions probability (b).

Your Baby's Growth: 12 Months

MedlinePlus

... little one). What's Next? For the remainder of this year and next year, expect that your baby's growth ... Gavin, MD Date reviewed: December 2014 More on this topic for: ... and Your 8- to 12-Month-Old Your Child's Checkup: 1 Year (12 Months) Movement, Coordination, and Your 8- to ...

Developmental Trajectories in Siblings of Children with Autism: Cognition and Language from 4 Months to 7 Years

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gamliel, Ifat; Yirmiya, Nurit; Jaffe, Dena H.; Manor, Orly; Sigman, Marian

2009-01-01

We compared the cognitive and language development at 4, 14, 24, 36, 54 months, and 7 years of siblings of children with autism (SIBS-A) to that of siblings of children with typical development (SIBS-TD) using growth curve analyses. At 7 years, 40% of the SIBS-A, compared to 16% of SIBS-TD, were identified with cognitive, language and/or academic…

Global Analysis of Empirical Relationships Between Annual Climate and Seasonality of NDVI

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Potter, C. S.; Brooks, V.

1997-01-01

This paper describes the use of satellite data to calibrate a new climate-vegetation greenness relationship for global change studies. We examined statistical relationships between annual climate indexes (temperature, precipitation, and surface radiation) and seasonal attributes If the AVHRR Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) time series for the mid-1980's in order to refine our understanding of intra-annual patterns and global abiotic controls on natural vegetation dynamics. Multiple linear regression results using global 1o gridded data sets suggest that three climate indexes: degree days (growing/chilling), annual precipitation total, and an annual moisture index together can account to 70-80 percent of the geographic variation in the NDVI seasonal extremes (maximum and minimum values) for the calibration year 1984. Inclusion of the same annual climate index values from the previous year explains no substantial additional portion of the global scale variation in NDVI seasonal extremes. The monthly timing of NDVI extremes is closely associated with seasonal patterns in maximum and minimum temperature and rainfall, with lag times of 1 to 2 months. We separated well-drained areas from lo grid cells mapped as greater than 25 percent inundated coverage for estimation of both the magnitude and timing of seasonal NDVI maximum values. Predicted monthly NDVI, derived from our climate-based regression equations and Fourier smoothing algorithms, shows good agreement with observed NDVI for several different years at a series of ecosystem test locations from around the globe. Regions in which NDVI seasonal extremes are not accurately predicted are mainly high latitude zones, mixed and disturbed vegetation types, and other remote locations where climate station data are sparse.

Coalition for Global Clinical Surgical Education: The Alliance for Global Clinical Training.

PubMed

Graf, Jahanara; Cook, Mackenzie; Schecter, Samuel; Deveney, Karen; Hofmann, Paul; Grey, Douglas; Akoko, Larry; Mwanga, Ali; Salum, Kitembo; Schecter, William

Assessment of the effect of the collaborative relationship between the high-income country (HIC) surgical educators of the Alliance for Global Clinical Training (Alliance) and the low-income country surgical educators at the Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences/Muhimbili National Hospital (MUHAS/MNH), Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, on the clinical global surgery training of the HIC surgical residents participating in the program. A retrospective qualitative analysis of Alliance volunteer HIC faculty and residents' reports, volunteer case lists and the reports of Alliance academic contributions to MUHAS/MNH from 2012 to 2017. In addition, a survey was circulated in late 2016 to all the residents who participated in the program since its inception. Twelve HIC surgical educators provided rotating 1-month teaching coverage at MUHAS/MNH between academic years 2012 and 2017 for a total of 21 months. During the same time period 11 HIC residents accompanied the HIC faculty for 1-month rotations. HIC surgery residents joined the MUHAS/MNH Department of Surgery, made significant teaching contributions, performed a wide spectrum of "open procedures" including hand-sewn intestinal anastomoses. Most had had either no or limited previous exposure to hand-sewn anastomoses. All of the residents commented that this was a maturing and challenging clinical rotation due to the complexity of the cases, the limited resources available and the ethical and emotional challenges of dealing with preventable complications and death in a resource constrained environment. The Alliance provides an effective clinical global surgery rotation at MUHAS/MNH for HIC Surgery Departments wishing to provide such an opportunity for their residents and faculty. Copyright © 2017 Association of Program Directors in Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Monthly Deaths Number And Concomitant Environmental Physical Activity: 192 Months Observation (1990-2005)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stoupel, E.; Kalediene, R.; Petrauskiene, J.; Starkuviene, S.; Abramson, E.; Israelevich, P.; Sulkes, J.

2007-12-01

Human life and health state are dependent on many endogenous and exogenous influence factors. The aim of this study is to check the possible links between monthly deaths distribution and concomitant activity of three groups of cosmophysical factors: solar (SA), geomagnetic (GMA) and cosmic ray (CRA) activities. 192 months death number in years 1990-2005 (n=674004) at the Republic of Lithuania were analyzed. Total and both gender data were considered. In addition to the total death numbers, groups of ischemic heart disease (IHD), stroke (CVA), non-cardiovascular (NCV), accident, traffic accident and suicide-related deaths were studied. Sunspot number and solar radio flux (for SA), Ap, Cp and Am indices (for GMA) and neutron activity on the Earth s surface (for CRA) were the environmental physical activity parameters used in this study. Yearly and monthly deaths distributions were also studied. Pearson correlation coefficients (r) and their probabilities (p) were calculated. Multivariate analysis was conducted. Results revealed: 1) significant correlation of monthly deaths number with CRA (total, stroke, NCV and suicides) and inverse with SA and GMA; 2) significant correlation of monthly number of traffic accidents number with SA and GMA, and inverse with CRA; 3) a strong negative relationship between year and IHD/CVA victims number (an evidence for growing role of stroke in cardiovascular mortality); 4) significant links of rising cardiovascular deaths number at the beginning of the year and traffic accidents victims at the end of the year. It is concluded that CRA is related to monthly deaths distribution.

Estimating daily global solar radiation by day of the year in Algeria

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Aoun, Nouar; Bouchouicha, Kada

2017-05-01

This study presents six empirical models based on the day-of-the-year number for estimating global solar radiation on a horizontal surface. For this case study, 21 years of experimental data sets for 21 cities over the whole Algerian territory are utilized to develop these models for each city and for all of Algeria. In this study, the territory of Algeria was divided into four different climatic zones, i.e., Arid, Semi-arid, Highlands and Mediterranean. The accuracy of the all-Algeria model was tested for each city and for each climate zone. To evaluate the accuracy of the models, the RMSE, rRMSE, MABE, MAPE, and R, which are the most commonly applied statistical parameters, were utilized. The results show that the six developed models provide excellent predictions for global solar radiation for each city and for all-Algeria. Furthermore, the model showing the greatest accuracy is the sine and cosine wave trigonometric model.

Recent Global Warming As Depicted by AIRS, GISSTEMP, and MERRA-2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Susskind, J.; Iredell, L. F.; Lee, J. N.

2017-12-01

We observed anomalously warm global mean surface temperatures since 2015. The year 2016 represents the warmest annual mean surface skin and surface air temperatures in the AIRS observational period, September 2002 through August 2017. Additionally, AIRS monthly mean surface skin temperature, from January 2016 through September 2016, and November 2016, were the warmest observed for each month of the year. Continuing this trend, the AIRS global surface temperatures of 2017 February and April show the second greatest positive anomalies from average. This recent warming is particularly significant over the Arctic where the snow and sea ice melt is closely tied to the spring and summer surface temperatures. In this paper, we show the global distribution of surface temperature anomalies as observed by AIRS over the period September 2002 through August 2017 and compare them with those from the GISSTEMP and MERRA-2 surface temperatures. The spatial patterns of warm and cold anomalies for a given month show reasonably good agreement in all three data set. AIRS anomalies, which do not have the benefit of in-situ measurements, are in almost perfect agreement with those of MERRA-2, which does use in-situ surface measurements. GISSTEMP anomaly patterns for the most part look similar to those of AIRS and MERRA-2, but are more spread out spatially, and consequently are also weaker.

Absolute change in fasting plasma glucose over 12 months is associated with 2-year and 5-year major adverse cardiovascular events in patients with drug-eluting stent implants.

PubMed

Kang, Dong Oh; Seo, Hong Seog; Choi, Byung Geol; Lee, Eunmi; Kim, Ji Park; Lee, Sun Ki; Im, Sung Il; Na, Jin Oh; Choi, Cheol Ung; Lim, Hong Euy; Kim, Jin Won; Kim, Eung Ju; Rha, Seung-Woon; Park, Chang Gyu; Oh, Dong Joo

2015-01-20

Major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) in patients with or without cardiovascular disease (CVD) are greatly affected by various factors associated with metabolism and inflammation. To determine which clinical parameters at treatment are associated with the development of 2-year and 5-year MACEs in high-risk patients with CVD who have undergone drug-eluting stent (DES) implantation. The present study involved a total of 432 patients who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention with DES. Variables representing the average and absolute amount of change in clinical parameters over the 12-month follow-up were assessed for association with 2-year and 5-year development of MACE. The study population was divided into quartiles for the variable showing the highest correlation to MACE development. Estimated incidence of 2-year and 5-year MACEs for each of the quartiles was determined by survival curve analysis, and subgroup analysis was performed for patients with diabetes and statin users. Absolute change in fasting plasma glucose (FPG) over 12 months showed the highest correlation with 2-year and 5-year MACE development. The estimated incidence of MACE increased with increasing quartiles for absolute change in FPG. The association between absolute change in FPG and MACE development exhibited a stronger relationship for the specific subgroups of patients with diabetes and statin users. Increases and decreases in FPG had a comparable contribution to MACE development. A greater absolute change in FPG over 12 months post-PCI is an independent risk factor for 2-year and 5-year MACE development in DES-implanted patients, especially in the diabetes and statin users. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Two-Year Colleges Move Toward Global Orientation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schultz, Raymond E.

1977-01-01

Describes events and factors contributing to a global orientation for community colleges, including external and internal forces, the role of university professors, agencies and professional organizations, foreign students, and the influence of staff and student travel. Possibilities and requirements of continued global development are discussed.…

Internet-Based Digital Simulation for Cleft Surgery Education: A 5-Year Assessment of Demographics, Usage, and Global Effect.

PubMed

Kantar, Rami S; Plana, Natalie M; Cutting, Court B; Diaz-Siso, Jesus Rodrigo; Flores, Roberto L

2018-01-29

In October 2012, a freely available, internet-based cleft simulator was created in partnership between academic, nonprofit, and industry sectors. The purpose of this educational resource was to address global disparities in cleft surgery education. This report assesses demographics, usage, and global effect of our simulator, in its fifth year since inception. Evaluate the global effect, usage, and demographics of an internet-based educational digital simulation cleft surgery software. Simulator modules, available in five languages demonstrate surgical anatomy, markings, detailed procedures, and intraoperative footage to supplement digital animation. Available data regarding number of users, sessions, countries reached, and content access were recorded. Surveys evaluating the demographic characteristics of registered users and simulator use were collected by direct e-mail. The total number of simulator new and active users reached 2865 and 4086 in June 2017, respectively. By June 2017, users from 136 countries had accessed the simulator. From 2015 to 2017, the number of sessions was 11,176 with a monthly average of 399.0 ± 190.0. Developing countries accounted for 35% of sessions and the average session duration was 9.0 ± 7.3 minutes. This yields a total simulator screen time of 100,584 minutes (1676 hours). Most survey respondents were surgeons or trainees (87%) specializing in plastic, maxillofacial, or general surgery (89%). Most users found the simulator to be useful (88%), at least equivalent or more useful than other resources (83%), and used it for teaching (58%). Our internet-based interactive cleft surgery platform reaches its intended target audience, is not restricted by socioeconomic barriers to access, and is judged to be useful by surgeons. More than 4000 active users have been reached since inception. The total screen time over approximately 2 years exceeded 1600 hours. This suggests that future surgical simulators of this kind may be sustainable by

Effectiveness of MR Angiography for the Primary Diagnosis of Acute Pulmonary Embolism: Clinical Outcomes at 3 Months and 1 Year

PubMed Central

Schiebler, Mark L.; Nagle, Scott K.; François, Christopher J.; Repplinger, Michael D.; Hamedani, Azita G.; Vigen, Karl K.; Yarlagadda, Rajkumar; Grist, Thomas M.; Reeder, Scott B.

2014-01-01

Purpose To determine the effectiveness of MR angiography for pulmonary embolism (MRA-PE) in symptomatic patients. Materials and Methods We retrospectively reviewed all patients whom were evaluated for possible pulmonary embolism (PE) using MRA-PE. A 3-month and 1-year from MRA-PE electronic medical record (EMR) review was performed. Evidence for venous thromboembolism (VTE) (or death from PE) within the year of follow-up was the outcome surrogate for this study. Results There were 190 MRA-PE exams performed with 97.4% (185/190) of diagnostic quality. There were 148 patients (120 F: 28 M) that had both a diagnostic MRA-PE exam and 1 complete year of EMR follow-up. There were 167 patients (137 F: 30 M) with 3 months or greater follow-up. We found 83% (139/167) and 81% (120/148) MRA-PE exams negative for PE at 3 months and 1 year, respectively. Positive exams for PE were seen in 14% (23/167). During the 1-year follow-up period, five patients (false negative) were diagnosed with DVT (5/148 = 3.4 %), and one of these patients also experienced a non–life-threatening PE. The negative predictive value (NPV) for MRA-PE was 97% (92–99; 95% CI) at 3 months and 96% (90–98; 95% CI) with 1 year of follow-up. Conclusion The NPV of MRA-PE, when used for the primary diagnosis of pulmonary embolism in symptomatic patients, were found to be similar to the published values for CTA-PE. In addition, the technical success rate and safety of MRA-PE were excellent. PMID:23553735

Immunogenicity of quadrivalent HPV and combined hepatitis A and B vaccine when co-administered or administered one month apart to 9-10 year-old girls according to 0-6 month schedule.

PubMed

Gilca, Vladimir; Sauvageau, Chantal; Boulianne, Nicole; De Serres, Gaston; Couillard, Michel; Krajden, Mel; Ouakki, Manale; Murphy, Donald; Trevisan, Andrea; Dionne, Marc

2014-01-01

No immunogenicity data has been reported after a single dose of the quadrivalent HPV vaccine (qHPV-Gardasil®) and no data are available on co-administration of this vaccine with the HAV/HBV vaccine (Twinrix-Junior®). Two pre-licensure studies reported similar anti-HPV but lower anti-HBs titers when co-administering HPV and HBV vaccines. To assess the immunogenicity of the qHPV and HAV/HBV vaccine when co-administered (Group-Co-adm) or given one month apart (Group-Sep) and to measure the persistence of HPV antibodies three years post-second dose of qHPV vaccine in both study groups. 416 9-10 year-old girls were enrolled. Vaccination schedule was 0-6 months. Anti-HAV and anti-HBs were measured in all subjects 6 months post-first dose and 1 month post-second dose. Anti-HPV were measured 6 months post-first dose in Group-Co-adm and in all subjects 1 and 36 months post-second dose. Six months post-first dose: 100% of subjects had detectable anti-HAV and 56% and 73% had detectable anti-HBs in Group-Co-Adm and Group-Sep, respectively. In Group-Co-adm 94, 100, 99 and 96% had detectable antibodies to HPV 6, 11, 16 and 18, respectively. One month post-second dose of qHPV and HAV/HBV vaccine, in both study groups 99.5-100% of subjects had an anti-HAV titer ≥ 20IU/L, 97.5-97.6% an anti-HBs level ≥ 10IU/L, and 100% had an anti-HPV titer ≥ 3LU. Thirty-six months post-second dose of qHPV all but four subjects (99%) had antibodies to HPV18 and 100% had antibodies to HPV6, 11 and 16. The great majority (97-100%) had an anti-HPV titer ≥ 3 LU. Post-second dose administration of qHPV and HAV/HBV, no meaningful difference was observed in the immune response in the two study groups to any component of vaccines. The results indicate that qHPV and HAV/HBV can be given during the same vaccination session. Two doses of of qHPV and HAV/HBV vaccines induce a strong immune response. Three years post-second dose of qHPV, the great majority of subjects had antibodies to HPV types

The Status of NASA's Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Mission 26 Months After Launch

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jackson, Gail; Huffman, George

2016-04-01

particle size distributions internal to the cloud, 5-15 km estimates of regional precipitation and merged global precipitation. Once TRMM data is recalibrated to the high quality standards of GPM (and as GPM continues to operate), TRMM and GPM together, with partner data) can provide a 25-30+ year record of global precipitation. Scientists and hazard decision makers all over the world value GPM's data. Status and successes in terms of spacecraft, instruments, retrieval products, validation, and impacts for science and society will be presented.

Stabilization Wedges and the Management of Global Carbon for the next 50 years

ScienceCinema

Socolow, Robert

2018-05-24

More than 40 years after receiving a Ph.D. in physics, I am still working on problems where conservation laws matter. In particular, for the problems I work on now, the conservation of the carbon atom matters. I will tell the saga of an annual flow of 8 billion tons of carbon associated with the global extraction of fossil fuels from underground. Until recently, it was taken for granted that virtually all of this carbon will move within weeks through engines of various kinds and then into the atmosphere. For compelling environmental reasons, I and many others are challenging this complacent view, asking whether the carbon might wisely be directed elsewhere. To frame this and similar discussions, Steve Pacala and I introduced the 'stabilization wedge' in 2004 as a useful unit for discussing climate stabilization. Updating the definition, a wedge is the reduction of CO2 emissions by one billion tons of carbon per year in 2057, achieved by any strategy generated as a result of deliberate attention to global carbon. Each strategy uses already commercialized technology, generally at much larger scale than today. Implementing seven wedges should enable the world to achieve the interim goal of emitting no more CO2 globally in 2057 than today. This would place humanity, approximately, on a path to stabilizing CO2 at less than double the pre-industrial concentration, and it would put those at the helm in the following 50 years in a position to drive CO2 emissions to a net of zero in the following 50 years. Arguably, the tasks of the two half-centuries are comparably difficult.

Monthly mean simulation experiments with a course-mesh global atmospheric model

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spar, J.; Klugman, R.; Lutz, R. J.; Notario, J. J.

1978-01-01

Substitution of observed monthly mean sea-surface temperatures (SSTs) as lower boundary conditions, in place of climatological SSTs, failed to improve the model simulations. While the impact of SST anomalies on the model output is greater at sea level than at upper levels the impact on the monthly mean simulations is not beneficial at any level. Shifts of one and two days in initialization time produced small, but non-trivial, changes in the model-generated monthly mean synoptic fields. No improvements in the mean simulations resulted from the use of either time-averaged initial data or re-initialization with time-averaged early model output. The noise level of the model, as determined from a multiple initial state perturbation experiment, was found to be generally low, but with a noisier response to initial state errors in high latitudes than the tropics.

Language Outcomes of 7-Year-Old Children with or without a History of Late Language Emergence at 24 Months

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rice, Mabel L.; Taylor, Catherine L.; Zubrick, Stephen R.

2008-01-01

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the language outcomes of 7-year-old children with and without a history of late language emergence at 24 months. Method: One hundred twenty-eight children with a history of late language emergence (LLE) at 24 months and 109 children with a history of normal language emergence (NLE) at 24 months…

Variations in Global Precipitation: Climate-scale to Floods

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Adler, Robert

2006-01-01

Variations in global precipitation from climate-scale to small scale are examined using satellite-based analyses of the Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP) and information from the Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM). Global and large regional rainfall variations and possible long-term changes are examined using the 27- year (1979-2005) monthly dataset from the GPCP. In addition to global patterns associated with phenomena such as ENSO, the data set is explored for evidence of longterm change. Although the global change of precipitation in the data set is near zero, the data set does indicate a small upward trend in the Tropics (25S-25N), especially over ocean. Techniques are derived to isolate and eliminate variations due to ENS0 and major volcanic eruptions and the significance of the trend is examined. The status of TRMM estimates is examined in terms of evaluating and improving the long-term global data set. To look at rainfall variations on a much smaller scale TRMM data is used in combination with observations from other satellites to produce a 3-hr resolution, eight-year data set for examination of weather events and for practical applications such as detecting floods. Characteristics of the data set are presented and examples of recent flood events are examined.

Means, Variability and Trends of Precipitation in the Global Climate as Determined by the 25-year GEWEWGPCP Data Set

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Adler, R. F.; Gu, G.; Curtis, S.; Huffman, G. J.

2004-01-01

The Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP) 25-year precipitation data set is used as a basis to evaluate the mean state, variability and trends (or inter-decadal changes) of global and regional scales of precipitation. The uncertainties of these characteristics of the data set are evaluated by examination of other, parallel data sets and examination of shorter periods with higher quality data (e.g., TRMM). The global and regional means are assessed for uncertainty by comparing with other satellite and gauge data sets, both globally and regionally. The GPCP global mean of 2.6 mdday is divided into values of ocean and land and major latitude bands (Tropics, mid-latitudes, etc.). Seasonal variations globally and by region are shown and uncertainties estimated. The variability of precipitation year-to-year is shown to be related to ENS0 variations and volcanoes and is evaluated in relation to the overall lack of a significant global trend. The GPCP data set necessarily has a heterogeneous time series of input data sources, so part of the assessment described above is to test the initial results for potential influence by major data boundaries in the record.

Intergenerational Consequences: Women's Experiences of Discrimination in Pregnancy Predict Infant Social-Emotional Development at 6 Months and 1 Year.

PubMed

Rosenthal, Lisa; Earnshaw, Valerie A; Moore, Joan M; Ferguson, Darrah N; Lewis, Tené T; Reid, Allecia E; Lewis, Jessica B; Stasko, Emily C; Tobin, Jonathan N; Ickovics, Jeannette R

2018-04-01

Racial/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in infant development in the United States have lifelong consequences. Discrimination predicts poorer health and academic outcomes. This study explored for the first time intergenerational consequences of women's experiences of discrimination reported during pregnancy for their infants' social-emotional development in the first year of life. Data come from a longitudinal study with predominantly Black and Latina, socioeconomically disadvantaged, urban young women (N = 704, Mage = 18.53) across pregnancy through 1 year postpartum. Women were recruited from community hospitals and health centers in a Northeastern US city. Linear regression analyses examined whether women's experiences of everyday discrimination reported during pregnancy predicted social-emotional development outcomes among their infants at 6 months and 1 year of age, controlling for potentially confounding medical and sociodemographic factors. Path analyses tested if pregnancy distress, anxiety, or depressive symptoms mediated significant associations. Everyday discrimination reported during pregnancy prospectively predicted greater inhibition/separation problems and greater negative emotionality, but did not predict attention skills or positive emotionality, at 6 months and 1 year. Depressive symptoms mediated the association of discrimination with negative emotionality at 6 months, and pregnancy distress, anxiety, and depressive symptoms mediated the association of discrimination with negative emotionality at 1 year. Findings support that there are intergenerational consequences of discrimination, extending past findings to infant social-emotional development outcomes in the first year of life. It may be important to address discrimination before and during pregnancy and enhance support to mothers and infants exposed to discrimination to promote health equity across the life span.

Variability and trends in global drought

USGS Publications Warehouse

McCabe, Gregory J.; Wolock, David M.

2015-01-01

Monthly precipitation (P) and potential evapotranspiration (PET) from the CRUTS3.1 data set are used to compute monthly P minus PET (PMPE) for the land areas of the globe. The percent of the global land area with annual sums of PMPE less than zero are used as an index of global drought (%drought) for 1901 through 2009. Results indicate that for the past century %drought has not changed, even though global PET and temperature (T) have increased. Although annual global PET and T have increased, annual global P also has increased and has mitigated the effects of increased PET on %drought.

Comparison of the 9-month intra-stent conditions and 2-year clinical outcomes after Resolute zotarolimus-eluting stent implantation between 3-month and standard dual antiplatelet therapy.

PubMed

Fujimoto, Wataru; Sawada, Takahiro; Toba, Takayoshi; Takahashi, Yu; Miyata, Taishi; Oishi, Shogo; Osue, Tsuyoshi; Onishi, Tetsuari; Takaya, Tomofumi; Shimane, Akira; Taniguchi, Yasuyo; Kawai, Hiroya; Yasaka, Yoshinori

2018-07-01

The use of short-duration dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) remains controversial. To investigate efficacy and safety of short-duration DAPT, we performed a detailed comparison of intra-stent conditions by optical coherence tomography (OCT) after second-generation drug-eluting stent implantation with short-term and standard DAPT. Eighty-two consecutive patients with stable angina pectoris who received Resolute zotarolimus-eluting stents (R-ZESs; Medtronic Cardiovascular, Santa Rosa, CA, USA) were enrolled. Patients were assigned to 3-month (3M group: 41 patients) and standard (standard group: 41 patients) DAPT. In the 3M group, clopidogrel was discontinued 3 months after stent implantation. In the standard group, DAPT was maintained until follow-up OCT. At 9 months, neointimal proliferation was significantly larger in the 3M group, but there were no significant between-group differences in the proportion of uncovered and malapposed strut. The prevalence of abnormal intra-stent tissue (AIT) at 9 months was equivalent between groups. A multiple regression analysis revealed malapposition at 9 months as the strongest independent predictor of AIT at 9 months, and the prevalence of AIT was not associated with DAPT duration. Over 2 years, cardiac events were equal between groups; however, major bleeding was higher tendency in the standard group than in the 3M group. This OCT study indicated that reducing DAPT's duration may provide acceptable arterial healing in patients with implanted R-ZESs. Copyright © 2018 Japanese College of Cardiology. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy in patients over 59 years: early recovery and 12-month follow-up.

PubMed

Leivonen, Marja Kaarina; Juuti, Anne; Jaser, Nabil; Mustonen, Harri

2011-08-01

Bariatric surgery has shown to be safe for patients over 60 years with good results especially considering resolving of comorbidities. Sleeve gastrectomy is considered to be safer than gastric bypass (GBP) and more effective than gastric banding with less adverse symptoms. Weight loss may be more modest than after GBP, but the effect on vitamins may also be milder. Since 2007, we collected prospectively 12-month follow-up data from 55 sleeve gastrectomy patients of whom 12 were over 59 years of age. Vitamin and calcium supplements were used postoperatively. The recovery from the operation was recorded during hospital stay, at 1- and 12-month follow-up visits using a standard protocol including laboratory tests. The results between patients over and under 59 years were compared. The preoperative weight and weight loss were comparable between the groups. Operation time was shorter and hospital stay was longer for older patients, p = ns. There was no operative mortality. Early major complications were seen more often in the older age group, 42% vs 9% (p = 0.02), but late complications were more common in younger patients, 17% vs 44%, p = ns. Early complications were mostly bleedings, which did not lengthen the hospital stay, neither were re-operations nor endoscopic procedures needed. Excess weight loss and resolving of comorbidities after 12 months was comparable between the groups. However, vitamin deficiencies and hypoalbuminemia were more common in the older age group, 42% and 23% for vitamins and 44% and 29% for proteins, p = ns. The older patients had more adverse effects related to surgery, 25% vs 9%, and younger had more adverse psychiatric effects, p = ns. Sleeve gastrectomy is effective and safe for older bariatric patients. Weight loss is comparable to younger patients and enough to resolve the comorbidities in most of the patients. With standardized nutritional supplementation, the older patients had more often vitamin deficiencies and

Estimating 40 years of nitrogen deposition in global biomes using the SCIAMACHY NO2 column

USGS Publications Warehouse

Lu, Xuehe; Zhang, Xiuying; Liu, Jinxun; Jin, Jiaxin

2016-01-01

Owing to human activity, global nitrogen (N) cycles have been altered. In the past 100 years, global N deposition has increased. Currently, the monitoring and estimating of N deposition and the evaluation of its effects on global carbon budgets are the focus of many researchers. NO2 columns retrieved by space-borne sensors provide us with a new way of exploring global N cycles and these have the ability to estimate N deposition. However, the time range limitation of NO2 columns makes the estimation of long timescale N deposition difficult. In this study we used ground-based NOx emission data to expand the density of NO2columns, and 40 years of N deposition (1970–2009) was inverted using the multivariate linear model with expanded NO2 columns. The dynamic of N deposition was examined in both global and biome scales. The results show that the average N deposition was 0.34 g N m–2 year–1 in the 2000s, which was an increase of 38.4% compared with the 1970s’. The total N deposition in different biomes is unbalanced. N deposition is only 38.0% of the global total in forest biomes; this is made up of 25.9%, 11.3, and 0.7% in tropical, temperate, and boreal forests, respectively. As N-limited biomes, there was little increase of N deposition in boreal forests. However, N deposition has increased by a total of 59.6% in tropical forests and croplands, which are N-rich biomes. Such characteristics may influence the effects on global carbon budgets.

The International Year of Astronomy 2009: The Global Programme

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lindberg Christensen, Lars

2009-01-01

The International Year of Astronomy 2009 (IYA2009) is a global collaboration between nations and organisations for peaceful purposes - the search for our cosmic origin, a common heritage that connects everyone. The science of astronomy represents millennia of collaborations across all boundaries: geographic, gender, age, culture and race, in accordance with the principles of the UN Charter. 1 January 2009 will mark the beginning of the IYA2009 in the eyes of the public. However this immense worldwide science outreach and education event began more than six years earlier, with IAU's initiative in 2003. The IYA2009 aims to unite nations under the umbrella of astronomy and science, while at the same time acknowledging cultural differences and national and regional particularities. Never before has such a network of scientists, amateur astronomers, educators, journalists and scientific institutions come together. When the IYA2009 officially kicks off in Paris on 15 January 2009, it is estimated that more than 5000 people will be directly involved in the organisation of IYA2009 activities across the globe. During this talk we will outline the status of the principal projects and activities that make up the Year.

Global Analysis of Empirical Relationships Between Annual Climate and Seasonality of NDVI

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Potter, C. S.

1997-01-01

This study describes the use of satellite data to calibrate a new climate-vegetation greenness function for global change studies. We examined statistical relationships between annual climate indexes (temperature, precipitation, and surface radiation) and seasonal attributes of the AVHRR Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) time series for the mid-1980s in order to refine our empirical understanding of intraannual patterns and global abiotic controls on natural vegetation dynamics. Multiple linear regression results using global l(sup o) gridded data sets suggest that three climate indexes: growing degree days, annual precipitation total, and an annual moisture index together can account to 70-80 percent of the variation in the NDVI seasonal extremes (maximum and minimum values) for the calibration year 1984. Inclusion of the same climate index values from the previous year explained no significant additional portion of the global scale variation in NDVI seasonal extremes. The monthly timing of NDVI extremes was closely associated with seasonal patterns in maximum and minimum temperature and rainfall, with lag times of 1 to 2 months. We separated well-drained areas from l(sup o) grid cells mapped as greater than 25 percent inundated coverage for estimation of both the magnitude and timing of seasonal NDVI maximum values. Predicted monthly NDVI, derived from our climate-based regression equations and Fourier smoothing algorithms, shows good agreement with observed NDVI at a series of ecosystem test locations from around the globe. Regions in which NDVI seasonal extremes were not accurately predicted are mainly high latitude ecosystems and other remote locations where climate station data are sparse.

Causes of global mean surface temperature slowdowns, trends and variations from months to a century, 1891-2015

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Folland, C. K.; Boucher, O.; Colman, A.; Parker, D. E.

2017-12-01

The recent slowdown in the warming of global mean surface temperature (GST) has highlighted the influences of natural variability. This talk discusses reconstructions of the variations of GST down to the monthly time scale since 1891 using monthly forcing data. We show that most of the variations in annual, and to some extent sub-annual, GST since 1891 can be reproduced skillfully from known forcing factors external and internal to the climate system. This includes the slowdown in warming over about 1998-2013 where reconstruction skill is particularly high down to the multi-monthly time scale. The relative contributions of the several key forcing factors to GST continually vary, but most of the net warming since 1891 is reconstructed to be attributable to the net forcing due to increasing greenhouse gases and anthropogenic aerosols. Separate analyses are carried out for three periods of GST slowdown:- 1896-1910, 1941-1976, together with 1998-2013 and some of its sub periods. We also study two periods where strong warming occurred, 1911-1940 and 1977-1997. Comparisons are made with the skill of average GST provided by 40 CMIP5 models. In the recent 1998-2013 slowdown, TSI forcing appears to have caused significant cooling, particularly over 2001-2010. This is additional to well documented cooling effects of an increased frequency of La Nina events, a negative Interdecadal Pacific Oscillation and some increases in volcanic forcing. Although there are short-term features of the GST curve since 1891 that cannot be fully explained, the most serious disagreements between the reconstructions and observations occur in the Second World War, especially in 1944-1945. Here observed near worldwide SSTs may be biased significantly too warm. Despite this, our generally high reconstruction skill is consistent with a good understanding of the multiple causes of observed GST variations and the general veracity of the GST record since 1891.

Quantifying the influence of global warming on unprecedented extreme climate events

PubMed Central

Singh, Deepti; Horton, Daniel E.; Swain, Daniel L.; Touma, Danielle; Charland, Allison; Liu, Yunjie; Haugen, Matz; Tsiang, Michael; Rajaratnam, Bala

2017-01-01

Efforts to understand the influence of historical global warming on individual extreme climate events have increased over the past decade. However, despite substantial progress, events that are unprecedented in the local observational record remain a persistent challenge. Leveraging observations and a large climate model ensemble, we quantify uncertainty in the influence of global warming on the severity and probability of the historically hottest month, hottest day, driest year, and wettest 5-d period for different areas of the globe. We find that historical warming has increased the severity and probability of the hottest month and hottest day of the year at >80% of the available observational area. Our framework also suggests that the historical climate forcing has increased the probability of the driest year and wettest 5-d period at 57% and 41% of the observed area, respectively, although we note important caveats. For the most protracted hot and dry events, the strongest and most widespread contributions of anthropogenic climate forcing occur in the tropics, including increases in probability of at least a factor of 4 for the hottest month and at least a factor of 2 for the driest year. We also demonstrate the ability of our framework to systematically evaluate the role of dynamic and thermodynamic factors such as atmospheric circulation patterns and atmospheric water vapor, and find extremely high statistical confidence that anthropogenic forcing increased the probability of record-low Arctic sea ice extent. PMID:28439005

Quantifying the influence of global warming on unprecedented extreme climate events.

PubMed

Diffenbaugh, Noah S; Singh, Deepti; Mankin, Justin S; Horton, Daniel E; Swain, Daniel L; Touma, Danielle; Charland, Allison; Liu, Yunjie; Haugen, Matz; Tsiang, Michael; Rajaratnam, Bala

2017-05-09

Efforts to understand the influence of historical global warming on individual extreme climate events have increased over the past decade. However, despite substantial progress, events that are unprecedented in the local observational record remain a persistent challenge. Leveraging observations and a large climate model ensemble, we quantify uncertainty in the influence of global warming on the severity and probability of the historically hottest month, hottest day, driest year, and wettest 5-d period for different areas of the globe. We find that historical warming has increased the severity and probability of the hottest month and hottest day of the year at >80% of the available observational area. Our framework also suggests that the historical climate forcing has increased the probability of the driest year and wettest 5-d period at 57% and 41% of the observed area, respectively, although we note important caveats. For the most protracted hot and dry events, the strongest and most widespread contributions of anthropogenic climate forcing occur in the tropics, including increases in probability of at least a factor of 4 for the hottest month and at least a factor of 2 for the driest year. We also demonstrate the ability of our framework to systematically evaluate the role of dynamic and thermodynamic factors such as atmospheric circulation patterns and atmospheric water vapor, and find extremely high statistical confidence that anthropogenic forcing increased the probability of record-low Arctic sea ice extent.

Quantifying the Influence of Global Warming on Unprecedented Extreme Climate Events

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Diffenbaugh, Noah S.; Singh, Deepti; Mankin, Justin S.; Horton, Daniel E.; Swain, Daniel L.; Touma, Danielle; Charland, Allison; Liu, Yunjie; Haugen, Matz; Tsiang, Michael;

BETR Global - A geographically explicit global-scale multimedia contaminant fate model

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Macleod, M.; Waldow, H. von; Tay, P.

2011-04-01

We present two new software implementations of the BETR Global multimedia contaminant fate model. The model uses steady-state or non-steady-state mass-balance calculations to describe the fate and transport of persistent organic pollutants using a desktop computer. The global environment is described using a database of long-term average monthly conditions on a 15{sup o} x 15{sup o} grid. We demonstrate BETR Global by modeling the global sources, transport, and removal of decamethylcyclopentasiloxane (D5).

The development of maternal touch across the first year of life.

PubMed

Ferber, Sari Goldstein; Feldman, Ruth; Makhoul, Imad R

2008-06-01

The developmental trajectories of specific forms of maternal touch during natural caregiving were examined across the first year in relation to the development of mother-infant reciprocal communication. One hundred and thirty-one mothers and infants in four groups aged 3, 6, 9, and 12 months were observed in a cross-sectional design at home during natural caregiving and mother-child play sessions. Microanalytic coding of the caregiving sessions considered nine forms of maternal touch, which were aggregated into three global touch categories: affectionate, stimulating, and instrumental. Play sessions were coded for maternal sensitivity and dyadic reciprocity. Maternal affectionate and stimulating touch decreased significantly during the second 6 months of life. In parallel, dyadic reciprocity increased in the second half year. Dyadic reciprocity was predicted by the frequency of affectionate touch but not by any other form of touch. Results contribute to specifying the role of touch as it evolves across the first year of life within the global mother-infant communication system.

Use of the Screening Tool for Autism in Two-Year-Olds (STAT) for Children under 24 Months: An Exploratory Study

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Stone, Wendy L.; McMahon, Caitlin R.; Henderson, Lynnette M.

2008-01-01

The study examined the properties of the Screening Tool for Autism in Two-Year-Olds (STAT) for children under 24 months. The STAT provides a standard context for observing social-communicative behavior in play, imitation, and communication. Seventy-one children received the STAT between 12 and 23 months of age and a follow-up diagnostic evaluation…

Estimates of Fossil Fuel Carbon Dioxide Emissions From Mexico at Monthly Time Intervals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Losey, L. M.; Andres, R. J.

2003-12-01

Human consumption of fossil fuels has greatly contributed to the rise of carbon dioxide in the Earth's atmosphere. To better understand the global carbon cycle, it is important to identify the major sources of these fossil fuels. Mexico is among the top fifteen nations in the world for producing fossil fuel carbon dioxide emissions. Based on this information and that emissions from Mexico are a focus of the North American Carbon Program, Mexico was selected for this study. Mexican monthly inland sales volumes for January 1988-May 2003 were collected on natural gas and liquid fuels from the Energy Information Agency in the United States Department of Energy. These sales figures represent a major portion of the total fossil fuel consumption in Mexico. The fraction of a particular fossil fuel consumed in a given month was determined by dividing the monthly sales volumes by the annual sum of monthly sales volumes for a given year. This fraction was then multiplied by the annual carbon dioxide values reported by the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center (CDIAC) at Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) to estimate the monthly carbon dioxide emissions from the respective fuels. The advantages of this methodology are: 1) monthly fluxes are consistent with the annual flux as determined by the widely-accepted CDIAC values, and 2) its general application can be easily adapted to other nations for determining their sub-annual time scale emissions. The major disadvantage of this methodology is the proxy nature inherent to it. Only a fraction of the total emissions are used as an estimate in determining the seasonal cycle. The error inherent in this approach increases as the fraction of total emissions represented by the proxy decreases. These data are part of a long-term project between researchers at the University of North Dakota and ORNL which attempts to identify and understand the source(s) of seasonal variations of global, fossil-fuel derived, carbon dioxide emissions

Multicomponent physical exercise with simultaneous cognitive training to enhance dual-task walking of older adults: a secondary analysis of a 6-month randomized controlled trial with 1-year follow-up.

PubMed

Eggenberger, Patrick; Theill, Nathan; Holenstein, Stefan; Schumacher, Vera; de Bruin, Eling D

2015-01-01

About one-third of people older than 65 years fall at least once a year. Physical exercise has been previously demonstrated to improve gait, enhance physical fitness, and prevent falls. Nonetheless, the addition of cognitive training components may potentially increase these effects, since cognitive impairment is related to gait irregularities and fall risk. We hypothesized that simultaneous cognitive-physical training would lead to greater improvements in dual-task (DT) gait compared to exclusive physical training. Elderly persons older than 70 years and without cognitive impairment were randomly assigned to the following groups: 1) virtual reality video game dancing (DANCE), 2) treadmill walking with simultaneous verbal memory training (MEMORY), or 3) treadmill walking (PHYS). Each program was complemented with strength and balance exercises. Two 1-hour training sessions per week over 6 months were applied. Gait variables, functional fitness (Short Physical Performance Battery, 6-minute walk), and fall frequencies were assessed at baseline, after 3 months and 6 months, and at 1-year follow-up. Multiple regression analyses with planned comparisons were carried out. Eighty-nine participants were randomized to three groups initially; 71 completed the training and 47 were available at 1-year follow-up. DANCE/MEMORY showed a significant advantage compared to PHYS in DT costs of step time variability at fast walking (P=0.044). Training-specific gait adaptations were found on comparing DANCE and MEMORY: DANCE reduced step time at fast walking (P=0.007) and MEMORY reduced gait variability in DT and DT costs at preferred walking speed (both trend P=0.062). Global linear time effects showed improved gait (P<0.05), functional fitness (P<0.05), and reduced fall frequency (-77%, P<0.001). Only single-task fast walking, gait variability at preferred walking speed, and Short Physical Performance Battery were reduced at follow-up (all P<0.05 or trend). Long-term multicomponent

Multicomponent physical exercise with simultaneous cognitive training to enhance dual-task walking of older adults: a secondary analysis of a 6-month randomized controlled trial with 1-year follow-up

PubMed Central

Eggenberger, Patrick; Theill, Nathan; Holenstein, Stefan; Schumacher, Vera; de Bruin, Eling D

2015-01-01

Background About one-third of people older than 65 years fall at least once a year. Physical exercise has been previously demonstrated to improve gait, enhance physical fitness, and prevent falls. Nonetheless, the addition of cognitive training components may potentially increase these effects, since cognitive impairment is related to gait irregularities and fall risk. We hypothesized that simultaneous cognitive–physical training would lead to greater improvements in dual-task (DT) gait compared to exclusive physical training. Methods Elderly persons older than 70 years and without cognitive impairment were randomly assigned to the following groups: 1) virtual reality video game dancing (DANCE), 2) treadmill walking with simultaneous verbal memory training (MEMORY), or 3) treadmill walking (PHYS). Each program was complemented with strength and balance exercises. Two 1-hour training sessions per week over 6 months were applied. Gait variables, functional fitness (Short Physical Performance Battery, 6-minute walk), and fall frequencies were assessed at baseline, after 3 months and 6 months, and at 1-year follow-up. Multiple regression analyses with planned comparisons were carried out. Results Eighty-nine participants were randomized to three groups initially; 71 completed the training and 47 were available at 1-year follow-up. DANCE/MEMORY showed a significant advantage compared to PHYS in DT costs of step time variability at fast walking (P=0.044). Training-specific gait adaptations were found on comparing DANCE and MEMORY: DANCE reduced step time at fast walking (P=0.007) and MEMORY reduced gait variability in DT and DT costs at preferred walking speed (both trend P=0.062). Global linear time effects showed improved gait (P<0.05), functional fitness (P<0.05), and reduced fall frequency (−77%, P<0.001). Only single-task fast walking, gait variability at preferred walking speed, and Short Physical Performance Battery were reduced at follow-up (all P<0.05 or

Evaluation of the North American Multi-Model Ensemble System for Monthly and Seasonal Prediction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zhang, Q.

2014-12-01

Since August 2011, the real time seasonal forecasts of the U.S. National Multi-Model Ensemble (NMME) have been made on 8th of each month by NCEP Climate Prediction Center (CPC). The participating models were NCEP/CFSv1&2, GFDL/CM2.2, NCAR/U.Miami/COLA/CCSM3, NASA/GEOS5, IRI/ ECHAM-a & ECHAM-f in the first year of the real time NMME forecast. Two Canadian coupled models CMC/CanCM3 and CM4 joined in and CFSv1 and IRI's models dropped out in the second year. The NMME team at CPC collects monthly means of three variables, precipitation, temperature at 2m and sea surface temperature from each modeling center on a 1x1 global grid, removes systematic errors, makes the grand ensemble mean in equal weight for each model mean and probability forecast with equal weight for each member of each model. This provides the NMME forecast locked in schedule for the CPC operational seasonal and monthly outlook. The basic verification metrics of seasonal and monthly prediction of NMME are calculated as an evaluation of skill, including both deterministic and probabilistic forecasts for the 3-year real time (August, 2011- July 2014) period and the 30-year retrospective forecast (1982-2011) of the individual models as well as the NMME ensemble. The motivation of this study is to provide skill benchmarks for future improvements of the NMME seasonal and monthly prediction system. We also want to establish whether the real time and hindcast periods (used for bias correction in real time) are consistent. The experimental phase I of the project already supplies routine guidance to users of the NMME forecasts.

A 61-year-old man with erythematous forearm papules three months after liver transplantation.

PubMed

Ayrapetyan, Mesrop; Googe, Paul B; Jolly, Puneet; Levinson, Kara; Popowitch, Elena; Lachiewicz, Anne M

2018-06-01

A 61-year-old Caucasian man presented with papules on his left forearm and hand three months after liver transplantation: images from physical exam, pathology, and microbiology are presented. Skin biopsy confirmed the presence of fungal elements within the hair shaft, which is consistent with Majocchi granuloma, also known as nodular granulomatous perifolliculitis. A combination of fungal culture, microscopic morphology, and gene sequencing was used to identify the causative organism. The patient recovered with appropriate systemic antifungal therapy. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

The Burden of Cryptosporidium Diarrheal Disease among Children < 24 Months of Age in Moderate/High Mortality Regions of Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, Utilizing Data from the Global Enteric Multicenter Study (GEMS).

PubMed

Sow, Samba O; Muhsen, Khitam; Nasrin, Dilruba; Blackwelder, William C; Wu, Yukun; Farag, Tamer H; Panchalingam, Sandra; Sur, Dipika; Zaidi, Anita K M; Faruque, Abu S G; Saha, Debasish; Adegbola, Richard; Alonso, Pedro L; Breiman, Robert F; Bassat, Quique; Tamboura, Boubou; Sanogo, Doh; Onwuchekwa, Uma; Manna, Byomkesh; Ramamurthy, Thandavarayan; Kanungo, Suman; Ahmed, Shahnawaz; Qureshi, Shahida; Quadri, Farheen; Hossain, Anowar; Das, Sumon K; Antonio, Martin; Hossain, M Jahangir; Mandomando, Inacio; Nhampossa, Tacilta; Acácio, Sozinho; Omore, Richard; Oundo, Joseph O; Ochieng, John B; Mintz, Eric D; O'Reilly, Ciara E; Berkeley, Lynette Y; Livio, Sofie; Tennant, Sharon M; Sommerfelt, Halvor; Nataro, James P; Ziv-Baran, Tomer; Robins-Browne, Roy M; Mishcherkin, Vladimir; Zhang, Jixian; Liu, Jie; Houpt, Eric R; Kotloff, Karen L; Levine, Myron M

2016-05-01

The importance of Cryptosporidium as a pediatric enteropathogen in developing countries is recognized. Data from the Global Enteric Multicenter Study (GEMS), a 3-year, 7-site, case-control study of moderate-to-severe diarrhea (MSD) and GEMS-1A (1-year study of MSD and less-severe diarrhea [LSD]) were analyzed. Stools from 12,110 MSD and 3,174 LSD cases among children aged <60 months and from 21,527 randomly-selected controls matched by age, sex and community were immunoassay-tested for Cryptosporidium. Species of a subset of Cryptosporidium-positive specimens were identified by PCR; GP60 sequencing identified anthroponotic C. parvum. Combined annual Cryptosporidium-attributable diarrhea incidences among children aged <24 months for African and Asian GEMS sites were extrapolated to sub-Saharan Africa and South Asian regions to estimate region-wide MSD and LSD burdens. Attributable and excess mortality due to Cryptosporidium diarrhea were estimated. Cryptosporidium was significantly associated with MSD and LSD below age 24 months. Among Cryptosporidium-positive MSD cases, C. hominis was detected in 77.8% (95% CI, 73.0%-81.9%) and C. parvum in 9.9% (95% CI, 7.1%-13.6%); 92% of C. parvum tested were anthroponotic genotypes. Annual Cryptosporidium-attributable MSD incidence was 3.48 (95% CI, 2.27-4.67) and 3.18 (95% CI, 1.85-4.52) per 100 child-years in African and Asian infants, respectively, and 1.41 (95% CI, 0.73-2.08) and 1.36 (95% CI, 0.66-2.05) per 100 child-years in toddlers. Corresponding Cryptosporidium-attributable LSD incidences per 100 child-years were 2.52 (95% CI, 0.33-5.01) and 4.88 (95% CI, 0.82-8.92) in infants and 4.04 (95% CI, 0.56-7.51) and 4.71 (95% CI, 0.24-9.18) in toddlers. We estimate 2.9 and 4.7 million Cryptosporidium-attributable cases annually in children aged <24 months in the sub-Saharan Africa and India/Pakistan/Bangladesh/Nepal/Afghanistan regions, respectively, and ~202,000 Cryptosporidium-attributable deaths (regions combined). ~59

Influence of daily versus monthly fire emissions on atmospheric model applications in the tropics

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marlier, M. E.; Voulgarakis, A.; Faluvegi, G.; Shindell, D. T.; DeFries, R. S.

2012-12-01

Fires are widely used throughout the tropics to create and maintain areas for agriculture, but are also significant contributors to atmospheric trace gas and aerosol concentrations. However, the timing and magnitude of fire activity can vary strongly by year and ecosystem type. For example, frequent, low intensity fires dominate in African savannas whereas Southeast Asian peatland forests are susceptible to huge pulses of emissions during regional El Niño droughts. Despite the potential implications for modeling interactions with atmospheric chemistry and transport, fire emissions have commonly been input into global models at a monthly resolution. Recognizing the uncertainty that this can introduce, several datasets have parsed fire emissions to daily and sub-daily scales with satellite active fire detections. In this study, we explore differences between utilizing the monthly and daily Global Fire Emissions Database version 3 (GFED3) products as inputs into the NASA GISS-E2 composition climate model. We aim to understand how the choice of the temporal resolution of fire emissions affects uncertainty with respect to several common applications of global models: atmospheric chemistry, air quality, and climate. Focusing our analysis on tropical ozone, carbon monoxide, and aerosols, we compare modeled concentrations with available ground and satellite observations. We find that increasing the temporal frequency of fire emissions from monthly to daily can improve correlations with observations, predominately in areas or during seasons more heavily affected by fires. Differences between the two datasets are more evident with public health applications: daily resolution fire emissions increases the number of days exceeding World Health Organization air quality targets.

Medium Resolution Global Earth Observations with Landsat: Looking 35 Years Back and 50 Years Forward

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Williams, D. L.; Irons, J. R.; Goward, S. N.

2007-12-01

The modern era of global medium resolution satellite remote sensing was inaugurated 35 years ago, in July 1972, with the launch of the first Landsat satellite carrying the Multispectral Scanner (MSS) sensor. Ten years after that first launch, Landsat 4 carried a much-improved sensor aloft, the Thematic Mapper. The TM provided better spatial resolution (30 m versus 79 m) than the MSS, as well as additional spectral bands in the mid- infrared (IR) and thermal IR regions. Roughly another decade later, in April 1999, the Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) instrument was placed in orbit on Landsat 7. The ETM+ provided a new 15 m panchromatic band and a much-improved thermal band resolution (60 m versus 120 m). Through a combination of planning and good luck, the various Landsat missions have delivered a continuous set of calibrated, multispectral images of the Earth's surface spanning this entire 35-year time period. This imagery database has been used in agricultural evaluations, forest management inventories, geological surveys, water resource estimates, coastal zone appraisals, and a host of other applications to meet the needs of a very broad user community, including business, government, science, education, national security, and now -- even the casual observer -- as Landsat imagery provides the skeletal backbone of Google Earth. Landsat established the U.S. as the world leader in terrestrial remote sensing, contributed significantly to the understanding of the Earth's environment, spawned revolutionary uses of space-based data by the commercial value-added industry, and encouraged a new generation of commercial satellites that provide regional, high-resolution spatial images. In spite of the overall success of the Landsat series of satellites, the first 35 years of the Landsat legacy have been extremely challenging as the push to embrace new technologies was often questioned by those who simply wanted to maintain whatever the current capability was at that

Estimating direct, diffuse, and global solar radiation for various cities in Iran by two methods and their comparison with the measured data

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Ashjaee, M.; Roomina, M.R.; Ghafouri-Azar, R.

1993-05-01

Two computational methods for calculating hourly, daily, and monthly average values of direct, diffuse, and global solar radiation on horizontal collectors have been presented in this article for location with different latitude, altitude, and atmospheric conditions in Iran. These methods were developed using two different independent sets of measured data from the Iranian Meteorological Organization (IMO) for two cities in Iran (Tehran and Isfahan) during 14 years of measurement for Tehran and 4 years of measurement for Isfahan. Comparison of calculated monthly average global solar radiation, using the two models for Tehran and Isfahan with measured data from the IMO,more » has indicated a good agreement between them. Then these developed methods were extended to another location (city of Bandar-Abbas), where measured data are not available. But the work of Daneshyar predicts its monthly global radiation. The maximum discrepancy of 7% between the developed models and the work of Daneshyar was observed.« less

Iron supplementation until 6 months protects marginally low-birth-weight infants from iron deficiency during their first year of life.

PubMed

Berglund, Staffan K; Westrup, Björn; Domellöf, Magnus

2015-03-01

Low-birth-weight (LBW) infants (<2500 g) have an increased risk of iron deficiency (ID) during their first 6 months of life. The optimal dose and duration of iron supplementation to LBW infants are, however, unknown. The objective of the present study was to investigate the long-term effect on iron status and growth in marginally LBW (2000-2500 g) infants, of iron supplements given until 6 months of life. In a randomized controlled trial, 285 healthy marginally LBW infants received 0, 1, or 2 mg · kg(-1) · day(-1) of iron supplements from 6 weeks to 6 months of age. At 12 months and 3.5 years of life we measured length, weight, head circumference, and indicators of iron status (hemoglobin, ferritin, mean corpuscular volume, and transferrin saturation) and assessed the prevalence of iron depletion, functional ID, and ID anemia. At 12 months of age, there was a significant difference in ferritin between the groups (P = 0.006). Furthermore, there was a significant difference in the prevalence of iron depletion (23.7%, 10.6%, and 6.8%, respectively, in the placebo, 1-mg, and 2-mg groups, P = 0.009) and similar nonsignificant trends for functional ID and ID anemia. At 3.5 years of life there were no significant differences in iron status and the mean prevalence of iron depletion was 3.2%. Anthropometric data were not affected by the intervention. Iron supplements with 2 mg · kg(-1) · day(-1) until 6 months of life effectively reduces the risk of ID during the first 12 months of life and is an effective intervention for preventing early ID in marginally LBW infants.

Auditory Brainstem Responses from Children Three Months to Three Years of Age: Normal Patterns of Response II.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gorga, Michael P.; And Others

1989-01-01

Auditory brainstem responses (ABR) were measured in 535 children from 3 months to 3 years of age. Results suggested that changes in wave V latency with age are due to central (neural) factors and that age-appropriate norms should be used in evaluations of ABR latencies in children. (Author/DB)

Febrile Convulsion among Hospitalized Children Aged Six Months to Five Years and Its Association With Haemoglobin Electrophoretic Pattern.

PubMed

Adeboye, M; Ojuawo, A; Adeniyi, A; Ibraheem, R M; Amiwero, C

2015-07-01

Febrile convulsion and sickle cell disease are common in tropical countries and both are associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Worldwide, Nigeria has the highest prevalence of sickle cell disease. However, there is a dearth of knowledge on the haemoglobin electrophoresis in patients with febrile convulsions. This was a hospital based, descriptive, cross-sectional study of the relationship between haemoglobin genotype and febrile convulsion at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital over a period of 12 months. A self-designed pretested questionnaire was administered on the subjects, and necessary examinations and investigations were conducted. Of a total of 1675 children admitted into the emergency paediatric unit during the study period, children aged 6 months-5 years that presented with febrile convulsions were 167(10%). Of this, 1,212 were aged 6 months-5 years. Thus, the age specific, hospital-based prevalence was 13.8%. The M:F was 1.1:1. Their Haemoglobin genotype distribution was AA 131(78.4%), AS 23(13.8%), AC 6(3.6%), SS 6(3.6%), and 1(0.6%) SC. The mean age of the sickle cell disease patients was higher at 46.0±13.5 months compared to 29.2±15.4 months in the non-sickle cell disease patients (p=0.005). The mean packed cell volume in subjects with sickle cell anaemia was 8.8±1.5%; the only case of haemoglobin SC had packed cell volume of 20%, while the non-sickle cell disease patients had a normal PCV. Malaria was present in 80.4% of them. Febrile convulsion remains a common cause of hospitalisation. It is uncommon in haemoglobin SS where severe anaemia is always an accompanying derangement. The packed cell volume is nearly normal in children with normal haemoglobin genotype.

Changes and tracking of fruit, vegetables and sugar-sweetened beverages intake from 18 months to 7 years in the Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study.

PubMed

Bjelland, Mona; Brantsæter, Anne Lise; Haugen, Margaretha; Meltzer, Helle Margrete; Nystad, Wenche; Andersen, Lene Frost

2013-08-30

A few studies have investigated tracking of dietary patterns or nutrient intake in pre-school children, but no studies have been identified examining tracking of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSB), fruit and vegetable intakes in early childhood (1-7 year olds). The purpose of this study was to investigate changes and tracking of intakes of fruit, vegetables and SSB, and association between maternal education and dietary tracking, from 18 months to 7 years of age. Longitudinal data from the nation-wide Norwegian Mother and Child Cohort Study, conducted by the Norwegian Institute of Public Health were used, including 9025 children participating at three time points (18 months, 36 months and 7 years). Frequencies of fruit, vegetables and SSB were assessed by questionnaire. Slightly different questions were used at each time point to collect information about intake. Maternal education was categorized into ≤ 12 years, 13-16 years, ≥ 17 years. Cross-tabulation, Spearman's rho and multinomial logistic regression were used for assessing change, tracking and differences by maternal education. Analyses by gender indicated largest changes for intake of fruit and SSB from age 18 months to 7 years. Fair to moderate tracking coefficients (Spearman's rho = 0.23-0.46) for intake of fruit, vegetables and SSB were found and children assigned to low, medium and high frequency of consumption at 18 months continued to be in the same group at age 36 months and 7 years. Children of mothers with low education consumed fruit and vegetables less often and SSB more often compared to children of mothers with high education at 18 months of age. Children with higher educated mothers had lower odds for increasing fruit intake or decreasing SSB intake, compared to children with lower educated mothers showing a stable intake. The tracking coefficients for intakes were fair to moderate and differences in intakes according to maternal education were found already at age 18 months. This

Use of TRMM Rainfall Information in Improving Long-Term, Satellite-Based Global Precipitation Analyses

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Starr, David OC. (Technical Monitor); Adler, Robert F.; Huffman, George; Curtis, Scott; Bolvin, David; Nelkin, Eric

2002-01-01

The TRMM rainfall products are inter-compared among themselves and to the 23 year, monthly, globally complete precipitation analysis of the World Climate Research Program's (WCRP/ GEWEX) Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP). Ways in which the TRMM-based estimates can be used to improve the long-term data set are described. These include improvement of the passive microwave algorithm that is applied to the 15 year SSM/I record and calibration or adjustment of the current GPCP fields utilizing the 4-5 year overlap of TRMM and GPCP. A comparison of the GPCP monthly surface precipitation fields and the TRMM-based multi-satellite analyses indicates that the two are similar, but have significant differences that relate to the different input data sets. Although on a zonal average basis over the ocean the two analyses are similar in the deep Tropics, there are subtle differences between the eastern and western Pacific Ocean in the relative magnitudes. In mid-latitudes the GPCP has somewhat larger mean precipitation than TRMM. Statistical comparisons of TRMM and GPCP monthly fields are carried out in terms of histogram matching for both ocean and land regions and for small areas to diagnose differences. These comparisons form the basis for a TRMM calibration of the GPCP fields using matched histograms over regional areas as a function of season. Although final application of this procedure will likely await the Version 6 of the TRMM products, tests using Version 5 are shown that provide a TRMM-calibrated GPCP version that will produce an improved climatology and a more accurate month-to-month precipitation analysis for the last 20 years.

A 20-year simulated climatology of global dust aerosol deposition.

PubMed

Zheng, Yu; Zhao, Tianliang; Che, Huizheng; Liu, Yu; Han, Yongxiang; Liu, Chong; Xiong, Jie; Liu, Jianhui; Zhou, Yike

2016-07-01

Based on a 20-year (1991-2010) simulation of dust aerosol deposition with the global climate model CAM5.1 (Community Atmosphere Model, version 5.1), the spatial and temporal variations of dust aerosol deposition were analyzed using climate statistical methods. The results indicated that the annual amount of global dust aerosol deposition was approximately 1161±31Mt, with a decreasing trend, and its interannual variation range of 2.70% over 1991-2010. The 20-year average ratio of global dust dry to wet depositions was 1.12, with interannual variation of 2.24%, showing the quantity of dry deposition of dust aerosol was greater than dust wet deposition. High dry deposition was centered over continental deserts and surrounding regions, while wet deposition was a dominant deposition process over the North Atlantic, North Pacific and northern Indian Ocean. Furthermore, both dry and wet deposition presented a zonal distribution. To examine the regional changes of dust aerosol deposition on land and sea areas, we chose the North Atlantic, Eurasia, northern Indian Ocean, North Pacific and Australia to analyze the interannual and seasonal variations of dust deposition and dry-to-wet deposition ratio. The deposition amounts of each region showed interannual fluctuations with the largest variation range at around 26.96% in the northern Indian Ocean area, followed by the North Pacific (16.47%), Australia (9.76%), North Atlantic (9.43%) and Eurasia (6.03%). The northern Indian Ocean also had the greatest amplitude of interannual variation in dry-to-wet deposition ratio, at 22.41%, followed by the North Atlantic (9.69%), Australia (6.82%), North Pacific (6.31%) and Eurasia (4.36%). Dust aerosol presented a seasonal cycle, with typically strong deposition in spring and summer and weak deposition in autumn and winter. The dust deposition over the northern Indian Ocean exhibited the greatest seasonal change range at about 118.00%, while the North Atlantic showed the lowest seasonal

A 305 year monthly rainfall series for the Island of Ireland (1711-2016)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Murphy, Conor; Burt, Tim P.; Broderick, Ciaran; Duffy, Catriona; Macdonald, Neil; Matthews, Tom; McCarthy, Mark P.; Mullan, Donal; Noone, Simon; Ryan, Ciara; Thorne, Peter; Walsh, Seamus; Wilby, Robert L.

2017-04-01

This paper derives a continuous 305-year monthly rainfall series for the Island of Ireland (IoI) for the period 1711-2016. Two key data sources are employed: i) a previously unpublished UK Met Office Note which compiled annual rainfall anomalies and corresponding monthly per mille amounts from weather diaries and early observational records for the period 1711-1977; and ii) a long-term, homogenised monthly IoI rainfall series for the period 1850-2016. Using estimates of long-term average precipitation sampled from the quality assured series, the full record is reconstituted and insights drawn regarding notable periods and the range of climate variability and change experienced. Consistency with other long records for the region is examined, including: the England and Wales Precipitation series (EWP; 1766-2016); the early EWP Glasspoole series (1716-1765) and the Central England Temperature series (CET; 1711-2016). Strong correspondence between all records is noted from 1780 onwards. While disparities are evident between the early EWP and Ireland series, the latter shows strong decadal consistency with CET throughout the record. In addition, independent, early observations from Cork and Dublin, along with available documentary sources, corroborate the derived series and add confidence to our reconstruction. The new IoI rainfall record reveals that the wettest decades occurred in the early 18th Century, despite the fact that IoI has experienced a long-term winter wetting trend consistent with climate model projections. These exceptionally wet winters of the 1720s and 1730s were concurrent with almost unprecedented warmth in the CET, glacial advance throughout Scandinavia, and glacial retreat in West Greenland, consistent with a wintertime NAO-type forcing. Our study therefore demonstrates the value of long-term observational records for providing insight to the natural climate variability of the North Atlantic region.

Constraining estimates of global soil respiration by quantifying sources of variability.

PubMed

Jian, Jinshi; Steele, Meredith K; Thomas, R Quinn; Day, Susan D; Hodges, Steven C

2018-05-10

Quantifying global soil respiration (R SG ) and its response to temperature change are critical for predicting the turnover of terrestrial carbon stocks and their feedbacks to climate change. Currently, estimates of R SG range from 68 to 98 Pg C year -1 , causing considerable uncertainty in the global carbon budget. We argue the source of this variability lies in the upscaling assumptions regarding the model format, data timescales, and precipitation component. To quantify the variability and constrain R SG , we developed R SG models using Random Forest and exponential models, and used different timescales (daily, monthly, and annual) of soil respiration (R S ) and climate data to predict R SG . From the resulting R SG estimates (range = 66.62-100.72 Pg), we calculated variability associated with each assumption. Among model formats, using monthly R S data rather than annual data decreased R SG by 7.43-9.46 Pg; however, R SG calculated from daily R S data was only 1.83 Pg lower than the R SG from monthly data. Using mean annual precipitation and temperature data instead of monthly data caused +4.84 and -4.36 Pg C differences, respectively. If the timescale of R S data is constant, R SG estimated by the first-order exponential (93.2 Pg) was greater than the Random Forest (78.76 Pg) or second-order exponential (76.18 Pg) estimates. These results highlight the importance of variation at subannual timescales for upscaling to R SG . The results indicated R SG is lower than in recent papers and the current benchmark for land models (98 Pg C year -1 ), and thus may change the predicted rates of terrestrial carbon turnover and the carbon to climate feedback as global temperatures rise. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Serum anti-tetanus and measles antibody titres in Ugandan children aged 4 months to 6 years: implications for vaccine programme.

PubMed

Warrener, Lenesha; Bwogi, Josephine; Andrews, Nick; Samuel, Dhanraj; Kabaliisa, Theopista; Bukenya, Henry; Brown, Kevin; Roper, Martha H; Featherstone, David A; Brown, David

2018-05-09

To study the antibody response to tetanus toxoid and measles by age following vaccination in children aged 4 months to 6 years in Entebbe, Uganda. Serum samples were obtained from 113 children aged 4-15 months, at the Mother-Child Health Clinic (MCHC), Entebbe Hospital and from 203 of the 206 children aged between 12 and 75 months recruited through the Outpatients Department (OPD). Antibodies to measles were quantified by plaque reduction neutralisation test (PRNT) and with Siemens IgG EIA. VaccZyme IgG EIA was used to quantify anti-tetanus antibodies. Sera from 96 of 113 (85.0%) children attending the MCHC contained Measles PRNT titres below the protective level (120 mIU/ml). Sera from 24 of 203 (11.8%) children attending the OPD contained PRNT titres 0.15 IU/ml by EIA, a level considered protective. The overall concentration of anti-tetanus antibody was sixfold higher in children under 12 months compared with the older children, with geometric mean concentrations of 3.15 IU/ml and 0.49 IU/ml, respectively. For each doubling in age between 4 and 64 months, the anti-tetanus antibody concentration declined by 50%. As time since the administration of the third DTP vaccination doubled, anti-tetanus antibody concentration declined by 39%. The low measles antibody prevalence in the children presenting at the MCHC is consistent with the current measles epidemiology in Uganda, where a significant number of measles cases occur in children under 1 year of age and earlier vaccination may be indicated. The consistent fall in anti-tetanus antibody titre over time following vaccination supports the need for further vaccine boosters at age 4-5 years as recommended by the WHO.

Reconstruction of global gridded monthly sectoral water withdrawals for 1971-2010 and analysis of their spatiotemporal patterns

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Huang, Zhongwei; Hejazi, Mohamad; Li, Xinya; Tang, Qiuhong; Vernon, Chris; Leng, Guoyong; Liu, Yaling; Döll, Petra; Eisner, Stephanie; Gerten, Dieter; Hanasaki, Naota; Wada, Yoshihide

2018-04-01

Human water withdrawal has increasingly altered the global water cycle in past decades, yet our understanding of its driving forces and patterns is limited. Reported historical estimates of sectoral water withdrawals are often sparse and incomplete, mainly restricted to water withdrawal estimates available at annual and country scales, due to a lack of observations at seasonal and local scales. In this study, through collecting and consolidating various sources of reported data and developing spatial and temporal statistical downscaling algorithms, we reconstruct a global monthly gridded (0.5°) sectoral water withdrawal dataset for the period 1971-2010, which distinguishes six water use sectors, i.e., irrigation, domestic, electricity generation (cooling of thermal power plants), livestock, mining, and manufacturing. Based on the reconstructed dataset, the spatial and temporal patterns of historical water withdrawal are analyzed. Results show that total global water withdrawal has increased significantly during 1971-2010, mainly driven by the increase in irrigation water withdrawal. Regions with high water withdrawal are those densely populated or with large irrigated cropland production, e.g., the United States (US), eastern China, India, and Europe. Seasonally, irrigation water withdrawal in summer for the major crops contributes a large percentage of total annual irrigation water withdrawal in mid- and high-latitude regions, and the dominant season of irrigation water withdrawal is also different across regions. Domestic water withdrawal is mostly characterized by a summer peak, while water withdrawal for electricity generation has a winter peak in high-latitude regions and a summer peak in low-latitude regions. Despite the overall increasing trend, irrigation in the western US and domestic water withdrawal in western Europe exhibit a decreasing trend. Our results highlight the distinct spatial pattern of human water use by sectors at the seasonal and annual

Do developmental milestones at 4, 8, 12 and 24 months predict IQ at 5-6 years old? Results of the EDEN mother-child cohort.

PubMed

Peyre, Hugo; Charkaluk, Marie-Laure; Forhan, Anne; Heude, Barbara; Ramus, Franck

2017-03-01

The present study aims: (i) to determine how well developmental milestones at 4, 8, 12 and 24 months may predict IQ at 5-6 years old, (ii) to identify cognitive domains during the first two years that best predict later IQ and (iii) to determine whether children with IQ in the normal range at 5-6 years old may differ from disabled (IQ < 70) and gifted children (IQ > 130) with regard to their early cognitive development. The main developmental milestones were collected through self-administered questionnaires rated by parents at 4, 8, 12 and 24 months and through parental questionnaires administered by a trained interviewer and questionnaires completed following a medical examination at 12 months. These questionnaires were derived from the Brunet-Lézine Psychomotor Development Scale and they addressed several cognitive domains (gross and fine motor skills, language and socialization). (i) Developmental milestones predict a substantial part of the later IQ variance from 24 months (R 2  ∼ 20%). (ii) Early language skills more strongly predict later IQ than the other cognitive domains. (iii) Several cognitive domains, but particularly language skills, predict disabled children at 5-6 years old (from the age of 8 months) and gifted children (from the age of 12 months). The present study provides valuable information for early developmental assessment and could contribute to a better understanding of intellectual development. Copyright © 2016 European Paediatric Neurology Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Global and Local Processing of Incidental Information and Memory Retrieval at 6 Months.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bhatt, Ramesh S.; And Others

1994-01-01

Five experiments examined the role of global and local cues in memory retrieval in infancy. Results showed that infants encode and remember for substantial periods of time not only the shape of figures displayed in their periphery but also the global organization of these figures. They also adapt this information when responding to new events.…

Recovery in treated aphasia in the first year post-stroke.

PubMed

Sarno, M T; Levita, E

1979-01-01

During a one year post-stroke period of observation, the recovery trend in treated aphasic patients was characterized by general progression in communication skill. The most notable improvement occurred on a measure of everyday function with changes worthy of note on tasks of auditory comprehension and spontaneous word production. In the first 6 months post-stroke, the greatest gain occurred in aphasic patients classified as Fluent, and the least gain in Global aphasics. On the auditory comprehension task, however, improvement was noted in all aphasics regardless of type. In contrast, during the latter half of the first year post-stroke, Fluent aphasics showed least and Global aphasics the greatest improvement. In spite of their progress, Global aphasic patients remained considerably more impaired than the other groups. That the Global aphasics remained so impaired was expected, but the extent and temporal characteristics of their progress in communicating was unexpected.

Linking the isotopic composition of monthly precipitation, cave drip water and tree ring cellulose - 15 years of monitoring and data-model comparison

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Labuhn, Inga; Genty, Dominique; Daux, Valérie; Bourges, François; Hoffmann, Georg

2013-04-01

The isotopic composition of proxies used for palaeoclimate reconstruction, like tree ring cellulose or speleothem calcite, is controlled to a large extent by the isotopic composition of precipitation. In order to calibrate and interpret these proxies in terms of climate, it is necessary to study water isotopes in rainfall and their link with the proxies' source water. We present 10 to 15-year series of stable hydrogen and oxygen isotopes in monthly precipitation from three sites in the south of France, along with corresponding REMOiso model simulations, a monitoring of cave drip water from two of these sites (Villars cave in the south-west and Chauvet cave in the south-east), as well as measurements of oxygen isotopes in tree ring cellulose from oak trees growing in the same area. The isotopic composition of monthly precipitation at the three sites displays a typical annual cycle. At the south-west sites, under Atlantic influence, the interannual variability is much more pronounced during the winter months than during the summer, whereas the south-eastern Mediterranean site shows the same variability throughout the year. The model simulations are able to reproduce the annual cycle of monthly precipitation δ18O as well as the intra-seasonal variability. Compared to the data, however, the modelled average isotopic values and the seasonal amplitude are overestimated. Correlations between temperature and precipitation δ18O are generally weak at all our sites, on both the monthly and the annual scale, even when using temperature averages weighted by the amount of precipitation. Consequently, a proxy which is controlled by the δ18O of precipitation cannot be directly interpreted in terms of temperature in this region. The isotopic composition of cave drip water in both caves remains stable throughout the monitoring period. By calculating different weighted averages of precipitation δ18O for time periods ranging from months to years, we demonstrate that the cave drip

The global burden of measles in the year 2000--a model that uses country-specific indicators.

PubMed

Stein, Claudia E; Birmingham, Maureen; Kurian, Mary; Duclos, Philippe; Strebel, Peter

2003-05-15

The estimation of the global burden of measles is challenging in the absence of reliable and comparable surveillance systems worldwide. A static model is described that enables estimation of measles morbidity, mortality, and disability for the year 2000 on the basis of country-specific information (i.e., demographic profile, vaccine coverage, and estimates of case-fatality ratios). This approach estimated a global incidence of 39.9 million measles cases, 777,000 deaths, and 28 million disability-adjusted life years. The World Health Organization regions of Africa and Southeast Asia had 70% of incident cases and 84% of measles-related deaths; 11 countries alone (Afghanistan, Burkina Faso, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Somalia, Uganda) account for 66% of deaths. This approach quantifies the measles burden by considering country-specific indicators, which can be updated, permitting an assessment of country, regional, and global changes in the burden associated with measles infection.

Scientometric analysis of published papers in global ophthalmology in the past ten years

PubMed Central

Yu, Zheng-Lu; Hu, Xin-Yue; Wang, Ying-Na; Ma, Zheng

2017-01-01

AIM To investigate the published papers of ophthalmology in past ten years and explore the development of ophthalmology. METHORDS The data of this study retrieved from Science Citation Index Expanded and downloaded online in November 2017, including all the papers with publication year from 2007-2016 were analyzed. The papers were based on the Web of Science category and the journals were based on the Journal Citation Report category. RESULTS The number of ophthalmology papers increased from 7450 to 9089 during 2007 to 2017. The average rate increased 2.2% annually. USA accounts for one thirds of the total and two thirds of the highly cited papers. In Asia, China, Japan and South Korea were in Top 10 by the number of ophthalmology papers. UK, Germany, Japan and Australia also had great impact in global ophthalmology. The hot spots included endothelial growth factor, optical coherence tomography and open-angle glaucoma. CONCLUSION USA is in the leading position in global ophthalmology. Part of Asian countries play an important role in the development of ophthalmology, but the impact needs to be improved. PMID:29259910

Scientometric analysis of published papers in global ophthalmology in the past ten years.

PubMed

Yu, Zheng-Lu; Hu, Xin-Yue; Wang, Ying-Na; Ma, Zheng

2017-01-01

To investigate the published papers of ophthalmology in past ten years and explore the development of ophthalmology. The data of this study retrieved from Science Citation Index Expanded and downloaded online in November 2017, including all the papers with publication year from 2007-2016 were analyzed. The papers were based on the Web of Science category and the journals were based on the Journal Citation Report category. The number of ophthalmology papers increased from 7450 to 9089 during 2007 to 2017. The average rate increased 2.2% annually. USA accounts for one thirds of the total and two thirds of the highly cited papers. In Asia, China, Japan and South Korea were in Top 10 by the number of ophthalmology papers. UK, Germany, Japan and Australia also had great impact in global ophthalmology. The hot spots included endothelial growth factor, optical coherence tomography and open-angle glaucoma. USA is in the leading position in global ophthalmology. Part of Asian countries play an important role in the development of ophthalmology, but the impact needs to be improved.

Compensatory Water Effects Link Yearly Global Land CO2 Sink Changes to Temperature

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Jung, Martin; Reichstein, Markus; Tramontana, Gianluca; Viovy, Nicolas; Schwalm, Christopher R.; Wang, Ying-Ping; Weber, Ulrich; Weber, Ulrich; Zaehle, Soenke; Zeng, Ning;

The Derivation Of A CO2 Fugacity Climatology From SOCAT's Global In SITU Data

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goddijn-Murphy, L. M.; Woolf, D. K.; Land, P. E.; Shutler, J. D.

2013-12-01

The Surface Ocean CO2 Atlas (SOCAT) has made millions of global underway sea surface measurements of CO2 publicly available, all in a uniform format and presented as fugacity, fCO2. However, these fCO2 values are valid strictly only for the instantaneous temperature at measurement and are not ideal for climatology. We recomputed these fCO2 values for the measurement month to be applicable to climatological sea surface temperatures, extrapolated to reference year 2010. The data were then spatially interpolated on a 1°×1° grid of the global oceans to produce 12 monthly fCO2 distributions. Our climatology data will be shared with the science community.

The Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP): Results, Status and Future

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Adler, Robert F.

2007-01-01

The Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP) is one of a number of long-term, satellite-based, global analyses routinely produced under the auspices of the World Climate Research Program (WCRP) and its Global Energy and Watercycle EXperiment (GEWEX) program. The research quality analyses are produced a few months after real-time through the efforts of scientists at various national agencies and universities in the U.S., Europe and Japan. The primary product is a monthly analysis of surface precipitation that is globally complete and spans the period 1979-present. There are also pentad analyses for the same period and a daily analysis for the 1997-present period. Although generated with somewhat different data sets and analysis schemes, the pentad and daily data sets are forced to agree with the primary monthly analysis on a grid box by grid box basis. The primary input data sets are from low-orbit passive microwave observations, geostationary infrared observations and surface raingauge information. Examples of research with the data sets are discussed, focusing on tropical (25N-25s) rainfall variations and possible long-term changes in the 28-year (1979-2006) monthly dataset. Techniques are used to discriminate among the variations due to ENSO, volcanic events and possible long-term changes for rainfall over both land and ocean. The impact of the two major volcanic eruptions over the past 25 years is estimated to be about a 5% maximum reduction in tropical rainfall during each event. Although the global change of precipitation in the data set is near zero, a small upward linear change over tropical ocean (0.06 mm/day/l0yr) and a slight downward linear change over tropical land (-0.03 mm/day/l0yr) are examined to understand the impact of the inhomogeneity in the data record and the length of the data set. These positive changes correspond to about a 5% increase (ocean) and 3% increase (ocean plus land) during this time period. Relations between variations in

Continued cannabis use at one year follow up is associated with elevated mood and lower global functioning in bipolar I disorder.

PubMed

Kvitland, Levi Roestad; Melle, Ingrid; Aminoff, Sofie Ragnhild; Demmo, Christine; Lagerberg, Trine Vik; Andreassen, Ole Andreas; Ringen, Petter Andreas

2015-02-05

There is limited knowledge about how environmental factors affect the course of bipolar disorder (BD). Cannabis has been proposed as a potential risk factor for poorer course of illness, but the role of cannabis use has not been studied in a first treatment BD I sample. The present study examines the associations between course of illness in first treatment BD I and continued cannabis use, from baseline to one year follow up. Patients (N = 62) with first treatment DSM-IV BD I were included as part of the Thematically Organized Psychosis study (TOP), and completed interviews and self-report questionnaires at both baseline and follow up. Cannabis use within the last six months at baseline and use between baseline and follow up ("continued use") was recorded. After controlling for confounders, continued cannabis use was significantly associated with elevated mood (YMRS) and inferior global functioning (GAF-F) at follow up. Elevated mood mediated the effect of cannabis use on global functioning. These results suggest that cannabis use has clinical implications for the early course of BD by increasing mood level. More focus on reducing cannabis use in clinical settings seems to be useful for improving outcome in early phase of the disorder.

The UK Government's global partnership programme - Its achievements over the past five years and challenges ahead

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Heyes, Alan

2007-07-01

Through the Global Partnership the UK continues to make a significant contribution to improve national and global security. Over the past year the UK has continued to implement a wide range of projects across the breadth of its Global Partnership Programme. As well as ensuring the Programme is robust and capable of dealing with new challenges, the UK has cooperated with other donor countries to help them progress projects associated with submarine dismantling, scientist redirection, enhancing nuclear security and Chemical Weapons Destruction. The Global Partnership, although only five years old, has already achieved a great deal. Some 23 states, plusmore » the European Union, are now working closer together under the Global Partnership, and collectively have enhanced global regional and national security by reducing the availability of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) materials and expertise to both states of concern and terrorists. Considerable progress has already been made in, for example: - Improving the security of fissile materials, dangerous biological agents and chemical weapons stocks; - Reducing the number of sites containing radioactive materials; - Working towards closure of reactors still producing weapon-grade plutonium; - Improving nuclear safety to reduce the risks of further, Chernobyl style accidents; - Constructing facilities for destroying Chemical Weapons stocks, and starting actual destruction; - Providing sustainable employment for former WMD scientists to reduce the risk that their expertise will be misused by states or terrorists. By contributing to many of these activities, the UK has helped to make the world safer. This paper reports on the UK's practical and sustainable contribution to the Global Partnership and identifies a number of challenges that remain if it is to have a wider impact on reducing the threats from WMD material. (authors)« less

Performance assessment of different day-of-the-year-based models for estimating global solar radiation - Case study: Egypt

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hassan, Gasser E.; Youssef, M. Elsayed; Ali, Mohamed A.; Mohamed, Zahraa E.; Shehata, Ali I.

2016-11-01

Different models are introduced to predict the daily global solar radiation in different locations but there is no specific model based on the day of the year is proposed for many locations around the world. In this study, more than 20 years of measured data for daily global solar radiation on a horizontal surface are used to develop and validate seven models to estimate the daily global solar radiation by day of the year for ten cities around Egypt as a case study. Moreover, the generalization capability for the best models is examined all over the country. The regression analysis is employed to calculate the coefficients of different suggested models. The statistical indicators namely, RMSE, MABE, MAPE, r and R2 are calculated to evaluate the performance of the developed models. Based on the validation with the available data, the results show that the hybrid sine and cosine wave model and 4th order polynomial model have the best performance among other suggested models. Consequently, these two models coupled with suitable coefficients can be used for estimating the daily global solar radiation on a horizontal surface for each city, and also for all the locations around the studied region. It is believed that the established models in this work are applicable and significant for quick estimation for the average daily global solar radiation on a horizontal surface with higher accuracy. The values of global solar radiation generated by this approach can be utilized in the design and estimation of the performance of different solar applications.

Precise monitoring of global temperature trends from satellites

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Spencer, Roy W.; Christy, John R.

1990-01-01

Passive microwave radiometry from satellites provides more precise atmospheric temperature information than that obtained from the relatively sparse distribution of thermometers over the earth's surface. Accurate global atmospheric temperature estimates are needed for detection of possible greenhouse warming, evaluation of computer models of climate change, and for understanding important factors in the climate system. Analysis of the first 10 years (1979 to 1988) of satellite measurements of lower atmospheric temperature changes reveals a monthly precision of 0.01 C, large temperature variability on time scales from weeks to several years, but no obvious trend for the 10-year period. The warmest years, in descending order, were 1987, 1988, 1983, and 1980. The years 1984, 1985, and 1986 were the coolest.

The effect of year-to-year variability of leaf area index on Variable Infiltration Capacity model performance and simulation of runoff

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tesemma, Z. K.; Wei, Y.; Peel, M. C.; Western, A. W.

2015-09-01

This study assessed the effect of using observed monthly leaf area index (LAI) on hydrological model performance and the simulation of runoff using the Variable Infiltration Capacity (VIC) hydrological model in the Goulburn-Broken catchment of Australia, which has heterogeneous vegetation, soil and climate zones. VIC was calibrated with both observed monthly LAI and long-term mean monthly LAI, which were derived from the Global Land Surface Satellite (GLASS) leaf area index dataset covering the period from 1982 to 2012. The model performance under wet and dry climates for the two different LAI inputs was assessed using three criteria, the classical Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency, the logarithm transformed flow Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency and the percentage bias. Finally, the deviation of the simulated monthly runoff using the observed monthly LAI from simulated runoff using long-term mean monthly LAI was computed. The VIC model predicted monthly runoff in the selected sub-catchments with model efficiencies ranging from 61.5% to 95.9% during calibration (1982-1997) and 59% to 92.4% during validation (1998-2012). Our results suggest systematic improvements, from 4% to 25% in Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency, in sparsely forested sub-catchments when the VIC model was calibrated with observed monthly LAI instead of long-term mean monthly LAI. There was limited systematic improvement in tree dominated sub-catchments. The results also suggest that the model overestimation or underestimation of runoff during wet and dry periods can be reduced to 25 mm and 35 mm respectively by including the year-to-year variability of LAI in the model, thus reflecting the responses of vegetation to fluctuations in climate and other factors. Hence, the year-to-year variability in LAI should not be neglected; rather it should be included in model calibration as well as simulation of monthly water balance.

Effect of year-to-year variability of leaf area index on variable infiltration capacity model performance and simulation of streamflow during drought

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tesemma, Z. K.; Wei, Y.; Peel, M. C.; Western, A. W.

2014-09-01

This study assessed the effect of using observed monthly leaf area index (LAI) on hydrologic model performance and the simulation of streamflow during drought using the variable infiltration capacity (VIC) hydrological model in the Goulburn-Broken catchment of Australia, which has heterogeneous vegetation, soil and climate zones. VIC was calibrated with both observed monthly LAI and long-term mean monthly LAI, which were derived from the Global Land Surface Satellite (GLASS) observed monthly LAI dataset covering the period from 1982 to 2012. The model performance under wet and dry climates for the two different LAI inputs was assessed using three criteria, the classical Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency, the logarithm transformed flow Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency and the percentage bias. Finally, the percentage deviation of the simulated monthly streamflow using the observed monthly LAI from simulated streamflow using long-term mean monthly LAI was computed. The VIC model predicted monthly streamflow in the selected sub-catchments with model efficiencies ranging from 61.5 to 95.9% during calibration (1982-1997) and 59 to 92.4% during validation (1998-2012). Our results suggest systematic improvements from 4 to 25% in the Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency in pasture dominated catchments when the VIC model was calibrated with the observed monthly LAI instead of the long-term mean monthly LAI. There was limited systematic improvement in tree dominated catchments. The results also suggest that the model overestimation or underestimation of streamflow during wet and dry periods can be reduced to some extent by including the year-to-year variability of LAI in the model, thus reflecting the responses of vegetation to fluctuations in climate and other factors. Hence, the year-to-year variability in LAI should not be neglected; rather it should be included in model calibration as well as simulation of monthly water balance.

[The nutritional status among children under 60 months year-old after one year of the Earthquake in Wenchuan].

PubMed

Zhao, Xian-feng; Yin, Shi-an; Zhao, Li-yun; Fu, Ping; Zhang, Jian; Ma, Guan-sheng

2010-08-01

To evaluate the effects of Wenchuan Earthquake on the nutritional status, growth, and the prevalence nutritional anemia, vitamin A deficiency (VAD) and vitamin D deficiency among children under 60 months old living in the disaster areas. A nutritional survey was conducted in April 2009. The survey recruited 466 under 60 months old children, including 162 children aged 0 months old and 304 children aged 24 - 59 months old. The children's growth status, prevalence of anemia, and the iron deficiency prevalence, vitamin A, D, B(12), folic acid status were measured. The study findings were compared to the results from 2002 Chinese Nutritional and Health Survey. The exclusive breast milk feeding rate among infants under 6-months was 58.8% (30/51). Among the 0 - 23 months old children, only 10.7% (16/150) got breast feeding within one hour after delivery. Ninety-two per cent (149/162) 0 - 23 months old children never received any nutrient supplements. The average cereals and roots intakes of the 24 - 59 months old children living in the disaster area were (267.2 ± 154.3) g/d, higher than the result of rural children average (178.75 g/d) of 2002 National Nutrition and Health Survey (u = 9.995, P < 0.01). The average intakes of vegetables, aquatic products, meat and poultries were (63.6 ± 56.7), (2.6 ± 7.9), (19.4 ± 24.0) g/d, respectively, significantly lower than 2002 results 135.05, 8.82 and 32.23 g/d (u = 21.971, 13.728 and 9.321, P < 0.01). Fruits, dairy products and legumes intakes were (102.2 ± 110.8), (65.2 ± 123.8) and (20.5 ± 29.0) g/d, respectively, higher than 2002 results (32.81, 2.87 and 6.50 g/d; u = 10.919, 8.778 and 8.417, P < 0.01). The prevalence of vitamin A deficiency and marginal deficiency was 15.4% (29/188) and 30.3% (57/188), respectively. The sum of vitamin D deficiency and insufficiency was 92.0% (183/199). The prevalence of anemia of the 0-months old children and 24 - 59 months old children was 47.5% (77/162) and 21.5% (60

Remote sensing, global warming, and vector-borne disease

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Wood, B.; Beck, L.; Dister, S.

1997-12-31

The relationship between climate change and the pattern of vector-borne disease can be viewed at a variety of spatial and temporal scales. At one extreme are changes such as global warming, which are continental in scale and occur over periods of years, decades, or longer. At the opposite extreme are changes associated with severe weather events, which can occur at local and regional scales over periods of days, weeks, or months. Key ecological factors affecting the distribution of vector-borne diseases include temperature, precipitation, and habitat availability, and their impact on vectors, pathogens, reservoirs, and hosts. Global warming can potentially altermore » these factors, thereby affecting the spatial and temporal patterns of disease.« less

Dengue Sentinel Traveler Surveillance: Monthly and Yearly Notification Trends among Japanese Travelers, 2006–2014

PubMed Central

Fukusumi, Munehisa; Arashiro, Takeshi; Arima, Yuzo; Matsui, Tamano; Shimada, Tomoe; Kinoshita, Hitomi; Arashiro, Ashley; Takasaki, Tomohiko; Sunagawa, Tomimasa; Oishi, Kazunori

2016-01-01

Background Dengue is becoming an increasing threat to non-endemic countries. In Japan, the reported number of imported cases has been rising, and the first domestic dengue outbreak in nearly 70 years was confirmed in 2014, highlighting the need for greater situational awareness and better-informed risk assessment. Methods Using national disease surveillance data and publically available traveler statistics, we compared monthly and yearly trends in the destination country-specific dengue notification rate per 100,000 Japanese travelers with those of domestic dengue cases in the respective country visited during 2006–2014. Comparisons were made for countries accounting for the majority of importations; yearly comparisons were restricted to countries where respective national surveillance data were publicly available. Results There were 1007 imported Japanese dengue cases (Bali, Indonesia (n = 202), the Philippines (n = 230), Thailand (n = 160), and India (n = 152)). Consistent with historic local dengue seasonality, monthly notification rate among travelers peaked in August in Thailand, September in the Philippines, and in Bali during April with a smaller peak in August. While the number of travelers to Bali was greatest in August, the notification rate was highest in April. Annually, trends in the notification rate among travelers to the Philippines and Thailand also closely reflected local notification trends. Conclusion Travelers to dengue-endemic countries appear to serve as reliable “sentinels”, with the trends in estimated risk of dengue infection among Japanese travelers closely reflecting local dengue trends, both seasonally and annually. Sentinel traveler surveillance can contribute to evidence-based pretravel advice, and help inform risk assessments and decision-making for importation and potentially for subsequent secondary transmission. As our approach takes advantage of traveler data that are readily available as a proxy denominator, sentinel

Assessment of the NeQuick-2 and IRI-Plas 2017 models using global and long-term GNSS measurements

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Okoh, Daniel; Onwuneme, Sylvester; Seemala, Gopi; Jin, Shuanggen; Rabiu, Babatunde; Nava, Bruno; Uwamahoro, Jean

2018-05-01

The global ionospheric models NeQuick and IRI-Plas have been widely used. However, their uncertainties are not clear at global scale and long term. In this paper, a climatologic assessment of the NeQuick and IRI-Plas models is investigated at a global scale from global navigation satellite system (GNSS) observations. GNSS observations from 36 globally distributed locations were used to evaluate performances of both NeQuick-2 and IRI-Plas 2017 models from January 2006 to July 2017, covering more than the 11-year period of a solar cycle. An hourly interval of diurnal profiles computed on monthly basis was used to measure deviations of the model estimations from corresponding GNSS VTEC observations. Results show that both models are fairly accurate in trends with the GNSS measurements. The NeQuick predictions were generally better than the IRI-Plas predictions in most of the stations and the times. The mean annual prediction errors for the IRI-Plas model typically varied from about 3 TECU at the high latitude stations to about 12 TECU at the low latitude stations, while for the NeQuick the values are respectively about 2-7 TECU. Out of a total 4497 months in which GNSS data were available for all the stations put together for the entire period covered in this work, the NeQuick model was observed to perform better in about 83% of the months while the IRI-Plas performed better in about 17% of the months. The IRI-Plas generally performed better than the NeQuick at certain locations (e.g. DAV1, KERG, and ADIS). For both models, the most of the deviations were witnessed during local daytimes and during seasons that receive maximum solar radiation for various locations. In particular, the IRI-Plas model predictions were improved during periods of increased solar activity at the low latitude stations. The IRI-Plas model overestimates the GNSS VTEC values, except during high solar activity years at some high latitude stations. The NeQuick underestimates the TEC values during

Evening salivary cortisol and alpha-amylase at 14months and neurodevelopment at 4years: Sex differences.

PubMed

Andiarena, Ainara; Balluerka, Nekane; Murcia, Mario; Ibarluzea, Jesús; Glover, Vivette; Vegas, Oscar

2017-08-01

Stress system activity in early life can have long-term effects on neurodevelopment. The main aim of this study was to assess the association of child evening salivary cortisol and alpha-amylase basal levels at 14months of age with longer-term neuropsychological development at 4years in a low-risk population-based birth cohort derived from the INMA (Environment and Childhood) project in Spain. We included 186 parent-children pairs with information on both stress system activity and neurodevelopment. Both stress markers at 14months of age showed an association with neuropsychological development at 4years. Salivary cortisol showed a sex-specific pattern of association. In girls, cortisol levels at 14months were negatively associated with cognitive development [long-term declarative memory (β=-17.8, p=0.028; 95% CI=-33.2 to -2.5); executive function (β=-9.8, p=0.08; 95% CI=-21 to 1)] and gross motor development (β=-13; p=0.022; 95% CI=-24 to -2), whereas in boys cortisol levels were negatively associated with socioemotional development [autistic-like behaviours: Incidence Rate Ratio (IRR)=1.6, p=0.039; 95% CI=1.01 to 2.41]. Salivary alpha-amylase was positively associated with socioemotional development in boys only [social competence (β=2.11, p=0.013; 95% CI=0.47 to 3.72), autistic-like behaviours (IRR=0.93, p=0.042; 95% CI=0.87 to 0.99) and hyperactivity symptoms (IRR=0.81, p=0.021; 95% CI=0.69 to 0.97)]. These results suggest that stress system activity in early life is associated with longer-term neurodevelopment and that sex is an important factor in this relationship. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

The Burden of Cryptosporidium Diarrheal Disease among Children < 24 Months of Age in Moderate/High Mortality Regions of Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, Utilizing Data from the Global Enteric Multicenter Study (GEMS)

PubMed Central

Nasrin, Dilruba; Blackwelder, William C.; Wu, Yukun; Farag, Tamer H.; Panchalingam, Sandra; Sur, Dipika; Zaidi, Anita K. M.; Faruque, Abu S. G.; Saha, Debasish; Adegbola, Richard; Alonso, Pedro L.; Breiman, Robert F.; Bassat, Quique; Tamboura, Boubou; Sanogo, Doh; Onwuchekwa, Uma; Manna, Byomkesh; Ramamurthy, Thandavarayan; Kanungo, Suman; Ahmed, Shahnawaz; Qureshi, Shahida; Quadri, Farheen; Hossain, Anowar; Das, Sumon K.; Antonio, Martin; Hossain, M. Jahangir; Mandomando, Inacio; Nhampossa, Tacilta; Acácio, Sozinho; Omore, Richard; Oundo, Joseph O.; Ochieng, John B.; Mintz, Eric D.; O’Reilly, Ciara E.; Berkeley, Lynette Y.; Livio, Sofie; Tennant, Sharon M.; Sommerfelt, Halvor; Nataro, James P.; Ziv-Baran, Tomer; Robins-Browne, Roy M.; Mishcherkin, Vladimir; Zhang, Jixian; Liu, Jie; Houpt, Eric R.; Kotloff, Karen L.; Levine, Myron M.

2016-01-01

Background The importance of Cryptosporidium as a pediatric enteropathogen in developing countries is recognized. Methods Data from the Global Enteric Multicenter Study (GEMS), a 3-year, 7-site, case-control study of moderate-to-severe diarrhea (MSD) and GEMS-1A (1-year study of MSD and less-severe diarrhea [LSD]) were analyzed. Stools from 12,110 MSD and 3,174 LSD cases among children aged <60 months and from 21,527 randomly-selected controls matched by age, sex and community were immunoassay-tested for Cryptosporidium. Species of a subset of Cryptosporidium-positive specimens were identified by PCR; GP60 sequencing identified anthroponotic C. parvum. Combined annual Cryptosporidium-attributable diarrhea incidences among children aged <24 months for African and Asian GEMS sites were extrapolated to sub-Saharan Africa and South Asian regions to estimate region-wide MSD and LSD burdens. Attributable and excess mortality due to Cryptosporidium diarrhea were estimated. Findings Cryptosporidium was significantly associated with MSD and LSD below age 24 months. Among Cryptosporidium-positive MSD cases, C. hominis was detected in 77.8% (95% CI, 73.0%-81.9%) and C. parvum in 9.9% (95% CI, 7.1%-13.6%); 92% of C. parvum tested were anthroponotic genotypes. Annual Cryptosporidium-attributable MSD incidence was 3.48 (95% CI, 2.27–4.67) and 3.18 (95% CI, 1.85–4.52) per 100 child-years in African and Asian infants, respectively, and 1.41 (95% CI, 0.73–2.08) and 1.36 (95% CI, 0.66–2.05) per 100 child-years in toddlers. Corresponding Cryptosporidium-attributable LSD incidences per 100 child-years were 2.52 (95% CI, 0.33–5.01) and 4.88 (95% CI, 0.82–8.92) in infants and 4.04 (95% CI, 0.56–7.51) and 4.71 (95% CI, 0.24–9.18) in toddlers. We estimate 2.9 and 4.7 million Cryptosporidium-attributable cases annually in children aged <24 months in the sub-Saharan Africa and India/Pakistan/Bangladesh/Nepal/Afghanistan regions, respectively, and ~202,000 Cryptosporidium

Changes in Health Care Spending and Quality 4 Years into Global Payment

PubMed Central

Song, Zirui; Rose, Sherri; Safran, Dana G.; Landon, Bruce E.; Day, Matthew P.; Chernew, Michael E.

2014-01-01

BACKGROUND Spending and quality under global budgets remain unknown beyond 2 years. We evaluated spending and quality measures during the first 4 years of the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts Alternative Quality Contract (AQC). METHODS We compared spending and quality among enrollees whose physician organizations entered the AQC from 2009 through 2012 with those among persons in control states. We studied spending changes according to year, category of service, site of care, experience managing risk contracts, and price versus utilization. We evaluated process and outcome quality. RESULTS In the 2009 AQC cohort, medical spending on claims grew an average of $62.21 per enrollee per quarter less than it did in the control cohort over the 4-year period (P<0.001). This amount is equivalent to a 6.8% savings when calculated as a proportion of the average post-AQC spending level in the 2009 AQC cohort. Analogously, the 2010, 2011, and 2012 cohorts had average savings of 8.8% (P<0.001), 9.1% (P<0.001), and 5.8% (P = 0.04), respectively, by the end of 2012. Claims savings were concentrated in the outpatient-facility setting and in procedures, imaging, and tests, explained by both reduced prices and reduced utilization. Claims savings were exceeded by incentive payments to providers during the period from 2009 through 2011 but exceeded incentive payments in 2012, generating net savings. Improvements in quality among AQC cohorts generally exceeded those seen elsewhere in New England and nationally. CONCLUSIONS As compared with similar populations in other states, Massachusetts AQC enrollees had lower spending growth and generally greater quality improvements after 4 years. Although other factors in Massachusetts may have contributed, particularly in the later part of the study period, global budget contracts with quality incentives may encourage changes in practice patterns that help reduce spending and improve quality. (Funded by the Commonwealth Fund and others

Remission in schizophrenia: results of cross-sectional with 6-month follow-up period and 1-year observational therapeutic studies in an outpatient population

PubMed Central

2012-01-01

Background A standardized definition of remission criteria in schizophrenia was proposed by the International group of NC Andreasen in 2005 (low symptom threshold for the eight core Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) symptoms for at least 6 consecutive months). Methods A cross-sectional study of remission rate, using a 6-month follow-up to assess symptomatic stability, was conducted in two healthcare districts (first and second) of an outpatient psychiatric service in Moscow. The key inclusion criteria were outpatients with an International Classification of Diseases, 10th edition (ICD-10) diagnosis of schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder. Remission was assessed using modern criteria (severity and time criteria), PANSS and Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF). Patients who were stable but did not satisfied the symptomatic criteria were included in a further 1-year observational study, with the first group (first district) receiving risperidone (long-acting, injectable) (RLAI) and the second group (second district) continuing to receiving routine treatment. Symptoms were assessed with PANSS, social functioning with the personal and social performance scale, compliance with rating of medication influences scale, and extrapyramidal side effects with the Simpson-Angus scale. Results Only 64 (31.5%) of 203 outpatients met the criteria for symptomatic remission in the cross-sectional study, but at the end of the 6-month follow-up period, 158 (77.8%) were stable (irrespective of remission status). Among these only 53 (26.1%) patients fulfilled the remission criteria. The observational study had 42 stable patients in the RLAI group and 35 in the routine treatment group: 19.0% in the RLAI group and 5.7% in the control group met remission criteria after 12 months of therapy. Furthermore, reduction of PANSS total and subscale scores, as well as improvement in social functioning, was more significant in the first group. Conclusions Only around one-quarter of

Internal variability in European summer temperatures at 1.5 °C and 2 °C of global warming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Suarez-Gutierrez, Laura; Li, Chao; Müller, Wolfgang A.; Marotzke, Jochem

2018-06-01

We use the 100-member Grand Ensemble with the climate model MPI-ESM to evaluate the controllability of mean and extreme European summer temperatures with the global mean temperature targets in the Paris Agreement. We find that European summer temperatures at 2 °C of global warming are on average 1 °C higher than at 1.5 °C of global warming with respect to pre-industrial levels. In a 2 °C warmer world, one out of every two European summer months would be warmer than ever observed in our current climate. Daily maximum temperature anomalies for extreme events with return periods of up to 500 years reach return levels of 7 °C at 2 °C of global warming and 5.5 °C at 1.5 °C of global warming. The largest differences in return levels for shorter return periods of 20 years are over southern Europe, where we find the highest mean temperature increase. In contrast, for events with return periods of over 100 years these differences are largest over central Europe, where we find the largest changes in temperature variability. However, due to the large effect of internal variability, only four out of every ten summer months in a 2 °C warmer world present mean temperatures that could be distinguishable from those in a 1.5 °C world. The distinguishability between the two climates is largest over southern Europe, while decreasing to around 10% distinguishable months over eastern Europe. Furthermore, we find that 10% of the most extreme and severe summer maximum temperatures in a 2 °C world could be avoided by limiting global warming to 1.5 °C.

20 CFR 210.3 - Month of service.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... number. This is the employee's total months of service for the calendar year. 10.10 becomes 11 Employee B... of service for a calendar year after 1984 may be “deemed” to have performed service for compensation... calendar year in question exceeds an amont calculated by multiplying the number of reported months credited...

Global Associations between UVR Exposure and Current Eczema Prevalence in Children from ISAAC Phase Three.

PubMed

Fuertes, Elaine; Flohr, Carsten; Silverberg, Jonathan I; Standl, Marie; Strachan, David P

2017-06-01

We sought to examine the relationship globally between UVR dose exposure and current eczema prevalences. ISAAC Phase Three provided data on eczema prevalence for 13- to 14-year-olds in 214 centers in 87 countries and for 6- to 7-year-olds in 132 centers in 57 countries. Linear and nonlinear associations between (natural log transformed) eczema prevalence and the mean, maximum, minimum, standard deviation, and range of monthly UV dose exposures were assessed using linear mixed-effects regression models. For the 13- to 14-year-olds, the country-level eczema prevalence was positively and linearly associated with country-level monthly mean (prevalence ratio = 1.31 [95% confidence interval = 1.05-1.63] per kJ/m 2 ) and minimum (1.25 [1.06-1.47] per kJ/m 2 ) UVR dose exposure. Linear and nonlinear associations were also observed for other metrics of UV. Results were similar in trend, but nonsignificant, for the fewer centers with 6- to 7-year-olds (e.g., 1.24 [0.96-1.59] per kJ/m 2 for country-level monthly mean UVR). No consistent within-country associations were observed (e.g., 1.05 [0.89-1.23] and 0.92 [0.71-1.18] per kJ/m 2 for center-level monthly mean UVR for the 13- to 14- and 6- to 7-year-olds, respectively). These ecological results support a role for UVR exposure in explaining some of the variation in global childhood eczema prevalence. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Global warming: is weight loss a solution?

PubMed

Gryka, A; Broom, J; Rolland, C

2012-03-01

The current climate change has been most likely caused by the increased greenhouse gas emissions. We have looked at the major greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide (CO(2)), and estimated the reduction in the CO(2) emissions that would occur with the theoretical global weight loss. The calculations were based on our previous weight loss study, investigating the effects of a low-carbohydrate diet on body weight, body composition and resting metabolic rate of obese volunteers with type 2 diabetes. At 6 months, we observed decreases in weight, fat mass, fat free mass and CO(2) production. We estimated that a 10 kg weight loss of all obese and overweight people would result in a decrease of 49.560 Mt of CO(2) per year, which would equal to 0.2% of the CO(2) emitted globally in 2007. This reduction could help meet the CO(2) emission reduction targets and unquestionably would be of a great benefit to the global health.

FLO1K, global maps of mean, maximum and minimum annual streamflow at 1 km resolution from 1960 through 2015

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barbarossa, Valerio; Huijbregts, Mark A. J.; Beusen, Arthur H. W.; Beck, Hylke E.; King, Henry; Schipper, Aafke M.

2018-03-01

Streamflow data is highly relevant for a variety of socio-economic as well as ecological analyses or applications, but a high-resolution global streamflow dataset is yet lacking. We created FLO1K, a consistent streamflow dataset at a resolution of 30 arc seconds (~1 km) and global coverage. FLO1K comprises mean, maximum and minimum annual flow for each year in the period 1960-2015, provided as spatially continuous gridded layers. We mapped streamflow by means of artificial neural networks (ANNs) regression. An ensemble of ANNs were fitted on monthly streamflow observations from 6600 monitoring stations worldwide, i.e., minimum and maximum annual flows represent the lowest and highest mean monthly flows for a given year. As covariates we used the upstream-catchment physiography (area, surface slope, elevation) and year-specific climatic variables (precipitation, temperature, potential evapotranspiration, aridity index and seasonality indices). Confronting the maps with independent data indicated good agreement (R2 values up to 91%). FLO1K delivers essential data for freshwater ecology and water resources analyses at a global scale and yet high spatial resolution.

Projected Temperature-Related Years of Life Lost From Stroke Due To Global Warming in a Temperate Climate City, Asia: Disease Burden Caused by Future Climate Change.

PubMed

Li, Guoxing; Guo, Qun; Liu, Yang; Li, Yixue; Pan, Xiaochuan

2018-04-01

Global warming has attracted worldwide attention. Numerous studies have indicated that stroke is associated with temperature; however, few studies are available on the projections of the burden of stroke attributable to future climate change. We aimed to investigate the future trends of stroke years of life lost (YLL) associated with global warming. We collected death records to examine YLL in Tianjin, China, from 2006 to 2011. We fitted a standard time-series Poisson regression model after controlling for trends, day of the week, relative humidity, and air pollution. We estimated temperature-YLL associations with a distributed lag nonlinear model. These models were then applied to the local climate projections to estimate temperature-related YLL in the 2050s and 2070s. We projected temperature-related YLL from stroke in Tianjin under 19 global-scale climate models and 3 different greenhouse gas emission scenarios. The results showed a slight decrease in YLL with percent decreases of 0.85%, 0.97%, and 1.02% in the 2050s and 0.94%, 1.02%, and 0.91% in the 2070s for the 3 scenarios, respectively. The increases in heat-related annual YLL and the decreases in cold-related YLL under the high emission scenario were the strongest. The monthly analysis showed that the most significant increase occurred in the summer months, particularly in August, with percent changes >150% in the 2050s and up to 300% in the 2070s. Future changes in climate are likely to lead to an increase in heat-related YLL, and this increase will not be offset by adaptation under both medium emission and high emission scenarios. Health protections from hot weather will become increasingly necessary, and measures to reduce cold effects will also remain important. © 2018 American Heart Association, Inc.

Global trends and patterns of commercial milk-based formula sales: is an unprecedented infant and young child feeding transition underway?

PubMed

Baker, Phillip; Smith, Julie; Salmon, Libby; Friel, Sharon; Kent, George; Iellamo, Alessandro; Dadhich, J P; Renfrew, Mary J

2016-10-01

The marketing of infant/child milk-based formulas (MF) contributes to suboptimal breast-feeding and adversely affects child and maternal health outcomes globally. However, little is known about recent changes in MF markets. The present study describes contemporary trends and patterns of MF sales at the global, regional and country levels. Descriptive statistics of trends and patterns in MF sales volume per infant/child for the years 2008-2013 and projections to 2018, using industry-sourced data. Eighty countries categorized by country income bracket, for developing countries by region, and in countries with the largest infant/child populations. MF categories included total (for ages 0-36 months), infant (0-6 months), follow-up (7-12 months), toddler (13-36 months) and special (0-6 months). In 2008-2013 world total MF sales grew by 40·8 % from 5·5 to 7·8 kg per infant/child/year, a figure predicted to increase to 10·8 kg by 2018. Growth was most rapid in East Asia particularly in China, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam and was led by the infant and follow-up formula categories. Sales volume per infant/child was positively associated with country income level although with wide variability between countries. A global infant and young child feeding (IYCF) transition towards diets higher in MF is underway and is expected to continue apace. The observed increase in MF sales raises serious concern for global child and maternal health, particularly in East Asia, and calls into question the efficacy of current regulatory regimes designed to protect and promote optimal IYCF. The observed changes have not been captured by existing IYCF monitoring systems.

GEM1: First-year modeling and IT activities for the Global Earthquake Model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Anderson, G.; Giardini, D.; Wiemer, S.

2009-04-01

GEM is a public-private partnership initiated by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to build an independent standard for modeling and communicating earthquake risk worldwide. GEM is aimed at providing authoritative, open information about seismic risk and decision tools to support mitigation. GEM will also raise risk awareness and help post-disaster economic development, with the ultimate goal of reducing the toll of future earthquakes. GEM will provide a unified set of seismic hazard, risk, and loss modeling tools based on a common global IT infrastructure and consensus standards. These tools, systems, and standards will be developed in partnership with organizations around the world, with coordination by the GEM Secretariat and its Secretary General. GEM partners will develop a variety of global components, including a unified earthquake catalog, fault database, and ground motion prediction equations. To ensure broad representation and community acceptance, GEM will include local knowledge in all modeling activities, incorporate existing detailed models where possible, and independently test all resulting tools and models. When completed in five years, GEM will have a versatile, penly accessible modeling environment that can be updated as necessary, and will provide the global standard for seismic hazard, risk, and loss models to government ministers, scientists and engineers, financial institutions, and the public worldwide. GEM is now underway with key support provided by private sponsors (Munich Reinsurance Company, Zurich Financial Services, AIR Worldwide Corporation, and Willis Group Holdings); countries including Belgium, Germany, Italy, Singapore, Switzerland, and Turkey; and groups such as the European Commission. The GEM Secretariat has been selected by the OECD and will be hosted at the Eucentre at the University of Pavia in Italy; the Secretariat is now formalizing the creation of the GEM Foundation. Some of GEM's global

The effect of displacement on sensitivity to first- and second-order global motion in 5-year-olds and adults.

PubMed

Ellemberg, D; Lewis, T L; Maurer, D; Lee, B; Ledgeway, T; Guilemot, J P; Lepore, F

2010-01-01

We compared the development of sensitivity to first- versus second-order global motion in 5-year-olds (n=24) and adults (n=24) tested at three displacements (0.1, 0.5 and 1.0 degrees). Sensitivity was measured with Random-Gabor Kinematograms (RGKs) formed with luminance-modulated (first-order) or contrast-modulated (second-order) concentric Gabor patterns. Five-year-olds were less sensitive than adults to the direction of both first- and second-order global motion at every displacement tested. In addition, the immaturity was smallest at the smallest displacement, which required the least spatial integration, and smaller for first-order than for second-order global motion at the middle displacement. The findings suggest that the development of sensitivity to global motion is limited by the development of spatial integration and by different rates of development of sensitivity to first- versus second-order signals.

Global Changes in Drought Conditions Under Different Levels of Warming

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Naumann, G.; Alfieri, L.; Wyser, K.; Mentaschi, L.; Betts, R. A.; Carrao, H.; Spinoni, J.; Vogt, J.; Feyen, L.

2018-04-01

Higher evaporative demands and more frequent and persistent dry spells associated with rising temperatures suggest that drought conditions could worsen in many regions of the world. In this study, we assess how drought conditions may develop across the globe for 1.5, 2, and 3°C warming compared to preindustrial temperatures. Results show that two thirds of global population will experience a progressive increase in drought conditions with warming. For drying areas, drought durations are projected to rise at rapidly increasing rates with warming, averaged globally from 2.0 month/°C below 1.5°C to 4.2 month/°C when approaching 3°C. Drought magnitudes could double for 30% of global landmass under stringent mitigation. If contemporary warming rates continue, water supply-demand deficits could become fivefold in size for most of Africa, Australia, southern Europe, southern and central states of the United States, Central America, the Caribbean, north-west China, and parts of Southern America. In approximately 20% of the global land surface, drought magnitude will halve with warming of 1.5°C and higher levels, mainly most land areas north of latitude 55°N, but also parts of South America and Eastern and South-eastern Asia. A progressive and significant increase in frequency of droughts is projected with warming in the Mediterranean basin, most of Africa, West and Southern Asia, Central America, and Oceania, where droughts are projected to happen 5 to 10 times more frequent even under ambitious mitigation targets and current 100-year events could occur every two to five years under 3°C of warming.

Reconstruction of global gridded monthly sectoral water withdrawals for 1971–2010 and analysis of their spatiotemporal patterns

DOE PAGES

Huang, Zhongwei; Hejazi, Mohamad; Li, Xinya; ...

2018-04-06

Human water withdrawal has increasingly altered the global water cycle in past decades, yet our understanding of its driving forces and patterns is limited. Reported historical estimates of sectoral water withdrawals are often sparse and incomplete, mainly restricted to water withdrawal estimates available at annual and country scales, due to a lack of observations at seasonal and local scales. In this study, through collecting and consolidating various sources of reported data and developing spatial and temporal statistical downscaling algorithms, we reconstruct a global monthly gridded (0.5°) sectoral water withdrawal dataset for the period 1971–2010, which distinguishes six water use sectors, i.e., irrigation,more » domestic, electricity generation (cooling of thermal power plants), livestock, mining, and manufacturing. Based on the reconstructed dataset, the spatial and temporal patterns of historical water withdrawal are analyzed. Results show that total global water withdrawal has increased significantly during 1971–2010, mainly driven by the increase in irrigation water withdrawal. Regions with high water withdrawal are those densely populated or with large irrigated cropland production, e.g., the United States (US), eastern China, India, and Europe. Seasonally, irrigation water withdrawal in summer for the major crops contributes a large percentage of total annual irrigation water withdrawal in mid- and high-latitude regions, and the dominant season of irrigation water withdrawal is also different across regions. Domestic water withdrawal is mostly characterized by a summer peak, while water withdrawal for electricity generation has a winter peak in high-latitude regions and a summer peak in low-latitude regions. Despite the overall increasing trend, irrigation in the western US and domestic water withdrawal in western Europe exhibit a decreasing trend. Our results highlight the distinct spatial pattern of human water use by sectors at the

Reconstruction of global gridded monthly sectoral water withdrawals for 1971–2010 and analysis of their spatiotemporal patterns

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Huang, Zhongwei; Hejazi, Mohamad; Li, Xinya

Human water withdrawal has increasingly altered the global water cycle in past decades, yet our understanding of its driving forces and patterns is limited. Reported historical estimates of sectoral water withdrawals are often sparse and incomplete, mainly restricted to water withdrawal estimates available at annual and country scales, due to a lack of observations at seasonal and local scales. In this study, through collecting and consolidating various sources of reported data and developing spatial and temporal statistical downscaling algorithms, we reconstruct a global monthly gridded (0.5°) sectoral water withdrawal dataset for the period 1971–2010, which distinguishes six water use sectors, i.e., irrigation,more » domestic, electricity generation (cooling of thermal power plants), livestock, mining, and manufacturing. Based on the reconstructed dataset, the spatial and temporal patterns of historical water withdrawal are analyzed. Results show that total global water withdrawal has increased significantly during 1971–2010, mainly driven by the increase in irrigation water withdrawal. Regions with high water withdrawal are those densely populated or with large irrigated cropland production, e.g., the United States (US), eastern China, India, and Europe. Seasonally, irrigation water withdrawal in summer for the major crops contributes a large percentage of total annual irrigation water withdrawal in mid- and high-latitude regions, and the dominant season of irrigation water withdrawal is also different across regions. Domestic water withdrawal is mostly characterized by a summer peak, while water withdrawal for electricity generation has a winter peak in high-latitude regions and a summer peak in low-latitude regions. Despite the overall increasing trend, irrigation in the western US and domestic water withdrawal in western Europe exhibit a decreasing trend. Our results highlight the distinct spatial pattern of human water use by sectors at the

Reconstruction of global gridded monthly sectoral water withdrawals for 1971–2010 and analysis of their spatiotemporal patterns

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Huang, Zhongwei; Hejazi, Mohamad; Li, Xinya

Human water withdrawal has increasingly altered the global water cycle in past decades, yet our understanding of its driving forces and patterns is limited. Reported historical estimates of sectoral water withdrawals are often sparse and incomplete, mainly restricted to water withdrawal estimates available at annual and country scales, due to a lack of observations at seasonal and local scales. In this study, through collecting and consolidating various sources of reported data and developing spatial and temporal statistical downscaling algorithms, we reconstruct a global monthly gridded (0.5°) sectoral water withdrawal dataset for the period 1971–2010, which distinguishes six water use sectors, i.e., irrigation,more » domestic, electricity generation (cooling of thermal power plants), livestock, mining, and manufacturing. Based on the reconstructed dataset, the spatial and temporal patterns of historical water withdrawal are analyzed. Results show that total global water withdrawal has increased significantly during 1971–2010, mainly driven by the increase in irrigation water withdrawal. Regions with high water withdrawal are those densely populated or with large irrigated cropland production, e.g., the United States (US), eastern China, India, and Europe. Seasonally, irrigation water withdrawal in summer for the major crops contributes a large percentage of total annual irrigation water withdrawal in mid- and high-latitude regions, and the dominant season of irrigation water withdrawal is also different across regions. Domestic water withdrawal is mostly characterized by a summer peak, while water withdrawal for electricity generation has a winter peak in high-latitude regions and a summer peak in low-latitude regions. Despite the overall increasing trend, irrigation in the western US and domestic water withdrawal in western Europe exhibit a decreasing trend. Our results highlight the distinct spatial pattern of human water use by sectors at the

SEPARATION OF THE RIBBON FROM GLOBALLY DISTRIBUTED ENERGETIC NEUTRAL ATOM FLUX USING THE FIRST FIVE YEARS OF IBEX OBSERVATIONS

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Schwadron, N. A.; Moebius, E.; Kucharek, H.

2014-11-01

The Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) observes the IBEX ribbon, which stretches across much of the sky observed in energetic neutral atoms (ENAs). The ribbon covers a narrow (∼20°-50°) region that is believed to be roughly perpendicular to the interstellar magnetic field. Superimposed on the IBEX ribbon is the globally distributed flux that is controlled by the processes and properties of the heliosheath. This is a second study that utilizes a previously developed technique to separate ENA emissions in the ribbon from the globally distributed flux. A transparency mask is applied over the ribbon and regions of high emissions. We thenmore » solve for the globally distributed flux using an interpolation scheme. Previously, ribbon separation techniques were applied to the first year of IBEX-Hi data at and above 0.71 keV. Here we extend the separation analysis down to 0.2 keV and to five years of IBEX data enabling first maps of the ribbon and the globally distributed flux across the full sky of ENA emissions. Our analysis shows the broadening of the ribbon peak at energies below 0.71 keV and demonstrates the apparent deformation of the ribbon in the nose and heliotail. We show global asymmetries of the heliosheath, including both deflection of the heliotail and differing widths of the lobes, in context of the direction, draping, and compression of the heliospheric magnetic field. We discuss implications of the ribbon maps for the wide array of concepts that attempt to explain the ribbon's origin. Thus, we present the five-year separation of the IBEX ribbon from the globally distributed flux in preparation for a formal IBEX data release of ribbon and globally distributed flux maps to the heliophysics community.« less

Two years of LCOGT operations: the challenges of a global observatory

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Volgenau, Nikolaus; Boroson, Todd

2016-07-01

With 18 telescopes distributed over 6 sites, and more telescopes being added in 2016, Las Cumbres Observatory Global Telescope Network is a unique resource for timedomain astronomy. The Network's continuous coverage of the night sky, and the optimization of the observing schedule over all sites simultaneously, have enabled LCOGTusers to produce significant science results. However, practical challenges to maximizing the Network's science output remain. The Network began providing observations for members of its Science Collaboration and other partners in May 2014. In the two years since then, LCOGT has made a number of improvements to increase the Network's science yield. We also now have two years' experience monitoring observatory performance; effective monitoring of an observatory that spans the globe is a complex enterprise. Here, we describe some of LCOGT's efforts to monitor the Network, assess the quality of science data, and improve communication with our users.

Imaging Global Electron Content backwards in time more than 160 years ago

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gulyaeva, T. L.; Veselovsky, I. S.

2014-02-01

The Global Electron Content, GEC, represents the total number of electrons in the spherical layer over the Earth restricted by orbit of Global Positioning Satellite system (20,200 km). GEC is produced from Global Ionospheric Map of Total Electron Content, GIM-TEC, transformed to the electron density varying with height using the International Reference Ionosphere and Plasmasphere model, IRI-Plas. The climatologic GEC model is developed from GIM-TEC maps for a period 1999-2012 including the solar activity, annual and semiannual cycles as the most important factors affecting daily GEC variation. The proxy Rzp of the international sunspot numbers, Ri, is used as a measure of solar activity composed of 3 day smoothed Ri, 7 day and 81 day backwards mean of Ri scaled to the range of 1-40 proxy units, p.u. The root mean square error of the GEC climatologic model is found to vary from 8% to 13% of GEC. Taking advantage of a long history of sunspot numbers, the climatologic GEC model is applied for GEC reconstruction backwards in time for more than 160 years ago since 1850. The extended set of GEC values provides the numerical representation of the ionosphere and plasmasphere electron content coherent with variations of solar activity as a potential proxy index driving the ionosphere models.

Global strategy for the diagnosis and management of asthma in children 5 years and younger.

PubMed

Pedersen, Soren Erik; Hurd, Suzanne S; Lemanske, Robert F; Becker, Allan; Zar, Heather J; Sly, Peter D; Soto-Quiroz, Manuel; Wong, Gary; Bateman, Eric D

2011-01-01

Asthma is the most common chronic disease of childhood and the leading cause of childhood morbidity from chronic disease as measured by school absences, emergency department visits, and hospitalisation. During the past two decades, many scientific advances have improved our understanding of asthma and our ability to manage and control it effectively. However, in children 5 years and younger, the clinical symptoms of asthma are variable and non-specific. Furthermore, neither airflow limitation nor airway inflammation, the main pathologic hallmarks of the condition, can be assessed routinely in this age group. For this reason, to aid in the diagnosis of asthma in young children, a symptoms-only descriptive approach that includes the definition of various wheezing phenotypes has been recommended. In 1993, the Global Initiative for Asthma (GINA) was implemented to develop a network of individuals, organizations, and public health officials to disseminate information about the care of patients with asthma while at the same time assuring a mechanism to incorporate the results of scientific investigations into asthma care. Since then, GINA has developed and regularly revised a Global Strategy for Asthma Management and Prevention. Publications based on the Global Strategy for Asthma Management and Prevention have been translated into many different languages to promote international collaboration and dissemination of information. In this report, Global Strategy for Asthma Management and Prevention in Children 5 Years and Younger, an effort has been made to present the special challenges that must be taken into account in managing asthma in children during the first 5 years of life, including difficulties with diagnosis, the efficacy and safety of drugs and drug delivery systems, and the lack of data on new therapies. Approaches to these issues will vary among populations in the world based on socioeconomic conditions, genetic diversity, cultural beliefs, and differences in

Evaluation of a Novel Global Immunity Assay to Predict Infection in Organ Transplant Recipients.

PubMed

Mian, Muhtashim; Natori, Yoichiro; Ferreira, Victor; Selzner, Nazia; Husain, Shahid; Singer, Lianne; Kim, S Joseph; Humar, Atul; Kumar, Deepali

2018-04-17

Solid organ transplant recipients (SOTRs) are predisposed to infection due to the need for lifelong immunosuppression, although tools to measure the overall degree of immunosuppression are limited. In this study, we used a novel global cell-mediated immunity (CMI) assay to quantify the degree of immunosuppression and predict subsequent infections. Consecutive SOTRs were enrolled and provided whole blood to conduct the global CMI assay (QuantiFERON Monitor) at 1, 3, and 6 months posttransplant. The assay measures plasma interferon gamma (IFN-γ) levels after stimulation of whole blood with antigens that stimulate both innate and adaptive immunity. Bacterial, viral, and fungal infections were prospectively recorded. We enrolled 137 patients who provided CMI measurements on at least 1 study timepoint. Median age was 58 years; transplant types were kidney (32.1%), liver (30.7%), and lung (36.5%). At least 1 episode of infection occurred in 32 of 137 (23.4%) patients between 1 and 3 months, 34 of 135 (25.1%) between 3 and 6 months, and 39 of 132 (29.5%) between 6 and 12 months. IFN-γ levels were significantly lower in those with at least 1 episode of infection vs no infection at month 1 (P = .04), month 3 (P = .05), and month 6 (P = .006). Patients who developed opportunistic infections (OIs) also showed a significantly lower CMI than those without OI at months 3 and 6. Using a cutoff value of ≤10 IU/mL of IFN-γ, there was a 2- to 3-fold greater likelihood of subsequent infection in those with lower CMI. We show that a novel global immunity assay is able to quantify the level of immunosuppression and predict the risk of subsequent infection episodes in organ transplant recipients.

Atlas of the global distribution of atmospheric heating during the global weather experiment

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schaack, Todd K.; Johnson, Donald R.

1991-01-01

Global distributions of atmospheric heating for the annual cycle of the Global Weather Experiment are estimated from the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) Level 3b data set. Distributions of monthly, seasonally, and annually averaged heating are presented for isentropic and isobaric layers within the troposphere and for the troposphere as a whole. The distributions depict a large-scale structure of atmospheric heating that appears spatially and temporally consistent with known features of the global circulation and the seasonal evolution.

The Effects of Global Warming on Temperature and Precipitation Trends in Northeast America

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Francis, F.

2013-12-01

The objective of this paper is to discuss the analysis of results in temperature and precipitation (rainfall) data and how they are affected by the theory of global warming in Northeast America. The topic was chosen because it will show the trends in temperature and precipitation and their relations to global warming. Data was collected from The Global Historical Climatology Network (GHCN). The data range from years of 1973 to 2012. We were able to calculate the yearly and monthly regress to estimate the relationship of variables found in the individual sources. With the use of specially designed software, analysis and manual calculations we are able to give a visualization of these trends in precipitation and temperature and to question if these trends are due to the theory of global warming. With the Calculation of the trends in slope we were able to interpret the changes in minimum and maximum temperature and precipitation. Precipitation had a 9.5 % increase over the past forty years, while maximum temperature increased 1.9 %, a greater increase is seen in minimum temperature of 3.3 % was calculated over the years. The trends in precipitation, maximum and minimum temperature is statistically significant at a 95% level.

[Analysis of eyeball development in children between the fourth month and seventh year of life with regard to eyeball length, refraction value and fundus].

PubMed

Borowiec, A

2000-01-01

An ophthalmologic screening of three-month-old infants was conducted between 1990 and 1993 in the province of Szczecin. The screening was aimed at early detection and treatment of vision defects and diseases of the eye. Attention was also focused on the appearance of the eyeballs. Approximately 50% of children had a retina of more or less "reduced density". The fundus appeared much like in the case of near-sightedness, raising the question whether such eye would continue towards myopia or would this just be a morphological trait of immature retina which will disappear with growth and development of the eyeball. The children were selected among those reporting for ophthalmologic screening and were divided into four groups: I--children with retina of "reduced density" and near-sightedness in the family (at least one parent had myopia), 45 children--90 eyes; II--children with retina of reduced density, whose parents did not have myopia, 45 children--90 eyes; III--children without changes in the fundus and with near-sightedness in the family, 30 children--60 eyes; IV--children without changes in the fundus, whose parents did not have myopia, 30 children--60 eyes. An additional group consisted of children without family history of near-sightedness, in whom myopia was -5.0 D sph or more during skiascopy with cycloplegia when the child finished six months of life (10 children--20 eyes). The following was examined in all children after three months of life: pupillary reflexes, fixation, anterior segment of eyeball, eyeball length, fundus, intraocular pressure, and refraction. The examination was repeated when the children finished three years, and six years ten months of life. Skiascopy was performed with prior cycloplegia. Statistics were done using Mann-Whitney test for unpaired and Wilcoxon's test for paired results. The following conclusions were made: 1. Length of the eyeball was not related to the appearance of fundus or family history of myopia (Tab. 1). Growth of

Assessing the environmental impacts of freshwater thermal pollution from global power generation in LCA.

PubMed

Raptis, Catherine E; Boucher, Justin M; Pfister, Stephan

2017-02-15

Freshwater heat emissions from power plants with once-through cooling systems constitute one of many environmental pressures related to the thermoelectric power industry. The objective of this work was to obtain high resolution, operational characterization factors (CF) for the impact of heat emissions on ecosystem quality, and carry out a comprehensive, spatially, temporally and technologically differentiated damage-based environmental assessment of global freshwater thermal pollution. The aggregation of CFs on a watershed level results in 12.5% lower annual impacts globally and even smaller differences for the most crucial watersheds and months, so watershed level CFs are recommended when the exact emission site within the basin is unknown. Long-range impacts account for almost 90% of the total global impacts. The Great Lakes, several Mississippi subbasins, the Danube, and the Yangtze are among the most thermally impacted watersheds globally, receiving heat emissions from predominantly coal-fuelled and nuclear power plants. Globally, over 80% of the global annual impacts come from power plants constructed during or before the 1980s. While the impact-weighted mean age of the power plants in the Mississippi ranges from 38 to 51years, in Chinese watersheds including the Yangtze, the equivalent range is only 15 to 22years, reflecting a stark contrast in thermal pollution mitigation approaches. With relatively high shares of total capacity from power plants with once-through freshwater cooling, and tracing a large part of the Danube, 1kWh of net electricity mix is the most impactful in Hungary, Bulgaria and Serbia. Monthly CFs are provided on a grid cell level and on a watershed level for use in Life Cycle Assessment. The impacts per generating unit are also provided, as part of our effort to make available a global dataset of thermoelectric power plant emissions and impacts. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

On the diffuse fraction of daily and monthly global radiation for the island of Cyprus

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Jacovides, C.P.; Hadjioannou, L.; Pashiardis, S.

1996-06-01

Six years of hourly global and diffuse irradiation measurements on a horizontal surface performed at Athalassa, Cyprus, are used to establish a relationship between the daily diffuse fraction and the daily clearness index. Two types of correlations - yearly and seasonal - have been developed. These correlations, of first and third order in the clearness index are compared to the various correlations established by Collares-Pereira and Rabl (1979), Newland (1989), Erbs et al. (1982), Rao et al. (1984), Page (1961), Liu and Jordan (1960) and Lalas et al. (1987). The comparison has been performed in terms of the widely usedmore » statistical indicators (MBE) and (RMSE) errors; and additional statistical indicator, the t-statistic, combining the earlier indicators, is introduced. The results indicate that the proposed yearly correlation matches the earlier correlations quite closely and all correlations examined yield results that are statistically significant. For large K{sub t} > 0.60 values, most of the earlier correlations exhibit a slight tendency to systematically overestimate the diffuse fraction. This marginal disagreement between the earlier correlations and the proposed model is probably significantly affected by the clear sky conditions that prevail over Cyprus for most of the time as well as atmospheric humidity content. It is clear that the standard correlations examined in this analysis appear to be location-independent models for diffuse irradiation predictions, at least for the Cyprus case. 13 refs., 5 figs., 4 tabs.« less

Cost-Effectiveness Analysis of Monthly Zoledronic Acid, Zoledronic Acid Every 3 Months, and Monthly Denosumab in Women With Breast Cancer and Skeletal Metastases: CALGB 70604 (Alliance).

PubMed

Shapiro, Charles L; Moriarty, James P; Dusetzina, Stacie; Himelstein, Andrew L; Foster, Jared C; Grubbs, Stephen S; Novotny, Paul J; Borah, Bijan J

2017-12-10

Purpose Skeletal-related events (SREs) such as pathologic fracture, spinal cord compression, or the necessity for radiation or surgery to bone metastasis cause considerable morbidity, decrements in quality of life, and costs to the health care system. The results of a recent large randomized trial (Cancer and Leukemia Group B/Alliance for Clinical Trials in Oncology [CALGB/Alliance 70604]) showed that zoledronic acid (ZA) every 3 months was noninferior to monthly ZA in reducing the risks of SREs. We sought to determine the cost-effectiveness (CE) of monthly ZA, ZA every 3 months, and monthly denosumab in women with breast cancer and skeletal metastases. Methods Using a Markov model, costs per SRE avoided were calculated for the three treatments. Sensitivity analyses were performed where denosumab SRE probabilities were assumed to be 50%, 75%, and 90% lower than the ZA SRE probabilities. Quality-adjusted life-years were also calculated. The analysis was from the US payer perspective. Results The mean costs of the denosumab treatment strategy are nine-fold higher than generic ZA every 3 months. Quality-adjusted life-years were virtually identical in all the three treatment arms; hence, the optimal treatment would be ZA every 3 months because it was the least costly treatment. The sensitivity analyses showed that relative to ZA every 3 months, the incremental costs per mean SRE avoided for denosumab ranged from $162,918 to $347,655. Conclusion ZA every 3 months was more CE in reducing the risks of SRE than monthly denosumab. This analysis was one of the first to incorporate the costs of generic ZA and one of the first independent CE analyses not sponsored by either Novartis or Amgen, the makers of ZA and denosumab, respectively. ZA every 3 months is the more CE option and more reasonable alternative to monthly denosumab.

First-Year Male Students' Perceptions of a Rape Prevention Program 7 Months after Their Participation: Attitude and Behavior Changes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Foubert, John D.; Tatum, Jerry L.; Godin, Eric E.

2010-01-01

Seven months after seeing The Men's Program, a commonly used rape prevention program, 248 first-year college men responded to four open-ended questions concerning whether or not the program impacted their attitudes or behavior, particularly regarding alcohol related sexual assault. Two thirds of participants reported either attitude or behavior…

Sub-seasonal predictability of water scarcity at global and local scale

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wanders, N.; Wada, Y.; Wood, E. F.

2016-12-01

Forecasting the water demand and availability for agriculture and energy production has been neglected in previous research, partly due to the fact that most large-scale hydrological models lack the skill to forecast human water demands at sub-seasonal time scale. We study the potential of a sub-seasonal water scarcity forecasting system for improved water management decision making and improved estimates of water demand and availability. We have generated 32 years of global sub-seasonal multi-model water availability, demand and scarcity forecasts. The quality of the forecasts is compared to a reference forecast derived from resampling historic weather observations. The newly developed system has been evaluated for both the global scale and in a real-time local application in the Sacramento valley for the Trinity, Shasta and Oroville reservoirs, where the water demand for agriculture and hydropower is high. On the global scale we find that the reference forecast shows high initial forecast skill (up to 8 months) for water scarcity in the eastern US, Central Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. Adding dynamical sub-seasonal forecasts results in a clear improvement for most regions in the world, increasing the forecasts' lead time by 2 or more months on average. The strongest improvements are found in the US, Brazil, Central Asia and Australia. For the Sacramento valley we can accurately predict anomalies in the reservoir inflow, hydropower potential and the downstream irrigation water demand 6 months in advance. This allow us to forecast potential water scarcity in the Sacramento valley and adjust the reservoir management to prevent deficits in energy or irrigation water availability. The newly developed forecast system shows that it is possible to reduce the vulnerability to upcoming water scarcity events and allows optimization of the distribution of the available water between the agricultural and energy sector half a year in advance.

Functional and motor outcome 5 years after stroke is equivalent to outcome at 2 months: follow-up of the collaborative evaluation of rehabilitation in stroke across Europe.

PubMed

Meyer, Sarah; Verheyden, Geert; Brinkmann, Nadine; Dejaeger, Eddy; De Weerdt, Willy; Feys, Hilde; Gantenbein, Andreas R; Jenni, Walter; Laenen, Annouschka; Lincoln, Nadina; Putman, Koen; Schuback, Birgit; Schupp, Wilfried; Thijs, Vincent; De Wit, Liesbet

2015-06-01

Recovery of patients within the first 6 months after stroke is well documented, but there has been little research on long-term recovery. The aim of this study was to analyze functional and motor recovery between admission to rehabilitation centres and 5 years after stroke. This follow-up of the Collaborative Evaluation of Rehabilitation in Stroke Across Europe study, included patients from 4 European rehabilitation centres. Patients were assessed on admission, at 2 and 6 months, and 5 years after stroke, using the Barthel Index, Rivermead Motor Assessment Gross Function, Leg and Trunk function, and Arm function. Linear mixed models were used, corrected for baseline characteristics. To account for the drop-out during follow-up, the analysis is likelihood-based (assumption of missingness at random). A total of 532 patients were included in this study, of which 238 were followed up at 5 years post stroke. Mean age at stroke onset was 69 (±10 SD) years, 53% were men, 84% had ischemic strokes, and 53% had left-sided motor impairment. Linear mixed model analysis revealed a significant deterioration for all 4 outcomes between 6 months and 5 years (P<0.0001). Scores at 2 months were not statistically significant different from scores at 5 years after stroke. Higher age (P<0.0001) and increasing stroke severity on admission (P<0.0001) negatively affected long-term functional and motor recovery. Five-year follow-up revealed deterioration in functional and motor outcome, with a return to the level measured at 2 months. Increasing age and increasing stroke severity negatively affected recovery up to 5 years after stroke. © 2015 American Heart Association, Inc.

Recent advance in polar seismology: Global impact of the International Polar Year

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kanao, Masaki; Zhao, Dapeng; Wiens, Douglas A.; Stutzmann, Éléonore

2015-03-01

The most exciting initiative for the recent polar studies was the International Polar Year (IPY) in 2007-2008. The IPY has witnessed a growing community of seismologists who have made considerable efforts to acquire high-quality data in polar regions. It also provided an excellent opportunity to make significant advances in seismic instrumentation of the polar regions to achieve scientific targets involving global issues. Taking these aspects into account, we organize and publish a special issue in Polar Science on the recent advance in polar seismology and cryoseismology as fruitful achievements of the IPY.

Six months versus nine months anti-tuberculous therapy for female genital tuberculosis: a randomized controlled trial.

PubMed

Sharma, Jai B; Singh, Neeta; Dharmendra, Sona; Singh, Urvashi B; P, Vanamail; Kumar, Sunesh; Roy, K K; Hari, Smriti; Iyer, V; Sharma, S K

2016-08-01

To compare six months versus nine months anti-tuberculous therapy in patients of female genital tuberculosis. It was a randomized controlled trial in a tertiary referral center teaching institute on 175 women presenting with infertility and found to have female genital tuberculosis on clinical examination and investigations. Group I women (86 women) were given 9 months of intermitted anti-tuberculous therapy under directly observed treatment short course (DOTS) strategy while Group II (89 women) were given 6 months of anti-tuberculous therapy under DOTS. Patients were evaluated for primary end points (complete cure, partial response, no response) and secondary end points (recurrence rate, pregnancy rate) during treatment. All patients were followed up further for one year after completion of therapy to assess recurrence of disease and further pregnancies. Baseline characteristics were similar between two randomized groups. There was no difference in the complete clinical response rate (95.3% vs 97.7%, p=0.441) between 9-months and 6-months groups. Four patients in 9-months group and two patients in 6-months group had recurrence of disease and required category II anti tuberculous therapy (p=0.441). Pregnancy rate during treatment and up to one year follow up was also similar in the two groups (23.2% vs 21.3%, p=0.762). Side effects occurred in 27(31.4%) and 29(32.6%) in 9-months and 6-months of therapy and were similar (p=0.866). There was no difference in complete cure rate, recurrent rate and pregnancy rate for either 6-months or 9-months of intermittent directly observed treatment short course anti-tuberculous therapy in female genital tuberculosis. The trial was registered in clinicaltrials.gov with registration no: CTRI/2009/091/001088. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Monitoring of allograft vasculopathy by intravascular ultrasound one month and one year after heart transplantation: A single center study.

PubMed

Bedanova, Helena; Orban, Marek; Tretina, Martin; Fila, Petr; Horvath, Vladimir; Krejci, Jan; Nemec, Petr

2016-03-01

The aim of this trial was to use intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) to determine whether cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV) starts progressing during the first year after heart transplantation (HTx). We retrospectively analyzed 51 patients (11 women) who received heart transplants in our center between January 2010 and September 2013 and underwent coronary angiography as well as IVUS examination one month and one year after HTx. Patients with proven calcification and fibrotic plates in the IVUS examination one month after HTx constituted a group with defined donor-transmitted atherosclerosis (DTA). In patients without DTA, measurements of maximal intimal thickening (MIT) were made in two predetermined locations. Eight of the 51 patients had DTA, while 43 did not. These were divided based on maximal intimal thickness (MIT) into a group with MIT < 0.5 mm (27) and MIT ≥ 0.5 mm (16). No patient with MIT < 0.5 mm developed allograft vasculopathy within one year after HTx. CAV developed in three patients (P = 0.045) out of the 16 patients with MIT ≥ 0.5. In patients with DTA, a statistically significant deterioration in percent area stenosis (PAS) occurred in both artery sections (P = 0.01). Our trial showed that CAV progresses during the first year after HTx significantly more frequently in patients with DTA and MIT ≥ 0.5 mm. It is essential in these patients to implement an IVUS control examination one year after transplantation. The results can lead to a change in treatment strategy to prevent further progress of the disease.

Measles Humoral and Cell-Mediated Immunity in Children Aged 5–10 Years After Primary Measles Immunization Administered at 6 or 9 Months of Age

PubMed Central

Gans, Hayley A.; Yasukawa, Linda L.; Sung, Phillip; Sullivan, Barbara; DeHovitz, Ross; Audet, Susette; Beeler, Judy; Arvin, Ann M.

2013-01-01

Background. Given the high infant measles mortality rate, there is interest in whether a measles immunization regimen beginning at <12 months of age provides lasting immunity. Methods. Measles-specific immune responses were evaluated in 70 children aged 5–10 years after primary measles vaccine administered at 6, 9, or 12 months. Results. At 5–10 years of age, the stimulation index for measles T-cell proliferation was 11.4 (SE, 1.3), 10.9 (SE, 1.5), and 14.4 (SE 2.1) when the first measles dose was given at 6, 9, or 12 months, respectively. Neutralizing antibody concentration (geometric mean titer [GMT]) in those immunized at 6 months of age was 125 mIU/mL (95% confidence interval [CI], 42–377) in the presence of passive antibodies (PAs) and 335 mIU/mL (95% CI, 211–531) in those without PAs; in those immunized at 9 months, GMTs were 186 mIU/mL (95% CI, 103–335) and 1080 mIU/mL (95% CI, 642–1827) in the presence and absence of PAs, respectively. The GMT was 707 mIU/mL (95% CI, 456–1095) when vaccine was administered at 12 months (P ≤ .04). Conclusions. Measles-specific T-cell responses were sustained at 5–10 years of age regardless of age at time of primary measles immunization. Neutralizing antibody concentrations were lower in cohorts given the first vaccine dose at 6 months of age and in the presence of PAs; however, responses could be boosted by subsequent doses. Starting measles vaccination at <12 months of age may be beneficial during measles outbreaks or in endemic areas. PMID:23300162

25 years of research on global asphyxia in the immature rat brain.

PubMed

Barkhuizen, M; van den Hove, D L A; Vles, J S H; Steinbusch, H W M; Kramer, B W; Gavilanes, A W D

2017-04-01

Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy remains a common cause of brain damage in neonates. Preterm infants have additional complications, as prematurity by itself increases the risk of encephalopathy. Currently, therapy for this subset of asphyxiated infants is limited to supportive care. There is an urgent need for therapies in preterm infants - and for representative animal models for preclinical drug development. In 1991, a novel rodent model of global asphyxia in the preterm infant was developed in Sweden. This method was based on the induction of asphyxia during the birth processes itself by submerging pups, still in the uterine horns, in a water bath followed by C-section. This insult occurs at a time-point when the rodent brain maturity resembles the brain of a 22-32 week old human fetus. This model has developed over the past 25 years as an established model of perinatal global asphyxia in the early preterm brain. Here we summarize the knowledge gained on the short- and long-term neuropathological and behavioral effects of asphyxia on the immature central nervous system. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Spatial and Temporal Trends in Global Emissions of Nitrogen Oxides from 1960 to 2014.

PubMed

Huang, Tianbo; Zhu, Xi; Zhong, Qirui; Yun, Xiao; Meng, Wenjun; Li, Bengang; Ma, Jianmin; Zeng, Eddy Y; Tao, Shu

2017-07-18

The quantification of nitrogen oxide (NO x ) emissions is critical for air quality modeling. Based on updated fuel consumption and emission factor databases, a global emission inventory was compiled with high spatial (0.1° × 0.1°), temporal (monthly), and source (87 sources) resolutions for the period 1960 to 2014. The monthly emission data have been uploaded online ( http://inventory.pku.edu.cn ), along with a number of other air pollutant and greenhouse gas data for free download. Differences in source profiles, not global total quantities, between our results and those reported previously were found. There were significant differences in total and per capita emissions and emission intensities among countries, especially between the developing and developed countries. Globally, the total annual NO x emissions finally stopped increasing in 2013 after continuously increasing over several decades, largely due to strict control measures taken in China in recent years. Nevertheless, the peak year of NO x emissions was later than for many other major air pollutants. Per capita emissions, either among countries or over years, follow typical inverted U-shaped environmental Kuznets curves, indicating that the emissions increased during the early stage of development and were restrained when socioeconomic development reached certain points. Although the trends are similar among countries, the turning points of developing countries appeared sooner than those of developed countries in terms of development status, confirming late-move advantages.

Two-year antibody persistence in children vaccinated at 12-15 months with a measles-mumps-rubella virus vaccine without human serum albumin.

PubMed

Berry, Andrea A; Abu-Elyazeed, Remon; Diaz-Perez, Clemente; Mufson, Maurice A; Harrison, Christopher J; Leonardi, Michael; Twiggs, Jerry D; Peltier, Christopher; Grogg, Stanley; Carbayo, Antonio; Shapiro, Steven; Povey, Michael; Baccarini, Carmen; Innis, Bruce L; Henry, Ouzama

2017-07-03

One combined measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine without Human Serum Albumin (HSA) is currently licensed in the USA (M-M-R II; Merck, USA) and another has been developed (Priorix™ [MMR-RIT, GSK, Belgium]). In this follow-up study, children from USA or Puerto Rico, who had received one dose of M-M-R II or MMR-RIT at 12-15 months of age in the primary study (NCT00861744), were followed-up for 2 y post-vaccination. Anti-measles and anti-rubella antibodies were measured using Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA), and anti-mumps antibodies using ELISA and plaque reduction neutralization (PRN) assays. Serious adverse events (SAEs) were recorded during the entire follow-up. The according-to-protocol (ATP) persistence cohort included 752 children (M-M-R II = 186, MMR-RIT = 566), who received primary vaccination at a mean age of 12.3 ( ± 0.67) months. 104 children were revaccinated with MMR-containing vaccines; therefore, serology results for timepoints after revaccination were excluded from the analysis. Seropositivity for measles (Year 1≥ 98.3%; Year 2≥ 99.4%) and rubella (Year 1≥ 98.9%; Year 2 = 100%) remained as high at Year 2 as at Day 42. Similarly, seropositivity for mumps determined by ELISA (Year 1≥ 90.1%; Year 2≥ 94.1%) and PRN assays (Year 1≥ 87.5%; Year 2≥ 91.7%) persisted. Thirty-three SAEs were recorded in 23 children; 2 SAEs (inguinal adenitis and idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura) and one SAE (febrile convulsion) were considered as potentially related to MMR-RIT and M-M-R II, respectively. This study showed that antibodies against measles, mumps and rubella persisted for up to 2 y post-vaccination with either MMR vaccine in children aged 12-15 months, and that both vaccines were well-tolerated during the follow-up period.

NEUROIMAGING CHARACTERISTICS AND POST-STROKE FATIGUE WITHIN THE FIRST 6 MONTHS AFTER ISCHEMIC STROKES.

PubMed

Delva, M; Delva, I

2017-10-01

Aim - identify neuroimaging characteristics associated with different post-stroke fatigue (PSF) domains within first 6 months after ischemic strokes. There were enrolled in the study 107 patients with acute ischemic strokes. General PSF and certain PSF domains (global, physical, mental, motivational, activity-related) were measured by multidimensional fatigue inventory-20 (MFI-20) scale at hospital stay, in 1, 3 and 6 months after stroke occurrence. Brain MRI studies included cerebral infarct localization, planimetric measurements of infarct volumes, measurement of brain atrophy indexes (bifrontal, bicaudate, cortical atrophy indexes, width of third ventricle) and evaluation of leukoaraiosis severity, according to Fazekas scale. In univariate logistic regression analysis infarcts volumes as well as brain atrophy indexes were not significantly associated with risk of any PSF domain at any time points within first 6 months after ischemic strokes. On the other hand, it had been found reliable associations between subcortical infarcts and increased risk of PSF domains which are related just to physical activity (physical PSF, activity-related PSF) in 1 month after stroke onset and later, as well as reliable associations between infratentorial infarcts and risk of global PSF domain in 3 months after stroke and later. Moreover, it have been revealed significant direct associations between severity of white matter lesions and risk of mental PSF in 3 months after stroke onset and later. Subcortical infarcts may be risk factors for development of physical PSF domain, infratentorial infarcts - risk factors for development of global PSF domain, leukoaraiosis extension - risk factor for development of mental PSF domain but not early than 1 month after stroke occurrence.

Nine years of global hydrocarbon emissions based on source inversion of OMI formaldehyde observations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bauwens, Maite; Stavrakou, Trissevgeni; Müller, Jean-François; De Smedt, Isabelle; Van Roozendael, Michel; van der Werf, Guido R.; Wiedinmyer, Christine; Kaiser, Johannes W.; Sindelarova, Katerina; Guenther, Alex

2016-08-01

As formaldehyde (HCHO) is a high-yield product in the oxidation of most volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted by fires, vegetation, and anthropogenic activities, satellite observations of HCHO are well-suited to inform us on the spatial and temporal variability of the underlying VOC sources. The long record of space-based HCHO column observations from the Ozone Monitoring Instrument (OMI) is used to infer emission flux estimates from pyrogenic and biogenic volatile organic compounds (VOCs) on the global scale over 2005-2013. This is realized through the method of source inverse modeling, which consists in the optimization of emissions in a chemistry-transport model (CTM) in order to minimize the discrepancy between the observed and modeled HCHO columns. The top-down fluxes are derived in the global CTM IMAGESv2 by an iterative minimization algorithm based on the full adjoint of IMAGESv2, starting from a priori emission estimates provided by the newly released GFED4s (Global Fire Emission Database, version 4s) inventory for fires, and by the MEGAN-MOHYCAN inventory for isoprene emissions. The top-down fluxes are compared to two independent inventories for fire (GFAS and FINNv1.5) and isoprene emissions (MEGAN-MACC and GUESS-ES). The inversion indicates a moderate decrease (ca. 20 %) in the average annual global fire and isoprene emissions, from 2028 Tg C in the a priori to 1653 Tg C for burned biomass, and from 343 to 272 Tg for isoprene fluxes. Those estimates are acknowledged to depend on the accuracy of formaldehyde data, as well as on the assumed fire emission factors and the oxidation mechanisms leading to HCHO production. Strongly decreased top-down fire fluxes (30-50 %) are inferred in the peak fire season in Africa and during years with strong a priori fluxes associated with forest fires in Amazonia (in 2005, 2007, and 2010), bushfires in Australia (in 2006 and 2011), and peat burning in Indonesia (in 2006 and 2009), whereas generally increased fluxes

The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) after fifteen years: Review of global products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Abrams, Michael; Tsu, Hiroji; Hulley, Glynn; Iwao, Koki; Pieri, David; Cudahy, Tom; Kargel, Jeffrey

2015-06-01

The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) is a 15-channel imaging instrument operating on NASA's Terra satellite. A joint project between the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration and Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry, ASTER has been acquiring data for 15 years, since March 2000. The archive now contains over 2.8 million scenes; for the majority of them, a stereo pair was collected using nadir and backward telescopes imaging in the NIR wavelength. The majority of users require only a few to a few dozen scenes for their work. Studies have ranged over numerous scientific disciplines, and many practical applications have benefited from ASTER's unique data. A few researchers have been able to mine the entire ASTER archive, that is now global in extent due to the long duration of the mission. Six examples of global products are described in this contribution: the ASTER Global Digital Elevation Model (GDEM), the most complete, highest resolution DEM available to all users; the ASTER Emissivity Database (ASTER GED), a global 5-band emissivity map of the land surface; the ASTER Global Urban Area Map (AGURAM), a 15-m resolution database of over 3500 cities; the ASTER Volcano Archive (AVA), an archive of over 1500 active volcanoes; ASTER Geoscience products of the continent of Australia; and the Global Ice Monitoring from Space (GLIMS) project.

Global, Regional, and Megacity Trends in the Highest Temperature of the Year: Diagnostics and Evidence for Accelerating Trends

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Papalexiou, Simon Michael; AghaKouchak, Amir; Trenberth, Kevin E.; Foufoula-Georgiou, Efi

2018-01-01

Trends in short-lived high-temperature extremes record a different dimension of change than the extensively studied annual and seasonal mean daily temperatures. They also have important socioeconomic, environmental, and human health implications. Here, we present analysis of the highest temperature of the year for approximately 9000 stations globally, focusing on quantifying spatially explicit exceedance probabilities during the recent 50- and 30-year periods. A global increase of 0.19°C per decade during the past 50 years (through 2015) accelerated to 0.25°C per decade during the last 30 years, a faster increase than in the mean annual temperature. Strong positive 30-year trends are detected in large regions of Eurasia and Australia with rates higher than 0.60°C per decade. In cities with more than 5 million inhabitants, where most heat-related fatalities occur, the average change is 0.33°C per decade, while some east Asia cities, Paris, Moscow, and Houston have experienced changes higher than 0.60°C per decade.

Global, Regional, and Megacity Trends in the Highest Temperature of the Year: Diagnostics and Evidence for Accelerating Trends.

PubMed

Papalexiou, Simon Michael; AghaKouchak, Amir; Trenberth, Kevin E; Foufoula-Georgiou, Efi

2018-01-01

Trends in short-lived high-temperature extremes record a different dimension of change than the extensively studied annual and seasonal mean daily temperatures. They also have important socioeconomic, environmental, and human health implications. Here, we present analysis of the highest temperature of the year for approximately 9000 stations globally, focusing on quantifying spatially explicit exceedance probabilities during the recent 50- and 30-year periods. A global increase of 0.19°C per decade during the past 50 years (through 2015) accelerated to 0.25°C per decade during the last 30 years, a faster increase than in the mean annual temperature. Strong positive 30-year trends are detected in large regions of Eurasia and Australia with rates higher than 0.60°C per decade. In cities with more than 5 million inhabitants, where most heat-related fatalities occur, the average change is 0.33°C per decade, while some east Asia cities, Paris, Moscow, and Houston have experienced changes higher than 0.60°C per decade.

Effects of tennis play on executive function in 6-11-year-old children: a 12-month longitudinal study.

PubMed

Ishihara, Toru; Mizuno, Masao

2018-06-01

The present study aimed to assess the effects of 12 months of frequent tennis play on executive functions and the relationships of daily moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), physical competence, and enjoyment of playing tennis to executive functions in children. Thirty-two children (6-11 years old) who had regularly played tennis (once a week; mean = 3 years, range = 0-6 years) before the study were enrolled in a 12-month intervention. Participants were allocated into two groups: low-dose (maintain current frequency of tennis play, N = 19) or high-dose (increased frequency of tennis play to four times per week, N = 13). Participants' MVPA, physical competence, enjoyment of playing tennis, and executive functions (i.e. inhibitory control, working memory, and cognitive flexibility) were evaluated before and after this intervention. The high-dose group demonstrated a greater improvement in working memory than the low-dose group, while there was no group difference in MVPA, physical competence, and enjoyment of playing tennis. Changes in MVPA were associated with improvements in cognitive flexibility. Changes in physical competence were associated with improvements in working memory and cognitive flexibility. Changes in the enjoyment of playing tennis were associated with improvements in inhibitory control. The current findings suggest that replacement of MVPA with sports activity, such as tennis enhances executive functions development, and suggest that sports programmes that seek to build competence and enjoyment might help support the development of executive functions in children.

Downscaling of snow depth and river discharge in Japan by the Pseudo-Global-Warming Method

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kimura, F.; Ma, X.; Hara, M.; Advanced Atmosphere-Ocean-Land Modeling Program

2010-12-01

Although a heavy snowfall often brings disaster, snow cover is one of the major water resources in Japan. Even during the winter, the monthly mean of the surface air temperature often exceeds 0 deg. in large parts of the heavy snow areas along the Sea of Japan. Thus, snow cover may be seriously reduced in these areas as a result of global warming, which is caused by an increase in greenhouse gases. This study estimates the impact of global warming on the snow depth in Japan during early winter. Some dynamical downscaling experiments are conducted by the Pseudo-Global-Warming method for the future projection of snow cover. By the hindcast runs, precipitation, snow depth, and surface air temperature show good agreement with the AMeDAS station data observed in a High-Snow-Cover (HSC) year and a Low-Snow-Cover (LSC) yea. Pseudo-Global-Warming runs for these years indicate that the decreasing ratios of the snow water are more significant in the areas whose altitude is less than 1500 m. The increase of the air temperature is one of the major factors for the decrease in snow water, since the present mean air temperature in most of these areas is near 0 deg. even in winter. On the other hand, the change in the aerial-mean precipitation due to global warming is less than 15% in both years. To evaluate the impact of the reduction of snow cover to water resource, a hydrological simulation is also made for the Agano River basin, which locates in Niigata and Fukushima Prefectures. The Agano River drains into the Sea of Japan and is the second largest river in Japan with annual discharge of about 12.9 billion m3. A hind cast experiment is carried out for the two decades from 1980 to 1999. The average correlation coefficient of 0.79 for the monthly mean discharge in the winter season indicates that the interannual variation of the river discharge could be reproduced and that the method is useful for climate change study. Then the hydrological response to the future global warming

Joint variability of global runoff and global sea surface temperatures

USGS Publications Warehouse

McCabe, G.J.; Wolock, D.M.

2008-01-01

Global land surface runoff and sea surface temperatures (SST) are analyzed to identify the primary modes of variability of these hydroclimatic data for the period 1905-2002. A monthly water-balance model first is used with global monthly temperature and precipitation data to compute time series of annual gridded runoff for the analysis period. The annual runoff time series data are combined with gridded annual sea surface temperature data, and the combined dataset is subjected to a principal components analysis (PCA) to identify the primary modes of variability. The first three components from the PCA explain 29% of the total variability in the combined runoff/SST dataset. The first component explains 15% of the total variance and primarily represents long-term trends in the data. The long-term trends in SSTs are evident as warming in all of the oceans. The associated long-term trends in runoff suggest increasing flows for parts of North America, South America, Eurasia, and Australia; decreasing runoff is most notable in western Africa. The second principal component explains 9% of the total variance and reflects variability of the El Ni??o-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and its associated influence on global annual runoff patterns. The third component explains 5% of the total variance and indicates a response of global annual runoff to variability in North Aflantic SSTs. The association between runoff and North Atlantic SSTs may explain an apparent steplike change in runoff that occurred around 1970 for a number of continental regions.

Prevalence of Corneal Astigmatism in Tohono O'odham Native American Children 6 Months to 8 Years of Age

PubMed Central

Dobson, Velma; Miller, Joseph M.; Schwiegerling, Jim; Clifford-Donaldson, Candice E.; Green, Tina K.; Messer, Dawn H.

2011-01-01

Purpose. To describe the prevalence of corneal astigmatism in infants and young children who are members of a Native American tribe with a high prevalence of refractive astigmatism. Methods. The prevalence of corneal astigmatism was assessed by obtaining infant keratometer (IK4) measurements from 1235 Tohono O'odham children, aged 6 months to 8 years. Results. The prevalence of corneal astigmatism >2.00 D was lower in the 1- to <2-year-old age group when compared with all other age groups, except the 6- to <7-year-old group. The magnitude of mean corneal astigmatism was significantly lower in the 1- to <2-year age group than in the 5- to <6-, 6- to <7-, and 7- to <8-year age groups. Corneal astigmatism was with-the-rule (WTR) in 91.4% of astigmatic children (≥1.00 D). Conclusions. The prevalence and mean amount of corneal astigmatism were higher than reported in non–Native American populations. Mean astigmatism increased from 1.43 D in 1-year-olds to nearly 2.00 D by school age. PMID:21460261

20 CFR 226.62 - Computing average monthly compensation.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 1 2010-04-01 2010-04-01 false Computing average monthly compensation. 226... RETIREMENT ACT COMPUTING EMPLOYEE, SPOUSE, AND DIVORCED SPOUSE ANNUITIES Years of Service and Average Monthly Compensation § 226.62 Computing average monthly compensation. The employee's average monthly compensation is...

Globalizing Space and Earth Science - the International Heliophysical Year Education and Outreach Program

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rabello-Soares, M. C.; Morrow, C.; Thompson, B. J.

2006-08-01

The International Heliophysical Year (IHY) in 2007 & 2008 will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the International Geophysical Year (IGY) and, following its tradition of international research collaboration, will focus on the cross-disciplinary studies of universal processes in the heliosphere. The main goal of IHY Education and Outreach Program is to create more global access to exemplary resources in space and earth science education and public outreach. By taking advantage of the IHY organization with representatives in every nation and in the partnership with the United Nations Basic Space Science Initiative (UNBSSI), we aim to promote new international partnerships. Our goal is to assist in increasing the visibility and accessibility of exemplary programs and in the identification of formal or informal educational products that would be beneficial to improve the space and earth science knowledge in a given country; leaving a legacy of enhanced global access to resources and of world-wide connectivity between those engaged in education and public outreach efforts that are related to IHY science. Here we describe how to participate in the IHY Education and Outreach Program and the benefits in doing so. Emphasis will be given to the role played by developing countries; not only in selecting useful resources and helping in their translation and adaptation, but also in providing different approaches and techniques in teaching.

Functional Outcome of School Children With History of Global Developmental Delay.

PubMed

Dornelas, Lílian F; Duarte, Neuza M C; Morales, Nívea M O; Pinto, Rogério M C; Araújo, Renata R H; Pereira, Sílvia A; Magalhães, Lívia C

2016-07-01

This study aimed to investigate the functional and developmental outcomes in school age children diagnosed with global developmental delay before 2 years old and to verify the association between their final diagnosis and environmental and biological factors. Forty-five Brazilian children (26 boys), mean age 95.84 (7.72) months, who attended regular school and were diagnosed with global developmental delay before they were 2 years old had their functions evaluated. Children with global developmental delay were diagnosed with several conditions at school age. Students with greater chances of receiving a diagnosis were those whose mothers were younger at the time their children were born (OR = 1.47, CI = 1.04-2.09, P = .03), who had impaired motor performance, specially balance (OR = 1.33, CI = 1.01-1.75, P = .04), and who needed help during cognitive and behavioral tasks at school (OR = 1.08, CI = 1.00-1.17, P = .048). Interdisciplinary evaluation contributed to defining the specific diagnosis and to identifying the necessity of specialized support. © The Author(s) 2016.

Mineral resource of the month: tellurium

USGS Publications Warehouse

George, Micheal W.

2006-01-01

Global demand for tellurium has grown significantly in recent years owing to increased use in solar cells in the United States and Europe, thermoelectronics (especially in China) and steelmaking worldwide. Estimated global production, however, has remained relatively unchanged over the same period, while accumulated inventories have been exhausted, leading to a supply shortfall.

75 FR 23559 - Older Americans Month, 2010

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2010-05-04

... Americans Month, 2010 By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation Older Americans have.... During Older Americans Month, we show our support and appreciation for these treasured individuals who have contributed so much to our Nation. This year's theme for Older Americans Month, ``Age Strong, Live...

76 FR 68613 - National Adoption Month, 2011

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2011-11-04

... National Adoption Month, 2011 By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation As a Nation... without families. During National Adoption Month, we celebrate the acts of compassion and love that unite... the foster care system. Last year, during National Adoption Month, I signed the International Adoption...

Are Global and Regional Improvements in Life Expectancy and in Child, Adult and Senior Survival Slowing?

PubMed Central

Hum, Ryan J.; Verguet, Stéphane; Cheng, Yu-Ling; McGahan, Anita M.; Jha, Prabhat

2015-01-01

Improvements in life expectancy have been considerable over the past hundred years. Forecasters have taken to applying historical trends under an assumption of continuing improvements in life expectancy in the future. A linear mixed effects model was used to estimate the trends in global and regional rates of improvements in life expectancy, child, adult, and senior survival, in 166 countries between 1950 and 2010. Global improvements in life expectancy, including both child and adult survival rates, decelerated significantly over the study period. Overall life expectancy gains were estimated to have declined from 5.9 to 4.0 months per year for a mean deceleration of -0.07 months/year2; annual child survival gains declined from 4.4 to 1.6 deaths averted per 1000 for a mean deceleration of -0.06 deaths/1000/year2; adult survival gains were estimated to decline from 4.8 to 3.7 deaths averted per 1000 per year for a mean deceleration of -0.08 deaths/1000/year2. Senior survival gains however increased from 2.4 to 4.2 deaths averted per 1000 per year for an acceleration of 0.03 deaths/1000/year2. Regional variation in the four measures was substantial. The rates of global improvements in life expectancy, child survival, and adult survival have declined since 1950 despite an increase in the rate of improvements among seniors. We postulate that low-cost innovation, related to the last half-century progress in health–primarily devoted to children and middle age, is reaping diminishing returns on its investments. Trends are uneven across regions and measures, which may be due in part to the state of epidemiological transition between countries and regions and disparities in the diffusion of innovation, accessible only in high-income countries where life expectancy is already highest. PMID:25992949

Malaria control by chlorproguanil. I. Clinical effects and susceptibility of Plasmodium falciparum in vivo after seven years of monthly chlorproguanil administration to children in a Liberian village.

PubMed

Björkman, A; Brohult, J; Willcox, M; Pehrson, P O; Rombo, L; Hedman, P; Hetland, G; Kollie, E; Hanson, A P; Bengtsson, E

1985-12-01

For seven years, chlorproguanil (1.0 to 2.0 mg kg-1) was administered monthly to the children below 15 years of age in a village with holoendemic malaria. Malariometric indices were recorded every six months. Susceptibility in vivo was monitored by the clearance of Plasmodium falciparum parasitaemia after drug intake. Three parasite species were found initially: P. falciparum (52%), P. malariae (8%) and P. ovale (4%). The parasites found during the study were mainly P. falciparum, and parasite rates ranged from 37 to 87% at the different surveys one month after respective drug intake. A fifty-fold decrease of mean parasite density was generally observed seven days after drug intake. Splenomegaly was initially recorded in all two to nine year old children, with a mean size of 2.64 according to Hackett's index. From 18 months onwards as the mean spleen index was 1.15 in the same age group. Chlorproguanil may represent an important alternative drug to groups at risk in malaria control schemes.

Base flow calibration in a global hydrological model

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

van Beek, L. P.; Bierkens, M. F.

2006-12-01

Base flow constitutes an important water resource in many parts of the world. Its provenance and yield over time are governed by the storage capacity of local aquifers and the internal drainage paths, which are difficult to capture at the global scale. To represent the spatial and temporal variability in base flow adequately in a distributed global model at 0.5 degree resolution, we resorted to the conceptual model of aquifer storage of Kraaijenhoff- van de Leur (1958) that yields the reservoir coefficient for a linear groundwater store. This model was parameterised using global information on drainage density, climatology and lithology. Initial estimates of aquifer thickness, permeability and specific porosity from literature were linked to the latter two categories and calibrated to low flow data by means of simulated annealing so as to conserve the ordinal information contained by them. The observations used stem from the RivDis dataset of monthly discharge. From this dataset 324 stations were selected with at least 10 years of observations in the period 1958-1991 and an areal coverage of at least 10 cells of 0.5 degree. The dataset was split between basins into a calibration and validation set whilst preserving a representative distribution of lithology types and climate zones. Optimisation involved minimising the absolute differences between the simulated base flow and the lowest 10% of the observed monthly discharge. Subsequently, the reliability of the calibrated parameters was tested by reversing the calibration and validation sets.

Once a Year to Be Black: Fighting against Typical Black History Month Pedagogies

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

King, LaGarrett J.; Brown, Keffrelyn

2014-01-01

Our study examined the experiences of three middle school teachers who created their own Black History Month curriculum. Although, the relevance of Black History Month is under scrutiny by opponents who feel it marginalized the history of Black Americans, proponents of this position have failed: to account for teachers who view and use this Month…

Seven Years of Imaging the Global Heliosphere with IBEX

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

McComas, D. J.; Zirnstein, E. J.; Bzowski, M.

2017-04-01

The Interstellar Boundary Explorer ( IBEX ) has now operated in space for 7 years and returned nearly continuous observations that have led to scientific discoveries and reshaped our entire understanding of the outer heliosphere and its interaction with the local interstellar medium. Here we extend prior work, adding the 2014–2015 data for the first time, and examine, validate, initially analyze, and provide a complete 7-year set of Energetic Neutral Atom (ENA) observations from ∼0.1 to 6 keV. The data, maps, and documentation provided here represent the 10th major release of IBEX data and include improvements to various prior correctionsmore » to provide the citable reference for the current version of IBEX data. We are now able to study time variations in the outer heliosphere and interstellar interaction over more than half a solar cycle. We find that the Ribbon has evolved differently than the globally distributed flux (GDF), with a leveling off and partial recovery of ENAs from the GDF, owing to solar wind output flattening and recovery. The Ribbon has now also lost its latitudinal ordering, which reflects the breakdown of solar minimum solar wind conditions and exhibits a greater time delay than for the surrounding GDF. Together, the IBEX observations strongly support a secondary ENA source for the Ribbon, and we suggest that this be adopted as the nominal explanation of the Ribbon going forward.« less

Estimation of the current global burden of cryptococcal meningitis among persons living with HIV/AIDS.

PubMed

Park, Benjamin J; Wannemuehler, Kathleen A; Marston, Barbara J; Govender, Nelesh; Pappas, Peter G; Chiller, Tom M

2009-02-20

Cryptococcal meningitis is one of the most important HIV-related opportunistic infections, especially in the developing world. In order to help develop global strategies and priorities for prevention and treatment, it is important to estimate the burden of cryptococcal meningitis. Global burden of disease estimation using published studies. We used the median incidence rate of available studies in a geographic region to estimate the region-specific cryptococcal meningitis incidence; this was multiplied by the 2007 United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS HIV population estimate for each region to estimate cryptococcal meningitis cases. To estimate deaths, we assumed a 9% 3-month case-fatality rate among high-income regions, a 55% rate among low-income and middle-income regions, and a 70% rate in sub-Saharan Africa, based on studies published in these areas and expert opinion. Published incidence ranged from 0.04 to 12% per year among persons with HIV. Sub-Saharan Africa had the highest yearly burden estimate (median incidence 3.2%, 720 000 cases; range, 144 000-1.3 million). Median incidence was lowest in Western and Central Europe and Oceania (Globally, approximately 957 900 cases (range, 371 700-1 544 000) of cryptococcal meningitis occur each year, resulting in 624 700 deaths (range, 125 000-1 124 900) by 3 months after infection. This study, the first attempt to estimate the global burden of cryptococcal meningitis, finds the number of cases and deaths to be very high, with most occurring in sub-Saharan Africa. Further work is needed to better define the scope of the problem and track the epidemiology of this infection, in order to prioritize prevention, diagnosis, and treatment strategies.

Global linkages between teleconnection patterns and the terrestrial biosphere

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dahlin, Kyla M.; Ault, Toby R.

2018-07-01

Interannual variability in the global carbon cycle is largely due to variations in carbon uptake by terrestrial ecosystems, yet linkages between climate variability and variability in the terrestrial carbon cycle are not well understood at the global scale. Using a 30-year satellite record of semi-monthly leaf area index (LAI), we show that four modes of climate variability - El Niño/Southern Oscillation, the North Atlantic Oscillation, the Atlantic Meridional Mode, and the Indian Ocean Dipole Mode - strongly impact interannual vegetation growth patterns, with 68% of the land surface impacted by at least one of these teleconnection patterns, yet the spatial distribution of these impacts is heterogeneous. Considering the patterns' impacts by biome, none has an exclusively positive or negative relationship with LAI. Our findings imply that future changes in the frequency and/or magnitude of teleconnection patterns will lead to diverse changes to the terrestrial biosphere and the global carbon cycle.

[Efficacy and tolerability of 5% minoxidil solution (Carexidil®) in male and female androgenetic alopecia: a 6-month open multicentric study].

PubMed

Piraccini, B; Starace, M; Alessandrini, A; Guarrera, M; Fiorucci, M C; Lorenzi, S

2011-12-01

The aim of the study was to evaluate efficacy and safety of 5% Carexidil solution®, applied twice a day on the scalp, on male and female androgenetic alopecia. The 6 month-study was performed in three Italian dermatological centers. Evaluation of efficacy was performed with subjective and objective methods, including operator and patient assessments, global photography and videodermoscopy. Global photography revealed that after 6 months of treatment with 5% Carexidil solution®, androgenetic alopecia was improved in all 32 females and 16 males. Alopecia stopped to progress in 6 males. Scalp videodermoscopy confirmed the results. Some patients complained of increased hair greasiness, others complained of mild scalp itching. Two female patients developed contact sensitization to minoxidil, confirmed by patch test, 2 a mild malar-temporal hypertrichosis. All patients were satisfied by treatment and continued it after the end of the study. Our study confirms the data of the literature and the evidence coming from years of clinical experience, that twice a day topical application of 5% minoxidil solution, Carexidil ®, is effective in the treatment of male and female androgenetic alopecia, with evident efficacy already after 6 months.

Estimates of monthly streamflow characteristics at selected sites in the upper Missouri River basin, Montana, base period water years 1937-86

USGS Publications Warehouse

Parrett, Charles; Johnson, D.R.; Hull, J.A.

1989-01-01

Estimates of streamflow characteristics (monthly mean flow that is exceeded 90, 80, 50, and 20 percent of the time for all years of record and mean monthly flow) were made and are presented in tabular form for 312 sites in the Missouri River basin in Montana. Short-term gaged records were extended to the base period of water years 1937-86, and were used to estimate monthly streamflow characteristics at 100 sites. Data from 47 gaged sites were used in regression analysis relating the streamflow characteristics to basin characteristics and to active-channel width. The basin-characteristics equations, with standard errors of 35% to 97%, were used to estimate streamflow characteristics at 179 ungaged sites. The channel-width equations, with standard errors of 36% to 103%, were used to estimate characteristics at 138 ungaged sites. Streamflow measurements were correlated with concurrent streamflows at nearby gaged sites to estimate streamflow characteristics at 139 ungaged sites. In a test using 20 pairs of gages, the standard errors ranged from 31% to 111%. At 139 ungaged sites, the estimates from two or more of the methods were weighted and combined in accordance with the variance of individual methods. When estimates from three methods were combined the standard errors ranged from 24% to 63 %. A drainage-area-ratio adjustment method was used to estimate monthly streamflow characteristics at seven ungaged sites. The reliability of the drainage-area-ratio adjustment method was estimated to be about equal to that of the basin-characteristics method. The estimate were checked for reliability. Estimates of monthly streamflow characteristics from gaged records were considered to be most reliable, and estimates at sites with actual flow record from 1937-86 were considered to be completely reliable (zero error). Weighted-average estimates were considered to be the most reliable estimates made at ungaged sites. (USGS)

Assessing the global zoo response to the amphibian crisis through 20-year trends in captive collections.

PubMed

Dawson, Jeff; Patel, Freisha; Griffiths, Richard A; Young, Richard P

2016-02-01

Global amphibian declines are one of the biggest challenges currently facing the conservation community, and captive breeding is one way to address this crisis. Using information from the International Species Information System zoo network, we examined trends in global zoo amphibian holdings across species, zoo region, and species geographical region of origin from 1994 to 2014. These trends were compared before and after the 2004 Global Amphibian Assessment to assess whether any changes occurred and whether zoo amphibian conservation effort had increased. The numbers of globally threatened species (GTS) and their proportional representation in global zoo holdings increased and this rate of increase was significantly greater after 2004. North American, European, and Oceanian GTS were best represented in zoos globally, and proportions of Oceanian GTS held increased the most since 2004. South American and Asian GTS had the lowest proportional representation in zoos. At a regional zoo level, European zoos held the lowest proportions of GTS, and this proportion did not increase after 2004. Since 1994, the number of species held in viable populations has increased, and these species are distributed among more institutions. However, as of 2014, zoos held 6.2% of globally threatened amphibians, a much smaller figure than for other vertebrate groups and one that falls considerably short of the number of species for which ex situ management may be desirable. Although the increased effort zoos have put into amphibian conservation over the past 20 years is encouraging, more focus is needed on ex situ conservation priority species. This includes building expertise and capacity in countries that hold them and tracking existing conservation efforts if the evidence-based approach to amphibian conservation planning at a global level is to be further developed. © 2015 Society for Conservation Biology.

Global burden of mental disorders among children aged 5-14 years.

PubMed

Baranne, Marie Laure; Falissard, Bruno

2018-01-01

The global burden of disease (GBD) study provides information about fatal and non-fatal health outcomes around the world. The objective of this work is to describe the burden of mental disorders among children aged 5-14 years in each of the six regions of the World Health Organisation. Data come from the GBD 2015 study. Outcomes: disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs) are the main indicator of GBD studies and are built from years of life lost (YLLs) and years of life lived with disability (YLDs). Mental disorders are among the leading causes of YLDs and of DALYs in Europe and the Americas. Because of the importance of infectious diseases, mental disorders appear marginal in Africa for YLLs although they play an important role in YLDs there. Because the epidemiological transition that has taken place in Europe and the Americas (i.e., a switch from acute and infectious conditions to chronic and mental health issues) is likely to happen sooner or later across the entire planet, mental health problems in youth are likely to become one of the main public health challenges of the twenty-first century. These results should improve health care if policy-makers use them to develop health policies to meet the real needs of populations (especially children) today.

Planning abilities of children aged 4 years and 9 months to 8 ½ years: Effects of age, fluid intelligence and school type on performance in the Tower of London test

PubMed Central

Malloy-Diniz, Leandro Fernandes; Cardoso-Martins, Cláudia; Nassif, Elaine Pacheco; Levy, Angela Maria; Leite, Wellington Borges; Fuentes, Daniel

2008-01-01

The present study investigated the relationship between age and one type of environmental factor, namely, type of school (i.e., private vs. public), and the development of mental planning ability, as measured by the Tower of London (TOL) test. Methods Participants comprised 197 public and 174 private school students, ranging in age from 4 years and 9 months to 8 years and 6 months. Besides the TOL test, students were administered Raven's Colored Matrices. Results Results confirmed the findings of previous studies that both age and school type are important predictors of mental planning. Furthermore, results also suggest that the relationship between type of school and mental planning ability cannot be accounted for by differences in students' fluid intelligence. Conclusion In the present study, the TOL test continued to differentiate public from private school students, even after we controlled for the effect of differences on the Raven test. PMID:29213536

Monthly dynamics of atmospheric wet nitrogen deposition on different spatial scales in China.

PubMed

Zhang, Qiongyu; Wang, Qiufeng; Xu, Li; Zhu, Jianxing; He, Nianpeng

2018-06-16

China is one of three global hotspots for nitrogen (N) deposition, which has concerned scientists and the public. While previous studies on N deposition in China have focused on its composition, spatial pattern, and interannual dynamics, its monthly dynamics in different regions remain unclear, hindering our ability to evaluate its ecological effects. Therefore, we obtained monthly wet N deposition data from196 sites after continuous network observations and published data in China and analyzed the monthly dynamics of NH 4 + -N, NO 3 - -N, and dissolved inorganic N (DIN=NH 4 + -N+NO 3 - -N) deposition fluxes on site, regional, and national scales. We observed that the deposition fluxes of NH 4 + -N, NO 3 - -N, and DIN in China showed clear monthly patterns and regional differences. In Northern China, wet N deposition predominantly showed a unimodal trend, whereas in Southern China, it revealed a bimodal trend or irregular fluctuations. During 2000-2016, NH 4 + -N, NO 3 - -N, and DIN deposition fluxes were estimated as 9.09, 6.12, and 15.21 kg N ha -1  year. -1 , respectively. Our findings enhance our understanding of atmospheric wet N deposition, and can serve as a reference for N deposition simulation experiments in different regions, and for generating long-term N deposition data for model optimization. Regional differences in the monthly dynamics of wet N deposition should be emphasized to accurately evaluate its ecological effects on terrestrial ecosystems in different regions.

78 FR 26225 - Older Americans Month, 2013

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-05-03

... Americans Month, 2013 By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation For half a century... the month of May. We carry that tradition forward again this year by recognizing their accomplishments..., but also for those to come. Our seniors deserve the best our country has to offer. This month, we pay...

Global climate simulations at 3000-year intervals for the last 21 000 years with the GENMOM coupled atmosphere–ocean model

USGS Publications Warehouse

Alder, Jay R.; Hostetler, Steven W.

2015-01-01

We apply GENMOM, a coupled atmosphere–ocean climate model, to simulate eight equilibrium time slices at 3000-year intervals for the past 21 000 years forced by changes in Earth–Sun geometry, atmospheric greenhouse gases (GHGs), continental ice sheets, and sea level. Simulated global cooling during the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) is 3.8 ◦C and the rate of post-glacial warming is in overall agreement with recently published temperature reconstructions. The greatest rate of warming occurs between 15 and 12 ka (2.4 ◦C over land, 0.7 ◦C over oceans, and 1.4 ◦C globally) in response to changes in radiative forcing from the diminished extent of the Northern Hemisphere (NH) ice sheets and increases in GHGs and NH summer insolation. The modeled LGM and 6 ka temperature and precipitation climatologies are generally consistent with proxy reconstructions, the PMIP2 and PMIP3 simulations, and other paleoclimate data–model analyses. The model does not capture the mid-Holocene “thermal maximum” and gradual cooling to preindustrial (PI) global temperature found in the data. Simulated monsoonal precipitation in North Africa peaks between 12 and 9 ka at values ∼ 50 % greater than those of the PI, and Indian monsoonal precipitation peaks at 12 and 9 ka at values ∼ 45 % greater than the PI. GENMOM captures the reconstructed LGM extent of NH and Southern Hemisphere (SH) sea ice. The simulated present-day Antarctica Circumpolar Current (ACC) is ∼ 48 % weaker than the observed (62 versus 119 Sv). The simulated present-day Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) of 19.3 ± 1.4 Sv on the Bermuda Rise (33◦ N) is comparable with observed value of 18.7 ± 4.8 Sv. AMOC at 33◦ N is reduced by ∼ 15 % during the LGM, and the largest post-glacial increase (∼ 11 %) occurs during the 15 ka time slice.

Twenty Years of Progress on Global Ocean Tide: The Impact of Satellite Altimetry

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Egbert, Gary D.; Ray, Richard D.

2013-09-01

At the dawn of the era of high-precision altimetry, before the launch of TOPEX/Poseidon, ocean tides were properly viewed as a source of noise-tidal variations in ocean height would represent a very substantial fraction of what the altimeter measures, and would have to be accurately predicted and subtracted if altimetry were to achieve its potential for ocean and climate studies. But to the extent that the altimetry could be severely contaminated by tides, it also represented an unprecedented global-scale tidal data set. These new data, together with research stimulated by the need for accurate tidal corrections, led to a renaissance in tidal studies in the oceanographic community. In this paper we review contributions of altimetry to tidal science over the past 20 years, emphasizing recent progress. Mapping of tides has now been extended from the early focus on major constituents in the open ocean to include minor constituents, (e.g., long-period tides; non-linear tides in shelf waters, and in the open ocean), and into shallow and coastal waters. Global and spatially local estimates of tidal energy balance have been refined, and the role of internal tide conversion in dissipating barotropic tidal energy is now well established through modeling, altimetry, and in situ observations. However, energy budgets for internal tides, and the role of tidal dissipation in vertical ocean mixing remain controversial topics. Altimetry may contribute to resolving some of these important questions through improved mapping of low-mode internal tides. This area has advanced significantly in recent years, with several global maps now available, and progress on constraining temporally incoherent components. For the future, new applications of altimetry (e.g., in the coastal ocean, where barotropic tidal models remain inadequate), and new mission concepts (studies of the sub-mesoscale with SWOT, which will require correction for internal tides) may bring us full circle, again pushing

Twenty Years of Progress on Global Ocean Tides: The Impact of Satellite Altimetry

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Egbert, Gary; Ray, Richard

2012-01-01

At the dawn of the era of high-precision altimetry, before the launch of TOPEX/Poseidon, ocean tides were properly viewed as a source of noise--tidal variations in ocean height would represent a very substantial fraction of what the altimeter measures, and would have to be accurately predicted and subtracted if altimetry were to achieve its potential for ocean and climate studies. But to the extent that the altimetry could be severely contaminated by tides, it also represented an unprecedented global-scale tidal data set. These new data, together with research stimulated by the need for accurate tidal corrections, led to a renaissance in tidal studies in the oceanographic community. In this paper we review contributions of altimetry to tidal science over the past 20 years, emphasizing recent progress. Mapping of tides has now been extended from the early focus on major constituents in the open ocean to include minor constituents, (e.g., long-period tides; non-linear tides in shelf waters, and in the open ocean), and into shallow and coastal waters. Global and spatially local estimates of tidal energy balance have been refined, and the role of internal tide conversion in dissipating barotropic tidal energy is now well established through modeling, altimetry, and in situ observations. However, energy budgets for internal tides, and the role of tidal dissipation in vertical ocean mixing remain controversial topics. Altimetry may contribute to resolving some of these important questions through improved mapping of low-mode internal tides. This area has advanced significantly in recent years, with several global maps now available, and progress on constraining temporally incoherent components. For the future, new applications of altimetry (e.g., in the coastal ocean, where barotropic tidal models remain inadequate), and new mission concepts (studies of the submesoscale with SWOT, which will require correction for internal tides) may bring us full circle, again pushing

Vitamin K Antagonists and Cognitive Decline in Older Adults: A 24-Month Follow-Up.

PubMed

Brangier, Antoine; Ferland, Guylaine; Rolland, Yves; Gautier, Jennifer; Féart, Catherine; Annweiler, Cedric

2018-05-24

Vitamin K participates in brain physiology. This study aimed to determine whether using vitamin K antagonists (VKAs), which interfere with the vitamin K cycle, were (i) cross-sectionally associated with altered cognitive performance, and (ii) independent predictors of cognitive changes in older adults over 24 months. Information was collected on the use of VKAs (i.e., warfarin, acenocoumarol, and fluindione) among 378 geriatric outpatients (mean, 82.3 ± 5.6 years; 60.1% female). Global cognitive performance and executive functions were assessed with Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and Frontal Assessment Battery (FAB) scores, respectively, at baseline and after 12 and 24 months of follow-up. Age, gender, body mass index, mean arterial pressure, disability, gait speed, comorbidities, atrial fibrillation, stroke, carotid artery stenosis, leukoaraiosis grade on computed tomography (CT) scan, psychoactive drugs, antidementia drugs, blood-thinning drugs (i.e., anticoagulants other than VKAs, antiplatelet medications), serum creatinine levels, and vitamin B12 concentrations were considered as potential confounders. Using VKAs was associated with lower (i.e., worse) FAB score at baseline (adjusted β = -2.1, p = 0.026), and with a decrease in FAB score after 24 months (adjusted β = -203.6%, p = 0.010), but not after 12 months ( p = 0.659). Using VKAs was not associated with any change in MMSE score at baseline ( p = 0.655), after 12 months ( p = 0.603), or after 24 months ( p = 0.201). In conclusion, we found more severe executive dysfunction at baseline and incident executive decline over 24 months among geriatric patients using VKAs, when compared with their counterparts.

Assessing first year radiology resident competence pre-call: development and implementation of a computer-based exam before and after the 12 month training requirement.

PubMed

Khan, Rihan; Krupinski, Elizabeth; Graham, J Allen; Benodin, Les; Lewis, Petra

2012-06-01

Whether first-year radiology residents are ready to start call after 6 or 12 months has been a subject of much debate. The purpose of this study was to establish an assessment that would evaluate the call readiness of first-year radiology residents and identify any individual areas of weakness using a comprehensive computerized format. Secondarily, we evaluated for any significant differences in performance before and after the change in precall training requirement from 6 to 12 months. A list of >140 potential emergency radiology cases was given to first-year radiology residents at the beginning of the academic year. Over 4 years, three separate versions of a computerized examination were constructed using hyperlinked PowerPoint presentations and given to both first-year and second-year residents. No resident took the same version of the exam twice. Exam score and number of cases failed were assessed. Individual areas of weakness were identified and remediated with the residents. Statistical analysis was used to evaluate exam score and the number of cases failed, considering resident year and the three versions of the exam. Over 4 years, 17 of 19 (89%) first-year radiology residents passed the exam on first attempt. The two who failed were remediated and passed a different version of the exam 6 weeks later. Using the oral board scoring system, first-year radiology residents scored an average of 70.7 with 13 cases failed, compared to 71.1 with eight cases failed for second-year residents who scored statistically significantly higher. No significant difference was found in first-year radiology resident scoring before and after the 12-month training requirement prior to call. An emergency radiology examination was established to aid in the assessment of first-year radiology residents' competency prior to starting call, which has become a permanent part of the first-year curriculum. Over 4 years, all first-year residents were ultimately judged ready to start call. Of

Global cognition and 8-year survival among Japanese community-dwelling older adults.

PubMed

Iwasa, Hajime; Kai, Ichiro; Yoshida, Yuko; Suzuki, Takao; Kim, Hunkyung; Yoshida, Hideyo

2013-08-01

We sought to examine the longitudinal relationship between cognitive function and all-cause mortality among Japanese community-dwelling older adults, using an 8-year prospective cohort study design with mortality surveillance. A total of 454 men and 386 women, aged 70 years and older, participated in the study. The Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) was administered to assess global cognition. The total MMSE score and subscale scores were used as independent variables, and age, gender, education level, chronic disease, sensory deficit, depressive symptoms, and instrumental activities of daily living were used as covariates. During the follow-up period, 191 subjects (139 men and 52 women) died, and 64 subjects (31 men and 33 women) moved to a different region of Japan and were lost to follow-up. Use of the multivariate Cox proportional hazards model, adjusted for potential confounders, showed that global cognition was significantly and independently associated with mortality (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.59, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.14-2.23 and HR = 2.81, 95% CI: 1.77-4.36 for the middle [24-27 points] and lowest [0-23 points] categories, respectively). Among the MMSE subscales, place orientation (HR = 1.57, 95% CI: 1.09-2.25), calculation (HR = 1.67, 95% CI: 1.18-2.35), and delayed recall (HR = 1.42, 95% CI: 1.03-1.96), were also significantly and independently associated with mortality. Our study suggests that among older individuals, those with lower levels of cognitive function are more likely to have a shorter lifespan compared with those with higher cognitive functioning. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Constrictive Pericarditis 5 Months after Radiation Therapy in a 62-Year-Old Woman with Esophageal Cancer.

PubMed

Yeneneh, Beeletsega T; Allen, Sorcha; Panse, Prasad; Mookadam, Farouk; Rule, William

2017-12-01

Most pericardial changes appear within a few weeks in patients who have undergone radiation therapy for thoracic neoplasms. Chronic pericardial constriction typically occurs decades later, consequent to fibrosis. Early constrictive pericarditis after chest irradiation is quite rare. We report the case of a 62-year-old woman who underwent radiation therapy for esophageal cancer and presented with constrictive pericarditis 5 months later. We searched the English-language medical literature from January 1986 through December 2015 for reports of early constrictive pericarditis after irradiation for thoracic malignancies. We defined "early" as a diagnosis within one year after radiation therapy. Five cases fit our criteria, and we summarize the findings here. To our knowledge, ours is the first definitive report of a patient with esophageal cancer to present with early radiation-induced constrictive pericarditis. We conclude that constrictive pericarditis can occur early after radiation for thoracic malignancies, albeit rarely. When planning care for cancer patients, awareness of this sequela is helpful.

Global Learning for Global Colleges: Creating Opportunities for Greater Access to International Learning for 16-25 Year Olds

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bentall, Clare; Bourn, Douglas; McGough, Hannah; Hodgson, Ann; Spours, Ken

2014-01-01

This article explores the extent to which it is possible to incorporate global learning within the further education (FE) curriculum, drawing on the findings from the "Global Learning for Global Colleges" (2009-2012) research and development project, funded by the Department for International Development (DfID). Against a background of…

Skill of a global seasonal ensemble streamflow forecasting system

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Candogan Yossef, Naze; Winsemius, Hessel; Weerts, Albrecht; van Beek, Rens; Bierkens, Marc

2013-04-01

Forecasting of water availability and scarcity is a prerequisite for managing the risks and opportunities caused by the inter-annual variability of streamflow. Reliable seasonal streamflow forecasts are necessary to prepare for an appropriate response in disaster relief, management of hydropower reservoirs, water supply, agriculture and navigation. Seasonal hydrological forecasting on a global scale could be valuable especially for developing regions of the world, where effective hydrological forecasting systems are scarce. In this study, we investigate the forecasting skill of the global seasonal streamflow forecasting system FEWS-World, using the global hydrological model PCR-GLOBWB. FEWS-World has been setup within the European Commission 7th Framework Programme project Global Water Scarcity Information Service (GLOWASIS). Skill is assessed in historical simulation mode as well as retroactive forecasting mode. The assessment in historical simulation mode used a meteorological forcing based on observations from the Climate Research Unit of the University of East Anglia and the ERA-40 reanalysis of the European Center for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF). We assessed the skill of the global hydrological model PCR-GLOBWB in reproducing past discharge extremes in 20 large rivers of the world. This preliminary assessment concluded that the prospects for seasonal forecasting with PCR-GLOBWB or comparable models are positive. However this assessment did not include actual meteorological forecasts. Thus the meteorological forcing errors were not assessed. Yet, in a forecasting setup, the predictive skill of a hydrological forecasting system is affected by errors due to uncertainty from numerical weather prediction models. For the assessment in retroactive forecasting mode, the model is forced with actual ensemble forecasts from the seasonal forecast archives of ECMWF. Skill is assessed at 78 stations on large river basins across the globe, for all the months of

Burden of micronutrient deficiencies by socio-economic strata in children aged 6 months to 5 years in the Philippines.

PubMed

Wieser, Simon; Plessow, Rafael; Eichler, Klaus; Malek, Olivia; Capanzana, Mario V; Agdeppa, Imelda; Bruegger, Urs

2013-12-11

Micronutrient deficiencies (MNDs) are a chronic lack of vitamins and minerals and constitute a huge public health problem. MNDs have severe health consequences and are particularly harmful during early childhood due to their impact on the physical and cognitive development. We estimate the costs of illness due to iron deficiency (IDA), vitamin A deficiency (VAD) and zinc deficiency (ZnD) in 2 age groups (6-23 and 24-59 months) of Filipino children by socio-economic strata in 2008. We build a health economic model simulating the consequences of MNDs in childhood over the entire lifetime. The model is based on a health survey and a nutrition survey carried out in 2008. The sample populations are first structured into 10 socio-economic strata (SES) and 2 age groups. Health consequences of MNDs are modelled based on information extracted from literature. Direct medical costs, production losses and intangible costs are computed and long term costs are discounted to present value. Total lifetime costs of IDA, VAD and ZnD amounted to direct medical costs of 30 million dollars, production losses of 618 million dollars and intangible costs of 122,138 disability adjusted life years (DALYs). These costs can be interpreted as the lifetime costs of a 1-year cohort affected by MNDs between the age of 6-59 months. Direct medical costs are dominated by costs due to ZnD (89% of total), production losses by losses in future lifetime (90% of total) and intangible costs by premature death (47% of total DALY losses) and losses in future lifetime (43%). Costs of MNDs differ considerably between SES as costs in the poorest third of the households are 5 times higher than in the wealthiest third. MNDs lead to substantial costs in 6-59-month-old children in the Philippines. Costs are highly concentrated in the lower SES and in children 6-23 months old. These results may have important implications for the design, evaluation and choice of the most effective and cost-effective policies aimed

Social support and maternal mental health at 4 months and 1 year postpartum: analysis from the All Our Families cohort.

PubMed

Hetherington, Erin; McDonald, Sheila; Williamson, Tyler; Patten, Scott B; Tough, Suzanne C

2018-06-19

Low social support is consistently associated with postpartum depression. Previous studies do not always control for previous mental health and do not consider what type of support (tangible, emotional, informational or positive social interaction) is most important. The objectives are: to examine if low social support contributes to subsequent risk of depressive or anxiety symptoms and to determine which type of support is most important. Data from the All Our Families longitudinal pregnancy cohort were used (n=3057). Outcomes were depressive or anxiety symptoms at 4 months and 1 year postpartum. Exposures were social support during pregnancy and at 4 months postpartum. Log binomial models were used to calculate risk ratios (RRs) and absolute risk differences, controlling for past mental health. Low total social support during pregnancy was associated with an increased risk of depressive symptoms (RR 1.50, 95% CI 1.24 to 1.82) and anxiety symptoms (RR 1.63, 95% CI 1.38 to 1.93) at 4 months postpartum. Low total social support at 4 months was associated with an increased risk of anxiety symptoms (RR 1.65, 95% CI 1.31 to 2.09) at 1 year. Absolute risk differences were largest among women with previous mental health challenges resulting in a number needed to treat of 5 for some outcomes. Emotional/informational support was the most important type of support for postpartum anxiety. Group prenatal care, prenatal education and peer support programmes have the potential to improve social support. Prenatal interventions studies are needed to confirm these findings in higher risk groups. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

MAC-v1: A new global aerosol climatology for climate studies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kinne, Stefan; O'Donnel, Declan; Stier, Philip; Kloster, Silvia; Zhang, Kai; Schmidt, Hauke; Rast, Sebastian; Giorgetta, Marco; Eck, Tom F.; Stevens, Bjorn

2013-12-01

The Max-Planck-Institute Aerosol Climatology version 1 (MAC-v1) is introduced. It describes the optical properties of tropospheric aerosols on monthly timescales and with global coverage at a spatial resolution of 1° in latitude and longitude. By providing aerosol radiative properties for any wavelength of the solar (or shortwave) and of the terrestrial (or longwave) radiation spectrum, as needed in radiative transfer applications, this MAC-v1 data set lends itself to simplified and computationally efficient representations of tropospheric aerosol in climate studies. Estimates of aerosol radiative properties are provided for both total and anthropogenic aerosol in annual time steps from preindustrial times (i.e., starting with year 1860) well into the future (until the year 2100). Central to the aerosol climatology is the merging of monthly statistics of aerosol optical properties for current (year 2000) conditions. Hereby locally sparse but trusted high-quality data by ground-based sun-photometer networks are merged onto complete background maps defined by central data from global modeling with complex aerosol modules. This merging yields 0.13 for the global annual midvisible aerosol optical depth (AOD), with 0.07 attributed to aerosol sizes larger than 1 µm in diameter and 0.06 of attributed to aerosol sizes smaller than 1 µm in diameter. Hereby larger particles are less absorbing with a single scattering albedo (SSA) of 0.98 compared to 0.93 for smaller sizes. Simulation results of a global model are applied to prescribe the vertical distribution and to estimate anthropogenic contributions to the smaller size AOD as a function of time, with a 0.037 value for current conditions. In a demonstration application, the associated aerosol direct radiative effects are determined. For current conditions, total aerosol is estimated to reduce the combined shortwave and longwave net-flux balance at the top of the atmosphere by about -1.6 W/m2 from which -0.5 W/m2 (with

A human-scale perspective on global warming: Zero emission year and personal quotas.

PubMed

de la Fuente, Alberto; Rojas, Maisa; Mac Lean, Claudia

2017-01-01

This article builds on the premise that human consumption of goods, food and transport are the ultimate drivers of climate change. However, the nature of the climate change problem (well described as a tragedy of the commons) makes it difficult for individuals to recognise their personal duty to implement behavioural changes to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Consequently, this article aims to analyse the climate change issue from a human-scale perspective, in which each of us has a clearly defined personal quota of CO2 emissions that limits our activity and there is a finite time during which CO2 emissions must be eliminated to achieve the "well below 2°C" warming limit set by the Paris Agreement of 2015 (COP21). Thus, this work's primary contribution is to connect an equal per capita fairness approach to a global carbon budget, linking personal levels with planetary levels. Here, we show that a personal quota of 5.0 tons of CO2 yr-1 p-1 is a representative value for both past and future emissions; for this level of a constant per-capita emissions and without considering any mitigation, the global accumulated emissions compatible with the "well below 2°C" and 2°C targets will be exhausted by 2030 and 2050, respectively. These are references years that provide an order of magnitude of the time that is left to reverse the global warming trend. More realistic scenarios that consider a smooth transition toward a zero-emission world show that the global accumulated emissions compatible with the "well below 2°C" and 2°C targets will be exhausted by 2040 and 2080, respectively. Implications of this paper include a return to personal responsibility following equity principles among individuals, and a definition of boundaries to the personal emissions of CO2.

A human-scale perspective on global warming: Zero emission year and personal quotas

PubMed Central

Rojas, Maisa; Mac Lean, Claudia

2017-01-01

This article builds on the premise that human consumption of goods, food and transport are the ultimate drivers of climate change. However, the nature of the climate change problem (well described as a tragedy of the commons) makes it difficult for individuals to recognise their personal duty to implement behavioural changes to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Consequently, this article aims to analyse the climate change issue from a human-scale perspective, in which each of us has a clearly defined personal quota of CO2 emissions that limits our activity and there is a finite time during which CO2 emissions must be eliminated to achieve the “well below 2°C” warming limit set by the Paris Agreement of 2015 (COP21). Thus, this work’s primary contribution is to connect an equal per capita fairness approach to a global carbon budget, linking personal levels with planetary levels. Here, we show that a personal quota of 5.0 tons of CO2 yr-1 p-1 is a representative value for both past and future emissions; for this level of a constant per-capita emissions and without considering any mitigation, the global accumulated emissions compatible with the “well below 2°C” and 2°C targets will be exhausted by 2030 and 2050, respectively. These are references years that provide an order of magnitude of the time that is left to reverse the global warming trend. More realistic scenarios that consider a smooth transition toward a zero-emission world show that the global accumulated emissions compatible with the “well below 2°C” and 2°C targets will be exhausted by 2040 and 2080, respectively. Implications of this paper include a return to personal responsibility following equity principles among individuals, and a definition of boundaries to the personal emissions of CO2. PMID:28628676

Children's Health Month 2017

EPA Pesticide Factsheets

October is Children's Health month, with information and links that you can use -- in October and throughout the year. We will work with parents, teachers, and health providers to promote healthy environments where children live, learn and play.

Differentiating maternal fatigue and depressive symptoms at six months and four years post partum: Considerations for assessment, diagnosis and intervention.

PubMed

Giallo, Rebecca; Gartland, Deirdre; Woolhouse, Hannah; Brown, Stephanie

2015-02-01

fatigue and depressive symptoms are common among women in the postpartum period, and it has been proposed that fatigue is a risk factor for later depression. To progress this research, there is a need to clarify the conceptual and measurement issue of whether these two sets of symptoms are distinct constructs. There is also a need to determine whether they are distinct constructs beyond the postnatal period. The aim of the study was to assess the construct and discriminant validity of fatigue and depressive symptoms as measured by the SF-36 Vitality subscale (SF-36) and the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) at six months and at four years post partum. data from over 1000 women participating in the Maternal Health Study, a longitudinal study of women׳s physical and psychological health and recovery after childbirth were used. confirmatory factor analysis revealed a two-factor model of fatigue and depressive symptoms represented as distinct but related constructs was a better fit to the data than a one-factor model of fatigue and depression sharing the same underlying construct at both six months and four years post partum. this study provides empirical evidence that maternal fatigue and depression in the first year after having a baby and at four years post partum are best understood as separate psychological constructs or experiences. The findings have important implications for clinical practice, in particular underlining the importance of differentiating tiredness from depression. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Prenatal Adversities and Latino Children’s Autonomic Nervous System Reactivity Trajectories from 6 Months to 5 Years of Age

PubMed Central

Alkon, Abbey; Boyce, W. Thomas; Tran, Linh; Harley, Kim G.; Neuhaus, John; Eskenazi, Brenda

2014-01-01

The purpose of the study was to determine whether mothers’ adversities experienced during early pregnancy are associated with offspring’s autonomic nervous system (ANS) reactivity trajectories from 6 months to 5 years of age. This cohort study of primarily Latino families included maternal interviews at 13–14 weeks gestation about their experience of a range of adversities: father’s absence, general social support, poverty level, and household density. ANS measures of heart rate, respiratory sinus arrhythmia (parasympathetic nervous system) and preejection period (sympathetic nervous system) were collected during resting and challenging conditions on children at 6 months and 1, 3.5 and 5 years of age. Reactivity measures were calculated as the mean of the responses to challenging conditions minus a resting condition. Fixed effects models were conducted for the 212 children with two or more timepoints of ANS measures. Interactions between maternal prenatal adversity levels and child age at time of ANS protocol were included in the models, allowing the calculation of separate trajectories or slopes for each level of adversity. Results showed no significant relations between mothers’ prenatal socioeconomic or social support adversity and offspring’s parasympathetic nervous system trajectories, but there was a statistically significant relationship between social support adversity and offspring’s heart rate trajectories (p<.05) and a borderline significant relationship between socioeconomic adversity and offspring’s sympathetic nervous system trajectories (p = .05). Children whose mothers experienced one, not two, social support adversity had the smallest increases in heart rate reactivity compared to children whose mothers experienced no adversity. The children whose mothers experienced no social support and no socioeconomic adversity had the largest increases in heart rate and preejection period respectively from 6 months to 5 years showing the

Synergistic effects of the components of global change: Increased vegetation dynamics in open, forest-steppe grasslands driven by wildfires and year-to-year precipitation differences

PubMed Central

Aszalós, Réka; Lengyel, Attila

2017-01-01

Climate change and land use change are two major elements of human-induced global environmental change. In temperate grasslands and woodlands, increasing frequency of extreme weather events like droughts and increasing severity of wildfires has altered the structure and dynamics of vegetation. In this paper, we studied the impact of wildfires and the year-to-year differences in precipitation on species composition changes in semi-arid grasslands of a forest-steppe complex ecosystem which has been partially disturbed by wildfires. Particularly, we investigated both how long-term compositional dissimilarity changes and species richness are affected by year-to-year precipitation differences on burnt and unburnt areas. Study sites were located in central Hungary, in protected areas characterized by partially-burnt, juniper-poplar forest-steppe complexes of high biodiversity. Data were used from two long-term monitoring sites in the Kiskunság National Park, both characterized by the same habitat complex. We investigated the variation in species composition as a function of time using distance decay methodology. In each sampling area, compositional dissimilarity increased with the time elapsed between the sampling events, and species richness differences increased with increasing precipitation differences between consecutive years. We found that both the long-term compositional dissimilarity, and the year-to-year changes in species richness were higher in the burnt areas than in the unburnt ones. The long-term compositional dissimilarities were mostly caused by perennial species, while the year-to-year changes of species richness were driven by annual and biennial species. As the effect of the year-to-year variation in precipitation was more pronounced in the burnt areas, we conclude that canopy removal by wildfires and extreme inter-annual variability of precipitation, two components of global environmental change, act in a synergistic way. They enhance the effect of

Synergistic effects of the components of global change: Increased vegetation dynamics in open, forest-steppe grasslands driven by wildfires and year-to-year precipitation differences.

PubMed

Kertész, Miklós; Aszalós, Réka; Lengyel, Attila; Ónodi, Gábor

2017-01-01

Climate change and land use change are two major elements of human-induced global environmental change. In temperate grasslands and woodlands, increasing frequency of extreme weather events like droughts and increasing severity of wildfires has altered the structure and dynamics of vegetation. In this paper, we studied the impact of wildfires and the year-to-year differences in precipitation on species composition changes in semi-arid grasslands of a forest-steppe complex ecosystem which has been partially disturbed by wildfires. Particularly, we investigated both how long-term compositional dissimilarity changes and species richness are affected by year-to-year precipitation differences on burnt and unburnt areas. Study sites were located in central Hungary, in protected areas characterized by partially-burnt, juniper-poplar forest-steppe complexes of high biodiversity. Data were used from two long-term monitoring sites in the Kiskunság National Park, both characterized by the same habitat complex. We investigated the variation in species composition as a function of time using distance decay methodology. In each sampling area, compositional dissimilarity increased with the time elapsed between the sampling events, and species richness differences increased with increasing precipitation differences between consecutive years. We found that both the long-term compositional dissimilarity, and the year-to-year changes in species richness were higher in the burnt areas than in the unburnt ones. The long-term compositional dissimilarities were mostly caused by perennial species, while the year-to-year changes of species richness were driven by annual and biennial species. As the effect of the year-to-year variation in precipitation was more pronounced in the burnt areas, we conclude that canopy removal by wildfires and extreme inter-annual variability of precipitation, two components of global environmental change, act in a synergistic way. They enhance the effect of

Changes in Tropical Cyclone Intensity Over the Past 30 Years: A Global and Dynamic Perspective

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Wu, Liguang; Wang, Bin; Braun, Scott A.

2006-01-01

The hurricane season of 2005 was the busiest on record and Hurricane Katrina (2005) is believed to be the costliest hurricane in U. S. history. There are growing concerns regarding whether this increased tropical cyclone activity is a result of global warming, as suggested by Emanuel(2005) and Webster et al. (2005), or just a natural oscillation (Goldenberg et al. 2001). This study examines the changes in tropical cyclone intensity to see what were really responsible for the changes in tropical cyclone activity over the past 30 years. Since the tropical sea surface temperature (SST) warming also leads to the response of atmospheric circulation, which is not solely determined by the local SST warming, this study suggests that it is better to take the tropical cyclone activities in the North Atlantic (NA), western North Pacific (WNP) and eastern North Pacific (ENP) basins as a whole when searching for the influence of the global-scale SST warming on tropical cyclone intensity. Over the past 30 years, as the tropical SST increased by about 0.5 C, the linear trends indicate 6%, 16% and 15% increases in the overall average intensity and lifetime and the annual frequency. Our analysis shows that the increased annual destructiveness of tropical cyclones reported by Emanuel(2005) resulted mainly from the increases in the average lifetime and annual frequency in the NA basin and from the increases in the average intensity and lifetime in the WNP basin, while the annual destructiveness in the ENP basin generally decreased over the past 30 years. The changes in the proportion of intense tropical cyclones reported by Webster et a1 (2005) were due mainly to the fact that increasing tropical cyclones took the tracks that favor for the development of intense tropical cyclones in the NA and WNP basins over the past 30 years. The dynamic influence associated with the tropical SST warming can lead to the impact of global warming on tropical cyclone intensity that may be very

2011 Women's History Month

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-03-24

John C. Stennis Space Center employees (l to r) Janet Kovac (NASA Shared Services Center), Lael Butler (Environmental Protection Agency Gulf of Mexico Program), Mary Carter (NSSC) and Maura Lohrenz (Naval Research Laboratory) celebrate a correct answer during the Women's History Month Quiz Bowl held onsite March 24. The contest between the women and a panel of four men tested each side's knowledge of women's history facts and events. This year's Women's History Month theme was 'Our History is Our Strength.' Befitting that sentiment, the panel of women won the contest.

2011 Black History Month

NASA Image and Video Library

2011-02-16

Victoria Webb (center) discusses African-American history during a Black History Month program for John C. Stennis Space Center employees on Feb. 16. Webb, a 103-year-old native of Pass Christian, was guest speaker for the program, sponsored by the Stennis Diversity Council and the Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command. She was joined in her presentation by Valli Battle (left), a NAVOCEANO employee at Stennis, and friend Jeanell Barnes. Black History Month was first observed in 1976 and is celebrated each February. The 2011 theme was African-Americans and the Civil War.

Global Soil Respiration: Interaction with Environmental Variables and Response to Climate Change

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jian, J.; Steele, M.

2016-12-01

Background, methods, objectivesTerrestrial ecosystems take up around 1.7 Pg C per year; however, the role of terrestrial ecosystems as a carbon sink may change to carbon source by 2050, as a result of positive feedback of soil respiration response to global warming. Nevertheless, limited evidence shows that soil carbon is decreasing and the role of terrestrial ecosystems is changing under warming. One possibility is the positive feedback may slow due to the acclimation of soil respiration as a result of decreasing temperature sensitivity (Q10) with warming. To verify and quantify the uncertainty in soil carbon cycling and feedbacks to climate change, we assembled soil respiration observations from 1961 to 2014 from 724 publications into a monthly global soil respiration database (MSRDB), which included 13482 soil respiration measurements together with 38 other ancillary measurements from 538 sites. Using this database we examined macroscale variation in the relationship between soil respiration and air temperature, precipitation, leaf area index and soil properties. We also quantified global soil respiration, the sources of uncertainty, and its feedback to warming based on climate region-oriented models with variant Q10function. Results and ConclusionsOur results showed substantial heterogeneity in the relationship between soil respiration and environmental factors across different climate regions. For example, soil respiration was strongly related to vegetation (via leaf area index) in colder regions, but not in tropical region. Only in tropical and arid regions did soil properties explain any variation in soil respiration. Global annual mean soil respiration from 1961 to 2014 was estimated to be 72.41 Pg C yr-1 based on monthly global soil respiration database, 25 Pg lower than estimated based on yearly soil respiration database. By using the variable Q10 models, we estimated that global soil respiration increased at a rate of 0.03 Pg C yr-1 from 1961 to 2014

A year of living dangerously: the tobacco control community meets the global settlement.

PubMed Central

Bloch, M; Daynard, R; Roemer, R

1998-01-01

Momentum toward Congressional action on tobacco issues began with the announcement in June 1997 of a proposed "global tobacco settlement" between the tobacco industry, a group of state Attorneys General, and private class action lawyers. For the next year, tobacco issues received unprecedented national attention, culminating in the U.S. Senate's consideration and ultimate defeat of the McCain tobacco bill. Through the proposed settlement, the Attorneys General and others involved in talks with the industry sought to reduce tobacco use by attempting to forge a "win-win" solution for all parties. In exchange for money and public health concessions, the industry would be granted sweeping protection from litigation and thus a stable environment in which to operate. Members of the public health community responded to the "global tobacco settlement" in very different ways. The authors explore how different visions of possibilities and practicalities were played out in the fight for strong Federal tobacco control legislation and attempt to draw lessons for the future. Images p489-a p491-a p492-a p495-a p496-a PMID:9847920

Spatializing 6,000 years of global urbanization from 3700 BC to AD 2000

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Reba, Meredith; Reitsma, Femke; Seto, Karen C.

2016-06-01

How were cities distributed globally in the past? How many people lived in these cities? How did cities influence their local and regional environments? In order to understand the current era of urbanization, we must understand long-term historical urbanization trends and patterns. However, to date there is no comprehensive record of spatially explicit, historic, city-level population data at the global scale. Here, we developed the first spatially explicit dataset of urban settlements from 3700 BC to AD 2000, by digitizing, transcribing, and geocoding historical, archaeological, and census-based urban population data previously published in tabular form by Chandler and Modelski. The dataset creation process also required data cleaning and harmonization procedures to make the data internally consistent. Additionally, we created a reliability ranking for each geocoded location to assess the geographic uncertainty of each data point. The dataset provides the first spatially explicit archive of the location and size of urban populations over the last 6,000 years and can contribute to an improved understanding of contemporary and historical urbanization trends.

Spatializing 6,000 years of global urbanization from 3700 BC to AD 2000

PubMed Central

Reba, Meredith; Reitsma, Femke; Seto, Karen C.

2016-01-01

How were cities distributed globally in the past? How many people lived in these cities? How did cities influence their local and regional environments? In order to understand the current era of urbanization, we must understand long-term historical urbanization trends and patterns. However, to date there is no comprehensive record of spatially explicit, historic, city-level population data at the global scale. Here, we developed the first spatially explicit dataset of urban settlements from 3700 BC to AD 2000, by digitizing, transcribing, and geocoding historical, archaeological, and census-based urban population data previously published in tabular form by Chandler and Modelski. The dataset creation process also required data cleaning and harmonization procedures to make the data internally consistent. Additionally, we created a reliability ranking for each geocoded location to assess the geographic uncertainty of each data point. The dataset provides the first spatially explicit archive of the location and size of urban populations over the last 6,000 years and can contribute to an improved understanding of contemporary and historical urbanization trends. PMID:27271481

MOnthly TEmperature DAtabase of Spain 1951-2010: MOTEDAS. (1) Quality control

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peña-Angulo, Dhais; Cortesi, Nicola; Simolo, Claudia; Stepanek, Peter; Brunetti, Michele; González-Hidalgo, José Carlos

2014-05-01

The HIDROCAES project (Impactos Hidrológicos del Calentamiento Global en España, Spanish Ministery of Research CGL2011-27574-C02-01) is focused on the high resolution in the Spanish continental land of the warming processes during the 1951-2010. To do that the Department of Geography (University of Zaragoza, Spain), the Hydrometeorological Service (Brno Division, Chezck Republic) and the ISAC-CNR (Bologna, Italy) are developing the new dataset MOTEDAS (MOnthly TEmperature DAtabase of Spain), from which we present a collection of poster to show (1) the general structure of dataset and quality control; (2) the analyses of spatial correlation of monthly mean values of maximum (Tmax) and minimum (Tmin temperature; (3) the reconstruction processes of series and high resolution grid developing; (4) the first initial results of trend analyses of annual, seasonal and monthly range mean values. MOTEDAS has been created after exhaustive analyses and quality control of the original digitalized data of the Spanish National Meteorological Agency (Agencia Estatal de Meteorología, AEMET). Quality control was applied without any prior reconstruction, i.e. on original series. Then, from the total amount of series stored at AEMet archives (more than 4680) we selected only those series with at least 10 years of data (i.e. 120 months, 3066 series) to apply a quality control and reconstruction processes (see Poster MOTEDAS 3). Length of series was Tmin, upper and lower thresholds of absolute data, etc), and by comparison with reference series (see Poster MOTEDAS 3, about reconstruction). Anomalous data were considered when difference between Candidate and Reference series were higher than three times the interquartile distance. The total amount of monthly suspicious data recognized and discarded at the end of this analyses was 7832 data for Tmin, and 8063 for Tmax data; they represent less than 0,8% of original total monthly data, for both Tmax and Tmin. No spatial pattern was

Global Snow-Cover Evolution from Twenty Years of Satellite Passive Microwave Data

USGS Publications Warehouse

Mognard, N.M.; Kouraev, A.V.; Josberger, E.G.

2003-01-01

Starting in 1979 with the SMMR (Scanning Multichannel Microwave Radiometer) instrument onboard the satellite NIMBUS-7 and continuing since 1987 with the SSMI (Special Sensor Microwave Imager) instrument on board the DMSP (Defence Meteorological Satellite Program) series, more then twenty years of satellite passive microwave data are now available. This dataset has been processed to analyse the evolution of the global snow cover. This work is part of the AICSEX project from the 5th Framework Programme of the European Community. The spatio-temporal evolution of the satellite-derived yearly snow maximum extent and the timing of the spring snow melt were estimated and analysed over the Northern Hemisphere. Significant differences between the evolution of the yearly maximum snow extent in Eurasia and in North America were found. A positive correlation between the maximum yearly snow cover extent and the ENSO index was obtained. High interannual spatio-temporal variability characterises the timing of snow melt in the spring. Twenty-year trends in the timing of spring snow melt have been computed and compared with spring air temperature trends for the same period and the same area. In most parts of Eurasia and in the central and western parts of North America the tendency has been for earlier snow melt. In northeastern Canada, a large area of positive trends, where snow melt timing starts later than in the early 1980s, corresponds to a region of positive trends of spring air temperature observed over the same period.

Financial Capacity Following Traumatic Brain Injury: A Six-Month Longitudinal Study

PubMed Central

Dreer, Laura E.; DeVivo, Michael J.; Novack, Thomas A.; Marson, Daniel C.

2015-01-01

Objective To longitudinally investigate financial capacity (FC) following traumatic brain injury (TBI). Design Longitudinal study comparing FC in cognitively healthy adults and persons with moderate to severe TBI at time of acute hospitalization (Time 1) and at six months post injury (Time 2). Setting Inpatient brain injury rehabilitation unit. Participants Twenty healthy adult controls and 24 adult persons with moderate to severe TBI. Main Outcome Measures Participants were administered the Financial Capacity Instrument (FCI-9), a standardized instrument that measures performance on eighteen financial tasks, nine domains, and two global scores. Between and within group differences were examined for each FCI-9 domain and global scores. Using control group referenced cut scores, participants with TBI were also assigned an impairment rating (intact, marginal, or impaired) on each domain and global score. Results At Time 1, participants with TBI performed significantly below controls on the majority of financial variables tested. At Time 2, participants with TBI demonstrated within group improvement on both simple and complex financial skills, but continued to perform below adult controls on complex financial skills and both global scores. Group by time interactions were significant for five domains and both global scores. At Time 1, high percentages of participants with TBI were assigned either ‘marginal’ or ‘impaired’ ratings on the domains and global scores, with significant percentage increases of ‘intact’ ratings at Time 2. Conclusions Immediately following acute injury, persons with moderate to severe TBI show global impairment of FC. Findings indicate improvement of both simple and complex financial skills over a six month period, but continued impairment on more complex financial skills. Future studies should examine loss and recovery of FC following TBI over longer time periods and a wider range of injury severity. PMID:22369113

A Global Drought and Flood Catalogue for the past 100 years

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sheffield, J.; He, X.; Peng, L.; Pan, M.; Fisher, C. K.; Wood, E. F.

2017-12-01

Extreme hydrological events cause the most impacts of natural hazards globally, impacting on a wide range of sectors including, most prominently, agriculture, food security and water availability and quality, but also on energy production, forestry, health, transportation and fisheries. Understanding how floods and droughts intersect, and have changed in the past provides the basis for understanding current risk and how it may change in the future. To do this requires an understanding of the mechanisms associated with events and therefore their predictability, attribution of long-term changes in risk, and quantification of projections of changes in the future. Of key importance are long-term records of relevant variables so that risk can be quantified more accurately, given the growing acknowledgement that risk is not stationary under long-term climate variability and climate change. To address this, we develop a catalogue of drought and flood events based on land surface and hydrodynamic modeling, forced by a hybrid meteorological dataset that draws from the continuity and coverage of reanalysis, and satellite datasets, merged with global gauge databases. The meteorological dataset is corrected for temporal inhomogeneities, spurious trends and variable inter-dependencies to ensure long-term consistency, as well as realistic representation of short-term variability and extremes. The VIC land surface model is run for the past 100 years at 0.25-degree resolution for global land areas. The VIC runoff is then used to drive the CaMa-Flood hydrodynamic model to obtain information on flood inundation risk. The model outputs are compared to satellite based estimates of flood and drought conditions and the observational flood record. The data are analyzed in terms of the spatio-temporal characteristics of large-scale flood and drought events with a particular focus on characterizing the long-term variability in risk. Significant changes in risk occur on multi-decadal time

Cognitive functioning over 2 years after intracerebral hemorrhage in school-aged children.

PubMed

Murphy, Lexa K; Compas, Bruce E; Gindville, Melissa C; Reeslund, Kristen L; Jordan, Lori C

2017-11-01

Previous research investigating outcomes after pediatric intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) has generally been limited to global and sensorimotor outcomes. This study examined cognitive outcomes after spontaneous ICH in school-aged children with serial assessments over 2 years after stroke. Seven children (age range 6-16y, median 13; six males, one female; 57% white, 43% black) presenting with spontaneous ICH (six arteriovenous malformations) were assessed at 3 months, 12 months, and 24 months after stroke. The Pediatric Stroke Outcome Measure (PSOM) quantified neurological outcome and Wechsler Intelligence Scales measured cognitive outcomes: verbal comprehension, perceptual reasoning, working memory, and processing speed. PSOM scales showed improved neurological function over the first 12 months, with mild to no sensorimotor deficits and moderate overall deficits at 1- and 2-year follow-ups (median 2-year sensorimotor PSOM=0.5, total PSOM=1.5). Changes in cognitive function indicated a different trajectory; verbal comprehension and perceptual reasoning improved over 24 months; low performance was sustained in processing speed and working memory. Age-normed centile scores decreased between 1- and 2-year follow-ups for working memory, suggesting emerging deficits compared with peers. Early and serial cognitive testing in children with ICH is needed to assess cognitive functioning and support children in school as they age and cognitive deficits become more apparent and important for function. In children with intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), motor function improved between 3 months and 24 months. Improvements in cognitive function were variable between 3 months and 24 months. Working memory centiles declined, suggesting emerging deficits compared with peers. Processing speed improved but remained significantly below the 50th centile. Cognitive impact of ICH may increase with age in children. © 2017 Mac Keith Press.

38 CFR 52.40 - Monthly payment.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-07-01

... health care at the facility divided by the total number of participants enrolled in the adult day health... FOR ADULT DAY HEALTH CARE OF VETERANS IN STATE HOMES Per Diem Payments § 52.40 Monthly payment. (a)(1) During Fiscal Year 2002, VA will pay monthly one-half of the total cost of each eligible veteran's adult...

Random errors of oceanic monthly rainfall derived from SSM/I using probability distribution functions

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Chang, Alfred T. C.; Chiu, Long S.; Wilheit, Thomas T.

1993-01-01

Global averages and random errors associated with the monthly oceanic rain rates derived from the Special Sensor Microwave/Imager (SSM/I) data using the technique developed by Wilheit et al. (1991) are computed. Accounting for the beam-filling bias, a global annual average rain rate of 1.26 m is computed. The error estimation scheme is based on the existence of independent (morning and afternoon) estimates of the monthly mean. Calculations show overall random errors of about 50-60 percent for each 5 deg x 5 deg box. The results are insensitive to different sampling strategy (odd and even days of the month). Comparison of the SSM/I estimates with raingage data collected at the Pacific atoll stations showed a low bias of about 8 percent, a correlation of 0.7, and an rms difference of 55 percent.

Segmental and global lordosis changes with two-level axial lumbar interbody fusion and posterior instrumentation

PubMed Central

Melgar, Miguel A; Tobler, William D; Ernst, Robert J; Raley, Thomas J; Anand, Neel; Miller, Larry E; Nasca, Richard J

2014-01-01

Background Loss of lumbar lordosis has been reported after lumbar interbody fusion surgery and may portend poor clinical and radiographic outcome. The objective of this research was to measure changes in segmental and global lumbar lordosis in patients treated with presacral axial L4-S1 interbody fusion and posterior instrumentation and to determine if these changes influenced patient outcomes. Methods We performed a retrospective, multi-center review of prospectively collected data in 58 consecutive patients with disabling lumbar pain and radiculopathy unresponsive to nonsurgical treatment who underwent L4-S1 interbody fusion with the AxiaLIF two-level system (Baxano Surgical, Raleigh NC). Main outcomes included back pain severity, Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), Odom's outcome criteria, and fusion status using flexion and extension radiographs and computed tomography scans. Segmental (L4-S1) and global (L1-S1) lumbar lordosis measurements were made using standing lateral radiographs. All patients were followed for at least 24 months (mean: 29 months, range 24-56 months). Results There was no bowel injury, vascular injury, deep infection, neurologic complication or implant failure. Mean back pain severity improved from 7.8±1.7 at baseline to 3.3±2.6 at 2 years (p < 0.001). Mean ODI scores improved from 60±15% at baseline to 34±27% at 2 years (p < 0.001). At final follow-up, 83% of patients were rated as good or excellent using Odom's criteria. Interbody fusion was observed in 111 (96%) of 116 treated interspaces. Maintenance of lordosis, defined as a change in Cobb angle ≤ 5°, was identified in 84% of patients at L4-S1 and 81% of patients at L1-S1. Patients with loss or gain in segmental or global lordosis experienced similar 2-year outcomes versus those with less than a 5° change. Conclusions/Clinical Relevance Two-level axial interbody fusion supplemented with posterior fixation does not alter segmental or global lordosis in most patients. Patients with

Progress Toward a Global, EOS-Era Aerosol Air Mass Type Climatology

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Kahn, Ralph A.

2012-01-01

The MISR and MODIS instruments aboard the NASA Earth Observing System's Terra Satellite have been collecting data containing information about the state of Earth's atmosphere and surface for over eleven years. Data from these instruments have been used to develop a global, monthly climatology of aerosol amount that is widely used as a constraint on climate models, including those used for the 2007 IPCC assessment report. The next frontier in assessing aerosol radiative forcing of climate is aerosol type, and in particular, the absorption properties of major aerosol air masses. This presentation will focus on the prospects for constraining aerosol type globally, and the steps we are taking to apply a combination of satellite and suborbital data to this challenge.

7 CFR 932.19 - Crop year and fiscal year.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... Regulating Handling Definitions § 932.19 Crop year and fiscal year. (a) Crop year means the 12-month period... be recommended by the committee and approved by the Secretary. (b) Fiscal year means the 12-month... 7 Agriculture 8 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Crop year and fiscal year. 932.19 Section 932.19...

Global lightning studies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Goodman, Steven J.; Wright, Pat; Christian, Hugh; Blakeslee, Richard; Buechler, Dennis; Scharfen, Greg

1991-01-01

The global lightning signatures were analyzed from the DMSP Optical Linescan System (OLS) imagery archived at the National Snow and Ice Data Center. Transition to analysis of the digital archive becomes available and compare annual, interannual, and seasonal variations with other global data sets. An initial survey of the quality of the existing film archive was completed and lightning signatures were digitized for the summer months of 1986 to 1987. The relationship is studied between: (1) global and regional lightning activity and rainfall, and (2) storm electrical development and environment. Remote sensing data sets obtained from field programs are used in conjunction with satellite/radar/lightning data to develop and improve precipitation estimation algorithms, and to provide a better understanding of the co-evolving electrical, microphysical, and dynamical structure of storms.

78 FR 26217 - National Building Safety Month, 2013

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-05-03

... Building Safety Month, 2013 By the President of the United States of America A Proclamation When natural.... This month, as we pay tribute to professionals who design, construct, and secure our infrastructure... standards. This month, we take up those tasks once more and recommit to safety in the year ahead. NOW...

Global Precipitation Patterns Associated with ENSO and Tropical Circulations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Curtis, Scott; Adler, Robert; Huffman, George; Bolvin, David; Nelkin, Eric

1999-01-01

Tropical precipitation and the accompanying latent heat release is the engine that drives the global circulation. An increase or decrease in rainfall in the tropics not only leads to the local effects of flooding or drought, but contributes to changes in the large scale circulation and global climate system. Rainfall in the tropics is highly variable, both seasonally (monsoons) and interannually (ENSO). Two experimental observational data sets, developed under the auspices of the Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP), are used in this study to examine the relationships between global precipitation and ENSO and extreme monsoon events over the past 20 years. The V2x79 monthly product is a globally complete, 2.5 deg x 2.5 deg, satellite-gauge merged data set that covers the period 1979 to the present. Indices based on patterns of satellite-derived rainfall anomalies in the Pacific are used to analyze the teleconnections between ENSO and global precipitation, with emphasis on the monsoon systems. It has been well documented that dry (wet) Asian monsoons accompany warm (cold) ENSO events. However, during the summer seasons of the 1997/98 ENSO the precipitation anomalies were mostly positive over India and the Bay of Bengal, which may be related to an epoch-scale variability in the Asian monsoon circulation. The North American monsoon may be less well linked to ENSO, but a positive precipitation anomaly was observed over Mexico around the September following the 1997/98 event. For the twenty-year record, precipitation and SST patterns in the tropics are analyzed during wet and dry monsoons. For the Asian summer monsoon, positive rainfall anomalies accompany two distinct patterns of tropical precipitation and a warm Indian Ocean. Negative anomalies coincide with a wet Maritime Continent.

Xanthos – A Global Hydrologic Model

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Li, Xinya; Vernon, Chris R.; Hejazi, Mohamad I.

Xanthos is an open-source hydrologic model, written in Python, designed to quantify and analyse global water availability. Xanthos simulates historical and future global water availability on a monthly time step at a spatial resolution of 0.5 geographic degrees. Xanthos was designed to be extensible and used by scientists that study global water supply and work with the Global Change Assessment Model (GCAM). Xanthos uses a user-defined configuration file to specify model inputs, outputs and parameters. Xanthos has been tested using actual global data sets and the model is able to provide historical observations and future estimates of renewable freshwater resourcesmore » in the form of total runoff.« less

Xanthos – A Global Hydrologic Model

DOE PAGES

Li, Xinya; Vernon, Chris R.; Hejazi, Mohamad I.; ...

2017-09-11

Xanthos is an open-source hydrologic model, written in Python, designed to quantify and analyse global water availability. Xanthos simulates historical and future global water availability on a monthly time step at a spatial resolution of 0.5 geographic degrees. Xanthos was designed to be extensible and used by scientists that study global water supply and work with the Global Change Assessment Model (GCAM). Xanthos uses a user-defined configuration file to specify model inputs, outputs and parameters. Xanthos has been tested using actual global data sets and the model is able to provide historical observations and future estimates of renewable freshwater resourcesmore » in the form of total runoff.« less

Woody encroachment over 70 years in South African savannahs: overgrazing, global change or extinction aftershock?

PubMed Central

Erasmus, B. F. N.; Archibald, S.

2016-01-01

Woody encroachment in ‘open’ biomes like grasslands and savannahs is occurring globally. Both local and global drivers, including elevated CO2, have been implicated in these increases. The relative importance of different processes is unresolved as there are few multi-site, multi-land-use evaluations of woody plant encroachment. We measured 70 years of woody cover changes over a 1020 km2 area covering four land uses (commercial ranching, conservation with elephants, conservation without elephants and communal rangelands) across a rainfall gradient in South African savannahs. Different directions of woody cover change would be expected for each different land use, unless a global factor is causing the increases. Woody cover change was measured between 1940 and 2010 using the aerial photo record. Detection of woody cover from each aerial photograph was automated using eCognitions' Object-based image analysis (OBIA). Woody cover doubled in all land uses across the rainfall gradient, except in conservation areas with elephants in low-rainfall savannahs. Woody cover in 2010 in low-rainfall savannahs frequently exceeded the maximum woody cover threshold predicted for African savannahs. The results indicate that a global factor, of which elevated CO2 is the likely candidate, may be driving encroachment. Elephants in low-rainfall savannahs prevent encroachment and localized megafaunal extinction is a probable additional cause of encroachment. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Tropical grassy biomes: linking ecology, human use and conservation’. PMID:27502384

Woody encroachment over 70 years in South African savannahs: overgrazing, global change or extinction aftershock?

PubMed

Stevens, Nicola; Erasmus, B F N; Archibald, S; Bond, W J

2016-09-19

Woody encroachment in 'open' biomes like grasslands and savannahs is occurring globally. Both local and global drivers, including elevated CO2, have been implicated in these increases. The relative importance of different processes is unresolved as there are few multi-site, multi-land-use evaluations of woody plant encroachment. We measured 70 years of woody cover changes over a 1020 km(2) area covering four land uses (commercial ranching, conservation with elephants, conservation without elephants and communal rangelands) across a rainfall gradient in South African savannahs. Different directions of woody cover change would be expected for each different land use, unless a global factor is causing the increases. Woody cover change was measured between 1940 and 2010 using the aerial photo record. Detection of woody cover from each aerial photograph was automated using eCognitions' Object-based image analysis (OBIA). Woody cover doubled in all land uses across the rainfall gradient, except in conservation areas with elephants in low-rainfall savannahs. Woody cover in 2010 in low-rainfall savannahs frequently exceeded the maximum woody cover threshold predicted for African savannahs. The results indicate that a global factor, of which elevated CO2 is the likely candidate, may be driving encroachment. Elephants in low-rainfall savannahs prevent encroachment and localized megafaunal extinction is a probable additional cause of encroachment.This article is part of the themed issue 'Tropical grassy biomes: linking ecology, human use and conservation'. © 2016 The Author(s).

The influence of mothers' and fathers' sensitivity in the first year of life on children's cognitive outcomes at 18 and 36 months.

PubMed

Malmberg, L-E; Lewis, S; West, A; Murray, E; Sylva, K; Stein, A

2016-01-01

There has been increasing interest in the relative effects of mothers' and fathers' interactions with their infants on later development. However to date there has been little work on children's cognitive outcomes. We examined the relative influence of fathers' and mothers' sensitivity during interactions with their children at the end of the child's first year (10-12 months, n = 97), on child general cognitive development at 18 months and language at 36 months. Both parents' sensitivity was associated with cognitive and language outcomes in univariate analyses. Mothers' sensitivity, however, appeared to be associated with family socio-demographic factors to a greater extent that fathers' sensitivity. Using path modelling the effect of paternal sensitivity on general cognitive development at 18 months and language at 36 months was significantly greater than the effect of maternal sensitivity, when controlling for socio-demographic background. In relation to language at 36 months, there was some evidence that sensitivity of one parent buffered the effect of lower sensitivity of the other parent. These findings suggest that parental sensitivity can play an important role in children's cognitive and language development, and that higher sensitivity of one parent can compensate for the lower sensitivity of the other parent. Replication of these findings, however, is required in larger samples. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Effects of aripiprazole once-monthly on symptoms of schizophrenia in patients switched from oral antipsychotics.

PubMed

Peters-Strickland, Timothy; Zhao, Cathy; Perry, Pamela P; Eramo, Anna; Salzman, Phyllis M; McQuade, Robert D; Johnson, Brian R; Sanchez, Raymond

2016-12-01

To assess the effects of aripiprazole once-monthly 400 mg (AOM 400) on clinical symptoms and global improvement in schizophrenia after switching from an oral antipsychotic. In a multicenter, open-label, mirror-image, naturalistic study in patients with schizophrenia (>1 year, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision [DSM-IV-TR] criteria), changes in efficacy measures were assessed during prospective treatment (6 months) with AOM 400 after switching from standard-of-care oral antipsychotics. During prospective treatment, patients were cross-titrated to oral aripiprazole monotherapy (1-4) weeks followed by open-label AOM 400 (24 weeks). Mean change from baseline of the open-label AOM 400 phase in Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) scores (total, positive and negative subscales) and Clinical Global Impression-Severity (CGI-S) scores; mean CGI-Improvement (CGI-I) score; and proportion of responders (≥30% decrease from baseline in PANSS total score or CGI-I score of 1 [very much improved] or 2 [much improved]) were assessed. PANSS and CGI-S scores improved from baseline (P<0.0001) and CGI-I demonstrated improvement at all time points. By the end of the study, 49.0% of patients were PANSS or CGI-I responders. In a community setting, patients with schizophrenia who were stabilized at baseline and switched to AOM 400 from oral antipsychotics showed clear improvements in clinical symptoms.

7 CFR 1430.205 - Selection of starting month.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... 7 Agriculture 10 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Selection of starting month. 1430.205 Section 1430... Program § 1430.205 Selection of starting month. (a) A dairy operation that enters into a MILC contract with CCC must designate the starting month for each fiscal year for the calculation of payments and...

Do Patients Failing Return-to-Activity Criteria at 6 Months After Anterior Cruciate Ligament Reconstruction Continue Demonstrating Deficits at 2 Years?

PubMed Central

Nawasreh, Zakariya; Logerstedt, David; Cummerm, Kathleen; Axe, Michael J.; Risberg, May Arna; Snyder-Mackler, Lynn

2017-01-01

Background The variability in outcomes after anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction (ACLR) might be related to the criteria that are used to determine athletes’ readiness to return to their preinjury activity level. A battery of return-to-activity criteria (RTAC) that emphasize normal knee function and movement symmetry has been instituted to quantitatively determine athletes’ readiness to return to preinjury activities. Purpose To investigate performance-based and patient-reported measures at 12 and 24 months after ACLR between patients who passed or failed RTAC at 6 months after ACLR. Study Design Cohort study; Level of evidence, 2. Methods A total of 108 patients who had participated in International Knee Documentation Committee level 1 or 2 sports activities completed RTAC testing at 6, 12, and 24 months after surgery. The RTAC included the isometric quadriceps strength index (QI), 4 single-legged hop tests, the Knee Outcome Survey–activities of daily living subscale (KOS-ADLS), and the global rating scale of perceived function (GRS). Patients who scored ≥90% on all RTAC were classified as the pass group, and those who scored <90% on any RTAC were classified as the fail group. At 12- and 24-month follow-ups, patients were asked if they had returned to the same preinjury activity level. Results At the 6-month follow-up, there were 48 patients in the pass group and 47 in the fail group. At the 12-month follow-up, 31 patients (73.8%) from the pass group and 15 patients (39.5%) from the fail group passed RTAC, and at the 24-month follow-up, 25 patients (75.8%) from the pass group and 14 patients (51.9%) from the fail group passed RTAC. The rate of return to activities in the pass group was 81% and 84% at 12 and 24 months after ACLR, respectively, compared with only 44% and 46% in the fail group (P ≤ .012), respectively; however, some patients in the fail group participated in preinjury activities without being cleared by their therapists. At 12 and 24

Aqueduct Global Flood Analyzer - bringing risk information to practice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ward, Philip

2017-04-01

The economic losses associated with flooding are huge and rising. As a result, there is increasing attention for strategic flood risk assessments at the global scale. In response, the last few years have seen a large growth in the number of global flood models. At the same time, users and practitioners require flood risk information in a format that is easy to use, understandable, transparent, and actionable. In response, we have developed the Aqueduct Global Flood Analyzer (wri.org/floods). The Analyzer is a free, online, easy to use, tool for assessing global river flood risk at the scale of countries, states, and river basins, using data generated by the state of the art GLOFRIS global flood risk model. The Analyzer allows users to assess flood risk on-the-fly in terms of expected annual urban damage, and expected annual population and GDP affected by floods. Analyses can be carried out for current conditions and under future scenarios of climate change and socioeconomic development. We will demonstrate the tool, and discuss several of its applications in practice. In the past 15 months, the tool has been visited and used by more than 12,000 unique users from almost every country, including many users from the World Bank, Pacific Disaster Center, Red Cross Climate Centre, as well as many journalists from major international news outlets. Use cases will be presented from these user communities. We will also present ongoing research to improve the user functionality of the tool in the coming year. This includes the inclusion of coastal flood risk, assessing the costs and benefits of adaptation, and assessing the impacts of land subsidence and urban extension on risk.

Aqueduct Global Flood Analyzer - bringing risk information to practice

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ward, P.; Bierkens, M. F.; Bouwman, A.; Diaz Loaiza, A.; Eilander, D.; Englhardt, J.; Erkens, G.; Hofste, R.; Iceland, C.; Willem, L.; Luo, T.; Muis, S.; Scussolini, P.; Sutanudjaja, E.; Van Beek, L. P.; Van Bemmel, B.; Van Huijstee, J.; Van Wesenbeeck, B.; Vatvani, D.; Verlaan, M.; Winsemius, H.

2016-12-01

The economic losses associated with flooding are huge and rising. As a result, there is increasing attention for strategic flood risk assessments at the global scale. In response, the last few years have seen a large growth in the number of global flood models. At the same time, users and practitioners require flood risk information in a format that is easy to use, understandable, transparent, and actionable. In response, we have developed the Aqueduct Global Flood Analyzer (wri.org/floods). The Analyzer is a free, online, easy to use, tool for assessing global river flood risk at the scale of countries, states, and river basins, using data generated by the state of the art GLOFRIS global flood risk model. The Analyzer allows users to assess flood risk on-the-fly in terms of expected annual urban damage, and expected annual population and GDP affected by floods. Analyses can be carried out for current conditions and under future scenarios of climate change and socioeconomic development. We will demonstrate the tool, and discuss several of its applications in practice. In the past 15 months, the tool has been visited and used by more than 12,000 unique users from almost every country, including many users from the World Bank, Pacific Disaster Center, Red Cross Climate Centre, as well as many journalists from major international news outlets. Use cases will be presented from these user communities. We will also present ongoing research to improve the user functionality of the tool in the coming year. This includes the inclusion of coastal flood risk, assessing the costs and benefits of adaptation, and assessing the impacts of land subsidence and urban extension on risk.

Global Multi-Year O3-CO Correlation Patterns from Models and TES Satellite Observations

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Voulgarakis, A.; Telford, P. J.; Aghedo, A. M.; Braesicke, P.; Faluvegi, G.; Abraham, N. L.; Bowman, K. W.; Pyle, J. A.; Shindell, D. T.

2011-01-01

The correlation between measured tropospheric ozone (O3) and carbon monoxide (CO) has been used extensively in tropospheric chemistry studies to explore the photochemical characteristics of different regions and to evaluate the ability of models to capture these characteristics. Here, we present the first study that uses multi-year, global, vertically resolved, simultaneous and collocated O3 and CO satellite (Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer) measurements, to determine this correlation in the middle/lower free troposphere for two different seasons, and to evaluate two chemistry-climate models. We find results that are fairly robust across different years, altitudes and timescales considered, which indicates that the correlation maps presented here could be used in future model evaluations. The highest positive correlations (around 0.8) are found in the northern Pacific during summer, which is a common feature in the observations and the G-PUCCINI model. We make quantitative comparisons between the models using a single-figure metric (C), which we define as the correlation coefficient between the modeled and the observed O3-CO correlations for different regions of the globe. On a global scale, the G-PUCCINI model shows a good performance in the summer (C =0.71) and a satisfactory performance in the winter (C = 0.52). It captures midlatitude features very well, especially in the summer, whereas the performance in regions like South America or Central Africa is weaker. The UKCA model (C = 0.46/0.15 for July-August/December-January on a global scale) performs better in certain regions, such as the tropics in winter, and it captures some of the broad characteristics of summer extratropical correlations, but it systematically underestimates the O3-CO correlations over much of the globe. It is noteworthy that the correlations look very different in the two models, even though the ozone distributions are similar. This demonstrates that this technique provides a powerful

Forecast of Frost Days Based on Monthly Temperatures

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Castellanos, M. T.; Tarquis, A. M.; Morató, M. C.; Saa-Requejo, A.

2009-04-01

Although frost can cause considerable crop damage and mitigation practices against forecasted frost exist, frost forecasting technologies have not changed for many years. The paper reports a new method to forecast the monthly number of frost days (FD) for several meteorological stations at Community of Madrid (Spain) based on successive application of two models. The first one is a stochastic model, autoregressive integrated moving average (ARIMA), that forecasts monthly minimum absolute temperature (tmin) and monthly average of minimum temperature (tminav) following Box-Jenkins methodology. The second model relates these monthly temperatures to minimum daily temperature distribution during one month. Three ARIMA models were identified for the time series analyzed with a stational period correspondent to one year. They present the same stational behavior (moving average differenced model) and different non-stational part: autoregressive model (Model 1), moving average differenced model (Model 2) and autoregressive and moving average model (Model 3). At the same time, the results point out that minimum daily temperature (tdmin), for the meteorological stations studied, followed a normal distribution each month with a very similar standard deviation through years. This standard deviation obtained for each station and each month could be used as a risk index for cold months. The application of Model 1 to predict minimum monthly temperatures showed the best FD forecast. This procedure provides a tool for crop managers and crop insurance companies to asses the risk of frost frequency and intensity, so that they can take steps to mitigate against frost damage and estimated the damage that frost would cost. This research was supported by Comunidad de Madrid Research Project 076/92. The cooperation of the Spanish National Meteorological Institute and the Spanish Ministerio de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentation (MAPA) is gratefully acknowledged.

Combination of monthly gravity field solutions from different processing centers

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Jean, Yoomin; Meyer, Ulrich; Jäggi, Adrian

2015-04-01

Currently, the official GRACE Science Data System (SDS) monthly gravity field solutions are generated independently by the Centre for Space Research (CSR) and the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ). Additional GRACE SDS monthly fields are provided by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) for validation and outside the SDS by a number of other institutions worldwide. Although the adopted background models and processing standards have been harmonized more and more by the various processing centers during the past years, notable differences still exist and the users are more or less left alone with a decision which model to choose for their individual applications. Combinations are well-established in the area of other space geodetic techniques, such as the Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR), and Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI), where regular comparisons and combinations of space-geodetic products have tremendously increased the usefulness of the products in a wide range of disciplines and scientific applications. In the frame of the recently started Horizon 2020 project European Gravity Service for Improved Emergency Management (EGSIEM), a scientific combination service shall therefore be established to deliver the best gravity products for applications in Earth and environmental science research based on the unified knowledge of the European GRACE community. In a first step the large variety of available monthly GRACE gravity field solutions shall be mutually compared spatially and spectrally. We assess the noise of the raw as well as filtered solutions and compare the secular and seasonal periodic variations fitted to the monthly solutions. In a second step we will explore ways to generate combined solutions, e.g., based on a weighted average of the individual solutions using empirical weights derived from pair-wise comparisons. We will also assess the quality of such a combined solution and discuss the

Does Terrestrial Drought Explain Global CO2 Flux Anomalies Induced by El Nino?

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schwalm. C. R.; Williams, C. A.; Schaefer, K.; Baker, I.; Collatz, G. J.; Roedenbeck, C.

2011-01-01

The El Nino Southern Oscillation is the dominant year-to-year mode of global climate variability. El Nino effects on terrestrial carbon cycling are mediated by associated climate anomalies, primarily drought, influencing fire emissions and biotic net ecosystem exchange (NEE). Here we evaluate whether El Nino produces a consistent response from the global carbon cycle. We apply a novel bottom-up approach to estimating global NEE anomalies based on FLUXNET data using land cover maps and weather reanalysis. We analyze 13 years (1997-2009) of globally gridded observational NEE anomalies derived from eddy covariance flux data, remotely-sensed fire emissions at the monthly time step, and NEE estimated from an atmospheric transport inversion. We evaluate the overall consistency of biospheric response to El Nino and, more generally, the link between global CO2 flux anomalies and El Nino-induced drought. Our findings, which are robust relative to uncertainty in both methods and time-lags in response, indicate that each event has a different spatial signature with only limited spatial coherence in Amazonia, Australia and southern Africa. For most regions, the sign of response changed across El Nino events. Biotic NEE anomalies, across 5 El Nino events, ranged from -1.34 to +0.98 Pg Cyr(exp -1, whereas fire emissions anomalies were generally smaller in magnitude (ranging from -0.49 to +0.53 Pg C yr(exp -1). Overall drought does not appear to impose consistent terrestrial CO2 flux anomalies during El Ninos, finding large variation in globally integrated responses from 11.15 to +0.49 Pg Cyr(exp -1). Despite the significant correlation between the CO2 flux and El Nino indices, we find that El Nino events have, when globally integrated, both enhanced and weakened terrestrial sink strength, with no consistent response across events

Associations between the physical activity levels of fathers and their children at 20 months, 3.5 and five years of age.

PubMed

Walsh, Adam D; Crawford, David; Cameron, Adrian J; Campbell, Karen J; Hesketh, Kylie D

2017-07-05

Early childhood (under five years of age) is a critical developmental period when children's physical activity behaviours are shaped and when physical activity patterns begin to emerge. Physical activity levels track from early childhood through to adolescence with low levels of physical activity associated with poorer health. The aims of this study were to examine cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between the physical activity levels of fathers and their children at the ages of 20 months, 3.5 and 5 years, and to investigate whether these associations differed based on paternal body mass index (BMI) and education. The Melbourne Infant Feeding Activity and Nutrition Trial (InFANT) Program was a cluster randomized-controlled trial delivered to pre-existing first-time parent groups. Physical activity levels of fathers and their first-born children were assessed using the Active Australia Survey and ActiGraph accelerometers respectively. Cross-sectional associations between father and child physical activity behaviours were assessed at each time point. Longitudinal associations between father and child physical activity were also investigated from child age 20 months to both 3.5 and 5 years. Additional stratified analyses were conducted based on paternal BMI and paternal education as a proxy for socioeconomic position (SEP). Data from the control and interventions groups were pooled and all analyses adjusted for intervention status, clustering by first-time parent group and accelerometer wear time. Physical activity levels of fathers and their children at child age 20 months were not associated cross-sectionally or longitudinally at child age 3.5 and 5 years. Positive associations were observed between light physical activity of healthy weight fathers and children at age 3.5 years. Inverse associations were observed for moderate/vigorous physical activity between fathers and children at age 5 years, including between overweight/obese fathers and their

Moclobemide and cognitive behavioral therapy in the treatment of social phobia. A six-month controlled study and 24 months follow up.

PubMed

Prasko, Ján; Dockery, Colleen; Horácek, Jirí; Houbová, Petra; Kosová, Jirina; Klaschka, Jan; Pasková, Beata; Praskova, Hana; Seifertová, Dagmar; Záleský, Richard; Höschl, Cyril

2006-08-01

The aim of the study was to assess the 6-months treatment efficacy and 24-month follow up of three different therapeutic programs (A. moclobemide and supportive guidance, B. group cognitive-behavioral therapy and pill placebo, and C. combination of moclobemide and group cognitive-behavioral therapy) in patients with a generalized form of social phobia. Eighty one patients (38 males and 43 females) were randomly assigned to three different therapeutic programs. Patients were regularly assessed on a monthly basis by an independent rater on the LSAS (Liebowitz Social Anxiety scale), CGI (Clinical Global Impression) for severity and change and BAI (Beck Anxiety Inventory). Altogether, sixty-six patients completed the six month treatment period and 15 patients dropped out. All therapeutic groups showed significant improvement. A combination of CBT and pharmacotherapy yielded the most rapid effect. Moclobemide was superior for the reduction of the subjective general anxiety (BAI) during the first 3 months of treatment, but its influence on avoidant behavior (LSAS avoidance subscale) was less pronounced. Conversely, CBT was the best choice for reduction of avoidant behavior while a reduction of subjective general anxiety appeared later than in moclobemide. After 6 months of treatment there were best results reached in groups treated with CBT and there was no advantage of the combined treatment. The relapse rate during the 24-month follow up was significantly lower in the group treated with CBT in comparison with the group A. formerly treated with moclobemide alone.

The association between stress, coping, and sexual risk behaviors over 24 months among African-American female adolescents.

PubMed

Hulland, Erin N; Brown, Jennifer L; Swartzendruber, Andrea L; Sales, Jessica M; Rose, Eve S; DiClemente, Ralph J

2015-01-01

Heightened psychosocial stress coupled with maladaptive coping may be associated with greater sexual risk engagement. This study examined the association between stress levels and coping strategy use as predictors of sexual risk behavior engagement over 24 months among African-American adolescent females (N = 701; M = 17.6 years) enrolled in an STI/HIV risk-reduction intervention program. Participants completed audio computer assisted self-interview (ACASI) measures of global stress, interpersonal stress, coping strategy use, and sexual behaviors prior to intervention participation. Follow-up ACASI assessments were conducted at 6, 12, 18, and 24 months post-intervention. Generalized estimated equation models examined associations between baseline stress levels and coping strategy use as predictors of condom use (past 90 days, last sex) and multiple partners during follow-up. Global stress and individual coping strategy usage were not associated with differences in condom use. Higher interpersonal stress was associated with lower proportion condom use (p = .018), inconsistent condom use (p = .011), and not using a condom at last sex (p = .002). There were no significant associations between stress levels, coping strategy use, and multiple partners. Future research should explore mechanisms that may underlie the association between elevated interpersonal stress and decreased condom use among this population.

The association between stress, coping, and sexual risk behaviors over 24-months among African American female adolescents

PubMed Central

Hulland, Erin N.; Brown, Jennifer L.; Swartzendruber, Andrea L.; Sales, Jessica M.; Rose, Eve S.; DiClemente, Ralph J.

2014-01-01

Heightened psychosocial stress coupled with maladaptive coping may be associated with greater sexual risk engagement. This study examined the association between stress levels and coping strategy use as predictors of sexual risk behavior engagement over 24 months among African American adolescent females (N = 701; M = 17.6 years) enrolled in an STI/HIV risk-reduction intervention program. Participants completed audio computer assisted self-interview (ACASI) measures of global stress, interpersonal stress, coping strategy use, and sexual behaviors prior to intervention participation. Follow-up ACASI assessments were conducted at 6-, 12-, 18-, and 24-months post-intervention. Generalized estimated equation models examined associations between baseline stress levels and coping strategy use as predictors of condom use (past 90 days, last sex) and multiple partners during follow-up. Global stress and individual coping strategy usage were not associated with differences in condom use. Higher interpersonal stress was associated with lower proportion condom use (p=0.018), inconsistent condom use (p=0.011), and not using a condom at last sex (p=0.002). There were no significant associations between stress levels, coping strategy use, and multiple partners. Future research should explore mechanisms that may underlie the association between elevated interpersonal stress and decreased condom use among this population. PMID:25159332

The Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2: first 18 months of science data products

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Eldering, Annmarie; O'Dell, Chris W.; Wennberg, Paul O.; Crisp, David; Gunson, Michael R.; Viatte, Camille; Avis, Charles; Braverman, Amy; Castano, Rebecca; Chang, Albert; Chapsky, Lars; Cheng, Cecilia; Connor, Brian; Dang, Lan; Doran, Gary; Fisher, Brendan; Frankenberg, Christian; Fu, Dejian; Granat, Robert; Hobbs, Jonathan; Lee, Richard A. M.; Mandrake, Lukas; McDuffie, James; Miller, Charles E.; Myers, Vicky; Natraj, Vijay; O'Brien, Denis; Osterman, Gregory B.; Oyafuso, Fabiano; Payne, Vivienne H.; Pollock, Harold R.; Polonsky, Igor; Roehl, Coleen M.; Rosenberg, Robert; Schwandner, Florian; Smyth, Mike; Tang, Vivian; Taylor, Thomas E.; To, Cathy; Wunch, Debra; Yoshimizu, Jan

2017-02-01

The Orbiting Carbon Observatory-2 (OCO-2) is the first National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) satellite designed to measure atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) with the accuracy, resolution, and coverage needed to quantify CO2 fluxes (sources and sinks) on regional scales. OCO-2 was successfully launched on 2 July 2014 and has gathered more than 2 years of observations. The v7/v7r operational data products from September 2014 to January 2016 are discussed here. On monthly timescales, 7 to 12 % of these measurements are sufficiently cloud and aerosol free to yield estimates of the column-averaged atmospheric CO2 dry air mole fraction, XCO2, that pass all quality tests. During the first year of operations, the observing strategy, instrument calibration, and retrieval algorithm were optimized to improve both the data yield and the accuracy of the products. With these changes, global maps of XCO2 derived from the OCO-2 data are revealing some of the most robust features of the atmospheric carbon cycle. This includes XCO2 enhancements co-located with intense fossil fuel emissions in eastern US and eastern China, which are most obvious between October and December, when the north-south XCO2 gradient is small. Enhanced XCO2 coincident with biomass burning in the Amazon, central Africa, and Indonesia is also evident in this season. In May and June, when the north-south XCO2 gradient is largest, these sources are less apparent in global maps. During this part of the year, OCO-2 maps show a more than 10 ppm reduction in XCO2 across the Northern Hemisphere, as photosynthesis by the land biosphere rapidly absorbs CO2. As the carbon cycle science community continues to analyze these OCO-2 data, information on regional-scale sources (emitters) and sinks (absorbers) which impart XCO2 changes on the order of 1 ppm, as well as far more subtle features, will emerge from this high-resolution global dataset.

Society of Neurological Surgeons boot camp courses: knowledge retention and relevance of hands-on learning after 6 months of postgraduate year 1 training.

PubMed

Selden, Nathan R; Anderson, Valerie C; McCartney, Shirley; Origitano, Thomas C; Burchiel, Kim J; Barbaro, Nicholas M

2013-09-01

In July 2010, the Society of Neurological Surgeons (SNS) introduced regional courses to promote patient safety and teach fundamental skills and knowledge to all postgraduate Year 1 (PGY1) trainees entering Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)-accredited US neurosurgery residency programs. Data from these courses demonstrated significant didactic learning and high faculty and resident satisfaction with hands-on training. Here, the authors evaluated the durability of learning from and the relevance of participation in SNS PGY1 courses as measured midway through PGY1 training. Resident participants were resurveyed 6 months after boot camp course attendance to assess knowledge retention and course effectiveness. Exposure to relevant hands-on experiences during PGY1 training and the subjective value of pre-residency simulated training in the courses were assessed. Ninety-four percent of all residents entering US PGY1 neurosurgical training participated in the 2010 SNS boot camp courses. One hundred sixty-four (88%) of these resident participants responded to the survey. Six months after course completion, 99% of respondents believed the boot camp courses benefited beginning neurosurgery residents and imparted skills and knowledge that would improve patient care. The PGY1 residents' knowledge of information taught in the courses was retained 6 months after initial testing (p < 0.0001). The learning and other benefits of participation in a national curriculum for residents entering PGY1 neurosurgical training were maintained 6 months after the courses, halfway through the initial training year.

Stroke Prevalence, Mortality and Disability-Adjusted Life Years in Children and Youth Aged 0-19 Years: Data from the Global and Regional Burden of Stroke 2013.

PubMed

Krishnamurthi, Rita V; deVeber, Gabrielle; Feigin, Valery L; Barker-Collo, Suzanne; Fullerton, Heather; Mackay, Mark T; O'Callahan, Finbar; Lindsay, M Patrice; Kolk, Anneli; Lo, Warren; Shah, Priyanka; Linds, Alexandra; Jones, Kelly; Parmar, Priya; Taylor, Steve; Norrving, Bo; Mensah, George A; Moran, Andrew E; Naghavi, Mohsen; Forouzanfar, Mohammed H; Nguyen, Grant; Johnson, Catherine O; Vos, Theo; Murray, Christopher J L; Roth, Gregory A

2015-01-01

There is increasing recognition of stroke as an important contributor to childhood morbidity and mortality. Current estimates of global childhood stroke burden and its temporal trends are sparse. Accurate and up-to-date estimates of childhood stroke burden are important for planning research and the resulting evidence-based strategies for stroke prevention and management. To estimate the prevalence, mortality and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) for ischemic stroke (IS), hemorrhagic stroke (HS) and all stroke types combined globally from 1990 to 2013. Stroke prevalence, mortality and DALYs were estimated using the Global Burden of Disease 2013 methods. All available data on stroke-related incidence, prevalence, excess mortality and deaths were collected. Statistical models and country-level covariates were employed to produce comprehensive and consistent estimates of prevalence and mortality. Stroke-specific disability weights were used to estimate years lived with disability and DALYs. Means and 95% uncertainty intervals (UIs) were calculated for prevalence, mortality and DALYs. The median of the percent change and 95% UI were determined for the period from 1990 to 2013. In 2013, there were 97,792 (95% UI 90,564-106,016) prevalent cases of childhood IS and 67,621 (95% UI 62,899-72,214) prevalent cases of childhood HS, reflecting an increase of approximately 35% in the absolute numbers of prevalent childhood strokes since 1990. There were 33,069 (95% UI 28,627-38,998) deaths and 2,615,118 (95% UI 2,265,801-3,090,822) DALYs due to childhood stroke in 2013 globally, reflecting an approximately 200% decrease in the absolute numbers of death and DALYs in childhood stroke since 1990. Between 1990 and 2013, there were significant increases in the global prevalence rates of childhood IS, as well as significant decreases in the global death rate and DALYs rate of all strokes in those of age 0-19 years. While prevalence rates for childhood IS and HS decreased

The process of striving for an ordinary, everyday life, in young children living with cancer, at six months and one year post diagnosis.

PubMed

Darcy, Laura; Björk, Maria; Enskär, Karin; Knutsson, Susanne

2014-12-01

Health care focus is shifting from solely looking at surviving cancer to elements of attention relating to living with it on a daily basis.The young child's experiences are crucial to providing evidence based care. The aim of this study was to explore the everyday life of young children as expressed by the child and parents at six months and one year post diagnosis. Interviews were conducted with children and their parents connected to a paediatric oncology unit in Southern Sweden. A qualitative content analysis of interview data from two time points, six months and one year post diagnosis, was carried out. The process of living with cancer at six months and at one year post diagnosis revealed the child's striving for an ordinary, everyday life. Experiences over time of gaining control, making a normality of the illness and treatment and feeling lonely were described. Nurses have a major role to play in the process of striving for a new normal in the world post-diagnosis, and provide essential roles by giving the young child information, making them participatory in their care and encouraging access to both parents and peers. Understanding this role and addressing these issues regularly can assist the young child in the transition to living with cancer. Longitudinal studies with young children are vital in capturing their experiences through the cancer trajectory and necessary to ensure quality care. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Er,Cr:YSGG laser-assisted surgical treatment of peri-implantitis with 1-year reentry and 18-month follow-up.

PubMed

Azzeh, Manal M

2008-10-01

Peri-implantitis may occur because of biologic or mechanical factors. It can be treated by a variety of methods. In the present case report, treatment was attempted by regenerative osseous surgery associated with an erbium, chromium-doped:yttrium, scandium, gallium, and garnet (Er,Cr:YSGG) laser. A 28-year-old, non-smoking male complained of gum recession around an implant in the area of upper left central incisor. After clinical examination and radiographs, it was found that there was 2 mm recession, a probing depth of 7 mm, mobility grade one, and bone mesially and distally. Regenerative osseous surgery was performed using an Er,Cr:YSGG laser (2,780 nm) at different settings to open the flap, remove the granulation tissues, perforate the bone, and clean the implant surface. A bone graft and a bioabsorbable membrane were used for bone regeneration. The patient was reevaluated at 3, 6, 12 (with reentry), and 18 months postoperatively. At 3, 6, and 12 months postoperatively, there were no reported complications, with probing depths of 3 to 5 mm, <1 mm recession, no bleeding or implant mobility, and good bone formation. Slight pus discharge was present at 12 months. At 18 months postoperatively, probing depth was 2 mm, recession was <1 mm, there was no bleeding, implant mobility, or discharge, and there was better bone formation. The results were satisfactory to the patient and the clinician. The Er,Cr:YSGG laser enabled regenerative osseous surgery around an implant with no complications and with high patient and clinician satisfaction and confidence.

Global trends in vegetation phenology from 32-year GEOV1 leaf area index time series

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Verger, Aleixandre; Baret, Frédéric; Weiss, Marie; Filella, Iolanda; Peñuelas, Josep

2013-04-01

Phenology is a critical component in understanding ecosystem response to climate variability. Long term data records from global mapping satellite platforms are valuable tools for monitoring vegetation responses to climate change at the global scale. Phenology satellite products and trend detection from satellite time series are expected to contribute to improve our understanding of climate forcing on vegetation dynamics. The capacity of monitoring ecosystem responses to global climate change was evaluated in this study from the 32-year time series of global Leaf Area Index (LAI) which have been recently produced within the geoland2 project. The long term GEOV1 LAI products were derived from NOAA/AVHRR (1981 to 2000) and SPOT/VGT (1999 to the present) with specific emphasis on consistency and continuity. Since mid-November, GEOV1 LAI products are freely available to the scientific community at geoland2 portal (www.geoland2.eu/core-mapping-services/biopar.html). These products are distributed at a dekadal time step for the period 1981-2000 and 2000-2012 at 0.05° and 1/112°, respectively. The use of GEOV1 data covering a long time period and providing information at dense time steps are expected to increase the reliability of trend detection. In this study, GEOV1 LAI time series aggregated at 0.5° spatial resolution are used. The CACAO (Consistent Adjustment of the Climatology to Actual Observations) method (Verger et al, 2013) was applied to characterize seasonal anomalies as well as identify trends. For a given pixel, CACAO computes, for each season, the time shift and the amplitude difference between the current temporal profile and the climatology computed over the 32 years. These CACAO parameters allow quantifying shifts in the timing of seasonal phenology and inter-annual variations in magnitude as compared to the average climatology. Interannual variations in the timing of the Start of Season and End of Season, Season Length and LAI level in the peak of the

Global sea-level change during the next 10,000 years: the end of an icehouse?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Van Breedam, Jonas; Huybrechts, Philippe; Goelzer, Heiko; Loutre, Marie-France; Fichefet, Thierry

2015-04-01

Because of the long life-time of atmospheric CO2, any realized future warming is likely to persist for many centuries to millennia. As a consequence, sea-level rise will continue on a multi-millennial timescale, especially from the slower components such as oceanic thermal expansion and above all, from melting of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. The two polar ice sheets have the potential to produce a global eustatic sea-level rise of about 65 m, at least an order of magnitude larger than thermal expansion under extreme forcing scenarios. Other components contributing to sea-level change are the melting of glaciers and ice caps and haline contraction of the ocean from fresh water delivery from land ice, but are less important. We have made projections of future sea-level rise over the next 10,000 years with the Earth System Model of Intermediate Complexity LOVECLIM, which includes high resolution models of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets. Four different model parameter sets are considered to explore the model uncertainty. The climate forcing is based on prolonged Radiative Concentration Pathway (RCP) scenarios with an assumed exponential falloff for carbon dioxide concentrations according to global carbon cycle simulations. Six different forcing scenarios are constructed where the highest scenario includes a positive feedback due to the destabilization of methane hydrates and the subsequent emission of methane. By far the largest contribution in the global sea-level projections arises from the polar ice sheets. For the Greenland ice sheet, the ablation is larger than the accumulation for all forcing scenarios shortly after the start of the experiments. The ice sheet continuously melts and nearly disappears in all cases. The Antarctic ice sheet grows during the first decades under low to intermediate forcing scenarios due to increased accumulation. However, the spread between the different scenarios is very large. Under the highest prolonged RCP

Comparison of mindfulness-based stress reduction versus yoga on urinary urge incontinence: a randomized pilot study. with 6-month and 1-year follow-up visits.

PubMed

Baker, Jan; Costa, Donna; Guarino, Julie M; Nygaard, Ingrid

2014-01-01

The objective of this study is to compare the effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) versus yoga on urinary urge incontinence (UI) at 8 weeks, 6 months, and 1 year after beginning an 8-week program. Participants in this prospective randomized single-masked pilot study were women aged 18 years or older with urge-predominant incontinence, 5 or more UI episodes (UIEs) on a 3-day voiding diary, and no recent anticholinergic use. Women were randomized to MBSR or yoga. The primary outcome was the percent change of UIE. Of 30 enrollees (15 in MBSR, 15 in yoga), 24 completed at least 5 of 8 sessions (13 in MBSR and 11 in yoga). Twenty and 21 women completed the 6-month and 12-month follow-up visits, respectively. At 8 weeks, 6 months, and 12 months, the median percent change from the baseline in UIE on the intention-to-treat analysis was greater for the MBSR group (-55.6, -71.4, and -66.7, respectively) compared with that for the yoga group (-33.3, -11.8, and -16.7, respectively), with P values ranging from 0.01 to 0.08. On intention-to-treat analysis, the median percent change in the Overactive Bladder Symptom and Quality of Life-Short Form and the Health-Related Quality of Life was greater at each time point for MBSR than for yoga but was statistically significant only at 8 weeks (P = 0.003 and 0.02, respectively). As per protocol analysis, at 8 weeks, 6/13 and 0/11 women in MBSR and yoga, respectively, reported they were very much or much better (P = 0.02), whereas at 1 year, 6/12 and 1/9 women in MBSR and yoga, respectively, did so (P = 0.16). These results support larger scale trials to evaluate MBSR, which seems to be a promising treatment of UI.

15-Year old girl with APS type IIIc, 12 months post-thymectomy remission of myasthenia.

PubMed

Jamiołkowska, Milena; Bossowski, Artur

2017-01-01

Polyglandular autoimmune syndromes (PAS) is a group of heterogenous conditions characterized by the association of at least two organ-specific autoimmune disorders, concerning both endocrine and non-endocrine organs. Type III is defined as the combination of autoimmune thyroid disease and other autoimmune condition (other than Addison's disease) and is divided into four subtypes. We describe a teenage female patient - with the family history of autoimmune diseases, who has simultaneously developed the symptoms of autoimmune thyroid disease with the clinical picture of hyperthyroidism and myasthenia gravis at the age of fifteen. Graves' disease was diagnosed approximately 2 months before myasthenia. Co-occurance of those two diseases allowed us to diagnose PAS type IIIC, however it caused specific diagnostic and treatment difficulties. Furthermore, several months after the diagnosis the patient was found to be GAD-Ab positive, whilst the glycaemic control remained normal. No evidence of other autoimmune conditions was observed. This patient received the standard GD and MG treatment. When the CT scan revealed thymus enlargement, thymectomy was performed. After the surgery we have observed not only remission of MG, but also a significant decrease of TRAb as well, that lasted for a year after the thymectomy. Our patient's case suggests that in patients diagnosed with PAS, the organ-specific Ab screening can help identify other latent and subclinical autoimmune diseases before clinical symptoms develop. The achievement of post-thymectomy remission of both MG and GD may indicate a close immunological relationship between PAS components. © Polish Society for Pediatric Endocrinology and Diabetology.

Seeing the Forest for the Trees: The International Baccalaureate Primary Years Programme Exhibition and Global Citizenship Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Palmer, Nicholas

2016-01-01

The purpose of this research was to determine the depth and scope of Global Citizenship Education (GCE) through the International Baccalaureate (IB) Primary Years Programme (PYP) exhibition. The small-scale qualitative study describes how a fifth-grade cohort and teachers at The International School of Azerbaijan uncover GCE in situ. Drawing on…

Perspectives on global nursing leadership: international experiences from the field.

PubMed

Buckner, E B; Anderson, D J; Garzon, N; Hafsteinsdóttir, T B; Lai, C K Y; Roshan, R

2014-12-01

Nursing leaders from six countries engaged in a year-long discussion on global leadership development. The purpose of these dialogues was to strengthen individual and collective capacity as nursing leaders in a global society. Field experiences in practice and education were shared. Perspectives on global leadership can strengthen nurses' contributions to practice, workplace and policy issues worldwide. Transformational leadership empowers nurses' increasing confidence. Mentoring is needed to stimulate leadership development but this is lacking in many settings where nurses practice, teach and influence policy. Organizations with global mission provide opportunity for nurses' professional growth in leadership through international dialogues. Dialogues among participants were held monthly by conference calls or videoconferences. Example stories from each participant illustrated nursing leadership in action. From these exemplars, concepts were chosen to create a framework. Emerging perspectives and leadership themes represented all contexts of practice, education, research and policy. The cultural context of each country was reflected in the examples. Themes emerged that crossed global regions and countries. Themes were creativity, change, collaboration, community, context and courage. Relationships initially formed in professional organizations can be extended to intentionally facilitate global nursing leadership development. Exemplars from the dialogues demonstrated nursing leadership in health policy development within each cultural context. Recommendations are given for infrastructure development in organizations to enhance future collaborations. © 2014 International Council of Nurses.

Holocene = Anthropocene? The HYDE database for integrated global change research over the past 12,000 years

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Klein Goldewijk, K.

2008-12-01

More and more studies of global (climate) change are focusing on the past. Hundreds and thousands of years of land use, driven by population growth have left their trace/mark on the Earth's surface. We are only at the beginning to understand the complex relationship of human induced disturbances of the global environment, and the consequences for future climate. It is therefore essential that we get a clear picture/understanding of past relationships between population growth, land use and climate. In order to facilitate climate modelers to examine these relationships, the HYDE database has been updated and extended. The update of HYDE described here (Klein Goldewijk et al. 2006; Klein Goldewijk et al. 2007) includes several improvements compared to its predecessor: (i) the HYDE 2 version used a Boolean approach with a 30 minute degree resolution, while HYDE 3 uses fractional land use on a 5 minute resolution; (ii) more and better sub-national (population) data (Klein Goldewijk, 2005) to improve the historical (urban and rural) population maps as a basis for allocation of land cover; (iii) implementation of different allocation algorithms with time-dependent weighting maps for cropland and grassland; (iv) the period covered has now been extended from the emergence of agriculture (10,000 B.C) to present time (2,000 A.D.), with different time intervals. Examples of (future) use of the database is to help test the 'Ruddiman hypothesis', who proposed a theory that mankind already altered the global atmosphere much earlier than the start of the Industrial Revolution in the early 18th century (Ruddiman, 2003), which put forward the research question whether we detect a pre- Industrial Revolution anthropogenic signal, and how strong is that signal? References Klein Goldewijk, K. A.F. Bouwman and G. van Drecht, 2007. Mapping current global cropland and grassland distributions on a 5 by 5 minute resolution, Journal of Land Use Science, Vol 2(3): 167-190. Klein Goldewijk, K

Explaining poorer stroke outcomes in women: women surviving 3 months have more severe strokes than men despite a lower 3-month case fatality.

PubMed

Olsen, Tom Skyhøj; Andersen, Zorana Jovanovic; Andersen, Klaus Kaae

2012-06-01

Women who survive stroke are more disabled and more often institutionalized than men. We explore this phenomenon by studying case fatality and stroke severity in stroke survivors separately for men and women. A Danish stroke registry (2000-2007) contains information about 26,818 patients with first-ever ischemic stroke, including stroke severity (Scandinavian Stroke Scale, 0 worst to 58 best), computed tomography scan, cardiovascular risk factors, and death 3 months after stroke. We modeled stroke severity by generalized additive linear model and 3-month case fatality with logistic model adjusting for age and cardiovascular risk factors. Male to female ratio was 51.5% to 48.5%. Mean age was 68.8 (SD 12.6) years in men; 73.7 (13.8) years in women. Stroke was more severe in women (mean [SD] Scandinavian Stroke Scale, 42.2 [16.0]) than in men (mean [SD] Scandinavian Stroke Scale, 45.6 [14.2]) also after adjustment for age and cardiovascular risk factors; significant in patients older than 75 years. In survivors at 3 months, stroke was more severe in women than men, given same age and cardiovascular risk factor profile; significant in patients older than 75 years. More women (11.9%) had died within 3 months than men (8.6%). However, adjusting for age, stroke severity, and risk factor profile, 3-month case fatality was lower in women than men; significant in patients older than 78 years. Although 3-month case fatality was lower in women than men, strokes were more severe among survivors at 3 months in women than in men. In addition, strokes were more severe in women. Our data help elucidate why women survive stroke better but have poorer functional outcomes that require more care than men. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier HS Journals, Inc. All rights reserved.

Global warming and South Indian monsoon rainfall-lessons from the Mid-Miocene.

PubMed

Reuter, Markus; Kern, Andrea K; Harzhauser, Mathias; Kroh, Andreas; Piller, Werner E

2013-04-01

Precipitation over India is driven by the Indian monsoon. Although changes in this atmospheric circulation are caused by the differential seasonal diabatic heating of Asia and the Indo-Pacific Ocean, it is so far unknown how global warming influences the monsoon rainfalls regionally. Herein, we present a Miocene pollen flora as the first direct proxy for monsoon over southern India during the Middle Miocene Climate Optimum. To identify climatic key parameters, such as mean annual temperature, warmest month temperature, coldest month temperature, mean annual precipitation, mean precipitation during the driest month, mean precipitation during the wettest month and mean precipitation during the warmest month the Coexistence Approach is applied. Irrespective of a ~ 3-4 °C higher global temperature during the Middle Miocene Climate Optimum, the results indicate a modern-like monsoonal precipitation pattern contrasting marine proxies which point to a strong decline of Indian monsoon in the Himalaya at this time. Therefore, the strength of monsoon rainfall in tropical India appears neither to be related to global warming nor to be linked with the atmospheric conditions over the Tibetan Plateau. For the future it implies that increased global warming does not necessarily entail changes in the South Indian monsoon rainfall.

Complementary-relationship-based 30 year normals (1981-2010) of monthly latent heat fluxes across the contiguous United States

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Szilagyi, Jozsef

2015-11-01

Thirty year normal (1981-2010) monthly latent heat fluxes (ET) over the conterminous United States were estimated by a modified Advection-Aridity model from North American Regional Reanalysis (NARR) radiation and wind as well as Parameter-Elevation Regressions on Independent Slopes Model (PRISM) air and dew-point temperature data. Mean annual ET values were calibrated with PRISM precipitation (P) and validated against United States Geological Survey runoff (Q) data. At the six-digit Hydrologic Unit Code level (sample size of 334) the estimated 30 year normal runoff (P - ET) had a bias of 18 mm yr-1, a root-mean-square error of 96 mm yr-1, and a linear correlation coefficient value of 0.95, making the estimates on par with the latest Land Surface Model results but without the need for soil and vegetation information or any soil moisture budgeting.

Developmental outcomes among 18-month-old Malawians after a year of complementary feeding with lipid-based nutrient supplements or corn-soy flour

USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

The major aim of this trial was to compare the development of 18-month-old infants who received complementary feeding for 1 year with either lipid-based nutrient supplements or micronutrient-fortified corn-soy porridge. Our secondary aim was to determine the socio-economic factors associated with de...

Global climate change driven by soot at the K-Pg boundary as the cause of the mass extinction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kaiho, Kunio; Oshima, Naga; Adachi, Kouji; Adachi, Yukimasa; Mizukami, Takuya; Fujibayashi, Megumu; Saito, Ryosuke

2016-07-01

The mass extinction of life 66 million years ago at the Cretaceous/Paleogene boundary, marked by the extinctions of dinosaurs and shallow marine organisms, is important because it led to the macroevolution of mammals and appearance of humans. The current hypothesis for the extinction is that an asteroid impact in present-day Mexico formed condensed aerosols in the stratosphere, which caused the cessation of photosynthesis and global near-freezing conditions. Here, we show that the stratospheric aerosols did not induce darkness that resulted in milder cooling than previously thought. We propose a new hypothesis that latitude-dependent climate changes caused by massive stratospheric soot explain the known mortality and survival on land and in oceans at the Cretaceous/Paleogene boundary. The stratospheric soot was ejected from the oil-rich area by the asteroid impact and was spread globally. The soot aerosols caused sufficiently colder climates at mid-high latitudes and drought with milder cooling at low latitudes on land, in addition to causing limited cessation of photosynthesis in global oceans within a few months to two years after the impact, followed by surface-water cooling in global oceans in a few years. The rapid climate change induced terrestrial extinctions followed by marine extinctions over several years.

Global climate change driven by soot at the K-Pg boundary as the cause of the mass extinction

PubMed Central

Kaiho, Kunio; Oshima, Naga; Adachi, Kouji; Adachi, Yukimasa; Mizukami, Takuya; Fujibayashi, Megumu; Saito, Ryosuke

2016-01-01

The mass extinction of life 66 million years ago at the Cretaceous/Paleogene boundary, marked by the extinctions of dinosaurs and shallow marine organisms, is important because it led to the macroevolution of mammals and appearance of humans. The current hypothesis for the extinction is that an asteroid impact in present-day Mexico formed condensed aerosols in the stratosphere, which caused the cessation of photosynthesis and global near-freezing conditions. Here, we show that the stratospheric aerosols did not induce darkness that resulted in milder cooling than previously thought. We propose a new hypothesis that latitude-dependent climate changes caused by massive stratospheric soot explain the known mortality and survival on land and in oceans at the Cretaceous/Paleogene boundary. The stratospheric soot was ejected from the oil-rich area by the asteroid impact and was spread globally. The soot aerosols caused sufficiently colder climates at mid–high latitudes and drought with milder cooling at low latitudes on land, in addition to causing limited cessation of photosynthesis in global oceans within a few months to two years after the impact, followed by surface-water cooling in global oceans in a few years. The rapid climate change induced terrestrial extinctions followed by marine extinctions over several years. PMID:27414998

Global climate change driven by soot at the K-Pg boundary as the cause of the mass extinction.

PubMed

Kaiho, Kunio; Oshima, Naga; Adachi, Kouji; Adachi, Yukimasa; Mizukami, Takuya; Fujibayashi, Megumu; Saito, Ryosuke

2016-07-14

The mass extinction of life 66 million years ago at the Cretaceous/Paleogene boundary, marked by the extinctions of dinosaurs and shallow marine organisms, is important because it led to the macroevolution of mammals and appearance of humans. The current hypothesis for the extinction is that an asteroid impact in present-day Mexico formed condensed aerosols in the stratosphere, which caused the cessation of photosynthesis and global near-freezing conditions. Here, we show that the stratospheric aerosols did not induce darkness that resulted in milder cooling than previously thought. We propose a new hypothesis that latitude-dependent climate changes caused by massive stratospheric soot explain the known mortality and survival on land and in oceans at the Cretaceous/Paleogene boundary. The stratospheric soot was ejected from the oil-rich area by the asteroid impact and was spread globally. The soot aerosols caused sufficiently colder climates at mid-high latitudes and drought with milder cooling at low latitudes on land, in addition to causing limited cessation of photosynthesis in global oceans within a few months to two years after the impact, followed by surface-water cooling in global oceans in a few years. The rapid climate change induced terrestrial extinctions followed by marine extinctions over several years.

a Climatology of Global Precipitation.

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Legates, David Russell

A global climatology of mean monthly precipitation has been developed using traditional land-based gage measurements as well as derived oceanic data. These data have been screened for coding errors and redundant entries have been removed. Oceanic precipitation estimates are most often extrapolated from coastal and island observations because few gage estimates of oceanic precipitation exist. One such procedure, developed by Dorman and Bourke and used here, employs a derived relationship between observed rainfall totals and the "current weather" at coastal stations. The combined data base contains 24,635 independent terrestial station records and 2223 oceanic grid-point records. Raingage catches are known to underestimate actual precipitation. Errors in the gage catch result from wind -field deformation, wetting losses, and evaporation from the gage and can amount to nearly 8, 2, and 1 percent of the global catch, respectively. A procedure has been developed to correct many of these errors and has been used to adjust the gage estimates of global precipitation. Space-time variations in gage type, air temperature, wind speed, and natural vegetation were incorporated into the correction procedure. Corrected data were then interpolated to the nodes of a 0.5^circ of latitude by 0.5^circ of longitude lattice using a spherically-based interpolation algorithm. Interpolation errors are largest in areas of low station density, rugged topography, and heavy precipitation. Interpolated estimates also were compared with a digital filtering technique to access the aliasing of high-frequency "noise" into the lower frequency signals. Isohyetal maps displaying the mean annual, seasonal, and monthly precipitation are presented. Gage corrections and the standard error of the corrected estimates also are mapped. Results indicate that mean annual global precipitation is 1123 mm with 1251 mm falling over the oceans and 820 mm over land. Spatial distributions of monthly precipitation

Access to antiretroviral therapy in HIV-infected children aged 0–19 years in the International Epidemiology Databases to Evaluate AIDS (IeDEA) Global Cohort Consortium, 2004–2015: A prospective cohort study

PubMed Central

Desmonde, Sophie; Takassi, Elom; Edmonds, Andrew; Lumbiganon, Pagakrong; Pinto, Jorge; Malateste, Karen; McGowan, Catherine; Dicko, Fatoumata; Mubiana-Mbewe, Mwangelwa; Wools-Kaloustian, Kara; Davies, Mary-Ann

2018-01-01

Introduction Access to antiretroviral therapy (ART) is a global priority. However, the attrition across the continuum of care for HIV-infected children between their HIV diagnosis and ART initiation is not well known. We analyzed the time from enrollment into HIV care to ART initiation in HIV-infected children within the International Epidemiology Databases to Evaluate AIDS (IeDEA) Global Cohort Consortium. Methods and findings We included 135,479 HIV-1-infected children, aged 0–19 years and ART-naïve at enrollment, between 1 January 2004 and 31 December 2015, in IeDEA cohorts from Central Africa (3 countries; n = 4,948), East Africa (3 countries; n = 22,827), West Africa (7 countries; n = 7,372), Southern Africa (6 countries; n = 93,799), Asia-Pacific (6 countries; n = 4,045), and Latin America (7 countries; n = 2,488). Follow-up in these cohorts is typically every 3–6 months. We described time to ART initiation and missed opportunities (death or loss to follow-up [LTFU]: last clinical visit >6 months) since baseline (the date of HIV diagnosis or, if unavailable, date of enrollment). Cumulative incidence functions (CIFs) for and determinants of ART initiation were computed, with death and LTFU as competing risks. Among the 135,479 children included, 99,404 (73.4%) initiated ART, 1.9% died, 1.4% were transferred out, and 20.4% were lost to follow-up before ART initiation. The 24-month CIF for ART initiation was 68.2% (95% CI: 67.9%–68.4%); it was lower in sub-Saharan Africa—ranging from 49.8% (95% CI: 48.4%–51.2%) in Central Africa to 72.5% (95% CI: 71.5%–73.5%) in West Africa—compared to Latin America (71.0%, 95% CI: 69.1%–72.7%) and the Asia-Pacific (78.3%, 95% CI: 76.9%–79.6%). Adolescents aged 15–19 years and infants <1 year had the lowest cumulative incidence of ART initiation compared to other ages: 62.2% (95% CI: 61.6%–62.8%) and 66.4% (95% CI: 65.7%–67.0%), respectively. Overall, 49.1% were ART-eligible per local guidelines at

Thirty Years of Improving the NCEP Global Forecast System

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

White, G. H.; Manikin, G.; Yang, F.

2014-12-01

Current eight day forecasts by the NCEP Global Forecast System are as accurate as five day forecasts 30 years ago. This revolution in weather forecasting reflects increases in computer power, improvements in the assimilation of observations, especially satellite data, improvements in model physics, improvements in observations and international cooperation and competition. One important component has been and is the diagnosis, evaluation and reduction of systematic errors. The effect of proposed improvements in the GFS on systematic errors is one component of the thorough testing of such improvements by the Global Climate and Weather Modeling Branch. Examples of reductions in systematic errors in zonal mean temperatures and winds and other fields will be presented. One challenge in evaluating systematic errors is uncertainty in what reality is. Model initial states can be regarded as the best overall depiction of the atmosphere, but can be misleading in areas of few observations or for fields not well observed such as humidity or precipitation over the oceans. Verification of model physics is particularly difficult. The Environmental Modeling Center emphasizes the evaluation of systematic biases against observations. Recently EMC has placed greater emphasis on synoptic evaluation and on precipitation, 2-meter temperatures and dew points and 10 meter winds. A weekly EMC map discussion reviews the performance of many models over the United States and has helped diagnose and alleviate significant systematic errors in the GFS, including a near surface summertime evening cold wet bias over the eastern US and a multi-week period when the GFS persistently developed bogus tropical storms off Central America. The GFS exhibits a wet bias for light rain and a dry bias for moderate to heavy rain over the continental United States. Significant changes to the GFS are scheduled to be implemented in the fall of 2014. These include higher resolution, improved physics and

Effects in Short and Long Term of Global Postural Reeducation (GPR) on Chronic Low Back Pain: A Controlled Study with One-Year Follow-Up

PubMed Central

Cecchi, Francesca; Del Canto, Antonio; Paperini, Anita; Boni, Roberta; Pasquini, Guido; Vannetti, Federica; Macchi, Claudio

2015-01-01

Objective. Comparing global postural reeducation (GPR) to a standard physiotherapy treatment (PT) based on active exercises, stretching, and massaging for improving pain and function in chronic low back pain (CLBP) patients. Design. Prospective controlled study. Setting. Outpatient rehabilitation facility. Participants. Adult patients with diagnosis of nonspecific, chronic (>6 months) low back pain. Interventions. Both treatments consisted of 15 sessions of one hour each, twice a week including patient education. Measures. Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire to evaluate disability, and Numeric Analog Scale for pain. A score change >30% was considered clinically significant. Past treatments, use of medications, smoking habits, height, weight, profession, and physical activity were also recorded on baseline, on discharge, and 1 year after discharge (resp., T0, T1, and T2). Results. At T0 103 patients with cLBP (51 cases and 52 controls) were recruited. The treatment (T1) has been completed by 79 (T1) of which 60 then carried out the 1-year follow-up (T2). Both GPR and PT at T1 were associated with a significant statistical and clinical improvement in pain and function, compared to T0. At T2, only pain in GPR still registered a statistically significant improvement. PMID:25945360

Trends in annual, seasonal, and monthly streamflow characteristics at 227 streamgages in the Missouri River watershed, water years 1960-2011

USGS Publications Warehouse

Norton, Parker A.; Anderson, Mark T.; Stamm, John F.

2014-01-01

The Missouri River and its tributaries are an important resource that serve multiple uses including agriculture, energy, recreation, and municipal water supply. Understanding historical streamflow characteristics provides relevant guidance to adaptive management of these water resources. Streamflow records in the Missouri River watershed were examined for trends in time series of annual, seasonal, and monthly streamflow. A total of 227 streamgages having continuous observational records for water years 1960–2011 were examined. Kendall’s tau nonparametric test was used to determine statistical significance of trends in annual, seasonal, and monthly streamflow. A trend was considered statistically significant for a probability value less than or equal to 0.10 that the Kendall’s tau value equals zero. Significant trends in annual streamflow were indicated for 101 out of a total of 227 streamgages. The Missouri River watershed was divided into six watershed regions and trends within regions were examined. The western and the southern parts of the Missouri River watershed had downward trends in annual streamflow (56 streamgages), whereas the eastern part of the watershed had upward trends in streamflow (45 streamgages). Seasonal and monthly streamflow trends reflected prevailing annual streamflow trends within each watershed region.

Assessing Progress in Reducing the At-Risk Population after 13 Years of the Global Programme to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis

PubMed Central

Hooper, Pamela J.; Chu, Brian K.; Mikhailov, Alexei; Ottesen, Eric A.; Bradley, Mark

2014-01-01

Background In 1997, the World Health Assembly adopted Resolution 50.29, committing to the elimination of lymphatic filariasis (LF) as a public health problem, subsequently targeted for 2020. The initial estimates were that 1.2 billion people were at-risk for LF infection globally. Now, 13 years after the Global Programme to Eliminate Lymphatic Filariasis (GPELF) began implementing mass drug administration (MDA) against LF in 2000—during which over 4.4 billion treatments have been distributed in 56 endemic countries—it is most appropriate to estimate the impact that the MDA has had on reducing the population at risk of LF. Methodology/Principal Findings To assess GPELF progress in reducing the population at-risk for LF, we developed a model based on defining reductions in risk of infection among cohorts of treated populations following each round of MDA. The model estimates that the number of people currently at risk of infection decreased by 46% to 789 million through 2012. Conclusions/Significance Important progress has been made in the global efforts to eliminate LF, but significant scale-up is required over the next 8 years to reach the 2020 elimination goal. PMID:25411843

Improved naming after TMS treatments in a chronic, global aphasia patient — case report

PubMed Central

NAESER, MARGARET A.; MARTIN, PAULA I; NICHOLAS, MARJORIE; BAKER, ERROL H.; SEEKINS, HEIDI; HELM-ESTABROOKS, NANCY; CAYER-MEADE, CAROL; KOBAYASHI, MASAHITO; THEORET, HUGO; FREGNI, FELIPE; TORMOS, JOSE MARIA; KURLAND, JACQUIE; DORON, KARL W.; PASCUAL-LEONE, ALVARO

2005-01-01

We report improved ability to name pictures at 2 and 8 months after repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) treatments to the pars triangularis portion of right Broca’s homologue in a 57 year-old woman with severe nonfluent/global aphasia (6.5 years post left basal ganglia bleed, subcortical lesion). TMS was applied at 1 Hz, 20 minutes a day, 10 days, over a two-week period. She received no speech therapy during the study. One year after her TMS treatments, she entered speech therapy with continued improvement. TMS may have modulated activity in the remaining left and right hemisphere neural network for naming. PMID:16006338

Drivers and implications of change in global ocean health over the past five years

PubMed Central

Frazier, Melanie; Afflerbach, Jamie; O’Hara, Casey; Katona, Steven; Stewart Lowndes, Julia S.; Jiang, Ning; Pacheco, Erich; Scarborough, Courtney; Polsenberg, Johanna

2017-01-01

Growing international and national focus on quantitatively measuring and improving ocean health has increased the need for comprehensive, scientific, and repeated indicators to track progress towards achieving policy and societal goals. The Ocean Health Index (OHI) is one of the few indicators available for this purpose. Here we present results from five years of annual global assessment for 220 countries and territories, evaluating potential drivers and consequences of changes and presenting lessons learned about the challenges of using composite indicators to measure sustainability goals. Globally scores have shown little change, as would be expected. However, individual countries have seen notable increases or declines due in particular to improvements in the harvest and management of wild-caught fisheries, the creation of marine protected areas (MPAs), and decreases in natural product harvest. Rapid loss of sea ice and the consequent reduction of coastal protection from that sea ice was also responsible for declines in overall ocean health in many Arctic and sub-Arctic countries. The OHI performed reasonably well at predicting near-term future scores for many of the ten goals measured, but data gaps and limitations hindered these predictions for many other goals. Ultimately, all indicators face the substantial challenge of informing policy for progress toward broad goals and objectives with insufficient monitoring and assessment data. If countries and the global community hope to achieve and maintain healthy oceans, we will need to dedicate significant resources to measuring what we are trying to manage. PMID:28678881

Language skills of children during the first 12 months after stuttering onset.

PubMed

Watts, Amy; Eadie, Patricia; Block, Susan; Mensah, Fiona; Reilly, Sheena

2017-03-01

To describe the language development in a sample of young children who stutter during the first 12 months after stuttering onset was reported. Language production was analysed in a sample of 66 children who stuttered (aged 2-4 years). The sample were identified from a pre-existing prospective, community based longitudinal cohort. Data were collected at three time points within the first year after stuttering onset. Stuttering severity was measured, and global indicators of expressive language proficiency (length of utterances and grammatical complexity) were derived from the samples and summarised. Language production abilities of the children who stutter were contrasted with normative data. The majority of children's stuttering was rated as mild in severity, with more than 83% of participants demonstrating very mild or mild stuttering at each of the time points studied. The participants demonstrated developmentally appropriate spoken language skills comparable with available normative data. In the first year following the report of stuttering onset, the language skills of the children who were stuttering progressed in a manner that is consistent with developmental expectations. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Effectiveness of nutrition training of health workers toward improving caregivers’ feeding practices for children aged six months to two years: a systematic review

PubMed Central

2013-01-01

Background Nutrition training of health workers can help to reduce child undernutrition. Specifically, trained health workers might contribute to this end through frequent nutrition counseling of caregivers. This may improve child-feeding practices and thus reduce the risk of undernutrition among children of counseled caregivers. Although studies have shown varied impacts of health workers’ nutrition training on child feeding practices, no systematic review of the effectiveness of such intervention has yet been reported. Therefore, we conducted this study to examine the effectiveness of nutrition training for health workers on child feeding practices including feeding frequency, energy intake, and dietary diversity among children aged six months to two years. Methods We searched the literature for published randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and cluster RCTs using medical databases including PubMed/MEDLINE, CINAHL, EMBASE, and ISI Web of Knowledge, and through WHO regional databases. Our intervention of interest was nutrition training of health workers. We pooled the results of the selected trials, evaluated them using the Grades of Recommendation, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) criteria, and calculated the overall effect size of the intervention in meta-analyses. Results Ten RCTs and cluster RCTs out of 4757 retrieved articles were eligible for final analyses. Overall, health workers’ nutrition training improved daily energy intake of children between six months and two years of age. The pooled evidence from the three studies reporting mean energy intake per day revealed a standardized mean difference (SMD) of 0.76, 95% CI (0.63-0.88). For the two studies with median energy intake SMD was 1.06 (95% CI 0.87-1.24). Health workers’ nutrition training also improved feeding frequency among children aged six months to two years. The pooled evidence from the three studies reporting mean feeding frequency showed an SMD of 0.48 (95% CI 0

Developmental and functional outcomes in children with global developmental delay or developmental language impairment.

PubMed

Shevell, Michael; Majnemer, Annette; Platt, Robert W; Webster, Richard; Birnbaum, Rena

2005-10-01

Preschool children diagnosed with either global developmental delay (GDD) or developmental language impairment (DLI) were reassessed during their early school years with standardized developmental (Battelle Developmental Inventory [BDI]) and functional (Vineland Adaptive Behavior Scale [VABS]) outcome measures. Of an original cohort of 99 children with GDD and 70 children with DLI assessed and diagnosed at a mean age of 3 years 5 months (SD 1.1) and 3 years 7 months (SD 0.7) respectively, 48 children (34 [71%] males) with GDD and 43 children (36 [84%] males) with DLI were reassessed at a mean age of 7 years 4 months (SD 0.9) and 7 years 5 months (SD 0.7) respectively. The overall total mean BDI score for children with GDD was 66.4 (SD 4.3) versus 71.9 (SD 8.2) for children with DLI (p=0.002). On each subdomain of the BDI, except communication, mean scores for the GDD group were significantly lower than for the DLI group (p<0.05). Similarly, the VABS total score for the GDD group was significantly lower than for the DLI group (p<0.001). For each subdomain of the VABS, the GDD group scored significantly lower than the DLI group (p<0.001). The proportion of children falling below meaningful cut-offs on the outcome measures selected was significantly higher for those initially diagnosed with GDD. Preschool diagnosis of either GDD or DLI has later prognostic validity with regard to persisting developmental and functional deficits.

1-km Global Anthropogenic Heat Flux Database for Urban Climate Studies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dong, Y.; Varquez, A. C. G.; Kanda, M.

2016-12-01

Among various factors contributing to warming in cities, anthropogenic heat emission (AHE), defined by heat fluxes arising from human consumption of energy, has the most obvious influence. Despite this, estimation of the AHE distribution is challenging and assumed almost uniform in investigations of the regional atmospheric environment. In this study, we introduce a top-down method for estimating a global distribution of AHE (see attachment), with a high spatial resolution of 30 arc-seconds and temporal resolution of 1 hour. Annual average AHE was derived from human metabolic heating and primary energy consumption, which was further divided into three components based on consumer sector: heat loss, heat emissions from industrial-related sectors and heat emissions from commercial, residential and transport sectors (CRT). The first and second components were equally distributed throughout the country and populated areas, respectively. Bulk AHE from the CRT was proportionally distributed using a global population dataset with a nighttime lights adjustment. An empirical function to estimate monthly fluctuations of AHE based on monthly temperatures was derived from various city measurements. Finally, a global AHE database was constructed for the year 2013. Comparisons between our proposed AHE and other existing datasets revealed that a problem of AHE underestimation at central urban areas existing in previous top-down models was significantly mitigated by the nighttime lights adjustment. A strong agreement in the monthly profiles of AHE between our database and other bottom-up datasets further proved the validity of our current methodology. Investigations of AHE in the 29 largest urban agglomerations globally highlighted that the share of heat emissions from CRT sectors to the total AHE at the city level was 40-95%, whereas the share of metabolic heating varied closely depending on the level of economic development in the city. Incorporation of our proposed AHE data

An updated climatology of surface dimethlysulfide concentrations and emission fluxes in the global ocean

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Lana, A.; Bell, T. G.; Simó, R.; Vallina, S. M.; Ballabrera-Poy, J.; Kettle, A. J.; Dachs, J.; Bopp, L.; Saltzman, E. S.; Stefels, J.; Johnson, J. E.; Liss, P. S.

2011-03-01

The potentially significant role of the biogenic trace gas dimethylsulfide (DMS) in determining the Earth's radiation budget makes it necessary to accurately reproduce seawater DMS distribution and quantify its global flux across the sea/air interface. Following a threefold increase of data (from 15,000 to over 47,000) in the global surface ocean DMS database over the last decade, new global monthly climatologies of surface ocean DMS concentration and sea-to-air emission flux are presented as updates of those constructed 10 years ago. Interpolation/extrapolation techniques were applied to project the discrete concentration data onto a first guess field based on Longhurst's biogeographic provinces. Further objective analysis allowed us to obtain the final monthly maps. The new climatology projects DMS concentrations typically in the range of 1-7 nM, with higher levels occurring in the high latitudes, and with a general trend toward increasing concentration in summer. The increased size and distribution of the observations in the DMS database have produced in the new climatology substantially lower DMS concentrations in the polar latitudes and generally higher DMS concentrations in regions that were severely undersampled 10 years ago, such as the southern Indian Ocean. Using the new DMS concentration climatology in conjunction with state-of-the-art parameterizations for the sea/air gas transfer velocity and climatological wind fields, we estimate that 28.1 (17.6-34.4) Tg of sulfur are transferred from the oceans into the atmosphere annually in the form of DMS. This represents a global emission increase of 17% with respect to the equivalent calculation using the previous climatology. This new DMS climatology represents a valuable tool for atmospheric chemistry, climate, and Earth System models.

A Study to Determine the Incidence of Urinary Tract Infections in Infants and Children Ages 4 Months to 6 Years With Febrile Diarrhea.

PubMed

Nibhanipudi, Kumara V

2016-01-01

To determine the incidence of urinary tract infections (UTIs) in infants and children (4 months to 6 years of age) with febrile diarrhea, as outpatients. This was a prospective institutional review board-approved study. patients (between 4 months and 6 years of age) were enrolled in the study who presented to the pediatric emergency room with a complaint of fever (rectal temperature 101°F or more) and diarrhea (watery stools >3 in number). The patients were evaluated for state of hydration, and also urine samples were collected. For those children not toilet trained, urine specimens were collected by bladder catheterization, and for those children toilet trained, urine specimens were obtained by midstream collection method. The urine samples obtained were sent for analysis and culture. Eighty patients were enrolled in the study. The number of specimens obtained by clean catch midstream was 20, and by bladder catheterization was 60. None of the urine specimens obtained by both methods of collection grew any organism. There was no increased incidence of infections in male children whether circumcised (10/60) or uncircumcised (50/60). The mean temperature was 102.8°F (range = 101°F to 105°F). Using in silico online 2 × 2 χ(2) test by comparing both the positive and negative urine culture results, 2-tailed P value is <.0001. Our prospective randomized study concluded that there is no increased incidence of UTIs in infants and children (4 months to 6 years of age) with febrile diarrhea.

Observed Budgets for the Global Climate

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kottek, M.; Haimberger, L.; Rubel, F.; Hantel, M.

2003-04-01

A global dataset for selected budget quantities specifying the present climate for the period 1991-1995 has been compiled. This dataset is an essential component of the new climate volume within the series Landolt Boernstein - Numerical Data and Functional Relationships in Science and Technology, to be published this year. Budget quantities are those that appear in a budget equation. Emphasis in this collection is placed on observational data of both in situ and remotely sensed quantities. The fields are presented as monthly means with a uniform space resolution of one degree. Main focus is on climatologically relevant state and flux quantities at the earth's surface and at the top of atmosphere. Some secondary and complex climate elements are also presented (e.g. tornadoe frequency). The progress of this collection as compared to other climate datasets is, apart from the quality of the input data, that all fields are presented in standardized form as far as possible. Further, visualization loops of the global fields in various projections will be available for the user in the eventual book. For some budget quantities, e.g. precipitation, it has been necessary to merge data from different sources; insufficiently observed parameters have been supplemented through the ECMWF ERA-40 reanalyses. If all quantities of a budget have been evaluated the gross residual represents an estimate of data quality. For example, the global water budget residual is found to be up to 30 % depending on the used data. This suggests that the observation of global climate parameters needs further improvement.

Celebrating National Women's History Month

NASA Image and Video Library

2013-03-14

Lori Garver, NASA Deputy Administrator gave opening remarks at an event at NASA Headquarters celebrating National Women's History Month, Thursday, March 14, 2013 in Washington. This year's keynote speaker was Donna Brazile, adjunct professor at Georgetown University, syndicated newspaper columnist and vice chair of voter registration and participation at the Democratic National Committee (DNC). The theme of this year's program was "Women Inspiring Innovation Through Imagination." Photo Credit: (NASA/Carla Cioffi)

Global travel patterns and risk of measles in Ontario and Quebec, Canada: 2007-2011.

PubMed

Wilson, Sarah E; Khan, Kamran; Gilca, Vladimir; Miniota, Jennifer; Deeks, Shelley L; Lim, Gillian; Eckhardt, Rose; Bolotin, Shelly; Crowcroft, Natasha S

2015-08-18

In 2011 the largest measles outbreak in North America in a decade occurred in Quebec, Canada with over 700 cases. In contrast, measles activity in neighbouring province Ontario remained low (8 cases). Our objective was to determine the extent to which the difference could be explained by differing travel patterns. We explored the relationship between measles cases over 2007-2011, by importation classification, in Quebec and Ontario in relation to global travel patterns to each province using an ecological approach. Global measles exposure was estimated by multiplying the monthly traveler volume for each country of origin into Quebec or Ontario by the yearly measles incidence rate for the corresponding country. Visual inspection of temporal figures and calculation of Pearson correlation coefficients were performed. Global measles exposure was similar in Ontario and Quebec. In Quebec, there was a nearly perfectly linear relationship between annual measles cases and its global measles exposure index over 2007-2011 (r = 0.99, p = 0.001). In contrast, there was a non-significant association in Ontario. The 2011 rise in Quebec's index was largely driven by a dramatic increase in measles activity in France the same year. Global measles activity was associated with measles epidemiology in Quebec. Global measles exposure risk is higher in Ontario than Quebec. Differences in measles epidemiology between Ontario and Quebec from 2007-2011 are not explained by greater exposure in Quebec. A combination of alternative factors may be responsible, including differences in population susceptibility.

20 CFR 210.3 - Month of service.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-04-01

... for that year by an amount equal to one-twelfth of the current annual maximum for non-tier I... one or more employers or serves as an employee representative in the month or months to be deemed. For...,000 (6) Subtract line (4) from line (5). Enter the result (but not less than zero). This is the...

AQUARIUS: A Passive/Active Microwave Sensor to Monitor Sea Surface Salinity Globally from Space

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

LeVine, David; Lagerloef, Gary S. E.; Colomb, F. Raul; Chao, Yi

2004-01-01

Salinity is important for understanding ocean dynamics, energy exchange with the atmosphere and the global water cycle. Existing data is limited and much of the ocean has never even been sampled. Sea surface salinity can be measured remotely by satellite and a three year mission for this purpose called AquariudSAC-D has recently been selected by NASA's Earth System Science Pathfinder (ESSP) program. The objective is to map the salinity field globally with a spatial resolution of 100 km and a monthly average accuracy of 0.2 psu. The mission, scheduled for launch in 2008, is a partnership of the United States National Aeronautics and Space Agency (NASA) and the Argentine Comision National de Actividades Epaciales (CONAE).

Weighting the Parameters, a Response to Bancel׳s "Searching for Global Consciousness: A Seventeen Year Exploration".

PubMed

Nelson, Roger

This brief report is a response to the article by Peter Bancel entitled "Searching for Global Consciousness: A Seventeen Year Exploration" in which he compares a goal orientation (GO) model with a field-like model he refers to as global consciousness (GC). He first attempts to exclude the latter, and then presents selected tests that compare the models. While the article appears to provide support for Bancel׳s conclusion that GC cannot explain the data and must be supplanted by GO, there are good reasons to believe this conclusion is premature at best. I address the vulnerable assumptions underlying Bancel׳s rejection of GC, and then provide multiple examples of parametric structure in the data, which cannot be attributed to GO, but are amenable to explanation by field-like models. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Feeding in the first year of life - emerging benefits of introducing complementary solids from 4 months.

PubMed

Symon, Brian; Bammann, Michael

2012-04-01

Current World Health Organization guidelines recommend exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months of life. Breastfeeding conveys clear benefits to both mother and child. These benefits are likely to be amplified by prolonged feeding. This article outlines the emerging evidence that suggests possible benefits from introducing complementary solids from 4 months of age in developed countries. The human gut may have a critical early window during which it has an opportunity to develop immunological tolerance. Introducing complementary solids from 4 months of age may decrease the risk of food allergy and coeliac disease - immunological illnesses that have become a public health priority. The new draft National Health and Medical Research Council guidelines recommend introducing solids at around 6 months (22-26 weeks). However, given recent evidence, it may be appropriate to recommend the introduction of solids from 4 months of age in the Australian context.

Teaching Global Change to Undergraduates at Universidad Nacional de Colombia for 15 years

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mesa, O. J.

2015-12-01

First let's describe the context. Approximately 80% of our students in Medellin major in engineering. In the National University system students can choose freely twenty percent of the credits. Their decisions are made taking into account various reasons. As far as we know the amount of work and the expected grades are factors besides the interest in the topics. Statistics show that there is an even distribution among complementary professional, cross-disciplinary and general interest courses. Plan B took the name from Lexter Brown book, which was the original inspiration and text. The program expanded with more in depth consideration to a general understanding of climate and climate change science, and to water and energy crises because they are close to my research area. But we consider other global change uses as well, including recycling, loss of biodiversity, food crises, economics of climate change and demographic and social issues. We developed a textbook whose title would translate as "Where is the Globe heading?" that refers to a usual saying during Christmas time in relation to candle balloons popular at that time of the year that children and teen-agers try to catch. The expression reflects the need for predictions, call for action, but also acknowledges that chance is a factor to consider. I believe it summarizes well the content of the course. The class meets in a large auditorium with 250 sits. We moved from the usual size room of about 50 because of the large demand during registration. This forced us to adjust the methodology, but our evaluation is that such a large audience is worthwhile. Student's feedbacks at the end of the semester confirm this with very good rating and general comments. Besides crude diagnostics of the problems based on data and science we always make an effort to present solutions. For instance there is ample consideration to renewal energy technologies. Globalization is also a theme of the course, there are local actions but

Post-stroke fatigue and its dimensions within first 3 months after stroke.

PubMed

Delva, Iryna I; Lytvynenko, Nataliya V; Delva, Mykhaylo Y

Post-stroke fatigue (PSF) is a common stroke complication with long-term negative consequences. Assess the qualitative and quantitative PSF characteristics during 3 month post-stroke period. There were examined 141 patients with acute ischemic or hemorrhagic strokes at hospital stay, in 1, 2 and 3 months after stroke. PSF was measured by fatigue assessment scale (FAS), multidimensional fatigue inventory-20 (MFI-20) and fatigue severity scale (FSS). 116 (82.3%) patients had ischemic strokes, 25 (17.7%) had hemorrhagic strokes. According to FAS and MFI-20 "global fatigue" sub-scale, PSF was present, respectively, in 22.0% and 25.5% cases at hospital stay, in 38.3% and 35.5% cases in 3 month after stroke. The growing prevalence of PSF was based on significantly increasing the rates of PSD physical domain (from 28.4% to 41.1%) and the rates of PSF mental domain (from 19.1% to 31.9%). On the other hand, the rates of PSF activity-related component had been significantly reduced from 36.2% to 17.0% within observation period. Moreover, according to MFI-20, it had been revealed significant increasing of PSF intensities in global, physical and mental domains during first 3 post-stroke months. According to FSS value ranks, proportions of patients with "no PSF" had been decreased in 1.5 times due to simultaneously rising rates of "moderate" as well as "severe" PSF impacts on daily life. The PSF spreading is significantly increased during the first 3 post-stroke months due to increasing of rates and intensities of physical and mental PSF domains.

Future-proofing global health: Governance of priorities.

PubMed

Bennett, Belinda; Cohen, I Glenn; Davies, Sara E; Gostin, Lawrence O; Hill, Peter S; Mankad, Aditi; Phelan, Alexandra L

2018-05-01

The year 2015 was a significant anniversary for global health: 15 years since the adoption of the Millennium Development Goals and the creation of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization, followed two years later by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria. 2015 was also the 10-year anniversary of the adoption of the International Health Regulations (May 2005) and the formal entering into force of the Framework Convention on the Tobacco Control (February 2005). The anniversary of these frameworks and institutions illustrates the growth and contribution of 'global' health diplomacy. Each initiative has also revealed on-going issues with compliance, sustainable funding and equitable attention in global health governance. In this paper, we present four thematic challenges that will continue to challenge prioritisation within global health governance into the future unless addressed: framing and prioritising within global health governance; identifying stakeholders of the global health community; understanding the relationship between health and behaviour; and the role of governance and regulation in supporting global health.

Vitamin D insufficiency in the first 6 months of infancy and challenge-proven IgE-mediated food allergy at 1 year of age: a case-cohort study.

PubMed

Molloy, J; Koplin, J J; Allen, K J; Tang, M L K; Collier, F; Carlin, J B; Saffery, R; Burgner, D; Ranganathan, S; Dwyer, T; Ward, A C; Moreno-Betancur, M; Clarke, M; Ponsonby, A L; Vuillermin, P

2017-08-01

Ecological evidence suggests vitamin D insufficiency (VDI) due to lower ambient ultraviolet radiation (UVR) exposure may be a risk factor for IgE-mediated food allergy. However, there are no studies relating directly measured VDI during early infancy to subsequent challenge-proven food allergy. To prospectively investigate the association between VDI during infancy and challenge-proven food allergy at 1 year. In a birth cohort (n = 1074), we used a case-cohort design to compare 25-hydroxyvitamin D 3 (25(OH)D 3 ) levels among infants with food allergy vs a random subcohort (n = 274). The primary exposures were VDI (25(OH)D 3 <50 nM) at birth and 6 months of age. Ambient UVR and time in the sun were combined to estimate UVR exposure dose. IgE-mediated food allergy status at 1 year was determined by formal challenge. Binomial regression was used to examine associations between VDI, UVR exposure dose and food allergy and investigate potential confounding. Within the random subcohort, VDI was present in 45% (105/233) of newborns and 24% (55/227) of infants at 6 months. Food allergy prevalence at 1 year was 7.7% (61/786), and 6.5% (53/808) were egg-allergic. There was no evidence of an association between VDI at either birth (aRR 1.25, 95% CI 0.70-2.22) or 6 months (aRR 0.93, 95% CI 0.41-2.14) and food allergy at 1 year. There was no evidence that VDI during the first 6 months of infancy is a risk factor for food allergy at 1 year of age. These findings primarily relate to egg allergy, and larger studies are required. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Characterization of contact structures for the spread of infectious diseases in a pork supply chain in northern Germany by dynamic network analysis of yearly and monthly networks.

PubMed

Büttner, K; Krieter, J; Traulsen, I

2015-04-01

A major risk factor in the spread of diseases between holdings is the transport of live animals. This study analysed the animal movements of the pork supply chain of a producer group in Northern Germany. The parameters in-degree and out-degree, ingoing and outgoing infection chain, betweenness and ingoing and outgoing closeness were measured using dynamic network analysis to identify holdings with central positions in the network and to characterize the overall network topology. The potential maximum epidemic size was also estimated. All parameters were calculated for three time periods: the 3-yearly network, the yearly and the monthly networks. The yearly and the monthly networks were more fragmented than the 3-yearly network. On average, one-third of the holdings were isolated in the yearly networks and almost three quarters in the monthly networks. This represented an immense reduction in the number of holdings participating in the trade of the monthly networks. The overall network topology showed right-skewed distributions for all calculated centrality parameters indicating that network resilience was high concerning the random removal of holdings. However, for a targeted removal of holdings according to their centrality, a rapid fragmentation of the trade network could be expected. Furthermore, to capture the real importance of holdings for disease transmission, indirect trade contacts (infection chain) should be considered. In contrast to the parameters regarding direct trade contacts (degree), the infection chain parameter did not underestimate the potential risk of disease transmission. This became more obvious, the longer the observed time period was. For all three time periods, the results for the estimation of the potential maximum epidemic size illustrated that the outgoing infection chain should be chosen. It considers the chronological order and the directed nature of the contacts and has no restrictions such as the strongly connected components of a

A Global Precipitation Perspective on Persistent Extratropical Flow Anomalies

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Huffman, George J.; Adler, Robert F.; Bolvin, David T.

1999-01-01

Two globally-complete, observation-only precipitation datasets have recently been developed for the Global Precipitation Climatology Project (GPCP). Both depend heavily on a variety of satellite input, as well as gauge data over land. The first, Version 2 x 79, provides monthly estimates on a 2.5 deg x 2.5 deg lat/long grid for the period 1979 through late 1999 (by the time of the conference). The second, the One-Degree Daily (1DD), provides daily estimates on a 1 deg x 1 deg grid for the period 1997 through late 1999 (by the time of the conference). Both are in beta test preparatory to release as official GPCP products. These datasets provide a unique perspective on the hydrological effects of the various atmospheric flow anomalies that have been identified by meteorologists. In this paper we discuss the regional precipitation effects that result from persistent extratropical flow anomalies. We will focus on the Pacific-North America (PNA) and North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) patterns. Each characteristically becomes established on synoptic time scales, but then persists for periods that can exceed a month. The onset phase of each appears to have systematic mobile features, while the mature phase tend to be more stationary. Accordingly, composites of monthly data for outstanding positive and negative events (separately) contained in the 20-year record reveal the climatological structure of the precipitation during the mature phase. The climatological anomalies of the positive, negative, and (positive-negative) composites show the expected storm-track-related shifts in precipitation, and provide the advantage of putting the known precipitation effects over land in the context of the total pattern over land and ocean. As well, this global perspective points out some unexpected areas of correlation. Day-by-day composites of daily data anchored to the onset date demonstrate the systematic features during the onset. Although the 1DD has a fairly short record, some

Measurement effects of seasonal and monthly variability on pedometer-determined data.

PubMed