Paternal and Maternal History of Myocardial Infarction and Cardiovascular Diseases Incidence in a Dutch Cohort of Middle-Aged Persons

Background - A positive parental history of myocardial infarction (MI) is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular diseases (CVD). However, different definitions of parental history have been used. We evaluated the impact of parental gender and age of onset of MI on CVD incidence. Methods - Baseline data were collected between 1993 and 1997 in 10¿524 respondents aged 40–65 years. CVD events were obtained from the National Hospital Discharge Register and Statistics Netherlands. We used proportional hazard models to calculate hazard ratios (HR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) for CVD incidence and adjusted for lifestyle and biological risk factors. Results - At baseline, 36% had a parental history of MI. During 10-year follow-up, 914 CVD events occurred. The age and gender adjusted HR was 1.3 (95% CI 1.1–1.5) for those with a paternal MI, 1.5 (1.2–1.8) for those with a maternal MI and 1.6 (1.2–2.2) for those with both parents with an MI. With decreasing parental age of MI, HR increased from 1.2 (1.0–1.6) for age =70 years to 1.5 (1.2–1.8) for ag

A Controlled Experiment of Surface Albedo Modification to Reduce Ice Melt

Abstract Loss of reflectivity in the Arctic and the wider cryosphere is known to increase global temperature rise through an ice‐albedo feedback loop, which has the potential to lead to loss of summertime ice cover in the Arctic Ocean, and to accelerate global warming. Despite the urgency of this situation, there are few options being developed to preserve and restore ice reflectivity. Localized surface albedo modification using reflective materials offers a potential pathway to restore Arctic ice. We conducted a controlled experiment to determine effects of surface albedo modification on ice melt and thermodynamic processes of a pond. We applied a coating of hollow glass microspheres (HGMs) to a test section, while leaving a control section unmodified. Laboratory measurements show that the loading of HGM materials used corresponds to a reflectivity of 30%. We measured ice and snow thickness, albedo, incoming and outgoing shortwave and longwave radiation, and ice, water, and ambient temperatures. A 1‐D thermodynamic model was developed to quantify the effect of albedo modification on the processes of heat transfer, energy absorption and ice melt. The albedo increased from 0.17 on a control section to 0.36 on a test section. During the 2‐week melt period, there was a 29% reduction in net radiative energy into the test section and a 33% reduction of ice melting rate measured by volume. This experiment using quantitative methods elucidates the mechanisms of ice preservation through surface albedo modification and demonstrates its effectiveness