Rebuild by Design Phase 1 Evaluation Report

Rebuild by Design (RBD) was formally launched on June 20, 2013, to ensure that the rebuilding after Hurricane Sandy incorporated designs that built in resilience. RBD was launched with strong public leadership, philanthropic support and professional interest within the design community. The early enthusiasm for RBD came as much from curiosity about RBD's vision and ambition as from the substantial size of the implementation awards from the Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds that Congress appropriated to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for Hurricane Sandy Recovery.As part of its ongoing commitment to learn from the work it supports, the Rockefeller Foundation provided funding for the Urban Institute to evaluate the design competition component of Phase 1 of RBD, including its innovative aspects, partnerships and community engagement

INFLUÊNCIA DOS CEMITÉRIOS NA CONTAMINAÇÃO DE ÁGUAS SUBTERRÂNEAS POR COMPOSTOS FENÓLICOS

The phenol is one of the main compounds using in the prepare of bodies for burial. Objectified with this work evaluate the concentration of total phenols in groundwater that if are under direct influence of two urban cemeteries, both in a city in the Serrana region of Santa Catarina. Because don´t have studies that evaluate the contamination of the groundwater of cemeteries for total phenols, this study is a start point for deepened studies evaluate this contaminate and your dynamics in areas under influence of cemeteries. Was realized gathers of underground water in monitoring wells located inside of these cemeteries, in the four seasons, for one year. For the purposes of analysis, the pH and concentration of total phenols were determined by the colorimetric method. The results indicated high concentrations of total phenols, with minimum concentration of 0,03 mg L-1, in the autumn, and maximum of 2,72 mg L-1, in the summer. The concentrations observed in all the samples gathers, in all the seasons, was above of the value allowed for CONAMA regulation at the 396/2008, that is 0,003 mg L-1, charactering the environment contamination.O fenol é um dos principais compostos utilizados na preparação de corpos para sepultamento. Objetivou-se com esse trabalho avaliar a concentração de compostos fenólicos em águas subterrâneas que estão sob influência direta de dois cemitérios urbanos, localizados em um município da região Serrana de Santa Catarina. Por não haver estudos que avaliassem a contaminação de água subterrânea de cemitérios por fenóis totais, esse estudo é um ponto de partida para que estudos mais aprofundados avaliem esse contaminante e a sua dinâmica em áreas sob influência de cemitérios. Foram realizadas coletas de água subterrânea em poços de monitoramento localizados nas áreas internas destes cemitérios, nas quatro estações, durante um ano. Para fins de análise foi determinado o pH e a concentração de fenóis totais, pelo método colorimétrico. Os resultados indicam elevadas concentrações de fenóis totais, com concentração mínima de 0,03 mg L-1, no outono, e máxima de 2,72 mg L-1, no verão. As concentrações observadas em todas as amostras coletadas, em todas as estações, estavam acima do valor máximo permitido pela Resolução CONAMA no 396/2008, que é de 0,003 mg L-1, caracterizando a contaminação ambiental

Does student loan debt deter higher education participation? New evidence from England

Research among prospective UK undergraduates in 2002 found that some students, especially from low social classes, were deterred from applying to university because of fear of debt. This paper investigates whether this is still the case today in England despite the changing higher education landscape since 2002. The paper describes findings from a 2015 survey of prospective undergraduates and compares them with those from the 2002 study. We find that students’ attitudes to taking on student loan debt are more favorable in 2015 than in 2002. Debt averse attitudes remain much stronger among lower-class students than among upper-class students, and more so than in 2002. However, lower-class students did not have stronger debt averse attitudes than middle-class students. Debt averse attitudes seem more likely to deter planned higher education participation among lower-class students in 2015 than in 2002

Effective fisheries management instrumental in improving fish stock status

Marine fish stocks are an important part of the world food system and are particularly important for many of the poorest people of the world. Most existing analyses suggest overfishing is increasing, and there is widespread concern that fish stocks are decreasing throughout most of the world. We assembled trends in abundance and harvest rate of stocks that are scientifically assessed, constituting half of the reported globalmarine fish catch. For these stocks, on average, abundance is increasing and is at proposed target levels. Compared with regions that are intensively managed, regions with less-developed fisheries management have, on average, 3-fold greater harvest rates and half the abundance as assessed stocks. Available evidence suggests that the regions without assessments of abundance have little fisheries management, and stocks are in poor shape. Increased application of area-appropriate fisheries science recommendations and management tools are still needed for sustaining fisheries in places where they are lacking.Fil: Hilborn, Ray. University of Washington; Estados UnidosFil: Amoroso, Ricardo Oscar. University of Washington; Estados UnidosFil: Anderson, Christopher M.. University of Washington; Estados UnidosFil: Baum, Julia K.. University of Victoria; CanadáFil: Branch, Trevor A.. University of Washington; Estados UnidosFil: Costello, Christopher. University of California at Santa Barbara; Estados UnidosFil: de Moor, Carryn L.. University of Cape Town; SudáfricaFil: Faraj, Abdelmalek. Einstitut National de Recherche Halieutique; MarruecosFil: Hively, Daniel. University of Washington; Estados UnidosFil: Jensen, Olaf P.. Rutgers University; Estados UnidosFil: Kurota, Hiroyuki. Japan Fisheries Research and Education Agency; JapónFil: Little, L. Richard. Csiro Oceans and Atmosphere; AustraliaFil: Mace, Pamela. Ministry for Primary Industries; Nueva ZelandaFil: McClanahan, Tim. Wildlife Conservation Society; Estados UnidosFil: Melnychuk, Michael C.. University of Washington; Estados UnidosFil: Minto, Cóilín. Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology; IrlandaFil: Osio, Giacomo Chato. Joint Research Centre (JRC); Italia. DG Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, European Commission; BélgicaFil: Pons, Maite. University of Washington; Estados UnidosFil: Parma, Ana María. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Centro para el Estudio de Sistemas Marinos; ArgentinaFil: Segurado, Susana. Sustainable Fisheries Partnership; Estados UnidosFil: Szuwalski, Cody S.. University of California at Santa Barbara; Estados UnidosFil: Wilson, Jono R.. University of California at Santa Barbara; Estados Unidos. The Nature Conservancy; Estados UnidosFil: Ye, Yimin. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; Itali

Impact of liver tumour burden, alkaline phosphatase elevation, and target lesion size on treatment outcomes with 177Lu-Dotatate: an analysis of the NETTER-1 study

Purpose: To assess the impact of baseline liver tumour burden, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) elevation, and target lesion size on treatment outcomes with 177Lu-Dotatate. Methods: In the phase 3 NETTER-1 trial, patients with advanced, progressive midgut neuroendocrine tumours (NET) were randomised to 177Lu-Dotatate (every 8 weeks, four cycles) plus octreotide long-acting release (LAR) or to octreotide LAR 60 mg. Primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS). Analyses of PFS by baseline factors, including liver tumour burden, ALP elevation, and target lesion size, were performed using Kaplan-Meier estimates; hazard ratios (HRs) with corresponding 95% CIs were estimated using Cox regression. Results: Significantly prolonged median PFS occurred with 177Lu-Dotatate versus octreotide LAR 60 mg in patients with low ( 50%) liver tumour burden (HR 0.187, 0.216, 0.145), and normal or elevated ALP (HR 0.153, 0.177), and in the presence or absence of a large target lesion (diameter > 30 mm; HR, 0.213, 0.063). Within the 177Lu-Dotatate arm, no significant difference in PFS was observed amongst patients with low/moderate/high liver tumour burden (P = 0.7225) or with normal/elevated baseline ALP (P = 0.3532), but absence of a large target lesion was associated with improved PFS (P = 0.0222). Grade 3 and 4 liver function abnormalities were rare and did not appear to be associated with high baseline liver tumour burden. Conclusions: 177Lu-Dotatate demonstrated significant prolongation in PFS versus high-dose octreotide LAR in patients with advanced, progressive midgut NET, regardless of baseline liver tumour burden, elevated ALP, or the presence of a large target lesion. Clinicaltrials.gov : NCT01578239, EudraCT: 2011-005049-11

Evidence for genetic association of RORB with bipolar disorder

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Bipolar disorder, particularly in children, is characterized by rapid cycling and switching, making circadian clock genes plausible molecular underpinnings for bipolar disorder. We previously reported work establishing mice lacking the clock gene D-box binding protein (<it>DBP</it>) as a stress-reactive genetic animal model of bipolar disorder. Microarray studies revealed that expression of two closely related clock genes, <it>RAR</it>-related orphan receptors alpha (<it>RORA</it>) and beta (<it>RORB</it>), was altered in these mice. These retinoid-related receptors are involved in a number of pathways including neurogenesis, stress response, and modulation of circadian rhythms. Here we report association studies between bipolar disorder and single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in <it>RORA </it>and <it>RORB</it>.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>We genotyped 355 <it>RORA </it>and <it>RORB </it>SNPs in a pediatric cohort consisting of a family-based sample of 153 trios and an independent, non-overlapping case-control sample of 152 cases and 140 controls. Bipolar disorder in children and adolescents is characterized by increased stress reactivity and frequent episodes of shorter duration; thus our cohort provides a potentially enriched sample for identifying genes involved in cycling and switching.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We report that four intronic <it>RORB </it>SNPs showed positive associations with the pediatric bipolar phenotype that survived Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons in the case-control sample. Three <it>RORB </it>haplotype blocks implicating an additional 11 SNPs were also associated with the disease in the case-control sample. However, these significant associations were not replicated in the sample of trios. There was no evidence for association between pediatric bipolar disorder and any <it>RORA </it>SNPs or haplotype blocks after multiple-test correction. In addition, we found no strong evidence for association between the age-at-onset of bipolar disorder with any <it>RORA </it>or <it>RORB </it>SNPs.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Our findings suggest that clock genes in general and <it>RORB </it>in particular may be important candidates for further investigation in the search for the molecular basis of bipolar disorder.</p

A communal catalogue reveals Earth's multiscale microbial diversity

Our growing awareness of the microbial world's importance and diversity contrasts starkly with our limited understanding of its fundamental structure. Despite recent advances in DNA sequencing, a lack of standardized protocols and common analytical frameworks impedes comparisons among studies, hindering the development of global inferences about microbial life on Earth. Here we present a meta-analysis of microbial community samples collected by hundreds of researchers for the Earth Microbiome Project. Coordinated protocols and new analytical methods, particularly the use of exact sequences instead of clustered operational taxonomic units, enable bacterial and archaeal ribosomal RNA gene sequences to be followed across multiple studies and allow us to explore patterns of diversity at an unprecedented scale. The result is both a reference database giving global context to DNA sequence data and a framework for incorporating data from future studies, fostering increasingly complete characterization of Earth's microbial diversity.Peer reviewe

A communal catalogue reveals Earth’s multiscale microbial diversity

Our growing awareness of the microbial world’s importance and diversity contrasts starkly with our limited understanding of its fundamental structure. Despite recent advances in DNA sequencing, a lack of standardized protocols and common analytical frameworks impedes comparisons among studies, hindering the development of global inferences about microbial life on Earth. Here we present a meta-analysis of microbial community samples collected by hundreds of researchers for the Earth Microbiome Project. Coordinated protocols and new analytical methods, particularly the use of exact sequences instead of clustered operational taxonomic units, enable bacterial and archaeal ribosomal RNA gene sequences to be followed across multiple studies and allow us to explore patterns of diversity at an unprecedented scale. The result is both a reference database giving global context to DNA sequence data and a framework for incorporating data from future studies, fostering increasingly complete characterization of Earth’s microbial diversity