Solar accumulation: the worlds-systems theory of The Expanse

The Syfy television series The Expanse (2015-) transposes a form of combined and uneven development from Earth to the solar system, making the human reality of life lived in space a central concern. The Expanse envisions a colonized solar system, replete with a United-Nations-controlled Terra and Luna, a military dictatorship on Mars, and a densely populated asteroid belt. This essay proposes that The Expanse offers an image of a worlds-system, by which we mean an interplanetary system of capital accumulation that reproduces the structure of twentieth-century geopolitical-economy at the level of the solar system. At one and the same time, The Expanse imagines a new cycle of accumulation founded in the planetary system and premised on ecological crisis on Earth and it provides a re-narration of the end of the cycle of accumulation that has been called the long twentieth century or the American century, which exasperated the climate crisis in the first instance. The Expanse is a pivotal narrative that promises a new interplanetary cycle of accumulation and its decline all at once, a fantasy of continuity that simultaneously dramatizes the contemporary crisis of futurity

Editorial: Advancing our commitment to antiracist scholarship

Social work prides itself as a profession committed to improving the lives of people who are vulnerable, oppressed, and living in poverty. Achieving this mission requires candid conversations about racism as a social justice and public health issue and the role of social work in dismantling white supremacy and promoting racial justice. At its core, research on social work practice and policy should focus on examining how racism and inequality undermine the health, well-being, and social mobility of diverse and marginalized populations. We write this statement as a call to social work researchers to prioritize pursuits that will surface and motivate action to address the causes and consequences of racism. We also call on researchers to renew their commitment to scholarship that alleviates the suffering in Black, Indigenous, and other communities of color

Social work and faith-based agencies in Sweden and Australia

The roles which faith-based agencies play in social work provision vary between countries. This article provides an overview of social work provision by the Church of Sweden in Sweden and the Catholic Church in Australia and explores how different relationships between faith-based organizations and professional social work practice have emerged in different countries. The article concludes with questions about the role of faith-based agencies which readers can reflect upon in their own contexts

Comparative pain reduction of oral non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and opioids for knee osteoarthritis: systematic analytic review.

OBJECTIVE: Summarize the comparative effectiveness of oral non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and opioids in reducing knee osteoarthritis (OA) pain. METHODS: Two reviewers independently screened reports of randomized controlled trials, published in English between 1982 and 2015, evaluating oral NSAIDs or opioids for knee OA. Included studies were at least eight weeks duration, conducted in Western Europe, the Americas, New Zealand, or Australia, and reported baseline and follow-up pain using the Western Ontario and McMaster Universities Osteoarthritis Index (WOMAC) Pain subscale (0–100, 100-worst). Effectiveness was evaluated as reduction in pain, accounting for study dropout and heterogeneity. RESULTS: 27 treatment arms (9 celecoxib, 4 non-selective NSAIDs [diclofenac, naproxen, piroxicam], 11 less potent opioids [tramadol], and 3 potent opioids [hydromorphone, oxycodone]) from 17 studies were included. NSAID and opioid studies reported similar baseline demographics and efficacy withdrawal rates; NSAID studies reported lower baseline pain and toxicity withdrawal rates. Accounting for efficacy-related withdrawals, all drug classes were associated with similar pain reductions (NSAIDs: −18; less potent opioids: −18; potent opioids: −19). Meta-regression did not reveal differential effectiveness by drug class but found that study cohorts with a higher proportion of male subjects and worse mean baseline pain had greater pain reduction. Similarly, results of the network meta-analysis did not find a significant difference in WOMAC Pain reduction for the three analgesic classes. CONCLUSION: NSAIDs and opioids offer similar pain relief in OA patients. These data could help clinicians and patients discuss likely benefits of alternative analgesics

Prime and target immunization protects against liver-stage malaria in mice

Despite recent advances in treatment and vector control, malaria is still a leading cause of death, emphasizing the need for an effective vaccine. The malaria life-cycle can be sub divided into three stages: the invasion and growth within liver hepatocytes (pre-erythrocytic stage), the blood- (erythrocytic stage) and finally the sexual-stage (occurring within the mosquito vector). Antigen-specific CD8+ T-cells are effectively induced by heterologous prime-boost viral vector immunization and known to correlate with liver stage protection. However, liver-stage malaria vaccines have struggled to generate and maintain the high numbers of Plasmodium-specific circulating T-cells necessary to confer sterile protection. Here, we describe an alternative “prime and target” vaccination strategy aimed specifically at inducing high numbers of tissue-resident memory T-cells present in the liver at the time of hepatic infection. This approach bypasses the need for very high numbers of circulating T-cells and markedly increases the efficacy of subunit immunization against liver-stage malaria using clinically relevant antigens and clinically tested viral vectors in murine challenge models. Translation to clinical use has begun, with encouraging results from a pilot safety and feasibility trial of intravenous chimpanzee adenovirus vaccination in humans. This work highlights the value of a prime-target approach for immunization against malaria and suggests that this strategy may represent a more general approach for prophylaxis or immunotherapy of other liver infections and diseases