State-level income inequality and mortality among infants born in the United States 2007-2010: A Cohort Study

BACKGROUND: United States state-level income inequality is positively associated with infant mortality in ecological studies. We exploit spatiotemporal variations in a large dataset containing individual-level data to conduct a cohort study and to investigate whether current income inequality and increases in income inequality are associated with infant and neonatal mortality risk over the period of the 2007-2010 Great Recession in the United States. METHODS: We used data on 16,145,716 infants and their mothers from the 2007-2010 United States Statistics Linked Infant Birth and Death Records. Multilevel logistic regression was used to determine whether 1) US state-level income inequality, as measured by Z-transformed Gini coefficients in the year of birth and 2) change in Gini coefficient between 1990 and year of birth (2007-2010), predicted infant or neonatal mortality. Our analyses adjusted for both individual and state-level covariates. RESULTS: From 2007 to 2010 there were 98,002 infant deaths: an infant mortality rate of 6.07 infant deaths per 1000 live births. When controlling for state and individual level characteristics, there was no significant relationship between Gini Z-score and infant mortality risk. However, the observed increase in the Gini Z-score was associated with a small but significant increase likelihood of infant mortality (AOR = 1.03 to 1.06 from 2007 to 2010). Similar findings were observed when the neonatal mortality was the outcome (AOR = 1.05 to 1.13 from 2007 to 2010). CONCLUSIONS: Infants born in states with greater changes in income inequality between 1990 and 2007 to 2010 experienced a greater likelihood of infant and neonatal mortality

Frictional behaviour of non-crimp fabrics (NCFs) in contact with a forming tool

Microscopic observation and analysis are used to examine the role that contact conditions play in determining the frictional behaviour of non-crimp fabrics (NCFs). The true fibre contact length is measured over a range of normal pressures. For the NCF considered, the contact length is 67% lower than for a corresponding unidirectional tow-on-tool contact at a pressure of 240 kPa. The difference in contact behaviour is associated with the fabric architecture, specifically stitching and gaps between tows. These microscopic observations are used to predict friction using a constant interface shear strength model. These predictions are found to compare well with macroscopic friction measurements taken using a sliding sled arrangement, once the roughness of the sled tool is taken into account

Dynamics of <em>Prochlorococcus </em>Diversity and Photoacclimation During Short-Term Shifts in Water Column Stratification at Station ALOHA

\ua9 Copyright \ua9 2018 Thompson, van den Engh, Ahlgren, Kouba, Ward, Wilson and Karl.The cyanobacterium Prochlorococcus is the dominant phototroph in surface waters of the vast oligotrophic oceans, the foundation of marine food webs, and an important component of global biogeochemical cycles. The prominence of Prochlorococcus across the environmental gradients of the open ocean is attributed to its extensive genetic diversity and flexible chlorophyll physiology, enabling light capture over a wide range of intensities. What remains unknown is the balance between temporal dynamics of genetic diversity and chlorophyll physiology in the ability of Prochlorococcus to respond to a variety of short (approximately 1 day) and longer (months to year) changes in the environment. Previous field research established depth-dependent Prochlorococcus single cell chlorophyll distributions in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre. Here, we examined whether the shifts in chlorophyll distributions correspond to changes in Prochlorococcus genetic diversity (i.e., ecotype-level community structure) or photoacclimation of stable communities over short time intervals. We report that community structure was relatively stable despite abrupt shifts in Prochlorococcus chlorophyll physiology, due to unexpected physiological plasticity of high-light adapted Prochlorococcus ecotypes. Through comparison with seasonal-scale changes, our data suggest that variability on daily scales triggers shifts in Prochlorococcus photoacclimation, while seasonal-scale dynamics trigger shifts in community structure. Together, these data highlight the importance of incorporating the process of photoacclimation and chlorophyll dynamics into interpretations of phytoplankton population dynamics from chlorophyll data as well as the importance of daily-scale variability to Prochlorococcus ecology

Performance of horn-coupled transition edge sensors for L- and S-band optical detection on the SAFARI instrument

We describe the geometry, architecture, dark- and optical performance of ultra-low-noise transition edge sensors as THz detectors for the SAFARI instrument. The TESs are fabricated from superconducting Mo/Au bilayers coupled to impedance-matched superconducting ß-phase Ta thin-film absorbers. The detectors have phonon-limited dark noise equivalent powers of order 0.5 - 1.0 aW/$\sqrt{Hz}$ and saturation powers of order 20 - 40 fW. The low temperature test configuration incorporating micro-machined backshorts is also described, and construction and typical performance characteristics for the optical load are shown. We report preliminary measurements of the optical performance of these TESs for two SAFARI bands; L-band at 110 - 210 µm and S-band 34 - 60 µm .European Space AgencyThis is the final version of the article. It first appeared from SPIE via http://dx.doi.org/10.1117/12.223274

Estimating the furrow infiltration characteristic from a single advance point

Management and control of surface irrigation, in particular furrow irrigation, is limited by spatio-temporal soil infiltration variability as well as the high cost and time associated with collecting intensive field data for estimation of the infiltration characteristics. Recent work has proposed scaling the commonly used infiltration function by using a model infiltration curve and a single advance point for every other furrow in an irrigation event. Scaling factors were calculated for a series of furrows at two sites and at four points down the length of the field (0.25 L, 0.5 L, 0.75 L and L). Differences in the value of the scaling factor with distance were found to be a function of the shape of the advance curves. It is concluded that use of points early in the advance results in a substantial loss of accuracy and should be avoided. The scaling factor was also strongly correlated with the furrow-wetted perimeter suggesting that the scaling is an appropriate way of both predicting and accommodating the effect of the hydraulic variability

What's in a name; Genetic structure in Solanum section Petota studied using population-genetic tools

Background - The taxonomy and systematic relationships among species of Solanum section Petota are complicated and the section seems overclassified. Many of the presumed (sub)species from South America are very similar and they are able to exchange genetic material. We applied a population genetic approach to evaluate support for subgroups within this material, using AFLP data. Our approach is based on the following assumptions: (i) accessions that may exchange genetic material can be analyzed as if they are part of one gene pool, and (ii) genetic differentiation among species is expected to be higher than within species. Results - A dataset of 566 South-American accessions (encompassing 89 species and subspecies) was analyzed in two steps. First, with the program STRUCTURE 2.2 in an 'unsupervised' procedure, individual accessions were assigned to inferred clusters based on genetic similarity. The results showed that the South American members of section Petota could be arranged in 16 clusters of various size and composition. Next, the accessions within the clusters were grouped by maximizing the partitioning of genetic diversity among subgroups (i.e., maximizing Fst values) for all available individuals of the accessions (2767 genotypes). This two-step approach produced an optimal partitioning into 44 groups. Some of the species clustered as genetically distinct groups, either on their own, or combined with one or more other species. However, accessions of other species were distributed over more than one cluster, and did not form genetically distinct units. Conclusions - We could not find any support for 43 species (almost half of our dataset). For 28 species some level of support could be found varying from good to weak. For 18 species no conclusions could be drawn as the number of accessions included in our dataset was too low. These molecular data should be combined with data from morphological surveys, with geographical distribution data, and with information from crossing experiments to identify natural units at the species level. However, the data do indicate which taxa or combinations of taxa are clearly supported by a distinct set of molecular marker data, leaving other taxa unsupported. Therefore, the approach taken provides a general method to evaluate the taxonomic system in any species complex for which molecular data are available

Understanding stroke survivors' and informal carers' experiences of and need for primary care and community health services--a systematic review of the qualitative literature: protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Despite the rising prevalence of stroke, no comprehensive model of postacute stroke care exists. Research on stroke has focused on acute care and early supported discharge, with less attention dedicated to longer term support in the community. Likewise, relatively little research has focused on long-term support for informal carers. This review aims to synthesise and appraise extant qualitative evidence on: (1) long-term healthcare needs of stroke survivors and informal carers, and (2) their experiences of primary care and community health services. The review will inform the development of a primary care model for stroke survivors and informal carers. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: We will systematically search 4 databases: MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO and CINAHL for published qualitative evidence on the needs and experiences of stroke survivors and informal carers of postacute care delivered by primary care and community health services. Additional searches of reference lists and citation indices will be conducted. The quality of articles will be assessed by 2 independent reviewers using a Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) checklist. Disagreements will be resolved through discussion or third party adjudication. Meta-ethnography will be used to synthesise the literature based on first-order, second-order and third-order constructs. We will construct a theoretical model of stroke survivors' and informal carers' experiences of primary care and community health services. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The results of the systematic review will be disseminated via publication in a peer-reviewed journal and presented at a relevant conference. The study does not require ethical approval as no patient identifiable data will be used.National Institute for Health Research (PTC-RP-PG-0213-20001)

AdS_7/CFT_6, Gauss-Bonnet Gravity, and Viscosity Bound

We study the relation between the causality and the positivity of energy bounds in Gauss-Bonnet gravity in AdS_7 background and find a precise agreement. Requiring the group velocity of metastable states to be bounded by the speed of light places a bound on the value of Gauss-Bonnet coupling. To find the positivity of energy constraints we compute the parameters which determine the angular distribution of the energy flux in terms of three independent coefficients specifying the three-point function of the stress-energy tensor. We then relate the latter to the Weyl anomaly of the six-dimensional CFT and compute the anomaly holographically. The resulting upper bound on the Gauss-Bonnet coupling coincides with that from causality and results in a new bound on viscosity/entropy ratio.Comment: 21 page, harvmac; v2: reference adde

Conformational effects on the Circular Dichroism of Human Carbonic Anhydrase II: a multilevel computational study

Circular Dichroism (CD) spectroscopy is a powerful method for investigating conformational changes in proteins and therefore has numerous applications in structural and molecular biology. Here a computational investigation of the CD spectrum of the Human Carbonic Anhydrase II (HCAII), with main focus on the near-UV CD spectra of the wild-type enzyme and it seven tryptophan mutant forms, is presented and compared to experimental studies. Multilevel computational methods (Molecular Dynamics, Semiempirical Quantum Mechanics, Time-Dependent Density Functional Theory) were applied in order to gain insight into the mechanisms of interaction between the aromatic chromophores within the protein environment and understand how the conformational flexibility of the protein influences these mechanisms. The analysis suggests that combining CD semi empirical calculations, crystal structures and molecular dynamics (MD) could help in achieving a better agreement between the computed and experimental protein spectra and provide some unique insight into the dynamic nature of the mechanisms of chromophore interactions