The Decline Of Manufacturing In The United States And Its Impact On Income Inequality

The decline of manufacturing in the United States has been a perceptible trend, starting in the aftermath of World War II when manufacturing represented over one quarter of our Gross Domestic Product, to today, when it is less than 12%. The unemployment of the Great Recession, and the most recent State of the Union Address by President Obama, have now made this front page news. The declining trend has been masked by the facts that the U.S. remains, in total, the world’s largest manufacturer, and, along with China, the top value added producers. A second trend has been the decline of manufacturing employment as a percentage of the total labor force, running from just under one quarter post WWII, to less than 8% today. And finally the third trend has been the premium of manufacturing compensation versus all industries, from 11% in 1950 to 23% in 2010. Together these three trends are the major components of the increasingly palpable trend of income inequality from 1950 to 2010. In 1950 the top 20% had 17.3% of family income, whereas in 2010 it was 20%. The Gini coefficient, another measure of negative income distribution, moved from .379 to .440 over the same time frame

The Labor Force Participation Rate: An Examination Of The Determinants Of Its Recent Precipitous Decline

The Labor Force Participation Rate (LFPR) is defined as those Americans in the labor force, i.e. above the age of sixteen, below retirement age, who are either actively employed or actively seeking employment.  From 1950 until 1998 it rose from 59.2% to 67.2%.  Given the near doubling of the U.S. population, its impact on our economy was enormous.  However, since 1998 the LFPR has declined steadily to 63.3%.  Parallel to this decline, we have seen a polarization of both wealth and income in the U.S.  Many economists have examined both trends – the decline of LFPR and inequality – and have put forth a variety of determinants.  These include technology and globalization – a decline or “hollowing out” of the middle class, if you will.  Also included are the demographics of an ageing society, and the increased racial and gender participation, but also a workforce that has become only marginally prepared by today’s educational institutions.  Another class of determinants is the welfare “safety net” at both the Federal and state levels, including extended unemployment benefits, disability payments and other subsidies.  The authors examine each class of determinants, including whether their aspects are cyclical, structural or even part of an ominous trend for our economy

2016 AAPP Monograph Series: African American Professors Program

The African American Professors Program (AAPP) at the University of South Carolina is honored to publish this fifteenth edition of its annual monograph series. AAPP recognizes the significance of offering scholars a venue through which to engage actively in research and to publish their refereed papers. Parallel with the publication of their manuscripts is the opportunity to gain visibility among colleagues throughout postsecondary institutions at national and international levels. Scholars who have contributed papers for this monograph are acknowledged for embracing the value of including this responsibility within their academic milieu. Writing across disciplines adds to the intellectual diversity of these manuscripts. From neophytes to quite experienced individuals, the chapters have been researched and written in depth. Founded in 1997 through the Department of Educational Leadership and Policies in the College of Education, AAPP was designed originally to address the under-representation of African American professors on college and university campuses. Its mission is to expand the pool of these professors in critical academic and research areas. Sponsored historically by the University of South Carolina, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, and the South Carolina General Assembly, the program recruits doctoral students for disciplines in which African Americans currently are underrepresented among faculty in higher education. The continuation of this monograph series is seen as responding to a window of opportunity to be sensitive to academic expectation of graduates as they pursue career placement and, at the same time, to allow for the dissemination of products of scholarship to a broader community. The importance of this series has been voiced by one of our 2002 AAPP graduates, Dr. Shundelle LaTjuan Dogan, formerly an Administrative Fellow at Harvard University, a Program Officer for the Southern Education Foundation, and a Program Officer for the Arthur M. Blank Foundation in Atlanta, Georgia. She is currently a Corporate Citizenship and Corporate Affairs Manager for IBM-International Business Machines in Atlanta, Georgia and has written the Foreword for the 2014 monograph. Dr. Dogan wrote: One thing in particular that I want to thank you for is having the African American Professors Program scholars publish articles for the monograph. I have to admit that writing the articles seemed like extra work at the time. However, in my recent interview process, organizations have asked me for samples of my writing. Including an article from a published monograph helped to make my portfolio much more impressive. You were \u27right on target\u27 in having us do the monograph series. (AAPP 2003 Monograph, p. xi) The African American Professors Program continues the tradition as a promoter of international scholarship in higher education evidenced through the inspiration from this group of interdisciplinary manuscripts. I hope that you will envision these published papers to serve as an invaluable contribution to your own professional development and career enhancement. John McFadden, PhD The Benjamin Elijah Mays Distinguished Professor Emeritus Director, African American Professors Program University of South Carolinahttps://scholarcommons.sc.edu/mcfadden_monographs/1003/thumbnail.jp

1968: Abilene Christian College Bible Lectures - Full Text

CROWNING FIFTY YEARS” Being the Fiftieth Annual ABILENE CHRISTIAN COLLEGE BIBLE LECTURES - 1968 J. D. THOMAS, LECTURESHIP DIRECTOR, EDITOR Published by ABILENE CHRISTIAN COLLEGE ACC Station, Abilene, Texas 7960

Modulation of SOCS protein expression influences the interferon responsiveness of human melanoma cells

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Endogenously produced interferons can regulate the growth of melanoma cells and are administered exogenously as therapeutic agents to patients with advanced cancer. We investigated the role of negative regulators of interferon signaling known as suppressors of cytokine signaling (SOCS) in mediating interferon-resistance in human melanoma cells.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Basal and interferon-alpha (IFN-α) or interferon-gamma (IFN-γ)-induced expression of SOCS1 and SOCS3 proteins was evaluated by immunoblot analysis in a panel of n = 10 metastatic human melanoma cell lines, in human embryonic melanocytes (HEM), and radial or vertical growth phase melanoma cells. Over-expression of SOCS1 and SOCS3 proteins in melanoma cells was achieved using the PINCO retroviral vector, while siRNA were used to inhibit SOCS1 and SOCS3 expression. Tyr⁷⁰¹-phosphorylated STAT1 (P-STAT1) was measured by intracellular flow cytometry and IFN-stimulated gene expression was measured by Real Time PCR.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>SOCS1 and SOCS3 proteins were expressed at basal levels in melanocytes and in all melanoma cell lines examined. Expression of the SOCS1 and SOCS3 proteins was also enhanced following stimulation of a subset of cell lines with IFN-α or IFN-γ. Over-expression of SOCS proteins in melanoma cell lines led to significant inhibition of Tyr⁷⁰¹-phosphorylated STAT1 (P-STAT1) and gene expression following stimulation with IFN-α (IFIT2, OAS-1, ISG-15) or IFN-γ (IRF1). Conversely, siRNA inhibition of SOCS1 and SOCS3 expression in melanoma cells enhanced their responsiveness to interferon stimulation.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>These data demonstrate that SOCS proteins are expressed in human melanoma cell lines and their modulation can influence the responsiveness of melanoma cells to IFN-α and IFN-γ.</p

COgnitive behavioural therapy versus standardised medical care for adults with Dissociative non-Epileptic Seizures (CODES): statistical and economic analysis plan for a randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Dissociative seizures (DSs), also called psychogenic non-epileptic seizures, are a distressing and disabling problem for many patients in neurological settings with high and often unnecessary economic costs. The COgnitive behavioural therapy versus standardised medical care for adults with Dissociative non-Epileptic Seizures (CODES) trial is an evaluation of a specifically tailored psychological intervention with the aims of reducing seizure frequency and severity and improving psychological well-being in adults with DS. The aim of this paper is to report in detail the quantitative and economic analysis plan for the CODES trial, as agreed by the trial steering committee. METHODS: The CODES trial is a multicentre, pragmatic, parallel group, randomised controlled trial performed to evaluate the clinical effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of 13 sessions of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) plus standardised medical care (SMC) compared with SMC alone for adult outpatients with DS. DISCUSSION: The objectives and design of the trial are summarised, and the aims and procedures of the planned analyses are illustrated. The proposed analysis plan addresses statistical considerations such as maintaining blinding, monitoring adherence with the protocol, describing aspects of treatment and dealing with missing data. The formal analysis approach for the primary and secondary outcomes is described, as are the descriptive statistics that will be reported. This paper provides transparency to the planned inferential analyses for the CODES trial prior to the extraction of outcome data. It also provides an update to the previously published trial protocol and guidance to those conducting similar trials. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ISRCTN registry ISRCTN05681227 (registered on 5 March 2014); ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02325544 (registered on 15 December 2014)

Emergency department crowding in The Netherlands: managers’ experiences

__Abstract__ __Background__ In The Netherlands, the state of emergency department (ED) crowding is unknown. Anecdotal evidence suggests that current ED patients experience a longer length of stay (LOS) compared to some years ago, which is indicative of ED crowding. However, no multicenter studies have been performed to quantify LOS and assess crowding at Dutch EDs. We performed this study to describe the current state of emergency departments in The Netherlands regarding patients’ length of stay and ED nurse managers’ experiences of crowding. __Methods__ A survey was sent to all 94 ED nurse managers in The Netherlands with questions regarding the type of facility, annual ED census, and patients’ LOS. Additional questions included whether crowding was ever a problem at the particular ED, how often it occurred, which time periods had the worst episodes of crowding, and what measures the particular ED had undertaken to improve patient flow. __Results__ Surveys were collected from 63 EDs (67%). Mean annual ED visits were 24,936 (SD ± 9,840); mean LOS for discharged patients was 119 (SD ± 40) min and mean LOS for admitted patients 146 (SD ± 49) min. Consultation delays, laboratory and radiology delays, and hospital bed shortages for patients needing admission were the most cited reasons for crowding. Admitted patients had a longer LOS because of delays in obtaining inpatient beds. Thirty-nine of 57 respondents (68%) reported that crowding occurred several times a week or even daily, mostly between 12:00 and 20:00. Measures taken by hospitals to manage crowding included placing patients in hallways and using a fasttrack with treatment of patients by trained nurse practitioners. __Conclusions__ Despite a relatively short LOS, frequent crowding appears to be a nationwide problem according to Dutch ED nurse managers, with 68% of them reporting that crowding occurred several times a week or even daily. Consultations delays, laboratory and radiology delays, and hospital bed shortage for patients needing admission were believed to be the most important factors contributing to ED crowding

Evidence-based patient choice: a prostate cancer decision aid in plain language

BACKGROUND: Decision aids (DA) to assist patients in evaluating treatment options and sharing in decision making have proliferated in recent years. Most require high literacy and do not use plain language principles. We describe one of the first attempts to design a decision aid using principles from reading research and document design. The plain language DA prototype addressed treatment decisions for localized prostate cancer. Evaluation assessed impact on knowledge, decisions, and discussions with doctors in men newly diagnosed with prostate cancer. METHODS: Document development steps included preparing an evidence-based DA in standard medical parlance, iteratively translating it to emphasize shared decision making and plain language in three formats (booklet, Internet, and audio-tape). Scientific review of medical content was integrated with expert health literacy review of document structure and design. Formative evaluation methods included focus groups (n = 4) and survey of a new sample of men newly diagnosed with prostate cancer (n = 60), compared with historical controls (n = 184). RESULTS: A transparent description of the development process and design elements is reported. Formative evaluation among newly diagnosed prostate cancer patients found the DA to be clear and useful in reaching a decision. Newly diagnosed patients reported more discussions with doctors about treatment options, and showed increases in knowledge of side effects of radiation therapy. CONCLUSION: The plain language DA presenting medical evidence in text and numerical formats appears acceptable and useful in decision-making about localized prostate cancer treatment. Further testing should evaluate the impact of all three media on decisions made and quality of life in the survivorship period, especially among very low literacy men

The state of the Martian climate

60°N was +2.0°C, relative to the 1981–2010 average value (Fig. 5.1). This marks a new high for the record. The average annual surface air temperature (SAT) anomaly for 2016 for land stations north of starting in 1900, and is a significant increase over the previous highest value of +1.2°C, which was observed in 2007, 2011, and 2015. Average global annual temperatures also showed record values in 2015 and 2016. Currently, the Arctic is warming at more than twice the rate of lower latitudes