A longitudinal analysis of the impact of the local tobacco retail availability and neighbourhood deprivation on male smoking behaviours in Shanghai, China

Some evidence from Western high-income countries suggests local tobacco retail availability and neighbourhood deprivation may influence smoking behaviours. However, this assertion has not been considered in China, where 44% of males continue to smoke. Data were analysed from Chinese males (n = 2054) who participated in Waves 3–5 (2009–2015) of the International Tobacco Control (ITC) China Survey by linking information on tobacco retail availability (estimated through population weighted Kernel Density of tobacco retailers in 2019) and neighbourhood deprivation (calculated as a composite score derived from the 2010 Chinese census) across Shanghai. Generalised Estimating Equation models were fitted to examine the impacts of local tobacco availability and neighbourhood deprivation on smoking behaviours (current smoking versus current non-smoking, quitting versus current smoking, longer durations of smoking abstinence versus current smoking) using the longitudinal data. Examining the impacts separately, participants living in neighbourhoods with greater availability and higher levels of deprivation were less likely to maintain longer durations of smoking abstinence in both unadjusted and adjusted models. Neighbourhood deprivation, but not availability, was found to be associated with higher odds of being a current smoker. Examining the impacts jointly, neighbourhood deprivation was still positively associated with current smoking and negatively associated with longer durations of smoking abstinence, but the negative association between availability and longer durations of smoking abstinence disappeared. The findings offer some evidence that greater tobacco retail availability and deprivation are obstacles on prolonged smoking cessation among males in Shanghai, China. Policymakers should consider small-area level place-based restrictions in China, such as reducing the availability of tobacco, as part of a comprehensive tobacco control strategy aimed at addressing the high prevalence of smoking

A cross-sectional analysis of socio-spatial patterning of tobacco retail in Shanghai, China

INTRODUCTION: International evidence from high-income countries demonstrates that the availability of tobacco tends to be greater in more urban and more deprived neighborhoods. However, little is known about the socio-spatial disparities in other settings, including megacities in China. This study investigated the patterning of tobacco retailers across Shanghai by types of tobacco retailers, including the relationship with levels of urbanity and neighborhood deprivation. AIMS AND METHODS: Tobacco retailer data (n = 19 413) was extracted from a web-scraped Points-of-Interest database. For all communities (n = 5432) across Shanghai, neighborhood tobacco retail availability was calculated using population-weighted kernel density estimation and grouped by quintiles of neighborhood deprivation and a 3-level urban classification. Associations were analyzed using the Kruskal–Wallis tests and epsilon squared. RESULTS: Across Shanghai, tobacco retail availability decreased from more urbanized areas to less urbanized areas. There was a statistical difference (p < .001) in the availability of tobacco retail across quintiles of deprivation, with the highest availability in the less deprived neighborhoods, and the lowest availability in the most deprived neighborhoods. However, this trend was reversed in the urban center, where retail availability was greatest in the most deprived areas. Convenience stores were the most common type of tobacco retailer across the city, while tobacco-only outlets were most strongly associated with levels of neighborhood deprivation. CONCLUSIONS: The results show an association between tobacco retail availability and neighborhood deprivation, which varied with levels of urbanity and types of tobacco retailers. These findings provide supportive evidence for further interventions that target reducing inequalities in exposure to tobacco retail. IMPLICATIONS: This is the first study to examine the relationship between tobacco retail availability and neighborhood deprivation in the context of Chinese megacities. Using data from Shanghai, China, we found a significant non-linear association between tobacco retail availability and neighborhood deprivation across the city. It is plausible that the socio-spatial disparities in tobacco retail availability at the neighborhood level may be a key factor explaining differences in smoking behaviors between sociodemographic groups. The findings emphasize the need for greater efforts in regulating neighborhood-level tobacco retailing in China

Effect of abomasal inorganic phosphorus infusion on phosphorus absorption in large intestine, milk production, and phosphorus excretion of dairy cattle

The objective of the study was to evaluate the effect of inorganic phosphorus (Pi) infusion on P absorption in large intestine, milk production and phosphorus excretion. Four ruminally- and ileally-cannulated crossbred cows were used in a 4×4 Latin Square with 21 d periods. Cows were fed a total mixed ration containing 0.21% P, providing 50% of the cows’ P requirement. Cobalt-EDTA (Co-EDTA) was used as marker to measure large intestine digesta flow. On d 13 to 21 of each period, each cow was infused daily with 0, 20.1, 40.2, or 60.3 g Pi into the abomasum and total collection was conducted on d 18 to 21. Ileal samples were collected every 9 h on d 18 to d 21. Feed, digesta, and fecal samples were analyzed for total P and Pi using the molybdovanadate yellow method and blue method, respectively. All data were analyzed using PROC GLIMMIX in SAS 9.3 using contrasts to evaluate linear, quadratic and cubic effects of Pi infusion dose. Dry matter (DM) intake, apparent DM digestibility, milk yield and milk total P were unaffected by Pi infusion. Ileal flow and fecal excretion of total P and Pi increased linearly with increasing infused Pi. In the large intestine, net absorption of TP and Pi were increased linearly with increasing infused Pi. The magnitude of absorption from the large intestine was greater than reflected in current models and raising questions that could be evaluated with longer infusion periods or dietary alteration

Decision Fusion over Noncoherent Fading Multiaccess Channels

In this paper, we consider a distributed detection scenario where a number of remote sensors is linked to a decision fusion center by a fading multiaccess channel. The communication is assumed to be noncoherent meaning that channel gains are unknown at both sensors and the fusion center. Each sensor makes a binary local decision and communicates it to the fusion center simultaneously. We investigate the detection performance of the system in terms of error probability and error exponent under both Rayleigh and Rician fading scenarios. We reveal that on-off keying is the most energy efficient modulation scheme when the channel is subject to Rayleigh fading and that optimizing the modulation scheme can lead to a gain in error exponent under Rician fading scenario. Under both fading scenarios, optimal decision fusion rules can be reduced to simple threshold tests

Multi-component Decomposition of Cosmic Infrared Background Fluctuations

The near-infrared background between 0.5 and 2 μm contains a wealth of information related to radiative processes in the universe. Infrared background anisotropies encode the redshift-weighted total emission over cosmic history, including any spatially diffuse and extended contributions. The anisotropy power spectrum is dominated by undetected galaxies at small angular scales and a diffuse background of Galactic emission at large angular scales. In addition to these known sources, the infrared background also arises from intrahalo light (IHL) at z < 3 associated with tidally stripped stars during galaxy mergers. Moreover, it contains information on the very first galaxies from the epoch of reionization (EoR). The EoR signal has a spectral energy distribution (SED) that goes to zero near optical wavelengths due to Lyman absorption, while other signals have spectra that vary smoothly with frequency. Due to differences in SEDs and spatial clustering, these components may be separated in a multi-wavelength-fluctuation experiment. To study the extent to which EoR fluctuations can be separated in the presence of IHL, and extragalactic and Galactic foregrounds, we develop a maximum likelihood technique that incorporates a full covariance matrix among all the frequencies at different angular scales. We apply this technique to simulated deep imaging data over a 2 × 45 deg^2 sky area from 0.75 to 5 μm in 9 bands and find that such a "frequency tomography" can successfully reconstruct both the amplitude and spectral shape for representative EoR, IHL, and the foreground signals

Generalized modeling of origami folding joints

Origami robots self-reconfigure from a quasi two-dimensional manufactured state to three-dimensional mobile robots. By folding, they excel in transforming their initial spatial configuration to expand their functionalities. However, unlike paper-based origamis, where the materials can remain homogeneous, origami robots require varying payloads and controllability of their reconfigurations. Therefore, the mechanisms to achieve automated folding adapt flat thin panels and folding hinges that are often of different materials to achieve the folding. While the fundamental working principle of an origami hinge remains simple, these multi-component, multi-material origami joints can no longer be modeled by beam theory without considering the semi-rigid connections at the material interfaces. Currently, there is no comprehensive model to analyze physical behavior of an actuated folding hinge accurately. In this work, we propose a model based on the plate theory to predict the origami folding joint: we adapt a torsional spring to capture this semi-rigid connection, predict the folding stiffness and bending of origami joints. Herein, the semi-rigid connection is calibrated by quasi-static folding tests on a series of physical origami folding joints, and the accuracy of our model is compared to finite element simulations. With this analytical model, we can accurately simulate the mechanics of physical origami folding joints