Carboxyhaemoglobin concentration, smoking habit, and mortality in 25 years in the Renfrew/Paisley prospective cohort study

Objective: To investigate how carboxyhaemoglobin concentration is related to smoking habit and to assess whether carboxyhaemoglobin concentration is related to mortality. Design: Prospective cohort study. Setting: Residents of the towns of Renfrew and Paisley in Scotland. Participants: The whole Renfrew/Paisley study, conducted between 1972 and 1976, consisted of 7048 men and 8354 women aged 45–64 years. This study was based on 3372 men and 4192 women who were screened after the measurement of carboxyhaemoglobin concentration was introduced about halfway through the study. Main outcome measures: Deaths from coronary heart disease (CHD), stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), lung cancer, and all causes in 25 years after screening. Results: Carboxyhaemoglobin concentration was related to self reported smoking and for each smoking category was higher in participants who reported inhaling than in those who reported not inhaling. Carboxyhaemoglobin concentration was positively related to all causes of mortality analysed (relative rates associated with a 1 SD (2.93) increase in carboxyhaemoglobin for all causes, CHD, stroke, COPD, and lung cancer were 1.26 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.19 to 1.34), 1.19 (95% CI 1.13 to 1.26), 1.19 (95% CI 1.13 to 1.26), 1.64 (95% CI 1.47 to 1.84), and 1.69 (95% CI 1.60 to 1.79), respectively). Adjustment for self reported cigarette smoking attenuated the associations but they remained relatively strong. Conclusions: Self reported smoking data were validated by the objective measure of carboxyhaemoglobin concentration. Since carboxyhaemoglobin concentration remained associated with mortality after adjustment for smoking, carboxyhaemoglobin seems to capture more of the risk associated with smoking tobacco than does self reported tobacco consumption alone. Analysing mortality by self reported cigarette smoking underestimates the strength of association between smoking and mortality

The semantic effects of verb raising and its consequences in second language grammars

This article considers whether highly proficient second language speakers of English can distinguish meaning contrasts associated with constructions where there is a raising be, and constructions where there is a non-raising thematic verb, as illustrated in the difference between (1a) and (1b): 1a. Kim is reading a novel (`event-in-progress/existential ? interpretation

Resources for Supporting Mathematics and Data Science Instructors During COVID-19

In late May of 2020, a few months after the raging COVID-19 pandemic forced university faculty to quickly switch to online teaching, the Associated Colleges of the South (ACS) released a call for grant applications to support working groups to help faculty within our consortium who will be teaching during the pandemic (e.g., from hybrid courses with some remote/online components to fully remote/online courses; socially distanced face-to-face courses). We replied to this call and the ACS awarded the six of us (from four ACS schools) a Summer Rapid Response Grant in early June. The grant funded our efforts to create and provide to other faculty Mathematics and Data Science Resources to Support Socially Relevant Teaching in the Time of COVID-19. This paper summarizes our efforts and includes the resources that we developed

Extended performance solar electric propulsion thrust system study. Volume 4: Thruster technology evaluation

Several thrust system design concepts were evaluated and compared using the specifications of the most advanced 30 cm engineering model thruster as the technology base. Emphasis was placed on relatively high power missions (60 to 100 kW) such as a Halley's comet rendezvous. The extensions in thruster performance required for the Halley's comet mission were defined and alternative thrust system concepts were designed in sufficient detail for comparing mass, efficiency, reliability, structure, and thermal characteristics. Confirmation testing and analysis of thruster and power processing components were performed, and the feasibility of satisfying extended performance requirements was verified. A baseline design was selected from the alternatives considered, and the design analysis and documentation were refined. The baseline thrust system design features modular construction, conventional power processing, and a concentrator solar array concept and is designed to interface with the Space Shuttle

The spin-half Heisenberg antiferromagnet on two Archimedian lattices: From the bounce lattice to the maple-leaf lattice and beyond

We investigate the ground state of the two-dimensional Heisenberg antiferromagnet on two Archimedean lattices, namely, the maple-leaf and bounce lattices as well as a generalized $J$-$J'$ model interpolating between both systems by varying $J'/J$ from $J'/J=0$ (bounce limit) to $J'/J=1$ (maple-leaf limit) and beyond. We use the coupled cluster method to high orders of approximation and also exact diagonalization of finite-sized lattices to discuss the ground-state magnetic long-range order based on data for the ground-state energy, the magnetic order parameter, the spin-spin correlation functions as well as the pitch angle between neighboring spins. Our results indicate that the "pure" bounce ($J'/J=0$) and maple-leaf ($J'/J=1$) Heisenberg antiferromagnets are magnetically ordered, however, with a sublattice magnetization drastically reduced by frustration and quantum fluctuations. We found that magnetic long-range order is present in a wide parameter range $0 \le J'/J \lesssim J'_c/J$ and that the magnetic order parameter varies only weakly with $J'/J$. At $J'_c \approx 1.45 J$ a direct first-order transition to a quantum orthogonal-dimer singlet ground state without magnetic long-range order takes place. The orthogonal-dimer state is the exact ground state in this large-$J'$ regime, and so our model has similarities to the Shastry-Sutherland model. Finally, we use the exact diagonalization to investigate the magnetization curve. We a find a 1/3 magnetization plateau for $J'/J \gtrsim 1.07$ and another one at 2/3 of saturation emerging only at large $J'/J \gtrsim 3$.Comment: 9 pages, 10 figure

The charges for ESRD treatment of diabetics

To evaluate the differential charges for treating end-stage renal disease (ESRD) associated with diabetes mellitus, Medicare billing data are analyzed. The charges of 244 patients in the Michigan Kidney Registry identified as having (ESRD) from diabetes are compared with charges of 902 nondiabetic patients. Average annual charges for ESRD treatment for diabetics are $29,671 (+/-27,662) which are$4695 (+/-1344) higher than charges for nondiabetics. The majority of the difference (84.3%) is attributable to higher inpatient hospital charges. Most of the remainder (14.5%) is attributable to higher physician and medical supply charges. Charges for treatment of diabetics are higher on all modalities of treatment, but differences are not significant among modalities.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/28133/1/0000584.pd

Modal Ω-Logic: Automata, Neo-Logicism, and Set-Theoretic Realism

This essay examines the philosophical significance of $\Omega$-logic in Zermelo-Fraenkel set theory with choice (ZFC). The duality between coalgebra and algebra permits Boolean-valued algebraic models of ZFC to be interpreted as coalgebras. The modal profile of $\Omega$-logical validity can then be countenanced within a coalgebraic logic, and $\Omega$-logical validity can be defined via deterministic automata. I argue that the philosophical significance of the foregoing is two-fold. First, because the epistemic and modal profiles of $\Omega$-logical validity correspond to those of second-order logical consequence, $\Omega$-logical validity is genuinely logical, and thus vindicates a neo-logicist conception of mathematical truth in the set-theoretic multiverse. Second, the foregoing provides a modal-computational account of the interpretation of mathematical vocabulary, adducing in favor of a realist conception of the cumulative hierarchy of sets

The natural history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the USA, and it remains one of the few diseases that continues to increase its numbers. The development and progression of COPD can vary dramatically between individuals. A low level of lung function remains the cornerstone of COPD diagnosis and is a key predictor of prognosis. Lung function, however, is not the only factor in determining morbidity and mortality related to COPD, with factors such as body mass index, exercise capability and comorbid disease being important predictors of poor outcomes. Exacerbations of COPD are additional important indicators of both quality of life and outcomes in COPD patients. Definitions of exacerbations can vary, ranging from an increase in symptoms to COPD-related hospitalisations and death. COPD exacerbations are more common in patients with lower levels of lung function and may lead to more rapid declines in lung function. Better understanding of the natural history of COPD may lead to better definitions of specific COPD phenotypes, better interventions and improved outcomes

Health-related Quality of Life among hospitalized older people awaiting residential aged care

BACKGROUND: Health related quality of life (HRQoL) in very late life is not well understood. The aim of the present study was to assess HRQoL and health outcomes at four months follow-up in a group of older people awaiting transfer to residential aged care. METHODS: Secondary analysis of data from a randomized controlled trial conducted in three public hospitals in Adelaide. A total of 320 patients in hospital beds awaiting a residential aged care bed participated. Outcome measurements included HRQoL (Assessment of Quality of Life; AQoL), functional level (Modified Barthel Index), hospital readmission rates, survival, and place of residence at four months follow-up. RESULTS: In this frail group the median AQoL was poor at baseline (median 0.02; 95%CI -0.01 - 0.04) and at follow-up (0.05; 95%CI 0.03 - 0.06). On leaving hospital, more than one third of participants who were moving for the first time into nursing home care rated themselves in a state worse than death (AQoL < or = 0.0). Poor HRQoL at discharge from hospital (AQoL < or = 0.0) was a significant predictor of mortality (HR 1.7; 95%CI 1.2 - 2.7), but not hospital readmission nor place of residence at four months follow-up. Improved function was a predictor of improved HRQoL among the surviving cohort. CONCLUSION: People making the transition to residential aged care from hospital have very poor HRQoL, but small gains in function seem to be related to improvement. While functional gains are unlikely to change discharge destination in this frail group, they can contribute to improvements in HRQoL. These gains may be of great significance for individuals nearing the end of life and should be taken into account in resource allocation.Lynne C. Giles, Graeme Hawthorne and Maria Crott

Relation between coronary risk and coronary mortality in women of the Renfrew and Paisley survey: comparison with men

Most epidemiological and intervention studies in patients with coronary artery disease have focused on men, the assumption being that such data can be extrapolated to women. However, there is little evidence to support this belief. We have completed a fifteen-year follow-up of 15 399 adults, including 8262 women, who lived in Renfrew and Paisley and were aged 45-64 years when screened between 1972 and 1976. We identified 490 deaths from coronary heart disease (CHD) in women and 878 in men. Women were more likely to have high cholesterol, to be obese, and to come from lower social classes than men, but they smoked less and had similar blood pressures. The relative risk--top to bottom quintile (95% Cl)--of cholesterol for coronary death after adjustment for all other risk markers was slightly greater in women (1[middle dot]77 [1[middle dot]45, 2[middle dot]16]) than in men (1[middle dot]56 [1[middle dot]32, 1[middle dot]85]), but absolute and attributable risk were lower. Thus, women in the top quintile for cholesterol had lower coronary mortality (6[middle dot]1 deaths per thousand patient years) than men in the bottom quintile (6[middle dot]8 deaths per thousand patient years). Moreover, it was estimated that there would have been only 103 (21 %) fewer CH D deaths in women, yet 211 (24%) fewer in men, if mortality had been the same for women and men in the lowest quintiles of cholesterol. Trends showing similar relative risks in these women, but lower absolute and attributable risks than in men, were present for smoking, diastolic blood pressure, and social class. There was no relation between obesity and coronary death after adjustment for other risks. Our results suggest that some other factors protect women against CHD. The potential for women to reduce their risk of CH D by changes in lifestyle may be less than for men.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/30146/1/0000523.pd