Caught in the act: Implications for the increasing abundance of mafic enclaves during the eruption of the Soufriere Hills Volcano, Montserrat

An exceptional opportunity to sample several large blocks sourced from the same region of the growing Soufrière Hills lava dome has documented a significant increase in the presence of mafic enclaves in the host andesite during the course of a long-lived eruptive episode with several phases. In 1997 (Phase I) mafic inclusions comprised ~1 volume percent of erupted material; in 2007 (Phase III) deposits their volumetric abundance increased to 5–7 percent. A broader range of geochemically distinctive types occurs amongst the 2007 enclaves. Crystal-poor enclaves generally have the least evolved (basaltic) compositions; porphyritic enclaves represent compositions intermediate between basaltic and andesitic compositions. The absence of porphyritic enclaves prior to Phase III magmatism at Soufrière Hills Volcano suggests that a mixing event occurred during the course of the current eruptive episode, providing direct evidence consistent with geophysical observations that the system is continuously re-invigorated from depth

Perceived addiction to smoking and associations with motivation to stop, quit attempts and quitting success: A prospective study of English smokers

Aims: Some argue that perceived addiction to smoking (PAS) might undermine motivation to stop. We examined the association of PAS with motivation to stop in a population sample and assessed its association with past and future quit attempts and future quit success. Method: 12,700 smokers in England were surveyed between September 2009–March 2012 as part of the Smoking Toolkit Study. 2796 smokers were followed up after 6 months. PAS was assessed at baseline by a single self-report item. The outcome variables were ratings of motivation to stop and reports of past-year quit attempts at baseline, and quit attempts in the past 6 months and smoking status at follow-up. Baseline covariates were sex, age, social grade and daily cigarette consumption. Results: In adjusted analyses, PAS was positively associated with at least some degree of motivation to stop versus no motivation (ORs = 1.97–2.96, all p's < 0.001). PAS was also positively associated with past-year quit attempts (OR = 1.43, 95% CI = 1.32–1.55, p < 0.001), but not with future quit attempts (OR = 1.17, 95% CI = 0.99–1.39, p = 0.064) or quit success (OR = 1.04, 95% CI = 0.73–1.47, p = 0.83). Conclusion: In smokers in England, perceived addiction to smoking is positively associated with motivation to stop and having recently made a quit attempt but is not clearly associated with future quit attempts or success. These findings provide no grounds for believing that increasing smokers' perceived addiction through promotion of stop-smoking support has undermined motivation to stop

Does consistent motivation to stop smoking improve the explanation of recent quit attempts beyond current motivation? A cross-sectional study

AIMS: In seeking to provide more accurate models of population quit attempt rates, this study assessed whether a single self-report measure of consistent motivation to stop smoking adds useful explanatory power over and above an established measure of current motivation to stop. METHOD: Data from 16,657 current smokers in England were collected between October 2012 and June 2017 using cross-sectional household surveys. Smokers were asked whether they had made a serious quit attempt in the past year and they answered two questions on motivation to stop (current motivation and consistent motivation to stop smoking). Having made at least one quit attempt in the past year was regressed in logistic models onto current motivation to stop and consistent motivation to stop individually and then together, with both models adjusting for sociodemographic variables and a measure of nicotine dependence. RESULTS: The addition of consistent motivation to stop smoking added substantially to the fit of the model over and above the established measure of current motivation to quit (χ2(1, N = 16,657) = 901.7, p < 0.001) with an adjusted odds ratio of 4.1 (95% CI = 3.7–4.5, p < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Consistent motivation to stop smoking substantially improves the modelling of recent smoking cessation attempts over and above current motivation to stop. The consistency of smokers' motivation to quit may be a useful explanatory and target variable in future intervention studies

Genome-wide association studies for feedlot and growth traits in cattle

A genome wide-association study for production traits in cattle was carried out using genotype data from the 10K Affymetrix (Santa Clara, CA) and the 50K Illumina (San Diego, CA) SNP chips. The results for residual feed intake (RFI), BW, and hip height in 3 beef breed types (Bos indicus, Bos taurus, and B. indicus × B. taurus), and for stature in dairy cattle, are presented. The aims were to discover SNP associated with all traits studied, but especially RFI, and further to test the consistency of SNP effects across different cattle populations and breed types. The data were analyzed within data sets and within breed types by using a mixed model and fitting 1 SNP at a time. In each case, the number of significant SNP was more than expected by chance alone. A total of 75 SNP from the reference population with 50K chip data were significant (P < 0.001) for RFI, with a false discovery rate of 68%. These 75 SNP were mapped on 24 different BTA. Of the 75 SNP, the 9 most significant SNP were detected on BTA 3, 5, 7, and 8, with P ≤ 6.0 × 10 . In a population of Angus cattle divergently selected for high and low RFI and 10K chip data, 111 SNP were significantly (P < 0.001) associated with RFI, with a false discovery rate of 7%. Approximately 103 of these SNP were therefore likely to represent true positives. Because of the small number of SNP common to both the 10K and 50K SNP chips, only 27 SNP were significantly (P < 0.05) associated with RFI in the 2 populations. However, other chromosome regions were found that contained SNP significantly associated with RFI in both data sets, although no SNP within the region showed a consistent effect on RFI. The SNP effects were consistent between data sets only when estimated within the same breed type

Unusual features in the nonlinear microwave surface impedance of Y-Ba-Cu-O thin films

Striking features have been found in the nonlinear microwave (8 GHz) surface impedance $Z_s=R_s + jX_s$ of high-quality YBaCuO thin films with comparable low power characteristics [$R_{res}\sim 35--60 \mu\Omega$ and $\lambda_L(15 K)\sim 130--260 nm$]. The surface resistance $R_s$ is found to increase, decrease, or remain independent of the microwave field $H_{rf}$ (up to 60 mT) at different temperatures and for different samples. However, the surface reactance $X_s$ always follows the same functional form. Mechanisms which may be responsible for the observed variations in $R_s$ and $X_s$ are briefly discussed.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

The changing of the guard: groupwork with people who have intellectual disabilities

This paper considers the impact of service systems on group activities. It describes an inter-professional groupwork project facilitated by a social worker and a community nurse. The project provided an emancipatory experience for a group of adults who had intellectual disabilities. The group was charged with the task of reviewing and updating the recruitment and interview processes used by a 'Learning Disability Partnership Board', when employing new support workers. The paper begins with a brief history of intellectual disability and provides a context to the underpinning philosophical belief that people should be encouraged and supported to inhabit valued social roles no matter what disability they may have. It then identifies the ways in which the sponsoring health, education and social care services impacted on the creation and development of a groupwork project. It might have been expected that the nature of the intellectual disability would have been the major influence on group process. However the paper reveals that organisational constraints had a significant impact on group functioning. Issues including, staffing budgets and transport contracts impacted on group process and function. The results of the project show how, with adequate support, people with intellectual disability can make important decisions that have long-reaching impacts on the services

Human longevity: 25 genetic loci associated in 389,166 UK biobank participants

This is the final version. Freely available on open access from Impact Journals via the DOI in this recordA public use file of data from the WLS is available from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1180 Observatory Drive, Madison, Wisconsin 53706 and at (http://www.ssc.wisc.edu/wlsresearch/data).We undertook a genome-wide association study (GWAS) of parental longevity in European descent UK Biobank participants. For combined mothers' and fathers' attained age, 10 loci were associated (p<5*10-8), including 8 previously identified for traits including survival, Alzheimer's and cardiovascular disease. Of these, 4 were also associated with longest 10% survival (mothers age ≥90 years, fathers ≥87 years), with 2 additional associations including MC2R intronic variants (coding for the adrenocorticotropic hormone receptor). Mother's age at death was associated with 3 additional loci (2 linked to autoimmune conditions), and 8 for fathers only. An attained age genetic risk score associated with parental survival in the US Health and Retirement Study and the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study and with having a centenarian parent (n=1,181) in UK Biobank. The results suggest that human longevity is highly polygenic with prominent roles for loci likely involved in cellular senescence and inflammation, plus lipid metabolism and cardiovascular conditions. There may also be gender specific routes to longevity.This work was generously funded by an award to DM and LH by the Medical Research Council MR/M023095/1. LF is supported by the Intramural Research Program of the National Institute on Aging, U.S. National Institutes of Health. Input from CK and GK was supported by the University of Connecticut Health Center. The Health and Retirement Study (HRS) is a longitudinal project sponsored by the National Institute on Aging (NIA U01AG009740) and the Social Security Administration. This research uses data from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study (WLS) of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Since 1991, the WLS has been supported principally by the National Institute on Aging (AG09775, AG21079 and AG33285), with additional support from the Vilas Estate Trust, the National Science Foundation, the Spencer Foundation and the Graduate School of the University of Wisconsin-Madison

A universal equation to predict methane production of forage-fed cattle in Australia

The methods for estimating methane emissions from cattle as used in the Australian national inventory are based on older data that have now been superseded by a large amount of more recent data. Recent data suggested that the current inventory emissions estimates can be improved. To address this issue, a total of 1034 individual animal records of daily methane production (MP) was used to reassess the relationship between MP and each of dry matter intake (DMI) and gross energy intake (GEI). Data were restricted to trials conducted in the past 10 years using open-circuit respiration chambers, with cattle fed forage-based diets (forage >70%). Results from diets considered to inhibit methanogenesis were omitted from the dataset. Records were obtained from dairy cattle fed temperate forages (220 records), beef cattle fed temperate forages (680 records) and beef cattle fed tropical forages (133 records). Relationships were very similar for all three production categories and single relationships for MP on a DMI or GEI basis were proposed for national inventory purposes. These relationships were MP (g/day) = 20.7 (±0.28) × DMI (kg/day) (R2 = 0.92, P < 0.001) and MP (MJ/day) = 0.063 (±0.008) × GEI (MJ/day) (R2 = 0.93, P < 0.001). If the revised MP (g/day) approach is used to calculate Australia’s national inventory, it will reduce estimates of emissions of forage-fed cattle by 24%. Assuming a global warming potential of 25 for methane, this represents a 12.6 Mt CO2-e reduction in calculated annual emissions from Australian cattle