Local Labor Market Conditions and the Jobless Poor: How Much Does Local Job Growth Help in Rural Areas?

The employment outcomes of a group of jobless poor Oregonians are tracked in order to analyze the relative importance of local labor market conditions on their employment outcomes. Local job growth increases the probability that a jobless poor adult will get a job and shortens the length of time until she finds a job. After accounting for both the effects of personal demographic characteristics and local job growth, there is little evidence that the probability of employment or the duration of joblessness differs in rural compared with urban areas.employment, local labor markets, rural labor markets, rural poverty, unemployment, welfare reform, Labor and Human Capital,

EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES FOR LOW-INCOME ADULTS IN RURAL AND URBAN LABOR MARKETS

This study analyzes the impact of local labor market conditions on the probability of employment and duration of employment for low-income adults in Oregon. We find that economic conditions (lower employment growth and higher unemployment rates) help to explain the less successful employment outcomes for low-income adults in non-metro areas.rural labor markets, employment, low-income workers, Labor and Human Capital,

Prevalence and Patterns of Sugar-Sweetened Beverage Consumption in Canadian Youth: A Northern Focus

Regular consumption of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) is a well-known risk factor for weight gain, tooth decay, and metabolic syndrome. Rates of SSB consumption in Nunavut specifically, have been noted to be exceptionally high. This study describes consumption rates of specific foods and beverages, with a focus on SSBs, among adolescents in Nunavut, northern Canada as a whole, and the Canadian provinces, using data from the 2010 and 2014 cycles of the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study to investigate population characteristics and consumption patterns. Comparative analyses of consumption patterns for Nunavut, the three territories combined, and the southern provinces found that in 2010, those who consumed SSBs once a day or more comprised 53.1% of adolescents in Nunavut, 31.1% in the northern territories and 24% in the provinces. Comparable figures for 2014 were 55.0% in Nunavut, but only 27.0% in all the territories, and 19.1% in the provinces. The percentage of adolescents who consumed fruit and vegetables daily was also lower in Nunavut than in the provinces (65.5% vs. 85.3% in 2010, and 57.5% vs. 84.4% in 2014). More Nunavut adolescents consumed sweets and potato chips daily than provincial adolescents (42.6% vs. 27.6% in 2010, and 52.2% vs. 25.2% in 2014). A greater proportion of Nunavut adolescents reported high consumption of SSBs, as well as other energy-dense foods, when compared to adolescents in the three territories combined and in the provinces. These results confirm previous studies but provide a current and comprehensive analysis that can help inform future food and nutrition priorities and programing. La consommation régulière de boissons édulcorées est un facteur de risque bien connu pour le gain de poids, les caries et le syndrome métabolique. Au Nunavut plus particulièrement, la consommation de boissons édulcorées est exceptionnellement élevée. Cette étude décrit les taux de consommation d’aliments et de boissons spécifiques et met l’accent sur les boissons édulcorées chez les adolescents du Nunavut, du Nord canadien dans son ensemble, et des provinces canadiennes en s’appuyant sur les données des cycles de 2010 et de 2014 de l’enquête « Les comportements de santé des jeunes d’âge scolaire » (l’Enquête HBSC), enquête qui a pour but d’étudier les caractéristiques de la population et les habitudes de consommation. Les analyses comparatives des habitudes de consommation du Nunavut, des trois territoires dans leur ensemble et des provinces du sud du pays ont permis de remarquer qu’en 2010, 53,1 % des adolescents du Nunavut consommaient des boissons édulcorées une fois par jour ou plus, 31,1 % dans les territoires du Nord et 24 % dans les provinces. Pour 2014, les données comparables étaient de 55,0 % au Nunavut, mais de seulement 27,0 % dans l’ensemble des territoires et de 19,1 % dans les provinces. Le pourcentage d’adolescents qui consommait des fruits et des légumes au quotidien était moins élevé au Nunavut que dans les provinces (65,5 % par opposition à 85,3 % en 2010, et 57,5 % par opposition à 84,4 % en 2014). Au Nunavut, un plus grand nombre d’adolescents consommait des sucreries et des croustilles au quotidien par rapport aux adolescents des provinces (42,6 % par opposition à 27,6 % en 2010, et 52,2 % par opposition à 25,2 % en 2014). Une plus grande proportion d’adolescents du Nunavut a signalé une grande consommation de boissons édulcorées et d’autres aliments à forte teneur en énergie comparativement aux adolescents des trois territoires dans leur ensemble et aux adolescents des provinces. Ces résultats confirment les résultats d’études antérieures, en plus de présenter une analyse actuelle et exhaustive dont on peut se servir pour jeter de la lumière sur les priorités et la programmation futures en matière d’alimentation et de nutrition

Big Maggots Dig Deeper: Size-Dependent Larval Dispersal in Flies

The ability of individual animals to select habitats optimal for development and survival can be constrained by the costs of moving through the environment. Animals that seek overwintering sites underground, for example, may be constrained by the energy required to burrow into the soil. We conducted field and laboratory studies to determine the relationship between individual size and overwintering site selection in the tephritid flies, Rhagoletis juglandis and Rhagoletis suavis. We also explored the effect of site selection on pupal mortality, parasitism, and the ability to emerge from overwintering sites after eclosion. In both species, and in both lab and field tests, larger pupae were found at deeper soil depths. In addition, marginally non-significant trends indicated pupae in deeper sites were 48 % more likely to survive the overwintering period. Finally, larger individuals were more likely to eclose and emerge from the soil at a given depth, but flies in deep overwintering sites were less likely to emerge from those sites than flies in shallow sites. Our data indicate that overwintering site selection represents a trade-off between avoiding predators and parasites that occur at shallow sites, and the energetic and mortality costs of burrowing to, overwintering in, and emerging from, deeper sites. The size-dependent overwintering site selection demonstrated here has implications for population dynamics and pest control strategies. Some fly control measures, such as the introduction of parasites or predators, will be mitigated when the deepest and least accessible overwintering pupae represent a disproportionately large amount of the population\u27s reproductive capacity

Patterns of Fetal Heart Rate Response at ∼30 Weeks Gestation Predict Size at Birth

There is evidence that fetal exposure to maternal stress is associated with adverse birth outcomes. Less is known about the association between fetal responses to a stressor and indicators of fetal maturity and developmental outcomes. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether fetal heart rate (FHR) patterns in response to a startling stimulus at ∼30 weeks of gestation were associated with gestational age at birth and birth weight. FHR was measured in 156 maternal–fetal dyads following a vibroacoustic stimulus. All pregnancies were singleton intrauterine pregnancies in English-speaking women who were primarily married, middle class, White and at least 18 years of age. Group-based trajectory modeling identified five groups of fetuses displaying distinctive longitudinal trajectories of FHR response to the startling stimulus. The FHR group trajectories were significantly associated with birth weight percentile (P \u3c 0.01) even after controlling for estimated fetal weight at the time of assessment and parity, which are the known factors influencing birth weight (P \u3c 0.01). Post hoc analyses indicated that two groups accounted for the association between FHR patterns and birth weight. The group (n = 23) with the lowest birth weight exhibited an immediate FHR deceleration followed by an immediate acceleration that does not recover. An FHR pattern characterized by immediate and fast acceleration to the peak and a slow discovery to baseline was associated with the highest birth weight. This is the first direct evidence showing that low birth weight and the resulting neurological consequences may have their origins in early fetal development

A revised Cepheid distance to NGC 4258 and a test of the distance scale

In a previous paper (Maoz et al. 1999), we reported a Hubble Space Telescope (HST) Cepheid distance to the galaxy NGC 4258 obtained using the calibrations and methods then standard for the Key Project on the Extragalactic Distance Scale. Here, we reevaluate the Cepheid distance using the revised Key Project procedures described in Freedman et al. (2001). These revisions alter the zero points and slopes of the Cepheid Period-Luminosity (P-L) relations derived at the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), the calibration of the HST WFPC2 camera, and the treatment of metallicity differences. We also provide herein full information on the Cepheids described in Maoz et al. 1999. Using the refined Key Project techniques and calibrations, we determine the distance modulus of NGC 4258 to be 29.47 +/- 0.09 mag (unique to this determination) +/- 0.15 mag (systematic uncertainties in Key Project distances), corresponding to a metric distance of 7.8 +/- 0.3 +/- 0.5 Mpc and 1.2 sigma from the maser distance of 7.2 +/- 0.5 Mpc. We also test the alternative Cepheid P-L relations of Feast (1999), which yield more discrepant results. Additionally, we place weak limits upon the distance to the LMC and upon the effect of metallicity in Cepheid distance determinations.Comment: 26 pages in emulateapj5 format, including 6 figures and 5 tables. Accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journa

A Composite Seyfert 2 X-ray Spectrum: Implications for the Origin of the Cosmic X-ray Background

We present a composite 1-10 keV Seyfert 2 X-ray spectrum, derived from ASCA observations of a distance-limited sample of nearby galaxies. All 29 observed objects were detected. Above ~3 keV, the composite spectrum is inverted, confirming that Seyfert 2 galaxies as a class have the spectral properties necessary to explain the flat shape of the cosmic X-ray background spectrum. Integrating the composite spectrum over redshift, we find that the total emission from Seyfert 2 galaxies, combined with the expected contribution from unabsorbed type 1 objects, provides an excellent match to the spectrum and intensity of the hard X-ray background. The principal uncertainty in this procedure is the cosmic evolution of the Seyfert 2 X-ray luminosity function. Separate composite spectra for objects in our sample with and without polarized broad optical emission lines are also presented.Comment: 11 pages (AASTeX), including 3 figures. Accepted for publication in ApJ Letter

Microbial-Induced Heterogeneity in the Acoustic Properties of Porous Media

It is not known how biofilms affect seismic wave propagation in porous media. Such knowledge is critical for assessing the utility of seismic techniques for imaging biofilm development and their effects in field settings. Acoustic wave data were acquired over a two-dimensional region of a microbial-stimulated sand column and an unstimulated sand column. The acoustic signals from the unstimulated column were relatively uniform over the 2D scan region. The data from the microbial-stimulated column exhibited a high degree of spatial heterogeneity in the acoustic wave amplitude, with some regions exhibiting significant increases in attenuation while others exhibited decreases. Environmental scanning electron microscopy showed differences in the structure of the biofilm between regions of increased and decreased acoustic wave amplitude. We conclude from these observations that variations in microbial growth and biofilm structure cause heterogeneity in the elastic properties of porous media with implications for the validation of bioclogging models

Substance use and sociodemographic correlates among adolescents in a low-income sub Saharan setting

Background: The present study investigated the social and behavioral correlates of substance use, specifically bang or cocaine or similar drugs among a school-based sample of adolescents in a low-income urban settingMethods: The study utilized data on 2,176 school-attending adolescents aged 11-16 years in Dar es Salaam (DES) to examine social and behavioral correlates for lifetime substance use. The correlates under investigation included, demographic - age and gender; social - poverty, parent-adolescent relationship; behavioral – truancy, aggressive behavior, injury risk; psychological - depression and suicide ideation. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were then carried out on several variables identified from the 2006 Tanzanian Global School-based Health Survey (GSHS) questionnaire.Results: Approximately seven percent of school-attending adolescents (n=144) reported having used an illicit substance at least once during their lifetime. After adding significantly associated covariates into a logistic regression model, we found that only truancy [OR= 2.29 (CI=1.07 – 4.90)], suicide ideation [OR=4.36 (2.32 – 8.19)] and parents who had checked their adolescents' homework (OR=0.56 (CI=0.32 – 1.00)] were significantly associated with reported substance use.Conclusions: Our results suggest that health promotion programs should simultaneously target multiple factors associated with substance use behaviors among school-attending adolescents in Dar es Salaam. They should take into account the range of psychosocial characteristics of school-attending adolescents which may be impacted by or result from substance use.</p

Coade, Blashfield or Doulton? The in situ identification of ceramic garden statuary and ornament from three eighteenth and nineteenth century manufacturers

In the eighteenth century, the emergence of a neo-classical style in architecture created a growing demand for a range of classically-inspired products - not only for architectural decoration but also for ornamentation of the garden. Producing individual items in stone, however, was time-consuming and expensive, so cheaper clay-based alternatives were adopted, most notably from manufacturers such as Coade (1769-1830), Blashfield (1840s-1875) and Doulton (1854-1890s). The artefacts of these manufacturers are now considered of high historic value and significance and their identification is important, not only for the historical record, but also for provision of the evidence necessary to carry out informed conservation. As the sale and copy of moulds was common practice during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, stylistic considerations do not provide reliable identification. Through the analysis of 24 historic objects of garden statuary and ornamentation, this research evaluates the use of portable X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (pXRF), and more specifically element profiles, in identifying, and differentiating between the products of Coade, Blashfield and Doulton. Key questions around heterogeneity and representative material analysis are addressed. Despite the inherent heterogeneity of these materials, it is shown that discrimination is nevertheless possible using pXRF, primarily due to the significant differences observed across a range of elements at both macro- and trace-level. Objects of known provenance from Coade, Blashfield and Doulton produced three distinct and statistically significant groups demonstrating that the data reflect the composition of the bulk material – rather than surface characteristics. Through identifying the main discriminators for the Coade, Blashfield and Doulton materials, a simple presumptive test is proposed that can be used in an initial evaluation of any unsigned works. Analysis of a selection of unsigned objects with a probable Coade, Blashfield or Doulton provenance was in many cases successful in confirming the documentary evidence. A few objects, however, presented anomalous element profiles. These most likely result from past conservation treatments or polychromy - the two major limitations of the technique