Public Confidence in Government: Trust and Responsiveness

http://www.truman.missouri.edu/ipp/publications/index.asp?ViewBy=DateTo examine public confidence in government, researchers at the Harry S Truman School of Public Affairs at the University of Missouri have recently completed a national survey of 1,000 adults on these issues. The survey asked respondents about their general trust in government, their trust in local, state, and federal governments specifically, and their feelings on different levels of government's responsiveness to public opinion. The survey was administered as part of the 2007 Cooperative Congressional Election Study (CCES), a 10,000 person survey conducted through the collaborative efforts of a consortium of universities. The 2007 CCES was administered in November 2007 by Polimetrix, an internet survey firm located in Palo Alto, California.Includes bibliographical reference

Environmental Justice and Government Behavior: A Summary of New Findings

For nearly two decades, environmental justice advocates have charged that low-income and minority groups suffer a disproportionate burden from environmental risks associated with exposure to air, water, and land pollution as well as proximity to hazardous waste and other pollution generating facilities. Claims of these inequities have been amplified by a growing social movement that began with widely publicized protests in Warren County, North Carolina, where a predominantly black community mobilized in large numbers to fight the siting of a PCB landfill. Since that time, grassroots organizations have sustained and brought national attention to the environmental justice movement, which is often characterized as a new kind of social campaign embodied by the convergence of civil rights and environmental activism. Government at all levels have taken notice of environmental justice concerns, and responded with a variety of initiatives to these inequities (real and perceived). This policy report briefly summarizes new research that examines an understudied dimension of the environmental justice argument: that government behavior contributes to the alleged inequities.Includes bibliographical reference

Noninvasive monitoring of plant-based formulations on skin barrier properties in infants with dry skin and risk for atopic dermatitis

Background: Dry skin and the associated impaired epidermal barrier function are postulated to constitute a major element in the development of atopic dermatitis. Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of two plant-based formulations on the epidermal barrier function in a defined cohort of infants with a predisposition for atopic dermatitis. Methods: Over a period of 16 weeks, 25 infants who were ages 3 to 12 months and had an atopic predisposition and dry skin received two emollients that contained pressed juice of the ice plant. The infants received both cream and lotion on the forearm, only cream on the face, and only lotion on the leg. Stratum corneum hydration (SCH), transepidermal water loss (TEWL), skin surface pH, and sebum were assessed on the infants’ forehead, leg, and forearm. The Scoring Atopic Dermatitis (SCORAD) index was used for the clinical assessment. Results: SCH significantly increased in all body regions that were assessed. The forearm and leg revealed stable levels of pH and TEWL, but a decline in pH (week 16) and TEWL (week 4) was noted on the forehead. At week 16, sebum levels were lower on the forehead compared with those at baseline. SCORAD scores improved significantly during the study. Conclusion: A daily application of both emollients was associated with increased SCH levels and a stable course of TEWL, pH, and sebum on the forehead except for the forehead when compared with the forearm and leg. Clinically, improved SCORAD scores were noted