Nitrogen Incorporation in CH_4-N_2 Photochemical Aerosol Produced by Far Ultraviolet Irradiation

Nitrile incorporation into Titan aerosol accompanying hydrocarbon chemistry is thought to be driven by extreme UV wavelengths (λ120 nm is presently unaccounted for in atmospheric photochemical models. We suggest that reaction with CH radicals produced from CH_4 photolysis may provide a mechanism for incorporating N into the molecular structure of the aerosol. Further work is needed to understand the chemistry involved, as these processes may have significant implications for how we view prebiotic chemistry on early Earth and similar planets. Key Words: Titan—Photochemical aerosol—CH_4-N_2 photolysis—Far UV—Nitrogen activation

Music, Math, and Working Memory: Magnetoencephalography Mapping of Brain Activation in Musicians

Musical transposing is highly demanding of working memory, as it involves mentally converting notes from one musical key (i.e., pitch scale) to another key for singing or instrumental performance. Because musical transposing involves mental adjustment of notes up or down by a specific amount, it may share cognitive elements with arithmetical operations of addition and subtraction. We compared brain activity during high and low working memory load conditions of musical transposing versus math calculations in classically trained musicians. Magnetoencephalography (MEG) was sensitive to differences of task and working memory load. Frontal-occipital connections were highly active during transposing, but not during math calculations. Right motor and premotor regions were highly active in the more difficult condition of the transposing task. Multiple frontal lobe regions were highly active across tasks, including the left medial frontal area during both transposing and calculation tasks but the right medial frontal area only during calculations. In the more difficult calculation condition, right temporal regions were highly active. In coherence analyses and neural synchrony analyses, several similarities were seen across calculation tasks; however, latency analyses were sensitive to differences in task complexity across the calculation tasks due to the high temporal resolution of MEG. MEG can be used to examine musical cognition and the neural consequences of music training. Further systematic study of brain activity during high versus low memory load conditions of music and other cognitive tasks is needed to illuminate the neural bases of enhanced working memory ability in musicians as compared to non-musicians

Nitrogen Incorporation in CH4-N2 Photochemical Aerosol Produced by Far UV Irradiation

Nitrile incorporation into Titan aerosol accompanying hydrocarbon chemistry is thought to be driven by extreme UV wavelengths (lambda 120 nm is presently unaccounted for in atmospheric photochemical models. We suggest that reaction with CH radicals produced from CH4 photolysis may provide a mechanism for incorporating N into the molecular structure of the aerosol. Further work is needed to understand the chemistry involved, as these processes may have significant implications for prebiotic chemistry on the early Earth and similar planets

Trichome Lengths of the Heterocystous N\u3csub\u3e2\u3c/sub\u3e-Fixing Cyanobacteria in the Tropical Marginal Seas of the Western North Pacific

Calothrix rhizosoleniae and Richelia intracellularis are heterocystous cyanobacteria found in the tropical oceans. C. rhizosoleniae commonly live epiphytically on diatom genera Chaetoceros (C-C) and Bacteriastrum (B-C) while R. intracellularis live endosymbiotically within Rhizosolenia (R-R), Guinardia (G-R), and Hemiaulus (H-R); although, they occasionally live freely (FL-C and FL-R). Both species have much shorter trichomes than the other marine filamentous cyanobacteria such as Trichodesmium spp. and Anabaena gerdii. We investigated the trichome lengths of C. rhizosoleniae and R. intracellularis in the South China Sea (SCS) and the Philippine Sea (PS) between 2006 and 2014. On average, H-R had the shortest trichome lengths (3.5 cells/trichome), followed by B-C and C-C (4.9–5.2 cells/trichome) and FL-C (5.9 cells/trichome), and R-R, G-R, and FL-R had the longest trichome lengths (7.4–8.3 cells/trichome). Field results showed the trichome lengths of C-C and B-C did not vary seasonally or regionally. However, FL-C and H-R from the SCS and during the cool season had longer trichomes, where/when the ambient nutrient concentrations were higher. R-R, G-R, and FL-R also showed regional and seasonal variations in trichome length. Ultrastructural analysis found no gas vesicles within the C. rhizosoleniae cells to assist in buoyancy regulation. Results suggest that the trichome lengths of C. rhizosoleniae and R. intracellularis might be regulated by their diatom hosts’ symbiotic styles and by ambient nutrients. Short trichome length might help C. rhizosoleniae and R. intracellularis to stay in the euphotic zone regardless as to whether they are free-living or symbiotic

An open label pilot trial of low‐dose lithium for young people at ultra‐high risk for psychosis

Aim: Lithium, even at low doses, appears to offer neuroprotection against a wide variety of insults. In this controlled pilot, we examined the safety (i.e., side‐effect profile) of lithium in a sample of young people identified at ultra‐high risk (UHR) for psychosis. The secondary aim was to explore whether lithium provided a signal of clinical efficacy in reducing transition to psychosis compared with treatment as usual (TAU). Methods: Young people attending the PACE clinic at Orygen, Melbourne, were prescribed a fixed dose (450 mg) of lithium (n = 25) or received TAU (n = 78). The primary outcome examined side‐effects, with transition to psychosis, functioning and measures of psychopathology assessed as secondary outcomes. Results: Participants in both groups were functionally compromised (lithium group GAF = 56.6; monitoring group GAF = 56.9). Side‐effect assessment indicated that lithium was well‐tolerated. 64% (n = 16) of participants in the lithium group were lithium‐adherent to week 12. Few cases transitioned to psychosis across the study period; lithium group 4% (n = 1); monitoring group 7.7% (n = 6). There was no difference in time to transition to psychosis between the groups. No group differences were observed in other functioning and symptom domains, although all outcomes improved over time. Conclusions: With a side‐effect profile either comparable to, or better than UHR antipsychotic trials, lithium might be explored for further research with UHR young people. A definitive larger trial is needed to determine the efficacy of lithium in this cohort

Incarceration history and risk of HIV and hepatitis C virus acquisition among people who inject drugs: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background People who inject drugs (PWID) experience a high prevalence of incarceration and might be at high risk of HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection during or after incarceration. We aimed to assess whether incarceration history elevates HIV or HCV acquisition risk among PWID. Methods In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, and PsycINFO databases for studies in any language published from Jan 1, 2000 until June 13, 2017 assessing HIV or HCV incidence among PWID. We included studies that measured HIV or HCV incidence among community-recruited PWID. We included only studies reporting original results and excluded studies that evaluated incident infections by self-report. We contacted authors of cohort studies that met the inclusion or exclusion criteria, but that did not report on the outcomes of interest, to request data. We extracted and pooled data from the included studies using random-effects meta-analyses to quantify the associations between recent (past 3, 6, or 12 months or since last follow-up) or past incarceration and HIV or HCV acquisition (primary infection or reinfection) risk among PWID. We assessed the risk of bias of included studies using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale. Between-study heterogeneity was evaluated using the I2 statistic and the P-value for heterogeneity. Findings We included published results from 20 studies and unpublished results from 21 studies. These studies originated from Australasia, western and eastern Europe, North and Latin America, and east and southeast Asia. Recent incarceration was associated with an 81% (relative risk [RR] 1·81, 95% CI 1·40–2·34) increase in HIV acquisition risk, with moderate heterogeneity between studies (I2=63·5%; p=0·001), and a 62% (RR 1·62, 95% CI 1·28–2·05) increase in HCV acquisition risk, also with moderate heterogeneity between studies (I2=57·3%; p=0·002). Past incarceration was associated with a 25% increase in HIV (RR 1·25, 95% CI 0·94–1·65) and a 21% increase in HCV (1·21, 1·02–1·43) acquisition risk. Interpretation Incarceration is associated with substantial short-term increases in HIV and HCV acquisition risk among PWID and could be a significant driver of HCV and HIV transmission among PWID. These findings support the need for developing novel interventions to minimise the risk of HCV and HIV acquisition, including addressing structural risks associated with drug laws and excessive incarceration of PWID

International Child Development Accounts

This Working Paper has been submitted for inclusion in the new online edition of theEncyclopedia of Social Work, which is published by Oxford University Press. The paper discusses efforts to implement Child Development Accounts in the United States and numerous other countries. Child Development Accounts (CDAs) are subsidized savings or investment accounts to help people accumulate assets for developmental purposes and life course needs. They are envisioned as universal (everyone participates), progressive (greater subsidies for the poor), and potentially lifelong national policy. These features distinguish CDAs from most existing asset-building policies and programs around the world, which are typically regressive, giving greater benefits to the well-off. With policy innovation in recent years, several countries now have national CDA policies, and four states in the United States have statewide programs. Some of these are designed to be universal and progressive. Evidence indicates that true universality can be achieved, but only with automatic account opening and automatic deposits. In the absence of automatic features, advantaged families participate and benefit more. Today, momentum for universal and automatic features is gradually gaining traction and accelerating. At this stage in the emergence of inclusive asset-based policy, this is the most important development