“A National Calamity”: Locust Eradication Efforts in Argentina, ca. 1890-1920

A fines del siglo XIX, el gobierno nacional de Argentina inició un programa de combatir las invasiones de langosta que habían afligido el país y amenazado su riqueza agrícola. Este programa alzó cuestiones importantes sobre la autoridad del estado nacional y la de las provincias. La oposición en el congreso caracterizó el proyecto como una intrusión inconstitucional al poder y la autoridad de las provincias. Sin embargo, con la legislación de 1897 se creó una red de comisiones dedicados a la extinción de la langosta. Esta legislación y el programa que inició revelaron un intento por parte del gobierno nacional no sólo de proteger la prosperidad económica de la nación, sino de inculcar en los agricultores de las provincias y territorios un sentimiento de identidad nacional. La búsqueda por una “zona permanente” o “zona invernada” en el norte del país, donde se suponía que las langostas vivieran durante el invierno, también representó una oportunidad de integrar el recién conquistado Chaco Austral a la nación.At the end of the nineteenth century, the national government of Argentina began a program to combat the locust invasions that afflicted the country and threatened its agricultural wealth. This program raised important questions about the authority of the national state and that of the provinces. The congressional opposition characterized the project as an unconstitutional intrusion on the authority of the provinces. Nevertheless, the legislation of 1897 created a national network of commissions dedicated to the extinction of locusts. This legislation and the program that it began revealed an attempt by the national government not just to safeguard the nation’s economic prosperity, but to inculcate in the farmers of the provinces and territories a feeling of national identity. The search for a “permanent zone” or “wintering zone” in the north of the country, where locusts supposedly lived during the winter, also represented an opportunity to integrate the recently conquered Chaco Austral into the nation. A fines del siglo XIX, el gobierno nacional de Argentina inició un programa de combatir las invasiones de langosta que habían afligido el país y amenazado su riqueza agrícola. Este programa alzó cuestiones importantes sobre la autoridad del gobierno nacional y la de las provincias. La oposición en el congreso caracterizó el proyecto como una intrusión inconstitucional al poder y la autoridad de las provincias. Sin embargo, con la legislación de 1897 se creó una red de comisiones dedicados a la extinción de la langosta. Esta legislación y el programa que inició revelaron un intento por parte del gobierno nacional no sólo de proteger la prosperidad económica de la nación, sino de inculcar en los agricultores de las provincias y territorios un sentimiento de identidad nacional. La búsqueda por una “zona permanente” o “zona invernada” en el norte del país, donde se suponía que las langostas vivieran durante el invierno, también representó una oportunidad de integrar el recién conquistado Chaco Austral a la nación.At the end of the nineteenth century, the national government of Argentina began a program to combat the locust invasions that afflicted the country and threatened its agricultural wealth. This program raised important questions about the authority of the national state and that of the provinces. The congressional opposition characterized the project as an unconstitutional intrusion on the authority of the provinces. Nevertheless, the legislation of 1897 created a national network of commissions dedicated to the extinction of locusts. This legislation and the program that it began revealed an attempt by the national government not just to safeguard the nation’s economic prosperity, but to inculcate in the farmers of the provinces and territories a feeling of national identity. The search for a “permanent zone” or “wintering zone” in the north of the country, where locusts supposedly lived during the winter, also represented an opportunity to integrate the recently conquered Chaco Austral into the nation. A fines del siglo XIX, el gobierno nacional de Argentina inició un programa de combatir las invasiones de langosta que habían afligido el país y amenazado su riqueza agrícola. Este programa alzó cuestiones importantes sobre la autoridad del gobierno nacional y la de las provincias. La oposición en el congreso caracterizó el proyecto como una intrusión inconstitucional al poder y la autoridad de las provincias. Sin embargo, con la legislación de 1897 se creó una red de comisiones dedicados a la extinción de la langosta. Esta legislación y el programa que inició revelaron un intento por parte del gobierno nacional no sólo de proteger la prosperidad económica de la nación, sino de inculcar en los agricultores de las provincias y territorios un sentimiento de identidad nacional. La búsqueda por una “zona permanente” o “zona invernada” en el norte del país, donde se suponía que las langostas vivieran durante el invierno, también representó una oportunidad de integrar el recién conquistado Chaco Austral a la nación

Reference Managers

This presentation provides an overview of how to collect and organize bibliographic citations using a reference manager such as Mendeley or Zotero

COVID-19 in the Pediatric Population

This presentation provides an overview of a recent study and its implications pertaining to COVID-19 for pediatric patients

Characterization of Severe Malaria in Liberian Children 5 Years Old and Younger

Malaria continues to be a challenging problem in the developing world, and the burden of this life threatening disease continues to be borne by young children living in Sub Saharan Africa. One of the biggest challenges to the prevention and control of this problem lies in accurately diagnosing malaria, and distinguishing it from the many other febrile illnesses which present in children in this age group. Liberia is a West African country with a high burden of malaria. Very little is known about the presentation of severe malaria in children aged 5 years old and younger in Liberia. We undertook a prospective, hospital -based study of children 5 and under presenting to JKF Medical Center, the national referral hospital, with fever and signs and symptoms consistent with malaria. The aims of our study were to determine: 1) the frequency of confirmed malaria cases, 2) the frequency of non-malaria diagnoses, 3) the prevalence of anti-malarial drug resistance mutations, 4) the presence of other life threatening etiologies of febrile illness such as S. typhii and Dengue virus and 5) immunological profiling associated with severe malaria. We analyzed clinical and laboratory data from 462 children age 5 and under who presented to the national referral hospital in Monrovia, Liberia with signs and symptoms consistent with malaria over a one year period. Key findings included determining the demographic factors most closely associated with severe malaria in this population (age \u3e 1yr and urban environment) and those that were negatively associated with the development of severe malaria (prior episodes of malaria, use of bednets and use of anti malarial medications prior to presentation). The clinical symptoms most closely associated with severe malaria in this population were found to be headache and vomiting. We found that 33% of children admitted and treated for severe malaria did not test positive for malaria by rapid diagnostic testing (RDT) or blood smear. These children had a case fatality rate that was 5 times higher than their RDT positive counter parts. Of the RDT negative children, 2 tested positive for salmonella typhii, but were not treated for this pathogen. Upon discharge from the hospital, 11% of children had resolved their symptoms, but had not cleared their malaria parasites. These findings will help to identify the children who present with true severe malaria in Liberia. They also underscore the need to expand diagnostic capabilities to determine which other types of pathogens cause febrile illness in this population, so that adequate treatment can be extended to these patients. The immunoprofiles of these children revealed 3 IgM antibodies (AMA-1, CSP and LSA-1) that were associated with the development of severe malaria. These antibodies also appear to be associated with initial infection with malaria. Such data will help to identify antigens could be potential targets for malaria vaccines, and which can play an important role in the development of new malaria diagnostics for this population

Study of the application of superplastically formed and diffusion bonded (SPF/DB) titanium structure to laminar flow control (LFC) wing design

Eighteen design concepts for a LFC wing cover, using various SPF/DB approaches, were developed. After evaluation of producibility, compatibility with LFC requirements, structural efficiency and fatigue requirements, three candidates were selected for fabrication of demonstration panels. Included were both sandwich and stiffened semi-sandwich panels with slotted and perforated surfaces. Subsequent to the evaluation of the three demonstration panels, one concept was selected for fabrication of a 0.3 x 1.0 meter (12 x 42 inch) feasibility panel. It was a stiffened, semi-sandwich panel with a slotted surface, designed to meet the requirements of the upper wing cover at the maximum wing bending moment of the baseline configuration

Feasibility of SPF/DB titanium sandwich for LFC wings

The feasibility of fabricating SPF/DB titanium structures of sufficient smoothness to be used for laminar flow wing surfaces was demonstrated. Two methods of fabricating panels which meet the surface smoothness criteria were demonstrated. The first consists of superplasticity forming/diffusion bonding a panel using steel dies, then machining the surface to the required flatness and finish after forming. This approach, however, was estimated to be more costly than the second approach, in which the panel is formed against ceramic platens which produce the desired surface smoothness without subsequent finishing. Four panels were fabricated, and their surface quality was evaluated. The specified criteria for waviness compared with actual measured values on the panels is shown. The acceptable surface quality as well as feasibility of the laminar flow control surface design, in which separate strips incorporating the boundary layer bleed provisions are bonded into slots on the surface, was also demonstrated

Education of Staff Nurses on the Implementation of a Standardized Clinical Care Pathway for Patients Who Undergo Correction of Pectus Excavatum

Objective: Educate staff nurses on a new standardized clinical care pathway (SCCP) for Nuss Procedure patients to decrease the length of stay, decrease hospital costs, decrease postoperative complications, and improve pain control. Design: Evidence-based practice improvement initiative. Setting/Local Problem: An inpatient surgery unit at a local pediatric medical center with no previous standardized care plan for Nuss Procedure patients. Participants: All staff nurses working on the inpatient surgery unit of a pediatric medical center. Intervention/Measurements: An SCCP was created by a multidisciplinary care team. All staff nurses on the inpatient surgery unit at a local pediatric medical center were assigned an online education module to evaluate pre/post-knowledge of nursing care from a standardized clinical care pathway for patients after receiving the Nuss Procedure. Chart audits were completed to assess staff nurses’ utilization of the SCCP on patients undergoing the Nuss Procedure to assess patient outcome measures and length of stay. This project aimed to enhance policies and protocols and decrease Nuss patients’ length of stay, which in turn improves patient outcomes and healthcare costs. Results: Fourteen out of 32 staff nurses completed the nursing education module, with a 44% compliance rate. Pre-test score (M = 9.07, SD = 1.27). Post-test score (M = 10.71, SD = 0.47). Patient length of stay decreased from M = 4.2 days in 2020 to M =2 days in 2022 (p = 0.001). Chart audits revealed that the nursing staff adhered to charting patient diet and hygiene, not ambulation or incentive spirometry use. Conclusion: Implementation of an SCCP leads to decreased postoperative length of stay in Nuss Procedure patients. In nursing staff, post-knowledge assessment scores were higher than pre-knowledge assessment scores. The nursing staff adhered to charting measures pre-populated in the electronic charting system but showed poor compliance in charting interventions that needed to be manually added to the patient chart. Adherence to a daily patient checklist could not be assessed due to the misplacement of the checklists upon patient discharge