Food Security Status and Barriers to Fruit and Vegetable Consumption in Two Economically Deprived Communities of Oakland, California, 2013-2014.

IntroductionFood security status may moderate how people perceive barriers to fruit and vegetable consumption. This study aimed to 1) describe the association between fruit and vegetable consumption and microbarriers and mezzobarriers to consumption, and 2) test whether these associations differ by food security status.MethodsWe surveyed adults (n = 531) living in 2 economically deprived communities in Oakland, California, in 2013 and 2014. Multivariate linear regression assessed associations between microbarriers (taste, cost, busyness) and mezzobarriers (produce selection, quality, and purchase ease) and fruit and vegetable consumption, derived from a 26-item dietary screener. Interactions were tested by food security status.ResultsRespondents consumed a mean 2.4 (standard deviation, 1.5) servings of fruits and vegetables daily; 39% of the sample was food insecure. Being too busy to prepare healthy foods was associated with reduced fruit and vegetable consumption (β(busyness) = -0.40; 95% confidence interval [CI], -0.52 to -0.28) among all respondents. Food security moderated the relationship between fruit and vegetable consumption and taste, cost, and perceived ease of purchase of healthy foods. Among the food secure, disliking healthy food taste (β(taste) = -0.38; 95% CI, -0.60 to -0.15) and cost (β(cost) = -0.29; 95% CI, -0.44 to -0.15) concerns were associated with lower consumptions of fruits and vegetables. Mezzobarriers were not significantly associated with consumption in either group.ConclusionPerceived time constraints influenced fruit and vegetable consumption. Taste and cost influenced fruit and vegetable consumption among the food secure and may need to be considered when interpreting analyses that describe dietary intake and designing diet-related interventions

Regulating Internet Trade in CITES Species

Wild collection of species that are or may be endangered by collection from the wild for international commerce is regulated under the The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) for 176 member States. Internet commerce is a relatively a new route for such trade and is rarely included in CITES statistics. By comparing information from an international on-line auction system with official CITES records on international trade, we discovered that only around 10% of the specimens of cacti listed on CITES Appendix I traded in 2010 were even potentially legal. Clearly, such trade over the Internet easily bypasses CITES trade regulations and should be monitored in future to ensure the effective protection of CITES listed species

Experimental investigation on tensile and shear bond behaviour of Basalt-FRCM composites for strengthening calcarenite masonry elements

The use of Fabric Reinforced Cementitious Matrix (FRCM) composites for structural retrofit has seen an increased interest among the scientific community, during the last decade. Various studies have revealed their effectiveness as external retrofitting technique of masonry elements, offering numerous advantages respect to the well know Fibre Reinforced Polymer (FRP) in terms of compatibility with masonry support, reversibility of intervention and sustainability. Despite the growing use, the characterization of FRCM mechanical behaviour is still an open issue, due to numerous uncertainties involved in test set-up adopted and fibre-mortar combination. The proposed experimental study aims to investigate the tensile and shear bond behaviour of Basalt-FRCM for strengthening calcarenite masonry elements. Calcarenite is a natural stone with sedimentary origin and it is widely present in existing buildings of the Mediterranean areas. Direct tensile tests are performed on two types of Basalt-FRCM coupons, with cement-based and lime-based mortar, adopting two different test-set-up based on clamping and clevis grip methods. Moreover, double shear bond tests are carried out to evaluate the adhesion properties of the two types of Basalt-FRCM with calcarenite support. Experimental outcomes are compared in terms of stress-strain curves, evaluating the influence of mortar grade and test set-up on the mechanical performances of Basalt-FRCM composites. The comparisons provide information about the mechanical stress transfer phenomena that occur at the fibre-to-matrix and FRCM-to-substrate interface level and the failure modes

Multimodal Outcome Prognostication After Cardiac Arrest and Targeted Temperature Management: Analysis at 36 °C.

Targeted temperature management (TTM) represents the standard of care in comatose survivors after cardiac arrest (CA) and may be applied targeting 33° or 36 °C. While multimodal prognostication has been extensively tested for 33 °C, scarce information exists for 36 °C. In this cohort study, consecutive comatose adults after CA treated with TTM at 36 °C between July 2014 and October 2016 were included. A combination of neurological examination, electrophysiological features, and serum neuron-specific enolase (NSE) was evaluated for outcome prediction at 3 months (mortality; good outcome defined as cerebral performance categories (CPC) score of 1-2, poor outcome defined as CPC 3-5). We analyzed 61 patients. The presence of two or more predictors out of, unreactive electroencephalogram (EEG) background, epileptiform EEG, absent pupillary and/or corneal reflex, early myoclonus, bilaterally absent cortical somatosensory evoked potentials, and serum NSE >75 μg/l, had a high specificity for predicting mortality (positive predictive value [PPV] = 1.00, 95% CI 0.87-1.00) and poor outcome (PPV = 1.00, 95% CI 0.80-1.00). Reactive EEG background was highly sensitive for predicting good outcome (0.95, 95% CI 0.74-0.99). Prediction of outcome after CA and TTM targeting 36 °C seems valid in adults using the same features tested at 33 °C. A reactive EEG under TTM appears highly sensitive for good outcome

Numerical Modelling of the Constitutive Behaviour of FRCM Composites through the Use of Truss Elements

The modeling of the mechanical behavior of Fabric Reinforced Cementitious Matrix (FRCM) composites is a difficult task due to the complex mechanisms established at the fibre-matrix and composite-support interface level. Recently, several modeling approaches have been proposed to simulate the mechanical response of FRCM strengthening systems, however a simple and reliable procedure is still missing. In this paper, two simplified numerical models are proposed to simulate the tensile and shear bond behavior of FRCM composites. Both models take advantage of truss and non-linear spring elements to simulate the material components and the interface. The proposed approach enables us to deduce the global mechanical response in terms of stress-strain or stress-slip relations. The accuracy of the proposed models is validated against the experimental benchmarks available in the literature

A Nested Atlantic-Mediterranean Sea General Circulation Model for Operational Forecasting.

Abstract. A new numerical general circulation ocean model for the Mediterranean Sea has been implemented nested within an Atlantic general circulation model within the framework of the Marine Environment and Security for the European Area project (MERSEA, Desaubies, 2006). A 4-year twin experiment was carried out from January 2004 to December 2007 with two different models to evaluate the impact on the Mediterranean Sea circulation of open lateral boundary conditions in the Atlantic Ocean. One model considers a closed lateral boundary in a large Atlantic box and the other is nested in the same box in a global ocean circulation model. Impact was observed comparing the two simulations with independent observations: ARGO for temperature and salinity profiles and tide gauges and along-track satellite observations for the sea surface height. The improvement in the nested Atlantic-Mediterranean model with respect to the closed one is particularly evident in the salinity characteristics of the Modified Atlantic Water and in the Mediterranean sea level seasonal variability

A nested Atlantic-Mediterranean Sea general circulation model for operational forecasting

A new numerical general circulation ocean model for the Mediterranean Sea has been implemented nested within an Atlantic general circulation model within the framework of the Marine Environment and Security for the European Area project (MERSEA, Desaubies, 2006). A 4- year twin experiment was carried out from January 2004 to December 2007 with two different models to evaluate the impact on the Mediterranean Sea circulation of open lateral boundary conditions in the Atlantic Ocean. One model considers a closed lateral boundary in a large Atlantic box and the other is nested in the same box in a global ocean circulation model. Impact was observed comparing the two simulations with independent observations: ARGO for temperature and salinity profiles and tide gauges and along-track satellite observations for the sea surface height. The improvement in the nested Atlantic-Mediterranean model with respect to the closed one is particularly evident in the salinity characteristics of the Modified Atlantic Water and in the Mediterranean sea level seasonal variability