Psychosocial Predictors of Metabolic Syndrome among Latino Groups in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA).

ObjectiveWe sought to determine the contribution of psychological variables to risk for metabolic syndrome (MetS) among Latinos enrolled in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA), and to investigate whether social support moderates these associations, and whether inflammatory markers mediate the association between psychological variables and MetS.Research design and methodsCross-sectional analyses at study baseline were conducted with a national Latino cohort (n = 1,388) that included Mexican Americans, Dominican Americans, Puerto Rican Americans and Central/South Americans. Hierarchical logistic regression analyses were conducted to test the effects of psychosocial variables (chronic stress, depressive symptoms, and social support) on MetS. In addition, separate subgroup-specific models, controlling for nationality, age, gender, socioeconomic position, language spoken at home, exercise, smoking and drinking status, and testing for the effects of chronic stress, depressive symptoms and inflammation (IL-6, CRP, fibrinogen) in predicting risk for MetS were conducted.ResultsIn the overall sample, high chronic stress independently predicted risk for MetS, however this association was found to be significant only in Mexican Americans and Puerto Rican Americans. Social support did not moderate the associations between chronic stress and MetS for any group. Chronic stress was not associated with inflammatory markers in either the overall sample or in each group.ConclusionsOur results suggest a differential contribution of chronic stress to the prevalence of MetS by national groups

Hierarchical structural design for fracture resistance in the shell of the pteropod Clio pyramidata

The thecosomes are a group of planktonic pteropods with thin, 1 mm-sized aragonitic shells, which are known to possess a unique helical microstructure consisting of interlocking nanofibres. Here we investigate the detailed hierarchical structural and mechanical design of the pteropod Clio pyramidata. We quantify and elucidate the macroscopic distribution of the helical structure over the entire shell (~1 mm), the structural characteristics of the helical assembly (~10–100 μm), the anisotropic cross-sectional geometry of the fibrous building blocks (~0.5–10 μm) and the heterogeneous distribution of intracrystalline organic inclusions within individual fibres (<0.5 μm). A global fibre-like crystallographic texture is observed with local in-plane rotations. Microindentation and electron microscopy studies reveal that the helical organization of the fibrous building blocks effectively constrains mechanical damages through tortuous crack propagation. Uniaxial micropillar compression and cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy directly reveal that the interlocking fibrous building blocks further retard crack propagation at the nanometre scale.National Science Foundation (U.S.) ((Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Center for Materials Science and Engineering (DMR-0819762))United States. Army Research Office (Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies (Contract W911NF-07-D-0004))United States. Department of Defense. National Security Science and Engineering Faculty Fellow

Arctic biomass burning aerosol event–microphysical property retrieval

An intense biomass-burning (BB) event from North America in July 2015 was observed over Ny-Ålesund (Spitsbergen, European Arctic). An extreme air pollution took place and aerosol optical depth (AOD) of more than 1 at 500nm occurs in middle and lower troposphere. We analyse data from the multi-wavelength Raman-lidar KARL of Alfred Wegener Institute to derive microphysical properties of the aerosol of one interesting layer from 3186 to 3306 m via regularization. We found credible and confidential microphysical parameters

A review on buildings energy consumption information

The rapidly growing world energy use has already raised concerns over supply difficulties, exhaustion of energy resources and heavy environmental impacts (ozone layer depletion, global warming, climate change, etc.). The global contribution from buildings towards energy consumption, both residential and commercial, has steadily increased reaching figures between 20% and 40% in developed countries, and has exceeded the other major sectors: industrial and transportation. Growth in population, increasing demand for building services and comfort levels, together with the rise in time spent inside buildings, assure the upward trend in energy demand will continue in the future. For this reason, energy efficiency in buildings is today a prime objective for energy policy at regional, national and international levels. Among building services, the growth in HVAC systems energy use is particularly significant (50% of building consumption and 20% of total consumption in the USA). This paper analyses available information concerning energy consumption in buildings, and particularly related to HVAC systems. Many questions arise: Is the necessary information available? Which are the main building types? What end uses should be considered in the breakdown? Comparisons between different countries are presented specially for commercial buildings. The case of offices is analysed in deeper detail

Material ecology

The world of design has been dominated since the Industrial Revolution by the rigors of manufacturing and mass production. Assembly lines have dictated a world made of standard parts framing the imagination of designers and builders who have been taught to think about their design objects and systems in terms of assemblies of parts with distinct functions. The assumption that parts are made of single material and fulfill predetermined specific functions is deeply rooted in design and usually goes unquestioned; it is also enforced by the way that industrial supply chains work. These age-old design paradigms have been reincarnated in Computer-aided Design (CAD) tools as well as Computer-aided Manufacturing (CAM) technologies where homogeneous materials are formed into pre-defined shapes at the service of pre-determined functions

La Ruta de la Sal Prehispánica. Patrimonio alimentario, cultural y turismo rural en Zapotitlán de las Salinas, Puebla, México.

Ante el abandono del campo mexicano de parte de sus pobladores, resultado del proceso de apertura comercial que ha conocido el país desde hace treinta años, y que se ha traducido en empobrecimiento y migración de los campesinos, resulta importante buscar alternativas. Volver a valorar productos tradicionales, enraizados en las culturas locales, con una fuerte carga de identidad y buscar la activación de un desarrollo local en torno a estos productos mediante actividades no solamente agrícolas sino también turísticas es una opción para algunas comunidades. El caso de una sal de origen prehispánico, cuyos usos han sido no solamente alimentarios sino curativos, ofrece estas posibilidades. La Ruta de la Sal, en Zapotitlán de las Salinas, Puebla, es un proyecto en ejecución que incorpora planteamientos de desarrollo local relativamente nuevos para el contexto rural mexicano. Su forma de operación es través del modelo de rutas alimentarias, basadas en la integración de un alimento con fuerte identidad local como elemento focal del producto turístico. En este lugar, destaca el desarraigo, relativamente alto, de la población masculina de su contexto rural originario. Mediante un diagnóstico participativo, se determinó a la sal como el producto más característico y al turismo como una actividad factible para mujeres, niños y jóvenes que habitan en la comunidad. El presente trabajo establece la relación entre turismo rural, alimentos con identidad y desarrollo local para lo cual se plantearon los siguientes objetivos: identificar los factores determinantes para la implementación del proyecto de la Ruta de la Sal; identificar los agentes locales y externos, las instituciones públicas, privadas o no gubernamentales que pueden construir sinergias para la realización del proyecto; analizar las redes de cooperación o de conflicto que lo afectan, en un sentido u otro. Particularmente, evaluar la participación de los actores locales tanto en el proyecto como en sus beneficios.Turismo rural, Sal prehispánica, Patrimonio alimentario., Agribusiness, Agricultural and Food Policy, Community/Rural/Urban Development, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Labor and Human Capital,