Griggs and Corrothers: Historical Reality and Black Fiction

Sutton E. Griggs\u27s Imperium in Imperio and James D. Corrothers\u27s A Man They Didn\u27t Know are two early Afroamerican fictions which suggest a black alliance with foreign powers in the face of unrelenting racial injustice at home.1 Imperium in Imperio, published in 1899, has been described as the first political novel by a black American;2 and A Man They Didn\u27t Know, appearing in 1913, is probably the first Afroamerican fiction to suggest a specific alliance between American blacks, groups in Mexico, and the Japanese. Sutton E. Griggs is currently undergoing rediscovery, and Imperium in Imperio is by now well known to students of Afroamerican literature, if not to students of American literature in general. However, aspects of the historical context of Imperium in Imperio have been overlooked by literary scholars at significant cost to a complete appreciation of what Griggs is doing in the novel. Corrothers\u27s A Man They Didn\u27t Know has been overlooked in all respects. This highly interesting fictional work, comparable in important respects to Griggs\u27s novel, needs to be brought to the attention of students of American culture of various disciplines, and, like Imperium in Imperio, to be fully understood, it must be read in its historical context

Random Walks and Market Efficiency: Evidence from International Real Estate Markets

This study performs tests of the random walk hypothesis for international commercial real estate markets utilizing stock market indices of real estate share prices for three geographical regions: Europe, Asia and North America. The augmented Dickey-Fuller and Phillips-Perron unit root tests and Cochrane variance ratio test find that each of these markets (as well as associated broader stock markets) exhibits random walk behavior. Moreover, a non-parametric runs test provides support for weak-form market efficiency in the real estate markets. In addition, Johansen-Juselius co-integration analysis reveals that all three markets appear co-integrated and share a common long-run stochastic trend. Results of co-integration analyses and vector error correction models suggest that diversification benefits through international real estate securities can only be achieved in the short run.

Anti-inflammatory Effects of Abdominal Vagus Nerve Stimulation on Experimental Intestinal Inflammation

Electrical stimulation of the cervical vagus nerve is an emerging treatment for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). However, side effects from cervical vagal nerve stimulation (VNS) are often reported by patients. Here we hypothesized that stimulating the vagus nerve closer to the end organ will have fewer off-target effects and will effectively reduce intestinal inflammation. Specifically, we aimed to: (i) compare off-target effects during abdominal and cervical VNS; (ii) verify that VNS levels were suprathreshold; and (iii) determine whether abdominal VNS reduces chemically-induced intestinal inflammation in rats. An electrode array was developed in-house to stimulate and record vagal neural responses. In a non-recovery experiment, stimulation-induced off-target effects were measured by implanting the cervical and abdominal vagus nerves of anaesthetized rats (n = 5) and recording changes to heart rate, respiration and blood pressure during stimulation (10 Hz; symmetric biphasic current pulse; 320 nC per phase). In a chronic experiment, the efficacy of VNS treatment was assessed by implanting an electrode array onto the abdominal vagus nerve and recording in vivo electrically-evoked neural responses during the implantation period. After 14 days, the intestine was inflamed with TNBS (2.5% 2,4,6-trinitrobenzene sulphonic acid) and rats received therapeutic VNS (n = 7; 10 Hz; 320 nC per phase; 3 h/day) or no stimulation (n = 8) for 4.5 days. Stool quality, plasma C-reactive protein and histology of the inflamed intestine were assessed. Data show that abdominal VNS had no effect (two-way RM-ANOVA: P ≥ 0.05) on cardiac, respiratory and blood pressure parameters. However, during cervical VNS heart rate decreased by 31 ± 9 beats/minute (P ≥ 0.05), respiration was inhibited and blood pressure decreased. Data addressing efficacy of VNS treatment show that electrically-evoked neural response thresholds remained stable (one-way RM ANOVA: P ≥ 0.05) and therapeutic stimulation remained above threshold. Chronically stimulated rats, compared to unstimulated rats, had improved stool quality (two-way RM ANOVA: P < 0.0001), no blood in feces (P < 0.0001), reduced plasma C-reactive protein (two-way RM ANOVA: P < 0.05) and a reduction in resident inflammatory cell populations within the intestine (Kruskal–Wallis: P < 0.05). In conclusion, abdominal VNS did not evoke off-target effects, is an effective treatment of TNBS-induced inflammation, and may be an effective treatment of IBD in humans

Open urethroplasty versus endoscopic urethrotomy - clarifying the management of men with recurrent urethral stricture (the OPEN trial) : study protocol for a randomised controlled trial

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Flow and retreat of the Late Quaternary Pine Island-Thwaites palaeo-ice stream, West Antarctica

Multibeam swath bathymetry and sub-bottom profiler data are used to establish constraints on the flow and retreat history of a major palaeo-ice stream that carried the combined discharge from the parts of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet now occupied by the Pine Island and Thwaites glacier basins. Sets of highly elongated bedforms show that, at the last glacial maximum, the route of the Pine Island-Thwaites palaeo-ice stream arced north-northeast following a prominent cross-shelf trough. In this area, the grounding line advanced to within similar to 68 km of, and probably reached, the shelf edge. Minimum ice thickness is estimated at 715 m on the outer shelf, and we estimate a minimum ice discharge of similar to 108 km(3) yr(-1) assuming velocities similar to today's Pine Island glacier (similar to 2.5 km yr(-1)). Additional bed forms observed in a trough northwest of Pine Island Bay likely formed via diachronous ice flows across the outer shelf and demonstrate switching ice stream behavior. The "style" of ice retreat is also evident in five grounding zone wedges, which suggest episodic deglaciation characterized by halts in grounding line migration up-trough. Stillstands occurred in association with changes in ice bed gradient, and phases of inferred rapid retreat correlate to higher bed slopes, supporting theoretical studies that show bed geometry as a control on ice margin recession. However, estimates that individual wedges could have formed within several centuries still imply a relatively rapid overall retreat. Our findings show that the ice stream channeled a substantial fraction of West Antarctica's discharge in the past, just as the Pine Island and Thwaites glaciers do today

Surgical Treatment for Recurrent Bulbar Urethral Stricture: A Randomised Open-label Superiority Trial of Open Urethroplasty Versus Endoscopic Urethrotomy (the OPEN Trial)

BackgroundUrethral stricture affects 0.9% of men. Initial treatment is urethrotomy. Approximately, half of the strictures recur within 4 yr. Options for further treatment are repeat urethrotomy or open urethroplasty.ObjectiveTo compare the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of urethrotomy with open urethroplasty in adult men with recurrent bulbar urethral stricture.Design, setting, and participantsThis was an open label, two-arm, patient-randomised controlled trial. UK National Health Service hospitals were recruited and 222 men were randomised to receive urethroplasty or urethrotomy.InterventionUrethrotomy is a minimally invasive technique whereby the narrowed area is progressively widened by cutting the scar tissue with a steel blade mounted on a urethroscope. Urethroplasty is a more invasive surgery to reconstruct the narrowed area.Outcome measurements and statistical analysisThe primary outcome was the profile over 24 mo of a patient-reported outcome measure, the voiding symptom score. The main clinical outcome was time until reintervention.Results and limitationsThe primary analysis included 69 (63%) and 90 (81%) of those allocated to urethroplasty and urethrotomy, respectively. The mean difference between the urethroplasty and urethrotomy groups was –0.36 (95% confidence interval [CI] –1.74 to 1.02). Fifteen men allocated to urethroplasty needed a reintervention compared with 29 allocated to urethrotomy (hazard ratio [95% CI] 0.52 [0.31–0.89]).ConclusionsIn men with recurrent bulbar urethral stricture, both urethroplasty and urethrotomy improved voiding symptoms. The benefit lasted longer for urethroplasty.Patient summaryThere was uncertainty about the best treatment for men with recurrent bulbar urethral stricture. We randomised men to receive one of the following two treatment options: urethrotomy and urethroplasty. At the end of the study, both treatments resulted in similar and better symptom scores. However, the urethroplasty group had fewer reinterventions

Posterior structural brain volumes differ in maltreated youth with and without chronic posttraumatic stress disorder

Abstract Magnetic resonance imaging studies of maltreated children with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) suggest that maltreatment-related PTSD is associated with adverse brain development. Maltreated youth resilient to chronic PTSD were not previously investigated and may elucidate neuromechanisms of the stress diathesis that leads to resilience to chronic PTSD. In this cross-sectional study, anatomical volumetric and corpus callosum diffusion tensor imaging measures were examined using magnetic resonance imaging in maltreated youth with chronic PTSD ( N = 38), without PTSD ( N = 35), and nonmaltreated participants ( n = 59). Groups were sociodemographically similar. Participants underwent assessments for strict inclusion/exclusion criteria and psychopathology. Maltreated youth with PTSD were psychobiologically different from maltreated youth without PTSD and nonmaltreated controls. Maltreated youth with PTSD had smaller posterior cerebral and cerebellar gray matter volumes than did maltreated youth without PTSD and nonmaltreated participants. Cerebral and cerebellar gray matter volumes inversely correlated with PTSD symptoms. Posterior corpus callosum microstructure in pediatric maltreatment-related PTSD differed compared to maltreated youth without PTSD and controls. The group differences remained significant when controlling for psychopathology, numbers of Axis I disorders, and trauma load. Alterations of these posterior brain structures may result from a shared trauma-related mechanism or an inherent vulnerability that mediates the pathway from chronic PTSD to comorbidity

Individual and partner risk factors associated with abnormal cervical cytology among women in HIV-discordant relationships

Individual and sexual partner characteristics may increase risk of abnormal cervical cytology among women in HIV-discordant relationships. Papanicolaou smears were obtained in a prospective cohort of Kenyan HIV-discordant couples. Of 441 women, 283 (64%) were HIV-infected and 158 (36%) were HIV-uninfected with HIV-infected partners. Overall, 79 (18%) had low-grade and 25 (6%) high-grade cervical abnormalities. Lack of male circumcision, male HSV-2 seropositivity and lower couple socioeconomic status were associated with cervical abnormalities (p350 cells/µL) had the lowest prevalence of high-grade cervical lesions. HIV-infected women (CD4>350 cells/µL) and HIV-uninfected women with HIV-infected partners (CD4≤350 cells/µL) were at similar intermediate risk (P>0.05), and HIV-infected women (CD4≤350 cells/µL) had significantly higher risk of high-grade cervical abnormalities (p=0.05). Women in HIV-discordant relationships have high rates of cervical lesions and this may be influenced by couple-level factors, including HIV status and CD4 count of the infected partner

Linking in-situ charge accumulation to electronic structure in doped SrTiO3 reveals design principles for hydrogen evolving photocatalysts

Recently, record solar to hydrogen efficiencies have been demonstrated using La,Rh co-doped SrTiO3 (La,Rh:SrTiO3) incorporated into a low cost and scalable Z-scheme device, known as a photocatalyst sheet. However, the unique properties that enable La,Rh:SrTiO3 to support this impressive performance are not fully understood. Combining in-situ spectroelectrochemical measurements with density functional theory and photoelectron spectroscopy produces a depletion model of Rh:SrTiO3 and La,Rh:SrTiO3 photocatalyst sheets. This reveals remarkable properties, such as deep flatband potentials (+2 VRHE) and a Rh oxidation state dependent reorganisation of the electronic structure, involving the loss of a vacant Rh 4d mid gap state. This reorganisation enables Rh:SrTiO3 to be reduced by co-doping without compromising p-type character. In-situ time resolved spectroscopies show the electronic structure reorganisation induced by Rh reduction controls electron lifetime in photocatalyst sheets. In Rh:SrTiO3 , enhanced lifetimes can only be obtained at negative applied potentials, where the complete Z-scheme operates inefficiently. La co-doping fixes Rh in the 3+ state, resulting in long-lived photogenerated electrons even at very positive potentials (+1 VRHE), where both components of the complete device operate effectively. This understanding of role of co-dopants provides new insight into the design principles for water splitting devices based on bandgap engineered metal oxides

Policy Recommendations for Meeting the Grand Challenge to Achieve Equal Opportunity and Justice

This brief was created forSocial Innovation for America’s Renewal, a policy conference organized by the Center for Social Development in collaboration with the American Academy of Social Work & Social Welfare, which is leading theGrand Challenges for Social Work initiative to champion social progress. The conference site includes links to speeches, presentations, and a full list of the policy briefs