Household inequality and remittances in rural Thailand: a life-cycle perspective

This article studies the dynamics of income inequality among a panel of rural households in Thailand. In contrast to the many cross-section studies of income inequality, the article exploits a long panel data set to examine lifetime trajectories of household inequality. It finds that income inequality is decreasing over time within cohorts delineated by decennial birth dates of heads of household. This decline in inequality primarily arises from differences in receipt of remittances from adult children of the head of household who live outside the village of origin. On average, poorer households receive remittances from a larger number of children, the annual amount remitted per child is a greater proportion of household income than in richer households, and the importance of remittances in household incomes grows as the head of household ages

Sub-cortical and brainstem sites associated with chemo-stimulated increases in ventilation in humans

We investigated the neural basis for spontaneous chemo-stimulated increases in ventilation in awake, healthy humans. Blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) functional MRI was performed in nine healthy subjects using T2weighted echo planar imaging. Brain volumes (52 transverse slices, cortex to high spinal cord) were acquired every 3.9 s. The 30 min paradigm consisted of six, 5-min cycles, each cycle comprising 45 s of hypoxic-isocapnia, 45 s of isooxic-hypercapnia and 45 s of hypoxic-hypercapnia, with 55 s of non-stimulatory hyperoxic-isocapnia (control) separating each stimulus period. Ventilation was significantly (p < 0.001) increased during hypoxic-isocapnia, isooxic-hypercapnia and hypoxic-hypercapnia (17.0, 13.8, 24.9 L/min respectively) vs. control (8.4 L/min) and was associated with significant (p < 0.05, corrected for multiple comparisons) signal increases within a bilateral network that included the basal ganglia, thalamus, red nucleus, cerebellum, parietal cortex, cingulate and superior mid pons. The neuroanatomical structures identified provide evidence for the spontaneous control of breathing to be mediated by higher brain centres, as well as respiratory nuclei in the brainstem

Elevation of the Basal Sand and Gravel of the Middle Illinois River Valley, Bureau, LaSalle, Marshall, Peoria, Putnam, and Woodford Counties, Illinois

Illinois Department of Transportationpublished or submitted for publicatio

Surficial geology of Chillicothe Quadrangle, Peoria, Marshall, and Woodford Counties, Illinois

Relief shown by contours and spot heights"Geology based on field work by E.D. McKay, R.C. Berg, A.J. Stumpf, and C.P. Weibel, 2001-2005.""This mapping was funded in part by the Illinois Dept. of Transportation to support planning for upgrade of Illinois Route 29.""Digital cartography by J. Carrell, J. Domier, and Z. Golshani, Illinois State Geological Survey. GIS support by P. Johnstone, L. Smith, and B. Stiff, Illinois State Geological Survey.

Surficial geology of Lacon Quadrangle, Marshall County, Illinois

Relief shown by contours and spot heights"Geology based on field work by E.D. McKay, R.C. Berg, A.J. Stumpf, and C.P. Weibel, 2001-2003.""This mapping was funded in part by the Illinois Dept. of Transportation to support planning for upgrade of Illinois Route 29.""Digital cartography by J. Carrell, J. Domier and Z. Golshani, Illinois State Geological Survey. GIS support by P. Johnstone, L. Smith, and B. Stiff, Illinois State Geological Survey.

Process for Making Single-Domain Magnetite Crystals

A process for making chemically pure, single-domain magnetite crystals substantially free of structural defects has been invented as a byproduct of research into the origin of globules in a meteorite found in Antarctica and believed to have originated on Mars. The globules in the meteorite comprise layers of mixed (Mg, Fe, and Ca) carbonates, magnetite, and iron sulfides. Since the discovery of the meteorite was announced in August 1996, scientists have debated whether the globules are of biological origin or were formed from inorganic materials by processes that could have taken place on Mars. While the research that led to the present invention has not provided a definitive conclusion concerning the origin of the globules, it has shown that globules of a different but related chemically layered structure can be grown from inorganic ingredients in a multistep precipitation process. As described in more detail below, the present invention comprises the multistep precipitation process plus a subsequent heat treatment. The multistep precipitation process was demonstrated in a laboratory experiment on the growth of submicron ankerite crystals, overgrown by submicron siderite and pyrite crystals, overgrown by submicron magnesite crystals, overgrown by submicron siderite and pyrite. In each step, chloride salts of appropriate cations (Ca, Fe, and Mg) were dissolved in deoxygenated, CO2- saturated water. NaHCO3 was added as a pH buffer while CO2 was passed continuously through the solution. A 15-mL aliquot of the resulting solution was transferred into each of several 20 mL, poly(tetrafluoroethylene)-lined hydrothermal pressure vessels. The vessels were closed in a CO2 atmosphere, then transferred into an oven at a temperature of 150 C. After a predetermined time, the hydrothermal vessels were removed from the oven and quenched in a freezer. Supernatant solutions were decanted, and carbonate precipitates were washed free of soluble salts by repeated decantations with deionized water

Surficial Geology of Putnam Quadrangle, Bureau, Putnam and Marshall Counties, Illinois

Relief shown by contours and spot heights"Geology based on field work by E.D. McKay, R.C. Berg, A.J. Stumpf, and C.P. Weibel, 2001-2003.""This mapping was funded in part by the Illinois Dept. of Transportation to support planning for upgrade of Illinois Route 29.""Digital cartography by J. Carrell, J. Domier and Z. Golshani, Illinois State Geological Survey. GIS support by P. Johnstone, L. Smith, and B. Stiff, Illinois State Geological Survey.

Martian Superoxide and Peroxide O2 Release (OR) Assay: A New Technology for Terrestrial and Planetary Applications

This study presents an assay for the detection and quantification of soil metal superoxides and peroxides in regolith and soil. The O2 release (OR) assay is based on the enzymatic conversion of the hydrolysis products of metal oxides to O2, and their quantification by an O2 electrode based on the stoichiometry of the involved reactions: The intermediate product O2 from the hydrolysis of metal superoxides is converted by cytochrome c to O2, and also by superoxide dismutase (SOD) to 1/2 mol O2 and 1/2 mol H2O2, which is then converted by catalase (CAT) to 1/2 mol O2. The product H2O2 from the hydrolysis of metal peroxides and hydroperoxides is converted to 1/2 mol O2 by CAT. The assay-method was validated in a sealed sample chamber using a liquid-phase Clark-type O2 electrode with known concentrations of O2 and H2O2, and with commercial metal superoxide and peroxide mixed with Mars analogue Mojave and Atacama Desert soils. Carbonates and perchlorates, both present on Mars, do not interfere with the assay. The assay lower limit of detection, using luminescence quenching/optical sensing O2-electrodes, is 1 nmol O2 cm(exp. -3) or better. The activity of the assay enzymes SOD and cytochrome c was unaffected up to 6 Gy exposure by gamma-radiation, while CAT retained 100% and 40% of its activity at 3 and 6 Gy, respectively, demonstrating the suitability of these enzymes for planetary missions, e.g., in Mars or Europa

A contemporary overview of percutaneous coronary interventions The American College of Cardiology–National Cardiovascular Data Registry (ACC–NCDR)

AbstractObjectivesThe American College of Cardiology (ACC) established the National Cardiovascular Data Registry (ACC–NCDR) to provide a uniform and comprehensive database for analysis of cardiovascular procedures across the country. The initial focus has been the high-volume, high-profile procedures of diagnostic cardiac catheterization and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).BackgroundSeveral large-scale multicenter efforts have evaluated diagnostic catheterization and PCI, but these have been limited by lack of standard definitions and relatively nonuniform data collection and reporting methods.MethodsBoth clinical and procedural data, and adverse events occurring up to hospital discharge, were collected and reported according to uniform guidelines using a standard set of 143 data elements. Datasets were transmitted quarterly to a central facility for quality-control screening, storage and analysis. This report is based on PCI data collected from January 1, 1998, through September 30, 2000.ResultsA total of 139 hospitals submitted data on 146,907 PCI procedures. Of these, 32% (46,615 procedures) were excluded because data did not pass quality-control screening. The remaining 100,292 procedures (68%) were included in the analysis set. Average age was 64 ± 12 years; 34% were women, 26% had diabetes mellitus, 29% had histories of prior myocardial infarction (MI), 32% had prior PCI and 19% had prior coronary bypass surgery. In 10% the indication for PCI was acute MI ≤6 h from onset, while in 52% it was class II to IV or unstable angina. Only 5% of procedures did not have a class I indication by ACC criteria, but this varied by hospital from a low of 0 to a high of 38%. A coronary stent was placed in 77% of procedures, but this varied by hospital from a low of 0 to a high of 97%. The frequencies of in-hospital Q-wave MI, coronary artery bypass graft surgery and death were 0.4%, 1.9% and 1.4%, respectively. Mortality varied by hospital from a low of 0 to a high of 4.2%.ConclusionsThis report presents the first data collected and analyzed by the ACC–NCDR. It portrays a contemporary overview of coronary interventional practices and outcomes, using uniform data collection and reporting standards. These data reconfirm overall acceptable results that are consistent with other reported data, but also confirm large variations between individual institutions

Exploring new drilling prospects in the southwest Pacific

A major International Ocean Discovery Program (IODP) workshop covering scientific ocean drilling in the southwest Pacific Ocean was held in Sydney, Australia, in late 2012. The workshop covered all fields of geoscience, and drilling targets in the area from the Equator to Antarctica. High-quality contributions and a positive and cooperative atmosphere ensured its success. The four science themes of the new IODP science plan were addressed. An additional resource-oriented theme considered possible co-investment opportunities involving IODP vessels. As a result of the workshop, existing proposals were revised and new ones written for the April 2013 deadline. Many of the proposals are broad and multidisciplinary in nature, hence broadening the scientific knowledge that can be produced by using the IODP infrastructure. This report briefly outlines the workshop and the related drilling plans