The emissivity of conductor Gaussian random rough surfaces: the surface impedance boundary condition method

AbstractWe are interested in studying the contributions of the physical parameters of materials to the emissivity of random rough surfaces for both transverse electric and transverse magnetic waves. Comparisons between the surface impedance boundary condition (SIBC) and the exact results are presented. The effects of the incident angle, the material surfaces and random roughness on the directional emissivity are quantified. The contributions of the effects to the emissivity are used to investigate the domains of validity of the approximate model

Interventions using behavioural insights to influence children's diet-related outcomes: a systematic review

The global prevalence of children with overweight and obesity continues to rise. Obesity in childhood has dire long-term consequences on health, social and economic outcomes. Promising interventions using behavioural insights to address obesity in childhood have emerged. This systematic review examines the effectiveness and health equity implications of interventions using behavioural insights to improve children's diet-related outcomes. The search strategy included searches on six electronic databases, reference lists of previous systematic reviews and backward searching of all included studies. One-hundred and eight papers describing 137 interventions were included. Interventions using behavioural insights were effective at modifying children's diet-related outcomes in 74% of all included interventions. The most promising approaches involved using incentives, changing defaults and modifying the physical environment. Information provision alone was the least effective approach. Health equity implications were rarely analysed or discussed. There was limited evidence of the sustainability of interventions-both in relation to their overall effectiveness and cost-effectiveness. The limited evidence on health equity, long-term effectiveness and the cost-effectiveness of these interventions limit what can be inferred for policymakers. This review synthesises the use of behavioural insights to improve children's diet-related outcomes, which can be used to inform future interventions

Exploring the relationship between education and obesity

An epidemic of obesity has been developing in virtually all OECD countries over the last 30 years. Existing evidence provides a strong suggestion that such an epidemic has affected certain social groups more than others. In particular, a better education appears to be associated with a lower likelihood of obesity, especially among women. This paper sheds light on the nature and the strength of the correlation between education and obesity. Analyses of health survey data from Australia, Canada, England, and Korea were undertaken with the aim of exploring this relationship. Social gradients in obesity were assessed across the entire education spectrum, overall and in different population sub-groups. Furthermore, investigations testing for mediation effects and for the causal nature of the links observed were undertaken to better understand the underlying mechanisms of the relationship between education and obesity. © OECD 2011

Musculoskeletal Diseases Role in the Frailty Syndrome: A Case-Control Study.

Frailty syndrome severely burdens older age, and musculoskeletal diseases are of paramount importance in its development. The aim of this study is to unravel the contribution of musculoskeletal diseases to frailty syndrome. This is a case-control study, and we enrolled 55 robust community-dwelling age- and gender-matched patients, with 58 frail and pre-frail subjects. Frailty was diagnosed according to the Fried criteria (FP), and the Fragility Index (FI) was calculated. In all the subjects, a comprehensive geriatric assessment was carried out. Their nutritional status was evaluated by the Mini Nutritional Assessment and Bioelectrical Impedance Analyses. Their bone density (BMD), bone turnover, muscle mass, strength and performance were evaluated. Here, we show that the prevalence of frailty varies according to the diagnostic criteria used and that FP and FI showed a moderate to good agreement. Despite age and gender matching, frail subjects had lower muscle strength, performance and BMD. Their quality of life and cognitive performance were reduced in the frail subjects compared to the robust ones. Muscular strength and performance, together with mood, significantly predicted the diagnosis of frailty, whereas BMD and bone turnover did not. In conclusion, we show that sarcopenia plays a pivotal role in predicting the diagnosis of frailty, whereas osteoporosis does not

Exceptional cause of bowel obstruction: rectal endometriosis mimicking carcinoma of Rectum - A case report

Endometriosis with intestinal serosal involvement is not uncommon in women of childbearing age. However, endometriosis presenting as colon obstruction is rare and occurs in less than 1% of cases. The Lack of pathognomonic signs makes the diagnosis difficult, mostly because the main differential diagnosis is with neoplasm, even during the intervention. Reported here is a case of a 35-year –old woman presenting with bowel obstruction due to rectal endometriosis. The patient presented signs and symptoms of bowel obstruction. Colonoscopy and radiological findings were suggestive of rectal carcinoma. Surgeons performed an anterior resection with right salpingectomy. Histopathology diagnosed bowel endometriosis. This case demonstrates the difficulty of establishing an accurate pre- and intra-operative diagnosis and the ability of intestinal endometriosis to mimic colon cancer

Population density and photosynthetic pigment content in symbiotic dinoflagellates in the Brazilian scleractinian coral Montastrea cavernosa (Linnaeus, 1767)

A dinâmica sazonal na densidade de células e na concentração de pigmentos fotossintetizantes das zooxantelas de Montastrea cavernosa foram analisados no período setembro/1999 a setembro/2000 nos Recifes do Picãozinho (06º42'05"/07º07'30" S e 34º48'37"/34º50'00" W), Nordeste do Brasil. Verificou-se que existe um padrão distinto entre estes parâmetros, com maior quantidade de células no período chuvoso e maior concentração de pigmentos fotossintetizantes na época de estiagem. Ambos os parâmetros apresentaram, no entanto, uma nítida redução em seus valores nos meses de maiores índices pluviométricos (junho e julho /1999). Especulamos que tal fato deve estar relacionado com o regime de chuvas que pode variar em magnitude e freqüência, afetando a qualidade ótica da água e o estado fisiológico das células.The seasonal dynamics of cell density and photosynthetic pigment contents of the zooxanthellae hosted by Montastrea cavernosa were investigated on coastal reefs off Picãozinho (06º42'05"/07º07'30"S and 34º48'37"/34º50'00" W), Northeast Brazil between September 1999 and 2000. A distinct pattern of these parameters was found: cell numbers were greater during the rainy season (autumn/winter) while photosynthetic pigments were greater during the dry season (summer). Both parameters showed drastic reductions during heavy rains (June and July 1999). We speculate that this pattern is largely influenced by the rain cycles which, owing to their magnitude and frequency, affect the water clarity and the seasonal physiological condition of the cells

The benefits and challenges of taxing sugar in a small island state: an interrupted time series analysis

Background: Beverage and food taxes have become a popular ‘best buy’ public health intervention in the global battle to tackle noncommunicable diseases. Though many countries have introduced taxes, mainly targeting products containing sugar, there is great heterogeneity in tax design. For taxes levied as import tariffs, there is limited evidence of effectiveness in changing the price and sale of taxed products, while the evidence base is stronger for excise taxes levied as a fixed amount per quantity of product. This paper examines the effect of the Bermuda Discretionary Foods Tax, which was based on import tariff changes, on retail prices and sales of sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs), and on selected fruits and vegetables that benefited from a tariff reduction. Methods: We used weekly electronic point-of-sale data from a major food retailer in Bermuda. We assessed historical weekly sales and price data using an interrupted time series design on 2,703 unique products between the dates of January 2018 through January 2020, covering 103 weeks. Results: By January 2020, the average price per ounce of SSBs increased by 26.0%, while the price of untaxed beverages (including waters and non-added sugar drinks) remained constant. The increasing price of SSBs was the sole observable structural driver of SSB market share, responsible for a decrease in the market share by nearly eight percentage points by the end of the study period. The subsidy on fruits and vegetables was ineffective in changing prices and sales, due to the relatively small 5% import tax decrease. Conclusions: The tax was largely passed through to consumers. However, several factors mitigated the impact of the tax on the prices paid for SSBs by consumers, including the specific design of the tax, price promotions and consumer responses. The experience of Bermuda provides important lessons for the planning of similar taxes in the future