87 research outputs found

    Community Resilience Through Crisis At El Infiernito, Chiapas, A Fortified Refuge In The Upper Usumacinta Valley

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    Collapse has been misunderstood to equate with the disappearance of civilizations, but political fragmentation is merely one aspect of the complex processes of social transformation. Other concepts, including resilience are useful to separate the effects of cultural continuity from political disintegration. This study approaches these topics from the level of an archaeological community or hamlet located at the periphery of a dynastic center or state. I present 4 broad arguments: 1) collapse and resilience are evolving processes best understood as different aspects of social transformation, 2) the role of agency in collapse and resilience studies is underappreciated, 3) lower elite and commoner populations play a role in these political dynamics, and 4) the changing relationship between dynastic centers and outlying communities is negotiated over time rather than static. The cultural context of this study is the political transformation at the end of the Classic period (AD 250–900) in the Southern Maya Lowlands that involved, in part, political fragmentation or collapse. The timing of this Classic period (AD 250–900) collapse in the Maya area has been informed by long count calendar dates on the final monuments of dynastic and subsidiary centers. However, archaeologists have noted that the subsequent demographic decline in the Southern Lowlands was a protracted process that operated at diverse rates across different subregions. I address these issues with a middle or community-level approach through settlement survey and the excavation of El Infiernito, a hamlet roughly equidistant from the Classic period dynastic center Piedras Negras and its subsidiary ally La Mar. Crucial to the resilience of the El Infiernito community was the reoccupation of a hilltop first modified during the Protoclassic period (100 BC–AD 350) and the construction and maintenance of defensive features to protect the site, agricultural terraces, and a karst spring. Further strategies involved the construction of C-shaped benches and subdivision of living space, ancestor veneration and other household rituals, accessing shifting trade networks, and controlling access to ritual caves. El Infiernito, therefore, provides a rare glimpse of the transition from the Terminal Classic to Early Postclassic periods in the Upper Usumacinta Basin

    Screening for antinuclear antibodies by enzyme immunoassay

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    Journal ArticleIndirect fluorescent antibody (IFA) is the most widely used method in clinical laboratories to screen for autoantibodies against a wide variety of nuclear antigens. Recently, a number of antinuclear antibody (ANA) enzyme immunoassay (EIA) screens have become commercially available and claim to be an alternative method to screen for ANAs. Given the subjectivity of technical interpretation of IFA and the high number of ANA negative samples, a suitable EIA method for ANA screening would be beneficial to clinical laboratories with large sample volumes. Five ANA EIA screens were compared (Efias, Helix, Sanofi, ThcraTcst and Zeus) to IFA using a human epithelial cell line (HEp-2). Sera from 601 patients submitted to our reference laboratory for autoimmune testing, and from 202 normal healthy blood donors, were included in this study. Samples with discordant results between IFA and EIA were further analyzed using single antigen EIAs for SSA, SSB, Sm, RNP, Scl-70, histones, dsDNA, and ssDNA

    THE 13TH ADVANCED ACCELERATOR CONCEPTS WORKSHOP (AAC'8)

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    The Thirteenth Workshop on Advanced Accelerator Concepts (AAC) was held from July 27 to August 2, 2008 at the Chaminade Conference Center in Santa Cruz, California, USA, organized by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the University of California at Berkeley. There were unprecedented levels of interest in the 2008 AAC Workshop, and participation was by invitation, with 215 workshop attendees, including 58 students. Reflecting the world-wide growth of the advanced accelerator community, there was significant international participation, with participants from twelve countries attending

    On the evolutionary origin of aging

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    It is generally believed that the first organisms did not age, and that aging thus evolved at some point in the history of life. When and why this transition occurred is a fundamental question in evolutionary biology. Recent reports of aging in bacteria suggest that aging predates the emergence of eukaryotes and originated in simple unicellular organisms. Here we use simple models to study why such organisms would evolve aging. These models show that the differentiation between an aging parent and a rejuvenated offspring readily evolves as a strategy to cope with damage that accumulates due to vital activities. We use measurements of the age-specific performance of individual bacteria to test the assumptions of the model, and find evidence that they are fulfilled. The mechanism that leads to aging is expected to operate in a wide range of organisms, suggesting that aging evolved early and repeatedly in the history of life. Aging might thus be a more fundamental aspect of cellular organisms than assumed so far

    Uso de ålcool na gestação e desfechos obstétricos adversos em pacientes de baixo risco / Alcohol use in pregnancy and unfavorable obstetric outcomes in low risk patients

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    OBJETIVO: Avaliar os desfechos adversos perinatais relacionados ao uso de ĂĄlcool na gestação.MÉTODOS: Trata-se de um estudo observacional transversal, realizado na Maternidade Darcy Vargas em Joinville–SC, perĂ­odo de março de 2018 a fevereiro de 2019 atravĂ©s de amostra randomizada composta de 722 puĂ©rperas maiores de 18 anos, que realizaram o acompanhamento prĂ©-natal exclusivamente em Atenção PrimĂĄria Ă  SaĂșde, divididas em 2 grupos: pacientes que fizeram uso de ĂĄlcool na gestação e que nĂŁo utilizaram. Os fatores de confusĂŁo foram uso de tabaco e drogas. O intervalo de confiança foi de 95%.RESULTADOS: Comparou-se duas populaçÔes de puĂ©rperas, as que consumiram ĂĄlcool na gestação (n=38/ 5,26%) e as que nĂŁo utilizaram (n=684/ 94,74%). A frequĂȘncia mĂ©dia de uso foi 1,37 vezes/semana, observou-se que 81,6% consumiram bebidas fermentadas e 18,4% destiladas. As caracterĂ­sticas maternas diferiram quanto a raça, sendo mais prevalente entre brancas (81,6%vs62,6%) e menos entre negras (2,6%vs9,6%) e pardas (5,3%vs25,0%), e ao uso de tabaco na gestação (15,8%vs4,7%), das pacientes que fizeram uso de ĂĄlcool na gestação e das que nĂŁo utilizaram, respectivamente. ApĂłs o cĂĄlculo de razĂŁo de chance ajustado, nĂŁo houve valores significativos para desfechos adversos perinatais, como cesariana, prematuridade, Apgar baixo de 1Âș minuto e UTI neonatal.CONCLUSÃO: Considerando a baixa regularidade e concentração alcoĂłlica, nĂŁo se encontrou relação significativa entre o uso de ĂĄlcool na gestação e os desfechos obstĂ©tricos desfavorĂĄveis.

    Prematuridade em primigestas que realizaram pré-natal na atenção primåria de Joinville-SC / Prematurity in primiparous women who received prenatal care in primary care of Joinville-SC

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    OBJETIVO: Analisar os fatores envolvidos com a prematuridade em primigestas que realizaram o prĂ©-natal na atenção primĂĄria de Joinville-SC.MÉTODOS: Trata-se de um estudo caso controle, realizado na Maternidade Darcy Vargas em Joinville-SC, perĂ­odo de março de 2018 a fevereiro de 2019 atravĂ©s de amostra randomizada composta de 257 puĂ©rperas primigestas maiores de 18 anos, que realizaram o acompanhamento prĂ©-natal exclusivamente em Atenção PrimĂĄria Ă  SaĂșde. A população foi dividida em dois grupos, primigestas com parto prematuro e primigestas com parto a termo. Para o cĂĄlculo de razĂŁo de chance, os valores foram considerados significativos quando P<0,05. CEP nÂș2.487.567.RESULTADOS: As pacientes foram separadas em primigestas com parto prematuro (n=15/5,83%) e primigestas com parto a termo (n=242/94,16%). As caracterĂ­sticas maternas destoaram quanto ao nĂșmero de consultas de prĂ©-natal (6 vs 9 P<0,001), nas puĂ©rperas com parto e prematuro e a termo respectivamente. JĂĄ os recĂ©m-nascidos diferiram no mĂ©todo de capurro (34,25 vs 39,25 P<0,001), peso (2208,75 vs 3357,31 P<0,001), Apgar baixo de 1Âș minuto (20,0% vs 5,4% P=0,023), necessidade de UTI neonatal (33,3% vs 1,7% P<0,001) e baixo peso ao nascer (86,7% vs 1,2% P=0,000), nos RNs prematuros e a termos, respectivamente. ApĂłs o cĂĄlculo de razĂŁo de chance, notou-se que a realização de 5 consultas ou menos (26,045 IC95% 2,732-248,256) aumentou a prematuridade, enquanto DHEG e fumo nĂŁo se mostraram significativos.CONCLUSÃO: O nĂșmero de consultas prĂ©-natal pode aumentar em 26 vezes as chances de prematuridade em primigestas que realizaram prĂ©-natal na Atenção PrimĂĄria

    Evaluation of the function and quality of life of patients submitted to girdlestone's resection arthroplasty

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    OBJECTIVES: To evaluate function and quality of life of patients submitted to Girdlestone's arthroplasty, and to compare outcomes between unilateral Girdlestone's group with the group with contralateral total hip prosthesis. METHODS: Cross-sectional study where 9 patients were evaluated with unilateral Girdlestone's and 3 with Girdlestone's in one hip and contralateral total hip prosthesis. The evaluation consisted in filling in a generic questionnaire on quality of life SF-36 and a specific questionnaire for hip function Harris Hip Score (HHS). The comparison between groups was made by using the Student's t-test and the Fisher's test. RESULTS: The patients of the unilateral Girdlestone's group presented a higher number of SF-36 domains classified as high, although 77.8% of these showed poor results on the HHS. All patients had a leg-length discrepancy and positive Trendelenburg's test, which led to limping gait in 11 of 12 patients evaluated. Of these, only 6 underwent physiotherapy after surgery. CONCLUSION: Girdlestone's postoperative quality of life and function in a Brazilian population still requires further studies, because these outcomes are indicative of study variables' behavior and cannot be regarded as definite.OBJETIVOS: Avaliar a função e a qualidade de vida dos pacientes pĂłs-artroplastia de Girdlestone e comparar os resultados entre os grupos Girdlestone unilateral e o grupo com prĂłtese total de quadril contralateral. MÉTODOS: estudo transversal no qual foram avaliados 9 pacientes com Girdlestone unilateral e 3 com Girdlestone em um quadril e prĂłtese total no quadril contralateral. A avaliação constitui-se em aplicar o questionĂĄrio genĂ©rico de qualidade de vida SF-36 e um questionĂĄrio funcional especĂ­fico para o quadril, Harris Hip Score (HHS). A comparação dos grupos foi realizada usando-se o teste t- Student e o teste de Fisher. RESULTADOS: Os pacientes do grupo Girdlestone unilateral apresentaram maior quantidade de domĂ­nios do SF-36 classificados como elevados, embora 77,8% destes tenham obtido resultados ruins no HHS. Todos os pacientes apresentaram o teste de Trendelenburg positivo e discrepĂąncia de membros, o que levou Ă  marcha claudicante em 11 dos 12 pacientes avaliados. Destes, apenas 6 submeteram-se a fisioterapia pĂłs-operatĂłria. CONCLUSÃO: A qualidade de vida e a função pĂłs-operatĂłria de Girdlestone, na população brasileira, ainda necessita ser mais pesquisada, pois estes resultados sĂŁo indicaçÔes do comportamento das variĂĄveis de estudo e nĂŁo podem ser consideradas encerradas.Universidade Federal de SĂŁo Paulo (UNIFESP) Escola Paulista de Medicina Departamento de Ortopedia e TraumatologiaUNIFESP-EPM DOTUNIFESP, EPM, Depto. de Ortopedia e TraumatologiaUNIFESP, EPM DOTSciEL

    Scalable Integration of Solid State Quantum Memories into a Photonic Network

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    Single nitrogen vacancy centers in nanostructured diamond form high quality nodes integrated into low-loss photonic circuitry, enabling on-chip detection and signal manipulation. Pre-selection provides near-unity yield. Long coherence times are demonstrated in integrated nodes

    Role of Physical Activity and Fitness in the Characterization and Prognosis of the Metabolically Healthy Obesity Phenotype: a Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

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    The aims of the present article are to systematically review and meta-analyze the existing evidence on: 1) differences in physical activity (PA), sedentary behavior (SB), cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and muscular strength (MST) between metabolically healthy obesity (MHO) and metabolically unhealthy obesity (MUO); and 2) the prognosis of all-cause mortality and cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality/morbidity in MHO individuals, compared with the best scenario possible, i.e., metabolically healthy normal-weight (MHNW), after adjusting for PA, SB, CRF or MST. Our systematic review identified 67 cross-sectional studies to address aim 1, and 11 longitudinal studies to address aim 2. The major findings and conclusions from the current meta-analysis are: 1) MHO individuals are more active, spend less time in SB, and have a higher level of CRF (yet no differences in MST) than MUO individuals, suggesting that their healthier metabolic profile could be at least partially due to these healthier lifestyle factors and attributes. 2) The meta-analysis of cohort studies which accounted for PA (N = 10 unique cohorts, 100% scored as high-quality) support the notion that MHO individuals have a 24-33% higher risk of all-cause mortality and CVD mortality/morbidity compared to MHNW individuals. This risk was borderline significant/non-significant, independent of the length of the follow-up and lower than that reported in previous meta-analyses in this topic including all type of studies, which could be indicating a modest reduction in the risk estimates as a consequence of accounting for PA. 3) Only one study has examined the role of CRF in the prognosis of MHO individuals. This study suggests that the differences in the risk of all-cause mortality and CVD mortality/morbidity between MHO and MHNW are largely explained by differences in CRF between these two phenotypes

    Height and body-mass index trajectories of school-aged children and adolescents from 1985 to 2019 in 200 countries and territories: a pooled analysis of 2181 population-based studies with 65 million participants

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    Summary Background Comparable global data on health and nutrition of school-aged children and adolescents are scarce. We aimed to estimate age trajectories and time trends in mean height and mean body-mass index (BMI), which measures weight gain beyond what is expected from height gain, for school-aged children and adolescents. Methods For this pooled analysis, we used a database of cardiometabolic risk factors collated by the Non-Communicable Disease Risk Factor Collaboration. We applied a Bayesian hierarchical model to estimate trends from 1985 to 2019 in mean height and mean BMI in 1-year age groups for ages 5–19 years. The model allowed for non-linear changes over time in mean height and mean BMI and for non-linear changes with age of children and adolescents, including periods of rapid growth during adolescence. Findings We pooled data from 2181 population-based studies, with measurements of height and weight in 65 million participants in 200 countries and territories. In 2019, we estimated a difference of 20 cm or higher in mean height of 19-year-old adolescents between countries with the tallest populations (the Netherlands, Montenegro, Estonia, and Bosnia and Herzegovina for boys; and the Netherlands, Montenegro, Denmark, and Iceland for girls) and those with the shortest populations (Timor-Leste, Laos, Solomon Islands, and Papua New Guinea for boys; and Guatemala, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Timor-Leste for girls). In the same year, the difference between the highest mean BMI (in Pacific island countries, Kuwait, Bahrain, The Bahamas, Chile, the USA, and New Zealand for both boys and girls and in South Africa for girls) and lowest mean BMI (in India, Bangladesh, Timor-Leste, Ethiopia, and Chad for boys and girls; and in Japan and Romania for girls) was approximately 9–10 kg/m2. In some countries, children aged 5 years started with healthier height or BMI than the global median and, in some cases, as healthy as the best performing countries, but they became progressively less healthy compared with their comparators as they grew older by not growing as tall (eg, boys in Austria and Barbados, and girls in Belgium and Puerto Rico) or gaining too much weight for their height (eg, girls and boys in Kuwait, Bahrain, Fiji, Jamaica, and Mexico; and girls in South Africa and New Zealand). In other countries, growing children overtook the height of their comparators (eg, Latvia, Czech Republic, Morocco, and Iran) or curbed their weight gain (eg, Italy, France, and Croatia) in late childhood and adolescence. When changes in both height and BMI were considered, girls in South Korea, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and some central Asian countries (eg, Armenia and Azerbaijan), and boys in central and western Europe (eg, Portugal, Denmark, Poland, and Montenegro) had the healthiest changes in anthropometric status over the past 3·5 decades because, compared with children and adolescents in other countries, they had a much larger gain in height than they did in BMI. The unhealthiest changes—gaining too little height, too much weight for their height compared with children in other countries, or both—occurred in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, New Zealand, and the USA for boys and girls; in Malaysia and some Pacific island nations for boys; and in Mexico for girls. Interpretation The height and BMI trajectories over age and time of school-aged children and adolescents are highly variable across countries, which indicates heterogeneous nutritional quality and lifelong health advantages and risks
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