Teaching Statistics with Current and Historical Events: An Analysis of Survivor Data From the Sinking of the HMT Birkenhead, the RMS Titanic, and the Korean Ferry MV Sewol

Citation: Lee, Y., Schumm, W. R., Lockett, L., Newsom, K. C., & Behan, K. (2016). Teaching Statistics with Current and Historical Events: An Analysis of Survivor Data From the Sinking of the HMT Birkenhead, the RMS Titanic, and the Korean Ferry MV Sewol. Comprehensive Psychology, 5, 216522281664790. https://doi.org/10.1177/2165222816647900Statistical examples can feel remote to students, especially if the variables under consideration are ambiguous. However, life or death is not ambiguous but very concrete. Three different historical shipwrecks offer an abundance of ways to demonstrate the relevance and importance of statistics. Here, we discuss statistical outcomes associated with the loss of three ships: the HMT Birkenhead in 1852, the RMS Titanic in 1912, and the Korean ferry MV Sewol in April 2014. These disasters can serve as examples for demonstrating the relevance of statistics to current events. Statistics in these historical events can help students see that the survival rates of different groups of passengers were very different, with medium to large effect sizes. Even if statistical analyses cannot answer all of the questions about why some passengers had higher survival rates than others, they can lead to further productive qualitative or quantitative research into such questions

Neurologic adverse events associated with smallpox vaccination in the United States – response and comment on reporting of headaches as adverse events after smallpox vaccination among military and civilian personnel

BACKGROUND: Accurate reporting of adverse events occurring after vaccination is an important component of determining risk-benefit ratios for vaccinations. Controversy has developed over alleged underreporting of adverse events within U.S. military samples. This report examines the accuracy of adverse event rates recently published for headaches, and examines the issue of underreporting of headaches as a function of civilian or military sources and as a function of passive versus active surveillance. METHODS: A report by Sejvar et al was examined closely for accuracy with respect to the reporting of neurologic adverse events associated with smallpox vaccination in the United States. Rates for headaches were reported by several scholarly sources, in addition to Sejvar et al, permitting a comparison of reporting rates as a function of source and type of surveillance. RESULTS: Several major errors or omissions were identified in Sejvar et al. The count of civilian subjects vaccinated and the totals of both civilians and military personnel vaccinated were reported incorrectly by Sejvar et al. Counts of headaches reported in VAERS were lower (n = 95) for Sejvar et al than for Casey et al (n = 111) even though the former allegedly used 665,000 subjects while the latter used fewer than 40,000 subjects, with both using approximately the same civilian sources. Consequently, rates of nearly 20 neurologic adverse events reported by Sejvar et al were also incorrectly calculated. Underreporting of headaches after smallpox vaccination appears to increase for military samples and for passive adverse event reporting systems. CONCLUSION: Until revised or corrected, the rates of neurologic adverse events after smallpox vaccinated reported by Sejvar et al must be deemed invalid. The concept of determining overall rates of adverse events by combining small civilian samples with large military samples appears to be invalid. Reports of headaches as adverse events after smallpox vaccination appear to be have occurred much less frequently using passive surveillance systems and by members of the U.S. military compared to civilians, especially those employed in healthcare occupations. Such concerns impact risk-benefit ratios associated with vaccines and weigh against making vaccinations mandatory, without informed consent, even among military members. Because of the issues raised here, adverse event rates derived solely or primarily from U.S. Department of Defense reporting systems, especially passive surveillance systems, should not be used, given better alternatives, for making public health policy decisions

Статеві особливості метаболізму міокарда в динаміці розвитку експериментального гіпертиреозу

В экспериментах на половозрелых самцах и самках крыс исследовано активность перекисного окислення липидов, антиоксидантной защиты и энергообразования в динамике развития тироксиновой кардиомиопатии, которую моделировали введением L-тироксина (500 мг/кг, внутрижелудочно, ежедневно). В миокарде желудочков через 5, 10 и 15 дней с начала эксперимента определяли содержание диеновых и триеновых коньюгат (ДК, ТК), ТБК-активных продуктов (ТБК-АП), активность супероксиддисмутазы (СОД), каталазы, глутатионпероксидазы (ГП) и глутатионредуктазы (ГР), сукцинатдегидрогеназы (СДГ), цитохромоксидазы (ЦО). Установили, что гипертироксинемия визывала накопление в миокарде желудочков крыс ДК, ТК и ТБК-АП, что в самок было более существенным, чем у самцов, несмотря на большую активность ГП та ГР. Недостаточная протекторная эффективность ферментов системы глутатиона была результатом значительного угнетения активности СОД и каталазы, что свидетельствовало о существенном накоплении активных форм кислорода. Активность энергообразования в таких условиях уменьшалась, о чем свидетельствовало угнетение активности СДГ, которое было аналогичным в самцов и самок, и ЦО, что было более существенным в самок. Полученные результаты свидетельствуют о том, что развитие тироксиновой кардиомиопатии вызывает существенный метаболический дисбаланс в миокарде желудочков самок крыс, что разрешает ожидать болем интенсивные структурные нарушения.Lipid peroxidation, antioxidant protection and energy production were studied in adult male and female rats with thyroxin cardiomyopathy, which simulated by introduction of L-thyroxine (500 mg / kg, intraperitoneally, daily). In the myocardium of the ventricles after 5, 10 and 15 days from the start of the experiment determined the content of diene and triene conjugate (DC, TC), TBA-active metabolits (TBA-am), activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase, glutathione peroxidase (GP) and glutathione reductase (GR), succinate dehydrogenase (SDH), cytochrome oxidase (CO). Found that hyperthyroxinemia caused accumulation in myocardium of the ventricles DC, TC and TBA-am mostly in females despite the higher activity of GP and GR. Lack of protective effects of glutathione system enzymes resulted from significant inhibition of SOD and catalase, indicating a significant accumulation of reactive species of oxygen. Activity of the energy production in these conditions decreased. That was proved by the inhibition of SDH in myocardium both sex animals and CO mostly in females. We conclude that the development of thyroxin cardiomyopathy causes metabolic disbalance in myocardium of the ventricles mostly in female rats, which can results in more intense structural damage

Impact Factor: outdated artefact or stepping-stone to journal certification?

A review of Garfield's journal impact factor and its specific implementation as the Thomson Reuters Impact Factor reveals several weaknesses in this commonly-used indicator of journal standing. Key limitations include the mismatch between citing and cited documents, the deceptive display of three decimals that belies the real precision, and the absence of confidence intervals. These are minor issues that are easily amended and should be corrected, but more substantive improvements are needed. There are indications that the scientific community seeks and needs better certification of journal procedures to improve the quality of published science. Comprehensive certification of editorial and review procedures could help ensure adequate procedures to detect duplicate and fraudulent submissions.Comment: 25 pages, 12 figures, 6 table

Search for dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks in √s = 13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for weakly interacting massive particle dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks is presented. Final states containing third-generation quarks and miss- ing transverse momentum are considered. The analysis uses 36.1 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at √s = 13 TeV in 2015 and 2016. No significant excess of events above the estimated backgrounds is observed. The results are in- terpreted in the framework of simplified models of spin-0 dark-matter mediators. For colour- neutral spin-0 mediators produced in association with top quarks and decaying into a pair of dark-matter particles, mediator masses below 50 GeV are excluded assuming a dark-matter candidate mass of 1 GeV and unitary couplings. For scalar and pseudoscalar mediators produced in association with bottom quarks, the search sets limits on the production cross- section of 300 times the predicted rate for mediators with masses between 10 and 50 GeV and assuming a dark-matter mass of 1 GeV and unitary coupling. Constraints on colour- charged scalar simplified models are also presented. Assuming a dark-matter particle mass of 35 GeV, mediator particles with mass below 1.1 TeV are excluded for couplings yielding a dark-matter relic density consistent with measurements