The Effect of Historical Narratives and Flag Type

This research will examine the effect of mainstream or marginalized historical narratives and the Confederate or American flag on temporal distancing, patriotism, perception of injustice, and assimilationist national identity. We expect that participants exposed to marginalized narratives will indicate higher perceived distance, especially when exposed to the Confederate flag. We expect that participants exposed to mainstream narratives will be highest on blind patriotism, especially when exposed to the American flag. We expect that participants in the American flag marginalized narrative condition would perceive the most racism and would reject more assimilationist conceptions of national identity. For the dependent measures of patriotism, perception of injustice, and national identity, we expect to find differences within the Confederate flag condition according to the meaning participants associate with the Confederate flag. These results will help us understand how people may respond to threatening narratives, how flag exposure may impact that response, and how historical narratives or flags can be presented to increase social justice awareness

Clinical assessment of retinal changes by spectral-domain OCT.

Purpose: To evaluate optical coherence tomography changes in patients with retinal thinning at the posterior pole. Methods: In this cross-sectional and retrospective study, 648 files were reviewed, and 67 patients were selected. Optical coherence tomography images that showed an area with a retinal thickness reduction at the macular region by using the Asymmetry Analysis Map in Heidelberg Spectralis were selected. The presence of hemisphere asymmetry in the same eye and asymmetry between the paired eyes were calculated and used for the analysis. Retinal thickness was measured in 3 different retinal areas (squares): (1) the area (square) involved by the pathology (IA), (2) the specular area (square) in the opposite hemifield (SA), and (3) the corresponding IA in the contralateral eye (CIA) (area used to recruit the patients). Retinal layer morphology was analyzed observing the Spectralis screen. Results: The thickness of the IA was 235.54 \ub1 39.95 \u3bcm (mean \ub1 standard deviation), while it was 269.84 \ub1 36.16 \u3bcm and 293.81 \ub1 37.52 \u3bcm for SA and CIA, respectively. Conclusions: Different retinal layers could be involved in reduction of the retinal thickness: a reduction of the inner layers was related to disease in which ciliary or retinal arterial vessel flow was involved, while a reduction of the outer retinal layer was related to pathologies related to choroidal flow diseases

Comment on ‘The latency period of mesothelioma among a cohort of British asbestos workers (1978–2005)': the effect of left censoring

none4noWe read with extreme interest the article by Frost on mesothelioma latency period among asbestos workers (Frost, 2013). Despite the main aim of the study being to investigate ‘the determinants of mesothelioma latency among a cohort of asbestos workers, paying particular attention to indicators of intensity of asbestos exposure’ (Frost, 2013), the reported lack of evidence of an association between duration of exposure and latency attracted some attention. Commenters argued that right censoring occurring in the underlying cohort could have biased an analysis restricted to cases (Consonni et al, 2014; Mirabelli and Zugna, 2014).openFarioli, A; Mattioli, S; Curti, S; Violante, F SFarioli, A; Mattioli, S; Curti, S; Violante, F

Light scattering from a rough metal surface: theory and experiment

There is still great interest in the determination of microtopographic properties of rough metallic surfaces from light scattering measurements. According to Beckmann–Kirchhoff theory a clear relationship is established between the in-plane angular scattered light intensity and the statistical properties of the surface. We discuss one way to invert this relationship, and we introduce a new iterative procedure to retrieve the height autocorrelation function even for a very rough metallic surface (rms surface roughness of the same order of the optical wavelength). The procedure is eventually applied to the experimental data of a known metallic surface for validation

Italy's health performance, 1990-2017: findings from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017

BACKGROUND: Through a comprehensive analysis of Italy's estimates from the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2017, we aimed to understand the patterns of health loss and response of the health-care system, and offer evidence-based policy indications in light of the demographic transition and government health spending in the country. METHODS: Estimates for Italy were extracted from GBD 2017. Data on Italy are presented for 1990 and 2017, on prevalence, causes of death, years of life lost, years lived with disability, disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs), life expectancy at birth and at age 65 years, healthy life expectancy, and Healthcare Access and Quality (HAQ) Index. We compared the estimates for Italy with those of 15 other western European countries. FINDINGS: The quality of the universal health system and healthy behaviours contribute to favourable overall health, even in comparison with other western European countries. In 2017, life expectancy and HAQ Index score in Italy were among the highest globally, with life expectancy at birth reaching 85·3 years for females and 80·8 for males in 2017, ranking Italy eighth globally for females and sixth for males, and an HAQ Index score of 94·9 in 2016 compared with 81·54 in 1990, keeping Italy ranked as ninth globally. Between 1990 and 2017 age-standardised death rates for cardiovascular diseases decreased by 53·7% (95% uncertainty interval -56·1 to -51·4), for neoplasms decreased by 28·2% (-32·3 to -24·6), and for transport injuries decreased by 62·1% (-64·6 to -59·2). However, population ageing is causing an increase in the burden of specific diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease and other dementias (DALYs increased by 77·9% [68·4 to 87·2]) and pancreatic (DALYs increased by 39·7% [28·4 to 51·7]) and uterine cancers (DALYs increased by 164·7% [129·7 to 202·5]). Behavioural risk factors, which are potentially modifiable, still have a strong effect, particularly on cardiovascular diseases and neoplasms. For instance, in 2017, 44 400 (41 200 to 47 800) cancer deaths were attributed to smoking, 12 000 (9600 to 14 800) to alcohol use, and 9500 (5400 to 14 200) to high body-mass index, while 47 000 (31 100 to 65 700) deaths due to cardiovascular diseases could be attributed to high LDL cholesterol, 28 700 (19 700 to 38 500) to diets low in whole grains, and 15 900 (8500 to 24 900) to low physical activity. INTERPRETATION: Italy provides an interesting example of the results that can be achieved by a mix of relatively healthy lifestyles and a universal health system. Two main issues require attention, population ageing and gradual decrease of public health financing, which both pose several challenges to the future of Italy's health status. Our findings should be useful to Italy's policy makers and health system experts elsewhere. FUNDING: Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Flood Historical Data for Flood Risk Estimation in Coastal Areas, Eastern Tyrrhenian Sea, Italy

A reconstruction of historical floods occurred along the Amalfi coast, during the last five 7 centuries is presented. The analysis of historical sources allowed to achieve a chronological 8 reconstruction of more than 100 floods, four of which classified as catastrophic events. In this 9 task, the level of information was decisive to carry out space–time identification, estimate the 10 affected area and define the type of damage to the structures, and the environment (e.g. mud 11 flow, debris flow, rock falls, shoreline progradation, fan deltas), which may be relevant for the 12 recognition of similar events within the geologic record. The magnitude of the events was 13 finally estimated, taking into account the size of the areas affected by flooding as well as the 14 type of effects induced on the urban and physical environment and the recurrence intervals

Quantitative Assessment of Asbestos Fibers in Normal and Pathological Pleural Tissue—A Scoping Review

Background: pleural mesothelioma is a rare cancer in the general population, but it is more common in subjects occupationally exposed to asbestos. Studies with asbestos fiber quantification in pleural tissue are scarce: for this reason, we aimed at undertaking a scoping review to summarize the evidence provided by studies in which asbestos fibers were determined by electron microscopy (SEM or TEM) in human pleural tissues, whether normal or pathologic. Materials and methods: A scoping review of articles that quantified asbestos fibers in human pleural tissue (normal or pathologic) by electron microscopy (SEM or TEM), in subjects with asbestos exposure (if any) was performed. Results: The 12 studies selected comprised 137 cases, out of which 142 samples were analyzed. Asbestos fibers were detected in 111 samples (78%) and were below the detectable limit in 31 samples (22%). The concentration of asbestos fibers detected in the positive samples was distributed from as low as 0.01 mfgdt (millions of fibers per gram of dry tissue) up to 240 mfgdt. However, the minimum concentration of fibers overlaps in the three types of tissues (normal pleura, pleural plaque, mesothelioma) in terms of magnitude; therefore, it is not possible to distinguish a definite pattern which differentiates one tissue from the other. Conclusions: The studies included were heterogeneous as to the representativeness of the samples and analytical techniques; the possibility of false negatives must be considered. It would be desirable to systematically search for asbestos fibers to fill the knowledge gap about the presence of asbestos fibers in normal or pathological pleural tissue in order to better understand the development of the different pleural diseases induced by this mineral

The geological record of storm events over the last 1000 years in the Salerno Bay (Southern Tyrrhenian Sea): new proxy evidences

International audienceThe shallow marine Late Holocene wedge of the northern Salerno Bay shelf (Southern Tyrrhenian Sea) discloses the presence of four decimetric shelf-tapering sand beds. Their internal features, depicted by cores analysis and their stratigraphic position, revealed by VHR seismic investigations, inferred sandy layers as being the result of flash deposition, storm controlled, thus episodic. Stratigraphic correlations among cores lead to constrain sandy layers deposition to storm events falling in the 11th, 16th, 19th and 20th centuries. A certain attribution of the most recent event bed to the major cloudburst that hit the Salerno region in 1954A.D. and resulted in a disastrous flood of the Bonea stream, was formerly achieved. A tentative link with two sea-storms that occurred in the 1544A.D. and in the 1879A.D. and well documented by historical sources is here proposed to explain the deposition of the two previous event beds. The deposition of these sandy layers must be related to major storm events, since their preservation in the stratigraphic record is not common. Lithostratigraphic and textural differences between flood and sea-storm emplacement emerge from the study of sandy layers in cores and point to a prevalence of sea-storm deposits in the middle shelf compared to flood deposits. Seismic stratigraphic evidence lead us to suppose that the style of episodic flash deposition has been running on for the last 2-3kyr and is probably linked to a climatic trend of the region