New insights into the effects on blood pressure of diets low in salt and high in fruits and vegetables and low-fat dairy products

Results from the recent Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH)-Sodium trial provide the latest evidence concerning the effects of dietary patterns and sodium intake on blood pressure. Participants ate either the DASH diet (high in fruits, vegetables and low-fat dairy products, and reduced in saturated and total fat) or a typical US diet. Within each diet arm, participants ate higher, intermediate, and lower sodium levels, each for 30 days. The results indicated lower blood pressure with lower sodium intake for both diet groups. Although some critics would argue otherwise, these findings provide important new evidence for the value of the DASH diet and sodium reduction in controlling blood pressure

Prevalence of COPD in Iceland-the ISOLD study

Neðst á síðunni er hægt að nálgast greinina í heild sinni með því að smella á hlekkinn View/OpenOBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Iceland and possible risk factors. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This Icelandic survey is a part of an international study (www.BOLDCOPD.org). The target population consisted of a simple random sample taken among all non-institutionalized Icelanders 40 years and older living in Reykjavik and adjacent suburbs (n=938). Participants were subjected to a structured interview based on questionnaires on respiratory diseases, symptoms, life style and possible risk factors. They also underwent a spirometry that was repeated after inhalation of a bronchodilating agent. COPD stage I, or higher, was defined according to the GOLD staging (www.goldcopd.org) based on chronic airflow limitation (FEV1/FVC 70%) persisting after inhaled bronchodilator. RESULTS: Full participation was by 755 (80.5%). Altogether 18.0 % of the participants fulfilled criteria for COPD, GOLD stage I or higher and 9.0 % for GOLD stage II or higher. There were proportionally more young females (40-49 years) than males diagnosed with COPD GOLD stage I or higher (8.1% compared to 4.8%), even though there was no difference in total prevalence between males and females. The prevalence of COPD increased with increasing age and the amount of tobacco smoked. Only a part of those fulfilling criteria for COPD had been diagnosed by doctors. CONCLUSION: Our results show a high prevalence of COPD among Icelanders 40 years and older when internationally accepted criteria and methods are used. These results are useful for heath authorities when planning and giving priority in our future health care system.Tilgangur: Markmið rannsóknarinnar var að kanna algengi og mögulega áhrifaþætti langvinnrar lungnateppu meðal Íslendinga á höfuðborgarsvæðinu. Efniviður og aðferðir: Um er að ræða hluta af fjölþjóðarannsókn (www.BOLDCOPD.org) þar sem val á efnivið og aðferðir eru staðlaðar. Rannsóknarhópurinn var slembiúrtak þeirra Íslendinga á höfuðborgarsvæðinu sem voru 40 ára og eldri og voru ekki á stofnun (n=938). Þátttakendur svöruðu stöðluðum spurningarlistum um öndunarfæraeinkenni, lífsstíl og áhættuþætti. Gert var blásturspróf sem varð að uppfylla strangar gæðakröfur og var það endurtekið eftir gjöf berkjuvíkkandi lyfs. Lungnateppustig I eða hærra samkvæmt skilgreiningu GOLD var skilgreint samkvæmt alþjóðaviðmiðun ef teppa var á blástursprófi (FEV1/FVC <70%). Niðurstöður: Þátttakendur voru alls 755 (80,5%). Reyndist 18,0 % með stig I af eða hærra, en þar af voru 9,0 % með stig II eða hærra. Hlutfallslega voru mun fleiri ungar (40-49 ára) konur en karlar sem voru með langvinna lungnateppu (8,1% á móti 4.8%), en ekki var munur á heildaralgengi karla og kvenna. Algengi fór vaxandi með hækkandi aldri og umfangi tóbaksreykinga. Aðeins hluti þeirra sem uppfylltu skilmerki höfðu áður greinst með sjúkdóminn. Ályktun: Niðurstöður okkar sýna háa tíðni langvinnrar lungnateppu meðal Íslendinga 40 ára og eldri þegar fylgt er alþjóðlega viðurkenndum og samræmdum vísindavinnubrögðum. Upplýsingarnar geta nýst heilbrigðisyfirvöldum til þess að forgangsraða verkefnum í heilbrigðisþjónust

NLDAS Views of North American 2011 Extreme Events

2011 was marked as one of the most extreme years in recent history. Over the course of the year, weather-related extreme events, such as floods, heat waves, blizzards, tornadoes, and wildfires, caused tremendous loss of human life and property. The North American Land Data Assimilation System (NLDAS, http://ldas.gsfc.nasa.gov/nldas/) data set, with high spatial and temporal resolutions (0.125? x 0.125?, hourly) and various water- and energy-related variables, is an excellent data source for case studies of extreme events. This presentation illustrates some extreme events from 2011 in North America, including the Groundhog Day Blizzard, the July heat wave, Hurricane Irene, and Tropical Storm Lee, all utilizing NLDAS Phase 2 (NLDAS-2) data

Enabling NLDAS-2 Anomaly Analysis Using Giovanni

A newly implemented feature in Giovanni (GES DISC Interactive Online Visualization and Analysis Interface) allows users to explore and visualize anomaly data from the NLDAS-2 Primary Forcing and Noah model data sets. For a given measurement and location, an anomaly describes how conditions for a particular time period compare to normal conditions, based on long-term averages. Analyzing anomalies is important for monitoring droughts, determining weather trends, and studying land surface processes relevant for meteorology, hydrology, and climate. Using Giovanni to analyze anomalies for NLDAS-2 data allows for these studies to be efficiently conducted for the central North American region. Phase 2 of NLDAS (NLDAS-2) currently runs at an 1/8th degree resolution, in near-real time, with data sets extending back to January 1979. NLDAS-2 provides data for soil moisture, precipitation, temperature, and other hydrology measurements. Hourly, monthly, and 30-year (1980-2009) monthly climatology data are available for several land surface models and forcing data sets. The Giovanni anomaly tool calculates monthly anomalies, for a given user-defined variable, as the difference between the NLDAS-2 monthly climatology data and the monthly data. The resulting anomaly describes how a chosen month compares to the 30-year monthly average. The presentation will demonstrate the capabilities and usefulness of Giovanni's anomaly tool, detail the recently added NLDAS-2 variables for which anomalies are available, and show how users can access the data

NASA GLDAS Evapotranspiration Data and Climatology

Evapotranspiration (ET) is the water lost to the atmosphere by evaporation and transpiration. ET is a shared component in the energy and water budget, therefore, a critical variable for global energy and water cycle and climate change studies. However, direct ET measurements and data acquisition are difficult and expensive, especially at the global level. Therefore, modeling is one common alternative for estimating ET. With the goal to generate optimal fields of land surface states and fluxes, the Global Land Data Assimilation System (GLDAS) has been generating quality-controlled, spatially and temporally consistent, terrestrial hydrologic data, including ET and other variables that affect evaporation and transpiration, such as temperature, precipitation, humidity, wind, soil moisture, heat flux, and solar radiation. This poster presents the long-term ET climatology (mean and monthly), derived from the 61-year GLDAS-2 monthly 1.0 deg x 1.0 deg. NOAH model Experiment-1 data, and describes the basic characteristics of spatial and seasonal variations of the climatology. The time series of GLDAS-2 precipitation and radiation, and ET are also discussed to show the improvement of GLDAS-2 forcing data and model output over those from GLDAS-1

Sublogarithmic uniform Boolean proof nets

Using a proofs-as-programs correspondence, Terui was able to compare two models of parallel computation: Boolean circuits and proof nets for multiplicative linear logic. Mogbil et. al. gave a logspace translation allowing us to compare their computational power as uniform complexity classes. This paper presents a novel translation in AC0 and focuses on a simpler restricted notion of uniform Boolean proof nets. We can then encode constant-depth circuits and compare complexity classes below logspace, which were out of reach with the previous translations.Comment: In Proceedings DICE 2011, arXiv:1201.034

New and Improved GLDAS Data Sets and Data Services at NASA GES DISC

The goal of a Land Data Assimilation System (LDAS) is to ingest satellite- and ground-based observational data products, using advanced land surface modeling and data assimilation techniques, in order to generate optimal fields of land surface states and fluxes data and, thereby, facilitate hydrology and climate modeling, research, and forecast. With the motivation of creating more climatologically consistent data sets, NASA GSFC's Hydrological Sciences Laboratory has generated more than 60 years (Jan. 1948-- Dec. 2008) of Global LDAS Version 2 (GLDAS-2) data, by using the Princeton Forcing Data Set and upgraded versions of Land Surface Models (LSMs). GLDAS data and data services are provided at NASA GES DISC Hydrology Data and Information Services Center (HDISC), in collaboration with HSL and LDAS

Building partnerships to scale up conservation: 4R Nutrient Stewardship Certification Program in the Lake Erie watershed

AbstractHarmful algal blooms in the Western Lake Erie Basin (WLEB) can be considered a wicked problem—there are conflicting interpretations of the problem and science, stakeholders have different values and goals, and there is no definitive solution. This paper provides an overview and lessons learned of how one set of diverse stakeholders worked together to initiate a voluntary 4R Nutrient Stewardship Certification Program to address the wicked problem in the WLEB. 4R Nutrient Stewardship (Right rate, Right time, Right place, and Right source) provides the foundation for a science-based framework that achieves sustainable plant nutrition management while considering the environment, society, and economics. The 4R Certification Program ensures a third-party auditor objectively evaluates the nutrient service providers' implementation of the 41 criteria of the program that encompass education, recordkeeping, nutrient recommendations, and applications. While the environmental impact of 4R Certification Program adoption is being evaluated currently, implementing the 4Rs has been identified as a key step to improving water quality. In two years, the 4R Certification Program has influenced nearly 40% of WLEB's farmland through the 30 4R certified providers. While any single organization could have created a nutrient management program, it would not have been as robust, as practical, or as accepted as the one created by the broad group of stakeholders involved with the WLEB 4R Advisory Committee. The rigor, structure, governance, and credibility of the 4R Certification Program make it a top candidate to act in other regions with wicked problems related to nutrient management