229 research outputs found
The genealogy of a book collection: an early history of the Cavendish familyâs book collection, 1599-1811
This article analyses the early modern book collecting activities of
the Devonshire branch of the Cavendish family as an example of
elite cultural capital accumulation across multiple generations. The
detailed records of seventeenth-century book collection by the
first, second and third Earls of Devonshire and their librariantutor
Thomas Hobbes (1588â1679), demonstrate the development
of the collection at Hardwick Hall as a resource for investment
information, political news, scholarly activity and childrenâs education.
The family tradition was continued by the first Duke of
Devonshire (1640â1707) who shifted the base of collection to
Chatsworth House, and the bibliophile second Duke (1673â1729)
who expended vast amounts on works using an array of London
booksellers; as did the third Earl of Burlington (1694â1753), and
the Duchess Georgiana Cavendish (1757â1806) thereafter. These
collections were amalgamated at Chatsworth by the sixth Duke of
Devonshire at the start of the nineteenth century, where this
account concludes
University of North Florida Environmental Center Annual Report 2020
2020 Annual Report of the Environmental Center at the University of North Floridahttps://digitalcommons.unf.edu/ecenter_annual/1008/thumbnail.jp
IERE Annual Report 2022
2022 Annual Report of the Institute for Environmental Research and Educationhttps://digitalcommons.unf.edu/ecenter_annual/1009/thumbnail.jp
Rethinking âdemocratic backslidingâ in Central and Eastern Europe â looking beyond Hungary and Poland
This essay introduces contributions to a special issue of East European Politics on âRethinking democratic backsliding in Central and Eastern Europeâ, which seeks to expand the study of democratic regression in CEE beyond the paradigmatic cases of Hungary and Poland. Reviewing these contributions, we identify several directions for research: 1) the need to critique âdemocratic backslidingâ, not simply as a label, but also as an assumed regional trend; 2) a need to better integrate the role of illiberal socio-economic structures such as oligarchical structures or corrupt networks; and 3) a need to (re-)examine the trade-offs between democratic stability and democratic quality. We also note how insights developed researching post-communist regions such as Western Balkans or the post-Soviet space could usefully inform work on CEE backsliding. We conclude by calling for the study of CEE democracy to become more genuinely interdisciplinary, moving beyond some narrowly institutionalist comparative political science assumptions
Testosterone Is Associated with Erectile Dysfunction: A Cross-Sectional Study in Chinese Men
Testosterone is essential for the regulation of erectile physiology, but the relationship between low testosterone and erectile dysfunction (ED) has not been firmly established.To examine the association between serum total, free and bio-available testosterone and ED in a population-based sample.A consecutive series of 1776 men aged 20â77 participated in the routine physical examination from September 2009 to December 2009 in Guangxi, China. ED was assessed using the five-item International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5) questionnaire. Total testosterone (TT), sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) and other biochemical profiles were measured. Free testosterone (FT) and bio-available testosterone (BT) were calculated based on Vermeulenâs formula. Data were collected with regard to smoking, alcoholic drinking, physical activity and metabolic syndrome.The prevalence of ED (IIEF-5<22) was 47.6%. Men with ED were significantly older, and more prone to smoke cigarettes (â„20 cigarettes/day) or drink alcohol (â„3 drinks/week), and more likely to have elevated blood pressure (Pâ=â0.036) or hyperglycemia (P<0.001) compared with those without ED. The significant increase in SHBG with age was parallel to its increase with increasing severity of ED (P<0.001). The obscure increase in TT across the ED status was detected without significance (Pâ=â0.418), but TT was positively associated with ED after adjustment for age [odds ratio (OR) â=â1.02, 95% CI (confidence internal): 1.00â1.04]. FT and BT were inversely associated with ED (ORâ=â0.14, 95%CI: 0.06â0.33; ORâ=â0.92 (95%CI: 0.89â0.96, respectively) in the univariate analysis, and this inverse association appeared to be independent of smoking status, alcoholic drinking, physical activity, hyper-triglyceridemia and hyperglycemia.FT and BT are inversely related to worsening ED, whereas the positive association between TT and ED is most likely due to the increase in SHBG
Exposure to Concentrated Coarse Air Pollution Particles Causes Mild Cardiopulmonary Effects in Healthy Young Adults
Background: There is ample epidemiologic and toxicologic evidence that exposure to fine particulate matter (PM) air pollution [aerodynamic diameter Ăąâ°Â€ 2.5 ĂÂŒm (PM2.5)], which derives primarily from combustion processes, can result in increased mortality and morbidity. There is ess certainty as to the contribution of coarse PM (PM2.5ĂąâŹâ10), which erives from crustal materials and from mechanical processes, to mortality and morbidity. Objective: To determine whether coarse PM causes cardiopulmonary effects, we exposed 14 healthy young volunteers to coarse concentrated ambient particles (CAPs) and filtered air. Coarse PM concentration averaged 89.0 ĂÂŒg/m3 (range, 23.7ĂąâŹâ159.6 ĂÂŒg/m3). Volunteers were exposed to coarse CAPs and filtered air for 2 hr while they underwent intermittent exercise in a single-blind, crossover study. We measured pulmonary, cardiac, and hematologic end points before exposure, immediately after exposure, and again 20 hr after exposure.
Results: Compared with filtered air exposure, coarse CAP exposure produced a small increase in polymorphonuclear neutrophils in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid 20 hr postexposure, indicating mild pulmonary inflammation. We observed no changes in pulmonary function. Blood tissue plasminogen activator, which is involved in fibrinolysis, was decreased 20 hr after exposure. The standard deviation of normal-to-normal intervals (SDNN), a measure of overall heart rate variability, also decreased 20 hr after exposure to CAPs.
Conclusions: Coarse CAP exposure produces a mild physiologic response in healthy young volunteers approximately 20 hr postexposure. These changes are similar in scope and magnitude to changes we and others have previously reported for volunteers exposed to fine CAPs, suggesting that both size fractions are comparable at inducing cardiopulmonary changes in acute exposure settings. Originally published Environmental Health Perspectives, Vol. 117, No. 7, July 200
Recent in vitro findings of negative inotropy of pantoprazole did not translate into clinically relevant effects on left ventricular function in healthy volunteers
Detection of human parvovirus B19 in papillary thyroid carcinoma
To evaluate whether parvovirus B19, a common human pathogen, was also involved in papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC), 112 paraffin-embedded thyroid specimens of benign nodules, papillary, medullary and follicular carcinomas, and normal controls were examined for B19 DNA and capsid protein by nested PCR, in situ hybridisation (ISH) and immunohistochemistry (IHC). The expression of the nuclear factor-ÎșB (NF-ÎșB) was investigated by IHC. The results showed B19 DNA commonly exists in human thyroid tissues; however, there were significant differences between PTC group and normal controls, and between PTC and nonneoplastic adjacent tissues (P<0.001). The presence of viral DNA in PTC neoplastic epithelium was confirmed by laser-capture microdissection and sequencing of nested PCR products. B19 capsid protein in PTC group was significantly higher than that of all the control groups and nonneoplastic adjacent tissues (Pâ©œ0.001). Compared with control groups, the activation of NF-ÎșB in PTC group was significantly increased (Pâ©œ0.02), except for medullary carcinomas, and the activation of NF-ÎșB was correlated with the viral protein presence (P=0.002). Moreover, NF-ÎșB was colocalised with B19 DNA in the neoplastic epithelium of PTC by double staining of IHC and ISH. These results indicate for the first time a possible role of B19 in pathogenesis of PTC
- âŠ