Parallel Design of a Product and Internet of Things (IoT) Architecture to Minimize the Cost of Utilizing Big Data (BD) for Sustainable Value Creation

Information has become today\u27s addictive currency; hence, companies are investing billions in the creation of Internet of Things (IoT) frameworks that gamble on finding trends that reveal sustainability and/or efficiency improvements. This approach to “Big Data” can lead to blind, astronomical costs. Therefore, this paper presents a counter approach aimed at minimizing the cost of utilizing “Big Data” for sustainable value creation. The proposed approach leverages domain/expert knowledge of the system in combination with a machine learning algorithm in order to limit the needed infrastructure and cost. A case study of the approach implemented in a consumer electronics company is also included

Joint modeling of wind speed and wind direction through a conditional approach

Atmospheric near surface wind speed and wind direction play an important role in many applications, ranging from air quality modeling, building design, wind turbine placement to climate change research. It is therefore crucial to accurately estimate the joint probability distribution of wind speed and direction. In this work we develop a conditional approach to model these two variables, where the joint distribution is decomposed into the product of the marginal distribution of wind direction and the conditional distribution of wind speed given wind direction. To accommodate the circular nature of wind direction a von Mises mixture model is used; the conditional wind speed distribution is modeled as a directional dependent Weibull distribution via a two-stage estimation procedure, consisting of a directional binned Weibull parameter estimation, followed by a harmonic regression to estimate the dependence of the Weibull parameters on wind direction. A Monte Carlo simulation study indicates that our method outperforms an alternative method that uses periodic spline quantile regression in terms of estimation efficiency. We illustrate our method by using the output from a regional climate model to investigate how the joint distribution of wind speed and direction may change under some future climate scenarios.Comment: 29 pages, 15 figure

Association of combination statin and antihypertensive therapy with reduced Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia risk

Background Hyperlipidemia and hypertension are modifiable risk factors for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD). Approximately 25% of adults over age 65 use both antihypertensives (AHTs) and statins for these conditions. While a growing body of evidence found statins and AHTs are independently associated with lower ADRD risk, no evidence exists on simultaneous use for different drug class combinations and ADRD risk. Our primary objective was to compare ADRD risk associated with concurrent use of different combinations of statins and antihypertensives. Methods In a retrospective cohort study (2007-2014), we analyzed 694,672 Medicare beneficiaries in the United States (2,017,786 person-years) who concurrently used both statins and AHTs. Using logistic regression adjusting for age, socioeconomic status and comorbidities, we quantified incident ADRD diagnosis associated with concurrent use of different statin molecules (atorvastatin, pravastatin, rosuvastatin, and simvastatin) and AHT drug classes (two renin-angiotensin system (RAS)-acting AHTs, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) or angiotensin-II receptor blockers (ARBs), vs non-RAS-acting AHTs). Findings Pravastatin or rosuvastatin combined with RAS-acting AHTs reduce risk of ADRD relative to any statin combined with non-RAS-acting AHTs: ACEI+pravastatin odds ratio (OR) = 0.942 (CI: 0.899-0.986, p = 0.011), ACEI+rosuvastatin OR = 0.841 (CI: 0.794-0.892, p< 0.001), ARB+pravastatin OR = 0.794 (CI: 0.748-0.843, p< 0.001), ARB+rosuvastatin OR = 0.818 (CI: 0.765-0.874, p< 0.001). ARBs combined with atorvastatin and simvastatin are associated with smaller reductions in risk, and ACEI with no risk reduction, compared to when combined with pravastatin or rosuvastatin. Among Hispanics, no combination of statins and RAS-acting AHTs reduces risk relative to combinations of statins and non-RAS-acting AHTs. Among blacks using ACEI+rosuvastatin, ADRD odds were 33% lower compared to blacks using other statins combined with non-RAS-acting AHTs (OR = 0.672 (CI: 0.5480.825, p<0.001)). Conclusion Among older Americans, use of pravastatin and rosuvastatin to treat hyperlipidemia is less common than use of simvastatin and atorvastatin, however, in combination with RAS-acting AHTs, particularly ARBs, they may be more effective at reducing risk of ADRD. The number of Americans with ADRD may be reduced with drug treatments for vascular health that also confer effects on ADRD.Open access journalThis item from the UA Faculty Publications collection is made available by the University of Arizona with support from the University of Arizona Libraries. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected]

Action Research: Investigating Educators Feelings About Rubrics

Teacher candidates who worked with small groups of children during a semester long pre-student teaching practicum developed four point rubrics for each of the lesson plans they created on a weekly basis. The scope of this practicum is discussed along with an action research project pertaining to the rubric assessments they utilized. Findings suggest ways this assessment practice might be enhanced in the future

Island resource exploitation by the ancient Maya during periods of climate stress, Ambergris Caye, Belize

Ancient Maya societies experienced a period of reorganisation and change in settlement patterns associated with social and climate instability at the end of the Classic period (750-1000 CE) and the subsequent Postclassic period (1200-1500 CE). Although it has been proposed that severe droughts and the breakdown of Classic political systems caused a migration of populations towards the coast, we have little evidence of the nature of land-use at coastal sites. Our understanding of subsistence on islands has been shaped by archaeological research indicating marine-based diets, with maize imported from the mainland. Here we provide, for the first time, palaeoecological proxy data that inform on ancient Maya land-use on an island site, located on Ambergris Caye, Belize. Using pollen and charcoal proxies, we present over 6000 years of environmental change and land-use history. Our reconstruction reveals evidence of cultivation, beginning at 2900 BCE and culminating during the Postclassic Period. We demonstrate that periods of higher land-use intensity correlate with climate instability, which corroborates archaeological evidence of migration to coastal locations. We hypothesize that the diverse marine and terrestrial environments of the island provided sustainable resources for the mainland Maya to use during times of both political and climatic stress

Klotho pathways, myelination disorders, neurodegenerative diseases, and epigenetic drugs

In this review we outline a rationale for identifying neuroprotectants aimed at inducing endogenous Klotho activity and expression, which is epigenetic action, by definition. Such an approach should promote remyelination and/or stimulate myelin repair by acting on mitochondrial function, thereby heralding a life-saving path forward for patients suffering from neuroinflammatory diseases. Disorders of myelin in the nervous system damage the transmission of signals, resulting in loss of vision, motion, sensation, and other functions depending on the affected nerves, currently with no effective treatment. Klotho genes and their single-pass transmembrane Klotho proteins are powerful governors of the threads of life and death, true to the origin of their name, Fates, in Greek mythology. Among its many important functions, Klotho is an obligatory co-receptor that binds, activates, and/or potentiates critical fibroblast growth factor activity. Since the discovery of Klotho a little over two decades ago, it has become ever more apparent that when Klotho pathways go awry, oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction take over, and age-related chronic disorders are likely to follow. The physiological consequences can be wide ranging, potentially wreaking havoc on the brain, eye, kidney, muscle, and more. Central nervous system disorders, neurodegenerative in nature, and especially those affecting the myelin sheath, represent worthy targets for advancing therapies that act upon Klotho pathways. Current drugs for these diseases, even therapeutics that are disease modifying rather than treating only the symptoms, leave much room for improvement. It is thus no wonder that this topic has caught the attention of biomedical researchers around the world.https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/biores.2020.0004Published versio

The association of multiple anti-hypertensive medication classes with Alzheimer’s disease incidence across sex, race, and ethnicity

<div><p>Background</p><p>Antihypertensive treatments have been shown to reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The renin-angiotensin system (RAS) has been implicated in AD, and thus RAS-acting AHTs (angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs), and angiotensin-II receptor blockers (ARBs)) may offer differential and additional protective benefits against AD compared with other AHTs, in addition to hypertension management.</p><p>Methods</p><p>In a retrospective cohort design, we examined the medical and pharmacy claims of a 20% sample of Medicare beneficiaries from 2007 to 2013, and compared rates of AD diagnosis for 1,343,334 users of six different AHT drug treatments, 65 years of age or older (4,215,338 person-years). We compared AD risk between RAS and non-RAS AHT drug users, and between ACEI users and ARB users, by sex and race/ethnicity. Models adjusted for age, socioeconomic status, underlying health, and comorbidities.</p><p>Findings</p><p>RAS-acting AHTs were slightly more protective against onset of AD than non-RAS-acting AHTs for males, (male OR = 0.931 (CI: 0.895–0.969)), but not so for females (female OR = 0.985 (CI: 0.963–1.007)). Relative to other AHTs, ARBs were superior to ACEIs for both men (male ARB OR = 0.834 (CI: 0.788–0.884); male ACEI OR = 0.978 (CI: 0.939–1.019)) and women (female ARB OR = 0.941 (CI: 0.913–0.969); female ACEI OR = 1.022 (CI: 0.997–1.048)), but only in white men and white and black women. No association was shown for Hispanic men and women.</p><p>Conclusion</p><p>Hypertension management treatments that include RAS-acting ARBs may, in addition to lowering blood pressure, reduce AD risk, particularly for white and black women and white men. Additional studies and clinical trials that include men and women from different racial and ethnic groups are needed to confirm these findings. Understanding the potentially beneficial effects of certain RAS-acting AHTs in high-risk populations is of great importance.</p></div

Maternal Dietary Patterns during Pregnancy Are Associated with Child Growth in the First 3 Years of Life

Background: Child obesity is a major problem in the United States. Identifying early-life risk factors is necessary for prevention. Maternal diet during pregnancy is a primary source of fetal energy and might influence risk of child obesity

Maternal Dietary Patterns are Associated with Lower Levels of Cardiometabolic Markers during Pregnancy

Elevated levels of cardiometabolic markers are characteristic of normal pregnancy; however, insulin resistance and increased glucose, triglyceride, and cholesterol levels can adversely influence maternal and child health. Diet is a modifiable behavior that could have significant impact on maternal cardiometabolic levels during pregnancy. We investigated the association between dietary patterns and cardiometabolic markers (glucose, insulin, insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), triglycerides, and cholesterol) during pregnancy