The dog that didn’t bark: on the effect of the Great Recession on the surge of secessionism

This paper explores the relationship between the economic turmoil generated by the Great Recession and the increase of secessionism. Some authors have stressed that the Great Recession triggered changes in territorial preferences and, in the context of a conflict between the centre and the periphery, fuelled secessionism as a radical shift of the institutional setup. Nevertheless, other researchers have remarked that a recession may enhance the status quo bias and decrease the likelihood of changes. Our paper aims at contributing to this debate by analysing the case of Catalonia. We use an aggregate and an individual-level empirical design to explore the relationship between the deterioration of the economic situation and the increase of preferences for secession among the Catalan population. The findings from the analysis of our empirical models do not support the hypothesis that the effects of the Great Recession had any significant impact on political preferences in Catalonia.     

The impact of mothers’ earnings on health inputs and infant health

This paper investigates the impact of mothers’ earnings on birth weight and gestational age of infants in the U.S. It also analyzes the impact of earnings on mothers’ consumption of prenatal medical care, and their propensity to smoke and drink during pregnancy. The paper uses census division-year-specific skill-biased technology shocks as an instrument for mothers’ earnings and employs a two-sample instrumental variables strategy. About 14 million records of births between 1989 and 2004 are used from the Natality Detail files along with the CPS Annual Demographic Files from the same period. The results reveal that an increase in weekly earnings prompts an increase in prenatal care of low-skill mothers (those who have at most a high school degree) who are not likely to be on Medicaid, and that earnings have a small positive impact on birth weight and gestational age of the newborns of these mothers. Specifically, if a mother's earnings double, this produces a weight gain of the newborn by about 100 g and an increase in gestational age by 0.7 weeks. An increase in earnings does not influence the health of newborns of high-skill mothers (those with at least some college education). Variations in earnings have no impact on birth weight for mothers who are likely to be on Medicaid.     

The impact of heat waves on children’s health: a systematic review

Young children are thought to be particularly sensitive to heat waves, but relatively less research attention has been paid to this field to date. A systematic review was conducted to elucidate the relationship between heat waves and children’s health. Literature published up to August 2012 were identified using the following MeSH terms and keywords: “heatwave”, “heat wave”, “child health”, “morbidity”, “hospital admission”, “emergency department visit”, “family practice”, “primary health care”, “death” and “mortality”. Of the 628 publications identified, 12 met the selection criteria. The existing literature does not consistently suggest that mortality among children increases significantly during heat waves, even though infants were associated with more heat-related deaths. Exposure to heat waves in the perinatal period may pose a threat to children’s health. Pediatric diseases or conditions associated with heat waves include renal disease, respiratory disease, electrolyte imbalance and fever. Future research should focus on how to develop a consistent definition of a heat wave from a children’s health perspective, identifying the best measure of children’s exposure to heat waves, exploring sensitive outcome measures to quantify the impact of heat waves on children, evaluating the possible impacts of heat waves on children’s birth outcomes, and understanding the differences in vulnerability to heat waves among children of different ages and from different income countries. Projection of the children’s disease burden caused by heat waves under climate change scenarios, and development of effective heat wave mitigation and adaptation strategies that incorporate other child protective health measures, are also strongly recommended.     

The impact of time of day on the gait and balance control of Alzheimer’s patients

Alzheimer’s patients suffer from circadian dysregulation. The aim of this study was to examine the evolution of balance control and gait at different times of the day (11:00, 14:00, 18:00) in order to identify whether Alzheimer’s patients were more likely to fall at certain periods of the day. Spatio-temporal parameters of centre of foot pressure displacements were measured with a force platform and spatio-temporal parameters of walking were evaluated with a gait analysis device. The results highlighted that balance control was worse in the evening and the afternoon than in the morning. Furthermore, the walking speed was faster and support duration, swing duration and cycle duration were shorter in the evening than in the morning and afternoon. The combined analysis of balance control and gait parameters revealed that balance control and walking are concomitantly altered in the evening which increases the fall risk in the evening, in comparison with the morning, for Alzheimer’s patients.     

Latino racial choices: the effects of skin colour and discrimination on Latinos’ and Latinas’ racial self-identifications

Abstract

Are predictions that Hispanics will make up 25 per cent of the US population in 2050 reliable? The authors of this paper argue that these and other predictions are problematic insofar as they do not account for the volatile nature of Latino racial and ethnic identifications. In this light, the authors propose a theoretical framework that can be used to predict Latinos’ and Latinas’ racial choices. This framework is tested using two distinct datasets – the 1989 Latino National Political Survey and the 2002 National Survey of Latinos. The results from the analyses of both of these surveys lend credence to the authors’ claims that Latinas’ and Latinos’ skin colour and experiences of discrimination affect whether people from Latin America and their descendants who live in the US will choose to identify racially as black, white or Latina/o.     

Assessing the impact of fostering on children’s outcomes in Niger

This article measures the impact of fostering on children’s outcomes in Niger. We estimate a simultaneous equations model with three outcomes for children (school attendance, hours of market work and hours of domestic work) and a treatment variable (fostering). Nonlinearity provides identification by functional form of the causal effect of fostering. We further use information on the historical level of community integration of the child’s ethnicity and the relative importance of the ethnicity in the neighborhood to build a plausibly exogenous exclusion restriction in order to correct for the potential endogeneity of fostering. Our results sustain the overall conclusion that fostering has a positive impact on children’s school attendance and hours of domestic work. However, while foster boys and girls are both engaged in longer hours of domestic labor, only foster boys are advantaged in terms of schooling.     

Analysing the impact of communication and public participation on the acceptability of Germany’s Black Forest National Park

For successful management and development of protected areas in general, and national parks (NPs) more specifically, a high acceptance by local residents, interest groups, and policy makers is needed. Communication and participation as influencing factors of acceptability have mostly been analysed for already established NPs. Until today, there is little evidence as to whether communication and participation are relevant factors for gaining acceptance of NPs in their establishing phase. Using survey data regarding Black Forest NP (Germany), our aim is to ascertain how the NP administration’s communication and the participatory opportunities it provided affected the NP’s acceptability before its establishment in 2014, and how acceptability changed thereafter. The main results are: In 2014, half of the local population accepted Black Forest NP; and over the course of five years, this number increased only slightly. Regarding the information provided by the NP administration through different means of communication, almost half of the respondents felt (very) well-informed at both queried times. The public participation process accompanying the NP’s establishing phase was rated as good or very good by roughly one third of the respondents; while another third evaluated it as bad or very bad. The general participation efforts by the NP administration were evaluated mostly critically. However, respondents who showed a positive attitude towards the NP in 2019 were those who felt well-informed, rated the material as informative, the NP’s communication as honest, and the participation process as positive. Respondents were more likely to report a positive change within acceptability if they felt well-informed, had a positive impression of the NP rangers, and rated the general participation efforts as positive. These results are an important step toward better understanding the complexity of attitude formation, and they provide statistical evidence that communication and participation can influence the acceptability of protected areas from their early beginnings. Beyond our results regarding Black Forest NP, we also draw conclusions and recommendation of broader relevance.     

People versus machines: The impact of being in an automatable job on Australian worker’s mental health and life satisfaction

This study explores the effect on mental health and life satisfaction of working in an automatable job. We utilise an Australian panel dataset (HILDA), and take a fixed effects linear regression approach, to relate a person being in automatable work to proxies of their wellbeing. Overall, we find evidence that automatable work has a small, detrimental impact on the mental health and life satisfaction of workers within some industries, particularly those with higher levels of job automation risk, such as manufacturing. Furthermore, we find no strong trends to suggest that any particular demographic group is disproportionately impacted across industries. These findings are robust to a variety of specifications. We also find evidence of adaptation to these effects after one-year tenure on the job, indicating a limited role for firm policy.     

Between the Great War and the Great Depression: preliminary observations on the ‘missing link’ in the history of human stature in Poland

The paper traces the secular trend in stature in Poland in the interwar period. On the basis of individual measuring cards created by military authorities for Krosno and Sarny districts, the author states that the secular trend in stature that started in the mid-1860s continued between the two world wars with the velocity of at least 0.7 cm per decade, i.e. at a similar rate as in the second half of the 19th century. Although regional differences inside the Second Polish Republic were clearly visible, cohorts born during the Great War were able to make up the lost ground in their teens despite the hardships caused by the Great Depression of the 1930s.     

Biomechanism of impact resistance in the woodpecker’s head and its application

The woodpecker does not suffer head/eye impact injuries while drumming on a tree trunk with high acceleration(more than 1000×g) and high frequency.The mechanism that protects the woodpecker’s head has aroused the interest of ornithologists,biologists and scientists in the areas of mechanical engineering,material science and electronics engineering.This article reviews the literature on the biomechanisms and materials responsible for protecting the woodpecker from head impact injury and their applications in engineering and human protection.     

Studying Auxin’s Role in Ectopic Outgrowths’ Development on Leaves of the Arabidopsis thaliana taeniata Mutant

Russian Journal of Developmental Biology - Auxin is an important inductor of organogenesis. During leaf development, local sites with high auxin concentration initiate the formation of leaf...     

The impact of gout on patient’s lives: a study of African-American and Caucasian men and women with gout

Introduction

The aim of this study was to examine the impact of gout on quality of life (QOL) and study differences by gender and race.

Methods

Ten race- and sex-stratified nominal groups were conducted, oversampling for African-Americans and women with gout. Patients presented, discussed, combined and rank-ordered their concerns.

Results

A total of 62 patients with mean age 65.1 years, 60% men, 64% African-American, participated in 10 nominal groups: African-American men (n = 23; 3 groups); African-American women (n = 18; 3 groups); Caucasian men (n = 15; 3 groups); and Caucasian women (n = 6; 1 group). The most frequently cited high-ranked concerns among the ten nominal groups were: (1) effect of gout flare on daily activities (n = 10 groups); (2) work disability (n = 8 groups); (3) severe pain (n = 8 groups); (4) joint swelling and tenderness (n = 6 groups); (5) food restrictions (n = 6 groups); (6) medication related issues (n = 6 groups); (7) dependency on family and others (n = 5 groups); (8) emotional Impact (n = 5 groups); (9) interference with sexual function (n = 4 groups); (10) difficulty with shoes (n = 4 groups); and (11) sleep disruption (n = 4 groups). Compared with men, women ranked the following concerns high more often: problems with shoes (n = 4 versus n = 0 groups); dependency (n = 3 versus n = 2 groups); and joint/limb deformity (n = 2 versus n = 0 group). Compared with Caucasians, African-Americans ranked the following concerns high more often: dietary restrictions (n = 6 versus n = 0 groups); severe pain (n = 6 versus n = 2 groups); gout bringing the day to a “halt” (n = 2 versus n = 0 group); effect on emotional health (n = 4 versus n = 1 groups); and the need for canes/crutches during flares (n = 2 versus n = 0 group).

Conclusions

Gout has a significant impact on a patient’s QOL. Important differences in the impact of gout by gender and race were noted.     

Effect of sleep environment of preschool children on children’s sleep problems and mothers’ mental health

Sleep and Biological Rhythms - We evaluated the sleep environment factors that influence children’s sleep, and the relationship between co-sleeping and parenting stress and parents’...     

The impact of rheumatological disorders on lymphomas and myeloma: a report on risk and survival from the UK’s population-based Haematological Malignancy Research Network

BackgroundAutoimmune inflammatory disease increases the risk of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and marginal zone lymphoma (MZL), but findings for other mature B-cell malignancies are equivocal. Furthermore, it has been suggested that the increase in DLBCL is due to the activated B-cell (ABC) subtype; but data on this, and the impact of inflammatory co-morbidities on survival, are sparse and contradictory.MethodsData are from an established UK population-based cohort. Patients (n = 6834) diagnosed between 01/2009 and 08/2015 are included; DLBCL (n = 1771), myeloma (n = 1760), chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL, n = 1580), MZL (n = 936), and follicular lymphoma (FL, n = 787). Information on rheumatological disorders and deaths was obtained by record-linkage to nationally compiled Hospital Episode Statistics, with age-and sex-matched individuals (n = 68,340) from the same catchment population (˜4 million people) providing the comparator.ResultsSignificantly increased risks for DLBCL (OR = 2.3, 95% CI 1.8–2.8) and MZL (OR = 2.0, 95% CI 1.5–2.7) were found for those with rheumatological disorders; the site distribution of those with/without rheumatological conditions differing for DLBCL (p = 0.007) and MZL (p = 0.002). No increases in risk were observed for the remaining mature B-cell malignancies, and no associations with survival were detected for DLBCL (age-adjusted HR = 1.2, 95% CI 0.9–1.6) or MZL (age-adjusted HR = 1.0, 95% CI 0.6–1.9). Furthermore, whilst our findings provide evidence for an association with rheumatological disease severity for DLBCL, they offer little support for the notion that the association is driven by an increase in the incidence of the ABC subtype.ConclusionOur findings support the hypothesis that the chronic activation and proliferation of specific B-cell populations which characterize autoimmune disease increase the potential for the lymphomagenic events that lead to DLBCL and MZL in both males and females; but have no impact on the development of CLL, FL or MM, or on survival.     

Heritage of the Romantic Philosophy in Post-Linnaean Botany Reichenbach’s Reception of Goethe’s Metamorphosis of Plants as a Methodological and Philosophical Framework

This paper demonstrates the importance of the reception and development of Goethe’s metamorphosis of plants as a methodological and philosophical framework in the history of botanical theories. It proposes a focus on the textbooks written by the German botanist Ludwig Reichenbach and his first attempt to use Goethe’s idea of metamorphosis of plants as fundamental to his natural system of plants published under the title ‘Botany for Women’, in German Botanik für Damen (1828). In this book, Reichenbach paid particular attention to Goethe’s sensitive views on the essence of nature; he regarded Goethe’s idea of metamorphosis in the plant kingdom as an ideal model to interpret connections of natural phenomena, in particular as a conceptual frame for a natural system. Furthermore, he aimed to develop the philosophical statement of the metamorphosis, in which he called for nature-philosophical conceptions in order to materialize his representation of plant “affinities,” and of a kind of “ontogeny” of the whole plant kingdom. This paper demonstrates that, between speculative views and empirical attempts, the extent to which Reichenbach actually belonged to a new “school” of thought, which left its mark on the history and philosophy of botany.     

Incidence and severity of injuries among juvenile crown-of-thorns starfish on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef

Coral Reefs - Outbreaks of crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster spp.) represent a major threat to coral reef ecosystems throughout the Indo-Pacific, and there is significant interest in whether...     

Process-oriented training in breastfeeding for health professionals decreases women’s experiences of breastfeeding challenges

Background

The World Health Organization recommends promoting exclusive breastfeeding for six months. Women often end breastfeeding earlier than planned, however women who continue to breastfeed despite problems often experience good support and counselling from health professionals. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of a process-oriented training in breastfeeding support counselling for midwives and child health nurses, on women’s satisfaction with breastfeeding counselling, problems with insufficient breast milk and nipple pain in relation to exclusive breastfeeding shorter or longer than 3 months.

Methods

An intervention through process-oriented training for health professionals regarding support in childbearing and breastfeeding took part in the south west of Sweden. This study was conducted in Sweden, in 2000 - 2003. Ten municipalities were paired, and within each pair, one was randomly assigned to the group of five intervention (IG) municipalities and one to the group of five control municipalities. Primiparas (n?=?540) were invited to participate in a longitudinal study to evaluate the care they received. A survey was distributed at 3 days, 3 months and 9 months postpartum. Data collection for control group A (n?=?162) started before the intervention was initiated. Data for control group B (n?=?172) were collected simultaneously with the intervention group (IG) (n?=?206). Women were also divided into two groups depending on whether they exclusive breastfed?<?3 months or?≥?3 months.

Results

Women in IG were more satisfied with the breastfeeding counselling (p?=?0.008) and felt the breastfeeding counselling was more coherent (p?=?0.002) compared to control groups, when exclusive breastfeeding was?<?3 months. In addition fewer women in the IG, among the group exclusively breastfeeding?<?3 months, had problems with insufficient breast milk compared to the control groups (p?=?0.01).

Conclusion

A process-oriented training for health professionals in support influenced women’s ability to solve breastfeeding problems such as the experience of insufficient breast milk production. Women with exclusive breastfeeding lasting?≥?3 months more often had breastfeeding duration in line with their planned breastfeeding duration, compared to women who had breastfeeding duration?<?3 months.

Trial registration

ACTRN12611000354987

     

Impact of Dental Atmosphere and Behaviour of the Dentist on Children’s Cooperation

During dental treatment children are usually under psychological pressure. With the Sarnat Behaviour Score five different types of patients can be distinguished. There is no method that measures the impact of dental atmosphere and dentist's behaviour on the young patients' readiness to cooperate. The objective of the present study was the implementation and evaluation of a questionnaire on this subject. Eighty-eight patients participated in this study. In the first part of the new questionnaire personal information was collected. The second part consists of 43 items and investigates the relationship between dentist and patient and reflects the atmosphere of the environment. Statistical analysis was performed using the Chi-square test. There were statistically significant differences between the cooperative and non-cooperative group, as regards the perceived honesty of the dentist, the ability to explain and wish to help. Uncooperative children are significantly more often afraid of the dental environment. Sympathy alone has only a minor effect on children's cooperation. Children should be treated with empathy. Especially younger patients appreciate detailed explanations by the dentist. Children's non-cooperative behaviour results often from their aroused interest in the unknown environment, which causes an unpleasant perception of the whole setting.