Caring for Creation: The Evangelical’s Guide

The Everyday Lives of Young Children: Culture, Class, and Child Rearing in Diverse Societies. Jonathan Tudge. New York: Cambridge University Press. 2008. 328 pp. ISBN 9780521803847. $85.00 (cloth). Anthropologists have a long tradition of immersing readers in the flavors and textures of various cultures through detailed accounts of their time spent observing, listening, and talking to family members all over the world. Jonathan Tudge's The Everyday Lives of Young Children: Culture, Class, and Child Rearing in Diverse Societies (2008) is a nod to this tradition, though, as a developmental psychologist, Tudge introduces some interesting bifurcations from traditional approaches to studying culture. First, the family members at the center of Tudge's research are generally shorter, more prone to napping, and less inhibited than the typical subjects of ethnographic work. Thus insights into values, beliefs, and practices are granted by a dedicated focus on how young children are socialized into a given society's ways of being and doing. Tudge takes us one step further by considering how young children themselves shape and change their own cultures. This is a brilliant departure from classic studies of cultural transmission that frame children as culture bearers. Second, the cultural-ecological theory guiding Tudge's research, and inspired by Vygotsky and Bronfenbrenner, brings many layers of analysis, including psychological, sociological, historical, and anthropological. This multiplicity of lenses is one of the primary characteristics that makes Tudge's work stand out among studies of young children and marks the book as a breakthrough contribution. The multidisciplinary nature of the work also invites readers to consider culture (what it is, what it means for our lives, how it changes) in all of its complexity and fluidity, and presents interesting possibilities for studying education, urbanicity, and childrearing as shaped by - and as they shape - culture. Third, this work pushes the boundaries of research typically classified as cross-cultural by spotlighting children in urban settings around the world and by including comparisons not only across societies but also within societies (Cohen, 2009). Traditionally, when children in the ' 'majority world' ' - a term for nonindustrialized countries Tudge borrows from Kagitccibasi (1996) - are studied, the subjects are from communities. This contributes to the predominant impression among members of the industrialized (minority) world that rural is a concomitant of non- Western societies. In contrast, Tudge's research was conducted in seven cities similar in one or more ways to Greensboro, North Carolina, United States, where the study began. They include Obninsk, Russia; Tartu, Estonia; OuIu, Finland; Suwon, South Korea; Kisumu, Kenya; and Porto Alegre, Brazil. Besides Kenya and to some extent Brazil, these countries are not part of the usual lineup in comparative studies, as the objective of many such studies is to contrast societies perceived to be radically different from one another (Hallpike, 2004). In addition, traditional crosscultural studies comparing majority- world societies with minority-world industrialized urban ones tend to conflate societal differences with social class differences. By including middle- and working-class participants in his study, Tudge is able to engage within-society comparisons. Further, the Greensboro site also includes two ethnic groups, White and Black, allowing for within-society comparisons across ethnicity and attention to the intersections of culture, class, and ethnicity (Tudge & Putnam, 1997). Tudge accomplishes these sophisticated contributions in nine well-organized chapters. In Chapter 1, Tudge sets the backdrop for the research presented in the book and provides an overview of approaches to studying children from three disciplines - developmental psychology, sociology, and anthropology. …

God's Greenhouse

This study uses a basic qualitative design to explore faith-integrated study abroad programming at Protestant Christian-affiliated institutions in the United States, with a particular focus on comparing programs in Majority and Minority worlds. Guided by postcolonial theory, and informed by critical lenses of globalization, we analyze curricular content found on the webpages of four US higher education institutions. Study abroad trips are compared across four vectors: how Protestant Christianity is integrated into the programs; how programs are described; the activities undertaken; and the images used to promote them. Results reveal stark and pervasive differences in how programs are depicted, depending on their location in the Majority or Minority world, that reinforce negative stereotypes and colonial/imperial narratives regarding the Majority world, contrasted with the Minority world. These results have important implications for both individuals who work directly with study abroad and to leaders more generally at Protestant-affiliated institutions.

Air pollution, racial disparities, and COVID-19 mortality

Brain Fog: Does Air Pollution Make Us Less Productive?

Outdoor air pollution and lung cancer: recent epidemiologic evidence.

The Interplay Between Air Pollution and Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19).

Inequities in air pollution exposure and gaps in air quality monitoring

Ambient particulate matter has been associated consistently with an increased risk for mortality largely due to cardiovascular diseases.1 Although the relative risk estimates from epidemiological studies are small, they apply to almost the entire population of the United States. Consequently, exposure to ambient particles produces considerable burden of disease, and its mitigation offers the benefit of improving life expectancy.2 Articles see pp 941 and 949 Over the past decade, research has substantiated the understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms linking ambient particles to the cardiovascular system3,4 once it was noted that ambient air pollution elicits systemic inflammatory responses in the general population.5 An update of the American Heart Association statement on air pollution and cardiovascular disease3 is under way. Mechanisms considered for active and secondhand smoke as well as ambient air pollution are strikingly similar.4,6,7 They include progression of atherosclerotic plaques to vulnerable forms, prothrombotic states, endothelial dysfunction, and altered autonomic nervous system control (Figure). Increased systemic oxidative stress is considered the key mechanism responsible for most of these pathophysiological changes. Increased risks for cardiovascular disease in general and coronary artery disease in particular have been documented for active and secondhand smoke as well as ambient particulate matter. Deep venous thrombosis has been added to this list recently.8 Figure. Overview on pathomechanism linking ambient air pollution,4 secondhand smoke,7 and active smoking to acute coronary syndromes. Nevertheless, the public health relevance of particulate matter in the light of the smoking literature remains hotly debated. Smokers are exposed to considerably higher cumulative doses of particulate matter than the general nonsmoking population. Mortality due to low doses of ambient particles may be considered counterintuitive compared with doses of particles tolerated by smoking individuals. A systematic assessment of the exposure-response function ranging from low doses of inhaled particles …

Problem/ConditionThe places in which persons live, work, and play can contribute to the development of adverse health outcomes. Understanding the differences in risk factors in various environments can help to explain differences in the occurrence of these outcomes and can be used to develop public health programs, interventions, and policies. Efforts to characterize urban and rural differences have largely focused on social and demographic characteristics. A paucity of national standardized environmental data has hindered efforts to characterize differences in the physical aspects of urban and rural areas, such as air and water quality.Reporting Period2008–2012 for air quality and 2010–2015 for water quality.Description of SystemSince 2002, CDC’s National Environmental Public Health Tracking Program has collaborated with federal, state, and local partners to gather standardized environmental data by creating national data standards, collecting available data, and disseminating data to be used in developing public health actions. The National Environmental Public Health Tracking Network (i.e., the tracking network) collects data provided by national, state, and local partners and includes 21 health outcomes, exposures, and environmental hazards. To assess environmental factors that affect health, CDC analyzed three air-quality measures from the tracking network for all counties in the contiguous United States during 2008–2012 and one water-quality measure for 26 states during 2010–2015. The three air-quality measures include 1) total number of days with fine particulate matter (PM2.5) levels greater than the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for 24-hour average PM2.5 (PM2.5 days); 2) mean annual average ambient concentrations of PM2.5 in micrograms per cubic meter (mean PM2.5); and 3) total number of days with maximum 8-hour average ozone concentrations greater than the NAAQS (ozone days). The water-quality measure compared the annual mean concentration for a community water system (CWS) to the maximum contaminant level (MCL) defined by EPA for 10 contaminants: arsenic, atrazine, di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), haloacetic acids (HAA5), nitrate, perchloroethene (PCE), radium, trichloroethene (TCE), total trihalomethanes (TTHM), and uranium. Findings are presented by urban-rural classification scheme: four metropolitan (large central metropolitan, large fringe metropolitan, medium metropolitan, and small metropolitan) and two nonmetropolitan (micropolitan and noncore) categories. Regression modeling was used to determine whether differences in the measures by urban-rural categories were statistically significant.ResultsPatterns for all three air-quality measures suggest that air quality improves as areas become more rural (or less urban). The mean total number of ozone days decreased from 47.54 days in large central metropolitan counties to 3.81 days in noncore counties, whereas the mean total number of PM2.5 days decreased from 11.21 in large central metropolitan counties to 0.95 in noncore counties. The mean average annual PM2.5 concentration decreased from 11.15 μg/m3 in large central metropolitan counties to 8.87 μg/m3 in noncore counties. Patterns for the water-quality measure suggest that water quality improves as areas become more urban (or less rural). Overall, 7% of CWSs reported at least one annual mean concentration greater than the MCL for all 10 contaminants combined. The percentage increased from 5.4% in large central metropolitan counties to 10% in noncore counties, a difference that was significant, adjusting for U.S. region, CWS size, water source, and potential spatial correlation. Similar results were found for two disinfection by-products, HAA5 and TTHM. Arsenic was the only other contaminant with a significant result. Medium metropolitan counties had 3.1% of CWSs reporting at least one annual mean greater than the MCL, compared with 2.4% in large central counties.InterpretationNoncore (rural) counties experienced fewer unhealthy air-quality days than large central metropolitan counties, likely because of fewer air pollution sources in the noncore counties. All categories of counties had a mean annual average PM2.5 concentration lower than the EPA standard. Among all CWSs analyzed, the number reporting one or more annual mean contaminant concentrations greater the MCL was small. The water-quality measure suggests that water quality worsens as counties become more rural, in regards to all contaminants combined and for the two disinfection by-products individually. Although significant differences were found for the water-quality measure, the odds ratios were very small, making it difficult to determine whether these differences have a meaningful effect on public health. These differences might be a result of variations in water treatment practices in rural versus urban counties.Public Health ActionUnderstanding the differences between rural and urban areas in air and water quality can help public health departments to identify, monitor, and prioritize potential environmental public health concerns and opportunities for action. These findings suggest a continued need to develop more geographically targeted, evidence-based interventions to prevent morbidity and mortality associated with poor air and water quality.

Invited Perspective: Moving from Characterizing to Addressing Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Air Pollution Exposure.

Diabetes is a growing epidemic, and it has become arguably one of the biggest health challenges of our time. Currently, more than 23 million Americans have diabetes, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that in the last 15 years, the number of people in the United States with diabetes has more than doubled. Diabetes is increasing at an alarming rate in Europe as well, and it is fast becoming a major health threat in developing countries such as India and China. Despite its high prevalence, however, diabetes remains somewhat of a mystery. Although type 1 diabetes mellitus could be attributed to insufficient insulin release by the β-cells of the pancreas, the origins of type 2 diabetes mellitus (which accounts for >90% of the cases of diabetes) remain obscure. Insulin resistance is a cardinal feature of type 2 diabetes mellitus; however, it is not clear how whole-body insulin resistance develops, which specific tissues are affected first and which ones later, and how metabolic changes in individual tissues contribute to the overall development of the disease and its many secondary complications. Article p 538 The origin of diabetes is equally complex. Although diabetes develops in genetically susceptible individuals, it is a complex trait and does not show simple mendelian inheritance. Because the rates of diabetes change with the environment in several population groups, it has been suggested that modifiable environmental factors and lifestyle choices account for more than 90% of adult-onset diabetes.1 Nevertheless, our understanding of the environmental causes of diabetes has remained rather rudimentary, being limited mostly to the impact of physical inactivity or unhealthy dietary choices. In this context, the study by Sun and coworkers published in the present issue of Circulation 2 is interesting because it provides new evidence showing that exposure to particulate air …

Air Quality Index and air quality awareness among adults in the United States

The importance of monitoring air pollutants has been dramatically emphasized by the occurrence of killer smogs in major cities throughout the world. However, many other valid reasons exist for monitoring air pollutants. Nearly 40 years ago the United States and Canada were entangled in an air pollution controversy which emphasized that air pollutants ignore national boundaries. There is nothing to stop the estimated 264 million tons of air pollutants discharged annually in the United States from wandering over neighboring borders. Such a trip is even facilitated by the fact that almost 90% of this air pollution is invisible. As horticulturists, we are most concerned about air pollution effects on plants. Crop losses in the United States due to air pollution amount to approximately 500 million dollars annually. Some of this damage may come from pollutants generated outside the United States. However, air pollutants generated in the United States have been responsible on several occasions for crop damage in Canada. Scandinavian and other countries sharing common borders often share their air pollutants just as North Americans do. Fifteen years ago a World Health Organization publication indicated that sampling, analysis, and instrumentation in the field of air pollution monitoring was in a state of chaos. This symposium will show that out of the chaos has come order and that the science of monitoring air pollutants has become quite sophisticated and most complex, though many problems still remain to be solved. As an example, during the past year a disagreement on how to measure air pollution in California was reported on prime time television in the United States. Problems such as this are discouraging and most unfortunate. Nonetheless, they illustrate the heart of the air pollutant monitoring problem, which is that man has become biologically obsolete in sensing pollution hazards and we must develop new and more accurate methods and sensitive instruments to detect these hazards for ourselves, our animals, and our plants if life is to survive.

The Green Heart Initiative