Effects Of Reductions Research Articles

Working less for more? A systematic review of the social, economic, and ecological effects of working time reduction policies in the global North

The increasingly studied effects of working time reductions (WTR) on social, economic, and ecological sustainability depend on how these reductions are conceptualized in terms of implementation level, form, extent and accompanying wage compensation. Very little research on WTRs considers more than one sustainability dimension or explores different conceptualizations of WTRs. We thus seek in this article to differentiate the effects of diverse conceptualizations of WTR policies within and across all three sustainability dimensions by conducting a systematic review of longitudinal and (quasi-)experimental research on the ecological, social, and economic effects of WTRs. The studies we reviewed on social sustainability (n = 18) suggest that WTRs have generally well-substantiated positive effects on well-being, health, and work-family conflict. Regarding economic effects (n = 14), however, the findings are mixed: WTRs appear to have small, positive employment effects and unclear productivity effects, on one hand, as well as negative career-trajectory effects, on the other. The only study reviewed concerning ecological sustainability suggests that WTRs have a positive effect on the environment. Research on different conceptualizations of WTRs is scarce but suggests that WTRs might be most beneficial when implemented with a substantial reduction in working hours, on the national or organizational level, in the form of fewer rather than shorter working days, and accompanied by progressive wage compensation. Based on these findings, we also outline a research agenda to address the knowledge gaps in this important field of study.

Reaching New Lows? The Pandemic’s Consequences for Electricity Markets

The COVID-19 crisis has disrupted electricity systems worldwide. This article disentangles the effects of the demand reductions, fuel price devaluation, and increased forecast errors on New York’s day-ahead and real-time markets by combining machine learning and structural econometrics. From March 2020 to February 2021, statewide demand has decreased by 4.6 TWh (-3%) including 4 TWh (-8%) for New York City alone, and the day-ahead market has depreciated by $250 million (-6%). The real-time market has, however, appreciated by $15 million (+23%) because of abnormally large forecast errors which significantly undermined system efficiency.

Spatial and sector-specific contributions of emissions to ambient air pollution and mortality in European cities: a health impact assessment

Ambient air pollution is a major risk to health and wellbeing in European cities. We aimed to estimate spatial and sector-specific contributions of emissions to ambient air pollution and evaluate the effects of source-specific reductions in pollutants on mortality in European cities to support targeted source-specific actions to address air pollution and promote population health. We conducted a health impact assessment of data from 2015 for 857 European cities to estimate source contributions to annual PM2·5 and NO2 concentrations using the Screening for High Emission Reduction Potentials for Air quality tool. We evaluated contributions from transport, industry, energy, residential, agriculture, shipping, and aviation, other, natural, and external sources. For each city and sector, three spatial levels were considered: contributions from the same city, the rest of the country, and transboundary. Mortality effects were estimated for adult populations (ie, ≥20 years) following standard comparative risk assessment methods to calculate the annual mortality preventable on spatial and sector-specific reductions in PM2·5 and NO2. We observed strong variability in spatial and sectoral contributions among European cities. For PM2·5, the main contributors to mortality were the residential (mean contribution of 22·7% [SD 10·2]) and agricultural (18·0% [7·7]) sectors, followed by industry (13·8% [6·0]), transport (13·5% [5·8]), energy (10·0% [6·4]), and shipping (5·5% [5·7]). For NO2, the main contributor to mortality was transport (48·5% [SD 15·2]), with additional contributions from industry (15·0% [10·8]), energy (14·7% [12·9]), residential (10·3% [5·0]), and shipping (9·7% [12·7]). The mean city contribution to its own air pollution mortality was 13·5% (SD 9·9) for PM2·5 and 34·4% (19·6) for NO2, and contribution increased among cities of largest area (22·3% [12·2] for PM2·5 and 52·2% [19·4] for NO2) and among European capitals (29·9% [12·5] for PM2·5 and 62·7% [14·7] for NO2). We estimated source-specific air pollution health effects at the city level. Our results show strong variability, emphasising the need for local policies and coordinated actions that consider city-level specificities in source contributions. Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, State Research Agency, Generalitat de Catalunya, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en red Epidemiología y Salud Pública, and Urban Burden of Disease Estimation for Policy Making 2023-2026 Horizon Europe project.

Cross-Linking of White Proteins in Soft-Shell Turtle Eggs Using Transglutaminase, Reductant, and Thermal Pretreatment

The effects of transglutaminase (TGase), reductant, and thermal treatment on the cross-linking of white proteins in soft-shell turtle eggs were investigated. Egg white proteins were denatured by reductant (0.83% 2-mercaptoethanol, 2-ME) pretreatment and thermal pretreatment (95 °C and 5 min), and the denatured proteins were then catalyzed by TGase (1.0 unit/mL). SDS–PAGE showed that without any pretreatments, three major egg white proteins (210 kDa, 115 kDa, and 76 kDa proteins) were inferior substrates for TGase. Only portions of the 210 kDa protein (7.9%), 115 kDa protein (11.4%), and 76 kDa protein (42.9%) were polymerized by TGase into high-molecular-weight (MW) protein polymers (>180 kDa) after incubation for 3 h at 40 °C. However, the combined use of TGase with 0.83% 2-ME and thermal pretreatment led to a significant increase (p < 0.05) in the rate of white protein polymerization after 3 h: 210 kDa protein (90.8%), 115 kDa protein (69.5%), and 76 kDa protein (72.2%). Particle size analysis indicated that these cross-linked high-MW protein polymers were 2000–10,000 nm in size. Based on the experimental results, egg white proteins denatured by 2-ME and heat pretreatment are more prone to TGase-induced cross-linking.

Effect of pandemic-related reductions in cancer care delivery on different US health systems.

e18811 Background: The Covid-19 pandemic caused unprecedented challenges in the diagnosis and evaluation of cancer. At the same time, cancer treatment was potentially impacted by significant constraints on patients and hospitals; however, the extent and differential influence on different hospital types is unknown. Our objective was to assess the patterns of treatment utilization to better characterize the impact of the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic on the US healthcare system. Methods: The National Cancer Database (NCDB) was queried for patients treated for any type of malignancy diagnosed from 2018-2020. Autoregressive models were used to forecast expected findings for 2020 based on observations from the prior two years. Descriptive univariate statistics using chi-squared tests were performed to compare observed-to-expected findings for treatment utilization and losses in provided care in 2020. Results: Overall, 1,229,654 patients underwent treatment for any newly diagnosed cancer in the NCDB in 2020, representing a 16.8% reduction compared to what was expected. Stratified by treatment modality, 146,805 fewer patients than expected underwent surgery, 80,480 fewer received radiation and 68,014 fewer received chemotherapy. Reductions in treatment were examined by hospital type. Academic hospitals experienced the greatest reduction in provided care (-105,093 patients, -19%) compared to community programs (-72,432 patients, -14%) and integrated networks (-40,827 patients, -13%). However, there were fewer hospitals in the academic cohort which exaggerated the impact on each hospital. Thus, academic hospitals lost approximately 484 patients per hospital while community hospitals lost 99 patients and integrated networks lost 110 patients per hospital. The losses in provided care were most dramatic in terms of surgical care, as academic hospitals operated on 314 fewer patients per hospital (-20%) than expected while community hospitals on average operated on 69 fewer patients (-16%) and integrated networks 71 fewer patients (-14%). Conclusions: The impact of the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic on cancer treatment was heterogenous, resulting in nearly twice the number of missed surgical patients, compared to other treatment modalities. While all hospital types were affected by the pandemic, cancer care at academic hospitals experienced disproportionate reductions, with each hospital losing more than 4 times the number of treated patients than other hospital types. Continued efforts to recover from the strain of the pandemic on the US healthcare system will need to consider the complex influence of treatment declines across hospital types and different cancer service lines.

Research on the Spatial Network Characteristics, Synergistic Emission Reduction Effects and Mechanisms of Carbon Emission in Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei Urban Agglomeration

With the in-depth advancement of the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei coordinated development strategy, establishing a new mechanism for coordinated development in regional coordinated development is an important measure to realize the green, low-carbon and sustainable development of the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei urban agglomeration. At present, there are significant differences in carbon emission intensity among different cities in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei urban agglomeration, which poses a significant obstacle to the synergistic development goals of the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region. Therefore, studying the carbon emissions of the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei urban agglomeration is of great significance for achieving synergistic development in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei region and achieving China’s dual carbon goals. Based on the above practical background, this study focuses on the carbon emissions of the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei urban agglomeration, using the gravity model, the social network analysis method, and the synergistic effects of carbon emission reductions model to analyze the general characteristics of the carbon emission spatial network, individual characteristics of the carbon emission spatial network, and synergistic effects of carbon emission reduction in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei urban agglomeration. The study found that the carbon emission spatial network of the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei urban agglomeration presents a typical core–periphery structure. From the perspective of the general characteristics of the spatial network, the ranking structure of carbon emissions among cities in Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei is strict, and the network stability is good; from the perspective of individual characteristics of the spatial network, Beijing and Tianjin are the centers of the carbon emission spatial network of the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei urban agglomeration, playing an important role of “betweenness” and “bridge”, while cities in Hebei Province are in a weak position in this regard. From the perspective of the measurement result of synergistic effects of carbon emission reduction, there is significant room for improvement in the synergistic effects of carbon emission reductions in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei urban agglomeration, and there are significant differences in the synergistic effects of carbon emission reduction among various cities. In general, at this stage, the core–periphery structure of the spatial network of carbon emissions in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei urban agglomeration is still solid, and the synergistic effects of carbon emission reduction between cities are weak. Establishing a sound synergistic mechanism of regional carbon emission reduction is the key to solving the carbon emission problem of the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei urban agglomeration. Therefore, this study proposes countermeasures and suggestions to improve the synergistic mechanism of the reduction in carbon emissions in the Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei urban agglomeration from three levels—the formation layer, the implementation layer, and the guarantee layer—in order to promote synergistic emission reduction, ecological and environmental governance, and sustainable development of Beijing–Tianjin–Hebei urban agglomeration.

Modeling spatially varying compliance effects of PM2.5 exposure reductions on gestational diabetes mellitus in southern California: Results from electronic health record data of a large pregnancy cohort

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is a major pregnancy complication affecting approximately 14.0% of pregnancies around the world. Air pollution exposure, particularly exposure to PM2.5, has become a major environmental issue affecting health, especially for vulnerable pregnant women. Associations between PM2.5 exposure and adverse birth outcomes are generally assumed to be the same throughout a large geographical area. However, the effects of air pollution on health can very spatially in subpopulations. Such spatially varying effects are likely due to a wide range of contextual neighborhood and individual factors that are spatially correlated, including SES, demographics, exposure to housing characteristics and due to different composition of particulate matter from different emission sources. This combination of elevated environmental hazards in conjunction with socioeconomic-based disparities forms what has been described as a “double jeopardy” for marginalized sub-populations. In this manuscript our analysis combines both an examination of spatially varying effects of a) unit-changes in exposure and examines effects of b) changes from current exposure levels down to a fixed compliance level, where compliance levels correspond to the Air Quality Standards (AQS) set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and World Health Organization (WHO) air quality guideline values. Results suggest that exposure reduction policies should target certain “hotspot” areas where size and effects of potential reductions will reap the greatest rewards in terms of health benefits, such as areas of southeast Los Angeles County which experiences high levels of PM2.5 exposures and consist of individuals who may be particularly vulnerable to the effects of air pollution on the risk of GDM.

Effects of endogenous and exogenous reductants in lung fluid on the bioaccessible metal concentration and oxidative potential of ultrafine particles

Health risk posed by ultrafine particles (UFPs) is potentially increased by reducing substances present in lung fluid, although knowledge of the underlying mechanisms is insufficient. Here, UFPs mainly consisting of metals and quinones were prepared. The reducing substances examined included lung endogenous and exogenous reductants. UFPs were extracted in simulated lung fluid containing reductants. Extracts were used to analyze metrics relevant to health effects, including the bioaccessible metal concentration (MeBA) and oxidative potential (OPDTT). The MeBA of Mn (974.5–9896.9 μg L−1) was higher than those of Cu (155.0–599.6 μg L−1) and Fe (79.9–500.9 μg L−1). Correspondingly, UFPs containing Mn had higher OPDTT (2.07–12.0 pmol min−1 μg−1) than those containing Cu (2.03–7.11 pmol min−1 μg−1) and Fe (1.63–5.34 pmol min−1 μg−1). Endogenous and exogenous reductants can increase MeBA and OPDTT, and the increments were generally higher for composite than pure UFPs. Positive correlations between OPDTT and MeBA of UFPs in the presence of most reductants emphasized the importance of the bioaccessible metal fraction in UFPs for inducing oxidative stress by reactive oxygen species (ROS)-generating reactions between quinones, metals, and lung reductants. Present findings provide novel insight into the toxicity and health risks of UFPs.

Effect of Rolling Reduction on Microstructures and Mechanical Properties of Sc-Containing Al-3.2Cu-1.5Li Alloy

The effects of various rolling reductions (64.7%, 72.1%, 81.4% and 88.2%) on the microstructures and mechanical behaviors of Sc-containing Al-3.2Cu-1.5Li-based alloys were experimentally investigated through XRD, SEM (equipped with EBSD), TEM and the tensile test. The results showed that the grains of hot-rolled and T6-treated alloys are mainly dominated by substructure features, and the addition of the trace Sc element can obviously impede the static and dynamic recrystallization due to the formation of fine and stable nano-Al3(Sc, Zr) particles. Additionally, the combined effects of fine grains, dispersion, substructure and precipitation strengthening make the alloys with a rolling reduction of 81.4% possess higher tensile properties. With an increase in the rolling reduction, the tensile strength of the alloys increases first and then decreases, while the elongation gradually increases and then reaches a plateau, which was ascribed to the variation in the grain size and substructure features.

Using long-term ecological monitoring to evaluate how climate and human-induced disturbances impact nekton communities in a Northern Gulf of Mexico estuary

Apalachicola Bay, a river-fed estuary in the northeast Gulf of Mexico is experiencing impacts from anthropogenic and climate-induced changes in freshwater inputs and sea level rise. These synergistic pressures have resulted in a historic oyster fishery collapse and the expansion of mangroves, which are displacing native salt marsh. Understanding how these natural and man-made-driven changes have affected the nekton community is essential for the sustainable management of this coastal region. To evaluate changes in nekton occurrence and distribution in Apalachicola Bay, we analyzed 20 years of biological monitoring data. Our results indicated that spatial variation in species’ populations was driven by differences in salinity, while seasonal changes were driven by temperature. Freshwater inflow is the primary driver of salinity, and these differences demonstrated that river flow reductions have the potential to alter nekton communities. The effects of climate-driven droughts and anthropogenic freshwater flow reductions on estuarine community structure highlight the importance of maintaining sufficient river flow for nursery areas, which provide ecosystem services for the region. Ultimately, these findings support the continued need for monitoring programs that track accelerating ecosystem change and provide a clearer understanding for how community composition will respond to global change.

Climate effects of future aerosol reductions for achieving carbon neutrality in China

Climate effects of future aerosol reductions for achieving carbon neutrality in China

Air quality changes in Taiwan over the past decades and during the COVID-19 crisis

Over the past decades, Taiwan has achieved remarkable goals in air pollution reduction with the concentrations of several common air pollutants such as CO, NOx, PM10, PM2.5, and SO2 going down. In contrast to these achievements, the mitigation of O3 remains extremely tough due to the complexity of its formation process involving synergistic effects of precursor reductions and meteorological influences. During the local COVID-19 crises in Taiwan and the Level 3 alert in 2021, air pollutants directly emitted from the traffic such as CO and NOx present clear relationships with the drop of the recorded freeway traffic volume due to the alert, while PM10 and PM2.5 which are also relevant to the traffic do not show indications of being greatly influenced by the decrease of the traffic flow. Although road traffic is not regarded as a main source of SO2 by current understanding, the unusual SO2 variation patterns found in this study suggest a prolonged impact for months from the changes of travel behavior during the epidemic. In contrast, the epidemic did not exert influences on industrial SO2 concentration which accounts for a large portion of total SO2 in Taiwan, and a similar scenario is also seen in each type of O3 monitoring. Although some results discussed in this study are not in line with current consensuses and understandings in terms of the nation of certain air pollutants, these findings may disclose new perspectives which could be a potential benefit to air quality improvement projects in the future.

Drivers of High Concentrations of Secondary Organic Aerosols in Northern China during the COVID-19 Lockdowns.

During the COVID-19 lockdown in early 2020, observations in Beijing indicate that secondary organic aerosol (SOA) concentrations increased despite substantial emission reduction, but the reasons are not fully explained. Here, we integrate the two-dimensional volatility basis set into a state-of-the-art chemical transport model, which unprecedentedly reproduces organic aerosol (OA) components resolved by the positive matrix factorization based on aerosol mass spectrometer observations. The model shows that, for Beijing, the emission reduction during the lockdown lowered primary organic aerosol (POA)/SOA concentrations by 50%/18%, while deteriorated meteorological conditions increased them by 30%/119%, resulting in a net decrease in the POA concentration and a net increase in the SOA concentration. Emission reduction and meteorological changes both led to an increased OH concentration, which accounts for their distinct effects on POA and SOA. SOA from anthropogenic volatile organic compounds and organics with lower volatility contributed 28 and 62%, respectively, to the net SOA increase. Different from Beijing, the SOA concentration decreased in southern Hebei during the lockdown because of more favorable meteorology. Our findings confirm the effectiveness of organic emission reductions and meanwhile reveal the challenge in controlling SOA pollution that calls for large organic precursor emission reductions to rival the adverse impact of OH increase.

Dynamic Scenario Predictions of Peak Carbon Emissions in China’s Construction Industry

As the largest carbon emitter in the world, China aims to reach its peak carbon emissions goal by the year 2030, while the construction industry makes a significant contribution to carbon emissions, directly affecting the country’s commitment to meet its target. The present paper investigates the dynamic characteristics of carbon emissions released by China’s construction industry under single- and multiple-scenario settings with altering economic growth rates, optimizing energy structures, adjusting industrial structures, and modifying carbon emission policy factors. The research results show that the total carbon emissions generally present a steady increase from the year 2000 and will reach 12,880.40 million tons (MT) by 2030 under a scenario without any intervention. Indirect carbon emissions released from associated industries account for over 96% of the total carbon emissions, while direct carbon emissions make a minor contribution to the total. Single and comprehensive scenarios have positive effects on reducing emissions; it was also observed that only under energy structure scenario III and comprehensive scenario III could carbon emissions released from the construction sector reach a peak value by 2030. The effects of emissions reductions as a result of single policies can be presented in the following order: energy structure, economic growth, carbon emissions policy factor, and industrial structure. All of the emissions reduction effects of multiple scenarios are superior to the single scenarios. The research results provide a basis and guidance for policymakers to adopt the correct steps to fulfill China’s aim of achieving peak carbon emissions by the projected date.

Efficacy of antihyperglycemic therapies on cardiovascular and heart failure outcomes: an updated meta-analysis and meta-regression analysis of 35 randomized cardiovascular outcome trials

BackgroundEffects of antihyperglycemic therapies on cardiovascular and heart failure (HF) risks have varied widely across cardiovascular outcome trials (CVOTs), and underlying factors remain incompletely understood. We aimed to determine the relationships of glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) or bodyweight changes with these outcomes in all CVOTs of antihyperglycemic therapies.MethodsWe searched PubMed and EMBASE up to 25 January 2023 for all randomized controlled CVOTs of antihyperglycemic therapies reporting both major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) and HF outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes or prediabetes. We performed meta-regression analyses following random-effects meta-analyses to evaluate the effects of HbA1c or bodyweight reductions on each outcome.ResultsThirty-five trials comprising 256,524 patients were included. Overall, antihyperglycemic therapies reduced MACE by 9% [risk ratio (RR): 0.91; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.88–0.94; P < 0.001; I2 = 36.5%]. In meta-regression, every 1% greater reduction in HbA1c was associated with a 14% reduction in the RR of MACE (95% CI 4–24; P = 0.010), whereas bodyweight change was not associated with the RR of MACE. The magnitude of the reduction in MACE risk associated with HbA1c reduction was greater in trials with a higher baseline prevalence of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. On the other hand, antihyperglycemic therapies showed no overall significant effect on HF (RR: 0.95; 95% CI 0.87–1.04; P = 0.28; I2 = 75.9%). In a subgroup analysis based on intervention type, sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT2i) conferred the greatest HF risk reduction (RR: 0.68; 95% CI 0.62–0.75; P < 0.001; I2 = 0.0%). In meta-regression, every 1 kg bodyweight reduction, but not HbA1c reduction, was found to reduce the RR of HF by 7% (95% CI 4–10; P < 0.001); however, significant residual heterogeneity (P < 0.001) was observed, and SGLT2i reduced HF more than could be explained by HbA1c or bodyweight reductions.ConclusionsAntihyperglycemic therapies reduce MACE in an HbA1c-dependent manner. These findings indicate that HbA1c can be a useful marker of MACE risk reduction across a wide range of antihyperglycemic therapies, including drugs with pleiotropic effects. In contrast, HF is reduced not in an HbA1c-dependent but in a bodyweight-dependent manner. Notably, SGLT2i have shown class-specific benefits for HF beyond HbA1c or bodyweight reductions.

Potential for prevention of dementia in Denmark.

According to previous estimates, 40% of dementia cases globally may be attributed to 12 potentially modifiable risk factors. We calculated national population attributable fractions (PAFs) for each risk factor and modeled the effects of proportional reductions in risk factor prevalence on dementia prevalence by calculating potential impact fractions (PIFs) for each factor. The overall adjusted PAF for all risk factors was 35.2%. Physical inactivity, hearing loss, hypertension, and obesity accounted for 64% of the total prevention potential. The overall adjusted PIF was 4.1% at 10% risk factor prevalence reduction and 8.1% at 20% risk factor reduction. Estimates of the potential for the prevention of dementia should be based on country-specific data on risk factor prevalence, as estimates based on global risk factor prevalence have limited relevance from a national perspective. Physical inactivity, hearing loss, hypertension, and obesity could be primary targets for prevention of dementia in Denmark. Overall adjusted PAF for potentially modifiable dementia risk factors was 35%. Physical inactivity, hearing loss, hypertension, and obesity had the largest prevention potential. Estimates of prevention potential should be based on national risk factor prevalence.

Regulation of marine plankton respiration: A test of models

Plankton respiration is a major process removing oxygen from pelagic environments and constitutes one of the largest oxygen transformations in the sea. Where the O2 supplies due to dissolution, advection and oxygenic photosynthesis are not sufficient, hypoxic, or anoxic waters may result. Coastal waters with limited water exchange are especially prone to have low oxygen levels due to eutrophication and climate change. To support marine environmental management in a period of rapid climate change, we investigated the current knowledge of regulating plankton respiration based on field and experimental studies reported in the literature. Models for regulation of plankton respiration was tested on a three-year field data set. Temperature is the most reported predictor positively influencing plankton respiration (mean r2 = 0.50, n=15). The organic carbon supply driven by primary production has a similar coefficient of determination but fewer reported relationships (mean r2 = 0.52, n=6). Riverine discharges of dissolved organic carbon can override the influence of primary production in estuaries precluding effects of nutrient reductions. The median predictions of respiration regulation produced by current models vary by a factor of 2 from the median of observed values and extreme values varied even more. Predictions by models are therefore still too uncertain for application at regional and local scales. Models with temperature as predictor showed best performance but deviated from measured values in some seasons. The combined dependence of plankton respiration on temperature, phytoplankton production and discharge of riverine organic carbon will probably lead to increased oxygen consumption and reduced oxygen levels with projected climate change. This will be especially pronounced where increased precipitation is expected to enhance riverine discharges of carbon compounds. The biologically mediated transfer of carbon for long-term storage in deeper layers will slow down. Implementation of plankton respiration measurements in long-term ecological monitoring programs at water body and basin scales is advocated, which would enable future multivariate analyses and improvements in model precision across aquatic environments.

Alterations in white matter integrity and network topological properties are associated with a decrease in global motion perception in older adults.

Previous studies have mainly explored the effects of structural and functional aging of cortical regions on global motion sensitivity in older adults, but none have explored the structural white matter (WM) substrates underlying the age-related decrease in global motion perception (GMP). In this study, random dot kinematogram and diffusion tensor imaging were used to investigate the effects of age-related reductions in WM fiber integrity and connectivity across various regions on GMP. We recruited 106 younger adults and 94 older adults and utilized both tract-based spatial statistics analysis and graph theoretical analysis to comprehensively investigate group differences in WM microstructural and network connections between older and younger adults at the microscopic and macroscopic levels. Moreover, partial correlation analysis was used to explore the relationship between alterations in WM and the age-related decrease in GMP. The results showed that decreased GMP in older adults was related to decreased fractional anisotropy (FA) of the inferior frontal-occipital fasciculus, inferior longitudinal fasciculus, anterior thalamic radiation, superior longitudinal fasciculus, and cingulum cingulate gyrus. Decreased global efficiency of the WM structural network and increased characteristic path length were closely associated with decreased global motion sensitivity. These results suggest that the reduced GMP in older adults may stem from reduced WM integrity in specific regions of WM fiber tracts as well as decreased efficiency of information integration and communication between distant cortical regions, supporting the "disconnection hypothesis" of cognitive aging.

Performative enactments of pedagogy in the classroom: strategies and tactics of relationality

ABSTRACT Within neoliberal regimes of educational performativity, expectations of teachers’ work have become increasingly prescriptive, standardised and formulaic. To counter the reductive effects of this ‘exteriority’ of influence over teachers' work, we draw on three conceptual prompts—relational pedagogy, informality, and de Certeau’s theorisation of strategies and tactics—to examine empirical accounts of teachers who challenge the normative expectations of their work. We contend that teachers who seek to work beyond the restrictions of neoliberal educational managerialism engage in deliberate acts of tactical intervention, which involve the deployment of relational and informal modes of engagement with students and other educators. In doing so, teachers can more fully assert their professionalism and nurture important relational bonds with students in ways that respond to the contingent nature of classrooms in rich and contextually meaningful ways.

An updated global mercury budget from a coupled atmosphere-land-ocean model: 40% more re-emissions buffer the effect of primary emission reductions

An updated global mercury budget from a coupled atmosphere-land-ocean model: 40% more re-emissions buffer the effect of primary emission reductions