Hudson County Research Articles

CDC-Funded HIV Testing and Undiagnosed HIV Infection in Ending the HIV Epidemic in the U.S. Jurisdictions.

Approximately 13% of persons with HIV (PWH) are unaware of their status. To help end HIV, it is important to understand the relationship between the rates of HIV testing and undiagnosed HIV infection. Ending the HIV in the U.S. (EHE) jurisdictions. Using 2021 data from the National HIV Surveillance System and the National HIV Prevention Program Monitoring and Evaluation system, we calculated estimated rates of undiagnosed HIV infections per 100,000 population and rates of CDC-funded HIV tests per 1,000 population. We assessed the association between the two rates using Spearman's rank correlation. We also calculated a rank difference between the two rates for each EHE jurisdiction to help identify jurisdictions with greater unfilled needs for HIV testing. Overall, CDC-funded HIV tests per 1,000 population were positively associated with estimated rate of undiagnosed HIV infection per 100,000 population (rho=0.55, p<0.001). EHE jurisdictions with the greatest magnitude of negative rank differences (i.e., higher undiagnosed HIV infection per 100,000 population and lower CDC-funded HIV tests per 1,000 population) were Prince George's County, MD; Mecklenburg County, NC; Hudson County, NJ; Bronx County, NY, and Hamilton County, OH. In general, CDC-funded HIV testing is being conducted in jurisdictions with the greatest needs. However, we also found large discrepancies between CDC-funded HIV testing and undiagnosed HIV infection rates for some jurisdictions. These jurisdictions may want to identify barriers to their HIV testing services and expand their programs to ensure that all PWH in their jurisdictions are diagnosed.

The Real “Stolen Election”: Frank Hague and New Jersey’s 1937 Race for Governor

Any notion of a rigged 2020 national election pales in comparison to America’s real “stolen election” 83 years before, in New Jersey. Republican state senator Lester H. Clee was poised to make the 1937 gubernatorial election a very close race. He carried 14 of the state’s 21 counties and was nearly tied in 5 others. Yet the day after polls closed, people awoke to news that Clee’s 80,000-vote lead had vanished. Overnight, his majority was erased by late returns from one single county—Hudson County, the power base of state Democratic boss Frank Hague. The 45,000-vote plurality delivered by Hague’s indomitable political machine put Clee’s opponent A. Harry Moore over the top. This article examines claims made by Republicans of the day that the 1937 election was stolen: that Lester Clee lost to A. Harry Moore because of institutionalized voter fraud in Hudson County.

HIV Prevalence and Associated Factors Among Men Who have Sex with Men (MSM) in New Jersey, U.S., 2017

This study assessed the HIV prevalence among MSM in the greater Newark New Jersey area including Essex, Hudson, Morris and Union Counties and examined correlates of HIV infection among those men. By analyzing National HIV Behavioral Surveillance data on MSM from four counties in New Jersey (N = 175), which were collected via a venue-based sampling method in 2017, this study shows that HIV prevalence among all races/ethnicities (12.5-31.9%) and all age groups (15.1-47.8%) were high. Casual sex and unprotected sex with male partners were prevalent among these men, regardless of HIV test results. MSM who were tested HIV positive were more likely to have diagnosed any sexual transmitted diseases in the last 12months (AOR: 6.7; 95% CI 2.2, 21.3) and less likely to have had alcohol use in the past 12months (AOR: 0.3; 95% CI 0.1, 0.8). Findings from behavioral surveillance strengthens the response to the HIV epidemic by providing policy makers and care/prevention providers with peer reviewed data to base their decisions on.

Removal of hexavalent chromium by hyporheic zone sediments in an urbanized estuary.

More than 2 million tons of chromium ore processing residue (COPR) waste was disposed of in Hudson County of New Jersey, which was known as the center of the production of chromate in the 20th century. The Cr(VI) removal experiments were conducted with the hyporheic zone (HZ) sediments collected along the shore of an urbanized estuary located in and near Hudson County to investigate the natural remediation of Cr(VI). Fine-grained and organic-rich Passaic River sediments showed the highest removal capacity for Cr(VI), whereas the lowest removal of Cr(VI) occurred in coarse-grained and organic-poor sediments from Newark Bay. In general, Cr(VI) removal increased with higher amounts of sediment organic matter, sulfur, and silt and clay fractions, as well as lower pH conditions. The removal of hexavalent chromium in organic-rich sediments is attributed mainly to the reduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III), resulting in less reversible immobilization of Cr(VI), while reversible adsorption could also remove Cr(VI). The results suggest that the organic-rich, fine-grained HZ sediments can act as a natural reactive barrier for the remediation of Cr(VI) transport from subsurface to surface water in the estuary. Further research is needed to understand the long-term mobility of Cr along the urban estuary.

Determining shelving accuracy via sampling in a community college library

During the Fall 2017 semester, staff at the Hudson County Community College (HCCC), Library began to notice that many books listed as available in the catalog were often not being found on the shelves when patrons attempted to retrieve them. This situation puzzled library leadership because HCCC had recently conducted an inventory and removed all missing items from its holdings. To determine the cause of this discrepancy, HCCC staff decided to sample the library’s collection to determine if books were available at the expected locations. From this, the library found that a high percentage of its books were not present where they were expected to be. In response, library staff implemented a variety of changes to HCCC’s shelving and access services operations.

Creating and Deploying USB Port Covers at Hudson County Community College

In 2016, Hudson County (NJ) Community College (HCCC) deployed several wireless keyboards and mice with its iMac computers. Shortly after deployment, library staff found that each device’s required USB receiver (a.k.a. dongle) would disappear frequently. As a result, HCCC library staff developed and deployed 3D printed port covers to enclose these dongles. This, for a time, proved very successful in preventing the issue. This article will discuss the development of these port covers, their deployment, and what worked and did not work about the project.

The Hudson County Court House and Hugh Roberts: A Building and Architect in Perspective

Hugh Roberts, the architect of the Hudson County Court House, has had his career identified in totality with this building that brought him fame for its artistic stature and shame for his envelopment in the graft scandal that followed its 1910 opening. History has been kinder to him than were his contemporaries. Accusations against him are now considered to have been unjustified, but the imbroglio derailed his practice. The court house and much of the Roberts oeuvre originated through the influence of and his relationships with the politically powerful. Examination of the court house project, Roberts’ other work and the law suit place both architect and building in sharper focus.

First North American Records of the Eastasian Metallic Wood-Boring Beetle Agrilus smaragdifrons Ganglbauer (Coleoptera: Buprestidae: Agrilinae), a Specialist on Tree of Heaven (Ailanthus altissima, Simaroubaceae)

Abstract. The East Asian buprestid Agrilus smaragdifrons Ganglbauer is reported for the first time in the Western Hemisphere. Specimens of this species taken from emerald ash borer (A. planipennis Fairmaire) monitoring traps in New Jersey in 2015–2016 suggest establishment of this metallic wood-boring beetle in the northeastern United States. The earliest known record of A. smaragdifrons in the U.S. is based on a verifiable image found on BugGuide, from a specimen collected in Hudson County, New Jersey in June 2011. Diagnostic information and high-resolution images of the adult male, female, and the male aedeagus are provided to help facilitate the recognition of this adventive buprestid from other North American Agrilus. A summary of information about the host plant (Ailanthus altissima), native distribution, and biology are given, and all known North American records are listed and mapped.

A Common Interest: Franklin Roosevelt, Frank Hague, and the Presidential Election of 1936 in New Jersey

The Great Depression and the New Deal forged a mutually beneficial alliance between President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Mayor Frank Hague of Jersey City. Each needed the other. Hague benefited from the federal funds he was allocated by the New Deal relief agencies. Channeling this government assistance through his political machine in Jersey City enabled him to consolidate his control over Hudson County and ultimately become the dominant figure of the Democratic Party in New Jersey. In return, Hague pledged to secure New Jersey for Roosevelt in his reelection campaign. Ironically, Hague got the better of this arrangement. Roosevelt's personal popularity would have ensured his reelection in 1936 regardless of Hague's level of commitment. But by entrenching Hague's authority, as the New Deal tide ebbed over the ensuing years, and elections in New Jersey became more competitive, the President became ever more dependent on the capacity of the Mayor to deliver the votes he needed. This necessitated a policy of willful indifference towards Hague's increasingly autocratic and corrupt maladministration.

Middle School Students' Perceptions of Safety: A Mixed-Methods Study.

Active travel to school has been on the decline, despite its beneficial influence on children's current and future well-being. Adults' safety perceptions have been shown to influence children's active travel. Children's perceptions, particularly of safety, may be an important link not only to their present health and travel behaviors, but also their future health and behaviors. This study examined middle school students' perceptions of the built environment and safety. Overall, 776 students from 3 schools in Hudson County, New Jersey participated in a visual survey and structured, interactive classroom discussions. Emergent themes from the discussions were tested using multivariate statistical models. Findings suggest that older students, boys, and students who self-identified as black, rated built environment scenes as safer. Students also perceived being near adults, traveling in a group, and using crosswalks as significantly safer and want additional recognition of these to further improve safety. Students perceived that being near a school, in daylight, and aesthetics as factors contributing to safety. Schools and municipalities may increase programs for students to travel in groups, prioritize maintenance in school zones, and increase the number of crossing guards, particularly outside the immediate school proximity to further improve safety.

Mary Norton: "A Grand Girl"

£ £ E A R M A R Y , You are a grand gir l , Franklin D . I 1 Roosevelt wrote on White House stationary on June 1, * J 1942.1 The letter was addressed to Honorable Mary T . Norton,2 the first Democratic woman elected, after suffrage, to the House of Representatives. Norton, whose papers are housed in Rutgers University's Alexander Library, represented Jersey City and Bayonne in the House from 1924 to 1950. She was the first woman to serve on the New Jersey State Democratic Committee, of which she was chairwoman from 1932 to 1948. She became the first woman to co-chair the National Democratic Platform Committee in 1944 and, in 1948, the first woman to chair the Credentials Committee; in 1932, Norton became the first Democratic woman elected to a position on the Board of Chosen Freeholders in Hudson County, New Jersey; and in 1924 she was elected to the House of Representatives and was the first woman to chair a congressional committee—the House Committee on the District of Columbia, on which she served as Mayor of the District from 1931 to 1937. Norton was also the first woman to chair the House Labor Commit-

Chromium steel from chromite ore processing residue — A valuable construction material from a waste

As species we humans generate excessive amounts of waste and hence for sustainability we should explore innovative ways to recover them. The primary objective of this study is to demonstrate an efficient and optimum way to recover chromium and iron from chromite ore processing residues (COPR) for the production of chrome steel and stainless steel. In Hudson County, New Jersey, there are more than two million tons of leftover COPR. Part of COPR was used as fill materials for construction sites, which spread the problem to a larger area. With high solubility along with their toxicity leached chromate from COPR is threatening the environment as well as human health. In this research, COPR was thermally treated to recover iron with chromium by applying techniques used in steel manufacturing. An extensive experimental program was performed using a Thermo-Gravimetric Analyzer (TGA) and bench scale tests to thermally treat the processed chromium contaminated soils with carbon and sand at varying temperatures and under reducing environment. The optimum chemical composition of COPR and additives to be used in the melts were evaluated based upon the thermodynamic properties of the mixture to ensure good phase separation, least amounts of iron and chromium oxides in the slag and minimum variability of final product (steel or iron with chromium). The impact of other oxides on the steel making process was evaluated to minimize the adverse impact on the process. The research demonstrated the feasibility of recovering a valuable construction material (chrome steel) from a waste (COPR).

Measuring “What if?” Standard Versus Priming Methods for Polling Counterfactuals

How might people have behaved in the 2006 midterm elections were it not for the ongoing conflict in Iraq? A casual observer of US politics might respond glibly, “Republicans would still control Congress!” Indeed they might. There is, however, a way to quantify this counterfactual, as we did in the 2006 New Jersey Senate race between Democrat Bob Menendez and Republican Tom Kean. While Democrats in New Jersey had easily won every statewide race in the previous five years, there was reason to believe that the 2006 Senate race would be different. First, the Republican challenger was the son of a popular former governor, and thus had a level of name recognition far exceeding most statewide politicians. Second, he had no significant challenge in the primary election. Finally, the Democratic contender had serious problems to overcome. While technically the incumbent, Menendez had been appointed to the seat only a few months earlier and was little known outside of his home district in Hudson County. Hudson County, in turn, was mostly known for a truly remarkable level of corruption. The only problem fly in the ointment was the Iraq war. While in the House of Representatives, Menendez had voted against the resolution to go to war, and often referred to it as one of the most important votes of his career. Kean, on the other hand, had been reluctant before the campaign to criticize either the President or the war in a state which had become very critical of both. Menendez would make this difference paramount in his campaign.

Leaching Mechanisms of Cr(VI) from Chromite Ore Processing Residue

Batch leaching tests, qualitative and quantitative x-ray powder diffraction (XRPD) analyses, and geochemical modeling were used to investigate the leaching mechanisms of Cr(VI) from chromite ore processing residue (COPR) samples obtained from an urban area in Hudson County, New Jersey. The pH of the leaching solutions was adjusted to cover a wide range between 1 and 12.5. The concentration levels for total chromium (Cr) and Cr(VI) in the leaching solutions were virtually identical for pH values >5. For pH values <5, the concentration of total Cr exceeded that of Cr(VI) with the difference between the two attributed to Cr(III). Geochemical modeling results indicated that the solubility of Cr(VI) is controlled by Cr(VI)-hydrocalumite and Cr(VI)-ettringite at pH >10.5 and by adsorption at pH <8. However, experimental results suggested that Cr(VI) solubility is controlled partially by Cr(VI)-hydrocalumite at pH >10.5 and by hydrotalcites at pH >8 in addition to adsorption of anionic chromate species onto inherently present metal oxides and hydroxides at pH <8. As pH decreased to <10, most of the Cr(VI) bearing minerals become unstable and their dissolution contributes to the increase in Cr(VI) concentration in the leachate solution. At low pH ( <1.5), Cr(III) solid phases and the oxides responsible for Cr(VI) adsorption dissolve and release Cr(III) and Cr(VI) into solution.

Development of a standard reference material for Cr(vi) in contaminated soil

Over the last several decades, considerable contamination by hexavalent chromium has resulted from the land disposal of Chromite Ore Processing Residue (COPR). COPR contains a number of hexavalent chromium-bearing compounds that were produced in high temperature industrial processes. Concern over the carcinogenic potential of this chromium species, and its environmental mobility, has resulted in efforts to remediate these waste sites. To provide support to analytical measurements of hexavalent chromium, a candidate National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Standard Reference Material® (SRM 2701), having a hexavalent chromium content of approximately 500 mg kg−1, has been developed using material collected from a waste site in Hudson County, New Jersey, USA. The collection, processing, preparation and preliminary physico–chemical characterization of the material are discussed. A two-phase multi-laboratory testing study was carried out to provide data on material homogeneity and to assess the stability of the material over the duration of the study. The study was designed to incorporate several United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) determinative methods for hexavalent chromium, including Method 6800 which is based on speciated isotope dilution mass spectrometry (SIDMS), an approach which can account for chromium species inter-conversion during the extraction and measurement sequence.

Characterization of Chromite Ore Processing Residue

This paper summarizes the characteristics of chromite ore processing residue (COPR) in terms of their chemical compositions, phases, and recycling potential of iron and chromium through preliminary magnetic separation. COPR from nine hazardous waste sites in Hudson County, N.J., were analyzed using nondestructive instruments including environmental scanning electron microscope, x-ray diffraction spectrometer, and x-ray fluorescence spectrometer. The test results revealed that major phases of COPR were CaCO3, iron/chromium containing spinel, and SiO2. Concentrations of iron-containing phases, calculated as Fe2O3, ranged from 10 to 33% by weight. The COPR samples from nine sites can be divided into two groups, one with high concentration of iron oxide (20–33%) in a form of spinel having magnetic property, and another with low concentration of iron oxide (10–15%) without magnetic property. The manual/dry magnetic separation was able to concentrate iron and chromium oxides in COPR from the former group to 34.9–40.9 and 6.3–8.6%, respectively. The morphology of COPR from a sample containing high iron content revealed that COPR is mainly the remnant of chromite ore. The characteristics of COPR are different from those chromium-contaminated soils from other sources. The study will provide essential information for further remediation and recycling potential for COPR.

Mercury Use and Exposure among Santeria Practitioners: Religious versus Folk Practice in Northern New Jersey, USA

Objective. To understand and characterize exposure to and use of elemental mercury among practitioners of Afro-Cuban religions in Hudson County, New Jersey, USA. Design. Participant observation and open-ended interviews with 22 religious supply store employees and practitioners of Santeria, Espiritismo or Palo Mayombe probed respondents’ knowledge and use of mercury, as well as their beliefs about its benefits and risks. Including a cultural and religious insider as part of the research team was crucial in working with this relatively closed community. Results. Seventeen of the 21 practitioners reported using mercury or mercury compounds in various forms of practice and in services that they provide to clients. The contained nature of these uses suggests that accidental spills, as opposed to the practices themselves, emerge as the greatest exposure concern for this population. Mercury was never recommended to clients for individual use. This restriction appears to be rooted in the way the religion is practiced and in the way santeros receive compensation, not in a perception of mercury as hazardous. Most practitioners were aware that mercury can be hazardous, but were not familiar with the most significant exposure pathway, inhalation of mercury vapor. A climate of fear surrounds the use of mercury in this community, so that health concerns pale in comparison to fear of reprisal from authorities. Among those who sell or formerly sold mercury, several shared the erroneous belief that it was illegal to sell mercury in New Jersey. Conclusion. Despite widespread reported use, there were no reports of practices believed to result in the highest exposures. To reduce exposure in the community, interventions presenting general information on mercury hazards and instructions for cleaning up spills are recommended. To address insider–outsider dynamics and the climate of fear, educational materials should be accessible to the community and avoid any mention of religious practice.

Epidemiologic Aspects of Traumatic Brain Injury in Residents of Hudson County, New Jersey

Epidemiologic Aspects of Traumatic Brain Injury in Residents of Hudson County, New Jersey

Evaluability Assessment in Juvenile Justice

An evaluability assessment of three programs of the Juvenile Justice Commission of the State of New Jersey was undertaken. Operation Hook-Up, the Hudson County YAP Challenge Program, and the Monmouth County Bullying Prevention Project were assessed. This included interviewing program personnel, site visits, reviewing the record-keeping systems, and meeting with the staff of the Juvenile Justice Commission and of the programs. This assessment enabled the researchers to acquire firsthand knowledge of the programs that led to the development of tailored evaluation designs for two programs. This article describes the programs, the assessment, and the bases for our recommendations.

Community Health Changes Under Welfare Reform

This comparative case study1 examined changes in community health under New Jersey welfare reform policy implementation (1994-2001). The boundaries of these case descriptions were directed by Milii's ecological framework for policy studies. The separate cases consist of descriptions of changes in social climate and health indicators within Camden, Essex, and Hudson counties in New Jersey. Data analysis revealed a greater public health challenge in these counties than the state as a whole. A large increase in the numbers of low income and uninsured in the population may begin in 2004, 2 years following the 5-year lifetime limit of the receipt of welfare benefits. A growing uninsured population would place additional burdens on the abilities of safety net providers to meet health care needs of vulnerable populations. If left unchanged, these wider effects of the New Jersey welfare reform policy would have negative implications for improving quality of care.