Live Nearby Research Articles

Heavy Metal Pollution Impacts Soil Bacterial Community Structure and Antimicrobial Resistance at the Birmingham 35th Avenue Superfund Site.

Heavy metals (HMs) are known to modify bacterial communities both in the laboratory and in situ. Consequently, soils in HM-contaminated sites such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Superfund sites are predicted to have altered ecosystem functioning, with potential ramifications for the health of organisms, including humans, that live nearby. Further, several studies have shown that heavy metal-resistant (HMR) bacteria often also display antimicrobial resistance (AMR), and therefore HM-contaminated soils could potentially act as reservoirs that could disseminate AMR genes into human-associated pathogenic bacteria. To explore this possibility, topsoil samples were collected from six public locations in the zip code 35207 (the home of the North Birmingham 35th Avenue Superfund Site) and in six public areas in the neighboring zip code, 35214. 35027 soils had significantly elevated levels of the HMs As, Mn, Pb, and Zn, and sequencing of the V4 region of the bacterial 16S rRNA gene revealed that elevated HM concentrations correlated with reduced microbial diversity and altered community structure. While there was no difference between zip codes in the proportion of total culturable HMR bacteria, bacterial isolates with HMR almost always also exhibited AMR. Metagenomes inferred using PICRUSt2 also predicted significantly higher mean relative frequencies in 35207 for several AMR genes related to both specific and broad-spectrum AMR phenotypes. Together, these results support the hypothesis that chronic HM pollution alters the soil bacterial community structure in ecologically meaningful ways and may also select for bacteria with increased potential to contribute to AMR in human disease. IMPORTANCE Heavy metals cross-select for antimicrobial resistance in laboratory experiments, but few studies have documented this effect in polluted soils. Moreover, despite decades of awareness of heavy metal contamination at the EPA Superfund site in North Birmingham, Alabama, this is the first analysis of the impact of this pollution on the soil microbiome. Specifically, this work advances the understanding of the relationship between heavy metals, microbial diversity, and patterns of antibiotic resistance in North Birmingham soils. Our results suggest that polluted soils carry a risk of increased exposure to antibiotic-resistant infections in addition to the direct health consequences of heavy metals. Our work provides important information relevant to both political and scientific efforts to advance environmental justice for the communities that call Superfund neighborhoods home.

“Lucky Enough”: The Music and Stories That Make Vaughan's Lounge, New Orleans, Louisiana, United States

“Lucky Enough”: The Music and Stories That Make Vaughan's Lounge, New Orleans, Louisiana, United States

Health Exposure and Environmental Challenges of Households Living Nearby an Open Landfill System in Nigerian Urban Centre

Urbanization and poor town planning have contributed to large waste generation, poor management, and landfill are sited close to the living environment; hence, high health risk. The study assessed households living near open landfills' health-related exposure and environmental challenges.

Family and Friends Living Nearby, Neighborhood Satisfaction, and Residential Mobility

This study draws on panel data from the Los Angeles Family and Neighborhood Survey ( N = 1,128) to examine whether and how family and friends living close-by are associated with individuals’ interneighborhood residential mobility. Additional analyses tap into why individuals’ proportion of nearby kin and friends are linked to their mobility. The results suggest that individuals’ perceptions of their neighborhood are patterned by whether or not they have family—and to a lesser extent friends—who live locally. The absence of nearby family is associated with leaving the neighborhood, but the direct effects do not hold for nearby friends. However, the role of friends does become important in the absence of family ties. The results also indicate that having nearby friends moderates the relationship between neighborhood satisfaction and moving away.

An Empirical Study of Public Response to a Waste-to-Energy Plant in China: Effects of Knowledge, Risk, Benefit and Systematic Processing

With the development of urbanization in China, tons of municipal solid waste have been produced and disposed Incineration is the best way to deal with municipal solid waste in China but this practice often is opposed and resisted by the public who live nearby. This study systematically analyzed the risk responses of the public, in particular factors affecting the public’s resistant behavior We conducted a survey and collected 376 valid questionnaires which we used for the analysis. We used the structural equation model and path analysis for the examination, and the results showed that risk perception was a critical factor predicting the resistant behavior of the public surrounding the wasteto-energy (WTE) plant. Benefit perception had a negative, but insignificant, impact on the public’s resistant behavior. We found a negative correlation between benefit perception and risk perception but the relationship was weakened when we added systematic processing to the path analysis. The impact of system processing on risk perception was greater than that of benefit perception; that is, systematic processing was better in explaining the risk judgment of the public than benefit perception. Problem knowledge was a significant indicator in predicting risk perception and systematic processing and technology knowledge was a significant indicator in predicting risk perception and benefit perception. Systematic processing increased the public’s risk judgment to the WTE plant. Finally, we discussed practical implications and limitations.

The effect of film production studios on housing prices in Atlanta, the Hollywood of the South

Governments compete to attract film productions to their communities, expecting them to provide economic benefits directly through local purchases and employment and indirectly through publicity and image building. Atlanta, Georgia, has become a large film production hub, partially because of a state tax credit programme. As a result, permanent production facilities have been established that may influence surrounding real estate prices. Convenience and a desire to live among other creatives may encourage actors, technical workers and support staff to live nearby, and the film industry cachet may attract additional residents, increasing house prices. However, if the facilities are perceived to be similar to other industrial operations, they may negatively affect surrounding house prices. We investigate film production studios’ effect on residential property values using housing sales data and information on film production studios’ location, size and year established. To mitigate bias from the potential endogeneity of studios’ location choices, we augment the standard hedonic pricing framework to incorporate proximity to a film production studio and construct treatment and comparison groups. Using a spatial difference-in-difference framework, we find that while houses located closest to film production studios tend to sell for lower prices than houses further away, the discount is not attributable to the studios. Instead, the establishment of a new studio, especially a large one, is a positive event in the housing market. These findings have important policy implications for local governments in making decisions about film industry incentives and facilities’ site selection as possible drivers of redevelopment.

Design and Manufacturing Analysis of Multi-purpose Vertical baler/trash Compactor Machine

Humans have always had an impact on their surroundings. Solid waste is one of our biggest effects on nature. Unlike other animals, humans create too much waste for nature to keep up. With the continually rising of the earth’s population, the situation is going to get harder and harder to slow it down, or fix it. With garbage pollutioncomes; from the burning of garbage we are destroying the atmosphere just as fast as we are just leaving the garbage on the ground. When you burn garbage it gives off extremely poisonous gases into the atmosphere. If a person breathes this air it can hurt their lungs and if untreated can result in cancers or even death. Even if we burry our garbage not all of it will decompose, as there are some material needs centuries to decompose. By polluting the ground it can seep into our farming soil and even into our ground water, which can cause dramatic consequences.Compacting trashes is considered a great solution for the problem of throwing garbage as it was examined in well developed countries and solved the problem of thrown garbage in the streets or burning extra garbage which is the same problem that each developing countryis facing, and in result it also reduce the pollution amount due to the smoke of burning garbage and the diseases caused because of the uncovered garbage in streets where people walk through and others live nearby

Behavior of general population toward mentally ill persons in Digital India: Where are we?

Background:We aimed to find out the overall reported and intended behavior of the general population of India toward mentally ill persons.Materials and Methods:Participants were included in an online survey using a nonprobability snowball sampling technique. After taking informed consent, sociodemographic details were recorded, and the “Reported and Intended Behaviour Scale” was administered.Results:Out of 818 responses, 684 responses were eligible for study after exclusion. The mean age (standard deviation) of the study population was 31.01 (7.79) years. Maximum participants reported that they did not live (76.6%), did not work (75.7%), did not live nearby (66.4 %), or have not had a close friend (79.8%) with mental health problems. However, most individuals neither agreed nor disagreed to live (48.5%), work (38%), and live nearby (42.7%) a mentally ill person, but maximum individuals strongly agreed to continue a relationship with a friend having mental health problems (34.5%). There were 77.5% males and 32.2% healthcare workers. Regarding intended behavior, there was a significant difference between healthcare workers and persons other than these as well as between males and females. Participants who had previous interaction with the mentally ill person were more willing to interact with the same.Conclusion:Most people do not intend to have stigmatized behavior toward mentally ill persons. Healthcare workers and males have less negative social reactions toward mentally ill persons in different domains of life. However, there is still a need to intensify awareness about mental health.

Impact of Lead Exposure on Thyroid Status and IQ Performance among School-age Children Living Nearby a Lead-Zinc Mine in China

BackgroundLead exposure is one of the most concerning public health problems worldwide, particularly among children. Yet the impact of chronic lead exposure on the thyroid status and related intelligence quotient performance among school-age children remained elusive. ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of lead exposure on the thyroid hormones, amino acid neurotransmitters balances, and intelligence quotient (IQ) among school-age children living nearby a lead-zinc mining site. Other factors such as rice lead levels, mothers’ smoking behavior, and diet intake were also investigated. MethodsA total of 255 children aged 7-12 years old were recruited in this study. Blood lead level (BLL), thyroid hormones including free triiodothyronine (FT3), free thyroxine (FT4) and thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH), and amino acid neurotransmitters such as glutamate (Glu), glutamine (Gln), and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) were measured using graphite furnace atomic absorption spectroscopy (GFAAS), chemiluminescence immunoassay, high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Raven's standard progressive matrices (SPM) and the questionnaire were used to determine IQ and collect related influence factors. ResultsThe average BLL of children was 84.8 μg/L. The occurrence of lead intoxication (defined as the BLL ≥ 100 μg/L) was 31.8%. Serum TSH levels and IQ of lead-intoxicated children were significantly lower than those without lead toxicity. The GABA level of girls with the lead intoxication was higher than those with no lead-exposed group. Correlation analyses revealed that BLL were inversely associated with the serum TSH levels (R= -0.186, p < 0.05), but positively related with IQ grades (R = 0.147, p < 0.05). Moreover, BLL and Glu were inversely correlated with IQ. In addition, this study revealed four factors that may contribute to the incidence of lead intoxication among children, including the frequency of mother smoking (OR = 3.587, p < 0.05) and drinking un-boiled stagnant tap water (OR = 3.716, p < 0.05); eating fresh fruits and vegetables (OR = 0.323, p < 0.05) and soy products regularly (OR = 0.181, p < 0.05) may protect against lead intoxication. ConclusionLead exposure affects the serum TSH, GABA levels and IQ of school-aged children. Developing good living habits, improving environment, increasing the intake of high-quality protein and fresh vegetable and fruit may improve the condition of lead intoxication.

Early adopters, firm survival, and environmental policy: dry cleaners in the South Coast Basin of California

This paper examines the relationship between the early adoption of new technologies, the probability of firm survival, and environmental regulations through a case study of dry cleaners in the South Coast Basin of California (SC Basin). Most dry cleaners use machines that use the toxic chemical perchloroethylene (PERC) to clean garments. PERC vapors are emitted into the ambient air during the dry cleaning process and can cause cancer in people who live and work nearby. In 2002, the South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) required all dry cleaners in the region to purchase a costly alternative machine that used a non-toxic cleaning solvent by the year 2020. Using bivariate and multivariate analysis, we found that the timing of the early adoption of non-PERC machines among dry cleaners was optimal, ceteris paribus, and adopting early did not have a negative effect on the probability of surviving.

Beyond nostalgia: Older people's perspectives on informal care in rural Flanders

Flanders (Belgium) is aging at high speed. In 2060, almost one in three (32 percent) will be older than 60. The number of people aged 80 and over will increase from more than 400,000 today to nearly 800,000 in 2060. This demographic change can be witnessed throughout the entire region, yet older people are overrepresented in rural areas. A large majority of older people is ‘aging in place’. This often occurs in places that witness a severe decline in basic facilities and that suffer from a loss of its young(er) population. Nevertheless, policies in Flanders strongly support aging in place, while emphasizing the role of informal caregivers. This paper explores older people's perceptions of and experiences with informal care in rural Flanders. Based on qualitative in-depth interviews, we focus on the role of family members and neighbors in providing informal care for older people living at home in two different rural areas in Flanders (‘Westhoek’ and ‘Kempen’). The analysis shows how, in both regions, receiving care from children and neighbors is simply not always perceived as a valid and realistic option by our respondents, and this for different reasons. It concludes that the current focus of elderly policy in Flanders on aging in place and the strong emphasis on the role of informal caregivers work only for those older people whose informal caregivers (in practice mostly children) live nearby. This depends strongly, of course, on spatial and economic factors. Also, neighbors are not the cohesive group they are presumed to be. We thus have to move beyond the nostalgic idea that neighbors and close family members can or will actively engage in informal care.

“BRTT” (Clean, Neat, Orderly, Organized) Program as a Pioneer of Daarut Tauhid Santri with Ecological Intelligence

Daarut Tauhid as one of the educational institutions that study religion proves that an islamic boarding school does not only deepen the Holy Qur’an and hadith; but also does real activities in the society. Researchers are interested in capturing the process of implementing the "BRTT" program to the ecological intelligence of the Santri[1] of Daarut Tauhid. This research uses a qualitative approach with a case study method. The subjects of this study include the santri from Daarut Tauhid, the Quality Control Team and Daarut Tauhid Principal. The data are collected through observation, interviews, and documentation. The results of this study indicate that the background of implementing this program is the desire to make islamic boarding schools as pioneers of a clean, neat, orderly, and organized attitude to its santri and to the people who live nearby. The process of implementing the BRTT program is carried out in two categories: internally and externally. The obstacles encountered in the implementation of the BRTT program were self-habit constraints and fatigueness. The factors that influence the students in being disciplined in implementing BRTT are self-consciousness and environmental habit. The ecological intelligence of the students of Daarut Tauhid consists of seven aspects: (1) understanding environmental issues and problems from the perspective of ecological balance and sustainability, (2) conducting BRTT starting with a rule, mandatory policies which gradually become a habit and are inherent in self, (3) ways of solving problems creatively and applying knowledge in a new situation (ecological context), (4) oftenly assess the impact and the effects of human actions and technology on the environment, (5) oftenly take into account of the long-term consequences in taking a decisions (environmental context), (6) knowing indicators of clean and healthy living behavior, also (7) ways to give attention, empathy, and care for others and other living things.[1] Santri is the students of islamic boarding school

Acorn woodpeckers vocally discriminate current and former group members from nongroup members

Abstract In species with long-term social relationships, the ability to recognize individuals after extended separation and the ability to discriminate between former social affiliates that have died and those that have left the group but may return are likely to be beneficial. Few studies, however, have investigated whether animals can make these discriminations. We presented acorn woodpeckers (Melanerpes formicivorus), a group-living, cooperatively breeding bird, with playbacks of current group members, former group members still living nearby, former group members that had died or left the study area, and familiar nongroup members. Subjects responded more quickly to the calls of nongroup members than to the calls of current group members or former group members still living in the study area but did not discriminate between nongroup members and former group members that had died or disappeared. This suggests that acorn woodpeckers can vocally recognize both current group members and former group members that have dispersed to nearby groups and that they either forget former group members that no longer live in the vicinity or classify them differently from former group members that still live nearby. This study suggests an important role for vocal recognition in maintaining valuable relationships with social affiliates postdispersal.

A Bookman Remembers Charles Bowden

A Bookman Remembers Charles Bowden Walt Bartholomew* (bio) I moved to Tucson in August 1994 and the first week I got here, or maybe the first day, I started looking for bookstores. First one I found was a place called the Book Mark on Speedway. It screwed up my life. I walked in and saw a display of local authors, new releases, this sort of thing, and then the clerk, Gloria Chivers, came over and said, "Have you ever heard of Chuck Bowden?" I had heard his name before, in conjunction with Edward Abbey, when I was living in Seattle. I had read everything by Edward Abbey, but never anything by Bowden. I'd never even seen any of his books in the Seattle area, where there are lots of bookstores. Gloria said, "Here. Try this." So the first book I read was Blue Desert, and then it was Mezcal. She had copies of Red Line and Desierto, but Blood Orchid wasn't out yet. So, that was my introduction to Chuck. I read Blue Desert and I liked it. Blue Desert was pretty mild. This was before the Blood Orchid thing. That was something a little different. Then Chuck had a book signing at the Book Mark for Blood Orchid. I brought him a bottle of wine, which is hilarious, because we set the bottle of wine down and it got tipped over and soaked the whole stack of books. The bookstore lost, because they threw these drenched burgundy-colored books away. He got a little tipsy. I read it the day it came out. I went and Gloria was opening the boxes. She was slicing one open and I said, "Here, give me that." And I went over on my patio in midtown, got a beer, and sat there and read the whole book. I said, "I don't know if I like this. I don't know." I had to read it, but there was something disturbing. At the signing, I told Chuck, "Something disturbs me about this book." His line was, "There's no big words in there." That was his joke. [End Page 149] No, there are no big words in there, but there's something in there that bothers me. And so I read every book that came out, and every magazine article—we're talking about things coming out in Mother Jones and the Atlantic. This is when he started doing the drug writer for Blood Orchid. I just started reading everything. I just couldn't stop. I thought, "Maybe this is weird," but I couldn't stop. I just get addicted to things. So that was '94, '95, '96, and somewhere around '97 I found out that Chuck lived about a mile away from me. So I asked Gloria, "What if I write him a letter. Will he tell me to drop dead?" That is what I would expect. So I wrote him a letter and said, "I live nearby and maybe I'll drop by some time." And he said, "Sure. Come over at 2." That started a twelve-year run. About every three months I went over to his place and it was never less than four hours. I would get there and he was always back in the purple writing shack. Mary Martha Miles, Chuck's partner at the time, would just point back there. The place should be a historic landmark. I'll pitch in for the brass plaque. It had been a garage, converted, and he had the floor tiled and an air conditioner put in. He had a little refrigerator there with the beverages. It was to give them space, I'm sure. She could stay in the house and say, "Chuck, go to your shack and don't return until it's dark." That works. Chuck, I don't know what he's doing. I think he writes in the morning, and this was after lunch, so he's back there in his shack and he's mellowing out. Sometimes there was someone else there, or not, and I'd be given an espresso and some wine, another espresso, another wine, and he'd just...

Research on the impact factors of public acceptance towards NIMBY facilities in China - A case study on hazardous chemicals factory

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the factors influencing public acceptance of hazardous chemicals factory in China. By using structural equation modelling approach, perceived risk, perceived benefit, perceived fairness, trust in government and positive affect tag are examined as impact factors. Data is collected from the local public and the general public by internet-based questionnaires. The results show that NIMBY effect is significant to hazardous chemical factory because for the local public who live nearby, perceived risk has the greatest impact on the acceptance, but perceived benefit is not significant, and positive affect tag has significant influence on both perceived risk and perceived benefit. While for general public, perceived benefit is significant to the acceptance, but perceived risk not is statistically significant and positive affect tag influences perceived benefit only. The results also indicate that perceived fairness and trust in government affect the acceptance of both groups, and trust in government affect perceived fairness, perceived risk and perceived benefit. This study contributes to the management of sitting problems of hazardous chemical factory by providing understanding of impact factors on the public acceptance. Recommendations for improving public acceptance are offered at last.

ANALISIS PENINGKATAN EKONOMI MASYARAKAT DI AGROWISATA BELIMBING KARANGSARI KOTA BLITAR

Kelurahan Karangsari after established of Karangsari Starfruit Agrotourism in Blitar City we can see economic development in society with how Starfruit farmer’s income transformed. For knowing income differentiation of Starfruit farmer we use paired sample t-test method. This research found that after established of Karangsari Starfruit Agrotourism in Blitar City give positive influence for Starfruit farmer. The influence is the increasing demand for the product, the creation of product quantity, the creation of selling price, the creation of product innovation, and give more employment opportunity for society who live nearby. The creation Starfruit farmer income in a significant way show that there is differentiation after established Karangsari Starfruit Agrotourism in Blitar City.Keywords: Agrotourism, Karangsari Starfruit, Blitar City, Farmer’s Income, And Paired Sample T-Test.

Spying on volcanoes

Active volcanoes can be incredibly dangerous, especially to those who live nearby, but how do you get close enough to observe one in action? Matthew Watson explains how artificial drones are providing volcanologists with insights that could one day save human lives

Tourist motivations for visiting heritage attractions: new insights from a large US study

This article describes the results of a large study measuring tourist motivations for visiting heritage-related attractions in a major state in the US. The study used a quantitative survey method with a sample size of more than 3,500 collected at dozens of diverse heritage tourism attractions in a geography spanning hundreds of miles. The methodology used a blended paper and online technique using QR image technology to assist respondents in completing surveys on any mobile device. The study also used GIS software to map survey data points. 'Seeing heritage attractions' was the top motivation cited by respondents for their visit (39%) followed by 'outdoor recreation' (22%), 'visiting friends and family' (13%) and 'just passing through' (8%). Eighteen percent of visitors reported that they visited because the lived nearby. Conclusions and limitations of the study as well as implications for future research are also discussed.

The complex interplay of social networks, geography and HIV risk among Malaysian Drug Injectors: Results from respondent-driven sampling

BackgroundHIV is primarily concentrated among people who inject drugs (PWID) in Malaysia, where currently HIV prevention and treatment coverage is inadequate. To improve the targeting of interventions, we examined HIV clustering and the role that social networks and geographical distance play in influencing HIV transmission among PWID. MethodsData were derived from a respondent-driven survey sample (RDS) collected during 2010 of 460 PWID in greater Kuala Lumpur. Analysis focused on socio-demographic, clinical, behavioural, and network information. Spatial probit models were developed based on a distinction between the influence of peers (individuals nominated through a recruitment network) and neighbours (residing a close distance to the individual). The models were expanded to account for the potential influence of the network formation. ResultsRecruitment patterns of HIV-infected PWID clustered both spatially and across the recruitment networks. In addition, HIV-infected PWID were more likely to have peers and neighbours who inject with clean needles were HIV-infected and lived nearby (<5km), more likely to have been previously incarcerated, less likely to use clean needles (26.8% vs 53.0% of the reported injections, p<0.01), and have fewer recent injection partners (2.4 vs 5.4, p<0.01). The association between the HIV status of peers and neighbours remained significantly correlated even after controlling for unobserved variation related to network formation and sero-sorting. ConclusionThe relationship between HIV status across networks and space in Kuala Lumpur underscores the importance of these factors for surveillance and prevention strategies, and this needs to be more closely integrated. RDS can be applied to identify injection network structures, and this provides an important mechanism for improving public health surveillance, accessing high-risk populations, and implementing risk-reduction interventions to slow HIV transmission.

It's Jun-e-ata, Not Juan-ita!

It's Jun-e-ata, <i>Not</i> Juan-ita!