Sustained Contact Research Articles

Variations in plantar pressure variables across elliptical trainers in older adults

BackgroundEllipticals are used to address walking and cardiorespiratory training goals of older adults, some of whom are at risk for foot injuries. Variations in joint kinematics and muscle demands when using different ellipticals could lead to plantar pressure differences. This study explored plantar pressure variables during gait and use of four ellipticals. MethodsPlantar pressures were recorded while 10 adults [68.1 (4.5) years] walked and used the True, Octane, Life Fitness, and SportsArt ellipticals. Repeated-measures ANOVAs (5 × 1) identified forefoot and heel differences across conditions. FindingsMaximum forefoot forces and peak pressures were significantly lower than walking for each elliptical condition with one exception (Life Fitness peak pressure). However, sustained elliptical pedal contact time contributed to forefoot pressure-time integrals and dosages (i.e., cumulative pressure during one minute of activity) not varying significantly amongst elliptical and walking conditions. Heel maximum forces and peak pressures were significantly lower than walking during all elliptical conditions except SportsArt. Heel contact time on SportsArt and Octane exceeded walking, and SportsArt heel contact time exceeded Life Fitness. Heel pressure-time integral was greater on SportsArt compared to walking, Life Fitness, and True. Sports Art heel dosage exceeded Life Fitness and True. InterpretationWhile elliptical training's sustained double limb support diminished maximal forces and peak pressures under the forefoot and heel compared to walking, each ellipticals' pressure-time integral and dosage were not significantly lower than walking. These findings point to the importance of carefully initiating elliptical training programs to minimize tissue injury, particularly if sensory neuropathy is present.

Caravans of Gold, Fragments in Time: Art, Culture, and Exchange Across Medieval Saharan Africa edited by Kathleen Bickford Berzock

Caravans of Gold, Fragments in Time: Art, Culture, and Exchange Across Medieval Saharan Africa edited by Kathleen Bickford Berzock

Pragmatic markers resulting from language contact. The case of sañani in Aymara

This paper explores the pragmatic functions of a previously unattested pragmatic marker (Fraser, 1996, 2006) found in Aymara, i.e. sanani ‘let’s say’. The uses of sanani suggest that this marker is the result of the influence of Spanish on Aymara due to sustained language contact. Sanani seems to be the “replication” (Heine and Kuteva, 2005) of the Spanish pragmatic marker digamos ‘let’s say’. Like digamos (Grande Alija, 2010; Quartararo, 2017a), sanani functions as a pragmatic marker by signaling either an inferential process or the semantic relation between two discourse segments. The original data used for this analysis was gathered through the Family Problems Picture task (San Roque et al., 2012), the Pear Story task (Chafe, 1980) and personal and traditional narratives. All the data transcripts were used to compile a novel corpus of Aymara.

Temperature-dependent mechanical behavior of three-dimensionally ordered macroporous tungsten

Abstract

Lonely Young American: Queer Terrorist Recruitment and the Trope of the Child

Abstract The trope of the Child is contradictory and marked by considerable ambivalence. To reckon with the Child’s place in public culture is to bear witness to its myriad permutations. One such permutation presents itself in the story of “Alex,” a 23-year-old white U.S. American woman who nearly left her Washington State home to join the Islamic State (ISIS) after sustained online contact with several Caliphate members. Alex’s story is a representative anecdote regarding white civil society’s affective investments in and anxieties about the Child, and is strikingly homologous to popular narratives of online sexual predators who target children. Within the white Western heteronormative imaginary, the figures of the pedophile and the terrorist recruiter seek to defile the Child and, in so doing, undermine the normative foundations of white Western civil society. To mark the ISIS recruiter as a queer threat to the Child is to mobilize the latter in the service of Western hegemony and tether heteronormative notions of child and family to the politics of empire.

Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis transmission among middle school students in Zhejiang Province, China

BackgroundDespite significant advancements in the treatment and diagnosis of tuberculosis (TB) over the past decade, drug-resistant TB remains an increasing threat to public health. TB outbreaks are most commonly reported in schools considering the delay in TB diagnosis, sustained contact, and overcrowding observed in schools. This report describes multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) transmission in a school in Zhejiang Province. We aimed to raise awareness regarding MDR-TB transmission among students.Case presentationThe index patient was a 16-year-old girl in the second year of junior middle school in Zhejiang Province, China, who had been experiencing persistent cough and expectoration for 37 days since 1 March 2014. She tested positive for smear pulmonary and extrapulmonary TB on 8 April 2014 and was subsequently diagnosed with MDR-TB on 1 May 2014. However, the patient was resistant to isoniazid, rifampicin, ethambutol, and streptomycin. Thus, she was suspended from school for anti-TB treatment. All 54 students who were in close contact with the index patient in the same class were screened, and 5 tested positive on the tuberculin skin test. Their exposure time to the index patient was approximately 37 days. Three classmates were subsequently diagnosed with MDR-TB, with similar resistance profiles nearly two years later. Their average discovery delay was 55 days. These three classmates were also suspended from school for anti-TB treatment. During the treatment period, four students visited the local TB-designated hospital for further consultation every month and were followed up once a month by the local community health service center until they were completely cured.ConclusionsDiscovery delay for an index patient played a primary role in MDR-TB transmission inside the school. To immediately detect TB, morning examinations in schools should be performed. TB trackers and case managers should work closely with public health workers and physicians in cases of TB outbreaks or transmissions involving students. Moreover, individuals who are in close contact with MDR-TB patients should undergo careful clinical follow-up for at least two years. Implementing a joint examination strategy to ensure early detection, diagnosis, and treatment of MDR-TB transmission is recommended.

Aphid saliva: a powerful recipe for modulating host resistance towards aphid clonal propagation

The successful colonization of an aphid requires intimate/compatible association which is achieved in the susceptible host plant. During development of intimate association with the susceptible host plant, aphid explores ‘effector’ molecules enriched in saliva that translocate into the host cell to modulate host cell’s function (physiology) as well as structure for assuring the nutrient availability. ‘Effectors’ are saliva proteins and/or small molecules having ability to manipulate the host cell’s structure as well as function. These molecules are originated from an aphid saliva gland and move through the aphid stylet during interaction with the host plant. The compatibility between aphid and its susceptible host plant depends on successful effector molecules exchange for better access of nutrient from the host plant. The compatible interaction which is also known as intimate association promotes aphid’s growth and multiplication due to well access of host’s phloem sap. In resistant host plant, aphid saliva enriched with effector molecules are recognized by the host plant defense machinery resulting in inducing effective plant defense response that negatively impacts on aphid’s survival, growth, and multiplication. The interaction of saliva secreted effector molecules with the host defense machinery results in two extreme reactions—susceptible and resistance types. Genetic mutant study reveals that the salivary secreted effector molecules are required for sustained contact with the host plant and play pivotal role in establishing compatibility with the susceptible host plant. Recent findings are also quite indicative that the silencing of salivary effector gene in aphid reduces the sustained contact with the susceptible host plant resulting in reduced survival and multiplication in aphid. This knowledge of salivary gland secreted effector genes could be potentially explored in aphid control in agricultural as well as horticultural crops as a novel strategy for next generation aphid control to bypass the heavy use of insecticide which causes imbalance in ecology.

How do healthcare workers in diagnostic imaging minimise risks but maximise performance during the COVID-19 pandemic?

How do healthcare workers in diagnostic imaging minimise risks but maximise performance during the COVID-19 pandemic?

New Dialect Formation Through Language Contact

The situation of sustained contact between Spanish and English in Miami during the past half century provides a rare opportunity to study contact-induced language change in an ecological context in which speakers of the immigrant language (i.e., Spanish) have become the numerical majority. The study reported here is designed to track the phonetic and prosodic influences of Spanish on the variety of English emerging among second-generation Miami-born Latinx speakers of various national origin backgrounds by examining a suite of variables shown in prior studies to exhibit Spanish substrate influence in other regional contexts. We examine two kinds of phonetic variables in the English spoken by 20 second-generation Latinx and 5 Anglo white speakers: (1) prosodic rhythm and (2) vowel quality. Prosodic rhythm was quantified using Low and Grabe’s Pairwise Variability Index (nPVI); results show that Miami-born Latinx speakers are significantly more syllable-timed in casual speech than Miami-born Anglo white speakers. Significant vocalic differences were also observed, with Latinx speakers producing lower and more backed tokens of [æ] in prenasal and nonprenasal positions and more backed tokens of [u].

Person-to-Person Transmission of Avian Influenza A (H7N9) Among Family Members in Eastern China, 2016.

Human infections with avian influenza A (H7N9) virus are associated with exposure to poultry and live poultry markets, but the evidence of person-to-person transmission remains limited. This study reports a suspected person-to-person transmission of H7N9 virus, and explores what factors influenced this transmission. We interviewed 2 patients with H7N9 infection and their family members as well as health-care workers. Samples from the patients and environments were tested by real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. The index patient became ill 5 to 6 days after his last exposure to the poultry bought in the market of Weimiao town. The second patient, the sister of the index patient, who had sustained intensive and unprotected close contact with the index patient, had no exposure to poultry. This study documents that the H7N9 virus was transmitted directly from the index patient to his sister. Our findings suggest that person-to-person transmission may be associated with sustained close contact with the patient during his onset of early stage, when the H7N9 viral shedding increases sharply.

Integrated lithium metal anode protected by composite solid electrolyte film enables stable quasi-solid-state lithium metal batteries

Lithium (Li) metal, possessing an extremely high theoretical specific capacity (3860 mAh/g) and the most negative electrode potential (−3.040 V vs. standard hydrogen electrode), is one the most favorable anode materials for future high-energy-density batteries. However, the poor cyclability and safety issues induced by extremely unstable interfaces of traditional liquid Li metal batteries have limited their practical applications. Herein, a quasi-solid battery is constructed to offer superior interfacial stability as well as excellent interfacial contact by the incorporation of Li@composite solid electrolyte integrated electrode and a limited amount of liquid electrolyte (7.5 μL/cm2). By combining the inorganic garnet Al-doped Li6.75La3Zr1.75Ta0.25O12 (LLZO) with high mechanical strength and ionic conductivity and the organic ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (EVA) with good flexibility, the composite solid electrolyte film could provide sufficient ion channels, sustained interfacial contact and good mechanical stability at the anode side, which significantly alleviates the thermodynamic corrosion and safety problems induced by liquid electrolytes. This innovative and facile quasi-solid strategy is aimed to promote the intrinsic safety and stability of working Li metal anode, shedding light on the development of next-generation high-performance Li metal batteries.

The Psychology of Loyalty in Codependency Relationship

The article considers the problems of emotionally close relations between people in the context of codependency. The article describes the specificity of the development of loyalty as personal formation. In the nature of codependency, there is a progression of the sign of the narcissistic process. A person that has got an increased sensitivity to his/her own comfort zone needs a compensation for their own disadvantage, which is expressed in the compulsive desire to control the lives of others. Their main goal is to achieve a sustained emotional contact and the fact of recognition of their uniqueness. Loyalty for such a person is associated with an emotional burden and the necessity to emphasize its unsteady uniqueness. The basic needs of personality in codependent relationships contents very unevenly, because in the mind of a person with narcissistic signs there is no completed idea of the proximity and certainty of relationships. Loyalty cannot take place in a sustainable personal formation, because its nature is based on the compensation of trauma and the disadvantage of the partner. Loyalty which was formed on the basis of neurotic attachment is based on hopeless expectations, on dissatisfied needs, exaggerated results of interaction filled with double references, feelings of guilt, and a deficit of the sense of belonging. In the codependent relationship, loyalty acquires special modifications and interspersed with other personal structures the nature of which determines the successive cyclical dissatisfaction with this kind of relationship. Loyalty is conditioned by the need to fill its own narcissistic “I” which is incapable of keeping its structural integrity on its own. Without regular support of another person, it quickly desolates and actualizes in a high anxiety. The proximity is realized not in emphasizing the significance of the latter but in the opposite form: depreciated.

Freedom in the Face of Nicaragua's Hybrid Carceral System

Drawing on extensive prisons research and sustained contact with (former) prisoners in Nicaragua, this article explores three former prisoners’ post-release trajectories. In the face of a hybrid state that manifests as both a legal penal state and an extralegal system of powers, colloquially referred to as el Sistema (the System), and to the backdrop of a (d)evolving political context, I argue for an understanding of the ‘tightness’ of post-release life by conceptualizing the Sistema’s transcarceral grip. Former prisoners deal with this grip in different ways, ranging from self-censorship to the taking of ‘delinquent freedoms’. A detailed understanding of this grip can help pinpoint how carceral logics are mobilized outside prison in Nicaragua and how its carceral state expands through not only legal but also extralegal means.

Immobilized Acylase PvdQ Reduces Pseudomonas aeruginosa Biofilm Formation on PDMS Silicone

The bacterial biofilm plays a key role in nosocomial infections, especially those related to medical devices in sustained contact with patients. The active dispersion of bacterial cells out of biofilms acts as a reservoir for infectious diseases. The formation of such biofilms is a highly complex process, which is coordinated by many regulatory mechanisms of the pathogen including quorum sensing (QS). Many bacteria coordinate the expression of key virulence factors dependent on their population density through QS. The inhibition of this system is called quorum quenching (QQ). Thus, preventing the development of biofilms is considered a promising approach to prevent the development of hard to treat infections. Enzymatic QQ is the concept of interfering with the QS system of bacteria outside the cell. PvdQ is an acylase with an N-terminal nucleophile (Ntn-hydrolase) that is a part of the pyoverdine gene cluster (pvd). It is able to cleave irreversibly the amide bond of long chain N-acyl homoserine lactones (AHL) rendering them inactive. Long chain AHLs are the main signaling molecule in the QS system of the gram-negative pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa PA01, which is known for surface-associated biofilms on indwelling catheters and is also the cause of catheter-associated urinary tract infections. Furthermore, PA01 is a well characterized pathogen with respect to QS as well as QQ. In this study, we immobilized the acylase PvdQ on polydimethylsiloxane silicone (PDMS), creating a surface with quorum quenching properties. The goal is to control infections by minimizing the colonization of indwelling medical devices such as urinary catheters or intravascular catheters. The enzyme activity was confirmed by testing the degradation of the main auto-inducer that mediates QS in P. aeruginosa. In this article we report for the first time a successful immobilization of the quorum quenching acylase PvdQ on PDMS silicone. We could show that immobilized PvdQ retained its activity after the coating procedure and showed a 6-fold reduction of the auto-inducer 3-oxo-C12 in a biosensor setup. Further we report significant reduction of a P. aeruginosa PA01 biofilm on a coated PDMS surface compared to the same untreated material.

Of Other Caribes: Son Jarocho and the Sounds of Dissent

By tracing the long history of music in the Caribbean, this article will discuss the son jarocho as a sound of dissent: a musical, poetic and kinetic practice that relies on hundreds of years of sustained and intimate contact throughout the insular, coastal and mainland Caribbean, or the “Mexican Archipelago.” By examining specific sones, such as “El chuchumbé” and “El presidente,” I will explore the longevity and multivalence of this musical, poetic, and dance practice that has been appropriated as a sound of dissent and recuperation of rural communal values described as “convivencia” by practitioners both in Sotavento and abroad. The values of “convivencia,” or “coexistence” have been deployed across cities in the U.S. (and Europe) as a counterhegemonic force that seeks to imagine—and forge—vital human connections through music and specifically the fandango. It is, conversely, the idea of the rural communal values proper to indigenous democracy, and the history of Afro-Andalusian dissent throughout the colonial period and across the diverse port cities of the Mexican archipelago that are summoned to countermand urban decay, immigration policies, and the imposition of a global Western sameness.

The influence of emergency food aid on the causal disaster vulnerability of Indigenous food systems

Emergency food aid is the dominant humanitarian response to food insecurity precipitated by disasters. There is a significant literature on food aid effectiveness (e.g., bolstering food security, targeting, modality selection) in various disaster contexts. Additionally, there are some studies on the potential disincentive effects on agricultural production among other unintended consequences. However, there has been no explicit research on the possible effects of emergency food aid on the causal disaster vulnerability of Indigenous food systems. This research, based within the remote Bedamuni tribe of Western Province, Papua New Guinea, addresses this gap. The Bedamuni first received emergency food aid in response to the 1997 El Nino drought, followed by the 2015/16 El Nino and February 2018 Highlands earthquake. We identify first sustained contact (1962), the subsequent establishment of a mission (1968), and the societal changes that followed as more pronounced drivers of vulnerability. However, emergency food aid exacerbates several key determinants of vulnerability such as declining self-efficacy and adaptive capacity, in addition to encouraging unsustainable food system practices. This paper argues for a more holistic understanding of causal vulnerability in food systems and renewed critique regarding the use of emergency food aid in rural Indigenous contexts.

A 3D Lithium/Carbon Fiber Anode with Sustained Electrolyte Contact for Solid‐State Batteries

AbstractTo reconcile the energy storage ability and operational safety of lithium metal batteries (LMBs), a transformation from a liquid to a solid‐state system is required. However, Li volume variation, poor interfacial contact, and high operation temperatures hinder its practical applications. To address the above issues, here, an integral structure design for solid‐state LMBs is shown, in which a Li‐preinfused 3D carbon fiber (Li/CF) anode is ionically connected to a cathode via an autopolymerized gel electrolyte. The gel electrolyte helps to encapsulate the liquid electrolyte within the Li/CF anode and the cathode to improve the interfacial contact. The gel also serves as a reservoir that balances the liquid electrolyte supply during repeated Li stripping/plating process. As a result, the symmetrical cells and full cells with Li/CF electrodes exhibit improved cycling stability and effective suppression of dendrites at ambient temperature. This work facilitates the realization of solid‐state LMBs with high energy and high safety.

TECHNICAL EFFICIENCY IN ARABLE CROP PRODUCTION UNDER GORONYO IRRIGATION PROJECT OF SOKOTO STATE, NIGERIA

The study examined the technical efficiency in arable crop production under Goronyo irrigation project of Sokoto State, Nigeria. Multi-stage sampling technique was used to sample 246 farmers and the limited cost-route approach was used with the aid of questionnaire. Stochastic frontier production function (SFPF) model was used in estimating farm level technical efficiency. The study also revealed the average technical efficiency index of rice, maize, cowpea and tomato farms to be 0.87, 0.79, 0.45 and 0.76, respectively and that technical inefficiency effect existed among the farmers. Estimates of technical efficiency of farmers revealed that average sampled farms operate 13%, 21%, 55% and 24% below the frontier output levels for rice, maize, cowpea and tomato farms under consideration. Farmers are fairly efficient technically in deriving maximum output from rice, maize and tomato farm and less technically efficient in the production of cowpea. Extension contact was one of the major factor that influences technical efficiency in the area, therefore, sustained farmers extension contact should be encourage by increasing frequency of contact where new techniques will be disseminated to the farmers to improve the use of available resource.

Occupational Animal Contact in Southern and Central Vietnam

Despite the global zoonotic disease burden, the underlying exposures that drive zoonotic disease emergence are not understood. Here, we aimed to assess exposures to potential sources of zoonotic disease and investigate the demographics, attitudes, and behavior of individuals with sustained occupational animal contact in Vietnam. We recruited 581 animal workers (animal-raising farmers, slaughterers, animal health workers, and rat traders) and their families in southern and central Vietnam into a cohort. Cohort members were followed for 3 years and interviewed annually regarding (1) demography and attitudes regarding zoonotic disease, (2) medical history, (3) specific exposures to potential zoonotic infection sources, and (4) socioeconomic status. Interview information over the 3 years was combined and analyzed as cross-sectional data. Of the 297 cohort members interviewed, the majority (79.8%; 237/297) reported raising livestock; almost all (99.6%; 236/237) reported being routinely exposed to domestic animals, and more than a quarter (28.7%; 68/237) were exposed to exotic animals. Overall, 70% (208/297) reported slaughtering exotic animals; almost all (99.5%; 207/208) reported consuming such animals. The consumption of raw blood and meat was common (24.6%; 73/297 and 37%; 110/297, respectively). Over half (58.6%; 174/297) reported recent occupational animal-induced injuries that caused bleeding; the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) was limited. Our work demonstrates that individuals working with animals in Vietnam are exposed to a wide range of species, and there are limited procedures for reducing potential zoonotic disease exposures. We advocate better education, improved animal security, and enforced legislation of PPE for those with occupational animal exposure in Vietnam.

Piloting workshops to enhance hope among patients with advanced breast cancer and oncologists.

137 Background: Hope is a modifiable entity that can be separated from cancer outcome. Increasing hopefulness in patients with advanced breast cancer and oncologists may be of intrinsic value. The feasibility and efficacy of a short intervention to increase hopefulness in these groups are unknown. Methods: We enrolled eligible participants at 2 medical centers into 2 cohorts- 1 for patients with advanced breast cancer and 1 for oncologists. The intervention, a half-day hope enhancement workshop (HEW), was conducted in groups of 10-15 participants within each cohort. Participants completed evaluations including the Adult Hope Scale (AHS) and Herth Hope Index (HHI) pre-workshop, post-workshop, and at 3 months. Mean scores were compared across time points within each cohort using paired t-tests. Results: Ten out of 13 consented patients (76.9%) and all 26 consented physicians (100%) participated in the HEW, meeting our feasibility threshold. In patients, the mean AHS score increased significantly from 50.60 (SD 4.88) pre-workshop to 56.50 (SD 4.74) post-workshop (t = 3.99, p = 0.003); the mean HHI score also increased but this trend was not significant. In oncologists, the increases in mean AHS and HHI scores post-workshop were smaller and not significant. A summary is shown in the table. Post-workshop, patients and physicians were inclined to apply what they learned. However, at 3 months, less than half of participants responded to the evaluation. Mean AHS and HHI scores in patients fell back to baseline values. Conclusions: A short intervention to enhance hope was feasible and associated with increased hopefulness in patients, which was not maintained. Next steps for patients include “maintenance hope therapy” with earlier follow-up and more sustained contact post-workshop. Among oncologists, we hypothesize that for those not grappling with poor prognoses, reframing hope may be less effective, and they may feel less urgency to augment their hopefulness. [Table: see text]