York City Metropolitan Area Research Articles

The influence of race–ethnicity and physical activity levels on elementary school achievement

ABSTRACTThe authors used structural equation modeling to map the relationships between student race–ethnicity via the mediating variable physical activity on English language arts (ELA) and mathematics achievement among 964 fourth- and fifth-grade students. The students attended a New York City Metropolitan area school district and completed the Physical Activity Questionnaire for Older Children, which measured weekly average activity levels. Confirmatory factor analysis validated the use of this instrument. Physical activity had a significant, substantive effect on both ELA and mathematics achievement for students, but was most pronounced among White students on ELA and among Black students on mathematics. Hispanic ethnicity had significant direct and indirect negative associations with ELA and mathematics achievement via their decreased physical activity levels relative to White and Black students. These findings help confirm the important link between physical activity and academic achievement and the need to foster more healthy physical activities for students of all races and ethnicities.

The Impact of Team Outcomes, Brand Connection, and Game Attendance on the Corporate Image of a Stadium Naming-Rights Sponsor

The impact of sport sponsorship on perceptions of the sponsor has become a well-established line of research, but the examination of the special case of stadium naming-rights sponsors has only just begun to gain momentum. The purpose of the current study was to examine the impact of primary tenet success/failure, game attendance, and team connection on the corporate image, reputation, and credibility of the naming-rights sponsor. MetLife Stadium in the New York City metropolitan area was chosen as the unique context for this examination. The results indicated that game attendance had a significant effect on respondents’ image of MetLife. Full results, as well as practical and theoretical implications, are discussed.

Urban forests sustain diverse carrion beetle assemblages in the New York City metropolitan area.

Urbanization is an increasingly pervasive form of land transformation that reduces biodiversity of many taxonomic groups. Beetles exhibit a broad range of responses to urbanization, likely due to the high functional diversity in this order. Carrion beetles (Order: Coleoptera, Family: Silphidae) provide an important ecosystem service by promoting decomposition of small-bodied carcasses, and have previously been found to decline due to forest fragmentation caused by urbanization. However, New York City (NYC) and many other cities have fairly large continuous forest patches that support dense populations of small mammals, and thus may harbor relatively robust carrion beetle communities in city parks. In this study, we investigated carrion beetle community composition, abundance and diversity in forest patches along an urban-to-rural gradient spanning the urban core (Central Park, NYC) to outlying rural areas. We conducted an additional study comparing the current carrion beetle community at a single suburban site in Westchester County, NY that was intensively surveyed in the early 1970’s. We collected a total of 2,170 carrion beetles from eight species at 13 sites along this gradient. We report little to no effect of urbanization on carrion beetle diversity, although two species were not detected in any urban parks. Nicrophorus tomentosus was the most abundant species at all sites and seemed to dominate the urban communities, potentially due to its generalist habits and shallower burying depth compared to the other beetles surveyed. Variation between species body size, habitat specialization, and % forest area surrounding the surveyed sites also did not influence carrion beetle communities. Lastly, we found few significant differences in relative abundance of 10 different carrion beetle species between 1974 and 2015 at a single site in Westchester County, NY, although two of the rare species in the early 1970’s were not detected in 2015. These results indicate that NYC’s forested parks have the potential to sustain carrion beetle communities and the ecosystem services they provide.

Urban freight policymaking: The role of qualitative and quantitative research

The paper's fundamental tenet is that sound policymaking requires a solid understanding of how the target(s) of a policy would react to it. Transportation systems, particularly urban freight, are complex, heterogeneous, and often poorly understood by policymakers. Enacting policies that impact such a complex system can lead to ineffective efforts, and often, negative unintended effects. The best way to avoid these outcomes is to ensure that urban freight policy is supported by behavior research. To understand what kind of research most effectively supports sound policymaking, the authors conduct an ex-post assessment of qualitative and quantitative research techniques to determine which one more effectively predicts the behavioral changes that were seen by transportation users in response to transportation policies. The authors identify the key findings of five large research projects that, using qualitative and quantitative research, investigated the stated and revealed behavioral reactions of transportation users to pricing and incentive policies in the New York City metropolitan area. The findings are catalogued and used to compare insights gained from the qualitative research, and from the quantitative research conducted afterwards. The analyses shed light on the potential and the limitations of both approaches, the synergies that exist between them, and their potential in assisting the development of effective urban freight policies.

Faculty Development for Metro New York City Postdoctoral Dental Program Directors: Delphi Assessment and Program Response

Faculty development for dental academicians is essential to cultivate a continuous faculty workforce, retain existing faculty members, enhance their teaching skill sets, and remain responsive to changing program requirements and curricular reforms. To maximize the utility of dental faculty development, it is important to systematically assess and address faculty members' perceived training needs. The aims of this study were to determine priority topics among one group of postdoctoral program directors and to translate those topics into faculty development programs as part of Columbia University's Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)-sponsored faculty training program for primary care educators. The study was conducted in 2013-16. A Delphi consensus technique was implemented with three sequential surveys of 26 New York City metropolitan area general, pediatric, and public health dentistry residency program directors. On the first survey, the five respondents (19% response rate) identified 31 topics. On the second survey, 17 respondents (response rate 65%) rated the 15 most important topics. In the third and final round, 19 respondents (73% response rate) ranked teaching research methods and teaching literature reviews as the topics of greatest interest. Overall, the responses highlighted needs for faculty development on teaching research methods, motivating trainees, trainee evaluation, and clinical care assessment. Based on these results, a series of six Faculty Forums was developed and implemented for dental educators in the metropolitan area, starting with the topic of teaching research methods. The process flow used for assessing training needs and developing and evaluating training can be applied to a variety of populations of educators.

Latino men who have sex with transgender women: the influence of heteronormativity, homonegativity and transphobia on gender and sexual scripts

Latino men who have sex with transgender women make up an overlooked sector of the population that requires more attention than is currently given in sexuality and gender studies, particularly in regard to their non-commercial, long-term sexual and romantic relationships with transgender women. Sixty-one sexual histories were selected for this qualitative analysis from a larger study on Latino male bisexuality in the New York City metropolitan area. Findings suggest that participants’ sexual and gender scripts with transgender women are strongly regulated by heteronormativity. Furthermore, homonegativity and transphobia often intersect in the lived experiences of men who have sex with transgender women, resulting in relationship conflicts over the control of transgender women’s bodies, sexual behaviours and gender performance both in public and in private. Findings also suggest that low relationship conflict is more common among men who have sex with transgender women who exhibit diverse sexual roles (being both insertive and receptive during anal sex), or transgress heteronormative scripts through dialogue of desires and/or by embracing transgender women as human beings and not as hyperfeminised objects of desire. Stigma reduction and alternatives to heteronormative interventions are needed to improve relationship dynamics and potentially positively impact on the sexual health and overall wellbeing of Latino men who have sex with transgender women and their transgender partners.

Prevalence of Masked Hypertension Among US Adults With Nonelevated Clinic Blood Pressure.

Masked hypertension (MHT), defined as nonelevated blood pressure (BP) in the clinic setting and elevated BP assessed by ambulatory monitoring, is associated with increased risk of target organ damage, cardiovascular disease, and mortality. Currently, no estimate of MHT prevalence exists for the general US population. After pooling data from the Masked Hypertension Study (n=811), a cross-sectional clinical investigation of systematic differences between clinic BP and ambulatory BP (ABP) in a community sample of employed adults in the New York City metropolitan area (2005-2012), and the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES; 2005-2010; n=9,316), an ongoing nationally representative US survey, we used multiple imputation to impute ABP-defined hypertension status for NHANES participants and estimate MHT prevalence among the 139 million US adults with nonelevated clinic BP, no history of overt cardiovascular disease, and no use of antihypertensive medication. The estimated US prevalence of MHT in 2005-2010 was 12.3% of the adult population (95% confidence interval: 10.0, 14.5)-approximately 17.1 million persons aged ≥21 years. Consistent with prior research, estimated MHT prevalence was higher among older persons, males, and those with prehypertension or diabetes. To our knowledge, this study provides the first estimate of US MHT prevalence-nearly 1 in 8 adults with nonelevated clinic BP-and suggests that millions of US adults may be misclassified as not having hypertension.

Data-Driven Spatial Modeling for Quantifying Networkwide Resilience in the Aftermath of Hurricanes Irene and Sandy

In recent years, the New York City metropolitan area was hit by two major hurricanes, Irene and Sandy. These extreme weather events disrupted and devastated the transportation infrastructure, including road and subway networks. As an extension of the authors’ recent research on this topic, this study explored the spatial patterns of infrastructure resilience in New York City with the use of taxi and subway ridership data. Neighborhood tabulation areas were used as the units of analysis. The recovery curve of each neighborhood tabulation area was modeled with the logistic function to quantify the resilience of road and subway systems. Moran's I tests confirmed the spatial correlation of recovery patterns for taxi and subway ridership. To account for this spatial correlation, citywide spatial models were estimated and found to outperform linear models. Factors such as the percentage of area influenced by storm surges, the distance to the coast, and the average elevation are found to affect the infrastructure resilience. The findings in this study provide insights into the vulnerability of transportation networks and can be used for more efficient emergency planning and management.

Analysis of major air pollutants and submicron particles in New York City and Long Island

A year-long sampling campaign of major air pollutants and submicron particle number size distributions was conducted at two sites taken as representative of city-wide air quality in New York City and Long Island, respectively. A number of species were quantified with hourly time resolution, including particle number concentrations in 6 size ranges (20–30 nm, 30–50 nm, 50–70 nm, 70–100 nm, 100–200 nm, and >200 nm), nitrogen oxides, sulfur dioxide, ozone, carbon monoxide, methane, non-methane hydrocarbons, PM2.5 mass concentration and some PM major components (sulfate, organic and elemental carbon). Hourly concentrations of primary and secondary organic carbon were estimated using the EC tracer method. Data were matched with weather parameters and air parcel back-trajectories. A series of tools were thus applied to: (i) study the seasonal, weekly, diurnal cycles of pollutants; (ii) investigate the relationships amongst pollutants through correlation and lagged correlation analyses; (iii) depict the role of atmospheric photochemical processes; (iv) examine the location of the potential sources by mean of conditional bivariate probability function analysis and (v) investigate the role of regional transport of air masses to the concentrations of analyzed species. Results indicate that concentrations of NOx, SO2, CO, non-methane hydrocarbons, primary OC and EC are predominantly determined by local sources, but are also affected by regional transports of polluted air masses. On the contrary, the transport of continental polluted air masses has a main effect in raising the concentrations of secondary PM2.5 (sulfate and secondary organic carbon). By providing direct information on the concentrations and trends of key pollutants and submicron particle number concentrations, this study finally enables some general considerations about air quality status and atmospheric processes over the New York City metropolitan area.

Willingness to use mental health counseling and antidepressants in older Korean Americans: the role of beliefs and stigma about depression

ABSTRACTObjectives: Despite a high prevalence of mental health problems, racial/ethnic minorities are often reluctant to seek mental health services. Their reluctance may be shaped by cultural beliefs and stigma about mental health. The present study examined how beliefs and stigma about depression (e.g. disbelief in depression as a health-related condition, perception of depression as a normal part of aging, and/or depression as a sign of personal weakness/family shame) pose barriers to older Korean Americans’ willingness to use mental health counseling and antidepressants.Method: Data were drawn from surveys with 420 Korean American older adults (Mage= 71.6, SD = 7.6) living in the New York City metropolitan area in 2010. Using a separate logistic regression model, the role of beliefs and stigma about depression in predicting participants’ willingness to receive mental health counseling and to take antidepressants was tested. Based on Andersen’s behavioral health service use model, the analysis was conducted in consideration of predisposing characteristics (age, gender, marital status, education, and acculturation), mental health needs (anxiety, depressive symptoms, and self-rated mental health), and enabling/hindering factors (beliefs and stigma).Results: Similar proportions of the sample (69–70%) indicated their willingness to use mental health counseling or antidepressants. Willingness was more likely among participants who had beliefs about depression as a health-related concern (OR = 1.94, 95% CI = 1.15−3.27 for mental health counseling; OR = 4.47, 95% CI = 2.59−7.70 for antidepressants) and less likely among those who associated depression with family shame (OR = .55, 95% CI = 0.33−0.91 for mental health counseling; OR = .56, 95% CI = 0.33−0.95 for antidepressants).Conclusion: In addressing mental health problems and promoting the use of mental health services, cultural beliefs and stigma shared within an ethnic community should be considered. Given that disbelief in the medical model of depression and family shame reduced willingness to use mental health counseling and antidepressants, promoting mental health literacy for older immigrants could be beneficial.

The persistence of invasive populations of kudzu near the northern periphery of its range in New York City determined from historical data1,2

In 1989, Edward Frankel recorded the distribution of Pueraria montana var. lobata (kudzu) in and around New York City, motivated by the concern that kudzu was extending its range northward from the southeastern USA, where it is an aggressive invasive species. Understanding species persistence is important in determining the dynamics of the distribution of invasive species as they spread, particularly since harsh environmental conditions at the periphery of a species range might result in frequent extinctions. Long-term species persistence data are difficult to obtain; the Frankel (1989) data thus represent a valuable contribution to documenting population persistence. In this study, we were able to identify unambiguously 22 of Frankel's original 34 sites of kudzu in the New York City metropolitan area. After more than 20 yr, we found only 32% of kudzu populations persisted in and around New York City. In contrast, we used herbarium records to identify 19 sites in Georgia and South Carolina where P. montana var. lobata was documented to occur in the same approximate time period as Frankel's data, and found that 95% of these populations persisted. Even accounting for the difference between urban and rural sites, populations of P. montana var. lobata go extinct more often near the periphery of the range than at the core of the invasion.

Not just a pretty picture: visual literacy education through art for young children

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to understand young children’s knowledge of visual literacy elements as well as their ability to comprehend newly introduced visual literacy concepts. The study also examined existing support for visual literacy programs from parents and educators. Design/methodology/approach The study explored the knowledge of basic visual literacy elements of young children enrolled in two private schools in the New York City metropolitan area. The authors interviewed 17 children, aged four to six years old, about fine art paintings using a semi-structured interview format. Children’s responses were qualitatively analyzed to determine their initial level of visual literacy and their ability to learn and retain the concepts of visual literacy after receiving basic instruction. The children’s educators and parents completed online questionnaires that were quantitatively analyzed to determine their level of support for visual literacy programs. Findings The findings show that young children exhibited extensive knowledge of simple visual literacy elements (color, shape, line), and limited understanding of more abstract elements (perspective and salience). Children’s knowledge of visual elements improved after instruction. Parents and educators expressed support for incorporating visual literacy instruction in early childhood education. Research limitations/implications The study relied on a sample of children and adults drawn from two private schools. The sample’s demographics might have affected study findings. More studies are needed using a larger and more diverse sample. Practical implications The study suggests that young children are ready to receive instruction on visual literacy elements using art images. Children reacted positively to the images and were engaged in the discussions about them, supporting the use of fine art paintings as an instrument to introduce visual literacy concepts to young children. Survey of children’s parents and teachers indicated strong interest in, and support for such programs. Social implications With the increase of visual information production and consumption, it is important to introduce visual literacy early in life. The study advances research in methods for developing visual literacy instruction for young children. Originality/value There are no previously reported studies that have examined pre-kindergarten children’s knowledge of basic visual literacy elements and reactions to visual literacy instruction.

Assessing the impact of fine particulate matter (PM2.5) on respiratory-cardiovascular chronic diseases in the New York City Metropolitan area using Hierarchical Bayesian Model estimates

An enhanced research paradigm is presented to address the spatial and temporal gaps in fine particulate matter (PM2.5) measurements and generate realistic and representative concentration fields for use in epidemiological studies of human exposure to ambient air particulate concentrations. The general approach for research designed to analyze health impacts of exposure to PM2.5 is to use concentration data from the nearest ground-based air quality monitor(s), which typically have missing data on the temporal and spatial scales due to filter sampling schedules and monitor placement, respectively. To circumvent these data gaps, this research project uses a Hierarchical Bayesian Model (HBM) to generate estimates of PM2.5 in areas with and without air quality monitors by combining PM2.5 concentrations measured by monitors, PM2.5 concentration estimates derived from satellite aerosol optical depth (AOD) data, and Community-Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model predictions of PM2.5 concentrations. This methodology represents a substantial step forward in the approach for developing representative PM2.5 concentration datasets to correlate with inpatient hospitalizations and emergency room visits data for asthma and inpatient hospitalizations for myocardial infarction (MI) and heart failure (HF) using case-crossover analysis. There were two key objective of this current study. First was to show that the inputs to the HBM could be expanded to include AOD data in addition to data from PM2.5 monitors and predictions from CMAQ. The second objective was to determine if inclusion of AOD surfaces in HBM model algorithms results in PM2.5 air pollutant concentration surfaces which more accurately predict hospital admittance and emergency room visits for MI, asthma, and HF. This study focuses on the New York City, NY metropolitan and surrounding areas during the 2004–2006 time period, in order to compare the health outcome impacts with those from previous studies and focus on any benefits derived from the changes in the HBM model surfaces. Consistent with previous studies, the results show high PM2.5 exposure is associated with increased risk of asthma, myocardial infarction and heart failure. The estimates derived from concentration surfaces that incorporate AOD had a similar model fit and estimate of risk as compared to those derived from combining monitor and CMAQ data alone. Thus, this study demonstrates that estimates of PM2.5 concentrations from satellite data can be used to supplement PM2.5 monitor data in the estimates of risk associated with three common health outcomes. Results from this study were inconclusive regarding the potential benefits derived from adding AOD data to the HBM, as the addition of the satellite data did not significantly increase model performance. However, this study was limited to one metropolitan area over a short two-year time period. The use of next-generation, high temporal and spatial resolution satellite AOD data from geostationary and polar-orbiting satellites is expected to improve predictions in epidemiological studies in areas with fewer pollutant monitors or over wider geographic areas.

미국에 거주하는 한국계 이민자의 생활의례 및 한국인 정체성

In order to understand Korean American immigrants'adjustment to American society, it is important to understand how their life rituals and ethnic identities maintain or change over time and across immigration generations. To achieve this goal, this study examined how Korean Americans who resided in the New York City metropolitan area and New Jersey State performed life rituals and formed ethnic identities. A total of 18 Korean immigrants participated in one-on-one in-depth interviews and the interview data were analyzed with the themes. The results showed that Korean Americans performed life rituals integrating both Korean and American cultural aspects. Many Korean Americans attempted to perform life rituals based on American cultural holidays and procedures. However, a majority of these Koreans also strived to maintain Korean ethnic identities and also practice traditionally Korean life rituals as a way to preserve this ethnic identity. These findings suggest that across time and generation, Korean Americans prefer to maintain their Korean cultural identity, while not shunning the adoption of typical "American" rituals. The way that Korean Americans practice and develop identities differs very little across immigration generation. These findings provide insight on how the Korean government may support foreigners and immigrant families in South Korea and Korean Americans' acculturation processes in the U.S.

Adverse Effects of Synthetic Cannabinoids: Management of Acute Toxicity and Withdrawal.

Although several chemical structural classes of synthetic cannabinoids (SCs) were recently classified as Schedule I substances, rates of use and cases of serious toxic effects remain high. While case reports and media bring attention to severe SC toxicity, daily SC use resulting in dependence and withdrawal is a significant concern that is often overlooked when discussing the risks of these drugs. There is a rich literature on evidence-based approaches to treating substance use disorders associated with most abused drugs, yet little has been published regarding how to best treat symptoms related to SC dependence given its recency as an emerging clinically significant issue. This review provides a background of the pharmacology of SCs, recent findings of adverse effects associated with both acute intoxication and withdrawal as a consequence of daily use, and treatment approaches that have been implemented to address these issues, with an emphasis on pharmacotherapies for managing detoxification. In order to determine prevalence of use in cannabis smokers, a population at high risk for SC use, we obtained data on demographics of SC users, frequency of use, and adverse effects over a 3.5-year period (2012-2015) in the New York City metropolitan area, a region with a recent history of high SC use. While controlled studies on the physiological and behavioral effects of SCs are lacking, it is clear that risks associated with using these drugs pertain not only to the unpredictable and severe nature of acute intoxication but also to the effects of long-term, chronic use. Recent reports in the literature parallel findings from our survey, indicating that there is a subset of people who use SCs daily. Although withdrawal has not been systematically characterized and effective treatments have yet to be elucidated, some symptom relief has been reported with benzodiazepines and the atypical antipsychotic, quetiapine. Given the continued use and abuse of SCs, empirical studies characterizing (1) SCs acute effects, (2) withdrawal upon cessation of use, and (3) effective treatment strategies for SC use disorder are urgently needed.

Urbanization shapes the demographic history of a native rodent (the white-footed mouse, Peromyscus leucopus) in New York City.

How urbanization shapes population genomic diversity and evolution of urban wildlife is largely unexplored. We investigated the impact of urbanization on white-footed mice,Peromyscus leucopus,in the New York City (NYC) metropolitan area using coalescent-based simulations to infer demographic history from the site-frequency spectrum. We assigned individuals to evolutionary clusters and then inferred recent divergence times, population size changes and migration using genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphisms genotyped in 23 populations sampled along an urban-to-rural gradient. Both prehistoric climatic events and recent urbanization impacted these populations. Our modelling indicates that post-glacial sea-level rise led to isolation of mainland and Long Island populations. These models also indicate that several urban parks represent recently isolated P. leucopus populations, and the estimated divergence times for these populations are consistent with the history of urbanization in NYC.

Population genomics of the Anthropocene: urbanization is negatively associated with genome-wide variation in white-footed mouse populations.

Urbanization results in pervasive habitat fragmentation and reduces standing genetic variation through bottlenecks and drift. Loss of genomewide variation may ultimately reduce the evolutionary potential of animal populations experiencing rapidly changing conditions. In this study, we examined genomewide variation among 23 white‐footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus) populations sampled along an urbanization gradient in the New York City metropolitan area. Genomewide variation was estimated as a proxy for evolutionary potential using more than 10 000 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers generated by ddRAD‐Seq. We found that genomewide variation is inversely related to urbanization as measured by percent impervious surface cover, and to a lesser extent, human population density. We also report that urbanization results in enhanced genomewide differentiation between populations in cities. There was no pattern of isolation by distance among these populations, but an isolation by resistance model based on impervious surface significantly explained patterns of genetic differentiation. Isolation by environment modeling also indicated that urban populations deviate much more strongly from global allele frequencies than suburban or rural populations. This study is the first to examine loss of genomewide SNP variation along an urban‐to‐rural gradient and quantify urbanization as a driver of population genomic patterns.

Recent Tobacco Smoking is Associated with Poor HIV Medical Outcomes Among HIV-Infected Individuals in New York.

Tobacco smoking is associated with adverse health effects among people living with HIV (PLWH), including a higher risk of cancer and cardiovascular problems. Further, there is evidence that PLWH are two to three times more likely to smoke than the general population. The aim of this study was to examine the association between tobacco smoking and biomarkers of HIV disease progression, including unsuppressed viral load (viral load >200 copies/mL) and low CD4 cell count (<200 cells/mm3). Recent tobacco smoking was reported by 40 % (n = 5942) of 14,713 PLWH enrolled in Ryan White Part A programs in the New York City metropolitan area. In multivariate analyses controlling for sociodemographic and clinical characteristics, recent tobacco smoking was independently associated with unsuppressed viral load (AOR = 1.38, CI 1.26–1.50) and low CD4 cell count (AOR = 1.12, CI 1.01–1.24). Findings suggest the importance of routine assessments of tobacco use in clinical care settings for PLWH.

Analytical Validation of a Personalized Medicine APOL1 Genotyping Assay for Nondiabetic Chronic Kidney Disease Risk Assessment

The incidence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) varies by ancestry, with African Americans (AA) having a threefold to fourfold higher rate than whites. Notably, two APOL1 alleles, termed G1 [c.(1072A>G; 1200T>G)] and G2 (c.1212_1217del6), are strongly associated with higher rates of nondiabetic CKD and an increased risk for hypertensive end-stage renal disease. This has prompted the opportunity to implement APOL1 testing to identify at-risk patients and modify other risk factors to reduce the progression of CKD to end-stage renal disease. We developed an APOL1 genotyping assay using multiplex allele-specific primer extension, and validated using 58 positive and negative controls. Genotyping results were completely concordant with Sanger sequencing, and both triplicate interrun and intrarun genotyping results were completely concordant. Multiethnic APOL1 allele frequencies were also determined by genotyping 7059 AA, Hispanic, and Asian individuals from the New York City metropolitan area. The AA, Hispanic, and Asian APOL1 G1 and G2 allele frequencies were 0.22 and 0.13, 0.037 and 0.025, and 0.013 and 0.004, respectively. Notably, approximately 14% of the AA population carried two risk alleles and are at increased risk for CKD, compared with <1% of the Hispanic and Asian populations. This novel APOL1 genotyping assay is robust and highly accurate, and represents one of the first personalized medicine clinical genetic tests for disease risk prediction.

Dad dad buu dugsadaa dugaagna geed – the Somali Diaspora in the United States and their Impact on the American Domestic, Social and Security Situation

The paper is dedicated to the Somali diaspora in the United States and its influence on the American domestic, social and security situation in relation to: 1) Somali cultural, historical and religious background, 2) history and patterns of U.S. Somali immigration, 3) analysis of the Somali cultural adaptation to American society, 4) analysis of the remittances sent from diaspora back home and certain associated patterns 5) potential among Somalis, especially young Somalis, when it comes to the Islamic radicalization, 6) analysis of the Somalis as part of Black African immigration. However, Somalis are not even close to being the largest migration group from Sub‑Saharan Africa, for sure they are a significant one. Settled mostly in Minnesota (mostly the Minneapolis urban area), Columbus (Ohio), Seattle (Washington), Virginia, Washington D.C. metropolitan area, New York City metropolitan area, San Diego and Georgia, they created a unique minority with significant impact on the whole picture of American society and the American domestic and security situation.