scholarly journals CO2 and Radon Emissions as Precursors of Seismic Activity

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simone D’Incecco ◽  
Ermioni Petraki ◽  
Georgios Priniotakis ◽  
Michail Papoutsidakis ◽  
Panayiotis Yannakopoulos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Seismic Activity ◽  
Sampling Methods ◽  
Anomalous Behavior ◽  
Gas Emission ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Radon Gas ◽  
Seismic Precursor ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Passive Techniques ◽  
Chamber Technique

AbstractThis paper reports a review on the relationship between seismic activity and the emissions of CO2 and radon. Direct, indirect and sampling methods are mainly employed to measure CO2 flux and concentration in seismic areas. The accumulation chamber technique is the mostly used in the literature. Radon gas emission in seismic areas can be considered as a short-term pre-seismic precursor. The study and the measurement of radon gas activity prior to earthquakes can be performed through active techniques, with the use of high-precision active monitors and through passive techniques with the use of passive detectors. Several investigators report models to explain the anomalous behavior of in-earth fluid gasses prior to earthquakes. Models are described and discussed.

Evaluation of the Efficacy of ST2 and NT-proBNP in the Diagnosis and Prediction of Short- Term Prognosis in Heart Failure with Reduced Ejection Fraction

2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (04) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shivananda B Nayak ◽  
Dharindra Sawh ◽  
Brandon Scott ◽  
Vestra Sears ◽  
Kareshma Seebalack ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heart Failure ◽  
Ejection Fraction ◽  
Cardiac Biomarkers ◽  
Double Blind Study ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Double Blind ◽  
Reduced Ejection Fraction ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Design And Methods ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose: i) To determine the relationship between the cardiac biomarkers ST2 and NT-proBNP with ejection fraction (EF) in heart failure (HF) patients. ii) Assess whether a superiority existed between the aforementioned cardiac markers in diagnosing the HF with reduced EF. iii) Determine the efficacy of both biomarkers in predicting a 30-day cardiovascular event and rehospitalization in patients with HF with reduced EF iv) To assess the influence of age, gender, BMI, anaemia and renal failure on the ST2 and NT-proBNP levels. Design and Methods: A prospective double-blind study was conducted to obtain data from a sample of 64 cardiology patients. A blood sample was collected to test for ST2 and NT-proBNP. An echocardiogram (to obtain EF value), electrocardiogram and questionnaire were also obtained. Results: Of the 64 patients enrolled, 59.4% of the population had an EF less than 40%. At the end of the 30- day period, 7 patients were warded, 37 were not warded, one died and 17 were non respondent. Both biomarkers were efficacious at diagnosing HF with a reduced EF. However, neither of them were efficacious in predicting 30-day rehospitalization. The mean NT-proBNP values being: not rehospitalized (2114.7486) and 30 day rehospitalization (1008.42860) and the mean ST2 values being: not rehospitalized (336.1975), and 30-day rehospitalization. (281.9657). Conclusion: Neither ST2 or NT-proBNP was efficacious in predicting the short- term prognosis in HF with reduced EF. Both however were successful at confirming the diagnosis of HF in HF patients with reduced EF.

Plebiscitary Politics and the Threats to Legality

2019 ◽  
pp. 275-289
Author(s):  
Claudius Härpfer
Keyword(s):  
The State ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Political Processes ◽  
The Face ◽  
State Of Affairs ◽  
The Relationship

In recent times we find many plebiscitary acts that seek to democratically legitimize political processes in any direction. They have in common that they interrupt the normal routine of representative democracies to a certain degree and create an extra-daily state of affairs, which entails not only direct but also indirect consequences. The text attempts to systematize some of these mechanisms from a Weberian perspective using Brexit as an example. After a brief overview of Weber’s short-term politically inspired statements on plebiscitary democracy, the text systematizes Weber’s understanding of the state as a bureaucratic apparatus that requires any kind of leader to be controlled. Subsequently, the text discusses the relationship between domination, legality, and rationality in order to finally point out the danger of erosion of truth and legality through the emergence of competing consensus communities in the face of competing conceptions of order.

Parasites and promiscuity: Acute disease salience leads to more restricted sexual attitudes

2021 ◽  
pp. 026540752110309
Author(s):  
James B. Moran ◽  
Nicholas Kerry ◽  
Jin X. Goh ◽  
Damian R. Murray
Keyword(s):  
Social Behavior ◽  
Sexual Attitudes ◽  
Experimental Manipulation ◽  
Sexual Relationships ◽  
Experimental Results ◽  
Acute Disease ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Attitudes And Behaviors ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Sexual Promiscuity

How does disease threat influence sexual attitudes and behaviors? Although research on the influence of disease threat on social behavior has grown considerably, the relationship between perceived disease threat and sexual attitudes remains unclear. The current preregistered study (analyzed N = 510), investigated how experimental reminders of disease threat influence attitudes and anticipated future behaviors pertaining to short-term sexual relationships, using an ecologically valid disease prime. The central preregistered prediction was that experimental manipulation of disease threat would lead to less favorable attitudes and inclinations toward sexual promiscuity. Results were consistent with this preregistered prediction, relative to both a neutral control condition and a non-disease threat condition. These experimental results were buttressed by the finding that dispositional variation in worry about disease threat predicted less favorable attitudes and inclinations toward short-term sexual relationships. This study represents the first preregistered investigation of the implications of acute disease threat for sexual attitudes.

Molecular biology of enzyme adaptations in higher eukaryotes

Genome ◽  
1989 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 272-283 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donal A. Hickey ◽  
Bernhard F. Benkel ◽  
Charalambos Magoulas
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Biology ◽  
Tissue Specificity ◽  
Enzyme System ◽  
Direct Interaction ◽  
Evolutionary Genetics ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Eukaryotic Genes ◽  
Higher Eukaryotes ◽  
The Relationship

Multicellular eukaryotes have evolved complex homeostatic mechanisms that buffer the majority of their cells from direct interaction with the external environment. Thus, in these organisms long-term adaptations are generally achieved by modulating the developmental profile and tissue specificity of gene expression. Nevertheless, a subset of eukaryotic genes are still involved in direct responses to environmental fluctuations. It is the adaptative responses in the expression of these genes that buffers many other genes from direct environmental effects. Both microevolutionary and macroevolutionary patterns of change in the structure and regulation of such genes are illustrated by the sequences encoding α-amylases. The molecular biology and evolution of α-amylases in Drosophila and other higher eukaryotes are presented. The amylase system illustrates the effects of both long-term and short-term natural selection, acting on both the structural and regulatory components of a gene–enzyme system. This system offers an opportunity for linking evolutionary genetics to molecular biology, and it allows us to explore the relationship between short-term microevolutionary changes and long-term adaptations.Key words: gene regulation, molecular evolution, eukaryotes, Drosophila, amylase.

scholarly journals Higher Handgrip Strength Is Linked to Better Cognitive Performance in Chinese Adults with Hypertension

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 985
Author(s):  
Shenghua Lu ◽  
Fabian Herold ◽  
Yanjie Zhang ◽  
Yuruo Lei ◽  
Arthur F. Kramer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Performance ◽  
Short Term Memory ◽  
Handgrip Strength ◽  
Adult Health ◽  
Linear Regression Models ◽  
Chinese Adults ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Term Memory ◽  
Using Data ◽  
The Relationship

Objective: There is growing evidence that in adults, higher levels of handgrip strength (HGS) are linked to better cognitive performance. However, the relationship between HGS and cognitive performance has not been sufficiently investigated in special cohorts, such as individuals with hypertension who have an intrinsically higher risk of cognitive decline. Thus, the purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between HGS and cognitive performance in adults with hypertension using data from the Global Ageing and Adult Health Survey (SAGE). Methods: A total of 4486 Chinese adults with hypertension from the SAGE were included in this study. Absolute handgrip strength (aHGS in kilograms) was measured using a handheld electronic dynamometer, and cognitive performance was assessed in the domains of short-term memory, delayed memory, and language ability. Multiple linear regression models were fitted to examine the association between relative handgrip strength (rHGS; aHGS divided by body mass index) and measures of cognitive performance. Results: Overall, higher levels of rHGS were associated with higher scores in short-term memory (β = 0.20) and language (β = 0.63) compared with the lowest tertiles of rHGS. In male participants, higher HGS was associated with higher scores in short-term memory (β = 0.31), language (β = 0.64), and delayed memory (β = 0.22). There were no associations between rHGS and cognitive performance measures in females. Conclusion: We observed that a higher level of rHGS was associated with better cognitive performance among hypertensive male individuals. Further studies are needed to investigate the neurobiological mechanisms, including sex-specific differences driving the relationship between measures of HGS and cognitive performance in individuals with hypertension.

scholarly journals Climate bones of contention: How climate variability influences territorial, maritime, and river interstate conflicts

2021 ◽  
Vol 58 (1) ◽  
pp. 132-150
Author(s):  
Cody J Schmidt ◽  
Bomi K Lee ◽  
Sara McLaughlin Mitchell
Keyword(s):  
Climate Variability ◽  
Climate Changes ◽  
Heat Waves ◽  
World Politics ◽  
Western Hemisphere ◽  
Intrastate Conflict ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Climate Conditions ◽  
Interstate Conflicts ◽  
The Relationship

Many scholars examine the relationship between climate variability and intrastate conflict onset. While empirical findings in this literature are mixed, we know less about how climate changes increase the risks for conflicts between countries. This article studies climate variability using the issue approach to world politics. We examine whether climate variability influences the onset and militarization of interstate diplomatic conflicts and whether these effects are similar across issues that involve sovereignty claims for land (territory) or water (maritime, river). We focus on two theoretical mechanisms: scarcity ( abundance) and uncertainty. We measure these concepts empirically through climate deviation (e.g. droughts/floods, heat waves/cold spells) and climate volatility (greater short-term variance in precipitation/temperature). Analyses of issue claims in the Western Hemisphere and Europe (1901–2001) show that greater deviations and volatility in climate conditions increase risks for new diplomatic conflicts and militarization of ongoing issues and that climate change acts as a trigger for revisionist states.

scholarly journals The relationship between maximal expiratory pressure values and critical outcomes in mechanically ventilated patients: a post hoc analysis of an observational study

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yann Combret ◽  
Guillaume Prieur ◽  
Roger Hilfiker ◽  
Francis-Edouard Gravier ◽  
Pauline Smondack ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mechanical Ventilation ◽  
Observational Study ◽  
Univariate Analysis ◽  
Premature Death ◽  
Extubation Failure ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Expiratory Muscle ◽  
Maximal Expiratory Pressure ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract Background Little interest has been paid to expiratory muscle strength, and the impact of expiratory muscle weakness on critical outcomes is not known. Very few studies assessed the relationship between maximal expiratory pressure (MEP) and critical outcomes. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between MEP and critical outcomes. Methods This work was a secondary analysis of a prospective, observational study of adult patients who required mechanical ventilation for ≥ 24 h in an 18-bed ICU. MEP was assessed before extubation after a successful, spontaneous breathing trial. The relationships between MEP and extubation failure, and short-term (30 days) mortality, were investigated. Univariate logistic regressions were computed to investigate the relationship between MEP values and critical outcomes. Two multivariate analyses, with and without maximal inspiratory pressure (MIP), both adjusted using principal component analysis, were undertaken. Unadjusted and adjusted ROC curves were computed to compare the respective ability of MEP, MIP and the combination of both measures to discriminate patients with and without extubation failure or premature death. Results One hundred and twenty-four patients were included. Median age was 66 years (IQR 18) and median mechanical ventilation duration was 7 days (IQR 6). Extubation failure rate was 15% (18/124 patients) and the rate for 30-day mortality was 11% (14/124 patient). Higher MEP values were significantly associated with a lower risk of extubation failure in the univariate analysis [OR 0.96 95% CI (0.93–0.98)], but not with short-term mortality. MEP was independently linked with extubation failure when MIP was not included in the multivariate model, but not when it was included, despite limited collinearity between these variables. This study was not able to differentiate the respective abilities of MEP, MIP, and their combination to discriminate patients with extubation failure or premature death (adjusted AUC for the combination of MEP and MIP: 0.825 and 0.650 for extubation failure and premature death, respectively). Conclusions MEP is related to extubation failure. But, the results did not support its use as a substitute for MIP, since the relationship between MEP and critical outcomes was no longer significant when MIP was included. The use of MIP and MEP measurements combined did not reach higher discriminative capacities for critical outcomes that MEP or MIP alone. Trial Registration This study was retrospectively registered at https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT02363231?cond=NCT02363231&draw=2&rank=1 (NCT02363231) in 13 February 2015

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