Languages differ widely in the ways they encode time. I test the hypothesis that the languages that grammatically associate the future and the present, foster future-oriented behavior. This ...prediction arises naturally when well-documented effects of language structure are merged with models of intertemporal choice. Empirically, I find that speakers of such languages: save more, retire with more wealth, smoke less, practice safer sex, and are less obese. This holds both across countries and within countries when comparing demographically similar native households. The evidence does not support the most obvious forms of common causation. I discuss implications for theories of intertemporal choice.
Research on growing American political polarization and antipathy primarily studies public institutions and political processes, ignoring private effects, including strained family ties. Using ...anonymized smartphone-location data and precinct-level voting, we show that Thanksgiving dinners attended by residents from opposing-party precincts were 30 to 50 minutes shorter than same-party dinners. This decline from a mean of 257 minutes survives extensive spatial and demographic controls. Reductions in the duration of Thanksgiving dinner in 2016 tripled for travelers from media markets with heavy political advertising-an effect not observed in 2015-implying a relationship to election-related behavior. Effects appear asymmetric: Although fewer Democratic-precinct residents traveled in 2016 than in 2015, Republican-precinct residents shortened their Thanksgiving dinners by more minutes in response to political differences. Nationwide, 34 million hours of cross-partisan Thanksgiving dinner discourse were lost in 2016 owing to partisan effects.
The 2003-2004 and 2005-2006 cycles of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) were among the first population-level studies to incorporate objectively measured physical activity ...and sedentary behavior, allowing for greater understanding of these behaviors. However, there has yet to be a comprehensive examination of these data in cancer survivors, including short- and long-term survivors of all cancer types. Therefore, the purpose of this analysis was to use these data to describe activity behaviors in short- and long-term cancer survivors of various types. A secondary aim was to compare activity patterns of cancer survivors to that of the general population. Cancer survivors (n = 508) and age-matched individuals not diagnosed with cancer (n = 1,016) were identified from a subsample of adults with activity measured by accelerometer. Physical activity and sedentary behavior were summarized across cancer type and demographics; multivariate regression was used to evaluate differences between survivors and those not diagnosed with cancer. On average, cancer survivors were 61.4 (95% CI: 59.6, 63.2) years of age; 57% were female. Physical activity and sedentary behavior patterns varied by cancer diagnosis, demographic variables, and time since diagnosis. Survivors performed 307 min/day of light-intensity physical activity (95% CI: 295, 319), 16 min/day of moderate-vigorous intensity activity (95% CI: 14, 17); only 8% met physical activity recommendations. These individuals also reported 519 (CI: 506, 532) minutes of sedentary time, with 86 (CI: 84, 88) breaks in sedentary behavior per day. Compared to non-cancer survivors, after adjustment for potential confounders, survivors performed less light-intensity activity (P = 0.01), were more sedentary (P = 0.01), and took fewer breaks in sedentary time (P = 0.04), though there were no differences in any other activity variables. These results suggest that cancer survivors are insufficiently active. Relative to adults of similar age not diagnosed with cancer, they engage in more sedentary time with fewer breaks. As such, sedentary behavior and light-intensity activity may be important intervention targets, particularly for those for whom moderate-to-vigorous activity is not well accepted.
Celotno besedilo
Dostopno za:
DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Aggressive fibromatosis, also known as desmoid-type fibromatosis (DTF) or desmoid tumor, is an uncommon locally invasive tumor. Because of its low incidence and variable behavior, DTF is often first ...seen by physicians who are not familiar with it, and recent advances in understanding this disease have led to changes in treatment approaches. The Wnt (β-catenin) pathway appears to play a key role in DTF pathogenesis, and recent studies of DTF biology suggest a possible model of DTF pathogenesis. Histologically, DTF shows a poorly circumscribed proliferation of myofibroblast-like cells with variable collagen deposition, similar to the proliferative phase of wound healing, and DTF has been associated with trauma and pregnancy. Desmoid-type fibromatosis may be a useful model of the tumor stroma in carcinomas as well as other fibrosing diseases such as progressive pulmonary fibrosis. The clinical course of DTF can vary greatly among patients, complicating the determination of the optimal treatment approach. Treatment options include surgery, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs with or without hormonal manipulation, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and other forms of local therapy. Many treatments have been used, but these are not without toxicities. Because of the variable nature of the disease and the potential morbidity of treatment, some cases of DTF may do better without treatment; simple observation is often the best initial treatment. This review used a PubMed search from January 1, 1980, through October 31, 2016, using the terms fibromatosis and desmoid and discusses DTF disease characteristics, pathophysiology, and treatment options as well as examines several cases illustrating key points in the biology and treatment of this heterogeneous disease.
Corneal structure and transparency Meek, Keith M.; Knupp, Carlo
Progress in retinal and eye research,
11/2015, Letnik:
49
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
The corneal stroma plays several pivotal roles within the eye. Optically, it is the main refracting lens and thus has to combine almost perfect transmission of visible light with precise shape, in ...order to focus incoming light. Furthermore, mechanically it has to be extremely tough to protect the inner contents of the eye. These functions are governed by its structure at all hierarchical levels. The basic principles of corneal structure and transparency have been known for some time, but in recent years X-ray scattering and other methods have revealed that the details of this structure are far more complex than previously thought and that the intricacy of the arrangement of the collagenous lamellae provides the shape and the mechanical properties of the tissue. At the molecular level, modern technologies and theoretical modelling have started to explain exactly how the collagen fibrils are arranged within the stromal lamellae and how proteoglycans maintain this ultrastructure. In this review we describe the current state of knowledge about the three-dimensional stromal architecture at the microscopic level, and about the control mechanisms at the nanoscopic level that lead to optical transparency.
•We are coming close to understanding how its complex structure governs the shape and biomechanical behaviour of the cornea.•Transparency arises from the arrangement of collagen fibrils and the presence of crystallins within the stromal cells.•Fibril positions at any instant are maintained by the arrangement of proteoglycans around and between them.•Transparency loss in pathology or following surgery can arise from a combination of many different structural alterations.
Quantum Algorithms for Quantum Field Theories Jordan, Stephen P.; Lee, Keith S. M.; Preskill, John
Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science),
06/2012, Letnik:
336, Številka:
6085
Journal Article
Recenzirano
Odprti dostop
Quantum field theory reconciles quantum mechanics and special relativity, and plays a central role in many areas of physics. We developed a quantum algorithm to compute relativistic scattering ...probabilities in a massive quantum field theory with quartic self-interactions (ф⁴ theory) in spacetime of four and fewer dimensions. Its run time is polynomial in the number of particles, their energy, and the desired precision, and applies at both weak and strong coupling. In the strong-coupling and high-precision regimes, our quantum algorithm achieves exponential speedup over the fastest known classical algorithm.
We demonstrate that widely used measures of antigay sentiment and the size of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) population are misestimated, likely substantially. In a series of ...online experiments using a large and diverse but nonrepresentative sample, we compare estimates from the standard methodology of asking sensitive questions to measures from a “veiled” methodology that precludes inference about an individual but provides population estimates. The veiled method increased self-reports of antigay sentiment, particularly in the workplace: respondents were 67% more likely to disapprove of an openly gay manager when asked with a veil, and 71% more likely to say it should be legal to discriminate in hiring on the basis of sexual orientation. The veiled methodology also produces larger estimates of the fraction of the population that identifies as LGBT or has had a sexual experience with a member of the same sex. Self-reports of nonheterosexual identity rose by 65%, and same-sex sexual experiences by 59%. We conduct a “placebo test” and show that for nonsensitive placebo items, the veiled methodology produces effects that are small in magnitude and not significantly different from zero in seven out of eight items. Taken together, the results suggest antigay discrimination might be a more significant issue than formerly considered, as the nonheterosexual population and antigay workplace-related sentiment are both larger than previously measured.
Data, as supplemental material, are available at
http://dx.doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2016.2503
.
This paper was accepted by Uri Gneezy, behavioral economics
.
Animals can detect and consume nutritive sugars without the influence of taste. However, the identity of the taste-independent nutrient sensor and the mechanism by which animals respond to the ...nutritional value of sugar are unclear. Here, we report that six neurosecretory cells in the Drosophila brain that produce Diuretic hormone 44 (Dh44), a homolog of the mammalian corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH), were specifically activated by nutritive sugars. Flies in which the activity of these neurons or the expression of Dh44 was disrupted failed to select nutritive sugars. Manipulation of the function of Dh44 receptors had a similar effect. Notably, artificial activation of Dh44 receptor-1 neurons resulted in proboscis extensions and frequent episodes of excretion. Conversely, reduced Dh44 activity led to decreased excretion. Together, these actions facilitate ingestion and digestion of nutritive foods. We propose that the Dh44 system directs the detection and consumption of nutritive sugars through a positive feedback loop.
•Six Dh44+ cells in the brain are essential for post-ingestive nutrient selection•Dh44 neurons are specifically activated by nutritive sugars found in the hemolymph•Activation of the Dh44 circuit results in increased proboscis extension and excretion•The brain-gut axis connects the ability to detect nutrients with effector mechanisms
Sugar is sweet and nutritive. The taste cells that detect its sweetness were identified, but the sensor that detects its nutritional value is unknown. Dus et al. identify a brain-gut microcircuit expressing Dh44/CRH as the nutrient sensor.
In addition to immediate implications for pregnancy complications, increasing evidence implicates maternal obesity as a major determinant of offspring health during childhood and later adult life. ...Observational studies provide evidence for effects of maternal obesity on her offspring's risks of obesity, coronary heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, and asthma. Maternal obesity could also lead to poorer cognitive performance and increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders, including cerebral palsy. Preliminary evidence suggests potential implications for immune and infectious-disease-related outcomes. Insights from experimental studies support causal effects of maternal obesity on offspring outcomes, which are mediated at least partly through changes in epigenetic processes, such as alterations in DNA methylation, and perhaps through alterations in the gut microbiome. Although the offspring of obese women who lose weight before pregnancy have a reduced risk of obesity, few controlled intervention studies have been done in which maternal obesity is reversed and the consequences for offspring have been examined. Because the long-term effects of maternal obesity could have profound public health implications, there is an urgent need for studies on causality, underlying mechanisms, and effective interventions to reverse the epidemic of obesity in women of childbearing age and to mitigate consequences for offspring.
As the worldwide prevalence of hypertension continues to increase, the primary prevention of hypertension has become an important global public health initiative. Physical activity is commonly ...recommended as an important lifestyle modification that may aid in the prevention of hypertension. Recent epidemiologic evidence has demonstrated a consistent, temporal, and dose-dependent relationship between physical activity and the development of hypertension. Experimental evidence from interventional studies has further confirmed a relationship between physical activity and hypertension as the favorable effects of exercise on blood pressure reduction have been well characterized in recent years. Despite the available evidence strongly supporting a role for physical activity in the prevention of hypertension, many unanswered questions regarding the protective benefits of physical activity in high-risk individuals, the factors that may moderate the relationship between physical activity and hypertension, and the optimal prescription for hypertension prevention remain. We review the most recent evidence for the role of physical activity in the prevention of hypertension and discuss recent studies that have sought to address these unanswered questions.
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