Wagamaga
Wagamaga OP t1_j5sx9v9 wrote
Reply to Billions of Celestial Objects Revealed in Gargantuan Survey of the Milky Way. The DECaPS2 survey, which took two years to complete and produced more than 10 terabytes of data from 21,400 individual exposures, identified approximately 3.32 billion objects by Wagamaga
Astronomers have released a gargantuan survey of the galactic plane of the Milky Way. The new dataset contains a staggering 3.32 billion celestial objects — arguably the largest such catalog so far. The data for this unprecedented survey were taken with the Dark Energy Camera, built by the US Department of Energy, at the NSF’s Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, a Program of NOIRLab.
The Milky Way Galaxy contains hundreds of billions of stars, glimmering star-forming regions, and towering dark clouds of dust and gas. Imaging and cataloging these objects for study is a herculean task, but a newly released astronomical dataset known as the second data release of the Dark Energy Camera Plane Survey (DECaPS2) reveals a staggering number of these objects in unprecedented detail. The DECaPS2 survey, which took two years to complete and produced more than 10 terabytes of data from 21,400 individual exposures, identified approximately 3.32 billion objects — arguably the largest such catalog compiled to date. Astronomers and the public can explore the dataset here.
This unprecedented collection was captured by the Dark Energy Camera (DECam) instrument on the Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO), a Program of NSF's NOIRLab. CTIO is a constellation of international astronomical telescopes perched atop Cerro Tololo in Chile at an altitude of 2200 meters (7200 feet). CTIO’s lofty vantage point gives astronomers an unrivaled view of the southern celestial hemisphere, which allowed DECam to capture the southern Galactic plane in such detail.
Wagamaga OP t1_j5fzlc3 wrote
Reply to Can our brains be trained into respectful political dialogue. Research findings showed that youth who received the intervention showed a broad and multidimensional bio-neurobehavioral change and the intervention gains lasted for years by Wagamaga
Can anything minimize the serious polarization among groups in countries like Israel and the US? With the global escalation in conflicts among population groups, acts of violence by residents of cities and the increasing participation of youth in civil conflicts, there appears to be an urgent need to develop science-based methods to mitigate hatred and aggression and foster empathy and dialogue among youth growing up in the reality of a long-term conflict.
Eight sessions of dialogue-enhancing interventions among Jewish and Arab youth resulted in an impact on brain function, hormonal response, social behavior and attitudes towards the conflict and gains were retained seven years later.
Prof. Ruth Feldman, director of the Center for Developmental Social Neuroscience at Reichman University’s Ivcher School of Psychology, together with her research partners, examined whether it’s possible to build an intervention for teenagers from polarized groups in a society that has experienced multigenerational conflict, based on findings from the field of neuroscience. They wondered whether such interventions improve the brain’s reactions towards others, and can these improvements be preserved over time?
For the study, the researchers built a unique synchrony-focused intervention and examined its effects on the neural and hormonal responses and communication behavior among Jewish and Arab adolescents. The intervention, entitled “Tools of Dialogue” is a manualized group intervention of eight meetings between Jewish and Arab teenagers.
Each meeting lasted about two-and-a-half hours and was held in groups of 12 boys or girls, half of them Jews and half of them Arabs. The sessions were led by two mediators, one Jewish and one Arab, both of which have vast experience in facilitating Jewish-Arab groups.
“Our research findings showed that youth who received the intervention showed a broad and multidimensional bio-neurobehavioral change and the intervention gains lasted for years,” said Feldman. “This study is the first of its kind to show that an intervention based on increasing behavioral synchrony in groups engaged in intractable conflict stimulates the brain's empathic response, attenuates the neural basis of prejudice, reduces the cortisol response (stress), increases oxytocin (love) and shapes interpersonal interaction that is more mutual and less hostile.
This change is evident in the participants even after seven years, and the youth who underwent the intervention developed more tolerant attitudes towards the other, believed in finding a solution, and were actively involved in initiatives for dialogue and peace as young adults.”
https://m.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/mind-and-spirit/article-729118
Wagamaga OP t1_j5adrdp wrote
Reply to Agriculture linked to changes in age-independent mortality in North America. The intensification of crop use occurred in two phases, the first of which led to a decline in human age-independent mortality, while the second is associated with a rise in it. by Wagamaga
The transition to agriculture from hunting and gathering in pre-colonial North America led to changes in age-independent mortality, or mortality caused by factors that are not associated with age, according to a new study by a Penn State-led research team. The team found that the intensification of crop use occurred in two phases, the first of which led to a decline in human age-independent mortality, while the second is associated with a rise in it. The study is the first to tie patterns of age-independent mortality to food production.
“This study tells the story of our shared human experience,” said George Milner, distinguished professor of anthropology at Penn State and lead author. “We have several examples around the world where we see a move toward crop domestication as an independent event – eastern North America, particularly the midcontinent, being one of them, but so too the Fertile Crescent in the Middle East. Also, there are demographic changes happening. This paper addresses the relationship between the move toward agriculture and demographic change.”
The researchers examined previously published data to identify general trends in archaeobotanical samples, or the remains of plants in the archaeological record, and skeletal samples from sites across eight states stretching from Illinois to northern Alabama. They wanted to study the relationship between the domestication of crops and an index that uses skeletal data to capture the frequency of juveniles aged five to 19 years old relative to all individuals aged five or more. Anthropologists normally use the index to measure fertility rates and population growth, but the new work shows it is more responsive to age-independent mortality.
Wagamaga OP t1_j4uqqgo wrote
Reply to Family Dynamics and Doctors' Emotions Drive Useless End-of-Life Care. Surveys repeatedly indicate that nearly all people would rather die peacefully at home, yet painful, long-shot treatments remain common, and efforts to reduce usage have failed by Wagamaga
Researchers from Rutgers and other universities have developed a behavioral model that explains a long-standing healthcare mystery: Why do so many terminally ill patients undergo intense last-ditch treatments with little chance of meaningful life extension?
Surveys repeatedly indicate that nearly all people would rather die peacefully at home, yet painful, long-shot treatments remain common, and efforts to reduce usage have failed.
Previous analyses have mostly emphasized patients’ treatment preferences at the end of life. The new model, which its creators named the Transtheoretical Model of Irrational Biomedical Exuberance (TRIBE), focuses squarely on clinician psychology and family dynamics.
“Old models tended to assume that clinicians were purely rational agents, leading patients toward logical choices,” said Paul R. Duberstein, lead author of the study and chair of the Department of Health Behavior, Society and Policy at the Rutgers School of Public Health. “Once doctors have recommended a treatment or procedure, there’s enormous pressure on patients to undergo it.”
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0277953622008528#ack0010
Wagamaga OP t1_j4unr6t wrote
Reply to App helps to significantly improve memory recall and could have applications for improving memory. Users of the app were able to recall more than 50% more details about everyday experiences that took place as many as six months earlier than if they had only recorded events and never replayed them. by Wagamaga
In a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, University of Toronto researchers have demonstrated that their new smartphone application helps to significantly improve memory recall, which could prove beneficial for individuals in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease or other forms of memory impairment.
Known as HippoCamera for its ability to mimic the function of the brain’s hippocampus in memory construction and retention, the app enhances the encoding of memories stored in the brain by boosting attention to daily events and consolidating them more distinctly, thus later enabling richer, more comprehensive recall.
In a two-step process, HippoCamera users record a short video of up to 24 seconds of a moment they want to remember with a brief eight-second audio description of the event. The app combines the two elements just as the brain’s hippocampus would, with the video component sped up to mimic aspects of hippocampal function and to facilitate efficient review. Users then replay cues produced by HippoCamera at later times on a curated and regular basis to reinforce the memory and enable detailed recall
Wagamaga OP t1_j4r3uvw wrote
Reply to Nearly two thirds of the sharks and rays that live among the world's corals are threatened with extinction. Coral reefs, which harbor at least a quarter of all marine animals and plants, are gravely menaced by an array of human threats, including overfishing, pollution and climate change by Wagamaga
Nearly two thirds of the sharks and rays that live among the world's corals are threatened with extinction, according to new research published Tuesday, with a warning this could further imperil precious reefs.
Coral reefs, which harbor at least a quarter of all marine animals and plants, are gravely menaced by an array of human threats, including overfishing, pollution and climate change.
Shark and ray species—from apex predators to filter feeders—play an important role in these delicate ecosystems that "cannot be filled by other species", said Samantha Sherman, of Simon Fraser University in Canada and the wildlife group TRAFFIC International.
But they are under grave threat globally, according to the study in the journal Nature Communications, which assessed extinction vulnerability data from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) to look at 134 species of sharks and rays linked to reefs.
The authors found 59 percent of coral reef shark and ray species are threatened with extinction, an extinction risk almost double that of sharks and rays in general.
Among these, five shark species are listed as critically endangered, as well as nine ray species, all so-called "rhino rays" that look more like sharks than stingrays.
https://phys.org/news/2023-01-thirds-reef-sharks-rays-extinction.html
Wagamaga OP t1_j4pcy3j wrote
Reply to Visits to parks, community gardens and other urban green spaces may lower city dwellers’ use of drugs for anxiety, insomnia, depression. Positive effects were stronger among those reporting the lowest annual household income by Wagamaga
Visits to parks, community gardens and other urban green spaces may lower city dwellers’ use of drugs for anxiety, insomnia, depression, high blood pressure, and asthma, research has found.
Researchers in Finland found that visiting such areas three to four times a week cuts people’s chances of turning to drugs for mental health problems or high blood pressure by a third, and for asthma by about a quarter.
Moreover, the positive effects of visiting green spaces were stronger among those reporting the lowest annual household income, the researchers found.
The findings correlate with a growing body of evidence that a lack of access to green spaces is linked to a range of health problems. Access tends to be unequal, with poorer communities having fewer opportunities to be in nature.
To investigate the link, researchers from the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare drew on the responses of 16,000 randomly selected residents of Helsinki, Espoo and Vantaa – three cities that make up the largest urban area in Finland – to the Helsinki capital region environmental health survey in 2015-16.
The survey gathered information on how city dwellers aged at least 25 experienced residential green and blue spaces within a 1km (0.62-mile) radius of their homes. Green areas included forests, gardens, parks, castle parks, cemeteries, zoos, natural grasslands, moors and wetlands; and blue areas included sea, lakes, and rivers.
Respondents were asked to report their use of prescribed drugs for anxiety, insomnia and depression, and for high blood pressure and asthma. They were then asked how often they spent time or exercised outdoors in green spaces, during May and September, with options ranging from never to five or more times a week.
The researchers chose prescription drugs as a proxy for ill health. They picked those for anxiety, insomnia and depression, and high blood pressure and asthma in particular because they are used to treat common but potentially serious health issues.
Wagamaga OP t1_j47xang wrote
Reply to Corridors between Western U.S. national parks would greatly increase the persistence time of mammals. Establishing an expanded protected area network based on identified mammal pathways and incorporating adjacent wilderness areas would greatly enlarge available habitat for mammal species by Wagamaga
National parks are the backbone of conservation. Yet mounting evidence shows that many parks are too small to sustain long-term viable populations and maintain essential, large-scale ecological processes, such as large mammal migrations and natural disturbance regimes.
A new study published on Jan. 11, 2023, in Scientific Reports found that enhancing ecological connectivity, known as “corridors” or “linkages,” among several of the oldest and largest national parks in the Western United States would greatly extend the time that many mammal species populations can persist. The authors analyzed the value of establishing ecological corridors for large mammals between Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks and between Mount Rainier and North Cascades National Parks. Their findings show that these corridors would not only enlarge populations, but also allow species to shift their geographic ranges more readily in response to climate change.
Wagamaga OP t1_j46c3vu wrote
Reply to In a study using data from nearly 1,200 older adults, researchers have added to a growing body of evidence that loss of the sense of smell is a predictive marker for an increased risk of frailty as people age. by Wagamaga
In a study using data from nearly 1,200 older adults, Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers have added to a growing body of evidence that loss of the sense of smell is a predictive marker for an increased risk of frailty as people age. Building on previous research showing that olfactory dysfunction is a common early sign of brain-linked cognitive decline, the new findings suggest the link to frailty is likely not just in the brain but also in the nose itself.
If further studies affirm the findings, the researchers say, screening older adults’ ability to smell various scents could be as important as testing hearing and vision over time.
Results of the study, published Jan. 10 in the Journal of Gerontology, looked at the prevalence of frailty, an age-related syndrome of physiological decline, along with two different ways of assessing the ability to smell: olfactory sensitivity (the ability to detect an odor’s presence) and olfactory identification (the ability to detect and name an odor). Olfactory identification is a central measure of smell function, which has been linked to frailty and relies on higher-order cognitive processing to interpret and classify an odor. This suggests that neurological function may help to explain the relationship between smell and frailty. However, researchers say the ability to merely detect an odor without having to use higher-level neurological processes and the relationship of the ability to detect odors alone with frailty have been understudied.
Wagamaga OP t1_j414hha wrote
Reply to Fossil fuel producers pay for carbon clear up. Compelling fossil fuel producers to pay for carbon clean-up could end these fuels’ contribution to global warming without pitting climate action against meeting society’s energy needs—at a relatively affordable cost. by Wagamaga
The paper, Extended producer responsibility for fossil fuels, was written by an team of international experts, including Oxford Professor of Geosystem Science, Myles Allen. Their paper concludes compelling fossil fuel producers to pay for carbon clean-up could end these fuels’ contribution to global warming without pitting climate action against meeting society’s energy needs—at a relatively affordable cost.
They argue carbon capture and storage is an affordable way of ‘stopping fossil fuels from causing further global warming’.
Speaking on Radio 4’sToday Programme this morning, Professor Allen said, ‘The crucial point about this new paper…is we could stop fossil fuels causing global warming, we could do it in a generation without upending the world economy, but only if we introduce a radical approach to climate policy: this is the idea of extending the principle of producer responsibility to fossil fuels.’
Wagamaga OP t1_j3xox7f wrote
Reply to Significant reductions in global greenhouse gas emissions still possible. Research estimated total global CO2 emissions from the life cycle of gas-fired power is 3.6 billion tons each year. This could be reduced by as much as 71% if a variety of mitigation options were used around the world. by Wagamaga
About a quarter of the world’s electricity currently comes from power plants fired by natural gas. These contribute significantly to global greenhouse gas emissions (amounting to 10% of energy-related emissions according to the most recent figures from 2017) and climate change.
By gathering data from 108 countries around the world and quantifying the emissions by country, a McGill-led team, which includes researchers from Carnegie Mellon, Johns Hopkins, University of Texas (Austin) and the University of Maryland, has estimated that total global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from the life cycle of gas-fired power is 3.6 billion tonnes each year. They found that this amount could be reduced by as much as 71% if a variety of mitigation options were used around the world.
“We were astonished by how large the potential reduction in greenhouse gases could be by 2050, and even by 2030,” says Sarah Jordaan, an associate professor in the Department of Civil Engineering and the Trottier Institute in Sustainability in Engineering and Design at McGill University and the first author on the paper which was recently published in Nature Climate Change. “If natural gas is going to play a role in a low carbon future, even for a transitional period, there will be a need to improve efficiency in power plants and to cut methane emissions from natural gas production as well as to capture and store CO2.”
Wagamaga OP t1_j3mz5qf wrote
Reply to Solar-powered system converts plastic and greenhouse gases into sustainable fuels. Researchers have developed a system, which can convert two waste streams into two chemical products at the same time – the first time this has been achieved in a solar-powered reactor. by Wagamaga
The researchers, from the University of Cambridge, developed the system, which can convert two waste streams into two chemical products at the same time – the first time this has been achieved in a solar-powered reactor.
The reactor converts carbon dioxide (CO2) and plastics into different products that are useful in a range of industries. In tests, CO2 was converted into syngas, a key building block for sustainable liquid fuels, and plastic bottles were converted into glycolic acid, which is widely used in the cosmetics industry. The system can easily be tuned to produce different products by changing the type of catalyst used in the reactor.
Converting plastics and greenhouse gases – two of the biggest threats facing the natural world – into useful and valuable products using solar energy is an important step in the transition to a more sustainable, circular economy. The results are reported in the journal Nature Synthesis.
Wagamaga OP t1_j3gi7fd wrote
Reply to Sports and Other Exercise a Natural Antidepressant for Teens. Research found supervised exercise programs are associated with significant reductions in symptoms of depression among children and teenagers by Wagamaga
An antidote to teenage depression might be found in school gymnasiums and on sports fields, a major new review argues.
Supervised exercise programs are associated with significant reductions in symptoms of depression among children and teenagers, according to the analysis of data from 21 studies involving more than 2,400 kids.
"This is the first time that we've been able to put enough studies together so that we can make a pretty good conclusion to answer the question, 'Is physical activity and exercise good for children with depressive symptoms?'" said co-study author Walter Thompson, a retired professor of exercise physiology with Georgia State University in Atlanta. "The answer is overwhelmingly yes."
https://www.newsmax.com/health/health-news/sports-activity-physical/2023/01/06/id/1103344/
Wagamaga OP t1_j3dmh52 wrote
Reply to Farmland bird populations bounce back when farms devote 10% of their land to nature-friendly measures. Ten-year study measured changes in the abundance of farmland birds on land managed under bird-focused schemes, as well as land no bird-friendly farming initiatives. by Wagamaga
This ten-year study measured changes in the abundance of farmland birds on land managed under bird-focused lower- and higher-tier agri-environment schemes, as well as land no bird-friendly farming initiatives.
Under the higher-tier scheme, an average of 11% of the farm was devoted to bird-friendly measures, whereas <4% was managed under the lower-tier schemes. The authors specifically studied bird-friendly measures that provide seed-rich habitat for winter foraging, insect-rich habitat for feeding chicks, and nesting habitat for ground nesting species such as Lapwing. Higher-tier farms also received bespoke one-to-one management advice prior to the start of their agreements.
The results showed that when approximately 10% of a farm was devoted to bird-friendly farming practices under the higher-tier scheme, this benefitted over half of the farmland bird species in two of the three study regions. Although lower-tier provision generally failed to increase bird numbers, it helped to sustain populations of some species, which continued to decline in the absence of agri-environment support elsewhere.
The second part of the study asked what proportion of the farmed landscape would need to be placed into higher-tier agreements to recover farmland birds by 10% over ten years. The answer was similar in the two regions – 26% in the pastoral West Midlands and 31% in arable East Anglia.
https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2664.14338
Wagamaga OP t1_j3d7zij wrote
Reply to New study challenges previous ideas regarding Alzheimer’s disease. Research found the increase in soluble Aβ may be a general aging-related change in the brain not specific to Alzheimer’s, while higher levels of fibrillary amyloid appear to be a better indicator of poorer brain health. by Wagamaga
A new USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology study challenges existing ideas of how buildup of a protein called amyloid beta (Aβ) in the brain is related to Alzheimer’s disease.
While buildup of amyloid protein has been associated with Alzheimer’s-related neurodegeneration, little is known about how the protein relates to normal brain aging, said University Professor Caleb Finch, the study’s senior author and holder of the ARCO/William F. Kieschnick Chair in the Neurobiology of Aging at the USC Leonard Davis School.
To explore the levels of Aβ in human brains, the researchers analyzed tissue samples from both healthy brains and brains of patients with dementia. More severe Alzheimer’s cases were indicated by higher Braak staging scores, a measurement of how widely signs of Alzheimer’s pathology are found within the brain.
The analysis revealed that older, cognitively healthy brains showed similar amounts of dissolvable, non-fibrillar amyloid protein as brains of Alzheimer’s patients. But, as the researchers expected, the brains of Alzheimer’s patients had higher amounts of insoluble Aβ fibrils, the form of amyloid protein that aggregates to form the telltale “plaques” seen in the disease, said Max Thorwald, the study’s first author and a postdoctoral researcher at the USC Leonard Davis School.
https://alz-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/alz.12896
Wagamaga OP t1_j36r0ko wrote
Reply to 3-Week Intensive Program Effective for Vets With PTSD. More than 60% of patients saw a substantial reduction in their PTSD symptoms soon after therapy ended, and the improvements were largely maintained for six months by Wagamaga
A short but intensive approach to "talk therapy" can help many combat veterans overcome post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a new clinical trial has found.
The study tested "compressed" formats of a standard PTSD treatment called prolonged exposure therapy, in which patients learn to gradually face the trauma-related memories they normally avoid.
Traditionally, that has meant therapy once a week, over the course of a few months.
But while prolonged exposure therapy is often effective for PTSD, there is room for improvement, according to Alan Peterson, a professor of psychiatry at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio.
In general, he said, prolonged exposure (PE) therapy does not work as well for combat veterans as it does for civilians with PTSD. In an earlier trial, Peterson and his colleagues found that about 60% of combat vets still met the criteria for PTSD six months after therapy.
So for the new trial, his team tested the effects of two compressed PE formats, where vets attended therapy every weekday for three weeks. It's a concept that some PTSD programs have been offering in recent years.
The general idea, Peterson explained, is that the short time window will help more patients stick with therapy. And the intensity of daily sessions, with patients devoting their time and energy toward getting better, might also boost effectiveness, he suggested.
For the study, the researchers randomly assigned 234 veterans with combat-related PTSD to one of two groups. One received 90-minute PE therapy sessions, five days a week, for three weeks.
Essentially, Peterson explained, PE encourages people to dig into their trauma-related memories, retelling their stories and learning to face — rather than avoid — situations and feelings that remind them of their trauma.
The other study group also had daily PE sessions, plus various "modules" that extended the treatment to a full day.
Some of those enhancements included education sessions that involved family members or friends, onsite "homework" assignments, and feedback from therapists.
In the end, the trial found, both groups fared equally well. More than 60% of patients saw a substantial reduction in their PTSD symptoms soon after therapy ended, and the improvements were largely maintained for six months.
Wagamaga OP t1_j2xlpdj wrote
Reply to Cheap, sustainable hydrogen through solar power. Withstanding high temperatures and the light of 160 suns, a new catalyst is 10 times more efficient than previous sun-powered water-splitting devices of its kind by Wagamaga
A new kind of solar panel, developed at the University of Michigan, has achieved 9% efficiency in converting water into hydrogen and oxygen—mimicking a crucial step in natural photosynthesis. Outdoors, it represents a major leap in the technology, nearly 10 times more efficient than solar water-splitting experiments of its kind.
But the biggest benefit is driving down the cost of sustainable hydrogen. This is enabled by shrinking the semiconductor, typically the most expensive part of the device. The team’s self-healing semiconductor withstands concentrated light equivalent to 160 suns.
Currently, humans produce hydrogen from the fossil fuel methane, using a great deal of fossil energy in the process. However, plants harvest hydrogen atoms from water using sunlight. As humanity tries to reduce its carbon emissions, hydrogen is attractive as both a standalone fuel and as a component in sustainable fuels made with recycled carbon dioxide. Likewise, it is needed for many chemical processes, producing fertilizers for instance.
“In the end, we believe that artificial photosynthesis devices will be much more efficient than natural photosynthesis, which will provide a path toward carbon neutrality,” said Zetian Mi, U-M professor of electrical and computer engineering who led the study reported in Nature.
Wagamaga OP t1_j23jbhm wrote
Reply to Iron Supplementation ‘Is Beneficial For Intelligence’. The effect was shown to increase with supplement dosage, with researchers highlighting that the “results suggest that oral iron intake can improve the cognitive development of children and adolescents living in LMICs. by Wagamaga
IRON intake was shown to have a positive effect on intelligence scores in children and adolescents from low- and middle- income countries (LMICs), in a new meta-analysis and systematic review.
The demonstrated effect was shown to increase with supplement dosage, with researchers highlighting that the “results suggest that oral iron intake can improve the cognitive development of children and adolescents living in LMICs.”
Researchers from Tsinghua University, Harvard University, Duke University, and the University of Southern California report their findings in Nutrients.
Due to the critical biological and physical development processes taking place throughout childhood and adolescence, it is vital to ensure a strong nutritional profile during this period to prevent deficiencies. However, iron deficiencies are highly common during this age because of the bodies’ inability to increase iron reserves with increased demand.
https://tribuneonlineng.com/iron-supplementation-is-beneficial-for-intelligence/
Wagamaga OP t1_j1z3b78 wrote
Reply to In the first two years of the pandemic, 40,830 children and teenagers lost their mothers to COVID-19 in Brazil. The delay in adopting the necessary public health measures in Brazil aggravated the spread of the disease, resulting in losses of human life that could have been avoided by Wagamaga
In the first two years of the pandemic, 40,830 children and teenagers lost their mothers to COVID-19 in Brazil. The conclusion is from an unprecedented study carried out by researchers from Fiocruz and the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG), released by the Observatory of Children’s Health (Observa Infância). The article with the results was published with open access (12/19) in the Springer Nature Journal Archives of Public Health.
According to Observa Infância’s coordinator Cristiano Boccolini, one of the study's authors, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the lives of Brazilian children and teenagers requires the urgent adoption of intersectoral public policies to protect childhood. “Considering the health and economic crisis settled in the country, with the hunger returning, the increase in food insecurity, the growth of unemployment, the intensifying employment insecurity and the growing line for admission to social programs, it is urgent to mobilize society for the protection of childhood, with priority attention to this group of 40,830 children and teenagers who lost their mothers to COVID-19 in the first two years of the pandemic," says the Fiocruz Public Health researcher.
“Certainly the death of a parent, particularly the mother, is bounded to lifelong adverse outcomes and has serious consequences for the family's well-being, profoundly affecting the family structure and dynamics. Orphaned children are more vulnerable to emotional and behavioral problems, which requires intervention programs to mitigate the psychological consequences of orphanhood”, states Celia Landmann Szwarcwald, a researcher at the Information and Health Laboratory of the Institute of Scientific and Technological Communication and Information in Health (ICICT/Fiocruz).
Wagamaga OP t1_j1dqp97 wrote
Reply to Sleep duration declines in early adulthood until age 33, and then picks up again at age 53. The study, involving 730,187 participants spread over 63 countries, revealed how sleep patterns change across the lifespan, and how they differ between countries. by Wagamaga
Sleep duration declines in early adulthood until age 33, and then picks up again at age 53, according to the findings published in Nature Communications.
The study, involving 730,187 participants spread over 63 countries, revealed how sleep patterns change across the lifespan, and how they differ between countries.
Study participants were playing the Sea Hero Quest mobile game, a citizen science venture designed for neuroscience research, created by Deutsche Telekom in partnership with Alzheimer's Research UK, UCL, UEA and game developers Glitchers. Designed to aid Alzheimer's research by shedding light on differences in spatial navigational abilities, over four million people have played Sea Hero Quest, contributing to numerous studies across the project as a whole.
In addition to completing tasks testing navigational ability, anyone playing the game is asked to answer questions about demographic characteristics as well as other questions that can be useful to neuroscience research, such as on sleep patterns.
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-12-people-early-30s-50s.html
Wagamaga OP t1_j0ymmjn wrote
Reply to Research finds people who are married have a lower risk of developing dementia after the age of 70 than those who are unmarried or divorced. Previous studies suggest that being married later in life protects against dementia, and that being single in old age increases the risk of dementia by Wagamaga
This finding comes from a study by the Norwegian Institute of Public Health (NIPH) (link in Norwegian).
Previous studies suggest that being married later in life protects against dementia, and that being single in old age increases the risk of dementia. The new results support this.
“There's a correlation between being married in midlife and a lower risk of dementia as an elderly person. Our data also shows that divorced people account for a significant proportion of dementia cases,” the first author of the study, Vegard Skirbekk says. He is a senior researcher at the Department of Physical Health and Ageing and the Centre for Fertility and Health at the NIPH.
The researcher’s starting point was looking at the marital status of 8,706 adults in the age group 44-68 who were registered in various Norwegian national registers. They then saw how many of these developed dementia after the age of 70.
One explanation for the lower risk of dementia among married people may be that marriage is an important source of social contact.
“In several studies, it has been shown that social isolation is related to an increased risk of dementia. Marriage has also been shown to be a particularly important protective factor against dementia for men. However, in our study marriage was equally important for both men and women,” Skirbekk says.
The increased risk of dementia for unmarried people could largely be attributed to childlessness.
https://journals.sagepub.com/eprint/AMG4ZUJHMMEFDKDGRIMU/full
Wagamaga OP t1_j0w5w6n wrote
Reply to Global study reveals widespread salt marsh decline. The world lost 1,453 square kilometers (561 square miles) of salt marsh between 2000 and 2019, an area twice the size of Singapore, according to a new study based on satellite imagery. by Wagamaga
An area of salt marsh twice the size of Singapore has disappeared since the turn of the century, NASA scientists determined by analyzing satellite images from around the globe. Severe storms were partially responsible for the loss, which resulted in “significant” carbon emissions, according to a recent study based on the maps.
The study, published in the journal Nature in late November, showed that the world lost 2,733 square kilometers (1,055 square miles) of marsh over the 19-year period between 2000 and 2019 and recovered 1,278 km2 (493 mi2), some as a result of restoration by people. This resulted in a net loss of 1,453 km2 (561 mi2). Globally, salt marshes declined at a rate of 0.28% per year, according to the study.
Previously, up-to-date information on the rates and “hotspots” of salt marsh loss at the global level was limited, as were estimates of the resulting carbon emissions, Anthony Campbell, the paper’s lead author, told Mongabay in an interview. Past estimates suggested much higher salt marsh losses of between 1% and 2% per year.
Wagamaga OP t1_j0i4o0t wrote
Reply to The new omicron boosters are very effective at preventing seniors from being hospitalized with Covid. The latest omicron boosters are 84% effective at keeping seniors 65 and older from being hospitalized with Covid-19 compared with the unvaccinated by Wagamaga
The latest omicron boosters are 84% effective at keeping seniors 65 and older from being hospitalized with Covid-19 compared with the unvaccinated, according to a study published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday.
And seniors who received the omicron booster had 73% more protection against hospitalization than those who only received two or more doses of the original vaccines that were not updated to target omicron, according to the CDC.
The study was conducted from September through November when omicron BA.5 and the even more immune evasive BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 variants were dominant. About 800 seniors with a median age of 76 were included in the analysis.
In a larger study that looked at more than 15,000 adults ages 18 and older, the omicron booster was 57% effective at preventing hospitalization. Adults who received the booster had 38% additional protection compared with people who only received the original shots.
Neither study examined how well people were protected against hospitalization if they were vaccinated and had natural immunity from a previous Covid infection.
Wagamaga OP t1_j0gg3f9 wrote
Reply to A study of more than 90,000 patients revealed that approximately one in 100 carried at least one rare gene variant known to increase risk for neuropsychiatric disorders (NPD), such as autism spectrum disorder, and that a third of those with a variant had a diagnosed mental health condition by Wagamaga
A Geisinger study of more than 90,000 patients revealed that approximately one in 100 carried at least one rare gene variant known to increase risk for neuropsychiatric disorders (NPD), such as schizophrenia and autism spectrum disorder, and that a third of those with a variant had a diagnosed mental health condition
The results, published online by the American Journal of Psychiatry, confirm a strong link between genetics and NPD.
The Geisinger team, led by Christa L. Martin, Ph.D., analyzed genetic and electronic health record (EHR) data from a subset of 90,595 participants enrolled in Geisinger's MyCode Community Health Initiative. Researchers evaluated the sequenced exomes for 94 genes that have been linked to an increased risk for NPD and compared the prevalence of these genes with de-identified linked EHR diagnosis codes for NPD, including autism, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Genetic variants were found in more than 1% of patients in the study group, and a third of those with a variant had been diagnosed with a corresponding NPD.
"This study confirms the important role of rare genetic variants in neuropsychiatric disorders and highlights the use of DNA-based approaches in studying and diagnosing these conditions," Dr. Martin said. "Given that one in 100 MyCode participants were found to have one of these genetic variants, efforts to incorporate genetic screening into routine healthcare have the potential to improve the treatment and care of individuals with neuropsychiatric disorders."
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-12-link-genetics-neuropsychiatric-disorders.html
Wagamaga OP t1_j5ua683 wrote
Reply to Research analyzes spread of COVID-19’s most common early conspiracies.The overwhelming majority, roughly 87 percent, of webpages linked in tweets and retweets centered on the conspiracy theory surrounding Bill Gates, a villain-based conspiracy theory blaming Gates for creating the virus by Wagamaga
The early stages of the pandemic created a breeding ground for COVID-19 conspiracy theories, which, on Twitter, spread almost as fast as the virus itself. But out of the pandemic’s most prominent early conspiracies, which were shared the most and why?
To find out, a team of researchers, led by Itai Himelboim, the Thomas C. Dowden Professor of Media Analytics at the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, collected nearly 400,000 tweets sent between Jan. 19, 2020, to June 30, 2020, about COVID-19 conspiracy theories surrounding Bill Gates, QAnon, the vaccine, 5G networks and Agenda 21. They then analyzed the content of the webpages shared in the tweets.
The overwhelming majority, roughly 87 percent, of webpages linked in tweets and retweets centered on the conspiracy theory surrounding Bill Gates, a villain-based conspiracy theory blaming Gates for creating the virus and financially benefiting from the pandemic. Following Gates, in order of most to least tweeted about, were QAnon, 5G networks, the vaccine and Agenda 21.
“Looking for who to blame for the pandemic was a major motivator in the early stages of the pandemic-related conspiracy theories, illustrated by the Bill Gates-related theory being the most popular,” Himelboim explained.
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/14614448221142800?journalCode=nmsa