Kimberly-Clark (Canada)

A large slurry impounding embankment dam in the eastern USA was built in the 1970s. In 1992, regulation changes led to 1993 seismic re-analysis of the upstream slope. Stability analysis programs from the 1970 to 1993 period (and most today) do not properly handle seismic analysis of a multi-fluid reservoir involving water over sludge or just water (if the water is treated as more than one layer). To avoid unneeded and expensive remedial repairs, better modeling of the 2-fluid reservoir problem was required. Only one of the 3 programs used through 1993 could do this and that one only approximately; but, it yielded an acceptable factor of safety for significant deep circles of about 1.2. Since 1993, a program correctly treating a multi-fluid reservoir has been developed. If it was available in 1993, re-analysis would have cost less than a third of the roughly $75,000 required. This paper discusses the seismic analyses, including comparisons of results using the 4 programs.

Sugar beet is highly susceptible to the beet curly top virus (BCTV), which significantly reduces sugar yield and is prevalent in semi-arid growing regions. Typical BCTV symptoms are leaf vein swelling, thickening, and curling, leading to chlorosis and plant death. Insecticide seed treatments with neonicotinoids have been the primary management option, but neonicotinoids face regulatory restrictions due to environmental concerns. Thus, insecticides and biochemicals that are relatively safer to use were evaluated for efficacy against BCTV during the 2024 growing season. New treatments identified in this work can potentially be used by the growers to improve sugar beet BCTV management.

Media is a potent source of disseminating news in the present era. So, news regarding violence against Women (VAW) is not an exception. The objective of the present study is to examine how news of VAW is portrayed in the English newspapers of Pakistan. The patterns to portrayal of news regarding VAW are based on gendered landscapes through the predictable images of gender identities, which ultimately leads to inequality and biasness against women. The present study investigated the news regarding VAW published in the newspapers. VAW is also generally known as domestic violence. The researchers conducted a discourse analysis of five English newspapers and collected 510 news reports regarding VAW published during 2017 and 2018. In order to make the findings objective and replicable, the researchers used Critical Stylistics (Lesley Jeffries, 2010a) and Sketch Engine, a computer-based corpus software. Findings suggested that the ethical guidelines proposed by various journalist organization were flagrantly violated. These violations involve revealing the victims’ identity i.e., age, location, and even slantingly holding the victims responsible for the violence. The researchers discovered that these unethical practices may result in inappropriate and stereotypical narratives about women. Therefore, it becomes necessary for the media to uphold the ethical considerations to assure the appropriate understanding of VAW and its severity.

Uma das formas de levar conhecimento para pacientes com câncer e, consequentemente, melhorar a sua performance é agregar estratégias de cuidado envolvendo a comunicação entre profissional e paciente no sentido de educar e promover saúde por meio de tecnologias de fácil e rápido acesso. Sendo assim, objetivou-se validar o conteúdo do podcast como tecnologia de cuidado em saúde para pacientes oncológicos. Trata-se de um estudo aplicado na produção de mídia que se propõe a construir e desenvolver mídias de áudio (podcasts) que possam ser utilizadas no contexto assistencial. O estudo faz parte de um projeto maior dividido em três etapas distintas e complementares com 13 fases. Validou-se, por meio disso, o conteúdo, a configuração, a funcionalidade e a sonoridade do Podcast produzido por meio de juízes especialistas. Ressaltamos a importância da validação de podcasts os quais devem ser avaliados por especialistas antes de serem propagados para a comunidade em geral.
 Descritores: Estudos de Validação, Podcast, Educação em Saúde, Câncer.
 
 Validation of “podcast” as a means of health promoting in oncology
 Abstract: One of the ways to bring knowledge to cancer patients and, consequently, improve their performance is to add care strategies involving communication between professionals and patients to educate and promote health through easily and quickly accessible technologies. Therefore, the objective was to validate the podcast content as a healthcare technology for cancer patients. This is a study applied in the production of media that proposes to build and develop audio media (podcasts) that can be used in the care context. The study is part of a larger project divided into three distinct and complementary stages with 13 phases. Through this, the content, configuration, functionality, and sound of the Podcast produced by expert judges were validated. We emphasize the importance of validating podcasts that experts must evaluate before being propagated to the community.
 Descriptors: Validation Study, Podcast, Health Education, Cancer.
 
 Validación del “podcast” como medio de promoción de la salud en oncología
 Resumen: Una de las formas de acercar el conocimiento a los pacientes con cáncer y, consecuentemente, mejorar su desempeño es agregar estrategias de atención que involucren la comunicación entre profesionales y pacientes para educar y promover la salud a través de tecnologías de fácil y rápido acceso. Por tanto, el objetivo era validar el contenido del podcast como una tecnología sanitaria para pacientes oncológicos. Se trata de un estudio aplicado en la producción de medios que propone construir y desarrollar medios de audio (podcasts) que puedan ser utilizados en el contexto del cuidado. El estudio es parte de un proyecto mayor dividido en tres etapas distintas y complementarias con 13 fases. A través de este se validó el contenido, configuración, funcionalidad y sonido del Podcast producido por jueces expertos. Resaltamos la importancia de validar los podcasts que los expertos deben evaluar antes de ser propagados a la comunidad.
 Descriptores: Estudio de Validación, Podcast, Educación en Salud, Cancro.

Introduction: Previously, we used plasma metabolomics profiling to identify metabolites underlying cardiovascular health (CVH) in participants of the Morehouse-Emory Cardiovascular (MECA) Center for Health Equity Study. Herein, we explored whether a health intervention could alter plasma concentrations of metabolites associated with CVH in MECA participants with poor CVH. Methods: 71 Black adults without known cardiovascular disease and with poor CVH, defined as AHA Life’s Simple 7 (LS7) score <8, were given a technology-enabled behavioral intervention platform (Health360x) for 6 months with or without access to a health coach. Metabolites were assessed pre- and post-intervention by untargeted high-resolution metabolomics profiling. Metabolome wide association study (MWAS) was conducted to identify differentially expressed metabolites and Mummichog was used to identify metabolic pathways that were differentially enriched after the intervention. Annotations were performed by matching to an in-house library of confirmed metabolites. Paired t-test and Wilcoxon signed-rank test were used to compare clinical metrics. Results: Mean age was 55 + 9.0 years, 69% female. Total LS7 scores improved from 6.2 ( + 1.49) to 6.5 ( + 1.74) with the intervention. While total and subcomponent LS7 scores and clinical metrics (BMI, blood pressure, glucose and cholesterol levels) trended toward improvement, the changes were not statistically significant. MWAS identified 18 metabolites that were significantly changed after intervention, including glutamine and glutamate. Pathway analysis demonstrated 30 metabolic pathways that were significantly changed with intervention, including glutamate, aspartate, asparagine, arginine and proline metabolism. Conclusions: Six-months of lifestyle intervention altered activity of 30 metabolic pathways without significant alterations in the clinical metrics. These metabolites and pathways appear to be indicators of a healthier lifestyle in the Black population, potentially supporting their use as markers of CVH and possible therapeutic targets.

Yield is one of the most important agronomic traits in alfalfa breeding; however, this is a complex trait affected by genetic and environmental factors. In this study, we used multi-environment trials to test yield-related traits in a diverse panel composed of 200 alfalfa accessions and varieties. Phenotypic data of maturity (MSC), dry matter, plant height (PH), yield (Yi), and fall dormancy (FD) were collected in three locations: Idaho, Oregon, and Washington from 2018 to 2020. Single-trial and stagewise analyses within each environment were used to obtain estimated means by genotype by trait by environment. Genome-wide association studies identified a total of 84 non-redundant markers associated with the traits analyzed. Of those, 55 markers were located at 44 different loci. Ten significant SNPs at the same locus were associated with FD and they were linked to a gene annotated as a nuclear fusion defective 4-like (NFD4) protein. SNPs linked to transcription factors such as Cysteine3Histidine (C3H), Hap3/NF-YB family, and serine/threonine-protein phosphatase 7 proteins were associated with MSC, PH, and Yi, respectively. Our results provide insight into the genetic factors that influence alfalfa maturity, yield, and dormancy, which is helpful to speed up the genetic gain of alfalfa yield improvement.

Xylazine is a nonopioid veterinary anesthetic and sedative that is increasingly detected in the illicit drug supply in the United States. Data indicate a striking prevalence of xylazine among opioid-involved overdose deaths. The emergence of xylazine in the illicit drug supply poses many unknowns and potential risks for people who use drugs. The public health system needs to respond by increasing testing to determine the prevalence of xylazine, identifying its potential toxicity at various exposure levels, and taking mitigating action to prevent harms. Currently, there is little testing capable of identifying xylazine in drug supplies, which limits the possibility of public health intervention, implementation of harm reduction strategies, or development of novel treatment strategies. (Am J Public Health. 2022;112(8):1212-1216. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2022.306881).

How have teachers’ concerns changed during the course of COVID-19? Using three survey waves of a national sample of US teachers (Spring2020 - Winter2021), we found increased concerns regarding teacher burnout, student disengagement, and learning loss as well as decreased concerns regarding home responsibilities and job security. We suggest opportunities for investigating predictors, consequences, and viable solutions to these concerns, as well as propose that education studies during COVID-19 be divided into four periods according to the main societal and educational concerns in a given period. More broadly, we highlight theoretical and practical implications of this temporal attention in education.

One of every five pregnancies ends in miscarriage, disputing the common misconception that miscarriage is rare. Early pregnancy loss has a complex impact on women's mental health, requiring compassionate, trauma-informed care. This article explores the emotional and psychological impacts of miscarriage, and strategies for nurses to support the needs of patients after a miscarriage.